Raven (Fred x oc)

60. Disillusion

My heart pounded in my chest as I poured the antidote into a cup of fresh tea. Glancing at the clock, I saw that it was four a.m. Fred had gone to bed some hours before so now it was just me awake. Much to my luck, Dad came down the stairs at exactly that moment. "Hey Dad," I said. 

"I thought you were avoiding me," he said, moving to grab a cup. 

"No, I've just been thinking a lot," I said. Turning to face him, I said, "I've decided to give her the ring." He looked over in surprise before a smile suddenly broke out over his face. 

"Valerie, that's amazing. You have no idea how much this will mean to her," he said. 

He began to make himself tea, but I said quickly, "No, Dad, here. Have mine. It's fresh. I can just make another." He took it and I pretended to busy myself with another cup, but I watched closely out of the corner of my eye. 

He stared at it a moment before drinking a large gulp of it. I smiled and set a teabag in the hot water before me. Glancing back, I saw that he had drunk a large portion already. By the time my own tea was done, he had finished his and Remus had come down. 

Before I had time to wonder if the potion would have any visible effect, Dad suddenly groaned, leaning against the counter of the island. "Dad?" I said, moving in front of him. He clutched his head as the pain seemed to grow slightly. 

"My head," he groaned. "It feels like it's being split open." I shared a look with Remus. Next moment, his head seemed to clear slightly and he looked up at me as if he hadn't known I was there or hadn't seen me properly until this moment. "Raven," he exclaimed. 

"Dad," I replied, my eyes widening. "Do you want me to give my ring away?" 

Clutching his head in pain again, he replied, "What? Why would you give away your ring? What happened? The last thing I remember was sitting at the table and Remus saying we needed to talk to you." 

Turning to Remus, I asked, "Do love potions erase memory while in effect?" 

"A strong enough one could, I suppose," he replied. 

"Love potion?" Dad interrupted. "What are you talking about? I feel like I was just hit with a beater's bat." 

"Dad, you've been under the effects of a love potion for about a week," I explained. "A really really strong one." 

"Love potion for who?" he asked. 

"Well...Petra," Remus said. 

"What?" Dad groaned. "You can't be serious." 

With a sigh, I said, "Dad, you've been spending a good portion of this week trying to convince me to give up my ring to her." He stared at me pointedly for a moment as if he couldn't decide if he believed me or not, but finally, he sighed and sat down at the table. 

I brewed him a strong cup of coffee and set it in front of him as I began to sip at my tea. Remus grabbed himself some coffee and joined us at the table. After finishing my tea, I lay my chin on my hands with my elbows on the table. No one spoke as the hour dragged on. 

At five, a few more people appeared. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley came in along with Tonks. Everyone, apart from Mrs. Weasley, was already dressed. "Morning," Mr. Weasley said, seeming surprised we were all awake. 

"How long have you lot been up?" Mrs. Weasley asked. 

"Only about an hour," Remus replied. 

"Speak for yourself," I grumbled. "I was up all night trying to figure out how to get this loser back to himself." 

"How do you mean?" Tonks asked with a yawn. 

"Sirius has been under a love potion for the last week," Remus explained. "Valerie just got him the antidote this morning." 

"Not so loud," Dad grumbled. I snorted. 

"Who knew getting over a love potion would be so much like a hangover," I chuckled. 

"What do you know about hangovers?" Dad asked, looking over at me. I shrugged, smiling widely as I tried to hold in my laughter. Everyone sat down and soon we began to talk. 

"How was guard duty?" I asked, looking at Tonks. 

"A-A-All right," she replied, laying her head on the table as she tried not to yawn again. "I swear, b-b-before when I was in school I could pull all-nighters with no problem, but now-" 

"Certainly gets harder as you get older," Remus agreed. 

Mr. Weasley turned to Tonks and said, "Fudge has finally stopped harassing me with notes. How's it going on your end?" 

"Well Scrimgeour is being a peace of work," she replied. Before she could say more, the door to the kitchen opened and Harry appeared. 

"Breakfast," Molly called, getting to her feet. She rushed over to the stove and asked, "What do you want, Harry?" I tuned them out as I began to drift off again. Before I knew it, I heard the hushed voices of the Weasleys. Groggily, I sat up and looked around to see that everyone was now awake. 

Yawning, I got up. "Do you need breakfast, Valerie?" Mrs. Weasley asked. 

"I think I'm going to just go to bed," I replied. "Thank you, though." She nodded and I headed upstairs to sleep. On the way there, I passed by the room in which Dad kept Buckbeak. He had just opened the door to leave as I was passing by. 

"Hey," he said. 

"Hi Dad," I replied, giving him a tired smile. "Are you feeling any better?" 

"Yes," he replied. "Thank you for what you did for me. I can't imagine how this all would have ended if you hadn't." 

"I do what I can," I replied with a small smile. "Well, my brain is spacing out and I feel a mixture of a headache and an extreme pressure on my head so I'm going to go get some sleep." 

"Okay," he replied. "I love you, Raven." 

"Love you too, Dad," I replied.