Hello again! This is my third fanfic here on Hope you like the story, the plot and all the little fluffy things. I think that Ron needs a little bit of lovin', he doesn't have a girlfriend and Harry's had quite the load from the majority of stories I've read. As much as you may tease and taunt me, I think Ron is so cute.
Summary: of course Fred and George would talk about their joke shop in private, especially when they wanted to keep their newest recruit in secret so their mom wouldn't know what they were up to after hiring a girl. Jaden Ferrara is beautiful, her dark brown hair and light green eyes are quite the combination. Before heading off to Hogwarts Harry and the others go to Diagon Alley to gather their new books and things, but when they stop in to see how the twins are doing in their shop, it's quite the surprise to find Jaden helping out. Jaden begins her sixth year at Hogwarts with the others, she's always got a smile, but it hides what she knows that the others don't.
Chapter One: Keeping Secrets
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Jaden was busying herself by dusting off the front counter for about the thirteenth time in the last three hours, business was slow, as usual, though the last two weeks had been swamped with Hogwarts students buying Fred and George's inventions for the upcoming year at Hogwarts.
Fred and George appeared on the stairs leading to the second level of the shop, in other words, the basement, and both gave Jaden a big smile, devilishly glancing at each other. She could tell they were up to something and smiled back in a questioning way. They both moved to either side of her behind the counter and she couldn't help but look from one to the other.
"What..." she got cut off by the one standing to her right, which she knew was George.
"We've run out of a few things jade, we're headed off to fetch them, you mind staying all by yourself for a few." She let her smile and mocked her innocence.
"I don't know guys, you think I can? All by myself?" they both smiled devilishly, shaking their heads at her antics as they watched each other passed her.
"As hard as it is to live without us jade, we'll be right back..." Fred was cut off by his brother trying to outdo him.
"Promise." George added, placing a kiss upon her cheek. Her hand instantly moved up to her cheek in surprise, while her mouth dropped open, watching as he crossed to the other side of the counter.
"What was-"again she was cut off as another kiss was placed about her opposite cheek, her first hand dropping as she turned to stare at Fred surprised. Fred winked and followed his brother.
"You can even count if you'd like..." he said in a teasing way, wriggling his eyebrows at her, implying something she didn't even want to know. With a loud 'pop' the twins were gone in a snap before she could even give them her evil stare.
Since she'd started working for them here at the joke shop at the beginning of the summer, the twins had dared to show their affections for them, she thought of them more like brothers, but luckily each kiss was upon her cheeks instead of her lips. She thanked god for that, even though the two of them were quite good looking, she'd rather not into any sort of mixed up relationship with either of them, it was hard enough to tell them apart.
She'd been hired exactly two minutes after walking into the shop, she knew why, but she didn't care, she needed the job and it wasn't that hard to do. They'd offered her a wage that was far more than any regular job, but she'd declined and accepted no less than what any other would pay someone with little experience.
Since Jaden was hired, the twins had offered her seven raises, three from George and four from Fred, but she'd declined all of them, knowing it was just an attempt to impress her, plus, she only needed enough to pay for her books once she was to return to school, happening to be in three days.
Again she began to sweep off the counter with a small rag located on a shelf beneath the counter, bored to the bone, she hated not being able to use magic during the summer holidays. Her attention more on how bored she was, she knocked over a glass jar of keys, they melted the instant inserted into any lock, further preventing anyone into the room beyond.
Jaden sighed and crouched behind the counter, beginning to pick up the keys and the glass of the jar, pulling another jar from beneath the counter and replacing the keys into that one. She piled the glass in one hand and once she had a handful she stood and placed it into the wastepaper basket behind her, again she began to pile her handful when the bell above the door chimed, startling her.
Grasping the jar full of keys, she reached up and placed it upon the counter. "I'll be right with you.," she said politely, picking up the last few pieces of glass and dropping them into the wastepaper basket with the rest of it. She began to stand up straight, but ended up hitting her forehead on the edge of the counter. Once at her full height, she placed her hand upon her forehead and muttered a small whiney "Ouch." She noticed the shadow of a figure standing before her.
