She stared up at the climbing wall in front of her. It had to be at least fifteen feet tall which meant…she stopped to do the math in her mind, the obstacle before her slowing her calculations…over four meters. The obstacle course looked like a grown-up playground, except too high up. A magical net shimmered a few feet beneath the course whenever the sun caught it at the right angle, but when the sun disappeared behind a cloud it looked like there was nothing at all to break someone's fall. She'd seen a few courses like this becoming popular in the muggle world, but hadn't realized magical versions existed. From the looks of things, the magical versions were far more terrifying with pieces enchanted to spin, drop, and generally make the course harder.
"I see a lot of ropes," she said as she eyed up a rope bridge that would require scaling it to get to the next platform.
"Yep, sure do," Fred said cheerfully.
Of course she did. She should have known better. "Have you done this before?"
"Quite a few times. George and I always come together in the spring because that's when they change it up for the year. Now I'm just getting in some extra runs before winter hits."
She blew out a breath of resignation and mimicked the stretches Fred was doing to warm up. George had sent her in his place and the last thing she wanted to do was let him down by wimping out. For some reason flying on a broom felt like a piece of cake compared to that rope bridge or the spinning and shifting stepping stones she spotted. But this was the perfect chance to push herself to be more adventurous, a goal she was currently regretting.
"You're up!" the attendant said as he waved them forward. The man's long, shaggy hair made him look like an old-fashioned hippie and the comic books sitting beside his chair gave her no confidence that he would be watching for trouble. "Shouldn't we be wearing safety gear or something?" She flexed her hands. Fred had suggesting her buying the grip gloves in the small shop on site before they got started. Too bad they didn't sell knee pads and helmets too.
"No. The magic nets will catch you if you fall and you can climb right back up."
"So you expect me to just…climb up." She stared up at the wall. It felt twice as tall as it actually was. "I've never done this sort of thing before." She was glad for the gloves. The way her palms sweated would have made climbing impossible without them.
"It's easy and this one is a straight-forward climb. Use the bigger hold for your feet." Fred started climbing, moving up the wall so quickly he made it look like a piece of cake. He paused halfway to peer down at her. "Come on. Hands first then feet. Keep looking up instead of down."
She sucked in a deep breath as she reached for two hand holds. Her gloves made holding on easy, but a lump formed in her throat once she got both feet on the wall. She felt as if she tried to move she'd slide down. Her grip tightened. For George, she reminded herself. She could do this. Walking away would only make her regret it and feel ashamed when she told George. Except she couldn't figure out where to reach to next and felt stuck already.
"Put your right hand up on the next blue hold." Fred pointed down to it.
Her head whipped around. With her tunnel vision focused on the hand holds above her head she hadn't noticed Fred climbing back down. He hung on the wall beside her. She reached for the hold he mentioned.
"Now your right foot up to the next hold," he instructed, mirroring the movements. "Good." He continued murmuring directions as they climbed side by side. She focused on his voice and refused to look down. His directions didn't give her time to pause and panic. Up and up she went at an even pace.
Once she made it half way, she'd gotten a hang of the climb. Noticing her growing comfort, Fred grinned, his gentle, coaxing voice turning mischievous. "Race you to the top." He picked up the pace, each movement confident and smooth.
She moved faster, but not nearly fast enough to keep up with him. When her left foot slipped trying to find the next hold, her throat skipped a beat. Then she noticed Fred was almost to the top and she let her competitive side drive her upward. By the time she reached the top, he was sitting on the platform, one leg dangling over, the other bent as he watched her finish the climb. "You left me!" she cried as she scrambled onto the platform.
"You made it up, didn't you? You didn't need my help anymore."
She crossed her arms, lips forming an angry pout. "You didn't need to leave me alone."
"I didn't leave, I was just above you." He flicked her nose. "Just you wait, we'll have you climbing a real mountainsides in no time."
She wrinkled her nose at him. "I think you're getting ahead of yourself there. I don't know if you can tempt me into real rock climbing."
"You will want to by the time you finish the obstacle course. I'll bet ice cream on it."
"Ice cream?"
"Yeah, didn't you notice it at the shop? The ice cream scoops here are huge and almost too big for their cones." He climbed onto his feet, his good mood about the obstacle overriding the fact that she'd taken George's spot. "Onto the rope bridge!" He pointed forward as he marched on.
"I'm already seeing too much rope for comfort. You should have told me there'd be so much rope."
He rolled his eyes "Why, so you could back out before you made it this far? No way. George sent you in his place and you are doing this course even if I have to carry you through it or George will blame me for you not making it through."
