August 3, 1995
Waking up on August 3rd was never really different for me then waking up on any other day of the year. The only time that it had started to be different was in my second year of school when I was inspecting the posters on the teachers wall.
On the posters were normal teacher things. The alphabet, numbers and other regular things related to school. On one of the posters had all the months of the year in fancy fonts with our name on it. And after asking my best friend Eddie who was sharing classes with me again. He said it was our birthdays.
On the wall below a fancy font with the month August was my name and a date.
'Aubrey Potter- 3rd'
And after that day Harry had learned his birthday the same way. From then on, August 3rd and July 31st were days for small celebrations for me and Harry.
So when I woke up today in my bed at 12 Grimmauld Place on August 3rd, it was almost like any other day.
Lying down on the bed closest to the window in our room, the rays of red and yellow were gently waking me. Opening my eyes I could see presents at my feet that were put in overnight.
Rolling over I saw Hermione in the bed next to me was fast asleep. Ginny was also deep in her dreams lying in the bed next to her.
The night before, like the two nights before that, Ginny and I spent it metating in our astral forms while our sold body's slept. So I could empathize her exhaustion. When I had started meditating at night in my astral form I was constantly tired.
Sitting up, I slipped on my teal glasses and reached out for my presents. I could see I had gotten presents from my brother, my friends, and some of the Weasleys.
Lifting them up and slipping out of the bed. I grabbed the presents and headed over to Harry and Ron's room.
Lying down the neatly wrapped gifts on the floor outside the bedroom, I slipped inside Jamie's room. Padding over softly to where he slept I shook him slightly.
"Jamie, Jamie come on and wake up. I'm going downstairs to start breakfast. You should get dressed and ready to go."
Slowly Jamie started to wake up until his eyes meet mine.
"Hey." He said sleepily. "What time is it?"
"Around 6." Harry nodded and sat up to get dressed. "I'll see you down stairs." After seeing Harry nod, I moved outside the door and closed it back up to let Harry get ready.
Picking up my present again. I moved down the stairs slowly as to not wake anyone else.
Opening the kitchen door I saw Uncle Sirius sitting at the table with Uncle Remus drinking coffee.
"Hi guys." I said as I laid my presents on the table.
"Why hello there birthday girl." Started Sirius. "How old are you now? Oh yes. You have finally turned 3."
"You know I would have a snarky response to that, but I have been told I must respect my elders." I said with a coy smile. Sirius took a big gasp and put his hand on his chest in mock offence.
"She got you there Padfoot." Uncle Remus remarked next to his friend with a smile. Laughing slightly. I moved over to the kitchen. Taking out a lighter in the drawer near the stove, I lit it and moved toward to find the pans.
"What do you want for breakfast?" I asked.
"No, no it's your birthday Aubrey you're not making breakfast." I laughed a little as I started taking out the pans from the cupboard.
"And what, you're going to make it Uncle Sirius?" I said moving to get out the food from the enchanted looking fridge. "Did they offer premium cooking classes in Azkaban?"
"You know actually they did." Uncle Sirius said in a completely...well...serious face. "Those dementors can make a mean lasagna."
"You two are weird." Harry said as he came in dressed on nicely fitting robes.
"You have no idea." Uncle Remus responded with a small chuckle. "You should have seen your mum and Sirius together. Their banter was prime entertainment. Lily always knew how to put your Uncle in his place."
Looking back over at Remus, I could see him looking wistfully at me, and by the look on Sirius' face I could only imagine that they were thinking of mum.
Clearing his throat slightly, Harry moved over to me and took the whisk out of my hands.
"Here Brie let me make you breakfast." Harry said, whisking the pancake batter. Waving off my objections, he started to cook the batter on one of the clean pans I had taken out from the cupboard.
All of a sudden I had been hiked up on Sirius' shoulder in a fireman's hold and moved to the table. Ignoring my objections he sat me in a seat across from Remus. Grabbing the coffee from the other side of the table he took a seat in the chair next to mine.
