The heavy rains of the last week had finally tapered off, though a blanket of clouds still lingered overhead.  Despite yesterday’s increasing sun breaks, the pastures and lawns remained wet, soggy messes.  All of the horses had become restless, impatient basket cases after being cooped up in their stalls during the rain, despite Sasha’s best efforts to try to keep the edge off by exercising them in the indoor arena. That hadn’t been nearly enough to stave off the mass transformation of fine horses into wild, wallowing-loving mud cakes when they’d finally been let out into their pastures.

Giada still didn’t seem to understand that muggle animals lived by a different code of ethics (and cleanliness) then house elves and witches and wizards.  She continued to try and lecture Baldur when the dog took to rolling in something nasty.  It’s what animals do didn’t seem like a valid excuse to her.   

There were only a few protective charms put on the property; just enough to avoid muggles unexpectedly encountering anything that would garner another visit from the Ministry but not so many that the ambient magic interfered with technology.  Anti-apparition charms had been top of the list so Sasha had given Xavier Tawse directions from a safe apparition point to the front gate, where he’d met him a few moments ago. 

It felt weird, almost surreal to have Xavier Tawse walking down what had once been his parents' driveway.  It fell firmly in the realm of never would have predicted it.  Sasha offered a few, generic pleasantries as they made their way up the driveway to the side of the house. 

“The gravel drive extends around the property now,” Sasha was explaining as he led the way down the driveway and pressed the button for the automatic garage door.  “So, it should be a good place to practice.  And, the ground’s soft enough that you probably couldn’t take out a fence if you tried.  The Range Rover’s the only vehicle heavy enough to get through the mud.”

And, they wouldn’t be using that vehicle. 

"Go ahead and pick your poison," Sasha offered, gesturing towards the line of cars as he went over to the keybox on the wall and punched in a combination.  "The vintage ones are similar to what it sounds like you have.  The newer transmissions will be easier to learn on.  Clutches get ... finicky ... as they get older.  More ... stall-y.  And, the older cars are a lot heavier.  Which, wears the clutch out quicker." 

---

Title from: Brand New 64 Dodge

Xavier sipped on a smoothie as he walked up the gravel drive with Sasha. He had almost completely forgotten about their plans. He had been on a wee bit of a bender lately and it wasn't until Cook had presented him with a veritable feast in bed that he was reminded. After filling himself up with protein and carbs to combat the impending hangover he had the gruff old wizard whip up a smoothie for the road. He had promised him there was an extra ingredient to help him on his way. Xavier had been hoping he meant a bit of the hair of the dog but it seemed to be some sort of energy booster or potion or something. Whatever he had spiked the smoothie with Xavier was certainly much more alert and energetic than he had any right to be.

He engaged in the small talk easy enough finding it strange how casual the encounter was. He originally thought it was going to be awkward but somehow, outside the confines of the castle and it's social hierarchy, being around Sasha wasn't actually all that bad. If anything, it made him thankful he was finally out in the real world.

Xavier walked around the cars, admiring their sleeks designs and the notable differences between the vintage models and those purchased in more modern times. He barely had time to take inventory of everything his Grandfather had left him. He knew the Mansion itself had countless display and store rooms. (He also knew the building itself was enchanted to reflect it's owner preferences, leaving him to wonder if certain items would be lost to him since he's own personality differed so much from his Grandfather's)

He looked up to Sasha, speaking in a rather posh sounding English accent he asked "What do you think would be better? Would driving something new be bad?" He rubbed at the back of his neck and sipped at his smoothie again, "Sorry bout tha. Bin spendin' all me time in meetin's. Thee share'olda's donnae like me Scottish Accent."

Xavier didn't seem to have a strong preference, so Sasha ran his fingers along the rows of keys and considered the options.  For the first time, perhaps foolishly, Sasha wondered what Xavier was expecting from this exercise?  Did he have a picture in his head of what it looked like when muggles drove vehicles and what was that picture?

Of all the elements of muggle technology, automobiles were probably the ones most widely encountered by the wizarding world; even the most magic-centric purebloods encountered them when heading to Kings Cross station or Daigon Alley.  They had even found ways to incorporate them into their world.  Take the knight bus, for example, or those vehicles the Ministry used.  They'd probably been altered so that magic provided the propulsion.  Were motor vehicles just as much of a mystery to witches and wizards as, presumably, magic would be to Muggles?

