Disclaimer: J.K. owns HP. She's also pregnant again! Hooray for her!
A/N: It's me again! This chapter you're about to read is completely different to how I had planned it months ago. The story has taken a really different turn. The super long chapter goes on a bit but it's really important. It has comedy, drama, fluff and angst. What more could you want!?
This chapter is dedicated to my 600th reviewer. I think it's lucid-03-days. Thanks!
Chapter 40
Alicia had never been very good at making decisions. Toast or cereal for breakfast? Hair up or down? Pass the Quaffle to Angelina or Katie?
Believe George or believe Daniel?
It was one of those decisions where she had to follow her head or her heart. Alicia hated those decisions the most. Her immediate reaction was to go with her head. It knew what it was doing, right? Her heart was sentimental and foolish. It didn't know anything about real life.
Alicia's heart wanted her to trust George. After all, she had known him for something like twelve years. Her head, however, kept pointing out that George might no longer think of her as only a friend. That would certainly give him a reason to make up a story about Daniel.
Either way she looked at it, it wasn't going to be a straightforward decision. If she believed George's story, was that some sort of reciprocation of his affection? If this was the case, she did not want to get his hopes up. Alicia was not willing to risk their friendship on something insubstantial. No matter how good-looking, funny and sweet George was. It couldn't happen.
A decision had to be made soon. Tomorrow was Christmas Eve.
An hour after the incident in George's room, Angelina returned. Alicia had long since stopped crying and was now struggling with the news.
"You all right?" Angelina asked cautiously.
"Fine."
"You're not angry at me?"
"No. You warned me not to go up there. I didn't listen so it's my own fault," Alicia said.
Angelina joined her on her bed. "What are you going to do now?"
"I've no idea," Alicia admitted with a sigh. "Ang, how did you choose between Cedric and Fred?"
"It wasn't much of a choice. I guess I just knew somehow. Do you really think George would lie about something like this?"
"No…but-"
"No buts. You know George better than anyone – other than Fred – so you know he wouldn't do that. You have a really strong relationship. Daniel hasn't made an impact on your life like George has."
"I know all this. It still doesn't make anything clearer," Alicia said exasperatedly.
"Well, let me put it another way. Do you remember the first thing Daniel ever said to you?"
"Huh? What does that have to do with anything?" Alicia asked with a frown.
"Just answer the question," Angelina instructed.
Alicia gave her best friend an odd look, but obliged. "Well, I think he said hello. Actually, he might have just said hi. I'm not sure."
"And where did this take place?"
"In the castle. On the second floor…or perhaps it was the third floor. What is this leading to, Angelina?"
"You'll see," she replied cryptically. "What about George? How much do you remember about the first time you met him?"
Alicia stared at Angelina. Realisation slowly dawned. "Everything. I remember everything about it."
Angelina grinned smugly and leant towards her eagerly. "Tell me about it."
Alicia took a deep breath. "Well, it was Erica's first year at Hogwarts and she was coming home for Christmas. I was only four years old…"
FLASHBACK
Platform nine and three quarters was bustling with families eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Hogwarts Express. It appeared that most students were returning home for Christmas. Alicia clutched her mother's hand tightly. She was actually glad that Erica was coming home. Her parent always seemed to be yelling at each other. Baby Jasmine wasn't helping with her constant crying either.
Alicia had been looking forward to this day for weeks. Before coming to King's Cross the family had experienced a lovely day in London. Alicia had even been allowed to wear her brand new dress.
Her father had bought her an ice cream outside the station. Alicia now licked it idly as she was led through the excited crowd. Her bouncy ringlets had been pulled into pigtails and she was the epitome of cuteness that day.
Alicia's parents took her towards the end of the platform where there were less people. Her father sat her on a bench and crouched in front of her.
"I want you to stay on this bench, Alicia. Don't move without my permission. Do you understand?"
Alicia nodded emphatically. "Yes, daddy."
"Good girl." Her father stood up and gave her a pat on the head. "Don't get ice cream on your new dress either."
Alicia nodded again. Her mother sighed and shifted Jasmine onto her hip. "I don't know why you bought her the ice cream in the first place."
"I promised her she could have one if she behaved herself," her father answered tersely.
"You shouldn't have bought her something so messy."
Alicia's father got that look in his eye. It was the look that always made Alicia run to her bedroom. It meant a fight was coming.
"I guess we've both done things we shouldn't have," her father replied, looking pointedly at Jasmine.
"Here we go again. You bring it up every day like clockwork. What do you want me to say? I've apologised hundreds of times!"
"I want you to let me reward my youngest daughter without passing judgment."
Alicia watched intently as her mother clutched Jasmine to her chest. "Don't antagonise me like that! You said you would treat Jasmine like your own daughter."
"That may be so, but we all know she isn't mine!"
Alicia didn't really understand what the argument was about. She did, however, know that it had something to do with the time her daddy went away with Erica. He came back just before Jasmine was born. Alicia didn't remember much about the period, but she knew it wasn't a pleasant time for her family.
Belatedly, her parents realised Alicia was watching. They both gave her forced smiles and stepped a few metres away to continue their argument. Alicia went back to her ice cream. After a while, a group of witches and wizards moved in between Alicia and her parents. Alicia did as she had been told and stayed on the bench.
The platform continued to fill up and time dragged on. Alicia began to wonder if the Hogwarts Express was ever going to arrive. She had almost finished her ice cream when she began to admire her pretty dress. It was pink and had little white flowers around the hem. There was even a white bow at the back. It was the prettiest dress she had ever owned.
"Can I have a lick of your ice cream?"
Alicia jumped. Someone had sat down beside her without her knowing. She turned slowly to find a young boy with flaming red hair and inquisitive eyes. He was looking hopefully at her ice cream.
