Chapter 1: Fred and Parvati

A/N: So this story will be basically a collection of one shots of some of my favourite Harry Potter couples. I start with Fred/Parvati. I know it is a really rare pairing that not many even imagine about. But I was surprised to realize how cute this pairing was after reading, 'Deduction and Seduction' by jowx97. I think mine is the first story in in the Fred/Parvati category. There are even 10 stories for George/Parvati but none for them. So here it is. No flames please. Read and enjoy :)

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter

Parvati was never the one for jokes. Sure she was lot less uptight than her twin Padma, but never really had any inclination for jokes. That was the reason why Padma was really pissed and suspicious when she had dragged her to the Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. She had to bribe her, cajole her and even guilt trip her to agree to visit the shop. Padma hated jokes and hated the Weasley twins even more. Apparently one of them had played some pretty nasty prank on her last year.

"Par, things are already not going that well in the wizarding world and it was due to our persistence that we are even allowed to return to Hogwarts this year. I just don't get why you insist on visiting the Weasleys joke shop. I mean you are not even into jokes that much!" whined Padma already getting frustrated with her sister's stubbornness.

"Hey it is just for Dean. He has his birthday in a week and I thought it would be good if I present him with a good joke product, especially in such a troubled times. Moreover, aren't you curious what the Weasleys have done that Dean, Seamus and Lavender are so excited about?" questioned Parvati. Padma sighed and conceded, "Fine, we can go. But we should meet mom and dad for lunch, don't forget it" Parvati's smile widened and hopped on happily.

The wizarding world was seriously in a bad state now that everyone had realized that You-know-who was truly back. The frequent disappearances of people also didn't help the cause much. But it was surprising how witches and wizards flocked the Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes in an otherwise deserted Diagon Alley.

As Parvati entered the shop she was amazed by the variety of products that were on sale. The first thing that caught her attention was the Skiving Snackboxes which the Weasleys had tested on the innocent students of Hogwarts last year. However it appeared as if they were a hit among the customers as there were only few of them left. Even though she didn't know anything about business, even Parvati could tell the shop was doing well. She noticed that her sister had gone off to check out the Spell Checking quills. 'Typical Padma' thought Parvati.

As she turned around, a collection of boxes bearing a highly coloured picture of a handsome youth and a swooning girl who were standing on the deck of a pirate ship caught her attention. She moved closer to examine them. "Patented Daydream Charms" whispered a voice near her ears. She was startled on hearing someone so close. She just jerked her head to see Fred standing just behind her. She automatically took a step back uncomfortable with the proximity. Fred smirked on seeing her nervousness.

"Hello Parvati! Fancy seeing you here" said Fred. Parvati was surprised by the fact that he could distinguish her from her twin without the Gryffindor clothes. Many had difficulty to do so, especially when they didn't have their house colours to differentiate them. But then again Fred himself was born as a twin, so it wouldn't be much of a surprise. Still, Parvati was impressed nonetheless.

Though Parvati had been with the Weasley twins in the Gryffindor house for five years, she hadn't been friends with them. Sure they were popular at school, but she had never really had any real conversation with them. Fred and George didn't spend much time with anyone other than their quidditch friends and Ron, Harry and Hermione. Padma hated them with passion but Parvati never really paid them much attention. But that was until they joined the Dumbledore's Army.

The day Umbridge discovered about their secret group, they had very little time to flee from them. Parvati didn't know where to run and got separated from Padma in the hurry. Unfortunately Pansy Parkinson was just a foot away from her and had she turned Parvati would have definitely been caught. At that moment, a pair of hands pulled her into a nearby room, concealing her from Parkinson. When she turned around to see her saviour, she came face to face with none other than Fred Weasley. When she was about to thank him, he shushed her and waited till Pansy was gone. From that day, Parvati started to notice Fred everywhere, right from the time, she went to breakfast till she went back to sleep.

She realized that he was always a constant presence and it was she who hadn't noticed him before. She noticed everything about him right from how weird his flaming red hair would be in the morning, how he got a gleam in his eyes whenever he was waiting to execute a prank, how his lips quirked into a grin when he was around friends and how he looked so determined without any trace of humour when he was on the quidditch field. She had also noticed how his features would turn soft and caring when he was around Ron or Ginny even though he might be teasing them. It looked as if he felt fiercely protective of them.

Parvati also didn't fail to notice how handsome he was. He had a well built body thanks to quidditch and his smile was enough to send any girl swooning. It was that smile he was directing at her now. "You know one simple incantation and you will have a top quality dream that could last thirty minutes. The side effects are vacant expressions and minor drooling though that maybe attributed to the fact that you are dreaming about me" grinned Fred with such a confidence that Parvati wanted to snub him. "Well then it is not wanted" said Parvati coolly turning to another stack of products.

"Oh you mean you don't need our products to dream about me since I am already in it?" smirked Fred. Parvati was so infuriated with his teasing but the worst part was that she liked it. "You are awfully too sure about it" muttered Parvati glaring at him. She sure liked him a lot but the problem was that so did many other girls. And it didn't help that Fred flirted with every girl he met.

"Oh that I am" replied Fred sounding a lot more confident than he felt. The truth was he had been shocked to see Parvati at his shop. Not many knew except George but Fred kind of had liked Parvati for some time now. Sure he knew she was one of the pretty looking girls of Ron's class but that had been it. He hadn't paid much attention to her until one day she had reduced a big statue to dust with a powerful 'Reducto' spell. He had been pretty impressed with her and it didn't hurt that she was breathtaking. She wasn't as intelligent or close to his brother like Hermione but still she was brave and beautiful. She sure knew how to take a prank in her stride. She was passionate about the things she loved and never failed to defend it even if it was a stupid subject like Divination.

