Chapter VI
"What kind of relationship status?" Fred finished wrapping her arm and now they look at each other eye to eye.
He took in a deep breath. "Your choice, we could be girlfriend and boyfriend or husband and wife. We could be girlfriend and boyfriend leading to husband and wife." He pushed the gauze aside and scooted closer to her. "I'd really love to end it with us being husband and wife."
"Fred, what- do you know what you're saying?" Arabella was shocked and confused, but still a little part of her is happy, maybe more than a little.
"Yes, I completely know what I'm saying." He took both of her hands in his. "This is not the most ideal way of asking someone to be in a relationship with them. And probably the most awkward timing, but I've thought about this." He paused. "I don't want to be away from you anymore, Arabella. I want to be the one who you will come home to, no matter how beaten up you are. I want to be the one who would nurse you till you get better." He reached for her, tucked her long hair behind her ear and placed one of her hand on his chest. "I don't want to freak you out, or scare you away, I'm not even sure if I should say this now. But, I love you."
It felt like a truck of blocks has been lifted from his chest, for a moment he thought he would be able to breathe easy. But her long pause made him anxious, he shifted from his seat. After all that he said, all that there is, is silence. He collected both of his hand and placed it on his lap, fidgeting. He cleared his throat. "You don't have to answer right now-"
"Fred."
"-You should think about it-"
"Fred."
"-it is a lifetime commitment and-"
"Fred!" He finally turned to her, and he saw a smiling face. "Let's start with boyfriend and girlfriend." She said to him.
He jumped from the bed to the floor. "Yes!" It made Arabella laugh. He walked to her, closing the gap between them and leaning down on her. He stopped for a moment as if asking for permission. She placed her right hand on his cheek and leaned forward for a kiss. A long and breath taking kiss, it was Arabella who gave up on it.
"I need to breath." She said as she fans herself.
With a triumphant smile, he sat next to her on the bed, pulled her so she'll be sitting on his lap. He lightly pulled on her hair, making her tilt her head upward. He started kissing her neck all the way up to her ear. He heard her moan when he licked her earlobe. He stopped to look at her flushed face. "I love you, so much." He held her tight, slowly pulling her top up,
"Let's wait till I'm fully healed, Fred." She said as she eased herself from him. "It'll be difficult to move right, now."
"I was just actually planning on nibbling." He said with a big fat smile on his face. "It's nothing harmful, but definitely pleasurable." She rolled her eyes and got off him.
A day after Arabella woke up, Molly, Arthur, Bill and Fleur arrived with other people. From the window, she noticed the blue robes that were familiar to her. She quickly got up from the bed and got dressed. She got both of her wands and apparated to the living room of the burrow. Holding the wands tightly and placing it above her right chest. She greeted Shacklebolt with a bow as everyone entered the house including Malfoy and Neville.
"I see you're doing well." Shacklebolt eyed her as he nodded. "You can be at ease now." She relaxed under the order and was surprised to get a hug from her mentor. "We will end it."
With that message, she knew why they were here. They have located Rodolphus and they will capture him. Her life of hiding, running and chasing down death eaters is almost at the end. She can now see a life with Fred. Her heart skipped at the thought.
They all head down to the kitchen, the twins and Alice were surprised to see them. "We're the rest of the order?" Shacklebolt asked Arthur.
"Harry, Ron and Hermione are on their way." And as if on cue, the golden trio came out of the fire place.
"Let's start the meeting." Shacklebolt looked at Arabella. "Better if you keep your sister out of this."
She nodded and looked at Alice, she understood. Harry caught her attention. "Go to Ginny, she's at Grimmauld Place." They watched Alice floo out of the house before everyone settled to their seats. Except Malfoy who leaned on the sink, arms folded and looking as if he was scowling.
"We found where Lestrange has been hiding along with other Death Eaters who remain loyal to the cause" Shacklebolt clasped his hand together on the table. "I'm bringing this to the order, it's only right that the Order will be the one to end it."
"How many Death Eaters are there?" Ron asked.
"More than fifty probably, but less than a hundred." He took in a deep breath. "That's why I have Malfoy and Longbottom with me. They are to help, we are outnumbered. As much as I want to bring in more people, I can't risk it. We haven't apprehended the traitor inside the ministry."
"If it's less than a hundred, the three of us can do it." Arabella said referring to Neville and Draco.
"No, we'll help." Fred was stern.
Shacklebolt cleared his throat. "The numbers aren't clear." He said to Arabella. "We can't afford making any mistake-"
"That's the reason why me, Draco and Neville should be the one to do it." She said hotly.
