Summer Antics
The start of summer was slow for the friends. It seemed that some of their parents were still unhappy with the prank they had partaken in all those months ago and as a result were keeping their children busy around the house as punishment. When questioned about the length of time it would take for their parents to be appeased the response had been non-committal. Ruby-Jane, Peter and Troy were even more frustrated that their siblings were able to see each other, especially since Alixx had also had a hand in the prank. On the fourth day of the holidays Ruby went to find her mother, completely fed up after having cleaned the upstairs bathroom for the third time.
"Mum, we are really sorry," she said upon spotting her mum drying up in the kitchen.
"I know you're sorry," Jemima Pettigrew replied, flicking the tea towel over her shoulder as she started stacking plates in the cupboard.
"Then how much longer are you going to punish us?" her youngest daughter asked, exasperation lacing her voice.
Jemima turned to look at her. "Until I'm satisfied. You both really disappointed your father and I, and until you understand that simply saying I'm sorry does not undo that, I will not be satisfied that you have learned your lesson,"
Ruby sighed. "But mum! We only did it the once, and we both tried really hard for the rest of the year,"
"And now you've been whinging about your punishment since you got home. If you stopped complaining and got on with it then I would be more satisfied that you were learning your lesson,"
"Where is the logic in that?!"
Jemima fixed her daughter with a stare. "Maybe one day you'll be old enough to understand,"
"Oh, don't use that card with me!" Ruby cried angrily.
"If you insist on acting like a child, I'll treat you like a child," Jemima said firmly. "Now, you can clean out the fire grate for me,"
"No," Ruby folded her arms and glared at her mother.
"Ruby," her mother replied softly. "The best way to get what you want is to do what other people ask of you first,"
"But it's not fair!"
"Life isn't fair,"
"Mum, where do you find all these clichés?" Alixx drawled from the doorway.
"Fortune cookies, obviously," Jemima smirked good-naturedly at her eldest daughter.
"Figures," Alixx sighed. "Anyway, I came to ask if I could take Pete and Rubes out?"
"Out where?" Jemima asked suspiciously.
"Just out," Alixx shrugged. "I know you've been punishing them for days now, but even Caden's out today with friends. They're sorry and they've proved it, let them have some fun?" Alixx pleaded.
"Pete can go, but after our last conversation Ruby isn't going anywhere," Jemima said firmly.
"Mum!" Ruby shouted. "God, you play such favourites,"
Jemima watched blankly as Ruby stormed out of the room, and then nodded to the living room. "I had Pete polishing the silver on the mantelpiece. Make sure you're home in time for dinner,"
XX
Hunter's grandfather had slapped Hunter on the back when he met him at Kings Cross and grinned cheerfully. Having gone home for Christmas, Hunter had already apologised for the trouble he had gotten into and his grandfather had waved him off. Mirren Crowley had always been somewhat lenient with his grandson, not that Hunter had little sense of responsibility. He was quite happy to let Hunter loose with his friends had their parents been happy with the idea. As it was the Pettigrew and Blue families were only just able to punish their children properly, and Mirren respected their decision to limit interaction until they were satisfied.
Holly Jameson had punished Mackenzey during the Christmas holidays, too, and so Mackenzey was able to invite Hunter over. The two spent much of the first week together, finding that they could bond over mutual interests without the help of their friends, and this strengthened how comfortable the two felt around each other.
Hunter was round Mackenzey's house again when Troy and Jack turned up, followed by Alixx and Pete. The two elder siblings had agreed it was high time the youngsters had some freedom and had conspired to wheedle the same consensus from their parents. The four friends excitedly started chatting to each other as Alixx and Jack high-fived, before Mackenzey looked round for Ruby.
"She had a bust up with mum," Alixx explained. "I'll try and get her out tomorrow,"
"What happened?" Mackenzey asked.
"Ruby's short temper happened. If she'd just waited five minutes, she could be here," Alixx sighed.
"Well, mum's gotta let her out on Saturday. It's our party," Peter added. "For which you have an official invitation here," he said as he handed out the red and yellow slips of paper.
"No theme this year?" Hunter asked, looking up. "Get in!"
