Chapter One
The Leashed Libra
–
Nothing is more discouraging
than unappreciated sarcasm.
–
"There is nothing on your finger but a bite mark," Sirius smirked.
"I know," I said in an intentionally loud and whiney voice, rubbing my wound. "George bit me yesterday when I tried to knick his licorice wand! What kind of person bites another human being, honestly?"
"Someone who really fancies licorice wands," said Sirius, smiling. "I take it your ickle boyfriend hasn't popped the question then?"
"If you ask WitchWeekly he has," I scowled, "but no he hasn't."
"And what would you say if he did ask you?"
"Absolutely not," I replied without a moment's hesitation.
Sirius laughed and gripped his stomach, "Just like your mum, you are, never one for marriage."
"I am far too young to even have marriage as an afterthought," I said. "I am only seventeen, just turned of age, for Merlin's sake. I couldn't imagine actually having to be a wife and– oh god, a mother. I can barely stand the thought of pushing seven pound, slime covered human carcass out of my–"
"Winnie, I still believe in the stork, and I would like to keep it that way," said Sirius, cringing at the thought. "Ugh, I am not going to be able to eat for a week."
"Well, rest assured, Padfoot," I grinned, "I have no intention of pushing anything out of me ever. I'm not one for children, and I don't know if I am even one for marriage."
"Don't you think your boyfriend is the one you should be telling this to?"
Unbeknownst to me until recently, I am apparently completely bat shit crazy (but utterly boring), unintelligent (yet a know-it-all), overzealous (but lazy), too loud (but too soft spoken), crude (but insufferably proper), basically I was the worst of both worlds. I could do nothing right. Well, at least Oliver Wood thought so. Everything was all sunshine and daisies when I first returned back from school. Oliver was his old self again, he and George were actually getting along somewhat, and it was like there had never been a rift between us. However, about a month into the summer holiday, Quidditch started up again and Quidditch Oliver returned. I didn't mind him practicing all the time, spending time with the team, always drawing up plays; I never complained once because it gave me more time with twins and our owl delivery business we had going on for Weasley Wizard Wheezes. What bothered me was when Oliver did want to spend time with me we could never be alone. We had to go to some event or to one of his teammate's home and talk about Quidditch or to something else that gave us little to no time to speak in private.
It was just a week before that Oliver and I had gotten into an enormous row all because I refused to attend some stupid alumni social for Puddlemere. I had run clean out of dresses to borrow from Ginny and Hermione, and I was sick of having to wear something he complained about anyhow. He would say that everything I wore looked to baggy and out of style, and I needed to purchase something new for each occasion. I proceeded to tell him to suck a wand. I wasn't going to go on much longer being miserable. Something needed to change. I had promised to attend the award ceremony for all of Quidditch the following weekend, but beyond that I didn't know. I didn't have the heart to stand him up when he was the front runner for the Rookie of the Year Award. Even though I was sore at him, that award was a very big deal to him and to everyone who loved the game, and I would suffer through being his date at one last award ceremony before I made my final decision whether or not I wanted to stick around or call it quits between us. I had more important things to worry about after all.
For the most part, we had been cooped up in the House of Black all summer long. The only reason I was allowed to leave was because it would cause too much suspicion with Oliver which had the potential to have a public backlash and so on and so forth. I had talked Fred and George into being allowed to come on a couple occasions, but I had still only had the sunlight hit my face no more than a dozen times in a month and a half. We grew frustrated with the cramped living conditions even more so because we kept being left in the dark. It was like living in the midst of some enormous secret that no one would tell. I knew Sirius wanted to fill us in on everything that was going on within the confines of the house, but I suppose he made a promise to Molly to keep his mouth closed.
The door opened slowly peeked open and revealed a pair of red heads, their hair quite a bit shorter and their stature a bit taller than the year before, "There you are."
"I think they're talking to you," Sirius smirked, nodding towards me.
"Actually we were looking for Buckbeak," said Fred, pushing the door all the way open and closing it behind George (who was lugging a messenger bag of new mail orders over one shoulder and June sitting on another). "What a complete and utter disappointment to find he already has company."
June looked exhausted, and I was far from pleased. She appeared frazzled and disgruntled from all the deliveries she'd been making lately. June fluttered down from George as soon as she saw me and nuzzled up against my neck. I affectionately petted her feathers and kissed the top of her little head. Fred and George joined our two person party, sprawling out our newest bag of inventions. Sirius was well aware of our secret business, and he was too much of a prankster and child at heart to tattle tale on us. We had just posted an ad in the Prophet promoting out mail order business even though Molly would kill us if she found out. She had quit reading the DailyProphet since they'd lost their minds, so we were in clear for now.
"I am serious about getting another owl," I said. "We can't count on June all the time. She's exhausted, and it's not fair to her. I also don't trust those dodgy school owls anymore. We should invest in another owl. We might as well get one now that we can get accustomed to for the future."
"Fine, fine," said Fred. "We can buy a new another one soon. I was thinking another minute owl. They're so bloody fast."
"That works for me," I agreed. "Let's try and guilt someone into taking us tomorrow."
"You want to join us, Padfoot?" asked George.
"Not funny, George," said Sirius coldly. "You know I wish I could."
"I was serious," said George.
"I thought he was Sirius," I said, pointing to Padfoot.
"That got old after the millionth time you made that joke," said George, "As I was saying, I had an idea recently–"
"We had an idea recently," said Fred.
"We had an idea," said George, glancing over at Fred with a smirk. "Well, Cassandra's dog, Leo, is the same sort of dog as well – you. If you agreed to wear a leash then I bet you could persuade Dumbledore to let you go. It wouldn't look the slightest bit suspicious then."
"We didn't know if you would be fond of the leash," said Fred quickly, "but it would still be an excuse for some fresh air. I reckon Cassandra wouldn't mind coming along. She'll be here since she stops by for lunch every Sunday anyhow. I bet Mum would be willing to go too, so she wouldn't have a panic attack about us leaving, if we told her Winnie needed to buy some new shoes are something stupid. It's just an idea…"
"It's a brilliant idea," said Sirius, grinning like I hadn't seen him smile in weeks. "I will speak to Dumbledore about it tonight."
I caught George's eye and I smiled thankfully at him.
–
"Do you think we'll run into Oliver tomorrow?" asked Fred, wrapping another Canary Cream into another package atop his twin bed. He had a pile of what looked like ten dozen mixed in with several dozen Ton-Tongue Toffees. We'd had so much success lately with our orders that we had barely been able to keep up.
"Maybe, he said he had to pick up some things in the Alley this week the last time we spoke," I whispered, trying to remain as quiet as possible, "and keep your voice down, will you?"
We had a pillow shoved in front of the crack under the door to block the light from escaping. I had propped my own pillows up under my covers in my bedroom across the hall and had Ginny on call in case Molly got suspicious in the middle of the night.
"We sound proofed the room, idiot," said Fred, "We are allowed to use magic now, remember?"
"The maternal powers of Molly Weasley know no bounds," I replied.
"She's got you there, mate," said George, smirking as he worked on a couple new trick wands on the floor.
The twins and I had gotten on so well since our Sixth Year came to a close it was unreal. I mean, we always were like three peas in a pod, but were like an oiled machine now. We were determined more than ever to start up our own shop and perfect our inventions and create more as well. George and I had been like our old selves together again. He had kept his promise to not make things awkward whilst Oliver and I were still… us. I appreciated it more than he knew. It also became increasingly difficult to deny my feelings much longer.
With me and George, we were always just Winnie and George. Even as things began to change over the past couple years between us there was still this sort of almost safe feeling we had because we always had something keeping us apart. As it became more obvious that things between Oliver and I had probably run its course, there was this insane built up tension between us that was ready to erupt. I started to notice how perfectly his hair sat on his head or how much I liked the way his mouth rose the slightest bit higher on one side when he smiled or how I had to look up at him when he talked. I suppose Fred was almost identical, but he just annoyed the bogies out of me.
"I wager Sirius will be anxious to get a good look at Wood," said Fred. "You know he's gotten pretty protective over you, and all he's had to go on are the occasional mentions in the gossip columns mixed in with the 'Harry is Crazy' articles."
"And those are so charming," I muttered, organizing some order forms into several folders. "I'm glad they've become so few and far between."
