When it was About to Turn Dark

by vbt22220

Twins, Anusha Maurya Snape and Anya Maurya Snape were known for their tendency to get in trouble. It wasn't their fault, really. They sincerely took measures to keep themselves out of trouble, but in vain. So, even though their Nana took many steps to ensure that they reach Wizarding Britain safely, they still got into trouble. And this time, the trouble led them to adventures...

8. Birthdays, visits to Diagon alley

***~~WIWATTD~~***

Disclaimer-Harry Potter is a franchise owned by J. . I do not, in any way, own the characters, places, movies, books, etc….. The Ocs, however, are my characters. There are families whose surname is Maurya, but I'm not using any of them as a character. So all Oc characters and NAMES would be my own creation. Any character resembling any person living or dead is entirely a coincidence.

CHAPTER VIII

Harry's fifteenth birthday was a little quiet this time, what with all the court hearings and everything that was being said against Dumbledore and Harry and all their known supporters. Instead of throwing in a grand party, as Molly had suggested, they instead had a nice dinner with everyone present to offer him their well-wishes, give him his gifts and just spend some time with him. Molly couldn't help but bake a nice cake for him, even though he had insisted not to. When she brought in the cake, Harry opened his mouth to speak, but Molly cut him off.

"Now Harry dear, it may not be like it was in the past, these are a bit hard times for you, but you still have to remember that it is your fifteenth birthday. It's not going to come back again. So while I listened to you and planned a nice dinner, you are still cutting the cake. End of discussion," She said, with a tone of finality and went back to the kitchen. Harry shook his head and smiled at her as she went back to the kitchen.

Other than the dinner, the day had passed as it normally did for the teens. The twins had started covering up with what was taught in the past four years from Hermione, while Ginny gave her inputs as well.

"But why are you guys bothering with it, huh? I mean, you have already done it, maybe way before than us!" Ron asked, frowning at them.

"Yes, but we need to know if there are things that we may have accidentally missed, or we did earlier than you guys so, we're discussing this just so that we're in the same page, that's all," Anusha said, shrugging apologetically.

"And besides, it's a wonderful revision for us, as it's our O.W.L.S this time," Hermione said, jotting down some notes about the syllabus.

"It is sort of like the same, but we were taught some things before you all since it was home-school and the tutors had indulged themselves," Anya said.

Anya woke up to their fifteenth birthday with a bright smile on her face. She nudged her twin, who sniffed a little before turning her back on her. Anya raised an eyebrow at her.

"Anusha, come on. It's our birthday. Wake up!"

"Don' wanna," Anusha mumbled, her voice muffled by the pillows.

"Wake up yaar! We need to go to the Diagon Alley as well!" Anya groaned, shaking her sister from her slumber. But it was in vain. She simply burrowed herself in her blanket, pulling it to the top of her head.

Anya huffed and pulled the blanket from her head.

"Anya! Let me sleep!"

"Nah, sis!" Anya said, smirking mischievously and started poking her twin in her ribs. Anusha squirmed, squealing and laughing loudly.

"ANYA! Stop it!" Anusha exclaimed, throwing a pillow at her, which began a pillow fight between them as both girls screamed and squealed, throwing pillows at each other. At one point, they even tore a pillow open while wrestling for it, which made all the cotton from the pillow float around the room. But they ignored the state of the room, instead throwing pillows at each other, and didn't even notice Severus standing in the doorway, observing their antics with a small smirk on his face before clearing his throat loudly to catch their attention. They stopped immediately, looking at him, horror dawning on their faces.

"Oh shit," Anusha muttered.

"Language, Ms. Snape!" Severus said sternly, giving her an admonishing look. Anusha looked down sheepishly.

"Sorry Papa," Anusha murmured. Severus sighed and came inside the room, shutting the door behind him softly. He came and stood in front of them, looking around the room blandly. The twins looked around the room as well, their expression turning sheepish as they looked at the state of the room. Pillows were strewn around the room, along with pillow feathers lying around them, the bedding was covered with feathers and some were flying around like snow. They turned back to look at their father giving them the eyebrow. They shrugged collectively, smiling at them guiltily. He sighed and smirked, shaking his head at them.

"Since it is your birthday, I'll let you both off the hook. But, as soon as you get back from the Diagon Alley, you're cleaning the room."

"Actually, we don't have to," Anusha said, smirking at him. Severus raised his eyebrows at her.

"I beg your pardon?" He uttered.

"This room belongs to one of Sirius' ancestors," Anya began, an identical smirk gracing her features.

"Obviously," Severus muttered.

"She loved this room too much, so when she got married, she didn't want the room to be changed by anyone," Anusha continued.

"So, she charmed the room to be self-automated," Anya interjected.

"That's why we don't have to clean the room," Anusha finished, shrugging at him.

"Fine. I'll be assigning punishments to you both."

"Papa!" The girls groaned, pouting at him sulkily in a way that reminded Severus of Amisha when she used to look at him that way. He felt that familiar pang in his heart at the thought of her.

They may as well be her clones… You'd be proud of them, Amisha…

He blinked back and smirked at their expressions, before gesturing them close to him. They complied with smiles on their faces and stood close and wrapped their arms around him tightly, burying their faces in his chest, feeling safe and content.

"Happy birthday to you both," Their father murmured, pressing a kiss on both their foreheads softly.

"Thank you, Papa," They murmured back, tightening their arms around him. He took a deep breath and wrapped his arms around their shoulders, suddenly wanting nothing more than keeping them there for the rest of eternity. But he simply pulled back slightly after a few moments.

"Come on down now, freshen up. You need to have breakfast and go to Diagon Alley for your supplies," He murmured, pressing another kiss to their foreheads and pulling back.

---

As soon as the twins had entered the dining room along with their father, they were greeted with cheers and shouts of 'Happy Birthday!'.

"Happy birthday, sweeties!" Molly said, coming into the dining room. She smiled down at them, patting their shoulders gently.

"Oh sweeties, I really don't know what your favorite is! Well, is there something different you want today? Other than your usual?" She asked gently. The girls chuckled and shook their heads.

"Oh no! We don't want to trouble you!" Anusha said.

"We'll take our usual, Mrs. Weasley!" Anya continued.

"Are you sure?"

The girls nodded and said, "Thank you!" Collectively.

"And are you two coming to the Diagon Alley with us?" Hermione asked, looking excited. The girls turned their heads to their father, who nodded with a reluctant sigh.

"Yeah!"

"Of course!"

"So, Harry and Ron are coming as well," Hermione continued. The twins nodded, not seeing their father hide a grimace.

"Anyone else wants to accompany us?" Molly asked, looking around the table.

The others shook their heads in negative.

"Alright now, kiddies," Moody snapped suddenly, looking at them, much to Molly's exasperation, "We aren't going ta be there to keep a watch out for ya lot! So keep yer wands on hol', stay alert and CONSTANT VIGILANCE!"

"Alastor," Molly began exasperatedly, much to the amusement of the others, "We're going to the Diagon Alley, not a war zone!"

"Anywhere can be a war zone! These little tots need ta' be prepared for all that!"

"Alastor!" Molly snapped at him, before turning to the trio and twins, "All of you, finish breakfast and meet me here in an hour alright?"

"Okay!" They said collectively.

"Severus, sit down! I have a plate ready for you," Molly said, gesturing to the seat between Anya and Sirius. Severus hesitated, looking at Sirius with slight distaste, which was returned back to him full force. Anya cleared her throat, which made both men snap out of their trance.

"Molly-" He began but stopped as Molly gave him a stern look.

"Sit. down," She said, pointing to the chair.

Severus sighed and sat down, not wanting to tempt fate and defy the Weasley Matriarch. The expression on his face made the girls snicker loudly. Even the look he sent them wasn't enough to quiet them down.

The others quickly finished their breakfast and went off to work.

"So," Harry said, as he pushed his plate away from him, "We'll see you guys in an hour, alright?"

"Okay," The girls said, standing up as well. Harry nodded to them and went out of the room with Ron and Hermione, who were busy bickering about their Prefect duties.

"Thank you, Molly," Severus said, nodding to the Weasley matriarch as he walked out of the hall.

"Do you both have enough money for today?" Severus asked as they climbed up the stairs.

The twins looked at each other contemplatively, having a silent conversation with each other, before shaking their heads.

"I mean, we can buy supplies from the money we have, but it's better to be safe," Anusha added apologetically. Severus considered it, before nodding in answer as they turned around the corner to their room.

"You have a point there," Severus conceded, stepping inside the room after the girls entered it and closed it behind him.

"Okay. There are a few things I should tell you both," Severus said, pulling the table chair and sitting across the bed, gesturing them to sit as well. They looked at each other for a moment, before going to sit down and crossing their arms.

"What is it, Papa?" Anya asked, curiosity shining in her eyes.

"Raman is going to be in the Diagon Alley today as well, with his ward, Harsh," He said, looking at them both as their eyes widened in realization.

