Chapter 5: It's all about the Family

Nora's life had become close to normal, except for the fact that she was avoiding Daisy. The girl was giving Nora pleading looks, but she didn't want to talk to the girl, until she was willing to apologize to Corvus. Nora still hadn't properly spoken to the boy about his family. She didn't care, who his parents were, because she knew him.

Nora had also noticed people giving Olivia weird looks, which had made the blond girl sad. Nora was supposed to bring up the subject when she had a chance.

The atmosphere on the breakfast-table was gloomy. Olivia wasn't being her usual bubbly self, Corvus was wondering how to bring up Nora's parents. Nora felt sad, because of her argument with Daisy. Michelle and Astoria just didn't simply know how to light up the atmosphere.

Everything changed, when an owl with a letter flew in the middle of the group and gave Nora her first letter during her whole school year. Nora's Aunt Laurel hadn't written her a letter, and Nora wasn't really surprised. It just wasn't something that her aunt would do.

Nora!

Love to hear from you! I agreed with you aunt, that you'll come to our house for your entire Christmas Holiday! I can't wait to have you for longer than Christmas. Tell me when your semester ends, and I'll send you the train ticket. I can't come to pick you up, you know me in traffic, and William… well you know your uncle.

It'll be first time in years that everyone will be here. Even Marianne, her husband and Connor, Erin and Fiona are coming from Boston! I can't wait to spoil you all! Or all except one.

I'm glad to hear, you are happy. If your aunt allows, maybe you can come here and bring some of your friends with you! If the rules allow, then please send me some pictures! I can't wait to see you and them! Oh, I also sent some of Rosemary and Phillip's pictures to you, I hope you enjoy them! I also added some with all my dears together, just because! Don't worry, I still have plenty at home!

We are managing. Your uncle and his friend visits us daily. They just adopted the most adorable puppy called Pongo. Oh, and Mr Whiskers is doing well, he enjoys its pension days! I'll send you some pictures of him as well!

And remember dear, to stay out of the trouble. Hopefully the vandals will be found out soon!

With all the love

Your Grandma and Grandpa

Iris and John Barrell.

Nora smiled at the letter. She spent all her Christmases with her grandparents, who lived in York. They were her mother's parents, who were warm and bubbly people. Her uncle Bill lived with his "friend" Ian near their house. Then there was also her mother's twin sister Aunt Marianne, who lived with her Irish husband Sean Declan Ahearn in Boston. Nora didn't like the man, because of the way he treated her grandparents. He spoke to them in very condescending way and looked down on people.

Nora had met his family in one Christmas. She and her grandparents really liked his siblings and parents. They were very kind and friendly people, who came from poor background. Uncle Bill had explained Nora that the man tried to run away from his origins and get a better life.

'Nobody enjoys living in poverty. Still, you should never forget where you're coming from, like Annie and that prick has', Uncle Bill had explained Nora the last time the family was visiting them.

Nora usually spent a week of her summer break and her Christmases with her grandparents and Uncle Bill and his "friend" Ian. They were warmest and most loving people that Nora knew. But the reason for Nora living with Aunt Laurel was her grandparents' old age. Also, when Nora had come orphan, her aunt had that point three children already to take care of. Nora's uncle Bill on the other hand had quite unstable life and was openly seen protesting for minor sexuality rights and been even in jail for it. Nora had seen the picture of him protesting in newspapers and had seen the love in his and Uncle Ian's eyes.

Everybody in the main family knew about the Uncle Bill's relationship, but it was never openly spoken about, because by law, their relationship was illegal.

Nora took out the photographs from the envelope, and even brighter smile came on her face.

"What's making you smile Nora?" Olivia wondered.

"I g… got a l… letter f… from my gr… grandma, and s… she sent s… some pi… pictures."

"Wow, you look a lot like your maman." It was true. She had similar hair colour with her mother, same oval-shaped head, and similar nose. From her father she had inherited her dark green eyes, freckles and mouth-area, and her timid-yet-polite personality.

Nora's mother was short and little chubby. Her hair was curly and dark brown, and her eyes were hazel. Her lips were large and wore bright a smile. She looked happy in each picture, but especially in those, where she was with Nora's father, Philip Wilkins.

Her father was tall and lanky man, with short blond hair and short blond beard that tried to cover his freckles. His smile was shy and small when he looked at the camera. But when he looked at Rosemary, his eyes came alive.

"Oh, who is this cutie-pie?" Olivia asked.

"Oh, th… that's Mr. W… Whiskers."

