CHAPTER TWELVE
GRIM OLD PLACE
[12]

song: Happy Pills by Weathers

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Dear Lin,

I have to keep this letter short. I'm very, very sorry for not replying to your letters lately. I'm not allowed to give lots of information. Mum and Dad said you can visit us where we're staying now. Reply with yes or no. If yes, then Dad will pick you up on August 27. Happy belated birthday by the way. Sorry again for not replying to your letters.

Love,
Fred

"Hey, Mum." I try to get her attention.

"Apa?" (translates to what?)

"Can I stay with the Weasleys for the rest of summer break?" I ask hopeful.

"No. Absolutely not." She replies immediately.

"But Mum! I want to celebrate my birthday with my friends!" I made up that excuse.

"Then they can come over here."

"But, Mr and Mrs Weasley can take care of me and they'll get my school supplies. I told you you-know-who is back. It's not safe for a child like me wondering out in Diagon Alley."

She thinks it over. "Fine."

"Thank you Mum!" I run up to her and hug her.

"Are Arthur and Molly going to pick you up?" She questioned.

"They said Mr Weasley will be picking me up on the 27th." I tell her.

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"Mina! Albert! So good to see you again!" I hear Mr Weasley greet my parents from downstairs when he shows up here.

I'm currently finishing up packing my trunk when there's a knock at the door. "I'm almost done packing, Mum." I say in an annoyed tone.

"Now, is that anyway to greet your friend?" A voice that is not my mother's says.

I turn around and smile when I see who it is. "Hi Fred."

He walks up to me and is about to hug me but I stop him. "Ah-ah. No physical affection."

He looks disappointed and drops his arms. Now I feel a little bit bad so I get on my tippy toes and kiss his right cheek.

"Oi!" A voice from the door says. George and Ron are behind him in the doorway.

I pull away and blush heavily. I see Fred's face is one shade away from his hair color.

"Lower down on the PDA would 'ya?" Ron says.

"Hello to you too Ronald."

"And no hello for me?" George dramatically puts his right hand above his heart.

"Nope." I smile and look back over to Fred. Two of his fingers are touching his cheek where I kissed him and he has a lazy grin on his face.

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"Harry!" Hermione hugs Harry when he enters the room. She pulls him back so he can look at his face. Ron just raises his eyebrows quickly at Harry. "Are you alright?" She asks concerned.

Harry nods.

"We heard them talking about the dementor attack. You must tell us everything" I say.

"Let him breathe for a second." Ron says.

"And this hearing at the Ministry. It's just outrageous. I've looked it up. They simply can't expel you. It's completely unfair." I say quickly.

"Yeah. There's a lot of that going round at the moment." Harry walks around the room and looks around. "So, what is this place?" Harry asks us.

"It's headquarters." Ron answers.

"Of the Order of the Phoenix." I specify. "12 Grimmauld Place. But really it's more of a grim old place, really."

"It's a secret society. Dumbledore formed it back when they fought You-Know-Who." Hermione explains.

"Couldn't have put any of this in a letter, I suppose?
I've gone all summer without a scrap of news."

"We wanted to write, mate. Really, we did. Only..." Ron trails oof.

"Only, what?" Harry asks.

"Only Dumbledore made us swear not to tell you anything." Hermione answered.

"Dumbledore said that?" I nodded. "But why would he keep me in the dark? Maybe I could help."

Harry's voice raises, "I'm the one who saw Voldemort return... the one who fought him, who saw Cedric Diggory get killed."

"Harry." The twins apparated behind Harry and touched his shoulder.

"Thought we heard your dulcet tones." George said as he sat down on the bed.

"Don't bottle it up, though, mate. Let it out." Fred says.

"If you're all done shouting..."

"...Do you wanna hear something a little more interesting?"

The twins show us their new invention: the extendable ear.

We're at the top of the staircase of number 12 Grimmauld Place. Fred lowers the ear to in front of the closed door where the Order meeting is being held.

"If anyone has a right to know, it's Harry. If it wasn't for Harry... we wouldn't even know Voldemort was back. He's not a child, Molly." Sirius Black tells the Order.

Mrs Weasley argues back. "But he's not an adult either. He's not James, Sirius."

