Disclaimer: Ok, this is FAN-fiction! You shouldn't even need to write one of these…right? Anyway…I don't own Harry Potter or any Harry Potter Characters. I'm just borrowing them.
Summary: When the gang returns to school after the summer holidays, they've changed. Oliver and Fred are finding themselves strangely drawn to Angelina…but she can't be more than a friend…to either of them….right?
Rating: PG.
Note: The character's thoughts will appear in Italics. Sorry if it's confusing. It's been hell trying to get this story up – I screwed it up the first time I tried posting it, so here it is again. For those of you that have me on Author Alert, I hope that it didn't mess you guys up! Happy reading!
Closest Thing to Heaven
© Angelface04
August 8, 2004
There was an uneasy silence as the other five made their way back to the common room. Fred tried to lighten the mood a bit, but no one really laughed. It wasn't the same without George to chime in and Oliver to tell them to stop acting so stupid.
"I still can't believe we got detentions." Alicia's eyes were wide with shock. "I mean, I don't mean to come across as a stuck-up prat or anything, but I haven't had a detention since 2nd year!" Angelina linked onto Alicia's arm.
"You got a detention in second year?" Fred's mouth fell open in mock surprise. "They really give people like you detentions?"
"Oh shut up." Alicia laughed, playfully hitting Fred in the shoulder. They made their way to the common room, and Lee made a great show as Katie tripped over her robes as she came through the portrait hole. They attracted the attention of several others as they entered, and Angelina noticed that quite a few girls where making googly-eyes at Fred. Fred? She was confused. Why Fred?
She watched as he laughed with Lee and then smiled at a few fellow fifth-year girls. She guessed he was pretty cute…his hair had grown a little over the summer and was beginning to curl slightly as it hit his ears and the nape of his neck. He still had his boyish grin and dimples and freckles still danced casually across his nose. He was taller now too, and much more fit than he had ever been. She didn't know that she had been staring until she saw a hand waving in front of her face.
"Hell-o? Anybody there?" Angelina blinked rapidly before turning to look at Katie.
"Yeah – um, sorry, what?" Katie gazed at Angelina with a sly smile on her face.
"Nothing…I see that you're busy" She teased, moving to whisper something to Alicia. Angelina rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but smile. Those guys…
Minutes later they were all sitting around, sprawled on various couches. Fred and Lee were battling it out in Wizard's Chess on the ground in front of the fire. Alicia was feverishly writing on a long roll of parchment (it was Snape's essay) and Katie was reading a magazine. Angelina was curled up on the couch and absent-mindedly scratching her cat, Isis, behind the ears as she watched the boys play chess.
"I wonder where they are," Angelina piped up suddenly.
"Who?" Lee asked without looking up. He groaned as Fred's knight smashed his queen. "I should'a seen that…"
"George and Oliver. I'm worried about them." Katie glanced over her magazine, entitled 133 Easy Charms and Potions.
"They're already in enough trouble. They won't do anything stupid." Fred shot her a look. "Well…Oliver won't do anything stupid.
Alicia stretched suddenly. "Done!" She saw the look that Katie and Angelina shared. "You guys really should get started on your essays. It's only six inches
"Yeah, yeah" They all chorused, but Angelina couldn't help but smile. She loved this – getting back into the swing of things. It was funny how everyone had changed a little over the summer, but they were all still the same. Alicia was still the goody-goody, get-your-homework-done-first girl that she had always been. Fred, George, and Lee were still the goof-offs. Katie was still the best friend that she'd always been, and Oliver…well…maybe some people had changed.
Isis stretched slowly, and then peered over the edge of the couch. Angelina put her down, and she trotted off towards Harry and Ron who were bent over something. Harry glanced up at Angelina, smiled, and then gathered the cat up. Angelina stood, and stretched as well. Checking her watch she groaned.
"It's nearly 8:00 now!" She announced, and Katie put her magazine down in exasperation.
"I still cannot believe he shot off fireworks on the first day!" She exclaimed as she stood.
