Bailey and George were enjoying a quiet walk along the edge of the frozen pond when the tiny hairs on the back of Bailey's neck began to prickle. She suddenly stopped and looked about cautiously. Her grip on George's hand tightened as she slowly turned to locate the source of her uneasiness.
"Oh no, not this again," grumbled George.
"Sshhh," hissed Bailey as she narrowed her eyes as she searched the tree line. "We're being watched. Shit! How could they have found us here? I was extremely careful about my thoughts."
"What are you talking about? Who's looking for you? The person who tried to posses you? I thought they said that was all a hoax?" George scanned the trees as well.
"I'll explain later. Right now, start moving toward the house. Go slow and try not to act to suspicious." She turned and pulled George with her. "There are three of them, two on our left now and one behind us and too the right. Do you have your wand?"
George nodded as he slipped his arm across her shoulder protectively. "If they attack, stay behind me, I'll protect you."
Bailey shook her head. "They'll kill you to get to me. Don't do anything heroic. If they attack…RUN!" Bailey pushed at George as she turned to face the three figures that suddenly rushed out of the woods. She hit the first one with a blast of air that sent the woman with mousey colored hair spinning to the ground. The second she caught with a hex that bound his legs, from knees to ankles, together as he fell on his face. The third raised his wand and fired a shot that went high and wide. Bailey ducked and froze him with the imomblius hex.
Bailey turned and pointed to the prone man who was also raising his wand, "Exussom!" The man's wand burst into flames and with a cry, he dropped it into the snow. She held out her hand toward the woman's dropped wand, "Propinquoem!" The wand slid across the snow and stopped at Bailey's feet. Bailey scooped it up and turned to follow George, who should have been well on his way back to the house by now, but instead stood directly behind her.
His amazed gaze traveled from the slightly flushed girl to her three defeated opponents.
Bailey ignored his looks as she grabbed his hand and tried to pull him from where he stood. "George, come on. We need to go and get the others before these three recover, so that the proper authorities can take care of them."
George was finally broken from his stunned silence and he began to laugh. "Bailey, these are the proper authorities."
Bailey turned and looked more closely at the three people she had just immobilized. The man with the bound feet wasn't familiar to Bailey at all. However, the mousey haired woman who sat with her legs sprawled in front of her, shaking her head, looked slightly familiar. But, it was the man that stood immobilized that held Bailey's attention. She walked up close to examine him and suddenly her hand flew to her mouth. "Oh, Mr. Lupin, I'm so sorry." She motioned for George to get on the other side of the man and instructed him to be ready as she waved her hand and undid the hex.
Remus Lupin crumpled limply between them as his body was unfrozen. He stared up at Bailey with his eyes sparkling. "Brilliant, young lady, that was bloody perfect. I couldn't have done better myself. You certainly do your parents proud. Now, if you will kindly undo my companion's leg lock and return Tonks her wand, we'll go on up to the house."
Bailey made sure that George had hold of Mr. Lupin before she hurried over to the man who had finally accomplished to rise to a sitting position. She gave him an apologetic smile as she spoke the counter curse and freed his legs. "I'll be glad to replace your wand sir."
The man just smiled and waved his hand dismissively. "It was worth the cost of a wand to see a performance like that and from someone so young."
Tonks was rubbing at her hip as she made her way over to the group. "Whose brilliant idea was it to try and scare these two? They were just walking along, minding their own business." She held out her hand and accepted her wand from Bailey. She leaned close and gave the girl a wink. "You two look good together, I might add."
Remus gave them a broad smile. "It never hurts to test the skills of our young people. Besides, in times like these, one always needs to be prepared."
The group was just rounding the hill when they were met by a second group rushing from the house. Arthur, Bill and Charlie were at the forefront with their wands drawn.
Arthur sighed as he saw Remus, Marcus Gravely and Tonks escorting George and Bailey back toward the house. "Thank goodness you're here Remus. Thank you for protecting the children from whatever happened out there." He noticed that Remus still leaned against George. "Are you okay? Quick now, clear a path and let them through. We need to get him into the house. Bill, Charlie, go check to make sure there is no one else lurking about the house."
"Arthur, Arthur," said Remus calmly, "its okay. There are no others lurking about. And I'm fine, just a little cold and my old injury is acting up. A sit by the fire to warm my bones and some hot cocoa for the rest of me and I'll be right as rain."
"Come on now," said Mrs. Weasley as she pushed her way thru the crowd as she made a path to the house. "So, what exactly happened out there? We heard a lot of noise and saw the flash of a fire bolt. Were you attacked?"
