QLFC: Season 11, Round 3
Team: Falmouth Falcons
Position: Chaser 2
Prompt: Eos "Goddess of the Dawn" (Greek): Write a story set at the break of dawn.
Optional Prompts: (dialogue) "How could you have possibly forgotten?" (setting) starry night, and (family) Prewett
Word Count: 3,000
Betas: Thanks, Ash and stars, for the help!
Warnings: Mild Swearing, Mention of Alcohol Use, Implied Child Abuse
A Romantic Night Turned To A Tense Morning
A crackling fire warmed Molly as she snuggled close to her boyfriend of two years under the light of a million stars on a cool summer's night. A lone figure crossed the field from the sprawling, two-story farmhouse to the young couple by the fire.
Noticing his grandfather approaching, Arthur stashed the half-empty bottle of elf-made wine under the large quilt beneath them.
"Alright. You kids need to wrap it up now," he said as he reached them.
"But, Gramps, it just got dark," Arthur protested. "Molly's parents said she can stay till eleven."
"I know, but your grandmother and I are going to bed."
"We're sixteen. We can manage on our own for a couple of hours," Arthur said.
Gramps studied his grandson for a long moment then shrugged. "Keep a close eye on the time. Arthur, your parents want you home by midnight. Make sure you both get home on time."
"Yes, sir. Thank you."
"Yes, thank you," Molly said.
"Remember what happened last time you got home late – and only by five minutes?" Gramps told Arthur.
Arthur frowned and gave a stiff nod.
Gramps bid them goodnight and went back to the house.
"What happened the last time you were late?" Molly asked.
"I was punished," Arthur replied shortly.
"For being five minutes late coming from your grandparents' house?"
"My father's…very strict."
"What does your mum think about it?"
Arthur shrugged. "She doesn't have much say on the matter."
Molly stopped her questioning. She could sense him starting to close in on himself, as he did occasionally when he was prodded about his parents.
It struck her that she'd never met his dad. She knew his grandparents very well. She spent a great deal of time around them since they split their time together outside of school between her house and theirs; they were very lovely, warm, welcoming people. She'd even met his mum a handful of times. She found it strange that she'd never met his dad or been to the house where he actually lived.
Her curiosity got the better of her, and she couldn't stop the question before it left her lips. "Why don't we ever go to your house?"
Arthur stiffened.
"What's wrong with that?" she asked, genuinely confused. "We've been friends for five years."
"No – I know. Why would we need to go to my house when we can come here?"
"I'd just like to see where you grew up, that's all."
"You've seen it. I've spent half my life here."
"But what about the other half? There's still so much I don't know about you. I want to know everything about you, like I'm willing to tell you everything about me."
"My house doesn't matter. I like it better here. When I finish school, I want to live in a place like this. Not as many animals and no big barn, but some chickens and an orchard out in the countryside. I'm most comfortable here, so why should it matter if you see my house?"
Well, she'd never known that about him, and he had a fair point. The secrecy still piqued her interest, but did it really matter when she'd seen the place he liked the most?
She leaned into him as she pictured a little house in the middle of nowhere with lots of children playing in the garden; an ever-growing orchard that would supply them with all the fruits they could eat – peaches, apples, apricots, plums, and pears; a vegetable garden where she would pick fresh vegetables for their dinner; chickens pecking at the ground around the chicken coop; maybe two or three sheep grazing nearby. Then, on warm, clear nights such as this, she and Arthur could gather their children around a fire to look at the stars above.
"You know," she sighed contentedly, "I think I'd rather like that as well."
He looked over at her. "You would?"
She nodded. "It sounds nice. The village is alright, but there's always something going on and you don't get as much privacy as you do out here. The stars are never this bright either." She looked up at him and added, "But really, as long as I'm with you, I know I'll be happy."
"No house – no matter how ideal it is – would be a home without you," he murmured then leaned in for a long, slow kiss on the lips.
When they broke apart, they settled back against the small hay bale Gramps had carried out for them earlier. Arthur wrapped a protective arm around her shoulders while she hugged him around his middle. They talked about what the future could hold for them until they drifted off to sleep.
oOoOo
Molly snuggled into her unusually hard pillow and wrapped herself tighter in the blanket against the cool morning. Sheep bleated nearby while hooves trampled soft grass.
Sheep? She must still be dreaming in her half-asleep state. That tended to happen when she'd visited Arthur's grandparents' house, dreaming about the life they could build together.
A warm puff of air blew in her face. Her eyes snapped open to see a sheep inches from her. She shot up, scaring the sheep off in the dim light. Heart racing, she glanced around to see her boyfriend's grandparents' house and barn in the distance.
"Arthur – Arthur!" she hollered as she frantically shook him awake. "What time is it?"
Blearily looking at his watch, he mumbled, "4:18."
"We were supposed to leave hours ago!"
Arthur's eyes shot open as he, too, sat bolt upright. "Oh, shite!"
"Ugh! How could we have done this again? And this time, I'll get more than a telling off from the Fat Lady. My parents are going to kill me!" Molly quickly got to her feet and started toward the house. Arthur snatched up the large quilt and empty wine bottle and followed.
