Magical

Molly II is the lead singer in a Muggle rock band called The Sun Sets on Lies. She's been dating the drummer for nearly two years now, and wants to trust him with her biggest secret.

Winner of the NextGen - The S U N S E T S Competition by watching stiricide in the HPFC

Pairing: MollyII/OC

Her fists clenched, her body pumped with adrenaline, and she stomped her foot as she belted out the lyrics. Vocal cords straining, she threw her head to the side and stomped her feet again. Her green streaked curls whipped through the air as she sang her heart out. This was what she lived for.

Then, the final chorus! Her body rocked with the rhythm of the music, the guitar chords hitting her so hard they almost felt tangible. She felt the beat from the drumset vibrating from her feet to her head, charging her whole body with electricity. She sang out the last few words, harmonizing perfectly with the male guitarist's vocals.

As the last chord echoed through the air, everything fell silent and she let the mic fall from her hand. It hit the floor and the speakers screamed in protest, but the sound wasn't jarring. It just broke the spell. The room felt normal again, and they were just regular people with songs to sing. The best part was that she didn't even use any magic. It was all in the music.

She turned to face the rest of the group, who were staring at her with awe.

"So?" she asked, deep blue eyes sparkling with leftover adrenaline. "How was that?"

The drummer stood up and cleared his throat. "Band meeting," he declared.

The other two members of the band went over to him and they stood shoulder to shoulder. They talked for a little, but mostly they just stared at her. These simple Muggles seemed to know that they'd stumbled upon something huge. This girl with the ripped jeans and bracelet lined arms had to be something other than human. She felt almost dangerous, as if she were a wild creature that nobody could tame. Her whole being just screamed extraordinary, from the way she breathed to the confident expression that said, "I can do anything, and more."

"Alright," the drummer said, clearing his throat again. He stepped forward, but tripped over his cymbals stand, causing the two others to catch him. "Sorry," he grunted, embarrassed.

He cleared his throat again and faced her. "We'll let you in."

Molly smiled and the other three smiled back. Then she folded her arms and leaned forward with a mischievous look on her face. They'd known her for barely ten minutes, but they knew that that look meant trouble.

"Why should I?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

They looked dumbfounded, and kept exchanging bewildered expressions. Finally, the drummer - who appeared to be the leader of the group - cleared his throat again and asked,

"What?"

She took a step forward and they took a step back. "Why should I be your lead singer? Why your band? Why shouldn't I walk out of this room and go somewhere else?"

Her eyes narrowed and she took another step forward, but they had nowhere to go because the drumset was directly behind them.

"What do you have to offer me?"

The drummer stepped forward so that he was almost nose to nose. She stared unblinkingly into his almond shaped brown eyes. He swallowed and said,

"Because we are The Sun Sets on Lies. Because we take these poor, misguided liars and put them back on the path to truth and justice. Lying and secrets have become second nature to humans. But we can't just sit them down and tell them to be honest with themselves and the world. People don't listen to spoken words. They listen to music. We have music. Real music that touches people's hearts and opens them up to the truth. We're going to create a legacy that people will talk about for decades. That's what we have to offer you."

They stared at each other for a very long time in the tense air. Nobody spoke. Then Molly cracked a smile and said,

"You know how cheesy and ridiculous that sounds, right?"

He grinned, turning his stern look into one of boyish charm. "I know."

They all began to laugh then, and Molly knew that this was where she belonged. So she said, "Sure, I'll join up."

"Glad to have you on board," he replied, shaking her hand. "I'm Jun Li, percussionist."

The older guy with spiked blonde hair and chisled features extended his hand. "West Bruckner, guitarist and back up vocals."

Molly turned toward the girl, who flipped her waist length, glossy black hair of her shoulder, which was a gesture that reminded Molly of her cousin Victoire, the beauty queen with an attitude.

"I'm Darcy Stickland, bassist," she said with a haughty air, only holding the tips of Molly's fingers and shaking them.

Molly felt extremely put off, staring at this petite girl who was a good six inches shorter than her. Darcy leaned forward and Molly had to restrain herself from slapping the girl, she felt so offended by her attitude.

"By the way, I'm the coolest one here," she whispered, winking one of her jade green eyes.

The group burst out laughing and then Molly realized that it was a joke. She smiled and said proudly,

"Molly Weasley, lead vocalist."

West shook his head and chuckled to himself. "We're going to be legends."

HPHPHP

Molly sat on the grassy bank, staring down at the dark river that flowed before her. A warm mug of tea was held between her hands. She sipped from it occasionally, as she always did after they performed a show, to soothe her raw throat. The sun had long left the sky, and only the faint light from the half moon shone through the clouds.

"Molly?"

