Author's Note:
Reviews: Pegg7: Tonks won't be catching Crouch anytime soon. He still has a role to play. I'm glad you enjoyed Blaise's threat to Finn, his friends have to stand up for Theo. To TheOneWithWritersBlock: a) your name speaks to me and b) after Easter all hell can break loose, check! To Steelcode: I wanted Zee's tattoo to be her and beautiful and what better way to explain that than through the lyrics to I Am Woman? To Pottermum: Thank you! I love writing Theo and Finn so much! To phoenixmaiden13 (Lady Phoenix): That is a lot of reading! I'm excited for you all to get to the proposal as well, and no, it's not in this chapter ;)
To alix33: Tonks had taken a sleeping draught, which was also why she didn't wake up when Remus undressed her. To Sayumii: Don't we all wish we just found a Finn lying around? That's exactly what I wanted with Zee's tattoo, I wanted to make something ugly beautiful. To supersandman86: I always liked the idea that anyone who is a true Gryffindor can wield the sword, which is why Harry could use it and why Ron and Neville were able to. As to the 1950s blue police box, I'm not a Doctor Who fan so I never thought of it lol. To Wolf's scream: Agreed, Crouch Jr does not have a single redeeming quality in my book. To Lillyrw2: Thank you! I enjoyed writing Ginny as an empath in the Beginning Series, but she's not going to be in this story. To NotchHero11: Thank you! You created an account just to leave me a review? I'm so honoured! I'm so glad I inspired you and go out and write what your heart desires. To chthonian: No, I don't plan on Zee becoming an Animagus. She's good where she is and she loves working with animals, she doesn't need to turn into one
My posting schedule: Once a week.
Thank you to Dusk for her patience and awesome editing skills! This chapter is for you!
As always, thank you very much for reading and please, please review!
Your reviews give me life! They give me inspiration! And they make me want to keep writing for more than just myself! Thank you for all of your continued support!
CHAPTER TWO-HUNDRED AND FOURTEEN:
Ron knew it was a dream.
He could feel the dream-like quality of the environment around him, but he also knew that he was hard as a rock and that part wasn't a dream.
She was standing before him in the duelling room with her bushy brown curls tumbling halfway down her back, the arrow holster over her right shoulder, a bow in her hands. Her wand holster was high on her thigh and she wore nothing else.
"It's about aim, Ron," she instructed, aiming the bow towards the bull's eye, her lovely round breasts bouncing as she did.
Ron moved behind her, that plump bum looked so delightful. "Show me," he urged, taking a handful. His hand was large and spanned most of her arse, the tip of his index finger teasing between her legs.
She wiggled back into his arms and he groaned.
"Pay attention, Ronald," her voice cut through in that lovely annoyed tone that told him she was tired of explaining the same thing; he nodded.
"I'll pay attention," he muttered. He grabbed the bow from her before dropping it to the ground, picking her up, and wrapping her legs around his waist.
Her brown eyes twinkled at him as he carried her to the wall and pinned her back against it. Then he bent his head and covered that sweet mouth with his. She groaned, her hands sliding up his back, her ample bosom pressing against his chest. He stroked her bum, kneading and squeezing as his finger teased her and then slipped into her. She moaned against his neck, her feet digging into his waist.
"Oh, yes, Ron," she moaned. "Yes…"
He added a second finger and then a third as she cried out, her dark eyes hooded in pleasure as he pumped her. Then he pulled his fingers out, unwrapped her legs from his waist, and spun her around. Her breasts squished against the wall as he gripped that warm, supple arse in his hand and he used his other to unzip his trousers. He slid into her in one deep thrust and she cried out.
"Yes, Ron, yes! Yes! Yes! Ooh…"
He took a breast with one hand and reached around her to rub her clit with the other as he thrusted, holding her against the wall. She whimpered in pleasure and begged for more and he kept thrusting into that sweet spot, watching in amazement as his cock disappeared into her and slid back out.
"Harder, Ron, harder…YES! You're so big… YES!"
Ron grabbed a fistful of that bushy hair, pulling just enough to tug her head back so he could kiss her throat - and then he woke, with his hand wrapped around his cock. It was exploding rather spectacularly over his chest, chin, and headboard. He continued to pump out every drop as he caught his breath.
"Fuck," he murmured as the image from his dream still lingered.
It had been a month since he'd kissed her the second time. Another whole month where they both pretended it hadn't happened. But Merlin, did he want it to happen again. The sight of her in Defence Club shooting those arrows had turned him on so badly he'd had to wank in the loo before he could head back to the common room with his friends. The way her fingers had slid along that arrow, the way she stroked the bow's strings… he'd about busted in the middle of the duelling room imagining those fingers on his cock.
And the dreams had been getting a little more intense as of late.
He'd just finished cleaning himself up when he jumped at the sound of his friend's voice.
"Oi!" Seamus yelled, jerking him out of his dreamy post-orgasmic stupor. "Get your hand off your cock and out of bed, Weasley, or you'll miss breakfast."
Ron blanched as he realized that he'd forgotten to use a silencing charm and hoped he hadn't done more than make a few groans. "Fuck you, Seamus!"
Seamus grinned at him when he poked his head out of his bed curtains. "You wish. Seriously though, it's almost eight."
Ron nodded, grateful for the wakeup call. As he made his way into the bathroom to wash up, he wondered if the warm weather would mean Hermione would opt to leave her robes open when not in class. When her robes were open, he could watch the sway of that arse a little more easily; it meant he could see more of those thighs when she sat down. By the time he stepped under the hot spray of the shower, he had his hand wrapped around his cock again.
He swore she was going to be the death of him and she didn't even know it.
~ ASC ~
Ginny opened the box with great hesitation. The sight of the large gift coming towards her had surprised her, but when she recognized her brother's writing on the side, she had immediately frozen. After living her whole life with those two, she knew better than to dive into a wrapped box without being as cautious as possible.
And since Ron's birthday had been last week and his present had quite literally singed off his eyebrows, she thought proceeding with caution was a good start.
Colin craned his neck over. "Ooh, I love presents."
"It's from Fred and George."
Colin immediately moved away and she laughed.
"I don't think that it will blow up in my face, but it's probably wise to err on the side of caution," she warned as she carefully unwrapped the bow and slid the envelope off. She slipped the letter out, unfolding it to read.
Ginny,
We just wanted to check in with our favourite sister. The shop looks great! Fred and I painted all of the walls neon orange! Just kidding! It actually looks great. We decided to go with a bright blue and we've already started filling the shelves with our products. Sirius came by the other day to check it out and he was really impressed with our progress. Dad came by as well with Percy. Mum is still a bit sore at us for leaving Hogwarts, but Dad assures us that she's just worried - you know, how we're throwing away our futures, and how we'll be desolate and living on the streets - but after seeing the shop, I think Dad will change her mind. He told us that he was so proud of us and that he supports how we're following our dream. It was nice. We had a moment.