"Mr. Whiskers?"

"Ye… yes, it's n… nine, I n… named h… him when I was t… three."

"That's so cute!" Astoria cried out.

"Why aren't the pictures moving?" Corvus felt puzzled. He had never seen still pictures because his family never visited muggles' neighbourhoods.

"M… muggle pi… pictures d… don't move."

"How come you have so many photos?" Michelle wondered.

"My gr... grandparents o… owned a p… photoshop, th… they s… sold ca… cameras, vi…video cameras, a…and fi… film r… rolls a… and th… they pri… printed pictures and bu…burned vi… videos... Th… they also owned th… the dark room."

"Burned videos?" Olivia asked, voice filled with curiosity.

"I… in th… their f… final years, th… they sold VHS, th… they c… can be linked i… in the television…"

"How does it work?"

"Seriously Livvy, that's what you're interested in?" Michelle wondered.

"Wow, all that actually sounds quite interesting, does your family still run it?" Astoria interrupted before the two girls started to picker.

"N… no, grandma i… is al… already se… seventy-eight, and gra… grandpa ei… eighty-one. M… my mum was s… supposed to i… inherit it, but y… you know…"

"Oh, that's so sad!" Olivia cried out.

"So, is this the aunt you live with?" Astoria pointed at Nora's aunt Marianne.

"N… no, th… that's my a… Aunt Annie", Nora answered. "I l… live wi… with my fa… father's sister A… Aunt Laurel."

"How about your other grandparents?" Corvus asked, it was rare for Nora to talk about herself. "Are they still alive?"

"M… My grandmother i… is. I d… don't s… see her th.. that often."

"What is she like?"

"Um… Sh… she is q… quite strict. She c… comes from a ri… rich fa… family, and ap… appearance i… is im… important f… for her. It i… isn't th… the main n… nor th… the most im… important re… reason, but sh… she insisted A… Aunt La… Laurel to ta… take c… care of m… me, be… because it l… looks g… good."

"Oh, she doesn't sound very nice", Astoria said, trying not to sound rude.

"Horrible, just horrible woman!" Michelle sounded angry.

"Sh… she isn't s… so bad. Sh… she j… just m… mourned, a… and still d… does f… for my dad."

"Is this your uncle? Who is he with?" Corvus asked, sensing the girls starting to grill Nora about her grandmother.

"Y… yes, th… that's my U… Uncle B… Bill. That's h… his" Nora remembered her grandpa's words: 'If anyone ever asks, they are just friends, because that's all they're allowed to be!' "b… best f… friend. H… he is l… like s… second u… uncle to m… me. So h… he is my U… Uncle Ian."

"Wow, that's so nice! I hope I can keep a friendship like that one day!" Olivia piped out.

"Y… yeah, m… me too."

Rest of the breakfast went in a lot of happier tone. They chatted about the pictures and laughed at some silly photos.

It was obvious that Olivia was bothered by the rumours. Corvus knew that Olivia's aunt Arabella Underwood was well-known supporter of Dark Lord, who killed mostly muggles. She had died in the hands of an old muggle man, who had shot the woman death. For Olivia's luck not very, many people knew about even more dangerous and more famous family member of Olivia's. Her uncle from her mother's side was Antonin Dolohov, who was a brother of Anastacia Dolohova.

"Are you going to watch the game tomorrow?" Corvus asked. He wanted to distract her mind from the recent events.

"I don't know, maybe not. People are still looking and judging me."

Corvus sighed. He knew the girl couldn't go on like that. "So, you don't want to see us beating Gryffindors to the ground?" Corvus stated in condescending voice.

Sparkle came to alive in Olivia's different pair of eyes. "What? There's no way we are losing to you guys!"

"Hah, so you say now!"

"I'll bet you ten galleons that our team is going to beat up you guys!" Olivia said in heated voice. "We have Potter in our team, and I've seen Wood's passion for the game close by. So, there's no way we're going to lose to your cousin!"

"I accept the bet, if you go to see the game tomorrow."

"I agree!"

The next day Nora, Olivia, and Michelle were cheering for Gryffindor team. On the other side of the stadium stood Corvus and Astoria, wearing green and silver. It was rainy and windy day.

It was Nora's first time watching Quidditch. The game seemed illogical to her, but it was still interesting enough to follow. She could barely see the Slytherin players since their brooms were just so fast. Corvus had told Nora that morning in Breakfast table, that his cousin had bought the newest brooms to whole team.

