I know it's been longer than long, so here's a brief recap of where we left off.
At the conclusion of her 5th year and the dreadful ending of the Triwizard Tournament, Ana went to stay with Fred and his family at the Burrow. After spending an hour alone with Fred in his room playing gobstones, Ana confessed her love for a certain red-haired boy. Fred took his time but eventually repeated the sentiment...before disaperating and leaving Ana alone in the room.
Now, we pick up right where Fred left her.
Belladonna 47
The Daily Dramas of a Teenage Slytherin
28 June 1995
Ana stepped onto the platform outside Fred's room and nearly ran into Ginny. "Your brother is an idiot."
"Agreed," Ginny replied. "Which one are we talking about in particular though?"
"All of them?" Ana shrugged. "Well, maybe that's a little unfair. Bill seems pretty cool and the minor interaction I had with Charlie first year was too brief to make a proper analysis."
"Charlie's cool. But there is a definite decline of cool with each additional brother."
"And an increase in idiocy?" Ana asked.
"Precisely."
"You know, Gin, this could be the beginning of something beautiful."
"It could be...too bad you're in Slytherin though." Ginny smirked playfully as they reached the bottom platform. Ana had no time to retort as she found herself face-to-face with the rest of the Weasley clan.
"Oh! There you girls are. Now that we're all here we can begin." Mrs. Weasley ushered everyone into the kitchen, cutting off Ana's direct access to Fred in the process.
"It smells wonderful as always, Molly," said an older man with thinning red hair as he made his way towards the table. This, Ana knew, could only be Fred's father Arthur. Ana stumbled forward to meet him.
"Mr. Weasley…Hi."
"Ah." He turned her way with a smile that reminded her a little of Fred's. "Molly told me we would be having company for the summer. It's nice to meet you…"
"Ana, Ana Evans."
"Ana. Are you a friend of Ginny's?"
"Oh! Well, apparently that has yet to be determined," Ana replied without thinking. Before she could worry about how Mr. Weasley would react to the apparent snub of his only daughter, Ginny chimed in.
"I'll let you know how it turns out."
Fred came up behind Ana and threw his arm around her neck. "She's my girlfriend, Dad."
"Oh." Mr Weasley frowned slightly. "And you looked like such a smart girl."
Ana smiled. Fred nodded dumbly. And Mr. Weasley walked away chuckling.
"Oi!" Fred called after a beat too long. "He just insulted your intelligence," he whispered to Ana.
"He insulted your character more," she replied. "And we'll see how long I remain your girlfriend if you keep disaperating on me like that."
"Oh, you know you love it."
"If you two love birds don't hurry up, there won't be anything left!" George shouted over the din.
Fred pulled Ana along as she fought to keep the blush from her cheeks. Mrs. Weasley had prepared a small feast for them. The array of food wasn't as vast as what Ana often saw at Hogwarts, but it was certainly more than she and Sev ever had and even more than what she saw at Sadie's. Everyone helped themselves to a little bit of everything.
"So, Ana, will you be starting your seventh year at Hogwarts as well?" Mr. Weasley asked.
"No, Sir. I just finished my fifth."
"OWL year was brutal, and then I met NEWT," Bill said.
"Speak for yourself," Percy said. "I found them both to be pleasantly refreshing."
"You would," Fred muttered under his breath. Fortunately, neither Mr. nor Mrs. Weasley heard him.
"Uh, I don't know about 'refreshing' but I don't think they were nearly as bad as the Professors made them out to be," Ana said.
"Do you suspect you did well then?" Mr. Weasley asked.
"Oh, yes Sir. I expect I'll get at least five OWLs."
"Only five? You're slacking off, Miss Evans. Tsk. Tsk," George teased.
"I didn't want to sound too boastful, but if you must know Transfiguration has always been a bit touchy for me. I feel confident about it however. As for Potions, they'll have to create a new tier when they come across my results; an OWL won't be exemplary enough."
"Oh that's not boastful at all," said Fred.
"A new tier? That good at it are you?" Bill asked.
"Better even. I brewed my first potion when I was five and since last year I've mastered the Wolfsbane."
Bill looked impressed.
"Wolfsbane? Why would you want to brew Wolfsbane?" Percy sneered.
"For those who need it and cannot brew it themselves because a, it is either too complex a potion for them, and admittedly it is the most complex thing I have brewed to date, or b, because they simply cannot afford the materials required, the patent alone was 100 Galleons and the support from the Ministry is non-existent. I am sure you're aware of the recent law that bans werewolves from seeking employment within the magical community."
