─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───
"Your letters are here!" Yelled Laura, wiping her hands on her apron and plucking the envelopes from the owls beak.
Juniper dropped her notebook on the bed as her and Marie rushed out of their room and down to the kitchen. They heard the determined runs of their brother as he ran down after them and then the slow pace of their sister following behind.
They crowd around the table excitedly.
"Why do you care so much?" Ezra scoffed, looking at little Marie. "You aren't even going to Hogwarts this year."
She shrugged, looking down at her shoes.
"Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed." Corinna stated with a raised brow.
"Lay off her, Ez." Juniper spoke. "If she wants to be involved, let her be."
Laura sighed, handing the letters to each child- except ten-year-old Marie, who was now on her tiptoes as she looked at the letter that Juniper was opening. Laura sifted through the rest of the mail delivered by Frida, the family owl.
"Another two for Juni." She said, dropping two, "One for Corinna."
Ezra turned with a look to Corinna, "You have friends?"
She gritted her teach, punching him in the arm as he yelped and covered the spot she hit. She picked up the letter and then began to open her Hogwarts envelope.
"Don't hit your brother." Laura scolded, shaking her curly head.
She looked inside the envelope. Her eyes widened a substantial amount when she picked out a badge from inside.
"I'm head girl." She said with a grin. Laura smiled widely in return.
"Oh my goodness!" She squealed loudly as she pulled her eldest daughter into a bone-crushing hug. "Congrats!"
"I know someone that'll be happy with that..." Juniper said with a sly grin. Ezra then also smirked as the rest looked on blankly.
Ezra scoffed a laugh, "Come on Cori, we all know Weasley has the hots for you!"
She rolled her eyes as Juniper laughed. Marie let out an 'Oooooh!' in a mock tease.
"Like I would ever date that pig." She said with a shake of the head.
"Corinna!" Laura scolded with wide eyes. "That's no way to talk about someone."
"But it's fitting." Corinna said with a shrug, some of her blonde curls falling in front of her face. She swiped them behind her ear again. Laura set a bowl of mashed potatoes on the table. "Plus, he's dating Penny."
"-Only to make you jealous." Juniper teased. "Everyone and their mum knows he's been after you for two years."
"Three years." Ezra corrected. "Could you imagine if you actually dated him?"
"No, I couldn't." Corinna muttered with gritted teeth as she crossed her arms.
Ezra smirked, "Well I think it would go something like this... 'Oh Corinna, please I love you so! Want to help me shine my badges and sort my stamp collection?' 'Oh Percy! I would love to!' 'Come and give it to me my darling Corinna.'-"
Corinna gave him a bored expression, whereas Juniper and Marie both grinned from the other side of the table.
"-'Oh Percival! Oh, Percival please!'" He moaned, hitting his hand on the table. Corinna pushed him so quickly that he fell off his chair.
Laura looked at them sternly, "Ezra, Corinna! Quit it!"
"Why should they quit it when it's so entertaining?" Juniper wondered aloud as Ezra stood up from the floor with a grin. He bowed making Marie clap excitedly.
"Idiot." Corinna mumbled, sitting down next to him. Juniper picked up her other two envelopes after looking over her school list.
Dear June,
You won't believe the arsehole my mum has brought round this time! I'll give you a description. He's old, creepy and refers to himself as 'the love-machine'. Making it through family dinner was difficult when you want to puke.
I'm going to my dad's for a week, as I cannot stand to stay in this house for a minute longer without strangling someone. I can't WAIT to go back to Hogwarts and see you! I miss you so much and we definitely need a catch up with Hermione when we get back. Nothing beats the dorm room talk with the girls.
I've heard from Hermione! She says she's on holiday with her parents. I suspect she's been in touch with you too, unlike the boys of course. I've had nada from Ron and Harry over the past months, I'm starting to think they've died or something.
If not they better have a good excuse for not writing me back...
Love sincerely,
Tam x
She smiled before folding it up and opening the next.
Dear Juniper,
I've having an excellent time in France! The language and culture is beautiful, as is the landscape. Have you seen the daily prophet? Ron is in Egypt!
That's the only thing I know about the boys this summer, they seem to have gone incognito on us. Speaking of, have you heard from either of them? Neither me or Tam have.
