Chapter 5: Becoming Bostonian (Meal Part 2)
Sirius and James talk to Gaius about plans for the children in the future. Max, Eugenia, William and Marah Winthrop arrive, captivating Sirius and the Potters with the family history and tales of magickal Boston.
*authors note* My version of the magickal US differs dramaticly from JK Rowling's version. I wanted to show a stark contrast between Britain and the US during this time because a lot of the reason Voldemort rose to power was due to the Dark Ages fuedal structure of the magickal world there and the pureblood families aka aristocracy being against change for the same reasons their medieval counterparts were. Whence the embrace of no mag technology, science, and medicine comes from in the States who threw off the aristocracy of the Old World both muggle and magickal.
WARNING: This chapter will be long, as it is vital to establish the lives the Potters and Sirius will be leading in Boston so please read through and bare with it. This info will be important throughout the story.
I do not own Harry Potter. I do own Emeri, Max, Eugenia, Evelyn, Gaius, Anna Lee, William, Nadia, Daniel, Judith, Rosa, and Eudora Winthrop.
Sirius' POV
Sirius was still reeling from shock at the appearance of Matthus Winthrop. His resemblance to his brother Regulus at that age was so striking it knocked the wind out of him! His distant family were so different from his own! There were no House Elves here, no using magick even to cook! Everything here was done by hand or by electricity, something he was still having trouble wrapping his mind around. All of them seemed to have this humility to them, even though like him they were also pureblood, wealthy, and powerful. There was genuine warmth between parent and child in this household, genuine love between his cousin Gaius and Anna Lee, much like with James' parents. There was warmth here, and he was wrapping himself up in it, wishing that he could have been born into this branch of the family. And then there was Boston herself, a city of colonial beauty and charm, a testament to the perfect balance of wealth and simplicity. He also looked forward to exploring the shops and haunts of the magickal side of what to his eternal amusement was nicknamed Bean Town. He followed James and Gaius as he led them towards what he called the living room, seeing there another tellie and soft, expensive looking furniture. An expensive Asian rug was found underneath a stone and glass coffee table.
There was a gorgeous oak cabinant with what looked like strange carvings into the wood, sitting on top was two tumblrs and three glasses. Gaius poured whisky for Sirius, and Scotch for James. Bidding them sit, he made off for his cellar to get Lils her Sweet Red. The two best mates regarded each other a moment. "I sort of feel like we've been called to the Headmaster's office." James said, looking a bit nervous, not like the other man would ever actually admit to it. "If getting called to the Headmaster's comes with whiskey, I'm ready to be sent everyday Prongs!" Sirius replied jovially. It wasn't much longer before Gaius rejoined us. "Now I am sure my wife is letting Lilah in there know that we know everything. You will find that there are no secrets in this family, but we do keep each other's secrets. We know how you got here, that Sirius here is our Black cousin, and we know even more about what is going on in England right now and the prophecy about Hank." both Sirius and James let out a breath. "Well, thats an opener if I ever heard one." James said. Gaius smirked at us. "I know how deeply you two have been involved in this thing, and I am hoping, having been away from it, you have gotten a little perspective on the whole situation. We here in the states do not feel threatened by the so called Dark Lord, not even a little bit. At most, he is a skilled terrorist." he stated.
Not much of a surprise to Sirius. The Dark Lord's reach had never extended to the United States. His grip was the strongest in England, Scotland, and Ireland, with a small foothold in Russia. And even there the resistance had been growing in strength. "I see that you are thinking about my point. Good! Now to us, this seems to be nothing more than a pissing contest between rivals, with innocents being caught in the crossfire. Not to mention the best of your youth being thrown in, pawns between two master chess players. If Dumbledore truly wanted the Potters safe, why did he not seek asylum for them in a place that is free from the conflict? America, France, Japan even? Places that are free from any of the Dark Lord's minions? Why keep them in a place that he has such a strong presense? Does that really make sense to either of you?" he asked them both. These were not questions that he had not been asking himself over the past week or so. Keeping the Potters so close when Dumbledore knew the Dark Lord was hunting them now seemed the height of folly. It was only a matter of time before he found out where they were, there was always a way of finding such things out, Fedelius charm or not.
