Soooooo? What do you think? Isn't Charlie being a jerk? Oh wait, maybe he has a reason... Yeah, I'm sure he has a reason. He has to have a reason... Doesn't he?
=) Keep reading and Keep Reviewing!
-=-=- Alex -=-=-
Did I do something wrong? Why was Charlie acting so strange? I just couldn't figure it out. I walked quietly down the stairs, watching the floor as I walked. And then I walked, head first, into George. I closed my eyes and rubbed my head where we collided.
"Oi, Alex. I'm sorry. I wasn't watching where I was going. I'm really sorry." He stammered.
"It's fine." I told him. "What are you doing up so late?" I asked.
"What? Oh, nothing. I was- just, uh, using the bathroom. I'm going to bed now." He stuttered again. "What are you doing up so late?" he asked me.
"I- I'm, uh, yeah bathroom." I answered, looking around uncomfortably. I just had sex with his brother. Should I tell him? Does he know? Hmm...
"Your hair is all messed up." he said.
"Oh yeah. Charlie, um, we were wrestling." I replied. Wrestling?, I thought to myself, What the hell? Why would I say that?
"Oh." George answered.
"Can I go now?" I asked. This was getting weird.
"Uh, yeah. I'll, see you in the morning." He answered. I nodded and quickly ran down to my room.
-=-=- George -=-=-
Smooth, George. Really smooth. I bet she thinks you're like, the coolest guy ever. I totally blew it. What was with the stuttering and being totally awkward? I thought we were over that! Maybe I should picture her in her underwear when we talk... That's not going to help anything! She's beautiful, she's probably got beautiful underwear, I'm sure she looks great in any underwear. And now I'm already distracted thinking about her in underwear. I opened the door to our room and sat down on my bed.
"What are you thinking about?" Fred asked me.
"Alex. In her underwear." I replied,
"You saw Alex in her underwear?" Fred shouted, sitting straight up in bed.
"Shhhhh!" I whispered at him. "No, I was just thinking about it." I finished.
"Oh." Fred answered, laying back down. "I bet she gorgeous." he added.
"I bet she's better than gorgeous. She's probably, incredible." I said.
"Incredible is better than gorgeous?" Fred asked, laughing.
"Of course." I said, thinking. "Oh! She's indescribable!" I said.
"That's a good descriptive word for her." he replied.
"Whatever." I said, throwing my pillow at him. Of course, he replied by throwing a pillow back at me. The pillow fight turned into a full on wrestling match, which only ended when Charlie opened the door to our room. He came in like he wanted to talk to us about something, but looked at us on the floor and looked confused.
"Knock it off." he said, and closed the door behind him. Then we heard footsteps walking back up to his room.
"What's got his knickers in a twist?" Fred asked, laughing. I joined him, laughing at Charlie's temper and we went to bed, still chuckling...
-=-=- Ginny -=-=-
I sat down at the breakfast table and set my head in my hands. Hermione had arrived and she had already started ranting. I mean, I didn't even eat breakfast yet... She sat down next to me and I realized she was still talking to me.
"...these are the most dangerous time we've ever experienced. You know?" she said, looking over at me.
"Um, yeah. I totally agree. Can you pass the syrup, Lex?" I replied. I didn't really care about what Hermione was saying. It's not like she's trying to fix anything, she's just been worrying about how dangerous everything is. What I did care about, was that Alex came down to the room REALLY late last night, and there was something bothering her. It was strange...
"Hey Lex, You alright?" I asked. She had been moving one piece of pancake back and forth across her plate, with no intentions of actually eating it. She looked up at me.
"Um, what? Oh yeah, fine." she mumbled.
"Okay..." I said.
"So, like I was saying, poor Harry... Dumbledore forbade us to write to him at all. He's stuck there with those dreadful people, and he hasn't heard from his friends in months." Hermione said.
"Yeah. Poor Harry." I said, which I did care about. Sure, I was still dating Michael, but he was really just whatever. I only started dating other people because Hermione suggested I do so. Michael was nice and funny, but I couldn't deny that I still felt something for Harry.
"Ginny, Does Charlie, you know, date?" Lexi asked. "Like, bring home girls often?"
"Um, no. Almost never in fact. He had a couple of girlfriends in school, but they didn't last. I think he prefers to keep to himself, focus on his job, you know?" I said. "Why?" I added, smirking.
"What? No. Nothing. I was just wondering." She answered, then with a glance over at Hermione, she smiled.
"What about Ron?" she asked.
"Ronald has the emotional capacity of a teaspoon and is not suited to date anyone ever!" Hermione said angrily.
Lexi nodded her head and tried to hold back her smile. "Thought so." she said.
"Are you going to ask about Fred and George, too?" I prompted.
"Ask Fred and George about what?" Fred said from the steps, followed by George.
