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Magical Mugwort	By : Marjay2127 Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female Views: 10391 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 36
- 37
I was excited. The twins were having me over to their flat over the shop. Considering they were nearly living over at my place, I thought it would be a rather quaint experience to trash someone else's pad for once. They'd promised me that it wouldn't be a total disaster when I arrived; I called bullshit.

At any rate, they were plainly planning something, or at the very least hoping to enlist my aid in making it habitable. With two guys, be it Muggle or wizard, it was inevitable to be a Classic Bachelor Pad, though with the twins I anticipated lots of scorch marks and possible frightening remnants of experiments gone awry. Wait, I was totally right the first time.

With the holidays fast approaching and the temperature dipping with every day, I'd learned to wear layers whenever I ventured outside, especially in regards to anything wizard-related. Homey fireplaces were one thing; all-room heating courtesy of the electric company was quite another. I was heading down to meet George at the Leaky Cauldron, and I would hang out until the shop closed. Thankfully my own job had decided to cut everyone loose a little earlier today.

“Because, mom, I've been invited someplace for Christmas.” I hugged the cell phone to my ear as I made my way down the London streets towards the Leaky Cauldron. It was cold, windy, the air threatening snow, and I tried to walk as fast as my four inch heels would permit me.

My mother sighed into the phone. “But you know we always do Christmas. Andy's coming home soon, and you know he's looking forward to seeing you. So who is he?” she asked slyly.

I smiled, though she couldn't see it. “I've told you, haven't I? The twins I've been hanging out with for a few months now, Fred and George Weasley. Their mom has threatened me under pain of much nagging that I have to go out to their house and help manage them.”

“Oh, yes. Andy goes on about them, too. Don't they run that joke shop in Diagon Alley, the one Andy always orders from? I must have two rolls of parchment of gift ideas he's jotted down.”

“That's them.”

“Ah-ha.” Oh, dear. Not the annoying mother sound. “So when do your father and I get to meet them? And which one are you seeing?”

Rolling my eyes, I was glad I didn't blush easily anymore. Not that it would have mattered at the moment, but still. “Mother, when was the last time you wanted to know who I was dating?”

“Since I've decided that the world is not safe right now, and I want to make sure that you're taking care of yourself.”

“Are you going to screen every man I date to see if they're a Death Eater? You know I have better taste than that.”

“Maggie, I only worry about you.”

“I know.” I chewed my lip for a moment, waiting for a crosswalk light to change. At last, I exhaled heavily. “I can promise you that the Weasleys are a great stock. I've met most of them, except for Fred and George's oldest brothers. There are seven kids in their family, can you believe that?”

My mother laughed. “Sweet Lady, I can't imagine how Mrs. Weasley did it.”

“Oh, you don't have to worry about her. Mrs. Weasley is formidable enough to make grown men shrink in fear.”

“So... when do I get to meet your friends?”

“Gah! Mother...”

The light turned green, and I continued on, keeping a wary eye on the crowd around me. One could never trust those around. The sky was dreary, but the sun was attempting to peek through the clouds. With any luck, we might see a bit of light before the end of the day. If the snow could just hold off a bit longer, that would be great.

“Sweetheart, if you've been hanging out with them this much, then I think I should meet them.”

“You know, mom, I did move out of the house quite some time ago. The days of my having to introduce you to every date are long gone.” Rolling my eyes again, I finally heaved a sigh of resignation. “Actually, I think you'd really like Fred and George. They're very intelligent, they run their own business, and they are both very good-looking.”

My mother made a sound. “And you said they're twins?”

“Yup. So good luck figuring out which is which, because I still can't tell at first glance.”

She laughed. “I'm sure that makes for some interesting situations. So. If you're going to see the Weasleys, when will you grace your family with your presence?”

“I can probably do Christmas Eve with you, or come over later on Christmas Day. Why don't you and dad come over later this week? We can all go out to dinner or something.”

My mom paused for a moment. “You're willingly letting us meet these young men? Perhaps I should be concerned.”

