When she woke up the next day, Winona had been terrified of seeing Fred again. But they'd had classes, and no matter how much she desperately wanted to, she couldn't skive off class forever.
But, to her great surprise, when she met came face-to-face with Fred again, there was barely any lingering tension. He greeted her with a smile and a joke about needing a haircut, before Angelina had arrived and they'd had a great snog in front of the rest of them.
"Suppose there'll be a lot of that, won't there?" Alicia had muttered teasingly to the others.
"Ange told you, then?" George had asked.
"Oh yeah," she'd giggled loudly, "we got all the details,"
Winona had gripped Lee's arm and started a loud conversation with him about that morning's Charms class, dragging him out the door and trying her hardest not to think about Fred and Angelina twisted up into intimate positions the night before.
And so the days passed by, and November turned into December, and with it came a harsh winter. The castle began to grow colder, and Winona had taken to wearing an extra jumper everywhere she went.
She didn't see Jeremiah alone again. They'd made eye contact a few times in the Great Hall, or in their lessons, but otherwise they didn't even speak. She wanted to be glad, and in a way, she was. But mostly she just felt tired. Angry at herself, that she'd let it go on as long as it had.
It was well into December when McGonagall stopped them from leaving after Transfiguration, a tense, awkward sort of a look on her face. "Now, as I'm sure you've all heard, the Yule Ball is approaching," she said with an air of great importance.
Winona hadn't really heard anything about it – but she wasn't exactly Miss Popularity, so that wasn't surprising – but neither had her friends, judging by the confused looks on their faces.
"The Yule Ball?" asked Lee loudly from his place beside Fred a row over. "You mean like a party?"
McGonagall shot him her most unimpressed stare. "I mean, Mr Jordan, a ball. As in a dance."
The class broke out into excited whispers and George turned to smirk at Winona. "This means you have to wear a dress," he sang teasingly. "You're gonna actually look like a girl," he added with a snort.
"You're gonna have to wear dress robes, you know?" she countered. "I bet you look good all dressed up."
"Bet you'll think Fred looks better," he joked with a wink, but before she could ask when he meant by that, McGonagall was speaking again, voice raised over the hum of her students' chatter.
"The Yule Ball is a traditional part of the Tri-wizard Tournament and an opportunity for us to socialise with our foreign guests," she told them all in a stern, no-nonsense voice. "Dress robes will be worn. I will have none of you showing up dressed inappropriately. Now, the ball will start at eight o'clock on Christmas Day, finishing at midnight in the Great Hall."
The class broke out into whispers again, and McGonagall cleared her throat pointedly.
"The Yule Ball is of course a chance for us all to, er, let our hair down and have fun," she said, full of an awkward disapproval.
The twins both gave loud snorts of amusement, no doubt at the image of their Transfiguration Professor without her staple tight bun.
"But we will not be relaxing the standards of behaviour we expect from Hogwarts students. I will be most seriously displeased if a Gryffindor student embarrasses the school in any way," she said, low and stern, and a threat if Winona had ever heard one.
The class nodded back obediently.
"Are there any questions?" she added briskly. Nobody moved an inch. "Very well – don't forget to revise the chapters on Human Transfiguration in your textbooks before next week's lesson," she called as she waved them out.
The moment she was finished speaking, the class exploded into a hum of chatter, all of them flowing towards the doors, clumped together as they excitedly discussed the upcoming dance.
Winona wanted to stay with the boys as they made their way down to the Great Hall for lunch, but Alicia grasped her arm and forced her away from them. She sent George a pleading look that he absolutely understood, but still he just gave a cheeky wave as she was dragged away for girl-time.
"Who do you want to ask you?" Angelina was asking Alicia eagerly.
"Oh, I don't mind," she replied dreamily. "Just someone nice and handsome. And they have to be a good dancer, that's non-negotiable. Oh – how amazing would it be if Krum asked me?!" she asked excitedly.
"Why would Krum ask you?" asked Hope, and Winona knew she didn't mean it rudely, although it certainly sounded that way.
"More to the point, you actually think of Krum as handsome?!" she asked Alicia before any sort of argument could get started.
Alicia flushed pink. "You don't?"
"I'd rather fuck the giant squid," she replied in a deadpan, and her friends let out squeals of disgust.
"Winnie!" groaned Angelina, scandalised as she shoved her away with a grimace. "I think that's the most disgusting thing you've ever said!"
"Really?" Winona asked in surprise. "Wow, I'm not as sharp as I thought I was."
"What about you?" Alicia asked Angelina before they could go down that particular rabbit hole. "Do you think Fred will ask you?"
Angelina looked insulted by the question. "Well, I'd hope so, considering I'm his girlfriend," she said primly.
"And after what you did last night … well, he'd be an idiot not to, right?" Alicia giggled brightly, and Angelina ducked her head shyly.
Winona's insides turned sour, like lemon juice was being pumped through her veins. She grimaced, looking away and forcing herself for what had to be the dozenth time to not imagine them together in that way. It made her heart heavy like lead, and her stomach curdle with disgust.
She didn't want to think about why she had such a strong reaction to the pair of them together, didn't want to analyse it, too afraid of what she might find if she did.
In the days that followed, the school was abuzz with a nervous, excited sort of energy. The girls and boys seemed to have split off, and Winona found herself feeling strangely out of the loop. What was the big deal? It was just a dance. Who cared if they had a date or not? Couldn't they just go in a big group, as friends?
"You should just ask someone, Winnie," said Alicia, who was awfully confident in the whole thing now that she was going to the ball with a tall, handsome Ravenclaw boy from their year. "You don't want to have to go with someone horrible."
"I don't care who I go with," she said, halfheartedly sketching in her book, the feel of graphite scraping against parchment soothing and gentle. The fire was crackling across the room, giving the common room a warm sort of glow, but she was still cold, hunched over in her too-big jumper for warmth.
"But what if you never ask anyone, and have to go alone?" asked Katie as though it were the most atrocious thing in the world.
"Then I'll go alone," she shrugged. "So what?"
The girls stared at her like she'd just told them she was planning on attending the ball completely naked and dancing with Professor Moody the whole night. "Winona, that's just going to look … well, it'll look sad," said Angelina quietly, the sound of her voice pitying.
Winona grit her teeth against a rush of annoyance. "Since when do I give a flying shit what people think of me?" she countered without so much as batting an eyelash. "So it'll look sad; big deal," she said. "I'd rather go alone than dance in uncomfortable silence with someone I don't even like."
Alicia and Angelina exchanged a long look. "Don't you like anyone?" Alicia asked slowly. "There's nobody at all you could see yourself going to the ball with?"
The first name that came to mind was Fred, and she looked at her feet, cringing until the thought went away. She didn't want to go with Fred – the implications alone were too much. Besides, he had a girlfriend. "Nope," she said instead, looking back up with a steely expression.
"Not even your mysterious snogging partner?" Angelina teased.
Winona glanced over at her in slight alarm. "What?"
"Oh, come on," Angelina laughed, and even Alicia couldn't help but giggle. "As if we haven't noticed how you've been acting the last few months." Alicia nodded her head in agreement. "There's someone in your life. Why not take a chance and ask him?"
