It was a week after she had arrived home, a week of Josie tossing around the idea of asking her father to help her understand Quidditch and wondering what her friends were doing. A Sunday morning finally came that her Father stayed at home, drinking coffee while he sat in front of the cold fireplace and read the paper. "Dad?" her voice was barely a whisper over the murmur of song playing from the radio. But her father's head turned immediately towards her, a warm smile deepening the wrinkles forming around his eyes. "What is it?" his response in French took longer to process than she was accustomed to , her ears still used to hearing English. "You enjoy Quidditch, right?" she asked after the long silence. "Of course, you know that's a silly question. Why?" his eyes followed her as she sat next to him. "Can you help me to understand the basics?" His thick eyebrows rose as he put his book down. "You're not thinking about playing are you? Because you know-""I'm not going to play. I just want to be able to understand it." Josie interrupted, holding up a hand to stop the worried-father-speech that was brewing. "Good. As much as I enjoy the sport I wouldn't want my daughter up there." "Dad, I can hardly fly." "Exactly."
She couldn't help but laugh at the well-times joke, shaking her hair out after her father ruffled it with a grin. "I like it; I just have a hard time understanding it when it's all moving so fast." "Well if that's the only issue I can surely help you understand it. As long as you're not doing this just for those two boys." Embarrassment flooded through her as she rolled her eyes at her father's waggling eyebrows. A soft shove forced him to stop, low rumbling laughter bouncing off the walls. "It's not. I want to be able to keep up with the game for myself." Her father stood up as she spoke, stretching enough to pop his back before he walked to the bookshelves along the wall and slide out one book after another until he'd made a very impressive pile. "Would you like to start now?" he asked as he sat down again. All it took was a small nod from Josie for him to pick up a book and begin rattling on about Quidditch.
In the weeks that followed Josie and her father spent all of his free time together, Andre animatedly talking about Quidditch and sketching out drawings to help her understand. They sat for hours, talking and debating, drinking mug after mug of hot chocolate and driving her mother absolutely crazy with their dirty cups. Finally she was starting to understand, the slowed down pace that her father taught her at giving her the time to process instead of her mind constantly racing.
During an outing on a Sunday afternoon was the only time her mother ever pried into Josie's relationship with the twins all summer, bringing it up as casually as she could when they stopped for sandwiches after hours of shopping. "How are your boyfriends? Besides seeing the constant barrage of letters you three send back and forth you've said nothing about them since you've gotten home." Delephine asked with a raised brow, sipping at her tea and smiling at the waiter as he placed their food in front of them. "They're fine, they've been off their rocker ever since they won the Quidditch tournament at school. Now they're riled up about the possibility of going to the Quidditch World Cup to watch Ireland and Bulgaria." Josie said softly, carefully separating the already cut halves of her sandwich before taking a small bite out of a corner. "Sounds like a good time. Why aren't you going with them?" "They don't know if they are or not. But because I don't want to intrude on their family, I haven't been formally introduced to anyone but three of their five siblings." Josie's eyes wandered along the cobblestone road, chewing the warm crisp bread and hearty fillings of her sandwich slowly. "I suppose that makes sense, their family seems different from ours." The tones that layered under her mother's voice resembled those of Josie's grandmother when she was getting ready to share gossip, making the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. "They're very close, but they've been planning on asking their mother if I can visit. Ron has friends over so they don't see why they can't have me over." She quickly tried to change the subject to one her mother would surely be interested in.
"Of course their mother doesn't know that we're-" "She doesn't know you're their girlfriend?" Delephine nearly shrieked, covering her mouth soon after so she would make less of a scene. "Of course she doesn't! Their mother is more….strict on them then you are on me. We doubt she'd understand the three of us being together." Josie muttered as she took another bite dipped into the tomato soup she had gotten alongside her sandwich. "I honestly don't understand it completely either dear, but it's your love life not mine so I don't think it's any of my business as long as you're not dating someone who isn't good and as long as you're being safe when you-" "Mother!" "Exactly, so I have the right to worry about these things." Josie laughed at the witty and well timed response, which in turn caused her mother to laugh along with her as they finished their meal and the sun beat down on their shoulders.
