Home life had settled in to a routine at Grimald place. Harry was getting stronger. Ginny was only doing the game of the week with Lee for cable-less., and writing her Sunday column James was at Hogwarts, Al and Lily attending primary school.
Ginny was gone for a game on the Isle of Skye and Harry was propped on the sofa in the great room helping Lily with her math homework, when Neville's head appeared in the fire. "Harry can I come through?"
"Certainly! How are the twins? How is Hannah? How is the school year going?"
"The babies are fantastic and so is the wife. It's school I want to talk to you and Ginny about. ….."
Harry knew from the look on Neville's face that James had done something. "Lilly, this will be grownup talk I want you to go upstairs to your room. Neville it will be just me, Ginny's covering a game."
Lilly gathered her things and went slowly to the stairs, trying to hear what her brother had done. Uncle Neville never looked that serious so she knew James had gotten in trouble.
Neville waited until Lily had disappeared from sight and began. "Well we've had a problem that James and Fred have caused."
Harry snorted, "Why am I not surprised. Have you talked with George and Angie yet?" Neville shook his head no. "Why don't we get them over here too and then you only have to tell it once."
While Neville was flooing George and Angie Harry called for Kreacher. "Kreacher could you serve Al and Lily dinner in Al's room tonight? Also could you please bring us some tea, pumpkin juice and sandwiches? There will be 4 of us."
"Yes Master Harry." Kreacher smiled but did not disappear right away. Instead he bobbed his head toward the stairs, winked and then disappeared.
Harry lifted his wand, put a finger to his lips for Neville and said; "Acio extendable ears". Two extendable ears flew down the stairs and the sound of running feet could be heard on the second floor.
Soon the adults were settled around the great room. Kreacher had served the children dinner and put a time out charm on Al's door for good measure.
"So Neville, what did our little angels do?"
"Well….
Three days earlier….
Fred and James were draped over one of the sofa's in the common room in Gryffindor tower. Victoire and Teddy entered through the portrait hole.
"I can't believe Parkinson got permission for us to use a Chinese fireball's egg shell in potions! They are so hard to get. I can't wait to learn to potion! I understand it's one from the Ming dynasty."
Teddy and Victoire went up the stairs to his dorm room to play a quick game of chess before dinner.
Freddy's eyes had that certain look James knew all to well. "Say Potter do you think the nasty Professor Parkinson would be upset if her fireball blew up when she went to use it?"
The next night found James and Freddy using the map to sneak in to the potions lab. Under Freddy's cloak was a paper mache egg decorated to look like a Chinese fireball egg. That day Freddy had studied the repaired cracks on the egg Pansy had proudly displayed on her desk. He was a rather talented artist because the egg, packed with WWW fireworks that they were exchanging looked remarkably like the real one.
James took the real one and hid it in an old cauldron in the closet.
Professor Parkinson was standing in front of a combined class of her 6th and 7th year students, a bubbling cauldron in front of her. " Alright now we have all the other ingredients in our cauldron. Now the text calls for us to gently lower the eggshell, whole into the mixture."
Pansy picked up the egg with a pair of tongs and gently lowered it in to the cauldron and began to stir.
"You must stir until the egg shell dissolves then remove the potion from the fire immediately. It must be bottled before it cools."
Suddenly the potion in the cauldron let out a strange hiss. "It's not supposed to do that!" Pansy jumped back from the cauldron. "Students we need to leave the classroom in an orderly manner, NOW!"
Pansy was the last one leaving when the room filled with light and color. Magical fireworks exploded everywhere.
Victoire looked at Teddy, they both knew immediately who was responsible.
Neville had a very upset Ms. Parkinson in his office when Teddy asked permission for them to enter with information on the incident in potions.
Victoire entered first, Freddy's ear firmly between her fingers and him howling as he was being drug along. Teddy followed, James was marching in front of him, white faced and crying.
"Well that's how we found out what happened. It seems Freddy denied it at first. Although they both have a strong respect for their cousins magic abilities and confessed it all to us in my office."
George was totally useless, he was rolling on the floor laughing. Angie looked at her husband, shook her head and asked Harry to call for Kreacher.
After Kreacher had disappeared with George to take him home the remaining three decided what to do.
Teddy had already confiscated the map. Harry had advised that he hold on to it for another year. Freddy and James were to pay for the potions and equipment destroyed. Freddy was suspended from the house team for one game. (Freddy was a beater for Gryffindor). Angie would floo to Hogwarts that night and search both boys things to find the hidden stash of WWW items. Freddy and James would spend the weekend cleaning the potions lab, by hand.
Harry relayed the story to Ginny when she got home the next day.
Sunday morning at breakfast a familiar owl landed in front of James, it was his mum's owl Atlantis who disdainfully tossed a red envelope on to his plate. James' face went deadly white, he grabbed the envelope and ran desperately out of the great hall, still the whole student body present heard "JAMES SIRIUS POTTER WHAT IN THE NAME OF MERLIN DO YOU THINK WE SENT YOU TO HOGWARTS TO DO?" Ginny's angry voice could be heard growing fainter as he rushed toward his room in the tower.
Christmas saw the whole family gathered at the burrow. Teddy and Harry were on awkward terms. Teddy had spoken to Harry about wanting to start Auror training in the fall and Harry had gone in to over protective godfather mode and voiced his displeasure at the thought. Ginny knew Andy hated the idea too. She felt for Teddy, but getting either one of them to change their minds was akin to moving mount Olympus to the middle of Piccadilly circus!
Fred and James were subdued throughout the holidays. Angie made Fred work the stock room of the Diagon alley WWW to pay for the things they had destroyed at Hogwarts and James had to work the one at Hogsmede.
