Chapter Twenty-Six: Good Luck With That, Blondie

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was filled with noise and excitement the night of December 25th. It was a holiday, it was the yule ball, and every student looked incredible in their dress-robes—regardless of what century said robes were from. That night seemed to be brimming with endless possibilities. Most shocking of all these possibilities, was a kiss between two Gryffindor sixth-years. Fred Weasley had fulfilled his greatest fantasy, and had it taken away, all in the span of a few minutes.

The tall, red-headed boy was still braced against a the wall of the castle, with his other hand twisted in silver locks that belonged to Jamie Devereaux Bruce. Jamie's eyes were wide and apologetic. Fred looked down at her, his heart panging. Yet, if anyone knew Fred well, they would not be surprised by his reaction to her statement. "Sorry, Jamison, I think I must have accidentally snogged your brains out. You meant to say 'oh, Freddie, I would love too, you're so handsome.' And then you throw yourself into my arms." He looked at her expectantly, but inside his heart was racing with doubt and anxiety. "Now it's your turn." Fred prompted.

Jamie's slim fingers went up to hold his face. His cheeks felt a little rough under her palm and his eyelashes were much longer than she thought they were. The blonde's lips were tingling and her cheeks were warm from their encounter. She knew it would be played in her head on repeat for the next week. Maybe month. "I can't date you right now. But I want to." She rushed out when he started to pull away from her. Jamie brought his head down to they were leveled, "I want to I just can't yet."

"Why not right now?" Fred asked.

Jamie exhaled and looked away from him, "I…I can't tell you."

Fred's heard leapt into his throat, "Are you dying?" "No!" Jamie responded, quickly, but Fred pressed on, "Because if you are dying I would think you would want to spend your last days with a hot piece like me."

Jamie blinked, confused at his joke. "I'm not dying."

"But if you were you'd spend it with me." Fred stated, moving his hands to her waist and squeezing lightly. His head lowered again and his nose grazed her cheek.

"I'd spend it with my mother." Jamie retorted.

Fred moved Jamie's hair so it was behind her shoulder, "That's a weird pet name for me."

Jamie heard a laugh escape from her and she felt Fred smile against her neck, "Fredward, I just told you I can't date you."

"And I chose to ignore you." Fred responded, kissing her neck and making Jamie dizzy and want to ignore what she had said as well. After a second she pulled away completely, Her hands pressed against his shoulders so that he would be forced to stop something she really didn't want him to stop. Jamie thought, with a lot of certainty, that she would be quite happy to stay in that position with Fred Weasley for hours.

Fred pushed his lower lip into a pout at being pulled away from her and Jamie rolled her eyes at his antics. "We can't date right now and I can't tell you exactly why because it's personal and something I need to figure out. It wouldn't be fair for me to bring you into it by dating you right now."

"Counter-offer," Fred said, "You tell me, I help you work through it while we date." Jamie raised her eyebrow in response and his smile fell slightly. The red-head ran one large hand through his hair and looked down at his Jamie Devereaux, "When will you be ready?"

Jamie's eyes widened. She didn't know, but she also didn't want to give him nothing. Jamie wanted to be with him. If she dedicated more time to controlling her emotions and read the Tale of Devereaux and figured out how it related to her, then maybe she could be with him. And then, once he fell in love with her, she wouldn't be so worried about using her emotions against him. "End of next term?" She asked.

Fred exhaled in relief, "That's all?" A smile broke across his face, and he leaned into kiss her again.

Jamie covered his mouth with her hand, "If we snog, then we're basically dating."

"Fine by me, we're dating."

"Fred!" Jamie exclaimed. "We can't snog until we are dating."

Fred's eyes narrowed, "But we are engaged to be dating. So I don't see the point in waiting." Seeing Jamie's annoyed face, Fred sighed, "Are you going to add to our list of rules again?"

Jamie smiled, "That's a great idea, Fredward." Fred's shoulders slumped but Jamie continued, "Rule one: you're still not allowed to prank my friends. Rule two: No provoking me in class." "Blimey you memorized it?" Fred interrupted, but Jamie ignored him and continued, "Rule Three: You're not allowed to snog me."

"Rule Three: I won't snog you, but you can snog me whenever you want to." Fred stated, looking quite smug.

Jamie thought about it and doubted her ability to control herself around Fred. But she also knew she was lucky to be getting him to agree to rules at all. "Fine. Rule Four: You can't call me Bruce again. It's weird and hostile."

Fred smiled, "Awe, Jamison, you little softie." He then added, "Rule Five: No more Jean. Rule Six: You can't go with anyone else to Hogsmeade. Rule Seven: No more Jean. Hell, just make that Rule Seven—Fourteen and save some time."

"Jealous, Fredward?"

"Yes." Fred responded, without embarrassment.

Jamie giggled, tugging on his robes, "He likes someone else, don't worry."

"Don't care." Fred said, pulling her closer. The little blonde's heart had never felt lighter in her life.

