28 Jul 2021, 17:28
Welcome Home
Miami, Florida, United States
It was a early morning. Having gotten up before the sun rose with his siblings to pack their bags then be taken to the airport.
It was the 22nd and so their parents honeymoon was over and their America trip had come to a end. Henry was expecting less but actually it had a pretty fun trip, he was even to converse easily with Alexa Mackenzie while also keeping it a secret from his step siblings. Writing when alone or making calls in the dead of night to the girl so the others wouldn't become suspicious or tease him about having a crush or girlfriend...
The teen also got to visit america and see some of the sights, he traveled down to the beach a few days with the group. Learning how to surf and relaxing on the warm sand.
One of his favorite parts however was that everyone seemed so interested with his British accent, always wanting to talk to him to hear it and girls always seem to want to flirt or chat with him. Occasionally when that happened Henry mess with them a bit with either Rose or Gabe.
He also bonded with his siblings, mainly Rose and Gabe. Franklin usually only wanted to discuss academics and Faith was a teenager girl who seemed to care for her looks. Jess was fun but sometimes she was a bit too young for Henry. Gabe got along perfect with Henry and the teen even started to care or rather protect him like a older sibling would do. Rose was first his close friend and now sister so it wasn't a surprise he would be close with her as well.
The group would arrive to the muggle airport early that morning. After getting their tickets, checking their bags, and going through security. The group would buy a few snacks and drinks then find seats in their terminal.
Henry sat between Gabe and Rose, placing his backpack on his laps and pulling out a journal that Cash has given him and the muggle phone that Pearl gave him. Also giving Faith, Franklin, and Rose one as well before the trip to American saying something about it's a good way to keep in contact.
Plugging in headphone and slipping them on as music filled his ears, Henry started to sketch in his journal. Looking up and smiling at Rose occasionally while Franklin and Gabe bicker about something as usual.
Jess and Faith sat next to Rose, probably for some girl time before the flight at least that's what Henry thought.
The teen sketched for a good hour before lightly nudging Rose in the shoulder and showing her the sketch of herself.
Henry smiled a little at her until he heard Faith's voice and placed the journal all his lap as he turned his blue eyes to the blonde.
"The rows are across from each other, so boys in one and girls in the other?" Faith asked and majority nodded their heads, as they started to switch tickets with each other. Henry decided to take the aisle seat when he saw Rose also had the aisle seat, it would be easier to communicate with her being so close and only a aisle between.
Gabe took the middle and Franklin the window, Henry was rather hoping that the boy didn't start a conversion on academics or a puzzle on the long flight.
When thier seats were called, the group of six would stand. Henry tucking away the muggle phone, headphone, journal, and pencil into his backpack and zipping up before joining the group. Standing near the back next to Rose, giving her a smile when he felt a tap on his shoulder.
The teen would turn around and would see two brown hair girls around their age standing there, smiling as one spoke " hi, my friend wanted to say that your cute," the two girls broke into a fit of giggles and Henry eyed Rose as the girl continued " are you two dating?" Henry looked at the two, took a breath then spoke" no, were siblings and best be off." Upon hearing his accent, the two giggled more as they skipped off whispering to each other.
Weird...
Henry smiled a little toward Rose as he followed her onto the plane, setting his bags under his seat as he looked over and saw Rose by his side. He wasn't comfortable in a muggle plane yet but seeing the girl brought him ease as he sat back prepared for the long journey ahead.
London, England
It was night when they arrived in London, England. Henry would look out the window from the aisle and take a breath, he was home.
Henry smiled a little as he nudged Gabe a bit to wake up, the boy fell asleep on his shoulder. Henry didn't mind and actually kind of like it.
He would help the others get their bags out of the overhead compartments if they stored the same there before following the group off the plane and through the terminal, toward the baggage pickup area where their parents were waiting.
Pearl rushed forward and gave each of them a hug and saying how much she missed them and a few other questions. Only Henry stepped out of the way if the lady tried to gave him a hug, his father was besides him and would wrap his arm around Pearl once she finished and would speak" how was your trip and flight?" Most mumbled fine or good while others like Henry remained silent.
After catching up and finding their bags, the group would leave the airport and find the muggle car. Henry stayed silent as conversation rang mainly between Luke, Pearl, and a few of the children.
Loading the luggage in the trunk, Henry held his backpack over his shoulder as he opened the door to the backseat and saw a surprise.
"Loki!" The teen exclaimed, rushing in and lifting up his feline who let out a short meow of discomfort. Holding the cat in one arm and scratching Chaska with the other, it's been a month since he seen his feline buddy. Luke smiled at the scene before speaking" alright everyone in and if we have time, Faith would you like to try your hand at the wheel?" There was conversation on that but Henry only smiled at Rose as he held Loki in his arms who didn't purr or show much affectionate to being held.
Pearl took the driver's side and would drive the muggle car while Luke took the passage side, often making eye contact and smiling at his wife. There was the back seat then two seats behind them since there were six children now. Henry, Rose, Franklin, and Gabe got to the backseat first leaving the two seats behind them for Faith and Jess.
Loki stayed on Henry's lap and occasionally bat at Chaska playfully as the drove it was actually a rather long drive until Henry started to notice the scenery and houses. They were in godric hollow where their new home was.
Godric Hollow
As they drive conversation continued, Henry stayed silent however when they were 10 minutes away Pearl asked Faith if she would like to drive, there were words and protests heard as the teen switch places with her mother.
Pearl give her motivation and Luke giving her tips and cautions from the front seat, preparing to grab the wheel if necessary.
The words and protests being heard around made it feel like longer but it was only a few minutes until the group drove in front of their new home.
Last edited by Henry Knight on 14 Feb 2022, 02:18, edited 2 times in total.
"There's no such thing as strange creatures, only blinked people" - Newt Scamander
13 Aug 2021, 22:11
Welcome Home
Their flight had been at five in the morning, so that meant they had to leave by at least four, so they had to get up at three thirty. Everything that could be was packed beforehand. They groggily got dressed, brushed their teeth, and made their beds, and then all piled in another Uber with all of their stuff. Most of the kids fell back asleep in the Uber ride, and Rose honestly couldn't remember if she had or not.
They all sleepily went through the airport and worked towards the plane. Rose felt like snapping at people every other word that was said, a combination of how tired she was and because of the chatter at the airport. Merlin, it was so loud. Rose hated it, and followed her siblings, hanging at the back to focus her mind on something else- keeping track of her six companions. Margerie was still with them, and, miraculously, as upbeat as ever. Rose's best guesses would be that she had either had downed several cups of coffee before they had left, or she was just as good of an actor that Rose was. She was much more quiet than usual, which Rose's tired brain was definitely thankful for.
Rose looked over Henry's sketch. "Oh my goodness, Henry, that's beautiful," she said softly. "I didn't know that you were that good at that stuff, it looks so realistic," she added, looking up to smile at him. Gosh, he was so talented.
