7:The Quibbler and the Firings-February/March 1996
The Harry Potter Universe belongs to J.K. Rowling. I'm just borrowing the characters for a while. This is for pleasure only, no profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Bold Face Type indicates a direct quote from Chapter Twenty-six, Seen and Unforeseen, or Chapter Twenty-seven, The Centaur and the Snake, in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.
A/N This story is told from Molly's Weasley's point of view and parallels Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenixand the summer after it.
Arthur's birthday celebration was scheduled for the first Sunday in February, so Molly began preparing food a couple of days earlier. She decided to have a buffet rather than the usual family-style dinner and planned a whole sideboard of tasty comestibles. She made many different appetizers and a choice of sliced beef or chicken legs and several varieties of vegetable. Arthur's favorite cheesecake with tinned sweetened cherries on top was the spectacular dessert.
Kate and Nic were the first guests to arrive. They handed Arthur a bottle of champagne and a small festively wrapped package. Arthur and Molly took them all around The Burrow showing them the improvements that had been made by the Hogwarts house-elves while they were away. They did not discuss the reason for their two absences.
When Amos and Corrine arrived, they each carried an oddly shaped present that they put on the table with the small one. The six friends chose what they wanted to eat and sat around the large gleaming table in The Burrow's kitchen. They toasted Arthur's health with the champagne and enjoyed Molly's cooking.
The conversation turned to the latest developments in the Wizarding world. They all thought that the escape of the ten Death Eaters from Azkaban was extremely troubling. Now that the Dementors had joined forces with You-Know-Who and his Death Eaters, Wizards and Muggles alike were being attacked.
The women joined in the serious conversation for a while but then Molly and Corrine began to ask Kate about what was happening at WWN in Days of Destiny and Bedside at St Brigid's. Kate said that some of the Muggleborn actors, as well as camera and production people, were terrified now that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was gathering his followers. The escape of so many dangerous Death Eaters was seen as a sign that no one was safe anymore. Whole families were leaving for Australia or Canada in droves. Even some of the writers were worried about being retaliated against for plot lines with controversial topics so Kate herself had written most of the scripts about helping the Spell-damaged children by teaching them and their parents counter curses.
Finally, they finished eating and it was time for presents and cake. Kate tapped her wand on the small present to reverse the Shrinking Charm and it grew to the size of a cooker. Arthur tore the wrapping off and discovered a large Muggle electric saw that Nic had charmed to work by magic. He was delighted and thanked Kate and Nic profusely. Corrine and Amos revealed that their strangely shaped presents were large pieces of bur wood.
Kate recognized them at once and said, 'In California, they are called wood burls and very popular for decorative and useful items.'
Amos smiled and said, 'You can make a couple of tables with these now that you have a big saw.' Then he and Nic and Arthur levitated presents out to Arthur's shed and returned for cake after a few minutes, jabbering like Cornish Pixies about Arthur's new tool.
After their guests left and the kitchen was clean, Molly and Arthur turned in for an early night. 'We'll have more presents on Tuesday,' promised Molly. ' You should have something to open on your real birthday.'
Tuesday morning, Arthur was delighted when Bill's large gray owl arrived with a gift certificate for new dress robes from Madame Malkin's. A large postal owl from Romania had arrived the afternoon before with Charlie's present and Molly had saved it for this morning. He had sent his father a pair of boots made with hide from a Ukrainian Iron Belly. They were magically cushioned and adjusted to fit perfectly. Molly gave him a new Black Watch plaid dressing gown with matching slippers. Minerva had smuggled notes from the children out of Hogwarts without being caught by High Inquisitor Umbridge. She'd given them to Molly at the last Order meeting. The notes said that they had not been able to get him anything since they could not go into Hogsmeade until Valentines Day.
As she gave Arthur his breakfast, Molly could not help regretting that Percy had not sent his father any acknowledgement of his birthday. Arthur could tell what she was thinking from her expression and gave her a big hug. 'Don't be concerned about Percy. He'll come around eventually,' he said gently.
Molly nodded and kissed him. 'He just doesn't appreciate all that you have done for him. You've been the best father I can imagine.'
Arthur asked Molly to meet him at Madam Malkin's after work so they could pick out his new dress robes and go out for a bite to eat that night. She readily agreed, saying she needed a thing or two from Gladrags and some more floo powder and ingredients for owl strengthening pellets for Errol.
