Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any related material. All materials in this story are copyrighted by someone who is a hell of a lot well off than I am.

A/N: I had one of these for the last chapter, but I'm not really sure where it went... So, thanks for reading, yada yada yada, I live on feedback, but it's not necessary. I'll love you forever if you do review, blah blah blah. Thanks to the reviews I got for the last chapter, and I'm going to go ahead and tell you that it's not likely that you'll ever get an update this close to the last ever again. You should expect about a two week wait between each update. I procrastinate like that.

Edited 07-02-07


International Delight
Chapter Two: Through the Grapevine of the Quinsy Triplets

My head spun as I shrunk down more of my medical equipment. The whole team, with the exception of Jones, seemed to be pretty miffed that I would be leaving the ranks of their various trainers. As I levitated more of the shrunken things into my funky carpet bag (which had been a gift from Alicia for my last birthday), I heard another angry set of yells at the Tornados coach, Bernard Brown.

"How the Hell are you letting her get away?" The keeper, Angela Quinsy, yelled angrily at him. "She's the best ruddy Medi-Witch in the field, and you're letting her get away because of that great prat Jones!"

"Now, Angela," Bernard stammered slowly.

I laughed as she screamed, "Don't you, "Now, Angela," me, Bernard! How can you expect us to make it to the tournaments if we don't have a decent Medi-Witch to keep us in players in single pieces?"

"Honestly, Angela! She's leaving by choice!"

"No, she's leaving because you let Jones bully her! You don't know what you're doing with losing Bell, but I guarantee you Bernard Bartholomew Brown, you'll regret the day Katie Bell left."

"She's right, Coach," I heard Andrew Quinsy, Angela's brother, interject. "Bell's the best ruddy Medi-Witch on the circuit, and you'll be more than sorry."

Bernard could be heard spluttering as the third voice (and the last of the Quinsy triplets) said, "I hate to admit it, Bernie, but they're right."

I heard the distinct sound of someone getting clapped on the back roughly before Andrew said, "Thank you, Xavier! Ugh! You'll see, Bernard. . ."

I shook my head and went back to packing as the triplets started thundering down the hall in their usual fashion. I assumed that they were headed my way. I had just levitated the last of my belongings into my bag when they appeared in the doorway. As I struggled to snap my bag closed, I greeted them with a smile.

"Kaaaaaate," Xavier whined, his brown eyes looking remarkably like those of a sad puppy.

"Xaaaaavier," I mocked him.

He sighed. "Do you really have to go?"

I nodded sadly. With a small smile of reassurance, I said, "I do truly have to go. I can't stay here and let Jones treat me like a flobberworm."

"Do you have another job yet?" Asked Andrew, the worrier of the group.

"No, I don't, Mother."

"Kat!" Angela exclaimed angrily, while ignoring the sass that I had sent to her brother. "How are you and Alex going to make it?"

I sighed. I had been asking myself the same question for three weeks now. I ran my tanned hand through the mop of curly brown. "Well. . . I have someone interested in buying that new practice robe I developed."

I smiled in amusement as Xavier ran a hand down the front of his brown robe fondly. After a few short seconds, however, he was frowning at me. "Katie, this robe is spectacular, and I know that you've been patenting it for four years, but seriously, that is a totally indefinite thing."

"Merlin. . . I know, Xav, but it's all I've got for now."

"Well," Angela said, while checking over her shoulder and into the corridor, "you didn't hear this from us, but word got out fast about you quitting, and Coach has been getting owls from all over the place from people that are trying to find out if you've really quit."

"Yeah," Andrew interjected happily, "all sorts of teams are interested in you!"

I thanked the triplets and quickly left the office. It was definitely interesting to heard that teams wanted me for their Medi-Witch, but I didn't want to stick around the Tornados training house all day long. Besides, I had to go pick Alex up from the daycare that he was in.

Apparently, the Patil twins had a knack for controlling children, and they had been caring for Alex since he was a year old. One of the twins worked out of Diagon Alley while the other worked out of Hogsmeade. I kept Alex in the one in Diagon Alley. It was run by Padma and her friend Mandy Brocklehurst. Alex loved both of the girls, and it was easy to keep him there so close to everything (and everyone).

