The Sun Rose from the West Today

[parvati patil macmillan]

Presumed dead. Harry Potter—the Boy Who Lived—was presumed dead. He had come close to death so many times before, yet he had made it out alive. Who was to say that he wasn’t still out there, clinging to life? Well, if one was to ask the members of the Order of the Phoenix, they all had their own opinions. Parvati thought they should have known better, squabbling the way they were. No one had been able to hear much of anything over all of their talking at once, though it had been clear by the end of it that the Order was severely fractured from within.

The American girl, Finn, had had a point. Even though she wasn’t British and had been a part of the organization for only a short time, she was right: The Order wasn’t like that. The arguing, the hard feelings… It wasn’t who they were.

Victoire’s reaction to it was what had shocked her the most. Calling for vengeance, it was clear to see how young she was in spite of her past experience as Minister for Magic. Vengeance would only end badly, Parvati thought.

And Poet had had a point, too, in saying that they all needed to stand together as one. They couldn’t divide themselves that way. The Sorting Hat had warned them about that once, years before.

Maybe she had been in denial that the scene before her was truly happening, but Parvati had tried to remain neutral aside from exchanging a few glances with her sister here and there. She hadn’t brought her voice above its usual tone except for once or twice at the beginning, though she’d failed to get anyone’s attentions off of their one-track minds.

Leaving headquarters with a mix of anger and sadness, she still wasn’t sure what to think. They needed to protect the students, especially when there were so many who were coming from Ilvermorny. Vengeance. Protection. Unity.

There had been so much going on that what she needed was time. Everyone had reacted so strongly, but Parvati didn’t want to burn any bridges if she could avoid it. Everyone had been on the same side, she thought.

If she sided with Victoire, then maybe she could help her to see reason. Harry had taken risks, but she didn’t think that even he would have approved of that one.

If she sided with Finn, she knew that she would have been siding with Hermione, too. That held weight, she thought, and she knew that Hermione would be looking out for the greater good.

If she sided with Poe, there was a risk that she would be seen as not taking a position. The further apart they all became ideologically, the worse off they would be… But how many people would even bother to listen?

Apparating to the Leaky Cauldron, she went in and sat at the bar as casually as she could, given everything that had just happened and the news that wasn’t public yet. It had been a while since she’d drank anything stronger than wine, but she needed it. “A glass of firewhisky, please.”

[Deleted]

Laurel was happy, actually, no – she was ecstatic. Her divorce had pushed through, and she was no longer tied to Devin on paper. While he got nothing out of the divorce, she did get the option for child-support from Devin, but order of the judge that saw the case. He didn’t care that Devin wasn’t the father, but he had helped raise Rayne for a little while before the divorce, and he saw it fit. Though if Laurel didn’t want it, she could simply never ask for it, and she wasn’t about to do that. She wanted nothing to do with Devin Harper, not now and not ever. She wanted him fully out of her life and nowhere near her nor her daughter. She denied the need for child support since she had her family and her job that paid a good bit, she could raise her daughter just fine on her own. And luckily her step-mother, Ashley, was there to save the day. Laurel wanted to celebrate, and Ashley had offered to watch the little monster, so after dropping her off at her childhood home, she found herself apparating to the local pub and inn, The Leaky Cauldron. She hadn’t been in the establishment for years, and it still looked the same.

It wasn’t long before she arrived at the little establishment and made her way up to the bar, slipping in next to a brunette woman who seemed to be ordering a glass of fire whiskey. “A dirty martini, please,” she said as the bartender nodded to the other woman and turned towards her. He disappeared to make the drink, “Sounds like someone’s had a night,” she breathed out in attempt to converse with the other woman. She wouldn’t mind if the lady ignored her, but she was in a good mood.

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parvati patil macmillan

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[parvati patil macmillan]

A younger woman came up to the bar and sat down beside her, ordering a dirty martini for herself and then nodding to acknowledge her presence. “Sounds like someone’s had a night,” she commented.

