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FIC: Ash's Wand
W00t! I made it all the way through National Blog Posting Month--30 posts over 30 days, ranging from reviews to meta to fic. I didn't think I could manage to write that much, even if several of the entries were short, but I did. I don't think I'll be able to keep up that pace in the future, but now that I know I can do it, hopefully it will inspire me to increase my writing output. Now, on to today's fic...
Title: Ash's Wand
Rating: PG
Pairing: Ash/Tsubasa
Word count: ~4,330
Disclaimer: No money is being made off this story; consider it a little wish fulfillment on my part.
Sequel to: Scars, which ended here. This is part of my Snupin Always series, although Snape and Lupin do not appear in this story, aside from a brief mention.
Summary: Ash is uneasy about returning to his childhood home when he escorts his half-sister back to the farm for the summer.
***
For the first time in over fifteen years, Ash was returning to his childhood home, the Madley farm and residence, and he felt distinctly uncomfortable. He would not have returned at all, except that his half-sister Laura missed her home and her friends, and as her guardian, he felt that he should not let her come back alone.
Not that she was in any danger there, with Greyback and the Macnairs safely dead or locked up in Azkaban, and the farm workers would have been happy to look after her if Ash wasn't there. But as a wolf, he felt a strong sense of responsibility to his pack, and Laura was part of his pack now.
Which was how he found himself riding the Hogwarts train for the very first time, sharing a compartment with Tsubasa, Laura, and a few of Laura's Hufflepuff friends, including Rosie Zeller, who was the daughter of one of the farmhands--Ash's former friend John, as a matter of fact, who had been the one to catch him in the apple tree on the Madley farm, which had inadvertently led to Madley marrying Rosalind. If John hadn't caught sight of Ash that day, his mother and Madley might never have met, and Laura would never have been born...
"Do you want something to eat, Ash?" Laura asked, interrupting his rather gloomy thoughts. An elderly witch was waiting patiently outside the entrance to the compartment with a cart filled with various snacks, mainly candy and pastries.
"I'm not hungry," Ash said, and it was true. The thought of returning to his old home had his stomach tied in knots, and eating was the last thing he wanted to do at the moment--well, second to last, to be more accurate. Returning home was actually at the top of the list.
Tsubasa bought him a sandwich, anyway--"Just in case you get hungry later. It will be evening by the time we arrive at the station." He also bought cups of pumpkin juice for everyone in the compartment, while the girls bought candies and pumpkin pasties.
Laura's friends shyly thanked Tsubasa for the drinks; half the girls in the school were infatuated with the handsome Transfiguration Professor, and these were no exception. Ash smiled slightly, his inner wolf more amused by than jealous of their harmless schoolgirl crushes. He was glad that Tsubasa was with him; having his mate by his side was the only thing that made returning to his childhood home bearable.
He managed to nibble halfheartedly on his sandwich as he stared out the window and watched the scenery rushing by him. It felt a little surreal to finally be riding the Hogwarts Express after all these years. He had looked forward to it so much as a child, but it was more of a melancholy experience for Ash now, since it reminded him of everything he had lost, and all the things that he would never be able to do. The laws discriminating against werewolves had been repealed, but it was too late now for him to attend Hogwarts. Even if it was possible, he'd look ridiculous attending classes with the first-years.
They could have arranged to travel by Floo or Portkey, but Laura wanted to ride the train home with her friends, and Tsubasa thought it would be good for her to stick with her usual routine after so much of her life had been turned upside-down and inside-out by her parents' murders. Ash had reluctantly agreed, if only because the train ride would allow him to postpone setting foot in his childhood home for a few more hours.
It was early evening when they disembarked at the station, and most of the children were greeted by their parents with hugs and kisses. Ash felt that familiar pang of envy and bitterness that tended to resurface every time he saw a child with a loving parent. Then he felt Laura's hand hesitantly slipping into his own, as if seeking comfort, and he was reminded that he was not the only one suffering. He squeezed her hand reassuringly and smiled at her, and the lost look on her face seemed to ease a little as she smiled back at him. Tsubasa said nothing, but placed a comforting hand on Ash's shoulder for a moment.
"Miss Laura?" said a familiar voice, and Ash turned to see his old friend John waiting for them on the platform. Rosie had run over to greet her father, and now picking up on the air of tension, glanced nervously back and forth between Ash and John.
Ash managed a polite nod, and John and Rosie relaxed slightly. "Thank you for meeting us, Mr. Zeller," Laura said, smiling at John warmly. "This is Professor Tsubasa, and...um, of course you know Ash..." Her voice trailed off uncertainly.
"I do," John said quietly. "It's good to see you again, Master Eth...excuse me, I mean, Ash." Ash nodded again, not trusting himself to speak. "And I've, er, met the Professor before. Thank you for looking after Miss Laura, sir."
Ash had almost forgotten that John had met Tsubasa on the day that he had fled to his old hideout in the woods to grieve for his stepfather's death. Tsubasa had come in search of him, along with Snape, Lupin, and the Aurors, and John had led them through the woods and helped them find Ash.
Tsubasa shook John's hand and said politely but coolly, "It is my duty as her teacher, and as her brother's companion." He wasn't going to make a scene over it, but it was obvious that he hadn't forgiven John for failing to protect Ash as a child.
The farm was a long distance from the station, so John had brought a Portkey to take them back home, which they triggered as soon as they got out of sight of the Muggles in the station. They landed in front of the Madley residence, and John's wife Sarah immediately opened the door to let them in, and Ash's nose picked up the mouth-watering scent of roast beef and freshly baked bread.
