Champagne out of a golden shoe
With the knuckles of both her fists banging the table like sticks on a drum, marking the end of a rough, powerful song, Vi stood up, ready for action.
"All right. Let me write to Dumbledore, and we're good to go."
Everybody raised their eyebrows in comical simultaneity.
"What? I gotta resign properly. I owe the old man at least that."
A cold stone dropped into Caitlyn's stomach, filling her with a dreadful shiver. She must have heard wrong—she must have! Vi couldn't leave Hogwarts. That was nonsense.
And yet, the spark in Vi's eye was impossible to misread. Full, absolute resolve. Her fear turned to deep sadness.
"No," declared Vander, his voice dropping like a rock in the ocean. "You're not resigning, Vi."
There was as much certainty in his words as in Vi's gaze. Titan against titan.
"Why not? You expect me to sit out there in that giant castle, carrying logs or pampering damn Snifflers, while Pow-Pow is out there? 'Til now, we had no lead, so I had no choice. But now we do! So I'm going to follow it to the end, and I'm going to bring her back!"
Vander pulled a smoking pipe from his pocket and checked if there was any tobacco left inside.
"And how are you going to do that, Vi? Stake out the bars, hide in corners under your oh-so-discreet pink hair and your name written on your cheek? Face it, Vi. You're good at lots of things—great even—but being subtle ain't one of them."
"Who said anything about being subtle? I'm gonna go in, pummel a few faces, and make sure no one's leaving 'til I got a name or a place to go!"
Vander chuckled—bitterly or not, no one could say. Caitlyn was frozen in time, a powerless witness to the confrontation between the Lanes. Ekko was not faring much better beside her.
"Oh, that sounds like a great idea, Vi! But just to be sure— is your goal to push all of them into hiding and make sure we never find them again, or to get yourself killed? Because those are the only two outcomes I can see to this plan!"
"'Cause you got a better one, maybe?" she asked back, her voice going louder with every word, her fists tenser with every breath.
The old man sighed deeply.
"The only person I know to be smarter than Silco is Powder. I can't fathom why, but if they're working together… aaah. They have to be keeping tabs on us. Especially now that Powder knows you're back in town. So you have to keep pretending. Everything's normal. Go back to work. Live your life. Let me and Ekko find her. They don't know his face, and I'm not a threat—not anymore. Let them lower their guard. And when they expect it the least…"
His grip tightened around his pipe, and Caitlyn heard it creak.
"…We pounce. And we get Powder back."
Ekko scoffed.
"So now I'm working for you, you old hound?" he asked with a cocky smile, immediately matched by a cocked eyebrow from Vander.
"You telling me you're not going to do everything you can to get Powder back, boy?"
His smile turned into a bitter laugh.
"All right, you got me. My total incapability to give up on any of you Lanes might make me a bit predictable."
But Vi's fists next to him were still clenched, and her teeth were gritting.
"You can't keep me out of this, Vander! She's my sister! My blood! You cannot ask me to do nothing!"
"You're not doing nothing!" roared Vander, his temper finally flaring. "Don't you get it? You have the hardest job of us all! You're the smoke screen! You're the one that has to pretend everything's as usual so the kid and I can work!"
He took a breath and brought his voice back under control.
"I know I'm asking you a lot, Vi. Being patient is probably the worst thing—the most unfair—I can ask of you. But this is the way it has to go if we want to have a chance. But the moment we have anything, the second we know where she is, we'll let you know. We'll need you. If she's truly under Silco's influence… No one can help her but you."
He paused and stared at his pipe.
"We can't underestimate him. I've met many people in my life, and not one was better than Silco at manipulating, convincing—making you believe things to get you on his side. Not even Grindelwald himself."
Vi growled and gnawed, like a frustrated beast.
"That's dragonshit," she muttered before pushing the table—hard—and leaving the inn through the front door, an icy gust of wind inviting itself inside for a split second before she slammed the door behind her.
Instinctively, Caitlyn got up and moved toward the door as well, on Vi's tracks.
"Caitlyn," cut Vander.
