New Year's Eve
Right before Christmas, Liam received a card from Gillian and a brief note: Hey, we’re having a New Year’s Eve party! You should come! A few days later, Todd Roycester called Liam to fill him in on the arrangements. Todd spoke at length with Annie as well.
“There’ll be a few girls over, Mrs. Wren, but rest assured, after everyone goes to bed, the boys will be in one room and the girls in another. My mum will put up extra charms to make sure there’s no shenanigans in the night.”
“That’s comforting,” said Annie, who wasn’t Mrs. Wren anymore, but she didn’t correct him. “You won’t be serving alcohol, will you?”
“Just butterbeer, ma’am.”
“Oh! I tried some of that one time when we were at Diagon Alley. It was quite good. And you’ve invited both of my sons?”
“Patrick is a right and proper Gryffindor, ma’am,” said Todd. “He’s welcome at the Roycester home any day, any time.”
Once the Christmas festivities wrapped up, it was a long, slow wait for New Year’s Eve. Liam and Patrick roamed the neighborhood with the local boys. The brothers said as little as possible about their school, except to say that they rarely saw one another.
Patrick told his friends, “Of course, Liam got himself elected prefect, and is now an unsufferable pain in the ass. I step an inch out of line and he reads the riot act on me every time.”
At three o’clock in the afternoon on the last day of 2010, Liam heard the rumbling of a big V-8 engine. The Wren brothers rushed out the front door to investigate.
There on the driveway was a bright red sedan with the words GTS across the grill. The car doors opened, and out came Todd and Gillian Roycester. From the backseat, with a big grin on her face and an untidy mop of orange hair on top of her head, popped Shona MacDougal.
“Hey there!” said Liam. “Happy New Year!”
Gillian ran to his side and gave him a big hug. Her thoughts were immediately in his head. Thanks for the cookies!
“You’re welcome,” he said. To Todd, he added, “Nice car. What is it?”
“This is a 1973 Holden Monaro GTS. Rear wheel drive, manual transmission, and a few alterations by yours truly, both mechanical and otherwise.”
Patrick and Shona shared a fist bump. Liam said, “Hey, little one. How’s your sister doing?”
“Dark and moody as usual,” said Shona. “She’s wearing trousers all the time now. Every time Grandmum sees her, she shrieks that there’s an intruder in the house.”
Liam nodded. “I’d be dark and moody, too, if I had to put up with all that.”
The group went inside. Todd introduced himself to Annie. “Nice to meet you in person, Mrs. Wren.”
“It’s nice to meet you! Thank you for your generous offer to host the boys.”
“No trouble at all.”
Annie moved on to Gillian. “Nice to see you again. Did you have a nice Christmas?”
“Yes, thanks!” There was only the slightest hesitation, as Gillian had to remember to speak instead of communicating telepathically, as she did all the time when she was home with her family.
Annie reached out and gave Shona a brief hug. “Hello, sweetie. I’m so glad you and Patrick are still friends.”
“Me too!” said Shona.
“You have a sister, too, don’t you? Is she coming to the party?”
“No, thank god,” said Shona. “I need a break from her.”
“Mac is a Slytherin,” said Liam. “It would be like inviting a Hotspur fan to an Arsenal party.”
“I see.” She turned to Liam and said, “You’ll behave yourself, won’t you? Magic spells or no, you need to be a good guest.”
“I got this, mum, don’t worry.”
“Alright, go get your things.”
Liam went down the hall to his room to grab his bag. Gillian lingered by in the hall by his door. Away from Annie, she immediately reverted to telepathic communication. There’s a weird aura in this room. You haven’t been seeing another witch on the side, have you?
Liam answered verbally, “Of course not. Besides me and Pat, there’s no magical people in this whole town.”
Gillian was peering into the middle distance, with a gaze not unlike Lara’s when she was having a prophetic vision. I’m sensing something.
“I still have a few letters from Ness under my bed.”
It isn’t that. She entered the room and went to the nightstand. She opened the drawer and pulled out the book Modern Quidditch Strategy by Geoffrey Woodbine. It’s this.
“I have to keep that out of sight in case I have a neighborhood buddy over.”
Gillian opened the book and read the handwritten dedication: Happy Christmas. Fondly, Wen. When she touched the page, her hand recoiled as if stung. Who is she?
“Morwena Felwich. She gave that to me last year.”
I’ve never heard anyone call her Wen. Gillian tossed the book back into the drawer. You and Hark are too close to those Slytherin witches. They’re trouble – a bad problem just waiting to happen.
“Morwena and I have a good working relationship,” said Liam. “But that’s all. She’s not angling to be my next girlfriend, believe me.” He pulled Gillian into an embrace and gave her a brief shot of his heat spell. “Don’t worry about it, okay? Let’s go enjoy your party.”
Todd appeared in the hallway. “You ready to go?”