"No, Fred. That was ask Ginny about Fred and George." George said.
"Why ask Ginny when we're here in the flesh?" Fred asked.
"Good point. It is a good point, Lex." George replied, sitting down next to Lexi.
"So ask us." Fred said, sitting down on her other side. She laughed. It was actually incredible that she even liked them at all. They acted like gits when they met her, and they seemed to be back to their normal selves...Which might be even more off putting to a girl. But she seemed to fit right in with them, she wasn't distracted by their twinspeak, the way they finished each other's sentences and thoughts and kept the conversation moving so quickly you could barely catch up. She was kind of like me...
-=-=- Fred -=-=-
"Well, I was just asking Ginny if her brothers' date much." She explained. "So we already learned that Charlie works too much, and Ron is a teaspoon."
"So you wanted to ask us-" George said.
"About Bill and Percy." I finished.
"No problem! Percy, well, he's a right git. Another one of those 'in love with his job' things." George said.
"Yes, definitely. He's much too stuck up to ever hold down a relationship..." I said.
"And Bill. Well, Bill is just a ladies' man. He's always had at least one girlfriend." George said.
"Sometimes more. Personally, I think he's starting to settle down. Looking for a place to hang his coat, you know what I mean." I said.
"Uhm." Lexi said.
"Well, I know what you mean, Fred. I'd like a place to hang my coat." George said.
"Oh yes, a coat rack would be nice. Sitting right next to the door?" I said, pantomiming being a coat rack, while George pretended to walk in and throw his coat on my head.
"All you ever do is make me hold your coat." I complained, in a hilarious high pitched voice. I looked over and saw Lexi smile. I winked back at her, she chuckled.
"Oh, Betty, calm down. I had a long day." George answered in a low, gruff voice.
"You always say that. You never even hold me anymore, sweetie. I'm lonely." I nagged.
"This isn't working out for me honey." George answered.
"Oh no! That is so typical!" I shouted. Soon, George and I were both shouting to the point that you couldn't even make out what either of us were saying.
"Oh, knock it off, boys." Mum said, walking in with more pancakes. We quickly stopped arguing and walked back to the table and started to eat.
"So that's what relationships are like?" Lexi asked us.
"Pretty much." George answered, with his mouth full.
"She could also nag about work, his friends, money, the world... Really anything." I said.
"Pretty much, she just nags." George added.
"Interesting." Lexi said.
"Are you all packed? We're leaving in an hour. Only pack the essentials, clothes, toothbrush, those things. We don't have room to be packed everything under the sky, plus we need to seem inconspicuous." Mum told us as we ate. We all generally mumbled an answer.
"Actually, I still need to pack." Ginny said, standing up.
"I'll help you." Lexi said, standing up.
"Me too." Hermione added.
-=-=- Hermione -=-=-
I don't not like her. She's fine... I mean she's just beautiful and smart and funny. She laughs with the boys and fits in perfectly even though she just got here. Which is fine. It's great that she fits in. She's family, isn't she? Like fifth cousins or something... which is actually closer than some people might think. I mean, she'd never try to date a Weasley. Like Ron... Would she try to date Ron? She did ask about Ron second, only after Charlie... No, she wouldn't. They're cousins.
"Hermione! Could you quit pacing around?" Ginny said to me.
"Oh, yes." I said, sitting down on her bed. Alex was sitting on the floor next to Ginny, helping her fold the clothes she was putting in her trunk. It made me feel better to call her Alex, because that was a boy's name... She was just a boy, who hit puberty much sooner than I did, and much harder...
"Hermione! What is wrong? You've been freaking out since we left breakfast. What is going on?" Ginny asked me. I realized I was tapping my feet on the ground and wringing my hands.
"Oh, nothing. I'm just so nervous. Do you know where we're going?" I asked.
"We haven't heard anything. They just said we were going somewhere safe." Lexi answered.
"Oh, okay." I nodded slowly. Then the door opened and Ron walked in. I was consciously very aware of his movements and how he reacted to Lexi. He just walked in and sat next to me on the bed.
"Shouldn't you be packing?" Lexi asked him.
"I should. But it's hard. I don't have you sitting there helping me like Ginny does." he answered.
"I'll help you." I said. "Let's go, now" I added.
"Oh, thanks Hermione! You're the best!" Ron said, as I walked out of the room and he followed behind.
-=-=- George -=-=-
Fred and I were about to open the door to Ginny's room, the door opened for us and Hermione and Ron stepped out, nearly running into us.
"Ah, there they go, Fred. Two star-crossed lovers..." I said, making Hermione blush.
"Of course. Could fate be so cruel?" Fred added. Ron punched him as they left to go upstairs. I shrugged and walked into Ginny's room.
