"But Professor Longbottom!" I pleaded. "Come on, it was just a joke! Dad and Uncle Fred got away with loads more when they were in school!"
"Miss Weasley, school policy dictates that certain acts earn detention, and -"
"Uncle Neville! C'mon.. Don't be all noble and scholarly like that!"
"Professor, it was my idea; I was doing the behind-the-scenes work..." Fred said, stepping out from one of the many secret passageways. "I should get punished with Roxie." I twisted a lock of my dark hair around my finger. If Fred could get detention too... Well, it was better than being alone.
"Is this true, Miss Weasley?" Uncle Neville asked.
"What's with all the 'Miss Weasley', Uncle Neville?" I asked. "It's just me, Roxanne. No need to be so formal..."
Neville sighed. "Roxanne, please. Stop being so difficult. Merlin. You're mum would be ashamed, the way you're talking back to a professor..."
"And our dad would be delighted," Fred countered. I smirked at him. Sometimes we were such a tag team; although I felt bad ganging up on Uncle Neville, it was fun.
"That's it. Both of you have detention tomorrow with Hagrid in the forest. End of discussion," Uncle Neville said, a serious look crossing his face. Just then, James stepped out of the same passageway Fred had been in.
"Hey people. Saw you lot on the map. Figured you couldn't be having a party without me," James said, smirking and holding up an old, wrinkled piece of parchment.
"We are not having a party, Mr. Potter. Your cousins just happened to be getting detention. Would you like to join them?"
"No, sir. I promise, I had no part in this latest prank, whatever it was," James said, quickly loosing his casual, humored attitude.
"I don't have any reason to punish you, James. Unless you're feeling particularly guilty?" Uncle Neville said, raising an eyebrow.
"No, sir. If you don't mind, sir, I really need to run," James glanced at his watch. "I'm supposed to be meeting Olivia in ten minutes in the library to pl- study." Uncle Neville hid a smirk, and nodded.
As James rushed past me I whispered, "Git."
-oOo-
At eight o'clock the next night, Fred and I were making our way down to Hagrid's hut.
"You know, if you guys would just behave, you wouldn't get in trouble so often," Rose said wisely as she walked with us. She had Prefect duties, the prat, and was taking the time to lecture us. Mum and Dad had already given up, but not Rose.
"Yes, mum," I said, teasing. I was older than her, and yet she still acted like my mother.
"Well, I'm just saying..." Rose said, making a left turn while Fred and I continued downstairs.
"Do we have to do detention with Hagrid? Not that I don't like him, but... " Fred said.
"But you don't like the forest," I finished. He nodded.
-oOo-
"Fred! Roxanne! How wonderful it is to see yer!" Hagrid boomed as we reached the main doors.
"Hello, Hagrid," Fred said, wincing a little as the half-giant patted him on the back.
"We're gonna be looking fo' somethin' that's been attacking all 'er my flesh-eating slugs. It shouldn' be ter bad..." Hagrid said, grabbing his lantern as we headed for the woods.
"No, because flesh-eating slugs aren't scary at all," Fred muttered under his breath. I laughed.
"Nope, they just like the way your skin tastes. Even though they take something your body can't function without, they're harmless," I said, causing Fred to laugh. We were walking far enough behind Hagrid for him not to hear our comments. While I felt bad, I didn't. Detention with Hagrid was awful because I hated going into the forest. James and Fred would sneak into them all the time, but not me, no way. There were way too many creepy crawly creatures and animals and spirits and... The list goes on and on.
As we were walking, I found a really cool looking stone among the weeds. It was a dark black, and I could feel a carving on the one side with a big crack down the center. I rolled it around in my hand, not really thinking about what I was doing, until a smoky figure started to appear. I backed up into a tree as it solidified.
All of the oxygen left my lungs. The -man? creature? ghost? Take your pick - looked exactly like my dad. They had the same red hair, the same nose I'd inherited, the same mischievous blue eyes my brother got. In fact, the only noticeable difference I saw was the ear. Dad had lost his in the Second Wizarding War against Voldemort when they were moving Uncle Harry from his aunt and uncle's house to Gram and Gramps house.
"Dad?" I whispered.
"No," the spirit said, shaking his head. A small smirk curled across his lips. "I... I'm your Uncle Fred."
A/N: Beth, here. How'd you like that little tale? It's based off a text I got from one of my guy-friends the day before school started, and I've been itching to write it since. Please leave a review of what you think, and tell me if you'd like to see this story progress further. Thanks!