The Journey Cycle: pt 3: Australia *pt 3 complete*

Hi all,

Whoo, 2 reviews and a whole canopy of stars since last posting - bows - thank you all very much.

For that, here's another 2 chappies for you to get your teeth into.

7

Julia was incandescent with excitement as she chivvied the other three to the breakfast table. Jon was all for crying off but his sister wouldn’t hear of it, “C’mon, bro, this is probably the only chance we’ll get to see these places. My magic is so weak that they’ll probably never let us in and I’ve no idea how to do the glamour things either or even if I’m capable”.

Harry was grinning at her predicament. “Julia, if we do find you a wand, what exactly do you hope to achieve here? Only Sev and I can’t stay around long enough to teach you anything worth knowing”. Severus yawned discreetly behind a hand, “And, I, for one, would quite like to get back to something approaching normal hours if it’s all the same to you. No offence meant but I’m older than you lot and I don’t adjust to all the strange time shifts that you folk seem to live by”.

Jon chuckled, “Well, to be honest, Jules and I did the shifting about so we could go places with you during daylight hours, no matter the cost to ourselves”, he arched a pale brow. Severus smirked, “All right. I’m sorry. I know you wanted to show us around and I’m sorry for inconveniencing you. It has been fun.....”. Julia chimed in, “I sense a ‘but’ that is going unsaid”. Severus sighed and scrubbed his face with a hand and looked at her. Truth to tell, he looked tired and more lined than normal. “I’m just tired. Forgive me”.

Harry pulled the sofa on Bessie into the middle, bolting it down to the floor retrieving the seat belts as he did so. He made sure his passengers were securely strapped in before casting light glamours over them both as he had on the trip to Melbourne then repeated the process with himself and his beloved after having been warned by the security detail that as usual there were reporters at the gates. Jon huffed in annoyance, “It’s ‘cos we signed the fourth series deal just before you arrived and the gossip rags want their pound of flesh. What’s coming in the next series, that kinda thing. As if we have any idea. The writers just give us the scripts when we arrive for rehearsals, we may have a couple of weeks advance story but certainly no specifics. We don’t even know when they’re gonna kill a character off like they did in the first series. Apparently it’s to maximise the shock value though that doesn’t stop all the speculation on the Internet, Jeeze, you should see the rafts of sites devoted to just gossip; man, it sucks”.

They sped through the gates of the compound, the security guards keeping the vultures at bay with their intrusive long lenses and their shouted questions. Harry adroitly maneouvred through the throng and they were on their way.

Jon turned them away from the main airport. “We’ve a private plane waiting for us on an airstrip nearby. It’s like the States in a way, it’s almost cheaper and easier to get around by air not to mention quicker as most of the roads sorta hug the coast. There’s lots of nothin’ in the middle”. Harry smiled, he and Severus had noticed this when poring over maps of the continent. Desert in the centre with settlements and cities clinging limpet-like to the coasts with one main road bisecting the interior. This was the road Harry wanted to take eventually, through Alice Springs and past Ayer’s Rock all the way to Darwin on the northern coast.

“Over there”. Julia called out pointing Harry in the direction of the far side of the airfield where a lonely twelve-seater twin-prop plane stood, the engine off and the propellers still. Pete, their chopper pilot from previously stood beside it finishing a cigarette. Severus lifted their glamours as Bessie drove towards it.

In a matter of half an hour they were in the air. Jon sat alongside the pilot while the others sat in the main body of the plane. This one was the epitome of luxury with the logo of the studio emblazoned on the tail. The seats were long, curved and leather. There was a mini-bar fully stocked as usual but at Julia’s request only with soft drinks and bottled water which she handed out once they were in the air. She giggled, “Maybe I’ve missed my calling. I should have been a hostess: a trolley dolly”. Harry grinned at her.

The flight was to take two and a half hours so Harry encouraged his husband to slip off his shoes and try and get a bit more sleep. Severus grumbled like mad but Harry was having none of it, taking his man in his arms, resting the black-haired head in the crook of his elbow while he stroked the much-loved face. Despite his whinges, Severus was asleep in moments.

Harry continued to look at his love until he was aware of a shadow falling across them both and looked up as Julia sat before him gazing down at Severus as he lay. “Could you do me a favour?”, he asked her. She looked up, “Sure, whatever”. He smiled at her, “Could you lift Sev’s feet up so he’s lying down, he’ll have backache if he’s left twisted up like this”, she grinned at him conspiratorially and complied then reached into an overhead locker producing a clean fluffy blanket before shaking it out and covering the man with it, “There, that’s better, isn’t it?”. Harry wasn’t sure if she was addressing him or the sleeping man in his arms who snuffled and turned slightly to bury his face in Harry’s stomach.

Julia sat down again, “Is he all right? Only he seemed a bit out of sorts at breakfast. I’m sorry if we’re buggering up your holiday, y’know, only.....well....I need your help with all this and it was you lot that told me of my witchiness in the first place”, she smirked. Harry nodded, “You’re not messing anything up. It’s just Sev, he gets grumpy when he doesn’t get enough sleep. He’ll be all right when we get back to regular days again. I do think that the strange hours we keep are messing up his body clock, it’s not doing much for mine either but I’m younger so I suppose I adjust faster. It must all be playing havoc with your own systems too”. Julia shrugged, “Yeah, I suppose, but it’s no biggie. Even though the light affects us badly at times, it’s sometimes nice to remember that daylight is still there, if you know what I mean”.

They were quiet for a moment but Harry knew that Julia wanted to ask something else so he prompted her gently. “It’s just....Is there anyone who can show me anything about my magic or am I going to have to muddle it out myself?” Harry looked up again from absently running his fingers through thick black hair, “Well, I suppose you could ask George for a few pointers but he was on the wrong side in the War and has no wand now”.

This was news to Julia and Harry could kick himself for revealing this as he recalled that her and her brother hadn’t been privy to the showdown in the boatshed the previous day. “What!”, she exclaimed. “George! That works for Josh’s dad?! He’s a wizard?” Harry nodded, “Yes, and I made him blood-bond to us. D’you know what those are?” The girl nodded slowly, her eyes still wide, “Yes, they bind you for life or until the stronger magical lifts them or dies. Why did you have to do such a thing?” He whispered, “Can you keep a secret?” She nodded again and leaned forward to listen. Harry hesitated chewing the inside of his lip, his head tilted to one side as he regarded her.

