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Post by Hermione J. Granger on May 23, 2012 12:25:34 GMT -5
Mr and Mrs Granger shifted nervously on the couch. From the opposite side of the room, Hermione could not help but smile slightly. This was the first time they would be seeing Floo Powder at work; she could tell they were both excited and nervous. Probably worrying about the consequences as she had taken the time to explain it to them in great detail. Even how sometimes witches and/or wizards can get out of the wrong portal.
Folding her arms over her chest, Hermione leaned back. She tilted her head to the side; checking her trunk and Crookshanks carrying basket. Everything was in check but the only thing... well persons... missing were the Weasleys. They were late and Hermione felt a bit apprehensive. All of a sudden their fireplace engorged and green flames appeared out of nowhere, amidst them standing tall and proud was Ron with his father behind him. Mr Weasley exchanged pleasantries with her parents while Ron helped with her things.
As usual the good bye lasted several minutes, but Hermione did not mind. She knew both parties would miss one another, and they had her promise to write as often as possible. With one last hug and kiss on the cheek Hermione left her house for what would be another year of surprises. The moment they arrived at the Burrow, she was greeted by the other Weasleys and in no time she was chatting animatedly with Ginny. Both anxiously waiting for Harry's arrival...
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Post by Harry Potter on May 23, 2012 12:43:32 GMT -5
Charlie and Bill Weasley entered the kitchen a few minutes after Hermione arrived. They were having a good-natured argument about which one of them worked with more foul-tempered creatures. "Dragons. No brainer" Charlie was scoffing. "Goblins" Bill countered. They paused their debate to introduce themselves to Hermione, having never met her before but obviously having heard quite a bit about her. "You must be Hermione. I'm Bill." Bill held out a hand to shake Hermione's. Charlie did the same, a long scar running up his arm. "And I'm Charlie. Nice to meet you."
It was right about this point in time that the flames in the Weasley's kitchen fireplace turned a violent shade of green. Fred and George appeared in quick succession of each other with identical grins on their identical faces, looked around to orient themselves and then burst into hysterical laughter. Bill and Charlie exchanged looks. "What did you do now" Bill wanted to know, but the twins couldn't find words.
Luckily, the flames turned green again and this time it was Harry and Ron who appeared. They also seemed highly amused by something. Fred was the first of the small group to say something, directed at Harry. "Did he eat it?"
Harry nodded, tears of mirth swimming in his eyes. "What was it?"
"Ten-tongue toffee." Fred beamed proudly.
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Post by Hermione J. Granger on May 23, 2012 13:00:01 GMT -5
Quite some time passed before a popping sound jolted all those present. Mr Weasley - who's face was as red as his hair - appeared in the kitchen and looked at his twin boys furiously.
"That was not funny Fred! What on earth did you give that Muggle boy?"
Fred tried to argue and a baffled Arthur replied, "You dropped it one purpose. His tongue was four feet long before his parents would let me shrink it!"
Mr Weasley scolded them for the fact that he was always promoting pro-muggle behaviour and his own sons went against it.
"You wait until I tell your mother..."
Before he could even finish his sentence Molly herself appeared, followed by Hermione and Ginny who smiled at Harry and lingered by the door frame.
"Tell me what, Arthur?" she said with her eye brow cocked.
When he didn't reply, Molly repeated her question.
"It's nothing... I already had words with the pair..."
However, Mrs Weasley was having none of that and continued to press for answer. Hermione, sensing they should probably leave, proposed showing Harry his room.
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Post by Harry Potter on May 23, 2012 13:12:05 GMT -5
Fred and George could never get too worked up over their father's anger as he wasn't really the parent who dished out discipline. So when Mr. Weasley started yelling, Fred tried to calm him down while George just kept laughing. "Dad, come on, it's not like I gave it to him...I just accidentally dropped it..."
Harry, Ron, Fred, George, Bill and Charlie broke down in hysterical laughter again when Mr. Weasley mentioned how long Dudley's tongue had gotten before Mr. and Mrs. Dursley would succumb to allowing magic in their house. Harry had to bend over and rest both hands on his knees, becoming winded from laughing so hard for so long.
When Hermione suggested showing Harry his room, Ron looked at her, puzzled. "Why? Harry knows where he's sleeping...it's the same place he always..." He trailed off when his mother entered, finally understanding what Hermione meant. "Right...er...Harry, why don't you come with me and I'll show you where you're sleeping..." Harry nodded quickly and they escaped.
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Post by Hermione J. Granger on May 24, 2012 5:58:10 GMT -5
Mrs Weasley brought herself to her full height and looked at her sons haughtily; her eyes were narrowed and her lips were set in a tight line. Her expression wavered for a moment and she greeted Harry with a cheerful hello. However, the frown was back as fast as it had taken it to disappear. From the corner of her eye, Mrs Weasley watched her youngest children, Harry and Hermione step out of the room.
To her disappointment, the twins attempted to follow.
"Not so fast," Arthur said surprising all.
Simultaneously to her husband Molly snarled, "You stay right there!"
That was their cue to increase their pace and hurry upstairs.
