The missing boys ✔

Part 4: The Lovegoods

Back at the burrow house the Weasley's kitchen was filled with energy and movement. It was after dawn by the time the Weasleys managed to get through reporting to the ministry and getting a hold of the people they needed to start the search, but now things were in full swing, despite it being only eight in the morning.

"Bill what've you got?" Arthur asked his oldest son as he walked in the door.

Even though Bill—who had come of age during his sixth year—was only beginning his last year at Hogwarts, and Charlie was only just starting his fifth year, Arthur had pulled them from school for the weekend so they could help with the search for Ron. If the war had taught Arthur anything, it was that young wizards are never to be taken lightly, and he knew that his two oldest sons would be of great help despite the fact that they were not yet fully qualified Wizards. Bill, for instance, had made several useful contacts over the summer during an internship at Gringotts Bank. Bill had just spent the last couple of hours utilizing those contacts.

"A certain group of Gringotts Goblins have been coveting that ring I inherited from Uncle Billious for ages now, I offered it up as bounty for anyone who brings Ron to us alive and well. Two of them said they'd start tracking him down straightaway. News spreads fast around Gringotts, they wanted to get ahead of the competition."

"Good boy, Bill," said Mr. Weasley squeezing his son's shoulder in gratitude. He was filled with pride at how his eldest had volunteered to give up his most prized possession without so much as a flinch.

Bill himself didn't give the ring a second thought; he was too worried about Ron. Bill would never admit it to anyone but himself but he was much more protective of Ron than he was of his other brothers. The boy had, after all, been traumatized into fearing spiders, almost killed through making an Unbreakable Vow, and had a hole burnt through his tongue, by the twins' antics alone, never mind the mischief he got into on his own.

His mother was always so busy, that he often took it upon himself when he was growing up to keep track of Ron when his mother was busy or distracted. The thought of Ron running around alone in the cold without any fingernails made him more upset then he could express in words.

Bill was broken out of his worried thoughts as his brother Charlie poked his head out of the fire.

"Just spoke to my friend from the magical creature reserve I volunteered at over the summer, he said he's got a couple owls he's been training in tracking and agreed to send them out to find him. He also said that his girlfriend has a creature that'll be able to help too. He wouldn't say what it was, so I think it's one of her illegal crossbreeds, but he promised that whatever it was is harmless."

"Excellent!" said Mr. Weasley, "do you have any more contacts?"

Charlie shook his head sadly.

"He was the last person I could think of to call."

"That's alright," said Mr. Weasley, "Mad-eye wants a few memories from family members. Think you could give him a few? He wants to see how Ron acted when Molly and I weren't present, he reckons it'll give him some insight into how Ron thinks."

Charlie nodded and headed upstairs to where Mad-eye was waiting upstairs.

Arthur had amazed his fellow ministry workers by not only gaining Dumbeldore's help with his son's case, but he'd also managed to get Mad-eye out of retirement for the search too. Mr. Weasley may not have been an official order member during the first war—he had to be much more subtle, given the fact that he had a horde of defenseless children at home with his wife—however, he always found ways to help out on the sly, which gained him many useful allies.