7

HP

It's been over a month since their lunch at the Golden Inn and they had met up two times a week for lunch. Ron came with them every Thursday, stating he didn't want to eat alone at the cafeteria. And even though she liked her time alone with Harry, it was nice to get to know Ron too. Not only because of Harry but because of the twins. She's been helping Fred trying to regain strength in his legs. When she met up with them the day after, she urged them to go get help at St. Mungo's, but they refused, saying that they didn't do anything to help him over the past year and that she found out quickly there was a large chance that he could walk again. So, every day after work, she apparated to the twins' flat and did muggle exercises to strengthen his muscles. She went to the twins' flat almost every night. She helped them cook other recipes. The three of them were together almost every night in the kitchen as they cooked. Only Fridays they ordered in. The weekends they kept free because of family lunches and George's girlfriend, Angelina. That according to George was getting suspicious about his sparse free nights. The twins didn't want to tell anyone what they were doing until they knew for sure it was going to work.
With work, lunches with Harry and Ron and her secret evenings with the twins, her days were long. But she never felt happier than she did when she crashed in her bed at the end of the day.

Now she saw the twins waiting in front of a large building in muggle London, looking up at it with a frown. George turned when he heard her footsteps on the gravel.

"Here is our miracle worker." He grinned and leaned down to kiss her cheek.

"Hi, love." Fred looked up at her and reached for her hand. She took it and squeezed it as she leaned down to kiss his cheek. "So, where are we and what are we doing?"

"Hello, boys." She smiled. "We're going swimming."

"Swimming?" They chimed in surprise and looked at each other with raised eyebrows.

"Yes, swimming." She turned to George. "But you don't have to come."

"What? Why not?" He asked affronted.

"Because I can do this by myself, and you've been neglecting your girlfriend. So, spend the evening with her. I'm sure she would appreciate it."

"She's right, George." Fred said as he turned his wheelchair towards his twin. "You know Ange. She'll flip if you keep this up any longer. And if Mia says she can handle me all by herself." He winked at her.

"Can you explain me what exactly you're going to do?" He asked nervously. So, she told him. She explained the water therapy muggles use for people with back injuries to help them walk again. After a thorough explanation, he finally agreed to have a date night with his girlfriend. He turned to Fred. "Try kicking the water, yeah?" He joked and Fred laughed. "I'll see you tonight."

"Have fun, Georgie." Fred smiled. George clapped his twin's back and gave Amelia another kiss on the cheek before he vanished. "Don't think I don't know why you wanted George out."

"And that is?" She said as she started to push his wheelchair in the building. The smell of chlorine hitting them immediately.

"Seeing I didn't bring my swimming trunks; you want to see me naked."

She couldn't help but laugh as they reached the register. "Two please." She asked the lady behind the glass. She took out her wallet and paid the cashier before pushing Fred towards the elevator. When the elevator door closed, and they were being lifted up, she said. "Although I think you look good naked, I came prepared." She smirked, patting her bag.

"Oh, so you thought about seeing me naked?" He wiggled his eyebrows. Amelia leaned down as the elevator came to a stop.

"Like you have me?" The elevator dinged before he could reply. The doors opened and a family with two small children walked in. Fred had to bite his tongue to stop his answer. Even though they found each other attractive, there wasn't anything romantic between them. They became good friends, who joked and teased each other about everything. Besides Fred knew about her growing feelings for Harry. And Fred wasn't ready to date anyone, he was just happy to have a friend like her in his life. Fred knew she was smirking as she rolled him through the corridor where the wall was covered with little blue tiles. They reached a large room where small cubicles were lined against each other. She pushed him towards a large cubicle, on the door was a drawing of a family and a wheelchair on it. She pushed the door open and rolled him in. She started rummaging through her bag and held out dark blue swimming trunks for him. When he took them, she grabbed a couple of towels and her own bathing suit before she turned to look at him.

"Since this is a muggle pool." She whispered. "We leave our wands in the lockers." She said as she shrugged of her blazer. "Don't get why you don't have your own pool." She muttered to herself.

"Uhm, Mia?" Fred asked and she turned after she stuffed her socks in her shoes. "Should I turn?"

"Turn?" She asked confused, a little crease between her eyes. "Oh, Fred. We're both adults. But if you want, I can change us with a wave of my wand. Don't know if the ministry will like it..." She thought about it before she shrugged and picked up her wand. Fred stopped her as he placed a hand on her wrist.

"Don't. I don't want you to get in trouble. Like you said, we're both adults. And we can still hold out a towel if needed."

"Brilliant. Now change." She ordered with a smile. She pulled the shirt over her head, leaving her in a tank-top, just as Fred discarded his shirt and placed it on the little bench next to her bag. When she pushed her jeans down, she tripped and crashed her knee against the bench.

"Mia!" Fred gasped and reached out to help her sit down on the bench. "Let me see."

"It's fine." She said, but her eyes were watering from the hit. Fred shot her a look, and she sighed in defeat. Her jeans were still around her ankles, and she took them off before Fred looked over her knee. There was a large gash, and her knee was slightly swollen.

"Merlin Mia, how hard did you hit your knee?" Fred gasped as he inspected her leg. He searched his pockets before taking out a large tube. It was the tube she had seen a lot these past few weeks. The twins had showed her how they made some of their products, and of course the cuts and bruises that came along with it. He put a large wad on his finger and started rubbing it on her knee. She closed her eyes and sighed in relief as the pain instantly retracted. "How does that feel?"

