After the last dish had been washed, rinsed, dryed, and put away, the two young adults dropped down into chairs at the long, communal table. In the back of their minds they both wondered why they kept going without using magic but never mentioned it to the other.
"How does mum rack up so many dishes?" Fred whined before resting his forehead to the cool wood. Hermione arched an eyebrow at him, and even though his eyes were down he sensed the sassiness rolling off of the witch.
"I know, I know. There are a dozen mouths to feed in this house. I shouldn't complain, because my mother is far too good to me." the Weasley spoke, his voice muffled some. Hermione smiled at him as she leaned back into the chair; her fingernails drummed on the table as she looked around the kitchen.. The bubbling of food still cooking on the stove top was the only sound in the house now she could hear. Even the children upstairs had quieted down, and no Mrs. Weasley was heard yelling. She must've finished with George and went on straightening the house.
"Oh Fred, at this rate of cleaning and preparation Halloween is going to be long gone! Everyone knows it's the best holiday!" the graduated Head Girl groaned as she stood up and moved around the table to stand beside Fred. "So, perhaps we should find your mum and see if there's anything else we can do?"
Fred lifted his head and looked into her brown eyes with his blue ones. Hermione's breathing faltered for a moment, and hoping he didn't notice she moved to the other side of him. "Perhaps, we can hang up some lights outside? I heard your mother mention something about them. It's kind of toasty in here, we could also take the chance to cool down from doing all those dishes." The suggestion to go outside made Fred sit right up. He'd be alone with Hermione. More alone than they were in the kitchen anyhow.
In the house at any moment someone could walk upon them. Outside, Fred would hear a door open and close. Maybe he could tell Hermione... or maybe he couldn't.
"Sounds like a plan. Let's get out there, I know there are some Halloween lights in the garage." Fred walked past Hermione and held open the door for the short witch. She walked out with a blush on her cheeks which was covered by the darkness.
"Thank you Fred." As she brushed past him she got a whiff of his cologne; it was familiar but she just couldn't place it. Worried that his being so nice was a sign of a prank coming up, she vowed to stay focused while they did their work.
After reaching the shed without incident she stopped looking for the signs and just enjoyed being around Fred. In a household as large as the Burrow it was a rare moment to be alone with only one or two other people.
She pulled the door open for Fred, letting him go first since he knew the dark space better than she. Fred was fumbling around in the darkness of the garage where his father stored all of his muggle artefacts. A loud crash, a swear, and groan later Hermione pulled out her wand and lit up the garage with 'Lumos!'
"Are you alright Fred? Why didn't you get your wand out!" Brown eyes looked around for the bright red mane of hair. Seeing only Mr. Weasley's collection she walked around the side of the new muggle car he had acquired. Not seeing Fred she sighed loudly, "Fred! This isn't funny!" She stomped her foot and spun around on her heel and bumped her head roughly into Fred's chin.
"Ooooouch! Hermione!" Fred swore as he rubbed his chin and looked down at Hermione. The girl looked up at him with anger in her eyes.
"If you had the decency to say something when you were walking right behind someone that might not have happened!" She exploded at him, her cheeks flush with anger and embarassment. Fred flashed her a cheeky grin as he reached up and tucked a loose strand of Hermione's hair behind her ear. Her cheeks flushed white in shock at his light touch.
"I am very sorry, Hermione." His soft lips pressed into the red spot on her head where she had bumped into him. "Won't you please forgive me?" Once he had leaned away from her she looked up into his deep, blue eyes and gave him a quick nod, blinking rapidly.
"That's good. Hopefully you won't think I'm too forward when I..." he trailed off as his lips once again met her flesh, but not her head this time.
Hermione's eyes widened at the spark that went between their lips. A few seconds, a thousand heartbeats, and some blushing later Hermione boldened up. She pressed up on her tiptoes to press against his lips. A moment passed. Then two. An eternity, or an hour. Neither of them could tell, but it was all broken up by a loud bang outside the garage. Fred pulled away from Hermione and gave her a shy smile and a wink. He took a step away from the younger witch so his mother wouldn't catch the two in a compromising position.
"FRED! Fred Weasley! You get your bum inside this house now!" Mrs. Weasley's voice broke them apart. "Don't think you're getting out of helping with the decorating!" The door banged open as they were both composing themselves.
"Fred! Hermione! What in Merlin's name are you doing out here?!" Fred cleared his throat and flicked his head toward the door. Only Hermione noticed.
"Don't worry Mum. We were helping decorate." Molly just glared at him before he continued his explanation. Hermione hoped it was good, even though they did come to find the lights she probably wouldn't believe them. "The holiday lights are already strung up, and we were looking for more decorations."
Hermione arched an eyebrow before looking out the door and noticing a faint orange glow from lights around the doorframe. She smiled at Mrs. Weasley then to confirm their story.
"We figured since we finished up with the dishes we would go ahead and get a headstart on the outside decorations." Hermione's smile was so sweet that Mrs. Weasley couldn't help but believe her.
The matriarch of the Weasley family scoffed and threw up her hands. She turned around and went outside the garage to probably find some more children and yell at them.
"How did you do that Fred?" Hermione turned around and smiled at the young man. He shrugged and mumbled something about 'magicians never revealing their secrets'. Hermione stepped over to him and reached up to cup his cheek. "However you did it, you rock." She stood on her tippy toes and pressed a light peck to his cheek causing his cheeks to flair the color of his hair.
She smiled and turned out to head back into the house.
A/N: Hullo my darlings. I'm so glad I've subscribers. Tell me how horrible it is, or how great it is. Just... please don't tell me that it's already past Halloween. I do quite know that. Um. Let's see, if you got ideas, throw them my way. Ah. Thanks!