AN: If you've made this far I just want to thank you! I know this story doesn't have any reviews and I basically wrote as an actual story instead of something short. So I greatly appreciate anyone who has taken the time to read it. You have no idea how much it means to me. I also wanted to warn—I mean let you know there will be more stories in this "series"(5th, 6th and 7th year). I do hope to keep them around the same amount of chapters. This one still has 9 more chapters. I'm writing this story because I love writing and I know there's someone out there who enjoys reading this as much as I did writing. The stories I've read on here so far are great and I just hope one day mine can be just as great. So again, thank you for your patience.

What To Say

"Surprise" Fred jumped out from, well, wherever he was and wrapped his arms around me. Not feeling in the mood and quite honestly annoyed with how he had been acting since we returned from break I pushed his hands from around my waist. "Tammie" he said following me up the stairs.

"Fred" I replied as he seemed to deflate.

"You're mad at me"

"Wow, spot on" my sarcasm seeming to annoy him.

"I'm not avoiding you" he said as he stopped on a stair.

"Right, no of course you're not, why would I get that impression?"

"I was trying to give you some space, you look like you've had a lot on your mind lately" he said as I momentarily debated telling him about my daydreams. "And I know a lot happened at the Manor, we don't have to talk about it if you don't want to." I shrugged.

"There's nothing to talk about it, I'm stuck there" I told him.

"You know, I was thinking...I could talk to my mum about seeing if she could make room at our house for you." I knew he was just being kind and trying to help but I laughed anyway.

"Fred, there is absolutely no way on earth your mum is going to let me stay. One being, there is no room with all the guests you usually have, two, I am your girlfriend and certainly she doesn't want to chase you around the house trying to get you to leave me alone." This time Fred laughed.

"For a moment I thought you were gonna say you didn't want to stay" he said as I felt my shoulders fall.

"If I could, I would, but, there's a lot going on with the Malfoys and my mum right now" I knew I was just scratching the surface but it didn't seem right to tell him on the staircase in the middle of school.

"Like what?" He asked as I noticed Professor Burnner walking up another staircase, I wondered if it was just me or if she looked suspicious in general.

"Right now, at this moment is probably the last place I want to explain it, I wanna sit down and talk to you about it all" I told him but he only seemed to deflate. "Don't do that, it's not bad or anything, it's just that they became my legal guardians and..." I trailed off, trying to keep dry eyes.

"You sure you don't wanna talk about it?" I shook my head.

"Not yet, I talked to Draco about it but it was just rambling, I want make sure I have a nice understandable conversation with you about it—"

"You talked to Draco first?"

"He was there, it made sense" I told him.

"You had the mirror" he reminded me.

"It wasn't a conversation I wanted to have long distance and whenever I try to get you alone you're busy with Charity or acting like I don't exist."

"Maybe I was exploring my other opportunities" he mumbled as I felt a jab to my chest, I didn't expect the comment to hurt my feelings so much.

"What did you say?" I asked anyway but he didn't reply. "You heard what Mrs. Malfoy said, didn't you?" Still nothing. "Fred, it was nothing—"

"You agreed!"

"I had to say something to please her to get her to leave me alone!"

"No, you didn't." I swallowed hard, wishing I had just told him about my situation, but even if I had I didn't think it would've changed this argument we were having. "You told Oliver" he whispered. "On the train, the day we came back..." I had to look away, not because I felt guilty but because of how annoyed Fred looked.

"You're being unfair. Do you know how it looks when I'm looking for you and I see you laughing and whispering with Charity. You know it bothers me that you never explained your past with her; but you're upset because I talked to Draco and Oliver a couple of times because they caught me off guard?"

"I'm upset because I expected you come to me, Tammie. And now that we've found each other you still won't spit it out."

"It's not the right time, if you really wanna talk about it, fine, let's go somewhere and talk, about other stuff" I said as he shook his head, looking put out. "I'm going through a lot right Fred and until I sort out how I wanna approach you with all this it's gonna be weird between us. But in the meantime I just wish I didn't have to think about my boyfriend flirting with another girl" I explained or hoped I explained well enough.

"Right, well, let's even the playing field, eh?" He said taking a step back. "I'm no longer your boyfriend" he said as I felt my heart sink. Where had that come from?

"Fred—"

"If you can't talk to me then what's the point, Tammie?" I licked my lips, trying not to cry.

"Can we not do this? I just need a little more time to process..." I whispered, wishing I could tell him everything, but for some reason I felt the more I told him the more vulnerable I'd be and then I'd get hurt even worse later.

"You had a month to process" he said and then walked off.

I sat down even before he was out of sight and held on to the banister, I should've told him, I should've let him in. I shouldn't have stayed up all night talking with the Malfoys, I wouldn't have entertained the idea of what they said about Fred; the Weasleys and Malfoys hated each other, no one had thrown any punches but Mrs. Malfoy was convinced they'd scurry away from me as soon as they found out I was a blood Malfoy. That Fred couldn't bare to dishonor his name by dating me. That he'd find a way to emotionally hurt a Malfoy even if it meant getting just a small victory. I had told her repeatedly she was wrong. Fred wasn't like that. I told Draco the same thing. And he always told me to just be careful, that he didn't want to see me get hurt. They all told me to keep my heart closed, share slowly and carefully, don't let my guard down, it was easy to get hurt by those who had nothing to lose.