While they were trying to get onto the airplane, they were interrupted by a pair of giggling girls. She glanced over to him as he looked over to her. What were they supposed to say to that? Rose sighed when they were asked if they were dating. Henry told them no, they were siblings. Once the girls obnoxiously skipped off, Rose muttered, "Americans are weird. 'Cmon."
Once on the plane, the girls got in the middle and boys nearer the window, per suggestion from Faith. This time Margerie sat in front of them, also on an aisle seat. All Rose really felt like doing was going back to sleep. It was almost a nine hour flight, after all, so she could get plenty of sleep. But she forced herself to stay up until the plane had taken off.
She got out her phone, putting in earbuds and looking up a sleepcast that she had saved on her phone. As an insomniac, having somebody talk her down to sleep had been really helpful, since she had gotten her phone. She had felt more rested, and had been able to go to sleep faster, blocking out all the outside noise. She slept for a good four hours on the plane, recovering some of her sleep time.
The rest of the time on the plane, her and her sisters either talked, or Rose would listen to music, journal, or work on her drawing. Ever since she had been showed Henry's sketch of her, she had wanted to draw something of him, too. But her drawing style was much less realistic. Hopefully she could create something that looked like him. Once she had sketched out something she felt good with, she pulled out her markers that her mom had given her last year, coloring in the little Henry she had drawn. She looked behind her and tapped Henry on the knee, showing him her own drawing of him in her sketchbook, with a smile.
The plane landed and, as Rose looked back, she noticed that Gabe had been sleeping pretty much the entire time. At one point, he had shifted into his sleep onto Henry's shoulder. Rose smiled softly as Henry gently woke him up. Henry didn't seem to be a big fan of Frankie, Faith, or Jess, but he seemed like he was becoming really good friends with Gabe, and Rose was glad.
They went through the airport again (ugh) and then spied their parents. Their officially married, honeymoon fresh parents. When the five Moon kids saw their mother, they rushed forward to go hug her. Hugs were just part of the culture of their family. Pearl was consumed by a group hug, and she stood there, hugging them all back. Rose might have been frustrated with her mother, but that didn't mean that she didn't love her, and that she would deny her a hug. "I missed you," her mother whispered. And, just for a little bit, Rose believed her. When they broke apart, Margerie came forward to hug her niece as well. "Thank you for watching them," Pearl said to her aunt.
"Oh, it was my pleasure," Margerie replied, looking back at the kids, her eyes twinkling.
Most answered Luke's question, not super enthusiastically. Rose and her siblings were still unsure of Luke. They had only seen him not many more than four major times now, and most of what they knew of him was how much he adored their mother. A lot. And he was their stepfather. It was really awkward.
Margerie went around and hugged the kids- this would be where they would split again. She offered Henry a hug, but if he didn't want one, she would respect that and not give him one. She said, "It was wonderful to meet you, Henry. Keep Gabe in line for me, mkay?"
"Hey!" Gabe protested, crossing his arms playfully. She glanced at the boy. "I don't need to be kept in line!"
She smiled and shook her head, playing along with him. "I have no idea what you're talking about." They all knew that Margerie knew exactly what he was talking about- she was just messing with Gabe, and it was all in good fun.
They all waved goodbye to Margerie as her ride arrived and she left the airport. "Well, then, come on," Pearl told the kids. They all went out and to the place where Pearl and Luke had parked the car.
"Oh," Rose said softly. It was their family car. It barely held the six of them, and Rose had no idea how it would hold eight of them, let alone comfortably.
"Luggage in the back! Everyone in!" They put as much luggage in the back that they could, and then opened the car doors to get in.
Rose heard Henry exclaim about seeing Loki, and heard a familiar meow of delight. "Chaska?" She asked, poking her head past Henry. Chaska launched herself into Rose and the redhead giggled, hugging the fluff of a cat to her chest. "Hey princess." She had missed her cat so much. She hadn't seen her in the two weeks they were in America, as Loki and Chaska had stayed with Arthur.
"Mom? Did you use magic on the car to expand it?" Faith asked.
"What a ridiculous question," Pearl answered. Once everyone had gotten into the car, which did, actually, comfortably fit all eight of them, plus the cats, she closed her door and said, "Of course I did."
"Isn't that illegal or something? Using magic on muggle stuff?" Gabe asked, rolling his eyes.
Pearl smiled. "It doesn't really matter, as long as we don't get caught."
"It kinda does, though!" Frankie exclaimed.
The majority of the car ride was filled with cuddling Chaska and a background conversation between Gabe and Frankie. For a moment, everything was okay. It wasn't perfect. It wasn't even good. But it was okay, and Rose was alright with that.
But, at the last five minutes before they got to the house, Faith was given the opportunity to drive. Luke sat in the passenger side, and Pearl was right behind Faith.
Faith had gotten some tutoring from Pearl before on how to drive, but never in a car like this, and never with this many people. Faith smoothly merged back into the road. Gabe dramatically wrapped his arms around Frankie, saying, "Hold me."
"I have faith in you, Faith," Pearl said. She laughed a little. "Get it? Cause your name is- FAITH IT'S A TREE LOOK OUT FAITH-"
With Faith's next turn, the car erupted into sounds of terror from the rest of the Moon children.
"Faith, look out!"
"We're gonna die!"
"Guys, chill out-" Faith started, but she was soon interrupted.
"WE'RE GONNA DIE!"
"Gabe, stop squeezing me, I can't breathe!"
"I'M SORRY I TEASED YOU FAITH PLEASE DON'T KILL US-"
"WE'RE GONNA DIEEEEEEE!!!!!!"
"GUYS! Chill out. All I did was turn the corner." And Faith was right. Her driving was actually very smooth and very calculated. It was a comfortable ride, and the passengers of her car had nothing to worry about.
Gabe was pretending to hyperventilate (now just to make Faith annoyed), and Frankie patted him on the back. Rose pulled Chaska a little closer to her. She still wasn't sure if she trusted Faith's driving yet, even though it had been extremely good.
"It's this one," Luke directed her, and Faith slowed down, backing into the driveway on the side of the house, so that the trunk (the boot I guess) of the car was facing the house, so that they could get the stuff out of the back easily.
They all got out of the car and went to the front to look at the house.
"Most things are already moved into the house. There's just stuff like each of y'all's personal belongings that you can put away in your rooms, as well as the stuff you took with you to America," Pearl informed them. "What do you think?"
"It's so pretty," Rose murmured, mostly to make her mom feel better. Murmurs of agreement sounded from around them.
"Okay- room arrangements. Frankie and Gabe are sharing a room, Rose and Henry are sharing a room, and Jess gets a room and Faith gets a room and we get a room," Pearl explained.
