disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, just Arabella and her story. Hello all! Welcome to the rewrite of the second book! I hope you all like it!

Going to the Weasley's

"Moony, do you believe that our lives are measurable?"

Remus glanced at her for a moment. They just Apparated to the outskirts of their house and were now walking up to the door.

"I suppose so," said Remus. "Depends on the situation. Why?"

"Well," said Arabella, "we can always say that life is measured by our love, our understanding and our acceptance."

"Ah, but love cannot be measured," Remus offered thoughtfully.

"Yes, it can," said Arabella. "We can always say this to make ourselves seem less selfish, but I certainly love you more than most people, I certainly love Andy, Nymph and Ted more than most people."

"That's because they're your family," Remus said gently. "What's this all about?"

"Well, love and acceptance go hand and hand, don't you think? As well as understanding?"

"You're wondering if Andy is mad at you," Remus said simply, snorting at the fact she asked such a meaningful question for an even simpler one.

"No-ooo," said Arabella. "I'm wondering how mad she is. Let's be honest, Moony, I expect her to be mad, I just want to know how much on a scale she is."

"From one to ten?" asked Remus, thoughtfully. "Probably a twelve. She was mostly worried about you, Arabella. She thought she lost you. It reminded her of the night we lost… you know what I'm talking about."

Arabella winced at the reminder. Remus opened the door and Arabella dragged her trunk over the threshold. Andromeda, Ted and Nymphadora Tonks were already there. Ted was checking on the lamb chops in the oven, Nymphadora was casually looking through a magazine with her wand twirling in her fingers, and Andromeda was setting the table.

Andromeda's head snapped up once the door shut behind Arabella. Though she did resemble Bellatrix, Andromeda's hair was a beautiful light brown and her eyes were kinder. Nymphadora smiled and tossed the magazine aside while Ted was the first one to approach her.

"Welcome home, dear," he said pleasantly. He gave her a tight hug and slapped her back. "Chip off the old block, aren't yea?"

"Did you give McGonagall hell?" asked Nymphadora, coming forward and tussling her hair.

Arabella was soon under Nymphadora's armpits, struggling to get out of the hold. "Let go of me, you git!"

She managed to push Nymphadora away from her and tried her best to straighten her messy hair. Nymphadora kept making motions to continue with her, moving her hands fast towards Arabella and retreating it quickly, as though trying to pull a fast one over her. Arabella kept flinching and ended up slapping Nymphadora on her stomach, who let out a big yelp.

"All right, all right, you two," said Ted, stepping in between the two of them. "Come on now, you two have the rest of the summer to annoy each other, don't want to get it all out now."

Ted and Nymphadora went to the kitchen where Remus already was. Ted was fair-haired with a belly, and she always referred to him as her 'Teddy-bear.' When she younger, he used to always chase her around the garden, trying to catch her and Nymphadora, while Andromeda always yelled at him to not tire himself out too much.

Nymphadora, though she did have her own friends from Hogwarts, always managed to find time for Arabella, whether she dragged her along, or they found something to do by themselves – horseback riding or trying a Muggle sport. It was always easy to let go and just enjoy time with Nymphadora.

Andromeda was the last one to greet her. She finished setting the table and walked over to Arabella by the entrance of the house. Arabella braced herself as Andromeda took a deep breath.

"How could you?" Andromeda said in a hushed voice. Arabella winced because her aunt sounded so wounded and so sad. "How could you do this? Putting yourself in deliberate danger like that! You could have died! You could have been seriously injured! What were you thinking?"

Andromeda went from looking miserable to furious within seconds. She stood in front of Arabella with her hands on her hips, glaring at her.

"I… well, you see… it was for something important." Arabella adverted her eyes towards the kitchen. Nobody was exactly coming to her aid. Traitors.

"Something important?" repeated Andromeda. "I understand that this had something to do with You-Know-Who, but you are eleven. You should be leaving things like this to the adults."