They had a delightful evening picking out Arthur's new robes and going out for a late dinner. Arthur teased Molly that the new underwear she had bought at Gladrags was also a present for him. Molly blushed all through dinner.
The weather turned wetter and warmer by the weekend. The rain washed all the snow away and turned the frozen ground soft and mushy. Molly did not enjoy being out in muck so used the Floo connection to go to her exercises and meetings.
On Valentine's Day, a school owl came with another of Ginny's drawings. It showed her with a Quaffle and Ron guarding the rings on a Quidditch pitch. Figures that looked like Harry, Hermione, and Luna were in the stands. A black-haired girl was walking by looking at the three people watching Ron and Ginny. The twins were off in the distance bent over a workbench, working on something. Across the bottom of the drawing it said, 'WE LOVE YOU!' surrounded by hearts. Molly was puzzled about the girl with black hair but since she was dressed in a blue robe so she thought she must be in Ravensclaw with Luna.
Arthur brought her a pot of bright red azaleas that evening when he returned from the Ministry. Molly decided that she'd better move the Grow Light that Florian Gardener had given her for her birthday from Grimmauld Place after the next meeting of the Order. They had a lovely dinner and went to bed early. That night neither of them thought about what was happening now that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was gathering followers again.
Molly was greatly surprised the following Wednesday when a school owl arrived with a short note in Ron's scrawl. She gave the owl a treat, told him to wait for a reply, and read,
Why is everything I do rubbish? I can't do what I am supposed to and we are going to lose! I wish everyone wouldn't sing every time I miss.
All of us are fine but my best friends are doing something that they aren't telling me about.
We are learning a lot this year.
Molly could feel Ron's frustration so immediately baked a double batch of biscuits and sent it back with the strong looking school owl. Arthur was as worried as she was about what was happening at Hogwarts but decided that all they could do was wait until a meeting of the Order and try and find out what was happening from Minerva when Severus was busy talking to someone else.
On Sunday, a strange school owl tapped on the window while Molly and Arthur were finishing breakfast. The note was not addressed but Arthur recognized the distinctive dual handwritings and read it aloud to Molly-
We lost to the Badgers. BUT NOT BY MUCH- 240-230.
The King let fourteen of them by. THE PRINCESS DID WHAT SHE WAS SUPPOSED TO.
We are sad. THE BISCUITS CHEERED US UP.
School is not fun any more. NOT THAT IT EVER WAS MUCH FUN.
'Oh dear,' said Molly. 'It's worse than I expected but at least Ginny caught the Snitch just like you used to.'
Arthur smiled. 'When we were at Hogwarts seems like so long ago. How is it that you have stayed just the way I remember you on our wedding day?'
Now Molly smiled as she said her part of their familiar routine. 'How long has it been since you've had your eyes examined?'
Arthur brought a copy of The Quibbler home with him the next evening 'This is the talk of the Ministry!' he said, putting it in front of Molly. There was a picture of Harry on the front cover with large letters saying:
HARRY POTTER SPEAKS OUT AT LAST:
THE TRUTH ABOUT HE-WHO-MUST-NOT-BE-NAMED
AND THE NIGHT I SAW HIM RETURN
'It's a whole article, telling what happened the night that Cedric Diggory died,' said Arthur.
Molly started reading, stopping now and again, to comment. 'So that's how it happened!' and 'Oh my, Fudge must be having a fit!'
'And his toady Umbridge!' added Arthur. 'I bet she issues another Educational Decree forbidding the students from reading this.'
Molly and Arthur received a few owls from friends telling them to compliment Harry for telling the truth. Nic and Kate thought the article was very informative although both were surprised that Rita Skeeter had written it. She had never been known for her truthfulness.
Molly went with Corrine when she took her copy of The Quibbler to Ceddie's grave and read the whole article to his headstone. 'BELOVED SON AND BRAVE HUFFLEPUFF, now everyone will know what that monster did to you.' She put some early crocus blooms on his grave and said, 'Molly, I feel more at peace than I have for months. Thank you for being such a loyal friend.'
'You'll never know how much you helped me when Fabian and Gideon were killed by Dolohov and his friends,' said Molly. 'I couldn't have got through it without you helping me by letting me talk about my brothers and taking the boys to play with Ceddie.'