Since Cedric's death, the Prophet was trying to make Harry (and Dumbledore for that matter) seem completely mad. That sort of consumed every news story besides all of the disappearances that no one seemed to find suspicious. I felt guilty for Harry taking all the heat for seeing Cedric's death when I experienced a vision on a slightly less vivid level. The gift of Sight was a delicate matter. I did not have nearly enough credentials to make an impact on anything. Now, if Cassandra had experienced some sort of crazy vision about You-Know-Who's Return a while ago and then this happened it would be a different story completely. However, any crackpot Seer could claim they saw something happen after it supposedly happened. The only good I could do was in private. I hoped in the future that whatever was going on within the house… with the Order, would ask me to help them use my ability in any way I could. Dumbledore and I had been pressuring Molly to give me the permission to help in the near future, but she was relentless.
I hadn't told Oliver anything since my vision during the Triwizard Cup. You want to know why? He never asked. Even when we were getting along, if I raised the topic of that night he would change the subject immediately. That made things a lot easier when Molly told me I was not allowed to tell Oliver anything about where we were or what we were doing. I don't know if he just didn't want to believe it, didn't care or was frightened or what it was, but the more I thought about it the more it bothered me. Sometimes I lie awake at night just fuming about it to be perfectly honest. He never outright denied the fact the You-Know-Who was back, but he never admitted that he believed it either. His indifference was infuriating.
"I'm sort of surprised Mum is letting us go," said Fred.
"I'm more surprised Dumbledore is letting Sirius go," I replied.
"A group of anything is less conspicuous than any singular solitary thing," said George. "Besides, Cassandra is infamous for always breeding those massive beasts. Leo isn't her first dog. I remember see a picture of her in one of our old Divination books with one of them I think it was named after another horoscope sign… I think it was Scorpio."
"Why George Weasley," I teased. "I always thought you only used your Divination book as a pillow, I never knew you actually read them."
"Who said anything about reading?" he smirked, "I just glanced at some of the pictures."
"Uh-huh," Fred laughed. "Don't pretend you didn't go to the library and stay up all night for two whole weeks just to read a dozen books about Seers right after we found out about Winnie's ability."
"H-He's joking," George blushed.
"I am," Fred admitted, "It must have been two dozen books. I think he knows a lot more than he lets on."
"No, I don't," he hissed.
I sent George a sideways glance.
"You really did that, George?" I asked.
He glared at Fred, his face red as a tomato.
"I read afewbooks," he said, gritting his teeth. "I just wanted to be able to understand a bit more of what you were going through is all. Fred is exaggerating."
"You took notes," said Fred, smiling like a Cheshire cat.
"I wrote down a couple facts I found interesting," he said, hurling a trick wand a Fred's head so hard that it exploded into a rubber chicken and knocked him clean off the bed and onto the floor in whirlwind of Ton-Tongue Taffies and Canary Creams. We couldn't help but laugh. I was glad the room had been sound proofed because we would have been murdered. I thought I was going to die from laughter. When we could all finally breathe again I looked over at George I engaged him again.
"Why didn't you ever tell me that before?" I asked George.
"I don't know," he shrugged. "I didn't think you needed to know."
"I'm surprised Fred kept his mouth shut this long," I replied. "You know how he likes to meddle."
"I like to tease," he objected. "There is a huge difference! I also believe in the very delicate practice of comedic timing which is something you have yet to master. It's all very scientific, you wouldn't understand."
"I'm sure," I said dryly.
"Anyway, that is very sweet, Georgie," I said genuinely. "I mean it. It's too bad Fred can't be as considerate as you."
"I may have read his cliff notes," said Fred.
"He read those books as soon as I was finished with them," said George finally. "Don't let him fool you."
"Shut up, George," said Fred.
"Aw, you two aren't as bad as they say after all," I smiled, propelling forward and knocking both of them over with my outstretched arms. I wrapped my arms around their necks and pulled them both close to place a big sloppy smooch on each of their cheeks. They both wiped my slobber away and cringed while they laughed. I rolled over on my back and repositioned myself so I still had my arms still wrapped behind both of their heads.
"Your armpits smell like a troll's backside," said George, still staring at the ceiling.
"See, Freddie, now that is comedic timing," said Fred, reaching his outside arm over to meet his twin's in the middle to high-five square in the middle. "Good show, George."
"Idiots," I muttered.
–
Cassandra and I had been able to continue our lessons at the House of Black even though Molly refused to allow me to assist the Order. It was infuriating. Cassandra was a member now, however. She refused to hide this time around. She said that the she was not as useful as she could have been when she was younger come to find out. I guess a Seer's visions run few and far between as they grow older. She told me once that she was so old now that she assumed her next vision would be her last — the vision of her death. Our sessions grew shorter and shorter as time passed. She had taught me all she knew, and all I could do was wait for my powers to grow stronger. I had all the knowledge and ability to control my gift, but I had to just wait and see if I would grow to be a stronger Seer — if I could see further into the future than ever before. Because Cassandra and I had spent so little time with each other outside of the Number Twelve lately, she agreed to accompany the lot of us to Diagon Alley for the afternoon. I think she regretted it after she realized that entailed having to manage Sirius.
"I told you to stay close," Cassandra snapped at Sirius in her thick Bulgarian accent, "I don't want to pull on the leash again. You are worse than Leo."
"I wish I could buy three more and hook them on you lot," said Molly, only half joking as she glanced over at the three of us.
Sirius had been so excited to be granted a rare visit in the sunlight that he pranced about like a newborn pup. Leo was old and seemed annoyed to have to share a walk with someone with another dog with so much energy. The twins and I thought it was quite funny though Cassandra and Molly did not quite find it so. At least no one found it suspicious. If we saw anyone we knew, Sirius was on his best behavior and was overlooked or simply petted along with Leo. We told anyone who asked that his name was Libra, and we were looking to breed the two. He hated it. We loved it.
Come to find out, the only reason we were allowed to go on this little endeavor was because Molly wanted to buy everyone's school supplies all of her own kids as well as Harry and Hermione's. We were dragged along the entire way with our errand being the last thing on the to-do list. Cassandra was just along for the ride, shopping for little things she needed and growing more and more annoyed with Sirius who was just pleased to be away from the house.
"Can we go to Eeylops now?" asked Fred.
"I don't know why you two think you need an owl when you could easily borrow Winnie's, Ron's, Errol or one of the school's for the matter," said Molly. "It just seems like a waste of money that you don't have."
"We're sick of having to borrow, Mum," said George. "We've been borrowing owls all our lives. Errol is unreliable, Ron never wants to lend us Pig, June is worn out and the school's owls bite worse than Winnie."
"Oi!" I objected.
"Alright, let me finish picking up your robes–" said Molly. "Wait, why would June be worn out–"
"Mum, we will take Leo and Libra and go get the bloody owl and meet you back at Madam Malkin in twenty minutes," said George in an exasperated tone, trying to change the subject. "I doubt we will be serial murdered in the time it takes us to check out at Eeylops."
"Absolutely not–"
"Molly dear, considering the circumstances I would agree with you," said Cassandra tentatively, "but they are all now of age. They have the ability to Apparate if danger presents itself, and I doubt it will in broad daylight. They will have some pretty intimidating friends along with them as well." Cassandra winked down at the two dogs.
Molly thought long and hard about her decision before releasing a heavy sigh.
"Twenty minutes," she replied begrudgingly and the three of us engulfed her in a hug, "And if you're late, I will kill you myself you."
"Deal," we said in unison as I grabbed both leashes from Cassandra and jogged off towards Eeylops.
Eeylops Owl Emporium was nothing special, but it was a haven to escape Molly's nagging and bargain shopping. In fact, the twins weren't happy at all to have to buy an owl, but if it mean we could get away for a while they would have spent our entire savings. The shopkeeper glared at us once he set eyes on our two fury friends. The owls became significantly louder at the sight of them, hooting and flapping their wings in a wild frenzy.
"Just pick one," said Fred, covering his ears.
George walked over to the minute owls and found a tiny white fluff ball in a cage, practically threw it at the shopkeeper along with a few galleons as we darted out the door in a record thirty seconds. It was a cute little thing, maybe even smaller than May. I cooed over it like a child to Fred and George's disgust.
