She was working in her office. Her nose was buried in papers and parts of her hand were stained dark with black ink. Her left hand was completely smudged, and turning the parchment sideways to write did not seem to alleviate the problem. Laila was completely immersed in her work, and she did not notice when the light in her office began to disappear and shroud her in darkness. Nor did she hear the footsteps approaching and the switching on of a lamp next to her desk.
"You'll become blind if you keep going at this rate," Peter smiled. He turned on the light switch and her office brightened. Laila looked up to find her paralegal gazing at her with slight concern and exasperation as he sat down in the chair across from her.
"Not with you around," Laila responded. She rubbed her eyes tiredly and put her quill to the side. When she looked around, she finally noticed how dark her office had become.
"Wow when did it become so dark? What time is it?"
"Closer to 6:30 PM, and you're still here slaving away," Peter drawled.
"Peter, if Christmas wasn't tomorrow, and I wasn't getting married in less than 5 days, then I would not be here trying to play catch up," Laila snarked back playfully.
"Lies," Peter grinned. "You would still be here because you never half-ass anything."
"I try not to," Laila sighed and buried her face in her arms on her desk. She had let her hair down today, and it formed a dark curtain that obstructed her face from view.
"When are you meeting with that one woman who was willing to be a witness?"
"Joanna?" Laila looked up. "The second week of January is when I will be starting to meet with witnesses, and she said she would come in on January 12 sometime in the morning. I didn't want to push too hard to ask her for a specific time, especially because she was already reluctant to come in."
Peter nodded thoughtfully. They sat in silence for a while. He had been with Laila for the past three years, and Laila was never shy to admit how much she relied on him. In many ways, Peter was her rock, her partner in silent crime. Together, they had witnessed the horrors of the war, and she could confide in him some things she was terrified of telling her family or her close friends. Things she could not even admit to herself, but were easier to share with Peter and her mentor, Patrick.
She glanced up at the dress hanging in the small closet of her office. The closet door was slightly ajar, and if she stretched back in her chair enough and rolled over to her left side, she could also catch a glimpse of her winter jacket. It was Christmas Eve, and Laila was expected at the Weasleys in the next hour or so for their traditional Christmas dinner. She was bone tired, and she sorely wished she had scheduled a nap during the day. Not to mention, she would be having another dinner with Fred tomorrow. Her heart was quivering with nerves and worries, and the thoughts would not stop racing in her head. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Peter glancing at her with slight concern.
"Are you okay?" he asked quietly. Laila was surprised at his bizarre tone. Peter was anything but quiet and calm. He was witty, funny, and kept her on her toes. The concern laced in his words was evident, and she was unsure of what to make of it.
"Of course, I mean I am a bit tired. But, it's been a really long day. And then I have that dinner I have to go to-"
"Laila," Peter interrupted. "I don't mean today in general, just with everything else. Adjusting here in the UK and being away from your family. And then you're getting married a week from today. Are you okay?"
She blinked in surprise, yanked open her drawer, and gently slammed a bottle of tequila and a shot glass in front of Peter. His jaw dropped in surprise as he looked back and forth between the two.
"You don't drink" was all he could say.
"Nope, this is for you." She smiled wryly. "Drink up, buddy. I have been waiting to rant to someone."
He let out a startled laugh, poured himself a drink, and raised his glass. "Bring on the bullshit."
Laila laughed and waited for Peter to settle back into his chair. "What do you want to know?"
"Well for starters, has anything happened yet? I mean beyond just kissing of course."
"Nope," Laila popped the 'p' out dramatically. "I haven't even properly kissed Fred yet."
Peter stared at her. "Well you better get moving, girl. How do you expect to consummate the marriage within a week of your wedding and get pregnant with his kid within the 18 months time frame if you haven't even kissed him yet."
As soon as his words came out, Peter blanched slightly, "Shit, I didn't mean."
