the one | h. potter

28. the burrow

On Sunday at five, when Harry apparates us to the burrow, I'm nervous.  When Harry notices my shaking hands and shallow breaths, he holds me close and whispers in my ear.

"You'll be fine, they're not that bad."

I reply with a nervous laugh. "Alright." My voice sounds doubtful and unconvinced.

He pulls away. "You'll be fine. Just make sure not to join Hermione and Percy's political debate and tell Molly how much you like her food."

I'm about to reply, but Harry knocks on the door, so I keep my mouth shut. A man with red hair laced with strands of white and a wide smile opens the door.

"Ah, Harry! And you must be Liz! Come in, come in." he beckons.

He leads us inside, but before I can make my way towards the living room, he stops me with his arm.

"It's lovely to meet you, Liz," he smiles, shaking my hand. "Arthur, pleasure to meet you."

"Well, Arthur, thank you so much for inviting me to into your home," I hear myself say. Is that too formal? It didn't sound too formal in my head, but now that I said it out loud... Why am I second-guessing myself?

"It's our pleasure. Harry's told us so much about you, and we're glad to see him so happy." He turns into the living room and yells, "Harry's here with his date!"

"Oh, Merlin," I mutter, putting my face in my hands.

Harry takes my hand again and leads me into the living room, which is filled to the brim with people. I immediately recognize Ron and Hermione, cuddling in a loveseat, George, and Fleur Delacour, who has her arm around an older-looking redhead with a scar running down his face. A redhead girl (Ginny, I presume) appears out of nowhere and launches herself into Harry's arms.

When she lets go, I hear her say, "Finally replaced me, have you? Took you long enough."

"Just because you found a new boyfriend after a month doesn't mean I have to!" I hear Harry huff back and she laughs.

Ginny turns to me and smiles. "So, he didn't just get a girlfriend, he got a famous one too?"

I hold back a laugh and smirk. "I'm not famous. And Harry does have a type, doesn't he? Redheads with great personalities?" I turn towards Harry and he blushes. Ginny eyes me silently before drawing me in for a hug.

When her mouth is right next to my ear and hidden by my hair, she whispers, "Don't you dare hurt him."

If only she knew. "You don't have to worry about that," I mumble back.

By the time Ginny lets go a second later, half the living room has stood up to greet us. First, I hug Ron and Hermione and am introduced to the rest of the Weasley siblings and their counterparts. There's Bill, Charlie, Percy, and George, Fleur (who I discover married Bill), and George's girlfriend Angelina.

"You're in luck," Bill tells me. "Mom's in a good mood today."

My eyes widen. "Is she usually not?"

Harry laughs and snakes an arm around my waist. "Depends. But, just in case, be extra nice."

They all must see the fear written on my face, but Harry steers me into the kitchen before anyone can say anything.

The kitchen, just like the rest of the house, is cozy. It's small, compared to the one in Smith Manor, but it's the type of kitchen I would have wanted to grow up in; it's messy but clean, lived in, and used by people, not house-elves. It smells amazing in here too; I get a whiff of about ten different aromas, ranging from spicy to sweet to fruity, in each deep breath I take through my nose. An older redhead woman, who must be Molly, is moving around the kitchen, running from pot to pot, stirring different concoctions with her wand.