"Don't be stubborn." Malfoy rolled up his sleeve and he can see disturbed expressions from the room. "The last time we went on an entrapment operation of over thirty dark wizards and witches, you were badly injured. These fifty Death Eaters will be more formidable than those renegades. We need help, you need help."
They were silent for a moment until Neville spoke up. "I hate to say this, but Draco's right. But is the rest of the Order ready to face this Death Eaters?"
"We fought at the battle at Hogwarts." George said. "Don't get cocky, Neville just cause you're an Auror."
"He's not being cocky." Harry said to them with a serious expression on his face. "Most of the Death Eaters we've taken down two years ago are just pawns. Those that escape are really skilled. We need to be as good if not better than them in dueling."
"That's why Arabella will lead this team." Shacklebolt caught their attention again. "You'll have three weeks to prepare them-"
"Wait, my sister's wedding-"
"You will have a week before the wedding if things go smoothly."
Arabella took in a deep breath. "I'll train them for two weeks and maybe three days. Send me the details of the location by that time." She paced around the room, not limping anymore. "And I'll take Fred but not George."
"Oi! We're a package deal." George called out to her.
"Not anymore, I'm a sister before I was even a part of the Order. You're the one who needs to take care of Alice if ever-" she trailed off; she shook her head from side to side slowly. "And I'm not taking Molly and Arthur."
"You think we can't fight?" Arthur said with an amused smile.
"It's not that, you're the second parents me and Alice have."
Shacklebolt laugh heartily. "Always thinking about the younger Nelly." He said to Arabella.
"She's a damn fox." Malfoy commented. "Neville, give her the herbs so she can heal already. Five days of lazing around and she might already lost her edge."
"Draco, I can take you right now." Arabella tilted her head to the side.
"Whatever." He looked at the golden trio. "What are you planning with these three?"
Arabella looked at them, Harry and Ron will be a part of the team. But she wasn't sure with Hermione. "We'll teach them how to apparate."
"We all know that." Hermione said to her and in that moment Arabella shook off her doubt.
"Well, you guys don't apparate like we do." Neville handed her a violet leaf and she started chewing on it. "I suggest you change into something more comfortable." With that she left them.
"She doesn't waste time." Shacklebolt said. "I'll be back to give you the details of the location in due time." He got up from his chair and with a pop, he apparated.
Everyone at the table looked at each other, Ron giving away a nervous glance at Hermione. She held his hand and gave it a squeeze, Neville noticed it. "Don't be nervous, feeling scared will be a hindrance."
"You got it wrong." Malfoy said. "Remember what she always tells us while we were training?"
Neville smiled as he scratched the back of his head. "I forgot." He said with a light chuckle.
"Embrace your fear but do it anyway." Malfoy took out a cigarette and lit it up. He looked at them. "Merlin, I hope you're ready." He shifted his stare to Hermione. "But you don't have to worry; she'll go easy on you."
Fred felt a pull on his heart while he watched Malfoy look at Arabella. There was something in his eyes that he can't understand. The night Arabella was hurt; Malfoy's hand was shaking as he place the herbs in her wounds. There was worry in his eyes; he was muttering things under his breath. When they visited her, his eyes of cold blue suddenly light up like the warm ocean as he stare at her sleeping image. Fred certainly can't deny their fondness towards each other.
He got up from his chair and went up stairs, he saw Arabella taking off the bandages from her body. "Hey, what're you doing?" He walked towards her and was trying to stop her.
"It's fine." She said to him with a smile. "The herb that Neville gave to me healed everything."
"Just within minutes?"
"Well, the other herbs that we put on my wounds healed the inside damages, the herb that I just ate, took care of the outside wounds." She grabbed her coat and looked at the ripped part of it. She took out a needle and a black thread, tapped her wand at it and it started sewing itself.
"You could have just used reparo." He said to her as he walked to his closet and took out a shirt.
"I know." She held out the coat to him. "See the black threads?" She asked him and he nodded. "Those are the hits I've endured. I sew them so it'll leave a mark on the coat, Neville gives me herbs that won't leave scars, and I need a reminder."
"A reminder of what?" He stood close to her as he changed his top.
"That I'm a mere mortal." She said with a laugh. "I've come to face death and escape it more than I could remember; it gets to my head sometimes. This helps me be grounded." She put on her coat.
He noticed how many black threads that there was in it, the closest to her chest was the dagger that was just taken off her a few days ago. He placed his hand on it. "Will you still be an Auror after all of this?"
"I-" she took in a deep breath. "I honestly don't know. Fighting is the only thing I'm good at, strange coming from a girl right?" She gave away a nervous laugh.
"The four of us can work at the shop, we can expand it." He held her hands into his.
