(Hogsmeade) Tag Along

[oliviabelmont]

Olivia wasn't to excited when her parents sent a letter saying that her little brother would be coming to visit. Apparently he had done something amazing and was being rewarded with the opportunity to annoy his older sister. And so it was planned that on the next Hogsmeade trip, Olivia would meet her brother at the train and take him around the wizarding town.

So here we find Olivia, waiting for her brother. A warm breeze flowed through her long wavy hair coming from the direction she was waiting for the train. It seemed to precede the tower of smoke Olivia could see in the distance. She stamped her foot in the dirt at the stop. She was planning to have a nice relaxing Hogsmeade day, but that would never happen with Ashlynd around. The little terror, was well, a terror and to top it all of, he would be coming to Hogwarts next year. Olivia hated to think about it.

The train pulled up to the stop slowly. Olivia stamped her foot harder in the dirt, making a welt in the ground. She looked up as the sound of steam release surrounded her. From the train door, out popped a tall dusty brown haired boy. He casually walked over to his sister with his hands in his pockets. "Hi." he said. "Hi" Olivia returned.

They stood in silence, and Ashlynd, just like his sister kicked the dirt making a similar welt. "Oh come here." Liv smiled and took her little brother into a hug. Ashlynd allowed her to hug him, but only for a moment before pulling away. He didn't want anyone to see him hugging his big sister like a little boy. He was almost eleven! What if someone saw him, and remember him next year. It would be reputation suicide. Yes, ten year old Ashlynd was already worried about his reputation. That was half the reason he begged his parents to allow him to visit. He wanted to get his face around town, if you will.

Olivia rolled her eyes at her little brother. "Come on then." she said, starting to walk back into town. "So what do you want to do?" she asked him. Ashlynd shrugged his shoulders. Liv noticed that he had grown a lot since she last saw him. He would be as tall as she was by the time the summer was out. His face was being to thin out, his blue eyes becoming brighter. He really did look a lot like their father. He would be a handsome young man, the girls would love him. Great Liv thought. My brother the Hogwarts Heartache.

As they got into town, Liv tried to strike up many conversations, but Ashlynd was to busy looking around. He nodded to a couple people that he thought looked 'cool', but most of them smirked at him and then laughed at Liv. Her cheeks blushed. "Don't you have any friends?" Ashlynd said. Liv nodded. "Of course. They're just...not..here." It was true, but it was obvious that Ashlynd wasn't convinced. Her little brother shook his head, disappointed. He thought this was going to be a real social push. He hadn't counted on his sister being a loser.

Olivia walked along with her brother, looking in the shops. She was so embarrassed. Her little brother thought she was the biggest dork in the world. Then Liv's heart stopped. Standing in front of one of the shops was Russell. Olivia's face immediately went red. "Hey, Look at that!" Ashlynd said and ran over to the window Russ was looking into. No..oh boy. She thought. and quickly followed after her brother rather than lose him. Maybe Russ wouldn't notice her and her ten year old baggage.

[Russell Parkhurst]

Russell was once again in Hogsmeade, still searching for something to give his ten year old sister. Lucky for him, today, there was something new in one of the store windows, something he was certain she would like. He stood in front of the window, admiring it with a satisfied grin on his face that resembled his brothers’ grin.

He was lost in thought about his luck at finding it and just in time too when a little boy, about ten years old Rus would say, pushed past him and too began to ogle the window. "A lucky kid that get's that, " Rus said to the little boy, glad a ten year old liked it. "You here with someone?" he asked. He knew that ten year olds were not often allowed to go out on their own so looked around for his parents.

But he didn't see anyone that was looking for or at the little boy. He spotted Olivia and smiled at her. "Hey Liv," he said as she walked towards him, "beautiful day." He noticed her facial expression and cocked his head. He crossed his arms and said, "is there something the matter?" He didn't like seeing people worry or hurt and would do his best to help.

[oliviabelmont]

Liv saw that Russ had indeed noticed her brother, and was indeed, talking to him. She heard her brother say in reply to Russell, "Yeah," his eyes fixed on the item behind the glass. "Yeah, my sister is som..." Liv got to him just in time. Stepping to the side of him, she smiled awkwardly at Russ. Then she took her brother's hand behind her back, and held it so he wouldn't get away again.

"Hi Russ!" Liv said quietly, yet happily. He remembered her name. It was sad, but Liv hadn't expected him too. "Oh, yes..It' s Lov..." Ashlynd wasn't to fond of his hand being held by his older sister. Getting fed up with her, she kicked her hardly in the shins. Olivia used to his abuse, just made a weird face but continued on her conversation, not letting go of his hand. "...lovely." She smiled.

"Oh, nothings really, wrong." Olivia said losing her grip on her brother, receiving another hard kick. "OK ALREADY!" She said to him, releasing him. Ashlynd brushed himself off as long Liv had wrestled him to the dirty ground. Holding out his hand, he said very formally to Russ. "Ashlynd Belmont." and graciously shook the older, taller boy's hand.

