I jolted awake as the car pulled into the gravel drive of Marlene's house. Mr McKinnon was standing in the open door way, waiting to greet us. The snow was falling slightly heavier by now so we hurried into the warm, leaving Marlene's dad and Mason to bring in the luggage.
The McKinnon's lived in a comfortable house for the size of their family. Each of the children had their own bedroom and there were an equal number of bathrooms - Marlene had completely refused to share a bathroom with any of her brothers. As we skidded into the small foyer I realised that there wasn't going to be enough space for all of the guests that the McKinnon's were expecting over the winter break.
"Hey Mar, where is everyone going to stay?" I asked.
"What do you mean?" She was sat on the bottom step of the staircase, struggling to yank off her boots.
"Like where are the Potters going to sleep? I mean I know you and Sirius are cosy and all, but I don't think your parents would like it if you had to share a room". She laughed and, with a final pull, her boot went flying off her foot.
"Lil, you do remember that I come from an all wizard family right?" she said crossing to a door that was hidden by the staircase. I trailed behind her out of curiosity. "Oh, and be careful what you say - Mason has ears like a bat".
She flung open the door and my jaw dropped. There was a whole other corridor with several doors leading off of it into, what I could only assume were bedrooms.
"I don't have to stay down there do I?" I asked tentatively. Our trunks appeared through the front door, floating alone, followed by Mason carrying his owl in one hand and his wand in the other.
"Right, ladies you're on your own" Mason said, letting the trunks crash to the floor in the middle of the foyer and disappearing into the kitchen. I looked at Marlene who looked back at me; we came to the same resolve.
It took us ten minutes to get the trunks up the staircase, Marlene carrying the front and me bringing up the rear. We'd never realised before just how heavy the bloody trunks were.
"Okay" Marlene huffed. "You are staying in Adrian's room since he's not coming back for Christmas. He's spending it with his girlfriend".
"Is it safe?" I laughed.
"Don't worry I sent Mum and Owl asking her to fumigate it". I pushed open the door to reveal a bedroom that certainly did not look like a boy's.
"Huh, she must have re-decorated at the same time" Marlene said, looking over my shoulder.
The walls were duck egg blue and cream which matched the white furniture gorgeously. Mrs McKinnon had also wrapped tiny fairy lights around the head board of the bed and placed a vase of flowers on the bedside cabinet.
"Your Mum is the best" I smiled happily.
"Yeah, just don't get on the wrong side of her or you could find yourself with stones in your food" Marlene laughed, as she left.
I had just put her last pair of trousers in the chest of draws when I heard Mrs McKinnon's voice; magically magnified, saying that dinner was ready.
There were two days before the Potters would arrive with Sirius. I was thankful for the small amount of time I'd have to mentally prepare myself for being in such close approximation with Potter again. There was definitely no magical girl's staircase to retreat up in Marlene's house to hide from him. Maybe I could persuade Marlene to go with her to Diagon Alley as a distraction.
We spent the evening sat around the living room telling Marlene's parents stories of our last term, much to Josef's delight. Mr McKinnon was a funny man with a round belly which wobbled when he chuckled merrily at Marlene's recounts of the Marauders' antics. Mason's eyes narrowed every time she said Sirius' name with too much enthusiasm.
Eventually Marlene, Mason and I had talked themselves hoarse and Josef's eyelids were beginning to droop, so Mrs McKinnon sent us all up to bed. We parted on the landing all saying "Goodnight". I was so exhausted that I had barely changed into my tank top and shorts before I collapsed into bed.
However, when I was finally comfy her mind seemed to wake up again. It seemed to have decided that now was a good time to panic about Potter. Neither of them had really acknowledged that...kiss, thinking about it made my stomach churn. I couldn't tell if it was nerves or whether I had eaten too much at dinner. I had been fairly good at avoiding him over the past few months, but now...oh Merlin. This Christmas break was going to be very interesting, and very stressful.
After my brain kept me up well past midnight with all of its thinking, I ended up sleeping in late the next day. I trudged downstairs to the kitchen, yawning and pulling on a dressing gown over my pyjamas. Josef and Mr McKinnon were sat at the table with the remains of their breakfast in front of them, whilst Mrs McKinnon leant against the counter.
"Good Morning" I smiled and sat down opposite Josef, who was reading a comic book.
"Morning, well nearly afternoon" Mrs McKinnon laughed, "seems like we all had a lie in today". A panicked look came across Mr McKinnon's face.
