It been such a pleasant start to the summer vacation. Everyone had settled in to the summer home quite nicely. All the Great Aunts had come, and their children, and their grandchildren. Opal and Faye had to be fetched by Uncle Magnus via Portkey because her Gran couldn't Apparate anymore and traveling by Floo Powder had been too risky ("You could end up in a grate on the other side of the United Kingdom," Uncle Magnus had tried to explain to a flustered Opal). By the time the pair had arrived at the summer home with their bags, all of her cousins had already decided who they would bunk with. Hermia and Iphigenia would be on opposite sides of the house this year, thank goodness. Faye noticed that her aunts Moira and Millicent were also trying to put one another as far away from the other as possible. With everyone else settled with their chosen roommates, the arrangements left Faye with no other choice than to bunk with the two loudest girls in the family: Eugenia (age 9, not yet a Hogwarts student) and Morrigan Blackthorne, who would be starting school later this year.

There were two sets of bunk beds in the room and both Eugenia and Morrigan had already taken one side. All over Eugenia's bed were things only a nine-year-old would care about: coloring books, a box of painted rocks, a Sneak-o-Scope, and some first learner's books to practice reading. Up on top were Morrigan's things: fashion and beauty magazines of muggles and witches, a stylish bag full of tasteful clothes in bright colors, and make-up strewn across her bed. Neither of them were in the room when she arrived and she decided to go ahead and unpack, too. She opened her own bag, a worn out duffle with lots of pockets, and peered into it longingly. Faye had tried very hard to stuff all of her history books into her bag, but Gran had caught on to the fact there had been more books than clothes and demanded she remove the books. All of them! Under her Gran's supervision, Faye hadn't been able to sneak a single book into her duffel before Uncle Magnus's arrival. ("You need to start learning to talk, girl! Socialize! How do you expect to get anywhere by keeping your mouth shut all the time?" Gran had said.) The words still echoed in her mind. She shoved them out, suddenly angry at her Gran for being so pushy.

"Talk when I damn well want to, won' I?" She grumbled to herself as she zipped her bag forcefully back up. "Don' need no mad ol' lady tellin' me somefin' wrong with me, do I? The ol' hag can go Floo herself, she can."

"Sshh! I thought I heard someone talking."

Faye went quiet again and turned around to see Morrigan and Eugenia entering the room. Morrigan's red hair had grown more wild, if that were possible, since she last saw her two summers ago. Her clothes were cute with just the right amount of accessories. Faye shuffled her feet, dipping her blue eyes down at her own second-hand outfit. Everyone thought Faye and Morrigan were twins, or at least sisters, because both of them had distinct red hair, fair skin, and freckles. Even though Faye was a year older than Morrigan, she was as small as a first year. No one outside of the family would believe them when they explained they were extended family...

Eugenia had grown, too. She wasn't as plumpy anymore and she didn't waddle when she walked. She was thinner, though her cheeks were still chubby and her glasses still made her look like a big-eyed bug. Thick brown pigtails drooped to her shoulders and she gave an obnoxious sniffle, wiping her bare hand across her nose. Eugenia had no hygiene.

"Were you talking to yourself, Faye?"

Faye shook her head in response.

"You know, Faye, it's okay to talk. Mum always told me that if you ever feel sad or upset about something that talking can help."

Again, Faye shook her head with a more meaningful expression. There was nothing wrong with her. At least, that's what she kept telling herself. A shout from the hall beckoned the girls to lunch and they went downstairs. The most obvious thing they noticed, (aside from Aunt Millicent drinking deeply from a glass full of wine while her sister Moira fixed her with a scathing glare, narrowly missing chopping off her finger as she sliced the lettuce) was that the table was missing.

"Where is the table?" Morrigan asked loudly and with more awe than was necessary.

"Don't shout," Moira said coldly, "and it's being moved outside."

"Mummy is doing magic!" Eugenia scuttled out of the kitchen door to the yard with her cousins following closely.

 They didn't want to be in the same room as their aunts and for good reason. The moment they left, Moira started nagging at Millicent about doing nothing to help and Millicent started shouting. Outside, Aunt Josephine (Eugenia and Iphigenia's mother, a sour-looking Ministry witch wearing a pants suit) and Aunt Saoirse (a red-haired beauty dressed classy-casual in a plum blouse and khaki pants) twiddled their wands to set up the table and chairs. The younger girls joined their cousins who were seated on pillows, mattresses, and couches scattered underneath a tall camphor tree, all wide-eyed and giddy at the spectacle. They were always excited to see their aunts and older cousins use magic. Magic at home was common, so it wasn't as impressive. With a flick of her wand, Aunt Saoirse made a chair spin in mid-air, sprout wings, and begin to fly around the yard making odd creaking noises.

"Oh, now, Saiorse..." Aunt Josephine complained with a groan, "Is that really necessary? I want to get this done."

"We are done, Josie," Saiorse smiled kindly at her cousin. "I'm simply having fun. You can go back inside if you want to."

And Josephine did so, groaning loudly as she went. The kids heard her give a loud shout over her sisters' screams followed by a BANG!, a blast of shocking-violet light, and a squawk. Reluctantly, Saiorse returned the chair to normal, set it down at the table, and looked at the children.

"I should go see if anyone's hurt. Why don't you all go play for a while? We'll call you when lunch is ready." And she hurried away to see what was wrong. It was easy to see why she made such a great Healer at St. Mungo's.

The kids all stood up and started discussing what they were going to do. Desdemona stood leaning up against the tree, looking like she was deciding what hex she wanted to use them all. Morrigan was chattering loudly to Eugenia and Eoghan about starting school. Faye meandered away from them to stand beside her older brooding cousin. She placed her hands behind her before she, too, leaned her back up against the tree, her fingers scraping against the rough bark. Desdemona ignored her for a few seconds before she finally looked down with a raised eyebrow.

"Sick of them already?"

Faye nodded.

"Don't blame you." The silence stretched on before she said anything else. "Saw you were sorted into Gryffindor. Did my siblings watch over you?"

Faye gave another nod, her eyes finding Rhiannon and Levi in the mix of relatives. Desdemona looked nothing like them. She had dark brown hair, a surly expression, and wore lots of dark colors. Rhiannon and Levi, on the other hand, were both red-haired, freckled, and were much more outgoing than their oldest sibling. Levi caught her eye and winked; Faye smiled shyly. He had stood up for her against a rather tough-looking sixth year that had been picking on her. They'd got into a fight and Levi ended up in detention, but he told Faye it was worth it.

"Are you looking forward to going back?" Desdemona asked.

She shrugged. Hogwarts was nice, but there were too many people. She got lost easily and she didn't fit in--even among those in her same year. They were all quirky, but all of them said something even when they were shy. Faye never said a word. By the end of the year, she was sure all of them thought something was wrong with her, like Gran and the rest of her family did. Except... There was nothing wrong with her.

Serenity glanced over at her cousins Desdemona and Faye, but she didn't pay them too much attention because the word 'Quidditch' had just popped up in the conversation among the older cousins. She heard her sister squeal excitedly and she was suddenly interested, too.

"If we're playing--" But someone talked over her. They always did that. It was annoying. Each of them was going on and on about what position they were playing and who were picking the teams. "I want Keep--" Interrupted again! Serenity rolled her eyes and backed out of the conversation for the time being. Nobody wanted to listen to each other, let alone listen to her.

She had just moved away from the conversation in time to see her grandparents making their way through the kitchen. Pearl looked rather upset that her nieces had hexed each other. Just as she had opened her mouth to lecture them, Great Aunt Beryl, covered in an expensive fur cloak, started jabbering accusingly at her and pointing her long fingers into Pearl's chest. The two started squabbling. Serenity's grandfather saw she was watching and got their attention, nodding in her direction. It was only then she noticed that there was silence behind her: all of her cousins had also stopped talking to watch the adults. Great Aunt Beryl gave a haughty sniff and pulled her cloak around her more; Pearl swiped some of her black hair out of her face, forced herself to smile, and lead the way outside toward the collection of grandkids and great-neices and nephews.

"Good afternoon, children," Pearl beamed. "Look at all of you! You've all grown so much. I'm sorry to interrupt, but we need a word with our grandchildren. Serenity? Angerona? Oh, Morrigan, there you are! We won't be a minute. Come on, upstairs."

Serenity's cheeks burned with embarrassment. Pearl was the only one to get her grandchildren presents every summer. Great Aunt Beryl was too stuck up and Great Aunt Opal couldn't afford it and if she could, she wasn't allowed to leave the house without supervision. After a sorrowful look back at her cousins, Serenity joined her sisters and followed their Oma upstairs. They were lead in to their parents' room where Romulus and Morgana waited with excited grins. Their grandfather, Angus, was even smiling. Serenity, however, frowned.

"Where's Romaine?"

"Oh, he sent an owl saying he'd be here around dinner time," her father explained. "He's busy at the Ministry."

"Youngest first, of course," Oma reached into her handbag and pulled out a large box that should not have been able to fit. This box she handed to Morrigan. "I hear you are expecting a letter from Hogwarts this year?"

Morrigan grinned. "Yes, ma'am!"

"Excellent. I'm sure you'll do well in whichever house you're Sorted into."

"Oh, everyone says I'll be in Ravenclaw like Reni because I'm clever and smart."

Serenity felt herself swell with pride as her younger sister beamed at her. She'd almost forgotten what it was like to be a big sister because she had been away from Morrigan all year. Since the girl could walk she had been following her bigger sister around; Serenity had been frequently teased by her older cousins that she had a talking shadow. For the longest time, that was what they called Morrigan: Shadow. But once Serenity started at Hogwarts and Morrigan had grown into her own person, they had all been resigned to calling her by her actual name. Serenity never wanted to admit it because at the time her "shadow" had been so annoying, but deep down, Serenity was lonely without Morrigan at Hogwarts. This year, of course, would be different: Morrigan was going to be at Hogwarts now.

"How wonderful! However, we never know what the Sorting Hat will put us in until you've put it on. Remember that, dear. Now, here's your present."

