Pops!
I hope you had a good Christmas Day! I know it's only been 6 days but I really miss you! I have lots of plans with Blane next week but I'll see you at the Potter's party on Wednesday. I can't wait!
Love,
Florence
Flo,
I miss you too! It's nice you're seeing Blane lots – how did the parent meeting go? Speaking of Potters, my parents invited them round for dinner tomorrow... Will update you on how that goes and if James is still acting weird.
Talk soon,
Pops
Poppet,
IT WENT SO WELL! They loved him! And I think he liked them too! I think he was a bit overwhelmed because they're Muggles but he was fine! (He was kind of offended they didn't know what Quidditch was!) Hmm, James has been weird lately. Good luck with dinner. Have you seen Tobias over the holidays?
Yours,
Flo
Florence,
Yay! I'm so happy for you! On the subject of Tobias (imagine I am glaring at you right now) we had coffee last week at a weird Muggle cafe (you may have heard of it - Tobias really liked it!) and it was really nice. He didn't mention any of the weird train stuff with James. I blame testosterone!
Love ya,
Pops
Pops,
CUUUUUUUUTIES! You better return to Hogwarts as a couple! You have dinner tonight with the Potters, right? Keep me informed. If you want to meet up tomorrow, I'm going to Diagon Alley with Roxy and we'd love for you to come! Meet 10am at the Leaky Cauldron?
Love ya too,
Florence x
Flo,
Yep, they should be here any minute! Sounds good – see you there!
Poppet
PS: We will not be a couple & I hate you ;)
Poppet sent the family owl, Doreen, flying off with the note tied to her foot. Poor Doreen had seen the most work in her lifetime over the past week. Poppet almost felt bad but Doreen was the only thing connecting her and her friends. (Well, that and WizardSpace. But she preferred to correspond by owl. It felt more personal.)
Jennifer had told Poppet that she had to dress nicely for the dinner with the Potters. Poppet had decided on a long sleeve, black, crushed velvet bodycon dress and black tights. Her hair was in loose waves and she also had opted for red lipstick. She hoped this met her mother's impeccably high standards. The Hastings family couldn't possibly wine and dine in jeans! Merlin forbid! Poppet made her way downstairs and found her mother sweating in the kitchen. She looked nice in a red blouse and black skirt.
"Poppet! Oh – thank Merlin you're here! Can you please get out glasses for wine?" Jennifer gestured frantically to the cupboard above the sink.
Poppet pulled out six wine glasses and laid them out on the kitchen surface.
"Six?" Jennifer questioned, "Poppet, there's only going to be four adults!"
"Mum, I'm going to be seventeen on Friday. James is going to be seventeen too, soon! We can have a tipple, surely?" Poppet resented how she was always babied by her parents.
"Well, we'll see what Harry says-"
"Oh, you're taking parenting tips from him too, now?" Poppet said, quickly.
"Would you let me finish?" Jennifer snapped, "I was going to say that I can't speak on behalf of Harry and Ginny and if they want James drinking but I don't mind if you have something to drink."
"Oh."
"Yes – 'oh' is right," Jennifer smiled smugly and waved her wand. The pie flew into the oven. Douglas came rushing in from the dining room, proclaiming that he'd laid the table and needed Jennifer's approval. He was wearing a navy blue suit and tie. Her father was a tall man and Poppet imagined once quite handsome. His once ashy blonde hair was greying and he had lines under his eyes.
"Pops," Douglas looked fondly at his daughter, "You scrub up nice!"
"Thanks dad," Poppet laughed, dodging the hand he was about to use to ruffle her hair. He gave a throaty chuckle and pulled her into a bear hug. He released her and she smoothed out her dress. There was a twinkle in his grey eyes.
"We got an owl from Darling this morning," Douglas said. Darling was Poppet's older sister. She was twenty four and living in America with her husband and she had recently popped up in the family fire place to announce her pregnancy. Poppet was delighted. She couldn't wait to be an auntie. "Guess what she's doing?"
"What?"
"Changing her name!" Douglas scoffed, "I'm offended. I chose that name. She's not a Hastings anymore and now she's not going to be Darling either!"
Poppet was pleased for her sister. She never understood why her mother and father had named her and her sister the way that they did. When they were children it was endearing. When they started school it was just a source of torment. At Beauxbatons, Poppet had gone as 'Poppy' for a while, much to the dislike of her parents. "What's she changing it to?"
"Darla," Douglas sighed, "I guess it's not much of a change. Please never change your name, Pops."
"If you didn't want us to change our names, you shouldn't have named us such ridiculous things," Poppet reminded him, smirking.
"I love your names," Douglas said, a sad smile on his face.
Before Poppet could retort, the doorbell rang. Here we go, Poppet thought to herself. She nodded at her father. Before they even reached the hallway, Jennifer had answered the door.
