Fireworks

Chapter 6: Fireworks

"How do you feel about writing a character development scene?" asked Biff.

"I'll give it a try," said Theo.

It was Sunday afternoon, and Andromeda was pouring Jonathan another tea. "Have you had a chance to see much of our country, or have you been busy in the library?"

"Just the library and the nearby countryside."

"Is it much different from where you were?" she asked. "Or were you in a lot of different places?"

"A number of places," he said. "Most of them a safer place to put a school."

"Even that castle is dangerous," said Andromeda. "You're being careful, aren't you?"

"He's been looking for documents about the founders," said Lucius.

"What interests you about them?" asked Andromeda. "Are they similar to the founders of other schools you've visited?"

"He's skeptical about the standard story of the split," said Narcissa.

"Oh, that thing," said Andromeda. "I accepted it when I was in school. We were just naïve children. I haven't thought about it since, but it would be quite a revelation to discover that's not how it happened."

Narcissa spoke up. "Skippy is certainly well behaved. I was afraid he would chase the peacocks."

"Maybe he likes bigger game," joked Lucius.

"Do you prefer bigger game, Skippy?" asked Andromeda.

Skippy's eyes met Andromeda's.

"Oh, I thought Lucius was joking, but he might have been serious. Does Skippy prefer bigger game, Jonathan?"

"Skippy is a faithful companion," said Jonathan.

"He looks independent," said Cissy. "Now, brooms always come when you call."

Jonathan nodded in pleasant agreement before saying, "That makes me curious. Can one teach a broom tricks?"

"I like the way your mind works, old chap," said Lucius. "Let's try it and see."

They began by having brooms soar and do acrobats at the wave of a wand. The brooms seemed to enjoy it. Next, they experimented with training the brooms to perform complicated routines by a simple command. Some brooms were amenable and others not.

As they were resting, Lucius mentioned he had been trying to formulate potions for fireworks. Jonathan suggested sending the pyrotechnics aloft on a bewitched broom.

"Something for Guy Fawkes Day," he said.

"But that was explosives in the cellar," said Narcissa.

"But we're wizards," said Jonathan.

"Ah, the inverse, splendid," said Andromeda.

Jonathan indicated the cracker plate. "Do you think our aerial display could match the pattern in this china, subtle but striking?"

Narcissa sat upright and refilled his teacup.

Lucius was eager to begin, but didn't think they should undertake anything as tricky as fireworks in their fatigued state. Jonathan agreed to appear next week to help.

"What about Saturday brunch?" suggested Andromeda.

As he was leaving, Jonathan realized he had spent several hours not tormented by thoughts about a certain witch.

"At last," said the editor. "The boys are advancing the plot, and they wrote it as an innocent encounter. Our heroine can show her mettle by uncovering their nefarious intentions."

Those who imagine themselves keepers of moral rectitude often inveigh against gossip, and while we might agree that malicious things are sometimes better left unsaid, we must not lose sight of the contribution that the flow of information makes to the functioning of society, and that this information plus the social cohesion that it fosters do make a better life for us all as we struggle to make sense of the world around us and make correct decisions despite the miasma of ignorance and misleading pronouncements in which we must all lead our daily lives.

"If the boys can't champion our intrepid witch after that lead-in, they should turn in their license to write," said Cho.

Later, the boys were reviewing the latest.

"I can't face moral rectitude without another espresso," complained Theo.

"Brace up, old bean," said Biff. "Let the hot brew of femininity be your pick-me-up."

Hermione was gratified that Luna took Jonathan consorting with the Malfoys seriously although she couldn't figure out why the other girl was obsessing about Andromeda.

She needed more information, and she went immediately to the one who could let her observe anything that happened on the Malfoy estate.

"Dobby is not certain he should spy on his old family," said the elf.

"It's for their own good," said Hermione. "They're being led astray again. You don't want that to happen, do you?"

"Well, no," said the elf.

'It was bad enough when it was by a Brit wizard, but this time it's by a smooth operator from the continent," said Hermione. "He even has Luna thinking he's innocent. Imagine how much trouble he could get the Malfoys in before they suspected anything."

"Dobby hadn't thought of that," said the elf.

The next day she took her revelations to Ron and Harry, but they weren't convinced there was any need for alarm.

Back at her flat, she confided to Crookshanks. "I had hoped those two had matured to the point they recognized the need for prompt action, but alas, they're still a disappointment. Well, we'll gather more evidence and convince them. I can only pray that they'll see reason before it's too late."

"I've been thinking about Jonathan and the Malfoys," said Theo.

