Finding Heather

Year 6 Chapter 15

Author's notes: Hello all and thank you once again for your patience. I'm very grateful to the many readers who have reached out to ask when I would be returning to this project. I hope you continue to enjoy Finding Heather. Also, yes Heather will use magic at the burrow, but since she's surrounded by adult wizards who are using magic anyway, there wont be any consequences.

Harry Potter doesn't belong to me, but to JK Rowling. One conversation in this chapter uses paraphrased quotes from Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, Chapter Sixteen.

Chapter Fifteen

 Two days after Slughorn's party, Heather boarded the Hogwarts Express from the cold platform, bound for the Burrow with Ron and Ginny. For the first time in her life, she wasn't looking forward to spending the holidays with the Weasley's, but the plans had been made and it was too late to back out. Still upset with Ron after their conversation about Justin, she hadn't spoken to him since the day he had come to check on her after the breakup. Ginny however seemed to have returned to her usual self, or close to it. As she sat next to her in their compartment, Heather caught her imperceptibly blushing anytime they touched as the train swayed. Her make up hid most of it, and that gave Heather something else to ponder.

 At King's Cross, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were waiting with a squad of aurors. On seeing them, Mrs. Weasley pulled Heather into one of her trademark hugs. After releasing her Mrs. Weasley stopped and stared at Heather, an odd expression on her face. Before she could comment however, one of the aurors tugged roughly at Heather's sleeve, pulling her towards the barrier. Outside waiting for them was a Ministry car to take them to the Burrow. Sitting in the backseat with Ron and Ginny, Heather felt cramped even though the seat could have held six grown adults easily. About halfway there, conversation died and they rode in silence. Ottery St. Catchpole was covered in thick white snow, fresh from the night before. The Burrow resembled a tall, lopsided gingerbread house, covered in snow with icicles hanging from the many sills. Unlike over the summer, Heather had to share a room this time. Fred and George were home for the holidays, along with Bill and Fleur, and to Heather's delight, Lupin.

 It was very frosty for the first two days of the visit. Ron barely spoke to her, not that she had much to say to him either. Out of respect for their friendship, even as rocky as it currently was, Heather didn't change clothes in Ron's bedroom. Despite a large portion of her wanting to strip down to her bra and knickers in front of him just to show him that she was, in fact, a girl now, she resisted. Every morning and evening she made her way down the stairs to the toilet with a bundle of clothes, feminine items well hidden.

 The one bright spot of those days was getting to spend time with Fred, George, Bill, and Lupin. When she was with them the gloom of everything going on lifted somewhat. It felt easy to joke with them and remember that she did have people who loved her. She caught herself wondering again and again how they would react when they learned the truth about her, but each time she told herself that was a problem for another time. She was sure that Mrs. Weasley was watching her during meals, often catching her with a puzzled look on her face.

 Heather intended to speak to Mr. Weasley about what she had overheard after tailing Snape and Malfoy the other evening. Time and time again she replayed the conversation in her mind, wondering what Malfoy could be up to. At the very least this confirmed her suspicions that he was up to something. She wished Hermione were there so she could talk to someone about it, but she was visiting her parents.

On Christmas Eve, the entire family and their guests were gathered in the living room listening to the Wizarding Wireless Network. Mrs. Weasley's favorite singer, Celestina Warbeck, was singing a rather jazzy number that most of them were doing their best to ignore. Under its cover, Heather tried to talk to Lupin and Mr. Weasley about her theories on Malfoy and Snape working together for some nefarious purpose, but it had little effect. "What it all comes down to," said a slightly vexed Lupin when Heather wouldn't let it go, "is do you trust Dumbledore, or not?"