Eleanor & Fred

"There she is." Molly beamed at me as I entered the kitchen. Sirius and Remus were seated at the table drinking tea and they both smiled up at me as well. "Sirius, go and fetch it will you?"

Sirius stood from the table and left. I stood awkwardly awaiting his return, which was only seconds later. "Here you are," he grinned, setting a rather large wooden crate on the table. "Remus picked it up while you were sleeping. We all thought you might need a bit of cheering up."

I stepped toward the table and just as I was about to open the crate, I heard a scratching noise from within, followed by a high-pitched barking. I felt my eyes widen and I glanced between the three adults, almost too shocked to open the crate.

Grinning like a madwoman, I pulled the lid off and set it on the table beside the box. Inside was a brown, fuzzy-looking puppy, of what breed I wasn't sure. It was sitting, looking up at me, with it's tongue hanging out of it's mouth and it's tail wagging.

"Take it out," Sirius encouraged. I glanced around the room once more before pulling it out of the crate and holding it in my arms. I was suddenly being attacked by puppy kisses and giggled as the others watched, laughing as well.

"It's mine to keep?" I asked, recieving a nod from Sirius. "It's perfect! Thank you so much!" I hugged Sirius, Molly, and Remus. "Is it a boy or a girl?" I questioned, not wanting to look myself.

"It's a boy," Remus responded. "And I also picked up a couple of toys and some food." He stood, said a thank you to Molly for the tea, and stated that he had to leave, telling me to take good care of my new puppy.

Molly stated that she had some clothes that needed to be washed, leaving me and Sirius alone. "I'm really glad you like it," he stated, nodding toward the puppy, still in my arms. "Do you know what you'll name it?"

I thought about it for a moment before answering. "I think I'll name him...Ivan."

"Hello there, Ivan." Sirius grinned, reaching out to pet the wriggling animal. He recieved many kisses to his hands and I couldn't help buy smile at the softness in Sirius' eyes.

So far, not being at school wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.

*****

It was three days after Fred left that I finally recieved two letters; one from Fred and one from George.

Ellie,
I miss you so much! I hope things are going okay with you. George and I are making a lot of progress with our Weasley's Wizard Weezes products. We've managed to get quite a few people willing to try them out. It's proven to be quite interesting. I cannot believe that it will be so much longer before I get to see you again. I'm sure that I am bothering Fred with how much I talk about you, but I don't care all that much. I find myself not paying attention in class (though, that's not really anything new), because I get lost in thoughts about us. I miss feeling your hand in mine, making you smile, the way that your hair smells like roses. I miss kissing you, hugging you, just seeing you. I have a feeling this is only going to get worse, and I think it is already made worse because I keep focusing on the fact that I can't just see you whenever I want to. Hopefully, you are having an easier time than I am. I cannot wait to see you again.

I am forever yours,
Fred Weasley

Next, I read the letter from George.

Ellie,
How have you been? Hopefully better than Fred is. He's driving me crazy talking about you. Umbridge is mad as ever. You better write back because I'm your future brother-in-law here. You know I'm just teasing, right? Well, I hope to hear from you soon!

George Weasley

I set the letters on the bedside table and went down to breakfast. I was rather surprised to find the dining room full of people; Lupin, Molly, Arthur, Tonks, Kingsley, Snape, Mad-Eye, and even Dumbledore were all present. I had never seen him from a close distance, and I had to admit it was rather strange.

“Good morning Ms. Brooks,” he smiled softly, causing everyone’s eyes to turn to me.

“Good morning,” I smiled back, my face reddening. “Am I interrupting something?”

“Actually,” Sirius stated, from where he sat between Dumbledore and Lupin, “We’ve all decided that, since you are of age, we’d like to let you join.”

“Join what?” I asked stupidly.

“The Order,” Sirius beamed. Over the last few days we bonded quite a bit, and he almost already felt like a father to me, especially considering that my own hadn’t shown any form of affection toward me in the last seven years.

“R-really?” I stuttered. “What do I have to do?”

“As of right now, just listen,” Remus stated. “If something comes up and you are wanting and willing to help out, then you may.”

I took the only empty seat, quickly taking in the expressions on everyone’s faces; Dumbledore seemed calm but distant as if he was pondering a million things, Sirius seemed please, Lupin and Tonks were too busy sharing secretive glances for me to read their expressions, Molly and Arthur seemed concerned, Snape had his usual blank expression, and Mad-Eye and Kingsley were both sharing whispers.

“Alright,” I stuttered. I wasn’t quite sure what I was getting myself into, but at least I would be doing something to fight against You-Know-Who-not that it was at the top of my priority list. At least I had a purpose.