A/N I'm so sorry that it has been so long since I've updated! Let's just get on with it...
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Doctor Who, just the plot to this story.
Chapter 26: Merry Christmas
~ FRED ~
"Merry Christmas, everyone!" He could hear his mother yelling from downstairs. She was always the first one awake on holidays because she knew she had a lot to prepare for.
Fred, more awake than his twin, threw a pillow in his direction, causing him to throw one back. They were never really morning people, but early days at the shop had challenged them to become more adapted to the morning.
At the foot of the beds were their gifts from their mother. Every year when they woke up, a handmade sweater would be waiting for them at the foot of their bed. The identical boys opened the parchment surrounding the gift, threw on the new sweaters, and headed down to breakfast without bothering to fix their hair.
Sitting in the kitchen were their mother, father, Remus, and Amy, engaging in a silent conversation. When Fred saw her, he froze. Her back was to him, so she hadn't laid eyes on him yet; but he had the feeling that when she did, the result would be catastrophic.
George pushed past his brother a proceeded towards the table, causing the four to halt their conversation and begin talking to him. His mother went off to fetch him breakfast while his father read the paper. Fred could tell that Amy knew he was there. There was a change in the way she sat; she became more tense and only made slight glances towards George.
Fred knew how she found out was wrong, but it wasn't his fault that she was eavesdropping. He was going to tell her about him and Verity — he was — but he just couldn't find the right time. He didn't want to owl her, he wanted to tell her in person. But when he got to the Burrow, he overheard her telling his mother that she wanted nothing to do with him anymore.
What happened between him and Verity just… well, it just happened. He didn't mean for it to; he really didn't. It was only a few days after he had left Amy at the Hospital wing…
Fred was sitting in his office in the back of his shop when someone knocked on the door. He wasn't really taking visitors at the moment, so he casted a locking charm on the door and leaned back in his chair. All he could think about was Amy… and that it was all his fault.
If he had just let her explain herself, they would still be together; they would still be happy. But he had to go and leave her. He never even said goodbye.
There was another knock at the door and this time he yelled back, "Leave me alone, George!"
"It's not George, you git, would you just open up!" Fred sighed, wondering whether he should let her in or not. "I'm not getting any younger!"
Fred let out a loud breath and unlocked the door. Verity swung the door open and walked up to him. "What's the point of coming down here if you're not going to do any work?"
"Verity, I'm not in the mood right now. Please, just go back to work."
"I'm not going back to work until you agree to come with me." She moved towards him and leaned on the front of his desk. He responded by leaning back in his chair even more, taking a paper off the desk, and beginning to read it. She took the paper from his hand, slammed it on the table, and walked around to him.
"Fred, I'm not going to ask you again." She crossed her arms across her chest, forcing her cleavage to show a bit more than Fred was comfortable with. He cleared his throat and began to stand up, but she placed her hands on his shoulders to force him back into the chair.
"Unless..." She brushed her hand along his face as she proceeded to lower herself onto his lap. Her face was now dangerously close to his. "Unless you don't want me to leave..."
She pressed her mouth against his as they closed their eyes. He had never kissed anyone besides Amy before and it was… strange. Not a good type of strange, just… strange. Too strange.
But it was all he had to distract him from the pain he felt of Amy. So he let it happen. He didn't stop it when they stood up and pressed up against the wall. He didn't stop it when she casted silencing and locking charms around the room. He didn't even stop it when they began to remove their clothes.
He let it happen.
And he never felt more guilty in his life then when he woke up next to her, a few hours later, on his office floor.
They never officially started anything, but it was one of those unspoken things. So they never officially ended anything, either.
He had sex with Verity before he did with Amy… and that's why he didn't have the heart to tell Amy about what had happened…
He heard her chair pull out from the table and he watched her as she proceeded upstairs to change into her new sweater. Every year, his mother would make Amy a dark blue sweater with the letter 'A' on the front, but somehow, by the end of each Christmas Day, she would end up wearing Fred's green sweater (which was always too big on her). He guessed that this Christmas would be different.
And so, he sat down by George, Remus, and his parents at the table and scarfed down his breakfast. They were all soon joined by the rest of their siblings, Harry, and Fleur. They all engaged in a loud conversation about the holidays and what the plans were for the day.
