DISCLAIMER: That part of this world and those characters you've seen before belong to their Creator: JKR. The rest is mine - although I cannot quit my day job as I make no $$$ from this…

A/N: In this Chapter, the teachers are all Professors and not Senei's. In reality they would be, but for clarity, I do not wish you to be confused with the Character Sensie.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX:

THE WATANABE SCHOOL

There were twenty-five students assigned to Harry and the others floor. They were told that they were all "Full Term" students meaning they were all signed up for the full ten Terms this summer. The rest of the First Summer English speaking students who had just arrived were only going to be here for two to four Terms before they retuned home. Most all would return the following summer to continue their education from where they left off. The families of everyone on this floor had already reserved slots for a Full Term next summer and most for the next two summers.

Of the twenty-five students, there were five sets of siblings, including Harry, Hermione and Clarice. All five sets shared a flat. The others were divided into pairs and assigned rooms. Those students could change flat mates at the end of any Term if they so desired. Ms. Carter and Rose then explained both the school rules and the floor rules. As their adult supervision, they had the authority to award punishments to the same extent as any member of the faculty, but would prefer to help with homework rather than assign detentions. Once everyone had been introduced to everyone else, the kids had free time until lights out at 10:00 (22:00).

One thing both Harry and Hermione noted was that one set of siblings was Steve and Erin McGonagall from New Zealand. They both wondered whether these two kids might be any relation to Aunt Minnie and more specifically, Aunt Minnie's brother. This minor mystery would be pursued at a later date as it was more pressing to find out why Rose was here.

"Mum?" Hermione asked, "what are you doing here?" Her tone was that of genuine curiosity and a hint of surprise, as opposed to accusation.

"Well," Rose replied, "Let's just say I had my first huge magical adventure!"

"What do you mean, Mum?"

"Well, it all began the night before you lot left to come here," Rose began. "I know that to me you would only be gone a month, but I also know that you would come home changed in a way."

"Mum? Changed? We don't get older here."

"Not physically, although Harry will probably grow a few inches once his potions start kicking in as that is not a true function of his age. But you three will be four years older in your heads, won't you? You'll have four years of experiences that I would have missed. And you're all so young. I didn't want to miss that, Sweetie. I wanted to be here for you when and if you needed me. In a couple of summers, it might not be that big a deal, but right now it is.

"Anyway, Aunt Minnie had a plan that would allow me to be here where I am needed. You see, when she met Gendasan, the Dean of Admissions here, he told her about the Floor Mentors and she naturally volunteered. She said I could as well because there's always a non-magical as well."

"Wasn't it too late?"

"If you view time as linear," Rose said.

"You didn't! You went back in time?"

Rose nodded. "Minnie's family had its own magical device called a Time Turner. She loaned it to me and I went back about three weeks not long after you three left to come here. I contacted the school, and they agreed to have me as they were short a couple of non-magicals. A couple of days later, I was on the flight here."

"Did Daddy know?"

Rose nodded. "He agreed it was a good idea."

"I mean, did he know before? Did you?"

"No," Rose said. "Once I went back in time, I went somewhere where I knew I would not accidentally run into you, or Daddy or anyone I knew, at least until I could come here."

"Where was that?"

"Paris."

"So you'll be with us the whole time?" Harry asked.

"No. I mean I'll be here at the school the whole time. But you will have your flat and I have my own - feel free to visit, by the way. I also have twenty-two other students to watch over. But I would love to share our real days touring this beautiful city. If that's alright with you."

"Thanks Mum," Hermione said hugging her mother. "I'm so glad I won't have to miss you!"

_____________________________________________________________

Sensei had thought he knew a lot about the school. He had, but hs soon learned that what he did not know could fill a book. He was quite familiar with time compression, having used that kind of magic before or rather his Creator had. He had used it in a cave. Just like here, he gained years of research without the corresponding years of aging and as he was alone in his research into how to change the past and as his and his Hermione's theory for time travel was never tried before, he needed those years. First to perfect his version of magical energy temporal displacement and then to perfect the Avatar. He always wondered how a Time Compression ward would work outside of a building or cave.

It turned out, it only affected magical life or non-magicals who wore a special charm at all times. Non-magical plants and animals did not undergo time compression, so for the trees and shrubs in the many gardens, they would experience 30 days and never be starved for either sunlight or water, unless the entire city was. The students, meanwhile, would experience fifty days for every real twenty four hour period. Time compression began promptly at eight o'clock (or 2000 Hours) real time on June 29th and ended with the students' first real day beginning at eight o'clock (0800 Hours) on June 30th. Their real days when they were not under time compression ran from 0800 to 2000 Hours each real day.

