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alt_gredforgeRon,
The good news is that we're moved into the new building. Well, we're camping pretty rough, but we don't mind that. Our new space is coming together just like we envisioned, pretty close to that map we sketched out for you, right before you went back to Hogwarts. We're making progress on the packaging, and we have several cool new products that we have in the prototype stage now. We reckon we'll have some samples to show around the Common Rooms right before the first Hogsmeade weekend. The Zonko's deal has been finalised, so we'll have some shelf space there, and so we hope Hogwarts students will be able to buy our products in a very short time.
In the not-so-good news department, Lucius Malfoy seems to have taken offence at our involving Pansy in our plans. Don't know how much trouble he will cause, but he's been leaning on Percy and Percy's siding with him against us and Mum. You know about Mum's plans, to acquire the building rent-to-own, and to turn it into a place where new businesses can get started--even muggle and muggleborns, as long as we handle the books right. Lucius Malfoy found out about Mum's role sometime in the last day or two, and apparently didn't take it well. Percy launched a real scold at Mum and us in the journals tonight. Going on about how we could never make it work, and Mum's dead foolish to try it. He seems mostly bothered that Lucius Malfoy will think less of him if his mum and brothers have anything to do with keeping a shop.
Anyway, Mum didn't take it well. She's been sort of ragged this week, worried about Bill because Bill's boss is such a bastard. So when Percy started in on her, she really blew her stack.
I was in on the messages they exchanged, too (Fred) and since Mum was so upset, we came home and are spending tonight at the Burrow. Had to put some Calming Draught in her tea to get her to simmer down. We think she'll be all right.
But, yeah. Percy. He seems to be within an inch of washing his hands of the whole lot of us. Guess we aren't helping his career enough to suit him.
The good news is that we're moved into the new building. Well, we're camping pretty rough, but we don't mind that. Our new space is coming together just like we envisioned, pretty close to that map we sketched out for you, right before you went back to Hogwarts. We're making progress on the packaging, and we have several cool new products that we have in the prototype stage now. We reckon we'll have some samples to show around the Common Rooms right before the first Hogsmeade weekend. The Zonko's deal has been finalised, so we'll have some shelf space there, and so we hope Hogwarts students will be able to buy our products in a very short time.
In the not-so-good news department, Lucius Malfoy seems to have taken offence at our involving Pansy in our plans. Don't know how much trouble he will cause, but he's been leaning on Percy and Percy's siding with him against us and Mum. You know about Mum's plans, to acquire the building rent-to-own, and to turn it into a place where new businesses can get started--even muggle and muggleborns, as long as we handle the books right. Lucius Malfoy found out about Mum's role sometime in the last day or two, and apparently didn't take it well. Percy launched a real scold at Mum and us in the journals tonight. Going on about how we could never make it work, and Mum's dead foolish to try it. He seems mostly bothered that Lucius Malfoy will think less of him if his mum and brothers have anything to do with keeping a shop.
Anyway, Mum didn't take it well. She's been sort of ragged this week, worried about Bill because Bill's boss is such a bastard. So when Percy started in on her, she really blew her stack.
I was in on the messages they exchanged, too (Fred) and since Mum was so upset, we came home and are spending tonight at the Burrow. Had to put some Calming Draught in her tea to get her to simmer down. We think she'll be all right.
But, yeah. Percy. He seems to be within an inch of washing his hands of the whole lot of us. Guess we aren't helping his career enough to suit him.
no subject
Date: 2013-09-25 03:38 am (UTC)And what's Malfoy care if Mum's buying a building or starting a business? You don't mean he's got wind she's going to work with Muggleborns and Muggles? You can't mean that, really, can you? Never mind. If he had any notion of that... yeah, no.
All right. Look, see to Mum tonight, but it's excellent news about you moving and about Zonkos and packaging and all. And I want to hear everything about these new products you're working on. Because obviously I'll help you get them into the common rooms here. As long as they're not likely to maim anyone. They're not, are they?
Bell's missing you like mad on the pitch. Well, you and Angelina. She keeps saying Angelina made it all look so easy--as if Bell'd never noticed how much time Angelina spent fuming and shouting at us. And I think she's forgotten how often you lot were the ones making Johnson shout! She'll settle into it, though. And we've got until November before we have to play a match. It's against Slytherin, though, so no breaks there.
