Long Story Short: Fremione

Fred's New Friend

Ginny walked into the common room, Harry and Draco trailing behind her. Fred was sitting on the biggest couch in front of the fireplace, head in his hands. His hands groped his flaming hair. He sat alone, which gave Ginny the excuse to yell at him.
She ran up to him and began to yell at him, turning a few of the first year's heads.
"Fred Weasley what did you do to her? She has been cooped up in her room for the last day. What the bloody hell is wrong with you?" Harry thought she sounded like her mother.
He looked up for a split second, shocked to hear Ginny yell at him like that. He put his head down, after realizing he didn't want Ginny to see his red cheeks or his puffy red eyes. He was upset, not just because of george, but the way Hermione yelled at him. Hermione didn't want him to be happy? He wanted his twin, and she wouldn't help.
She couldn't be too upset, she was talking to Ariana last night. She wasn't sobbing, and neither was he, at the time anyways. He wasn't sober, his thoughts weren't straight. When he woke up this morning his thoughts were all coming back, and he was, reluctant to admit, crying.
"Fred!" Ginny kicked his shin. "Answer me!"
She kicked him once more, and Fred didn't even flinch. His sister was strong, but he wouldn't let her know that.
Fred heard her wind up for another kick, but someone pulled her back. Fred could tell by her yelling to tell the person to let go, and she wasn't done yelling yet.
Harry's voice stated calmly, "Ginny, calm down. Let me talk to him. Go talk to 'Mione, okay?"
Fred was grateful for what Harry did.
"Fine!" Ginny gave up. Her footsteps were loud, going towards her dormitory.
Harry let out a sigh.
Fred heard a new voice, which he recognized as Malfoy.
"Harry, tell Ariana I want to talk to Hermione, if you see her. Ariana or Ginny will fish her out, right?"
Harry nodded. Draco put his hands in his pockets, after giving a slight wave. He turned on his heel and left the common room.
"Fred," Harry sat down next to him, shaking off the staring people.
Fred grunted in response. So Harry was going to yell at him for hurting Hermione? Great, Fred thought sarcastically.
"Fred, seriously." Harry shook his legs.
Fred lifted his head, and looked into Harry's eyes. They were serious, and not intimidating or demanding.
"What happened?" Harry asked calmer than Fred expected.
Fred slowly explained what was bugging him. The store, George, and that Hermione wouldn't let him use her time turner.
When Fred was done, Harry let out a sigh. "Fred, that's no reason to be mad at Hermione. I know she didn't let you, but she wasn't kidding when she said it was dangerous. You can barely go back a few hours without getting in trouble. Trust me." Harry said.
"You're taking her side. I knew it." Fred spat.
He started to take of when Harry pushed back on the couch.
"I assure you, it's for the best." Harry stated.
Fred nodded. Maybe it was, but he needed George. He needed him badly. Of course, Harry was her best friend. Maybe someone who knows neither of them could tell him if he's right or wrong.
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Hermione's Pov
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Hermione didn't want to leave her dormitory at all. She wanted to either wait for good news about Fred from one of the girls, or to get over their argument. She wasn't wrong, but maybe she was a little too dramatic. She didn't know. There was a knock at the door at about seven o'clock, Ginny came into the room, fuming. She slammed the door and marched to her bed.
"What's wrong?" Hermione asked, trying not to sound weak.
She sat up, shocked that Hermione was talking. "Fred." She stated.
"Join the club." Hermione laid on her back. She was absentmindedly playing with the necklace around her neck. It was engraved 'Mia' from Fred. Why was she still wearing it? She sat up and took it off, setting it carefully on the bedside table.
Ginny explained what happened downstairs. She accidentally kicked the couch when she explained that part. Hermione giggled slightly.
Hermione stood and walked out without another word. She wanted to go see people, deciding Fred was steamed anyways, she wouldn't see him, and if she did, he probably wouldn't see her.
She was halfway down the stairs when it turned into a slide. Hermione fell down it feet first, hitting her head hard against it. She whipped down the stairs, and bumped into Draco at the bottom, who must have set it off. Hermione landed in his arms, which was majorly awkward. Her head hurt too much for complaining, though.
"Hermione, you okay?" Draco asked, sounding concerned.
She rubbed the back of her head. "Ow. I don't know." Hermione gritted her teeth in pain. Her head was sore, Madam Pomphrey would be getting a visitor tonight.
"Harry!" Draco yelled out. He needed Harry's help to help him bring her to the hospital wing.
Ariana came to the doorway, saying a farewell to someone, and turned to see Hermione in Draco's arms.
"Draco!" She gasped. "What are you doing?" She was bright pink.
Draco stuttered, and explained what had happened to Hermione.
"Why were you going to see Hermione?" Ariana crossed her arms.
Hermione immediately felt bad. She didn't know why Draco wanted to see her. She couldn't focus on anything, and there was two Draco's in front of her.
Draco was stumped once again. "I-It's a surprise!" He said, unconvincingly in Hermione's point of view.
"What kind of surprise?" Ariana didn't seem totally convinced, but she definitely lightened up.
"You'll have to wait and see." Draco hesitated slightly, but added a smile to sell it.
She smiled, and skipped away merrily.
Draco looked down at Hermione, after sighing when Ariana disappeared. He noticed she was a little out of it. Her head was moving slowly in every direction, and her eyes were moving around, too.
"Sorry," Hermione said weakly.
Draco shook his head. "Why?"
"You getting caught." She said, and she went unconscious.
Draco's eyes widened in horror. Of course, everyone will blame him, the son of a Death Eater, Lucius Malfoy. Maybe people considered him as a faithful Death Eater, but he didn't. It technically was his fault, but he didn't know that would happen. He would be blamed for the wrong reasons.