"You're bleeding." Came a female's voice, motioning to her hand that lay upon the counter. Jaden removed the hand from her forehead and looked back at the girl standing before her, brush brown hair looking about her age. Jaden sighed.
"I- I was just..." she couldn't find the words, but frowned. "Can I help you?" she asked, watching a few other figures near from behind the girl, and then reaching down beneath the counter once more to find a clean piece of cloth, wrapping it about her bloodied hand.
"Who are you? Asked a redheaded boy, about a head taller than the girl as he came to stand beside her, eyeing Jaden as he leaned upon the edge of the counter. Jaden stared back at him, he seemed familiar, but she couldn't place it, but his hair reminded her of the twins.
"M-my name is Jaden Ferrara, I work here." She replied and a frown graced the brow of the boy.
"Hermione Granger." She replied, extending he hand, Jaden extending hers, but took it back and offered the other once realizing it was the bandaged one. "This is Ron Weasley, his brother's own this shop... Ginny Weasley and Harry Potter." The name bounced around in Jaden's brain, reflecting of off of every piece of memory she had of her childhood before she was adopted, she knew the name, she knew Harry potter. She looked over the shoulder of Hermione and saw a redheaded girl approach, closely followed by a boy looking much like Jaden herself. The girl with red-hair smiled as she came to the side of Ron and Jaden couldn't help but notice the resemblance.
"Weasley? Fred and George didn't mention any brothers...or sisters." Jaden said, feeling embarrassment flush her cheeks.
"They wouldn't." Muttered Ron sourly. "Where are Fred and George?" he asked her, though his frown was gone and his tone had risen to normal speech.
"Umm, they've gone to fetch a few things, don't know what though, said they'd be back in a bit if you want to wait for them?" her eyes moved to Harry as he also surrounded the counter, but his eyes moved from one place to the next around the shop.
"So you work here? Fred and George never mentioned you either." Ginny replied with a questioning smile. Ron prodded Harry's shoulder with his index finger and motioned they go to check things out.
"That's weird, I've worked here all summer." Jaden replied, not helping the smile, as she alone knew their motives. "Must've slipped their mind." She added, but she noticed the smirk on Hermione's face grow.
"Likely on purpose," Hermione said through laughing, Ginny joined in as well, chortling, while trying to hide it with her ands.
"You're not dating one of them are you?" Jaden frowned just as the question was answered.
"No, sadly I just work here." She faked her sadness and wiped away an invisible tear before joining in their laughter. "But not for long." She added in, making the laughter die.
"Why's that?" Hermione questioned, throwing a glance over her shoulder to see what Ron and Harry were up to.
"School, I'm only in my sixth year." Jaden shook her head like it was a habit. Hermione's eyes lit up like a fire sparked inside her head.
"Really? Are you going to Hogwarts?" Jaden nodded, an awkward smile on her lips as the giddiness in Hermione started to build up. "That means you'll be with Ron, Harry and I..." Jaden's surprise was evident as both eyebrows lifted.
"Wow..." she said out loud, then lowering her gaze to the counter and shifting the contact lens in her eye. "Quite the coincidence." She muttered to herself.
"What was that?" Ginny asked, trying to look into Jaden's eyes, leaning down upon the counter to see what she was up to.
"Oh, nothing, I just said it'll be nice to actually know someone before I go." Ginny frowned, but a sudden double 'crack' made them all jump, looking nearer to the door to see Fred and George appear from nowhere.
"Showoffs." Ron said aloud, only making his annoyance evident. Fred Gaped at his brother and the others, and his actions were doubled by his identical brother. Fred walked over to Ron and flicked his ear.
"Ow, what was that for?" Ron said defensively, instinctively clutching his ear. Fred shook is head and made a glance towards Jade, though trying not to make it obvious.
"You little Git, I thought Fred and I told you to tell us in advance when you were coming." George said, coming to stand by Fred's side and reaching out to flick Ron's other ear, but he grabbed it too and backed away so George flicked air.
