An active, character-driven Hogwarts experience set in the early 2000s. Unique items, plots, and features. Non-canon; this isn't Harry Potter's story, it's ours.
Kamari and Alora had barely set feet down on the grass just beyond their family wards, when Irene swept them up into a warm and soothing hug. Her hugs were always the best -- as if nothing in the world could touch them there, and everything would always be okay.
'Ugh. I love you two so much.' She gave them another squeeze. 'Welcome home, darlings.'
Pulling back, she gripped each of their chins -- inspecting them thoroughly, and making sure they were okay. Giving each a reassuring pat, Irene led them into the yard and through the wards towards Aunt Taraji's cottage.
It was cold and there was a bit of snow in the air, but the grounds itself were a nice break from the stark white they were used to at Hogwarts and around London. The climate was a bit different at the Hollow, for whatever reason. It was a rare sight to be blanketed with snow, and this year didn't include it yet again.
'Go wash up,' Irene said, headed to the kitchen. 'Stay out of the office; your Aunt is writing some rather angry letters to suppliers. You do not want to go in there.'
She shuddered, giving them an exaggerated (playful) panicked look. To help lighten the mood, but also impress that interrupting their aunt right now would likely get their hair hexed green or papers flying at their face.
'She said hi though, by the way. Papa too,' Irene added, tossing a dry dish cloth onto her shoulder. 'You hungry? Oh, and your Papa's in the workshop. Wash up first, before doing anything.'
They were also welcome to hang out in the room for now, until called to eat. Irene always made sandwiches when they got home, and this was one of their few chances to spend in their actual bedroom. Even though their ones in the tent felt more like home than the cottage. But they were free to roam and settle in, at their own pace and comfort.
They could chill in their bedrooms or the living room, go see what their Papa was working on, chat with Irene while she worked in the kitchen, or simply go for a walk (within the wards, of course).
It wasn't strange that Papa and Aunt Taraji didn't come greet them, as they would surely be spending a lot of time together as family these entire holidays anyway. Some space wasn't a bad thing, especially when it was the busiest time of year for a Sagemore. It was perfectly normal for them.
Post by Alora Sagemore on Nov 7, 2023 19:32:11 GMT 10
During the whole walk towards their Mama and the bodyguards, Alora had tried to keep her mind occupied, thinking about it as a challenge she had to overcome.
Enduring the constant barrage of question was rather difficult for her since she constantly had to hold herself back and not just shoot out a comment at the reporters. That would not be a good idea, although it would definitely feel great!
And she was sad that she had to wait to show true affection to her Mama, to wait for a hug from her, until they finally were home.
Therefore, Alora snuggled herself instantly into the heartwarming hug from her Mama upon arrival, a content smile spread across her face.
"I love you too! It's great to be home again! I missed you!"
She let her mother inspect her, but she would see no fault there. Alora had survived the nasty reporters and managed to come home - that was all she needed to perk up again.
Snow started to settle on her hair and face, making her shiver a bit. Quickly, she followed her mother towards the cottage. Alora was glad that the snow had decided not to stay on the ground as it made it for her way easier to walk without -
Yeah, no, she still tripped. Over a stone. A real tiny one.
At least her Mama had been right beside her and Alora managed to hold onto her arm, avoiding face-planting onto the ground.
At the comment about their Aunt, Alora grinned because she could imagine rather easily what would happen if she even dared to approach Taraji now. "Alright, will do! I'll be in my room!"
She immediately got the washing part done, then decided to first settle down in her own room, getting rid of her coat and scarf there for now.
Freed from them, she glanced around her room, looking if anything was out of place, then let herself fall onto her bed with a sight, pressing a fluffy pillow against her face.
Yeah, that smelled and felt like home. Finally!
Lying in the bed, cuddling with the pillow, only now Alora realised how exhausting the whole procedure from Hogwarts to their home had been for her. And she was glad just to rest a bit in her own bedroom for now.
Post by Kamari Sagemore on Nov 7, 2023 22:57:03 GMT 10
It was normal by this point, really. The endless barrage of questions that felt more like rapid fire than questions - one was asked and then another. Back-to-back as if they'd have time to answer even if they wanted to.
Kamari was focused ahead of her, giving her sister's hand a light, reassuring squeeze.
Just keep walking. Head held high. Shoulders back. Mama was just ahead.
Has she been studying hard? She wanted to answer that one but refrained. Was she close with the Twiggs family?
No, not really but they were nice. Still, the reporters were met with silence.
The two of them made it through the crowd with their Mama, her hands on shoulders as she rested between the two of them.
Flashes. Yelling. She wanted to reach up and take Mama's hand, to hold it rather than be steered through the crowd.
