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Christmas Morning
Author: Hermione Granger
Date: 11-08-09 14:57
The gathering at the Burrow last evening had been as delightful as all Weasley family get-togethers generally were. The Christmas Eve celebration was the first in a long time in which they'd all assembled without the fear of getting snatched by the Relocation Assistance Committee and either arrested or sent to a horrid community for nons.
The world was certainly a happier place––exponetially more so now than it had been last year and even two years ago. It was just as the holiday season should be: free of worry, and a time for family and friends to spread joy and good cheer.
There were more children in the Weasley family now since the last pleasant Christmas season several years ago. Hermione didn't have full-blown maternal feelings just yet, but when she gazed upon the expanding younger generation, the instinct to have children of her own started stirring within her.
Originally, she'd wanted to complete her training as a healer before getting married. If circumstances hadn't required her to go into hiding or risk getting sent to one of the communities, Hermione would now be in the middle of her last year as a trainee healer. It wasn't that Hermione hadn't wanted to get married young; she'd just wanted to get her schooling out of the way first.
If the last few years had taught her anything, though, it was that time could be very precious. One never knew how long one had with a loved one or friend. So many wizards had been separated from their families during those recent years of turmoil, and some would forever be apart, since not everyone had made it through the awful ordeal alive. Hermione considered herself very lucky, since all those closest to her had survived.
Although she had changed her stance on getting married before completing her healing degree, she definitely didn't want any children until after she finished.
"What are you thinking about?" Ron asked, poking Hermione in the side with his index finger.
They sat side by side on the floor under the Christmas tree at the Burrow, where they'd ended up spending the night. The gifts had long been opened, most of them last night before the children had gone to bed. The rest had been opened promptly at midnight or this morning before breakfast.
"About the healing program," Hermione replied.
Ron rolled his eyes. "It's always school with you."
Hermione smiled. "I happen to like school, thank you very much."
"You're a strange one, you know that?"
It was Hermione's turn to roll her eyes. She reached for the morning edition of the Daily Prophet which had a Christmas greeting from Acting-Minister, soon-to-be official Minister of Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt, on the front page. His official swearing in as Minister would happen in a couple of days, just in time for the new year.
"Want to go to that?" Ron asked, indicating to the article about the ceremony. "I'm sure Kingsley would want you there, but even if you don't get an official invitation, I bet I can get us both in."
"Since when do you have so much pull at the Ministry?" Hermione queried, grinning.
"Well, let's face it Hermione. I'm awesome."
Hermione laughed and kissed Ron. "I think I can agree with you on that one."
Stuffed To The Gills
Author: Harry Potter
Date: 11-08-09 15:49
Although he's got his own home, Harry hadn't hesitated in accepting an invitation to sleep over at the Burrow on Christmas Eve. Before coming here yesterday, he'd dropped by to see Sirius, Dru, Mira, and James as well as Remus, Tonks, and Teddy. The Lupins were spending some time at the Eternal-Black household before going on spend the rest of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with Tonks's parents.
Pinky sent gifts but chose to spend the time with Rocko, which came as no surprise to Harry. With Rocko so often with the Foxes, Pinky's not at home as much anymore. the House Elf does make sure Harry's properly taking meals, which is good because Harry's cooking efforts still aren't much better than when he was a kid at the Dursley's. He can cook many things. He simply doesn't make anything well if it's above the level of jam on toast or bangers and mash.
Even though Harry now has regular, excellently made meals, Molly Weasley still doesn't think Harry gets enough to eat. She currently has Harry at the Burrow's kitchen table, trying to tempt him into yet another helping of waffles, eggs, sausage, bacon, and fresh fruit. He's already eaten so much he has no idea how he's ever going to find room for the fabulous Christmas dinner already in the works, filling the kitchen with wonderful aromas.
Tomorrow when he makes a fourth trip to Singapore, Harry thinks he might have to Floo or Portkey because his weight gain between now and then will be so substantial, he won't be able to properly apparate from point to point to reach his destination. Catherine Patterson and Harry are sealing the deal tomorrow, barring unforseen circumstances, with Ryan Jewkes. His mother, Constance Jewkes and her attorney drove a hard bargain but the British Ministry finally came to an agreement with Ryan Jewkes to get his testimony in the on-going prison community trials.
What Harry finds oddly coincedental is that on two of the three trips so far, he's spotted his cousin Dudley with the same woman. As far as he knows Dudley lives and works here in Britain but maybe that's changed. Harry can't decide if he wants to bother finding out. Dudley and he have been on better terms but that doesn't mean after everything else Harry wants to delve into the day in and day out life of Dudley Dursley.
On Catherine and Harry's first Singapore visit, he'd also spotted Isodro Cousillas. Knowing the man was indeed leaving Uruguay meant the British Ministry wasn't going to give up on apprehending him just yet. He's no closer to being caught but at least they know there's a chance of getting him outside of Uruguay's borders and thus circumventing an international incident.