She turned back to look him in the eyes, not sure if she should display her anger, her understanding, or her compassion.
"I know I got no right to ask anything of you. This ain't your fight. But Vi needs you. Could you please keep an eye on her? Be there for her?"
She stared at him, feeling—allowing—this cold anger to settle in her veins.
"Those Death Eaters killed my friend. My mentor. And many more innocents. Of course it's my fight."
What she would do if Powder—the beloved sister of this woman she held so dear—was truly responsible for those deaths… That, she didn't want to think about.
"Vi! Vi, by Merlin, where are you going?"
"Go back to the Cauldron, Cait! This doesn't concern you!"
"Like hell it doesn't!"
She pressed on and caught up, finally, with her pink-haired friend and grabbed her shoulder, forcing her to slow down. She wanted to stop her, but there was no stopping this bulldozer.
"Stop, please! Don't make me pull my wand out!"
Vi finally stopped in her tracks and volte-faced. Wind blew in her face, sending her hair back and forcing a blink out of her, the cold reaping a small tear from the corner of her eye. The winter sun, usually Caitlyn's favorite, was bringing neither heat nor comfort, only a shiny reflection in Vi's eyes—enough to turn them from steel blue to translucent silver. Her gaze was just as hard and cold as the said metal.
"Then do. Because it's the only way you'll keep me from going after Powder."
"Vi, listen! Please! Your dad is right!"
"He's not my dad," spat Vi.
Now Caitlyn scoffed and let go of Vi's shoulders, crossing her arms in front of her.
"Aren't you a bit old for a teenager's rebellion?" she asked. "Or were you such a quiet kid back then that you just kept your tantrums for later?"
The question seemed to slap Vi in the face. Despite the cold zephyr, her cheeks reddened. Anger and shame battled in her brain and across her face, with no victor in sight, so Caitlyn resumed:
"We just switched from a search-and-rescue operation to a shadow war against a new gang led by some mastermind trained by Grindelwald himself, and someone seemingly terrible enough for him to call Master. We just went from 'Where's your sister, and what's happening with her?' to 'Is she murdering people left and right, and how do we save her from this gang without dying in the process?' Do you really think now's the time to barge in headfirst?"
Vi choked on her words, and Caitlyn took a small step forward, getting into her personal space—gently—her hand slowly brushing up her arm.
"You're a lot of things, Vi, and all of them are great. Well, almost all. You still got defeated by Peeves. But you do not have any experience in these kinds of situations. I do. And as crazy as it sounds, it seems so does your father and Ekko. So please. I'm asking you for your own sake—and your sister's. Trust us. Follow our lead. At least for a little while."
Vi's shoulders dropped as she shook her head.
"Fuck you, Cait. You're way too good with words. It's just… It's too much, you know? A murder gang? My sister changing her name to Jinx and blasting off curses at Ekko's friends? Ekko being a gang leader? Vander… Fuck, Vander worked for Grindelwald? The greatest criminal of the century?"
She looked up at the sky, hoping the sun would finally do its job of warming her up a little. It didn't.
"I feel like the world is gone. When they kicked me out of that bloody prison, they sent me back to the wrong universe. Nothing makes sense to me here."
She looked back at Caitlyn, whose heart stopped in her chest for an imaginary instant.
"Even you don't make sense. What are you doing here? Why are you here? With me? Helping me? The Auror Golden Girl, heir to House Kiramman, closest friend to the Man of Tomorrow Jayce Talis—what in Merlin's name are you doing serving drinks at the Leaky Cauldron? Freezing your ass off in the street with me instead of sipping champagne out of a golden shoe?"
"Golden shoe?"
"Or whatever you fancy pricks like to drink champagne from. What are you doing here, Cait?"
Caitlyn's hand moved from Vi's arm up to her cheek.
"I'm having the time of my life with the most amazing woman I've ever met," she whispered. "I'm trying to save the little sister of the one person I hold dearest. I want to make sure that incredible smile of yours never leaves for good. I'm finally figuring out my life."