Luke looked at his watch. "It's just after seven now. How about everyone gets settled in their rooms and we have dinner at seven thirty?" Everyone seemed to agree and they all went inside, looked around a little downstairs, then got their luggage and went to their own rooms, Luke showing them which was which while Pearl prepared their dinner. (Actually, the dinner was pizza but they didn't know that yet.)
Rose and Henry came into their room and set their bags down. She came over to the boxes to the side of the room, holding their personal belongings that they had packed up but not taken to America. Rose had a whole box full of books, and then another box carefully packed with other things. And a box of her other clothes, that she hadn't taken to America. All three of them had "Rose" written on them in big, red Sharpie. It was Rose's handwriting. She opened the middle box and pulled out her covers to her bed carefully.
"Which bunk do you want?"
14 Aug 2021, 01:46
Welcome Home
Godric Hollow
Their home would be in Godric Hollow
The large family will call Godric Hollow their home
Henry wasn't paying attention to Faith driving it backing into the driveway when his eyes landed on the house.
He was back in Godric Hollow. He was living in Godric Hollow again. The feeling was different. The emotions bubbled inside the teen. The sensation of it as he held Loki on his lap. Felt unreal.
Henry stayed silent, still in awe of it all. The house. The street. The area. The garden.
The garden.
A small garden sat in front of the house similar to other houses along the street, just like how is first home in godric hollow had a garden.
Henry remembered the house and the garden, how it flourished with large flowers and fire brushes. Butterflies flew around it. It was beautiful and had been his mum's pride and joy. Then after the night. After the attack. It changed. It became overgrown and abandoned.
Henry couldn't look at the garden as he carried his backpack, suitcase, and Loki to the house. Avoiding the the sight of the garden.
Upon entry, the house was large. Naturally it had to be able to fit eight people but it was large and around a sight to take in.
Henry put Loki down, letting the feline walk besides him as he stayed at the back of the group looking around again the large interior.
Unpacking, room arguments, dinner. Henry was hardly paying attention not expecting to be attending however what he did cross his mind was Scarlett Aden. He could see her again! Henry was planning in surprising the girl in the coming days but how exactly...
Henry followed his father and siblings upstairs to the rooms which were along the narrow hallway that was long and something that Henry hadn't seen for a while. It was different from the townhouse that he lived in for a few years Liverpool. Larger and spacious.
The first room they stopped at was Franklin and Gabe which the two ran in abruptly and started arguing about which bunk is whoes.
Henry softly smiled at the scene as he peered into the room, it was a some layout and still covered in boxes for the two to unpack. There was a bunk bed where the bottom had both a bed and desk underneath, it was functional and Henry smiled at Gabe when he agreed.
"I bet Frankie is going to fall asleep at the desk more than the bed," Gabe spoke causing a few smiles and a protested looking Franklin which is when Luke stepped in, placing a hand on Franklin's shoulder as he spoke"enough choose a bunk and get settled in. Try to keep the comments to a minimum, Gabriel," Henry couldn't believe it, his father was parenting them. Well the teen didn't care he was planning to ignore the man either way that summer, his father left the room and the group followed.
However Henry would smile over to Gabe and mouth "your right" offering a soft smile before following the group. The next room they would approach would be Jess's, the blonde girl would take one glance of her room and run in with a wide grin that Henry couldn't understand as he looked at her room.
The group continued on and the next room would be Henry's and Rose's. Henry felt his stitched turn. He was sharing a room. He was sharing a room with his sister. The last person he shared a room with was his twin sister who was missing.
Henry walked to the room but found his path stopped by Luke who looked down upon him with a smile as he spoke" it feels nice to be back in godric hollow, right?" Henry tool a breath and moved past him as he spoke" need some help with your bags Rose?" Henry was determined to ignored his father who gave his som a concerned look before turning toward Faith as he spoke" this way to your room."
Henry looked around, it was nice. There were bunk beds and a book shelf that would soon be filled with books.
Henry dropped his backpack and suitcase next to the beds before going over to the side of the room that was filled with boxes. Boxes that Henry helped moved there a night before the trip to America.
Each box had the name 'Henry K' written in black sharpie some in his hand writing and some in his brothers. The boxes held different items, there looked to be around 15 or so that held books of different genres and topics. Then a couple held his personal belongings and clothes he didn't take to American with him.
However there was a single closed box that was rather heavily with no name that Henry would approach first, picking it up and carrying it over to the cloest when he heard Rose's question.
"Which bunk do you want?" Henry asked approaching the closest as he struggled for a few seconds then finally opened it, taking a step back as he spoke" I can take the bottom if you want the top," setting the box down and pushing it to the back of the closet.
Henry closed the closet and moved the boxes as he started to unpack the rest of his items, Loki jumped on the bottom bunk and sat there watching the duo with his amber eyes.
As Henry unpacked one of the boxes of his books, the young teen would look over at Rose with a smile as he spoke" how does it feel to finally live in godric hollow now,sister?"
Last edited by Henry Knight on 17 Sep 2021, 20:43, edited 3 times in total.
"There's no such thing as strange creatures, only blinked people" - Newt Scamander
24 Aug 2021, 16:35
Welcome Home
Henry seemed more in a daze, not paying attention to much, not talking much. She hoped he was alright.
Chaska refused to leave Rose's side, sticking next to her. Rose supposed she had plans to rope Loki into exploring with her later. But for now, the fluff bounded right next to Rose, a little bit behind her.
That's when Luke decided to get all bossy on them, stopping Gabe and Frankie's argument/debate and, in a much more fancy way, telling Gabe to shut up. Gabe didn't like this at all, and neither did Frankie, even though the man seemed to be siding with Frankie anyway. Rose knew that they weren't sure about Luke yet, either. Pearl would have told the boys to make sure they were being nice and stuff, but she wouldn't have shut down arguments altogether. Gabe decided to wait until the man had walked away to finish the conversation, an uneasy look on his face.
Or maybe Rose was just overreacting because she was feeling emotional or something? Rose was probably overthinking. Yeah. That was it.
Henry seemed to be completely ignoring his father, even when he was directly addressed. Rose glanced towards Luke but then decided to join him in ignoring the man. After all, Henry was defnitely her friend more than Luke was, as Luke had shown little interest in who Rose actually was. She knew he was probably busy with the wedding and stuff, but he still could have made time. Not that he did. "No, thanks," Rose said, walking into the room. Now, to successfully ignore Luke, she would make conversation with Henry, pretending the man wasn't really there. "...but I think that it'll be fun to compare the boxes that we have..." she closed the door behind her. There. She had really wanted to take Henry's side in that, even at the expense of Luke's feelings. He hadn't ever cared about hers, so why should she protect his? Henry was her real friend here. He was the one who was loyal to her and had never given up on her.
