Cosette's morning went a little differently.
She barely had time to process that she woke up alone as she glanced at the clock and saw she had majorly slept in. She started to brush her hair and ignored the pains in her stomach that were telling her she was probably going to throw up again as she left her bedroom.
Her living room was a mess.
Empty bottles were sprawled everywhere. There were stains on the carpet. A bowl of chips had been knocked over and there was a couch cushion next to the fireplace for some odd reason.
But everyone was gone.
Cosette noticed a note left on the coffee table for her and she picked it up to read it over.
Setty, so sorry about the mess. I tried to clean up a bit but I think Ron took my wand with him this morning when he left so I couldn't cast any household spells. I also didn't want to wake you up to say goodbye, you probably needed the rest.
I'll talk to you soon! Thank you for being a great host.
-Hermione
Cosette glanced around as the memories of last night slowly started to come back to her. It was like a puzzle she had to piece together. Cosette vividly remembered not wanting anyone at her house but after a few drinks, she started to loosen up and actually enjoyed herself.
She looked at the coffee table again where a deck of cards had been left open. They definitely played a few drinking games but off the top of her head she couldn't recall which ones. It wasn't until she spotted the empty bottle of vodka that had rolled next to the couch did she remember Dean using it as a pretend microphone when he was dancing on the coffee table.
The image of her dancing on the table as well started to appear in her mind. She must have joined in when she saw Dean having such a good time. Everything seemed fun last night, she didn't question anything that anyone was doing.
Cosette couldn't remember much else that happened after that but she didn't have time to dwell on it. She had to get ready for work so she would just have to deal with the mess later.
Once she was finally dressed and looking a little less hungover, Cosette returned to the living room, only this time her eyes went directly to the recliner that was on the far side of the room.
George had been in that chair.
Cosette suddenly remembered him sitting in it directly after he kissed her.
Holy shit, George kissed her.
Cosette ran her fingers through her hair, tugging at the roots as her mouth fell open when she realized her and George had kissed again. It was suddenly all becoming so clear. Her eyes darted around the room, replaying the events of last night in her head.
He pulled her off the table and kissed her.
She sat with him on the recliner and convinced him not to leave.
Looking back down the hallway, Cosette's heart dropped to her stomach when she remembered the two of them heading into her bedroom and doing a bit more than just sleeping.
"Fuck," Cosette huffed out, needing to express some type of emotion. She felt sick and it wasn't just because of the copious amount of alcohol she had consumed, it was because she kissed George and she really, really, shouldn't have.
Cosette didn't regret sleeping with him the other night, she knew that much, but that didn't mean it should have happened. Since they hooked up, things were starting to get messy and confusing between them and while she definitely didn't hate kissing George, it just made things complicated.
She didn't know what to think and she had no idea what George was thinking about all of this either.
She also had no idea where George even was.
Panic turned into confusion almost immediately and Cosette turned in circles in her living room as if thinking George would suddenly appear, but it didn't take long for her to recognize this to be the third time George had left before she even woke up.
Cosette was frustrated, and rightfully so. She knew she needed to talk to George and clear the air between them, but she figured he must have left because he felt guilty about last night, which made sense seeing as he was sort of with Lottie, still. Or was he? George put her on the do-not discuss list so Cosette was a little unclear about what their relationship was.
It was even more unclear what her relationship with George was, but she couldn't just keep hooking up with him whenever they drank together. Two nights in a row they had ended up in bed together. It was unhealthy for both of them for multiple reasons and Cosette needed to talk to George before anything else happened.
Nothing made sense.
Cosette needed to get her emotions in check.
She clearly liked George after having a few drinks and was desperate for him to stay with her. But even before she started drinking yesterday and he showed up to offer some comfort, a part of her was thankful to see him. George was really the only person she wanted to see yesterday.
And throughout the night, all she wanted was him, it didn't matter in the slightest that she was drunk. Being drunk most likely just intensified those thoughts. She didn't want him to leave, she wanted to kiss him, she wanted to sleep in the same bed as him.
Even if Cosette wasn't ready to admit it out loud, she was starting to feel something for George.
But he was gone.