“Goodbye, mother. I have to go. I'm meeting up with George now.” I paused outside the Leaky Cauldron, knowing my cell phone would be useless in a few moments.

“All right, Maggie. I'll call you later, and we'll sort out the details.”

As I hung up with my mom, I immediately entered the pub. It was dark, and only a small handful of customers were lounging about. The barman, Tom I think was his name, looked up hopefully, and gave me a lopsided smile and a nod. I returned the gesture. He knew I came in all the damn time. A few of the others inside gave me funny looks, but I was used to that. At least it was warmer than on the street.

A few moments later, I saw George appear from the back room. I headed straight towards him. He looked a bit rushed.

“Afternoon, m'dear,” I greeted.

“Maggie. Glad you came.”

He kissed my cheek, and immediately swept me towards the back room. “Sorry to rush you on like this, but the shop's rather busy and I need to get back. Fred and Verity have it under control at the moment, but I think we'd all like to finish up sometime before close.”

“Business good for the holidays, then?”

George nodded, brought out his wand, and immediately tapped the bricks, which quickly opened to reveal Diagon Alley. “Considering we're one of the few businesses left right now, I think it's safe to say we have a fair monopoly.”

I frowned as we stepped onto the stone street, and my confusion faded fast as I surveyed Diagon Alley. The gloom of the outside world seemed doubled here. Shops were boarded up, the Wanted posters from the Ministry still staring out from empty shop windows. There were small vendors standing periodically throughout the streets, but there were no crowds. The shoppers who were out and about huddled in groups and walked quickly from one place to the next.

“Oh my god,” I said softly.

George nodded grimly. “Everyone's reacting to the way things are going. Fortescue's is shut up now.”

I stared at him in shock. “The ice cream parlor where we met? But the place was wonderful!”

“Dad says old Florean just boarded up and took off. Nobody's quite sure whether he did it on his own, or if the Death Eaters took him. And Ollivander's gone too.”

“Ollivander...?”

“Wandmaker. Best there is. Or was, at any rate.” George pointed down the street to another shop that was dark inside. “Apparently he just disappeared one day, which is not looking good for us. The man was brilliant.”

A few of the vendors leered at us, and I ignored them. Sighing quietly, I squeezed his arm. “I suppose that makes it even more impressive that your shop is still going strong.”

“And we're supremely aware of that.” George led me towards the brightly colored shop that never failed to make my eyes water for just a moment. Even from the outside I could hear the buzz of conversation among customers.

As we entered the shop, I stared around in never-ending amazement. All the dancing, singing, whirring, shrieking objects dazzled me for a heartbeat, and I watched as customers of all ages exclaimed over the merchandise.

“Maggie, you can wait in the office, or stay on the floor, whatever suits,” George said, immediately falling into business mode. “We're only open for another half an hour, so we'll try and chivy this lot along.”

“Okay. I'll manage.” I gave him a smile.

George returned the smile, and kissed me quickly on the cheek. He turned as he heard Fred bellow, “George! Where'd you leave the rest of the hangmen gallows? Oi, you! Don't try and pocket anything!”

They really needed more help in here, if this is what it was going to look like at holiday. Smiling to myself, I felt a bit sorry for the girl, Verity, as she alone took care of ringing up the customers. If I could help, I would. Me and wizard money got along all right, but I certainly didn't know their system.

I perused the shelves, returning to the Wonder Witch section. There was a small group of girls giggling over the love potions, another one poking at the Pygmy Puffs. As I approached, two of the older girls glanced up and glared daggers at me. I smiled bemusedly and they began whispering urgently, pointing at me and then glancing over at where George and Fred stood.

Wonderful. More pubescent attempts to woo the twins. I decided to keep half an eye on the girls, but knew that the boys were more than capable of dealing with the girls.

