Flipped
Chapter Four: The Spell
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. They belong to JKR, and I own the plot. (I think)
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When Arthur arrived back at the burrow, he was greeted by scurrying children, and crying babies. Ron seemed to be having a tantrum about some toy. At least, Arthur thought it was a toy. Ron just kept shouting, "Give back! Me want!" while stomping his feet on the floor. The rest of the household ignored him; they were used to baby tantrums and fits around here. Ginny was sleeping in a carrier on the couch, much to Arthur's surprise. How could she sleep in all this racket that the kids were making? When Arthur went further into the house he found Molly. She was in the kitchen preparing dinner for the family. It seemed to be a bit extravagant for a normal night, but Arthur wasn't too surprised. Molly seemed to like to cook to get rid of her emotions, being fear, anger, or both.
"Hello Molly dear,' he told her, setting his cloak on a chair, and kissing Molly lightly on the cheek from behind. Her only reply was to lean back slightly, letting her husband take her weight for a moment. The moment did not last long however. Charlie came in a few moments later, screaming that Bill had thrown a pile of dragon dung on him and ruined his robes. Bill came in a moment later defending himself forcefully. Molly handled it by glowering at both boys until they stopped, and telling them to sit in a corner until they could calm down long enough to not yell and accuse. Both boys went upstairs sulking, and glaring at the other.
Arthur just smiled. It was good to be home. He had been away from home way too often these days. With the Dark Lord rising, most ministry members were on call twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Arthur was lucky to have gotten one day off, and look what had happened to it now. It was full of fear of you-know-who again. Arthur sighed. Molly turned to look at him after a moment of silence.
"What did he say?" she asked quietly. She didn't even have to mention who or what. He knew what she was talking about.
"He told me he didn't know," he told his wife, equally quiet, as if trying to keep out any eavesdropping children.
"How could Dumbledore not know about something?" she asked him fearfully. The idea that the most powerful wizard in the world did not know what that thing had been was unsettling to Molly. Especially when they had found the Dark Mark on their property. The experience was chilling.
"He is only human after all, Molly." Arthur told her gently. "You can't expect him to be all knowing." Molly nodded at this, but said nothing. It didn't seem that words could have expressed her feelings at the moment. He understood. He strode across the small kitchen, and wrapped Molly into a hug, ignoring the world in chaos around them for a moment.
But than Ron began to scream again, and Ginny began to cry, and Fred, (or was it George) came streaming through the house with nothing but his underwear on. Arthur rolled his eyes at his children. They could be so strange sometimes. He wondered for a moment where they got that, but left the matter be when he went to calm Ginny and tell Ron to hush.
The house went about its normal business for a while and finally sat down to dinner at the slightly cramped table in the dining room, that was connected to the kitchen. The meal was finished without disaster that night, and everyone was settling into their evening activities, when there was a small 'pop!' at the fireplace, and a head appeared in the flames.
The children who were in the room at the time, Bill, Charlie and Ron, were astounded, until they recognized the head.
"Professor Dumbledore?!" Bill asked incredulously. Dumbledore just smiled, and asked for Arthur.
"Dad!" screamed Charlie, not bothering to move. "Dad! There's a head in the fireplace asking for you!" Arthur came bundling down the stairs at top speed and looked at the scene before him. Dumbledore's head sat in the fireplace with that merry twinkle in his eyes, looking calmly at the boys, who were staring back at him, apparently awed that their headmaster's head was in their fireplace. Arthur wasted no time, however.
"Boys," he told them firmly, "take your brother upstairs please, and tell your mother who called." He walked over to Dumbledore, and leaned down to the grate and began to speak in hushed voices with him. Bill and Charlie, as much as they would have liked to stay, decided it would be best to leave before someone got angry. It was known to happen when people called his father from the fire.
"So, Albus," Arthur said as he crouched down to be closer to the headmaster's head. "Any news on how to perform the charm?" he asked tersely, not knowing if he wanted to hear the answer.
"Of course, Arthur," he said calmly. "I told you I would be able to perform it soon, and the sooner the better. We are able to perform it tonight, if it would be alright with you." He told the slightly taken aback ministry official staring at him. Dumbledore smiled.
