Breaking Free- Fred Weasley

Chapter 33

I slid in next to Fred at the Gryffindor table. "Hey there Freddie."

"Well hello there Ev, and why are you in such a good mood today?" he smirks at me before returning the huge pile of food in front of him.

"Have you really forgotten? Durmstrang and Beauxbatons are coming today."

The redhead shakes his head vigorously, "Of course not! Georgie and I have been waiting to test out our aging potion."

"Well, I can't wait to watch that fail," I tease gently, while climbing off the bench.

"Eva, wait," Fred grabs my arm, and carries a look I've never seen on his face. Nervousness. "You know how there's the first weekend at Hogsmeade coming up?"

"Yes," I say, trying to keep my breath even. He couldn't be asking what I think he was.

"Do you want to go with me?"

"Yes, yes. Of course!" I curse myself mentally for sounding too excited.

"Great!" all the nervousness evaporates from Fred and is replaced with his normal smirk. "And don't keeping skipping out on helping me, Lee, and George with pranks. We miss you, or well, I do."

"Who wouldn't?" I laugh, turning away to hide the blush rising on my cheeks. "Well, I've got to get to class." I pull my arm from his grip and practically sprint out of the Great Hall. There was no way I was going to think about anything other than Fred Weasley asking me to Hogsmeade all day.

The next few hours fly by with the thought of this morning constantly playing in my mind. It's not long until me, Kala, Luna, and the rest of Hogwarts are stumbling out onto the grounds. With rocks and secret little land dips everywhere, it's no surprise that half of the student boy falls down at some point.

"Ahh!" Kala screeches as her long legs trip over a rock.

Luna and I burst out laughing, but it's only a few seconds before Luna stops to go help her girlfriend off the ground.

"Shut it Eva," she grumbles half-heartedly, "How the hell have neither of you tripped?"

"I walk these grounds all the time," Luna shrugs glancing over at the forest.

"Oh, I did my fair share of tripping this summer."

"In Romania?"

"No...with my dad," calling Sirius, dad felt foreign and odd, but I couldn't just say his name outright. "Instead of helping me, he just laughed every time I fell. I got good at avoiding the rocks and holes eventually."

"Sounds like someone I know," Kala grins, as I roll my eyes.

We all eventually get to the Black Lake. But as time starts ticking by, many younger kids start to get anxious and complain. Even the 6th and 7th years look like they want to leave, but everyone's boredom is stopped at the sound of someone yelling.

"Look! There in the sky!"

We all strain to see a small blob in the sky moving closer and closer. After a few minutes the blob slowly turned into what looks like horses and a carriage. We all gasp in awe as the beautiful baby blue carriage with intricate gold detail swoops down, and lands dangerously close. Out step the most beautiful girls and guys I had ever seen. Their robes made of fine blue silk, they look way too proper to be at Hogwarts. Then out steps someone who makes the whispers about the Beauxbatons stop. The woman who steps out had to be at least 10 feet tall and covered in magenta robes more elegant than her students.

Dumbledore moves towards Beauxbatons' headmaster immediately. I turn my attention away from the tall woman and Professor Dumbledore's conversation to watch for Durmstrang. Surely they had to be here soon.

But again we waited, looking in the sky for another horse drawn carriage.

"There's something weird in the lake," Luna whispers quietly.

Not a second later, a small ship pops above the water. The students start to whisper furiously among themselves. The small ship hovering on the water bursts up into a ship as tall as the castle. Water leaks from the sides as we all gape at the pirate-like ship with gold trimming just like the Beauxbatons carriage in front of us.

"Hogwarts! Hogwarts students!" Professor Dumbledore starts to attempt to herd the students from all three schools inside. And no one complains as the cold lakeside breeze and the cool October air start to fully kick in.

After a long walk back up to the castle, Laurie finds her way to us at the Ravenclaw table. "I heard Cedric is going to enter," Laurie whispers into my ear while Dumbledore begins his speech.

"Do you think he could really win?" I let out a low snort.

"Don't make me laugh Eva. If he becomes a champion he'll be dead in the first task," she laughs back.

Both of us ignore the long speeches being made, and whisper bets on who would enter from each of the schools. Luna, Kala, the rest of the Ravenclaw table, and the Beauxbatons who had joined us- eyed us angrily, as they were all hanging onto Dumbledore's every word. Finally, our Headmasters very long introduction ends and the feast appears in front of us. As I dig in hungrily I don't notice two people standing behind me.

"Hem Ava?" I turn around to see Victor Krum and a younger boy, who looked strikingly similar, expect his hair was long and curly compared to Victor's buzzcut.

"Oh er hello," I smile. What was Krum doing talking to me?

"You are Ava, yes?" his thick Bulgarian accent made my name sound weird.

"Yes I am," though I didn't follow national Quidditch teams as vigorously as Kala, I knew exactly who he was.

"You got my voomstick yes? Loopen ask for one. I normally don't give out vose, but for Loopen I do."

"Oh yes I did! Thank you! Er, may I ask how you know him?" I say looking curiously at the smaller boy beside him.

"Ve applied to ve a professor at my school. Ve did not get the job, but ve helped me with somezings," he smiles oddly at me making me feel a little uncomfortable. "Oh where are me manners? Vhis is my little vrother Ivan."

The younger boy who looks about my year waves slightly. "Hello Eva." Unlike Victor his accent is much less thick.

The two leave before I could say another word, and I'm left with everyone gaping at me while I try to comprehend what just happened.

"How do you know Victor Krum?" someone finally speaks up.