Pearl removed a medium-sized decorative box with a large pink bow from her handbag. This was a wonder in itself because the box looked too big for the bag. Morrigan, dazzled by the box, gave a delighted squeal and sat on the floor o open it. Inside was a brand new muggle princess dress of hot pink, an enchanted tiara that lit up and turned some of her curls pink, and a book labeled, Wicked Style! The Hottest Trends of 2010!, which predicted the upcoming styles of witches and wizards. Morrigan danced on the spot, giggling excitedly, before hugging her grandparents.

"You next, Ren." Her Oma pulled out yet another box, this one decorated in the majestic blue and brone of the Ravenclaw House. "Here you are."

"Thank you," she said sincerely before even opening the box.

Her grandparents probably had helpful tips from her parents because inside was a brand new set of robes and dress robes, a copy of Home Life and Social Habits of British Muggles by Wilhelm Wigworthy, and a set of opal dice for her Dungeons and Dragons games (opal was her birth stone). She felt tears welling up at the sight of the new robes and dress robes. Her parents wouldn't have been able to afford them. And the dice set looked really expensive! Fighting against the tears, Serenity ran forward and hugged her grandparents tightly.

"I love the gifts. Thank you." Her grandfather gave her an awkward pat and she pulled away, wiping off the few tears that had leaked.

Angerona was difficult to please. Her presents had also been a new set of robes and dress robes, a book titled, Practikal Magick: An Essential Witch's Guide for Charms and Spells to Enchant Wizards (Morrigan demanded to borrow it once Angerona had finished with it), and a new set of Runes. Oma and Opa didn't see the disappointment on Angerona's face, but Serenity did: Angie didn't take Runes, she took Numerology and it was by far her best subject. Angie forced a smile on her face regardless, hugged them, and thanked them for the presents as sincerely as her sisters.

"Well, I hope you all have a good year at Hogwarts," Oma said brightly. "Be sure to write to us. Especially you, Miss Morrigan, I want to know what house you were sorted into."

"Yes, Oma. Thanks again!"

The elderly grandparents swept from the room with Pearl muttering about going to see her sister Opal before they left. Their parents went to escort them out. Morrigan admired her tiara before putting it on and trying on her dress over her clothes. Serenity was in the middle of opening her new dice set when her youngest sister bolted for the door.

"I'm going to go show off my new tiara!"

Her arm was snatched fiercely by Angerona. "No you are not!"

"But... But why not?" She pouted.

There was a mixture of hurt feelings and anger struggling to express themselves on the sweet girl's face. Serenity and Angerona loved their sister greatly, but she could get downright nasty with her temper. Angie wasn't the softest person, either. Her own meanness and biting attitude would come out and when it did, nobody had any trouble at all believing the Sorting Hat had been right to put her in Slytherin. Serenity set her own things aside and knelt down in front of her younger sibling with a softened smile, glancing at Angerona to let go; she did.

"Because the other kids didn't get any presents from their grandparents. You don't want to brag, do you?"

"I like my gifts and I want to show them off. What's wrong with that?" Her confusion was showing on her face now, red brows knitted together. Morrigan was also gritting her teeth in irritation.

"They'll all hate you for it," Angerona crossed her arms over her chest. "For flaunting your gifts, I mean."

The shock effect worked brilliantly. Maybe too much.

"They won't hate you, but they already feel hurt because we get presents and they don't. There's nothing wrong with being proud of what you got. You got some fantastic things! But you won't be able to show them off until we get home..."

"But that's six weeks away!"

"I know... I'm sorry, Morrigan, but you can't take these things out of this room." She felt really bad for her sister and her guilt was made worse when she started to cry. "You can come in here and play with them, though. Whenever you want."

"I...I can?"

Angerona muttered, "Nice,[/]" to Serenity and smiled at her youngest sibling. "Of course you can. Mum and Dad won't mind as long as you don't mess with their stuff. You can even use the vanity and bring your make-up in here, but don't make a mess, all right?"

Morrigan grinned through her tears. She reluctantly placed her tiara on the bed along with her dress and whispered to them she would return before they all left the room. Serenity hated leaving behind her book because she was looking forward to learning more about Muggles, but her disappointment was hidden from her sisters as they made their way back outside with their cousins.

The Blackthorne kids had been summoned by their grandmother to receive presents. It was something that had been going on for a long time. Faye was the only grandchild of Opal because her Aunt Saoirse refused to allow her relatives to help with her love life and Faye's dad, well... He was dead. She had no chance of getting any brothers or sisters. She would be an only child. Forever. Was that really so bad, though? Her blue eyes glanced up at the moody Desdemona. 'Look at what she has to go through,' she reminded herself.

Desdemona was the oldest of her siblings, but everyone knew Rhiannon was the star of the family. She had a lot of promise for being great, she was friendly, and she was a Gryffindor. Levi even out-shined her because he was expected to become a Quidditch star; he was also in Gryffindor. Poor Desdemona was the first Slytherin besides her mother in a long time. Desdemona had been out of school for over a decade and still hadn't "amounted to anything", the way Aunt Moira told it. Faye thought this was a little unfair because Desdemona wasn't an outgoing person. That would make it hard on anyone to get a good career.

A few minutes passed without anyone talking. The others were disappointed at not being able to get presents like Romulus's kids. Great Aunt Beryl was the richest out of the three sisters yet she wouldn't spend a dime on her grandchildren--or her own children, for that matter. Millicent always complained loudly to anyone who would listen how she had to wander around Hogwarts with second-hand robes. Aunt Moira had never been given second-hand anything and Aunt Josephine and Uncle Fergus had never once complained. Everrett was just as whiny as his mother about things.

It was he that spoke first from the tree branch above Faye and Desdemona. "Are we going to play Quidditch or not?"

"I guess so," shrugged Levi. "But we need to decide on Captains."

Everrett's lip curled into a nasty smirk. "I think we all know I'm one of the best players among the lot. I'll be a Captain."

"We can't play yet," Rhiannon spoke up. "Mina and Romaine aren't here."

Levi brushed his hands through his hair. "Merlin's beard... I hate it when we're short on players."

"But we're not. Make the kids play." Everrett insisted haughtily.

"Oh yeah," Iphigenia recalled, "I forgot Morrigan can play now."

Rhiannon shook her head. "Even with Morrigan, we're still short two players. I had already counted her."

"What a bunch of idiots you are," snorted Everrett. "I was talking about those two." And he pointed directly at Eugenia and Eoghan, who both cowered at the idea of being on a broomstick. There was a sudden uproar from the rest of the older kids.

"ARE YOU MAD?!" Levi shouted furiously.

"My sister is not getting on a broomstick! What if she fell off and hurt herself?"

"And there's no way Eoghan is going to be flying, either!" Hermia added.

They may have hated each other, but Hermia and Iphiegenia were fiercely protective of their younger siblings and constantly forgot their dislike of one another when they united against a force that threatened Eugenia and Eoghan. Faye's smile went unnoticed as they all bickered and hollered at Everrett (Aonghus was shouting something in Irish, no doubt learned from his father's paranoid mutterings), who was growing more annoyed by the second. The riot got so loud that some of the adults had hurried outside to see what all the fuss was about. Uncle Magnus reached them first, looking odd in a simple t-shirt and pants. Faye had never seen him dress so casual.

"Here, now, what's going on? Break it up! Levi, Rhiannon, stop shouting. What in the name of Merlin's beard is going on out here?"

"We're short two players and that lunatic--" (--he pointed an accusing finger at Everrett--) "--up there wants to put the little ones on broomsticks!"

"All right, you've made your point," Uncle Magnus grunted while staring at his son's finger. "There's no need to get your broomstick in a knot and call people names. Got your mother's temper... We can settle this quite easily, no need to get the li'l ones involved. There are..." He took a quick headcount of them all. "There are eleven of you. My my... You wouldn't be able to play even if you added the little ones. You'd still need another player."

"If Mina and Romaine were here, we'd have--" Rhiannon suddenly fell silent as she took another head count. It dawned on her, too, that they would still be short a player.

"See what I mean?" Uncle Magnus slipped his hands into his pockets, barked a loud laugh, and beamed at them all. "No need to beg. I'd be happy to play!"

Faye, Eugenia, and Eoghan errupted into giggles. Even Aonghus chortled. It was Levi that groaned and hid his face in his hands.

"What are you all laughing at?" Uncle Magnus looked around at them all, then fixed his gaze on his son. "Oi, I'll have you know that I am an excellent Quidditch player!"

"Aren't you a bit old to be playing Quidditch with your kids?" Everrett asked in a condescending tone.

"Not any more old than your mother is and I'm sure she'd love to have a go," Uncle Magnus retorted coolly. His nephew's ears flushed a violent shade of red and went quiet. "Right. I'll go round up a couple more players. I'll be sure to ask Millie first. We need Captains... Hmm... Desi, you and Iphigenia can start picking your teams. I'll be along with the rest shortly."

Levi and Everrett both scowled at Uncle Magnus's back as he strolled to the house, giving a carefree whistle as he went. Iphegenia swaggered to a spot and gave her bossiest look yet. Hermia did not seem too pleased. Levi, Everrett, and the others lined up while Desdemona stood a short distance away from Iphigenia.

"You go first," she offered.

"Right. I'll pick Rhiannon."

The others groaned. Rhiannon, Levi, and Everrett were the easy choices because they were all the best at Quidditch. Desdemona's dark eyes glared at them all.

"Faye."

Everyone gaped at her in shock, even Faye. Iphigenia stared hard at her as she tried to creep her way over to Desdemona's side. It was like Iphigenia was trying to figure out if there was something she had missed about Faye. Why would Desdemona pick the smallest child--other than Morrigan--over a star player such as Levi? Faye really wished her cousin would ask Desi... She wanted to know the answer, too.

Morrigan and her sisters passed Uncle Magnus on the way out. He was shouting for Millicent.

"Hello, Uncle Magnus," she greeted cheerfully on her way out.