In the early hours of the morning the four of us sat (or in Harry's case), cooked in comfortable silence. Once breakfast was distributed between the four of us we ate with easy small talk. Avoiding the obvious topic of Harry's upcoming trial.
As we tried to finish off our plates despite our nervous stomachs, the sound of two people coming downstairs could be heard.
"Oh. Harry dear, you're awake early. Good, good. Have you eaten this morning. Oh, yes it seems you have. Well how about you go and get a brush for your hair dear. We can try and put it to righ-"
"Molly." Authur interrupted his wife's rambling kindly. "Harry looks fine." Moving over toward me, Authur gave me a kind smile. "And how are you Aubrey. How does it feel to be 14?"
"It feels almost just like 13 Mr Weasley." Nodding, Mr Weasley took a small present out of his robe and placed it on the pile at the end of the table. Giving me a kiss on the head, he moved back over toward where his wife was serving them both breakfast. Mrs Weasley looked back over towards me and flashed me a smile and gave me birthday greetings as well before handing a plate to Authur.
Slowly the morning continued. After we finished eating I went and got dressed and ready for the day. After finishing dressing I took off my glasses and putting in my contacts. Unlike Harry, I thought that contacts were much better then glasses. Coming out of the bathroom and back into my bedroom to bring back my pajamas I could tell that Ginny and Hermione would be waking soon. Quietly I put away my clothes and walked back down to the kitchen.
As time slowly moved on towards 7:30, you could feel the palpable tension rising at the table. Nerves became visible in Harry by the small shaking of his hands while we were helping Mrs Weasley clean the dishes.
I quickly finished the plate that I was cleaning. Drying my hands I grabbed Harrys as he put the dried pan away in the cabinet. Excusing us both we moved down the hallway into a nearby room.
Once inside I could quite clearly see a tapestry covered in a layer of dust. Most of the pictures were in pristine condition with their faces beautifully displayed on the wall. Others were covered by big black spots. Moving to the center of the room me and Harry plop down on the floor and look at the pictures on the wall.
Each and every one of the people who could be seen were still. It was strange to see still pictures in a wizarding house. I moved my eyes over the men and women on the wall. Most likely all pure blood supremacists. Almost everyone had a star name.
"There's Sirius." Harry said. He pointed to a black spot by the end of the wall. Next to his name was a wizard who looked almost exactly like Sirius. The only difference was the slight sneer he had on his face. Looking down I could see his name clearly. Now realizing that it must have been his brother. Regulus Black.
Above Sirius and Regulus were two regal looking people. Orion and Walburga Black. And if I were to go by the intertwining lines of Walburga and Orion's heritage, I could only assume that they were related.
"Brie, that's our names." Standing up, Jamie crossed the distance of the room to where our names lay on the wall in a matter of seconds. Standing up I joined him at the wall. "Look you can see mum and dad's picture. This must have been our grandparents." Pointing to another black spot, identical to Sirius'. Below it was the name of our gran. Dorea Potter (née) Black, and next to him was Charles Potter.
"I'm named after our gran." I said to him. Running my fingers over the lines that intertwined our families.
"Yeah and she was quite amazing." Spinning around me and Harry came face to face with our Uncle Sirius. He smiled gently at us and pointed at the wall. "Dorea. Lovely woman. Took me in when I ran from here at 16." He placed his arm around my shoulder. I leaned into him as we gazed back where our family lay. "I had met her before of course. Me and your dad were best friends. I used to spend a lot of the summer with them." He looped his other arm around Harry's shoulder.
"The morning after I had arrived I walked down stairs and said to her, 'Thank you for taking me in Mrs Potter.' And before that I had always called her Dorea." He smiled fondly. "She always rolled with the punches that one." He shook his head and pulled us closer to him.
"Anyway she just looked at me surprised. I had never called her Mrs Potter before. So she just looked at me oddly for a moment before seemingly coming to some conclusion in her mind. I remember being scared shitless. Thinking that she would throw me on the street for some reason." Me and Harry both gave him disbelieving looks. From what we had just heard about her we assume that would have been the last thing that she would have done.
