Early Morning

The whole Remembering Day thing,  Anastacia was still trying to understand. She knew it was important but she was still reading up on the subject... Despite the fact she skipped out early when she heard there were going to be festivities. What better way to learn but through hands on expirence. Besides she wasn't sure when her mentor's would get around to showing her about and it was getting rather dull being inside her room all day.

A few hours of wandering around had done her some good, it seemed that either people were happy and celebrating while others were solemn in a respectful manner. What Anastacia did know for sure was that there was a major battle that ensued at Hogwarts ten years ago. Taking in the sites and the people Anastacia didn't notice the bulbous man, with puffy red cheeks, and a big noes ahead of her. (Seems pretty hard to do) He was rather unpleasant seeming, and when she bumped into him he didn't smell to hot either. In a grumbly voice he coughed and sputtered at Anastacia. "Children these days never watching where they are going... Blah yadda, getcha booga hu?" Anastacia stopped paying attention. He'd seemed to be on a rant ever since what looked to be a delivery boy scooted off terrified. She was beginning to understand why.

His cheeks got puffier, blood red, and he seemed to be puffing up like a blow fish with each over exaggerated phrase. Taking a step back to avoid the onslaught of spittle that was spewing from his quickly moving lips, Anastacia's eyes shifted back and forth for a means of escape. It came in the form of another man, sketchy looking and thin as a fence post. "Oi Harold whats got you all worked up!?" He asked in a jolly manner as 'Harold' turned to his friend or whatever the other man may be, Anastacia scooted off slowly at first and then with great speed around the corner into the nearby alley.. (She had been ending up in those a lot lately).

With her back pressed against the wall she held in a big breath as Harold figured out his latest target was gone. A slew of what Anastacia assumed to be wizard curses flew every which way, and she could hear the big mans heavy clip clops along the cobble stone as he strode quickly passed her hiding place and into the crowd. The skinny man laughed and followed telling him to calm down.

As soon as both men were lost in the crowd Anastacia exhaled and giggled lightly to herself "Shananagins! That was close.."she mumbled as Fairfax, her kitten, poked his head out of her jacket pocket. "So that's where you've been," She replied to his yawn and cute little mew. Petting his head she stepped back out on to the sidewalk, glad that the big man was gone, for now. Anastacia definitely didn't want to be there when he got back, turning the corner she headed off in the opposite direction.

While it had been Mairead's teeming mind that had kept her up all night, it had also been her teeming mind that had kept her mother up all night.  And, in a strangely quiet and half-awake state, the woman kept one curious eye on the people and stores they passed and one eye on her daughter.  She appeared to give no sign of unease or uncertainty as the eleven-year-old broke away from her to press her nose against the window of the shop. 

Mairead was, as of yet, largely oblivious to the reason for the activities of the day.  She'd gathered this was all to remember someone or something.  Of course, the name of the day gave that much away.  Watching the people she passed hadn't made it any more clear - some seemed to be enjoying the festivities, others seemed quiet and somber.  Last night during dinner, she'd overheard her mother asking someone at a neighboring table but Mairead had only half-listened.

"It looks like a tea shop" Clar ó Fearghail said in Irish, when, with a yawn, she'd finally caught with her daughter.  "We have those at home; you've seen them in Dublin."

"Maybe teacups fly, though.  Or - refill on their own, or - oh look! 

Like a finely polished stone, another shop window grabbed Mairead's attention and drew her down the street.  She was oblivious to the curious glances those dressed in long wizarding robes gave her - she'd grown used to them years ago.  Her second hand skirt and blouse were old-fashioned, even amongst muggles.  While her overactive imagination could manage to turn a simple teashop into a teeming teacup circus, even she was struggling to figure out what was so exciting about a shop full of brooms.  Maybe wizards really liked sweeping?  With a shrug, Mairead moved off down the street just as her mother managed to catch up. 

Mairead continued down the street when one store fully caught her attention.  Racing over to the window, she stared in at the sea of bright, sparkling, sea of candy.  She was staring in at the candies when she heard soft footsteps behind her.  Assuming it was her mother, Mairead spoke, again in Irish, without turning from the window. 

"Can we go in?  Please?  We don't have to buy anything - just to look?" 

