Fic: Unraveling a Mystery, chapter 2 (Bill/Millicent, PG-13)
Title: Unraveling a Mystery
Author: Kaz
Disclaimer: JK Rowling owns all.
Rating: PG
Pairing: Bill/Millicent
Summary: Bill tries to pick up a girl in a pub, but she proves to be more of a mystery than he bargained for.
Chapter Two
While he certainly wasn’t as brilliant as the twins or Percy, Bill had been Head Boy, and he was smart enough to know where to go to find information. So the next day at lunch, with a happy little grin on his face, he walked down Diagon Alley until he got to the building housing the Daily Prophet. He was going to have to use all his subtle techniques at eliciting information without rousing her suspicions. Since he’d taught her most of what he knew, he’d have to be especially cunning, so he decided to invite her to lunch and draw her out over a nice meal. Unfortunately, he did teach her all the tricks, which was why she raised an eyebrow and point blank told him to just ask his question already.
“You don’t have to be so suspicious,” he said, pouting a bit as he mentally revised his tactics. “Maybe I don’t have a question at all. Maybe I’m just trying to take my favorite investigative reporter to lunch.”
Ginny rolled her eyes, clearly not believing a word of it. “Yes, and I’m having a torrid affair with Cornelius Fudge,” she said sarcastically.
Bill wrinkled his nose, doing his best to dispel the visual that accompanied her words. “It isn’t even funny to joke about something like that, Gin. Especially right before lunch. That’s just sick,” he said with a shudder.
“Come on, then, we’ll go to the little sandwich place down the street,” she replied, standing up and leading the way out of the building. She did wait until they were seated and had ordered before tapping her fingers on the table. “Out with it then.”
Bill was startled for a moment - she had sounded far too much like their mother for his comfort - but old habits died hard and he found himself doing as commanded almost immediately. “I have a bit of a mystery that I think you can help me solve,” he began, drumming his fingers on the table.
That definitely piqued her interest, both as a reporter and as a sister, as he hoped it would, and she leaned forward.
“Well, you’ve come to the right woman,” Ginny said, reaching into her bag for her ever-present pad of paper and a quill. “Is this on the record or off?”
Bill just looked at her drolly. “It’s a personal matter,” he said shortly, trusting his sister not to make a story out of his search for his mysterious Millie, though he couldn’t imagine who would want to read it anyhow.
She sighed. “Off then, but you owe me the next time something interesting happens at the bank,” she said.
“Honestly, woman, when did you get so …” He trailed off, searching for the right adjective.
“Professional?”
“I was going to say calculating,” Bill corrected.
Ginny stuck her tongue out at him. “I’m not calculating, I’m simply trying to use all available contacts,” she said with a grin. “It’s good reporting. Besides, you never know when a great story will unravel before your eyes.”
Bill shook his head, keeping his mouth shut until the waitress had delivered their meals and wandered away to look after another table.
“Well then, hurry up and tell me. I’m dying over here,” his sister urged.
He gave her a look that clearly said she should be more patient, but acquiesced anyway. “I met a girl the other night at the pub,” he began.
“You took me out to lunch to discuss a witch?” she asked in shock. “Is it that serious already?”
He blinked. “What? No! No, I just … I haven’t any idea who she is, exactly. I had just begun chatting her up when Ron came in and made a mess of my plans. And when I was going to call her over to talk to the both of us, she was gone.”
Ginny waggled her pickle at him. “Did you even ask her name?” she asked before taking a bite of it.
“Yes,” he said, a bit testily. “I’m not a totally neophyte, you know.”
“Good word! I’ll have to see if I can work that into my next story,” Ginny said with a grin, grabbing her quill and scrawling the word on her paper.
Bill scowled. “Focus, will you?”
“How can I? You’ve not given me anything to focus on, except the fact that there’s a witch that was seemingly immune to your supposed charms.”
He began to wonder why he had gone to her at all, if all she was going to do was tease him. Shouldn’t he know better by now? Wouldn’t it have been far easier to find another way than his sister? Even if she did have ways of finding things out that he couldn’t dream of, surely hours spent toiling in the Ministry library would be preferable to this.
“Okay, okay, get that look off your face. It’s as if someone just killed your pet puffskein,” Ginny said, shaking her head. “I’ll be serious.”
Bill glanced at her warily.
She pointed to her face. “See? This is my serious face,” she intoned, keeping her face blank.
At that, Bill had to crack a smile. “You’re not funny. I don’t even know why I’m smiling because there is nothing amusing in your antics at all,” he said, before he took a bite of his sandwich.
Ginny grinned. “Because I’m a lovely sister, that’s why. Now, come on, tell me more about this witch.”
