**HP is not mine. It's JK's. I can only dream.
-The First Escapade-
Upon entering the fifth year room, Roxanne stared at her bed in amazement. It was perfect. The bed was a four post made with dark-stained oak and had crimson red curtains hanging down from the bed. The pillows alternated in golds and reds. The comforter was gold and the sheets were the same color as the red pillows. Roxanne's trunk sat at the foot of her bed. On top of the trunk lay many bundles wrapped in cardboard paper. She picked up the first bundle and discovered four medium-length gray skirts, four gray v- neck sweaters with the v of the neck lined in red and gold and adorned with the crest of the Gryffindor house on the left breast, four pairs of gray knee-high socks, four white oxford shirts, and two red and gold stripped ties. Roxanne was all too giddy and laid each set of clothing out on her bed. In the next bundle there was one red and gold stripped scarf, three black work robes also adorned with the Gryffindor house crest, one black cape, and one pair of midnight blue dress robes. Two sets of pajamas were in the next bundle she opened up. The next had her broomstick, a moontrimmer, which she petted adoringly. A coin purse sat below all of the bundles with enough spending money to last her for the rest of the year. At the foot of her trunk sat two pairs of black mary-janes and a rather unpleasantly large pile of textbooks. Her barn owl sat in his cage near the window. Hearing him hoot, Roxanne walked over and opened up his cage, gently petting the back of his head,
"Hello Romulus. Have a nice trip?"
Romulus hooted affectionately.
"Well that's great. Now you go on out there and have a little fun and once you're done you can go up and rest in the owlery and make some new friends okay?" Roxanne began to stroke his beak and then significantly lowered her voice, "You and me, Romulus, we're just alike. We've got to start again here. We can do it." She smiled weakly and then opened the window and watched Romulus fly out.
Roxanne had walked back to the foot of her bed and opened her trunk, which already had personal belongings and other muggle clothing inside, and took out a very worn, stuffed, brown bunny and placed it on her bed. She then moved her socks into her trunk and walked to the bureau opposite of her bed. She picked up a few hangers and hung up her clothes in the bureau, smiling. She then changed out of her jeans and tee-shirt into her new pajamas.
Roxanne walked back to her bed and belly flopped on it, mussing the sheets up significantly. After a rare moment that lacked movement, she took out the letter Professor McGonagall had given her and turned onto her back, opened the letter and began to read it to herself,
Roxanne,
Welcome to our family! Mrs. Weasly and I are so very happy to
have you with us now. Your father was a wonderful man and when
you are old enough there is much more for you to know about him.
On to happier matters, eh? We all look forward to having you at
the Burrow this summer, Charlie and Bill will be joining us for
some time - do you have any interest in dragons? Your father
seemed to love to brag about your handle of magical creatures.
Anyway! If you have any questions or concerns please write to me
or Mrs. Weasly, or ask any of the boys or Ginny; we're all more
than willing to help you. Wishing you the best and a wonderful
year,
Mr. Weasley
Roxanne held the parchment to her chest and hugged it, smiling warmly. She then folded it back up and hid it under her mattress. She was about to walk back downstairs when she was confronted by Hermione
"McGonagall just called bedtime; you've got to stay up here until morning."
"I just wanted to say goodnight to Harry."
"Nope, sorry. Rules are rules."
"More like guidelines I'd say."
The two girls glared at one another. Roxanne took a few steps back to her bed, grabbed a brush out of her trunk and began to unbraid her hair. At that point Roxanne's head disappeared under a mess of hair and she began a long brushing process.
"Wow, you really are related to Harry, aren't you?"
Hermione said with raised eyebrows. Although it couldn't be seen from under her hair, Roxanne glared at her.
"Why did you transfer here anyway?"
Roxanne waited for a long moment before answering, weighting out the pros and cons of telling her and not telling her.
"I had a tutor who was retired from working here. After father died, he got an owl that I read that she wouldn't be able to teach anymore. And almost immediately another owl arrived from Professor Dumbledore saying that I was invited to attend Hogwarts. And before I knew it my trunk seemed to pack itself and the Knight Bus was there to take me to my guardians' home.but I didn't know who they were until I got there."
"So the Weasley's didn't know they were you guardians?"
Roxanne shook her head,
"I didn't even know they were until I arrived there this morning. Everyone else had already left by the time that the Knight Bus got me to the Burrow. Mrs. Weasley was the only one home and she used some flu powder to get me to the ministry and then we went and looked for Mr. Weasley but we couldn't find him so we had to find another way there and so we thought 'easy explanation - Knight Bus!' And so I went on it again but it only left me at the gates and so I had to trudge all the entrance in all that rain and-"
"Yes, I know the rest."