"What should we name it?" ask George, ripping the pink sticker off the cage to signify its feminine gender.
"Let's see…" Fred thought aloud. "We have a May and June… I suppose we could do with an April. That's our birth month anyway."
"I like it," I smirked, tickling her tiny stomach through her cage bars.
"April it is," said George, "What do you think, Padfoot?"
He released a loud bark of approval.
"It looks like we have four stamps of approval," said Fred, "and speaking of stamps of approval… isn't that Oliver across the way? You wanted Padfoot to meet Oliver didn't you… or at least see him in person, right?"
Oliver was walking out of Twilfitt and Tatting's, wearing sunglasses and looking consumed with checking off items on a list in his hand. His outfit looked brand new and pristine, his hair newly styled. I should have been ashamed to even be seen with him. I was in tattered jeans, chucks I'd had for years and an old Chudley Canons t-shirt that was far too small with my hair in pigtails as usual. But I strode right up to him, leading Leo and Sirius with the twins in tow. He didn't even notice I was there for a minute or two.
"Winnie!" he exclaimed, leaning down and kissing me. He noticed my shirt at once and looked at me in a way that Molly used to give me when I forgot to clean my room. "I thought we talked about that shirt."
"We did," I said, gritting my teeth and trying to remain quiet enough for the boys not to hear, "and I told you it has sentimental value. Ron gave it to me for my thirteenth birthday. He saved up and–"
"I understand that, but I do not play for the Chudley Canons," he replied airily. "You must understand how your appearance could be misconstrued—"
"Right-o," I interrupted, trying to change the subject, "Anyways, so Oliver, these are my grandmother's dog's – Leo and Libra. We're taking them for a quick walk, would you want to join us? I haven't seen you since last Friday."
"Oh, I would love to, sweetheart, but I just have so much to do before Saturday," he replied in a way that sort of made me feel like his daughter instead of his girlfriend. I was also still bothered that he had yet to acknowledge Fred and George. "Oh, which reminds me – I bought your dress!"
"You – what?" I said with an upward inflection. "I figured I was just going to wear that dress I wore the Alumni dinner last month. I don't mind it that much. Hermione even said I can borrow it again and–"
"The Prophet will be there, and you can't wear that again," he said as if I just told him I was planning on wearing a burlap sack. "This could potentially be the biggest night of my life – of our lives, and I want everything to be perfect."
"Oliver–" I objected.
"It's no problem, sweetie," he smiled, tilting my chin up to meet his sunglass covered eyes. "I will send the dress and shoes to you and it even comes with a charm to tidy your hair and make-up."
"Marvelous," I said dryly. "What does this dress look like exactly?"
"It's a surprise, but I know you'll love it," he grinned. "It's something I know you would have picked out yourself."
"If you knew her at all you would know that Winnie would have never picked out a dress to begin with," said George from behind me. I elbowed him in the gut.
"Great," I replied in a less than enthused tone.
"Yeah, I just bought it," he went on. "Mrs. Cattermole is just grabbing the rest of the bags. Ah, here she comes."
Poor Mrs. Mary Cattermole fell through the front door of Twilfitt and Tatting's with her arms chock full of bags from several shops in Diagon Alley. She was sweating and out of breath, deep handle indentions on her arms from the heavy bags. Fred handed me the caged owl so he and George could take the bags off her hands. She heaved a heavy breath and thanked them tremendously. She fixed her hair and adjusted her dress, and I didn't even want to think about how long she had been lugging around those bags on her own. Oliver appeared unfazed.
"Gee, Wood, it would have been nice if you could lend her hand, wouldn't it?" said Fred in an unsettling tone.
"You can't expect me to risk another injury, can you?" said Oliver, laughing as if Fred had told a joke.
"Is he serious?" Fred whispered to his brother. George rolled his eyes.
"Thank you, boys, but I think we were just about to leave the Alley now anyway," said Mary. "We are going to drop off these bags and then run a few more errands, no worries. I have strong forearms."
"She's right," said Oliver, "I will see you on Saturday. Shall I pick you up at the Burrow?"
"No," I said quickly. "I will meet you at your flat."
"Alright," he nodded, kissing me quickly. "I'll see you then."
Oliver playfully ruffled the top of Sirius's head, and he released a deep growl that made Oliver regret even glancing at the beast. The twins begrudgingly gave back the plethora of bags to Mary before the pair proceeded to Apparate before our eyes. George took the owl cage from my hand so I could hold a leash in either of my hands again.
"What an asshole," said Fred.
"Fred–" I began.
"That's all I'm going to say," he said, holding his hands in the air as Sirius barked in agreement. "Let's go find Mum before she skins all of us alive."
–
"I like her," said Fred, flicking several seeds across the wooden floor so April could gobble them up.
"It looks like June is jealous," George laughed as May flew down from the window and nudged the little brown owl out of the way to snatch up the seeds.
"June!" I scolded, grabbing some more seed and returning it to April.
"They'll get used to each other," said Fred, "May hated Crookshanks in the beginning, but she loves him now."
"Yes, a bit too much if you ask me," I replied. "They're inseparable."
"Aw, is Freddie jealous her cat is spending too much time with another cat?" George teased.
"Bugger off," I laughed, throwing seed in his face and making a mess on the floor for the hungry owls to eat up.
We were waiting for Harry and the others to return to the Number Twelve and killing time by adjusting April to her new surroundings. She was getting on fine besides June's occasional fits of jealous rage.
"So you're not sore at me for making you buy another owl anymore?" I smiled.
"We're always sore at you for something," Fred joked. "But I think we will need more than one owl to keep up with these orders."
"I was glad Sirius got to go with us too," said George.
"Even though he ranted about how much of a selfish ass Oliver for three hours after we got home," said Fred.
"Yes, that got old about ten seconds in," I replied. "He seemed to take a page out of Percy's book of things nobody wants to hear."
Percy was still a sore subject throughout the entire house. He had gotten into an end all fight with Molly and Arthur and chose the Ministry over us. Molly was hysterical. Arthur was too upset to speak for a week afterwards. Everyone else was so shocked that we didn't know what to do. Somehow I was voted to console Molly after the whole ordeal which baffled me to no end, but I spent the whole evening trying to get her to stop crying by stammering like a buffoon. I guess she appreciated the effort more than anything though because ever since she has introduced me as her daughter to any new person we have met instead of just Winnie McKinnon. Molly always loved and treated me as her daughter, but I think she always thought I might be uncomfortable with her claiming me as her own. I wasn't, and I think she finally realized it.
"I wish we could hear what that meeting is going to be about downstairs," said George.
"We could give it another go," said Fred, grabbing another Extendable Ear from under his bed.
Suddenly, loud indistinguishable yelling could be heard down the hall. Though the words could not be understood I recognized the voice at once. It was Harry. I smiled and looked over at the twins.
"Oh, he sounds like he's in good spirits," said Fred, "Shall we go cheer him up?"
We decided to Apparate. It only seemed fitting.
"Hello, Harry," said George, beaming at him. "We thought we heard your dulcet tones."
"You don't want to bottle up your anger like that, Harry, let it all out," said Fred, also beaming.
"There might be a couple of people fifty miles away who didn't hear you," I replied.
"You two passed your Apparation tests, then?" asked Harry grumpily.
"With distinction," said Fred, puffing out his chest. Harry looked at the Extendable Ear in his hand with a bewildered stare.
"It would have taken you about thirty seconds longer to walk down the stairs," said Ron.
"Time is Galleons, little brother" said Fred. "Anyway, Harry, you're interfering with reception."
"He's referring to the Extendable Ears," I added in response to Harry's raised eyebrows, and held up the string which Harry now saw was trailing out on to the landing. "We were going to try to hear what's going on downstairs."
"You want to be careful," said Ron, staring at the Ear, "if Mum sees one of them again…"
"It's worth the risk, that's a major meeting they're having," said Fred.
The door opened and a long mane of red hair appeared.
"Oh, hello, Harry!" said Ginny, brightly. "I thought I heard your voice."
"That's just Ginger Snap's polite way of saying, 'I thought I heard you screaming down the hall ten minutes ago, Harry, but I thought I'd wait a bit for you to cool off before I welcomed you back,'" I teased. Ginny stuck her tongue out at me, and I returned the gesture.