"Weasley! Bruce! Twenty points from Gryffindor." Professor Snape called, sweeping by the embraced couple, his cloaks flying behind him.

"For hugging!?" Fred Weasley exclaimed in disbelief.

Snape turned his head to the side and glared from over his shoulder, "Public displays of affection are not encouraged in the hallways, Weasley." He turned a corner and disappeared from view just as Igor Karkaroff sped walked past the couple without sparing them a second glance and turning past the same corner Snape had just slithered past.

Fred held his hand out for Jamie take, "Want to go back in and dance?" The blonde smiled wide and grabbed his large hand in hers, allowing him to guide her back into the great hall where their friends were clustered together. When they were in view of the sixth year Gryffindor's, Jamie pulled her hand from Fred's quickly, "I don't want them to ask any questions." Jamie explained, worriedly.

Fred nodded in understanding, turned to the pack of Gryffindor's and declared, "Jamie and I were just snogging, but we aren't dating because she only wanted me for my body."

"Fred!" Jamie said, punching him in the stomach, hard.

"Can't keep her hands to herself, this one." Fred teased, grabbing Jamie's arm before she could strike him again. "Tsk, Tsk, Jamison, surely you knew that was how this was going to go."

"James!" Angelina squealed, grabbing her friend from Fred, who said 'Paws off, Johnston' in response. "You snogged Fred?"

Jamie glared at the tall red-head, "Yes. We aren't dating. We're going to wait a bit and see if we can coexist without me murdering him." The little blonde crossed her arms, "So far, he is not off to a great start." Fred winked and blew a kiss, eliciting a small smile to edge at the corners of her mouth. She couldn't help it. Jamie Devereaux was truly smitten. She just hoped she could figure out her own personal drama soon, because all she could think about was feeling Fred's lips on her again.

"Always the drama with you two." George sighed, but Jamie didn't miss the fist-bump he and Fred exchanged. Or the passing of sickles that exchanged Lee's hand to George's.

"How much?" Fred asked.

George smirked, "I had four sickles on a snog, he had six on her permanently dismembering you. Both were about as likely." Fred nodded in agreement, not bothering to disagree or defend himself.

Alicia looked confused, "So you're just going back to being friends?" She smirked, "Good luck with that, Blondie."

"I don't appreciate these responses." Jamie said, her hands on her hips.

At that moment, Ginny and Neville danced by them, "Oop, Mama's mad!" Ginny sang, with a smirk in the older witch's direction.

On Boxing day almost every student had decided to sleep in. All except a Hufflepuff boy and Gryffindor girl who sat at a table in the Great Hall discussing all that had occurred the night before.

"Please never describe in detail any snog you have to me ever again." Cedric Diggory moaned, covering his ears and looking across the table at his best friend's giant grin. Jamie Devereaux's hair was un-brushed, her cheeks puffy from a night of drinking, her eyes permanently alight with happiness after her and Fred Weasley's kiss. She was also sporting a rather large sweater that most certainly did not belong to her. It didn't matter that they couldn't date right then, because Fred was going to wait for her to figure out herself.

"Did I tell you about the neck thing?" Jamie asked, only to receive a large slab of jelly directly in her face.

Cedric rolled his eyes at the blonde, before bringing her back to the real world. "I don't want to bring you down, Jamie, but you need to figure out what exactly it is you can do before you bring Fred into it. You wearing his sweater and telling all your friends that you snogged? You might as well be dating at this point. But…you can't."

Jamie's heart fell and she looked down at the sweater, knowing her best friend was right. "I didn't want to tell them." She complained. "But you know Fred."

"Yes, I do know Fred." Cedric said. "I know he has been crazy about you since he met you and you asking him to wait is not a big deal to him, because he has always been waiting. The problem is you need to actually not be dating him during that time and focus on yourself. You need to put in the work with McGonagall and get the book from Fleur and really make an effort. You can't keep half-assing it."

"Jesus, Ced, you don't have to be so harsh." Jamie said, glaring at him. The blonde witch hated the tone he was using. It was one she had heard a few times during lectures that he would give her. 'The Big Brother' tone is what she referred to it as. Whatever was said in this tone was never something Jamie wanted to hear. "What do I do then? If you think I'm such an idiot for liking him then what is it you suggest I do? Is there a Male-Veela book for dummies you could direct me to because, by all means, hand it over."

Cedric ran a hand through his hair and sighed, "I think you be nice to him and as friendly as you can without…" The Hufflepuff cleared his throat uncomfortably, "recreating last night."

"Oh, grow up. Don't act like you and Cho weren't snogging last night as well." Jamie rolled her eyes.

"That's different."

"Why? Because you're a guy and I'm a girl?" Jamie's eyebrows were reaching her hairline and her nose was pointed, "You might want to stop while you're ahead, Hufflepuff."