Careful to mind my way, I began to stroll along, listening to the chatter of the crowd. I realized I was absent-mindedly shopping for Andy. Of course, I'd heard there was a blanket ban on the Wheezes items at Hogwarts, but from what the twins had told me they had a special Owl Delivery Service that disguised said items. Well, I reasoned, it wasn't as if they were out to hurt anyone. Hopefully Andy could put some of these to good use.

As I picked up a couple of small spiny objects that were listed as Decoy Detonators, I glanced up to see a young man staring at me. He didn't look much older than Fred and George, another wily teenager. I raised an eyebrow and continued perusing. Andy could definitely use these. Moving further along, I found Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder, exploding crackers, and holiday headless hats. I picked up the Santa hat and imagined the look on my family's faces if dear old Uncle Steve had come calling one day at Christmas with this instead. He likely would have found it hilarious. Frightened the children, though: Santa with no head.

I moved towards the back where the more serious items were at, and there were more customers than last time, which was good to see. The anti-jinx items were moving a lot faster these days. I picked up a pair of gloves, wondering if my mother would like them.

“Hello, there.”

Turning quickly, I saw the young man standing way too close to me. I automatically but smoothly put a few extra inches of space between us while surveying him. He was only a few inches taller than myself, wide shoulders and a chest that was developing quickly, and he knew it. I suspected it was natural build as opposed to an athlete's reward. A thick head of curly brown hair punctuated the hazel eyes that were very focused on me. He was rather good-looking, in a barely-legal sort of way. The green sweater he wore fit him nicely, bringing out his eyes.

“Hello,” I returned cordially, still holding the gloves.

He glanced at the shelves, then back at me. “Needing some good anti-jinx items?”

“Perhaps,” I replied. “I haven't decided what I want yet.”

His smirk broadened, and he drew closer about an inch. His brashness made my eyes narrow just a tad, but I held my ground. “Well, if I may recommend...” He leaned close to me, so close that I felt his breath brush my cheek, as he reached just over my head to pull down a rather attractive scarlet cloak. “I think this might look smashing on you.”

I raised an eyebrow as he wrapped it around my shoulders. In truth, it was very beautiful, and was something I should pick up. The young man's bold flirtations were quite interesting. He stepped back, using the opportunity to look me over from head to toe. “What do you know,” he said. “I was right.”

I couldn't help chuckling. “Actually, black is more my color,” I commented.

He glanced up at the black cloaks, then back at me and shook his head with a grin. “Nah, the red definitely suits you. Brings out all sorts of color in you: your hair, your cheeks, your lips...”

Wow. At least Fred and George had been armed with good pick-up lines when we met. But what the hell. I knew everyone started somewhere, and I could certainly deal with this guy.

“Come in here often, do you?” I asked.

He nodded, leaning against the shelves. “As often as I can. See, I know the owners, so they're used to me coming in.”

Apparently this was meant to impress me. Fighting back the laugh that was building, I tried to make my expression into one that showed how impressed I was. “Really?”

Puffing out his chest a bit, he smiled, a little cockily. “Yeah. I've known the Weasleys since they were in school. Really good mates, and now they're solid here. I can probably introduce you, if you like. They're usually busy, but they'll make time for me.”

Eyes widening slightly, I smiled, intrigued. “Wow, could you really? That's amazing.”

“You know they're getting ready to close soon, but if you'd like, we can go grab a drink while we wait. That way, you and I can get to know each other.”

I affected my patented “intrigued girl” look with a side of flirt. I would have to let him know that he had a lot of work to do on how to effectively pick up women.

Before I could come up with my line, he leaned in a little closer, and gave me a charming smile. “What do you say, kitten?” he asked. “Fancy something hot and sweet to keep you warm?”

Kitten? Really? I can't remember ever hearing that one before. Has he been watching 1960s movies?

As I opened my mouth to reply, a voice behind me said, “I don't believe we have any kittens in this store. However, you might try the Magical Menagerie.”

I looked up to see Fred—or was it George?--standing nearby. I felt my face light up, although I immediately smothered it when I saw his expression. It was a calculating look I knew well. Glancing back at my mysterious suitor, I saw a look of slight panic on his face.

