WILD ➞ Fred Weasley

xxxv. unpathed waters, undreamed shores

"Fuck, I love you so much."

[][][][][]

THE EVER SO JOYUS MONTH of April left them quietly and May was here. April showers truly did bring May flowers. The Hogwarts grounds were much more colorful than it had been all year, with fresh flowers sprouting out of the earth and shades of green covering the trees once again.

It was perfect weather for Rory to sit by the Black Lake with her friends. The group didn't eat lunch that day, instead packed their food in a small basket and left the castle to go spend an afternoon on the grounds.

Marina watched as they did this from the Slytherin table (because she could – not even Umbridge would make a rule so silly that students couldn't eat informal meals with students in other houses), she felt very sad seeing them giggle about and make plans.

"Stop looking over there," Graham said.

"Sorry. I just miss them," Marina murmured, looking down.

"Well they don't miss you, do they?" He sneered.

The girl nodded in agreement, believing his words and sipped her coffee, black.

It was a beautiful day. Rory couldn't remember the last time she went outside for something besides Herbology class or Quidditch practice.

There were trees by the Black Lake that provided perfect shade as well as a perfect spot for a hammock. Rory set up her large cloth hammock between the trees before sitting on the blanket placed on the grass and joining her friends for lunch.

Rory sat next to Fred and placed a hand on his knee as she reached over to grab a sandwich.

He smiled and picked up a bundle of grapes.

"Want one?" He offered. She nodded and held out her hand. However, Fred thought it would be more productive to throw one at her.

"Fred!" She shrieked. He laughed and then she joined him, it was rather funny.

"Joking, love," he smiled, "Here." He fed her a grape with a wink which caused Lee to gag.

"Please get a room or I'm going to drown myself in the Lake." The boy groaned. Rory teasingly stuck her tongue out at him and took a bite of her sandwich. The sun wasn't too bright, but the rays that peaked our reflected on the Black Lake making the terrifying body of water look like a work of art. The girl (for obvious reasons) was not particularly fond of the Lake. However, in that moment, it looked so welcoming.

"I have a strange feeling," Angelina blurted, "That this is going to be our last lunch together."

Fred and George exchanged a look. Rory didn't want to come to terms with it, but they were going to leave school. They discussed the planning of their final prank, which had been in the works since they were just first years. It was an idea that came to them as they sat by that very Lake, just six years prior.

"Yeah," George nodded, "How did you guess?"

Angelina sighed, "We've all been friends for ages. I could tell. So, tomorrow then?"

The twins nodded. A twinge of sadness rushed over Rory. She was going to miss seeing them at school every day. Although it was only be a few weeks until they were reunited, she didn't want to image her days without them in it. Especially with Umbridge as Headmistresses and N.E.W.Ts approaching, it was going to be the longest month of her life.

"Want to get out of here before we're in too deep with N.E.W.Ts." Fred nodded, "Its getting pretty hard pretending to pay attention to everything if there's no use in taking the information in."

"Don't worry though," George smiled, "We won't leave without saying goodbye."

The rest of the afternoon was spent by the Lake. Rory and Fred sat in the hammock while Angelina read a book and Lee and George played exploding snap. The girl felt so content but couldn't help but think something was off. It was the absence of Marina that seemed to upset her. It seemed every time the girl wanted to confront her or try and understand the situation, something else came up and she couldn't or Marina would somehow find a way out of (usually by saying she was going to be late to meet Graham and he hated when she was late).

However Rory tried not to let her thoughts of sadness and missing her friend ruin the rest of her day. As she sat in the shade of the trees so close to Fred, hearing his heart beat, she took a mental image of her in that moment. She of course, took plenty of real pictures that day but she never wanted to forget how she felt by the Black Lake with her friends.