Hope you are having an excellent summer with your family!
Kind regards,
Hermione Granger
She smiled sweetly at the letters. She truly did love her best friends.
Laura put down the stack of plates on the table, "Who are the letters from?"
"Tam and Hermione."
Both the girls were right. The only time she'd heard from either of them was when she sent a letter and a wrapped up box of peppermint toads for Harry's thirteenth birthday. She got a letter of thanks in return, but that was all.
"Juni, pass your Hogsmeade form." her mum said, holding out a hand. The redhead opened the Hogwarts envelope and took the slip out.
"Oh right, I forgot it's your first Hogsmeade year." spoke Ezra thoughtfully.
She took a pen and signed her signature, handing it back to her daughter.
"Thanks." Juniper said with a grin as she picked up her letters and walked up the stairs to her and Marie's room.
She dropped them onto her desk. She stopped for a second to think. Then she decided she'd write them back later on before she went to bed.
Marie ran into the doorway, "Mum said tea's ready."
Juniper followed her little sister out and back down the stairs to where Ezra was spitting peas at Corinna whenever their mother looked away.
She sat down, as did Marie.
"So, what're your friends saying?" Laura asked curiously.
Juniper picked up the carrots, "Hermione's on holiday, both of them are complaining that we haven't heard from Harry and Ron that much. I've told them many times they are just lazy oafs and don't like to write to us."
Laura chuckled, "Where's Hermione on holiday to?"
"France." She answered. "She says its beautiful."
"I can't believe you're friends with Granger." Ezra said with a shake of the head. "The Weasley twins say she's such a know-it-all."
Laura scowled at him, "Don't say that, Hermione is a lovely girl."
Ezra rolled his eyes as Corinna said, "You're just jealous Hermione is smarter at thirteen than you will be in your thirties."
"What does that even mean?" Ezra spoke, narrowing his eyes mockingly.
"And there you are, proving my point." Corinna said as Marie giggled. She pointed her fork at the youngest Blakely. "See, even Marie gets it."
Marie sighed dreamily, "I can't wait to go to Hogwarts! I'm going to make so many friends and be the smartest and prettiest witch there ever was."
Laura laughs this time, "You have about as much cockiness as your dad has." Her face morphed and she paused. "Had." She corrected quietly.
Everyone looked down at their plates awkwardly, except Marie who smiled at the concept.
Laura sighed, "Sorry. I just... I see your father in you guys everyday."
Marie - who was all but five when Jonathan Blakely passed- grinned and said, "Really?"
"You're just like dad." Corinna said with a faint look of mist in her eyes. Ezra nodded too. They were the two out of the four kids who had known him longer.
"And you," Laura looks at Corinna. "You got his creative mind. And you two." She said, looking between Juniper and Ezra. "You both look just like him."
Everyone sat in silence for a second.
"What was he like in school?" Marie then questioned.
Laura smiled as she remembered, "Well, the first time I remember meeting him was when he and some of his friends were pulling pranks that I had to tell them off for. He was a year younger, like a little pipsqueak when I first met him. I never thought I'd see him as..."
She laughed.
"As a boyfriend, a husband... a father. He was just... so immature."
Corinna stared at Ezra, "wow, you're more alike than I thought." Earning a small slap from Ezra on the arm.
"When did you guys start dating?"
"We... started dating in my sixth year, his fifth year. He'd set up this whole picnic date outside at night... it was the most beautiful thing anyone had ever done for me..." Her voice broke at the end. She sniffed, blinking rapidly. "We also noticed some of his friends were spying on us on the date."
Juniper chuckled, "What?"
"Yeah." Laura laughed a melodic laugh. "They never knew that's we'd seen them... It was a bit difficult to miss them though, considering two of them were in a bush with these giant binoculars... I think they were omnioculars actually."
And for once in the last five years they had been grieving Jonathan Blakely, tonight felt like the first time they'd laughed at the memories attached to him. Maybe they were healing after all.
★。／｜＼。★
𝑹𝑼𝑬 𝑺𝑷𝑬𝑨𝑲𝑺
I'm so indecisive about this book but I'm trying to get better as a writer so I've redone it again!