The Exclusive Holiday Tales of the Weasley-Potter Family
"James Sirius Potter," Aunt Ginny's face was livid, now turning the same color as her hair as she bellowed up the stairs after her first born child, "if I hear one more word of you sneaking Puking Pastilles into your brother's food again, there will be heavy consequences to pay! Several sniggers belonging to my cousins James and Fred carried down the stairs in reply to my aunt. She rolled her eyes as she made her way back into the kitchen.
"Another typical Christmas at the Burrow," I murmured to myself, looking up from the Quidditch magazine that lay in my lap. Grandma Weasley's cooking had wafted its way into the sitting room, sending my stomach in a lurch for happiness.
"Louis!" A pair of tiny arms wrapped themselves around my neck, "Happy Christmas!" My younger cousin Lily shrieked as she pulled away.
"You too, Li─" I began, but she had already ran off and had her arms flung around my sister, Dominique. I shook my head, laughing to myself. Lily Luna Potter was a ball of energy, if it weren't for her being so sweet, I would bet Galleons that she ends up like her brother James.
I returned my eyes to my magazine, absorbing myself in an article about the new state-of-the-art broom, the Skybolt, the daughter broom to the older, rare Firebolt (in which my uncle, Harry, happened to be the proud owner of).
"I still don't think it will be as fast as the Firebolt," A voice said from behind me. I turned my head quickly, my eyes falling upon my Uncle Harry. He gave me a soft smile, nodding towards the magazine. "Let me see that." Without hesitating, I handed over the flimsy book. He scanned over the magazine through his thin, round glasses, ultimately tossing it onto an armchair across the room, "Don't read that rubbish, Louis, if you want a real broom, I'll bring the Firebolt to the Burrow next time." He smirked, shoving his hands in his robe pockets and stalking off in the direction of the kitchen.
With a sigh, I stood up from the chair in which I had sat for the past hour and began making my way up the staircase. Shrill laughter cascaded through the halls of the second landing as I stepped into the corridor. Furrowing my brow, I walked coolly down the hall, my hands in my pockets as Uncle Harry's had been. As I got closer to the doors, I recognized the laughter of my cousins James and Fred, the elusive troublemakers of the Weasley-Potter family. Muffled sounds and wand flashes came from behind a shut door, followed by the yelling of my numerous cousins.
"James, I'm serious! You better stop!"
"Oh my gosh! James, Fred! You better clean this up; Grandma Weasley will have a fit!"
Green, murky water began pouring out from under the door, wetting my trainers. I slung open the door to the bedroom quickly. My cousin Rose was standing on a trunk, her wand out and pointed at James. Molly and Lucy, the twins, were standing on a dresser, staring in shock at the mossy waters below them. James and Fred were rolling around on the beds, howling in laughter. The girls were right; Grandma Weasley would most definitely have a fit, along with Aunt Ginny and Aunt Angelina.
I sloshed through the water, the bottom of my jeans getting sodden. "James, Fred, what did you do in here? Use a portable swamp?" I raised an eyebrow in their direction, my mouth gapping as a dirty weed wrapped around my foot. "Yuck!" I scoffed, kicking it off my foot.
"Aw, come on Louis, lighten up a bit!" Fred managed to get out between laughs as he placed a hand on James' shoulder for support.
Molly and Lucy let out a blood curdling scream. Their combined weight had been too much for the dresser in which they stood, causing it to capsize, sending them splashing into the muddy swamp. With that, the two boys doubled over, holding their sides from laughing.
Outside the room, heavy footsteps had begun clambering up the wooden staircase. Uh-oh. Seconds later, Grandma Weasley, Aunt Ginny, Aunt Angelina, Uncle Harry, Uncle Ron, and Uncle Percy burst through the doorway. Fred's eyes widened as he saw the flashes of red hair in the room, the scowling looks on their faces. He grew quiet quickly, but James on the other hand was still howling like a hyena. Fred nudged James on the side, trying to get him to stop, but it was too late─
"Fred Weasley II and James Sirius Potter am I going to have to put you under the Cruciatus curse just to get you to stop!" Grandma Weasley yelled, malice appearing on her face. James stopped laughing immediately, his eyes growing the size of bludgers. "I knew I shouldn't have let Fred and George create such a thing as a Portable Swamp!" She shrieked once more, flicking her wand to siphon swamp water out of the bedroom.
