I've returned from the past

Chapter 31

The grounds are quiet, almost eerie as Hadrian stares up at the main door. It's arching black oak doors had two statues of wolves sat outside with two dishes in their mouths. He remembers hanging from them when he was younger and climbing them and then laughing at Orion because his brother didn't have the nimbleness to understand how to climb and had fallen flat on his backside with much indignity.

He stares at the great stone wall and how it shaped to create a courtyard in front of the front door, a horse stable on the right where his horse Sassafras had been stationed next to Blaze and they would frequently take them on rides throughout the forty-two hectare property that used to be the marvel of the Wizarding world.

Ivy climbed up the limestone bricks and weeds had taken over the ivy beds and usually the outdoor ornamental lanterns were lit and would have cast a warm glow on the walls but it was utterly dark and blinds were drawn closed and the windows of a room were shattered and his heart broke a little bit more. There was always food being made and there was a lack of smoke coming out of the chimney, a lack of noise- even the trees seemed quiet.

There was the orchard out back where Orion, Hadrian, Tom, Thaddeus, Abraxas, Reinhard and Aiden had gorged themselves on berries, pears, mandarins and the odd plum if the ancient tree decided it was going to drop some that year.

Those moments were the ones he enjoyed the most, in the warm caress of spring with everyone he enjoyed being with and his family calling through the kitchen windows for dinner that would be something unique from overseas and something new for them all to try- he enjoyed saving his friends from the tumult at their homes and hiding them away in his room, slamming the closet shut and when their parents flooed around, his them with expert magic- muggle magic. There was a wall behind his clothes that one could slip into and no magic would be detected- apart from a presence hider but of course no one was there.

So the parents- especially Aidens parents, would go home empty handed. Abraxas and Reinhard were usually the other residents of that tiny closet but he always set up a bed or simply let them sleep in his bed while he slept with Orion or if more than one of them were there, they'd flip around on the bed with their feet hanging off the edge and sleeping like sausage rolls.

The horse treks were the best, exploring the property and the extent of magical terrain it ran to. One could spend three days out there and not see the house for miles. Covered in hills, trees and ponds-

It truly was stunning and home to many magical creatures. Thestrals swarmed, probably courtesy of Hadrian, there was an odd wild kneazle and an odd unicorn that ran past but it was the birds and rabbit-like things that frequented the property most.

Except it was empty, quiet- dead. Covered in snow and ice and the fountain was frozen in the carriage circle and the drive hadn't been cleared. There was no clear lines of where one should go- where the road was-

And he hated it-

"Why?" He asked Orion.

"Because it hurt." He glances at the broken window, the window of the Master room- Orion follows his gaze. "That's where I had to tell my father that his son was dead. We never repaired it, just moved."

"You didn't stay in Grimmauld."

"No, for the same reason." Hadrian can't say anything, jeez he's barely breathing, like a single wisp of air on the property might cause it to crumble into ash.

He wants to punch Orion but it's out of place- it's not his place-

"Christmas is in three days," he says quietly. Orion looked at him strangely- near hopeful for a moment.