Dancing In The Storm •Fred Weasley•

Chapter 9

•This story takes scenes from the Harry Potter series. I want to make it clear that I don't own those scenes. That's owned by
J.K. Rowling. Thank you•

~Sirius~

The leaves crunched under my paws as I walked in the shadows of the forest. I could see the Black Lake from here, which also meant I was dangerously close to the castle.

I knew I was there because I hoped that maybe I could see Claire, Scarlett, or Harry. But I knew the chances of that were extremely unlikely.

Well, until a girl plopped herself down in front of Claire and I's tree.

I stepped a little closer – almost out of the shadows – trying to get a better look at the girl. But there was no need really, a father could recognize his daughter no matter how far apart they've been.

I knew how risky it'd be to go over to her, but what else could I do? This was my chance.

The closer I got, I could tell that she was in a bad mood. Her eyes were closed and she was biting her lip so hard I thought she was going to draw blood. I also noticed that a piece of parchment was lying on her lap.

But it wasn't until I was right next to her that I realized it was the Marauder's Map. Panic shot through me as I realized it could give me away, but then I noticed that the only name on the map was Scarlett Bennet.

I was relieved that my name wasn't on there, but I was also slightly disappointed by the name 'Bennet'.

Without really knowing what I was doing, I barked. Grey eyes met mine as Scarlett looked up at me.

I placed my paw on her hand, where I noticed the bracelet I gave Claire. I barked again, pushing thoughts of the bracelet to the back of my head and focusing on the fact that my daughter was in front of me. Her grey eyes sparkled with mischief behind a wall of sorrow. Her hair now fell down her back in perfect curls. It was quite obvious that no matter how much she looked like Claire, she cared about her hair as much as I did.

Stepping forward, I licked her face happily.

"Well hello there?" She laughed.

I licked her face again and she laughed.

"Where'd you come from?"

Well, it seems she talks to animals like they'll talk back to her just like Claire does.

Only a little bit later, and I could see a red headed boy walking in our direction.

Definitely a Weasley.

"Hey Scar!" The boy called.

Scarlett looked up and waved at him, her bad mood still there slightly.

"What happened?" He questioned.
"What do you mean?" Scarlett asked, her dark brown eyebrows furrowing.
"You're obviously upset. Is it about your Mum?" He inquired.

I stared at him curiously. What's this got to do with Claire?

"How'd you guess?" Scarlett asked sarcastically.
"I can see it on your face. Now what'd she do this time?" He laughed.
"You say it as if I'm alway mad at her, George," Scarlett snorted.