My One and Only

Chapter 21 - Year 3

MAIA POTTER HAD EXPECTED THE SUMMER HOLIDAYS TO BE DIFFICULT, seeing as she would be stuck with Dursley's for two months with no magic, but she hadn't expected them to be as miserable as they ended up becoming.

For one thing, anything magic related was completely banned, meaning she and her brother, Harry, had to lock all of their school supplies away in their closet. Because of this, the twins were forced to stay up long after the moon had reached its peak just to finish their summer homework, only to be woken early the next morning for a day of chores and scathing remarks.

Maia could barely contain her annoyance when she was running on a full night's rest, but with the three hours a night she was getting, she was lucky not to accidentally set the house on fire each time one of the Dursleys made a snide comment.

The only time of day she looked forward to was the short hour she'd set aside to speak with Fred Weasley on the phone. Vernon had become enraged when Ron Weasley called the Dursleys, looking to speak with Harry and Maia, and had forbidden them use of the telephone ever again. So, Maia had written to Fred and told him only to call at three in the afternoon on the dot, as she knew that Vernon would still be at work and Petunia would be out at her daily lunches with the other ladies who lived on the street. Dudley spent most of his time locked away in his room, the television blasting, so she never had to worry about him overhearing her.

As the end of July slowly approached, however, Maia was forced to stop her daily phone conversations, as Vernon had taken a week off from work and spent every minute in the sitting room in front of the TV.

The night before the Potter twins' birthday, Maia sat in the windowsill, one leg dangling over the edge, the other pulled to her chest as she counted the stars in the sky. Her brother was tucked beneath his bedsheets in an attempt to hide the light of his flashlight as he scribbled away at his potions essay, pausing every so often to listen of signs of life outside of their room.

If the Dursleys woke to use the bathroom and heard any noise coming from the twins' room, they would lock them both back in the cupboard under the stairs for the rest of summer holiday, and Maia knew for a fact that cupboard had grown far too small for the two of them.

Maia didn't turn as Harry approached her, her eyes still locked on the sky as Harry leaned on the edge of the window sill by her feet.

"Happy birthday, Maia" he said softly, and she turned, her eyes finding the clock on his bedside table that read out 1:00am in neon lights.

"Huh." She mumbled, tipping her head back as a gust of warm summer wind swept over them. "One in the morning already? Time sure does fly."

Harry snorted and turned, searching the sky for any signs of Hedwig or Orion, who'd both been absent for the past three days. His eyes roamed lazily over the shadowy rooftops for a moment before he noticed a large, unevenly shaped creature flying straight towards them. He straightened up, nudging his sister's leg, and contemplated telling her to move so he could slam the window shut.

But Maia, who'd spotted the creature the minute she opened her eyes, didn't need him to tell her to move. She rolled off the window sill and landed gracefully on her feet, tugging Harry back just as the bizarre creature soared over the Dursley's backyard.

Four owls swept in through the Potters' open window, the first two holding the third, who was dangling limply between them. The fourth trailed slightly behind them, eyeing the unconscious owl with a look of exasperation.

They landed with a soft fluttering of feathers on Maia's bed, and she dropped to her knees on the floor beside them, reaching for the unconscious owl.

"Its Errol." Maia said, untying a large package that had been secured to the Weasleys owls legs, and gently lifting him in her arms. She carried him to Orion's cage and he squinted weakly at her through one eye, hooting quietly as she positioned him in front of the water dish.