Chapter Nine “ Shopping
“Come on Morag!” Maeve begged as she shook her sister awake. “There are only a few days left before the big day and mother is going to allow us to Floo to Diagon Alley to go shopping!”
Morag pulled the covers over her head and moaned, “Don’t remind me! Only a week of freedom left.”
“Don’t be silly,” Maeve replied lightly, tugging the covers from her sister’s face. “It’s only a betrothal; the wedding doesn’t have to happen for years. Shopping, however, is happening today. So get your lazy arse out of that bed and let’s get going!”
Morag sat up reluctantly, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. “Did Da manage to get the Floo access hooked up here or will we have to go to the Blackwaterfoot Lodge?”
Maeve wrinkled her nose. “From the Lodge. Unless something happens between now and the time you finally get dressed.” She grabbed her sister’s hand and tugged her from the bed. “I heard at school that there is a new shop, called Twillfit & Tattings. We can go there first, and if we don't find what we want we can see what Madam Malkin has to offer.”
Morag’s eyes lit up. “I think I heard something about it. Isn’t it supposed to be very posh?”
“Yes, but Da said we were to spare no expense. He doesn’t want to look bad in front of the Blacks.”
“Just because we are in Hufflepuff doesn’t mean we don’t have money,” Morag exclaimed indignantly.
“I know that, and you know that, be we are talking about Da,” Maeve said, taking a dress from her sisters closet and tossing it on the bed. “It’s a lovely day, let’s get going!”
When they approached the Blackwaterfoot Lodge Maeve tried to pretend she didn’t see Sirius and another boy she thought she recognized from Hogwarts sitting with the same man she had seen Sirius with before.
Morag nudged her elbow and whispered, “Look, its Sirius Black and James Potter. Let’s hurry. I don’t want them to see us.”
She increased her pace, causing Maeve to nearly have to jog to keep up. Just as she was about to slip into the Lodge without being seen, her eyes locked with his. His expression lightened from whatever he was talking about, he smiled and lifted a hand in greeting. Maeve smiled in return and wagged her fingers in a brief hello as she stepped inside.
“You said that other boy was James Potter. I think I’ve met him before,” Maeve said as they made their way to the private parlor for wizards. The anti-muggle wards on the particular parlor were especially strong because there were so many Muggles that came through Machrie Moor. Maeve swore they gave her the shivers every time she walked through the doorway. “I remember. He came running up to me one night after I left the great hall, called me Stebbins, or Evans or something. He was really quite nice afterward, apologized for being mistaken.”
“Potter? Nice? Impossible! He’s one of the Marauders, surely you’ve heard of the Marauders!”
“No! Those boys out there? They couldn’t be! He “ I mean they seem so nice,” Maeve stumbled over her words, not wanting Morag to know she had spent a few hours with Sirius Black. She was never certain how Morag would react to some things. She might be hurt, or worried, or jealous, or excited. You could just never tell.
“How can you tell by looking?” Morag asked. “You think Divination has actually taught you something real?”
Maeve giggled. “Of course not. They just don’t look like troublemakers. Take that Potter boy for instance, with his hair a mussed up all the time, he looks like a little boy that’s been playing outside all day.”
Morag sniggered. “Exactly, a young scamp that ties paper bags to cats tails.”
“I only did that once! And you promised you wouldn’t bring it up again!” Maeve pretended outrage.
“I’m only teasing. Come on, let’s get to Diagon Alley.” Morag dropped a knut into a bowl on the mantle of the fireplace and a box of Floo powder silently opened. She took a handful, tossed it into the fire calling out her destination.
A moment later she and her sister were brushing soot from each others clothes and smiling up at Tom, the bartender of the Leaky Cauldron.
“A bit early for lunch today girls,” he called out heartily.
“Shopping first, we'll come back for lunch when we’re finished,” Morag replied with a smile.
A tap of a wand on the special brick and a moment of watching the bricks rearrange themselves and the girls were there. Strolling along in Diagon Alley was always an interesting experience. It was mid-morning and the street was fairly busy, witches bustling along carrying string bags filled with potion ingredients. Wizards huddled together having hushed conversations. Students larking about, idling a summer day away.
The girls entered Twillfit & Tattings and breathed in the exclusive scent of lush fabric, expensive cologne, and money.
“May I help you young ladies?” came the frosty greeting from a snobbish saleslady.
The girls exchanged a glance before Maeve directed her answer toward her sister, “Sister, I know you already have the dress robes we were fitted for in Scotland, are you sure you won’t be happy with those?”
Morag concealed a grin at her sister’s ploy to take the saleslady down a peg or two. “Well, Sister, that set of robes is for the betrothal ceremony, afterwards there will be dinner and dancing at Black Moor Manor.”
“Ah, I just despise days where we have to change more than twice,” Maeve griped.
“Sister, you are not the one being betrothed to one of the Black’s,” Morag complained, suppressing a giggle at her sister’s antics.
The saleslady was goggle-eyed. The Black family betrothal ceremony was going to be “An Event” to dress the bride-to-be would get her a commission large enough that she could afford most anything she could dream of.
“Do you really think they will have anything in here worth looking at?” Maeve whined.
Morag pretended she just noticed the saleslady. “You there, we need to see some dress robes. Something that will compliment each other’s robes yet be completely different.”
“I am positive we will have something you will simply adore!” the saleslady gushed. “Won’t you please follow me?”
She scurried ahead while the girls exchanged looks and suppressed giggles. Morag swallowed her smile and called after the saleslady, “I believe we will need more help, perhaps you could call some of your associates.”
“Of course,” she replied, allowing only a slight bit of disappointment to show. Her commission would suffer but this sale would be a feather she would be able to attach to the brim of her witches hat for some time to come!
“Mary Kate, Mary Joyce, Mary Francis, we have some young ladies out here that need some help finding dress robes for a betrothal ceremony.” She turned to the girls and said, “I am Mary Ann and I’m very glad you decided to visit Twillfit and Tattings.”
The three salesladies descended in rush, each bearing a beautiful dress and chattering about the flawless lines of this gown, and the perfect color for your eyes and hair of that gown, and how perfect this one will flatter your lovely figure.
It seemed no time at all had passed when the girls had chosen two dress robes each and had all the accessories to go with them from new shoes to hair trimmings.
Happily exhausted they made their way back to the Leaky Cauldron loaded down with boxes and bags. Morag suggested they sneak up the back staircase and hope their father wouldn’t see and throw a fit. Maeve agreed, inwardly hoping that Sirius would think she was beautiful and ask her to dance.
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Sorry for the delay, I accidently submitted my un-edited copy of this chapter last week.