"No," Peter grinned. "Mum was punishing us so didn't let us have any input. What she doesn't realise is that we only say that every year to keep her happy,"
"What are you doing about your birthday, Hunt?" Troy asked, knowing it was the next day.
Hunter shrugged. "I'm happy to share with the twins again. It's not exactly the best day to celebrate itself, and I know Grampa is much happier celebrating my birthday under the pretence that we're celebrating the twins' birthdays than he would be to have some big party on my actual birthday,"
"Are you going to see them this year?" Mackenzey asked, her brow furrowed in empathy.
"Yeah," Hunter nodded. "It's the ten year anniversary. Kinda big, very sad," He trailed off, looking past his friends into the distance.
"We're here if you need us," Troy told him, nudging his shoulder to regain his attention.
"Thanks, guys," Hunter grinned, his good-natured smile returning. "But I think both grampa and I would prefer to have the day to ourselves, y'know? You can make me smile again at the party,"
"We'll make your favourite everything," Pete promised, knowing that every year his and Ruby's party was equally Hunter's. It wasn't his fault that his parents had been murdered on his birthday, after all.
"Thanks, dude. Now, who's up for some Exploding Snap?"
XX
Ruby was nowhere to be found when Alixx and Peter returned home just before dinner. When Alixx went to inform their mother they were home, Pete snuck off to what he knew was Ruby's favourite spot in the house. Nobody else was aware it was there, and Pete would never dare to intrude. He only ever went there when he could feel that Ruby needed to talk.
"Hey, Roo," he greeted, sliding into the small space. It was small and dark, a gap behind the boiler which faced the back garden, and Ruby had somehow managed to create a small window which enabled her to see outside. A small pane of glass, Ruby had drawn a cross on it to make it looked like a traditional paned window like the rest of the house. In the years that it had been there no one else in the family had noticed its existence due to Ruby's careful placement of magic.
The Pettigrew children were smart. They all got told as youngsters that they would get a wand when they were eleven and after then would not be able to practice magic outside of school. Whilst Ross and Jemima assumed this meant that their children were happy to wait, the four children learned by themselves that they could channel their magic wandlessly. Alixx happily helped all three of her siblings, having been the first one to embrace the idea, and she quickly discovered that both she and Ruby had an aptitude for magic where both brothers struggled more. Regardless, even at twelve after she began her Hogwarts career, Alixx actively encouraged the 'illegal' use of magic by her siblings because she knew that Hogwarts would only add to what they were already able to do. Hence, Alixx practiced wandless magic that could be passed off as 'accidental' rather than spending hours ploughing through the theory that textbooks provided. It was perhaps this deviance which caused Ross and Jemima to be unaware of how powerful their union was, and therefore how valuable their children would become.
"Hey," Ruby replied shortly, softly, to her brother. The light from the setting sun streamed into the small space, illuminating the wooden boards which made up the walls. Ruby's hair shone with golden streaks from her time out in the sun making it look like a small halo hovered above her. Peter grinned at the thought; his sister was no angel.
"I think dinner will be ready soon," The statement was designed to let Ruby talk in her own time. Peter may have a sixth sense when it came to his twin, but he still wasn't psychic.
"What is it?"
"Lasagne, wedges and garlic bread," Peter replied.
"My favourite," Ruby murmured. She took the bait. "Why does mum hate me?" she finally asked, turning round to look at him. She was nibbling her bottom lip, her eyes shining with unshed tears.
"She doesn't hate you," Peter confirmed, taking a hand and squeezing it. "I think, perhaps, you're too similar sometimes, but mum doesn't see it. She thinks you're acting out on purpose, rather than simply being as stubborn and headstrong as she is,"
Ruby couldn't even muster a smile. Instead, a tear slipped down her cheek. "So what do I do?" Ruby asked somewhat desperately.
Peter thought he understood. Family was important to all six members of the Pettigrew family. Having so many siblings it was impossible not to be close-knit and their parents treated them all equally. For Ruby to feel like their mother treated her differently to all her siblings was a cause of great distress, especially when Ruby couldn't understand why. Alixx was always the voice of reason, and Ruby tried to be like her but somehow she always got it wrong where Alixx always succeeded in winning both her parents round.
"I think you just be you," Pete consoled his sister with a smile. "The older you get, the more mature you'll get, and if we have this conversation again in five years, then we should re-evaluate your personality," he grinned, smiling more when Ruby looked up at him with a small grin.