Turning to Fred and George, she said, "It's no-go with the Extendable Ears, she's gone and put
an Imperturbable Charm on the kitchen door."
"How d'you know?" said George, looking crestfallen.
"Tonks told me how to find out," said Ginny. "You just chuck stuff at the door and if it can't make contact the door's been Imperturbed. I've been flicking Dungbombs at it from the top of the stairs and they just soar away from it, so there's no way the Extendable Ears will be able to get under the gap."
Fred heaved a deep sigh.
"Shame," he sighed again. "I really fancied finding out what old Snape's been up to."
"Snape!" said Harry quickly. "Is he here?"
"Yeah," said George, carefully closing the door and sitting down on one of the beds; Fred and Ginny followed. "He's giving a report, top secret."
"Git," said Fred idly.
"He's on our side now," said Hermione reprovingly. "Winnie trusts him too."
Ron snorted. "It doesn't stop him from being a git. The way he looks at us when he sees us."
"Bill doesn't like him, either," said Ginny, as though that settled the matter.
"Bill hates everyone who doesn't worship him," I said, rolling my eyes.
"Oh, so you like Snape now?" George retorted.
"Absolutely not," I snapped, "but just because I don't like someone as a person doesn't mean I think they don't have honorable intentions."
"Is Bill here?" Harry asked. "I thought he was working in Egypt?"
"He applied for a desk job so he could come home and work for the Order," said Fred. "He says
he misses the tombs, but;" he smirked, "there are compensations."
"What d'you mean?"
"Remember old Fleur Delacour?" said George. "She's got a job at Gringotts to eempwve 'er Eeenglish -"
"And Bill's been giving her a lot of private lessons," sniggered Fred.
"Charlie's in the Order, too," I said, "but he's still in Romania. Dumbledore wants as many foreign wizards brought in as possible, so Charlie's trying to make contacts on his days off."
"Couldn't Percy do that?" Harry asked.
"Whatever you do, don't mention Percy in front of Mum and Dad," Ron told Harry in a tense
voice.
"Why not?"
"Because every time Percy's name's mentioned, Dad breaks whatever he's holding and Mum
starts crying," Fred said.
"It's been awful," said Ginny sadly.
"I think we're well shut of him," said George, with an uncharacteristically ugly look on his face.
"What's happened?" Harry said.
"Percy and Dad had a row," said Fred.
"If that isn't the understatement of the century," I muttered. "It was terrible. He and Arthur really got into it–Arthur has never been the one to shout, you know."
"Yeah, it's always been Mum who yells," said Ginny.
"So none of us had seen Dad in a row with anyone like that," said Ron. "It was the first week back after term ended," said Ron. "We were about to come and join the Order. Percy came home and told us he'd been promoted."
"You're kidding?" said Harry.
"Yeah, we were all surprised," said George, "because Percy got into a load of trouble about Crouch, there was an inquiry and everything. They said Percy ought to have realized Crouch was off his rocker and informed a superior. But you know Percy, Crouch left him in charge, he wasn't going to complain."
"So how come they promoted him?"
"That's exactly what we wondered," said Ron, who seemed very keen to keep a normal conversation going now that Harry had stopped yelling from what I could tell. "He came home really pleased with himself – even more pleased than usual, if you can imagine that – and told Dad he'd been offered a position in Fudge's own office. A really good one for someone only a year out of Hogwarts: Junior Assistant to the Minister. He expected Dad to be all impressed, I think."
"Only Dad wasn't," said Fred grimly.
"Why not?" said Harry.
"Well, apparently Fudge has been storming round the Ministry checking that nobody's having any contact with Dumbledore," said George.
"Dumbledore's name is mud with the Ministry these days, see," said Fred. "They all think he's just making trouble saying You-Know-Who's back."
"Dad says Fudge has made it clear that anyone who's in league with Dumbledore can clear out their desks," said George.
"Trouble is, Fudge has to at least suspect Dad is friendly with Dumbledore," said Fred. "He really has to after all, Winnie is basically his daughter and we all witnessed her make her allegiances known pretty clear to Fudge himself, the night of Cedric's death. Besides, he's always thought Dad's a bit of a weirdo because of his Muggle obsession."
"I would say I would probably have been able to control my anger if I would have known the trouble it caused, but I don't know if that's true," I admitted.
"But what's that got to do with Percy?" asked Harry, confused.
"I'm coming to that. Dad reckons Fudge only wants Percy in his office because he wants to use him to spy on the family – and Dumbledore."
Harry let out a low whistle.
"Bet Percy loved that."
Ron laughed in a hollow sort of way.
"He went completely berserk," I said, "I mean, he lost his head. He three Molly's tea set across the room – shattered it into a million pieces."
"And then he said – well, he said loads of terrible stuff," said Ginny, "I–It was awful. I can't even repeat it. Ron, you do it."
"She's right, it was awful," said Ron. "He said he's been having to struggle against Dad's lousy reputation ever since he joined the Ministry and that Dad's got no ambition and that's why we've always been – you know – not had a lot of money, I mean–"
"What?" said Harry in disbelief, as Ginny made a noise like an angry cat.
"I know," said Ron in a low voice. "And it got worse. He said Dad was an idiot to run around with Dumbledore, that Dumbledore was heading for big trouble and Dad was going to go down with him, and that he – Percy –knew where his loyalty lay and it was with the Ministry. And if Mum and Dad were going to become traitors to the Ministry he was going to make sure everyone knew he didn't belong to our family any more. And he packed his bags the same night and left. He's living here in London now."
"Molly has been in shambles," I frowned. "She's been crying at the drop of a hat. She went to try and talk to Percy in London. He slammed the door square in her faces. She bawled her eyes out the whole night afterwards."
"I dunno what he does if he meets Dad at work," said George.
"–Ignores him, I s'pose," said Fred.
"But Percy must know Voldemort's back," said Harry slowly. "He's not stupid, he must know your mum and dad wouldn't risk everything without proof."
"Yeah, well, your name got dragged into the row," said Ron, shooting Harry a furtive look.
"Don't feel bad, Harry," I smirked sadly, "you weren't the only one. Yours truly was mentioned, too."
"Percy said the only evidence was your word and Winnie's… I dunno… he didn't think it was good enough."
"But he knows Winnie is a Seer, and whenever she had a vision, he cared enough to report it back to–"
"Dumbledore – exactly," I nodded. "If he is stupid enough to believe Dumbledore is a loon then why would he trust me?"
"Because he grew up with you, and loves you," said Ginny.
"You would think that, wouldn't you?" I said with a bitter taste on my tongue.
"I also think Percy takes the Daily Prophet seriously," said Hermione tartly.
Harry, Ron and Hermione proceeded to get into a heated conversation about the recent articles about Harry that we had no interest in involving ourselves in. Harry was in a dreadful mood, and we had no intention of being on the receiving end of his rage. A few minutes later the meeting let out, Tonks knocked over the bloody umbrella stand again.
"Tonks!" cried Molly in exasperation, turning to look behind her.
"I'm sorry!" wailed Tonks, who was lying flat on the floor. "It's that stupid umbrella stand, that's the second time I've tripped over–"
But the rest of her words were drowned by a horrible, ear-splitting, blood-curdling screech. The moth-eaten velvet curtains hiding Walburga Black began to flap about from her shouting again. The old woman was drooling, her eyes were rolling, the yellowing skin of her face stretched taut as she screamed; and all along the hall behind us, the other portraits awoke and began to yell, too – again. Remus and Molly darted forward and tried to tug the curtains shut over the old bag, but they would not close and she screeched louder than ever, brandishing clawed hands as though trying to tear at their faces.
"Filth! Scum! By-products of dirt and vileness! Half-breeds, mutants, freaks, whores, be gone from this place! How dare you befoul the house of my fathers–"
Tonks apologized over and over again, dragging the huge, heavy troll's leg back off the floor; Molly abandoned he attempt to close the curtains and hurried up and down the hall, stunning all the other portraits with her wand; and Sirius came charging out of a door facing us. The flaps kept flying around as he ran from the end of the hall. Walburga spotted me again and pointed.
"YOU! Sniveling whore of treacherous scum!" she bellowed at me.