Olivia buried her face in her hands, shaking her head. Her brother was ruining her life. "I'm so sorry." Liv said, pushing Ashlynd off to go look at the fancy item in the window. "he's just..." Liv groaned, she couldn't find the right way to describe her brother. Russell probably hated kids, and loathed little brother. He was probably going to think that Liv was stupid for agree to babysit a ten year old for the day. Liv's smile was gone as she made sure she could see Ashlynd and she then looked at Russ and sighed.

[Russell Parkhurst]

The first thing Rus noticed was how awkward Liv was around her brother. He couldn't decide if it was because her brother was there or if it was because he was there. Still, he smiled at her and was a mused by how she and her brother interacted. Rus remembered when he was younger and had to look after Aidan and Derryl and keep them out of trouble. The hardest task of his life.

Rus shook the little boy's hand firmly, "pleasure Ashlynd," he said, "I'm Russell Parkhurst." He was unaccustomed to ten year olds being so boisterous but, then again, his basis of comparison was his angelic little sister which could hardly be a fair comparison. Russell laughed at Olivia and shook a hand. "Don't worry about it," he chuckled, "my brothers were much worse at his age. I can handle just one little one." She gave her a skew smile and cocked his head. "Younger siblings can be annoying," he said with a smile.

[oliviabelmont]

"You have no idea." Liv said with a slight smile. She had forgotten that Russel had his own set of little monsters. Olivia would definitely agree that the twins were probably ten times worse than Ashlynd could ever be. Liv watched as Ashlynd attempted to introduce himself to a fellow Hufflepuff, much older than he was, and she also watched as he got brushed off. Liv smiled.

Then she remembered Russel standing there. "Oh, So what are you doing in Hogsmeade?" She asked. She then realized that it was a scheduled visit and he was here for the same reason everyone else was here. Stupid question. Honestly Olivia, she said, wishing she could physically smack herself in the head.

"LIV!!!!" She heard a shout from amongst the crowd. "I CAN'T SEEEEE YOU!" Olivia grimaced at Russel. She held up a finger for him to wait a second. "Hold on a sec." She then dove into the crowd, emerging with Ashlynd in tow. His face was red. He had gotten lost and panicked. He could kick himself. He was acting just like a little boy who lost his mommy. Anyway, Olivia put her arm around him and squeezed him in tight to her side. He didn't push away this time. "Going to stay with me now?" Liv asked her brother. Now that he was his normal color he pushed away from his sister, but nodded his head in agreement.

"Sorry." She said again to Russ. It seemed like she was alway apologizing for something around him. She hoped he wasn't annoyed by it.

[Russell Parkhurst]

Russell laughed. "Oh, I think I may know one or two things about ten year olds." His own sister was also coming to Hogwarts the following year but she wanted everything to be a surprise, new and exciting. He smiled as, in his minds eye, he could see her running around Hogmeade for the first time. She would enjoy it so much. The next thing Rus knew, Ashlynd's voice was calling through the crowd.

Rus nodded to Liv as she dashed off, smiled as she returned. He had crossed his arms when he was the red cheeked huffy-looking Ashlynd and shaken his head remember in Laura having a similar temperament. "It's fine," Rus said, smiling at Liv understandingly. "I'm here for a birthday present for my ten year old sister." Rus ruffled Ashlynd's hair and crouched down next to him. "You think you can help me pick out a present for her?" he asked and winked at Liv.

[oliviabelmont]

Liv smiled at Russell. She wished that she had a ten year old sister instead of a ten year old brother. Olivia always wanted someone to look up to her, and she doubted the Ashlynd ever would. Perhaps if he was a girl everything would be different. He, or she, would want to hang out with Liv, and "it" would be happy to hug her and have her do her hair and dress her up. Liv sighed, looking at Ashlynd, who was now fixing his mop of hair. She laughed as Russ ruffled Ashlynd's hair, ruining all his hard work.

Ashlynd considered the offer. "How much you got?" He asked Russ, standing up straighter, puffing out his chest looking important. "Ashlynd! You can't expect Russ to pay you to find his sister a..." Olivia started, sounding horrified. Her little brother was now a mobster. The many faces of Ashlynd Belmont. "Chill out sis." Ashlynd said, still sounding way to important for his height. "I meant to spend on his gift. I don't want payment." Ashlynd grinned. Russell seemed like a pretty cool guy. Maybe he was cooler than his sister. He could already see that Olivia had a crush on Russ, but he'd use that as a defense mechanism later. For now, Ashlynd figured his ticket into Hogwart's coolness was Russ here. "Now then, tell me about your sister ." He said, still sounding like a forty-year old business man.

Liv didn't know what to do with him. She stood there half horrified at his behavior, half deeply amused. She sighed and smiled, giving into his little charms. She shook her head with a silent laugh, and shrugged her shoulders looking at Russel.

[Russell Parkhurst]

Russell laughed heartily when he was asked how much he had. He understood exactly when Ashlynd meant but Liv missed the mark. That made Rus laugh more. Once Ashlynd had soothed his sister (as best as he could of course) Rus shruged. "Enough," he said in answer to his question. The way the little boy made himself out to be ten feet tall was amusing to Rus and he couldn't help but smile continuously.