"You have a lot more books than me," she said, in a much quiter voice. Rose had to put on some effort to volume around most people, but with Henry, she could just be herself. "Most of the books that we have aren't owned by a single person, and if they are, they're normally Frankie's. We kinda split up the books and I only took the ones that were really important to me," she informed him, recounting the events when they moved out.
Rose scanned the box that Henry had picked up first. It didn't have a label on it, as far as she could see. "Is that one labeled?" she asked him, in curiosity. She didn't care too much, but she did remember labeling the ones that were hers, and wondered what was in that one.
Henry repeated her own question back to her, and she smiled a little. "That wasn't an answer, silly." She paused, about to tell him that she would rather have the top, when he suggested that he have the bottom. "Okay. We can always end up switching if you want," she said. She didn't want to make him stuck with the same bunk that he didn't really want forever. To be honest, she had wanted the top, since she liked perching places, and a top bunk would be a perfect place to do it.
"I dunno, honestly. I've always wanted to live in Godric's Hollow, but... this wasn't the way I imagined it." She thought a little, gathering her things in a corner so that they wouldn't be strewn across the floor as she knew her siblings' (excluding Henry) things would be. Chaska joined Loki on the empty mattress, sitting beside him at first, and then standing up again to turn in circles and curl up in a ball next to him. "I kind of imagined moving here with my mom winning the lottery and us moving here, or when I moved out or something. Not... not quite like this, I guess." Luke had come as a total surprise to her. And not the good kind. "And you? I guess Luke already asked, but what's it like being back here?"
Rose's best guesses would be- nostalgic, happy, strange, and nightmare fuel. Probably all of them at once.
Rose had already formed a plan in her mind about how to set up their room, though she didn't tell Henry right away because she didn't want to be pushy. "How about we make our beds first?" she asked, taking the fitted sheet for her bed and finding the corners, so she could put it on correctly. "Will you help me with the fitted sheet? It's easier with two people."
If Henry decided to help her, they would pull the fitted sheet over the mattress, Henry holding it in place as she pulled the corners over. It was tricky because hers was the top bunk and there was only one ladder, so it required sometimes standing on Henry's bed. Henry was taller than her by a significant amount, so she was definitely grateful for his help in that area. "Thank you," she said, smiling. "Would you like help with yours?" If he did, Rose would help him as instructed.
She climbed up in her bed and arranged her pillows and blankets, creating a cozy space for herself, and then held her head out over the edge of the bed to peek at him, her hair submitting to gravity and blood rushing to her head a little, making her head pink. "Hello, brother." She giggled a little- this was one of her favorite parts of living with Henry so far, she decided- rooming with him. Then she climbed down the ladder and started sorting through her stuff. "When do you think they'll call us for dinner?" She furrowed her brow, remembering what Luke had said. "Or do you think that they'll want us to just come down at seven thirty?"
22 Sep 2021, 02:11
Welcome Home
Loki would crawl up to Henry's right shoulder, taking a seat there's the feline examined the house with his amber eyes.
Henry used Rose to ignore his father but that didn't mean he was up for any conversations, not that he would tell Rose that. The teen allowed her to reply and talk but he didn't answer, he comment bring himself to.
Henry counted the boxes that contained his book, 20 boxes. The young teen nodded toward them as he placed his backpack and suitcase on the ground, near the boxes. The teen heard Rose's words on the amount of books he has and that Frankie did have the most books out of them. The teen had quite a few, he was a book worm and avid reader whose always on the search for her books. It is a wonder how he didn't get into ravenclaw.
Loki would jumped down from his shoulder and walk over to his backpack, taking a seat on it as he watched the two unpack. Henry would start to move the 20 boxes toward the two bookshelves, one larger than the other. Stacking the boxes on top of one another figuring he would unpack his books first.
Henry didn't answer Rose about the box he placed in the closet, it was his and would remain there until he had some time to go through it which hopefully would be alone. The teen did want the bottom bunk mainly since the bottom bunk had shelves for him to put books and other items that the top bunk was lacking.
Loki jumped up and took a spot on the mattress of the bottom bunk, sitting down and watching Henry as the teen spoke" which shelves and drawers do you want next to the bunks? The left or right side?" Henry looked over at them and was trying to decide which side would be better for him to have and make mornings easier but decided to let Rose choose first since he choose the bunk first.
Henry would walk over to the two bookshelves, one smaller and one a bit larger containing little squares in each shelf allowing it to hold more books if stacked in a organized way. Henry would look over toward Rose as he spoke" mind if I take the larger shelf?" The young teen would wait for her response before he would start taking out his books and neatly organizing them in the larger bookshelf, organizing the books by topic, date, and size.
Henry nodded toward Rose's answer as he was putting his books in the large shelf, Loki wasn't phase when Chaska joined him on the bottom bunk mattress. The orange feline wasn't phased by the addition feline and continued to watch the conversation between Henry and Rose wiry his amber like eyes.
Henry placed a book on charms next to a ancient ruins book in a shelf when he heard Rose's question. The teen had been avoiding the answer himself.
How does it feel to be back at godric hollow. To be back at the place he was born and lived for part of his life, where he me his first friend and childhood best friend; Scarlett Aden, where he lost his family in one night.
The teen didn't feel normal being back. Be felt like he was in a dream sequence or he felt like he shouldn't be there. The place where he was born, so close to his mum's grave...
Henry left godric hollow all those years ago with his brother, twin, and father. Leaving behind friends and his mum. Leaving behind his life or the memories that he had of it.
Now being back... it didn't feel right to the teen. He didn't feel like he should be there while his twin was missing somewhere and his brother was in London. Then he.... he was with a different family. One that he told himself he didn't need or want.
Henry didn't answer her question. He couldn't bring himself to so instead he answered he asked question as he spoke" you unpack how you want to unpack and I'll unpack how I want to unpack," the teen was halfway done unpacking his books and organizing them in the shelf when he heard Rose's question about helping her make her bed.
"Fine," Henry spoke leaving the books as he went over to the bunk, the third year slipped off his shoes and stood on his bottom bunk as he helped Rose put the fitted sheet on her bed. It took some time but once they were done, the third year jumped from the bottom bunk landing on his feet before speaking" no problem, I'm making my bed later," the teen then went over to finish unpacking and organizing his books in the shelf.
It took a few more minutes then he originally thi8ght but finally the teen only had two boxes left. Both filled with his most favorite and prized books that weren't going in the shelf instead Henry carried one over to the shelves on either side of the bunk bed and sat it down still waiting for Rose to choose her side. Then went back over and lifted the second box, carrying it over toward the bottom bunk where he place it on the mattress.
Henry unpacked the box of books and organized them on shelf on the right side of the bunk. Placing each in a well thought out spot based on genre, topic, and how much he read that book while Rose made her bed. Once he was done the teen took the box and rose from his bed just at the right moment to meet Rose's head and her words in which he would reply to, " Hi," with a soft smile.
