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[ chamber of secrets ]
THE END OF THE SUMMER HOLIDAY CAME TOO QUICKLY IN MAYA'S OPINION. She was looking forward to getting back to Hogwarts, don't get her wrong, but her month at the Burrow had been the happiest of her life.
On their last evening, Mrs. Weasley conjured up a sumptuous dinner that included all of Maya's favorite things, ending with a mouthwatering treacle pudding. Fred and George rounded off the evening with a display of Filibuster fireworks; they filled the kitchen with red and blue stars that bounced from ceiling to wall for at least half an hour. Then it was time for a last mug of hot chocolate and bed.
It took a long while to get started next morning. They were up at dawn, but somehow they still seemed to have a great deal to do. Mrs. Weasley dashed about in a bad mood looking for spare socks and quills; people kept colliding on the stairs, half dressed with bits of toast in their hands; and Mr. Weasley nearly broke his neck, tripping over a stray chicken as he crossed the yard carrying Ginny's trunk to the car.
Remus and Sirius weren't coming along, since apparently Remus was still job hunting despite Sirius' constant complaints that the man didn't need to since marrying him, but Maya knew Remus preferred to earn his money. So, when it was time for Harry to set off without them, Sirius hugged him tightly and Maya heard him whisper a, "don't do anything too stupid like your dad and I did back in the day."
When Maya saw the car for the first time, she couldn't see how eight people, six large trunks, two owls, and a rat were going to fit into one small Ford Anglia. She had reckoned, of course, without the special features that Mr. Weasley had added.
"Not a word to Molly," he whispered to Maya as he opened the trunk and showed her how it had been magically expanded so that the luggage fitted easily.
When at last they were all in the car, Mrs. Weasley glanced into the back seat, where Harry, Maya, Ron, Fred, George, and Percy were all sitting comfortably side by side, and said, "Muggles do know more than we give them credit for, don't they?" She and Ginny got into the front seat with Priya, which had been stretched so that it resembled a park bench. "I mean, you'd never know it was this roomy from the outside, would you?"
Mr. Weasley started up the engine and they trundled out of the yard, Maya turning back for a last look at the house. She barely had time to wonder when she'd see it again when they were back ━━ George had forgotten his box of Filibuster fireworks. Five minutes after that, they skidded to a halt in the yard so that Fred could run in for his broomstick. They had almost reached the highway when Ginny shrieked that she'd left her diary. By the time she had clambered back into the car, they were running very late, and tempers were running high.
