Disclaimer: I don't own anything and I don't make any money from this, as my parents constantly remind me.
A/N: You guys amaze me. I couldn't believe the reviews I got. I thought you'd all go back to not reviewing. I hope it keeps up this way. Sixty-five reviews is an amazing effort. Breaking one hundred reviews with my second chapter would be…beyond words. I have my fingers crossed. This chapter is dedicated to everyone who has posted at the forum. FYI, it has the sixth highest number of posts of the four hundred forums in the 'general' category. Thanks. You've made it a fun and interesting place. Our epitaph this time comes from the Bard. Enjoy!
Chapter Two
All the world's a stage.
And all the men and women merely players;
They have their exits and their entrances;
And one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages.
As You Like It, William Shakespeare.
Katie,
It's me, Alicia. Do you remember me from school? Pale skin, auburn hair. Played Chaser for Gryffindor alongside you.
Just kidding, Kat. I know it's only been a few days. I promised I would write everyday, but I didn't get the chance. Everything's been non-stop. You have to promise to show this letter to Angelina. I would send her one, but I'm worried about George finding out I'm writing to you girls but not him. How is he, by the way? Healthy and everything, I mean. Is he eating vegetables? Angelina, make sure he eats enough vegetables. Be careful. He'll tell you he ate them then one day you'll find a heap of old peas hidden in a pot plant.
All right. This letter isn't supposed to be about George. I hope he's fine, though. Is he happy? Has he mentioned me? Oh, it doesn't matter. I'm being stupid. You're probably more interested in hearing what I've been doing. Well, I'm still in Australia obviously. I'm writing this on the afternoon of my fifth day here.
It's beautiful here in Sydney. Even though it's winter, the sky's always blue. I got sun burnt today. I never would have thought it possible to get burned in winter. Aside from the constant sunshine, there are some downsides. No one has said G'day to me and I haven't seen a single kangaroo. Apparently the only kangaroos in Sydney live in the zoo. I guess that makes sense. They'd have a little trouble hopping around the streets and dodging cars.
Work is already getting hectic. I had to prepare an introduction to my interview with Oliver this morning. All I did was talk a bit about Oliver's history and stats. The senior correspondent (Francis) gave it back to me covered in red marks. There was all this scribble about me splitting an infinitive and ending a sentence with a preposition. Those rules of grammar went out with the 19th century! Apparently Francis is a stickler for that sort of thing, though. I bought a book of grammar and punctuation today.
I'm still getting to know my workmates. The photographer Cassie is really nice. A little excitable though. My boss frowns a lot and the other new correspondent (Jacob) has hardly spoken to me. I don't think he likes me. On the train to Leeds my bag accidentally fell off the luggage rack and hit him on the head. Really. Can I control what my bag does? It's fine anyhow. I'm getting along with everyone well enough.
I saw Oliver last night, which was nice. Good to see a familiar face and stuff. He's doing well. He says hello. Oliver's good.
How are things with you girls? What's it like living with guys? Do they really leave their underwear lying around? What about the shop? Is business good? Is Lee enjoying his job?
I better finish up. A batch of express mail is due to leave in ten minutes. I better hurry if I want this to get to you before you really do forget me. Please reply. I'm dying to hear from you girls.
Love always,
Alicia Spinnet.
P.S. Oh. I almost forgot to add that I spent last night in Oliver's hotel room. Well. Cheerio!
The parchment slipped from Katie's hands and drifted to the floor. Before it had even hit the carpet, Katie had already run off in search of her wand. As soon as she found it, she Apparated into Diagon Alley.
Weasley Wizarding Wheezes was busy, as always. The school holidays ensured that there was always a healthy number of customers in the store. Fred and George were busy doing a demonstration of their Nosebleed Nougats, leaving Angelina to serve. Katie ducked around the crowd of appalled but curious people and made her way to her friend.
"Katie? Is it lunchtime already?" Angelina asked, frowning down at her watch.
"We have a problem," Katie hissed, ignoring the question.
"What kind of problem?"
"A big one!"
"Why are you whispering like that?" Angelina asked.
"So Fred and George won't hear!" Katie said, her tone clearly implying that this was obvious.
"You don't want them to hear?"
"No!"
"Then I suggest you shut up because they're coming this way."
Katie made a small squeaking sound and pressed her lips together. She gave a strained smile and turned around. Fred and George were approaching, grinning and wiping blood from their faces.
"That went well. I suspect we'll have to order in an extra batch of Nougats," Fred said cheerfully.
"What brings you here so early?" George asked Katie. "Angelina's lunchbreak isn't for another half hour."
"Can she take it early? I need to talk to her upstairs," Katie said, giving what she hoped was a calm smile. If the twins sensed trouble they would be on her in a second. Those two always had to know what was going on, especially when it wasn't any of their business.
"Sorry. We kind of need her to keep serving whilst we do a demonstration of the Puking Pastilles."
Katie pouted. "Please, George."
"It's only half an hour," Angelina said, giving Fred a meaningful look.
"All right," he yielded almost immediately. "Off you go then. You've got an hour."
George rolled his eyes. "Are we running a business here or not?"