"Hey, it's George. What can you expect? Checkmate." Fred heaved himself up off of the floor. "Speaking of George – I wonder where he is?"
"Who knows?" Alicia stood as well. Lee was still staring at the chessboard in shock.
"What? How did you - ? I – Hold on -" Fred just laughed, shaking his head.
"Give it up Lee…it's over. You've lost." Lee was shaking his head as he joined the group and they slowly filed out.
Fred watched from a distance as Angelina and Alicia were joking with Lee ahead of him. He felt his gaze drawn to her again. God, he was hopeless. He couldn't stop staring at her. Why hadn't he noticed her like this before? She was absolutely breathtaking. He had always known that she was beautiful – ever since he'd first met her on the Hogwarts Express and had pelted her with Chocolate Frogs he'd known that. But – now – she'd changed…or maybe he had?
"Hey, Fred?
"Yeah," He turned seeing Katie looking up at him. She was shoving some wisps of her blonde hair behind her ear.
"What's the matter?" She looked sincere, her blue-green eyes were penetrating and he looked away.
"It's nothing Kate." He mumbled, fidgeting with an Exploding Snap in his pocket. His eyes somehow found their way back to Angelina. She was still laughing. She looked amazing when she laughed
"My dear, dear Fred" Katie's face was lit up with excitement. "I do believe you're quite taken by my friend.
"Taken?" Fred forced a nervous laugh. "What's that supposed to mean?
Katie gave him a meaningful look. "You tell me.
He was spared from having to answer. They arrived at McGonagall's door and as Alicia knocked, he began talking to Lee.
"Come in." McGonagall's voice came clearly through though the thick oak door. When they entered, they found Oliver sitting in the chair opposite McGonagall, a thoughtful look playing across his face. McGonagall stood when they walked in, her eyes roving over them before she opened her mouth.
"Where is Mr. Weasley?" Fred raised his hand with a playful innocence. McGonagall just glared at him. "Where is your brother?
Fred shrugged. "Haven't seen him." He shot an evocative look at Oliver, who ignored it.
They waited in an awkward silence as the professor pulled out her pocket-watch looked at it, sighed, and closed it again. "He's late." The group stirred restlessly.
"Well…I suppose I can get the rest of you started." She glanced at a piece of
parchment. "Lee, Miss Bell, you will be assisting Professor Snape in the dungeons, helping him do whatever he would like." Angelina shot Katie a sympathetic look. "Alicia you and-" All of the sudden the door burst open and George was standing there, panting.
"Sorry – I-
"You," Professor McGonagall interrupted him. "Will be working with Miss Spinnit helping Mr. Filch clean up the burn stains in the Great Hall where the fireworks scorched the tables and floor.
"I've never heard anyone call Filth – I mean – Filch, Mr. Flich before." Fred quipped softly. George broke into a grin, as did Lee. McGonagall wiped each grin off with a steely glance.
"And Mr. Wood, you will join Fred and Miss Johnson to the Astronomy Tower to help Professor Sinestra clean out the telescopes." Angelina stole a glance at their quidditch captain, who seemed to be looking her way as well. She shrugged, meaning that it wasn't so bad. He cocked an eyebrow.
"Oh yes, and, will each of you please leave your wands here on my desk? You know detention rules – no magic allowed unless previously instructed." They all groaned in unison and forked over their wands, Alicia nearly succumbing to tears at parting with it. Professor McGonagall sat down, perched her glasses on the edge of her nose, and began shifting through parchments. A few moments later she looked up at them. "Well? Hurry on, now, the later you start, the later you stay!" She shooed them out.
"I can't believe this" Alicia moaned as George and her headed off to the Great Hall where Filch would, most surely, be waiting. Fred looked from Oliver to Angelina.
"Well – Here goes!" He exclaimed cheerily, leading the way.
