Light filters into Fred's room, making me wake up immediately. I roll over to check the clock on his nightstand and am surprised to see it's already noon, so I force myself out of the bed.
The smell of eggs and bacon make their way into the room, and I follow the trail to find George cooking up some breakfast. He spots my sleepy figure, "Mornin', sleep well?"
I think back to how soundly I slept all night long, surrounded by warmth, "Very." A knowing smile spreads across George's face at this. I notice we are the only ones in the apartment, "Where's Fred?"
As he puts the food onto the table with four plates on it, he says cautiously, "Grabbing Angelina so we can all eat together." My body stiffens up a bit when I hear this, still not used to the idea of Fred being with someone else. George notices the change in my form, despite my best efforts to play it cool, "or I can tell them you're still sleeping?"
I shake my head certainly, "It's fine. Besides, it's your apartment anyways."
He offers a look, "But you're more than welcome here."
"Thanks...for everything."
George smiles brightly, "Of course." My eyes travel towards the food, wishing I was hungry for it, especially since George looks like a good cook. George's eyes follow my gaze and seems to catch on. He raises his left wrist towards me, "Here."
"You sure?" He nods, so I walk forward a few steps to meet him and take his hand into my two hands carefully. I gently bite into his wrist to feed for a few seconds, emitting a small hiss from George, until I hear two people enter the apartment.
A quiet gasp escapes from Angelina's lips at the sight, so I immediately drop George's wrist. She apologizes right away, "I'm sorry, I almost forgot and it took me by surprise."
I respond nicely, doing my best to be a supportive friend for the twins, "No worries, I understand. Shall we eat?"
Everyone takes a chair at the table and starts passing around the food to place some on their plates. I take a few bites of bacon to make this breakfast seem as normal as possible.
Angelina asks me, "Did you sleep okay on the couch? I slept there one night on accident and woke up with knots in my back."
I swallow a bite of bacon before slyly looking at Fred, realizing now that me sleeping in his bed may not have been the best idea. I decide to go along with it though, "Not the comfiest couch ever but it was alright."
Fred jokes to lighten the tension that arose from the two of us, "Don't diss the couch!" We all laugh and the whole sleeping thing is thankfully dropped.
Angelina's voice fills the room again, "Alexia, thank you for protecting me the other day."
I nod, "It was nothing."
She waves me off in disagreement, "Nonsense! If you hadn't of saved my life then Fred would have forever struggled with tying his ties."
I drop my hands in my lap slowly, feeling awkward at her comment. I know she is harmless but that doesn't mean that this act of playing nice is going to be easy or will make it any less awkward. I don't even know if Fred told her about us.
She seems unfazed by the silence and makes friendly conversation without realizing that she is making the situation much worse, "So is there a guy back in America or have you finally realized that George isn't all that bad?"
I choke on my water but recover quickly, "No to both. Sorry George, you're not my type." I send him a cheeky smile, covering up how I truly feel.
Angelina and George chuckle at my words, yet Fred's eyes lock with my own. We stay like this, both knowing that what I said was a downright lie, until the laughing dies down until Fred smirks and turns away. We finish eating and I think we all feel relieved that no talk of Voldemort comes up. At least everyone could take their mind off of the danger for a little bit.
While the couple walks to the door to say their goodbyes, I pick up the dirty dishes to start cleaning, with magic of course. From the corner of my eye, Angelina giggles while placing a hand on Fred's arm. I try not to pay attention but I freeze when I see their lips meet yet again. It lasts only a few seconds before Fred pulls away, his gaze settling on me, so I snap my head back to the work in front of me.
She waves goodbye and exits the apartment to return back home. George, who was changing before, re-enters the room to say, "I'm going to check our stock downstairs."
Curiosity takes over, "I thought you two weren't staying open?"
"We aren't, but we've come up with a genius system to mail our products to our loyal customers so they can have a laugh every once in a while."
I smile at this, in awe of them for looking out for others and for being so selfless. George leaves me alone with Fred for the time being.
Fred goes over to sit on the couch that I was supposed to sleep on, "I'm sorry if that was awkward."
I glance over to his guilty face, "It's okay." I finish with cleaning and go to stand in front of him, "She doesn't know, does she?"
He pauses as he looks down into his lap but proceeds to shake his head, "No...she thinks George is still in love with you."
I laugh at the thought, knowing that there is no way that George has any romantic feelings for me left. "Well the three of us know that is not the case."
Thinking our conversation is over, I walk over to the door, in need of some fresh air. Fred's next words make me stop in my tracks, "She has the wrong twin."
I leave Fred by himself, unable to respond to his statement. I feel caught off guard but more than anything, I don't understand what angle he's playing with me. One minute he is all over Angelina and the next, he is making comments that lead me to believe he still wants to be with me.
