Chapter IV
"Wake up, you two." Harry blinked sharply in the bright sunlight streaming in from the window. "Get ready to go. Breakfast is ready downstairs." Harry slowly sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He could hear the groaning from under the ball of sheets on Ron's bed. Harry breathed in the sweet aroma of doughnuts and hot tea. Harry stretched and went to wake Ron.
"Ron." Harry shook his shoulder. An indistinguishable series of muffled mumbling emitted from under the covers. "C'mon, Ron!" Harry said, slightly louder. "Breakfast!" As if by magic words, a head full of ruffled blazing red hair poked up from beneath the sea of Chudley Cannons bed sheets.
"Smells like doughnuts," Ron said, stretching. Harry and Ron raced down to the kitchen, where everyone was finishing up, and a sack of powdered doughnuts lay in the center of the table.
"I see you two have decided to join us," Mrs. Weasley said as she pointed her wand at the fryer near the sink, which began to fill with suds.
"I'm going to go ahead and tell the Grangers we may be a little late," Mr. Weasley said, pushing in his chair and eyeing Harry and Ron, who both were still in their pajamas. Ginny jumped from her seat, looking down at her feet.
"Can I go with you, Dad?" Harry thought he saw her glance in his direction for a moment, but he hardly noticed as he started on his second doughnut. "I'm ready to go." She looked at Mr. Weasley, who nodded.
"Sure. Grab your suitcase." Ginny whisked past Harry and followed her father into the adjacent room.
"You boys had better finish," Mrs. Weasley said, conducting the dish rags in their work with her wand.
''C'mon, let's go wash up," Harry said, getting up from the table and nudging Ron.
"Alright," Ron managed through a mouthful. He snatched two doughnuts off his plate, and the boys hurried to the upstairs loo.
"You okay?" he asked Harry, looking at him in the mirror. "You look a little disoriented."
"Yeah, I'm fine," he lied. He paused for a few moments then, "Did you know that your sister didn't send the, er...valentine to me in our second year?" Ron swiveled around and grabbed Harry by the shoulders.
"Harry, please tell me that's not what you're upset about. I mean, c'mon, that was three years ago." Harry shrugged his shoulders.
"Well, we never actually knew who sent it; we just assumed it was her." Ron had a very pained look on his face as he shook his head, almost sympathetically.
"I cannot believe that I'm having this conversation with my best friend," he said in an undertone to himself. "Harry, it's Ginny. My sister. Forget about it." He said, pronouncing every syllable very loudly.
"I know, I didn't mean that-" Ron cut him off.
"Good." There was an awkward silence before Harry asked,
"Where do you keep your sponges?" Ron opened a cabinet and tossed Harry a sponge.
"Are you sure you're alright? You're freaking me out here." Harry threw the sponge back at Ron.
"I'm fine."
"Phew!" Ron spat a mouthful of frothing bubbles while Harry hurriedly rubbed a towel through his wet hair. Ron gurgled with a glass of water, spat again, then turned to Harry.
"So Ginny didn't send the valentine" Ron grabbed a comb and ran it through his hair. "Then who was it?" Ron grabbed a small black bottle from the cupboard and, quick as lightning, dabbed it on his neck and shoved it back in.
"What was that?" Harry asked with a smirk.
"What? Um..." Ron looked at the mirror nervously. Harry reached for the cupboard and grabbed the bottle. "It's just a little cologne." Ron squealed. "Please don't tell Fred and George," Ron begged. Harry laughed, just as he heard Mrs. Weasley's voice booming from downstairs.
"C'mon boys, we're already late!" Harry ran down the steps as Ron threw on a T-shirt and fumbled with his belt. They reached the bottom of the stairs and Mrs. Weasley guided them towards the fireplace. Harry got an uneasy feeling in his stomach.
"Not again…" Mrs. Weasley patted his shoulder.