"Hullo, darling," and he walked right on past her.

"Ugh! How rude. Did you see that, Angie? He walked right past me! As if I'm not his favorite niece!"

There was a muttering from Angerona that sounded like "You aren't", but Morrigan must have imagined it. She was everyone's favorite relative, after all. Angie was just jealous because she was as ordinary as the rest of the Slytherin girls. Morrigan was in a much better mood now that she knew she could play with her things in her parents' room. It would be so much fun! Why, she could even have a tea party in there! Except that there was no one she could have a tea party with...

Their cousins were picking teams for Quidditch. Iphigenia had the winning team so far: Levi and Rhiannon! Much to her surprise, Faye was on Desdemona's team. But why? Could Faye playe Quidditch? She had never told Morrigan so! This irritated Morrigan a great deal. She walked right up behind Faye and tapped her hard on the shoulder. The older kids were still picking teams and paying no mind to the younger ones.

"Excuse me," she said bossily, "but since when do you play Quidditch?"

Faye said nothing, of course. She just gave a shrug and turned away from her. This made Morrigan very angry. Her ears turned pink. She tapped her cousin again, harder this time. Faye turned around, also irritated.

"What position do you play?"

Faye gave another shrug.

"Well, why haven't you ever told me you play?" There was no reply from her cousin. Only a guilty shuffle of her feet. Morrigan gave an annoyed sigh. "Oh, all right, then.. Desi! I would like to be on your team."

Desdemona stared down at her. She glanced at Faye, then nodded over at Iphigenia. It seemed that the opposing Captain had a problem with Desi choosing Morrigan because she raised her voice.

"What are you playing at? Are you trying to make a fool out of me? You're going to lose, Desi! Don't you care?"

There wasn't an instant reply from Desdemona. One was lucky to ever get a reply from her when they shouted in her face. Morrigan thought Iphigenia must have been one such lucky person because Desi did, in fact, honor her with a response.

"Piss off."

Iphigenia scowled and opened her mouth to scream, but the adults came out and she was forced to fume in silence. Uncle Magnus, Romulus, and Ingrid lined up with the remaining kids. Desdemona took Magnus and Romulus because Iphigenia apparently did not think that either of them would be that great on a broomstick. The teams were finalized, the girls shook hands, and Romulus used a Summoning Charm to get them all broomsticks. Morrigan stared at hers, suddenly terrified of what to do.

"It's all right, sweetums," her dad patted her back gently. "You'll learn how to fly at Hogwarts. Do you want to wait until next summer to play with your cousins?"

She nodded and handed her broom back to her dad. There were a few arguments about her not joining because it meant they had to find another Quidditch player and she was replaced by none other than her own Aunt Fionna, who had turned up only a few minutes before. Morrigan gaped at Aunt Fionna, whom she rarely saw. Fionna was a beautiful red-head with stylish glasses, a pleasant smile like Aunt Saiorse, and her dad's warm brown eyes. Although she wasn't as tastefully dressed as Aunt Saiorse, there was something to be said about her unconventional outfit of mud brown and caramel. She smelled like earth which was Morrigan's favorite smell.

"All right, Morggie?" She gave her niece a chummy wink while she removed her long, leathery coat and took the broom from Romulus. "Thank you, Romy."

Morrigan's dad trodded off to join the others in their hike to the field, but she didn't notice. She was too busy gawking at her actual aunt. All the other Aunts and Uncles were actually just distant cousins yet they insisted on being called 'Aunt' or 'Uncle'. Fionna was her real aunt, Romulus's sister, and she was very pretty. Morrigan had only met her once before and that had been when she was a toddler and didn't appreciate her the way she did now.

"Your dad told me you were afraid to fly so I thought I'd take your place. That all right with you?"

The girl nodded fervently. She was currently finding it hard to speak.

"Wicked! Thanks. Want to come watch?"

Morrigan was in the middle of nodding again when she caught herself and instead shook her head. Finally, she could speak. "I...I think I'd like to go have a tea party."

"Tea party, eh? That sounds like more fun than playing Quidditch. Wish I could go."

"You could! I mean... If you want to?" She gave her aunt her sweetest smile.

Fionna laughed. "I would love to come, but those kids need another player. Tell you what. How about if I come tomorrow instead?"

Such a suggestion made Morrigan feel quite disappointed and sad. It showed all over her face, her body sagging with the emotional downfall. Fionna poked her nose.

"Cheer up, sweets. We've got all summer."

"But... You're a grown-up. Don't you have a job?"

"Of course. But I don't work for the Ministry or St. Mungo's so I can do my job while I'm here."

"What... What do you do?" She had the unusual thought that she was asking too many questions. Her aunt, however, didn't seem to mind.

The woman positively glowed, as though she was hoping Morrigan would ask. "I'm a Dragon Chaser."

Morrigan gasped in excitement. There was a loud shout from the field beyond a clump of trees and Fionna made sure her reply could be heard. With another friendly wink at her niece, she said, "Got to go, sweets.", mounted her broom, and flew off in a wondrous spin like a professional athlete. She watched her aunt go and after the woman disappeared beyond the trees, she felt very lonely indeed. With a heavy sigh, she glanced hopefully at Eugenia and Eoghan.

"Want to come to my tea party?"

"No, we're going to go play Auror and Death Eater. Want to come?"

She gave a sad shake of her head and trudged her way upstairs to her parents' room in a dramatic manner. She couldn't wait until tomorrow when her aunt would come. It seemed like it would be forever...

Levi, Rhiannon, and Iphigenia were the most extraordinary Chasers that Faye had ever seen play. Everrett made a superb beater, given his aggressive nature, but he was easily overshadowed by his Uncles Magnus and Romulus. Serenity Lee wasn't a bad Keeper, either, and Faye had never seen anyone make such a spectacular catch as her Aunt Fionna. Desdemona's team had won in spite of Iphigenia having the best Chasers on her team. Faye, who played as a Chaser for Desdemona's team, had been rubbish. Being up so high made her dizzy and she had taken a few crude dives to dodge the Quaffle rather than catch it. Everrett had laughed himself silly and shouted that he didn't need to knock a Bludger at her because she was so horrible. This caused a loud argument between himself and the others (even Uncle Magnus and Aunt Fionne had defended her), but Faye honestly didn't mind: if she was afraid of a Quaffle, she would hate to be the target of a Bludger. And Everrett was a really mean Beater.

By the end of the game, the sun had set and everyone made their way back toward the summer house dragging their broomsticks with rumbling bellies. Hers was the loudest besides Levi's. She lagged behind on purpose so the others wouldn't hear it. Aonghus was obviously under the impression that she was upset about Everrett because he decided to lag behind, too, and walk with her. They were the same age and Aonghus had been sorted into Gryffindor right before she was. He gave her an encouraging smile.

"Don't worry about Everrett, Faye. My mum says people like him always get their come-up-its...whatever those are."

She smiled at him graciously. No one looked after her better than Aonghus and Levi. They really should have been brothers, in her opinion.

"Still not talking, eh?"

She shook her head, red hair flopping as she did so. Aonghus had inherited the dark brown hair of the Ruggles and his mother's blue eyes.

"Oh... Didn't you make any friends last year?"

Another head shake. He went quiet for a minute and they stopped underneath the camphor tree to admire the view. The table (which could seat about thirty people) had been covered with several different patterned cloths and set with mismatched china, silverware, and cups (some were goblets, some were wine glasses). Hovering over the tables were dozens of colorful candle lanterns, some hanging from tree branches and others magicked to float around above the table. A huge feast had been prepared by the adults and they were still bringing stuff out when the Quidditch players, sweaty and grimy, started pulling out chairs to sit down.

"Oh no you don't," Aunt Moira slapped her husband's hand as he reached for a roll. "Hands off! Every one of you is going to march upstairs and wash up before you sit down at this table! Go on!"

Uncle Magnus had difficulty getting over his shock that his wife had just smacked his hand. Upon finally doing so, he cleared his throat loudly and announced he was going to do just that. "Follow me, lads and lasses."

Aonghus shook his head as he spoke, which made Faye jump because for a moment she had forgot he was there. "I'll never understand love. What does he see in her?"

Faye also shook her head with an exaggerated look.

"Faye, I don't think anyone's ever asked you this, but...." He looked her straight in the eye, a serious expression on his freckled face. "Why don't you talk?"

Her nose turned red and she bit her lip. For a long time, she wasn't sure she wanted to answer. Then she let out a breath to ready herself and looked up at him. For the first time in a long time, she wanted to say something to someone. Aonghus was her favorite cousin; he'd been at her side since they were born. If she was going to open up to anyone, it should be him. It was the right moment. No one was watching them. Faye opened her mouth to say something and then... Her moment was ruined by a shriek of surprise and a loud uproar from the adults inside. Uncle Magnus, Aunt Ingrid, and her Gran all rushed out of the house towards them, pale and frightened. They swept straight towards her and she backed away, suddenly afraid of what was going on. Aunt Ingrid gently ushered her towards the tree, but it was too late. Someone had just appeared in the kitchen doorway. Someone that made Faye's stomach churn into knots, her legs lock up, and her breath catch in her throat.

A woman with cropped red hair, a very pale narrow face, and bright green eyes stared back at her. Anastasia had once been drop-dead gorgeous with long tresses and fair skin. She could have had any man she wanted yet she had chosen the goofy Elias Ruggle, Opal's youngest son. Now, however, she was far too thin and had several spaces on her skin that were marked with Azkaban tattoos. She stood rooted to the spot, fidgeting with the hem of her cloak nervously.

"Mother..." The word slipped out in Faye's shock.

Everyone gasped. Faye had at last said something! Anastasia seemed to have made up her mind on whether or not she was going to approach her daughter because she almost flew across the lawn towards the girl. The Gryffindor couldn't move; she was paralyzed with astonishment. She felt the woman's arms fly around her and hug her tight, clinging to her for dear life.