Mairead turned around excited but found it wasn't her mother behind her - she appeared to be back down at the shop with the brooms, peering curiously through the window.  It was a girl; about Mairead's age.  Mairead grinned at her before turning back to the window.  But, really, the sight of the mounds of candy were just too fantastic to not share with someone.  If her mother was too busy with stupid brooms, she'd have to improvise.

"They look so good," she said, looking back towards the girl. 

The bustling street gave way into a slew of shops that held all sorts of mysteries. Anastacia was hopping to at least poke her nose into a few of them before attempting to find her way back to where she was staying. She found it kind of the Ministry to put her and her parents up here until Anastacia started her first year at Hogwarts.

Stepping gingerly around a murky looking puddle Anastacia passed by an interesting looking book store. There was something to say about a magical book and a normal one: The pictures moved, spoke at times, letters jumbled themselves up and vice versa, things could disappear and then reappear. It made reading exciting, however, unlike that of the books she was supposed to be reading at the moment. No matter how magical they were, they still didn't grasp her attention like a good hands on, exploration of her new world. Hoping to remember how she got to this spot, she moved on. Ana knew perfectly well that if she went inside, it would be hours before she actually came out, and she was pretty sure she didn't have hours + to spend in a magical book nook.

Continuing on she passed by many a character, even an older woman interestingly dressed looking into the broom shop. Now, Anastacia recalled reading up on the game of Quidditch, which was a sport ridden on brooms..  There was something about a Golden Snicker doodle or something to that effect that would win you the game if caught (She still had some reading to do). Feeling Fairfax shuffle inside her pocket restlessly made Ana suspect that he was probably hungry, and as a matter of fact she was feeling a tad peckish herself.

"Can we go in?  Please?  We don't have to buy anything - just to look?"
 
"Hmm?" In front of Anastcia was a girl about her age, and in the middle of her hungry thoughts she'd seemed to replace the person the girl expected to be behind her. It was apparent to the girl as well when she turned around and noticed Anastacia instead of the perosn she was expecting. Returning her offered smile, Anastcia realized that she'd been stopped in front of a trough of sweet goodness. Blinking and giving her eyes a quick rub, Ana didn't think she'd ever seen something as magical as the candy store in front of them.

"They look so good,"

"Leaping leopards they sure do!" Anastcia replied to the girl licking her lips briefly. "Want to go inside?" She asked so enthralled by the essence of cavity inducing goodies, that she ignored the small fact that she didn't even know the girls name. Moving to to the other side of her to get a better look into the shop window a thought crossed her mind. She wondered if candy here was anything close to candy in the muggle world. She doubted it, imagining the shop keeper being made out of chocolate briefly made her giggle.
 

The other's non-committal response didn't surprise Mairead at all.  Once she'd seen it hadn't been her mother standing behind her, Mairead had assumed the other girl wouldn't have understood her.  Though, there was bound to be some people around that spoke Irish gaelic, but it was highly unlikely that the first person she ran into would speak it.  Or, understand it at a minimum. 

"Oh, sorry," she said, grinning sheepishly.  "I thought ye were me - well, someone else." 

Mairead looked away from the girl briefly to peer down the street back towards her mother.  Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion as she shook her head; why was she still staring through the window?  "I don't get it," Mairead admitted, looking at the girl standing next to her as if the girl could explain her mother's odd behavior.  "They're bloody, boring brooms.  Ye'd think she'd never swept a floor before."   

Mairead shook her head and rolled her eyes.  Why her mother had to embarrass her in such a mundane manner, Mairead could only guess.  Maybe it was anxiety from soon leaving Mairead in the care of someone the didn't know well.  Or, perhaps, it was just part of being an adult.  Really, Mairead wouldn't complain if her mother would just behave somewhat normally, though.  If they could figure out what was normal.

Go inside?  Mairead's attention was immediately drawn back to the girl and she turned towards her, the eagerness evident on her face.  "I do!"  Mairead agreed, excitedly.  She looked back towards her mother.  "Mamai!" she called, gesturing towards the door to the candy store before turning to head inside.  "Oh, my name's Mairead," she offered the other girl as she entered the shop. 

