A Phone Call from Sadie
The next afternoon, as Reginald Dennison was showing Jason Carter the dead squirrel and Benedict and Alyssa were reconciling, the phone rang at Liam’s house. Though he, Patrick and Annie all had cell phones, Annie kept a landline in the kitchen. It was white, with large buttons and a shrill tone that rang throughout the house. Liam went down the hallway to the kitchen, but his mother reached the phone first and answered it.
“Hello?” A warm smile crossed her lips and she handed the phone to Liam. “It’s for you, son.”
Liam took the phone from his mother and said, “Hullo?”
A high-pitched, animated voice was in his ear, as familiar as a member of his own family. “Liam? Hi! It’s Sadie.”
“Hi there.”
“Guess what?”
Liam spoke what was on his mind, though he did not think it would be true. “You’ve been nominated prefect.”
Sadie gasped. “How did you know?”
“I didn’t know. I just guessed.”
“I got my badge and my letter last night. I was floored. I thought they’d pick Cal for sure. She’s got better grades even than I do, and she’s way more assertive.”
“You’re plenty assertive,” said Liam. The more he thought about it, the more it made sense. “Calliope and them have been giving MacDougal a hard time for years. That may have counted against them.”
“You know, I bet you’re right. You got your pin, too, right?”
“Why is everybody assuming I’m prefect?”
“They did pick you, didn’t they?” asked Sadie, alarmed.
“Yes, in fact, they did. But before I even got it, I heard from Umberto and Vanessa asking me about my pin and telling me to wear it when I’m on the platform. I guess they were afraid I’d just chuck it in my trunk.”
“Well, that thought crossed my mind as well,” said Sadie, laughing. “But of course they picked you as prefect. Who else were they going to choose? Bendrix? And, as much as I adore Philip, you are the leader of the Hufflepuffs.”
“Thank you.”
“It’s true. And, I’m not surprised Umberto and Vanessa jumped the gun. This is a cottage industry for Slytherins, guessing who will earn what title. I’m sure they had you down as prefect for quite some time.”
“Berto’s prefect, too.”
“Not surprised.”
“I guess we have some training to do on the way up to school.”
“Yes. Orientation. One of the Seventh Years will be Prefect Coordinator and will give us advice on what to do and how best to do it.”
“How are you calling me, by the way? Mike and Philip don’t know heads or tails about telephones.”
“That was the real reason I was calling you. I got a cell phone! My dad, he’s been working around Muggles, and apparently, everybody has one of these things. So, he went to a shop, and the clerk said, ‘You’ve got a family. You need a family plan.’ So, now we all have them. Even Aiden!”
“Brilliant.”
“As soon as I got my phone, I wanted to call someone. And, I thought, ‘Who do I know who has a phone?’ Like you said, most wizard families don’t even know what they are. But I thought, ‘I bet the Wrens have a phone.’ So, I looked you up. I looked for Wrens in Biggleswade. There’re directories, you know. And you weren’t there, of course, but then remembered ‘Annie Keats.’ So, I looked, and there it was. A. Keats. So, I called you!”
“You know, I’ve got a cell phone, too. Let me give you that number, and we can continue our conversation in my room, instead of me having to stand here in the kitchen with my mum and my brother eavesdropping.”
Sadie laughed. “Yes, please give me your number. I’ll put it in my directory!”
They hung up, but before Liam could even walk down the hallway to his room, Sadie was calling him again. “So, you’ve been in touch with Umberto over the break? And Ables?”
“Yeah,” said Liam. He entered his room and closed the door behind him. He lay back on his bed for the rest of the conversation. “Vanessa wrote me about the pin. I didn’t even know what she was talking about. And then, I was in Brighton the other day, and I happened to run into Umberto.”
Liam described the awkward meeting in the souvenir shop. “I had heard that about him,” said Sadie, thoughtfully, “that he preferred Muggle boys. I don’t think he quite has the confidence to date someone at Hogwarts. I think it’s easier for him, dating someone from outside our circle, to seem prestigious, powerful and mysterious.”
“So you knew that he was gay?”
“Yes. I’ve known that for many years. He and I were very close once upon a time.”
“You had a falling out, as I recall. You told me once he betrayed your trust or something.”
