WHO Jamila and the Denials WHAT Devdas has to get to Hogwarts because, it's... WHEN September 1, 2029. WHERE King's Cross Station RATING/WARNINGS N/A STATUS PG TO BE AIRED Likely not! But could be~
September the First.
A big day for a good portion of the magical community and after fifteen years of being married, it was finally time for Jamila and Louis Denial to join in the fun. Their adventure began when Devdas’ acceptance letter to Hogwarts finally arrived on a Sunday which they celebrated over a dinner of the boy’s favorites and some really good cake (and wine for the adults when the kids were in bed). From then on, the days just faded in and out in a whirlwind of faces and places; just when they thought they would have enough time to go through Devdas’ shopping list at the very least, suddenly they were being visited by Louis’ relatives or were dropping by Jamila’s brothers and their families who all wanted to congratulate the boy personally for a privilege that was rightfully his by blood. And then work would get in the way if family friends didn’t and before they knew it, the Denials would be among the crowd in Diagon Alley, rushing to buy books and quills and parchments for the school year.
Now, it was all finally about to end. Jamila gave her father a tight hug from the back of his seat as her family filed out of his well-loved sedan and gave him a kiss on his cheek. “Thanks so much for driving us here, Dad.”
“I missed doing this, okay, Jamila?” said Jamil with a laugh as he patted his daughter soundly on her arms. His hair may have finally completed its transformation into a white mat but there was still power in those huge hands of his. “Besides, I couldn’t risk you crashing my car, could I?”
“Dad!”
Jamil laughed. “I’ll wait for you outside as usual.”
“As usual?” Jamila asked with the voice of shock and amusement, a smile decorating her face as Louis opened the door beside her and waited for her to step out. “Dad, it’s been 18 years since I graduated! Do you think you’d still have your parking space there?”
“You don’t believe me? I’ll show it to you!” said Jamil with a laugh as Louis called to her outside, saying, “Jamie, let’s go! Dev will be late for the train.”
Jamila showed her shaking head to the rear-view mirror before she climbed out of the car and pushed the door close. She accepted Louis’ arm over her shoulders and she looked up to him to nod when he asked if they were ready. Their sons were waiting for them with their bags by the entrance. Gustave was dressed warmly for his first day in King’s Cross Station, with a light scarf and a hand-woven yellow sweater over his new shirt and jeans and tennis shoes. Devdas, on the other hand, was dressed in a fiery orange sherwani paired with a white churidar, an outfit he had chosen a week before his first day of school. Louis and Jamila had to discuss allowing their eldest son to do this and decided that outcasts of modern society were probably not going to be good outcasters themselves. Besides, he would have to wear a uniform soon so why not give him this chance for freedom?
Jamila smiled at her oldest boy as she waved for him to give her his bags. “Ready?”
Devdas nodded and dutifully carried his bags, refusing to burden his mother with them.
They found a cart easily enough, the same way three of Jamila and Louis’ friends from Hogwarts did but stayed back because they didn’t want to join them on crashing into the wall. As soon as they were sure they were alone, they wheeled their way towards Platform 9¾.
Jamila stayed back with Gustave who held his hands together by his chest, a good eight steps away from Louis and Devdas and their cart of bags. He was leaning closely to his son, pointing towards the wall as he did so. She took this chance to crouch on one knee and whisper to her second son’s ear, “Watch closely and see what Dad’s going to do.”
“Is he going to set it off?”
“No, he’s not,” Jamila laughed as she turned to watch Louis and Devdas brace themselves for the run. If she could have her way, she wanted to be the one to do that with her son. It must be very exciting, she thought. Devdas would remember it forever and it would be thrilling to be there during his first. But Louis had declared that he wanted to do this on the onset, and Jamila couldn’t find a valid argument to deny him that right.
And then father and son began to move -- slowly at first but faster as they neared the brick wall and before they could crash into it, the concealing veil swallowed them like a hungry friend.
