I stepped out of the fireplace, letting my eyes sweep across the apartment I found myself in. I was in the living room. It was painted a light tan colorwith dark brown trim. There was a wornbrown sofa in one corner of the room, with a table in the center of the room.
"Good, you made it," Angelina said from beside me.
I turned around, biting back a yelp of fright as I smiled at her. "Hey Angelina," I said. She was standing in front of a mirror mounted above the fireplace mantle. She was wearing a black robe and jeans. Her long black hair was pulled back in an intricate plate and it made her look older and more mature.
"She's here already?" a voice called from where I judged the kitchen would be. I smiled despite myself and turned towards the voice, smiling even wider when I saw Lee walk in the room with a sandwich.
"Hey, 'Mione," he said chewing his sandwich. "Whoa! What'd ya do to your eye?"
"Really?" Angelina asked, sounding annoyed as she continued to fidget with her hair. "Have you absolutely no tact?"
"It's alright," I said with a laugh. "It was a prank telescope. I was rummaging through some boxes in George and Fred's old room and came across it," I explained.
Lee grinned widely as he finished his sandwich. "Wicked!" he said as he sat down on the couch and patted the sofa. "You might want to sit down. We're waiting on Alicia to get out of the bedroom. Could be a while." He was smiling as I sat down. I heard a voice coming from the room to our left.
"It's your fault we're late Lee," Alicia called. "I had to wait forever for you to finish whatever you were working on with that radio."
He smiled despite himself and turned so he was facing the room. "I almost had it working, Love. I just…"
"Needed a few more minutes," Alicia finished for him, walking into the room. She was wearing cobalt blue robes and had her long hair down. Lee smiled widely at her and hopped up, grabbing her in a hug.
"Ready to go?" Angelina questioned. She turned from the mirror, apparently finally satisfied with her hair.
"Ready," we all said. I gripped my bag in my hand, and Angelina led the way out of her and Alicia's apartment. It was rather depressing to walk down Diagon Alley, even with Lee's constant stream of jokes. Every other shop in the alley seemed to be closed down. The only one that was full of customers was at the end of the strip. It stood out like a Gryffindor in a room full of Slytherins.
The windows were full of items that were moving. They revolved, popped, flashed, bounced, fluttered, dashed, shrunk, expanded, changed colors, and even sparkled. There was so much to look at that I actually stopped for a moment just to take it all in. The right window didn't have as many things in it but it did have a huge purple poster with flashing yellow letters:
WHY ARE YOU WORRYING ABOUT
YOU-KNOW-WHO?
YOU SHOULD BE WORRYING ABOUT
U-NO-POO
THE CONSTIPATION SENSATION
THAT'S GRIPPING THE NATION!
I laughed - I couldn't do anything else. It was fantastic, perfect. So very George and Fred.
"The inside's even better," Angelina whispered as I took in the front display. She led the way into the shop, and I followed her. It was packed with customers. I could hardly get through the doors, let alone see any of the shelves. The products I could see all brought smiles to my face as I recognized the titles of the sweets George and Fred had invented and perfected the year before.
"Wow," I breathed out, unable to think of any words to express just how brilliant this shop was. It was perfect, far more than I'd ever imagined. Only George and Fred would be able to run a shop like this, and run it so well.
"Fred!" a jubilant exclamation sounded beside me and I turned to see a red head in brilliant magenta robes grab hold of the witch. I laughed at the sight of him. He looked so terribly Fred-like. Only he and George would purposely wear something that clashed so very much with their hair.
"Hey 'Mione," he said smiling widely until he saw my eye. "Blimey!" he exclaimed, looking alarmed. "What did you do to your eye?"
I snorted and put my hands on my hips. "I did nothing. Your telescope punched me," I said, forcing myself to look fierce.
His eyes grew wider and he fumbled in his pockets. "Merlin's beard - George'll kill me if he sees you with a black eye. I was supposed to get rid of those." He handed me a jar of a thick yellow paste. "Here, use this."
I opened it up suspiciously. "What'll it do to me?" I asked.