“Yes."
“Grab your broom. We’ve got hoops set up. We’re gonna play some three-on-three.”
Liam grabbed his broom. Patrick had his as well. They went to the kitchen to say goodbye to Annie.
“Have fun, mum, with the house to yourself,” said Liam. “Don’t stay up too late.”
She laughed. “Same goes for you, son. Behave yourself and watch after your brother.”
“I always do.”
Liam thought Monaros had bucket seats up front, but this one had a long bench, front and back. The stick shift had a black knob at the top. Todd got in the driver’s seat. Patrick opened the front passenger door for Shona and she slid in so that she was between the two boys. Liam and Gillian got in the back.
Liam saw Todd’s blue eyes in the rearview mirror. The older boy didn’t have to say a thing. Liam got the message loud and clear – That’s my sister, there, buddy. Liam stretched out his arm and Gillian leaned against him, but his hand stayed off her tight blue jeans.
Todd drove normally out of town. On the narrow roads north of Biggleswade, he accelerated. The landscape became a blur, and then they were deep in the English countryside, pulling up to a sprawling house. There were piles of snow by the pathway up to the house. Off to the side, on a wide lawn, Liam could see three full-sized Quidditch hoops.
Family and friends poured out of the house to greet the new arrivals. Sadie was there, as was Alma, Dave and Paul. Liam recognized Brian Roycester, who had coached him on being a keeper in Quidditch the season before. There were many others, too, that Liam did not know at all. Watching it all from the top step was Gillian’s parents. They looked to be about ten years older than Liam’s mother and father.
A round of hellos, hugs and handshakes followed. Todd said, “Hey, let’s get a game of three-on-three going!”
Brian quickly agreed. “No keepers. 1 point per hoop. First to ten wins.”
Todd offered a coin. “Flip to see who goes first?”
Brian shook his head. “I want a neutral coin, not one that came out of your pocket. And, a neutral flipper, too.”
Gillian ran to get a sickle from her father. It had the image of a quarter moon on one side and the Ministry of Magic edifice on the other. Liam flipped the coin. Brian shouted “Building!” When the coin hit the stone path, the building side was face up.
“You didn’t let him tweak that flip, did you?” asked Todd.
“I have skills,” said Liam. “Nobody can tweak my flip.”
“Alright, I’m picking first,” said Brian, “and I’m going with this bright lad right here.” He put his arm around Liam.
“Fair enough,” said Todd. “Let’s make a game of that. Older sibs vs younger sibs. I get young Patrick here, and I’ll take little Mac while I’m at it.” Shona grinned to be called such.
“I’m taking Jill, then,” said Brian.
I’m not an ‘older sib!’ argued Gillian.
“You’re a big sister to this little one,” said Todd, with his arm around Shona. “Let’s play ball.”
They grabbed their brooms and went to the pitch. On the far side, Liam could now see a second set of hoops. The sun reflected brightly off the snow. Liam cast charms on his sunglasses to keep them from fogging up or falling off his head. “Is this a full-sized pitch?” he asked.
“Three quarter size,” said Brian. “Big enough for a game of 3 on 3.”
Liam lined up to the left and Brian to the right. Patrick lined up across from Liam and Todd across from his brother. Gillian took her regular spot as center chaser, across from Shona. Paul volunteered to do the ball toss. “Don’t count on me cutting in on any sibling rivalry, though. If you foul your own brother, you have to live with the consequences.”
Shona was quick off the mark, but Gillian had longer arms and gathered the ball first. She fired a pass to Liam and the game was on.
The Wren brothers had the same type of broom. Liam at first could not shake Patrick’s tight defence. He was forced to pass the ball back to Gillian. She shot it right back to him on the give-and-go. Patrick’s try at an interception failed. Liam gathered in the Quaffle and then fired a shot through the center hoop for the game’s first score.
Patrick was eager to even the score. He took the ball up the pitch as fast as his broom would go. Liam tried to poke it free, but Patrick held the ball securely in the crook of his arm. He raced all the way to the hoop and pushed it through at point blank.
“No keeper would have let you do that,” warned Liam.
“There isn’t any keeper!” retorted Patrick.
Anytime one of the Roycester brothers had the ball, the other would tackle him. They would fall off their brooms and float gently down onto the snow, where the wrestling match would continue.
Shona did not have her own broom, but she borrowed an old Nimbus from the Roycesters. With a quick burst of speed, she flew in front of a pass from Gillian to Liam and shot in the other direction with it. Seeing the open pitch in front of her, she let loose a long throw towards the center hoop. A regular ball would have fallen to the ground, but magic keeps Quaffles in the air. In a regular game, Gillian would have overtaken the ball and swept back the other way. Instead, they all sat on their brooms and watched while Shona’s ball sailed as straight and smooth as a long put across a tightly mown green. When the ball went through the hoop, everyone cheered.
