Dealing with Ourselves : Fred Weasley

40

     The next morning I get up and skip breakfast. Instead, I stay inside the common room as long as I can. I try to pay as much attention to my classes as possible. Any distraction is a good distraction. At lunch instead of going to the great hall and eating I sit in the owlery and send a letter to my parents telling them I will go home for Christmas. 
     I can feel the knots in my chest and stomach tighten as I walk to DADA. Only I dread it for a whole new reason now. I always sit next to Fred in that class. I walk in slowly, my chest tightens when I see the back of Fred's head. I quickly look around the room. Reno is sitting in front of them as usual. That is too close to Fred. Zacharias Smith is sitting on the other side of the room alone. I walk over and sit next to him. 
     He looks at me, surprised but seemingly happy. "Hey." I give him a small smile for a response. "Charlie!" George's family voice says. I hesitate before looking over. Fred is looking at his desk with his arms crossed. George is looking over at me confused. I suppose Fred didn't tell him. "Why are you sitting with him?" George asks loudly. Fred says something quietly to him. George quickly looks at me concerned before turning away and talking quietly to Fred. 

     Two weeks pass by before either of the twins speak to me. Harry and Ron have asked me several times what happened between Fred and me. I just say that Fred messed up. Apparently, Fred won't tell them. I can never help myself when we are in the great hall. I always have to look over at him. He is usually sitting in between either George and Angelina or George and Lee. Often we will look over at each other at the same time. We will make eye contact, and it always hurts us both. We only look away when someone speaks to one of us, pulling our attention away. 
     I have spent most of my time with Reno and Zacharias. I told Harmony about everything that happened so she knows that I wasn't avoiding her. I just need space away from Fred. Meaning I have been avoiding George too. He reminds me too much of Fred. I know it is wrong of me, but I want to be okay. 
     Today however seems different. It is the last day of classes. Tomorrow we will be going home for Christmas. When I walk into the great hall for lunch I find George sitting at the Hufflepuff table where I always sit with Reno and Zacharias. I consider leaving and going to the library instead. The rumbling in my stomach makes me quickly change my mind. 
     I take a deep breath before walking over and sitting across from him. I don't look at his face. "Hey, George. What's up?" I ask trying to sound normal. "What's going on with you and Fred? What happened?" He asks quickly. I freeze for a moment before taking a sandwich. "I thought it was fairly obvious. We broke up," I say trying very hard to sound normal. "He told me that, but why? He won't talk to me about it. What happened?" 
     I slowly look up at him. "And why have you stopped talking to me? What did I do to you?" He sounds hurt. I start to feel really guilty. "I know... I am sorry George, I really am... It is just hard, you are his twins. And he really hurt me," I say slowly. "Why? What did he do? Please, Charlie, he is miserable. And you seem like you are too. Just tell me so I can understand," he begs. "Okay fine. Zacharias saw him and Angelina kissing in the corridor," I say while closing my eyes to focus. When I open my eyes and look back at George he looks confused. "And you believed that git?" He asks. "No, not at first. When I asked Fred about it he said that he couldn't talk to me about it. He refused to say anything about it," I say quickly. 
     George thinks for a few long seconds before leaning forward. "Charlie. I am about to tell you something very important. Please believe me, it is the god honest truth. Zacharias saw me kissing Angelina, not Fred. Me and Angelina have had a secret thing going on since around October. Fred had sworn to me that he wouldn't tell anyone. He wasn't saying anything because he was protecting me. He didn't cheat on you," he speaks slowly. I look at the door and see Fred walk in. He goes and sits at his normal spot at the Gryffindor table. He looks around for George. When he sees him over here with me he has a confused look. I look back to George.
     "So why didn't he try telling me that when no one else was around?" I ask after a moment. "He didn't want to break his promise. He didn't tell me what happened between you because he didn't want me to feel responsible because he was protecting me. Charlie, he really cares about you. He wouldn't do anything to hurt you." 
     "Is everything okay?" Reno asks as he sits next to me. "Yea, everything is fine," I say quietly. "Reno. I am going to tell you too. But please keep it between only you two. Zacharias saw me and Angelina kissing, not Fred. Fred didn't cheat. I swear that is the truth. Angelina and I wanted to stay secret, and Fred swore he wouldn't tell anyone. He was protecting me," George says quickly. 
     "That's great news, isn't it Charlie?" Reno says with a smile. He slowly stops smiling when he sees that I'm not. "I still don't understand why he would let me believe for two weeks that he cheated on me if he didn't," I say quietly. "Please try to talk to him, Charlie. You need each other. You are still wearing the necklace he gave you. I know you still care about him," George pleads. Zacharias takes the other seat next to me. 
     "What is he doing here?" He asks while glaring at George. "That's George, not Fred," I point out. Zacharias puts his arm over my shoulder. "They are both just as bad," he says under his breath. George looks between Zacharias and me. "Is there something going on with you two now?" George asks in disbelief. I push Zacharias's arm off me. "No. We are just friends," I say while getting a glass of water. 
     "Just think about it, please Charlie?" George asks. I nod. "I will," I say to him. He lightly nods then walks back to the Gryffindor table. "What did he want?" Zacharias asks. "Don't worry about it," I say while looking at my water. "Did he try-"  "I said don't worry about it. Why do you treat them like they are bad people?" I ask Zacharias irritated. "Are you serious? After what he did to you?"  "George didn't do anything. And maybe neither did Fred," I say defensively. "I'll see you tonight Reno," I say before quickly walking out. 
     