"His cousin's son?" Anusha clarified. Their father nodded solemnly.

"Yes. He is a year older than you two," Severus remarked thoughtfully. The girls blinked at him in surprise.

"You've met him?" Anya asked.

"Yes, I have. He had to stop by to Hogwarts to fill some forms for his apprenticeship and discuss his apprenticeship details with Madame Pomfrey. She was very impressed by him," He said, remembering the conversation he had with Poppy earlier that day, before smirking suddenly. The girls raised an eyebrow at him.

"What are you so amused about, Papa?"

"Your Mama met Umbridge as well."

The girls raised their eyebrows in slight amusement.

"And how was that like?" Anya asked curiously. Severus chuckled.

"Well, he was quite traumatized. She took… quite a liking to him, what with his looks and working directly under your Grandparents," He answered.

"Well, I wonder what her reaction would be when she finds out that the Potions Master of Hogwarts is the heir of Prince family which is a part of a Royale 15," Anusha said, looking at him, gauging his reaction. He looked up, his smirk fading off.

"I do hope you know you have to keep that under the wraps. I am a spy for the Order and that title would go to you when it is your time," Severus said with a tone of finality.

"And, as for a title, all I am is a spy and a Professor at an educational institute, doing a job that I hate. I am not as important as your Mama or either of your Grandfathers," He said. The girls sighed exasperatedly.

"Papa, you are a Prince Heir and the Prince family comes under the Royale 15. You easily outclass every Pureblood family in Magical Britain!" Anya exclaimed, standing up suddenly. Severus looked up at her with surprise.

"I have not taken up that mantle, Anya. I am, for all intents and purposes, Severus Tobias Snape, Potions master of Hogwarts. And, till this war ends, I'd want it that way. Do you both understand?" He asked sternly. The girls looked at him stubbornly, before giving up and nodding at him reluctantly.

"And while we're on that subject, I'll lay some rules for you both. I do not have any idea which House you both would go in. It doesn't matter to me where you go anyway. Perhaps you both would be in the same house, or different houses. But I know that at least one of you would go to Slytherin or Gryffindor. I know you have an idea of what I am about to say, but I just want to make it clear for my satisfaction. No one can know of what your full names are. At Hogwarts, I am your Professor and you are my students. Apart from that, there would be no further interaction in front of the general student population.

"Second thing, if either one of you gets into Slytherin, then remember, you are the Royalty among the pureblood families of Wizarding Britain. The purebloods would surely be told to suck up to you by their parents. You know what you need to do, don't you?"

The girls nodded.

"Be polite, but keep them at arms' length and make your friends wisely," Both of them recited the rule exactly as their father had told them. Their Papa nodded in approval.

"And whatever house you get into, expect and prepare for Draco Malfoy to interact with you."

At seeing the girls' confused expressions, Severus sighed and said, "I know he is my Godson, but he is a brat sometimes."

The girls nodded, looking thoughtful all of a sudden.

"Is he?" Anusha voiced out, suddenly having a strange glint in her eyes. Anya had the same look in her eyes.

"Anyway," Severus said slowly, looking at the two of them with suspicion, before continuing, "He would either try to bully you into submission or would try to act as a 'guide' for you, telling you what is and isn't right, according to him. Lucius must have definitely told him to befriend you two. In fact, the Malfoys are going to buy the supplies for Draco today. So, keep an eye out, don't interact until you are forced to and do not seek him," He finished, looking at them with the hardest of expressions. The girls nodded at him.

"Third thing, if there is a time when you absolutely have to reveal… certain things to anyone around you, make sure that it is someone you trust. Excluding these teenagers and Harsh, it is highly important that you know who to trust and whom not to. If it isn't a right party who gets hold of the information accidently, then you can obliviate him/her. Understood?"

The twins nodded to him, their expressions completely serious. They knew what the consequences of trusting a wrong person were. They lost their mother because of that very mistake she had made five years ago.

Severus' face softened as he stared at them, cupping their faces gently.

"You know, you didn't use your full title," Anusha mused quietly. Severus' eyes narrowed in confusion.

"Sorry?" He prompted.

"You aren't just the Potions master of Hogwarts," Anya continued.

Severus turned his head to look at her.

"You are the Youngest Potions Master of Hogwarts," Anusha said, smiling softly. Severus sighed, shaking his head at them.

Not this conversation again…

"No-"

"In its history!" Anya interjected.

"That's not much of a title!" He began, but Anusha stopped him.

"That is a huge title, Papa!" She exclaimed exasperatedly. He began shaking his head again.

"At the time when your peers went dancing bars and seriously began thinking about their futures, you were working on your Mastery in Potions and Ancient Runes!" Anya continued.

"Double Mastery is no joke!" Anusha added. Severus opened his mouth to speak, but his efforts were thwarted yet again as Anya spoke up.

"And you did it in two of those subjects which are supposed to be the hardest!" Anya said, ticking this off her fingers.

Severus knew he had lost to them yet again. So he simply huffed and sat more comfortably, crossing his arms as he listened to his children rant about the same thing they had said since they were ten.

"And you were literally the first one to have a legit degree in your generation!" Anusha said, ticking it off from her fingers, much to his amusement.

"Face it, Papa, you took up responsibility when countless others would rather shirk it!" Anya finished. He sighed at them, shaking his head as he stared at them.

"Thank Merlin you both stopped! You both usually go on about this for hours," He said teasingly, smirking at them. The girls' eyes widened a little before they looked down, suddenly feeling sheepish. Severus chuckled and stood up. Instantly, the girls made up space for him to sit between them and rested their heads on his shoulder.

"We've had this conversation a lot of times," He began gently. Anusha opened her mouth to say something, but her father stopped her by saying, "For Merlin's sake, just let me speak for a minute, child!"

Anusha looked down again, her cheeks slightly pink.

"Sorry," She mumbled.

He smirked and kissed her and Anya on the head before he began.

"I had my motivations. I was never used to riches. I had always been slightly uncomfortable at Prince Manor. And Maurya Mansion just strengthened that. That is exactly why I had asked your mother if she were willing to live in a smaller home than the Manor or the Mansion. That is why I had purchased a house in Munnar. When your mother and I had visited there, I had loved the seclusion, the quiet surroundings and the freshness of the place. Although we loved staying with your Grandparents, that house was ours alone. And I had bought that house with my money, the money that I had earned by creating or renewing Potions and patenting them. I was doing my own research as well. And I was able to do that because of my education, because I wanted to be someone more than the Prince Heir."

He then looked down at them with hard eyes.

"I don't care that you both have an infinite inheritance waiting for you both to mature. You work hard to prove that you are worth that amount of inheritance, that you have an identity other than the Maurya heiresses, understand?" He asked, looking at them sternly.

"Yes sir," The girls said collectively, nodding at him.

"Good," He said, nodding at them with approval.

"And this lecture session is adjourned for today," Anya said, smirking mischievously, causing Anusha to chuckle. Severus snorted amusedly, shaking his head at them, before he poked his fingers at their sides, tickling them. They squirmed and pulled away from him gently, laughing loud.

"Now, back to the topic. Your Mama worries that Harsh is too quiet after his parents died. He did work with the boy, so he is much better than before. All he wants is you both befriending him."

"Okay. He seems kind of desperate," Anya commented, looking up at her Papa.

"Oh, yes he is. The kid keeps himself secluded at all times, instead studying and pursuing healing. He is quite dedicated," Severus commented. The twins shared a look with each other.

"Wow, Papa's quite impressed by him," Anusha commented.

"Yeah. I guess we will see what this guy's all about," Anya said, breathing out slowly.

---

"Are we all ready?" Molly asked the group of teens standing before her.

"Yes Mrs. Weasley," The girls answered collectively.

"Now, you all must remember to stick to one another, not interact with strangers-"

"And be alert, keep your hand on your wands at all times, and CONSTANT VIGILANCE!" Moody snapped at them. Molly rolled her eyes at him exasperatedly but otherwise ignored him.

"So, you kids ready?" Molly asked excitedly, looking at the five teens before her. Ron rolled his eyes at her.

"Yes, mum! Would you stop asking about it?" Ron grumbled loudly.

"Watch your mouth young man or it's no new robes for you!" Molly warned him, glaring at him fiercely.

"It not like I get new robes the entire time mum," He retorted.

"And you're not getting any supper tonight as well!"

That shut him up pretty quickly, much to the others' amusement. The twins snickered, making Ron look at them with a grumpy expression.

"Shut it!" He muttered, walking ahead of them towards the door to the living room quickly.

"Aww, sorry Ron!" Anya said, laughing to herself.

"Don't be like that!" Harry continued.

"We'll give you a share from our plates!" Anusha teased, making the others chuckle.

The girls snickered to themselves but quieted down when they heard their father clear his throat. They turned around to see him giving them a warning look, which was enough to make them serious again.

