May 6th at 4:00 PM
Outside of the Leaky Cauldron
Opies Outfit
Cassie and Rhiannon's clothes

"So this Mary girl... is she gonna be like our sister or sumthin," Cassiopeia inquired, her words garbled thanks to the multicolored braid of hair she was chewing on. Ophelia reached out and gently pulled the locks from her mouth.

"Cassie, don't talk with your moth full of hair... and don't chew on your hair for that matter... What did I tell you about that?" She said softly, giving Cassie a stern look. Cassie crossed her arms and muttered in a monotone "If you chew on your hair it will get in your colon and the colon gremlins will use it to tie your intestine shut so you can't poop and you will explode."

"That's correct. Put this in your mouth instead..." Opie handed Cassie a treacle tart from the small basket of goodies she was bringing Mairead. Cassie grabbed it greedily and stuck it in her mouth, chewing noisily. "Now... the answer to your question... The girls name is Mairead, not Mary, and she is going to be staying with us for the summer while she is preparing to enter hogwarts..." Ophelia added, glancing at her watch.

Cocking her head to the side, Opie smiled at her other niece, who was quietly reading a book. Rhiannon was Cassie's opposite in every way, from her clothes muted color palette to her complete lack of interest in the world around her. Cassie was bright and cheery and always curious, but Rhiannon kept to herself. Opie worried at times about the girl, but then, she hadn't been the most social of butterflies when she was her age. "Rhia... Please be ready to greet the young miss... This is after all her first time in the wizarding world, we need to set a good example..."

As Rhiannon sighed heavily and complied, Opie glanced down the street in front of the Leaky Cauldron, wondering where her new charge was. In the distance she thought she saw the woman that she had run into earlier that week, Clare she believed was her name, and a young girl next to her. "That must be them! Look alive my dears!"

Noos a Daalyon, Mairead!  Geth! 

Mairead heard her mother's voice called in Shelta through the door towards her and, reluctantly, turned away from the brick wall and followed her mother out onto the streets of London.  Since Mairead had first passed through the brick wall into Diagon Alley, she'd found herself squarely in some surreal plane of existence.  And, though she'd grown up hearing her own native language spoken on a daily basis, to hear it again, as if it was perfectly normal, after five days without it in the wizarding world only added to the surrealism. 

"I wasn't going to run off," Mairead lied, in English as she caught up with her mother.  "Honest."  The place had been a proverbial cornucopia of fascination when she'd first slipped away from her mother to explore the wizarding alley and, at the time, she'd known nothing about the place.  Now, with the little she'd learned about wands (which she knew she'd have one day), flying brooms (which she knew she'd ride one day), potions ingredients (which she knew she'd brew soon), moving portraits (which, she wouldn't mind avoiding for a while) and crazy pets (which she'd already pocketed once), the alley was even more of an intense temptation. 

 "Please, Maisie.  You've only been away a few days; I don't forget that easily."  A firm hand grasped Mairead's shoulder as her mother scanned the street.  "Remember, your going to be living with this woman's family.  You need to make a good impression.  Not like the last time." 

Mairead wasn't actually convinced the last time hadn't been a good impression.  Of course, such events were always matters of personal perspective.  The first day of the Remembrance Day festivities, they'd meant to catch up with this Opie Grimly - or whatever was written on the note in Mairead's pocket.  Her mother had spoken with the woman but the meeting had been cut short when Mairead had gotten chased out of Honeydukes for helping herself to candy which she couldn't pay for.  Of course, Mairead blamed it on the gummi crickets - candy was not supposed to make noise and notify the store clerk of its imminent removal from its jar. 

A long bored sigh escaped Mairead and she rolled her eyes as her mother put her hands on both of her shoulders and looked at her in that distinctly maternal I'm-being-dead-serious-so-now's-not-the-time-to-ignore-me-or-daydream manner.  "You can't do those things here.

Of course, such distinctly maternal mannerisms were rarely entirely effective.  Mairead's attention had readily fixed on the dark haired woman and the younger girls that was coming towards them.  A week ago, Mairead would have assumed they were just strange.  Granted, they did still appear strange, but Mairead also was fairly certain she recognized the signs of Wizarding folk. 

"Mrs. Grimlish.  Pleased to see you, again."  Mairead's shoulders were released after a good, firm squeeze from her mother who turned towards the trio.  "This is my daughter, Mairead.  I can't tell you how much we appreciate you offering to help us out.  I know it's a lot to ask."  Mairead glanced from her mother to the woman and offered her and the two girls a smile. 

Mai's Outfit

"Mrs. Grimlish.  Pleased to see you, again. This is my daughter, Mairead.  I can't tell you how much we appreciate you offering to help us out.  I know it's a lot to ask."