“Yes, he did. It was a long time ago, and he apologized for it. I forgave him, but I didn’t forget it.”
“I didn’t know he was gay. Had no clue. But I think Vanessa knows, also. Things she was hinting at last year now makes sense.”
“Mmm-hmm,” said Sadie. “Sumner knows, too. And Felwich. It’s almost impossible to keep secrets like that from Morwena Felwich, especially something pertaining to Slytherins.”
“People used to tease Hark about being gay, but I thought that was a bunch of bunk.”
“It is a bunch of bunk,” agreed Sadie. “I know who Philip is in love with.”
“You mean MacDougal?”
Sadie laughed. “Philip loves Rhiannon MacDougal, yes, but he is in love with someone else.”
“Who?”
“I’m sorry, but I’m not divulging something shared to me in confidence.”
Liam sighed, feigning irritation. “Then why did you bring it up?”
“I was just offering it as evidence of his sexual orientation. Besides, these things have a way of becoming public. I think it’s only a matter of time until he makes his move.”
Liam couldn’t argue with that. As a Hufflepuff, he thoroughly approved of Sadie’s display of loyalty to Philip. “You worried about the O.W.L. tests?”
“Oh, I’m trying not to think about it right now. I’ll have nine months to worry. No sense in starting early. Have you heard who they’ve made our new Herbology teacher?”
“No, I haven’t.”
“Longbottom!”
“Who?”
“Neville Longbottom, the war hero! He fought at the Battle of Hogwarts, and he led the resistance against the Dark Lord at school during the war. He’s coming to teach!”
“Patrick will be happy to hear that. He’s read up on all that war stuff.”
“Longbottom was in Gryffindor, too. I’m sure all the Gryffs will be over the moon once they hear the news. Jill was, that’s for sure,” said Sadie.”
“Probably why my Slytherin friends failed to mention it.”
“No, I don’t think they will be quite as excited about this as the Gryffindors will be. Since you mentioned Vanessa Ables, is it okay that I called you? I mean, I’m not trying to become your girlfriend again.”
“I’m glad you called. I wanted to talk to you. Vanessa’s fun to be with, but she’s not someone you pour your heart out to, exactly.”
“Mmm-hmm,” said Sadie, his time with an edge of disapproval. “I always thought her conversation skills were severely lacking.”
“She makes up for it in other ways,” said Liam, loyally.
“If you’re a boy,” said Sadie.
“But, she’s not someone I could talk to about stuff that’s really personal. Like the way I talked to you about Elena Morrow.”
“Oh! Have you been thinking about Elena?”
“Yes.” Liam relayed the thoughts he had during his trip to Brighton.
“That really would be extraordinary to run into her by chance. The odds of it happening would have been astounding,” said Sadie.
“I’ll probably never see her again.”
“I don’t know. I wouldn’t count it out entirely. There was an article recently in St. Mungo’s Journal of Magical Medicine. They are strongly discouraging memory modifications in children and adolescents. They’re finding a high failure rate in those age brackets.”
“If it all comes back to her, people are going to think she’s crazy,” said Liam, worried.
“There are psychologists who are trained to identify cases like this,” said Sadie. “Even if they are Muggles, they can refer her to someone from our community who can help her process her memories and reorient herself. If that happens, your name is bound to come up.”
“So, it could happen,” said Liam.
“Yes. It may be years from now, but there’s a good chance, at some point in her life, that memory charm will fail.”
“Do you think they’d tell me if it did?”
Sadie laughed. “Stranger things have happened, Liam.”
On the morning of September the first, 2009, Liam awoke excited and anxious to return to school. He never would have felt this way about his primary school, but after a summer away from Hogwarts, he was eager to re-enter the magical world.
He rose early and made breakfast for his family. It would be the last opportunity he would have to cook for several months (though he had often noted that Potion-making was something like cooking.) He fried up slices of bacon, and then cooked stacks of pancakes, which he served with pats of butter and a pitcher of honey from the local farmer’s market.
Though most of his peers would arrive at the station in casual clothes, Liam decided he should look the part of prefect from Day One. He put on one of his black school uniform slacks and a crisply ironed white shirt. To this he added a bright red tie with the outline of a cannon stitched in white, the logo of the Arsenal Football Club.
