-//-
(No Woman, No Cry//Bob Marley)
2nd of January, Wednesday, 1974
"Wake up, occhioni," Marco said quietly, shaking his daughter slightly. Andrea let out a grunt but didn't stir any more than that.
Marco rolled his eyes and headed out into the hallway. "Your turn," he called down from the bannister to the first floor. Aisha set the basket of laundered clothes on the kitchen island and went into the cupboard.
She headed into the grand entrance and climbed the wide staircase, meeting Marco on the first-floor landing. "Did you even try?" she chuckled when she reached her grinning husband. He just smiled sweetly and kissed her cheek.
"Of course, I did. And now it's your turn," he winked. Aisha sighed. "I swear, I'm too old for this." "You don't look a day over 20, mi amore," he smirked at her.
She rolled her eyes as he left, heading down the long hallway and turning the corner at the end, going to get ready for their departure to Godric's Hollow.
Aisha went to her daughter's bedroom door. The curtains were still drawn, and the only light Marco had turned on was her desk lamp. "Yeah, you really strained yourself," she muttered to herself, knowing her husband had done minimal effort to wake their zombie daughter. Opening the door wider, she flicked the light switch and brought the wooden stirrer up to the frying pan she had brought up with her and started banging it loudly.
Andrea jumped up in fright and fell to the floor beside her bed, her legs tangled in one of her blankets as she smacked her head into her nightstand.
"MAMA! CHE CAVOLO?! Sei pazza?!" she screamed at her, plugging her ears with her fingers. Aisha stopped the banging and grinned at her daughter. Her Italian always got stronger after they had been in Italy for a visit. Marco's too.
"Ah bene, you're up. Fai i bagagli and get ready. We're expected at the Potter's in an hour," she smiled, walking over to her window. She opened the curtains only to see it was still dark out. "Il sole non è ancora sorto! Why do I have to be?" Andrea complained when she saw the dark outside, falling onto her bed again.
"Come on, hurry up. Mia wrote to me and said she'd have pancakes ready for us when we got there. Chop, chop!" she called out, walking back downstairs. Andrea groaned loudly in protest but got off her bed, shuffling to her en-suite bathroom.
"Papi is my favourite parent!" she yelled after her mother. "Gian is my favourite child!" Aisha yelled back immediately. Andrea gaped at her door, highly offended her mother had been so quick to name one of her siblings.
Their new house in England was much bigger than the townhouse in New York had been. Technically, the house was a manor, but they preferred to call it a mansion. Less Medieval.
In Andrea's en-suite she had a large built-in shower in the far corner, the dark grey tiles along the wall complimenting the misty glass wall to the shower beautifully.
Andrea stopped in front of her sink basin and looked in the large mirror above it, letting out a shocked chuckle when she saw her reflection. Her wild curls looked like a crow's nest after her good night's sleep. Running her hand over her hair to try and flatten it, she reached in and turned the shower spray on to let the water heat up.
Finishing her shower, Andrea headed back into her bedroom wrapped in a towel. She opened her closet doors in search of clothes to wear for her long train journey. It was more like an extra room than a closet. Walk-in closet, her mother had called it. Packing lightly for the move to England, Andrea hadn't even filled half the space yet. She'd have to see to that over the summer. It had been cold through their Christmas in Atrani, but the temperatures in England had been brutal compared to Italy, so she needed to layer up. They were heading up to the Scottish Highlands later today, so the temperature was surely only going to drop.
Quickly tying her hair up, she threw on a white knitted sweater, a pair of blue, mom-jeans and her wool coat. She had packed most of her things for school the night before, but she did a final sweep, packing up some of the new items she had received as Christmas gifts.
She and Sirius had quickly bonded over Muggle music the last term, even if they have very different tastes.
She had mentioned that her parents had a record player at home, so, he had gotten her a few records for Christmas, saying; Your taste is questionable, but I figured you'd send back the Bowie record I wanted to give you
Siri xx
Grabbing the vinyl Bob Marley and The Temptations records off her desk, she turned off her bedroom light and left her room to join her dad downstairs. Even if she hadn't been able to see any of her friends over the Christmas break, they had all exchanged gifts and Christmas cards, sending her presents all the way to Italy.
Sirius had gotten her the records, in return, she had gotten him one of the rare Bowie albums that he did not yet own and a record of an American group he hadn't heard of yet, Aerosmith.
Remus had gotten her a couple of Muggle novels, so she wouldn't have to keep stealing Lily and Mary's books, and Andrea had gotten her sister to send over some American chocolate. Enough to last a normal person for at least a year, and probably Remus for about two or three weeks. How he wasn't a fat cow yet was anyone's guess.
