Chapter 4: SunSpot Alley and Dealing with Banks

November 6th mid-morning, New Salem

Jim arrived the next morning around ten to take the witches and the boys to SunSpot Alley. He had waited until he thought they would be done with breakfast and clothed for the day. He made his way up the walkway looking at the dying vegetable and herb beds. He so liked the gardens this time of year. Upon climbing up the stairs to the front of the house, he knocked on the door.

Gilly opened it, dressed in jeans and a tight knit green sweater, which left little to the imagination, with Harry on her hip. "Come on in, we're almost ready to go. I just have to put shoes on and get a bag put together for the kids." She stepped aside to let him in.

Jim followed her in and looked over Harry, who was staring at him in awe and then the tyke giggled, making Gilly smile.

"Aunt Jet, can you come and get Harry so I can get a bag together?" she yelled to the kitchen, making Harry squirm a little, he still didn't like loud voices, not after last night. She bounced the child on her hip and gave him a big hug and smile, making him babble.

The Owens woman decided to get them used to happy yells, so they wouldn't always be frightened of loud noises. It had been a long night, whenever there was a loud noise the boys would cry. That and the poor children had nightmares. They both cried for their moms and it took the witches hours to get them calm, not that they blamed them. It would take a while to get over the horrors that they saw, perhaps there were tools, or spells, that would help. It was something to look in to.

"I've got Neville, ask Frances!" Jet yelled back.

"I heard," came Frances' voice from upstairs. "You keep Harry and I'll get the bag ready, since I'm already up here," she offered and you could hear her moving around to do just that.

"Okay, I just wanted to let you know Death is here and waiting. Grab my brown boots and some stockings, please," Gilly shouted back. She turned to Jim and in a quieter voice said, "Come and sit in here. We should be done in a minute. I need to check this little guy's diaper before we go," she said as she walked him to the living room.

If Jim had been a being easily amused, he would have found the conversation very funny. However, he was not, so he just sat and waited for everyone to join him. It took another half an hour for the witches to be ready. The aunts came into the room dressed in heavy dresses and button up form-fitting coats, large faux-fur hats and colorful ruffled umbrellas at the ready. Their attire would not be out of place in Diagon Alley, though theirs was a bit more modern, maybe by a couple of years.

"So where are we going? And how are we going to get there?" Gilly inquired, putting a coat and knit cap she found in one of the trunks on a fidgeting Harry, while Jet did the same with Neville. She looked at Death and noted he was still garbed in the long fluid-like black robes, which hid all but his bony hands. "You're gonna scare the hell out of anyone who sees you. It's not every day Death walks among the living," she informed him with a quirk of her eyebrow. After yesterday this person didn't scare her as much as he used to.

"I can make it so I will not be seen," he said, waving away her concern with the mentioned bony hands. "As for how we will get there, you are going to ride the train to Salem, where I will meet you and show you the way to SunSpot Alley. I will then meet you inside the Alley, and take you to the bank, so you may get some wizard money from the trust funds set up for the boys. We will be traveling this way so that you need no help when your return. Do you have the letter I gave you yesterday? And please, you may now call me Jim," Death said patiently.

"Jim, huh? Never woulda figured. Yeah, I have the letter in the diaper bag. I put it there last night so we wouldn't forget it. So we gotta go all the way to Salem? I guess that's cool," Gilly said with a shrug of her shoulders as she made sure that Harry was bundled. "I don't think we'll be going very often, until the boys get older, that's quite a trip with two toddlers. Do we have some money to change over? We don't want to use all the boys' money," she turned and asked her aunts as she looked through the diaper bag to make sure they had enough baby stuff for an all-day adventure.

"Yes, dear, I have some money. We should be okay," Jet said as she picked up Neville and starting for the door. Frances grabbed the diaper bag from Gilly and followed Jet.

It was a gloomy day, with the clouds hanging in the air, threatening to rain at any minute. The leaves on the trees, lining the roads, were all turning many fascinating colors, making the streets look blanketed in a natural colored rainbow of browns and oranges. The Owens women loved this time of year. The air was crisp and cold and the trees were hanging on to life with colorful fingers.

They walked through the town acknowledging anyone who paid the slightest bit of attention to them. Frances made it a point to wave at everyone, some waved back, while others scurried away. Gilly sashayed through the streets, making women jealous and men stare. Frances walked sedately and kept up a talk with Jet. Jim glided unseen by their side.