Parvati nodded. The woman was right; her night so far had been more of a nightmare than anything, and of course she couldn’t tell her the half of it. She hoped that it would be temporary, that morning would come and that they would realize the errors of their ways. The Order was stronger together than it was divided, and they couldn’t stop moving forward because of that, either. At least she would be able to forget about that temporarily, she thought.

While she waited for her drink, she looked over to the woman beside her. She didn’t recognize her, but, then again, that was probably true for most people about that woman’s age. “Hopefully yours has been better than mine,” she said, managing a hint of a smile.

If not for her complete sobriety, she would have questioned whether or not the meeting she had just experienced had actually happened. Parvati hoped, too, that the woman who had ordered the martini had something positive to share to make up for what negativity she had just had thrown her way like a Bludger.

@laurel

[Deleted]

Laurel seemed to be in luck, because the woman answered her, though in the form of a nod, she continued the conversation and she didn’t sound annoyed when she did it. She even managed to smile at the younger brunette, and it made Laurel return that smile. “I’m sorry that I was right, believe me – there is always a light over that darkness your stuck in. Believe me, being through the entire divorce process for what feels like an eternity, finally being free from the bastard feels like a god sent,” she breathed out. She hoped that her personal life didn’t make the other woman feel awkward, some people just asked the question but didn’t want the details. “I felt the need to come out and celebrate, no more stress off my back and no one attempting to take custody of my daughter away from me,” she added just as the bartender returned with both of their drinks.

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parvati patil macmillan

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[parvati patil macmillan]

The woman beside her said that she was sorry that she’d been right about her having had a bad night so far, and then she offered her up the sort of wisdom that Parvati was used to giving her students. There was always a light somewhere, but when that light would show up this time seemed to be in the distant future, if ever. Everything seemed to be turning Dark again; it was a flashback to her past that Parvati had never wanted to relive.

And then there was another one. The younger woman beside her spoke of having only just gotten divorced, and Parvati let out a knowing laugh in spite of herself. She could relate to the sentiment that being free of her ex-husband was a blessing; she’d been in that boat the year before.

“I felt the need to come out and celebrate, no more stress off my back and no one attempting to take custody of my daughter away from me,” said the younger woman, who seemed quite triumphant.

Parvati could certainly drink a toast to that, and she held up the glass that had just been set before her in acknowledgement of the woman’s victory. “Oh, I’ve been there,” she smiled. Divorce might not have been the happiest thing over which to bond with a stranger, from an outsider’s perspective, but Parvati knew the relief it had brought her. “Cheers.”

@laurel

[Deleted]

The woman laughed as if having been in the same position that Laurel had been in before, and she held up her glass in a toasting manner, agreeing with Laurel’s thought train. The woman had been in the same boat as her, though it seemed like it had happened in the far-off past instead of in that exact moment for the brunette. Laurel smiled and raised her glass, both of them saying cheers at the same time. Laurel took a delicate sip of her martini the moment she brought it to her mouth and instantly grimaced, she hadn’t had something more than wine in a long time.

“So—what kind of day did you have that’s brought you down in the slumps…if you don’t mind me asking, of course,” she said not wanting to get into the other woman’s business if she didn’t want to.

But maybe Laurel could help her get into a better place by talking; it was something that a friend had told her a long time. As she took another sip, she almost choked as she realized that she hadn’t introduced herself, “Shit—sorry, I didn’t introduce myself. I’m Laurel, Laurel Fawley,” she said as she placed the glass back on the wooden surface quite delicately and held out her hand.

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parvati patil macmillan

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[parvati patil macmillan]

Although she hadn’t noticed the woman beside her grimace with the sip she took of her martini, Parvati did the same with her firewhisky. She didn’t habitually drink it, and now she was reminded why that was. It wasn’t exactly pleasant.

The younger woman asked her what kind of a day she had had to warrant the firewhisky, and Parvati was forced to come up with a lie. By morning, the woman next to her would know what she did already—or at least part of the story, anyhow. “It’s nothing,” she said to cover herself. “Just got in a bit of a row with a friend.” Truly, she didn’t know how many people would still be on her side of things, when all was said and done, but she was trying not to think about that.