"Oh, my girl... My sweet girl... What you must have gone through... I am so sorry! I'm sorry, Faye..." And then she was shaking, sobbing against Faye's shirt. Her mother collapsed to her knees and cried. Faye still didn't know how to react.

Serenity Lee had been standing in line for the downstairs bathroom waiting to wash up when there was a sudden knock on the door. The bathroom was just around the corner and down the hall from the front door and she and her cousins peered at each other curiously. Who would be coming here that wasn't family? There was another knock at the door, Aunt Moira shouted that she was busy, and Great Aunt Opal waddled to the front door, muttering. The cousins, Uncle Magnus, and Aunt Fionne all crept closer towards the foyer to peek around the corner and watch Great Aunt Opal open the door. She gave a startled shriek of astonishment the moment it had opened.

Standing in the doorway was Aunt Josephine and another young, good-looking wizard flanking a raggedy woman with cropped red hair and startlingly blue eyes. From her blanched face and some of the tattoos on her arms, the obvious explanation was that this woman had just come from Azkaban. But what was she doing here?

"JOSEPHINE!" cried Great Aunt Opal, making them all jump. "YOU SHOULD HAVE SAID SOMETHING!"

"I'm sorry, Aunt Opal, I didn't realize the Ministry needed your permission for escorting Paroll Witches around," quipped Josephine. "She's been released and she was ordered to be taken somewhere for supervision."

"Released?! Get that foul little wretch out of my house!"

"What in the name of Merlin's beard is going--OH!!" Great Aunt Beryl gave a similar cry of shock at the sight of the woman. "What is she--"

"She's been released, Beryl," Great Aunt Opal explained heavily. "I don't want her here! No, shoo! Go away!"

The good-looking Auror started to back away slowly. "I'll just...uh..."

"Take her with you!" screeched Opal.

Aunt Josephine was leaning against the doorway with her arm propped up and her head leaning on her arm. She was irritated and getting cranky. When she spoke again, it was with a roll of her eyes and a very bored expression. "First of all, Auntie, this is not just your house, this is everyone's house. And secondly, she has every right to be here. She has been released from Azkaban, all charges have been dropped, and there is nothing anyone can do about where she goes, stays, or whom she sees fit to consort with as long as she is not violating her paroll and involving herself in criminal activities or illegal persons." It sounded as thought she had just repeated text from a book, as she said it all with a dull drawl. "And thirdly," she interrupted with emphasis as Opal and Beryl both opened their mouths, "seeing as how this family is full of Ministry witches and wizards, this is honestly the best place for her."

Serenity couldn't handle all the mystery anymore. The woman was looking very anxious, frightened, and yet there was a determined flare in her eyes. Very quietly, she glanced up at her cousin Levi.

"Who is that woman?"

"Oh, I forgot.. You and Angie were too small then. That's Aunt Anastasia, Uncle Elias's wife."

It didn't matter if they were speaking in hushed voices anymore because both Opal and Beryl had started shouting again. Serenity's aunt, Fionna, wiggled up beside them. Maybe she had been too young to remember her aunt, or maybe it was just because she rarely saw her, but Serenity thought her Aunt Fionna was beautiful...in a nerdy sort of way.

"Why was she in Azkaban?" She couldn't help but ask.

Her Aunt Fionna smiled at her. "Her and your Uncle Elias were caught selling actual potions to Muggles. It was a big to-do at the Ministry and caused even more chaos here at home."

"She IS allowed to see her daughter!" hollered Josephine at last. "Now get out of our way!"

"Who is her daughter?"

But nobody answered. Uncle Magnus, her dad, and Aunt Ingrid had suddenly rushed outside with worried looks on their faces. Josephine almost had to knock Opal and Beryl out of the way and she had to threaten them with arrest before they finally did. Opal started screaming foul things and crying, too, supported by her sister Beryl. Aunt Moira and Aunt Millicent had been watching in shock from the doorway. Even paranoid Uncle Fergus had come down from his room, wand in hand and muttering animatedly to himself, to see what was going on. The cousins all followed behind Aunt Josephine. Serenity glanced at the doorway in time to see the other Ministry wizard wink at her before Apparating.

The woman, Aunt Anastasia as she had been identified, ran across the yard to hug a stunned Faye. Serenity wasn't sure what to make of this: the fact that her cousin had parents whom were alive or the fact that the woman was sobbing horribly against her. It was a depressing reunion. Nobody in the family seemed to be happy that Faye was reunited with her mother.

"I don't understand," Serenity voiced aloud, "isn't it a good thing that Faye has her mother back?"

Aunt Fionna placed a hand gently on her shoulder. "Some of the family, like The Aunts, don't think Anastasia is a fit mother."

Her mother quickly fluttered from the kitchen to Serenity. "Ren, I want you and your sisters to go up to our room."

"But--"

"Ren, please."

Serenity stood there, gazing out the window at her tiny cousin. Faye wasn't reacting to her mother's sobs. "She doesn't look very happy to see her, either..."

"She was just a babe when her parents were arrested," Fionna explained. "Better do as your mother says."

"What about dinner?" She looked from her aunt to her mother.

"We'll send plates up. Quickly now."

"Mom... If you send Faye up, can she come with us?"

Morgana and Fionna exchanged meaningful glances, but her mother nodded her consent. Serenity then did as she was told and hurried upstairs with her silent sister storming behind her. She wasn't silent for long, however, because once they were alone in the hallway (Uncle Fergus had gone back to his room and was loudly cursing in Irish), she whirled around on Serenity angrily.

"I don't like it!"

She was surprised by her sister's sudden reaction. "What?"

"I don't like any of this. Aunt Anastasia just barging back into her daughter's life without a care what her daughter must be feeling! Then there's mum and our aunts acting all casual about it and sending us away! And The Great Aunts have no right to treat her that way! I mean, it was just a few potions handled out to Muggles, wasn't it? What was so horrible about that? It's not like she was Voldemort or anything!"

"Sshhh!"

Too late. Uncle Fergus came bursting out of the room shouting at Angerona, cursing loudly in Irish. Terrified, the girls fled up another set of stairs up to their parents' bedroom and shut the door. They locked it and pressed their ears against it, listening for their crazed uncle. He never came upstairs. Eventually, they heard a door slam shut and both heaved a sigh of relief.

"He must have gone back to his room."

Wheeling around, both girls were astonished to find the room a disaster...and Morrigan in the center of it all, smiling hopefully up at them.

"Oops..."

Her sisters gaped at the room. Their mother's vanity was littered with Morrigan's make up sets and it had become quite colorful due to the spilled powders of eye shadow and shades of blush. Her entire bag of clothes had been brought in and strewn around the floor; the bed was hidden by her fashion magazines, many of them open and the pages smeared with lipstick, eye shadow, or blush. Her Tearose Tea Set was set on the bed, too, some of the cups tipped over; the pink tea had already stained the sheets. Morrigan was sitting at her mother's vanity with far too much make-up all over her face wearing the dress their Oma had presented her and the tiara, making some of her red curls extraordinarily pink.

"What have you done, Morrigan?!" Angerona exclaimed.

"I... I was having a tea party..." She gazed around the room guiltily.

"You're eleven!! Eleven-year-olds about to start Hogwarts don't have tea parties! Look at this mess! What did we tell you about making a mess?"

"You didn't say anything about a mess." Morrigan's voice had suddenly become quite bossy and she placed her hands on her hips. "You just said I wasn't to mess with mum and dad's stuff. And I haven't."

Angerona's green eyes darkened suddenly, causing the youngest sibling to shrink away to the corner. She had drawn her wand and Serenity took a swipe to knock it from her hand. The door opened just then and everyone froze. Romaine was standing there, his brown eyes flicking in surprise all over the room before he really noticed what they were doing. Their oldest brother was a Ministry wizard, too. He quickly stepped in and closed the door behind him.

"What happened in here?"

"Morrigan had a tea party." Angerona said thickly, pointing her wand accusingly at Morrigan. "We warned her--"

"Put that wand away, Angie," he huffed. "Surely you haven't forgotten you're not allowed to do magic outside of school? Really, I expected more of you... Hello, Reni." He beamed in Serenity's direction, then at Morrigan.

She picked at her fingernails with a pout. "Am I in trouble?"

"Not to worry. I'll have this cleaned up in a jiffy. Stand aside there, ladies."

Her sisters joined her in the corner while Romaine rolled up his sleeves. He gave his wand a good twirl and began swishing it like a maestro would direct an orchestra. The make-up powders filled themselves back into their containers, which set themselves upright and closed; pink tea stains vanished and the Tearose Tea Set clinked itself back into order; the clothes neatly folded and packed themselves back into her bag, followed by the magazines. In moments, the room was clean and not a trace of the hazard left behind. Romaine smiled at them all.

"That was amazing! When do I learn that at Hogwarts?"

Romaine turned a bright shade of pink which clashed with his curly red hair. He adjusted his glasses nervously, positively glowing with pride. "I didn't learn that from school. Mum does know some things, Morrigan."

She wrinkled her nose up at his statement in reply. Angerona, having returned her wand to her pocket, moved out of the corner.

"Can we come downstairs yet?"

"No, not yet, I'm afraid. The grown-ups are still...ah...talking."

"What are they talking about?" Serenity asked.

Morrigan was completely baffled by the looks on her siblings' faces. She felt like she had missed something big. This was not a feeling she enjoyed. "What happened?"

"Faye's mum just got out of Azkaban," Serenity waved a dismissive hand at her sister, still eagerly awaiting an answer from her brother.

"WHAT?! How come no one's told me? When did this happen?"

"Just a moment ago. Why d'you think we're up here instead of outside eating dinner? Honestly, Morrigan, you think you're the center of everything." Angerona rolled her eyes.

Morrigan fixed her with a look, not unlike their mother's. "No I don't."

Romaine loudly cleared his throat. "I've just come to say 'hello' and check on you girls. I'll be back soon with some sandwiches."

"Wait, Romi, we still have some questions!"

But it was no good. Their brother returned downstairs and Serenity was left without answers. She sat down on the bed with a groan.