Sirius looked at both of our expressions and let out a short laugh. "Yeah, yeah. I know that seems pretty ridiculous looking back at it now, but I had just been thrown out of one home why not make it two. But apparently kicking me out was the furthest thing in her mind because she just looked at me and said, 'Sirius. As it happens you're under my roof and my ward now. So you're going to have to refer to me as mum.' And I did.
"Charles was the same as Dorea. 'Call me dad,' he said minutes after. They were quite amazing those two." He let go of Harry's shoulder and ran his hand along the pictures of his mum and dad. He sighed sadly and stepped away from the both of us.
"Mum died in March over spring break in mine and your parents in 6th year. Dragon pox." He answered our unasked question. "Charles passed just 3 months after our graduation. He took down 6 Death Eaters with him." His eyes seemed to gloss over. As if he was deep in a memory.
"He was protecting a group of muggle-born kids in Diagon Alley. It was the day before that start of term." His eyes cleared and he gazed at both of us softly. He cleared his throat and clapped his hands together. "Alright Harry you and Authur are going to have to leave soon." He nodded his head toward the door and made his exit.
"Come on Jamie." I reached out my hand to in lace it with his. "It's time to go." Looking into each other's eyes we moved to leave the room. We both knew that the outcome of this trial could change everything. And we both hoped that it didn't.
--
Silence.
Complete quiet.
A stillness that has not been broken by me for over 30 minutes.
It must have been at least 9:00, and Harry was not back yet. The residences of grimmauld were awake and all had converged in the kitchen.
The silence and quiet only extended to my Uncles. Everyone else was enjoying their breakfast that Mrs Weasley had made when her children started waking up. And though they seemed loud and bustling around the kitchen seemingly trying to be normal you could see the nervousness in some of their actions.
Unlike the outside of me that looked nervous, I seemed calmer then you'd expect me to be considering my brother was on trial. Inside I was a raging storm.
My magic was swirling around inside me and I was trying hard not to let it out. Nervousness and just general anxiety from over the summer and today had built up dangerously.
Either from lack of magic use from over the summer or fear from Harry's outcome that started the rise of the storm of magic again, I couldn't tell. But the storm was not unfamiliar in a sense.
Generally my magic was like a storm. It could be wild and dangerous if not regularly used. It could build up just like a cloud. Growing bigger and in a way 'heavier' over time. That is why I was taught to channel my magic in the form of astral magic and to learn wandless. To exercise it and make sure I do not go through long period of time without use.
I had taken my teachers lessons to heart and made sure that I used little bits of magic each week during summer breaks. Last summer I had my magic easily used due to lessons with him and practicing wandless magic. Though unfortunately, because of mine and Harry's house arrest and the constant watch from aurors it became infinitely harder to do so.
There had only been one other time when my magic build up was so great it exploded. Not due to not doing magic, but from overwhelming emotions. And it seemed the person I exploded it with was the only one who recognized the signs.
"Aubrey." Startled, I looked to the right where the voice came from. Ginny was sitting next to me and looked at me in concern. Roaming her brown eyes over my face her eyes start to widen in understanding. "Come on lets go. You can't have it explode again." She softly whispers to me.
Both of us rise from our seats at the table and excuse ourselves and move to leave the bustling kitchen. Lying a hand on the door, Ginny pushes it open and leads me toward a room below the kitchen.
"I thought that there was no rooms below the kitchen?" I asked.
"No one else knows about this place besides Sirius. And Kreature I guess." Ginny opens the door and pushes me in. "He told me about it when he gave us the tour." She shrugs and closes the door.
The inside is nothing special. Four walls, all brick that had been painted white. The floor is a soft wooden color. The torches on the walls lit up once we had walked in, making it a very well lit room. Looking around, I dig deeper inside the wall. Not for the bricks, but for the wards.
The wards on the walls were all tangled together in something similar to a maze. Strings crisscrossed and there was no beginning or an end to it. Lying my hand on the nearest wall, I could feel the magic pulse through the house. Focusing on just this room I could locate the specific string that keeps this room together.
