Willow awoke on July 31 inside her new room in Whitehall Manor. As she stared at the white ceiling of her room, she began to go over in her head all that was planned for today.
She had leaved with her brother and grandfather for the last two weeks in England. She was happy about today, but also worried. As this was the first birthday Harry and she had ever shared, except for their first one, today would be the day their twin bond fully reconnected. To some people that would not seem like a bad thing, but it made Willow nerves. Twins shared both power levels as well as magical abilities.
Some people were born with special abilities in the Magical World, like Parseltongue. There was no known way for someone to learn magical abilities, so having one was a pretty big deal. However, over the course of her life Willow had earned abilities given by the Spirits she invoked. Almost all of these abilities required some form of ritual to be performed, and some kind of test or trial to be taken. The young witch was afraid that when her brother received certain powers, they would be too much for him to handle. There was also the problem of the trials possible starting up for Harry to take. She didn't believe some spirits would hand over power freely.
Willow climbed out of her bed and looked around her room. Her bed was a Four Poster Queen. It was covered in gold colored quilts and pillows. White and gold seemed to be the color theme for most of the manor, though the Entrance Hall and Dining Hall had a lot of black marble. The walls of her room where white with a thick white carpet on the floor. On the left side of the room was the double glass doors that lead out to her second story balcony which gave a nice view of the front yard. On the right side of the room was a solid oak door that lead into her walk-in closet. On the back wall in the right-hand corner was a small door that lead into her private bathroom. The bathroom had an actual gold tub built into the floor you could swim in as well a solid marble walk-in shower. A separate smaller room held the toilet. Willow had almost expected the toilet to be gold or marble but, thankfully, it was only plain porcelain. The sink for washing was silver though. Willow believed the room was way too much for one person and really didn't like her grandfather being so extravagant when it came to her and Harry.
Opening her closet Willow was greeted with even more proof of her grandfather's money. The Wicca had never been big into clothes and jewelry like a lot of girls in Sunnydale. After she had recovered enough to go out, Victor took Harry and her shopping. Willow had pretty much destroyed her old home that day in Sunnydale, so she didn't have very much with her when she came to England. Victor had decided to buy her a new wardrobe made of the finest wizarding robes gold could buy. Most people went to Madam Malkin's Robes for all Occasions, but Victor took Willow to a special place in France to be fitted called Witch's Dream.
Willow had argued with her grandfather about the clothes. She had wanted cute robes to wear and a few plain robes for everyday use. The young witch got her cute robes alright. Most had designs and colored patterns that danced across them, as well gold or silver clasps on the collars and sleeves. There were a few made of various magical animal skins like dragon, snake, and griffin. She also had lace up ankle boots made of the same material with Unicorn hair lace. On the back wall of her closet where shelves full of jewelry. Granted, a lot of the pieces where inherited but several where brand new. For the young California girl, it was a little overwhelming. Willow didn't know if Victor was just extremely happy to have grand kids or if he was trying to buy their love.
One thing Willow was happy to see was that this was also overwhelming for Harry to. Nether children had grown up being showered with such extravagant gifts so nether knew how to react to the situation. Victor, for the most part, didn't seem to understand this and both children were actually dreading the gifts that they would probably receive today from their Grandfather.
Willow got dressed in a fluffy white robe that had blue Unicorns running across it. Because she knew it would make Victor happy, she also put on her Great Great Grandmother's opal necklace. The young witch walked out on her balcony to watch the sun rise over the trees.
Unlike most manor houses, Whitehall Manor was hidden inside a large wooded area in Scotland. The manor itself was 42,000 square feet but it only had about four acres of clearance in the back and on both sides before the woods started. the front had about ten. Most of the front yard was a magnificent garden full of magical wonder. On the left side of the manor was another clearing in the woods, about ten square acres, for a Quidditch pitch. Still even further back in the woods behind the house was a ten-acre plot with eight green houses on it that Willow had claimed as her own. One thing Willow loved more than computers was growing magical plaints.
