"Who d'you suppose'll be the next Defense Against the Dark Arts professor?" George asked, staring the Daily Prophet. Currently, Fred and George were sitting at the table in their flat above the shop, slowly eating their dinner. They had lost track over the amount of articles that had been released about You-Know-Who's return, how the Ministry was finally admitting Harry Potter was not lying all this time. At this moment, George was reading about the former High Inquisitor, who had been found after a centaur attack. "Apparently, Umbridge has returned to the Ministry."
"Seems they're meant for each other," murmured Fred under his breath.
"A lot of people are going to be scared," George continued. "Says here that Muggles are dying because of this."
"I have an idea," Fred said. "Been thinking about it, Georgie. What if we...helped the Ministry out?"
"That doesn't seem like a kind hearted thing that we would do," George answered. "Ministry's just a load of prats."
"Yeah, but you heard what Dad was saying last night. Most of the Ministry can't even do a decent Shield Charm. We got those Headless Hats, right? What if-"
"Shield Hats?" George continued, thoughtfully. "Huh. There's an idea."
"We could sell them to the Ministry, help them out a little." George nodded, pulled a piece of parchment out, and began planning what the Shield Hats would look like. Since the night at the Ministry, the Weasleys had been waiting for Percy to return. Or to at least admit he was wrong. But, that didn't seem to be happening. Percy was too proud to admit that he was wrong, he hadn't even spoken to the Weasleys in the following weeks.
"Ready for tomorrow?" Fred asked George. He nodded. They had waited so long for this opportunity, for the time where they would finally open their own shop. It seemed a little surreal to them. After everything, they were finally doing what they wanted to with their lives.
Lee Jordan was working for them for the time being. He was currently trying for a position as the Chudley Cannons' commentator. Yet, in the meantime, he was working for Fred and George and flirting quite terribly with Verity. Verity was a nice girl and Fred and George were glad that she was willing to work for them. Last week, she had been helping them organize and stock the shelves in anticipation for the grand opening. They tried numerous pranks out on her and she seemed completely unfazed by it all. She told them that she had twelve siblings, she was used to strange things happening around her.
They decided, then, that she was going to do just fine at Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes.
"Granger coming, right?"
"She said she would," Fred told him. He pushed his food around with his fork. The Hogwarts Express was chugging along to King's Cross as they spoke. Tomorrow, Hogwarts students would flood the streets of Diagon Alley.
Fred would be lying if he said he wasn't nervous because he was. He was extremely nervous. Everything he wanted was going to happen tomorrow. He briefly worried that no one would come to their grand opening, but stopped that train of thought quickly. No, he wasn't terribly worried that no one would come to their store. Actually, he was worried that his parents still wouldn't be proud of him and George after tomorrow. That they would still see this as a waste of their time and money.
Sleeping that night was hard for him. He kept thinking through the next day and everything that it would entail. He woke up early and spent most of his time waiting for the grand opening at eleven.
Hermione was there, like she had promised. Her parents were standing behind her, looking slightly disgruntled. Fred made a note to ask her about that later. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were in the crowd, equal looks of worry plastered on their faces.
The ceremony went quickly. Fred and George simultaneously cut the red tape, officially opening Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes.
While their customers started looking around their products, Fred made his way over to where Hermione was standing with her parents. Her eyes were trained on the Daydream Charms. "Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Granger," Fred greeted them. "Thank you all for coming."
"This really is extraordinary magic," Hermione said in awe. Fred smiled.
"For that, Granger, you can have that for free." Mr. Weasley made his way over to the Grangers. Whenever Mr. Weasley was in the company of Muggles, he had a habit of asking as many questions about the Muggle world as possible. Fred hoped that Mr. and Mrs. Granger weren't getting annoyed with his parents.
Seizing the opportunity, Fred turned to Hermione. "Is everything okay?" he asked her. She sighed, her eyes trained on the products, refusing to look him in the eye.
"My parents aren't exactly happy with everything that's been happening at Hogwarts," she told him quietly. "I made the mistake of telling them everything last night."
"Not too happy with You-Know-Who being back?" Hermione nodded.
"They don't want me going back to Hogwarts next year." Fred was startled. He knew that it was going to be hard for parents to send their children to Hogwarts, what with You-Know-Who out and all. But Fred honestly couldn't think of a safer place than Hogwarts. Besides, Ron and Harry wouldn't last a day without Hermione Granger. "I'm sure I'll be able to talk them around," she continued, "they didn't understand why I wanted to come today either."
