Like Real People Do (R.A.B)

3

~ Albus Dumbledore

It was now mid December and Kendra was still getting used to being Kendra. She wasn't sad though, Cleome was a girl who was afraid and alone, and she hoped Kendra would be different.

It was strange being called by something your whole life and then suddenly its gone. Monty and Mia would be around calling her name and too often she would ignore them by accident. Funnily enough, she wasn't the only one struggling to grow accustomed to her new name. Out of everyone, Monty was definitely struggling the most. Mia ended up putting a spell on her old name so that every time the older wizard called her by it his nose would start to grow. They had many hard laughs from it and it prompted Mia to tell Kendra the story of Pinocchio which was a muggle tale for children about lying. Monty, quite often, looked very much like this character.

Anyway, besides getting used to the name Kendra they all had a bigger issue at hand. What were they to tell James and Sirius?

The two boys were becoming restless in their letters and Monty and Mia couldn't blame them. The only response they they had gotten on the topic of Kendra Potter was in a measly vague letter from Mia.

'Don't believe the papers, don't speak about it, wait till you are home.'

James was not at all happy about this and funnily enough through the letters they sent Sirius seemed to be the level-headed one out of the two. This in itself was concerning but Mia was just thankful that someone was being a reasonable voice in James's ear.

Monty and Mia just had to hold their breath and wait for the Christmas holiday, which was something that gave them more anxiety than usual this year.

"Fleamont! Fawkes is at our window!" Mia called out.

This was another problem that the couple had run into. Figuring out what to tell Albus Dumbledore. The old man had sent an owl inviting Kendra to Hogwarts an hour after the papers had published the headline about the Potter family. They knew that he would have questions, but what answers would they have?

Euphemia and Fleamont had trusted Albus their whole lives, but after joining the order they realized a few things about the man that they hadn't before. He was willing to do anything and go farther than anyone else in the ways of this war. He had already recruited the newlywed Longbottom's straight out of school, and he was slowly planting seeds in James, Peter, Sirius, and Remus's minds. His willingness to recruit children to fight the war caused an invisible rift between him and the Potters. Now Mia feared what he would do if he knew of Kendra's capabilities. The girl had been a used prisoner her whole life and she was finally in a good place. The last thing they wanted to do was hand her over to Albus to use as a pawn in his battles against the Dark Lord.

Wind of a prophecy foreseeing the destruction got around through Alastor to Albus just after Kendra's name was in the paper. They knew Albus wasn't stupid. He was coming to offer her a place at Hogwarts and discover if she was the one the prophecy foretells. The thought of this made Mia sick. She would do everything she could to keep her newly found daughter out of the war until she was ready, and that certainly wasn't now.

Monty came running into the room with red cheeks and sweaty brows. The top few buttons on his shirt were undone and the sleeves were rolled to his elbows. He had been practicing occlumency with Kendra and her progress was visibly showing by his appearance.

"What does the letter say?" He questioned in a breathless tone, chest heaving up and done rapidly.

He watched as his wife untied the rolled of parchment with shaking hands and scanned the page.

She looked at her husband with worried eyes, "He's to be here in ten minutes." Her voice shook more violently than her hands and an anxious tension settled in the house.