As Willow watched the sun rise, she thought about her powers and what to expect from Harry in later days. He would differently receive empath abilities and more than likely Willow's power over the night. Willow's night powers came from the same spirits that Dracula used for his many abilities. Like Dracula, the Wicca could turn into an assortment of various animals as well mist. The one drawback was that Willow would get tired during the day and be wide awake at night. There were a few others that Willow would rather Harry not receive, if only to avoid the tests to claim them. The rights of Eryishon and Osiris nearly killed her, and she didn't want Harry to go through that.
It was twenty minutes of sunrise watching when a House Elf came to collect Willow. The House Elf was named Tilly and she was the one that primarily took care of Willow. "Miss Willow, Miss Willow, you needs to get to breakfast now. Your guests will be her soon Miss, and you will need to great them."
It had been decided that Harry and Willow would have a small party with their closer friends in the morning and then have a much larger party with other people that there grandfather knew later on in the evening. Victor had decided that this would be a good opportunity to introduce his grandchildren to the high society of the Wizarding World. Harry and Willow where not looking forward to this evening but they would do it if it made their grandfather happy. Victor had invited various members of the government and several older families with children to come to the formal party.
Victor wasn't being very selective with the guest list. Yes, there where a few dark magic families coming but also several neutral and light families as well. Harry's two close friends, Hermione and Ron, would also be there and would also stay the night. Willow had asked Dawn to come and spend the remaining summer break until Hogwarts started, but Joyce had said no as the young Witch was still getting everything sorted out with her scholarship. Joyce was also being much more watchful over Dawn ever sense she learned the truth about magic and was reluctant to let her out of her sight.
Willow looked at Tilly and told her she would be along shortly. After Tilly popped away Willow walked out of her room and headed for the Main Hall that would lead to the Dining Room that was located on the ground floor. Whitehall Manor looked like a three-story rectangular block from the outside with a smaller fourth story on top. Willow's room was located on the second story of the left wing along with Harry's that was on the third floor.
The entrance to the manor was a room that was almost fifty feet tall, forty feet long, and forty feet wide. The front of the room was almost solid glass with two French doors right in the middle. On both sides of the room where two marble staircases that lead from the second-floor landing to the ground floor landing. The bottom of each staircase was curved to face the other with the front doors positioned squarely in the middle. A large fireplace was embedded in the back wall on the first floor underneath the second-floor landing. There was a small Parlor in front of the fireplace with solid black leather furniture. The furnishings consisted of two armchairs and a sofa with a stone coffee table between them. The mantel of the fireplace was decorated to be the top half of a black marble snake skull that guests would have to step out of when they flooed in.
As Willow came out of the hallway and stood on the second-floor landing, she heard voices coming from the Parlor. As she walked down the staircase she looked to her left and saw three kids and one old wizard talking to her brother Harry. Though Willow had never meet anyone there she recognized them all instantly from pictures her brother showed her. All three had their backs to Willow so it was Harry that noticed her first.
"Willow your finally up! I would like you to meet my friends Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, and Genny Weasley." Harry said indicating the three kids. "Also, this is Headmaster Albus Dumbledore."
The old man nodded his head and walked forward with his hand outstretched to shake. "How do you do dear. I hope you are having a pleasant birthday."
Willow took stock of Headmaster Dumbledore. He was dressed in very colorful purple robes with black buckle boots. He had one of the longest and whitest beards that the young girl had ever seen and the hair to match. The wizard wore a tassel hat and half-moon spectacles. Willow also wondered why he never fixed his crocked nose with magic.
The young redheaded witch shook Dumbledore's hand and said she was glade to meet him. Then she turned to the other three people with Harry. Ron Weasley was a tall, lanky, freckled faced wizard in comfortably worn out clothes. His hair was a lighter shade of red than Willow's. Hermione Granger was a lovely girl with bushy brown hair wearing blue jeans, blue sneakers and a stripped multicolored shirt. Ginny, who was shyly hiding behind Ron, had the same shade of hair as her brother only it hung all the way to her waist. She also wore well-kept older clothes and shoes.
Lord Whitehall had arrived during the introduction. Willow was glad to fill no negativity towards Harry's friends, though he was hesitant about meeting them. She was not surprised to fill his outright anger regarding Dumbledore. It didn't show on his face at all though.
"Thank you all for coming so early. Thank you as well Dumbledore for escorting the children here. I understand you were both out of country." Whitehall said.