"Great," said Biff. "Let me take care of the aftermath of the Midsummer Festival and try to do something coherent with the touchy-feely stuff the girls left dangling."

Monday morning, Luna skipped down to the library as brimful of expectations as a carelessly filled teacup.

"Good morning, Jonathan."

"Hello."

"Did you go to the Midsummer Festival? I didn't see you there. Neville and I went to all the booths. It was lots of fun. And Neville got to see a lot of new plants."

"That's great."

"What did you do all weekend? Are you going to show me that subtle lemma Saturday? Neville's got to run errands for his gran. I'm free."

"I went to a tea party. I'm going to another one this weekend."

"Oh," said Luna.

"Aftermath done," said Biff. "Touchy-feely undangling next."

She was strolling through the streets and pausing to look in the shop windows.

"Are you really interested in the latest astrolabes? Be you taking up forecasting the future?"

She turned to face Alistair. "Until you pointed it out, I didn't realize what I was looking at, but now that you mention it, do we really want to know the future."

"Some be believing that if we're forewarned of catastrophe, we will be braced to face it," said Alistair.

"Do you see only doom in your future?" asked Andromeda.

"How quickly you be turning the conversation personal. Foresee you a time for a cup of tea before fate descends upon us?"

"Together, we will defy it," said Andromeda.

Mellowed by a hot brew, the conversation turned to the Sunday afternoon of training brooms. Alistair thought it a most entertaining idea. Andromeda opined that Jonathan and Lucius inspired each other. Alistair expressed the hope that Jonathan finally relaxed. The man was wound tight enough that he had to snap. Andromeda asked if he were talking about himself.

"Quite the probing lass, aren't you," remarked Alistair.

"Were there any significant events that gave you your current attitude?" asked Andromeda. "There had to be. How long ago did they happen?"

"Perhaps longer ago than I care to recall."

"During your school years?" asked Andromeda. "Are your parents still alive? Did you lose friends to the Dark Side? Family?"

At this, Andromeda stared wistfully into the distance until Alistair said, "Who knew that training brooms would conjure up melancholy memories. Be there regret from last Sunday? Did you get to participate?"

She shook her head no before adding that she would like to try but didn't want anyone to laugh at her clumsiness. Alistair assured her that he wouldn't laugh and she could enjoy his ineptness. She placed her hand on his and declared he had made a promise he had to keep. There was a field a short distance away that was safe from prying eyes. They could gather some old brooms suffering from neglect and give them a chance to learn new tricks. With the universe back in balance, Andromeda declared that Lucius and Jonathan deserved their time together. There were lots of things Lucius wanted to forget. She was certain there were thoughts that Jonathan wanted to escape from.

"Aye, lass, there be a subtle lemma," said Alistair.

"I've never heard Luna called that before," said Andromeda.

Biff gave the story line over to Theo. "Go get 'em, tiger."

The next Saturday saw Jonathan and Lucius concocting strange powders and Andromeda telling her sister about Alistair and teaching old brooms new tricks. Narcissa was telling her that was wonderful, hoping Alistair would soon man up and get in her sister's pants.

It was time for a demonstration.

"Boys will be boys," said Cissy.

Andy agreed.

The trained broom rose high into the sky before blossoming into a brilliant red and yellow display.

"Can we try?" asked the girls.

Jonathan and Lucius admitted they had been working on a packet they called the Big Bang, and they were pleasantly surprised when Cissy and Andy agreed that a fiery affair should end with a grand climax.

As quietly and as full of dread as a mouse who had been spying on a symposium of hunting weasels, Hermione took Dobby by the hand and retreated from the mysterious, but obviously sinister, display of pyrotechnics.

"Back to the integration with minor characters," said Theo.

The hooded figures had gathered in the local pub as usual, but this time, there was reason for hope. Their informants in officialdom had reported that a witch was causing a commotion about some stranger. They were certain it was the one they were trying to locate because nothing else could be happening on this backwater island. The information so far was that he was involved in academia and with some rich family. The witch causing the commotion was working with an elf, and they would be easy to track.

Biff had thought out the next segment. "Now's the time to write something surreal, not a task to be undertaken lightly."

Hermione went to bed troubled, certain that the sport with the brooms was part of a deadly plan.

Thousands of brooms were in the air ... the castle defenses were down ... Justin Finch-Fletchley was calmly lecturing on the offense overwhelming the defense ... Malfoys the potion masters ... brooms tearing through hallways like demented hornets ... explosions clearing the rooms of blood traitors ... all her friends falling ... they were coming ... she was grateful she didn't have to witness any more of this life.

She sat bolt upright in bed. "That's why Jonathan is here. That's what he came to Britain to do."