The Carnival ⌁ Draco Malfoy [1/4] ✔

21

The following morning everyone set up Christmas decorations, excluding Harry who spent it hiding from everyone. Fred and George pestered Emma with the whole 'twin' thing, for they used their Extendible Ears until Mrs Weasley caught them, so they knew about her and Harry speaking with Sirius about being related.

They even went as far as scaring her and almost killing her. She'd been putting tinsel along the wall upstairs. There were several Christmas trees, and there was one by the hallway upstairs. Emma covered the entire thing in silver tinsel, until she heard loud yells and she jumped backwards. Had Fred and George not jumped out from behind the tree and yanked on one arm each, Emma would have fallen over the railing to her death.

Hermione turned up later that evening, and she, Ron, Ginny and Harry went into Harry's bedroom to talk about his 'possessed' issues. Ron had told Hermione all about Emma and Harry being twins, so it was hard for Hermione not to gawk at Emma in awe each time she got the chance to.

Emma's thoughts were whisked back to just a few nights ago, and her hands naturally clenched the tinsel in her hands. She'd been having a much better time than she thought she would have, too. To others, McGonagall and Snape showing up was a nightmare, but to her it was like seeing God for the first time.

"You OK?" George said, amused, gesturing toward the crushed tinsel in Emma's hands.

"Huh?" she jumped, completely forgetting that Fred and George were still pestering her into giving details. "Oh," she unclenched her fists, "yeah..."

"Tell you what," Fred started, appearing on her left side, "you tell us about the conversation with Sirius, and you'll get permanent discounts from Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes."

"Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes?" Emma snorted, dropping the tinsel to the floor and whirling around to move toward the stairs. "Is that even a thing?"

Fred and George both bounced toward either side of her, cornering her every step. "Ah, it's a work in progress."

"And you won't regret it," added Fred, jumping right in front of her in the middle of the stairs. Emma moved to step past him, but Fred blocked her. She turned around to try and run back upstairs but George blocked her escape.

She sighed, defeated. "Will the two of you ever let it go?"

"Nope," they both said brightly simultaneously. They grinned at her frown.

"It'll take me ages to get through everything."

"So?" said George, wrapping his arm around Emma's shoulder to guide her back upstairs to where she assumed the twins' bedroom was. "We've got all morning."

And so Emma dived into the story she'd heard from Sirius just twelve hours ago. The twins hung onto Emma's every word, growing more and more fascinated by the second. When she finished, Fred and George leaned back, seemingly pondering the whole story.

"That doesn't make any sense, but OK," said George,"we've still got a deal."

"I wonder why you aren't a Potter," Fred said, clearly amazed. "Interesting."

"At least they had the decency to let me keep my first name," Emma mumbled.

Fred and George continued to comment on the story, but Emma wasn't paying attention. She could feel the bubbles in her stomach growing larger, and as though miniature demons were using her lungs for drums. She tried to keep them held back but the tears still glossed over her eyes, making the twins fall silent. Emma wasn't sad, though - she was furious. Her mind kept pulling back to the night she was forced into doing something she did not want to do...