"You're welcome Victor, it was no trouble. I was already in France on personal business so collecting Ms. Granger from her parents was a small matter, and the two youngest Weasleys where dropped off at the Leaky Caldron by their father late last night." Dumbledore explained.
Willow felt her grandfather's anger as he gave Dumbledore a small nod to show he heard him. Apparently, he didn't like the fact Dumbledore addressed him by his first name. Willow wasn't entirely sure of the customs, but she knew her grandfather and Professor Dumbledore should only be on formal speaking terms, not a first name bass. Dumbledore didn't seem to care that he was being offensive to her grandfather or he honestly didn't consider he was. All she could figure from the Headmaster's emotions was that he was an incredibly happy and bubbly person. Willow didn't believe he was all there in the head.
Victor then turned to address the children. "I know you all must be hungry for breakfast. If you would proceed to the Dining Room the House Elves have prepared a nice spread for all of you. Dumbledore, well you be staying for breakfast?" Victor asked as he looked towards the Headmaster.
"Unfortunately, no Victor. I have a lot to do today at Hogwarts. We are still going over next year's schedule for classes as well as distributing funds where there needed. I will be attending the party this evening as well as a few of the professors." Dumbledore said. With that he waved goodbye to everyone and left by use of the fireplace.
Willow and the others fallowed Victor to the dining room.
The dining room was located on the ground floor at the right-hand side of the manor. It was a long room with a long wooden table that could set fifty people at one time. All along the table where silver plates and goblets with high back chairs. Each goblet had the Whitehall family crest, a wand pointed straight down breaking a sword in two, as did the face of each plate. The front door to the room was located directly across from the head of the table so whoever was setting there would always know who was entering.
The walls where bare, made of solid cherry wood, except for the wall to the right of the head chair. All along this wall was a painting that showed a bunch of Witches eating in the woods at night with a pack of wolves. No one was honestly sure how old the painting was, or what it represented, only that it was expensive and grand. For years it had been an object of discussion amongst the magical community and it hung in a place of honor in Whitehall Manor.
Breakfast was a light affair. It consisted of pancakes, sausage, bacon, and fruit. Ron and Hermione talked a lot about France and Egypt. Hermione had visited a few magical sites in France with her parents. Ron talk about the tombs they visited with his eldest brother Bill. Ginny complained about her mother not allowing her to enter a few that were said to be to gruesome.
Willow loved listening to her brother's friend's stories. Hermione seemed like someone she would have a lot in common with though she was still debatable in her head if Ron would be a close friend. She had felt a small amount of jealousy from the boy when they had first meet, however, Ron was truly Harry's friend and seemed concerned about Victor. Willow believed Ron must think Whitehall was a Death Eater if the level of emotion was anything to go by. Willow also noticed the boy kept himself between Victor and the girls that accompanied him to the manor.
Hermione was a very polite and kind girl that seemed curious about everything. She asked Willow questions about America and the kinds of Magic she could perform. She also asked Victor questions about France sense she knew he used to live there.
Victor politely answered Hermione's questions even though Willow could feel that the Muggleborn Witch made him uncomfortable. Victor still wasn't used to being around Muggleborns but was trying to improve. He had accepted he's grandchildren would always have a connection to the Muggle World and he would have to live with it.
Ginny was incredibly quiet and shy. She seemed to be rather taken with Harry and Willow found it quite cute. The Wicca now knew about the Chamber of Secrets and all about Harry's second year of school. Her brother was Ginny's real knight in shining armor, just without the armor. Willow also found it interesting to fell that the emotions coming from Ginny where genuine and not just infatuation that would normally come from a simple crush.
As breakfast was ending, two more people showed up. They were American Auror Timothy McGee and Caitlin Todd of the A.R.W.K. They would oversee security for the party as the manor was now under diplomatic protection. Lord Whitehall made the introductions for everyone then he excused himself to go over the guest list and floor plans of the Ball Room where the party would take place.
After the adults left Ron asked. "So, what you guys want to do now? We could play Quidditch or just fly on brooms." Ron looked at Harry hopping he would agree to Quidditch.
"That sounds like fun Ron. Hermione doesn't really like flying but maybe me and Willow could be on a team against you and Harry? It would be fun, brothers against sisters." Ginny said.