Percy's face turned red with lack of oxygen and he clearly wanted to defend the Ministry's position, however, Mr. Weasley spoke over him in an attempt to dispel the rising tension at the table. "It sounds like you have quite the talent, Ana. Were your parents potioneers also?"
"Oh, I…"
"Arthur," Molly squeaked. "I told you Ana was adopted by Professor Snape."
"Snape? Severus Snape? Potions Master at Hogwarts Snape?"
Ron muttered something that sounded like, ' greasy, gitty, can't shower Snape,' under his breath and Fred kicked him beneath the table.
"I was never adopted by Sev," Ana said, almost irritably, as she eyed Ron. "But I was raised by him after both my parents died in the first war. So, I guess, yeah, my parent is a brilliant potioneer who has inspired me to do better."
There was a beat of tense silence; only the scraping of Ron's spoon across his plate could be heard, but it was too late. Ana couldn't take back what she said, and upon inspection she realized that she didn't want to. After a few pain stacking seconds, Mr. Weasley broke the silence with a smacking of his lips.
"I am sure Professor Snape would be very pleased to hear that, and very proud of you, Ana. George, pass the parsnips please."
14 July 1995
"Ow, Ron! That was my foot!" Ginny whispered harshly.
"Well, stop shoving."
"Shush, all of you," Mrs. Weasley commanded as she began leading the party up a dark staircase.
Ana bit her tongue to keep from retorting. Her patience had been tested over and over in the two weeks she spent at the Burrow. Most of the family was great, even Ron seemed both more tolerable and more tolerant of her. Percy was the same self-absorbed, ignorant git he always was and their interactions only dissolved into further chaos culminating in an angry blowout over the lies the Daily Prophet and the Ministry were spreading about Harry and Dumbledore.
Worst of all, perhaps, was Mrs. Weasley. She was highly unappreciative of Ana's blunt and defensive demeanor towards Percy and too tolerant of Percy's evident bigotry. Ana was certain beyond doubt that Mrs. Weasley blamed Ana for the fight Percy had with his dad at work which resulted in Percy abruptly moving out of the family home. Furthermore, Ana found Mrs. Weasley to be overbearing, over critical, and over controlling of all her children, Ana included. Mrs. Weasley absolutely refused to let Ana work on her potions. Even the argument that Ana needed to start prepping for her NEWTs wasn't enough to change Mrs. Weasley's mind.
"You can prep by studying the theory in your textbooks," she said.
"But I know the theories. I need to perfect the practical," Ana argued.
Fred was of no use on the matter. He tried to convince Ana to see it as a break from her studies, a chance to have some fun, but he highly underestimated how much fun Ana had while brewing her potions. This led to their first real fight as a couple. It lasted until Fred set up a secret laboratory for her to work in.
Mrs. Weasley caught them brewing together one afternoon while Ana was mid-spell. Mrs. Weasley grounded Fred for his collaboration and took Ana's wand away as punishment, something Sev had never done. Not to mention, Mrs. Weasley's interruption caused Ana to ruin the potion, and that was something which Ana had never done.
Ana's "misguided" and "delinquent" behavior was apparently a result of her "poor parental control." Ana wanted to ask Mrs. Weasley what that said about her own parenting skills given that two of her sons were the most delinquent boys in the country, but Fred, George, and Ginny all pulled her out of the room before she could get a word out. Ana and Mrs. Weasley hadn't spoken to each other directly since. Now, she was hauling them all into the dark and dirty house on Grimmauld Place in London, in which, apparently, they were supposed to make no noise.
"Bloody hell!" Ron exclaimed quietly, but not quietly enough. An oversized portrait just behind Ana, burst out of her coverings and began shouting.
"FILTH! BLOOD TRAITORS! A TARNISH UPON MY HOUSE! HOW DARE YOU BRING SUCH STAIN UPON MY FAMILY!"
"Mother of Merlin!" Ana dropped her trunk to cover her ears, but it landed on Fred's foot.
"Son of a…"
"Fred Weasley!" Mrs. Weasley screeched. "You are not too old for me to wash your mouth out with soap. The same goes for you, Ronald."
"Someone needs to wash her mouth out," Ana said, nodding to the portrait. "Who is she any way?"
George leaned forward to read the brass sign hanging just below the frame. "Wall-burg-a Black."
"Black, as in…"
"Oh, shut up you old hag!" Sirius Black said, appearing in a doorway to their right. As soon as the portrait of Walburga caught sight of Sirius her face turned purple with rage and her screeching insults reached a new level of loud.
"Go on, Molly; get them upstairs and I'll deal with her," he said.
