That Way

Chapter Eight You Look Good, Thanks To Me

 "I really don't blame you. It must have been terrible." Fred consoles.

I'm at the Burrow, surrounded by my favourite people at dinner. The twins, Molly, Mr. Weasley, Harry, Hermione, Ginny, Ron, and also Percy. Ron had read the article about my mother being sent to Azkaban, and I confessed she'd been living in Malfoy manor. I expected to be thrown out and would have to sulk back to the manor, possibly find new friends on the train.

Aunt Narcissa took care of me the rest of the summer, but I still fought her into letting me go to the Burrow for the last few weeks like my mum promised. My aunt doesn't know I promised my mum that I would stay next summer, so if things go well, I'll be back to the Burrow next summer for longer. Draco was sad to bid me goodbye, but I told him he should just keep away from Sleekeasy's and he'd be fine.

Surprisingly, when I got to the Burrow this afternoon, nobody immediately jumped on me for the news of my mother being caught. Everything was running according to plan, until Ron brought it up at dinner. I was very silent, before admitting that my mum had been at the manor, and that I didn't know if I could do anything. It wasn't exactly a holiday to live with her either. Everyone was silent again, and I thought Molly was going to say something, so I braced for the worst but instead, Fred had spoken up.

"Thank you, Freddie." I whisper, staring intently at my lap.

"No one blames you dear, you're just a child." Molly assures me, and I glance up to see her reassuring smile. Hermione's smile mirrors Molly's, and the corner of my mouth twitches upwards.

~~~~

I clutch my stomach, scared I'll throw up after Mrs. Weasley's meal combined with the twins' jokes.

"Please stop—" I wheeze, leaning on George's shoulder. George grabs my side and starts tickling me.

"Nevah!" The twins say in unison as I gasp for air. George releases me and I crawl over to Fred, still wheezing.

I rest my head on his thigh, smiling. "I missed you two so much." I say, never getting tired of assuring them that.

"We missed you too." Fred smiles down at me, and I grin, closing my eyes for a moment. If I can just rest my eyes for a second—

~~~~

"Good morning, Dabria." Ginny's voice jolts me awake, and I spit my hair out of my mouth.

"Morning, Ginny." My voice is raspy and I attempt to clear my throat. "Do you have a reason for waking me up?" I snatch a glass of water off her nightstand and begin greedily gulping it down.

"Yes, silly, it's Harry's birthday, and mum needs me, Hermione's, and your help to finish setting up." She smiles, and I smirk at her. She has a little fancy for the Chosen One, and I already established I love teasing my friends.

"Alright, alright, I'm up." I toss my covers aside and head into the bathroom to freshen up. Sliding on jeans and a tank top, I snatch George's jumper last second, unsure about my bare skin. I head into the kitchen, and Mrs. Weasley turns and smiles at me.

"Oh, Dabria, thank you for helping—" she cuts herself off and glances at my jumper.

"Oh!" I exclaim, blushing a colour that rivals Ron's jumper shade.

A smile creeps across her face, signs of disappointment absent. "Are you and Georgie...?" She asks, grinning widely.

"No! No, no, I—" I stutter, blushing even darker. "Those two are my best mates, it's nothing like that, Mrs. Weasley, I assure you." I stammer, yanking the sleeves that have seemingly shortened due to my growth.