The teen would move over to the other boxes with the empty on in his hand. Unknowingly to Rose he would make a empty box pile next to the door with the 19 empty boxes he now had that once held books. Once done the teen would take another box toward his bunk and set it on the mattress, unpacking and organizing the contents on the shelf to the left of the bottom bunk.
The contents ranged from journals, cameras, photo books, the slytherin brooch, SPEW badge, pocket knife, some sweet (including the 'chill pills', and a few other items.
The teen finished the box with a picture of his family from years ago that he pushed to the back and out of view along with a glass of water and chocolate bar. The chocolate would be mainly for Rose rather than himself. Henry took the box once he was done and placed it in the empty box pile before going back to the boxes that still needed to be unpacked.
Time for the bed then
"If they expect us to go down then I'm not going," Henry replied as he sniffed the air normally for a moment, letting the fragments drift into his nostrils as he waited for a moment before smelling the tangy smell of tomato sauce, the sweet smell of cheese, and the other choosen toppings.
Turning to Rose as the teen spoke" its pizza and by the smell it was delivered," the teen searched the boxes for his sheets, pillows, and other bedding as he spoke" I'm going to change if they call us to supper if you want to go together."
Last edited by Henry Knight on 8 Oct 2021, 22:46, edited 1 time in total.
"There's no such thing as strange creatures, only blinked people" - Newt Scamander
5 Oct 2021, 00:49
Welcome Home
Keen Eye / Lovely Creature
Mentioning | n/a
7:30ish pm
Wearing casual clothes=================== ===================
Rose glanced between both sides of the bed. "It doesn't matter that much, does it?" she asked. She was sitting beside her box, carefully taking out some of the things and putting the bubble wrap in a neat stack. It was the same on both sides, so it didn't matter quite the way the bunk beds did. "I'll have the right side," she said. Since Henry had been able to choose which bed he wanted (even though it worked out since the top bunk was the bunk she wanted anyway), Rose didn't feel as bad choosing a side. She didn't feel pushy in this instance. Rose shook her head at his next question. "No, I don't mind. It makes sense since you have more books," she stated, letting him take the bigger shelf.
Henry remained silent as she asked her next question. She had answered his question, after all. The question he had asked almost came with the expectation of him answering a similar question himself. Rose's heart sank. She had been hoping to give him a safe space to talk if he wanted it, but he didn't seem to even be able to talk. Did she push him too far? Did he not want to talk about it? Was Rose digging up dark memories that Henry didn't even want to think about? Was she just making everything worse by asking him a question about his dark past? What if his question had been more polite and he hadn't wanted her to ask the question back? What if he had wanted her to ask the question back, but he just couldn't come up with an answer? Had she just made everything worse? Merlin, why couldn't she just keep her mouth shut?
Kneeling next to her boxes, she started putting her books on the shelves. She kept them in the order that she had packed them- sorted by genre and author's last name. But there were an exclusive ten to fifteen books that were excluded from this sorting- her favorite books. She put those on the bookshelf next to her bed, on the middle shelf. The rest of them went on the smaller bookshelf in their room. Once finished with her books, she put the rest of her things on the shelf by her bed. Little trinkets and decorations on the top shelves, boxes of things on the bottom. Like she had a shoe box for the letters that she had been given over the years. She had kept them all safely tucked away in that little shoe box. And a shoe box of drawings and other art things she had created on loose-leaf paper. She managed to fit all of her clothes into the drawers on her side and half of the closet, the side that Henry hadn't put stuff into. She put her shoes underneath the clothes that she had hung up. She only had a couple pairs of shoes- her black converse and her black boots. Rose knew that most girls her age had at least four or five pairs of shoes, all for different occasions, but her family simply didn't have enough money for that. Her feet were also strangely narrow. They weren't small lengthwise, just skinny. It made it hard to wear flats, and she only sometimes could share shoes with her sisters. Jessica stole her boots sometimes when her outfit didn't fit with her flats.
How strange it would be, that one day this would feel like home. Would it ever feel like home? Her last home had felt so much like home, but now that home was gone, and she was never going back there again. She felt chills go down her back. One day she would wake up and not be confused about why she wasn't in her bed at her own house, or in her bed in her dorm. One day this would all become normal.
Did she want it to become normal? Did she want it to replace her old home? Did she want for it to ever stop feeling like she didn't belong here? Rose didn't know.
"Are these empty boxes?" she asked him, pointing to the pile of obviously empty boxes. If he confirmed that they were, in fact, empty boxes, she would kneel next to them and break them down so that they were flat, stacking them on top of each other and then putting as many as she could into the biggest box, doing what her mother often called consolidating.
Henry sniffed the air and informed her that their parents had ordered pizza. Rose smiled for only a second before it faded, with a realization. "Do you think they're trying to make us feel better about moving our entire lives for them?" she said quietly, looking out the window instead of making eye contact with him.
Moving on from her question, she said, "Anyway. I kinda want to take a walk around Godric's Hollow. What do you say we grab a couple of pieces of pizza and slip away for a minute?" she asked him. "They probably won't even notice we're gone," she added, her voice lined with sarcasm that, if you paid enough attention, you could see was masking hurt.
Rose knew Henry always paid attention. She felt sure he would notice her slip-up.
8 Oct 2021, 23:27
Welcome Home
@Rose Moon
New outfit+jeans - Henry: English | French | Italian | Arabic | Russian
Luke: Speech
Room
"Alright," Henry reminded silently happy that Rose choose the right which mean he would have the left which was the side closer to his head and would be easier to get to in the room although the teen didn't let this known to Rose.
The third year finished unpacking his books in the larger shelf and the shelf in the bottom bunk on the right side. The teen unpacked the second box of books on the left shelf of the bunk organizing the books by genre and author.
Unpacking a few more items and organizing them on the left shelf in the bottom bunk and the left shelf, smiling a little once he was done.
Henry unpacked his socks and smaller articles of clothing in the drawers on the left side, fitting them on inside which was pleasing to the boy.
The teen then moved to the boxes that held his clothes, mostly handy me downs as he finished unpacking them on the right side leaving the left for Rose. Henry pushed the unlabeled box on the right side underneath his clothing along with one pair of sandals, one pair of boats, and one pair of dress shoes. A total of three pairs of shoes which wasn't a lot considering most of them came from his elder brother.
"uh," Henry spoke as he looked over at the empty boxes by the door and nodded toward Rose as he spoke" yeah those are empty," the teen turned back to unpacking as he moved his Hogwarts trunk to one side of the room, specially to a empty side of their shared desk and placed his backpack, message type bag, and duffle bag in the closet on the floor of the left side.
Taking out his school supplies and writing items along with a few trinkets, the third year organized them on half of the desk leavening the other half for Rose.