Sasha supposed he would find out.   

"How about we start with newer and, once you get a feel for it, we can switch to something a bit touchier."  Sasha hooked his finger through the key ring of the smokey grey Porsche and took it in his hands.  There was only one motivating factor for the choice: that car had been Gerhard's favorite and Sasha relished the idea of a pureblood like Xavier learning to drive in it.  Before stepping away from the box, Sasha grabbed a second set of keys before slipping both in his pockets. 

Motioning for Xavier to follow, he led the way over to the Porsche and unlocked the doors with a push of a button and a loud beep.  "So, unfortunately, this will be one of the biggest differences between your vintage models and these newer ones.  Everything's automatic and high tech, these days, even if the transmission is manual.  Not to mention, they're always improving speed and acceleration but we'd need a racetrack or the Autobahn to really get to that level." 

"What do you know, already?" Sasha asked, slipping into the driver side seat and waiting for Xavier to get into the other side. 

Xavier was glad that Sasha hadn't made a fuss about his accent change. The first time Jordyn had heard it she nearly flipped her lid. Spending hours in meetings, getting to learn his business, he had become tired with constantly having to repeat himself and simply switched over. It was something that was easy enough for him, only required a small amount of thought given the fact that his Londoner's accent was actually his natural one and the Brogue was something he had adopted after moving in with his mother's family - not to mention it was how he had talked all throughout his Hogwarts year. Apparently women found it sexy.

He followed Sasha to the porche, "Don' try ta go too fast, gotcha."

Xavier slipped into the car and shrugged, "I've ridden in cars in thee pas' but nev'r driven them meself." He secured his smoothie in the nearest cupholder, "Key goes in, turns on thee car and thee pedals make it go?" It was probably the absolute simplest explanation on how a car worked but it was all the information Xavier actually had. He imagined it couldn't be too hard to figure out. He knew how to apparate. He could ride a broom and a flying horse as easy as walking. Driving a car couldn't be any harder than that, right?

Sasha chuckled and nodded his head.  "Yes.  Don't go too fast.  That would be best." 

"All in all, that's the general idea," Sasha confirmed when Xavier gave a summary.  It was a vast oversimplification, not unlike describing the process of potion brewing as light fire, add ingredients and stir.  But, at least the process was familiar. 

Watching Xavier settle down into the bucket seat was, admittedly, a little surreal.  What was even more surreal was the impulse to ask Xavier to buckle up.  Even if there was little chance of needing them while driving the car out of the garage, it was a good habit for the former Slytherin to get into. 

"Step one," Sasha said, trying to ignore the awkwardness.  "You won't be driving with your wand in your hand and there may not always be enough time to get it out to cast a spell, should things go wrong.  So, you'll want to fasten your seatbelt."  He pointed to the straps behind Xavier's shoulder before buckling himself in with exaggerated movements, so Xavier could follow. 

They'd come to the first major difference between the newer models and the classic models Xavier owned.  "In your cars, your first step is correct.  You put the key in and turn it while you press on the pedals.  That will start the car.  The newer cars know the key fob is nearby and you just flip a switch."  The car rumbled to life and Sasha did a quick demonstration of the various pedals and how to let up on the clutch while shifting gears while he slowly drove the car out of the garage.  Once out on the driveway, he hoped out while leaving the car running. 

"Alright.  Ready to give it a try?" he asked.  "Stalling is almost a given when learning to drive a manual, so don't worry about it.  You'll get a feel for when it's ready to go all the way over to gas."

Xavier gave a soft shrug when Sasha explain about buckling up. He pulled on the strap a little awkwardly and pulled it across himself. The pressure on his chest was going to take getting used to. He shifted in his seat as he tried to acclimate to the new sensation.

He watched as Sasha went through the motions of pulling the car out of the garage then stepped out of the car. Xavier followed suit and switched places with the former Ravenclaw. He settled in, pulled his seat belt on and placed one hand on the wheel the other on the gear shift. He noted how different it felt sitting in the driver seat and the passenger. One foot near the break, the other hovering over the gas pedal. He started to ease the car out, slowly accelerating though it Wasn't long before he popped the clutch and an acrid smell filled the air.

