Good food was a remedy for frayed emotions.
It had to be said that inviting Mrs. Weasley over had been a very wise choice on Black's part. With just Harry and Black, two men, plus a house-elf whose willingness to cooperate was uncertain, it would have been hard to put together such a lavish lunch.
Black might not have been a good cook, but he had Galleons, and Galleons could buy plenty of expensive, excellent ingredients. Add Mrs. Weasley's cooking skills to that.
Everyone ate their fill with great satisfaction, and no one gave another thought to the foul-mouthed old witch in the corridor, hidden securely behind her curtains.
That afternoon, with Sirius Galleon Money-Printing Machine Black treating them, Su Er, Hermione, and the others had a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon in Diagon Alley.
By the end, the Weasley Brothers were beaming, their arms full of "research materials."
Although Christmas had been over for more than ten hours, the festive atmosphere in Diagon Alley was still so strong that Hermione abandoned her original plan to read at Flourish and Blotts. She did, however, keep a respectful distance from the drinks sold along the street, for no other reason than that her earlier moment of public humiliation was still fresh in her memory.
Incidentally, the Weasley family's newly appointed Head Boy had not attended the lunch at the Black Family Home. According to the Weasley Brothers, Percy and his girlfriend were busy being lovebirds in Hogwarts Castle, while also researching how to become Minister for Magic straight after graduation, so the two of them could hardly interrupt.
So, in fact, no one had told Percy there would be a feast that day at all.
The rest of the Christmas break passed uneventfully. Su Er exchanged letters with Harry and his friends now