I do not own Harry Potter, the Wizarding World, or any canon characters.

Extended Family

Chapter 160 – A Day in Potioneering

Takes place around chapter 121.

She woke up slowly and unwillingly, resenting the change from sleep to wakefulness. For long moments she tried to resist the change before she finally accepted her fate, waking up fully and blinking slowly. She sighed softly, enjoying the way she felt warm in his arms and how protected she felt before she slowly wriggled her way free.

Alicia managed to escape Oliver's grasp and looked down at his still sleeping form fondly before she pulled on her bathrobe and started her morning routine. The usual brushing and washing, silently cursing the bright sunshine trying to squeeze its way through the curtains, making her way out of the bedroom and walking softly down the hall. A peek into Melanie's room showed the little one still slumbering peacefully and Alicia kissed her sleeping daughter's cheek before closing the door quietly. Hadley was still sleeping too, though how with her covers strewn about and her body half hanging out of the bed, it was a mystery. Alicia waved her wand and rearranged her older daughter's body into bed and kissed her too before walking downstairs.

She waved her wand left and right as she walked into the kitchen. The curtains opened to the bastard sunlight, the windows cracked open to let the fresh summer air in, already slightly warm despite the early morning hour. Water flowed into the kettle from the spigot and the stove turned on, heating the water up. She opened the cold box door and looked at the food within, pulling out eggs and sausage and small tomatoes. Bread floated out of the bread box and a knife danced in the air, slicing the bread while the sausages arranged themselves in the pan, setting on the stove too with the tomatoes beside them.

A hoot from the window drew her attention and she nodded at the Prophet owl, delivering the newspaper. A coin paid for the paper and a bit of water and a gratefully accepted piece of yesterday's ham had the owl bob his head and flap off to deliver the next.

Alicia paged through the newspaper as the sausages fried and the water burbled and bubbled for coffee and tea. The sausages and tomatoes came out of the pan and a bit of melted butter coated the pan before the slices of bread went in for toasting.

"Morning Mummy," Hadley yawned as she walked into the kitchen.

"Morning Baby," Alicia smiled, hugging and kissing her. "What kind of eggs do you want today?"

"Scrambled please," Hadley said as she pulled a chair to the cabinet and climbed on top to get to the plates and things.

"Scrambled it is," Alicia said, cracking eggs into a bowl and beating them with a little cream. She poured them into the pan after taking the butter fried bread out, stirring gently. "Is your father up?"

"Mmhmm," Hadley said, carrying plates to the table. "He woke me up and is helping Melanie."

A few minutes later, Oliver walked into the kitchen, carrying Melanie. "Good morning girls!" he said loudly and boisterously.

"Must you be so loud so early?" Alicia asked, a smile on her lips removing the sting in her words.

"Yes," OIiver said unashamedly. "The little ones like it." He kissed her cheek and held Melanie to do the same.

"Well if they do, I suppose I must," Alicia said, smiling at Melanie and Hadley's giggling. "Fried eggs, runny yolks?"

"Yes please," Oliver said. "What kind of eggs does Melanie want?"

"Scrabbled!" Melanie shouted.

"Scrabbled it is," Alicia smiled.

Not for the first time and not for the last time, Alicia loved their breakfasts together. It was still a strange concept to her sometimes. She never remembered eating breakfast at home with her family growing up. Her father rarely came to meals unless he had to, her mother was always off on some sort of scheme and plan, and her brother wanted little to do with her. Whenever she visited the Wood home, she was always struck by how much the family ate together and thought that was a Wood family thing.

She learned at Hogwarts how important others took when it came to meals together, and she got more used to it. After leaving school and moving in with Oliver, he insisted on sharing as many meals with her as possible, and with the Team and others as time passed. Only if one of them were traveling did they miss it. Even if one of them were sick, they usually sat with the other and either ate while the other did not or shared in what little the other could tolerate.

She came to love it and looked forward to it. Even if it did mean she had to wake up early sometimes.