"Now," their Papa began quietly, "Remember what I told you both. Be careful, be alert, keep a hand on your wands at all times. Your Mama would meet you both near the Gringotts. Please act appropriately as the Malfoys would be there in the Diagon Alley and I am perfectly sure that they would cross paths with you all. You know what to do when you are confronted by either Draco or Lucius. Be polite, but firm and stand your ground no matter what. I wouldn't worry about Narcissa; she's a smart woman, actually smarter than either of her men. So, she won't be of any problem to you both."

The girls nodded, looking completely serious and determined.

"Although, if I get the time, I'll be there to see if everything is alright or not," Severus added as an afterthought.

The twins looked at him exasperatedly.

"We are fifteen Papa, not five," Anusha grumbled.

"We know how to take care of ourselves," Anya said, exasperated. Their father gave them a stern look.

"While you both may have turned fifteen today young ladies, you both still have a tendency to act like little stubborn brats and run off into dangerous situations!" Severus retorted. The twins' faces flushed as they looked down sheepishly.

"It's not our fault, you know," Anusha mumbled.

"We're just at the wrong place at the wrong time," Anya continued in a small voice.

Severus sighed.

"I know you both are as careful as possible, but I just want to make sure you both are alright," Severus finished, looking at them. The girls seemed to contemplate his side of the argument, which made him roll his eyes at them.

"Okay," The girls conceded, shrugging.

"If that's what you want," Anya said.

"Just remember to buy all things that you both require."

"Yes sir," The girls answered and gave him a one-armed hug, before going with Mrs. Weasley and the others.

They went towards the fireplace, where Molly simply took the floo powder and threw it in the fireplace and called out 'Diagon Alley!'. Everyone stepped in one by one. They stepped out in the Leaky Cauldron. Since it was for the first time for the twins, they looked around with a tiny bit of distaste. Harry saw their look and chuckled.

"I know, it's a bit shady but you'll get used to it in a bit," He said.

The twins nodded slowly, their expressions of distaste still on. The pub was dark, dull and filled with all sorts of shady people. The bartender and, admittedly, the owner of the pub, was the only man who looked clean enough. Otherwise, the rest of the crowd was not so impressive. But the girls were still looking at the crowd of people suspiciously. They all were staring at Harry and the others with mixed expressions. Some looked at them curiously, some gave him an angry look, some gave him side-eyed glances as they spoke to their partners, and some just ignored them. But one of them, in particular, a woman with short blonde hair resting on her neck in tight curls was eyeing them as though they were meat. Anusha noticed the small notebook and the quill peeking out of her purse and clicked her tongue.

Oh fuck. A journalist. Exactly what I needed for my birthday morning…

She silently nudged Anya, who looked at the woman with distaste, but nearly sneered at her when she noticed the same as Anusha did.

"Fuck my life," Anya muttered under her breath.

"Yeah, tell me about it. This is so not our ideal birthday, is it?" Anusha murmured to her.

"Nah. I do not like the situation," Anya murmured back and looked ahead with the others and her twin as the blond haired woman approached them with confidence and attitude. From nowhere, a camera took a shot of them all. Anusha blinked rapidly to clear her vision, while Anya snapped her eyes shut to prevent the light from entering her eyes.

"What the fuck?!" The girls muttered together. But no one noticed them at all. They were all observing the commotion between Harry and the woman.

"Ah, would you look at that? The boy-who-lived out in public with his cohorts! This is a good day for me! Ah, my dear companions," The woman said to her notepad and quill, 'We must get started, for Skeeter is on the hunt for stories!"

The twins gave her a flabbergasted look, before looking at each other.

"Who is she?!" Anya mouthed to her twin.

Anusha shrugged as an answer and looked ahead as she started harassing Harry, who was acting quite calm, considering the circumstances.

"How did it feel like to be presented in the Wizangamot at the age of fifteen?"

Harry remained silent. The woman was taken aback by his silence. It was clear that she thought him to be vocal and passionate. Anusha was slightly proud of him.

"What would your parents have said, if they had heard you making these fake accusations about you-know-who coming back to life?" She asked with a benign smile, but her eyes were filled with malice.

Harry's expression changed slightly, but he still kept his mouth shut. Skeeter was now growing agitated, clearly not expecting the stoic and blank expression from him. Anusha couldn't help but send him a small smirk.

Well, he has changed… he's doing well to keep his occlumency shields up…

The woman saw the smirk she sent him and rounded on them both.

"And who are these two pretty young ladies, Mr. Potter? Your new followers?" Skeeter crowed, eliciting a laugh from her audience. The trio and Molly smirked slightly as the twins gave her a sharp look.

"I'm Anusha Maurya," Anusha introduced herself to the whole room.

"And I'm Anya Maurya," Anya said rapidly, looking at the Skeeter woman with a distasteful expression.

The people in the room grew silent as both the girls held out their hands for the Skeeter woman to shake. All of them were looking at her with shock and some even had slight horror etched on their faces. But the most priceless expression as of Skeeter's, as she clearly wasn't expecting that at all. She raised her hand to shake theirs in a very feeble way.

"Heiresses to the Maurya Family, one of the Royale 15?" Skeeter clarified in a small voice.

"Yes, unless there's any other family with surname 'Maurya'," Anusha retorted. Harry and the others smirked wider.

"Bloody hell," Ron said, snickering to himself. This was followed by murmurs and silent whispers from the crowds.

"They aren't the ones to take this sort of treatment lying down," Harry said, looking at his best friend.

"And you are?" Anya asked politely.

"Rita Skeeter, a journalist for the Daily Prophet. I also write for the gossip column there," Skeeter answered promptly.

"Oh?" Anya uttered softly. Anusha gave her an amused look, before turning back to Skeeter.

"We have read your column, Miss. Skeeter, when we were last in London," Anusha said.

"Oh yes, about five years ago. We came here with our… late mother at that time," Anya said, nodding to herself.

"Your way of twisting a story is quite… impressive, if I may say," Anusha said in a slightly dry tone. Skeeter caught the tone but didn't comment on that.

"I wonder if I may get an interview with you two. It would be a huge occasion for the Wizarding world to hear about one of the families of the Royale 15. We hardly get one of your families in this area," Skeeter said, smiling at them toothily, which reminded the twins of a crocodile.

"I apologize, but we are in a hurry," Anusha began.

"Oh, very well. But just some basic information," Skeeter said, her quill and notepad floating up with gusto.

"Alright. We're here to shop for our supplies," Anya began.

"We're joining Hogwarts this September," Anusha announced.

"And if you have any further questions, please contact Raman Acharya, our uncle. He'll be happy to help you out," Anya finished.

"Oh no. I know what will happen. Your man wouldn't answer my calls at all," Skeeter said, grabbing Anya's forearm before she could leave. The twins shot her a piercing look which made her back away slightly. They smiled a cold and chilling smile at her. The golden trio shivered slightly at that look. They were privy to that particular look.

"Is it creepy that that smile reminds me of Snape's?" Ron whispered to Harry and Hermione slowly.

"No Ron," Hermione answered, "you aren't wrong at all."

"Listen now, Miss. Skeeter. Here's what's going to happen. You will contact 'our man' and send him a list of questions that you may have for us," Anusha said softly but chillingly. The room grew silent again.

"He will be there to answer them, personally as well, if you wish so," Anya continued with the same voice.

"But for now, please let us leave. We have a lot to purchase," Anusha finished. Skeeter gulped slightly, suddenly knowing that if she took a wrong step, the consequences would be drastic for her.

"I see. Well, I shall be glad to have a word with you two when you wish to have it, Heiresses," Skeeter said, offering an alternative.

"Oh, we'll see. Good day," Anusha said, smiling at her benignly. Skeeter nodded shortly before turning and stalking out of the pub with her cameraman. The twins gave the crowd a stern expression, which sent all of them stalking off back to their own tables.

Molly noticed their expressions and quickly led them to the back of the pub and stopped near an old brick wall. The girls looked at the brick wall confusedly, but the others just looked ahead.

"Well now, we have to get on," she said, gathering them around the wall and tapped on certain bricks around a hollow area in the wall. The bricks started rearranging themselves, looking as though someone was pulling them out from the other side and pushing the others in. Soon enough, the bricks that were pushed in had slowly started sliding away from the center to reveal an opening for them.

"Wow," Anusha muttered.

"I didn't know there was this opening to Diagon Alley as well," Anya said in awe.

"Really?" Harry asked curiously.

"Yeah, the few times we came here were all from floo and we'd enter from one of the uh, more prominent restaurants in this area."

"Oh."

"Girls, where did you say your uncle would meet you?" Molly asked them.

"Near Gringotts," The girls answered, looking in front of them towards the huge white building on the intersection of the two streets. They spotted their Mama with another young boy. They were speaking to each other softly.

"Mama," Anya called out to him, walking towards them quickly.

"Anya," Anusha called out, before following her quickly, much to the exasperation of Molly, who took the trio and all but ran behind them.

Raman turned towards her and smiled.