Swallowing quickly, he smiled a bit. “Well, she’s got long, dark hair, and she’s younger than I am - but not too young, and she has a rather nice voice. She’s curvy, from what I could see at least, and she’s got nice eyes,” he informed her, looking at her for some reaction.
She returned his gaze. “Is that it?”
“No,” he said defensively. “She knew that Ron was my brother, so I thought that maybe she went to school with you two.”
“You couldn’t have started with that, could you? And you never did tell me her name,” Ginny pointed out, rolling her eyes.
“Oh, didn’t I? Sorry. She said it was Millie.” Catching the look on Ginny’s face he frowned. He didn’t like it, not one bit. “What?”
She cleared her throat, setting down the crisp she’d been holding. “Let me make sure I have all the fact, yeah?” Without waiting for Bill to agree, she plowed on. “There’s a girl named Millie, who you conjecture went to school with Ron and I, who has long, dark hair and is a bit on the plump side?”
“Yes.” Bill nodded. “Now what are you thinking. You know who it is, don’t you?”
“No, but I’ve an idea, I just want to be sure before I tell you who I think she is,” she admitted. “There’s nothing else you can remember about her? What did you two talk about, anyway?”
Bill shrugged. “I tried to make small talk, but only got to the Malfoy trial before Ron interrupted. She seemed relieved when Malfoy was found innocent, though,” he added as an afterthought.
This news only made his sister’s lips purse even more. “Gin, if you don’t tell me what you’re thinking, I’ll be forced to tell Ron who accidentally-on-purpose broke his replica of the Cannons’ stadium,” he warned.
Ginny scowled at him and gave him a sharp kick underneath the table. “Stop being a prat,” she said, though her cheeks were heated. “And for the record, Hermione thanked me. It was taking up far too much room on their dining room table for her liking, but she couldn’t think of a way to get rid of it without him having a fit.”
“Ginny …”
“All right,” she said with a huff. “There was one girl in Ron’s class who fits the description of your mystery witch, but …”
Bill just waited.
“She was a Slytherin,” Ginny said. “She was part of the Umbridge’s Inquisitorial Squad during my fourth year, and she was quite nasty to Hermione in particular. She was close with Malfoy, too, but I don’t know if she was a Death Eater or not. She certainly wasn’t brought to trial if she was, at least.”
That hadn’t been what he expected Ginny to say, so he blurted out the first thing that came to mind. “What’s her last name?”
“Bulstrode.”
Bill’s eyes widened in shock. He was familiar with the surname, as anyone in the Order was after what Gustavus Bulstrode had done to Mundungus Fletcher. Poor Dung was still working on getting back full use of his arm.
He’d heard rumors about Bulstrode’s daughter during the man’s trial, but since she hadn’t shown up at the Wizengamot to hear the case, he had never actually seen her. Ron and Harry had mentioned her though, but they’d described an ugly hag, and that certainly didn’t fit with the witch he’d seen at the pub. Millie would never be on the cover of Witch Weekly, but she wasn’t ugly at all. She was striking and unique. Intriguing. That was the word for her.
He didn’t realize he was speaking out loud until he saw his sister’s face. “What?” he asked, frowning.
“I didn’t say anything,” Ginny said quietly, sipping at her water.
“You were thinking it awfully loudly though.”
“Then you hardly need me to repeat it,” she pointed out. At his look, she sighed. “It just … would it be smart? To get involved with a Slytherin whose father was … what he was? And who might have been involved herself?”
“I never said I wanted to be involved with her. I just wanted to find out who she was,” Bill replied rather defensively.
At that, Ginny held him with steely glare. “You called her intriguing, Bill. You only call witches you’re interested in intriguing,” she informed him.
“I do?” he asked, frowning in thought. She nodded, pulling a sigh from him. “Well, the war’s over, Gin. Isn’t it time we all put it behind us?”
She shrugged. “Do you think that’s possible? To just forgive and forget after all that’s happened?” Her expression said louder than words that she didn’t think so.
Bill didn’t have an answer to that, so he took a large bite of his sandwich. After swallowing and wiping his mouth, he met her eyes. “I don’t know. But if I see her again, I think I might want to try.”
“And what will Ron think of this? You know how he gets, especially about Slytherins, and Millicent was horrid to Hermione.”
“It isn’t any of his business,” Bill said firmly. “And it’s a moot point until I find her anyway.”
Ginny raised an eyebrow. “Until you find her? I thought this was a ‘if I see her again’ type thing.”
He frowned. She was entirely too sharp sometimes. “Well, regardless, I don’t make my decisions based on what Ron thinks.” He pinned her with a knowing gaze. “Do you?”
“Point taken,” she said, somewhat unwillingly. “But when he goes barmy when he finds out that you’re chasing after Millicent Bulstrode and you two have screaming match, I’ll be there to tell you I told you so.”
“I wouldn’t expect anything less, Gin,” he said, grabbing a crisp and popping it into his mouth.