Once inside, Mairead slowly walked around the room, peering at the jars and barrels and piles of colorful, gleaming sweets.  "Wow!" Mairead breathed, moving over towards the nearest display.  "It's ... they're ... what are they?" she asked, despite the signs that were set up around the various wares.  "Do they do anything fancy?"

"Oh, sorry," she said, grinning sheepishly... I thought ye were me - well, someone else."

Shrugging and nodding Anastacia understood, her habit of wandering from her mothers side had caused similar incidents. "It's alright, happens to me all the time." Turning her attention back to the shop window sticking her hand into her pocket with the money she'd been given for goodies, betting that she had enough to spend on several sweet, and bitter items she grinned lightly to herself.

 "I don't get it... They're bloody, boring brooms.  Ye'd think she'd never swept a floor before."   

Anastacia looked in the direction Mairead was looking in, and giggled with a smile.  What she assumed to be her mother was staring into the broom shop window. "Oo.. I thought so at first too, but I've been reading up on things here.. And well they are used to fly on. There is even a sport here that requires a broom to play, called Quidditch." she responded happy that she'd remembered that much from her reading. "So I take it your not from here either?"

It was a relief that there was another possible muggle-born here as well, and hopefully going to Hogwarts as well. Then as she thought about it, that was probably the truth, she was here for the same reason as Ana was.

"I do!..Mamai!..Oh, my name's Mairead,"

Anastacia follwed Mairead into the candy store relieved that she'd said yes to her offer, "I'm Anastacia, but you can call me Ana," she replied with a wide grin before remembering that  one of the ministry people had told her that once the festivities started that a mentor would be showing her and another girl around.  She wandered if Mairead was the girl she was supposed to meet later on that day.

Her pondering didn't last very long as the bright colors and various varieties of candies caught her eyes. "Amazing.." She mummbled  jaw almost touching the floor.

"It's ... they're ... what are they?...Do they do anything fancy?"

Anastacia tore her eyes away from the display she had wandered to to join Mairead by the display nearest to the door. "I.. Well.. I don't know... I've heard that they have chocolate frogs here that leap, and jelly beans that taste like vomit.. But I'm not sure what these are.."  She replied tilting her head a bit to the side. She was sure of one thing, they sure looked delicious.

Mairead looked to Ana with surprise and then through the candy store window towards her mother.  "Really?  They fly?"  Almost instantly, a renewed sense of interest in the brooms had been fostered.  Watching her mother, she had to assume it was that bit of information that captivated her.  Now that she considered the prospects, it was likely that her mother was picking her way through whatever there was to read on the shop sign or next to the broom.  "Wow!  That sounds so cool.  Qui- Quidditch.  That's a funny word." 

Really, so much about this place seemed surprising and fantastic.  Like the sweets that filled the store - which, in the end, proved to be far more captivating then brooms, even if they did fly.  The brooms sounded fun, but Mairead turned her attention fully to the sweets.

Mairead looked at the Ana and shook her head.  "No.  I'm not; I'm from over in Ireland," she explained.  "So, you aren't, either?  Are ye here with yer parents?  Are ye going to school?"  She asked, the questions coming quickly, in short succession.  School.  It was such a novel concept to Mairead and she was at the same time excited and nervous.  "Have ye ever been to school before?" she asked.

"Yeah," Mairead seconded Ana's mumbled expression of amazement.  The colors and the smell of the sweet sugar was fantastic.  She stood by the display in the corner and eyed the jars upon jars of treats.  Her eyes widened and her mouth had, officially, begun to water. 

She wanted to run around the shop, tugging lids of and taking samples just to see what they did.  She knew, chances were, she'd get in considerable trouble for it, but that wasn't necessarily an unfamiliar place to be in.  Trouble was something that frequently found her - whether or not it was her fault was open to debate.  Usually, Tito, her best friend back home, was the instigator but she wasn't entirely 'well-behaved' on her own. 

"I just want to try everything," Mairead admitted as she stopped in front of a shelf full of jars.  Mairead knew this Ana was a completely unknown entity.  She seemed like she was nice, but she might also be one of those nice goody-two-shoes types.  One of those that didn't understand that, sometimes, one had to take advantage of the situations that presented themselves.  Mairead glanced over her shoulder but found everyone else in the shop distracted and thoroughly ignoring the two of them.  She slipped off the lid of one of the jars and reached in, snagging a few of the soft, gummy, wriggling candies.