When the two women walked in the door that evening they were met with Andre jumping from his seat in front of the fireplace as soon as they walked in the door. The book he had falling to the floor as he ran over to Josie, taking her bags from her and setting them on the ground before taking her shoulders in his hands. "How would you feel about going to the Quidditch World Cup with me?" were the first words that were shared between them. "What?" came the shared response between Josie and her mother. "Emmanuel had tickets but he can't go because he has to be in Belgium until that evening. Paxton doesn't want to go without his father so he gave them to us." He clarified, waving two sleek strips of paper in front of his chest proudly. "I thought it would be a nice time." The stunned silence that followed was broken only the rustling of Delephine placing the bags on the ground. "Of course she'll go." "What?" Josie turned on her mother's response with wide eyes.
"It will be fun." "It will be crowded." Josie replied, already feeling the bottom of her stomach filling with rocks. She watched the lines on the corners of her fathers eyes turn down as the excitement drained. "It will be fine, I'll be with you the entire time." He took her hands between his, holding them tightly as he crouched down to meet her eyes. "I'm not going to force you, I thought it would be a fun experience since we've been talking about Quidditch." With a sigh Josie squeezed his hands, smiling through the butterflies in her stomach. "You two could use the bracelets from when she was little." Her mother chimed, quickly walking down the hallway to her bedroom.
"What bracelets?" Josie asked as her father set the bags on the table one by one. "When you were little my mother gave you a set of bracelets, one for you and one for your mother and I. It was in case you ever got lost and for when we had to leave you places by yourself." Her mother rejoined them with a small box in hand, the silver coating glinting in the warm light streaming through the window. From inside the box came two small braided bracelets, soft blue melded with glistening white, each with a silver clasp.
"What makes them special?" Josie asked as she took one of them to turn between her fingers. "They'll glow white if two people are wearing them, and the farther apart you get the dimmer it gets. If someone is thinking about you then it glows blue. So, if you two get separated you can find each other by how its glowing, and if you need to be apart then you'll be able to be brave when the other is thinking about you." Delephine said with a smile, helping Andre clasp the bracelet around his thick wrist. As it slipped around her wrist Josie's bracelet began to glow brightly. With a small smile she looked up at her father, Josie's voice quivering with residual apprehension as she spoke. "Alright, we'll go."
The morning they left was rushed and misty, Josie's father having already set up their home away from home the night before to cut down on work that day. Eating toast and fruit at the table, brown boots swinging above the floor as swirled the milk in her tea to create patterns Josie prepared herself to the day. Her mother was fussing over what she had chosen to wear, and neither Josie nor her father was having any of it. "Delephine can you please leave her alone she looks fine."
"Yes, she looks fine, but I still think she should be a bit more dressed up for such a large event." She argued, long hair whipping behind her as she paced. "Its in a field dear, its loud and crowded. We'll be standing up for hours." Andre argued, placing a hand over his wife's as it lay on the table. "I understand, but there's going to be so many people and-" "Yes, so many people in face paint and sweaters and Quidditch gear. If she's any more dressed up she's going to stick out like a giant in a goblin colony and we'll have to pretend she's famous because of all the attention she'll get." Andre argued, smiling warmly at Josie with a wink. Josie had tuned out of the conversation long ago, ignoring her mothers rant over her ripped jeans and tank as she watched the fringe on her shawl swing slightly as she moved.
"Fine. I give up. I don't understand the dress code for these things." Delephine sighed, kissing the top of Josie's head. "Seems she's dressed expecting something special anyway." She added as she tucked her daughters' hair behind her ear, the yin-yang earrings Josie wore glinting in the morning sun. Shooting her mother a playful glare as the woman cleared the empty plates from the table she blushed, chewing an already faux-flushed lip between her teeth. She had in fact dressed up that morning after receiving an owl the night before from the twins saying that they were in fact going to the Quidditch World Cup. In a hopeful blur of excitement she had agonized over picking out an outfit that was both practical and breathtaking.
