It's immediately obvious to Harry what's wrong with his sister. Riding around and eating at roadside diners with their brothers was fine. They were on neutral territory. Now the scales are out of balance. They're in their brothers' home. They haven't been given any ground rules. Azalea is obviously floundering in fear of exposing their magic and anxiety of not knowing the rules they should follow.
The same anxiety sits in his own chest. It's easy to fall into the routine of a docile housekeeper in the face of three men that are more strangers to them than anything else. There's only room for one of them to fall apart though. Harry supposes that he'll let Lea have it this time since she was the one kidnapped by vampires. Payback for his breakdown after the graveyard incident, he guesses.
Lea sits on the edge of the sofa in the cluttered living room, backpack on the floor at her feet. Harry sinks into the seat next to her.
"You're about to freak out on me, aren't you?"
His sister shoots him a glare, clasping her hands tightly in her lap. "Don't use that word."
Harry bristles, realizing at once what she means. "Sorry." He sighs, leaning further into the back of the couch. "You're about to have a breakdown on me, then?"
Lea lets out a slow breath, leaning back as well. "I just don't know what we're supposed to do. What they expect of us. If Sam would sign the papers, we could plan our next step. I feel stuck and I hate it." She takes another breath before turning toward Harry. "It's like being confined to the cupboard except now I'm confining my-" She breaks off, gesturing to herself.
Magic. She's confining her magic. Harry reaches out and squeezes her collapsed hands. "I get it. Me too." It's hard to control his ambient magic when it's been allowed to roam free all school year. Lea's grip has always been looser than his, but he still feels the same confinement. As if he's binding one of his limbs.
The two sit in comfortable silence for a moment, leaning into each other as they stare unseeingly at the dark screen of the television. Harry breaks the quiet.
"We'll figure it out, though. We've got each other and that's always been enough."
-
The twins settle into a routine over the next several days. They wake up early and make breakfast, a habit from the Dursleys that Harry is pretty sure they'll never break, then they hover around the house until Bobby sighs and gives them a chore to do. Bobby is nice, if a little standoffish. He refuses to let them make lunch or dinner, but doesn't stop them from making breakfast. He answers any questions they ask about himself, Sam and Dean, John, or the salvage yard. Dean answers the questions they have about hunting, much to Sam's consternation it seems. Sam does let them read his books on the different creatures they hunt. Lea thinks the knowledge within them would have Hagrid salivating and begging to keep a wendigo as a pet. Harry thinks she's not far off.
It's about a week into their stay that their routine goes off the rails. Sitting around the kitchen table at lunch, grilled cheese in hand, Harry almost startles when Sam breaks the silence.
"We've got a case." He slides the laptop set in front of him to Dean. Harry and Lea share a look, watching their brothers with anticipation. More vampires? "Haunting. Kripke's Hollow, Ohio."
Three out of four of the words mean nothing to Harry. He's left to assume that 'Crypt Key Hollow Oh Hi Oh' is a location. Or maybe it's a creature he hasn't heard of. A glance at his twin shows Lea in similar confusion.
"We don't need a case." Dean shoves the computer back, rolling his eyes. He takes a large bite of his sandwich.
Sam scowls, pushing the laptop back. "So you're just going to leave this ghost terrorizing people?"
Their older brothers suddenly seem to be caught up in a staring contest. Well, it's more of a glaring contest. Harry suddenly wishes Bobby was there to break the tension. He had left this morning after breakfast to go on some errand or another. If he was here, he'd knock Sam and Dean's heads together.
"Fine." Dean spits at Sam after several silent seconds. Sam's scowl immediately turns into a satisfied smile. Harry relaxes back into his chair.
"When do we leave?" Lea perks up beside him, eyes shining. His sister can say what she wants about the horrors they've faced in their years at Hogwarts, but Lea is an adrenaline junky to the core. She's been upset that Harry got to participate in a hunt and she didn't. Though, as Harry pointed out to her, she kind of did participate as a hostage. She had not been very appreciative of his observation.
" We ," Dean gesture's between himself and Sam, "will leave in the morning. You two pipsqueaks will hang here with Bobby until we get back."
