Daughter of Black

Chapter 56- The Real World

V had started her healer apprenticeship under the head healer, Barnabas Waters, and was working a lot harder than she had anticipated. She didn't mind the hard work though and enjoyed seeing how everything she learnt in Hogwarts applied to the real world. It was like putting together a puzzle.

Barnabas and V had gotten along from the get go. He liked her very much and she really did remind him quite a bit of her mother, who was also a healer in training when he had known her. Both were exceptionally bright, especially when it came to Herbology and Potion making. He knew from the very first day he had made the right decision in taking V as an apprentice.

Barnabas was an old wizard, well into his eighties and in a way reminded V of Dumbledore. Though V learnt about all the things healers needed to know, her primary task was to take over his research in finding a cure for dragon pox. The more she learnt about his research, the more she became invested in it. He was so close to finding a cure, there just seemed to be something missing. 

V had been living with Sirius while she started her apprentice and the two had been getting along better than ever. If Sirius wanted to go outside, V would go with him, pretending to be his owner while in he strolled the streets in his animagus form. As for George and Fred, they had gotten into very big trouble as soon as they had gotten home, with both their parents being especially unimpressed with their dropping out. They had gotten into so much trouble in fact, that they had to stay at Grimmauld Place for a few days until their mother calmed down and they were able to buy a store in Diagon Alley. The store had been an immediate success, with the twins moving in to flat on top of the store to keep the production going as smoothly as possible. 

This particular night, V had come home from work quite late having helped Barnabas fiddle quite a bit with his chicken pox cure samples, while she read up on magical plants. It was already nearing night fall when she had arrived at Grimmauld Place, but when she had arrived she found that it was buzzing with life. 

Remus, Tonks, Kingsley, Mad Eye, and the Weasley family were crowded round the dining room, all drinking butter beer and talking amongst themselves.

As soon as George had spied V, he walked up to her with his arm outstretched, holding a bunch of Sunflowers. V gazed back at him suspiciously, weary that the last time he gave her flowers, they had been hexed. 

"What did you do to them?" V asked backing away from the flowers. 

"Oh c'mon V, can't I do something nice for my girlfriend without it being a prank." George replied, folding his arms.

"Not really..." V began, thinking it would be more a surprise if he actually did a romantic gesture without it being some sort of joke.

"Ok, fine, I promise you I did not hex the flowers in the name of pranking." George said holding out his pinky to her.

V reluctantly took his pinky in hers and together they pinky promised. When she took the bouquet of sunflowers, sure enough nothing happened and they just sat in her hand smiling up at her in a peaceful way. 

"Awww." V said with a bright smile that mimicked the sunflowers growing across her face. 

She gave him a hug while he hugged her back saying, "I told you." 

"Ew, get a room." Fred shouted from across the room, while they both flipped him off in somewhat of a comical manner. 

"Alright everyone, we should get started." Mad Eye announced. 

"Ok you lot, out now." Mrs Weasley then said trying to shoo V and the twins away. 

"But we're of age now." Fred protested, while V and George nodded in agreement.