A/N: I'm so sorry. I somehow forgot to post this chapter and went straight on to chapter 5, thinking it was chapter 4. That sucks because this chapter is my fave so far and it introduces an important plot element. The story makes sense again. This chapter is the real chapter 4 and it continues right after the end of chapter 3. Whew. I promise I'll pay better attention from now on!


Alicia was so angry when she Apparated that it was a small miracle she didn't Splinch herself. As it was, she stumbled when she rematerialised in Christopher's back garden. Thankfully, she caught herself on a tree before she hit the grass. Not a very elegant entrance, but no one would be able to see her from the house. She was tucked away in the back corner of the garden, where Christopher had left a deliberate hole in his Anti-Apparition charms.

This was only the second time she had been to his new house in Hampstead and she hadn't actually seen the inside of it yet. Of course, the house was big and beautiful; she hadn't expected him to pick anything less. Right now, the sight of it looming over her just fuelled her anger. Why did he even need to live in a five bedroom house? Jake had his own room, but every other room was probably immaculately furnished but never used.

"Pretentious twat," she muttered to herself as she stomped up to the back door.

She knocked loudly then waited. And waited some more. After a minute the door was finally thrown open.

"Miss! Oh, what a wonderful surprise!"

Alicia's anger took a backseat and she smiled at the plump older lady beaming at her. "Hello, Marta. How are you?"

"Can't complain, dear. Are you feeling all right? You look a little flushed. Do you need some water? Something to eat?"

Alicia shook her head and patted the housekeeper's hand reassuringly. "No, I'm fine. It's just a little warm today. I came to see Chris."

Marta ushered her into the house and led her through a large, shiny kitchen. "Was he expecting you today? He didn't mention you were coming, but it certainly wouldn't be the first time he neglected to warn me we were having visitors."

"This is a spur of the moment visit," Alicia answered crisply.

Marta stopped walking abruptly and Alicia almost ran into her. "Oh no. Is everything all right? What has he done now?"

"Just the usual, Marta, just the usual."

Alicia hid a smile as the other woman tutted her disapproval. Poor Marta had witnessed a few of their fights in her time. Back in France, she and her husband Frank had been staff at the Warrington family villa. Somehow Christopher had convinced them to leave and come to work for him once he had bought his own place in Paris. He had even managed to get them to move back to London with him, which Alicia was pleased about. Marta had a real knack for dealing with Christopher's wildly fluctuating moods.

"Where is he at the moment?"

"Up in his office working, of course. The only time he isn't working is when Jake is here. Where is the little darling today?"

"He's with my parents at the moment." Alicia grabbed Marta's shoulder to stop her walking. "It's okay, I'll go up on my own. I know you're probably right in the middle of something."

She hesitated, then nodded and brushed her hands down the front of her apron. "Okay, dear. Just remember he can't help the way he is, our Christopher. He doesn't mean to be so…forthright."

That was putting it nicely. Alicia sighed. "The problem is he did mean it this time and he absolutely can help the way he is. But don't worry yourself, I'm only going to give him a bit of friendly advice."

Marta looked even more worried after that comment. She gripped Alicia's hand briefly then bustled off back towards the kitchen. Alicia continued making her way through to the front of the house. The place was classically styled with a neutral colour palette and minimal furniture. It was clearly meant to pass as a regular Muggle house in case someone from his work life unexpectedly turned up.

She skipped up the beautiful mahogany staircase in the foyer then found herself at the end of a long corridor. There were seven or eight doors stretching the length of it and she belatedly realised she had no way of knowing which room was the office.

"Christopher!" she shouted at the top of her lungs. When nothing happened she did it again, this time slowly enunciating each syllable of his name.

A door in the middle of the hallway flew open and Christopher's angry face appeared. "What are you bellowing about, woman?"

The very sight of him made her blood boil. She pointed her finger at him. "How dare you!"

Christopher rolled his eyes. "Calm down," he said, then he disappeared back into the room.

Alicia stormed down the hall and right into the office after him. "I will not calm down!"

"I don't remember inviting you into my office," he said blandly as he sat down behind a large antique desk by the window.

"I can go where I please."

"So can I. If I want to take a stroll through Diagon Alley then no one can stop me."

So he wasn't even going to deny it or make up a lame excuse. Typical. "Who the hell do you think you are?" Alicia demanded. She stood on the other side of the desk and planted her hands firmly on her hips. "What gives you the right to show up at George's shop like that? And you lied to me! You didn't have a business meeting on Sunday!"

