Chapter Two

The very minute the plane landed, Rayna's phone rang. She pulled from her purse, her razor flip phone. There was a red and orange flame on the front, with a black background. On the back, was the phrase, 'Flamin' hot!' in flamed letters. She smiled, seeing the name, "Silverdrop, Celeste," in bright pink letters. While she was waiting for the line to move, she flipped her phone open.

"Hey, Cel! You're right on time! I just landed like, a second ago!" Over the phone, Rayna heard her friend laugh.

"Yeah, well, I have a knack for perfect timing."

"Wait, you called first. Are you still in the airport?"

"Yeah. What gate are you at?"

"B, I believe."

"All right. I'll be your one-man welcome committee."

"With a red carpet, too?" Rayna asked jokingly.

"And a limo waiting."

"Oh, I can't wait!"

"Well, I see your gate so get out here soon!" Celeste remarked.

"All right."

Rayna hung up and walked up the gate terminal. There, she saw Celeste, standing on a chair, waving. Rayna smiled, walking over to her friend.

"Did you have a fun time on the plane?" Celeste inquired They had gotten their luggage at the baggage claim, and so were walking towards the front of the airport.

"Are you talking about the eighteen hours I spent on my ass, with no one to talk to, bored out of my mind?!...Yes, it was quite all right," she finished calmly. "What about you?" She turned to address Celeste.

"Oh, same here, really." They were nearing the exit doors of the airport, when Celeste asked,

"Are you staying with anyone here?"

"No, actually, I haven't thought about accommodations yet. Well, of course Hogwarts, but other than that, I don't know. I figure I'll just...um..."

"Well, you must allow my home to be yours for the year."

"I couldn't do that, Cel!"
"Oh, quit being considerate for once, and stay with us! Well, you know, at least for the rest of the summer, and your school breaks. I won't take no for an answer, and don't you even think of staying in a hotel, alone for a year! Besides, both my brother and my cousin go to Hogwarts, so you don't have to worry about us going out of our way to take you to King's Cross Station."

"Ugh, fine, but shouldn't you talk with your parents first? I mean, this is extremely on the spur of the moment."

"Nonsense! My parents love guests! 'The longer they stay, the better.' That's what they say. And, they can fix up the guestroom for you, in minutes! It'll be fine!" Rayna let out an exasperated sigh.

"All right, all right, I'll come! But, one word that it's not okay, and I'm off to live in Soho."

"Agreed."

In London, at the time, it was just about 2:00 PM, so it was still fairly sunny as they went out to hail a taxi.

"After dinner, why don't you and Andy show our American guest around town?" Suggested Mark Silverdrop, Celeste's dad.

"Good idea, Dad!"

After dinner Celeste led Rayna up to the guestroom.

"My brother Andy brought up your suitcase, so I'll let you change, and we can go whenever you're ready. We'll be downstairs."

"All right, thanks." Rayna looked around the room. It was spacious with two twin beds. There was a large empty closet, as well as a dresser with a mirror above it. Peeking in through another door, she found a bathroom.

Rayna changed into a red Roxy top, and her tight Lucky's jeans. Running down the staircase, she found Celeste and Andy sitting in the living room, waiting. "Ready!" The two led her out to Andy's car, and they piled in. Celeste made Rayna sit in the front seat, saying, "You'll be able to see the sites better." So the three went off, and within a few hours, Rayna became acquainted with Big Ben, the Eye of London, and a few Cathedrals.

When they got home, it was nine o' clock. Having thanked them for the tour, Rayna walked up to her room. She took a shower, then changed into her red silk pajamas. Curling up under the blankets, her long lashes drew the curtains of her eyelids, and she rocketed off to Dreamland in seconds.

The next morning, at nine o' clock, she awoke to voices down in the kitchen. Groggily, she swung her legs over the side of the bed, and stood up...a bit too quick. The room spun, she saw double, and sat back down. Closing her eyes, Rayna waited for her blood to circulate correctly, before making another attempt at obtaining a vertical position. This time she was successful. She jumped into a cold shower to wake herself up. That day she wore a light blue tanktop with her Bongo jeans, and an orange and brown necklace to top it off.

Making her way down to the dining room, she found the four around the table. Upon her entrance, they looked up.

"Good morning dear, come have some breakfast," said Jane, Celeste's mum. Seating herself next to Celeste, Rayna reached for the plate of bacon.

"So, what's happening today?" Rayna inquired.

"Shopping of course!" Celeste exclaimed. Chuckling, Andy leaned over, as he was sitting on her other side, and whispered,

"I swear she's gone shopping every day of the summer so far." Rayna laughed along with Andy, before Celeste caught her attention again.

"You'll meet my friends, and my sister and her husband are coming too!"

"Sounds like a plan!" Rayna affirmed.

After breakfast, Rayna took the morning slow, making sure to feed Shimsa. The Silverdrops enjoyed her kitten, seeing as they didn't have any pets in the house. It was when they were all finished with lunch, at about 1:00, when Rayna rushed up to her room, brushed her teeth, and fixed her hair. She didn't know who Celeste's friends were, of course, so she wanted to make a good impression.

"Rayne, they're here! Come on!" Celeste's voice carried itself up to her ears from the front hall.

"Coming!" Rayna grabbed her purse, and sprinted down the stairs, and out the front door. There were two cars parked on the street in front of the large house. Out on the curb, Celeste was waiting, with eight other people. Celeste addressed Rayna.

"All right. Before we head off, I believe introductions are in order..." Over the next minute or so, Rayna learned that the guy with light brown, cropped hair, was Jason, Celeste's boyfriend. Apparently, Jason was a muggle.

"But don't worry," Celeste had whispered to her later, "he knows..."

The girl next to him, was slightly taller, with dark brown hair and tan streaks, was Claire Morgan, Celeste's older sister. She looked about 26 years old. The hand of the guy next to her, who, Rayna assumed, was Claire's husband, held her hand. Rayna found his name was David Morgan. He was about the same height as his wife, if not a centimeter or so taller. He later told her, when asked, that he was 25. Next to him was a much shorter girl, about 15, with long dark hair, and dark brown eyes. This was Jenny. The dark-haired boy next to the girl, was Kyle, 15 as well, Jenny's boyfriend. And last but not least, Rayna was introduced to Brittany and Jeff. Brittany was average height for a 16-year-old, with shoulder length, brown hair. Her boyfriend Jeff, of the same age, had short, dark brown hair. Besides them, Andy was there as well.

"Well, shall we go? Claire's driving the girls in the Lincoln, and David's taking the boys in the Pathfinder." Celeste informed them all. They all piled into their respective vehicles, and were off to the mall and Department stores. Earlier, Rayna had allowed Celeste to go through the clothes she had brought with her, and Celeste had commented, "We need to get you a new wardrobe..." And that's what they did.

The next three hours was devoted to purchasing a whole new set of clothes for Rayna, worthy of a closet in London. The two hours before dinner at seven o'clock, was when the girls pampered themselves, while the majority of the guys were in the electronics sections. Dinner, which lasted about an hour or so, was had at a casual restaurant, after which, the whole group went out to a party that other friends of Celeste's were hosting. This lasted for about four hours.

Almost 11 hours later, Andy, Celeste and Rayna were dropped off at home. All three then realized how tired they were, and went straight up to their rooms, with mumbled "goodnights". Rayna merely dropped her many shopping bags on the floor, got changed, and made sure, with a flick of her wand, that Shimsa had enough water for the night. Falling into bed without bothering to get under the covers, the second her head made contact with the pillow, Rayna was out for the evening.