Chapter One: The Deal.
There was a loud bang in the kitchen; glasses and dishes were shattering while splashing water – although not an incredibly destructive force – could be heard colliding with the floor. In other words, it was a normal Friday night at The Burrow. The chaos was followed by a shrill, woman's shriek – a sound only capable of being produced by Molly Weasley.
Her voice broke through the noise, although just barely. "Fred! George! You get down here this instant!"
The two twins had just poked their heads out from behind the sofa in the living room when Ginny looked over, an annoyed, frustrated look on her face.
"What'd you two gits do this time?" The entire summer had been filled with the usual gags; fireworks, fart noises, tricky sweets, bangs, and crashes. Some of them were admittedly her own fault, but she didn't feel like being 'shown up' by her twin brothers.
"Aw, nothing really Ginny, just fireworks in the faucet." Fred grinned and couldn't hold back a chuckle as his mother's shrieks turned quickly into frustrated sighs. "She's too worked up, she is. Needs a bit of a break from your pranks, Gin." As George nodded in agreement, she felt her face burn.
"Hey! I bet you I could still go longer without magic and pranks than you two! You both need to find a new hobby." The newly seventeen year old stood up proudly as the twins exchanged a look. George was the first one to speak on their thoughts. Scary…sometimes it seemed like they had some kind of telepathy.
"Okay then. How bout' this weekend? No magic. Strictly muggle-type work." Fred was laughing at the idea, only making Ginny angrier.
"Yeah, like doing the dishes," he added, "And cleaning that mess we just made." She had no time to retort as the twins snuck away from their mother's clutches; Molly had entered the room, soaking wet from head to toe.
"Ginny dear, have you seen – oh, never mind. I have a question for you dear – would you mind babysitting for Sarah's daughter this weekend? She works with your father at the Ministry and she and her husband wanted to go away." A simple enough request…but she recalled the girl from before.
"Wait…oh no mum, you can't be serious! Lexi's a total terror!" And with no magic, there was no telling what the destructive nine year old might do next.
"She is not a terror Ginny –," Molly paused, taking a deep breath before beginning again. "Please, Ginny, you'd be doing me a big favor." Her mother looked at her with bright, hopeful eyes – the kind of look that made her groan.
"Oh mum…fine, I'll babysit. But I swear if that girl gives me any trouble…" She grit her teeth and turned away, not able to stand her mother smiling so widely. "I'll go start packing…"