Angelina kissed Fred on the cheek and winked at George. "I suppose this is just one of the perks of sleeping with the boss."
George made a face. "I thought we agreed never to discuss what you and Fred did behind closed doors."
"Lighten up," Angelina advised as she took Katie by the arm. "Maybe if you got some you wouldn't be so uptight."
"Don't," Katie breathed, digging her nails into Angelina's forearm.
"Ow. God. What is your problem?"
"Everything all right?" Fred asked, rasing his eyebrows slightly.
"Yep. It's just a girl thing. Nothing you boys would be interested in. See you later."
"What's going on?" Angelina asked as she was dragged upstairs. "You left nail marks in my skin, you know."
"I don't think you should be teasing George like that. He might actually go out and do what you suggested."
"So? He'd be a lot less tense if he did."
Katie pushed Angelina into the flat and slammed the door shut. "Please promise you'll stop suggesting stuff like that to him."
"Whatever you say," she said, giving her friend a concerned look. "Since when do you care what George does or doesn't do?"
"This isn't about George. We have a problem."
Angelina sighed and went through to the kitchen. She set about making herself a sandwich for lunch as Katie sat down at the table. "It had better be worth it. I'm going to owe Fred for this. Not that I mind paying him back. He thinks I don't like it as much as he does. Guys are stupid that way. Anyway, it's better when I pretend I don't want to. Fred's very cute when he begs. Is Lee like that with-"
"Alicia shagged Oliver!" Katie blurted suddenly.
Angelina turned around very slowly. "What did you just say?"
"It's true. She shagged him in Australia. What are we going to do?"
Completely forgetting her lunch, Angelina went to the table. "How do you know this?"
"She said it in a letter I got this morning. The beginning of the letter was normal. That bit was just about kangaroos and grammar. At the very end she just said that she shagged him, casual as you like. I don't think the southern hemisphere agrees with her. We need to bring her back before she goes completely mad."
Angelina frowned, trying to get her head around what she had just been told. It made no sense. "I think I'll need to read the letter before I can participate in this conversation."
"Bugger." Katie leapt up and whipped out her wand. "I left it at home. I'll be back in a second."
Katie disappeared with a crack and Angelina stared at the empty spot she left behind. Despite Katie's obvious agitation, Angelina was less surprised that something like this had happened. She just hadn't expected it to be so soon. Actually, she had expected George to be the first to crack. She had obviously underestimated Alicia's feelings for Oliver.
Katie reappeared at that second, a piece of parchment clasped tightly in her hand. She thrust it towards Angelina and sat back down. Reading it quickly, Angelina could see what Katie had meant earlier. Most of the letter was about perfectly mundane stuff. Only at the very end did she mention it in passing.
"Ah. You see, there's nothing to worry about. She just said she spent the night in his room. That doesn't necessarily mean anything happened. You're over-reacting," Angelina assured her.
"Don't be stupid, Ang. Why else would she be in his room at night?"
She snorted. "Probably re-living every Quidditch game they ever played together. You know what Oliver's like."
"I do know what Oliver's like. That's why I'm worried!" Katie exclaimed. "How can you be so calm?"
"Firstly, there's no proof that they did anything. Secondly, if they did do it, then so what? Alicia could do a lot worse in my opinion."
"But it'll confirm all of George's fears. He'll have a panic attack."
"No he won't," Angelina said firmly. "He's much better now. He's moving on quite well."
"If they both keep moving on so much they'll never get back together! George won't take her back if he knows what she did with Oliver," Katie said, beginning to get even more worked up.
Angelina reached across the table to pat her hand gently. "Kat, you do remember that Alicia's on the other side of the world, right? You know she and George will be on different continents for most of their lives."
"But there's always a chance. It's a little speck of light at the end of the tunnel, but at least it's something. If they both lose their virginity to other people, it'll be over forever. Alicia and George are meant to be together."
Angelina couldn't help but smile. "You're a hopeless romantic, Katie Bell."
"I can't help it," she said, lowering her eyes and blushing.
"I'll tell you what, let's write Alicia a letter and ask for clarification. Then we'll at least know what we're dealing with."
Katie nodded enthusiastically. "Good. Clarification. Good idea."
Angelina Summoned a piece of parchment and a quill. "Here, you start and I'll finish making myself lunch."
Katie scribbled away and Angelina smeared some peanut butter on her bread. As she ate she looked over Katie's shoulder. "What are you doing?" Angelina demanded as her eyes scanned the parchment.
"Writing a letter. And don't talk with your mouth full."
"That's not how you're supposed to do it. Give me the damn thing."
Katie sighed and took Angelina's sandwich as she seized the quill and parchment.
Alicia,
How is Australia? It sounds like you're having a good time. Can you send me a koala as a souvenir?
Everything's great here. Fred and Angelina are hardly fighting and Lee loves his job. I've been getting more confident about my NEWTs result everyday. I even started buying medical books. As for George – he's doing much better now. I'm sure he'd like to get a letter from you. Did you get the invitation for the engagement party? Lee and I are counting on you coming.