He gave a foul expression, "I thin' I burnt yer car."

"And, this is why we're using this car," Sasha offered with a laugh as rolled down the window.  The pungent burst of burning oil was ubiquitous both around and in the car.  But, with the windows rolled down, a steady breeze could quickly replace it with the smell of grass, horses and hay from the surrounding fields. 

He shrugged, dismissively.  "It's going to happen again, so don't worry about it.  My sister -" Sasha hesitated, then continued after another dismissive shrug.  "My sister completely burnt out a clutch learning.  That takes talent."  Curious about the smell and commotion, two very muddy horses had trotted up to the fence line and were hanging their heads over the top rail, watching the proceedings curiously. 

"So, you're going to have to start it again.  Put in the clutch and break, turn over the engine and try again.  And, again when it stalls.  Wash, rinse, repeat until you can keep it going in first." 

Xavier was a little thankful that this seemed common enough with those first learning. He was hoping he hadn't broken anything. Then again he could certainly pay for anything that needed to be repaired, though judging by the estate he was currently on he didn't think it would hurt Sasha all that much either. He tried to remember if he had known anything about Schlagenweit's wealth while they were at school. He didn't think so, though at the time he had been more concerned about blood status. Thank Merlin he had grown out of that nonsense.

He glanced over with a smirk, "I didn't know he 'ad a sistah." Most kids at school who had siblings usually ended up together over their seven years at castle. Although, judging by the slight hesitation, there was also a possibility that Sasha had a sister like he did - a half sibling he had gone most of his life knowing nothing about.

He turned his attention back to the task at hand on only popped the clutch two more times before he managed to drive more steadily, "I thin' I might actually be doin' it." He gave Sasha a genuine smile, looking out the windows to where they were being watched, "How many do ye 'ave?" He knew he should be more focused on keeping the car moving smoothly but he was curious about the animals. He had visited all of his company's ranches over the summer and found they were much nicer to visit than many of the cramped store fronts or the overtly sterile breeding centers.

Sasha left the car windows down, even after the acrid smell of had dissipated.  The gentle breeze drifting down the driveway felt good and the pleasant summer afternoons were dwindling quickly.  He had grown far too comfortable with the casual, relaxed tempo of the summer.  He planned to enjoy ever bit of it.  "Do you mind music?" Sasha asked, tugging his iPhone from his pocket and unlocking the screen.  "Any preferences?  I mean, it's all muggle so it might not make a difference." 

"I didn't know he 'ad a sistah."

For only a brief moment, Sasha hesitated.  "Two, in fact.  Older and younger - I'm the middle.  Officially, at least," he admitted.  At the time of her death, Ava Grosvenor had been convinced that she and Sasha were half-siblings through Sasha's, as of then, unidentified, mysterious father.  Though the future would eventually connect Sasha to someone else at Hogwarts, the circumstances of her death had made it difficulty to abandon her theory.  Even if it was only symbolic, symbolism was the only thing that mattered anymore. 

"Half-sisters, at least.  Though, we didn't know my mother had an affair until later so it never really felt like being half-siblings.  You know?"  Perhaps, he didn't.  Sasha knew Xavier a similar scenario, though largely in reverse.  Sasha had grown up with his sisters and only learned they were half-related until later.  Peyton, as Sasha understood, hadn't been a part of Xavier's childhood though they'd also discovered their partial connection later in life.  "I suppose it was different for you?"

"Alright, so do you feel that?"  Even in the passenger seat, Sasha could both feel and hear the engine starting to rev.  "If you opened up the gas - pressed down on the pedal - you'll hear the engine surge but it won't go any faster.  You're going as fast as you can in first gear which means, to go any faster, you have to shift gears.  Now, it'll probably ... jerk horribly until you get the hang of it, but put in the clutch and move the shift into second.  Then, gradually let out the clutch and gently add more gas."  Sasha had gestured over the stick, indicating how Xavier would have to shift. 