Without a second thought she asked him for his penknife. He handed it over from his pack at his side, winkling it out one-handed. She unfolded the largest blade and made a nick in her thumb-pad before holding knife and thumb in front of Harry. “I may not be trained but I am of age. Do it, Harry, then you know I can never betray you. I trust you completely, Severus too, but I can understand if you don’t trust us, me in particular, but us magicals can do things about that. Go on, it’s given freely and I have read about them. I know what it entails”.

He was astonished at the levels of trust she had and her willingness to do this. Making a decision, he nodded once and took the knife from her, laying it on his husband’s chest as he withdrew his wand. He made the nick in the same place he had yesterday and pressed their thumb-tips together. She shuddered as the wave of pure power washed over her. Harry murmured the incantation and asked her to repeat it. This she did, looking determinedly into his green eyes without flinching. Their blood melded and he used his wand awkwardly held in his left hand to heal the cuts on both digits. Julia looked down at her thumb and saw only clean whole skin then back up at Harry who smiled at her. She whispered, “That’s the first time I ever felt like a true magical. I felt the power from you. Wow”, then dashed a few tears away as the feeling threatened to overwhelm her. She swallowed hard once, straightened her shoulders and nodded once, “I’m okay now. What was it you wanted to say, Harry?”

He then gave her a brief precis of George’s story as she listened carefully. At the back of his mind he wasn’t surprised that her and Hermione got along so well. She was gutsy and determined without being rash or stupid. She would have made an excellent Gryffindor, maybe a Ravenclaw and he sighed for all the untrained magicals out there in the world. She sat quiet for a while absorbing this new knowledge along with the implications of his own husband’s past before whispering, “I suppose this means that anyone is capable of redemption and ultimate forgiveness. Does George know if any of his kids are wizards?”

This had occurred to Harry too and inwardly he praised her for her thinking. “I’ve no idea. I didn’t ask and he didn’t volunteer the information. I think he was too worried I might hex him or something and it was a shock to Sev too seeing someone he hasn’t seen for over twenty-five years. Most of the folk who joined the Death Eaters were misfits or power-mad individuals. I think both Sev and George are the former though hubby here was more than a bit of the latter as well and none of them got what they bargained for. Instead they were slaves to the master will and Voldemort hated everybody. For sure he had a few toadying sycophants in his inner circle, some of whom are still at large. We saw one such in Athens before we came out to Crete. We reported him of course but he’s disappeared again”.

They fell silent again, the low drone of the engines the only sound to be heard save for the gentle snores of the man he loved. Harry carded his free hand through Severus’ hair, “You’re right about the redemption thing though for me, forgiveness is a bit harder sometimes”. Julia grinned, “Well, you forgave Severus didn’t you?” He returned the smile, “Yes, but that was long ago, though admittedly it took some time. He and I had a long talk just after he was allowed to come back to school although I still wanted to kill him at the time and Draco was also destined for the dark side although he managed to escape before he was Marked”.

Julia tremulously pointed to her inner left forearm, “The tattoos Severus and George have there? Was that the remains of the Mark?” Harry nodded. This girl may not be very powerful but she was intelligent, “Yes, he Marked all his followers in the same way. I also had a link to him. Here”, he pushed his hair back to reveal his own scar. She peered closely at it and reached out tentative fingers but stopped short of touching. Harry nodded, “It’s okay, you can touch it. I don’t mind”. She traced it delicately, her fingertips cool. “Did it hurt a lot? You know, when he sent you messages and stuff?” Harry shrugged, “Like the devil. It would make me sick or faint for the most part, it was sheer agony”. She winced at this.

“Do you still feel things with it? When the bad guys are around?” Harry smiled, “Yes, that’s how we figured out Nott in Athens. It was the scar that alerted me at first. If their magic was still bad then the Mark stayed dark, didn’t fade like the others after Voldemort was dead. The new recruits to the Spaniard’s cult have another Mark and the chap we saw in Athens had signed up to the new guy. He’s obviously decided to stay dark and carried both Marks. I suspect he’s not the only one. It’s like Simon Wiesenthal the Nazi hunter after the Second World War still rooting the evil out relentlessly. That’s what I did for fifteen years or so after Voldy was dead. We caught quite a few and they are in jail for life now. Ron, Ollie and Hermione carry on the good work even as we speak, but I left as you know to nurse Draco in his final year and after that, I didn’t have the heart for it all any more, so here I am in a small plane over Australia with you chaps”. They shared a laugh at this.

They quieted again and both gazed out of the small plane’s window at the red land passing beneath them. Julia said softly, “I really appreciate all this, Harry, all that you and Severus are doing for me. I’ve no idea how to pay you back. How does one pay back something like this?”, she mused thoughtfully. Harry leaned forward and patted her arm, “Don’t worry about it. Just keep reading and studying. Maybe ask George a thing or two but keep it strictly between the two of you. Remember though, he may not want anything to do with magic again, so be tactful and bow out gracefully if he refuses you”. She nodded once, her brow creased, “I’m not going to have any time for much magic for at least another eighteen months until this fourth series is in the can, and then there’s the publicity trail and so on, so it could be another couple of years before I can give it some serious time. Who knows, one day I may just turn up in London to see you all again”.

Harry sniggered, “Well, by then, Sev and I may have settled for a while. I think he quite likes teaching adults, though I have a feeling that London may not be where we settle in the end, if settle we do. I know we both love to travel and we may just keep going but as we speak the two guys we met in New Zealand are starting training and have paid for one of my old teachers and an ex-Auror to come back with them for some intensive training. Sammy is a powerful untrained wizard though and has issues with uncontrolled magic as well as being an Animagus and can change even now in his sleep”.

This got her attention, “Wow. How come he never went to one of the wizarding schools then?” Harry chuckled, “Long story”, and left it at that. She didn’t pry though disappointment was writ large across her face. Harry shook his head, “I don’t mind revealing stuff about me and magic in general but other people’s secrets stay just that, I’m afraid, secret”. She tried for a flirtatious look, “You’ve told me stuff about Severus there”. He gave her a stern glance over the top of his glasses, “That’s because by making a blood-bond with me, you also made one with Sev, we’re joined by more than matrimony; we’re soul-bonded, and that’s something we need to find out more about, so while we’re in Perth we need to find an International Floo so we can get some books that Ginny has for us”.

