❃.✮:▹ 　◃:✮.❃

7th Year of Hogwarts
❃.✮:▹ 　◃:✮.❃

THE LAST SCHOOLYEAR seemed to be sprinting faster than anyone could have imagined. Christmas break arrived and everyone piled into the Hogwarts Express. Considering the expansion of their friend group, they had colonised two compartments next to one another so that they could still talk to each other when the doors were open. Everyone would return to their respective homes, but dates had been set for rendezvous.

Eloise watched the snow fall and Hogwarts vanish in the distance. Her breath condensed on the window. Remus' hand was on her thigh, and the wool from Molly's previous Christmas jumper was tickling the back of her neck.

James was standing in the corridor and salsa-dancing with Sirius to Queen, which drummed on from a small radio that belonged to Lily. Peter was laughing and sharing a bag of sour sweets with Marlene. Remus had his nose deep in some book about Norse Mythology, Eloise could not for her life remember its title. Dorcas was scribbling away in her poetry book, annotating her heart out. Meanwhile, Alice busied herself with her cat, cuddling and kissing it sweet whilst Frank embroidered a jumper hem.

It was strangely peaceful.

The Prewett girl looked down at the small table of her train compartment, on top of the engraved Marauders' initials lay a Polaroid photo. It depicted her and her friends the day before. They were all modelling Christmas family poses from a magazine that belonged to Dorcas, they all had Christmas hats on and jumpers in an array of colours. A simple multiplication spell allowed all the friends to have a copy.

That warmth and comfort. Maybe that was love. Eloise Mathilda Prewett would treasure it forever.

☆——⍟——☆

The Burrow was bustling with even more family than the year prior. Although the young twins and Elena were screaming to their hearts content, it was a merry gathering. The gifts were flowing as always, and it was the first year when one of the kids got to join in on the gift giving. Bill Weasley at 8 knew about the big Santa Claus secret (as he called it), and decided it was his turn to chip in. His gifts were simple, but thoughtful. He had mostly made large drawings for everyone and tied some garden trinkets together with scraps of yarn. Eloise received a pine-cone tied at the end of an oak leaf.

Eloise herself had lugged around a sack of gifts which she had spread out under the tree. "Screaming mandrakesss," She sang out loud to gain the attention of her niece and nephews. "It's time for presents."

"I'm not a mandrake," Bill argued with a 'harrumph', he crossed his arms in defiance.

Not buying the sudden maturity of her nephew, Eloise ruffled Bill's red strands before shoving him towards the tree. She received an air raspberry in return.

Nonetheless, the Weasley children gathered around the tree and tore into their gifts as though they were ravaged wild animals. As the wrapping papers drifted down onto the floor, the children were already clutching their gifts to their chests. A chess-set for Bill, dragon toys that spit fire for Charlie (quickly confiscated by Valentina who had some sense of safety) and a quaffle pillow for Percy, which the boy cuddled fondly.

The babies were not forgotten, Fred was gifted a stuffed broom, George a stuffed Gryffindor lion and Elena received a fluffy fox. It was totally not propaganda.

Gideon walked around as he handed out big jugs overflowing with butterbeer, eggnog, tea and hot chocolate. "Butterbeer for the grown-ups and hot chocolate for the little ones!" He called out, his voice booming above the chatter. "Come on now, no one gets thirsty on my watch!" His gaze settled on his sister-in-law. "And eggnog for señiorita."

Molly, perched comfortably in an armchair with little George cradled in her arms, accepted a mug of tea from Gideon. "You're a saint, Gideon," She said gratefully, taking a sip and sighing contentedly. "Ohh, I love a good cuppa."

Eloise finally joined the children by the tree, where they had formed a haphazard circle, clutching their gifts as though they were the most precious things in the world. Her butterbeer came dangerously close to spilling over the edge, and she felt Molly's gaze burn into her back. She crouched down beside Elena, who giggling and clutching the fluffy fox that Eloise had given her, the child's eyes shining with delight.

"Do you like it, Elena?" Eloise asked, her voice gentle. "Of course you do." She smirked and booped Elena's nose.

The baby looked up at her aunt with curious eyes.

Nearby, Charlie was inspecting his new dragon toys, his face a mix of awe and excitement. "Look, Mum!" He exclaimed, holding up the small model of a Hungarian Horntail that puffed out tiny bursts of smoke. "It's just like the one in the book!"

Molly's eyes widened slightly as she saw the toy dragon. "That's wonderful, Charlie, but maybe we should save the fire-breathing for when your father's around, hmm?" She suggested, glancing over at Valentina, who had already confiscated one of the more dangerous-looking dragon models.

Valentina, with her dark hair pulled back in a neat braid and her eyes sparkling with amusement, gave Molly a conspiratorial smile. "Don't worry Molly, I got an eye on him" She said, her voice lilting as he arms overflowed with dragon toys. Charlie didn't seem to mind the supervision, at least not when it was his aunt. He was too engrossed in making his dragons battle one another, complete with sound effects that only a young boy could make.

Percy, meanwhile, had wrapped his arms around the quaffle-shaped pillow, a contented expression on his face as he buried his nose into the soft fabric. "This is brilliant," Percy murmured. He was much too glad to be cuddling something, even if it would become his greatest disdain later in life.

Fabian and Gideon, never ones to be behaved, were busy plotting in the cluttered kitchen. In front of them lay a net which was filled with swirling marbled.

"What are you two up to?" Eloise asked, she popped up between her older brothers, forcing her small frame in between their broad shoulders.

The Prewett twins shared a grin, and Gideon slung an arm around Eloise's shoulders. "We are far past childish things such as pranks, fatherhood has changed Fabian," He clapped his brother's head and Fabian nodded solemnly in agreement.

