High Hopes {h.granger}

Two

Nora rest her head on Fred's shoulder, her mouth opening every few minutes for George to spoon feed her cereal. She could do it herself, of course, but she was tired and still a bit sore from the day before, plus, George had just started doing it without her asking.

They were all sat at the table for breakfast. Mrs Weasley had cooked up a storm to accommodate her children and the two curly haired girls who'd become family over the course of many years (many, many years, in Nora's case). They were all dreary eyed and yawning when Mr Weasley came in, a bright smile plastered across his face.

"Morning Weasley's, Nora and Hermione," He greeted cheerfully, taking his place at the head of the table and successfully jolting Nora awake. "We'll be heading off to get Harry in a bit and when we get back, Bill, Charlie and Percy will be here."

Nora perked up at Bill and Charlie's names. She adored the eldest Weasley sons. Charlie's energy bounced off Nora's perfectly but Bill was the one she aspired to be like. When she'd first met Bill, Nora was a bright and shiny first year. She knew Bill as the dazzling head boy who could do no wrong, and then she visited the Burrow. Bill had told her all about his plans to be a curse breaker and Nora's brain had absorbed it like a sponge. It's not the career path she saw herself going down but she admired his commitment. If it weren't for Bill, Nora's grades would be at rock bottom but he'd stressed how good it would be if she got top marks, how the Ministry would definitely offer her a place. Her mother wasn't too fond of the idea but her dad was proud she knew exactly what she wanted to be in life, it was more than he knew at that age.

"Oh, so she finally wakes up at the mention of Bill and Charlie, huh?" George teased, causing Nora to roll her eyes and lift her head.

Nora looked across the table only to find a pair of brown eyes already staring at her. Brown wasn't the colour, they were more of a melted chocolate. Hermione was watching her and Nora smiled, a dazzling sort of smile that she only reserved for a few people. "Good morning 'Mione," she gave her a two finger salute causing Hermione to avert her eyes and mutter a quick 'good morning back'.

Fred nudged her in the side, an expression on his face that showed he'd seen the exchange. "She's very pretty, I don't think I ever realised," He whispered so only Nora could hear him.

Nora turned in her chair, giving Fred her full attention. "Wonders of puberty," She grinned. "Hey, do you want to play a game-"

"Alright, let's get going," Mr Weasley clapped his hands. "I'll go first then the twins and Nora after me, Ron you'll be last,"

Within 20 minutes, Nora found herself wedged between Fred and a wall.

"What the hell?" She managed to wheeze out, attempting to move but there was no room to be spared. Her head just about fit over Fred's shoulder, luckily making sure she wasn't entirely squished against him.

"Nora? Nora, quickly go back- tell Ron there's no room-" Mr Weasley called out.

"Maybe Harry can hear us, Dad - maybe he'll be able to let us out -" This was Fred, his breath hot on Nora's neck.

Nora twisted herself around, earning an amused sound from Fred. She started knocking on the wall. "Harry, can you hear us?"

"Nora? Mr Weasley can you hear me?" Harry's voice came from the other side of the wall. "Mr. Weasley, it's Harry...the fireplace has been blocked up. You won't be able to get through there,"

"Georgie? Where are you?" Nora whisper-yelled as Mr Weasley figured out a plan for them to get out.

She heard more shuffling and by the time she'd grasped George's hand, Ron had appeared. Fred and George managed to coordinate and shift Nora so that she was no longer between Fred and the wall. The smidgen of claustrophobia she'd felt when she landed in Fred's arms seemed to increase despite her newfound position. Nora's breathing quickened slightly as she squeezed her eyes shut.

"What are we doing here? Has something gone wrong?"

"Oh no, Ron," came Fred's voice, very sarcastically, though he did sound a bit flustered. "No, this is exactly where we wanted to end up."

"Yeah, we're having the time of our lives here," George called out as he gripped Nora's hand, squinting to see her in the dark.

She swallowed thickly, trying to sound nonchalant so no one knew she was internally panicking. "Just where I wanted to spend my morning, Ronnie-"

"Boys, Nora..." said Mr. Weasley vaguely. "I'm trying to think what to do....Yes...only way...Stand back, Harry."

A blast resounded through the area and Nora could finally see and breathe. George pulled her through into what looked like a living room. Her eyes took in the flower patterned wallpaper and then finally settled on Harry Potter.

Her eyes lit up and she scooped him into a hug. "Look at you, baby cousin!" She pulled back and squished his cheek playfully. She turned serious for a moment. "You won't be staying here too long, Dad says we're finalising papers to adopt you-"

"Now listen here-" A rather large man stepped forward, wagging a sausage of a finger in Nora's direction. She stepped threateningly towards him, hazel eyes lit like a fire.

"Don't point your finger at me, you sorry excuse for a human," She spat, an uncharacteristic malicious gleam in her eyes. She was her father's daughter, all the way down to her vicious loyalty. "Don't think that I don't know what you do to him. And you-" Her hostile gaze turned to her aunt by blood. The blonde woman's eyes flickered as she shied away from her niece. "Your own nephew, how dare you treat him like that! Dad has some very harsh words to say to you when he sees you next!" Petunia flinched harshly at the mention of her younger brother before she ducked behind her miffed husband.

"Nora, go with the boys to get Harry's trunk," Mr Weasley interjected as George gently tugged her back. "I'm sure you three know where it is by now,"

Nora's eye twitched as she let George lead her away, his thumb brushing over the rings on her fingers. "We know how you feel, but don't worry, we've got a plan,"

"Does it involve the sweets we were making?" Fred only smirked at her, grabbing Harry's trunk with one hand.

"Ah, right," said Mr. Weasley when they appeared again. "Better get cracking then."

He set the fireplace on fire but Nora was looking elsewhere. She eyed her other cousin, Dudley, a boy who looked exactly like his father but with his bony mother's pale hair. Dudley, the kid who's been bullying Harry since he'd arrived. Nora's lip curled in disgust. How could she be related to a coward who uses bullying to bring joy to his own sorry existence. He looked quite clammy, glancing at Mr Weasley's wand and then to the rest of them as though they were going to hurt him. He caught Nora's eye and the sheer distress on his face made her gaze soften slightly. She felt mildly sorry for him, his parents weren't the greatest role models.

"Off you go then, Fred," said Mr. Weasley, snapping Nora back into reality.

"Coming," Fred grinned stepping forward and Nora stuck her boot out, just as they'd practiced. "Oh no - hang on -"

When he tripped, a bag of sweets had spilled out of Fred's pocket and the contents were now rolling in every direction - sweets in brightly coloured wrappers. He scrambled around, snatching up as many sweets as he could see.

Nora stifled a laugh as she made eye contact with George beside her. Fred finally turned around, sending them a wink before he disappeared in green flames.

George was next, taking the trunk with him. Nora stepped up next, she sent a withering glare towards the Dursley's before being engulfed by flames. She was tossed out of the Weasley fireplace and landed in Fred's arms.

"Did you see anything?" George asked excitedly, bouncing on the balls of his feet.

Nora shook her head as she dusted herself off, sending Fred a thankful nod. "Didn't stick around long enough-"

"Nora?"

{A/N: Thank you for reading :) please vote and comment!}