"You didn't tell them your incredibly attractive boyfriend was opening his shop today?" he smirked.
"They were more wondering why I was going out with the boy who exploded a toilet for the sole purpose of sending the toilet seat to his little sister." Fred smiled, pressed a kiss to her cheek, and told her he would try to see her later. He had to see to the ever growing crowd in the store.
-----
Stupid Potter, Malfoy seethed. It was all stupid Potter's fault. His father was sent to Azkaban and it was all Harry Potter's fault. Malfoy didn't know the specifics of what had happened in the Ministry that night, but he knew it was all Potter's fault.
Oh, the Dark Lord was so angry with the Malfoy family for Lucius' failure! If only they had succeeded in the Ministry that night, everything would be alright. But Lucius had failed, and it was only a matter of time before the Dark Lord punished them. Draco had heard his mother tell Severus that Lucius was better placed in Azkaban then in Malfoy Manor. The Dark Lord was going to humiliate them and then dispose of them because he would no longer have need of them.
Every day, Draco lived in fear. He wasn't sure what was going to happen to himself or his mother. That was until the Dark Lord approached him one night at the beginning of July. He had a job for Draco, a job that only Draco could do. He was intrigued, to say the least. This was his opportunity to prove himself, to redeem his family in the sight of the Dark Lord. He just had to complete the task.
All he had to do was find a way to bring Death Eaters into Hogwarts. He was sure it wouldn't be terribly hard to find a way to do this. He could do it.
But then the Dark Lord asked Draco to do something that startled the sixteen-year-old boy. He had to kill Professor Dumbledore. Certainly, he had never particularly cared for the old man. He was always favoring the Gryffindors, especially Potter. He had wanted to rid the school of Dumbledore. But he had never once considered murdering another human being, much less a great wizard like Albus Dumbledore.
But these were things he would not voice aloud to the Dark Lord. Instead, he nodded and said he would do as he was asked. He made the choice, like his father, to follow the Dark Lord. He had no other choice, not really. He had fix Lucius' failures. And this was a great honor that the Dark Lord was bestowing on him. He could have had his pick of students at Hogwarts to help him, but the Dark Lord had chosen Draco Malfoy.
Yes, he could do this. He could find a way for Death Eaters to enter Hogwarts. He could find a way to kill Albus Dumbledore. How hard could it be really?
Excitement flooded Draco the day that he received his Dark Mark. He hadn't anticipated the searing pain the came from his left arm afterwards, so painful that he had passed out. But it was okay, really. He was a Death Eater officially.
"Be grateful, Draco," Bellatrix had said, beaming with pride. "This is an honor not many your age receive." That was how Draco chose to see it. His job was an honor. He ignored the fear that creeped inside of him at seeing the Mark. He ignored the doubts he had because of his decision. He couldn't think of that now. He had a job to do.
-----
Remus Lupin was sitting at a table in a small flat. He didn't want to be in Grimmauld Place anymore than he had to these days. He'd finally gotten his best friend back, only to have him disappear from his life again. I should be used to the loneliness by now, he thought to himself morbidly.
There wasn't a funeral for Sirius. There couldn't have been. At an Order meeting, the day following the attack at the Ministry, Mad-Eye said a few words for his friend. Remus wanted Bellatrix to pay for what she had done to her own cousin. But going after her now wouldn't solve anything. Revenge never solved anything.
It was after the meeting that Nymphadora Tonks confessed her feelings for Remus. Her hair was vibrantly pink that day, a silly color that he seemed to love. He stared at her for a few moments, trying to figure out if he was still dreaming or not. She looked at him expectantly, like she knew of his favor towards her. Like she expected him to like her back. But he couldn't do as Sirius had told him. He couldn't be with such a young, lovely girl. He would only destroy her in the end.
So in response to her proclamation, he said, "I'm too...old, too poor...too dangerous for you, Tonks," he stated. He had turned to leave the room at that, but she grabbed his arm to hold him back for a moment.
"You're not what you think, you're really not that much older than me. Remus, I know-"
"There's nothing more to say, Tonks," he interrupted. He couldn't hear her tell him what he was feeling, he already knew it. And it was because he care for Nymphadora Tonks that he told her to forget about him. He was doing her a favor. She deserved a young, strong, rich man. That is not something he was. He couldn't give her anything.