"I thought you would be tired and hungry, so I have dinner ready," Sarah said kindly, but Laura froze in the doorway as she was about to step through it.
"Mother...and Father...the Aurors..." Laura stammered, her words coming out in halting, not quite coherent bursts. "Did they...that is...did they, well...leave the house as they found it?"
Sarah seemed to understand what she meant, and wrapped her arms around Laura in a motherly hug. "Oh my dear, of course we cleaned up the house...afterwards. Everything is as it was before."
Except that Mother and Father were no longer here, of course. But poor Laura must have been having visions of her parents' blood staining the floors, and she seemed reassured by Sarah's words.
"You know, dear," Sarah said hesitantly, "if you're not comfortable staying in the house, you know that you're welcome to stay with us over the summer. We'd all love to have you, especially Rosie."
"Thank you, but I'll be all right here with Ash and Professor Tsubasa," Laura said with a genuine smile.
"Of course, dear," Sarah said, flushing slightly as she glanced over at Ash. It was the same look that he remembered from his childhood, the look of shame on the farm workers' faces when they pretended not to notice the bruises on Ethan's face, or his stepfather's coldness towards him.
Laura allowed Sarah to usher her into the house, and the rest of them followed. There was a joint of roast beef sitting on the kitchen table, along with a large bowl of salad, a loaf of bread, and a dish of what looked like freshly-churned butter.
"Everything looks delicious," Tsubasa said politely, and Sarah smiled at him.
"Thank you," she replied. "There are several meals, casseroles and such, already prepared and stored in the cold pantry so that you don't have to worry about cooking, and can just heat them up when you're ready to eat. And when those run out, I can make some more."
"We can manage fine, but thank you so much, Mrs. Zeller," Laura said, giving her a hug.
"Well then, just let me know if you need anything, dear," Sarah told her, then hesitated and added, "And you too, Master Ethan. I...I know that I have no right to say this, but I'm glad that you're back home, and I'm sorry that we weren't able to protect you back then."
"Weren't able to, or didn't choose to?" Tsubasa asked pointedly.
There was an awkward silence as both the elder Zellers flushed, and Rosie and Laura stared anxiously at Ash. If he was going to be fair, he had to admit that there was not much that the Zellers and the other workers could have done for him. If they had tried to stop Madley from abusing him, they would have been fired and forced to leave the farm, in which case, they still wouldn't have been able to protect him. They could have tried to inform the Ministry of the abuse, but wizarding law was still decades behind Muggle law, and the Ministry didn't like to interfere in what it saw as "family matters". Also, Alden Madley had been a very wealthy man and the Ministry, at least back then, had been corrupt, and he could easily have bribed a ranking official to make the allegations go away.
However, that still didn't make it easy for Ash to accept that people he had loved and trusted had let him down and turned a blind eye to his pain. He didn't hate them anymore, but he still felt a lingering resentment, and wasn't sure if he would ever be able to truly forgive them.
Finally he told his lover, "Leave it be. There's no way to change the past now," and the Zellers relaxed slightly, although they still looked rather guilty. "And call me 'Ash'--Ethan belongs to another life. He doesn't really exist anymore."
"We'll let you folks get settled in, then," John said uncomfortably. "But I'll need to talk to you and Miss Laura tomorrow about some business matters."
John was one of the most senior of the farm workers, and by far the most sensible. He had been the one to stay calm and keep the others from panicking after their employer had been murdered, so he had been temporarily placed in charge of running the farm since Laura was too young to take up that responsibility yet.
"Are there any problems?" Ash asked.
"Not really," John replied. "The farm itself is running smoothly, but I'm not used to handling the contract negotiations with the various stores that we supply. And to be honest, most of the business people don't really respect a common farmhand. You and Miss Laura may want to consider hiring someone to handle the financial end of things."
"The farm belongs to Laura," Ash said curtly. "I have no say in it." Laura was looking at him anxiously again, and he softened his voice and added, "But I'll do my best to advise her, though I'm no businessman myself."
"All the contracts and accounting books are in your father's...er, in Mr. Madley's office," John said. "I'll come by tomorrow morning to go over them with you."
After the Zellers left, Laura told Ash earnestly, "The farm is just as much yours as it is mine! You're my brother, Ash, and I would love to run the farm together with you when I finish school!"
"Legally speaking, you do have a right to a share of the farm, since your stepfather originally named you his heir and never disowned you," Tsubasa pointed out calmly as he began slicing the bread and the beef. "Will you set the table, Laura?"
As Laura laid out plates, cups, and silverware on the table, Ash argued, "But I don't want the damned farm!" Laura looked hurt, and he sighed and added gently, "It's just that I'm happy with my Ministry job, and, well...it's awkward being here, for both me and the workers. There are too many painful memories."
"I'm sorry, Ash," Laura said tearfully. "You needn't stay here if it's too hard for you. I'll be fine with the Zellers, or we can all go back and stay with the pack."
Ash sighed. He loved his little sister, but this family thing was complicated at times. "Hey, what's with the tears?" he asked gruffly, pulling Laura into a hug and planting a kiss on the top of her head. "I'm a big bad werewolf; I'm not about to let a few memories scare me away." To his relief, Laura giggled and brushed the tears from her eyes.
"Look," Ash said, "I'm not planning to give up my Ministry career, but if you need help with the farm, I'll be there for you, though as I told John, I'm hardly a businessman."
