Who needed makeup to play Quidditch? Lucy did apparently. She hadn't been able to go without knowing George would be at practice. With how embarrassing her skills would be she almost begged Oliver to cancel the practice. Almost. And then she realized what better way to try and connect to George? He liked Quidditch and she'd always wanted to be able to play. What better way to stick out from the other girls who might be vying for his attention?
She hadn't forgotten Angelina's words. Nothing about George seemed childish and she wrote the bitchy words off as bitterness toward an ex and his brother. If he was a womanizer, she'd have to ask Oliver about it. He'd known George for years. Who better to go to if she wanted to truth? She set her pile of food down on the little shaded table. Maybe she'd overdone the cooking and baking too, but she'd promised Oliver she'd provide snacks. If she had any opportunities to impress George she was going to accept them with enthusiasm. She hoped he liked pizza rolls. And orange cookies. And pumpkin cookies. And cut up fruit with homemade fruit dip.
"I said snacks. You didn't need to bring a whole meal." Oliver eyed up the food.
She shrugged. "This is my payment for the help, right? I can't half-ass that."
"No way will we be able to eat it all. Can I take some of it with me?"
She grinned. "Sure thing. I brought baggies for that very reason." Then George could eat her cookies this week while thinking of her. A girl could dream.
He nodded. "The twins will be here in about an hour. Apparently they are getting a new stock of inventory today so they are working late, which gives us time to warm you up."
"You've known them a long time, right? The twins, I mean." She pulled her hair into a ponytail.
"Yeah, since they started Hogwarts. Why?"
"I was just wondering what you thought of George." She cringed at herself. Way to be overly obvious.
His eyes narrowed. "Why George?"
She hadn't told him about the impromptu date yet. She was too worried about what he might think. This early in on getting her feet on the ground in England wasn't the time to start up bad blood with Oliver over dating one of his old friends and a womanizer at that. "Curious is all. Come on, I'm ready to practice." She flexed her hands, the leather gloves feeling restrictive. Her stomach roiled.
"Are you sure? Because you look ready to vomit all over my feet."
"No, I can do this. I want to do this. I've always wanted to play and that's what moving here is all about, right? Having an adventure and being the me I want to be."
His face softened. "Are you doing all right, Luce?" His nickname for her. It'd been a while since she'd heard it from him. She took the nickname as a good sign. There had been some initial awkwardness when it came to seeing each other in person for the first time in years when she first came to England. With their communication mostly via writing letters on a weekly basis in the past, it'd taken some time to get accustomed to their new mode of in-person communication.
"I'm fine. I went to a book lecture with Hermione this week. It was good to get out with another girl. And I've been exploring more of the area. I'm starting to feel more familiar with my new home. Really it's nice to be away from him." She refused to use her ex's name. He didn't deserve it. Not after the way he reacted after discovering she wasn't a pureblood. He could go to Hell alongside the blonde he was having an affair with.
"Hermione likes you. Ginny too." He climbed onto his broom. "How bout we start with some flying exercises to get you out of your comfort zone? Then we can give you the quaffle and we can toss it back and forth."
"Whatever you think is best. Just don't get too far away." If he went too far and she found herself alone, she might panic. She felt lucky George hadn't questioned her insistence on using the trains. How to explain she used to love flying up until last year after she broke up with her ex? Then two of his friends who'd joined up with the American version of the Death Eaters came after her for revenge and knocked her from her broom. Sometimes she could fly without a problem. Other times those same nightmares of falling from her broom that used to plague her as a child came back, this time with the memories of hitting the ground and hearing the pop of her wrist breaking.
"I'll stay right beside you." He laid a hand on her shoulder and stared her in the eye. "You can do this Luce. If something is too much tell me, okay?"
"I will, but I don't want to be a wuss. I need you to push me. As long as you stay with me I can do this. You have no idea how envious I feel when I watch you play. You make it look so easy."
"We'll start simple and work our way up. Follow me, okay?" He started with a simple trip around the Quidditch pitch. Her pounding pulse calmed as she flew. After the third pass she felt ready when Oliver dived toward the ground and pulled up only feet from hitting the grass. He continued putting her through different dives, spins, and dodges, ending with making her go right through a goal hoop upside down.
Her legs brushed the top of the hoop and a shot of adrenaline coursed through her. Instead of getting afraid, the feeling exhilarated her. She readjusted her grip on the broom and made a second pass for good measure. Getting used to carrying the quaffle under one arm was a different matter. With only one hand on the broom she had to readjust her balance, rely less on her grip.
