Chapter Seventeen
Ginny was injured.
To be fair, it had been worth it.
Sirius had found several broomsticks in the attic. He, Ginny, Fred, and George had promptly decided to race one another through the house. Ginny had easily shot past the others. She had zoomed down to the foyer where she had promptly crashed into a vase. She now sported a cut on her arm. Fortunately, it disappeared with a quick wave of Sirius' wand.
The twins flew up behind him and chorused, "Alright?"
"Fine," Ginny replied, "I won!"
"Kreacher," Sirius called, "Clean up this mess!"
The house-elf appeared next to him and growled, "Of course, Master. Kreacher would be honored to clean up the mess caused by the blood traitor."
"Hey, you owe me one," Ginny reminded him, "If it wasn't for me, four blood-traitors would have entered Master Regulus' room a few weeks ago!"
Kreacher's mouth snapped shut and he began to clean.
"Nice one, Juniper," Sirius snickered, "Come along!"
The four flew their broomsticks down to the kitchen. They hopped into their seats and began to eat. Ron, Hermione, and Mr. Weasley individually entered within the hour. Ginny glanced up as she realized that her father was carrying multiple packages.
"What are those?" Ginny curiously asked.
"Our attire," Mr. Weasley replied, "For the Ministry ball."
Sirius abruptly choked on his breakfast.
He swallowed and yelped, "The what!?"
"Ginny roped us into going to some dance at the Ministry," Ron crossly said.
Ginny glared at him and said, "If I hadn't accepted the Minister's proposal, he would have known that something was up!"
"Hang on, hang on," Sirius exclaimed, "The Minister invited you?"
"I thought that I had told you," Ginny replied, "Yes, when we went to Great Aunt Muriel's a few weeks ago, the Minister ended up showing up. He tried to think of an excuse as to why he was there. He finally blurted out an invitation. I accepted. Again, I thought that it would seem suspicious if we didn't."
"Good call," Sirius agreed, "So, when is it?"
"This weekend."
"WHAT!?"
Sirius leapt to his feet and cried, "That's not enough time! Not nearly enough!"
At that moment, Mrs. Weasley entered the kitchen and snapped, "What are you going on about, Sirius? And what are those?"
"Our attire, dear," Mr. Weasley explained, "For the Ministry Ball."
"Attire?" Mrs. Weasley repeated, "What do you mean?"
"They provide the attire for the evening," Sirius explained, "You and Ginny will have gowns. Arthur, Fred, George, and Ron will have dress robes."
Mrs. Weasley sorted through the packages.
Sure enough, there was a package for each Weasley.
"What?" Mrs. Weasley gasped, "But we have dress attire!"
"I'm not saying otherwise," Sirius replied, "I'm just pointing out that the Ministry provides attire for every formal event. That way everyone will match in one unified system."
He spat out the last sentence.
Mrs. Weasley scowled.
"It's traditional," Sirius added.
"It's insulting," Mrs. Weasley snapped, "They don't need to buy clothes for us!"
"Molly," Sirius sighed, "It's traditional."
And yet, he saw that there was no getting through to her.
"How do you know so much?" Ron asked.
"Yeah, Sirius," Fred coyly said, "How do you know so much about the Ministry's balls?"
"Do you have a fancy for the Ministry's balls?" George wryly added.
The two chortled.
Unfortunately, Mrs. Weasley glared at them.
Sirius was silent for a moment.
"I can assure you that I've seen plenty of the Ministry's balls," Sirius finally said, "You see, my family loved the Ministry's balls. They absolutely adored the Ministry's balls. They went wild about the Ministry's balls. Walburga, in particular, could never get enough of the Ministry's balls. Now myself, I was never a big fan of the Ministry's balls. The Ministry tries to act like their balls are big. However, you'll soon find out that the Ministry's balls aren't anything to brag about. Fortunately, the Ministry didn't have any balls when Voldemort first rose to power. And my guess is that, once they realize that Voldemort is back in power, their balls will disappear once more. I'm a Marauder, mates. Don't ever try to out-innuendo me."