Then, after a small, shaky pause—
" And I'm freezing my ass off and wish we could go back inside to get a hot cocoa. Out of a regular mug."
Vi let a chuckle escape her tightened jaw, and a cloud of hot breath filled the space between them.
"All right. Let's get you back inside then."
"Only if you come with me."
"Yeah, yeah," laughed Vi. "We still got two full services to go through anyway…"
It was surprising to Caitlyn how quickly the dust had settled and the air had cleared. The moment they stepped back into the inn, Vander's first question was whether Vi was okay. After she confirmed that they were good, he had smiled and asked if she could flip the panel back to Open.
For Cait, a conflict with her mother could last days, even weeks. To see them so quickly and so naturally mending their relationship was astonishing—and inspiring.
"Doesn't mean I'm not pissed anymore," explained Vi. "He still lied to me, hid things from me, for all my life. I get why he ain't proud of it, but it's hard to see him as the Vander that raised me. But he is, ain't he?"
"I suppose he is, yes."
"And looking back at my life… I chose wrong every time. And because of it, I've lost everyone."
Silence fell like a stone in a pond.
"Maybe I'm not made for choosing. As you said, better leaving that to professionals. I'll follow your lead and cross my fingers that things turn out differently this time."
Caitlyn smiled.
"I appreciate the trust. But you know you're still allowed to want things for yourself, right?"
Vi eyed Caitlyn from head to toe with a mischievous smirk.
"Oh, trust me, Cupcake. I do. I really do."
The professor's smile turned into an awkward laugh, her cheeks reddening, and she both cursed and praised Vander for choosing this moment to bark some orders from the kitchen.
At the end of the day, her feet were slightly less sore than the day before, her back hurt just slightly less—but enough to feel like an improvement. Only one day left, then she would have to go back to the castle to prepare for the return of the monsters on Monday morning.
"Say, Vander," she asked while slowly pouring milk into the coffee she had prepared, trying to form some kind of shape on the surface—without much success. "How are you handling all this without Vi? Without anyone, really! The three of us, and I feel like we're always on the edge of imploding."
Vander let out his signature bark of a laugh.
"Don't take it the wrong way, sweetheart, but you and Vi are both shite at this job. Vi does her best, and she's got a hell of a way with customers, but… she spends half her shift chatting them up. It's cool, they buy more ale, but this ain't helping get plates out of the kitchen. And you, well… it's your third day, ain't it?"
"But surely it's still easier than being alone?" she asked, not at all vexed by the remark.
"Sure, but I ain't alone. Got an employee, Jericho. Great cook, as quick as he's vulgar. But I always give him the week off during Christmas—the man's entitled to a little bit of rest. Vi never mentioned him?"
Cait shook her head from left to right.
"Well, in any case, you know… I appreciate you worrying for me, though, but I got this. I was getting this done with four little demons running havoc, and I still got this today."
Caitlyn fiddled a little with her fingers without realizing.
"Please tell me if this is too personal, I'll understand, but I was wondering…"
He stopped cleaning the glass—the pint looked so tiny and fragile between his massive paws. He waited. Encouraged, with a single raise of his hairy eyebrow.
"Why… I mean… what pushed you to adopt not one, not even two, but four children? Especially alone. Vi never mentioned any Mrs. Vander, and please don't take it the wrong way, but I haven't noticed anything indicating the presence of a woman across this whole building."
Vander chuckled, and even this gentle sound felt like thunder on the horizon.
"I can see why you had that reputation among the Aurors. You're not letting anything slip until you have all the answers, are you?"
She felt put on the spot, unsure whether she had crossed a line or not, and could only blush. She briefly wondered why this man was so intimidating to her—not just because of his size—and how things would have turned out if she had, one day, needed to bring him in for questioning. She had never been intimidated by any suspect, ever. And yet…
"When Silco and I grew up, most wizards, especially their kids, were mean to us. From indifference to straight-up bullying, we saw it all. I already told you as much yesterday anyway. But there was one exception. Only one. It's not like she was defending us, didn't play the big savior with her magic wand… she just…"
His eyes wandered into the past, and Cait could have sworn she saw them water.
