AN: First things first, a shout out to all of my reviewers, favorites, and followers: You all rock! I'm glad you're enjoying my story.
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Disclaimer: I am not JK Rowling. I know, I know. It's incredibly disappointing.
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Chapter 7: Kingsley Shacklebolt
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"We aren't together, you two are," George replies with a smirk of his own.
I gasp and punch George in the arm.
"I told you-!"
George cuts me off.
"You told me not to tell him while we were there. You never said anything about while we're here," he says cockily. I glare at him.
"You are an absolute idiot."
"Would one of you mind telling me what the two of you are going on about?" Fred demands, looking confused but not angry. "If this is supposed to be a prank George it's a pretty lame one. I've never even met this girl before, let alone asked her out. You're slipping Georgie."
I glance uncomfortably at George who doesn't seem to mind the load that he's about to dump on his brother's shoulders. Instead he smirks at me with a mischievous twinkle in his eye before turning to Fred.
"What was it you said we should tell him Cora? Something along the lines of 'Welcome home Freddie. We're so glad you're not actually dead! Oh! By the way, the Ministry betrothed you to some girl you've never met before while you were gone and you'll be married within the next two months. Surprise!"
I glare ferociously at George.
"I never said we should say that to him you git! I was just pointing out the irony of the situation!" I shout angrily. George waves his hand dismissively.
"Ah details, details. The long and short of it dear brother," George says turning back to his severely confused twin, "is that the Ministry passed a marriage law that matched up everyone between ages 17 and 40 and is forcing them to either get married or go to Azkaban. And you and Cora are matched!" He says it like Fred just won the lottery. Fred glances at me and then cracks a smile at his twin.
"Ha ha, very funny Georgie. You almost had me there," he says, shaking his head in amusement. "Very elaborate, but not very believable. Better luck next time." George grins even wider at Fred's denial and I realize that this is all just a big joke to him. He's just trying to pull one over on his brother without thinking about how Fred might react to such news.
"George-," I warn him, but he ignores me.
"That's the best part, Freddie," George says gleefully. "It's not a joke. It's true."
Fred snorts. "Okay then. Who are you matched with?" he asks. George's face falls and suddenly he looks uncomfortable for the first time. That's when I remember that Angelina is Fred's ex. Fred's grin drops off his face and splats on the pavement as he catches sight of George's face. He stops in his tracks, forcing us to both stop as well. By the look on his face I know that he now knows that none of this is a joke. He stares in stunned amazement between me and George.
"Maybe we should just get back to the-," I start quietly, but Fred cuts me off.
"I don't believe anybody asked you," Fred says loudly and then turns away from me and back to George, thoroughly blocking me out. I stiffen and stare open mouthed at the back of his head for a moment before the rage rises up in me and then I am furious.
All I can think is that this is foreshadowing the rest of my life. Fred will dismiss me whenever I'm not needed. He'll try to train me to speak only when spoken to. He'll try to transform me into his meek little housewife while he carries on as he always has; nothing changed for him while my life is full of misery and suppressed anger.
No way in hell, am I going to let that happen. From this moment on I'm not going to take a single thing Fred Weasley tries to dish out at me. I might as well write off George as well. There's no way he'll go back on his twin.
I grab Fred's shoulder and spin him around. Since he's the same height as George I can look dead into his eyes, mine blazing in a rage that far outstrips his own.
"Excuse me?" I demand through clenched teeth. He raises his eyebrows and opens his mouth to make some disparaging remark I'm sure, but I don't give him the opportunity. "You think you're the only one affected here? You think I want to marry you? This wasn't exactly my choice buddy," I snarl, giving him a hard poke in the chest. "And I'll be damned if I'm going to just let you steamroll over me and mess up my life more than it already has been. If you think I'm just going to sit when you say sit and stay when you say stay you've got another think coming."
I glare one more time at George just for being such a colossal idiot and then stomp off to go catch up to Mr. Weasley. My blood is rushing through my ears and my thoughts are raging through my head like a freight train. I'm just so mad. I feel like I could explode at a moment's notice just from the sheer force of it all.
Finally I catch up to Mr. Weasley who's waiting just outside our alley, no doubt avoiding the smell for as long as he can.