For Peter, she had gotten him a special book on rare plants and how to tend to them, along with a tiny potted plant she had no idea what was, but by Peter's response, it seemed successful.
But she was just as excited about the gift he had gotten her, her very own Muggle camera. Peter carried his polaroid camera with him in his bag most days and Andrea loved snapping pictures with it so much Peter had gotten her, her very own camera. This Muggle camera wasn't a polaroid one though, he had explained that to her on the card. He would teach her how to use it when they got back to Hogwarts. And she couldn't wait.
For James, she had gotten him a notebook specific to writing Quidditch plays, the pitch drawn in and everything. She was getting tired of having to decipher his play ideas scribbled on top of torn newspapers, pages from books in the library or on her hands and arms on rare occasions. To go with it, she had gotten him a book on wizard map making, which all five of them would benefit from in the coming years as they worked on their map.
She was proud of her personal gifts to each of the boys and very happy with how well they had gotten to know her in this short time. James, of course, knew her already, which was probably the reason behind him getting her the absolute perfect gift.
When she opened it and saw it was a Quidditch book, focusing on Seekers all across Britain, she shrieked so loudly Aisha had Silencio'ed her for about ten minutes, while all the relatives laughed their heads off.
Through the pages, the writers asked Seekers about their favourite moves, matches and good workout routines. Since she had opened it on Christmas Day, Andrea had read it every night before going to bed. Stuffing said book into her backpack to bring onto the train compartment with her, Andrea ran down the stairs.
The mansion they had moved into had three floors, the grand staircase going up to the first floor and a more mundane staircase leading up to the second floor.
In the grand entrance, there were seven doors that led you around the ground floor, plus an archway that led to the kitchen. The first door was the front door, leading out onto the front steps that went down to the long, gravel driveway.
To the left from the front door was the den. Here stood three plush couches and giant sitting pillows filling the floor. There was a built-in cupboard that they had filled with all their card and board games, muggle, and wizard games alike.
When Aisha was growing up in New York, her parents had always brought as much Muggle culture as possible into their home. And she had done the same with her own kids, showing them that there is more than one way to live out in the world. That was why on the bottom shelf of the cupboard there was nothing but film DVDs that could be played on the TV placed in front of the sitting area.
The kitchen was large, bright, and lively, the pastel blue making the originally white kitchen brighten much more than it had before the Russo's had taken over the house. And the blue perfectly complemented the white stone countertops and light wooden cupboards beautifully.
Heading for the kitchen, Andrea saw her trunk standing lid open by the bottom of the stairs. She smiled happily to herself to see that her father had already shrunk down the record player they had gotten her for Christmas and packed it for her. She slipped her two new records into the trunk, along with an extra jumper she had found in her cupboard.
"Papi?!" she called out, closing her luggage. "Cucina!" he yelled back, his deep voice echoing along the hardwood floored entryway. Turning the corner from the stairs Andrea joined her father in the kitchen, letting him use a spell to dry her hair and then he pulled it back into a nice, tidy, and loose braid.
He'd always been better at braiding than Aisha. Aisha pulled too much.
With all the Russo's ready, they joined hands by Andrea's trunk and with a twist, Apparated to Godric's Hollow.
As soon as her feet sunk into the soft snow in the Potter Cottage driveway, she pulled her woollen hat further down to cover her ears and stuffed her mittened hands into her coat pockets. English winters were as brutal as New York ones. Shivering slightly, Aisha and Andrea pulled her trunk with them, setting it by the potted plants by the front door and waited behind Marco as he knocked on the door.
The frost had killed whatever had been growing in the pots on either side of the front door before winter had come, but Andrea admired the sparkling of the snow crystals covering her surroundings. The last time she had been here it had been summertime, but Potter Cottage was beautiful during any season. The sun was starting to light up the sky above them and the first orange glow was sparkling against the snow settled on the ground and on the slanted roof of the house.
Over the front door was a wooden trellis that was filled with twining, green ivy that had survived the snow. Either the plant was incredibly strong, or Mia had enchanted it to withstand the freezing temperatures.
The front door opened, and all three Russo's felt a flood of heat hit them in the face as a spectacled Fleamont opened the door. "Goodness. You'll freeze to death. In, in, in." The entryway was small and only big enough for two people really, two doors on either side. Fleamont stood to the side and opened the door on the left, letting more warm air hit them.
"Head in here. Mia's making breakfast and the fire's lit." Andrea and Aisha rushed in and ended up in the sitting room slash dining room, which was also openly connected to the kitchen.
