Chapter One – Home for Christmas

"Come on, Freddie!" Lydia scolded him.

He was blocking the carriage doorway, preventing them from getting out onto Platform 9¾. She was considering giving him a sharp dig in the ribs when he turned to her with a puzzled look.

"He's not there. It's Harry Potter. Do you think something's happened?"

"Think about it, Freddie," Sophie said in exasperation. "What could happen to Ambrose?"

"I didn't say anything had happened TO him!" Freddie protested. "I thought maybe something had, you know, started. And he had gone to deal with it."

Lydia sighed. "If you let us off the train, we could ask Harry."

"Oh, yeah," said Freddie with a foolish grin.

Sophie and Lydia looked at each other and rolled their eyes as Freddie stepped down.

They followed him, bringing Lydia's Travelighter trunk with them. Steam swirled around them, picking up the sunlight which stabbed through the skylight windows high above.

Harry beamed as he walked towards the carriage.

"Hi, kids," he said. "I'm here to pick up Teddy. I saw Ambrose. He asked me to ask you to meet him where he normally parks 'the motorcar', as he calls it."

"He hasn't finally got a parking ticket, has he?" Lydia asked with a hint of glee.

Harry frowned. "Does that seem likely, given his… abilities?"

"Oh! Has he told you he's…" Freddie began.

"We have talked," Harry interrupted. "For a long time, as usual. So, yes, we are all in on the big secret now. Ah, here comes Teddy. Glad to see you all again."

Harry moved off down the side of the train towards the waving Teddy Lupin. The three students waved to Teddy and strode off towards the platform exit. They made their way across the cavernous hall of the station, weaving through the muggle crowds and stepping out into the London evening bustle. From the station they went out to the double-yellow-lined side street, where it was Ambrose's habit to park illegally. They found the old gentleman talking to another figure they recognised.

"Draco!" Lydia yipped.

"Hello, fourth-years," Draco grinned. "Ambrose invited me along."

"Indeed," Ambrose observed. "That was before I knew him to be your 'proper' and 'not annoying' uncle, as he tells me. I am horrified at your perfidy and disloyalty, Lydia Faye Ward."

"I can't see why," Lydia replied levelly. "If you are my uncle you're, like, my two hundreds great-uncle. And, as you pointed out, Draco's not annoying. And he's a professor."

"I have been a professor many times," Ambrose said. "In Babylon, Alexandria, Athens, Fez, Cambridge, Harvard and Bangor."

"And," Lydia delivered her final blow. "Draco has atoned for his sins."

Ambrose turned to Draco with a scornful look. "Pupil's pet."

Draco chuckled. Freddie and Sophie giggled. Lydia took her trunk around the back of the Bentley and slid it into the open boot.

"Don't you two have your trunks?" Draco asked the other students.

"Inside Lydia's, along with the cats," crowed a triumphant Freddie.

"Ah, you finally thought of something sensible," Ambrose noted, slipping past them to close the boot. "Now, if Lydia put her trunk inside one of your trunks inside hers… but no. Please, step inside the motorcar and we shall depart."

Draco got into the back of Ambrose's car with the youngsters. There was, of course, plenty of room for them all. As they settled into the soft leather seats, Lydia wondered if Fearghal Finnegan had ever modified the car. It could so easily have been Ambrose's work, after all. She decided it did not matter.

"Your third Christmas at the Old Rectory, I gather? I imagine you're wondering why I'm here," Draco said.

"I thought you were probably going to help Ambrose with my training," said Lydia with a sigh.

Draco blinked a few times. "Well, yes. How did you know?"

Lydia pulled a face. "It feels like the world is rushing towards something. Ambrose has some bloody awful task for me – probably for all of us – and it's all happening sooner than he thought it would."

"What signs are you… experiencing?" Draco asked.

"Dreams, mostly," Lydia admitted. "That Grey Watcher is getting really insistent, trying to get me to look into his eyes. Then there's the knight in dirty armour and the dragon, telling me not to look."

"You sound…" Draco began.

"Pee'd off," Lydia finished. "There's a reason for that."