The summer was broken down into ten Terms, each Term lasting three real days and fifty school days. Two Terms equaled one academic year. The first three days of each Term were devoted to "orientation." Real Day One of each term then included six full weeks of classes with six days of class and one day off, then an additional three days of class before a time compressed day off and the next real day off. Real Day Two started with a time compressed day off followed by another six full weeks of class, then five class days followed by another time compressed day off and the "dawn" of their next real day off. Real Day Three again began with a time compressed day off, then five full weeks of class plus an additional three days. Then came six days for end of term exams, followed by the end of term break: four time compressed days off and their next real day before the beginning of the next term.

The students were encouraged to keep three different calendars. One was of their real days. The school calendar did not have dates or days, just numbers. Day 1 began as soon as time compression locked down. The days for their summer ran from Day 1 until their last real day which was Day 1500. All events, classes and official schedules used the school calendar. But the students were also encourage but not required to keep a third, fake calendar. That calendar began on "fake day" Friday, June 29th, 1988, School Day 1, and ran forward through "fake day" September 12th, 1992, School Day 1500. This allowed the students to celebrate their "intellectual" birthdays, as well as "fake" Christmas or other holidays depending upon their various beliefs. However, if "fake" Christmas fell on a class day, they still had to attend class. Students were encouraged to write home on their days off and were also encouraged to keep up with their studies so that their day off was really that - a day without studying where they could be kids.

The children's first Orientation saw them undergo medical and magical examinations. They were fitted for their wands if they did not already have one. Some of the older students did. They received their various uniforms, athletic togs, school supplies and course books. They could wear their own regular clothes on their days off, but for classes and exams, they were in school uniforms.

They also sat for placement examinations for their non-magical courses. Once these exams were completed and scored, they were sorted into their "Class". There were over 400 children of various ages being sorted. They were divided first by native language and second by their non-magical academic year. Harry, Hermione and Clarice all tested in to Third Year non-magical, much to Hermione's annoyance. But the school did not start on even numbered years, thus the students were sorted into either first, third, fifth or seventh year non-magical studies. The three were assigned to English Track 88-2. 88-1 were those students who tested into first year non-magical studies and 88-4 were those who tested into seventh year non-magical studies. These were the two smallest classes in their year. 88-1 had twelve students and 88-4 had eight. 88-3 had twenty-five students and 88-2 (Harry, Hermione and Clarice's group) was the largest with thirty students. They were told their class rankings would be with their Track for non-magical studies, but with their entire year regardless of language group for magical studies and athletics.

Out of the seventy-five new English speaking students, the three were the only ones from the British Isles. The rest were from Canada, the United States, Australia, New Zealand and other English speaking countries. What Sensei did not know was that well over half of all of these First Year Students would leave after the Second Term. Most of 88-4 would stay as would about one third of 88-3. None from 88-1 would stay the full summer and only ten from 88-2, including his three charges would stay for all five years. The students who would leave were sent here because their parents could not bare to send them away to boarding school for much of the year or because there was no magical school where they lived. The ones who stayed, mostly older ones, did so in most cases because their families had their own business or farmed and it was far more convenient to educate them quickly than to wait for them to grow up normally. Once they completed school, they might apprentice for a few years or go right into their family's business. The students who left would be replaced by students who had already completed magical studies to that level the previous summer. Thus, every academic Year would see new students, at least new to Harry and the others.

The course scheduled looked hard, Sensei thought. His charges were seven and eight years of age. Their class days began at 6:00. That was the earliest they were allowed to be out of their flat. Breakfast was served from 6:30 until 7:50 and was the longest meal of the day. Students could sleep in if they wanted, but most awoke and the second summer students and older usually were out on the grounds for a workout before showers and their morning meal.

Classes began at 8:00 each morning and there were four fifty minute periods between then and lunch. Classes resumed at 1:00 and there were five possible periods, although for Harry and the others, they had no academic classes after 4:00. Their schedule allowed them two free periods each academic day.

As "First Years" they were taking twelve courses, six non-magical and six magical. Their non-magical courses were: Arts, Culture and History, English, Japanese, Math and Sciences. English and Math met three hours each week while the rest were two hours. Their magical courses were Astronomy (taught from both a magical and non-magical perspective), Charms, Defense (where they were also going to be taught mind magics), Herbology, Potions and Transfiguration. Herbology and Astronomy met two hours a week and the rest were three hours a week.