"Hello everyone! Hello! Do come in! Hello, James, Albus! Oh, no Lily?"
"No, she unfortunately decided that a sleepover with her new friends was far more important!" Ginny laughed, walking into the hallway. "Is there somewhere I can leave my coat? It's very cold outside!"
"I'll take that," Douglas swept down the hallway and took Ginny's coat from her, not before kissing her on the cheek. "Good evening, Ginny!"
Harry walked in through the door, smiling and looking around. He caught Poppet's eye and she beamed politely at him. Douglas quickly rushed to shake Harry's hand and they did so tightly while exchanging pleasantries.
Jennifer ushered Ginny and Harry into the kitchen where there was promise of wine and this left Albus, James and Poppet stood in the hallway of Poppet's house.
"Evening, Hastings," James smirked.
"Evening," Poppet replied.
"I never got that letter you promised me," James said, coyly, "I have been waiting by the window every day."
Albus rolled his eyes and gave out a loud, exasperated sigh. "I knew I shouldn't have come!"
"Why, Al?" Poppet asked, somewhat offended he wasn't delighted to be in her company.
"Because he's just going to be flirting with you the whole night," Albus grumbled.
James looked taken aback, "Al, if you think this is flirting then you've clearly been doing it wrong!"
"Maybe I have," Albus muttered.
Poppet looked at them both in silence. Well, this was mighty awkward. She decided to go for a subtle subject change. "Um – would you like a tour?"
"Sure," Albus said, nonchalantly.
"Where would you like to start?" Poppet asked, somewhat timid. Albus was clearly in a mood – she assumed spending a week in solitude with James had taken its toll.
"Your bedroom?" James winked.
"Excellent idea," Poppet said, brassily. She led the boys up the stairs and along the soft carpeted landing to her bedroom. She swung open the wooden door and gestured for them both to walk in. Poppet's room was an average size with a double bed under the window. She had a soft, white duvet and blue cushions on it. Beside her bed was a large oak chest of drawers and on the other side was a wardrobe. A desk was positioned in one corner with her computer on it and a blue reading lamp. Every surface in her room was covered in various knick-knacks. Books lay strewn across the floor, empty bottles of Butterbeer on the bookshelf in their place. Her trunk was open at the end of her bed. Posters of Quidditch players from the Appleby Arrows were slapped on the walls. Poppet turned and smiled to the boys. "You like it?"
James started to pace, looking around and the finally he walked towards the window. "So this is where the magic happens, eh?"
"Actually, you two are the first boys I've had up in this room," Poppet laughed, "So feel privileged."
"It's an honour," Albus giggled, lightly touching one of the moving posters on the wall.
"So you don't bring Holt up here for a little shagging, then?" James sat himself down on the bed, still looking out the window.
"Oh, please," Albus groaned.
"Shut up," Poppet said, lazily.
"Oh look!" James had stood up and was making his way over to the desk in the corner. He picked up a piece of blank parchment and turned to Poppet, "You do have parchment! I thought there'd been a shortage and that's why you didn't write me!"
"You want me to write to you so badly?" Poppet snatched the parchment from his hand and wrote "YOU'RE AN ASS" on it in big, bold letters. Smiling smugly, she folded it up and handed it to him. "There you go."
Albus laughed. Even James couldn't disguise the smirk that was growing on his face. "You're hilarious, Hastings."
"I know."
After the tour, Poppet wound up with the boys in the kitchen. Their parents were sat in the living room now, laughing manically. She hoped her parents weren't embarrassing themselves. She often did worry for them.
"Do you want a drink?" Poppet asked the two Potter boys who had made themselves at home at Poppet's kitchen table.
"Do you have Butterbeer?" Albus asked, eagerly.
"Yep," Poppet said, "I take it you would like some?"
"Yes, please," Albus said. Poppet popped the top off the bottle with a bottle opener and handed the drink to Albus who took a grateful sip and then placed it back down on the wooden table.
"And for the lady?" Poppet teased.
James scowled, "Mum and Dad said I could have some wine, if it was going."
"Would madam like to try our finest Pinot?" Poppet said, imitating a French accent perfectly.
Albus laughed again. James continued to glower. "Go on, then."
"Excellent choice, madam!" Poppet's French waitress impression continued as she pulled the cork from the bottle of wine and poured it into a glass for James. He muttered his thanks as he took it. As Poppet was pouring her own glass, she sloshed a bit onto the table. "Ah, merde!" she exclaimed, quickly mopping it up. Albus continued to laugh.
Poppet grabbed her wine and sat down next to James at the table. "You're such a loser," James sighed, sipping his wine.
"Thanks, Potter," Poppet smirked, the accent gone.
