Chapter 28
Christmas was looming nearer. Thankfully, not many people had taken the article seriously and decided that Fred was not a traitor so when the twins brought out their new set of products for Christmas, sales for the joke shop rocketed. They no longer had the time to worry about the Vow, as long as everyone was together at Grimmauld place, Fred and George were quite happy to leave for work early in the morning and as Christmas grew ever closer, they began keeping the shop open later into the evening. Every single new item sold out within the first day so with only a week before Christmas, Fred and George had been forced to bring in more and more stocks. At the end of every day, the shelves were practically empty and the crowds of people that flooded the shop every day meant that both Ron and Mr. Weasley came in with Fred and George every morning to help.
Diagon Alley had never looked so beautiful to Fred. A while after the twins had saved Fawkes from the island, the storms had stopped which allowed crisp snow to drift gracefully down every night. When morning rose, the shops were coated in a beautiful duvet of perfect white. A twenty-foot tall Christmas tree had been placed at the entrance to Gringotts, decorated with red and gold floating baubles and long icicles, with a glittering star on the top. Every shop had decorations plastered to the walls and Weasley's Wizard Wheezes was no exception. Bewitched snowflakes stuck to the windows, sliding down the floor beneath it and forming a huge snowman, complete with a hat and scarf, that waved at everyone who passed. Garlands of holly bordered the door and when someone passed underneath it, it would shower them heavily with snow. Fairy lights which flashed different colours were woven around hanging mistletoe.
On Christmas Eve, Fred and George kept the shop open until ten at night. Wrapped up warmly in hats and thick coats, they were quite content walking home with the occasional snowflake landing gently on their faces.
By the time they reached Grimmauld place, snow was resting on their shoulders like little parrots and their noses were tinted red from the cold. The stairs were lined with tinsel and it sparkled as Fred and George made their way down the hall and into the kitchen. Everyone but Albus had returned from Hogwarts and Kat had also come over with Willow. James had been discharged from St Mungo's so he could spend Christmas with his family. Three Fire Fungi had been placed down the middle of the table, each smelling like cinnamon and nutmeg and burning a deep scarlet red. No one would be going to work the next day which meant that they could all spend the whole day together. Fred was convinced it would be the best Christmas he'd ever had; he'd be with all his family for the first time in twenty years. His mother was planning the biggest Christmas dinner she'd ever made and Hermione and Ginny had spent the day icing a spectacular cake. Bill, Fleur, Dominique, Victoire, Louis, Charlie, Percy, Audrey, Lucy and Molly were also all coming over to stay.
Nearly everyone retired upstairs early with the hopes of getting up early the next morning. Fred, George and Lee, however, stayed up late, setting up small surprises around the house for everyone to find on Christmas. The three of them spent about an hour carrying everyone's presents into the drawing room where they then bewitched them to float on the ceiling like balloons. They then hid all the cards and rewrote them on Insulting Parchment so that they said things such as, 'Merry Christmas. You smell like burnt turkey and your hair looks like a Brussel sprout.' Then, they changed all the chairs in the kitchen into snowmen.
But they didn't just pull pranks. At midnight, they were still enchanting the ceilings to look as though it was a fresh winter's day and snow prancing down from the clouds and dusting everything so it looked brand new. Intricate ice sculptures were placed around the house so that they twirled and danced as people passed and sparkling lights lined mantle pieces and door frames. It was enchanting, every room looked like it belonged in a Winter Wonderland ice palace.
Christmas day was indeed the best day that Fred had ever had. Everyone thought the house looked brilliant and when Bill, Fleur and the others arrived at about 11, everyone was ready to start cooking lunch. Mrs. Weasley had decided to cook it entirely by hand which meant that everyone had to help in order to get it done in time. A turkey as big as a cauldron had been slowly cooking since the early hours of the morning thanks to Kreacher, so the entire house smelt mouth-wateringly delicious. Everyone was having such a good time, they didn't even shout at the twins for transfiguring the chairs into snowmen.
After Christmas lunch, Fred had either the best or worst idea he'd ever had.
"Let's all pull our crackers at the same time!" Fred said excitedly, "Cross over arms and pull two with the people on either side of you."