Cosette didn't want to stress about it too much because if she tried to think about why George left, again, she wouldn't be able to concentrate on her job. There were a hundred different reasons why George would have left this morning but she just had to tell herself it was work related. George probably left to go work on getting the shop ready to open. It made the most sense logically and it was a reason that wouldn't drive her insane.
She'd stop by after her shift and talk to him and hopefully they would be able to figure out whatever it was they were doing.
Cosette had to push all of her current thoughts aside to finish getting ready. Today was her first day back to work in nearly a week.
She found her training book next to the door where it was usually left but before she walked out the door, she realized that her wand was not on her.
Glancing from the couch to the floor to the hallway, it took nearly five minutes before she found it on the kitchen table beside the box that George had brought over, but what caught her eye was the piece of paper with Fred's handwriting. His proposal plan it would seem, but the ring box wasn't anywhere near it.
Cosette searched inside the memory box briefly, thinking maybe it fell in there but a purple box with bright orange ribbon would have stood out and she couldn't find it.
"Please not now," Cosette sighed, bending down to look under the table. She really didn't have time to look for the ring now but it was just going to be another thing that was going to weigh on her mind during her shift.
She trusted everyone who was at her house last night. None of them would have taken something of hers, so maybe there was a chance she left it at George's flat? It was hard to retrace her steps but she remembered how eager she was to leave when Lottie showed up so there was a strong possibility Cosette forgot it there.
It made the most sense.
It wasn't lost, it was at George's.
Cosette just had to keep reminding herself of that.
She'd visit him after work to find the ring box and to talk to him. Cosette wasn't entirely sure what she was going to say but she needed to know what was going through George's mind. Whatever he was thinking, or feeling, would hopefully help Cosette figure out what she wanted.
But it was hard for her to clear her head to focus on her job which was awful considering the fact that being focused was one of the most important steps when it came to defensive spells.
The first few groups of the day were fine. Cosette got through the lessons and she was really trying her hardest to not think of anything other than work.
It wasn't until the last groups came into the studio when she was thrown off her game. She was trying to teach the Shielding Charm, Protego and it didn't require much effort to execute or master but the wizard casting it still needed to be concentrating. This group, however, was having trouble with the concentrating part and seemed more interested in having a conversation.
"Will it stop unforgivable curses?" A young wizard asked, he looked to be no older than eighteen and Cosette wondered why he wasn't currently enrolled at Hogwarts. Her first thought was that maybe he dropped out, as it was sometimes common for students to leave before their seventh year.
Fred and George did that.
But she really shouldn't have been thinking about either of them while trying to teach a class.
"No," Cosette answered. "Unforgivable curses will penetrate the charm."
"Then what's the point of learning it if it's not going to offer any assistance?" Another wizard asked.
Cosette glanced around the room and saw that everyone had the same look of curiosity. It was a fair question, "Because there are still a lot of hexes, curses and charms out there that will do a lot of damage to you if you're not ready to defend yourself."
"Do you think we'll need to defend ourselves?" That same young man who first spoke asked another question. Cosette turned to him, waiting for clarification and he cleared his throat. "I mean, do you think there will be another wizarding war?"
She was used to getting so many questions while trying to teach, especially from younger wizards who were curious about the world they lived in. But no one had ever asked her if she expected there to be another war.
But she didn't have the answer the student was wanting.
"I don't think so," Cosette shrugged and turned her back on the group to walk to the front of the room. "I don't see why there would ever be another battle, but it's better to be prepared in case that day ever does come."
"You fought, didn't you?"
"I did."
"And did you even use Protego?"
A few others snorted and Cosette even cracked a smile as she turned back around, leaning against the floor to ceiling mirror that covered the wall, "Believe it or not, I did. I'm very reactive when it comes to dueling, always have been, so it's never been easy for me to think of offensive spells. I stuck to the defense and when my opponent's guard was down or when they showed any sign of weakness, that's when I would strike. Which is the whole point of this class. We don't want to teach you how to fight, we want to teach you how to defend and protect yourself."
"If you're so good at defensive spells how'd you get the scar?" A girl off to the side asked, raising her eyebrows. She wasn't asking to be rude, Cosette could tell. It was more to poke fun of what Cosette had just shared.