After regular classes ended at 4:00, the next two hours were for physical training. They had three lessons a week. General Physical fitness, which began with swimming lessons, and two lessons a week in the martial arts. Their required course was Aikido, a style of dodging and using an attacker's moves against them. They then had a choice between either Japanese style Karate or Korean Style Taekwondo, for unarmed fighting. Thus, three days a week they spent two hours in their physical training courses and the other three they had that two hours off to do with as they pleased.

Dinner began at 6:30 and was over an hour later. The students then had until 10:00 before mandatory lights out for the First Years. Still, for the first four Terms, that meant they had at least thirty-three hours a week for homework, not including their day off and as the school goal was one half hour of homework per hour of class, that meant they still had a fair bit of free time if they managed themselves well. And as Harry and Clarice learned very early, Hermione was all about time management. As tight as their schedule seemed, there was still plenty of time to be a kid.

_____________________________________________________________

Minerva and Rose entered what looked like a conference room. It was the first week of classes and as mentors or minders or whatever other terms might apply to their positions at the school, they were observing classes. Minerva's charges were in Potions at the moment and Rose's in Maths. They were both a little surprised that they had been called out. Before them sat two wizards and a witch and they were both asked to take a seat.

"I am Professor Kimura," the wizard in the center stated. "I teach at the University, College of Healing. To my left it Professor Nakajima, who is head of our Dark Arts Studies program…"

Minerva gasped.

"Relax. It is merely part of our Masters Defense. To defeat such Arts, one must know about them."

"Gaijin," Professor Nakajima huffed.

"Wh-what's that?" Rose asked.

"My esteemed colleague thinks little of the Defense courses taught in Europe and particularly in Britain. As you would say, bloody useless rubbish.

"There are reasons why Dark Lords have not arisen anywhere in this part of the world or the Americas in centuries," Professor Nakajima said. "And reasons why once every generation or so one does arise in Europe. Ignorance of the threat is among them."

"Finally," Professor Kimura continued, "this is Professor Takai. She heads our Masters Studies Program in Ritual Magic."

"This is about that Horcrux thing, isn't it?" Rose asked.

"Horcrux?" Professor Nakajima replied. "I am aware Dr. Granger that you are non-magical but was unaware that one such as you might know of such a vile thing."

"I've been told of them."

"Indeed? And why would that be?"

"There are some back home who suspect that Harry may have been accidentally made into one."

Professor Nakajima laughed for several seconds. "I am sorry," he said after a time. "I find the British sense of humor amazingly droll."

"Erm," Rose said, "we really were told that."

Professor Nakajima huffed. "Why am I not surprised then," he growled. "The more enlightened amongst us believe your government's classifications of Dark Magic to be ignorant in the extreme and your ban on all knowledge about such magics a fool's folly that gave rise to your last Dark Lord. While I will concede a Horcrux is Dark as it requires a human to be sacrificed to achieve its creator's ends, to ban all relevant knowledge about it? Foolishness."

"We are here to determine what really happened to your Harry," Professor Kimura. "I can understand your concerns, as he has a parasitic dark soul affixed to him, his scar being the parasite's physical manifestation. But I defer to my colleague here as to what it cannot be. We have already ruled that out as a possibility, fortunately."

"Fortunately?"

"Were he actually to be a horcrux," Professor Nakajima said, "there is but one way to remove his dark invader. Well, many ways. But the results are regrettable as he would have to die."

"We were told an act of pure love…"

"Ah! The Yin and Yang? An act of pure hate and malice to create and an act of pure love to destroy, yes? Regrettably, such is not the case. To destroy those vile things, they must be destroyed both magically and physically. But that's neither here nor there as it is quite impossible that young Harry is a horcrux."

"How can you be so sure?" Minerva asked. "Our own Albus Dumbledore suspects he is. He believes it may have been an accident, but none the less…"

Professor Nakajima laughed again. "I can assure you, Madam, it is impossible to create one of those things by accident and it is likewise impossible to create one within a living thing.