Death had faded away when the women finally got to the train station around 11 am. It was about a two hour train ride with stops in every town, making the time they got to Salem around 1 pm. They got off the train and saw Jim waiting by the shadows and followed him to Beckford Street, in the historical district.

The rain that threatened earlier came pouring down. It was a good thing the witches liked the rain and the boys had raincoats put on over their winter coats. They came upon a bookstore named All Things Wicca. It was a little run down and fit in with the rest of the old buildings that lined the street. Most people rushing down the sidewalks paid no attention to it.

"There is a mild Muggle Repelling Charm on front of the building. It will attract non-magical people who want to learn about the witch hunts and modern day Wicca, and repel anyone else. There is a room in the back that will lead you to SunSpot Alley. The door leading to that room has a stronger charm that only magicals can see. The shopkeeper, of course, knows about this room and keeps an eye out for anyone who gets lost or confused. When you enter the store ask them to show you how to enter the Alley. They will then think you are Muggle-born and assist you. I am providing you with fake wands, which contain just enough magic that you made enter the Alley unaided." He handed them the fake wands. "I strongly recommend you not get real wands of your own. Though you can use them, they will only hinder your magic. These imitation wands are for show so the people here will think you are wand witches. Do not forget them when you return here. I will meet you in the Alley," Jim said, pointing to the store and with a nod of his hidden head, he vanished.

"Ya know, I'm beginning to hate when he does that," Gilly said, adjusting Harry on her hip and making sure his scar was hidden. She looked at the stick in her hand and felt a tingle in her arm. It wasn't strong, more like a hair that tickles.

"I know what you mean. It's kind of spooky when he just fades like that. Oh well, let's get this over with," Jet said, holding on to Neville and making sure he was dry and warm. "We should see if there are wizard type strollers so we don't have to carry these guys around all day. I'm not as young as I use to be."

"I hear ya. These little guys aren't light," Gilly said, as she tickled Harry under the chin, causing the child to giggle. So far the children hadn't talked, except to ask for their 'Mummy' or 'Daddy', Harry occasionally asked for 'Pa'oot' or 'Muey', but the witches had to tell them they weren't here and that made the boys cry, which in turn made the women sad, and then they would try their best to cheer the boys up.

"Oh. this is going to be so much fun. Think of everything we can learn," Frances said, bouncing in place making the diaper bag rebound on her hip. The happy glow on her face and the gleam in her eyes noted that she really was as excited as she was portraying. The other two witches smiled at her and nodded in agreement. They were looking forward to seeing a magical shopping center.

They went into the store, which was set up like any other bookstore, but for the shelves of Wicca paraphernalia. Crystals, incense and candles that lined the walls and there were displays of small statues, pentagrams and scarfs. Beaded and crystal necklaces were on a small display on the counter. Racks of music not found in a music store, were next to the same counter and shelves of books were arranged throughout the middle of the store with the occasional display to show any new books. There was Indian music piped in and the overall atmosphere was welcoming.

Frances went to the front counter and got the attention of the young lady there. "Hello dear, we're new around here and were told you could show us the way to the Alley," she said with a huge smile on her lips. Gilly and Jet were relieving the boys of their rain jackets and coats and putting umbrellas and hats into the diaper bags, after shaking off the water out the door.

"Oh yeah, I can do that, let me put the bell up in case someone comes in," the girl said, putting a bell on the counter and locking the cash register. She motioned them to the back where they could see a beaded curtain. "Follow me, it's right through here," she said.

So they followed her to the back. The room had a rather large fireplace on the right wall, a large X on the floor on the opposite side and a wall with an arch that looked to be decoration on the back.

"Okay," the girl said after they all entered, "all you have to do is tap the brick right in the middle of the arch with your wand three times and a portal will open. It's the one that's all chipped and stuff. The Floo address is All Things Wicca, that spot over there is for Apparition, there's a lot of traffic in the morning and evenings so you might have a wait," she warned.

Gilly used her new wand and tapped where indicated. The wall folded back on itself and a large doorway now stood there.

"Welcome to SunSpot Alley," the young clerk chirped. She always liked it when new people got their first glimpse of the Alley.

"Whoa," Gilly gasped. The Owens women looked through the portal and were very impressed. They looked around in awe, mouths open, eyes wide, and speechless.