Sasha followed Xavier's glance through the window towards the muddy messes by the fence.  "Twelve horses, currently," he offered.  "I compete with four of them but I'm considering expanding our breeding lines.  Nothing like what you do, of course," Sasha tagged on.  Though, to be honest, "I admit, I'm not entirely sure I understand what your business' breeding goals are.  Beyond, I suppose, pet trade?"  He certainly understood the pet trade part - as far as owls and cats and rats were concerned.  Livestock just seemed to be an entirely different realm.  "What do people usually buy your livestock for?"

Xavier shrugged a bit when he asked about music, "Nuthin' too 'eavy." He liked music but didn't really follow any bands, especially muggle ones. He enjoyed muggle music well enough whenever he went out to the pubs. He found it easy enough to relate to even though the subject matter was usually about how hard muggle lives were. He supposed, so long as it wasn't too loud it wouldn't distract him from driving.

He listened to Sasha talk about his sisters and was a little taken aback by how similar their situations were. He found himself wondering if they would have been friends earlier in life had he not been following his family's toxic ideals. He hesitated himself a moment, "Yeah, bit diff'rent. I mean I've known Peyton fer so long. We dinnae git alon' but I 'ated him fer reasons tha' really 'ad nuthin' to do with 'im." Xavier found it strange but almost refreshing to talk about his long time rivalry in the past tense. While their relationship was nowhere near perfect it certainly wasn't the bloody rivalry it used to be, "I only jus' found out though," he paused for a moment, focusing on the drive ahead of him, "I guess I knew fer long'r. Me grandda, removed thee memories." He wasn't sure how much Peyton had told him but considering the two Ravenclaws had been close, he figured Sasha actually knew.

"Met me sist'r afta graduashun fer thee firs' time though. Sweet girl." Helena was two years younger and a Ravenclaw. Though he had been aware that Peyton had a little sister, he had never had a reason to interact with her until he discovered their shared parentage.

When the conversation changed back to driving Xavier took a deep breath. Tentatively moving his hands and feet he followed Sasha' s directions. The car jerked as he said it likely would have but Xavier recovered quickly. Another smile curled his lips as the car picked up speed under his control.

He let out a low whistle as Sasha mentioned how many horses he had. The estate must have been bigger than Xavier first thought to accomadate them all. He shrugged slightly and was tempted to say he barely knew what his company did himself, "Thee small'r centers breed fer thee stores. Thee ranches breed fer luxury an' prestige mostly. Some become race horses, many o' thee flyin' breeds sell well to thee purebloods ladies." He knew almost all of his female cousins knew how to ride a flying horse, even the youngest ones, "We also rehabilitate an' house injured animals found in thee wild. Breed 'em where we cin ta 'elp endangered wild populations."

Sasha didn’t make an attempt to hide his surprise as he glanced, sideways, at Xavier, though he wasn’t sure which surprised him more: that Xavier wasn’t a fan of heavier music or that Xavier was concerned heavy music would be Sasha’s default.  “I wouldn’t have thought you to be the easy listening type.  I figured Band of Banshees or Dead Sirius[1] was more your speed."  Granted, as Sasha flipped through his mp3 player until he settled on a mix[2], he had to remember that his assumptions were based off of several years of biased history all of which recent events had shown new light on.  Perhaps, Sasha wasn’t giving Xavier enough credit for his ability to change or, simply, Sasha was overestimating how well he knew the other. 

“I remember Peyton talking about it,” Sasha admitted, with a slight nod.  There had been a lot going on in both of their lives, at the time, and they had spent a fair bit of time venting and supporting each other.  For better or worse, what Sasha didn’t know at the time, was that he had more similarities to Peyton then he actually knew.  Unlike Xavier, he’d known his half sisters his entire life.  But, he'd had his own experiences with finding unexpected relatives at Hogwarts.  It had been strange and confusing and a relief, all at the same time.  “Yes, she is a nice girl,” Sasha agreed, remembering Helena from Ravenclaw tower.  "Smart, too."

“Do you think you’ll stay in touch?  I mean, now that you know, it’d be weird not to, right?  I thought it’d be easier to ignore new family connections - they should just be the same, other people at the end of the day, but they’re not.  It’s not.  It just creates a space that you never thought you had.” 