How long would it be before she had to walk next to Mama without her hand steering her? She was quickly approaching the age of being strong enough to walk on her own.
Next year? The one after? She didn't know.
Apparating disoriented her for a moment (it usually did) but she was able to gain her footing after closing her eyes and inhaling a deep breath that smelled clean.
Of home, really, not of the London Streets and overwhelming cologne of some of the reporters.
Arms were around her! Oh! Yes! She tightened her own arms into a greeting hug, pressing her cheek into her Mama as she tightened arms around her.
She had so much to ask! So much to question! But it wasn't yet time.
"I love you! I missed you so much!" and she had. She was so glad to be home even for a little while.
She remained still as Mama inspected her but she was alright. She was getting more and more used to reporters and mindless insanity by the day.
Even if she didn't have to deal with press in school grounds she still knew they were waiting.
After a moment she followed behind her mama, glancing around at the grounds that weren't covered in snow. It was a breath of fresh air! No snow! Nothing to wade through or crunch beneath her shoes.
It was a welcome change.
Dismissed to wash up, Kamari did just that. She watched as her sister went toward her room and did the same, dropping her bag on the bed before leaving it there and returning to the kitchen to watch her work. She stood at the counter, letting it brace her back.
"Would you like help, Mama?" she asked. Surely she had it. Sandwiches were easy but it was a good opening anyway.
Kamari got to spend plenty of time alone in her dorm room - why would she want to be alone here, at home?
Irene glanced at her eldest who offered to help make something as simple as sandwiches, squinting playfully to show her suspicion.
'Sure.' She nodded. 'Would you go pick some lettuce from the garden? Give them a good wash, then tell Mama what's on your mind.'
She didn't even blink as the sound of something being thrown came from behind the office's closed door. A mug, if she'd hazard a guess. Nothing a quick spell can't fix. She gave Kamari and amused look, though certainly did not envy Taraji's task of tackling those owls.
The letters, not the poor innocent creatures themselves. No doubt they'd all tucked their feathers and fled to the Sagemore Owlery by now.
While she sliced fresh bread (left to cool while she'd gone to retrieve the girls), Irene eyed Ringwald making his way into the room. He'd finally decided that the return of his favourite Sagemores was worth leaving the comfort of his favourite windowsill, and used this as a cover to sniff around for any food scrap.
'Cheeky rascal,' Irene muttered at the beloved cat, shaking her head. 'Kamari, lettuce.'
Post by Kamari Sagemore on Nov 8, 2023 0:20:11 GMT 10
What was that look? Kamari offered a sheepish grin at the squint her Mama offered her.
But lettuce. Washing. Then talking. She could manage that, for sure. But what was on her mind? Well that was much more difficult to tackle than lettuce.
A crash sounded from the office and Kamari arched a brow, turning her attention toward the closed door. Oh, Mama wasn't exaggerating when she said that Aunt Taraji was frustrated, was she?
Ringwald made a grand appearance and Kamari, distracted for a moment, greeted him with half a squeal. But... Lettuce.
Right, right!
With a wave she slipped out the door to make her way to the garden and retrieve the afore mentioned lettuce.
Wandering around the garden was easy. She knew what she was looking for and, moving quickly, she stopped, stooped, and searched for the best head of lettuce that she could see.
It wasn't hard to find and, plucking it, she carried it close to herself and made her way back into the kitchen to wash and hand over the item.
Irene accepted the lettuce, while leaning to give Kamari a kiss to her temple -- a habit whenever her daughters were finally home; she'd missed them.
Setting to work, she prepared a whole plate of sandwiches. Ringwald had patrolled the kitchen parameter and deduced that there were no crumbs for him, so he wished targets -- and sat on Kamari's feet to meow at her in demand for attention. He'll accepted scratches behind the ear or belly rubs. Dealer's choice.
Irene set aside some sandwiches on its own plate, twice. She whistled, and the office door shortly opened. Aunt Taraji emerged looking rather frazzled, still focused on some supply records, as she wandered into the kitchen. She kissed Kamari's forehead, retrieved a plate, then returned to the office.
Irene sighed. 'She's been dealing with this all morning.' She shook her head. 'There's nothing worst than a supply issue this time of year. Something's definitely going on. We may have deal with it personally.'
That meant a trip, and one of the more boring ones.
She indicated for Kamari to grab a slice, while leaning on her elbows to admire her daughter. She was growing up, which was both lovely and sad to see. She also suspected there was something on her mind, and awaited to hear about it.
'Unless it's something for our ears only, please call your sister to eat,' Irene said, always making sure her hard-working family members ate well and rested when they needed to. 'Have her send this plate to Papa; he must be hungry too.'
