Author's Note: Okay, this might sound a little dumb, but for visual use, I sort of pictured The Potter house like the house from Full House, the Malfoy manor is like the house from Charmed, and the Weasley house is sort of like the house from Rosanne, only more modern.
Forgive my television choices, that's just what I see when I'm writing here. Everyone else's house, you'll have to use some imagination. Ha Ha
I hope this REALLY long chapter is worth the wait, it was 37 pages on WORD!
This whole chapter is set in one day. December 23, 2016.
Chapter Seven: Holiday
Al relaxed on the couch in the living room, watching his mother and sister put up ornaments on the Christmas tree. James and Danaë were in the kitchen and his dad was still at work.
"Albus," his mother said. "Do you want to help Lily and me?" Al looked up and his sister was reaching up to place a rather large bauble on the tree.
"Sure," Al said. He hopped off the couch and helped Lily with the ordainment. The three of them continued to work until Teddy and Harry walked through the door.
"I just don't understand why you won't study for this test," Harry said, sounding frustrated.
"Because it's a test on disguising myself," Teddy said, refraining from laughter. "I'm pretty good at it already…" To prove his point, he squeezed his eyes shut and his turquoise hair grew out and turned black, his brown eyes became a deep green, and he grew a little taller. He looked like Harry without glasses, but the smirk was so very Teddy that it was easy to tell them apart. "Don't you think?" he asked. Harry rolled his eyes at his godson and Teddy turned back to normal.
"Hey boys," Ginny said from behind the tree. "Fun day at work?" Lily, who was also behind the tree, came running out and leaped into Harry's arms. Harry hoisted her up and kissed Lily's cheek, causing her to giggle.
"Hi Ginny," Teddy said. "Work was fine." He replied, taking Al's seat on the sofa.
"Just fine?" Ginny asked curiously.
"Yea well, boss can be a real jerk sometimes…" He said, and Harry smacked the back of his head, "Hey!" Childishly, Harry stuck out his tongue. Teddy laughed and jumped up again.
"Well I'm going to see Victorie." He smiled widely. Then with a nod, he turned on his heels and disapperated. Harry placed Lily back on the ground and walked over to the tree. Currently, only half of the tree had decoration on it, and it looked like it was about to fall. In Harry's eyes, it was perfect.
"I think he does," Lily announced, beginning to string popcorn on the tree. Lily often did this, only voicing the last parts of her thoughts so that the whole room was confused.
"You think who does what?" Al asked, looking confused. Lily looked at her brother, annoyed that she had to explain herself.
"I think that Teddy loves Victorie," Lily said as though it was obvious Harry and Ginny raised their eyebrows at each other; Ginny's eyes saying 'I told you so,' and Harry's eyes saying 'Bill's not going to like this.'
"Where's James?" Harry asked.
"In the kitchen with Danaë," Al answered, trying to fight a war against the tinsel that had clung to his sweater.
"I think they love each other too…" Lily said, but Al shushed her. Harry chuckled and went into the kitchen. James and Danaë were sitting at the table, heads close together, reading what looked like a Quidditch magazine.
"Hey you two," Harry said, but he was either ignored, or the two were too busy to notice him. He went to the refrigerator and poured himself a glass of pumpkin juice. The clinking of glass made Danaë look up.
"Hi Mr. Potter," she said sweetly. Harry smiled at her.
"Hello Danaë, when did you get here?" It had become accustomed that Danaë spent the holidays with them ever sense James' first year at Hogwarts. Harry was reminded of his own childhood, spending every holiday with the Weasley's because it was better than going to the Dursley's. Harry knew Danaë had the same reasons. She had grown up in a muggle orphanage, not knowing about being a witch until Professor McGonagall knocked on the door one day. When a young eleven year old James had come to Harry, explaining all this about his new best friend, Harry instantly had a soft spot for Danaë.
"Just this morning, but I left my school books on my desk, so we're going to go back and get them later," Danaë said. She and James would wait until it was less crowded at her place before heading over there. "And then when we come back we may drag Michael along." She added as a side note.
"That's good." Just then James realized that there was someone else in the room and he looked up at his dad.
"Hi Dad," James said. "Is Teddy here?"
"Just missed him," Harry said. "But your mother's working on the tree in there with Al and Lily, you should go help," Harry jerked his head toward the living room.
"Oh come on, it'll be fun," Danaë said as James began to pout. "Please James," she said.
James gave in to her pleading, and he and Danaë left the kitchen to help the others. Harry smirked as they left. His eldest really was a lot like Ron was when they were kids; really into Quidditch, food, and completely unaware that he was crazy about his best friend.
As if on cue with Harry's thoughts, Ron walked into the back door that connected their yard with the kitchen. He didn't acknowledge Harry and headed straight for the cupboard.
"Hi Ron," Harry laughed. Ron hardly came through the front door, seeing that the back door went straight to the kitchen. Ron looked up at Harry with a handful of crackers in hand. "I swear you raid my kitchen more than the boys," Harry said.
"Oh um," Ron raised his eyebrows a bit and bit his lip. "I was just in the neighborhood, thought I'd check in…"
"Ron, you're my neighbor," Harry chuckled. "Besides, I don't care. It's your sister who shoos you out and sends you home."