I threw one last smile over my should to the Quinsy triplets before apparating to right outside of the daycare: Wizard's Dream Child Development Centre. With a content smile, I entered the daycare. As soon as the door closed behind me, hundreds upon hundreds of colored cotton balls pelted me. I looked up as they reformed in the air as a peaceful looking rainbow.

"Oh! Sorry about that, Katie!" I heard. I turned to see Padma waddling towards the rainbow as fast as possible with her wand pointed to it. Padma Davies, the three year wife of Roger Davies, was pregnant with her first child, and I didn't envy her one bit. At eight months, she was looking very radiant; but at the same time, she looked as if she were about to pop. With a tired smile to me, she said, "Fred and George Weasley stopped by earlier to pick up Ronny for Bill and Fleur. They must have enchanted it while they were here to attack people."

I shrugged it off with a laugh. There really wasn't any harm in a bit of fun courtesy of the Weasley Twins. "It's fine, Padma. Is Alex ready?"

"He's just started his afternoon nap, Katie. Why don't you take a couple of hours to yourself? Oh, and leave the bag here, darling, I'll banish it to your flat."

I smiled gratefully at the girl. She was so good at banishing charms. "Thanks, Padma. I'll be back by four-thirty."

She smiled back warmly and proceeded to show me out of the daycare. Well, I thought as I took in a deep breath of the late summer air, I might as well go to the Quidditch shop. Terrance always knows what's going on with the Quidditch teams.

As soon as I entered Quality Quidditch Supplies, I was met with a rough voice exclaiming, "Well, if it isn't Miss-I'm-Too-Good-for-the-Tutshill-Tornados!"

I smiled and looked around as if I didn't know who he was talking about. I looked back with a faux-shocked expression. "Who? Me?"

"Who else?" The greying wizard asked with a warm smile.

"You've quite got it wrong, Terrance."

"Oh?" He asked as customers looked on in amusement.

I nodded. "You see, I'm actually Miss Katie I'm-Too-Good-for-Anthony-Jones Bell."

Terrance slapped his forehead and feigned a disappointed sigh. "I can't believe that I got you mixed you up with that other tramp. I'm a bloody idiot."

I smiled. "Honestly, Terrance, I can't believe that you'd get me mixed up with a tramp at all!"

The elderly wizard jerked his head over his shoulder. He was indicating that I should go behind the counter. Once there, I occupied the stool right next to his. As I took care of his latest customer, a man buying his child a toy broomstick for his/her birthday, I noticed him staring at me with a small grin.

When the man left, I rested my arms on the counter and asked, "What are you thinking, Terrance?"

"Have you gotten a job yet?"

I cocked an eyebrow. "No, sir. I'm hoping that the practice robes will go through with Ireland. . . Have you heard anything yet?"

"Marion did happen to call earlier today. Ireland wants thirty-four of your training robes. Apparently Jeff McCready was insanely impressed by the sample robe you sent. He's offered to pay you seven galleons a robe. On top of that, he'll pay you four times that amount if you'll personalize each robe and have them to them by their first practice, which is at the end of next week."

I gasped and started to do the figures in my head. That was nearly a thousand galleons! The man must have been severely impressed with the robes if he was willing to pay that much for them! I could easily have the robes finished in just a couple of hours, honestly. . . My charm was easy enough to perform, and I could easily buy another material charm off of Marion.

I had just started to open my mouth to say something when Terrance continued on, "And Marion said that he'd like for you to do a game robe for him. Two different styles, one for International Games and one for League games. He said he'd want," at this point, the man peeked down at a piece of paper sitting before him, "three pairs a piece for their main players in two styles, five pairs of each for each of the three coaches, and two pairs of each style for all of the reserve players. That totals up to 112 robes. He's offering 13 galleons a robe, and he'll triple the money if you can get them to him before the first league game."

I was back to the figuring in my head. That was nearly 4,500 galleons. I nearly fainted when I realized that I could easily have almost six-thousand galleons in my emptying Gringott's account by the next week. Oh, yes, I could make 146 robes in a week. No problem. My heart started to beat wildly. Was it legal for someone like me to make nearly 6,000 galleons in a week. . . Well, if it wasn't, it sure as Hell had become legal.

"Count me in. I wouldn't have to have a job for a couple of months. . ." I pondered aloud.

"I told Marion that you would do it!" He exclaimed with a smile.

