Time seemed to move differently at the Burrow than it did in Remus Lupin's home. Vera had decided that it was neither good nor bad, but it eventually ended with Vera sitting on a cot in Ginny's room, their voices nothing more than low whispers as the moon traced through the sky. Vera could not say that she was usually a very talkative person, but Ginny was the kind of conversationalist that could make even the most recluse introvert into a good friend within minutes.
"What house do you think you'll be in?" Ginny asked after a pause in the conversation.
"I don't really know," Vera admitted. "I don't really know how the houses work."
Ginny straightened with visible excitement. "Okay, well, there's four houses, Gryffindor- that's the one my whole family is in- is all about, bravery, chivalry, courage, that kind of stuff. There's a lot of daredevils in Gryffindor, but there's also some people that have sort of an inner strength, rather than a more outward one." Vera nodded as Ginny continued.
"Then there's Ravenclaw- that's the smart ones, wit, cleverness, books, that sort of thing. Though, they're not all like amazing at school, that's just a stereotype, they actually put in the least amount of effort because they know they can pass. There's Hufflepuff, which everyone likes to say they suck because it's where they stick you if you don't fit in anywhere else, but there's a familial element of Hufflepuff that you don't really get with the rest of the houses. They're incredibly loyal and caring people," Ginny paused, clearly unsure of how to phrase her next words. "And then there's Slytherin."
"Slytherin?" Vera spoke up to ask. "Is that bad?"
"Yes, and no," Ginny said slowly. "Slytherin has a reputation, one that's sort of self-perpetuating, but the traits itself associates aren't bad at all. Ambition, cunning, it's all about making the world your bitch."
Vera stifled a laugh, though an uneasy feeling entered her stomach. "What do you mean by reputation?"
"Well, a lot of the people who've come out of there are shite," Ginny said bluntly. "Like Lord Voldemort."
"Oh," Vera replied softly.
"Can I braid your hair?" Ginny asked suddenly, the topic of conversation changing quickly. "Bill used to let me do his when I was little but he's off living with his girlfriend now and Mum says I can't anymore."
"Okay," Vera agreed, though it was with some nerves. She had not had someone braid her hair since she was six and it had been her mother doing it. The more and more time that Vera spent with Ginny Weasley, the more and more she began to compare herself to that little girl, the little girl she had once been, though she hadn't accepted that fact in a long time.
Ginny's slender fingers brushed her hairline at her forehead as she gathered pieces of hair. Vera tensed instinctively as she felt the girl's delicate touch, and then softened and Ginny's hand continued to move slowly and delicately, like a spider weaving a web of lace. She found her eyes dropping shut pleasantly as the ginger's hands would continually brush against her ear or her neck, her fingers grazing Vera's scalp gently every so often.
Vera did not like to be touched. In fact, she was unsure as to why she even agreed to let Ginny braid her hair in the first place. Perhaps it was the part of her that still desperately missed her mother, even though she had very few memories of the woman. But there was something about Ginny that made the touch soothing rather than it being perceived as a threat, like Vera had anticipated.
"My mother used to sing to me," Vera said softly, eyes still closed as Ginny weaved Vera's hair into two plaits. "When she braided my hair."
Ginny was silent for a moment. "She sounds like a lovely woman," she finally said, clearly not wanting to tread on Vera's toes and ask what had happened to her mother, but still curious.
But for once, Vera wasn't paying attention to her surroundings.
"Vera, you messed up your hair again, baby," Ivan smiled as he ruffled his daughter's already messy hair. The young girl giggled. "Let's take you to your мама, ok?"
She ran on wobbly legs into the arms of her mother, who smiled fondly and shook her head at her daughter, who climbed into her lap, ready to have her hair braided.
"Малышонок, what did you do to your hair?" Annika sighed slightly, inspecting the tangled nest that had been glassy and smooth just that morning.
"It was play time, Мама," Vera said, as though that explained everything. "Sing the song, Мама, пожалуйста, Мама."
"красивая лилия выросла
против снегу
однажды ты вернешься домой
но пока ты должен цвести в одиночестве," Annika sang in her mother tongue as she brushed out her daughters hair. Unlike most girls her age, Vera never cried while she had her hair brushed, she never fussed or wiggled- as long as Annika sang the song.
"In English now!" Vera giggled, pleased. Annika smiled fondly.
"Pretty lily rose
up against the snow
one day you will return home
but for now you must bloom alone," Annika sang once more, finishing the braid off with an elastic. She shared a glance with her husband. Their daughter did not really know what the song was about she did not know, nor did they, how her life would come to play by the song later in her life.
"Vera?" Ginny asked softly. Vera blinked, a hand reaching up to feel for a braid- she found two instead. "I've been done for three minutes."
"Sorry, I was just..." Vera trailed off. "I must be tired, I think I fell asleep."
"Goodnight, then," Ginny said, grinning at the girl now that she knew Vera was okay. "Mum's making a massive breakfast tomorrow, Bill's coming over, but I'll make sure they don't wake you up too early."
"Thank you," Vera said, offering a smile that dropped immediately as Ginny turned away. She lay back on her pillow, studying the glow in the dark stickers that adorned Ginny's ceiling. She wasn't tired- in fact she was sure it was impossible to sleep.
Thoughts of her mother and father plagued her mind, and they could not do so without them becoming thoughts of how they died, and him. The sickly taste of revenge settled in her mouth again.
If she was a flower, he would be the one to feel her thorns.
a/n: sorry for not updating in forever, I've had a pretty bad creative block but I said I would so indeed I did! hope you enjoyed the ginny + Vera bonding and a little look into how Vera feels about her parents.
YOU ARE READING
SCREAM | ginny w.
Fanfictionat first, she lived every moment of her life like her last was the moment before. she was caught up in her own world, her own life. she was a soldier, not a student. a fighter, not a lover. a weapon, not a person. and then she met ginny weasley. o...