"Why/"Ginny asked, going towards them. "And when were you planning on telling us about Jaden here? Or her of us?" Fred and George both grew smiles that Jaden had grown to know as their mischievous ones. Both of them moved to the counter, smiling at Jaden, but Hermione backed away from them, glaring at their sudden interest in the girl behind the counter.
"Who? Jade?" Fred asked, smiling at her innocently, then turning to face his brother and sister along with George.
"We didn't want to subject her to such intolerable cruelty." George finished for Fred and their Jaws dropped, even Harry and Hermione's.
"Awe that's sweet." Said Jaden in her surprise, though sarcastic as it was. "But I'm sure they can't be any worse than the two of you." Fred and George's smiles faded and the two of them turned to look at her with expressions of hurt.
"What?" George asked in a tone to match the look on his face, both leaning upon the edge of the counter to face her.
"Yeah, we thought you liked us Jay." Fred added in, placing a sad smile upon his face, but Jaden could tell the two of them were mocking it. She gave them a mock innocent look; sympathy intermingled with her deepest regret for saying it, and reached out.
"I do..." she said, placing the back of her hand innocently upon George's cheek as Fred frowned in his contempt with her actions. She noticed and smiled at him, removing her hand and leaning down in front of him so they were face to face. "But that's my point, you two are so loveable, I can't see your family being any different." Harry and Ron looked both disgusted and a bit off guard as they exchanged confused glances. Jaden stood straight up, smiling at Ginny over their heads. Ginny smiling back with a small look of irritation at her bothers.
"How wrong you are." Fred voiced, standing up s he was in her view, tuning abruptly to look at Ron, pointing his way. "For example, Ron..."George interrupted, looking at Jaden with a crooked grin.
"Isn't half as good looking as either of us." Jaden giggled, but felt sorry for Ron as she noticed his ears turn an instant red.
"And he's a coward..."Fred went on, looking to Jaden, then to Ron, who scratched behind his ear without a defense, "Scared of spiders." He added, with an expression showing his disappointment for his younger brother. Jaden rolled her eyes and moved around the counter, grasping Fred's shirt at his stomach.
"Come here for a second." She pulled him, much to his delight and placed him beside Ron, who looked like he was about to run away. "Just a second, Kay." She played like she was studying the features of both of them.
"What are you doing?" George asked from right behind her, she turned her head, catching a glimpse of a smiling Trio nearby, including Harry and then, finding George looking over her shoulder.
"See, same Hair, besides the cut, same eyes... same height, or close to..." she looked at Ron, covered her mouth to hide her grin, then reached out and ran her thumb along the edge of Fred's ear, he looked utterly exhilarated to have her simply paying this much attention to him.
"So?" Fred asked as his head leaned towards her touch as her finger slid off his earlobe and touched his neck for a single second before she removed it and placed her hands upon her hips, looking from one to the other.
"Don't see much of a difference." Fred's jaw dropped and he looked utterly repulsed, looking to Ron, who blushed, touching his own ear gingerly. With a small huff and a loud crack, Fred was gone and a loud crack was heard above their heads. Looking up, all of them heard words of profanity muffled through the floor and distinguishable words of 'how could she?' float down the stairs. Jaden felt her shoulders get a hard squeeze and she was turned around in her spot, he feet stumbling as George spun her around.
"See what you've done?" he said with wide eyes. "Now he's going to be sour all day, if not all week." She held up her hands in defense.
"I can fix it." She squeaked.
"Leave the poor girl alone, I'm sure she was just Joking."Hermione tried to defend Jaden, but just then, as George was distracted, she slipped out of his grasp and made her way to the stairs. Noises still protruded through the roof. She made her way up the stairs and George watched her with far less than a grin on his face.
The noises kept on for a few second more, but then silence fell upstairs and George seemed to be listening intently. After a few minutes, the silence was more than George could handle and he made his way towards the stairs, but both Ron and Harry jumped to stop him.
"Leave it alone." Harry voiced, making George give him a distinguished glare, but a 'crack' sounded once more and George was gone from their grasp, making them jump back in surprise.
Upstairs
Jaden knocked on the door she knew Fred had disappeared into.