"Faye...has a mum?"

"It seems so," Serenity muttered. "The adults are all in an uproar about it, especially The Great Aunts."

"Why do we have to stay up here?"

"Apparently they don't want the kids involved," Angerona grunted.

"Oh..."

Serenity looked up at their oldest sister. "Mum is supposed to be sending Faye up here while they talk."

"How come she's not here, then?"

"Dunno..."

"Maybe we should sneak downstairs and go see what they're up to."

"But we'll get into trouble," Morrigan chimed in.

"Only if we're caught." Serenity's brown eyes twinkled with mischief.

Morrigan frowned. This was new for Serenity. She had hardly ever broken the rules before Hogwarts, always doing as mum and dad had told her. What did they teach at Hogwarts? Surely there were rules there. Why was her sister breaking the rules here? The little one simply didn't understand how her sister could have changed so much while she was away at Hogwarts...

Angerona had just opened the door and gasped. None of them had expected Levi to be standing there, haunted by his two shadows Aonghus and Eoghan. Eoghan looked rather anxious, his eyes skittering back and forth; Aonghus, however, simply looked worried.

"And where d'you think you're off to?" Levi quirked a brow at the girls suspiciously.

"Downstairs."

Angerona was quite blunt about their plan. Morrigan became nervous. What if Levi told on them? She had her answer, however: Levi's lips formed a full grin, the same devious glint in his eyes as her sisters'.

"No need. I got these." From his pocket he withdrew a set of ears that drooped towards the floor slowly as though they were made of elastic. The tips were frayed, as though they had been used many times. "Extendable Ears."

"Where did you get those?"

"Weasley's Wizard Wheezes down in Diagon Alley," he grinned. "They were my Christmas present from Gran last year."

The voices were raised again downstairs, drawing all their attention to the ruckus. Levi lead the way down to the first landing. His grin disappeared suddenly and he stopped in his tracks. Uncle Fergus was standing in the hall, too. He had his wand out and his eyes were popping. He jerked his head up to look at them all and started muttering something in Irish, too incoherent for them to understand.

"Sorry, er... We were just--"

"SSHH!" Uncle Fergus's gaze slipped to the Extendable Ears. He gave them a smile (a creepy, mad smile at that) and crept over to the area of the hall where the stairs began. Levi gave a shrug and joined his Uncle Fergus in a crouch at the top of the landing. The Extendable Ears slithered their way down the stairwell and up against the cracks in the walls until they entered the Den, which was the living area for the summer home. All of the adults had gathered there for the discussion. Morrigan hesitated. She wasn't so sure she wanted to hear...

Caught in the middle of all the drama, at its very core, was the ever-silent Faye. She was shaking with mixed emotions, though somehow holding it all together. Sitting beside her on the couch was her mother, also pale and trembling. Neither of them said a word to one another. Faye really wished they would stop arguing... She glanced up at her mother then quickly stared down at her bare feet again. They were dirtier than the rest of her.

"She can't just walk in here and--" Gran was shouting at Josephine again.

"Yes, she CAN because Faye is HER daughter!" Aunt Josephine screamed back.

The room had divided the adults into three groups: Great Aunt Opal vs Josephine, and a Neutral party. Great Aunt Opal and her party did not seem to think Anastasia should be allowed to see Faye. This included Great Aunt Beryl, Aunts Moira and Millcent, and (much to everyone else's surprise), Saiorse. ("She is a criminal," reasoned Beryl, "think of the girl's reputation!") On the opposing side were: Aunt Josephine, Uncles Romulus and Magnus, Aunt Morgana, and Faye's cousins, Romaine and Wilhelmina whom had both been astounded by all the drama they were met with upon arrival. Josephine and her group were all trying to uphold the law and explain that Anastasia deserved another chance as a mother, as she hadn't been given much of a chance the first time.

She was grateful for the Neutral party of her Aunt Fionna (whom she'd only met once) and Aunt Ingrid, and her cousins, Desdemona, Rhiannon, and Everrett (he was sulking in a chair in the corner), all of whom were remaining quiet for the time being. They were also all flanking Faye and Anastasia protectively while the others shouted, hollered, and swore at one another. It wouldn't be long until wands were pulled out...

"Excuse me," she heard her mother's weak voice try to say something. The others got louder. Anastasia suddenly stood up and shouted at the top of her lungs. "EXCUSE ME!!"

Everyone shut up and stared at her, including Faye. Her mother was anxiously wringing her hands and she was trembling violently. She looked positively terrified to be addressing them all. However, there was a fierceness in her blue eyes that was inspiring.

"I have something to say..."

Gran and Great Aunt Beryl fixed her with stern gazes; they did not look pleased that she would be speaking. They made her even more nervous yet still she stood her ground.

"I have come here only to see Faye. I...I have missed a lot. Far too much, honestly. Now I...I want it understood that I have not come back here to--to take over. I am not her mother, in her eyes. I am a stranger." Tears and snot starting to pour down her face, but she got a grip on herself before she went out of control again. "I simply want a private word with my daughter for now and... I plan to create a relationship with her, if that's what she wants." And then, she did something that Faye thought was very brave of her: she looked her Gran straight in the eye to speak only to her. "I know why you hate me... And I am truly sorry about Elias. I don't want to cause you any more pain, I never intended for this to happen. You have done so wonderful, raising my--our little girl and despite what you might think, Opal, I don't want to take her away from you. I just want the chance to try."

Opal did not take this very well and the rest of the room was quiet for what seemed like half an hour. Aunt Saoirse was crying and suddenly ran forward to hug her sister-in-law. Anastasia returned the hug, but kept her gaze locked on Opal. Faye's own blue eyes moved back and forth between her mum and Gran. Then, at long last, her Gran had a reaction. Her mouth thinned into the nastiest smile Faye had ever seen the old woman wear.

"Why don't you ask Faye if that's all right with her?"

Whatever courage had been building up in the little girl seemed to have vanished as suddenly as though it had Dis-Apparated. The entire room turned to face her, looking almost as shocked as she was. Anastasia, however, was quite befuddled by this. She didn't know that Faye didn't talk. That must have been why her Gran had said what she did.

"Is... Is that all right with you, Faye?[/i]" Her mother asked tentatively.

Faye glanced to her Gran, who still held the nasty smile; the girl thinned her lips, her nose turning red with anger. She wanted more than anything to show her up and tell her mother very smartly that it was all right. But she couldn't. There was an inexplicable feeling of her vocal chords seizing up. Her eyes ran across the room to view everyone's expectant faces. Behind all of them, she could see that her cousins and Uncle Fergus were poking their heads timidly around the corner. Aonghus was among them and he looked very worried. Faye's rage built up...but she still couldn't speak. In the end, she simply lowered her gaze to her grimy feet and nodded.

Anastasia looked around at the ever-so-smug Opal, still confused. Josephine decided to speak up at that moment and the smirk was wiped off Gran's face.

"There you are, Auntie. Faye has given her consent. Anastasia now has every right to visitations, owls, and to take her whenever and wherever she wishes."

Such news astounded the elderly woman and she almost fell over in her haste to face her niece. "Take her?"

"Yes."

"Wherever...?"

"Yes."

Opal's mouth opened and shut several times before she finally made an odd noise of grief and swooned into an empty chair. Anastasia did not look any less anxious and simply gave Aunt Josephine an appreciative smile.

"You and Faye can use my room," Aunt Saiorse wiped her tears away, sounding merry once again. "Follow me."

The adults were all surprised at the great blundering of many feet up the stairs. At first Faye thought the grown-ups were going to become angry because their children had been spying, but in the end Uncle Magnus just chuckled and said, "Should've known..." Anastasia took Faye's hand and guided her upstairs, both of them following Aunt Saiorse to the western wing of the third floor.

Aunt Saiorse's room was unusually tidy. The walls were white instead of colored, though it still maintained its shabby-chic furniture, mismatched pillows and bedspread, and a hideous antique lamp which, Faye guessed, was not her aunt's. There were animated posters advertising St. Mungo's, some autographed pictures of magical celebrities (one of which was a good-looking wizard with wavy blonde hair that kept winking at everyone signed, Gilderoy Lockhart), and a rather grouchy-looking Siamese cat asleep on the bed.

"Rosemary, shoo!" Aunt Saiorse said sternly. The cat glared at her, yawned as she got up and stretched (taking her time in doing so), and skittered off into the hallway. Before leaving, Saiorse flicked her wand and a small plate of sandwiches appeared. "That should hold you over until dinner. Come down when you're ready." She flashed them a winsome smile and hurried off, closing the door behind her.

Anastasia turned to Faye. None of them said anything for a while and then...

"Excuse me," Aunt Saiorse said crossly at the group outside the door.

Levi, Serenity, Morrigan, Angerona, Aonghus, and Eoghan all looked up at her with guilty faces. They slowly stood up, heads bowed. Serenity saw Levi gave a tug on the Extendable Ears to try and hide them in his pocket, but it was too late. Aunt Saiorse had seen them. The young woman held out her hand expectantly.

"That is a private conversation!"

The lanky red-haired boy handed over his Extendable Ears with a groan. "We just wanted to hear what Faye had to say."

"We all do, I'm sure. But when Faye wants to talk, she will. I suggest you all finish getting washed up for dinner. Go on!"

The teenagers and children trod downstairs to do as they were told. Serenity agreed with Aunt Saiorse about her mute cousin, but she still wanted to know if Faye would speak or not. The younger kids washed up first then it was her turn. She had to get all the dirt off her face and hands. Her eyes glanced down at her filthy clothes. She sighed. Were they expected to change clothes, too? Levi seemed to be asking himself the same question because he started patting himself down right there in the hallway.

"Ack! Wotcher, Levi!" Rhiannon had been standing just behind him.

