Chapter 8:
Ginny awoke Alicia up by jumping on her and the girl groaned from the sudden weight before she coughed in complaint.
"God what are you five?" Alicia mumbled through her grogginess and Ginny only started laughing.
"Well you can't sleep forever." Hermione grinned from Alicia's other side.
"Here." Alicia rubbed her eyes before she managed to sit up. Ginny was holding out a present. "It took me ages to figure out what to get you, considering you're going away but I figured I'd keep it simple."
It was clearly a book and when Alicia opened it, she found a magical cook book.
"Seeing as you're going to have to look after yourselves." Ginny smiled
"This is perfect." Alicia grinned as Hermione looked at it over her shoulder "I actually hadn't even thought of that part." Ginny chuckled at her
"This one's from me." Hermione smiled, handing it to her. It was a box and Alicia opened it. She looked inside to find a miniature version of Noel. It fluttered out of the box and in front of Alicia chirping at her before moving to her shoulder. Alicia stared at it.
"It's not real, wont be able to send letters, but it requires similar things." Hermione said.
Alicia stared at it and she suddenly hit a terrible realisation that had yet to occur to her.
She couldn't take Noel with her.
Ginny and Hermione looked at Alicia as she suddenly looked sad and worried.
"Alicia?" Ginny asked. Alicia looked up at her as Hermione placed a hand on Alicia's shoulder, watching her.
"Noel." Alicia muttered and she looked at the little owl. "I can't take her." she said "We can't apparate around with an owl with us, and we cant send letters, someone would notice her." she mumbled. "I just realised."
"Don't worry Alicia." the girl turned to Ginny beside her. "I'll look after her." Alicia stared at her before she smiled sadly and pulled Ginny into a hug.
"Crookshanks is staying to Alicia, they'll be fine." Hermione assured, patting Alicia's back.
"Make sure she's safe. I've never been without her before."
"I can even leave her here, what with Errol being… Errol." she said and the three girls laughed.
"It's probably better you do Ginny, if you're seen with her at Hogwarts then it might lead the Death Eaters to you." she said and Ginny nodded and Hermione brushed Alicia's hair comfortingly and she smiled.
Alicia then turned smugly to Ginny.
"So, what you get Harry?" she stopped and then sighed, the two girls watching.
"I couldn't think of anything."
"Well, not like it has to be physical." Alicia grinned before she got up and got dressed. She waved her wand absentmindedly and her clothes all folded themselves up as she grinned.
"Seventeen, don't have any restrictions!" she grinned before she sighed "All these protections and I could totally just apparate down stairs." Ginny laughed at her as Hermione rolled her eyes.
"Fred's a bad influence on you." she decided
"It's been said." Alicia agreed, earning laughs from both as she turned for the door and headed up the stairs, a gift in her hand.
"This isn't your average book," Ron's voice sounded. "It's pure gold: Twelve Fail-Safe Ways to Charm Witches. Explains everything you need to know about girls. If only I'd had this last year I'd have known exactly how to get rid of Lavender and I would've known how to get going with… Well, Fred and George gave me a copy, and I've learned a lot. You'd be surprised, it's not all about wandwork, either."
"I am ashamed I even heard that." Alicia said as she opened the door and both boys blushed at her, Harry shoving the book out of sight. "Charm women, he doesn't need to charm women, he's got Ginny." Alicia said to Ron.
"He broke it off with her." he snapped at her
"Only until Voldemort's gone then his excuse is gone and they can be together happily." Alicia said, waving her hand absentmindedly. "Happy birthday Harry." she grinned and chucked him her present, which he caught.
"Happy birthday Alicia," and he chucked her one back. Both opened them and Harry found a bottle of firewhisky from Alicia while she had another charm for the bracelet Fred had gotten her, a tiny golden snitch.
"That's lovely." Alicia grinned, clipping it to the bracelet she never took off.
"You bought him fire whisky?" Ron asked looking disappointed
"I bought him a bottle, which I put a little charm on, so it always duplicates the last little bit to refill itself again. Figured since we're going away it'd be handy." she said a little annoyed at Ron. Now she'd explained though the boy looked at it with fascination.
