Ginny laughed happily as the wind blew her hair out behind her. Being on a broom again was exhilarating. She executed a sharp pivot, flying low over the ground. She loved this feeling. The freedom and tranquility that came from losing herself in the sensation of whipping threw the air.
Fred flew at her from above yelling, “Here I come, little sis!”
Ginny avoided him easily. George, Fred’s twin, gave her a thumb’s up from the other side of the yard.
Ginny smiled and gave a mock bow from her broom. After the confinements of Hogwarts, being home was amazing. Even having so many people crammed into a space as small as the Burrow was better than the unreasonable rules Snape and the Carrows had set.
They had been flying for an hour when Mrs. Weasley poked her head out the back door and called for dinner. Ginny and the twins reluctantly landed and put their brooms back in the shed.
Ginny made it into the house first, only to be grabbed by a pair of large, scar-covered arms. “Charlie!” she squealed.
Charlie, the second of the Weasley children, had been living in Romania for several years, working with dragons. It was a rare thing for him to be able to come home for family gatherings.
Twisting around, Ginny looked into her brother’s face. “You made it!” she cried. “When did you get here?”
Charlie laughed and gave Ginny a squeeze. “I arrived about twenty minutes ago. I’ve been watching you fly,” he told her. “You’re pretty good.”
Fred and George, who had come through the door as he was speaking, laughed. “Oh, yeah!” Fred exclaimed. “We taught her everything she knows.”
George nodded his agreement. “Yes. Why she ever decided to be a Chaser instead of a Beater is beyond us.”
“Shows how grateful she is for our guidance and assistance over the years!” Fred added, punctuating his words with an affectionate punch to his sister’s arm.
Ginny grinned. “I just didn’t want to take away from the legend of Fred and George Weasley. Charlie was Seeker, and Ron was Keeper. We needed to cover all the positions.”
“We are Gred and Forge,” George corrected.
“Quite right,” Fred confirmed.
Ginny laughed. “Of course. How silly of me!”
A soft, feminine cough from the corner interrupted the conversation. It was a sound rarely heard in the Weasley household, where six young men and one girl (who only had brothers to look up to) made as much noise as they could just to be heard above the others. So, naturally, everyone turned towards it.
Ginny blinked in surprise. A very beautiful, dark-haired young woman sat on one of the many stools, watching the scene with a twinkle in her eye. The dark green robes she wore clung to her perfect hourglass figure and her legs were crossed neatly beneath her.
Charlie gasped and jumped to her side. “I’m so sorry, my dear!” he said to the angelic creature. “Everyone, this is Martha Wollby. My fiancée.”
Ginny clapped her hands together excitedly. “Oh! Really, Charlie? Engaged! It’s wonderful to meet you, Martha.”
Fred and George patted Charlie on the back. “All right!” said Fred.
“Way to go!” said George.
“Boys!” Molly admonished. “Don’t be ridiculous!”
“Aw, Mum!” George exclaimed. “We were just expressing our delight!”
Martha stood and wrapped her arm around Charlie’s waist. “It is all right, Mrs. Weasley,” she assured the older woman in careful, deliberate English. “Charlie warned me that his twin brothers could be… what did you call them, dear? Oh, yes. Ob-nox-ious.”
Charlie gave his fiancée a hug. “You see? I’ve prepared her for the oddities of our family.” They smiled sweetly at each other.
“Oh, brilliant,” said Mr. Weasley, who had come into the room unseen. “Who knows what she’s expecting. I hope we don’t disappoint her.”
Everyone chuckled.
~///~
“Focus, Draco!” Lucius yelled for the umpteenth time. “You’re letting go too soon.”
The library of Malfoy Manor was littered with pieces of paper and dirty dishes. Draco and his father had been holed up in the room all day, practicing the new detection spells. They hadn’t even come out for meals.
House-elves had been allowed in to bring food and to take the last dishes, but other than that, they were completely alone. Narcissa had been occupying herself with teas and parties. The only time they had all been together all holiday was Christmas day.
In the weeks that Draco had been home, he had very slowly learned the detection spells he was being taught. The only one had been unable to produce in his lessons was the spying spell he was supposed to place over the school. He had worked hard to memorize the concept, but application was proving difficult.
Lucius was getting frustrated with the multiple fouled attempts, though he tried not to show it. He was anxious for Draco to prove himself to Voldemort, so he chose to ‘encourage’ him. He made him practice it every morning, first thing, and every night, right before bed. In between, they continued working on the others.
Carefully, Draco muttered the incantation for a complicated spell again, and this time, a flickering image appeared.
“Yes, that’s it,” Lucius said.
Draco sagged with relief. This particular spell had been difficult to master. He did it again to celebrate, glad to have finally finished.
“You’ve set up a shocker?” he asked his father. This particular shocker was on the lesser side of the Dark Arts. Illegal and mildly dangerous if you didn’t know what you were doing.
Lucius gave a self-satisfied smirk. “Yes. Any unauthorized person attempting to enter this house will be struck with quite a dazzling lights display.”
