Many Stirrings Throughout the House

[Aurora Night]

Rory burst excitedly through the Floo into her grandfather's entrance hall, any soot that had come with her shaking itself from her shoulders and hair to fall on the pristine marble floor beneath her. "We're here!" she yelled loudly, announcing herself to anyone that might be within hearing range. It wasn't too often that her family on the Night side all gathered in one place together, and it was for exactly that reason that she always looked forward to the Christmas celebration there with a vengeance. Some members of the family just weren't that fun by themselves, although she could never get Sophia to agree with her about this. The thought of her sister made her turn her head back over her shoulder, impatient for her and their parents to hurry up and arrive already. Or for someone to come and find her - was there no one here? They definitely weren't the sort to hide from her, that particular joke would be set up and executed by her Mustard family members only. It was sort of proof about the whole not-fun thing, really, Rory thought with a smug smile. Take that, Sophia.

 

[Jasper Night]

Jasper had been waiting, and waiting, and waiting. It seemed like he'd been here for ages, waiting for his cousins Rory and Sophia to arrive. He blamed his dad for being so early, and didn't know why he was early as he rarely was early to anything. He suspected his dad might be a little scared of his father, Jasper's grandfather. He couldn't blame him, Jasper himself felt the same. His cousin Arkose was here too, but he could be so boring. He knew the estate better than Jasper did, and after a little while of playing together he had found some hiding spot Jasper couldn't find easily so he had given up. He wished he had a ball to kick around, but he had the feeling the estate was the sort of house were there were rules against kicking balls inside. In the apartment he shared with just his dad he could do that sort of thing, they had no rules! Well, no boring ones anyway. He was lying on one of the couches, kicking his feet in the air to see which one of his shoes would fly off first. So far, neither were budging.

When the sound of the floo broke the silence, he sat up. Then, unmistakably, he heard his favorite cousin Rory shout. He whooped loudly and jumped to his feet, running over. "Rory!" He shouted before he jumped on her back, wrapping both arms around her neck from behind. "You got taller! I had to jump more!" He said excitedly, adjusting his position on her back so he was more comfortable. "Did you bring presents from Hogwarts? Is one a snake?" He wasn't sure why it would be, but a snake would be hilarious. He could only imagine Arkose's face.

 

[Arkose Night]

It was kind of dark in the little cupboard Arkose had hidden himself away in, but he didn't mind. There was golden light shining through the gap around the hinges, and it was quiet. He could hear himself breathing, which was always reassuring. He thought that sometimes he forgot to do that, when his surroundings were particularly raucous and filled with heavy space that felt like it was trying to push its way into his brain through his ears. But he hadn't heard Jasper for some time now. Arkose's current position, hugging his knees at the bottom of a cupboard in the entrance hall, had been a quick but decisive move. His cousin had been taunting him during one of the 'games' he always liked to play, and in an effort to escape Arkose had hoped the largely empty room would be sufficiently boring for Jasper not to bother looking for him there. There had been a tense couple of moments where he had heard his cousin calling for him, but then silence had fallen and Arkose hoped he would be safe. But he stayed in the cupboard regardless.

However as he heard the sound of someone coming through the Floo, he knew his time was up. He and Jasper had been allowed to occupy themselves freely while it was only their parts of the family that had arrived, but this could only be his Uncle Ig and Aunty Emily turning up - and he would be expected to greet them properly and behave. Not that Arkose ever didn't behave, but his father would surely have heard the Floo as well and would be here shortly. He didn't want to have to crawl out of the cupboard with his father watching. In the short space of time that these thoughts rolled through his head, the prospect of immersing himself in his family didn't seem so bad - he could hear his oldest cousin, Rory, announcing their arrival with a yell and a small smile appeared upon his face. Rory was loud too, but she wasn't pushy like Jasper was. Maybe it was because of the age difference, but she gave him some space. He liked that. And she was fun - she always had interesting stories to tell about her time at Hogwarts. Wondering what new ones she might have, Arkose pushed open the cupboard door and climbed out, ready to walk over and catch her attention. But mid-step he froze - Jasper had just careened into the room, and Arkose's heart sank as he watched the other boy launch himself onto Rory's back. Now that those two had gotten started together there wouldn't be a chance for him to get a word in about anything.

 

[Sophia Night]

No matter how many times she travelled through the Floo, Sophia still hadn't managed to find a way to do so that left her hair and clothes completely soot-free. She always tried to stay as still as possible, but she clearly hadn't managed to perfect the art just yet. Although it was nothing compared to the amount of soot Rory had somehow managed to accumulate and shake free, Sophia thought, frowning down at the distinct mess on the floor. Even though she had arrived last after her parents, there was no question in her mind that it was her sister that had caused it. She was sure the house elf was already aware, watching and itching for them to leave so he could get on with cleaning it up.