Laila waved her hands at him. "Dude, it's fine. I know what you mean. And honestly, I don't know. Like, it's been four years since I was attacked. Therapy has been helping, and I think I am prepared mentally enough to go through with the act of sleeping with someone willingly again. It's just…"
She paused, trying to think of what to say next, "I just met him. And I just started a job in a new country where everyone sounds different from us, and there is a whole new system I have to get used to. I feel like I am on so much auto-pilot these days that I've barely had the chance to process anything. And then I ran into Eleanor-"
Peter made an annoyed noise at hearing that name. "What?" he shrugged at Laila's amused look. "That bitch was one of your closest friends and slept with your boyfriend, who is an even worse piece of trash. At least your future husband is better looking than him."
"And he wouldn't sleep with my best friend," Laila snorted.
Peter raised his eyebrows. "You say that with a lot of confidence about someone you claim to hardly know."
Laila shrugged. "I know Fred enough to know that he wouldn't ever do anything like that. He's dealing with his own shit, but he's a good person. I could have done much worse."
Peter grimaced, "Considering all of the pureblood fanatics that are rotting in Azkaban right now, you got that right."
Laila smiled grimly, "I didn't ask you about your adjustment here."
"The man I love moved across the ocean to be with me here, and I have family here. Laila, I appreciate your concern, but I am fine. I worry about you more. And don't change the topic. I know what you told Malfoy when you went to visit him in Azkaban."
Laila sighed in defeat. "You sound like Fred. I get it. You're pissed that I would want to make a deal with a prejudiced man who is finally getting what he deserved."
"Well, that sure is putting it lightly."
"But history has shown us time and again that torturing the oppressors beyond what is considered humane can have devastating consequences. I am not arguing against punishing the Death Eaters. They deserve to go to prison, and some should even get the death penalty if it were legal here. But, they also deserve to be treated humanely, to be given the basic amount of food and shelter to survive. Otherwise, how does that make us any different than the Death Eaters?"
Peter pursed his lips thoughtfully. "How is it punishing them if you are agreeing to let some of them go free?"
"What do you mean?"
"Come on, I heard the deal you made with Malfoy. He insisted on serving more time to spare his son from punishment."
"Peter, I never agreed to that request. I have only agreed to meet him and see what I can do for him. I don't disagree that Draco Malfoy should be punished, but I think we also need to look at the bigger picture."
"Really?" Peter raised his eyebrows. "Do you mean the fact that he was under seventeen when he became involved in all of this? But then, should I remind you of all the other young students who were also not of age, but didn't get roped into becoming Death Eaters like Malfoy did? How about you? You were very young when the war began, but you didn't go down Malfoy's route."
"No, but I also wasn't surrounded by Death Eaters as family members. And I was also one of the targets as a Muggleborn. I think it just puts things into a different perspective."
Peter nodded thoughtfully, "All right I suppose." He glanced up at the clock. "You really ought to get going. It's almost time for you to be at the Weasley's."
Laila followed his line of sight and got up. Her dress was tucked out of sight in the closet beside her desk, and she had just enough time to get ready before apparating to the Burrow. She pushed her chair back, pushed down from the hand rests to hoist herself out, and removed her blue dress from the closet. The colour matched her eyes, and it had been a gift from one of her close friends.
"I'm going to pop into the washroom to get ready. You should leave too, Peter. It's been a very long day."
Peter laughed. "Oh you don't have to tell me twice."
Laila smiled and popped out of her office to get dressed. It took ten minutes, and when she emerged, she was already feeling refreshed.
"You know, it's amazing how refreshing it can be to wash your face after a long day. I already feel a lot better. It just sucks that I don't have enough time to go home and take a shower."
"Is that a warning for me to stay ten metres away from you?" An amused voice met Laila's ears, and she was surprised to see Fred standing in her office. Peter was nowhere to be found.
She blinked in surprise. "Hi. I thought I was meeting you at your parents' house?"
Fred cocked his head. "Is that a question or a statement? Because I thought it was a gentlemanly thing to escort your date to dinner with her future in-laws."
