Written for Round 6 of the Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition! My prompt was "Slice of Life!"
Team: Tutshill Tornadoes
Position: Captain
"You should've stopped after Percy."
That seemed to be a very common phrase for Mrs. Molly Weasley. It had been ever since the twins were born. "You should never have kept going after the twins," people would tell her after she had Ron.
When Molly had Ginny, many of her relative very nearly exploded. "Molly! What on Earth are you thinking? Are you and Arthur ever going to stop.
Much to the relief of her family, Molly did stop having children after Ginny came around. Seven really was quite a handful, and she loved her baby girl too much to burden her and the entire family with the cost of another child.
Still, even though she loved ALL of her children very dearly, every once in a while, the words "you should have stopped at Percy," lingered in her head.
Today was one of those days.
"Charlie, for the last time, you CAN'T get a pet dragon! It's just not practical!"
"But mum!" Charlie exclaimed. "We have so much space to keep one!"
"Charlie you're being ridiculous. How are we supposed to feed it? What happens when it learns how to breathe fire and burns you to ash? Come on, now, you're smarter than this!"
Charlie groaned and left the room, muttering to himself about how he would grow up and work with dragons if they couldn't have one at home. Molly just laughed quietly to herself. As if he would really do something like that...
"Mum!" said the proud voice of Percy Weasley. "I've finished my latest book! I'd like to go to Diagon Alley and get a new one."
"Today?" Molly asked in exasperation.
Percy frowned. "Well, I was hoping to go today. After all, how am I supposed to become minister of magic if I don't study."
"Lighten up, Perce!" Bill shouted, stomping through the kitchen and ruffling Percy's hair.
"Hey!" Percy said.
"Bill, you know how much your brother hates it when you do that!"
"Right, sorry mum," Bill said seriously. "Honestly though, Perce, I'm already at Hogwarts and I don't study half as much as you do. Relax! You only have one more year of peace left."
Percy just rolled his eyes and walked away, mumbling something about never having peace in this house. How right he was.
Just then, there was a crash, and Molly ran to see what was going on. She found them standing near the broom cupboard with Ginny, clearly preparing to take her out for a ride.
That just about did it for Molly Weasley.
"Fred!" she bellowed at the top of her lungs, shaking the whole burrow. "George! What on Earth do you think you're doing?"
The two trouble-making twins grinned broadly at her. "We're just taking Ginny out for a quick run on the broomstick!" they said, each holding one of four year-old Ginny's hands in one of there's. In their other hand they each had a broomstick.
"Ginny isn't nearly old enough to ride a broom!" Molly exclaimed in horror. "I expected better judgement from you!"
"Did you, Mum?" asked Charlie, who was walking into the kitchen with raised eyebrows. "Did you really expect better judgement from the twins?"
"Oh, be quiet!" Molly snapped at Charlie. He and the twins ran from the kitchen, sniggering and laughing with each other.
Molly just sighed, and bent down so she was on eye level with her daughter.
"Ginny," she said calmly, trying not to shout at her youngest. "What have I told you about riding a broomstick?"
"You said not to do it until I'm older," Ginny replied sadly.
"Right! Good girl. You can ride a broom when you're old enough-"
"But mum!" Ginny whined. "Ron can ride a broomstick now! He'd only a year older than me, and he's not even that GOOD!"
"Yes, well, Ron likely won't be riding a broom again for a little while. I'm not entirely sure I can trust him with that responsibility yet."
"What's repositility?" Ginny asked.
Molly smiled, seeing her little face light up with curiosity and excitement to learn a new word. "Responsibility?" asked Molly. "It means that you can be trusted to do things not everyone is allowed to do."
"Oh, I get it!" Ginny explained brightly. "So since me and Ron can't ride a broom yet, does that mean Fred and George are respositle?"
Molly laughed. "Not exactly, sweetheart," she said.
Ginny's tiny face scrunched up in confusion. "I don't get it," she said simply.
"That's okay, love," Molly said. "We can talk more about this later. Why don't you go play with your little potions set while I fix dinner, okay?"
"Okay!" Ginny exclaimed, and she ran off to her room as fast as her little legs could carry her.
Molly watched her go up the stairs before turning to the stove and beginning to prepare dinner. In some houses, this might have been an easy task, but in a house with seven children and a husband who worked all day, it was quite the undertaking. She had rows of meat and vegetables and fruit lining the counter, all needing to be chopped up. Even using magic took a long time!
She'd just gotten done chopping up the carrots, potatoes, and onions for beef stew when she heard a crash upstairs.
"What in the name of Merlin is going on up there?" she shouted.
"Nothing mum!" shouted one of the voices of the twins, sounding a little bit too innocent. "We're just playing around, yeah?"
"Boys..." Molly said threateningly. She set her wand down on the counter and made her way up the stairs to where she could hear the excited whispers of the boys and the giggling of Ginny.
She finally reached the top landing and realized they were coming from Ron's room. "Boys? Ginny? What are you-? OH I DON'T THINK SO!"
Fred and Ron were seated on one broomstick, poised and ready to fly out the window, and Ginny and George were right behind them.
"Go, Fred, go!" George shouted. Fred and Ron flew out of the house laughing, and George tried to follow suit.
Molly roared with rage as she lunged forward to grab the back of the broomstick Ginny and George were riding on, but much to her dismay, she came up with nothing but a fist full of air. George and her daughter flew after their brothers, all of them laughing hysterically and disappearing off into the distance.
And for what felt like the millionth time, Molly found herself shouting one word in anger.
"BOYS!"