A/N:Written for the "True Colors Competition", created by alohamora080 on the HPFC forums. The rules were to write a story about the meaning of a random color. I was assigned the color white, which means purity and cleanliness.
Summary: Fleur discovers a lot of things when she moves to England - insecurity, embarrasment and love. Most of them thanks to Bill Weasley.
Disclaimer: HP and all of its characters belong to JK Rowling.
Thank you so much for reading!
~ Julie
A whole new world
Every morning, when she walked into the office, the world stopped turning. In slow motion, she swayed around the room and her bright, luminous aura beautified everybody and everything around her. The flowers' scent became more intense, the room lit up and everything became a blur. It was like living in a dream, like heaven on earth. And just like that, there were no stains on the carpet, no angry or sad faces and the smell of cigarettes and coffee disappeared. She could wipe out all the problems and purge all the ugliness of the world with the mere act of walking.
She could hear the sighing from men and jealous whispers from women, which only encouraged her to elegantly lift her chin up in a very haughty way. She was charming and graceful, beautiful and confident. She simply owned the room.
But she already knew all that.
What she didn't know was why he didn't take his eyes off his desk everytime she walked into the office, why he didn't sigh when she said hello and why she tripped and stuttered when he was too close. He had a ponytail and the ugliest earring she had ever seen, yet there was something about Bill Weasley that captivated her. He looked tough, rebellious and completely flawed – the absolute opposite of her – and she adored it.
Before she knew it, she was staring at him. She did this a lot lately. It was not on purpose; she did it unconsciously, and unfortunately he always noticed. For a second they would stare at each other, which led to that weird and new feeling that turned her cheeks bright pink. He would smile at her childish reaction and she would immediately turn her head to the unopened files lying on her desk.
She often wondered if he felt the same way. If his heart beat rapidly for those few seconds on which their eyes locked. If he also smiled like an idiot when remembering their silly morning ritual. But then, she immediately suppressed those thoughts. Of course he wouldn't feel the same way. She paid a lot of attention to all those women that approached him – edgy, daring and…older. She didn't fit in any of those categories. She was simply a French girl, barely of age.
And so the day went by, without his attention and the painful sensation of her charm and beauty wearing out. Suddenly, she felt so small and powerless, so...insecure – another new feeling that she only experienced around Bill Weasley. By the end of her shift, she stood up and walked across the room again, but this time nobody noticed her and nobody heard when she said goodbye. This time, she didn't sway, but slither; there was no beautifying and no heaven on earth. She always left upset, embarrassed and unsure of herself.
She hated Gringotts, England, Bill Weasley and everything that came with him.
"C'est ridicule!" she muttered under her breath as she walked towards the bronze doors.
Who was Bill Weasley, anyway? Yes, he was friendly, kind and extremely polite; but she didn't know him. The big doors shut behind her and hurriedly, she walked down the stairs.
"Fleur!" shouted someone behind her.
"What?" she spat as she turned around.
"You…forgot your coat," said Bill warily.
"Oh! Zank you, Beel," she said blushing.
"Alright, see you tomorrow," he smiled and turned around, slowly walking towards the end of the street.
"Beel!" she called.
"Yes?" he asked.
"Would - would you…would you like to 'ave deener zome time?"
She didn't know why she said it; she had never – ever – asked a boy out. But then again, everything concerning Bill Weasley was different.
He looked taken aback at first, but then, with a broad grin, he nodded timidly.
And the street around her lit up. The smelly, awful owls hovering above them now resembled elegant doves and the noisy shoppers were suddenly happy and peaceful. All Diagon Alley was now radiant and joyful, and Bill was framed by a godly light that had her wondering if she was daydreaming.
" 'ow about tomorrow?" she asked.
"Sounds perfect," he winked and disappeared amongst the crowd.