Fred, George, and Ginny were cracking up.
The twins applauded and Sirius bowed.
Mrs. Weasley's glare held fire.
Sirius ducked and sincerely said, "Joking aside, I have been to many of them. My family used to bribe the Ministry at least once a month. As such, we were invited to all of the fancy dinners, events, and balls. It was horrid. I hated every minute of it."
"Gee," Fred sardonically said, "Thanks for that pep talk."
"Yeah," George sarcastically added, "I'm really looking forward to it now."
Sirius chuckled and changed his tone as he said, "It was horrible. But I have to admit that it did give way to a lot of great opportunities. I never took any myself. I probably should have. I could have pulled a few strings when I was in Azkaban. Hindsight's 20/20. So, my advice to you is to make as many connections as you possibly can. You never know when you might have to use them in the future. Especially if you're trying to start up your own business."
The twins' faces lit up.
Ginny smirked.
Sirius merely winked.
oOo
"Remember to hold your head high."
"I will."
"But not too high."
"Right."
"You want to seem confident but not arrogant. It's a fine line. And remember to frequently mention that it's an honor for you to be there."
"I know."
"Thank everyone that you possibly can."
"I know, Sirius," Ginny replied, "You've been going over this for the past three days!"
"I just want to make sure that you're ready," Sirius cried, "This is a huge night! These people will eat you alive if you so much as walk the wrong way!"
Ginny swallowed.
"Be careful," Sirius warned, "They can smell fear! Now then, you should probably change into your dress."
Ginny took the large bag and ducked into the bathroom.
A thought occurred to her and she called, "What if it doesn't fit?"
"I have no doubt that it's magically altered to fit," Sirius called back.
Ginny unzipped the bag and gasped.
She had never been a big fan of dresses. But this dress was stunning! It was emerald green with a silver pattern that reminded her of shining stars.
"S…Sirius," Ginny called, "How…how much did this dress cost!?"
"You don't want to know," Sirius chuckled.
Ginny spotted the price tag and shrieked, "Oh, Merlin!"
"Yeah…"
"One hundred galleons?" Ginny gasped, "I'm going to be wearing a dress that's worth one hundred galleons!? One hundred! One…one…hundred?"
"Are you going to keep repeating 'one hundred'?" Sirius amusedly asked, "Or are you going to put it on and go to the ball?"
A few minutes passed as Ginny wrestled with it in an attempt to get it on.
"It's actually not that bad," Ginny finally admitted, "It's even a bit flattering."
"Well, sure," Sirius cried, "You have to show off those birthing hips to the male heirs."
The next few minutes were wasted as Ginny cracked up.
"Alright, alright," Sirius hastily said, "Come on!"
Ginny opened the door and nervously said, "Well?"
"You look great," Sirius amicably cried, "You're going to have a few heads turning!"
"Thanks," Ginny replied, "It's terribly uncomfortable, though!"
"I know," Sirius sympathetically said, "That's the price for high fashion."
"No," Ginny murmured, "The price of high fashion is one hundred galleons!"
Sirius snorted.
He then pulled a mirror from his pocket and handed it to her. Ginny proudly swelled as she gazed at herself. Sirius was right; she looked great!
"I want you to take this," Sirius explained, "It used to belong to Lily. I have its twin. If anything goes wrong, just hold the mirror and say my name. Use Padfoot, mind you. And ensure that you're in a safe location."
"I will," Ginny assuredly said, "Thanks!"
She placed it in the small purse that came with the dress.
The two went down to the foyer. Ginny was relieved to see that Fred and George had worn the emerald green dress robes that had been sent to them. Unfortunately, Ron was wearing his hideous pair of robes from last year. Mr. Weasley was wearing his Ministry robes.
"Ron," Sirius sighed, "You should change."
"But Mum said—"
"Your mother's wrong," Sirius insisted.
Ginny nodded and added, "You look ridiculous."