"Brilliant Alicia." he grinned
"I know." she flicked her hair
"What's with the bird?" Harry asked, it had been on her shoulder and when she'd flicked her hair it's moved to the top of her head.
"Isn't it sweet? Hermione gave it to me, it's like a baby Noel. It's not real, but seeing as I can't take Noel with us…"
"Why not?"
"She'd be too much of a give away." Alicia frowned to Harry. "It's alright though, Ginny's promised to look after her here." she smiled and then sauntered from the room proudly to head down the stairs. Ginny was still in her room it seemed with Hermione as Alicia came into the kitchen.
There was two piles of presents waiting on the table. Bill and Monsieur Delacour were finishing their breakfasts, while Mrs. Weasley stood chatting to them over the frying pan.
"Morning Alicia, Happy birthday." Mrs Weasley smiled at her.
"Thank you Mrs Weasley."
"Arthur unfortunately had to go to work early but he wished you a Happy Birthday." she said
"Will he be here for dinner?"
"Oh yes."
"Then I excuse him." Bill chuckled as Alicia said down for some breakfast.
The door opened before she could touch a single present and she was hoisted out of her seat and smothered by two bodies, causing her mini-Noel to take chirping flight and stand on top of the other presents. Instantly she knew they were the twins and waited for them to release her.
"Happy seventeenth!" they chorused.
"I'm seventeen? Really?" Alicia asked with a look of shock on her face, causing the two to laugh. They held out a present and Alicia took it, it being the first to be opened apart from Ginny and Hermione's.
Alicia removed the wrapping to find a box, and opening it, she found a golden watch, encrusted with diamonds by the looks of it, sitting upon a small cousin and she stared at it surprised.
"Mum says it's traditional to give a watch for seventeen, we all got one." George grinned.
"We made sure to ask mum we could get it for you so she wouldn't double up, so don't worry." Fred said.
"One day you're gonna go broke from spending on me." Alicia said as she took out the watch and clasped it to her wrist, correcting the time and grinning.
"Well, we made it so it matched your bracelet." George said pointing. Both were gold and both had diamonds encrusted somewhere on it. "Hey you got a snitch."
"From Harry this morning." she nodded.
"Well, good thing I didn't get you another charm. I got you this instead." Fred said holding up another box. Alicia looked confused
"What? You didn't buy together?" she asked looking between them.
"Yeah we did, but Fred had to outshine me." George rolled his eyes
"That's possible?" Alicia asked and George grinned
"He can dream." Alicia grinned at Fred who smirked down at her as she took the box.
This one was much smaller than that of the one that held the watch and Alicia opened it.
When she didn't exclaim thank you, seem surprised or even move, Bill, Monsieur Delacour and Mrs Weasley all looked up.
Alicia rose an eyebrow.
"You're supposed to be on one knee when you present a ring, you know." she said and Mrs Weasley gasped as though she'd been knocked over.
Sitting in the cushion was a gold ring. The band was thin and the top half encrusted with very small diamonds and on the top was a rather large diamond, tear shaped and surrounded by more small round ones, encrusted into the gold metal work. It was simple, yet intricate.
"Do you want me to?" Fred asked smirking at her
"Is that what it's for?" Alicia responded as the two males were watching surprised.
"I'd think not!" Mrs Weasley said
"What? You don't want me as a daughter-in-law?" Alicia said back instantly, not looking at her as she and Fred held one another's eyes. Her voice was calm and her expression showed no hurt or malice or disappointment. It was just a question.
"Don't worry Mum." George grinned as Fred took the ring from it's case and placed it on the middle finger of Alicia's right hand.
"And even if Fred did decide to propose to me it wouldn't mean we'd go and steal Bill and Fleur's wedding reception." Alicia grinned as Fred kissed the ring now on her finger.
"A proposal's not set in stone mum." Fred grinned at her and Mrs Weasley seemed to have taken a breath and able to get a grip on herself again as the Weasley twins and Alicia grinned.
"Better not scare her like that for a few more years." Alicia said amused
"Well you are going to need to get through your Auror training first." George reminded her and she grinned as she looked down at the ring now gracing her finger, matching her bracelet and new watch.
She said nothing about her future career wish, without her N.E.W.T there was a likely chance that she wouldn't get her wish… if she survived that is.
