Sweet Torture - Fred Weasley

Chapter 3 - A Stranger to Me

Matilda

The welcoming feast went by relatively fast this year. We watched the sorting ceremony, cheering every time someone was sorted into Gryffindor, and listened to the usual announcements Dumbledore made at the start of each year before eating. I had sat in between Maddison and Keira and eaten until I felt like I could burst. No Matter how good Molly's food had been for the last two weeks, nothing could beat the food at Hogwarts. Funnily enough George had been paying attention to me and had made a joke about how much I had eaten to which I just rolled my eyes. He had no room to talk, he had gone in for a third helping of both food and dessert.

We had all been in shock when Dumbledore announced that the Inter-House Quidditch Cup this year had been cancelled due the Triwizard Tournament taking its place instead. Of course everyone around me was beyond excited, barely able to sit still in their seats.  Well that was until we heard about the age restriction for the competition. In all honesty, I had been relieved. I had heard about a few of the previous Triwizard Tournaments and the amount of deaths it had racked up. Dying a painful death and becoming just another number to the already high death toll was not a life goal of mine. Clearly I had been the only one to think this way though because a wave of complaints had erupted as right after the age limit was revealed. Both George and Fred had been leading the booing going on around the hall, calling the age rule rubbish as they were only half a year away from being the right age to enter the competition. Dumbledore had called for silence, the Great Hall having fallen quiet in seconds. Soon after we had been ushered off to our dorms to get ready for bed.

"So how come you weren't more upset about that bloody age limit?" George had asked me as I walked up the staircase towards the Gryffindor common room with Keira and Maddie.

"First of all", I started calmly, turning to look at the boy with a knowing smile. "That tournament has a higher death toll than the whomping willow does." I stated.

"But think of the eternal glory and a 1000 galleons." Fred interrupted a wide grin on his face.

"Mhmm, yeah I'm not looking for eternal glory, just a normal bloody year at school. One without my father roaming the castle or a basilisk petrifying muggleborns thank you very much." I replied sighing a little but smiling back at Fred.

"I'll stand by that, a normal year sounds good." Harry chimed in from behind everyone.

"Thank you Harry! See! Not everyone lives for eternal glory like you two!" I mocked as I saw Harry blush and the twins roll their eyes at me. I could also hear Keira and Maddie snickering from in front of me. They always found it hilarious when I was at odds with the twins.

"And secondly", I started talking, now fully turning to look at the twins while still trying climb up the stairs backwards.
"I don't feel like adding to the death toll of either the tournament or Hogwarts." I said confidently a smug smile coming upon my face. Unfortunately I hadn't noticed that the staircase Keira and Maddie had rushed to get on had now changed direction. I stepped into thin air, panic racing through my body as I started falling backwards. 'Damn it, this is how it all ends' , I had thought, my life starting to flash by my eyes as I closed them in fear. I only opened them when I felt a strong arm around my waist holding me tightly, keeping me from falling.

"Godric Tilly, You really have got to watch where you're going. I can't always be here to save you." Fred mocked in a quiet voice, a smug smirk across his face.

"Well I'm blaming you two for needing to be saved. I could've been walking with Keira and Maddie if it wasn't for you two troublemakers." I joked, playfully hitting Fred's shoulder. He looked at me with an amused smile, loosing his grip around me a little, causing me to fall back a bit. I instinctively grabbed on to his arm and squealed loudly. This caused George to look at me bitterly while the rest of our friends laughed. Surely he wasn't upset that I was holding on to his brother to avoid falling to my death?