"Believe me," Winona said through gritted teeth. "It's not an option." She took a deep breath, deciding to change the subject. "You're going with Fred, right?" she asked quickly. "Are you excited?"
Angelina suddenly looked like she'd just swallowed a lemon. Alicia winced in sympathy. "He hasn't asked her yet," she revealed quietly.
Winona blinked in surprise. "He still hasn't?"
"You didn't know?" Angelina was frowning. "Don't you guys talk about these things?"
Winona lifted her shoulders in a weak shrug. "Now that we're older, our love lives aren't really something we discuss," she replied evenly. And it was true, however, maybe not for those exact reasons. "I'm sure Fred's just working up to it," she added to Angelina with a small, reassuring smile. "Beneath all that bravado, he is actually quite cautious, you know."
Angelina sighed, casting Fred a glance where he stood with George at the opposite end of the common room. She looked away just as quick, not wanting to be caught staring, but Winona watched a while longer, catching Fred's eye when he glanced over.
She shot him a small, tentative smile that he returned, and she looked away, turning back to her sketching.
"Are you excited to go with Rory?" Angelina asked Alicia, probably just eager to get the conversation off of herself.
They began to talk, chattering instead of working on their homework like they were meant to. Winona was content to sketch, pulling her coloured pencils out from her bag and beginning to add colour to one of her old drawings. She was distracted, and so the force of a vision came on suddenly.
There wasn't really time to go anywhere, and she assumed no one would bother her – besides, everyone knew she was a Seer now anyway. It wasn't like she had anything to lose.
The vision wasn't loud or violent as they usually were. Instead it was rather quiet, and she heard the hum of familiar voices and the pleasant crackle of fire before it slipped away, leaving her blinking back to the present.
"–Winona?" Alicia was saying her name, and it was clearly not the first time she'd done so.
"Hm?" she hummed, feeling the room sway a little as she came back to the present.
Alicia and Angelina exchanged a long look. "Was that a vision?" Alicia asked curiously.
Winona didn't want to lie – and there was really no need to. "Yeah," she said, instinctively pressing her newest sketch close to her chest. "It was."
The girls suddenly looked incredibly interested. "What was it of?" Angelina asked eagerly.
"Uh, you'll find out later," she told them, glancing subtly down at her sketch, although she didn't need to. It was one of those rare ones she remembered with perfect clarity. "I'll be back," she said, standing up. Her friends tried to argue, but she ignored them, shoving her sketchbook away and moving across the room to where Fred and George were stood talking to one another in low voices.
They stopped abruptly when they saw her standing there, waiting for their attention. "Hey, Winnie," said Fred in gentle greeting.
"Hey," she said, but it was distant and distracted. "George, a word?"
"Conviviality," he joked with a cheeky grin. "All yours, gorgeous." Rolling her eyes, Winona gripped him by the shirt, hauling him over towards the frosted-over window, away from any prying ears. "Ow!" he exclaimed childishly, even though she knew she hadn't hurt him at all. "What, Win?"
"Do you have a date for the ball yet?" she asked without preamble.
He blinked in surprise. "Uh, no," he said slowly. "Why?"
"You wanna go with me?"
George looked very suddenly like a deer in the headlights. The panic on his face surprised her, and he began to edge away. "Oh, uh, Winnie … I'm flattered, really, I am–" he stammered awkwardly.
She rolled her eyes so hard it gave her a headache, reaching up to slap him soundly upside the head. "Not like that, you idiot," she scoffed, laughing at the very thought. "As if. I'd rather snog Snape."
"Thanks," he muttered back dryly.
"Look, the girls have been harping on at me for days to pick someone to ask so I'm not going alone. As little as I care about how it looks, I've decided I'd rather go with someone I will actually have fun with, as opposed to someone I take out of desperation. So, I thought we'd go as friends. Wreak some chaos, spike the punch, dance to some Weird Sisters. Y'know, have a good time?"
George was frowning, like he couldn't make a decision.
"Unless you already have someone in mind to go with?" she asked, mirroring his frown. She'd been almost certain that he didn't have a thing for anyone in particular, but she'd been distracted as of late, so she could have been wrong.
"No, it's not that, it's just…" he didn't seem to know what to say.
"George."
George winced. "Well, it's Fred," he finally said, and Winona frowned.
"If you're worried he's gonna be lonely, he's just about to ask Ange to go with him," she told him.
"He is?"
"Oi! Angelina!" called Fred from across the room, and the two friends turned to look at him, one curious, the other knowing.
Angelina looked up from her conversation with Alicia, eyes wide in surprise. "What?" she called back, a little wary. She knew just as well as Winona that when a Weasley twin drew attention to you like that, some kind of public humiliation typically followed.
"Want to come to the ball with me?" Fred asked her, eyes focused solely on hers, a confident smile on his face.
Angelina blinked in shock, then paused to consider it. Winona knew she'd say yes, but was taking her time to seem cool about the whole thing. "All right, then," she finally said, and she turned back to Alicia, cheeks just a little bit darker with her flush.
The whole common room went up in childish giggles at the display, and George turned back to Winona with wide eyes. "That's going to get scary, you know?" he told her wryly, referring to her startling foreknowledge, but she just smiled back at him innocently.
"Come on, George," she said, folding her hands together in front of her face. "Please will you go with me to the stupid ball?"
George rolled his eyes. "Yeah, all right," he said with a huff, the hesitation in his eyes giving way to a strange sort of determination, the meaning of which Winona wasn't sure of. "It'll be a laugh. You were serious about spiking the punch, right?"
"You bet your arse I was, Weasley."
And Winona found it was a lot easier to go about her day to day life now that she had a date. However, the amount of times that she had to say 'yes, George Weasley, but just as mates' was beginning to take a toll.
The end of the term came suddenly, but when it did it was a relief. Winona spent her days lounging around with her friends and ignoring the way Fred and Angelina were sat wrapped together more often than not, like any other sickening couple in love.
Winona wanted to gag at the sight of them, but settled for keeping engaged at all times with the others, talking about the ball and the rest of the remaining tasks.
Christmas Day dawned before she knew what had hit her, and Winona woke up to the sound of Angelina murmuring to Hope, and the crunch of wrapping paper as it was pulled from a present.
"Merry Christmas!" exclaimed Alicia when she noticed her awake. Winona responded in kind, moving over to the bathroom to brush her teeth before anything else. "I absolutely adore the bag you guys gave me, by the way!" Alicia continued, following Winona into the bathroom and hovering in the doorway.
"You know I didn't choose it," Winona said around a mouthful of toothpaste. "But I'm glad you like it anyway."
"I'm going to use it for my books in the new term," she nodded happily. "Now hurry up and open your presents," she urged Winona from the room once she'd finished rinsing out her mouth. "I wanna see if you like what we got you."
Every year the four friends always put in for one big present from the others, meaning they could get something nice from all of them, without having to worry about something small that they wouldn't like. It worked out nicely for Winona, who was terrible at choosing gifts, and always had been.
She sat down on her bed, wrapping her quilt around her shoulders for extra warmth as she dug into her humble pile of presents.
