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Author: Grandma Kate Story: Ginny's Fifth Year at Hogwarts Rating: Everyone Setting: Pre-DH Status: Completed Reviews: 6 Words: 44,208
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 Fifteen, The Unbreakable Vow, or Chapter Sixteen, A Very Frosty Christmas, in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. A/N: This story is told from Molly's Weasley's point of view and parallels Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and the summer after it.
She cast a Shrinking Charm on the things in the attic to leave space for Ron and Harry to sleep up there because so many people would be sleeping at the Burrow over the holidays. Remus Lupin was coming, in addition to the children. He was a connection to Harry's parents but Molly was sure it was also so that he and Harry could mourn for Sirius together. Last Christmas, they'd all been at Grimmauld Place. Even with all the worry about Arthur being at St Mungo's with the poisonous snakebite, Sirius had made sure that they had a happy Christmas. Molly smiled as she remembered him prancing about with the twins following him, singing 'God Rest You, Merrye Hippogriffs.' Professor Dumbledore and the Order had decided that it would be safer for Harry and the two younger Weasley children if they were transported home for the Christmas Holidays through a special Floo connection between Professor McGonagall's office and the Weasley kitchen. They eventually made similar arrangements for the rest of the students who were going home. With increasing Death Eater attacks and the constantly growing number of Dementors, the Hogwarts Express would not run this year. The Floo System was much safer. At the beginning of the week before the children were to return to the Burrow, a very wet Pig arrived with a note addressed in Ginny's writing. Molly put a towel and some owl treats down on the counter and began to read— Dear Mum and Dad, I am so happy that we are coming home the end of this week by Floo instead of going on the train. One of my friends seems to think that he has the right to decide how I spend my time and with whom. Some boys can be such gits. Did I tell you that the Slug Club is having a Christmas party on Friday night? We can invite people that are not members. Hermione was going to invite Ron but he is being insufferable so I think she will probably go by herself. Maybe she and I could go together if I manage to pick a fight with the person I asked to go with me before he started thinking that I needed to spend all my time with him. Every single girl at Hogwarts is trying to get Harry to ask her to go with him to the party. Some of them have even ordered love potions disguised as perfumes and cough potions from the twins' owl service. Fred and George showed them to Hermione and me last summer but we don't need them. All sorts of boys seem to like us already. Anyway, we will see you next Saturday. Molly was puzzled as she set Ginny's letter at Arthur's place. She knew that Ginny had gone to Hogsmeade with a boy named Dean and wondered what he had done to make her so resentful. Ginny did not take well to being either babied or bossed around, so it was probably something of that sort. As she turned on the wireless to listen to the WWN, she began assembling ingredients for the cut to shape biscuits that the children liked to decorate. She got out the angel cutter for Ginny and several fanciful magical animals for Ron and the twins. She remembered how Charlie had liked the big fire-breathing dragon, while both Bill and Percy fancied the wizard with his wand raised. They were the only ones careful enough to ice his wand without breaking it. She began to remember past holiday periods and found that tears were trickling down her cheeks and dripping on her apron-covered bosom. Thinking about Percy always made her cry. 'Enough of that,' she reminded herself as she realized that Days of Destiny had started while she had been reminiscing. Lyla, the evil twin, was bound and gagged in the water taxi being driven by the mysterious Muggle with all the tattoos. Molly wondered if the actress who played Lyla had already gone on holiday since the grunts with which she answered the Muggle's questions could have been done by anyone. Nic Meath reminded the faithful listeners that there would be reruns of the past year's programs all during the Christmas holidays. Bedside at St Brigid's was going on hiatus until the second week in January. Molly thought that Kate Wallace must be going to California and Boston to visit her grandchildren. Molly made two tins full of cut to shape sugar biscuits for the children to decorate when they were home next week. She wondered if Harry had ever had a chance to decorate biscuits. His Aunt Petunia didn't seem to be the sort to want to have flour and icing all over her kitchen. And that fat lump of a cousin wouldn't be able to keep from eating the biscuits as he decorated them. Flourish and Blotts sent an owl to tell her that they had located more copies of Christmas Memories. They told her that a bookshop at Brighton Beach that was going out of business had several. They would hold them for her until after the beginning of the year Bill and Fleur came over midday on Saturday to greet Ron, Harry, and Ginny when they arrived home for the holidays. Molly had made a substantial lunch of soup along with baked bread and a treacle tart. Fleur went to the cold cupboard and arranged a platter of carrots, sprouts, and broccoli for those 'who could not eat such an 'earty meal'. Molly was glad that she and Arthur, along with Bill and Fleur, were able to see what happened as the three Hogwarts students arrived. Ginny was the first one out of the Floo and quickly put down her trunk and Arnold's cage. She then turned back toward the fireplace as Harry followed her out of the fireplace. He tripped and dropped everything he was carrying. Ginny reached out to catch him and they stood with their arms tight around each other until Ron arrived, stumbling over Harry's trunk and Hedwig's cage. 