"Because no matter what they say, you always have a choice. You just don't have the guts to make it." - Ray N. Kuilli, Awakening

Chapter Thirty-Four – The Turning Point

The rest of the week passed by rather quickly for Ankaa. She was glad she didn't have to see Umbridge in class again, at least until the following Tuesday. That being said, all her other classes had wasted no time in piling up the homework. McGonagall had everyone practicing Vanishing Spells, something that Ankaa had ample practice with, thank Merlin. But Snape's essays and Trelawney's dream journal were proving to be an absolute pain. All this coupled with her prefect rounds, and she was steadily falling behind on her schoolwork.

When the first weekend came, Ankaa was beyond overjoyed at the break she had. Ankaa figured now would be a great time to answer to the letters she had received earlier in the week. She wrote to Remus first, taking extra care to keep the letter as vague as possible. She told him about her almost breakdown with Umbridge's class, and the fact that the little toad was an absolute nightmare.

Moony,

It's not getting any better. I never expected it to, of course, but it's just a lot harder now. I'm surrounded by people who don't understand. My friends right now… they know what I've lost, but they could never understand the danger I'm in. I've got this sinking feeling again. What scares me most is that I'm not trying to do anything to change it. It's almost like I've accepted the fact that it's better if I don't feel anything at all.

She also wrote to her mother and Sirius, both of whom had written her separate letters but she didn't have much to say to them.

Dear Mom and Snuffles,

Things are fine here. We're swamped with work, O.W.L year and all. Prefect duties are also going good – haven't found anything too interesting so far. Though I think the house-elves are a bit mad at Hermione for trying to set them free from Gryffindor tower (the idiot keeps hiding hats everywhere), so there might be a revolution soon.

I'd like to talk more soon sometime. I've been seeing some things that I want to clear up.

She wrote to Henry as well, but then ended up scrapping the letter entirely. She wasn't sure if he'd be alone when opening them. She couldn't risk him blowing his cover in front of Voldemort.

Ankaa made her way to the Owlery early in the morning, as to avoid all the other students milling about. Zeus, upon viewing her, flew elegantly and perched himself on the space in front of her. Ankaa pet his head affectionately, dutifully offering him a few treats.

"To Snuffles and Mom, alright? And this one's for Remus."

Zeus waited patiently as she tied the letters to his leg, and then he was off. Ankaa turned to the door as it swung open and Harry stepped in. He seemed shocked to see her at first, but then made his way over with a smile.

"Hi," said Harry automatically.

"Hey," Ankaa nodded down to his letter, "Snuffles?"

Harry nodded. Hedwig soared down to his shoulder with a low hoot, blinking at Ankaa in recognition. Harry explained to her that the letter was going to Sirius, despite the fact that it said 'Snuffles' on the outside. The two stood silently, watching as the white owl became one with the blindingly bright sky.

"How were Keeper tryouts?" Ankaa asked quietly after a moment, turning her head to look at Harry.

"Great, actually," Harry nodded, "Ron's our new Keeper."

There was a pause. Ankaa watched as Harry affectionately ran his fingers over Hedwig's head. "You had detention with Umbitch didn't you?" Ankaa squinted at his hand, which he reflexively tried to hide, "How is it?"

"How do you—"

"Some of the first year Slytherin kids don't know how to keep their mouths shut," Ankaa muttered with an irritated sigh. "They wound up in detention, came back complaining about Umbridge's Blood Quills."

"Yeah, well…" Harry drifted off, glancing down at his hand and then back at Ankaa. "It's nothing."

"It's really not." Ankaa shrugged casually, "But I know you won't care. For future reference, please do keep your mouth shut."

Ankaa noticed his anger flare up almost immediately. Giving her a harsh glare, Harry questioned, "Why? She was—she said those things about—"

"You don't have to tell me what she said or didn't say Potter," Ankaa spat venomously, taking a step closer to him and matching his glare evenly, "I was there, through it all. But you have to pick your battles, and this is something you're not going to win. I know years of false bravado have led you to believe yourself to be unbeatable, but you should know when to back off."

The Owlery door opened behind the duo once more, and Harry jumped in shock. Upon spotting Cho Chang, with a parcel and a letter in hand, Harry relaxed only slightly.