"I think you mean for that to be reassuring, but it sounds like a threat instead." The rope bridge swayed in the gust of wind. The bridge hung like a sideways ladder. They'd have to climb across the rope rungs.
"Is this a bad time to warn you the course gets harder as it goes?"
"Yes. Yes it is."
"Then think of the ice cream at the end." He stopped at the rope bridge and gave her an elegant bow. "Ladies first."
She hesitated as the wind calmed down.
"As long as you hold on you won't fall." He nudged her forward, giving her no choice but to step onto the bridge. The climbing wall had been embarrassing enough. She shook off his nudge and pushed herself onward, her stomach lurching every time it swayed from her movements.
She searched for a distraction. Anything to keep her from thinking about the wind and swaying. "What will it take to get you to give up whatever's been bothering George since he came home? Something happened that you two aren't telling me about, didn't it?" She stopped climbing to look back at him.
"He's just traumatized from the awful coffee and tea the Ministry keeps stocked. It's a miracle he survived that torture." The lightness in his voice sounded forced. "They don't even use loose leaf tea, just cheap sachets. Can you imagine?"
"Clearly not for the faint of heart then," she said as she reached for the next rung on the ladder. "What if I buy you an ice cream cone? Will you give up the secret?"
He scoffed. "At the very least offer me a new Nimbus broom. How cheap do you think my loyalty is?"
She stopped again on the ladder, one third of the way to go. Her arm muscles ached from how tense she kept them. "You're right. I can't afford you, so how about I refuse to keep going instead and keep you stuck over there?"
Fred's eyes narrowed and then he jumped onto the ladder, sending it swaying. She let out a yelp and pressed herself against the rungs. "There are two sides to this ladder and I will climb right on past you."
She held on for dear life as he climbed across, the ladder swaying and shaking with his progress. "Is the secret really that bad?"
He continued until he was across from her, their hands side by side on the ladder. "George is fine. It's more like he is dealing with my shit, not his own. And he's a little worried about all the expanding we've been doing lately with the shop. We both are. It's all big steps for us and we've never expanded this fast before. We were going to focus on getting our WonderWitch products stocked, then the requests came in from Germany and France."
"It's a good thing you have me now. I'll have more marketing materials ready this week, not just for the WonderWitch line but some of your joke stuff too. And George already scheduled me in for the empty day shifted that needed another warm body. I even learned how to make coffee yesterday."
He continued on the ladder, passing right over her, sending the bridge shaking again. "I don't understand how an American doesn't know how to make coffee."
"I only bought it out and we never had any at home when I was a kid. At least I know how to make tea.
"I don't see a barista career in your future. Why didn't you go into marketing?"
"I was good at it, but I was dumb enough to fall for that saying 'Do what you love and you'll never work a day in your life.' Editing felt more fun, but I think I enjoy having time to read whatever I want back. And technically I did stay in marketing to an extent. It was part of my job, just with a focus on books instead. Marketing had the most say over what the company published. A good book isn't enough to succeed anymore, a marketing plan is the key to sales."
Fred hit the platform and she waited for the bridge to calm before continuing. Reaching the next platform gave her a small rush. "You're distracting me because you don't want to say the truth. Have you gotten yourself into trouble?"
"You ask that like you've never met me, but no, this time I'm trying to keep myself out of trouble." He turned to face the next obstacle, a rope swing that put them on a platform almost level with the pond below. Once they reached the lower platform, they'd have to climb up what looked like a jungle gym, except this one spiraled and humped in a few places. There was even a water spout shooting up in the middle of it that would provide a challenge as it blocked the view to the other side, making it harder to plot a course up the behemoth.
"Please tell me you aren't agonizing over something you shouldn't be again. You're good at the torturous self-angst."
"Wow, thanks," he said, sarcasm dripping from his words. "Just for that I'm not offering any help on this one." He grabbed the rope swing and pushed off from the platform. As she watched him go she realized if she didn't time her swing right she would miss the next platform and wind up in the water. Or the magical net. She couldn't tell which. Fred of course landed the platform without a hitch. Once he let go of the rope, the enchantment on it floated it right back up to its resting spot on her platform. Fred climbed partially onto the crazy jungle gym, taking a seat on one of the bars and watching her with a look that said "I'm waiting." But he wasn't blazing on without her, and for that she was grateful. However Fred did tap an imaginary watch on his wrist, getting his point across.