Teddy and Victoire always earned a few knuts working for WWW during summer and holidays and they each took one of the terrible two to look after. Apparently the bat bogy hex lived on! Victoire was quite adapt at using it and Dominique was no slouch. George had accused Ginny of favoritism, because she would only teach it to the girls.
Harry continued his pearl gifts this year. He gave Ginny a pair of pearl earrings that she could either wear with her wedding strands to dress up or her single pearl necklace to dress down.
Ginny suspected the men had consulted each other, because Arthur had made each of the granddaughter's a jewelry box. Harry gave them all single pearl necklaces. In addition he had given Lily a bracelet that had a lily flower depicted in small inlaid diamonds, topaz and emeralds. She put it on and never took it off.
Ron gave each of the girls the cutest initial earrings made of their birthstones. For Rose he had made a bracelet like Lily's except it was a rose made of rubies, diamonds and emeralds.
Bill, knowing his daughters well gave each of them tennis bracelets. Victoire loved the color blue so her's had three sapphires in it. Dominique loved green so hers had three emeralds. Bill gave them and the rest of the girls necklaces that had their first initial depicted in gold and silver.
George had found strands of mother of pearl that he had made in to necklaces for the girls. For his Roxanne he had gotten a gold id bracelet that was set with a topaz surrounded by small diamonds. Roxanne already showed signs of being a striking beauty. She had skin the color of warm caramel, rich chocolate colored eyes, long , warm reddish brown hair that hung in heavy ringlets and a long graceful body.
Practical Percy had gone against type and gotten each of the girls rings with semi precious stones set in bands. For his two girls he had gotten pearl bracelets that had a gold charm with their first initial dangling from them.
Charlie had a friend that took some of the dragon egg shells and used them to make mosaic inlay pieces. He gave them all striking free form pendants on silver chains.
The boys certainly were not left out. The men had gone together and gotten them all gift certificates to their favorite hogsmede and Diagon alley stores. The boys were thrilled and started planning what to buy immediately.
Teddy had made a sketch of all the grandchildren last summer. He had copied it large and small for everyone. He really could make a living as an artist!
Molly's jumpers were outstanding again this year. The boxes of yarn she had been given last year had been transformed in to beautiful items. New blankets also rounded out her gifts.
Soon the holiday was over and James back in school and Harry back at work. Ginny had more time than she had ever had in her adult life. She decided to start researching quidditch.. Quidditch through the ages was a great book but no books on the modern era of the sport had been written since. She thought it might raise a little money for her charity
Harry was at his desk, just about through with paper work. Gint had done a magnificent job as acting head of the department. Ron had taken over his duties and trained the recruits for the time that Harry was gone, but they were both happier back in their old positions.
Gint said he would never complain about how much paperwork training generated after dealing with the whole departments paperwork!
Just as Harry put his signature on the last paper his secretary announced Minister Shakelbolt to see him. Kingsley came in smiling.
"It sure is good to see you here instead of laid out in a hospital bed!"
"It's good to be back. Although I could do without so much paper work!" Harry said with a laugh.
"How's your wife and the children?"
"They are fine, had a huge Christmas, I swear the amount of toys the twins got will squeeze us out of our flat!"
The two old friends talked a little bit and then Kingsley headed back to his office to deal with his paperwork.
Harry noticed it was almost lunch time. He flooed Ginny to find out if she could meet him at the Leaky Cauldron for lunch.
Over Hannah's wonderful Cock a Leekie soup and warm crusty bread they discussed Ginny's research and mundane household issues.
Life settled in to a comfortable routine for the rest of the school year. James and Fred got in to a few spots of trouble, but nothing major.
Al continued to astound everyone that knew him with his accidental magic. He was certainly a poster boy for not inbreeding. Arthur was convinced it was his muggle blood that helped his natural abilities to shine.
Lily was developing in to the cousin the other's came to for comfort. She had, what Augusta called, healing hands.
AN-Those of you who have read Teddy know excitement is to come. We can see the whole thing from Ginny and Harry's POV.
I adore Cock a Leekie soup. Here is a decent recipe for it. The changes I would make:
If you have the time: Pack two whole chickens with onions and one bay leaf each. Place in slow cooker and cook as directed by slow cooker manufacturer. Take out, set in refrigerator until cool and strip the chicken of the meat. retain the liquid that is in the cooker. Place it in a container in the refrigerator.
Set aside for soup. Into the slow cooker place chicken bones, the onions from the insides of the chickens, pureed, one pound carrots, chopped , 1 tablespoon salt, ½ Tablespoon pepper, and one whole head of garlic. Cook on low a whole day.
Remove, cool a bit and them strain the solids from the liquids. Measure the liquids, add the retained liquids from cooking the chicken. Add water to make 10 cups. Place in pot on stove.
Separate bones form vegetables. Puree veggies and add to pot.
Which every way you make the soup wash the leeks very well!
I then add all the ingredients, except the barley and cook. Add the barley as suggested in the recipe below.
This is an ancient Scottish dish that warms you up and works wonders for colds. I would not add the amount of salt and pepper to the soup that the suggest if you start with the long method. Wait un till you are going to add the barley and season to taste.
From all recipes
Cock a Leekie Soup
INGREDIENTS
4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-size pieces
10 cups water
1 onion, chopped
1/3 cup barley or one pound pealed and diced potatoes
1 (10.5 ounce) can condensed chicken broth
7 leeks, sliced
2 stalks celery, thickly sliced
1 sprig fresh thyme, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
DIRECTIONS
In a large pot over high heat, combine the chicken, water, onion and barley. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for 1 hour. Remove chicken, discard the bones and skin, chop meat into bite size pieces and return to the pot.
Add the chicken broth, leeks, celery, thyme, parsley, salt and ground black pepper. Simmer for 30 more minutes, or until all vegetables are tender.