Ginny sits down at the table opposite Harry, breaking into his thoughts. "Here's more bacon."
"No, really, I couldn't. I mean that literally." Harry gently pats his stomach, thinking it might explode. "If I had gills, I'd be stuff to them."
"I've always found that to be an odd expression. Stuffed to the gills. Where did it come from?"
"I don't know. Something to ask Hermione. If she doesn't know she'll probably have an answer for you by week's end."
Ginny laughs, "So very true!"
Harry gives a chuckle then nods towards Ginny's wrist. "That's a nice bracelet."
"Yes, isn't it," she says with a broad smile, holding up her arm to show off the bracelet more. "It was a Christmas present from Declan."
"He seems a nice enough fellow."
"He is. We should... You should get to know him better."
"You started to say something else."
"No, it's nothing."
"You were going to suggest we double date sometime."
"Yes, sorry. I don't know why I was going to when you and Janine haven't been really together for a few months now."
"It's because even though we aren't together to speak of, we've also not broken it off officially."
"Is that what you want? To break up for good?"
"Sometimes I think so; othertimes I would give you an emphatic now. I wish I knew what to do about everything."
"That's just it though, it's Janine who has to make the effort. She's the one choosing to not spend time with you, to live more at her parents' house than her own. You've made an effort time and time again. Janine needs to either start working with you or tell you she's done."
"Or I could tell her I'm done."
"Yes, there is that."
"More waffles, Harry."
"No, thank you, Mrs. Weasley, I couldn't."
"If I have to tell you once more it's past time you call me Molly to my face, I'm going to smack you across the back of your head."
"She will too," Ginny nods.
Harry finds himself grinning again because Molly Weasley threatening him the same violence she does her own children helps to remind him that no matter what else happens in his life, the Weasleys are family.
Christmas in Wales
Author: Carys
Date: 11-08-09 15:54
When the doorbell rang, Carys got up from where she'd been sitting on the floor with Tristan (who was playing with a box instead of the present that had been inside it) and answered the door.
"Happy Christmas!" Griffin greeted. He was carefully balancing a number of gifts in his arms.
"Happy Christmas!" Carys replied, moving out of the way so that Griffin could come in from out of the cold and unload the towering gifts from his arms.
"Daddy!" Tristan squealed, his box momentarily forgotten.
Griff put the presents he brought under the tree and scooped up his son, kissing him on the nose. "Happy Christmas, Tristan. I see you already opened some of your presents. I guess you probably don't want any of the ones I brought you..."
For a three year old, Tristan shot his father a very serious look. "Yes, I do," he protested, folding his little arms over his chest.
Griffin laughed. "I suppose you can have them then." He snuggled Tristan to his chest and tickled his sides, causing the little boy to laugh and squeal.
Carys smiled, watching the two together. Although it was only natural that Griffin spend Christmas with his son, it was Carys herself who'd invited him to join the family at her grandfather's home in Wales. While it was true that Griff had Ruth and Seeayetee with whom he could celebrate the holidays, the only other family he had was Tristan and by extension Carys and Alun. It was only fitting that he spend Christmas with them.
Besides, Carys truly cared for Griffin and wanted him around.
He grinned at her. "What say you to letting Giggles here open the rest of his gifts?"
Tristan giggled harder.
Carys smiled. "I think I'm okay with that."
Griff set Tristan on the floor but didn't let him go quite yet. "One at a time, okay?"
Tristan nodded his head vigorously and then made a beeline for the boxes under the tree.
Parent Someday
Author: Ginny Weasley
Date: 11-08-09 17:04
A little while after talking with Harry in the Burrow kitchen, Ginny's still sitting at the table but is busy peeling and chopping vegetables for the big Christmas feast later in the day. The back door swings open with probably more force than intended and in strides George with Miranda on his shoulders. Even before they're inside Miranda is calling out, "Gram! Gram!" her name for Molly.
Molly had only stepped out of the kitchen seconds before. She comes rushing back in now. "What? What's wrong?"
"For you!" Miranda practically chortles, holding out a wrapped package for Molly.
"But I've already had my gifts," Molly protests.
Ginny looks up from her work, "Just take it, Mum."
"Do you know what this is?" Molly asks, pivoting around to face Ginny.
"Maybe."
"Open it, Gram!" Miranda commands.
George swings Miranda off his shoulders, "What if Gram wants to wait until later? Remember what I said?"
Miranda pouts a little at this, not surprising given that she's only three. "But I want it now."
Molly holds out her hand to Miranda, "Let's go in the other room and sit down and then you can help me open this lovely gift, all right?"
"Yeah!"
"Yes, ma'am," George corrects his daughter.
