An Unexpected Visit [Katrin Edlund & Professor Grimm]

[G]

Wednesday, August 4th, 2117.
London, England - Midday.

"Katrin! You have a visitor! He says he's your uncle!"
Professor Grimm smiled, smoothing the dark, wiry hair of his beard between forefinger and thumb as he waited. He appeared calm, relaxed even, about meeting his 'niece' for the first time. Katrin Edlund was not, in fact, Caelin Grimm's niece at all - but the truth was far more difficult to believe, and these Muggles, like many, did not seem to want to reach for unbelievable truths. They preferred, largely, to hold onto the comfort of something simple, and reasonable to them.

When Katrin appeared, Caelin's smile widened, and he held out a hand for her to shake.

"Hello, Katrin. It's so good to meet you at last. There's so much for us to discuss, I..."

Grimm paused, looking up at the Katrin's foster parents. They had seemed relieved at the story he'd given them - that he was Katrin's uncle, that he'd discovered her existence and now wished to adopt her into the family, sending her to a prestigious private school. The truth was much more... Magical. Caelin smirked, amused at his own thoughts.

"Would you give us a moment? I'd like to speak to Katrin privately."

When they were alone, he turned back to face her, his smile warm.

"Hello, Katrin," he said again, "I'm Professor Caelin Grimm, of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I must confess, I was not entirely honest to the Muggles... I mean, to your foster parents. I am not your uncle.

I am here for a different reason. You're special, Katrin. I'm sure you've seen the signs - strange things happening, when you were angry or upset, or scared? The truth is, Katrin... you're a Witch. You're capable of incredible things... and I'm here to help you learn to achieve them."

He paused, waiting for her response. Maybe I should have paced it a little more. Was that too much, all at once? he thought.

[HaelKatrin]

"Katrin! You have a visitor! He says he's your uncle!"

The annoyingly high pitched shrill voice of her foster mom could be heard from the girl's room. It was a rather clean room. Surprising for a young girl of Eleven. Eleven today! The room was painted bright pink. As were the sheets and blankets on the hospital bed in the corner. They'd even managed to convince the company that the railing on said bed needed to be pink as well. Not an easy feat. There was a desk to another corner. Nothing else on it, except an older laptop. Quite outdated, but then, as her foster parents had told her many times over, "We've paid a lot of money for all your equipment. cuts had to be made somewhere!"

She had no illusions that this would be the last family she saw. Oh no. The young girl was well aware she was too much for most to deal with. After all, she'd been told the same enough times. Still, it wasn't a bad home. This one. It was rather quite pleasant. That is, when she wasn't getting in trouble. Or being too loud. . . . Or any number of other offenses.

She pushes her way out of the small room. Just barely avoiding the almost-too-narrow doorway. She takes just a moment to glance down, seeing the black scuffing along the bottom of the door and walls. Something she'd gotten yelled at quite a lot for. She stops for a second, avoiding a running child, then continues on her way down the hall.

She stops in front of the strange man. Hands on her wheels to keep it from moving on her. She wore a black t-shirt with a blue police call box on the front. Blue jeans, and pink fuzzy socks. She didn't wear shoes. Absolutely refused to wear them. They were lucky enough to have her in matching socks at the moment. She had long blond hair. For the moment, it was braided behind her. The edge of the braid down past the back of her wheelchair. She wasn't very tall. But then, that could be simply because she was sitting. The top of her head coming up to about Professor Grimm's waist.

Her piercing blue eyes look up at him curiously. They were the kind of blue that seemed to almost pierce into a person's very soul. And, with the way she studied him, she seemed to be doing just that. She reaches out, taking his offered hand, and shaking it. Just as he asks for privacy, another laughing, shrieking, youngster runs past them. Katrin sighs. "We can go to my room. . ." And with that, quiet, hushed, statement, she was off again. Leading the way back to her room.

This time, as she runs back to her room, she doesn't pay attention to the door. A loud crash is heard as her right caster comes into contact with the door frame. A great amount of cursing, her name mixed in, is heard from the living room. She simply shrugs it off, not at all bothered. Hands on her wheels, she pushes up and back, righting herself once more, squarely on the seat. Then continues through the door. Once in, she turns back to face him, listening as he talks about obscure things.