"Of course!" Arthur said, once he had regained his composure. "Of course!" He repeated. "Give me a few moments to collect the children and Molly, and we will be ready to do whatever you need." He promised the headmaster, eagerly willing to do anything in his power to help this process. He came down from his short high quickly though, and his happiness ebbed. "Err, Dumbledore," he asked, looking down at the head once again. Dumbledore looked at him expectantly, silently urging him to continue. "Well, have you found anything on that ring that I showed you earlier?" he asked, his face apprehensive.
Dumbledore's face darkened at the mention of it, and Arthur sat on the floor for a moment to collect himself. This could not be good. "No," the headmaster told him shortly. "And I've been asking around for a while. No one seems to know of anyone that would put the Dark Mark in a piece of muggle jewelry. It just doesn't make sense. Voldemort (Arthur cringed at the name, but said nothing as he continued) hates muggles, why would he put any of his signs on any muggle artifact?" he looked thoughtful for a moment, but snapped back to attention to look at Arthur, who was staring.
"Right then. Thank you ever so much Albus," he said graciously, getting up to stretch. "I shall go and collect the children, and Molly, and you shall.. .?" he paused, not knowing how the headmaster had planned this.
"I will apparate there, with the colleagues that we need to help perform the charm, and the tools. Its quite a complicated charm, for which all of your family must be present." Dumbledore smiled to himself at the idea of all of the Weasleys in a small room together for more that a few moments. Utter chaos. Arthur just nodded, having some idea of what the headmaster was smiling about left the room as the small 'pop!' told him that Dumbledore's head had left the fireplace.
When all of the party needed for the task was present in the Weasley's dining room, they were all very cramped. Firstly, Dumbledore was present, accompanied by a very small wizard who happened to be the top wizard in Charms in Britain, Professor Flitwick. Also present was the deputy headmistress of Hogwarts, Professor McGonagall. Add that to the mass confusion of eight children and two aggravated parents, and Dumbledore's prediction had been correct. It was utter Chaos.
It took a few whistles on Mr. Weasley's part to silence the children, but they finally had peace. Dumbledore nodded at him in thanks, and then turned to the rest of the people present.
"Thank you all for attending." He told them, his eyes dancing. "We are going to perform a very complex charm on the Weasley household. One that will keep you all separated from the wizarding world for however long is necessary. There were many worried faces among the children, but Molly assured them that everything would be fine, as long as everyone did exactly as the headmaster said.
The only one to answer he was Ron, who was being held by Bill, with a gleeful "Dumbledee help!" Everyone in the room laughed at this, and the tension that had crept upon them with Dumbledore' s words eased.
Arthur and Molly situated the children on the run down couches and chairs, hoping that they would not get too bored and decide to ruin the spell. All they needed to do was be good for a little while. Unfortunately, both parents knew how futile that request was of their children.
After a moment of blissful silence, Dumbledore cleared his throat, and all eyes turned towards him. "Right then. Shall we get right into it then?" he asked, though no one expected to answer.
"How long will you expect this to take, Albus?" Professor McGonagall said with a meaningful glance at the eight restless children on the couches. Dumbledore got the message, however vague it was, and turned to the rest of the onlookers.
"Yes, yes. Well, we won't take too much time," he told them, his eyes twinkling yet again. Arthur wondered wildly for a moment if they ever stopped twinkling. 'That'll be the day,' he thought 'when Dumbledore's eyes no longer twinkle, the world will have serious problems.' He came back to attention as the headmaster went on.
"This should not take over an hour, but I am afraid that the children, and yourselves," he said, looking gravely at Mr. And Mrs. Weasley, "will need to remain unmoving for the entire time."
The children looked appalled at sitting still for that long, but said nothing as Mrs. Weasley rounded on them.
"Hear that? All of you, sit still, and don't say anything. This won't take too long." She told her children, all of who were looking very uncomfortable at the thought of doing nothing for more than five minutes. The twins, sitting on Percy's and Charlie's lap, looked particularly lively and Molly thought she saw a glimmer of mischief in both their eyes. She overlooked it for the moment, but made a mental note to have a talk with them about that. She took a swift glance at all of the children. They were doing this to protect them, all of them. She prayed it would work. With bright eyes, she turned back to the adults.
