Chapter Nine- The Burrow

AN: Oh My Godric Gryffindor guys I am so sorry! Real life hit me with a brick and. Godric. Well, here's the ninth chapter! To you guys that favourited this seeing the gap between chapters, thank you. You kept me going. PLEASE review! It'd make me so happy! Felix out~

Harry sat across from the blonds awkwardly.
When he had come through, the two had been shocked, of course- a strange boy had come flying out of their fireplace, for Merlin's sake! After They'd recovered, they had immediately sat him down with a cup of tea (which was quite awful), and questions of who he was, where he was from, etcetera.
He'd told them he was Harry, and that he'd been heading for The Burrow.
They were Xenophilius and Luna Lovegood, father and daughter, and the Burrow was just over the hill, supposedly.
Luna was staring at him in quite a queer way, as if he was a puzzle she was sure had a few pieces missing.
"Ummm, excuse me, Mr. Lovegood, sir, could you give me directions to The Burrow?" He asked. He was attempting to pretend as if he was drinking the tea he'd been given. Dirigible plums? What were those?
Mr. Lovegood smiled in a way that would be quite charming, had his eyes not been so dreamy and far away.
"Ah, yes, The Burrow. Luna, dear, better floo Molly and tell her we've found her stray."
Harry blushed at that, watching as Luna stood and crossed to the fireplace. He swirled the contents of his tea cup and, when Xenophilius glanced away, poured the contents into a potted plant next to him.
"Mrs. Weasley said to just bring him right over" Luna said, pulling her head out of the fireplace.
Harry still didn't understand that. The fireplace was an odd transportation device and a communication system?
"Luna, go ahead and take him over, alright?" Luna nodded at that and took Harry's wrist.
She all but dragged him to the front door and out. She was a sight, long blonde curls falling everywhere, odd turnip earrings, and a cork necklace. She also had various bracelets, a flowy yellow top, shorts, and she was barefoot.
They walked down a path and over a grassy hill. The whole town could be seen.
"So, how do the regular people not question your father's house?" Harry asked.
"Oh, there are spells to keep them from seeing," Luna replied dreamily.
"Oh. Alright then." Harry followed her to a tall, lopsided house. It looked like it had been a small, quaint two-story house, and rooms had been added on one by one. How it stood was a mystery, it seemed as unstable as a house of cards.
Harry had never seen anything like it before. He decided right then and there that he loved it.
Luna knocked on the door, and immediately a troupe of red heads filed out. A heavyset woman embraced him.
"Oh Harry, dear, when Horace told us they'd lost you in the floo, we were so worried. We were lucky you ended up in Xenophilius's floo, you could he lord only knows where right now!"
Harry clammed up a bit, surprised that this woman was being so familiar with him.
"A-are Horace and Draco here?" He asked in a small voice.
"Oh yes, yes of course, come on!" She then hurried inside. A redhead his age stepped over to him.
He looked a little familiar, but Harry couldn't remember where from.
"Don't mind mum, she's a worrier. I'm Ron, by the way- Ron Weasley." He held his hand out.
Harry blushed a bit. "I'm... Harry."
Ron immediately sagged a bit. "You're not another one, are you? Because if Lupin comes and you're not him... the man can't take much more, so if you're a phony-"
"I promise I'm not trying to impersonate anyone" Harry said. "I... I don't know if I am or not."
Ron's features softened. "I... suppose that makes sense. At least you aren't lying, yeah?" The boy clapped him on the back, leading him inside.
Harry stopped to turn to Luna, who was standing and looking on at the scene with the same dreamy expression she beheld all happenings.
"Umm... thanks, Luna." He smiled.
"Your welcome, Harry. And goodbye. Oh, and Harry, remember that even the most stubborn of cats loves its owner, and sometimes all it takes is a good scratch in the right spot."
Before Harry could inquire as to just what the bloody hell that meant, she was skipping off.
"Bloody strange, she is. Nice enough, though, so we don't mind her. Too few nice people in the world to be mean to some." Ron continued inside, and Harry followed.
He saw Draco and Horace sitting in the living room. Draco looked a bit out of his element, but Horace seemed perfectly at ease, lounging in a chair that was obviously conjured.
There was many redheads, and Molly Weasley made sure to introduce him to all of them. The youngest, and only other female, was Ginny. Then there was Ron, whom he'd already met. Then came the twins, who amused Harry to no end. Fred and George were possibly all he'd ever wanted in an older brother.
Percy, on the other hand, was uptight. He greeted Harry formally and stiffly. It was very impersonal. Harry would insist he was adopted if not for the obvious physical resemblance to the rest of the family. But magic did do many things...