She had sat on the floor amongst the clothes ripped from her closet for hours, nervously snacking on leftover candy she had found in her suitcase. In the wee hours of the morning inspiration had come to her in a trip to the kitchen for a glass of milk. The photograph of her parents, Emmanuel and Andrea from their dual couples trip to Italy stared back at her as she closed the fridge, her eyes flickering to her aunts stomach growing out from under her flowing dress. A moment later and Josie was inspired by her aunt's bell sleeves and beaded necklaces as she darted back to her room, leaving small puddles of milk along the floor along the way. She went to sleep that night with the discarded clothes shoved into the bottom of her closet and an outfit she'd hope would impress both her aunt and her boyfriends.
As soon as they had finished breakfast Josie and her father hoisted their bags over their shoulders as they slipped into the fireplace so they could be on their way. From where they came out in a pub a while off from the field where the Cup was being held they walked the rest of the way. As they emerged over the crest of the last hill a great roar of people erupted around them, the field in front of them covered with tents of all colors and thriving with life. Following her father down into the mass with the back of his sweater clutched in her fist she took in her surroundings around her. She wasn't halfway through the crowd of people to their tent before she heard someone yelling her name. Stopping her father with a tug as she looked around she quickly looked around for the source of the yelling.
Oliver Wood was waving an arm widely above his hands from a few tents behind them, a large grin breaking his face as he jogged towards her. Josie quickly let go of her father, running against the flow of traffic to pull the ex-captain into a bone crushing hug. "Wood! It's so good to see you." she said as the older boy swung her above the ground. He grinned down at her as they parted, patting her shoulder appreciatively. "It's good to see you too. How's your summer?" Wood asked as he looked down at her. "Uneventful until now." "I resent that." her father added with a smile, holding a hand out and shaking Wood's enthusiastically. "My father's been helping me understand Quidditch." Josie clarified. "This is Oliver Wood, he was the Captian of the Gryffindor Quidditch team until he graduated this year." "Don't count me out yet, I've been signed to the Puddlemere United Reserve team." Wood added proudly. "That's impressive." Andre said as he slung an arm around her shoulders. The smile that spread across Oliver Woods face was wide enough to open a Butter Beer on. "Thank you sir."
"Have you seen the Weasleys?" Wood asked after a moment of silence, looking down at Josie's with a teasing raised brow. "No, are they here already?" Josie answered quicker than needed, catching her father smiling from the corner of her eye. "I saw Ron with Harry and Hermione a minute ago, and if Ron's here than the rest of them are sure to be here as well. Fred and George would throttle their brother if he came to the World Cup without them." Oliver said with a laugh, one that was soon joined by Josie. The two friends parted ways as Josie followed her father towards their tent, hoping to have some time to rest and eat before the match started. After some time lounging around the tent and munching on sandwiches and fruit, Josie took a walk around the area to look at what the sales people they had passed earlier had put up. With what little pocket money she had she decided to buy a rosette to pin to her shawl and a poster of the Irish team for Paxton, placing the few knuts she had left in her pocket as she continued to wander.
As a flash of red hair crossing her path she stopped suddenly, the ginger turning to look at her. Ginny Weasley smiled widely as she looked at Josie, the girl now even in height with her. "Josie!" she said loudly, looking over her shoulder and at the booth she had come from before repeating herself even louder than before. Moments later the crowd around the booth split as another head of red hair tumbled out of it, followed by yet another. "What?" "What about-""Josie!" the twins exclaimed, both of them quickly running over to her. "I don't know what you two are looking at when you've already gambled all your money away, I had to call you twice." Ginny said with a sigh.
