Fallen Angel

Chapter Fifteen: Fall For You

It had caused quite an uproar in Devon, once Molly Weasley had collected the fivesome from Kings Cross and brought them to the Burrow, that she revealed that she and Arthur had decreed that Ron and Hermione would be bunking together, and that Draco and Ginny would be doing the same. Ron was naturally pleased to have his girlfriend by his side throughout the holidays, but was vehemently against Ginny and Draco sharing a room. Molly calmly informed her son that she was well-aware of Ginny and Draco's sleeping habits on the weekends back at Hogwarts, and did not have a problem with it.

This silenced Ron for good on the matter.

Harry also learned from Molly that Charlie would be remaining in Romania during the holidays and so his room was available for Harry to sleep in. Fred and George would be returning to the Burrow for the holiday, so naturally their bedroom was not available, and Bill's room needed to remain open as well, for he would be bringing Fleur. Harry acquiesced immediately to Molly's plans, and promptly took his truck upstairs to Charlie's room, down the hall from Ron's, and was pleased at the prospect of having a room to himself throughout the holiday.

The first three days at the Burrow were filled with the senior Weasleys asking the five students still attending Hogwarts about their classes, Quidditch, and the rather nasty ending to their term when it came to Hermione's attack at McLaggen's hands. Molly said that the entire McLaggen family had always been high and mighty pompous rubbish, and that their son, therefore, given his actions towards Hermione, was no better.

"I'm so sorry, dear," Molly said softly to Hermione on their fourth night there—which just so happened to be Christmas Eve, "that I believed one word that evil viper wrote about you during your fourth-year."

"Rita Skeeter, you mean?" Hermione asked.

Molly nodded, putting together Charlie's jumper, which she was due to send through the Floo the following morning; Harry detected the telltale dragon stitched upon its front. She had worked tirelessly on cooking massive meals that night, which was a traditional roast, and preparing tomorrow's dinner, which was to be a goose, and had managed to have plenty of time to stitch up all the various jumpers and things she wanted to provide for the family, plus Harry, Hermione, and Draco.

"Vile woman," Fred agreed, from where he was sitting in a chair beside the fire, Alicia Spinnet in his arms.

"Bottle blonde if I ever saw one," George said with a nod, in the chair opposite Fred, and his steady girlfriend, Angelina Johnson, cuddled up beside him, pressed a rather sweet and innocent kiss onto his cheek.

"She was running like mad after the third task," Bill said solemnly, Fleur practically on his lap, upon one of the couches in the room.

"All she wanted was to get pictures of poor Cedric Diggory," Fleur said quietly, turning her head to rest upon Bill's shoulder.

"She likes making up stories," Ron said, his tone filled with disgust, from where he sat, arms wrapped around Hermione, beside Molly.

"I, of course, seemed to be the star of the show," Harry muttered, leaning against the couch in front of Ron and Hermione, and shook his head. "Not that I wanted any of it, of course..."

"Of course not," Ginny replied, her tone an encouraging one; she was sitting draped across Draco's lap, beside Bill and Fleur, on the couch across the room.

"She was constantly asking anyone who was spotted seen talking with Harry for quotes," Draco put in, shuddering in revulsion. "I'll admit, I said some less-than-savory things. However, I'm just pleased that they never made it to print..."

"Nasty woman," Arthur said, from where he sat beside Molly. "Fudge could never tolerate her running about the ministry in those tap-tapping shoes of hers, and that's saying something, considering all the other things that man tolerated."