Post by Kamari Sagemore on Nov 8, 2023 5:37:21 GMT 10
She'd missed her mama so much. The kiss to the forehead was grounding and nice, relaxing in a way that she'd not even realized.
Ringwald at her feet had her stooping down to scratch behind his ears, offer him all the attention he craved with a gush of happiness on her part.
"I missed you, too, you beautiful boy!" she told him, hands working behind his lovely ears before she stood. Oh, she'd pick him up if she could! But she wouldn't, not yet.
Two whistles and Kamari was allowed the quick glimpse of her aunt who gave her a quick kiss, grabbed a plate, and retreated back to the office. Kamari waved at her as she left with a quick See you in a little while! to her retreating back.
Picking up one of the sandwiches she took a bite before she was told to call her sister.
"It really isn't that important... just boys." she wrinkled her nose at the word before stuffing more sandwich into her mouth. There was enough of that! She moved quickly, calling for Alora and taking the plate for both her and Papa.
"Alora, do you want to go share lunch with Papa?" she called, knocking once on her door. She'd wait for an answer, of course. She wanted to see him, too, but figured that Alora would love some time with him herself before she had to share.
Post by Alora Sagemore on Nov 8, 2023 15:02:17 GMT 10
After a whilw, Alora had decided she had enough rest (she actually had just been bored simply lying around) and started playing with a yo-yo. She stopped as soon as she heard her sister calling her name, throwing into onto her bed for later, and the door was ripped open in front of Kamari a mere seconds after she knocked, a beaming Alora appearing.
“I do! Thank you!”
Alora carefully took the plates and looked at the sandwiches with a smile, noticing now how hungry she was. “They look delicious!”
As quickly as for her possible without tripping, she made her way to the workshop, where her Papa was supposed to be. She swiftly entered, inhaling the scent and surroundings with a smile. Yeah, the workshop was definitely one of her favourite places in the cottage!
Alora looked around, trying to decipher if anything new jumped in her eyes, then spotted her father working on… what was he actually doing?
She placed the two plates on a table nearby and they were immediately forgotten as Alora approached him, peering around him to see what was lying in front of him, having decided against hugging him suddenly as not to disrupt him with his work, and potentially cause any unintended consequences.
“Papa! I'm back! What are you working on?”
Last Edit: Nov 9, 2023 17:57:21 GMT 10 by Alora Sagemore
'Oh. Okay?' Irene was taken aback but Kamari's words then swift exit. Amused, she resorted to muttering to Ringwald as Kamari went in search of her sister. 'I mean, I feel like boys are a fairly important topic but don't mind me.'
Ringwald meowed in response, as if he understood the mysterious of the universe.
--
Zareb didn't react in the slightest to his daughter's arrival, nor the sound of the plates being put on a mostly-empty counter nearby. He was bent forward, peering closely at the tiny silver cogs of a toy train engine -- made only slightly easier by the golden jeweler's loupe self-stuck to his right eye.
'A replica of the Hogwarts Express,' he answered, never failing to impress with his acute awareness of his surroundings without even budging from his work. 'Or it will be, once I paint it and get this engine sorted.'
He poked a cog with his wand, and it promptly spat smoke in his face. Zareb didn't even flinch, just closed his eyes and accepted his fate. This was perfectly normal for a toymaker; he was far used to it by now. Still, it was quite rude of it.
Leaning back, the loupe dropped into his awaiting hand. He set it aside, then swerved in his chair to offer Alora a warm smile.
'Sustenance, please.' He held out his hand for a plate of sandwiches. 'Been a long day, and it's only morning. But hello, beautiful daughter. How was the trip back? No drama, I trust?'
Post by Alora Sagemore on Nov 9, 2023 19:15:59 GMT 10
Alora watched the movements of her Papa closely, totally absorbed in his work, and wondered if he even had heard her.
A second later he answered her, not even batting an eye in her direction. Alora grinned. Of course he had, why had she ever considered otherwise?
She really needed to learn how he did that! She herself always did forget her surroundings while crafting.
This was not the only thing she wanted to learn from her Papa. He was her role model and she aspired to be a fabulous toymaker such as him!
But she knew she still had a long way to go. Especially regarding transformation magic...
Alora peered with him at the train and recoiled from the sudden smoke, though grinned impressed as her father didn't even flinched.
"I love it already! I'm excited to see, when it's finished!"
Her fingers itched now to craft something as well.
"Here!" Alora turned around and retrieved a plate for him with a smile, then freed another stool by his side from a carton full of wooden materials.
She giggled at his 'beautiful daughter' comment and climbed onto the chair, her feet dangling in the air.