Gustave gasped and Jamila laughed secretly at him. “Can we do that?!”
“We can, yeah!” the witch laughed as she took the invisible thing from Gustave’s little hands to hold by her left. Her right found his and held it firmly. “Hold onto Mum, okay? We’ll run, too.”
“Okay.”
Mother and son braced themselves, and made a dash for the wall.
When they exploded out of the concrete, they burst out in laughter and Gustave, cheerful, hugged his mother for the experience. “Let’s got at it again!”
“Not now, we’ve got to see your brother off.”
“Okay!” Gustave nodded happily enough as he ambled behind his mother who joined the waiting Louis and Devdas with their cart.
To Jamila, it almost seemed as if the place had never changed at all -- like she was 17 or even 11 again. Everything was just as she remembered it -- the golden sheen, the steam, the crowd and the cheer, and that brilliant red coat on the Hogwarts Express which never seemed to tarnish no matter how many headmasters or, indeed, Ministers had passed it.
She let out a sigh, and fought back a tear from rolling down her cheek when Louis called to her with a, “Jamila, let’s go here!”
They met more friends and relatives in the station, and shared embraces and greetings and gasps with those they have not seen in 5, 10 years. Jamila entertained himself with them as Louis packed Devdas’ belongings into the train and shared a final talk with him. Through it all, Devdas held his chin high and his shoulders straight.
Jamila noticed this when Louis took Gustave away from her as she strutted towards Devdas who stood patiently by the door to the train, watching her move. “Well, someone looks ready.”
Devdas nodded at this. “I am,” he said.
“I know,” Jamila sighed as she knelt before him, putting down the thing she had been holding so she could fix his nehru collar and run her hand down his coat a bit. “Oh, Dev, look at you. Such a handsome boy. You make your Mum proud.”
“I’m excited, Mum,” Devdas said with barely contained emotions. “When they see me there, they’ll hear my name. And then they’ll know I’m Jamila Denial’s son! The most hard-working DMAC witch, the hottest witch in the Ministry.”
Jamila laughed, pinched Devdas’ nose who flinched back with annoyance and covered his face with his hands. “Keep doing that while I can still do this to you, okay?”
Devdas frowned slightly.
“But try not to let it get over your head,” Jamila said as she took a hand from his face to hold and pat. “My celebrity status won’t get you good grades. But I’m sure you’ll do just fine. Just study hard, work hard...all those things you’ve heard for the past month, I won’t repeat them anymore.” She waved them away.
“Won’t you leave me with some tips?”
“Me?” Jamila still smiled. “Well, what kind of tips do you want? Umm...when you transfigure an object, don’t think too hard about it. Just think about what you want it to be and it’ll be that way. And don’t believe anyone who says it’s all in the wrists -- it’s not.” Jamila held an invisible wand as she cast an Expelliarmus. “It’s in the elbow. Move your elbow and your wrist will follow. Don’t exaggerate it either, it’ll just make you look stupid.”
Devdas laughed and Jamila smiled.
“But you know what?” Jamila righted a button of his, “You already know this. Your bones know it.” She took both his hands after. “Your Mum is a duelling star and she aced her Transfiguration and Charms NEWTs. Your Dad used to be a Quidditch star, too. So you see, you’ve got the best genes in there. There’s nothing to worry about.”
“Really?” There was doubt in Devdas’ voice even as Jamila nodded. “But...but what if I don’t make it to Gryffindor? I, I’ve always wanted to be in Gryffindor.”
This tickled Jamila’s smile wider, and she laughed as she pinched her son’s cheek before he flicked that hand away. “Then that only means that you’re smarter, kinder, and wiser than your Mum.”
“But I won’t be brave.”