Uncle Percy had scurried over to his daughters, helping Lucy and Molly off of the floor and drying them off with a quick spell. He shot the boys a menacing look as he ushered them out of the room. Aunt Ginny didn't care about the remaining water; she trotted right through it, making a beeline towards her son. "James. Sirius. Potter. Just because we named you after the two most notorious troublemakers in Hogwarts history, it doesn't mean that you have to act like them!" Her eyes bore into him. James opened his mouth to speak but was cut off quickly, "I am taking your broom."
James mouth gapped open, "But MOM! The Gryffindor-Slytherin match is in two weeks! You can't take my broom." He shook his head fiercely at her, "Dad, do something!" James's eyes turned to Harry, as did everyone else's in the room.
Uncle Harry simply shrugged his shoulders, "Sorry James. That's your mother's final word." He said, almost as down heartedly as James as he leaned against the doorway.
Aunt Angelina, Fred's mom walked beside her, "You boys can clean this mess up, then, after you finish you can come eat Christmas dinner!" She scolded, her eyes glinting with hatred.
Fred and James look at each other, then, with a heavy sigh, got off the bed and got their wands out. They began cleaning the swamp up with the spell that Uncle George had taught them, their faces long and sad.
I stood with a huge grin on my face, watching as the drama slowly began unfolding. Something like this usually happened every time the whole family was together. Aunt Ginny and Aunt Angelina would have heart attacks if they only knew about Fred and James' escapades at Hogwarts.
The party had begun making their way out of the room, their wet shoes squeaking on the floor. I shook my head at my cousins, laughing ruefully at them before turning and making my own way out.
"Uh Dad, Aren't you going to help me!" Rose's shrill voice called out into the hallway. Uncle Ron sighed heavily, pushing through the crowd to get back into the semi-dry room. "I'm coming Rosie!" He called through gritted teeth as he pushed pass me.
Later that night, after James and Fred successfully rid the bedroom of the swamp, my large family crowded around the table. I sat myself between the still-fuming Rose and my overly dramatic sister, Dominique. James and Fred sat beside each other, sniggering to themselves about something while Aunt Ginny shot them wary looks. Molly and Lucy whispered to each other, occasionally looking up at the older Teddy Lupin who sat opposite them. Teddy Lupin, Uncle Harry's godson and my future brother-in-law, kissed my older sister Victoire on the cheek while she giggled as her eyes turned wide and dreamy. I rolled my eyes, feeling my stomach growing achy. Fred's sister Roxanne sat between Lily and Hugo, chatting with the small children and making them laugh.
"When are we going to eat?" Dominique asked, dragging out her question dramatically.
My mother shot her a look, as if to say, have more class. Dominique rolled her eyes, slumping in her seat. "Dom, honey, as soon as the dear Scamanders get here we will eat." Grandma Weasley said softly. Dominique sighed deeply, crossing her small arms across her chest.
"Have you and Victoire chosen a date to get married, Teddy?" Uncle Harry asked, suddenly directing the attention towards the young couple.
"Oh yes, we're um, er─" Teddy cleared his throat, color rising to his cheeks; his hair had turned a light pink (a sign that he was embarrassed). Uncle Harry raised his eyebrow, waiting for a response.
"Oh Ted-e, don't be so embarrassed, the date 'as been set for March tenth!" Victoire replied, a twinkle glowing in her light blue eyes. Uncle Harry smiled, obviously realizing something the others didn't.
"March 10th was, um, my father's birthday." Teddy said quietly, a soft smile appearing on his face.
My family erupted in a choir of awe as the children and I sat bored and hungry around the table. We exchanged glances, rolling our eyes at one another.
The front door burst open; two young, blonde boys scurried through the door, followed by a talk, equally blonde woman and a dark haired man. The Scamanders were a part of our extended family on account that Luna Lovegood-Scamander fought alongside our parents in the war several years ago.