"Anya, Anusha! How are you both?" Raman asked, embracing Anya warmly, picking her up a little, before setting her down and giving Anusha the same treatment.

"Happy birthday to you two," He murmured, smiling at them and ruffling their hair.

"Thank you!" They said together.

"I'll be buying you both an owl as a gift this time. I'm sorry but I just couldn't prepare for what I wanted to give you both," Raman murmured to them.

"Was it going to be shocking for Papa?" Anusha asked, with an impish look.

"Oooohhh, definitely," Raman murmured with amusement.

"Then that's enough for us. We'll be glad for an owl. It'll make it easy to send letters to you all," Anya said with a smirk.

"Well, I'll introduce you two to him," Raman said, gesturing to Harsh. They nodded, smiling a small smile to Harsh, who returned it demurely.

"Harsh, this one," Raman gestured to Anusha, "Is Anusha Maurya, while the one beside her is Anya Maurya."

Harsh looked at them both quietly, not saying a word.

"Girls, this is my ward, Harsh Acharya."

"Hello," Anusha greeted him, smiling a small smile. Harsh nodded and said 'Hello' quietly.

"Hi! Nice to meet you!" Anya exclaimed, holding out her hand for him to shake. He shook her hand after a moment's hesitation.

"Hello," He greeted, smiling shyly. Anusha gave Raman a side-eyed glance at the boy's shy behavior, but he only shrugged.

"He's always been like that, and he became quieter after his parents died. He's only opened up a little now, but still…" Raman trailed off, looking a little frustrated.

She opened her mouth to say something but composed herself as the others caught up with them.

"There you are, Anusha! We nearly lost you in the crowd!" Harry said, smirking slightly at her.

"And you remember what your Papa told you two, right?" Ron teased the girls but quelled as they gave him sharp looks.

"Don't start!" Anusha groaned.

"He exaggerates all the time!" Anya said, exasperated.

"We're not that bad!"

"I'll be the judge of that!" Raman said, smirking at them. They shot him a grumpy look but otherwise didn't comment upon that.

"Mama, Harsh, this is Mrs. Weasley, Harry, Ron, and Hermione," Anusha introduced them all to him. He shook hands with all of them. Harsh simply nodded to all of them and shook hands with Harry and Ron. Both of them gave him slightly odd expressions but shook hands with him anyway.

"Good Afternoon, Mrs. Weasley," Raman greeted, "Thank you for agreeing to assist me with the purchasing," he said, smiling at her charmingly.

"Oh, it's alright! It's my pleasure," She said, smiling back at him.

"So, shall we?" Raman said, gesturing to the shops.

"Of course! We are extremely sorry to keep you waiting!" Molly said apologetically.

"Oh no! We got here a little early. I had some business to attend to," Raman said, waving off her apology.

"Then we shall get going! But before that, I shall need to take out some money," Molly said gesturing them to the large white building ahead of them.

"You don't mind waiting for a few more minutes, do you?"

"No. It's quite alright! I can wait!" Raman said kindly.

"Alright then, they have a seating area inside," Molly said, as she led them all to the entrance, which had huge gold doors. The twins looked around curiously. They had hardly ever entered the British branch of Gringotts before. The reception area was a small, but a beautifully decorated area with comfortable furniture and filled with people coming in and out. There were the smaller doors painted silver, besides which there was writing engraved on the wall.

The twins and Harsh immediately sat down comfortably.

"Now," Molly began, as she turned to look at the twins, Harsh and Raman, "We'll be back in no time. I do apologize for making you wait unnecessarily."

"Oh no," Raman said, shaking his head, "On the contrary, I am glad enough to have my nieces alone with me for a few moments! Please take your time."

Molly nodded with a smile and led the trio with her through the silver doors.

Meanwhile, the twins read the writing that was engraved on the wall. It said-

*Enter, stranger, but take heed
Of what awaits the sin of greed,
For those who take, but do not earn,
Must pay most dearly in their turn.
So if you seek beneath our floors
A treasure that was never yours,
Thief, you have been warned, beware
Of finding more than treasure there.

*{Harry Potter- the Sorcerers' Stone}

The twins raised their eyebrows as they read the writing.

"Well, they are serious about security, aren't they?" Anya said, crossing her arms and sitting more comfortably against the couch.

"Whether it's the Indian branch or the English branch, goblins are really cunning and sly creatures," Harsh said softly from beside her. She turned her head to look at him with surprise as he continued, "They do business with the wizard-folk, but they serve on the exact terms that were laid and agreed by them. Other than that, they don't even care. That makes them extremely dangerous. And on top of that, they are honorable as well. If you were to approach the Goblins with a deceitful or a dishonest intention, they would be sure to bring down immediate death and ruin upon you and your family."

There was slight silence as she stared at him for a short while.

Wow… he sure does read a lot, doesn't he? That's good. Most of the others don't even understand the other creatures, instead belittling them and thinking that they're superior to anyone else… Well, it must be in his very nature… he's just so quiet, so shy with everyone…

"Wow. You seem to know a lot about Goblins Harsh," Anya said.

Harsh tensed slightly. He knew when people spoke to him in that kind of voice, it always meant that he would be teased or made fun of, or even used for their own ends. But when he turned his head to look at her, her eyes showed none of the deceit or malice. Instead, they showed approval, slight interest, and even light-hearted amusement. The smile on her face prompted him to smile back at her.

Anusha, meanwhile, looked on as Anya tentatively engaged Harsh into a pleasant conversation.

"Wow," she commented, "She has managed a feat with Harsh, Mama."

Raman smiled softly as he turned his attention to Anya and Harsh.

"Oh yes, indeed she has."

---

"Well," Molly said, as they stepped out of the bank, "Let's start with stationaries! I believe we must go from small to large!"

Raman raised his eyebrows at her as she led them all to the stationaries first. The shop was small, but they had all the good stock with them. They all had bought their own stationaries, but the twins bought some special ink as well, just in case.

The trio and twins were feeling slightly hesitant around Harsh, what with his quiet and demure nature. But they involved him with small conversations after a short while and were happy to see him answer softly. So, by the time they left for the Quidditch shop for Harry to buy some materials for his broom, they found out his apparent disinterest for Quidditch.

"But why?!" Ron asked loudly, "Why do you hate Quidditch, of all things?"

"Because I see no point in it. It's just a game with players throwing around a ball, with magically induced fastballs flying around that could hit you and hurt you very badly. What's the point of hurting yourself unnecessarily?"

Harry and Ron and the twins as well were horrified by his disinterest, while Hermione smirked smugly.

"Ah finally! Someone understands how pointless that game is!" She exclaimed.

"You watch out Granger!" Anusha warned playfully.

"Yeah! We can't change your mindset, but we'll change his! You'll see!" Anya added, looking extremely determined. As Hermione huffed and commented on something else, Raman and Molly shared a look and chuckled collectively.

"These kids!"

"Well, they do have quite the love for Quidditch. They have their memories associated with it," Raman said, his smirk diminishing. Molly turned her head to look at him.

"Their mother was a true fanatic of Quidditch. She took them to matches and trials since they were three," Raman said, his smile turning nostalgic.

Molly nodded, feeling sad all of a sudden.

"How was she like?"

"Brilliant. I could've never dreamt of a more wonderful sister, truly," Raman murmured, blinking to clear away the sudden wetness in his eyes.

"I know," Molly said softly, rubbing his arm for a moment, before pulling away.

"I see the pain in his eyes, Mr. Acharya, all the time when he thinks no one is looking. He just turns his head to look at them and I see the pain in his eyes then," She said quietly.

Raman nodded and took a deep breath, letting it out and blinking back his emotions.

"I'm sorry. I didn't want to put a damper on this day out," Raman said, shaking his head and smiling at her softly.

"Oh no! You must speak about these things with others," She said, patting him on the arm in a friendly gesture.

He nodded and looked ahead at the kids.

The next shop they entered was the Eeylops Owl Emporium, where they bought food for their pets.

"Well," Raman announced, "I promised your Papa that I would buy an owl for you both. Harsh, you would need an owl as well," Raman said, "So, what kind do you want, huh?"

"A simple one would suffice, Raman," Harsh answered quietly, going over the cages to look over the different owls kept there. The twins looked at each other and shrugged.

"What he says, Mama," Anusha said, looking around the shop.

After looking at all of the owls, Harsh took one Eurasian Eagle-owl, while the twins decided on a southern white-faced owl.

"Very good choice sir," The shopkeeper commented, "That would be fourteen sickles."

Raman paid for them and they left the Owl Emporium for their next stop- The apothecary.

"Are you kidding me?" Anusha muttered, looking at her ingredients for the fifth year.

"I know, right? This is like going back through last year," Anya murmured back, making sure of refilling every slot of ingredients that were in low amounts. They knew that they would get the rest of the rare, more important ones from their father's personal stores.

"Got everything?" Harry asked as he came from inside the stores with Ron and Hermione in tow. Raman was with Harsh and Molly had gone to fill up some of the ingredients for Ginny and the twins.