"What is the point behind these questions? I know you mean no offence, but what is the point?" he asked him. "The point is, Hank in there deserves better than to be thrown into the war path of a megolomaniac and turned into a weapon! He is only 3 years old! And even if the Dark Lord is gone for a short time, his followers sure as Hell are not. And if you think they would not come back for revenge, you are sadly mistaken! This is not a fight of his making, or yours, and quite frankly I believe the fight should be left between those who actually started it. You have a safe place here, where the children can learn and grow without being under the constant threat of that man or the manipulative Headmaster. They can learn here things they would never have been taught at Hogwarts. Pick up and move on with your lives, and should the day come, if either of them wish to fight, you make damn sure that they are trained and ready for it. I know you have friends that have been drug in the middle of this, and for that I am truly sorry. I hope that they find a way out as you have. But you got to build a life here, and yes, you should not, in any way, reach out to anyone in your former life. Doing that will put yourselves and everything you are trying to achieve here at risk." he stated. "I do think that when you are in the middle of something, it seems bigger than it actually is. However, we in the Black family KNOW the Dark Lord. He may be a terrorist now, but you would be a fool to underestimate what he is capeable of. We do need to deal with him, once and for all. So yes, we will keep quiet." he said.
He continued "However, I do know now that this is not over, as much as I wish it was so. And you are right, the children must be trained in every way possible for when the time comes." he finished. "I am glad you are willing to remove yourselves for this, even if it is only for a time. We understand he is only an irritant now, so was Adolf Hitler, and I believe we all know how that ended!" Gaius replied, both men sharing a bitter smile. "Now my wife in there is explaining how we Winthrops handle our children's education, and you now as Winthrops will more than likely do the same. They will learn magick that few know about in your part of the world, with even fewer practictioners. They will have every magick and weapon at their disposal, no different from my own children, Max will see to that. So now that we got that out of the way, lets talk about where you found yourselves! I have yet to welcome you to our humble Bean Town!" the look on his face changed entirely, and there was a pride there in Gaius' eyes that could not be mistaken. Inspite of where his thoughts were, he was intrigued to learn about the magickal side of this city he had come to find himself in. Even James leaned forward in interest. "Now Max is the sage of our family, and no doubt he will tell you the entire history, but I am sure you have already noticed the differences between England and Boston in how no mags and witches and wizards co-exist, correct?' he asked.
James spoke up. "I actually find that to be quite fascinating. Here you seemed to have bridged the gap between muggle technology and magick. How is that possible? Everything I have heard says that magick and electricity do not go together." he said. "Well let me ask you a question Charles. Lightning strikes the ground just fine on Hogwarts grounds as well as muggle London, correct?" now this was getting interesting! "Of course, that's only natural!" he stated. "Electricity is just so, it is a part of nature. Now in most no mag homes, electricity is powered by a powerplant that often uses natural resources like coal. We actually took our model from the no mag designs of the battery. There are places, all over the globe, where electricity occurs naturally, and constantly. Also, we know that crystals also store and hold energy. Now I don't know the specifics, but there are crystals throughout the United States, embued with magick, that store that natural power source and runes that transfer that power into the same type of wiring as no mag wiring. So there is no interference, and our house is lit and ran no different from theirs." he answered. It was actually a huge achievement in intregrating magic and muggle technology, Sirius was deeply impressed.
"I imagine that soon you will start exploring the magick part of our city. Now unlike Europe, it is not a seperate world between no mags and us. Think of it more like lasagna or multiple plains existing together in the same place, all at once. They interact without touching each other, or seeing each other most of the time. We do have a few wizarding towns here and there, but mostly we live amongst the no mags. Ourselves, we don't want our children to ONLY rely on their magick, so when we send them to school, during the summer breaks we make sure that they get caught up on their muggle schooling for that year as well. It is not a good thing to leave such a disadvantage to only introduce them to the magickal world. It is important that they embrace all of the world around them, and know what is going on around them as well. Whether the older families like it or not, what happens in the no mag world DOES effect us. But I drift off." Gaius took a sip from his own drink. It made sense to Sirius. Especially since learning of the creation by muggles of the Atomic bomb and then the build up of what was now the Nuclear Age! Magick may be powerful, but muggles had done something no wizard had ever attempted before, the splitting of the atom, the harnessing of it's power! They could destroy the whole world, magickal and non magickal alike, and there would really be nothing the magickal world could actually do to stop it once those rockets were in the air! It was incredibly humbling to think about. It was dangerous to underestimate them, thinking they had no power, just because they did not possess magick!
