Molly smiled sadly as she watched Harry sleep; his arm wrapped tight around his little bear; after Dumbledore had left, she had allowed the children to play and get to know one another for a few hours as she busied herself about the house, hoping that they would accept the little boy who had suddenly appeared in their lives.
To her joy, it seemed that was indeed the case, as when she had called the children in for lunch, Harry had discovered that Bill had carved Harry's name into a chair at the table, making the boy stare at it in confusion for a moment before Bill explained,
"It's all yours, Harry,"
the boy had looked close to tears as he replied,
"All mine?"
"Yup," Bill had said with a smile, "No one else can sit there but you,"
Harry had rubbed his face quickly to try and hide the tears as he mumbled,
"Thank you, Bill,
Bill had beamed at the boy at that and lifted the boy up in a great hug, not noticing the way Harry had flinched as Bill picked him up, but Molly had, and it broke her heart even as she smiled at the little boy's joy at having something as simple as a seat with his name on it.
After lunch, Molly had asked the kids to round up any clothes that no longer fit them or that they no longer wanted so she could give them to Harry so he wouldn't have to wear his cousin's anymore. To her surprise, an avalanche of clothes was donated, ensuring that Harry would have clothes to wear for a long time to come; most had come from Bill and Charlie, though Ron had offered to give Harry his extra set of Chudley Cannons pajamas, Molly had to fight back the tears at her son's innocent display of charity.
After charming the clothes to resize to Harry, Molly had taken the boy upstairs to give him a bath and was alarmed at how afraid Harry had been of getting into the water until he had told her why,
"Aunt Petunia used to hold me under," Harry had told the horrified Molly, "She said I was wicked and unnatural and that it would help make me better,"
Molly had taken Harry in a hug at that and held him for a while as he sobbed into her shoulder,
"Am I wicked?" Harry had asked Molly softly, making her force the tears back as she answered,
"No, sweetie, you are not. You are a decent, good, brave little boy; there isn't a wicked bone in your body, I imagine,"
"But my aunt and uncle-" Harry began before he was cut off by Molly,
"Were wrong! Don't you worry about anything they told you, Harry. They were cruel and vile, and you never should have been placed with them in the first place, and as long as there's a breath in my body, I promise you'll never have to go back to them."
"Never?" Harry had asked wide-eyed,
"Never," Molly answered quickly as she stared the scared little boy in the eyes, willing him to believe her; Harry had given her another hug at that and then allowed her to put him into the tub, sitting as still as possible as she began to wash him as gently as she could.
As she washed him, Molly saw with sadness how many white lines there were on the boy's body from scars and previous injuries and had to bite back the rage that threatened to break loose, 'how could his own family do this to him,' she had thought angrily as she washed Harry's hair.
Finally, with the boy nice and clean, Molly had dried Harry off, had him put on his new clothes, and run downstairs to play with Ron and Ginny while she prepared dinner, she had been worried about Ron the most, to be perfectly honest, fearing that he would be jealous of the attention Harry was getting, but to her delight, Ron and Harry seemed to get along just fine, laughing as they played war with Ron's army of tiny soldiers while Ginny cheered them on.
As they sat down to dinner that night, Molly again noticed how skinny Harry was and how little he ate; much to her chagrin,
"Harry dear, do you want some more?" She had asked the boy when he had finished his meager portion, frowning when he shook his head,
"Okay, but if you get hungry later, let me know, alright, darling?" She had said warmly,
"Okay, Molly," Harry replied with a smile that melted her heart instantly.
Before anyone else could ask Harry anything else, the ghoul in the attic had caused a loud crash which had so frightened poor Harry that he had dived under the table, and it was several minutes before Molly was able to coax him back out.