Julia frowned, “Ginny? The red-haired woman, Ron’s sister, right?” Harry nodded, “She’s a teacher at Hogwarts. She has what was Severus’ old job”. She nodded her understanding and stayed quiet.

The plane began to circle and Pete announced over the Tannoy that they were to return to their seats and buckle up as they would be landing shortly. Julia plunked herself in the seat in front and Harry could hear the click of her belt. He leaned down to his beloved and kissed him awake. Evidently Severus forgot where he was as he looped his arms around Harry’s neck, pulled him down and kissed him senseless. It was as the plane made a steep bank that he nearly fell on the floor and came back to himself suddenly.

Harry tried hard not to laugh as he gently instructed that they should belt up for landing and Severus groused, “Why didn’t you tell me, brat?” This made Harry laugh harder, “Oh, sweetie, your face is a sight, you have a crease all down one side, and I haven’t been a brat for twenty some years now”, his eyes glittered mischievously, “And anyway, I was enjoying that kiss. Brat indeed. Git! Now buckle up, we’re nearly there. D’you feel any better for your kip?” Severus just humphed and wrestled with his belt. Harry sighed and leaned over to do it up for him at the moment Julia popped her head over the back of the seat, “I don’t think you have time now to join the mile-high club, boys, anyway we’re not high enough up any more, maybe on the return journey?”, she smirked to receive a classic Snapely death glare. “You don’t scare me, Mr ex-bad-guy”, she giggled before turning again. Severus glowered, “’M losin’ my touch”, he muttered darkly to feel Harry butt his shoulder with his head whilst trying to suppress his mirth.

“Bloody brats, you’re all the bloody same, the lot of you”, he snarked, “Leave an old geezer in peace, why don’t you?” Harry sniggered, “Oh, shut up, old man”.

It was raining in Perth as they landed and taxied to a halt. Severus was still shaking off deep sleep as they debarked although Harry had spelled away the crease for him. When they left the plane after thanking their pilot, Harry cast the requisite glamours on all four of them before they left the airfield in search of a cab to take them into town.

A bit more awake now, Severus insisted on lunch first so they piled into an Italian cafe for meatballs and sauce, a great favourite with Severus, Harry felt like indulging him to make up for taking the mickey earlier. Severus was in a considerably better frame of mind as they emerged. Julia was antsy, itching to see the magical district. Harry knew the street it was on but not the means of access but it soon became obvious to him and Severus.

Severus held Harry back, “No, love, let’s see what she can see for herself”. Julia bit her lip as she wandered the street up and down, a busy shopping street full of people. “How do we get in without being seen disappearing or something?”, she was stalling for time but the others said nothing. Then she spotted it, a shop that they’d walked past several times. She stopped and observed it for a while and the other shoppers were ignoring it, going in and out of the stores adjacent. “Ha! This one’s got one of those ‘notice-me-not’ charms on it, folk aren’t even looking in the windows, not that there’s much to see anyway. I reckon that’s it”, she said decisively folding her arms across her chest and frowning.

Harry grinned, “You’re right. Now we just sidle up to the window and....”, the glass seemed to dissolve with the slightest press of their bodies against it. Harry and his husband were either side of Jon to guide him through in case the portal refused him. Severus muttered something to the effect that the security here was greater and both full-blown wizards felt the familiar tingle of entering a magical zone. Jon had no sooner blinked and turned to find another brick wall at his back. Sheepishly, he pulled free of the wizards either side of him trying hard not to colour but neither noticed as their mouths had dropped open at the sight that met their eyes.

Julia summed it up, “Wow. Fuck!” were her only words and the two wizards had to agree. This was far bigger than Diagon Alley at home and obviously the centre of the magical world in the southern hemisphere. The northern half of the planet had many such districts, usually a major one for each country but this place obviously served the whole of wizarddom on this side of the planet.

There was a bit of everything here. They moved away from the portal slowly taking everything in, the shops, the newspaper offices, the imposing branch of Gringotts. Not only on the street that stretched away from them, there were numerous side streets running off to right and left and all boggled somewhat at the sight.

“This is incredible”, Severus breathed, awed. Harry had to concur as they blended in to the shoppers scurrying hither and yon around them. They passed owl shops. Potions supply houses, even a separate cauldron shop that was twice the size of the place back home. “Merlin’s beard, this is immense”, Harry looked all around him, his eyes wide in wonder. He slipped his vidicam out of his bag, “No-one on our side of the world has ever been here that I know of, I think we should organise package tours or something. Amazing”. He lifted the camera and shot some secret film to send to the people back home, “Hermione would love it here, so would the others”.

They carried on down the street, ducking in and out of the small alleys as they went. Jon was the first to spot the wand shop, larger and more brightly lit than old Ollivanders. “Bloody hell, Julia, if we don’t find you something here, then you are not a magical, end of story”, Harry exclaimed, “But let’s do a recce first, check it all out”.

There were several robe shops, even separated by gender, plus a fine bespoke tailors catering to the wealthier witch or wizard, and on every door the signs denoting that the establishment was more than happy to accept all the major muggle credit and debit cards. There were several bookshops, even a tiny place that stocked nothing but potions manuals, periodicals and other related tomes. Harry sighed, that was the last they would see of Severus for awhile. Harry had to physically restrain the man who almost squeaked with joy when he spotted it. “Down boy. We’ll come back later”, Severus scowled and nearly pouted before capitulating with a grunt.

A splendid quidditch emporium took up a whole block between two street entrances that made Harry drool but Severus got his own back, “Not now, Harry, remember, recce first, spend later. Recall if you will why we’re here”. It was Harry’s turn to pout until he saw the smirk on his husband’s face.

Not one but three specialist ice-cream shops were present as well as a selection of bars and eateries. “Oh, gods”, Harry moaned, “I want to live here”. There were several hotels of all stripes from the luxurious to the more modest boarding houses and none of them even slightly resembled the grottiness of the Leaky Cauldron. In fact the whole place was reminiscent of a modern metropolis not the archaic, nay, positively Dickensian mien of the London wizarding zone.

There were electric lights in the shop windows, the stationer’s sold magical biros under brand names such as ‘Everfill’ as well as the more traditional parchment and quills. Even the toyshops contained modern magical dollies as well as building and train sets not one of which even slightly resembled the Hogwarts Express save the centrepiece which was just used for decoration, a perfect miniature of the train that Harry had travelled to school on except that this one was run either on batteries or electric.

