The weeks following the visit to Malfoy Manor blurred into a busy, comfortable rhythm.
Morwenna's days always started early. Breakfast was shared with the entire family, featuring hearty spreads of steaming rice, noodles, and occasionally a thick steak if Tilly was feeling particularly generous.
Once the table was cleared, she moved to the library for her daily lessons with Aldric. They delved into complex family histories and the intricate structures of wizarding alliances, studying the way old money moved through generations like water wearing away stone.
Wand work with Jane usually followed in the late morning. They practiced basic spells like Lumos and Nox, alongside the red spark charm. Every time Morwenna executed the movement correctly, her toy wand emitted a steady glow. Jane insisted her daughter was improving rapidly, though Morwenna secretly felt she was still far too slow.
Then came the long afternoons.
During the first week, she returned to Malfoy Manor several times. Draco took great pride in showing off his collection of toy brooms, which numbered three in total. When she pointed out that owning three was entirely excessive, he simply countered that she was jealous.
"I am not."
"You are."
The argument inevitably ended in another race. She won every time, leaving him to sulk for twenty minutes before he would inevitably demand a rematch.
By the time her third visit arrived, he finally stopped sulking over his losses. He simply let out a long sigh and told her she was annoying.
"You're annoying too," she replied easily.
They tried their hand at chess, a game Morwenna lost quite decisively. Draco was incredibly smug about his victory until she informed him that such blatant pride was unbecoming.
"What does that mean?"
She explained. He accused her of showing off.
"Maybe I am," she admitted. "But I'm still right."
A letter from Draco arrived on a Tuesday morning. His handwriting was slanted and the ink was smudged in several places,
"Come to the manor on Thursday. Father got a new peacock."
Morwenna went, discovering a bird of pure, snowy white with tail feathers longer than her arm. They spent over an hour trying to get the creature to perform on command by shaking a small brass bell, but the peacock ignored them both with regal indifference.
In the second week, she began inviting the children of the various dark families to Keith Manor.
Pansy came, as did Theodore, Millicent, and the Greengrass sisters, Daphne and Astoria. Blaise arrived with his mother, who stayed behind to talk with Jane in the drawing room. Blaise himself stood near the fountain, watching everyone with dark, quiet eyes that seemed to miss very little.
Morwenna gave them a tour of the conservatory, showing off the koi fish and the grand piano. When Theodore asked if she could actually play, she performed the simple scale Jane had taught her. It wasn't particularly impressive, but he gave a stiff nod as if he were a judge at a high-stakes competition.
Pansy expressed an interest in seeing the gardens, so Morwenna led the group through the towering hedges. Daphne Greengrass walked silently beside her, not feeling any need to fill the quiet with useless chatter. Astoria, however, ran ahead to look at the roses.
"She's fast," Morwenna say.
Daphne looked at her younger sister with a soft expression. "She's always fast."
They walked in silence for a while longer. Morwenna found that she actually liked the lack of pressure; Daphne didn't seem to mind the quiet at all.
By the third week, Morwenna turned her attention to the neutral families, visiting the Bones household first.
Susan lived in a comfortable house near the Ministry of Magic. She explained that her aunt was often busy with work, so she usually kept to herself and her books. She brought out her favourite volume to show Morwenna—a thick, meticulously kept history of the Wizengamot filled with detailed illustrations of famous trials.
Morwenna studied the pages, noting that the accused wizards looked remarkably ordinary, with faces that could have belonged to anyone. Susan pointed to one particular man, "He was my great-great-uncle."
Unsure of how to respond to that, Morwenna simply offered a quiet "Oh," which Susan acknowledged with a nod before turning the page.
They went to the garden behind Susan's house. It was smaller than the grounds at Keith Manor, but neat, tended, marigolds lining the fence in a straight row.
"Aunt Amelia's work," Susan said. "She likes things in order."
Morwenna asked about the Ministry.
Susan's eyes lit. She spoke of the Wizengamot, the departments, cases Amelia discussed at home. Her words came faster, her usual restraint slipping.
"Do you think it's boring?" Susan asked, pausing.
"No," Morwenna answered. "I think it's very important."
Susan studied her. "You're strange."
"I know."
The Macmillan estate was a different world entirely, situated among rolling hills and a slow, winding river. The visit began with polite conversation over cake served by Ernie's mother, while his father spoke with Jack about various trade agreements. Ernie hovered nearby until he could finally pull Morwenna away to show her his neatly stacked collection of Quidditch cards. He was clearly pleased with the fact that he owned three copies of a particular Chaser.
"That's a lot," Morwenna noted, and Ernie beamed with pride.