Gamma and Papa even stopped by to see the place. We were originally hoping to be ready for business by Easter, but I think that we're pushing it back to the first weekend after school ends. It will give us the extra time we need to stock up and to make sure that we're as prepared as we can be. Not to mention the large orders we have for the Ministry of Magic. Sirius convinced them to let us make Shield Cloaks and Shield Hats for them and we've been busy getting the orders ready.
How's Hogwarts been without Umbitch? Lee mentioned that Peeves made her life quite fun those last few days, I'm almost sad that I missed it. He also said something about you being there for the final showdown, which you have yet to fill us in on! What happened? Fred says that he can only imagine how Weasley-worthy it was of a prank (apparently we're using ourselves as the standard now).
Anyway, this box just contains a mix of some of our new stuff that we'd like you to distribute to whomever you think it will benefit. We could use the publicity and it will help us gauge some of the reactions if you could let us know.
Write soon and fill us in! What happened?
Love,
George & Fred
PS - there's a red box tied with a gold ribbon in the parcel, can you give it to Angelina? Thanks.
Ginny frowned at the last part, looking at the box curiously.
"Well?" Colin prompted noticing her look up from the letter. "Is it safe?"
"It's safe," Ginny told him with a laugh.
She dug into the box, sorting through the many different joke shop items before she found the long, rectangular red box. She put in the pocket of her cloak to give to Angelina later at practice. She was curious as to what her brother had put aside for their friend.
Ginny and Colin went through the assortment of WWW products in interest, passing them out to people among the Gryffindor table as they went before Colin took off to the Herald. Harry was doing extra Quidditch practice with Ron on the pitch, so she grabbed her bag and decided to go find Theo.
She found him sitting at the back of the library, his books strewn open around him as he made notes. She slid into the chair next to him and Theo grinned.
"Hi, chick."
"Hi, I've missed you. How's life?"
Theo smiled brightly, propping his face on his hands. "Life is great!"
"How's Finn? He's been helping out in the Advanced Years Defence Club the last few weeks, hasn't he?"
"Yes, and it was a wonderful surprise that first night! Finn is... incredible and so sexy and so sweet and I want my hands on my him every second of every day — which I know is completely unreasonable."
She chuckled. "Not really. I feel pretty similar about Harry's hands."
"Hinny does need to be touching, it makes sense."
"Will you stop with the Hinny stuff?" she exclaimed in amusement. "You talk about us like we're connected at the hip."
Theo shook his head. "Never!"
"I'll have to come up with a couple name for you and Finn then. Feo?"
"I will choose to ignore that," he said with a chuckle. "I really like him, Ginny. He's kind and so interesting. He tells me all about his family and friends. He's the commander for the royal guard, the youngest one in their history. Before him, the youngest was twenty-one! He's brave, and Merlin… so gorgeous! And he's just so sweet to me! He's been taking me to his place in New Zealand every Saturday since the one after Valentine's Day. We just Apparate there — he has that kind of power! Fae can apparently Apparate halfway around the world in just a blink like house elves can! And when he kisses me... I just lose myself."
"I'm so happy for you."
"Thanks." He let out a slow sigh. "I spoke to Na'eemah again on Sunday."
Ginny's eyes widened. She had introduced Theo to the mind healer three days after Umbridge had left the school, but she hadn't wanted to pry to see if he was communicating with her or not. She knew from experience that sometimes after the push, one needed time to come to terms with it on their own. "Oh good! How was it?"
He shrugged. "You were right, she has a way about her. I kind of convinced myself that I wasn't going to say much and the next thing I knew I was telling her about my fucked up childhood and my fear of my father. I felt better when I left her. We've met four times over the Floo. Professor McGonagall has been letting me use her office every week."
"Good! That's a start. I just don't want you to blame yourself for Ernie, Theo. Yes, you should have come forward and told someone, but I understand why you didn't. Fear sometimes drives us to make the wrong choices. But you let him hurt you, and that scared me."
"I think Finn is worried about that as well."
"Worried how? Ernie can't hurt you anymore, he's in prison."
Theo shrugged and Ginny thought maybe he wasn't going to answer her. She watched him pick at the corner of one of the library books for a long moment before he spoke.
"We… he goes down on me... a lot. It's amazing and Merlin, when his mouth is wrapped around my… er, but — he won't let me do him. He kept saying that it was because the day was for me. But even the first night after he surprised me by showing up in Defence Club, we went back to my room and we spent three delicious hours snogging. I wanted to go further, but he seemed... I don't know… hesitant… to let me. Every time we've gone to his place, he only pleasures me and doesn't let me reciprocate and when I try… he always stops me, says it's about me and my pleasure."
"Theo," Ginny said softly. "You don't have to rush it. You were pressured into sex early by your father. With Finn it's not necessary to move fast again. You can take your time and get to know one another before you jump all the way in."
"I know," he said. "I just… I don't want him to think that…"
"Theo, if he really likes you, he won't pressure you."
He smiled at her. "You make it sound so easy."
"It is," she said. "Just enjoy the moment. When you're ready you'll know, and you can tell him."
Theo sighed. "I guess. I guess maybe I'm overthinking it. Like maybe he doesn't want me to because of what... happened with Ernie."
Ginny took his hand in hers, squeezing tightly. "Considering that he rescued you from that bloody, pompous arse, I doubt that. Take things slow, Theo. I know you feel like you already know him so well because you write letters and have written letters for four months, but technically you've only been together for a little over one month."
"Two months in two weeks."
"Theo…"
"I know," he said, squeezing her hand back. "But I feel like it's not new. We tell each other everything. There's nothing about me that he doesn't know, Ginny. Nothing. I really, really like him."
Ginny leaned in and kissed his cheek. "Good, but do you know everything about him?"
"I think so, yeah," he said honestly. "Like I said, we tell each other everything. His letters are full of everything. He told me all about his childhood and his sisters, he has six older sisters and two older brothers. Niamh is thirteen years older than him - that's Ciara's mum - and he told me how she fell in love with a wizard and how his father was worried about what it would mean for her, but how she was so happy that they couldn't deny her. He's been training how to fight since he was eight as he was groomed to be in the royal guard. He could be king one day, but he's so far down in the line of succession since he's the youngest and his eldest sister, Roisin will rule when their father steps down. Finn's happy about that as he says the idea of ruling a kingdom is a big headache. He'd rather just be part of the team that protects it. He has nine nephews, but Ciara is his only niece and his favourite. He was always close to Niamh and he says that Ciara is like a little sister to him. A lot of his nephews are the same age as him so he considers them more friends than nephews."