     I walk into the room of requirement with Reno. This will be the last D.A meeting before the holiday. By the time we get there, everyone else is already there. The room is decorated for Christmas. I slightly smile. It looks nice. We all gather around for Hary to talk to us. 
     "Okay," he says. "I thought this eveningwe should just go over the things we've done so far because it's the last meeting before the holidays and there's no point starting anythingnew right before a three-week break —" "We're not doing anything new?" Zacharias asks, in a disgruntled whisper loud enough to carry through the room. "If I'dknown that, I wouldn't have come..."
     "We're all really sorry Harry didn't tell you, then," Fred says loudly.Several people sniggered. "We can practice in pairs," says Harry. "We'll start with the Impediment Jinx, just for ten minutes, then we can get out the cushionsand try Stunning again." Everyone starts to divide into pairs. I am always paired with Reno. When I look over to him though he is standing with George. 
     I give him a confused look. He doesn't give any response. I look around the room to see who doesn't have a partner. I think my heart skips a beat when I see that the only one is Fred. He looks at me then at George before back to me. He looks sad and scared at the same time. He slowly walks over. "For the sake of the D.A?" he asks quietly. I lightly not, not being able to speak. How am I supposed to do a jinx against him? I think he is thinking the same thing about me. 
     We stand across from each other and hold up our wands. He gives me a small nod as to say I can jinx him first. I take a deep breath and hold my wand tightly. "Impedimenta!" Fred almost instantly freezes. I feel something hit my feet. I look down and see a wand laying on the floor next to me. I bend over and pick it up and look around to see who's it is. 
     Zacharias hurries over. "Sorry, I didn't have a good grip," he says while smiling. I hand him his wand without saying anything. He looks over at Fred who is still frozen then up above us. I look up to see what he is looking at. "Mistletoe," he says softly. Oh no, I already know what he is thinking. I turn away from him and face Fred again. Zacharias puts his hand on the side of my head and pulls me to him. Our lips touch for only a few seconds before I push him away as hard as I could. 
     "What the hell?!" I say angrily to him. Before I can stop myself my hand is clenched into a fist and making contact with his nose. Several people hurry over or stop to watch what is happening. Reno is one who runs over, he takes my hands and pulls me away. "Stupefy!"   Zacharias flies back a couple of feet and falls onto the floor, stunned. We all look over at Fred who looks very angry. Harry and George run to him. 
     "What is going on?" several people ask. A few people go over and help Zacharias up. Fred walks over to me. "Are you okay?" he asks me softly. Out of shock, all I can do is nod. Fred looks at Zacharias once he is on his feet again. "If you ever touch her without her content again you will be getting a lot worse than just stunned," Fred says sternly. He looks at Fred for a few seconds before walking away to continue practising. 
     "Erm... Everyone get back to it then!" Harry says to everyone who is standing around watching. Slowly everyone does as he says. Harry and George walk over to Fred and me. "What was all that?" Harry asks looking between us. "Zacharias kissed me," I say still a little angry. "I thought you two broke up?" Harry says confused while looking between Fred and me. Me and Fred look at each other for a few seconds before looking back at Harry. "We are, but it was pretty obvious that she didn't want him to touch her. She turned away and he forced her to him," Fred says after a few seconds. 
     Harry and George look at me for confirmation. I nod. "It's true. I pushed him away and punched him," I say quietly. Harry looks between us for a few seconds. "Okay, are you okay to continue with practice?" he asks me. I nod. "Okay," he says before walking away to watch everyone. 
     "Do you want to practice with me, Charlie?" Reno asks me. I look over at Fred for a few seconds before lightly shaking my head. I give him a small smile. "Not this time Reno." A small smile goes across Fred's face. Reno and George smile at each other before walking away to continue practising. 
     "You just want to keep jinxing me don't you?" Fred asks with a smile. I can't help but smile back. "Maybe a little bit," I say softly, still not able to completely find my voice. "You know they set up us pairing upright?" Fred asks, motioning over to Reno and George. I nod. "Oh completely," I say a bit louder with a very small laugh. Fred looks up before looking back at me. "You are still under the mistletoe," He says softly. I look up. He is right. "We had better move then," I say while walking away a few feet. I can sadness flash across his face for a few seconds before he covers it up. 
     He walks along with me as we stand something new, each a couple of feet away from each other so we can continue practising. "It's your turn," I say to him with a small smile. We continue to practice, going back and forth jinxing then stunning each other. An hour later Harry calls us to an end. We all gather around again. 
     "You're getting really good," Harry says, beaming around at us. "When we get back from the holidays we can start doing some of thebig stuff — maybe even Patronuses." There is a small murmur of excitement around the room. Slowly everyone files out in pairs. Everyone wishing Harry a merry Christmas as they walk out. 
      "Merry Christmas Harry! I will write to you!" I say while smiling at him before Reno and I walk out together. "So, are things good with you and Fred now?" he asks me curiously. I give him a small look. "It was very clever for you and George to team up like that and force us to talk," is all I say. "So are you back together?" He asks. "No. We are on talking terms again though. So thank you," I say while smiling at him. He rolls his eyes. "For now," he says while smirking at me. 