It looked like a giant two floors mall. They had never seen such a bright and colorful shopping area. Every shop was a different color, yet they somehow matched or faded into the next store. The ceiling seemed to be pouring in dimmed sunlight, yet it didn't look glass. There was no rain, of course, as it was enclosed. They glanced in the nearest stores and saw that the windows seem to be lit the same way, making the whole alley bright and shiny with very little shadow. Not too bright as the sunlight was that of an overcast day where the sun was barely there, but light enough that you could hardly tell that the clouds were trying to cover it. The temperature in the mall would indicate such as day as well, almost room temperature, maybe a little warmer for these chilly days. It made Jet wonder if the place cooled down in the summer.

There were bookshops, apothecaries, robe shops with an attached Muggle clothing store, stores that were selling all sorts of trinkets and many others. There were a few kiosks and market stalls, but they were rare. There was one spot in the Alley that seemed to be darker than the rest, and the Owens women got a bad vibe from it and it was decided they would not take the boys there.

People were merrily shopping in bright colored robes or plain Muggle wear. They bustled about the mall with shopping bags; some were many others only had one. There were a few that only seemed to be carrying a purse of a back pack.

"Thanks. You've been a big help," Jet said to the girl as she ushered everyone through when she spotted Jim waiting for them just inside.

"Jim, if this is a mall, why call it an alley?" Frances asked as she continued to look around. She was bubbling with excitement, there were so many new people to meet and maybe for once her family wouldn't be the odd ones.

"This used to be an alley until about two years ago. A Muggle-born wizard named Howard E. Leavitt talked the shop owners into modernizing. The Alley was closed for a week and when they opened again it was this mall. They decided to keep the name," Death explained as he led them down the center to the bank. He had learned this from souls who passed through his realm. They had been excited and wanted to chatter to Death as he led them to their final journey.

"Well, good for him," Jet said, with a nod. "How did they…" was as far as she got when Death interrupted her.

"If you wish to know more there are books that will explain. I do not mean to be rude, but I have been removed from my duties far too long," Jim said as he reached into his robe and pulled out two pieces of parchment. "Here are the addresses of Neville's grandmother and Harry's godfather. You may write to the grandmother, however do not put your address on the envelopes and do not use your names. It would be best if you find a way to keep your home town from being postmarked. If you include pictures make sure they cannot give away where you live. You cannot write to the godfather as he has been framed for murder and is sitting in prison right now. This particular prison does not have mail call, so he asked that you wait a year, in which time he will hopefully be out."

"Yeah, I hope so too," Gilly muttered, not liking the idea of an innocent man in prison. The more she learned about the Magical British the more she disliked them. She had been close to going to jail over Jimmy, and while she would have been guilty, for the second murder, she didn't like the thought of any innocent in one. Thanks the little Gods that Gary claimed it self-defense. It didn't hurt that he married Sally.

"Here are the keys to the trust vaults, hand the letter I gave you last night to the goblins and they will walk you through the rest," Jim continued, and then he waved his right hand across his left and the keys appeared. "I must go now. Expect a visit from me at least one more time. I will be watching," Jim said ominously and after supplying everything to Frances, he waved his hand in front him and without a noise he was gone.

The witches looked at where he had been standing then at the stuff in Frances' hand.

"Well, it looks like we're on our own," Jet said, looking around, readjusting Neville on her hip. "Let's get started. The bank first I think."

They started up the marble stairs leading to the bank, after tucking their fake wands, pieces of parchment and keys into their purses. There were creatures on either side of the doors holding spears and dressed in what looked like armor. These must be goblins; I don't think I want to make them angry. They may be short, but those spears are not for decoration, Frances thought, leading the two tot carriers past the doors.

The bank looked like any other bank, buffed wooden floors, nice soft colored walls. There were teller counters on the right side of the lobby and cubicles on the left. It was also complete with long roped off lines. But for the creatures manning those counters, you wouldn't know it was a Wizarding bank. They stood in the nearest line and waited with everyone else, idly chatting about what they had seen in the mall. Many of the wand witches were looking at the trio of oddly dressed women, and wondering why they were so attired. The wizards mostly looked at the tightly clothed Gilly, until their wives hit them about the head. When they came to the teller, Frances handed the letter and the keys to him.

The goblin read the letter first and his eyes widened in fright, causing the witches to worry. He looked first to the boys and then to the witches. He handed the keys back to Frances and said curtly, "Follow me." He put a window closed sign on the counter and stepped down.

The Owens witches followed him into the back of the bank, through a door that simply said 'Bank Services'. He led them to an office, which was furnished with one large plain desk with a large chair, bookcases filled with books and scrolls, a few smaller chairs were in front of the desk for customers. An older goblin was seated behind the desk, busily writing away on some papers. He looked rather odd in that large chair with him being so short, but he was diligently working away as if completely at ease.