"Oh… hi," the newcomer said breathlessly, oblivious to the tension between the duo. "I didn't think anyone would be up here this early… I only remembered five minutes ago, it's my mum's birthday."

Ankaa watched, beyond amused, as Harry looked from the parcel to the Ravenclaw girl. His brain seemed to have jammed up, which of course was nothing out of the ordinary, but Ankaa had hoped that Harry was past the customary nervousness when dealing with Cho at this point. Then again, perhaps she was placing too much hope in his ability to search for an interesting topic of conversation.

After another beat of silence passed, Ankaa opened her mouth to put him out of his misery, to ask Cho about her upcoming Quidditch trials, when Harry said: "Nice day."

"Oh, Merlin," Ankaa felt second-hand embarrassment for Harry as he gestured to the windows. Harry, for his part, conveniently looked as if he had been stabbed in the heart. And Ankaa, though thoroughly amused by his misfortune, was cringing at the awkwardness she had to witness.

Normally, Ankaa would have said something—anything to ease the awkwardness in the air and help Harry out a little. But now that he had argued with her, she was in one of her moods. The last thing Ankaa wanted to do was help Potter cozy up with his giggly crush. So, when Cho was busy trying to get a school owl to take her parcel, Ankaa ignored Harry as he shot her pleading looks.

"It was nice to see you, Cho," Ankaa smiled deviously at Harry briefly before giving Cho a wide smile, "But I've got to get going—too much work to catch up on."

As she headed out, she turned one last time to Potter and flipped him off with a sweet smile. Harry's face flushed in embarrassment as he glared at her, quickly shaking his head as if he didn't want her to leave. With a slight smirk, Ankaa rolled her eyes and left the Owlery.

On the Monday after a glorious weekend, Fred Weasley was beyond ecstatic as he settled himself into Charms class right before lunch. Beside him, George and Lee were snickering, telling one joke or another. In front of him sat Angelina Johnson, who was (as usual) submerged in her notes as she prepared for the lecture ahead.

"Good afternoon!" Flitwick smiled genuinely at everyone from the front of the class. "Today, we shall be learning a new—"

"Hem, hem."

Everyone turned to the back, watching as Umbridge sauntered into the classroom and smiled somewhat condescendingly at Professor Flitwick.

"You received my note, I trust? Giving the time and date of your inspection?"

Professor Flitwick seemed taken aback for a moment before he nodded, "Yes, of course. Please, have a seat."

Fred watched as Umbridge smirked and made her way to the corner of the classroom, towards their side. In front of him, Angelina tensed. Fred was sure that she was glaring at Umbridge, trying to melt her into a puddle of pink goo with her eyes. After Harry had missed tryouts because of Umbridge's detentions, Angelina had almost marched straight into her office and demanded that she let Harry go.

Fred grazed his fingers over her shoulder lightly, letting her know that he was right there. She relaxed a little but continued eyeing the Pink Toad as she made her way over.

"Right," continued Professor Flitwick, "As I was saying—Today we shall be learning a new technique when working with non-verbal spells. As I am sure you remember, last year non-verbal spells were on the curriculum for your final examinations."

"Miss. Spinnet, is it?"

Fred and George cast each other a look, rolling their eyes as Umbridge turned to Alicia to question her. Alicia, for her part, answered them without sass or contempt. If Fred had been in her place, he would have wasted no time in giving Umbridge a piece of her mind. But he also knew that if he did that, Angelina would have murdered him for the detention he would surely be put in.

"Is this how Professor Flitwick usually conducts class?" Umbridge asked, glancing at the twins behind her. Fred and George just gave her a smile, pretending to be as innocent as ever.

"Yes," Alicia answered, "It's usually theory and then we get some time to practice our charms while he watches."

"I see," Umbridge scribbled some notes down on her clipboard. She glanced around the classroom one more time, and then to the twins. Her eyes narrowed at them slightly, as if she was waiting for them to do something ridiculous.

Fred and George just continued smiling at her.

"Everything alright, Professor?" George asked, raising a brow.

Umbridge nodded stiffly, giving them a sickly sweet smile in return. "Of course, Mr. Weasley. Pay attention, now."

With that, it seemed that Umbridge had decided she had enough. With a nod in Flitwick's direction, she sauntered off with her clipboard to harass some other unfortunate teacher. Fred and George watched her go, turning to each other once the door closed shut behind her.