There was a knock at the door, which had all of them setting down their glasses, the voice of Anna Lee already drifting towards him. As they made their way to the front door in walked Max, and if his guess was correct, his wife Eugenia. The couple were an quite attractive older couple in their 50's, Max with the family trademark dark brown hair and dark silver eyes, strongly built in the shoulders, hints of physical strength. Eugenia was a vision, with silver and auburn peppered long hair, half pulled back in a berette and the rest left to fall down in long waves around her shoulders with bright glaciel blue eyes and the same hour glass figure as Evie had, but also very tall, at least 2 inches taller than her husband. Lily was right next to Anna Lee at the door. Her manner around Anna Lee was now easy. "Dad!" Gaius exclaimed giving the older man a hug. Lily reached out a hand towards the older woman. "And you must be Lilah, hello, my name is Eugenia, but you can call me Geanie, everyone does!" and she embraced Lils in a tight hug like they had known one another for years. There was a shocked look on the redheads face as she was embraced that caused him to crack a smirk. Watching this family, Sirius felt more than content becoming a Winthrop! This was how a family was supposed to be! "Hoped you cooked for a small army, Will, Nadia, and the kids are coming right behind us!" Max called out. It appeared that the Winthrops rivaled the famed Weasleys in sheer size! The thought made Sirius chuckle. As if on cue, a loud knock came to the door, with Geanie reaching behind her to open it.
"Come in Dumb Ass!" Gaius called jovially. Geanie paused to wack him in the back of the head. "Seriously Gaius Marcus?!" she scolded. Sirius had to bite down on the urge to say "No, I'm Sirius." His cousin just smiled at her. They all moved out of the way to show William and Nadia Winthrop. William had the features of the rest of his family, and Nadia, platinum blonde hair that would make a Malfoy jealous with dark blue eyes, a wicked smile, and medium frame. He heard the sound of feet heading their way, as he heard Mattie call out "Come on Danny! You too Dora!" and so William and Nadia's daughter rushed in, knocking into the adults and causing them all to crack grins of amusement. "Not so fast, we must not be rude my little rascals!" the amused Nadia grabed gently on their arms, causing them to halt in mid run. "But mom! I want to go play with Mattie!" claimed the boy called Danny. Meanwhile, the girl named Dora, who in a way reminded him of his own, Black cousin, looked curiously at Harry and Emeri. William chuckled. "This bold one here is Daniel, and my sweet little princess here is our Eudora. Be nice and hug your grandma and grandpa and aunts and uncles!" William told the children. Eudora actually shocked them and hugged Sirius first! "Hi Uncle Atlas!" the girl smiled and melted him into a pile of goo. The girl looked but a year older than Emeri, whereas Daniel looked to be the oldest out of the children. Sirius returned the embrace. "Hello little bird, its nice to meet you!" he smiled. She blushed prettily. The little girl moved on to hug Lils and then James.
Nadia walked up and greeted him next with a one armed hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Welcome to the family, Grypphindor!" she said with a smirk. She looked as though she was proud of him for that, one of the first in his family that actually was. Next was William who gave him a firm hand shake and then Daniel who did the same, imitating his father. "Alright, looks like we are all here! Why don't we all go to the living room? Son would mind a glass of whiskey and some Scotch here for your mother?" Max said. "Come on guys, its story time!" Mattie said, excited while he lead the children into the living room, being a little gentleman by taking the twins Judy and Rosa by the hand. It almost reminded him of heading to class at Hogwarts, following the others back into the living room while he took back his spot next to his whiskey. Looking over, he saw the eager look in Lils eyes at learning something new, while James had more of a semi-interested look. He had never been big on family history, anymore than Sirius had. However he was very curious about this side of the family. His mother had told him and Regulus next to nothing about them, probably because she knew next to nothing about them. While the kids got situated Anna Lee and Eudora left to go fix some hot chocolate. While waiting on them, Max turned to the three of them. "Anymore thoughts on what you wish to do here?" he asked. Lily smiled. "I have decided to open that potions shop, it is just to tempting to pass up, and a wonderful way to still have time for the children as well!" he smiled at her enthusiasm.
