A/N: So this was asked by @johnwatsonisbae and they wanted a Fred Weasley fanfic where he didn't die. They gave me a lot of free space to imagine what I wanted so I hope it satisfies you, and I'm sorry it took so long, it's mostly because I had a lot in mind and it's 20 pages. So yeah, it's a long one. I'll explain in the end what will happen to this book, since I haven't uploaded for a year.
If the screams and explosions outside were any indication of what Hogwarts was facing, I don't know what was. It was truly a war for good and evil, and while I didn't exactly want to go out and risk death, sadness, and people who I love on the ground unmoving and neglected, I had to go out to help more people. There were injured students, my class out there, and I wasn't going to have them die alone, if anything.
Running through the halls of my beloved school, I tried to help as much as I could, but kept the reason I was away from the Hospital Wing in mind, Madam Pomfrey would want me back to help soon. The Death Eaters had made it through the defenses, and Merlin, was it hell in a nutshell. Everywhere I turned, I would find fellow students and the Order of the Phoenix fighting to ward off the Death Eaters from entering our school and killing off our last bit of hope. I heard telling thumps above me, and I scrambled up the stairs, ending up close to where the Room of Requirements was.
Vaguely remembering that Harry, Ron, and Hermione were in the Room of Requirements, I put on a burst of speed, no way was I going to let them die on me now. I found two Weasleys by the names Fred and Percy, I believe, warding off a group of Death Eaters, by the Room instead. They were talking, unaware of one of the Death Eaters making their way dangerously close to them.
"Watch out!" I shrieked. He was going to use a spell, and I needed to do something. I wasn't going to let a Weasley die, not if I could do something about it. "Protego!"
In a split second, the shield made its way around the two gingers just as the Death Eater cast a Confringo. Stumbling from the vibrations of the impact, I saw Fred Weasley's smile freeze as he realized just how close he'd touched Death. But thankfully, he seemed ok. I allowed myself to breathe easier for a moment, before joining the two gingers.
"Are you both ok?" I asked casting quick glances at both of them before helping to attack the Death Eaters.
"Yeah, we're fine" Fred answered, his tone shaking.
"That's good," I noticed the Golden Trio had joined us across the hall, their clothes singed and their faces flushed like they had been too close to a fire. The Death Eaters seemed to realize they were outnumbered, and retreated from the scene immediately.
I ran over to the Golden Trio and stared at the three of them. "You look worse for wear," I noted, checking their bodies for burns I could heal. "Did you find what you need? Are you ok?"
"We're fine, just, we need to get one more thing, and it'll require us to do our share of fighting outside," Hermione said, turning towards the stairs, waving her hand towards the Harry and Ron. "Come on."
"Ok," I hesitated, before running down the stairs after them. "Wait, I don't know if this will help, but good luck. Make sure you make it out of this battle alive ok?"
All three of them turned, their faces holding grim expressions, an epitome for the Battle at Hogwarts. It was going on for too long, I couldn't bear to lose more of those I held dear, and while they'd be making empty promises, I needed to hear that. It would give me an inkling of hope to hear them say it, to give me a reason to keep fighting with all I've got while Death lurks around me.
"We will make it through this. We all will," Harry stated firmly, "This Battle will be the end of Voldemort, I promise."
The conviction in his tone threw me off, but I hesitantly nodded, smiling as best as I could at theses three, who I trust would find a way to lead Voldemort to his downfall. "Go save the world then."
They were off, running in the opposite direction I did as I went to find more wounded. Those I could heal with a few simple spells, I did and sent them off, but those who were in dire need of professional care, I asked the people closest to them to send them to the Hospital Wing. After making my rounds all the way back down to the ground floor, I faced the full brunt of the battle threatening to tear Hogwarts apart. I sent spell after spell against the wizards and witches attacking the place I held dear, slowly making my way back to the Hospital Wing.
There was another student who was wounded, leaning against the wall as if he was just napping, but he was without someone, so I decided that since he was so close to the Hospital Wing, I would carry him back. He moaned in pain when I rested his arm around my shoulders, and I staggered under his weight, but righted myself and walked to the Hospital Wing. At least I knew he was alive.
To distract myself from the exhaustion and fatigue I was feeling, I thought of the future, hopefully one where we win. I would graduate from Hogwarts and say goodbye to my fellow classmates, teachers, and the Ravenclaw Tower which I'd come to love, then immediately join St. Mungo's to become a medic for the hospital. One day, hopefully, I'll become the head medic of the hospital. It had been my dream since I was young to be able to help people in their most desperate time of need, and I turned that dream into a goal I wanted to reach someday. But that was far into the future, for now, I needed to survive this battle before even thinking of entering the hospital.
Huffing from the dead weight on my shoulders, I shifted from under him, and heard the sound of footsteps behind me. My stomach knotted up from the sound, I was almost at the Hospital Wing, and I didn't want to face the threat behind me if I could avoid it, with the unconscious student laying against me. But what choice did I have in the matter?
I whirled around as best as I could and aimed my wand at my attacker. As soon as I moved, she cast her spell and I hastily protected myself with a forcefield. That did not stop her from sending spell after spell my way.
"Silencio," Hoping to handicap her so I could make it the rest of the way to the Hospital Wing, I backed away, casting spells that would falter her so I could help the wizard leaning against me. Apparently this witch was gifted in nonverbal spells, as my silencing curse only made her more persistent, her actions deft and purposeful, like she wanted me hurt.
With a grimace, I fired my own spells as best as I could, but the exhaustion my body was facing from carrying someone who was obviously taller and larger than me, and the merciless way this witch was attacking, she managed to hit me with one of her curses. Fearing the worst from her spell, I tried to hit her with a stunning curse before running to the Hospital Wing.
I made it to the Wing, panting and exhausted, and set down the wizard in an extra hospital bed. I tried healing his wounds, hoping that even though I had taken a long time to get here, he was still alive.
"Oh there you are- oh, what happened to him?" Madam Pomfrey appeared behind me and examined the boy I brought in.