"It's sweet that he looks out for her," Ginny told him. "I love that my brothers do that for me, even though sometimes it can also be quite annoying."
Theo nodded. "It is. He loves her a lot. He told her that we were dating and she was so excited. She asks me every day about Finn and tells me that I make him really happy, which makes me really happy and Merlin… I've turned into a sap and it's only March!"
Ginny chuckled. "He makes you happy. You make each other happy and that's a good thing, Theo. Are you nervous about having him come stay with you over the Easter holiday?"
"No," he said. "I thought I would be. I was nervous when I told him about the concert but… I'm not. I asked him to spend the weekend at Norfolk with me and he said that he would."
"Maybe that will be your moment," Ginny told him.
Theo grinned. "Maybe. I'm just excited to spend more than one afternoon a week with him. Having him teach swordplay at Defence Club means I see him twice a week, but he can't always stick around after the meeting and we never get more than a quick snog."
"Maybe Harry and I can double date with the two of you one weekend?"
Theo raised an eyebrow. "You two are not old enough to go to Hogsmeade any weekend you choose."
Ginny smirked. "Doesn't mean we can't be there."
Theo grinned at her. "I'd like that."
"There's this Italian restaurant that Harry and I go to. His parents went there, and the food is delicious. We can sit in a large booth and I can see how the two of you interact."
"You just want to meet him."
"Well, you've been keeping him away from me."
He smirked. "I don't want him to be enchanted by your beauty."
Ginny chuckled. "I think we can both say with absolute certainty that I not only have the wrong equipment for him, but that he's completely besotted with you. My ten minute visit with the two of you on Valentine's Day wasn't long enough."
"Yeah," he said, smiling brightly. "I do want you to meet him, for real, I mean, I know you met him! A double date would be great. Did I tell you what Draco and Blaise said to him?"
"No. When did they meet him?"
"When he came to Defence Club," Theo said, quickly telling her about the exchange.
Ginny laughed. "I'm glad they're looking out for you."
Theo scoffed. "Looking out for me, great — but still!"
"Good," she said, kissing his cheek again. "It's good that they're looking out for you. You are very loved, Theodore Nott. I have to head to Quidditch practice, but pick a Saturday and then let me know. Harry and I will be there."
Theo nodded and grabbed his books. "I'm going to come watch you practice if that's okay? I need a study break."
Ginny beamed at him as he packed up his things. "Absolutely. Just don't stare at my boyfriend's bum the whole time!"
Theo smirked. "Where my eyes wander is out of my control, chick, but I'll do my best."
Ginny laughed as she linked her arm with his. He told her more about Finn as they went up to Gryffindor Tower to get her broom and practice kit before heading down to the pitch. Seeing Theo happy again made her happier than she could put into words.
~ ASC ~
Quidditch practice was extra gruelling. With the loss of Fred and George Weasley as Beaters, Gryffindor took a hard hit. Harry had held tryouts the weekend after Valentine's Day and the prospect hadn't been fun. The first round of tryouts was a complete failure. The only two who showed up, Jack Sloper and Andrew Kirk, were not exactly the players that he was looking for. Sloper had hit Angelina with his bat and Kirke had trouble even staying on his broom, but no one else had come out to try for the position Beater and Harry thought he was going to be forced to accept them. However, Harry's luck turned around when a second year named Ritchie Coote approached him and asked if he could still try out.
Coote was a lucky find. He was weedy and had an excellent arm for whacking Bludgers. He beamed at Harry when complimented and Harry made a comment about wishing that there were two of him. Coote told him about how his friend Jimmy was rather decent with a bat. Harry had immediately pounced and asked him to bring Jimmy out for a tryout. Jimmy Peakes was also a second year and absolutely fascinated by American Muggle baseball so much so that he was a bit of an amazement with a bat. Harry asked him to join the team within five minutes as Angelina only nodded eagerly at his assessment. Coote and Peakes were exactly the kind of players he needed in his next match against Ravenclaw.
Harry ran them hard that practice, upping the drills and working them around the pitch in such a frenzy that he heard Katie whisper 'possessed by Wood'. Harry chose to ignore this. For the first time since the twins left, he was feeling good about his Quidditch team, and he wasn't leaving anything to chance. That Cup was as good as Gryffindor's this year.
He watched Ginny give Angelina a red box after practice before she approached him. When she got close enough, Harry tugged his girlfriend towards him and kissed her.
"Giving out gifts? Where's mine?"
Ginny chuckled and stood on her toes to kiss him. "It was from George."
Harry raised an eyebrow. "For Angelina?"
Ginny nodded. "He said that it was for her birthday, but that was in October. I think that George might fancy her."
"Really?" Harry asked in surprise. "Didn't she date Fred?"
"No," Ginny said. "Fred asked her and she said yes, but she went with George."
Harry frowned. "Did George like her, then? I mean, why would she go with George if Fred asked her?"
Ginny kissed his furrowed brow. "You're thinking too much."
"I just think that's like a big no, isn't it? Like an unspoken rule, you don't go after the girl your brother likes?"
"Isn't it also an unspoken rule not to date your best mate's sister?"
Harry closed his mouth. "Shutting up now."
"Mmm, good choice," Ginny said, standing on her toes again and kissing the corner of his mouth. "I rather like Angelina, and I think she and George would be great together."
"Matchmaker."
She grinned and stretched her arms up over her head. "I'm all sweaty. So are you. We need to shower."
Harry kissed her neck. "Together?"
Ginny's eyebrows rose. "Bold, Mr Potter."
"Hmm, not an outright no, interesting…"
Ginny blushed. "Separate showers."
Harry chastely kissed her on the lips. "Spoilsport."
Ginny hooked her arm through his as they headed towards the changing rooms. "Listen, I told Theo that I want to double date with him and Finn on Saturday. The next weekend is the Easter holiday so this one works the best, and I said that we could go our Italian restaurant."
"Sure — wait, it's not a Hogsmeade trip on Saturday."
Ginny put her hand on the door handle of the Gryffindor changing rooms and smirked at him. "Well, I mean, my boyfriend does have an Invisibility Cloak and a special map that helps him sneak out of the school. Are you telling me that's not possible?"
Harry's smile was slow. "You're a troublemaker."
"And you're not?"
"If we get caught we'll have detention for the rest of the year," he told her. "And Uncle Siri and Uncle Rem will ground me for life if I get caught sneaking out of the school again."
Ginny grinned widely. "So let's not get caught."