"Please?"
Alicia shook her head, too shy to say anything. She had never really spoken to a boy who was around her own age. Besides, her parents had taught her all about stranger danger. Unfortunately, this boy proved to be persistent.
"Vanilla is my favourite flavour," he informed Alicia.
Alicia began to panic as the strange boy slid closer to her. She looked around for her parents but they were nowhere to be seen. Surely her father wouldn't mind if she left the bench now. Without looking at the boy, Alicia slid off the bench and ran for it.
She ran in the opposite direction to her parents and spotted a bench with a vacant spot. Someone wearing a hooded jumper sat at one end of the bench so Alicia sat at the other end. She cautiously looked back in the direction of the odd boy. There were too many people in the way…
"Hello. What's your name?"
Alicia turned around. She almost dropped her ice cream in surprise. She stared in silence for a moment then squealed. The same boy was sitting next to her. He grinned at her and lowered his hood. The red hair was unmistakable.
Alicia gaped in unabashed amazement. "How did you do that?"
"Do what?" the boy asked.
"You were just on the other bench," Alicia explained breathlessly. She tentatively reached out and poked him in the cheek.
"Hey!"
Alicia was thoroughly perplexed. There was no way the boy could have beaten her to this bench. "You're real. How did you get over here so fast?"
The boy tilted his head quizzically. "What are you talkin' about?"
"Over on the other bench," Alicia said slowly, beginning to wonder if boys really were that stupid. "Remember? You wanted some of my ice cream and I ran away?"
The boy shook his head. "Not me. I don't like vanilla ice cream. Besides, I don't want to get girl germs."
"I don't have germs!"
"All girls have germs."
Alicia narrowed her eyes. "Boys are silly and smelly," she retorted.
"No we're not," said a voice on Alicia's other side.
Alicia turned to see the exact same boy standing beside her. There were two of them! The one that was standing up smiled and reached for her ice cream. Alicia gasped and jumped back, causing her sticky ice cream cone to slip from her fingers. She watched in horror as it slid down the front of her dress.
"Whoops," the boys said.
"My pretty dress!" Alicia shrieked. She stood up and the ice cream hit the ground with a soft plop. She sat back down, her lower lip trembling dangerously.
"Look what you've done now, George."
"I didn't do it!"
"You're the one who scared her."
"You told her she had germs, Fred."
Alicia, meanwhile, had decided they were equally to blame. "Wait till my mummy and daddy find out what you did!"
The boys exchanged a quick glance. "We'll fix your dress," the one on her right said.
"Yeah," the other agreed. "Just don't tell on us."
Alicia sniffed forlornly. "How will you fix it?"
The boy who had taken a fancy to her ice cream looked her up and down critically. He extended a finger and ran it down the front of her ruined dress. He then licked the ice cream off the end of his finger. He repeated this three more times.
Alicia watched in horror for the first two times. By the third time she began to sob loudly. Large tears rolled down her cheeks and she gasped and blubbered. People were beginning to look. The identical boys jumped back in alarm.
"Why is she doing that?" one asked.
"Because she's a girl," the other replied matter-of-factly.
Alicia glared at them and rubbed a hand across her wet eyes. "Stupid boys. Now I have ice cream and boy spit on my dress!"
"Why'd you put your spit on her, George?"
"I didn't mean to! I was trying to get the ice cream off with my finger!"
"Boy spit doesn't wash out," she informed him sharply. "I'm gonna tell my parents now."
"No! Wait!"
"Don't go…er, ice cream dress girl."
Alicia poked her tongue out at the boy whose spit now graced the front of her not-so-lovely dress. "My name isn't 'ice cream dress girl'. It's Alicia Spinnet."
The boy with the hooded jumper laughed. "That's a funny name."
Alicia had taken just about all she could handle from these boys. She clenched her fists and jumped to her feet. "Be quiet or I'll punch you in the head really hard."
The ice cream fancier smiled at her. "You don't act like much of a girl, Alicia Spinnet."
"You sayin' I'm not a girl?"
"No," he said quickly. "But if you punch us both in the head we won't be able to fix your dress."
"Then you'd better hurry up and fix it," Alicia said anxiously, looking around at the milling crowd. "I think the train will be here soon."
Hood boy looked up at the large clock and scrunched up his face in concentration. "It's half past a quarter to nine. That means we have a long time. Follow me." He marched off and Alicia and the ice cream fancier hurried after him.
"Can he really tell the time?"
"Of course he can."
Alicia frowned at the boy. "How come you two look the same?"
"We're special," he answered seriously. "We even have powers. I can tell what you're thinking in your head."
"Go on then," Alicia challenged.
"Well, right now you're thinking that I can't see what's in your head," he said proudly.
That was what she was thinking! Alicia's eyes widened in awe. "Wow."
"Told ya. Come on, we better hurry."
The boy reached out and grabbed her hand and together they ran after the other red head. They followed him all the way to a dark alcove. Alicia caught her breath while the boys whispered to one another.
"We know a way to make your dress clean again," they announced in unison.
Alicia sighed in relief. "Good. How will you do it?"
"With magic, of course."
"We'll go and get our dad's wand. He won't even know."
Alicia shook her head dubiously. "You can't do magic! You're just kids like me!"
"We can so! Just yesterday we almost set the cat on fire," one of them said smugly.
"That's horrible!" Alicia gasped.
"It was the cat's fault."
Alicia did not like the idea of these strange boys doing any magic around her, let alone to her. She looked down at her ruined dress and felt tears sting at her eyes. "My parents are gonna be so angry. I hope my daddy doesn't leave again."
"Oh, she's doing it again," hood boy said with a groan.
"Why would your daddy leave because you dirtied your dress?" the other asked curiously.