Freddie put an arm around her shoulders. "We'll do whatever we can to help, chick. Won't we Soph?"

"Anything!" Sophie confirmed.

"We have a few days on the run up to Christmas," Draco said. "We'll work out some things to practise when we get to the Rectory. Ambrose?"

"Please excuse my rear aspect," Lydia's uncle said. "I do like to be able to keep an eye on the road as I am conducting the motorcar. Draco and I have discussed some exercises of your magic, based on solving problems rather than practising specific spells."

"The work we have done together," Draco explained, "has proven how you can quickly master just about every spell we know. That includes those we teach at Hogwarts and those we were reading about in the accounts of the first wizards. Those accounts, of course, seem rather irrelevant now that I realise we have the original source in our midst."

"Ah, indeed," Ambrose conceded, with a hint of embarrassment. "Sorry to have put you all through that little charade. I had my reasons. That does not, of course, guarantee that I was right. But however dubious or erroneous they were, those reasons were mine."

"Problem-solving exercises," Draco continued, "seem a better idea for you at this stage. Your limitations are less about performing magic than about choosing the right magic to perform."

"How can we help, Professor?" Sophie asked.

"No person can do everything by themselves," Ambrose said from the driver's seat. "This is something I have learned over the years. Even the most talented of us, modesty forbids me from naming names, can be astoundingly stupid without friends to rein in our more ludicrous fancies."

"We'd like you, Lydia," Draco said, "to build a habit of running your ideas past your friends and truly hearing their opinions. It might surprise you how difficult it is to hear other ideas when you have your own idea lodged in your mind."

There was a snorting sound from Freddie. Lydia glowered at him. Sophie giggled.

"Shut up, you two!" Lydia warned.

"Oh. C'mon, Lydz," Freddie chuckled. "That's SO you!"

"Sorry, Lydia," Sophie added. "But it really is, babe."

"If everything I do has to be decided by a committee," Lydia snarled. "A committee of gits, that is. Everything is going to take ages."

"Yes," Draco nodded. "Until it becomes second nature. That's why you need to practise."

"Do not forget, Lydia," her uncle added. "You possess the ability to solicit such advice directly from the minds of your friends, as quickly as they can form their opinions. And if you develop a deep understanding of their values, you may know what they would advise even before they know."

"Most importantly," Draco said, "your friends will have to trust you enough to have you poking around in their minds – without going too far!"

"One time, Draco!" Lydia protested. "One time, when I was first starting out, I ACCIDENTALLY looked a bit further into your mind than I intended. You're never going to let me forget it, are you?"

Draco grinned. "Of course not."

"Ooh, scandalous!" said Freddie. "What did you find?"

"I'm not going to tell you!" Lydia insisted. "How would Sophie ever trust me if I started giving away secrets to any random gossipmonger?"

"Flatterer," Freddie joked.

"Anyway," Lydia continued. "I didn't find anything that didn't make me love Draco more."

Draco said nothing. He did not look as though he could speak at that moment.

"Perhaps we might pursue this conversation further after we reach the Old Rectory," Ambrose suggested. "We are about to welcome Selina into our midst and I would not wish to burden her with thoughts of the existential threat to our species."

The group in the rear of the passenger compartment fell silent. Ambrose got out and walked to the Inkwood's front door. They remained silent.

Selina got in and turned around to the group behind her. "Hello, baby girl. Hello, all of you."

"Hi, mum," said Sophie with a weak smile. "This is Professor Malfoy. He's a friend of Ambrose's, and one of our teachers."

"Hello, professor," Selina said, reaching behind her to shake his hand. "I hope my little girl is being good?"

"They are all three exemplary students," he assured her. "Good-mannered, hard-working, and well-behaved."

Ambrose opened the driver's door, having put Selina's bag in the boot.

"Well," he observed, "our merry throng is complete. Should I effect the introductions?"

"Sophie has already introduced us, Ambrose," Draco told him.

"And, have you all had a good first term of your fourth year?" Selina asked, with a warm smile.