"These witches have a letter you need to see, Goldsworthy," the teller said as he handed the letter to the older goblin and hurried away without another word.

Goldsworthy looked up from his paperwork, took the letter and read it. His beady black eyes also widened and he bade the witches to sit down in the chairs in front of his desk. "This letter states that you are in need of muggle paperwork that will make you the guardians of Mr. Potter and Mr. Longbottom in the Muggle World. As you know these papers will be counterfeit, though the ones for the Wizard World are legit. However, we do very good work, so you needn't worry about being caught. We will even have them filed in the local government, free of charge. We have wizards that work for us in that world and they will enter the necessary forms into the system. This letter also tells me you have the keys to their trust vault and you need to be set up with a monthly allowance. May I have the keys, please?" he said, being far more courteous than he would otherwise for fear of making Death angry at him. Talks had spread through the entire goblin nation and they were all wary of the deity.

After the witches were seated, Frances handed him the keys and they waited for what was next.

Goldsworthy took the keys and examined them. "These keys are for vaults in Gringotts London. Fortunately, the paperwork to transfer those vaults to all locations has already been sent to all of Gringotts banks, in anticipation that they would be needed. It will take a week to transfer the needed funds. However, we will loan you the money for your shopping today and remove it from the vaults when they are set up here. Only the trust vaults will be here, the remaining vaults will stay in London and will be frozen until the boys reach legal age and claim them. I will make sure statements are sent to you monthly. Here is what is currently in the trust vaults," he said after putting the keys on a parchment each. The parchments filled with numbers showing only one transaction, which was from the Longbottoms. Harry's vault showed he had 2,300 Galleons while Neville's had 2,000.

"The current exchange rate is one Galleon equals $4.30. Indicating that Mr. Potters vault has approximately $10,000, which refills to that amount every year. Mr. Longbottom's vault has $8,600 and again his will refill at the end of the year. Both accounts are set up so you will receive $220 a month for each boy. If the cost of living rises, we will adjust accordingly. I will need your address so we may send you a check every month via Muggle mail. If you require funds outside of that amount you must send a letter to the bank and explain why. Today you will receive an amount equal to $1,000 for each child so that you may get what you need for them," the goblin explained, showing Frances, as she was the only child free witch, the parchments with the balance.

The other two witches leaned forward to see the parchment, holding on to their wards, causing them to squirm. This was all so new to them and the magic was fascinating.

Goldsworthy then placed two stacks of 232 Galleons and two cloth bags on the desk, "When the boys are of school age you will receive a check for the sum of $1000, about one month before school starts. You will find that wizard wares are much cheaper than those obtained outside the magical world, because there are far fewer wizards than there are Muggles, so the market is not that big. That and with magic there is less labor cost. You may want to come to the Alley or mail-order at before the start of school. To mail order you will need to obtain an owl, which is what wizards use for their post." His teeth grated at having to be so polite.

The witches sat at the edge of their seats and listened carefully to the manager. They needed to make sure they understood everything. The boys, being babies, were fussing a little, so Jet handed them juice bottles to help tide them over until the adults were done.

The goblin pointed a long pale finger to the gold coins. "These are Galleons," he said and then pulled out some silver and copper coins from his pockets. "The silver ones are Sickles and the copper are Knuts. One Galleon equals 17 Sickles or 493 Knuts," he informed them and put the coins back in his pocket. "The bags in front of you are expanded, feather light bags. They are designed to hold a lot of money, yet not weigh more than a feather."

Jet handed Neville to Frances and looked at the gold coins, then hefted one of them in her hand. She then placed it in one of the bags and weighed it again. She then placed the separate stacks of coins into one bag each and noticed they weighed the same as they had when they were empty. "That is a pretty neat trick," she said as she put the pouches in her purse. "Here let me give you the address. We're going to need that paperwork for the kids. Will it be on paper or parchment? I don't think that our government uses parchment," she added as an afterthought.

The goblin growled at her and leaned forward in a threatening manner. "Do you think us stupid?" he snapped. "We know how your government works. I already explained to you that we have people that work in your government."

"No, of course I don't think you're stupid," Jet snapped back as Gilly and Frances tensed and held the now struggling boys tight, ready to protect them if this progressed into a fight. "I have no idea how anything works in your world. We were told you were hidden and that the 'Muggles' didn't know about you. How are we supposed to know if you know about them? For all I know these people you have working for you don't know everything that is needed." Her magic flared a little, to show she wasn't intimidated. She was a strong witch after all.