Concealing wards, protection wards, expansion wards. To me this room definitely was not for just handing out or a prison. Not that I would know why they would have a prison room in their house. But they were Blacks so I guess never to understatement them.
Ducking, I moved away as a spell whizzed past me and hit the wall. Stunning spell. Looking behind me I could see Ginny standing behind me. Her red hair was up and in a ponytail and her wand was pointed out at me. No this room was definitely not for hanging out. And from thinking back to the concealing wards I could definitely tell what they were concealing now. Underage Magic.
This was a training room.
"Come on Aubrey. Too chicken to fight me." Gin teased as she started to move around me. Lifting my hand up quickly tied my hair up with a tie from around my wrist. Closing my eyes for just a moment, I pulse my magic. No wands for me.
Opening up my eyes, I ready myself as Ginny does the same. We both stand in a silent standoff. Unknown who would say the first spell.
Narrowing my eyes slightly, I take in Ginny's posture. Realizing that it was the one that I had taught her a couple months ago. I think of all the disadvantages of this position. Finding that I couldn't wait any longer, I move to put more pressure on the back of my leg and twist my right hand slightly shooting a stunning spell at her.
Spells shoot out of her wand in quick succession following the stunning spell. I hastily put up a shield and moved to get out the way of the multicolored spells. As the assault rained down on me I tried to put more power into my shield. Cursing Ginny silently as she knows that doing shields without a wand was taxing on me.
Finding an opening from her assault, I dispel my shield and start throwing all manors of spells at her. Hexes, jinxes, charms are thrown her way. She just throws them all back right at me.
Dodging spells, throwing more at her, shildeing. Over and over. Neither of us relenting. The feeling of magic thrumming through me was amazing. Both of us had missed this over the course of the summer.
I pulse more magic through my fingers in an attempt to get an edge on Ginny. Trying (and failing), to throw her off balance with harder hitting spells. Finding this to be faulty when I realize that my magic has been drained enough through the duel. It became slowly harder and harder to use my wandless magic.
Quickly I felt myself tiring. Using wandless magic was very taxing when the explosive storm started to fade, and a lot less easier than using a wand. When the excess magic of the storm faded and my regular magic was all that was left I had to use a lot more focus and control. I had to guide my magic like a path out of me without my wand as a conduit.
Dispelling my shield I push more magic into my spells trying to distract Ginny. Shooting a bombarda at the corner of the room, I distract Ginny enough to pull my wand out of my holster in my right hand and palm it.
Steadying herself Ginny sees my wand in my hand. Her eyes widen slightly and a hint of fear creeps into her eyes. She knew that I was much better at dueling with a wand and at a disadvantage with me using one. Unfortunately for me I had been drain a lot from the wandless previously.
Spells fly back and forth between us. Neither of us wanted to step down. Neither of us wanted to stop either.
We moved around the room in a dance. Spells landing on us as we started to tire from the constant stream of magic being used.
Feeling myself getting slightly slower from the exercise I decided that I needed to try to use the rest of my energy to attempt to quickly finish it. Using some of the last bits of my reserves I move my wand faster and I push more spells at her. Throwing spells at the walls and floors to distract her, I use a quick expelliarmus I throw her wand out of her hand and it flies into mine.
Neither of us move for a moment. Both of us were breathing heavily and slightly drenched in sweat. I smile at her and she gives one back.
"I win." I said to her. She smiled and rolled her eyes at me and held out her hand. Placing her wand in her and we both move to the wall and slide down it.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Ginny asked after a couple of minutes.
"I'm really worried." I said in a whisper. She looped her arm around my shoulder. Squeezing it she laid her cheek on my head. "I don't think I would be able to stay here if Harry wasn't here with me."
"You would have me with you." Ginny pointed out. "And Eddie and Luna. Plus," She said, "You would be able to leave Fred." Poking her in her side in retaliation. She just laughed.
"This summer was really shit."
"How so?"
