Chapter 2

Remus helped Hestia prepare the dinner while they gave Nina time to set up some of her things in the guest bedroom and get some rest after traveling.

It turned out, though, that Nina was not a bit tired. She sat at the little wooden table and chatted with them as they worked.

Hestia was filling Remus in on the whole situation as Nina joined them.

"Well, Dumbledore actually wrote me a few months ago," she said, stirring some gravy, "saying he had a really great relative in the States who was interested in coming on over." She turned to Nina: "He actually says he prefers to think of you as his niece, right? Even though you're technically cousins?"

"Yeah," Nina answered, "being that he's so much older than me."

"Right. So he told me his niece was such a brilliant witch, but has been kind of trapped over the pond, you know? And of course she can't quite live with Dumbledore, him being the headmaster of a huge school and all, so he asked me if I would be interested in having a sweet little American witch come and stay with me and Bernie for a bit, until she finds her way around."

"He's the best would-be uncle I ever had."

The front door opened once again. It was Bernie this time, and he called out to them a jovial greeting.

"In the kitchen, Bern!" Hestia called.

Bernie entered the kitchen with a huge smile on his face, and went right away to give his girlfriend a kiss on the cheek. Hestia blushed. Remus knew they were a great couple, but seeing their matching smiles and comparing their inch-difference in heights made them seem even closer.

"You must be Nina!" Bernie cried, and gave Nina a warm, embracing hug. He gave Remus a solid handshake and thanked him once again for coming to their aid that afternoon.

"Was the flight okay, other than that absurd delay?" Bernie asked, seating himself across from Nina.

"Oh, it was fantastic. I love flying. I can't wait to get myself on a broomstick…it's been ages since I've been on one. Last time I was in Britain, actually."

"So you've been here before?" Remus asked, slicing potatoes with his wand. Nina nodded, but before she could comment, Hestia kindly told Remus to go sit and chat while she finished up the dinner. Remus obliged; he was well aware of his lack of cooking skills.

"How long ago was that?" he asked Nina.

"Let's see…" Nina pondered. "I was about eight, I think, so I guess almost eighteen years."

"Ah, what is that, only 26? You make me feel so old, Nina!" Hestia chuckled from the kitchen. "And I'm only thirty-one!"

"You could pass for twenty-one!" said Nina, in mock outrage.

"Hah! In your dreams!"

It was a pleasant dinner, aided by Hestia's wonderful cooking. Remus kept forgetting to be nervous that Nina might ask questions directed towards him. He was saved by the fact that Hestia and Bernie had an endless supply of questions and anecdotes for their guest. Bernie, mainly, had a handful of knowledgeable questions; he was a member of the Muggle Relations Committee at the Ministry, which is why he had a telephone, but also why he was able to know a lot of what Nina told them about the States.

"See, growing up with magic was a whole different experience for me," she began. "Here, you have 'wizarding communities,'" she looked at Remus, "and most children attend magical secondary schools, then go into careers in magic. You even have your own government."

"You didn't have any of those things?" Hestia asked incredulously.

"Not at all. Having magical abilities was more like being part of a secret, poorly-organized club, rather than a secret lifestyle, if you catch my drift. The only other witches and wizards I knew were my family. And a few friends here and there, if we were lucky to realize it about each other."

"Wow," said Hestia. "And to think, the only Muggles I know are the ones Bernie talks about from work!"

"Well, there are places in the U.S. where magical people tend to gather. Like Salem, and Portland. But I lived in Florida, so no luck there."

There was a little light that was starting to kindle within Remus. He felt giddy, but also rather childish. This was because while Nina was describing all these things to her hosts, Remus realized that she had essentially told him the same exact story, but more personally. She had told him how her parents died when she was twelve, and her and her younger brother went to live with their aunt until she died when Nina was sixteen. The death of the only magical people she knew was the fire she needed to get in contact with her Uncle Albus.

"What made you stay in Florida, if there were other wizarding places?" asked Bernie, taking a sip of white wine; Nina had bought them a bottle as a thank you gift.

"I liked Florida. I only planned on going there for secondary school – I got accepted in the sixth grade to an arts school – but I made lots of friends and wound up going to college there and later getting a job."

Remus was hardly listening – he had indeed heard this just a little while ago. Instead, he relived how intimately Nina described the help from her Uncle Albus. He loved the way she described learning about magic. It was as if it were a spiritual entity that flowed through her being.

"Wow!" said Hestia again. "Amid nothing but Muggles, eh?"

Hestia's exclamation brought him back to the present, but only momentarily. He was busy remembering how beautiful her hands looked when she showed him the wandless magic she had been perfecting over the years.

"I had my brother, and like I said, a handful of magical friends. We all went to a Quidditch game in Massachusetts once."

"What kind of job did you have?" Bernie asked.

Nina smiled nostalgically. "I was a music teacher," she said. "That's what I went to school for."

Her response to Bernie's question brought Remus back to the conversation at full speed. Teaching, to Remus, was the best possible answer she could have given. The good that a teacher does for the world outweighs any other good deeds done by any profession, any noble philanthropist, anything. At least, it was that way in his humble opinion. If Remus's life was any less chaotic, he would be a teacher. It made his respect for Nina shoot up even more, if possible.

"Ah, beautiful! What was your instrument?" Bernie asked.

"Piano and voice," she answered. "But I taught a wide range of things, and I like conducting, and songwriting, too."

"Well, how great!" said Bernie. "We've got a piano in the guest bedroom. You can use it whenever you want, of course."

"Thank you, that will be nice."

Later, after the dishes had been put away, Remus knew it was time for him to leave. It was uncomfortable for him to do so, for even in the few short hours he had gotten to know Nina, he felt deeply connected to her. A sudden, unreasonable anxiety gripped him – what if he never saw her again?

However, he still left with a smile. The last thing Nina said to him before he walked out the door is what did it: "I hope we get to see each other again soon."

But as soon as the door closed behind him, his good mood faded, and the irrational anxieties began to creep in. He walked, thoughtless for a few moments, his eyes glued to the ground in front of him. His mind did nothing but buzz painfully as his breathing became rapid.

Bizarre thoughts struck him through the haze of his confused mind.

He realized he had just met someone who was going to change his life forever. He couldn't find the thoughts to explain how he knew this, he just knew. The struggle that ensued was the question: Would she change him for better or worse?

She seemed to go through life with the gratefulness and love that he had only experienced as a teenager. But Nina…Nina had the sorrow in her past that strengthened her. It was insane, he thought, but he wanted to be like her.

It occurred to him that he would never have the courage.

He let the buzzing return to his darkened mind. He did not sleep that night.