only words remain

“Are you ready to meet the Ghosts of Christmas Past?” Colin asked in a dramatic tone before dropping his serious face to a smile. “We’ll get started in a minute, but let me know if you have any questions as we go.” Colin just had to hope there weren’t any wizards on the tour that would reveal too much about when ghosts were and weren’t actually present. It hadn’t happened yet, but he had to assume it would happen sooner or later, even if that day wasn’t today. 

“Anna. Nice to meet you both.” Her smile was still small, but genuine. Something in her almost missed being a patrol officer, all the way back when she truly believed that the police were out there to help people. It had been too long and Anna was a different person now, but she still felt satisfied to help.

It was only Colin’s question that finally took her out of her thoughts. “Oh, that’s okay, you really don’t have to–”, but her stomach decided to interrupt her in order to voice its opinion, and a loud growl came out. Mortified, Anna looked down and pinched between her eyebrows. “Well. That was embarassing.”

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Colin tried to turned his chuckle into a cough, but he wasn’t sure he had fully succeeded. “I suppose that means I should have offered ice cream instead of coffee? We usually do that after the park a couple of times a week, no matter how cold it is outside.” And he felt after their shared panic today, he and Simon both deserved it, although he didn’t voice as much to Anna. “You’re free to tag along. Don’t feel obligated though.”

The smallest hint of a smile tugged at Anna’s lips as she watched the reunion, both happy to help and relieved that her gut feeling was right. On her time as a patrol cop she had come across quite a few children, so much so that she had to wonder if they were just drawn to her. She nodded as the boy’s father explained the situation, but there was no judgement on her part. Kids could be very dangerous little creatures if they set out their minds to do so. “Next time you stick with your daddy, ok, buddy?” She crouched so that she could be on the boy’s eye level and ruffled his hair playfully. “It can be a scary world out there when you’re alone.”

The child nodded solemnly–a smart one, that one–and Anna got up, ready to leave when the father asked his question in a playful tone. She couldn’t help but chuckle at the idea. “I wouldn’t say child whisperer, no, just experience from being the eldest–” Sister? The thought downed on her so suddenly that it nearly knocked the wind out of her. No, Anna, you’re an only child now. The unexpected surge of grief in her chest threatened to choke her, but she swallowed it. Not here. Not now. “Um, the eldest cousin in a large family.” A couple of deep breaths before she could carry on. “But actually, I work on the bookstore down the street and I saw this little guy crying alone on the sidewalk. And well, who sees a kid crying and doesn’t try to help?”

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“Ah.” Colin nodded like he understood what it meant to be the eldest in the family. He supposed he had known, at one point, although by the time his younger siblings were in the position of needing guidance, the writing was on the wall as far as his magical ability went, and he hadn’t spoken to any of them in nearly a decade. “I’m sure there are plenty of people who wouldn’t want to get involved, although I’m glad you’re not one of them.” He didn’t like to think about what could have happened if she didn’t. “I’m Colin, by the way. This is Simon.” Simon gave her a shy smile before ducking his head away. “Do you need a coffee or tea or something? Not really an equal thank you or anything, but it’s something.” 

WHEN: November 7th, 1980

WHERE: Central London, UK

WHO: Anna + @colinfawcett

The streets of London were as busy as ever, almost as if the entire world hadn’t turned upside down just a week ago. Bummer, Anna thought to herself as she stared at the long line for the veggie burger stand across the street. Though she hadn’t had much of an appetite these days, she still had to eat something before coming into work. With a sigh, she walked to the end of the line. Odds weren’t exactly in her favor to find an eatery in downton London that wasn’t packed at lunch time.

Before she reached the stand, though, she nearly collided with a small boy standing on his own, crying with his face on his hands. Her instincts got the best of ber and Anna kneeled beside him, giving up on that burger. “Hey, little buddy. Where are your parents?” The child stopped crying and looked at her with a shy expression before shaking his head. “I see. Are you lost?” This time he nodded, still not speaking, and started to cry again, but Anna placed a hand on his little shoulder to stop him. “Hey, it’s okay. We’ll find them together, is that okay?”

The boy hesitated, but finally nodded, and Anna smiled, taking his hand. She was about to take him to the nearest officer when her eyes spotted a man on the other side of the sidewalk, looking frantic. Following her gut, she took the child in her arms and pointed to the man. “Is that your dad?” The child’s enthusiastic nod was all the answer that she needed and Anna put the little boy down, guiding him there hand in hand. “Excuse me”, she asked, tapping the man’s shoulder so that he’d face them, “is this your son?”

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Panic. That was the only word that Colin could use to describe the moment when he turned around, newly purchased Muggle newspaper in his hand and realized that Simon wasn’t behind him like he should have been. His eyes scanned the sidewalks, but there was no sign of where he could have gone. Visions of Simon saying something about magic to a stranger and someone who thought he could tell them all it grabbing him flashed through Colin’s mind, and he almost didn’t notice when someone tapped him on the shoulder. He turned, the sudden relief making him feel light headed. He scooped Simon up before he could even process the woman’s words. Simon immediately buried his face in Colin’s neck, bursting into a fresh wave of tears. “Hey, buddy, you’re alright. You’re safe now,” Colin soothed, rubbing his hand over his son’s head.