"I just… I couldn't," said Arabella, shaking her head. "No one believed us and Voldemort… I couldn't let him get that Stone, you know? If he came back, then the others will and I… I can't let that happen to someone else. You're worried about me getting hurt? I'm worried about meeting someone else with the same scars as me."

Andromeda's face softened. "You don't know that."

"And neither do you," Arabella pointed out. "Look, Andy, I'm fine, I'm safe, let's drop it, all right? I'll never do this again. I'll stand by whenever danger arises and do nothing, okay?"

Andromeda sighed and pulled her into a hug. "I don't mean it like that. I just want you to be safe and healthy, is that too much to ask for?"

Arabella shook her head. "No, but I'm just asking you to trust me, that's all."

"Well, I suppose you are your mother's daughter," said Andromeda, letting go of Arabella and brushing her hair with her fingers. "She too would not have stood idly either. Come, Ted and I made your favourite – Lamb Chops."

Arabella walked into the kitchen after her saw that the food was already placed on the table. She took a seat next to Nymphadora.

"So, how's training?" Arabella asked as she filled her plate.

"Same old, same old," said Nymphadora, shrugging. "It's Mad-Eye. He's working us to the bone, but nothing I can't handle."

"How is old Mad-Eye?"

"Same as he's ever been. You should come see him one day. He'll appreciate it. Though he might give you some speech about wand safety now that you're in Hogwarts. Can't save you from that."

The rest of the dinner they continued on with different sorts of conversations. Ted told them about the articles he was working on for the Daily Prophet, while Andromeda spoke about the Potions she was working on, and Remus told her about the small jobs he took up North before coming home. Arabella stayed quiet for the most part, nodding when necessary and agreeing when everyone else did so as well. After dinner, Andromeda helped Remus clean up before the Tonks headed back to their house.

Arabella slumped down on the couch next to the fireplace. She laid down and placed a pillow above her head, trying to block out the light of the lamps in the room.

"Can I ask you something?"

Arabella took the pillow off her and looked at Remus. He took a seat on the armchair next to her. He looked worried and unsure of himself.

"I suppose," said Arabella, shrugging. "Depends on what your question is."

"What happened when you went to get the Stone?" he asked. "Albus said that Quirrell was going to steal the Stone, and you and Harry were trying to save it. But he didn't tell me anything else."

"Do you really want to know? You're probably not going to like it."

"Probably not," admitted Remus. "But I have to know everything, the good and the bad, because… you're my godchild, Arabella, I care about you. I don't want to see you get hurt anymore."

Arabella sighed. "Fine, but you won't like it."

So she told him everything: The Devil's Snare, the flying keys, the chess game and Ron sacrificing himself, Hermione with the riddle and potions, facing Quirrell, facing Voldemort. She left out the part where she got tortured. He really didn't need to hear that.

"You faced Voldemort!" exclaimed Remus, standing up in shock.

"He was on the back of Quirrell's head. Nobody knew, not even Dumbledore."

Remus was at a loss for words. "Voldemort? Alive?"

"Yeah," said Arabella. "On the bright side, he's got no body and I doubt we'll be seeing her for a long time."

"I just… I can't believe it. He's still out there. I also suspected that he was never truly dead, but to actually hear that he's still out there, biding his time, it's unreal."

Arabella shrugged. She really wasn't up to talking about it anymore "Yeah. So, did you get my Christmas gift?"

Remus gave her a small smile. "All right, I can take the hint. I appreciate the scarf and gloves. Thank you. How was your Christmas?"

Arabella shrugged again. "It was fine. Spent most of the time with Harry, Ron and his brothers. Had some snowball fights and the food was really good. I got a Christmas present from the Ministry." Remus seemed shocked. "It was from… it's from Sirius."

Remus blinked a couple times before saying, "And what did he send you, if you don't mind me asking."