As instructed, she went for the one in grey paper from the other girls. It was rather large and shaped like a standard box. Really, it could have been anything. Pulling it open, Winona was surprised to find it was a shoebox, and she hesitantly lifted the lid.
Inside was a pair of simple – but gorgeous – black high heels. Winona tentatively pulled one from the box, holding it up to find they were made from a durable suede material.
"Wow," she murmured, stunned. They looked expensive, but then again, Alicia was notoriously good at finding all the best sales.
"Do you like them?" Angelina asked hopefully, sitting down on the edge of Winona's bed.
"We wanted to go for something simple, because we know you don't like to make a fuss – but we chose ones with a platform to give you the extra height. These are gonna make your legs look fantastic," Alicia assured her.
"Guys, they're gorgeous," Winona assured them, still eyeing them carefully. They looked delicate, while at the same time sturdy. "Thank you."
"You'll wear them tonight?" Angelina asked with a smile. "We went with black because we knew it would suit the burgundy of your dress."
"Yeah," she agreed with a matching grin. "I'll wear them." She paused in thought. "Although, I may need to practise walking in them first. They're awfully tall."
"They're from Madam Malkin's, silly," laughed Alicia from where she'd wandered back over to her own bed. "They've got a both a Cushioning Charm and a Balancing Charm on them. They'll still be a little uncomfortable, but it's way better than Muggle heels. And not even you will be able to fall over in them."
Winona rolled her eyes, leaning over to give Angelina a quick hug in thanks. "That perfume you guys chose is amazing, by the way," Angelina said as Winona pulled back, smiling at her widely. "I can't wait to see what Fred thinks," she added as she wandered happily over to her bed.
Biting her lip to keep it from pulling down in a grimace, Winona said nothing, gently putting the shoes back and opening the rest of her presents.
She got her usual sweater from Mrs Weasley, this year a deep blue with a quill stitched delicately onto the front. She smiled at the older woman's thoughtfulness and put it aside next to the assortment of cakes she'd sent as well.
Charlie had sent some beautiful purple dragon scales, along with a note telling her that they were rare, and could be used in many high-level potions, although they worked nicely as decoration. She agreed, and placed them gently in her bedside drawer.
Lee had sent a small assortment of sweets from Honeydukes, along with her beloved Sugar Quills, and she grinned, already sucking on one as she moved to the next in the pile.
Harry had bought her a set of expensive new watercolours, the kind he could have only ordered specially in the mail. She awed over them for a quite awhile before remembering that there was one more present at the end of her bed.
It was from the twins, and rather large for something from them. Opening it curiously, she was surprised to find a new bag sitting beneath the plain brown wrapping.
It was in much the same style as the bag she used now; a satchel with an overwhelming but necessary amount of pockets. Winona knew immediately that it was for her art supplies, because the one she had was years old, and beginning to wear thin. She took her time transferring all her art supplies from her old one to this new one, and ran her hands down the sturdy material of the front with a smile.
"Ready to come down to breakfast, Winnie?" Hope asked, and Winona realised she'd been so distracted in her new things that she'd not seen the others move to leave the room.
"Yeah, just give me a moment," she said, hurrying to yank on a pair of jeans and her brand new Weasley sweater before shoving her feet into her shoes and shouldering her bag. The girls then wandered down to the Great Hall for breakfast.
The boys were all already there, laughing uproariously over their plates of bacon and eggs. Angelina slipped into the spot beside Fred, and he greeted her with a nod. Winona plopped down next to George.
"This bag's a dream," she said in greeting, and he grinned at her brightly.
"Knew you'd like it," he told her happily. "But Freddie picked it out."
Fred was already looking at her, and she smiled at him widely from across the table. Ducking his head, he quickly engaged Lee into a conversation while Winona spoke to George about their custard cream sales and whether they were meeting demand.
The day passed in a casual, relaxed sort of fashion. They all went up to the common room, which was packed with students as it never before had been at Christmastime. While enjoying their gifts and their time to lounge about, nearly everyone was chattering excitedly about the ball that night.
Winona was curled on the floor beside George, experimenting with the new watercolours Harry had gotten her and halfheartedly engaging in the conversation of her friends around her. Lunch came quickly, and they all ate their fill before wandering out onto the grounds with Harry and the Weasleys for a snowball battle.
Both Alicia and Angelina didn't want to join them, stating that they wanted plenty of time to get ready and hurrying back up to the dorms.
Winona didn't mind, she found herself laughing so hard she felt sick as she hung low behind a tree with Ginny, Fred and Harry. Ron, George and Lee were all on the other side of the courtyard, snickering as they threw snowballs in their direction.
It was easy and fun, and she felt relaxed in a way she'd forgotten how to feel.
"We should ambush them," whispered Ginny. "Sneak up on them before they know what's hit them."
"Are you kidding? It's suicide," Harry replied, but there was a smile on his lips.
"Oh, grow a pair, Boy Wonder," Ginny replied through a laugh, and both Harry and Winona gaped at her in surprise. She only laughed, gathering up a giant snowball in her nimble hands before launching to her feet and sprinting across the battlefield. "For Hogwarts!" she cried dramatically, and Harry grinned, wide and amused, before throwing himself after her with a laugh.
Winona grinned as she heard Ron squawk from across the courtyard, and George and Lee both shouted something about a foul. She leant back against the tree they were using as cover. Her skin was pink and numb from the cold, but she didn't care, smiling to herself happily.
"Looking forward to tonight?" Fred asked from where he was crouched beside her. She glanced over at him, surprised to find he hadn't followed in his sister's footsteps – it certainly seemed like something he'd do – but she wasn't about to complain.
"I guess so," she replied, glancing over at him, taking in his red cheeks and pink nose, blue eyes seeming to sparkle in the sunlight reflecting off the pure white snow. "More excited to see the Weird Sisters live than anything else," she admitted with a smile.
"What made you decide to go with George?" he asked, and she looked back at him from where she'd been peeking around the tree.
"I just want to have a good time," she told him simply. "And I rarely have much fun with anyone other than with a Weasley twin, so it was really a no-brainer."
Fred smiled, but something about the expression was off. It was his eyes, she realised. They were sad.
"Fred?" she asked quietly, forgetting about the battle they were in the middle of, concern strong in her gut.
He looked back at her, frowning like he were struggling to find the words, but before he could say whatever he needed to, there was a shout from over by the archway. "Ginny! Winona! It's five o'clock!" Hermione called to them.
Confused, Winona popped her head out from behind the tree. "Practising for a job as a wristwatch, Hermione?" she called back.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "We need to go get ready!" she said, but it only served to make Winona more confused.
"Now?" she asked, incredulous. "We have hours!"
"Fine, but don't come crying to me when you're running late!" Hermione replied tartly.
Winona grumbled but reluctantly stood to her feet. Maybe Hermione had a point. She'd never gotten dressed up for a ball before, maybe it took longer than she thought? She ducked gracefully out of the way of an oncoming snowball, and George called out to her in a whine, "Hey, no fair! You can't use your inner eye in a snow battle!"
Winona didn't bother replying, lifting her hand in a wave. "I'll see you guys tonight," she told them quickly, collecting her bag from where it lay under the shelter of a bench. Ginny and Hermione were waiting in the archway, and Winona hurried to meet them.