Christopher shuffled a few papers around on his desk, clearly intending to keep right on working. "Don't be daft. Of course I had a business meeting. You think I'd put on a Hugo Boss suit just to go see your new boyfriend?"

Alicia threw her hands up, completely thwarted. "I don't know what you're capable of anymore."

"And I'll have you know I was almost late to my important meeting because I wasted half an hour searching Hogsmeade for the idiot."

"He's not an idiot. Who do you even think you are? You have no right to interfere in my life."

"You brought all this on yourself. Really, you had to go and pick a Weasley. Are you trying to give me a brain aneurism? Do you understand how offensive this is to me? A Weasley."

"I don't care! I never considered your feelings or opinion because it has nothing to do with you!"

"And not just any Weasley. You have to date the one who broke my nose in our fifth year."

Alicia smirked at that. She hadn't thought about that incident in a while. The Gryffindor team had once tried to share the Quidditch pitch with the Slytherins for training in fifth year. It had ended with a wayward Bludger hitting Christopher in the face. "Mmm, thanks for that fond memory. It was actually Fred who hit the Bludger at you though, not George."

"Same thing."

"They're two different people! Stop being deliberately ignorant."

Christopher turned his attention to his work and began to scribble on one of the pieces of paper. "Funny thing is, I'd actually be less appalled if you were fucking Potter. At least he has money," he added casually.

Alicia reached across the desk and snatched up a handful of papers. She launched them across the room, sending pieces fluttering in every direction. Christopher folded his arms and leaned back in his chair. "I see wanton destruction of my property is still your outlet of choice. Did that make you feel better?"

"No." Alicia seized an ornate silver inkwell this time and threw it across the room. It hit the far wall and left a large dent in the plasterboard. Black ink sprayed everywhere. "That was a little more satisfying. Next, I'd like to put you in a full body-bind and use you as a punching bag."

"You've already forgotten, haven't you? On Sunday I gave you the chance to choose me. None of this had to happen."

"Oh my God. You're completely insane! As if I would ever choose you over George. He's perfect. He's everything I want in a man."

"Even the red hair?" Christopher asked dubiously.

"Especially the red hair!" Alicia snapped. "How did you even know I had seen George that night? Are you paying someone to spy on me?"

"You really don't know yet?" Christopher opened the top drawer of his desk and pulled out a page from the Daily Prophet. He tossed it towards her. "Rita Skeeter very kindly took care of the spying for me. Middle of the page."

As she read along, her heart began to pound. Now she wanted to use Rita Skeeter as a punching bag as well. What were the chances that someone had happened to see them at the moment they shared a quick kiss goodbye?

"Pretty. Little. Brunette," Christopher said slowly, punctuating each word with an accusatory point of his finger. "You confirmed it yourself when you told me you had gone to Hogsmeade that night. How long were you planning to keep it from me?"

Alicia slammed the paper down on the desk between them. "For as long as I felt like it because it's none of your business!"

Christopher leapt to his feet, his face contorted in anger and Alicia momentarily thought he was going to lunge across the desk and grab her. "Excuse me? Of course it's my damn business! I have a right to know who is with my son when I'm not around. Whether you like it or not, whomever you decide to shag in your spare time is my business and you had better get used to it."

"Jake hasn't even met George yet, you stupid arse! What kind of mother do you think I am?"

"Evidently the same kind of father you think I am. You're the one who told me first I wasn't to let Jake meet any of my girlfriends."

"You don't have girlfriends, Christopher – you have one night stands with Muggle women. I said I didn't want Jake to ever witness one of them stumbling half-naked out of your bedroom."

Christopher tutted and shook his head. "As if I would ever bring one of them back to my house. I'm not a complete moron."

"You know what, this is all getting way off point," Alicia said. "I came here to tell you that you had better keep away from George from now on. If I hear you've stepped foot in Hogsmeade or Diagon Alley there's going to be trouble."

"Is that your cute little Gryffindor way of threatening me?"

Alicia narrowed her eyes. "You better believe it. You're a part of Jake's life because I decided to let you be a part of it. You're lucky I don't terminate your visitation rights after the stunt you pulled."

Christopher threw his head back and laughed. "Oh, you want to do this the hard way? You want to play solicitors at ten paces? I can afford the best legal team in the country. How about you, Spinnet?"