Things that seemed like a dream. Seemed to be from any number of her favorite TV shows. No, the old ones She would always correct anyone who asked. They always assumed she kept up with the modern obsessions. But, those just couldn't seem to captivate her. That is, until one nurse, during one of many hospital visits, introduced her to something more . . . magical.

She blinks up at him a few times, then shakes her head sadly. She doesn't say anything right away. Simply turns away from him. Goes to her desk and turns back on the computer. "Ya know, I though to myself, maybe just maybe I'd get a cake for my birthday. Of course, it would be half eaten and smooshed. What with Jane and Tommy running around like crazed animals. But, never in my wildest dreams, did I think. . . ." Here she spins around, anger flashing in her eyes, and the movement, "That someone would play such an obviously cruel joke on me. I've had my share of them. "Oh, Katrin, that police box out there. . . Some man in a funny hat just stuck his head out." Her voice shrieking, mocking, as she retold countless things she had heard. -"Oh Katrin, Why's that old car out there? With two really hot guys leaning against it? She shakes her head, glaring. "Why, in all the universes, would I believe that someone's come to take me away from this hellhole?!" She shrieks.

As her anger mounts, as if to prove the Professor's very point, her door slams closed with an unknown force. She jumps in her chair, surprised and off guard. She brushes a few stray strands of hair behind her ear. "I-I didn't do that." Her eyes were big as she looks between him and the door. Her mind seeming to race a thousand a minute.

She gestures weakly toward one lonely rocking chair in the room. "M-maybe you should sit down. . .A-and start over. . ." Her voice almost resigned. As if she had decided to play along with the all too cruel prank. There wasn't joy in her eyes. No, there was pain, sadness. As if she expected he had set the whole thing up. From the long speech, to the slamming door. It wouldn't surprise her. She'd seen worse.

[G]

Professor Grimm looked taken aback as Katrin's voice rose in anger, his mouth a small 'o' of surprise. It had been clear from the moment he saw the overcrowded house that things were not perfect here - he hadn't realised it was this bad, though. For her to be so mistrustful... the man frowned, running a hand through his scruffy locks.

"I'm sorry, Katrin," he said, his voice carefully casual, the smile back on his face - though a little more cautious, and not as wide, it was still very kind and genuine, "Of course, I should have wished you a happy birthday first of all! How thoughtless of me." He didn't comment on her other statements - the frequency of cruel jokes being played on her, the disbelief that something positive could be true... but he didn't forget them. He wouldn't; beneath the jovial mans' friendly, casual exterior, his blood boiled.

She should never have had to grow up like this! he thought angrily, though outwardly he showed no sign of it. But she's too young, yet, to know the truth.

Reaching into the pocket of his jeans, Caelin Grimm drew out a single pink carnation, its petals a little crumpled from his pocket. Crossing to the desk, he laid it down on the bare wood, then reached into his sleeve, drawing out his wand. He gave the wood a flourish, its end drawing a circle in the air above the flower; and before Katrin's eyes, it transformed.

Petals started to peel back, curling outward and over themselves, growing. The carnation spun slowly in place, continuing to swell until it was the size of Katrin's fist - then twice as big again, and again. Petals thickened and softened, surrounding the dome of the growing flower, concealing its' center as the flower whirled faster and faster...

Then the spinning slowed, and where the flower had been sat an elegant birthday cake, its' pink frosting layered from its' center in sweeping petal shapes. Eleven slender, dark green candles rose from its' surface, and with another flick of Professor Grimm's wand their tips burst into tiny flames.

"Happy Birthday, Katrin," Grimm's grin was back now; obviously pleased with his handiwork.

[HaelKatrin]

The girl shrugs as he apologizes. It didn't matter. No one here remembered anyway, why should she have expected him to? It wasn't the first missed birthday. It would not be the last.

She smiles weakly as he wishes her a happy birthday. Her hands rested on her lap, fidgeting. She watches as he pulls out a small flower, confused.

But then, the situation only got stranger. He pulled out a strange wooden stick. And began waving it around. Like he was some kind of Jedi or something. Stranger still, to her surprise, the flower began spinning. Her eyes grew wide, wider still, as she watched.

