Ethereal ✭Fred Weasley✭

44.

The group found themselves all standing around the barrister of the staircase, looking down at the hallway below them that lead into the kitchen. The door was shut once again and meant that the Order of the Phoenix was having another one of their meetings. Sophia stood beside Fred who was lowering the Extendable Ear down on a piece of string, holding an identical one in his hands for listening to. The group leaned in closely when quiet voices started to erupt from the ear in Fred's hands, Sirius's voice being the first for them to hear.

"If anyone has the right to know, it's Harry!" his voice sounded from the ear. "If it wasn't for him, we wouldn't know Voldemort was back! He's not a child Molly!"

"He's not an adult either! He's not James, Sirius!" Molly was heard.

"He's not your son," Sirius tried.

"He's as good as! Who else has he got?"

"He's got me!"

"How touching Black. Perhaps Potter will grow up to be a felon, just like his godfather," Professor Snape's dreary voice mocked.

"Snape's part of the order?" Harry spoke as he looked up from his place at the barrister.

"Git," Ron spat before they all lent forward again to listen in on the meeting.

"What about you Moony, don't you want Sophia knowing about what's going on? She's got just as much involvement now as Harry does," Sirius was heard again. Sophia could feel the quick looks she got from everyone at the mention of her name but kept her gaze down on the hallway. She was anxious to hear more about why she maybe was being so closely watched by her father, when a distant meow was heard and there was no longer any voices coming from the Extendable Ear. Hermione's cat Crookshanks appeared into view in the hallway and started to hauntingly creep up to the ear at the end of the string.

"Pull it up!" George hissed when he saw the feline, making Fred jump into action and start pulling at the string. But Crookshanks had started to swat at the ear and deeming it impossible to reel back up. Loud meows echoed from the ear as the cat sniffed and bit at the fake flesh, the Order meeting now forgotten as Fred and George panicked at the thought of their mum walking out and finding their dangling product.

"That little furball-" Fred continued to try and yank the ear from the tabby cat. Quick whispers were now coming from Ginny and Ron to try and get Fred to pull it up faster.

"Crookshanks!" Hermione tried to quietly shout down at her pet. "Leave it! Bad Crookshanks!"

A high pitch ring suddenly rang through the ear in Fred's hand and the string went limp, the counterpart now in Crookshanks mouth as he ran away from the scene. Sophia huffed at their ruined chance to spy on the meeting and pushed back from the barrister while hearing Ron grumble,

"Hermione I hate your cat."

Fred and George grumbled about that being one of their best prototypes and swore they'd shave the cat next time they saw it. They heard the door to the kitchen open and voices become clear throughout the hallway, initiating the end of the meeting and the end of the group's spying. Molly was seen walking into view and looking up towards the top floors making the Hogwarts' students jump back out of sight. Their reactions seemed to be quick enough as she called,

"Dinner will be downstairs today! If you want it before midnight, I suggest you come help!"

The group made it seem like they had just come out of their rooms and started descending the stairs to the bottom floor. Fred had shoved the useless ear and string into his pocket to hide it from Molly, George whispering quickly about what they were going to do now that their best prototype was ruined. Sophia was going to give an input when she spotted her father walking the length of the hallway just as she stepped off the stairs. She looked up just in time to see him a metre away from her, making her stop in her place at the thought to maybe say something.