Harry and Ron came down the stairs before Ginny and Hermione did and Harry was greeted with happy birthday's from the twins.
Alicia took a seat as Harry looked at the pile of presents he had, Alicia moving to open Mr and Mrs Weasley's present for her. She was curious as to what it would be if the twins had gotten her the watch.
"Arthur told me to wish you a happy seventeenth, Harry," said Mrs. Weasley, beaming at him. "He had to leave early for work, but he'll be back for dinner. That's our present on top."
Harry sat down, took the square parcel she had indicated, and unwrapped it. Inside was a watch, it was gold, with stars circling around the face instead of hands.
"It's traditional to give a wizard a watch when he comes of age," said Mrs. Weasley, watching him anxiously from beside the cooker. "I'm afraid that one isn't new like Ron's, it was actually my brother Fabian's and he wasn't terribly careful with his possessions, it's a bit dented on the back, but —"
The rest of her speech was lost; Harry had got up and hugged her. She responded by patting his cheek clumsily and waving her wand in a slightly random way, causing half a pack of bacon to flop out of the frying pan onto the floor.
Alicia grinned as she pulled out her present from Mr and Mrs Weasley, unwrapping it. Inside sat a bracelet. Gold, and a a bangle. In the centre of it, was a rectangular plaque, flatter to the rest of ht bangle and wider, in which Alicia's name had been engraved.
"It belonged to one of my family as well, her name also was Alicia, she had no descendants of her own and I thought it quite fitting." Mrs Weasley smiled
"It's beautiful." Alicia smiled and she clipped the bangle on with her gold chain charm bracelet. "Thank you Mrs Weasley…" she said "After all, I don't really have many heirlooms." she whispered, glancing fleetingly at Harry. After all, Mrs Weasley didn't know about the map.
"Happy birthday, Harry!" said Hermione, hurrying into the kitchen and adding her own present to the top of the pile. "It's not much, but I hope you like it. What did you get him?" she added to Ron, who seemed not to hear her.
"Come on, then, open Hermione's!" said Ron.
She had bought him a new Sneakoscope.
"He dodged my question." Hermione whispered to Alicia, slightly put out. Alicia smirked slightly.
"It's best you don't know." she responded.
Fleur it seemed had decided on Alicia's present, for she couldn't see Bill buying her perfume from France that smelled like it had Armortentia in it instead of perfume. Hermione had to take it away from Alicia's nose so she'd put it down. Bill and Fleur had gotten Harry a razor, which Monsieur Delacour had apparently heard of.
"Ah yes, zis will give you ze smoothest shave you will ever 'ave," Monsieur Delacour assured him, "but you must tell it clearly what you want… ozzerwise you might find you 'ave a leetle less hair zan you would like…"
The Delacours had given both twins chocolates and the Weasley twins had given Harry an enormous box of the latest Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes merchandise.
"You'll go broke doing that."
"Yeah it seems you and Harry are going to completely bankrupt us." George agreed, but he was grinning.
"What they give you Alicia?" Hermione asked. She rose her left hand to show the watch.
"They insisted on giving me one instead of their parents." she said
"That's beautiful." Hermione said
"A thing for jewellery Hermione?" Fred asked and for some reason he seemed to want to show off her ring too, as if it was sitting on her left hand instead of the right. He laced their fingers together and raised their hands, showing her the gold diamond ring on Alicia's finger.
Hermione gasped like Mrs Weasley had.
"Wrong hand Hermione." Alicia said rolling her eyes and Hermione looked at her two hands before realising she was right. "Wrong finger too."
"Wow!" Hermione grinned "It's gorgeous." Alicia chuckled "I don't thing there'd actually be anything wrong if you two got married actually." she said "You do fit together perfectly after all." Fred responded by wrapping his arms around Alicia's shoulders and kissing her temple. She grinned.
Madam Delacour, Fleur and Grabrielle came into the kitchen then and it automatically became overly crowded.
Hermione, Ron and Harry took this as an opportunity to leave the room, Hermione scooping up Harry's presents from him.
"I'll pack these for you," Hermione said brightly. Alicia looked at her with a raised eyebrow as they left the kitchen.
