Not Like You Planned

Chapter 16

 Hi! Another chapter down! Hope you like it! Gimme some feedback please! 

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Time passed quickly, classes got harder and everyone got more excited as the October Hogsmead trip got nearer. Merope was again going with Fred. Things hadn't gotten as heated as they had that night on the couch. Merope had thought up hundreds of excuses if their situation had gotten close, but Fred had been the perfect gentleman. It was helped in part that the 7th years were having homework piled on them. Merope had gotten a lot as well, but with her advanced education, she finished fairly quickly.
    Fred wasn't nearly as fast. Merope helped him as best as she could, but there was only so much she could help him with, essay wise, before the professors started telling him that he needed to do his own homework. She still helped with his spellwork; he was nearly as proficient with nonverbal spells as herself which made dueling interesting.
    Draco was showing to be more and more tolerant, helped by Merope and him spending time together and knowing that Fred was for show. Merope had great guilt from fooling Fred but Draco helped her through it, assuring her that it was only until Potter began to trust her.
    Finally it was the morning of the Hogsmead trip...
*~*
    "So are you going to Hogsmead today?" Merope asked, looking up at Draco. They were lying on the rocky shore of the Cursed side of the lake. Merope had conjured a blanket and they were looking at the early morning stars, Merope's head resting on Draco's chest as he held her.
    Draco hesitated before nodding.
    "Yes, but not for long," he said, running his hand down her shoulder.
    She sighed and looked back across the lake. The small distance she could see, mist swirled around and if she concentrated, she could imagine animals.
    "Your mission?" she whispered. Draco's chest rose as he sighed and nodded, his pale hair flopping into his eyes. Merope gently brushed it away, revealing his warm, gray eyes.
    "Well then I'll see you tonight," she said, laying her head back on his chest.
    "You'll be with Fred I'm guessing," he said nonchalantly. Merope took a deep breath and nodded. Draco's soft black shirt rubbed against her cheek.
    "Well just stay safe," he said. Merope sat up and propped herself on an elbow facing him.
    Draco's smooth, pale face showed no emotion as he looked at Merope. But his gray eyes were serious.
    "You're kidding," Merope said.
    "And why would I be kidding?" he asked. Merope rolled her eyes.
    "My father is your master. I went to an all-boys school, notorious for sending out Dark wizards, I've raised basalisks in your basement..." Merope teased. "And you're afraid of me being in danger at Hogsmead?"
    "I just don't want you getting hurt," he said grudgingly. Merope laughed.
    "I've been in training since I was five!" she said, chuckling.
    She yelped as Draco grabbed her waist, pulling ontop of him, then rolling them both over so she was pinned beneath him.
    Merope's heart raced as she looked up at him.
    Draco's pale blonde hair framed his angular face, brushing against his black lashed, gray eyes. His lips curved up in a smirk.
    He brushed a piece of hair away from her face and trailed his hand down her neck, eyes narrowing as she let out a small gasp. His smirk grew larger.
    "Yes, and you're very vicious," he muttered, kissing her. She succummed to the kiss for a few seconds before pushing his face away. Draco pouted.
    "Why do I feel like that wasn't an actual compliment?" she asked, fixing him with a stern expression. Draco sighed and rested his forehead against hers.
    "I do know you can handle yourself. But you have some enemies. And the Dark Lord could have spies in Hogsmeade," he murmured, "Just be careful. Please?"
    Merope sighed slightly. "I will. Probably hang out at Honeydukes the entire time. That's safe, right?"
    Draco hesitated so slightly, Merope thought she imagined it.
    "Yes. Just keep an eye out."
    "Yes sir," Merope said, smiling.
    "Hmmm," Draco said, "I like the sound of that.
    "Not gonna-" Merope was cut off as Draco smothered her words with a kiss. She gladly forgot all of her troubles as Draco's mouth moved with her own.
*~*
    "Are you ready?" Fred asked, eyeing Merope as she put a a scarf on. It was windy and cold outside, the wind biting their skin every time the great doors opened.
    "Yep, lets get out of here," she said. She was wearing a pair of black leggings with a dark, navy sweater dress. She had a pair of furry brown high snow boots and her hair was in a french braid down her shoulder. She had added some silver eyeshadow to her usual makeup routine as well.
    "What?" she asked, letting Fred help her put her jacket on.
    "Just admiring," he said, grinning as she rolled her eyes.
    "Well they're letting everyone else outside," Merope said, watching the crowd move out into the gray, cloudy day.
    "Well, you could walk ahead of me and I could still admire," Fred joked. Merope's jaw dropped and she slapped his arm.
    "I was joking!" Fred said, throwing his hands up in defense.
    Merope rolled her eyes and looped her arm through his. Fred laughed and kissed the top of her head. The scent of lavender wafted from her hair.
    "I'm just kidding," he said, giving her a squeeze.
    "I know," she said, looking up at him.