Breakfast was dished up, tea and coffee made and juice for the little ones poured. The Wood family sat together and they ate with the casual voracity of people breaking their fast in anticipation of the day.

"Are you going to the pitch today?" Alicia asked.

"Not today. Off week for us and I already did my paperwork that I needed to do," Oliver said. "So I'll be home spending time with the girls and I'll do some of the house things we were talking about." He smiled at his daughters. "Especially since I got my little helpers!"

"You remember where the first aid kit is, yes?" Alicia asked Hadley.

Hadley nodded. "In the bottom cabinet in the bottom floor bathroom, the one in the potion dungeon, or the one in the hall closet."

"Good girl," Alicia praised. "And?"

"If Daddy gets hurt and is still laughing, call Papa Harry. If Daddy isn't laughing, call KatiMum. If he isn't talking, call Nana Andi," Hadley said.

"That's my girl," Alicia said. She gave Oliver an arched look.

"No complaints here," Oliver said genially. "That sounds pretty good to me."

"If Daddy gets hurt because of Uncle Fred and George, call Mummy and AngiMum," Hadley said.

"Also right," Alicia said and Oliver groaned.

"How does your day look?" he asked, helping Melanie wipe her mouth as the little girl ate enthusiastically and messily.

"Inventory for the first bit," Alicia sighed. "Annoying but necessary. Then I need to check on the long simmering projects. Should not be kept at the facilities for too long however."

"I think Sir Harry and I are going to do some fishing later if we finish our other things. How's that sound for dinner?"

"Sounds good to me," she said honestly. "If you end up going to the market because you failed to catch anything, I would like some prawns please."

"What? We don't do that," Oliver said. He sighed when he caught Hadley giggling. "You grassed us up, didn't you?"

"I don't recall," Hadley said, looking away.

"Mmmhmm," Oliver snorted, making her and Alicia laugh.

Alicia left the table and changed, getting her things ready. She kissed her loves on her way to the Floo, smiling as Oliver and Hadley were washing the dishes. With a fond farewell, she stepped through the Floo and came out at Castor's Potion's Facilities. She shook off the soot and ash and greeted some of the others that worked that on her way to her office.

After putting her things away and slipping on her potion robes, she went to work. She decided to check the long projects first, picking up the clipboard off the wall as she looked at cauldrons. She checked the simmering solutions for color and clarity, double-checking the strength of the fires beneath the cauldrons and making the appropriate notes before moving to the next.

"Morning Alicia!"

"Morning Mirabelle," Alicia said, smiling but not looking away from the cauldron. She was watching the thick liquid dribble slowly off the ladle, counting the drops as they fell back into the solution. She nodded, satisfied at the texture and amount of drops. She looked at her friend after scribbling on the clipboard. "How are you?"

"I'm well, thanks," Mirabelle replied. She carried a cauldron and some things on a tray and started moving things around one of the cauldrons Alicia already checked. "I already had to chase Higgins out of our supply room."

"Already?" Alicia groaned. "Let me guess, he was trying to steal our solutions."

"Yep," Mirabelle said, popping the P loudly. "He said the others don't work as well and well yeah, it's 'cause we made them and they're better, but it's because he keeps messing everything up and is too lazy to make his own."

"I swear, I'm going to never-lock the door," Alicia grumbled. "And only put you, me, Daphne, and Mistress on the key for it. How did you get him to go away?"

"I waved my bat at him and he ran," Mirabelle said smugly as she poured a new liquid into the cauldron and stirred it in alternating clockwise and counter-clockwise motions.

"You really do carry that everywhere," Alicia giggled.

"It's very useful besides hitting Bludgers with it," Mirabelle said. "Helps drive a point home, you know?"

"I do," Alicia smiled back. "Maybe I should steal one from the twins."

"You don't need a bat to be scary."

"Bless you," Alicia smiled.

After finishing mixing the next step into the process into the cauldron, Mirabelle stayed to help Alicia finish checking the long-term projects. When they finished, she left on her next task while Alicia went to the main supply room. She rolled her sleeves up and released her light orb to float beside her. With another clipboard in hand, she began going through the inventory.