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Post by Harry Potter on May 24, 2012 8:21:34 GMT -5
Fred and George's smiles vanished at the appearance of their mother. "Er...hi mum." George tried to look innocent. Fred glanced out the window. "Lovely day, isn't it?"
Harry followed Ron, Hermione and Ginny up the narrow flight of stairs all the way to the top. He could have walked to the room he would be staying in with his eyes closed. He had long ago memorized nearly every part to the burrow as it was his favorite place in the world right after Hogwarts.
Ron opened the door to his bedroom and waved an arm at the general mess inside. "How cool will it be when I can do that and have it clean itself" he mused with an excited grin. "Just three more years!" He entered the room and dropped down onto his unmade bed.
Harry followed, sitting on his usual camp bed that was set up across from Ron's. "So how was your guys' summer" he wanted to know. They both knew how his had been...he wasn't sure about Ginny though.
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Post by Hermione J. Granger on May 24, 2012 17:47:52 GMT -5
"I am waiting for an explanation."
Each word was accurately punctured as Mrs Weasley expectantly waited for her husband or one of her sons to give a recount of what had happened. Finally, it was Mr Weasley who spoke. He tried to ignore Molly's facial expression as it contorted into rage and rapidly changed colour.
"What were you thinking? You have crossed the line... again. And I have half my mind set on making you stay home and scrub every inch of the floor with a toothbrush while the others are at the Quidditch Game."
Arthur thought of interjecting. But one look at his wife made him change his mind.
Mrs Weasley's voice carried all the way upstairs as she bellowed at the twins. Hermione graciously closed the door to Ron's room, leaving them in almost silence. It felt good being with her friends again and she could hardly suppress the cheshire cat grin that appeared on her face.
"Same as usual," she replied.
That meant that she had been on a trip aboard with her parents. Hermione always enjoyed herself but felt uncomfortable discussing it. She leaned against Ron's desk and looked at Ginny, her eyes encouraging the younger girl to say something. A light blush tinted the red head's cheek.
"We bet Fred and George at Quidditch?" Ginny blurted out uncertainly.
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Post by Harry Potter on May 25, 2012 9:22:52 GMT -5
It was sort of like watching a volcano in the moments before it erupted. Fred and George backed off nervously as their mother's voice carried through the house. Fred's mouth hung open at the threat and it was George who tried to placate Mrs. Weasley. "Aw, come on, mum, that's not fair" he began, looking for help from his father or twin desperately. They had been gloating to Lee Jordan for two weeks now about going to the world cup.
Harry flinched at the sounds of Mrs. Weasley's tirade and was grateful that Hermione had enough decency to close the door, letting Fred and George get yelled at without too much of an audience. He nodded faintly when Hermione said it had been the same as usual at her house which Harry took to mean a trip with her parents. He wasn't sure why she didn't like to expand upon this and give them detailed descriptions of the places she went but he didn't ever push her to do so. He figured she had a reason. Hermione always had a reason for everything.
When Ginny hesitantly blurted out that they had beaten the twins at quidditch, Harry smiled at her. "That's great Ginny. Do you think you'll try out for the team this year?"
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Post by Hermione J. Granger on May 26, 2012 5:18:33 GMT -5
"Fair? FAIR?!" Mrs Weasley bellowed
"How dare you George Fabian Weasley speak of fairness after what you and your brother did to that... that... muggle boy?"
She scoffed loudly and shook her head, "You both know I do not approve of your Weasley Whizzes plan..."
There was a long pause when one of her sons corrected her. Molly's face turned a bright red, indicating that she had had enough.
"To your rooms! And I expect every single creation of yours to be in the rubbish bin by dinner time."
Ginny shifted slightly, looking slightly uncomfortable. Taking a deep breath she reminded herself to keep calm. After all Harry was simply a friend.
"I might. I bet it would be more fun to play with a proper team," she replied.
The youngest Weasley enjoyed Quidditch with her brothers. However, it was not the same like a real game. Pushing the thought at the back of her mind, she looked back at Harry and smiled.
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Post by Harry Potter on May 27, 2012 16:18:39 GMT -5
"Weasley Wizard Wheezes" Fred corrected -- albeit quietly -- while George had been scolded by the use of his middle name into silence.
The twins didn't even risk a glance at each other or their father this time. It was easy to see...and hear...how deadly serious their mother was and before they could get in any more trouble (after all, pretending to throw away their creations was hardly any "real" trouble), they nodded and fled upstairs. But instead of stopping at their room, they moved a few floors higher and barged into Ron's room, their expressions throughoughly miserable...until they were sure that their mother wasn't able to see them. Then the grins came back.
Harry was in the middle of nodding enthusiastically at the idea of Ginny joining the team when Fred and George made their entrance. "How bad was it" he wanted to know with an apologetic look. It was because of his moron cousin, after all, that this had all happened.
ooc; did you wanna take one of the twins since the weasley parents are kinda done?
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Post by Hermione J. Granger on May 28, 2012 2:47:21 GMT -5
Shortly after the twin's arrival, the door opened again. A face poked in wearing horn-rimmed glasses and an annoyed expression. Percy straightened his back and folded his arms over his chest, which was puffed out even more than usual.