"You're an idiot," she told him. "But I love you anyway,"
"Good! Now, dinner?"
"I suppose," Ruby sighed.
When they arrived at the dinner table the food was being served and they hurriedly took their seats.
"Have you washed your hands?" Ross Pettigrew asked.
"Yes, dad," the twins chorused as their mother entered the room with a tray of wedges.
"Oh, there you are. Where have you been?" Jemima asked her youngest daughter coldly.
"Jemima," Ross said warningly. "From what I've heard Ruby has done nothing wrong, and I think you're being unfair. Did you not get frustrated when people mistook your personality for lack of manners and brusqueness?"
Ruby smiled slightly, glad that her dad was openly defending her. She was careful not to let her mum see, though, otherwise Jemima would probably assume that Ruby was manipulating her somehow. She rolled her eyes inwardly at her mum's reasoning skills.
Jemima said nothing, but sat down and began serving. Both Alixx and Caden gave her supportive smiles across the table, and Ross winked at her before their attention was diverted to the food in front of them.
After that the atmosphere was lighter in the Pettigrew household, and all four children were allowed to go visit whomever they liked, as long as they informed their parents where they were going. Despite the tension easing, only Alixx still approached their mother more than was necessary, and it was on the sunny Friday three days later when the house was otherwise empty that Jemima brought the topic up with her husband.
"Our children are avoiding me," she stated bluntly, whilst they were enjoying a cool drink in the garden.
Ross saw no reason to beat around the bush. His wife had always been able to handle the truth, and it made her a better person for it. "Yes,"
"Why?" Jemima asked in puzzlement.
"Because they think you'll go off at them for no reason. No reason that they can see," he amended. "And I can attest to the fact that sometimes your thought process is questionable,"
Jemima sighed. "What happened? I always promised that I would be the best parent, and now I have three out of four children who would rather avoid me than even set eyes on me,"
Ross set his gaze on her. "You're more like Ruby than you can remember," he said wisely.
Jemima looked away, thinking about the argument a few days prior, and what Ross had said at the dinner table. No one liked being wrong, and Jemima was still slightly smarting over the calling out of her own behaviour, especially in front of her own children who were still pre-teens, but she conceded that the point still stood.
"And maybe by acknowledging that, you'll not only help yourself but you'll give Ruby a better guide to not making the same mistakes," Ross added.
With that conversation fresh in her mind, Jemima sought out all four of her children individually, before addressing them as a group and apologising, reminding them that she would always be there and non-judgemental. The individual conversations had been educational, and Jemima resolved to make Ruby, especially, feel closer to her, even though it had not been Ruby herself to inform her mother of how she felt.
XX
The Saturday after the disruption in the Pettigrew household was the twin's birthday party, and all their friends had been invited, along with their parents' friends; the Blues, Holly Jameson and Mirren Crowley. An invitation had even been extended to the Potters, the Lupins, Augusta Longbottom, and Kerris and Chris' parents who had all happily accepted.
As was usual for this time of year, it was hot sunny day, and so the Pettigrew parents had decided on the traditional barbecue. A brick barbecue had been built in the garden some years ago, so the preparation for the party involved erecting a gazebo with a table for drinks and setting up several round tables in the rest of the garden. Jemima then spent half an hour taping down different coloured table cloths and placing a centrepiece on each table. This was the biggest party they had held in a while, and the first time they were meeting most of the guests. Jemima was eager to make a good impression, and her family left her to it.
Ross, meanwhile, was in charge of food and drinks. Despite being a Pureblood, he much preferred doing certain things the muggle way, and barbecuing was one of them. He set up everything how he liked and then went to organise the arrival of the children's surprise. Not long after that the family reunited in anticipation of the arrival of their guests.
Sirius had been staying with James for the duration of the summer so far, after an argument with his mother caused him to leave the house one day and he hadn't yet worked up the courage to go back. He and James, along with James' parents, arrived first for the party, and both twins were over the moon to see their friends again. Ruby was somewhat off with James, but didn't care to see whether he noticed. He seemed friendly and eager to join in, but Ruby wasn't one to forgive and forget so easily.