"Who is it/" he yelled through the door, she knew better then to answer, knowing that if he knew it was her, he'd never let her in. she knocked again, but no answer this time, so she turned the handle and slipped into the room, only to get a deep glare from Fred. She smiled innocently and came all the way in, closing the door behind her.
"You forgot to lock the door." She said innocently, but he just began to pace the floor incessantly, mumbling words to himself. "Look, Fred, I'm sorry..." she said sweetly, trying to calm his demeanor. "I was only joking." At this he stopped and gave a quick glance her way, but turned so she couldn't see the smile on his face. "C'mon Fred, you can't hate me forever." She pleaded, moving away from the door, placing a comforting hand upon his shoulder.
"Hmmf." He muttered his sorrowful disregard for her comment, looking away from her as she tried to look at his face, unbeknown to her, baring a smile.
"C'mon Fred..." she pleaded, "you have to forgive me, I don't think I can live if you continue to hate me." He turned to look at her, a smile on his lips.
"Prepared to do anything to make me forgive you?" he asked, bearing his devious grin again. A crack sounded and made her jump, falling to the floor at his feet, just as George appeared in the room.
"I knew it." He shouted, "You only wanted to make her think you were mad." George said accusingly, Fred let a reddened smile cross his face. Jaden got up off her butt and dusted herself of as the two stared at each other menacingly.
"How 'bout this..." she said, lifting her hands to her side as she slid between them and pushed them apart. "We just go back downstairs and all of us go have a butterbeer at The Three Broomsticks, ok?" they both looked at her, then to each other, contemplating her offer. "I'll buy." She added, but then it just made them remember the shop.
"Who'll watch the shop?" They asked, both in unison as if they were the same person, which was partially true. Jaden smiled, knowing the only answer to that.
"Why can't we just close for the rest of the day, its late afternoon anyways... please, for me?" She asked innocently, pleading with her eyes, not wanting to leave them here by themselves, only to come back and find one dead or something. George squinted and eye at her.
"We buy." He said, motioning to his brother and himself. Jaden shook her head.
"I'm the one who caused this, even if I was only joking." George shrugged, but Fred wanted to one-up his brother.
"We buy, or it's no deal." He said like it was a do-or-die situation. Jaden pretended to contemplate it.
Fine..." she said, making them both smile. "No deal..." she moved towards the door, leaving them dumbfounded as she trod downstairs with a smile and the others watched with disbelief at the smile upon her face as they heard more arguing upstairs.
"Everything ok?" Hermione asked in a low voice as she stared at the ceiling.
"Oh, they're fine..." she said, grabbing a small zippered jacket from off of a hanger behind the counter and tucking a stay hair behind her ear as she made her way to the door. "We're going to got to the Three broomstick, drinks on me if you want to come." They all let their expressions show surprise as they heard a few more words of argument from up the stairs, Jaden turning the sign on the door and beginning to lock up, just when they hear another set of loud cracks and Fred and George appeared in the middle of the room, looking calm as can be.
"Just gonna stand there or are you coming?" Fred asked in a cool demeanor, making Ron frown at Harry, but the two girls knew better than Ron and Harry, following Fred and George and Jaden from the room.
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They sat in a corner table, the room filled with witches and wizards of every sort, among other such creatures in the Wizarding world.
"You guys have been going to Hogwarts since your first year?" Jaden question, playing like she knew nothing of Harry most of all, though it was just the opposite.
"Yeah, but I'm only in my fifth year, these guys are in their sixth." Ginny said, implying Ron, Hermione and Harry, Jaden nodded, having been told that.
"I can't believe you two quit." She said, looking to Fred and George out of the blue, they both shrugged in unison, one on either side of her.
"We had the joke shop, but we were actually thinking about going back and finishing our seventh year." George replied, looking to his brother implying, Ron shook his head.
"Oh, come off it, the only reason you'd go back is to be close to this one..." e raised his hand at Jaden and then rolled his eyes as she lifted a brow. "If she was going to attend Drumstrang, you'd follow her there if you had to-"he was cut off as Ginny elbowed him in the ribs.