There were telephone booths collected together at street corners that gave Internet access with the insertion of a few Galleons and Harry noticed that more than one establishment boasted solar panels on the roof. There was an International Call Centre that offered sit-down Net access and even for the more old-fashioned, the Floo-call grates were situated up the walls at a comfortable height. Severus groaned, “No more kneeling down and sticking your arse in the air. This place is fabulous”. Even the Apparation points were covered to keep one from either the glare of the sun or the pounding of the rain.

The public Floo points were tiled in white with nary a smut nor fleck of soot to be seen anywhere and the few open fires they glimpsed seemed to run on a variety of smokeless fuel that Harry had never seen before. There was even a magically operated bus that zipped about doing a curcuit of the whole area that was free to board and there was a garage at one end of the main thoroughfare where was housed the equivalent of the Knight Bus but there were several in a small fleet that came with full air-conditioning and were sleek single-deckers capable of long distance travel to anywhere on the continent.

It was fairly obvious that this part of the wizarding world was wealthy and modern and well-supported by its patrons. Severus found it beyond belief that there was no magical educational establishment anywhere in Australia but such still seemed to be the case and he could remember many Antipodeans coming through his own classes in times past. Perhaps England still had the highest standards as far as education went though he felt sorry for any Australian kid who came from this milieu and had to be plunged into what amounted to Victorian conditions, damp, cold draughty classrooms with archaic facilities and that still lit their world with candles for Merlin’s sake. He and Harry exchanged looks and shook their heads at the wonder of it all.

Harry started to observe the variety of the people that they passed in the street. Folk of all colours and dress styles that spoke of origins all over the southern hemisphere. He could hear a plethora of different languages all around him and when people talked as they met up in the streets or cafes, before the conversation could begin in many cases, the participants would casually intone the Redditus charm and chatted as easily as if they all spoke the same tongue by touching their wands to their throats as if uttering a Sonorus.

This was no backwater and he took loads of film as well as making lots of mental notes. There was of course the obligatory dark zone but even that was well populated and lit, the wares displayed were presented well and at least looked clean, not like Knockturn Alley where some of the shops clearly hadn’t even been dusted since they buried Queen Victoria. Severus pushed a Galleon into a newspaper stand to get a look at the local wizard’s rag only to be presented with a choice from the highbrow to the outright gossipy much like at home but even here, the pictures were in colour, the typefaces modern and all different views were represented in many different languages.

“This is our world as it should or could be”, said Harry, “It must be the magical world’s best kept secret”. One of the side streets seemed to be devoted entirely to what appeared to be a Ministry or governmental building of some sort and yet another housed the main Medi-facility for the treatment of myriads of wizarding maladies, the departments of which were well signposted even from the outside with a clear map to the different departments.

In short, this was a rich and vibrant community and explained to Harry’s way of thinking why there were so few magicals perhaps in other parts of the southern part of the globe. With such a rich diversity right here then wizards and witches would naturally gravitate here and having seen the place, stay, set up homes or businesses in the warm climate of the south.

Julia commented, “They all seem to be wearing ordinary clothes here. I thought you said everyone wore robes”. Harry had to agree, “Well they do in Britain”. But here were dashikis and djellabahs and other such garb more suited to warmer climes as well as a generous sprinkling of Hawaiian shirts and shorts, jeans and t-shirts, burqas and salwar kameez, kurtas, pyjamas, saris, kimonos and other clothes that spoke more of national or ethnic origins than roots in the wizarding world. Most of these people could have passed anywhere on the planet. There were robes of course but they were of silk or cotton rather than the heavier wools and serges that the two Brits were used to but over all a much more casual mood prevailed though there was a sprinkling of sharp suits and one or two ladies clacked along in high heels looking for all the world like any other Western style executive types.

Harry and Severus were completely gobsmacked to put it mildly. Harry rubbed his hands together with glee, “Time for some serious shopping, methinks”, and glanced at Severus who seemed just as taken with the whole place. Their first stop, however, was the wand shop to equip Julia.

Jon pushed open the door and stood back to let his sister precede him. She entered nervously not having any idea what to do next. Severus whispered, “Remember dear, your wand was snapped. Ask to see oak first and you will be offered many with different cores. Try each of these first as that was the wand held by my colleague who seemed to share with you an affinity for animals. It is also one of the classes of wand held by the less magically able as heart of oak is very powerful all by itself”. She listened carefully and nodded before taking a deep breath and walking purposefully up to the counter.

The young woman who served them wasn’t much older than her customer and was sympathetic to the tale of a snapped wand, “Oh, me too, dear, my elder brother’s youngest snapped his. What a shame. Now, what was your last one?” Julia tried not to stammer, “Oak, twelve inches, dragons heartstring core. I’ve had it since I was eleven”. Severus raised a brow behind her back at his mate and Harry tried to suppress a grin, she had learned this much at least. The young woman with a name badge that read ‘Kelly’ smiled brightly, “Let’s start there then, shall we? Although you have to remember that your wand requirements have quite likely changed now you’re an adult so your original configuration may not suit any more”. Julia smiled a little tightly, “Thank you, I realise that”.

The girl disappeared into the stacks behind the counter and was gone a while. Julia whispered, “How am I doing so far?” Harry patted her shoulder, “Fine. Try and relax though otherwise you’re blocking your energies. You need to let it flow through you. What hand do you favour?” She grinned, “I’m a rightie but as I’m a drummer, I’m pretty ambidextrous”. Severus chuckled, “Good skill. Try it in both hands then. Bugger, we should have given you a go at trying to use one of ours just to make your movements look more natural even though you can’t do anything with them”. Jon giggled, “Behave, she’s been practicing for ages with twigs and all sorts. Don’t forget we’ve got a few Charms primers that Hermione sent us and she can wield sticks after all as a drummer. Look at the average drumsticks. Wand-like, no?”

Harry and Severus smiled, “Well, then, you’ll ace this”, Harry murmured and the girl was back with a stack of small boxes containing wands for her to try. Julia flexed and cracked her finger joints in preparation, rolling her shoulders every bit as if she was about to sit behind her kit.