Katie's being ridiculously polite. Leesh, I'm hereby commandeering this letter from her. All that small talk is pointless. This letter has one purpose and one purpose only. We want to know something.
Did you or did you not shag Oliver Wood?
I'm sorry, Alicia. Living with Fred and George has already made Angelina uncouth. Well, more uncouth.
And we'd have been here all day with Katie's method of meandering randomness. At least I got to the point.
Ignore her, Alicia. It's true that we need clarification on what you and Oliver did, but that's not the only reason we wrote to you. We really miss you.
Oh yeah. Well. That really goes without saying.
But you still ought to say it. We all miss you, Leesh. It's not the same without you.
Why'd you go to Oliver's room at all? Were you planning to sleep with him from the start? Why? I mean apart from the obvious reason that he's hot. I thought you were over him?
I've confiscated the parchment from Angelina. I didn't want to put it so bluntly, but I would like to know what happened. Reply to this as soon as you can.
Love you, miss you.
Katie and Angelina
P.S. Angelina's the one responsible for the peanut butter smudges on the letter.
"And now we wait," Angelina said as Katie folded the parchment.
xxxxx
And they waited…then waited some more. Katie became so on edge that Lee thought he had done something wrong. For the life of him, he couldn't work out what it was. Whatever had happened, he had to fix it. When he returned home from work one evening with a bunch of red roses, Katie could only stare.
"What on earth are those for?"
Lee thrust the fragrant flowers towards her. "Because I love you and you're pretty. Er, and I'm sorry."
"What did you do?" she asked wearily.
"Well, I'm not quite sure. I'm sorry though. I didn't mean to do…whatever it is I did to make you angry."
"Angry? I'm not angry."
"You've hardly spoken to me these past two days." Lee lowered his dark brown eyes and said, "If you're having second thoughts you can just tell me."
"Second thoughts?" Katie blustered. What was he on about?
"You've been distant and you wouldn't tell me what was going on. I figured it had something to do with me. Something you didn't want to tell me."
Katie suddenly realised what she'd been doing. By worrying about Alicia and George's tattered relationship, she'd been neglecting Lee. He was the sort of person who needed constant attention and reassurance. I should have known better, Katie scolded herself.
"Stupid boy." She tossed the flowers aside and kissed him fiercely. He'd been so sure that she didn't want him that he was too surprised to kiss back right away.
Katie finally broke the kiss and hugged him. "Let's go out for dinner tonight."
"What? But it's-"
"Come on, you've been dying to try out that restaurant down the street." She snatched a jacket off the coat rack and shoved Lee back out the door.
"Are you sure there's nothing wrong?" he asked hesitantly as she locked the door behind them.
Katie turned to him and smiled consolingly. "There's a lot wrong with a lot of people, but we've never been better as far as I'm concerned. I've just had a bad couple of days, which has absolutely nothing to do with the way I feel about you."
"Can I help fix whatever's been worrying you?"
"Honey, I don't think anyone will be able to fix it," Katie said earnestly.
As Katie and Lee enjoyed their dinner, Fred, George and Angelina were doing the same. Sadly, the dinner conversation was not as pleasant.
"I just don't know why you decided to hire a new employee all of a sudden. Was it because I took lunch a half hour early that day?" Angelina asked.
"We just need to expand a little," Fred placated.
"And it'll look more professional if we have a paid employee," George added.
Fred groaned as Angelina dropped her fork abruptly. "Are you suggesting I'm not professional enough for your joke shop? Or is it because I'm not contributing to the rent? You both agreed that I wouldn't have to pay if I worked in the shop."
"I just thought you would want to get a job of your own. Working and living together might not work out so well," George said gently. At least he thought he was being gentle. Fred put his head in his hands.
"You don't want me working in the shop. Just come out and say it. Why don't you just fire me?"
George rolled his eyes. "Fine. You're fired."
Angelina gasped in outrage. "Fred! Tell him he can't do that!"
"Tell her we're running a business."
Fred stood up and shook his head. "I'm not going to choose between the both of you. I don't know what's going on, but you had better stop acting like children before I fire both of you. Sort it out."
Fred stormed off and George and Angelina lowered their gazes to their plates. Angelina was first to speak. "I never thought I'd hear Fred Weasley tell someone else to grow up."
"He's right though," George said quietly. "I'm sorry I baited you like that."
"Are you going to tell me what's wrong? You only ever pick fights with me when something's wrong."
"Oh, it could have something to do with the fact that Alicia's already moved on with Oliver."
"Moved on?"
"I think there may have been a hotel room involved."
Angelina's stomach dropped. "Wait. How did you know about that?"
George shrugged. "I came up here to ask you a question during your lunch break. You and Katie were gone, but there was a letter on the table."
"Whoops." She grimaced. In their haste to Apparate to the owl post, she and Katie had left the letter out in plain view. "Ok, but technically, we don't know if anything happened. The wording wasn't conclusive."
"What do you think personally?"
Angelina didn't reply. She didn't have to; George saw the answer in her eyes. He got up and began to clear the table. "Alicia asked about you in the letter," Angelina pointed out weakly.
"She wanted me to eat vegetables. How romantic," he said dryly.
