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Author: girlyswot Story: Meeting the Weasleys Rating: Young Teens Setting: Post-DH Status: Completed Reviews: 10 Words: 12,338
Bill held the door open for Christy to pass through into the yard… no, garden, she corrected herself. She blinked at the bright sunshine and stood where she was for a moment while her eyes grew accustomed. A huge table under an ancient oak tree was being set by three women all of whom clearly had their own ideas about how best to fit twenty people round it. Christy smiled as she noticed Hermione quietly rearranging all the place mats in the middle without entering into discussion. There seemed to be people everywhere she looked. Ron was diving to catch a Quaffle that one of his nephews had tried to throw past him. She counted three… four… no, five red-headed men. Some were tall and some were broad. All sported the characteristic Weasley freckles Christy had come to recognise. And she could quite see why they were eating outside. No room could possibly hope to contain all that vibrant masculinity. ### With Percy on one side and Hermione on the other, Christy was quite enjoying herself. At least four different conversations were going on round the table, most of them at full volume, and much of them utterly incomprehensible to Christy. Molly Weasley, she noticed, seemed to be able to track all of them at once. Or maybe she just had a sixth sense that told her whenever one of her children needed putting right. ‘No, Bill, it was Fred's third birthday… Ron, have you had any cabbage? Hermione, make sure Ron eats his greens… I saw that article in the Prophet, Percy. I really think you should have a word with… George! Don’t do that…’ From across the table the brother she didn’t know grinned broadly at her and raised his eyebrows behind his mother’s back. ‘George!’ Apparently she had eyes in the back of her head. Well, she probably needed to, raising a houseful of kids like this. ‘So, Christy,' he said, ignoring his mother and smiling the smile of the innocent, George leaned forwardly earnestly. ‘Tell us what it’s like working for old Perce.’ Christy looked nervously at the Minister and then quickly at Hermione, who nodded encouragingly. ‘It’s fine,’ she said. George shook his head. ‘No, no. We want more than that. Does he make you call him Sir?’ ‘And do you have to bow and scrape every time he enters the room?’ That was Harry Potter. Christy blushed. She couldn't quite believe she was being teased by someone that important. ‘Is there a red carpet leading into his office?’ Bill chimed in. ‘Or a large portrait of him with a big gold frame round it?’ suggested Ron. Everyone was looking at Percy who was smiling casually enough, but Christy could see his grip tighten round his knife and fork. He didn’t like the teasing. ‘He’s been very kind and helpful,’ she stated firmly. ‘Oooh,’ said George. ‘Kind,’ put in Ron. ‘And helpful,' Harry's wife, Ginny, reminded them. ‘Sounds to me like…’ ‘…someone has a little crush.’ Christy pushed back her chair, blushing furiously. Her napkin had fallen to the floor and she bent down to find it. What if they asked her outright? Because, if truth be told, she thought she just might have a little, tiny sliver of something that resembled a crush. And she didn’t need that kind of complication. Not while she was still hoping to persuade the Ministry to give her a permanent contract. ‘Well, Perce?’ When Christy reappeared, George was still lounging on his chair, grinning wickedly at his elder brother. ‘Are you kind and helpful to every young witch who works at the Ministry? Or just the pretty ones?’ Percy put down his cutlery with a clatter. ‘Now that’s enough,’ he blustered. ‘Christy is a temporary employee at the Ministry of Magic and I should have thought even you could show a little consideration to a visitor here.’ George turned a surprisingly earnest gaze to Christy. ‘Sorry, darling, but you’ve got to know, Percy’d be mad not to fancy a gorgeous girl like you. I'd never get anything done if you worked for me.' Something inside of her melted in a most unexpected way. She bit her lip and picked up her wine glass, just for something to do. Mike had never paid her compliments like that. Not just telling her easily and straightforwardly that he liked the way she looked. She used to tell herself it was because he was a modern wizard--liberated; not just judging witches by the size of their chests. But George Weasley thought she was gorgeous. And said so. And Christy found that she liked it. An irrepressible smile began to blossom and form into a giggle. ### Well that was ridiculous. She’d never been a giggly girl and she didn’t see why she should start at her age. Christy shook her head and resolved to stick to the pumpkin juice from now on. The men had started talking about Quidditch so she turned to Hermione, hoping for some more rational conversation. ‘Are you okay?’ Hermione asked her in a concerned whisper. ‘George didn’t mean to upset you. It’s just how he is.’ Christy nodded. ‘I can see that. I’m fine.’ ‘Good.’ ‘What sort of work does he do? I’m just curious,’ she added hastily. ‘I can’t imagine him in an office all day.’ Hermione laughed. ‘No. He runs a shop on Diagon Alley. Guess what kind?’ Christy looked at the laughing, teasing face. Books? Wands? Clothes? She shook her head. ‘I can’t imagine.’ ‘Jokes.’ ‘Jokes?’ Christy repeated blankly. ‘Yes, you know. Fake wands, dungbombs, screaming yoyos. Stuff that kids like to spend all their pocket money on.’ ‘Ah. Well that makes sense.’ Hermione glanced across at her brother-in-law who was conjuring everyone’s napkins into ducks and geese and setting the children to catch them. ‘Yes. But don’t be fooled. He's as sharp as anything when it comes to business. He has more gold than anyone else at this table.’ She frowned. ‘Maybe not Harry. Anyway, that doesn’t matter. He's brilliant.’ ‘Did he fight in the War, too?’ ‘Of course. We all did. Even Percy.’ ‘Even Percy?’ Hermione frowned slightly. ‘Yes. Look, I’ll tell you about that later, okay? But George and Fred… You know that George had an identical twin?' Christy shook her head. 'Ah. Well, George and Fred were amazing. They’d just opened their shop but they spent all their time developing defensive products to be used in the War. Shield Cloaks and Disguise Charms. Specially adapted invisible Extendable Ears for our spies. Clever magic, brilliantly executed, perfectly reliable. We couldn’t have done it without them.’ ‘And they fought too? Or they just did the research?’ George didn’t seem the type to hide in the back room. ‘No, they fought. George lost his ear. Then Fred was killed in the Battle of Hogwarts. He, um, he…' Christy watched, embarrassed, as Hermione put up a hand to brush away a tear. 'He was laughing at one of Percy's jokes.' 'Oh. I'm sorry.' She didn't know what to say. She'd never known this man who had died so long ago. Christy glanced over at George, trying to picture him with both ears and a matching brother. The two of them together must have been quite something. ### The rest of the grown ups had fetched brooms and balls and were cheerfully arguing about Quidditch teams. Christy watched as Bill took charge, nodding to his sister to join his team. George and Ron seemed to drift together naturally. That left Percy and Harry. George leaned out to clap his older brother on the shoulder, making some remark which Christy couldn’t hear but which made everyone smile and Percy flush a little bit pink as he went to stand with his brothers, leaving Harry to join Bill's team. Someone threw the Quaffle in the air and the game began noisily and excitedly. ‘They’re so lucky,’ Christy murmured to herself. ‘Yes, they are.’ She turned to see an amused Hermione still sitting beside her. ‘They’re all so different, but…’ ‘They love each other.’ ‘Yes. That’s it, I suppose.’ ‘You didn’t have a large family, did you?’ ‘Just me and Mom. I can’t imagine what it must have been like growing up in a house with six children.’ ‘Seven,’ Hermione corrected her. ‘You haven’t met Charlie yet.’
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