"Every Flavour Ice Cream"

As was compulsory among most soon-to-be first year, Serenity was to travel to Diagon Alley with her father and younger sister, Merritt. They stood beside the fireplace in one of the many family rooms alongside Dexter. The small boy had trailed around the house after them in a state a hazy wonderment after he discovered they would be travelling via the floo network. The brunette sat cross-legged in front of the family of three with a smile on his face.

"You're actually going to go?" Merritt rolled her eyes and nodded for- what felt like- the hundredth time that morning.

"Yes! For the last time, yes!" She moves to crouch in front of him, grasping his arms tightly and shaking him slightly. "How?" She wonders, "How have you not experienced this at all? In all of your nearly-ten years. Does your mother not love you?" Frowning heavily, Dexter nods and stands up sharply.

"You know she does!" Jabbing her sharply in the chest her turns and runs out of the room.

"Way to go, Merri," Serenity announces, rolling her eyes as she took a handful of floo powder from the pot beside the fireplace, "you hurt the poor boy's feelings." Turning to watch her sister step into the fireplace, she rubbed the small patch of her chest that throbbed ever-so-slightly.

"He poked my heart." Pouting playfully, Serenity loudly announces 'Diagon Alley!' before dropping the powder and finding herself engulfed in green flames. Eyes wide, Merritt stared at the fireplace, she'd only ever heard stories about travelling via floo network from Serenity; after all, she'd only been teasing Dexter. "Where'd she go?"

▪~○••○~▪

Diagon Alley was a little too busy for Merritt's liking. Allowing her sister to brush the final bits of soot from her head and shoulders, she took her sister's hand and kept close to her side. Clutching Serenity's letter, Merritt felt herself smile as she knew she was responsible for telling them what her sister would need.

"Where to first, Merri?" Looking around distractedly, Serenity failed to notice her little sister struggling to focus on the parchment in front of her. Merritt looked around in a panic noticing that their father had yet to return from where he had immediately run off to. Shaking Serenity's arm, the eleven-year-old finally looked down. Recognising her sister's panic, Serenity ushered them out of the crowd and into the shop beside them.

It was decorated nicely, however, that wasn't Serenity's immediate concern. Sitting her sister down at the nearest table, she crouched in front of the ten-year-old and squeezed her knees supportively.

"Hey," she spoke softly, "hey, it's alright. We're out of the crowd now. Look around," Merritt looked up, the tears running down her cheeks staining her face red as her chest heaved up and down, "see? We're safe here. You're safe here, don't worry." As Merritt continued her laboured breathing, Serenity tapped her knee softly. "Merritt, can you look at me? Breathe," smiling kindly up at her sister, she exaggerated her even breathing, "In, out. See? Just copy me. In, and out."

Bowing her head and closing her eyes, Merritt listened to her sister and began to work towards steadying her breathing. She felt hot and heavy, as though she was trapped where she was and couldn't move... as though she was frozen and no one cared enough to help. She could've died then and there yet the crowd outside would simply trample her corpse into the ground before anyone cared. So, when Serenity stood, she looked up in a panic.

"Where are you going?" Smiling, Serenity waved her hand dismissively.

"Don't worry, I won't let me out of your sight." She'd mixed up the words to Merritt's advantage so she knew she wouldn't go far, and so, she watched as the eldest of the two approached the counter and leant against it.

"Mr Fortescue?" Serenity called out to the back of the shop. A man with dark, wild hair poked his head through the beaded entrance, his face one of pure guilt and feigned shock

"Serenity Rier! What a surprise!" Laughing heartily and walking around the countertop, he places his hands on either side of the child's face. "How are you?" Laughing with the man, Serenity walked out of his grasp.

"I'm fine, thank you, Mr Fortescue. Now, rather than arguing over your obvious eavesdropping, my sister is upset and I was wondering if you had anything special to help cheer her up?" Glancing over at the younger Rier, he clapped his hands over his mouth.

"It can't be!" Hurrying up to the table, he looks between the two girls. "THE Merritt Rier?" Crossing her arms and smiling, Serenity watched as the man worked his not-so-magical magic. "I've heard so much about you and I was hoping that one of these days your sister would bring you to see me." As Mr Fortescue sat across from Merritt, propping his hands under his chin, the ten-year-old reared away in surprise.

"You know me?"

"My dear," he said softly, "I do now." Standing from his seat, he claps loudly and suddenly shocking both of the girls. "And I know exactly what you need!" As the man ran back around the counter, Christian stepped into the store.

"There you are!" He noticed the tear stains on Merritt's otherwise confused face and stalked over to her. "What happened, is she okay?" Looking from his eldest to his youngest, he addressed Merritt. "Are you okay."

Merritt nodded numbly, still frazzled at the encounter with the old man. Serenity sat down beside her sister and her father.

"She just met Mr Fortescue." Christian nodded understandingly as the man himself waltzed over with a large ice cream sundae, it was an unappetizing mud brown colour with multicoloured sprinkles littered over the top to add more colour.

"It's not the most attractive of desserts, it's also not official yet, but this is a Bertie Bott's-Fortescue collaboration: Every flavour ice cream! A different flavour in every scoop, no lingering tastes for a cool experience with every bite!"

"Catchy," Christian commented, poking at it with his spoon. He ducked his head as Mr Fortescue roughly ruffled his hair.

"Eat up, folks!"

Each of the Riers took a spoonful and glanced nervously around at each other. Christian slowly counted down to three and Christian and Serenity simultaneously discarded the ice cream into their mouths. While Christian's face displayed his pleasant surprise, Serenity's contorted into the disgust.

"Tastes how it looks," he began, "like chocolate moose." Shaking her head vigorously, Serenity disagreed enthusiastically.

"No. That's sand."

"You're both wrong!" Merritt stood and backed away from the table once she ate her spoonful, attempting to wipe at her tongue with her napkin. "That is poo!"