Angelina got up and snatched the plates from him. "Well, so what if they did it? What's the big deal?"
George turned away and began to run hot water into the sink. "The big deal is that I always thought Alicia would be my first and that I'd be her first. It was an important thing to me. She made an offer the night we broke up, you know. I turned her down. I rejected her, actually. That one night could have changed everything."
"With all due respect, I doubt you're that good." Angelina dumped the stack of plates in the sink, splashing water over both of them in the process. "Alicia was always going to leave no matter what happened. That one moment, no matter how spectacular it was, wouldn't have stopped her from going."
"But at least I'd have beaten Oliver to it," George muttered darkly.
"Does it really matter that much?"
"How would you feel if Fred had lost his virginity to Marietta Edgecombe, or someone else you dislike?"
"Edgecombe would be missing a few teeth and Fred would have to beg on his hands and knees before I would even look at him again," Angelina admitted.
"You see? As much as I appreciate your advice, you've no idea what I'm going through."
"Yes, but you can't go through it on your own."
George nodded. "I'm not going to go through it alone. I've decided to move on. Really move on, I mean. No more casual snogging for me. Are you right to finish up this cleaning by yourself?"
"Why? Where are you going?" Angelina asked.
"To get changed."
"Why?"
"Because I'm going out," he answered shortly.
"Where to?"
"Just out. Don't wait up for me."
Before Angelina could think of anything else to say, George left the kitchen, humming to himself. She didn't like this situation. Still, she didn't know what she could say. As much as she loved Alicia, she didn't like seeing George unhappy. Unlike Katie, she had no illusions about the state of their relationship. It was long over, but George's idea of jumping to another random girl didn't seem like it would help much.
In fact, Angelina was willing to bet that it would only make things much worse in the long run.
xxxxx
Katie,
What does it feel like to have a nervous breakdown? I think I'm having one. I'm dizzy and I can't catch my breath properly. I feel like vomiting even though I haven't eaten all day. If my vision starts blurring I'm going to have to call…oh God. What's the emergency number in Australia? Is it 911, or is that just America?
Sorry. You can't even use a telephone. I'm sorry. Things have become so much worse since my last letter. Even the letter from you girls didn't cheer me up.
I need to see you. I need to talk to someone. No one but you and Angelina will be able to help me. No one in this country cares about me. I cried this morning. I haven't cried in ages. I'm lonely and I'm in trouble. I want to come home.
Oh no. The reception desk just called. Someone's here to see me.
Angelina flipped the parchment over. "What? That's it? It just ends there?"
"Yes." Katie chewed on her bottom lip anxiously. "What are we going to do?"
"She didn't even answer the question. I underlined it, for Christ's sake," Angelina said, glaring at the letter.
"What if something happened to her? What if she got sick and she tried to use that number on the telephone but it didn't work and she died alone in her hotel room?"
"If she died, who sent the letter, Katie?"
"Alicia was murdered," she gasped.
"Ok. That's enough for you." Angelina pulled Katie's cup of coffee away from her. "Alicia is not dead. She's just having some sort of crisis."
"She needs us."
"I know."
"How much are Portkeys to Australia?" Katie asked.
"A few hundred Galleons, I'd expect. Why?"
"Because one of us is going to have to go to Australia."
Angelina laughed loudly. "Oh yeah. Do you have three hundred Galleons lying around?"
"You're the one with the job."
"You know that working in the shop pays for my living expenses and not much else."
Katie frowned in thought. "Well, Lee hasn't been paid yet. What about Fred?"
"He isn't rich enough to just hand over three hundred Galleons without question. He'll want to know what it's for. What will I say then?" Angelina demanded. "Oh, hey, baby, can I have three hundred Galleons to buy a Portkey so I can go to the other side of the world to help someone you aren't even terribly fond of?"
"George, then?"
Angelina shook her head as though she had already ruled this out. "I'm not dragging him into it. Besides, he and Fred have a joint account at Gringotts. There's no way he'll be able to withdraw that much without Fred raising an eyebrow."
Katie sighed forlornly and looked around her kitchen helplessly. There had to be an answer. A way to get fast money. It hit her quite suddenly. "Angelina…you could always go to your mother."
"No way."
"It'd just be-"
"No!" Angelina snapped. "I cut her out of my life for a reason. If I go running back begging for help she'll be able to say I told you so. I can't stand it when people say that to me. She is not an option, so keep thinking, Katie."
"Your father?" she asked tentatively, already suspecting the answer.
"Yeah right! As if he'll have any spare money now that baby what's-her-name is around."
"I thought as much," Katie said tersely.
"Look, I want to help Alicia as much as you do. I'm just not willing to run back to my parents when I don't even know how bad it is. Knowing Leesh, she probably just got a bad haircut or something."
"It's sounds worse than that."
"A very bad haircut."
Katie scowled. "This isn't a joke."
Angelina sighed and rubbed at her temples. "I know. Can't you go to your family?"
"No. My parents are worried about me enough as it is. They already think I'm living a life of poverty with Lee."
"What about one of your brothers?"