Opie's Outfit

"Ten already??...Merlin's Knickers!..." Opie cursed and promptly covered her mouth in horror at her foul mouth. She really did need to watch her language, especially now that she was going to have a couple young impressionable children to look after. She had been surprised when she was offered the position of Divination Professor, after having longed for it so long, and was even more surprised, and elated, when she was told that she would also be serving as a guide for many of the young Muggleborns who would be attending the next year.

Usually muggleborns were brought into the Wizarding world only a month or so before the start of their schooling, but for whatever reason, the young Fearghail and Rowaiin were introduced much earlier. It was Opie's job to introduce them to the wizarding world and teach them the basics of what they needed to know, which she was very excited about.

She was so excited that she was actually running for once. Usually Opie strolled... no... wandered where ever she walked, her head in the clouds. But today she was on a mission and no one was going to get in her way. Well, except for a booth selling mummified remains, but she vowed that nothing else would distract her. It took quite a bit of willpower, But Opie managed to get to the meeting spot only a couple minutes late. Unfortanatly, she was the only one who did.

"Where could they be?" She wondered, glancing around at the milling crowds. Maybe they had wandered off, like children were wont to do. Opie sighed and pondered to herself Where would I have gone if I was an 11 year old..... Glancing around, she saw a book stand. "Of course... a bookstore..." It seemed like the most logical explanation in her mind, and she quickly made her way to the towering stand of books, losing herself within the rows of tomes.

Anastacia was all smiles, the candy shop glowed and whirled with magic, and life. Each candy was unique in such a way that they  put a simple Hershey bar to shame.  Stomach growling, she licked her lips, boy did they all look rather tasty.

"Really?  They fly?"


"Yuppers, that they do!" Ana replied enthusiastically. When she was old enough to have one (according to her mothers standards) she was going to buy one and fly it as much as possible. As far as she knew they had a course of flying a broom at Hogwarts that she'd have to take, this tidbit of info excited her beyond belief.

"No.  I'm not; I'm from over in Ireland,... So, you aren't, either?  Are ye here with yer parents?  Are ye going to school?...Have ye ever been to school before?"

Giggling Ana nodded, "Ireland?! That's really amazing... Nope I'm not, I'm from Manchester actually,"  Ana's responses came as quickly as Mairead's interrogation. "My parents and I are staying here for the time being, and I went to a public school back home," being here had totally sidetracked Ana from thinking of what life was like back home. Going to the small public school nearby her home, walking home with her friend Jenny, playing four square during recess.

"I just want to try everything,"

Comming out her thoughts, Ana realized her companion was not beside her anymore.  She'd heard her comment about trying everything, but where had she moved off to? Turning around she spotted Mairead over by a shelf full of jars. Slipping over to her side Ana witnessed Mairead unscrew the lid and pull out a few gummy looking, wriggling things. As she put them in her mouth Ana licked her lips. "How do they taste?" she asked hastily as she unscrewed another jar that had pink somethings in it, and pulled out two. They were a bit difficult to hold onto, forcing Ana to quickly stuff them into her mouth.

They were sweet and  bounced around in her mouth, and Anastacia fell instantly in love with them, "Yummy..." she managed to get out. At that moment as if the force had suddenly come alive a struck her, Ana's parental adult supervision switch turned on. "I... Fe..el.. Like... Somebody's....Look..ing ... For... us.." she said to Mairead between trying to chew on the bouncing candies in her mouth. This had nothing to do with Ana's clairvoyance, that was geared towards the paranormal, this feeling occurred whenever there was an adult that was looking to supervise her. She hated being a child for that reason. With an adult it was harder to get into shananagins, and Ana liked getting herself into tight squeezes.

Mairead made a mental note to look into these flying brooms sometime.  That sometime wasn't now, though.  Right now was the time for tasting as many of these candies as she could before she, inevitably, got shooed out the door.  For now, though, the shopkeeper still seemed distracted, leaving Mairead's access to the candy uninhibited. 