Already a thankless, annoying, and necessary job, she was even more incensed when one of the distributor companies made a delivery in the middle of it, throwing her off. She bit onto her quill, an exercise in frustration and restraint, and started going through the crates. Her ire grew when she discovered that the delivery person already left without verifying the delivery and she stomped towards the communication Floo inside the supply room. She threw a handful of powder into the hearth and the fire immediately roared to life, as if sensing her mood and intent.

"Pascal's Potion Supplies, how can I help-oh Mistress Wood!" The woman who appeared in the flames had started with a pleasantly bored expression that evaporated instantly when she saw Alicia's face. She gulped when she saw Alicia's expression. "Uh…is everything…okay?"

"Have I ever called you if 'everything is okay'?" Alicia asked with dangerous politeness.

"No Mistress," the woman said, wincing. "The delivery person is new and-"

"I do not care if he is new," Alicia said scathingly. "New never bothers me. You know what bothers me."

"Incompetence," the woman said, wincing further. "What did he do wrong?"

"What did he do right is the better question and to answer it, barely anything! Half of the inventory is wrong! Half of the labels are not even ours and they were buried at the bottom of the pile so either he knew he delivered them to the wrong location and was hiding it, or is illiterate and I do not know which is worse! Also, look at this!" Alicia held up several strands of long sandy material that hung wetly and limply from her hand.

"That looks like…sandweed," the woman said with her biggest wince yet.

"Well spotted," Alicia said angrily. "Since you know what its name, may I ask do you know how a property of sandweed should be?"

"Dry," the woman sighed.

"So why is this soaking wet?!" Alicia shouted.

"I have no idea and I'll get to the bottom of this,-"

"I am waiting for someone to come over right now and sort this mess out! I will be timing you and if it goes on too long, then I will involve Mistress Castor! Then there will be no peace at all!" Alicia felt a grim flicker of vindictive pleasure as the woman looked especially alarmed and the fire went out. Still nettled, she threw the offending soaking sandweed back into its not dry box and let loose a litany of words that made people outside of the storeroom scurry away.

-0-

"I see you made the delivery person cry again," Daphne remarked as she entered the storeroom.

"I barely had to look at him," Alicia grumbled, putting things away. "I didn't even get to raise my voice at him and he started blubbering."

"It is their fault," Daphne said, wholly unsympathetic. "They know better than to send us substandard material and personnel."

"You would think they would've learned by now," Alicia said grumpily. "I still don't know why we still deal with them."

"Because they have a lot of range in their supply and because they fear you and will fix their many mistakes when you are involved," Daphne smiled.

"No wonder I'm the one that has to deal with them," Alicia complained.

"Mistress pays you more for it," Daphne said, again unsympathetic.

"Doesn't mean I can't complain about it," Alicia said.

"True," Daphne conceded.

"You look frustrated too," Alicia observed.

Daphne sighed as she helped Alicia put things away. "First thing I had to deal with was Peters."

"What's that little bitch complaining about now?"

Daphne smiled. "His usual complaint."

"It's not favoritism if he sucks at his job and isn't picked to do things because he sucks," Alicia snorted.

"Indeed," Daphne said dryly. "His newest theory is the dumbest one yet."

"What, he can't help it?"

"More or less. He claims I like Li more because she is a woman and he is a man."

"Hilarious and he's barely a man so that should barely be a reason," Alicia snorted deeply.

Daphne's smile turned mischievous. "Well I told him that having a cock is no reason to act like one and I offered to remove it and see if there is a change in the way that he is treated." She and Alicia cackled together for a long moment.

"I think Tracy's rubbing off on you more," Alicia said, wiping tears of merriment away.

"You are probably correct," Daphne smiled. "He refused the offer and ran away saying he is going to speak to Mistress Castor."

"If she's in a mood, she'd do the procedure without offering," Alicia said. "There, done, finally. Only took me all bloody morning."