He moved towards the portrait only to stop suddenly when he spotted Ana. They hadn't seen each other since the night of the third task, and then he had remained at Harry's side as the loyal pup Snuffles until he revealed himself as an Animagus. After which, he still seemed more worried about keeping Harry safe and out of trouble than Ana. And now, he nodded awkwardly towards her and said her name.
Ana rolled her eyes and muttered, "Black," before following the others up the stairs.
The boys' rooms were on a different floor then the girls'. Well, Fred and George's room was on a different floor; Ron and Harry (when he arrived) would be on the same floor as Ana, Ginny, and Hermione (when she arrived). Ginny pushed open the door to their room and a cloud of dust and stale air met them making them both gag and choke on their air.
"The first task for each of you, will be to clean your rooms," Mrs. Weasley said. "Here are some protective gloves and doxicide," she continued, thrusting said products into their hands before continuing down the hall with Ron.
"I think fiendfire would be our best option," Ginny whispered to Ana.
Ana gasped dramatically. "Ginerva! I am astounded, you're not of age; such actions are unbecoming of a proper lady."
"Well, two weeks with you has been enough delinquency to taint my innocence."
Ana snorted. "I highly doubt you were ever truly innocent, not with Fred and George as brothers"
"I suggest you two get to work if you want to be able to sleep in there tonight," Mrs. Weasley said on her way back down the stairs.
Ana felt like she and Ginny had been cleaning for hours before she heard footsteps coming up the stairs. She quickly tucked her wand away, shoved her hand back in the dragon hide glove, and grabbed the cleaning rag. She shared a look with Ginny, who had done the same, just as the footsteps stopped outside their door.
"I was told I might find you here."
"Professor Lupin?"
"Uncle Moony!" Ana exclaimed to Ginny's surprise and mild confusion.
A pleasant smile spread across Lupin's face as Ana tore off her protective gloves once more and hugged him; behind her the rag continued to clean. He raised his brow at the sight.
Ana shrugged her shoulder. "I swear, it's like magic, Professor."
"I'm sure," he replied.
"Wait…uncle?" Ginny asked.
"Well, it's not by blood or anything, but he was one of my dad's best friends."
"That explains it then."
"Explains what?" Ana asked.
"So much. Well, if you'll excuse me, I have a brother to pummel."
"Should I be concerned about that?" Lupin asked after Ginny left.
"Seeing as how you are no longer her Professor, technically and unfortunately, I'm going to say no. Perhaps Molly should have taken better parental care in raising her."
Lupin frowned.
"So…you heard about that then?" Ana asked.
"I did."
Ana huffed. "I'm surprised she was brazen enough to admit to it."
"She hasn't, as of yet."
"Then how…? It wasn't Fred, was it? Please tell me it wasn't him."
"Would it be so bad if it was?"
"Would it be bad if my boyfriend ratted me out? Yes, because rats are icky and gross and I won't be kissing one."
Remus smiled slightly and pointed to the bed. "May I?"
"Mother of Merlin! It was him and now you're going to try and convince me that not all rats are bad?"
"No," he smiled sadly. "I'm no longer a fan of rats either. But it wasn't Fred. It was Arthur."
"Mr. Weasley?" Ana said in surprise as she sat next to Lupin on the bed. "Why would he go to you about it?"
"That's not the question. The real question is, why didn't you?"
Ana looked down at her hands and shrugged. "I suppose I figured you had enough on your plate and you didn't need to add worrying about the daily dramas of a teenage Slytherin in love with a Gryffindor prankster and his warden of a mother. Sirius certainly couldn't be bothered by it less."
Lupin sighed. "You're a lot like him, you know, and Sirius doesn't really know what to do with that."
"A lot like who? Ugh, please don't say Sirius, because if you do there's the door."
Lupin paused before answering, like it was difficult for him to admit it too. "No. You're a lot like Severus. He kept his thoughts locked away in school too; never told anyone what was really bothering him. Not…" he sighed deeply, shamefully almost. "Not that we would have bothered to listen if he tried. Sirius hated everything Slytherin just on principle. We all did."
"Sirius still hates all things Slytherin, including me, and Mrs. Weasley would obviously prefer her son to date someone less green and silver."
"Molly and Sirius don't hate you because you're a Slytherin," Lupin said.
Ana looked at him curiously.
"At all," he added quickly, realizing his inadvertent mistake. "They don't hate you at all."
Ana stared at him blankly, challenging him to disprove her beliefs.
"Why do you think they hate you?"