"Well, no and yes," answered Remus as he winked at Bailey. The girl looked up at him indignantly, but she softened her features as she realized he was teasing.
"George Weasley, how many times have I…" Molly turned a hard stare on her son.
"But, mum, it wasn't me!" George gave his mother his most innocent look as he pointed to Bailey.
"I've heard that one before," she said with a sarcastic snort. "And don't go trying to pin it on Bailey. I know better."
"Honestly, Molly, don't blame the kids," defended Remus as he settled into the rocking chair that Harry had moved closer to the fire. "It was my fault actually. I thought it would be fun to sneak up on them, seeming how they looked so cute, walking along holding hands. Well, they certainly taught us a lesson or two instead."
"George, we'll discuss this later," whispered Mrs. Weasley harshly.
"But, mum, really, it wasn't me," he protested.
"It was me, Mrs. Weasley. I attacked Mr. Lupin and the others," said Bailey softly.
Mrs. Weasley wrapped her arm about the girl. "There's no need to defend him, dear. You shouldn't have to take the blame for his miscreant ways."
"If anyone is to blame, it's us," piped in Tonks as she glared from the one of her companions to the other. "All Bailey was doing was defending herself when the three of us came out of the woods at them."
"Wait," said Arthur as he offered Remus and Marcus glasses and poured a finger of brandy from a silver flask into each cup. "You mean that she took on the three of you, alone?"
"Well, in our defense," said Marcus sheepishly, "we weren't trying very hard."
Tonks snorted. "Who had time? She had me disarmed and you flat on your face before either of us could get our wands up. Only Remus got a shot fired off."
"Which reminds me," and Marcus turned a keen eye on Bailey. "I never did see a wand. How did you get it back in your pocket so fast?"
Remus just laughed. "Marcus, you're too young to remember how Derrick used to duel. Not only was he a practiced occlumen, but he had mastered his spells as well. He rarely used his wand, usually only took it out for show. Sina, now there was an accomplished witch. She had such control that she never spoke her charms." He turned and looked at Bailey. "Now, I'm guessing that it was your occlumency skills that kept you from completely annihilating us out there."
Bailey shifted uncomfortably under the many watchful eyes. She nodded as she suddenly wished that she was anywhere but there. "I sensed the initial danger, but then as you came out of the woods, the danger seemed to disappear. But still, you all were coming at us, drawing your wands."
"You did the right thing," said Remus softly. "You protected yourself, without causing any harm to us."
The sudden, slow clapping of a single pair of hands drew everyone's attention to the doorway. There stood Dumbledore with Severus beside him. Severus dropped his hands as he fixed his nieces with a cold stare.
"A very admirable display, I assure you," said the headmaster. "Thank you Remus, Marcus and Tonks for your participation."
"Dumbledore, please come in and have a seat. Severus, it's good to see you again as well." Mr. Weasley offered his chair to the headmaster, while Bill moved to give his to the professor.
Severus waved his hand. "Thank you, but we won't be staying. I think that this little demonstration should prove to my nieces just how dangerous it is to be away from the school. Now, gather your cloaks and let's be off."
The girls nodded in unison and turned to thank the Weasley's for all their hospitality. The girls tied on their cloaks and were just finishing saying good-bye when Ginny came dashing down the stairs.
"You don't want to forget these," she said as she held out one of the boxes with holes in it. "I put them together for you."
"Oh, and Bailey dear, don't forget these. I've included a set for Lake as well. You can show her how to get started." Mrs. Weasley handed Bailey a sewing bag as she gave her a hug. She turned to Lake next and drew her close. "Now, don't forget, you're welcome here any time."
Severus cast the kindly woman a warning glance, which was ignored as she wrapped him in an embrace as well.
"You too, Severus," she said with a smile. "Don't be such a stranger."
"Uh, hmmm, hrumph," he grumbled on the pretence of clearing his throat. "Thank you, Molly, I'll try to remember that. Come girls, you've imposed long enough."
"Truly, it was a joy having them here and you all are welcome any time," said Arthur jovially as he shook Severus' hand.
While Mr. Weasley kept her uncle busy, Bailey pulled George aside. "I can't explain everything now, but I realize that it's too dangerous for you to be associated with me right now. Don't send any more messages, at least not directly. Send them through Ron or Harry. I'll try to explain later, okay?" She leaned in to kiss his cheek, but he turned his head and their lips connected instead. She looked up at him in surprise and he pulled away, a light blush coloring his cheeks.