"I'm not sure, I saw him lying against the wall. He was unconscious when I found him, but I think he's still alive," I said, glancing back to see if the witch who was attacking me would appear again here.
"Hmm, I'll take care of him then, could you bandage the people around here?" Madam Pomfrey asked, handing me some gauze. I nodded and went to the other patients. I wasn't sure what the curse that witch had sent at me was, but it didn't seem to be affecting me.
As soon as I made it to the closest patient's bed however, my balance failed me and I stumbled over, leaning against the bed. A pounding headache appeared and I shut my eyes, trying to block out the pain. I scrunched up the sheets and stifled a scream, waiting for the impromptu headache to disappear. It did, but I was left breathless and sweating, my tears starting to trail down, my head light and dizzy, and my balance failing me. What happened? I wasn't sure, but I couldn't focus on that, I had help these people.
I put my energy into bandaging the wounds, before asking Madam Pomfrey what to do next. She ordered me to help a patient with healing their surface wounds. I obeyed. But when I started waving my wand to perform the healing spell, my head started pounding again.
I gasped and dropped my wand, clenching my hands and waiting for the pain to pass once again. When it eventually did, I hesitantly picked up my wand, frowning at it. I tried again to use magic, and once again, I was unable to, and the headache appeared again. Grimacing, I waited, my whole body tense with pain.
I could only come up with one reason my magic was failing and hurting me. That curse the witch managed to hit me with might've affected me more than I thought. But what was the curse she hit me with, and what had happened to my magic?
=====
"Thank you, please come again," I said brightly as I handed the textbooks to the student who was going to Hogwarts for the first time in a few weeks.
It had been more than a year since the Battle of Hogwarts, and after completing my seventh year again as best as I could, I had left Hogwarts feeling melancholy that day, knowing that I would miss the school even after its horrors. I knew with the way I was that I could not enter St. Mungo's, and even with my time spent at Hogwarts' library, the teachers' help, and Hermione, I still didn't have a counterspell to the curse I had been given. Because of that, I applied for Flourish and Blotts so I could do more research on a counterspell and so I wouldn't be forced to use magic.
Checking the time, I decided to clock out and take my lunch break. I left the register and notified my partner, who was checking the books, that I would be taking a break, before going out into Diagon Alley. With a sigh, I walked down the Alley and sat myself on a bench.
Even after a year, the Wizarding World still seemed to be recovering from Voldemort's wrath. People were still wary and cynical of those even remotely related to Voldemort. The ruins from the Dark Lord's reign were also still noticeable, though not as much as it had been a few months back. Hogwarts had been rebuilt, and Diagon Alley too, but you could see the ruins if you looked close enough. A brick that was cracked, pillars looking like they had collapsed once, even the Alley itself bore scars that might never fade, only reminding us what power could do. The fear also never left the people's eyes, fear and a knowledge of what could happen to those who look kind, to those who appear gorgeous, who are too charismatic for their own good. We were all still recovering, I doubt the fear would ever disappear, but one day, people would learn to live with it.
I sighed again, and ate the lunch I had packed myself, enjoying the serene silence, until it was broken by a group of kids. They apparently had pranked one of their friends, and were laughing at what happened. I could see one of them had a ring of black around an eye, and suppressed the urge to roll my eyes, but I did smile at their antics.
"I knew I'd find you here somewhere," a voice said behind me. I turned and smiled at the Gryffindor making their way towards me.
"Well I do work here," I said, smiling.
"I know, but you really shouldn't be," Hermione said, sliding onto the bench to sit next to me. She followed my gaze to the group of friends and let out a playful huff. "Those kids, Weasley's Wizard Wheezes are just trying to give Filch a headache."
"I bet that's always been the twins' dream," I said, remembering their pranks during their last year.
"Yeah," Hermione smiled at that. "Speaking of Weasleys, I was just heading over to visit Ron for lunch before I made my way back to the Ministry, do you want to join us?"
"You didn't come to visit me?"
"Well I had you in mind too," Hermione said.
"I get it, it'll be your boyfriend before your best friend," I mock pouted at that, and Hermione threw an exasperated look my way.
"If you don't want to join us that's fine," Hermione said with a smile.
"Fine, if I must," I sighed, standing up and taking my half eaten lunch with me. "If you needed a third wheel, you could've always asked Harry you know."
"You won't be a third wheel," Hermione protested.
"You say that now Hermione," I smirked at her blush, and she frowned at my expression.
We made our way to Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, and as soon as we entered, we were pulled into a crowd of Hogwarts students, parents, and employees, all of them trying their hardest to navigate around each other. It took us a few minutes to get to the front desk where the cashier was, but as soon as we did, Hermione introduced herself and asked where Ron was.
He let us in through the back door before quickly returning to his post, and we both entered it without any further invitation. The room was full of crates and other pranks with a door on the other side. Hermione made a beeline towards the door, and opened it to reveal a spacious staff lounge with a few sofas around a coffee table in the middle, and a little mini kitchen pushed to the corner of the room. Seated at the sofas were the famous Weasley twins Fred and George, and Ron Weasley.
"Hi, Hermione," Ron almost rocketed up from his spot and greeted her immediately. I stepped to the side as the two blustered up without knowing what to do.
Feeling another gaze on me, I turned to the twins, who were both staring at me incredulously, before Fred stood up and pointed at me. "You!"
"Me," I agreed, not sure what I was agreeing to.
Ron seemed to finally take notice of me and greeted me as well, and I smiled and said hello to him too. But Fred and George were still staring at me like I had sprouted a third eye.
"You were the one who saved me," Fred said, finally managing to say something more. "Ron why didn't you tell me it was her?"
"What?" Ron spluttered, "I didn't know she was the one who saved you."
"You were there," Fred deadpanned.
"Wait, are you talking about that explosion that almost killed you during the Battle of Hogwarts?" Ron asked inquisitively. The memory came back to me, and I remembered my act, though it was shadowed by what happened within that hour.
"Yes! Why wasn't she invited over to the Burrow? She saved my life from that explosion," Fred said, frowning at me.