Colin settled Simon more firmly in his arms as he turned his attention to the woman in front of them. “Thank you for your help. We took a different route than usual home from the park, and I think he must have gotten turned around.” Not that Colin should have talked to the man at the newsstand long enough for Simon to wander off. It would be a while before that guilt wore off. “Are you usually out doing good deeds, or are you just a child whisperer?” Colin asked, trying to keep his tone light despite the adrenaline still running through his system.

Halloween was a busy night for a single man with a four year old and his own ghost tour business.

“Merlin, I guess that’s something.” He frowned. “I do have to go down there, though.”

.

“Well, good luck, mate. If there’s a charm for blocking your sense of smell for a while, you might want to try it out. What are you here for?” 

“Anything’s fashion if you believe it in enough.” Amelia was very so much serious at the beginning of this statement, but soon after she was letting loose another soft laugh. “Have you seen the fronts of magazines lately, anyways? Some ensembles never quite make any sense to me, but the models make it work. It really does make you wonder if all you need is a little bit of confidence to pull anything off. You’ll be great bald, I’ll be beautiful grey, we’ve got this all figured out.” Ames tapped the handle of her plastic spoon to Colin’s in a cheers motion.

“I’m not keeping you from anything pressing, am I?”

“Actually...” Colin checked his watch and nodded to himself. “I should probably head out to pick Simon up. But how do you feel about helping pick a good ice cream flavor for a four year old?” 

“I dunno, Fawcett. Teenage pregnancy isn’t the most scandalous thing I’ve ever heard. Although, you’ve caught my attention with the overly expensive cars.” She waited for more, her interest piqued. 

.

“Speak for yourself, it was plenty scandalous for me.” Not something he could really say he regretted all that much now, considering, but still. “The car was an Aston Martin. You know, like James Bond has? The father of one of my mates in secondary was some kind of fancy financial person that thought having the same car as James Bond would help him find his third wife faster. He also liked taking his girlfriends on expensive trips out of the country, so we had a lot of opportunities to borrow the car. It handles really well, would definitely recommend it for a car chase in the mountains.” 

“That’s the thing isn’t it.” Molly smiled knowingly. “It’s always one more story mummy, or read it again daddy! Do you know— I locked myself in the cupboard last week for just a moment of peace, then I looked down and there were twenty little fingers under the door waiting to suck out my soul.” She said with a laugh. “You might be right, but with my brothers as positive influences on my boys, wild might never go away.” There was a teasing in her voice, she knew that if Bill and Charlie turned out anything like Fabian or Gideon they’d be quite alright. “Please, you and Simon are always welcome to the Burrow. The boys love him and the garden gnomes catch falling children.”

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Colin couldn’t help laughing despite, or maybe because of, being completely able to understand the feeling that Molly was describing. “In the cupboard? You didn’t even go for the loo? I’m worried about your feature as a hide and seeker participant.” Part of Colin worried about exposing Simon to too much magic when chances were good that he would never have any himself, and garden gnomes that could catch little boys falling out of trees definitely qualified. But a bigger part of Colin was worried about making sure Simon had friends. He couldn’t give him fun aunts and uncles, supportive grandparents, or siblings any time soon, but he could at least make sure Simon had friends. So he found himself smiling in response to Molly’s offer. “Well, we’ll have to come over soon then. I think he’s figuring out the trick to the trees in the park, the variety would probably be good for him.” 

Frank frowned. “S’not Mulpepper’s, is it?”

“Nah, Slug and Jiggers, I think. Never the best smelling place to begin with, but especially not today.” 

“Yeah, soon to be an octogenarian.” A.J. smiled wryly. He didn’t press for more answers from Colin. Sure, he was curious—who wouldn’t at the mention of magical maladies—but A.J. valued his privacy too much to poke into another’s business. “I’m a medical examiner now, so let’s hope I don’t see you in my place of work anytime soon.” 

.

“Ah, well, in that case, you’re holding up remarkably well for your age. I’m sure you could make a mint selling your skin care secrets to Witch Weekly at this rate.” Colin’s eyebrows shot up, interested despite himself. “I suppose that’s one way to avoid most stupid accidents. Unless things take a particularly dark turn, I guess. How does someone go from emergency room to medical examiner?” 

“Uh, you do not want to go that way, mate. One of the apothecaries had some kind of mild brewing accident and now that whole part of the alley smells like literal garbage.” 

“I can’t be the one to burst your bubble, but…,” Amelia attempted to be sly, side-eyeing Colin’s hair for dramatic affect. She was not wearing her readers at the moment, but she knew there would not be a grey in sight. Luckily for him. Although, she was sure the silver fox look would go a long way with the single father. 

