The First Invitation

The whole next day Fred kept an eye on the street, as if waiting for a special delivery. Several times he went outside to sweep the walk, until business picked up and the shop became busy. It seemed that even though there was a certain amount of concern by the parents, the kids that came into the shop were just as happy, boisterous, and curious as ever.

Fred and George's shield hats, gloves and cloaks were selling almost as fast as they could make them. Also Decoy Detonators, Instant Darkness Powder, Liquid Condensed Fog and their the newest invention, Blinding Flash, were becoming very popular and were now available in both regular size and emergency pocket-size containers. They even had pocket-sized Swamp Ooze, which made a puddle of slimy swamp water three meters wide when dropped.

Fred mused that if business continued as it was, he and George would have to consider finding larger premises in Diagon Alley. They still wanted to open a shop in Hogsmeade, but didn't have the time to do that; at least until the summer business quieted a bit.

At lunch, Fred stopped by Annie Ett's before he went to pick up sandwiches from the small café. The wizards Marysia had hired to remodel were working on rebuilding the shop's new shelves and fixtures. It looked like they would be ready to paint soon. The wall sconces and counters were up, and noise from the back meant that there were additional rooms being done. Possibly the back work area and storerooms, Fred thought. One older worker in the main room stopped to tell Fred that Marysia wouldn't be back for a while.

*~****~*

When Marysia came back from having lunch with her mother and running some errands, she noticed several owls waiting for her with mail from her brothers. Since each owl expected a reply, Marysia jotted down a few lines to each one, basically reassuring them she was doing all right. A large box had also arrived, with old scrolls and journals stuffed with added sheets of parchment, that her father had dug up somewhere, asking her to copy and translate them. Unlike the letters he usually sent her, his note was brief, lacking any of the details or the enthusiasm of his discovery. Also, this time he didn't mention where he was or for her to forward back any of the work she'd finished. That was odd, she thought as she carried the box upstairs to her room.

She emptied the contents onto the table and carefully packed the documents she had finished the night before, ready to send the package back to her father when he asked for it. She spent the rest of the day busy inside the new shop.

As dusk approached, Marysia took out a pad of paper, and her favorite quill and ink well. She considered which of the journals and papers she should start first, and selected an old diary full of extra sheets of parchment, grabbed the bag of books she used as references when translating, and walked down to her favorite table for a break.

The small café across from Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes and the Leaky Cauldron were currently the only places left that served dinner in Diagon Alley. Marysia as usual, chose the small café, as it was generally quieter and had tables set up outside. The plump lady who ran the kitchen in the café was cooking home-style meals rather than menu selections, and a large menu board announced what was being offered each night. Her food was always so good, and it reminded Marysia of home.

As Marysia sat down, she waved at George, or at this distance it could have been Fred, and accepted her dinner the witch set before her with a warm smile. Between bites, Marysia worked at translating the writing in the diary and became engrossed in her work.

A cloaked, bent figure moving in the shadows down the street at dusk caught Marysia's attention, and she felt a shiver run down her spine. She tried to ignore it as she worked on the pages between bites, being careful not to rip the pages. It gave her a sad feeling that people coming to Diagon Alley to shop and buy supplies should feel the need to be so guarded.

She remembered that not long ago this was a main social area for wizard kind to mingle and meet; with people shopping happily and glad to run into faces they may not have seen for a while.

As the translating progressed, Marysia was surprised by the content of diary; it was much more ominous than what her father usually dealt with. Her father had probably found or borrowed it from someone's library, she assumed, but was uncertain as to why. There were many sheets added between the pages of the old diary, and the text to be carefully copied was obviously spells. The tiny script and symbols on the old diary and on the parchment sheets to be translated were particularly difficult.

"You're not doing homework are you?" Marysia nearly jumped out of her skin, looked up, startled to see George standing over her. "I thought that you graduated from Hogwarts with honors!"

"George, you startled me! No, not homework, a favor for my dad," Marysia replied, as she breathed easier, seeing a smiling face. "I like your shop, by the way. It seems to be doing really well. I'm glad for you."

George was amused that she could always distinguish him from his brother. Outside of close friends and family, not many people could. Of course in school he had frequently caught her watching them, and she even covered for them twice when they were pulling pranks on Umbridge.

"Yeah, it is, thanks. You should come on in sometime, and say hello." He looked up, noting that many of the shops were closing for the night. "What are you doing out here? You shouldn't be out so late."

"Girl has to eat, and besides, the shop is still such a mess inside." She motioned for George to sit, which he declined. "We began painting today, and tomorrow that should be done, and then the products arrive the day after. But with all the construction going on, upstairs and in the shop, I can't actually eat in there until it's all finished."

"You could come and eat with us," George offered. "It would be safer."

Marysia blushed scarlet in the soft light. "I'd like that very much, thank you, but I'd hate to impose on you."