"There, there dear. Just try to relax and remember to enunciate. Ron will go first, then you. I'll follow up behind. Grab you're suitcases, and hold on tight to them. It's such a bother going through the Ministry's Floo Powder Baggage Claims, and you don't want to wear the same clothes the whole trip." Mrs. Weasley handed Ron a slip of paper, and he read the address off from it. He was gone in a whirl and Harry stepped towards the fireplace. Mrs. Weasley handed him another piece of paper with the same address. He clutched the paper tight in his left hand and his luggage even tighter in his right.
"Twelve Sycamore Way, Stafford, England." Harry pronounced carefully. Within a few minutes Harry emerged through the green ash to see the rest of the Weasleys, Hermione and her parents and a boy he'd never seen before. Ron and the twins immediately rushed to help brush the ash off of Harry's shoulders and hair. In a minute, Mrs. Weasley appeared and introductions began. Harry already knew Hermione's parents and was extremely anxious for Hermione to get to the older boy.
"This is my mom and dad, and this is my older brother Kurt. He's in college now." Harry and Ron looked at each other in surprise. Hermione had never mentioned a brother before. Harry could remember that she may have mentioned the name Kurt before, but she had never said that he was her brother.
Nevertheless, they all smiled and said hello. While Mr. and Mrs. Weasley drifted over to chat with Hermione's parents, Ron and Harry went to catch up with Hermione. Harry noticed that Mr. Weasley wasted no time and immediately drew Mr. Granger over to the television set near the window.
"Does it really rot your brain?" Mr. Weasley asked in a serious voice.
"Hey, Hermie! Long time, no see," Ron said sarcastically. Hermione glared at him.
"You sound like a bloody Neanderthal!" Just then, Fred and George entered the conversation.
"Oh, Ron, you forgot your club." Fred stood in a hunch and pretended to hit Ron over the head with an imaginary club while George made ape noises.
Hermione rolled her eyes and Kurt made a pretentious "hmph" sound through his nose.
"So," Harry interrupted, "What's this new job of yours?" Hermione blushed.
"Well, it's not much, but I need the money to buy my car when I turn 18." Ron interrupted her.
"But that's almost 3 years away!
"Wake up, you two." Harry blinked sharply in the bright sunlight streaming in from the window. "Get ready to go. Breakfast is ready downstairs." Harry slowly sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He could hear the groaning from under the ball of sheets on Ron's bed. Harry breathed in the sweet aroma of doughnuts and hot tea. Harry stretched and went to wake Ron.
"Ron." Harry shook his shoulder. An indistinguishable series of muffled mumbling emitted from under the covers. "C'mon, Ron!" Harry said, slightly louder. "Breakfast!" As if by magic words, a head full of ruffled blazing red hair poked up from beneath the sea of Chudley Cannons bed sheets.
"Smells like doughnuts," Ron said, stretching. Harry and Ron raced down to the kitchen, where everyone was finishing up, and a sack of powdered doughnuts lay in the center of the table.
"I see you two have decided to join us," Mrs. Weasley said as she pointed her wand at the fryer near the sink, which began to fill with suds.
"I'm going to go ahead and tell the Grangers we may be a little late," Mr. Weasley said, pushing in his chair and eyeing Harry and Ron, who both were still in their pajamas. Ginny jumped from her seat, looking down at her feet.
"Can I go with you, Dad?" Harry thought he saw her glance in his direction for a moment, but he hardly noticed as he started on his second doughnut. "I'm ready to go." She looked at Mr. Weasley, who nodded.
"Sure. Grab your suitcase." Ginny whisked past Harry and followed her father into the adjacent room.
"You boys had better finish," Mrs. Weasley said, conducting the dish rags in their work with her wand.
''C'mon, let's go wash up," Harry said, getting up from the table and nudging Ron.
"Alright," Ron managed through a mouthful. He snatched two doughnuts off his plate, and the boys hurried to the upstairs loo.
"You okay?" he asked Harry, looking at him in the mirror. "You look a little disoriented."
"Yeah, I'm fine," he lied. He paused for a few moments then, "Did you know that your sister didn't send the, er...valentine to me in our second year?" Ron swiveled around and grabbed Harry by the shoulders.