Seeing as the charms the class was practicing were non-verbal, none of them had any time to talk to each other about the inspection. Fred's leg bounced in anticipation as it got closer and closer to lunchtime.

George laughed at him as he was packing up, purposely going slower so that Fred would have to wait. Ultimately though, George, Fred, and Lee were all packed up before Angelina and Alicia were. Fred shook his head in apparent irritation as Angelina and Alicia continued chatting as they slowly packed up.

"Come on," George nodded to him as the guys began to walk ahead.

"Do you think she's going to inspect all the teachers?" Lee asked, glancing up at the twins. "I wish we'd get to see her with McGonagall."

Fred snorted. "What a right sight that'll be. Finally, someone will put her in her place."

"I don't understand why she's doing it though," Angelina commented, sliding up next to Fred. Reflexively, he put his arm around her shoulders. "Why is she in charge of deciding whether a teacher stays or not? I thought that was Dumbledore's job?"

George nodded. "It normally would be, I reckon." He said, "Haven't you read the papers? The Ministry's not too fond of Dumbledore ever since he sided with Harry and said that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named had returned."

Angelina nodded. "That must be horrible…" She trailed off, "For Harry and Ankaa both."

"You believe him then?" Lee asked.

"Of course," Angelina nodded. She then glanced at Fred quickly, "He's never lied to me. And if you believe him—" she said to Fred, "—then I do too."

Fred smiled down at her, tightening his hold on her ever so slightly.

"Oi, is that Ankaa?" Lee squinted in the distance, watching as three figures stood off to the side of the courtyard, trying not to draw attention to themselves. Lee shaded his eyes from the sun, "Yeah, that's her! I haven't seen her in forever!"

Fred noticed that she was standing with two other Gryffindor students. As they got closer, Fred realized she was with Hermione and Harry. It looked like Hermione and Ankaa were arguing with Harry over something.

Ankaa's mouth contorted into a frown before she reached down and took Harry's hand in her own. She turned it over gently, inspecting it carefully.

"Whoa," Angelina stopped walking abruptly. She grabbed George's sleeve as he made to walk past her and towards the trio. "Slow down!"

"What's wrong?" Fred asked.

"Nothing!" Angelina smiled widely, "I just don't want us to interrupt their moment. Look!"

George looked back at the trio and watched them carefully. He noticed Harry's fingers twitch slightly as if he wanted to reach out and grip Ankaa's hand as well. Not to mention the fact that Harry's face was slowly turning red. Beside him, Hermione was smiling amusedly at his reaction. Ankaa, for the most part, remained oblivious to Harry's reaction.

George sighed in mild amusement and mild amazement. "Harry likes Ankaa."

Fred's head snapped towards his brother at the statement. Fred looked from George to Harry, and then back and forth a couple of times. Beside him, Angelina was giggling mildly, nodding joyously. Fred looked back to Ankaa, but he couldn't see any sign on her face about whether or not she reciprocated Harry's feelings.

But then why is she holding his hand? He asked himself.

Maybe she wasn't. Maybe she was just… shaking his hand in a new way. Yes. That's what it was. Ankaa didn't like Harry like that, Fred would have noticed if something like that had happened. But then again, he hadn't talked to her properly since they got back. Between school, the shop, Quidditch, Angelina… he just hadn't had the time to speak to her properly.

"Let's go," Fred said, pulling Angelina along towards the trio. He was aware of George's smug expression as he and Lee followed along as well.

"Well hello there," Fred slid up next to the trio, watching with slight amusement as Harry jumped back and withdrew his hand from Ankaa. Ankaa, on the other hand, turned to Fred with a deadpan look.

"Why aren't you in the Great Hall?" George asked, moving past quickly to give Ankaa a hug. Fred watched as she smiled and gave him a small and quick hug back.

"Yeah, Harry," Ankaa smirked over at the boy, "Why aren't we in the Great Hall?"

Harry glared at her slightly before turning to Angelina with a shameful expression. Quietly, he said, "I've got another week's detention."

All the amusement that had been present on Angelina's face vanished almost immediately. Without wasting a second, Angelina began shouting at Harry so loudly, that it made Ankaa's ears ring. Ankaa cringed away from the harpie, and so did the rest of the group.