"Throw it to me!" Oliver called. "We'll start while you are sitting still then move up to tossing it up and down the pitch."
She raised up, ready to throw the ball. Then she tilted sideways as her heart jumped into her throat. She readjusted and tossed the quaffle. She missed. The ball went wide, but Oliver zoomed left and down quick enough to catch it before it reached the ground. It took her two more tries before she tossed it right into Oliver's lap. Then they zoomed up and down the pitch, passing the quaffle back and forth. Whenever they reached the goal post she would try to land a goal. The first attempt bounced of the ring. The second flew too low. The third attempt made it in and then ricocheted off the side and back out the way it'd gone in.
She took a deep breath as she started back down the pitch. Oliver moved farther away, forcing her to throw harder. She heaved the ball in his direction. A figure appeared between them, snatching the quaffle before it could reach Oliver. He tossed it over Sarah's head and to the redhead on the other side. She squinted at the first red head. Had to be George judging by his hair and the green headband he wore to keep it out of his eyes. Fred caught the quaffle and tossed it her way. Oliver zoomed ahead to play Keeper. As simple as that they melded into practice together. Not once did she manage to get a quaffle past Oliver. No surprise there.
An hour passed before they called it a night. Oliver made the time-out sign and the twins shot toward the table of food together. Oliver caught up with Lucy halfway to the ground.
"You doing okay? You're getting better. A few more practices and you will be game ready. Just don't get any hopes about going pro."
"I think it's going to take a lot longer for me to get on the same level as the rest of your friends." She landed and her right arm threatened to drop her broom. Her arm felt like jelly after all the throwing she'd done. Sweat trickled down the back of her shirt. She wiped her face with the rag Oliver tossed her and hoped she didn't smell as gross as she felt.
"Brings back memories of us as kids when you visited England. Remember how we stayed outside most of the visit to play, even in the rain? We snuck away on brooms a few times."
"I remember. Took long enough for us to get to play Quidditch together, didn't it?" She remembered why they stayed outside. Not because they wanted to play but because they wanted to avoid the arguing adults. The surprise trip hadn't gone as her parents had hoped. If anything it only made family tensions worse and left her family with no hope the Brits would ever accept the American branch. It also started her and Oliver's secret correspondence. They adults could argue about things that happened before Oliver and Lucy were born all they wanted, but Lucy and Oliver decided not to be a part of it.
"Looks like your food is a hit." He wiped the back of his neck down, his gaze on the twins. Both Fred and George held a cookie in each hand. "It's the only way you'll be able to get them to practice with us. They aren't as wed to the game as I am."
"No one is as wed to Quidditch as you." She made her way to the table, her throat dry and scratchy.
She grabbed her bottle of water and chugged half of it down. When she lowered it, she found the twins watching her.
"Great practice today, yeah?" George said.
Fred nodded. "Lucy would be the best chaser at the local care home. Those old folks wouldn't be able to keep up with her."
"Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence." She pointed at her hair. "Cute headband, George." Wearing her cat underwear may not have been such a bad choice after all. Who better to appreciate them than the redhead who wore a headband fit for a leprechaun?
He rested a hand on one hip while turning sideways. The pose made him look like a terrible runway model. "Thanks. I think the rainbows and pots of gold really bring my hairstyle together."
"It's almost as cute as the one covered in unicorns," Fred said.
Oliver reached past Lucy for his drink. "She's going to need practice dodging bludgers next. Gentle bludgers." He emphasized the gentle.
"I don't know." Lucy chewed on her bottom lip. "Might be best if I stick to watching."
"Nonsense," Fred and George said in unison.
"Are you sure you're related to Oliver?" Fred asked.
"You don't have even a quarter of his love for Quidditch," George finished.
"Very funny," Oliver grumbled.
"Hey, did you talk to Ginny yet this week?" Fred asked him. "She has something important for you."
Oliver groaned. "Don't tell me she's trying to set me up on another blind date."
George gave Lucy a shy smile as Oliver continued to grumble at Fred. "You going to The Leaky Cauldron for lunch Thursday?"
"Usually do." She reached for a cookie to hide her nerves. "You?"
"Probably. Wanna eat together? I still have some candy left. I hid it before Fred got a chance to eat it all."
"Sure." Excitement shot through her veins. She'd get to see him again. Alone. "Have you started a new book yet?"
"Yeah, a muggle one about spaceships. It's fascinating. You can borrow it when I'm done if you want." So he was interested in muggle books then? Her ex had looked down on anything muggle related.