"There you are," he says brightly, oblivious to everything that just happened between me and the Weasley twins. "I was worried you'd all gotten lost."
I just shake my head, not trusting myself to speak. A few moments later the twins come into view and Mr. Weasley sighs in relief. Within a minute we've disappeared from the foul-smelling alley and reappeared at the Burrow.
I stomp into the house ahead of our group and a wall of anxious voices hits me as I step across the threshold. It seems everyone has managed to come home to greet Fred. I'm oddly relieved at this. Maybe Rylie and I will be able to slip out early in all the hubbub. I leave the door open behind me for the others, but still don't look back. I'm angry and frustrated, but somehow I don't want to take it out on them any more than I already have and if I'm forced to interact with them I know I will.
The voices lead me to the sitting room which seems even more pressed for space than usual. There are way too many people here for it to just be the Weasley family. It seems Fred has got himself a whole welcoming party. I stop just outside the doorway and then groan a bit. Of course my conscious won't just let me let him go in there unprepared. If it was me I'd want to spend some time with just me and my family instead of a whole mob of people. I sigh and curse my Hufflepuff qualities for not the first time in my life and then turn back to catch Fred just as he, George, and Mr. Weasley are walking through the front door.
Him and George are cracking up about something, but as soon as Fred sees me coming he stops abruptly and his lip curls slightly. I scowl at the less than warm welcome. And when I was just coming to help him out too.
"There's a whole mob of people in there just so you know," I mumble, trying not to glare at him too much. His face remains unreadable for just a moment too long and then he beams and nudges George.
"Well then let the party begin!" he says and then bounds into the sitting room, George close behind. George at least spares me a backward glance before catching up with Fred. A roar of loud excitable voices erupts from the room's occupants as the twins enter. Mrs. Weasley's sobs are unmistakable.
I frown after them and wonder how on earth we got matched. We are nothing alike. My chest hurts as I wonder how we are possibly going to make this work. Then I shake the thoughts from my head. This is not the time or place for a break down.
Mr. Weasley places a warm hand on my shoulder and gives it a squeeze. I look up at him and he bestows a sad smile upon me before trailing after his sons. I sigh and lean against the wall, allowing myself to wallow for a few moments. Then I straighten up, square my shoulders, and walk into the room with my chin up.
I see Fred in the center of the room yucking it up with George at his side. They're surrounded by people and seem to be jointly telling a story. I tune it out and start searching through the room for Rylie. Finally I find her in the corner with Hermione flipping idly through magazines and chatting about wedding things. She sees me approaching and jumps up.
"Cora! Fred seems, er- nice?" she says, glancing over at Fred who looks like he's having the time of his life. He's probably thinking he should have faked his death ages ago so he could get all this attention.
"He seems like a conceited git," I correct her. Hermione behind her laughs, having obviously overheard.
"He does come off that way doesn't he?" she says. "But he's really not once you get to know him." I roll my eyes at her, in no mood for social niceties.
"So basically he's an arsehole, but you get used to it," I snap. Rylie looks a bit panicked at my outburst while Hermione seems to be shocked speechless. I turn back to Rylie.
"You ready to go?"
"Let me grab my stuff," she says quickly and rushes back to the spot of floor she'd been occupying and starts shoving magazines back into her oversized tote. A few seconds later she's stooped under the weight of her tote and ready to go. I roll my eyes at her and take the bag from her shoulder. I cast a feather light charm on it and then place it on my own shoulder. Rylie grins sheepishly. Of all my siblings, she has the hardest time remembering about the conveniences of magic.
I roll my eyes again, but this time with the slightest upquirk of my lips.
"Let's blow this popsicle stand," I tell her and we begin making our way to the door.
"Cora? Cora Rivers is that you?" a booming voice calls out. The room quiets a bit at the question. I spin around and search for the owner. I'd know that deep slow voice anywhere. Finally I catch sight of him making his way over from the other side of the room and my first real smile of the day blossoms on my face.
"Kingsley!" I exclaim, beaming. He smiles as he finally reaches us and puts one of his large dark hands on each of my shoulders.
"How are you? I didn't know you were friends with the Weasleys!" he says happily, dropping his hands to his sides. My smile drops and I press my lips into a firm line.