"Oh dear, I need to be in the office in ten minutes" he said getting to his feet, "I better get a move on".
He kissed his wife's cheek and ruffled Josef's hair before striding out of the kitchen. I heard him shouting good bye to Marlene and Mason, before the front door opened and closed behind him with a snap. Mrs McKinnon placed some toast in front of me and I helped herself to jam as Marlene shuffled into the room.
"Was that Dad leaving?" she asked.
"Yes sweetheart, now do you girls know what you're going to do for the remainder of the day?" Mrs McKinnon placed a plate of toast in front of Marlene too. I looked to Marlene but she just shrugged and took a bite out of her toast.
"Well, the snow has stuck to the ground and it's quite deep" she said nodding towards the window.
"Seriously?" Marlene rushed to the back door and pulled it wide. The McKinnon's back garden looked beautiful; like someone had dusted icing sugar all over it. A sly grin came over Marlene's face.
"Hey Lil, come here and watch this" she said. She didn't wait for me to reach her. Instead she sprinted into the snow…still bare foot. I laughed as she ran like a lunatic making the first prints in the white blanket.
"Marlene Florence McKinnon get back in here this instance!" Her mum screeched. I could hear Josef giggle at his sister getting told off. Marlene came back into the house grudgingly, her feet now a bright pink colour.
"Sorry Mum but you know Mason and I have a competition each time it snows to see who can make the first tracks in the garden" she said quickly before Mrs McKinnon could say anything.
"You could of at least put some shoes on first you silly girl!" Mrs McKinnon said sharply. "Now go and take a hot shower so you don't catch the flu".
Marlene trooped out of the kitchen leaving a small trail of water after her. I finished my toast quietly and then went back to my – well, Adrian's – bedroom. I took my hair out of the messy knot it was in and found that it curled loosely over my shoulders before making my way to the adding bathroom.
Although Mrs McKinnon had re-decorated the bedroom the bathroom was still distinctly masculine. There were bottles of cologne lined up by the sink and a razor with shaving cream in the medicine cabinet. I washed my face and teeth, applied some mascara and then wondered back into the bedroom. The door slammed open, bouncing back off the wall.
"WAR HAS BEEN DECLARED!" Marlene shouted, making me jump with fright.
"What did you say?" I asked flopping back onto the bed. Marlene marched across the room and pulled me up by the tie on my dressing gown.
"Colonel Mason McKinnon has challenged us to a snowball fight cadet!" She continued to shout. "Are you in?"
"Mar you know we're not in the army right? No war, no rankings, nothing" I sighed.
"Yeah but it's more fun to pretend! Stop ruining my fun!"
"Fine, what should I wear?"
"Jogging bottoms are probably best, and lots of layers! Meet you downstairs at twelve hundred hours!" She giggled, giving me a mock salute and sauntered back out the door.
"There are only twenty four hours in a day!" I called after her but she was already gone. By the time I had got down stairs Mason was the only one left in the kitchen, holding a shovel in one hand and a scarf in the other. His hair wasn't styled in its usual quiff but squashed under a beanie hat. He looked so much younger with his hair flopping over his forehead into his eyes.
"Hey Red, you ready to be beaten at war?" he grinned.
"Ugh you sound like Marlene" I moaned, "and didn't we talk about you calling me 'Red'".
I brushed passed his shoulder and continued into the back garden, which definitely didn't look the same as the last time she had seen it. The snow had been scraped away in some places so you could just see green tufts of grass poking through. I could just make out Marlene's blonde hair flying about behind a wall of snow, which was positioned between two trees at the bottom of the garden, as she hurried to make ammunition.
"Hey, where've you been?" Marlene asked whilst still scraping snow into balls.
"I was getting dressed like you told me!"
"Well, you're really slow" she said "fancy making yourself useful and helping?" I rolled my eyes and began scraping my own pile of snow.
"Alright Ladies", I heard Mason yell from the other end of the garden. He and Josef had taken up shelter around the side of the garden shed. "No face shots or cheating, fair game?"
"Sure, whatever" Marlene called back.
"How do we know who wins?" I asked quickly before the onslaught started.
"Oh sweetie us McKinnon's are only done when someone gets injured, people get tired and forfeit or we run out of snow" She flashed a smile and then positioned herself around the side of the wall.
"CHARGE!" Josef cried as he ran across the space between the shelters, his arms full of snowballs. He pelted them at the spot where Marlene had been peeking out.