Harry watched her disappear through the door and he couldn't help but chuckle. One of the best things about Ginny was that there was never a dull moment.
~ ASC ~
Tonks had barely walked inside the front door of her home when Kingsley's Patronus sent her back. At his lynx's request, she Apparated back to the DMLE and found most of the bullpen congregating in the conference room. Higgins waved her over.
"What's going on?" Tonks asked him.
"Not sure," Higgins admitted, his eyes on Kingsley.
She only had to wait a moment before Kingsley spoke over the team of Aurors.
"There's been an attack in Piccadilly," his smooth, deep voice echoed. "The Muggles have deemed it from a terrorist organization, but the presence of the Dark Mark tells us otherwise."
"How many people?" someone called out.
"Fifty injured, five dead, four critical. All Muggles. It looks like a combination of a reducto and a bombardment jinx in the middle of the square. It took out part of the tube, two restaurants, and a local tourist shop. I've already sent two Aurors to work with the Muggle law enforcement in finding out the details. The rest of you, come see me for an assignment. You've all been cleared for overtime until I say otherwise. This is the only case we're working on at the moment; everything else goes to the back burner."
Tonks rolled her shoulders as she and Higgins approached Kingsley. She'd already put in a fourteen hour day, but she was ready and alert.
"Lupin, Higgins — I've assigned you two to the scene. I want you to find out what it was they used and how many Death Eaters were there. See if you can speak to any witnesses who may be able to give you something. I'll have Oblivators arriving as soon as possible and those who need it can be directed to them."
"Yes, sir."
Tonks led the way out and gestured for Higgins to follow. They Apparated to an alley just off of Piccadilly. The street looked like a war zone. Fires were still raging inside the restaurants, the street was littered in holes big enough to swallow a person whole, and the smell of burnt flesh was ripe in the air.
Tonks' eyes went to the screen where a Muggle news reporter was claiming terrorists unknown had attacked London.
"Do you think that they're still around?" Higgins asked.
Tonks shook her head. "No. King knows that we won't catch any of them today. They're long gone."
"Why attack this place?"
"To cause fear," Tonks said simply. "There are a lot of people here all the time. It's the perfect place to do just that."
Someone screamed for their child, ripping Tonks and Higgins' attention away from the street. A sobbing woman threw herself over the body of a child. A man nearby was ranting to a policeman.
"They wore masks! They were terrifying and made of gold and silver, almost skull like, and then they pulled this stick out! The stick must have been connected to a remote starter or something because he waved it like this and — BOOM!"
Tonks turned away from the policeman and rolled her neck and shoulders back. "I'll start by the restaurant, you start by the tourist shop. We'll meet in the middle, and by then, maybe we'll know what they used to blow this street up."
It was five hours later before she finally made it back home.
She barely got her shoes off before she swayed on her feet, clutching the wall for support. She stripped off her clothes as she walked through the house, desperately climbing into the hot shower. Tonks stood under the hot spray and finally let the tears come.
Sometimes, the horror of what she saw was too hard to handle. The dead littered the ground… body parts and bodies… and the children. How could anyone do something to someone so innocent? How could they just blow up a street full of people they didn't even know? Sometimes, she wondered how anyone was supposed to cope with seeing such horrors; how she was supposed to cope with it, day after day, knowing that the people who had done it were still out there. That until they were caught and punished they could do it again.
Tonks let the tears fall before she pushed her face under the spray to get rid of the evidence. She lathered shampoo in her hair, feeling better, but even more exhausted than she had been when she'd walked into the house. She finished washing up and shut off the shower. She dried off and walked naked into the bedroom to where her husband was waiting for her in their big bed. Tonks climbed into the bed and Remus opened his arms to her. She snuggled into him as he kissed her forehead.
"Did you get all of your tears out?"
"You and your damn supersonic hearing," she murmured against his chest.
He kissed her forehead again. "Rest. You're exhausted."
Tonks shook her head, her mouth moving to his neck. "No… not yet."
Remus raised an eyebrow. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"No," she murmured, her lips on his neck. "I need… I can't sleep yet. Too much energy… I need you first… Please…"
Her hands slid beneath his plaid pyjama bottoms, gripping him. Remus pushed his bottoms down his hips and let her set the pace, watching as she took him into her heat. She tossed her head back as she rode him, her fingers linked with his over her breast, and when she came, she cried out a steady stream of yes, that made her ride him faster. Remus raised his head up to suckle her nipple and she held him in place as she rode out her orgasm. She let out a sigh of satisfaction and Remus flipped their positions. He thrust harder and harder. Her hands gripped his bum tightly as he came, burying his face in her neck as they both moaned.
Remus rolled her with her, snuggling her against his side and she sighed in contentment. He kissed her forehead tenderly and the sound of her soft snores made him chuckle. But he held her close, watching the dim light of the stars cross her face. He just hoped tonight she rested and didn't dream.
But if she did, he planned on being right here when she woke. He wished that he could do more to help her, to ease the things she saw on a daily basis. He knew the horrors of what her work often entailed, and he wanted nothing more than to cuddle her close and kiss them away as he had done to Harry's childhood monsters. But this was her job. Dora was an Auror, and part of the reason he loved her was her unfailing capability to take care of herself. She was a damn good Auror and as emotionally attached as she often was, that connection made her the Auror she was.
Remus kissed her forehead, letting his eyes drift closed as he listened to her heavy breathing. She was an incredible Auror and it was his job to make sure that she came home to a loving, relaxing home that could help build her up for her next day on the job. Good food, good sex, good dreams.
That's exactly what he could do.
~ ASC ~
Peter watched them.
He stayed in the shadows, quiet and out of sight and did his best to blend in. He had spent the last few weeks travelling in disguise from Scotland to Russia, watching them, learning their habits. He'd even spent some time in his rat form watching his nephew interact with them; the love that he could see both for and from Harry, surprised him. Harry reminded him so much of James that he felt a pang of remorse and longing that he couldn't put into words. The more he watched them, the more he questioned how much he truly wanted to share with the Dark Lord.
Peter followed close behind the woman, doing his best to stay well enough behind her, to act as if he wasn't following her. He'd been using Polyjuice Potion to change his disguise every few days; in his rat form, he couldn't keep up with them as well as a human. But he'd noticed their routine. After over three months, he'd noticed a lot.
The man left around the same time every day and went to work; he came home at a reasonable hour. The woman, however, was on a different schedule. He watched her go for long walks; sit on a bench and write furiously in a notebook; enjoy a treat at a café... she was the weak link.
And when she slipped into the lift of the apartment complex, he joined her. He was to watch, to learn, to spy. He needed to blend in, but he also needed a bit more. He pulled his wand from his holster carefully. He would stun her if necessary, but he just wanted to chat, to get some information.