Introductions between parents were made, and the Pettigrews immediately warmed to the older couple. They had only been there five minutes before Holly Jameson arrived with her daughter, Mirren and Hunter Crowley. Drinks were offered and the party of adults moved under the gazebo where they could sit and chat in the shade, the children happy to sit on the grass in the sun and catch up.
The sound of a car moving up the driveway ten minutes later intrigued the children, and they all ran as one to the front of the house where they all started jumping up and down and waving as they recognised the face leaning out of one of the backseat windows of the car.
"Kerris! Kerris!" Mackenzey yelled.
Kerris almost fell out of the car as it came to a stop and was immediately enveloped in a tight hug, James and Sirius even getting involved in the moment. The hug was still taking place when there were two sets of apparition pops in the driveway, as Frank arrived with his grandmother, who was friends with Mirren Crowley, and the Blues apparated in, a child accompanying each parent.
"What time do you call this?" Ruby called over, cheekily.
"Blame Troy!" Shane called back good-naturedly, coming over to give both twins a hug. "Is everyone round back?"
"Yeah, come on, follow us!" Pete told everyone present, and the group of fifteen moved to the back garden.
Kerris stood awkwardly next to her parents as Ruby introduced them to Ross and Jemima, and then introduced both Kerris and Frank, whom they knew by name but not personally. Mirren was left to introduce Augusta to the parents as Alixx shouted from the house.
"Floo call, Ruby!"
It turned out to be Alice, who had wanted to check it was okay to floo before randomly appearing in their house. Ruby grinned and said it was fine, before Alice's entire body materialised from the fireplace.
"I doubt anyone would have noticed," she added, hugging her friend.
The two left the house to discover that Chris and his parents had arrived and the children had formed a massive bundle in saying hello. Wordlessly, the two girls took a flying leap and landed on top of the pile, hearing several 'oomphs' as a result.
"Surprise!" came a muffled shout from somewhere in the middle of the pile, and the group finally climbed off one another so Chris could present Ruby and Peter with a joint gift. There was again another round of introductions, and by this time they were only expecting Remus and his parents.
Not five minutes later Lyall and Hope Lupin arrived with their son and, although he looked tired, Remus' eyes lit up when he saw that everyone was already there. Another round of screaming accompanied his arrival and the adults all winced, unused to the sound of so many children in one place.
"Go off and play," Ross told them. "There's a surprise next to the summer house," The wink made Peter suspicious and he quickly led the group round the bend in the garden, before yelling 'Thanks, dad!" in an excited squeal as he took in the surprise.
Before them were a number of brooms, with the full Quidditch set, along with other muggle garden games and a bouncy castle. Sirius quickly had a game set up on the mini Quidditch field the Pettigrews had provided for the occasion, where he and James were captains, with Troy, Hunter, Pete, Mackenzey, Ruby and Alixx with Sirius and Frank, Alice, Remus, Chris, Kerris and Jack on James' team. Both teams had two beaters (Hunter, Troy, Chris and Jack), three chasers (Alixx, Pete and Mackenzey, Alice, Remus and Kerris), one keeper (Sirius and Frank) and one seeker (Ruby and James).
The game was a short one. Both Sirius and Frank were good keepers, having been brought up Purebloods they had had a lot of practice, and after a while those who hadn't really wanted to play lost the will to finish the game. The keen players had been put into the important positions, and thus the game ended with four of the chasers sitting on the side lines and cheering, as Alixx and Alice continued to try and score, evenly matched at forty points each. The game was won, however, when Hunter hit the bludger particularly well, and it went hurtling toward James, who had to dive out of the way. He saw the snitch on his way down, but struggled to regain his balance and Ruby grabbed it right out from under his nose.
"And that's forty to one hundred and ninety!" Mackenzey called as the remaining players flew down to the ground.
"Well played!" Sirius winked at Ruby, who high fived him and the rest of her team.
"And you," Ruby added, turning to James with a smile.
James, who had been feeling a bit of a sore loser, recognised an opening when he saw it. His friends were slightly worried he would blow up again, but instead he smiled back. "Yeah, good game, Pettigrew,"
"Food's up!" The holler came from the other end of the garden and fourteen children went running towards the gazebo. The barbecue was currently piled high with sausages, burgers and chicken, and the boys, especially, began salivating at the sight.