The goblin backed down, remembering who sent them. "I apologize; we are used to being looked down on by wizard-kind. Yes, the paperwork will be on Government Issue paper. When it is done it will be filed, like I said, and the copies will be sent to your house via Muggle mail. You should receive it in three days."

"Okay then, sorry I snapped, we too are used to being looked down on. I'm going to need a pen and paper to give you the address," Jet stated calmly, also settling back in her chair, her magic diminished like a small breeze. The other two lessened their hold on the boys. "Wait, I have a pen in my purse. May I have some paper?" she said, looking through her purse and pulled out a pen.

Goldsworthy handed her some parchment and she wrote the address down and handed it back. "That takes care of everything that was in the letter. Was there anything else I could do for you today?" he said.

"Yeah," Gilly said, bringing the goblin's attention to her, "I'd like a list of services your bank offers. Maybe you can help us in investing some of the trust funds for the boys. So they have some extra money when they get out of school."

Goldsworthy looked through the drawers in his desk and pulled out a vault starter kit and handed it to Jet. "This portfolio has everything the bank offers. If more services become available in the future, a notice will be sent to you."

Jet took the packet with a thanks and the witches rose to leave. She paused at the door and asked, "Where would we go to exchange our money to Galleons?"

"When you enter the lobby, the teller on the far end is the exchange window," Goldsworthy said as he cleared off his desk and pulled out more papers and continued where he was before the witches interrupted him.

"Thank you. Have a nice day," Jet said, quickly leading the other two to the lobby.

"Whew, these goblins are easily insulted. We'd better be careful, they look like they can really fight," Gilly said quietly as she settled the now calm Harry more firmly on her hip.

"Yeah, I'm glad we don't have to deal with them often. Let's get in line and change our money. Then we can go shopping. That'll be fun," Frances said, her bounce back now that they were done dealing with bank issues. They waited in line for the exchange window and after they swapped some of their money they went into the Alley.

"So, where first?" Gilly said, looking around at all the shops.

The Owens women looked around the mall. Jet pointed to a store about four shops away from the bank. "I think we need to go there first. Maybe they have strollers or something for the kids." The shop displayed the name All You Need Baby Supplies in pastel yellow colored lettering.

They had looked through the trunks the night before, but had only managed to get one crib set up and a few baby supplies like diapers, bottles and some clothes. They did an inventory on all the shrunken items so they had a pretty good idea what else was needed. That and they were hoping to find books that explained all the things they didn't understand.

The witches made their way into the shop. As they entered the store Jet went to the counter while the others grabbed what looked like hand baskets and went to see what the store offered. The store had displays of baby items; child care books, infant and toddler clothes, necessary feeding implements, toys and furniture.

It was softly colored in blues, yellows, greens and pinks and the displays were all arranged for easy looking and handling. The register was in the back of the store manned by a young woman who looked to be in her early twenties, she was dressed in a nice baby blue uniform type robe, with the store's logo of a sleeping baby sucking its thumb, on the upper right chest area.

"Hello," Jet said, getting the young woman's attention, "we're new here and we were wondering if there are strollers or carriers for our new charges," She said, pointing at the boys.

"Oh, are you Muggle-borns? Well, I can set you up with what you need," The young woman said, coming from behind the counter and making her way to the left wall. "We don't have strollers, but we do have these feather light carriers. They will stay the same weight no matter how big your little guys get," she chirped in a bubbly fashion, and pointed to the display of carriers, that positioned on ones back. "They're 4 -G- and 5 -S- each."

"Okay we will take two. Do you mind holding them at the front while we look around?" Jet asked as she pulled one blue with a green dragon and one green with a blue dragon off the display and handing them to the cashier.

"Yeah, I can do that. Let me know if you need any more help," She said brightly and took the carriers and went back to the cashier counter.

Jet joined Frances, who had Neville, and looked at the books. The titles were things such as, 'What Your Little Wizard Needs', 'The Terrible Twos and What to Expect', 'How to Control Accidental Magic', 'Childhood Illness? What Potions Work Best' and 'Basic Nutrition for Your Toddler' and others along that line. The aunts grabbed one of every book displayed, except for ones for pregnant mothers and newborns. They knew how to raise children that had magic, but they needed to know if there was anything different with the boys. The books cost a little above two Galleons a piece. There were fifteen in total and they would split the cost of the books between theirs and the boys' money.