"They stationed guards all around Privet Drive so that we were protected. From Death eaters I guess. But that meant I was never able to practice my magic, hence." I gesture to the room that we had just dueled in.
"Well damn the consequences. Next time you need to make sure your using it. You don't need another magic buildup like that again. Nor the explosion like in second year." She said lightly tapping my shoulder.
"I'm hoping that there won't be a next time thought." I sigh and burrow into her more, even though both of us being very sweaty. I felt much more relaxed then I had in a while despite being in someone else's arms that was not Jamie's. "Can this school year just be normal?" She chuckled slightly and shook her head a little.
"With you potters there I doubt that there is ever going to be a normal year." Giving her bitter smile I just let the silence take over. She suddenly lifted her head off of mine and moved away to be able to look into my face.
"You know Aubrey. You can always come to me for something like this right. To use you magic. Or even if you just need to left off some steam." To make her point she swing her arms across the room that was magically putting itself back together from the aftermath of our duel. "And I'm sure the Sirius wouldn't mind helping either." She finished.
Giving her a quick smile I lean back against the wall and take a deep breath. Slowly relaxing back into the wall. Opening my eyes I look back into Ginnys before smirking at her. "This would really be the worst birthday if Jamie got expelled." I said.
Laughing at that she gives my arm another gentle squeeze before moving to stand up. Reaching out her hand and helping me up She pulled me into another hug.
Breaking apart both of us move to open the door. Hoping to go upstairs and take a nice long shower.
As we started walking upstairs we hear loud noises and shouts. Opening the door to the stairs we can clearly hear the shouts from the kitchen.
Running towards it I throw open the door to see My brother being surrounded by joyful redheads screaming, 'He got off!'
My face split into a wide smile ran up to him and I jumped into my brothers arms and pulled him into a hug. "You're still going to Hogwarts?" I whisper to him.
"I'm still going to Hogwarts." He whispers back. I squeeze him tighter and let out a laugh that sounds laced with tears. Pulling myself off of him I looked into his eyes and gave him a wide smile. He gives me one back, but then looks down at me and frowns. "Why are you all sweaty."
I frown in return and look down to realize that I am still definitely sweaty from dueling with Ginny. "Oh. Well actually I forgot about that." I said moving away from him. "Me and Ginny were exercising." Avoiding the topic of us using our magic knowing that it would be too difficult to explain the ward scheme that covers underage magic to him. And if Uncle Sirius hadn't told anyone else about the room besides Ginny or I, I was definitely not going to say it with all the occupants of the house on the room. He looked down at me in concern. I merely shrugged my shoulders. "I needed a distraction."
"Okay well next time do a distraction that it less stinky." Harry said while pinching his nose mockingly. I shoved his shoulder slightly.
"Hey you can be rude to me today Harry James Potter. As it happens it's my birthday." I said moving away from him.
"Oh really? Well I didn't know." He said sarcastically. Turning to the left he faced Hermione. "Hermione did you know it was Aubreys birthday. Because I certainly didn't-" I punched him in the arm and he just shoved me slightly back.
"You don't have to be a prat you know." I said smiling slightly.
"Yeah, yeah." He waved off. "Now you need to shower because I was not joking before you really stink." He started pushing me toward the doorway. Turning around we find most of the occupants of the kitchen watching us interact. Smiling at them, I excuse myself to go upstairs and shower. Realizing that Harry was right. I did in fact small very bad.
After Ginny and I showered everyone came back down to the kitchen for cake and presents. They sat me down at the head of the table and started to sing happy birthday to me.
A two tiered cake with light purple frosting was brought out. It was decorated with white flowers on the top and had words written in neat script, Happy Birthday Aubrey.
As the song came to and end and I blew out the 14 candles on my cake. I looked around at the people that surrounded me and realized something. That despite all the years alone with just Jamie by my side. We were surrounded by people who loved us.
Grabbing Harry's hand I give it a small squeeze. He looked over at me and smiled slightly. Then he gazes around the room and it's occupants. Looking back over at me he seemingly had come to the same conclusion as me. We finally had something that we had always wanted.
Family.