Afterwards, everyone gathered outside for a Quidditch game: Bill, Ginny, and George versus Fred, Ron, and Harry. Their parents, Fleur, and Amy sat off to the side near the house (they had convinced Remus to referee).
After a few goals, Ginny decided to sit out, forcing Amy to take her spot in the game. Bill and George seemed happy to have gained such an amazing player on their team, earning a warning look from Ginny, but Fred was pretty much worried for his life. He knew how rough she could get while playing Quidditch, and he wasn't looking forward to the fact that they were on opposite teams.
When everyone went back inside the house early in the afternoon, Fred nonchalantly applied a packet of ice to his forehead from where Amy had 'accidentally' hit him with her broom. He tried to convince her that he was George during the game to get her attention and, well, the injury speaks for itself.
After the game, Amy had returned to her room and never came back down. Knowing she probably wouldn't let him in, he sent Ginny after her to check up on her.
Ginny returned with a sorrowful look on her face. "I'm sorry, Fred. She just doesn't want to talk to anyone right now."
"More like she doesn't want to talk to me," he mumbled. "Can you at least make sure she comes down for dinner? I need to talk to her before you all go back to Hogwarts."
Ginny revealed an evil grin upon her face. "Don't worry, she was already coming down for that." And she began to walk away, leaving Fred completely baffled.
The day went on as it normally would: his mother sang along to Celestina Warbeck, Ginny and Ron fought over who got the last mince pie, and George played Harry in a game of Exploding Snap. All the while, Fred still covered his forehead with the ice. Remus sat off to the side engaging in conversation with Bill and Fleur about the Order. Fred was the only one left in the living room by the fireplace when there was a sudden uproar of smoke and green flames. Emerging from the fire was someone that Fred never would have expected to ever set foot in the Weasley household: Draco Malfoy.
"Pond? Where are you?" Malfoy coughed in the smoke as he looked around the room, his eyes falling on Fred, a scowl upon his face. "Weasley? What the hell are you doing here?"
"I freaking live here, Malfoy! What in Merlin's name are you doing here?"
"Ah, look who finally showed up!" Ginny poked her head around a corner and joined them in the living room.
"I can't believe I'm saying this, but thank Salazar that Weaslette here. Your ginger prat of a brother doesn't seem to understand the concept of being invited over."
"Invited? Who the hell from my family would want to invite you over? After all the trouble you've caused us?"
"Draco? What are you doing here?"
"Pond!" Malfoy walked over to where Amy was now standing, at the bottom of the staircase. "Is everything alright? What was with the letter?"
"Letter? What lett—"
"Time for supper everyone! Come grab a seat!" Fred's mother bellowed from the kitchen.
"You two can catch up later, I think we should go sit down..." Ginny took Amy and Malfoy by the arms and dragged them from the living room. Fred followed closely behind them, wanting to see everyone's reactions to a Malfoy in their home.
When the four of them entered the room, all eyes were on them. The other eight were already sat at the table when they arrived; and as soon as they did, Harry, Ron, and George were the first ones to stand and draw their wands. Bill and Fleur looked confused, and Fred's parents and Remus stayed seated, though, with shocked looks upon their faces.
"Mr. Malfoy. May I ask what you are doing in my home?" Fred's father stood and approached the pale boy.
"Well, I…" He cleared his throat. "I was invited."
"Invited? By whom?" Mrs. Weasley asked.
"Um… Amy. She owled me." He pointed in her direction and everybody turned to her. Fred narrowed his eyes at them. She and Malfoy were now standing too close to each other for Fred's liking. Was something going on between them? Between her and Malfoy?
"I… I don't —" Amy was cut off by Ginny placing her arm around her.
"Yes, Amy invited him over. In case you all weren't aware, they are very close friends now. It was only right for her to invite her friend over for Christmas dinner. I mean, we do the same with Harry and Hermione every year."
Everyone was still a bit skeptical off him, though, as there was a long silence. His mother, though, was the one that broke it.
"Well, then! A friend off Amy's is always welcome here… Fred, honey, would you mind fetching a chair for our guest?"