Gilly, who still had Harry, was looking at the necessities; diapers, bottles, bibs and things. She knew she could get such items in her own world, but the magic that was on these made them fascinating. They already had the bottles and bibs, but they didn't have sippy cups and they would run out of diapers soon so they needed to stock up. There were also self-cleaning plates and utensils for toddlers that might come in handy. However, she was worried that all this magic would make the boys, and them, lazy. She would have to talk to the aunts about making sure that the boys had chores when they were older and that they played outside as much as possible.

So she decided that they would only get the self-filling sippy cups, which automatically filled with milk or pumpkin juice, of all things. The cups would last until the boys were three years old. The booklet said by that time the boys should be drinking out of glasses and the liquid would run out —the magic on the cups would know when the boys were that age by the maturity of their magic. The cups would then become regular cups and can be used as such, or given to Muggles. They had to be stored in a chill box —Gilly figured this was the magical equivalent to a refrigerator— and when taken out of the 'box' the cup would fill and then when empty it had to be washed and then returned to the 'box' to refill again. She grabbed two that filled with pumpkin juice and four that filled with milk. The cups were only 6 -S- and 5 -K-.

She also grabbed a few packets of diapers that changed color when they were dirty. She then went towards her aunts. "Well I got some sippy cups and some diapers. I think we need to talk about everything else before we buy them. I'm not sure how much we want magic to do, when we can do it ourselves, though the refilling will be cheaper than having to go to the store every week. But we should get some regular sippy cups and other juices, so they have a variety," she said, indicating her basket.

"We grabbed some books that should help. Is that everything we need here?" Jet said, looking around. They didn't see anything else, so they went to the front to pay for their purchases. The total came to around 30 -G-. After they paid, they left the store venturing back into the mall.

They looked around and tried to decide where to go to next. All the stores had large, clear lettering on the windows to show what each store contained. The names were very easy to read due to the muted sunlight spell that seemed to be on every shop window.

"I think we need to go there next," Frances said, pointing to a store that advertised luggage. "If we're going to be shopping all day maybe they have a bag that will help carry everything. I don't want to shove everything in the diaper bag. Let's keep it separate. First let's get these little guys in the carriers," she said as she went through the shopping bags and pulled out the carriers.

She then helped the other women to put them on their backs and put the children in them. Harry and Neville went without a fuss, looking around at all the soft glowing windows and displays with wide wondering eyes. Frances handed them a teething biscuit each, to hold off on any hunger. They had fed them before they left and some more on the train and Frances figured they would keep giving them little snacks and bottles, until they got home.

They went to the luggage store and saw bags lined up on the walls with neat little rows for the trunks and luggage in the center.

"Looks like what we need is over there," Jet said, pointing to the right wall.

The bags ranged from cloth to leather, some small enough to be purses, others large enough to be carry-on luggage, in all colors imaginable. The tags on each bag explained how much it would hold. Some were bottomless, which made it hard to tell how much or what was in them. Others were expanded to hold fifty items, no matter how large the item was, which made emptying them easier and you knew when they were full. The ladies chose the hundred fifty item bag made in soft tan leather that looked like a large purse. They wanted to make sure they had enough room for all the books they planned on buying. They paid for this and tried to decide where to go next.

They went to a wizard robe shop next; they wanted to get some robes to fit in better the next time they came. Not the closed robes that made them look like judges or graduates, no, these were open styled robes, with cinched waist in the back, to show off the clothing you wore underneath, especially designed for Muggle-born women. They purchased these with their own money, two robes each.

Jet bought two plain robes; one grey and one black. Frances got one a muted yellow with green vines and the other was sky blue with clouds floating across. Gilly went all out and got one that was tie-dye in fall colors and the other was bright green with gold trimming. There were no toddler clothes there. That was okay, though, the boys had plenty of clothes back at the house.

They left that store satisfied and looked around to find their next destination. "I think we need to go to the book store next. It's getting late and it's a long train ride home," Jet said and started to the book store. "We can come back next month or so, after we finish reading whatever books we get today. By then we'll have a better understanding of all this stuff. I don't want to spend money on anything we won't be able to use." The other two nodded in agreement. And they all headed to the large store with a book in the window.

The inside of the book store was bright and clean, with rows of books, much like you would find in a library. There were a few chairs in front so you could scan many books at your leisure. Jet asked the clerk about them, "Aren't you worried that someone will read the books and not pay for them?"