"Ready," she told them, looking determinedly at Dumbledore. "Let's do this." She reached out, and Arthur took her hand automatically. Dumbledore nodded, and turned to both professors behind him.
"Do we have all the necessary supplies?" he asked Professor Flitwick, looking down at the small wizard.
"Quite right," he squeaked back, craning his head to look at Dumbledore. "Everything needed is here."
Dumbledore nodded in approval, and answered, "Then let us begin."
The three professors formed a triangle in the Weasley's living room, and began to chant arcane words that no one else understood. The entire spell took a little more than an hour, and consisted of the three professors chanting, and throwing a bit of a herb, or a chip of some kind into the center of their triangle. The whole room was lit with a brilliant, pale blue light, that somehow gave comfort to all watching.
The children gazed at them, entranced at the three teachers working such a huge magic in their very own living room. Bill and Charlie had never known how powerful their teachers were, but felt a deep appreciation and awe for all three of them. There was no trace of mischief in any child's eyes. They were wondered at the intensity of it all.
Arthur and Molly stood, holding hands through the entire ceremony, gazing steadily at the three powerful wizards working a dangerous magic on their home. they could feel when the forces of protection were called, and when the home itself, and the atoms around it changed in frequency slightly. It was a eerie feeling; one that neither of them liked, but both knew that it meant safety for their family. They were willing to go through anything to protect the eight children sitting on the couch next to them. Anything.
When Dumbledore broke the triangle of professors, and spoke a word of power that gave the air an electric charge, the Weasley's all knew that they were done. Dumbledore himself looked slightly ill, and the other two looked none the worse for ware. Arhtur and Molly helped them all to a seat on a run down chair, and Molly bustled to the kitchen to make a pot of tea.
"can we move now?" came a small voice from the couch in the corner of the room. The four grownups looked, amused, at the begging eyes of most of the children. Dumbledore laughed, and his eyes twinkled once more.
"Yes, children," he told them kindly, "you may go. But remember, you cannot leave the house until your parents tell you you can." He told them seriously.
The older children cheered, and leapt off the couch, Percy setting Ginny in her rocker before running to join the others. The twins were a few steps behind their brothers, and Ron was still trying to get off the couch, his feet dangling over the edge, trying desperately to touch the floor. Everyone, including Molly, who had just arrived with a pot of tea and a tray of cups, laughed as the seven children run out of the room (Ron now waddling as fast as was possible to catch up with his brothers).
"Have some tea, please, before you leave." Molly offered the wane professors. They accepted readily, and soon all five of them were sitting in a chair, discussing quietly the growing pressures of He-who-must-not-be- named, and the effectiveness of this charm.
As Dumbledore signaled that it was reaching time to leave, he stood. "Thank you very much, Molly dear, for the tea." He told her, and turned to his companions. "Come Minerva, Caspan, it is time we leave." Turning to the Weasley's, he told them gently, "Contact me through the fire if anything happens. Don't hesitate." He gave Molly a small hug, and turned back to the professors. "Let us go then." And with a wave of their wands, they disaparated from the Weasley household, leaving two parents with eight hyperactive children, in one small house.
Sighing, Molly went to Ginny's carrier, an old one of Bill's, and brought the baby up to her shoulder. She turned to her husband, who looked as worried about the situation at hand as she felt, and they trudged upstairs together, trying hard to ignore the constant yelling, various bangs and booms, and the chaos that was their home.
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A/N: So… what do you all think?!?!? I hope you like it… From the number of reviews I think it sux, but oh well… I like writing it, so if you like it review and tell me what you think, if you hate it and think I am the spawn a Satan for creating such a horrible story and plotline, then flame me!!! But please put at least a smidgeon of constructive critisim in the flames… it does help. Well, maybe it does, I've never been flamed, so I don't know…. Oh well! I hope you do like it, and tell me what I should do or am doing wrong! That's how this whole review thing works! I give you story, you give me review, (or a flame, depending on how you thought of the story!!) =D Catch y'all later
Ps. I will try and post more regularly, but don't count on it. Finals are coming, and my teachers are all evil!! Ttfn!