Arabella hesitated for a moment before saying, "It's a picture of us and Mum. Do you want to see it?"

Remus shook his head. "No, that's fine."

"It was… odd," said Arabella. "Seeing him and Mum. Looking so… happy and normal. Like she wasn't sitting next to a monster. But why would he send this now? I don't understand how the Ministry could let him do this."

"Certain prisoners with families are allowed to send presents, as long as it was with them at the time of their arrest. He knows that if he sent something before you went off to Hogwarts, I would have probably sent it back to the Ministry. Anything else you want to tell me?"

Arabella shook her head. "I don't think so."

"Are you sure?" asked Remus, smiling at her. "Nothing at all. Say, a midnight stroll or a Mirror?"

Arabella was taken back. "How do you – "

"Albus told me about you and Harry, but he didn't tell me anything else. Sneaking out at night? You could have really gotten into trouble, Ara."

Arabella suppose she shouldn't bring up Norbert or losing two hundred points.

"Well, it all worked out in the end, didn't it?" Arabella smiled at him. "It was an interesting Mirror, though. It could show you your deepest desire. If you saw what I saw, you would have snuck out as well."

"What did you see?"

Arabella licked her lips for a moment and then said, "I saw you, I saw Mum, and I saw Sirius. And… you looked younger and healthier, you weren't effected by your lycanthropy."

Remus opened his mouth to speak and then closed it again. His light green eyes looked rather watery, and he looked at his own knees hastily. When Remus spoke, his voice was quite steady. "I am touch that you care about me so much, that you want to see me… whole and healthy. But I don't want you to worry about it anymore. I want you to promise me that you won't do anything like this again. No more wondering around at night."

Arabella raised an eyebrow. "Are you saying that you never snuck out at night?"

Remus turned red at the thought. "That's beside the point. Things have changed since I was at Hogwarts, I have obviously grown up."

"But I haven't," said Arabella. "Come on, Moony. I'm a kid, I'm supposed to do things like this. Sneak out at night, create trouble –"

"Face Voldemort?" Remus smirked.

"Um… well, I suppose –"

"You have a lot to learn, Arabella. If you're going to make up excuses, at least be consistent and cover your bases. Just… trying not to get into too much trouble. I won't really want to hear from Albus or Minerva about you sneaking out anymore."

"No promises," said Arabella, shrugging. She then stood up. "I'm gonna go to bed. Been a long day. Good night, Moony."

She told Remus about Sirius's jacket the next day and told him about going over to the Weasleys for the rest of the summer closer towards the date when they had to return back to Hogwarts. He accepted this in strides, and told her in turn that he got a job for the summer a couple towns over.

It was strange to talk about Sirius with him. He mostly listened when she told him about Hagrid giving her the jacket. He didn't seem mad, but there was a faraway look upon his face, as though remembering some distant memory. She wanted to ask him so much about it – memories of Kassandra and Sirius when they were younger, when they were in love. Sirius wasn't always a monster, there must be some good in him, but she can see the pain in Remus, the look he gets when Sirius or Kassandra is brought up. She doesn't ask him anything because he doesn't deserve anymore pain.

A cold voice was surrounding her…. The bitter end was coming…. She could feel it…. She could taste it... It was coming… closer and closer… She could feel it on her fingertips….

How could you…. You were my friend…. Why… why did you do this….

She saw bright blue eyes staring at her…. It was all too familiar….

Do it… Now!

Another voice whispered at her… urging her… it was wicked and cold…

NOW!

Green light flashed before it…. It was hurling across from her in slow motion…. She could only watch as the light died out from the blue eyes…. Her friend was dead before her and the cold voice shrieked in delight…

You're one of us now…. Embrace us, child…

No…. Arabella…. No…. Arabella…. Leave me…. Arabella!

"Arabella!" shouted Remus, trying to shake her away. "It's just a dream!"

Her eyes flew open and she gasped for air. Her whole body was shaking and her face was covered with sweat.

