Father's Day was the 18th of June- it was now the first week of July as Lea had been at Hogwarts during the holiday. While she sent an owl with a nice handmade card, it didn't seem like enough- plus the girl already celebrated Mother's Day late during Spring Break, so why not do it again for her dad? She spent the first few days of summer readjusting to muggle life and excitedly telling her parents about everything- excluding some of the potentially dangerous activities- that happened since they last truly spoke back in April. It was a little strange putting the wand away after it had been safely tucked by her side everyday for multiple months, but the amount of things to do or people and places to see distracted her enough that the transition wasn't too difficult.

The next few days were spent actually deciding how to celebrate- dessert made sense, while her baking skills were nothing in comparison to her father, she was sure that he'd appreciate the effort put into it. Plus, it'd be a chance to prove that Lea had learned from him and his lessons enough to make a tasty and nice looking cake- with maybe some piping letters on top? It would just be a matter of finding a good flavor and cake recipe, deciding to sort that out later as she convinced her mom for money and bought some balloons, a gift, and another card in preparation. None of that was too challenging to find, quickly scampering up to her room with the bags to hide them in her closet so that her dad wouldn't get any hints. It being a surprise hadn't been part of the original plan, but she liked that it was now. The small list the Hufflepuff had made to organize her thoughts now contained mainly crossed out words, with only flavor and recipe left. Considering it was summer and the heat had picked up, something light seemed appropriate. Perhaps lemon then, with simple buttercream frosting. She could even add some buttercream flowers...

Recipe, then. There were likely some in the kitchen, although books there tended to be more for cooking and not her father's baking recipes. No, the special recipes would likely be by his and her mom's desks, where they could be organized or properly written up when working on a book. That's where Lea would first look, one of the few times where neither of her parents were there, a hand rummaging through the different papers as she scanned the titles of each. There were certainly some interesting recipes within the mix, but nothing that both caught her attention and fit with her plan. She'd flip through the stack again just to be sure, pulling out one that might work before moving onto a different section of the desk with the same scanning gaze and mildly intrigued yet unsatisfied look as the recipes dated back further and further, finding more red ink and sticky notes attached where he had edited recipes or added little snippets of life around the making of this recipe. It was interesting to look at, a glimpse that Lea had not been privy to before. She'd continue her investigation, although the search took on a new meaning as her attention turned to those little notes rather than finding the best lemon dessert recipe, glancing at any papers she could reach on the desk until brown eyes settled on an especially peculiar one.

The title was strange, not really giving any hints as to what it might mean. Certified Copy of an Entry? It seemed like some sort of confirmation, perhaps for an application, but what caught her attention next was her name in one of the boxes, along with her parents name. She wouldn't think too much of it for now, up until the point where she read through the small ending paragraph where it stated, "...true copy of an entry in the Adopted Children Register..." That certainly didn't make sense as her parents had never said anything about being adopted nor was there ever an indication of that being true. Lea looked similar enough to the two of them and had no recollection of any other parents or family. Perhaps this was just a mistake in terms of paper, really just a birth certificate except they ran out of regular copies, but the inkling that maybe it was true was enough to start seeing some of the differences, the small little details of build and facial features that were close yet perhaps not accurate?

The search once more changed meaning, sifting through the piles and drawers some more for some new piece of paper that could clarify her findings one way or another. Another form with quite a few pages stapled together made its way into the 14 year old's hands, one that stated clearly at the top that it was an Application for an Adoption Order with detailed information about her parents- adoptive parents- a little before she would have been born. Brown eyes stared down at the first page, taking in her parents' names listed on a sheet Lea had never seen before nor ever expected to for her own adoption. Some answers that she could have stumbled upon at any time or that they could have mentioned instead of what? Hoping she never found out? Waiting until she was an adult? What were they thinking when they kept her information secret? The Hufflepuff shook inside, but she gently put the papers away except for the recipe she had collected previously before storming up to her room, letting out some of that frustration as she slammed the door and flopped onto her bed.

Minutes passed as dull brown eyes stared up. The ceiling became the most interesting, speckled, bland thing to look at. Her hand still clutched the recipe, but the girl made no effort to move towards the kitchen quite yet. Her thoughts spun in circles, tightly weaving together emotion, logic, and responsibility until it was a tangled ball of yarn that Lea dared not to touch. Instead she still stared up. Up at her ceiling, that couldn't talk, that couldn't provide answers, that couldn't do much of anything except be there, that couldn't even look interesting enough to provide an excuse for her blank, broken stare.

She ended up making the cake, putting up the decorations, wrapping the gift, and pretending that the papers found weren't overtaking her mind. Her mom helped out with some of the taller streamers, giving Lea a worried and inquisitive glance which she replied with a shake of her head and a grimace. Caecilia wouldn't push the subject, instead nodding and reaching out to offer the girl a small squeeze of the shoulders. A comforting gesture, but there was a new wave of hurt as she realized what her mother had hidden from her for 14- almost 15- years. Still, this day was meant to honor her father and it felt a little rude to take that away after she had already taken the time to plan and set up the event, after all her effort. Everything was in order and prepared except her, finding some space in the kitchen to take slow deep breaths as her mom finalized some details in another room. She could do this, those papers could wait until tomorrow.