"Hermione, who're you going with?" Ron yelled after his friend, but she ignored him with a distant wave and led the way back up to the dorms.
As they climbed through the portrait hole, Winona noticed that Ginny looked awfully reluctant to begin getting ready. She picked up on why rather quickly. "You wanna come get ready with us, Ginger?" she asked the third year kindly.
"You don't have to offer…" Ginny said politely.
"I know," Winona replied. "But you're the only one from your dorm going tonight, right?" she asked. "Wouldn't you rather get ready with people who are?"
Ginny smiled, relieved. "Thanks, Winnie," she said gladly.
"Go get your things and meet me in my dorm," she replied, turning to Hermione as they paused at the fourth year girls' room. "You wanna join us, 'Mione?" she offered.
"It's okay," Hermione replied. "Lavender already promised to let me borrow her things to get ready."
"Okay, well, I'll see you later," Winona said, waving at her as she moved further down the hall, slipping into her own room only to freeze in the doorway.
It was rather like some kind of glamour bomb had gone off in their dorm. Clothes and make up brushes and shoes and lingerie were strewn across the room, coating every surface. Angelina was using her wand to try and straighten her hair, and Alicia was beside Hope on her bed, and they were painting one another's nails.
"Took you long enough," Angelina tutted as Winona stepped fully into the room. "At this rate, you'll only be late."
Winona rolled her eyes. "I'm gonna go take a shower," she said, moving over to the bathroom – which, in all honesty, looked just as messy as the dorm – and sealed herself inside.
The spray was heavenly, and Winona took her sweet time washing her hair with her favourite lavender shampoo, scrubbing her skin with a loofa to try and get the charcoal stains off, and then painstakingly shaved, making sure every last bit of unwanted hair was gone.
She changed into a robe, then wandered out into the dorm again to see Angelina standing in the mirror, still toying with her hair to make it perfect. Ginny had joined them, perched on Winona's bed as she ran a brush through her fiery hair. Alicia and Hope were done with their nails, but when Alicia saw Winona reappear, she waved her over.
"You've got to do your nails too," she said eagerly.
"Uh, I've never painted my nails before," Winona admitted.
"I'll do it for you," Alicia offered immediately, giving her friend a sunny smile. "Black, to match your shoes?" she said, and Winona nodded her head, sitting down on the bed and holding out her hands, letting Alicia do as she wished.
The girls chattered easily about the coming night. They spoke about how handsome their dates were going to look, and whether they'd be any good at dancing. Winona and Ginny were most excited about the Weird Sisters' performance, but the other girls didn't seem to care as much.
Once Alicia was done with her nails, Winona let Hope do her makeup. She wasn't sure what any of it was meant to do, and simply kept her eyes shut, allowing Hope to do as she wished. When she was told to look, Winona glanced in the mirror to see her cheeks holding a soft blush, her lips a deep, enticing red, and her eyes framed with charcoal-like shadow.
"It's called smokey-eye," Hope informed her.
"It's great," Winona replied honestly. Hope smiled wide, moving over to help Ginny with her makeup too.
"All right, Winnie," said Angelina bracingly, waving her over to the chair in front of the mirror, "time for your hair."
"You guys know I can get ready by myself, you know?" Winona asked dryly.
Her friends all exchanged a long look. "Winnie, your idea of dressing up is a messy bun and a sweater without any holes," said Alicia, gentle but stern all the same.
"So?" she asked, frowning.
"So, this calls for something just a little more special," Angelina said, patient and soft. Sighing, Winona had to admit they had a point. She could barely draw on eyeliner, let alone get ready for a ball. Ginny was grinning from over beside Alicia, who was now painting her nails, too.
Angelina toyed with her hair for awhile, then began to curl it up with rollers. Winona knew they were to make her hair curly, and she stayed still while Angelina muttered some gentle, unfamiliar heating spells on her hair before slowly unrolling the hair.
It was a rather simple process, but Winona was surprised by how effective it was. Her hair now had a buoyancy to it that it hadn't before. Her mess of white-blonde tresses now fell around her face in soft, beachy curls.
"You like it?" Angelina asked hopefully.
"Yeah," Winona assured her. "It's gorgeous, Ange. Thanks."
Angelina smiled, patting her gently on the shoulder before wandering over to Ginny, chatting excitedly about something or other. With a glance at the clock, Winona saw it was steadily approaching seven-thirty. Alicia, Hope and Ginny were already in their dresses, each looking just as beautiful as the last.
With a small sigh, Winona wandered over to where her gown for the evening was hanging by the bathroom door.
She slowly pulled it on, careful with the fabric. It didn't look too delicate, but she'd never worn anything so beautiful before, and she didn't want to risk breaking or tearing it.
"Wow, Winnie," breathed Alicia once she'd turned around to face them. "You look stunning."
Winona only smiled in thanks, sitting down on her bed beside a nervous-looking Ginny and slowly pulled on her mum's ring, twisting it around her finger and smiling at it gently before standing on bare feet and padding over to the full-length mirror in the corner.
Her dress was the deepest burgundy, tight at the waist and bust, rather as she imagined a corset might be. Her cleavage was on tasteful display, and her shoulders and arms free of sleeves. The dress then swept into long, willowy skirts of a slightly lighter shade. It played beautifully against the smokey quality of her makeup, and her bright blonde hair seemed to glisten in the lights, creating a sort of halo around her head.
She'd never before looked so pretty, she realised with a silent sigh, running her hands gently down the front of her dress.
"Guys, it's nearly eight," said Angelina, who was now dressed in her gown too. It was tight down her entire body, hugging her generous curves and made from a deep purple, velvety material. "We should get going," she told them, unmistakeable excitement to her voice.
The others stood to their feet, all making eagerly for the door. Winona knew she was forgetting something, and it took her a moment to realise it was her shoes.
"You guys go, I'll catch up," she told them, and they didn't argue, laughing excitedly amongst themselves as they slipped from the room, Ginny close behind.
Winona was glad for the few minutes alone to gather herself. She sat on her bed, slowly pulling on the gorgeous, towering heels she'd gotten that morning. They were much more comfortable to wear than she'd expected, which she supposed was thanks to the Cushioning Charm they had cast on them.
She glanced down at her bag, the one she was never, ever without, and realised for the first time with a sinking feeling that she couldn't bring it.
What would happen if she had a vision? She'd never gone anywhere without it before … but at the same time, there was a small note of relief to her when she thought about spending the night without it. She wasn't going to be the 'Seer' tonight. She was just going to be a girl having fun with her friends in a beautiful dress.
Winona glanced to the doorway, feeling strangely like the moment she stepped through it, something was going to change. She couldn't put into words exactly what it was, but it was there all the same, strong and hot in her gut.
She squared her shoulders and moved through it, closing the door gently after her. It shut with a low click, and she turned, heading down the hall towards the stairs.
The shoes may have had a Balancing Charm on them, but there was still the risk that she might trip on her skirts on the way down, so she lifted them up and kept her eyes on her feet as she slowly wandered down the stairs to the common room.