"Not at all... As a future teacher I look forward to the chance to help out my students..." Ophelia smiled softly as the woman, Clar, she had met the other day pushed a young girl forward. The girls belligerent expression didn't match the bright and flowery dress she wore until she warily smiled at the three woman in front of her. Ophelia offered her the same gently half-moon smile she had given Clar and Rhiannon glanced up from the book she was surreptitiously reading to give the short girl a slight nod. Cassiopeia, on the other hand, burst into a grin so large that her face threatened to split in twine.

"I'm Cassie, glad to meetcha... You're a muggleborn right? I love muggle stuff... My grandpa got me a ceedee player from your world... I took it apart and fixed it up so it makes toast really really good..." Cassie's words flowed out without pause, or even breath, as she grabbed Mai's arm and started to pull her away. "It's well Cassie.. It makes it well..." Opie called after her neice as the thirteen year old blathered on to the younger girl, telling her about how Rhiannon was nice as long as you didn't go into her room "... she siced a boggart on me... You know what boggarts are right? Oh I bet you don't... well..."

Turning away from her niece and Mai, Opie gave Clar an apologetic look "She is very excitable... I am afraid that she doesn't have many children to play with where we live. Mai being here will surely make her entire summer..." Opie glanced lovingly at Cassie before returning to Clar "Well then... I suppose everything is in order... But before you go, is there anything we need to touch up on in her education... Aside from magic I mean? Or has she studied the reading material yet? There is quite a lot I am afraid..."


((Mai, feel free to godmod Cassie if you want... I am sure you will do a good job with her hehe... ))

Clar nodded her head as she looked from the woman to the two girls that accompanied her.  They were a peculiar bunch, at least by her standards, their dress not the least of the peculiarities.  One of the girls seemed to have her nose stuck in a book, only slightly aware of what was going on around her.  The other girl seemed to be much more similar than the older one to her own daughter. 

"Well, from what I understand, teachers don't usually help students this much.  We really do appreciate it," Clar repeated, perhaps needlessly.  "Hopefully, she won't be too much trouble.  She's used to a more ... nomadic lifestyle.  I don't know if they told you but we're Pavees - Travellers and she's grown up on the road."  She knew she was probably worrying more than necessary but she couldn't resist the uneasy, nervous glance she cast at her daughter.  She was, after all, leaving her daughter in the care of a complete stranger. 


Mairead had, officially, tuned out the adults and was grinning enthusiastically at the chipper girl opposite her.  Cassie seemed close to Mairead's age and seemed to have as much energy as she did.  Unlike this Rhiannon girl.  "Yea, I'm mu - muggleborn," Mairead admitted, stumbling slightly over the new vocabulary.  "But, I'm not ... we're not like other muggles.  And, I don't ... I don't have a CD player.  We don't have electricity."  Mairead's eyes widened slightly and she glanced between Cassie and the adults.  "Yer ... the CD player ... makes toast?  Where do ye put the bread?  Does it play music while it's making toast?" 

"What's well?" Mairead asked, looking up at Opie as Cassie pulled her away, entirely unaware the woman was correcting the girl's grammar.  "Are ye going to the school?"  Mairead asked Cassie, eagerly.  "She has her own room?" Mairead asked the girl with the book, clearly impressed by the notion.  "Do ye have yer own room also?" She asked Cassie.  Despite Miles' clarification about boggarts, Mairead couldn't resist the temptation to clamp her hand over her nose when she heard that Rhiannon had a history of setting boggarts on people.  "They are the things that change shapes.  But, they don't come out of yer nose, right?"

Mairead felt her mother's hand close on her shoulder moments before she'd even attempted to head off down the street with Cassie.  Apparently, now was not the time to take off.  "I just have to go get her things from our room," Clar explained to Opie.  "She doesn't have much, just a few clothes and her pet.  I understand they let them take pets?"  That's what they remembered the witch say when she'd come to camp.  Since then, there hadn't been many they could trust to read the letter from school for them.  Of course, Mairead's mum was still unaware of the ball of fur in Mairead's pocket. 

"Reading material?"  Mairead cut in before her mother could answer the question.  "Ye mean, I'm supposed to read something before I even start school?  I - I don't ... I can't ... I've never been to school before."

"Well, from what I understand, teachers don't usually help students this much.  We really do appreciate it, Hopefully, she won't be too much trouble.  She's used to a more ... nomadic lifestyle.  I don't know if they told you but we're Pavees - Travelers and she's grown up on the road." 

"Oh yes, they did..." Opie said, giving Clar a sweet smile. "It was part of the reason I offered to take her under my wing... My great great great..." She paused, counting back the ancestors in her head before finishing "... Great grandfather was also a Pavee... We still have his caravan sitting in our back yard."

Glancing over at where Mai and Cassie were chatting excitedly, Opie sighed happily. It was nice to see Cassie get some friends. The poor girl was stuck in the house so much, working on her experiments, that she had little interaction aside from Rhiannon, who normally spend her time in the library. "... I think we could possibly fix the caravan up and allow Mai to sleep there if she would be more comfortable... As long as she doesn't mind ghosts... Grandfather likes to get drunk and play his violin until he falls in the fire..." Leaning forward, she whispered to Clar "Thats how he died, poor man..."