At least, that had been his plan.
But she suddenly turned, her knee shifting and slamming into his groin so sharply that he saw stars.
The woman pulled out her wand, disarmed him, and sent him flying forward just as the doors to the lift opened. He slammed into the ground of a wide corridor and landed at the feet of a tall man with salt and pepper hair cut military style. Peter realized he was the Auror just as a boot lifted to hold Peter in place on the ground
"Sorcha, they alvays think they can underestimate you."
Sorcha shrugged, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "My husband may be the Auror, but you don't mess with a Brown. You've been following me for weeks!" she declared, her wand still pointed at him. "What do you want?"
Misha snorted and flicked his wand to cuff the man at his feet, lifting him up. "You think ve don't know vhen somevone is following us? Vhen somevone stalks my wife!"
Peter whimpered under Misha's wand. "I-I-I..."
"He's speechless, Sorcha. How quaint." Misha said before he pinned Peter by his neck against the wall outside of their apartment. "Somevone came after my vife once and I lost her. Do you know vhat I did to the man vho hurt her? Russians, they know that happened to her and they know not to mess vith Misha Zacarias, da, but you, you are not Russian... you follow him. That English svoloch' vho calls himself lord."
"I'm not here to hurt you!" Peter blurted, his eyes frantic now.
Misha's eyes narrowed. "No? Then vhy do you stalk my vife?"
"He wants to know — the Dark Lord," Peter said quickly. "When he got word that your daughter survived the attack, he wanted to know more about her — where she came from and who her people are — he wants information!"
"On our grandson," Misha said coldly. He spit in Peter's face. "You think I vill give it to him? Harry may not be my blood, but he is mine. You tell your Dark Lord that!"
Peter shook his head as MIsha's fingers gripped his throat tighter. He finally managed to get his bearings and shifted into his rat form, biting Misha's hand before he ran.
"Der'mo!"
Peter felt the spells whiz past his him as he escaped into the hole of the lift and shimmied down the wall. He had enough information, he thought. The Dark Lord would understand why he left.
He made it outside into the biting cold of the Russian winter and attempted to catch his breath. He caught sight of the Auror coming out the front door and let out a tiny squeak. Peter hadn't expected the wizard to follow him. He scurried out across the street, desperate to get away, and when he finally ducked down into the sewer, he let out of a breath of relief.
The last thing that he wanted was to become someone's prisoner again. He needed to get his bearings and then make it back to Croatia. The Dark Lord would be waiting for his report - and Peter realized that the last thing he wanted to do was give it to him.
But what choice did he have?
~ ASC ~
Sirius woke up that morning on the brink of orgasm. He'd been having the most intense dream about Zee and he'd barely had time to blink awake before he realized that it hadn't entirely been a dream. His woman had her mouth wrapped around him, and he reached down to grip those caramel curls in his hands as she moaned around his cock. The sound sent shivering vibrations through him.
"Merlin," he groaned.
Zee lifted her gaze to his, her eyes dark and full of desire as she sucked. Those soft lips slid along his shaft, taking all of him and then slowly bobbing her head in a way that made him grip the sheets. Her tongue moved across the head of his cock and he managed to make an ugh sound before he came, eyes on her as she held him in her mouth.
Once he'd managed to come down from his high, he watched her swallow and then proceed to lick him clean. She kissed her way up his chest, nuzzling his neck.
"Morning."
Sirius wrapped his arms around her. "Best fucking morning ever."
Zee kissed his lips. "You were hard against my hip when I woke, and you know how much I love your cock."
"You destroy me," he said, kissing her softly. "Just, you know, give me some time to recover and I'll make you scream."
Zee kissed him again before she shook her head. "You'll have to make it up to me later. I need to hop in the shower or I'm going to be late for work."
Sirius pouted, tugging her back down into the bed when she attempted to stand. "I could join you, wash your back from my knees while my mouth is buried between your thighs, my tongue swiping you clean…"
Zee's breath hitched. "Then I'll be really late."
"I'll make it worth your while," Sirius told her, his hand sliding down between her thighs.
Zee whimpered when his finger brushed her clit. "No, I… I have to go. Tonight. You'll make it up to me tonight."
Sirius sighed as she scrambled out of bed and into the master bath to get ready for the day. He put his arms behind his head, sighing in contentment. It was always a good day when Zee woke him with a blowjob. He stayed where he was, drifting in and out of sleep as Zee hurried around him to get ready. He smelled a whiff of her perfume as she bent to kiss him and then she was gone, hurrying out of the room and down the stairs.
He drifted off to sleep again and woke three hours later, deciding it was time to get his lazy arse out of bed. He stretched before falling to the floor and making himself do his morning routine of push-ups and sit-ups (fifty of each) before he took a shower and washed up.
It was after eleven by the time he padded downstairs in a pair of black jeans, his hair still damp at the nape of his neck. He put the kettle on and decided to make himself a sandwich just as the phone on the wall shrilled, startling him. He gave the device an evil look before he grabbed the receiver from the wall.
"Er, hello?"
"Sirius, good!" Misha's voice boomed.
"Hi, Misha. You know I hate this bloody thing."
Misha chuckled. "Da, but you use it because you know my daughter vanted one. Is she there?"
"No. She's at work. It's close to noon here."
"Good, it's you, I vanted."
Sirius raised an eyebrow as he leaned against the wall casually, holding the phone more closely to his ear. "Oh?"
"Sorcha and I just found ourselves a rat."
"A rat?" Sirius repeated, his eyes narrowing. "Do you mean an actual rat, or are we talking Pettigrew?"
"I believe Pettigrew," Misha replied. "A man has been following Sorcha and I for the last three months or so. I thought that I had even saw him vhen you vere here, but he kept changing his face, so I was only suspicious. Today, he vas brave enough to follow Sorcha right into the apartment building."
"Is she hurt?" Sirius demanded.
"No," Misha answered quickly. "Ve are both fine. Sorcha is not a delicate flower, da, she took him down herself."
Sirius chuckled at the image. "She took him down?"
"Da. Ve didn't get much out of him. He said that he vas looking for information on the family of the voman vho survived in France, the voman vho has become so important to you and Harry. He swore he vasn't looking to hurt anyone. Before I could question him further he transformed into a rat, bit me, and took off. It vas only then that I made the connection as to vho exactly he vas. I suspected he vas a Death Eater, but I didn't realize he vas your old friend until he changed into the rat."
"He's gone?"
"Escaped. The last I saw he vas scurrying down the sewer before I could snatch him. I thought you vould like to know that he vas here."