He had her there. Except she knew deep down neither of them would ever deny the other access to Jake. That was petty and would only end up hurting Jake more in the end. "Fine. You and your money win again. I don't want you coming to my flat anymore. You can send Frank to pick up and drop off Jake from now on."

"Fine by me."

Neither of them said anything more. Alicia felt like she had gotten most of her anger out of her system for now. Christopher was just staring at her, not speaking. Feeling suddenly uncomfortable, she turned away and finally got a good look at the room she was in. This room evidently wasn't meant for Muggle eyes. It was full of moving pictures of Jake and assorted Quidditch memorabilia. The yellow and black of his favourite team jarred against the otherwise classy décor.

"Is this really what you want for your life?"

Alicia turned back to Christopher. "What do you mean?"

"Do you want to live in a ramshackle house in the countryside with more children than you can afford to feed?"

"That's not what my life will be like. You don't know anything about George, all right. He's brilliant. Way better at Charms and Transfiguration than you," Alicia added.

"Hmm. Doubtful."

"No. That's a simple fact. And he and Fred own two successful shops now."

Christopher opened his mouth to reply, but then shut it and frowned. His face slowly broke into a wide smile. "I see it now! This is priceless; Weasley was your Hogwarts crush."

"No," Alicia said quickly.

"Yes! He's the one you told me about, the one who never paid you any attention," Christopher said triumphantly. "That's so bloody typical. For all these years I thought it was Potter or Wood. But you couldn't even set your sights higher than a Weasley."

"All you're doing right now is confirming that I made the right decision," Alicia said haughtily, her voice a lot calmer than she actually felt.

"Like I ever stood a chance anyway. Not if you've been in love with him since you were thirteen. I bet you spent our whole relationship comparing me to him. I also bet I fell short every single time."

"Our relationship had nothing to do with George, just like my relationship with George has nothing to do with you," Alicia said slowly and clearly. "You really pissed him off, by the way, so thanks for that. What exactly did you say to him?"

Christopher shrugged and attempted to appear innocent and perplexed. "All I did was lay down the ground rules. He's obviously too sensitive."

"Ground rules? There are no ground rules and if there were it certainly wouldn't be your job to lay them down! You can't just-"

"Shut up and listen," Christopher cut her off. "Jake is to have no contact with any other members of the Weasley family. That includes Potter and Granger."

"That's not up to you to decide!"

"I'm not done. Nothing you two plan will disrupt my scheduled visits with Jake and he's not to be left alone with Weasley and he's never allowed to enter that stupid joke shop either. If our son ends up being another Hogwarts drop-out with no money and no future, I'm holding you and that idiot ginger responsible."

Alicia's mouth opened and closed like she was some sort of fish struggling to breathe on land. She had officially run out of names to call Christopher. Nothing was enough to convey just how much she wanted to strangle the life out of him right now. How had she ever thought she might be able to have some sort of vague friendship with him one day?

"Are you actually going to say anything?" he demanded.

"I hate you," she hissed.

Christopher came around from behind his desk and slapped his hand to his chest dramatically. "And I'm terribly heartbroken. Are we done here now? Can I get back to work?"

"I don't ever want to see your stupid face again. Your facial hair looks ridiculous by the way."

"We both know that's not true. You can do better than that, Alicia."

She could do better than that. Out of the corner of her eye she spotted his most prized possession sitting on a bookcase on the other side of the room. She marched over and snatched up the Quaffle. The entire surface was covered in signatures. Someone had managed to get the ball signed by every Chaser who had played for England in the last forty years. Alicia tossed it lightly in the air.

Christopher just put his hands in his pockets as if he didn't care but she could see his jaw clench. "I wouldn't try anything if I were you. If you damage that you'll owe me a small fortune."

Alicia smiled and tossed the Quaffle even higher. He obviously didn't have his wand nearby or he'd have hexed her into oblivion by now. She caught it deftly with one hand and admired it for a moment. "I miss having a Quaffle in my hands."

"Put it down now. You've already sullied it just by touching it."

"Why? Because I could never afford something like this? Because I'm a woman? A Gryffindor?"

"All of the above. Not to mention you're the weakest of the three Gryffindor Chasers. I'd trust Johnson or Bell to know how to handle it properly."

Bastard. Right. Concentrate, Spinnet. Twelve feet away, give or take. No wind to speak of. Mind the sofa.