By the time that the trio had made it to the Astronomy Tower, Oliver had already decided that this evening was going to be hell. If it had just been him and Angelina, he would practically be jumping up and down with joy. But, of course, today was a bad day, and nothing was going to go right for him. There Fred and Angelina were, chatting and flirting all the way up the long stairs to the Astronomy Tower. And there he was, sullen, quiet, and alone. When they finally reached it, Professor Sinestra greeted them with a warm smile, and handed them each a bottle of Madam Misty's Multi-Use Polish – Good for Everything From Silver to Shoes! and instructed them to get to work. She stuck around for a few minutes, but, being the laid-back professor that she was, she left, saying that she'd check back often enough to make sure that they weren't goofing off. She gave them a playful wink as she slipped out, her leather shoes making scuffing sounds as she tramped down the stairs.
The sky was darkening, and stars popped out, but it was still warm. After about half-an-hour, they had worked up a good sweat. They peeled off their robes, throwing them into a pile by the doorway.
Oliver listened to Fred and Angelina converse as he polished a telescope slowly. God, Fred was so lucky. He not only had the attention of the prettiest girl in school (Angelina) but every other girl seemed to be drawn too him as well. He was funny, witty, and always knew what to say, and what to do. Girls just fawned over him. All of them. He was forced to realize it now, he liked her. He liked Angelina Johnson. He liked her a lot. He like her so much that – maybe –
"Hey you. Why so quiet?" He smiled for the first time since lunch at her voice. He shrugged.
"I guess I'm still mad at George." He swiped at his telescope once more before moving on to the next one. She followed him.
"Well, what he said about you was low. He had no right to do that to you." Oliver gave a sarcastic chuckle.
"Well, he may not be all that wrong. I've have been acting like a prat lately.
"You're not being a prat." Angelina picked up her rag and began to work on the next telescope. "Hey, could you hand me your polish? I'm all out." Oliver chucked her his polish and smiled as her hand jutted out and caught it swiftly. She always did have good reflexes. "At least," She began, looking up at him. "You're not being a prat to me." He lifted up his head to look at her, but before he could there was a yell.
"Oi! Ange! Check out that shooting star!" Fred ran over next to her, putting his hand on the small of her back and turning her, pointing up to the heavens. Oliver fought down the urge to rip his arm off.
"Did you make a wish?" Fred asked Angelina, slowly removing his hand from her back.
"Of course I did." She smiled.
"Oh yeah? What is it then?" He replied, lifting his eyebrows and crossing his arms.
"I can't tell you." She met his gaze. "Then it wouldn't come true." He laughed.
"Alright then. Fine. I won't tell you mine either.
"I wouldn't want to know yours anyway." Angelina straightened her shoulder's glaring up at him playfully.
"Oh, don't kid yourself. You know that you're infatuated with me." He slid his hands into his pockets.
"In your dreams." She shoved his bottle of polish into his chest. His eyes sparkled as he laughed. They talked a little as they finished up, and Fred couldn't keep his eyes off of her – as usual.
If you only knew Angelina…if you only knew
When Professor Sinestra popped in for the last time, and they were all sitting on the edge of the balcony, she let them go back to their common room. They slowly walked back to their dormitories, taking their time, just because they could. Angelina was walking in-between the two boys, smiling wearily.
"How's that for the first night back?" She laughed, rubbing her arm absently.
"It was splendid." Fred announced with a flourish. "Brought back many school memories.
She laughed again. Fred loved to make her laugh.
"I'm sure it did." She glanced at Oliver. He hadn't said a word the entire way back. He was staring straight ahead, an impenetrable mask on his face.
"What's up Ol?" Fred finally asked. "You've been quiet all night.
"Nothing." He replied a little too quickly, not even directing his gaze.
Angelina shared a worried look with Fred. He shrugged. She sighed. She was worried about Oliver…he wasn't normally like this.
When they arrived in the common room, the fire was lit and it was still bustling with students, doing homework, playing games, and talking of their summer vacation. Fred wasn't surprised to see that Lee, Katie, Alicia, and George were still gone. They had really lucked out on the whole detention thing.