"You obviously don't have any brothers," she said wryly. "They're all looking for excuses to prove Lee isn't good enough for me. If I go to them for money it'll be like admitting he isn't a good provider."
Angelina slumped back in her seat, defeated. "We'll have to help her the best we can with a letter."
"To help her we'll actually have to know what's wrong. What do you think happened?"
"She slept with Oliver again?"
"Or he somehow hurt her by turning her down," Katie suggested.
"Or she's…" Angelina trailed off mysteriously.
"Or she's what?"
"She's feeling sick, right? A stomach-ache she said."
Katie's eyes widened substantially. She looked over her shoulder even though no one else was in the flat. "Do you really think she could be…pregnant?"
"I don't know. We can't really rule it out."
"It's only been a couple of days. Isn't it a bit early for morning sickness? How long does it normally take?"
Angelina said, "Does it look like I would know something like that? You're the one who wants to be a nurse."
"Me? I'm having enough trouble trying to memorise the names of all the bones and muscles!"
"We'll just have to ask her straight out."
"No, we'll ask her what's wrong. We can't ask her if she's pregnant. It's too rude and presumptuous."
"What if she is," Angelina said quietly. "She'll only be able to travel for a few more months. Even if they give her maternity leave she'll have to drag a child around the world."
"Poor girl. She must be terrified." Katie's eyes began to swim with tears. "She must be so afraid and confused and lonely."
"Oliver had better do his bit," Angelina growled threateningly.
"Ooh. I could be a godmother next year," Katie said, forgetting her tears and clasping her hands together excitedly.
"You? What are you talking about? She'd obviously pick me."
"You don't even like children!"
"I'll like Alicia's baby. She'll naturally pick me because I've been her friend longer," Angelina replied matter-of-factly.
"Only because you ran into her on the platform! She'll pick Lee and I because we're the most responsible of the group."
"She'll never pick Lee. George will be the godfather."
"In what parallel universe would he ever agree to be the godfather of Alicia and Oliver's child? You're an idiot."
Angelina tutted. "Children pick up on bad habits so easily. I don't call people names so I'm obviously a much better choice."
"You swear more than I do," Katie protested.
Angelina looked down at the letter before her. It was odd to think that Alicia – the cautiously prudent one of the group – would get pregnant to an ex in a foreign country. "I think we should write her a letter before I have to go back to the shop."
"Good idea." Katie Summoned some parchment and a Self-Inking Quill. "I'll start it."
Alicia,
I promise you aren't going to have a nervous breakdown. Whatever it is, it can't be that bad. We'll always support you. We can't come to Australia but we'll help you through whatever it is. Even if it takes months. We won't judge you.
Hey, Leesh, it's Angelina. I hope you don't feel as if you can't tell us things because we're on different continents. Tell us what's wrong and we'll help you sort it out. Even if it's the sort of problem that will be with you for the rest of your life, for example.
What Angelina means to say is that there's no problem too big or too small. We might not be right beside you, but we promise we're with you all the way. The only thing is that we really need to know what's going on before we can help.
Don't feel embarrassed to tell us. Like Katie said, we won't judge you. Or him for that matter. Unless you want us to hurt him…then we will. No questions asked.
Ignore her. No one's going to hurt anyone. Reply to this letter as soon as you can because we're really worried about you.
Love always,
Katie and Angelina.
P.S. I baby-sat my younger cousins a lot over the past few summers. Angelina's had no experience with children.
"And why did you feel the need to add that P.S.?" Angelina asked tartly.
"Because it's true." Katie poked out her tongue and folded the letter. "Children are scared of you."
She smiled calmly and replied, "Alicia's going to think you're a nutter. She definitely won't trust her kid with you."
xxxxx
It was another three days before Alicia's letter arrived. Angelina found it particularly hard to keep quiet. She couldn't help but imagine Alicia alone and frightened in an unfamiliar place. It took all of her willpower not to blab to Fred and demand that he hand over the money for a Portkey. The only thing that stopped her was the knowledge that he would tell George, which would ruin his current good mood.
George had gone out every night since finding out about Alicia and Oliver. He wouldn't say where he went or who he was with, but he always came home happy. Having George out of the house made Fred happy, which satisfied Angelina in many ways. She couldn't see any point in ruining the collective good mood with her suspicions.
After dinner that night, George went out, leaving Angelina and Fred alone again.
"What shall we do tonight?" Angelina asked, sitting herself down on Fred's lap.
"Well, I do have all those resumes to read through. George wants my top three candidates by tomorrow."
"I suppose you could do that…"
Fred held her against him as she moved to get up. "Or I could just pick three people at random and spend the time doing something more enjoyable."
"Oh no, sweetheart. I wouldn't want to distract you from your important work," Angelina said as seriously as she could.
"That's why you sat on me, hmm? Trying not to be a distraction?" Fred's fingertips danced up the side of her ribs, causing her to giggle and try to push him away. "You're the most distracting person in the world, Angel."
"I'll distract you some more if you stop tickling me."
Angelina slid off his lap and he stood up. She won the race to the bedroom and leapt onto the bed. Fred crawled on top of her and buried his face in her hair.
"I'm really glad you're here."