Draco tossed aside the notes he had made for the spell and took a long drink from the replenishing glass of water by his side. Glancing up at the clock on the mantle, he was startled to find that it was only seven o’clock. With how tired he was feeling, it could easily have been the next day.
“Now,” Lucius said, drawing Draco’s attention back to him. “Let’s try the spying spell again. Here’s the incantation.”
Draco took the paper his father was holding out to him. “I can’t do this one, Father,” he said, trying to keep a groan out of his voice. “I’m trying. It just doesn’t seem to work for me.”
Lucius struggled to disguise his anger. His eyes flashed as he said, “Don’t get frustrated, Draco. I can plainly see that it’s too difficult for you. But you must try it one more time. A true Malfoy is persistent. We do not accept failure. We fight it. Now begin.”
These were the sorts of words that had always made Draco attack Harry Potter at school. The sort that made him desperately practice on his broom for hours and hours to try to beat the hero of the world in Quidditch. His grades had never gone below an E and people feared him because of his father saying these things to him.
All of his life he’d heard what Malfoys did and didn’t do. A veiled way of saying, ‘Right now you’re not good enough, shape up.’ Family honor was vastly important in the minds of the elite of society.
Draco sighed and looked down at the instructions. He lifted his wand and mumbled something similar to the words he was reading. He growled deeply as purple sparks shot out of his wand.
“All right, all right,” Lucius smoothly said. “Just try again.”
Concentrating as hard as he could, Draco waved his wand. A faint glow appeared in front of him and he nearly jumped, startled. The light was gone just as quickly as it appeared.
Draco dropped his head into his hands and shook it back and forth.
Lucius just waved his hands in an unconcerned manner, though Draco could sense his disappointment. The senior Malfoy had never been particularly good with completely masking his emotions, especially with people who knew him well.
“No matter. No matter. The Dark Lord will find another way to get this done. At least you can detect the wards.” He looked away, but not before Draco saw his frustration.
The two Malfoys began to sift through the papers on the floor, organizing them into some semblance of order. “Let’s try this one,” Lucius suggested in a steely voice. They stayed at it for several more hours.
Draco struggled against falling asleep as his father tested him on what he’d learned. Finally, Lucius was satisfied. He gathered up all of the information and dismissed his son carelessly, with a simple, “See that you’re up in time. Malfoys are never late.”
Draco dragged himself upstairs to his room. Making sure the door was locked, he cast a silencing spell on the room. Then, carefully and deliberately, he cast the spying spell over Malfoy Manor.
Fred flew at her from above yelling, “Here I come, little sis!”
Ginny avoided him easily. George, Fred’s twin, gave her a thumb’s up from the other side of the yard.
Ginny smiled and gave a mock bow from her broom. After the confinements of Hogwarts, being home was amazing. Even having so many people crammed into a space as small as the Burrow was better than the unreasonable rules Snape and the Carrows had set.
They had been flying for an hour when Mrs. Weasley poked her head out the back door and called for dinner. Ginny and the twins reluctantly landed and put their brooms back in the shed.
Ginny made it into the house first, only to be grabbed by a pair of large, scar-covered arms. “Charlie!” she squealed.
Charlie, the second of the Weasley children, had been living in Romania for several years, working with dragons. It was a rare thing for him to be able to come home for family gatherings.
Twisting around, Ginny looked into her brother’s face. “You made it!” she cried. “When did you get here?”
Charlie laughed and gave Ginny a squeeze. “I arrived about twenty minutes ago. I’ve been watching you fly,” he told her. “You’re pretty good.”
Fred and George, who had come through the door as he was speaking, laughed. “Oh, yeah!” Fred exclaimed. “We taught her everything she knows.”
George nodded his agreement. “Yes. Why she ever decided to be a Chaser instead of a Beater is beyond us.”
“Shows how grateful she is for our guidance and assistance over the years!” Fred added, punctuating his words with an affectionate punch to his sister’s arm.
Ginny grinned. “I just didn’t want to take away from the legend of Fred and George Weasley. Charlie was Seeker, and Ron was Keeper. We needed to cover all the positions.”
“We are Gred and Forge,” George corrected.
“Quite right,” Fred confirmed.
Ginny laughed. “Of course. How silly of me!”
A soft, feminine cough from the corner interrupted the conversation. It was a sound rarely heard in the Weasley household, where six young men and one girl (who only had brothers to look up to) made as much noise as they could just to be heard above the others. So, naturally, everyone turned towards it.
Ginny blinked in surprise. A very beautiful, dark-haired young woman sat on one of the many stools, watching the scene with a twinkle in her eye. The dark green robes she wore clung to her perfect hourglass figure and her legs were crossed neatly beneath her.
Charlie gasped and jumped to her side. “I’m so sorry, my dear!” he said to the angelic creature. “Everyone, this is Martha Wollby. My fiancée.”
Ginny clapped her hands together excitedly. “Oh! Really, Charlie? Engaged! It’s wonderful to meet you, Martha.”