After dinner, the conversation turned to where would Harry sleep; Bill offered to continue to stay with Charlie, but Molly wouldn't hear of it,
"We can't use your room forever, Bill," Molly said quickly after thanking him for his generosity,
"I can sleep in the cupboard," Harry had answered, "That's where I slept when I lived with my aunt and uncle,"
the warmth in the room seemed to evaporate at Harry's words, and he looked at them in confusion as they stared at him in shock,
"What?" Harry had asked after a moment,
"Harry, sweetie," Molly had said gently, lowering herself to his level, "We're not going to make you sleep in a cupboard; that is no place for a boy to stay, and if I ever get my hands on those muggles…."
"Molly dear…." Arthur had said softly, bringing her up short,
"Why do you call them that?" Harry had asked, tilting his head slightly in confusion,
"Because that's what they are, dear," Molly explained, "Muggles are people who cannot use magic, people like your aunt and uncle,"
"Am I a muggle?" Harry had asked, making Molly laugh,
"Heavens, no, Harry, you are chock full of magic and will be a great wizard one day!" Molly answered, bringing a smile of pleasure to the boy's face.
Turning to Ron, Molly had asked,
"Ron, would you be okay with it if Harry stayed in your room for a little while?"
Ron, to her joy, had nodded so fiercely that Molly thought the poor boy's head would fly off and had run to Harry and embraced the boy in a great hug, not noticing the way Harry flinched, but again, Molly did.
Before she put him to bed, Molly put a few healing salves on Harry's back. It took a great effort for her not to show any emotion as the poor boy winced despite how gentle she tried to administer them; when she was done, she gave the boy a long hug to ensure he didn't see her misty eyes.
Now Harry and Ron were curled up next to each other, sound asleep. Its innocence made Molly want to weep as she saw how peaceful Harry looked; with a final sigh, Molly softly shut the door and made her way to bed.
XXXX
The first thing Molly noticed the following day as she came down the stairs was the smell of something burning; suddenly afraid, she quickly made her way down the stairs to see Harry standing on a stool in front of the oven and struggling to make eggs, with a determined look on his face.
"Harry James Potter, what do you think you are doing?!" Molly yelled out, making the boy jump in fright and land on his butt on the floor; after quickly turning off the oven, Molly bent down to make sure Harry was alright and was alarmed to see him shaking with fear as tears began to run down his cheeks,
"I'm s-sorry, Molly," Harry sputtered as he rubbed his eyes, "I was just trying to m-make breakfast for everyone; I didn't m-mean to make you mad."
Quickly, Molly drew Harry into her embrace, gently stroking his hair as he sobbed into her shirt,
"Harry, it's okay, sweetie," she said softly, "I'm not mad; I was just worried that you might hurt yourself, is all; you're far too young to be using the oven without supervision, dearie,"
"B-but I used to make meals all the time for aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon," Harry cried, making Molly frown as she remembered him telling her how he would cook for them,
"Well, you don't need to worry about that anymore, Harry," Molly said quickly as Harry finally began to settle down,
"I don't?" He asked, confused,
"No, dear, you don't," Molly clarified, "I'll take care of making the meals; you just worry about being a good boy and doing the occasional chore, okay?"
"Okay, Molly," Harry replied with a smile,
"Now, why don't you wake up the others and have Bill show you how to collect eggs, okay?"
With a nod, Harry disappeared up the stairs, and Molly slowly got to her feet before turning to survey the oven,
"It's a miracle he didn't hurt himself," she thought as she pulled out her wand and began making breakfast, "Poor boy is so used to slaving away that he doesn't even realize that he's far too young to be doing it in the first place!"
Molly growled as she imagined how she would like to punish the muggles for treating such a kind boy in so beastly a manner. But it wasn't right, and she'd be damned before she allowed Harry to return there.
XXXX
"You've never heard of Quidditch?!" Fred (or was it George?) asked Harry after breakfast as the children went outside to play,
Harry shook his head quickly, making the twins' eyebrows rise in disbelief,
"That is completely unacceptable, Harry!" The other twin said, "C'mon, we'll teach you everything to know; you'll love it!"
Before Harry could reply, he was dragged away as the twins explained the game to him, Ron, Ginny, and Percy following close behind.
