January 7th, 1994
The Great Hall was full and bustling as the first school day of 1994 commenced. Persephone, who was dressed in her Hufflepuff robes, made her way through the crowds of excited students, eyes searching for a familiar face along her table. Eventually realising none of her friends had made it down for breakfast yet, she sat down by herself and poured herself a cup of her favourite tea. Taking a sip of the piping hot chamomile, she glanced up at the staff table, waving at her father who was caught in conversation with Professor Flitwick.
The first week of January had been rather uneventful, to say the least. Persephone had spent it mostly lying in bed with Klara whilst they ate half their body weight cauldron cakes, sneaking into hidden corridors with Fred, sneaking out of said corridors and then running back in them in order to avoid Cedric. The last was unusually easy, as he was avoiding her as well.
Tipping the contents of some cereal into a bowl, and pouring some milk on top from a larger silver goblet, Persephone began to flip through The Daily Prophet. Opening onto the second page, she grimaced as the deranged face of Sirius Black stared back at her. Feeling a shiver run down her spine at the sight of him, she turned the page immediately, coming instead onto a full page advert for Madame Puddifoot's Valentines Day Afternoon Tea.
"Hi Persi." said a figure as they sat down next to the girl.
Looking over, Persephone was faced with the smiling face of Neville Longbotttom. "Hi Neville! How were your holidays?"
Neville looked up with a straight lipped grin, "Gran made me go with her to Uncle Algie's house for a week over Christmas, which was terribly uneventful, but she told me to say hi to you and Remus."
Persephone smiled, and instinctively rose her hand to her cheek with the mention of Augusta Longbottom. Ever since she was a toddler, Mrs Longbottom had tightly squeezed her cheeks at the sight of her.
"Tell her that we say hi as well, and that we will come visit St Mungo's next break."
Neville nodded sadly, and she gripped his hand loosely in order to comfort him.
"I'm okay," he assured her with a poor attempt at a smile, "I was just coming over to ask if you could help me quickly with Valarian? Sprout showed me the essay you had written on it in third year and said you might be able to help me with mine?"
Persephone nodded as she took the parchment from his hand that listed the details regarding the essay. "That shouldn't be a problem, i'm doing a Herbology essay tonight anyway, so ill be in the library after dinner studying if you wanted to join?"
"Nerds." muttered Fred, as he slipped in beside Persephone at the Hufflepuff table.
Leaning across so he had full access to her breakfast, he scooped up a spoonful of her CheeriOwl cereal, causing her hand to rise up and slap his lightly with a frown.
"Ignore him Neville, i'll see you later."
With a blush and a quick ramble of a goodbye, the short Gryffindor half ran - half shuffled to a seat at the Gryffindor table.
"That was your fault" mentioned Persi in a sing song voice, staring at Fred as he spread his toast with a thick layer of butter and raspberry jam.
He grunted, not looking up from his thick slice of sourdough. Clearly not a morning person.
Fred glanced up, his puffy and still sleepy eyes looking into her own awake ones, "We have defence with your Dad first, which should be good, he was banging around the common room at 3am looking for something for the lesson."
She nodded, before taking another mouthful of her cereal. "Oh yeah he was looking for a Boggart, he thinks he needs to do it for all the classes as our past few teachers haven't exactly been the most skilled in teaching defensive magic"
Fred scoffed, "He isn't wrong."
The pair quickly finished up their breakfast, chatting quietly about the day ahead of them as they stay sat at the long Hufflepuff table.
"Why is your father staring at us" whispered Fred, not taking his attention away from the drops of pumpkin juice that he was swirling around in his cup.
"He isn't staring at us" murmured Persephone, but sure enough when she looked up, her father was looking down at them from the staff table. As he noticed her gaze, he pushed back his seat and stood to his feet. With a wave of goodbye down the staff table, he began to make his away down the staff table and down the side of the Hufflepuff table.
"Now look what you've done, he's coming towards us."
Persephone slapped Fred's arm. hardly this time, "Hey, that's my Dad you're talking about."
"The Dad that hates me"
"He doesn't hate you..."
Fred let out a fake laugh, putting the glass down to face his girlfriend. "Oh, so he just seriously dislikes me?"
Persephone giggled, leaning forward to kiss Fred on the cheek, "Yes, just that."
To be truthful, Remus didn't actually hate Fred, and liked him quite a lot. He admitted that over the first cup of tea that the pair exchanged together in the New Year. "I'm just being a dad" He had laughed, ignoring his daughters groans and pleads for him to act nice.
"Hello Persi" Greeted Lupin, kissing the top of her head lightly, he then turned and nodded in Fred's direction, "Mr Weasley."
"Hi Dad"
"Good Morning, Professor"
"Shall I be seeing you both in my class first period?" Questioned Lupin, leaning down to pick up Persephone's copy of the newspaper. Like her, he skipped the second page promptly.
The pair nodded, "I've just been told it's going to be a Boggart" said Fred.
"You have been told correctly." Lupin muttered, stopping at the same Valentine's day advert, "This looks interesting, doesn't it Fred."
Fred choked on his pumpkin juice, orange liquid dribbling down his chin as he nodded.