"Oh, I don't know about that," Tsubasa said with a mischievous grin. "I hear that you used to run a pretty successful smuggling business."
"That's all in the past," Ash growled, glaring at his lover balefully, although he was gratified to hear Laura giggle again. "We don't discuss those things in front of impressionable young children."
"I'm not a child!" Laura protested indignantly. "I'm sixteen years old!"
"Yes, you're practically an old crone," Tsubasa teased, and the three of them laughed, and Ash relaxed enough to enjoy Sarah's cooking without the food forming a lump in his throat, as long as he didn't think too hard about the last time that he had sat down to dinner in this house.
After the leftovers had been put away and the dishes washed and dried, Ash made some coffee and the three of them sat down to go over the farm's accounts. "Are you sure you're not too young for that?" he asked his sister skeptically as she sipped from her cup of coffee, although it was diluted with milk and heavily sweetened with sugar and chocolate powder. "It'll stunt your growth."
"Why do I need to grow more?" Laura asked logically. "I'm already at a normal height; did you want me to grow as tall as Hagrid?"
"Smart-mouthed little sister," Ash grumbled, and Laura and Tsubasa laughed.
"Besides, I've had coffee before at Madam Puddifoot's," Laura added.
"What?!" Ash demanded.
"Only on Hogsmeade days," Laura replied, looking startled. "Honestly, I don't drink enough to stunt my growth."
"I'm not worried about that!" Ash growled. "Puddifoot's is a place for couples! Just who did you go there with?"
"It's not a big deal, Ash," Laura tried to reassure him. "It wasn't anything serious..."
"Not serious? You mean some guy is trifling with my little sister's feelings?" Ash demanded.
"Calm down," Tsubasa laughed, patting him on the shoulder soothingly. "I'm afraid that the boys you date will have to be very brave, Laura, to face your overprotective werewolf brother."
"Oh dear," Laura said, only half-jokingly. "Then I may be single for the rest of my life!"
She reassured Ash that nothing had happened on her "date" at Puddifoot's, but Ash was only slightly mollified, since she declined to name the boy for his own safety. Still, he supposed it was good that she seemed to be in a much better mood, even if it was at his own expense.
"Math always gave me a headache," Ash sighed, setting aside the account books after going over the figures.
Tsubasa flipped through the books and said, "Well, you should have an accountant go over these, but everything seems to be in order, and the farm is still making a profit."
Ash stared at him curiously. "Did the tengu teach you accounting as well as sword-fighting?"
"No," Tsubasa replied with an amused smile. "But my step-uncle ran his own business--I believe I mentioned that he owns a kendo dojo? I used to work part-time in his office during summer vacations while I was in school, so I know a bit about balancing accounts. I do think that Mr. Zeller is right, though, and that you should hire someone to handle the finances, at least while Laura is still in school."
"But where would we find someone that we could trust?" Ash wanted to know. "We can't give just anyone control of all the finances."
"I'm sure that Lady Selima could recommend someone reliable," Tsubasa replied calmly.
"And why would Snape's mother want to do a favor for me?" Ash asked doubtfully.
"She wouldn't," Tsubasa replied, just as matter-of-factly as he had before. "But she has a soft spot for Lukas, so she might do a favor for him. And she would also do it if her son asked her to, and before you ask why Professor Snape would want to do you a favor, he wouldn't, but Remus would, and we all know that Remus has the Professor wrapped around his little finger." Tsubasa turned to Laura and added, "Pretend you didn't hear that."
"Too late," she giggled.
"Well, at least don't repeat it in Professor Snape's presence if you value your life and mine," Tsubasa said, and Laura grinned and nodded.
"All right, let me put these away, and we'll send a message to Lupin tomorrow," Ash chuckled, but as he reached for the account books, he accidentally knocked over his cup of coffee. "Damn it!" he cursed, but then he couldn't help but laugh as all three of them whipped out their wands and shouted, "Evanesco!" at the same time.
A few of the papers had gotten wet, but weren't soaked too badly, and Tsubasa was able to dry them off with a quick spell, although the edges retained a few brown stains. His wand was slender and almost delicate-looking, with a vine design carved into it, spiraling down from the handle to the tip--it was almost as beautiful as its owner, and Ash suspected that like its owner, it was probably much stronger than it looked.
"Your wand is so pretty, Professor," Laura said admiringly. "All the girls in class have remarked on it. It doesn't look like anything I've ever seen at Ollivander's."
"It's not," Tsubasa said with a smile. "I grew up in America, remember? My stepmother's cousin is a wand-maker, and Aunt Mari custom-made this for me when I started school at Salem. It's teak, with one of my father's feathers as the core."
He held out the wand for Laura to examine, and she very carefully traced the vine carving with her fingers. "How exotic," she said. "I don't know anyone else with a teak wand."
"Well, the American wizards are a little unconventional, compared to their more stodgy British counterparts," Tsubasa laughed. "But it's a good wood for a wand, strong and resilient. What kind of wand do you have, Laura?"
"Almond, with a unicorn tail hair," she replied, holding up her own wand.
"Almond is often called the tree of life, because it's the first to bloom in the spring," Tsubasa said. "It's a good wand for someone who wants to specialize in Herbology."
"That's what Professor Sprout said, too," Laura said proudly. "What about you, Ash? What kind of wand do you have?"
"I'm not really sure," Ash said, staring down broodingly at his own wand. It was made of a light-colored wood, with a simple rounded handle tapering down to a point, with no ornamentation. The grip was worn smooth and slightly discolored from many years of handling.