"That's what happened the last time he got really angry," Alicia replied sadly. "He took my big sister with him and they didn't come back for a really long time."
The nice boy suddenly thumped her on the arm. It was meant to be encouraging but Alicia squeaked in pain. He grinned at her. "It'll be all right. Your daddy won't leave because he'll never know you dirtied your dress."
"I don't want to be put on fire!" Alicia said urgently.
"You won't be. We'll get an adult to do it."
"But we'll get in trouble, George!"
"No we won't. We just have to find a kind looking grown up and tell them that our friend spilt her ice cream. Can you start crying again?"
This last question was directed at Alicia. She blinked in confusion. "Cry on purpose? I don't know how to do that. It…it just happens."
One of the boys, the one Alicia called the nasty boy, promptly insisted that he could make her cry. He reached out and pinched her hard on the forearm. Alicia didn't cry. She did, however, make the nasty boy yelp by kicking him in the shin.
"Just pretend to cry. Make a sad face and a lot of noise," the nice boy advised, showing little concern for his look alike.
"All right. I'll try." Alicia dutifully screwed up her face and began to sob loudly.
"Good. Let's go find someone. Fred, you stay here."
Alicia was suddenly whisked away and led through the crowd. She kept pretend crying as the boy pulled her right up to an elderly witch who was knitting on a bench.
"Excuse me?" he said sweetly and politely.
Through her narrowed eyes, Alicia saw the witch let go of her needles, which clicked on without her. She lowered her thick glasses and peered at the youngsters. "Yes, my dears?"
"My name is George and this is my friend Alicia. We want to know if you could help us. See, my friend accidentally dropped her ice cream on her new dress." The lady focused on Alicia and he continued, "It was an awfully nice dress. She's terribly sad and sticky, ma'am. Could you use some magic to clean her? I don't want her to get in trouble with her parents."
Alicia gave an extra loud sob and lowered her head mournfully. "I don't see why not, dears. It is a very nice dress," the lady said with a smile. She reached into her handbag and pulled out her wand.
In the blink of an eye, Alicia's dress was back to its pristine best. She grinned brightly at the lady. "Thank you ever so much," she said softly.
"It was no trouble for such lovely children."
Alicia and the boy skipped away, still holding hands. They stopped when they were far enough away from the lady. The two of them dissolved into giggles at the same time.
"That was fun!" Alicia exclaimed breathlessly.
"Yeah. You're really good at pretend crying."
Alicia stopped giggling abruptly. She was suddenly aware that she was never going to see this boy again. It made her feel a little sad. "Will you come back to this place one day?"
"Probably. Will you come back?"
"Probably."
"I'll look for you," the boy vowed.
Alicia wanted to thank him for helping her. For some reason she just couldn't bring herself to say it. Instead she settled with, "Boys don't really smell."
The boy looked thoughtful for a second. "Well, girls still have germs," he concluded. Alicia scowled at him and he looked her up and down. "But you don't look very germy."
Alicia was trying to figure out if that was a good thing when an announcement resounded through the platform and she jumped in surprise. "Attention, please. The Hogwarts Express will be arriving in approximately one minute. Please stand behind the safety line."
Both children looked horrified. "I have to get back to my daddy," Alicia said quickly. She gave the boy one last long look then turned and ran away.
Back at her original bench, Alicia resumed her seat and folded her hands in her lap. She swung her legs innocently and waited. Not more than ten seconds later her parents came hurrying towards her. Alicia gulped.
"I told you she'd still be here, Natalie."
"I never said she wouldn't be here, David," Alicia's mother replied with a weary sigh. She extended a hand towards Alicia. "We're sorry we left you here, Alicia. We started talking to people and lost track of time. Come on, sweetheart, Erica will be arriving soon. Let's go meet her."
Alicia smiled sweetly and took her mother's hand. There was a low rumble as the Express pulled into the station. It let out a puff of smoke as Prefects opened the carriage doors. The students disembarked in droves.
Alicia waited patiently between her parents. She could feel the excitement in the air. Obviously Jasmine was feeling it as well because she leant over and enthusiastically pulled Alicia's hair. Alicia squealed and her father had to untangle Jasmine's chubby little hand.
"Jasmine has grown so much!" a voice shrieked through the crowd.
Alicia was first to spot Erica waving at them. She was also the first to reach her. Alicia threw herself at her big sister. The rest of the family was right behind her. It was a very happy reunion; even Alicia's parents hugged each other at one point.
"Hogwarts is great! There are ghosts and talking paintings and a giant man named Hagrid," Erica said, talking a mile a minute. "I'm in Gryffindor like mum was. It's the best house of all. Oh! You have to come and meet my new friend. He's over here. Come on!"
Alicia trailed shyly behind Erica as she approached a group of red headed people. The red hair reminded Alicia of the identical boys and she felt a little sad.
"Charlie! I brought my family so you could meet them!"
A tall freckled boy turned around. He smiled when he saw Erica. "Hi. I'll introduce you to my family first. They can't wait to meet you."
Alicia hid behind her father's leg as Erica's friend introduced his family. There were a lot of them, even though two of them were off somewhere else. Alicia didn't bother to try and remember any of their names. Erica then introduced her family and everyone shook hands and nodded at one another.
Erica's friend's mother leant down and seized Alicia's hand. "Hello there, Alicia. How old are you, darling?"
Alicia held up four fingers, too shy to speak. Alicia's father pulled her out from behind his leg and said, "She turns five in April."
"So do my twin sons! What a wonderful coincidence! Oh, where have the got to? Fred? George?"
Alicia froze. Those names sounded awfully familiar…
"It's you!" the identical boys said as they came running over.
Alicia could only gape as her parents peered at her curiously. "Do you know these boys?" her father asked.