Albus smiled, "Maybe tonight won't be so bad, after all."
Dinner was served and the seven of them all sat comfortably around the table in the dining room, tucking into their pie. There was a mutual love for Jennifer's food around the table – Ginny even joked that if this was the standard of food that was served every night then she might as well move in. Jennifer was clearly delighted by this as for the second time that night, wine was spilled. Douglas quizzed James and Albus about Quidditch and again Ginny sang her praises about Poppet's skills as a chaser. Douglas never looked prouder.
"I used to play in my youth," Douglas said, "I used to want to be a Quidditch player so badly. But, then dark times fell, as you well know and that dream went out the window."
Harry nodded solemnly. "I played at school, but decided an Auror was my true calling. Professional Quidditch can be cut-throat."
"Forget professional Quidditch," James muttered, "It's cut-throat at Hogwarts."
There was a murmur of agreement around the table.
"In all my matches, I've never faced a crowd as lethal as the Slytherin students," Ginny joked.
Dessert was brought out. Jennifer had made Crème Brule. She explained that she had learnt how to make it in France (which Poppet knew was a white lie as she remembered eating it a lot during her childhood) which impressed the Potters. There were clean dishes all around. The party moved to the living room where more wine was poured. While Jennifer was setting the dishes to be washed, Douglas shared the news of Darling's pregnancy.
"Oh – how wonderful," Ginny beamed, "I bet you'll be brilliant grandparents!"
"Thank you," Douglas said, modestly. "It was a bit shocking when we found out. She's twenty four and I supposed that we'd have a bit longer, you know? Mind you, Jennifer was younger when she fell pregnant with Darling."
"Those years are a very long way off for us, I hope," Ginny glanced at James who seemed oblivious to the joke she was trying to make. He was staring at the family photos which lined the mantelpiece.
"You want to have a closer look, son?" Douglas asked, reaching for the photos that were behind him and handing them to James. "That was Poppet's first day of Beauxbatons. Oh – and this one is her very first trip to the beach! Look at her! Wasn't she cute?"
"Nice swimsuit," James said, dryly. In the picture, six year old Poppet was beaming up at the camera, a bucket and spade in her little hands. Her hair was much blonder than that it was now and she had a very vibrant pink Babbity Rabbity bathing suit on. In the picture, she laughs as an older girl, Darling, tickles her sides. "Do you still have that?"
Poppet shot him a glare. Douglas continued to bombard the Potters with old photos of Poppet until he couldn't find anymore. James and Albus were finding it very amusing. "Now, this one is Poppet and her first boyfriend. Taken last year, wasn't it Pops?"
"Why do you still have that?" Poppet was exasperated.
"It was a big step," Douglas shrugged.
"He looks like a right tosser," James laughed, handing the photo to his brother so he could take a look.
"James Sirius Potter!" Ginny hissed.
"It's okay, Mrs. Potter," Poppet said, quietly. "He was a tosser."
James and Albus both laughed but Ginny still looked flustered, clearly embarrassed by her son's outburst. Poppet smiled but she was mortified her dad still had that picture. You don't keep pictures of your daughter with an ex boyfriend, do you? That's just not right.
Midnight came and went and the Potters decided it was probably time to make tracks. Albus was yawning and James was getting more and more crass as the hours moved on and it was clearly taking its toll on Ginny.
"We'll see you on Tuesday, I suppose!" Harry said, as they were getting their coats on in the hallway.
"I suppose so!" Douglas beamed, "Thanks for the photo. Now we'll be able to Apperate there!"
"Thank you for a wonderful evening, Jennifer," Ginny said. "The food was divine."
Jennifer blushed, "That's quite alright, Ginny!"
"See you on Tuesday, Poppet!" Albus said, smiling and waving as his mother ushered him out of the door.
"Bye, Al!" Poppet called.
James was the last to leave the house. "Bye Hastings. See you on Tuesday. You better write me before then."
"I promise I will," Poppet winked.
James rolled his eyes, thanked Poppet's parents and shut the door behind him as he left the Hastings family home.
"Nice boy, that one," Douglas said. "Cracking sense of humour."
Poppet rolled her eyes. Thank Merlin James didn't hear Douglas say that.
Later that evening, Poppet sat at her desk. She rolled out a piece of parchment, dipped her quill in ink and began to write.
James,
I hope you're happy now.
Poppet
AN: I hope you enjoyed that! I am really starting to love James. There's something about him that I really just like about his character – I don't know if you feel that? ANYWAAAAAAAY... You got some insight into Poppet's family dynamic. She has a sister – betcha didn't know that! And her letters to Flo hopefully gave you some insight into what her holidays have been like. The next time we see our fearless heroine she will be at the Maison de Potter for a New Years Eve party. Woo!