Such A Long Time (Parvati)

[Deleted]

Anna wasn't entirely sure what exactly she was doing in Hogsmeade. It wasn't a weekend where the students would be coming. In fact, it wasn't a weekend at all. Today was a Tuesday, with absolutely nothing special about it. The only thing was ... she found herself wanting to wander about the place she'd gone so often when she was in school. It was one of the strangest urges, but Oscar was quite busy with his work for the time being, so she figured it would be fine if she stopped off there. 

She wandered down the street, smiling as she looked at all the buildings that were so familiar to her. She thought about slipping into the Three Broomsticks, but decided to wait a bit. She wanted to walk the rest of the way down the street and then she'd come back. She wasn't the only person there. Obviously teachers and other random people came here once they were done with work as well. That was nice to know. At least she didn't feel out of place. Maybe she'd even run into someone she knew. 

When she reached the end of the street she turned around and recognized a familiar figure not far away. "Madam Macmillan?" she called, just loud enough for the woman to hear her. She wondered, belatedly, if she should call her something else, but it was too late for that. Even though they were both adults, the woman was still her elder, so she might as well speak to her respectfully.

parvati patil macmillan

[parvati patil macmillan]

Hogsmeade weekends weren’t the most convenient for running personal errands. One didn’t have to wonder too much as to why that was; anyone who had been into the village when it was full of students knew that it could be difficult to get around. That was why Parvati had gone on a Tuesday, instead, using what free time she had before dinner for the short trip outside of the grounds.

It was about the time that most people would be returning home from work, though Parvati hadn’t expected to run into anyone she knew. All of a sudden, though, she heard a voice calling out her name and turned to see Anna Weasley there. “Anna!” Smiling warmly, Parvati greeted her and walked back in her direction. It had been quite a while since she had last had a proper conversation with the young woman, though she knew that Anna had joined Ouroboros. What was perhaps the most significant development, however, was that Anna had since gotten married.

It wasn’t something that Parvati would have expected to happen so soon. It was no secret that Anna and Oscar had been thrust into adulthood and the spotlight at once, though Parvati had neither heard nor seen anything to suggest that their marriage had been decided out of impulse. So much adversity had led the husband and wife to one another, and Parvati was happy for them.

“How are you?” she asked Anna, still smiling and stopping just before her. She looked well, Parvati thought.

@annelise

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Anna wasn’t surprised at all by the smile on her mentor’s face once she realized who was talking to her. She approached Madam Macmillan as the other woman did the same and soon enough they were standing close to one another. “I didn’t think I’d see you here,” Anna commented with a small laugh. It was nice to see a familiar face here, especially when she hadn’t expected it to happen.

Anna shrugged. “I’m doing well. Auror training’s going fine and Oscar found a job doing work for Gringotts so things are great there. How is the new year going for you? Aren’t there a lot of students here from America?” Anna was pretty sure she read about the Ilvermorny students attending Hogwarts due to some attack on their own school. She hesitated a moment and then added, “Do you want to stop off in the Three Broomsticks and we can catch up a bit?” She wasn’t sure if the other woman had somewhere she needed to be or not, but she might as well ask.

parvati patil macmillan

[parvati patil macmillan]

Anna almost immediately commented that she didn’t think she’d see her there, but she laughed and said that she was well. Her Auror training was fine, she told her, and Oscar had found a job with Gringotts. That was “great”, Anna added. “How is the new year going for you? Aren’t there a lot of students here from America?”

Parvati nodded. “Most of Ilvermorny, I think,” she answered her, responding with a laugh that was—in equal parts—both amused and a little overwhelmed. “Though, they are adjusting well,” she added. It seemed to have made it easier on a lot of the students that they and nearly everyone else from their school had been put in the same position of having to adjust to an entirely new environment. Too, they had the added benefit of not facing some of the language barriers that the students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang had had the previous year.

“Do you want to stop off in the Three Broomsticks and we can catch up a bit?”

“Of course,” Parvati smiled. “I’d love to.” It wouldn’t be too much more time out of her day, and how often would she get the opportunity to catch up with Anna?