"It's okay," said Remus soothingly. "It was just a dream. You're in your room and you're safe."

Arabella nodded and took in an unsteady breath. She sat up on her bed and ran her fingers through her hair. She wasn't all that shocked to see blood on her arms. It's been like this since the incident. She had a bad nightmare and there was blood the next morning. Remus passed the medicine over to her and a damp washcloth.

"I'll be in the kitchen when you're ready to talk."

She was glad that Remus never pushed her to talk. There are days when she wants to spill out the contents of her heart and tell him everything, but then there are days when she can't bear to say a word.

She looked down at her arms and the cuts. Most of them blended into her skin, leaving only a dark line in its wake. Most were still pink and shined in the light. The deeper ones were more red and white. She got up and went to the bathroom and quickly cleaned up her scars. It was hard to look at them sometimes without thinking about Bellatrix Lestrange.

"It's a reminder of who you are."

Who she is. She's just a kid and everyday she's reminded of her heritage and who she might end up as. It was a reminder of that night, of the way Kassandra died, of Bellatrix holding a knife over her, of blood, tears and never getting to say good-bye.

Her scars were a reminder of her past and just how real it was. It's been years and every moment still haunts her.

She went back to her room and changed into her jeans and a brown long sleeve shirt. She then sat on her bed and looked around her room. It was full of gifts from Remus and the Tonks, and random knick-knacks from small markets. There was a small bookcase it the corner with her Hogwarts books and her Quidditch equipment leaned against it. There were posters on her wall of her favourite Quidditch team and scenery, as well as a small one of a bike.

Next to her bed was a table stand that held a picture of her mum, Kassandra. The picture was taken when she was at Hogwarts during her seventh year. She sometimes looked at the picture to give her strength, other times she just wanted her mother to be there with her, saying that there was nothing to be afraid of and that there were pancakes downstairs.

Arabella rubbed her eyes for a moment and steadied her breath before going downstairs to find a plate of eggs and sausages already there for her. Remus was drinking a cup of coffee and reading the paper when she entered the kitchen. He looked up and gave her a reassuring smile.

"Everything all right?" he asked.

Arabella nodded and took a seat. "It was just a bad dream. The usual – green light, death and whispers. The only thing different was the blue eyes."

"Blue eyes?"

"It was on a face, but I could barely make it out. All I could see were those eyes staring at me, and the light escaping it when they… when they died. And the voice, it was just cold and all too much like hers."

Remus shook his head and held his coffee with both his hands tightly. "It's just a dream. You've been getting them since you were four."

"But this one… it just felt so real," she whispered. "I usually see the green light and the whispers and sometimes Mum is there, but this was different. At least with Mum I'm seeing something that I already lived through, but with this… it was different. I don't know how to explain it, Moony."

"Every dream is going to feel different, Arabella," said Remus. "But it is what it is – a dream. What you see in them, what you feel in them, it's nothing. You're not going to turn into her, you're nothing going to do any of those things. I know you don't believe me right now, but you will one day, I promise you."

Arabella nodded and pushed her plate of half-eaten food away. She lost her appetite a long time ago. "But I've never seen those eyes before."

"You probably have," said Remus, shrugging, "probably in some stranger and you just don't realize it. Why don't you get ready? The Weasleys will be here soon. Did you finish packing?"

Arabella shook her head. "I'll go do that now." She put her food away and cleaned her plate. Once she was done, she headed back to her room and finished packing. She tried to push the dream out of her mind, but she was failing.

A couple hours after breakfast, green light erupted from the fireplace. One by one, four Weasleys entered Remus's living room. He set aside his book and stood up, looking at all the Weasleys, all of who had bright red hair and identical in their freckles.

"It's good to see you again, Molly," said Remus, smiling at her.

"Hello, Remus!" said Molly. "How have you been? You remember my sons?"

"Um, Ron, right? Same year as Arabella?" he asked. "And Fred and George?"