“Good evening, miss,” Fred said, moving closer. “I see you've discovered our Anti-Jinx items.”

“I have indeed,” I replied in amusement.

“Well, I hope you weren't considering that red cloak,” he said, pulling it off my shoulders and tossing it at the young man. “Definitely not your color. Perhaps you should consider something a bit more personal for your protective needs.”

Raising an eyebrow, restraining my laughter, I looked at him curiously. “Oh? And just what do you suggest?”

Fred took hold of my chin and abruptly kissed me. Surprised and taken aback, I steadied myself so I didn't fall. His lips were firm and insistent, his nose pressing on my cheek. My heart began to speed up, the world spinning around me just a bit.

At last he pulled away, leaving me gazing up at him with a bit of a dazed expression. I coolly kept it together, arms folded over my chest. He didn't spare a glance at the young man still standing beside me, merely kept looking at me with an expectant look.

I nodded once, nonplussed. “You're right, I think that's a better fit.”

“If you'll come with me, miss, I'll make sure that you're well taken care of.”

His words made me purse my lips as evil thoughts danced in my head. I was quite ready for them to close the shop. With a nod, I said, “Very well, sir. I'd love to see what else you can recommend.”

Glancing over my shoulder at the young man whose name I never got, I was highly amused at the look of consternation and disbelief on his face. With a slight wave, I said, “Sorry, perhaps we can have that drink some other time.”

Fred spoke up. “Wouldn't get your hopes up, mate. It's likely to take some time in finding the perfect fit for this young lady. I'd suggest you finish your purchases and leave for the night, as we will be closing soon.”

As Fred steered me away, I saw George watching the whole thing with narrowed eyes even as he helped a couple of young kids. I burst out laughing.

“Not one for subtlety, are you?”

Fred shrugged, leading me back through the shop. “I figured the most direct approach would be the most effective. I wasn't sure how much more drivel I could handle from your potential suitor.”

Shaking my head, I watched as the store was beginning to clear out a bit. “Everyone has to start somewhere, Fred. I have no doubt that you and George were less than brilliant when it came to letting the ladies know when you first started.”

Steering me up the stairs to the second floor, Fred replied, “I'll have you know that I have never been so barking as to claim to know someone when I didn't. Honestly, the utter twaddle coming out of him...”

We were leaving the sales floor, and I noticed George was following us. “What, is this a group exercise?” I asked, as Fred led me into a short hallway.

“Merely making sure you're not waylaid by any other dastardly villains plotting to bore you to death with useless pick-ups,” said George, catching up with us.

“Oh. Well. Aren't you two considerate.”

Opening a door, Fred ushered me into a cozy office. One large desk took up part of the room, one chair behind and one in front. On top of the desk were stacks of parchments, envelopes, quills and inkpots, as well as a vase of flowers that kept blooming, then exploding. The rest of the room was filled with boxes and scattered parts. A fireplace sat in the corner. Above it were two long chains and what appeared to be broken links. On the other side was what appeared to be part of a swamp, cordoned off by velvet ropes.

“We are indeed, saving your delicate ears from that lot.”

I couldn't help but laugh quietly at the apparent jealousy on Fred and George's faces. If they were that upset over some other kid coming on to me, what on earth would they do when they saw the occasional guy make a genuine effort?

“So now I have to stay locked up like a bad little girl?” I asked bemusedly.

Fred and George exchanged a glance that said so much. They were being careful, and that was funny.

Sliding into an amused smile, Fred said, “Well, we already know what a naughty girl you are, Maggie.”

“We're merely trying to preserve your irresistible personality for us,” George put in. “We're sort of selfish that way.”

I raised an eyebrow, perching on the desk and crossing my legs. “Very well. If it's in the interest of making sure you are on the receiving end of my full personality, then so be it.”

Fred frowned slightly. “She's taking this awfully well,” he commented to his brother.