He checked his trunk for clothes and books, then conducted an inspection of Patrick’s trunk. “I don’t need you poking through my things!” argued Patrick.
“Yes, you do,” said Liam sternly. “You’ve forgotten to pack underwear and socks.”
“I just haven’t finished yet!” argued Patrick. “I was just going to pack them.”
“And, where are your books?”
“Right there in the bag!” Liam opened the bag and checked each title. “This is how it’s going to be all year, isn’t it?” said Patrick morosely. “Prefect Wren bossing everyone around, and me especially.”
“You forget, I’m prefect for two years, not just one. But I’m your big brother. I’ll be bossing you around for the rest of your life.”
“You think they’ll make me prefect when I’m a Fifth Year?”
“Not if you keep getting into fights with the Slytherins.”
“How am I supposed to be friends with those Snakes? That creepy freakhead Dennison and conniving, spying Thompson?”
“If you can’t befriend the Slytherins, make sure you’ve got at least one ally in Ravenclaw. Inter-House cooperation is very important.”
Annie drove them to the train station in Biggleswade, but she had to work and could not accompany them all the way to London. “You’ll do alright, won’t you, son?” she said to Liam. “Look after your brother.”
“I always do, Mum,” he told her.
She gave him a hug. “You look the part of prefect already. Make sure your actions fit the part as well.”
Liam nodded solemnly.
There were tears in her eyes as she gave a hug to Patrick. “I’m going to miss my boys.”
“We’ll be fine, Mum,” said Patrick. “Honestly. We’re learning loads, really we are. It’s going to be great.”
They caught the 8:30 am train to King’s Cross. Liam had shrunk their long trunks so that they looked like suitcases. He gave Patrick the window seat while he sat on the aisle. He read through the train schedule and kept an eye out for unsavoury people. There were no dark wizards lurking in the crowds of commuters that morning, no boys wearing Lakewood College gear, and no black-haired beauties with shiny cat-like eyes, either.
They arrived at Kings Cross at 10:30 am. Liam noted that, as per the schedule, they were on Platform 6 and needed to head to Platform 9, to the brick wall barrier that hid Platform 9 ¾.
Standing by the brick wall, seeming very lost, was a woman and her son. The boy, with an untidy mop of straw hair, looked to be about eleven years old. In a cage at his feet was a grey owl.
Time to start being a prefect, thought Liam. He walked up to the pair. “Do you need some help getting on to the platform?”
“Oh yes please,” said the woman. Her blue eyes were wide, and she looked to be on the verge of tears. “They said someone would be here to greet us, but we’ve been here for half an hour and you’re the first person who’s come up and spoken to us.”
“Not to worry,” said Liam kindly. “We’re just early, that’s all. We’ll help you get through the barrier.”
Liam smiled at the boy. He had the same blue eyes as his mother. His cheeks were red with freckles. “What’s your name?” asked Liam.
“Richie. Richie Parker.” He said his last name ‘Park-eh,’ dropping off the ‘r.’
“Liam Wren.” The boys shook. “I’m a prefect.”
Richie noticed Liam’s tie. “Are you a Gooner?” he asked, again dropping off the ‘r’ so that it sounded like ‘Goonah.’
“I am a Gooner,” said Liam.
“I’m a Goonah too! They’re gonna win the Treble this year.”
Patrick smirked, as this last prediction, that Arsenal would win three titles in a single season, was highly unlikely. Liam looked to his brother and pointed to the owl. “Pat, take the owl through the barrier please.”
Patrick didn’t argue. He picked up the cage and walked towards the barrier. Richie gasped when Patrick vanished from sight. “Where did he go?”
“Come on,” said Liam gently. “I’ll show you.” He took Richie by the hand, and he held his other out for Richie’s mother. “Come on, Mum.”
The woman took his hand with a slight blush on her fair cheeks. “Now, walk straight at the wall,” said Liam. “Close your eyes if you need to. And don’t worry. I won’t let you get hurt.”
A moment later, they were on the other side of the barrier, gazing at the scarlet train, wreathed in steam. “Welcome to Platform 9 ¾,” said Liam. “Next stop, Hogwarts.”