"To make a horcrux, one must first have prepared the vessel in which he seeks to store his soul anchor. This is a lengthy process that must begin at sunset on the day of the New Moon and continue for twelve hours a day, every day, until the Full Moon reaches its zenith. A final, six hour ritual is necessary for final preparation - one which must be conducted within twenty-four hours of the human sacrifice that would rent the caster's soul. Even then, the magic used to create the vessel destroys any existing life magic within. This is necessary as a pre-existing life force would not accept a soul fragment. Thus, the magic would have killed the boy before the horcrux was complete."

"If he's not one, then why are we here?" Rose asked.

"He's is not one to the extent that he can serve as an anchor to a disembodied soul," Professor Nakajima replied. "It does not follow that he cannot be possessed by one."

"He's possessed?" Rose asked in shock.

"There is a parasitic soul essence within his scar," Professor Kimura said. "It is dormant for now. But it is also foreign to him and strong enough that if awakened it could seek to possess him. Obviously, it must be removed."

"Obviously," Minerva said dryly.

"Yet," Professor Takai said, "to determine the most efficient means of removal, we must seek to understand how it came to be there in the first place. Do either of you know the circumstances of his curious scar?"

Minerva nodded. "V-Voldemort tried to kill him when he was a baby. He found Harry's family despite efforts to protect them. He killed Harry's parents who tried to defend him. He then tried to kill Harry. Something went terribly wrong as he was destroyed yet all Harry received was that scar."

"How sure are you of that?" Professor Nakajima asked.

"I've seen the Auror's reports. I regret I have to rely upon them given your disdain for our defense abilities, but…"

"Go on," Professor Nakajima encouraged.

"The Killing Curse was cast three times in that house by the same wand with same caster's signature. It was him all three times."

"Hibarius Decection?"

Minerva nodded.

"Well at least your forensic types are not totally incompetent. Any risidual signature on the victims?"

Minerva nodded again. "All three."

"It's been seven centuries," Professor Nakajima began.

"What's been seven centuries?"

"Do you know if this Voldemort made more than one horcrux?"

"For certain, no. There's reason to believe he had six on purpose, but no proof."

"Then the man - if he is one anymore - was a fool! The danger in creating even one of those things is it renders what is left of your soul unstable. In the thirteenth Century, Huan Jiqing - a nasty Dark Wizard of Mongolian descent - created four. His soul was rendered so unstable that he accidentally severed a final bit of himself. It settled into the nearest living thing it could find, his daughter Xihua. She became a most vile witch. They say that the western notions of witches eating children are based upon her own base pleasures. She is said to have consumed children without killing them first.

"The risks of making more than one of those things is well known here. After all, the first confirmed Horcrux was made by the wizard for the first Emperor of China who was obsessed with immortality. That was well over two thousand years ago. Huan's Case was well studied. We believe what happened was when he tried to kill someone, a part of his weakened remaining soul separated from what little was left and sought a new home - his daughter. There were also wars here in this country with similar Dark Wizards seeking such perversions. Their cases are even more well documented as unlike Huan, they had apprentices.

"The soul fragment attaches itself to the nearest human - assuming it can find one before it dissipates forever, which is only a matter of seconds. Once it is fixed within the other human, it remains dormant for years. But it can be awakened and when awakened, it will seek to become the dominant one within its host. No, it's former self will never return. But the essence of evil that was its birth will consume its host."

"So he's in danger?"

"For now, no," Professor Kimura said. "He is too young for his parasite to awaken and will be for some time. But, it should be removed as soon as conveniently possible."

"Why?" Rose asked.

"Even dormant, it will inhibit his own magical growth unless he is not unlike his possessor. Harry is most unlike his possessor and his magic is poison to it. It will defend itself for now by not letting his magic grow too strong. While the inhibitions are years away from becoming detectably manifest, the sooner we remove it the better."

"And preferably before he starts learning the Patronus Charm," Professor Nakajima added. "There are references to that magic accelerating the awakening of the demon lurking within."

"The Patronus…?" Rose began.

"When would that be?" Minerva asked.

"Fifth Term" Professor Nakajima said. "Sooner would be wiser, though."

"When and how?" Rose asked.

"When is when we determine his magical growth treatment has reached its full extent. Third Term at the earliest," Professor Kimura said.

"How is an ancient ritual designed to remove a demon possession," Professor Takai added. "But we will need two virgins of the opposite sex whom he trusts and loves. Need not be romantic. A trusted and loved sister works…"

"And what are they for?" Rose asked.