“Atta-girl, little Mac,” shouted Paul. “Just like your old man.” Shona beamed with pride.
With the score only at 2-1, the teams abruptly gave way to another sextet. Sadie, Alma and another girl that Liam did not know paired up against Paul, Dave and Adam. Sadie rode a brand-new Falcon. It was bright blue and nimble. She intercepted two passes and scored a couple of easy goals. Liam and Gillian cheered her on.
“Come on, Wren!” shouted Paul. “You’re supposed to be rooting for us! We’re defending male pride here.”
“The girls are quicker and smarter than you,” said Liam. “They’re going to beat you.” He was right.
Afterwards, everyone went in for hot chocolate. Liam sat down on a sofa by the fire, his arm around Gillian. Sadie and Alma sat adjacent. Christmas music was playing softly in the background.
Liam said to Sadie, “You flew really well out there.”
“Thanks!”
“Given any thought to trying out for your House team?”
“Not really. What would be the point of playing on the junior team? I’m a Sixth Year!”
“Forget the practice squad,” said Liam, firmly. “I say you’re good enough to start for the House team.”
Gillian nodded in agreement. You should be a Seeker, Sadie. You’d be a natural.
“I can’t be Seeker! I’ve hardly played Quidditch at all!"
Liam shook his head. “The skill positions – Chaser, Keeper, Beater – those take years of practice to get good at them. Seekers are different. All you need is eye-hand coordination and a good broom. I say you have both. Get some practice this spring and you’ll be ready.”
“You’re not just saying this to be nice?”
“You wouldn’t beat Hark to a Snitch,” said Liam. “He has the fastest broom in the school. But you’re just as quick as some of the other Seekers I’ve seen. You kept up with Alma today just fine, and she’s a starting Seeker. Go ahead and try out.”
Sadie smiled and blushed to see the encouraging nods from Gillian and Alma. “Alright, I’ll do it. I’ll try out for my team.”
Gillian broadcast another thought to the group. Guess who got a Witchter ball for Christmas!
Sadie and Alma looked expectantly at Liam. He fished the silver ball out of his pocket. “Oh yeah. I have to keep this thing out of sight when I’m at home, but I brought it today.”
“Now you can keep up with what we’re all talking about!” said Alma.
“I think I do alright at that without it,” said Liam, “but it’ll be helpful communicating with the other prefects.”
Sadie took hers out of her bag. “Hey, let’s connect. Just touch your ball to mine, and then we’ll be connected.” Liam spent the next several minutes tapping the Witchter balls of his friends. They all had one of their own.
More guests arrived. Gillian switched to the spoken word to provide introductions. “This is my cousin Gertrude. She went to Hogwarts with Brian … Hi, Uncle Bob! This is my boyfriend Liam …You remember Allison, don’t you? She was a prefect when we were firsties ….”
Warm aromas wafted in from the kitchen – scents of garlic, tomatoes and parsley. Gillian and Liam helped set plates on a long table that made a sharp right turn and continued on out of the dining room into the room beyond. Dinner was served – pans of lasagna, trays of garlic bread. There was glasses of wine and mugs of butterbeer. The nearby hutch was stacked with pies – pumpkin, mince and apple.
Once the table was cleared, the party started in earnest. The Christmas music, which had been playing softly all through dinner, gave way to 70’s rock and 80’s synth pop. Gillian and Alma slipped upstairs for a few minutes and came down wearing shorts and racerback tanks.
Gillian danced to every song. She stayed with Liam for a while and then began to drift among the crowd. Liam danced with Sadie and Alma, and with one of Gillian’s younger cousins who was also in Gryffindor. While Liam was dancing with Alma, Larry cut in. Soon, the two were sitting in a corner, kissing.
Gillian always returned for the slow songs. The crowded room gave them the freedom to dance close. Liam set his left hand at the small of her back and shot heat and pleasure into her while she smiled dreamily.
I can tell what you’re thinking, Gillian told him. Believe me, I’d love to take you upstairs for a quickie, but not with my dad and my brothers all home.
Liam pushed a thought into her head. Larry and Alma are getting steamy over there.
Oh yeah. Mum’s watching them. She’ll break them up in a bit. Just as that thought passed into Liam’s head, Mrs. Roycester came over to the couple and encouraged them to continue dancing.
As the clock approached midnight, the Roycesters handed out flutes of champagne to everyone, even to Patrick and Shona. The crowd counted down to midnight and then shouted “Happy New Year!” Together, they sang “Auld Lang Syne.” Liam and Gillian kissed, and many other hugs and kisses followed as his friends wished him a Happy New Year.
Slowly, the crowd began to disperse. Todd and Brian led Liam and Patrick up the stairs to bed. Liam lay down on a sleeping bag on the floor of Brian’s room and was quickly asleep.
It was the happiest day of his time with Gillian. A new year of challenges lay before him.