Despite the expected shaky shifts and occasional lurches, Xavier seemed to have a decent handle on two gears.  Sasha gestured to the right where the driveway intersected the dirt road that followed the perimeter of the of the 1600 acre property.  “As you slow, you may need to downshift to first when you take the turn.  That’s, often, rockier then shifting up - for me at least.  Process is the same.  Put in the clutch, shift and then apply gas as you let out the clutch.  It’s counter intuitive - but you want to increase the gas as you slow down.” 

“What?” Sasha asked, curious what had brought about the whistle.  With a dubious grin, he eyed Xavier with mild suspicion.  “Are you taking a crack at me?” he asked.  "Twelve can’t sound like a lot to you, given your business.”  It definitely sounded like an interesting business though Sasha couldn’t imagine such an … impersonal set up.  “If you don’t mind me asking, how do you know if it’s working?  Your breeding plan, I mean.  Don’t worry - I’m not trying to steal inside secrets or anything.  Our approaches are too different.  Just, with that size of an operation, what do you use to measure if your lines are improving or stagnating?"

1.	Bands in the Reducto Racks
2.	Paul Simon mix - starting with Me and Julio Down the Schoolyard

Xavier gave a bit of a shrug when Sasha mentioned the band's he thought he'd be into. He wasn't exactly against them, he supposed he could find at least one song he liked from each band he definitely wouldn't say they were his go to. However he found himself sort of tapping along to the music Sasha had put on. He could tell it was muggle music right away (if the device Sasha used wasn't indication enough) but it had a good rhythm to it.

He listened to him talk about his thoughts on keeping in touch, "It'll take time ta fix thin's between Peyton an me but we're workin' on it. I helped 'im git into thee Quidditch camp tha' got 'im signed, so issa start." He looked ahead to where the road was about to curve, "I'd like ta git ta know Helena, if she'll 'ave me." He took in a deep breath, "Me Dad . . . some wounds run too deep."

He followed Sasha's instructions once again as he geared down to follow the path the other man had indicated. This time the car jerked a little more but he had managed to cause it not to stall. He hoped he'd get better and smoother at switching gears, though it likely all came with practice.

He glanced over at Sasha and gave him a genuine smile, one that lit up his arctic blue eyes, "Ah'm impressed. It ain't easy takin' care o' so many."

With his eyes back on the road ahead he took a deep breath, trying to figure out how best to answer, "Are we in competition?" He asked with laughter in his voice as the former Ravenclaw assured him that he wasn't looking to steal trade secrets, "'onestly Ah'm not really part o' thee process. Ah know sumtimes it works, otha's it donnae. End o' thee day Ah sign thee papers makin' sure they 'ave thee money ta keep doin' wha' they do."

He took a long sigh, "Not wha' Ah though' Ah'd be doin'." He glanced over with a smirk, "Did he know Ah used ta wanna be Minister?"

Sasha glanced at Xavier, curiosity evident in his expression before he shook his head and glanced forward, again.  Who was he, after all, to be prying into the details of Xavier's personal family turmoil?  Back at Hogwarts, Xavier Tawse had always seemed like one of those big guys on campus - well-liked and confident, almost to the point of being full of himself.  Part of Sasha acknowledged that his own perception might have been skewed but he still couldn't shake the feeling that he was one of the last people who should be prying into Xavier's personal life. 

Instead, he finally decided on a more generic response and less personal response.  "Ja, fathers have a knack for that, don't they?  Hopefully it works out with Peyton and Helena, though.  I definitely wish I knew my sisters better."  And, hopefully, Xavier had better luck than Sasha did and would have the time to let things mend at their own pace. 

"Taking care of them wasn't the hard part," Sasha offered, with a grin.  "I had some help with that, especially for when I was at school.  It was keeping up with the competitions and travel and trying not to fall in the rankings too much when I was at school.  Most holidays, I'd step off the Hogwarts Express and right into the show circuit." 