Majority of the boxes were unpacked now, all that was left was his bed and Loki's items. The teen took out a small wicker basket and placed it besides the left shelf that contained Loki's toys that would probably become both Loki's and Chaska's toys.
Loki however would jump from the bottom bunk and take out a little mouse with a bell around it neck, placing it him front of him and giving a small meow toward Chaska. The feline side the same with a yarn ball that Dakota gave him as he continued to show Chaska his toys that he seemed somewhat proud about.
Henry smiled at the sight, unpacking and organizing Loki's costumes in the bottom draw of the left side shelf before taking out a cat bed and placing it near the bunks along with a folded up blanket. The third year would eye the two beds and turn toward Rose as he spoke" there Loki's beds but he prefers by pillows so maybe Chaska could use them," giving Rose a small smile before placing two bowls (one for dry food and one for water) to a empty spot against the wall.
Lastly the teen placed two bags of cat treats on the shared desk before passing the boxes toward Rose to crush. The teen then turn his attention to the bed, take out his sheets that were blue he managed to make it himself before adding the pillows, also blue and placing a blanket on top.
Giving Rose the last box as he looked around the room, a odd feeling form within him when he heard Rose's voice.
"No," Henry spoke as his blue eyes landed on the window, the curtain was pulled back and at the edge he could see the forest. The forest where the fort was and the family of bowtruckles, where the tree stood that he performed his first accidental wandless magic incident, where the place sat where his mum died. Henry stared at the window, memories flashing by his mind's eye as he continued" their happy, in love- and they probably want us to be happy to even though he moved our lives." The teen teen took a final look at the window, blinked then turned away to face Rose.
"give me a moment to change, " Henry replied as he started to walk toward the closet but stop with only a few steps left and turned to Rose as he spoke" the weather patterns here are easily to get use to. Normally its freezing in the fall and winter then rainy in the spring and summer," the teen nodded toward Rose stepped inside the closet and changed his shirt into a short sleeve and jeans since he haven't gotten the scar on his shoulder and bicep yet.
Leaving his trainers on the teen opened the closet door and stalled out as Loki jumped on the bottom bunk, curling up on the blanket causing Henry to softly smile as he walked over to Rose and spoke" maybe later I can show you around godric hollow tonight," the teen wasn't in a good mindset to show Rose around the place currently but things could change as he opened the door for Rose smiling a little at her as he heard and perhaps smelled the others going downstairs.
"After you even through he won't notice if we were missing," Henry spoke with a playful smile as he continued on her own comment which he caught the sarcasm and hurt in.
Last edited by Henry Knight on 26 Oct 2021, 22:48, edited 1 time in total.
"There's no such thing as strange creatures, only blinked people" - Newt Scamander
25 Oct 2021, 22:51
Welcome Home
Keen Eye / Lovely Creature
Mentioning | n/a
7:30ish pm
Wearing casual clothes=================== ===================
Loki seemed to have some toys in the basket that Henry took out of the box. Rose watched as Loki took the toys out of the basket one by one, showing them to Chaska. With every toy, Chaska seemed to politely sit and sniff at his toys, pawing them a little bit. Rose only had a couple toys for Chaska. Strangely, Chaska had always been more interested in people than she had in toys. She seemed to be a very extroverted cat, and would rather socialize, climb a tree, or explore, than have a new toy. Rose had bought the cat a couple of toys for Christmas, but they were largely forgotten by Chaska. She would carry it around for a while, and play with it occasionally, but she never seemed overly interested in them. The one toy that Chaska had liked was Rose's laser pointer. She had bought a laser pointer for Chaska, and the cat really enjoyed chasing the little red laser around, especially if Rose had it come onto people or herself. Chaska was just a very strange cat. Because of this, Rose only had the two toys for Chaska and the laser pointer.
Henry commented about Loki's cat beds. Chaska went over to sniff the bed, just briefly, and climbed in it, bouncing up and down on her paws as if checking how fluffy it was. "Chaska usually sleeps in my bed as well, she's very snuggly," Rose said. Chaska looked over to Rose at her name, and the redhead smiled. "Yes, I'm talking about you, lil' princess," she said quietly, smiling. "Maybe she'll use it when I'm not here."
Rose nodded at his words. "You're probably right," she said quietly. They were finally happy, and now that they were happy, their kids being happy was finally a priority again. Maybe Rose took her mom a little bit too much for granted, but she thought that it should have been a priority of her mom's that they were happy anyway, even if it wasn't at the top of her list. She was still working a lot, but she was at least trying now. Rose should forget about the past and stop dwelling on it, because it wasn't going to change now. Yes, she was salty that her mom didn't seem to be around as much as a mom should. She didn't want for that ever to happen again, and she was angry that her mom would do it in the first place. She wondered if she ever would be able to let herself get close to her mother or rely on her again. She didn't need her anymore. If she had any "girl stuff" questions, then she could always ask Faith (not that she would), and if she needed any homework help, she now had at least three older siblings she could ask, four if you counted Arthur, but he wasn't always around. Her mother expected that Rose would need her, but Rose didn't, and it was Pearl's fault for depriving her of her mother all those years.
But at least she was around, and that's all Rose could ask for, right?
Rose "crushed" the rest of the boxes, gathering up in the corner of the room, out of the way of everything. She looked around their room, at their successful unpacking. It looked almost like home. Almost. It probably helped that Henry, Loki, and Chaska were all in here with her. Otherwise, it would be much harder to get used to.
The redhead sat against the wall, and Chaska climbed into her lap gingerly, laying down there and putting her head down on Rose's knee. She closed her eyes but her ears pivoted around to listen to Rose and Henry's conversation. Rose laid her hands on her cat, stroking her a little bit. Sometimes it surprised Rose how much Chaska had grown. She was just over a year now, and it had been just under a year since Rose had met her. She was very fond of the silver little fluffball now.
Rose nodded at Henry. Rose was planning to change later. If the dinner got especially bad, maybe she could escape to change then. But, on second thought, she didn't want to leave Henry with the rest of the family. She knew he'd have Gabe, but Gabe wasn't always really thoughtful or observant in the moment. He turned to tell her about the weather here, which would be helpful later, as she would get dressed during the days she lived here. "Oh- thank you. That's very helpful." Rose wondered if he had looked that up, if he had memorized it, or even if he remembered it from the time that he lived here.
"Okay," she said, in response to his comment about showing her around.
Henry usually used "he" instead of "them," which meant he was usually referring to his dad instead of their shared parents. She supposed he hadn't really been able to make a decision on Pearl yet, as she hadn't for Luke. Rose just grouped together their post-neglectful parents now that they were married and because of their noticable similarities. The redhead scooped up Chaska in her arms, cradling the cat in her arms and standing up. She didn't want to part with Chaska, as she had only just been reunited with her cat. "Coming, Loki?" She asked the orange feline. She then went out of the room ahead of Henry, finding her way to the stairs. She glanced back to make sure Henry had caught up with her, then bounded down the stairs to join their parents in the kitchen.