The room was full of a low, excited buzz of chatter, and as she reached the flat ground there was a loud, appreciative whistle that stood out from the hum of noise. Winona looked up to see George grinning at her cheekily, his arm held out for her to take.
"Hey, Georgie," she greeted him with a smile, taking his arm.
"We should go now, before my date shows up and sees us together," he joked. "Maybe you've heard of her? Winona Andrews?"
Winona rolled her eyes so hard it nearly gave her a headache. She reached up to slap him gently upside the head, a move more affectionate than reprimanding. "Where're the others?" she asked instead of playing into his cheesy lines.
"They were eager to get down to the Great Hall, so they already left," he told her with a shrug.
"Thanks for waiting," she said, leaning into him in a quick hug.
"As if I'd let someone as beautiful as you walk down on her own," he replied with a large shit-eating grin on his lips.
"Enough with the compliments," she said with a nudge at his side, an exasperated smile on her face. "It might go to my head."
"Wait till Freddie sees you," he added, somewhat offhanded and casual, but it made Winona's pulse speed up and her mouth go dry. She covered it with a fleeting smile, reaching out to tug at the collar of his dress robes.
"You look handsome in these," she told him. "Who knew a Weasley twin could scrub up so nice?"
"Not me, that's for sure," he joked, and they giggled together as he led her out into the hall. They made their way down to the Great Hall slowly, unconcerned with being late. They chatted quietly about nothing in particular, just enjoying one another's company as they strolled through the empty halls of the castle.
It was comfortable and easy, and she wished it could last. A whole evening of that, strolling with her friend and laughing at the suits of armour they passed, all of them singing awkward, incomplete Christmas carols.
The entrance hall was flooded with people, and as they made it to the grand staircase, George grinned widely before leaping onto the bannister and sliding down it with a shout of playful glee.
When he reached the bottom, McGonagall was already there to hiss at him in sharp reprimand. Winona grinned widely as she gripped her extravagant skirts in one hand, walking cautiously down the stairs. She felt eyes on her, but that wasn't unusual. Ever since Skeeter's article had come out, stares had been following her everywhere she went.
So she didn't look up until she was at the bottom, finally lifting her head with that hint of an amused smile still playing at her carefully painted lips from George's antics, to see it wasn't the room as a whole looking at her, but rather just one person in particular.
Fred stood across the room in a small group comprised of Angelina, Lee and his Hufflepuff date, and Alicia and her Ravenclaw date. Angelina was talking, saying something that was making the others laugh, but Fred wasn't paying her so much as a lick of attention. Instead he was focused solely and completely on Winona.
Her heart began to race, and her mouth went dry. She swallowed around the lump in her throat, meeting his gaze across the room. His eyes seemed luminescent in the lights of the hall, and there was such indescribable emotion within them that Winona felt her cheeks warm, no doubt adding to the blush on her face.
He was looking at her like she wasn't sure he ever had, and it made her feel hot and cold all at once. He was staring at her with absolute focus, and she could practically feel him thinking from all the way at the opposite end of the room.
He looked especially handsome in his dress robes, a bowtie sitting at his throat that shouldn't have been so tempting, but totally was. His hair, although long and shaggy, seemed to flicker like fire in the fairy lights above.
As she stared at him, she noticed his eyes roaming her body, taking in the magnificence of her dress and the way her blonde hair hung, curled and springy, around her face. He met her eyes again, and there was no smile on his face, only a deep sort of sadness that confused her. What did he have to be sad about?
Winona watched as Angelina said something to him, but he didn't appear to hear it, too caught up in staring across the room at her. She grew impossibly warmer.
"Miss Andrews," came McGonagall's voice, cutting across the tornado of thoughts and doubts and hopes and wishes wreaking havoc in her head. She flinched, swinging around to stare guiltily at her Head of House, as though having been caught doing something she shouldn't. "I trust you'll keep your date for the evening under control?"
"Yes, Professor," Winona quickly agreed, trying not to grin at the twinkle in George's eyes. "No more sliding down bannisters for you, Mr Weasley," she added to George in a spot-on impression of McGonagall that the witch herself certainly did not appreciate.
"At least try not to embarrass me tonight, you two," McGonagall sighed, her crisp Scottish accent lilting, and Winona gave her a lazy salute that made her professor grimace. "Finnigan! What are you doing with that?!" she snapped suddenly, scurrying away to put out yet another fire for the evening.
"Shall we go inside?" George asked Winona, holding out an arm.
"Lead the way, good sir," she said, taking his arm and letting him guide the way into the Great Hall. It was absolutely breathtaking, decorated to perfection. The walls had all been covered in glittering silver frost, and hundreds of garlands of mistletoe and ivy were crossing the starry black ceiling, like. The whole hall smelt of cinnamon and fresh spices. The House tables had vanished, replaced by roughly a hundred smaller, lantern-lit ones, each seating about a dozen people.
George spotted Alicia, Fred, Angelina and Lee sitting at one table at the far right, and guided Winona towards them. George pulled out the chair beside Fred for Winona to take, and although she frowned at the strange move, she didn't argue, sitting down and making sure her skirts were centred before pulling her chair in further.
George took the seat on her left, and as he sat down immediately roped Lee and his date into a lively discussion about Quidditch.
Winona didn't join in to the conversation. She felt suddenly voiceless and awkward, like her every nerve was focused with laser-like precision on where Fred was sat beside her.
He wasn't looking at her, but rather at Alicia across the table, who was saying something about hoping they had a vegetarian option for the feast. But she couldn't help but feel like his attention wasn't on the conversation. His back was straight, shoulders tense, and she wondered whether he felt the same prickling at his skin with her close proximity as she did. She focused on breathing steadily, pretending to nod along to whatever Lee was talking about now, and she was beyond relieved when the feast began.
She scanned the options on her menu, deciding on the lamb and stating it aloud, watching as it materialised on her plate.
She allowed herself to get caught up in the conversation throughout dinner, focusing as best she could on what everyone was saying. It was easier now, the Great Hall buzzing with excitement and activity as everyone chattered and ate, and she even managed to nearly completely forget Fred or that lingering tension were even there.
He didn't seem to be talking much, which certainly helped things along. He ate his food and responded to whatever Angelina was telling him, saying all the right things at all the right times. Winona couldn't help but privately think that it sounded awfully rehearsed, like he were on autopilot, answering with as little engagement as possible.
Soon enough dinner was over, the tables were cleared and a small stage had been erected at the other end of the large, open space. Winona gasped as the Weird Sisters themselves trudged onto the stage, hairy as could be, wearing artfully ripped robes and gripping their instruments confidently.
"It's them," she hissed, slapping George repeatedly on the arm in her excitement.
"Geez, Win," George laughed. "Take a breath."
"It's the Weird Sisters," she reminded him, just in case he'd somehow forgotten. She was practically bouncing on her toes as they began to play.
"Oh, watch out," George whispered. "Harry's dancing."
"Harry's dancing?" she parroted in surprise. Glancing over to the dance floor, she found Harry dancing awkwardly with Parvati Patil, stare vacant and unfocused. Winona reached up to cover her mouth to stifle a laugh. Harry looked like he'd have rathered face the dragon again than be dancing in front of everyone like that.