So she laughed, "I was hit with the tail end of the Sectumsempra curse. Not quite powerful enough to do any real damage but it still scarred and left me with blurry vision for a week." Cosette fiddled with the wand in her fingers, almost giving up on the idea of teaching anything at this point. This group of wizards seemed to be more interested in chatting anyway and Cosette got paid regardless.
"Oh like George Weasley!"
She wasn't sure who made the comment but it caught Cosette off guard for a moment, "Pardon?"
"Isn't that what happened to him?" A man who looked to be her age stepped forward from the back of the group.
Cosette hadn't paid much attention to anyone in particular today but when she glanced at this student, she felt as though she'd seen him before. Dark brown hair, even darker eyes. He looked really familiar, but Cosette just couldn't place a name to his face.
"That's how he lost his ear, right?" He asked again, this time with a chuckle. "Sectumsempra went wrong?"
"Something like that," Cosette didn't feel like contributing any more to this conversation because she really didn't want to think about George at this time. She crossed her arms over her chest, hoping that this guy would get the hint that she didn't want to talk about it anymore.
"Did anyone ever find his ear?" He joked, tilting his head. "Or did it just vanish? I'm not too sure how that spell works."
"I have no idea, you'll have to ask George."
Cosette knew that this guy wasn't trying to purposely get on her nerves, but it happened anyway. If she recognized him there was a chance that George would have too but it still bothered her how open he was to talking about an injury that had absolutely nothing to do with him.
He snorted, "You couldn't pay me enough to step foot in that joke shop."
She almost felt offended on behalf of George. Who the hell was this guy? Cosette wanted to ask what he had meant by that but the timer on the wall had gone off indicating that the session was over. Cosette turned off the buzzer using her wand and dismissed everyone from the studio.
She turned around to grab her sweatshirt and began to clean up the area as the group started to trickle out, but when Cosette glanced behind her in the mirror, the same brown-haired wizard who was starting to irritate her was still standing there.
He had done nothing wrong during the class. He stayed quiet and participated for the most part and it was only during these last few minutes did he decide to stay something.
"Can I help you?" Cosette asked, averting her eyes again. She was still technically a trainer so she couldn't just ignore someone if they had a question, but she was allowed to be passive aggressive about it if she wanted.
"You don't remember me?"
Cosette looked in the mirror again before turning back around. She eyed him from head to toe before shrugging her shoulders. Although he did look familiar, she had no idea who he was, "Am I supposed to?"
"Benjamin," he introduced himself with a charming smile. "Benjamin Nott."
Her mouth parted slightly as the name instantly brought back memories of her time at Hogwarts. Benjamin Nott was a student who was two years older than her, but was surprisingly good friends with Nick, despite him being younger than Benjamin as well. She didn't know him, nor did she care to even get to know him because he was an arrogant, know-it-all Slytherin just like her brother.
Cosette never expected to see him again, if she was being honest. She didn't talk to her brother anymore so she had no idea if the two of them were even still friends. Again, she didn't really care.
"Okay," Cosette nodded, her expression unchanged. Even though it had been years since she last saw him, her opinion of him remained the same. "Can I help you, Benjamin?"
"Yes actually," he smiled again and as Cosette started to walk to the front door of the studio, he followed along at her side, "I was wondering if you would like to go out sometime."
Cosette waited until they were outside and the door to the studio was locked before she finally turned to look at him, "No."
He must have never been rejected before because his smile soon faded, "No?"
"I know nothing about you," she continued on, raising her eyebrows at him. "Did you sign up for this class for the sole purpose of asking me out on a date? Or did Nick set you up to this?"
Cosette started to walk in the direction of the Leaky Cauldron, planning on using their back entrance to get into Diagon Alley and Benjamin continued to follow.
"Nick didn't have anything to do with this," he assured her. "He told me yesterday that he ran into some of your old friends and I asked how you were doing but apparently you haven't spoken to him in a long time. Is that true?"
"Why do you care about my relationship with my brother?" She tried to walk faster, again hoping that he would get the hint that she wasn't interested in talking to him but Benjamin was persistent.
"I don't, I care about taking you out on a date."
"Yeah that's not happening," Cosette scoffed, turning a corner. This was the last thing she needed today. All she wanted was to go to work and talk to George and now one of Nick's stupid friends was harrassing her. On top of that, Cosette was still slightly hungover.