Through the dust cloud, Serenity hurried out to the dinner table where the grown-ups were finishing the set up. Her parents, Uncle Magnus, and Aunt Ingrid were all having a hushed discussion at one end of the table. It was mostly likely about Faye and her mother. Serenity took a seat near their end, though not quite so close as to arouse suspicion, and listened hard. Levi plopped down right next to her, gave a wink, and pulled out a secondary set of Extendable Ears. She smiled and they pretended to be talking about Quidditch while he allowed the Ears to roam under the table towards their parents.

"...don't see how Opal can be so horrible towards her," Romulus said. "After all, her crime wasn't as severe as... Well, she wasn't part of the Dark Lord's group."

"But it was her idea to sell potions to muggles." Morgana reminded them gently.  "It got Elias killed, in a way. I'm sure Opal blames her."

"That has nothing to do with whether or not she should be able to see her daughter." Uncle Magnus banged his fist lightly on the table. "If you ask me, Opal is just being a--"

Aunt Ingrid chimed in at that moment. "But it's really not up to us, is it? It's up to Faye. No one knows why she's a mute. The poor girl was traumatized by her parents' arrest..."

"We can't be certain of that, Ingrid," Romulus had become stern. "Look at how odd the rest of our family is. Look at Elias's brother, Odwig! Nearly forty and hasn't got a clue of how to ride a broomstick."

"Not knowing how to ride a broomstick and not saying a word are two completely different things," Uncle Magnus leaned closer. "Faye needs to find a way to communicate if she won't talk, and I don't mean by parchment and quill, either. She's got to stand up for herself and tell her grandmother what she wants."

"Oh, Magnus," Ingrid sighed, "if it were that easy for her, she would have done it already."

"He has a point, though," Morgana added. "Opal knew Faye wouldn't be able to stand up and just start talking. That's why she said what she did in there. Her mother has no idea she won't talk."

Romulus patted his wife's hand. "I s'pose she'll be finding out now and wondering what's wrong with her daughter. I just hope Faye will be able to..." He trailed off with an almost hopeless tone.

Before the conversation picked back up, Rhiannon, Hermia, Aonghus, Morrigan, Eoghan, Angerona, and Eugenia all sat down at the table around Levi and Serenity. They looked awfully hungry. Aonghus reached for a roll only to have his hand slapped by his spoon.

"Ow!"

The others stared at the spoon just as shocked as he was. Serenity looked down at her own set of silverware. "They've enchanted it."

"But why?" Levi picked up his fork to examine it. "Don't they trust us?"

"Levi, it's mum," Rhiannon gave him an 'are-you-really-surprised?' look. "Would you trust you?"

He grinned, "Nope!"

The last of the food arrived on the table and Aunt Moira shot a bright blue firecracker out the tip of her wand. It rocketed around in the air in odd spirals and twists and exploded, bellowing out, "DINNER'S READY!!" as loud as possible. The booming voice died away with the embers. The rest of the Ruggles family amassed outside and claimed the remaining seats. Uncle Magnus was more than happy to fetch an extra chair for Anastasia when she came out holding Faye's hand. Faye sat between her mother and Aonghus with an odd expression on her face: a mixture of happiness and somberness. She kept glancing nervously at the other end of the table where her Gran was sitting. Serenity felt bad for her and gave her an encouraging smile when she caught the girl's eye; Faye just looked back at her plate.

Serenity watched her dad stand up with his goblet. He seemed a little nervous, but her dad wasn't the best at public speaking. He raised his goblet, looking them all over warmly, and cleared his throat.

"I er... I just wanted to say that I am very proud of this family. We have far too many differences and quirks to be counted among the more noble houses of wizarding families... But we're still together. Some of us can't stand the sight of each other and sometimes we say or do things that we aren't too proud of, things we may never apologize for. Yet here we all are: living under the same roof, sitting at the same table, and eating the food so lovingly prepared together. We Ruggles come back every summer for this. I want to thank the adults for acting your age and giving our children the chance to do better than we have." His voice cracked, tears rolling down his cheeks. "And I want to thank the kids for letting us drag you guys out here in the middle of nowhere every summer to be cooped up with more of your mad family. We should all be thankful to have each other in our lives and I know that is sometimes almost impossible, given the things we go through out here... But like it or not, we are still family and, well.... Let's make this summer vacation count, along with the next three hundred. Cheers!"

"Cheers!" Everyone around the table held up their glasses (Eugenia and Morrigan clinked theirs, giggling) and drank to the toast. The dinner was long and much more merry. Serenity stared at her roll as she chewed and pondered whether or not it was drugged with a happiness potion. The drama in the living room seemed to have been forgotten. Anastasia was fitting in quite nicely, apart from being pale, haggard, and not talking much: she had the same red hair as some of the Ruggles. Next to Serenity, Levi was chowing down and across from him, Eoghan and Aonghus were, too.

"You're going to choke yourself," Serenity warned her cousin. He said something with a mouthful of food, none of which she understood, then gulped down the rest of his juice. She shook her head shamefully and went back to eating.

After dinner, it was time for showers. Everyone had to go inside, rummage around for their pajamas and soaps, then take a walk down a narrow trail to the bath house. It was a large building that resembled a greenhouse except that the walls and floor were made of stone and the only windows were skylights to let the moon in. A wall of solid rock divided the building into two rooms: one for the boys and one for the girls. Each room had four massive, round copper tubs and four more shower areas. There were plenty of towel racks and shelves for setting one's clean clothes. Muggle laundry hampers and baskets had been set around for dirty articles. The tubs had spells to refill with clean, hot water between people getting out and settling in.

The younger ones bathed first, then the teenagers. Serenity took her time in the tub until her sister started nagging at her to get out. Dried and once again clothed, she joined the younger cousins in standing around outside talking animatedly. Faye was standing by herself, timid and unsocial. Serenity took her chance and wandered over to her.

"You all right, Faye?"

The girl nodded, tugging her hideous jacket around her more. Serenity tucked a strand of red hair behind Faye's ear, a habit she had picked up as a sister.

"Your mum seems nice," she said tentatively.

Faye gave a noncommittal shrug.

"I guess it takes time... You're rooming with Morrigan and Eugenia tonight, aren't you?" Her answer was a single nod. "I bet you could room with your mum instead, if you like."

Faye gave a violent shake of her head.

"Oh." There was so much she wanted to say to Faye, but she reminded herself that it wasn't her place. Faye wasn't her sister. And it was like Aunt Ingrid said... If Faye wanted to talk, she would.

Some of the older teenagers came out and were ready to escort them all back to the house. It was a safety precaution the adults had put in order three summers ago when the rumors of werewolves were loose and running around. Though there wasn't a real threat of werewolves out here (and especially not tonight since it wasn't a full moon), the adults still believed in Better Safe than Sorry. They started off towards the house when Serenity started wondering... What if Faye didn't know she could talk to them? Everyone knew the grown-ups didn't really listen to them. Maybe she felt like she was different, like she didn't fit in. Serenity felt like this quite often, though there was no reason to. But Faye was only twelve... She caught up to Faye who was dawdling along behind Morrigan and Eugenia talking very fast about unicorns.

"Faye," she whispered quietly. "I... I know I'm not your sister or anything, but what my dad said is true. We're family." Faye was giving her a blank look. "I just wanted you to know that...we all care about you. I care about you, and so do the rest of your cousins. We'll listen, you know. If you ever...y'know...want to talk."

Faye honestly didn't know what to say to Serenity. The whole "we care about you" speech was unexpected, really. Of course Faye knew her cousins cared about her and would listen, but... To have one of them actually say it gave her a bit of a shock. Serenity was one of the more reserved girls of the family; she'd been a lot more timid once, always hiding behind her hair. Faye had been able to relate a great deal with Serenity before. Now, Serenity had somehow blossomed. She wasn't as shy and she kept her hair out of her face. When she did speak, it was important. Faye liked that. 'I should try that sometime,' she told herself.

She pressed her lips together, keeping her blue eyes locked with Serenity's brown gaze, then nodded in answer. Serenity gave her a smile and started to walk off, but Faye lunged forward and hugged her. Her cousin froze, stunned by the unexpected show of affection, but only for a moment. Then she returned the hug. There was a rush of movement from behind them seconds before the strong arms of Levi wrapped around them both, crushing them in a hug. The others ran back and tackled the close-knit group with their own hugs: Morrigan and Eugenia were giggling. Levi beamed down at Faye.

"That's more like it, Faye." He winked.

She grinned. The group separated and all returned to the house, laughing and singing the school song loudly. Faye was in such a good mood when she arrived at her shared room that she didn't mind Eugenia and Morrigan's obnoxious chattering. Through the walls, she could hear Levi next door making the commentary for a pretend Quidditch match between Aonghus and Eoghan, who were either jumping on the walls or on the beds. Faye climbed into bed and snuggled under the covers. She was too hyper to sleep and so were her roommates, dancing around to a song they were making up.

The energy died away; Morrigan and Eugenia had crashed in their beds around ten-thirty. She lay wide awake until one in the morning, listening to the adults laughing outside at the table. She could tell they were drinking because Aunts Moira and Millcent were getting along, shrieking their high-pitched laughs as they joked with one another. Faye turned over to face the wall. Was her mother out there? Was she getting along? And still she had never got an answer from her mother about the letter... Why hadn't her mother replied to the letter she had sent to Azkaban? Her eyes grew heavier, questions still buzzing around in her mind. Faye finally fell asleep.

---

The weekend had been a blast. Anastasia was spending lots of time with the more friendly Aunts to catch up on news and the latest trends. Only Aunts Moira and Millcent weren't joining in, but they were often too busy squawking at one another that it wasn't too unusual. Aunt Josephine stopped by every day around lunch to ask Anastasia if she was all right and needed anything. Uncle Fergus had come out and was shadowing Romulus and Uncle Magnus, who were constantly asking Levi and Rhiannon if they were up for another Quidditch match. Opal and Beryl spent a lot of time shut up in their rooms, even during meals. Uncle Magnus voiced his suspicion that they were plotting something about Anastasia, but nobody could really prove it.