"Aw! The pizza was supposed to be a surprise," Pearl said, a little disappointed.
Rose felt a prick of guilt. She hadn't meant to mess up her mom's surprise. It had been her who had reminded Henry, after all. "Sorry," she murmured, not sure what else to say. She was about to blurt that Henry had been able to smell it, thrusting the "blame" on him, but decided against it, as it might have pointed a little bit to his... Furry little secret.
Or, actually, furry big secret.
Rose supposed there wasn't anything to actually feel guilty for, and she was just overreacting.
Pearl called up the stairs. "Kids! Dinner's here!" she shouted. A thundering of kids came down the stairs, seeming to be in a rush.
"I'm starving!" Gabe announced. "I think my stomach's still on America time," he said. Rose knew they were all jet-lagged from their big time difference, but they would readjust, just like they had to readjust to so many things.
They all sat down at the table, which was big enough for all of them, with paper plates of pizza, munching. Chaska was put down on the floor and was now laying on Rose's feet under the table. As Faith and Jess chatted away, bragging to the boys about their own separate rooms, and the family laughing at Frankie and Gabe's clear different styles of unpacking their rooms, which was expressed quite loudly. They almost felt like a family, and it made Rose feel uncomfortable for a reason she didn't quite know. Rose laughed and made little comments, but on the inside, she felt... out of place.
29 Oct 2021, 01:32
Welcome Home
Outfit+jeans - Henry: English | French | Italian | Arabic | Russian
Luke: English | Russian | French
Arthur: English | French
Emily: English
The Cakes
"It seems like either of our felines like cat beds, maybe they'll sleep on one of the bunks when we're not around," Henry replied with a soft smile as he didn't comment on her next few words, tucking the gold rusted pendant underneath his shirt as he glanced around their room.
It now looked like a room, like their room where they would sleep, talk, bond, and get up to numerous adventures in the time ahead of them. Sharing a room with his stepsister reminded him of when he shared a room with his twin sister, the two used to be close and there for each other. They were twins and often told others that but after only one received their Hogwarts letters something happen. A sudden hole appeared in their relationship one that either could fix... no matter how hard they tried.
Henry kept his emotions hidden behind the 'barrier' as he turned toward Rose, listening to her words and nodding toward them as he softly spoke" just something I remembered from years past," the teen considered taking his shoes off since he normally didn't wear them inside the house but left them on since he would probably be showing Rose around godric hollow and would need them soon anyway.
Henry smiled at his feline; Loki who gave a short meow and brushed past the group, walking from the room then downstairs. The teen always thought his feline acted strange and almost like he believed he had a certain 'power' about him even through he was only a cat. Henry followed Rose from their room, shutting the door behind him as he followed her downstairs keeping a eye out for the others.
The young teen founded Rose downstairs where they would joined their parents in the kitchen. Spotting the two pizza boxes on the counter, assuming one was pepperoni and the other was another type of pizza if Rose or him decided to peer in.
Henry saw Loki slip into the living room, stopping for a moment ad the feline looked over his shoulder and gave a short meow toward Chaska watching the fellow feline with amber eyes. Loki then casually walked into the living room to examine his new home and probably see if he could escape to the outdoors anywhere.
Turning back to the conversation that started between Rose and their parents. The teen didn't want Rose to take the blame for something he smelled out, even is she was the one who asked as he replied" it was my fault anyway, I heard the bell ring and uh assumed," offering a soft smile before it slipped in hiding along with the rest of his emotions as they hid behind the 'barrier'.
Henry saw his father glancing over him, choosing to aim his blue eyes a the pizza boxes as Luke sigh as he smiled toward Pearl and spoke" well they can now help set the table before the join," the man held out a stack of napkins in one hand and plates in the other hand to two. Henry glanced at Rose and lightly rolled his eyes to her before smiling a little for moment, taking a few steps forward and taking the napkins from his father that he would place at out around table finding out that there was places for ten.
"Is someone joining us?" Henry asked glancing over at Rose suspiciously as Luke moved closer to Pearl before speaking" Arthur and a friend of his will be joining," nodding a bit to his father ad he wondered when his brother would get there when he heard Pearl call the rest down for dinner.
Smiling at Gabe's words when he turned his head at the boy who spoke" Henry, sit next to me so I don't have to be force next to Frankie," Henry avoided eye contact with his older stepbrother as he nodded toward Gabe turning to look at Rose as he whispered"across from each other?" The teen smiled a little toward as he grabbed his plate and took a piece of cheese pizza before finding a seat besides Gabe and across from Rose, the two seats to his other side remained empty for Arthur and his friend.
The others talked and engaged in conversation, Henry couldn't look at his father and Pearl.
He couldn't stand the thought of his father being with someone else, of being happy and in a normal family again. He couldn't imagine the thought that his father was replacing his mum.
Gabe was the main contributor to the conversation with the other three as he turned toward Rose and pretended to fall sleep before silently laughing as he took a bite of cheese pizza burning the top of his mouth except he didn't show it. The pain reminded him that he was alive and human even through he thought of himself as neither.
Henry was about to whisper over to Rose if she wanted to go explore godric hollow when his father squeezed Pearl's hand and cleared his throat a little for silence.
Henry raised a eyebrow at Rose before turning toward Luke who softly spoke" now that your all settled in, your mother and I thought you should know a few things," Henry felt his hand drop to his lap as his stomach dropped as well feeling his mind spiral as the two parents explained the ground rules at house. No shows in the house, they'll each have chores, respect them both, and so long... if Henry needed to then later he'll just ask Rose to repeat them until he heard his father's next few words.
"Now, I understand this will be strange and even hard for someone of you but neither of us will tolerate any of talking about it," Luke spoke nodding toward Pearl before looking over at Henry who slid a little bit down into his chair as the man continued" Henry suffers from lycanthropy which means he is a werewolf," Henry hid his face with his hands as he figured the others were staring and even heard Gabe shout something about being cool when Pearl spoke" You all show know what that means but if any of you have questions then come to me or Luke," Henry felt like saying to come to him but he stayed silent when he heard Pearl's next words and suddenly remembered how his twin felt when the women found out that she was a squib all those months ago.
"If you need anything, Henry know that I can help and that I won't see you any differently," Pearl spoke and suddenly Henry felt a surge withing him and understood the 'twin thing' as he softly replied back still hiding his face, " I don't need your sympathy, but thank you," someone there would remember those were the extract words that Annabeth said to Pearl just meaner a months back.
There was a awkward silence and Henry picked at his pizza as Loki walked in to the room and over to Henry, jumping on the teens lap and looking at the group with amber eyes when a knock on the door could be heard from the distance.