"Why not?" Benjamin stepped in front of her, causing Cosette to stop in her tracks. "It's been three years, Cosette."
"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" Now, she was offended.
"Please don't take this the wrong way, but you can't love a dead guy for the rest of your life." Benjamin told her, seriously crossing a line. Cosette knew next to nothing about Benjamin Nott and now all of a sudden he shows up and tries to tell her how she should be living her life.
"I think I'm done talking to you," Cosette muttered, stepping around him. She glanced over her shoulder briefly, only to see him still following behind. Cosette rolled her eyes, "Piss off, Benjamin."
He picked up his pace to walk at her side again, "Give me one good reason why you won't let me take you out on a date."
Cosette could think of at least five.
He was arrogant. He wasn't her type. He was her brother's friend and he had a very pushy personality that didn't sit right with her.
But she blurted out the fifth and final reason, "I'm seeing someone."
Was she?
Or was that just a lie she had to say in order for him to back off? Regardless, it seemed to throw him off, not having expected her to say that. The two of them stopped walking and Cosette shrugged her shoulders again.
"I'm flattered," she wasn't, "But it's not going to happen."
"I understand," He no longer tried to persuade her to go out with him. Benjamin offered her another charming smile before nodding and turning to walk back in the opposite direction, "Hopefully I'll see you around some time."
Cosette forced herself to smile back, all while thinking that hopefully this would be the last time she saw Benjamin Nott.
As she continued walking, Cosette tried to piece together why someone like him was interested in asking her out. She didn't know him in the slightest, nor did she know his younger brother Theo, the only mutual person in their life was her brother. Cosette had a feeling that Nick had something to do with this, even if Benjamin said otherwise.
Regardless, she didn't care. Benjamin Nott was not the person she wanted to spend her time with. There was only one person on her mind at the moment and Cosette was quickly making her way to Diagon Alley so she could talk to him.
She wondered what George would have to say about her run in with Benjamin. Or maybe she wouldn't even bring it up, it wasn't really relevant. She needed to talk to George about whatever it was they were doing so bringing up another guy probably wouldn't be the smartest idea.
Cosette pushed open the doors of the Leaky Cauldron and made her way to the back exit. Once she was there, it only took a few wand motions for the stones to reassemble and Diagon Alley to open up.
Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes was a bit of a walk still but that gave Cosette time to think about what she was going to say.
First and foremost, she needed to find that ring box. The longer it was missing the more worried she grew that something happened to it.
But besides the ring, Cosette knew how important it was for the two of them to figure out what was going on. Was he still seeing Lottie? If yes, would he break up with her if Cosette showed interest? Was Cosette even interested?
She liked being with George. His presence comforted her both sober and drunk. And while they had only spent a bit of time together since he came back into her life, George was helping Cosette start to feel like herself again. She was starting to feel whole.
When Cosette was with him, her chest didn't hurt as much as it used to. Which was strange considering she expected to feel some sort of pain while looking directly at the face identical to the man she once loved.
But besides that fraction of a second at the burrow when they were alone in the kitchen, whenever Cosette looked at George, she saw George. She didn't see Fred.
Which was a bit of a relief, really.
It wasn't hard to be around George like she assumed it would be. It was actually surprisingly easy. He was someone who really cared about her and for the last three years, Cosette didn't have anyone like that in her life.
She had to tell him that.
Cosette knew that she had to tell George that she thoroughly enjoyed spending time with him and that she wanted him to be a constant in her life, whatever role that may be. She was anxious, of course, to learn how he would respond but Cosette hoped he would reciprocate those thoughts. He wouldn't have stopped by her house last night if he didn't want to.
He wouldn't have kissed her if he didn't want to either, right?
Cosette stepped up to the door of the joke shop, but she instantly noticed that all the lights were off. She was aware that the shop probably wouldn't have been open today but the sun hadn't even set yet. She expected George to be getting prepared or cleaning as it was common for him to work late.
She knocked on the window a few times, much like she did a few nights ago but there was no answer. Even when she rang the buzzer, she could hear it through the glass but no one ever came down the stairs.
So she rang it again.
And again.
And still no sign of anyone.