Monday morning, the adolescents decided to play Quidditch and since Wilhelmina and Romaine had somehow managed to take off work, Uncle Romulus and Aunt Ingrid had been kicked off. Uncle Magnus, however, refused to leave the team and insisted he play with them. Faye offered him her spot and returned to the dinner table to sit with her mother and aunts, who were flipping through their old photo albums. There were dozens of pictures of them from school.

Just before brunch, a heavy breeze made her look up in time to see a fierce-looking black owl deliver an envelope with minute, tidy print to her mother. Anastasia paled and Faye tilted her head curiously.

"What's that, Anastasia?" Aunt Ingrid inquired softly.

"It's...it's a letter from the Ministry."

"Oh."

Anastasia hesitated for a few minutes before she finally opened it. Faye and her aunts all leaned over curiously to read it with her.

Dear Ms. Ruggles,

The Ministry of Magic has cleared your name of all charges against your prior offense owing to your release from Azkaban prison. As a free witch, you are now legally responsible to reengage yourself in the wizarding lifestyle. We, at the Ministry of Magic, recommend you to find a habitable home and a legal source of income by January 1st, 2011. We also encourage you to update yourself on our current laws and abide by them in order to avoid a secondary sentence spent in Azkaban prison.

Sincerely,

Avelina Bole,
Magical Law Enforcement Secretary

Faye glanced up at her mother, who looked terrified. She had to get a job and a home by the end of the year? What if she couldn't? Would they throw her back into Azkaban? Her mother gave her a fearful look, as though she was asking herself the same thing. Ingrid took the letter gently and read it several times.

"This shouldn't be a problem." She placed a hand on Anastasia's shoulder comfortingly. "You can always ask Josephine for help on finding a job."

"I...I don't know if..."

"You're welcome to stay with me until you find a place," Saiorse clapped her hands together enthusiastically. "I'm not there a lot and I have plenty of room!"

Anastasia seemed overwhelmed by everything going on at once; it looked as though she was about to faint. Faye stood up and took her mother's hand, leading her inside to the deserted kitchen. She pulled down a cup and filled it with water then handed it to her mum, who gave her an appreciative smile before drinking it. The woman let out a long sigh afterward.

"Thank you, Faye."

"Welcome..."

There was a long silence before Anastasia spoke again. "They told me you're a mute?"

Faye gave a shrug which caused her mother to frown.

"Why?"

"Got nuffin' to say," she replied smartly.

"Nothing to say? Faye, sweetheart, you can say anything you want to. You want to talk to me, don't you?"

The girl's eyebrows knitted together in frustration as her mother knelt down in front of her. "I dun wanna talk abou' it."

"We need to talk about this," her mother insisted. "Your aunts have told me you've never said a word, not to your grandmother or at school. You must know it's not healthy to stay quiet so much. Don't you?"

This discussion was irritating Faye. She jerked away from her mother, nose turning pink. "I got nuffin' to say and I dun wanna talk abou' it."

"Faye--"

Without warning, Faye bolted out of the kitchen into the forest. She sped as fast as she could through the clump of trees to where her cousins were all playing Quidditch. There was enough anger in her to make her want to scream loudly. With this anger came an immense amount of words. She just stood there, silently fuming, on the Quidditch pitch. Aonghus came rushing towards her on his broomstick and landed clumsily on the ground. There was a shout of time-out from above and everyone else stopped the game, much to Everrett's chagrin. Aonghus looked at her in confusion.

"What is it Faye? Is someone hurt?"

"I wanna talk." And she stomped her way into the clump of trees. He followed, a look of utmost surprise on his face that she had said something...and was about to say more.

Morrigan had been playing around in the dirt all morning. Her parents had seen fit to put her to the special task of planting some herbs in some empty pots they had found. The packets of seeds laid scattered around her along with some small gardening tools. Just as she packed in the last of the Lavender seeds, she realized she was thirsty. She stood up to dust off what she could of the soil from her bright pink overalls and made her way inside. That new red-headed woman, Anastasia, was standing in the kitchen by herself. Morrigan thought this was a little suspicious. The woman watched her fetch a glass of water and she stood there drinking it, staring back at the woman.

"What are you doing?"

"Thinking. What are you doing?"

"I'm thirsty. Potting plants is hard work."

"I remember doing that when I was younger. It's a useful skill. What plants are you working with?"

"Herbs. Lavender, Rosemary, and Sage."

"Good choices," the woman nodded. "You'll be good at Herbology."

"Really?" Morrigan grinned.

"Sure. Or Potions. You need to know your herbs to get a good head-start on making your own potions."

"Wicked![/i]"

Her mother hurried in looking bewildered. "What happened to Faye? She took off like a Firebolt looking rather upset."

"I was trying to get her to talk to me," Anastasia waved her hand dismissively. "I wanted to know why she wasn't talking."

Morrigan recognized the face her mum made: she was cross. "We told you--"

"You told me that my daughter is a mute and hasn't said a word to anyone! She gave me an answer. 'I got nuffin' to say' and 'I dun wanna talk abou' it'. She's not even talking properly when she does talk."

Morgana fixed the woman with a glare, but kept herself calm when she spoke. Neither of them seemed to notice Morrigan was still in the room.

"I understand you are her mother, but you have been away for ten years. There is no reason for you to push her. When she is ready, she will talk. No amount of pressure or prodding from anyone will make her do so otherwise."

The woman said nothing and simply walked back outside. Her mother glared out the kitchen window before getting to work on lunch. She smiled down at Morrigan, trying to hide the fact that she was still angry.

"Did you finish potting the herbs?"

"Yes, ma'am," she said politely.

"Good girl. Go on outside to play."

She shook her head and instead fetched her mother a butter knife. "I want to help with lunch."

"Oh, all right. Go wash up, first. I'm making sandwiches."

And Morrigan did so because she enjoyed helping.

Serenity and Levi could be seen shuffling around the trees nearby, whispering at each other to be quiet. Faye rolled her eyes.

"Ol'right, then," she shouted at them irritably. "Ge' over 'ere and 'ave a listen."

The two were a bit bashful at first and finally shuffled over to join her and Aonghus. All three of her cousins were a little shocked that she was talking. She narrowed her blue eyes at him.

"Not a word to aneeone, eh?"

Levi couldn't help but grin at her thick accent and crossed his fingers over his heart. "I swear on me faddar's loife," he mocked, "I shan't say wurd to no one that moi cousin--er--said a wurd."

"Roigh'," Faye nodded and looked to Serenity and Aonghus. "Take the oath, go on."

Serenity and Aonghus also crossed fingers over their hearts and repeated what Levi had said, though not in the same accent. The second Aonghus had finished the oath, he repeated his question from the Quidditch field.

"What's wrong, Faye?"

"It's me mum," she growled. "Wants me ta talk, dun't she? Told 'er I dun wanna and she kept roigh' on naggin', she did. I ought to'a told 'er to go flush herself... I wan' it clear, I ain' got nuffin' to say outside o' you three. Dun expec' me ter go sayin' 'hullo' and wha'no' at Hogwarts, eh? Go' nuffin' to say at Hogwarts."

The three of them stood gaping at her. It was irritating to have them look at her like that. Serenity was the first to work through what Faye had said and quickly wiped the blank stare off her face.

"But... You will say something to your mum, won't you? And your Gran?"

Faye snorted, "Me Gran... Tha' ol' hag. I know she's trynna rooin this fer me. Hates me mum, I s'pose." Serenity and Levi exchanged furtive glances, drawing her attention to them. Her red eyebrows furrowed darkly. "Whot?"

"We heard the grown-ups talking," Levi murmured. "They reckon Opal blames your mum for Uncle Elias's death--and your lack of talking.

"They said you might have been traumatized by your parents' arrest..."

"Said tha', did they? Well, I'm not. Dun remember it, see. But now... Now I dun know whot to do. Me Gran hates me mum, me mum showin' up wantin' ta be me mum... I'm jus' so angry!"

A pebble nearby exploded, causing all of them to jump. She glared at the remains of it as though it were the rock's fault, even though she knew it wasn't. Things exploded around her sometimes when she got mad enough. The redness on the tip of her nose had spread through her whole face, clashing with her freckles and red hair.

"What if you just told them off in private?" Aonghus suggested. "It'd give your Gran a shock, you talking to her."

"Yoo really fink I shood?"

Levi grinned broadly. "Definitely. I'd give anything to see the look on her face when you start telling her where she can shove her--"

"Levi!" Serenity had shouted in surprise. "You shouldn't talk like that! I'm sure Faye won't be telling her such things. You... You only need to tell her that what you want is to be around your mum."

"But I dun know if I do wan' to," she said sheepishly. "No' after..."

"Not after whot?" Aonghus was more concerned now.

Faye took in a deep breath, preparing herself to tell them. "The Ministry sent me a note 'round the same time I go' me Hogwarts le'er. Said me mum was gettin' out this summer. I weren' expectin' 'er ta show up 'ere, tho. Aneeway, I sent 'er a le'er trynna start gettin' ta know 'er. Got nuffin' back, see. Why wood'n' she write me?"

The others had become sullen, though they also seemed to be trying to figure out the answer. Aonghus glanced over at her.

"Have you asked her about it?"

"O'curse I did. Daft woman wen' righ' on babblin', no' once lookin' at me. Never go' a straigh' answer, see... Jus' the babble... Ruddy foorious, I am!"

"I still say tell 'em both off," Levi suggested.

"Levi, she can't do that," Serenity chided. "She might not get another chance with her mum and she has to live with her Gran. If she talks to Opal, she might expect Faye to keep talking and then what's she going to do?"

"I bet if we ask our mums and dads, she could come stay with one of us," added Aonghus. "This would be the perfect time, what with your mum and Gran goin' at it. Any one of our parents would be glad to take you in for the rest of the summer until you make a decision."

"You mean... play the Pitee card?" Faye didn't like the sound of that.

"Our families don't pity you, Faye," he said defensively. "They care about you, same as us. We all want you to talk, yeah, but we're not going to force you. My parents talk about you a lot, believe it or not. They're always sayin' Opal's not good as a Guardian--no offense. Me mum thinks you ought to be livin' with us."