Thank Merlin for Lea practicing control on her magic, Harry can feel her irritation immediately. Her emotions are thankfully not followed with static filled air for once. He straightens in his seat, cutting across his sister to speak before she can voice her annoyance.
"We're not kids, Dean."
Their eldest brother lets out a loud laugh. "You literally are!"
Harry huffs, setting down his sandwich to cross his arms. "We're almost fifteen."
" We're almost fifteen ." Dean mocks, crossing his own arms. He rolls his eyes. "Cut me a break, kid."
"We've been through more than you can imagine." Lea speaks up from beside him, voice soft but holding a sharp edge. Both Winchesters turn their gazes to her. "We don't need to kill your bloody ghost, we've been chased by one our entire lives."
Harry watches as she stands. Lea drops her plate in the sink before leaving the room. The three brothers sit eerily still as her footsteps fade up the stairs. Dean snaps his head around to look at Harry.
"What did she mean?"
Harry stares Dean down for a moment before standing and depositing his own plate in the sink. "Don't worry about it. We're just kids . You know how kids exaggerate."
Harry walks quickly from the kitchen. While their brothers haven't shown any signs of being like Uncle Vernon, he rather not stick around and find out after talking back to them. He takes the stairs two at a time, heart not settling until the guest bedroom door closes behind him. Turning, he finds his sister spread eagle on the bed, face buried in a pillow. Harry sighs and sinks onto the edge of the bed next to her.
Lea turns her head to the side to look at him. "I still don't want to go back to Hogwarts, but I'm starting to miss the lack of adult supervision."
Harry snorts, leaning back to lay across his sister. "Of course you are, Ms. 'Let's-Follow-Ginny-And-Her-Friend-Into-The-Forbidden-Forest-To-Look-For-Wandering-Humdingers.'"
His twin's response is to first whack him with a pillow. "We were fine!"
"You broke your leg so badly by falling out of a tree that Madam Pomfrey had to regrow your bones!" Harry breaks out into laughter as he's hit with the pillow again. "You told her you tripped over Malfoy's ego."
Lea breaks into her own giggles. "That's the closest either of us has ever got to making Poppy laugh."
The twins continue their fit of laughter, trading stories or their school years without thinking of their brothers downstairs.
-
The Winchesters end up leaving that evening. Dean gives them strict instructions to not leave the house until Bobby gets back from wherever he went. The twins stood on the front steps, watching the Impala drive off with their brothers inside. After a few moments, Lea speaks.
"So, we're all alone."
Harry looks at her, raising a brow. Lea stares at him expectantly. She seems to tire of his lack of response quickly, huffing.
"Two magic kids are finally alone with no one to witness their secret magic powers."
Harry's mouth drops open as he absorbs her words. His face breaks out in a grin. Lea gives an exasperated sigh.
"I swear I got all of the brains in the womb." She grabs Harry's arm, dragging him back into the house. The two race up the stairs, diving for their backpacks on either side of the bed they've been occupying. Harry digs through his bag before pulling out his wand, holding it up victoriously. Just as he's about to stand, his gaze catches on light reflecting off something within the backpack.
His heart drops as he reaches back in and pulls out a hand mirror. Looking up, he meets Lea's smiling face, already twirling her wand through the air. Harry stands.
"'Zalea." His sister turns to him, her smile dropping at the look on his face. Harry holds up the mirror. "We've forgotten Sirius."
"Oh fuck." Lea reaches the same conclusion he has the next second. Both twins move to sit on the bed, scooting over until they're side by side.
Harry glances at Lea before holding up the mirror. "Sirius Black."
It's several tense seconds before the reflective surface shimmers and their godfather's worried face fills the frame.
"Flower! Prongslet!"
"Hey Padfoot." Lea smiles nervously, leaning into Harry's shoulder.
"Where have you been? Dumbledore said you're missing. Your owl showed up at the Weasley's with no note. Nobody has heard from you in weeks!"
By the way the room moves in his background, Sirius must be pacing. He slows to a stop at a trilling sound. Making shushing noises, he pets Buckbeak before looking back at the mirror expectantly.