"There's no food at home though. Hermione is working late before she goes on holiday," Ron said, stuffing a cracker in his mouth.
"Why don't you cook then?" Harry suggested. Ron gave Harry a look of disbelief. "Right, never mind." Harry said. Ron couldn't cook if his life depended on it. "Just bring Rose and Hugo over here, Ginny always cooks extra." Ron nodded.
"Good plan," Ron said. The door between the kitchen and the living room began to open. Knowing it was probably Ginny, he looked back at Harry, who couldn't help but laugh.
"Best get out of here, Dinner is at 7," Harry said. Ron gave Harry a thumbs up and then sprinted out the back door and hopped over the bushes that separated his yard from the Potter's. Ginny walked into the kitchen, popcorn and tinsel in her hair, to find her husband chuckling.
"What's so funny?" Ginny ask, putting her hands on her hips. Harry though, only shook his head and walked toward his wife, pulling at the tinsel in her ginger hair.
"Who won?" Harry joked. "The Tree or the stockings?" Ginny raised an eyebrow at Harry. "What? You look like you just got out of a Christmas battle," Ginny rolled her eyes and playfully slapped his chest.
"Shut up," she said. "Lily got all excited and tripped on the popcorn bowl, running into James and the tinsel went all over the place and now the five of us that were out there look like we decorated ourselves instead of the tree." Harry laughed again and he peeked in the door to see the kids in the same state that Ginny was.
"Was that Ron that just jumped over the bush?" Ginny asked. "Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about."
"Um, yea, I invited them for dinner, 'cause Hermione will be working late," Harry said, he knew Ginny wouldn't mind, and she nodded, confirming what he knew.
"Fine, then you're helping Mr. Potter," Ginny said. She threw him an apron and put her own on.
"Yes ma'm," Harry saluted, and then the two began to get to work.
Gage lay down on the floor of his father's office, throwing a quaffle that was in the corner of the room up and down as his dad worked at his desk. His father, Vincent Oliver, moved the family to London that previous summer when he was offered the editor-in-chief's position on the Daily Prophet. Memos were flying in and out and around Gage's father's head, the holiday season must be busy for the paper.
"That doesn't make any sense…" Mr. Oliver would say occasionally. "Gage, does this make sense?" Gage, who wasn't paying attention, looked over at his dad and promptly dropped the quaffle on his face.
"Oww," Gage said, grabbing his nose. "Does what make sense?" Vincent hardly looked up from his desk and handed Gage a tissue and a piece of paper.
"Read that and tell me if that makes sense to you, I don't know how many more of these I can read over…" Gage looked at his dad with a raised eyebrow for a moment, wondering if he even knew about Gage's problem with reading. But Mr. Oliver didn't correct himself, or apologize; he just went back to his desk work. Gage rolled his eyes and put the paper on the desk.
"Sounds great Pop," Gage said. Just then, an owl flew into the office and landed on the quaffle that Gage was playing with earlier. Gage looked at the bird curiously and unlatched a parcel from its ankle. His name was stamped across the top in bold blue letters. He was about to ask aloud about it when a memo smacked him in the head before going to his dad. Vincent grabbed it and read it over quickly before looking at Gage.
"Hey kiddo, can you run down to your mother's office and watch the twins for a minute, she has a meeting and I'm…"
"Swamped. Sure Pop," Gage said. He took the package and the owl and left the office, heading down the hall to his mother's office. "Ma?" Gage peeked in.
"Oh great, Gage, just watch the girls for a moment?" his mother, Eliza, said. She was running through her office and grabbing papers, the twins, 5 year olds Lennie and Luca, played on the floor next to her desk. "I have a meeting and than an interview with Oliver Wood and then…" she tripped over one of Lennie's toys. "And then I'm going to find your older brother and strangle him for backing out of babysitting today…" Gage smiled at his mother. When she finally had her things together, she kissed Gage on the cheek and then ran out the door.
"Gagey!" Luca said, realizing her brother was in the room. Lennie looked up at her brother and the girls batted their identical blue eyes from under their platinum blonde hair.
"Did'ja get a Christmas present early Gagey?" Luca asked.
"I dunno, I was about to open it," Gage said.
"I wanna read the card!" Lennie said, snatching it from Gage. Gage sighed and shook his head. His five year old sister's could read, but he couldn't read a lick.
"Dear Gage…" Lennie started. "I was tink…ing that you co…cold use these…charmed them to help you wif read…ing…" While Lennie was butchering the letter, Luca took the liberty to open Gage's gift. Inside was a pair of black, rectangular rimmed glasses.
"Someone got you glasses?" Luca asked confused. Gage took them from his sister and looked at them curiously before putting them on his face. Surprisingly enough, the glasses didn't affect his vision. Then what were they for? He listened to Lennie read the letter again. Help with his reading? Gage took the letter from his sister and looked at it. The words on the page jumbled around, making it easier for Gage to decipher what each word said. "No way…" he whispered.
Dear Gage,
I was thinking that you could use these. I had my sister charm them to help you with your reading. Think of them as training wheels, only, instead of for a broom, they're for your eyes. We'll still work together on reading. I promised you I would. But at least now, you won't have to copy Mikael in potions class.
