Rosabella Black |Daughter of Sirius Black| (Book 6)

The Slug Club

Rosabella's Point of View:
Harry and I spent a lot of the last week of the holidays pondering the meaning of Malfoy's behavior in Knockturn Alley. What disturbed us the most was the satisfied look on Malfoy's face as he had left the shop. Nothing that made Malfoy look that happy could be good news. To Harry's annoyance, neither Ron nor Hermione seemed quite as curious about Malfoy's activities as we were or at least, they seemed to get bored of discussing it after a few days.
    "Yes, I've already agreed it was fishy, Harry. But haven't we agreed there could be a lot of explanations?" Hermione said a little impatiently, sitting on the windowsill in Fred and George's room with her feet up on one of the cardboard boxes and had only grudgingly looked up from her new copy of Advanced Rune Translation.
    "Maybe he's broken his Hand of Glory. Remember that shriveled-up arm Malfoy had?" Ron said vaguely, as he attempted to straighten his broomstick's bent tail twigs.
    "But what about when he said, 'Don't forget to keep that one safe'?" Harry asked Harry for the umpteenth time.
   "That sounded to me like Borgin's got another one of the broken objects, and Malfoy wants both." I said, agreeing with Harry.
I have a really bad feeling about all of this. I sat on the floor next to Harry with Roseanna in my lap. I held one of her toys for her to chew on because it helped with her teething. Winter lay next to me.
   "You reckon?" Ron said, now trying to scrape some dirt off his broom handle.
   "Yeah, I do." I said.
   "Malfoy's father's in Azkaban. Don't you think Malfoy'd like revenge?" Harry said when neither Ron nor Hermione answered.
Ron looked up, blinking.
    "Malfoy, revenge? What can he do about it?" Ron said.
    "That's my point, I don't know! But he's up to something and I think we should take it seriously. His father's a Death Eater and-" Harry said frustrated.
Harry suddenly broke off, his eyes fixed on the window behind Hermione, his mouth open. A startling thought had just occurred to him.
   "Harry?" I said, anxiously.
   "What's wrong?" Hermione said also anxious.
   "Your scar's not hurting again, is it?" Ron asked nervously.
  "He's a Death Eater." Harry said slowly.
  "He's replaced his father as a Death Eater!" Harry said more urgently.
My eyes widened as I considered this possibility but it seemed unlikely.
There was a silence. Then Ron erupted in laughter.
    "Malfoy? He's sixteen, Harry! You think You - Know - Who would let Malfoy join?" Ron said in disbelief.
   "It seems very unlikely, Harry." Hermione said in a repressive sort of voice.
    "What makes you think -?" I asked.
    "In Madam Malkin's. She didn't touch him, but he yelled and jerked his arm away from her when she went to roll up his sleeve. It was his left arm. He's been branded with the Dark Mark."
Ron and Hermione looked at each other, but I stared at Harry. I couldn't shake the feeling that this what we saw was more then what it seemed.
   "Well. . ." Ron said, sounding thoroughly unconvinced.
   "I think he just wanted to get out of there, Harry." Hermione said.
   "He showed Borgin something we couldn't see. Something that seriously scared Borgin. It was the Mark, I know it - he was showing Borgin who he was dealing with, you saw how seriously Borgin took him!" Harry pressed on stubbornly.
Ron and Hermione exchanged another look.
   "I'm not sure, Harry. . ." Hermione said.
   "Yeah, I still don't reckon You - Know - Who would let Malfoy join. . ."
    "Did you forget Pettigrew is a Death Eater? He doesn't offer much magic wise but he had something Voldemort needed." I pointed out.
    "Ro, don't encourage him." Hermione sighed.
    "Come on, Ro, what could Malfoy offer You - Know - Who?" Ron said.
     "Don't underestimate people. Dad underestimating Pettigrew led to him spending twelve years in Azkaban." I insisted.
Hermione and Ron still looked unconvinced.
Annoyed, Harry snatched up a pile of filthy Quidditch robes and left the room. I followed him as Roseanna was due a feed. Winter walked next to me. Mrs. Weasley had been urging us for days not to leave our washing and packing until the last moment. I washed all my clothes yesterday. On the landing we bumped into Ginny, who was returning to her room carrying a pile of freshly laundered clothes.
   "I wouldn't go in the kitchen just now. There's a lot of Phlegm around." Ginny warned us.
   "I'll be careful not to slip in it." I said, grinning.
Sure enough, when Harry and I entered the kitchen it was to find Fleur sitting at the kitchen table, in full flow about plans for her wedding to Bill, while Mrs. Weasley kept watch over a pile of self - peeling sprouts, looking bad - tempered.
   ". . . Bill and I 'ave almost decided on only two bridesmaids, Ginny and Gabrielle will look very sweet togezzer. I am theenking of dressing zem in pale gold - pink would of course be 'orrible with Ginny's 'air -"
   "Ah, Harry, Rosabella!" said Mrs. Weasley loudly, cutting across Fleur's monologue as I placed Roseanna in her travel cot so I could prepare a bottle.   
   "Good, I wanted to explain about the security arrangements for the journey to Hogwarts tomorrow. We've got Ministry cars again, and there will be Aurors waiting at the station -" Mrs Weasley said.
   "Is Tonks going to be there?" Harry asked Harry, handing over his Quidditch things as I prepared the bottle.
    "No, I don't think so, she's been stationed somewhere else from what Arthur said." Mrs Weasley said.
  "She has let 'erself go, zat Tonks. A big mistake if you ask –" Fleur mused, examining her own stunning reflection in the back of a teaspoon.
    "Well, being an Auror is a lot of work so she can't spend all day worrying about how she looks!' I snapped, glaring at Fleur.
I didn't know what was going on with Tonks but she wasn't her usual self.
   "Yes, thank you. You'd better get on, Harry, I want the trunks ready tonight, if possible, so we don't have the usual last - minute scramble. I'll feed Roseanna, Rosabella, you go and make sure all your stuff is ready." Mrs. Weasley tartly, cutting across Fleur again.
Michael and I were spending the night at the Burrow so we could go to Kings Cross with them.