Hogsmeade.
It was the sole wizard only village in Great Britain and it had a population of about two thousand souls, not counting the kids, many who were currently attending Hogwarts. I thought it was kinda funny that no one thought to think about the fact that a good chunk of every yearly crop of children made their homes in Hogsmeade and subsequently walked home after each day of schooling like with a regular school.
I was currently standing on the snow-covered roof of one of the shops, looking down at the throngs of people as they walked the street below, shopping, talking, laughing and just having a great time with their families and friends. At this time of year, right before Christmas, the whole town lit up like something out of a Dr. Seuss book.
With me playing the Grinch. I wasn't going to steal Christmas or anything, but this time of year was… difficult. And I couldn't help but feel a certain undeserved resentment towards all the happy people going about their lives without a care in the world. I also felt a bit guilty about that petty little goblin inside of me that took a measure of glee that the years to come would be all but happy for them. It was… shitty of me. It wasn't their fault that I was separated from my family after all.
Hogsmeade at or around Christmas was the place to be and even at this time in the evening the streets were packed with people, the air and the trees were filled with enchanted candles and all the shops and houses were gaily decorated for the coming holiday. It was like something right out from a Christmas photo, only come to life… with magic added.
It looked like a fairytale.
I don't know how long I'd been standing around up here, I didn't have a watch, and I didn't feel like fishing out my cell that was currently resting in one of the inner pockets of my flight suit. My guess was that it was somewhere between eight or nine, but I wasn't sure.
I sighed and looked up at the full moon hanging high in the cloudless sky, it was a beautiful night. I really hated this time of year which was why I was out here. Being cooped up had suddenly been unbearable. I had to get away from here. Clear my head. And what was a better way then go for a flight? I'd been on my way when I'd been drawn here by the rights and the noise.
I sighed again before putting on my helmet and strapping it into place securely and then looked up into the sky again before blasting off at just under the speed of sound, and passing it once I was far enough away from the village. I didn't really have a destination in mind, but I headed in the general direction of London, not that there were many other directions I could go at the moment.
On a whim, I decided to follow along the coastline as I went and was disappointed to discover that all of England's cost was not actually vertical chalk rock faces!
My world doesn't make sense anymore!
I now have my mission. Find the white cliffs of Dover!
"There'll be bluebirds over the white cliffs of Dover!" I sang badly, some birds fell from the sky with their heads missing. True story!
Mission clear in my mind I started my search for chalk cliffs. I honestly didn't know exactly where those cliffs were supposed to be. I had a notion that they were located somewhere along the side that faced the English Channel so I accelerated to my top speed and barreled straight down the country towards the Sothern coast of England.
---
I passed London at supersonic seeds, probably making more than a few old war veterans crap their pants in fright. I probably shouldn't have done that… I most certainly shouldn't have done that. But I did. It's done. I'm a stinker. I wonder if they will send airplanes to investigate.
I wonder what would happen if I flew right past a radar station. I think there are a lot of them along the Sothern part of the cost, what with all the bombing the Germans did during the war. Or maybe they dismantled those after the war.
Eh, who cares anyway? There is nothing in the air at this time that can catch me!
After buzzing the capital of the realm of tea I headed west along the coastline and sure enough, there they were. The white chalk cliffs of England. I wish I could say that it was beautiful and that the cliffs glowed in the light of the moon. But mostly they just looked gray. A very light gray, much lighter than any normal rock face at night. Kinda like looking at a normal rock face during the day, only it was night.
Very philosophical.
I was at a place called Beachy Head if the sign was to be believed, and whoever named it that gets a gold star for the most unimaginative name for a piece of coastline ever conceived. It was a pretty barren place located fairly close to the city of Eastbourne. It did have a lighthouse thought, painted red and white and looking like a novelty dildo. It even lights up!
Only £14.85 at your local sex shop.
It wasn't lit now though for some reason. I don't know if it was supposed to be lit at all times or just if visibility was compromised. Maybe they'd run out of oil or whatever they used in lighthouses these days.
What is that girl doing up there?
I blinked as my mind caught up with itself and I noticed that there was indeed a girl standing right as the edge of the cliff below me. She obviously hadn't seen me yet so I cast a concealment charm on myself before floating closer.
She was young, possibly close to my age or a bit younger, dark hair cut short, barely touching the shoulders of her white and blue checkered winter overcoat. I think she would have been quite pretty if she weren't currently crying her eyes out. It wasn't one of those quiet cries ether, but a full-on bawling you did when things were really shit.