Merry Christmas Gage!
Love Terra
Gage nearly jumped for joy, he just read that whole letter! Before he knew it, his mother was running back into her office. "Hey sweetie," his mother said. "Logan is coming to get you and the girls in a half hour. Thanks for watching them." She looked up and tilted her head quizzically. "How long have you had glasses?" She asked. Gage chuckled. With five kids, it was difficult to keep track sometimes.
"Not long," Gage shook his head; he took them off and placed them in his pocket. "Reading glasses." He shrugged. His mother nodded and sat at her desk. "Hey Mom," Gage said. "Do I have to go with Logan, Lennie, and Luca?" He asked. "Cause I wanted to see someone," he pointed to the owl still with them. "Bring back their owl."
"Sure sweetie," Eliza said. "Be home by dinner though." Gage nodded and then headed toward the floo hallways, a skip in his step, Terra's owl flying behind him.
"Mikael is the table set?" Mikael's mother called out from the living room.
"Not yet Mum," Mikael replied. The house was noisy, and he was hiding in his room trying to read the assignment for his transfiguration homework. He sighed and shut the book, going to his side of the room and hiding it under his mattress with the rest of his school stuff he had brought home. There was really no point in hiding it though; he shared the bedroom with 4 other, younger brothers who were exceptionally skilled in finding hidden things. Mikael left the room and went down stairs, stepping over toys and backpacks and smaller siblings on his way to the kitchen. His mother, who was three months pregnant, was lying on the couch playing with Nicholas and Nicole, his two currently youngest siblings.
"Mickey, sweetie, what time is you friend coming?" His mother ask when Mikael walked by.
"I told Bek six thirty," Mikael replied. He had invited Bek and her mother over for dinner in light of the holidays. Mikael thought it'd be good to invite Bek, seeing that she was also muggleborn and it wouldn't freak out his family too much to have magic folk in the house.
"And it's just her and her mother?" his mother asked, Mikael nodded, knowing that it wouldn't of mattered to his mother how many people were coming, she loved having the house full, hence the large amount of siblings. "Good, well your father will be home around 6:30 as well and the pasta is almost done." Mikael nodded again. "See if one of your brothers or sisters can help you set the table." She said.
"Kay Mum," Mikael said. He entered the kitchen and pulled out the supplies needed to set the table when six year old Peyton came skipping into the room wearing a Santa hat and jingle bells on her ankles. Her long brown hair was braided, but her bangs covered her eyes. "Hiya Peyton," Mikael laughed at his little sister. "Want to help me with the table?" He asked, offering the placemats to her.
"Otay," Peyton said. She gave Mikael a wide smile and then skipped to the dining room, placemats in hand and jingling all the way. Mikael chuckled at his little sister and was about to follow when eight year old Tyler and five year old Damien came in.
"Hey big brother," Tyler said. He took the massive pile of plates and without another word, followed Peyton to the dining room.
"I wanna help too!" Damien said. Mikael laughed again and looked at the rest of the place ware.
"Okay Day…" Mikael said. He grabbed a pile of napkins and handed them to the smallish child. "Put one napkin on the left side of the plates, okay?" Damien nodded enthusiastically and then ran into the dining room yelling: "Hey Ty! What's the left?"
Mikael crossed his arms, confused. His siblings weren't normally this helpful, and, as the oldest, that meant Mikael was mostly responsible for the chores in the house. Just then, Philip came downstairs and tosses something toward Mikael. It was his bag of wizarding money.
"Sarah had it," the 10 year old said. "You gotta have a better place to find all your weird crap then under the mattress. Please, she's five and it was right in her eyesight…" Philip shoved one hand in his pocket and scratched the top of his head with the other, his short blonde hair hardly moving.
"Oh, thanks…" Mikael said awkwardly, shoving the money in his own pocket. Aside from his parents, Philip was the only one of his siblings that knew Mikael was a wizard. Needless to say, Phil hadn't taken it to well, calling Mikael a freak and not speaking to him at all until forced to say goodbye back on September 1st. The brother's now had an uncomfortable relationship with each other, but since there were 9 kids running around the house, with two on the way as well, there never was time to resolve anything between Mikael and Philip.
"They're trying to impress Santa Claus," Philip said, jerking his head toward the door. "All the little ones, from Tyler down, they've been like the perfect kids, its nuts…" He shook his head.
"What about Omar?" Mikael asked as he pulled out the correct amount of silverware. He gathered the spoons and handed them to Philip.
"Sort of on the fence about it, I think this year he'll figure it all out," Philip looked at the spoons his brother was handing him. "Hey, I don't need to be helpful. I don't believe in Santa putting me on some naughty list…" Mikael lowered his eyes at his brother. "Fine, fine," Philip said, taking the spoons. "You know, you look a hell of a lot like Dad when you do that," Philip said. "Almost scary a lot…" and Philip shook his head and went through the door. Mikael noticed that Philip had also taken the forks and knives as well, meaning that, since glasses were already in the dining room, he didn't have to do anything to set the table.
"Awesome," Mikael said, clapping his head together. He checked his watch. 6:15. Bek would be here soon.