Bill and Charlie came last, being the two oldest. Bill and Charlie were separated by a year or so. Bill had long red hair pulled back by a thin leather cord. His ear sported an earring with what appeared to be a very large, very sharp fang of some sort. He looked rough and rugged, but he was too easy to smile to be frightening.
Charlie was the same way; he laughed easily at any shenanigans the twins got up to, and unlike his brother Percy, was mature without completely letting go of all fun.
All this Harry learned in the hour that Mrs. Weasley demanded everyone be fed and settled in. Dinner was quite the affair in the Weasley household. Yet another thing to add to the list of things Harry loved about the place. Everyone in the house was required to be around the table and have a heaping plate in front of them. If room was needed, they used magic to extend the table.
They made sure no one felt left out. It was such a radical change from what he was used to.
Harry sat awkwardly in between Ron and Draco. Molly filled everyone's plate generously.
"So, Miss Weasley-"
"Call me Molly, dear." She smiled at him.
"Uhm... Molly, then. When is Lupin supposed to be here?"
Molly filled his cup with juice.
"In the morning, dear. He's away on some business. Bill's already sent him a letter."
Harry smiled. "Thank you, Mis- Molly. I really hope I am. Harry, I mean."
The floo flared, and a redheaded man walked in.
"Oh, darling, today was terrible. More raids, we found out Crabbe was running some dark artifact smuggling ring out of Knockturn Alley. Sirius has his work cut out for him, I'll tell you- oh, Hello, Horace! Who are your companions?"
He smiled at the three newcomers.
Harry blushed.
"Well, this is Draco, and the young boy there is Harry. We think he might be THE Harry."
Arthur sat at the head of the table, where Molly was making him a plate.
"No, really? Harry, where have you been all these years?"
Harry bit his lip.
"Well... an orphanage. A muggle orphanage."
Arthur gasped.
"Muggle, you say? Did you ever use a felly tone? Or elektricidy, or- oh, actually, could you tell me... What is the function of a rubber duck?"
The family groaned (in Percy's case) or smiled fondly (just about everyone else).
"Well, sure, no, I never really got to do any of that. We weren't allowed to ring anyone, or watch the telly, and I had to use a candle to light my room at night."
Molly looked on with sympathetic eyes.
"Oh, poor dear." She refilled his plate when he was finished. It was shepherd's pie, the most delicious he'd ever had.
After dinner was finished, they were all in the living room around the fire. Harry was being asked question after question about his life, or what he remembered.
"Well, I remember being found by the authorities. They got what they could out of me, put out muggle posters, then put me in the orphanage. It was the closest one to where they found me, they figured if anything, someone nearby may recognize me. They were wrong. The orphanage was always full, and there were never enough rooms. I slept in a broom cupboard, under the stairs. We all did chores, cleaned the whole place top to bottom. I've always been able to do strange things, and Miss Dursley, the Matron, hated me. Thought I was unnatural. I'm only here because she got me a job in the city and sent me off. I decided to take the wrong road on purpose."
Ron laughed. "Adventure?" He asked. Harry nodded, grinning.
"I knew if I turned up, I'd be a nobody for the rest of my life. No, I went to look for a life. A real one. Excitement. And even if I'm not Harry Potter, then at least I know I belong in this world."
Molly looked like she had tears in her eyes.
"Oh, Harry, don't worry. You seem like such a nice boy, you'll do wonderful here. And if you're not James's boy, you can always stay here until you get on your feet."
Arthur nodded. "Not that we doubt you. Good god, you are a spitting image of James. With Lily's eyes, to boot."
Harry smiled. "Well, thank you."
Ginny piped up. "Do you remember anything? From before you disappeared, I mean."
Harry shrugged. "I've had dreams before. One of green light, and screaming. And there's a tune I can't quite place, sung by a man with the warmest grey eyes I've seen in my life. And then there's one where I'm running, and suddenly a boy opens a wall... but that's silly. Walls don't just open, you know?"
Draco's eyes widened. Did he mean...
Molly stood. "Well, it's time for you kids to be in bed. Ron, show Harry where he'll be sleeping."
Ron stood. "Come on, Harry, you're in my room." He led him upstairs.
Draco stayed behind as everyone was being ushered off to bed.
"Horace?"
The man jumped. He and Arthur had hit the fire whiskey, with Bill's help.
"It's him, Horace. He's Harry."
Horace grinned. "That's the spirit, my boy!"
Draco frowned. "No, it's really him! That boy who opened a wall, that was me! I let them out of the castle."
Horace's eyes widened, then he smiled.
"This is wonderful! Sirius deserves his god son back, he's a good man."
Draco smiled too.
"Yeah... yeah." He went upstairs to find where he was to sleep.