"Harry! Ginny! Neville! Fr-" Draco stopped naming people. Not Fred, he wouldn't help.
A door opened at the top of the stairs opened. "Did someone yell for me?" Ginny's voice rang. "Who set off the slide?"
"Ginny, come quick!" Draco responded.
You could hear Ginny sliding down the slide, and she saw an unconscious Hermione in Draco's arms.
"Are you..." Ginny raised her eyebrows moving her index finger between the two of them.
"No," Draco answered. He explained what happened to Hermione, and Ginny helped take Hermione to Madam Pomphrey.
Draco explained, for the third time, what happened on the stairs.
"How and why did you get into the Gryffindor common room, Draco. Aren't you a Slytherin?" She questioned, making a bed for Hermione.
"I'm good friends with some Gryffindors. Anyway," he said.
She said that everyone had to leave her with Hermione, and she'll be okay. Draco and Ginny parted on the trip back, going to their common rooms. Ginny went up the stairs, and bumped into her older brother.
"What's up Ginny?" He asked, kind of irritated. Ginny went up one more step, so if the staircase moved she would still be by Fred. She crossed her arms, to show she was mad.
"What?" He asked.
She shook her head, and walked away from Fred, straight to the common room. Fred yelled her name multiple times, but she didn't answer. He gave up when she was out of sight. He sighed and turned to continue his way down the stairs. He didn't know where he was going, but not in Gryffindor Tower, where Hermione could show up. Maybe to get a drink. Once he turned, a first year girl with bleach blonde hair was facing him. She smiled slightly and spoke.
"Why is she mad at you?" The staircase started to move, and Fred assumed she didn't know they did that too much, so he pulled her up to the landing, where it didn't move. "Thanks." She says.
Fred thought she was familiar, but her hair told him it was Malfoy's cousin.
"No problem." He decided to be nice to her, from her young age.
"Why is she mad?" The Malfoy repeated.
"She's my sister. She's mad because I broke up with her friend." Fred didn't explain specifically.
She nodded. "Why?"
"Why what?" He asked.
"Did you break up with her?" The girl asked.
Fred sat down on a broken statue's pedestal. "Long story."
Nova nodded. She sat on the ground in front of him.
"You can talk to me. No judging, no telling anybody." She smiled, rubbing the back of hand, that was sticking out from the way he sat, knees pulled to his chest, arms on knees, hands limp. "I'm Nova."
"Fred," he replied. She was kind, especially for a Malfoy.
She put her hand down back in her lap. "Go," Nova says. "I'm all ears."
Fred smiles, grateful for somebody to talk to. "Answer my question at the end of this honestly," he starts.
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Hermione was out for a few hours, due to drugs the nurse gave her. Draco is the first person she sees. Harry soon pops into view. She tried to remember how she ended up in the hospital wing, and got reminded when she saw that the necklace that was around her neck wasn't there. She took it off out of anger, and left the room when the stairs turned into a slide from a boys using the stairs.
"Hermione!" Draco's voice rings out, once she remembers why she was there. "I'm so sorry."
She puts a hand to her head, feeling like Harry rubbing his scar, and said don't worry about it.
"Really," Draco assures.
"I was going to find Fred, but he was gone. I asked a portrait where he went. She said last she saw he was with a girl."
She gives him a sad look, but a nod, and addresses him. "It's okay, Harry. If he wants someone else, then fine. Thanks for trying." She smiled, lightly.
He was already moving on? That left a pang in her heart.
"Wait, I meant, he was with a first year. They were talking." He says.
Hermione's heart lightens. She was happy that he hadn't moved on yet, that she would guess anyways. It hasn't even been a full day. Besides, she still loved him.
"Madam Pomphrey said you can  stay overnight if it hurts too much. But you have to go to classes tomorrow." Harry informed Hermione.
"I can go back up to my dormitory." Hermione said. "Where's Madam Pomphrey?"
"She said she'll be back in a few minutes." Draco answered. "Harry, can I talk to her alone. There's something important I need to tell her. And no, I'm not going to ask her out." Draco justified.
"Okay," Harry awkwardly left the two.
Hermione inferred this is what he wanted to say earlier.
"What's going on?" Hermione asks, once Harry left.
"It's about Ariana. She... She isn't who she claims to be." Draco starts. Hermione motions for him to keep going. "She's a Death Eater. I found her Mark."
"Wait, wait, wait. What? Ariana? Are we thinking about the same girl?" Hermione refused to believe Draco. But then something in her mind got brought back. The Weird Sisters bracelet at Weasley's Wizards Wheezes. It all fit in.
"That explains it." Hermione accidentally said out loud.
"What?" Draco knew he missed something.
"I'll tell you in a second. Go on," Hermione said.
"She pitched an idea to the remaining Death Eaters about taking revenge on halfblooded witches and wizards, and that they are planning to attack Hogwarts." His voice was very hushed, that Hermione could barely hear him. She knew that nobody but her must know, and it's pretty recent news.
"When did you find the Dark Mark?"
"Friday, the day we got here." Draco said.
It's Sunday today.
"Okay, just stay calm. Tell me if anything happens, and don't tell anybody else about this. I might ask Harry for help, like what to do to stop her. In the meantime, keep me updated. I won't talk to her about it." Hermione explains.
"Okay." Draco replied. "I better go eat dinner." He stood.
Madam Pomphrey came back, and let Hermione go. She did have a concussion, but Madam Pomphrey fixed it in her sleep. She was instructed to take it easy.
"Bye Draco." Hermione said. She took her time going to her table in the Great Hall.