𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱, fred weasley

˗ˋ 23

CHAPTER TWENTY THREE
✧
-: sixth year :-

── IN WHICH FRED BRAGS

. . .

After dinner, Elodie had once again been dragged up into the Gryffindor common room, the Fat Lady casting her rather disapproving gaze as the French champion passed through the portrait. 

"I don't think she likes me very much." Elodie's nose crinkled in disappointment as she entered the common room, the two twins looking back from in front of her.

"Nonsense." George waved his hand dismissively as they exited the portrait hall, Elodie hit by the wonderful smell of cinnamon and the fire that was blazing away like usual. The red common room felt homely, and the twins led her over to some chairs nearish to the fire.

Harry, Ron and Hermione sat at a table over, and Elodie smiled at Harry, who gave her a brief smile in return - Hermione seemed to be pestering about the egg once again. 

Fred and George sat opposite Elodie, pulling out a scroll parchment and hurriedly working on it, Elodie resuming her book, using a clipping of the dress that Fleur had saved of her dress as a bookmark. 

She glanced at the picture again, the model loving around slightly on the picture - of course it was a moving picture; it came out of a wizard clothing catalogue after all. A small smile appeared on her face, moving the slip of paper out of the way so that she could turn the page. 

She felt something nudge her thigh, and she looked down to see the battered sneaker that Fred always wore. Looking across the table, Fred was no longer working on the parchment, but instead smirking across at her. 

"What are you smiling about?" He asked, and Elodie shook her head, smiling slightly. "No - I'm actually interested." Fred insisted, balancing his head on his hands, elbows wobbling slightly on the wooden table. 

"Just thinking. And it's a good book." Elodie shrugged in reply.

"About me, love?" Fred pushed.

"As always - I swear you use that joke about a thousand times a day." Elodie rolled her eyes, "Each with some different form of pet name."

"Any chance to make you smile. Besides, I'm going to be using them every second at the ball - so you need to get used to them." Fred winked and Elodie blazed red. "Come on George, we need to pester Ron."

"We haven't done that for a while." George agreed, instantly putting down his quill and following his twin out of their seats, moving just over to the table next to them, Elodie placing the dress bookmark and closing the novel, turning in her seat so she could watch them.

She watched as Ron placed two cards on top of castle, before it blowing up and singeing his eyebrows. "Nice look, Ron... go well with your dress robes, that will." George said, the twins slipping into the two spare chairs next to Harry.

Elodie hadn't notice them take anything with them, but after a moment of talking, Fred held up the parchment, asking to borrow Ron's owl Pigwidgeon so they could send a letter (they couldn't, he was out delivering a letter).

"Nose out, Ron, or I'll burn that for you too," said Fred, waving his wand threateningly as he tucked away the parchment. "So.. you lot got dates for the ball yet?"

"Nope." Ron said, rather firmly.

"Well, you'd better hurry up, mate, or all the good ones will be gone," said Fred. He glanced over at Elodie momentarily, who had only just managed to control the blush from before - her face heating up once more.

"Who are you going with, then?" Ron asked, and Fred smirked, looking over at Elodie. 

"Elodie." said Fred promptly, without a trace of embarrassment. "You know, one of the good ones."

"Angelina." George said afterwards, and Ron looked slightly taken aback. 

"You're going with.. her?" Ron's eyes flickered over to Elodie, and she remembered how awkward he had been around her at first, the twins telling her it was because she was pretty. 

"It's true." George nodded. "Surely you can't have missed him flirting with her at every chance he got. It's good that her arm got better quickly, or I'm pretty convinced he would be carrying around her stuff by now."

"He did that anyway." Elodie blinked, and the group looked over at her - Fred flushing pink, but only momentarily, before rearranging a smirk on his face as the others looked back at you.

"Well, we should get going. Use a school owl or something. Fancy another late night walk, El?" Fred asked, him and George standing up.

"Another?" George asked, and Ron looked confused - usually George was pretty confident on what his twin had done, but apparently not this time. 

"Another." Fred nodded, standing up. "You're welcome to come with." He looked across to his brother.

"I'd rather not listen to you hopelessly flirt with Ellie. I need to ask Angelina to the Ball anyway." George shurgged, and Ron's brow furrowed.

"Hold on - you haven't asked her yet?" Ron said, and Fred laughed, pulling Ellie away from the group, the girl tucking her book away in her bag.

"I'll leave you to deal with that one." Fred smirked, his hand wrapping around Elodie's as they left the common room, for a late, snowy walk to the owlery.

Both with massive smiles on their face.

✧