"Of course she does," one of the boys (the nasty one, Alicia noted) answered for her. "We were with her when she dropped her ice cream on her dress."
Alicia's father raised his eyebrows in interest. "Is that so? Alicia, is there something you forgot to tell us?"
END FLASHBACK
Alicia smiled at the memory. "My parents didn't let me wear the dress for six months. That was officially the first time Fred and George ever got me in trouble. It certainly wasn't the last."
Angelina, who had been giggling through the whole story, dried her eyes and shook her head regretfully. "I wish I had known Fred when I was four. Maybe then we wouldn't fight so much."
"You'd still fight anyway," Alicia said with a wry smile. "You both have dominant personalities. You're going to keep fighting until one of you learns to be a little more submissive."
"Dominant personalities?" Angelina repeated thoughtfully. "I never thought of it that way."
"Of course you haven't. You just prefer to blame Fred for it all."
"Hey, this is about you, not my dysfunctional relationship," Angelina reminded her. "What are you going to do?"
Alicia shrugged. "The only thing I can do."
xxxxx
The very next day Alicia tracked Daniel down and told him that she wouldn't be going to the Ball with him. Needless to say, he wasn't very happy about it. Alicia hadn't planned on mentioning the bet but he got so angry that she had no other choice. Much to her surprise he didn't even bother to deny it.
He did, however, demand to know how she had found out about it. Alicia wasn't going to point the finger at George, so she remained silent. This made Daniel even angrier.
Before the situation could get any worse, Alicia made a quick retreat. Daniel demanded that she stop, but she ignored him and kept walking. Outwardly she appeared calm but inwardly she was in turmoil. For some silly reason she still wasn't sure if she'd done the right thing.
Alicia was without a date the day before the Yule Ball. There was no way she could get a date in such short notice. There was also no way she was going alone. She was going to end up moping around Gryffindor Tower with the first, second and third years. Angelina and Katie would certainly object, but Alicia vowed to herself that she would stand firm.
When she got back to her room she found herself blissfully alone. The girls obviously hadn't returned from their outing with the boys. They were going outside to make snowmen. Alicia thought about joining them for moment then quickly decided against it. She couldn't face George after all that she had said and done to him. Feeling stupid and lonely, Alicia settled down on her bed and flicked through the Daily Prophet.
The English Quidditch team had announced their line-up for the annual Boxing Day match against Australia…The Minister of Magic kissed some babies…Celstina Warbeck was caught in a seedy hotel with a younger man…some old lady was trying to sell her pet Puffskein.
Good luck to her, Alicia thought. The news was obviously slow on Christmas Eve. Just as she was about to stop reading, something very interesting caught her eye. Her pulse quickened as she read. She finished tearing it out of the paper just as Angelina and Katie returned. Alicia didn't want them to see what she was doing so she shoved the small bit of paper under her pillow.
"You girls look cold," she commented casually.
"Have you told Daniel yet?" Angelina demanded, without so much as a hello.
"How did you know I was going to do that?" Alicia asked curiously. Surely she wasn't that transparent.
"The way you told that story…well, I knew you would take George's side. It wasn't that difficult to figure out."
Apparently she was that transparent. "You didn't mention it to George, did you?"
Angelina shook her head. "Only Katie. We were going to tell George but Katie thought you might chicken out. We didn't want to get the poor boy's hopes up."
"I didn't chicken out," Alicia said sharply, giving Katie a reproachful look. "I told him not long ago."
Both girls pulled off their damp cloaks and jumped onto her bed. "What happened?"
"Not much. He got angry and I walked away," Alicia replied simply.
Angelina put on what Alicia referred to as her business face. "All right. First we have to get you a date."
"That's not necessary. I'm not going to the Ball."
Alicia braced herself for the onslaught. It never came. What she got instead was a huge surprise. "Then I'm not going either," Angelina announced calmly and seriously.
"Nor am I," Katie added.
"Stop being ridiculous," Alicia ordered. "You're both going to the Ball without me."
"Nope. Katie and I have already decided that all of us go or none of us go."
"But you were dying for Fred to ask you!" Alicia exclaimed. She was flabbergasted that her best friends had managed to outsmart her. She turned beseechingly to Katie. "And you deserve to go after what happened with Lee."
"You're more important."
Deep down, somewhere below the outrage, Alicia was touched. "You'd really leave the twins dateless because of me?"
"Have you checked them out recently, Leesh? Most girls would cut off their left arms to go to the Ball with one of the Weasley twins."
Ok, so Angelina had a point there. They wouldn't be dateless for long. "I still won't let you do it."
"The alternative is that you go to the Ball with George and I go alone," Katie said.
Alicia shook her head even before she had finished the sentence. "Don't even try it. I don't want to go with Daniel, but that doesn't automatically mean I want to go with George."
"Then it looks like the three of us will be having a girls' night in tomorrow."
"You two are pure evil." Alicia glared at them, but they remained unrepentant. She knew there was no way she could get them to change their minds. "Fine, I'll go to the stupid Ball."
Katie grinned. "That's our girl. Now all we need to do is find you a date. I'm sure there's someone left."
"I don't want a last minute date. I'll go alone," Alicia said firmly. "I also don't want either of you to tell George what I did. I need you to promise you won't tell him."
"I promise."
"Me, too," Angelina said after a moment of thought.
Alicia trusted the two of them so she didn't mind much when they went downstairs. She began to experiment with hairstyles and makeup. Unbeknownst to Alicia her best friends were busy outsmarting her again.
Downstairs, Angelina and Katie had joined Fred, George and Lee in front of the fireplace. No one spoke for a minute. It was Lee who eventually asked where Alicia was.