Arthur came home on the last Thursday of February with the news that Luna's father had printed a second edition of the March Quibbler already since the original printing had sold out. Everyone was reading this issue and sending copies of it to friends and family.
Molly bought Ron some new Keeper gloves and asked Arthur to put them and his cake in the Ministry post. They told each other that it hardly seemed possible that their baby boy was turning sixteen. He'd be of age next year. They'd better start saving for a new watch to mark that milestone.
The weather at The Burrow turned even warmer the first week of March but a steady rain made the ground too wet to turn over in the garden. Molly started some seedlings by her kitchen sink and was thankful for the Grow Light from Florian. She began to want to get out of the house more so she and Corrine began to meet with Kate Wallace once a week for lunch at cafés near the WWN. All three of them preferred Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor but agreed that it was probably because they all remembered eating there when they came to Diagon Alley with their parents.
Ron sent a prompt thank you message with Pig but did not address or sign it. Molly was glad it had stopped raining on Wednesday when Pig flew in the open kitchen window. She was glad to see him. Errol even moved a notch on his perch to make room for him to rest. Ron's note was short.
Thank you for my present. I hope they improve my game. We liked the cake. Trevor the toad has come out of hibernation. I wish the other toad would go into hibernation.
Everyone is well but the teachers and students are having a hard time this year. I wish we could come home for Easter but we have practice.
Molly and Arthur discussed what Ron probably meant by the teachers having a hard time. Molly could not imagine that Dolores Umbridge was making life difficult for Severus Snape or Minerva McGonagall or Filius Flitwick, but Arthur was not so sure.
'Power is very addictive for some people. Fudge has given her permission to overrule the other teachers, even the Heads of House. My guess is that she is trying to intimidate everyone.'
'Even Albus Dumbledore?' said Molly, in surprise. Arthur nodded sadly.
The following Wednesday, an unfamiliar school owl flew through a heavy rainstorm with another scroll of parchment that Molly was sure was one of Ginny's animated drawings.
It was blank when Molly un-rolled it but figures appeared as she spread it out on the kitchen table. The drawing was quite detailed. It showed the Hogwarts Entrance Hall with many students standing in a circle or up on the staircases. They were all watching three witches. Molly recognized the tall one in the Tartan robe and the short toad-like one dressed in pink but could not figure out who the witch with unkempt long hair and lopsided glasses was supposed to be. She had colorful shawls and scarves draped all over her and was holding a sherry bottle in one hand and her wand in the other as she hovered over two trunks that were dumped on the floor.
While Molly watched, the short witch kept yelling and pointing to the closed castle door. The witch dressed in shawls began rocking back and forth with a terrified look on her face. The front door opened and Molly recognized the wizard with long silver hair and beard who walked into the scene. Professor Dumbledore beckoned to Minerva and the terrified witch and said something to the toad-faced witch. Minerva and a witch with a dirty apron helped the terrified witch up the stairs. A very short wizard who was standing off to the side waved his wand and the two trunks followed them up. The witch dressed in pink seemed to be shouting at the Headmaster and stamping her feet. Then the parchment went blank but started its animation again when Molly touched it.
'Arthur will like this and maybe he will know something about who the strange-looking witch is,' said Molly, watching the whole story play out again.
Arthur did know all about the witch that Umbridge tried to fire. 'She's Sibyll Trelawney, the Divination teacher. Dolores Umbridge wants to fire her and Rubeus Hagrid. She wants to appoint new teachers.' Arthur laughed so hard that he had to hold his side.
'It doesn't seem funny to me. The children think Trelawney is a fraud but they love Hagrid.'
'It's whom Dumbledore has chosen to replace Trelawney,' said Arthur, finally gaining control over himself. 'He appointed Firenze the centaur as Divination teacher and she can't overrule him even though Dolores Umbridge hates all non-human creatures with a vengeance.'
Molly understood but still worried about Hagrid. She also thought privately that Professor Dumbledore himself might be in jeopardy.
Molly sent the usual two cakes for the twins in with Arthur to put in the Hogwarts' post. She enclosed gift cards for Madame Malkin's with the suggestion that they get something nice that they could wear for job interviews after they completed their N.E.W.T.s. It hardly seemed possible that their twins would be leaving Hogwarts in just a couple of months.