"I wouldn't want to be anywhere else in the world," she said, hugging him tightly.
"And here I was thinking you were just using me to get away from your mother," he joked.
"That, too."
Fred chuckled and kissed her shoulders and collarbone. She was trying to pull his shirt over his head when a familiar owl came swooping in the open window. Katie's owl dropped a letter on Fred's head and circled back out of the room.
"What the hell now?" Fred muttered, irritated by the disruption.
Angelina snatched up the letter. "That'll be for me from Katie."
"You see Katie everyday! Can't you two stand to be apart for more than a few hours?"
"To be fair, we did share a room for seven years. It's a little hard to adjust so quickly."
"Yeah, my heart bleeds." Fred tugged at the hem of her shirt impatiently.
"I'm trying to read here," she said, swatting at him as if he were a fly.
A,
Got it! I won't open it until you get here. Hurry up!
K.
"We're going to Lee and Katie's," Angelina said, shoving Fred away.
"Why? I want to stay here with you," he whined.
"It won't take very long," she soothed.
Fred groaned and sat up. He scowled at Angelina as she adjusted her clothes. "What could be so important that you need to see Katie right this second?"
"It's a girl thing."
"Of course it is," he sighed.
"I promise we'll be back in less than an hour." Angelina slid off the bed and grabbed his hand. She led him back down the hall and to the living room. She shoved his wand into his hand. "Here you go. See you there."
"You're definitely going to owe me for this one," Fred told her.
He Apparated and Angelina smiled to herself. "I suppose I'll just have to grit my teeth and bear it."
At Lee's flat it quickly became obvious that Alicia's letter had interrupted their plans as well. Lee was sulking in the living room as Katie paced the floor in front of him.
"You took your time," Katie accused.
Angelina folded her arms defensively. "I left as soon as I got your letter. Your owl should learn how to fly faster."
"Sparkles is an excellent flyer."
"Whatever. So when did you get it?"
"Half an hour ago."
"You haven't opened it? Not even a peek?"
"No. I'm too frightened."
"What on earth are you talking about?" Lee demanded.
The girls ignored him and disappeared in the direction of the bedroom. Fred went and sat down beside Lee and asked, "Do you understand them at all?"
"Nope."
"Good. Just checking."
Down the hall, Angelina and Katie were huddled together on the bed. Alicia's unopened letter sat between them.
"Ready?" Angelina asked, tearing the envelope open.
"No," Katie answered truthfully.
Angelina pulled out the piece of parchment and unfolded it slowly.
Girls,
I'm quite sure I'm on the brink of some sort of nervous breakdown. My stomach keeps hurting even when I haven't eaten anything. I've had a constant headache for two days. I hope I feel better tomorrow. I have to interview Oliver tomorrow morning before the Quidditch game.
Oh God. I forgot to tell you last time. My boss found out I'm close to Oliver and he now wants some sort of exposé. I have to talk about what Oliver's really like. He wants dirt on Oliver! He wants to know all about his Hogwarts romances. How can I tell him that I'm Oliver's only Hogwarts romance? I can't expose Oliver or myself like that. What should I do?
Do you think I can produce something in-depth without having to embarrass Oliver or make him hate me? I can't betray his trust. I couldn't do that to him. Especially after what happened on Friday night.
You know what, Oliver's interview is the least of my worries. The really bad news is that I won't be able to come to the engagement party. I showed my boss the date and he checked out our schedule. We're booked solid till next February.
That means no engagement party for me. That means I'll single-handedly break the Christmas Eve pact in the first year.
I can't start crying now. I'm going to meet Oliver for lunch and he'll notice. He wants to 'talk' about what happened on Friday. He's picking me up in an hour. Hopefully I'll have developed an appetite by then. At the moment I can't even think about food without feeling sick.
I guess I'll see you at the school reunion in ten years.
Alicia.
When Angelina looked up from the letter, she found Katie crying quietly. Without saying anything, she put her arm around her weeping friend and hugged her. They were still sitting there in silence when Fred and Lee came barging into the room.
"All right, we demand to know what's going on," Fred said.
"Katie!" Lee exclaimed, shoving Fred aside.
"She's fine," Angelina said quickly. "She just got a little upset by something."
"Alicia's not coming to our party," Katie sobbed, throwing her arms around Lee. "She promised me!"
"What?"
"We got a letter from Alicia. She told her boss about the party and he says she won't have time off till next year," Angelina answered, discreetly folding the letter and slipping it into her pocket. They didn't need to see what else she wrote.
"Her job's more important to her than us," Katie said, her voice muffled because her face was buried in Lee's chest.
"This surprises you?" Fred asked coldly. "Look what she did to George. She's too important to visit us little people anymore. Can't even make time to attend her best friend's engagement party. It's one of the most important days of your life."
"You're not helping," Lee told him. "Look, Katie, maybe we can change the date to something that suits Alicia better."
"Postpone the party till next year?" she shrieked. "That's so far away!"
"There's no way to be sure Alicia will come even then," Fred interjected quietly.
Angelina thumped him on the shoulder. "We can have two parties, Katie. Doesn't that sound like fun? When Alicia comes back next year we'll organise another party with her. How many people can say they had two engagement parties, huh?"
