I felt as though I had barely lain down to sleep when Mum shook me awake.
"Time to go, (Y/n), dear," she whispered, moving away to wake Harry.
I groaned slightly and practically rolled out of bed. It was still dark outside. Ron muttered indistinctly as his mother roused him.
" 'S' time already?" said Fred groggily.
We dressed in silence, too sleepy to talk, then, yawning and stretching, the five of us headed downstairs into the kitchen. Mum was stirring the contents of a large pot on the stove, while Dad was sitting at the table, checking a sheaf of large parchment tickets. He looked up as the we entered and spread his arms so that we could see his clothes more clearly.
He was wearing what appeared to be a golfing sweater and a very old pair of jeans, slightly too big for him and held up with a thick leather belt.
"What d'you think?" he asked anxiously. "We're supposed to go incognito — do I look like a Muggle, Harry?"
"Yeah," said Harry, smiling, "very good."
"Where're Bill and Charlie and Per-Per-Percy?" said George, failing to stifle a huge yawn.
"Well, they're Apparating, aren't they?" said Mum, heaving the large pot over to the table and starting to ladle porridge into bowls. "So they can have a bit of a lie-in."
"Why can't we apparate?" I asked yawning.
"Because you're not of age and you haven't passed your test," snapped Mum.
"We could've done side along apparition." I muttered.
"So they're still in bed?" said Fred grumpily, pulling his bowl of porridge toward him.
"Where have those girls got to?" Mum asked ignoring Fred, bustling out of the kitchen and we heard her climbing the stairs.
"You have to pass a test to Apparate?" Harry asked.
"Oh yes," said Dad, tucking the tickets safely into the back pocket of his jeans. "The Department of Magical Transportation had to fine a couple of people the other day for Apparating without a license. It's not easy, Apparition, and when it's not done properly it can lead to nasty complications. This pair I'm talking about went and splinched themselves."
I winced slightly, as did everyone expect Harry.
How thick do you have to be to splinch yourself
"Er — splinched?" said Harry.
"They left half of themselves behind," said Dad, now spooning large amounts of treacle onto his porridge. "So, of course, they were stuck. Couldn't move either way. Had to wait for the Accidental Magic Reversal Squad to sort them out. Meant a fair old bit of paperwork, I can tell you, what with the Muggles who spotted the body parts they'd left behind. . . ."
"Were they okay?" Harry asked, startled.
"Oh yes," said Dad matter-of-factly. "But they got a heavy fine, and I don't think they'll be trying it again in a hurry. You don't mess around with Apparition. There are plenty of adult wizards who don't bother with it. Prefer brooms — slower, but safer."
"But Bill and Charlie and Percy can all do it?"
"Charlie had to take the test twice," said Fred, grinning. "He failed the first time, Apparated five miles south of where he meant to, right on top of some poor old dear doing her shopping, remember?"
"Yes, well, he passed the second time," said Mum, marching back into the kitchen amid hearty sniggers.
"Percy only passed two weeks ago," said George. "He's been Apparating downstairs every morning since, just to prove he can."
YOU ARE READING
The Weasley of Slytherin: The Goblet of Fire
Fanfiction(Y/n) Weasley, starting to feel disconnected from his family, is staring his fourth year at Hogwarts, and with that brings new adventures, new threats, and new feelings.