"I'd love to." She couldn't remember the last time she read a book about a space ship, but if George liked it she'd pick it up in a heart beat.
"George, can we talk?" Oliver grabbed him by the arm and dragged him away.
"Looks like Georgie got himself in trouble with your cousin." Fred grabbed his third cookie. "Did you really bake these? I know for a fact Oliver is a terrible cook."
"We're distantly related. We share the same grandmother and I don't think he spends enough time away from Quidditch to cook well. What's with Ginny trying set him up on dates?"
Fred finished the cookie in one bite. "Thinks it'd be good for him to get back on the dating scene. Once his fiancée left, well he's gotten more obsessed with Quidditch than before."
"I noticed. I've been trying to get him out more. He toured me around part of London last week." She smiled, remembering how much fun it'd been. He'd hunted down a large bookstore just for her and they ended the excursion with ice cream. And the best part? Not once did he mention Quidditch. Or their families. As an only child, being with Oliver was everything she dreamed having a brother would be like.
Fred began to reach for a pizza roll and then stopped. His shoulders tensed as he watched Oliver and George. Oliver's hands waved wildly in the air. George crossed his arms over his chest.
"Are they fighting?" Lucy gaped. Then Oliver sprang at George, tackling him onto the grass.
"You bastard, not my Luce!" Oliver let out a snarl as he grabbed George by the shirt.
George's hands fisted as he resisted slugging Oliver. His face turned red as Oliver shook him. "If you don't let me go you're going to walk away with a black eye," he threatened.
Fred shot past Lucy. He grabbed Oliver under the arms and hauled him off George. "Get off him. What's gotten into you?"
Oliver tugged out of Fred's grip and climbed back to his feet. He jabbed a finger in George's direction. "I don't care what you do to other women, but Luce deserves better than to have her heart broken by you."
"Oliver! I can make my own decisions," she protested.
George let out a huff as he sat up. "Of all people I didn't expect you to fall for Angelina's lies. I thought you knew me—us—better than that. So much for being able to count on my friends, eh?" He shot to his feet and stalked over to his broom. His face and the tips of his ears blazed red. Without another word he flew off, rocketing away as fast as his broom could carry him.
"Don't touch George again," Fred jabbed Oliver in the chest.
"He slept with my cousin and I know his reputation." Oliver squared his shoulders as he faced Fred.
"You think you know everything because of lies Angelina was spouting? I never thought I'd have to clarify to you that George never kissed her. In fact I walked in just in time to see her attempt to kiss him. We broke up for good after the second go around because she decided she'd rather have George. Called him the responsible one. The respectable one." Fred's face turned as red as George's had, his anger alight for everyone to see.
"What about the other women? His womanizing?"
"As if he has a choice!" Fred's hands fisted as he took a step back. "Enough women have carved chunks out of his heart already. Do you know what dating is like for us? The women who want a taste of the Weasely twins before they settle down? With the store taking off we get the money hungry ones now too. Never had to worry about that before when we were just the poor Weasley twins and not the Jokesters of Diagon Alley." He sucked in a breath. "George wants to settle down and he deserves to. Hell even I want to settle down, but the reputation I made a mistake in sowing at Hogwarts still follows us. If you want to blame someone blame me, not him."
Oliver stared at him. His mouth flopped open.
Fred let out a growl. "If you don't apologize to George this friendship is over and that means George and I are off your team. You can find yourself new beaters."
Lucy reached for Oliver's shoulder and Fred's attention spun to her. His nostrils flared but he didn't say a word. He trudged off to get his broom and follow after George.
"Apologize tomorrow, okay?" Lucy patted Oliver's back. She glanced up at the sky. As badly as she wanted to chase after George, she had no clue where to find him. Plus she was probably the last person he wanted to see right now. All she could do was hope he showed up Thursday so she could make things right.
Oliver nodded, his gaze glued to the ground. "I'm sorry. I can't even keep my own life in order and now I'm screwing everyone else's up."
"Sit down." Lucy pulled him to the grass. "Tell me what's going on."
Oliver flopped onto his back and stared up at the passing clouds. It took him a minute before he was ready to talk. "The breakup with Carina left me feeling lost I guess. I thought I was going to marry her. And then she took a job in Germany and left me behind. Some days I still find myself hoping she moves back to England."
"You need to find a way to let her go. If she does come back, do you really want a woman who ran off with less than a month's notice?"