“Dev! Have you seen yourself cry today? You didn’t! And you’re just 11!” Jamila gripped him firmly by his arms, shaking him slightly. “Just because you might not be in Gryffindor doesn’t mean that you’re a coward all along. Remember what I told Gus when you fought the last time? Everyone’s a Gryffindor. But sometimes, they might be a little bit more of a Hufflepuff or a Ravenclaw or a Slytherin over their Gryffindor spirits.”
Devdas nodded, tried to smile. “I guess you’re right.”
“Of course I’m right!” Jamila said simply enough. “Cheer up, Devdas. Don’t think too much about this.” She tapped her son’s chin with her finger. “If you cry, I won’t give you Mum and Dad’s gift.”
Immediately after, Devdas’ eyes grew and his features hardened, tensed with surprise. “You have a gift?”
“Obviously,” Jamila giggled as she lifted the floating hook from mid-air and raised it towards Devdas, trying to look for the thing although all he could see was her arm and a strange wave of light. “Why don’t you open it?”
Devdas reached uncertainly towards the air until he found the fabric. With a determined eagerness, he ripped it off the air.
And gasped at the sight of a snow white owl, flapping its wings for balance when its golden cage swung at his movement. “An owl!” he said, catching the bars to steady it.
“Mhm!” Jamila said, nodding and smiling. “Your very own owl. So you could write to us everyday!”
“Wooow…!”
Jamila beamed at his reaction. “So, what will you name her?”
Devdas gazed widely at his mother before he looked at the owl, again. “Parvati!”
“I figured as much,” Jamila laughed while she handed the cage to her son. “If you look in your socks, you’ll find a note from Dad and I. It should help you with Parvati’s diet but don’t worry! Hogwarts has her own man to feed the owls.”
“Oh wow,” Devdas continued to gasp even as he set Parvati down and flung his arms around Jamila who accepted him with hers readily. “Thank you, Mum!”
“You’re absolutely welcome, Dev,” Jamila sighed, patting him on the back.
Soon, she had to part with him as calls for students to board began to ring through and she joined her husband and youngest son to see him hurry towards a booth and a window to wave to them just as the train began to move. They waved back, following him and chasing each other with last minute reminders.
“Don’t forget to drink your tonic!”
“Yes, Dad!”
“And eat lots even if there’s no vegetarian menu!”
“I know, Mum! Dad told me!”
They hit a family of black robes along the way and had to stop before they sent everyone tumbling over. Louis and Gustave kept a respectful distance as they stood and waved. Jamila herself paused momentarily to look at them, the black robes and her son. Typical of her, though, she didn’t stop yet.
She ran on.
“Jamila!!” cried her husband after her but she was small and lithe and Merlin, she was an Auror! Running in-between crowds, chasing after people, this was her second job! She kept her eyes on the speeding train as she slipped through bodies and hopped over bags, looking out for Devdas and beaming when she caught him gaping and laughing when she waved. He laughed and waved back.
“Faster, Mum, faster!!”
It was fun while it lasted. In a matter of seconds, the Hogwarts Express steadily outran the former Auror and Jamila had to stop before she crashed into a wall and fall into the tracks. A raucous of gasps and chatter backed her as she panted and with the last of her breaths, she screamed to the train, “Make me proud, Dev!!”
“I will!” called the wind from a distance.
Jamila laughed as she stumbled back, still chasing her heart and her breath as behind her, footsteps pittered from the crowd. One of those footsteps materialized into her younger son who she caught by his shoulders before he could fling himself to the tracks, crying, “Bye, Dev!!” She was still laughing breathlessly as she turned and beamed at Louis who crossed his arms and shook his head at her. She shook her head back at him and shrugged. “I can’t help it! Proud mum, okay?”
Louis only sighed. “Okay, Jamie. Okay.”
Jamila beamed.
Cameras flashed as the crowd mumbled into each other while Jamila approached Louis and wrapped an arm around his waist while he secured her to his side by her shoulders and they began to walk back.
“He’ll make us proud,” Jamila said to her husband.