And as he had said at one o'clock the next afternoon he walked to 97 Griswold Place. He rang the buzzer for number four and he heard a woman speak.
"deBarbarac residence," she answered, her muttled British accent taking Fred by surprise.
"Oh ... is this ... is this Audrey deBarbarac?" he asked, checking the name in the book.
"Who else? Need something?" she asked.
"Oh yes. I have your book, Anne of Green Gables. I found it in the park under the big willow tree."
"Oh thank goodness! Come on in." The door began to buzz and Fred opened it. He walked up the stairs and on the fourth floor was apartment number four. After he finally reached it, he knocked at the door which read 4 in very pretty French letters. Someone unlocked and opened the door. A young woman stood before Fred eagerly. Fred looked at her. He stood and gazed at her for a moment.
"Well?" she said, hands on her hips, with a smile.
"Wha ... oh! The book," suddenly remembering why he was here. He pulled it out from his bag and handed it over. She took it and opened to check it was the right one. She smiled and they stood awkwardly for a moment.
"Well, thanks." Audrey began to close the door but Fred spoke quickly.
"Would you like to go to lunch?" he asked. Fred replayed this in his brain many times to make sure he had said it, during the long pause that came afterwards.
"Er ... sure. Just stay here, let me get my coat." Audrey returned to find Fred in the same place. "I'm Audrey," she said putting her hand out. She was leading him away from the stairs, down a dark hall. Fred started to worry that he had asked "Jill the Ripper" to go to lunch. To his surprise they arrived at an elevator. He replied to her introduction with a hand shake and ," Fred Weasley." He watched her curiously as she put a key into the button and turned it. Then there was a loud clicking sound.
"You see," she spoke, pushing the doors open ," This was the old service elevator. My father owns this building and I have the only known key to operate it. So what do you do?" Audrey pushed the down button and the 'L' button. The elevator began to chatter and move. It took Fred a minute to get stable again and then went on.
"Um ... well... I am an entrepreneur. I own a business with my twin brother. What do you do?"
"I entertain," spoke Audrey, with a smile.
"What? Like a stripper?" asked Fred. The elevator clicked. Audrey pushed the doors open with a push.
Angrily she snapped back ," No! Not a stripper! I sing."
"My apologies. What do you sing?" asked Fred apologetically.
"My parents put me on the New York Broadway when I was barely 9 to be Cosette in 'Les Miserables'. Yeah and lately I've been in the London Theatre Company version of 'My Fair Lady'. I'm Eliza. So where would you like to go for lunch?"
"There's an American cafe down the street," he said. But she shook her head.
"I'm tired of that place. How about Le Bistro de Chat Noir?" asked Audrey, as they walked down Griswold Lane.
"Isn't that a coffee shop?" asked Fred. Audrey nodded. "I don't drink coffee," said Fred.
"You don't have to drink coffee. They have food," said Audrey with a laugh.
"Don't you need to be accepted?" asked Fred, stopping dead in his tracks.
"What do you mean accepted?" asked Audrey, also stopping but just in front of him. She cocked her head a bit.
"I mean, I was there only once and everyone ignored me and such," said Fred. Audrey laughed at Fred's apprehension and pressed on.
"Come on. It's not that bad. You're with me." Fred followed like a puppy and finally accepted the fact that she was going ot drag him in there no matter what. "So, Fred, what kind of business do you own?" asked Audrey. Fred paused a moment, choosing his words carefully. Muggles didn't take the knowledge that they were in the presence of a wizard very easily.
"I run a joke shop. Weasleys ... um ... Wheezes is the name. I run it with my twin brother George."
"Were you prankster in school?" asked Audrey, taken aback that this nice gentleman owned a joke shop.
"You could say that. How about you? What were you like in school?" asked Fred.
"I didn't go to school. I had a tutor like all of us Broadway kids did. They still do I suppose. You mentioned you had a twin?" asked Audrey, Fred nodded. "Fraternal or identical?"
"Identical. My mum always said that she likes things to match and my father was taken aback when she got what she wanted with us. Do you have any siblings?"
"Who do you think lives on floors two and three? You see I'm on the top floor and the top floor residents always get the elevator key. I have a pair of twin sisters who live on two and a brother who lives on three. But Jocelyn and Rosalinde are fraternal so they complain about living together."
The day went on and they made plans to meet again at lunch time the next day. And then the day after and the day after that. It went on for weeks and even months and after four months they seemed more of a couple than just friends. So one day they met outside of Le Bistro du Chat Noir. And Fred popped the question.
