"So you're just leaving?" I asked, stunned.

"Yeah. Hogwarts has nothing left to offer George and I. We'd rather work out this whole business idea now and have it up and running as soon as possible."

"Wow, this is just so sudden."

"We've been thinking about it for a while but Umbridge just sent us over the edge recently. We're leaving tomorrow during the O.W.L.s."

"I'm sure you've got some extravagant plan to go out with a bang. Am I right?"

"Of course you're right my dear."

"Brilliant," I smirked.

"There's more though. _, I want you to come with me."

"What? Fred, you know I can't."

"Why not?

"I….I have school."

"Yeah, but you only have a few months left. It won't make a difference. Please, just come with me."

"Fred, I need to finish school. Do you know how awful it will look if I drop out of school? I won't get a ministry level job."

"Who cares about getting a ministry level job? Do you really want to work for the ministry right now anyway? It's kind of on its way to being corrupted. Just look how much Percy's changed in a year."

"Well you're the one who thinks it's such a brilliant idea to open a joke shop right now? With this economy, it's unlikely you'll be making a profit." I immediately regretted saying this. I was just hurt by Fred's words and I thought retaliating would help, but it only enhanced his argument.

"I want to open a joke shop to give people a small sense of happiness. Things are only going to get darker and people will want to go somewhere to escape from the real world. It's not about economics, it's about helping people out and following my dream." His eyes looked hurt but still burned with a passion that was admirable. I'd been completely wrong. "Apparently this is a lost cause. Sorry I wasted your time," he said as he stormed off. You were left standing there, feeling horrible about yourself not knowing what you could do to make it better. Instead of trying to talk to Fred, or even George to see if Fred was okay, I did nothing. This was probably the biggest mistake of my life I would later discover.

Fred had left maybe a week ago and nothing had changed between us. I never had the opportunity to say goodbye, I didn't see him off; in fact we hadn't even spoken since the argument. The great relationship we had going was kind of at a stand still and I wasn't sure where that left us. Day by day this ate away at me until I realized the only way this would change is if I did it myself. The decision was made within seconds; I knew what had to be done.

An hour or two later and all of my things were packed up. I wrote a note to my roommate explaining I was leaving and I set off. The plan was to use the One-Eyed Witch passageway to get Honeydukes and then from there apparate to Diagon Alley. I planned to embark around 11:30 so I wouldn't disturb anyone and hopefully not get caught. Now all I had to do was wait.

The castle quieted down pretty quickly, then again it was a Tuesday and most people were trying to catch a good night's rest before classes tomorrow. The Ravenclaw common room was dead and I was able to sneak out there easily. My biggest worry at this point was running into Filch or Snape. I'd surely lose house points and be stuck here for at least another week. It was pretty dark in the corridors but I knew them well so it wasn't too difficult to navigate. I was almost there, the statue was in sight, when I heard movement coming down the hall. Someone had seen me and was coming closer. I tried my best to hide but it was difficult to hide in the middle of a hallway.

"_, is that you?" I sighed once I recognized who it was. Professor Flitwick.

"Yes sir. It's me."

"What are you doing out this late?" he asked. Professor Flitwick always liked me, maybe because I was a Ravenclaw. I was lucky he was the one who caught me and not anyone else.

"Erm, I'm actually leaving." I probably shouldn't have said this, but it was Flitwick. If anyone were to understand, it'd be him.

"Leaving Hogwarts? Why? The year's almost up! And you have your N.E.W.T's to take still."

"I just realized I don't belong here right now. I made a huge mistake by letting someone leave and now I have to go chase after them." At this point I think it was all making sense to him. He nodded and said, "I understand. Do what you must."

I smiled a grateful smile at him and continued on towards the statue. "Oh and _, I didn't see anything," he said with a wink. I chuckled briefly and went on my way.

I reached the passage and the journey kind of went blurry from there. I was just so nervous about seeing Fred and what was going to happen. I literally had no idea what to expect. For all I knew he could have been with some other girl at the moment. I couldn't turn back now though. I had to at least find out where our relationship was going.

Once I reached the Honeydukes basement, I realized I had no idea where to apparate to. Fred hadn't told me where they were planning on living. I didn't think they were back at the Burrow so I didn't want to go there. I decided the only thing I could do was focus all my energy on Fred and just hope that my wand would take me there. I closed my eyes and hoped for the best.

I opened my eyes and found myself on the doorstep of an apartment. I looked around and didn't recognize where I was. But I heard voices, familiar voices. They came from the door in front of me, which happened to be cracked open the slightest bit.

"George, I have to go back and at least apologize."

"Just give her a little time to think. She's probably upset and confused. Let her sort everything out before you go back."

"I need to go back now. I never should have left without saying goodbye. I need her in my life. She's the one mate."

"Wow, that's pretty serious. I….I had no idea."

"I just won't be able to live with myself if I don't go back and win her over. I can't let her get away."

