Tori was surprised to get a letter. She was even more surprised to see it was from her Nana.

It was requesting a chance to speak with her in the Three Broomsticks. At first, Tori thought it was a joke. But she thought about it for days before accepting the invite.

Tori's Nana was different like the rest of her family. She was much kinder, calmer, and gave fantastic hugs. Tori hasn't seen her in years. She hadn't seen any of her family in years.

She was sitting with the letter in her hand, skimming over the contents while watching the twins make a large snowman in the courtyard.

"You're acting like someone died! Lighten up! You both know this map like the back of your hands." Tori whispered to the twins as they continued to build their snowman.

Christmas was coming fast to Hogwarts. The hills and castle were covered with snow and Christmas cheer ran through every student's spirit. Today was the last Hogsmeade trip before the end of the term. Most students had ran off already, but Tori and the twins were waiting.

"There he is! Psst— Harry!"

The boy turned, confused to see the three of them."What are you doing?" Harry asked curiously. "How come you're not going to Hogsmeade?"

"We've come to give you a bit of a festive cheer before we go," Fred said with a mysterious wink. "Come on," Tori whispered, nodding towards an empty classroom. Harry followed them inside as George shut the door quietly.

"Early Christmas present for you, Harry."

Fred pulled out the blank map, sliding it across the table towards Harry, who looked at all of them skeptically.

"What's this rubbish?"

Tori scoffed, sitting herself up on the desk. "'What's this rubbish?' he says."

"That there is the secret to our success," Fred told him, trying his best not to look offended.

"It's a wrench giving it to you..." George sighed, running his fingers through his hair. He patted the parchment fondly thinking of the good times with it.

"But..." Tori waved her hand around for them to continue. Fred took a breath, while Harry still looked very confused. "But we've decided your needs are greater than ours."

"Anyway, we have it all memorized. We bequeath it to you." George shrugged, glancing over at Tori who sat silently.

"What would I need with a bit of old parchment?" Harry asked, tilting his head.

"Bit of old parchment?! George, if you will."

George pulled out his wand, saying the familiar phrase. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

Harry leaned forward, reading aloud what appeared on the map. "'Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs... are proud to present the Marauder's Map.'"

George nodded. "We owe them so much."

Harry's gaze went back towards the map. "Hang on. This is Hogwarts. And that... No. Is that really...?"

"Dumbledore."

"In his study."

"Pacing."

"He does that a lot," Tori said quietly. Harry peeked up again. "So this map shows..."

"Everyone."

"Where they are."

"What they're doing."

"Every minute."

"Of every day."

"Brilliant!" Harry exclaimed. He had the same excited glint in his eye the twins had when they first used it. "Where did you get it?"

"Knicked it from Filch's office, of course. First-year, when we were young, carefree, and innocent—"

Harry snorted loudly, giving them a you're kidding, right? look.

"It happened. Right, Tori?"

"Whatever you say..."

"Great. Now then, there are seven secret passageways... out of the castle. We'd recommend... this one." George pointed to the corridor on the third floor.

"The One-Eyed Witch passageway it'll lead you to Honeyduke's cellar."

"You best hurry now," Tori told him, pointing to a name on the map. "Filch is heading this way."

"Oh, Harry, don't forget." George said, "When you're done, just give it a tap and say—"

"Mischief managed." The twins said together.

"Otherwise, anyone can read it. See you at Honeyduke's." They left Harry alone while walking out of the room. Tori through her arms around them, "Doesn't that feel good?"

"Yeah," Fred admitted, "But obviously now we have to do something wicked to get it out of our system..." He pushed Tori down into a pile of snow that was piling up.

Tori squealed, wiping the freezing snow off her face. "You're so dead!" She yelled after them, chasing them down.

✧    ✦    ✧

"You alright?" George asked her as she stood outside the Three Broomsticks. Tori shrugged, genuinely unsure about how she felt. "Want us to go in there? We could be like bodyguards." Fred joked, slumping down to rest his chin on Tori's shoulder.

Tori laughed, "Yeah, two pretty pathetic bodyguards. No, I'll meet you guys later." She waved, saying goodbye to the twins and opening the door.

The tavern was crowded, filled with a large number of wizards and witches of all kinds. Tori glanced around trying to spot her Nana. She kept glancing out the window, watching Fred and George considering following her in. They decided not to and went down the road towards Zonko's

A small hand went up, waving Tori over. Tori's Nana looked very similar to her. She had the same dark brown eyes filled with curiosity and a similar kind smile.

Tori took her seat awkwardly, glancing around at the people. "Victoria, I'm so happy to see you, dear." Tori smiled weakly, "Hi, Nana. I have to say, I was surprised to get your letter."

"Well, we've been out of touch for far too long. I have to say, I was a bit disappointed when you weren't home when I came over."

"They don't want me there," Tori scoffed, taking a butterbeer from a tray. Nana took her tea, frowning. "Oh, don't say that honey—"

"It's true. Nana, why are you here? Why contact me after five years?"

"Oh. Honey, I love you. It's like a grandparent's law. And when I saw you at the train station? I knew I had to tell you something. It was right. Victoria, I don't care what house you're in, or who you spend your time with. I want you to be happy, and I love you. I noticed you out there with those twins? They seem to make you happy."

Tori smiled as her Nana took her hand. "Can I ask you something?" Her Nana nodded, "Of course dear, ask me anything."

"Unlike the rest of our family... I don't think I've ever heard you say anything nasty about another person, let along a Muggle."

Her Nana smiled, taking a sip of her tea. "Let me tell you a story, Victoria. When I was a little older than you, once I had graduated, I was a feisty woman. I was! And I met a man. He was a kind, loving man, who never had a prejudiced bone in his body.

"He was rather dashing, all the woman would watch me enviously. Sometimes I would even wonder, how did I get such a man?"

Tori smiled, leaning on her hand. Her Nana continued fondly, "He loved to dance. We would spend hours swaying and dancing, he would hold me close and all our problems would disappear. Oh, honey. I loved him. He was... something else."

"Grandpa?" Tori asked but her Nana shook her head. "No,"

"No? So who is it?"

"His name was David, and he was a muggle."

plot twist

i hope you FIND this plot twisty