"I'm… I mean…What where you saying?" mumbled George as he shook his head to try and clear his thoughts.
Bailey giggled. "I said that I'll explain everything later and don't send me any more owls. At least not directly, send any messages through Ron or Harry. Trust me. It will all make sense soon."
Severus stepped up beside Bailey, looking more cross than ever. "If you are ready, we need to go."
Bailey and Lake gave their friends a final wave as they walked out the door behind their uncle. They called back, "We'll see you at the end of break," then apparated.
--------
Draco and his cronies returned to the school after only spending a few days with their families.
"It was such a bore," he drawled as he sat in the common room with Crabbe and Goyle. "Basically, all mother did was carry on about how unjust it was that father is rotting away in Azkaban while people like Lupin are allowed to roam free. She did tell me something interesting though," and he leaned forward as if to whisper to his cronies. However, the opening of the common room door and the sound of light laughter stopped him.
Lake and Bailey entered the room and noticed the three sitting about. They both groand as Lake rolled her eyes and Bailey started to make a b-line for the girls' dormitory.
"Hello ladies," called Draco as he swung his feet off the sofa. "Why don't you come join us? We were just discussing family ties."
The girls exchanged glances. As much as they loathed the three young men, Draco's emphasis was not lost on them. Reluctantly they walked over to the couches. Draco waved his hand and Crabbe shifted over to offer a seat to Lake, forcing Bailey to sit by Draco on the smaller sofa.
"You know," Draco commented as he shifted to stretch his arms across the back of the cushions, "I like the muggle term, love seat. Isn't that what they call a two cushion couch?"
Bailey nodded as she crossed her arms tightly about her chest. She shifted on her cushion, turning her back into the arm and drawing her legs up to act as a barrier between herself and Draco. She tried to change the subject. "So, did you three have a nice holiday? You didn't stay away long."
Draco's smile widened. "Mother wasn't very into the Christmas spirit, but Goyle said he had a nice visit with his grandfather."
Bailey turned and tried to act cordial toward Goyle. "Well, it's always good to spend time with your family."
Goyle stared at Bailey as if she had suddenly sprouted wings and a tail. She had never spoken so nicely to him. He bobbed his head as he stuttered, "Yeah, it was good. We had a nice long talk. We played some Wizard's Chess. He told me that he was club champion when he went to Hogwarts. I'm really good at it too. I can teach you sometime."
"That would be nice, thank you Goyle." Bailey flashed him her most beguiling smile as the chubby teen turned beet red under her attentive gaze.
Draco leaned forward and glared at Goyle. Anything further that his lackey might have said was silenced by that stare. Draco snorted in satisfaction as he settled back on the couch. "I'd be happy to teach you, Bailey. I'm a much better player than Goyle there. We can use the new set that I just got as a present."
"Hey Draco," said Crabbe all of a sudden. "What was it you were going to tell us before they came in? I'm sure they would enjoy the gossip too."
Draco waved his hand. "It's not important. I can tell you later. Right now, I'm more interested in hearing about what the girls did while we were gone. Did you get to spend time with your family?"
A dark flame lit deep in Bailey's eyes and Lake spoke up before her sister could do something they might both regret. "We actually had a nice long talk with Uncle Severus. We really got to know him. He let us go to visit with the Weasleys too and we had a lot of fun there."
"Somebody's not going to like hearing that," sang Draco softly as he looked away from the group.
"Excuse me! If you have something to say Draco Malfoy, then say it. Otherwise, keep your trap shut. Before someone shuts it for you." The flame raged in Bailey's eyes as she pushed off the couch and stormed off to her room.
They all watched her storm up the steps. Crabbe and Goyle looked completely confused while Draco wore a smug smile. They turned to look askance of Lake and she shrugged her shoulders.
"Well, I better go make sure that she's okay," said Lake as she pushed up off the couch and walked toward the girls' dorm.
Bailey slammed shut the door of their room as she entered it. She paced its length several times before she finally flopped down in the chair beside her bed. She yelped as something jabbed her backside and she pulled from under her the sewing bag that Mrs. Weasley had given her. Suddenly feeling like things weren't quite so bad Bailey opened the bag and found another surprise. Folded neatly on top of the needles and balls of thread was the afghan that Bailey had wrapped herself in Christmas morning. As she pulled it out of the bag, a slip of paper tumbled from its folds. A soft smile creased Bailey's lips as she read Mrs. Weasley's neat writing.
Girls,
Here are my gifts to you. I'm sending you each one of my worry-ghans. Bailey, you know how special this one is, so I won't go into the details. You can explain to Lake the why's.