After a deafening bang, the kitchen was filled with mountains of smoke which engulfed everyone as not only were wizarding crackers extremely loud and contained the strangest gifts, but they also produced lots of blue smoke. Briefly blinded, there was a loud scuffling as everyone tried to find each other, interrupted only by Fred and George's laughter and high five.
Once the smoke had cleared, the rest of dinner was just as brilliant as the first part. Mrs. Weasley's Christmas pudding was spectacular and Hermione and Ginny's cake, decorated with hand-piped snowflakes was mouth-wateringly delicious.
They spent several minutes jumping up to catch the floating presents in the drawing room which probably wasn't a good idea after such a huge lunch and then had far too much fun reading the insults on their fake cards before chasing each other outside and commencing a snowball fight.
Completely drenched and out of breath, nobody returned to the warmth of the house until the sun was starting to vanish on the horizon. They snuggled with hot chocolates in front of the fire, wrapped in blankets and their newly opened Weasley jumpers. Harry and Ron, who'd had far too much to drink, were singing very slurred and very loud Christmas songs to everyone else's entertainment. Willow curled up on Kat's knee contentedly as Molly tickled her behind the ears and George had conjured up a small penguin to fly around the room as though ice skating, twirling and leaping gracefully.
At about 7, Kreacher snuck in to join them, carrying a large flagon of warm butterbeer and thirty mugs which he handed out to everyone, keeping one for himself too. Butterbeer for house elves was a lot stronger than it was for everyone else and so the more Kreacher drank, the tipsier he became. Soon, he was jumping around the room, spilling butterbeer everywhere before collapsing on the floor.
Charlie, Percy, Audrey, Lucy and Molly all left a few hours later, but Bill, Fleur, Victoire, Dominique and Louis were staying overnight.
It was extremely late before anyone even thought about going to bed, but as people slumped off one by one, a calm sense of peace settled on the house. The light, fluffy snow which had continuously dropped all day, now began to fall heavier so that white speckles sparkled against the dark night sky.
The week following Christmas ended much too soon for Fred. It seemed that they'd woken up on Boxing Day and then Molly, Rose and James were boarding the Hogwarts Express to return to school.
But, as time rolled on, Fawkes didn't reappear and everyone grew more and more fearful of leaving the house alone. Fred had been convinced that he'd be able to break the Vow with Malfoy quickly, but more problems seemed to be jumping in front of him. Fawkes had left without a trace, Molly and her wand were both now back at Hogwarts and nobody could go anywhere without being approached by another group of wizards, all of whom looked rather menacing. The twins had to apparate to and from work every day, opening later and closing earlier and strange, unexplainable illnesses were beginning to spread around the house.
The perfect white snow had turned into mushy sleet and grey clouds hovered over the skies menacingly. It was as February was coming to a close when a thought suddenly struck Fred. He ran down the stairs two at a time and burst into the kitchen, nearly knocking Kreacher off his feet.
"Oh, sorry, Kreacher," Fred apologised, squeezing past the elf and entering the kitchen where Lee, George and Mrs. Weasley were sitting. "Mum, do you remember ages ago in the summer holidays when I'd been out searching for the source of the storm and I came back to the Burrow instead of going home to Kat?"
"Yes, I think so," Mrs. Weasley replied in between gulps of tea, "Why?"
"Because when you opened the door, you were surprised to see that it was only me. You were worried that it was someone else. Who did you think was there?"
A very awkward silence fell on the room. George coughed and shuffled in his seat uncomfortably and Mrs. Weasley suddenly became very interested in her right fingernails.
"I thought you'd forgotten," she said after a while.
"I had," Fred admitted. "Who was it?"
Mrs. Weasley sighed, "Lucius Malfoy."
"Malfoy?" Fred repeated. "You're joking."
His mum shook her head.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Fred demanded angrily.
"We… I didn't think you needed to know."
"Why not?"
"Because of what he said," George interrupted.
"Which was?"
"He said that the only way to stop the Vow killing everyone in the family was…" Mrs. Weasley stopped and put a trembling hand to her mouth.
"For you to die," George finished solemnly.
"But it's fine, we know a different way!" Lee pointed out.