All three boys nodded at his words.

"Well, Arabella is still upstairs, finishing up packing."

"We'll get her," said Fred. They quickly bounded up the stairs as Molly looked around the room.

"You have a nice house, Remus," she said pleasantly. "Now, you promised me that you would come to my house for lunch, did you forget?"

Remus smiled at her. "I don't remember the exact words, but I suppose I could…"

Molly smiled in triumph as the twins and Arabella came down the stairs. Arabella was carrying her rucksack while the twins were carrying her trunk. They made it down the stairs without dropping it, and entered the living room.

"Ron!" exclaimed Arabella, running towards him and giving him a hug, and then giving Molly one.

"It's good to see you again, dear," said Molly, smiling at her.

"You too, Mrs Weasley," said Arabella, beaming at her.

"Fred, George, ready? All right then, you first."

Fred went forward first and grabbed a handful of Floo Powder. "The Burrow!"

Remus helped George with the trunk so that he could hold onto it better. He then cried, "The Burrow!" and vanished within the flames.

"Ron, you next," said Molly.

Ron disappeared into the flames and Arabella followed right after. Remus made sure his doors and windows were locked before entering the fireplace as well. Molly was making sure he held up his promise. Within seconds, he found himself in the Weasleys' kitchen. Molly followed behind him as the kids disappeared.

"Remus, please, have a seat," said Molly. "Would you like some soup? I'm afraid Arthur won't be here for dinner, rather busy at work, unfortunately, but you can meet the rest of my children, Ginny and Percy."

Remus smiled brightly at her as she began to prepare dinner for everyone. He stared at the clock on the wall opposite him for a moment. It had only one hand and no numbers at all. It showed where all the Weasleys were. Remus liked it. It was nice, making sure everyone was safe.

It was odd actually being in her house without Fabian or Gideon. The last time he saw Molly must have been at their funeral. It was hard staying in touch with everyone, and he knew why he never did so with Molly. Ron resembled the Prewetts' strongly. He might have Arthur's eyes, but he's the spitting image of Fabian and Gideon. He wondered if she saw that as well, or saw it in her own twins. Did it hurt her as much as it hurt him to look at Arabella at times? To see someone in them, someone that was long gone.

Remus helped her prepare where he could and made small talk with her until dinner was ready. Ginny was a quiet little thing during dinner while Percy stayed in his room, corresponding with someone clearly important. Arabella, Ron, Fred and George kept looking at each other in conspiracy. They all made small talk, but he could tell that the four children were planning on something that could not wait. He saw that same look years ago with all his friends – or the people he used to consider friends.

Once dinner was over with, Remus helped Molly put away all the dishes as the Weasley children headed for their room. Arabella stayed back to say goodbye to him. Molly had left to room to give them some privacy.

Arabella hugged him tightly as he smiled, smoothing her hair.

"Don't forget to write," said Arabella, burying her face into his chest.

"I won't," said Remus, kissing the top of her head.

"Love you, Moony."

"I love you too, Arabella. Try not to get into too much trouble, all right?"

Arabella let go of him and smiled. "I can't promise you something like that, Moony. Have a good time at your new job, all right?"

"Yeah, all right," said Remus, "and have a safe journey back to Hogwarts. I'm sad that I won't get to see you off, but…"

"You got a new job," said Arabella, smiling at him. She always understood. She always knew. "I don't mind, and we've got more trips to King's Cross, anyway. Missing one won't hurt us."

Remus stepped into the fireplace once more and gave her another smile. "I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too," said Arabella, grinning at him.

And with that, he returned back to his quiet house.

"This is mental," whispered Arabella, staring at Fred, George and Ron. "Completely mental."

It was one o'clock in the morning. She snuck out of Ginny's room and went down the stairs.

"We're flying to Harry's house," she whispered. "We're breaking so many laws…"

"Arabella, don't worry about it," said George. "It's all going to go smoothly."

