All the commotion from the arrival of Anora and Tonks alerted Mrs Weasley to come and check the scene, only to let out a delighted cry at the sight of the guests. She quickly made her way over, bringing both women into a strong hug, leaving Tonks to turn red in the face and Anora to squeak from the lack of air. It took Fred and George to gently tap their mother's arms to get her to release before it was too late.

"Easy, Mum," George told her, "You want Anora and Tonks to live, don't you?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," Molly said with a blush before her tone took to scolding, "but I wouldn't be so inclined to hug you two as hard if you visited more often! Honestly, it shouldn't take such circumstances for any of you to come by to visit."

Eleanor's ears pricked at the mention of "circumstances" noting Tonks stealing a quick glance over in her direction with a soft smile. It didn't take a genius to figure out after Tonks had mentioned Moody that their presence wasn't just a casual visit to the Burrow, but perhaps having to do with Dumbledore's announcement that Voldemort had returned and Eleanor's knitting playing an odd, yet crucial role in possibly aiding the fight against the dark arts.

"I've been meaning to visit," Tonks said, "but you don't get much time to yourself with Auror training. Now, Anora doesn't have that excuse though- "

Anora scoffed loudly before nudging her best friend in the ribs. "Excuse me, you want to try running a dragon sanctuary and talk about no time for yourself? I've been dealing with mating season!"

The group watched as Anora lifted the sleeve of her shirt to reveal a rather nasty looking wound that was on the verge of healing. However, it was her mistake to reveal the large burn as Molly suddenly let out a loud gasp before reaching out and grabbing her by the wrist.

"Anora Forney, what is this?!"

Suddenly, Ron appeared after hearing all the noise and squeezed his way into the middle to see the wound.

"It's wicked, is what it is!" he exclaimed as he smiled up at Anora. "Which dragon gave you that one?"

"A Romanian Longhorn," Anora answered as Molly started dragging her away towards the kitchen, "word to the wise, they don't like to be interrupted during mating season!"

Eleanor had offered to leave the Weasley family to enjoy their visit with Tonks and Anora, especially since it seemed long overdue. She suggested heading home but Fred along with the others insisted that she stay a little longer.

"So, have you all made any plans for the summer?" Anora asked after Molly forced her to sit down at the kitchen table to apply ointment to the burn.

Most of them proceeded to shrug their shoulders and mutter that there wasn't much they planned, just thankful not to be doing any schoolwork. However, Fred took the opportunity to brag about his girlfriend as he wrapped his arm around Eleanor's shoulders.

"Ellie's going to be working at the Ministry," he beamed proudly, "with Amelia Bones. She just got her apparating license today and will be starting first thing Monday morning."

With her face turning red as the heat of embarrassment travelled all the way to her ears, Eleanor cleared her throat to speak. "It's just an internship," she stated humbly, "I thought it would be a good idea to see what working in wizarding law was like before fully committing myself to the cause."

Tonks nudged Eleanor with her elbow. "There's no one better to work than Amelia Bones if you want to learn about the law. She's a hell of a woman. I've sat in some of her lectures during training, she's got a way about her when she speaks. Commands the attention of the whole room just by her stance alone."

"Easy there, Tonks. Sounds like you're in love," Anora teased. "And congrats on getting your apparating license. First time taking the test?"

"Yeah," Eleanor answered, "I took the classes back in Hogwarts when they offered them, but I couldn't take the test because of when my birthday fell in the year."

"Ah, the Apparating Lessons, those bring back some really good memories!" Anora laughed, along with Tonks. "I still get a good laugh remembering what happened to Charlie."

Eleanor had heard the story of Charlie's mishap with apparating before but found it funnier when Anora and Tonks told the tale, simply because the two women couldn't get more than a couple of words out before laughing hysterically.

"That poor old woman," Tonks said, wiping a few tears from her eyes, "I can't imagine what it's like, minding your own business, having a nice day of shopping and out of nowhere the sky drops massive redheaded bear on you!"

