'Do you like Quidditch Ellie?' Bill asked as the four of them trekked up the hill to the Weasley's Quidditch paddock.

'I guess it's alright,' Ellie shrugged.

'Alright?' Tonks cried, 'it's the best game in the world! Right Charlie?'

'Yeah it is,' Charlie already knew that Ellie wasn't a massive sports fan.

'How can you not like Quidditch?' Tonks continued.

Ellie shrugged again. 'I just don't really see the appeal of a dozen people on brooms throwing a ball around.'

'Actually there's fourteen people.' Tonks corrected.

'And four balls.' Bill added.

Ellie shook her head.

'So I assume you don't want to play a game of Quidditch with us.' Bill ventured.

'We do!' Charlie flattened himself against the paddock gate as Fred and George came flying past on brooms.

'C'mon Ellie, two teams of six - what do you say?'

'No, I think I'll sit this one out, if you don't mind.'

'I'll sit out too,' Charlie announced, not wanting Ellie to feel left out.

'No way! You always play Quidditch!' Tonks gasped.

'Exactly. I've got all summer to play Quidditch, but Ellie's not seen all of the house yet and she's only here for a week.'

Bill and Tonks stared. Behind them, Fred and George zoomed around an apple tree pelting each other with fruit.

'Uh, alright then.' Bill managed after a pause. 'We'll just stay here and have a game, okay?'

'See you in a bit!' Charlie waved as he and Ellie walked back down the grassy path from the paddock.

'Thanks Charlie,' Ellie smiled, walking close to him despite the wide path.

'For what?' Charlie could feel his ears burning and it was nothing to do with the late-July sunlight at his back.

'For not leaving me on the side-lines like a lemon. I know how much you love playing Quidditch.'

He shrugged nonchalantly. 'Like I said, I've got loads of time to play Quidditch. You're not here for long, so we might as well make the most of it.'

'Let's start now then.' Ellie cast a sideways glance at Charlie, before reaching over to take his hand. Charlie's stomach lurched at the contact.

He stammered nervously. 'So where do you want to see first?'


'Dinner's ready!' Molly called.

Charlie and Ellie came down the stairs with Ginny, from where Charlie had been showing Ellie the numerous floors of the Burrow. Percy joined them a few moments later, a book in hand.

'Percy dear, could you go and fetch Bill and the others from the paddock?' Molly asked, bustling about the kitchen. 'Then Charlie, could you and Bill move the tables outside? Oh, and we'll be needing eleven sets of cutlery Charlie, if you could get those out. Thanks love.'

'Is there anything I can do to help Mrs Weasley?' Ellie asked.

'Oh no dear, you just sit yourself down. That's just great.' Molly steered Ellie into a seat and started ladling out vegetables into dishes.

Charlie soon returned with Bill, Tonks, Fred and George. Once the tables were set up outside in the garden and their plates were filled with Molly's cooking, they all dug in.

'Where's Father tonight Mum?' Percy asked, carefully chewing on a slice of beef.

'He's probably been delayed again, dear. I'm sure he'll be home soon.' And as she finished speaking they heard the tell-tale opening and closing of the front door.

'We're in the garden Arthur!' Molly called.

'Evening Weasleys!' Arthur called, but he didn't sound like his usual cheerful self.

'What's wrong Dad?' George asked, when Arthur joined them at the table.

Arthur sighed. 'There was a nasty incident today at work: a cursed jumper killed a man.'

Ellie gasped. 'Who cursed it?'

Arthur shrugged and retrieved a copy of the Evening Prophet from his bag. 'We haven't managed to track them down yet, but there's a request for information in the article.' Arthur handed Charlie the paper, allowing both Ellie and Charlie to read the article.

'It was Professor Birch!' Charlie exclaimed.

What!' Charlie passed the paper over to Bill and Tonks.

'One of your teachers?' Arthur questioned, chewing thoughtfully on his meal.

'He taught Defence Against the Dark Arts.' Charlie explained. 'He always wore colourful jumpers to lessons.'

'I really liked his lessons.' Tonks murmured, scanning through the rest of the article.

Dinner was rather subdued after that.


Before Charlie knew it the week had passed and it was time for Ellie and Tonks to say goodbye.

Ted arrived via Floo Powder to pick up Tonks, and with a hug and a rather worried wave she vanished into the shockingly green flames. Charlie wondered why she looked so uneasy, admittedly he hadn't spent a lot of time with her that week because he'd been with Ellie. But then Ellie's Dad apparated outside the front gate and Charlie thought no more about it.

Charlie walked Ellie out to the gate, past Ron who was playing with his pet puffskein that Charlie had found for him in the garden. Ellie hugged Charlie goodbye and gave him a quick kiss, telling him she'll see him at Hogwarts. Charlie had asked Ellie out halfway through the week and, thankfully, she had said yes. Charlie was still getting used to Ellie being his girlfriend.

With a loud crack Ellie's father disapparated, taking Ellie with him.

'Charlie!' Molly called from the house. 'Don't forget you need to do all your chores before you listen to the World Cup this afternoon!'

With a grumble, Charlie slouched back into the house.

After cleaning out the chicken coop, tidying his room, helping his Mum with the cooking, and folding washing, Charlie was sat in the living room eagerly awaiting the start of the Quidditch World Cup. All the Weasleys but Molly (who had gone to visit a friend during the match) were seated with an assortment of snacks, listening to the wireless.

There was a burst of static and American Quidditch commentator Speeler Macken's loud and booming voice echoed around the room.

'Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the four hundred and twentieth Quidditch World Cup here in Atlanta! This is the one we've all been waiting for! The final - between Australia and Germany!'

The Weasleys cheered for Australia. Fred and George hopped around like kangaroos.

'And now, please welcome... the Australian National Team Mascots!'

Over the radio they heard a massive roar of sound, presumably the cheers of the Australian supporters. Then the weirdest sound Charlie had ever heard overpowered the voices of the crowd.

'What is that?' Fred asked Arthur, halting his kangaroo hopping. It was an odd, low, droning sound, that seemed to come from nowhere and everywhere at once. As he listened it made Charlie feel a little bit sleepy.

'It's a didgeridoo,' Arthur yawned. 'What I wouldn't give to see what's going on there now.'

'Why? What is it?' Percy questioned, his eyelids fluttering as he struggled to stay awake.

'Traditionally, the Australian Team mascots are Aboriginal wizards who use their native branch of magic to create images and stir emotions through their music.'

The gasps of the crowd reinforced Arthur's statement.

'But what are they seeing?' Bill wanted to know. As if in answer to his question a new voice came on the wireless.

'For those of you listening from other countries, this is the Australian Team mascots' famed routine. On the sidelines of the pitch are a dozen Aboriginal elders, each with a didgeridoo. Together their magic is telling a tale to the entire stadium. The tale is from the Australian Dreamtime and tells us of the Rainbow Serpent sleeping below the ground until the time of creation.' The tempo of the music increased. 'Then the Serpent awoke and pushed its way to the surface, creating mountains and gorges as it did so.'

Charlie became engrossed in the telling of the tale and the music that accompanied it that when the music faded he longed to hear it again.

'And now... please try to keep yourselves in your seats,' Speeler Macken was back. 'It's the German National Team Mascot!'

'They've only got one mascot?' George noticed. A jaunty tune started playing, the complete opposite of the calming drone of the Australian Mascots' music, and Charlie felt the urge to start stamping his feet and hopping about.

'Ah, the Germans have brought back the old favourite - the Pied Piper of Hamelin.' They were informed.

'Uh oh,' Arthur sighed, hurriedlly leaving the room. 'I'll go and get the earplugs.'

'Why do we need earplugs Dad?' Charlie called.

Ginny and Ron started tapping their little feet on the floor. Fred and George started to murmur the pipe tune and soon escalated into full on yodelling.

'That's why we need earplugs!' Arthur announced, returning to the room to find his children hopping and stamping and yodelling around the room. He stuffed cotton wool into each of their ears. Charlie found the urge to dance much decreased.

'What was that?' He asked loudly.

The wireless answered. 'The Pied Piper's tune has a similar effect to the Aboriginal elders' music, but instead of showing images this waltz urges the listener to get up and join in. This has a particular effect in children. Oh no, my foot's started tapping.' The speaker sighed. 'Roger! Get me stronger ear plugs!'

'Oh! What is going on!' Macken cried, interrupting the second commentator. 'The Piper's music has got the Australian Mascots waltzing on the side-lines!' The Australian crowd yodelled angrily over the wireless. 'And they are furious!'

The piping stopped and Charlie cautiously removed the cotton wool from his ears.

'And now - please welcome... The Australian National Quidditch Team! Echunga! Monteith! Hastings! Whakkaarangapawarau! Meadows! Nuhaka! And Karoonda!'

The Weasleys cheered once again, and a rather more upbeat didgeridoo chorus began.

'And their rivals! Todt! Blijk! Brand! von Glockenspieler! Eldritch! Wiel! And Weiss!'

The crowd cheered to the tune of the Pied Piper's pipe.

'Please show your support for our referee - all the way from Brazil - Chairwizard of the South American Confederation of Quidditch Referees, Matheus Carvalho!'

There was a pause, Charlie knew that the two captains were shaking hands and taking to the air once more, and the crate of Quidditch balls was waiting to be opened in the centre of the pitch.

'Carvalho puts the whistle to his lips and - THEY'RE OFF! Todt, Brand, Blijk, Hastings, Monteith, Echunga, back to Monteith!'

This was Quidditch at its highest level and Charlie's head was spinning just listening to the commentary. He wished that he was as good as those players, and that the Hogwarts games were as high a quality as he was hearing on the radio.


Charlie woke up a few days later from a dream of playing Quidditch for England, still pleased by Australia's astounding World Cup win, to find a letter waiting for him at the breakfast table.

Dear Charlie,

I hope you had a great week with Tonks, sorry again that I couldn't make it. Don and I have just got home from France. It was amazing and I learnt a great deal about French Wizards! Did you know there's a school of wizardry in France too? Skiing was fun too, you should really try it.

I don't know if you've already got your Hogwarts stuff, but we will be going to Diagon Alley on the 15th. Owl me back if you can make it, I've owled Tonks too.

Can't wait to see you,

Annie

xxx

P.S. I'm so excited about going to Hogsmeade this year!

P.P.S. We listened to the World Cup in a restaurant in France - I bet Buck had an amazing time there. Don is so jealous. I think he's going to start saving up to go to Australia for the next World Cup already.

Smiling to himself, Charlie folded up the parchment letter and set about replying. As he watched Errol swoop unsteadily out of the window, letter in beak, Charlie hoped that the unreliable owl would actually make it to Annie's house in one piece.


Thanks to chelseyb1010, WinterRainbow and September And Summer for reviewing!

Thanks to WinterRainbow and Little livi for favouriting, and again to Little livi for following!