The garden at the Burrow was livelier than ever. Lamps floated into the air with the help of magic, dotting the darkness with light.
Everyone chatted, and by seven o'clock, the two tables were groaning beneath the weight of the delicious dishes Mrs. Weasley had prepared.
Though she was now General Manager Molly, once she returned home, she was still the same loving mother, and she refused everyone's offers of help.
She insisted on doing the cooking herself and showing off her skills. So all nine members of the Weasley family, along with Harry, Hermione, Sirius, Malfoy, and Zhang Xiao, sat down at the long tables to eat beneath the clear, deep-blue night sky.
Zhang Xiao raised a brimming glass of Butterbeer and clinked it against Bill's and Charlie's, toasting their courage in giving up comfortable lives to join the fight against Voldemort.
Fred and George lit a bonfire, then took Ginny to catch a few gnomes. They cast Petrificus Totalus on them and arranged them in various poses to serve as a band.
Malfoy gave a vivid account of how, after returning to Britain, he had flown to the Burrow alone on his broomstick.
Harry and Ron listened, biting their forks in envy.
Zhang Xiao would bet that Little Ma Brother had gone against his father's instructions. A stunt that dangerous would make Lucius thrash his backside raw.
But after boasting for a while, Malfoy began to run out of steam. No matter what he said, even when Ron's and Harry's eyes went red with envy and their teeth ground together...
Neither would give him a single word of praise.
Unable to get the satisfaction he wanted, Little Ma Brother could only turn to Zhang Xiao and Sirius and tell them about Professor Lupin.
Even Hermione, who had been