Andrea loved Potter Cottage. It was cosy and beautiful, and she always felt at home in their comfortable house.
"Aisha is that you?!" they heard a voice call from deeper inside the house. Unwrapping herself from her winter coat and scarf, Aisha stood in front of the lit fire. "Yes, it's me, Mia! Give me a sec, I just need to defrost!" she called. On the furthest wall, the wall opened up into the kitchen, where Mia Potter appeared in a red apron.
"Andrea! Lovely to see you, dear," she greeted. Andrea took off her mittens and went to hug Euphemia. As Andrea's icy cheek touched Mia's, she gasped slightly, chuckling when Andrea buried her face in her warm hair and shoulder. Marco and Fleamont appeared from the door as well, having dragged Andrea's trunk inside.
As Aisha and Mia caught up, Fleamont headed to the kitchen and started bringing everything out to the dining table, Andrea helping him. Just as the last juice jug was brought to the table, a yawning, messy-haired James came in the door, dressed in a Gryffindor hoodie and black jeans.
"Puffo!" Andrea cheered, setting down the plate with the bacon she had been carrying.
"Puffetta!" James called back, accepting Andrea's hug. Potters and Russos reunited, they settled down for a lovely breakfast together before they had to head to King's Cross for the Hogwarts Express later on.
As they all finished up James and Andrea shared a look. Their parents couldn't avoid the elephant any longer now. Andrea gave James a nod and he turned to the seniors with a judging look.
"Now, we've gone four months without any answers, so now's as good a time as any. Why didn't you tell me the Russo's were moving to England this summer?" "And why wouldn't you let me see the Potters when we first got here?" Marco, Monty, Mia, and Aisha all looked at each other as if they were having a silent argument.
It seemed Mia had lost because she folded her hands on the table and looked at their children. "Andrea, the reason your parents and you moved here this August was because they accepted a job offer by the Head of the Auror Department here at the Ministry of Magic in England. James, we didn't tell you because said Head of Auror's told us not to. Not to draw any attention to the move, not to write anything in letters, and not to involve either of you."
"Why?" they chorused together. Mia sighed and looked to Aisha for help. Aisha cleared her throat and grabbed Marco's hand under the table, squeezing it for comfort.
"Have either of you been reading the newspaper lately? Hearing any chatter about anything going on?" she started, trying to ease into it. Andrea turned to James with a puzzled expression, only to see him mulling it over. He met Andrea's eye. "Well, there's that stuff Sirius told us about."
Fleamont straightened in his seat. "What did Sirius tell you?" he asked, trying not to sound as panicked as he felt. James shrugged. "There was something in the paper about this wizard calling himself the 'Dark Lord'. Apparently, he likes dark magic. Sirius had overheard his parents boasting about someone finally wanting to fix the tragic state of the wizarding world. Cleanse it, they had said," James shuddered.
Mia turned to Monty with a sad expression. "Sirius shouldn't have to listen to that. It's wrong of them to force such ideals onto their children," Mia growled. Fleamont reached out and rested his hand on top of his wife's.
"Either way," he went on, "this Dark Lord has started stirring up more trouble than we usually see, and the Aurors needed extra help. England is where there's been most activity, so they needed reinforcements here." "So, we got offered the job and figured we should help out where we could. Alastor Moody, the Head Auror, is a bit paranoid and he didn't want us spreading the word and making a big fuss about it. Because then it looks like the Ministry's recruiting people."
"Recruiting for what?" Andrea questioned her dad, "you're just working." "I know but they might not see it that way. People moving over here from across the world? It may look like the Ministry's calling in reinforcements and getting ready to fight them," Aisha explained. Mia let out a strangled noise and looked between all the parents warily.
"I think that's quite enough for today. James, go grab your stuff and we'll get ready to leave."
And with that, she ended the conversation. Heading upstairs with James, Andrea and he whispered about their own added theories, but they were both very pleased they had at least gotten some form of an explanation from them now.
Wrapping themselves in their outdoor clothes, both families Apparated to King's Cross station, on the wizard side of the magical border.
Hugging goodbye, Andrea winced away from Fleamont as James whistled loudly right in her ear. Several people turned at the loud sound and Euphemia scolded her son but Andrea only grinned. Because she spotted the boys James had whistled for. Releasing Fleamont she elbowed James and cut in front of him, running full speed towards Remus and Peter.
Bracing themselves, they both caught her as she flung one arm around each of them. "Andrea! We missed you," Peter squeaked against her shoulder.