Cosette didn't want to jump to conclusions but it didn't seem to make any sense as to why no one was answering. There was a chance that Ron was out with Hermione but where could George have gone?
Possibly the burrow? But Cosette didn't want to show up there unannounced.
She backed up a little to get a better view of the top level where George actually lived. When she tilted her head up, Cosette saw that there was a light on upstairs, which meant someone had to be home.
And if someone was home, they were purposely ignoring the door buzzer.
But why?
Cosette waited around for a few more minutes. Her eyes darted back and forth from the front door to the window with the light on until finally someone came into view to close the blinds.
But it wasn't George or Ron. It wasn't Hermione either.
It was Lottie.
She didn't even notice Cosette as she pulled the blinds down. Her shadow faded away as she retreated back into the flat and Cosette was left standing there absolutely dumbfounded.
Why did she feel so fucking shitty?
It seemed that her previous question from earlier was answered. George was, in fact, still with Lottie. Which meant that whatever happened between them last night, didn't mean anything to him if he was going to go running right back to Lottie the next day.
Cosette felt this unexplainable sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach as she started to back away from the shop. It turned out that she didn't need a conversation with him after all. She knew exactly where George's head was at.
He didn't want her. He wanted Lottie.
It was painful to think about, but Cosette needed to come to terms with it. Whatever she thought she had with George was simply a facade. He didn't care about her like she thought he did.
There was nothing to talk about. It made sense why George had to leave before she woke up, he probably had plans with Lottie. He most likely only kissed her because they were both drunk and he didn't think anything would come of it afterwards. He only spent the night in her bed because Cosette asked him to. He wouldn't have done that if she hadn't said anything.
The ache in her chest started to turn into frustration, partly directed at her for even momentarily thinking that there was something with George and partly directed at George because he was the one who made her think there was even something in the first place.
She didn't want to feel sorry for herself, but she did feel like an idiot.
What did she think was going to come from this conversation? She was almost glad that she spotted Lottie in the window. It saved her from actually talking to George and potentially feeling worse.
So Cosette headed home because there was nothing else she could do.
Once she was in the comfort of her own house she forced herself to clean up last night's mess. She had to keep busy otherwise she would over analyze every single thing that George had said or done.
But it didn't make sense.
This wasn't the George that she knew.
He was always so caring and thoughtful when they were younger and now Cosette had no idea what to think about him.
Was he just playing some sort of game? Was Cosette's first assumption right? Did George just have this stupid fantasy of hooking up with her from when he used to have a crush on her? And now that he succeeded in getting what he wanted, he didn't care anymore.
Cosette's eyes darted around the room and she spotted the box sitting on the kitchen table, with all of the items belonging to Fred.
The ring.
It had slipped from her mind the second that she saw Lottie through the window.
She wasn't desperate to see George anymore but she still needed the ring. There was no point in heading back there now, George had made it pretty clear that he wasn't opening up the door for anyone, not while Lottie was over at least.
She would just have to go back tomorrow for it.
It wasn't a surprise that Cosette had trouble falling asleep that night. Her thoughts kept her up, most of them being about George. She understood that she really didn't have a right to be upset that he went back to Lottie, especially since he had been with her for the last few months. Cosette was sort of the one in the wrong. By hooking up with George, she essentially was the other girl.
It was never her intention to ruin his relationship but she couldn't help but think that maybe George would leave Lottie after everything that happened. Even if he didn't want to be with Cosette, she hoped that he at least realized that Lottie was not the right person for him.
But that obviously didn't happen.
And she had to accept that George had chosen Lottie.
When Cosette woke up, it was still hard to think about George but she forced herself out of bed, got dressed and made her way back to Diagon Alley.
At this point, all she wanted was the ring. She didn't need to talk to George about the nights they spent together. She didn't need to talk to him about their relationship. As far as Cosette was concerned, she had to move past it. It didn't make sense for her to dwell on anything. He was with Lottie and nothing she could do or say would change that.
When she turned the corner and Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes came into view, Cosette noticed a crowd of people huddled around the front doors. The only explanation was that they must be reopening today.
Which benefited Cosette. She could go inside, find the ring box and leave and maybe she wouldn't even see George.