Slowly people began to enter the dance floor after the champions, moving with their partners and beginning to dance along to the slow song the Weird Sisters were playing.
"Shall we?" George asked her, giving a playful bow and sweeping his hand in the direction of the dancing crowd.
"We shall," she agreed, taking his hand and letting him pull her into the throng. He settled one hand on her waist, and took the other in his, gripping tightly and slowly beginning to dance. It was comfortable, dancing with George, easy in a familiar way. He gave her a spin every few steps, and she laughed as he dipped her low to the floor.
"All right, Casanova," she snorted. "Stop showing off."
"What was that?" he asked loudly, as though he were hard of hearing. "Keep showing off?"
Winona laughed again, kicking him playfully in the shin. The slow song faded into nothing, and everyone stopped dancing, watching as the musicians on stage rearranged themselves to begin another song.
This one was faster, and almost immediately George had scooped her up, spinning her in so many circles that she began to feel dizzy. "George!" she shrieked, and he let her go to instead spin circles around her, doing some kind of lively jig that made her giggle.
They danced for ages, twirling around one another, giggling up a storm. Eventually Katie wandered over, looking a little red in the eyes.
"You all right, Katie?" Winona asked in concern as she and George moved away from the dance floor, leading Katie over to an unoccupied corner.
"Ugh, just my date being an absolute troll," she bit out. "I don't want to talk about it."
George was frowning in concern, and he reached out to brush a hand down their friend's back. Winona took note of the tender worry in his eyes and quickly made plans to give them some space.
"I'm gonna go get a drink," she announced. "Either of you want anything?"
"I'm fine," Katie told her, glancing up at George with a small smile.
"Yeah, we're good, Win," he agreed as he took a seat on a bench off to the side.
Katie sat down after him, and Winona smiled as she wandered away, heading for the bar that had been set up at the back of the Hall. It was manned by a tall wizard with a goatee, and Winona leant against it, smiling at him politely. "One butterbeer, please?" she asked over the song the Weird Sisters were playing now, something she didn't know, loud and bombastic that the crowd seemed to love.
The wizard popped the top off the butterbeer bottle and handed it over. Winona took it with a smile.
"One for me, as well, good sir," came another voice, and she spun around to see Fred smiling down at her. The wizard behind the bar rolled his eyes at Fred's cheesy words, but handed over another bottle.
"Hey, Fred," she greeted him, trying to act casual, leaning her hip against the bar and smiling at him sweetly. "Are you having a good time?"
He hesitated to answer, and she wondered why. "It's been all right," he eventually said, lifting a shoulder in a shrug, picking idly at the label of his butterbeer. There was an uncomfortable look in his eyes, and she frowned in concern.
"Where's Ange?" she asked, glancing over his shoulder like Angelina might materialise from thin air.
"Bathroom," Fred replied, glancing away and anxiously tapping his finger against the glass of his bottle along to the beat of the song playing.
Winona reached out, placing her hand over the top of his to stop his fidgeting. "You okay?" she asked him gently, and he looked away from the crowd to meet her eyes.
"Dance with me," he said, sudden and unexpected.
She blinked in surprise. He was staring back at her, imploring and sincere. "Okay," she heard herself agree, as if powerless to say no. He took her drink from her hand, placing it beside his on the bar before reaching down and gripping her hand. His skin was warm and calloused and she felt herself flush as he intertwined their fingers, tugging her towards the crowd.
The were just at the edge of the dance floor when the song faded away. The pair stood for a moment in silence, waiting for the music to start up again, but instead the lead singer's voice spoke out over the crowd.
"Now, this one's for all the lovers out there. So grab ahold of that someone special and don't let go until they know you're theirs," he said, cheesy as could be, but Winona still felt her pulse spike.
The music started up, something slow and a little bit haunting; it was as romantic as it was sad.
"Maybe we should wait–" she tried to say, suddenly feeling like it were all too intimate for her, like it were all too real.
"Don't," was all Fred said, gripping her hand and stubbornly refusing to let go. It wasn't an order, but rather a plea. Turning back around to look at him, Winona watched as he moved slowly, reaching for her waist but giving her plenty of time to pull away. She didn't so much as move a muscle.
Fred's fingers found the seam where her bodice met her skirt, and his large hand splayed against her spine, pulling her closer into him.
It suddenly felt like all the air had been sucked from the room. She felt a hot flush come over her, and she could hear her heart racing in her ears as she reached up automatically, threading her arms around his strong, broad shoulders.
In her heels, they were almost the same height, she realised with a start. She didn't have to tilt her head back to look into his eyes. It was as nice as it was dangerous, and Winona swallowed thickly, looking away.
He seemed to notice the same. "You're taller."
"Heels," she explained, her voice soft. She was just glad it didn't tremble with nerves. She felt unsettled, scared and thrilled in the strangest way. Nothing had happened between them, and it was only Fred … so then why was her heart fluttering and her skin prickling? Why was her body so hyper-aware that he was so close, his cool breath brushing her warm skin? She needed to speak, to say something before it got to be too much. "I like this song," she whispered, chancing a glance up into his eyes.
"It's a good one," he agreed, sounding a little throaty himself.
They lapsed back into silence which, while tight with tension, wasn't uncomfortable. The music swelled and they drifted closer to one another as if made of magnets. Without anywhere else to angle her head, Winona pressed it gently to his shoulder and subtly breathed in the familiar scent of gunpowder and fresh soil.
Both his hands pressed against her waist, large and capable, and she inhaled at the pressure of him gripping her, like he wanted never to let go. Her heart was beating so loud she was sure he could hear it, and she shut her eyes, sealing out the world around them, focusing on the feel of him against her.
It was peaceful and warm, swaying gently in Fred's embrace. She couldn't remember a time she'd ever felt safer than right at that moment, in his arms.
The song drew to a close and Winona was surprised by the reluctance she felt to have to leave her dance with Fred. Slowly they drew apart, and she glanced up at him from under her lashes to find him smiling at her, soft and happy, so different to his typical gleeful, mischievous grins.
She felt like he could see into her soul in that moment. Like he could see and understand with perfect clarity exactly what she was; and that he loved what he saw. She felt both vulnerable and safe under his familiar, warm blue stare.
She couldn't have possibly guessed what was going through his head in that moment, but he seemed to be warring with himself, or perhaps trying to find words to say. She felt an energy, hot and intense, crackle between them, the likes of which she'd ever before experienced – not even with Jeremiah.
Fred seemed to finally pick something to say, and he parted his lips, taking a breath to speak, and she felt like everything she was hinged on whatever he would say. But before he could get so much as a word out, a voice cut across the pair, sharp and unhappy.
"Fred," said Angelina, her voice hard enough to cut diamonds.
Winona leapt away from Fred as though she'd just been caught committing a crime. Cheeks hot with something that wasn't quite shame, but certainly came close, she shot her two friends a weak smile. "I'm gonna go check on George," she said, praying to Merlin himself that her voice sounded more steady to her ears than it did to theirs.
Without looking at either Fred or Angelina, Winona spun on her heel and made a beeline over to the corner of the room where George remained, still talking with Katie, who looked a whole lot more cheerful than she had earlier.