"It's been a recent development," I say stiffly. Kingsley studies my face seriously for a moment before smiling sadly.
"You've been matched?" he asks, but I know it's not really a question. Every unmarried witch and wizard aged 17 to 40 has been matched so of course I have. "Which one?" he asks.
"Fred," I bite out through gritted teeth. I can't stop myself from glancing in his direction and that's when I realize that the focus of the room has shifted from him to me. I quickly turn back to Kingsley just as he bursts into laughter. I gape at him in shocked offense for a moment before punching him in the arm.
"Why are you laughing at me you git?" I demand fiercely. He manages to turn his outright laughter into amused chuckles.
"The two of you could out-stubborn a mule." He says. Then instead of elaborating he catches sight of Rylie behind me.
"Hello, you must be Rylie," he says holding out a hand. Rylie comes forward with a smile to shake it.
"Yes, and you're Kingsley Shacklebolt," she says confidently.
"Umm hello?!" I bring their attention back to me. "That still doesn't really explain why you think this is so funny."
He grins. "Oh I'm sure anyone who knows the two of you could see it," he says cryptically. I scowl, but drop the topic knowing that if Kingsley doesn't want to tell me something he won't.
"What are you doing here? I didn't know you were friends with the Weasleys," I say, turning his own question back on him. He smiles.
"We were all in The Order together," he tells me proudly. I smirk. Of course.
"I knew it," I tell him smugly. He laughs, his deep booming laugh reverberating through the room.
"I know you knew it," he tells me. "That was one of the things that made you the best assistant I've ever had. You had the intelligence to figure it out and the good sense not to talk about it. That and your loyalty, ability to keep secrets, and not having anything against breaking rules for the greater good."
I blush slightly at the praise and roll my eyes.
"I didn't really break any rules. I just bent them when the occasion called for it," I rationalize. And then I gasp in realization.
"Wait a second! That means you know how to do that talking Patronus thing!" I exclaim. He laughs again, a deep belly laugh that I've only heard from him a few times. I can't help but smile even as I prepare to berate him.
"Yes, I know how to do 'that talking Patronus thing'," he admits with a chuckle.
"And you never taught me! Traitor," I glare playfully at him. He just smiles and shrugs.
"Never came up," he shrugs. I roll my eyes.
"And here I thought we were a team," I say. "And speaking of, when do I get to come back to work?" I demand. "I've been bored to tears at home all the time. The Ministry has got to be safe for Muggleborns again by now. Or as safe as it ever was before the war at any rate."
Kingsley immediately looks uncomfortable and I narrow my eyes at him suspiciously. He hardly ever looks uncomfortable. Usually he's right at home in his own skin.
"Er- Actually the position has already been filled with- er, someone else," he says. My jaw drops and a black hole rips open in my chest. I've been replaced? I thought we worked well together. Kingsley needs me. But now he's just gone and gotten himself somebody else? Why? What did I do wrong? Why am I not good enough anymore?
"What?" I ask, and I'm embarrassed at how small and broken my voice sounds. Kingsley flinches as though I've struck him, but then straightens up to his full height and puts a kind although condescending expression on his face.
"I think it's time for you to move on," he says. What? I repeat mentally. "You've got too much potential to waste it just as someone's assistant, even mine."
I gape at him for a moment, still overwhelmed by the immense hurt wracking my chest. Then the anger comes in and I'm furious. How dare he? How dare any of them think that they can just control my life?
"How dare you?" I snarl in a vicious whisper. Kingsley at least has the good grace to look ashamed.
"How dare you make my decisions for me!" I bellow furiously.
"It's for the best-,"
I cut Kingsley off with a sharp slap across the face. The room is now in a stunned silence.
"You ministry types are all the same aren't you?" I growl in a quiet but powerful tone. "You think that just because you've got power you can lord it over people and make decisions for them! Well forget you Shacklebolt! I don't need you!"
I spin away from him and storm from the room, leaving an astonished silence in my wake. I burst out the back door and slam it savagely behind me. A sob rips from my throat and I'm horrified to realize that I'm battling tears. On impulse I turn on the spot and disapparate, fleeing the scene just before George and Rylie come barreling out of The Burrow behind me.
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