"Harry, please tell me that's not what you're upset about. I mean, c'mon, that was three years ago." Harry shrugged his shoulders.
"Well, we never actually knew who sent it; we just assumed it was her." Ron had a very pained look on his face as he shook his head, almost sympathetically.
"I cannot believe that I'm having this conversation with my best friend," he said in an undertone to himself. "Harry, it's Ginny. My sister. Forget about it." He said, pronouncing every syllable very loudly.
"I know, I didn't mean that-" Ron cut him off.
"Good." There was an awkward silence before Harry asked,
"Where do you keep your sponges?" Ron opened a cabinet and tossed Harry a sponge.
"Are you sure you're alright? You're freaking me out here." Harry threw the sponge back at Ron.
"I'm fine."
"Phew!" Ron spat a mouthful of frothing bubbles while Harry hurriedly rubbed a towel through his wet hair. Ron gurgled with a glass of water, spat again, then turned to Harry.
"So Ginny didn't send the valentine" Ron grabbed a comb and ran it through his hair. "Then who was it?" Ron grabbed a small black bottle from the cupboard and, quick as lightning, dabbed it on his neck and shoved it back in.
"What was that?" Harry asked with a smirk.
"What? Um..." Ron looked at the mirror nervously. Harry reached for the cupboard and grabbed the bottle. "It's just a little cologne." Ron squealed. "Please don't tell Fred and George," Ron begged. Harry laughed, just as he heard Mrs. Weasley's voice booming from downstairs.
"C'mon boys, we're already late!" Harry ran down the steps as Ron threw on a T-shirt and fumbled with his belt. They reached the bottom of the stairs and Mrs. Weasley guided them towards the fireplace. Harry got an uneasy feeling in his stomach.
"Not again…" Mrs. Weasley patted his shoulder.
"There, there dear. Just try to relax and remember to enunciate. Ron will go first, then you. I'll follow up behind. Grab you're suitcases, and hold on tight to them. It's such a bother going through the Ministry's Floo Powder Baggage Claims, and you don't want to wear the same clothes the whole trip." Mrs. Weasley handed Ron a slip of paper, and he read the address off from it. He was gone in a whirl and Harry stepped towards the fireplace. Mrs. Weasley handed him another piece of paper with the same address. He clutched the paper tight in his left hand and his luggage even tighter in his right.
"Twelve Sycamore Way, Stafford, England." Harry pronounced carefully. Within a few minutes Harry emerged through the green ash to see the rest of the Weasleys, Hermione and her parents and a boy he'd never seen before. Ron and the twins immediately rushed to help brush the ash off of Harry's shoulders and hair. In a minute, Mrs. Weasley appeared and introductions began. Harry already knew Hermione's parents and was extremely anxious for Hermione to get to the older boy.
"This is my mom and dad, and this is my older brother Kurt. He's in college now." Harry and Ron looked at each other in surprise. Hermione had never mentioned a brother before. Harry could remember that she may have mentioned the name Kurt before, but she had never said that he was her brother.
Nevertheless, they all smiled and said hello. While Mr. and Mrs. Weasley drifted over to chat with Hermione's parents, Ron and Harry went to catch up with Hermione. Harry noticed that Mr. Weasley wasted no time and immediately drew Mr. Granger over to the television set near the window.
"Does it really rot your brain?" Mr. Weasley asked in a serious voice.
"Hey, Hermie! Long time, no see," Ron said sarcastically. Hermione glared at him.
"You sound like a bloody Neanderthal!" Just then, Fred and George entered the conversation.
"Oh, Ron, you forgot your club." Fred stood in a hunch and pretended to hit Ron over the head with an imaginary club while George made ape noises.
Hermione rolled her eyes and Kurt made a pretentious "hmph" sound through his nose.
"So," Harry interrupted, "What's this new job of yours?" Hermione blushed.
"Well, it's not much, but I need the money to buy my car when I turn 18." Ron interrupted her.
"But that's almost 3 years away!