"It's the only chance we've got," said Ron. "Something's clearly not right with Harry. He won't replay to any of our letters and he got a warning for using magic outside of Hogwarts. Don't you think it's a bit odd?"

"Of course I do," said Arabella. "But driving a flying car? We could get caught!"

"Do you want to stay behind then?" asked George.

Arabella pursed her lips and said nothing more. They got in the car and drove off.

"Petunia!" roared Harry's uncle. "He's getting away! HE'S GETTING AWAY!"

Harry's uncle stood framed in the doorway and he let out an angry sound. He dove straight for Harry, grabbing him by the ankle. Ron and Arabella seized Harry's arms and pulled as hard as they could. They gave a gigantic tug and Harry's leg slid out of the man's grasp – Harry was in the car and he slammed the door shut.

"Put your foot down, Fred!" yelled Ron and the car shot suddenly towards the moon.

Harry rolled down the window and looked back at his uncle, aunt and cousin as they stared at Harry, dumbstruck. "See you next summer!" yelled Harry.

Arabella and the Weasleys roared with laughter as Harry settle back in his seat. Harry let Hedwig out of her cage and she glided alongside them joyfully.

"So – what's the story, Harry?" said Ron impatiently. "What's been happening?"

Harry told them about Dobby, the warning he'd given Harry and the fiasco of the violet pudding. Silence followed when he finished the story.

"Very fishy," said Fred.

"Definitely dodgy," said George. "So he wouldn't even tell you who's supposed to be plotting all this stuff?"

"I don't think he could," said Harry. "I told you, every time he got close to letting something slip, he started banging his head against the wall. What, you think he was lying to me?"

"Well," said Fred, "put it this way — house-elves have got powerful magic of their own, but they can't usually use it without their master's permission. I reckon old Dobby was sent to stop you coming back to Hogwarts. Someone's idea of a joke. Can you think of anyone at school with a grudge against you?"

"Draco Malfoy," said Arabella.

"He hates me," said Harry.

"Draco Malfoy?" said George. "Not Lucius Malfoy's son?"

"The very same," said Arabella.

"What about his father?" asked Harry.

"Lucius Malfoy was a big supporter of Voldemort back in the day," said Arabella. The Weasleys winced at the name. "Sorry, boys. Lucius was in his inner-circle. After Vol – You-Know-Who disappeared, Lucius came back to our side and said he never meant any of it – that he was doing it out of fear. It was a load of rubbish. Anyone who knew Lucius knew he certainly never did anything out of fear."

"I don't know whether the Malfoys own a house-elf…" said Harry.

"Well," said Fred, "whoever owns him will be an old wizarding family, and they'll be rich."

"Yeah,' said George, "usually the snooty ones who believe they're above everyone else."

"Oi!" exclaimed Arabella. "I have a house-elf!"

"You do?" asked the Weasley boys and Harry.

She wished she said nothing now. She grimaced at the thought of Kreacher. "Yeah… horrible little thing. Met him twice, once after my grandmother died. He's technically mine since the house and him go to the oldest son and his child – me."

"'Horrible little thing'?" asked Harry.

"Well, when I first met him he kept saying he wouldn't… oh what was it? 'Serve the daughter of the swine that made his mistress cry.' Then he went on muttering under his breath, calling me a blood-traitor and an abomination."

"He sounds horrible," said George. "Shouldn't he be treating you with some sort of respect? You are… well, you know…"

Arabella smiled at his tactfulness. "Well, I suppose he should be under the circumstance, but he's been with my grandmother for so many years. There's still a portrait of her in her house and he takes his orders from her. He still thinks that she is his mistress. He's sanity's gone, but I suppose he's happy around her and I don't mind, honestly. He can stay in that house forever, listening to a portrait every day. I don't really have much to do with him."