Willow felt a small twinge of annoyance coming from Ron. 'Why did she come anyways?' She accidentally heard him think to himself.
Willow quickly checked her mental shields and made sure they were in place. She didn't want to be reading people's minds all day. She also couldn't hold Ron's thought against him as most older siblings didn't like younger siblings hanging around them and their friends.
Come to think about it, why was Ginny here? From what Harry told her Ginny didn't really hangout with the group much. Neville Longbottom had more interaction with the trio than Ginny, but he wasn't coming until tonight along with everyone else. Willow believed the girl was here for another reason other than a birthday party but possibly didn't know why herself. The young redhead decided to enquirer further with her grandfather later.
"Actually, I have some work to do in my greenhouse that can't wait. You can all come with me if you like. I just ask that you don't touch anything that you are unfamiliar with as I do have some extremely dangerous plants." Willow said.
Harry didn't look to happy about the suggestion. Willow's brother was a typical boy and would rather fly than garden. Hermione looked interested but Ginny was unsure. Ron appeared to be on the same page as Harry.
"Why don't Hermione and Ginny go with you to the greenhouse and Harry and I go fly. You girls can join us after your done, unless you need help that is?" Ron suggested.
Willow noticed Ginny didn't seem too happy about the idea but Hermione was ecstatic. The young California Witch was sad for the younger redhead but decided to agree with Ron. "That works for me if no one has an objection."
Harry was a little unsure about it. On one hand he hadn't seen Ron all Summer and he really in joyed flying. On the other he had never celebrated his birthday with his sister. In the end his love for flying won out and he decided to go with Ron. Ginny reluctantly followed Hermione and Willow.
Willow could fell Ginny's emotions of anger and rejection towards her older brother. She believed there was a story their but decided not to pry. Instead she led both girls to the Main Library.
The Main Library of the manor was a decent sized room full of books in every wizarding magical study that there was. Hermione practically pulsated with curiosity and excitement so much that it was making Willow slightly sick being so close to her. The reason the Wicca brought both girls to the library was because of the quick travel Portkey that was set up between the library and the greenhouse.
When Lord Whitehall had decided to give Willow the greenhouse, he had set up three Portkeys to get there from the manor. The only other way to the clearing was walking through the woods. One Portkey was in the library, one was in Victor's private study, and one was in Willow's private library where she kept her Earth Magic books and various magical artifacts. There were also powerful wards all over the greenhouse that would notify him if Willow was hurt or if there was an intruder. That's why he had a Portkey in his study.
Willow walked over to a waist high dragon statue and turned to face her companions. "Have ether of you ever used a Portkey?" She asked.
Willow was once more blasted with Hermione's exited emotions as she answered. "No, but I read all about them and I've always wanted to try one!" She exclaimed.
"Yes, we used them to get to and from Egypt." Ginny answered.
"That's good. It makes this easier anyway. This dragon statue is one of three Portkeys that well take you directly to the greenhouse clearing. If you both will grab a hold of the statue will be going." Willow explained.
After both girls placed a hand on the statue, Willow tapped the forehead and away they went. One turbulent ride that felt like being sucked up a drain, all three girls arrived safely in the ten-acre plot behind the manor.
The greenhouse clearing was set up in a simple manner. All eight greenhouses where parallel to each other. Starting from left to right, the first five houses where dedicated to your typical magical plants. The sixth house was dedicated to underwater plants. The seventh house was dedicated to plants that only grew in cold climates and the eighth house was a complete mystery to everyone except Willow and her closes friends.
From the outside the first five houses looked like typical greenhouses. They were made of glass panels with a solid metal plate attached to a pole coming out of the ground. This was one of Willow's inventions. Each house had one, except the eighth, and it told you what was in the house as well as the condition of the plant in question.
The sixth greenhouse, or Underwater Nursery, was also one of Willow's favorites. The inside of the glass house was full of water with pathways made of air so you could walk through it. The front half was salt water and the back half was fresh water with a barrier between them so they wouldn't mix. There were even underwater creatures living inside, though there were no Mermen or Mermaids.
