Written for The Houses Competition: Round 2
House: Hufflepuff
Class: Potions
Prompts: [Last Line] Unfortunately, that wasn't the last they/he/she heard of that.
Summary: Molly hears strange noises at night and goes to investigate.
Word Count: 600
Molly was used to strange noises in her house. Growing up with prankster brothers, then raising a family of seven kids, she learned to sleep through most of those noises. However, tonight was different.
It started softly. She thought she was imagining things at first, but each night it happened consistently at the same time. And even stranger, it started happening when Harry came around for the summer.
The poor boy looked so relieved when he came in, she couldn't help but pity him. She may not have known the full situation, but she knew the Muggles he was living with were not as pleasant as Dumbledore had assured her.
With that thought in mind, she got up for the first time to check the situation. The house was silent except for the occasional snore or creak. Harry was staying in Ron's room, so she checked there first.
The noise got louder as she neared, and she knew she was right. What the noise was though was still a mystery. The door was slightly open, so she just peered in first.
Harry was wide awake, sitting up on his bed, Ron fast asleep on his own bed. In his hand was a flute. It was clearly an old flute by the coloring but looked well cared for, probably by Harry himself.
The music he was playing was soft, or at least he was trying to be. She didn't know the tune, and she figured it might be a muggle one. It was a song Harry knew well, as his eyes were closed as he played, trusting his fingers to do the rest and no music in front of him.
For a few moments, Molly just stood and listened. It was a lullaby of sorts and she felt herself get drowsy just listening to it. Molly did not fall asleep, however, as determination ran through her, so she knocked on the door. The music halted and Harry stared at her as she entered the room.
She gestured towards the bed, silently asking if she could take a seat, and he scooted over to accommodate her. The two sat in silence for a bit, Harry red in embarrassment as Molly thought.
"The flute, huh? How long have you been playing?" she asked, trying to start the conversation.
It clearly startled Harry as he started babbling apologies and promises that he would never do it again, and she raised her hand to stop it. She smiled gently at him and held out her arms for a hug. He hesitated at first, but settled into her arms.
"You're fine, Harry," she whispered, holding him tighter, "You play very well. Don't let me stop you. Though I would appreciate it if you did it during the day instead."
She knew that his response wasn't natural. Someone had obviously scolded him before about it, and viciously too, and Molly would bet the little money they had that it was the awful Muggles he lived with.
After a while, they pulled away. Harry looked slightly better, and he yawned, exhaustion finally catching up with him. Molly made sure he went back to bed and made him promise he would not play at night anymore.
"Harry?" she questioned one more time before she left, "Don't stop playing. No matter what anyone tells you."
Harry nodded before settling in for the night. Molly closed the door, hoping she would hear Harry play tomorrow morning or afternoon instead of at night. And hopefully, his family wasn't as bad as she believed.
Unfortunately, that wasn't the last she heard of that.