    "Good. I don't want to do my homework on my own," Fred said, laughing as she hit him again.
    Merope gasped as the cold wind hit them.
    "All right, all right. Move along," Filch said, waving his Secrecy Sensor to prod the students out the door.
    "Weasley," Filch said, nose wrinkling. "You'd better not bring any of those prank things back with you."
    "Watch where you're sticking that," Fred said, wincing as the Sensor hit his elbow.
    Merope glared at Filch and he shrank back a bit, waving Fred forward.
*~*
    "You're next," Filch said, trying to keep his voice steady. He waved the sensor quickly over the haughty girl.
    Her dark eyes bored into his face and his skin broke out with goosebumps.
    "Okay, move along," he said, a trickle of sweat running down his back. Her eyes narrowed slightly and he waved the next person over.
    He sighed in relief when he looked back up and the girl was gone.
    Watch your step Filch, watch your step, he thought, swallowing.
*~*
    "I can't believe Zonkos is closed!" George fumed, taking a swig of his butterbeer.
    "So our main reason for coming to Hogsmeade is gone," Lee said glumly, gazing mournfully into the amber-colored drink. "Why even bother coming back?"
    "At least we're out of school," Fred said, "We could be back at school doing homework." He stuck his tongue out and Merope chuckled.
    "How dare you laugh!" George chastised, putting his butterbeer down on the table forcefully. "This is a tragedy!"
    "It could be worse," Merope said.
    "Really?!" Lee asked sarcastically. "How?!"
    There was a sudden comotion, causing the four to look at the entrance of the bar.
    The door was open and Professor Slughorn could be seen talking animatedly to a weary looking Potter  and Hermione. The door to Honeydukes was open and they could see and hear the scene taking place. Finally, Slughorn meandered away, a satisfied smile on his plump face.
    "You could be harrassed into going to one of Slughorn's parties," Meorpe said, a smug smile on her face.
    "Hmm...touche," Fred said, turning back around.
    "True," George said. "But what do we do now?"
    Lee sat back in his chair and looked around. "I really don't have a bloody clue."
    "Well, we'd better get out of here before the urge to jinx everyone in here to giant blow-up clowns overwhelms me," George said exhasperately, downing the last of his butterbeer in a giant gulp. He set it down with a thud and stood up.
    Lee followed him outside. The door closed with a slight tinkling.
    "So how is life?" Fred asked with a smile, swirling the butterbeer in his glass.
    Merope grinned.
    "Well, I'm sitting in a warm building while there's a blizzard outside, a delicious, sweet, carmelly, drink in my hand, talking to my boyfriend without having to worry about homework. So all in all, pretty good," Merope said, smiling at him. Fred smiled at the word 'boyfriend'.
    "Well, Honeydukes is the best. So of course this is amazing," Fred said. He flipped his hair out of his eyes and winked at her.
    "I've never been here before," Merope said, looking around. Fred's eyes widened.
    "Are you serious?"
    "Completely. We went to the Three Broomsticks last time we were here," Merope said nodding earnestly.
    "Well then, I'm glad you're here. This is an experience everyone should have," Fred said. Merope raised an eyebrow at him.
    "And what other experiences are there?" she asked, lacing her fingers together and leaning forward to put her elbows on the table.
    "Well, sleep under the stars. Hold a tarantula. Build a snow fort. Adopt an accent just for fun. Milk a cow. Pretend to be a zombie. Turn your brother into a one-legged chicken. Ride a train. Jinx all the blankets in the house to not let people out from under them," Fred listed. "Learn to juggle. Learn to waltz. Glue galleons to the sidewalk. Watch a meteor shower..."
    Merope looked at him strangely.
    "What?" Fred asked defensively.
    "Those are awesome," she said, tilting her head slightly. "Are there more?"
    "Many," Fred said, smiling. "But I figured I could get to them later this year or next."
    "Yeah," she said, taking a sip of her drink.
    "What do you want to do?" Fred asked, watching her intently. She pauesed and played with the handle of her mug.
    "I dont' know really," she said, "I like animals and plants but-" she paused. "-life really...doesn't always turn out the way we expect or want. There's so many factors and they pile up." Merope said, speaking slowly. "Then one factor moves and everything just falls apart."
    Fred took her hand.
    "Well there's plenty of time," he said.
*~*
    "Not always," Merope said quietly. There were so  many things wrong with their plan. So many little cracks that could cause the faults to shift and make a monumental earthquake in everyone's life. So many, so many things could go wrong...
    "He was nicking Sirius's stuff!" Potter yelled out.
    Merope jumped and looked towards the entrance. Potter, Hermione, and Ron had entered Honeydukes and Potter looked livid. Merope reached towards Harry's mind and smiled in surprise when she saw his displeasure.
    So Potter knew Sirius Black, she thought. Hmm...interesting.