They looked at each other. The mood was still sombre. It was only a few weeks since Lydia had tackled the hydra and interviewed Alorea Rakissen. Now the threat of the Alterworld was looming before them.

"It's been… an education," Freddie said. Then, realising the joke he had made, a grin spread across his face. He looked around at the others.

"Well, that is reassuring to know," Draco said. "I feel vindicated in my efforts."

The girls smiled.

Lydia leaned in close and whispered to him. "Well done, Freddie."

"Next port of call: the Old Rectory, Naunton Turville," Ambrose announced.

"May I have a word with you before you retire for the evening, Lydia?" Ambrose asked.

They had finished their light supper and risen to go to their rooms. Fenton had clicked his fingers and used his elf-magic to remove all the tableware. Selina was chatting with Catherine, Lydia's mum, as they went through to the sitting room. Freddie and Sophie stopped at the door and looked around for Lydia. Draco gently guided them out of the door. Fenton left in the direction of the kitchen. Xander meandered in as the door was closing.

Ambrose indicated towards the table. "Please, take a seat, Lydia. This might conceivably take a while."

Lydia sat. Xander jumped up into her lap.

Ambrose sat and leaned towards her. "Have you and your two confidants discussed the Alterworld, which lies in parallel with ours?"

Lydia nodded.

"And my glorious mistake," he continued, "in causing this conflict by inadvertently stealing their power to make our High Magic?"

"Of course," she said. "Is this what you wanted to talk about? What's your point?"

"My point is simply that I wanted to ensure they know this is all my fault and that you are as much a victim as they are."

"They understand," Lydia assured him. "They know this has been going on for thousands of years. I've told them how the Alterworlders have been trying to break through to our world and cause whatever destruction they can. They won't blame me, but thank you for checking."

"I am glad," he sighed. "That was what I wanted to ascertain. What I wished to talk about is another matter."

"Which is?"

Ambrose looked her in the eye. "Have you heard about the dealings Harry and his aurors have had with the Death Eaters?"

She shook her head. "Not exactly. The Grey Watcher tried to taunt me with something about the aurors failing. And when I saw Harry at the station, I could sense there was pain and anger there. What's happened?"

Ambrose proceeded to tell her about Harry's agents infiltrating the Death Eaters' organisation, now led by Thorfinn Rowle. He said how the two agents were discovered and imprisoned and how Harry had mounted a rescue operation. He also told her it had ended in the deaths of one agent and an auror. Lydia felt a shock when she learned that the auror killed had been Tempest Savage. She had met him before she had become magical and had heard him mentioned from time to time since. Harry had always talked of Tempest, or 'Tem', as a tough, shrewd and experienced auror. In fact, after Ron had left the Auror Office, Tem had become Harry's right-hand man.

"As you can see," Ambrose concluded, "the Death Eaters are showing how serious they are. The Auror Office has responded, setting up a task team. Outside those involved, the story has been promulgated that some dark wizards killed a civilian and an auror. The story also says that the team is hunting down these dark wizards. In reality, they have been somewhat stumped over recent weeks."

"And this just seems like a… parallel with what the Grey Watcher is doing – building up the pressure?" Lydia asked.

"Precisely so," he nodded. "I expect the Watcher will increase his goading in your dreams. He will try to get you to challenge him, triggering the confrontation with the Alterworld. At the same time, the Death Eaters will attempt to distract all of those who would support us. You must resist the temptation to challenge the Watcher. You have done well so far. It will become much harder. I will try to keep him from your dreams while you are here, but I cannot guarantee success."

"What do I have to do?" she asked, almost pleaded.

"Let Draco help you to train, in conjunction with Sophie and Freddie. Hear and consider their advice – it will broaden your mind and your options. You will become better able to oppose the Alterworlders."

Ambrose paused for a moment. Lydia noticed that Xander had stopped purring.

"It will also become necessary for you to choose a number of companions," he explained. "They will accompany you on your task when you finally face the Alterworlders."

Ambrose gasped and clutched his side.

Lydia leaned forwards and put her hand on his. "Are you OK?"