Chapter Four: The Spell
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. They belong to JKR, and I own the plot. (I think)
Oo00ooOOoo00ooOOoo00ooOOoo
When Arthur arrived back at the burrow, he was greeted by scurrying children, and crying babies. Ron seemed to be having a tantrum about some toy. At least, Arthur thought it was a toy. Ron just kept shouting, "Give back! Me want!" while stomping his feet on the floor. The rest of the household ignored him; they were used to baby tantrums and fits around here. Ginny was sleeping in a carrier on the couch, much to Arthur's surprise. How could she sleep in all this racket that the kids were making? When Arthur went further into the house he found Molly. She was in the kitchen preparing dinner for the family. It seemed to be a bit extravagant for a normal night, but Arthur wasn't too surprised. Molly seemed to like to cook to get rid of her emotions, being fear, anger, or both.
"Hello Molly dear,' he told her, setting his cloak on a chair, and kissing Molly lightly on the cheek from behind. Her only reply was to lean back slightly, letting her husband take her weight for a moment. The moment did not last long however. Charlie came in a few moments later, screaming that Bill had thrown a pile of dragon dung on him and ruined his robes. Bill came in a moment later defending himself forcefully. Molly handled it by glowering at both boys until they stopped, and telling them to sit in a corner until they could calm down long enough to not yell and accuse. Both boys went upstairs sulking, and glaring at the other.
Arthur just smiled. It was good to be home. He had been away from home way too often these days. With the Dark Lord rising, most ministry members were on call twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Arthur was lucky to have gotten one day off, and look what had happened to it now. It was full of fear of you-know-who again. Arthur sighed. Molly turned to look at him after a moment of silence.
"What did he say?" she asked quietly. She didn't even have to mention who or what. He knew what she was talking about.
"He told me he didn't know," he told his wife, equally quiet, as if trying to keep out any eavesdropping children.
"How could Dumbledore not know about something?" she asked him fearfully. The idea that the most powerful wizard in the world did not know what that thing had been was unsettling to Molly. Especially when they had found the Dark Mark on their property. The experience was chilling.
"He is only human after all, Molly." Arthur told her gently. "You can't expect him to be all knowing." Molly nodded at this, but said nothing. It didn't seem that words could have expressed her feelings at the moment. He understood. He strode across the small kitchen, and wrapped Molly into a hug, ignoring the world in chaos around them for a moment.
But than Ron began to scream again, and Ginny began to cry, and Fred, (or was it George) came streaming through the house with nothing but his underwear on. Arthur rolled his eyes at his children. They could be so strange sometimes. He wondered for a moment where they got that, but left the matter be when he went to calm Ginny and tell Ron to hush.
The house went about its normal business for a while and finally sat down to dinner at the slightly cramped table in the dining room, that was connected to the kitchen. The meal was finished without disaster that night, and everyone was settling into their evening activities, when there was a small 'pop!' at the fireplace, and a head appeared in the flames.
The children who were in the room at the time, Bill, Charlie and Ron, were astounded, until they recognized the head.
"Professor Dumbledore?!" Bill asked incredulously. Dumbledore just smiled, and asked for Arthur.
"Dad!" screamed Charlie, not bothering to move. "Dad! There's a head in the fireplace asking for you!" Arthur came bundling down the stairs at top speed and looked at the scene before him. Dumbledore's head sat in the fireplace with that merry twinkle in his eyes, looking calmly at the boys, who were staring back at him, apparently awed that their headmaster's head was in their fireplace. Arthur wasted no time, however.
"Boys," he told them firmly, "take your brother upstairs please, and tell your mother who called." He walked over to Dumbledore, and leaned down to the grate and began to speak in hushed voices with him. Bill and Charlie, as much as they would have liked to stay, decided it would be best to leave before someone got angry. It was known to happen when people called his father from the fire.
"So, Albus," Arthur said as he crouched down to be closer to the headmaster's head. "Any news on how to perform the charm?" he asked tersely, not knowing if he wanted to hear the answer.
"Of course, Arthur," he said calmly. "I told you I would be able to perform it soon, and the sooner the better. We are able to perform it tonight, if it would be alright with you." He told the slightly taken aback ministry official staring at him. Dumbledore smiled.