George laughed. "You always were so formal! We eat at seven, so I'll expect you tomorrow night, then."

"Well, then alright. I would like to have dinner with you and Fred. It is very nice of you to invite me." As Marysia watched George walk back to his shop laughing, no doubt at her, the dark figure moving in the shadows down the Alley caught her attention again. It was a cloaked and bent figure she thought she saw earlier, but it quickly vanished. She hurriedly packed up everything, paid for her meal and went back up to her new flat above her shop.

Marysia spent the evening translating the pages in the journals her father had sent her. This was usually easy work and he paid her well for doing it, but some of the symbols didn't have translations that she knew, so she copied them down as they were in erasable ink. She'd have to ask her father about them later.

Marysia was surprised at the context of this batch of journals and papers her father had sent her. Like the diary they were full of Dark magic and Dark Arts, not her father's usual interest. The sheets stuffed between the pages contained very dark and very complex protective magic. Who would want to go through all this? Poisonous plants, snake venom, bloodletting, the killing of an innocent animal – a symbol that usually meant a 'young' or 'baby' – it wasn't nice stuff. As the night took on chilly stillness unusual for this time of year, Marysia set down her quill and carefully collected the papers she had been working on, placed them in her trunk and went to bed.

A shadow slid down the street as the bent, cloaked figure stopped at the door to the shop, raised a hand and brought out a wand. A door slamming nearby made the figure stop, as a couple started to walk down the street toward the shop. The figure moved away quickly and vanished.

*~****~*

George woke first and quietly made breakfast. He laughed quietly to himself as his brother slept slumped over in the chair by the window again. He noticed the small bell hanging on the window latch and smiled inwardly. George made himself a mug of hot tea, then made a second mug and slipped from the room, grinning mischievously.

As George walked up to her shop, he saw the tiny bell hanging near the door and laughed before tapping sharply on the windowpane. Marysia, dressed in jeans and a large stretched out sweatshirt, opened the door to greet him. "Hi, there!" George smiled at her. "I thought you'd like some tea." His brother, obviously jolted awake when the bell beside him in their flat jingled, alerting him that someone had touched her door, Apparated just behind him with his wand drawn.

Marysia, holding a brush in one hand and a large steaming mug in the other, looked like she had already started painting. "Ah, thanks, but I have mine." She said, lifting her mug to show him, and then looked behind him at Fred, who looked like he had slept in his robes. "I'd invite you in...but..." she said, as she turned to look behind her at the construction being done.

"Don't mind if we do," George answered, handing Fred the second mug, then passed by her into the mess inside. "Love what you're doing with the place. What do you call it?"

"Shabby Chic," Marysia replied with a grin. "All the shelves are finally finished, and the counters are done. Oh, it was a mess getting all the old stuff out, permanent stick on everything in here. Some of the walls practically had to be rebuilt!"

"Looks nice, though," Fred added, burning his tongue on the hot tea. "I mean, it will be really nice."

"Yes, once everything is painted, and the rugs are in place, furniture and oh, yeah, lamps, products and on and on..." Marysia said, gazing around. "The hard wood floors are done, thankfully, and I'm just touching up the paint," Marysia said, smiling warmly at them. "It is supposed to look like the shop in Hogsmeade when I get done. Although, I won't have a garden out back, just a large formal atrium."

She gave the guys a quick tour, stepping into the atrium, which already housed several kinds of flowering plants. "My brothers keep Apparating in here to check up on me. It's nice that they are all so concerned," she said, with a bit of sarcasm that didn't quite reach her eyes.

Fred's eyebrows went up on her remark. Her brothers Apparated in here? How? He wanted to ask her, but didn't. Instead, he asked her about the ever-blooming roses and jasmine.

Finally, Fred and George turned to leave. "It's time for us to go open our own shop," Fred said. On his way out the door, he stopped and turned to Marysia. "If you'd like, come by for lunch, get out of this mess for a while?"

"I'm sorry. I'd love to, but I'm expecting my brother to pop in this afternoon for lunch. But another time, maybe?" Marysia said hopefully.

"Okay, dinner then," Fred said. "After you finish up today, come by the shop." Marysia gave Fred a questioning look.

George smiled at his brother, remembering he'd forgotten to tell Fred he'd already invited her, and then turned to Marysia, and winked at her. "Yeah, stop by the shop, around seven," he added. "I just finished up a batch of brittle!"

"And have feathers, fins or scales all night?" Marysia asked, with a surprised smile. "I know what you did to chocolates! I'd be suspicious of what you two would think of doing to brittle!"

"Yeah, well, I'm sure we can find something that won't give you feathers," Fred replied grinning.

"But thanks for the idea of scales!" George shouted over his shoulder as they left.

*~*****~*

Author's Notes:

I owe a big debt of gratitude to Phoenix for all her hard work and time in cleaning this stroy up and making it presentable. Thank you, Phoenix. I appreciate it more than you know.