Ch 22 Sunday with the Weasley Clan
Excellent additions by Deb and a couple of corrections by Diane, my beta readers. Thank you.
Jane woke up at 8:00 AM to Lily's alarm. "Church?" Jane asked, wondering why Lily was using an alarm and remembered that it was Sunday.
"Not for me," Lily replied as she got out of bed and went to her closet and selected an outfit for the day. "Dad and Albus go to church Saturday night when they can. We go to Sunday breakfast with grandmum and grandpa Sunday mornings. We need to be dressed and leave before 9:00 AM."
The two girls scrambled to get showered and dressed. They entered the drawing room about 8:45 AM. Mrs. Potter was sitting in a chair nursing a toddler, and when the little girl saw her sister and Jane she let go of Mrs. Potter's breast, waved a hand and mouthed, "Mu, mu, mu." She looked at Mr. Potter. "Da, Da, Da." She smiled at her mother, patted her mother's breast, latched on for a couple more bits of milk, and then let go.
"Finished, Minerva?" Mrs. Potter wondered as she pulled Minerva close and raspberried her belly, before holding her close.
Minerva buried her head between Mrs. Potter's breasts, wiggled in contentment, then turned and reached up her hands to Mr. Potter. Mr. Potter picked up Minerva, and Mrs. Potter finally covered up, fastening her bra over her exposed breast and doing something to cover the bra.
Jane looked over to see a good looking adolescent boy, obviously just needing to shave, as tall as Mr. Potter or maybe just a little taller. She guessed, from Lily's description from the night before, that this was James, although he was more grown up than the last photo of him in the Prophet over two years ago. James grinned at Jane, then looked contently at his mother and little sister. Jane noticed that James did not seem embarrassed seeing his mother exposing her breast. James had the red hair of his mother and sister, in a stylish longish cut, and was dressed in clothes that were casual but well put together. James radiated an easy self-confidence.
"I'm James Potter," he waved. "Who are you, and what are you doing here?"
"I'm Jane Clark, and I'm running away from home. I spent the night with Lily, and I think I'm going to Switzerland with your family."
Jane looked over to Mrs. Potter again. Mrs. Potter had taken out her mobile, and was looking at something and doing something. She was obviously trying to figure something out. Eventually she took out her wand and touched her ear. Jane noticed what looked like a hearing aid behind her right ear, and what looked like one of those earphones that took up the whole ear that some musicians wore in the right ear. She touched her wand to the thing in her ear five times, then held up her hand to Mr. Potter. Mrs. Potter stood up, swayed a little while Mr. Potter helped steady her, and touched the wand to the thing in her ear a couple more times. "It is not going to be a good balance day," she finally admitted with a sigh.
Mrs. Potter looked over to a slightly confused Jane. "Do you know about Quidditch?" Jane's nodded, so she went on to say, "A Bludger hit my ear and messed with my hearing and balance," Mr. Potter then touched her ear. "The hearing came back really mixed up, with some frequencies loud and some soft, and which frequencies are loud and which are soft change. I have five settings. The program links to my mobile with some sort of colored toothy thing, so I can get the right program."
"Bluetooth," James whispered, rolling his eyes with both frustration and amusement at her mother's description of how the hearing aids and Magical/Muggle mobile communicated.
"I have a healer and a Goblin that have worked on something to help with the balance," Mrs. Potter continued, ignoring her oldest son. "One of the hearing settings links with a balance something and I can almost walk without losing my balance, and three other programs with a couple of balance settings, and it's not too bad. The last setting links with three balance settings, none of which are good. That is what I am dealing with today. It is not going to be a good balance day." Mrs. Potter shrugged as if this was just something she had to put up with.
Mr. Potter and Mrs. Potter were touching, and they looked at each other with love that was so real Jane thought she could almost feel it. They kissed a passionate lover's kiss, holding it a long time. They looked at Minerva with so much love that Jane knew she was looking at a "love child," a child that was a visible expression of how much Minerva's parents loved each other.
Lily sighed. "I hope I have a marriage like mum and dad. They live each other SO MUCH." James smiled in agreement.
"You going to kiss Erica like that?" Lily kidded James. James just smiled back. It didn't take much to guess that this Erica was James's girlfriend.
Jane thought that at times her father kissed her mother in a way that was less this kind of mutual love and more an expression of dominance.
Albus was awake and dressed a little after 8:00 AM, and he woke up Scorpius as soon as he was ready.
"I'm glad I'm here, I'm not looking forward to going back to Malfoy Manor," Scorpius declared, grumbling a bit. "I am still trying to digest what we learned last night. I do not trust my father. I really do not like it that I do not know what happened to me yesterday. Cleo says that the same thing happened at least once before. Whatever it is, I think it is something bad." He gave a shiver of revulsion.
