Still Not For Sale (Book 2 of I'm Not For Sale) COMPLETE

Chapter 17

    Lucy's parents arrived early the following morning, waking them all from their slumber. Marianne ad barged into the room that Lucy and Fred share and pulled the girl from the bed before smothering her in a hug. Lucy, still in the throes of sleep, screamed and fought away from the person, thinking it was Malfoy come to take her back, until her mother's voice reached her ears. Her scream was what woke everyone up. Everyone is now settled in the breakfast area with cups of coffee cradled in their hands. Fred's free hand is rubbing Lucy's back in an attempt to keep her relaxed. Everyone is jittery now since Death Eaters invaded the one place everyone thought was safe. Lucy is jittery because it seems every time she turns around, she's being whisked away to Malfoy's house or being attacked by Malfoy or, well something happens to her because of Malfoy. Marianne looks up from her mug and apologizes again for scaring her but Lucy waves it off telling her it's not necessary. Derek gets up to prepare a breakfast for everyone while asking Lucy and the boys to fill them all in about everything that had happened. The four of them take turns talking, Marianne becoming more and more shocked at what her daughter is going through. They end their tale with them taking Lucy to the house after being looked over for injuries.
Lucy's mother finally speaks up, asking for a word with her daughter. Fred squeezes Lucy's hand before she stands and leads her mother to the den for privacy.
"I don't want you going back to that school."
"I want to finish out my schooling there and be with Bethany for one more year." Lucy explains, sinking down into an armchair.
"It's too dangerous. You've been kidnapped from that place several times, Death Eaters invaded the school, and you saw your Headmaster get killed two days ago. It's not safe."
"I know Mom, but I will be alright. I've made it this far."
"You're not going. You're coming back to New York with us. You can finish schooling there."
"I'm going to Hogwarts. Malfoy won't be there, McGonnagol will probably step up as Headmistress and she kicks butt by the way, and I will be alright. The Death Eaters killed Dumbledore like they'd wanted. From what I've heard, Harry Potter isn't even coming back so they shouldn't have any reason to mess with Hogwarts anymore. Just please trust me." Lucy tries to reason with her while fiddling with the coffee cup in her hands.
Marianne looks over at her daughter and sighs. "I trusted it last time and all of this happened. I trust you, just not the state of this country right now. You'd be much safer in New York with us."
"I'm not leaving the guys or Bethany behind. I know what I saw and I know the danger, but I'm not running to hide somewhere if I could help. I want to do something right for the world and I know if I stay at Hogwarts I can do some good."
Marianne pulls her daughter from her chair and pulls her into a hug. Lucy hugs her back while wondering why she's being hugged suddenly.
"I may not have been there to raise you, but I'm glad you learned something while I was gone. I'm proud of you Lucy, just don't get hurt... and keep those boys safe. They need all the help they can get."
Lucy laughs. "I learned it from the boys and from Hogwarts. They're smarter than they let on."
The women return to the kitchen to find the four men playing with cans of silly string. The two sigh and go to walk away before getting sprayed. Lucy turns around, glaring at the tall red head holding a green can. He grins sheepishly before tossing her a can and spraying her again. Marianne has a can tossed to her as well and the kitchen and its inhabitants end up coated in silly string by the time the cans run out.
Derek and Marianne left later in the afternoon to return to New York, under the agreement that the four of them would visit at some point over the vacation. Lucy made the boys clean up the kitchen without magic while she started a letter to Bethany to check on her. Afterward they gave up arguing against her and brought her to see the shop and work for the day though she was hurting. A few hours into the work day, an owl swoops in through the open door with Bethany's reply. Lucy sighs as she reads it. As of right now, her parents aren't allowing her back at Hogwarts, even for the funeral service. There are talks of moving her to Beauxbatons though she's going to let them simmer for a few weeks before trying to reason with them. All of that part came after Bethany's freak out and scolding for Lucy's disappearance. Lucy rolled her eyes at that part, thinking of the younger girl's words like a mother yelling at her kid for wandering off at the market. She writes her back, telling her to try to visit soon and she will explain it all, not trusting the owls to reveal everything. She sends it back with the tawny owl before greeting the next customer to walk through the door.