"My dad says the same thin', but then mum goes off on him about expenses and housework," Levi rolled his eyes. "Don't know what she's going on about. We're never there so the house is never dirty and dad's got plenty of money stored away in Gringott's."

"My parents talk about you a lot, too. They reckon you'd like having siblings and we've got a spare room now since Romaine's got his own flat."

Faye frowned. "I dunno. I... I jus' dunno wot ta do."

She became aware of Aonghus watching her closely. He finally approached her and placed his hand on her shoulder, the way his mother had done to hers at the table. "I wouldn't worry about it too much, Faye. You'll be at Hogwarts with us in no time and you won't have to see either of them for almost a whole year."

"Roigh', but I still have all summa widd'em..."

There was a shout from the Quidditch pitch: it was Uncle Magnus asking if they were all right. Levi hollered a response. They had all completely forgotten about the match. Serenity rustled forward and hugged her.

"I'll help you the best I can, Faye."

Aonghus nodded and hugged her once Serenity had moved away. "We all will. There's ways to avoid the grown-ups easily."

"And if that doesn't work, we can always stand up for you, y'know. Mediators, I think they're called."

After Levi's hug, she gave them a weak smile. "Roight. Best of luck."

They nodded and marched off one by one towards the Quidditch field. Faye wasn't in much better spirits, her anger replaced by confusion. She hated feeling lost. If only she could stick her nose in a book... She decided to go and watch the game rather than return to the grown-ups. She wasn't in a forgiving mood.

Later that day, after a long private talk with Aunt Josephine, Anastasia had agreed to go with her to London to stay at Saoirse's flat until she found a job, which Josephine was going to help her look for. Serenity was more than a little shocked at her mother's reaction when Anastasia had dragged Faye in to the privacy of the kitchen to have a talk.

"Good riddance," muttered her mother, peeling a potato a little rougher than usual.

"Mum?" Serenity had never heard her mother talk badly about anyone, especially not any of the Ruggles. "What's wrong?"

Morgana looked at her daughter. "It's nothing you need to worry about."

"It is if it's about Faye." Even she was surprised at her own defensive tone. "I... I'm worried about her."

"I am, too, Reni, but there's nothing we can do about her situation..."

"Can't we...adopt her or something?"

Her mother let out a bubbly laugh. "I would love to. Any of us would! But clearly Faye needs to be with her mother...even one that doesn't understand her."

Serenity went quiet and returned to her own thoughts while she helped her mother peel potatoes. Her mother insisted on doing it the Muggle way because of her philosophy that the more labor you put into something, the more love went into it, too. Her mother must have found out that Anastasia had pressured Faye into talking.

"Mum, what did she go to Azkaban for?" She pretended to not know the answer.

"She and Elias were caught selling actual potions to Muggles. They were charged with several important criminal acts and sent to Azkaban for ten years." Her tone became morose. "Your Uncle Elias died in there..."

Such a statement made Serenity wonder how different things would be if Elias had lived. Would Faye have a better chance with a family? Would he have replied to her letter? Would the Great Aunts be more approving of Anastasia? She imagined Faye was going through the same questions and felt more guilty by the minute for not being able to help her cousin.

Faye returned a short time later, Anastasia said her good-byes to the family, and left for London with Aunts Josephine and Saiorse. Someone must have informed the Great Aunts because the pair came bustling down all cheerful-like, as though nothing had ever happened. Serenity glared as Great Aunt Opal started fussing at Faye's filthy appearance.

"Mum, say Faye did want to say something, something important, without actually talking... How could she do it?"

"There are several ways," she grabbed the last potato to start peeling it. "She could write a letter, maybe get a mediator--someone to talk for her--, or... Now that I think about it, she could use a muggle phone to text someone. The kids are all doing it in class."

"Text? Using a muggle phone? That wouldn't work at Hogwarts."

"There are charms for that, dear." It suddenly seemed to occur to Morgana that she was giving her daughter ideas. She glanced at Serenity suspiciously, who only returned her look with one of pure innocence. Her mother was not fooled. "They are complicated charms, Serenity."

"Are they illegal?"

Her mother paused to think about it. "No..."

Serenity's brown eyes took on a glint of cleverness and she went back to peeling her potatoes. "I wouldn't break any rules, mum. Honest."

"All right. No sense in getting yourself expelled if you can just write a letter or a Howler..."

The knife of her blade slipped on the potato as she was peeling and she whirled to face her mother. "What did you just say?"

"I said you could write a letter or send a Howler," her mother looked bewildered.

"Excellent! I'm done!"

She scraped off the last bit of skin from her potato and tossed it into the bucket, set her knife on the table, and took off toward the group on the other side of the yard. They were all gathered around watching Levi playing Wizard's Chess against Wilhelmina.

"Faye, I need to talk to you."

Faye looked up at her curiously and the two scampered off around the side of the house out of earshot of everyone else. Aonghus joined them only seconds later.

"What's going on, Ren?"

"Mum just told me you could write a letter to communicate or, and I think this would be more appropriate for your situation, a Howler."

Aonghus seemed excited by this idea. "There you are, Faye! You don't have to tell your Gran off to her face. You could wait until you get to Hogwarts to send it to her."

Although Faye had returned to her usual silence, her face lit up with a bright smile. Serenity pat her on the shoulder.

"She also said that you could text via muggle phone. I need to look up a few things when we get to Hogwarts, but I think I might be able to find you a way to communicate without talking."

This made Faye almost glow with happiness. She gave a loud squeal of excitement and hugged Serenity tight around the middle. Levi hurried around the corner, his eyebrows knit together.

"What's going on?"

"Serenity's found a way to get Faye communicating without having to talk!"

"It may be a bit complicated, but if I can get to the Hogwarts library early, I might be able to find the right charms to do it."

"Brilliant, Ren! Smartest girl in our family, you are."

Serenity felt herself go red in the face. "I don't know about that just yet."

Later that night, the three of them celebrated quietly at their end of the dinner table, clinking their glasses of juice together and grinning broadly.

The rest of the summer vacation was quite enjoyable and yet, somehow, went by very fast. Faye was glad of that, though this was by far the best summer she'd ever had. Levi, Aonghus, and Rhiannon helped her learn to fly better during evening practices for them all. She even tried another game of Quidditch, this time playing as Keeper. She wasn't much better at it than she was at playing Chaser.

The sessions had come to an unfortunate end after Aunt Moira had discovered that Levi hadn't done a shred of his homework. She had made such a dramatic scene that the other parents checked their kids' homework as well: none of them had even started. After a raging fit from the adults, the brooms had been locked away in a cupboard until all homework was complete, Faye's included. Having her cousins around were loads of help. Serenity even loaned Faye one of her history books, Sites of Historical Sorcery, for her to read in her spare time. She kept it tucked under her pillow and opened it only when Morrigan and Eugenia had gone to bed, reading into the long hours of the night.

---

In the final week of July, breakfast was interrupted by a dozen owls showering them all with Hogwarts letters. Faye picked hers out of the pile of toast and opened it. The letter was simply a reminder of when the Hogwarts Express would be leaving for Hogwarts. The second set of parchment was her school supplies list. She frowned at it. Would Gran be able to afford this stuff?

"Guess we'd better set a date to meet up, eh?"

None of the Hogwarts students had the heart to speak. It would be a month before they'd see one another again. So far, it had been a very depressing morning. It was the last day they would all be spending at the summer house. Faye glanced over her letter at her cousins: Serenity was staring at her untouched plate, Aonghus was picking at his eggs, and Levi looked as though he might be sick. Faye just put her letter down and frowned at her toast.

Half an hour later, they were all upstairs packing their bags without fuss. The adults were downstairs packing up leftovers, the Ministry relatives coming and going because they were in charge of arranging legal portkeys. Levi poked his head inside her room on his way by.

"Faye, we're going downstairs to ask our parents to meet up at Diagon Alley. Want me to ask your Gran, too?"

She nodded fervently, to which he winked and hurried downstairs. Her mood was lightened by the idea and she quickly finished packing and was halfway down the stairs when she remembered the history book under her pillow. Faye rushed back up to grab it and brought it downstairs to Serenity, who was waiting for her parents' answers.

"Faye," Uncle Romulus addressed her pleasantly, "would you like to come to Diagon Alley with us for your school shopping? I'm afraid your Gran isn't really up for the trip."

Faye felt like she could sprout wings and fly! She beamed up at him excitedly. Romulus clapped his hands together.

"Excellent! We'll come and collect you August First. We'll be staying at the Leaky Cauldron for our shopping."

Faye thought about it for a moment, then blurted out her question before she had time to stop herself. "Ken I stay whichoo 'til Hogwarts?"

Thanks to the buzz of the den, no one else in the family seemed to hear her. Romulus and his family, however, were quite stunned to hear her ask a question so blatantly. He quickly recovered, however, and grinned.

"Absolutely! I will speak to your Gran right away."

Serenity glanced at Faye and spoke up, too. "Um, dad? Since... Since it's only a few days until August First, do you think she could just come home with us now?"

Morgana and Romulus looked to one another quickly. Faye suddenly realized that Serenity was holding her hand in anticipation and both of them weren't breathing. Finally, Morgana nodded and smiled at the girls.

"I don't see why not. Romulus, go ask. Have you got all your things, Faye?"

She nodded. Serenity and Faye couldn't help but grin. Even Morrigan and Angerona were excited that Faye would be spending time at their house. It took Romulus ages to convince Opal to let her go, but in the end Aunt Ingrid and Uncle Magnus had joined in and with three of them haggling her at once, her Gran reluctantly agreed. She handed Romulus the key to her Gringott's account, warned him against stealing (like he needed to be /sarcasm), and was escorted safely away via Apparating with Uncle Magnus. Faye was going to spend the rest of her vacation with the Blackthornes! And, Serenity assured her, she could have full access to all their books. This was the best summer EVER!!