The twins, Lysander and Lorcan, ran across the room, taking seats on the sides of Lily and Hugo. "Sorry we didn't get here earlier, we would have Flooed in but the twins insisted on taking the thestrals!" Luna laughed, hanging a coat on the rack before making her way into the dining room. Her husband Rolf followed, dusting snow out of his hair.
After the dinner, which didn't go as bad as the previous ones had (that is if you don't count when Hugo spilled an entire mug of Butterbeer on the table, soaking Dominique who of course through a fit), my entire family crowded into the large sitting room and prepared to open gifts. Grandma Weasley knitted all of us jumpers, each embroidered with our first initial and some other stitching (mine being a bat, as I was the Ravenclaw house Quidditch team beater).
Hours passed and the sitting room was covered with torn wrapping paper. Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny got me a pair of dragon hide gloves for Quidditch, Uncle Percy and Aunt Audrey got me the oh so exciting (not) Quidditch- How to Play it Safe book, Uncle George and Aunt Angelina gave me a set of new robes, Aunt Hermione got me a book that I pretended to enjoy (Uncle Ron rolled his eyes from behind her back when I opened it) and Uncle Charlie got me a pair of Hungarian Horntail skinned riding boots.
We sat in the sitting room, adorning our presents. Grandpa Weasley came in, holding a badly wrapped broom shaped object. He handed it to James, a hearty smile his face.
"Wow Grandpa! Is this what I think it is?" James tore greedily through the paper, "A SkyBolt!" His eyes lit up as he held the Gryffindor-crimson broom in his hands. I glanced at Uncle Harry who was rolling his eyes to himself. James having the SkyBolt was bad though… He was the Gryffindor Seeker, meaning speed was a key factor to his game. If Ravenclaw wanted to beat them this year, we would definitely have to step up our game.
The whole Weasley-Potter-Scamander clan huddled together outside in the chilly weather as James soared above us on his new broom, yelling with glee as he zoomed by us.
The night ended with James, Fred, and I lying in our twin sized beds, all staring wide-eyed at the ceiling.
"Hey Fred, Lou, you awake?" James asked, the old bed springs squeaking as he turned over.
"No," Fred and I called in unison.
"Good," He smirked, murmuring Lumos quietly so that his wand tip lit up. A sliver of light glinted across the room. James propped himself up on one elbow, "So what do you boys think about the SkyBolt?" He asked, excitement dripping from his tongue.
"It's bloody amazing!" Fred gushed, smiling brightly in the darkness.
I remained silent, not wanting to give my true answer. "What about you Lou?" James and Fred both asked, their silhouettes looking at me.
"Er…" I trailed off, biting my lip, "It's nice I guess. I would much rather have a Firebolt."
James scoffed, turning the light out. "Gosh Louis, you can be such a drag sometimes." Fred snorted in obvious agreement. I put my arms behind my back, staring at the dark ceiling once more.
"Not true." I said, not knowing where it was coming from.
Fred laughed out loud this time, James following suit, "Oh yeah, name one time you've actually had true fun."
I bit lip, "Well…" I began thinking but came up shorthand. Maybe James was right for once. I hadn't had fun. Here I was in the middle of my fifth year at Hogwarts and I failed to have one exciting story to tell.
"See, I'm right." James said, almost sympathetically.
I rolled over on my side, sighing. "Yeah… you are right." I had definitely cracked. I would never in my life think that the day would come where James Sirius Potter would say something actually correct.
James and Fred lay in silence, as if to be talking in a silent conversation. "Let Jamesie and me help ya this year, Loewy-boy." Fred said.
"Ok, yeah… that sounds… good." I blurted out without thinking. James and Fred laughed mischievously. What had I gotten myself into? I just asked the two most devilish boys at Hogwarts to help me have fun. I sat in profound silence, wondering if James and Fred had begun sleeping.
"There's a party at The Three Broomsticks coming up, you're welcome to tag along." James called before letting out a tired yawn, "G'night boys."
"Night," Fred yawned as well.
"Yeah, uh, goodnight." I stammered, laying flat and in silence. What on Earth had I gotten myself into?