'Oi!' he shouted. 'Give me some room to land. That's my sister you have a hold of, Potter!' Harry and Ginny immediately let go of each other, stepping apart. Molly noticed that Ginny looked very pretty in her green sweater. It contrasted nicely with Harry's navy tracksuit. They had both been smiling while Ginny helped steady Harry but now avoided looking at each other as Molly and Arthur took turns hugging them. Bill and Fleur exchanged glances with raised eyebrow as they complimented the children on looking so well. 'Your 'air is so shiny and clean,' said Fleur, stroking Ginny's hair as she kissed the air on either side of her. 'No wonder 'Arry could not keep his 'ands off it. Eet smells so flowery! You must loan me zome of your zhampoo.' 'Harry, I think you are taller every time I see you,' said Bill shaking hands and clapping Harry on the shoulder with his other hand. Molly noted with some interest that Harry was looking as gobsmacked as Ron usually did when he was around Fleur but she was quite sure that it was not Fleur that Harry was staring at. Bill carried Ginny's trunk up to her room as his sister and fiancée admired Arnold and spoke quietly to each other. Ron and Harry carried their own trunks and owl cages upstairs and returned very quickly. 'Do I smell chicken soup?' asked Ron as he sat at the table across from Fleur. Harry sat next to him with Ginny on his other side. Everyone enjoyed lunch until Molly asked about the Slug Club party the night before. 'There were too many people there to suit me,' Ginny said as Harry nodded his agreement. 'Did you and Luna have a good time?' Harry looked startled. 'Yes, I guess we did. She is always interesting to be around. She sees things in a unique way.' Ron sniggered and mumbled something that sounded like 'Looney' 'Don't call her that!' Ginny gave him a death stare. Speaking of friends you treat badly, Hermione had a miserable evening. Cormac McLaggan is so rude. She was sorry that she agreed to go with him.' Now Ron looked extraordinarily cheerful. 'Is that so? I could have told her that he was a git.' Molly served the pudding rather quickly. Bill and Fleur decided to stay for dinner. Fleur spent the afternoon trying to draw out Ginny and Harry about the party that they had both attended while Ron and Bill played some wizard chess. After a while, Molly asked Ron and Harry if they would help her by peeling some sprouts while Ginny and Fleur put up the decorations that Bill was bringing down from the attic. Fred and George arrived shortly after Ron and Harry started to work. The twins went into the kitchen, saying that had something to tease Ron about. Molly heard loud conversation and followed them just in time to see Ron throw the sprout knife at Fred, who had turned it into a paper airplane with one lazy flick of his wand. 'Ron!'' she said furiously. "Don't you ever let me see you throwing knives again!' 'I won't,' said Ron, 'let you see,' he added under his breath. Molly then told Fred and George that they'd be sharing with Bill since Remus was arriving tonight. 'Then, as Charlie isn't coming home, that just leaves Harry and Ron in the attic, and if Fleur shares with Ginny—' '—that'll make Ginny's Christmas—' muttered Fred. Ginny, with some help from Fleur and Bill, had nearly finished decorating the Burrow before Harry and Ron finished peeling the sprouts by hand. Fred and George had added their own special touch — the garden gnome angel on the top of the tree. Each of the children exclaimed over ornaments that they had made years ago as they added them to the tree. Molly felt at peace with the world for the first time in a long time. She would have felt better if Charlie and Percy were home as well, but she understood Charlie couldn't come home both for Christmas and for Bill's wedding. She hoped that there was still a chance that Percy would be relieved of his very important duties for Christmas Day and would join them for Christmas lunch. She and Arthur were both shocked at his appearance when Remus Lupin arrived on Monday evening, two days before Christmas. He was thinner and more ragged than they had ever seen him. His eyes were haunted and he seemed extremely depressed. They welcomed him with open arms and a hearty meal. Molly noticed that the only time he smiled was when he was talking to Harry. Christmas Eve morning, Molly was up before daylight. The house was full and she had breakfast to prepare. She was surprised to find Ginny and Harry already up making cocoa for themselves. Ginny looked a little tired but said, 'I'm too excited to sleep. It's almost Christmas!' Harry looked at Molly and said, 'I have a lot on my mind and I guess I don't sleep well in strange places. Ron was snoring loudly. I must have made too much noise climbing down the attic steps and woke Ginny.' 