    She'd heard a lot about Black, nearly every member of the Death Eaters was ecstatic...except for Bellatrix. She put up a good show but she felt guilty. Family or not, she had respect for him. But Voldemort meant more.
    The three sat at the table talking in hushed whispers, looking around them periodically. Merope continued talking with Fred, keeping to menial topics and laughing often at Fred's jokes.
    Finally, her butterbeer was gone and Fred stood up. "Ready to go?"
    Merope sighed, "Back to the blizzard."
    Fred grinned and put his arm around her waist. "Don't worry. I'll keep you tethered to the ground," he said.
    "Wow, that might be the longest word I've ever heard you say," Merope teased. Fred rolled his eyes.
    "I'm quite intel-bloody hell!" he yelped, sleet pelting them as they left Honeydukes. They trudged up to the castle, fighting the wind that tore at their clothing and sleet that burned their skin. Merope walked close to Fred, grateful for his strong arm wrapped around her. Long, agonizing minutes later they trudged up to the castle.
    The frost dissolved from their clothes once they passed the front doors. Merope shivered and relaxed, the heavy weight of accumulated snow vanished.
    Clever, Dumbledore, she thought realizing the door's charm. Clever.
*~*
    "Merope! Wake up!" Ginny said, shaking the girl's shoulder. She was wearing a bright blue tank top and cute plaid pajama shorts. Ginny was a tad envious.
    "What?!" Merope growled, rolling over and covering her head with a pillow. Ginny giggled and grabbed the pillow. Merope made a half-hearted atttempt at retrieving the stolen pillow but failed.
    "What time is it?" she grumbled, rubbing her eyes.
    "It's nine," Ginny said, grinning at the way Merope's beautiful face froze.
    "Nine?!" she asked, incredilously.
    "Yep, you missed breakfast," Ginny said, sitting on the bed. Merope moved over to give her more room.
    "But then, so did Fred," Ginny said, struggling to keep a straight face. " So, I'm thinking there's a connection there."
    Score, Ginny thought as Merope's cheeks pinkened slightly.
    "Hmmm?" Ginny proded.
    "No correlation whatsoever," Merope argued, getting out of bed.
    "Of course not. So you wouldn't mind me asking Fred at lunch then?" Ginny asked, idly examining her nails.
    Merope froze and looked at her. "You wouldn't."
    "Try me," Ginny challenged. Merope hesitated before coming to sit by Ginny on the bed.
    "Tell anyone and I'll hex you," she threatened.
    "Deal," Ginny said, nodding. Merope looked skyward and took a deep breath.
    "Oh my god! You did 'it'!" Ginny gasped, covering her mouth. Thousands of questions raced through her mind.
    "No!" Merope said quickly. Ginny let her hand fall and she looked at her skeptically.
    "Then what happened?" she demanded.
    "We went up to the Astronomy tower and kind of made out for a long time," Merope said, a small smirk on her face.
    "So, you didn't do 'it'?" Ginny asked.
    "No!" Merope said, looking scandalized. "I've never."
    Ginny looked out the window to the lake, the grounds covered in fluffy snow.
    "Ginny...have you and Dean?" Merope asked slowly. Ginny blushed and looked at the older girl.
    "No, not all the way. He's asked before but..." Ginny paused. "I'm scared."
    "Then don't," Merope said simply.
    "You make it sound so easy," Ginny sighed.
    "Don't until you're absolutely certian," Merope said. "Otherwise you'll regret it."
    "I would've thought you'd have," Ginny said. Merope grinned as thought Ginny had just told her a good joke.
    "Are you kidding? I hardly have the temperment of a girl every guy wants to sleep with," Merope said, still smiling.
    "But you have the body," Ginny pointed out. She was again envious. Merope had great curves and Ginny was pretty small in the chest area.
    "And I make sure my attitude was the first thing Durmstrang guys noticed," Merope said. She laughed once. "There was a guy who grabbed my rear once. I jinxed him to have his hands locked to his own for a whole week."
    Ginny laughed. "Serves him right."
    "What about Krum though?" she asked, thinking of Hermione. Merope tilted her head.
    "What do you mean?" she asked, clearly confused.
    "Were you and Krum involved?"
    "Hell no!" Merope exclaimed. "He was like my brother! I was the only one who told him to get off his lazy arse and try out for Quidditch."
    "Really?!"
    "Yes! There was nothing going on!" Merope said.
    "Well then Hermione has no reason to be mad at you," Ginny said, pleased.
    "Why is she mad?" Merope asked, eyebrows pulled together.
    "She thought you were with Krum."
    "That clears up a lot," Merope said.
    "I bet if you explain that to her she won't hate you as much," Ginny said. Merope shrugged.
    "Maybe. I'll try it," she said, getting up to get dressed.
    "I'll see you in the commons," Ginny said, leaving the dormitory. Dean was waiting for her at the bottom and her heart jumped when he smiled. She grinned back and took his hand, maneuvering around clumps of people talking excitedly in the room.

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