"Oh, wouldn't you like to know," Rus chuckled and stood up straight again, his knees had been protesting to the crouching, the one actually creaked but over the hubbub of the street it could hardly be heard. Rus took a step towards Liv and leaned down, putting his head next to her ear, holding her with his hand on her back. "Don't worry so much," he whispered, "I can handle you brother. After all you've seen mine in action, haven't you?" Rus stood up straight again, winked at Liv and turned back to Ashlynd.

"Laura is the sweetest, kindest, most loving person I know." This was a subject Russell could talk about all day, his most belovéd sister. "She loves anything that grows, plants, animals, has this affinity for cats." At a look from Ashlynd, Rus quickly added, "she really likes cats." Rus stroked his stubble that was bristly. "She likes books too but I got her a book last year, so I want to get her something new. Problem is I can't think of anything. You need more?" Rus asked, looking at Ashlynd.

[oliviabelmont]

Liv breathed in softly as she felt Russ' hand on her back. She could feel the blood rush to the pores in her face giving her the, by now, common pink tint. Her high cheeks bones ached from the redness, but she smiled and nodded. She was thankful to Russ' sympathy. Never the less, she knew his pain, but Ashlynd could never compare to the twins. "You're right, as usual." Liv said, exhaling as she felt his hand leave her back. She relaxed again, and fanned her cheeks back to a normal color as her brother and the tall Ravenclaw boy talked.

Ashlynd nodded and "hmm"-ed at every detail Russell told him about his sister. "No, No." he said. "That will do just fine." Ashlynd put his hand to his head, thinking. "Cats...Growing.." he muttered allowed. "I'm guessing you don't want to actually give her a real cat." Ashlynd said, considering that was a most obvious thought. After all, he knew the houses, and Ravenclaw wasn't known for it's stupidity after all. "hmmm." He said again, tapping his forehead with his index finger. Olivia looked at him, wanted to laugh, but she didn't. He cheeks were still to red.

Tapping his forehead, Ashlynd's eyes lighted up. Suddenly he started walked down the street back towards Hogwarts. "Follow me!" he said, continuing on his merry way. Liv's eyes widened. She shouted after her, while taking a step to follow, hoping Russell would do the same. "Where are you going?!" She shouted. "How do you know where you're going?! You're going to get lost again." She jogged slightly to catch up to the boy and then grabbed the edge of his sweater to keep with him. Ashlynd let Olivia do this but retorted smartly. "I've studied a map of course! I know where everything is! I have an idea!"

[Russell Parkhurst]

As Ashlynd thought, which seemed a long and painful process, Russell smiled his skew smile and glanced at Olivia. She was watching Ashlynd too with much the same expression Rus was. Turning back to the small boy, Rus laughed. "Not at all," Rus said, "if anyone is going to get Laura a cat it's going to be Mum and Dad. They're more likely to kill me that thank me for it if I do." Rus laughed again and patted Ashlynd on the back, "though she'd love one, that I know."

Then suddenly the answer seemed to dawn on him and Russell was nearly knocked to his feet when the brother was quickly followed by the sister. "Oy," he cried after them, "wait up!" He quickly chased after them, weaving in and out of people that were passing by. Liv was in front of him now and he quickly took her hand. "Got ya," he said, smiling at her, "now I won't lose you." He locked his fingers in hers and followed her as they chased after the quick little boy.

Soon Liv caught him and Russell smiled at him. "So," he said, crossing his arms and grinning from Liv to Ashlynd, "what's this big idea that you had us run for?"

[oliviabelmont]

"You what?" she asked her brother, but he had already gone farther up the street, losing his sisters grip on his sweater. How would she have known he had been studying maps of Hogsmeade. It just wasn't normal. She just had to accept that this boy was not her biological brother. They had gotten him mixed up at St. Mungo's the day he was born or something.

Liv's look of confusion melted into a smile as Russ grabbed her hand. "Good." She said, blushing as she did. "Come on, we'll lose him again." Liv hurried up in the direction her brother had disappeared again.

Slightly out of breath, they finally came to where Ashlynd had stopped. Liv looked up at the sign. Green's Green Greens. What? she thought. What a name. What could Ash possibly have in mind.

"Give me your money." He said to Russ, had held out. "Are you kidding me Ash." Olivia started to protest. "Do you think you could get any ruder?" She said, wanting to give him a good spanking, then figuring he was way to old for it. "Sorry." Ash said, sounding truly sorry. "But trust me, she'll love it." he said with a wide grin, his hand still reached out for Russ' money. Liv looked at Russ, not knowing what to do. She shrugged, basically telling the tall boy to do what he wished.

[Russell Parkhurst]

Russell looked from Liv to Ashlynd and grinned stupidly. When Ashlynd asked for his money and Liv reacted so shockedly, Rus shrugged at her look before holding out his bag of money for Ashlynd. "Knock yourself out, mate," he said to the small boy. "I'll stay here with your sister, make sure she doesn't get into too much trouble."