Victorie was dressed warmly as she sat out on her porch at Shell Cottage. She watched the snow fall around her and curled up in the porch swing. Her parents and siblings went out to get a Christmas tree and Victorie was in charge of putting up Christmas lights. Thanks to turning of age last month, it only took Victorie about 15 minutes to decorate the house.
She heard a small pop, but when she turned around, she saw no one. Cautiously, Victorie reached for her wand. "Who's there?" she called out. No response. "Hey!" she yelled. Victorie didn't feel all high and mighty in her pink snow suit and her wand pointed out. She actually felt like the blonde girl in those scary movies that she watched; the one who always died first.
Suddenly out of nowhere, a snowball came out and hit the side of Victorie's arm. Startled, she screamed and ducked down. From under the porch swing, she heard a familiar laughing, but it was the turquoise hair that gave him away.
"Teddy!" Vic yelled, jumping up and throwing snowballs at him.
"Hey gorgeous," Teddy laughed, braving the snow flying from his girlfriend's wrath and running toward her picking her up and spinning her around. "Sorry to scare you."
"You better be." Vic said, still being held in the air by her boyfriend. "What are you so cheerful about?" she asked curiously.
"I missed you," Teddy said kissing her gently before placing her back on the porch. "I haven't seen you in a couple days…" he pouted. Vic nodded understandingly. Teddy was one of the first humans to inherit the werewolf gene, rather than get it though being bitten. Healers wanted to study him when he was younger, but thanks to Harry, that never happened. Three days ago had been full moon. Enough said.
"I missed you too," Vic said leaning in to kiss him back. She brought him inside where it was warmer and the two sat on the couch next to the fireplace. "I can't wait until I graduate Hogwarts, I hate being away from you for so long." She missed the days before school when she and Teddy would just play in the yard or go to the beach, or mess with Louis and Dominique.
"Have I ever seen what you really look like?" Vic asked curiously as she leaned into Teddy, wrapping his arms around her.
"Huh?" Teddy asked.
"I was just curious, I've known you all my life; but do you change your look, or were you born looking like this?" She tugged on his turquoise hair.
"Oh, um…" Teddy thought for a moment quietly. "Well I guess no, you haven't seen me…" he said, scratching the back of his head. "There isn't a big difference…" he said.
"But there is one?" Vic asked. Teddy nodded. "Can I see?" Teddy bit his lip.
"I dunno Victorie…" Teddy said. He wasn't very fond of his actual appearance.
"Please Teddy," Victorie pleaded. Teddy sighed.
"Okay, for you," He said, kissing the top of her head. He stood up in front of the fire place and closed his eyes. Victorie watched as his features morphed, and before she knew it, he opened his eyes and spread out his arms. "Ta-Da!" he smiled. He was the same height and body type; it was mostly his face that was different. Vic stood up and looked at Teddy. He had the black family blue eyes behind long lashes, and his turquoise hair was actually a sandy brown. He smiled to show white but slightly crooked teeth. Victorie had seen a picture of Teddy's parents when they were younger, and she'd have to say that her boyfriend was the spitting image of his father.
What struck Victorie the most though, were the scars that suddenly appeared on Teddy's skin. There were some on his face and his arms as well. "Teddy…" Victorie reached out and ran a finger along one on his face. He winced and Vic pulled her hand back, an apologetic look on her face. But Teddy smiled and took her hand in his.
"Don't worry, it's just new," He said. He kissed her hand. "What do you think?" he asked. He watched her look at him. She ran her hand through his hair and grinned; Teddy let out a breath.
"You're beautiful," She whispered. Teddy smiled and leaned forward to kiss Victorie.
"No Love," Teddy said his voice and even lower volume than hers. "You are."
Robert Anderson watched from his car as an unknown vehicle parked in front of his home. Out of the car came a young woman with long black hair and a white Christmas sweater and on the other side, a young girl, the same age as Robert's oldest child. The little girl had the same black hair as her mother, but it had streaks of red and green in her hair, Robert assumed for the Christmas holiday.
They must have been the guests that Mikael had invited. From his mysterious magic school. Robert had several children, and he loved them equally. If his oldest son was to be a wizard, Robert would support it.
He hopped out of his car and wrapped his coat around him. He reached the front door just as their guests made their way up the walkway.
"Hello," Robert said.
"Hi," Bek replied. She was outgoing and excited and Robert took her outstretched hand. "I'm Bek, this is my mother Madeline," She introduced her mother. Yesterday, Mikael had written Bek to warn her about his large family. Bek was excited about it though, she always wanted a lot of siblings, but it was just her and her mother. So the prospect of a day hanging out with Mikael and all his siblings was thrilling.
"Pleased to meet you Bek. I'm Robert, Mikael's father," he smiled. He shook Bek's hand and her mother's.
"Good, we thought we had the wrong house," Madeline said with a smile.
"Oh, you'll soon know which one is ours, come on in, before we all freeze." He opened the door. "Grace?" He called out, letting the Caldwell's in. "Mikael! Our company is here."
Mikael came from the kitchen. There was a strand of pasta in his hair that Bek was sure he didn't notice. "Bek!" Mikael exclaimed running over and hugging her. Bek laughed and hugged her back.
