Lumos: Year One

Nothing can desrcibe the feeling of seem home after being gone for months. It doesn't matter if you were staying in a castle and coming home to a run down shack, home was home. Lanee entered the house with her suitcase. She took in the clean cute kitchen on her left, the warm living room with a fresh smelling pine tree in the corner. She loved the incredibly strong staircase that looked like it would fall any second. She loved the multi-colored wooden planks of the upstairs hallway. She loved her room with it's barley visable walls and no theme. She loved her home.

Nymphadora Tonks began a fire as Lanee unpacked, filling up an empty spot she had left in her wall with Gryffindor pride. She even added a picture taken of her, Dean, and Seamus shortly before she left.

"Are those your friends?" Her mother was suddenly in the door way, watching Lanee put up the picture.

"Yeah. Most of the girls are annoying at school, I like boys better." She annoucned.

"I was the same way. Anyways, I think we need to talk about that little fight you got into."

Wonderful. A lecture. She had thought she avoided it, but apperantly her mother was saving this talk to be said in person rather than in a letter. A letter was simple because you didn't even have to read it, but it seemed her mother knew if she wrote it that Lanee would disregard it.

"Do we have to?" She whined as Nymphadora sat down on her bed.

"Yes." Lanee sat. "Now, I know you. I know that you don't like being told what to do or how to act by anyone, I'm assuing that's how this fight started?"

"It started because she seems to think me having different colored hair is a big deal. It was that stupid girl from Kings Cross who ran into my trolley. Who made fun of my hair. Her and her friend teased me about my hair again in Potions on the first day. And it always kind of went on from that, her always complaing about my hair!" Lanee explained.

"As much as that may be true, I know it isn't all this girls fault."

"Her name is Helena Villar, have you heard of her family?" She asked cursoiuly.

Nymphadora was silent for a moment. "I have. But we aren't talking about them, okay? We're talking about you fighting." She continued. "You need to learn some self-control, honey. I don't want you expelled or get a bad repuation. Your father isn't too happy with you."

"Will he be visiting?" Lanee asked excidtly. Her mom nodded.

"But not for long, he's very busy. Some strange things have been happening latley.." Her voice trailed off.

"Like that break-in at Gringotts?" She asked.

"I can't discuss this with you. I'm going to go start dinner, you finished un-packing, okay?" With the final word, her mother left the room. Lanee sighed and went over to her owl cage, opening and picking up the jet black owl named Rozana. The bird flew to it's favorite spot in the room, the dresser where the bird landing inside her always open sock drawer. She decided to string Christmas lights around her room while she waited for dinner to be ready. She would have practiced the levitating charm, but she couldn't use magic. Rozana actually helped by hanging the lights that were too high for Lanee to reach.

At dinner the two discussed the beautiful castle, Lanee's knack for potions, her dislike for Professor Snape, her like of Professor McGongall, Grape head, the amazing food, and even some Muggle things she had learned from Dean. Her mother told her of her expeirence at Hogwarts. She told Lanee funny stories about her old roommates, some which she still talks to. She told her funny stories of how she got dentention for silly things, her metamorphmagus stories, and even a few little things of how her father was in his schooling years. The girls sat and caught up long after they were done eating. Nymphadora was surprised at how much she enjoyed talking to her daughter as if she was friend since the girl was so young, but Lanee always had acted beyond her years. The girl had to grow up fast.

"Mum? Can you take me to Muggle store? I need to get gifts for my friends." Lanee asked as they cleaned up. At the store, which Nymphardora was purley fascianted by, she found what she was looking for, two packs of regualr playing cards. She had noticed while playing card games at Hogwarts that Dean's cards were so old and faded that some of the cards were drawn on which marker so that you could tell what card it was. She decided on getting Seamus a pack of cards as well, since he expressed intreset in the cards games.

After they returned home she carefully wrapped the two boxes in wrapping paper. Seamus's had one of a Christmas tree which would set on fire, and Dean's was one of a reindeer doing a silly dance. She gave both gifts to Rozana and sent her on her way, hoping that she's be able to deleiver both of them by Christmas Eve. Lanee could hardly sleep that night, her father would be visiting the next day. And even staying for Christmas. Nothing was a better gift than to have her family all together, a very rare occassion.

She awoke that morning to an empty house.

Emergency meeting, I'm so sorry. I promise I'll be home by midday. I made you breakfeast though! A note on the table read in her mother's handwriting. An arrow in the note pointed to a plate of cold eggs which Lanee had no appeitite for. To prepare for Christmas tommorrow, she decided to hang the ordanments which her mother always left for her to do. It was ten by the time she finished. She sulked around the house, waiting for someone to come home.

She was suddenly alarmed by an owl pecking at the kitchen window. It was carrying a skinng long box wrapped in red paper. She apprauched the window and slid it open. The bird gently released the box and flew off. Lanee examine the box to see a To Lanee, From Seamus scribbled on it. She set it under the tree, excited for tommorow to see what he had sent her. Not too long after, a brown owl appeared at her house with a small silver box from Dean, which she also placed under the tree. She decided it'd be a good time to wrap the gifts she got for her parents. For her mom, she got a Weird Sisters shirt, and her father got huge flavor-changing lollipop.