"Yup, let's go. We just need to pay for them," Anusha said, turning to look at him.

"Well, well, look who it is," A snobbish voice said from behind them, "Potty, weasel and Granger."

Harry bristled but schooled his expression as he turned to look at Draco Malfoy, who gave him a mocking smirk in greeting.

"Malfoy," Harry said, as a way of explanation. The twins' eyes widened as they snapped their heads to the blond.

"So, that's Papa's godson," Anusha observed, looking up and down at him.

"He looks so pompous and self-righteous," Anya said, looking at him with blatant distaste.

Seeing no change in expression, Malfoy's smirk dimmed slightly, but it didn't deter him.

"So, Weasel, what did your family had to sacrifice for shopping this year? Your lunch or dinner, or that pathetic little house of yours huh?" Malfoy asked malice dripping from his tone. The twins turned their heads to look at Ron, whose face had turned red with anger.

"Shut it, ferret!" Ron said, sneering.

"Ron," Anusha said slowly, moving to stand in front of him, "Calm down."

Harry turned his back rudely at Malfoy to look at his best friend.

"Yeah, mate. He's not worth it," Harry said softly, patting his shoulders. Malfoy gave him an ugly glare before turning his eyes to them.

By this time, Raman, Molly, and Harsh came back to stand with them and watch the interaction. Molly tried to intervene, but Raman shook his head at her.

"Don't. Trust me, they are well equipped to handle this situation, Mrs. Weasley," Raman murmured to her. Molly stared at him for a long moment, before sighing and watching the interaction.

"Who are they, Potter? Your fan-club members?" He asked, sneering at them. They raised an eyebrow at him, before stepping to stand in front of him.

"Anusha Maurya," Anusha introduced herself, holding out her hand for him to shake.

"Anya Maurya," Anya went in next, holding out her hand as well.

Malfoy's expression was absolutely priceless as he stared at him, his mouth agape and his eyes wide as saucers.

"Well?" Anusha prompted.

"Snap out of it, Mr. Malfoy. I can assure you, neither I nor my twin has any interests seeing your open mouth," Anya commented, looking at him distastefully.

That snapped Malfoy out of his reverie and he immediately shook their hands one by one.

"I apologize, Heiresses, for speaking like that in your presence. I assure you it'll never happen again."

"Please see that it doesn't. Ronald Weasley is our friend and it is very offensive to us to hear of him and his family in such a manner," Anusha said softly with a warning tone.

"Of course, Heiress Maurya," he murmured, bowing till his waist for a moment before he stood straight.

"Draco, there you are," A soft feminine voice said from behind him. The twins looked up to see a beautiful blond woman in her middle age entering the shop. She wore dark violet robes which made her seem grand even for them. They saw how her eyes looked up at them from the top to the bottom of their toes as if studying them before they flickered at Draco.

"Oh hello! Are you both Draco's school friends?" She asked, smiling at them politely, "I'm Narcissa Malfoy, Draco's mother."

"Good afternoon, Lady Malfoy," The twins greeted her together, giving her polite smiles. Narcissa's smile widened.

"Draco, introduce us," Narcissa murmured, smiling at them.

"Mother, this is Heiress Anusha Maurya and that is her twin, Heiress Anya Maurya," Draco murmured to her. Narcissa's smile froze for a second before she composed herself.

"It is quite a pleasure to meet you both," She said, shaking their hands softly.

"Oh no. The pleasure is all ours," Anusha said, smiling at her politely.

"I do hope your Grandparents are well?" She enquired. The twins smiled at her for a moment. If she had known about the attacks HE had conducted on them, then she was hiding it very well.

"Yes, they are quite well. Thank you for asking," Anya answered.

"Is this your first time in Diagon Alley? We can help you with your shopping," She asked, looking hopeful.

"No, but it is our first time shopping for Hogwarts," Anusha answered.

"Oh! Which year are you beginning?" She asked, looking curious.

"We are joining the fifth year," Anya answered.

"Oh, how lovely! If you require any help, I'm sure Draco would love to help you," Narcissa said with a polite smile.

"We'd be glad of the help. Thank you," Anusha said, nodding to her. Narcissa smiled.

"Heir Malfoy, I do hope we have a more friendly chat in the future," Anya said with a warning tone. Draco gulped and glanced at the trio, who simply stared over at their interaction.

Narcissa blinked curiously at her heir, before turning her attention back to the girls in front of her.

"It would be my pleasure, Heiress," Draco said, his tone quivering slightly.

"Well, I do apologize but we have quite a lot of shopping to do," Narcissa said apologetically.

"Of course. Good day, Lady Malfoy, Heir Malfoy," Anusha said, nodding to her and sighed quietly as both the Malfoys exited the shop.

"Phew! That was…" Anya trailed off.

"I know. That was too much shit for one day. First the journalist, then that brat! Such a prick!" Anusha cursed.

"Now, now," Raman reprimanded her, coming to stand beside her.

"But Lady Malfoy seems nice, just as Papa told us," Anya remarked.

"Well, she's the wife of a Bloody Death Eater! She's a part of evil!" Ron spoke up angrily. The twins turned to look at the redhead for a few moments, before turning to Molly.

"Mrs. Weasley, how about we take a break and eat some ice-cream? It's been a while since we ate at Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor," Anusha said, smiling nostalgically.

"Oh yeah! The last time was…" Anya trailed off, her smile diminishing rapidly as she remembered.

"A few months before Ma passed away," Anusha said, nodding to herself. Raman sighed and squeezed their shoulders affectionately.

"Of course! Why not?" Molly said, accepting and leading the trio towards the exit, giving Raman some time with the twins. Ron could be heard talking about his favorite flavor to Harry and Hermione.

Harsh stayed behind with Raman. He wanted to support him in any way possible.

"Come on then," He murmured, glancing at Harsh, who nodded and shrunk his things and pocketed them. All four of them followed the trio and Molly as they walked through the crowds. Raman glanced at the twins and felt saddened by the look in their eyes. He resolved to keep them happy for the rest of the day.

"I seem to remember that time," Raman began with an impish look on his face, "That was the time when you managed to convince her to take you all the way from India to here just for ice-cream, right?"

The twins chuckled at the memory, while Harsh looked on with a smile on his face.

"Oh yeah! I remember how she was trying to keep herself in control as we went on reminding how long it had been since she had and then suddenly she went 'Oh, Merlin help me! Fine, we're going for an ice-cream in London!'"

"Yes, I remember the incident particularly because she had a super important business meeting and I was forced to conduct it on my own! Your Nana was torn between being amused and angry at her, while Sarakshi was exasperated at you three. She had entered in the middle of the meeting, all muddled up and smelling of chocolate and caramel. She even had some on her face," Raman said, smirking fondly at the memory. The twins smirked at the memory.

"I like remembering her this way," Anya murmured, rubbing at her eyes, which were suddenly burning. Anusha simply placed her arm around her and pulled her close to comfort her.

"I know. I do too."

"Well, Harsh? Do you have any good memories of ice-cream with your parents?" Anya asked conversationally.

Harsh stopped slightly to stare at them. The twins blinked at him, while Raman grimaced slightly, fearing that he might react in a bad way or worse, go back to being closed.

Oh shit.

But instead, Harsh's eyes softened incredibly.

"Yes, I do. I remember when I was five, we used to live in a smaller house back then. There was a kulfi man who used to go around the neighborhood, especially in the summers. He used to make fresh kulfi. It was always my favorite flavor, that one. When we moved away, it had all stopped. Then I had grown older and just gave time for studies. But I would always remember those times. I will always cherish them," Harsh said softly, looking ahead.

The twins and Raman blinked and smiled at him. Anya simply patted his arm for comfort. He looked at her and nodded, grateful for the comfort.

They finally reached the ice-cream parlor and found the table Molly and the trio was sitting on.

"Ah, there you are!" Molly called out jovially, "Go on! Order your flavors! We do have the books and the school robes to shop for as well!" She said, hurrying them towards the counter.

Harsh took a double scoop of dark chocolate, saying that he never had it much. Anusha and Anya decided to take a chocolate sundae, while Raman settled for simple vanilla.

They all settled down with the others and enjoyed their treats. But Ron looked a little bit put out as he took in another spoonful of his bowl of ice-cream.

"Why did you speak to Malfoy's mother like that?" Ron grumbled. The twins stared at him for a few moments.

"I mean, it's not like she would ever be polite to anyone else without there being a very good reason or anything," He continued.

"Ron, we know what you mean," Anya began softly.

"In fact, we've come across those kinds of people before," Anusha added.

"But our Papa told us that there wasn't any need to worry about her. And believe me, there are very few people for whom he would ever say that," Anya said.

"So, we acted as polite to her as we would to anyone," Anusha finished.

Ron huffed and went back to his ice-cream. The twins shook their heads and went back to theirs.

Raman finished his cone quickly and looked up the table and asked, "Does anyone want anything else?"