"Upstairs," Katie answered, not looking at Lee. In fact, she'd managed to not look at him all day.
"By the way, Fred, Alicia isn't going to the Ball with that Daniel guy," Angelina said.
"What?!" four voices shrieked.
"You heard me, Fred."
Katie was thoroughly scandalised. "Angelina! You promised you wouldn't tell!"
"I promised I wouldn't tell George," she said smugly. "I'm telling Fred. Therefore, I am not breaking my promise."
"You've lost your mind," Fred concluded.
Katie shook her head, slightly impressed at the simple ruse. "Alicia is going to kill you when she finds out what you did."
"No she won't," George spoke up. "No one is going to mention it."
xxxxx
On Christmas morning the girls were awake early. There was much 'oohing' and 'aahing' as they unwrapped their numerous presents. Alicia was happy with what she got but she couldn't help but notice that she hadn't received anything from George. She had even given him a gift voucher from Zonko's.
Alicia had really meant for it to be a peace offering. Maybe it wasn't a terribly thoughtful peace offering. She was at least making an effort…unlike George.
"What are we going to do until the Ball?" Katie asked.
"I'm straightening my hair and that'll take about an hour," Alicia said, still rummaging around in case George had given her something.
"Facials and manicures?" Angelina suggested.
"Sounds great."
It was decided. While the boys were outside most of the day, the Chasers stayed in their room. Angelina went down and got them something to eat for breakfast and lunch, but that was the only time any of them left. The day passed in a blur of facial scrubs, nail polish and giggles.
It was about fifteen minutes before the Ball was due to begin and the girls were almost ready. Katie was just putting the finishing touches on Alicia's hair and makeup. Her dark red hair had been painstakingly straightened and the long, smooth strands reached the middle of her back.
Alicia wasn't wearing a lot of makeup but the little that Katie had put on her was just right. Her dress robes were a mossy shade of green that made her hair look even redder. As soon as Katie was finished she stood up and the girls all surveyed each other.
Katie was wearing robes that matched her sky blue eyes. Her golden blonde hair was half up and secured with silver chopsticks. Alicia had never seen her friend look prettier. It was a pity that she wouldn't be going with Lee. At the very least, Alicia thought, George would have the pretty Yule Ball date that he deserved.
Angelina was stunning in dark red robes with gold trim around the cuffs and hem. Alicia couldn't help but smile. Angelina was Gryffindor to the extreme. Her hair was up in a messy bun with random strands hanging about her neck and face. Fred was going to do a double take when he saw her.
"Let's go give those boys a shock."
Angelina grabbed both Alicia and Katie by the hand purposefully and pulled them out of the room. Alicia's knees wobbled alarmingly as she descended the stairs behind her best friends. Both of them seemed perfectly calm with the whole situation.
Not that this fact was very surprising. Both of them had hot dates so they had nothing to worry about. On the other hand, Alicia had no date, hot or otherwise. It was going to be a long night.
Katie pointed across the common room. "There they are."
The room was buzzing with excited students who were quickly pairing up. Alicia managed to spot Fred, George and Lee in the opposite corner. George was in an armchair with Fred sitting on the armrest. Lee was pacing back and forth in front of them. They all looked rather nervous.
"Might as well put them out of their misery," Angelina said kindly.
"I think I'll stay over here and just-"
Alicia never got to finish her sentence. Angelina and Katie seized her arms and marched her towards the boys. They were talking amongst themselves and subsequently didn't hear the girls approaching.
"They've been up there all day."
"I know. What do you think they're doing?"
"It's probably best not to know. Knowledge of the process might ruin the end product for us."
Angelina smirked. "Is that so, Fred?"
He jumped up in surprised, knocking over a lamp and stepping on his brother's foot in the same jerky movement. Lee stopped pacing and George stood up as well. Fred's ears were first to register his embarrassment. Then he looked Angelina up and down and his whole face turned red.
Angelina put her hands on her hips, daring him to make a smart comment. "You look beautiful," was the unexpected response. Alicia had to bite the inside of her cheek so she wouldn't giggle.
"Oh…thanks. You look really nice as well."
Alicia had to admit that Angelina was right. Fred had actually gone to the huge effort of brushing his hair. His robes were black, slightly faded and plain. They were obviously a hand me down, probably from Percy by the look of them. Despite this, Fred pulled it all off with a roguishness that even Alicia found herself admiring.
Standing a few steps behind Fred was George. His eyes met hers quickly and she searched for some flicker of pleasure or longing. It wasn't there. His gaze was steady and detached. George turned to Angelina next and gave her the same unaffected look. When he got to Katie it was a different story. He actually smiled and told her she looked really pretty.
Something akin to jealousy spiked through Alicia's veins. It wasn't real jealousy, of course. She had no reason to be jealous because she had no desire to be in Katie's place. None whatsoever.
"You all look great," Lee said diplomatically. He gave Alicia an encouraging little wink.
"We better get going as well," Fred said as the common room began to clear. He offered his hand to Angelina and she gladly accepted.
George did the same for Katie and they followed the other couple. Alicia felt lonely and stupid as she trailed behind them. On the way out of the portrait hole she caught sight of Ginny Weasley linking arms with Neville Longbottom. Even Neville had managed to get a date. It almost made Alicia cry.
"May I escort you down to the Entrance Hall?"
Lee had just emerged from the portrait hole behind Alicia and was offering his arm to her. She nodded gratefully and slipped her arm through his. Angelina and Fred smiled at the sight, Katie and George didn't.
"Ready?" Fred asked.
"As I'll ever be," Alicia answered bravely.
Alicia and Lee walked behind George and Katie. Alicia watched them laugh and joke together. They were walking awfully close for people who were only supposed to be friends.
"Don't let it get to you," Lee whispered in her ear.