"They're probably still asleep," he said, trying to calm her down. "The only people up at the break of dawn are my grandparents, and they won't say anything."
She spun around, causing him to slide to a stop on the damp grass. "Your grandparents are awake?"
"How else do you think the sheep got out of the barn?" Arthur asked with a shrug. He began rolling the quilt around the wine bottle. "It'll be fine."
"We promised we'd both go home."
"They'll understand, Molly. We fell asleep, that's all. If either of us gets in trouble by them, it'll be me for not making sure you got home." He kissed her forehead, something that always made the butterflies in her stomach flutter. "I'm sorry. Now, let's go."
The couple walked back to the house hand in hand.
Molly's nerves settled by the time they reached the backdoor. All she needed to do was get home and into bed before her parents noticed. That should be easy enough, right? If her parents had waited up for her, they would've come 'round hours ago.
"Arthur? Molly?" Gran said when they entered the kitchen. "You were both supposed to go home last night."
"We know, Gran," Arthur said. "We fell asleep. We're going now."
"You better make sure your parents don't find out," she warned, waving her spatula in their direction; however, it seemed like she directed that solely at Arthur. "You know we can't always protect you."
That was directed solely at Arthur. The sideways glance at Molly and the rising color in his cheeks confirmed there was more behind that statement than Molly knew.
Gran set the spatula down and then took the rolled-up quilt from her grandson before he could stop her.
"I'll put that away!" he blurted, reaching for it.
With a quizzical look at the bundle, she unrolled it to find the empty bottle.
"Now, Arthur, you know better than this," she admonished, the most stern Molly had ever heard either of his grandparents.
"I know, Gran," he sighed exasperatedly. "You can lecture me later. We need to go."
Gran looked out of the window where the sun still lay below the horizon, only a soft golden glow illuminating the eastern sky. "Right. You two best get a move on." She hugged Molly and kissed Arthur on the cheek as they passed.
Standing in front of the Floo, Arthur kissed Molly again. "Let me know how it goes."
She nodded. "I really did have a good time."
"Me too."
She grabbed a handful of Floo powder and stepped in, bracing herself for what might come.
oOoOo
Molly froze and held her breath the second she stepped foot out of the Floo and into her sitting room. Her dad stirred in his armchair with his feet propped up on the ottoman. Apparently, he'd stayed up waiting for her, but had dozed off.
Tiptoeing around him, she carefully dodged any creaky floorboards, but to no avail. He rubbed his eyes and sat up before she could make it out of the room.
"Molly?" he yawned.
Her heart pounded. "H-Hi, Daddy." She flashed him a great big smile.
"Did you have a nice time?"
She nodded.
Her dad stretched as he stood. "Good. Well, go on up to bed."
As soon as she made it onto the landing, Molly breathed a sigh of relief.
No sooner had she closed her bedroom door than she heard, "Molly Prewett!" She cringed.
"Molly Prewett!" her dad bellowed again. "Get down here this instant!"
Bracing herself yet again, she hesitantly exited her room.
The bedroom door across the hall opened to reveal her younger twin brothers looking out curiously. When they spotted her, they plastered huge grins on their faces.
"What did you do?" Fabian whispered dramatically.
"He's never been that angry with us," Gideon added.
"Go back to bed," Molly snapped.
"Molly!"
"I'm coming!" She hurried downstairs lest her dad get any angrier.
"Do you have any idea what time it is?" he demanded as soon as she reached the bottom of the stairs.
"I-It's a little late."
"A little late?!" he asked incredulously. "It's past four in the morning! What time were you supposed to be home?"
"I-I don't remember."
"How could you have possibly forgotten? You definitely know you're supposed to be home earlier than this!"
"Jonathon?" Molly's mum asked, tying her housecoat together as she exited their bedroom. "What on earth is going on?"
"It's dawn, and our daughter is just now getting home from a night spent with her boyfriend," he furiously informed her.
Her mum gasped. "Molly!"
"We didn't do anything! We fell asleep!"
Snickering came from upstairs.
"Boys, go to bed," their father ordered. Turning his attention back to Molly, he asked, "Why didn't Arthur's grandparents send you home?"
"They go to bed early. They said we –"
"They left you unsupervised?" he cut her off.
"We don't have chaperones at school," she argued.
"Are they awake now?"
"Yes."
"Good. I need to speak with them – and maybe that boy will be there so I can have a word with him as well."
"Dad, no!"
"Dear, you should wait a few hours until you've calmed down," her mum tried to intervene, but he ignored her, disappearing into their bedroom to get changed.
oOoOo
A few minutes later, she stood on the Weasleys' porch with her dad. He knocked on the front door.
No one answered.
He knocked harder.
Still, no one came.
The third time, he banged on the door. Gran slipped out seconds later, looking a bit frazzled. A man's harsh voice tumbled out until she shut the door firmly behind her.
"I'm so sorry." She finally looked at them and forced a smile. "Oh! Good morning, Jonathon."
"I'd like to say the same, Irene, but I just found out my daughter has been out all night," he said rather harshly. "I'd like a word with you and your husband."
"Costin is busy at the moment."