After what felt like days, her dad returned home from work. Lea greeted him at the door, wrapping him in a hug so that he couldn't examine the smile that didn't reach her eyes. He seemed a bit surprised by the sudden display of affection, tucking an arm around her as he looked up to see the decorations adorning the entryway and rest of the home.

"What's all this for?" He asked, a smile on his face as the embrace fell and he could now properly look at his daughter.

"It's a late Father's Day party- like the one I set up for Mum during spring break." She swayed on her feet, only able to look at him for a second before turning her attention towards the banners and confetti, preoccupying herself with fixing it to the point of perfection- if it ever stood still. It was clear she couldn't stop its natural tilt yet the girl continued to try anyway to avoid the gaze of her parents.

"Mom figured out the dinner, but I made the dessert- it's one of your recipes. So it'll taste amazing." Her glance over her shoulder never quite made it to him, only turning enough to see the air in front of him.

"Thanks kiddo, that sounds lovely."

The event was pleasant enough, if not a little awkward. She couldn't really hide her conflicting emotions from her parents, but they had no context for what was happening and Lea refused to offer an explanation. The couple wouldn't push it when there were presents to open or food to eat, offering some space in the hopes that it might help, but at the end of the day when the family would typically lounge together to watch a movie or work on their own projects- Lea left. Her disappearance would not go unnoticed as the parents paused their own reading and glanced towards each other, a small beat before they too would get up to follow.

The door to her room was shut, so they gently knocked at the door. There was no response from within, only slight shuffling noises and soft footsteps that barely made their way through the thin wooden door. Lea stood on the other side, hand on the doorknob and brown eyes watching the ground, a deep breath in... and out before the door opened and she faced the two adults.

"Did something happen? What's the matter?" Their voices were filled with concern and confusion as the 14 year old blinked back tears, biting down on the shakiness collecting in her throat. How stupid the fact was, the silly it felt to be so worked up over it- and yet they had lied to her. And she had trusted them, she had thought they were one 'perfect' happy family, that they would tell her the important things going on, that they would trust her back. Yet they had decided to leave out a crucial detail with no indication of ever debating telling her or looking to do so in the future. The sadness felt childish and silly but the anger- towards both herself and her parents- washed over as an easy mask.

"You lied to me-" Her voice filled with venom, lashing out at them in the hopes that they too would experience some of her hurt and that they wouldn't hear her shakiness, what felt like weakness. "You said we were family- you never mentioned that I was adopted. That you're not my real parents, that I'm not your actual daughter. How could you?"

"Well Lea, you-" you are our real daughter. She knew that, but the words wouldn't sit right in her ears. She knew nothing about her birth parents or her heritage or potential genetic health concerns- a whole collection of lives now connected to hers that Lea was blind to.

"You didn't tell me! You didn't even have a plan to tell me, did you? That's my information, my life! Fourteen years wasn't enough to give you a clue that maybe this would be important to me?" Her arms waved wildly now, gestured broadly around her as though orchestrating her frustration. Tears she had blinked back earlier freely streamed down her face, lines forming into puddles before dropping off her chin. Her voice quieted now, the initial outburst seeming to drain what little energy she had. "I- I thought you trusted me. I thought you would be truthful and honest- and all those things you say I should be, yet here you are not doing the same." Her arms now flopped to her side, head turned down to the ground as white noise filled her ears.

"Oh, Lea-" It was her mother now, arms softly reaching out in an attempt of a hug that the girl quickly side-stepped, brushing past them both to rush into the bathroom and lock the door, turning around to fall with her back pressed against the wall. The shakiness coalesced into sobs, arms hugging her knees and head buried to form a small trembling ball in the corner of the bathroom as the cool tiles slowly brought the girl out of her head.

A Couple of Days Later...

She felt silly- was it an overreaction? Surely it was fair to be upset to the point of crying, a lack of trust now in what else they might have hidden. There likely wasn't going to be anything crushing to uncover to the same extent as adoption, but it was a possibility now. At least at Hogwarts, the idea of secrets lying everywhere was well known. Mysteries were bound to happen and that forewarning was enough to keep her cool most of the time- but what if there was something more? Prefects and professors could just as easily keep information away, libraries filled with restricted knowledge or books filled with secrets hidden in plain sight. The rest of summer she distanced herself from her parents, only offering short responses to their questions and mainly existing in her room or outside with friends. Their actions- or lack thereof- wasn't something she would forgive easily, now rather annoyed that she hadn't decided to go to summer camp. Soon... then she could be back at Hogwarts and away from this.

Note: I don't know too much about adoption systems in the UK (or about adoption in general), apologies if information is incorrect. Thank you for reading!