"Okay but at least wait until the morning."

"What's the point? I haven't been able to sleep the past few nights, tonight won't be any different. I won't be able to sleep until she's in my arms."

"All I'm saying is make a plan or something. Don't just go barging in and think everything is going to work out."

"I know, it's just…I feel like I'm going crazy without her. Leaving her was the biggest mistake of my life. I love her."

I don't know what came over me but I opened the door and stepped into the apartment. George saw me but Fred must not have heard me.

"I love you too," I said. George just stood there, grinning, as I'm sure the expression on Fred's face was priceless. He turned around and saw me standing there, with all my bags, and smiled the biggest smile I'd ever seen. He rushed over to me, picked me up and spun me around.

"Surprise!" I laughed.

"You're brilliant you know that?" he said to me.

"I am?"

"Yes, and you're amazing and perfect and the love of my life."

"As soon as you left, it was like there was this hole inside of me. And everyday you were gone it got bigger. I should never have let you leave without saying goodbye. And you were right, about everything. I'd be crazy to work for the ministry when it's in this state."

"Why are we still talking?" he asked. I took that as my cue to kiss him, and kiss him I did. It felt amazing to be in his arms again I'd only been without him for a week and it felt like an eternity. Soon he was helping me unpack and telling me the plans for the store and such and I was excited for him.

I finally arrived home after a long day of work at the Ministry Press. It's not that the work was terribly difficult, it just took a while to get the wording precise on all the Wanted posters and informational pamphlets printed by the Ministry. It wasn't a great job but it paid all right. I was also hoping that once the Wizarding World was restored and out of the dark times, I could still get a job at the Ministry and knowing some people at the Ministry Press couldn't hurt.

Just when I was contemplating what to make for dinner, Fred emerged with a few bags in his hands.

"Hello darling," he said while kissing my cheek.

"Hi love. What've you got there?"

"Brought home some soup from the Leaky Cauldron. Thought I'd give you a break from cooking."

"Oh that sounds perfect! Thank you," I smiled. Fred knew I loved the soup at the Leaky Cauldron. This was the perfect night for him to bring it home too.

Soon the soup was in a bowl in front of me and I eagerly started eating. Fred sat across from me but seemed…jittery or nervous. He was tapping his fingers on the table, which I knew was a nervous habit of his, and he was awfully quiet.

"Where's George tonight?" I questioned.

"Working in the store," he responded.

"Is everything okay?"

"Great. Yeah, everything's great." I didn't believe him for a second, but I knew he would open up to me if he needed to talk. Pestering him would do no good. It was very possible him and George got into an argument and it upset him.

I started complaining a bit about my day, which made me feel a little bit better, as I ate my soup. It wasn't late at all but I was definitely tired and planned on going to bed early. I cleaned up the kitchen with a little bit of magic and proceeded to the bedroom, to change into nightclothes and maybe read a little bit before going to sleep. It was then I was engulfed by the smell of roses. I noticed the bed was missing and in its place was what appeared to be a blanket fort fastened into a tent. I peeked inside and all the sudden the lights went out. I gasped but a moment later there was a single candle lit at my feet. I wasn't sure if I should pick it up but found my answer a second later when another candle across from it lit up. Then suddenly multiple candles began to flame and a pathway was formed in front of me. The tent had been charmed considering the amount of space inside was far greater than the blanket itself. I started walking and realized the floral fragrance I smelled before was coming from the tent, where dozens and dozens of flowers were scattered on the floor. After a few minutes of taking in the atmosphere and walking for a few minutes, I began to see what looked like a bed ahead of me. Once I reached the bed, I noticed a rustic trunk at the foot of the bed. Letting my curiosity get the best of me, I opened the trunk and inside was another box. I pulled the box out and inside of that was another box. I saw where this was going and continued opening the boxes until there was a very small one left in my hand. It was a black velvet box…one that typically carried jewelry. I took a deep breath before opening it and inside found a very small piece of rolled up parchment. I opened it and it read Turn Around.

I looked behind me and Fred was kneeling on one knee, looking at me with loving eyes. I walked toward him and smiled, as a happy tear fell down my face knowing what was about to happen.

"_, I know we've only been together for about a year and a half, but I want to spend the rest of my life with you. You are everything I could ever ask for and I love the person I am when I'm with you. Will you be my wife?"

The tears were flowing now. "Of course I will," I managed to say. He slid a beautiful gold ring on my finger. It had a citrine stone and was encircled in several smaller diamonds.

"If you don't like it, we can take it back. It just stood out and reminded me of you. I didn't want to get you a plain old diamond. You're too special for that."

I hugged and kissed him after he said that. "It's perfect. I love you," I said. The rest of the night was kind of a blur to me. So much happened and after a bottle of champagne it was a bit of a skewed timeline. I just know everything about it was perfect and completely unexpected. I had been planning forever with Fred and now it confirmed my dream would finally come true.