"Not sure?" Laura asked in a puzzled voice. "The shopkeeper didn't tell you what it was made of?"
"I didn't buy it," Ash said quietly. "My--your--father gave it to me when I was a child. He said it had been his first wand when he was a boy, before he bought a better wand from Ollivander's later. He didn't tell me what it was made of, and I didn't care. I was just happy to have my very own wand, one that had belonged to my father."
"Oh Ash, I'm sorry," Laura whispered.
"You never replaced it?" Tsubasa asked gently.
Ash shrugged. "Couldn't afford to. Wands don't come cheap, and most times there wasn't enough money to feed everyone in the pack, let alone buy new wands. Mine was serviceable, better than some of the others who had secondhand wands that had been broken and mended. I suppose I could have bought a new one after I got my Ministry job, but I'd grown used to this one, and it works well enough. Maybe it's not Ollivander's quality, but it's not like I'm doing any great feats of magic, like dueling with the Dark Lord. Mostly I've just used it for defensive magic, obscurement spells...and maybe a few lock-picking charms." He grinned with some of his old rakishness, and Tsubasa and Laura laughed.
"Now who's a bad influence?" Tsubasa joked. "Can I see your wand? I'm not an expert, but I learned enough from Aunt Mari to determine the wood and the core." Ash handed it over, and Tsubasa examined it carefully, then chucked.
"What's so funny?" Ash asked curiously.
"Ash," Tsubasa replied.
"What?" Ash asked impatiently.
"No, I mean that your wand is made out of ash," Tsubasa explained with a smile.
"What?! Really?" Ash gazed at him suspiciously. "You're not pulling my leg, are you?"
"I'm perfectly serious," Tsubasa said, although he was still smiling slightly. "It's a good choice for you--ash is particularly suited to charms and protective spells." With his own wand, he cast a murmured charm over the ash wand, and it glowed with a pure white light. "The core is a unicorn tail hair," he said, handing the wand back to Ash.
"Like mine," Laura said, looking pleased.
"It's one of the most common cores used in British wands, along with dragon heartstring," Tsubasa said. "It's a good wand, Ash. It may not be fancy, but it's sturdy and well-made, not likely to break or fail."
Ash smiled as he turned the wand over in his hands; it felt familiar and comforting, like an old friend. "It is a good wand," he said. "It's served me well, and gotten me out of trouble more times than I can count. It would be a shame to get rid of it." He remembered the pride and joy he had felt upon receiving the wand, and for the first time, that old memory didn't sting quite as much as it used to. Perhaps the wand could serve as a reminder that his stepfather had done at least one good thing for him before their family had been torn apart by bitterness and jealousy.
"Besides, I suppose it's meant to be--an ash wand for an Ash," he chuckled, tucking it safely away in the pocket of his robe. He wasn't sure if he would ever feel entirely comfortable on the farm, but the thought of spending the summer in his childhood home no longer seemed so intimidating.
"The coffee's cold," Tsubasa observed, after taking a sip from his cup.
"I'll make a fresh batch," Ash said, rising to his feet, and Tsubasa grinned.
"I don't know why you say you aren't a businessman, Ash. Even if it wasn't quite legal, you ran a very successful smuggling operation--"
"I thought we weren't going to talk about that anymore!" Ash complained.
"--and your little coffee business at the Ministry is doing quite well," Tsubasa finished, ignoring the interruption.
"Coffee business?" Laura asked. "I hadn't heard about that."
"He's exaggerating," Ash replied. "And it doesn't really have anything to do with me. Arthur brought one of his Muggle toys to the office awhile back, a cappuccino machine, and I got it working for him." Laura looked confused, so he explained, "It's a type of machine that makes fancy coffee drinks with steamed milk. Anyway, the other workers got curious about it, and Arthur was happy to offer a cup to anyone who stopped by his office, but pretty soon the little machine couldn't keep up with the demand. So Arthur authorized me to buy and install more machines in the Ministry cafeteria, which was easy enough. It took longer to teach the cafeteria staff to use them, but everything is running smoothly now. The drinks are very popular, but it was actually Arthur's idea."
"But you got the operation running," Tsubasa pointed out. "You know, I think enough demand will develop that a coffee shop in Hogsmeade or Diagon Alley could prove very profitable. Merlin knows that the Muggles are certainly willing to shell out a lot of money for overpriced coffee drinks, so I don't see why the wizards wouldn't as well."
"Maybe, but like I said, I'm happy with my Ministry job," Ash said. "Well, except for the paperwork."
"But there are several of your packmates who are unemployed or working at low-paying jobs," Tsubasa reminded him. "If they can't find work, maybe they should start a business of their own. Now that Lukas has inherited the Diggory estate, he should have enough money to provide the capital for a small cafe."
"Will the public really want to buy coffee from werewolves?" Ash asked doubtfully.
"Ah, but werewolves are in fashion now," Tsubasa replied. "Especially among the more adventurous young witches and wizards, who are exactly the market that we'd want to target."
Ash laughed and gave in. "All right, I'll talk to the pack about it and see what they say. But you know, Tsubasa, I think that you make a pretty sharp businessman yourself!"
He made a fresh batch of coffee, and they raised their mugs and toasted the future success of the farm and not-yet-existent coffee shop.
THE END.
***
Afterword: The story was partially inspired by this meta discussion about wands on Snapedom. I started thinking that it would be appropriate for Ash's wand to be made out of ash, and this story developed around that idea. I also used the Alivan's website for additional inspiration and info. Tsubasa's wand is based on their Wood Vine Carved wand.
