𝗷𝗮𝗻𝗲, harry potter

˗ˋ 33

CHAPTER THIRTY THREE
✧
-: fourth year :-

── IN WHICH THEY GET READY

. . .

They had been busy all day, various tasks been given and completed as the day wore by. Neither were particularly tired by the time it had reached mid-afternoon, despite being on their feet and rushing around since the minute they woke up.

Jane had done a considerably good job on Harry's hair - it seemed all the extra little tasks that she had been allocated during her time at the home really paid off. Like promised, Angela took a small break from the constant production of food and helped tidy up. 

If she had been making food the muggle way, then perhaps she would be a little more time concious, but Harry could see her carefully watching as they left the kitchen, extracting her wand as soon as Jane was out of eyeline. 

And whilst Angela took care of the food, Flora had been the organiser of the entire thing. Vans with tables and chairs, vans arriving with mass amounts of floral arrangements and at least fifty times more fairylights that Jane had in her room. Just like Angela, she seemed to be cautious of using magic, but every so often she would mutter a spell under her breath to prompt things into speeding up. 

Harry and Jane, quite obviously, could not use magic but for different reasons. Jane was a muggle and neither owned a wand, knew the spells or had the magical capablities to use any of them. Harry, well he had been faced with expulsion from Hogwarts on two seperate occasions due to the use of underage magic. 

Technically neither was his fault - but how was he supposed to explain how the Malfoys' now former house-elf had caused his Aunt Petunia's cream-covered pudding over Vernon's very important dinner guest, or how his own anger had caused Vernon's sister Marge to blow up like Violet Beauregarde in that muggle film that Dudley had watched obsessively, foaming at the mouth, since they could remember. Of course, Marge had been decisively less blue, but still looked like a very ugly balloon.

And so, without the assitance of magic, Jane and Harry took on the task of arranging the many tables, placing tablecloths with minimal, pretty pattterns over them, organising napkins and cutlery on top of that and helping the flower arrangements find the right tables.

"Jane! Harry!" Flora's voice rang out across the lawn, and they straightened up from where they were currently folding the napkins for one of the tables. "I need you to go and get dressed please - don't worry about the napkins I can have that sorted out in a jiffy.""

Not wanting to upset her by protesting against her words and continuing to help setting up, Jane and Harry agreed and began to trail back into the house, the Potter boy managing to distract the girl as they walked past a very busy Angela, who currently had trays of potatos cutting themselves up, and a rather large, double-tiered cake icing itself, magic also placing dried and sugared flowers after it.

"This isn't like any other house warming party I've been to." Jane admitted, as they made their way up the several staircases to her room. "When I was fostered for the second time, they threw a house warming party. It doesn't make sense now considering that they had lived there for several years before I came along, but I think they were just disguising it as a party for me." She shook her head, smile on her face bright but faltering.