"It's not getting to me. I hope it isn't getting to you."
"It's not."
"Great. We both agree it's getting to neither of us."
Lee smiled at her and together they quickened their pace. At the top of the marble staircase the Gryffindors got a good view of the assembled students. Most of them were watching the couple descend. Alicia also noticed that many were whispering behind their hands. She was suddenly very glad that she was walking down the stairs with Lee and not alone.
"I hope your date won't be angry," Alicia murmured as they joined their fellow students.
"She won't," he assured her, a mysterious glint in his eye as he said it.
Alicia gave him a curious glance but decided she'd be better off asking later. "Well, you better go find her. Thanks for walking me down. Save me a dance?"
"Definitely." He kissed her hand then was gone.
Alicia was alone again. She stood behind the two couples and watched the champions assemble off to one side with their partners. Everyone else paired off and began to enter. At this point Alicia very nearly made a run for it. Powerless to escape, she was swept along with the eager crowd.
The five of them secured a table near the front of the Hall. After a moment Ron joined the table with his date, followed closely by Neville and Ginny.
"Where's Lee?" Angelina asked, looking confused.
"He's sitting with what's-her-name," George answered. "He thought it would be more polite that way."
Katie snorted impolitely. "That's bollocks. We should all be together. The night is completely ruined now."
George put a hand on her shoulder and whispered something in her ear. She slowly began to calm down. Alicia didn't want to watch them being 'friendly'; thankfully Fred distracted her.
"Where's your date, Leesh? You know, Derrick or whatever his name is."
"His name is Damien," George said from across the table.
"Actually," Fred replied, "Dane sounds familiar…"
"You know very well that his name is Daniel," Alicia snapped. "He isn't here because he isn't my date anymore."
"Oh, that's a pity," Fred said insincerely.
Alicia watched George out of the corner of her eye. There was no recognition, not so much as a smile or sigh relief. There were only two explanations for the lack of any reaction. Either everything he'd said had been a load of rubbish or…
"Angelina!" Alicia exploded. "You told!"
She shrugged easily. "Well, I may have told Fred. How was I supposed to know that other people would overhear?"
Alicia was horribly embarrassed. Even the younger students were watching the proceedings with apparent fascination. She stood up angrily. "That's it. I'm going back upstairs."
"Don't be ridiculous," Angelina said, grabbing her wrist so she couldn't get away. "Sit down. The champions are coming in."
Alicia reluctantly sat back down and applauded along with everyone else. When they had all been seated Alicia knew she had no hope of escaping. At least not until the dancing began. As soon as that started, she was out of there.
"What are you going to have for dinner, Alicia?" Angelina asked, obviously attempting to draw her into conversation.
"I'm not talking to you." Alicia folded her arms and turned to Ron, who was sitting on her other side. "Hello, Ron. Having a good time so far?"
"About the same as you," he answered sullenly.
"Right. Say, isn't that Hermione up there with Krum?"
"Yeah," was the gruff reply.
"She looks really pretty, doesn't she?" Alicia persisted.
Ron grunted indecipherably and pretended to be deeply interested in his menu. So much for that, Alicia thought with a sigh. On the other side of her, Fred and Angelina were having a hushed conversation, as were George and Katie across the table.
Neville was regaling a bored looking Ginny with endless stories about his toad. Poor Ginny. Ron was brooding and mumbling under his breath about enemies, traitors and Bulgarian vultures. His date, one of the Patil twin, was staring fixatedly at George. Alicia followed her adoring gaze and found that she couldn't blame the girl.
George was wearing dark blue robes that had undoubtedly once belonged to one of his brothers. Like Fred, he pulled it off exceptionally well. George's hair was a little more disorderly, but it suited him better that way. No, Alicia could not blame the Patil girl.
She could, however, make sure she kept her eyes to herself in future. Alicia was contemplating how best she could 'accidentally' throw a brussel sprout at the younger girl's head when people began to order their food.
Dinner was fun and delicious, as was usual with Hogwarts feasts. Her friends kept trying to include her in the conversation, but Alicia resisted defiantly. Dinner made her feel a little better about everything. Unfortunately, the feeling was fleeting. As soon as the plates had been cleared, Dumbledore asked everyone to stand and he cleared the tables to make room for a dance floor.
Alicia watched the champions for about ten seconds then fled to the relative safety of her table. She wasn't the only person sitting down; about three dozen other students were spread out amongst the table. Most of them were Durmstrang and Slytherin boys who thought they were above such frivolous displays.
Alicia decided that she would sit through three songs then make a break for it. If she was careful she could be back in Gryffindor Tower before anyone even noticed she was gone.
But it did look like fun, Alicia admitted to herself as she watched the dancers. Everyone appeared to be enjoying themselves. Well, except for Ginny, who was going to have very sore feet by the end of the evening. It looked like so much fun that Alicia actually considered dancing with the Beauxbatons boy who asked her during the third song.
In the end she politely declined. If she was going to leave she had to make her move now. The disappointed foreigner walked away and Alicia stood up. If she timed it correctly she could make it to the back of the Hall just as the song finished.
Alicia slowly and meticulously made her way towards the back of the Hall. She alternated between pretending to look for someone and admiring the decorations. No one spared her a second glance. The song ended and everyone turned their attention to the Weird Sisters. Well, nearly everyone.
"Not so fast, Spinnet."
Alicia nearly had a heart attack. Angry at being thwarted, she stomped her foot and spun around. "Bugger off, Lee. I'm leaving."
"Not till you've danced with me."
Alicia could see her chance at escape disappearing. At the same time she had said she would dance with Lee. "Oh, all right. Come on, then."
"Brilliant."
"Only one dance," she said firmly.