Michelle watched the game for pointers. She scribed things to her notebook every so often, that made no sense in Nora's eyes. Olivia watched the game with eyes wide open. Yelling praises and curse words as Lee Jordan's commentary went by. Frankly, more of Nora's time went by observing her friends than watching the actual game.

"Ummm… I… is it n… normal th… that those th… balls fo… follow only one p… person?" Nora asked, as she noticed the Bludger following Harry.

"No, I've never seen anything like that", Michelle answered. "They are programmed to hit all the players, like the other one is." She pointed out the other Bludger, that hit Gryffindor's Chaser Angelina Johnson.

"So, w… why i… is it ac… acting weirdly?"

"I have no idea," Michelle shrugged, and made more scribbles in her book. "But I must say. Gryffindor's team has better strategy, but Slytherins gets a huge advantage with their brooms. If they don't catch the Snitch soon, they'll be slaughtered."

"Hush now Mich, I'm not going to lose 10 Galleons to Raven boy!" Olivia cried out and Michelle just rolled her eyes. "Oh, they are having a time-out! I wonder what's wrong?"

"I ha… have no i… idea."

"Probably got something to do with that Bludger. I mean it almost broke Potter's nose."''

"Yeah, I just hope he didn't hurt himself or anything."

The team was in a time-out for a while. The change they saw was Harry making spirals, zigzags, and rolls. He was dealing against the Bludger on his own.

The weather got colder and rain heavier. Nora shivered, and wondered, how Michelle's notes weren't getting wet nor ruined. She wondered, which spell the girl had used. Olivia didn't seem to mind the weather at all, she was too entangled with the game.

"He saw the Snitch, he saw the Snitch!" Olivia cried. Michelle stopped scribbling and watched as Harry Potter flew towards Corvus cousin. "I'm certain of it, see his body language!" Then the ball hit his arm hard. The whole stadium could hear his scream.

"Oh Mon Dieu!"

"I… is it bro… broken?"

"I think so, gosh that looks painful!"

To the girls surprise, the broken arm didn't stop Harry. He continued to fly towards Draco, who hadn't noticed the Golden Snitch yet. Draco dodged Harry. Draco still had no idea about the golden ball. Harry kept flying and took his healthy hand away from the broom as he reached out for the Snitch and caught it.

"HE GOT THE SNITCH, GRYFFINDOR WINS WITH 180 POINTS AGAINST SLYTHERIN'S 90!"

The girls gasped as they saw Harry crashed to the ground. Soon enough the boy was surrounded by his team, and very eager looking Gilderoy Lockhart and Colin Creevey with his muggle camera.

"Th… that's not going to e… end well."

"Amen."

"What are you two talking about? He is a great man, certainly he can fix one broken bone!"

Olivia realized soon she had been wrong. Nora's mouth gasped wide open when she saw Professor Lockhart erasing all of Harry's bones. "Shit! Well technically, he fixed the broken one."

"Seriously Liv, that sale imbécile has absolutely no idea, what he is doing!"

"H… he e… erased a… all th… the bones… so, I a… agree w… with y… you Michelle."

"But, how else could he have written all the books?"

"I bet he hasn't."

"Ha… have you n… noticed, h… how he t… teaches u… us a… absolutely n… no… nothing?"

"But -!"

"Give up Liv, you're not going to win this one."

Olivia went silent. She decided not to continue the conversation, because she couldn't change the two girls' mind. The bone-incident didn't change her opinion about Professor Lockhart. If he was a fraud, then how could he have written all those books?

Did he just blow it all up? Did I just lose ten Galleons because of him? His "amazing flying skills my ass! Corvus thought, cursing his cousin.

"Well, I think Olivia is going to be one happy lady", Astoria said, feeling gloomy. She loved watching Quidditch. "But I must say that your cousin sucks."

"I unfortunately have to agree with you."

"By the way, have you spoken with Nora yet?"

"No, I haven't found the right moment yet."

"Well, I can understand that. It's not something easy, nor simple thing to bring up."

"I know," Corvus sighed. It was another topic he had avoided talking with Nora.

"But if you keep that up, you're going to hurt her feelings, you know that right?"

"Yes – "

"And it has to be you, from whom she hears it, since the rest of us already know."

"Yeah…"

"And it's about her family."

"Yes, I know that Tori, can you please stop, I already feel awful for her not knowing about it."

"Then do something about it already!"

"Umm… h… hey A… Astoria, Co… Corvus?" Both of them looked startled at Nora, Olivia and Michelle, who had spotted them.