Henry looked as Luke got up and walked over to the door, pulling it open to hind the man smiling a little as he spoke" Arthur, brilliant timing," the two exchanged a handshake as Arthur entered with a young red haired with light green eyes holding a cake box. The two slipped off their shows as they followed Lile to the singing room to the rest of the group when Arthur spoke" we would have came sooner but Emily wanted to perfect the cakes," Emily playfully swatted at Arthur causing the two to laugh as Emily replied" I remember you helping decorate them to, mister."
The two sharing looks and maiming at each other as Henry looked away, holding Loki in his arms and gazing down at the feline's orange fur. Luke retook his seat as the two walked over to the two empty ones, remembering that not everyone knew as Arthur spoke" right this is Emily my girlfriend," and right after he finished speaking Emily spoke" and I with his help made you lot chocolate cakes," placing the box on the table as Arthur took the seat besides Henry and Emily took the seat besides Arthur.
Henry felt Arthur put his hand on his shoulder as Emily spoke" you house is quite lovely Mrs- uh? Thank you for having me," Henry returned the smiled his elder brother gave him as Emily turned to Arthur with a wide smile filled with pearly white teeth as she spoke" did you tell them yet? You have to," Henry looked at his brother as Arthur seen to fluster a little bit from embarrassment and spoke" what Emily is referring to is I passed the auror examinations, I'm officially a auror and get my first assignment August first."
There were muttered from around the table as Luke nodded a bit as he spoke" well done," then after a few minutes Pearl asked Emily if she was a auror to in which Emily replied" Oh, No. I'm trying to find a spot at St. Mungos since I want to be a healer."
Last edited by Henry Knight on 18 Nov 2021, 17:20, edited 2 times in total.
"There's no such thing as strange creatures, only blinked people" - Newt Scamander
11 Nov 2021, 23:53
Welcome Home
Keen Eye / Lovely Creature / Healing Sage
Mentioning | n/a
7:30ish pm
Casual clothes=================== ===================
Rose shrugged when he commented about the cats, and then nodded at his words about Godric's Hollow. So it had been a little tidbit of knowledge from when he lived here all those years ago.
Pearl shrugged as Henry seemed to take the "blame" for the early dinner-coming. "I was just teasing," Pearl said, smiling. She turned back and opened up the pizza boxes, revealing one was pepperoni and the other plain cheese. It was what they usually got, except the pizzas seemed to be significantly bigger, due to the growth of the family. Rose didn't really know if they could eat all that pizza, though. There was only eight of them.
Rose narrowed her eyes at Luke, the smallest, most minuscule bit. They had come early to dinner and now they were being asked to set the table. Rose obeyed anyway, placing Chaska on the floor and taking the plates from Luke. "Fun," she murmured, not loud enough for either of the parents to hear. She did notice that he had said "the join," and at that moment, she assumed he meant her siblings. She was wrong.
The moment she had figured out how to evenly space the plates over the table, she realized she had ten plates, not eight. She looked up at the same time as Henry asked the question, confused. Had Luke counted wrong? Her and Henry exchanged glances, neither looking like they really trusted their parents. Well, they could have been told that Arthur and his friend were coming over.
Rose wondered if it was one of his toxic friends, those he thought would be a bad influence on Henry. Maybe even those friends who had asked them about drinking not-so-kid-friendly drinks just a few days ago. She sure hoped not. This would be really really awkward if so.
As the rest of her siblings came down the stairs, Gabe claimed sitting next to Henry. Rose and Henry made eye contact. Rose was sure there was an unspoken pact between them that they would look out for each other, whether that was just making sure they were comfortable, or defending them. Rose knew that Gabe and Henry were becoming friends, and she was very glad of that. Henry made eye contact with her, and asked her if they would sit across from each other. Rose nodded and smiled, small enough to go unnoticed by everybody else but big enough for him to see it, just as his whisper had been.
There was something about these little moments that only had Rose and Henry in them that held a wonderful magic to them. Nobody else seemed to exist in those moments, and everything else around them seemed to be in fog, in a blur. It was strange, but Rose thought they were pretty beautiful.
Before they started eating, Luke and Pearl explained the house rules. They were pretty synonymous with the rules they had at their old house, except none of them were really enforced by Pearl anyway. Rose started eating her pizza in this time, gingerly and blowing on it quietly, since it was still warm. Then the next thing they all needed to know was dropped on them like a bomb.
Rose opened her mouth in shock, not because she didn't know, but because she didn't think that Luke would stoop so low to do that. She quickly closed her mouth. Why in the world would Luke do that? Couldn't Henry tell his step family at his own pace? She understood telling Pearl, because she didn't know how anybody would manage to keep that kind of secret from their wife. But Luke didn't need to announce it to all of Henry's step siblings, automatically making him feel like the monster he wasn't. Luke, intentionally or unintentionally, shoved Henry into an outsider role.
"That's so cool-" Gabe blurted, but then said, "Uh- well, bad, obviously. But not everybody gets to turn into a wolf once a month." He grinned, making light of the conversation.
Henry covered his face with his hands, enduring the embarrassment. Rose glared at Luke out of his vision, and then bit her lip. This was horrible. After glancing at Henry for a few seconds, Rose's siblings would look away out of politeness, training their gazes on Pearl as she continued.
Pearl let Henry know that she was there for him if he needed her, casually. Rose knew she didn't think of him any differently. She didn't think that Pearl was helping Henry in any way, but at least she was trying, in a less accusatory tone.
Why hadn't Luke just let Henry go at his own pace telling his step siblings? It was simply sick.
Rose felt Chaska stand up, rubbing against her legs. The cat would then, unbeknownst to Rose, rub against Henry's legs comfortingly, and then sit next to him. It was almost as if she had sensed something was wrong with him and had felt she wanted to guard him. There wasn't much Chaska could do against embarrassment, but she sat there anyway, her fur against his legs.
By the time a knock sounded at the door, Rose had lost her appetite.
Arthur and his girlfriend entered, Arthur introducing her as Emily. She looked a lot like Rose, with her red hair and her green eyes. But her face shape, her body shape was different. Rose's eyebrows rose as they announced what was in the mystery boxes- chocolate cupcakes. Gabe scooted forward. Pearl invited them to sit, and they did, beginning to take out the cakes.
Arthur announced, with prompting from Emily, that he had passed all his Auror exams and was officially an Auror. "That's amazing, Arthur!" Pearl said, with much more enthusiasm than her husband. "That's extremely impressive. I've heard those exams are brutal. Congratulations!" she said, looking quite impressed.
"And you, Emily? What do you do, are you an Auror as well?" When Emily admitted she was an aspiring Healer, Pearl looked surprised again. "Really? I'm a Healer at St. Mungo's. I'll put in a good word for you. If you're anywhere near as dedicated as Arthur, I know you'll do amazing," she said, passing out a cupcake to each of the people there. "These cupcakes are gorgeous," she said, shaking her head. "You made these?"