"How do we know that it'll work?" Mrs. Weasley said. "We don't know that it won't kill you afterwards."
"But why does he have to die?" Lee asked. "You all said yourselves that the Vow follows people to the grave. If Fred dies, surely Malfoy would die too."
"Because if the Vow hadn't been made, I would have died at the World Cup."
"But so would George and your dad and Bill!"
"So, you're saying the way to stop the Vow is to let it win?" Fred interrupted angrily. "To let it kill me, all the kids, George, dad, Bill and who knows who else!"
"Fred please," Mrs. Weasley begged, "Molly's idea might work, you never know."
"That's the point!" Fred shouted, "We don't know if it'll work. Anyway, we still need Fawkes who's vanished, and Molly who's at Hogwarts, and Malfoy, who… no one knows where he is. By the time we've found everyone, half the family could be dead!"
"Don't say that!" Mrs. Weasley said shakily. "I fully trust that you can sort it out. Why don't you write a letter to Malfoy explaining your idea and see what he thinks?"
"Malfoy's such a foul pig, he probably won't even agree to do it, even if the plan works," Fred said sourly.
Fred did, however, return to his room and sit at the desk, quill poised over his parchment, and write:
Dear Mr. Malfoy,
I hope you are well. (This was a lie but Fred thought he should probably be polite as wanted he Malfoy's help) As you are probably aware, the Unbreakable Vow we made over twenty years ago, has now resurfaced and is attacking members of my family. I'm not sure whether it is affecting you in the same way, but we obviously want it stopped.
In regards to your suggestion that you made in the summer, for obvious reasons, we would like to avoid that so instead, we have come up with a new idea, if you'd be willing to help. We thought that if the two of joined hands and remade the Vow with the same conditions but in reverse, then perhaps, the effects of the Vow would be reversed. For that to work, we'd need you to be present.
Best Wishes, Fred Weasley.
Fred read and reread the letter over and over before taking it downstairs to the kitchen.
All the owls had gone back to Hogwarts so the next morning on the way to work, Fred dropped in at the post office on Diagon Alley so he could send his letter. As he was heading back to the joke shop to meet George, Fred accidently bumped into a very angry looking wizard who had a mask covering his face and was dressed in entirely black robes.
"Sorry," Fred muttered, sidestepping the man who didn't reply, but instead raised his wand.
Fred ducked just in time. A red beam of light flew above his head hitting the shop behind. Fred whipped out his wand and sent a stunning spell back towards his attacker. Shopkeepers were dashing out of their shops, although it wasn't clear whether they were they to stop the fight, or encourage it. Fred ducked and dodged the beams that continuously were sent flying towards him. They were shooting so fast, Fred didn't have time to send any back.
"George! Help me!" Fred shouted at his brother who was running forward from the joke shop, "Please, before I get my head blown off!" he screamed and ducked again. "Stupefy!"
His final curse hit its target. The attacker was swept off his feet and sent flying through the air. Breathing heavily, Fred picked himself up and pocketed his wand. There was a buzzing in his ears as though a vicious bee had flown into it and got stuck.
"Are you alright?" He heard George's vague voice over the persistent bee's calls.
Fred nodded and looked around. Immediately, he was glad he'd managed to duck and dodge the spells. The shops around him were pretty much in ruins. Signs had fallen from the walls, windows smashed and bricks crumbled to the ground. Many shopkeepers and early morning shoppers were staring in awe at him as he made his way towards the masked man who now lay sprawled on the ground.
"He… he's one of the men that… that guarded the island," stuttered Fred to George. "Look at his mask. They're… they're just like Death Eater masks."
George, who'd bent down to remove the mask, gasped in surprise, "Malfoy?"
Fred looked at the long, pale face, pointed nose and small pursed lips of Lucius Malfoy. Something obvious smacked Fred in the face. The vaguely familiar voice he'd heard on the island George, the cold sneer and icy snap could belong to no one but Lucius Malfoy. "I've only just given the letter to an owl!" Fred exclaimed. "There's no way he already got it."
"Clearly he decided he was going to end the Vow his own way," George suggested, kicking Malfoy in the leg, a look of disgust on his face.
"What are we going to do with him? We can't just leave him here," Fred lowered his voice because people were starting to crowd around them.