"I suppose not. I should let Ginny set me up. Not like I know of anyone myself." He grabbed a handful of grass. "I'm afraid the next one will take off the same way Carina did. I went from feeling like I had everything figured out to wondering where my life is even going. And with rumors about my coach planning to make his nephew the reserve keeper next year, I'm worried about my spot on the team."
"I thought you said you were trying out for the keeper position on the main team?"
"I am, but it's still up in the air whether the other one is going to bow out after this season. Keeps saying he wants to spend more time with his family and less time traveling. Losing Carina was one thing but losing my position on the team is another. Feels like everything is slipping through my fingers and I can't stop it."
"Then plan. You know what I did when I felt that way? I started over and moved here. You can't give up. You gotta keep going. There are other teams in England you can try out for. And when it comes to dating you need to put yourself out there. As a handsome Quidditch player you'll have it in the bag. Do you have any idea of how many girls dream about dating a pro Quidditch player?"
A ghost of a smile crossed his lips. "A lot?"
"Exactly."
He sat up and ran a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry if I screwed things up between you and George. If you want to date him, I promise I'll respect your decision."
"Tell me about this whole womanizer thing. I got the feeling he might be one, but what Fred said…what do you know?"
Oliver twirled a piece of grass across around his finger. "I shouldn't say anything. If what Fred said is true I don't want to give you the wrong impression. I guess with everything else falling apart for me I was too eager to protect you. Fred was right too, I should have known better. George has never let me down, on or off the Quidditch pitch."
"As long as you promise to apologize to them I'll forgive you, but you need to tell me something first. Where is their shop in Diagon Alley?"
Oliver was right, the shop was impossible to miss. And with their name right on the Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes sign searching for it wouldn't have taken long despite her little game with George. Colorful lights flashed through the windows followed by laughter. No way could she have walked past this place without noticing it.
She clutched the container of leftover pizza rolls and cookies to her chest and marched inside. Customers dotted the store, several looking like they were out on a late lunch break. With school in session she didn't have to worry about students filling the place up. The shop was well…colorful. The split floors and balconies looking over the center of the shop added a whimsical charm.
She stopped in front of a bubblegum pink display with pink mist bubbling over the edges. Hearts floated up from the mist only to pop in time for new ones to take their place. Love potions. Her best friend had used one on her boyfriend back in school when he decided to breakup with her. They got back together for all of literally an hour before the potion wore off and so did his newly found love.
"You'd better not be planning to use one of those on my brother."
She jumped. She'd never realized how tall Fred and George were. The extra head of height Fred had on her made him intimidating with the way he watched her. His shamrock-green suit trimmed in gold showed a similar figure to George's. No wonder girls wanted a taste of the twins with the way they pulled off suits. Too bad Fred was wed to the role of overprotective brother. Getting past him without becoming enemies was going to be tricky.
"Well?"
She shook her head and held onto the container for dear life. "I'm here to apologize for what happened. I brought cookies and pizza rolls. George didn't get to have any of the rolls and he wasn't at The Leaky Cauldron today so I figured I'd bring them over. And I was curious about the shop too." The blank stare she received warned her she was blabbering. "Is George here?"
"Maybe." He shoved his hands into his pockets, his pocket watch jingling from the movement.
She let out a sigh of frustration. "Can you tell me where he is?"
"Why should I?"
"So I can have the chance to apologize. And so you can both have these." She held up the plastic box. "And because I want to see him and I'm sure you are a fine gentleman who always goes out of his way to help a damsel in distress."
He smirked at her last line. "He's near the register doing card tricks."
"Thank you." She took a step forward before pausing to look back at him. "You look like a leprechaun in that suit by the way." She darted off, too afraid to see if she'd provoked him. If he was going to be insufferable, she'd get under his skin too.
A small crowd surrounded George. A round of "ahh's" and light applause went up when the cards shot from hand to hand in an arc before he took a bow. "Thank you. If you want to learn some tricks of your own don't forget to check out the cards display." The crowd drifted away and the charming smile George wore dropped like a mask. When he spotted her he did a double take.
"I brought you these as an apology for what happened the other day." She shoved the container into his hands. "You liked the cookies and didn't get to try the rolls so I brought you some." She resisted asking why he hadn't been at the pub for lunch. He had likely been avoiding her and she didn't want to hear it from him.
"Rolls?" His brow knit in confusion.
"Pizza rolls. And I really am sorry."
"It's okay, Oliver already apologized. He came over to our place with a bottle of Bourbon last night."
Ah, of course Oliver knew where they lived. She should have thought to have asked, but wouldn't that make her a creepy stalker?
