𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗱 𝗹𝗮𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗻, cedric diggory

˗ˋ 08

CHAPTER EIGHT
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-: seventh year :-

── IN WHICH THEY'RE SUMMONED TO THE DRAWING ROOM

. . .

"Wake up you lazy lump." The words were greeted by various punches, and Rosie instantly went into defence mode, pulling her arms and the covers over her head, swearing rather profusely. Of course, it were the twins waking her up, but why they were doing it so early in the morning she had no idea. "And yes it's early, but you have to get your arse up before Ron eats all the breakfast food."

"It's like you can read my thoughts." Rosie whined, feeling the covers being pulled off her face and was greeted by the sight of Fred and George peering over her. "You're both absolute dickheads, by the way."

"Aw, I love it when she calls us pet names." Fred grinned, and Rosie rubbed her eyes, looking between each twin, who were smirking back down at her. "You ready Georgie?" 

"Ready Fred." And with absolutely no other words of warning, Rosie was dragged up from the bed, the duvet falling completely off of her. She was set on her feet, one of the twin's hands wavering by her legs as she wobbled slightly, gaining her balance not long after. 

"We'll leave you to get changed. Mum said that breakfast is down in the kitchen, so we'll be down there." George said, the twins heading towards the door.

"Then we're off to the drawing room; she's found a neest of dead puffskeins under the sofa and there's apparently a shit ton more of doxies than she originally thought." Fred continued, before they left the room, door swinging behind them.

"How insightful." Rosie sighed to herself, searching through the closet and pulling out a pair of jeans, as well as a dark sweater, deciding it would be best to just not wear anything too fancy if they were just getting rid of doxies all day. 

She made her way down to the kitchen, sitting with Fred and George as they talked with her dad for a bit, confirming with him that she wasn't planning on visiting St. Mungos that day, but probably tomorrow or the day after that.

After finishing eating quickly, they were called up to the drawing room, where they were soon equipped with cloths to cover their mouths with, and a bottle of doxycide. 

The drawing room was rather nice, despite the condition it was in - and if it was fixed up, Rosie was sure it would look marvellous. It was a long, high-ceilinged room on the first floor with olive-green walls covered in dirty tapestries. The carpet exhaled little clouds of dust every time someone put their foot on it and the long, moss-green velvet curtains were buzzing as though swarming with invisible bees.

And these curtains were their focus, the invisible bees being the doxies. Ron and Harry soon entered, and were passed cloths and bottles of the black liquid like the rest of them. Molly was having yet another go at the utterly useless Kreacher, and Hermione was trying to argue against her words when Sirius joined them.

"You'd be surprised what Kreacher can manage when he wants to, Hermione," He said, having had just entered the room carrying a bloodstained bag of what appeared to be dead rats. "I've just been feeding Buckbeak," he added, in reply to Harry's inquiring look. "I keep him upstairs in my mother's bedroom. Anyway... this writing desk.."

He dropped the bag of rats onto an armchair, then bent over to examine the shaking locked cabinet. "Well, Molly, I'm pretty sure this is a boggart," Sirius continued,peering through the keyhole, "but perhaps we ought to let Mad-Eye have a shifty at it before we let it out — knowing my mother it could be something much worse."

A loud, clanging bell sounded from downstairs, followed at once by the cacophony of screams and wails that had been triggered the previous night by Tonks knocking over the umbrella stand.

The group listened as Sirius rushed out of the room, saying something to Kingsley Shacklebolt before Mrs Weasley asked Harry to close the door. "Right, you lot, you need to be careful, because doxies bite and their teeth are poisonous. I've got a bottle of antidote here, but I'd rather nobody needed it." Mrs Weasley straightened up from where she was peering at a copy of Gilderoy Lockhart's Guide to Household Pest.

She straightened up, positioned herself squarely in front ofthe curtains, and beckoned them all forward. "When I say the word, start spraying immediately," she said."They'll come flying out at us, I expect, but it says on the sprays one good squirt will paralyze them. When they're immobilized, just throw them in this bucket."

Clouds of doxies flew out of the curtains on Mrs Weasley's command, sprays of doxycide beckoning them out. "Get as many as you can." The girl made sure to mumble to Fred and George. "Doxy venom is something I've been wanting to experiement with - it'll work for the Skiving Snackboxes."

"Right you are." Fred chirped, taking a doxy between his fingers, Mrs Weasley telling him off for not spraying it and chucking it in the bucket sooner. He sprayed it with the doxycide and pocketed it, George explaining to a rather mystified Harry what their plans were with it.

Rosie had quite a bit of respect for Harry - she always had. But when he gave the twins money for their shop, it seemed so generous of him - and gave them a great start.

Which was just what they needed to get going.

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