The seventh house, or Frozen Nursery, was exactly what it sounded like. Instead of glass, the panels where made of ice and the inside was solid frozen snow covered ground. Willow had crafted Summer heated paths so you wouldn't need winter clothes to go inside. Like the Underwater Nursery, the Frozen Nursery had cold climate magical creatures living inside.
In truth all the magical crafting that went in to the last three houses where all Willow's design. Her grandfather had already hinted that he would like her to market the designs for both commercial and private growers. Willow wasn't sure if she would like to give away some of her greater inventions just yet, even at a ridicules price, but no matter what the eighth house was completely of limits.
The eighth and final house was for nighttime plants. Willow called it the Midnight Nursery because the time inside the greenhouse was always midnight. How was this possible? It went back to Willow's abilities with Spirit Magic.
One of the Magical Rights Willow had undergone was the write of Eryishon. If you survived, you gained the ability to manipulate time and space in incredibly ways. Willow had only sought a way to quickly teleport from one place to another and did not read the fine print. The task that was given by Eryishon almost killed her. In fact, it was the closest she had ever come to dying.
With the power of space and time Willow was able to keep the inside of the greenhouse forever at midnight without stopping the plants themselves from growing. However, she was the only one who could craft the wards and there was no way to duplicate them. Plus, she was afraid of what Wizards would do if they learned accessing the multiverse was possible.
A solid stone path connected the greenhouses together in the front. Also, in front of the greenhouses was a solid stone pad for the Portkeys to arrive on. There were three designated spaces and the girls had arrived on the left one.
Willow stood up and looked around the clearing. She gave a sharp hiss and was answered by another hiss in the woods. Sr. Huggs came out of the woods and greeted Willow.
At first Hermione and Ginny where a little afraid of huge reptile but soon warmed up to him. The snake lived in the woods around the clearing most of the time but would come and sleep in Willow's bed every now and again.
Willow lead the girls to the third greenhouse where she kept the more dangerous common magical plants. The Wicca needed to check on her baby Mandrakes she received nine days ago. Dawn sent them when Willow was just getting stronger to move around on her own. Her House Elf Tilly had helped the Wicca plant them, and in fact had helped Willow with most of her greenhouses. The only real difficult part for Willow was constructing the wards for greenhouses six, seven, and eight. The upkeep had just been Willow giving instruction to Tilly and supervising the work.
Upon interring number three, Willow went directly to the far-left corner where several large plants where kept. After inspecting the leaves on top and confirming the color, Willow decided they needed more dragon's dung. Hermione and Ginny helped Willow place several hardened dragon dung fertilizer bars into each pot.
Willow then walked to her Underwater Nursery. She decided to check on the Water Vine Hergal. The Water Vine Hergal was a water herb that was extremely useful in various anti-poisoning potions and Transfiguration potions. There were two different kinds, one for salt water and one for fresh water. Willow didn't really need to look in on them but thought her guest would like to see her handy work.
Hermione and Ginny walked through the air tunnels of the greenhouse. They couldn't believe all of the wonderful things they were seeing. "How could you possibly have done all of this Willow?" Ginny asked.
The older redhead looked back at her hopefully new friends and answered. "I have studied ruins and wards for years. I have always loved experimenting with different kinds and one day I had a breakthrough with water wards that eventually lead to what you now see."
"I don't understand, how you could have taught yourself Magic of this degree. It must have been exceedingly difficult for you?" Hermione inquired.
Willow ignored the emotions of jealousy that she felt coming from Hermione and instead focused on the emotions of wonder and curiosity. The young bushy haired witch seemed to take her studies very personally and didn't like being so outclassed by someone almost a year younger than herself.
Willow had been studying magic sense she was little, but Hermione had only been studying magic sense she was almost twelve. Willow hoped that the Muggleborn Witch would get over it so they could be friends. The Wicca just had to remember that no one was perfect.
"I have studied Magic sense I was very young, and Drusilla helped me a lot. She actually taught me to understand and read other languages. Plus, I didn't have to worry about the Underage Magic Acts that affect the Wizarding World. The A.R.W.K is not as strict as England and I grew up in the A.R.F.M." Willow answered Hermione.
Ginny didn't seem jealous about Willow's magic, but she was nervous being around someone so powerful. "A Muggle being a one and Dumbledore being a ten, how powerful are you Willow? Ginny asked.