Lee took her hand and led her towards the dance floor. Lee took her right to the middle where Fred and Angelina were dancing. George and Katie were nowhere in sight.
"I'm glad you finally decided to join us," Fred commented as he spun Angelina away from himself then pulled her back.
"Someone has to show you how it's done," Lee said jokingly.
Alicia couldn't help but wonder where George and Katie had disappeared to. Probably snogging in a dark corner, a horrible voice in the back of her mind said. Before she could dwell on it further, she was pulled into Lee's arms. For the course of two exuberant songs she was twirled, spun, lifted and dipped.
During all of this she forgot her problems and giggled and squealed as Fred and Lee tried to outdo each other. The next song was slower and Alicia and Angelina were grateful.
"I feel like a spinning top," Angelina said as she leant against Fred so she wouldn't lose her balance. "I think I need to sit down before I fall down."
Fred nodded in agreement. "I've got to take care of something for a second. I'll bring you a Butterbeer."
"I think I need a drink as well." Alicia pressed her hand to her warm forehead and smiled at Lee. "Thanks for the dances." She turned to follow Fred and Angelina off the dance floor.
"Just one more," he pleaded, grabbing her arm and pulling her back insistently.
Alicia recognised the pained expression on his face. The dancing was keeping his mind off Katie. She agreed to another dance and Lee put one hand on her waist. Alicia took his other hand and gave him a concerned look.
"Lee, what's going on? Where's your date?"
"I'm not really sure," he answered with an indifferent shrug.
"Tell me what happened, Lee."
"I guess I might as well. It's not going to make a difference now anyway."
As they slowly revolved on the spot Lee told her everything. Alicia listened rapturously to the story. At the end she gasped excitedly. "You have to tell Katie everything you just told me!"
"It's too late," he said disconsolately.
"It's never too late!"
Before Lee could even open his mouth to protest Alicia was dragging him through the maze of slow dancing couples. She spotted Angelina sitting alone at a table and made a beeline for her. "Have you seen Katie?" she asked urgently.
Angelina frowned up at her. "She said she was feeling ill and needed some fresh air. She ran out a minute ago. I was just about to go after her. What's going on?"
Alicia turned back to Lee. "Here's your chance! It's cold outside, take her your cloak and tell her everything!"
Lee still looked very uncertain. "Are you sure? What if she really is sick?"
"She's not. She saw you dancing with your date during the first song," Angelina informed him. "You better go out to her."
Lee finally relented. "All right. I'll go get my cloak and take it out to her."
"Good luck!" Alicia called after him as he hurried off. She collapsed into the seat next to Angelina.
"You still not talking to me?" she asked Alicia.
"I'm over it. But why did you tell him?"
"I thought he should know, Leesh. Don't you think he has a right to know?"
"I really don't know what I think. I'm confused about everything," Alicia admitted.
"Everything will work out all right in the end," Angelina said bracingly. She hugged Alicia then looked around. "Where the bloody hell is Fred with my Butterbeer? I'm about to die of thirst."
"Nevermind. I'll go get us some drinks," Alicia offered. Angelina smiled gratefully and hugged her again. "Gee, two hugs within the space of thirty seconds. You must be having a really good time."
"I am."
Alicia hadn't seen Angelina looking so happy in a long time. She felt genuinely pleased that Angelina had finally worked things out. Unfortunately, that didn't help her with her own situation. Alicia made her way towards the refreshments table located at the back of the Hall.
It was pretty crowded but she managed to snatch two Butterbeers and get away. Back at the table she stopped short and frowned. Angelina had disappeared. She set the bottles on the table and looked around. It didn't take long for her to spot Angelina out on the dance floor with Fred.
Alicia rolled her eyes. So much for dying of thirst. Oh well, no point in letting good Butterbeer go to waste. She was about settle back in her chair when she noticed there was a piece of folded parchment on it. She looked around in case someone had left it behind accidentally. There was a couple snogging at the next table but Alicia didn't dare to interrupt them.
Alicia picked up the parchment and opened it. There was one word on it. Sorry. She recognised the handwriting immediately. Her heart began to pound as she turned to scan the dancing couples. His hair was like a beacon. George was dancing on the edge of the group with his sister.
Alicia waited impatiently for the song to finish. When it did, Ginny reluctantly went back to Neville. Alicia hurried to George before he could get another partner. He gave her a tentative smile as she approached. "Get my little note?" he asked.
"Yes."
"Forgive me?"
"Of course!" Alicia threw her arms around him and held on tightly. "I'm sorry I called you a liar. It was so wrong of me. I should have believed you, regardless of how you felt about me now."
"Forget about it," George said, stroking her hair soothingly.
Alicia pulled back slightly and looked at him. "Is it really true?"
"It's true but I've decided I'm not going to let it get in the way of our friendship. We'll be friends forever."
Alicia felt herself blush slightly as she said, "What if I've changed my mind? What if I think it might be worth a try? It could be fun."
"It could," George agreed softly.
Alicia stared into his dark green eyes for a moment. His eyes flickered to her lips several times but he still didn't move. Alicia could understand his hesitation so she took the initiative. She put her hands on his cheeks and leant forward to meet his lips. That was about all the encouragement George needed.
Alicia had kissed Oliver enough times to know what a good kiss entailed. She had thought it had to be soft and sweet. George's kiss was the exact opposite. It was possessive, passionate and hard. It bordered on painful actually. His fingers were digging into her hips, holding her against his body.
George pulled away abruptly and looked a little ashamed. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean for it to be like that."
"It was brilliant," Alicia said, eyes wide in astonishment. "Feel free to do it again."
"Oh, don't worry about that. This is just amazing," he commented. He still held her tightly, as if he expected her to slip away like wisp of smoke. "You're sure about this?"