"Anyway," said Ron, "I'm glad we came to get you, Harry. I was getting really worried when you didn't answer to any of my letters. I thought it was Errol's fault at first –"

"Who's Errol?"

"Our owl. He's ancient. It wouldn't be the first time he'd collapsed on a deliver. So then I tried to borrow Hermes –"

"Who?"

"The owl Mum and Dad bought Percy when he was made Prefect," said Fred.

"But Percy wouldn't lend him to be," said Ron. "Said he needed him."

"Percy's been acting very oddly this summer," said George, frowning. "And he has been sending a lot of letters and spending a load of time shut up in his room…."

"Maybe he's got a girlfriend," said Arabella, shrugging.

George, Ron, and even Fred, who was driving, craned their necks to look at her. After a moment they started laughing. Fred was banging his hands against the stirring wheel as George and Ron started turning red in the face.

"Yeah, sure," said George. "Percy with a girl?"

"Come off it," said Fred, snorting. "A Veela would soon marry a troll before Percy ever got a girlfriend."

"Just saying," mumbled Arabella. "Fred, you're driving too far west." She pointed at the compass.

"So, does your dad know you've got the car?" asked Harry.

"Er, no," said Ron, "he's been working for the last couple hours. He didn't even come home for dinner. Hopefully we'll be able to get it back in the garage without Mum noticing we flew it."

"What does your Dad do at the Ministry of Magic, anyway?"

"He works in the most boring department," said Ron. "The Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office."

"The what?"

"It's all to do with bewitching things that are Muggle-made, you know, in case they end up back in a Muggle shop or house. Like, last year, some old witch died and her tea set was sold to an antiques shop. This Muggle woman bought it, took it home, and tried to serve her friends tea in it. It was a nightmare — Dad was working overtime for weeks."

"What happened?"

"The teapot went berserk and squirted boiling tea all over the place and one man ended up in the hospital with the sugar tongs clamped to his nose. Dad was going frantic — it's only him and an old warlock called Perkins in the office — and they had to do Memory Charms and all sorts of stuff to cover it up —"

"But your dad — this car —"

Fred laughed. "Yeah, Dad's crazy about everything to do with Muggles; our shed's full of Muggle stuff. He takes it apart, puts spells on it, and puts it back together again. If he raided our house he'd have to put himself under arrest. It drives Mum mad."

"That's the main road," said George, peering down through the windshield. "We'll be there in ten minutes…. Just as well, it's getting light…."

Fred began to lower the car slowly. Their house was outside the Ottery St. Catchpole village. They hit the ground with a slight bump. They had landed next to their garage in their small yard.

As the sun began to rise upon the horizon, Arabella could finally see their house properly. It was slightly rooked with five chimneys upon the red roof. Extra rooms had been added to make it several stories high and there was a lopsided sign stuck to the ground near the entrance: The Burrow.

"It's not much," said Ron.

"It's wonderful," said Harry happily.

They got out of the car.

"All right," said Arabella, fidgeting, "like the plan said: Everyone will go upstairs quietly and wait for Mrs. Weasley to call us down for breakfast. Then Ron will come downstairs and say something like, 'Look who turned out at night, Mum!" or something else, and she'll be all happy to see Harry safe and no one will ever know that we broke many, many laws…"

Arabella tangled her fingers together, clearly worrying. Fred clapped her on the back. "Cheer up, Arabella, no one will ever know we flew the car."

"Right," said Ron. "Come on, Harry, I sleep at the – at the top –"

Ron turned a nasty greenish color with his eyes fixed on the house. The rest of them followed his gaze.

Mrs. Weasley was marching across the yard with her chickens scattering across the yard. Arabella thought that she was a kind woman, but Mrs. Weasley looked ready for the kill right now.

"Ah," said Fred.

"Oh, dear," said George.

Mrs. Weasley came to a halt in front of them, her hands on her hips, staring from one guilty face to the next. She was wearing a flowered apron with her wand sticking out of the pocket. Arabella was standing next to Fred and squeezed his wrist.