"They would serve as his anchor both in the physical and magical sense. He lies on the table and one lies on either side and holds him down. The three must be naked as skin to skin contact is necessary as the anchors are channels for the ritual magic and any barrier between them and the other is blocked by fabric. Skin is a magical conductor because it is alive and similar. Fabric, being dead is not. I understand that the mores of your people are not comfortably with nudity. We are not so inhibited as you. Families bathe together in bathhouses and fabric is considered a contamination of the bath. Sumo wrestlers wear little more than thongs and yet this is also acceptable here. We can ease their potential discomfiture with blindfolds as they need not see. They still must be awaked and aware for it to work."

"And will it?" Rose asked.

"It should."

"When should we tell them?"

"Do they know about your Horcrux theory?" Professor Nakajima asked.

Rose nodded.

"Then this is certainly no worse. Tell them when you see fit."

"It might actually lift a burden from Harry to know this," Professor Kimura added.

"But," Professor Takai said, "there is no hurry. Let Harry get as better as he can be before we try. Moreover, let him not be worried about this so he can focus on his studies."

Minerva and Rose nodded in agreement.

_____________________________________________________________

Rose and Minerva hated not telling. But they decided it was best not to tell Harry and the others yet - unless they asked. The courses were not easy and certainly not for children their ages. Yet surprisingly the kids seemed to be adapting well as were all those on Rose's floor. Why add stress that was ages away? Rose loved being there for them and for their floor mates. The first real test of the floor came during their second week when Clarice's "fake" seventh birthday arose. Rose was surprised as the entire floor held a surprise party for her. Harry and the others had gone to the school shops to buy her gifts and she was floored! True, most of the gifts were inexpensive and much of it was candy of which Rose disapproved on professional grounds, but it was truly the thought that counted.

These three wonderful children now had friends. True, none were closer than the three. But the fact that the whole floor seemed to get along given their ages and such… Well, that was special, Rose thought.

And Rose had to admit, this was top quality education. She attended magical classes and was impressed by the teachers. But not being magical herself, she could not truly judge them. She also attended their non-magical classes and like her charges was beginning to learn Japanese if for no other reason than half of any class was in that language and you could almost understand it in context. This was immersion language training which had been used for years in some places. Still, Rose knew the kids were getting a high quality education.

_____________________________________________________________

Minerva sat at the back of the First Year Charms class five weeks into the Term. Thus far, the students had not been taught so much as a spell. This was the kind of crap she expected at Hogwarts in Defense, given the history of marginal or worse professors. They had been lectured and read on theory and definitions. Otherwise, they were asked to meditate and such. How could this help, Minerva wondered.

"Right then," Professor Tanaka said, "can anyone tell me why we've been practicing meditation and not real magic all term?"

No one spoke.

"Please? I know you are all disappointed. If you're not, you would be my first class in thirty years that thought otherwise? No?

"How many of you have done wandless magic?"

Not a hand raised.

"We have an honor code at this school, children. And you all are lying!"

"Professor?" a student asked.

"Ms. Roberts, are you saying you've never done accidental magic?"

"No Sir, but…"

"But what? Were you using a wand?"

"No, but…"

"So you did use wandless magic!"

"But I didn't intend to!"

"Did you intend for something to happen?"

She nodded.

"And did it?"

"Well, maybe not exactly as …"

"But it did happen, yes?"

"But I couldn't do it when I wanted to! Only when…"

"When you were desperate?"

She nodded.

"Wands are a great tool," the Professor began. "They allow for great degrees of precision in spell casting and will allow you to cast spells with little ability or effort as compared to not having one. But, rely on this and it becomes a crutch and inhibits your natural talents rather than enhanced it. Your mind exercises over the past weeks were to help you focus on your magic and concentrate your minds. Magic without mind is weak. Magic with mind is limitless. While there are spells that require wands and incantations, most magic does not if your mind and magic can be controlled and bent to your will.

"Now, Miss Roberts. Here is a feather. Do something to it."

"What?"

"We've discussed many kinds of Charms thus far. Try one. But don't feel you have to. Imagine what you want the feather to do, focus on it and your magic and make it happen."

"I - I can't…"

"You've not even tried," Professor Tanaka said. "Clear your mind of all disbelief, then the feather shall do as you wish."

The girl closed her eyes and within seconds, her feather was flying about the room. She then held her hand up and it came to her and she caught it.

"There now," the Professor said. "That was not so hard. Although we need to work on seeing our work!"

The girl was grinning ear to ear. "It was not hard at all!" she said.

By the end of the class, every student was making their feathers fly about the room until they called them back.