Molly shook her head at their laughter, attempting to hide her own smile before she excused herself to tend to something else in the home.

"Charlie still mostly refuses to apparate these days," Anora said, "it would have to be a very special occasion or an emergency, otherwise, it's been the trains for us ever since we left Hogwarts."

"I remember when you left Hogwarts," Eleanor said, "everyone was talking about how you two ran off in the middle of the night. They said the professors were looking all over for you in Hogsmeade. I even think there was a rumour that you two ran off and got married."

"Please," Anora snorted. "We left in the middle of the day during the first trip to Hogsmeade and practically had Dumbledore's blessing without even realising it at the time. We had written recommendations waiting on us when we finally arrived. It might have been a shock to others, but it certainly wasn't a shock to Dumbledore. He knew, the man knows everything."

"Were your parents upset?" Eleanor asked. "Upset that you left before finishing up your final year?"

"Oh, yeah, furious, absolutely fuming! I don't remember how many howlers and letters we received between the two of us, demanding that we come home or head straight back to Hogwarts. But you know what, they got over it. Once we reminded them that we were of age and they really didn't have a say anymore, there wasn't much of an argument to have. I think deep down they always knew we were going to end up there, or someplace like it. We just got a head start."

After a while of everyone settling in, Fred could only watch in amusement as Eleanor became completely enthralled by Anora's stories at the dragon sanctuary.

"So, what sort of work do you do with the dragons?"

"Well, we are currently training them in the waltz," Anora answered, only to watch Eleanor's eyes widen. "That was a joke, sorry. Can't help myself sometimes. To answer your question, we monitor the breeding, species development, health, and migration patterns. Although lately, I guess you could say that Charlie and I have been working a special programme."

"Oooh, what kind of special programme?!"

"Training; trying to get fewer hostile interactions between dragons and humans. You see, the Elders pretty much want nothing to do with humans, they usually just tolerate us since they know the sanctuary is a safe place for them to rest until it's their time to pass on. Some of them are easier to work with, others are total arseholes. That's why we're focusing on the younger dragons, the younger we start the better relationship we develop and the better chance that we don't get our arses burned."

"Do you get to ride them?"

"Very few are in the position for that right now. So far, Roscoe, my star pupil, is the best one for any sort of riding. He has a lot more control in the air, doesn't get carried away as the others do. The speeds they can reach and if the dragon isn't careful of their rider when turning, well, it's not going to end well, is it?"

The two remained at the kitchen table for what seemed like forever as Eleanor asked question after question and Anora gladly answered. He had been watching from the doorway when Tonks came over and leaned on the frame across from him with her arms folded across her chest. He didn't notice the growing smile on her lips or the fact that she was watching him until he looked away from the kitchen for a brief second.

"What?" he asked straightening himself. "Why are you smiling at me like that?"

"Well, look at you, little Freddie. You are absolutely smitten with her; it's written all over your face."

"Can you blame me?"

"No, not at all," Tonks said, "I'll admit, I was surprised at first when I heard you two were dating through Anora. I only remember Ellie from when she was a lot younger. The Mad Knitter, I think I called her, knitting away at the Hufflepuff table. She seemed so quiet and innocent- "

Fred chuckled to himself. "Don't let those looks fool you, Tonks, she's not as innocent as she looks. Mischief is in her blood."

Tonks only nodded her head; it grew quiet for a moment before she spoke again. "So, it's true then, about the knitting? You've seen it first-hand? Moody was telling me about them being waterproof and the next thing I know, there's talk about knitted socks repelling the Killing Curse."

He could hear the humour in her tone, probably because as Eleanor had once said herself that it all sounded ridiculous. But Fred had been in the stands when Cedric's still body had been brought back by Harry and everyone presumed Cedric to be dead. He could still recall the sounds of Marnie crying next to him and running to the pitch. He remembered how nervous and worried he felt over the idea that Eleanor had been missing that evening, only to find out that a Death Eater had been keeping her hostage in a trunk.

