Chapter 6

Prompt No. 6 – Shed

Date: Ron is 9 and Ginny is 8

She’d been gone for quite a long time. Ron sat on the carpet in the living room. He was bored of his chocolate frog cards and had suddenly realised that Ginny had not come back. She’d left the room about ten minutes ago. He wondered where she had gone.

Of course, it was quite possible that she’d gone to her room or out into the garden, but these past few days they had always been playing together. He wondered if she was annoyed with him.

They’d been alone for the past few hours. His mum was out at Diagon Alley buying new cauldrons for the twins. She’d received a letter from Hogwarts saying that they’d managed to melt theirs… His mum hadn’t been very happy and had stormed out, announcing that she wouldn’t be back for a while (Ron and Ginny had expected that she was going to go and have a sneaky ice cream at Florean Fortescue’s before she came home). His dad was home, but he’d been outside all afternoon ‘taking-apart-and-putting-back-together’ an old Muggle television.

“Ginny?” Ron called.He’d decided that if Ginny wasn’t going to come back then perhaps he should find her. There was no answer. “Ginny!” He wandered into the kitchen. The back door was open but his dad was out the front. “Ginny, you outside?” No answer.

It was cold outside. The light frost had only just vanished from the grass and a smattering of clouds hid the sun from view. Ron pulled his hands into his jumper sleeves and glanced around the garden. He couldn’t see Ginny… He turned back looking inside to see if she’d doubled back when something caught his eye. The broom shed was open.

“Ginny,” he called, moving towards the door, “Ginny, you in there?”

He’d just about reached the door, when from around it, he was met full in the face by Ginny’s wide eyed face, hair and all. Ron pulled back sharply, trying not to show the surprise on his face whilst simultaneously trying to calm himself down from the surprise. His heart was racing.

Evidently he’d been unsuccessful as Ginny walked out of the shed, a grin on her face.

“Scared you. Ha.” Ron frowned

“No you didn’t,” he replied, folding his arms across his chest, “You didn’t scare me at all.” Ginny just continued grinning. Ron was beginning to get annoyed.

“What are you doing in there anyway? Why would you want to go in there?” He gave the shed a weary glance over her shoulder. “It’s horrible and dirty and dark and full of - ”

“- Spiders?” Ginny cut in, obviously enjoying a rare opportunity to tease her elder brother. Ron scowled.

“No, I wasn’t going to say that. I was going to say… I was going to say…”

“Spiders?” Ginny said in a sing-song voice. She shook her head. “Anyway, I wasn’t in there for stupid spiders. What do you think I was in there for?”

“Well I don’t know, do I?”

“Guess.” Ginny was stood with her arms crossed, a gleam in her eye.

“Aw, Ginny, I don’t want to guess.”

“No, you’ve got to, else I’ll tell mum what you did with her best frying pan.” Ron’s eyes narrowed.

“Ginny, you can’t.” His sister smiled, darting away playfully.

“You have to guess then. Why was I in the shed?”

Ron scowled again. Ginny really was annoying sometimes.

“Because that’s where you belong – in a stinky, dark shed.” Ginny wasn’t fased.

“Nope. Guess again. You have two guesses left.”

“Since when?”

“Since now. You have three altogether, and you used one.” Ron rolled his eyes before actually considering what was in the shed.

There was an awful lot of junk and rubbish that wouldn’t interest Ginny at all. There was the chicken food, but it was his dad who fed the chickens, there was half a Muggle bicycle his dad had hidden there, and there was…

“I’ve got it!” Ron exclaimed, turning to face Ginny, a smile on his face. If he was right, he could get Ginny herself into a whole lot of trouble.

“What then?” asked Ginny, eyes narrowed as she clutched the door frame to the shed.

“You’re after the brooms”

Ginny looked slightly downhearted at Ron’s guess. She twisted her mouth as she opened the shed door again.

“OK, you’re right. But you can’t tell anyone.” Ron smiled slowly.

“Why shouldn’t I?” he replied, enjoying the turn of fortunes. Ginny’s eyes widened.

“Please Ron, don’t. I just want to learn. I just want to learn Quidditch. Mum’s never going to let me have a broom and you know it.” Ron considered for a moment, running his hand up and down the wood of the door.

“I won’t tell her, but you have to do something.” Ginny sighed, but nodded at his proposal.

“OK, what?”

“Let me come with you. This time at least.”

Ginny’s eyes widened in excitement, her face full of life again.

“Oh, OK! You can Keep for me, then it’ll be a bit harder!” Ron smiled at her as they both collected two of the brooms from the shed (Ginny had to pass them out to Ron because he didn’t especially feel like braving the spiders right now) and headed up to the orchard.

They spent a good hour practising without any disturbance from anybody. Ron enjoyed it much more than he thought he would and eventually he and Ginny ended up playing an exuberant game of air tag, chasing each other round in ever increasing circles.

It got to the point where they were both laughing hysterically before Ginny slipped off her broom. Only having fallen about a foot, she was unhurt, but they both decided it was time to go inside.

After returning the brooms, they went back through to the sitting room just in time to greet their mum as she came back in, clutching a bag in one hand and a Daily Prophet in the other.

“Hello, dears,” she said, obviously cheered for the better after her day out, “Have a good time?” Ron looked across at Ginny, grinning.

“Yes,” he answered, smiling, “We just played tag outside” (which really wasn’t a lie)

“Lovely,” his mum replied, obviously distracted.

As she headed into the kitchen, Ron looked across at Ginny. Sometimes, he thought, he really did have a great little sister.

A.N: Here is chapter 6 finally. Sorry for the wait. I don't like this one too much but I want to say a massive thanks to my beta Spinky because this chapter really was a mess before she looked through it! Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter, you guys really are great and it is so nice to receive reviews from anybody!

Elle xx