'I heard him tiptoeing by and decided that he might want some company and cocoa.' Ginny and Harry smiled at each other. Molly nodded but kept her thoughts to herself. 'Why don't you go into the sitting room and enjoy the tree while I make breakfast?' She grinned as they left for the other room. 'Well, well, well!' she muttered as she began waving her wand to summon what she needed for a breakfast for ten people. Christmas Eve day went by fast. Fred and George went into Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes for a full day, but Bill and Arthur promised to be home in time for lunch. Ron, Harry, and Ginny began decorating the biscuits that were cut to shape. Molly was surprised when Fleur joined them. She seemed to like the angels best and made one of herself dressed in white with a silver haired Gabrielle and an auburn haired Ginny, both dressed in a pale yellow. Then she iced wizard shaped ones into Bill and his five brothers. 'Zis ees our wedding!' Fleur announced, flicked her wand, and stood the biscuits upright on a platter. Molly noticed that Fleur did not have a bit of icing on herself, in contrast to the three younger children. Ron seemed to eat as much icing as he spread on biscuits while Ginny and Harry were constantly 'accidentally' getting icing on each other's biscuits or hands. Ron left in disgust when Ginny first painted her fingers with pink icing and then insisted on doing Harry's with green 'to match your eyes'. Molly didn't stay to watch them suck their fingers clean after she heard Harry asking, 'Ginny, does the pink icing taste different than the green?' She had to admit that they did a good job cleaning the kitchen before she came back downstairs to make lunch. Bill and Arthur arrived just in time to eat with the rest of them. Molly and Arthur took a little nap after lunch so they would be fresh to listen to Celestina Warbeck's Christmas Special. Molly was sure that everyone knew that this was her favourite evening of the whole year and that no one would do anything to spoil it. Christmas Eve supper was always the same at the Burrow. Molly made two kinds of soup and baked many loaves of bread. The other family tradition was a bowl full of satsumas for dessert. Everyone dished up what they wanted and assembled in the sitting room ready to hear Celestina Warbeck's Special Christmas Show. Molly finished her small portion of soup, sent her bowl into the kitchen, and began working on the scarf she was knitting for Hermione. She frowned a little because she wished everyone would stop talking and listen quietly. When they didn't quiet down, she pointed her wand at the volume control, so that Celestina grew louder and louder. She was even more annoyed when Fred and George started a game of Exploding Snap with Ginny. Celestina sang louder and louder as Molly pointed her wand at the wireless again and again. Oh, come and stir my cauldron, And if you do it right, I'll boil you up some hot strong love To keep you warm tonight. 'We danced to this when we were eighteen!' said Molly, wiping her eyes on her knitting. 'Do you remember, Arthur?' 'Mphf?' said Arthur, whose head had been nodding over the satsuma he was peeling. 'Oh yes…marvelous tune…' Molly smiled at him and continued to enjoy listening to Celestina as he began to talk to Harry in quiet tones. Remus Lupin stopped just staring into the fire and leaned toward them, obviously interested in what they were talking about. There was silence except for Celestina's crooning. Oh, my poor heart, where has it gone? It's left me for a spell… Molly sang along with Celestina in a nearly inaudible voice as Harry, Arthur, and Remus continued to speak softly. She appreciated that they were not interrupting the enjoyment of others the way some people were. …and now you've torn it quite apart I'll thank you to give back my heart! Celestina ended her song on a very long, high-pitched note and loud applause issued out of the wireless, which Molly joined in with enthusiastically. 'Eez eet over?' said Fleur loudly. 'Thank goodness, what an 'orrible—' 'Shall we have a nightcap, then?' asked Arthur loudly, leaping to his feet. 'Who wants eggnog?' Molly smiled at Arthur and said, 'Arthur, what a grand idea! Just the way to end a perfect Christmas Eve.' She set all the soup bows to washing while Arthur poured cups of eggnog for their guests. When Molly was finished, he made both of them a good strong cup of eggnog to take up to drink in bed. Shortly after this, Fleur decided to imitate Celestina singing 'A Cauldron Full of Hot, Strong Love'. Molly paused on the way to the staircase and made a face, thinking that Bill's future wife was lucky that she didn't have to make her living as a singer. Then she said, 'Happy Christmas everyone. Don't stay up too late. Father Christmas will be along soon.' Arthur followed her up to bed. After they drank their nightcap, Molly asked what he and Harry and Remus had been talking about so seriously. 'Just a bit of Order business. Nothing to worry about on such a lovely night,' he answered as he drew her close to him.
A/N #2 I could not resist writing the missing moment behind the picture of Ginny and Harry that is at http://community.livejournal.com/hbpmoviepics/27005.html
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