By this time Roxanne's hair had been toned down as much as it seemed that it would and she began to turn down her bed.
"Anything else you'd like to ask before I turn in?"
The attitude in her voice was rather obvious. Hermione, as always, had another question, expecting another complete answer,
"What exactly do you think you're safe from at Hogwarts?"
"I don't know."
"What do you mean, you don't know?!"
"I," Roxanne pointed to herself, "don't," she waved her hands in front of her face, "know," she pointed to her head. "Now. If you'll so kindly shut your trap I would like to get some sleep. It's been a long day."
And with that, Roxanne pulled the curtains to her bed down and disappeared within them leaving a dumbfounded Hermione.
Hours later, after she was sure the other girls in the room were asleep, Roxanne began to cry while hugging her stuffed bunny as if someone was trying to pry it from her arms. In the dark, alone, she got out of bed and made her way to the bathroom to retrieve some tissues, but as she passed the doorway to the stairs, she heard the voices of two whispering boys.
"Where's Lee?" one voice asked,
"The git won't wake up and hits you when you try to." The other replied
"We'll just have to do this without him then," said the first.
"Hello?" Roxanne whispered, sticking her head out the doorway after silently opening the door. The Weasley twins, in their pajamas, froze for a moment and then hid whatever they held in their hands behind their backs and smiled with a suspicious innocence. Roxanne stepped into the hallway, hoping the darkness would hide her face, red and warm from recent tears. "What are you doing?"
"What are you doing, Ms. Potter?" Fred asked with an emphasis on the 'you.'
"I asked first."
"Testing." George said quickly, Fred nodding affirmatively. There was a moment of odd silence, before Roxanne asked a second question,
"Testing what?"
"Nothing." They both replied
"Oh?" Roxanne said, trying to look behind them. They both turned, synchronized, with their backs now to the wall. "'Nothing' certainly looks rather bulky. Last I checked 'nothing' was the equivalent of thin air. So it wouldn't matter if I was to pull your arm away." Roxanne reached for George's arms and was about to pull them from his back when Fred managed to gain a free hand and put his hand on her shoulder,
"Roxy darling you wouldn't."
"I might. What is it?"
Neither Fred nor George responded
"Pranks?"
"Yes." They both sighed.
"Can I help?" she asked without missing a beat.
Fred smiled happily; this girl was into mischief and was already earning herself brownie points with him. Fred looked at George and George nodded, Fred then nodded to Roxanne,
"Certainly."
Very quietly they snuck down the steps. On the last step Roxanne tripped and plummeted to the floor, but Fred caught her before she could accidentally cause such a noise. She mouthed 'sorry' as he helped her back up to her feet.
Although she offered to help, the twins had the operation very well planned for two, obviously planning ahead for Lee's desire to sleep rather than set pranks. The two boys scurried across the common room, planting their tricks here, and enchanting cushions there. Roxanne held various items and objects until a twin passed her by and grabbed it out of her arms. While they ran around the room, she played a game in her head of tracking which one was George and which one was Fred. She was surprisingly skilled in identifying which one was which.
~*~
Ron lay upstairs, tossing and turning in his bed. He could not remember, for the life of him, whether or not he had extinguished the fire in the common room before going to bed. Neither could he remember whether or not he was supposed to. He wasn't sure if the fire was magical or not, even though it was very likely magical, and he surely didn't want the school to burn down. He finally decided to go down and check.
Fred and George had just finished and walked up to Roxanne, still whispering,
"Bang up job"
"I think that was George" she thought
"Yes thanks for your help."
This twin gave her a sly look, it was defiantly Fred. She smiled playfully at him, hoping that he could see her face in the dark.
"Can't wait until I can pay you back."
They made eye contact and Fred had a definite sparkle in his eyes. Unfortunately for them, a voice in a regular volume interrupted the whispered words,
"What's going on? Fred, George?"
Ron looked like a mix of horrified and upset as he pointed at Roxanne
"And dragging her in with you before school's even begun?"
The three looked at Ron, Roxanne especially not sure of what to do. Fred leaned over and whispered in her ear,
"Run."
And like a rabbit, she made a mad dash up to the girls' dormitory. Fortunately for her, boys weren't allowed up there, not even Prefects, and Hermione was still asleep. She quietly shut the door after making it to the fifth year room and then dived into her bed as if her covers were her only protection, although she wished it was Fred, rather than the sheets, around her.