The young man shook his head and explained, "There are charms on the chairs, well the books really, but the chairs are there for you comfort. You can brings as many books as you want up front, but, you can only read five pages from each book. If after you read the five pages and want the book, then you can put it in your basket. If you don't want the book, try and read the sixth page and the book will return to the shelf you got it from. There is an anti-theft charm on the door."

"That's pretty clever. Thanks," Jet said, shaking her head in wonder as she set off to the rows of books.

The store was sectioned for easy browsing. There was a section that carried school resource books, another for fiction and the ladies got the boys some children's stories, others for Muggle parents and Muggle-borns, on laws, culture differences and what one might need to learn to fit in and the witches bought 53 books from here, and others on magical theory and the history of magic they bought 22 from here. There were other sections that the witches didn't get to. All things told the Owens women left the shop with 92 books costing them 200 -G- and 14 -S-. Again they split the cost. They placed them all in the expanded bag and made their way back to All Things Wicca.

Using her fake wand, Jet opened the portal.

"I'm dog tired," Gilly complained, checking on the sleeping Harry on her back. "Next time we leave earlier. I want to hit the second hand stores when we come again. They looked like they could save us and the boys some money. And I'd kill to get a hold of those old books, too bad we didn't notice them until it was too late."

"Don't worry, dear, I'm sure we will have time to look at them later," Jet said, patting her arms.

"Yeah, I'm just glad that when we go back we won't have to go to the bank again. Maybe next time we should look into getting an owl. I mean, I don't think the town is going to think we are any weirder than they already think we are. Man, I'm so tired I'm not even making sense to myself," the blonde-red haired woman said, after they boarded the train to get home. She tried to get the sleeping Harry off her back so she could sit. Frances saw her struggle and helped her remove the baby and the carrier. Then turned and assisted Jet to do the same.

"I agree, I don't think it will be such a long day next time, since we won't have to deal with the goblins. I'm not sure why they thought we would need so much money. I think we should open an account in town in the boys' names and put all the money we don't use from the monthly checks in there so they have some savings in our world. We can give them an allowance from that so they can spend it in town and the Alley. We'll keep the Galleons left over from today with us and give them to the boys when they go back to England, so they have money on hand if needed," Jet said softly leaning forward so they won't be overheard.

"That's simply perfect. I was wondering what to do with all that's left over. I think we should get a safe or something hidden so it's safer than just leaving it in the dresser. When we go back next time we need to hit all the stores for catalogs," Frances said as she moved closer to Jet to keep their conversation soft.

"We'll talk about it more when we get home. Right now, I just want to take a nap," Gilly said, leaning her head back and closing her eyes and making sure to hold Harry close. The boys had been well behaved for toddlers; they only fussed when they needed changing or something to eat or drink. They had been more interested in all the new sights and bright people. She was pretty sure it wouldn't be the same next time they went, when the kids would be more comfortable to her and her aunts.

"Here, let me take Harry and you get some sleep," Jet offered and removed the sleeping Harry from her niece's lap and cradled him in her own. It was a quiet ride home and when they got there they simply cleaned up, ate and went to bed, they would look through everything in the morning.

For the next few weeks the witches spent all the time they weren't taking care of the boys reading everything they had purchased and what was in the trunks. They finally figured out how to set up the nursery and shrink all their own furniture. They put the shrunken furniture in one of the empty trunks so they knew where it was. They put the leftover Galleons in another trunk, shrunk it and hid it in the herb room, behind a wall.

Gilly was reading all about magic toddlers and what to expect when they got older. She learned that the boys might start having accidental magic around the age of three if they were powerful wizards. She learned how to make stars appear on the ceiling of their room and how to play soft music in the air to keep them calm.

The boys still had nightmares about the night Neville's parents were attacked. And poor Harry added the night his mom died in front of him, not to mention the curse that scarred his forehead. Though Death told them the horcrux was gone, the reason for the scar still gave him issue. That and no matter what potion or herbal remedy they tried it would not fade. So Gilly was trying to find everything that would help them mentally. The self-help books she got from the local library helped a lot and things were starting to calm down. The stars and music were easy magic for her. All she had to do was think the spell that was listed in the book, wave her hand and it happened. Magic like that always came easy to her.

Frances was reading about Muggle parents and Muggle-borns. There were also books on household charms and furniture so she would know how to use all the stuff in the trunks. She was the one who helped the other two expand the boys' furniture and set everything up in the attic turned nursery. She was also the one who learned how to make the boys' toys work, which made the toddlers happy. She made sure to learn listening charms so they would know when the boys had nightmares.