And so it began. Kelly passed her one after another and Julia frowned after an hour or so as she exhausted their stock of oak. Kelly frowned, “Your wrists are much stronger than they were when you were eleven so the bendiness of oak is no use to you any more. Might I suggest willow next. Give me a moment, I’ll put this lot back and fetch another selection”. She shared a look with her client, “And they say buying shoes is tricky!” This made Harry laugh. He had been on many an expedition with his ‘sisters’ to buy clothes and the shops they lingered in the longest were always shoe shops with both ladies knee-deep in boxes before they made their final choices.

The willows didn’t work either, even though Julia’s flick and swish style looked quite authoritative. Kelly was frowning as she took the last one back. On impulse, she took Julia’s hand in her own, “Grip my hand”, she instructed and Julia did. The girl winced, “Merlin, you have strong hands and here am I trying you on girlie wands”. Julia blushed, “Sorry, I’m a drummer in a band and my hands and arms are strong”. Kelly shook her head, “Don’t apologise sweetheart, you’re just more of a challenge to outfit. I think we’ll try the silver birch next, maybe the holm oak and I think a bit longer too, I shouldn’t wonder with hands like yours. Gimme a sec and I’ll get rid of these”, she went off again.

Julia quailed visibly when Kelly was out of sight, “Suppose my magic is too weak for a wand?” she asked querulously, “How many did you go through Harry, before you found yours for example?” Harry shrugged modestly, “Got it on the third try but I was a bit of a special case”. Severus purred, “Took me nearly three hours to find mine so fret not, dear, just keep trying”. She shot him a grateful look as Kelly re-emerged from the stacks, this time loaded down with boxes.

And so it went on. There was a fourteen inch holm oak that gave her a flicker but it wasn’t the wood but the core that worked; Veela hair of all things but at least it gave Kelly a starting point. From there it was a matter of minutes until she handed Julia a fifteen inch mangrove wood with Veela hair core and Julia beamed as the force shot through her arm making her hair stand on end. “Whoa. Let’s try this one out”.

Sweating, she stood back from the counter leaving the box where it was, took a deep breath and with a decisive downwards flick intoned “Accio wandbox” and had to shoot out the other hand to catch the thing as it smacked into her palm. Her grin was off the scale as she breathed a sigh of relief, “Think I got meself a wand, guys”, her eyes shining as she examined it, plain, slightly knobbly with very little flex in it but it was hers. She loved it already. She handed over her credit card with shaky fingers.

It was when Kelly saw the name on the card that her eyes widened to the point of almost falling out of her head, “Julia Smethwick?”, she squealed then looked closely at her client, “Drummer in a band huh? Not that band, surely? The Summer House? Wow, I watch that show every week” Julia looked like she may turn and run until she felt Severus’ hand in her back, “Don’t worry there are things we can do for such an eventuality”, he leaned in and whispered. She tapped in her PIN and the wand was wrapped reverently for her. Kelly shook her hand , delighted that she had served such an illustrious customer. Fortunately there were no other customers in the place and as they made a sharp exit, Severus whipped out his own wand and murmured an ‘obliviate’ before the door closed. “Damage control, dear”.

Julia danced a jig in the street, “It feels real now. I’m a witch, I’m a witch, I’m a witch”, she giggled as she capered about. Harry and Severus laughed, recalling Jed’s reaction to being dowsed. She hugged her wandbox all afternoon and refused to let it go tucking it under her arm when examining other merchandise or when two hands were needed then she stuffed it down her top and into the waistband of her jeans.

The afternoon was wearing on and the retail businesses were getting ready to close for the night. They still hadn’t found a place to stay yet so decided to try one of the local hotels. There was no problem finding a couple of rooms in a modestly priced establishment so they retired for a rest after making an arrangement to all meet up in a couple of hours to find food and a night’s entertainment.

Harry threw himself on the bed, “Merlin, I’m worn out after that”. Severus lay beside him, taking him into his arms, “Not too worn out, I trust?” Harry leaned up on one elbow and pushed Severus onto his back, “Hmm, don’t think so. Come here, I haven’t had one of your gorgeous kisses for ages” and their lips and tongues met heatedly. In seconds they had spelled each other’s clothes off and Severus was sunk deep into his husband’s luscious arse within minutes for a short, fast, hard fuck, easing the tensions of the day for both of them as they came grunting and crying out to the rafters, replete and happy.

After a quick nap and a shower they met with the others in the bar downstairs indulging in a pre-prandial drink or two before setting out in search of sustenance. They found an interesting place serving Somalian cuisine which none of them had ever tried before so between them they ordered a different meal apiece and dug in sampling each other’s food enjoying it all very much. Refreshed they hit the streets again. Nighttime was the Smethwicks’ natural milieu and they hit some of the bars first before agreeing to split up as their tastes in nightlife differed from this point on and Harry had spotted what looked to be a promising little gay boite in a side street while the younger two fancied a large noisy disco that they had already passed once.

With assurances that the two neophytes would be careful, Harry and Severus took their leave for the night arranging to meet up with their friends for breakfast in the morning to swap tales of their night. “Would you like us to leave the glamours on you two?” Harry asked to receive nods from them both, “Yeah. Seems like even the magicals round here have TVs so we might get recognised”. Severus told her how to keep her wand in her sleeve, “Now look after it, remember, it’s your most valuable magical asset”. She grinned at them, “No worries, mate. After all the time it took us to find the thing, I’m sure as hell not gonna lose it”. Julia hugged them both and they went their separate ways for the night.

Harry found a quietish corner of the little gay club and they sat checking out the locals while they had another drink discussing the unexpected wonders that were the magical district of Perth. Eventually, suitably oiled, they got up to dance and Harry thrilled to be in his beloved’s arms, moving to the beats and kissing on the dancefloor. Severus was relaxed and more than a little pissed as they swayed together lost in their little bubble of two.

The beats slowed down to a sexy grind and they were completely ignored as they danced a dance that was more like vertical sex than anything else. The kisses grew more urgent as they became more aroused rubbing their hard cocks together through their clothes. Many of the other patrons were indulging in an equally lascivious fashion. It had to be one of the best nights Harry had ever had in a club since he and Draco were in their early twenties. Severus was all over him like a rash, holding him close, clutching his arse and Harry was in heaven. The urgency grew so great that they had to time-out on the fire escape steps, shamelessly blowing each other in the darkened alley out back to the accompaniment of the groans and moans of others of like mind and the reek of sex hung heavy in the warm air. It was the best night either had had in a magical district and they loved it all.