"That's my cue," Ankaa told George. "I'll see you around?"

"I don't know, will you?" George sassed back, raising a brow, "Little Miss. Prefect, always busy with her rounds and has no time for friends anymore."

"I have time; I just don't like wasting it on you."

"Ouch," George placed a hand over his heart, "Hear that Freddie? She's replaced us for sure then."

Obviously, Fred wanted to say as he glanced at Harry (who was still being yelled at by Fred's girlfriend). But before the surprisingly hateful message could slip past his lips, Fred smiled widely and shook his head in pretend dismay.

"It was bound to happen, Georgie." Fred sighed, "She's growing up, she's realizing she's one of the 'cool' kids. Doesn't want to hang out with us anymore."

"Ankaa!"

Everyone in the group turned to see Draco Malfoy standing by the other end of the hallway, flanked by Blaise Zabini and Pansy Parkinson.

"I've got to go," Ankaa said, turning back to the group and giving them a small smile. "See you around."

Fred watched as Ankaa made her way over to the other Slytherin students. Blaise and Pansy started off for the Great Hall the moment Ankaa got close. Draco nodded in her direction, and then looked past her and at Fred with a vicious glare before he made his way into the hall with Ankaa.

"So…" Lee turned back to Harry with a raised eyebrow, "You and Ankaa, eh?"

George watched Fred's reaction carefully. Although he smiled as Angelina slid up next to him and grabbed his hand, Fred's attention remained mostly on the conversation happening between Lee and Harry.

"No," Harry denied immediately. "I don't like her like that."

Hermione nodded loyally. "It's just more of a passing crush I'd say."

Lee and George laughed. Harry shot Hermione a look filled with betrayal. Hermione laughed and shook her head in fascination.

"I don't—"

"I thought you liked Chang," Fred interrupted, narrowing his eyes and looking at the Ravenclaw girl as they all settled at the Gryffindor table.

George laughed, "Confused Harry?"

Harry scowled. "I don't like anyone. Not Ankaa, and not Cho."

George gave him a 'yeah, right' look before turning to Hermione. "What's the deal then?"

"About what?"

"Ankaa and Harry of course," George answered, looking to the Slytherin girl who was in a heated conversation with Draco now. George pursed his lips, hoping their presence around her hadn't gotten her in trouble. Then again, he was sure Ankaa was more than capable of handling Draco. Fred, on the other hand, was another story entirely.

George glanced towards his twin slyly. Fred's hand was entwined with Angelina's under the table, but his attention was focused solely on Hermione as she recounted the story of Harry and Ankaa.

"Nothing, like I said," said Hermione nonchalantly, "They're just friends who've discovered they have a lot more in common than they first thought."

Fred looked at Harry, who was slowly turning red. Harry gave Hermione a desperate look, trying to tell her to just change the topic. Fred wanted to know more, but the moment he opened his mouth to ask more questions, George stomped on his foot.

When Fred turned to his brother with a questioning look, George just shook his head. Not now, he was saying.

If not now, then when? Fred turned back with a slight frown. It irked him that he hadn't been able to question Harry. He understood why, of course, but that didn't amend the fact that now he'd have to wait to find out if there was anything happening between Ankaa and Harry.

She had made it perfectly clear that she didn't feel for him anymore. It was a 'passing crush' as she had called it. When he had first heard it, Fred hadn't been sure what to feel. Of course, when Ankaa had sprung the news on him at the Yule Ball, it had been an immense surprise. However, the more time the two spent together, the more Fred started to entertain the possibility that there might have been something between them.

No, he shook his head, you're with Angelina.

He had chosen Angelina. And it wasn't a wrong decision. Angelina made him happy. They shared similarities: she was outspoken, charming, funny, in the same house, and loved Quidditch (a bit too much, if he did say so himself).

"Are you ok?"

Fred looked to Angelina, who was examining him carefully. Fred nodded at her, giving her a wide smile.

"Alright," Angelina smiled as well. "I've got to head out, Alicia and I are going to start working on our Potions essay. I'll see you later?"

Fred nodded.

Angelina gave him a light peck, lingering for a moment before she pulled away. The rest of the day was uneventful for the students. Fred and George continued working on their Skiving Snackboxes, cautious to avoid Hermione in the common room.