"Well, for starters, Sirius clearly favors Harry. He's written him loads of letters, talked to him via the floo network, shadowed him in Hogsmeade, and stayed all night at his bedside in June after Harry was attacked by the fake Moody. Meanwhile, he's barely said two words to me since the Shack where he spent the whole time scowling at me, and he seems to have forgotten that I was attacked by the fake Moody as well. Well, technically, I suppose I attacked him, but I was left unconscious by it, albeit briefly. And since then all he's done is nod my way and say 'Ana,' as though he knows me; he doesn't know the first thing about me and he hasn't tried to learn either.
"As for Mrs. Weasley, I don't even know where to begin. Perhaps with the fact that she believes my parents would be disappointed in me for standing up for myself instead of rolling over when someone tries to badmouth me, my friends, or someone who can't defend themselves. Or perhaps I start with the notion that Sev must be a terrible parental figure for allowing me to perform minor bits of magic while on holiday and in the safety of our home, well away from the prying eyes and ears of Muggles. Or maybe I start with the worst of it and point out that it's been two weeks since school let out and I haven't done a single bit of potions work...except for that one time that she ruined by interrupting! I have never ruined a potion in my life, and now my record is tarnished because she decided to uphold her 'no magic outside Hogwarts' rule and failed to see the reason and the necessity behind my brewing."
Ana heaved a great sigh. "See, the daily dramas of a teenage Slytherin."
Lupin had a slightly dazed look in his eyes as he ran his hand over his face. "Wow. I… I had no idea."
"See, and that's why I wanted to spare you from all of this. It isn't your drama to handle."
"And you shouldn't have to handle it alone. I'll speak with Sirius. I'm sure he doesn't realize what his silence is doing. He was always rather thick when it came to girls. And this...this has been difficult for him as well. He spent twelve years in Azkaban for a crime he didn't commit and deaths he blamed himself for. As for Molly, you know it's not her 'no magic rule;' it's a Ministry mandate."
"It's a mandate put in place to protect the Statute of Secrecy from idiotic fools going to their Muggle friends and neighbors and bragging about the new tricks they learned at an exclusive boarding school. Seeing as how I am neither an idiotic fool nor do I need to brag with magic, I believe that mandate hardly applies to me."
"Ana…"
"And the Warden appears to be under the impression that I want to use magic to finish my homework early. I don't care about homework; I have weeks left to finish it. But I'd like to direct your attention back to the fact that school's been out for two weeks and I've not been allowed to work on my thesis or begin any prep-work for the Wolfsbane Potion."
"Ah...I see." Lupin nodded solemnly, finally understanding the gravity of the situation. "Have you tried talking to her?"
"Yes!"
"Talking, not arguing, Ana? Have you explained to her the specifics of your brewing?"
"I've tried, Uncle Moony; I really have. But she's stubborn, set in her ways. She won't listen to reason."
Lupin sighed. "All right, well I… I won't make any promises, but I'll talk to her, see if we can work something out. In the meantime, I believe she's got lunch ready for everyone downstairs and I am famished."
Ana followed Lupin down to the bottom of the staircase where Walburga Black was once more tucked behind thick curtains while an older-than-old house elf polished the brass plate. Then they turned left through a doorway and headed down another set of stairs. They came into a large, long room lined with pots and cauldrons on the walls and a table large enough to seat a small army. The Weasley's were all gathered at one end. Fred looked up from where he was huddled with George and smiled. Ana left Lupin's side and went to Fred's.
"Professor Lupin!" Fred greeted.
"Fred, George," Lupin replied. "Ron, how are you?"
"All right. You?"
"Here you go, Remus. I gave you an extra scoop; you're too skinny," Mrs. Weasley said as she set a bowl of hearty stew in front of him.
"So what were you and Lupin discussing up there?" Fred asked once they had their bowls. "It sounded intense."
"How would you know?" Ana asked. Fred tugged on his ear. "You got them working then?" she whispered.
"A bit. We adjusted the volume but now everything sounds muffled. So what were you talking about?"
"Mother of Merlin you're nosey. What's said between me and my uncle in confidence remains in confidence."
George snorted. "That's what you think."
"Once we get these ears fixed—"
"—then nothing will remain confidential around here."
A/N: I so want to apologize for the awful long wait. I'd like to be able to say I won't leave you hanging like that again but... well, I'd rather not make promises I can't keep. Suffice it to say, I took a little time off to vacation in Narnia where I wrote The Telmarine Wife and the first half of Allegiance (both Edmund Pevensie/OC fics but neither one related to the other). Now I suffer from a severe lack of time and motivation, but I'm trying to work on that and I really, really, want to write again.
Anywho...I hope you enjoyed this chapter. And I will try my hardest to get the next one out before very long.