"Sorry to interrupt," Winona said insincerely as she leant down between them, grasping the front of George's dress robes in her hand and yanking him unceremoniously to his feet. He gave a yelp, helpless to do anything but follow. "I need to speak with you," she snapped at her best friend urgently.
"I'll be back soon – save me a dance?" George asked Katie with a wide, confident smirk.
Katie rolled her eyes but still nodded her head, a smile on her pink lips. Winona barely waited for the exchange to be over, forcefully yanking him in the opposite direction.
George stumbled as he was dragged across the room towards the entrance entrance hall, but Winona barely noticed, laser-like focus on her objective. "Winnie," George finally said as they pulled to a stop at the foot of the main staircase, voice laced with exasperation and just a hint of concern. "What's the matter?"
Most everyone was still in the Great Hall, enjoying the music and drinks, which worked out nicely, because the last thing Winona needed was anyone else nosing around while she and George had this conversation.
"Win, you look like you've seen a ghost or something," George said, eyeing her carefully, taking in her wide, confused eyes and the way her hair was beginning to frizz a little with stress. "Last I saw you, you were dancing with Fred, and you looked fine – better than fine, even," he added with a playful and suggestive wag of his eyebrows.
Winona didn't quite know where to begin, but she knew she had to unload onto someone, otherwise her head just might explode under the weight of it all. She could have gone to Harry, but she was sure the last thing he wanted was his older cousin coming to him with something so touchy-feely and awkward. Besides, the poor kid had enough on his plate, like trying to get through this tournament in one piece.
"I'm confused," she began stiltedly, the words drenched with indecision and hesitance.
"You're usually confused, Win," George replied teasingly. "You'll have to be slightly more specific."
"If you can't be serious for the next five minutes, I'll permanently curse your bollocks to your forehead," she threatened him point-blank. George blinked in surprise at the severity with which she spoke, a deep kind of panic in her expressive grey eyes.
"All right," he said, smirk dropping from his face, replaced by something much more subdued and appropriate. "What's wrong?"
Winona couldn't possibly sit still, her body just wouldn't allow it. She began to pace the stone floor of the entrance hall, going back and forth between the two pillars that stood on either side of the grand staircase.
"So, I'm confused about something … something in particular. It's been driving me a little crazy – doing my head in, actually," she muttered, only just loud enough for George to hear. She didn't immediately elaborate, and George cocked an eyebrow at her in a question she couldn't answer.
"You know that for me to help, you'll have to actually tell me what the problem is, right?"
"Don't get clever," she replied in a snap. George just shot her his most exasperated expression and Winona forced herself to take a deep, sighing breath. She wondered how she could possibly phrase this so she didn't sound like a complete and utter idiot. "Things have been changing, lately," she began again, heart thundering like the hooves of a horse were beating at her chest, "between me and … me and …"
She couldn't seem to get the name out. It felt like saying it would make it all awfully, horribly, terrifyingly real.
"Between you and Fred," George finished in knowing voice. Winona snapped around to eye him suspiciously, as though he might have performed Legilimency on her to see the answer inside her head. George seemed to sense her thoughts, and he rolled her eyes as though she were being ridiculous. "Winona, just because you're thick as a brick when it comes to matters of the heart, doesn't mean the rest of us are," he said wryly.
Winona grimaced at the remark. "I need your help, not your carefully crafted insults," she said with a huff. His words sank in, and her expression narrowed into something of a panicked stare. "What d'you mean, 'matters of the heart'?"
George smiled, gentle but infuriatingly smug. She supposed it was too much to ask a Weasley twin to be serious longer than ten seconds. Winona ground her teeth together in frustration.
"I was wondering when you might catch on. Certainly took you longer than I'd thought. You're one stubborn bird, you know that?" he asked, torn between coy and amused.
"George, please don't speak in riddles. You know I haven't got the patience for it."
"Why don't you tell me, in your own words, what's happening on your end?" George asked with an air of patience, like they had all the time in the world.
"On my end?"
"Winona."
She huffed again, her palms sweaty and her insides quaking as she crossed her arms over the material of her gown, like it might protect her from any sort of emotional harm. She knew it was time to be honest, not just with George, but with herself, as well.
"I appear to maybe, sort of, perhaps be slightly … attracted to Fred," she confessed, suddenly feeling astonishingly like an exposed wire, sparking and dangerous and, in all seriousness, a potential a fire hazard.
She wasn't sure how she'd been expecting George to react, but she somehow knew that his unsurprised, indifferent expression hadn't been what she'd had in mind. "Since when?" he asked evenly.
Winona swallowed around the lump in her throat. "I don't know," she replied, and George shot her his most unimpressed stare at the non-answer. "It's true. I didn't just wake up one day and it was there," she said defensively. "It's more like something that's been building up for awhile now. It's something I've only just begun to even acknowledge, let alone accept."
By now all traces of teasing were gone from his eyes, replaced by a thoughtful, considering sort of a gleam. It was the same look the twins got in the early planning stages of a massive prank, she realised, but rather than make her uneasy, the comparison was a strangely comforting one.
"So what're you gonna do about it?" George asked her, the words a challenge she hardly felt ready accept.
She let out a loud, borderline derisive scoff. "Are you kidding?" she countered dubiously. "It's Fred," she reminded him tartly, as though it were all the answer he needed. It wasn't, and they both knew it, but Winona didn't move to elaborate. "Besides … he has Ange," she added with a wave of her hand, as though batting the very suggestion away.
"And you have Nott," finished George with a hard set of his mouth.
"No," she said immediately, the words defensive but nonetheless true. "I don't have Nott. We're not a couple – we never were. Besides, he only tolerated me because I was so good at–"
"For the love of all that is sacred, do not finish that sentence!" George exclaimed, hands shooting to cover his ears in a panic.
Winona rolled her eyes. "I was going to say snogging," she informed him wryly, but was unable to help but give just a tiny, vindictive kind of a smirk. "But yeah, that too."
George recoiled like she'd hit him with a hex, disgust spread clear across his face. "You know you're my best mate, right?" he asked her, voice still laced with revolt. "You're practically family."
"Don't you see, that's part of it!" she jumped on his words. "I might as well be Fred's sister," she hissed, sliding back into the argument with fervour.
George suddenly looked incredibly condescending. "Win, I know you're not exactly the most emotionally available person, and that your awareness of the world around you is tenuous at best," he told her, deadpan and sly, and she scowled at him for the dig, "but surely it's not escaped your notice that Fred hardly thinks of you as a sister."
Winona just frowned in bewilderment, and George sighed as though this were all terribly taxing.
"Look, I promised Fred a long time ago that I wouldn't betray his trust on the matter," he began bracingly, as though working himself up to something. "But this is getting ridiculous."
He turned to face Winona properly, gripping her shoulders tightly and forcing her to look him directly in the eye, speaking slowly and deliberately, making sure that there was no chance of miscommunication.
"Winona, Fred fancies you."
The words didn't quite seem to compute.
She'd known, on some level, that the attraction she shared with Fred wasn't totally one-sided. That kind of electricity couldn't possibly be something only she felt, and sometimes the way he looked at her…
It was enough to set her bones themselves on fire.