Meanwhile, Cassie was not having a hard time keeping up with Mai's questions at all, interjecting here and there with her answers. "CD players play music?... And thats cool we don't have electricity either, just magic....Heck yeah I am going to Hogwarts... I'm in Slytherin... They let me out for the day just to greet you cuz Aunt Opie asked... And yeah we all have our own rooms.. don't you?"

When Mai inquired about the boggarts, Cassie just laughed "No no no... they come out of like closets and doors and stuff. But don't worry, all you have to do is yell RIDDIKULOUS at them and make em into something funny...' She yelled the spell and stuck out her arm in a wand pose, despite not having a wand in her hand. When she was met with stares by the muggles passing, she burst into a bout of giggles. Rhiannon, who was desperately trying not to look up from her book lest people see her humiliated face, finally came out and bopped her sister on the top of her head "Shut up... what if the muggles heard you... You don't want to get Aunt Opie in trouble do you??"

Cassie started to pout, sticking her tongue out at Rhia, when Mai's mother was overheard asking Opie about pets. Cassie interjected excitedly "Yeah yeah, you can... I got a rat named Finster and Rhiannon has a cat... and..." she would have gone on, but apparently Mai overheard her aunt mention reading materials, for she suddenly burst out with "Reading material? Ye mean, I'm supposed to read something before I even start school?  I - I don't ... I can't ... I've never been to school before."

For a moment, Mai's statement was met with absolute silence from the three Grimlishs'. In their home, learning was an adventure that they all enjoyed. There were books covering nearly every surface in the mansion and most of them had been able to read before they were able to walk. To hear someone admit, at 11, that they could not read was... well... completely dumbfounding. Cassie gaped, Rhiannon stared and Opie looked taken aback. "Oh... well..." Opie managed, placing her hands on Cassie's head and Rhiannon's shoulder to indicate that they shouldn't judge "... We must remedy that much... You have a lot to learn before you can start school... Reading is just the start!"

Mairead looked up at this woman, Opie, with a hint of surprise.  They were Pavees too?  It was a somewhat comforting discovery.  So far, Mairead had encountered considerably less criticism here than she did back in Ireland, but it was nice to know where she'd be staying would be completely free of it. 

"Are you of Irish background?"  Mairead heard her mother ask.  Mairead knew, full well, the reason for the question.  She'd only met a Romani a few times before - usually in Belfast.  From the stories Oisin would tell them, Mairead knew the Romanis lived in Europe and shared similar cultural habits.  He'd explained to the kids that the Pavees were very closely related to the Romani in Europe - even more closely related than they were to the settled Irish.  "I know that will help her feel settled in."

Mairead nodded.  Yes, this was all nice and well and good.  She probably would rather stay in a vardo then in a house and it was very nice of the woman to offer.  The ghost sounded ... well, like interesting company.  There might have been a time a few weeks ago when the idea of sleeping with a ghost would have terrified her but after having met the Hogwarts ghosts, it now intrigued her.  But, this 'adult talk' was getting boring.  Why did they have to deal with all the details now?  Why couldn't the adults deal with them while ... well ... Mairead was back in that alley looking at stuff.

Really, Cassie's line of conversation was much more interesting.  "Of course!" Mairead declared, startled that she needed to declare it.  "CD players play CDs.  They have music on them."  She shook her head slightly, glancing a moment at her mother.  "Um... no - not really," she admitted, quietly.  Did most people have their own rooms?  "I mean, sort of.  I'm in the wagon with me and me mum and da." 

"What's ... so what if the muggles hear us?  They shouldn't be listening in anyway," Mairead said to Rhiannon.  It seemed logical to her.  Yes, she'd heard muggles were supposed to be kept in the dark about their world but it was partly their responsibility to not eavesdrop. 

Mairead glanced sideways as her mother moved back towards the pub to gather her supplies.  When she looked back at the three, the conversation had taken a turn to the slightly awkward.  The three of them were staring at her - not unlike Maggie had that day in Diagon Alley.  Color blossomed deeply on Mairead's face and she looked down at her shoes, watching as she tapped her shoes against the sidewalk.  "I ... I can speak three languages, though!" she declared, looking up, hoping that bit of news would counterbalance the previous.  "I ... is it hard?" she asked, glancing between them.  "I mean, what if I don't learn it all by the time school starts?"

She looked over her shoulder again, watching as her mother came back in sight through the pub door.  Mairead's ragged backpack was hanging from one hand and the leash of a large, wiry-haired dog in the other.  "Here's your stuff," she said, handing the bag and leash to Mairead.  "And, as I understand the school has given you something from the scholarship for school supplies.  I hope it's enough.  If it isn't we'll...well, we'll find a way."