The second one I thought special because it's the one that I did while sitting beside my brother's sick bed. He was saved by your parents during a Death Eater attack. He would have been lost had they not gone back for him.
Love,
M. Weasley
Bailey noticed that the ink of the last sentence was slightly smeared and she could see the blotchy stains where tears had dried on the paper. She unfolded the afghan and was just wrapping it about her shoulders when Lake cautiously opened the door.
"Nothings going to come flying at me, is it?" She stuck her head a little ways into the room. Seeing her sister sitting quietly on the chair, she sighed and walked in, pushing the door shut behind her. "Well, your heads not spinning and you're not spewing pea soup, so I guess I can't use the 'possessed by the devil' ploy."
Bailey just laughed. "Sorry about storming out back there. But did you hear what that idiot said? He knows about us."
"Probably half the school will know about us by the time break is over. Then it won't take long for the rest to find out." Lake shrugged her shoulders as she crossed the room. "Like Uncle Severus said, we didn't know ourselves till a few days ago. The knowledge doesn't change who we are. It's what we do with it that makes the difference."
"They're gonna look at us like freaks, or leapers. No one will come near us," said Bailey.
"They did that when we first arrived here. Besides, if they're going to act like that, who needs 'em? Hey, isn't that one of Mrs. Weasley's afghans?" Lake stared at her sister in disbelief.
"It's not what you think. She sent you one too. Here," said Bailey as she handed her sister the second afghan and the note.
Lake scanned the note as she shook out the blanket. "Oh, that's so sweet of her. But what does she mean, the 'why's'?"
"You'll see," said Bailey with a mischievous smile plastered on her face. "Wrap it about your shoulders and pull it close."
Lake's brow furrowed skeptically as she did as her sister bade her. After a moment, she looked up at Bailey with surprise in her eyes. "It's warm, but there's something else. Something that makes it cozy, almost as if Mrs. Weasley herself were hugging me."
Bailey beamed at her sister. "It's the love that she puts into making each of her worry-ghans, as the rest of the Weasleys call them. She does each one by hand instead of using enchanted needles. It's her way of de-stressing when things seem to be getting to bad. She got me started and sent an extra set of needles, in case you wanted to give it a try."
"Well, it certainly beats turning your room into a Level 4 disaster area or changing Elly Bumstead into a weasel."
"She was a weasel. Going and tattling because I'd changed my love potion to blue instead of the same old pink. It was still the right formula." Bailey rolled her eyes. "The room was an accident."
Lake cocked her eyebrow as she snorted, "You had everything turned upside down. Every stitch of clothing you owned was either on the floor or had been pitched out the window. You had thrown pictures off the wall, torn the heads off stuffed animals and created a life size cardboard cutout of Eric Ramsey, just so you could shred it. What part of that was an accident?"
"Fine," retorted Bailey sourly. "So it wasn't an accident. But he shouldn't have said that I looked fat in that lavender dress."
"He didn't. He said that you filled the dress out nicely. There's a big difference." Lake rolled her eyes as she searched for some reason to change the subject. "Hey, I know why my afghan is special, what's the story behind yours?"
Bailey's face flushed a deep red as she pulled it a little tighter about her shoulders. "Mrs. Weasley made this one when Fred and George were four and had Hungarian Huge pox."
"And?" prodded Lake. She knew by her sister's expression that there was something more to the story.
"And," replied Bailey, snidely, "she was worried most about George. He was the sicker of the two and she feared that they might loose him."
Lake considered teasing her sister about her new beau, but decided that it wasn't a good idea, since Bailey had as much ammunition against her and Fred. She was much more introspective when she looked up at Bailey. "You know, we can't encourage them. Any association with us could put them in grave peril."
Bailey sighed heavily. "I know. I told George not to send us any more owls and to send any correspondence through Ron or Harry. We should probably sit down and write them an explanation. We owe them that much."
"Yeah, but what do we say? 'Hi, how are you? We can not see you any more because our grandfather is a raving lunatic who would just as soon kill you as look at you.'"
"Well, that actually sounds better than what I was thinking." Bailey smiled at her sister as she summoned paper, a quill and an ink bottle. "I'm sure, between the two of us, we can come up with something good to tell them."
The parchment settled on the small side table between the two sisters and they bent their heads together as they tried to formulate a nice 'Dear John' type letter.
A/N - Sorry this chapter got a little sappy, hope you enjoy it anyway. Please leave a response and let me know what you think.