There was a lot of laughter and screaming whenever someone got snow down their back, the walls that had once stood as guards were flattened and dug away as more ammunition was needed. As the fight progressed everyone's faces got pinker from the cold and physical activity. The boys finally called for a time out so everyone could re-group.
"Okay then" Marlene said when she joined me back by the trees, "I'm starting to get tired. We need a strategy to end this just so I can curl up with a hot chocolate".
"How about we sneak through the bushes that go round the back of the shed, now whilst they aren't looking, and the come at the from behind" I suggested, still trying to catch my breath.
The grin appeared on Marlene's face again. She was quick to hurry through the foliage making as little noise as possible whilst I trailed behind her. We stopped at the back of the shed and poked our heads round the corner. Marlene held up three fingers and began counting down, and then we ran at them screaming scooping handfuls of snow on their way.
We caught them so of guard that the boys didn't react in time before being jumped on. Marlene tackled Mason, blonde hair flying, which left me to tackle Josef. I felt kind of bad seeing as he was only eight but there was plenty of snow behind him to break his fall. Out of the corner of my eye she spotted Marlene waving her handful of snow over Mason's face before stuffing it down the front of his jumper.
"Alright!" Mason cried holding his hands out in front of him to hold of Marlene's attack, "fine we forfeit!"
"You know that means that you have to give me and Lily foot massages later right?" Marlene said loftily.
"Yeah, but I'd rather touch your two's nasty feet then get frost bite and lose my own digits".
We all fell, laughing, through the back door just as Mrs McKinnon was putting the kettle on.
"Does everyone want cream and marshmallows?" She asked.
"Oh yes!" Josef exclaimed "a double helping of whipped cream and some chocolate shavings".
"Don't want much, do you sweetie?" she laughed and turned for the cupboards. As Mrs McKinnon bustled around finding enough mugs and marshmallows, they each took it in turns to dry themselves with the towel she had left out.
"Mum, why couldn't you just wave your wand and cast a drying spell on us?" Marlene moaned.
"Because my darling that is the ignorant man's way of doing things" Mrs McKinnon said as she placed the steaming coco in front of them. "What if there comes a day when you can't use magic? You wouldn't know how to look after yourself".
"Alright Mum, I just meant about my hair…" Marlene grabbed her mug and left for the sitting room where there was a roaring fire; I picked up a mug and followed suit.
The rest of the day was spent lying around, drinking hot chocolate and watching movies on the old muggle TV Marlene's dad had bought home the previous holidays. I had actually got all the holiday homework done before the end of term so now I didn't feel at all guilty about drinking so much chocolate! The credits of yet another film had just begun when I felt my eyes slowly drift into sleep.
Marlene
Lily's eyes had just fluttered closed when I heard a rap at the window. Gathering all my blankets around me, I shuffled to the cold glass and pushed it open. An owl with stunning plumage soared through and landed on the coffee table, Lily rolled over in her sleep so that she was now face down in the cushions. I recognised the owl instantly. It was Adeline, Sirius' Eagle owl, who else would have such a superior bird? She ruffled her feathers impatiently so I hurried to unlatch the letter tied to her leg. Sirius' scruffy hand writing stared back at her. I carried Adeline to the perch by the back door before settling back on the sofa to read Sirius' letter.
Marley,
I know you hate it when I call you that but I couldn't resist! Anyway, as yours truly is arriving at your splendid house tomorrow with a certain scruffy haired counterpart I feel I should for warn you. He's gone nuts. Totally and utterly loopy! And it's Ginger's fault. He keeps going on about that kiss that nobody's allowed to talk about and how her hair always smells of strawberries – it's driving me insane! Anyhow – to the point! Could you please just try and sweet talk her into at least being friends with James? Otherwise the holidays are going to be unbearable! Well for him anyway but I'd have to hear about it and my brain is already like mush. I do pray to God that I never turn all sappy like Prongs. If I do I give you permission to slap me. Right, Mum told us that we should pack now so I'll see you tomorrow bright and early!
Love Sirius xo
Seriously? He was asking me to ask Lily Evans to be friends with James Potter? I was not going to see Christmas this year. Lily'll probably curse me into oblivion for even mentioning it! With that in mind I set about writing a reply in which I depicted my very dramatic death in order to make Sirius feel bad. I strapped my reply to Adeline's leg and she took off into the night through the back door.
I stood and watched her silhouette be swallowed up by the darkness and then returned to the warmth of the living room fire. I figured it would be best for Lily if I took her into London tomorrow before any attempt to make Sirius' request. Hopefully distracting her enough with shopping would put her in the festive spirit.