Now he just had to find her again.
Author: Kaz
Disclaimer: JK Rowling owns all.
Rating: PG
Pairing: Bill/Millicent
Summary: Bill tries to pick up a girl in a pub, but she proves to be more of a mystery than he bargained for.
Chapter Two
While he certainly wasn’t as brilliant as the twins or Percy, Bill had been Head Boy, and he was smart enough to know where to go to find information. So the next day at lunch, with a happy little grin on his face, he walked down Diagon Alley until he got to the building housing the Daily Prophet. He was going to have to use all his subtle techniques at eliciting information without rousing her suspicions. Since he’d taught her most of what he knew, he’d have to be especially cunning, so he decided to invite her to lunch and draw her out over a nice meal. Unfortunately, he did teach her all the tricks, which was why she raised an eyebrow and point blank told him to just ask his question already.
“You don’t have to be so suspicious,” he said, pouting a bit as he mentally revised his tactics. “Maybe I don’t have a question at all. Maybe I’m just trying to take my favorite investigative reporter to lunch.”
Ginny rolled her eyes, clearly not believing a word of it. “Yes, and I’m having a torrid affair with Cornelius Fudge,” she said sarcastically.
Bill wrinkled his nose, doing his best to dispel the visual that accompanied her words. “It isn’t even funny to joke about something like that, Gin. Especially right before lunch. That’s just sick,” he said with a shudder.
“Come on, then, we’ll go to the little sandwich place down the street,” she replied, standing up and leading the way out of the building. She did wait until they were seated and had ordered before tapping her fingers on the table. “Out with it then.”
Bill was startled for a moment - she had sounded far too much like their mother for his comfort - but old habits died hard and he found himself doing as commanded almost immediately. “I have a bit of a mystery that I think you can help me solve,” he began, drumming his fingers on the table.
That definitely piqued her interest, both as a reporter and as a sister, as he hoped it would, and she leaned forward.
“Well, you’ve come to the right woman,” Ginny said, reaching into her bag for her ever-present pad of paper and a quill. “Is this on the record or off?”
Bill just looked at her drolly. “It’s a personal matter,” he said shortly, trusting his sister not to make a story out of his search for his mysterious Millie, though he couldn’t imagine who would want to read it anyhow.
She sighed. “Off then, but you owe me the next time something interesting happens at the bank,” she said.
“Honestly, woman, when did you get so …” He trailed off, searching for the right adjective.
“Professional?”
“I was going to say calculating,” Bill corrected.
Ginny stuck her tongue out at him. “I’m not calculating, I’m simply trying to use all available contacts,” she said with a grin. “It’s good reporting. Besides, you never know when a great story will unravel before your eyes.”
Bill shook his head, keeping his mouth shut until the waitress had delivered their meals and wandered away to look after another table.
“Well then, hurry up and tell me. I’m dying over here,” his sister urged.
He gave her a look that clearly said she should be more patient, but acquiesced anyway. “I met a girl the other night at the pub,” he began.
“You took me out to lunch to discuss a witch?” she asked in shock. “Is it that serious already?”
He blinked. “What? No! No, I just … I haven’t any idea who she is, exactly. I had just begun chatting her up when Ron came in and made a mess of my plans. And when I was going to call her over to talk to the both of us, she was gone.”
Ginny waggled her pickle at him. “Did you even ask her name?” she asked before taking a bite of it.
“Yes,” he said, a bit testily. “I’m not a totally neophyte, you know.”
“Good word! I’ll have to see if I can work that into my next story,” Ginny said with a grin, grabbing her quill and scrawling the word on her paper.
Bill scowled. “Focus, will you?”
“How can I? You’ve not given me anything to focus on, except the fact that there’s a witch that was seemingly immune to your supposed charms.”
He began to wonder why he had gone to her at all, if all she was going to do was tease him. Shouldn’t he know better by now? Wouldn’t it have been far easier to find another way than his sister? Even if she did have ways of finding things out that he couldn’t dream of, surely hours spent toiling in the Ministry library would be preferable to this.
“Okay, okay, get that look off your face. It’s as if someone just killed your pet puffskein,” Ginny said, shaking her head. “I’ll be serious.”
Bill glanced at her warily.
She pointed to her face. “See? This is my serious face,” she intoned, keeping her face blank.
At that, Bill had to crack a smile. “You’re not funny. I don’t even know why I’m smiling because there is nothing amusing in your antics at all,” he said, before he took a bite of his sandwich.
Ginny grinned. “Because I’m a lovely sister, that’s why. Now, come on, tell me more about this witch.”
Swallowing quickly, he smiled a bit. “Well, she’s got long, dark hair, and she’s younger than I am - but not too young, and she has a rather nice voice. She’s curvy, from what I could see at least, and she’s got nice eyes,” he informed her, looking at her for some reaction.
