Professor McGonagall allowed them to come directly by Floo, saving them a cold walk in the snow. Unfortunately, she had no idea how to occupy the young girl and keep her away from the Great Hall.
Minerva went first, asking the Weasleys to wait in a side room. Once she verified that the Potters were already present, she asked the Weasleys to come, leading Ginny to her twin brothers and letting the adults go forward and stand in front of the Head Table.
At first, Ginny was simply enthusiastic to be at Hogwarts and then to see her brothers. She was then surprised that the twins looked serious and even a bit worried. That made her worry too.
"What is it? Why do you look worried?" she asked them.
The twins looked at each other, as if consulting, and George answered, "Mum has a bad habit of sending howlers whenever any of her children does something she doesn't approve of. It never changed a thing, but she made herself known as the 'Howler Mother' among the students, and probably the staff too. Now, she didn't like the way Lord Potter talked about Dumbledore and thought it was her right to send a howler to him too, only it wasn't. Using the howler to berate him, and also his wife, in public is a gross breach of etiquette that many consider unforgivable. Mum and Dad have to apologize now and hope the Potters would be kind enough to accept the apology, or we may never get any status in Britain. Most purebloods and halfbloods would treat us as lower than even muggles. Then, there may be other consequences. Without an accepted apology, Dad may lose his job. We won't be able to still live at the Burrow if that happens. We can only pray that Harry, Lord Potter, will be kind enough to prevent this."
Ginny had no time to try and understand it all. She noticed Professor McGonagall leading her parents to the front of the hall, near the staff table, and pointing at a boy and a girl who were sitting near that end. Both her parents turned to look at them. Then her mother took a step forward and spoke loud enough to be heard throughout the hall and even a bit out of it.
"Lord Potter, Lady Potter, please accept my apology for acting thoughtlessly and inconsiderately by sending a howler to you without even fully checking the facts. I was wrong in more ways than I can even count and you were rightfully offended by my actions."
Molly stopped for a moment to take a breath and collect her thoughts.
"Those who know me are aware of my tendency to act before I even have all the facts. That is probably why I was sorted to Gryffindor in my time."
There were some chuckles, none from the Gryffindor table.
"Still, as a grown-up and a mother of seven, people expect me to act more responsibly. Unfortunately, they almost never make me aware of my faults, letting me continue to act immaturely and offend people around me, especially ones I shouldn't offend, and most of all – my children. I'm ashamed to say that I sent to them more howlers than I sent to all others. Erroneously, I thought I was still educating them, failing to see the humiliation and embarrassment they cause. This time, I just felt offended at the way you talked about the headmaster as if he was a nobody. I didn't read the rest of the article or the other articles, where all the mistakes and worse that he did concerning you were detailed. Only today, after my husband made me read these articles, I finally realised how wrong I was in even considering admonishing you. I regret ever even thinking of sending you a howler, but I can't take it back now.
"I know I may not be the best person around and probably not even the best mother, although I try my best to be that for my children. I really hope that you can accept my apology and not think badly of my family.
"As for Lady Potter – I completely misunderstood the circumstances. I can now understand, due to my husband, that Magic led you to your bond, so there was little you could do about it and there's nothing wrong with what eventually happened. Please accept my apology and treat what happened as a grave error on my side, one that I'll do my best never to repeat."
Ginny could barely believe it was her mother. She literally grovelled on the ground to get forgiveness. That was certainly as far away from how Molly normally behaved as one could imagine. She only hoped that Lord and Lady Potter would accept the apology.
Everybody was looking at Molly with surprise. She could notice that some looked at her with even some disgust. Thinking back on how her howlers seemed to others, she could barely hold back a grimace. How could she be so wrong?!
The Potter couple stayed silent for a moment, looking each other in the eye. Then, Harry stood up. "I, Lord Harry of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter accept the apology of Mrs Molly Weasley and forgive her. I can understand that it wasn't a malicious act and was only a mistake, never to be repeated."
Hermione also stood up. "Mrs Weasley, I accept your apology and forgive you in the spirit it was given. I also hope to never need to get another apology from you."
They knew it was not the warmest acceptance of an apology, but it was good enough not to harm either the Weasley standing in society or the Potter's. Still, this wasn't the end of it, as everybody knew.
Molly took a step back while Arthur stepped forward. "Lord and Lady Potter, as Head of the Minor House of Weasley, I hereby apologize for the unbecoming behaviour of my wife and promise to do all that I can to prevent such acts from any member of my family towards any of yours. I'd also like to reconfirm the vassal vow that my ancestors took to House Potter and assure you that I and my family take it seriously and would do nothing against it, my Lord and Lady."
Harry smiled at the clearly distraught man. "We accept your apology, although it was nothing you did. I also reconfirm the vow and promise to continue the protection promised by my ancestors to yours. I hope we can meet soon under some better circumstances and discuss whatever may need clarification. Until then, you can continue your life with the reassurance our mutual vow gives."
This was a warmer version, although not the warmest, but it was good enough under the circumstances. With the drama over, the students resumed their meals as normal. Molly stayed in her place, unsure what to do next. Arthur approached the Potters hesitantly.
"When do you want us to meet?" he asked.
Harry smiled, trying to convey reassurance and calm. "Probably not before the summer vacation, unless there's something you need to discuss urgently. Is there anything?"