Turning her attention to the people in the room, Sophia saw that only her younger cousins had arrived to greet them thus far. Jasper, of course, had attached himself so closely to Rory's back that it looked like he was almost strangling her, and though her sister didn't seem to mind Sophia grimaced slightly at the sight. Still, she was glad Jasper always seemed to gravitate most commonly towards Rory - her cousin had quite unpleasant ideas of what was considered fun and amusing, in Sophia's opinion. She liked her youngest cousin, Arkose, much better. He was a little bit younger than her in years, but the two had a much better time playing cards and board games together during family gatherings, rather than engage in the rough and tumble play Rory and Jasper seemed fond of. As such, she made her way past her parents and walked over to where Arkose was standing, a little apart from everyone else. "Hello Arkose," she said, smiling. "When the adults let us go play again, do you want to come and see Clover? We can bring him some sugar cubes from the kitchen." Hopefully Rory and Jasper would be too distracted by their own plans to realise she and Arkose were slipping down to the stables to visit her pony.

 

[Aurora Night]

Briefly turning back to check the fireplace for any sign of her parents or Sophia, Rory didn't have time to react to the sudden thunder of running footsteps behind her before she suddenly felt a great weight land itself upon her back. Staggering forward, she swore she almost mashed her head into the side of the fireplace from the force of the impact, but recovered quickly and turned her head awkwardly back towards the person who had ambushed her. "And you got heavier. Have you started eating bricks or something?" She grinned, placing her arms under Jasper's legs to carry him more securely, and stop his heels digging into her sides as he hung on. Hearing the Floo activate again, Rory stepped back to let her parents through unobstructed but still focused the majority of her attention on what her cousin was yelling in her ear. "Yup, I totally brought you a snake, and it's so big that it'll bite your entire head off!" Laughing, she swung herself around in wide half-circles, giving Jasper a more exciting ride. Although she had begun the escapade enthusiastically, she really hadn't been lying about her cousin getting heavier, and had to stop and stand still after a while to try and give herself a rest. It didn't last long however, because the pause made her realise that the rest of the adults had now appeared in the room - and more importantly, that Sophia was now talking to Arkose. "Arkose!" she called happily, striding over to her youngest cousin with Jasper still firmly entrenched on her back. "Man, you don't look like you've gotten heavier - I'd rather piggy-back you around than this heffalump here," she joked, hitching Jasper up a little higher. "Do you want a piggy-back ride? I'll give you one."

 

[Jasper Night]

From his position on Rory's back, he could see his uncle and aunt arrive as well, along with Rory's sister Sophia. He grinned at them each, though he paused to stick out his tongue to his cousin Sophia especially. It was so typical of Arkose to show up now, and Jasper yelled at him as soon as he saw him. "Hey Arkose! You gotta show me your hiding place sometime!" He shouted, though he didn't get off Rory's back. She was his favorite by far, and her comments about the bricks and the snake made him giggle. "Yes, I've been eating a brick with breakfast every day in preparation for Christmas!" He taunted her, digging his knees into her sides. He didn't like the attention she was giving to Arkose and groaned, couldn't she see Sophia was already talking to him? "No, you're my horse." He complained. Though right after saying that, he realized he had grown bored of sitting on her back. "I want off." He declared, before wrestling free without waiting for Rory to let him down. He nearly fell on his face, but managed to get back on his feet without incident. Then he slung an arm about his cousin Arkose, pulling him close. "So, if you want a piggy-back ride on my Rory-horse, you have to pay the fee." He said with a grin. "The tickle fee." He then started tickling his cousin with glee, laughing almost maniacally.

 

[Arkose Night]

Arkose continued to watch in silence as his aunt and uncle also appeared through the Floo, more interested in watching for Sophia to arrive than feeling out of place in the company of Rory and Jasper. At least Jasper hadn't noticed he'd come out of his hiding place yet, which was a relief. It didn't take long for Sophia to follow her parents through the fireplace, and Arkose perked up a little at seeing her. Rory might be fun, but Sophia was his true favourite cousin to spend time with. They liked a lot of the same things, and her games never seemed to wind up unintentionally hurting him like his other cousins' did. "Hi," he replied, giving Sophia a small smile as she came over to him and trying to pretend he hadn't noticed Jasper yelling at him across the room. Her suggestion widened the smile though, and he nodded eagerly. "Yes, please! Would I... would I please be able to bring him a carrot, too? Would he like that?" Arkose was still kind of in awe that Sophia had her very own pony, and she wasn't even afraid to do scary things like going over jumps on him. He didn't think he'd ever be able to do something that brave.