"deBarbarac residence," she answered, her muttled British accent taking Fred by surprise.
"Oh ... is this ... is this Audrey deBarbarac?" he asked, checking the name in the book.
"Who else? Need something?" she asked.
"Oh yes. I have your book, Anne of Green Gables. I found it in the park under the big willow tree."
"Oh thank goodness! Come on in." The door began to buzz and Fred opened it. He walked up the stairs and on the fourth floor was apartment number four. After he finally reached it, he knocked at the door which read 4 in very pretty French letters. Someone unlocked and opened the door. A young woman stood before Fred eagerly. Fred looked at her. He stood and gazed at her for a moment.
"Well?" she said, hands on her hips, with a smile.
"Wha ... oh! The book," suddenly remembering why he was here. He pulled it out from his bag and handed it over. She took it and opened to check it was the right one. She smiled and they stood awkwardly for a moment.
"Well, thanks." Audrey began to close the door but Fred spoke quickly.
"Would you like to go to lunch?" he asked. Fred replayed this in his brain many times to make sure he had said it, during the long pause that came afterwards.
"Er ... sure. Just stay here, let me get my coat." Audrey returned to find Fred in the same place. "I'm Audrey," she said putting her hand out. She was leading him away from the stairs, down a dark hall. Fred started to worry that he had asked "Jill the Ripper" to go to lunch. To his surprise they arrived at an elevator. He replied to her introduction with a hand shake and ," Fred Weasley." He watched her curiously as she put a key into the button and turned it. Then there was a loud clicking sound.
"You see," she spoke, pushing the doors open ," This was the old service elevator. My father owns this building and I have the only known key to operate it. So what do you do?" Audrey pushed the down button and the 'L' button. The elevator began to chatter and move. It took Fred a minute to get stable again and then went on.
"Um ... well... I am an entrepreneur. I own a business with my twin brother. What do you do?"
"I entertain," spoke Audrey, with a smile.
"What? Like a stripper?" asked Fred. The elevator clicked. Audrey pushed the doors open with a push.
Angrily she snapped back ," No! Not a stripper! I sing."
"My apologies. What do you sing?" asked Fred apologetically.
"My parents put me on the New York Broadway when I was barely 9 to be Cosette in 'Les Miserables'. Yeah and lately I've been in the London Theatre Company version of 'My Fair Lady'. I'm Eliza. So where would you like to go for lunch?"
"There's an American cafe down the street," he said. But she shook her head.
"I'm tired of that place. How about Le Bistro de Chat Noir?" asked Audrey, as they walked down Griswold Lane.
"Isn't that a coffee shop?" asked Fred. Audrey nodded. "I don't drink coffee," said Fred.
"You don't have to drink coffee. They have food," said Audrey with a laugh.
"Don't you need to be accepted?" asked Fred, stopping dead in his tracks.
"What do you mean accepted?" asked Audrey, also stopping but just in front of him. She cocked her head a bit.
"I mean, I was there only once and everyone ignored me and such," said Fred. Audrey laughed at Fred's apprehension and pressed on.
"Come on. It's not that bad. You're with me." Fred followed like a puppy and finally accepted the fact that she was going ot drag him in there no matter what. "So, Fred, what kind of business do you own?" asked Audrey. Fred paused a moment, choosing his words carefully. Muggles didn't take the knowledge that they were in the presence of a wizard very easily.
"I run a joke shop. Weasleys ... um ... Wheezes is the name. I run it with my twin brother George."
"Were you prankster in school?" asked Audrey, taken aback that this nice gentleman owned a joke shop.
"You could say that. How about you? What were you like in school?" asked Fred.
"I didn't go to school. I had a tutor like all of us Broadway kids did. They still do I suppose. You mentioned you had a twin?" asked Audrey, Fred nodded. "Fraternal or identical?"
"Identical. My mum always said that she likes things to match and my father was taken aback when she got what she wanted with us. Do you have any siblings?"
"Who do you think lives on floors two and three? You see I'm on the top floor and the top floor residents always get the elevator key. I have a pair of twin sisters who live on two and a brother who lives on three. But Jocelyn and Rosalinde are fraternal so they complain about living together."
The day went on and they made plans to meet again at lunch time the next day. And then the day after and the day after that. It went on for weeks and even months and after four months they seemed more of a couple than just friends. So one day they met outside of Le Bistro du Chat Noir. And Fred popped the question.