"Of course!" Arthur said, once he had regained his composure. "Of course!" He repeated. "Give me a few moments to collect the children and Molly, and we will be ready to do whatever you need." He promised the headmaster, eagerly willing to do anything in his power to help this process. He came down from his short high quickly though, and his happiness ebbed. "Err, Dumbledore," he asked, looking down at the head once again. Dumbledore looked at him expectantly, silently urging him to continue. "Well, have you found anything on that ring that I showed you earlier?" he asked, his face apprehensive.
Dumbledore's face darkened at the mention of it, and Arthur sat on the floor for a moment to collect himself. This could not be good. "No," the headmaster told him shortly. "And I've been asking around for a while. No one seems to know of anyone that would put the Dark Mark in a piece of muggle jewelry. It just doesn't make sense. Voldemort (Arthur cringed at the name, but said nothing as he continued) hates muggles, why would he put any of his signs on any muggle artifact?" he looked thoughtful for a moment, but snapped back to attention to look at Arthur, who was staring.
"Right then. Thank you ever so much Albus," he said graciously, getting up to stretch. "I shall go and collect the children, and Molly, and you shall.. .?" he paused, not knowing how the headmaster had planned this.
"I will apparate there, with the colleagues that we need to help perform the charm, and the tools. Its quite a complicated charm, for which all of your family must be present." Dumbledore smiled to himself at the idea of all of the Weasleys in a small room together for more that a few moments. Utter chaos. Arthur just nodded, having some idea of what the headmaster was smiling about left the room as the small 'pop!' told him that Dumbledore's head had left the fireplace.
When all of the party needed for the task was present in the Weasley's dining room, they were all very cramped. Firstly, Dumbledore was present, accompanied by a very small wizard who happened to be the top wizard in Charms in Britain, Professor Flitwick. Also present was the deputy headmistress of Hogwarts, Professor McGonagall. Add that to the mass confusion of eight children and two aggravated parents, and Dumbledore's prediction had been correct. It was utter Chaos.
It took a few whistles on Mr. Weasley's part to silence the children, but they finally had peace. Dumbledore nodded at him in thanks, and then turned to the rest of the people present.
"Thank you all for attending." He told them, his eyes dancing. "We are going to perform a very complex charm on the Weasley household. One that will keep you all separated from the wizarding world for however long is necessary. There were many worried faces among the children, but Molly assured them that everything would be fine, as long as everyone did exactly as the headmaster said.
The only one to answer he was Ron, who was being held by Bill, with a gleeful "Dumbledee help!" Everyone in the room laughed at this, and the tension that had crept upon them with Dumbledore' s words eased.
Arthur and Molly situated the children on the run down couches and chairs, hoping that they would not get too bored and decide to ruin the spell. All they needed to do was be good for a little while. Unfortunately, both parents knew how futile that request was of their children.
After a moment of blissful silence, Dumbledore cleared his throat, and all eyes turned towards him. "Right then. Shall we get right into it then?" he asked, though no one expected to answer.
"How long will you expect this to take, Albus?" Professor McGonagall said with a meaningful glance at the eight restless children on the couches. Dumbledore got the message, however vague it was, and turned to the rest of the onlookers.
"Yes, yes. Well, we won't take too much time," he told them, his eyes twinkling yet again. Arthur wondered wildly for a moment if they ever stopped twinkling. 'That'll be the day,' he thought 'when Dumbledore's eyes no longer twinkle, the world will have serious problems.' He came back to attention as the headmaster went on.
"This should not take over an hour, but I am afraid that the children, and yourselves," he said, looking gravely at Mr. And Mrs. Weasley, "will need to remain unmoving for the entire time."
The children looked appalled at sitting still for that long, but said nothing as Mrs. Weasley rounded on them.
"Hear that? All of you, sit still, and don't say anything. This won't take too long." She told her children, all of who were looking very uncomfortable at the thought of doing nothing for more than five minutes. The twins, sitting on Percy's and Charlie's lap, looked particularly lively and Molly thought she saw a glimmer of mischief in both their eyes. She overlooked it for the moment, but made a mental note to have a talk with them about that. She took a swift glance at all of the children. They were doing this to protect them, all of them. She prayed it would work. With bright eyes, she turned back to the adults.