"Uh, I didn't know you were talking about her. Why didn't you ever tell me you saved my brother's life?" Ron asked, sending his frown to me as well.
"I- was caught up in the moment?" I said tentatively. Only Hermione and the teachers knew of my curse, and I wanted to keep it that way. No one else needed to know I was basically a squib. I didn't want pity, condescending actions, or disdain. "It wasn't like I had an agenda to save your brother, I was looking for wounded allies."
"But-" Ron was about to retort back at my flimsy, hastily made excuse, until Fred came up to me and hugged me, followed by George. I froze before pushing my hands on his chest to put some distance between the two gingers.
"Why are you hugging me?" I asked, my curiosity piqued by their actions.
"Well you saved my life, I think you deserve some reward for that," Fred stated, beaming at me. "What would you like?"
"Uh..." Well for starters, I'd like the bloody curse off my back, then maybe a chance to enter St. Mungo's, then maybe money which my day job is not giving. "There's no need to repay me, I was only doing what I should as an ally. I was watching your back."
"We should've invited you over to the Burrow! You said you were always too busy, but we need to bring you there," Hermione interjected, and I quirked my brow. She knew why I was always too busy, I spent all of my free time trying to get my magic back in order.
"That would be nice, but really, I was only trying to help out a friend's brother," I said, stepping out of arms range from the twins.
"Well I have to repay you in some way," Fred insisted once again.
"No really it's fine, everything is fine. I was only doing what I should be doing that day," My eyes checked the clock hanging on the wall, and they widened. I was late for the end of my break. "Also I have to get back to work, uh- It was nice seeing you two again, I'm glad you're doing well, but I have to go, bye!" I left the lounge and the prank shop entirely, knowing that I would have to apologize profusely to my coworker for losing track of time.
=====
It seemed that Fred had been stalking me and asking me what I would like. After my partly forced visit to the Burrow, the whole family had thanked me at least once every five minutes for saving one of their members. I had told them continuously that I was only helping to fight in the war, but they continued to pepper me with thanks and hugs and kisses and tears. Needless to say, once I left the Burrow, I had a bag of gifts and enough leftovers to last me two weeks at least. After that day, I kept seeing Fred around in the bookstore and around Diagon Alley. He was always popping up and talking to me about what I wanted, today was no exception.
"When will you accept that I'm fine and I don't need any more thanks than I was given?" I asked, sending Fred an exasperated look.
"Once I'm satisfied," Fred said.
"Shouldn't it be once I'm satisfied?" I retorted back, but apparently that didn't deter him.
"No, because you'll just say 'I'm already satisfied,'" Fred imitated with an overly high squeaky voice.
The corners of my lips twitched, but I pushed down the urge to smile. Who smiles at someone's insult to their voice anyway? Rolling my eyes instead, I took a cart filled with books and started restocking the shelves. "Well in any case, I don't sound like that, and I need to finish working so I can earn my wages."
Fred followed me to the shelves where I took the books off the cart and put them against their copies. He kept following me as I went down the aisle, then the next, and the next, until I was all down and returned back to my spot at the register, where my book on counterspells sat. When I glanced up at Fred's expression he looked like he wanted to say something, so I leveled him with an expectant look, waiting for him to form the thoughts he needed.
"Why do you not use magic?" I stiffened, but quickly tried to mask it with a look of curiosity.
"What do you mean?"
"You know what I mean," Fred frowned, like he was trying to remember something. "In fact, I don't think I've ever seen you touch a wand since the day you saved me."
"Well- I- uh- my wand- I don't have it," I said nervously while subtly trying to hide my book.
"Why don't you?"
"Because I forgot. I like doing things manually, so if one day I don't have my wand, I can still support myself."
"But how could you leave and forget your wand at home?" Fred asked.
"Well...." I faltered, before sending Fred a cheeky smirk that hopefully wasn't too fake. "I guess you'll have to guess it."
"Guess huh?" Fred smirked. "That takes too much work."
"Suck it up."
"Ok fine," He whined. "I think you were cursed at some point during the Battle at Hogwarts, and it affected your magic, and you don't want to say that because you're afraid I'll just look at you as beneath me because whatever this curse, it has reduced you to a squib, so your pride has been utterly ruined by it too."
"Mmmm," I hummed, my face hopefully betraying nothing. "That's quite the intricate guess."
"Thanks," Fred smiled at me, and I gave him a deadpan.
"What?" I asked when his gaze turned expectant.
"Am I right?"
"Maybe," I said, turning around to organize the carts. They were already organized, but I just needed something to do so I didn't give myself away. "Any other guesses?"
"Um, no," Fred said from behind me. "Ok, so your magic has been cursed. Maybe that's what I'll do to repay you, by helping you uncurse your magic."
My hands stilled on the book I was going to grab, and I turned around to face Fred. Maybe he could help me. "Ok, so if my magic was cursed, and you helped me out with getting my magic back, would you stop asking me what I want in return for an act that really does not need a big reward for? Hypothetically of course."
"Maybe, hypothetically I would leave you alone, but who knows," Fred smirked.
"Ok...." I trailed off at Fred's cheeky expression. "Well anyways, I was researching on counterspells because someday I want to enter St. Mungos," I brought my book out again to flip through the pages. It was half true anyway.
"What does this have to do with your magic?" Fred asked.
"Nothing. But that's why I'm reading these books. Also they are really interesting," I said.
"Your Ravenclaw is showing," Fred drawled. I rolled my eyes, going to grab another cart so I could restock some more shelves and spend the rest of my time reading.
"Shouldn't you be taking care of your shop instead of following me every day?"
"George can take care of it."
"But what if he really needed you?"
"I'm only a block away. He knows I'm here trying to get a favor from you."
"With the amount of time you spend at my heels, people will start thinking you fancy me," I sent Fred a dry look. Not missing a beat, his smirk turned coquettish.
"Is that what you want love? Because I don't think that would be so bad," he purred.
My cheeks pinked, and I scrunched up my face in disgust. "Don't twist my words Weasley."