"Felicia's the name. She was our best friend, outside of each other. Of course, most of the time she was at Hogwarts, so we wouldn't see her often, but when she was home, she'd spend her time with us. Even bailed through her bedroom window to spend the evening drinking ale Silco had stolen, till morning came. It's hard to explain, you know. She wasn't taking pity on us. We were kids, she was a kid, and that was all we needed to be friends. She never showed off her magic, neither did she hide it. She was just pure that way."
Pieces of the puzzle started assembling in Cait's mind, and for a second, she really, really hoped that neither Vander nor Silco was responsible for the death of Vi's parents.
"Vi knows this. Since she and Powder came into my care, I've been telling them about their mother. How she was when she was a wee kid. The pranks we played. The idiocies. 'Bout their father too. He was a nice bloke, all things considered—she met him at Hogwarts, of course."
He slowly put down the glass on the shelf and grabbed another dirty one.
"She didn't know much about what Silco and I were doing when she was away at school. We wanted her to… how to phrase it… not see this part of us, I think. And when we met Grindelwald, I wanted to cut her loose. I didn't think she'd still want to see us, knowing that. Silco, though, wanted to bring her in. He thought Gellert's ideas would sway her. He thought she'd do anything to help us, including joining the ranks."
"But Vi and Powder weren't born yet, were they? They're too young for this."
Vander let out another chuckle—bitter, this time.
"Yeah, your maths are good. Things went south, and I… Silco and I had our fight. After that, I just couldn't face her. What could I tell her? That I had killed my brother, her best friend? That I had spent the past decade working for a terrorist? No, I couldn't. I was too ashamed. I thought being alone would be punishment enough."
He breathed out, and it was shaky. Heart-wrenching.
"Then… they just died. She was just gone. Wrong place, wrong time, and the girls were orphaned. With no one left to take care of them. Felicia was an only daughter, Connol an only son, and both of them had lost their parents not long before. They were old folks. So I was alone, and the girls were alone. Only seemed right we'd be alone together. I owed Felicia at least that."
Caitlyn asked about the brother as sensitively as she could.
"I got them two years later. I was doing decent with the girls, which honestly tells you more about them than it does about me. I don't know if you recall—you might have been ten or something back then—but there was a fire in Manchester. Killed both Muggles and wizards."
"I recall. Muggle chemicals caught fire, I believe."
"Yeah, maybe. In any case, that fire made a few orphans, including two young wizards."
"Mylo and Claggor."
"Hum hum. They weren't as young as Vi and Powder when I got them, but still young enough to need someone. It was Powder, actually, who came to me with the papers. She said, 'Vander, look! They're like us! We should help!' I asked her if she wanted brothers and… that was it. No one wanted them anyway, didn't have to fight much."
She smiled at him.
"From every account, you've given them a good home, Vander."
She rubbed her neck nervously—the exact same tell that Vi had when she was nervous or put on the spot.
"I like to think that's true," he muttered. "I just wish it had ended differently. And not so soon."
Grief washed over his face like a tidal wave on the beach, ravaging sandcastles and love messages drawn in the sand. An iron grip tightened around Cait's heart, and she wished—oh so strongly—that there was anything she could say or do to make this better.
Thankfully, Vi burst inside the inn, scaring the few customers into spilling their coffee.
"Merlin, it's freezing outside! Vander, why do you always send me on those deliveries when it's freaking Antarctica out there?!"
"'Cause a little fresh air ought to straighten you up, young lady!"
Silence fell as Vi, Caitlyn, and even a few bystanders all raised their eyebrows, heads slightly tilted to the right, in a way that clearly meant, Did you really just say what I think you just said?
"I mean," chuckled Vander awkwardly, "I meant that in a rebel way, not, you know… You know I'd never…"
His shoulders sagged, and he gave up, heading back to the kitchen.
"Oh, Merlin," he muttered, "please save me."
Vi laughed, pure and content, and the whole room joined her in her glee. For Caitlyn, this had to be the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.