We All Keep Secrets solo

1 September 2021

It had been a whole two years since a McCoire stepped through the portal at King's Cross Station in London, bound for Hogwarts. And now there was a was a whole pack of them waiting to get down to the platform. How wizarding parents managed to keep their kids corralled and away from Muggle attention, Colin had no idea at all. He was far too excited for such introspection! The last time he was here was seeing Moira off for her seventh year of school. She had decided to go all goth that year and insisted that Colin and Liam wait for thirty seconds before crossing the portal, so that she wouldn't die of embarrassment with two little brothers tagging along at her side.

For Colin's part, he didn't mind that he and Liam weren't alone today. After all, wherever one of the kids went, they all went. And that meant seven McCoire siblings were now queuing up for their run at the brick wall. "Angus! Alex! How many times do I have to tell you? Let Colin and Liam go first! Ciarán! Lorcan! Stop shoving Alex! Aoife --- where's Aoife!? COLIN! Where's your little sister?"

Colin's eyes widened. He had sooooo many little sisters! How was he supposed to know where they all were? He looked at Liam for help. But his own twin only gave him a slight shrug and pretended to whistle a tune. He heard a soft giggle coming from the trolleys. Then he caught sight. "Oh! She's in our baggage, Ma!"

"Can we take her with us, Ma?" asked Liam.

"She won't take up much room!" added Colin. "And anyway, Ravenclaw Tower is surely big enough for us all!"

"Right?" confirmed Colin.

"Pah!" Alex gave Colin a nudge. "I bet ye'll end up Hufflepuff, Col."

"Shutit, Alex! We've decided! It's Ravenclaw for us!" retorted Colin.

Two tall men appeared next. Da and --- whoa! Uncle Moray!? What was he doing here? Close behind them were Aunt Maureen and Uncle Christopher and their twins. Surely the whole train would be full of McCoires and their cousins! "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!" Colin watched as Merlin chased his twin Argus through the brick wall, both driving their trolleys like mad med!

As they waited their turn, they watched as a solidly built brown haired boy charged through, and then a girl with long black hair rolled through on some kind of wheeled contraption. The boys looked at each other in astonishment. "Must be some kind of racing rig," Liam said. "She was really moving!"
The boys laughed, and then it was their turn. Their arms were around each other's necks as they teased each other about who should go through first.

"I'm the older brother, Liam, so I should go first, right?" said Colin, scruffing Liam's pale blond hair.

"By two whole minutes you are, and no! I'm the smarter brother, so I'll actually go first, right!" said Liam, scruffing Colin's magically dyed jet black hair.

It was their little sister, Ciarán, who had also been watching the other kids cross over the threshold of magic who spurred them into motion. "Alright, you two! Enough gobbing! You'll go together or not at all!"

Arm in arm they drove their combined trolley through the brick portal with no troubles at all, though they almost crashed into Merlin's trolley on the other side, on account of Merlin's shoe coming untied and he decided to stop right in the middle of the platform where he was sure to cause the greatest amount of trouble for everyone.

Colin thought for sure that Alex and Angus would be right behind him and Liam, but a big tall lad came up behind, ruflling their hair. "Wotcha, ickle firsties!" came the voice. Hamish McCoire. Seventh year beater. Colin didn't want to have anything to do with Hamish, and he hoped very much to avoid all contact with his tormentor. "'Grats on not being a total Squib, Colin," the older boy laughed as he went off to find his mates.

"Half Squib, more like," chimed in Alex and Angus, arriving at last.

"Shutit Alex!" shouted Colin.

"GRYFFINSQUIBGRYFFINSQUIB!" shouted Alex.

"LADDIES! There'll be no muggle brawling here!" Uncle Moray said, separating the two sets of warring twins. "Ye two, Colin, Liam --- come with me." He didn't wait for Colin and Liam to comply. His voice commanded respect. He knew they would follow. They knew they would follow. Colin often wondered about Uncle Moray. Da would never say much about when they younger, though Colin knew that he was at Hogwarts when Da and Uncle Colin went to school.

He bade them sit on one of the stone benches, and just stood watching the boys for a moment. Their Da stood with his arms crossed, watching from a distance. Colin looked to Liam. Liam looked to Colin. Both boys gave each other a little shrug. Uncle Moray visited McCoire House from time to time, usually just visiting Da. Or conferring with Ma on something. He rarely smiled, and when he did, it was never because something was funny. Colin always thought he was grim. Like a dark cloud always surrounded him. He was certainly intimidating. Only on rare occasions did he ever catch the glint in his green eyes, only rarely did he show his kindness to you.

This was one of those moments.

"Cail," he said quietly. "I know what happened to you." Colin's eyes widened. Liam's gaze instantly focused on Uncle Moray. The man regarded them both. "Yer Da asked me explain some things. Our Seanmamó filled me in as well. I'm sure there's more to this story, young Cailean, perhaps something you've not told yer folks?" The question was perceptive, though neither Colin nor Liam said anything. Did he mean the letter? The fang? Something else that Seanmamó perceived and wanted to know from the boys?

