VIII.
"I was so, so, so, so, so worried," Theo said as he helped Harry off the floor in front of the fireplace. Harry grinned at him and found himself speaking the truth.
"I'm glad to be back."
. . . . . . .
The night had not been so bad. After Harry had finally finished crying- and he had never before been able to cry so long before in his life- Draco had lent him a handkerchief and led him back to the Gryffindor Dorm. Once Ron had been convinced that Draco hadn't, in fact, done anything to make Harry cry, he had been nothing but helpful.
They had decided that Harry would spend one night in the Gryffindor girl's dorm, on Hermione's bed. But that Ron would bring Harry's blanket and pillow from his old bed. Ron had also fetched Harry his toothbrush and other night supplies before offering to ask Ginny if she wouldn't mind lending Harry a nightdress.
It was not his best night of sleep and it was odd to be in a different room without the sound of other people, but Harry had eventually drifted into a deep and dreamless sleep.
. . . . . . .
It was Yule, or as Harry learned, the longest night of the year rather than Christmas itself. After sharing the scones and sausages that Harry had smuggled out of Hogwarts, which Theo loyally claimed was not as good as what Harry could cook, and saying good morning to Euphie, who was very happy to see Harry, the two Nott's spent the rest of the day preparing for the evening rituals.
Harry was fascinated to learn that there would be no complicated spells to memorize or potions to make or circles to draw on the ground. Instead, there were ropes. Lots of ropes. And ribbons. And threads. And knots.
"Well, we're Notts," Theo explained happily as he taught Harry a complicated braid using seven different colored ribbons, "Our family magic uses a lot of knot magic." And then went on to explain how every Pureblood family had a different strain of magic that their names sometimes could indicate.
"Take the Malfoy's for instance," He continued, fingers flying through a long plait as Harry slowly, and clumsily followed along, "Mal. Foi. Bad faith in French. You'd think that mean they'd be good at lying right? But it actually means that Malfoy's have empathy magic- they know when someone is lying or acting in bad faith. Or when they are being true." Theo laughed at Harry's thoughtful expression.
"I know- I know- Draco doesn't act very empathetic. But if you watch him closely, he's really good at reading a room or knowing just the right thing to say to make him the center of attention. Still, I think it would be more cool to be a witch."
"Why's that?" Harry asked, a thread of alarm running thorough him. But Theo just shrugged and tied off his long braid. Then he reached for another out of the enormous basket between them.
"Witches get two family magic's- their own and the family they marry into." He began plaiting the new ribbons quickly. "So when you eventually get married, you'll still be able to do Knot magic like this, but you'll also get to learn the magic of the family you marry into. It's really cool. Hey! Your braid is looking really good!"
. . . . . . .
Preparation for Yule began long before this night began. All throughout the year, Theo had been quietly busy tying knots in strings, braiding long plaits, and twisting cords around each other to form thick ropes.
"These," Theo explained, holding up a handful of thin chords, "were tied at midnight every night of a full moon. We'll untie them one knot at each of the cardinal directions- don't worry, I marked them off already- and repeat that three times."
"What do the colors and different knots mean?" Harry asked, tracing a finger over the complicate designs. Theo shrugged.
"Oh, you know. Health. Wealth. Fortune. Good will. Good harvest." He held up a long one with a particularly thick chord and blushed slightly, "Family. Whatever blessings you want in the future year. I do a lot, since it is just me right now. It can be tiring and a little lonely, but I like it." Harry remembered all the times that Theo had shown up to class looking a little under the weather. Was that because of so many late nights practicing his family magic?
"We'll do it together," He promised, "For the next full moon." Theo grinned at him happily.
. . . . . . .
Once the sun set they got to work.
Three times, they circled the Keep, pausing at each cardinal direction to undo dozens of knots, whisper an incantation and prayer of thanks, and release the captured magic into the Keep's wards. It was quiet, hypnotic work and Harry found that his new fingers had a genius in untying the knots- no matter how complicated they appeared at first.
Then, in each room where they had hung a plait, they undid the careful braiding- with Harry at one end and Theo at the other. They sang, on those ones, old songs that Harry couldn't translate but resonated through his bones. Their voices were thin, but harmonized.
They spent a long time in the Kitchen, sitting next to Euphie who smiled at each of them in turn as they unbraided plaits and untied knots and unraveled ropes around her for good health. By the times they left, she was in a veritable nest of old cords and ribbons.
Step by step, floor by floor, they circled deeper into the Keep until they reached the deepest floor and Theo unlocked a heavy iron door with a key. Inside, was a perfectly round room and at the center was a single, white slab of marble. Harry hesitated in the door way, almost able to feel the palpable magic in the room. Theo took a deep breath, as if tasting the air, then turned to Harry in delight.
"It's working," He whispered, "This is the corner stone- the source of all the Keep's power. Last year, when I tried this, none of the magic or rituals worked. Or at least not like this. But - well, you can feel it, can't you?" Harry nodded solemnly and they began the final stages of the Yule ritual.
. . . . . . .
Harry felt dawn arrive, just as Theo said he would. He stirred and stretched languidly, feeling exhausted but not at all weary. They had spent the final hours of Yule at the corner stone, unbraiding and undoing the final knots that Theo had spent the year creating. Finally, all their work complete, the twins had sat in companionable silence in the heart of their family's magic until the sun returned.
How would it have felt, Harry wondered as the two stumbled out of the room and locked the door behind them, to have more family with them? To have husbands and wives, sisters and brothers, aunts, uncles, and more children than could be counted? To fill the entire keep with noise and laughter? To strengthen the magic each year?
He followed Theo up the winding stairs until they reached the kitchen. There, the comforting sound of frying bacon and tuneless whistling of a house-elf, met their ears. Harry caught Theo as he began to sob. Soon, he began to cry as well. They held each other and shed tears of relief, of joy, of comfort, and release until an old house-elf found them and ushered them into the kitchen for breakfast.
. . . . . .
A/N: Thank you everyone for reading this. It has been a really fun to explore alternate forms of magic. Let me know what you think!