"We have established that she thinks I am my mother," I said nonchalantly to a shell-shocked looking Harry as if that was going to check off every question on his undoubtedly lengthy list.
"Shut up, you horrible old hag, shut UP!" Sirius roared, seizing the curtain Molly had abandoned. The old woman's face blanched.
"Yoooou!" she howled, her eyes popping at the sight of the man. "Blood traitor, abomination, shame of my own flesh!"
"I said – shut – UP!" roared the man, and with a stupendous effort he and Lupin managed to force the curtains closed again.
The old woman's screeches died and an echoing silence fell. Panting slightly and sweeping his long dark hair out of his eyes, Sirius turned to face us.
"Hello, Harry," he said grimly, "I see you've met my mother."
"Your–?"
"My dear old mum, yeah," said Sirius. "We've been trying to get her down for a month but we think she put a Permanent Sticking Charm on the back of the canvas. Let's get downstairs, quick, before they all wake up again."
–
It was always scarcely less gloomy than the hall above, a cavernous room with rough stone walls. We followed Sirius, leading Harry, to where most of the light was coming from a large fire at the far end of the room. A haze of pipe smoke hung in the air like battle fumes (most likely thanks to Dung), through which loomed the menacing shapes of heavy iron pots and pans hanging from the dark ceiling. Many chairs were crammed into the room for the meeting and a long wooden table stood in the middle of them, littered with rolls of parchment, goblets, empty wine bottles, and a heap of rags. Arthur and Bill were talking quietly with their heads together at the end of the table.
Molly cleared her throat. Arthur quickly looked around and jumped to his feet. Then the next five minutes proceeded to be a sea of pleasant welcome backs and some introductions to Harry followed by Tonks offering to help Molly finish dinner. I never thought Molly could come as close as she did to turning down help. Soon, a series of heavy knives were chopping meat and vegetables of their own accord, supervised of course, while Molly stirred a cauldron dangling over the fire and the others took out plates, more goblets and food from the pantry. After taking my plate, I went to take my usual seat at the end of the table and wait for the boys to catch up.
Mundungus Fletcher had pulled my chair out for me as he did every evening he ate dinner with us. I stood there while he patiently waited for me to take my seat.
"Piss off, Dung," I spat.
"Winnie, watch you language!" Arthur reprimanded.
"But he only pulls my chair out, so he has an excuse to touch my bum when I sit down!" I retorted.
"Oh, piss of then, Dung," said Arthur crudely, glaring at him and nodding his head at him to leave me be. The twins smirked at their father's witty response from across the room. I did too.
"Fred – George – NO, JUST CARRY THEM!" Molly shrieked suddenly.
Harry, Sirius and Mundungus looked round and, a split second later, they had to dive away from the table. Fred and George had bewitched a large cauldron of stew, an iron flagon of Butterbeer and a heavy wooden readboard, complete with knife, to hurtle through the air towards them. The stew skidded the length of the table and came to a halt just before the end, leaving a long black burn on the wooden surface; the flagon of Butterbeer fell with a crash, spilling its contents everywhere; the bread knife slipped off the board and landed, point down and quivering ominously, exactly where Sirius's right hand had been seconds before. I was laughing so hard that I was whipping away tears.
"FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE!" screamed Molly. "THERE WAS NO NEED – I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS – JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE ALLOWED TO USE MAGIC NOW, YOU DON'T HAVE TO WHIP YOUR WANDS OUT FOR EVERY TINY LITTLE THING!"
"We were just trying to save a bit of time!" said Fred, hurrying forward to wrench the bread knife out of the table.
"Sorry, Sirius, mate – didn't mean to–"
Harry and Sirius were both laughing; Mundungus, who had toppled backwards off his chair, was swearing as he got to his feet.
"Oh, Dung," I said in faux sympathetic voice. "Do you need help with your chair?"
"Piss off, Winnie," he muttered.
"Mundungus, watch your language!" Molly hissed.
I snickered in return.
"Boys," Arthur said, lifting the stew back into the middle of the table, "your mother's right, you're supposed to show a sense of responsibility now you've come of age–"
"None of your brothers caused this sort of trouble!" Molly raged at the twins as she slammed a fresh flagon of Butterbeer on to the table, and spilling almost as much again. "Bill didn't feel the need to Apparate every few feet! Charlie didn't charm everything he met! Percy–"
She stopped dead, catching her breath with a frightened look at her husband, whose expression was suddenly wooden.
"So… this stew looks great, Molls," I said quickly. "Let's tuck in."
"It looks wonderful, Molly," said Lupin, ladling stew on to a plate for her and handing it across the table.
For a few minutes there was silence but for the chink of plates and cutlery and the scraping of chairs as everyone settled down to their food. Then Molly turned to Sirius.
"I've been meaning to tell you, Sirius, there's something trapped in that writing desk in the drawing room, it keeps rattling and shaking. Of course, it could just be a Boggart, but I thought we ought to ask Alastor to have a look at it before we let it out."
"Whatever you like," said Sirius indifferently.
"The curtains in there are full of Doxys, too," Molly went on. "I thought we might try and tackle them tomorrow."
"I look forward to it," said Sirius. I heard the sarcasm in his voice, and by the look on Harry's face, I could tell he could as well, but I was not sure that anyone else did.
It didn't take long for Harry to feel the depression that engulfed Sirius Black. You couldn't blame him. He was trapped in the place he escaped as a child, his living hell, only to return after escaping Azkaban a couple years before. Sometimes I wondered if he would prefer Azkaban to the House of Black. I never had the nerve to ask him though. He sort of haunted the place, his spirit sucked into the building and his body drifting through the halls like a lost being. I had hoped that maybe when Harry returned that his spirits would be a bit lifted. However, his dull mood at the dinner table did little to convince me.
"We can help with that," said abruptly before I could take it back.
Fred and George sent me scathing glares.
"Really?" said Molly with an upward inflection.
"Uh, sure," I replied. "Right, Fred? Right, George?"
"Right…" they replied begrudgingly, kicking me under the table.
"Thank you," she smiled before returning to her intense conversation about goblins.
"Yes, thanks, Freddie," said George in a sarcastic tone.
"Why did you volunteer us for that?" Fred snapped.
"She would have made us do it anyway," I whispered, "and I can tell Sirius is really down. I want to try and get him out of doing any monotonous work."
"By making us more," said George, rolling his eyes.
"Aw, you're smarter than you look," I said dryly, reaching over and pinching his cheek. "But not smart enough to realize we can also use some of that Doxy venom for our Skiving Snackboxes."
Three helpings of rhubarb crumble and custard later and we were all feeling comfortably stuffed. As the final spoons were set down there was a lull in the general conversation: Arthur was leaning back in his chair, looking replete and relaxed; Tonks was yawning widely, her nose now back to normal; and Ginny who had lured May from dozing lazily atop the sofa, was sitting cross-legged on the floor, rolling Butterbeer corks for her to chase.
"Nearly time for bed, I think," said Molly with a yawn.
"Not just yet, Molly" said Sirius, pushing away his empty plate and turning to look at Harry. "You know, I'm surprised at you. I thought the first thing you'd do when you got here would be to start asking questions about Voldemort."
The atmosphere in the room changed with the rapidity only to be associated with the arrival of Dementors. Where seconds before it had been sleepily relaxed, it was now alert, even tense. A frisson had gone around the table at the mention of Voldemort's name. Lupin, who had been about to take a sip of wine, lowered his goblet slowly, looking wary.
"I did!" said Harry indignantly. "I asked Ron and Hermione but they said we're not allowed in the Order, so–
"
"Bets on how long Mum can go without her head exploding?" said George in a hushed tone.
"Five minutes," said Fred, quietly sliding a sickle on the table.
"Ten," said George, doing the same.
"I think she can make it fifteen," I said.
"Oh, a risk taker," George smirked.
"And they're quite right," Molly retorted. "You're too young."
She was sitting bolt upright in her chair, her fists clenched on its arms, every trace of drowsiness gone.
"Since when did someone have to be in the Order of the Phoenix to ask questions?" asked Sirius.
"Harry's been trapped in that Muggle house for a month. He's got the right to know what's been happen—"
"Hang on!" interrupted George loudly.