"Hey Mik, Happy Christmas." Bek smiled. She introduced her mother and her friend and then Mikael told his dad that dinner was done.
"Great, why don't you bring everyone to the table?" Robert said.
"Okay, come one Bek, Mrs. Caldwell…"
"Madeline is fine sweetie," Bek's mother said. Mikael nodded and he led them to the dining room, chuckling slightly. He didn't check the table after his siblings set it and it looked slightly ridiculous.
"Take a seat anywhere," Mikael said. Bek and Madeline sat and Mikael took a seat next to Bek. "Hold on tight," He joked as suddenly what sounded like a stampede was coming toward them. Suddenly the door burst open and Bek watched in amusement as a storm of children came hurrying in, followed slowly by Mikael's mother, and his father carrying the spaghetti.
"Wow that was crazy!" Bek said as excited chatter erupted around the table. She was in awe of the interaction that was going on. Most of the kids were very young, and Bek was entertained by the excitement over Santa Claus and Christmas gifts.
"Okay, how many siblings do you HAVE?" Bek asked Mikael. He laughed and wiped spaghetti sauce off his face.
"Eight," Mikael replied. "And my mom is pregnant again," he pointed over to his mother. "With twins, so after that, there'll be eleven." Bek dropped her fork, causing Mikael to laugh. ""Hey, you done?" Mikael asked as Bek polished off her plate. She nodded. "Kay, come on," Bek looked over to her mother, who was avidly enjoying a conversation with Mikael's parents. Mikael got up and left the table, and Bek followed him. They went up the stairs and turned to a bedroom that Bek assumed it was his.
"Where are we going?" Bek asked as she looked around the room. It actually looked like one of the dorms back at Hogwarts. "Who sleeps here?"
"Getting away from the insanity," Mikael answered. "And this is my room," He pointed toward a bed by the window. "And Philip's and Omar's and Tyler's and Damien's." Mikael laughed. "The girls sleep in the room next door and the twins are across the hall. Mom and Dad sleep downstairs."
"So you have no privacy, ever?" Bek asked, thinking that, even if he left his family to go to Hogwarts, he still was surrounded by the boys and others in Gryffindor tower.
"Not exactly," Mikael tossed her a jacket. "Come on, follow me." Bek did as she was told and followed Mikael, who climbed out the window onto the roof of his house.
"Mik, you're going to fall," Bek said, but that didn't stop her from following after him. Outside the Anderson home, it was snowing. Their roof was a thick powdery white and Bek and Mikael did everything they could to keep from slipping off.
"Welcome to my oasis," Mikael said. "None of the others can get up here." He sat on the top of the roof and Bek followed.
"It's so cool up here," Bek said, sitting in the snow and looking up at the sky.
"It's quiet up here," Mikael pointed out. "I learned I was a wizard up here." Mikael said. Bek turned her head to him, a look of question on her face. "It was last April, a couple weeks before my eleventh birthday," he laughed a little. "I slipped off and it's a two story drop, but I landed smoothly, didn't hurt myself at all." Bek raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything. The two friends sat quietly and watched the sky. Snow had begun to fall again and Bek shivered slightly.
"I was nine…almost ten and I was running away from some bully at school who was making fun of my hair." She tugged one of her green strands of hair that she had done for the holidays. "I had dyed most of it blonde, not a good phase for me," she giggled. "Anyway, I was running and all the sudden, I was home." She looked back at Mikael. "Like, I entered the girl's bathroom and ended up running into my living room." She giggled again at the memory of shock that crossed her mother's face.
"Best day of my life," Mikael said.
"Me too," Bek replied. They watched the sky again for a bit before Bek looked over the slopped edge of the house to a pile of snow on the ground. A mischievous smile crossed her face and a look of worry crossed Mikael's.
"That look has gotten us into nothing but trouble Bek," Mikael said.
"You said it was two stories down right?" she asked. Mikael nodded. "Okay, come on."
"Come on what?" Mikael asked.
"We're sliding down," Mikael's face paled and the few freckles on his face stood out.
"No we're not," But Bek had already looped her arm in his.
"Ready?" Mikael shook his head. "Set…"
"Rebecca, I'm telling you, bad idea!"
"Go!"
Lizzy got out of her mother's car and brushed imaginary dust off the skirt of her black dress. "Thanks Mum," Lizzy said. "Pick me up later?"
"At 8," Victoria Torrance waved to her daughter and drove off. Lizzy brushed her long red hair over her shoulder before making her way to the front door of the Longbottom home. She knocked twice and then stepped back. There were blue radishes hanging on the door handle and Lizzy looked at them curiously until the door swung open and Terra's older brother, Frankie, a sixth year Hufflepuff, greeted her with a smile.
"Hi Frankie," Lizzy smiled.
"Hey Torrance," Terra just assumed it was a phase that Frankie was going through, calling all non-family members by their last name, and she told Lizzy not to take offence. "Come on in," He held the door open and pointed up the stairs to where Terra's room was. With a quick thanks, Lizzy slipped out of her shoes and left them by the door before running up the stairs. She stepped onto the second floor landing and realized that she didn't know which room was Terra's. The first door she passed, the doorknob shocked her.
