Chapter 1: The Dog Days of Summer

Rose Weasley put down her book and stretched her arms above her head. After six weeks of summer vacation, she had perfected the art of doing nothing. She fixed the straps of her tank top and pushed her flaming red bangs out of her eyes. Bangs had been such a bad idea. Why weren't they growing out faster?

Rose lay back in the folding deck chair and watched the clouds drift slowly by. Their speed matched her mood. Lazy summers at the Burrow were the best.

A flicker of movement to the left caught Rose's eye. She suppressed a smirk and pushed her book slightly farther away on the table. She let her arm hang down to the porch floor and gently closed her fingers on her broad rimmed sunhat.

The porch stairs creaked to her left. Rose heard a human sounding squeak. Still, she didn't turn her head. She just tightened her grip on the hat.

The noise was closer now, the sound of water sloshing. Rose half closed her eyes and smiled.

"Three, two, one."

"ROSE!" Freddy jumped out and swung the bucket. Rose spun around and raised her hat. The water hit the inside of the hat and splashed back at Fred.

"Ah!" he cried.

Rose lowered the hat. Her younger cousin was soaked.

"Rose!" Freddy yelled. "What'd you do that for?"

Rose threw back her head and laughed.

"Come on!" Freddy said. "How did you know?"

"I'm sixteen, you're fourteen," Rose said between gasps. "And you've been trying that all summer. Come up with something new."

Freddy turned his face to the sky. "Uncle Fred! Where are you when I need you?" he shouted at his namesake.

Rose's laugh was down to a giggle. "You know what they say: sequels are never as good."

Fred's scowl suddenly turned into an evil grin. "Give me a hug."

"What? No!" Rose tried to get up from the chair. But it was so deep that it swallowed her. Fred draped himself across her.

"Ew! No! You're so cold!" Rose tried to push him off.

"Come on! Give your favourite cousin some love."

"You are not my favourite cousin! And now, you never will be!"

Freddy laughed and rubbed his wet hair on Rose's bare arm.

"Ah! No!" Rose caught sight of Freddy's little sister, Roxanne, poking her head out of the house.

"Roxie! Favourite cousin! Help!"

Roxie grinned and barreled over as only a twelve-year-old girl can. She launched herself at her brother and landed on his back with a thump.

"Oof!" The impact knocked the air out of Rose's lungs.

"Roxie!" Fred struggled to get up with his sister latched on to his back.

"Roxie," Rose gasped. "Not what I meant."

Roxie laughed and slipped to the ground. Fred flopped down next to her.

"Sorry, Rose." Roxie grinned and that adorable, mischievous way that only the youngest cousin could get away with.

Rose laughed. "Oh fine. You little rascal."

Freddy looked from his cousin to his sister. "I'm not fine. Come here, you!" Roxie jumped up as Freddy lunged at the spot she'd been sitting. She squealed and ran down the porch with her brother hot on her tail.

Rose laughed and lay back down. She was all wet. She'd have to lie out in the sun for another half hour to dry.

What a hardship.

What a wonderful summer.

"Rook to B8. Checkmate," Molly Weasley said.

"Ah!" Rose sat back heavily in her chair. "That's the third time in a row!" she exclaimed.

Molly smiled and picked up their score paper.

"So, I owe you one lunchtime dish duty. And you owe me, two laundry duties, three lawn de-gnoming duties, and one dinner dish duty."

Rose groaned and dropped her head back onto the chair.

Lucy walked by the girls at that point. "She beat you again, Rose?"

"Yes," muttered Rose.

"I'll play," said Lucy, leaning on the back of Rose's chair. "Double or nothing for Rose's chores."

"Hey!" Rose said.

"No way," Molly said. "This is grown-up business. Go away."

Lucy smirked. "What grown-ups? I just see a couple of kids fighting."

Molly glared. "I will tell you the end of Wuthering Heights."

Lucy's eyes bulged. "Don't you dare!"

"Heathcliffe-"

"No! No! No!" Lucy clamped her hands over her ears and bolted from the room.

Molly smirked.

Rose laughed. "Wow, you're mean," she teased.

"Yes, I am rather. And I'll take the dinner dishes you owe me tonight."

Rose's smile vanished. "But tonight is pot roast. That pan is impossible to clean!"

Molly shrugged. "Like you said, I'm mean."

Rose was curled up in her favourite chair in Nana's parlor with her book. Most of the gang was in the yard playing quidditch. Rose didn't have much interest, so she took the opportunity to have some peace and quiet.

She glanced up as footsteps approached. Her eyes widened when she saw which cousin it was.

"James Potter," she gave an exaggerated gasp. "What are you doing inside? Shouldn't you be outside being the quidditch hero?"

James gave a small smile. "I'm feeling a bit off. Think I'll lay low today."

"Did you tell Nana? I'm sure she could whip you up a home remedy."

"No, no," James said quickly. "I'll be fine. I should start on my Transfiguration essay. I need three feet by the first class and I haven't even started." He gestured to the textbook in his hands.

Rose tipped her head and looked at her cousin. James looked away. He sat at the desk and turned his back to her.

This was suspicious. There were still two weeks of holidays. Rose had never known James to start vacation homework earlier than the night before term start. But sure enough, James opened the book, took some parchment and started writing.

Rose went back to her book, occasionally glancing at him over the top. He really seemed to be writing. Every so often, he would cross something out and rewrite it. Hmm.

After half an hour, James hadn't looked at the textbook once. Rose smiled into her book. What was he up to?

A rumbling through the house announced the return of the rest of the cousins.

"James!" Lily's voice drifted in from the other side of the house. "We lost! We lost because of you!"

"In here!" Rose shouted. James whipped his head around and stared at Rose with slightly frantic eyes.

"No," he whispered. "Why did you do that?"

Rose put on her best innocent face and shrugged.

The quidditch players, victorious and otherwise, tumbled into the room.

Albus and Lucy started giving a play by play of their victory.

"Pass to Lucy."

"Duck under Lily. Pass to Al."

"Feint around Louis. Fake throw left, pass to Lucy."

"Slam it past Freddy. Score!" The winning team cheered like it was really happening. The losers grumbled.

James barely looked up.

"What's that?" Louis asked.

"Oh. Nothing," James shifted in his seat so that his body blocked the parchment. "Just my Potions essay."

"I thought you said Transfiguration." Rose chimed in. Six pairs of eyes turned to Rose and then to James.

Then they pounced.

"Hey! No! Give that back!" cried James from under the pile of cousins.

"Toss it here!" Hugo threw his hands up and Lucy threw him the crumpled parchment.

Hugo gasped and grinned. "Who's Eleanor?" he drew out the name as long as he could.

The room erupted into shouts and cries.

"Writing to a girl?"

"What does it say?"

"Does he loooove her?"

"Hey!" James managed to get up and lunged for Hugo.

Hugo threw the parchment to Lily.

"Darling Eleanor," Lily read. "I can't believe it's been- Ah!"

Lily threw the paper to Albus as James descended.

"I can't wait to see your beautiful-Oof!"

James tackled Albus to the ground. He stuffed the parchment into a pocket and stalked out the door.

"I hate you all!" he yelled over his shoulder. The room was so loud with laughter that no one heard.

Rose's sides hurt from laughing and eyes watered. Albus couldn't get off the floor, he was laughing so hard. The rest of the cousins had collapsed on sofas in gales of laughter.

Nana's voice boomed down the hall. "WHAT'S GOING ON IN THERE?"

"Nothing, Nana!" Louis called back. "Just playing!"

Playing as only the Weasley-Potter family play.

Thanks for reading!

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