"How come Harry gets his questions answered?" said Fred angrily.
"We've been trying to get stuff out of you for a month and you haven't told us a single stinking thing!" said George.
"'You're too young, you're not in the Order'," said Fred in a high-pitched voice that sounded uncannily like his mother's. "Harry's not even of age!"
"It's complete bullocks actually!" I objected loudly. "We've been fighting all summer about you refusing to let me in the Order when I can bloody well HELP! But Harry has been here for an hour and now all the sudden it's an open book?"
"It's not my fault you haven't been told what the Order's doing," said Sirius calmly, "that's your parents' decision. Which means I think Winnie and Harry, on the other hand should—"
That comment did not bode well with Molly or Arthur or any Weasley in that room, but no one seemed to find the words to reply. It was sort of like Sirius was sticking up for me, but it a way that I didn't appreciate. Molly's face looked extremely broken as she opened her mouth to speak; however, I cut her off to speak first.
"I am of age, so I do think it should be my decision," I replied calmly, and all eyes were on me, "but if the decision rests in the hands of my parents then that means it rests with Molly and Arthur. But regardless to whether or not we are members, we live in the Headquarters whether we like it or not, and we deserve to know what's going on!"
Molly and Arthur exchanged a meaningful look before they returned to conversation.
"And as for Harry, it's not down to you to decide what's good for him!" said Molly sharply. The expression on her previously adorning kind face looked dangerous. "You haven't forgotten what Dumbledore said, I suppose?"
"Which bit?" Sirius asked politely, but with the air of a man readying himself for a fight.
"The bit about not telling Harry more than he needs to know," said Molly, placing a heavy emphasis on the last three words.
Ron, Hermione, Fred and George and I swiveled from Sirius to Molly as though we were following a tennis rally. Ginny was kneeling amid a pile of abandoned Butterbeer corks, watching the conversation with her mouth lightly open. Lupin's eyes were fixed on Sirius.
"I don't intend to tell him more than he needs to know, Molly," said Sirius. "But as he was the one who was there when Voldemort come back" (again, there was a collective shudder around the table at the name) "he has more right than most to—"
"He's not a member of the Order of the Phoenix!" said Mrs. Weasley. "He's only fifteen and if that means you've been telling Winnie things just because she saw—"
"And he's dealt with as much as most in the Order," said Sirius, "and more than some — and no I have not."
"No one's denying what he's done!" said Molly, her voice rising, her fists trembling on the arms of her chair. "But he's still—"
"He's not a child!" said Sirius impatiently. "None of them are children! Quit acting like they are still on the bottle!"
"He's not an adult either!" said Molly, the color rising in her cheeks. "He's not James, Sirius!"
"Oh, shite," I muttered under my breath, covering my breath and slinking down in my chair. It was like watching a boxing match, each blow was lower than the next.
"I'm perfectly clear who he is, thanks, Molly," said Sirius coldly.
"I'm not sure you are!" said Molly. "Sometimes, the way you talk about him, it's as though you think you've got your best friend back!"
"What's wrong with that?" said Harry.
"What's wrong, Harry, is that you are not your father, however much you might look like him!" said Molly, her eyes still boring into Sirius. "Sirius thinks that it is just some sort of huge class reunion again, and he needs to grow up!"
"I most certainly do not!" Sirius objected.
"Of course you do," she shouted. "Don't think I don't know the only reason you spend all your time with Winnie is because she looks and acts just like her mother — your old flame. You like Fred and George because you think they are Gideon and Fabian all over again. And now Harry is here, and I know it will only get worse. You are going to be wrapped up in this fantasy world of yours and—"
"I spend time with them because I appreciate their humor and talents, and I don't treat them like they are worthless, childish foul-ups like you do," Sirius sneered.
"How dare you?" Molly bellowed. "I do not treat them like that! I don't even think anything of the sort!"
"Could have fooled me," he said in an icy tone.
"So back to Harry…" said Fred, extending a flat palm towards a stunned looking Harry.
"My point in all of this was that you are still at school and adults responsible for you should not forget it!" said Molly. I could tell she was moving on so she didn't have to address the latter subject again.
"Meaning I'm an irresponsible adult?" demanded Sirius, his voice rising.
"Meaning you have been known to act rashly, Sirius, which is why Dumbledore keeps reminding you to stay at home and—"
"We'll leave my instructions from Dumbledore out of this, if you please!" said Sirius loudly.
"Arthur!" said Molly, rounding on her husband. "Arthur, back me up!"
Arthur did not speak at once. He took off his glasses and cleaned them slowly on his robes, not looking at his wife. Only when he had replaced them carefully on his nose did he reply.
"Dumbledore knows the position has changed, Molly. He accepts that Harry will have to be filled in, to a certain extent, now that he is staying at Headquarters."
"Yes, but there's a difference between that and inviting him to ask whatever he likes!"
"Personally," said Lupin quietly, looking away from Sirius at last, as Molly turned quickly to him, hopeful that finally she was about to get an ally, "I think it better that Harry gets the facts not all the facts, Molly, but the general picture — from us, rather than a garbled version from… others."
His expression was mild, but Harry felt sure Lupin, at least, knew that some Extendable Ears had survived Molly purge.
"Well," said Molly, breathing deeply and looking around the table for support that did not come, "well… I can see I'm going to be overruled. I'll just say this: Dumbledore must have had his reasons for not wanting Harry to know too much, and speaking as someone who has Harry's best interests at heart—"
"He's not your son," said Sirius quietly.
"He's as good as," said Molly fiercely. "Who else has he got?"
"He's got me!"
"Yes," said Molly, her lip curling, "the thing is, it's been rather difficult for you to look after him while you've been locked up in Azkaban, hasn't it?"
"Jesus, Mum!" Fred and George exclaimed in unison. She was tossing out insults left and right.
Sirius started to rise from his chair.
"Molly, you're not the only person at this table who cares about Harry," said Lupin sharply.
"Sirius, for Merlin's sake, sit down," I snapped. "We get it, everybody loves everybody. Now sit the hell down."
"Winnie — language!" bellowed Molly.
"Seriously?" I pouted.
Molly's lower lip was trembling. Sirius sank slowly back into his chair, his face white.
"I think Harry ought to be allowed a say in this," Lupin continued, "he's old enough to decide for himself."
"I want to know what's been going on," Harry said at once.
"Very well," said Molly, her voice cracking. "Ginny — Ron — Hermione — Winnie — Fred — George — I want you out of this kitchen, now."
"Not bloody likely!" George shouted.
There was instant uproar.
"We're of age!" Fred and George bellowed together.
"If Harry's allowed, why can't I?" shouted Ron.
"Mum, I want to hear!" wailed Ginny.
"NO!" shouted Molly, standing up, her eyes over bright. "I absolutely forbid—"
"Molly, you can't stop Fred, Winnie or George," said Arthur wearily. "They are of age."
"They're still at school."
"But they're legally adults now," said Arthur, in the same tired voice. "And Dumbledore is on the verge of pressuring you to allow Winnie to help the Order sooner than later, so you might as well."
Molly was now scarlet in the face.
"I — oh, all right then, Winnie, Fred and George can stay, but Ron—"
"Harry'll tell me and Hermione everything you say anyway!" said Ron hotly. "Won't — won't you?" he added uncertainly, meeting Harry's eyes.
"Course I will," Harry said.
Ron and Hermione beamed.
"Fine!" shouted Molly. "Fine! Ginny — BED!"
George and I begrudgingly pushed our sickles into Fred's hands. Five minutes was the closest estimate before Molly lost her cool considering she lost her head about 30 seconds in.
"Fill you in later, Ginger Snap," I shouted as she left, and Molly was too upset to even respond.
Ginny did not go quietly either. We could hear her raging and storming at Molly all the way up the stairs, and when she reached the hall Mrs. Blacks ear-splitting shrieks were added to the din. Lupin hurried off to the portrait to restore calm. It was only after he had returned, closing the kitchen door behind him and taking his seat at the table again, that Sirius spoke.
"Okay, Harry… what do you want to know?"
"Where's Voldemort?" he said, ignoring the renewed shudders and winces at the name from the lot of us. "What's he doing? I've been trying to watch the Muggle news, and there hasn't been anything that looks like him yet, no funny deaths or anything."