"Right then! Excellent!" Professor Tanaka exclaimed. "Now whose feather did everything you wanted it to do?"

No one raised a hand.

"Wandless magic is less precise yet more flexible than wand magic. With your wand, your feather would go wherever your wanted it to. Without one, it just goes until you want it to stop. We will discuss the differences over the remainder of the term as we learn the differences in magics. Class dismissed!"

The next day, Harry, Hermione and Clarice had the same lecture and the same results and loved it.

The same lessons for spell casting occurred in Transfiguration.

"Just turn it into something else," Professor Higamura said to the boy staring at his feather.

"What?"

"Your call."

The boy closed his eyes and the feather slowly turned into a pen. "Whoa!" the boy said!

"Is that what you wanted?" Professor Higamura asked.

"My pen's been dodgy all lesson and this one's brilliant!" the boy said.

"Right then, all of you…"

Minerva watched in awe as these young and untrained witches and wizards mastered skills even she had problems with. She learned that Harry and his Flatmates were really impressive with these lessons.

"Tanakasan," Minerva asked after observing his class and not without a degree of jealousy, "can I ask why you and others teach meditation and than wnadless magics? Why a wand at all?"

"Please, Minerva," Tanaka said, "Can I call you that?"

Mierva nodded.

"Then I am Bill. I was born in Hawaii. Anyway, Europeans seem bound to their sticks. Wands have their uses. Precision, delicacy, accuracy and focused power being among them. But every witch and wizard begins as a wandless one and all that limits that potential is imagination and laziness. Less power is required for a wand spell than a similar wandless one. But less knowledge of a specific spell is requried for wandless magic. None in fact.

"The biggest flaw in your system is that you rely on wands and don't start teaching any magic before a child is eleven. Magically, you start teaching just as they enter puberty and only a few years before their maturation without training shuts them off from all possibilities. Ninety percent of all witches and wizards should be competent at wandless and non-verbal spell casting. How many are in a wand driven culture? One that does not teach until it is almost too late? Far less.

"Your culture is wand dependant. For us it is merely a tool. We teach so as they no not have to rely upon it, but can use it to their maximum ability. Eighty percent of OWL and NEWT level spell casting requires no wand and students taught that way can get Exceeds without ever having held a wand - except in defense where the best duelists combine the two techniques to shield and attach. We teach incantations only for the handful of precession spells that require it. Silent spell casting is why we Japanese can live amongst Muggles. They can never see us for our real magic. They never see us cast. They only see the results. So as you can see…"

Each of the children loved all their classes, but each had their own favorite even though they did well in all. Hermione loved Transfiguration. Clarice was Miss Charms. Harry was torn between Defense (although so far that was pretty mundane) and Potions. (even though they were still doing little more than preparing ingredients.)

"It's like cooking," Harry said. "You need the right stuff prepared the right way before you even begin to mix them together for it to work! And you need to know why this works with that but not with the other thing. It's brilliant!"

"Says the boy who can't burn toast," Hermione huffed. "Honestly! Just follow the directions and…"

"And you are limited to the author's view," Harry said. "They're not all perfect, you know."

"You can do better?"

"Well, at least I won't be totally self-taught. Potions is not something to do by trail and error. Really, neither is cooking, but at least you can't blow up the house if you really make a mistake. But, yeah. Given time and understanding of how it all works, I think I can!"

Harry was running a Potions Study Group well before the first Real Day and Hermione and Clarice were in it. Harry would help anyone, regardless of need as he was considered the best in this class. His marks, thus far, supported the opinions. He was also good a defense, but they were not dueling yet which was what everyone wanted to do…

One thing was soon certain to both Minerva and Rose. Their children loved this school. They were making friends and having the time of their lives together. Their own relationships with each other were blossoming. It was clear that Harry and Hermione were very close. They held hands as if on instinct. It was also clear that they were close with Clarice. She still had issues with losing her parents and every once in a while it overwhelmed her and she was reduced to tears, only to find her brother and surrogate sister holding her and reminding her there were still people out there who loved her.

Rose was glad she made the choice to come. She could see her children (as she thought of all three now) were still their ages. But she would not have missed the changes she saw in them thus far for anything. She was still their mother and yet was giving them space. And as the first Real Day approached and they invited her to tour the city with them, she realized they still wanted to be with her too. Real Days would become her days with her kids and they with her. And at least until she left, Minnie would be a part of their Real Day Explorations of Kyoto.