Author's Note
Happy New Year! I'm back to somewhere with internet, whooo!
Love, Wishin' Girl x x
...
"Fred!?"
"Hermione!?"
Was shouted simultaneously, followed by a scream from Hermione as she scrambled back to her feet and hurriedly wrapped herself in the towel while many garbled blushing apologies came from Fred.
"I'm so sorry. I am so sorry Hermione, I didn't know you were in here. I didn't even know you were at the burrow. I'm sorry. I'm so so sorry." Fred's apologies fell away into quiet as Hermione grabbed her clothes and rushed off to Ginny's room to get changed.
Feeling thoroughly desolate and full of self loathing, Fred locked the bathroom door behind her and crawled into the shower, turning on the water only to jump at the heat and turn it down to ice cold. The summer heat wasn't the only reason for the cold water anymore.
…
"So Hermione and Fred, both of your flats were dung bombed today?" Arthur attempted to start yet another conversation at dinner that evening, Fred was wallowing spectacularly in self hatred and embarrassment while Hermione glared at him over the casserole and dumplings Molly had cooked for the quartet.
After a pair of affirmation replies Arthur ploughed on.
"Any idea who the culprits were yet?"
"Pretty sure it was George" Fred muttered, "he was laughing his arse off - sorry Mum - laughing his bum off when I went down to use the shop's floo even before I told him about the flat."
"It can't have been George." Hermione scoffed. "My flat is well protected against him. The only people who can enter it are me, Harry, Ron, Ginny and you, Fred. Since it wasn't me, Harry and Ron are both away on a week long training exercise in Ireland and Ginny's at school in Scotland…" she finished off with a pointed glare at the Weasley twin opposite her.
"It wasn't me Hermione, honestly" Fred implored.
"It can't have been anyone else, and since you didn't smell like dungbombs at all before your shower I doubt your flat is actually dungbombed." She countered, setting down her cutlery on her empty plate "I think you just wanted to be here to gloat at your success or play even more pranks on me. I find it all a bit too suspicious."
"Hermione I didn't, really. Someone dung bombed my place too, I just had time to cast a bubble charm." He reached across the table for her hand "Please believe me."
Snatching her hand out of his reach, Hermione stood up sharply.
"Thank you Molly for dinner, it was delicious. Please may I be excused, I'd like a walk to calm down." With a kind nod from Molly and an understanding smile from Arthur, Hermione left the kitchen and stormed off towards the orchard.
With his plate still over half full Fred hesitated halfway out of his chair in pursuit of Hermione.
"Go on son. She'll be glad of someone to vent at at least." Arthur encouraged sagely and Fred sprinted out of the door after her.
"I do hope she realises soon." Molly muttered wistfully watching the red head tear after the woman he secretly loved.
"Maybe he'll tell her." Arthur added hopefully.
"Oh no, I don't mean realise that he loves her. I mean realise that she loves him." Molly corrected.
"You really think she does?" Arthur asked in delighted surprise.
"I'm sure of it. I just do hope they're in time."
…
"Mione!" Fred pleaded as he caught up with her about ten feet into the orchard.
"No." She snapped with tears brimming in her eyes "No, you don't get to use that name right now. I trusted you Fred, I trusted you more than anyone else and you broke that trust by dung bombing my home. I already had a crappy day and that was just… the… icing on the… cake…"
Hermione lost the battle against her watery eyes and broke down in tears. She crumbled as she spoke but her body was caught up in Fred's firm arms a moment before her knees hit the floor and he settled the pair of them down leaning against a nearby pear tree, his arms wrapped snugly around her sobbing frame.
"Tell me about your day love." He requested in a whisper as he gently stroked her bushy hair.
She shook her head against his chest as tears ran down her cheeks.
"Please."
With a heavy sniff Hermione relented and nodded timidly as Fred's arms wound even tighter around her protectively.
"I ripped my skirt before work this morning and I was too tired to repair it properly so it looked a right mess all day with my botched attempt. Then some idiot collided with me on the way into the library so I ended up with coffee all down my favourite lacy white top which, as I was in muggle public I couldn't even clean until I was out of sight. The idiot even had the audacity to ask me out at that point too, I nearly hexed his balls off but he left pretty sharpish when I told him a very clear and sweary 'no'." Hermione drew a chortle out of Fred at this image and she smiled a little at the sound "I got absolutely nowhere with my research all day, just round and round in circles until I dropped off my notes at the lab and headed home early in the hope of a grabbing a large glass of wine and sitting out on the balcony to read in the evening sunshine. But no, it was at that point I walk into the carnage that was my gorgeous apartment stinking to high heaven and back with those horrific uncounterable dungbombs that your twin has been developing."
"I'm sorry your day was so sucky." Fred whispered into her hair before placing a tender kiss on top of the curls.
"Why did you dungbomb my place?" She asked tearfully, her anger fading into sorrow now.
"I swear I didn't do that. I was at home all day until George bombed my place and I came straight here." Fred promised, cupping Hermione's face with one hand and gently guiding it so that he could look into her eyes as he spoke. "It wasn't me Hermione."
"Then who?"
"I don't know but I wouldn't put it past my little sister to sneak out of school, she's getting pretty restless now that exams are hitting."