Sasha offered another slight shrug and glanced towards Xavier.  He sounded, very much, like someone who'd been tossed off the deep end into a world he didn't quite understand.  The actual business aspect was probably fairly universal; crunching numbers and tallying inventory was the same, whether it was feed, paper or merchandise being tallied.  What drove those numbers, however, was not that universal and, especially in the case of livestock where the outcome of one year's breeding weren't seen until the next year, finicky.  The effects of sometimes it'd doesn't work could be as widespread and profound as the sometimes it works.

"I can't imagine it was what you were planning on.  But, no, I don't think I could imagine you being Minister, either.  I never pegged you for the meetings-type, in general.  I would have thought something more ... hands on.  Cursebreaker or hitwizard or something."  Again, perhaps, that was his own student-days skewed perspective of the the former Slytherin.  "If there's anything I could help with, I'd be happy to.  Or, I suppose you could always sell the company, if it's not what you want to be doing."

Xavier stopped himself short of asking Sasha about his own father. He really had little knowledge about the former Ravenclaw, aside from the little bit they had been sharing with each other. He wasn't even sure he knew his blood status, not that he cared about those sorts of things anymore, but it was still a habit to think about. There was an obvious muggle influence to the German, but he was curious as to whether or not he had any Wizarding family to help him along.

Xavier shook his head in awe, "I can't even imagine. Sounds busy as 'ell. Sum o' me cousins 'ave competed. Cadance used ta love it, though I doubt she'll be ridin' 'orses anytime soon." Xavier hadn't heard from his best friend in a few weeks. They had written to each other at the beginning of the summer. She had thanked him for getting her out of her marriage contract and to let him know that she had settled in just fine in New York. He had responded, not so nicely, hurt that she hadn't told him that Eli had been the father of her baby and he hadn't heard from her since.

Xavier let out a wry laugh, "Aye, used ta be all bout thee politics. I think it was the idea o' pow'r tha' got me." He thought back to his misguided mission to get closer to Ayla because of who her father was, "That dream died early though, I found out I was heir ta thee family fortune when I was bout Sixteen. Then I jus thought I could lay back an' enjoy bein' rich." Another wry laugh. How wrong he had been.

He waved Sasha off, "Nah, I could neva sell it, bin in thee family fer generations." He continued driving down the road, the car jerking a little less, "If anythin' I could likely hand it off ta one o' me Uncles or cousins tha already work there." He drew in a deep breath, "I think I jus wanna prove ta everyone tha I cin do it. Even if I 'ave no idea wha' I'm doin'."

Again, surprise and interest flickered across Sasha's expression as he glanced towards Xavier.  "I didn't know Cadence competed."  Of course, Sasha hadn't really known the other Slytherin that well.  "Not that I really knew her that well - or at all, outside of class.  She - you both were part of a different social group.  But, I preferred it being busy.  It kept me on the road and away from home; that was much better than the alternative." 

Even though, in purely economic terms, Sasha had been more of a peer to some of the wealthier Slytherins, his family's wealth had been exclusively muggle.  He was - or, rather, had been known as a muggleborn. 

"My father - well, step-father - would have approved of your interest in politics and power," Sasha offered truthfully; Gerhard Schlagenweit had made it clear he'd hoped, and expected, that Sasha would follow a similar path.  "He always expected that I'd end up in business, like him.  Or, at least, the military or international level competition."  Some sort of level of status - either fiscally, by rank or international notoriety.  Sasha couldn't help but wonder if his father would have, as well.  "I never had any interest in power; I was too much of a nerd.  I never actually expected to be rich, myself, either - I never expected to end up with any of this.  But, it isn't what people expect." 

But, the more Xavier talked about his role in the family business, the more Sasha was confident about his initial assessment: Xavier was in over his head, with little understanding of what he was doing.  He had no interest in selling it, but he also wasn't confident with what he was doing.  Sasha reflexively grimaced and shook his head at Xavier's idea of just handing off the management of the business to a family member.  "That's not a good idea," Sasha offered, with another shake of his head. 

"If you just-" he hesitated, again, and shook his head.  Again, Sasha doubted Xavier had come here looking for his advice.  He'd come hoping to learn about frivolous muggle stuff, like driving cars.  "I'm sorry.  My advise isn't what you came here for.  But, I'd just - I'd be careful with that approach."