"Take him into the joke shop."
Together, Fred and George heaved Malfoy up and half dragged, half carried him towards the joke shop. It was tough work, even though the shop was only a few hundred metres away; Malfoy was extremely heavy and wasn't very cooperative.
It took several minutes and by the time Fred and George had lugged Malfoy into the office, taken his wand and tied him to the chair securely, they were both sweaty and out of breath.
"Should we wait or revive him?" George asked with the same look of disgust and a turned-up nose.
"We might as well just revive him," Fred said, "We need to open soon."
"Rennervate," George muttered half-heartedly.
A long groan emerged from Malfoy's mouth and his eyes fluttered open. His shoulder jerked as though he was trying to raise an arm, but the restraints held him back. A sneer spread across his face as he looked around the room.
"Ah. I see you have me trapped," Malfoy mocked. "I've been beaten."
"Why did you try to kill me?" Fred shot.
"Kill you? Oh, you mean that mishap outside? Well, it should have happened quite some time ago. I only thought I'd make up for what I should have done over twenty years ago."
"Why? What difference does it make to you?" George asked. "You weren't protecting anyone by making that Vow."
"However true that may be, you must consider the hatred I am receiving because of what I 'forced you to do'. Oh, the letters I am getting. 'How could you make someone betray their friends and family?' 'You should be in Azkaban.' 'Why did anyone let you off?' It really is awful."
"You're getting hate mail?" George repeated with an air of amusement.
"Yes. Tragic isn't it? Your brother was smart enough when giving his little interview to make sure that he was completely innocent one."
"So you thought that murdering me would sort it out? Did you think that maybe that would make you even more hated?"
"Don't be stupid, Fred," George said sarcastically. "Being a murderer is the latest thing. Makes you so popular."
"Your little jokes will get you killed," threatened Malfoy, glaring at the twins, "Or perhaps you think that because you cheated death once, you'll be able to again."
"I didn't cheat death," Fred said coolly. "It cheated me."
An evil atmosphere set above the three of them thickly.
"Help me stop it," Fred said after a while. "It won't do you any harm; if you help, I'll be sure to give an interview for the Daily Prophet for you, explaining how bravely you helped or side in the war."
His words sliced through the mood like a knife through butter. Cogs turned in Malfoy's brain; a well-trained machine. Obviously caught by this request, he pursed his sour lips together. Hoping that they'd caught Malfoy out, Fred and George raised their eyebrows expectantly at Malfoy who only sneered back.
"Do you know, I think I'd rather kill you?"
"I've never been so terrified of an unarmed wizard," Fred said sarcastically.
"I think I wet myself with fright," George agreed.
"I can feel my knees shaking."
"Help us fix the Vow," George said dangerously.
"No," Malfoy snarled.
"Help us fix the vow!" George repeated, a little louder.
"Never!"
"HELP US FIX THE VOW!" he bellowed.
"What's in it for me?"
"No more hate mail, no more reports in the Daily Prophet and you'll never have to see us again," Fred said, taking a step towards Malfoy, placing his hands on either side of the chair and leaning forward to speak quietly into Malfoy's ear, "Please."
Malfoy's cold, hard eyes mined deep into Fred's pleading, kind ones.
"It won't do you any harm," said George, "You'll only be doing us a favour."
Silence took over, dominating the small office.
"I will help you," Malfoy spat, "I'm not saying your plan will work it probably won't- but I will help."
"Good," George snapped, folding his arms and scowling at Malfoy.
"But I have a condition," Malfoy continued casually, "If it doesn't work, I will kill both of you and your daughter on the spot."
"No!" Fred shouted. "Not Molly. You kill me. If it doesn't work, kill me, but leave Molly and leave George. This isn't their fault."
Malfoy shook his head menacingly. "I can't do that. If I only kill one of you, there are two witnesses to say I did it and I'd be… what do they say… toast."
Fred and George looked at each other uncertainly. Both knew that it was their only choice, Malfoy would never agree, but were the risks too great?
Finally, George nodded, "Fine."
Fred kicked the wall before following George out of the office, leaving Malfoy tied to the chair. Only a few seconds later, a loud crack came from the room- Malfoy was gone.