Her fingers closed around a couple of the wriggling candies and, almost immediately, she dropped the candies and jerked back her hands.  They looked like gummi worms but they felt and moved just like real, in-the-ground worms - like the ones birds ate.  She glanced over her shoulder at her companion as the other girl finally caught up with her.  To her relief, Ana didn't seem mortified to find Mairead testing the food.  Emboldened by the presence of the other and not wanting to come across as a wimp, Mairead grasped a few worms and pulled them from the jar. 

"Mmm..." Mairead moaned contently.  Once one got past the feel of eating worms, the candy was quite delicious.  "Mmm blackberry."  Mairead glanced at her companion with a grin before, checking over her shoulder for the shopkeeper and tugging off another lid.  Time was, of course, of the essence. 

"Mmhmm," Mairead said, shrugging.  To her, Ireland didn't seem amazing necessarily; it was home.  Though, in her eyes, all that she'd seen in England and Scotland had seemed amazing.  "Ye know those people that travel around in wagons with spotted horses?" Mairead asked around a mouthful of sweets.  "Sometimes they call us gypsies?  That's me family.  Or some of them.  Not all of them.  I mean, not we're all Pavees, but we aren't all family.  Ye know."  She cast a curious glance at her companion, hoping she made sense, before turning to a different jar.  "Manchester.  That's ... in England?"  She asked. 

Mairead eyed the jar of pink candies that Ana had just sampled and shuffled over to it.  "So, I take it ye don't care if we get caught?"  Mairead asked quietly as she struggled to close her fingers around one of the evasive candies.  Clearly, Ana didn't care, but it was worth making sure.  Mairead grinned eagerly at her and moved on to the next jar.

Apparently, among amusing, enticing traits, some of the candies actually aided the shop in the prevention of the type of shoplifting the two girls were currently engaged in.  Everything seemed to be going smoothly as Mairead lifted the lid off the jar of black cricket-like candies that looked to be licorice.  But, just as her fingers closed around one of the, the jar began chirping and singing.  Loudly.  Like a warm, mid-summer's evening.  "Raispín*!" Mairead hissed as she jumped, the sound spilling from the open mouth of the jar and quickly yanking her hand back and slamming the lid on the jar.

---

After watching her daughter duck into what appeared to be a candy store, Clar ó Fearghail turned her attention back to the smooth broom on display.  It had been the carefully sculpted bristles at the end of the broom that had caught her attention.  They were immaculately clean and smooth but tapered to a point.  Such a design would prove useless for actual sweeping; surely that couldn't be what the thing was intended for.  That curiosity had led her to studying the cards posted by the display; a slow-moving activity at best. 

While sounding her way through the words on the card, Clar noticed the reflection of a woman passing behind her.  The woman appeared to be searching for someone; seeing as how they had come to this strange village to meet a woman, it seemed to be too much of a coincidence. 

The most recent visitor from this Hogwarts school had explained that, given their circumstances, the school had asked for a volunteer from the school's staff to serve as Mairead's mentor.  Her family didn't have the financial ability to stay in a hotel for the summer and Clar couldn't be away from the group for so long - the summer was the season for county fairs and most of the money they earned in a year was made during those few short months.  Mairead would be remaining with the her mentor for the summer, acclimating to this new world and getting ready for her first year at school. 

A glance down the street confirmed that Mairead was still inside the candy store.  Clar turned away from the broom display and hurried to catch up with the strangely dressed woman in hopes that she, indeed, was the one they were supposed to meet.  Once inside the store - a bookstore, Clar realized as she stepped inside with an amused chuckle to herself - Clar weaved through the bookshelves until she spotted the woman.  Hopefully the woman's first assumption that a bookstore was the best place to go looking for her new charge didn't speak ill of the proposed match of mentor and mentee. 

"Excuse me, ma'am," Clar said as she approached the other woman.  "Are you Mrs. Ger-"  Oh, good grief.  It had been a peculiar name and, for the life of her, Clar couldn't remember it.  She remembered it had almost sounded German.  Or something of the nature.  "Are you from the school?" she asked, changing tactics.  If this was the woman she was supposed to meet, it would probably become clear relatively soon.  If it wasn't - well, she'd know if the woman stared at her blankly. 

heh - Clar's outfit; Mai's is probably similar