For what it's worth, I personally own the Petite Redwood wand, which I chose because it was pretty, and at the time I bought it, was one of the cheapest wands they had, though it seems to be more expensive now. I had actually wanted the vine-carved wand, but it was a little too pricey for something that's just going to decorate my desk. ^_^
Oh, and I guess it's obvious from the ending, but I'm also working a sequel dealing with the werewolf-run coffee shop.
For the first time in over fifteen years, Ash was returning to his childhood home, the Madley farm and residence, and he felt distinctly uncomfortable. He would not have returned at all, except that his half-sister Laura missed her home and her friends, and as her guardian, he felt that he should not let her come back alone.
Not that she was in any danger there, with Greyback and the Macnairs safely dead or locked up in Azkaban, and the farm workers would have been happy to look after her if Ash wasn't there. But as a wolf, he felt a strong sense of responsibility to his pack, and Laura was part of his pack now.
Which was how he found himself riding the Hogwarts train for the very first time, sharing a compartment with Tsubasa, Laura, and a few of Laura's Hufflepuff friends, including Rosie Zeller, who was the daughter of one of the farmhands--Ash's former friend John, as a matter of fact, who had been the one to catch him in the apple tree on the Madley farm, which had inadvertently led to Madley marrying Rosalind. If John hadn't caught sight of Ash that day, his mother and Madley might never have met, and Laura would never have been born...
"Do you want something to eat, Ash?" Laura asked, interrupting his rather gloomy thoughts. An elderly witch was waiting patiently outside the entrance to the compartment with a cart filled with various snacks, mainly candy and pastries.
"I'm not hungry," Ash said, and it was true. The thought of returning to his old home had his stomach tied in knots, and eating was the last thing he wanted to do at the moment--well, second to last, to be more accurate. Returning home was actually at the top of the list.
Tsubasa bought him a sandwich, anyway--"Just in case you get hungry later. It will be evening by the time we arrive at the station." He also bought cups of pumpkin juice for everyone in the compartment, while the girls bought candies and pumpkin pasties.
Laura's friends shyly thanked Tsubasa for the drinks; half the girls in the school were infatuated with the handsome Transfiguration Professor, and these were no exception. Ash smiled slightly, his inner wolf more amused by than jealous of their harmless schoolgirl crushes. He was glad that Tsubasa was with him; having his mate by his side was the only thing that made returning to his childhood home bearable.
He managed to nibble halfheartedly on his sandwich as he stared out the window and watched the scenery rushing by him. It felt a little surreal to finally be riding the Hogwarts Express after all these years. He had looked forward to it so much as a child, but it was more of a melancholy experience for Ash now, since it reminded him of everything he had lost, and all the things that he would never be able to do. The laws discriminating against werewolves had been repealed, but it was too late now for him to attend Hogwarts. Even if it was possible, he'd look ridiculous attending classes with the first-years.
They could have arranged to travel by Floo or Portkey, but Laura wanted to ride the train home with her friends, and Tsubasa thought it would be good for her to stick with her usual routine after so much of her life had been turned upside-down and inside-out by her parents' murders. Ash had reluctantly agreed, if only because the train ride would allow him to postpone setting foot in his childhood home for a few more hours.
It was early evening when they disembarked at the station, and most of the children were greeted by their parents with hugs and kisses. Ash felt that familiar pang of envy and bitterness that tended to resurface every time he saw a child with a loving parent. Then he felt Laura's hand hesitantly slipping into his own, as if seeking comfort, and he was reminded that he was not the only one suffering. He squeezed her hand reassuringly and smiled at her, and the lost look on her face seemed to ease a little as she smiled back at him. Tsubasa said nothing, but placed a comforting hand on Ash's shoulder for a moment.
"Miss Laura?" said a familiar voice, and Ash turned to see his old friend John waiting for them on the platform. Rosie had run over to greet her father, and now picking up on the air of tension, glanced nervously back and forth between Ash and John.
Ash managed a polite nod, and John and Rosie relaxed slightly. "Thank you for meeting us, Mr. Zeller," Laura said, smiling at John warmly. "This is Professor Tsubasa, and...um, of course you know Ash..." Her voice trailed off uncertainly.
"I do," John said quietly. "It's good to see you again, Master Eth...excuse me, I mean, Ash." Ash nodded again, not trusting himself to speak. "And I've, er, met the Professor before. Thank you for looking after Miss Laura, sir."
Ash had almost forgotten that John had met Tsubasa on the day that he had fled to his old hideout in the woods to grieve for his stepfather's death. Tsubasa had come in search of him, along with Snape, Lupin, and the Aurors, and John had led them through the woods and helped them find Ash.
Tsubasa shook John's hand and said politely but coolly, "It is my duty as her teacher, and as her brother's companion." He wasn't going to make a scene over it, but it was obvious that he hadn't forgiven John for failing to protect Ash as a child.
The farm was a long distance from the station, so John had brought a Portkey to take them back home, which they triggered as soon as they got out of sight of the Muggles in the station. They landed in front of the Madley residence, and John's wife Sarah immediately opened the door to let them in, and Ash's nose picked up the mouth-watering scent of roast beef and freshly baked bread.
"I thought you would be tired and hungry, so I have dinner ready," Sarah said kindly, but Laura froze in the doorway as she was about to step through it.
"Mother...and Father...the Aurors..." Laura stammered, her words coming out in halting, not quite coherent bursts. "Did they...that is...did they, well...leave the house as they found it?"