She didn't have to turn around to know who it was. His feet crunched on the grass as he made his way over to her. When he reached her side, he crouched so he could sit, but then fell over onto his backside, as clumsy as ever.

"Ow," he grunted, scrunching up his features.

She laughed quietly, not wanting to wake the other two up. Their tour bus wasn't too far away. "Nice to see you too."

He grinned and pulled something out of his pocket and held it out to her. "Here."

"What is it?" she asked warily, closing her fingers around the object.

It was a small black box, like one you'd get when you bought jewelery. She looked quizzically at him, but all he did was smile.

She repeated her question. "What is it?"

"You have to open it," he replied.

Molly raised a skeptical eyebrow and he rolled his eyes, finally understanding what she was getting at.

"Nothing bad's going to happen," he told her.

She still looked wary. She was the queen of pranking, and always pulled practical jokes on her bandmates. Therefore, the other three always tried as often as they could to turn the tables on her.

He met her eyes. "I promise," he said solemnly.

With a sigh, she pulled off the lid and stared. Sitting there in the tiny black box was a charm. But it wasn't just a charm. It was in the shape of a microphone, and is was green.

"What...?" she whispered, staring in awe.

"I thought you'd like it," he said proudly, leaning over and kissing her cheek.

"I love it," she replied. "But why?"

He smiled. "Happy five years since you've been in the band."

Her eyes widened and she laughed a little. "I can't believe it's been that long already!"

"Time flies when you're having fun," he said, interlacing their fingers.

"It sure does," she sighed, leaning her head against his shoulder as she took another sip of tea, and then set the mug on the ground. "Help me put it on."

He released her hand and took her charm bracelet off her wrist. Molly collected charms like there was no tomorrow, and she already had about ten bracelets that were full. They managed to find a link on the bracelet to put the charm on, and then he put it back on her.

"I think I'm going to need a new bracelet soon," she said, holding up her wrist and admiring the charm bracelet.

"Probably," he said. "Hey, that could be my two year anniversary present for you. It's in a couple weeks, right?"

She nodded and kissed him lightly. "But now it's not a surprise."

"You'll forget by tomorrow," he replied confidently.

Molly pouted, but chose not to argue that point. It was a fact. She was an incredibly forgetful individual because she lived in the moment, and she didn't bother to think about things in the past or future.

"Hey, uh, Molly?" he said quietly.

She shifted, sensing the sudden change in his demeanor. He was staring at the grass and he seemed uncomfortable.

"What's love?"

She frowned. "Love is trusting someone completely, enough to forsake your own needs for theirs," she replied after a moment.

"Then I love you," he said, blushing. "I trust you more than anyone else in the whole world. Even more than my mother. Because there are some things that a person just doesn't say to their mother, but I feel like I can tell you, because...I love you, Molly! And I know that we've told each other that before, but I really, really mean it. I truly love you."

Her eyes widened as she stared up at him. Then she squeezed her eyes shut and stared at the ground. He shifted away from her and stood up, shoving his hands in his pockets.

Jun bit his lip and sighed. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything."

She remained silent. She just sat there with her eyes closed.

"I'm sorry. I'll just go," he mumbled, turning away.

"No," she whispered. "No, don't go. Keep talking. Tell me something. Tell me why we play."

He looked confused. "We play because we're a band. Because it's our job." He said them like questions, testing out the answers.

She shook her head. "No, give me the cliche reason. Tell me why I sing."

"You sing for truth," he said slowly, stepping forward. "You give people the words they've been longing for, even if they don't realize it yet."

"Why are we called 'The Sun Sets on Lies'? Why the sunset?"

"Well, because the sunset represents the ending of one day and the beginning of the next. It's a time for second chances and new beginnings. The sunset is also when the sun is low in the sky, which means that it casts a different light, and we can look at things in a different way than before."

She smiled a little and looked up at the sky with tear filled eyes. "The sun's already set."

"So?" He took another step forward.

Molly stood up and turned her back on him. "I have to tell you something, but I'm not sure how to say it."

"Just say it."

"You might react badly."

"I won't."

"You don't know that."

"You don't know that I'll react badly."

Molly sighed and clenched her fists. She didn't like this. She felt scared and vulnerable, and she had never felt that way. Usually she was bold to a fault: Gryffindor through and through. She decided that she didn't like fear. Fear was a weakness. Fear held you back. But she knew that she was only scared because she might lose him.

"Trust me, Molls."

"I do trust you," she said turning back around to face him. "And trust needs honesty. So I'm going to tell you something that I've never told you. It's my deepest secret, and you can't tell a soul."

He set his jaw and nodded. "I'm ready."

She took a breath and then pulled something out of her pocket and held it out. He stared, trying to focus on the small object in the darkness.

"Is that a stick?" he asked with confusion.

