~ In which a shy Hufflepuff falls for a certain redhead Gryffindor that changes her life. ~
Disclaimer: I only own Katherine, Alden, and other original characters not found in the original HP world. Everything else belongs to JK Rowling.
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Katherine moped along the cobblestone path of Diagon Alley. Why did the woman run away? Why did she even show up? The bell rang as she opened the door to the shop. A couple of people were in the store, but not as much as in the summer. Katherine noticed one of the customers had curly brown hair and recognized the girl.
"Hey, Ange!" Katherine said as she walked up to the girl. Angelina turned around and smiled when she saw Katherine.
"Hey, Kari!" Angelina and Katherine embraced each other. "Where are the twins?"
"They and Lee got drunk last night," Katherine sighed.
"Of course they did," Angelina laughed, but then turned serious. "So, is Fred seeing anyone."
"Really, Ange? Why don't you ask him out?" Katherine questioned. "It's so obvious that you like each other. Just get back together!"
"Kari, he doesn't like me anymore," Angelina mumbled while playing with her fingers. "He's always flirting with Verity."
"No, he's not," Katherine took her friend's hands and squeezed them. "Fred still likes you. He's afraid that you'll reject him, so just go for it!"
"Go for what?" a voice said from behind them. The girls turned around and saw Fred.
"Nothing," Angelina squeaked. Fred laughed at her nervousness.
"So I was thinking that we can have a friend's night," Katherine started. Angelina shot Katherine a dirty look, knowing what she was trying to do. "You know, George, Ange, you, and I."
"What day?" Fred asked. He leaned against the wall with his arms crossed.
"How about Wednesday?" Katherine offered. Fred looked at Angelina and smirked.
"Does that work for you?" Fred asked. Angelina looked at Fred with a shy smile.
"Yea," she nodded.
"Alright, see you in a couple of days," Fred looked at Angelina one last time and walked away. She watched him walk away but glared at Katherine when he disappeared.
"What the hell was that?" Angelina whispered yelled.
"I just made a double date," Katherine innocently smiled.
"I don't think Fred knows that," Angelina retorted.
"Oh, stop being sour! Secretly, you are happy I set this up," Katherine teasingly pointed her finger in her friend's face.
"Whatever," Angelina rolled her eyes. "I'm ready to buy my stuff."
Katherine could've sworn Angelina cracked a smile as they walked to the register. She rang in Angelina and bid her farewell after. The rest of the day was slow, with only four other people coming into the store. Just as Katherine was about to send Verity off, the door rang. Katherine turned around and saw a familiar brunette Slytherin, Adrien Pucey.
"The hell do you want!" Katherine moved her hand to her wand that was in her back pocket.
"I thought you didn't swear, Katherine," Pucey snickered.
"What do you want!" Katherine repeated.
"The Dark Lord wants you," Pucey seriously said.
"Yea, I kinda got the gist when Greyback attacked my cousin and I," Katherine scoffed.
"Stop being sarcastic and listen, Katherine!" Pucey raised his voice. "The Dark Lord really wants you. You have to be careful. Don't go to public places because the Dark Lord will attack. He doesn't care if anyone sees anymore."
"Pucey, I know he doesn't care! Voldemort attacks daily!" Pucey shuddered when Katherine said his name. A long silence lingered in the air. Pucey's eyes would wander around the shop and then land on Katherine. This cycle played for a while until Katherine ended the silence. "Why are you warning me? You hate me."
"I don't hate you," Pucey sighed. This time his eyes stayed on Katherine.
"Seriously?" Katherine crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. "You constantly bullied my friends and me! For Merlin's sake! You said it was my fault my mother died!"
"I'm sorry! Okay!" Pucey put his head in his hands. "I did those things because I had a stupid crush on you, but I knew I wouldn't stand a chance when you started to show interest in George. Plus, you were a girl from Hufflepuff with a Muggle-born mother. If I showed actual interest in you and didn't bully you, Flint or another Slytherin would make my life a living hell! Not to mention my father!"
"Thank you for the apology and the warning," Katherine sighed. "But it would be best if you left."
Adrien shared an apologetic look when he looked at the girl. He didn't want to hurt Katherine or her feelings. When Adrien got wind of her uncle's death and innocence, a feeling that he felt too often resurfaced, his father laughed about the situation, saying that the blood traitor needed to be killed, but Adrien said nothing. He just sat in his room and stared at the wall.
Adrien looked around the store once more before looking back at Katherine. He gave a weak smile and wandered out of the joke shop. Katherine locked the doors and sighed. Before retiring to the loft, she checked the shop to make sure everything was in order. When Katherine saw the shelves were stocked and the Pygmy Puffs were all asleep, she climbed the stairs to her humble abode.
Katherine smiled when she saw George cooking or trying to cook dinner. The room was filled with the stench of burnt food. Katherine walked to the side of George and saw what looked like black mac and cheese. George looked sadly at his failure while Katherine lightly laughed. She took the pot and dumped its contents into the trash can. Katherine grabbed two bowls and poured cereal and milk into them.
"Thank you," George pouted, still upset about the mac and cheese.
"No problem, Georgie," Katherine chuckled. She looked at her bowl and stirred the cereal around. "Babe, I want to tell you something. It's been on my mind for a while."
"What is it?" he asked, directing a spoonful of cereal into his mouth.
"Well, after our first Order mission, Mad-Eye pulled me aside," she started. "Um, he asked me to become an Auror. Mad-Eye said I have great potential, and Tonks said I would be great."
Katherine waited to hear a response, but nothing came out. Instead, George stared at his bowl and slowly ate his food. Katherine knew it wasn't a good thing when George stayed silent. It meant he was either mad, upset, or a mixture of both. Finally, George sighed and looked at Katherine.
"Is this something you want to do?" George softly asked.
"Yea," Katherine smiled, "I obviously can't teach Care of Magical Teachers since it's taken by Hagrid, but I want to help people."