Ron opened his mouth, but Harry stopped him by shoving his own cone in his mouth.

"Oh no! We're all fine!" Molly said, standing up and going after him.

"Now, Mr. Acharya, I must ask you to let me give half the money-"

"Oh no, you don't! Please consider this my treat!" Raman said, looking at her with a smile.

"I can't accept that! It's too much!" Molly argued.

"I can assure you it's not," Raman said with a shake of his head. He turned his head in front, only to crash with someone who was coming from the other side. He stumbled but caught himself in time. He felt his shirt becoming wet and sticky and looked down to see mint chocolate chip smack at the center of his shirt.

"I'm sorry!" A girl's voice exclaimed in front of him (The owner of the ice-cream, no doubt).

"Oh no! It's alright! It's my fault-" Raman said apologetically as he looked up but stopped as he stared at the same brown eyes that had caught his attention since the day he had laid eyes on them.

"Kaira?!"

Anusha's spoon stopped halfway as she looked up to see Anya gulp her ice-cream slowly and turn her head towards her.

"What…" They muttered together as they turned back to see Kaira stare at their Uncle with shock etched on her face.

"Oh shit," Anusha muttered, face-palming, while Anya looked on in slight horror at Kaira's shocked expression becoming slightly pained. After all, she still hadn't forgiven him for what he had done, and it seemed from her expression, that she hadn't moved on from him either. But thankfully, instead of creating a scene, she composed herself, much to the relief of the twins, who sighed tiredly and stood up, leaving their bowl. Ron's attention snapped to their ice-cream as his mouth watered.

"May I have that?" He asked and simply took the bowl from its place. The twins shook their heads at him exasperatedly.

"Yeah Ron, you may," Anusha said as she wiped her hands and mouth from the napkin and threw it on the table and turned around with Anya and walked over to Raman.

"This is so not what I had imagined our fifteenth birthday to be," Anusha groaned, resisting the urge to shout out loud.

"Nor did I, sis. But what has ever happened according to our wishes, huh?" Anya muttered back through their connection. Anusha contemplated her twin's response for a moment, before nodding.

"You're right. Now, let's get this over with," Anusha answered.

"Raman," Kaira murmured to him softly, looking at him politely.

"Hi. How are you?" Raman asked, staring at her unabashedly, feeling his heart stutter as he looked at her lovely brown eyes.

Kaira's jaw clenched, but she smiled at him weakly and said, "I'm good. Very well in fact."

"Kaira!" Anusha exclaimed, smiling at her brightly as she came towards them. The dark-haired woman turned her head to smile back brightly at the twins.

"Ah, my little dolls!" She exclaimed.

"How are you?" Anya asked, hugging her tightly. She was hugged back just as tightly. Anusha did the same.

"I'm alright! How are you two little munchkins?" Kaira asked, smirking at them impishly. They chuckled at her, happy to see her obviously.

"We're good! And fifteen today!"

"Oh yeah! I almost forgot it's your birthday today! I'm so sorry! I'll promise to send you both your gifts!" Kaira said apologetically.

"So, how are Vikram and Sarakshi?" She then asked.

"They're well! Well, they're missing you a lot and would love it if you go and pay them a visit," Anya said, wrapping an arm around Kaira's shoulders.

"Oh, I would! I miss them too! I would've paid it a long time back, but I was so busy with work and tours and training. But I promise that I'll go and visit. It's the next thing on my to-do list," Kaira said, looking slightly guilty.

Anusha then noticed Molly observing their interaction curiously.

"Mrs. Weasley, this is our mother's best friend and our godmother, Kaira Kapoor. Kaira, this is Mrs. Weasley," Anusha said, introducing them. They shook hands, smiling at each other.

"Nice to meet you," Kaira said, looking at her curiously for a moment.

"You too!"

"I say, do you have family in Egypt? I seem to know a William Weasley who used to work at the Gringotts branch there as the curse breaker," She asked curiously.

"Oh, that's my eldest son!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed happily.

"Wow! Yes, he used to work there, but he decided to get a desk job in England this year because he wanted to be close to the family," She said, remembering her friend.

"Yes, well, he was just missing us too much," Mrs. Weasley murmured, nodding to herself.

"He's a good friend of mine. I missed him these past few months. How is he currently?"

"He's very well and apparently teaching English to a Miss. Delacour," Mrs. Weasley said, frowning in disapproval. Obviously, she didn't like William interacting with the girl. Kaira hummed to herself, determined not to look at Raman at all. The twins sensed this and nodded to each other.

"Kaira, come and meet our friends," Anya said, pulling her towards their table to the trio.

"This is Harry, Ron, and Hermione. That's Harsh, Mama's ward, his cousin's son," Anusha pointed out to each of them. She looked at the sixteen-year-old, who stared at her quietly. She blinked and nodded to them and they nodded back, Ron with his mouth full of the ice-cream he had taken from the twins.

"So what are you two doing here in London?" Kaira asked, looking at her goddaughters questioningly.

"We're shopping for Hogwarts!" Anya exclaimed happily.

"We're joining this year," Anusha added.

"Wow! So, your Papa agreed to that?" Kaira asked lightly, but the others noticed the underlying concerned tone.

"Yes. He did. I reassured him," Raman spoke up, for the first time since seeing her. Kaira turned her head to stare at him for a few moments before nodding tersely. The tension between them was thick enough to choke on.

"Anyways," Anusha began slowly, "How about you accompany us for the rest of our shopping trip, huh? It'll be fun!"

Anusha could feel her Mama burning holes on the back of her head. She gulped slightly. Kaira stiffened slightly, glancing at Raman, before looking back at Anusha.

"Aw sweetheart, I wish I could, but I have somewhere to be," Kaira said, looking at her apologetically.

Seeing the twins deflate slightly, Kaira considered something and perked up.

"Okay, an option. How about I visit you during your weekends, huh?" Kaira asked, wiggling her eyebrows at them.

"I don't know. Do they allow that kind of thing?" Anusha asked, looking doubtful.

"Yeah," Harry spoke up, "We have Hogsmeade weekends, where they let us go to the village and spend the day there."

"Okay, thanks. So, what do you two say?" She asked the girls, who nodded enthusiastically.

"Cool with me," Anusha said.

"Me too," Anya echoed. Kaira chuckled before she glanced at her watch and her eyes widened.

"Oh sh- Now, I'm sorry, but I must run!"

"But what about your ice-cream?"

"Oh well, I'll have it another time! I'm getting late for a meeting! See you two!" She said in a rush, kissing them both on their foreheads.

She nodded to Molly and the others and stared at Raman, who gave her a weak nod. She nodded back quickly and walked out quickly.

Raman stared at her receding back as she walked out of the parlor quickly. He blinked and looked away for a moment, clenching his fists, before saying distractedly, "I'll, umm, I'll get the bill."

As soon as he had gone to the counters, Mrs. Weasley rounded up on the twins.

"What was that?" She exclaimed, clearly gesturing to Raman and Kaira.

"Long story Mrs. Weasley," Anusha said tiredly, walking back and slumping into her seat. Anya followed suit and Molly took her seat quickly.

"Well, we have some time then," Molly countered. The twins raised their eyebrows, before nodding at her.

"Fine. Throw your questions at us," Anya said tiredly. For a short moment, everyone was silent. It was, to everyone's surprise, Harsh, who raised the first question.

"Who was she?" Harsh asked curiously. The twins blinked at him.

"Well, like I had said, she is our late mother's best friend. She has been since they were fourteen. Nana and her father ran in the same friend's circle," Anusha began.

"Long story short, both of them had feelings for one another. The others had approved of it and all. But, our Mama, in his youth had been very, very stupid, not seeing that she loved him and went and made a huge mistake, which broke her heart. It's not our story to tell what he did, nor do we know," Anya said.

"When he realized what he had done, he went to apologize to her and confessed his feelings for her. But she, she remembered the heartbreak he had caused her and flat out refused him. They fell out and she left for Egypt to work," Anusha continued.

"So, since then, her only contact with us was letters once in a while and postcards," Anya added.

"And from the looks of it, they have not seen each other since that fight and rejection," Anusha finished.

"Oh we can see that," Molly said, letting out a deep breath and shook her head.

"The tension was very thick," Hermione agreed, nodding.

"But it can't be that huge a thing to make her move countries away from him, right?" Ron asked for confirmation. All the females slowly turned their heads to stare at him. Harry and Harsh both raised their eyebrows slightly at their reaction.

"Ugh, Ron placed his foot in his mouth again," Harry muttered to Harsh, who gave him a look of agreement.

"Oh really?" Hermione asked sarcastically.

"Boys," Molly huffed.

"Tell me, do you really think you've not done anything stupid enough to upset Hermione, or Ginevra or either of us?" Anya asked rhetorically. Ron's face flushed slightly as he got the point. He simply went back to scrap the contents of the bowl.

"I think that's stupid, moving countries away," Ron grumbled.