Ron's face turned as red as his hair.
Ginny glanced around for Hermione to agree with her opinion. She then remembered that Hermione had gotten Tonks to Side-Apparate her over to her parents' house for the evening.
Ginny wished that she could have come to the ball with them. She and Hermione didn't always see eye-to-eye but Hermione was Ginny's friend.
She glanced up as her mother descended the steps.
"Well," Mrs. Weasley cried, "How do I look?"
Ginny grimaced. Her mother was wearing an old, burnt-orange, dress. The collar was the wrong shape, the sleeves were too long, and it had way too much lace.
Before Mr. Weasley could say anything, Sirius interjected, "Wrong."
"Wrong!?" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed, "What do you mean 'wrong'!?"
"It's all wrong," Sirius calmly said, "You should have honestly gone with the dress that they provided for you. You're making the wrong statement."
"I simply want to show them that I can provide my own clothing," Mrs. Weasley cried.
"Oh, for the last time, Molly," Sirius retorted, "They're not implying that you can't provide your own clothing."
"They're just saying that they can provide better clothing?" Mrs. Weasley countered.
Sirius didn't reply.
Mrs. Weasley indignantly huffed and said, "Well, I'm not changing!"
"Fine," Sirius sighed, "Well…good luck with that."
The umbrella abruptly glowed.
"Everyone, grab on!" Mr. Weasley cried.
"Good luck, Juniper!" Sirius exclaimed, "Have fun!"
oOo
Ginny was having a blast!
She fit right in!
Her dress was uncomfortable, her shoes were killing her, it was as hot as blazes, and her mother was sulking.
But she didn't care!
She was fitting in!
Everyone that she talked to looked impressed by her etiquette and knowledge.
Even Fudge looked impressed.
Fred and George were also having a good time. They had talked to a few important people about their inventions. One of them had even talked to them about a vacant building in Diagon Alley that was up for sale. The twins' eyes had lit up.
Mrs. Weasley was having a terrible time. Evidently, her dress had made the wrong statement. Many people seemed insulted by the fact that she hadn't worn the dress that had been provided. The way they saw it, Mrs. Weasley had not only disrespected tradition, she had disrespected the host. Seeing as how the host was the Minister for Magic, that wasn't exactly a good thing. Ron was also having a bad time. He was sulking in the corner, evidently mad that his siblings were out socializing. He had hoped to at least talk with Ginny so that he wouldn't appear to be completely alone. Yet Ginny was far too busy to adhere to his complaining. At the moment, she was bowing to the Minister of France's Ministry for Magic.
She felt a tap on her shoulder.
Ginny turned and found herself face-to-face with Michael Corner. Michael was in Ron's year. Unlike the Weasleys, however, he was in Ravenclaw.
They formally bowed to one another before grinning.
"It's good to see you, Ginny," Michael exclaimed.
"You too, Michael," Ginny replied.
Michael extended his hand and asked, "Would you care to dance?"
"D…dance?" Ginny repeated.
He nodded.
Ginny faltered and stammered, "W…would you excuse me for a moment?"
"Sure!"
Ginny raced away.
She frantically glanced around before ducking into the restroom. She crouched down in the corner and pulled the mirror from her bag.
"Padfoot!"
Ginny flushed at the urgency of her voice.
Sirius' face swam into view and he matched her urgency as he cried, "What's wrong?"
"Sssh," Ginny hissed, "Keep your voice down! We're in the women's loo!"
Sirius lowered his voice and repeated the question.
"I…err…well…"
"What!?"
"Nothing's wrong," Ginny admitted.
Sirius sighed with relief and asked, "Well? How's everything going?"
"It's going great!" Ginny excitedly whispered, "Everything that you said is working! I'm fitting in so well that you would think that I actually know what I'm doing."
Sirius chuckled and replied, "I'm glad."
"So," Ginny softly added, "Can I ask you for some…more advice?"
"Of course!"
Ginny hesitated before rapidly murmuring, "Well, do you remember how we were joking about how people would notice me?"