"I was wondering who was making all the noise. I'm trying to work in here, you know - I've got a report to finish for the office - and it's rather difficult to concentrate with people making a racket."
Ginny rolled her eyes at her older brother and shrugged, leaving the talking to her other siblings. Now that the door was open, Mr and Mrs Weasley could still be heard arguing - making those present in the bedroom feeling uncomfortable.
On the other hand, Hermione was intently listening to Percy's explanation of his report. She admired his ambition, but disliked his arrogant behaviour. Shaking the thought away, she focused back her attention on the conversation.
A red-faced and bothered Percy whirled on his heel and stormed out of the room, slamming the door hard behind him. Ginny jumped but was soon over it once hearing Hermione's snippy comment, directed to Ron.
"There was no need to be so rude."
At that moment, Pigwidgeon decided it was time to attract some attention. The little owl started hopping up and down; as well as hooting loudly and twittering round and round. With so many people in the room, he was bound to have a treat.
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Post by Harry Potter on May 28, 2012 8:30:19 GMT -5
"Not that bad. We've been in worse trouble." Fred shrugged. George was still silent. Before anyone else could say or do anything, the door flew open to reveal Percy, who complained of a racket.
Ron shook his head irritably. "We weren't making a racket. We were walking." His tone was heavily punctuated with sarcasm. "I'm sorry if that interrupted your report on why the minister is the best man on earth and you have to kiss his shoes all the time." Harry held in a snort as best as he could. Fred and George looked impressed at their younger brother's verbal attack of Percy.
George seemed to get his voice back. "Yeah, Perce, wouldn't want anyone writing that report before you. Then you might slip down from five hundredth most important person to the minister to five hundredth and one."
As the flustered Percy left the room to the sounds of laughter, Ron shrugged at Hermione, showing no indication that he was at all upset about just being called rude. "He was rude first" he pointed out as Fred clapped him on the shoulder. "Yeah, Hermione...you may think he's fascinating now but living for a whole summer hearing about how important he and his work are...well you'd drop a thing or two into that bloody cauldron of his too."
Harry took two treats from his pocket and gave one to Pig and the other to Hedwig who stood calmly beside the mini owl, obviously trying to show what a real owl acted like.
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Post by Hermione J. Granger on Jun 1, 2012 9:41:17 GMT -5
Hermione lifted both arms in defeat and said, "Fine, fine... I just think you should cut him some slack."
She paused for a moment, her eyes narrowing.
"Did you really tamper with his cauldron?"
Neither twin replied, however, Ginny's stifled giggles were enough for an answer. Hermione decided to drop the subject, simultaneously, Ron almost asked out loud about Sirius. Luckily he caught himself just in time... or was it her glare? She stood up and went to open the door; all was silent.
"I think they have stopped arguing. Shall we go down and help your mum with dinner?"
Her voice was chirpier than usual, but she couldn't help it as she noticed Ginny looking from Harry to Ron curiously.
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Post by Harry Potter on Jun 1, 2012 15:34:21 GMT -5
Ron shrugged again, obviously not planning to cut Percy some slack any time soon. He nodded along with Ginny's stifled giggle, a touch faster than his younger sister at keeping his face from cracking into a suspicion-confirming-grin, but it didn't matter as Hermione seemed content to drop the subject. He wasn't sure what made the jump in his mind from tampered cauldrons to Sirius...maybe it was the practical joke nature (everyone always said James and Sirius were almost exactly like Fred and George)...but either way, he looked suddenly to Harry. "Hey Harry have you heard from S-"
He caught sight of Hermione's fierce glare and fell silence at once as though he had swallowed his own tongue. Aware of Fred, George and Ginny all staring between him, Harry and Hermione with rapt curiosity, he cleared his throat awkwardly. "Er...why don't Fred, George and Ginny go help with dinner..."
Fred pretended to head for the door, looking solemn. "Right Ron, of course we'll go help mum with dinner when you were clearly about to say something really interesting for once in your life..."
"Not to mention, we're in a real big rush to go be in the same room with the woman who just threatened us with missing the world cup to scrub the house with toothbrushes..." George added, joining his brother by the door.
"It's not that important" Ron hastened to say, the tips of his ears reddening. Harry shot him a look that was much more sympathetic than the one he was receiving from Hermione.
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Post by Hermione J. Granger on Jun 15, 2012 2:36:13 GMT -5
Ron could really be unbelievable. Sometimes she could not help but wonder if he was plain daft or simply did not think before opening his mouth to speak. Either way, it was not the best idea to mention Sirius. Hermione looked at the other Weasleys; she was confident they could be trusted but after all the notorious propaganda that Sirius received, she did not want to risk giving him away.
She cocked an eye brow at Ron's retort and stopped herself of accusing him of being a lazy bum just in time. Frankly she thought the twins deserved that punishment, but knew better than to say anything. Hermione stood up and took hold of Ron's arm, giving it a light tug. She repeated her suggestion of going to help Mrs. Weasley. This time her voice sounded firmer.
However Ginny interjected, "What were you going to say Ron?"
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