     The next morning I wake up feeling better than I have in the past two weeks. I Get dressed and pack all of my stuff that I want to take home for the holiday. I make sure Pebbles is here and not exploring so he can come with me. 
     I walk down into the common room with a small smile to find Reno standing by the girl's dorm room. It looks as though he was waiting for me. I smile at him. "Good morning Reno." He gives me a half-smile. "Morning," he says. "Is everything okay?" I ask him a bit worried. "You are wanted in Dumbledore's office. I was told to get you as soon as you woke up," he says sounding worried. "Am I in trouble?" I ask worriedly. "I don't think so. Sprout is waiting outside the common room for you."  "Okay... I will see you in a bit then," I say before nervously walking out. 
     As soon as I walk out of the common room I am greeted by Professor Sprout. She smiles at me. "Ah, West. I thought you would be out soon. I expect Reynolds told you you are wanted in the headmaster's office?" She says with a wide smile. I nod. "Yes ma'am, he did," I say nervously. "Good. Well, on we go then," She says before starting to walk. I follow quickly behind. 
     I don't know if she speaks to me as we walk. I am too busy worrying about what I might be wanted for by Dumbledore. Does he know about me sneaking out of Hogwarts to go to Hogsmeade? Does he know about the D.A? After we walk up the large spiral staircase we enter his large office. Hermione is sitting in there as well. Maybe he does know about the D.A. "Good morning! Well, I will see you later West," Sprout says happily before leaving. I nervously walk over. 
     "Good morning Miss West. Please have a seat," Dumbeldore says to me, he seems very tired. I take the seat next to Hermione. "Last night Harry had a dream that was more than a dream. He saw Mr. Weasley being attacked. All the Weasley children and Harry have been sent to Grimmauld Place, they are safely there now," Dumbledore explains in a cool voice. "Is Mr Weasley okay?" I ask quickly. "Yes, he is being treated in St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. Because Harry telling us about the attack as soon as it happened, we were able to get help for him," he says calmly. 
     "Are you sending us there?" Hermione asks. "No. Professor Umbridge is very unhappy about the sudden absence of the others. You will be riding the train along with your peers unless you so choose to stay here for the holidays." Hermione and I look at each other for a few moments. "You are both free to go. Have a very Merry Christmas," He says before walking behind his desk. I stand and walk out. Hermione stays behind, probably to ask more questions. 
     "So they are back at Sirius's house?" Reno asks once I am back into the common room and after I told him what Dumbledore told me and Hermione. I nod. "Yea. I guess they will be there for Christmas," I say while petting Pebbles, who is now curled up on my lap. "Are you still spending the Holiday with your family?" he asks. I nod again. "As far as I know. Are you?" He nods as well. 
     The day seems to pass by very slowly as we wait for lunch. After lunch is when we will all get in the carriages and head for Hogsmeade to get on the train. Reno and I force ourselves to eat a bit before we leave, knowing that there isn't anything but sweets on the train. On the carriages, I hold Pebbles inside of my jacket to keep him warm. It is very cold out, snow lightly falls gracefully onto us. 
     Once we get onto the train Harmony and I find somewhere and sit. We talk about how we will be spending our Christmas. She seems very excited to tell her family about Hogwarts. After a while Hermione and Reno join us, that is after their prefect and Head boy duties are over. This ride feels longer than the one to school.