Alicia whipped around and in one fluid motion she threw the Quaffle at him. He reacted too slowly and he tried to cover himself but he failed to get his hands out of his pockets in time. The large, weighted ball hit him squarely in the crotch. He groaned and doubled over, coughing and spluttering indignantly.

"Typical. Too busy trying to come up with witty insults that you clearly forgot I always had the best aim of any Chaser at Hogwarts. I'm glad to see I've still got it. And such a small target, too. I'm really quite proud of myself."

Christopher was on his knees now, his hands clutched between his legs. "Have you lost your damn mind? That fucking hurt!"

"You should have realised I'd never deliberately damage a Quaffle. Unfortunately for you I have no such attachment to your balls." Alicia retrieved the Quaffle and returned it carefully to its original spot on the shelf, all the while grinning like the Cheshire Cat.

He winced and let out a loud breath. "What's wrong with you? Why would you do that? That was literally a low blow, Spinnet."

"It's the least you deserve right now. But it was only a warning. If you don't stay out of my life it'll be a severing charm I aim at your genitals next time."

"You had better be out of my house before I recover," Christopher wheezed.

Alicia figured that would be very prudent. "Goodbye, Christopher. I wish I could say it's been a pleasure knowing you. At the very least our time together taught me what I don't want in a man. I sincerely thank you for that."

He glared at her and made a move to get back to his feet. She took that as her cue to leave and Disapparated back to her parents' house.


Alicia stayed on a high for the next two days. By Saturday, however, her feelings of euphoria had all but evaporated. She hadn't heard from George yet. Not even a lousy letter. She knew it wasn't her place to chase after him because he clearly needed time alone to think things through. The problem was it was beginning to feel like an eternity since she had seen him.

But there was no time for a pity party. Frank had just come to pick up Jake so she had the weekend to herself. Briefly she had considered going to see Angelina or Katie, but she didn't feel up to it without knowing what was happening with George first. Her time would be better spent sorting out the flat while Jake wasn't around to mess it back up again straight away.

So, Alicia resigned herself to spending her Saturday cleaning while everyone else in London was out enjoying the beautiful weather. It would actually be a perfect day to go flying. She stopped by the window and stared at the sliver of blue sky visible through the buildings across the road. She couldn't even remember the last time she had been on a broom. Probably back in France at the villa. There had been a lot of room to fly there and Christopher owned no less than six racing brooms.

Alicia shook her head and turned away from the window. Flying would have to wait. She had cleaning to do. Besides, she didn't even own a broom anymore. She could hardly borrow one from Christopher now. There might still be an old one at her parents' house though. Maybe in the attic or the garden shed. Hopefully they'd kept the Cleansweep she'd received for her sixteenth birthday.

The mess would still be there in the morning after all.

Before she could make any real plans to skive off her housework, a distant speck in the patch of clear sky caught her attention. It grew in size and she realised it was heading for her open window. The tawny owl glided in as she stepped back. It dropped a roll of parchment on the sofa then executed a neat arc around the flat and swooped back out the window.

Alicia hopped on the spot with glee and went to retrieve the parchment. George had finally made up his mind. She unrolled it and her heart immediately sank. It wasn't George's handwriting. This couldn't be happening. She stared down at the letter, reading and re-reading it, translating it back and forth in her mind.

You can't hide forever. I will find you and when I do I will get back what I'm owed. I will not be ignored.

It was the same handwriting as always: neat cursive written in blood red ink. And always in formal French, never in English.

Alicia's heart was pounding. She had left France in the hopes of getting out of this psycho's way. The person kept referring to money that she had supposedly stolen from them. Alicia had no idea how or when she was supposed to have committed this theft and at first she'd assumed it was a mistake and simply ignored the letters. When they didn't stop she had asked a friend in Paris to place a strong Masking Charm on her flat.

Now she apparently needed to get one done in London as well. Except this time she didn't have a friend she could ask for help so she'd need to hire an expert, which would cost a pretty penny. Alicia sighed and massaged her aching temples. It was turning into a shitty day indeed.

A sharp knock at her door made her almost jump out of her skin. One hand slapped over her mouth in fright and her other hand clutched the letter to her chest. There was a good reason she'd chosen the flat she was in, despite the higher than normal rent. Her building was very secure. You needed to have an electronic key card to get in through the door by the foyer and then you had to use the card again in the lift, which would only take you to the floor you lived on. She'd given Christopher a card because he needed to be able to drop Jake off (though technically only Frank would use it now) and she'd sent a card to George so he'd be able to come up to her door for their date.