They were soon interrupted by Rory, however, and while Arkose had wanted to talk to his cousin before, now all he could focus on was the sight of Jasper's face leering over her shoulder as they approached. "Oh... no thank you," he responded to the offer of a piggy-back - he would much rather Jasper stay restrained up there, unable to reach him. However Arkose's words were lost under his cousin's loud yells of protest at the idea of being banished from Rory's back, and to his horror Jasper suddenly struggled down on his own. There was no time to execute the sudden impulse his mind had to run, and Arkose grimaced at being trapped by Jasper's arm, bracing himself for anything his cousin talked loudly in his ear. He didn't even want the kind of wild piggy-back Rory was sure to give him, much less have to endure whatever fee for doing so the other boy was talking about. Despite having expected something of the sort, the sudden attack of tickling was a shock to Arkose's system and he tried to wriggle out of Jasper's grasp, to no avail. "Ow, no! No Jasper, stop, please, ow!" He was laughing, but it was the sort of reaction that couldn't be helped - he wasn't enjoying the experience at all, and his cousin's fingers were beginning to jab more than tickle.

 

[Sophia Night]

Sophia smiled at Arkose's slightly anxious eagerness. "Clover loves carrots, I think he'd like that a lot." Pleased that she had a plan for the visit in place, she cast a quick look back at her parents to see if they wanted to greet her cousins too, but they were busy speaking amongst themselves as her father tried to push the soot Rory had left back towards the fireplace with his shoe. Her sister soon came over to chat though, and Sophia eyed her cautiously - she didn't mind them all talking together like this, but she hoped Rory or Jasper wouldn't suddenly come up with some crazy idea that they would try and drag her and Arkose into... from previous experience such ideas nearly always ended badly, and were never as 'fun' as they were declared to be. Jasper was his usual self of course, and for a moment Sophia allowed herself to be fond of the way he slung an arm around Arkose's shoulders - until he started tickling the younger boy. For a few seconds Sophia watched the exchange, slightly stunned, before she came back to her senses. She didn't think Jasper was purposefully trying to hurt Arkose, but in her mind it seemed fairly obvious that that her cousin was getting carried away with his actions. "Jasper, stop it," she said, trying to pull the boy's relentless hands away with difficulty. "He doesn't like it, can't you tell?" She looked up at Rory, but her sister was just laughing at the situation. "Rory, help me." It was times like this that Sophia felt like she was actually the older sibling, despite all other evidence.

 

[Aurora Night]

Having Jasper yelling in her ear didn't faze Rory in the slightest, although the way he was digging into her sides with his bony knees wasn't ideal. It didn't keep up for long though, and she let her cousin drop to the ground as soon as he indicated he wanted to get down. Rory wasn't bothered - he really had been kind of heavy. Rolling her shoulders to ease some of the strain, she then placed her hands on her hips, grinning at the apprehensive look on Arkose's face as Jasper laid out his terms for the proposed piggy-back ride. If Arkose had answered, she hadn't heard anything, although she would probably just give him one anyway, regardless of what Jasper wanted. "You know, a tickle fee's not so bad," she said, laughing as she watched her cousins begin playing. But, unsurprisingly, Sophia was a spoilsport and Rory scoffed at her worry. "Oh come on, Soph - he's laughing! He's fine." Her sister just shot her a look, however, and rather than fight about it Rory instead descended on Jasper from behind, beginning to tickle him in the same manner that he was doing to Arkose. "How about you pay a tickle fee of your own, huh?" she asked with a grin, scrabbling her fingers down her cousin's sides with glee.

 

[Jasper Night]

Jasper laughed as he tickled Arkose, not bothered by his wriggling. he was encouraged by the way his cousin laughed too, while ignoring his protests. After all, tickling was fun. Arkose was just being boring as usual. He rolled his eyes when Sophia tried to stop him. Of course it would be Sophia that would spoil the fun, and she even asked Rory to help. Thankfully Rory actually defended him, but then she started tickling him. He shrieked with laughter and let go of Arkose. He struggled and fought against Rory, trying to tickle her too. If his other cousins were going to be boring, at least he could have fun with her.

---

Later

After the adults made them behave while they "caught up" or whatever, they were finally free to explore the mansion. It never ceased to amaze him how big this house was, and he could hardly believe anyone needed this much room. He and his father lived in an apartment together, and while it had less awesome places to hide and explore, it was at least easier to navigate. Not to mention, less dramatic, and better for sock slides on the floor.