"Ow!" Lizzy jumped back.
"Oh, hey," Terra appeared from around the corner of the hall. "Sorry, didn't know you were here." The petite blonde girl skipped over and hugged Lizzy. "That's Frankie's room. Super private, no humans allowed," Terra held up her hands. "Just nargles and woz-naps," Lizzy was about to ask what nargles and woz-naps were, but she thought against it and kept her mouth shut. Terra occasionally would go on weird dreamy tangents about made up or freaky creatures that controlled destiny or tied shoelaces together in the middle of the night. Lizzy did the best she could to keep those random stories to a minimum, since they could get pretty weird.
"That over there is Alice's room," She pointed down the hall a bit to the neighboring room. Smoke was coming out from under the door.
"Is everything okay in there?" Lizzy asked Terra.
"Yea, she's fine. She graduated Hogwarts last year and now she works with experimental potions at St. Mungo's." Terra shook her head. "One time, she accidentally turned the whole house blue! Blue house, blue window, blue family…da ba deed a ba die…" They passed the smokey room and Terra non-chalantly pointed out her parents' room.
"Where's your room?" Lizzy asked, realizing they reached the end of the hall and there were no more doors. Terra smiled and pointed up before saying "Open." Magically, a staircase made its way from the ceiling to the floor, right in front of Terra's feet. Lizzy's face must have shown her astonishment because the next thing Terra said was "I know cool right?" She led Lizzy up the stairs, lazily saying "close" once they reached the top.
"Better than cool," Lizzy replied. The room must have once been an observatory at one point. Terra's ceiling was magicked the same way the ceiling at the great hall was. The sky-like ceiling then moved to a dark yellow walls and dark brown hardwood floors covered where the stairs once were. There were flowers in each corner of the room, all in exotic colors that Lizzy was sure she had never seen before. And then Lizzy turned toward her bed, where to her surprise, Gage Oliver was sitting with a wide smile.
"Gage!" Lizzy ran over to their friend and hugged him.
"Hey Liz, Happy Holidays," Gage said hugging the red head back. "Sorry I didn't mean to butt in on your visit with Terra, I just wanted to drop by," Gage said sheepishly.
"Oh no, it's fine," Lizzy said, hugging him again as she took a seat next to him on the bed. "I've missed you guys, have you seen anyone else since school got out?" Lizzy asked, sitting Indian style on Terra's bed so that the owner of said bed had room to sit.
"I went with my dad when he and Al's dad and Rose's dad and their other Hogwarts dorm mates went out for some annual Christmas tradition thing, so I saw them for a bit." Terra said. She sat on the bed and pulled her long blonde braid over her shoulder. "How about you Gage?"
"Um," Gage thought for a minute. "Mostly just letters. I saw Scorpius for a fraction of a second in the Ministry, but you know, I think he was avoiding me…"
"It's not your fault; it's the Malfoy thing he's stuck with…" Lizzy said, playing with one of her fingernails. She looked up to have two curious faces looking at her. "Scorpius' parents think that he's in Slytherin, because Malfoy's are always in Slytherin."
"He never told them otherwise?" Gage asked.
"I don't blame him." Terra said. "Poor kid, my dad went to school with his dad, apparently he's a right old…"
"Terra Lynn!" One of the neon pink flowers in the far corner of the room started shouting. "Bring your friends down to dinner, sweet daughter of mine."
"Oops!" Terra said, jumping off the bed, Lizzy and Gage after her. "I forgot about dinner," they hurried down stairs, Gage tripped on the last few steps. Terra's father was in the living room, and the kids noticed he must have just walked in the door.
"You're going to get in trouble mister," Terra teased her father. Neville hushed his youngest, but to no avail. In walked Terra's mother, Luna Longbottom.
"You all are late," Luna said. Since marrying Neville and becoming a mother three times, Luna had in a since, grounded more to reality. "But since its Christmas, we'll just say it was the hollypolks that made you late and leave it at that. Leave it to them to play with the clocks when you both weren't looking." Okay, so she wasn't grounded to reality, just hovering over it. She had the same large eyes and blonde hair that Terra had, but her's weren't brown like Terra's, but a deep blue. She then noticed the three kids and smiled.
"You two must be Terra's classmates?" she asked, looking to Neville for conformation.
"Mum, these are Lizzy Torrance and Gage Oliver, both in my house," Terra said, introducing them. "Lizzy's staying for dinner if that's still okay." Luna nodded then looked to Gage.
"You're not?" she asked simply. Gage shook his head, but he found he couldn't look straight at Mrs. Longbottom's eyes, so he opted to look at Terra's father instead.
"No, I promised I'd be home for dinner, maybe next time?" Gage said.
"Anytime Gage," Neville said, as he moved to the fire place to grab the floo powder.
Gage said goodbye to the girls, hugging them tightly. "Thank you for the glasses, Terra," Gage said, hugging her for a little longer. "Best gift ever."
"Merry Christmas Gaget," Terra said, and the two girls waved as he flooed off home.