The only thing that would be worse than being too afraid to do the course would be having Fred as her witness. She could imagine his jokes easily enough. And her own shame and anger at herself for not being able to push on. It was easier to look at Fred and wish she could be fearless like him than to actually do it. If this was her chance, she needed to take it. She held her breath and pushed away from the platform, holding in the scream threatening to erupt. Her stomach dropped, giving her that same feeling that rollercoasters gave her. It made her whole body clench.
"Don't close your eyes!"
She hadn't even realized she'd done it. Her eyes opened in time to see Fred reaching for her. She slammed into him and she gasped in surprise. He held his ground, his arms wrapping around her to keep her from flying off the platform with the rope. His body felt hot against hers, his cologne making her want to nuzzle her face against his neck to breathe it in better. To hear him whisper he'd always keep her safe in a husky voice while those toned arms of his wrapped around her.
Without warning he dropped her, ruining her fantasy in one fell swoop and leaving her reeling in more ways than one. She grabbed at his arms to keep herself upright and on the platform, her thoughts spinning in circles in shame at the fantasy. The guilt burrowed deep, but the surprise at herself ran just as deep. Where'd those feelings come from?
"New rule: no closing your eyes. A proper adventurer doesn't close their eyes. You keep them wide open so you see everything. Otherwise you'll walk right off a platform."
"I didn't mean to," she said, the words coming out as a whine. "And in my defense I wasn't expecting an adventure today."
"Rule two," he said, holding up two fingers, "unexpected adventure is the best kind of adventure. Don't complain about it, embrace it."
"That sounds like two separate rules."
He clicked his tongue. "You are breaking the rule again by complaining. Now let me see you climb with your eyes wide open the whole time." He widened his eyes in emphasis. He turned and jumped onto the next obstacle. She scrambled after him, but like before he quickly gained the lead, the fountain of water making it hard to spot him.
After a few minutes she paused, staring up. The spirals and bends made each few feet harder than the last. The water spray made some of the rungs slippery, making her glad once again Fred had thought to get her a good pair of gloves. She plotted out her path out, searching for the easiest route that avoided her climbing directly through the water.
"Are you coming?" Fred called down. "Do you need me to make a cheer about your name to pump you up?"
"Please don't," she called back. "I'm coming
"I can't think of anything to rhyme with your name."
"Just stop thinking." She reached for the next rung and then the next. As she twisted around to the back of the water spout again, Fred came into view. He gave her a slow clap and refused to stop until she sat on the platform beside him, their feet dangling over the side. They rested for a minute, the drops of water hitting them from the spout cooling them off. She savored her victory. There was plenty of course left to do, but she'd come this far. And once she got past the fear, it was fun and so unlike anything she'd ever done. No wonder Fred liked running the course.
His fingers drummed on the platform. After a minute he broke the silence. "I'm having…romantic troubles again."
"You can't say that and not dish."
He sighed, running a hand through his hair and mussing it. "Have you ever fallen for a friend's boyfriend before?"
"Can't say that I have." She chewed on her bottom lip, thinking. "One of my friends had a thing for guys with tattoos and piercings with muscles I found terrifying. Another tended to fall for the pretentious type who believed only classic books were worth reading. I'm pretty sure his glasses weren't even real."
He looked at her as if she had two heads. "What bizarre preferences. If not for you dating my brother who is nearly as handsome as I am, I'd question your tastes after hearing you have friends like that."
She agreed with him, but didn't want to tell him as much. "Back to your point. I take it you've fallen for a friend's girlfriend?"
"Not quite, but its someone who I don't feel comfortable asking out." He stood up and turned to continue on. Ahead of them rested a series of small platforms like stepping stones that would require jumping across to get to the other side. Some platforms turned in circles, others shifted side to side and others up or down, making it difficult to spot a path through. In three spots water shot across the path in timed increments.
"Well now I feel like I'm in a video game," she said.
"Never played any," Fred said. "Quidditch is way better." He jumped onto a platform that was holding still. A second later it began to fall beneath him and he scrambled to reach the next one. She laughed at the panicked expression on his face. Knowing there was no real danger made it easy to laugh instead of panic along with him.
"So now what? You plan to ignore your feelings?"
"Exactly," Fred answered as his platform spun in a slow circle. "I'm happier than I've ever been since Angelina left and I don't want to do anything that could screw that up. Things are back to normal with George again and the dark cloud of the Hogwarts battle is fading and I want to enjoy feeling free of it."
"Doesn't sound like you. You're the one who takes risks instead of playing it safe. And…" It'd been hard to find the right time or words to thank him. "And you're a good guy. You saved my life in Diagon Alley and you were right to stop me from killing the last Death Eater." She blew out a breath. "I've been trying to say that for a while now. You've been as helpful as you have been infuriating."