She had a beautiful laugh unlike the irritating giggles of her best friend Lavender and he loved how she bit her lips whenever she was nervous. It drove him crazy. So it took a lot of self control not to kiss her then and there when she was nibbling her lips in front of him. "So what are you looking for then? We have a lot of Wonder Witch products. From Guaranteed Ten second pimple vanisher to the best range of love potions. But I don't think you need those to make any guy fall for you?" winked Fred.

Parvati blushed a little but she still felt uneasy wondering whether that was how he talked to all his female customers. That would explain the business doing so well. "Actually I am here to buy a birthday present for my friend" informed Parvati wanting to get this over with. "You mean Lavender? Well we could get any of the Wonder Witch products behind" said Fred guiding her to the shelves which the girls seemed to hog. "No it is Dean and I don't think he would appreciate Wonder Witch products for a birthday present" told Parvati as a matter of fact.

For the first time that day Parvati observed that Fred's face morphed from smirk to scowl. "You mean Dean Thomas?" said Fred with such distaste. Parvati couldn't understand why hearing Dean's name made him sour but replied, "Yeah, his birthday happens to be next week and I thought I could get some good gift that he enjoys" explained Parvati. It was as if he had worn a mask but she was no longer seeing a grinning Fred. "So what do you want? Skiving Snackboxes or Nosebleed Nougat?" asked Fred.

"What? I am getting a birthday present not something to harm him" exclaimed Parvati. "Oh how I would like to" muttered Fred under his breath. "See, what about trick wands? Are they any good?" enquired Parvati. "Yeah" sighed Fred showing her the rack full of trick wands. As she was examining them, Parvati could feel his eyes watching her every single movement. She unconsciously bit her lip as she took another wand. She heard a frustrated sigh and was startled when Fred asked, "Are you dating Thomas?"

Parvati was confused when she heard the question. First of all, it was a personal question and even if she was why would it bother him? She was annoyed with such questions mainly because lately that was what everybody seemed to ask. Sure she was pretty close with Dean but that didn't mean they were dating. Even Padma had been suspicious. And now even the guy who she had a crush on asked the same. She was pretty tired answering them. "I believe it is none of your business" said Parvati a little harshly than she meant. It only infuriated Fred more.

He had seen Parvati hanging out with Dean a lot of times. Sure she had been Harry's date for the Yule Ball but it appeared as if she was closer to Dean. Fred had never really liked Dean Thomas for some reason. As he was about to retort Parvati continued saying, "I don't have to answer anyone. In fact, Dean is dating your sister Ginny right now and I would really appreciate if…." Parvati trailed off as she saw a wide grin breaking out on his face. She was thrown off track by it. She had never wanted to betray Dean and tell about his romantic life to the very brother of his girlfriend but seeing him smile like that left Parvati confused. She had thought since the Weasley brothers were bit protective they would be pretty mad at Dean.

"Are you okay?" asked Parvati cautiously. "Oh yeah! So Dean is dating my sister, huh?" questioned Fred curiously. "Yeah, but Dean is a great guy. Your sister is lucky to have him. He is like such a good brother to me" said Parvati rattling off all his good qualities to save Dean. Fred appeared even more amused on hearing it and repeated, "Like a brother? Not bad". He picked a trick wand from the shelf and gave it to Parvati. When she looked at him questioningly, he explained, "This wand turns into a flower bouquet on waving. I thought it would be a great present to your brother".

Parvati accepted it happily and smiled her beautiful smile which made the day for him. "Thank you so much! How much is it?" asked Parvati. "Oh it is just ten galleons. Wait I will be right back" told Fred disappearing behind a curtain. He was back with a cloak right for her. As she looked at him questioningly, Fred said in a low tone, "This is a Shield Cloak that could save you from jinxes. It doesn't work on Unforgivable Curses but …" trailed off Fred not wanting to think of the scenario. Parvati looked at him closely to see how sincere he was and that there was no trace of humour in his face. It showed how he genuinely cared for her and was a bit flattered. She realized at that moment that there was more than just a humorous prankster in him.

At that moment, Padma burst in from nowhere and demanded, "Are you done with your shopping, already? We have to meet dad for lunch" Parvati made a face at her sister and turned to face Fred and asked, "So how much is the cloak?" "Oh it is free" blurted Fred. When she narrowed her eyes, "Yeah, it is free for the trick wands. Yes, the trick wands" said Fred. "But…" continued Parvati when she was rudely interrupted by Padma. "Oh come on. He said it was free. Now let's go before it is late" urged Padma. Parvati paid her ten galleons and left the place half heartedly while Padma trailed behind her glaring at Fred. Fred returned to the counter a bit down after Parvati's departure but whirled around to see Parvati running towards him.

Before he could enquire what was wrong, Parvati gave a quick peck on his right cheek and ran off after whispering, 'Be safe'. Fred was never the one who was out of words but at that moment he was stunned to silence. He was brought out of his shock by a loud laugh behind him. It was none other than his brother George laughing at his expense. "You should have seen your face. Merlin, it was priceless" laughed George ignoring Fred's annoyed expression. "Oh shut it" waved off Fred, "So did you hear that Ginny was dating Dean?" asked Fred changing the topic.

"No. How do you know?" questioned George. "Well, Parvati told me" shrugged Fred. "And you are okay with it?" asked George incredulously. Fred nodded as he said, "Oh yeah. I even helped her get a nice present for his birthday. A trick wand that beats the unwary user around the head and neck" "The unwary user being Dean. Oh I like it" completed George sporting a grin identical to his twin's. "So you seem pretty serious about Parvati. When are you asking her out?" asked George. "When this is all over and everything is back to normal I sure will" assured Fred.

A/N: Hope you all liked it. Please review. Tell me if you liked this pairing. Also suggest some pairings for me to write.