"No, I'm serious," Fred said, though ironically, his tone said otherwise.
"Right," I said wryly.
"Do you need help?" Fred asked, sobering slightly.
"No, it's ok, you don't know where anything goes, and I don't think it would look good on me or the store if I recruited a customer to help me do my job."
"Do you want my wand instead then? It'll speed up the process, since you forgot your own," Fred took out his wand and pointed the handle towards me, and I narrowed my eyes averted my gaze from the stick.
"It might not work with me holding it."
"My wand is mellow like me, it's fine," Fred assured.
I scoffed. "Yeah, as mellow as a tsunami. I can recall you once setting a swamp at Hogwarts, real mellow, Fred."
"It was. I'm pretty sure we could've tried to make a volcano appear, or maybe we should've done an earthquake, or changed all the stairs to be slides. Or maybe we should've actually summoned a tsunami," Fred was actually contemplating this, and I was left in surprise at the seriousness in his expression.
"Are you trying to give Filch a heart attack?"
"I'm not trying, I'm succeeding," Fred said, completely assured at the fact, and I wasn't about to oppose it. "Point is, you should use my wand, here." He enclosed my hand around his wand, and immediately I could feel the magic flowing through me, giving me the start of a headache.
"No Fred, I really can't," I leaned against the bookshelf, feeling lightheaded all of a sudden. Giving him his wand back as soon as I could, I waited for the effects to wear off before standing upright again.
Fred was frowning at me. "Are you going to tell me I was right, or will we continue to ignore the elephant in the room?"
"There is no elephant in this room, literally and metaphorically," I stated, brushing off his concerned expression. "I'm ok not using your wand."
I returned to restocking shelves in silence. Fred was still staring at me, I could feel his almost calculating gaze, sizing me up. I straightened my posture self-consciously and continued to ignore him. I was almost done with the whole shelf and about to move on to the next when he spoke again.
"You know I won't judge you if I'm right. Also I can't help you if I don't know what your curse is like."
I paused, "I take it back, I don't need any favors from you Fred, you don't need to help me with my problems." Turning around I gave him a smile. "Really I'm fine."
He looked put out by this. "If it really is a problem of my judging you, remember I'm a Weasley. I have been called a blood traitor, and I've been on the poor side of life. I don't think I have the right to judge anyone by their setbacks, especially the person who saved my life from floating away."
"It's not just that, though," I muttered under my breath. It was also the fact that I didn't want someone treating me like I was any less capable of doing something because my magic made me weak. I didn't want someone treating me like they had to babyproof magic from me. I didn't want others' pity, it wouldn't help me, it would only make me think they believe I'm weak and I didn't want them thinking I was weak or unworthy. "Look Fred, as much as I appreciate the sentiment, like I've said a thousand times, I don't need any payment for fighting for what I believe in."
Fred stared at me with a blank expression, and I leveled him with a gaze of my own, until he suddenly smirked, like he found my words amusing.
"You're friends with Ron right?"
"What- uh yeah, why?"
"Then you know how stubborn Weasleys can be."
I groaned. "So you won't leave me be."
"Nope. I will get to the bottom of this problem of yours and figure out how to help you."
"Nosy little bloke," I muttered silently. Fred grinned, almost as he took my words as a compliment.
"Probably."
"Do you get satisfaction from bugging me or something?"
"Or something," Fred agreed. "I will not stop until I'm satisfied."
"Of course," I grumbled, pushing the cart to the next shelves, a smile tugging at my lips.
=====
Some days, if it's a slow day at work and I'm bored out of my wits, I'll take out my wand, and just set it down. For some reason, whenever I touch my own wand, I feel fine, but if I perform magic with it, that's when everything crashes and burns. Today was one of those days.
I took out my wand and felt the familiar feeling of having it in my hand. It was a shame really that I couldn't use magic, and I missed the feeling of it. I wanted to feel the rush of magic all collect to one point in my wand, I wanted to perform a spell without having to worry about the consequences. It was like missing an old friend that you haven't seen in a year. It's funny, I took magic for granted, I didn't realize how much it made my life easier, but when stripped of the power, I could understand the feelings of bitterness at your lack of power, and how the power could get into your head.
Sighing, I gripped my wand tighter. I could only try to find the counterspell against this curse, and if not, I'd have to try to make one, somehow. Maybe the reason why I always take out my wand is to remind myself why I wanted my magic back, and what responsibility this stick gives to every witch and wizard who holds it. That if used irresponsibly, could destroy buildings, corrupt souls, and kill those to get what you want.
"Hey!"
Instinctively, I raised my wand and cast a spell. I hadn't done that in more than a year, and immediately I felt my magic awaken again. It was a short lived feeling though, because it was followed by the pounding headache from my curse. I dropped my wand and wrapped my hands around my head, laying it against the counter. Tears were burning behind my eyes, and I squeezed them shut to lessen the pain. I felt a hand wrap around mine and I squeezed it, passing the pain to the hand, which tensed, but didn't move away. When the headache finally subsided, I was gasping, and the tears trailed down my cheeks.
"Hey, are you ok?"
I lifted my head, knowing the voice, and immediately turned it away. Putting my wand back, I wiped my tears and took a deep breath. "Y-yeah, I'm fine."
"Are you going to tell me what that was?"
"I guess I should," I turned around and grimaced at Fred, who had lended his hand for me to cut the circulation out of. He was staring at me, concern in his eyes. I tried to collect my thoughts, but they seemed too unorganized for me to, so I just said, "You were right."
"Oh." Fred said plainly.
"I was cursed during the Battle of Hogwarts while trying to bring an unconscious student to the hospital wing. I had silenced the witch so I have no idea what the cantation was. My head starts hurting whenever I perform any type of magic, and it's the kind of pounding headache that renders you immobile and unable to do anything as you just saw. I have literally no clue what the counterspell is, but I've been researching for curses that limit magic, stop magic, hurt magic, all that. Hermione has also been helping me, but with her job, it's very sporadic," I stared at Fred, trying to gauge his expression. I continued when he motioned me to. "That's why I'm working at Flourish and Blotts, because I have access to books. I've asked Madam Pomfrey about it, but she isn't sure of the counterspell since it seems to be very dark magic. I've also asked St. Mungo's, but again, dark magic. So, I don't have a solution to this curse."
