Just A Bet ● Fred Weasley × Reader ●

32 - Satan Wears Pink?

TW - Umbridge.

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I was back in the cabin with pretty much every Gryffindor in my year. And - coincidentally enough - I was squished between George and Fred. Lovely. I did not sign up for this forced proximity. I did not. Nope. 

And yet here I am. Because the author wants the plot to actually start moving. Right.

George and Lee were looking at a brand new prank item together. I swear, the twins come up with a new one every week. Ange, Katie, and Alicia were all comparing last years grades. And Fred was asleep in the most uncomfortable position ever. His long legs were curled up to his chest, his head rested on his knees which made him look like a shrimp, and I couldn't find his arms because they were tucked in his jumper. 

How can anyone sleep like that? On a moving train, no less. If I tried, my back would have cramped up and my feet would have had pins and needles instantly. 

"Fred." I nudge him. There goes my cold shoulder toward him... No response. "Fred." I try again, nudging him a bit harder with my elbow. 

"Mmph. Uh..." He straightened his head with barely open eyes. "Huh?" 

"Don't sleep like that. You'll stiffen." I flick his temple. 

He whined and put his head back on his knees, wriggling his arms back into the sleeves of his jumper. "Mmmmm..." 

"For Merlin's sake, Fred. Can't find a better position to sleep in?" 

"I could..." He yawned. "But I don't feel like it." 

"Well-" I lean back with a scoff. "My, you're difficult. Just... Don't wreck your back. You'll be kinked up for weeks if you continue on like that." 

"Mmph. Fine," he mumbled. In one fluid motion, his head was on my shoulder and his legs were sprawled out in front of him instead of curled up. I froze and tried to push him off, but damn, he was heavy when he slept. He wasn't even fully asleep! Only half! "I'm sorry..." His head nuzzled into the crook of my neck. 

Don't blush, don't blush, don't blush.

"For what?" I asked. 

"What you heard with the ear at Grimmauld... I was stupid and wasn't thinking..." 

I couldn't help but chuckle a bit. "You don't usually think."

"Not helping." His warm hand found my wrist and he squeezed a bit. "I'm really sorry... Saying what I said about you just because I wanted to shut up my mum was... rude. And not smart. I'm sorry... Can we just... go back to normal?" He lifted his head a bit to look at me. Brown eyes filtered through orange hair, and who was I to say no to guilt like that? 

If I was in danger, there would be no survival instincts. 

I sucked my lips into my mouth. "I'll... think about it." That was all I could come up with at the moment. Yes, what he said about me should be unforgivable, but now that I know how my own feelings are working with him... Maybe they can be forgiven a bit. 

Before I could say anything more, he was already asleep again, head buried in my neck, his breathing hot against the skin of my neck. His hand was no longer wrapped around my wrist, but was now lazily draped over my hand. I leaned back just a smidgen to get comfortable, then let out a heavy sigh.

George and Lee were grinning at me. Both winking in sync. Creepy. 

"How ya feeling, Munchkin?" George smirked.

I huff and cross my arms, looking the other direction. "Like I lost a bet." 

"That bet? The one for 100 galleons-" He waved a dismissive hand. "-or whatever the amount was?" 

Ugh... How dare he be perceptive. "Yes. That bet, you sod." 

He practically preened. "I think you've done more than succumb to being friends, deary." His grandmotherly voice was annoying. And the head pats were worse.

- 

The candles of the great hall never ceased to amaze me. And with the sky being as clear and as dark at it is, the stars only added to the awe it kept me trapped in. There was something so simple about looking at the sky that made it so beautiful. It genuinely upset me that people stopped looking up. Nothing could be more captivating than the vast infinity that was just right there above all of our heads. Yet light pollution is so widespread now... I think everyone deserves to see stars.

"Hey, Harry. See that star?" I point at the brightest one.

He leaned and peered. "Yeah?" 

"It's the brightest one of all the stars. It has lots of names... Dog star, Canicula, Lokabrenna, or - my favorite - Sirius." 

"Sirius? Like- like Sirius Sirius?" 

I nodded. "Yeah. Most of the Black family is named after something celestial. Like a star; Sirius. Or a galaxy; Andromeda. Or a constellation; Draco." By now, I had most of the Gryffindor table listening in. 

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A/N - So, because I am a huge space nerd, yes, I had to include this fact... But if you're curious too, then I HIGHLY recommend watching any YouTube video by Epic Spaceman. He's super good was small explanations and putting things to scale! Now back to the story!

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"That's cool..." Harry mused, then went back to chatting with Ron. 

"So... Andromeda is a galaxy?" Katie asked. 

"Yeah. Roughly. Pretty cool, but I won't dive into any details-"

Dumbledore added on to how welcome speech that I hadn't been paying attention to until now. "I would also like to introduce our new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Dolores Umbridge." He gestures to a tiny old lady clad in pastel pink. Next to Snape, she looked like a crayon. Dumbledore said something more about Filch, but the woman, Umbridge, interrupted with a childish clearing of her throat. 

Everyone was caught off guard by this woman's audacity. Even the professors, who were all looking at her like she was crazy. With that much pink, she probably was...

"She was at my hearing! Works for Fudge." Harry whispered. 

"Thank you, Headmaster, for those kind words of welcome." She approached the podium thing, which was something no other teacher has ever done. "And how lovely to see all your bright, happy faces smiling up at me." 

Never mind. She was standing in front of the thing. I couldn't hide my giggle at Dumbledore's baffled expression. 

"I'm sure we're all be very good friends." She clasped her hands in front of her and her weird beady eyes scanned all of us. 

"That's likely." George and Fred said at the same time, putting their chins in their hands. 

Since Fred woke up from his nap on my shoulder, which I hoped was at least a bit more comfortable than whatever position he was in earlier, he hasn't mentioned it or thanked me once. Not once. But he does glance at me, which I find odd.

Umbridge stared at the twins, then continued. "The Ministry of Magic has always considered the education of young witches and wizards to be a vital importance. Although-" She began pacing. "-each headmaster has brought something new to this... historic school." She bowed her head at Dumbledore, who unbelievably bowed back. "Progress for the sake of progress must be discouraged. Let us preserve what must be preserved. Perfect what can be perfected. And prune practices that ought to be prohibited." 

The twins and Lee groaned. 

"No more pranks?" Lee asked.

"I don't know," said George.

"Rules were made to be broken." Fred winked.  

This year will be good...

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A/N - Yippee! Another chapter! Anyways, I've been super hooked on this new song, 'Struck' by Steven Rodriguez and TROY. It's been on loop for hours now, I swear. What songs are y'all hooked on? I need recommendations.

Until next time, Darlings! Xxx