"Oh, good gracious, yes," he smiled. "A little indigestion, I suspect. Forgive me."

Lydia gave him a suspicious frown, but allowed him to continue.

"As I was relating," he resumed, "you and a number of companions will need to enter the Anteworld. It lies between our world and the Alterworld and is only accessible, I believe, when the path between our two worlds is opening. It resembles a land of fable, though never quite the same on the different occasions I have known it be entered. You will have to see how it is when the time comes."

Ambrose winced again.

"Do excuse me, please," he went on. "I must have eaten too quickly. You will have Sophie and Freddie with you, of course, but you must… choose another five able and… trustworthy companions – at least five more. Think about it over the holiday. For now, I suggest we retire for the evening."

With that, he rose stiffly and guided her to the door.

For the few days before Christmas, and again for several days after Boxing Day, Draco trained the three students. With Ambrose's help, he constructed amphitheatres, mazes, and obstacle courses. He dreamed up physical and logical tests. He injected moral dilemmas and time limits.

Lydia provided the magical solutions, but the decision on what was to be done was a team effort. Draco encouraged Lydia to use her wand for all the magic she performed. When she asked why, Draco told her that it was something Ambrose had insisted on, but had not given a reason.

One evening, over a dinner of pasta with a fragrant, herbed sauce, she tackled Ambrose on the wand use. He refused to give her a reason for his insistence. That evening, Catherine and Selina had gone to the cinema together. Draco had returned home to Malfoy Manor and his family. It was a perfect opportunity for Lydia to quiz Ambrose on his insistence that she use her wand.

"What if my wand can't handle the magic?" she persisted.

"That wand will endure anything you or I could direct through it," Ambrose told her.

Lydia felt he was being dismissive, even condescending, and scowled. She was tired from her training. The thing she found most tiring was having to wait for Freddie and Sophie to come up with suggestions. Ambrose had already scolded her for not listening to them and trying to predict their decisions. She was not going to let him off easily about the wand.

"How do you know? How can you be sure?" she challenged. "Mr Ollivander said his uncle didn't use olive wood. And everyone I've told about it has said they've never heard of a demiguise and thestral hair core. How do you know it's strong enough? It's only little."

Ambrose's glance was definitely condescending. She fumed.

"Someone with even more experience and knowledge than any of the renowned Ollivanders crafted it," he informed her.

"Who?" she snarled.

Another condescending glance followed.

She slumped. "Oh, God. It was you, wasn't it? All along. More lies; more manipulation. Why? Why did you have to lie every time?"

"Because," he explained.

"Because of what?" she probed.

"Reasons, my dear," he said, then seeing the thunder in her face, he continued. "I cannot explain at this given moment, my dear young lady. All I may say is that you will know in the fullness of time. I know this is an insufficient and unconvincing reply, but I cannot give you more just now."

Lydia, her anger subsiding, felt sullen and deflated. She pushed her plate away. Xander wound his lithe, silky body around her legs. She reached down to stroke him. His warm and purring touch lent her a different perspective. She looked up at Sophie. She looked tired. Freddie looked tired, too, but he noticed her looking at him and smiled.

"You guys," she said. "I'm sorry. All this training is hard on you, too. I need to think about you more. If we're going to get through this, then we're going to do it together. Don't let me become a pain."

"Become?" Freddie queried.

Sophie laughed. Freddie grinned. Lydia looked at Ambrose.

"Tomorrow," he pointed out, "is Christmas Eve. I have already suggested to Draco that he should give you time off from your training until after Boxing Day. He agreed."

"Three days of free time and fun!" Freddie yipped.

"Indeed," Ambrose confirmed.

"Just enough time for you to do your homework," Sophie observed, then, seeing Freddie's horror, she added, "I'm joking, Freddie!"

"I recommend as much fun as you can possibly fit in," Ambrose said. "I am convinced we can find some time for schoolwork on the run up to the New Year – even if I have to ask Draco to tutor you."

"Poor Draco," Lydia observed. "I need to consider him more, too."

"As do I," Ambrose muttered to himself.