Tis the Season

[Margo Liddell]

Though she was staying at Hogwarts for a good chunk of Christmas break (Auntie Sophie would be busy preparing her coven for Yule) this weekend she was back home. Being a part of the magical community now it was strange to Margo that her aunt would participate in the wiccan religion still. It was something Margo could not quite wrap her head around. She was having trouble trying to figure out how the two worlds could mesh together but honestly, that was up to Auntie Sophie to decide. All Margo had to worry about for now was attending Hogwarts and getting good grades. As long as she and Sophie got along everything would be fine and Margo certainly loved her eccentric Great Aunt. Margo really was lucky to have someone to take her in once her dad had decided he couldn't deal with her anymore. The young girl still felt as if her father had just abandoned her after her mothers death, casting her aside along with his old life as he started a new one with that insufferable twit Mindy.

That was not something to think of now however. Now it was Christmas time, a time for cheer and laughter and love. Despite the strange weather Margo was excited to be spending her Christmas at Hogwarts. She couldn't wait to experience the Holiday in a place of magic, wondering if there would be any differences. Of course the weather would be different. There was little hope for a white Christmas in New Zealand, where Christmas fell during the summer months. It was alright though. Perhaps she'd be able to take a swim. One thing was for sure, Christmas shopping was definitely more enjoyable in the warm weather. Sure she still had to battle the crowds, but it was much easier to do when one wasn't freezing.

It was said Christmas shopping that had brought Margo Liddell to Obsidian Harbor that weekend. She'd just spent the day bustling around from store to store trying to pick out the perfect gift for everyone on her list. Luckily it was a rather short list and she hadn't had very much trouble picking out her items. For auntie Sophie she'd purchased a beautiful hand painted set of tarot cards charmed so that the pictures moved. Of course her aunt couldn't use them around any other muggles, but she would love them just the same. Her father she'd simply gotten a tie. It hadn't required any thought, but Margo felt he was lucky to even be getting a gift from her at all. Her friends had been a bit more challenging. For Kaleb she had a stuffed wolf, a journal for Griffin, a pretty locket for Isla and a book on famous Quidditch seekers for Eugene. With her shopping complete Margo decided to take a break and people watch for a bit while she decided what to do next.

It was because of the people watching that Margo even noticed the girl in the first place. There was nothing particularly striking about the girl to separate her very much from the crowd aside from the fact that she seemed to be of an age with Margo. Many of the other children Margo's age were accompanied by adults. Margo herself was allowed quite a bit of freedom, but she knew it was strange for an twelve year old to be wandering Obsidian Harbor on her own and so her attention was drawn to the other girl. After watching the girl for a little over a minute Margo realized that the poor thing seemed a bit lost and confused, as if this were her first trip to Obsidian Harbor and she had no idea where to go. Seeing her reminded Margo of herself merely four months ago. Immediately Margo felt a sort of kinship toward her and knew she had to help. Without a second thought Margo walked over to where the other girl was standing and said, "Hey, sorry if I'm wrong but you look like you might be able to use some help. I'm Margo by the way." Margo shot the girl her warmest smile hoping to put her at ease a little.

 

[Paige Jacobs]

Paige continued to look around the street with a look of uncertainty, a piece of paper clutched in her hand as her head kept turning in all directions. She had arrived in Obsidian Harbour about ten minutes ago, but she'd been almost frozen to the same spot ever since. For months she'd been thinking that this magic thing had all been some kind of joke, especially since nothing seemed to come of it in September when she'd been supposed to start. But now Paige was finally here, standing in a wizarding street about to buy school supplies for a place she wasn't even sure really existed. Of course, being here made it hard to deny such a thing, but she was still having doubts because it just seemed like too much to hope for. Paige had been wanting to belong somewhere for her entire life. She'd often been called 'weird' at school, and she knew that both sets of foster parents thought of her as strange. Even though magic seemed like an impossible reason for what had been happening, Paige still found she had wanted to believe even as she remained skeptical. Here could finally be the reason that she was different, and maybe this world could even be a place where she could be accepted as a normal person. It had to be.

Paige suddenly realised that she'd been staring at everything for too long. Sure, wonderful and amazing things were happening all along the street, but she was here for a reason. She was supposed to be buying school supplies, only... she had no idea where to get anything on this list. Paige looked down at her piece of paper and then up at the shop signs, but nothing leaped out at her. She was about to turn around to look behind her, when a girl unexpectedly popped up in front of her. Paige had never been approached by anyone her own age before so at first she was surprised. This girl was not only being friendly to her, but she actually seemed to want to help Paige. Returning the bright smile directed her way, Paige replied "Oh my gosh, I would love some help, thanks. I'm Paige, and I'm kind of new to all this." She wondered if things were already beginning to get better for her.

 

[Margo Liddell]

The smile on the other girls face filled Margo with warmth. The Gryffindor girl loved making people happy and seemingly she'd been able to do so with a simple sentence. Perhaps she'd even be able to make another friends today. These days, thoughts about friendship were always accompanied with waves of worry. She couldn't help but think of Isla and Kaleb, both of whom she hadn't seen for almost two months now. Pushing her worry aside Margo kept a smile plastered on her face and genuinely replied, "It's a pleasure to meet you Paige. Let me guess, you come from a non-magical family? It's alright, I do too, they call us muggle borns. There's tons of us. But what are you doing in Obsidian Harbor at this time of year if you're a muggle born? I don't mean to be rude or anything. I'm just curious." Margo smiled apologetically at Paige hoping she hadn't said too much.

Standing in the middle of Obsidian Harbor looking at all the Christmas decorations with a girl she'd never met before today, Margo realized she was glad that Paige needed help. The Harbor was beautiful this time of year and with nothing left to do Margo would have likely been heading home soon. Helping Paige would be a sort of adventure and Margo needed a new adventure. She was still discovering new things at Hogwarts every day but the school was starting to feel like home. Obsidian Harbor was still brand new, and with a new friend to explore with today could turn out to be quite fun. "I'm glad you needed help actually," Margo confided, "I didn't want to leave yet, but I'm already done with all my shopping and didn't have an excuse to stay. So tell me, how can I be of assistance?"

 

[Paige Jacobs]

Paige was happy to see that the other girl - Margo, she must remember that - began talking away to her so fast. Most kids her age just stared at her awkwardly and made excuses to leave. It was like they sensed something about her that made her seem like a freak. Margo didn't seem to feel any such thing, however, so Paige continued to smile at her, even if it faltered a little bit when the other girl mentioned the word 'family'. "Yeah, that's right. I had no idea magic even properly existed until about... seven months ago. I'm here to buy school supplies, which is what I need help with actually." Paige held up the list she'd been holding. I have no idea where any of this stuff is."

Of course, she'd known that her foster father, David, wouldn't have wanted to come anywhere near this place to help her - and to be honest, Paige didn't want him to. It had been almost a year since - it - had happened, and David was worse now than he'd been all year. She'd been dreading Christmas for awhile now and she couldn't wait for the holidays to be over so she could leave. Going to this new school was going to good for Paige in so may ways - as long as she could actually get all the things she needed. Holding out the list so Margo could see it, Paige began explaining "Apparently I need to buy all the things on this list for the school I'm starting at in January. But I have no idea where to start." She shrugged, hoping Margo wouldn't think she was too pathetic for being unable to find her supplies by herself.