"That was odd of Hermione." Fred thought
"Probably got something to do with Ginny." Alicia mumbled as they ate breakfast.
It wasn't a few moments later that Ron suddenly came trudging down the stairs looking mightily unhappy, Harry following warily behind and Hermione trotting after them looking scared.
Alicia watched them and so did everyone else.
"Uh oh…" she muttered and she got up to follow.
She followed them to a seclusion of the freshly mown lawn before Ron suddenly rounded on Harry.
"You ditched her. What are you doing now, messing her around?"
"I'm not messing her around," said Harry, as Hermione and Alicia caught up with them.
"Ron —"
But Ron held up a hand to silence Hermione.
"She was really cut up when you ended it —"
"So was I. You know why I stopped it, and it wasn't because I wanted to."
"Yeah, but you go snogging her now and she's just going to get her hopes up again —"
"She's not an idiot, she knows it can't happen, she's not expecting us to — to end up married, or —"
"I take it Ginny gave Harry his birthday present." Alicia mumbled to Hermione. Hermione looked at her worried.
"Do we do something?"
"Kinda hard to when they both have a point." Alicia admitted
"If you keep groping her every chance you get —"
"It won't happen again," said Harry harshly. "Okay?"
"Not that we're going to be around long anyway." Alicia mumbled
Ron looked half resentful, half sheepish; he rocked backward and forward on his feet for a moment, then said, "Right then, well, that's… yeah."
"Can we turn today back into a happy celebratory birthday then?" Alicia asked and the two boys turned to her as she rose an eyebrow "Especially as it's the last day before the wedding." Alicia mumbled and the three laughed.
Dinner for the twins birthday would have stretched the limits of The Burrow's kitchen, with Charlie arriving during the day and Lupin, Tonks and Hagrid still to come, they decided to place several tables end to end in the garden. Fred and George bewitched a number of purple lanterns, all emblazoned with a large number 17, to hang in midair over the guests. Thanks to Mrs. Weasley's ministrations, George's wound was neat and clean and the twins couldn't help but make multiple jokes out of it.
Hermione made purple and gold streamers erupt from the end of her wand and drape themselves artistically over the trees and bushes.
"Nice," said Ron, as with one final flourish of her wand, Hermione turned the leaves on the crabapple tree to gold. "You've really got an eye for that sort of thing."
"Thank you, Ron!" said Hermione, looking both pleased and a little confused.
Harry and Alicia shared a look.
"Think he got it from that book?" she whispered and Harry smiled in response, smirking. Turning away Alicia saw him grin at Ginny and then abruptly look away.
"Out of the way, out of the way!" sang Mrs. Weasley, coming through the gate with what appeared to be a giant, beach-ball-sized Snitch floating in front of her.
Alicia looked at it marvellously as it was her and Harry's birthday cake. She grinned at it.
"That looks amazing, Mrs. Weasley."
"Oh, it's nothing, dear," she said fondly. Over her shoulder, Ron gave Harry the thumbs-up and mouthed, Good one.
"No, he's right, that's incredible." Alicia said shooting Ron a look.
By seven o'clock all the guests had arrived, led into the house by Fred and George, who had waited for them at the end of the lane. Hagrid had honoured the occasion by wearing his best, and horrible, hairy brown suit. He shook Alicia's whole arm wishing her happy birthday, followed by Lupin, and Tonks, the later go which who gave her a very big and bright hug. Alicia looked at her for a moment. She glanced at Lupin who was addressing Harry. Although Lupin smiled as he shook Harry's hand, he looked rather unhappy. It was all very odd; Tonks, beside him, looked simply radiant.
Alicia looked between them both.
"Tonks?" she said whispering to her and Tonks beamed at her
"No!" Alicia gapped at her, a smile spreading through and Tonks nodded. Everyone looked up as Alicia suddenly squealed the most girlyish squeal to ever come from her mouth yet, it was much unbecoming of her as she pulled Tonks into an enormous hug. Tonks was secretly shushing her in her ear.
"Oh I'm sorry." she whispered and she let Lupin drag her away with a grimace.
"What's that about?" Harry asked of her still looking stunned.
"Oh it's a girl thing." she said still radiant.
