Shanks groaned, steadying himself against a pine. "Next time, we take brooms."

Beck chuckled. "You hate flying. Apparating seemed easier."

Shanks, still green-faced, grumbled, "When I'm expecting it."

Beck bit back his laughter. His husband, one of the best aurors the ministry had ever known, the man who took down a Hebridean black on his own, and even lost his own arm protecting a kid, could still not handle apparition. Beck's lips twitched, struggling to hold back the crooked grin that finally broke free.

Shanks twitched his wand, making Beck's cloak fly up over his head. "Next time, ask Rayleigh for brooms," he pouted.

Beck smoothed down his cloak with a laugh. "I'll remember that. And they would have been better than the carriage ride at least."

Shanks gave a wry snort. "Anything was better than that black box pulled by speeding threstrals." He'd been able to see them most of his life apparently, and Beck knew he found them creepy. Personally, Beck found them interesting and they were usually quite friendly.

He chuckled and grabbed Shanks' hand. "We should find Vegapunk before we spend too much time here. The sooner we find him, the sooner we get back."

Shanks grumbled under his breath, but didn't protest as Beck led him through the forest along Feren Lake. Snow dusted the ground, sitting along the branches of the pines, coating fallen logs and stones.

Beck would've enjoyed it less if he hadn't heard Shanks muttering about cold under his breath. His husband wasn't fond of the cold, and even less fond of snow. After an hour of walking, he finally produced a bright flame and made it float in between them.

Shanks immediately navigated to it, cursing as he tripped over a snow-covered rock again. "How far away is his workshop? Surely we'd have found it by now." He cast an annoyed look at the snow-laden branches above them.

Beck looked around. "It's supposed to be on northwestern shore of Feren. There aren't a lot of muggles around here, but there might be protective charms set up." Raising his ebony wand, he muttered, "Revelio."

A humming noise greeted him from the right, above the shoreline.

Beck flicked his wand, sending out a golden spark and extinguishing the flame. Shanks immediately straightened up from where he was rubbing his leg, his wand in position. With another flick, Beck cast a nonverbal spell. A moment later, a faint, golden outline appeared not far off.

Beck carefully approached the tree, halting when it melted back to reveal a squat house made of iron. The bark formed into the door, which opened after a second.

"Come in, come in!" came a loud, excited voice. "For Merlin's sake, it's cold out today!"

Exchanging a look with Shanks, Beck cautiously entered the doorway. It closed the second Shanks stepped inside and there was a fluttering breeze that warmed Beck down to his bones. He waited until it was gone, then gazed around, unable to hide his curiosity.

Strange objects were set on shelves along the wall, in cabinets, sitting on boxes, leaning against the wall, and a few were even suspended from the ceiling with…wires? That was more of a muggle thing to do, but then again, Vegapunk was an experimenter. Maybe the wires were better than constant magic to make things float.

A tall man emerged from the shadows at the end of the hallway, his presence almost startling. Beck hadn't seen the doorway. "Ah, to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit gentlemen?"

Beck took in the man quickly; white hair, glasses on his forehead, white coat and pants with heavy looking shoes. "Are you by chance Vegapunk?"

The man nodded. "Yes. I'm the magic experimenter, Stella Vegapunk."

Beck lowered his wand, but didn't pocket it. "Sorry for the lack of warning, but we were sent by Headmaster Rayleigh to ask about something."

Vegapunk blinked, then whirled around. "Come sit. I think I know why." He motioned for them, then lead them to a surprisingly posh and clutter-free living room. Compared to the hallway, it almost seemed empty. Three chairs, a couch, a fireplace, and a wide coffee table made the room fell rather homey.

Beck took residence on the overstuffed couch, where Shanks joined him after shortly examining an iridescent vase that had a pair of dragons chasing each other as he watched. "We heard Kuma works for you…" Beck began.

Vegapunk rose a hand, cutting him off. "So you've come to ask about Bonney." Shanks nodded and Vegapunk continued, "I know that she's aged…drastically, but I have no idea as to why."

So the records were correct. She was really five years old.

Shanks let out a little huff. "Surely you must have some idea."

Vegapunk shook his head. "No. I know Kuma brought her here one day, unable to find a sitter, but then she came racing from into the room at the age of eleven!" He waved a slender wand and a tea set came floating into the room. Beck accepted the offered cup, as did Shanks. "I asked her what happened, but she had no idea. Said there was a flash of light, but heard nothing. She was scared, but that was to be expected."

Beck ignored the drop of disappointment in his chest. "Does her father know anything? I've spoken to Bonney some and they seem pretty close."

Vegapunk shook his head sadly. "Unfortunately, that isn't possible."

"Why not?" Beck asked. He recalled Rayleigh saying that Kuma had been missing for a while. About a month now.

Vegapunk glanced at the doorway they had come through. "Well…there was an incident a few weeks ago and I am trying to reverse it. Until that is done, he won't be able to answer anything about Bonney."

Shanks sat up straighter, his face a neutral mask. "What happened?" His hand clenched around his wand, which sent up a small trickle of smoke from the tip.

Vegapunk waved his wand and a piece of parchment came flying into the room, landing in Beck's hand. "I was attempting a new spell, and he offered to be the test subject, but it backfired."