"Is this like the new hangout or something? Why is everyone always in my room?" Ginny asked.
"Keep packing." Lexi said to her laughing.
"Lexi, I've been wondering." I said as I sat down on the bed, followed by George. "How old are you?"
"I'm actually 17." She said.
"So you're our age." Fred said.
"But you're in Ron's year?" I asked.
"Yeah, well, when I started school my parents were still living in Portugal. I was accepted to Hogwarts, but my parents, well mostly my dad, wanted me to stay closer. So I also got accepted to a school in Spain and I went there for my first year. Then my dad got a job in London, we moved and I started at Hogwarts. But they had some kind of rule, since the school I went to wasn't approved by the school board, I had to start as a first year again. And so I ended up in Ron's year." She explained.
"I see. So do you speak Portuguese?" I said.
"And Spanish?" Fred asked.
"Well, In Portuguese, 'Sim, eu falo Português.' Or in Spanish, 'Sí, hablo español.' Aren't you nosy today?" she said.
"And you weren't being nosy at breakfast?" I asked. She smiled. I winked at her and she laughed quietly.
"No, actually. That was playful curiosity." She said.
"That's a good one, George. Remember that." Fred said.
"Shouldn't you be packing?" Ginny asked.
"As a matter of fact," I said.
"Yes. We should be packing." Fred said.
"So goodbye." I added, and we left. As we walked to the door, it opened for us again.
-=-=- Charlie -=-=-
As I opened the door to Ginny's room, Fred and George were walking out the door. They walked past me and I entered after them, sitting down on Ginny's bed.
"Oh Merlin's Beard! Can I get one moment of privacy?" Ginny shouted as I sat down. I looked at her confused for a moment.
"I just- I'm going to get my things out of the bathroom." She said, storming out of the room.
"What's her problem?" I asked.
"I think she's a little stressed about the whole packing thing, and also everyone walking in and out of her room constantly." Lexi said.
"Or perhaps she was involved with a man last night who concluded the evening by telling her to get out his room?" she added, stuffing Ginny's clothes into her trunk.
"Oh." Charlie said. "Look, Lexi. It's not like that." I tried to explain.
"You don't need to tell me what it's like. I understand." she snapped.
"I don't think you do." I said.
"No, I do. I pushed myself on you, you couldn't say no, and afterwards, you didn't want to have to deal with it. It's fine. I don't care!" she shouted.
"That's only half true. And, it seems like you care." I answered. She threw one of Ginny's shoes at me and I caught it before it hit me. She glared at me.
"Half true?" She asked.
"Yes, just listen to me. There's something I have to tell you. Just think about it, how would it have looked if you woke up in my bedroom this morning? My mum would've flipped out, like, she would probably kill me. Not to mention how mad everyone else in the family would be." I explained.
"So that's why you pushed me away last night?" she asked.
"Not exactly. There's something else." I sighed. She continued packing Ginny's things.
"Dumbledore wants me to go back to Romania. He needs foreign wizards on his side, and he's asked me to go make contacts while I'm working." I explained, and she looked up at me.
"You're leaving? When?" she asked.
"Today. In about a half hour, actually. But you see, that's why I tried to push you away last night. I didn't want to you to get involved with me when I knew I was leaving. I'm sorry, I tried to resist you, but I just couldn't. You're very beautiful, and persuasive..." I said. She let her head drop.
"I'm not- um, I'm not going to, 'wait for you'. You know?" she said.
"Oh, yeah... I figured you wouldn't. I mean, of course not. And I realized that I don't want you to. Not that there's anything wrong with you, I just-" I tried to explain without hurting her feelings.
"You're in love with your job." she said, nodding. She looked up at me smiling.
"Exactly. You understand me..." I said, laughing.
"And if you weren't so committed to your job, I'd make a great girlfriend/fiance/wife? Thanks, I'll take it as a compliment." she said.
"I meant it as a compliment." I said. She laughed.
"So, you're not mad?" I asked.
She sighed. "No. I'm sad, though. I'll miss you." she trailed off. "On the bright side, I think your brothers have a crush on me." she laughed.
"You think? How about, I know they do. Fred and George for sure." I answered, and she laughed again.
"This is kind of funny. I mean, after last night, I thought I'd hate you... but it just feels like, you're my brother." she said, smiling at me.
"I completely agree. I feel like you're Ginny." I said.
"I hope I don't have to sleep with everyone to make them feel like I'm family..." she said, laughing quietly.
"I think they're are easier ways to convince them." I said.
"Can I have a hug?" she asked, standing up. I walked over to her and wrapped her in my arms. I still thought was beautiful and incredible but I found that I wasn't attracted to her like I was before. Of course, I still noticed that she smelled amazing and she felt so right in my arms, but I really did feel like she was another Ginny. Which was good.
