Morniiiiiiing :)
I just finished my exams for the week, so I thought I would give you guys a new chapter.
This one takes place at the Burrow - but next chapter, we are heading to everyone's favorite place in the world - Hogwarts!
Anyway, I hope you like it. Thank you so much for the reviews, the follows and everything. It means a lot - keep them coming!
Enjoy x

wildest dreams
VOLUME I

CHAPTER FIVE

When I opened my eyes again, the sun was shining brightly outside, warming up the tent. I straightened up clumsily, my head throbbing. Hermione was nowhere in sight – but Ginny was still sleeping. I got up, making my way to the other tent to find the others. Most of them were up, and quietly discussing the events of the previous night. I only listened, trying to wrap my head around everything that had happened. It just felt like a very bad dream.

Half an hour later, when everyone was awake, and after Charlie had replaced my bandage, we packed our things and made our way back to the Burrow, eager to get home and eat a good breakfast. I wondered if Molly had heard of what had happened – I quickly found out when she came out of the Burrow, screaming, still wearing her slippers, and ran to us, dropping the paper she was holding.

"Oh, thank goodness, thank goodness !"

She embraced Arthur – her hands were shaking.

"Arthur – I've been worried – so worried… You're all right, you're alive… Oh boys…"

To everyone's surprise, she turned to Fred and George and hugged them so hard their heads hit each other's, making them groan in pain. I couldn't help but quietly laugh at the sight.

"Ouch ! Mum – you're strangling us…"

"I shouted at you before you left ! It's all I've been thinking about ! What if You-Know-Who had got you, and the last thing I ever said to you was that you didn't get enough OWLS ? Oh Fred… George…"

"Come on, Molly, we're all perfectly okay" said Arthur, pulling her off the twins. "Bill, pick up that paper, I want to see what it says…"

I glanced at the twins as we made our way to the kitchen. They were rubbing the side of their heads, but they were smirking. We went inside, and I sat down at my usual place at the kitchen table. Of course, Molly had prepared us a huge breakfast – toasts, porridge, sausages, beans, bacon – even pancakes. I reminded myself that I needed to thank her properly before going back to Hogwarts. I started eating, but with my head throbbing painfully, I didn't feel very hungry.

"How's your head ?" asked Charlie, who was sitting in front of me.

"Huh – it's all right" I answered vaguely.

"Does it still hurt ?" he insisted.

"…Yeah. But it's just a headache, I'll be fine."

"Addy, you could have a concussion."

"No. Really, Charlie, I'm fine."

He stared at me, a disapproving look on his face. At that moment, he looked exactly like Molly. It made me smile.

"You're as stubborn as a Chinese Fireball. I'll get you something for the pain."

I didn't know what a Chinese Fireball was, but I could guess. Charlie, with a sigh, stood up and left the kitchen. I glared at the twins, who were busy laughing at their brother's comparison.

"Tossers" I whispered.

George raised his hands in surrender but Fred couldn't stop laughing. I rolled my eyes as Charlie entered the kitchen again, holding what looked like a small candy and a glass of water.

"Charlie, you're starting to be like Dad" said Bill, sitting a few seats away, his nose in the Daily Prophet.

"Bugger off" snapped Charlie with a smirk.

He turned to me, handing me the candy.

"C'mon, try it."

"What is it ?" I asked suspiciously.

"It's called aspirin. Muggle stuff."

"What does it do ?" the twins asked in unison.

"It soothes pain. Don't give me that look, Addy, it won't kill you."

"Are you sure about that ?"

He glared at me and I finally took the small candy.

"What do I do with it ?" I asked miserably.

"You just swallow it."

I gave Charlie one last hesitating look before I put the candy on my tongue and swallowed it with some water.

"What does it taste like ?" asked Bill, obviously curious.

"Nothing, really" I shrugged.

"Muggle medicine is a bit boring" said Charlie.

"Am I supposed to feel something ?"

"No. It takes a while before you'll feel the effects. But you'll feel better in time."

I nodded, and smiled kindly at him.

"Thank you, Charlie."

"Sure. I'm not only good with dragons."

He winked at me, and I chuckled.

"Charlie, please stop flirting with our associate, will you ?" said Fred, pulling a face.

I rolled my eyes – I hated when Fred called me that.

"Not flirting. Dragons are my only love" said Charlie as he left the kitchen.

I laughed, and turned to the twins.

"Associate, really, Fred ? That's all I am to you ?"

"Yes" he said calmly. "Associate and treasurer."

I threw him a piece of toast.

"If you bloody keep calling me that, soon you'll have no treasurer left to handle all your money."

The twins suddenly got grim. I frowned.

"What is it ?"

"Bagman" said George. "Didn't give us our money."

"What ? But I saw –"

"Leprechaun gold" explained Fred. "Disappeared during the night."

I was astonished.

"That slick git !" I exclaimed. "What are you gonna do ?"

The twins shrugged. I felt angry and disappointed, and promised myself that I would find a way to get their money back. That money was all their savings, and a lot more – they had won it, it was theirs. Sighing, I finished breakfast, and later watched the boys and Ginny play Quidditch in the garden. That significantly lifted my spirits, and when they went inside to change, I sat down with Hermione, waiting for them to come back for lunch.