"Glasses?" Neville asked curiously. "You got him glasses for Christmas?" Terra nodded. "Strange, so can I just get you socks then?" Terra laughed and she led Lizzy into the kitchen for dinner, discussing why no one should get socks for Christmas.
"Ellipsis!" Scorpius groaned in annoyance. "Get out of my room!" He slammed his quill down on his desk and turned his desk chair to face his 10 year old sister.
"But I'm bored!" Ellipsis whined, her bleach blonde bangs falling over her steel grey eyes. "Let's do something fun!"
"I'm doing homework Lippi…" Scorpius said, watching his sister scowl at her least favorite nickname. "Go find Mum and Dad and hang out with them."
"Adults are boring," Ellipsis said. "What kind of homework are you doing?" she walked over to Scorpius' desk and peeked at his book.
"Transfiguration," Scorpius frowned, closing his book and turning back to his sister. "Why don't you go find Squattle?"
"House elves are boring too…" she sighed. Scorpius say back and watched at the pigtails in his sister's hair drooped slightly as she wandered his room curiously.
"What doesn't bore you Lippi?" Scorpius asked.
"Hogwarts!" she said excitedly. "And magic," she added, running across the room and jumping onto Scorpius' bed. "I love magic."
"Well, good thing you're a pure blood," Scorpius said somewhat bitterly. "You've seen magic done your whole life."
"Yea, unlike dumb mudbloods, they don't get to see any…"
"Don't say that!" Scorpius cringed.
"But they don't…" Ellipsis looked confused.
"No," Scorpius took a breath; he didn't want to yell at a ten year old. "Don't say Mudblood, its foul."
"But Daddy says it all the time…"
"Dad's an adult," Scorpius said. "When you're an adult, you can say whatever you want," Ellipsis pouted. "But you're still a kid, so don't say Mudblood."
"Okay Scorpius," she said, falling back onto the bed. Scorpius assumed that was that and turned back to his book. He had just found the right page when Ellipsis spoke up again. "But why?" Scorpius groaned.
"Well," he thought. "It's rude, and it makes muggle borns feel bad. It's like…like…" Scorpius tried to think of an example.
"Like when you call me 'Lippi'," Ellipsis said, sitting up and crossing her arms over her chest.
"Well what do you expect me to call you?" Scorpius asked with a chuckle.
"What do you expect me to call mudbloods?" Ellipsis countered and Scorpius just had to laugh.
"I expect you to call them muggle born."
"I expect you to call me Ellipsis." She said, sticking her chin up. "I like my name."
"Lippi," she scowled. "Ellipsis," Scorpius corrected himself. "No one in the Malfoy family can possibly like their name." he thought of his own name. Scorpius Lucius Malfoy. He was named after some unknown star and/or a poisonous insect, his death eater of a grandfather, and a Malfoy, a name that was almost feared in the wizarding world.
"Ellipsis Alexandria Malfoy," Ellipsis pulled her brother out of his thoughts. "It's pretty."
"Okay Lip," Scorpius said, shaking his head. Ellipsis jumped down off the bed and walked back to her brother.
"I'm bored," she announced.
"And we have now come full circle." Scorpius laughed.
"Bye!" and she ran out the door. Scorpius shook his head and turned back to his homework to find his paper missing.
"Ellipsis!" he called. Then he ran out to the hall after his sister.
Michael Bertolli sat on the couch, flipping through the channels on the television when his mother came in wearing yellow latex gloves and a flowery apron. Michael, in all his almost fifteen years, had never seen his mother super-cleaning the way she was now.
"Mum," Michael said. She seemed to not hear him, and continued wiping fingerprints off of the glass coffee table. "Bernadette!" His mother froze and stood up. "Sorry Mum, but really, is this necessary? It's just Loraine…"
"We haven't seen your sister in three years Michael," Bernadette said, shoving her son's feet off the now clean table. "I just want the place to be nice when she gets here." It was true that Loraine Bertolli has completely disappeared off the face of the earth three years ago after Michael's father was killed in a car accident. She was sixteen when she left, and all Michael or his mother ever received to know she was alive was occasional letters asking for money.
"But do we even want her to come back?" Michael asked quietly. His mother shot him a glare. "I mean, she probably just needs money and can't afford postage stamps or an owl…" He wasn't sure she could apperate; Loraine never finished school at Hogwarts.
"She's family Michael, and that's the last you'll speak your mind today." She scolded just as the doorbell rang. Both of them froze, watching the front door.
"I guess I'll get it," Michael said, jumping up from the seat and heading to the door. He opened it wide and couldn't help, in spite of the bitter feelings, smiling at his sister. Loraine had always been beautiful. She had the same midnight blue hair that Michael had, only, instead of short and spiky like his, Loraine's flowed smoothly all the way to the small of her back. Her bright blue eyes had specks of copper in them, and her skin didn't have a single mark, blemish, or freckle on it. But Michael wasn't looking at his sister after opening the door, his eyes followed to her arms, which was holding a small pink blanket.
"What's that?" Michael said in astonishment.
"Honestly Mike," Loraine said in annoyance. "It's been what, three years and the first thing you can say to your big sister is 'what's that?'"
"Is that a…baby?" Michael asked, basically ignoring his sister until her jaw dropped.