While she turned to grab her own plate, she gave a shrug.
"The usual. But we managed", she said bravely, then frowned and continued with a lower voice. "Though I still don't like it."
Yes, they were quite used to reporters by now, but for Alora it still was a scary and exhausting experience. Though it was worth it, if it meant to spend time with her family afterwards.
As she pushed the thoughts of the dumb reporters away, she looked up and gave her Papa a bright smile.
"I'm glad, I'm home! So, what are the plans for today? When can I let my giftwrapping skills shine?"
She grinned and took a bite from her sandwich, closing her eyes for a second as she ate it with relish. Yes, Mama's sandwiches were the best!
'That's all right; I don't like it either.' Zareb took a bite of his sandwich, hoping Alora wouldn't tell her aunt that he was talking with his mouth full. He was hungry! 'They're a nosy lot, that's for sure. I know we're beautiful and talented people, but we're not shop displays.'
He added a bit of lightness to his tone, but his gaze was clearly annoyed. Being used to it didn't make it any easier or less frustrating, especially as parent with young children to protect.
'Ah, my dear Alora, you know I can't answer that.' Zareb gave her a knowing wink.
That was a bit of an unspoken thing at the Sagemore cottage, unlike when they were off elsewhere; never, during a slow moment, ask about the plans. Doing so almost always tempted fate. The last time this happened was over the summer. Irene was bored and asked if anyone had plans... not five minutes later, an enchanted fishbowl's spell backfired and flooded the workshed.
No one was even in there at the time, though Kamari still swore she'd seen Ringwald fleeing the scene.
'But I suspect it'll be a busy day,' he allowed.
Zareb paused, waiting for something to go off -- giving Alora a playful look as he did so, encouraging her to play along with him.
One of the benefits (in their opinion) in being toymakers is that no one ever really outgrew that young child stage of imagine play. Sagemores were a playful lot, though it had taken Zareb a long time to remember that. Irene was a blessing to them all.
'Hmm, what do you think of this?' Zareb pointed high above Alora's head, to a puppet-style dragon toy.
It was pale -- meaning it didn't have the detail layer yet; basically just a base model waiting to be transformed into a toy. It flew on its own, as if someone was moving the strings.
'I'm not sure about what breed to make it yet,' he said, finishing his sandwich while watching it flutter its huge wingspan. 'Dragons being in the news caused us to sell out of the others, so we're making something new. But there's a lot of choices. Figured we'd pick a colour range first; thoughts?'
Post by Alora Sagemore on Nov 9, 2023 21:48:33 GMT 10
Alora was glad her Papa and her were on the same wavelength regarding the nosy reporters. She also greatly appreciated the lightness her Papa added to the subject, it even brought a grin to her face.
"Maybe we should craft doppelganger of us as decoys! Then they can bother them and not us. We could even make them as walking shop displays!" She spun her thought further with a laugh, half jokingly as she would have loved if it was true. That would be awesome!
She continued eating her sandwich, grinning. After her question, she quickly gazed around the workshop, waiting together with her Papa for something to go off - but for now, everything remained calm.
"My, my, a busy day, you say!" Alora played along with a theatrical voice, then chuckled. "I sure hope so!"
Alora tilted her head to see what her Papa was pointing at, and squinted to get a better view at it. As her eyes were able to follow the movements of the prototype, flying around high above their heads, her eyes went wide and glistened in excitement.
"Awesome!" A bright smile appeared on her lips.
Her eyes were glued onto the dragon toy while she listened to her Papa.
"I saw one at school! Like I told you in my letter. But it was huge and amazing! Too bad it seemed hurt. And it was a strange breed."
What colour had the dragon actually been? Alora tried to remember, but gave up as no one would then recognise the breed anyway, that would be bad. She then came up with another solution regarding the colour range.
"How about the colours of the four Hogwarts Houses? So, red, blue, yellow and green?"
Alora's gaze returned to her father's face.
"I mean, there are surely known breeds with mainly one of the colours, right? And kids love their house colours!"
Post by Kamari Sagemore on Nov 9, 2023 22:32:57 GMT 10
Kamari watched as Alora took the plates and darted off with a loving smile on her face. Her sister just never stopped amazing her, if she were honest. It was so interesting to watch her grow and change.
It truly was something to be admired.
Maybe that was how Mama felt. Or Papa. Or both of them.
Once the plates were taken and Alora was on her way, Kamari turned back to the kitchen, making her way back without a word.
Once inside she leaned against the counter and glanced down at Ringwald.
"Sometimes I swear he knows everything." she said with a laugh, glancing back up at Mama.
