A.J RYAN IN THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX

Chapter 40 - Number Ninety-Three, Diagon Alley

*** A.J P.O.V ***

I stood outside number ninety-three Diagon Alley; Fred and George's new premises for their shop, it was still in the process of being set up, but I knew they would be inside.

I looked around as I walked towards the counter. Fred and George were standing at some shelves right at the back, sorting through the stock in their hands. I sat on the counter and watched them.

Fred dropped something and swore loudly.

"What's up mate, is it Lexi?" George said.

"She hasn't contacted me, and I can't contact her, can I?" Fred said angrily.

"Nah." George sighed sympathetically. "She still wouldn't tell you what she wanted after Hogwarts?"

"No." Fred threw the item on the shelf. "I hoped she'd still want to be with me. I mean she said she loved me..." he muttered.

"And she slept with you." George added understandably.

"Yeah. But she avoided any talk about the future." He said miserably.

"If you haven't heard from her in another week, I say we sneak into the castle." George said mischievously.

Fred smiled gratefully at him.

"Don't worry Fred, she can't avoid you forever, you're too handsome."

Fred smiled.

"Besides, doesn't absence make the heart grow fonder?" George recalled.

"Right, from that silly book of mum's we found." Fred chuckled.

"Most guys would be turned off that she's smarter than them-" George commented.

"But not me." Fred finished, now his brother had succeeded in cheering him up. "I love her brains."

I smiled, and deciding I had heard enough, I bounced a clear round item, no bigger than a golf ball, with a strange object inside, purposely on the counter. It made the desired sound effect, getting the attention of the twins.

George's eyes widened; "Eavesdropping now? How'd you get in here?"

"The front door." I shrugged, picking up the clear ball I had dropped. It now had a crack in it.

His eyes narrowed; "'bout time you turned up. I want to have a word with you." George dropped the items in his hands onto the counter. I folded my arms and waited.

"What I don't get is; why you act so indifferently to him, when you clearly couldn't get enough of him at Hogwarts." He said reproachfully.

"You and I are not having this conversation." I said pointedly.

George went to protest when Fred placed a hand on his arm. "It's okay George." He stepped closer to me.

"Congratulations, you two are the talk of the school. Umbridge is beside herself with what to do about the amount of students leaving her class with "Umbridge-itis", fainting, vomiting, bleeding noses, fevers. Peeves is having a blast following the old bat around blowing raspberries every time she tries to speak. Not to mention the fifth-floor corridor in the east wing is roped off."

Fred looked mighty pleased with himself. "What about Filch?" He smirked.

"Walks around with a whip and the help of the idiot squad but doesn't know who to catch first, because there's too many troublemakers now. How'd your mum take the news?"

He grimaced before moving on to the nagging issue; "I haven't heard from you in two weeks?" He eyed me with a blank expression.

"I can't tell if this, you and me, is the right thing to be doing." I spoke. "Would I be causing less hassle if I just left you alone?"