She didn't take her eyes off the flower. Not even blinking as she watches. Soon it stopped, disappearing as a cake remained in its place. She jumps, the movement causing her chair to move backwards a few inches. Surprised, as the candles lit on fire. She looks up at him, then back to the cake. Once more back to him, her eyes impossibly wide. She pushes her chair up to the desk, then reaches out cautiously. She reaches a finger out to one of the flames. Jerking back as she felt the heat. This doesn't cure her curiosity, however. As he says "Happy Birthday" she reaches for the cake again, this time poking at the frosting on the side.

She pulls her hand away again, staring at her finger, the frosting now on it. Then back to him as she cautiously tries it. "I-I've never had my own birthday cake before...." Certainly not one so big, either. Not as tasty.

She grins at him, her good humor returning. For the moment, deciding to trust him. Not completely. No, she'd learned that lesson a long time ago. "You said you were a professor? Where?" Deciding to hear him out. Hear his story.

She shakes her head at the absurdity of all of this. It was insane. It was. . . As if her Doctor really had come to take her away. Or, given his powers, maybe a Jedi Knight. Maybe, just maybe, she'd finally find someone who wanted her.

She turns her attention back to the cake curiously. "I don't have anything to eat it with... Ms Laura wouldn't let us in the kitchen for utensils either... " No, the kitchen was locked up tight. They were strict about that. Couldn't have the kids eating them out of house and home, after all! Still, this announcement didn't stop the girl from scooping up just a bit more of the frosting. Though, she was careful. Taking it from the very bottom, the edge. So it's absence wouldn't be noticed. Almost as if she were used to sneaking tastes of food. She grins again at the taste of the sweet pink frosting.

[G]

"No problem, I've got something here, I'm sure..." Opening the rather battered, soft-leather briefcase he'd set down to magic Katrin's cake, Grimm dipped his arm inside it; to the shoulder. He was an odd picture, rummaging around deep in the bottom of a bag that didn't look large enough to fit more than his hand.

"Ahh, here we go." He smiled, withdrawing a sheaf of pink napkins and a long, thin kitchen knife. The latter he offered hilt first to Katrin, the napkins he placed beside the cake, on the desk.

"Eat up! Yes, thanks, I'll have a piece too. We'll need our energy - lots to do today!"

At her querulous look, he chuckled. "I'm getting ahead of myself again, sorry, sorry! Right, yes, I'm a Professor.

Professor Caelin Grimm. I teach Charms; it's a delightful branch of Magic! Like your cake, that was a charm. Well, with a bit of Transfiguration thrown in, of course. But I'm rambling, you'll learn all about that at Hogwarts.

Hogwarts!" He beamed at the girl, settling into the rocking chair and lifting his arms into the air to emphasize the word. "Hogwarts is a school of Magic. The best school of Magic there is, if I do say so myself. And you..." he paused, leaning over to reach into his bag again. This time he withdrew a letter, the envelope made of a yellow-tinged parchment, sealed at the front with a red wax crest. He reached out, offering it to Katrin.

"You have been invited to attend. Over the next seven years, Hogwarts will teach you everything you could ever wish to know about your abilities, and the Wizarding World."

Professor Grimm paused again, his smile slipping into a serious expression.

"I can see... that you are not sure of your place in this world, Katrin. If I overstep my bounds by saying so, I apologise, but I think you have always felt that you do not belong - that you don't fit, perhaps. That's because you don't. You don't belong in the Muggle world... no more than I did, when I was a child, and still unaware that I was a Wizard. You belong at Hogwarts! You are a Witch, Katrin," his smile was back now as he repeated his initial message to her, and he leapt out of the seat, his jovial nature returning to the surface.

"So! We better get a move on, lots to do! We've got to get your schoolbooks, your cauldron, your wand..."

[HaelKatrin]

Katrin raises an eyebrow, watching him curiously as he reaches into the bag. "It's bigger on the inside?" She asks with a grin. Yes. He was definitely her Doctor. Come to steal her away. She smiles slightly at the thought.

She takes the offered knife gingerly. One hand held onto the desk, as if holding her up as she cut the cake. She grins when he said he'd like a piece, before she could even offer one. She cuts him a nice sized piece, then places it gently on the napkin. As he sits down in the chair, she places the napkin and cake slice on her lap, wheeling her way to him, and handing it over.