Fred and George patted Charlie on the back. “All right!” said Fred.
“Way to go!” said George.
“Boys!” Molly admonished. “Don’t be ridiculous!”
“Aw, Mum!” George exclaimed. “We were just expressing our delight!”
Martha stood and wrapped her arm around Charlie’s waist. “It is all right, Mrs. Weasley,” she assured the older woman in careful, deliberate English. “Charlie warned me that his twin brothers could be… what did you call them, dear? Oh, yes. Ob-nox-ious.”
Charlie gave his fiancée a hug. “You see? I’ve prepared her for the oddities of our family.” They smiled sweetly at each other.
“Oh, brilliant,” said Mr. Weasley, who had come into the room unseen. “Who knows what she’s expecting. I hope we don’t disappoint her.”
Everyone chuckled.
“Focus, Draco!” Lucius yelled for the umpteenth time. “You’re letting go too soon.”
The library of Malfoy Manor was littered with pieces of paper and dirty dishes. Draco and his father had been holed up in the room all day, practicing the new detection spells. They hadn’t even come out for meals.
House-elves had been allowed in to bring food and to take the last dishes, but other than that, they were completely alone. Narcissa had been occupying herself with teas and parties. The only time they had all been together all holiday was Christmas day.
In the weeks that Draco had been home, he had very slowly learned the detection spells he was being taught. The only one had been unable to produce in his lessons was the spying spell he was supposed to place over the school. He had worked hard to memorize the concept, but application was proving difficult.
Lucius was getting frustrated with the multiple fouled attempts, though he tried not to show it. He was anxious for Draco to prove himself to Voldemort, so he chose to ‘encourage’ him. He made him practice it every morning, first thing, and every night, right before bed. In between, they continued working on the others.
Carefully, Draco muttered the incantation for a complicated spell again, and this time, a flickering image appeared.
“Yes, that’s it,” Lucius said.
Draco sagged with relief. This particular spell had been difficult to master. He did it again to celebrate, glad to have finally finished.
“You’ve set up a shocker?” he asked his father. This particular shocker was on the lesser side of the Dark Arts. Illegal and mildly dangerous if you didn’t know what you were doing.
Lucius gave a self-satisfied smirk. “Yes. Any unauthorized person attempting to enter this house will be struck with quite a dazzling lights display.”
Draco tossed aside the notes he had made for the spell and took a long drink from the replenishing glass of water by his side. Glancing up at the clock on the mantle, he was startled to find that it was only seven o’clock. With how tired he was feeling, it could easily have been the next day.
“Now,” Lucius said, drawing Draco’s attention back to him. “Let’s try the spying spell again. Here’s the incantation.”
Draco took the paper his father was holding out to him. “I can’t do this one, Father,” he said, trying to keep a groan out of his voice. “I’m trying. It just doesn’t seem to work for me.”
Lucius struggled to disguise his anger. His eyes flashed as he said, “Don’t get frustrated, Draco. I can plainly see that it’s too difficult for you. But you must try it one more time. A true Malfoy is persistent. We do not accept failure. We fight it. Now begin.”
These were the sorts of words that had always made Draco attack Harry Potter at school. The sort that made him desperately practice on his broom for hours and hours to try to beat the hero of the world in Quidditch. His grades had never gone below an E and people feared him because of his father saying these things to him.
All of his life he’d heard what Malfoys did and didn’t do. A veiled way of saying, ‘Right now you’re not good enough, shape up.’ Family honor was vastly important in the minds of the elite of society.
Draco sighed and looked down at the instructions. He lifted his wand and mumbled something similar to the words he was reading. He growled deeply as purple sparks shot out of his wand.
“All right, all right,” Lucius smoothly said. “Just try again.”
Concentrating as hard as he could, Draco waved his wand. A faint glow appeared in front of him and he nearly jumped, startled. The light was gone just as quickly as it appeared.
Draco dropped his head into his hands and shook it back and forth.
Lucius just waved his hands in an unconcerned manner, though Draco could sense his disappointment. The senior Malfoy had never been particularly good with completely masking his emotions, especially with people who knew him well.
“No matter. No matter. The Dark Lord will find another way to get this done. At least you can detect the wards.” He looked away, but not before Draco saw his frustration.
The two Malfoys began to sift through the papers on the floor, organizing them into some semblance of order. “Let’s try this one,” Lucius suggested in a steely voice. They stayed at it for several more hours.
Draco struggled against falling asleep as his father tested him on what he’d learned. Finally, Lucius was satisfied. He gathered up all of the information and dismissed his son carelessly, with a simple, “See that you’re up in time. Malfoys are never late.”
Draco dragged himself upstairs to his room. Making sure the door was locked, he cast a silencing spell on the room. Then, carefully and deliberately, he cast the spying spell over Malfoy Manor.
Author notes: Surprise! Tell me. Did you see that coming? And did you like it? Thank you to all of my wonderful reviewers, psyche, choravenclaw, and Rosalie. Loves!
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