"Seventeen, eh!" said Hagrid as he accepted a bucket-sized glass of wine from Fred, who had pulled Alicia onto his lap the second the three guests had stopped greeting her. "Six years ter the day since we met, Harry, and Alicia too, though later on. D'yeh remember it?"
"Vaguely," said Harry, grinning up at him. "Didn't you smash down the front door, give Dudley a pig's tail, and tell me I was a wizard?"
"I forge' the details," Hagrid chortled.
"Weren't you supposed to keep that a secret?" Alicia smirked to Harry.
"All righ', Ron, Hermione?"
"We're fine," said Hermione. "How are you?"
"Ar, not bad. Bin busy, we got some newborn unicorns, I'll show yeh when yeh get back —"
"Aww!" Alicia cooed, covering up how Harry, Ron and Hermione avoided one another's gazes and all four of them felt guilty.
Hagrid rummaged in his pocket. "Here, Harry — couldn' think what ter get yeh, but then I remembered this." He pulled out a small, slightly furry drawstring pouch with a long string, evidently intended to be worn around the neck. "Mokeskin. Hide anythin' in there an' no one but the owner can get it out. They're rare, them."
"Sounds like my trunk, it had a spell put on it by Dumbledore so I was the only one who could open it." Alicia smiled.
"Hagrid, thanks!"
" 'S'nothin'," said Hagrid with a wave of a dustbin-lid-sized hand. "You were no better Alicia, couldn' think of a thin'," Hagrid said as he pulled out another object. "Came across this though…"
It was a necklace and Alicia wondered if people had been sick of always giving her books, as now it all seemed to be jewellery. Well, apart for her baby Noel owl which was sitting on the table, chirping and pecking at some food. Hanging from the chain it was a stone, in which a gold wire was intricately twisted around it to hold it in place. The stone itself looked blue, but Alicia noticed as it moved, it changed colour to lighter shades of green.
"It's a Phoenix flint." Hagrid said and Alicia looked at him shocked. "Dumbledore gave it teh me when I went teh the giants. I had it put on a chain for yeh."
"Wow Hagrid." Alicia breathed looking at it. Fred took the chain and, pushing her long black hair over her shoulder, he clipped it around her neck. The golden chain was thin and rather long that the stone bounced rather lowly on her chest and could easily be concealed down her top.
"An' there's Charlie! Always liked him — hey! Charlie!"
Charlie approached, running his hand slightly ruefully over his new, brutally short haircut. Mrs Weasley had attacked it almost the second he'd arrived. He was shorter than Ron, thickset, with a number of burns and scratches up his muscly arms.
"Hi, Hagrid, how's it going?"
"Bin meanin' ter write fer ages. How's Norbert doin'?"
"Norbert?" Charlie laughed. "The Norwegian Ridgeback? We call her Norberta now."
"Wha — Norbert's a girl?"
"Oh yeah," said Charlie.
"How can you tell?" asked Hermione.
"They're a lot more vicious," said Charlie. He looked over his shoulder and dropped his voice. "Wish Dad would hurry up and get here. Mum's getting edgy."
They all looked over at Mrs. Weasley. She was trying to talk to Madame Delacour while glancing repeatedly at the gate.
"I think we'd better start without Arthur," she called to the garden at large after a moment or two. "He must have been held up at — oh!"
They all saw it at the same time: a streak of light that came flying across the yard and onto the table, Alicia's baby Noel chided in surprise and jumped onto Alicia's shoulder, hiding in her hair. The patronus resolved itself into a bright silver weasel, which stood on its hind legs and spoke with Mr. Weasley's voice.
"Minister of Magic coming with me."
The Patronus dissolved into thin air, leaving Fleur's family peering in astonishment at the place where it had vanished.
"We shouldn't be here," said Lupin at once. "Harry — I'm sorry — I'll explain another time —"
"Bye!" Alicia called quickly as he seized Tonks's wrist and pulled her away; they reached the fence, climbed over it, and vanished from sight. Mrs. Weasley looked bewildered.
"The Minister — but why — ? I don't understand —"
But there was no time to discuss the matter; a second later, Mr. Weasley had appeared out of thin air at the gate, accompanied by Rufus Scrimgeour, instantly recognisable by his mane of grizzled hair.