"Well, he's not your son."

"He's as good as." Mrs Weasley fires back. "Who else has he got?"

"Hey Ginny." Ron and I greet her when she walks to where we're gathered.

"He's got me."

"How touchingly paternal, Black." A very, very familiar monotone speaks. "Perhaps Potter will grow up to be a felon, just like his godfather."

"Now, you stay out of this, Snivellus." Sirius warns.

Harry looks at us confused. "Snape's part of the Order?"

"Git." Ron says.

"So why don't you tell him..." Crookshanks spots the ear and looks at it as if it were prey. "...about your supposed information."

The words they say are glitching up as Hermione's cat swipes at the extendable ear like a toy.

"Get it up."
"Crookshanks." Hermione whisper-yells.
"Stop it. Bad kitty." I whisper.
"Get off, you bloody cat."
Fred tried to tug at the ear.
"Crookshanks. Leave it alone."
"Get it up."
"Hermione, I hate your cat."

"Bad Crookshanks." Hermione tells her cat when Crookshanks dismembers the ear from the line and pads away with it.

"Well, we'll be eating down in the kitchen." Mrs Weasley tells us as we walk down the staircase.

Fred and George apparate behind her, frightening their mum.

She gasps in shock. "Just because you're allowed to use magic now, does not mean you have to whip your wands out for everything!" Mrs Weasley reprimands them.

I follow Ginny, Ron, and Hermione to the kitchen while Harry stays behind to greet his godfather.

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Fred watches as Crookshanks licks his mouth after devouring the ear. I chuckle when he grimaces at the cat. He looks to me. "What are you laughing at?" He asks me with a smile tugging his face.

"Nothing." I say with a slight smile of my own.

I look over to Ginny and Hermione and see then laughing at Tonks as she changes her mouth to be a duck one. I laugh along with them.

"This is very, very peculiar." Mr Weasley tells Harry. "It seems your hearing in the Ministry is to be before the entire Wizengamot."

"I don't understand. What has the Ministry of Magic got against me?" Harry asks.

"Show him." Mad-Eye growls. "He'll find out soon enough." The adults exchange glances then Kingsley hands Harry a newspaper.

"He's been attacking Dumbledore as well. Fudge is using all his power, including his influence at the Daily Prophet... to smear anyone who claims the Dark Lord has returned." Sirius explains.

Harry looks confused, "Why?"

Remus answers, "He thinks Dumbledore's after his job."

"No one in their right mind could believe that—"

"—Exactly!" Remus Lupin interrupts. "Exactly the point. Fudge isn't in his right mind. It's been twisted and warped by fear. Now, fear makes people do terrible things, Harry. The last time Voldemort gained power... he almost destroyed everything we hold most dear. Now he's returned, and I'm afraid the minister will do almost anything... to avoid facing that terrifying truth."

"We think Voldemort wants to build up his army again." Sirius says. "Fourteen years ago, he had huge numbers at his command. And not just witches and wizards, but all manner of dark creatures. He's been recruiting heavily, and we've been attempting to do the same. But gathering followers isn't the only thing he's interested in." Mad-Eye Moody clears his throat. "We believe... Voldemort may be after something." Mrs Weasley stops chopping vegetables.

"Sirius." Mad-Eye warns.

Sirius looks intently at Harry, "Something he didn't have last time."

"You mean like a weapon?"

"No. That's enough. He's just a boy." Molly interjects before Sirius can answer. She takes the newspaper."You say more and you might as well induct him into the Order."

"Good. I want to join. If Voldemort's raising an army, then I want to fight." Harry tells them. Sirius motions to Harry like his point was just proven. Sirius winks at Harry.

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"What do you think the weapon is?" Harry asks as we walk up the stairs.

"I don't know." Hermione sighs.

"Well we're wizards," I say. "It's probably a wand. A very powerful wand if Voldemort wants it."

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A/N: HAPPY BIRTHDAY FRED GIDEON AND GEORGE FABIAN WEASLEY

I realized I never actually physically describe any of the characters. Whoops

are you shipping Fred and Lin yet?

it's hard to find places to put Lin's dialogue and she doesn't like to talk so she doesn't get much dialogue anyways 😔