"Yeah, I would actually." Fred mumbled on his way to grab a chair from the living room. When he returned, he placed it right next to where Amy was already seated, giving them both a scowl as he looked at them.
Malfoy sat and everyone began to dig in, it was Christmas after all. Fred kept his eyes on Malfoy and Amy all night. Everytime he looked in their direction, he saw that they were very close to each other and whispering. They seemed very comfortable with each other… but Amy wouldn't… or would she? Fred didn't know anymore. It was almost as if Amy was a completely different person with him.
After dinner, they moved into the living room for gift exchanging. He noticed almost right away that Amy and Malfoy had disappeared. Fred got up from his seat on the couch and went upstairs to see if he could listen in on their conversation.
He quietly walked through the halls, trying to avoid those creaky spots. He approached Amy's room and heard them talking…
"Draco, what the hell? Why did you tell everyone that I invited you over?"
"Because, Pond, that's what you call it when someone sends a letter over to your house asking you to come for dinner..."
There were a few moments of silence; Fred couldn't even risk trying to open the door. He was contemplating whether or not he should barge in and see what they were up to, but then they spoke again.
"This isn't my handwriting, this…" Amy grunted.
"What? What is it?"
"Don't even bother… anyway, as long as your here, did you want to stay until after dessert?" Fred could picture her blushing in his head. She really was dating Malfoy now, wasn't she?! Fred was completely enraged. He had never felt so irritated in his life. Amy was supposed to be with him, not because of fate or any of the crap that Ginny would tell them… but because he loved her. Fred knew that Malfoy could never love anyone, so why couldn't Amy understand that?
"I don't know, Pond. I think I have to get back to the Manor." The Manor… does she not realize that she was tortured there? That it was his family that held her there and kept her isolated from her friends? That is was the capturing in the first place that caused her to yell at me? But I've forgiven her now… why can't I just say it? Why did I have to say anything about Verity?
"Oh… alright then. I'll uh… I'll see you at the start of next term then."
"I'll see myself out then."
Fred ran to opposite end of the hall and stood in the bathroom doorway, allowing Malfoy to pass and descend the stairs. Fred took his chance at having Amy alone and entered her room, closing the door behind himself to let her know that he had entered. Her eyes shot up at him and she sighed, walking towards the door.
"Amy, can we please talk?" Fred stood in front of the door.
"Fred, if this is about Draco —"
"Draco? Of course this is about Draco! You think he can come over to my family's house and that everything is going to be okay?"
"Fred, please —"
"I can't believe that you and him are a thing now! How could you do that to yourself? To Harry? Ron? You all hate him —"
"Now you listen to me, Fredrick Weasley! There is nothing, and I mean nothing between me and Draco… we're just friends! If anything, Hermione's the one dating him, but that's a whole other story —"
"Hermione?!"
"Let me finish! Draco and I are definitely not together! And you're one to talk," she scoffed. "At least I didn't get with some slut the week we broke up!"
"Verity and I are not together!"
"What? What do you… what?"
"Something did happen between me and her, but we're not together."
"What do you mean "something happened?" What did you do?"
He moved towards Amy a little bit, trying to calm her down, but she just backed away. "I didn't do anything. She kissed me."
"But then… why did you tell Ginny —"
"You know how Ginny is… she won't give up on anything she sets her heart to."
Amy smiled a bit. "Trust me, I know. You know how earlier Draco said I sent him a letter telling him to come over? Well, he showed it to me… it was Ginny's handwriting..."
"So… you think..."
"She was trying to make you jealous?"
"Yeah, well… it definitely worked." They laughed together. He hadn't heard her laugh in a long time… too long.
"And, I guess… if we're admitting to being jealous..." Amy walked towards Fred and took his hands. She sighed. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you that night. I was just so overwhelmed by everything that happened, and I —" Fred decided that that was the perfect place to have her stop talking. He pressed his lips onto hers and let himself sink into them. Everything in that moment was okay. He was okay, now.
He had missed her so much.
A/N I love you all so much! Thank you for your reviews! If anyone, by the end of the story, still isn't sure of the full meaning of the Prophecy from chapter twenty-one - don't worry! At the end of the story, I will let everyone know what each line of the Prophecy meant for throughout the story!
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