Daughter of the Crow

Chapter 11

December 2006

Kiara waved goodbye to her roommates as she made her way through the crowd towards the familiar form of her mother. She weaved through the station, dodging past running children and harassed parents, her trunk in tow. Her mother was sitting on a bench a little ways off from the main entrance. She was surveying the platform her legs tucked underneath her and her back stick straight. Some things never changed and Hope's upbringing never quite left her. Kiara and her mother shared the same dark hair and brown eyes that ran in their genes. Hope was still a bit taller, with a few more streaks of gray than Kiara remembered but still the same. Kiara knew the moment her mother spotted her, Hope's posture relaxed by a barely perceptible degree, and a wide smile grew on her face. Hope gracefully stood up from the bench before rushing over to Kiara. Before Kiara knew it her mother had reached her and smothered her into a suffocating hug.

"Kiara, you've grown so much. You're almost as tall as me," Hope said, finally releasing her. She pulled just far enough away to judge at Kiara's slightly rumpled state.

"Mama, you say that every time I come home. I haven't grown that much," Kiara smirked, "maybe you're just shrinking."

"Oh, you... Why do I even bother? I should just leave you at school the whole year, you'll miss me then, and all my smothering," she added as an afterthought. Hope smoothed out Kiara's sweater, which had gotten somewhat disheveled by Quinn's goodbye hug and Hope's welcome.

"I did miss you, Mama." Kiara squeezed one of Hope's hands trying to impart her feelings through the touch. "Let's go home."

Hope mischievously tilted her head at Kiara knowing the real reason, "Really? I didn't know you loved the apartment that much. I guess you miss sleeping in your own room. Those friends of yours can get rowdy."

Kiara sighed, caught, "I want to see my siblings."

One of the highlights of the break for Kiara, other than seeing her mom, was hanging out with her siblings for a week. That had been the agreement Hope, Kiara and her cabin made. Half of each break was with her mom and the other with her siblings. Kiara rocked back and forth on her heels, she could not wait to see them. Hope shook her head at Kiara's excitement and grabbed her arm pulling them over to the portkey station.

– o – ☀️ – o –

The portkey line was not extremely long but it was not short. This was one of the few times Kiara wished they lived in London or at least somewhere close enough to apparate to. There were at least five groups maybe six that Kiara could count. Around the two-minute mark, Kiara set down her trunk, her hand aching. Three more groups passed in the time it took Kiara's feet to start throbbing. She needed better shoes. Hope snickered at Kiara's exhausted face.

"Don't be mean Mama, I've been awake since six," Kiara huffed.

"Well, you should try and stay awake." Hope cast a tempus, "It's only ten at home. You have at around eleven hours until sundown."

A loud groan was Kiara's only answer.

Two groups moved past the booth. One more to go. The only problem was the father and son in front of them seemed to have misplaced one of their passports. They rummaged through their belongings as the people behind Hope noticed the problem. Grumbles emerged from the waiting wixen a few of them sending harsh glares at the worker in the booth. Hope stepped up to the frantic father and placed her hand on his arm. The man jolted almost bumping into Hope who had swiftly moved. He stuttered out apologies reaching out as if to help her before pulling them sharply back.

"It's fine. No harm done." Hope gestured to herself before returning to the reason she had got his attention in the first place. "I'm sorry if this sounds out of the blue but are you perchance a muggle?"