He then led her to the family greenhouses. The air inside was warm and heavy, with rows of plants stretching out in every direction. Ernie moved among the greenery with practiced ease, naming each plant without hesitation and explaining complex details about cross-breeding and soil conditions. Morwenna followed him, though she only managed to catch about half of what he was saying.
"You really like this," she observed.
His ears turned a bright pink. "It's useful. Herbology is very useful."
"I didn't say it wasn't."
He glanced at her, uncertain if she was teasing him, but she wasn't. She simply didn't have anything of substance to add to a conversation about plants. They eventually left the greenhouse and walked down to the riverbank, where Ernie showed her how to skip stones across the water. His first attempt bounced three times before sinking, while Morwenna's stone dropped straight to the bottom.
"Your wrist angle is bad," Ernie diagnosed. "Let me show you."
He demonstrated the motion, and when she adjusted her grip and threw again, her stone skipped twice. Ernie nodded, looking thoroughly satisfied.
.
The Longbottom estate felt different from any of the others. The gardens were much wilder than those at the Malfoy or Macmillan homes, with roses that climbed without restraint and hedges that grew so thick the paths were half-hidden beneath the green.
Augusta met them at the door with her eagle perched regally on her shoulder, "Nimue. Neville is in the garden."
Morwenna found him seated on a stone bench near a birdbath with his hands folded neatly in his lap. When he saw her, he stood up immediately, though his shoulders remained slightly hunched.
"You came," he said quietly.
"I said I would."
They walked together toward the greenhouse, and Morwenna noticed that his steps grew more certain the deeper they went into the gardens. Inside the greenhouse, the air was warm and alive.
The plants were unlike anything she had seen elsewhere; some shifted faintly as if they were aware of her presence, while others glowed with a soft, internal light.
Neville seemed to change the moment he stepped inside. His hands became steady and his voice grew sure as he pointed out different specimens. "This one is for calming draughts. That one helps with sleep. This one has been in my family for eight generations."
He paused beside a plant with incredibly delicate leaves. "It's a sensitive plant. My grandmother says it comes from South Africa."
Morwenna reached out to touch it, and the leaves immediately folded in on themselves.
"It doesn't like you," Neville noted.
"It doesn't seem to like anyone."
He almost smiled at that.
As they stepped back outside into the wild garden. After a moment, Morwenna spoke. "Do you want to meet the others? Susan, perhaps. Ernie."
Neville's shoulders tightened. "I do not know."
"You don't have to talk much," she reassured him. "You can just be there."
He looked at her, looking pale but considering the offer. "Okay."
Morwenna began arranging small gatherings at Keith Manor, always making sure Neville Longbottom was included with the neutral families. She wrote to Susan , Ernie , and Lavender , mentioning that Neville would be attending.
They met on a warm Saturday in July when the roses were heavy with scent. Tilly set out lemonade and small cakes near the fountain. Susan arrived first and greeted Neville with a firm, adult-like handshake that turned his ears bright red.
Ernie came next, immediately talking about Quidditch teams Neville didn't know, but Neville listened politely as Ernie explained them. Lavender arrived last with her guinea pig in a small cage, and Neville crouched down to study the animal with quiet focus.
Morwenna watched from the edge of the garden with Cinder at her feet, noticing that Jane was watching from the window as well. At first, Neville lingered near the fountain and said very little, but Morwenna nudged the conversation toward things he understood. When she steered the topic toward the difference between moondew and starlight moss, Neville began to answer.
His voice grew steadier as he explained cross-pollination to Susan, and his shoulders straightened as Ernie asked a follow-up question. By the time the group drifted inside, he was sitting on the sofa and explaining fertiliser ratios with quiet intensity.
They returned to the lawn later for a game of croquet, where the mallets proved too heavy for Astoria. She sat on the grass to eat a biscuit while Daphne stood nearby, watching the game rather than joining in.
Neville missed every single shot he took, but he didn't seem to mind at all.
Morwenna watched the scene from across the lawn.
"One more," she thought. "One more connection."
She didn't know if any of this would truly matter in the long run, but she hoped that having friends early would ensure he wasn't alone.
It was a small thing, like a bee carrying pollen, but she knew that small things eventually added up.
When the children finally left, Jane met her at the door. "It's been a busy day."
Morwenna looked down at her hands, which were still dusty from the croquet mallets. "I'm tired."
Jane pressed a soft kiss to her forehead. "Go and rest."
Morwenna climbed the stairs with Cinder following close behind. She lay on her bed and stared at the ceiling, knowing that tomorrow would bring more letters and more visits. The work wasn't difficult, but it was constant. She smiled faintly before drifting off to sleep.