Fred stayed silent. I stared at him, but he seemed to be thinking of something. There wasn't any pity or any judgment in his eyes, just speculation. I was surprised. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"I didn't want you to treat me any less," I admitted, "But it was more than that, so before you cut me off, I mean that I didn't want you to pity me, or act like I was less capable of doing something. When you pity someone, you do it from a distance, and it wastes your time and mine. I'm not that bad off, and I'm not weak either."
"I know," Fred said, immediately after that. "But this is something I can try to help you with. My debt will be paid a little bit at least, and I'm happy to help a friend."
I smiled at his words, his response meant a lot to me. "Thank you Fred."
"Of course," Fred grinned back at me.
"I hope you won't mind me asking then, but do you know divination?" I asked, curious as to how he got my condition so quickly the first time.
"Tut tut tut, a magician never reveals his secret," Fred chastised, a cheeky smile on his lips.
"Fred," I said with a serious tone. Or as much as I could muster at least. "Y'know this could be some dark magic, being able to look into the future so quickly and accurately. Are you performing dark magic Fred?"
"Why would I perform dark magic love? I'm innocent," Fred retorted.
"You also spawned a swamp in your school that the 'headmistress' couldn't despawn, stole from Filch, create pranks to sell, and frequently prank others on a daily basis," I retorted back flatly.
"I haven't pranked you yet. Plus, Umbridge was just a bad witch, unintelligent, which I'm sure you know, after all, Flitwick got rid of the charm pretty easily if I recall," Fred said.
"True, she was bad. But I hope you never prank me then."
"Your wish is my command mademoiselle. I promise to not prank you."
"Don't prank me ever," I corrected.
"I promise to not prank you ever," Fred repeated.
"You're not actually going to keep it, are you," I remarked more than inquired, my gaze suspicious.
Fred mocked a dramatic gasp, his hand at his chest and his face painted in horror. "What kind of bloke to you peg me for?"
"A bloke who never misses a chance to prank someone undetected?" I deadpanned.
"The agony, the pain. Your words are so harsh," Fred rested his hand on his forehead, his other hand clutching his chest where his heart should be.
I rolled my eyes, "Drama Queen." Pulling out my book, I started reading again for counterspells, before Fred poked my nose to get my attention. "What?"
"Do I have to read?" Fred asked innocently.
"Of course you have to read. In fact," I pulled out a stack of books I was going to be searching and set it on the counter, "If you want to help, you can start by going through this pile."
Fred groaned, as if the idea of reading deeply hurt him, and I rolled my eyes once again at his antics. But he willingly took the books and settled down in a chair, placing the books on the table and taking the top one obediently. I smiled at him and returned to my book, it'd be nice to have more help with my research, especially with someone I didn't mind having around.
=====
"Ow," I groaned out.
"You really should get that tooth checked out if it's really hurting you," Fred suggested, frowning in concern.
"But the dentist will take too long, and I might not even get an appointment until next week," I said.
"Dentist?" Fred asked, the title rolling off his tongue awkwardly.
"Oh, right, it's someone who fixes your teeth," I explained.
"It must've been nice growing up a halfblood, you get to know the magical world, and the muggle world from your parents," Fred mused.
"I guess so, but I'm limited to only that one person's knowledge if I don't do the research myself," I said, smiling.
"Wait I think I've heard of a dentist from Ron at some point," Fred said, putting down his book as he ruminated.
"I didn't know Ron knew what a dentist was."
"I know, surprising," Fred teased with a smirk.
"You know that's not what I meant," I sent him a pout, and Fred laughed.
"That's an expression I wasn't expecting from the resident Ravenclaw. The nerdy girl who's always got her nose stuck in a book."
"Then I hope our resident Gryffindor knows that he's the one with the book in his hands, not me, with my delicious sandwich," I said blandly. "Who's the nerd now?"
"This resident Gryffindor was also chivalrous enough to have bought you that sandwich though, in any other occasion, you would've had a book," Fred winked and grinned at the banter.
"Yes, thanks for the sandwich. But you're still a nerd for having a book by your side," I said.
"Would you really say that to a man with such chivalry?" Fred taunted.
"Where's the man?" I asked, scanning the room for said chivalrous man jokingly.
"Ouch, that was harsh," Fred said. "I'm not even a little chivalrous in your heart?"
I sobered up and glanced at Fred. "No, you are extremely chivalrous to me." He brightened up, and suddenly I felt a warmth crawling up my neck while I said, "But you're still a nerd."
"Ah well, you seem to be rubbing off on me, you know your nerdiness is extremely contagious," Fred said. "Back to the topic that we strayed from though, I remember Ron saying Hermione's parents are dentists, why don't you ask Hermione to introduce you to them and set up an appointment with them?"
"Oh, right!" I had forgotten about that one little tidbit. "But do galleons transfer to muggle money?"
"I would think so," Fred said.
"I'll ask Hermione since she works at the Ministry," I said, "Let me owl her first, thanks for the suggestion Fred!" I stood up to leave and left a tip for the waiter, and Fred followed, grabbing the book on counterspells as well.
"You're coming along?" I asked as we both left the cafe.
"Well I need to make sure my resident Ravenclaw is okay," Fred said.
"Your resident Ravenclaw?" I asked, raising my eyebrow to distract from the heat I was feeling.
"Yeah," Fred said, rubbing his neck awkwardly.
"Care to clarify?" I asked, smothering a giggle at his awkwardness.
"Well, you're my friend, right? Doesn't that make you my fellow Ravenclaw?" Fred asked, offering an uncomfortable smile.
"Wow, not only are you nerdy, but you are also adorable, Fred," I cooed, pinching his cheeks, much to his chagrin.
"I'm not adorable," He muttered. "I'm a big strong, chivalrous Gryffindor."