He had never returned it, Alicia realised. Please let it be him, she thought desperately. She didn't know what she was going to do if some stranger was standing on the other side of her door. She tiptoed over to retrieve her wand from the kitchen bench just in case. Another loud knock made her wince and she made her way over to look through the peephole.

She'd never been so happy to see red hair. He had his head turned but it was definitely George. Alicia's overwrought emotions got the better of her and she threw the door open and grabbed the front of his shirt as a dozen different words all tried to tumble out of her mouth at the same time.

It was only then that she realised her mistake.

She let go of his shirt and stepped back. "Urgh. Fred!"

They were still so identical. Probably on purpose. But it was definitely Fred. She was a little out of practice but she was still able to tell them apart close up.

"Urgh?"

Alicia's heart rate was slowly returning to normal. It wasn't George, after all. But on the other hand it also wasn't a murderous stalker so that was quite a relief. She gave Fred an apologetic smile.

"Hello, I meant. What are you doing here?"

"Wait, why are you so horrified to see me?"

"I'm not horrified. I don't understand what's happening though."

Fred grinned. "Plenty of time for that. Aren't you going to invite me in first?"

Alicia's stomach fluttered involuntarily at the sight of that familiar smile. "Uh, okay. Is George here with you?" she asked hopefully.

Fred shook his head as he entered the flat with her. "Of course not. Like always…he's working."

"But how do you know where I live?"

"Saw a bit of paper at George's place with your address on it and a handy card thing attached. Thought I'd come see you." He held his arms open and beckoned her over with a bob of his head. "Don't you have any love for your favourite Weasley after all these years?"

Alicia felt a lump growing in her throat and she gratefully stepped into his arms. She still felt so lonely and she was worried now because of the letter and Fred was there while everyone else pretty much hated her. He squeezed her and lifted her a few inches off her feet. She took a deep breath and her senses were flooded with all the smells she associated with George. How did they still smell alike? They didn't even live together anymore.

Alicia wriggled out of his grasp and gave him a little shove back. "Do you two deliberately use the same cologne and shampoo or what? It's not enough you look alike?"

"What are you on about?"

"Never mind. Why are you here, Fred?"

"Because my twin brother is a useless knob-head, obviously. Can we sit down?"

So he knew about the fight on Wednesday. Why was she not surprised? Alicia sighed as she shoved the accursed letter into her pocket and pointed towards the sofa. "I really don't think you should get involved. You might make things worse."

"Like that's even possible," Fred said dismissively. "It's Saturday and the weather is great and you're home alone and he's working on his supposed day off. Losers, the pair of you!"

Alicia threw herself on the sofa and folded her arms huffily. "What exactly am I supposed to do? He said he needed time to think. For all I know he's already decided he doesn't want to be with me."

Fred sat down beside her. "You don't understand. He's a hopeless pillock when it comes to women. He seriously has no clue. I have all the skills with the opposite sex."

"It's not his fault this time. I've put him in a really awkward situation."

"Yeah, but he overreacted and he knows he did. He just has no idea what to do now. I told him to come over and apologise for a start but he thinks you won't want to see him."

"So he does want to be with me?" Alicia asked hopefully.

"Of course. You're like his dream girl or something. He always thought he was being subtle about it, but he's been pining on and off for years. This mess with Warrington has just really thrown him." Fred nudged her playfully with his shoulder. "Good going there, by the way. He seems like a real winner of a bloke."

"Shut up."

"Look, I came here to tell you that you're going to have to make the first move."

"But are you absolutely sure he wants to see me? He was so angry at me, Fred."

"You should know what he's like by now. George only lashes out when something happens that hits a nerve. You happen to be one of those nerves. The idea that you were busy making a baby with a Slytherin while he was back here pining for you must really be killing him."

Alicia dropped her head into her hands. "You're not making me feel any better here," she mumbled.

"He'll get over it. The fact that he got so angry is a good sign because now I know for sure that he really cares about you."

Alicia kept her face buried as she considered this. It was true that she'd only ever seen George truly angry when someone hurt or insulted a member of his family or one of his friends. Otherwise he never fought or made a fuss about anything. Her heart swelled as she thought about how loyal and protective and caring he was.

Her head snapped up. "All right. Help me, Fred. Tell me what I should do."

"Well, you see, I happen to have a plan in mind already."

Alicia recognised the glint in his eye even though it had been many years since she had last seen it. "Why do I get the feeling I'm not going to like this plan?"