A deep unladylike snort erupted from Eloise who cast her head back in mirth. "And I'm Freddy Mercury flying on a burning pig. Sod off you wanker," She shoved both her brothers, and finally settled her eyes on the bag of marbles.

"Rosewhick's Scratchy Marbles," The brunette breathed out in wonder. She tentatively grasped one and rolled the swirling gold marble between her fingers. "Arthur and Molly will kill you for this," She said in a serious tone before her cheeks became dimpled, and her eyes started glistening. "Fucking do it."

The marbles were placed in Arthur and Molly's bed, and a few found their way into Eloise's bed, unbeknown to her.

As the evening wore on and the moon rose further into the sky, the children slowly began to wind down, their energy finally ebbing away as the tide. Eloise helped to tuck in the three babies before she wandered down the stairs once more and found most of the children fighting sleep.

Bill was stubborn, saying he was not sleepy whilst unable to keep his eyes open. His brothers were more accepting of their fate and were snoring on the couch.

Eventually, the adults hauled the children up and tucked them into their respective beds. It left the ground-floor of the Burrow quiet and peaceful. The skating iceman cake topper made the most sound next to the fire place.

Eloise, still grinning from the escapades with the marbles and the dragon toys, sank into an armchair beside the fire. She stretched out her short legs, her wooden platforms scratching the floor. The others had settled into comfortable spots as well, basking in the rare quiet that followed a day like today.

Arthur sat at the kitchen table, tinkering with a few Muggle objects he'd received for Christmas. Most of those trinkets came from Eloise who gathered them from Remus and her friends. The clock came from the Lupins and it had seen better days. Otherwise there was casette tape, which had unwinded itself after being loved dearly by Lily. The Weasly was muttering softly to himself, his wand out, occasionally flicking it to see if the clock would tick to life or the casette would do anything.

His wife was fretting about and cleaning the room, and if anyone dared step in to help she would chide them for not doing correctly. It led to Valentina growing frustrated before she stepped out of the kitchen and dropped herself onto the well-loved couch.

Fabian and Gideon had taken the couche by the fire, their long limbs stretched out, looking as relaxed as if they hadn't just plotted the next chaotic prank involving the infamous Rosewhick's Scratchy Marbles. Gideon shot a glance at Eloise, his mischievous smile still lingering, while Fabian was already half-asleep, his head lolling against the back of the couch with drool escaping from the corner of his mouth.

Gideon nearly dropped lint into his brother's wide open mouth, but was stopped by a stern look from Valentina.

"I give it two days before Molly finds the marbles and makes you pay for it," Eloise said with a smirk, breaking the quiet. She glanced back at her sister to ensure that the older woman wasn't listening.

Gideon chuckled softly, lifting a mug of butterbeer to his lips. "Two days is generous. She's got a sense for these things, unfortunatley."

Eloise shrugged, though her grin grew wider. "All the more exciting, don't you think? The anxiety..."

Gideon gave a mock serious nod, then leaned back into the cushions. "You are the worst of us."

"Thank you," Eloise retorted, showing off her pearly whites with pride. "I try."

Molly, having caught part of their conversation, looked up from where she was standing with a towel in her hands. "If you lot are planning something, don't think I won't find out about it. I always do."

Arthur chuckled but didn't lift his head from his work, too interested by the casette. "You'd best listen to her. Remember the last time you tried?"

Fabian opened one eye lazily, suddenly aware of his surroundings. "Was that the time with the exploding custard creams?"

"Or the time with the shrinking broomsticks?" Eloise added, tapping her chin thoughtfully. She snorted at the memory.

"Neither," Molly interjected, a glint of warning in her eyes. "It was the time you charmed the entire Burrow to moo like a cow every time the door opened." She rested her hands on her hips in disappointment. It made her the spitting image of Judy Prewett.

Gideon let out a laugh that shook his shoulders. "Ah, yes, that one was a classic."

Molly's eyes twitched and she flew across the room and whacked her brother with her towel. Gideon screamed and skwirmed away. The other Prewett siblings enjoyed the scene a little too much and ended up receiving a towel in the face promptly.

After successfully working her siblings to the floor, Molly shook her head with a smile and crossed the room to sit down beside Arthur. She placed her hand on his, finally drawing his attention away from the Muggle casette he had been so engrossed in. "Come now, love it's time to let the Muggles rest. It's been a long day."

Something resembling a whine came from Arthur, but he caved in and headed up to Molly and his bedroom.

The fire crackled, filling the room with a soft, rhythmic sound. Eloise glanced over at the mantelpiece where photo's were moving around. With only those snippets the wedding of Valentina and Gideon appeared a fun affair which had known no complication, the truth was far from it unfortunately. Judy and Percival also still drew breath in the photo's. Eloise looked down and inhaled sharply. With 1978 fast approaching, so came her graduation. Which her parents would never see.

"A nightcap, anyone?" Valentina offered, she held a bottle of unknown liquor and four small glaces.

"Don't mind if I do," Eloise responded promptly, sitting up a little straighter as Valentina poured her a generous measure. The others followed suit, each accepting a glass and raising it in a silent toast.

As everyone took their first warm burning sips, Valentia piped up. "This is rum that my family makes."

"I love your family!" Gideon declared, downing the rest of his rum in one swig. His twin followed suit.

"Crazy gits," Eloise muttered, before tipping her glass aswell.

a/n:
a short but sweet chapter. i imagine that remus is spending
time with his own family and they just couldn't plan to spend christmas
together. anyway, hogwarts is coming to an end, we'll have
about three chapters left before we move on to the next act.

be sure to vote and comment! it means the world
-love, victoria

funny post

whahhaha please this would happen. ginny would obviously win,
but oh how they would fight like mad people
date published: 2 september 2024
word count: 3299