"Keep telling yourself that buddy," I teased, standing on my tiptoes to ruffle his hair affectionately.
"Hey- Wait did we miss the owlery?" Fred asked, glancing behind us incredulously.
"Oh, Merlin we did," I laughed at that, and walked back to the owl office, Fred trailing behind me with an amused smile.
Once we had delivered the letter with my request in it, Fred and I walked back to Flourish and Blotts, talking and teasing each other all the way. We'd made it to the bookstore later than Hermione had, who was waiting patiently by the door, and ran towards us when she noticed our figures.
"I asked my parents and they agreed to squeeze in an appointment," Hermione said, grinning. "And yes, galleons can be reversed into muggle money, it's just a little complicated so someone doesn't take advantage of the economy systems, but they agreed to do the service for free."
"But I can't ask for that, I have to repay them in some way Hermione," I protested, frowning. "I'll... I don't know, clean their house, offer to pay for dinner, but I'll repay them somehow."
"No, I'll pay if you really want to, but my parents are fine with helping out a friend," Hermione insisted.
"But-" I started, but Fred immediately cut me off.
"How about when you get your magic back and become Head Healer in St. Mungo's, you can offer potions to help Mr. and Mrs. Granger with their health? "
"But we're no closer to finding a counterspell Fred," I frowned, the problem was really starting to weigh on me.
"Well yes, but you'll get your magic back. I swear it. And you're a Ravenclaw, you're known for being extremely intelligent, I have no doubts that you'll become Head Healer soon, Bookworm," Fred stated confidently.
"Bookworm?" I asked, raising an eyebrow all while feeling touched by Fred's words.
"Well I can't call you a nerd now, since your nerdiness transferred to me, so I needed another nickname," Fred said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "So when's this dentist appointment?"
"Oh, so you guys didn't forget about me," Hermione said dryly. "It's in thirty minutes, so we should leave now."
"Ok, then let's go," I said, linking hands with Hermione.
"Wait, I'm coming too," Fred said, taking my hand in his as well. Hermione sent me a smirk, and I shot her a deadpan, hoping it translated to, no Fred and I are not in love or in a relationship. Either she didn't get it, or she didn't believe me, because her smirk only widened.
Hermione apparated the both of us in an alleyway, and we entered the parking lot of a quaint dentistry. There was a plaque saying Dr. Mary and Wilson Granger by the door, and when we entered, I noticed the homey feel of it. The photos on the wall were landscapes and thank you cards from other patients, there were a bunch of sofas, and a few stuffed animals for the children. The receptionist was typing on her computer before she looked up. Hermione dealt with the logistics of the appointment, while I watched Fred to make sure he didn't suddenly explode from the sight of the computer, the pen, and the printer.
"What's that?" Fred asked, pointing to the ceiling lights.
"Those are lights Fred, they produce light from electricity-"
"What about that?"
"That's a printer-"
"What's she typing on?"
"A computer-"
"How did muggles invent this everlasting ink quill?"
"It's not everlasting and it's called a pen Fred," I explained. "It has a tube filled with ink in it that it lets out of the tip. I was surprised honestly when I found out you guys still used ink bottles and quills."
"Is he ok?" The receptionist asked, her tone suspicious and wary.
"Yes, he's fine, he just doesn't go out often," I said, jabbing Fred's side to get him to stop gawking at quotidian things.
"Well...uh, Mr. Granger will be able to see you in a few minutes. Luckily, his patient that would've been after you rescheduled, so if it's a cavity you have, Mr. Granger will be able to fill," the receptionist informed us. "Feel free to sit while you wait, and please calm your friend there."
All three of us sat down, and Hermione and I answered Fred's questions to the best of our ability while he whispered questions at a rapid-fire pace. Sometimes the whirling from inside the dentist office would catch Fred's attention, and we had to explain that it wasn't a horror tool or torture device. We told him that he could enter the office with us, but he had to calm down with the questions while the appointment was going.
It wasn't until after he'd gone to the bathroom that Hermione started asking me questions completely unrelated to dentists.
"When did you guys get so close?" Hermione whispered, her eyes sparkling.
"Over the last few weeks. He figured out about my curse and has been helping me research. Neither of us have a cure though, you?" I asked hopefully.
"No, I'm sorry," Hermione said shamefully. "But I've had a few hunches on what this curse does, and I know it's connected to the source of magical power in your body, which is located in your mind, but that's not the point, the point is, there seems to be something more than friendship going on."
"There isn't, Hermione," I denied.
"I doubt that. Friends don't become so close in a few weeks. You guys have some amazing chemistry."
"He's just a good guy who decided to help someone out in need. Someone who he thinks he has a debt to," I said, unintentionally frowning.
"Has he mentioned that recently?" Hermione asked.
"No, I haven't had to correct that for a long time," I said. Hermione smiled coyly at that.
"Well it's nice to see you two are getting along so well. I can't wait for the wedding," Hermione teased, at least I hoped so.
"There won't be a wedding Hermione, you're jumping to conclusions too quickly," I said, rolling my eyes good naturedly.
"What's this about a wedding?" Fred asked, deciding that was when he needed to appear.
"I'm asking when your brother will put the ring on the finger," I said before Hermione could tell him the actual reason.
The door to the office opened, and the assistant to the dentist came out of the office, calling for my name. I stood up, and Hermione followed, so Fred also joined us as we walked through the door and into an empty room. The assistant checked my teeth and my gums before we went to do an x-ray. They then left to go find Mr. Granger, and Fred looked like he was aching to ask what an x-ray was and what did it do.
Mr. Granger appeared before Fred could ask though, and he examined the x-rays, before saying the cause of my toothache was from a cavity that was growing. He could fill it now if I wanted to, and I asked what the payment was. After a stubborn talk, we agreed that I would give him a supply of healing potions, and that would be payment. I'd have to buy them all instead of brewing it, but he gave no due date, so I could do a little more research on finding a good type before buying it.
"Are you ready? Would you like the NOx?" Mr. Granger asked, and I nodded.