Sarah seemed to understand what she meant, and wrapped her arms around Laura in a motherly hug. "Oh my dear, of course we cleaned up the house...afterwards. Everything is as it was before."
Except that Mother and Father were no longer here, of course. But poor Laura must have been having visions of her parents' blood staining the floors, and she seemed reassured by Sarah's words.
"You know, dear," Sarah said hesitantly, "if you're not comfortable staying in the house, you know that you're welcome to stay with us over the summer. We'd all love to have you, especially Rosie."
"Thank you, but I'll be all right here with Ash and Professor Tsubasa," Laura said with a genuine smile.
"Of course, dear," Sarah said, flushing slightly as she glanced over at Ash. It was the same look that he remembered from his childhood, the look of shame on the farm workers' faces when they pretended not to notice the bruises on Ethan's face, or his stepfather's coldness towards him.
Laura allowed Sarah to usher her into the house, and the rest of them followed. There was a joint of roast beef sitting on the kitchen table, along with a large bowl of salad, a loaf of bread, and a dish of what looked like freshly-churned butter.
"Everything looks delicious," Tsubasa said politely, and Sarah smiled at him.
"Thank you," she replied. "There are several meals, casseroles and such, already prepared and stored in the cold pantry so that you don't have to worry about cooking, and can just heat them up when you're ready to eat. And when those run out, I can make some more."
"We can manage fine, but thank you so much, Mrs. Zeller," Laura said, giving her a hug.
"Well then, just let me know if you need anything, dear," Sarah told her, then hesitated and added, "And you too, Master Ethan. I...I know that I have no right to say this, but I'm glad that you're back home, and I'm sorry that we weren't able to protect you back then."
"Weren't able to, or didn't choose to?" Tsubasa asked pointedly.
There was an awkward silence as both the elder Zellers flushed, and Rosie and Laura stared anxiously at Ash. If he was going to be fair, he had to admit that there was not much that the Zellers and the other workers could have done for him. If they had tried to stop Madley from abusing him, they would have been fired and forced to leave the farm, in which case, they still wouldn't have been able to protect him. They could have tried to inform the Ministry of the abuse, but wizarding law was still decades behind Muggle law, and the Ministry didn't like to interfere in what it saw as "family matters". Also, Alden Madley had been a very wealthy man and the Ministry, at least back then, had been corrupt, and he could easily have bribed a ranking official to make the allegations go away.
However, that still didn't make it easy for Ash to accept that people he had loved and trusted had let him down and turned a blind eye to his pain. He didn't hate them anymore, but he still felt a lingering resentment, and wasn't sure if he would ever be able to truly forgive them.
Finally he told his lover, "Leave it be. There's no way to change the past now," and the Zellers relaxed slightly, although they still looked rather guilty. "And call me 'Ash'--Ethan belongs to another life. He doesn't really exist anymore."
"We'll let you folks get settled in, then," John said uncomfortably. "But I'll need to talk to you and Miss Laura tomorrow about some business matters."
John was one of the most senior of the farm workers, and by far the most sensible. He had been the one to stay calm and keep the others from panicking after their employer had been murdered, so he had been temporarily placed in charge of running the farm since Laura was too young to take up that responsibility yet.
"Are there any problems?" Ash asked.
"Not really," John replied. "The farm itself is running smoothly, but I'm not used to handling the contract negotiations with the various stores that we supply. And to be honest, most of the business people don't really respect a common farmhand. You and Miss Laura may want to consider hiring someone to handle the financial end of things."
"The farm belongs to Laura," Ash said curtly. "I have no say in it." Laura was looking at him anxiously again, and he softened his voice and added, "But I'll do my best to advise her, though I'm no businessman myself."
"All the contracts and accounting books are in your father's...er, in Mr. Madley's office," John said. "I'll come by tomorrow morning to go over them with you."
After the Zellers left, Laura told Ash earnestly, "The farm is just as much yours as it is mine! You're my brother, Ash, and I would love to run the farm together with you when I finish school!"
"Legally speaking, you do have a right to a share of the farm, since your stepfather originally named you his heir and never disowned you," Tsubasa pointed out calmly as he began slicing the bread and the beef. "Will you set the table, Laura?"
As Laura laid out plates, cups, and silverware on the table, Ash argued, "But I don't want the damned farm!" Laura looked hurt, and he sighed and added gently, "It's just that I'm happy with my Ministry job, and, well...it's awkward being here, for both me and the workers. There are too many painful memories."
"I'm sorry, Ash," Laura said tearfully. "You needn't stay here if it's too hard for you. I'll be fine with the Zellers, or we can all go back and stay with the pack."
Ash sighed. He loved his little sister, but this family thing was complicated at times. "Hey, what's with the tears?" he asked gruffly, pulling Laura into a hug and planting a kiss on the top of her head. "I'm a big bad werewolf; I'm not about to let a few memories scare me away." To his relief, Laura giggled and brushed the tears from her eyes.
"Look," Ash said, "I'm not planning to give up my Ministry career, but if you need help with the farm, I'll be there for you, though as I told John, I'm hardly a businessman."
"Oh, I don't know about that," Tsubasa said with a mischievous grin. "I hear that you used to run a pretty successful smuggling business."
"That's all in the past," Ash growled, glaring at his lover balefully, although he was gratified to hear Laura giggle again. "We don't discuss those things in front of impressionable young children."
"I'm not a child!" Laura protested indignantly. "I'm sixteen years old!"