At the table, Ginny snickers. George swings a chair around to face backwards then straddles it. "What are you snickering about?"
"You attempting to teach Miranda proper manners and ettiquette."
George reaches for a carrot stick. "I don't see why that's a source of amusement," he says before crunching into the carrot. "You going to be that way, I'll take your wand and you'll be forced to do all these vegetables by hand."
Ginny grins, "Going to punish your children with such tasks like Mum did us?"
"Don't tell her I said this, but we're the better for her approach to discipline. One of these days, you'll have kids too and find yourself correct grammar and manners and all that other nonsense."
From the living room, Miranda starts squealing in delight, though whether about Molly opening the gift or something else, Ginny can't tell. George grabs another carrot stick. "I'd best go see what's going on."
For a brief time, Ginny is alone again in the kitchen and as she works on the vegetables, she can't stop thinking about George's comment that she'll have kids of her own someday. Ginny's never doubted that. The big question is with whom. She likes Declan Douglass well enough but her heart still belongs to Harry Potter. Until Harry resolves things one way or another with Janine, Ginny isn't going to let herself get herself into so serious a relationship that everyone, including Declan, starts thinking it's going to end in marriage.
More squeals come from the living room. Curious to know what that's all about, and curious to know if Molly likes this latest gift, Ginny leaves the vegablets being peeled and chopped unsupervised for a few moments.
Hogwarts for the Holidays
Author: Ronan Eastwick
Date: 11-09-09 08:00
With his mother in prison and no other family with whom to spend the holidays, Ronan had stayed at Hogwarts. Only a handful of students had, making the castle a very deserted and lonely place. Ronan wasn't completely alone, though. Illyria stayed at the castle most days and often kept her former ward company.
Last evening, she'd received special permission from Professor Dumbledore to take Ronan to a family gathering at her sister Arsinoe's London home. The entire Jones family had been there. Ronan hadn't felt out of place, since he'd met many of Illyria's family over the years and felt especially close to his former guardian and her youngest sister Urania.
The Jones family were planning on gathering for Christmas dinner, and Ronan was once again invited. Until then, he was at Hogwarts. He not only had dinner with Illyria's family to look forward to but a midday feast in the Great Hall. Already the smells of turkey and ham wafted through the air.
Ronan didn't want to eat too much and spoil his appetite for supper, but it was hard to limit what one ate at any Hogwarts feast. He went to the Great Hall early and ran into none other than Illyria herself.
"Smells too good to pass up, doesn't it?" Illyria asked him with a smile.
"Yes, and I don't think I realized how hungry I really am until now."
"Mind if I sit with you, Ronan?"
Ronan looked at Illyria with amusement and surprise. "At the Gryffindor table?"
"Why not?" Illyria exclaimed, grinning. "There's hardly anyone here... or would it embarass you to sit with a teacher?"
Ronan shook his head and laughed. "Of course not. I'd be happy to sit with you."
They moved to the front of the Great Hall, where a few of those students and teachers who'd remained at the school over the holidays sat in anticipation of the Christmas feast.
Family
Author: Plum
Date: 11-10-09 09:24
Plum enters the Beck kitchen, moving to the birthday cake that will be served later. Josefine Beck asks, "Alex fell asleep?"
"He was fighting it but finally gave in. He's had so much fun here yesterday and today."
"He's such a lively boy, just like Toby and Anthony were. Still are really."
Plum turns from the cake, into which she'd put the candles marking Alex's third birthday. "All the Becks are full of energy, competitive, and very smart."
To this Josefine says with a laugh, "I'm so proud of them all it's a good thing that bursting with pride is only an expression and not literal."
Plum laughs along with the older woman then looks back at the cake. "Sometimes I think I should celebrate Alex's birthday another time of year so that he has something special, apart from Christmas. Maybe that's something for when he's a little older and more aware of these sort of things."
Moving to refill drinks, the task she'd actually come into the kitchen for, Plum rejoins Anthony and some of the others, passing out the drinks as she does. Sitting down beside Anthony, Plum finds herself observing yet again the Beck family dynamic. As always, Plum gets a pang thinking about how this is something she missed out on most of her life. For much of her childhood, Mary and Evan stayed in drunken hazes. Plum was well into her teens by the time Mary got sober for good and it was after that when Evan did the same. She finally gets a sibling when she was old enough to have a child herself and is now is more mother than sister to Alex. Mary is gone and Evan's return to drinking landed him in St. Mungo's where he's very slowly recovering though may never be truly functioning again.
Yesterday, for a short time, Anthony, Alex, and Plum ahd gone to Anissa and William Weaver's. She'd been hesitant to go because since having confirmation that Anissa is her maternal grandmother, Plum can't stop having thoughts about why her grandmother would up and move to the other side of the world, knowingly leaving Plum with two constantly inebriated individuals. While she has gotten to know Anissa, and her husband William, some, and has allowed Anissa to get to know Alex, Plum is hesitant to embrace the woman and call her grandmother or whatever Anissa would want to be called. She's hesitant to consider Anissa as family.