"So," said Mrs. Weasley.

"Morning, Mum," said George, trying to sound cheerful.

"Have you any idea how worried I've been?" she asked in a deadly whisper.

"Sorry, Mum, but see, we had to –"

George, Ron and Fred were all taller than Mrs. Weasley, but they cowered over her rage. "Beds empty! No note! Car gone — could have crashed — out of my mind with worry — did you care? — never, as long as I've lived — you wait until your father gets home, we never had trouble like this from Bill or Charlie or Percy —"

"Perfect Percy," muttered Fred.

"YOU COULD DO WITH TAKING A LEAF OUT OF PERCY'S BOOK!" yelled Mrs. Weasley, prodding a finger in Fred's chest. "You could have died, you could have been seen, you could have lost your father his job —"

It seemed as though she was screaming for hours at her sons. She kept listing things off her fingers as her face turned a scarlet red. She then looked at Arabella and patted her cheek.

"You all right, dear?" she said calmly. "You look a bit tired." She then looked at her sons. "I can't believe you dragged her in your little escapade."

Arabella was at a loss for words as Mrs. Weasley turned to Harry.

"I'm very pleased to see you, Harry, dear. Come in and have some breakfast."

She turned and walked back into the house. Harry looked the Ron nervously before following after her. Arabella looked at the twins and Ron before shrugging. When they entered the house, she saw Mrs. Weasley clattering around, cooking breakfast chaotically while throwing her sons dirty looks as they entered the house.

"I don't blame you, dear," she reassured Harry. "Arthur and I have been worried about you, too. A few nights ago we were saying we'd come and get you ourselves if you hadn't written to Ron by Friday. But really, flying an illegal car halfway across the country – anyone could have seen you –"

"It was cloudy, Mum!" said Fred.

"You keep your mouth closed while you're eating!" snapped Mrs Weasley.

"Mrs Weasley, they had bars on his window," said Arabella.

"Be that as it may, it was still dangerous," said Mrs Weasley.

At that moment, Ginny came down the stairs in a long nightdress, gave a small squeal, and ran out again.

"Ginny," said Ron to Harry. "My sister. She's been talking about you all summer."

"Yeah, she'll be wanting your autograph, Harry," said Fred with a grin, but he caught Mrs. Weasley's eye and bent his face over his plate without another word. Nothing more was said until all five plates were cleaned.

"Blimey," said Fred, yawning, "I'm tired. I think I'll go to bed and –"

"You will not," snapped Mrs. Weasley. "It's your own fault you've been up all night. You're going to de-gnome the garden for me; they're getting completely out of hand again —"

"Oh, Mum —"

"And you two," she said, glaring at Ron and Fred. "You can go up to bed, dears," she added to Arabella and Harry. "You didn't ask them to fly that wretched car —"

"I can help," said Arabella. She felt guilty for how the boys were taking all the blame.

"I'll help too," said Harry. "I've never seen a de-gnoming –"

"That's very sweet of you, dears, but it's dull work," said Mrs. Weasley. "Now, let's see what Lockhart's got to say on the subject —" And she pulled a heavy book from the stack on the mantelpiece.

George groaned. "Mum, we know how to de-gnome a garden —"

"Oh, he's marvelous," said Mrs. Weasley, beaming down at Gilderoy Lockhart, who was winking at her from the cover of his book. "He knows his household pests, all right, it's a wonderful book…"

"Mum fancies him," said Fred, in a very audible whisper.

"Don't be so ridiculous, Fred," said Mrs. Weasley, her cheeks rather pink. "All right, if you think you know better than Lockhart, you can go and get on with it, and woe betide you if there's a single gnome in that garden when I come out to inspect it."

Yawning and grumbling, the Weasleys slouched outside to their large garden with Arabella and Harry behind them.

Thank you all for reading! Hope you all liked it!