But that he fancied her? Really, properly fancied her? That was a little much to take in.
"You mean he thinks I'm fit?" she asked, still struggling to understand.
George looked about ready to smash his head against the marble of the stairs in exasperation. "Believe it or not, Winona, not everything's about sex," he told her with another huff. Her cheeks grew warm at the implication, but even she had to admit it was warranted.
"But he's dating Ange," she said, still scrambling to wrap her head around this mind-blowing fact.
George grimaced, letting go of his friends shoulders and seeming reluctant to answer. "It's not his brightest move, I'll give you that," he began steadily, still cringing like something about his brother's actions was cringe-worthy. "Ange is great, and he likes her, but…"
Winona said nothing, waiting impatiently for him to finish.
"I think he thinks that if he dates Ange long enough, maybe he'll stop having feelings for you," George admitted with yet another wince.
Winona swallowed. "Is it working?"
"No," George told her point-blank. He cast a glance to the doorway to the Great Hall, from which the sounds of music and youthful levity was still floating. "In fact," he said grimly, "I think it might only be getting worse." He stopped suddenly, looking back over at her with fiery curiosity in his eyes. "Why?" he asked keenly. "Do you want it to be working?"
Winona suddenly felt very tired. Her legs threatened to give out, so she dropped down with a grunt, landing on the second step from the bottom, the soft tresses of her burgundy skirts settling around her legs, the tips of her platformed heels poking out just slightly from under the hem.
George took a seat on the step beside her, his dress robes crinkling, but he wasn't one to care any more than she was.
"I don't know," she finally answered him in a whisper, running her fingers through the material of her skirts, her mind a flurry of contrasting thoughts. Hope and panic and fear and relief and dread were all warring for pride of place in her head, and on her face.
"You fancy him back," said George, the furthest thing from a question.
"I don't know," she said again.
"Yes, you do."
And yes, she did. But it was Fred. There was so much to weigh – did she want to start something with her best friend in the whole world, risking the bond and relationship they had in the first place? Was whatever they had just the slightest chance of potentially becoming … would that be worth it? Did she even want something serious with anyone, let alone him?
It felt rather like she were standing on the edge of a cliff, trying to decide whether to dive into the turbulent waters below.
"Why has he never said anything?" she asked, frown pinching at her brow.
"For the exact same reasons as you, I s'pose," George replied, and she slumped further against the stairs, glancing up at the ceiling, her mind racing at a million miles an hour.
Winona swallowed around the dryness of her mouth. "Well, what happens now?" she asked him quietly, desperate for some direction.
"Oh no no no," said George around a slightly hysterical laugh. "I'm not getting any more involved in this than I already am. This is between you and Fred – I'm going to end up as a third wheel in the future enough as it is."
"You say that like we're inevitable."
George smiled. "I guess, in some ways, I've always known you would be."
Winona looked away from the holly-decorated ceiling and over at George, a frown pulling at her brows. Her heart was still racing. It felt like it had been all night. When would it stop? "How?" she asked him quietly, almost afraid of the answer.
Were there signs she'd missed? Occurrences she'd overlooked? Things said that she'd brushed off as nothing? It certainly felt like she'd analysed every aspect of the last five and a half years, going over every interaction she and Fred had ever had.
"A brother's instinct, I s'pose," George replied with just a hint of cheek, not seeming to sense the spiral of deafening doubt roaring in her head. She attempted a smile to keep it that way, but it fell flat. George suddenly grew serious, and she shifted warily, watching as he looked back at her intently. "But I think you need to do something," he admitted quietly. "Things can't go on the way they have been."
"Why not?" she asked, clinging to the hope that maybe, just maybe, they could, and nothing ever had to change.
"Because it's like a cord," he told her, the analogy honest and sincere as he met her stormy grey eyes. "And the tension is pulling it tighter and tighter. Sooner or later, Win, it's going to snap."
Winona knew with a horrible, sinking feeling that he was, unfortunately, right. "That was strangely poetic for you," she replied, but her voice lacked its usual teasing note, filled instead with weak exhaustion.
"I can be poetic," he argued, the usual glint of levity reappearing in his eyes. Winona felt relief like a shot of morphine at the sight of the familiar twinkle.
She smiled tiredly, beginning to lose her ability to engage. All she wanted now was to burrow under her covers and fall asleep, so that the world and her silly problems might disappear for just awhile.
"Are you okay?" George asked gently, and Winona realised she'd been staring absently into thin air, her mind in a million places at once, none of them being in that entrance hall with him.
"Yeah," she said, a blatant lie. "I think I'm gonna go to bed."
George's expression twisted in something like dismay. "At least stay until midnight," he encouraged her hopefully. "The Weird Sisters haven't even finished their set yet."
But the last thing Winona wanted was to walk back into that ball, where Angelina and Fred were no doubt still dancing along to the music the Weird Sisters were playing. She didn't want to have to meet Fred's eyes, now knowing what she knew, and pretend like everything was the same.
"Sorry, George," she said shooting him a smile that, while not insincere, also wasn't totally genuine. "I know I've been a lousy date."
George waved her words away. "Don't be stupid, Win," he scolded her gently. "You couldn't be a lousy date if you tried."
She leaned in, resting her head on his shoulder with a small sigh. George brought his arm around her, squeezing softly, providing a comfort that went beyond words.
"I'll see you in the morning?" she asked after a long few minutes of easy, comfortable quiet, the only noise the sounds of the ball – beginning to slowly wind down – that leaked through the doors leading to the Great Hall.
"More like afternoon," George laughed lightly, and this time when she smiled, it held a touch more warmth.
"Thanks, Georgie," she said, nudging him affectionately. George stood gracefully to his feet, holding out a hand to help her up after him. She stood, smiling once more before turning to escape up the staircase. "Oh, and George?" she called before leaving. Her best friend turned back to look at her, eyebrows raised expectantly. "Would it be pointless of me to ask you not to mention this to Fred?" she asked gingerly.
George smiled, unsurprised, like he'd been expecting the question. "As I said, Win," he told her steadily, "this is between you and him."
She hesitated another moment. "And if we don't progress at the speed you want?" she pressed, seeing through him like glass.
Now George's smile was really more of a sly, mischievous smirk. "Well, I may just have to prod at it a little," he said, impishness sparking in his eyes. "Y'know, just to keep things moving along."
Instead of the words scaring her, she felt a strange comfort. She trusted George with everything she had. He would never do anything that would hurt her, or his twin brother. He really did, in the most sincere way, have their best interests at heart.
"Thanks, George," she said again. He grinned, waving her gratitude away again and straightening his bowtie with a flourish. Winona turned and climbed the stairs, the smile melting from her face like ice left out in the sun. It was replaced with the strangest feeling of loneliness, and a deep, haunting confusion that she knew she was going to be carrying for quite awhile yet.
A/N: Hope you enjoyed: This week's spotlight review is xXThatRandomKidXx – I'm so glad you're enjoying the story. Thanks for your kind words about my writing, reviews like yours make me so happy! Hope you liked this one, and more of what's to come!