He as tagging along with his cousin Rory, as the two were more eager to explore than boring Sophia and Arkose. They were probably together fawning over the pony, or whatever it was they did. They might even be doing homework or something, as he suspected that was something they actually liked to do in their spare time. "So what's the plan, captain?" He asked Rory as he followed her around. There was no doubt that she was up to something, and Jasper was eager to see what it was. With Rory it was never boring.

 

[Aurora Night]

As soon as they were allowed to go off to their own devices Rory grinned and tore out of the drawing room, heading along a well-worn path across to the other side of the house. She was followed by Jasper, which wasn't a surprise, but thankfully Sophia and Arkose hadn't been able to keep up - if they'd even tried to come along at all. Rory didn't tend to care which of the younger kids wanted to spend time with her, but for where she was planning to go Jasper was the infinitely preferable option. He wouldn't spend the whole time whining about how much trouble they would get into - in fact, he was the kind that welcomed it. Rory shot a grin over her shoulder at Jasper's question. "Have you ever been in Grandfather's potions lab?" She didn't wait to hear his answer, instead continuing to barrel on with both her plan and down the current hallway. "I try to get in all the time, but he never lets me - and I've done proper potions at school now!" She stopped and reached behind her to pinch playfully at Jasper's arm. "How'd you like to be shrunk to three inches tall?" she asked, laughing. "Cause I could do that now." She then turned to gaze at the door she'd stopped in front of. It looked like an ordinary door, but she could never manage to get it open. "I wish I had my wand. Then I could just unlock it and we'd be in." Rory rattled the doorknob experimentally, and then lifted up her leg to try and kick it open like she'd seen done in a couple of those muggle movies. It didn't work, unfortunately. It never did.

 

[Gneiss Night]

Stuck between trying to decide whether he should mediate the latest disagreement his three (fully grown!) sons had launched themselves into, or just ignore them altogether, Gneiss was almost relieved to feel a shivering sensation ripple across his skin, alerting him to the fact that the wards in the eastern hall had been crossed. He couldn't help the fond smile that passed his lips at realising what that meant - Aurora was trying to get into the lab again. She'd been at it ever since she was a toddler, and to this day Gneiss was still unsure exactly as to just what her motivations were for trying so tenaciously. They'd all thought that after the first - and only - time she had ever been inside Aurora would have avoided the room on instinct, but fortunately it seemed that children's minds forgot some things so quickly. The trait was almost enviable, Gneiss thought as he rose from his armchair. His sons almost broke off their argument at the action, but he merely waved a hand at them to indicate that they needn't worry themselves with any judgement he might be about to rain down upon them. Gneiss was wryly amused to see that he was just as easily forgotten as the three turned back to one another. Perhaps it was only the old who remembered to take notice of things - or perhaps he really was just becoming the silly old cod they all half suspected him to be. That thought truly did lift his mouth at the corner.

There had been no point mentioning Aurora's - and, he suspected, Jasper's - antics to the middle-aged members of the family. Gneiss knew it would only give them all something else to grumble about over the edges of their wine glasses, and he rather preferred to keep everyone as agreeable as possible over the Christmas season. It was meant to be a time of togetherness, after all, even if such a thing was rather more problematic than the greeting cards made it out to be. He would almost prefer to spend all his time with the children and their simplistic views of the world, if only it wasn't for - he grimaced as he reached the end of the eastern hallway and witnessed the attacks both Aurora and Jasper were heaping upon the door to his lab. Such energy was certainly amusing, but also really quite tiring and the mask of sternness was easier to slip on this time than usual as he approached the children. "Now, I think that's quite enough, don't you?" he said, giving each of them a look that showed he meant business before he focused on Aurora, knowing she had been the instigator of this particular excursion. "My dear, you're a smart girl. You can't have thought the rules had changed since the last time you were here, hmm?" His left eyebrow rose out of habit. He wasn't truly angry at the pair - the door had held after all - but the enforcement still had to be upheld, lest either of the two began getting any ideas. Particularly Jasper. Gneiss turned his attention upon the boy, needing to make sure his grandson was in check. "I've no doubt Rora told you a very good story about what she was trying to do. Would you care to repeat the reasoning that so convinced you to attempt to break down a locked door - something that by its very essence you must have known I would not look favourably upon?" Perhaps the words sounded a bit harsh, but Gneiss had raised Jasper's father - give either of the two an inch, and they'd take a mile.