"Better." She opened her eyes again. "Thanks, Freddie."

"Anytime. Now get dressed carefully, alright." He smirked at her, and she stuck out her tongue. The twins, Ron and Harry, all told her she reminded them of Tonks, someone they lost during the war, that someone was Teddy's mum. She was funny, clumsy and messy in her own way, just like Amelia. It made them smile as they thought back at the fond memories they had of her. When she was standing in her underwear, Fred did turn around as she changed into her bathing suit. It was a simple, black, asymmetric bathing suit, her belly half exposed. When she turned, she saw that Fred was having trouble removing his socks. She turned the wheelchair back around and kneeled in front of him.

"I usually take a girl out for dinner before this happens." She didn't look at him as she tugged of his socks, knowing that the Weasley smirk was in place.

"I need more than just dinner for that." She grinned as she looked up. Without exchanging another word, she helped him out of his jeans. "How do you want to do the next part?" She asked as she looked at his swimming trunks.

"Since you have no feelings for me, even though you find me wildly attractive, you can see me in full glory." His smirk back in place. "But we better not tell Harry that." He pointed out and she rolled her eyes.

"Can you lift yourself up?" She asked. Fred pushed himself up in on the railings and she slipped his boxers off fast and his swimming trunks on in a few seconds.

"That was fast."

"I told you, I have experience." She said softly as he lowered himself back in the chair. She turned and started putting their things in the bag. She felt Fred's eyes on her. She knew that she needed to tell them one day, and it's not like it was such a big secret but it was hard for her to talk about it.

HP

After placing their things safely in a locker and she strapped the key around her wrist, they went to the corridor that led towards the pool. They reached a small office, where Fred would leave his wheelchair and was transferred into a special one from the pool. They passed showers on each side of them before three large pools appeared in front of them. To their left was a kids' pool, to the right was an athletic pool, and in the middle was one of for free play with slides. She directed them towards the athletic pool which was divided in several lanes. She pushed him to the one on the side were no one else was swimming, when they passed a box, she picked up two pool noodles.

"Fred?" She asked as she leaned closer. "Do you mind if they help you in the pool?" She nudged her head to two lifeguards that were heading their way.

"No, it's alright." He nodded. She pushed the brakes on the wheelchair and tossed the noodled in the pool before she hopped in. Fred was looking down at her as she waited for the lifeguards to reach him.

"Hello, Amelia." One of the lifeguards smiled down at her.

"Hey, Eric." She gave a small wave. "This is Fred. Fred, this is Eric and Leoni."

"Nice to meet you, Fred." Leoni smiled.

"Nice to meet you too, Leonie." He shot her a charming smile.

"Do you mind if we help you?" Eric asked.

"Help away." Fred grinned and held out his arms. The two lifeguards smiled as they both hitched an arm under his. They lifted him out of the chair and lowered him in the water. Amelia gave him a noddle to rest his upper body on. "Thanks." He winked toward Leonie. The girl blushed and Eric chuckled to Amelia before they walked away.

"I thought you weren't ready for dating?" She snickered.

"I wasn't. But have you seen her?" He craned his neck to look for the young lifeguard and let out a low whistle.

"She's pretty. And a great lifeguard too, saved my life once." She said nonchalantly.

"What?!" Fred turned to her wide-eyed.

"It's nothing." She waved him off. "Now-"

"You will tell me that story later." He interrupted as he pointed his finger at her. "But carry on."

"Now, your legs have become stronger the past month with our exercises. We're at the point we're going to learn your muscles to move again like they used to. It's been two weeks since you can move your toes on command, and you can feel pain and tingling in your legs. You can even feel anything that touches your feet. Then you and George tried to stand up without me there and failed. That's because your legs aren't strong enough, that's where this comes in." She said as she splashed water towards him. "Since your weightless in the water, you can stand here." She stepped closer and removed the noodled under his arms. "Hold my shoulders and try to stretch your legs, until you feel the bottom."

"Alright." Fred rested his hands on his shoulders and looked down between them. He focused hard on his legs, as they sometimes have a mind of their own. After twenty seconds he was standing on the bottom of the pool. He straightened up and beamed down at Amelia. "It feels great to tower over everyone again." His beaming smile was so contagious, she couldn't help but mimic it.

"You're too tall." She chuckled and looked over her shoulder. "I am going to take a step back; can you try to take one with me?"

"A step?" Fred suddenly looked nervous behind her.

"Hey." She placed her hand on his muscular biceps. "You can do this. I'm here, I got you." Fred closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. The grip on her shoulders tightened as he tried to move his feet. "You're doing great." Her reassuring voice spoke to him. His foot shuffled over the floor, then the other. "You did it." Her voice was so excited and proud, he opened his eyes.

"I shuffled; I didn't take a step." He sounded so disappointed.

"Freddie, this is going to take time. You've been paralysed, bound to a wheelchair for over a year. You can do this, but baby steps. Or shuffling steps." She teased and Fred couldn't help but laugh. "Want to try again?"

"Yeah." He nodded and his gripped tightened again when he moved his foot. They stayed in the pool until their fingers were wrinkled like an old man's. She and Fred had gone from one side of the pool and back, taking their time and takings breaks before they called it quits, both too tired to try anything else.