@annelise

[Deleted]

Man, it was so nice to just see a familiar face here! The fact that it was her mentor from the Triwizard Tournaments made it even better. Anna respected Madame Macmillan more than most people probably realized, and her opinion meant a lot to Anna. She was glad to see her this evening. 

"Have you met with a lot of them?" Anna knew her mentor couldn't discuss anything the students told her in confidence, but she was interested to know if she was busier this year with them, or if she had about the same amount of students visiting her. "Do you have a lot more meeting with students this year?" 

The pair made their way over to the Three Broomsticks once Madame Macmillan said she would love too. With no students in the village, it was easy to find a booth. Anna ordered a Butterbeer and waited for the waitress to leave before she started talking again. "So did you have an enjoyable summer? Do anything fun?" Honestly, it had been way too long since she last saw her mentor. 

parvati patil macmillan

[parvati patil macmillan]

“Have you met with a lot of them?” Anna asked her, referring to the students who had come to Hogwarts from Ilvermorny. “Do you have a lot more meeting with students this year?”

“Some,” she nodded, “but it isn’t awful.” Parvati knew that there wasn’t really much more that she could say to her in that regard, but Anna had been through more than enough to be able to guess that having one’s school damaged beyond a reasonable timeframe of repair and having to be shipped off to another school in another country all the way across the Atlantic Ocean was enough to cause some disruption. She was still trying to learn all of the new students’ names, though it was admittedly easier with the Gryffindors.

“Some of their teachers came to Hogwarts, actually,” Parvati added. There weren’t many Ilvermorny staff members who had come—or, at least, not relative to the number of staff she assumed they must have had—“so I wouldn’t be surprised if they’ve spoken to them, as well.” It was probably easier for some of the students to speak with people they already knew well and trusted.

They entered the Three Broomsticks a short time later, finding the place far less crowded than it usually was. They sat down, and Anna ordered a butterbeer, while Parvati ordered a cup of tea for herself. It was after the waitress had left, though, that Anna returned to their conversation.

“So did you have an enjoyable summer? Do anything fun?”

“Well,” Parvati thought aloud with a laugh, “nothing as exciting as getting married.” She shook her head. Aside from preparing for the sudden influx of Ilvermorny students at Hogwarts, she was happy to say that her summer had been relatively uneventful. She had been able to relax somewhat, she supposed; even if it had never been a complete sense of calm, the rest of the summer had been much smoother than its beginnings had been. “Oh, Sav’s Quidditch Captain for Gryffindor now—not my doing, I promise,” she commented, smiling, “so I’m quite proud of him for that.”

@annelise

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Anna smiled as her old mentor explained a bit more about how her year was going so far. "Well good. It sounds like you're not getting too overwhelmed, which is definitely a good thing, I think." Anna wasn't quite sure how many students Madam Macmillan met with in the first place, but Anna couldn't help but wonder how she dealt with helping all of them. It seemed like a large responsibility to her. 

"Really? Is it interesting having other teachers in the school?" Anna nodded as Madam Macmillan explained that the Ilvermorny students probably spoke with the teachers they were used to. Well, that definitely made sense. If she had to switch schools and a few of the teachers she knew came along, she would definitely go to them before going to anyone else. 

She smiled and shrugged as the other woman said she hadn't done anything as excited as getting married. That had definitely been the highlight of Anna's summer, but also the highlight of her life thus far. It just didn't compare with anything else, it was that good. Anna laughed when Madam Macmillan started talking about her son. "Oh, he'll be a great Quidditch captain!" Anna hadn't really done much with Sav, or Quidditch, but she knew he was a wonderful player, so she was not surprised at all to learn he'd taken over the position. "He deserves it," she added with a nod, "and I'm pretty sure that as a mother you're entitled to being proud of him for that."

parvati patil macmillan

[parvati patil macmillan]

Anna commented that it didn’t sound as though she was getting too overwhelmed by the presence of the Ilvermorny students, which was true. If anything, the thought of bringing so many students to Hogwarts had been more daunting than the way in which everything seemed to be playing out. Considering the risk of welcoming as many students as had been willing or able to come, it had gone well. It could have been absolutely disastrous, but Parvati had yet to see any signs of serious trouble brewing.