"No," Katie snapped. She looked up and her face was a picture of stalwartness. "I hate Alicia. She's ruined everything. I had the whole thing planned out in my mind. The three of us were going to spend the day looking at bride's maid dresses then start making food for the party. We were meant to spend the whole day together. Just us girls. And the party…I was going to make an announcement to everyone that you and Alicia were going to be my bride's maids. I was going to present you with flowers and…and…"
Katie trailed off pitifully as she began to cry again. Lee hugged her, giving Angelina a helpless look over the top of her head. When Fred opened his mouth, both Lee and Angelina shot him warning glares and his mouth slowly closed.
"Everything will work out," Angelina said, patting Katie on the back. "I'm sure Alicia will keep trying to get her boss to let her come home."
Katie sniffled and shook her head. "Doesn't matter. I don't want her to be my bride's maid anymore. I'll find someone else. Someone who actually cares about me."
"Now probably isn't the time to make hasty decisions. Wait till tomorrow when you've calmed down a bit," Lee advised.
"I've made up my mind," she said firmly.
"Ok. We had better go. I have tomorrow afternoon off so I'll come and see you," Angelina said. She took Fred firmly by the elbow and said, "I'll write a letter to Alicia as soon as I get home."
Katie sighed petulantly and threw herself backwards on the bed. "Make sure you tell her that I hate her and that she's lost her bride's maid spot," she said, not looking away from the ceiling.
Angelina forced a smile. "See you tomorrow."
"I'll see you out," Lee offered. He pried Katie's hand from his and got up. "I'll be back in a minute, love."
"Bye, Katie," Fred said brightly. He was the only cheerful one in the room. Angelina tightened her grip on his elbow.
They followed Lee back to the living room in solemn silence. No one knew what to say. Alicia's letter suddenly felt heavy in Angelina's pocket. It was laden with more than what was said. In between the lines and hidden in the margins was a deeper meaning. These past couple of days, innocuous as they seemed, were precursors. Alicia in Australia with Oliver. George seeing random women every night. Katie's wedding. The group was breaking apart.
Angelina felt incredibly burdened by the knowledge that she was the only one who saw what was going on. She was the only one who had the foresight to look down to discover they were standing on a precipice. It was probably because she had stood on that precipice before and looked out into an uncertain future.
"I don't like this," Lee finally said, dragging Angelina back to reality.
"It'll be fine," she said half-heartedly.
"Come and have a look at this." Lee gestured them over to the bookshelf. He grabbed one of Katie's medical books and pulled a few loose pieces of paper from the inside cover. "Katie doesn't know I've seen her with these. Look at what she's been doing."
Angelina took the papers. The first one had drawings of dresses on it. At the bottom there was a rough sketch of three smiling women.
"That's you and Katie and Alicia," Lee said unnecessarily. "They're her dream dresses. Take a look at the next one."
Angelina flipped to the next sheet of paper. This one was the menu and seating arrangement for the engagement party. It also had a schedule, which showed how long it would take to cook each dish. Katie had assigned Angelina and Alicia dishes to cook. She'd timed everything down to the last minute so that the courses would run smoothly from one to the next.
"Lee, I don't-"
"The third one," he said.
Angelina bit her lip and reluctantly turned to the last piece of paper. This one was covered in writing. It appeared to be the speech that Katie planned to give when she officially announced her bride's maids. Angelina didn't read any of it. She couldn't bear to. She handed the paper back. "Look, I understand the trouble that she's gone to."
"It's not just the effort. She's investing so much in this party. You know she won't even let any of our parents help organise it. All she's talked about these past few days has been the party. You and Alicia figure heavily in her plans. She thinks she needs both of you there or it won't be successful." Lee placed the paper carefully in the book and replaced it on the shelf. "I refuse to let her get hurt, Angelina."
"What do you think you can do?"
"Not me. You. You can tell Alicia she has to come to the party. Make her come back."
Angelina shook her head. "Nobody makes Alicia Spinnet do anything. The more you force it, the harder she pulls away. If I demand she come back she'll get indignant and dig her heels in. I know her better than you do."
"Just do whatever you have to do," Lee said flatly. "What Katie wants, Katie gets, all right?"
"Sure that's a good motto, mate?" Fred asked. "That might come back to bite you in the arse. Start spoiling her like that and you'll have to keep it up."
"Whatever makes her happy. That's all this is about."
"It'll turn out fine because she has you," Angelina said. "That's all she needs. She doesn't really need the party to make her happy. She wants to marry you and that's all she'll need at the end of the day."
"I better get back to her."
"See you later."
"Bye."
Angelina and Fred Disapparated at the same moment but Fred arrived back in the flat just before she did. Her mind wasn't focussed so it had taken her a few seconds longer to reappear.
"I thought you might have splinched yourself," Fred said, looking her up and down in case she had left any body parts behind.
"I'm fine. I just wasn't concentrating hard enough. I don't know what I'm going to write in this letter to Alicia."
"Are you going to do it now?"
"I'll wait till the morning. My head isn't clear enough at the moment. I just feel like going to bed. To sleep," she added for clarification.