"I do not know if I can help you," Albus confessed, looking sadly at his friend. "I will if I can, and I know my father will do everything he can to help you, he and the whole Department of Magical Law Enforcement."
"I know," Scorpius agreed. "I just do not like it."
They came down into the drawing room about 8:50 to see Albus's mother and father kissing. Albus grinned at Scorpius.
"I've never seem my mother and father kiss," Scorpius complained. "Your mother and father are so much in love!"
About 8:55 AM the Potter family and guests went through the closet network to the New Burrow, a little of the green powder that accompanied a Floo trip automatically dispensed. As they exited the Closet in the New Burrow an elevator door that was located next door to the Closet opened and Charlie Weasley and his nurse helper Caroline Fawcett exited. Charlie was driving his wheelchair with his one functioning arm, but Caroline was close at hand. Jane could see that one half of Charlie, what little was left, was burned, and that he had lost both legs and one arm. Jane had a hard time believing that someone so damaged was still alive.
"Hello, Potter family," Caroline cheerily intoned. "I see you have a new guest. I'm Caroline Fawcett, and I help take care of Charlie. Who are you?" Caroline moved to block Charlie from her view.
Jane had looked at what was left of Charlie with horror, having a hard time not staring but at the same time having a hard time even looking at him. She looked away from Charlie and right at Caroline, and replied, "I'm Jane Clark."
"Whose guest are you?" Caroline asked as the people made their way to the kitchen and dining room area, both rooms open to each other to hold the expanding Weasley clan.
Jane looked at Lily, who volunteered, "Jane slept in my room, but just because mum and dad and Mrs. Blackburn asked. They said you are only going to be staying with me for a couple of nights."
"I guess I'm going to Switzerland?" Jane asked, looking for some confirmation. Just then she saw Cleo and Rose with a man she was reasonably sure was Rose's father.
"She is going to Switzerland with us," Cleo confirmed, having heard Jane's question. "We have plenty of rooms in the castle."
James turned and rounded on Cleo. "You keep talking like it is YOUR castle."
Cleo kept silent, not knowing how to answer James. When she was in in Switzerland she did feel like the castle was home, not maybe only her home but home to her.
"Father, this is Jane Clark, the girl I told you about," Rose jumped in with, trying to head off Janes trying to pick a fight with Cleo.
Jane recognized Mr. Ron Weasley from photographs of him in the Prophet. "Hello, Mr. Weasley," Jane responded.
Just then the Magical/Muggle mobiles of Harry Potter and Arthur Weasley rang. They both answered. Mr. Arthur Weasley confirmed, "We will expect you momentarily, and we will meet in the living room. Use the kitchen Floo or the Closet. We do have a Floo in the living room, but activating it is not easy. I will tell Molly and the crowd to direct people there."
Both Arthur and Harry terminated their mobile calls within seconds of each other.
"We are convening a brief meeting concerning Scorpius and Cleopatra," Arthur announced. "Send people to the living room."
Arthur and Harry left for the living room. Shortly afterwards Hermione came through the Closet with Kingsley Shacklebolt. Percy Weasley followed them, accompanied by two witches, all carrying parchment or books.
Lavender and her husband Gray followed, Gray accompanied by Lumos, the Elf that helped serve as his eyes. Jane could see that Gray was blind. Gus Gudgeon was with them. Rose told Jane, "That is three-fourths of the Domestic Affairs unit of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. The other witch is a healer that works with families that need long term counseling. There are a couple of Aurors that help sometimes, and other DMLE officers. Mrs. Blackburn runs the department."
Finally, Minerva McGonagall and Neville Longbottom came striding through the house towards the living room.
"Is that the headmistress of Hogwarts?" Jane squeaked, her eyes wide as she took in the famous people, "And Neville 'Snakeslayer' Longbottom?"
"That's Frank Longbottom the second's dad," Rose confirmed, pointing over to a young man who looked like his father, but thinner. Frank was standing next to a girl who Jane recognized as Roxanne Weasley. Frank and Roxanne came over to where Scorpius and Cleopatra were standing, and Frank asked, "What is going on?"
"I guess my father is not very happy with me," Scorpius quipped. "He wanted me to stay at Malfoy Manor all summer, but I am going to Switzerland with the other Magic and Elf Language Learners. When he ordered us to stay Cleo and I just left."
"And you are both underage, so you are considered runaways?" Frank asked.
Scorpius, Cleopatra, and Jane all nodded yes.