Sometime in the early morning, they staggered back to their hotel, soused to the eyes. Their lovemaking was sloppy and wet each ravishing the other with fingers, tongues, lips and cocks. It was glorious. They fell asleep finally in a sated heap as the sun was peeking over the horizon.

There was a shy knock at the door which they both ignored until Jon murmured, “Hey guys, you got any of that hangover stuff with you?” Harry took pity on him and opened the door after having quickly donned his jeans. He opened the door a crack to see a bleary Jon and simply pushed a couple of small phials into his hand. Jon had swallowed his before uttering his thanks then took the other to his sister who, by all accounts, was in a worse state than he was.

Breakfast was a mite subdued but they all made it all looking a bit the worse for wear and they swapped tales of the previous night. Julia groaned, “I can’t believe I let that guy shag me in the ladies’ toilets”. Jon laughed weakly, “You think that was bad?” His sister giggled, “Jonny boy here, mister super girl magnet, got off with a couple, the girl and the guy. Good was it?” Jon sunk his head down onto his folded arms, “I think so but I really can’t remember. I have a feeling that we were joined by a fourth somewhere along the way but I’m a wee bit fuzzy this morning”.

The two older men snickered. Jon raised his head slightly, “So what did you two get up to then, or do I want to know?” Severus raised an arched brow, “Well, we did a lot of dancing and I recall a blowjob out on the fire escape but otherwise it wasn’t decadent in the slightest”. Julia shook her head trying to get it round the idea of a sixty five year old bloke getting a blowie out the back of a club. These two were definite party animals to be sure and in that moment, they positively soared in her estimation. She wanted to be like this at their age, they were wonderful role models in her eyes, still at it when older. She thought she might be squicked but she laughed instead. “Dirty buggers”, she giggled.

They started the morning’s shopping together then split up again. Julia and Jon headed for the bookshops as did Severus who went straight for the specialist place they had seen the previous day. Harry went straight into the quidditch shop gawking at the many types of brooms on display, amazed at the huge stock of models available, many that he’d never seen before. He met up with his delighted husband who was sporting a shrunken parcel containing many periodicals that even he had never heard of before and had signed up to several subscriptions to be delivered to the post office box that they had rented in Holland, the place they sent all mail to that they wouldn’t pick up for a while. Harry treated himself to a lightweight set of silk summer robes in muted colours as well as having a new broom delivered to their Dutch address. Severus also found an unusual set of titanium cauldrons in three sizes, the largest no bigger than a milk pan, “Didn’t even know that they made ‘em in titanium. Fat lot I know, potions master or not”, he snorted. They were very happy with their purchases.

Their wanderings brought them to the Call Centre, “Time to give li’l sis a call. It’s about time but I haven’t had a chance since we got here”, Harry muttered. They entered and had to wait a moment or two for a free grate to be ushered into a quiet booth by a smiling young man who handed them a jar of Floo powder and took their two Galleons from them for the half-hour chat. It felt odd to be doing this so comfortably, sitting in a quite civilised fashion with just their heads poking into the grate. Harry cast the powder into the flames and said, “Hogwarts School, Scotland, UK, Potions dungeons. Call for Ginny Macmillan”, and the flames turned green.

The sight that greeted him made Harry blush. He emerged in what was obviously her private sitting room’s grate. There was subdued lighting turned low illuminating the long sofa before the fire from which the obvious sounds of passion were emerging. Harry called out, “Ahem, er, I’ll call back later shall I? Only there’s no fireplace where we’re staying and....”. He was cut short as two heads parted and two red faces turned towards him, “Who the hell...? HARRY!”, came the excited squeak as Ginny and Hermione tried to untangle from each other while revealing as little as possible.

Harry squawked, “Er, I’ll just shut my eyes a moment, shall I? Only I’m in a public call box and I’ve already paid for the call, you naughty girls”. He did just that as he heard the rustle of cloth, “You can look now, we’re decent”, called Ginny to an accompanying giggle, “Well, we’re covered at any rate”, muttered her companion. Harry opened his eyes to see them both sitting side by side now with blankets pulled up far enough to hide their rude bits.

“Sorry it’s so late there, ladies. Erm, I needed to talk to you, Gin. Hi ‘Mione, nice to see you too”. She rolled her eyes then slid to the floor wrapped in soft wool and leaned in to kiss his greeny-orange cheek, “Hi, Harry, sorry to embarrass you, love, but I suspect we’re even now”, she smirked, recalling a few times when he and Severus had been staying while they waited to fulfil their marriage requirements when they had got up to all sorts in their bathroom and in their urgency had neglected to either lock the door or lay silencing charms.

Hermione shuffled back to lean against the sofa and Ginny’s legs, laying her head on Ginny’s knees now hidden by blanket. Ginny’s hand went to her girlfriend’s hair, plunging into the coarse curls, “Harry, it’s so good to hear from you. Is Severus with you?” Harry affirmed. “Can you fit both of you in the grate where you are? I can’t see you both”. Harry grinned and withdrew a moment, pulling his husband in with him.

Severus took one look at the barely covered pair and it didn’t take being an Einstein to divine what they had interrupted. “Wicked pair of minxes. What would your husband say?”, he kept his tone light. Ginny’s face clouded and she shrugged, “I wouldn’t know as I haven’t seen him in over four weeks now. He’s left me. Turns out he was also playing away from home but he wasn’t as open about it as I’ve been about me and ‘Mione”, she said with a degree of asperity.

He shrank back slightly and stayed quiet, no point in alienating these two who Harry thought of as ‘sisters’. Truth to tell, he was fond of them both himself and was secretly glad that she was now rid of the ‘dolt’ she had married in haste after her widowhood. She was, in his opinion, far too good for the chubby Ernie.

Ginny Accio’d her dressing gown and struggled into it, wrapping it snugly around her narrow tall frame before she slipped to the floor and knee-walked over to the grate, bending and kissing both of the faces therein. “Sorry to be a cow, but the last few weeks have been a bugger, what with the exams and everything”.

That out of the way, Hermione slid down too and came over sitting side by side with her girlfriend whom she threw her arms around, resting her head on her shoulder. Ginny leaned her head atop her lover’s, raising a hand to hold Hermione’s forearm as it stretched across her chest. In the booth thousands of miles away, Severus found himself unconsciously echoing the move, “You two really look good together”, he murmured, smiling slightly, “If my opinion is worth anything to you, I think that you’re the right way round now, too”.