Her main project was trying to figure out why electricity worked in their house, but not in wand wizards' houses. Her theories so far were that wizards used magic for everything, even to wash the dishes and so they over charged the air. Since all the magic the Owens witches used was passive and sporadic, while it was still in the air, it wasn't overloaded. Another of her theories was that when electricity first came out it was not insolated and so when the wizards tried it everything fried and they never tried again. She was going to have to test these. It would be fun.

Jet was reading magical theory and learning how to incorporate it into their own magic, so they could teach the boys as they got older. She was coming up with games the boys could play to help them along. Wizards were taught from a very young age that they would get into trouble with their government if they did magic, so Jet was thinking that they were repressing their children. That and they were taught, no wands no magic —another repression.

The Owens women were taught as children that as long as they didn't hurt anyone, you could do whatever came natural and felt good. Jet was pretty sure this was how Wiccans got their start. According to Death, theirs wasn't the only family that didn't go into hiding. So that particular cult probably started from them or squibs. She had no way to prove this though. Books on that time were rare and mostly about spells used and not journals.

She did some experiments and noticed that for some things thinking or saying an incantation made it easier to focus on what you wanted to do, like expansion and shrinking charms. However, for more passive magic like stirring sugar into coffee it was easier just to think about stirring coffee and it just did it, or gently blowing on a candle and making it light. Most of the rituals they used seem to be in place of spells that were cast with a wand. Maybe magic was like a muscle and you just had to practice thinking the spell until it became reflex. She would have to study that.

November 30, 1981

Making her way down the stairs to breakfast, carrying Harry on her hip, Gilly almost dropped him when a funny looking creature appeared in front of her with a loud 'pop'. It was about two feet tall, with spindly arms and legs and over-sized head and large headlight like eyes. It had pointed bat-like ears. Rather than normal clothes, it was wearing a tea-towel.

Gilly screamed, scaring Harry, who started to cry, which made the creature start wailing and banging its head on the floor, which made the aunts come running with Neville who looked at the creature and excitedly said, "Kippy, Kippy," as he held his arms out to the creature, squirming to get down. That made everyone stare and quiet down, except Harry who was still crying.

"Well," Jet said, looking from Neville to the creature, "It looks like Neville knows who this is. Can you talk?" she directed at the creature.

"Yes, Missy Witchy Jet, ma'am, Kippy can talk," the tiny creature said, nodding its disproportion head, ears flapping and eyes wide.

"Good, let's go in the kitchen and sit down and you can tell us who you are, why Neville knows you and why you are here," Jet said, leading the way. Everyone sat at the table, the boys in Gilly's and Frances' laps, except the creature who remained standing. "Kippy, was it? Why don't you sit down too? So we can find out what is going on," the older witch pointed to a chair at the end of the table, away from the boys.

"Oh," the creature started wailing, large tears dropping from its eyes. "Missy Witchy Jet is too kind to Kippy. Wanting Kippy to sit at the table like an equal," the creature's wailing made Harry cry harder, though Neville seemed used to it.

"Kippy, Kippy, stop that at once, you're scaring Harry!" Frances shouted to be heard.

"Oh, no, Kippy is scaring young Master Potter. Kippy will have to be punishing herself." It stopped weepy as ordered, but started banging its head on the floor again.

The witches were horrified, not understanding in the least what the diminutive 'Kippy' was doing.

"Kippy, stop that," Jet said, going towards the creature as she was the only one without a child. She grabbed the creature by the shoulders and stopped it from banging its head anymore and then picked it up and sat it in the chair. "Now sit and tell us who and what you are and how you know Neville."

"Kippy is Master Neville's house elf, Kippy is being told by Missy Longbottoms to find Master Nevilles and take care of him and who is living with him. Missy Longbottoms is telling Kippy to do this because Kippy is a family elf and only Kippy can find Master Nevilles. Missy Longbottoms is telling Kippy she is be obeying anyones in the house with Master Nevilles, Kippy is supposed to be staying here and not going back. Missy Longbottoms is telling Kippy that no matter who's calling Kippy she is to be staying with Master Nevilles. Kippy is so very happy she is finding young Master. Kippy was worried. Now Kippy is here to take care of him and she is not having to worry anymore," The excited elf said, all but bouncing off her chair like it was to run to the kitchen to start on the breakfast.

The women looked around at each other confused. They hadn't read anything about house elves and had no idea what to do with Kippy.