"Come on." He headed into the room behind the cash register. A little lounge filled the space. The shop's logo hung on the back wall with pictures of Fred and George beneath it. He plopped onto an arm chair and gestured for her to do the same.
"I should apologize for something else too. Fred was being frustrating so I told him he looks like a leprechaun. Sorry." She lowered herself into the chair across from George.
He laughed. "Don't worry, he enjoys a good insult." He opened up the container and shoved an orange cookie into his mouth. Then he snacked while he used his wand to float the container onto the coffee table. "What do you think of the shop?"
"Definitely not a sex shop. I don't know how to answer you outside of that. This place is a bit indescribable."
His eyes lit up as he nodded. "That's what we try to aim for."
"Then I'd say you're doing a good job of it." She rubbed her arm. "Can I see you again?" She shifted in her seat, squeezing her hands together. "I mean, I'd like to but I understand if you don't want to after what happened."
"Can I ask you something?"
"Sure." Her palms sweat. He was avoiding the question and that couldn't spell good news for her.
"What's the deal with your family and Oliver's? He mentioned the American branch isn't accepted."
"Family drama long before we were born. Basically Oliver's mother is from our grandma's first marriage. When her husband died she remarried an American muggle who was in London on business. The family refused to accept the match so she ran off to America with him. Oliver's mom had just graduated school and refused to go with her. The whole family has refused to welcome us back even though Oliver's mother and mine are half-sisters."
She cleared her throat and wiped her sweaty palms on her leggings before continuing. The way he watched in silence made her unsure of what he made of the story. "My mom's always had this thing about wanting to fit in with the rest of the family. She brought me over with her when I was a kid and that's how I met Oliver. The family wouldn't let us stay with them, but Oliver and I would sneak off and play together. I guess our letters back and forth after that started as a bit of rebellion. Unfortunately my mom has always taken being disowned by the family pretty hard. It ended up breaking up my parent's marriage in the end. And if you haven't figured it out yet I'm not a pureblood."
"Your grandmother, did she stay in love with her muggle husband?"
"Madly so, even after he died. She followed a few months after him. She took being disowned by her own daughter hard, but her and grandpa were always so happy together. I remember they used to write each other love letters and hide them around the house. We discovered my grandma kept every letter he ever wrote her. Found a large stack of them in her desk. As a kid I didn't understand why the family cared so much about him not having magic, and then I grew up and learned how much some people care about being pureblooded." She wondered what he thought of mudbloods. Would he scorn her over her heritage?
George leaned forward to rest his head on his hand. "Their love story sounds tragically romantic. I can't imagine running so far or leaving so much behind to be with someone. I guess Oliver got the less romantic side of the family, eh? I don't think he has a romantic bone in him. He thought getting a signed hat by one of Carina's favorite Quidditch teams was the height of romance. She didn't know who half the players were either."
Lucy smiled. "Sounds about right."
"Your story explains a lot though. Oliver always made sure to get to Hogsmeade to buy you birthday and Christmas gifts. Fred and I sometimes helped him pick stuff out. Fred and I never understood why he cared so much about some American cousin he never visited."
"He has a way of making other people's problems his own. He just wants to help. That's why his emotions were running high at practice. He's been worried about me and I can't say I blame him. Not after I was thrown off my broom and well…" She swallowed. "He has a big heart is all. Too big sometimes."
George stood. Her hands shook as he approached her, one hand in his pocket in that devil-may-care style of his. Her heart rate spiked. "I'd like to see you again too." He leaned down and pressed his lips against hers. She grabbed a hold of his gold tie, keeping him from pulling away too quickly. He smelled like he'd been in a coffee shop and the scent felt intoxicating.
He chuckled. "I think someone likes being kissed."
"Knock knock." Fred strolled in, breaking the kiss up. "I came for your cookies, George. Where'd you hide them?" Spotting the container, he pounced.
George shook his head at his twin. "How about a tour around the shop while Fred plays cookie monster?"
"Apparently we're playing leprechauns today," Fred said as he sat down and dug into a pizza roll.
George wrapped an arm around Lucy's shoulders and led her out. "Allow me to give you the official Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes tour, complete with a sneak peek of our new product that's hitting shelves next week."
"Yes!" She scooted closer to him, pressing herself against his side. When they turned the corner she caught sight of Fred watching them with suspicion. Whether he liked her or not she wasn't about to let him stand in her way of getting George. To seduce George she'd have to win Fred over too and she didn't have the foggiest idea of how to do that.