Novus Orbis | Fred Weasley x Insert | ON HIATUS

Chapter 39 - Recount

"You want to be careful. If Mum sees one of them again..."

They stand in Ron's–and now Harry's–bedroom, all looking at the flesh-coloured string in Fred's hand. Ron is the one that points this out–he and Hermione having explained to Harry that they had to bin all the others, for the most part, to keep Molly from getting to them.

"Not sure what's up with her," Y/n tells him. "It's been kind of a roller coaster this whole summer. She doesn't know about the...you know, the winnings."

Harry agrees it's probably best that it stays that way for the time being.

"It's worth the risk, that's a major meeting they're having," Fred says to his brother now. As he does, the door opens, and the youngest Weasley steps in.

"Oh hello, Harry!" Ginny exclaims brightly. "I thought I heard your voice." She turns to Fred, George, and Y/n. "It's no go with the Extendable Ears, she's gone and put an Imperturbable Charm on the kitchen door."

"How d'you know?" George and Y/n ask in unison, equally crestfallen.

"Tonks told me how to find out," the girl says. "You just chuck stuff at the door and if it can't make contact, the door's been Imperturbed. I've been flicking Dungbombs at it from the top of the stairs and they just soar away from it, so there's no way the Extendable Ears will be able to get under the gap."

"Shame," Fred sighs. "I really fancied finding out what old Snape's been up to."

The Potions professor hasn't been around much at all, and Y/n hasn't spoken a single word to him about her nightmares. However, he has supplied her with plenty of Dreamless Sleep potion ingredients, and she is silently grateful every time she needs to brew a new one when using up her stock after some particularly bad nights.

"Snape?" Harry says. "Is he here?"

"Yeah," George says, shutting the door again and sitting down on one of the beds. "Giving a report. Top secret."

"Git," Fred says idly.

"He's on our side now," Hermione says reprovingly.

Ron snorts. "Doesn't stop him being a git. The way he looks at us when he sees us..."

"Bill doesn't like him either," Ginny says, like the matter is settled by this one factor. Y/n stays carefully silent, avoiding anyone's gaze.

Harry looks as though maybe he'd still like to continue yelling. Much to the gratitude of Y/n and the others, this does not come to fruition, and he sinks down on the bed opposite them instead.

"Is Bill here?" He asks. "I thought he was working in Egypt."

"He applied for a desk job so he could come home and work for the Order," Y/n explains. "He says he misses the tombs, but..."

"There are compensations," Fred finishes for her, smirking.

"What d'you mean?"

"Remember old Fleur Delacour?" George says. "She's got a job at Gringotts to eemprove 'er Eeenglish–"

"And Bill's been giving her a lot of private lessons," snickers Fred.

"Charlie's in the Order too," Y/n follows up. "But he's still in Romania. Dumbledore wants as many foreign wizards brought in as possible, so Charlie's trying to make contacts on his days off."

"Couldn't Percy do that?" Harry asks. The energy in the room is like a shock went off, the Weasleys, Hermione, and Y/n all exchanging significant looks.

"Whatever you do, don't mention Percy in front of Mum and Dad," Ron tells Harry tensely.

"Why not?"