Josie's chest ached with the stop of her heart, her mouth going dry as she looked them over. She knew this was going to happen; of course this would happen when she hadn't gotten to see them all summer. How in the world did they get more attractive? She thought, staring up more than usual at their increasingly shaggy hair and strong jawline. Even as grins broke widely across their faces and their eyes darted over her she the impish gleam in their gaze was no longer lessened by the childishness still softening their features. Now all that looked down at Josie was a dual set of teasing looks to kill. Calm down Josie you sound like one of the novels mom keeps on the top shelf of the bookcase. She laughed to herself as she wrapped an arm around each of their necks and held them tight, giggling loudly as they lifted her from the ground and places a sly kiss on each of her cheeks.
"Why the hell didn't you tell us you were coming?" Fred exclaimed loudly, keeping long arms wrapped around her waist till his hands held the curve of her waist on opposite sides. "I just found out you were last night! If I would have known sooner I would have told you." Josie argued back playfully, blue eyes reflected back in his. "Well it's a bloody amazing surprise." George chimed, tugging his brother off of her to wrap his own arms around her. "It's even wrapped nicely." Fred added with a wink as George let her go, her cheeks turning scarlet as she stuttered out an argument. "Oh stop it." "You look nice." "It really suits you." they interrupted before she could finish her disagreement. "You don't look that bad yourselves." She said, her chest growing warm at the smirks they wore in response. "Do you know where your seats are in the match?" she asked in the hopes of a change of subject. "Probably at the top knowing Dad." "Are you complaining?" Ginny chimed in on Fred's answer, quirking a brow at him. She ducked from his hand as it went to ruffle her hair and stuck out her tongue at him.
"Who's this, or are you two just flirting with a poor defenseless witch again?" the twins turned at the voice from behind them, George playfully shoving the new Weasley sibling that had appeared. "Shove off Bill." "She knows better than that." The twins said, annoyance dripping from their voices as the gauged Josie's reaction to their older brothers statement. The hot envy that spread through her chest quickly faded as the boy who she recognized as Bill Weasley held out a hand to her. "And you are?" he asked as she hesitantly took his hand, only to have it squeezed tightly. "Josie Desmarias, it's a pleasure to meet you." she replied softly. "Pleasure is all mine. If you don't mine me asking, but where are you from?" he asked as he let go of her hand to shove his hands into his pockets. "I'm from Chateauroux, France." She replied, turning a bit red from the twins and their brother's gaze.
"How in the world did you meet these two nuisances?" Both of the twins took a shove at their brother's shoulders, the older boy laughing loudly. Josie had to suppress her giggles in order to answer. "I transferred from Beauxbatons this past year." "The students at Beauxbatons must have been beside themselves with grief to lose such a pretty pupil." This time she really did go red, the skin from her nose to her ears heating up with embarrassment. "Lucky for them we were there-" "-to take her off their hands." The twins chimed, grinning widely. "Would you three stop it?" Ginny interrupted the boy's banter, her mouth a hard line and hands planted firmly on her hips. "Sorry, it's nice to see my brothers with someone like you." The twins were practically beaming with pride. "We have to go, it's getting late and I'm afraid Dad's going to burn the tent down." Bill added. "It was nice meeting you, hopefully it will happen again soon." With that the elder Weasley sibling turned and strolled off with his hands in his pockets. "Does everyone in your family know we're together?" Josie asked the twins, the flush on her cheeks fading. "Most likely." They said together. "Everyone except mum." Ginny added before ran off after Bill with a wave.
"See you later?" she asked them, smiling up at them. "Of course." "We'll be around." They replied, leaning down to kiss her cheeks gently. "Fred! George! Come on!" Bill called, the twins apologetically hugging her tight enough to squeeze the air from her before the followed after their siblings. The last thing Josie saw before they disappeared into the crowd was the three boys glancing back at her over their shoulders and the twins meeting Bills hands with their own with an enthusiastic clap that echoed through the mingled voices of the busy field. With a roll of her eyes and a shake of her head to fade away the last of her embarrassment, Josie slipped into the crowd of people around the booth the twins had been staring at and reached for the last of her spending money just as her bracelet began to glow.