He was happy for her. It was a dream of hers to be her own boss, and potions had always been a passion of hers. "Well cousin, I and James have been talking. For a brief moment we thought about going into advertising but the truth is, both of us were looking to be Aurors in England. I've heard that you, William, have a private security buisness here?" he looked over to the man. It was actually rather genius, something he would have never heard of in England. They all trusted in wards so much, whereas here they always preferred to err on the side of caution for the VIPs of the country. It was a way for he and James to put their skills into use, on a less threatening scale, and the pay was more than adequate! "I do indeed, and the thought has crossed my mind to recruit you and Charlie here. Sounds like you are interested?" there was a calculating gleam in his eyes that showed his relation to the Blacks, he could see it poking through here and there. James perked up. "We both are. We are both well trained, are exceptional with blending into crowd, and to be honest, it sounds like the type of work that would be best suited to the two of us." his best mate stated. "Both of you, please call me Will, only my clients call me William." he replied. "I will be happy to arrange a meeting so that we can assess your skills and interview you. It simply would not due to just give you the position, but I don't imagine that we will have any issues with you two making the cut." he finished with a smile. Max gave both him and James an secretive grin and Sirius let out a sigh of relief. He would have been eternally bored to do nothing all day!
Not long after that was settled, Nadia and Anna Lee started to bring in Hot Chocolate for the children, giving the toddlers the drink in special non spilling cups. It was now time for Max to take central stage. "Alright, gather around folks, it is time to give our British cousins a run of the family history!" his voice took on the tone of a master storyteller, and all the children started leaning in, sitting crosslegged in front of Max. "It all started in 1630 with our ancestor John Winthrop. It was a dark time in the world back then. The time of the Witch Hunts, with trials going on throughout the world, led by misguided zealots who feared what they could not understand. John and his wife Margaret nee Black, known to history as Margaret Tyndal also, had to hide what they were, and what better way than to join the Puritans? (I know this is not the actual history, I claim author's creative licsense!) Becoming Puritan was one of the greatest ways that they could think of to throw off the scent of the authorities in what they actually were. The trip was long, imagine spending all that time on a ship with that many people in such close quarters! But the young couple had a charm to them, spinning tales that they took from their own world into fairy tales as to not draw suspiscion onto them. The soon to be settlers began to look to John, especially when the seas would start to become rough and they began to ask him to lead them into prayer. By the time they had reached America's shores, John was looked to as the leader of the new settlers.
They had with them their children (once again, creative license here, do not shoot me! It would not be the first time an author has played it fast and loose with history for a narative *eyeballs The Tudors series writers*) Mary, Samuel, John Jr, and the eldest, Henry from off the Arbela onto the mainland, looking to do as our ancestors had done before, explore new lands, escape the hysteria and aristrocracy of Europe, and discover what they could about the Natives that they had heard about when they lived in England. In June 1630, the Winthrop Fleet arrived in what would later be called Salem. We know that name as a name of horror, but that is a tale for another time. On account of lack of food, the town "pleased them not."They proceeded to Charlestown, which pleased them less for lack of fresh water. The Puritans settled around the spring in what would become Boston, aquiring the land form the first English settler, William Blaxton. ( wiki/History_of_Boston reference) John became Govenor of the settlers. Govenor Wintrhop announced the foundation of the town of Boston on September 7, 1630, with the place named after the town of Boston in the English county of Lincolnshire, from which many of them had emigerated. Now during this time, The Winthrops were not the only magickals that had left the Old World for the new. For another well known to magickal England, also and more closely related to the Sacred 28 had also come seeking refuge.
For those who know of the founding of Ilvermorny know of Isolt Sayre, niece of Gormlaith Gaunt, the aunt from whom she was fleeing. That same Gormlaith who is distantly related to the very Dark Lord menacing so recently the English grounds in fact! Long story short, Isolt was victorious in the slaying of her personal Snake, and the Winthrop children came to know well the first students of the reknowned witch, as well as her children. Samuel married Isolt's daughter, Martha, their son Henry married Webster Boot's daughter Anne, and here we are today." Sirius could tell there were many other stories to be told, but to hear everything they had risked to gain new life in a new world thrilled him and filled him with a sense of pride. Sounded like many of these exploring relatives would have been great Grypphindors, grand adventurers he used to imagine he and Reggie were when they could sneak away from their mother and find a safe place to play as children. The short tale only left him hungry for more information. James however looked rigid at the name Gaunt. A loud beeping came to his ears, sounding like it was coming from the kitchen area. Anna Lee stood up. "And that sounds like my cue. Ladies, if you wouldn't mind assisting me in setting the table?" she said with a smile. Eugenia, Nadia, and Lils stood up and headed that way.