"Yea, it is. You going to let your sister and your niece stand out her in the cold or are you going to let us in?" Michael, astonished, stepped aside and let them in.
"Loraine!" His mother ran across the room and hugged Loraine tight.
"Hi Mum, careful," she warned. "You'll squish her." Bernadette stepped back and realized the baby in her daughter's arms.
"Her...?" Bernadette questioned.
"Yes. Okay you two; I'd like you to meet my daughter, Anita." She held out the sleeping baby and Michael watched his mother carefully cradle her in her arms. "She three months old, very healthy, has blonde hair, and the most amazing blue eyes in the world." As if on cue, Baby Anita began to fuss and open her eyes, her big baby blues settling right on Michael.
"Oh hi," he said, feeling awkward.
"Mike, you want to hold her?" Loraine asked. Michael looked from his mother to his sister to the baby with a face of worry. "Don't worry, you'll be fine…" She had Michael sit in the chair in the living room and them his mother handed him his niece.
She was so small and helpless and Michael couldn't help but instantly love her. "Hey Anita," he smiled at her, putting his finger in her tiny hand.
"Oh how cute," Loraine said. She watched Michael for a moment before she asked if she could talk to her mother in the kitchen. They left him alone with Anita and he began to feel anxious again.
"Um…" what should he say? He already said 'hi' twice. "I'm your Uncle Michael," he said with a smile. He slowly moved his hand from hers to her hair. Anita had a few soft wisps of golden blonde hair, nothing like that of Michael and Loraine's. "You lucky thing, blonde hair is so much more manageable than dark blue." He chuckled, rocking her a little bit.
He wasn't sure how long he sat there, but while he did, Anita never made a fuss. Eventually, she even went to sleep, snoring lightly into Michael's chest. It was then that he heard someone else in the room and looked up to see his mother standing in the doorway, a couple tears dropping down her face.
"Mum?" Michael said.
"Loraine left…" she said, brushing it aside like it was normal. Well, it was, but Michael looked down at the baby in his arms.
"Well, she'll be back, she forgot…" but he knew. He knew as he was saying it that Anita was why his sister had come back. She didn't want her baby. Having a baby meant being tied down, stop having fun, and Loraine was not a tied down type of girl. "Mum, she didn't."
"It was her plan all along," she said, sitting next to her son and stretching out her arms. "Can I?" Michael nodded and handed his niece to his mother. He watched as Bernadette cooed over the small child, humming and whispering to her. It was a while before she said anything to Michael.
"Loraine wants you to raise Anita," She said, looking at her son with glossy eyes. "That's what she wanted to talk t me about. She asked that if I'd help out while you were at school, then you could take care of her after you graduate." Michael was glad he wasn't holding Anita anymore, because he would have dropped her.
"M…Me? Raise…raise a baby?" he asked. His mother nodded. He looked at Anita. Poor girl, having his sister for a mother. "Well, what do you think?" Michael asked her. The baby did nothing but make a small hiccup in her sleep. "Guess we're going for it." He said. Michael all of the sudden felt this new need to be more accomplished. He thought of the homework upstairs that hadn't been done, and how he was failing history of magic. It was then that he decided that he needed to be the best student he could possibly be, and get a good job right after if he was going to commit to raising his niece.
"I'm looking forward to it," Michael said, leaning his head on his mother's shoulder and softly running a finger along Anita's hand. "Call it a new adventure."
Rose went over to the Potter house early to hang out with the others before dinner. She quickly passed by her aunt and uncle without a word and entered the living room. Her cousins (and Danaë) were all lying on the floor, the tree half decorated, and there was popcorn, tinsel, and Christmas lights all over the place, tangled through the kids on the floor.
"What the hell happened here?" Rose chuckled; it wasn't until her little brother, Hugo, had run in and asked the same thing that anyone responded.
"Christmas battle," Al said, sitting up and shoving Lily off his lap.
"Auntie Ginny is going to have a heart attack," Hugo shook his head. "I know Mum would have if Rose and I had done this…"
"Which is why you're the good kids," said James. "And we're the trouble makers."
"But since you're in our house," Al said, getting up with the half empty bowl of popcorn. He walked over to Rose and Hugo and smiled. "Best fit the part then." He chuckled and poured the rest of the contents on his cousins' head. Rose's jaw dropped. He didn't seriously just do that?! Rose had her mother's hair; it would take hours to get it out!
"Albus Potter!" Al laughed, but he was smart enough to know to turn and run. Rose chased after him, out the front door, tripping through the snow and around the house to the back yard. Quickly, Al ran through the back door to his kitchen, just before Ron and Hermione.
"Hi Uncle Ron, Aunt Hermione," Al waved quickly as he ran up the stairs.
"Hi Mum, hi Dad," Rose said, nearly knocking her mother over as she followed Al. In less than three seconds, the kitchen had gone from whirlwind to silent, the only trace of Al and Rose being the trail of tinsel and snow and popcorn kernels that now followed the two first years.
"Aw, family," Hermione couldn't help but giggle at the kids. Soon enough, as the event had sunken in, Ron, Harry and Ginny were cracking up too.
Yup, just your average Holiday at Godric's Hollow.