"I do," Sirius told him, adjusting the phone at his ear. "It makes sense that Voldemort would want to know more about you. He knows how important Zee is now and after she survived that curse… you'll be careful?"
"Da. I've already increased our security and sent some Aurors out to Scotland to check on the Browns. Everyone has increased their security and is being more cautious. Ve know how to stay safe, Sirius."
Sirius nodded, forgetting that Misha couldn't see him. "Good, good."
"You vill tell, Zahira? She can call her mama vhen she gets home."
"Yes, I'll make sure she does. Thanks for letting me know, Misha. Peter is… he's a coward, but I wouldn't say that doesn't make him dangerous. I never should have let him go."
"No, you did vhat you thought vas best. Putting him back in Azkaban, he vould only be free again anyvay."
"Maybe," Sirius admitted, but he wasn't sure that made him feel any better.
"I vill let you know if anything else changes. Have Zahira call. Bye, Sirius."
"I will. Bye," he said as the phone clicked in his ear. He hung it up, running his hands over his face.
Peter had been following Misha and Sorcha in Russia; he had been there when they had been there, watching them. It made Sirius feel both uneasy and infuriated. How dare that stupid rat spy on them after everything? If he ever saw him again, he wasn't sure that he'd be able to restrain himself from killing him; not this time.
Sirius glanced up at the clock. Zee would still be a few more hours at least, but he felt restless now. He put away his unfinished sandwich. He needed to hit something, curse something… anything to get this rage out. He hurried upstairs to grab a shirt and decided that it was a good time to head to the Ministry.
The one thing he was quickly finding with the Terra Troop training was that it was always a handy excuse to burn off some energy, and right now he was itching for a good fight. He hoped Scrimgeour had something new for him to attack, but if not, he was more than happy to deal with the test dummies.
As long as he could hit something and pretend it was Peter's face, he didn't care what it was.
~ ASC ~
Three hours later, Sirius was still angry. He'd destroyed three training dummies before Scrimgeour had demanded he leave. He knew that he should head home, but the rage he had built up over Pettigrew was still so consuming that he found himself instead heading to Hogwarts. He walked quickly down the hall to Dumbledore's office and into the lift statue to take him up. His hands were trembling a little as he pushed open the door without invitation and saw Dumbledore's face show a moment of surprise before he masked it.
"Sirius."
"Letting Snape take Pettigrew was a stupid fucking idea, and you should have bloody well talked me out of it!"
Dumbledore's eyebrow rose. "We agreed that you keeping him indefinitely wasn't a wise choice."
"No, I should have just killed him."
"What happened, Sirius?"
"Voldemort sent him to Russia to spy on the Zacarias family!"
"How did Misha take that?" Dumbledore asked calmly.
Sirius only glared at him. "They're fine. They can handle themselves — that's not the point! He sent them there because of Zee! He's targeting her family!"
Dumbledore nodded. His expression seemed unsurprised to hear this. "It's what he does, Sirius. You remember what it was like before. Anyone considered to be a threat will be targeted. Those who refused to follow him were killed. Zee is part of yours and Harry's family and Voldemort can see that. He doesn't like it, and when she survived the attack in France, I imagine it made him even more aware of her importance."
"So what should I do? Break up with her? Kick her out? Send her to Russia?"
"If Pettigrew was in Russia, I doubt that's a good plan — and from what I've seen of your Zahira, I hardly think that she will simply go because you tell her to. And if you try to send her away, I imagine that you'll have a fight on your hands."
Sirius swore and kicked the desk. "I hate this!"
Dumbledore only stared at Sirius for a moment, his expression giving nothing away. "As to Pettigrew, what happened?"
Sirius explained how he had been following them and how Misha and Sorcha had taken him down. "He escaped by transforming and that's when Misha realized who he was."
"But he didn't hurt them?"
"No."
"That's interesting," Dumbledore said quietly. "That means that he was just observing them. Any idea how long he was doing so?"
"Since at least December," Sirius spat bitterly. "Whether it was a daily thing or not I have no idea."
"That's a long time to be merely observing."
"Stalking is what he was doing! If Sorcha hadn't… he was hoping to get something from them or do something… maybe take one of them hostage…"
"I doubt that," Dumbledore told him. "That would put too much importance on them. I think Voldemort was merely having him observe. We'll see if Severus knows anything."
It was only a moment before Snape stepped out of the fireplace.
"Where the fuck is Pettigrew?" Sirius demanded.
Snape only stared at him with extreme dislike. "He's on an information gathering mission in Eastern Europe. Been there since the middle of December as far as I know."
"What kind of information?"
"I don't know," Snape said. "His mission, his knowledge. I assumed something to do with Grindelwald as the Dark Lord has been talking about finding him."
Dumbledore frowned at that. "Why? He's been imprisoned in Nurmengard Castle for over fifty years. What would Voldemort want to know about Grindelwald?"
"I don't know," Snape repeated. "Something about him having hidden knowledge about something that the Dark Lord wants to know. There have been information gaining missions going on multiple fronts. He's still intent on learning the prophecy as well."
"Does he have the Guardian?"
"No, but he thinks that he's drawing closer to who they are after speaking to the half-Melusine Seer."
"You mean after he let Crouch Jr torture and murder him?" Sirius shot out.
Snape shrugged. "I wasn't present for that."
Sirius didn't think that was an answer. "Pettigrew was stalking Zee's family in Russia, Snape!"
Snape's eyebrows rose. "Why? Do they know something?"
"Because they're fucking Zee's family! He knows how bloody important she is and he... if you see Pettigrew, you tell him that if he harms her family in any way, I will make him wish for death!"
"Noted," Snape said dryly before turning to Dumbledore. "Last I heard, there was word of a Seer in Wales who might know of the Guardian. The Dark Lord was organizing a team to head out there. I heard that there was an attempt to take the prophecy a few weeks ago?"
Sirius nodded, trying to reel his anger back. "Yes. The one who touched it put his hand through some form of ice curse. He lost two fingers."
"The Dark Lord will want to know that. It only confirms his suspicions that no one can touch the prophecy except the Guardian."
Sirius let out a slow breath. "We tried again the other day — not to touch it, but to see if we could lift it down by magic. Bill, Fleur, and Moody — no dice. It was impossible to take it from the shelf. The Guardian is the answer apparently. You'll keep us posted if he learns more about the Guardian?"
"I will," Snape said cooly. "And if I find anything else on Pettigrew I'll let you know."
But as Sirius headed home, he found Snape's words did nothing to reassure him.
~ ASC ~
Zee stepped into the cottage only a moment after Sirius and gave him a bright smile.
"Hi, where are you coming from?"
Sirius tugged her close, lifting her to kiss her deeply. "I love you."