"So what, even if that was the case, at least they'd finish their seventh year." Ro looked down and grasped his bottle of butterbeer, swallowing a large amount.
"I think it's sweet." Said Hermione with a big grin, looking to Jaden with giddy excitement building up inside of her. "If you had half the brains you would follow in their footsteps." Freed and George looked very proud of themselves.
"Thank you Hermione."George said very formally, nodding to her as he lifted his own bottle to his lips.
"Yeah, thanks." Fred added, throwing daggers in Ron's direction as he bestowed a sour look upon his face, making Jaden once again, feel sorry for him.
"As much as I appreciate the gestures guys..." she began, sitting back in her seat, only to realize their arms were both slung across the back of her seat, and sitting forward again. "Who would look after the joke shop?" they both looked like they were deep in thought for a moment.
"Didn't think of that now did you?" Ron said, getting another elbow in his side from Hermione. "Ow, would you two knock it off?" he spat at them, putting his bottle down rather harshly so a small amount sloshed out of the opening at the top. Jaden shook her head and laughed.
"I was thinking of working there again next summer, if you want me to?" Ron rolled his eyes and Jaden couldn't help wondering what his problem was, frowning at him.
"No problem Jay." Fred said in an astonishingly excited voice.
"Even got nicknames for her." Ron mumbled and Ginny elbowed him again.
"Merlin's beard Ron, what's wrong with you tonight?" Ginny practically raised his voice at him, making him slump back in his seat and throw a disgruntled glance Jaden's way.
"Actually, everyone calls me either Jade or Jay, well, mostly just at my old school." She couldn't help but look away with a solumn face, etching her finger along the grains of the wooden table.
"Where did you go to school?" Harry inquired, not helping the smile he gave to Ron. Jaden looked up with sudden surprise at the sudden input he had.
"Ummm... Beauxbatons." She answered, and knew the question she was about to receive, for she'd gotten it from everyone she met.
"What?" Ron spat, sitting forward again. "B-but you don't even have the accent, it doesn't make sense." She raised a brow and stared his way, Fred and George leaning over her shoulders to whisper something.
"You don't 'ave to 'ave ze accent to attend ze school..." she let her normal voice return. "I grew up in a household where they didn't speak French or have the cheesy accent, a lot of the girls there picked it up just to get the attention of boys, at least the ones who weren't part veela or whatever." She took a drink of her butterbeer.
"You...aren't...are you?" Hermione asked, as though she was afraid to say it. Jaden giggled, scratching the tip of her nose as if it was some sort of signal, though it wasn't.
"No... I was adopted by a family and my adopted mom was, but I'm not, I'm pretty sure of that." Jaden let her smile subside as both girls watched the incessant whispering of Fred an George over Jaden's shoulder, and then looking from Harry to Ron, coming to their own conclusion that she wasn't.
"You knew Fleur then?" Jaden's mouth shot open at the mere mention, looking to Harry like he could read her mind, like he'd gone out of his own mind and somehow found his way into hers.
"She spoke of you quite highly after you saved her sister." Jaden couldn't help but notice Harry's cheeks pinker, but thought to spare what was left of his dignity. Her mind fluttered to him as a little boy, the night of the attack as she watched from under the edge of their crib...
She began to remember how she'd watched as James Potter yell at Lily to take Harry and run, he knew the little girl would be safe from harm, for Voldemort wasn't after her. She remembered how her father had tried to hold off the dark lord, but Voldemort had killed him first and told her mother to back away so he could kill the little boy... Harry. Jaden could feel her hands cover her eyes and all go black, just listening to her mother's deafening screams and pleas before they'd vanished, and all she heard was Harry's cries as Voldemort turned his wand on the little tyke...
"What?" she heard Harry's voice ask, shaking her head and bringing herself into reality once more, realizing she'd been staring at him.
"Nothing..." she said, ignoring the stares she was getting and then smiling. "Anyone want another?"
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hey there, please review, let me know what you thought of it, any questions are welcome. I Promise to write back to all of my reviewers.
Q: now that the chapter's over, who do you think Jaden is?
AFireInside