"That's because there haven't been any funny deaths yet," said Sirius, "not as far as we know, anyway… and we know quite a lot."
"More than he thinks we do, anyway," said Lupin.
"How come he's stopped killing people?" Harry asked.
"Because he doesn't want to draw attention to himself," said Sirius. "It would be dangerous for him. His comeback didn't come off quite the way he wanted it to, you see. He messed it up."
"Or rather, you messed it up for him," said Lupin, with a satisfied smile.
"How?" Harry asked, perplexed.
"You weren't supposed to survive!" said Sirius. "Nobody apart from his Death Eaters was supposed to know he'd come back. But you survived to bear witness."
"And the very last person he wanted alerted to his return the moment he got back was Dumbledore," said Lupin. "And you made sure Dumbledore knew at once."
"How has that helped?" Harry asked.
"Are you kidding?" said Bill incredulously. "Dumbledore was the only one You-Know-Who was ever scared of!"
"Thanks to you, Dumbledore was able to recall the Order of the Phoenix about an hour after Voldemort returned," said Sirius.
"So, what's the Order been doing?" said Harry, looking around at us all.
"Working as hard as we can to make sure Voldemort can't carry out his plans," said Sirius.
"How d'you know what his plans are?" Harry asked quickly.
"Dumbledore's got a shrewd idea,' said Lupin, "and Dumbledore's shrewd ideas normally turn out to be accurate."
"So what does Dumbledore reckon he's planning?"
"Well, firstly, he wants to build up his army again," said Sirius. "In the old days he had huge numbers at his command: witches and wizards he'd bullied or bewitched into following him, his faithful Death Eaters, a great variety of Dark creatures. You heard him planning to recruit the giants; well, they'll be just one of the groups he's after. He's certainly not going to try and take on the Ministry of Magic with only a dozen Death Eaters."
"So you're trying to stop him getting more followers?"
"We're doing our best," said Lupin.
"How?"
"Well, the main thing is to try and convince as many people as possible that You-Know-Who really has returned, to put them on their guard," said Bill. "It's proving tricky, though."
"Why?"
"Because of the Ministry's attitude," said Tonks. "You saw Cornelius Fudge after You-Know-Who came back, Harry. Well, he hasn't shifted his position at all. He's absolutely refusing to believe it's happened."
"But why?" said Harry desperately. "Why's he being so stupid? If Dumbledore—"
"Ah, well, you've put your finger on the problem," said Athur with a wry smile. "Dumbledore."
"Fudge is frightened of him, you see," said Tonks sadly.
"Frightened of Dumbledore?" said Harry incredulously.
"Frightened of what he's up to," said Arthur. "Fudge thinks Dumbledore's plotting to overthrow him. He thinks Dumbledore wants to be Minister for Magic."
"But Dumbledore doesn't want—"
"He should really be looking out for Percy," Fred muttered.
"Of course he doesn't," said Arthur. "He's never wanted the Minister's job, even though a lot of people wanted him to take it when Millicent Bagnold retired. Fudge came to power instead, but he's never quite forgotten how much popular support Dumbledore had, even though Dumbledore never applied for the job."
"Deep down, Fudge knows Dumbledore's much cleverer than he is — a much more powerful wizard, and in the early days of his Ministry he was forever asking Dumbledore for help and advice," said Lupin. "But it seems he's become fond of power, and much more confident. He loves being Minister for Magic and he's managed to convince himself that he's the clever one and Dumbledore's simply stirring up trouble for the sake of it."
"How can he think that?" said Harry angrily. "How can he think Dumbledore would just make it all up — that I'd make it all up? Wait a minute! Winnie, he heard you admit you had a vision. You're a Seer—"
"Harry, did you know I had vision that you, Hermione and Viktor Krum were really involved in a love triangle last year during the tournament?" I replied. Ron and Hermione both shifted awkwardly in their seats.
"No, that's crazy," he replied defensively.
"Exactly," I said.
"Who is going to believe me if I confess a vision I had after something happened?" I replied. "It would be so easy for me to lie. We know that I am telling the truth, and I know too many intricate and personal details for my story to be falsified, but no one else could possible know that. If I had had my prediction a day before and warned someone somehow then perhaps your claim would have been more credible — or better yet it could have been prevented. If someone wanted to try and make any lie true they could just have a Seer say they saw it."
"But Fudge was there," said Harry indignantly. "He saw us. He had to have known we weren't lying. Why—"
"Because accepting that Voldemort's back would mean trouble like the Ministry hasn't had to cope with for nearly fourteen years," said Sirius bitterly. "Fudge just can't bring himself to face it. It's so much more comfortable to convince himself Dumbledore's lying to destabilize him."
"You see the problem," said Lupin. "While the Ministry insists there is nothing to fear from Voldemort it's hard to convince people he's back, especially as they really don't want to believe it in the first place. What's more, the Ministry's leaning heavily on the Daily Prophet not to report any of what they're calling Dumbledore's rumor-mongering, so most of the wizarding community are completely unaware any things happened, and that makes them easy targets for the Death Eaters if they're using the Imperius Curse."
"But you're telling people, aren't you?" said Harry, looking around at Arthur, Sirius, Bill, Mundungus, Lupin and Tonks. "You're letting people know he's back?"
They all smiled humorlessly.
"Well, as everyone thinks I'm a mad mass-murderer and the Ministry's put a ten thousand Galleon price on my head, I can hardly stroll up the street and start handing out leaflets, can I?" said Sirius restlessly.
"And I'm not a very popular dinner guest with most of the community," said Lupin. "It's an occupational hazard of being a werewolf."
"Tonks and Arthur would lose their jobs at the Ministry if they started shooting their mouths off," said Sirius, "and it's very important for us to have spies inside the Ministry, because you can bet Voldemort will have them."
"We've managed to convince a couple of people, though," said Arthur, "Tonks here, for one — she's too young to have been in the Order of the Phoenix last time, and having Aurors on our side is a huge advantage — Kingsley Shacklebolt's been a real asset, too; he's in charge of the hunt for Sirius, so he's been feeding the Ministry information that Sirius is in Tibet."
"But if none of you are putting the news out that Voldemorts back—" Harry began.
"Who said none of us are putting the news out?" said Sirius. "Why d'you think Dumbledore's in such trouble?"
"What d'you mean?" Harry asked.
"They're trying to discredit him," said Lupin. "Didn't you see the Daily Prophet last week? They reported that he'd been voted out of the Chairmanship of the International Confederation of Wizards because he's getting old and losing his grip, but it's not true; he was voted out by Ministry wizards after he made a speech announcing Voldemorts return. They've demoted him from Chief Warlock on the Wizengamot — that's the Wizard High Court — and they're talking about taking away his Order of Merlin, First Class, too."
"But Dumbledore says he doesn't care what they do as long as they don't take him off the Chocolate Frog Cards," said Bill, grinning.
"It's no laughing matter," said Arthur sharply. "If he carries on defying the Ministry like this he could end up in Azkaban, and the last thing we want is to have Dumbledore locked up. While You-Know-Who knows Dumbledore's out there and wise to what he's up to he's going to go cautiously. If Dumbledore's out of the way — well, You-Know-Who will have a clear field."
"But if Voldemort's trying to recruit more Death Eaters it's bound to get out that he's come back, isn't it?" asked Harry desperately.
"Voldemort doesn't march up to people's houses and bang on their front doors, Harry," said Sirius. "He tricks, jinxes and blackmails them. He's well-practiced at operating in secret. In any case, gathering followers is only one thing he's interested in. He's got other plans too, plans he can put into operation very quietly indeed, and he's concentrating on those for the moment.'
"What's he after apart from followers?" Harry asked swiftly. Sirius and Lupin exchanged the most fleeting of looks before Sirius answered. "Stuff he can only get by stealth. Like a weapon. Something he didn't have last time."
"When he was powerful before?"
"Yes."
"Like what kind of weapon?" said Harry. "Something worse than the Avada Kedavra—?"
"That's enough, I think."
Molly spoke from the shadows beside the door. We hadn't noticed her return from taking Ginny upstairs. Her arms were crossed and she looked drained.
"I want you in bed, now. All of you," she added, looking around at all of us.
"You can't make—" Fred began.