"Ready," she told them, looking determinedly at Dumbledore. "Let's do this." She reached out, and Arthur took her hand automatically. Dumbledore nodded, and turned to both professors behind him.
"Do we have all the necessary supplies?" he asked Professor Flitwick, looking down at the small wizard.
"Quite right," he squeaked back, craning his head to look at Dumbledore. "Everything needed is here."
Dumbledore nodded in approval, and answered, "Then let us begin."
The three professors formed a triangle in the Weasley's living room, and began to chant arcane words that no one else understood. The entire spell took a little more than an hour, and consisted of the three professors chanting, and throwing a bit of a herb, or a chip of some kind into the center of their triangle. The whole room was lit with a brilliant, pale blue light, that somehow gave comfort to all watching.
The children gazed at them, entranced at the three teachers working such a huge magic in their very own living room. Bill and Charlie had never known how powerful their teachers were, but felt a deep appreciation and awe for all three of them. There was no trace of mischief in any child's eyes. They were wondered at the intensity of it all.
Arthur and Molly stood, holding hands through the entire ceremony, gazing steadily at the three powerful wizards working a dangerous magic on their home. they could feel when the forces of protection were called, and when the home itself, and the atoms around it changed in frequency slightly. It was a eerie feeling; one that neither of them liked, but both knew that it meant safety for their family. They were willing to go through anything to protect the eight children sitting on the couch next to them. Anything.
When Dumbledore broke the triangle of professors, and spoke a word of power that gave the air an electric charge, the Weasley's all knew that they were done. Dumbledore himself looked slightly ill, and the other two looked none the worse for ware. Arhtur and Molly helped them all to a seat on a run down chair, and Molly bustled to the kitchen to make a pot of tea.
"can we move now?" came a small voice from the couch in the corner of the room. The four grownups looked, amused, at the begging eyes of most of the children. Dumbledore laughed, and his eyes twinkled once more.
"Yes, children," he told them kindly, "you may go. But remember, you cannot leave the house until your parents tell you you can." He told them seriously.
The older children cheered, and leapt off the couch, Percy setting Ginny in her rocker before running to join the others. The twins were a few steps behind their brothers, and Ron was still trying to get off the couch, his feet dangling over the edge, trying desperately to touch the floor. Everyone, including Molly, who had just arrived with a pot of tea and a tray of cups, laughed as the seven children run out of the room (Ron now waddling as fast as was possible to catch up with his brothers).
"Have some tea, please, before you leave." Molly offered the wane professors. They accepted readily, and soon all five of them were sitting in a chair, discussing quietly the growing pressures of He-who-must-not-be- named, and the effectiveness of this charm.
As Dumbledore signaled that it was reaching time to leave, he stood. "Thank you very much, Molly dear, for the tea." He told her, and turned to his companions. "Come Minerva, Caspan, it is time we leave." Turning to the Weasley's, he told them gently, "Contact me through the fire if anything happens. Don't hesitate." He gave Molly a small hug, and turned back to the professors. "Let us go then." And with a wave of their wands, they disaparated from the Weasley household, leaving two parents with eight hyperactive children, in one small house.
Sighing, Molly went to Ginny's carrier, an old one of Bill's, and brought the baby up to her shoulder. She turned to her husband, who looked as worried about the situation at hand as she felt, and they trudged upstairs together, trying hard to ignore the constant yelling, various bangs and booms, and the chaos that was their home.
Oo00ooOOoo00ooOOoo00ooOOoo00ooOOoo
A/N: So… what do you all think?!?!? I hope you like it… From the number of reviews I think it sux, but oh well… I like writing it, so if you like it review and tell me what you think, if you hate it and think I am the spawn a Satan for creating such a horrible story and plotline, then flame me!!! But please put at least a smidgeon of constructive critisim in the flames… it does help. Well, maybe it does, I've never been flamed, so I don't know…. Oh well! I hope you do like it, and tell me what I should do or am doing wrong! That's how this whole review thing works! I give you story, you give me review, (or a flame, depending on how you thought of the story!!) =D Catch y'all later
Ps. I will try and post more regularly, but don't count on it. Finals are coming, and my teachers are all evil!! Ttfn!