**RR, be my hero! Whoooo hooray for dialogue! Or a lack of hooray? You tell me!
-The First Escapade-
Upon entering the fifth year room, Roxanne stared at her bed in amazement. It was perfect. The bed was a four post made with dark-stained oak and had crimson red curtains hanging down from the bed. The pillows alternated in golds and reds. The comforter was gold and the sheets were the same color as the red pillows. Roxanne's trunk sat at the foot of her bed. On top of the trunk lay many bundles wrapped in cardboard paper. She picked up the first bundle and discovered four medium-length gray skirts, four gray v- neck sweaters with the v of the neck lined in red and gold and adorned with the crest of the Gryffindor house on the left breast, four pairs of gray knee-high socks, four white oxford shirts, and two red and gold stripped ties. Roxanne was all too giddy and laid each set of clothing out on her bed. In the next bundle there was one red and gold stripped scarf, three black work robes also adorned with the Gryffindor house crest, one black cape, and one pair of midnight blue dress robes. Two sets of pajamas were in the next bundle she opened up. The next had her broomstick, a moontrimmer, which she petted adoringly. A coin purse sat below all of the bundles with enough spending money to last her for the rest of the year. At the foot of her trunk sat two pairs of black mary-janes and a rather unpleasantly large pile of textbooks. Her barn owl sat in his cage near the window. Hearing him hoot, Roxanne walked over and opened up his cage, gently petting the back of his head,
"Hello Romulus. Have a nice trip?"
Romulus hooted affectionately.
"Well that's great. Now you go on out there and have a little fun and once you're done you can go up and rest in the owlery and make some new friends okay?" Roxanne began to stroke his beak and then significantly lowered her voice, "You and me, Romulus, we're just alike. We've got to start again here. We can do it." She smiled weakly and then opened the window and watched Romulus fly out.
Roxanne had walked back to the foot of her bed and opened her trunk, which already had personal belongings and other muggle clothing inside, and took out a very worn, stuffed, brown bunny and placed it on her bed. She then moved her socks into her trunk and walked to the bureau opposite of her bed. She picked up a few hangers and hung up her clothes in the bureau, smiling. She then changed out of her jeans and tee-shirt into her new pajamas.
Roxanne walked back to her bed and belly flopped on it, mussing the sheets up significantly. After a rare moment that lacked movement, she took out the letter Professor McGonagall had given her and turned onto her back, opened the letter and began to read it to herself,
Roxanne,
Welcome to our family! Mrs. Weasly and I are so very happy to
have you with us now. Your father was a wonderful man and when
you are old enough there is much more for you to know about him.
On to happier matters, eh? We all look forward to having you at
the Burrow this summer, Charlie and Bill will be joining us for
some time - do you have any interest in dragons? Your father
seemed to love to brag about your handle of magical creatures.
Anyway! If you have any questions or concerns please write to me
or Mrs. Weasly, or ask any of the boys or Ginny; we're all more
than willing to help you. Wishing you the best and a wonderful
year,
Mr. Weasley
Roxanne held the parchment to her chest and hugged it, smiling warmly. She then folded it back up and hid it under her mattress. She was about to walk back downstairs when she was confronted by Hermione
"McGonagall just called bedtime; you've got to stay up here until morning."
"I just wanted to say goodnight to Harry."
"Nope, sorry. Rules are rules."
"More like guidelines I'd say."
The two girls glared at one another. Roxanne took a few steps back to her bed, grabbed a brush out of her trunk and began to unbraid her hair. At that point Roxanne's head disappeared under a mess of hair and she began a long brushing process.
"Wow, you really are related to Harry, aren't you?"
Hermione said with raised eyebrows. Although it couldn't be seen from under her hair, Roxanne glared at her.
"Why did you transfer here anyway?"
Roxanne waited for a long moment before answering, weighting out the pros and cons of telling her and not telling her.
"I had a tutor who was retired from working here. After father died, he got an owl that I read that she wouldn't be able to teach anymore. And almost immediately another owl arrived from Professor Dumbledore saying that I was invited to attend Hogwarts. And before I knew it my trunk seemed to pack itself and the Knight Bus was there to take me to my guardians' home.but I didn't know who they were until I got there."
"So the Weasley's didn't know they were you guardians?"
Roxanne shook her head,
"I didn't even know they were until I arrived there this morning. Everyone else had already left by the time that the Knight Bus got me to the Burrow. Mrs. Weasley was the only one home and she used some flu powder to get me to the ministry and then we went and looked for Mr. Weasley but we couldn't find him so we had to find another way there and so we thought 'easy explanation - Knight Bus!' And so I went on it again but it only left me at the gates and so I had to trudge all the entrance in all that rain and-"
"Yes, I know the rest."