Cosette managed to push her way to the front and inside the shop, but it was even more packed with people inside. She spotted a few employees trying to assist customers but when she started to walk towards the back of the shop, she spotted Ron walking out of the stock room.
"Hey Setty," Ron smiled at her. "I'd love to chat but I've gotta refill-"
Cosette didn't get to hear the rest of his sentence as he had already taken off and she didn't think she needed to ask for permission to go upstairs. When she was about halfway up the staircase, Cosette turned and scanned over the aisles but she didn't see George anywhere. Thinking that he must be in his office, Cosette continued up and opened up the door to the flat.
Her eyes went to the kitchen table first. She sat there with George the morning after she spent the night so there was a chance she had dropped it nearby. But after taking a quick look and bending down to scan the floor, Cosette still couldn't find the purple box.
Cosette stood back up right, just in time to hear a bedroom door open and shut. For a split second, she thought she was going to run into Lottie but it was George who walked down the hallway.
He certainly didn't expect to see her but he didn't comment on her presence either. He fiddled with the tie around his neck and turned to look at himself in the mirror. It threw Cosette off because even if he had made the choice to be with Lottie, she figured George would still be welcoming to her.
After all, they were still friends. Right?
"I'm just looking for the ring box," Cosette explained to him, stepping around the table. She watched George in the mirror purposely avoid her stare, which only confused her more.
"That's fine," he muttered.
"Have you seen it anywhere?" She raised her eyebrows.
"No."
Cosette nodded. George wasn't the type of person to give one word answers so she wasn't sure what to make of it.
But she also didn't peg him for the one night stand kind of guy either.
"Can you help me look for it?" As soon as Cosette asked that question, she noticed him suck in a breath in irritation.
"I don't really have time to help you right now," He told her. He was definitely annoyed, but Cosette couldn't pinpoint why. She didn't do anything wrong. Besides sleep with him and he was just as much at fault as she was.
She watched as he still struggled with his tie and Cosette started to walk forward, "Okay, then at least let me help you before you cut off your circulation."
The second that she reached for his arm, George flinched out of the way. Cosette narrowed her eyebrows at him, waiting for an explanation as to why he was suddenly treating her so coldy.
He was the one that led her on, making her believe that potential feelings had started to come into play, so if anything, Cosette should be upset with him. But she wasn't. She wanted to be an adult and move past it.
"I've got it," he assured her with the same disant tone.
"What is the matter with you?" Cosette asked him with a bit of a laugh as she eyed him up. "I'm just going to fix your tie, I'm not going to hurt you."
"It's a little too late to be saying that, don't you think?"
Cosette shook her head, really not understanding any of this, "What are you talking about?"
"Just go, Cosette," George nodded his head towards the door and Cosette looked at him like he was insane.
"Hang on, you're upset with me?" She asked for clarification. "You were the one who left me yesterday morning before I even woke up to go back to that blonde bitch. George, if anything, I should be angry with you but I'm not."
"Oh, you know who I am now?"
The sarcasm in his voice was alarming. It wasn't humorous, it was full of spite. Cosette took a step backwards, trying to process what he was saying.
"What are you talking about?" She asked again.
George sucked in a sharp breath but he no longer was averting his gaze. He looked Cosette straight in the eye and spat out, "You called me Fred."
But that idea alone made her chuckle, "No I didn't."
"Yes," George licked his lips. "You did."
"I would never call you Fred," Cosette assured him, finding it impossible to believe that she would have been that drunk that she got her dead boyfriend mixed up with his twin brother. "Out of all of the years I've known you, never once have I gotten you two mixed up."
"Well you did," he argued with a bitter laugh. "You kissed me, I fingered you and then after you threw up, you called me Fred. So forgive me for not wanting to see you right now."
"No that doesn't-"
"You were so incredibly happy that night," George wasn't done talking. "Part of me couldn't help but think that I had something to do with it, you know? You told me you didn't regret sleeping with me, then you invited me to spend the night and you kissed me and it turned out you were picturing Fred the entire time. How the fuck do you think that made me feel?"
"George that's not true," Cosette shook her head. She had absolutely no recollection of calling him Fred. She wouldn't have. There's no way she would have done something so incredibly stupid, even if she was drunk.
"It is."
"If I called you Fred-"
"You did."