"Was that him shouting?"
"Absolutely not," she fiercely replied. "If you want, you can wait here until he's available, or you can come back later."
He glared at her. "We'll wait."
Gran opened the door just enough for her to enter, allowing the man's shouting to momentarily disrupt the calm of the countryside.
After a few minutes, Molly's dad turned to her with a softer expression. "I'm taking you home."
"No."
His voice dropped an octave. "You need to go home."
"If you're going to talk to Arthur, I'm going to be here," she argued.
He reached for her arm to Side-Along her, but she snatched it away.
The door swung wide open. Silence had returned to the house.
"Jonathon, Molly, come in," Gramps said, stepping back to allow them to enter.
Her dad didn't try to make her go home again.
To her surprise, Arthur sat hunched over on the sofa with a hand covering his face while Gran tried getting him to move it out of the way. The visible half of his face was contorted in pain. Molly rushed over.
"Arthur?"
He gave a start, jerking his hand away to reveal a bloodied cheek and busted lip. "Molly!"
She gasped. "What happened?"
He looked at the hand he'd pulled away in surprise and immediately tried to replace it, but Molly gently grabbed his arm.
"Arthur…" she whispered.
"I-I fell – when I got home. It was dark, and somebody'd left a bunch of stuff in front of the fireplace – Hit my face – It woke my father. H-He wasn't happy," he stammered.
"I'm so sorry. Was that him a few minutes ago?"
"We need to get that cleaned up," Gran interrupted before he could answer, but it answered Molly's question all the same.
When Gran took Arthur into another room, Molly realized her dad and Gramps had disappeared. Hearing hushed voices coming from the kitchen, she snuck over to listen in.
"You swore the first time she visited that she'd always be safe here – you'd watch out for her, and there'd be nothing for us to worry about," her dad whispered angrily.
"And that is still true –"
"You went to sleep while she was here! How is that watching out for her?"
"They're almost of age. They can have a little freedom. They didn't do anything except fall asleep."
"I'm not worried about Arthur. I'm worried about your son. What if Septimus realized Arthur wasn't home earlier and ended up coming here in a rage? How could you make sure my daughter is safe while you're asleep? You can't even guarantee your grandson's safety in this house while Septimus is here and you're awake!"
"I can, and I do!" Gramps boomed then lowered his voice again. "He'd already had a go at him at their house. The second he tried anything here, I kicked him out." He blew out a long breath and calmly continued, "However, I do see your point. They're both very responsible for their age, so I thought they'd both get home on time. I should've made them leave or stayed up until they did. I'm sorry. I assure you it will never happen again and she will always be safe here."
All of this was because of Arthur's dad? Why wouldn't she be safe around him? Arthur would've told her if his dad hit him. She knew he was prone to accidents and Quidditch injuries, but all he ever said about his dad was that he was strict. Perhaps, he had a bit of a temper too, if that morning was any indication…but what parent would ever hit their child?
She only caught the tail end of what her dad said next. "...so I'm not sure I can trust that anymore. I'll have to think about it for a while before I decide if she can come back."
Whoa! She couldn't have that. Plucking up her courage and fully expecting to get in trouble for eavesdropping, she stepped into the kitchen.
"I've never felt unsafe here – and I would tell you if I ever did," she told her dad, staring him down. "I enjoy spending time here."
"Molly…how much did you hear?" Gramps asked.
"Enough to know what's going on. I've never met Arthur's dad, but I think I can handle a little shouting if I ever do."
"Sweetheart, there's more to –" her dad softly began but stopped when Gramps cleared his throat and gave a minuscule shake of his head. Instead, he said, "You shouldn't have to be around that type of behavior. No child should."
"Okay. Well, if this is the agreement you have, Gramps has kept his end of it. I've never seen Arthur's dad in the five years I've known him. His mum has been over a few times, but she's really nice – a lot like Arthur, actually. It's not even Gramps's fault for any of this. It's all on me and Arthur. We promised we'd get home, but we slipped up. Should one little incident where everything turned out fine really keep us from being able to spend time together in a place we both enjoy?"
Gramps placed a hand on her dad's shoulder. Their eyes met. "You can trust that she'll still be safe here," he promised.
He looked from Gramps to Molly and back before shaking the older man's hand. "Alright, but if anything else happens, that's it. And you" – he looked at Molly – "are grounded for two weeks, young lady."
"Okay." That was fair enough, so she wasn't going to try arguing that point; however, Arthur shouldn't have to get a telling off from her dad after whatever he'd gone through in the past hour. "When you talk to Arthur, could you go easy on him? He's had a rough morning."
To her relief, he agreed without hesitation. "It seems like it. I'm not going to have a talk with him. I was upset," he admitted. "Besides, it was an accident. I know he would've made sure you got home. I'm just glad you're okay."
He hugged her tightly and a little longer than usual and kissed her on the head.
A/N: Thanks for reading! If you want more of young Arthur/Molly, check out "Oblivious Soulmates," "Peach Pit," and "The Kids Aren't Alright." I enjoy the chance to develop their relationship with the backstory I've given them and hope y'all enjoy getting to see it.