"I think we should let the boys go first, just so we don't end up trampled on," Alice suggested, dodging out of the way as Sirius almost pushed her over when his bouncing became a little more energetic.
"Agreed!" Mackenzey squeaked as Peter accidentally stood on her toes in the midst of the boys' tussling to see who would be first in line.
The five girls moved to sit round one of the tables of six, patiently waiting as even Remus attempted to shove Chris out of the queue.
"Meat does strange things to boys," Ruby commented, looking at them with a slightly disgusted expression.
By the time the girls had gone to queue for their own food, the boys had all moved to a table of their own, Sirius stealing one of the six chairs around the girls' table and squeezing it in between James and Peter. Alice and Troy waited as Mackenzey, Ruby and Kerris piled salad onto their plates before all five moved as one back to their table.
"It's weird, being separated by gender," Alice commented halfway through the meal. "Usually we're all together or in small groups of both,"
"But it's good, too," Mackenzey said, dipping her sausage in tomato sauce. "Girl time is always fun!"
"Speak for yourself!" Troy injected, rolling her eyes at the concept of 'girl time'.
"It'll grow on you," Ruby told her friend with a grin.
"I hope not," Troy said seriously, making all the girls laugh.
"Did you end up asking your parents about that magical bond thing you were talking about at the beginning of the year?" Alice asked Ruby and Troy, Mackenzey having discussed it with her during one of their study sessions in the hope that Alice being a Pureblood would have more knowledge. Unfortunately Alice had been relatively sheltered in her childhood, and the subject had been somewhat forgotten as the year progressed.
"No, not yet," Ruby replied. "It's been a little… Tense around here lately,"
"What's happened?" Mackenzey asked.
"Oh, nothing much," Ruby replied, not really wanting to talk about it. "Just mum,"
The other girls accepted this answer, and the conversation moved on.
"How's Lily?" Kerris asked.
"She's good," Alice replied. "She's enjoying being home, as far as I can tell. She's been spending all her time with Snape,"
"She must be having a whale of a time," Troy grinned.
In response Alice swatted her on the arm as she told her to be nice.
They were interrupted as the cake was announced and all the guests crowded round excitedly as the two cakes were brought out. Jemima was holding the chocolate cake with twelve candles on it and Ross bore the Victoria sponge cake, both grinning at the happiness radiating from their children.
The cakes were placed on a table and Ruby, Pete and Hunter were waved to the front. Ruby and Pete, used to sharing their birthday with their friend, stood next to the Victoria sponge, letting Hunter have the chocolate cake. It had become an annual yet still unofficial occurrence ever since the children could remember, and both Hunter and his grandfather were grateful for the Pettigrew's discretion to the still raw memories surrounding the date of Hunter's birth. The three kids blew out their candles together and cut themselves slices, handing the knives to Ross and Jemima and running to eat at a table. This time the children pushed two tables together and sat as one group, loud chatter and boisterous laughter wafting back over to the parents.
"It's good to see them so happy," Mirren Crowley commented to Augusta Longbottom and Mrs Venturi.
Kerris' mum smiled. "I'm glad my girl's fit in. She was so shy and nervous twelve months ago, and now they all look as if they've known each other for years,"
"Frank mentioned there was some trouble with the Potter boy," Augusta commented. "If you ask me, he's still a spoilt brat,"
"Well, they all look happy now," Mrs Venturi replied, not sure what else to say.
Holly Jameson wandered over and gave Mirren a hug, whilst introducing herself to Mrs Venturi. She pointed out Mackenzey as her daughter, and then insisted Kerris' mum come with her to meet Remus' parents. Mrs Venturi gave a sigh of relief as they escaped to the other side of the garden.
"Augusta can be a handful," Holly told her, handing her a fresh glass of white wine. "Mirren is generally the only person who can control her, and we think that's only because she doesn't know how liberal he really is,"
"Thanks for the rescue!" Mrs Venturi grinned, introducing Holly to her husband, who had come to join them.
Mackenzey and Kerris also joined them, eager for their parents to become friends. The rest of the group watched, Sirius commenting "Look who the goody two shoes are!"