'Doppelgangers? An interesting idea,' Zareb nodded, then thought on it. 'Though I'm not sure they would capture our wonderful likeness. We Sagemores are rather unique; one of a kind, wouldn't you say?'
He always appreciated their ideas and imagination, though. It was nice to spend some time with his youngest over the holidays, though he hoped to see Kamari soon too. These times part were necessary for his daughters' education, but he didn't like it one bit.
'It would be tricky to apply four different breeds; we were trying to settle on only one new variation,' Zareb explained, his tone gentle as to not discourage her. 'And this is a child bedroom decoration, intended for those of younger age range.'
Getting ideas shot down because of practicality or target demographic was always going to happen. For every ten ideas they had, they'd be lucky if one made it to the planning stage. It happened less for the adults who knew this business inside and out by now, but it still happened. It was something the kids were still learning; when they were younger, it did feel like their ideas just weren't good enough.
But they learned by growing up in this life -- and it helped that, now and again, their Papa's ideas got shot down in flames by Aunt Taraji the moment they left his lips. Even he was known for a sulk or two at that.
But they'd also learned there were rare exceptions; if an idea got shot down, it might get a second chance if you can prove it'll work. Unfortunately, the young heirs didn't quite have the skills or experience for that yet.
Only Alora had ever managed it, at the tender age of five, when she'd envisioned a blanket that changed its pattern and colour everyday. They'd said it wouldn't work, because it would be too easily confused with other blankets or get lost. And a bunch of other reasons. So began her month-long mission to swap out their blankets, pillow cases, and bath towels as often as she could.
With Kamari, her co-conspirator, of course. Both girls made a point of saying how lovely it was that a blue towel with fish was now red with lizards. It drove Zareb and Tarji crazy, especially as it felt like nothing was ever given the chance to get used or not knowing what was clean -- but Irene was won over, and they settled on the idea of not using whole blankets but something small and most children would likely only have one of.
The idea evolved from the concept, but Alora had won.
In the case of the dragons though, this didn't seem like a battle worth fighting for.
--
Back at the cottage, the office door swung open -- giving Irene and Kamari quite the fright, as Aunt Taraji stormed out. Ringwald didn't even paw his paw-licking, as if he knew it was about to happen. It seemed impressive, but was more likely that he simply wasn't paying enough attention to care.
'Pack up. You're going to Hong Kong,' Taraji announced, handing off a file packet to Irene. 'Go see this supplier and sort things out. We are behind production, and I'm going to invent some new hexes if they don't get back to us soon.'
Without questioning or hesitation, Irene accepted the packet and nodded. She waved her wand, putting the food away and cleaning the kitchen.
'Kamari, go collect the others and meet me by the creek.' She gave her daughter a kiss to the temple, then headed off to get their travel pack (containing their tent) from where it was kept by the fireplace; always ready to go at a moment's notice.
Ringwald followed after her; not one to be left out of such adventures.
Post by Alora Sagemore on Nov 10, 2023 22:09:51 GMT 10
"True, we definitely are!" Alora laughed, though still liked her idea. It would make things a lot easier!
Although, it was rather difficult to copy such brilliant people - and after a short thought, she wouldn't really liked to be copied. That would mean they weren't unique anymore, right? And she just loved that they were!
Alora's corner of her mouth drooped a bit.
"Aww, I understand..."
Apparently, she made the mistake to not think enough ahead. Next time, she would first consider the target customer range before proposing a colour.
But her failure didn't discourage her. She knew making mistakes was a necessary step to improve oneself. She already had learned that while growing up as the daughter of toymakers.
If she would gave up after every failure, no product would ever get completed. And she would never master the art of Transformation magic, a topic that was filled with mistakes to the brim.
Also, mistakes were not bad per se. Sometimes, another idea would sprout out of it.
Alora pondered over it a bit, then smirked with mischief as she remembered the colour changing blanket.
"We can't make the toy colour changing, can't we?" She joked with a bright grin, then continued with a more serious tone.
"Hm, how about green then? Like a Common Welsh Green? They don't look as scary as a Horntail, for example. I think younger children would appreciate that."
Or did they already have this breed of dragon in stock? Alora thought hard which ones they usually sold.
Regardless, green was a nice colour. It was somehow soothing. Perhaps because it reminded her of plants.
Plants were great! You could use them for a lot of staff: eating, crafting, potions...
Alora's eyes went wide as she remembered something important.
"Papa, I actually managed to successfully brew a potion in class! Though I don't know how..." Alora shrugged with a bashful grin.
She told this her father not to boast, as she clearly still needed to improve, but to share with him the excitement of having achieved at least a tiny step in her journey.
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