star shopping ✰ d.m.

CHAPTER EIGHT

"When is someone going to bring Harry here?" Ron asked one day at dinner. He, Molly, Arthur, and Arabella were the only ones left at the table, as everyone else had finished and headed to their rooms. "He keeps asking and I don't know what to tell him."

"Soon," Arthur gave the same answer he had been giving all summer.

"Dad, you've been saying 'soon' for weeks. It's getting old."

"And if Ron feels that way, I can only imagine how Harry feels," Arabella said.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means you're dull."

"I don't know what else to tell you, Ron," Arthur said, sighing. "The exact date keeps delayed because of complications-"

"Complications?" the twins repeated, suddenly worried for their friend.

"Superb wording, Arthur," Molly said. "Harry's fine. It's just... other things that keep getting in the way. But when we say soon, we mean it. The Advance Guard is all assembled and the date is set. Now we just hope that nothing else happens before then."

"Advance Guard?" Ron questioned.

"The members of the Order that are going to retrieve Harry from his aunt and uncle's house," Arthur explained.

"Okay, so, when are they going to do that?" Arabella asked.

"We can't tell you that."

"And why not?"

"Because you're going to want to tell him in a letter and there's always a chance that those letters will be intercepted. Especially now with everything going on. It's just better that you don't know."

"Just think of it as a nice surprise when he does finally get here," Molly suggested.

"And until then we just continue to tell him the same thing over and over and piss him off and hope that by the time he gets here he doesn't hate us," Arabella said.

"Arabella, mind your language." Molly began to clean up the kitchen. "Oh, Ron, is your room clean yet?"

"Um..." Ron trailed off, reluctant to tell the truth.

"No," Arabella answered for him, earning herself a glare from her twin.

"Ronald, we have been here for nearly two weeks!" Molly said, her hands on her hips as she gave her son an exasperated look.

"Sorry! It's a lot to clean!" Ron defended.

"As soon as you two are finished with your dinner, you can help him, Bella."

"Me? Why me?" Arabella questioned.

"Because I told you to."

"Why can't you have Hermione do it? She's better at it than I am."

"Yes, please let Hermione do it," Ron pleaded. "It's not like Bella will be able to see anything anyway." It was his turn to be glared at by his twin.