I make my way downstairs, passing by George who looks deep in thought at the product in front of him. When the bell rings at the front door, George snaps out of his thoughts, "Where are you going? It's not safe out there past the wards."
"George, I can take care of myself. I'll be fine, don't worry."
Deciding to walk around Diagon Alley, I exit the joke shop to be met with a light drizzle, yet it doesn't bother me.
Most shops are black in the inside showing no source of light. The once vibrant area I had visited a while back now maybe has three places open. The wind howls as it carves its way around the vacant building, creating an eerie vibe.
My feet stop in place when I notice an alley that holds mystery, and I can't help but feel the dark nature radiating from it. Curiosity gets the best of me, so I make my way into the alley. A sign reads: Knockturn Alley.
My footsteps seem to echo as I walk down the paved way until I stop in my tracks when I sense someone behind me. I swivel around with my enhanced speed to come face to face with the one and only Draco Malfoy.
I take in his appearance, from the all black attire loosely fitting around his thinned out frame and the black circles lying prominent under his gray eyes. His blonde hair is as bright as ever but now it is chopped shorter so it can be gelled back with ease.
His broken voices comes out in a whisper, "Alexia? You're back."
I nod my head, "It was time."
His eyes survey the alley to see if anyone is around, "It's not safe for you in this part."
My eyes roll at his words, "I'm an immortal vampire who can use wandless and nonverbal magic...I think I can fend for myself."
It was almost as if he had forgotten everything that happened so long ago. "Is everyone okay? I heard there was an attack at the wedding."
I raise my eyebrows at this, noticing he is actually worried for my friend's safety. He shouldn't be worried about them at all, but it's obvious he wishes none of this destruction. I respond, "Yes but everyone is all spread out and in hiding. I'm staying with Fred and George."
"Figures," he says with a chuckle that comes out somewhat forced. "But please, make sure everyone is careful because war is coming and there's no hiding from it."
"I think everyone knows this but no one wants to admit it."
Draco looks down at his nice shoes, kicking a pebble out of the way. He looks so lost and miserable, making my heart break. I step forward to wrap my arms around his thin figure. Draco stands rigid at the sudden contact but soon wraps his arms around me as well, in need of some comfort. I let out a sigh, "What are they doing to you, Draco?"
He mutters out, "Terrible things."
I pull back and look at his sickly figure, "There's no way you can just leave?"
Draco's eyes widen in fear and he shakes his head rapidly, "They would catch me and kill me. Same with my parents."
"Oh Draco..." I look at the once confident boy who was constantly flirting with me and see someone who wants help but can't ask for it. "I can help out with something if you want."
Hope floods his eyes, "What do you mean?"
I reach up to place my hand on his cheek, already knowing that he will take me up on my offer. "I can give you the freedom to choose your own path when the time comes." His eyes become lost in his thoughts as he thinks about what I'm offering but then he seems certain as he nods. I lock eyes with him, "When the time comes, you will be strong enough to make your own decision. You won't worry about the consequences because all you want is to choose your own destiny and nothing, and especially no one can stop you."
His pupils dilate at my words, falling under my compulsion. Draco comes back to reality as a single tear escapes his eye, "Thank you."
"You will be free of all of this one day, I promise." Draco's eyes soften before embracing me in another hug, not bothering if anyone sees. I hug my friend back just as tight, hoping that Draco can sleep better now knowing he is finally in control.
Draco takes a step back when he hears cackling from some death eaters down the alley, "You should get going." Without another thought, Draco retreats from me.
I watch as he walks off, now with his head held a little bit higher. A smile appears on my face knowing that he will find happiness soon enough. As the voices approach, I run back to the shop so they don't follow me.
Fred and George stand in the living room talking about some new product idea excitedly and I share a smile with the pair. I walk into the bathroom to change into sweats and a cozy jumper. Picking out a book from my bag, I make my way back out the living room to notice that both the twins went to their rooms.
My eyes take in the words of the book for about an hour before my eyelids start becoming heavy. I don't fight it and allow my eyes to shut so I can be pulled into a deep sleep, despite still sitting with my back up against the arm of the couch.
Hours pass and my body awakens when I feel someone scoop me up into their arms. I slowly open my eyes to see Fred carrying me towards his room. He slowly lowers me onto his bed and I look up at him to find his gaze settled on me. He opens his mouth as if to say something but quickly closes it and starts to leave.
I call out quietly, yet loud enough for him to hear, "Wait."
He stops and turns around with a confused look.
I am half asleep and not bothering to pronounce my words eloquently, "It's your bed, so you should sleep in it." Using as much energy as I can, I move my body towards the end of the bed nearest to the wall.
I sense Fred hesitate but when he sees me turn away from him, he climbs into the bed. He lays down on his back on the other side as far away from me as possible. He whispers as sleep starts to overtake me again, "Goodnight Alexia."
I mumble, "Night Freddie."