"No opinions here, Ronald! We don't know what exactly happened to make her move away! And I am pretty sure that he must have done something incredibly stupid to make her move away," Anusha said, sitting more comfortably against her seat. Ron shared a look with Harry and Harsh, the former shrugging and the latter pursuing his lips.

Just then, Raman returned back from the counter. His shirt was clean again and he looked as lively as he could after that interaction.

"So, it's just the books and clothes now. So let's get it done!" He said jovially.

---

Severus had reached Diagon Alley after finishing his time table. He was there under the pretense of ordering the last minute potion ingredients that were quite rare and took time to be exported. Only the aconite fluid and Adder's fork were left for the Seventh Year NEWT students. But in reality, he was looking for Raman and his girls. He looked around the crowds, looking extremely uncomfortable, when he heard a light cough behind him. He turned around and saw Narcissa and Draco standing there with a polite smile on their faces.

"Good afternoon, Professor Snape!"

"Mrs. Malfoy. Mr. Malfoy," He greeted them in a polite manner.

"Nice to see you here!"

"Yes, I just came to the apothecary for some last minute refill for the potions stores," He said nonchalantly.

"Oh. Well, I must ask you, did you know that the Maurya heiresses are joining the school this coming September?"

Severus blinked at her on the outside, while on the inside, he sighed in resignation.

So, the news is out already…

"Apologies, but I am not privy to the new admissions here, Mrs. Malfoy. That responsibility goes with Headmaster Dumbledore," Severus said, sarcastically. Narcissa cracked a smirk at him.

"Well, we were just introduced to them in the apothecary," She said, conspiringly.

"Alright. If I do get introduced to those esteemed ladies, I'll be sure to tell you," He said, and nodded to them and walked off in the direction of the apothecary.

As he got nearer to his destination, he noticed Raman and the twins, along with Harsh walking towards the Ice-cream parlor. The twins were chuckling at something Raman was telling them. They seemed fine enough. Satisfied, he went in the apothecary to make his last minute enquiries. The shopkeeper, Mr. Aldridge, nodded to him in greeting.

"Good afternoon, Professor. Came here for the aconite fluid and Adder's fork, I presume?"

"Yes, Mr. Aldridge. It was kind of you to get the stock of it in such a short notice," Severus said, nodding to him. The old man smiled and shook his head.

"They are ready and packed for the school, Professor," He answered.

"I'd like to check the ingredients, if I may, sir," Severus said. After all, good ingredients were paramount to an excellent potion.

"Of course. That is why I kept the box open, just in case," Mr. Aldridge said, gesturing to his office. Severus followed him and found the boxes on the table. He checked both the boxes thoroughly and found the ingredients to be completely satisfactory. He nodded in approval and Mr. Aldridge chuckled and sent for the boys to pack it up.

"Mr. Aldridge, please, put it on the Hogwarts accounts," Severus said, shaking the old man's hand.

"Of course, Professor," He answered. Severus nodded and walked out of the shop in the direction of the ice-cream parlor. He came to the entrance of the parlor, only to find Kaira standing there with the group. He barely kept himself from going into shock.

Oh damn, this is not good… not good at all… Why, Merlin, why does it have to happen today, of all days?!

He saw his wife's best friend speak some more to the twins, before leaving and going out of the ice-cream parlor towards him. She saw him and her eyes widened. He shook his head inconspicuously at her. She understood immediately, and understanding dawned in her eyes. She simply walked past him towards her destination, wherever that is.

He sighed tiredly.

Seems like they are having quite the day… I'll be told about it sooner or later… best I leave now…

Deciding on going back Hogwarts, he walked back towards the Leaky Cauldron.

---

The rest of the trip was thankfully devoid of any reporters, bullies or ex-beaus. Hermione was almost ecstatic as she entered the bookshop. She took a deep breath and smelled the fresh parchment and leather and sighed. The twins chuckled at her behavior.

"I love that smell," Was all she murmured before her expression became predatory as she all but pounced on the books there.

"Well," Anusha commented, "I pity the boy who would ever think of pursuing Hermione. She would eat him alive!"

"Well, depends on whether he's predatory as well," Anya murmured back as they went inside.

The last to enter were Harry and Ron. The latter was grumbling loudly about the unfairness of the huge syllabus and the large amounts of homework.

The twins looked at each other and nodded.

"So, I'll meet you near the counter," Anusha said, going into one part of the bookstore. Anya went to the other side.

Finding the main subjects was incredibly easy- Potions, Defense against the Dark Arts and Transfiguration; Anusha was in the Charms, Arithmancy and Ancient Runes section, but it was really hard to look for Sanskrit and Latin textbooks. They had decided to give the OWLS for the last two subjects privately to be done with them at once.

She looked for the language books shelf after shelf and finally found the Latin textbook for the fifth year, but it was perched on the topmost shelf. She glared at it, angry at the fact that she wouldn't be able to reach it. She tried leaning up to get it but to no avail.

Suddenly, a pair of long-fingered hands grabbed the book from its place and pulled it down. She turned around to see Harsh holding the book out to her awkwardly.

"Is this what you wanted?" He murmured, looking into her eyes. Anya noticed the light catching in his eyes and brightening his pupils to a beautiful color.

She blinked back and glanced at the book, before smiling up at him softly.

"Yes, it is! Thank you," she said, taking the book. Her hand brushed against his softly as she took it. He tensed and pulled away, before nodding and walking away quickly. Anya blinked, staring after him with confusion.

Wow, he is incredibly awkward around people, isn't he?

Anya shrugged and picked up the books and went to the counter, where Anusha was waiting for her. Everyone else had taken their books already and was currently paying for them.

"Did you get all of them?" Anusha asked quietly.

"Yup. I only got the Latin textbook, so we'll have to see about the Sanskrit book," Anya murmured. Raman overheard the conversation.

"I'll have them ordered and sent for you three," He said immediately, gesturing to the girls and Harsh. The twins and Harsh looked at him gratefully.

"Thank you," They said together.

By the time they reached Madam Malkin's, it was late afternoon.

"Now," Molly began, "Let's get this done quick! We're given a curfew by Alastor, and I'll have my ears chipped off by his reprimanding!"

"Don't tell me you're actually scared of him?"

"Oh no. I'm just very tired and exasperated by that man!"

The teens chuckled, while Raman and Harsh looked on curiously. Just then, entered a lady in her middle age with smart robes entered the front of the shop.

"Good afternoon! I'm Madam Malkin! Here for new robes?" She asked briskly, her notepad ready for taking readings.

"Yes, all of them need to get their measurements done," Mrs. Weasley explained quickly, sending all of them in front.

"These three new to it?" Malkin asked, gesturing to the twins and Harsh curiously. Molly nodded.

"Well, I need you to stand straight for just a few moments," The woman murmured, pulling Harsh in front first. She began taking his measurements, rapidly barking out the numbers for the notepad to write them off quickly. Harsh stood straight, all tensed up and stiff.

"Right," She said after a few moments, "That's you done. Just the school robes or a whole wardrobe?" She asked quickly. He quickly glanced at Raman, who simply said, "A whole wardrobe. He'll need it."

"What?" Harsh exclaimed, "Raman, I don't-"

"You do, and you know it," Raman cut him off quickly and raised a hand in silence as Harsh opened his mouth again and said softly, "You just can't wear those same jeans and shirt all the time, can you? Anyways, your father would haunt me for the rest of the eternity if I neglect you," Raman added the last part with an impish smirk on his face. Harsh couldn't help but crack a hint of a smile at him and nodded at him.

After Harsh were Anusha and Anya. They had been quicker, as their measurements were almost the same. They agreed to a whole wardrobe as well.

The trio just needed new school robes, and as for Ginny, she had just wanted her hem to be slightly longer and the Weasley twins had grown to their brother's clothes, there was no need for new robes for them.

After nearly half an hour, the group entered the Leaky Cauldron. The adults breathed a sigh of relief.

"Well, the shopping finally is done!" Molly exclaimed, looking tired.

"Yes. Thank you so much for accommodating us both," Raman said, bowing his head in gratitude.

"Oh no, it was a pleasure meeting you and Harsh! I do hope to get to know you better in the future," Molly said, shaking his proffered hand with a smile.

"Girls, I wish this day could've been more… normal to you both," Raman said, kissing them both on their foreheads one by one, before he murmured, "Happy birthday to you two. I'm sorry I couldn't give you much better gift."

"Oh no! We love this owl! She's a beauty!"

"I promise to make it up to you both in Christmas," He declared.

They nodded with a bright smile, hugging him one by one.

As Anusha was hugging him, Anya turned to Harsh, who blinked at her.

"Again, thanks for giving me the book! I'll see you in the express, yeah?"

His eyes widened. Never had anyone said that to him. After the first conversation, everyone generally tended to avoid him and came to him only when they needed to get work done. But this was the first time anyone was looking forward to seeing and talking to him again. The thought made him smile a small smile and nod at her in response.