"I brought us lunch," Daphne said. "Hadley ran to me before I left for work, saying it was for us, Auntie Lizzie, and GranCasty."

"Aww, they must have made them right after I left if they managed to catch you before you did," Alicia smiled warmly.

"I believe so," Daphne smiled. "I was walking out of the door and they were running up to mine. I think Hadley went to Harry right after you left and they all made lunches for us."

"Our girls are the best," Alicia said. She smiled even wider. "GranCasty?"

"Since Mistress has not decided if she wants to be an aunt or a grandmother yet," Daphne said, her face wreathed in smiles.

"So the girls chose for her," Alicia laughed. "Well she's the one that gets on us about delaying decisions."

"The irony was not lost on me," Daphne laughed.

-0-

After a very nice lunch of different kinds of sandwiches: ham, cheese, and bacon, with a potato salad and fruit, they went back to work, after Castor spent a few minutes coming to terms with 'GranCasty'. Invigorated by the company and the good food, Alicia went back to her duties with grim determination instead of outright enthusiasm.

Thankfully it was much more pleasant. She was able to work in her personal lab/lair and brew potions that needed to be made. Her orb provided light and her floating desk, still in perfect condition after all these years, followed her faithfully. She was able to brew two potions in tandem and was happy with the results.

After a brief meeting with Castor and the other heads of her departments, they left to finish last-minute tasks and things and Alicia left through the Floo. She arrived at the Wood home, stepping onto the grate and stomped on it to shake off the usual debris from Floo travel, breathing a sigh of relief. Her traveling cloak went up on a hook in the Floo room and she stepped into the living room.

As she always did, she took everything in at once. It was mostly neat. A few crayons and some paper lay on the low table in front of the couch, next to a crooked looking Quidditch book. The pillows were slightly askew and Hadley's jumper was thrown over the back of the couch. One of the blankets was folded but not neatly, a sign of use and an attempt at putting it back.

It was a far cry difference from the state of her home growing up. Everything was always neat and in a specific place. Granted, they had house elves to pick up and clean at her old home, but if anything was put out of place, then she would be well chided for it. The air there was always cool and clean and smelling of nothing, frankly a miracle given that it belonged to a potion making family.

The Wood home always smelled of something. The polish and oils that Oliver used to maintain his gear. Plants and herbs from the back garden, simmering scents from the potion lair below that seeped their way up. Flowers more often than not sat on one of the tables, perfuming the air. There was always the faint scent of something delicious wafting over from the Potters. On boisterous days, one caught a whiff that smelled vaguely of something explosive coming from the Weasley home. The kitchen always had a trace of something they made earlier or from the day before.

She loved all of it.

"AliMum!"

"Dally!" Alicia bent over and scooped up Dahlia who came running into the home, kissing her on the cheeks.

"Welcome home," Dahlia said, hugging her hard.

"Thank you," Alicia said, hugging her back.

"Daddy's making dinner! We're having grilled prawns and grilled veggies and he also made shrimp and noodles!"

"He did?!" Alicia asked, delighted.

Dahlia nodded eagerly. "Uncle Oliver said you wanted some so they decided to go shopping at Skye Market instead of fishing and brought lots of them back. He's also going to make a shrimp salad for lunch tomorrow!"

"Well that all sounds delicious and I'm starving," Alicia said, all smiles. "Let's go and eat everything, shall we?"

"Eat everything!" Dahlia cheered and she wriggled out of Alicia's arms and pulled her outside eagerly with Alicia following without hesitation.

-0-0-0-

odonnellzoo99 - They're both small and very feisty and great scrappers. And good flyers. You're not wrong.

Ghostwriter - And what a fight it was.

DOOOOOOM Lord of Waffles - It was nice to go back a ways.

poka - Harry's always ready to help those he cares about, even when they cause the trouble haha. And Shelia's ready and raring to go at the drop of a hat.

TheSphynx - Glad you like the still. It's fun to just meander and see the random things that happen.

alix33 - Shelia probably kicks doors more open because she's a bit more belligerent.