"I wasn't joking."
"Well, someone did!"
"Fantastic," Sirius warmly whispered, "Who?"
"Michael Corner."
"Corner?" Sirius replied, "His father must be Joseph Corner. 'Has a really high position in the Ministry – just a few clicks down from the Minister. Michael could be a great asset. I'm assuming that he was well dressed?"
"He looks amazing," Ginny breathed.
She abruptly paused and felt her cheeks flame.
Sirius looked confused for a moment.
Then, his entire face relaxed as a large smirk spread across it.
"Shut up," Ginny hissed, "Padfoot, shut—"
"I'm not saying anything."
Yet Sirius ducked out of the frame and Ginny could hear him laughing.
"Padfoot!"
"Alright, alright," Sirius whispered, coming back into view, "Sorry."
He held back a smile as he said, "So, tell me about him."
"He's in Harry's year," Ginny muttered, "A Ravenclaw. He's really sweet. We met at the Yule Ball last year and started talking. Not much, mind you. But he asked me to dance!"
"Well, what happened?"
Ginny's eyebrows came together and she whispered, "What?"
"You said that he asked you to dance at the Yule Ball? What happened!?"
"No," Ginny quickly corrected, "He asked me to dance right now!"
"Wait, really!?" Sirius exclaimed, "When!?"
"Ssshh," Ginny whispered, "Just now. But, I…I don't know…that's why I needed your advice! The twins would have laughed at me – even more than you did! And I'm not asking Ron. And I'm certainly not asking my mother."
"What do you want to know?" Sirius asked.
He hesitated before hastily adding, "I'm not giving you any advice about the owls and the pixies."
Ginny was caught between flushing and cracking up.
"Mum and I already had that conversation a few years ago," Ginny hissed, "Just…just tell me if I should dance with him or not."
"Well, of course you should!"
Sirius acted as if it was obvious.
"Really?"
"Yes!" Sirius whispered, "Really! Go! Dance! Now!"
"Okay," Ginny replied, "Thanks, Padfoot!"
"Have fun, Juniper!"
Ginny pocketed the mirror and walked out.
"G…Ginny," Michael stammered, "There…there you are!"
Ginny flushed and said, "Yes, here I am."
"So," Michael awkwardly said, "Would you…would you like to dance?"
"I'd love to."
Michael took her hand and led her onto the dance floor. The band was playing some Muggle song about birds disappearing when someone was near. The two held one another and swayed. They stumbled, bumped into one another, and stepped on each other's feet. It was clumsy, awkward, gawky, goofy, and one of the best nights of Ginny's life.
oOo
"Ginny's got a boyfriend!"
The twins had been chanting the four words for the past twenty minutes.
Ginny couldn't even chastise them.
She was too busy smiling.
They had just returned to Grimmauld Place.
Sirius climbed up from the kitchen and cheerfully said, "How was it?"
"It was wonderful!" Ginny gushed, "Absolutely wonderful!"
"Ginny's got a boyfriend," Fred and George sang.
Sirius beamed and boomed, "Nice!"
Ginny flushed.
"She doesn't have a boyfriend," Mrs. Weasley retorted, "She's too young!"
Fred turned to Sirius and murmured, "Don't mind Mum."
"She's just embarrassed because she didn't fit in," George mumbled.
"And apparently insulted the Ministry," Fred added.
Mrs. Weasley gave an indignant huff and stomped away.
"Yeah," Sirius muttered, "Too bad that someone didn't warn her."
Fred and George snickered.
"Now, boys," Mr. Weasley chastised, "Do not talk about your mother in that manner!"
They both hung their heads and apologized.
"Speaking of apologies," Ron snarled, "You owe me an apology for abandoning me, Ginny. I looked like a complete idiot. Ginny? Ginny?"
Sirius smirked.
Ginny was swaying on the spot with a goofy grin on her face.
She couldn't hear anything that her brother was saying.
The only thing that she could hear was a song about birds.