There was such a sense of relief that washed over him when Eleanor and Cedric turned out to be okay, and that was all due to the knitting. He had witnessed some of the magic behind Eleanor's knitting personally, so even if it sounded ridiculous, he knew it to be true.

He went to answer Tonks' question when there was a sound of soft cracking outside of the home before there was a knock at the door.

"Hello?"

George answered the door after a familiar voice called out, only to reveal Nixie standing on the other side. Eleanor suddenly looked alert, standing up from her chair and taking several steps towards the other woman.

"Nixie? What are you doing here? Is everything alright at home? Is Mum and Dad- "

Hearing the panic in Eleanor's voice caused Fred to frown. As much as she had been trying to hide behind that smile of hers, Fred knew that she was carrying the weight of stressful matters.

"No need for worry, Ellie," Nixie said calmly, "your father is back home with your mother. He'll be meeting up with us a little later."

"Meeting up with us?"

"Yes, on that note, where is Molly? We really need to get going. The others are going to start showing up soon enough."

"Going? Going where?"

Unlike the Burrow, 12 Grimmauld Place lived up to its name of presenting itself as grim and old. Eleanor didn't know what to make of her new environment when she arrived, accompanied by Nixie. It seemed like Molly, Anora, and Tonks had been aware that they would be eventually venturing to headquarters, leaving only the teenagers in the dark. The home smelled of mildew, appeared to be covered in dust, and looked as though it had been abandoned for quite some time.

Nixie came up behind Eleanor after they arrived and immediately fell into a coughing fit before calling out in the empty room.

"Oh, for Kelpie's sake!" she spat, trying to wave the dust away from her face. "I left Sirius here ages ago to get started on the cleaning. Sirius!"

The sound of footsteps followed and in seconds, Sirius appeared in the doorway, wearing a sheepish grin as he greeted all of them.

"I thought you were going to get started on cleaning up around here," Nixie said, "what have you been doing all this time?"

"I've been cleaning!" Sirius replied defensively, only to watch as Nixie looked around the room before placing her hands on her hips.

"Oh really, and what have you cleaned exactly?"

The way Sirius swaggered over and suddenly, held a mug to her face. "I cleaned this mug."

Instantly, Nixie's expression turned from annoyed to confused back to questioning what was wrong with her husband as he held a dirty mug in her face. It took everything in Eleanor and the others not to laugh out loud at the scene.

"Sirius, this mug is dirty."

"Well, yes, it's dirty now because I poured my coffee into it, but it was clean before. Spotless, actually. You should have seen it, Nini, I could see myself in it."

There were several moments of silence before Nixie just shook her head slightly at him and walked away. However, Sirius quickly ran after her, still holding the mug out.

"If you would just look at it- "

"I don't care about the mug!"

"Look at it!"

"Sirius Black, if you don't get that mug out of my face!"

"Nixie Dover, if you don't look at this mug!"

Once the couple was out of earshot with their bickering, Molly turned to her children, Eleanor, Tonks, and Anora.

"Well, I know it's not the most ideal way to start the summer," she began, "but if we all work together, we can get this place into better shape in no time."

Fred, George, and Ron immediately began protesting, not realising they had been taken from the Burrow just so they could start cleaning, however, their complaining didn't last very long as Molly silenced all of them with one look.

"But Ginny and I aren't even of age!" Ron told his mother before she walked off. "What are we going to do if we can't use our wands to help?"

Ginny shoved her elbow into Ron's side to get him to be quiet. "Don't worry, Mum, we'll make ourselves useful!"

Molly nodded her head and called Anora and Tonks to follow her, leaving the rest of the group alone. Once it grew quiet again, Ginny rounded on Ron.