He smiled disarmingly, already leading Angelina away. "It'll get rid of that bruise in less than an hour," he called. I shook my head and applied the ointment.
I put the ointment in my pocket and turned around, looking for George. I couldn't see any sign of him so I walked around the shop. It was so incredible. Everywhere you looked there was something interesting to see. Things were exploding, changing colors, shrinking, growing, and doing other crazy things. I finally fought my way through a crowd and got to look at an interesting display. It was a box with a bright picture of a handsome wizards and a swooning witch standing on a pirate ship.
Patented Day Dream Charms. A simple incantation and you will enter a top-quality, highly realistic, thirty-minute daydream, easy to fit into the average school lesson and virtually undetectable (side effects include vacant expression and minor drooling). Not for sale to under-sixteens.
I read, feeling awed. That was really extraordinary magic. How could people not think they were smart when they made things like this?
"Do you like it?" someone asked from behind me. A grin lifted my lips and I gently placed the box back on its display. I straightened my robe and then promptly twirled around, grabbing George in a tight hug.
"I love it!" I exclaimed, pulling back from him with a huge grin. He looked nervous until he saw my smile. "This place is brilliant!"
"Of course it is," George said, his cocky smile back in place. "Fred and I invented it."
"And you did a marvelous job," I said turning around to take in the shop again.
He pulled me back around and was about to give me another hug until he saw my eye. He froze and then a furious glare took over his normally happy face. "Who hit you?" he hissed.
I actually shivered at how mad he sounded. I forced myself to smile nonchalantly and replied quickly. "A telescope. I was looking for some color changing potion in your room- I thought it be funny to use some in Fleur's shampoo - and I accidentally squeezed a telescope. It doesn't actually hurt at all," I reassured him quickly. His look of anger promptly changed to a look of horror.
"Blimey!" he exclaimed, pulling me into a hug. "I am so sorry Hermione."
"It wasn't your fault," I said quickly, hugging him back. "I should have known better than to mess with an unfinished joke product. It'll be hiliarious once it's finished."
He let me go and smiled. "You were going to prank Fleur?" he asked, like he'd just realized I'd said that. "Bloody brilliant!"
I laughed and shook my head. "You've been a bad influence on me," I said, smiling as I turned back to the Charm display.
"Those charms were invented with you in mind," George said, grabbing my hand and leading me towards a back room of the shop.
"What charms?" I asked, tearing my eyes away from a cage full of adorable creatures. He smiled at my excitement and opened the door to the backroom. It was full of shelves of products that looked like they were still being tested. I would have loved to stay and examine them but George kept walking towards the back of the room. He opened another door and led me into a room with two couches and a table. It looked like a worker's lounge. He sat down on the couch nearest the door and pulled me down beside him. We sat beside each other Indian style with our knees touching.
He was smiling widely, his handsome eyes sparkling with glee. This was my first trip to the shop, and I was thoroughly impressed. It was amazing, honestly - it personified my George. The bright moving objects, the pranks going off everywhere, the brilliant magic. Everything about it was amazing. I told George my thoughts and he smiled even wider, laughing with glee.
"What Charms were you talking about earlier?" I asked once he'd stopped laughing. He blushed slightly before reaching in his pocket and pulling out abox of Patented Day Dream Charms.
"How did I inspire that?" I asked taking the box in my hands.
He raised a ginger eyebrow at that. "Really?" he questioned. "You can't guess?" I shook my head no and he grinned softly. "I wanted to come up with some way that I could see you. I mean, the Galleons are great for talking, but they're not so much for snuggling." I laughed at that image and he smiled even wider.
"I figured we could take them at the same time while you're away at Hogwarts. That way we can both have a daydream of each other at the same time." He looked a little nervous as he spoke so I made my response quick. I dropped the box on the table and leaned up on my legs before kissing him soundly on the lips.
"I love that idea, George," I said before kissing him again. He returned it this time, pulling me closer to his body as he did. The same warmth that had flooded me the night before came back, making me flushed and lightheaded. I kissed him with all the passion I had, reveling in the feel of his hands on my back, in my hair.
