Extended Family

Chapter 57: Hearty Party

Takes place a few weeks before chapter 143 of Family

"Say Hermione?"

"Hmm?"

"Where're we going?"

"We're going to lunch, Ron.  Have you forgotten?"

Ron snorted.  "Haha.  No I know we're having lunch but where are we going to lunch?  You never said."

"To the Cauldron."

"Was that so hard?"  He stopped.  "Wait, hold on."

"What now?"

"You're hiding something."

"I resent the implication."

"Resent it all you want.  Whenever you're trying to be sneaky you always look over someone's shoulder.  What's going on?"

Hermione sighed.  "Drat, I thought I fixed that tic.  Nothing is going on; we're going to lunch like I said."  She coughed.  "Only it'll be with a few other people."

"Like Harry?"

"Harry won't be here."

"Okay, I grew up with the twins and my suspicion alarm is screaming so I'm going to go and-" he groaned when Hermione took his elbow in her iron grip.  "You're going to finally do it.  You're going to kill me.  And without Harry seeing it.  You're going to make up some story and-"

"Oh shut up," Hermione said but with a smile.  "I will not be killing you."  She led him to a private room and opened it and pushed him in.  "Now I don't know if the others will though."

Ron saw the twins there and smirked as he saw that they were tied to chairs.  Then he saw Oliver and became more confused.  Then he saw the other occupants in the room and groaned.  "You know, I'm not hungry so I'm going to skip out on lunch-"

"Sit down third bollock," Alicia said and pointed at an empty chair.  Ron blanched but did as ordered, glaring at Hermione who looked unrepentant.  "Right," Alicia continued, "this is your first and only warning.  There will be no illegal nonsense, no shenanigans, nothing untoward happening this Friday night.  Do you understand me?"

"Wait, what's happening Friday night?" Fred asked.

"Really?" Oliver asked, amused.

"I have a busy social life unlike you attached sods," Fred sniffed.

"It's Harry's stag do," George said, glaring at Fred.

"Oh right right."

"How could you forget?" Oliver asked incredulously.

"I didn't!  I was just wondering why Alicia would be so pre-emptively upset over it!"

"Really?" Angelina asked, giving Fred a flat stare.

"We're not planning it," Fred said, using his head to gesture to George and himself.  "Ron is, he's the best man."

"As if you two aren't helping," Hermione said with an arch look, "or have plans to make things...lively."

"We didn't but now that you mention it," Fred mused before flinching at the look Alicia and Angelina gave him.  "You know, I'm a bit upset about the assumptions being made about my alleged involvement in the planning of the stag do."

"Not saying anything incriminating, we did offer aid to our brother and was soundly ignored," George said.

"I can throw a party," Ron snorted.  "It's not that hard."