FLAMEOUT \\ fred weasley

Chapter Five

Fred looked around Runi's flat with interest. It wasn't quite what he'd expected — though, to be frank, he didn't know what he'd expected, except a touch more chaos. Runi Sundar was something of a whirlwind, and he'd thought, somehow, that her living space would reflect her sometimes-frenetic energy. Instead, the place was almost boring, with clinical light-grey walls and a hard sectional that looked like it belonged in a therapist's waiting room more than it did in the home of the cheerful, carefree junior Beater of the Holyhead Harpies. Even the Quidditch trophies atop the bookshelf in the corner appeared to be almost perfunctorily placed, and the hooks on the walls holding her racing broomstick and Beater's bat seemed more functional than anything else. In fact, only the bookcase itself appeared to hold any vestiges of personality, with brightly covered paperbacks crammed lovingly on the shelves and a dozen whirring magical objects holding them in place like makeshift bookends. Fred caught sight of a flying toy car hovering in the corner of a shelf, and recognised it as one invented by himself and George and sold at their shop in Diagon Alley.

He felt something slink past his legs, and looked down to see a large, striped tabby with a ridiculous yellow bowtie move just past him and sit down, his back facing Fred.

"And who's this?" Fred asked, bending down to scratch the cat behind the ears. The tomcat whipped around and hissed at him, and Fred jumped back with a rather high pitched yelp. He glared at the cat, who paid him no further attention, electing instead to begin grooming himself.

"That is Prinny," Runi said, beaming down at the hell-cat with a disturbingly affectionate smile. "Isn't he a sweet little baby?" She cooed at the cat, and Fred had to bite down on his lip to stop himself from saying something rude.

"Prinny?" He asked instead.

"Short for Princess Buttercup," she explained. "She's a character from a Muggle book I used to love as a child, and I thought Prinny was a girl for the first week of having him." She shrugged. "Never bothered changing it."

Fred nodded. "Do you come from a Muggle family, then?" He asked curiously. It was strange to not know such a thing about one's wife.

Runi hesitated a moment, her gaze flitting to her left before finding his. "My family's all magic," she explained, "but we were enrolled in Muggle primary school before the letters from Tonzies started coming in. Most wizard families in the region do that, you know."

"That's good," Fred said. "By the way, when you meet my dad, make sure not to mention that you grew up in Muggle school." The words fell out before he thought about it, and only after her slight hesitation did he realise that he'd talked about her meeting his dad like it was a sure thing. He opened his mouth to — take it back? reassure her that she didn't have to? — he didn't know, but he was saved from having to say anything at all by Runi's response.

"Is he a blood purist type?" She asked, and Fred snorted at the thought.

"Not at all," he said, "he loves Muggles. Obsessed with them and their inventions, really. The minute he finds out you grew up with them, he won't stop hounding you for information on lightbulbs and gas stooves—"

"Stoves."

"Yes, those." Fred waved a dismissive hand. "I'm saying this for your sake, really. If you say too much, Dad'll talk you into taking apart your refridjee with him to show him how it works."

"You mean a refrigerator? It'd be my pleasure," Runi said, smiling slightly. Fred shook his head doubtfully.

"Suit yourself." He said.

An awkward pause filled the air.

"Oh! Let me show you around," Runi said, leading the way into what Fred supposed was his bedroom. It was pleasantly large, with a decent amount of natural lighting and a full walk-in closet.