Letting out an expletive after nearly choking on her drink, the woman beside her apologized for not having introduced herself. “I’m Laurel,” she said, placing her glass back onto the bar counter and holding her hand out for a handshake. “Laurel Fawley.”

Her surname rang a bell, of course; she had a name belonging to the Sacred Twenty-Eight. Whether that was her maiden name or the family into which she’d married—as was the case with Parvati’s own surname—she wasn’t sure. Parvati set her own glass back down and accepted Laurel’s handshake.

“Parvati Macmillan,” she smiled back.

@laurel

[Deleted]

Laurel frowned, “Oh—I’m sorry, do you think you and this friend will be able to mend your relationship?” she questioned with curiosity. Sometimes people didn’t think that they could fix a broken relationship, and sometimes you couldn’t (like her and Devin’s), but that didn’t mean you shouldn’t try to do so. Losing someone you love – rather it be romantically or just a friendship – it should be fixed rather than forgotten. Laurel smiled, recognizing the last name of those that her parents deemed worthy, mostly because they were purebloods, not that she cared much, but it was drilled into her head after all. Their hands shook for a second, smiles on each of their faces before their hands fell away. “It’s nice to meet you Parvati – that’s a pretty name, it’s the name of a Hindu goddess. Your parents have interesting taste,” she said with the smile still on her face.

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parvati patil macmillan

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[parvati patil macmillan]

The woman said that she was sorry that she had been fighting with a friend, and Parvati appreciated her sympathy for what little it helped, seeing as that was far from the whole of it. When she asked if she thought that the friendship could be repaired, Parvati nodded her head. “Hopefully,” she told her, pausing in thought. “I think we both let our emotions get the better of us,” she explained, “and I think we both need some time, really…” Time to reflect, for everyone involved, was what they didn’t have; the news had been so sudden.

When she introduced herself to the younger woman, Laurel, she complimented her, saying that her name was pretty and recognizing that namesake was a Hindu goddess. “Your parents have interesting taste.”

“Thank you,” Parvati smiled. “Yours is, too.” She supposed that Laurel’s comment about her parents’ having had interesting taste was partially true; her name wasn’t one that was heard so often, and neither was her sister’s name, Padma. Still, in the grander scheme of things, their names weren’t particularly unique, given their Indian heritage. Parvati was surprised, however, that Laurel knew the connection to Hinduism. “Do you know much about religion?” she wondered, curious as to Laurel’s interest in it, particularly because Divination, Arithmancy, and even wandlore tended to play a larger role in magical society.

@laurel

[Deleted]

Laurel nodded her head, “Oh definitely. Letting your friend and yourself cool down will likely lead to a better outcome than trying to fix it now while you both are in a bad place,” she said with a smile, “But I’m sure you two will make up!” she said with optimism in her tone of voice.

Laurel smiled, “Thanks,” she breathed out. That was one thing that her parents gave her that she loved, her name. Everything else, from her childhood and the way her parents saw the world, she hated it. They were blood purist, and she never saw herself as such, she loved all people and judging them by their blood would get you nowhere in your life. Which was why she had run away while pregnant with Rayne, everyone thought that she would be a half-blood with the way she came into the world, and even if she was, Laurel loved her with all her heart.

“Oh yeah, after I graduated from Hogwarts I went to online muggle college to take some classes that seemed interesting. One of the classes I took centered around religious studies, and I even took one on Mythologies,” she said with an awkward laugh, “I enjoyed it so much that I got into teaching Muggle Studies at Ilvermorny before it was unable to open this year.” She shrugged her shoulder with that, it wasn’t much, but she had been interested in the past of the muggle world, and while they only learned a bit at Hogwarts about that type of stuff, she wanted to know more. “I don’t know everything, but I know a bit about Hinduism – I just recognized the name,” she said with another laugh.

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parvati patil macmillan

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[parvati patil macmillan]

Continuing to play along with the idea that she had merely disagreed with someone else was difficult, and Parvati was glad for Laurel’s optimism because it meant that she could agree with her without having to divulge anything more about the situation. “I’m sure we will,” she agreed, though everything felt up in the air.