"Who are you?" Frank asked, looking at Jane and trying to place her. "Did you run away from Malfoy Manor too?"
"I just ran away from my father, who doesn't believe in magic," Jane stated.
"Do you have a name, Miss Runaway?" Frank wondered.
"Jane Clark," Jane replied.
More of the family started to congregate around Scorpius, Cleopatra, and the Potter family, who all tried to explain what was going on. It was a mad house of noise and voices and Jane looked around wondering how anyone could hear anyone, but it seemed that they could and did.
About twenty minutes after the meeting started in the living room it began to break up. Percy came out first, with the two witches that had accompanied him. "You can file the paperwork and go home," Percy told the witches. "You both should take some comp time off next week to make up for being called in early Sunday morning."
Before Percy could say any more, the crew from the Domestic Affairs Department left.
Neville Longbottom was next. He made a beeline for his son Frank and Frank's fiancée Roxanne, telling them, "The flats for you in Longbottom Mansion are ready. You can move in any time."
He then announced, "There is a rumor that the owner of the Leaky Cauldron and the Assistant Headmaster of Hogwarts are engaged in a passionate love affair. I'd better go over to the Leaky and confirm the rumor."
"Tell mother Roxanne and I will see her tomorrow after work," Frank told his father.
"I will see you at school, Scorpius 'Snakeslayer' Malfoy," Neville joked in parting.
Scorpius covered his eyes with his hands and shook his head 'no' as his ears turned pink. This was the famous Mr. Neville "Snakeslayer" Longbottom, one of the Heroes of Hogwarts, confirming the "Snakeslayer" title on him. It was embarrassing.
Minerva McGonagall followed. She looked around and saw Cleopatra holding baby Minerva. The headmistress went over to where Cleo was holding the toddler, and asked, "Do you think I could hold my namesake, Miss Smith."
Jane could see Cleopatra reluctantly give the baby to the headmistress, and the normally stern appearance of the headmistress noticeably soften.
Finally, Arthur, Harry, and Kingsley Shacklebolt came out of the living room. Kingsley went over to Scorpius and with a big laugh presented him with a copy of a parchment. "All the documents refer to you as Scorpius Hyperon 'Snakeslayer' Malfoy. Good for you! I've never much liked your father, but from what I have been told you are a real credit to the Malfoy name."
Scorpius responded, happily embarrassed as he took the parchments, "Thank you, sir."
"I've asked Minerva and Kingsley to stay and have breakfast with us," Arthur announced to the room as everyone began making their ways to the table.
"Your family is on first name basis with the minister of magic and the headmistress of Hogwarts?" Jane asked in amazement. "I've never met anyone important."
"They are all just people," Cleo replied. "We talk to everyone at Hogwarts. It is only some of the pure blood idiots that think they are better than anyone else, and they are not." She took Jane's arm and led her to a spot at a table.
"Cleo and Rose work with all the students in Switzerland in the summer," Albus added with pride. "They do not care if you are important or not, if your parents are rich or poor. We, they, are all just people."
Breakfast was served at two large tables, one for the adults, one for the children. Jane noticed that Fred Weasley, his wife and baby, were at the adult table. "What are you going to do when you have children?" Jane asked Roxanne at one point.
Roxanne looked over to Victoire, who apparently ran the cousins. Victoire thought, "We may need a third table at some point." Victoire looked at Roxanne, but also young Molly Weasley who with Rich Hudson had joined the conversation, pointedly asking, "Especially if we have a couple more babies next summer."
Both couples blushed. Both brides were looked at Cleopatra. For some reason it was hard to be around Cleopatra and not think that having a baby or three would be a very good thing.
Breakfast morphed into a casual brunch as people left in small groups. By the middle of the afternoon the Potter family was back at twelve Grimmauld Place. Mrs. Potter went up to Lily's room with Lily and Jane, and looked over Jane's clothes. "We will fill out your wardrobe in Switzerland," Mrs. Potter announced as she put down the worn clothes that Jane had managed to grab when she packed.
"How am I going to pay you?" Jane asked with horror.
Ginny sat on the bed, helping her look the child in the eyes, "You are going to be nice to other people when you grow up, Jane," Ginny gently replied. "You are going to remember how good people took you in and took care of you. Then you have an obligation to do the same to other people. You can start right now by being nice, by being willing and eager to help."
"Is there anything I can do right now?" Jane asked.
"No," Ginny replied. "Just be up and packed and ready to leave by 8:00 AM tomorrow morning."
After dinner, with a little help from Albus, Jane found a book to read. Lily had a hard time sitting still, and she spend some time on her broom in the garden area between the houses.
2020