"If," Cosette huffed out, "by chance I accidentally called you Fred when I was drunk out of my mind, I swear on my life that it didn't mean anything, okay? I know you are not Fred. I don't want you to be Fred and I have never pictured you as Fred. You're George. I don't want you to be anyone else."
"Are you sure about that?" He asked, raising his eyebrows. Cosette was growing frustrated with his attitude. All she wanted was to offer an explanation but he was being so incredibly stubborn.
"Do you remember back at Hogwarts when other students and teachers only ever referred to you and Fred as 'The Twins' and you were each just 'one of the twins'?" Cosette waited for him to respond but he only crossed his arms so she sighed and continued on. "Do you remember how much I fought for you two to become your own person? Do you remember how many people I yelled at when they got you confused? I got detention for a week when I stood up to Snape after he called you Fred but I would have done it again and again and again because I knew how important it was for you and Fred to be known as individuals."
George didn't look convinced in the slightest and Cosette ran a hand through her hair. She wasn't going to let a stupid slip-up that she didn't remember get in the middle of her relationship with George.
"Whenever I looked at Fred I saw the energetic, social, daredevil that I fell in love with but when I looked at you I saw the most intelligent, selfless and hilarious guy that I knew I was lucky to have in my life. You are George Weasley and I will never think otherwise so please don't think that I would ever use you to try to be Fred."
"Cosette it just seems like you are wanting me to fill the hole in your heart that he left," George shook his head, still not wanting to listen to anything she was saying. "Why else would you sleep with me? Why else would you want me to spend the night?"
"Because I wanted to be with you," Cosette raised her voice before taking a deep breath. She could fight all day to prove her point but in the end, she wasn't the person that he chose, "But it doesn't matter anyway, does it? You're with Lottie."
"I'm with Lottie because I know for a fact that she sees me for who I am," George was so quick to jump to her defense before Cosette could even get out one bad word about her. "And because of you I nearly lost the one person who actually gave a shit about me."
Cosette's jaw dropped.
There was no way in hell he was blaming her for what they did.
"It is not my fault that the second I came back into your life, your relationship with Lottie started to fall apart." Cosette snapped at him. She could understand George being upset about the name mix up but she was not going to take the blame for him being disloyal to Lottie. "Do you really think that when you brought me back into your life I thought to myself 'let's see how I can destroy George's relationship'? I will take some of the fault because I was aware that you were seeing her when we hooked up but that is also on you for having no-self control and it is also on her for having insecurities that she doesn't know how to fucking deal with."
"And what exactly do you mean by 'Lottie's insecurities'?"
"You understand that the second I showed up, someone from your past, someone who you care about, Lottie became overbearing, controlling, and crazy which are a couple red flags that you probably should not be overlooking. She's clearly got her own issues so you can put some of the blame on her too."
"Stop talking about her like that," George was growing visibly angrier with Cosette as well.
"Why are you so quick to forgive all of her shitty behaviour towards me but when I maybe called you the wrong name, it's the final straw and you want nothing to do with me anymore?"
"There's no maybe, Cosette, you called me Fred!" George yelled at her but she wasn't going to let him intimidate her in the slightest.
"And I have no fucking recollection of it so can you cut me some slack?" She yelled back at him. Cosette was becoming hot because of how angry she was at him for not listening to anything she was saying. Her heart was pounding out of her chest.
"You expect me to just forget that you called me Fred? While I was trying to take care of you?" he scoffed. "Not a chance in hell."
"Fine," Cosette shrugged her shoulders. She didn't want to stand here arguing with him all day it was pointless. She started to retreat backwards towards the door all while keeping her eyes locked on George's, "I'll be at my house, waiting until you're ready to have mature conversation about all of this, but in the meantime, I hope you have fun with your psycho girlfriend."
George's nostrils were flaring as Cosette opened the door that led to the staircase, "Fuck you."
"Yeah?" Cosette pressed her tongue against the inside of her cheek, not able to let the opportunity go to waste as she eyed George up and down one last time before backing out of the flat, "You already did."
huge shoutout to my bestie for helping me write this chapter and also all the other chapters ---go follow her on tik tok bc she makes elusive themed content (and hp content) and she's great (/dracofred on tik tok)