Ron led them to a shed behind the house and opened the door.
“It’s Dad’s muggle car.”
“Didn’t the ministry fine your dad 50 galleons for
bewitching his muggle car last year” asked Hermione, looking around nervously, as if the minister of magic might appear at any moment. (Read book three to find out what sort of adventures the two
friends had the previous year with a flying muggle car, a carnivorous tree, a
hippogriff, and loads of other stuff. I don’t want to slow down this nascent
plot with those details at this point. You’ll like it, I promise. If you don’t,
then you don’t like Harry Potter and you certainly won’t like the rest of my
story either.)
“I’s one’s not bewitched” said Ron. His lowbrow accent had
sunk even lower since the trio had befriended Hagrid, the friendly, kind, and
unusually large Hogwarts games keeper who lived in a smelly one-room shack near
the school. “I’s up to us three to do that.”
Hermione looked as if she was about to say something about
underage magic. Ron cut her off before she could open her mouth.
“Don’t be such a spoiled sport, ‘Ermione” he said. “it’s
only 11:00 and Dad won’t be back from the ministry until supper. We have plenty
of time to put some spells on this car and then take them off again. Course,
you’ll ‘ave to ‘elp us with the spell part seeing that ‘Arry and I never study.”
“Wait a minute, Ron” said Harry. “I thought you didn’t want
an adventure until we have to save the school again?”
“We’re not saving the school, ‘Arry” Ron said, winking. “We’re
jus ‘aving a bit o’ fun.”
“Brilliant” said Harry, grinning from ear to ear.
“But, Ron; your parents.” Hermione’s face was terror
stricken. She was an only child who had been careful to never give her Muggle
parents a moment of concern.
“Don’t worry, ‘Ermione” said Ron. I know Dad secretly wants
me to do this. “Ave a look.”
He proudly pulled a letter out of a book he had been hiding
under his shirt. The letter was on ministry letterhead addressed to Mr.
Weasley, telling him that there had been some “odd goings-on around White
Hollow”, a distinctly non-magical place about three miles away. Since Arthur
Weasley lived the closest of anyone else in the Ministry of Magic to White
Hollow, he had been asked to ”look into it.”
“But why don’t you let your father take care of it, Ron?”
asked Harry.
“He slipped it into one of my books. I know he wanted me to
see it.”
“Let me see that book” said Hermione, grabbing it from Ron’s
hand.
“This is MY book, Ronald.”
Ron scratched his head. No one said a word for several long,
uncomfortable moments.
Harry broke the silence. “Does anyone have a wand?”
“’Ere’s mine” said Ron, triumphantly. He pulled what used to
be a wand out of his back pocket. It was now in three pieces.
This had happened to Ron before (see book two).
Ron was ashen-faced. “Must ‘have broken when I took my tumble down the stairs.”
“Bloody hell” said Hermione.
Ron and Harry stared at her.
“Isn’t there a spell that brings stuff to you?” Harry asked.
“Yes, Harold” said Hermione. She was beyond imperious at
this point. The boys could tell because she always called Harry Harold when
she’d crossed the line. “But we’re not
supposed to use magic, remember? I’ll go back into the house and get mine.”
As they waited, Harry could feel someone’s eyes watching
them. He looked up to the window next to Ron’s and saw a ginger head with two
piercing blue eyes and one smug smile. He poked Ron, motioning to the window
with his eyes. They book looked up to
the window. Above the head was a prefect badge which seemed to be polishing
itself with a rag. On closer observation, Harry could see a wand moving in
slight circles that matched the movement of the rag. The badge, the hair, eyes,
and smile all belonged to Percy, Ron’s brother who nobody in the family liked
because he didn't have a sense of humor and was a chronic tattle-tale. He was a few years older than Ron and could use
magic outside of school but he generally used it for boring things like folding
his clothes and popping his pimples. Percy knew how much Ron loved the muggle
car and hoped that the famous trio might do something reportable.
“Now what?” sighed Ron, nodding to the window as
Hermione returned with her wand.
“Prefect Badge Runaway-us” said Hermione, waving her wand
behind her back. Suddenly Percy’s prefect badge disappeared. His head did too,
and the trio could hear the clattering of footsteps followed by Mrs. Weasley’s shrill
voice and then the sound of someone tumbling down the stairs and screaming in
pain.
“Now!” said Ron. The three friends rushed into the shed.
“Automobile-us Carpe Diem!” cried Hermione, waving her wand
at the car.
“Never learned that one in school” muttered Ron to a
grinning Harry.”
“You never learned anything in school, Ronald” Hermione
retorted.
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