Catch Me, I'm Falling | Fred Weasley

Chapter 48

Fred arrived, giving Olivia a quick kiss.

"I made it," he said with false cheer. Sweat gleamed on his brow and his hair was a hurricane around his head.

"I knew you would." The words were true, but there was a glint of sorrow in Olivia's tone.

Fred took a couple of deep breaths, rolling his shoulders back as he looked around. "Where's George? I want to tell him. I dodged this spell and-"

Olivia put a hand on his shoulder. "He isn't here yet."

"He was supposed to be here already." Fred paced around, pulling away from her.

"Hey, hey, it's alright. I'm sure he's okay," Olivia said, a not-quite truth.

Ten minutes later, George hobbled in. Blood ran down his neck leaving a gruesome red trail. His ear, the one Olivia had known would suffer, was gone. Fred's shock and concern morphed into calm on his face. But the expression was a lie for his brother's sake. Olivia could tell that underneath the facade, Fred was terrified.

Once George was taken care of, it wasn't Fred who threw blame at Olivia. It was Harry. He stomped up to her, angry tears on his cheeks.

"You!" he accused, pointing a finger at her as if it was a wand shooting the killing curse. "You can see the future, you could have prevented this. This is all your fault!"

Every eye in the room turned towards her. Olivia could feel her heart stop for a second. He'd revealed her secret. Ginny must have told him.

"Harry, I-" she tried weakly.

"No! You don't get to say that. You could have prevented Cedric's death, you could have saved Hedwig. For Merlin's sake you could have at least saved George's ear," Harry yelled.

Olivia stood frozen, trying desperately not to cry. "I- I couldn't Harry. I'm so sorry." Her words were barely above a whisper, so fragile it sounded like they would crack any second.

She didn't notice that George had hauled himself up until his hand was on her shoulder. "It's not her fault, Harry. Let it go."

To Olivia's surprise, it was Hermione who pulled Harry outside, giving Olivia a nod. It was the first sign of approval Hermione had ever shown her. Ron followed suit, eyebrows scrunched in confusion.

Olivia turned, reaching out to support a teetering George. "What were you thinking? I told you to stay put." Her tone was stern. Yet, there was gratitude underneath.

She grabbed him under the armpits, hauling his form (which was twice her size) across the room, and setting him down on the couch where he should have been resting the whole time.

"And you aren't angry with me?" she asked, hesitantly.

"You didn't zap my ear off, now did you?" Olivia shook her head, ready to say it was all her fault, but George finished, "Right, then. There's nothing else to discuss."

Olivia hugged him tightly.

-

"I'm sorry, Liv. I had to tell him," Ginny said, her voice steady.

Olivia's lips pulled into a smile. "I know."

"The order- well, the adults- want to talk to you."

Olivia searched Ginny's expression, before sighing. She walked down a dark hallway, hearing the dulled echo of voices. When she opened the door, the room grew silent.

"Why did you not come forward, Miss Sparks? Your talent would have helped us greatly," said a man she didn't know.

"Oi. She's just a child. You can't expect her to be perfect. She's here now, isn't she? That's more than enough," Moody argued.

"She's an asset to us now. If the death eaters discover her, we'll have no chance."

Suddenly, the entire room exploded into arguments. Voices shouted over each other, overlapped. They all spoke about Olivia like she was a tool, a weapon at their disposal.

The room became blurry at the edges for Olivia, and she was suddenly hot. Her heart thundered in her chest and the air seemed to get stuck in her throat. Tears streamed down her face without her consent and all she wanted was to get out, out, out.

"Stop!" She screamed. "I will not be your weapon. I will not tell you what the future holds. If I do, I risk everything you've worked for. I'm leaving- and, and don't you dare come after me."

With that, she stomped to the door and escorted herself out into the windy night.