“Indeed.”

“Actually, I'm rather glad for the solitude,” I said. “I don't really want to fend off all the girls' whose hearts you're breaking. Don't think no one saw that kiss.”

The two exchanged a look and a grin. “Never thought you had a problem with that bit,” said Fred.

“I don't. It's your fangirls who are planning very nasty things to do to me that I have a problem with. Now go away! You said you had to finish up and close the shop. You can't do that if you're here with me.” I gave them a pointed look.

With slightly suspicious looks, the twins nodded and started backing out of the room. “All right, we're going,” said George.

“Bossy thing, isn't she?” muttered Fred as they shut the door.

I stared at the boxes that littered the room. How on earth could they possibly find anything in this mess? Surely they had some sort of system that made sense to them, if no one else.

Feeling insanely curious and amused, I slowly began perusing the boxes. Most were unlabeled save a few hand-scrawled notes. I peeked inside a few, noting with surprise and amusement some of the clever items that were in there.

Opening one box, I didn't have a second before something came at me. WHAM!

“Motherfucker! Goddammit!”

I continued cursing as I dropped the box and clutched my face. The tears were instantaneous, and I couldn't stop hopping around. Unable to see clearly what had punched me in the face, I could just make out the blurry outline of the object. I promptly kicked it, sending it scattering over the floor and nearly falling down, tottering on my heels. For a moment I thought it was turning itself around to come back at me.

“Maggie? What's going on?”

I heard the running feet and the opening door, but I couldn't stop cursing.

“You all right? What happened?”

One of the twins stood in front of me, trying to pry my hands off my face. I raised my head irritably, wincing. “One of your fucking toys got me,” I spat, trying to staunch the flow of tears.

“Oh, bloody hell.” I saw him wince as he looked at my face. I swear I saw him try not to laugh, but since my vision was blurry and he turned towards the door, I couldn't be sure. “George, you got some salve on you?”

George approached, and I saw his eyes bug out a little, the same expression of hard-suppressed laughter being smoothed away. “Merlin's beard!” he exclaimed. “Was it the telescope?”

I tried to glare at him, but glaring with one eye is not particularly effective. “I don't know, I can't really see!”

“Here, sit down.” George guided me backwards until I was able to perch on the desk. I wanted to punch them both; that would have to wait. George tilted my face upward, examining the damage. “Don't worry, Maggie, this will fix your eye in a jiff.”

Fred made as if to pat my arm, but the one-eyed glare I shot him was enough to make him back off, albeit with a cheeky grin that he tried to smother unsuccessfully. “I'll just... be over here.”

George applied some yellow salve to my eye, dotting it carefully. I winced, expecting it to sting like a motherfucker, and being unhappy that I was right. Still, I could feel the pain leaving after a few seconds.

“Sure you don't want to see your new look first, darling?”

I slapped him on the arm.

Laughing in an irritating fashion, George finished putting the salve on. “There you go. Has it stopped hurting?”

I blinked slowly, and was relieved to find that both my eyes seemed to be functioning again. “Yes. Thank you.” I exhaled heavily, and shook my head out.

“Now, it'll take up to an hour to actually disappear, but the pain should be gone.” George studied me carefully, as if preparing to get out of arm's reach.

Gingerly touching my face, I was relieved that it was no longer aching, although I had the nasty feeling that I looked quite funny at the moment. I'd never had a black eye before, and I wasn't sure I wanted to see it now. Looking back up at George and glancing at Fred, I now saw them both trying very hard not to laugh. Rolling my eyes, I sighed. “Go ahead and laugh. I should know better than to go poking around through your things.”

They both finally laughed loudly, though they at least tried not to do it too long. I huffed and folded my arms over my chest as I waited for them to finish. At last George took a tentative step forward and brushed my hair back from my face. “Sorry, Maggie,” he grinned apologetically.

“It's all right. Like I said, I should know better," I grudgingly acknowledged.
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Magical Mugwort