"Yes, you're practically an old crone," Tsubasa teased, and the three of them laughed, and Ash relaxed enough to enjoy Sarah's cooking without the food forming a lump in his throat, as long as he didn't think too hard about the last time that he had sat down to dinner in this house.
After the leftovers had been put away and the dishes washed and dried, Ash made some coffee and the three of them sat down to go over the farm's accounts. "Are you sure you're not too young for that?" he asked his sister skeptically as she sipped from her cup of coffee, although it was diluted with milk and heavily sweetened with sugar and chocolate powder. "It'll stunt your growth."
"Why do I need to grow more?" Laura asked logically. "I'm already at a normal height; did you want me to grow as tall as Hagrid?"
"Smart-mouthed little sister," Ash grumbled, and Laura and Tsubasa laughed.
"Besides, I've had coffee before at Madam Puddifoot's," Laura added.
"What?!" Ash demanded.
"Only on Hogsmeade days," Laura replied, looking startled. "Honestly, I don't drink enough to stunt my growth."
"I'm not worried about that!" Ash growled. "Puddifoot's is a place for couples! Just who did you go there with?"
"It's not a big deal, Ash," Laura tried to reassure him. "It wasn't anything serious..."
"Not serious? You mean some guy is trifling with my little sister's feelings?" Ash demanded.
"Calm down," Tsubasa laughed, patting him on the shoulder soothingly. "I'm afraid that the boys you date will have to be very brave, Laura, to face your overprotective werewolf brother."
"Oh dear," Laura said, only half-jokingly. "Then I may be single for the rest of my life!"
She reassured Ash that nothing had happened on her "date" at Puddifoot's, but Ash was only slightly mollified, since she declined to name the boy for his own safety. Still, he supposed it was good that she seemed to be in a much better mood, even if it was at his own expense.
"Math always gave me a headache," Ash sighed, setting aside the account books after going over the figures.
Tsubasa flipped through the books and said, "Well, you should have an accountant go over these, but everything seems to be in order, and the farm is still making a profit."
Ash stared at him curiously. "Did the tengu teach you accounting as well as sword-fighting?"
"No," Tsubasa replied with an amused smile. "But my step-uncle ran his own business--I believe I mentioned that he owns a kendo dojo? I used to work part-time in his office during summer vacations while I was in school, so I know a bit about balancing accounts. I do think that Mr. Zeller is right, though, and that you should hire someone to handle the finances, at least while Laura is still in school."
"But where would we find someone that we could trust?" Ash wanted to know. "We can't give just anyone control of all the finances."
"I'm sure that Lady Selima could recommend someone reliable," Tsubasa replied calmly.
"And why would Snape's mother want to do a favor for me?" Ash asked doubtfully.
"She wouldn't," Tsubasa replied, just as matter-of-factly as he had before. "But she has a soft spot for Lukas, so she might do a favor for him. And she would also do it if her son asked her to, and before you ask why Professor Snape would want to do you a favor, he wouldn't, but Remus would, and we all know that Remus has the Professor wrapped around his little finger." Tsubasa turned to Laura and added, "Pretend you didn't hear that."
"Too late," she giggled.
"Well, at least don't repeat it in Professor Snape's presence if you value your life and mine," Tsubasa said, and Laura grinned and nodded.
"All right, let me put these away, and we'll send a message to Lupin tomorrow," Ash chuckled, but as he reached for the account books, he accidentally knocked over his cup of coffee. "Damn it!" he cursed, but then he couldn't help but laugh as all three of them whipped out their wands and shouted, "Evanesco!" at the same time.
A few of the papers had gotten wet, but weren't soaked too badly, and Tsubasa was able to dry them off with a quick spell, although the edges retained a few brown stains. His wand was slender and almost delicate-looking, with a vine design carved into it, spiraling down from the handle to the tip--it was almost as beautiful as its owner, and Ash suspected that like its owner, it was probably much stronger than it looked.
"Your wand is so pretty, Professor," Laura said admiringly. "All the girls in class have remarked on it. It doesn't look like anything I've ever seen at Ollivander's."
"It's not," Tsubasa said with a smile. "I grew up in America, remember? My stepmother's cousin is a wand-maker, and Aunt Mari custom-made this for me when I started school at Salem. It's teak, with one of my father's feathers as the core."
He held out the wand for Laura to examine, and she very carefully traced the vine carving with her fingers. "How exotic," she said. "I don't know anyone else with a teak wand."
"Well, the American wizards are a little unconventional, compared to their more stodgy British counterparts," Tsubasa laughed. "But it's a good wood for a wand, strong and resilient. What kind of wand do you have, Laura?"
"Almond, with a unicorn tail hair," she replied, holding up her own wand.
"Almond is often called the tree of life, because it's the first to bloom in the spring," Tsubasa said. "It's a good wand for someone who wants to specialize in Herbology."
"That's what Professor Sprout said, too," Laura said proudly. "What about you, Ash? What kind of wand do you have?"
"I'm not really sure," Ash said, staring down broodingly at his own wand. It was made of a light-colored wood, with a simple rounded handle tapering down to a point, with no ornamentation. The grip was worn smooth and slightly discolored from many years of handling.
"Not sure?" Laura asked in a puzzled voice. "The shopkeeper didn't tell you what it was made of?"
"I didn't buy it," Ash said quietly. "My--your--father gave it to me when I was a child. He said it had been his first wand when he was a boy, before he bought a better wand from Ollivander's later. He didn't tell me what it was made of, and I didn't care. I was just happy to have my very own wand, one that had belonged to my father."
"Oh Ash, I'm sorry," Laura whispered.