"Er…" Harry's not sure what to say. The truth? A lie? A mix of the two?
"Padfoot, where are you right now?" Harry glances at Lea, wondering where she's going with the question.
"Buckbeak's room." Sirius seems to have taken a seat on the floor beside the hippogriff.
"Can anyone hear you?"
"Just Beaky." Their godfather turns his attention back to the animal for a moment, a wide smile growing on his face.
"Padfoot." Lea calls, looking serious. The man turns back to her after another minute of cooing at the oversized bird-like creature.
"Yes, Lily?"
Harry and Lea both sigh. "I'm Lea, Padfoot."
Sirius blinks several times before squinting at them. Eventually, he nods and smiles again. "Flower."
"Padfoot, Sirius, we need to tell you something, but you have to promise not to tell anyone."
"Cross my heart and hope to die." The wizard salutes them as he speaks. Lea sighs again.
"We're in America." Harry decides to take the wheel. "We came looking for John."
Sirius stares at them in confusion for several moments before his brain seems to catch up. "You found John!"
The twins cringe in unison. "Not quite, Pads."
"John's dead." Lea seems to decide bluntness is key. Harry agrees, giving too many details will only confuse Sirius further. "But, we found our brothers."
"Sean and David!"
"Sam and Dean." Harry quickly corrects. "We've been staying with them for a bit."
"That's great, Prongslet! Those two have to be a better family for you two than Petty Petunia." Sirius grins widely once more.
"We're not staying. We're just here to get some stuff settled, then we're moving on." Lea's firm in her words, clenching her wand in her lap.
Harry speaks before Sirius can ask questions that will surely upset them all in the end. "We just wanted to call and let you know we're safe, Pads. We'll talk to you soon."
"Of course! Talk soon, Jamie, Lilypad. Give the twins my love!" Their godfather ends the call before either of them can correct them.
Harry falls back on the bed with a groan. "Does he have to be insane?"
Lea leans back much more gracefully. "Dementors will do that to a person." She sighs. Lifting her wand, she twirls it through the air, filling the ceiling with streams of colorful lights. "He'll get better."
Harry glances at her. Lea's jaw is clenched and her eyes narrowed. Reaching over, he takes her free hand. "Yeah." He sighs. "He will."
He lifts his own wand, letting his magic join hers.
-
The ride back to Sioux Falls is quiet. It grates on Dean's nerves.
It had been too easy to forget about Lilith and the seals when they were distracted by the surprise appearance of the Terror Twins. They've been so busy with Harry and Lea that Dean hardly spared the demon a second thought.
Now she's in all of his thoughts. Part of him agrees with Sam. Lilith would have found a way around the deal she offered him. Another part of him wonders if it would have worked. If it would have been worth it. Their lives to keep the world from an apocalypse. To keep their kid brother and sister from the apocalypse.
Dean glances at Sam. The broody son of a bitch. He's staring out the window like a kicked puppy. Shaking his head, Dean sighs.
"Grab my bag."
Sam looks up at him, brows furrowed. "What?"
"My bag, grab it." Dean gestures to the back seat.
Throwing him a confused look, Sam complies, tugging the duffle bag into the front seat between them. "Okay. Now what?"
"Open it." Dean answers Sam's slow tone with his own mocking one. The look he receives this time is more annoyed than confused.
Sam unzips the bag, gesturing to it with obvious sarcasm.
"There should be four books that aren't 'Supernatural' on top."
" You have books." His brother snorts.
"Oh, shut up and get the damn books out, Sammy."
He ignores his brother's chuckles, waiting on him to read the titles.
"What the hell?"
"Yeah." Dean glances at him again, seeing him holding up one of the four books with wide eyes. "When I went to grab Saint Chuck, he gave me those. Apparently, 'Carver Edlund' isn't his only pen name. He said we should read 'em."
"Have you looked at them?"
"Haven't had the chance." He scrubs a hand down his face. "But, we've got like thirteen hours until we're back with the secret keepers, so start reading."
Sam cracks open the first book, staring at the page for a moment before beginning. "Mr. and Mrs. Dursley of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much."