"Hermione!" he finally gasped, breaking the kiss. I whimpered pathetically and tried to reclaim his lips but he held me back, laughing a little as he tried to catch his breath. "We've got to stop - I have to.." He broke off and moaned as I kissed his neck. Since he wouldn't let me at his lips I had decided to go for the next best thing. "Hermione!" he exclaimed again, pushing me at arms length this time. He laughed at my annoyed expression. "I've got to go back to work. No matter how much I'd like to keep, oh!" I'd wiggled out of his grip and went for the junction between his neck and chin. I had discovered that it was a very sensitive spot on him and I loved the noises he made when I kissed him there.
"Fred can get along without you for a while," I murmured against his neck.
"Despite how tempting that offer is, Hermione, I really need to go. I've got to help…" He trailed off as he moved himself away from my onslaught, breathing heavier now. I sighed in defeat and backed up.
"Okay, I understand." I said, trying not to sound as upset as I felt. I was having fun and didn't want to stop. I didn't want to return to the overcrowded Burrow just yet, but there wasn't much else to do.
"Tell you what, instead of coming over for dinner tomorrow night, how about I take you out?" George questioned, standing up from the couch and helping me up. I smiled widely and hugged him.
"I'd love that! Mind my asking why?"
"Well," he said, smiling mischievously, "I want to celebrate the fact that you got ten owls, and nine outstandings."
"How did you-?" I started to ask but he held his hand up to stop me.
"I have my ways, Hermione."
I smiled at that and nodded my head. "Alright, dinner it is."
I grabbed his hand as he began to lead me out of the room. I hadn't realized it, but it was already four. I had promised Mrs. Weasley I'd be back by four-thirty.
"Can I use your floo?" I asked George. He nodded his head and led me to the fireplace at the back of the shop. I gave him one last kiss before I stepped into the flames, reappearing back at the burrow.
Harry, Ron and Ginny were playing exploding snap, Mrs. Weasley was already working on dinner, and Bill was out with the Order. That left only Fleur in the dining room.
"'Ello 'Ermione!" she exclaimed, sounding excited. "'Ow was your date wiz George?"
"Très bonne," (Very good) I answered without thought.
Her eyes grew wide and a smile lit her pretty face. "Tu parles français?" (You speak French?) she asked, her eyes sparkling. I pulled a chair out from the table and sat down at it as I answered her.
"Bien sûr." (Of course.)
She smiled even wider and leaned back in her chair, her pretty hair falling around her shoulders in a silvery halo. She started to go off in French, talking about how much she missed her homeland, asking me if I had ever visited it. I told her that I had actually gone to school there for a few years as a child, and she started asking me about the places I had been. While we talked I came across a very startling realization.
She had no friends.
The beautiful, smart, half-veela had no friends other than Bill. I didn't know why this came as such a shock - men just stared at her, unable to think in her presence, and woman were always green with envy of her. She was too smart to get along with other veelas. In short, she was a misfit: a beautiful, lonely, misfit. She reminded me a lot of myself when I first started Hogwarts. I was by no means beautiful, quite the opposite actually, but I was extremely smart. I couldn't make friends because of that fact. The only person who would even talk to me was Neville, and that was largely because he was just as big a misfit as me.
This realization brought along another one as well - I actually wanted to be her friend. It was fun talking to her. She was still painfully pretty, but she didn't really flaunt it. She didn't flip her hair anymore than Ginny did, or bat her eyes anymore than Lavender. I just seemed to notice it more with her, probably because she did not need to do those simple flirtatious moves. The oddest thing about her, though, was she actually treated me like I was a girl.
That probably sounded weird, but I'd always been treated as 'one of the guys.' The first time Harry and Ron even really realized I was a girl was during the Yule ball fiasco, and they seemed to forget the fact immediately after it. George was the only other one who had consistently treated me as a girl. I really enjoyed the feeling, and I had fun talking to her. I was actually a little upset when Mrs. Weasley called me away to help serve dinner. Regardless of what I had previously thought of Fleur, I knew one thing for sure as I set the plates on the table for dinner. I had just made a new friend. C'est magnifique!
Thanks to ninja goldfish for beta reading this!