She listens quietly as he explains Hogwarts. Not completely understanding, but definitely interested. Curious. She returns to the desk, and cuts another, smaller, piece. Much smaller. As if portioning the cake out. It was a habit, more than intentional. She'd learned to make food last. You didn't always get meals. Even so, she scarfed down the small slice of cake. Clearly hungry. She looks back at the cake, as if debating another slice, or to save it.

Her attention then returns to Grimm as he held out the letter. She once more wheels over to him, taking the letter. She opens it up gently, carefully. Reading it. Once she had, she carefully folds it back up.

She turns slightly in her chair, one hand on a wheel, the other on the back cushion, using her arms to shift. She leans over the backing, to unzip a pocket in the backpack there. She gently puts the letter in there for safe keeping. She zips up the pocket, then sits up. Though doesn't yet right herself.

She looks up at him as he begins to talk again. Her eyes once more wide as she fights back tears. "I don't belong anywhere. I'm too much trouble. A burden." She says it softly. Still, there was no doubt to her words. She shakes her head. "You don't want me at your school. It's more trouble than it's worth." She looks down at her hands resting on her lap. One elbow casually propped against the back of her chair, holding her up.

She looks up as he says they had a lot to do, a lot to buy. "I-i don't have any money. . . " It was something she was reminded of daily. Her parents had left her with nothing.

[G]

"You don't want me at your school. It's more trouble than it's worth."

Professor Grimm had paused his energetic babble to eat the piece of cake Katrin had given him, but at these words he stopped, swallowing his mouthful. He looked serious again, though this was marred slightly by the dab of pink frosting clinging to the corner of his mouth.

"Now, I won't have that sort of talk! And don't worry about money, that's all taken care of. What, you think we leave magical children without funds just to fumble through on their own?! Preposterous. No, no, we've got budget for that at Hogwarts, you won't have to worry about a thing. And Katrin..."

He paused again. For all his compassion, the Professor didn't seem entirely confident when it came to more serious conversation; perhaps he preferred the comfortability of a grin or a joke. "I meant it when I said that you're capable of extraordinary things," he said finally, looking her in the eye. "Things these Muggles could never dream of accomplishing will be as easy as the flick of a wand for you. A burden! Ha.." Grim chuckled, but there was a tinge of sadness in it. "You won't be a burden. You won't want for anything! You'll be a force to be reckoned with!"

He smiled again, ending the impromptu speech. "But I can't expect you to take this all in in a few moments. You can discover it all for yourself. For now, I think we should worry about getting your things! It is your birthday, after all - you can think of them as presents."

A third time, he reached into the bag. This time, he withdrew a shabby black left sneaker, mercifully moving the cake out of the way before placing it, too, atop the desk.

"Portus," he said clearly, twirling his wand in a small figure-eight above the shoe.

"This will take us to Diagon Alley - we'll be able to get everything you need there," he said. "Just lay your hand on it - a finger is enough. And hold onto your chair, it will come with us too."

Perhaps sensing her hesitation, he paused in his instructions. "How about this - you don't have to decide yet. Just come along, at least take a peek at your new world, before you decide it isn't for you. Alright? At the very least, you get an interesting day out for your birthday."

[HaelKatrin]

Katrin's rumbling stomach had finally convinced her she should eat more of the cake. And so, after she finished telling him she was too much trouble, she had cut herself another slice. This one slightly bigger, though still small. She ate it slowly as he spoke, not quite looking up at him. Not sure she believed him.

She gives a small, sad smile, as he talks. She could tell he was much more comfortable with jokes than seriousness. But then he would be, her Doctor.

She wipes away at her tears. Watching curiously as he took an old shoe out of the bag. "Just like that? You can just... Whisk me away? Show different worlds?" She smiles again. Still small, but genuine.

She places her hands on her wheels, pushing up and shifting, she rights herself once more. Then nods. "I-I have to get a few things first..."

While her backpack always held a small amount of medical supplies, it wasn't quite enough. Not for a trip away. She'd been caught without them before, and those memories were burned into her mind. And so, she goes over to the dresser, opening up one of the drawers. She pulls her backpack off her chair, and begins filling it with all manners of supplies. The uses for these, unclear. Though, with a bit of thought, some of them would be able to be discerned. Once satisfied, she closes the drawer.