Amelia savored the ice cream she spooned into her mouth, finding the spark in the tiniest of things now and again. The raspberry ripple seemed to have her in good spirits. “I love when people embrace their aging. Why, one day, did society wake and figure growing old was horrendous? People hardly survived to forty way back then. We should celebrate anything. Every gray hair, every bald head.”

All for her to laugh softly, then cover her mouth with a hand, “You’re not old, Colin.”

.

Colin reached up, over dramatically rubbing his hair. “Wait, you’d tell me if I had a bald spot, right? Is it already happening?” He dropped his hand with a smile and shrugged, having never considered the question before. His attention was much more focused on the other end of the age specific the last few years. “Good question. Probably because it’s a reminder of everyone’s mortality. It’s less scary when you’re probably looking at ages closer to 100 than 50 though.” Colin took a bite of his own ice cream, feeling a slight twinge of guilt that he was spending a small part of his free time enjoying himself instead of with his son. Maybe he could sooth some of that by bringing Simon some ice cream of his own back. 

“I’m pretty sure if I’m not old, then by default you aren’t either. I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t take much for you to turn the grey into a fashion statement if you wanted to. That’s a thing people do, right?” 

She admired anyone who could make a living off of simply being charismatic enough for speaking and capturing people’s attention. That was a talent Cleo didn’t possess. Not with her spiky exterior, a penchant for keeping people at arm’s length, and a thirst for revenge which was usually never quite understood. At least in this instance she could see a businessman in front of her.

“Let me hear it, Fawcett. What’d you get up to in your reckless and wild years?”

.

“You mean besides getting someone pregnant? I’m pretty sure in the category of teenage recklessness, being half of a teenage pregnancy is at the top of the list. The fake IDs and the joyriding in my friends’ parents’ overly expensive cars seem pretty mild compared to that. No questionable tattoos though, you’ll be happy to hear.” 

“Perhaps he just wants you near.” Molly offered before her eyes went wide— she placed a comforting hand on Colin’s, a nonverbal apology not wanting to bring her moment of thoughtlessness back to the center of attention as he pushed on. “Oh they are my wild boys. They love having a good adventure out in the garden. Sometimes I let them run wild out there just to get rid of some of the energy. Does wonders for naptime now that I think of it, you should bring Simon over and let him run it out with the boys.”

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“That’s probably part of it. I’ve threatened to read him my textbooks before bed instead of picture books if he doesn’t go to bed on time, but it doesn’t work very well if both of us know I won’t do it and I’m not sure he would mind that much if I did anyway.” Colin smiled despite himself, shaking his head slightly. “I think wild is a requirement of most kids under the age of ten, based on our experiences at the park. Don’t offer me asking to a proper garden now, or I might add you to my rotating list of babysitters. Or if you’re okay with four year olds trying to climb trees.” 

At Cleo’s? A.J.’s brows furrowed, attempting to remember and failing entirely. They stuck of their hand nonetheless. “A.J.” They paused for a beat longer. “This happens to me somewhat frequently. I used to be a resident at Mungo’s; they shoved me into Emergency a lot.” A.J. nearly shuddered at the realization of how often they thought they knew someone, only to remember summoning a shampoo bottle out from their bum weeks before. Thankfully, now all their patients were dead. Well, not thankfully to those patients. 

“Ah.” Colin nearly winced in sympathy. He could only imagine the kinds of things a person saw in a magical emergency room, and he’d rather not go down that mental path. “Well, I can guarantee you haven’t seen me there. Unless you’re a lot older than you look. I haven’t been to St. Mungo’s in a decade, at least, and even then it was for magical maladies instead of the emergency room.” 

“So your true talent isn’t selling people things that aren’t really there, it’s understanding them well enough to keep the charade going for their particular needs.” A fact that Cleo clearly admired, and found nothing distasteful about. What people were willing to believe was their business, not hers. “Constantly. And I always up charge when I can. I’m not one to be preachy, but if you’re walking into my shop, looking for a tattoo, I’m never talking you out of it. It’s your job not to be fucked up when making permanent decisions. Not mine to be some administer of morality.”

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Colin grabbed his chest over his heart dramatically and closed his eyes as if he had been hit. “You wound me. I don’t always sell people things that aren’t really there. Sometimes they’re there. The Muggles just can’t see them, so it doesn’t make a difference anyway. But... yeah. All people want when they go on the tours is to be entertained and learn a good story they can tell someone later.” If there was one thing Colin had gained from suddenly being forced into a muggle school as a teenager, it was learning how to tell a convincing story. Not that he would be thanking his parents for the opportunity to develop the skill any time soon. “I think tattooing someone’s ass would be an upcharge regardless. Good thing you didn’t know me during my reckless and wild years, or I would have all kinds of questionable tattoos.” That was a slight exaggeration, since Colin wasn’t totally sure he had ever gone through a totally reckless and wild phase, and if he had, it probably would have been Muggle tattoos rather than magical just for the sake of rebellion.