Willow really didn't know how to answer the question. On one hand she was still in a weak state and so would be around seven, but when she recovered, she would be around eleven or twelve. Then there where her power levels when she began pulling from Earth Magic and Spirit Magic which she honestly couldn't measure.
"I'm probably just as strong as Dumbledore, maybe a little stronger when I get my health back to full. I'm really not positive about my estimations though." Willow told Ginny. After they spent a little more time in the Underwater Nursery the three friends decided to head back for lunch. One more horrible ride with the dragon and they appeared back in the library along with Sr. Huggs.
Willow instinctively felt out with her magic to get a feel for the manor and intuitively knew something was wrong. Harry and Ron where still at the Quidditch Pitch but there were three people setting in the Parlor with her grandfather that she didn't know. The American Aurors where with her grandfather and they didn't fell happy.
Lord Whitehall felt slightly angry but resigned to the situation. Agent Todd was trying to remain calm but seamed overly alert to her surroundings as if she was expecting to be attacked. Agent McGee seemed overly anxious but that wasn't really new for him as everyone made him nervous. McGee would get nervous because he always wanted to make a good impression. This made most people think he was weak when really the Auror had more magical strength than his three colleagues, he just had a hard time with self-confidence. This time was different though. He was worried more about the situation that the new people where causing rather than the people themselves.
Willow began to assess the people with her grandfather. They appeared to be a man, a woman, and a boy around her age. The woman had a superior attitude that told you she was just a totally fake person that probably only cared about her son and her appearance. The boy seemed bored with everything and didn't really have one compassionate bone in his body. Willow hadn't even seen him yet but figured he would be some good-looking rude rich boy.
It was the man that Willow was most nervous about. Whereas the woman and boy had dark gray to gray personalities about them, the man felt almost pitch black. This was a man that had killed before and loved it. This was a man that would kill again in an instant if it suited him in some way. The young California Witch doubted that he would pause even if a child was standing in front of his wand.
Willow walked slightly faster than Hermione and Ginny so she would arrive in the Parlor first. Upon entering, she took stock of the situation. Her grandfather was sitting in the armchair closest to the fireplace and Agent Todd was sitting in the second. Agent McGee had conjured a yellow armchair and was sitting by the entrance way with his back facing he Willow.
Across from her grandfather on the sofa sat a man and woman with long whitish blond hair that hung down their backs. Between them sat a boy with short blond hair. All were wearing exceptionally fine black, green, and silver robes with expensive dragon hide boots.
All the conversation stopped when Willow walked in. The family on the sofa turned and looked her way. At first there wasn't much of a reaction until Hermione and Ginny walked in behind her. The Wicca felt both her companions go stiff when they noticed who was sitting on the sofa. Hermione was extremely nervous, and Ginny was terrified.
Willow got a better insight into the minds of the visitors. The boy was angry that both girls where there. His anger felt more childish than anything else making Willow think more along the lines of a rivalry of some sort. The woman felt as if she was seeing something unpleasant like a rodent when she looked at Hermione. She felt only annoyed with Ginny's presents. When she glanced at Ginny's clothes her rodent felling came back.
Once more the man worried Willow. When he looked at her, she felt like throwing up. The lust he had was overpowering. It was the same and more when he looked at Ginny. He had a strong desire to hurt the younger redhead however, Willow believed this desire was to case pain to someone close to Ginny rather than the girl herself.
It was the reaction he had for Hermione that made Willow mentally restrain herself from sending a lightning bolt threw the monsters heart. The lust he had for the brown-haired girl was more animalistic than human simply because the evil Wizard didn't view her as a person. He viewed her as an object that he could break at his leisure.
It was as these thoughts began to pass threw her head that Willow began to slightly panic. She was not at full strength yet so her shields where still weak. The man's evil had surprised her so much she had accidentally read him to deeply and her magic was starting to act up within her in preparation for a fight. She had to regain control quickly before there was a repeat of Sunnydale.
Her grandfather seemed to notice the tension. He stood up in hopes of calming things down a little and to give an introduction. "Girls, I'm glad you are all here. I would like to introduce you to some old friends of mine. This is the Malfoy family."