"Thanks, but I think Angelina would disagree with you. She told me she would have broken things off sooner, but breaking the engagement embarrassed her. She didn't want everyone gossiping about it. She's happier without me."
They picked their way across the path, the amount of spinning and shifting platforms making it impossible for her to follow the same path as him. Ahead a zipline ran down to a maze at the edge of the pond. "I don't know if I can believe that. I was under the impression Angelina is so bitchy because she regrets leaving you. I mean she left and then you became such a success and now everyone knows what an idiot she is. You should take a chance on someone who might be good for you."
"I can't," he insisted. "Not without being a huge arsehole to her boyfriend. Otherwise there'd be nothing stopping me and we wouldn't be having this conversation."
She surveyed the path ahead of them, watching all the shifting components to plan her path. If she got ahead of Fred and timed her run just right, the next part would be easy. As long as she beat him to the zip line first, she'd reach the maze before he did. "How about a bet?" It didn't matter whether or not he took her bait. As soon as she took off she figured he'd run after her and if she could beat him, well that would shock him. Any remaining fear she felt drifted away as excitement made her right leg twitch in her eagerness to take off.
"I'm intrigued. It's not like you to suggest such a thing." He stopped a platform beside her and it began spinning off to the right away from her.
"If you get out of the maze first I'll buy you ice cream. If I beat you, you have to tell your crush."
He opened his mouth, but no words came out as if he couldn't decide which objection to settle on first.
"Ready, set, go!" she said in a rush before taking off. The spinning platform would make him wait a few more seconds before he came back in range of the others, giving her a slight head start, a head start she knew she'd need to have any chance of beating him. His longer legs would give him a speed advantage as well as all his other times beating the course.
"Hey!" Fred yelled in protest.
She didn't stop to look back. She followed the path she'd figured out earlier, sending two of the hovering stepping stones plummeting toward the water in her wake. Others went spinning away, enough to keep Fred from following directly after her while causing chaos among the other floating platforms as they shifted about and bumped into each other.
She reached the zipline to the maze first and she could practically taste her coming victory. Fred would have to wait for the handle to return to take his chance. She stepped off the platform. Her arms burned to hold her weight as she rushed down to the hill, exhilaration pumping through her and overriding her fear. It was easy to see how the rush could be addicting. Never in a million years would she have ever pictured herself doing something like this.
And yet… it felt freeing to overcome her fear. To be able to push herself and discover what she was capable of. To think she'd thought finding herself had stopped when she finished school. All those times spent sitting on the sidelines because she was too afraid. Too afraid to dance at her first school dance. Too afraid to try out for the quidditch team. To afraid to apply for a job because she feared she wasn't qualified enough. How might things have been different if someone had been there to give her the push she needed? No more sitting on the sidelines.
Her feet hit the hillside hard and she stumbled. She let go and immediately the magic pulled the handle back up to the platform. She ran for the maze, blowing past the sign with "entrance" written in large letters. During a trip to a haunted corn maze around Halloween during their school years, a friend had told her the trick to getting out of a maze was always turning left. And so she turned left when she entered the maze. The bushes closed behind her, sealing off the entrance as a new one appeared farther down.
At the next turn she tried to make a left again, but the maze shifted. The bushes moved to the right, forcing her back into the middle of the aisle to avoid being run over by the shrubbery. The left turn became a dead end, leaving her with no choice but to go right.
"Lucy?" Fred called from somewhere behind her. She stifled a laugh at the worry in his voice, but she wasn't going to give away where she was. It felt nice to have him chasing after her instead of him pulling her along with him as she dug her heels in from terror. She made another right turn. The shifting bushes picked up speed, shifting more often and faster. She dashed for the next left turn, racing against the bushes. They snagged on her shirt but she made it through in time. Except she was back at the entrance. At first she thought she'd made it to the end already, but the large entrance sign dashed her hopes. She started over, the shifting bushes making it impossible to track her turns.
With each passing minute her hope over winning dwindled. It felt like she'd been in the maze for ages making the same turns and with each turn. For all she knew she could be going in circles. Each turn looked the same. At this point she'd be happy to make it out on her own even if she lost as long as Fred didn't have to come looking for her. But that didn't put a damper on her mood. She'd never done anything like this course and the buzz made her bounce on her feet as she debated which way to go next.
Maybe next week she could try out a bigger rock climbing wall. Instead of reading about all the adventures in her books and longing for them, she should just do them. She could make a trip to Scotland and Ireland. Then France or Germany. Thanks to her work at the shop she'd feel comfortable spending her money on traveling soon. The buzz made her want to do everything. No wonder Fred was such a daredevil if this was how it felt.
