The Beginning of the End

Effie sat on one of the plump armchairs in the Weasley's living room and listened quietly to the conversation that was going on in front of her. She fiddled with a strand of her hair, which was put up in a loose, messy bun.

"Lord Voldemort has selected Draco for a mission?" Lupin asked skeptically. Harry had told him, Mr. Weasley and Tonks about what he had overheard from Snape when he was talking to Draco. None of them were really believing it except Tonks.

"I know how it sounds but Snape said he made the Unbreakable Vow and Draco said that he was 'chosen'." Harry said, trying desperately to get Lupin to believe him.

"Maybe Harry's right, Remus. I mean to make an Unbreakable Vow, it's just-"

"It comes down to whether you trust Dumbledore trusts him. He trusts Snape, therefore I do." Lupin stated, cutting Tonks off in the middle of her sentence.

"Even Dumbledore makes mistakes, he said so himself." Harry pushed. He was struggling and it killed Effie to watch but this wasn't her conversation. They didn't need nor want her opinion.

"You're blinded by hatred." Lupin said, pointing at Harry with a stern look. He honestly looked completely irritated. Effie just continued to fiddle with that loose piece of hair, like she had been for the past 30 minutes.

"I'm not-"

"Yes you are!" Lupin of course had the final word and Effie had to get up and leave before she said anything that could possibly make matters worse. She walked into the kitchen where Fred, George, and Mrs. Weasley were.

"Hello dear." Mrs. Weasley said to Effie as she sat down. Effie just smiled and gave a tiny wave.

"Bored already?" George asked as he and his twin brother started playing with her hands. Effie shook her head and licked over her drying lips.

"Not really bored, I just felt the need to leave before a heated argument broke out." She said with a small laugh.

"What is it with you guys and my hands?" She asked, watching them play with her fingers.

"You've got these really small hands and they're really soft. I'm not sure why but they're fun to play with." Fred said, twisting the ring on Effie's finger. Effie raised an eyebrow but blew it off. The twins were weird, she was used to it.

"Oh! I almost forgot, we have this new toy like...thing that we invented about a month ago and wanted to show it to you." George said as he stood up with his brother. Effie's eyes lit up as they pulled out a tube like thing.

"We still haven't come up with a name for it, we're kinda blocked." Fred's face flushed with frustration for a moment before he turned his attention back to the toy. He grabbed a hold of it with one hand and George did the same. They gave a quick pull and the pieces separated, revealing a big flexible spring.

"That's so cool! You should call it a Slinky. Keep in mind that there are Slinky's in the muggle world but you can sell these. They're a new kind of Slinky." Effie gushed, reaching for the Slinky.

"Brilliant!" Fred and George said together, grins spreading across their faces. Effie smiled back, glad that she could have helped. She pushed the Slinky back into the tube pieces and handed it back to the boys. Then she grabbed a plate and scooped up some of the banana pudding that Mrs. Weasley had just recently made.

She ate the pudding slowly, savoring every bite. She kept wondering what else Harry and the others were talking about but still, it wasn't her conversation.

"So, when did you say you would get to see your mum again?" Mrs. Weasley asked as she continued to bustle around the kitchen, preparing the last of the deserts. Effie smiled, remembering the letter that her mother had sent her.

"When I get home. I guess she's seen everything there is to see and decided that it was time to come back home." Mrs. Weasley flashed Effie a congratulatory smile that was interrupted when Lupin and Tonks entered the kitchen.

"We're going now." Tonks said as they opened up the front door. Mrs. Weasley walked over so that she could see them out, Mr. Weasley following not far behind.

"It was delicious, Molly." Tonks said giving Mrs. Weasley a smile. Lupin was staring intently out at the fields.

"Are you sure you won't stay?" Mrs. Weasley asked, hoping that they would.

"No, we should go. The first night of the cycle is always the worst." Tonks was referring to Lupin's condition. He had taken the potion to stop the transformation but it still made him really ill. Being a werewolf wasn't a picnic.

"Remus?" Mr. Weasley asked, sensing that something was wrong.

'What is it sweetheart?" Tonks placed her hand on her husbands arm, a worried look crossing over her features. Lupin said nothing as he continued to look out at the fields. Only a few short seconds later, a fire started, circling around the Burrow. Effie dropped her spoon and stood up. She watched in fear as Bellatrix Lestrange landed in front of the house. Harry came out of nowhere, flying passed Effie and pushing through Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Tonks, and Lupin.

"Harry!" Effie called out trying to run after him. Fred wrapped his arms around Effie's waist, holding her into place.

"No, it's okay. He'll be fine." He whispered in her ear and she struggled to get free. That didn't really help to calm her down. She continued to fight against Fred's arms...until she saw Ginny run passed everyone. Effie stared after her, her heart shattering into a million pieces. She wanted to be the one to run after Harry, not Ginny.

Fred finally stopped restraining Effie, and hugged her once he realized why she had stopped fighting.

A few long minutes passed by and Harry, Ginny, Lupin, and Mr. Weasley still weren't back. Effie was about to run outside when a loud crash sounded through the whole house. The smell of smoke quickly filled Effie's nose and she was yanked outside by Fred and George. Everyone watched in horror as the Burrow slowly began to burn down.

Harry and the others arrived back not long after and Effie looked over to Harry who was gripping on to Ginny's hand. Effie looked away and laced her fingers with Fred's. He gave her a confused look and Effie smirked.

"Just play along." She quoted him. Fred chuckled before they both returned to staring at the fire. Effie hoped that everything would be okay and that they could put out the fire. Almost as if they had read her mind, Mr. Weasley and Lupin pulled out their wands and started putting out the fire.