------
Narcissa Malfoy was worried. She was always worrying, but that she decided was the job of a mother, to always be worrying over her son. She was in favor of the job the Dark Lord had given her son. It was such a dark order to give a teenaged boy. It was going to change her son forever, she knew it.
Narcissa had always wanted more children. She and Lucius had tried for a while, but it seemed they were only going to blessed with Draco. As he was their only son, and he was going inherit everything the Malfoys had, Lucius pressured him more than he should have. Narcissa wished she had stopped it when she could have. She blamed herself and Lucius for Draco consenting to do this dark work.
And there was nothing she could do to stop it. She wished desperately that she could. She wished that the Dark Lord had given her the job instead. She would have done it gladly if she had known she would be sparing her son. But the Dark Lord wanted revenge on Lucius for his failure. So, he was setting Draco up for the same failure. He had already chosen to humiliate the Malfoys and he was laughing at their feeble attempts at redeeming themselves.
"What an honor, Cissy," Bellatrix kept saying. "We should all be grateful." But Narcissa was not grateful. She and her husband had doomed their son. And what if the Dark Lord did not win this coming war? The Potter boy had defeated him before, what if he did it again? What then? What kind of life had they just left for their son? He would forever be branded as a follower of the Dark Lord.
She thought for a moment what would happen if Draco ended up in Azkaban because of all of this. No, she was not grateful for the humiliation that the Dark Lord had in store for the Malfoys.
Draco Malfoy was not a murderer. He was going to fail. And the Dark Lord would kill him for his insolence.
But how could she help him when he was at Hogwarts? She certainly couldn't write him about it when he was at school. His letters could be intercepted and he would be in even more trouble than before. But what could she do?
Severus. Severus would be in the castle and he was Draco's godfather. Perhaps he could help Draco. He could guide him, help him when he inevitably failed. He could save her son. Yes. She would ask Severus Snape to help them. It was perfect.
-----
"Harry doesn't seem as emotional as he did last summer," Fred commented to Hermione the night before everyone would return to Hogwarts. They were sitting alone, staring at the lake on the edge of the Weasley property.
It had taken a while to convince Hermione's parents to let her return to Hogwarts. Even Fred had arrived to tell them that Ron and Harry wouldn't be able to survive the year without her. He meant that mostly for academic purposes, but he supposed they wouldn't be able to live without her, either.
"He wasn't attacked by dementors this year," she returned. Suddenly, she chuckled a little. Fred looked at her questioningly. "You know when we disappeared the other day in Diagon Alley?" Fred nodded. "Well, we were following Draco Malfoy." Fred scrunched his in disgust.
"Why would you do that?" said Fred.
"Because he was acting suspiciously. Anyway, he went into this shop in Knockturn Alley. And he was rubbing his left arm. So, Harry now thinks that Draco Malfoy is a Death Eater."
"Can sixth years do that? Is there an age limit or something?" Fred said, chuckling a little.
"I'm not sure. But honestly, why would Voldemort choose Malfoy to be a Death Eater? It doesn't make any sense. He couldn't very well be doing anything for him while going to class." Fred thought for a moment.
"Well, I mean, if he wanted someone to help him get inside the castle, a student would be the best option." Hermione shook her head.
"Fred, why would Voldemort need to get into Hogwarts?"
"Why wouldn't he?" Fred returned, sitting up slightly. This was not the conversation he wanted to be having with her before she left for school. "Dumbledore's always going to be there to stop him, right? He'd probably want to get rid of Dumbledore to carry on with his plans and that's not to mention Harry."
"But why Malfoy? If anything, he would choose a professor, someone who's not a child."
"I don't think You-Know-Who cares for children more than he does anyone else, Hermione. He just hates everyone."
Hermione said nothing more on the topic. She didn't agree with Fred. She didn't think that Voldemort would choose Malfoy, of all people, to help Death Eaters into the school. Harry was just being paranoid. She sighed.
"Let's talk about something else," she told him. "Like how much you're going to right me this term." He smirked.
"Every day, Granger," he murmured, pressing his lips to her temple. "Every day." And he didn't say it explicitly. But he knew he was going to miss Hermione. He didn't want her to go to school, but he knew better than telling her not to go. But Fred Weasley was going to miss Hermione Granger. And he could only hope that nothing bad would happen to her this year.
But then again, she was friends with Harry Potter.