There was a silence between the two as they both stared down at their plates. Jamie counted to ten and her shoulders relaxed as she realized that there was no reason to be mad at her friend who was genuinely looking out for her. "Sorry." She said, in a clipped tone. "You're right. I shouldn't half-ass being a girlfriend or my lessons with McGonagall. I'll work harder on it, I promise."

"I shouldn't have said it like that, I knew how you were going to react." Cedric responded. A half apologetic smile came onto his face, "Lets change the subject. How am I going to breathe underwater for an hour?"

"That big head of yours has quite a lot of extra air, you would think you'd manage just fine." Jamie quipped. The two laughed together and continued their meal, discussing all the possible charms that they had heard of that could be of assistance.

Ron Weasley sat in the common room with Harry Potter that evening after their first lesson with Professor Grubbly Plank, the stand-in Care of Magical Creatures teacher while Hagrid was…for lack of a better word, hiding. The youngest Weasley boy watched Jamie Devereaux Bruce from the corner of his eye as she sat at a desk in the common room. She was taking quite vigorous notes on something with her small, muggle pen that would have fascinated Arthur Weasley to no end. The blonde sixth-year had been studying and working much more since Christmas break than anyone had ever seen her. She seemed to constantly be working on something or with Professor McGonagall or standing at a distance that could only be described as appropriate from Fred Weasley.

Ron witnessed Jamie's entire demeanor change when Fred's loud voice carried into the common room. The little witch's shoulders relaxed, her gaze immediately drawn toward the Weasley boy, and her hand loosening on her pen. Ron Weasley was not an expert when it came to romance or relationships, but even he could tell that Jamie Devereaux and his brother were connected in a way he had never seen before. Fred's long strides immediately moved toward Jamie and he put both his hands on the edge of her desk, leaning close to the little blonde.

"I got you something." Fred said, in a sweet voice. Too sweet.

Jamie looked at him with suspicion, "What is it?"

"Just a gift between friends, you know. Nothing romantic at all, I promise." Fred swore. Jamie didn't doubt it wasn't romantic. The day Fred Weasley bought anyone flowers or jewelry would be the day the world was surely ending. The tall red-head placed a gooey looking chocolate cookie in front of Jamie, causing her mouth to water.

Her tan hands reached out to take it, but then she thought better of it, "You didn't poison it, did you?"

"Jamison, why can't you ever trust me? If we are going to be dating in five months and fifteen days, you need to trust me."

"You're counting?" Jamie asked in disbelief.

"Maybe. Now eat it. I dare you." Fred said, a smile on his face.

"You eat it first." Jamie countered, crossing her arms.

"I'm not hungry."

"You totally put something in this." Jamie stated, standing up and grabbing the brownie, "Does anyone want a cookie?" Jamie asked sweetly to the rest of the common room.

"But that's my special friendship cookie." Fred whined from beside her, just as Neville called out that he would like it. Jamie smiled mischievously and walked the cookie over toward the fourth-year Gryffindor.

"I don't see why Hagrid thinks it's a big deal." Jamie heard Harry Potter say as she crossed the common room.

Jamie stopped and turned to them, "What about Hagrid?"

Ron's face turned red at her presence, but Harry looked up at her and responded, "Rita Skeeter published an article about Hagrid being half-giant."

"Hagrid's half giant!" Fred exclaimed, standing close to Jamie and startling her. "Blimey, I thought he had just eaten some kind of engorgement charm when he was younger and no one could fix it."

"Is that what you put in the cookie?" Jamie asked, skeptically.

"Nope." Fred pointed to Neville who was currently bright red and had steam coming from his ears, "That's what I put in the cookie." Jamie scoffed and rolled her eyes at his antics, before returning to the conversation about the Game Keeper of Hogwarts.

"Why does it matter that he's half giant?" The blonde asked. She could hear a slight tone of defensiveness coming out of her. The idea of people at Hogwarts reacting poorly to a half-breed was not at all comforting to Jamie. She didn't know if she could take it.

Fred snorted, "I'm not surprised he's keeping it hushed up. Giants are dangerous."

Her dark green eyes widened in disbelief, "But you know Hagrid. Hagrid is the least dangerous thing at Hogwarts! The stairs here move and have trap steps! Everything is a walking hazard. It doesn't matter who Hagrid's parents are."

The tall red-head put his hands up defensively, "I know that. But giants have a bad reputation, it makes sense that he wouldn't tell anyone."

Ron nodded in agreement, "It's definitely not something I'd want to get out."

"So being a half-breed in the wizard world," Jamie started, her heart pounding hard in her chest, "Is a really bad thing?"

Fred shrugged, "It depends on who you're asking. There are a lot of wizards that would consider a muggleborn a half-breed. But people who are inter-species normally get a lot less rights and are watched by the ministry. Like werewolves." The little blonde Veela's eyes widened in panic. Her mind began to race at all the possible futures that meant for her. She imagined being locked up, or paraded around, or being forced to do tricks with whatever other strange gifts she discovered she had.

Suddenly, five months and fifteen days seemed far too soon, whereas that morning it had felt like an eternity.