May the Best Man Win |×| Fred Weasley | 1 |×|

×| FIFTY FOUR |×

IT WAS ALMOST EMBARRASSING REALLY, HOW LONG IT HAD TAKEN HER TO REALISE IT, but now that the thought had crossed her mind it was smeared in bold and vibrant letters at every corner of her conscience: Evelyn was almost certainly falling in love with Fred Weasley.

At every corner was a reminder: from the recipe book he'd given her last Christmas to every flash of red hair she'd spotted walking down the corridors. She'd never known a feeling like this. It wasn't at all like the faint fluttering in her insides she used to feel when she first met Ethan. It was almost painful, a desperation trying to rip out of her chest to escape the confines of her cage of a heart. She had no clue how long the feeling had been brewing in the background, but as January drew on into February, and February merged into march it forced itself further into the spotlight until it was the only thing on her mind. The second task was completed and school life moved on, but Evelyn felt as though she was suspended like a Cornish pixie; caught in the empty air whilst everything moved at lightspeed around her.

For months Evelyn lived in her thoughts, attempting to keep herself upright when she passed him in the halls and sending Max or Margaux or Ashton before her into the kitchens just in case he happened to be there. She'd evolved in a moment; from confused by Fred's friendship to spending sleepless nights trying to work out if he felt the same way she did. There had to be a way to stop herself from exploding from the surging emotions every time she saw something that reminded her of him. There had to be a way to determine if Fred felt the same way. To find out if his dreams were so full of their electric kiss from the summer as hers were or if he was keeping his distance because of something stupid she'd done at the Yule ball - the events of which were still lost to the firewhisky. They hadn't spoken in weeks. Not properly. For Fred always seemed lost for words and Evelyn's ability to form sentences now seemed to deteriorate at the moment she saw him.

She realised that if she wanted to find out what was going on in Fred's head without asking him directly (she could never do such a thing - any sensible Ravenclaw knew not to put themselves out so vuneralbly like that), the only person other than Fred himself that might be able to help her would be his twin brother. Unfortunately this had posed the question of how to get George on his own for long enough to interrogate him effectively - for since even before she'd known them personally Evelyn had known that the boys were always joined at the hip. So for a few days Evelyn tried desperately to find a way to get George alone (she even debated asking Léonie to let her crash their next date but decided against it.) By the time that Friday rolled around she'd mostly given up on her "genius" idea.

Until she remembered that there was indeed one place she was sure to be able to talk to George without any possibility of Fred being there: transfiguration. It was the only N.E.W.T that George was taking separate from his brother, and Evelyn conveniently was in the same class. Evelyn simultaneously reprimanded herself for being so stupid as to not realise sooner and praised herself for being able to remember something at least. And so the plan was born: Evelyn would find a way swap seats with Lee for a single lesson only so that she could try to dig some answers out of Fred's closest confidant.

There were only two problems: first, how to get around professor McGonagall's watchful eye for long enough to have a proper conversation, and second, the fact that Evelyn wasn't exactly sure what she wanted to ask George Weasley, or in fact if he'd even be willing to give her the information.

She'd have to figure it out in the process though, because class was about to begin and if she didn't want to have to wait until the following Tuesday to get her answers, that Friday afternoon would be her only opportunity. It was now or never (or so it had seemed at the time.)

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Evelyn had hoped to arrive at the transfiguration classroom five minutes early (which would have been be quite an impressive feat considering she'd need to come from potions a good three floors below) however, due to a slight spillage of frogspawn on the dungeon floor, she got to professor McGonagall's class only seconds before it was time to start. She burst through the door holding her breath - her plan had been to sit in Lee's usual spot before either boy got there and then ask George to sit with her there at the back where their conversation would be less easily heard, but if George and Lee were already in their regular seats she doubted there'd be a way to separate them without causing disruption. If she was too late, she'd be forced to live in the agony of the unknown for four more days too long.