Arthur sighed in relief. "No, Lord Potter. Nothing urgent on my side."
Harry smiled wider. "Good. While I'd really like to get to know you and your family, I don't feel any urgency about it. Still, if you ever feel the need to consult with me, you can owl me or send me a message with one of your children and I'll meet you as soon as I can. And oh… You should just call me Harry, in private."
Arthur could finally smile too. "Thank you, Harry, and you may just call me Arthur if you like."
Harry moved his hand forward and Arthur shook it enthusiastically. He then stepped back to his wife, took her arm in his, and escorted her out of the Great Hall, motioning for Ginny to join them.
They stopped just a few paces beyond the door to calm down further. Minerva joined them a short while later. "It went well enough, I believe."
Molly sighed. "I never thought I'd have to apologise to such a young boy, yet he acted as maturely as people much older than him. And his wife is just as impressive, so it seems."
Minerva smiled. "They both are, indeed. Lady Potter is the smartest witch in her year, and Lord Potter is not far behind. They're also very powerful in magic."
Molly sighed. "No wonder they found my Ron lacking. Unfortunately, he's not very smart and he doesn't like to read or do anything that requires thinking, except for chess. He's quite good at that."
She then turned worried. "Do you know how Albus is?"
Minerva turned sad. "Not well. He attended that press conference and it put to light some truths that he simply wouldn't accept. When the journalists insisted on the truth, his heart gave up. The goblin healers managed to stabilize him, but the healers at St. Mungos are not optimistic about his chances. He seems to have withdrawn into his mind, mumbling incoherently most of the time. Occasionally, he becomes lucid for a short while and recognizes people. He told me to care for the school in his absence, but then started talking about redeeming some Death Eaters and Voldemort himself. He didn't even notice when I said Goodbye and left. It doesn't look like he's coming back soon, if at all."
"Do you think he really did all he was accused of?" Molly asked.
Minerva sighed. "Unfortunately, I do. Filius found some compulsion charms that Albus had cast on me for quite some time. He removed them, of course, and I was much more prudent whenever I was in touch with Albus. He still managed to renew these spells twice, but Filius removed them. I also know that he didn't care when I told him that family was unsuitable for Harry. One of his compulsion charms was probably meant to make me ignore that too. Then, to let Snape teach, he compromised the wards, that wouldn't let the Dark Mark pass, in their original state. I still have to check all that he'd done and correct as much as I can."
Arthur didn't feel like staying there much longer. "Thank you, Minerva. Can you just send the boys out, so we can talk a bit with them before leaving? I'm sure you have a lot on your head right now."
She smiled tiredly. "You have no idea!" She then changed her posture. "I'll send the boys. You may talk to them in that room. See you some other time." She pointed at a nearby door and left.
The boys came out a few minutes later. Percy looked displeased with the whole situation. The twins seemed relieved, at least Ginny thought so, and Ron acted like he had barely touched his food, although Ginny had seen him eating at least two servings.
They settled into that room. Molly hugged each of them with tears in her eyes. "Why didn't you tell me how awful the howlers were?" she asked.
Fred answered. "You never listen to us, Mum. Whenever any of us told you something you didn't agree with, you just dismissed it or stopped listening, just like Dumbledore. How could we even tell you?"
For once, Molly really listened. "I'm sorry, dears. It looks like I was much less of a good mother than I thought. I'm very sorry about that."
George hugged her reassuringly. "Don't worry, Mum. Nobody's perfect. Not even we two. And we still love you."
Fred joined the hug. Ron joined a moment later, after finishing chewing the last remains of his breakfast, and even Percy joined it, making Molly's eyes tear up.
"I love you all, dears. Please forgive me."
"You…" said Fred
"Are…" continued George.
"Forgiven!" they said together.
–..–
A few minutes later, the boys left, not to be late for lessons. Molly made sure that Ginny was well dressed and cast a few warming charms too before they all went out. Ginny looked around, enchanted by the grandeur of the castle and by the mere fact that she was visiting it more than half a year before starting school.
They walked leisurely. It was still cold, but it wasn't snowing and the snow cover was thin enough to walk sure-footed. On their way, Arthur tried to explain to Ginny a bit more about the customs and traditions that made the apology such a big thing. She seemed to understand, but he wasn't sure she would remember it. After all, the Weasley family didn't normally pay much attention to these facets of life.
They were all glad to arrive at Hogsmeade after some walking. Despite the warm clothing and the warming charms, their feet were starting to feel quite cold. Arthur still gave Ginny a quick tour of the main street, not that there was much besides it, before joining his wife in the Three Broomsticks.
"May I have a butterbeer?" Ginny asked.
Molly frowned, but Arthur answered first. "Only one, and I suggest you keep half of it to drink at home, or you'll leave it along the Floo connection."
Ginny smiled. "Sure. It will taste better at home."
A short while later, they took the Floo back to the Burrow, glad to still have it. Since Arthur had taken the whole day off, Molly thought they could have some fun together.
"Ginny, I suggest you go back to sleep. We all woke up much earlier than normal to be on time at Hogwarts. We can now catch up on our sleep. Dad and I are also going to bed."
Ginny smiled at her parents. "Sure! Goodnight."
Molly watched her closing the door to her room and then dragged Arthur to their bedroom, where he seemed just as eager as her. 'With some luck, we may start another child,' she thought before joining him.