 

[Jasper Night]

Jasper was always happy to follow his cousin, but seeing her grin was definitely promising. He laughed. "Of course not, I don't have a death wish." He told her with a slight frown. "He'd be so mad!" He paused, thinking it over. "But if it's your idea, surely he'll be mad at you..." He pondered. Rory was quickly convincing him, especially when she mentioned the idea of him being shrunk to three inches tall. "You can DO that?" He asked, his eyes wide. "Really, like for real? I could do so many awesome things!" Arkose would never be able to find him if he were that tiny, and he would have a great time running up to people and biting their ankles. Though, he would have to be careful not to be stomped on too. "Hogwarts sounds awesome." He muttered. "I can't wait to learn that so I can shrink Arkose."

Eager to help, and suddenly filled with a burning desire to be three inches tall. Rory's kick didn't work, so Jasper tried it with his fists. He hit the door several times until his hands hurt. "Ouch." He muttered. "Maybe if we both push on the door together with all our strength?" He asked her eagerly. But then he heard the one voice he didn't want to hear. His grandfather. Jasper yelped and turned around, hiding his hands behind his back automatically even though he wasn't actually holding anything he shouldn't be. He was relieved when the man's ire turned to Rory instead of him, but that didn't last very long. Jasper gulped as his grandfather spoke to him. Not only that, he actually asked him why they were doing this. Why? Clearly it had been Rory's idea, why didn't she have to answer for it? "I... uh..." He started, glancing around as if hoping for someone else to come save him. "She said she could make a potion that will make me tiny. It sounded like fun." He said with a shrug.

 

[Aurora Night]

As Jasper began helping her try and break the door down, Rory was even more glad that he'd tagged along. Even as the door continued refusing to budge, she was having fun. She hadn't really expected to be able to get in anyway, it was more just a tradition to try it - and she really did want to shrink Jasper now the, idea of it was hilarious. Even Arkose would be able to push him over, not that he probably would. Her cousin's thoughts had strayed to almost the same place, and she snorted at Jasper's idea of what to do with a Shrinking Potion. "Maybe Arkose might shrink you," she said with a grin. "You'll be in the same year as your younger cousin," she teased in a sing-song voice. Sophia would be coming to Hogwarts next year, and it was kind of weird to think about the fact that in a few years all four of them would be at the school together. Rory couldn't help the grin that spread across her face at the idea of being able to jinx the younger three whenever she felt like it - all boring parental and school disapproval aside, of course.

She was about to try Jasper's suggestion for the door - it wasn't likely to work, but there was no harm in indulging him - when she suddenly heard a stern voice stretching up the hallway towards them. Brief disappointment at having her plan foiled again flashed through her, but it was gone just as quickly. Grandfather knew she always did this, he would hardly be angry at her for keeping up tradition. "No Grandfather," Rory said, trying to look suitably sorry through the amusement that was threatening to break out. "I was just... testing your reflexes. You were two minutes quicker than last time, good job." That part felt true at least, even if she really had no idea. She could tell Grandfather wasn't mad, even though he was pretending to be - they'd played this unspoken game before. Jasper didn't seem to get it though, and Rory bit her lip to keep herself from laughing at the pressure her cousin thought he was under. "It's true Grandfather, I learned the Shrinking Solution in Potions this year, as well as three other potions." She held her fingers up to demonstrate. "That means I now know six potions, and I'm so proud of my achievements that I just had to show Jasper. Please, Grandfather? We could make the potions together for him; you can supervise me!" This seemed like a suitable compromise to Rory, and she really hoped her grandfather would agree. The whole family knew that brewing was one of his most favourite things to do in the world and she'd always wanted to be able to share that fun with him. Grandfather was funny, in a different kind of way, and Rory had a feeling even be even funnier and more smiley if they made potions together. Without breaking eye contact, she reached out to poke Jasper in the side. "Go on Jas, tell him how much it would mean to you if he said yes."

 

[Jasper Night]

Jasper knew that Rory was brave, but he didn't know why she didn't seem worried about being caught at all. She even said that she had been testing their grandfather's reflexes, and it sounded like a joke! Jasper glanced at her uncertainly, a frown on his face. At least she was the one who had to talk now, who had to explain herself. Clearly it had been her idea, so if either of them would be punished it would be her. Of course, Jasper planned to help her out with whatever punishment it was. Fair was fair. He didn't understand why Rory was still fighting the case of getting to brew a potion, even with his supervision. Obviously grandfather had more important things to do than watch them, and he was already angry. He made a throat cutting motion at Rory to show her to shut up, as it seemed to him like she was only digging herself into a deeper hole, but she didn't seem to even notice. Even worse, she put the attention back on him. Jasper gulped, even though he automatically swatted at the hand she poked him with. "Uh. It would be super awesome." He conceded. "But I don't need to see." He added quickly. He wasn't quite sure what the right answer was in this situation.