The two ladies turned to each other and kissed chastely before returning their attentions to the fire, “Thanks, Severus, and, yes, your opinion has meant a lot to me for years”, Ginny said, “Both as mentor and friend”. Severus was glad for the orange of the fire hiding his blushes. He still wasn’t quite used to receiving compliments from anyone but Harry, but he dipped his head a fraction and widened the smile.

Hermione squeezed Ginny slightly, “Yeah, I think we’re the right way round, too, but, well, Neville’s not taking it well, he’s gonna fight me for custody of the kids, although Esme is old enough to choose under the law, it’s almost certain Nev’ll get sole custody of the lads. I’m going for full joint custody, but I’ve nowhere to live and bugger all money. The Ministry have offered me one of the dorm places but, yuk, I’m not eighteen anymore”, she sighed. “Sorry to hear about the tests, er, you know, Voldemort and Remus and Draco”.

Harry winced but his husband spoke up, “I will be honest, it hurt and I was angry at the implications but one has to move past it. On a lighter note, young Julia is now a fully-bewanded witch and Harry and I are in the most incredible wizarding section that we’ve ever seen. We’re in Perth. Everything is clean and modern, a mixture of the traditional and the modern, Oh, you have to see this place ladies, you will love it”. Harry grinned, “Yeah, it’s bloody brilliant actually, it’s not a bit like Diagon Alley and it’s loads bigger, even this Floo grate is at just the right height to sit in a chair and just put your head in. The whole place is really civilized”.

Hermione and Ginny sighed, “Sounds wicked, have you taken any film?”, Hermione asked. “Loads. Yesterday and today, we all stayed overnight ‘cos, wait for this, our ‘private pilot’ can only fly so many miles a day”, he replied breezily. This caused the girls to squeal, “Your own pilot?!!” The men chuckled, “Well, actually he’s the hosts’ pilot. You have to remember that they are famous over here. Hermione, you are keen on modernist architecture are you not? I have taken some film myself that I have sent with an e-mail of the house we are in. I thought it might interest you as I did a little research and the chap who built it was quite notable in the late sixties”, Severus replied.

Ginny untangled herself from her lover, “Oh, Harry, I’ve got those books on bonds handy. Give me a moment. There’s some interesting stuff in one of them and the other’s a bit ‘out there’”, she rose and left the room. Harry excused him and his husband for a moment and pulled him gently from the fire. After giving him a quick kiss on the cheek, Harry murmured, “Why don’t we invite them both out for a couple of weeks after school breaks up, say in about a month’s time. They sound like they need cheering up. I don’t mind paying for their flights and accommodation and they would really love it here. We may have to have a couple of nights where we have to all stay on Bessie but the rest of the time we’ll find ‘em somewhere to stay. Whaddya say? That’s if Hermione can get any more time off work. Give ‘em a bit of a break from all the hassle, too”.

Severus thought a moment, drawing his brows together, not frowning but thinking, “I don’t see why not. In fact it could be quite fun, but not for too long. Yes, a couple of weeks sounds all right. They’re your sisters, Harry, and, so hex me, I like them”. This earned him a fleeting kiss before they were back in the fire.

They made their offer to the delight of the women and Ginny handed over the books. Harry thanked her and said he would return them shortly. Then they got onto the subject of Jed and Sammy. Hermione was unable to do much work as her office was still being decorated so she was taking a turn with their training.

“Sammy’s like a firework, too fast, too impatient but burns brilliantly at times. Well, Jed’s more tortoise than hare and has a considerable brain in there. He bloody applies himself, too. But when it comes to it, I fear, Sammy will still be the better wizard, Jed’ll have to fight for it a bit but he’s really meticulous. God, it’s great teaching adults, even if it is from grade one”. This brought Severus up sharp, “Do you know? I had exactly the same thoughts the morning we made the potions. Maybe you and I could found a little academy for the teaching of the left-out, they are, as you say, great to teach. Just a thought”, he mused idly.

All four fell silent. Hermione was the first to speak, “That’s not such a bad idea. Put that one on a shelf in your mind, let it gather dust and take it out in a few years. Hmmm. Anyway, Kingsley and Minerva are really looking forward to New Zealand. Oh, wow, we’re goin’ to Aus”, it seemed to hit Hermione again and she giggled. Everyone laughed and they signed off the call with promises to send their latest travelogue as soon as possible.

Harry shrunk the books, recast their glamours and after a sneaked kiss, they wandered back into the fresh air. Severus cast a tempus while, by instinct, Harry pulled out his phone to view the clock. They saw the other’s move and grinned. Here, neither was out of place.

They wandered back to the bookshop they had arranged to meet up in to find their companions nowhere to be seen. They went outside again, to see Jon and Julia rushing up to meet them. Their eyes widened as they saw the selection of small cages Julia was toting. A tiny owl, a kneazle in a wicker basket, a puffskein with a muzzle on; not a good sign, and a small glass tank containing some darting insects that looked a bit like crickets that might have been pets or dinner for the others. Jon had a heavy looking bag of books balanced against his chest. Harry peered into the top to shrink them for him when he realised they were shrunk already, they had simply purchased so many. He commented on it.

Severus quizzed him as to their choices to receive an answer that made him shiver a bit. Plenty of wand-work tomes, to be sure, he’d expected that. But there were several on various of the darker arts that made him raise a brow until he discovered it was Jon who wanted these. He could do no harm with them after all. Julia was going to be doing mainly charm work, care of small creatures and there was a title or two on the milder curses as well as one on household magic. A good all round selection that would keep Julia busy for a while, enough to get by on until she could afford the time for proper training.

Severus grinned inwardly at the comment he had made earlier. Maybe he and Harry could go around the world like this, doing one-on-one training or maybe work with small groups. He felt the idea grip a bit stronger. He had to have a proper talk to Harry about it.

They took lunch in another tavern, the food pleasant, if a little stodgy before wending their way back to the airfield. The visit had been an unqualified success. They let the cab drop them up the road and Harry lifted the glamours so they were themselves again as they sauntered to the plane.