After that, everything was a blur to me because of the anesthetic, but I could remember Hermione gasping at one point, and Fred, excusing himself with a pale face. It was hours later that Mr. Granger was finished, and the right side of my mouth felt numb and tingly. We went up to the front desk who dealt with the forms and payment before sending us on our way.
"Are you ok?" Fred asked, his face worried.
"Yeah, my mouth just feels numb, but it'll wear off," I said, smiling to the best of my ability.
"It looked painful, it was hard to watch honestly, so I had to step outside and remind myself you weren't being tortured," Fred admitted, rubbing his neck awkwardly.
"Aw, you were worried about me?" I asked, pinching the side of Fred's cheek, which earned me a pout from said boy.
"You're my friend. I don't ever want to see you hurt," Fred said simply. I smiled at him.
"Me too, Fred."
Hermione cleared her throat and raised her eyebrow at me when I met her eyes. I raised my own in retaliation, as if daring her to say this was more than friends admitting their worry for the other.
"You know I'm still here right?" Hermione asked, dryly.
"Being the third wheel sucks doesn't it?" I retorted, sending her a cheeky look.
"Oh! Hermione made a breakthrough during your appointment with your curse," Fred exclaimed, his eyes wide and excited.
"Wait you did?" I asked incredulously.
"Yeah. Your cavity reminded me of your curse. If you bite down on the part with the cavity, your teeth starts hurting because the cavity is eating at your teeth. It's similar to the way your magic works. When you exercise that muscle, you start getting a pounding headache, it's almost as if that's how the witch from the Battle started her curse. I think this is how your curse works, and now we can narrow down our suspicions in just curses that eat away at magic instead of just curses in general, or ones that harm your magical muscle." Hermione explained, her smile bright and exuberant.
"This is amazing! Thank you so much Hermione!" I hugged her tightly, and she returned it, my smile stretching even more.
"Of course, but it was Fred who mentioned that a cavity is similar to your curse," Hermione said.
I turned towards the ginger, and beamed at him. He grinned back and rubbed the back of his neck, the tips of his ears turning red. I wrapped my arms around his waist and hugged him as a sign of my gratitude.
"Thank you Fred," I said sincerely.
"What are friends for?" Fred said, his tone a little breathless from my sudden actions.
Finally, it seemed all our hard work was paying off.
=====
It had been a few weeks after my dentist appointment, and so far, Fred, Hermione, and I hadn't found much on curses that eat at magic. I was getting frustrated by how close we were to figuring out the puzzle, yet how far we were from finding the solution. Every day seemed like a wasted day, especially since nothings was turning up in Flourish and Blotts, or the Ministry. Hermione had sent a few books from St. Mungo's, and they were serious when they said they hadn't heard anything like my curse, because there was barely anything about it. I was starting to wonder if our breakthrough really was a breakthrough, or if we were off on our theory.
While Fred and I still spent our research time together, I'd started snapping at him because of my frustration at how little we seemed to find on the curse. I'd regret it afterwards and apologize. Fred didn't deserve my anger, he didn't deserve my frustration that I was aiming at him, but I couldn't help it. It was hard not being frustrated, and there were barely any other people I could talk to this about, so I was left with silently letting it pile up until the string broke and I'd snap at someone. Bless Fred, he'd usually bear my attacks and calm me down with reassuring words, but I knew one day I would break down completely.
Today was apparently that day.
After another unsuccessful book from the Ministry per Hermione's request, I felt like screaming and crying at the same time. We were so close, I could feel it, and yet we weren't finding anything about the curse anywhere. I excused myself from Fred before I could actually burst into tears and went back behind the counter. I entered the storage room and sat down near a couple of boxes before breaking down. It was upsetting for me to be so close to having my magic back, but not find anything about it. Maybe we were wrong, but when Hermione introduced the idea, it made so much sense. What else could we do, it was our only lead. Merlin, why was it me who was cursed?
I probably stayed in the storage room for too long, because Fred came in rather hesitantly after a while. As soon as he saw me sitting on the floor with my head down around towers of boxes, he walked towards me and hugged me against him. I situated myself on his lap and buried my face in his chest while he rubbed soothing circles on my back. In his arms, I felt myself relax, and I squeezed him tightly around my arms, pressing my face harder against his chest. We stayed in silence while my sniffles stopped, and Fred stayed still as I started to move away from him.
"I'm sorry," I muttered, head down whilst I wiped a few stray tears away.
"Don't be, I knew this would happen eventually. Are you ok?" Fred asked, his voice lowered to the same volume as mine.
"I'm fine now. I'm sorry for my actions towards you for the past few weeks, and I'm sorry for staining your shirt," I apologized again.
"Hey, I told you it was fine right? So it's fine. Don't worry about your magic, we'll find a cure soon," Fred said.
"How do you know?" I asked, raising my head to meet his eyes. I could see concern in his eyes and the determination or stubbornness that was painted in his family tree and Hogwarts house. But there was a certain softness about them too that made my heart stutter.
"I just do. I'll help you get your magic back if it's the last thing I do," Fred stated firmly.
I paused, staring at him curiously. "If you're doing it because you think you still have your debt on me, consider your debt related Fred. I don't want you to think you still have to pay me, especially after all you've done for me out of your own good heart."
Fred's expression morphed into one of surprise. "You still think I'm doing this because I have to repay my debt?"
"You're- not?"
"Merlin, and I thought you were supposed to be smart," Fred smirked, but I could see the tenderness in his eyes, or maybe I was making that up. "I'm doing now because you're my friend. You deserve to have your magic back, and I care about you."
"Oh, right, friends," I said blandly. I knew what I felt in my heart, I wasn't that oblivious, but I also knew Fred only saw me as a friend, and that was that.
"Did you forget, Bookworm?" Fred asked, the corners of his mouth lifting up higher.
"Of course not," I denied, "You're my best friend Fred, how could I forget?" I offered him a small smile, and noticed his falter a little, or maybe it was just me. "We should probably return back to the bookstore."
