Rhapsody of a Veela

Part 29 - Return to Grimmauld Place

                                                                         December 1995

The Christmas holiday was coming up, and you cherished the fact that you would get to spend it with the Weasley's for the very first time. Not at the Burrow unfortunately, now that No.12 Grimmauld Place was headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix. By now it seemed your vile Defence against the Dark Arts professor, and Ministry Decoy, Dolores Umbridge had completely given up on breaking you. It was you however, you that seemed to have a peculiar talent of getting under her skin no matter how many medieval torture sessions you had spent in her office. The skin on top of your hand seemed to be permanently scared with the etchings of incomprehensible letters you had mixed up each time purposefully. You displayed it with rebellious pride.

You had not spoken a word to Draco since you had met up with him at the Three Broomsticks, you wanted nothing to do with him after he had shamelessly revealed his lousy reasoning of joining Umbridge's Inquisitorial Squad. He had not seemed to be willing to give up on you himself however, approaching you whenever he caught you alone in the halls. Proudly displaying his Inquisitorial pin, which you gladly would've pushed down his throat to stop him from gloating about it. Despite how you had more than once sent a biting jinx at his shoes and loudly proclaimed him to be a "Traitor of Hogwarts", he had never once given you any detentions or punishments which he had the power to give.

When he was attacked by Fred and Harry after the first Gryffindor vs Slytherin Quidditch match of the season, you had not even blinked. You thought he deserved it, after he and the rest of the Slytherin team had instigated a cruel but catchy song to bully Ron, who had recently become a Gryffindor keeper. Weasley is our king, they called it. After they lost the match however, Draco decided to keep jabbering on, sore loser as he was. Merlin knows how much time you spent the following days comforting Fred after he, George and Harry all had received a lifetime Quidditch ban by Dolores Umbridge as punishment for the physical retaliation. They even got their booms confiscated. Draco did not.

Now that several weeks had passed however, it seemed like your combined efforts in rebellion against the old hag satisfied the hurt, at least a little. Making her time at Hogwarts as miserable as you possibly could, was the very least you could do. You had even finally come to see the appeal in the mischievous products Fred and George had produced, and happily distributed to the students of Hogwarts which desperately needed a little cheering-up during those times, when the list of educational decrees grew as if cursed with a Gemino multiplying curse.

In the end it seemed like all fun and games had become forbidden at school grounds. Even Weasley products got it's very own ban, Fred seemed a little proud of this and you all knew well to not think this would be the end of Weasley's wizard wheezes.

On the morning of December 18th, you had overslept when Hermione appeared to shake you awake, bearing bad news.

"Y/n you got to wake up! Mr Weasley was attacked last night!" she said, whilst shooking you awake, and immediately all sleep washed away from you as if you had been doused with a bucket full of ice cold water. You sat up gasping, feeling your back go cold.

"Is he...?" you folded your hands in front of your mouth in shock, immediately picturing a griefstruck Fred. Your heart and thoughts were racing.

"No, he survived but I think it was critical" Hermione said, you could see it in her eyes how much worry she had for Ron, from the news she must've just heard herself. She was trying to keep herself calm, yet she seemed almost twitchy as she hastily threw your robe, shirt, sweater and skirt at the bed.

"Ron and the rest already went to St. Mungo's last night, but they're at.. the headquarters now.. Professor McGonagall said we better go to Dumbledore's office so we can join them"