She returned his gaze. “Is that it?”
“No,” he said defensively. “She knew that Ron was my brother, so I thought that maybe she went to school with you two.”
“You couldn’t have started with that, could you? And you never did tell me her name,” Ginny pointed out, rolling her eyes.
“Oh, didn’t I? Sorry. She said it was Millie.” Catching the look on Ginny’s face he frowned. He didn’t like it, not one bit. “What?”
She cleared her throat, setting down the crisp she’d been holding. “Let me make sure I have all the fact, yeah?” Without waiting for Bill to agree, she plowed on. “There’s a girl named Millie, who you conjecture went to school with Ron and I, who has long, dark hair and is a bit on the plump side?”
“Yes.” Bill nodded. “Now what are you thinking. You know who it is, don’t you?”
“No, but I’ve an idea, I just want to be sure before I tell you who I think she is,” she admitted. “There’s nothing else you can remember about her? What did you two talk about, anyway?”
Bill shrugged. “I tried to make small talk, but only got to the Malfoy trial before Ron interrupted. She seemed relieved when Malfoy was found innocent, though,” he added as an afterthought.
This news only made his sister’s lips purse even more. “Gin, if you don’t tell me what you’re thinking, I’ll be forced to tell Ron who accidentally-on-purpose broke his replica of the Cannons’ stadium,” he warned.
Ginny scowled at him and gave him a sharp kick underneath the table. “Stop being a prat,” she said, though her cheeks were heated. “And for the record, Hermione thanked me. It was taking up far too much room on their dining room table for her liking, but she couldn’t think of a way to get rid of it without him having a fit.”
“Ginny …”
“All right,” she said with a huff. “There was one girl in Ron’s class who fits the description of your mystery witch, but …”
Bill just waited.
“She was a Slytherin,” Ginny said. “She was part of the Umbridge’s Inquisitorial Squad during my fourth year, and she was quite nasty to Hermione in particular. She was close with Malfoy, too, but I don’t know if she was a Death Eater or not. She certainly wasn’t brought to trial if she was, at least.”
That hadn’t been what he expected Ginny to say, so he blurted out the first thing that came to mind. “What’s her last name?”
“Bulstrode.”
Bill’s eyes widened in shock. He was familiar with the surname, as anyone in the Order was after what Gustavus Bulstrode had done to Mundungus Fletcher. Poor Dung was still working on getting back full use of his arm.
He’d heard rumors about Bulstrode’s daughter during the man’s trial, but since she hadn’t shown up at the Wizengamot to hear the case, he had never actually seen her. Ron and Harry had mentioned her though, but they’d described an ugly hag, and that certainly didn’t fit with the witch he’d seen at the pub. Millie would never be on the cover of Witch Weekly, but she wasn’t ugly at all. She was striking and unique. Intriguing. That was the word for her.
He didn’t realize he was speaking out loud until he saw his sister’s face. “What?” he asked, frowning.
“I didn’t say anything,” Ginny said quietly, sipping at her water.
“You were thinking it awfully loudly though.”
“Then you hardly need me to repeat it,” she pointed out. At his look, she sighed. “It just … would it be smart? To get involved with a Slytherin whose father was … what he was? And who might have been involved herself?”
“I never said I wanted to be involved with her. I just wanted to find out who she was,” Bill replied rather defensively.
At that, Ginny held him with steely glare. “You called her intriguing, Bill. You only call witches you’re interested in intriguing,” she informed him.
“I do?” he asked, frowning in thought. She nodded, pulling a sigh from him. “Well, the war’s over, Gin. Isn’t it time we all put it behind us?”
She shrugged. “Do you think that’s possible? To just forgive and forget after all that’s happened?” Her expression said louder than words that she didn’t think so.
Bill didn’t have an answer to that, so he took a large bite of his sandwich. After swallowing and wiping his mouth, he met her eyes. “I don’t know. But if I see her again, I think I might want to try.”
“And what will Ron think of this? You know how he gets, especially about Slytherins, and Millicent was horrid to Hermione.”
“It isn’t any of his business,” Bill said firmly. “And it’s a moot point until I find her anyway.”
Ginny raised an eyebrow. “Until you find her? I thought this was a ‘if I see her again’ type thing.”
He frowned. She was entirely too sharp sometimes. “Well, regardless, I don’t make my decisions based on what Ron thinks.” He pinned her with a knowing gaze. “Do you?”
“Point taken,” she said, somewhat unwillingly. “But when he goes barmy when he finds out that you’re chasing after Millicent Bulstrode and you two have screaming match, I’ll be there to tell you I told you so.”
“I wouldn’t expect anything less, Gin,” he said, grabbing a crisp and popping it into his mouth.
Now he just had to find her again.