"That sounds great, really it does." She bit her lower lip. "But, I'm- I don't know. It just doesn't feel right for me."
He kissed both of her hands. "I understand." He said with a smile. "We still have a lot of time to figure things out, anyway."
She loves it; she loves how patient Fred was when it comes to her. She loves the softness in his tone whenever they will talk about their future. She loves his gentleness even when he was towering over her like a giant. Most of all, she loves it when he makes her feel that she actually have a bright future. She doubts it, but she never says it to him. She's not even sure if she'll come out alive after their mission. But she was sure she wouldn't let Fred die, she wouldn't let any die. She'll have to die first if that would happen.
The two of them headed down stairs, hand in hand. They saw the look George and Ron gave to them, but they just shrugged it off. They went outside of the Burrow and just in front of the porch they got settled. "Let's get started." Arabella said as she tucked one of her wands inside her coat. She was holding a white wand, about fifteen inches long and was crooked at the handle. "Death Eaters are fast because they apparate well in short distances, it's almost like an unsupported flight. That's what we'll be learning from here on out, also muggle fighting."
"Do you think they'll learn everything in two weeks and three days?" Neville asked as he watched Arabella tie her hair up in a ponytail.
"We'll teach them the basic, like stop and kick or punch or disarm. What's important is to move fast." She gave a knowing look at Draco, he moved a few feet away from her. "Watch carefully." She apparated behind Draco and he apparated away from her. A trail of violet and green smoke appeared like they were chasing each other. A bolt of lightning came shooting at the green trail. They all heard a grunt and saw Malfoy rolling on the dirt.
He quickly got up and apparated, moving faster. He disarmed Arabella but he knew that was useless. She has two wands and she can apparate wandlessly. He was surprised when she apparated to him, he ducked when he saw her small fist aiming at his face. He apparated at her back, but she took him along when she apparated and made him land on his back. She was on top of him, breathing hard like he was and his wand was at his face held by her steady hand. He sighed in defeat.
Arabella got up and held out a hand to Malfoy, helping him get up and giving him back his wand. She accio'd her disarmed wand and it went straight back to her hand with ease. They both saw amazement in the eyes of the audience, while a grin was playing on Neville's face. "How did you do that?" It was Hermione who spoke up.
"Determination and deliberation, with a very, very calm mind." Arabella said to them. "It also helps if your body is in action while you apparate, it'll help the speed and the landing." She pointed at Neville.
He nodded at her, he started running to Ron, the closer he gets the more terrified he seem. When they were just a foot away from each other a blue trail of smoke appeared, Ron duck and Neville was already at his back, waiting for him to open his eyes. Ron looked up at him. "Bloody hell, how long did it take you to learn that?"
"About a month." Neville answered honestly. "But Draco did it within two weeks."
"Try being pushed over a cliff, see if it won't make you feel determined." He said as he glared at Arabella.
"Oh, Draco." She waved her hand in the air. "Stop living in the past, you're good in apparating now, aren't you?"
"Yes, of course. All thanks to your murderous ways." He rolled her eyes at him. "Can we get back to the training?"
"Okay." Arabella moved her wand and balls of dirt appeared at her feet, Malfoy and Neville did the same. "We need an extra hand." She said looking at Harry, Ron, Hermione and Fred. "George!" She called out.
The door opened and he popped out his head. "Yeah?"
"Mind if you help us throwing this dirt ball at them?" Arabella saw Hermione's jaw drop, Ron's head hang down, Harry simply sigh and Fred looked excited and challenged.
George walked to them with a happy smile on his face. "Of course as long as it's Ronnikins I'm throwing this at."
"I'll do Fred." Malfoy said while looking at the ginger, a part of him was aching at the sight of him. "I shall show no mercy to your lover." He said to Arabella.
"I expect none from a Death Eater." Fred said with his wand ready.
"Even from Ara?" Malfoy snorted.
"I'll take Neville." Hermione spoke up before things get out of hand.
"Are you sure?" Neville asked him.
"Yes, I honestly think you'll cut me some slack than Arabella." She looked at the female Auror. "I'm sorry, I-"
"No one will be cut some slack here, Granger. Training is training." She saw Hermione winced, probably dreading the dirt that will be caught up on her hair. "That means I'll be your rival, Potter."
"I honestly thought Malfoy would go for me." He got his wand out.
"On my mark-"
Malfoy didn't wait for Arabella to finish her sentence; he started throwing dirt at Fred. Taking him off guard at first, but the second dirt ball didn't hit him. He managed to apparate a few feet back. They started without a clear signal; George was having fun throwing dirt at Ron and seeing how hopeless he is in apparating fast. Harry managed to apparate, but he apparated two feet near to Arabella, he got hit by the dirt. Hermione apparated fast the first time, but her landing was off, Neville hit her on her back.