"Did you want her to give us something to do by hand?" she asked him. "We just have to stay out of the way while everyone else uses their wands."

"Oh."

Before anyone else could speak, Ginny grabbed Eleanor's hand. "I call dibs on working with Ellie!"

Fred went to protest but Ginny stuck her tongue out at him before pulling Eleanor along out of the room. Before she completely vanished, Eleanor flashed a smile over her shoulder in his direction.

With a sigh, Fred pulled out his wand and headed out of the room.

"This is not the start to the summer I had planned in mind!"

Deciding to take a tour of Grimmauld Place, Eleanor led the way with her wand in front, unsure of what they were going to find. Ginny followed her closely behind, every so often coughing or sneezing from the amount of dust. To be honest, Eleanor found herself overwhelmed by the musty smells to the point where she felt the onset of a headache.

"Sorry to steal you away from my brother," Ginny said at one point, "you could go hang out with him if you want to. I just figured we could spend some time since we really never got a chance to one on one. And since you two are dating..."

"I'd love to spend the day with you," Eleanor told her, "Although I wish it was in better conditions than this. Next time, we'll plan it out and go to Diagon Alley or something."

The two rounded the corner, just about to head up the stairs when Eleanor let out a scream that also caused Ginny to scream. Ginny was just about to ask what the hell had caused her to react in such a way but a quick glance to the wall answered the question right away.

Mounted on the wall, were clearly severed heads of several house-elves, each of them placed on wood finished plaque, with nameplates above them. It was a horrible scene as Eleanor covered her mouth with her hands and Ginny looked away.

"What the hell kind of place is this?" she whispered. The two girls heard the sound of footsteps coming up behind them, noting Fred, George, and Ron making their way over with worried expressions.

"Did you stumble across some doxies too?" George asked, but Eleanor shook her head before Ginny pointed up at the house-elves heads.

Suddenly, George and Ron cried out before holding onto each other. It took them a moment to realise what they were doing before they looked at one another and shoved each other away.

"We're alright," Eleanor told Fred as he rubbed his hand against her back, "isn't that right, Ginny?"

"Yeah," Ginny breathed, "we're okay. I've seen scarier things than this."

Despite the smell, dust, and things that hid in the dark, Eleanor and Ginny had a good time spending the afternoon with each other. At first, they spoke about simple topics such as quidditch or classes at the school, but eventually, it came down to Ginny opening up about her experience in the Chamber of Secrets, after Eleanor told her about her time in the trunk with Moody after being confronted by Barty Crouch Junior. And while it wasn't the happiest of stories to bond over, it was nice to have someone to talk about it with.

But to change to a lighter topic, Ginny brought up the time of the twins turning Marnie's hair blue, expressing that she held envy over Marnie, as she wished she could dye her hair that colour.

"Well, why don't you?" Eleanor questioned. "I think you would look fantastic with blue hair."

"Have you met my mother?" Ginny countered. "She would kill me."

"That seems like a bit of an overreaction over hair."

Ginny shrugged her shoulders. "I guess you could say Mum is traditional in that sense," she said, "you should have seen when Bill came home with his first piercing. And we never heard the end of it when Bill and Charlie started letting their hair grow long enough to pull into a ponytail."

"I understand. I remember my mother always talking about how long hair was so pretty whenever she trimmed my ends, but I've always wanted to cut my hair. To right about here. "Eleanor lifted her hand up to her chin. "I've seen other women with their hair that short and I always loved it."

"Then do it!" Ginny became excited. "You should cut your hair! Come on!"

"What, you mean right now?!"

"There's bound to be scissors around here somewhere or you could use your wand."

Immediately, Eleanor started thinking of what her mother would think about chopping off so much of her hair, but then her thoughts travelled back to Anora telling her about leaving Hogwarts when she became of age.

And technically, Eleanor had just become of age in the Wizarding World, so why not kick off adulthood with the haircut she had always wanted?

"Alright, let's do it!"