Differences

After finishing our talk, we had dinner. It was a warm feeling, spending time with loved ones. But it was difficult, seeing them as my parents, and that was why I always addressed them by their names. It would be while before I would accept that. It wasn't something that could be rushed. If it didn't come generically then it wasn't worth saying at all.

I lay in my bed thinking about our conversation. I thought that they deserved to know, or at the very least have a look into what my family was like. They did not ask how I knew so much since Drak was there inside of me. Naturally he was the one who gave me this information as well.

[So, we have a couple of days before we head off to Hawaii, make sure to buy clothes that fit you, or did you forget?"] said Drak with a soft chuckle. I facepalmed when I heard that. I completely forgot about it. That was most definitely something that I would need to fix as soon as possible.

The night went by peacefully. The morning sun acted like my usual alarm clock as the rays touched my face. I woke up to the nostalgic sound of Diana's singing with the smell of freshly brewed coffee wafting in in waves through the gap beneath my bedroom door. I only came to realise how much I missed the little stuff. Like Aria getting fed by Diana in the kitchen acting aloof and prideful, Luke reading the morning newspaper with his reading glasses while taking a sip from his coffee absentmindedly, only to be burnt because it was too hot. This happened every morning, yet it never annoyed me.

I washed my face and when I lifted it up from the sink, I saw a more mature face looking back at me. I still had the childishness on my face but there was less of it. I was also taller than before which was apparent from the long sleeve shirt that only reached three quarters down my forearm. I had to roll it up to make sure it didn't look too out of place.

We ate breakfast before going shopping. I had clothes I needed to buy. I made sure to buy separate ones that were a size or two bigger in the event that I grew than expected. The reason was simple. I was going to make the potion again, so there was some expected growth to be seen. Also on that point, my muscle definition was an interesting thing to see. For a 12-year-old, I had a fair bit of muscle. There was still that skinny look since children my age wouldn't gain much muscle until two or three years from now but seeing the effects of the potion I wouldn't be surprised if I saw that being sped up by at least a year.

As I thought about this, we walked into the first clothing store. For the next 4 hours, we meticulously searched for all the articles of clothing I could need. It was exhausting. I didn't understand how women did this and enjoy it.

When I got back home, I sat down and watched some Tv with Luke before heading up to my room for some occlumency and Legilimency training. It was tedious and boring but that was the price to pay in order to see results, but they were very important to me so it must be done.

While I was doing that, I was deep in thought about the differences between England and American. Starting with the lack of communication between the two. the first indication that America is a world away from Britain is when Newt Scamander came off an ordinary Muggle steamship and having to go through Customs.

The meaning of this is not in what we can see, but what we don't see: any magical transportation system between Great Britain and North America. There is evidently no formal cooperation between the two wizarding worlds: no Floo Network - no Knight Bus or an equivalent magical ship that would sail to and from the two countries- no Hogwarts Express - no transcontinental brooms, magic cabinets, or enchanted paintings affording easy movement back and forth across the Atlantic.

It is also known that America was socially isolationist prior to the Second World War, and something of a rival with the British Empire for world leadership as well - suggesting that the American mind didn't quite know what it thought about itself at the time, let alone about distant Europe.

All these things are communicated by the simple fact that Newt Scamander has to use Muggle money and take a Muggle ship in order to reach New York from London. This was all I could glean from the movies which gives rise to the question of why didn't America step in when a huge threat like Voldemort appeared. The answer was simple.

They knew and didn't do anything about it. They were probably waiting for both parties to be weak before swooping in to save the day. What this would achieve is simple. The British empire would owe a massive debt of gratitude to their American counterpart. Something that would be detrimental to our growth. But that was all speculation. Maybe they're dealing with their own problems as well.

This leads to political differences between the two countries. The politics of the wizarding community in America are also presented as more shrill, more strident, than that of the British wizards. If I was to expect a less authoritarian equivalent in America to the draconian Ministry of Magic in London, with more personal freedoms, my expectations would soon be set straight.