XXXX
"Bill, honey, have you seen Harry?" Molly asked as she came downstairs; Bill was sitting at the table, an open potion book and a roll of parchment in front of him,
"Not since breakfast, mum," Bill replied, turning away from his homework, "Last I saw, Fred and George were dragging him off somewhere,"
Molly paled at the revelation, knowing her sons were born troublemakers; Bill immediately saw her reaction and smiled warmly at her,
"Mum, relax; I'm sure he's fine. Fred and George aren't as devious as everyone makes them out to be,"
"Oh yes, they are!" Molly countered with a grin, making Bill laugh as he turned back to his homework.
"Bill, there's something I wanted to say to you, if you've got time, that is," Molly said as she pulled out a chair next to her eldest child,
"Sure, mum, what's up?" Bill replied as he set down his quill and turned to face her.
"I just wanted to say how happy I am that you all have taken to Harry so well and that I'm grateful for it; the boy has been through a lot,"
"Yeah, I know, mum," Bill said seriously, making Molly pause,
"What do you mean 'you know'" Molly asked softly,
"Mum, I know…." Bill replied, looking at her in the eye to ensure she knew what he meant,
"How?" Molly asked softly, making Bill blush with embarrassment,
"When Madam Pomfrey came over, and you took Harry inside, we were curious, so we kind of listened at the window
"You shouldn't have done that, Bill," Molly said sadly,
"I know, mum," Bill replied downcast, "But the kids should know; this way, they won't be too rough with Harry,
"Is that why they're all being so nice to him?" Molly asked carefully,
"Partly, but I think they actually like him and want him to like them back, honestly,"
"Well, he certainly does, that," Molly said with a laugh that made Bill grin in agreement,
Before Molly could say anything else, Percy came bursting into the house looking extremely excited,
"Mum, you've got to come see this; you're not going to believe it!"
Instantly Molly began to fret as she approached her son,
"What is it? What's wrong?" She exclaimed as Percy tried to catch his breath,
"It's Harry!"
Molly paled at the words and placed a hand on the table to steady herself,
"What's wrong?! Is he hurt?!" Molly cried, rushing after Percy, who had disappeared out the door,
"No, he's not hurt; he's amazing is what he is! Look!" Percy cried as they came to the field just outside the yard; Molly's blood went as cold as ice at what she saw;
Fred and George were laughing with delight as they hovered at least twenty feet in the air on their broomsticks, throwing golf balls into the air; Harry was also laughing as he plunged towards the ground on another broomstick (Ron's, she imagined) and managed to catch each one before it hit the grass, sitting on the ground close by, Ron and Ginny were clapping with delight as the boy dived again and again without missing a single catch.
"Harry James Potter, you come down here this instant!" Molly screamed, panic in her voice as he rose back into the air after another catch that was far too close to the ground for comfort; Harry looked at her in sudden alarm and seemed to panic and lose his balance, for he promptly slid sideways off the broom and fell towards the ground, Molly let out a shriek of terror as the boy fell and quickly ripped her wand from her apron and pointed it at the clearly terrified child who was falling towards the ground, yelling,
"Arresto Momentum!"
Slowly Harry's speed decreased until he landed on the grass as softly as a feather, his face torn between terror and awe.
"Are you alright?!" Molly asked as she pulled the boy into a tight embrace before releasing him to look him over,
"He's fine, mum," Fred (or George) said as he landed his broom next to them, "Did you see how good he was at catching the golf balls? The kid's a natural on a broom, no doubt!"
Molly turned on the twin with a growl that left him speechless for a moment,
"Harry has never even been on a broom before, and you thought it would be a good idea to teach him to dive-bomb the ground?! He could have been killed, Fred!"
"Actually, I'm George," the twin mumbled,
"And I'm Fred," the other twin said as he landed next to Molly,
"Now is NOT the time to test my patience, Harry could have been seriously injured, and you both know better!"