"There'll be no going back after a kiss like that."
The look on George's face was unmistakable. He was ecstatic. He put his arms around her and hugged her. "You look beautiful, by the way."
"Thanks," she replied a little distractedly. For the moment she was preoccupied with how warm and solid he was. He definitely was no longer the same little boy who had wanted some of her ice cream.
"I didn't tell you earlier because I didn't want you to get embarrassed or angry. I also didn't think it would be polite to compliment my date's best friend in front of her."
Alicia made an agreeing sort of noise. Truthfully, she wasn't really following what he was saying. He just smelt so wonderful! And his shoulders…when had they become so broad?
"You probably noticed that I didn't give you a Christmas present this morning. It's in my pocket at the moment."
That caught Alicia's attention. "Really? When do I get it?"
"After you give me another kiss."
"Fair enough."
Alicia grabbed a handful of his soft red hair and pulled him back down for another kiss. It was just as mind-blowing as the last one. Right in the middle of the kiss, the current song ended and everyone around them clapped.
"Get a room," a familiar voice said.
The pair drew apart slowly and found Fred and Angelina standing next to them. Both were beaming. Angelina gave Alicia a knowing wink.
"A room?" George repeated. "That's a splendid idea, Fred. Come on, Leesh."
George threw his arm around her shoulders and together they left the Great Hall. Alicia wanted to know where they were going and George mentioned a classroom on the first floor. Once in there he told Alicia to sit on the professor's desk and hold out her hands.
"Now close your eyes," he instructed.
Alicia stomach fluttered about as she did as he said. A moment later something small, hard and cold fell into her hands. She opened her eyes slowly and…completely stopped breathing for a second.
"Oh my God, George," she said in a weak, wavering voice. "Is it…real gold?"
"Yes. Do you like it?"
Alicia continued to stare at the gold bracelet in disbelief. "It must have cost a lot?"
George shrugged the enquiry away. "It doesn't matter. I won some money at the World Cup. Well, technically I don't have it yet, but I'm working on it. I borrowed the money from Bill and Charlie. I'm going to pay them back as soon as I get my winnings. Please tell me you like it."
The anxiety in his voice made Alicia's heart constrict. "Oh, I love it. It's absolutely beautiful. I just can't accept it. It's too much."
"Not if you're my girlfriend," he said tentatively. "Are you my girlfriend?"
"If you want me to be," Alicia answered. He gave her a quick kiss and offered to put the bracelet on her wrist. She shook her head. "I still don't think I can accept it. I understand about the crush you have on me but you don't need buy me stuff."
"I didn't buy it for you because I have a crush on you. It's more than that."
"More?" Alicia was beginning to wonder what she had managed to get herself into. What more could there be?
"Alicia, I love you. I'm in love with you."
Time seemed to stop for an age. Alicia didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Her first thought was that it was a joke. George was looking too sincere, however. She had so many questions flashing through her mind. All she could manage to say was, "What?"
George smoothed her hair back from her face. "I don't exactly know when it first happened. I finally realised it for what it was when I walked in on you and Oliver. Before that it was just a crush."
Alicia had never had so many extraordinary things happen to her in one day. It was all too much to deal with. "Take the bracelet back, George."
"It's yours now," he said defiantly.
"I'm going back to Gryffindor Tower. I'm tired and I need to think about some stuff. Please take it back," she pleaded gently, holding out her hand.
"I won't accept it back." George closed her hand around the bracelet then kissed her fingers. "It'll always be yours. No matter what happens."
Realising that there was no way out of the situation, Alicia put the bracelet in her pocket and slid off the desk. "I'll see you tomorrow."
"All right."
It definitely wasn't all right. George looked sick with worry. Alicia couldn't stand seeing him in such agony. "There's no need to look so terrified. I think you're gorgeous and perfect."
It wasn't as monumental as I love you, but he relaxed all the same. She gave him a kiss on the cheek and left him standing in the empty classroom. The Ball was still in full swing and didn't look like stopping for a few more hours. Alicia was so emotionally drained that she trudged back to Gryffindor Tower without bothering to tell Angelina or Katie what had happened.
Alicia received curious looks from the first, second and third years who were waiting in the common room for news of the Ball. They didn't bother to ask her any questions and Alicia was glad. All she wanted was peace and quiet.
For a moment she was worried that Katie might have gone back to their room. When she opened the door it was completely empty. She flopped down on her bed and sighed. Talk about a crazy day. In the morning she had thought George hated her only to discover in the evening that he was in love with her. Or had at least convinced himself that he was in love with her.
Alicia wasn't quite sure which one it was yet. She took the bracelet from her pocket and held it in her right hand. She stuck her left hand under her pillow and pulled out the corner of the Daily Prophet that she had torn out earlier. She looked at both items in her hands. Yet another excruciating decision had to be made.
Though painful, this decision turned out to be a lot easier to come by. Alicia was going to be George's girlfriend and make him happy. At the same time she was going to do what was best for herself. She placed the bracelet on her pillow and ducked under her bed and grabbed a quill, ink and some of her finest parchment.
Eventually Alicia would have to tell George about all of it. Until then she would enjoy herself. She smiled to herself as she imagined kissing George again. She may not be in love with him but she would at least enjoy spending time with him.
Alicia steadied herself and began to write.
A/N: Oh my God. That was a draining chapter. This is really the beginning of the end. You probably have a lot of questions. What the hell Alicia is writing? What did the other four get up to after George and Alicia left? You'll find out the latter in the next chapter, which, funnily enough, will be titled Yule Ball Part Two. It will probably be quite a while though. Uni is about to get hectic so I hope this long chapter will keep you going for a while. While you're waiting you have to read 'Confessions of a Teenage Prankster' by SuckerForGrint06!