Hey everyone. This story was brought to you by Folklore: Folk Stories assignment, and Herbology Hangout on Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. For the Folklore: Folk Stories assignment I wrote for task 1 which was to write about someone breaking the law. For Herbology Hangout I wrote for the item prompt of gift-bag. I hope you all enjoy A Wizarding Robin Hood.
Looking over at the gift bag lined table near the exit Ginny wondered, not for the first time since they'd planned this heist, if this was the right thing to be doing. Not that her target didn't deserve to be robbed. He totally did. But something, a little voice in the back of her mind that sounded just like her mother, was telling her this wasn't something she should be doing.
"Are you ready, Gin?" Harry asked as he took her hand.
"Something's wrong," Ginny whispered to him allowing herself to be pulled into the crowd ballroom. Ginny was glad to find that the party they were robbing was masquerade ball being held by the Malfoy's. If it wasn't they were sure to be caught. "I can't put my finger on it but something bad is going to happen."
"You can't think like that, Gin," Harry told her in a whisper a little gentle laugh escaping his lips as he watched her concerned face. "It's that voice that sounds like your mother again."
"And it hasn't been wrong yet."
"We'll be in and out in a jiffy." Music started to play as their target lead his current girlfriend, one Pansy Parkinson, onto the dance floor. "Care to dance, love?"
"Of course," smirked and allowed Harry to pull her onto the dance floor. This was their usual plan for pulling off a heist held on a dance floor. They'd join the dancing and accidentally bump into their target. She'd end up filching what they were after because her hands were quicker at the draw. It came with the territory. She did have six older brothers after.
As they neared Draco and his partner she could see that he was whispering to Pansy. Quickly reading Draco's lips, it was a skill she picked up quickly during the course of their many jobs, her eyes widened in shock. Leaning close to Harry, making it look like she was leaning her head against her lover's shoulder, she quickly whispered, "He's onto us," in his ear.
"That's ridiculous," Harry whispered back. "He can't be onto us. We're just another pair of masked dancers on the floor. Maybe you read his lips wrong and he's saying something else." Harry twirled Ginny to keep up the rouse.
"And if I'm right?"
"Then I..." Harry was thrown forward as Draco bumped into them.
"I'm so sorry, sir," Draco said helping Pansy up.
Ginny held her breathe as praying they weren't about to get caught. She watched as Pansy dusted herself off. Suddenly a hand was in front of her face thinking it was Harry's she took the hand and allowed the person to help her to her feet. She was about to thank Harry when she realized it was Draco who'd helped her up.
"Do I know?" Draco asked studying her eyes.
"I don't think so," Ginny tried to lie. "I've just arrived from France were I have been studying Ancient Runes of the French Underground..."
"Darling," Harry said cutting her off, "this nice man isn't interested in your studies."
"Of course," Ginny said with a slight blush at being admonished. She congratulated herself on her ability to make herself blush on command. It came in handy in situations like this. "I'm so sorry. I sometimes get carried away with myself were my work is concerned. You can understand? Right?"
"Of course," Draco told her. "I get that way with my own work sometimes."
"All the time," Pansy snarked.
"Sometimes. Why don't you tell me more about your work?"
Ginny launched into a fake story about being fired from a group of curse breakers for trying horde her findings. "So of course," she was saying as she watched Harry pick Draco's pocket for the ornate ring that was said to belong to Nicholas Falmel's wife Pernelle herself, "I decided to go out on my own and find things worth finding. Most of the people I used to work with would consider the stuff I work with junk but not me. I think of all of it as treasure."
Harry nodded signalling that he'd gotten what they came for. "We must be going," Harry said. "Don't we have to wake up early tomorrow so you can go back to France?"
Ginny nodded. "Thank you for your hospitality and the party was wonderful."
Ginny and Harry made their way back through the crowd of people praying that the ring wasn't found missing before they could outside. Once they were outside they could apparate away. Once they were outside they were home free.
As they neared the door and the table with the gift-bags on them a commotion rose from back on the dance floor. Picking up their paces Ginny and Harry broke into a run. Picking up one of the gift bags as they passed them Ginny and Harry finally found themselves on the street. With a quick smile from Harry the two apparated back to the Burrow.
Harry held out the small ornate gold circle with a emerald encrusted setting to Ginny. "I think you should hold onto this for safe keeping until we can get it back to where it really belongs," he told her.
With a smile Ginny tucked the ring into her pocket. She felt just like Robin Hood from those old Muggle stories that Harry liked to tell her about. If they could find the right buyer they'd give the money to those poorer than them.
I hope you all enjoyed A Wizarding Robin Hood.