By this time Roxanne's hair had been toned down as much as it seemed that it would and she began to turn down her bed.
"Anything else you'd like to ask before I turn in?"
The attitude in her voice was rather obvious. Hermione, as always, had another question, expecting another complete answer,
"What exactly do you think you're safe from at Hogwarts?"
"I don't know."
"What do you mean, you don't know?!"
"I," Roxanne pointed to herself, "don't," she waved her hands in front of her face, "know," she pointed to her head. "Now. If you'll so kindly shut your trap I would like to get some sleep. It's been a long day."
And with that, Roxanne pulled the curtains to her bed down and disappeared within them leaving a dumbfounded Hermione.
Hours later, after she was sure the other girls in the room were asleep, Roxanne began to cry while hugging her stuffed bunny as if someone was trying to pry it from her arms. In the dark, alone, she got out of bed and made her way to the bathroom to retrieve some tissues, but as she passed the doorway to the stairs, she heard the voices of two whispering boys.
"Where's Lee?" one voice asked,
"The git won't wake up and hits you when you try to." The other replied
"We'll just have to do this without him then," said the first.
"Hello?" Roxanne whispered, sticking her head out the doorway after silently opening the door. The Weasley twins, in their pajamas, froze for a moment and then hid whatever they held in their hands behind their backs and smiled with a suspicious innocence. Roxanne stepped into the hallway, hoping the darkness would hide her face, red and warm from recent tears. "What are you doing?"
"What are you doing, Ms. Potter?" Fred asked with an emphasis on the 'you.'
"I asked first."
"Testing." George said quickly, Fred nodding affirmatively. There was a moment of odd silence, before Roxanne asked a second question,
"Testing what?"
"Nothing." They both replied
"Oh?" Roxanne said, trying to look behind them. They both turned, synchronized, with their backs now to the wall. "'Nothing' certainly looks rather bulky. Last I checked 'nothing' was the equivalent of thin air. So it wouldn't matter if I was to pull your arm away." Roxanne reached for George's arms and was about to pull them from his back when Fred managed to gain a free hand and put his hand on her shoulder,
"Roxy darling you wouldn't."
"I might. What is it?"
Neither Fred nor George responded
"Pranks?"
"Yes." They both sighed.
"Can I help?" she asked without missing a beat.
Fred smiled happily; this girl was into mischief and was already earning herself brownie points with him. Fred looked at George and George nodded, Fred then nodded to Roxanne,
"Certainly."
Very quietly they snuck down the steps. On the last step Roxanne tripped and plummeted to the floor, but Fred caught her before she could accidentally cause such a noise. She mouthed 'sorry' as he helped her back up to her feet.
Although she offered to help, the twins had the operation very well planned for two, obviously planning ahead for Lee's desire to sleep rather than set pranks. The two boys scurried across the common room, planting their tricks here, and enchanting cushions there. Roxanne held various items and objects until a twin passed her by and grabbed it out of her arms. While they ran around the room, she played a game in her head of tracking which one was George and which one was Fred. She was surprisingly skilled in identifying which one was which.
~*~
Ron lay upstairs, tossing and turning in his bed. He could not remember, for the life of him, whether or not he had extinguished the fire in the common room before going to bed. Neither could he remember whether or not he was supposed to. He wasn't sure if the fire was magical or not, even though it was very likely magical, and he surely didn't want the school to burn down. He finally decided to go down and check.
Fred and George had just finished and walked up to Roxanne, still whispering,
"Bang up job"
"I think that was George" she thought
"Yes thanks for your help."
This twin gave her a sly look, it was defiantly Fred. She smiled playfully at him, hoping that he could see her face in the dark.
"Can't wait until I can pay you back."
They made eye contact and Fred had a definite sparkle in his eyes. Unfortunately for them, a voice in a regular volume interrupted the whispered words,
"What's going on? Fred, George?"
Ron looked like a mix of horrified and upset as he pointed at Roxanne
"And dragging her in with you before school's even begun?"
The three looked at Ron, Roxanne especially not sure of what to do. Fred leaned over and whispered in her ear,
"Run."
And like a rabbit, she made a mad dash up to the girls' dormitory. Fortunately for her, boys weren't allowed up there, not even Prefects, and Hermione was still asleep. She quietly shut the door after making it to the fifth year room and then dived into her bed as if her covers were her only protection, although she wished it was Fred, rather than the sheets, around her.
**RR, be my hero! Whoooo hooray for dialogue! Or a lack of hooray? You tell me!