She took another step, closer to the edge and I suddenly knew what this girl had come here to do and it sent chills down my spine and almost made me panic on the spot. Christ, she was gonna kill herself. What do I do? What can I do?
Helping her would be again wizarding law.
It would also expose me.
Not doing it would likely mean her committing suicide right in front of me.
Fuck that. I'm not that cold.
I floated a bit closer, indecision and uncertainty warring inside of me. I really shouldn't be doing this. I have no idea what kind of punishment you get for breaking the statute of secrecy but it would probably include a lengthy visit to a certain soul-sucking prison not far from here.
I noticed her inch a bit closer to the edge.
Of course, not acting would mean watching her take her life. Not enthusiastic about that idea. I could talk her down and remove her memory after, but then she'd not remember it and would likely be back here again.
I grimaced behind my helmet.
Fuck it. If you have no good choice, then pick the one you can live with.
I floated down closer to the crying girl and cancel my concealment charms before deciding to pull off my helmet as well. Better she sees my face then think I'm some sort of alien come to abduct her, I think those movies were popular around this time. I cast a last-second Homenum Revelio charm to assure myself that we were alone. I saw nothing, though there were people in the lighthouse below.
"Whatever it is…" I said loudly, causing her to flinch, look up, see me, and I swear her eyes popped right out of her head at seeing me hovering there in the air above her. "…it can't be that bad."
She just gaped at me, her tears forgotten for the moment. I didn't stop that from me floating down closer to her, causing her eyes to widen and stagger back a few steps from the edge of the cliff. I landed lightly at the cliff edge and took step towards the girl, causing her to take several steps back.
I gave her what I hoped was a friendly smile and raising my hands into the air in a placating gesture. "Easy. I'm not here to hurt you."
"Who are you?" She demanded.
"I'm Drew," I told her, still smiling. "What's your name?"
She looked at me blankly, like she didn't understand me.
"Ello, ello? Anybody home?" I asked in a faux French accent while waving my hand at her.
That seemed to snap her out of it, she blinked and shook her head before looking at me again. "How did you do that!?"
"You know, it's polite to introduce yourself before you start yelling at people," I told her, ignoring her question. "I'm Drew, and you are…"
She looked at me like I'd grown another head before answering. "Mary… My name is Mary."
"Hello Mary, it's nice to meet you," I said as I snatched up her hand and sketched out a bow over it.
"O-oh, like-wise…?" She returned with a bit of uncertainty.
We kinda just stood there for a few moments just staring at each other in awkward silence, well for her anyway, I was perfectly comfortable.
"Are you an alien?" she asked at length, then immediately look mortified.
I barked a delighted laugh. "Do I look like an alien?"
"But you flew, like Superman." She said, looking a bit defensive.
I smirked at her. "I'll take that comparison as a compliment. I don't have his physique, obviously, or his chin, again obviously, or that hair. Actually, I think I'll just stop there." I joked lightly.
Mary just looked more confused. Wow, though crowd.
"I'm not an alien, don't worry," I assured her. "There will not be any anal probing. Not that I understand what that's about. Are they supposed to be harvesting farts or something?" I wondered out loud. "You want to hear my personal theory?" I asked but didn't give her an oppertunity to answer before I plowed on, "I think some drunk hillbilly passed out in a ditch somewhere and his secretly gay friend decided to capitalize on the opportunity to engage in some ass piracy."
Mary went from looking confused to scandalized, blushing up a storm. Wonderful, I wasn't sure she would have understood the slang. She did that goldfish impression people do when they are not sure what to say but feel like they should
"O-oh. I see."
"Excellent." I commiserated.
"Then… then if I may ask, what are you?" She asked hesitantly as if dreading the answer.
"I'm a wizard of course," I told her brightly.
Mary gave me an incredulous look. "A wizard?"
"Yes," I said with a nod. "Don't let all the leather fetish gear fool you; I usually sport a pair of black robes. Don't much care for the pointy hat and wand though." I told her as if I was charing something salacious, or conspiratory. "I like to use my hands." I told her and wiggled my eyebrows.
And that got her face to bake again. That's some fine capillary action. I'm surprised her little hat hadn't caught fire by now.
"Are you the son of the devil?" She asked and immediately looked horrified with herself for what just came out of her mouth.
I blinked in surprise, not expecting that particular question. "What?"