"Sirius!" Ruby chastised him, as James said bitterly "Nah, that'll always be Evans,"
"Can't get her off your mind, eh, James?" Sirius joked, ignoring Ruby.
"Ergh, don't make me sick," James replied, wrinkling his nose.
Nobody knew what to say, still not sure how James would take their usual ribbing. An awkward silence fell, until Remus nudged James rather hard.
James cleared his throat uncomfortably, and pushed his glasses up his nose. He kept his eyes on the ground as he stuttered. "I.. Um, I just wanted to say.. I'm sorry. I just wanted to say I'm sorry,"
He finally looked up after a short silence to see the girls grinning at him and the other Marauders beaming proudly at him. He smiled lightly, a weight lifting from his chest. He was unaware of Augusta Longbottom behind him, when she 'Hmmphed' loudly and he jumped, swivelling round quickly. When he caught sight of her his cheeks quickly reddened, and he turned back to his friends. Augusta came closer to the table and said gruffly "I'm glad you at least have the decency to apologise, even if it was with much coercion,"
James nodded, embarrassed, as Frank cried out "Mother!"
"I only want what's best for you, Frank," his mother replied sternly, making the others think they had had this conversation before. She walked off again, and everyone but James and Frank started giggling.
"Gee, your mum's like the Iron Lady!" Alice giggled, and Frank couldn't help but smile.
"She's not that bad," he replied. "She's just stuck in her ways,"
Remus nodded over at Augusta, who had returned to conversation with Mirren and a rather unfortunate Lyall Lupin, who had been conversing with Mirren until Augusta's return and then couldn't find a way to escape.
"Your poor dad," Ruby said, patting Remus on the arm.
"Ah, he'll be okay," Remus smirked. "Dad's tougher than he looks,"
"How come you and Frank weren't better friends before Hogwarts?" Alice asked Hunter curiously.
"I'm not sure," Hunter replied. "I probably wasn't a good enough playmate," he said a little sarcastically.
Frank grinned. "She always thought you were a little rough,"
"Oh, she'd know," Hunter winked, innuendo lacing his words. A couple of people wrinkled their noses, but the others just looked baffled, and Hunter sighed. "Never mind,"
"It's good to hang out again," Pete smiled happily.
"Maybe this year can be a little less drama-filled?" Mackenzey suggested.
"Don't jinx it!" Alice yelled. She grinned sheepishly as some of the parents turned to look at them.
"Can I suggest we avoid Evans?" Sirius suggested, half seriously.
Alice gave him a stare. "No,"
He sighed. "Well, it was worth a shot. Hopefully she'll be too busy with Snivellus to be around much anyway!"
"Can I give you a tip, Sirius?" Ruby asked, laughter in her eyes.
"What?" Sirius replied suspiciously.
"Maybe you wouldn't incur her wrath so much if you stopped called her best friend Snivellus. Just a thought,"
"Ah. Well, that's never going to happen. He's too snivelly to not call Snivellus!"
His friends sighed, with the exception of James.
"Well, guys, all we have to do is to avoid the Gryffindor common room," Troy said.
"Is it too early to attempt to rename it the 'War Zone'?" Frank asked drily.
"It won't be that bad," Remus attempted to reassure his fellow Gryffindors. There was a silence and he frowned. "Oh, who am I kidding? Avoid it at all costs. Save yourselves!"
Troy and Ruby burst out laughing as Hunter told Remus he was a drama queen. Their mirth was not shared by the other Gryffindors, though, as they realised they had less chance of avoiding any of James, Sirius and Lily's explosive run-ins.
"Right now, I would be happy to be a bloody Hufflepouff," Frank muttered, realising too late that he was sitting next to Mackenzey, who smacked him on the arm instantly.
"Rather be a Hufflepouff than a Gryffindork," Ruby stuck her tongue out at him.
"Hey, hey, hey!" Sirius injected. "I'm not dorky in the least. I am a HUNK!"
Peals of laughter followed this declaration. All of his friends were laughing so much they couldn't hold their breath long enough to contest his statement. Sirius looked mildly wounded but soon the infectious laughter got to him too and the sound of their laughter filled the garden.
All the parents looked over at them, feeling the happiness emanating from their children. Smiling fondly at the group they turned back to their conversations, leaving the twelve kids to enjoy the summer evening together.