"Wonder if Filch'll ever let Ôem go." Angelina wondered aloud, taking a seat in a big armchair.
"Not until that place is absolutely spotless." Fred replied, smiling. Wood scurried upstairs and then back down with a piece of parchment and quill. Fred stole a glance at it and wasn't the least bit surprised to see that it was quidditch plays. It wasn't long before they heard familiar voices outside the Fat Lady's portrait and George and Alicia bustled in, looking tired, but happy none-the-less. When they entered the room George stopped abruptly. Oliver glared in his direction, and George, in turn, glared right back.
"I'm going to bed." Oliver announced, gathering his stuff up roughly and stalking up the stairs.
"Good!" George growled after him, taking his seat. "I can't stand that git. He's always acting like he's better than everyone else. God, he thinks quidditch captian means King of the World or something!
"He's not that bad." Angelina defended him. Three heads whipped around in her direction. "I mean – there's no right to say that when you did the same thing to him." She stammered out. "Look, I'm gonna go check on him." She heaved herself up, not noticing that Fred's eyes followed her all the way up the stairs.
She was lingering outside his dormitory. She had been for nearly ten minutes now. She knew most of his other roommates would probably be asleep, and so she didn't want to wake them up by knocking. She took a deep breath, smoothed her hair back, and opened the door.
The second she did Oliver's head whipped around. He looked as if he'd just gotten out of the shower. He was still wet and topless, with only a pair of pajama pants on. She gasped, knowing that her dark skin was now a deep burgundy.
"Sorry – I – I didn't –" She stammered quietly. He was just staring at her. "I'll just go – I – I um – G'night." She turned to flee, but he grabbed her arm.
"No,wait..." She had never noticed how tan he was…summer quidditch practice surely paid off...
Stop, Angelina, you're staring…She scolded herself.
"What did you need?" He let go of her arm gingerly. She fought to control her shallow breathing.
"I – uh- just wanted to see if you were alright. You've been really quiet all day.
"Oh, " He turned, walking into his room a little ways. She followed. "I've, I've just been thinking." He began softly, staring at into the deep cinnamon color of her eyes.
"Really?" She breathed. "What about?
"Different things." His voice began to soften as he moved towards her, ever so slowly. "Quidditch," He stepped forward. "School," Another step. "Detention," Another step. "Me," He was only inches away from her now. He leaned closer, so that his lips were right above her ear. She shivered slightly. He was so close to her. "You." She barely heard the word but when she did she gasped.
Me?
"But – Oliver, I-" His had came up to her cheek, brushing it slightly. She was confused. He wanted to sort it out for her.
Don't you get it? I'm trying to tell you something…His finger traced an invisible pattern on her skin. She was so beautiful.
She closed her eyes, sighing before they fluttered open slowly. Her eyes traveled up to his.
"Oliver," She started, but stopped herself as he gently kissed her forehead. She felt her heart constrict in her chest.
Oliver we can't…I can't
"You are so beautiful." He sighed. She smelled like faint vanilla. He liked it. It suited her. His thumb fell from her cheek to her lips, tracing them softly. She smiled slightly at his touch. He felt her hands slowly rise from her sides, coming to rest on his arm. Her edges of her lips turned up ever so slightly, though her eyes held a sad, sorrowful look. She pulled his hand gently away from her face.
"We can't do this Oliver. Not now." She whispered. "I'm sorry.
He stiffened, drawing back as if he'd been stung. In a way, he had been.
"Right" He said huskily, turning his back to her and gazing out the window. You should have realized that she's crazy about Fred. The realization of this hurt more than he could ever have imagined.
She could clearly define every muscle of his back. She wanted to feel every one.
"Well – um – see you," She managed, giving him a fleeting look as she retreated down the steps.
Hmm….how's that for the end of a chapter? I didn't really feel a flow when I was writing this, so if it seems kinda funky…like it was constructed out of random strips of paper, it probably was.
Do you want to find out more? You know what you have to do!
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