"Backfired?" Beck echoed. He glanced over the paper. "An obliviate charm? But the spell is known already. Why work on this?" He scanned the page, but there was little he could make out. Some due to handwriting, most due to unfamiliar words. A different language?

Vegapunk sighed. "Memoria memento is a counter to obliviate. It's meant to help people recall things they've forgotten due to trauma or magical accidents."

Shanks glanced at the paper. "And did Kuma fit that for the test?"

"Yes," Vegapunk said. "He had memories from his childhood he had forgotten because something terrible happened. He wasn't fond of remembering them, but he offered to be the test for that spell. Instead of remembering his family, as was his intention, he forgot Bonney."

"Forgot his own daughter?" Beck struggled to wrap his mind around that. Forgetting a daughter... Could he ever risk forgetting Shanks or Luffy like that? Even if it meant remembering something important?

Vegapunk dipped his head sadly. "Yes. I've been trying to reverse it for two weeks, but nothing has worked."

Shanks gave him a sympathetic look, loosening his grip. "Other than that, is he alright?"

"Yes," Vegapunk said immediately. "Completely fine, but has no idea he has a daughter. He just remembers his wife getting sick and dying, but not their child." He stood. "Where is Bonney, by the way?"

Beck exchanged a look with Shanks, who nodded, then turned to Vegapunk. "She's a first year in Gryffindor right now."

Vegapunk's eyes went wide and he staggered back a step. "A…she's at Hogwarts?!"

Beck hid his alarm at the man's reaction. "Yes, and bright, despite her age." Especially considering she was really five. "She's doing well in her classes, and made friends with other students, but…"

Vegapunk stared at the two men. "Kuma must have found a way to get her into school then, but he said nothing to me about it. Just that she was safe for the time being. I assumed she was with a sitter."

Shanks glanced at Beck before continuing. "Headmaster Rayleigh said her records were incorrect, but he couldn't understand why. That's why we were sent here. We were hoping to find an answer."

They did, Beck reflected. Just not anything overly helpful. And sad, too. "Do you happen to have any assistants?"

Vegapunk paused, then flicked his wand. A bell chimed through the house. "I have two, though both are currently on leave. One to help Kuma, and the other was due for some personal time. I do have a pet however, who might be able to help. But he might not have been awake then."

"Why does Kuma need help?" Beck asked. Vegapunk said the only thing wrong was missing the memories of his daughter.

Vegapunk turned to him. "He's an herbalist, and needed someone to help him find something I requested him to look for. I'm hoping to make a potion to bring back his memory, but the plant is difficult to find."

There was a heavy, thumping noise then, and a large kneazle sauntered into the room. He was large, a little on the heavy side, and had thick grey fur. His whiskers were frazzled badly, but he seemed healthy otherwise.

"This is Gin," Vegapunk introduced him. "He usually stays with my assistants when they work. He's smart, even compared to other kneazles."

Shanks grinned. "I had a kneazle who used to follow me around school. He never got after me because I used to sneak him treats."

Beck smiled at the image. "Kneazles don't talk however, so how can he answer?"

Vegapunk kneeled in front of Gin. "You were here when Bonney changed, right?" Gin twitched his whiskers. "Did you see what happened?"

Gin paused, then flicked his tail. He nudged Vegapunk's wand, then trotted out of the room before he could ask the kneazle any more.

Beck arched an eyebrow at Vegapunk. "Guessing he knows?"

"Yes, and unfortunately I won't be able to find out more until my assistants return," Vegapunk explained. "By nudging my wand, he indicated it was a spell. But until the assistants are back, there's no way of knowing which one, or if it was a new spell or not."

Beck fought the urge to groan at this. "How long until they're back?" he asked.

Vegapunk gazes outside the window behind the couch for a moment. "Cyril should be back in a week, Eline…well, I'm not sure. She's with Kuma, so it might be awhile. Might be a week, could be a month."

Shanks frowned, but stood. "Then we should get back to Rayleigh for now. Can you ask Cyril when they're back?"

Vegapunk nodded as Beck stood. "Of course. I would love to figure out what happened, and if possible, reverse it."

Beck paused, then looked at him. "Might want to ask Bonney if she wants that, first. She's been doing good in her classes, keeping up with the first years well."

"I'm glad to hear that, and of course I'll ask her," Vegapunk said. "Accident or on purpose, a child should not undergo anything like that without being asked first." He walked with them to the front door. "If you would like, I have a special portkey than can get you back to Britain."

Shanks brightened immediately. "As long as it's not brooms!"

Beck chuckled. "Where would it take us?" he asked. He wasn't fond of portkey's however, preferring even the carriage ride over here to them. But if it meant getting back sooner, it was worth the nausea.

Vegapunk waved his wand and a comb flew over to hover between the two men. "Glasgow, Scottland. I have a contact there who helps me with research. We always keep a few portkey's set up in case we need some help."

Beck looked at Shanks, who nodded. "Alright. We appreciate the portkey, Vegapunk."

Vega gives them a little bow. "Please, call me Stella. And I'll send a message as soon as the assistants return."

Beck touches the comb at the same moment as Shanks, felt the jerk behind his navel, and the workshop spun out of sight.