"Oh I didn't mean. I just-". She felt flustered, and the words were lodged in her throat. And it didn't help that Fred Weasley was staring back at her with a mischievous glint in his eyes. That bastard knew exactly what he was doing.
"Would you like to sit down for some time before we head out?"
"No, I was thinking of robbing Gringotts. It's much more interesting than sitting here twiddling our thumbs."
Fred gave an amused snort, watching as Laila sat down in her chair. He turned and sat down on the couch facing her desk. They sat quietly in comfortable silence before Laila decided to speak.
"You know, I have been meaning to ask you. Ginny mentioned something about fever fudge or something, and she told me to ask you."
Fred groaned and buried his face in hands, shaking it ruefully. "For once I would like it if my sister used her wit and intelligence to remain on my side."
Laila quirked her eyebrows at his comment and waited. "Is this something related to your Skiving Snackboxes? Hermione mentioned you would test your products on underclassmen."
Fred looked up at her, his facial expressions conveying a mixture of amusement and annoyance. "Yes, and we paid them their weight in Sickles."
Laila laughed. "They must be a couple of rich buggers at this point, but I'm not letting this fever fudge thing slide so easily."
Fred sighed, "Fine. But if I tell you, you have to answer a question for me too."
Laila paused before finally relenting. "All right."
Fred grinned, "The fever fudge is our biggest triumph. Only, when George and I started developing it, let's just say things didn't go down very well…"
Laila cocked her head slightly. "I think I'm going to need more information than that"
"Okay okay," Fred held up his arms in surrender. "Let's just say when we ate them, we got boils in places that made it very painful to ride a broomstick."
Laila stared at Fred for a good ten seconds, before it finally clicked what he was saying. And then, she doubled over, laughing hysterically.
Fred glared at her playfully. "I'm glad you find this so amusing, but this is a very sensitive topic for me, Vikander. I would appreciate your support."
"Jesus Christ," Laila wheezed, grabbing onto her desk for support as she finally righted herself on her chair. She pushed her dark hair away from her eyes and did her best to compose herself before making eye contact with Fred.
"Well, I hope everything still works okay."
"Why don't you come and find out?" Fred challenged. He was smirking at her, and Laila felt her face growing hot. Unfortunately, her complexion was not dark enough to hide what she was feeling. Her mouth had dried out, and she was completely robbed of speech. Fred shifted slightly on the couch, and Laila got a glimpse of something on the outside of his hand.
Frowning, she stood up and walked over to him. Initially, Fred's expression was surprised before he put on his characteristic smirk. But the smirk faded when Laila sat down next to him and gently grabbed his palm, turning his hands over. She stared at the faded scars that formed the words I shall not tell lies.
Laila broke the tension first. "Harry told me about Umbridge. Did she do this to you as well?"
Fred tried to lighten the mood. "You got to give that vile woman some credit for being creative. Usually George and I would get stuck with detention and Howlers from Mum."
His voice broke off when he made eye contact with Laila. Her eyes were glacial, and her voice was shaky with anger as she spoke. "You were kids, and that horrible bitch branded you. That fucking piece of-"
She pinched the bridge of her nose and forced herself to calm down before turning back to Fred. He was looking at her with undisguised concern, and she felt her heart break. Most of their childhoods and early adulthoods were spent fighting a war, and he had been through just as much hell as she had. An image suddenly popped in her head, an image of Fred and George laughing as Umbridge handed them quills to begin writing. Then, she saw their laughter turn to horror and pain as they watched their skin get branded.
The tears came next, shocking the both of them. A few drops landed on Fred's hand before Laila hastily wiped them away. She acted on instinct in the next second, placing a gentle kiss on Fred's scars.
"I'm so sorry" was all she could get out. She finally bucked up the courage to meet his eyes. They were dark, warm, and inviting. And in the next second, she felt herself being enveloped in Fred's arms.