"Do you know what's going to happen at Hogwarts this year ?" I asked her.

"No idea, but it looks like it's going to be big. The Minister himself sounded excited."

"Yeah, well, it's not like we lack action at Hogwarts, right ?"

She chuckled, and nodded. It was true – since Harry's arrival at Hogwarts, there had never been a boring year.

"How's your head ?" she asked.

"Better. Charlie gave me Muggle medicine for pain."

"Oh, aspirin ?"

"Yeah !" I said excitedly.

"My parents use it at their practice. It's very useful."

"Their practice ? What do your parents do ?"

"They're dentists. Like doctors, but for teeth."

"That sounds pretty cool."

She nodded, and I smiled. I wished I knew more about the Muggle World. But I hadn't seen my parents in years. I wondered what my life would have been like if they had raised me instead of my uncle. I would probably know all of that stuff, like Hermione.

"Your parents are Muggles too, are they not ?"

The question caught me off guard, but I nodded.

"Yeah. I haven't seen them since I was six, though."

"Why not ?"

Hermione seemed genuinely curious – and I knew I could trust her.

"I think they got scared when they learned I was a witch. They didn't think they could handle it. So they dropped me off at my uncle's, and I never saw them again."

"That's awful" gasped Hermione.

I shrugged.

"It's okay. And growing up with my uncle was actually really cool. He would take me on his tours, and he really took good care of me."

"I always forget your uncle is Myron Wagtail" she chuckled.

"Yeah – and the band, they're basically all my uncles, you know ? So it was weird at times, but it was mostly great."

We kept talking for a while, and after lunch, I wrote a long letter to my uncle to assure him that I was safe and well. I sent Errol with the letter and the scarf I got him. My conversation with Hermione had gotten me thinking about my parents. Did they know what was happening in the wizarding world right now ? How would they react if they knew ? Would they ask if I was all right ? But I quickly tried to take my mind off the subject. It was no use thinking about that, after all.

We spent the rest of that week just playing Quidditch and spending time in the twins' room coming up with a new product. They had had an idea during the summer : something that gave you fever, so you could get out of classes. The twins had starting working on that and it was going very well. We had even found a name for it – Fever Fudge. We also tried to get in touch with that prat Ludo Bagman – but he seemed untraceable. When we finally found an address, the twins started writing him a letter, asking for their money. They had to be discreet, however, as Molly still didn't know about the bet. Everyone was busy – Arthur and Percy were almost constantly at the Ministry, and the others tried to keep up with the current news.

The night before our return to Hogwarts, we all met in the living room so that Percy could give us the latest updates about the current situation at the Ministry. I sat with Fred and George, in a remote corner, as they were still working on their letter to Bagman.

"It's been an absolute uproar. I've been putting out fires all week. People keep sending Howlers, and of course, if you don't open a Howler straight away, it explodes. Scroch marks all over my desk and my best quill reduced to cinders" mumbled Percy.

"Why are they all sending Howlers ?" asked Ginny.

"Complaining about security at the World Cup. They want compensation for their ruined property. Mundungus Fletcher's put in a claim for a twelve-bedroomed tent with en-suite Jacuzzi, but I've got his number. I know for a fact he was sleeping under a cloack propped on sticks."

I wondered how exactly could Percy know that. I heard Fred and George whisper frenetically beside me. Obviously, they didn't agree on something, which was a rare thing. I turned to ask them what was going on, but I was interrupted.

"What are you three up to ?" suddenly asked Molly.

"Homework" quickly answered Fred.

"Don't be ridiculous, you're still on holiday…"

"Yeah, we've left it a bit late" said George.

"You're not, by any chance, writing out a new order form, are you ? You wouldn't be thinking of restarting Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, by any chance ?"

"Now, Mum" declared Fred. "If the Hogwarts Express crashed tomorrow, and George and I died, how would you feel to know that the last thing we ever heard from you was an unfounded accusation ?"

I bit my lip to keep from laughing out loud. Molly's ears went red, and I was sure she would reciprocate, but she ended up laughing with the rest of us. Arthur appeared and the conversation about the Ministry started again. I turned to the twins, who went back to their parchment.

"Look, Fred, I want the money as much as you do, but maybe it's not worth risking that much."

"What do you mean, 'risking that much' ?" I asked.

"George believes that by sending a letter to Bagman, we could be accused of blackmailing."

"Huh – I guess you could be. Really depends on what you write, and how you write it."

"I'm not sure about this" said George, gesturing the parchment. "This sounds pretty aggressive to me."

"Maybe you should wait" I said. "He's probably very busy with everything going on at the Ministry, and your letter would probably just get lost in the lot. Wait until we're at Hogwarts, and if you still haven't heard from him at the end of the first term, send it."

The twins exchanged a look.

"Okay. Sounds good" said Fred.

"Agreed" nodded George.

I smiled. We stayed in the living room for a while, and soon it was time for bed. Even if I was excited to go back to Hogwarts, and see Angelina and the others again, I felt extremely tired, and had no trouble falling asleep.