Harry Potter and the Black Rose

Chapter 22 | The Burrow

The car was flying high in the sky, soaring above the plains and fields of the earth. By now, the sun had risen in the horizon. On some days, the new vibrant hues of the pansies and daffodils were bathed in tepid air that encouraged them gently. On other days, the wintry wind gusted fiercely - demanding a return to the bitterness of the months prior.

The birds were busy with feeding the never ending appetites of their chicks and the cats prowled  underneath the kitchen table in hopes that someone might drop a scrap of food. The previously denuded branches offered their wands of tight green bud to the brilliant rays of summer. The evergreens and spruces scented the air with their new growth. The little streams rushed hither and thither as if they were joyfully caroling. The burrow was a cozy place.

The light blue car lowered to the ground, running on the dirty path up to the large house on a small incline. The car came to a halt in front of the pig pen. A cloud of dirt swarmed in the air from their abrupt arrival.

Carefully, the twins walked towards the houses. They opened the door and stepped inside, shushing the three younger children. They quietly walked into the house, marveling at how cozy it seemed to the other foreign children.

They were in the kitchen. The table was long and there were different colored chairs surrounding it. Each chair had its own little designs and colors. Not a single one matched the other. There were many things on the walls from pictures of the children to cupboards holding different plates. There was a single brick fireplace in the center of the room with a multi-colored grandfather clock pressed against it.

"Come on. Okay, come on." One of the twins said, motioning his hand towards them. They quietly entered the kitchen, looking at their surroundings with admiring eyes. Slowly, Harry moved towards the sink with a broad smile on his face. There was a pot in the sink that was being brushed by a scrub. It was cleaning itself.

Instantly, Rose quickly rounded the table and walked towards the tall grandfather clock. The hands of the clock were spoons with each Weasley child's face on it. The three spoons moved towards the hour that said they were home. Her lips twitched into a soft smile as she stared at the little contraption.

"Think it'd be all right if we had some of these?" Ron asked his older brothers in a whisper. He lifted his hand and pointed towards some biscuits on the table. The two other brothers shook their heads and waved their hands in the air.

"Yeah, Mum will never know." George reassured them. Each Weasley boy reached forward and grabbed a single biscuit, eating their mother's deliciously fluffy roll. They rounded the fireplace, walking into the living room. Harry took a few steps forward, gazing at the needles knitting something by itself. There was no need for a human if magic could do it.

"It's not much, but it's home." Ron said with a shrug of his shoulders.

"I think it's brilliant," Harry said with a broad smile on his face.

Suddenly, there was a thundering sound of footsteps rushing down the wooden stairs. In an instant, Molly Weasley rushed into sight. She gripped the back of the blue armchair, staring at her three children with wide eyes.

"Where have you been?" She yelled.

The three boys looked down at the biscuits in their hands, lowering them to their sides so that their mother wouldn't notice. Slowly, Molly Weasley turned her head and looked towards the two children who were not her own.

"Harry. Rosie. How wonderful to see you, my dears." She said, rounding the blue armchair with a broad smile on her face. She turned back towards her children and placed her hands on her hips, frowning at them. "Beds empty. No note. Car gone. You could have died. You could have been seen."