The young woman then asked if it was interesting to have the visiting teachers from Ilvermorny there, as well as the students, and Parvati nodded her head. From the interactions she had had with them, they all seemed like reasonable people. “One of the professors teaches Native American Magic,” Parvati told Anna. “I think it must be interesting,” she added. The magical history of America had been significantly influenced by it, though it wasn’t something that was really incorporated into any of the classes at Hogwarts.

Fortunately for Parvati, Anna laughed as she mentioned Sav. She, too, agreed that he would make a good captain for the Gryffindor team. “He deserves it,” she stated, “and I'm pretty sure that as a mother you're entitled to being proud of him for that.”

“I am,” Parvati told Anna, the smile upon her face widening. It had taken her a little while to come to terms with the idea that Sav wanted to play Quidditch professionally, but it wasn’t hard too see with how serious he had become about it. He really had found his passion in the sport, and there was no way that she could have stayed upset with him about that. “I might have got him a new broomstick,” she divulged, laughing. “It was worth every Galleon, though. Sav didn’t know I’d bought it until he got to school.”

@annelise

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Anna leaned forward a little as her mentor began to talk a little more about the other professors in the school. "Oooh Native American Magic? That sounds fascinating." The type of thing she'd definitely like to learn a bit about, but probably not enough to take it as a class. While in school, Anna took the classes she felt she needed to so she could become an Auror. She hadn't had time for any extra classes. 

It was obvious that her friend was proud of her son becoming Quidditch Captain, even before the woman confirmed it to Anna, but she was glad all the same. Sav was a good guy, and a wonderful Quidditch player. He would definitely do Gryffindor proud, she was certain. Anna laughed, "I feel like he deserves some type of a reward for all his hard work," she agreed, laughing as her friend continued. "Oh? Was he so excited? I can imagine the look on his face." Anna chuckled as she imagined the younger Gryffindor's excitement when he saw a new broom for him. That would have been a great surprise.

parvati patil macmillan

[parvati patil macmillan]

Displaying what Parvati knew was genuine interest, Anna was in agreement with her that Native American Magic sounded like quite the fascinating subject. From what little Parvati understood of it all, it would be a welcome change from the same magic and the theories of it that had always been used at Hogwarts. It would broaden the students’ understanding of the world, too, which was one of the benefits of all of the associations and foreign faces in and out of Hogwarts over the past year or two. Parvati made a mental note to speak with the Native American Magic professor, Clarence Corntassel, about his subject when they got the opportunity.

On the subject of Savtaj’s Quidditch captaincy, good-natured laughter seemed to be a constant from Anna. She said that she felt as though he deserved a reward for his hard work, then she kept laughing as Parvati mentioned his new broomstick. “Oh? Was he so excited? I can imagine the look on his face.”

Parvati, too, found herself laughing again and shaking her head. “…I don’t think he realized it at first!” she admitted. “He brought his old broom to school with him on the train, and I didn’t give it to him until after the feast.” She paused. “Really, I think I might have scared him when I had him come to my office…” Her laughter now was at her own lack of planning there. She’d wanted to surprise him, although maybe she hadn’t gone about it in quite the right way. “He loves it, and I’m honestly relieved… I didn’t have the slightest idea what to buy him when I went into the shop.”

@annelise

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Anna laughed with Parvati as she continued to talk about her son. "I'm sure he was taken by surprise when you gave it to him." At least, she would have been surprised if either of her parents did something like that. Granted, her father generally didn't do things like that, but still ... it was the thought that counted and Parvati definitely put some thought into her gift.

Anna nodded her head enthusiastically, "I'm not surprised. As a general rule, Quidditch players love to get equipment." She chuckled, "And I should know. I have enough cousins that love the sport." Anna hadn't really gotten any of them gifts for Quidditch, but she'd helped their parents come up with Quidditch gifts sometimes.

"Anything else interesting going on with the new year?" Anna asked curiously. She couldn't imagine what the school was like with so many new students, but she was interested in any information she could get on the subject. 

parvati patil macmillan

[parvati patil macmillan]

Anna voiced that she wasn't surprised to hear that Sav had loved his new broomstick. "As a general rule," she said lightly, "Quidditch players love to get equipment. And I should know. I have enough cousins that love the sport." The Weasleys had always gravitated towards it, and the extended family was large enough that they probably could have their own friendly matches between relatives if the mood struck them.