She froze for a second, the proximity taking her back to that horrible night. Her breathing began to speed up, and she almost wrenched herself from his grasp. Fred's smell brought her back. He smelled like his shop, of wood and pie. And she felt her heart beginning to slow down. She buried her nose in Fred's neck and inhaled deeply. As her breathing became more normal she separated herself from Fred and made eye contact.
His eyes crinkled upward in a smile as he gazed at her for a few seconds. Laila decided to break the silence first by getting up and retreating behind her desk. She felt Fred's eyes on her as she rummaged through her drawer and pulled out two wrapped boxes.
Fred looked on in surprise. "You know we exchange gifts during Christmas morning right?"
Laila huffed in slight annoyance. "Yes, Weasley. I am aware. But I figured you might not want to open this in front of your family."
Fred wiggled his eyebrows in an exaggerated manner. "Ooh scandalous."
"Oh shut up." She handed him the bigger box first and waited as he opened it. Inside was a box of bright yellow balls.
"They're ladoos," she explained. "George said you and your family have somewhat of a sweet tooth, so I figured I would make you some for Christmas. I made boxes for everyone in your family since you can never go wrong with food. And I made you extra so you would not have to share. And now I am rambling and cannot stop."
She let out a shaky breath and wiped her sweaty hands on her dress, leaning back on her desk slightly for some support. To her surprise, Fred got up, reached for hands and gave them a gentle squeeze.
"You better not be trying to poison me," he joked.
"Do you really think I would be this dumb to murder you in the Ministry of Magic building with something this obvious?" Laila asked, amused.
Fred shot her a smile and half-shrug in response, biting into the ladoo. His eyes opened in surprise after he took his first bite.
"Bloody hell," he exclaimed. "They're delicious. At this point, I don't care if they're poisonous. Merlin, they're good!"
Laila smiled, handing him the second box. Fred put down the ladoos, and crossed his arms.
"Seriously, Vikander. You're making me look like a rotten fiance. Giving me two gifts before Christmas, and I haven't even given you one yet."
The remark was meant to be lighthearted, but Laila ignored his humour and simply responded, "It's not a tit for tat situation, Weasley. Now shut up and open this before I take away my ladoos."
Fred gaped at her, snatching the ladoo box and guarding it close to his chest. "You gave them to me, gifted them to me, so you can't take them away now. Come on, Vikander. How is it that I have to educate you about the law when you're supposed to be the barrister? You gave me a gift. It is now mine. So, too bad!"
Laila rolled her eyes. "God, there really is no winning with you. Here."
Fred laughed and opened the second box, revealing a picture frame with a photo of himself and George. As he gazed at the picture, he saw it change to a picture of him with his family on their holiday in Egypt. And on it went, each picture containing memories of his life before, during his time at Hogwarts, opening the joke shop with George, and the few happy memories after the war. As he watched the screen, he was completely silent.
Laila looked on anxiously and immediately began rambling. "I thought you would want something to remind you about all the happy moments in your life. So, I reached out to your mom, George, Angelina, and the rest of your family as well. Then a bit of magic to make them change in the same frame. If you want to look at a specific memory, all you have to do is say it out loud, and the picture related to it should pop up. Hopefully, that works if I did the magic right…"
She stopped in her tracks when Fred looked up at her. His facial expression was unreadable, and Laila felt a tightness in her chest.
He set aside the picture frame and brought up his hand to cradle her cheek. She inhaled sharply as he brought his face closer, their lips only inches apart. And he waited.
A few seconds passed, but it seemed like an hour to Laila.
"Fred," she whispered. The next second, he was kissing her. It started off slow and sweet, a tender kiss. But as she began to respond, the kiss became more rough. Fred angled her face up, and Laila found herself putting her hands in his bright, red hair. The pace of the kiss became quicker, and it seemed like Fred was pouring out all of his feelings into the kiss.
When it became hard for her to breathe, she tore her mouth away in a gasp, but she couldn't find the will to pull herself away. Fred buried his head in her neck, breathing heavily and doing his best to find his voice again.