"Lumos," she whispered, and the tip of her wand lit up, emiting a soft glow on the two of them.

He stared, mouth gaping slightly. "What?"

"I'm a witch," she said hoarsely.

For a second he looked dumbfounded, and then he laughed. "Nice try, Molls. Is this another prank? You bought a light up stick and tried to make me think you're a witch? Honestly, it's not your best."

She pursed her lips and glared at him. "I'm not lying! Jun, I'm telling the - "

"You know, this is really cruel," he said coldly, narrowing his eyes. "I just told you I love you, and now you're making fun of me?"

"No, Junie! I'm - " She broke off and muttered Nox, and then thought of her graduation, when her father had told her how proud he was of her. "Expecto Patronum!" she cried.

Instantly, a silvery tiger burst out of her wand and circled around them before fading away.

"Do you believe me now?" she asked.

"I...I...but it's not possible!" he exclaimed. "You have to be messing with me."

She shook her head and pulled the empty black box that once contained her charm out of her pocket. It rested on the palm of her hand and she pointed her wand at it. "Wingardium Leviosa."

The box rose into the air and he stared with astonishment. Then he reached out and began pawing at the air around the box, trying to feel for strings. When that didn't work, he desperately hit the box, but it stayed in the air.

"Please belive me," she said, lowering the box back into her open hand and putting it and her wand back in her pocket.

Jun ran a hand through his hair, eyes wide.

"I know it's hard to understand. But it's true. And I'm not the only one. There are lots of us. My whole family is made of witches and wizards. I wasn't homeschooled. I went to a school for magic people.

"We have to keep it secret, and we can't tell Muggles - that is, non-magic people like you - because we're scared you'll all hate us. But I had to tell you because love needs trust, and trust needs honesty. And I really love you, Junie."

With surprise, she noticed that she had begun crying. He didn't say anything, so she turned around and put her hands over her face. Then, she felt his arms wrap around her body.

"I don't understand it," he said. "And I'm a bit scared, to be honest. But I believe you, Molly."

She turned around in his arms and stared at him for a few seconds, and then she kissed him. When they broke apart, he blushed and cleared his throat, and then began stammering.

"Err, after you joined the band, I stalked you on Facebook. I don't like pie. I still sleep with a teddy bear. His name is Bear and I keep him in that box under my bunk that I don't let anybody touch. But I think Darcy and West know...anyway!"

She raised her eyebrows and tried interrupting, but he rolled right over her.

"I make racecar noises when I'm driving. When someone touches the back of my neck, my knees itch. I don't think my grandmother likes you. And, uh...after that one guy cheated on you...Daniel, was it? Well, I found his number on your phone, called him, and threatened to kill him if he ever talked to you again. Um - "

"Jun!" she exclaimed. "What are you doing?"

His cheeks turned a darker shade of pink. "Well, you just told me your biggest secret, so I felt like I had to say something. But none of my secrets are as big as yours, so..." He trailed off and grinned.

Molly rolled her eyes and leaned forward to kiss him again. "I love you."

"I love you too," he murmured, and then chuckled to himself. "My girlfriend's a witch," he said, laughing. "My girlfriend's a witch!"

"Shh!" she exclaimed, moving to cover his mouth with her hand. "You'll wake up West and Darcy!"

"Well it's too late for that."

They turned to see the two aforementioned people standing before them with their arms folded.

"You two really stink at being quiet," Darcy said, yawning.

"Besides, it isn't that hard to believe," West told them, raising an eyebrow. "I mean, come off it. There was always something odd about you. It explains a lot, really. I'm guessing this has something to do with why owls show up with your letters."

"And when we met your family last summer at your grandparents' place. Your grandfather kept asking how the tour bus worked," Darcy added. "Plus, some of your cousins were going on about their classes. Charms? Potions?"

Molly looked at her friends and felt incredibly grateful. Then she turned to Jun and put her hands on her hips.

"Your grandmother doesn't like me?" she asked with a frown.

He smiled sheepishly. "She calls you a huli jing."

"What's that?"

"It's a creature in Chinese mythology," he said. "They're fox spirits who appear as beautiful young women. They can be good or bad, but typically they're seen as dangerous beings who lead people astray. It's also a slang word now that means homewrecker."

Her jaw dropped and the others laughed. After a few moments of being shocked, she joined in.

They were a rather motley crew, the four of them.

There was Jun, the leader, and also the clumsiest one. Darcy, the witty girl in gothic, lacy dresses. Wise West, who never let anyone other than Darcy touch his rings.

And then there was Molly. Vivacious, sprightly Molly, who turned out to be more magical than they'd expected.

That turned out to be way longer than I expected. o.o Oh well! I like it! Molly's always been one of my favorite NextGen charries. ^^

Please review! And don't favorite without reviewing, please!

~K