"Oh, I'll have to start right away! This is spectacular, Terrance! I won't even have to worry about looking for a quidditch team! I could just wait until one wanted me!"

Terrance smiled his wolfish grin and said, "And if you do need a job, you know that you can just work here. I'll pay you a ridiculously high wage."

"Godric, what would I do without you and Marion to take care of me?"

"You'd perish," he started roughly. "That's what the Hell you'd do because of that scum-bag Finnegan."

I smiled. Terrance and Marion Malkin took care of me to no end. Marion helped me to get deals with my robes, and Terrance always seemed to know when a quidditch team seemed to need my services, even if the jobs were just temporary little shin-digs while I worked for the Tornados. With a grin, I wrapped my arm around Terrance. The Malkins had treated me nothing short of a daughter when my parents died.

Once I had freed him, he asked, "How's Alex?"

"Growing like Devil's Snare. He's with Padma right now. He was napping when I got there, and she demanded that I leave him and take some time for myself."

"Speaking of time for yourself." Oh Godric; here it was again. Terrance always wanted me to start dating, but I couldn't, and I hadn't since Alex was born. One; I didn't have time. Two; who wanted to date a single mom? Three; I didn't trust men since the Seamus ordeal.

"No, I am not dating anyone. No, I do not intend to start dating anyone!"

He shrugged. "It was worth a try, wasn't it?"

"Perhaps. . . Well, Terrance, I think I'm going to go see the Weasleys before I pick Alex up."

He nodded. "Tell them to tell that sister of theirs that I have a new broom for her to test."

I nodded before leaving the Quidditch shop. With a satisfied smile, I darted about Diagon Alley in search of Weasley Wizard Wheezes. In no time at all, I spotted the vibrant shop that had been thriving for about six years now. I waltzed through the door.

"Oi! George, Katie's here!"

"Oi! Fred, I can see her!"

I laughed at the hyperactive men. "Hey, guys."

"Well, aren't you peppy Miss I-Walk-Out-On-World-Famous-Quidditch-Teams!" George barked happily.

"Why, yes indeed, George, I am very exuberant."

"Who are you?" George demanded.

Fred finished for him, "And what have you done with our Katie? Our Katie that walks out on world famous quidditch teams!"

"Leave me alone, guys! I just got the most serious robe order of my life! After finally sending a robe to McCready to try, he decided that he wanted his team to have my practice robes. He also decided that he wants me to make them a new game robe. . . I got a 146 robe order, and he's willing to pay nearly six-thousand galleons."

"That's spectacular, Katie!"

"Speaking of spectacular!" Fred exclaimed as the bell for the shop jingled, indicating that someone had just entered. That someone happened to be a very muddy Ginny Weasley.

"Ginny, you're a bit. . ." I started dryly.

"Messy? You're damn right that I am. Those horrible men turned the water off in the women's locker and hid my wand!"

I rolled my eyes. I pulled my wand from a pocket and exclaimed, "Scourgify!" Ginny smiled thankfully to me, and I shrugged. "Oh! Ginny, Terrance had a new broom that he wants you to test."

"Did he say what it was?" She asked as she gingerly ran her fingers through her hair just to check that it truly was completely clean.

"No, he didn't."

"Oh. All right, I'll check it out before dinner tonight. Speaking of," she turned angry eyes on the twins, "you had better not be late tonight. I won't wait this time. Oh, and I'm supposed to bring Ronny home. Where is he?"

The twins didn't have time to answer. Instead, the two year old came running out of the back room. His strawberry blonde hair blew in his haste. He dropped the pink Pygmy Puff he had been holding and exclaimed, "Aunt Ginny!"

I smiled as she ruffled his hair. "Hey squirt. Are you ready to go home and get ready for dinner?"

"Yeah! Yeah!" He exclaimed as she picked him up. She shot a glare over her shoulder and warned, "Don't be late."

I waved goodbye to the twins and followed Ginny out of the shop. The auburn haired, twenty year old, beauty smiled brightly. "Hey, Katie, why don't you bring Alex and come to dinner tonight?"

"I .. . er. . ."

"Great! Be at the house by six!" She exclaimed.

I cocked my eyebrow but merely sighed. It was four-fifteen. I needed to get Alex and head to our house to get ready. Dinner at the Weasleys' was always quite the affair.