"OY! What am I, a stray dog?" James pouted behind Andrea. She released the two Gryffindors and turned to James with a defiant expression. "Nah. A dog's cuter." James' hand went out to grab her, but she quickly ducked out of the way and headed towards her parents again to give a final goodbye.
She stopped in her tracks as she spotted the two boys standing in front of her parents. A tall, round-bellied man and a splinter-thin, tall woman stood beside them, all four dressed completely in black.
Aisha's eyes shifted to her daughter, and she tilted her head, telling her to come over. Andrea grinned when she stopped in front of Sirius, but he merely offered her a small smile back. Reading his body language and the looks from his parents she decided not to hug him quite yet. Instead, she turned polite.
"Hello, Sirius. Good break?" Sirius smiled back; grateful she had read the situation.
"Ah, yes, it was most horrendous." As Sirius finished, a pained expression took over his face as he tried to keep his smile in place, and Andrea looked down to see the tall, fat man had landed his cane on top of Sirius' foot, pressing down on his toes.
Trying to stop this all from escalating any more Andrea looked up at the man and woman. "Andrea Russo, nice to meet you, Mr and Mrs Black." Orion Black's eyes went slightly wider, and he turned to Marco Russo.
"Of the Italian Russo, perhaps?" he asked him, ignoring Andrea's polite gesture completely. Marco nodded, his face turning tight. He knew exactly who these people were, and from what the Potters had told him about the Blacks and poor Sirius' home life, he wasn't the least bit interested in 'chit-chatting' with this man.
Marco turned to Andrea and Sirius with a gentler expression. "You best get on board now. The train will leave any minute," he said, tapping his wristwatch with a smile. Andrea and James hugged their parents goodbye one last time and climbed on board.
Walburga and Orion Black both turned to Regulus Black to lecture him one last time before letting him, board. Andrea sent the boy a sad look before following James further down the train. As they found Remus and Peter's compartment James slipped inside. Andrea turned to glance down the corridor to see Sirius and Remus coming on board. Sirius was positively beaming while Regulus looked like a gloomy puppy.
"What are you so pleased about?" Andrea asked Sirius as he reached her. "Check it out! Fleamont gave me his old Beater's bat. Said he was going to pass it on to James but since he's a Chaser, he wanted me to have it. It has his initials too. Look!" Andrea leaned in and saw, just above the leather wrap of the handle, three sets of letters carved into the wood.
H.P, F.P and S.B.
"Who's H.P?" she questioned.
"Henry Potter. That was Fleamont's Dad, James' grandfather." Andrea nodded, remembering Fleamont telling stories about his father. She had never had the pleasure of meeting him because his parents had died a few years before she was born, but from what she had heard, they seemed like amazing people. Just like their son.
Sirius passed her and headed into the compartment to show off his new gift to the other boys and Andrea turned to Regulus with a bright smile. "Merry Christmas, Reggie," she said, pulling him into a tight hug.
"What are you doing?" he mumbled over her shoulder, his arms stiff at his sides. "Hugging you," she giggled. When Reggie still didn't move, she squeezed him tighter. "I'm not gonna let go until you hug me back. And I think your friends will make fun of you if they see me hanging around your neck like a monkey for the rest of the school year," she laughed. Regulus chuckled and brought his arms up and hugged her back lightly.
"Don't have any friends to mock me, so no risk of that happening," he said, chuckling half-heartedly. Andrea hugged him tighter before releasing him.
"You wanna sit with us? There's plenty of room," she offered. Regulus glanced around her to see Sirius and James messing around through the compartment window. "I don't think so. I'll just make Sirius either annoyed or upset. I just remind him of home," he said truthfully. Andrea felt her heart tear at his words.
"I don't believe that for a second. He's your brother," she comforted, rubbing his arm gently. Regulus moved from her touch and kept walking. He nodded towards the compartment. "No. Those are his brothers. And I know that's what he thinks too," he said, walking away.
"How could you know that?" she asked, wanting to follow him but not wanting to push it. Regulus stopped walking and Andrea couldn't tell what he was feeling because his back was turned to her.
"I know because he told me." As Regulus disappeared down the train Andrea turned to her compartment with a glare. She and Sirius were going to have a serious conversation about this.
But that would have to wait.
Now, she just wanted to reunite with her friends and hear all about their holidays.
-//-
Translations:
Mi amore - My love
Bene - Good
MAMA! CHE CAVALO?! SEI PAZZA? - MUM! WHAT THE HELL?! Are you crazy?
Fai i bagagli - Pack your bag
Il sole non è ancora sorto - The sun's not even up yet
Cucina - Kitchen
– ACEXx