I rose up from Fred's lap and stood back, giving Fred space to rise from his seated position. But before I could leave the box towers we were between, Fred grabbed my arm, stopping me from walking farther away. I turned around and saw the serious expression on his face, making my heart stop.
"I know you feel frustrated, but I promise you, truly, that I will help you get your magic back, no matter what."
My breath hitched, and I was at a loss for words, before I nodded. I trusted Fred, I knew his words would ring true.
"I believe you."
=====
"This is the last stack Hermione was able to send. All these books come from Hogwarts' restricted section, or the Headmaster's library," I explained, handing the top book over to Fred's waiting hands.
I sighed, and took the next book. It had been a week since our box tower scene. Hermione had sent over a few more Ministry books, before sending Hogwarts books over for us to examine. We hadn't had any luck finding something of use, and this was the last pile Hermione had for us. If this failed, we'd have to search through international libraries, which I wasn't looking forward to.
Both of us scanning the books helped our progress, and soon our pile had dwindled to only a few more books. Hermione had said that the five bottom books were from the headmaster's office, with some of them being written by Dumbledore as well. As soon as Fred opened his book, he slammed down his palms on the table, startling me and disturbing the pile of books.
"I think I found the counterspell," Fred exclaimed, pointing to me the passage that was about the Magicis Curse.
Magicis Curse. It is a curse requiring very dark magic in order to perform, and only passed down through pure blood families with deep roots to the dark arts and blood supremacy. It was made to limit the amount of muggle borns in the Wizarding World by making them unable to perform their magic, thus, being reduced to almost mere squibs.
Though it is not known who the creator was, they gave directions for the counterspell in case the Magicis Curse had been used on the wrong victim, or had gone awry for whatever reason.
The symptoms of this curse are tremendous pain to the head whenever performing magic that renders the user unable to move. The idea of this curse was that it would eat at the magical muscle inside someone's head, making the pain slowly worse and worse. The counterspell however, revives all of the magic muscle.
I stopped reading to look up at Fred, whose eyes were shining in excitement.
"Wow, you read that so much more faster than I did," Fred said, and I flicked his arm and rolled my eyes.
"I think this is my curse," I said, reading through the symptoms again, they were perfect explanations for my own symptoms of my curse, and my smile widened, this had to be it. My smile faded when I came across the last line. It hasn't been used in over a century.
"What's the matter?" Fred asked, "I thought you'd be happier to get your magic back," He teased.
"Yeah, but this curse hasn't been used in over a century. This book was..." I checked the front pages for the date of publication, "Published in 1927. If this is the curse, it hasn't been documented in almost two centuries."
"So? This has to be your curse. Who cares how it survived, the pureblood fanatics were just really good at passing curses that hurt other witches and wizards," Fred insisted. He pulled the book towards him and scanned the page, taking out his wand from his pocket. "This has to be your curse."
I hesitated, this could make my curse worse if the information wasn't accurate, but then again, all I would do was keep searching until I found the answer. That was why I stood up, walking so I was across from Fred and facing him. "Ok, try the counterspell."
Fred glanced up, and grinned. "This will be it. I know it will be."
I waited for him finish reading how to perform it, and once he was done, he set the book aside. Walking towards me, he stood a meter away from me, and gently pointed his wand to my head. Rowena, bless me. I closed my eyes and waited for Fred to perform the counterspell.
He let out a deep breath, before saying, "Sana Magicae."
I waited to feel the effects of the counterspell, but there were none, and my eyes fluttered open as I raised my head to look at Fred. I felt anxious and confused, was I supposed to feel something? Fred stared at me, examining my face as if the curse had visible symptoms.
"Try to do some magic," Fred whispered, like too much noise would negate the effects of the counterspell.
I nodded and walked over to my bag, silently taking out my wand. I was scared of the outcome, I didn't come this far just for things to fail, but I had to consider the chance that it might fail, and be ok with it. With a sigh, I raised my wand, the magic in me already flowing through at the presence of my wand. I wanted to use the simple spell that started this for me, so everything would come full circle.
"Protego," I said, my voice quiet, but firm. The shield charm appeared, and I waited for any pain or lingering effects of the curse. One moment, two, three, I counted to ten before I lowered my wand hand. Nothing happened.
Turning to Fred, I beamed, and shrieked out my laughter as I ran towards him and jumped up to hug him. Thank Merlin I had my magic back, finally.
"Woah," Fred staggered slightly under my weight, but he steadied himself before any damage was done, chuckling while he wrapped his arms around me.
"Thank you, thank you so much Fred!" I thanked profusely, taking a step back and smiling at the redhead. Fred's gaze softened and he smiled. His hands came up to frame my face and my smile disappeared, replaced with an expression of trepidation and hope.
"Do I get a prize for helping you out?" Fred asked, his words quiet and muted, and his smirk, while teasing, also held a bit of fear.
"Depends. What do you have in mind?" I asked, returning his smirk with a nervous smile of my own.
"A kiss?" Fred asked, his tone innocent but his eyes conveying the nervousness in them.
I smiled. "Of course, Weasley."
I pulled Fred's tie and brought his face down to mine, connecting our lips together in a kiss. His shock from my action was short lived and he immediately pulled me closer to him, responding to my lips. I raised my arms to circle around his neck, and smiled through our kiss. Once we'd parted, Fred grinned at me, and rested his forehead against mine.
"So does that mean you'll go on a date with me?"
"Was that not a good enough answer?" I asked mischievously.
Fred responded with a cheeky smile of his own. "I don't think so love, you'll need to give me a better answer than that."
"How about a yes? I will go on a date with you."
A/N: So for the future of this book. I've been writing still, but just not a lot of Harry Potter. So I won't update unless someone reaches out to me with an idea of what they want me to write. Forcing myself to make ideas for a series I'm not invested in as much won't produce quality stories, so I hope you all understand.
With that said, feel free to private message me for any prompts you'd like me to write. I'll be a little slow writing it, but I'd be happy to writing something for one of you. Updates as a result, will be determined by people who message me with prompts.
Have a great day everyone!