"Yes," He murmured. The trio smiled and nodded to him and he nodded back.

Seeing Harsh's reaction made Raman smile brightly.

He's opening up… oh, thank god…

"So, I guess I'll be seeing you two later," Raman said, stepping back with Harsh and walking towards the fireplace. Taking some floo powder, he threw down and called out, 'The Ministry of Magic!' and walked in. Harsh glanced back to look at the teens, before looking Anya in the eyes and walking into the bright green fires as well.

"Well," Molly said after a few moments, "Let's get back! I have to prepare a dinner for the family after all!"

---

The trio, Twins and Molly entered the Grimmauld place, looking slightly haggard, but otherwise happy. They entered the living room to find Severus, Sirius, and Moody waiting for them.

"Harry!" Sirius exclaimed, standing up and going to his godson, while Moody gave Molly a look.

"You're late,"

"Excuse me, but shopping takes a while Alastor!"

"It shouldn't!"

"Now look here…" Molly started with a loud voice, which made the twins and Severus wince. The twins ignored the two and went to their father who smirked at them.

"I looks like you were having fun with your Mama and Harsh," He commented. The girls looked at him with surprise.

"When did you see us?"

"Like I said, I was in the Diagon Alley. I wanted to check over the ingredients. It was then that I met the Malfoys. They told me of the introduction."

"Oh, then you don't know that we intercepted Rita Skeeter the moment we entered the Diagon Alley," Anya said. Severus looked at them with wide eyes.

"What?" He exclaimed. The twins nodded.

"She um, she asked us for an interview," Anusha said slowly.

"But we refused," Anya added quickly.

"Instead, we gave her the news that we're joining Hogwarts," Anusha finished.

Severus' eye twitched. He was about to say something, but he stopped and sighed tiredly. He knew that with the twins' status came certain times that their lives had to be publicized. Doesn't mean that he enjoyed it, though.

"And after meeting Malfoy, we had an equally awkward meeting with Kaira," Anya continued. He nodded to them.

"I saw her, when I was coming out of the Apothecary. How awkward was it between them?" He asked.

"Very," Anusha answered, grimacing. Looking at his grimace, she continued, "She wasn't angry, but it was still filled with tension."

"So yeah, definitely awkward," Anya supplied.

"Like I said, you both are trouble magnets. With Potter and his cohorts, I knew that they'd be some major incidents involving you all," He said, running a hand through his hair as he sat down on the couch.

"Hey!" Anusha grumbled.

"Not our fault! We didn't even know Kaira was going to be there!" Anya said, with a grumpy expression. Severus looked at them with an unreadable expression, before he sighed.

"Yes, well, what's done is done," Severus said, his eyes softening as he looked at them. He gestured them beside him. They practically slumped on the sofa on either side of him. Anya laid her head on his lap, while Anusha laid her head on his shoulder.

"I'm so tired," Anusha murmured, closing her eyes. She fell asleep almost immediately. Anya did the same, resting her head on his shoulder and falling asleep.

Severus wanted to wake them up, but he didn't have the energy to. Instead, he sighed and removed Anusha's hair from her face gently, and maneuvered Anya's head so that it rested comfortably on his lap as well. He knew he had a lot to do, but he didn't want to disturb them at all.

As for the others, it always shocked them slightly that he was so… good at handling the girls. Molly smiled at them brightly. The trio smiled slightly and shook their heads. They couldn't quite connect the twins to the girls who had handled Rita Skeeter and Draco Malfoy flawlessly in the Diagon alley.

Sirius, on the other hand, saw Severus in a new light. He always thought that the Slytherin was slightly authoritarian on the girls, a little shut off from them and kept them away from him for the most part. This just contradicted all his beliefs. It made him slightly jealous as well. He didn't have many of those moments with Harry. Sure, he spoke with him, but these moments were rare and few in between.

"Bloody hell Snape-" Sirius began, but Severus shushed him sharply, as he gestured the sleeping twins. Sirius snapped his mouth shut and nodded, making a 'zipping-my-mouth' gesture. Severus rolled his eyes.

"Come now," Molly said, smiling at them, "Let them rest. I'll go and prepare the birthday dinner for them," She said, much to Severus' surprise.

"Molly, there's no need for that-" He began, but he was shushed as well, this time by Molly. Sirius snickered, and showed his tongue to Severus as he glared at him. Severus showed him the finger. Sirius made a gesture of gasping dramatically, much to the amusement of the trio, who were laughing quietly at their antics.

Both Sirius and Severus stopped with their antics as Molly cleared her throat pointedly at them. They looked at her expression and looked away.

"Honestly, it's like everyone is a child in this house!" Molly muttered to herself.

"But Molly, there no need of a grand party! I'm sure you must tired-"

"Oh hush you! Fifteenth birthday only comes once! You can't stop me anyway!" Molly said, gesturing to the sleeping girls. Severus opened his mouth to say something, but was quelled with a look by Molly. He sighed and nodded reluctantly.

"Ooh, is there going to be cake today too?" Ron exclaimed. Harry put a hand on his mouth, gesturing to the girls and Severus, who gave Ron a death glare. Ron gulped and tiptoes out of there, happy to escape Snape's wrath. The others followed him silently, leaving them alone.

When they were the only ones in the room, Severus looked down at the two girls sleeping soundly. He could hear his brain to just slip their heads on pillows and go back to work. But he shut off those temptations behind his shields and rested his head on the headrest and closed his eyes as well, determined to get a little bit of rest.

When Molly went to check on Severus and the girls, she found them in deep sleep. She smiled at the scene.

Severus looks so relaxed right now… it's as though he just forgets his worries and his work when he's with them… but I can never forget the pain that passes through his eyes when he glances at them… the pain of losing his wife…

She sighed and went back to the kitchens, determined to make the girls' birthday a memorable one.

---

The birthday dinner turned out to be one of the best dinners they ever had. The gifts were simple, as the others had been told of their birthday just a little before a week ago. But they were well thought out. Remus had pitched in with Sirius to gift them the most divine chocolates ever. Ron and Harry gave them a broom care kit each, while Hermione bought them a set of muggle novels of a famous crime author Agatha Christie, all of which looked very interesting by the minute. Molly had made them their favorite cake, red velvet as a present, exact to the way they liked it. Dumbledore had given them a very interesting book on ancient runes and wands, while McGonagall gave them 'Animagus-the link between a wizard and its inner animal'. The girls had taken to it like fish in the water.

"Well," Minerva said, "It never hurts to read that, does it? And if you are ever attempting to learn Animagus, I would insist either or both of you come to me instantly, is that clear?" She said sternly.

"Yes ma'am," They answered solemnly.

But the most fun gift they had got was from Fred and George. The Weasley twins got them a whole box of their pranking treats. The box had a logo of 'WWW' made upon it, and opening it, they found various compartments filled with various pranking materials. The twins had been happy to receive the box, much to Mrs. Weasley and their Papa's exasperation and Sirius unending amusement.

"Our very first edition!" Fred had crowed happily.

"Tell us how you like it!" George added.

"And what else can we do to improve it!" Fred finished.

The twins had laughed heartily.

"Of course!" Anusha said, smirking with glee.

"We'll not disappoint you!" Anya said, smirking as she rubbed her hands in glee.

They had enjoyed the evening to the fullest and were extremely exhausted when they finally went up to bed, only to find their father in their room.

"I wanted to catch you both alone," He murmured, standing up from his spot on the bed. His expression was unreadable and his eyes were slightly closed off, which worried the twins a little.

"Okay, did we do something wrong?" Anusha asked. Anya thought of the things they didn't do.

"We did thank Mrs. Weasley for the dinner she had made for us," Anya ticked it off.

"As you should," Their Papa said sternly, "She made it even after she was tired from the shopping trip."

"And we also thanked the people who gave us the gifts," Anusha added.

"Alright, if it's about the box of pranks, then we'll not be returning it," Anya muttered.

"Oh, I know. I'll just have to find a way to steal it from under your noses," Severus said. The girls rolled their eyes at him.

"No. I just wanted to give you both my gift. As much as that had made you both happy, Hogwarts letter of acceptance is not an appropriate gift at all," Severus said.

The twins blinked at him in slight confusion.

He sighed and walked towards them and handed them both a box with identical wrappings. They glanced at each other for a moment, before taking the boxes from him.

Anusha opened it to find a white box, which held a beautiful silver colored watch. It was feminine and it matched Anya's, only her watch was gold colored. The design was similar to their mother's favorite watch, which she used to wear all the time.

"This watch is similar to Ma's," Anya said for the both of them, as they looked up to their Papa. He nodded softly.

"Well, you both are growing up to be quite the young ladies, so I believed that a watch similar to that of your mother's would be the perfect gift for you," Severus murmured, smiling at them. The girls blinked back tears and simply embraced their father, who wrapped his arms around them tightly.

"Ah, my little girls," He muttered, pressing a kiss to their foreheads softly.