At the end of the training, their body felt sore not only from being hit by dirtballs but also because of the frequent apparating. Hermione's curl caught dirt and her jumper was already brown. Harry wiped away the dirt from his eye glass, Ron took off his shoes to take out the dirt off it, and Fred slumped on the porch not minding how dirty he was.
"You guys better clean yourselves out here." George said with a mischievous grin. "Mum doesn't like the shower getting clogged by dirt." With that he left them and greeted his future wife by the fire place.
"I can't even lift my wand anymore." Hermione said.
"Okay." Arabella gestured them to stand away from the porch. "I'll clean the dirt off but you'll be wet after, and there are only two bathrooms inside."
"I'll wash by the pond." Fred started walking. "Just please bring me clothes and soap and shampoo and towel." He said to Arabella.
"Sure thing." She washed the golden trio using an aguamenti charm and then rushed to their room.
Malfoy hated how Fred ordered Arabella, but he didn't say anything. Instead, he and Neville said their good-byes when Arabella appeared on the front door once again. "See you guys tomorrow." She said to them with a hug. She started making her way to the pond.
Fred took off every single item of clothing he has and got down to the warm water, he can see the sky changing from day to night. He cupped some water in his hand and splashed it on his face; slowly he dipped his whole body including his head. He emerged from the water, chest heaving as he catches his breath. "Hey," he turns around and saw Arabella holding the thing he has told her to bring. She placed it on a boulder and leaned on to it. "You did great today."
"Malfoy hates me more than ever."
"Don't say that."
"He likes you, it's so obvious." He started swimming to and fro, not minding that Arabella can see his butt cheeks.
"He doesn't like me, Fred." She called out to him when his head appeared from the water. "He's just looking out for me."
"Oh, yeah. Keep telling yourself that." He swam back to her. "Do you like him?" A question that he find appropriate to ask because he wasn't really sure what she feels for him. Yes, Malfoy did tell him she got jealous over Angelina, and she did say yes to his proposal, but she didn't tell him what she feels for him. He watch her mouth open and close, disbelief in her face. "You know what, don't answer that question. But please do answer this, do you love me?"
"What kind of question is that?" She asked back at him. "You're my boyfriend."
"Yes, I am. I confessed my love for you, but you didn't really say you love me. You just agreed to what I said."
"Fred, you're unbelievable."
"Why can't you just answer the question?"
"Because the answer is obvious."
"No, it's not."
She grabbed the soap and threw it at him, he dodged it and it went straight down to the pond. "Of course, you bloody idiot! Do you think I'll let you even get close to me if I don't like you! You're the only who has ever kissed me!" She stomped her feet at the ground. "You're so- so- argh!" She folded her arms and turned her back against him.
She was about to walk away from him, he quickly got up from the pond and grabbed her by the waist, turning her to face him. She quickly covered her eyes. "For Merlin's sake, cover up!"
"Say it, say you love me." His voice was laced with desperation, she was trying to free herself from him but he held her tight in place.
"Have you gone mental?" Still have her hands over her eyes.
He placed her hands on her side and she shut her eyes close. "Open your eyes and look at me. Tell me you love me."
"You're naked."
He tilted her head upward. "I won't let you go, not until you look at me and tell me you love me."
Slowly she opened her eyes and saw his chocolate brown eyes looking at her intently. His fiery red hair soaked and droplets of water were making its way down his cheeks and nose. She knows it weird to say it, but he looked beautiful. How can a man be beautiful? A few drops fell on her face, he tried to wipe it away but he only managed to get her face wet.
She took in a deep breath, she was afraid to say it. Arabella knew once she said it there will be no turning back. She knew that her heart won't belong to her anymore once she said it. A part of her liked being at the edge of fear, a part of her liked the way her breathing gets caught up. She liked the excitement the fear brings her. So, she took in a deep breath, trying to calm her thumping heart. "I... love y-you."
"Say it again." He begged.
"I love you." It escaped her mouth almost in a form of whisper. She felt his chest rise and fall; they were so close together she thought that they were breathing as one. Arabella placed both of her hands at his nape, she finally gathered her courage. "I love you, Fred." She watched him close his eyes, as if trying to instill her words, her voice inside his mind. Trying to memorize the way she said it. "I love you."
He crashed his mouth onto hers; it took her a moment to comprehend what was happening. He held her tightly, and she enveloped him using her arms. The movements of his hands were snake like, touching her, feeling her though the coat she was wearing. It was all he needed to hear from her.