"Yeah… hi guys," Astoria said awkwardly. "Good game?"

"You bet it was, because" Olivia singsong the last words: "Raven-boy owes me ten Galleons!"

"I know."

"It was bon game. But did you see, what that idiot did to Potter's hand?"

"No, I have no idea, what you are talking about, we left immediately. Who did what?"

"Y… you shouldn't call h… him i… idiot, he's s… still out t.. teacher! Pr… Professor L… Lock... Lockhart made h… his h… hands b… bones disappear."

"What do you mean disappear?"

"He literally erased his bones," Michelle said.

"What!? That must have been an accident!" Astoria piped out.

"Knowing him, he had no idea, what he was doing."

"Corvus! You can't say that! He tried to fix his bones, and he did!" Olivia kept defending the man.

"Oh, sale merde! Just stop it already Livia."

"But Mich, she has a point."

"No Tori, Michelle is right, he doesn't know what he is doing."

"I a…a… agree wi… with M… Mic… Michelle and C… Corvus…"

"Traitor", Astoria muttered at Nora, who usually was impartial with arguments.

"Do you think, he will take visitors?"

"Who, Lockhart?"

"No, Harry Potter, of course! I'd love to have his autograph."

"I don't think so Michelle. Madam Pomfrey can be really strict," Astoria wondered.

Yeah, and knowing Harry, he most likely wouldn't give you one," Olivia said.

"Harry?" Astoria teased.

"Well, we are in the same House, so it would be weird to not to call him that."

"But you still call his friends Weasley and Granger."

Olivia blushed: "Is it so wrong to want to feel closer to him?"

"Ask him, he knows the answer," Astoria teased more.

The two girls kept bickering on their way to the Castle. Corvus took advantage of the situation: "Hey Nora, do you have a minute?" Nora just nodded, and the two walked towards the lake. The rain had stopped, but the grass was still wet, so the two decided not to sit down.

"So, I have something to tell you, I've been supposed to talk to you about this for some time now."

"I k… know a… about y… your pa… parents."

"What?"

"D… Daisy wa… was bl… blaming you f… for the letters and a… all, and sh… she said th… that your pa… parents w… were D… Death-Eaters, so I d… did some research in the l… library."

"And you don't mind? You're not afraid of me? Or disgusted by me?"

"N… No, w… why would I be?"

"Well, because, because of all the horrible things that they did!"

"Ye… yeah?"

"My parents are in Azkaban. My mother is known for enjoying torturing people, and if they were lucky, she would kill them afterwards. My father liked to learn and study new spells with Antonin Dolohov, who is actually Olivia's uncle, to hurt and kill people!" Corvus was feeling agitated. "And I am creation, that those two made. People call them monsters, but I'm still their son. Their blood runs in me!"

"B… but y… you're not them. What y… you just said proves t… that. Of c… course you r… resemble th… them in w… ways, b… but yo… you are n… not the s… same pe… people!"

"But they are murderers! Do you know that Longbottom boy from a year ahead of us? My parents tortured his parents into madness! They are in St. Mungo, and they will be there for the rest of their life, because of what they did! And that's not the worst thing, the most horrible thing is that they both enjoyed it!"

"Corvus", Nora said his name sternly without stuttering. "I d… don't give a r… rat-ass, wh… who your pa… parents a… are, but who y… you are!"

Corvus was stunned and speechless. He wasn't used to that kind of reaction. He remembered Michelle's first reaction and how it had taken weeks, before the girl stopped treating him hostility. He confessed the girl something he had never said out loud.

"I still can't quite hate them. I mean, even though they did all those monstrous acts. But neither can I feel any love towards them. They got exactly what they deserved. But I feel bitter, and angry for them leaving me behind. I just wish, I could hate them, but I can't. But even more I wish I could feel indifferent about them. Like they meant nothing to me."

"We c… can't change o… our parents, nor o… our family. A… also we c… can't decide h… how we f… feel."

"Well, that's true but…"

"But?"

"I still feel conflicted."

"M… my grandparents and u… uncle a… always say, y… you are who y… you are, even if t… the rest of the w… world disapproves it, just b… be t… true to yourself. S… so I t… think it's f… fine if y… you don't k… know how to f… feel."

For the first time in his life, Corvus initiated a hug. "Thanks Nora."

"Y… you're welcome." Nora patted Corvus back gently. The moment ended with Nora's stomach growling loudly.

"Do you want to go to eat some dinner?"

"Y… yes p… please."

They walked back at the castle, Nora still not knowing, that her parents had been murdered.