By the time she set these under the tree, her mother was home.

"I'm so sorry. Work is so demanding sometimes." She apolgized, hugging Lanee.

"I understand. Where's dad?"

"He'll be here tonight, he promised."

Around five o'clock, the doors swung up as Lanee's father entered the house. Both of the girls faces lit up as he entered, each greeting him with a running hug. They family of three spent the night together. Lanee reshared her entire Hogwarts experiece with her dad at dinner. She told of her flying lessons, watching Qudditch games with Seamus and Dean, and even sneaking into the Forbidden Forrest when her mother wasn't listening. The entire family slept in the living room together on Christmas Eve. Lanee was awoken the next morning by her parents poking her and declaring that was Christmas.

She opening her gift from Seamus first. Inside was a beautiful fire colored flower with a note tied.

It's called a Phoenix flower. When it dies, it sets on fire and regrows from the ashes. I thought you might like a flaming flower, I know I do. -Seamus

The moment she set it in a vase the flower set aflame and disingrinted into ashes, where a small green leaf shot up from. Dean's gift contained a small rubber object. It was as someone made a hollow rubber sphere and cut in half. A note from Dean informed her it was a Muggle toy, a popper. It instructed her to turn it in side out, set it down, and watch it pop. This toy kept her entire family entertained for some time. From her parents she received a potions set, including a book with a bunch of ingreidents. They also gave her a special pair of earrings that changed with her mood, which she put on right away, them turning orange for joy.

An owl arrived with gifts from Nmyphadora's parents. She gave her parents a bag full with sickles galleons, and sent a few galleons to Lanee. Some of her parents friends from work even sent owls with cards and knuts. Lanee enjoyed the feeling of Christmas more than the gifts. She loved both of her parents home, their attention on each other instead of work. She loved the feeling of after all the presents were open and they just all sat together in the small, warm living room. It wasn't until midday that Lanee was strolling around the house, stopping around the corner from the kitchen as her parents spoke in hused voices.

"Villar?" Her father asked shocked.

"Yes, isn't he-?" Nymphadora was cut off.

"Yes. Let's not talk about this here. I don't want Lanee hearing anything she shouldn't."

"Shouldn't she know what's coming?"

"We don't need to frighten her. We don't know if our thoughts are true."

"Are you telling me all these events are nothing? Just a conicidence?"

"We don't need a mass panic, Nymphadora! And the last thing I want is to frighten my daughter! That's enough okay? I don't want to spend Christmas talking about this." And with that, the two went silent. Lanee quickly ran back upstairs so they wouldn't know what she had heard.

What was it about this Villar girl that concerned her mother so much? She looked frightened before when Lanee had mentioned it, and now she was secretly discussing it with her father? She was used to hearing odd things from her parents, but they had seemed on ends since the break in at Gringotts. Maybe they knew what used to be in that empty vault. Maybe it was something bigger than money. More important. But what could all of this mean? And what were they thinking that might frighten her? Lanee hated not knowing things, she was too curious. Curiosty killed that cat. she told herself trying to ignore the conversation she just heard.

She was sitting in her room when there was a pecking noise. She turned to her window to see a small owl pecking at the window. It didn't look familar at all. She lifted open the window as the owl dropped the letter and quickly took off. She leaned down to the floor where the letter had fallen. It was addressed to her.

Dear Lanee Tonks,

I wanted to apoligize for that incident we had in charms class several months ago on Halloween. Please don't write back.

Sincerely, Helena Villar

Lanee reread the letter several times, extremely confused. By the fourth time she remember what she was talking about, the fight. She reread it once more to take in the fact that the girl sent an apology letter. It was so random and out of the blue that Lanee was too shocked to understand why she even wrote this. After moments of staring, Lanee set the letter down, thinking she should write a reply until she noted that the letter noted not to. She felt obligated to obey.

Her father left that evening along with the intrest in her break. Her and mother played in the snow, her mum creating a huge snow fort complete with furniture and an owl inside. The even spent the night in the oddly warm fort. Another day they went into town to do a little shopping for school supplies, Lanee was in need of more parchment and quills. Her father visiting a couple more times in which they'd spend the day talking and relaxing by the fire.

The time finally came for Lanee to return to school. She packed all of her Christmas gifts in her suitcase, even the flower which she planned to put next to her bed. As upset as she was to depart from her parents, she couldn't wait to go back to school and see her friends. Not just Seamus and Dean, but even Neville Longbottom, Hermione Granger, and Parvarti Patil who she grew to liking over the past few months. Hogwarts was a second home, and she longed to return.

Her and her mother traveled by Floo Powder to King's Cross, where Lanee met up with Seamus and Dean on the platform. She hugged her mother goodbye and set off back to her other home. The three spent their trip back showing each other what they got for Christmas.

"My mum got me these weird slippers. You put them on your feet and if they get cold the slipper set on fire." Seamus showed them a pair of dark red slippers.

Lanee smiled. "You and your fire."