"Did you eat some bad food?" I heard Lee joke as I felt him standing over me. I kept my head down, I didn't want him to see I had been crying. "Tammie?" He asked when I didn't reply.

"Go away" I mumbled as he sat down next to me.

"You better be glad this is one of the less travelled staircases, I would have to drag you to another staircase if we were about to be trampled."

"Please leave me alone..."

"What happened?" He asked as I sniffed and lifted my head, Lee's face falling when he saw how upset I looked. "What did he do?" He asked starting to get up, but must have thought better of it and sat back down.

"I didn't know how to tell him something and I've messed everything up" I explained but Lee shook his head.

"I've been telling him to leave Charity alone. I think when he gets nervous he goes to her, like a fail-safe" he explained but obviously that didn't make me feel any better. "Is this about having to live with the Malfoys?" He asked as I looked at him in shock. "Melinda told George and although George tried to make it sound like you were going to enjoy it, I was able to read between the lines. You have to understand Fred and George are close and Fred tends to jump to conclusions and react a little more aggressively about situations. It doesn't help that George isn't particularly fond of you for some reason. But, forget them; I'm really sorry about your mum, I know it—"

"I don't wanna talk about it..." I whispered, my bottom lip trembling.

"Yeah, course not, sorry, c'mere" he said as he wrapped his arm around me and pulled me in.

I managed to not cry, instead we spent nearly two hours on the staircase reading, Lee looked cramped and bored of the same magazine but whenever I said he could leave he replied with a smile that he enjoyed being a solid rock. I attempted writing a letter to Fred, but none of them explained what happened at the Malfoys. I didn't know how to tell him it felt like my mother abandoned me, he had no clue what that felt like. I lost my father and now my mother, both his parents were around constantly. I had no siblings, he had several.

"What did Melinda tell you?" I finally asked.

"That you're mom asked you to stay with the Malfoys and you said yes while she sorted out some personal business" Lee said. "Well, George said that bit, and it was more like he said she asked if you would like to stay at the Manor and you said yes, but obviously that doesn't sound like you."

"How would Melinda know?" I asked.

"Draco told her I'm guessing" he said pulling a candy bar from his bag and breaking it in two, handing me half.

"They're speaking?"

"Have been for a while; Melinda asked if I knew what was up with you when we came back, said I didn't know, asked me to keep an eye on you. She was going to ask you herself but I guess Draco got to her first, something about you needing space and no one really able to relate to what was going on" he said as I stared off. Draco and Melinda were talking, how about that. At least something positive came out of this for one of us.

"I should go find her, tell her what's going on, maybe if I can find a way to talk to her I can tell Fred" I stood up, almost cursing myself as I saw Charity and Fred laughing as they hurried up another staircase, neither knowing I was watching. "Or I'll let it be" I said as Lee stood up and glanced over, turning up his nose and rolling his eyes.

"Tammie, she is a fail-safe. When things go wrong and Fred comes to bad conclusions and makes stupid decisions that hurt him he goes to the only person who will never judge him and always wants to suck his face. No one likes them together" he said but rolled his eyes again "okay, George likes them together but they're brothers, he understands why Charity is around. But don't take her into account, just work on you, when you're ready to talk to Fred." He said as I nodded.

"Lee, do you think I'm flirting with Oliver?" I asked as he laughed.

"I always thought Oliver was Fred's healthy competition, never thought you were aware of it, much less acting on it" he said and then nodded behind me, Draco walking our way. "See you later Tammie" he said and was off.

"Why do people run when they see you?" I asked Draco but he just smiled, probably thinking I was just being funny. "What did you tell Melinda?"

"Did she talk to you? I told her to give you some space, I thought she'd listen..." he grunted in annoyance.

"No, no, she hasn't talked to me, but I guess in her quest to help me she told George and George told Fred and Fred dumped me" I said with a tight smile.

"Wait, Fred knows what's going on and he still dumped you?"

"He knows what George told him, which is a screwed up version of whatever Melinda told him" I explained.

"I told Melinda your mom got a letter from your dad that explained you'd be safer at my house and though it hurt you she decided to leave you in the custody of my family. I said you were devastated and missed your mum very much and you were having a hard time adjusting to our house being who we are and understanding my dad is your only blood claim to your father." I raised an eyebrow, I never knew Draco had great insight in my mind. All I did was complain, I didn't think I said anything that made sense. "Oh, and how my parents don't really think you should be dating a Weasley; I was only concerned about something like this happening."

"It only happened because I kept thinking about what your parents have been saying. And because I just couldn't explain it to him. I don't know how to tell him..." I trailed off, not wanting to say it. "I don't want him to pity me..." I whispered instead as Draco walked closer and put a hand on my shoulder.

"Forget him then, if—and I will only say this once—if he feels any amount of guilt he'll come back and by then I'm sure you'll be ready to tell him something." I wanted to thank Draco, give him a hug or smile but I felt like that would do me more harm then good in any case.