"Please don't be mad at them, Molly," Harry said softly, making her turn to him, "They were teaching me to play Quidditch and said I was a natural on a broom; it was a lot of fun!"
Molly's expression softened as she saw the genuine look of pleasure on the boy's face, and she gently bent down to give Harry another hug before replying,
"I'm glad you're getting along with the other children, Harry, but what you did was very dangerous, I don't mind you flying, but from now on, I want either myself, Bill, or Charlie to keep an eye on you, okay? Does that sound fair to make sure you don't get hurt?"
Harry nodded quickly, earning another warm smile from Molly before she turned back to the other children,
"And as for the rest of you, no more flying for today; that's your punishment," Molly growled, hands on her hips,
groans of discontent followed this announcement before Molly fixed them all with a stern gaze, and they promptly went silent.
"Your auntie Muriel sent over some books last night; why don't you all go read them instead of thinking of new ways to give me a heart attack," Molly said with a grin, making the children laugh, except Harry, who looked crestfallen,
"What's wrong, sweetie?" Molly asked, "Don't you like to read?"
"I don't know how to…." Harry mumbled, making Molly's mouth drop open comically,
"You…. don't know how to read? Your aunt and uncle never taught you? Surely you must have gone to school and been taught there?"
Harry shook his head as tears began to form in the corners of his eyes, "Never went to school; my aunt and uncle said freaks weren't allowed…."
Molly was rendered speechless; even the other children looked shocked by the revelation that Harry had never been taught to read or write, Percy most of all.
"Well, that is certainly something we shall have to rectify, isn't it!" Percy said pompously as he took Harry's hand and began to drag the boy towards the house, the rest of the children not far behind. "We'll start with the alphabet and go from there; with any luck, we'll have you familiar with the basics by teatime!"
"What does rectify mean?" Harry asked as he tried to keep up; Molly smiled as she watched the children go inside the house though she felt the simmer of anger just beneath the surface as yet another crime was laid at the doorstep of Harry's family, with a final sigh of annoyance at the thought of the muggles, Molly accioed the broomstick from where it still sat hanging in the air and followed the children into the house.
XXXX
The following two weeks passed by relatively quickly; each morning after breakfast, Harry would study with Percy or Bill, or Charlie to learn how to read. Afterward, he would help the rest of the children with the chores; when that was done, Harry would join the others in whatever game they came up with for the day; most days were spent with the children teaching Harry how to ride a broomstick while Molly watched fretfully close by.
Gradually, much to Molly's inward delight, Harry had begun to stop flinching when someone tried to touch him and was even beginning to grow some meat on his bones as Molly made him have second and sometimes even third helpings despite his protests and even started talking more, losing his shyness as the children dragged him along on a new adventure every day.
However, the one thing that Harry hadn't gotten over yet were the nightmares, almost every night, Molly had rushed to Ron's bedroom to find Harry sobbing into his pillow as a frightened Ron tried to wake the poor boy up when Harry finally did wake he would cling to Molly and sob out how sorry he was for waking her. At the same time, she gently stroked his head and told him it was okay. Then, she would make him drink a cup of the 'draught of dreamless sleep' Madam Pomfrey had left for just such occasions and stay with the boys until they finally fell back asleep; much to her surprise, Ron never seemed to complain when Harry's nightmares woke him up but instead seemed determined to help the boy he had chosen as his new 'best friend' fight off the monsters in his dreams, Molly had brought the spare bed into Ron's bedroom. Yet, almost every morning, she would find the two boys curled up next to each other with Teddy standing guard in the middle between them.
One morning after the children had eaten their breakfast and run off to do their chores, Dumbledore returned, stepping out of the Weasley's fireplace and looking incredibly tired as though the poor man had not slept since Molly had last seen him.
"Good morning, Molly," Dumbledore said as he dusted himself off, "May I sit?"