A few minutes later she found herself at the center of the maze. Thanks to the shifting paths and bushes the center was small and decorated only with a single bench in the very middle. She eyed up the two entrances on the far side the maze shifted between. The arched doorways looked exactly the same. If the designers bet on people knowing the trick to mazes, then the right door would be the unexpected choice. Right it was. She took a step forward but something snagged the back of her shirt.
"Oh no you don't!"
She wiggled out of Fred's grasp. "Don't sneak up on me like that." As soon as he let go she dashed into the doorway just as the bushes began shifting again. Fred followed on her heels, barely clearing the closing gap.
"I'm not taking your bet," Fred called out.
"Afraid you might lose?"
"That's exactly what I'm afraid of."
The bushes shifted again and she stopped, waiting for them to open the new path. She glanced over her shoulder, surprised by his admission. "You, afraid? I don't believe it."
"I'm afraid of plenty of things. Like of a spider climbing into my mouth or sleeping in when I'm on shop opening duty."
"One of those things seems much likelier than the other. I don't think you should spend much time worrying about the spider one."
"It happened to a friend at Hogwarts!" Fred defended. "To be fair we bet someone else into putting it in the poor bloke's mouth, but it happened. I saw it with my own eyes."
She turned her attention from the path to put the full weight of her disgust on him. "Why on earth would you bet someone to do that?"
"Because I didn't think he'd actually do it."
She shook her head, refusing to let herself think about someone putting a spider in her mouth. "Don't ever sleep with my mouth open around you. Got it." She dashed through the next opening, but Fred stayed hot on her tail.
"This race doesn't count if you just follow me. You should be trying a different path."
"It doesn't matter because I refuse to accept the bet, win or lose. Some things are too risky."
"But you're Fred Weasley! Risks are who you are."
Fred snorted. "Not always. Even I can be smart sometimes. George didn't get all the brains."
Up ahead she thought she spotted the exit, but the shifting paths blocked the doorway. If she waited for another shift or two, she'd be able to make it. "You can't give up on me now. Not on such a small bet." She turned and made a shooing motion with her hands. "So go."
"No. I'm not going to tell you who it is."
She made a left and caught side of the exit right before it closed again. So close. "Is it someone embarrassing?"
"Not exactly."
"So it is."
Fred blew out a breath of frustration. "Forget about it. How about I just buy us both ice cream?"
"If you're too much of a wuss to tell me, then I'll take a scoop of vanilla and a scoop of chocolate with a drizzle of peanut butter sauce on top. And sprinkles." She snapped her fingers. "And whipped cream. God help you if you forget the whipped cream."
"Yeah, yeah, you can order it yourself."
She held a finger up. "And you have to cover my next opening shift."
Fred made a face. "That isn't fair."
"You're the one who changed the terms and that is what I'm willing to settle for."
"Well I want to renegotiate."
"Too late!" she darted for the exit, whooping when she burst into the clearing. Then she turned and did a slow motion fist pump. Fred wore a strange look on his face, once she couldn't quite decipher. Angry, or maybe dread. It was the kind of look she saw on her fellow job hunters whenever she went in for interviews. For her it meant a forced calm veneer over dread and anxiety.
"Do you really want to know?" he asked.
"Yes." She leaned closer eager to find out who it was.
The paths began shifting again. "It's you." He took a step back and the path closed, cutting him off from her.
She gaped at the wall of hedge in front of her. When the path shifted again, the path out was empty.
"Fred?" His name came out as a squeak and she cleared her throat and tried again. No answer. The doorway closed again, the maze beyond silent. She turned and ran for the next obstacle, her body screaming at her to get away. Surely Fred wouldn't joke about such a thing, which meant if he wasn't… No. She'd already had a weak moment earlier when he caught her. This was dangerous territory and she couldn't risk letting it go farther, no, she couldn't stand the thought of hurting George.
George deserved to know too, and right now she couldn't think of anyone else to go to. Oli had never been good with romantic troubles and she couldn't stand the thought of betraying Fred's secret to anyone other than George. More importantly, her imagination threatened to run wild. To picture herself kissing Fred at the end of the course beside the pond. Fred pinning her between him and the shop counter. Damn it, all of it was too easy to fantasize about.
She was so caught up in her whirling emotions that she missed the large puddle. Her running shoes sank right into the water and soft mud. "Urgh," she grumbled as she pulled her foot out. She fumbled for her wand to dry herself off, but the shock of the cold water was enough to pull her out of her mind.
She needed to talk to George. But first she needed to finish this damn obstacle course.