Well. I hope Mum calms down. He's no right telling her off like that. What a complete git.
no subject
Date: 2013-09-25 12:08 pm (UTC)No, no, Malfoy has no notion we intend to use the consortium to help muggles and muggleborns, and we'll be very careful to keep it that way. Mum has a lot of experience at, uh, creative bookkeeping from administering the barter network. They had no notion that they had Sherwood in their network, and were really puzzled when their business went way down after Mom was removed from administration.
No, what has Malfoy in a strop is Pansy. Specifically, she used some of her money to back us, and Malfoy's fuming about it, because he doesn't believe we can make a go of things selling fake wands, among other things. Or he just hates all Weasleys. Well, all Weasleys except Percy, apparently.
We're going a make a go of it, though. And Pansy's been brill. She has all sorts of marketing ideas, and she's spot on naming products. We're gonna be a good team.
We're trying to think of products that would sell well with the kids but would be dead useful to the Order, too. One of our best are these gizmos Pansy's named Sparking Super Balls. They spark colours (magical illusion, no fire included) when you bounce them on the floor. Look quite dazzling in the dark. BUT, if you carve a certain rune on them and bounce 'em on the floor, they'll become magic seekers: they fly right to the nearest wand you're not holding and engulf the tip. So you can see your opponent's wand glowing in the dark, and it'll delay spells coming from that wand by about five seconds. Until it gets pried off, of course, which takes some effort. Gives you time to dodge. Which could be critical in a firefight.
We have loads more ideas, too. We need to talk to Fu again; the man's a fountain of 'em.
We're missing Quidditch too (not to mention the rest of the team). Hey, who replaced us as Beaters? We should get together with Cedric Diggory and do some drills with him. He's missing Quidditch, too.
Mum still seems upset this morning. The pots and pans were really crashing while she was making breakfast. But she says she won't apologise to Percy.
Which is the right decision, we think. He said some things that were really unforgivable. WE don't mind what he says to us, but he was dead wrong to go after Mum like that.
no subject
Date: 2013-09-25 12:47 pm (UTC)Actually, y'know. You could do something similar with a magic-seeking item that would make loud noises--maybe really annoying music, but whatever--and tell you where your opponents are hiding. What if... what if you made toy Snitches and charmed them to zoom at other players who've got wands? Like... the gag would be that it's the opposite of a real Snitch that zooms away and makes you chase it, right? This joke Snitch would zoom right at whoever you send it towards and chase them or, y'know, dog them and harass them... like Peeves would. I think kids would love something like that! And maybe it would be as easy as those balls to turn it into a magic-seeker that would go find an enemy who's hiding to ambush you or just taking cover. In the ones for the Order, you could amplify the harassment charms, too, maybe so they'd have a wicked hard time fighting you with it whizzing around them.
About Mum: why would she apologise to Percy? He's the one started it.
She didn't burn the bacon, did she?
no subject
Date: 2013-09-25 01:34 pm (UTC)(You still haven't told us: who are the new Gryffindor Beaters?)
As for Mum, she's worried about what Percy might do if he really breaks with the family, if he ever picks up any hint about the Order. If he still cares about us, he might think twice about reporting us.
If he doesn't consider himself a Weasley anymore...well. That makes things really dangerous for us, yeah?
We think she's also feeling guilty because of Dad. She thinks Dad would have never given up on Percy. But honestly, we think this would have really tested his patience to the limit. Percy was scolding Mum--there's no other word for it, really. Fred told him to show some respect, because she's our Mum. And know what he said?!
He said it would help if she acted like she deserved respect.
Plonker.
Charlie said he'd try reaching out to him--oh, yeah, we asked him to come to the Burrow because Mum was in such a state. Anyway, Charlie's gonna try. Not because Percy deserves a second chance, the prat, but because, well, we're all worried about how far he'll slide if he's firmly in Lucius Malfoy's camp.
(And no, Mum didn't burn the bacon, but that was only because she didn't cook any this morning. She burned the sausage instead.)
no subject
Date: 2013-09-25 01:44 pm (UTC)And, yeah. The new Beaters. It's Finnigan and Archer. I mean, Bell didn't have much to choose from, really. And they're both good flyers. Only I wouldn't've picked either of them to get on with the rest of us, y'know?
Archer's so tetchy. And Finnicky, well. He's playing nice so far this term, but you really just never know when he's going stab you in the back.
Now if you could figure out a rune that would make a super sparker tell you if someone's about to turn on you, that would be dead useful.