"Good morning, Professor Dumbledore; of course, you may. Would you like some tea?" Molly asked, waving her wand as Dumbledore nodded and collapsed onto her couch; a moment later, Molly sat next to him as a tray softly landed between them laden with teapot, cups, and biscuits.
As Molly poured them both a cup, she noticed how weary the old man looked, and any thought of anger disappeared as she handed him his,
"Thank you, my dear," Dumbledore said softly as he took his and drank deep,
"Have you brought news?" Molly asked,
"I have, and unfortunately, it is not good news,"
Molly frowned at the words and took a moment to compose herself before replying,
"I take it you haven't been able to track down any more of Lily's family?"
Dumbledore shook his head slowly as he took another drink,
"It would appear as though Petunia Dursley is all the boy has; loathe though I am to admit it, I see no other options other than to send him back,"
Molly paled at the words and, for a moment, was rendered speechless as she choked on her own fury,
"No! You cannot send him back, Albus! You saw what those horrible people did to him, and you want to send him back to them?!"
"I see no other options, Molly," Dumbledore said wearily, "The blood wards are all that keep Harry safe from those who might hurt him, and Petunia Dursley is Harry's sole surviving blood-kin."
"Well, obviously, they don't work very well! Do you not recall how many injuries Madam Pomfrey listed off when she examined him?!" Molly exclaimed, making Dumbledore frown in remembrance,
"I will never forget, I can assure you, my dear," Dumbledore replied sadly; I will create more wards to ensure they will not be able to hurt him again; he will be an image in the corner of their vision; it will ensure they will not be able to have any further interaction with the boy,"
"My god, Albus, that's even worse!" Molly cried angrily, "You'll be sentencing him to a lifetime of loneliness without any human interaction from the ones raising him!"
"It is the only way to ensure that Harry is safe from those who would harm him, both magically and non-magically," Dumbledore replied,
"No!" Molly growled as she rose to her feet, "I won't allow it! Harry will stay here, and Arthur and I will raise the boy ourselves! He will be loved and cared for as he should be, you may place any wards you think wise around the burrow to ensure Harry's safety, but he stays here!"
"Molly, please be reasonable," Dumbledore replied as he set his cup down and looked up at her, "You already have so many children as it is, and young Percy will be starting at Hogwarts in September; you can hardly afford another child,"
"We'll manage just fine, thank you very much!" Molly retorted, "My decision is made, Albus."
Dumbledore looked at her pleadingly for a moment before he tried another tactic, though he hated even considering it,
"Molly, think of your other children; it won't be safe for them if Harry remains here; for their sake alone, he should go back to his aunt and uncle,"
Molly's eyes widened in a fury at the words, and she immediately drew her wand and pointed at the fireplace,
"Get out," she said through grit teeth,
"My dear woman, if you would only listen…."
"Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, if you do not leave this instant, I will curse you with kidney stones the size of quaffles; now get out!"
Dumbledore's eyes widened at the threat, and he quickly rose and stepped into the fireplace without another word, vanishing in a wall of green fire as Molly slowly tried to calm herself down.
A noise made her turn, and she saw with surprise that Harry was peeking from around a nearby wall with a scared expression on his face,
"Harry, dear," Molly called gently, "I thought you were upstairs doing your lessons with Charlie,"
"He said to take a break while he went to the bathroom," Harry mumbled as he slowly came up to her, "Am I going to have to go back to them?"
Harry's lip trembled, and Molly quickly bent down and placed her hands on the boy's shoulders as he tried not to cry,
"I will never let that happen, Harry, I promise,"
"But the man with the long beard said I had to go back to keep you all safe; I don't want you to get hurt because of me; what if the monsters come here?" Harry cried, tears beginning to run down his cheeks,
"Then Arthur and I will fight them off," Molly said as she drew him into her embrace, "We will never let anything happen to you, I promise,"
"I like it here; I don't want to leave," Harry cried into her shoulder as she gently rubbed his back,
"Don't worry about Dumbledore; he'll see reason in time; you belong here, and I'll never let you go, sweetie."