Uncle Moray drew a breath. "There always is. Perhaps in time..." he mused. "Your Da asked me to talk with both of you. We share more than just a name, now, Cailean." He rolled up his right sleeve momentarily, revealing jagged looking scars.

"Wicked," Liam whispered in awe. "W- Cail!" he nudged Colin. Colin understood what Liam meant.

Uncle Moray nodded. "We all keep secrets, Cailean. It's up to you if you wish to keep your own secret or tell others; but never reveal a fellow Wolf's secret. I'll come to it lad. Your first turning won't be at home where can administer the Potion and make sure you're all tucked away." He took something out of his pocket then and gave it to Colin. It looked like a pocket watch. On opening the dull silver case, it was clear that this was no ordinary watch.

The dial had but one hand and around the edge were inscribed numerous icons of moon phases. The handed pointed to waning crescent. "You've still got some time. Time to just be a normal boy. Sadly, too little. In about a week and a half, you'll be taken to the hospital wing. The healer will give you a potion to drink. Wolfsbane. Learn the name and how to brew it. It's the foulest thing you'll ever drink. But you shall drink it. Every drop of it. From first quarter to full moon --- a whole week. If you're lucky, you won't feel like murdering anyone the week before the Change. But every month, you'll feel it. Aches. Pains. Irritability. You'll feel like shoving other kids around and shouting at them. You might feel like you want to fight them. You must fight yourself."

He gave Colin a small smile. "The potion will help with that. As will this." He slid something else out his pocket. Liam's eyes lit up. It was a huge bar of Cadburys! "You won't be the first werewolf at Hogwarts, Cailean. You might find others. Or you might be alone. They don't treat werewolves well, not even at Hogwarts. You'll be taken to the Shrieking Shack."

"Shrieking Shack!" Colin exclaimed. "But! That's ---"

"Aye. That's the place. I'm sorry laddie. You'll be shut up in that place. There you'll transform and there you'll spend your days in wolf shape. They say lycanthropy is a curse. The curse of it is not the lycanthropy. Not any more --- not since wolfsbane potion was devised. The curse of it lies in how you will be treated. Some, surely, will not mind that you become an energetic canine on the monthly. Many will fear you. Hate you." He lowered his voice even more. Colin and Liam hung on his every word. "Even in your own family. I daresay you can always trust yer Da and our Seanmamó. You already know one who must not trust."

Uncle Moray reached out and stroked Colin's left cheek. "I've heard the tale. How you got that scar. Some might call that a lady killer." He grinned.

Liam broke in: "He's right about that, lad! Tis a wicked scar! But --- Hamish?"

Moray nodded. "Hamish. He's not treading a good path, Liam. And now I must address your part in all this."

"M-Me!?" Liam asked. Colin smiled. He wondered why Uncle Moray had called them both together.

"Aye.You stood by Cailean during the attack. You've a brave heart, Liam. Your brother will need that strength. You know his secret, and although you are not a Wolf, God preserve you from that curse, you must never tell your brother's secret. You must bear with him. Endure his pains. Stand by him even if he tries to push you away. Especially during the days before the Change. He might lash out at you. Those are the times he shall need you the most. You must learn to brew the wolfsbane as well. And make sure Cail drinks it all --- no pouring it into the pot of some poor plant or into one of the suits of armour! Also, make sure he wears his great kilt -- can't have the lad running naked about the school because he forgot to bring his clothes with him to the Shack!"

A loud whistle could be heard in the background.

Ma called for him and Liam.

What Uncle Moray had to say was a lot to take in. Especially right before setting off on the Hogwarts Express! "Colin! Liam! Make sure little Aoife isn't still in your trolley before they load it on the train!"

As Colin and Liam queued up to board, he wondered how many of the other kids were first years. Well, apart from Merlin and Argus, who were a couple carriages away. As he was about to get on, a blonde haired girl stepped up. Her eyes were a brilliant blue. She had a bit of a clueless look about her, like she'd never seen a magical train before! Colin smiled. "Go on lass! It'll be all right!" He wondered which of these might become friends; or if any of them ever would.

He wondered about the blonde haired girl. She seemed nice. But someone like her ever became his friend, would she remain his friend for very long? Werewolves were monsters, after all. And who wanted to become, let alone remain, the friend of a monster? Liam broke his reverie.

"Cailean, would you mind if I sat for a while with the lads we met in Diagon Alley?" asked Liam. When Colin looked into his twin's eyes they looked like he was asking Colin to tear himself in half. He understood, though. They'd never been parted in their entire lives, and Liam had met some lads that he took a liking to. Colin's heart skipped three or four beats. With that one question, Liam opened up in his mind the first understanding that Hogwarts would very likely separate them in many ways. He really wanted to say, no, Liam! I want to keep my around your neck forever, just like we are now!

"Um. Okay, Liam. Promise, though, we'll stand together when we get to this school, right?" is what he actually said.

"Aye, Colin! I'll never be parted from you, you know that, lad!" said Liam in return.

@Meyra Lancaster | @Jun Mayumi Mochizuki | @AngelFyre McCubbin | @Ava Winchect