"Fred — enough," said Molly in a tone that made his mouth slam shut. She was trembling slightly as she looked at Sirius. "You've given Harry plenty of information. Anymore and you might just as well induct him into the Order straightaway."
"Why not?" said Harry quickly. "I'll join, I want to join, I want to fight."
"No."
It was not Molly who spoke this time, but Lupin.
"The Order is comprised only of overage wizards," he said. "Wizards who have left school," he added, as Fred, George and I opened our mouths. "There are dangers involved of which you can have no idea, any of you… I think Molly's right, Sirius. We've said enough."
Sirius half-shrugged but did not argue. Molly beckoned imperiously to her sons, me and Hermione. One by one we stood up and Harry, recognizing defeat as well, followed suit. At the top of the stairs, Molly pulled the twins and me aside for one quick second and lowered her voice as the others entered their rooms.
"When Sirius said all that, back there, about me treating you like— like that," she said softly. "You don't really think I believe that, do you?"
"Uh, how you act and what you think might be two very different things," George smirked, trying to appease his mother as Fred and I shrugged.
"Well, I don't think that," she insisted. "I don't, and it breaks my heart to know that you honestly think that. I only want the best for you three, and I know I am harder on you than the rest. That is just because I see so much potential in you, and I don't want it wasted."
"Mum, you can't keep treating us like we're children," said Fred. "If we foul up then that is our fault. You can't keep trying to prevent every mistake we might make. Ease up, please."
"You keep pushing us into these Ministry-type career paths, these safe and steady lives," I went on, "but we don't want that. You think our inventions and jokes are nothing but silly wastes of time, but they aren't Molly. If you would just trust us for once we can prove to you that even though we don't excel in a whole lot of things, you can't deny that we are experts in humor and jokes."
"So even though you may think destroying or taking away our inventions is better for us in the long run, it really isn't," said George. "We work really hard on those, and they take a lot of effort to create. It is actually sort of insulting when you treat them like rubbish because frankly, they're not. Loads of people love what we make, what we can do even if you don't."
"We plan on opening a shop, and we know you think it's stupid, and we're wasting our time," said Fred. "But we've invested more research, time and money in our idea than you can even begin to imagine. We know what Sirius said really hurt, but it's nice to be around him because he listens to our ideas and doesn't think what we're doing is—"
"—stupid—" said George.
"—or a waste of time—" I added.
"When it comes down to it, Moll," I sighed. "We are adults now, and we are going to have our own joke shop someday very soon. It is going to happen whether you like it or not."
"So you can keep purging our Extendable Ears, Canary Creams, Trick Wands and anything else we come up with," said George.
"But there will always be more," said Fred. "We're not giving up on our dream."
"You taught us that," said George.
Molly had tears in her eyes. It was probably from everything that had happened during the past hour. She blinked a couple times, allowing her tears to fall freely down her cheeks. She abruptly yanked us all into a group hug, crushing our bones while she plastered sloppy kisses on us like mad.
"I love you three no matter what, and I will always be proud of you," she cried. "You hear me? No matter where you go, no matter what you do, no matter who you become — I will love you nomatterwhat."
"You still hate the joke shop idea, don't you, mum?" said George, smirking.
"Of course I do, dear," she sniffled, kissing our cheeks again.
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MUAH HAHAHAHA I GOT YOU!
A/N: Oh, how disappointed I am in you all;) I would never write one of those fics where the main character gets engaged in school. I hate that. It's a pet peeve of mine. Some people can write it well, don't get me wrong, but it's rare. Winnie is totally not the type. I loved all the comments of "NOO! OMG!" I love you guys. I was cracking up. I have been going through a real rough patch in my life lately, and I can honestly say that writing has continued to be a great outlet for my immense stress. I've just been so super depressed lately, but when I write it just all sort of fades away. I thank all of you for your kind words and support. Thanks again:) Also, I promised I would update quicker if I reached 50 reviews. Well, here we are. I hope you guys liked that I sort of went back to the trio dynamic than the sobby junk it has been lately. It will remain like this mostly from now on. This was sort of a catch up chapter, so you guys knew what things had been like and where they seem to be going. I know it was sort of stilted, but for a first chapter I thought it was alright. Any questions or suggestions just let me know. If you guys help me reach 100 reviews on chapter 2 I will die of excitement and update super soon again with any luck;)
BEWARE: I know this had a lot of book quotes, but I promise there won't be too terribly more from now on. I find I always have a lot in the beginning because it is all catch-up type junk that is nothing new. Please, don't complain. I know I do it at times. I am trying to not be as bad at it. I try to go along with book as closely as possible because I get so annoyed when people jump around and leave things out, and my ultimate price is adding in too much from the book. I suck at it. I am trying to get better at it. I promise. I just struggle with summarizing important conversations. I know it sucks some of the excitement out of it. I hope it doesn't ruin the story=/
PS: Check out my trailers on YouTube. Just search "Winnie McKinnon" and my new username is "TopoftheGList"! Let me know what you think=)
PSS: Search MonBon1128 on flickr! WhatsGoingOn made some awesome banners for this fic that are worth seeing! She is so talented! Thanks again, doll face=)
Reading Suggestions: Weasleys at War by Tumblerose, Epiphanies and Ginger Boys by Virginia Wolfe, and anything by lyin' or FredFanatic.
BTW: Does anyone know of any good Fred/OC or George/OC fics out there right now by the way? I don't want to read any stories where they fight over a girl (because I don't think they ever would) or any fics with Sues. Let me know=)
Coming Soon: The epic conclusion of the Oliver/Winnie/George triangle, boggarts and doxies, Dumbledore gives Winnie a cryptic warning and a new tutor, chaos and hilarity undoubtedly ensue…
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THANKSGIVING THANK YOUS
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A very special holiday thank you for reviewing to all of these special people:
DragonWand, Ryadai, The Wedding Planner's Daughter, DesireOFfantasy, 690, quidditchandsonicscrewdrivers, spannieren, tonidepp16, PhoenixRage92, Angel2u, Harper Granger-Weasley, LexVictoriaX, Shadowrunner240, Nestling, MissyMiss, QueenieBeanie, WinnieandGeorge4Ever, AshleyT, FredsLastLaugh, FiddleDeeDee, DragonWand, pridenprejudice, Gyardian, better-off-believing, AkaMizu-chan, Anon, random reader, FallingThroughTheWind, aliben, LoverPR-SN-HP, Namida-Kaida, ForgeandGred4Ever, Ieva, Marisa1698, Takara Matsdaira, ASDFGHJKL, l o c c l a i r e, swear-on-the-moon, MikeHimura, Charlie167, Deanykins, Blonde Pickle Mule, harlequincabaret, tonidepp16, purpleCHEEZ, kmkm89, JEM-99, shopoholic06, GreyLionDiva, ElephantsandTeacups, NightFury808, LilyMelany, and .heaRt
Poison Ice: I loved your review! Thank you so much! That means so very much to me! I was cracking up! I will get back to you about the reading thing because I may need you! I am so glad you are enjoying the fic so far, and I hope you continue to follow it in the future! I appreciate the feedback more than you know=)
Singing-The-Travels: FYI. Your review in particular brought a smile to face=) Thanks for reviewing!
Tumblerose: Thanks for tagging me in that facebook article the other day. I loved it. I read it like 3 times! Anywho, I hope promoting your fic on here is OK. I just started reading it, and I'm hooked. I'm on Chapter 3, so I'm going to go back and review every chapter once I'm finished. I can't wait to incorporate Verity in this fic too! I'm still working on the audio chapters, but I haven't heard a lot of support for it so far… so we shall see. I haven't given up yet! Anyways, thanks for reviewing, love=)
WhatsGoingOn: All I have to say to you is… YOU ARE AMAZING. For real, there is nothing else I can really say in that respect. You really are. On a random subject, what color is your hair, what color are your eyes and is your hair straight or curly? You will see why…;) I have been planning something for a very long time!
HarutaYari: I completely agree with you. I think you will like this story a lot more once the next chapter is complete. Not much romantic drama and more plot drama. Haha. Sound good?
imAddicted.2myipod: You right on the money, honey! She wouldn't think of it! No need to buy that black dress now=) Thanks for the review!
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Review.