They separated after a few minutes. But Fred didn't let her get too far. He tugged her back onto the couch and held her tightly in his arms. And for the first time, Laila did not feel the bile crawling back up her throat. Her heart was pounding out of her chest, but not in the way that made her want to run away, but in the way that made her lean her head on Fred's shoulder.
"Okay?" Fred asked after a few minutes of silence.
"Yes," she whispered, finding that she could barely speak.
"You still owe me one question."
Laila made a slight noise of discontent. "Seriously, that is the second thing you say to me after kissing me."
She felt his laughter rumble through his chest, and she finally forced herself to lean back and meet his eyes.
Laila relented, "Fine, ask me your question. You signed a huge contract to get your business into America, so this is the least I can do."
At Laila's words, Fred shifted uncomfortably in his seat and looked down at his hands.
"Fred?" Laila's voice rang out with concern. "What's going on?"
He thought about making up an excuse, but he found he could not lie to her. "Something didn't feel right. I asked George for the weekend to discuss things with you before we finalised things."
Laila was silent before she began sharing her story. "Eleanor and I knew each other in school, but we were really good friends growing up. In my fifth year, I began dating Liam. We were friends for a while before we decided to make things official."
She leaned back on the sofa and waited until Fred met her gaze.
"Things went well until the war, and then I was…raped." She let out a shaky breath. "And I shut myself off from Liam, from Eleanor, from everyone really. It definitely wasn't healthy, but I could barely get out of bed in the mornings."
She felt a brief twinge of pain as she continued. "I couldn't bear the thought of anyone touching me, so I…distanced myself from Liam. I wouldn't talk to him about what happened, let alone allow him to touch me. I…"
The tears began to prick the corner of her eyes, and Fred reached out to give her hand a gentle squeeze. His face was impassive, but she could read the pain and anger that was simmering beneath his warm brown eyes. This gave her the strength to continue.
"One day, God this is going to sound so cliche and pathetic. I caught Liam and Eleanor in bed together. I knew they had been getting closer, but I never thought…"
She trailed off and gazed down at her and Fred's interlocked hands.
"Laila"
She looked up.
He was visibly angry as he began to speak. "That wanker didn't deserve you. You went through a literal nightmare and came out stronger for it. He is a weak fool who didn't have the balls to stand by you when you needed him most. This isn't your fault."
Laila gave him a watery smile. "I appreciate that, Fred. And it was a really rough period in my life. But I…I should have at least tried to explain or open up to him. It was just…"
She paused, trying to find the words. "It's different with you. I feel like I can pour my heart out to you, and you somehow understand everything even if I can barely string two words together. I've known you for a much shorter period of time, and yet…I can't explain it, but you just make things better without trying."
"Do you think you are the only one who feels that way?" Fred asked quietly. She looked up at him in surprise, before returning his smile.
They sat in silence for a few seconds before Laila finished the story. "I haven't seen Eleanor since the time I caught them together. It was too painful. Last I heard, they got married and had a daughter together."
Fred nodded, his expression thoughtful. "The contract hasn't been signed, and nothing is official yet."
Laila blinked. "Fred, regardless of my personal history with Eleanor, this deal could change your and George's life for the better! I mean think of the audience you can reach with your products across the pond!"
Fred let out a frustrated noise, running his fingers through his hair. "Your life will be affected too, Laila. I don't want you to have a painful reminder of your past for the rest of our lives."
Laila reached forward and gently extricated Fred's fingers from his hair. She was surprised at her boldness and waited until he looked at her.
"I don't think about her at all. And quite frankly, Liam's and Eleanor's actions led me to you. I would take that pain any day if I knew this was going to be the outcome."
The tips of Fred's ears turned red, but he countered with, "Are you sure?"
"Yes," Laila smiled. "Now are we going to sit here for the rest of the night? I'm looking forward to eating your mom's delicious food."
Fred grinned and stood, pulling Laila up with him. "Well then, we should get to it, Vikander."