"To sleep," Fred repeated in a weary tone. "I'll behave myself."
"Thank you."
"Don't mention it."
The pair changed into their pyjamas. Angelina into her nightgown and Fred into his pyjama bottoms. They were too short for him, but Angelina absolutely loved them and she wouldn't let him buy new ones. When she finally lay down, he curled around her, cocooning her in a pocket of warmth.
"Love you," she whispered sleepily.
"So you should," he replied gruffly.
Angelina fell asleep with the smile still on her face.
xxxxx
Alicia,
It's just Angelina this time. Katie's a little preoccupied. Your letter was…unexpected. We were sorry to hear about the problem with the Oliver interview, but we have no solution. You'll be able to work it out on your own. You'll probably get this letter after you've conducted the interview anyway. I hope it went well.
And the thing about the engagement party…Katie was a little upset by that. She'll be fine, of course, but she was shocked. Are you sure there's no way you'll be able to work around it? Couldn't you make some sort of trade with your boss? You'll do overtime if he gives you a day off? Please try. Things are a little tense around here.
Look. You know me. I'm blunt about things so here it goes: Katie's angry. Really angry. This naturally makes Lee angry. You gotta fix this somehow. Katie even says she doesn't want you to be her bride's maid anymore. I think it was an overreaction. When she's calmed down she'll probably change her mind. Probably. Leesh, she was really upset.
And you didn't answer the bloody question! What happened with Oliver? Do you not want to tell me? Is it that embarrassing that you can't share it with me? I'm supposed to be your best friend. I told you about Fred and I.
If you don't want to share, fine. I have Katie and Fred. I'll survive. If it's too much of an effort then forget about it.
Angelina.
As soon as the letter left Angelina's hand, she knew she had made a mistake. She had let her emotions get the better of her and the end of the letter was terse and abrupt. She almost leapt after the owl that had taken the letter. There was no way to get it back now. It was on its way to France where it would be sent through the European Floo Network. In about five hours, it would reach Asia, where it would be flown across the Indian Ocean by some sort of southern hemisphere bird. In less than twelve hours it would be in Alicia's hands.
Then there'd be trouble.
After the owl post, Angelina went to see Katie, who refused to talk about Alicia at all. It was not a very pleasant visit. Back at the shop, Fred and George were both in exceptionally good moods. Even though she didn't ask, Angelina knew that George's good mood was a result of his mysterious liaisons with unknown women. She was dying to know what he got up to, but at the same time she was frightened to find out.
The following night, an owl delivered a fat envelope to the flat. Angelina was the only one home at the time thankfully. George and Fred were off having a brainstorming session with Lee in the hopes of coming up with some new products. Katie had been by earlier to share her list of potential replacement bride's maids. To avoid an altercation, Angelina humoured her and made a few suggestions. Katie then went off to visit her parents, leaving Angelina home alone.
When the letter arrived, she was hesitant to tear it open. In the end she realised she was being ridiculous and she ripped the envelope open. The letter was four pages long and the ink had run in several places, making some words illegible. Tears, Angelina realised.
Ang,
Oh my God. I didn't mean for things to become so bad. I'm sorry. Tell Katie I'm sorry. Should I write her a letter? I think I should. Unless she's so angry that she won't read it. Tell her I'm sorry. I don't know what to do. I've asked Francis three times and he's getting annoyed at me. He says I have to show commitment to the job.
Is Katie serious about me not being a bride's maid? I've been looking forward to it. I cried when I read that she didn't want me to do it anymore. I'm crying now, in fact. There's no one I can go to. No one here will understand. When we leave Australia I won't even have Oliver anymore. Do you know what it feels like to truly be alone? I went from having five best friends to having a cranky boss and one indifferent and one hyper colleague. (indecipherable) being alone, but what frightens me most is the possibility of returning to England, but still being alone. I'm worried that you guys will close me out of the group. The wound I left behind will heal over, leaving me outside in the cold. If that happened I'd truly be alone, in every sense of the word.
How do I manage to make everyone hate me without meaning to do anything wrong? First George, now the rest of (indecipherable) bet you're glad I'm not around anymore.
In case you care, I did the interview with Oliver and it turned out well. He agreed to let me ask in-depth questions. Now I just have to write it up as a feature article. You'll get to read it if it ever makes it into the paper.
Speaking of Oliver…I honestly thought I did tell you what happened. That interruption must have made me forget. But it doesn't seem like you would (indecipherable) do. You have your life. You have Katie and Fred, as you pointed out. Why should you care whom I do or do not shag? Are you passing this information along to George? Is he the one who wants to know?
So you really want to know what happened? It was private, between Oliver and I, but I'll tell you. I don't care what you think of me. I did what I did and I can't go back and change it now.
Let's see. It all started during the ride home from the nightclub…
A/N: And I think we'll leave it there. That was a bridging chapter, in case you couldn't tell. Not a lot happened and it was short. Next one will be more exciting. So, did she or didn't she? Should she have? I'm sure there'll be an entertaining debate over at the forum. As always, turn there or to my LJ to get the latest info on the progress of the next chapter.