The professor scoffed as his daughter let out a loud laugh.
"Pathetic, Weasley" they both said.
+ + +
"Now, everybody repeat after me" directed Lupin, from his position at the front of the classroom. "Riddikulus"
"Riddikulus"
"Very well." praised Lupin. Behind him, stood a large and ornate wooden wardrobe, that was shaking and wobbling dangerously.
The students murmured nervously, exchanging whispers about what could be contained within the large cupboard. Fred and Persephone stood together towards the back of the class, staring at the shaking wardrobe. The fact they knew what was inside didn't effect the butterflies that seemed to be exploding in their tummies.
Persephone never knew what her greatest fear was, until she stood in front of the trunk or cupboard or whatever the Boggart was found in, and the doors flung open. Usually it was water, or He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, but it always changed. Having a Dad like her own, she had been learning defensive spells her whole life, and fighting off Boggarts was her father's favourite holiday assignment.
"What's your boggart?" whispered Persephone, leaning into Fred's shoulder curiously.
He glanced back at her curiously, sensing her nervousness. "It's when George doesn't recognise me, I just walk around him and he has no clue who I am. How about you, is it water?"
Persephone shrugged, "I'm not sure, it changes a lot."
Nodding understandingly, Fred gripped her hand, squeezing in their own little way of saying "I'm here for you."
She leaned against his shoulder, wrapping both her arms around one of his for support.
"Now, everyone in a line behind Lee! Quickly, quickly, no pushing!"
Students all ran to form a muddled line behind Lee Jordan, whose dark skin somehow had a greenish tinge of fear. Augustus, who was standing behind him, patted his shoulder in support with an awkward smile.
With a crackling of the vinyl record player, the sound of Elton John's Goodbye Yellow Brick Road began to echo through the spacious classroom.
"Jordan, you're up. Remember - Riddikulus!"
Lee stepped forward slowly, his left hand gripping his wand so hard Persephone thought it might snap in half.
Lupin flicked his wand at the large wardrobe, causing the doors to fling open with a cloud of dust. Out from the darkness, stepped one knobbly knee, followed by the green tinged body of a Banshee. Her floor length black and knotty hair trailed after her, spilling across the floor.
"Riddikulus!" cried Lee, pointing his wand at the Banshee fronting Boggart.
As the banshee took a final step towards Lee, she tripped over a long section of her hair, causing her to fall to the floor with a loud bang.
A chorus of laughs echoed around the classroom, encouraging Lee as he made his way back to the end of the line.
Klara, who was next, winced as the fallen banshee turned into a swarm of bats. Flapping around her, threatening to get stuck in her unruly brown hair.
Persephone screwed up her face in anticipation- Klara had always been scared of the little winged rats that constantly flew around the Hogwarts grounds.
With a croaky yell of the incantation, the mess of beady eyed bats became a bundle of black bouncing balloons that floated all over the classroom at once.
"Brilliant Klara!" called Lupin as he stood watching, lent against the large Grindylow tank.
The line dwindled slowly - the classroom filling with vampires, zombies, quicksand, and the occasional scream as He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named revealed himself.
It wasn't long before George stood in second in line, behind Kamaria who had just turned a dementor into a mannequin wearing a tight black party dress.
The laughter that ricocheted around the classroom quickly died down as George stepped forward, the standing mannequin transforming into a lanky red haired figure, laying face up, unmoving.
Fred.
Persephone felt a huge intake of breath as she gasped audibly. Instinctively, she grabbed Fred's arm, holding him close as she started at his dead, still body on the floor.
George stood, staring, unable to take his eyes from his twins pale skin or blue tinged lips.
Even though she was touching Fred, feeling his warm skin against hers and his breath on her head, she still stared, like George, transfixed on his body.
"George," whispered Lupin, as he stepped forward to help.
George, who still hadn't looked up, raised an arm, and took a deep breath.
"Ridikulus" he croaked, finally lifting his wand towards his 'brothers' unconscious body.
The figure on the floor, began to laugh viciously as he opened his eyes. Lifting a sleeve to his mouth, he wiped away the blue tint that tinged his lips.
"Only joking!" the boy exclaimed as he sat all the way up, "thought it would be a good laugh."
Persephone felt the feeling of concrete in her tummy go away as she watched 'Fred' make his way to his feet and prance around the room chanting "I got you, I got you, I got you".
"I think that's enough for today" called Lupin as he pushed the fake Fred back into the wardrobe.
The students rushed from the classroom, eager to move onto their lunch period.
Fred leaned into her ear, "Sometimes I think he wants to push the real me into a wardrobe and throw out the key."
Lupin, who was ushering out the last student, looked up at them with a smirk. "Only when you're touching my daughter, Weasley"
Fred, who has just looped his arm around Persi, quickly threw it off, stepping at least three steps away from her.
Lupin's smile grew wider, "better."
+ + +
lol
hi
it's been a while
um i don't know what to say for it HAHAHHAHAHA i've just had a lot on
i edited the story though and changed a few semi significant details so it's up to you if you wanna re-read
love u guys ily
add me on tiktok doe
@quibitch