"I heard…" She started before I cut her off once my brain caught up with what she was saying.
"Oh no, that's just pure fiction made up by the Church. There are no devils or demons or such things." I told her seriously. "Well, not in this reality at least."
"This reality?"
"Yeah, there are many realities. Multiverse and all that. But that's not important right now."
"Are you, like, a crazy person?"
I grinned widely. Man, feed me a line, why don't you! "I'm quite sure they will say so."
She raised her hand do cradle her face. "This is ridiculous."
"Undoubtedly."
"I don't believe this."
"I was flying around just now." I pointed out.
"It was a trick." She decided.
"Of course it was."
She looked at me in confusion but instead of answering I just sped my hands out wide as if inviting her to a hug. And then I started to cast. A golden glowing mist started to billow out of my hands, quickly filling the area surrounding us in billowing clouds of shimmering magic. Mary flinched, and for a moment it looked like she would bolt, I think only the thought of having to run into the golden mist was what stopped her. I cast a vide area warming charm while I was at it to make her more comfortable.
Her fear didn't last long though, as I willed things to start to show appear in the mists. Herds of unicorns charging past us, burning phoenixes flying above, griffins, hippogriffs, and Sphinx wandered passed; I made one of them smile and nod at Mary while she stared at it in wonder. She gasped as a great dragon blazed passed overhead and disappeared into the churning clouds with an echoing roar. I smiled and cast a transfiguration spell on a boulder, turning it into a fair facsimile of a unicorn that I guided to come out of the clouds depicting other unicorns, it looked as if it had suddenly acquired form and substance.
Mary looked at the pure white animal in wonder and reached out to gingerly touch its horn before tracing it down to cradle its head in wonder.
"It's real."She breathed in awe.
I moved to stand by her side as she stroked my creation. "Of course."
"It's a unicorn, a real unicorn!" She enthused.
I chuckled. "That it is."
"I can't believe this."
I smiled softly before reached out to lay a hand on her shoulder and gave her a serious look. "Why did you try to kill yourself tonight, Mary?"
Mary looked started for a moment, then distraught as she recalled why she was out here in the first place. "I-I…"
"I won't judge you, Mary, I just want to help," I assured her. "Its why I'm here."
She shook her head. "It's nothing like that. It's just…" She trailed off for a moment, her face twisted into an expression of abject misery. "… there was an accident."
"Ah…" She suddenly looked at me with wide hopeful eyes and I knew what was coming. I shook my head. "No Mary."
"But…"
"I want to, I truly do. But even magic can't bring back the dead. Believe me, we have tried." I told her seriously, squeezing her shoulder comfortingly as I see that desperate hope in her eyes fade away. "However… I can allow you the opportunity to say goodbye if you want."
The look of hope in her eyes was back. "Goodbye?"
"Yes. I may not be able to return your parents back to life, but I can summon their shades, their ghosts, back from the other side for a short time so that you can say goodbye." I explained slowly. "I only need to know their names."
"Yes-please! It was… David! And Donna… Robinson!" She blurted out hurriedly.
I nodded and pulled out the Eye of Hades from under my flight suit... "Alright. Come, David and Donna Robinson, your daughter needs you, one last time." I said firmly.
Like all times before the reaction was immediate and suddenly two people, a woman and a man that looked to be in their mid-forties was standing there. The man was broad-shouldered, with thick arms and a bit of a belly. He was going bald by the looks of it but still looked well-tended despite it. Her mother was likewise a stocky plump woman with a kind face and long blond hair that almost reached her ass.
I stepped away a bit to allow the family to reunite in private. It wasn't my place to eavesdrop on this. So instead I walked to stand by the edge of the cliff and look out over the ocean while contemplating my place in life right now. If this little event had taught me anything it was that there were people out there that had it worse off then me. At least I could imagine that my family was still alive out there, in my home reality. At least I had that. I might never see them again, but at least I could imagine that they had it good. That they were happy. It was a small thing, but it would have to be enough.
Some didn't have that luxury…
I didn't have to stand too long in my own thoughts before I heard a throat being cleared behind me. I turned around to find the three of them standing behind me with Mary standing in the middle with both parents resting one hand on each of her shoulders. Fresh tear tracks were present on Mary's cheeks and her parents look in a similar state even if I saw no tears. For all that she looked more… peaceful. I was glad for her.