She makes her way back to the desk, and opens another drawer. This one was filled with different bottles of prescription medicine. Some liquid, some pills. These she scoops up and dumps in the bag as well. She glanced at a clock on a wall. Then, grabbing one of the bottles, she opens it and takes one of the pills inside. Then replaces it in the bag. She puts the medicine in her mouth, then swings the bag back onto her chair. This whole thing taking no more than five minutes. "Ok. . . I'm ready, Doctor." She smirked at this comment.

She places her hand on the shoe, gripping it tightly. Her other hand gripping the wheel of her chair just as tightly. Her eyes closed, she nods once.

[G]

"Very good," Caelin's smile was firmly back in place now that Katrin seemed to be happier. "Away we go, then!"

Tucking his wand back into his sleeve, Professor Grimm picked up his bag in one hand, reaching out with the other to touch the battered sneaker.

The feeling was instantaneous - a tugging sensation at each of their navels, pulling forward as if they were being sucked, bellybutton first, through a straw. The world spun wildly into a blur of flashing colours; mostly pink, at first, as the decor of Katrins' room whirled around them; then replaced with greys, browns, and greens as the spinning slowed. The wheels of Katrins' chair reconnected with the ground with a thump, and the world righted itself around them, tall buldings' bordering the clear blue sky above, and a buzzing babble in their ears turning into the chatter and laughter of the many shoppers' who traversed the street around them. Katrin had probably never seen so many odd-looking people in one place; while some people looked comfortable in their muggle attire, just as many wore long, billowing robes, pointed hats, capes and tassles, oiled cloaks. Owls swooped through the air above, in broad daylight, and if Katrin looked closely, she would notice that they clutched various items in their talons; letters, newspapers and packages. The gaudy signs that decorated the shopfronts were no less strange than those perusing them - "Angeliques' Antiques and Oddities,' said one, a rather delapidated building with huge, glass windows through which Katrin could see a number of peculiar items displayed. "The Magical Menagerie," another said; the front of the shop crowded with hatstands, from which hung cages housing an array of birds - from owls to toucans to a regal Phoenix which, as Katrin watched, burst into glorious flame. It burned down until there was nothing but a pile of ash in the bottom of the cage, from which the peeping head of a chick burst forth, calling out hungrily.

"Welcome," Caelin grinned, holding his arms out to gesture at the sights before her, "to Diagon Alley! Now, we've lots to get - but I think we should start with a wand, don't you? Ollivanders," he gestured to a large, plain shopfront, it's windows hung with thick curtains either side of it's wooden double-doors.

"That's the place to go for wands! Ollivander jr. runs it now, but his father was the best wandmaker there ever was, and he taught him everything he knows."

[HaelKatrin]

Katrin barely had a moment to gasp in surprise, and suddenly, they were somewhere else. Her chair landed with a resounding thump, throwing her almost halfway out of it. Thankful she had already been holding onto one wheel, she pulls herself back. She blinks a few times, looking around in wonder. She grins, seeing those in Robes and Cloaks. "I was wrong!" She says with a grin, looking up at him. "Not TimeLord at all! YOU'RE A JEDI!" She laughs, knowing she made absolutely no sense to the Professor.

She continues to look around as he points towards the wand shop. Her eyes once more wide, she looks up at him. "Y-you mean, I get one too?!" Her already excitable voice even more excited. Before he could stop her, she was practically running down the cobbled road. Not even minding in the least the way it caused her to bounce uncomfortably in the chair. Nor the fact she was once more only half way on the seat when she finally stopped.

She looks up at the sign on the door curiously. The old building strange, but enchanting to the young girl's imagination. She rights herself once more, then reaches out, pushing on the door. One hand holding the door, her other pushing her chair forward, she slowly, cautiously, makes her way inside.

What met her inside, made her eyes wide even more as she looked around. Walls and walls of thing long boxes. All of which she could only imagine were wands. And she was here to get one. She'd never gotten anything brand new before. Let alone something so unique, something so special! This really was turning into a very good birthday indeed.

Still, something was bothering the girl. She looks up as Grimm comes in, worry in her young eyes. "T-this place looks expensive. .. . Professor." She said in a hushed voice. It had not left her mind, that they would be using money from the school. "M-maybe we should go to another shop. . ." He had said this was the best, not that this was the only. Surely there were cheaper wands. She wasn't one to need the best of everything. Going from family to family had cured her of that. She'd learned to count every penny. And not to ask for more.