Zee frowned, her face squished against his heart as he hugged her tightly. "What happened? Are you all right? Is Harry all right?"
Sirius picked her up and carried her to the sofa, cradling her in his arms as he sat down. "I'm fine. Harry's fine." At her look, he let out a long sigh. "Pettigrew was stalking your parents in Russia."
Zee's eyes widened as he explained how Misha had called and how he had gone to Dumbledore.
"Letting him go was a bad choice, Zee," Sirius told her. "He was watching them! He was looking for signs of weakness."
"And Mama kicked his arse," she said, chuckling. "They can handle themselves, Siri. Papa is Head Auror for a reason."
"I know," he said. "But I'm angry. It was fucking Peter and…"
"Not your fault in any way. He's long gone by now anyway and we won't have to worry about that."
"I thought about sending you away, trying to break up with you or something stupid and Dumbledore told me from what he gathered about you that would only make me have a fight on my hands."
Zee's eyebrow rose. "More than just a fight. I'm not running, Sirius. I'm not going anywhere without both you and Harry — don't even try it."
He kissed her. "It was a stupid passing thought, I'm sorry."
"Forgiven. But if you even consider that an option again, I'll hex so you badly that you can't walk properly for a week."
Sirius grinned. "Understood."
Zee kissed his cheek. "I'm going to call Papa. Did you let Harry know about Pettigrew?"
Sirius shook his head. "No, not yet. I was too fired up. I went to the Ministry after I spoke to Misha to beat up some dummies, but Scrimgeour sent me home after I destroyed three of them."
She gently brushed a strand of his hair behind his ear. "Talk to Harry. I'll speak to Papa. They're both okay and I'm worried about them as well, but my father didn't get to be Head Auror for no reason, Siri. He can take care of himself and so can Mama."
He nodded as she climbed off his lap to head into the kitchen to use the phone. He knew that she was right, but the situation still infuriated him. Sirius pulled the mirror from his pocket and said his son's name. It was almost a full minute before Harry answered; Sirius tried not to smirk as he noted that his son's hair looked a little more mussed than usual.
"Hi, Uncle Siri."
"Harry, hope I'm not interrupting."
"Er, no… I'm doing homework."
He heard Ginny giggle in the background and Sirius couldn't prevent the knowing smirk. "Hi, Ginny."
Ginny's face appeared next to Harry's a moment later. "Hi, Sirius."
"Sorry to interrupt your quality snogging time, but I wanted to let you know about something that happened today."
"Is this about that terrorist attack in London?" Harry asked. "It was in the post this morning about how Death Eaters had attacked Piccadilly?"
Sirius shook his head. "No, it's something else. The attack was orchestrated in what the Aurors believe was to inspire fear and so far it worked. No, Misha called this afternoon, it seems our good friend Wormtail has been spending time in Russia."
Harry's eyebrow rose. "What?"
"Snape says he's been on an information gathering mission, but Misha said that he's been stalking him and Sorcha for months. He thinks that he even saw him when we were there, at least he thinks it's the same person as he kept changing his face. My guess is that he has a batch of Polyjuice Potion to swap disguises for when he can't be a rat."
"Are they okay?"
"Yes. Sorcha took him down. Zee's on the phone with Misha now. They caught him and questioned him, discovered he's been stalking them, and he turned into his Animagus, and took off. It's what tipped Misha off as to who exactly he was."
"Grandmama took him down?"
Sirius nodded. "Apparently she kneed him in his groin and sent him flying out of the lift into the wall. I guess he was more than a little surprised. But he escaped and we have no idea where he is now."
"Why would he be stalking them?"
"I don't know, Harry. I reckon any information they can gather on the people in your life is what's important to them. The fact that Misha is Head Auror probably says a lot as well. But we don't really know what they are after. What we do know, is that Pettigrew is long gone. Once Misha made him, there was no reason for him to stay in Russia — he knows that's unwise."
Harry nodded and let out a slow sigh. "Any other news?"
"Not really, no. But I'll see you next Friday to bring you home for the holiday."
Harry grinned. "Are you ready?"
"More than," Sirius admitted, his eyes on his girlfriend's profile from the doorway of the kitchen. "Do some schoolwork you two, talk to you later."
"Bye."
The mirror went dark in his hand and Sirius put it on the coffee table before he headed into the kitchen to wrap his arms around his woman. He kissed her neck as she talked to her father.
"I didn't expect you to have seen him again, I just wondered if you had Aurors hunting him," Zee said into the receiver. Whatever Misha said had her raising an eyebrow before she responded in quick Russian.
Sirius nipped at her neck. When she spoke in Russian, it sent an odd thrill through him. He slowly unbuttoned her blouse, untucking it from the black trousers she wore. Zee squirmed against him, shaking her head and pointing to the phone. Sirius ignored her and unzipped her trousers and with his eyes on hers, he slid his hand into her knickers.
"Oh," she breathed. "No, I meant, that makes sense. Yes… Papa, I have to go. Yes, I'll call you again tomorrow. Yes… okay… love you, too… bye." She hung the phone up just as he swiped her clit and her head fell back.
"I need a distraction and I believe it's your turn, love," Sirius said, slipping his hand out to finish undressing her down to her bra and knickers.
Zee smiled at him. "I think you did mention something this morning…"
Sirius rested his forehead against hers. "The bad is coming, Zee, it's coming fast. But right now, I just want you. I want you to distract me from it all. I want to just focus on you."
Zee kissed him softly. "I'm not going anywhere."
He sighed when she shimmied away from him. "Get back here."
Zee merely crooked her finger at him. "I think I'd like a bath. Are you still interested in helping me clean up?"
Sirius chased her up the stairs as she laughed, pinning her against the wall of the hallway and kissing her deeply. Then he was lifting her onto the little table by the wall, knocking the potted plant off and kneeling before her, pulling her knickers down and using his tongue. Zee's head fell back against the wall as her hips arched and the table smacked the wall loudly as she groaned.
"The bath," she murmured.
Sirius only slid his tongue along her folds as he added a finger and when she screamed his name, he grinned against her. They'd get to the bath eventually; he just had a few plans first.
~ ASC ~
George finished boxing up the next completed group of Shield Hats and sighed as he looked around the store. The orders for the Ministry alone had guaranteed them rent for the next year, which was incredibly exciting. He still couldn't believe that he and Fred had done it: They had their own shop. It was everything that he had ever imagined it could be and so much more. But the closer they seemed to get to opening, the more nervous he found himself becoming.
Nervous wasn't quite the right emotion, he thought; he was anxious. He was anxious for the big day. It was still two months away, but he knew that they would be more than ready. They'd been working almost night and day on creating stock, setting up the store, designing the layout and keeping it all fun, easy to find, and accessible. The shop truly looked great. Most of the work was done, and they were ready.