"You never replaced it?" Tsubasa asked gently.
Ash shrugged. "Couldn't afford to. Wands don't come cheap, and most times there wasn't enough money to feed everyone in the pack, let alone buy new wands. Mine was serviceable, better than some of the others who had secondhand wands that had been broken and mended. I suppose I could have bought a new one after I got my Ministry job, but I'd grown used to this one, and it works well enough. Maybe it's not Ollivander's quality, but it's not like I'm doing any great feats of magic, like dueling with the Dark Lord. Mostly I've just used it for defensive magic, obscurement spells...and maybe a few lock-picking charms." He grinned with some of his old rakishness, and Tsubasa and Laura laughed.
"Now who's a bad influence?" Tsubasa joked. "Can I see your wand? I'm not an expert, but I learned enough from Aunt Mari to determine the wood and the core." Ash handed it over, and Tsubasa examined it carefully, then chucked.
"What's so funny?" Ash asked curiously.
"Ash," Tsubasa replied.
"What?" Ash asked impatiently.
"No, I mean that your wand is made out of ash," Tsubasa explained with a smile.
"What?! Really?" Ash gazed at him suspiciously. "You're not pulling my leg, are you?"
"I'm perfectly serious," Tsubasa said, although he was still smiling slightly. "It's a good choice for you--ash is particularly suited to charms and protective spells." With his own wand, he cast a murmured charm over the ash wand, and it glowed with a pure white light. "The core is a unicorn tail hair," he said, handing the wand back to Ash.
"Like mine," Laura said, looking pleased.
"It's one of the most common cores used in British wands, along with dragon heartstring," Tsubasa said. "It's a good wand, Ash. It may not be fancy, but it's sturdy and well-made, not likely to break or fail."
Ash smiled as he turned the wand over in his hands; it felt familiar and comforting, like an old friend. "It is a good wand," he said. "It's served me well, and gotten me out of trouble more times than I can count. It would be a shame to get rid of it." He remembered the pride and joy he had felt upon receiving the wand, and for the first time, that old memory didn't sting quite as much as it used to. Perhaps the wand could serve as a reminder that his stepfather had done at least one good thing for him before their family had been torn apart by bitterness and jealousy.
"Besides, I suppose it's meant to be--an ash wand for an Ash," he chuckled, tucking it safely away in the pocket of his robe. He wasn't sure if he would ever feel entirely comfortable on the farm, but the thought of spending the summer in his childhood home no longer seemed so intimidating.
"The coffee's cold," Tsubasa observed, after taking a sip from his cup.
"I'll make a fresh batch," Ash said, rising to his feet, and Tsubasa grinned.
"I don't know why you say you aren't a businessman, Ash. Even if it wasn't quite legal, you ran a very successful smuggling operation--"
"I thought we weren't going to talk about that anymore!" Ash complained.
"--and your little coffee business at the Ministry is doing quite well," Tsubasa finished, ignoring the interruption.
"Coffee business?" Laura asked. "I hadn't heard about that."
"He's exaggerating," Ash replied. "And it doesn't really have anything to do with me. Arthur brought one of his Muggle toys to the office awhile back, a cappuccino machine, and I got it working for him." Laura looked confused, so he explained, "It's a type of machine that makes fancy coffee drinks with steamed milk. Anyway, the other workers got curious about it, and Arthur was happy to offer a cup to anyone who stopped by his office, but pretty soon the little machine couldn't keep up with the demand. So Arthur authorized me to buy and install more machines in the Ministry cafeteria, which was easy enough. It took longer to teach the cafeteria staff to use them, but everything is running smoothly now. The drinks are very popular, but it was actually Arthur's idea."
"But you got the operation running," Tsubasa pointed out. "You know, I think enough demand will develop that a coffee shop in Hogsmeade or Diagon Alley could prove very profitable. Merlin knows that the Muggles are certainly willing to shell out a lot of money for overpriced coffee drinks, so I don't see why the wizards wouldn't as well."
"Maybe, but like I said, I'm happy with my Ministry job," Ash said. "Well, except for the paperwork."
"But there are several of your packmates who are unemployed or working at low-paying jobs," Tsubasa reminded him. "If they can't find work, maybe they should start a business of their own. Now that Lukas has inherited the Diggory estate, he should have enough money to provide the capital for a small cafe."
"Will the public really want to buy coffee from werewolves?" Ash asked doubtfully.
"Ah, but werewolves are in fashion now," Tsubasa replied. "Especially among the more adventurous young witches and wizards, who are exactly the market that we'd want to target."
Ash laughed and gave in. "All right, I'll talk to the pack about it and see what they say. But you know, Tsubasa, I think that you make a pretty sharp businessman yourself!"
He made a fresh batch of coffee, and they raised their mugs and toasted the future success of the farm and not-yet-existent coffee shop.
THE END.
***
Afterword: The story was partially inspired by this meta discussion about wands on Snapedom. I started thinking that it would be appropriate for Ash's wand to be made out of ash, and this story developed around that idea. I also used the Alivan's website for additional inspiration and info. Tsubasa's wand is based on their Wood Vine Carved wand.
For what it's worth, I personally own the Petite Redwood wand, which I chose because it was pretty, and at the time I bought it, was one of the cheapest wands they had, though it seems to be more expensive now. I had actually wanted the vine-carved wand, but it was a little too pricey for something that's just going to decorate my desk. ^_^
Oh, and I guess it's obvious from the ending, but I'm also working a sequel dealing with the werewolf-run coffee shop.