As Fred poured over the ingredients list to one of their potions late at night, George settled himself in front of him.

"What's going on with you two?"

"With who two?" Fred muttered distractedly, continuing to work on amending the list.

He heard his brother sigh. Fred looked up then, watching carefully as George crossed his legs in front of him. George just stared at him for a moment, as if he was looking through him. There was a strange air of seriousness about him, that Fred had only seen a handful of times.

"What's going on?"

"I feel like you're making a mistake," George admitted quietly, conscious of the fact that there were a few first years on the other side of the common room, huddled together trying to finish their work. "You're making a mistake, Fred, with Angelina."

Fred's anger flared slightly, coupled with irritation. "Oh?" He asked derisively, "And what makes you think that?"

George picked up on his tone, but he did not back down as Fred had thought. Calmly, he responded, "You obviously like Ankaa, Fred. Don't think I haven't noticed. Ever since this summer, when you two started talking to each other, you had something, didn't you?"

"I don't know—"

"You know exactly what I'm talking about." George sighed, "I saw you two together, Fred. When we were cleaning out the doxies, and you comforted her. You probably don't realize it, and it's ok, but to an outsider, it's obvious you like her. The connection you two have is so much deeper than what you and Angelina have."

"And you're the relationship expert now, I reckon?" Fred ground his teeth together, his temper steadily rising. He was tired of people telling him how he should feel. First Ankaa, and then his own brother.

"No," George replied evenly, "I'm just telling you what I think. You might not like hearing it, but as your brother, I owe you the truth. What you do with this information is on you, Fred. I'm just telling you what I think."

"I don't need other people to tell me what I feel about her." Fred retorted, massaging his eyes tiredly. He picked up his quill and continued scratching away on his sheet. "She made it perfectly clear that she doesn't like me anymore. And besides, I'm with Angelina now. We can't do anything about it."

"But what if we—"

Fred looked up at him, intending to cut him off. However, behind him stood Angelina. Angeline Johnson stood there, as still as a statue. She was holding her books in her arm, clutching them tightly. Her brown eyes were focused on Fred, filled with a sadness he had never seen from her.

"Angelina…"

George turned quickly. Upon spotting the girl, he sighed in shame. George excused himself, knowing that this was a matter between Fred and Angelina. He slowly made his way past Angelina and muttered a heartfelt apology as he trudged up the stairs.

"You like her then?" Angelina's voice was soft in the common room. Fred could barely hear it over the crackling of the fireplace behind him.

Fred stood up. His hands were quivering.

"I—"

"Don't know," Angelina laughed bitterly, glaring at him. "You're not sure, is that it? Okay, fine. If you're not sure about what you feel for her, what do you feel about me, Fred?"

"Angelina…"

"No, Fred." Angelina sighed, "I can't be with someone who isn't sure about me. I deserve better."

Fred surged forward then. Holding onto her shoulders, he looked into her brown eyes, and assured her, "I know what I feel for you."

"Do you?" Angelina whispered, "If you were so sure about that, you wouldn't be conflicted about what you feel for Ankaa."

Fred pursed his lips, noticing offhandedly that his lips were chapped. It felt like a desperate gesture; his hands holding onto Angelina tightly, his mind running a thousand kilometres an hour trying to find a proper explanation for this.

"Choose."

Fred's eyes snapped up to Angelina.

"Choose," She repeated. "It's either me or her."

"Angelina—"

"I like you, Fred," Angelina clutched his wrist on her shoulder, running her thumb across the inside where she could feel his wild pulse. "I've liked you for a long time… Before you make your decision, just think—If you pick her, you'd be throwing away what we've been working on for months—all for a girl who's broken, a girl who can't even hold your hand in public because she's afraid."

Angelina regarded him carefully. Fred's head was bowed, and she could tell he was thinking over everything carefully. Angelina kept running her hand over his pulse, wanting some physical contact with him. She was terrified that he would pick Ankaa, that everything they had worked for would be over. She felt foolish for even giving him the option to pick.

But she believed Fred would make the right decision. And when he looked up at her, Angelina knew he had made a decision, she just wasn't sure if it was in her favour.

Silently, Fred ran his fingers over her cheeks. Gently, he pressed a kiss to her forehead.

He had made his decision.

NOTES:

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