"I can hear you thinking from over here," Fred said as he closed up the box he was packing. "Are you still having doubts?"
"I'm not having doubts," George insisted stubbornly.
Fred only stared at him from across the room. "Write to her."
George turned away from his brother and picked up one of the clothes as he wiped down their work space. "I wrote to Ginny already."
Fred rolled his eyes. "Not to Ginny, you dolt!"
George didn't answer.
"Georgie, look at me," Fred insisted, grabbing his brother's arm and forcing him to turn and look at his twin. "Pull your head out of your arse and do something about it."
"I don't know what you're talking about. We agreed, we don't need our NEWTs to run this place."
"I'm not talking about our bloody NEWTs and we both know it."
George let out a slow breath. "It's too late."
"I told you to say something before we left. You chose to ignore me."
George sighed. "I just didn't see the point of it. She's being recruited, you know. It doesn't seem logical. It's too late."
Fred scoffed. "You are such a coward! You only went to the Yule Ball with her because I asked her out for you!"
"And I had to pretend I was you, didn't I?" George said, glaring angrily at Fred.
Fred snorted. "And how'd that work out for you?"
George turned away from his brother as he heard Fred sigh in exasperation.
"It's our birthday on Monday. I'll send word to Lee. We can sneak into Hogwarts and have a little birthday bash with everyone."
"I don't know, Fred."
Fred was quiet for a long moment. "Hiding isn't going to make it any easier, George."
George chose not to answer.
It was only when the door closed and he realized that he was alone did he close his eyes. The Yule Ball seemed like ages ago, but he remembered it like it was yesterday.
"I asked Angelina to go with me to the ball," Fred said, climbing into George's bed.
"What?" George exclaimed, eyes wide as he stared at his brother.
"I asked Angelina to go with me and she said yes."
"But you — oh — well, have fun."
Fred smiled at him. "Are you going to ask someone?"
George shook his head, pulling the blanket away from his twin. "No, I think I'll just go stag… have fun… you know. Get out of my bed."
Fred ignored him and stretched his legs out across the bed. "I wondered. You never said it, but I knew it."
"Knew what?" George said bitterly, tugging the pillow out from beneath his brother's head.
Fred rolled onto side to stare at George. "Go in my place."
"What?"
"I changed my mind, I don't want to go with Angelina. You go in my place."
"I can't just — Fred, you asked her to go out with you. You! We can't just switch on her!"
"Why? She'll never know," Fred said with a grin. "It will be fun, like old times! Remember when we convinced Gamma and Papa that we were each other and it lasted all day until Dad and Ginny showed up and Dad outed us?"
George glared at him. "I won't do it! It's not funny to do that anymore. Now get out of my bed!" He shoved him and Fred caught himself before he fell out of the bed.
"We'll see."
But then the day of the Yule Ball had come and Fred had repeated that he wasn't going to escort Angelina.
"Fred, you can't be that much of an arse to stand her up! She's our friend!"
Fred only shrugged. "Not standing her up. She'll have you." He grabbed the bronze tie that George had picked out and handed it to him. "Angelina's wearing bronze, so you better take that."
Before he could protest, Fred was calling after Lee and disappearing. George swallowed nervously. He couldn't take Angelina to the ball and really pretend to be Fred, could he? He put his tie on, nervously fixing his hair before he made his way downstairs. Fred and Lee were talking to Angelina in front of the fire. Lee had his arm around Eliza Miller, his date for the evening.
"Ah, here's Fred now!" Fred exclaimed, nodding at George. "You two kids have fun! Let's go, Lee!"
Before George could say anything to contradict him, they were gone and he found himself alone with Angelina.
"Er, hi," he said slowly, taking her in. Her black hair was pinned up with soft strands near her face. Her dress was black with bronze horizontal stripes that shimmered in the firelight and left her back completely bare. His eyes dipped automatically to her chest as he realized that she wasn't wearing a bra. "You look beautiful."
Angelina smiled at him. "You look good yourself. Ready?"
George took her arm and nodded. "Ready."
The night had been amazing. They'd danced and chatted and when they went out back for some fresh air, she'd taken his hand and his heart had soared. Angelina twined her fingers with his, smiling brightly.
"I had a really great time, Fred. I'm glad you asked me."
"Me too," he said, guilt swimming in his gut again.
"You're so much sweeter and quieter than Fred. He's the loud one, isn't he?"
"He's a bit more — er, no, I'm Fred. George didn't ask you to the Yule Ball tonight, Angie, I did."
Angelina only raised an eyebrow before she leaned in and brushed her lips against his. "You're right, Fred did ask me. Kiss me."
George hesitated a moment, but then she pulled his mouth towards hers. It was the softest, sweetest kiss he'd ever had. Better than the first time he'd kissed her, in a stupid game of truth or dare where he'd also kissed Katie and Alicia. He'd kissed the corner of her mouth and she smiled at him, her gaze triumphant.
"I KNEW it!"
George stared at her. "Knew what exactly?"
Angelina gripped his chin hard enough to make him wince. "Do you two think I'm stupid?"
"No! Of course we don't think… I don't know what you're talking about!"
Angelina scoffed. "I almost believe you. George, why didn't you just ask me to the ball?"
"I wanted to — er, I mean, I did ask you, I'm Fred."
Angelina nodded. "Okay, Fred, how come you're acting like George? Kissing like George?"
"What? We're twins! Of course we do things the same!"
Angelina shifted and linked her arm with his. "I've known you two for six years. And after we played that little game last year, I kissed the both of you. Fred was… boisterous and eager and you… sweet and nervous and after you kissed me, you kissed the corner of my mouth just like you did now."
"You mixed us up, I'm… Fred."
Angelina reached up to touch the small barely there scar on his eyebrow. "No, I didn't because I wouldn't have kissed Fred. Goodnight."
George had watched her go and he'd let her go. He'd never quite forgiven himself. She'd never brought up the night again. He'd never asked. He'd told Fred that she'd figured it out, but Fred was convinced that George had caved and told her. But he felt like scum for lying to her. For taking her out when she thought that she was going out with Fred; for deceiving her like that.
And he wished that he'd spoken to her about it.
Instead, he thought of that kiss over and over; imagined kissing her again, kissing those dark shoulders, sliding the thin straps down to reveal her beautiful breasts.
He wasn't a coward, he thought darkly. Angelina was their friend; she had never given him any sign that she liked him outside of being a friend, and after he'd pulled that on her, how could she ever forgive him?
No, it was better this way.
End Authors Notes:
(Russian) svoloch' = scum
(Russian) Der'mo = shit