"We would like to thank you, young man, for this opportunity. And for saving our daughter from making a terrible mistake." Donna said while squeezing her daughter's shoulder comfortably.
"I'd say it was my pleasure, sir, but I wish we'd met under better circumstances," I told them with a weak smile.
"God's honest truth, if I ever head it," David said emphatically.
"You okay now?" I asked as I slid up to Mary.
She shook her head but gave me a weak smile. "No. But I think I'll wait on dying until I'm older."
I smiled and chuckled. "I'm glad. I'd hate to see such a pretty girl die before she could get out there and live a little."
"Darn straight." The dad agreed while the mother smiled at her daughter fondly.
"Do she have anyplace she can to go?" I asked.
"My sister, her aunt, will take care of her," Donna told me. "You always did like when we visited, right honey? That big house, and the pool."
Mary gave her mother a weak smile. "I suppose."
"It will be fine honey." Her father reassured her. "You might not be able to see us, but we will always be with you, we will always love you. We will be here waiting when it is your time." He said.
"Just make sure it's after you've had a couple of children, I might be dead, but I still expect you to give me grandchildren." The mother added.
"Mum!" Mary protested, blushing furiously.
The dad and I just laughed before he turned to me and gave me a serious look. "You mind taking her home from here, son?"
"Not a problem sir. I'll get her home, safe and sound. No worries." I assured them both.
David grinned approvingly before turning to his daughter again and the whole family shared a tear-filled final goodbye before I let them pass back to whence they came. I smiled reassuringly down at a despondent looking Mary before scooping her up in a bridal carry, causing her to yelp. I quickly cast a charm on her to reduce her weight, I wasn't exactly weak, and she wasn't all that heavy, but I was no Superman. No way would I be able to carry her for long despite that.
"Come on. Let's get you home!" I yelled out and jumped into the air causing Mary to shriek in fear.
"OH MY GOD!" she yelled in my ear causing me to wince.
"You are perfectly safe Mary," I called out.
"WE ARE FLYING!"
"Can you please stop yelling, my ear is right there!" I called out as I reached a hover. "Now where do you live?"
"What?"
"Where do you live right now?"
"Ah, Eastbourne?"
"Oh good, then this will not take too long. Point the way please!" I ordered before blasting off from where I was hovering.
As it turned out she lived in the Roselands, near the Princes Park Health Centre on Channel View Road. It was a nice two-story red-bricked house that looked a little out of place from its surroundings, mostly because it was free-standing while most of the houses on her street were terraced houses. it looked like a very nice, warm, family home.
She directed me to an open window on the second floor on the front of the house, which was her room at the moment. I was glad that there didn't seem to be anyone around, it being quite late by now. Probably somewhere around midnight if I didn't miss my guess. A simple spell helped her in through the window while I landed on the small red shingled roof outside. Within a moment the light comes on inside as she turned on the lights and then she was back at the window.
"No one is going to believe this." She said, mostly to herself I think.
I winced a bit. "I'd recommend not telling anyone if you want to remember it."
She looked at me in confusion. "Wot?"
"What I did tonight is kinda illegal," I told her earnestly. "Magicals like me aren't supposed to reveal ourselves to those without magic. It's one of our highest laws. The punishment is rather stiff, and the non-magical gets their memory erased of the incident." I told her quietly.
Mary looked at me in shock. "They can do that?"
"Can and do, quite frequently to boot." I told her wryly. "Wizards aren't always the most discreet, and then there are the kids... so yeah."
"That's monstrous." She protested. "Why would they do that?!"
"Well, there was the whole witch hunting, and witch-burning thing a couple of hundred years ago, it made people a bit cautious."
"But things are not like that anymore!"
I gave her a sideways look. "You sure of that?"
"Yes!"
I shrugged. "Maybe. But that's the way it is."
"It's wrong." She told me with conviction.
"Don't go get fired up over it. So long as you don't draw attention to yourself you'll be fine. Fortunately, you don't know all that much anyway." I said before floating off the roof, only to have Mary reach out and grab hold of my leg.
"Are you coming back?" she asked plaintively.
I pursed my lips in thought before shrugging. "I might," I told her. "Not for a while though. I have school, you know."
"There is a school? For magic?" Mary looked surprised at that piece of information.
"Sure, why not? There a school for pretty much everything, why not for magic?" I teased her.
"That's different!" she insisted.
"Bye Mary. See you around." I told her with a smile before shooting off into the wide blue yonder.
All in all, a pretty good night.