Harry threaded his arm around his husband’s waist and squeezed gently before letting go and as Severus advanced up the steps ahead of him, he had his arse pinched. Harry was in cheeky mode and Severus pulled him down into the back seat hard enough to make him squawk and kissed him properly before they coughed and pulled away from each other sorting out their limbs to the laughter of the other two, “Bloody hell. Oldie honeymooners!!” Julia wrinkled her nose and Harry pulled out his tongue, “Bet you don’t get laid as often as I do, so there!”

She rolled her eyes and sat in the seat ahead of them. Severus gave Harry a glare, “Good grief, what’s got into you?” Harry leaned in and bit his ear gently licking over the bite whispering, “You, as often as possible”. Severus gulped, “Hmmm, fancy joining that club malarkey then do we? What was it? Mile-high?” He looked up into Harry’s eyes that were full of lust and mischief. He was caught, his own lids half-closing. He felt the corners of his mouth lift, the smallest of smirks crossed with slight leer and plain old lustful grin.

They kissed again, straining slightly against their lapstraps, wet and heated. Julia tutted, giggled and pointedly donned her MP3 phones in front of them, the back of her seat facing them. The plane was making a sharp ascent and neither of them noticed so lost in each other were they, their low moans covered by the noise of the engines. The plane levelled out and they unclipped their belts, drawing apart for a moment but not taking their eyes from each other’s, the gaze heated and full of intent. Harry raised the arm between the seats and they moved together then, laying out on the seats, Harry pressing Severus to his back.

He sat up a moment and removed his jacket, bunching it for a pillow behind Severus’ head. As he descended for more kisses, Severus ran his hands up the inside of Harry’s t-shirt, rubbing the already tight nipples. Harry shuddered delightedly and their mouths meshed again. The next time oxygen ingestion was called for, Harry whipped out his wand and cast a variety of concealment and silencing spells and an anti-aroma charm before dropping his wand to roll under the bench and rolling atop his beloved for another bone-melting kiss.

Severus’ hands slid over warm skin to Harry’s back. One held the nape of his neck as they kissed, the other headed south and dived under his jeans waistband to cup a cheek, pulling Harry down harder to him. He had one leg crooked upwards between Harry’s and the other dangled from the end of the seat giving him purchase to push up into Harry’s groin. Harry bore down with a groan, rubbing and gliding and riding that hip. He desisted and lifted to give them chance to adjust themselves then slid down again, their cocks frotting together slowly under cloth.

“Fuck! I could come just like this”, Severus groaned softly into Harry’s mouth as the grinding speeded up. Harry grinned around the caressing tongue-tip that licked his lips, “I’ll lift up a bit. Undo us both”, he whispered as he raised his body off Severus. The black eyes flashed wickedly as he complied undoing both of their jeans’ and pushing them over hips, exposing themselves. Harry lowered himself with a rolling rub and they both gasped at the contact.

Severus finagled a hand between them and gripped both their cocks as their kisses became desperate and frantic, their hips pulsing up and down, Harry fucking his hand, rubbing his still-trapped bollocks along Severus’ thigh, his movement rubbing Severus’ crotch in turn. Severus tightened his grip and Harry’s glasses steamed up. They both closed their eyes and gave it up to pure stimulation, the throb of the engines adding a frisson.

Harry took his weight on one arm and grabbed both of their shirts, yanking them up their chests, creating more skin contact before joining them at the mouth again, tongues wet and agile against each other’s. Urgency drove them now, Harry’s back was in each thrust pushing as hard as he could against his lover’s cock. Severus’ hand was now flying up and down, oiled by precome. They drew their faces apart slightly, “Wanna watch you come”, Harry whispered, his eyes flicking open on the ecstatic face below him. His words seemed to tip Severus over the edge as he cried out and came over both of them. Harry grinned lustily at the sight and fucked that still tight hand, now copiously lubed, half-closed his eyes and gushed out ribbons of come in short hard strokes that bucked his hips with each spasm as he spent himself on Severus’ belly.

He squished the mess between them, laying along his husband’s body, his nose buried in Severus’ neck as they both got their breath back. Severus ran a lazy hand up and down Harry’s bare back and planted kisses in Harry’s sweaty hair. “I wonder how high up we are, actually?”, Severus muttered. Harry chuckled weakly, “I’ve no idea, but I doubt very much whether a plane this size would ever fly at a mile high. I think that’s for big jets”.

They dozed a moment before Severus nudged Harry awake, “Come on, you, we’d better make ourselves decent-ish”. Harry groaned but sat up. He couldn’t see his wand to hand so grabbed Severus’ and cleaned them both without thinking. Severus sat back, “I’ve never seen you do magic with my wand before”. It was as if Harry had noticed for the first time that the wand wasn’t his, “Oh! Oh, well, first time for everything I suppose. I’ve done magic with ‘Mione’s wand before, even when I was at school. Draco’s too. No big deal. Sorry, couldn’t see mine. I think it’s under the seat”, he yawned.

They shuffled about doing their jeans up. Severus sat up, his legs still spread and held open his arms. Harry sat backwards in them with a contented smile and Severus closed them around his chest and rested his chin on Harry’s shoulder. Harry turned and kissed him again, “Love you Mrs P”. Severus rubbed the tip of his nose up Harry’s neck, “Love you too, Mrs S. As you’ve got the wand, care to take down some of the wards”. Harry did so, and leaned back into his beloved’s arms and put his feet up on the seat. Severus had one leg crooked pressed into the back of the seat, the other foot rested on the floor. They were asleep in moments.

Julia ventured a peek some time later to see them lying thus, the protective arms, the way Severus buried his nose and mouth in Harry’s hair, the flush on their cheeks, Harry’s slight smile on kiss-swollen lips, his glasses askew, Severus’ normally tidy hair all over the place, and thought she had never seen anything quite so romantic or sexy in her whole life. Quietly digging out her phone, she shot off a couple of snaps already thinking of the title in her photo file on her computer, “Severus and Harry after joining the half-a-mile high club”. She giggled at this thought and went back to her book.

She had to shake them gently awake to put on their seatbelts and heard them kissing and whispering again as they obeyed. She sure as hell hoped she was going to be like this when she was older. If it could be like this then it wasn’t all bad was it? She grinned as she closed her eyes feeling the plane come in gracefully to land.

The four of them yawned through an excellent Chinese takeaway in front of the TV and had an early night. Julia was so tired, she couldn’t even be bothered trying any more spells but her wand went under her pillow that night and indeed so it would, for the rest of her life.