Learning about Malachi, the uncle Plum cannot recall ever meeting or hearing of, just reinforced Plum's reservations. Malachi visited the Lancaster household regularly when Plum was small, returning for visits even after he too had moved to Australia. Malachi failed Plum just as the other adults in her life had, leaving her with Mary and Evan despite knowing they were not the best people to have a child and that for a period of time they were truly unfit to raise a daughter.
Plum had met Malachi last night. As with Anissa, Plum found him to be nice enough, even doing as he requested and calling him Uncle Malachi. It's just that Plum is having trouble getting past the fact that these blood relatives who supposedly cared for her then and do now as well, who want to get to know her again and know Alex, left her in the care of people they themselves no longer wanted to be around.
As if sensing her thoughts, Anthony places an arm around Plum, whispering in her ear so no one else hears, "You all right?"
Plum snuggles against Anthony, smiles and says in an equally low voice, "Yes, just tired and Alex isn't going to sleep long I don't think. He's far too excited about everything."
"Maybe he'll get it out of his system today so we can sleep in tomorrow."
Plum laughs, knowing Alex's penchant for getting up very early. "We can only hope!"
Stuck At School
Author: Zabrynna
Date: 11-10-09 18:36
A cooling mug of hot chocolate has hardly been touched even though Hogwarts hot chocolate is rich, creamy, with a wonderful ratio of chocolate to milk to sugar. Usually Zabrynna can't wait to take a sip, even when it's scalding hot with steam rising from it. She got it with a generous dollop of whipped cream, which always makes the hot chocolate even better. Zabrynna has taken one sip and that was after the steam had largely dissipated. Looking at the mug now she wonders why she bothered getting it.
Why she bothered coming to the commons at all.
Why she doesn't just get up and walk down to the school gates and leave for good.
Zabrynna had been all set to go home over the winter holiday. She knew she'd be on restriction at home with very limited visits with Anne and Philippa but that was better than staying at school and not seeing her friends at all. Then the last Friday of classes, Zabrynna got an owl from her mother. Margretta was giving Nolan a Christmas getaway as one of his presents. Mariposa by then was already at her mum's and stepfather's. No one would be at home to supervise Zabrynna's restriction. She could go on the trip with her parents but would be confined to the rooms where they were staying because Margretta and Nolan were not going to lift punishment and allow Zabrynna a fun time simply because it was a holiday trip. After due deliberation, Margretta thought it best for Zabrynna to stay at Hogwarts.
Zabrynna got so angry she didn't bother replying to her mother. It wasn't so much having to stay at Hogwarts afterall and not get to see her friends any during the holiday. It was the less than 24 hours notice she was given that she was to remain at school. The only consolation was the possibility of catching glimpes of Declan should he remain at Hogwarts for any of the break.
Her presents from home were delivered Christmas Eve, though as part of her punishment, Zabrynna's gifts were minimal and more along the lines of basic necessities, such as several pairs of knickers, quills and plain, black ink. Mariposa did give Zabrynna a pretty blouse and a matching necklace-bracelet-earring set. There'd been gifts exchanged earlier with her friends though Zabrynna had had to beg her mother to allow anything. She'd had to let Margretta know what she wanted to give and as with Secret Santa, Mariposa did the shopping.
One gift that had Zabrynna laughing at the irony was the Secret Santa she'd received from Professor Lawrence Masterson. He'd given her some history books and while Zabrynna does like history itself, she only LOVES history at Hogwarts because of Declan Douglass. The thought was nice though and indicated that Professor Masterson had noticed her tendancy since arriving at Hogwarts a year and a half ago to talk more about history than she had before Hogwarts and to sound excited about it. Zabrynna seriously doubts the Herbology professor would have gotten her history books were he to know the truth behind her seeming love of history.
Zabrynna swirls the contents of her mug around, stopping when a house elf appears tableside offering to refresh it for her. For the same unknown reason she ordered it in the first place, Zabrynna agrees. She also accepts Christmas biscuits from the tray the house elf is carrying despite still being so full from the feast at lunch and the smaller but no less festive dinner this evening.
A few minutes later when another bound to Hogwarts for Christmas student asks her if she'll play Wizarding chess with him, Zabrynna sits up a little straighter and smilingly agrees as she tries to place the student's name, year, and house without having to ask. She doesn't really want to play chess but it's something to do besides going and working even more on the project Professor Dumbledore gave her weeks ago. Besides, she's not so awful a person that she'd deny another lonely soul someone to play chess with simply because she's still being punished for stupid mistake.