The last thing that Parvati had expected was that she would run into a new colleague at the Leaky Cauldron on what had been one of the worst nights of her life in recent memory, but that seemed to be what was happening. The pieces all fit together once Laurel mentioned Muggle Studies and having taught the subject at Ilvermorny, particularly because the chance that Laurel just so happened to be on holiday when the position had been vacant at Hogwarts was about as slim as chances got.

Laurel said that, after leaving Hogwarts, she had taken some sort of Muggle online courses, including some on religion and mythology. From there, she had started teaching Muggle Studies at Ilvermorny, although current circumstances made that difficult. Parvati, who had never immersed herself in Muggle culture beyond the points at which the magical and non-magical worlds overlapped, found it fascinating, though Laurel did admit that she didn’t know much about Hinduism aside from having recognized her name’s relation to it.

Parvati nodded her head, not sure if she should just ask the question outright. She hadn’t heard anything about who had taken up the position, though there was the risk that she would run into the awkwardness of mentioning the position, only to find out that Laurel hadn’t gotten it. Throwing caution to the wind, she asked anyway. “Will you be teaching at Hogwarts, then?”

@laurel

[Deleted]

Laurel felt like she was rambling on, but it didn’t seem like the older woman minded at all. Laurel was known to go a little too much into detail when talking about certain things, but if the person didn’t care, it meant that she avoided awkward conversation after that. It was then that the woman asked her about teaching at Hogwarts and she smiled, nodding her head, “Oh yes! I’ll be teaching Muggle Studies there this coming term,” she said with a smile. “I was so relieved to hear that the position was open, though they offered to allow me to still work at the school even if it wasn’t teaching that subject,” she said with a shrug of her shoulders. “Though—I was a bit worried about teaching the class with all that has been happening around Hogwarts, but I’m sure I’ll be fine,” she said with a small laugh. “If you don’t mind me asking, what about you? What do you do for a living?” she questioned as she took a sip, quickly praying that the woman did work and wasn’t a homemaker like many people these days.

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parvati patil macmillan

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[parvati patil macmillan]

Laurel confirmed that she would be teaching Muggle Studies at Hogwarts. Parvati nodded, giving her a hint of a smile as she continued to listen to her. “I was so relieved to hear that the position was open, though they offered to allow me to still work at the school even if it wasn’t teaching that subject,” she shrugged. Though—I was a bit worried about teaching the class with all that has been happening around Hogwarts, but I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

Parvati guessed that her new colleague’s laughter was more out of nervousness than anything else. She didn’t blame her for her fear; coming back to Hogwarts for the first time in years right after a number of students had been kidnapped—her own reintroduction to her former school—hadn’t been easy, either.

“If you don’t mind me asking, what about you? What do you do for a living?”

“Actually,” Parvati spoke as Laurel sipped her martini, “I work at Hogwarts.” She took another small sip of her own drink and then continued. “I was brought on as the school counselor last April,” she explained, since Laurel wouldn’t have had that offered to her during her time at the school, either. “I’m also Head of Gryffindor House.”

@laurel

[Deleted]

When Parvati told her that she too worked at Hogwarts, the young girl seemed to brighten up. The woman explained that she was brought on as the school counselor last April and that she was also made the head of the Gryffindor House. Laurel quickly smiled, “Well—then I guess it’s nice that I met a fellow colleague before the start of term, it’ll be nice knowing at least someone. I went there as a student a while ago, but I have no clue if some of my old teachers are even still there,” she said with a small laugh.

“It’s really interesting that you’re the head of that house, I’m was actually in Gryffindor when I went there,” she said with a smile, throwing out a random fact into the mix of conversation. “I guess that means the professor that was in that position before is no longer there,” she said with a small frown. She couldn’t remember the professor’s name, but she had liked them, but she was sure that Parvati would be just as great. Hogwarts seemed to go through a lot of professors through its progress, though not as bad as the DADA professor during the time of Voldemort’s reign, back when Harry Potter had gone there. From what she heard, and read, that position was supposedly cursed until Voldemort was vanquished.

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