"Anything else interesting going on with the new year?"

"There are more students, but, shockingly, it's been almost… normal," Parvati relayed to her. "Not that anything at Hogwarts has ever been particularly normal," she smiled, "but it's…" It wasn't "quiet", really, with so many more students around the corridors of the castle than before, but there wasn't really any trouble, either—not on the scale that Hogwarts was used to seeing it. "Even with all of the changes, all of the adjustments—it's like we can breathe again," she clarified, as unfair as that seemed for someone like Anna, especially.

"I know it isn't going to last forever, but…" Parvati shook her head. It sounded so silly, when what it was was likely nothing more than a false sense of security. "It's nice, for Hogwarts to feel like Hogwarts again."

@annelise

[Deleted]

Anna smiled as she listened to her old mentor explain that things at Hogwarts were almost normal, even though Hogwarts typically wasn't a very normal place. "So the tense atmosphere isn't there anymore?" Anna asked, hoping that she'd interpreted her friend's words correctly. The thing was, there was a tension at Hogwarts for the past few years, taking away the peaceful school that she knew and loved. She hoped it was back to how it was before Elaine started all her attacks. 

Anna nodded, "I love that it actually feels normal though," Anna agreed. "At least the new students can see it this way, you know? The way it's meant to be." She closed her eyes for a moment, remembering why she loved the school so dearly.

parvati patil macmillan

[parvati patil macmillan]

"So the tense atmosphere isn't there anymore?"

Parvati didn't think that the tense atmosphere, as Anna described it, would be gone until they knew for certain that Elaine Dupree was locked up in Azkaban along with everyone else who was associated with her, but Hogwarts had not felt so relaxed since Parvati had been working there. The students who had been at Hogwarts, who had been there for the attacks, would be forever changed by them, Parvati knew. Although perhaps not all of them had been visibly affected, having to wonder how long it would be before they or their friends or their families would be put in danger again.

"I don't think that anyone is going to forget what has happened," Parvati considered, for better or for worse, "but not to have that fear constantly…" It took off some of the weight, and every little helped.

Anna commented that she loved that Hogwarts felt normal again, even if she wasn't there to experience it that way. "At least the new students can see it this way, you know? The way it's meant to be."

At that, Parvati couldn't help but smile. There was always something happening at Hogwarts, from the professor who had turned out to be possessed by Voldemort (Quirrell) in her own first year to the battle that was supposed to have fixed it all. She'd come to realize—somewhere in that span of time—that the darkness in the world would never be "fixed". Regimes would fall, and people would be brought to justice, but something or someone else would seek whatever they felt they would gain from the Dark Arts. Yet, in spite of all of that, that didn't mean that there couldn't be light or hope or love.

"That so many students came from Ilvermorny," Parvati spoke aloud, "that they and their families still trust Hogwarts and the Ministry, is so important." It was so telling of how well Hermione and Professor McGonagall had done to keep everything under control, even in the aftermath of the Triwizard Tournament. Britain couldn't afford to lose its allies. "We have your Aunt Hermione and Professor McGonagall to thank for that."

@annelise

[Deleted]

Anna nodded her head seriously when Parvati explained that the fear wasn't gone, it just wasn't the prevalent emotion at Hogwarts right now. That was good. To Anna, it meant that her statement still stood. Hogwarts could be enjoyed the way it was meant to be when one wasn't constantly worried about being attacked. Yes, being prepared and on guard was good and especially important, even now, but feeling safe inside the school was also important. 

She listened as he friend started talking about how it was a good thing that so many students came from Ilvermorny. "I think that's a great thing," Anna agreed. "And I'm glad that they trust us. It's a good thing after everything that happened last year." She was referring, of course, to the attack on the Durmstrang and Beauxbaton students. That wasn't necessarily Hogwarts' fault, or the Ministry's, but everyone still felt responsible all the same. "Do those students seem all right? Like, they don't seem worried to be in Hogwarts or anything?" That was something Anna hadn't thought of before, how they might feel coming to a school where the previous visitors were murdered on their way home. Maybe they hadn't thought about it.

parvati patil macmillan