Marooned - Fred Weasley

Chapter 34: Pink

A.N.
Thank you guys so much for reading and reacting, I hope you enjoy it as much as I do when I write it <3
Also, I think Fred's pining might be my favorite thing ever ;)

_

The ride back to Hogwarts was not as cheeky and light as the others were, it was understandable, they weren't as carefree anymore.

Selena and George were blissful to see each other again, she didn't leave his grasp for the whole ride.

She also left for the summer in the States, visiting her cousin and couldn't exactly use magic around them, George couldn't Apparate to see her either, it was a bit painful for both.

Sarah had read all about it in Selena's letters, and Fred had heard about it all summer from George. Then, Sarah and Fred spent a while venting and laughing about it to one another.

Sarah smiled endearingly at them and Fred nudged her shoulder, "Hey, check this out," he got out some pieces of paper where he and George had scribbled their brand name and some sketches.

"Skiving snackboxes," she read out loud, trying to decipher Fred's handwriting.

"Yes, there's supposed to be some products in here, this one's for provoking nosebleeds, and this one's for fainting, some are still in process, but we're getting there," he excitedly showed the written plans and drawings.

"What's this one for?" she asked, pointing at what looked like a little pill with two colors.

"Puking," he beamed at her, "Puking Pastilles. One part's supposed to make you vomit, the other to stop."

"Charming," Sarah grimaced, not really willing to imagine how the developments for the pill and the cure would come about.

He nudged her shoulder, "Yes, well. Oh and this-"

He rambled a bit more about the different products, the majority was almost finalized, some were dropped and he explained why, and she listened intently to him, heart soaring to see him this passionate and get to have an insight on it.

"Wow," she marveled, turning the pages, "This is amazing. Oh! It's-" she reads some recipes for the snacks and recognizes some parts from the books she lent them last year. She had underlined the parts with the charms and spells that seemed useful.

"Yes, thank you actually," he said with a sly smile, nudging her shoulder again, and didn't move after, kept the contact. He glanced down at her, smiling still, and continued, "Also, there was a part about the Murtlap Essence that was useful for the side effects of the Fever Fudge. They were a pain in the arse, literally."

"Ouch."

"Yeah," he cringed, recalling them, then returned to the subject, "But it's all fixed now-I think- and we need some volunteers to test them-"

"Oh!" she looks up at him, half-accusatory and amused because she should've seen this coming, "That's why you're being so nice and forward! You want me to be your experiment mouse!"

He stared for a few seconds, because he didn't mean it like that, but now that he said it, it was much easier to pretend that's what it was, instead of admitting he wanted an excuse to be near her and see her smile up at him. "Yes, well, George won't ask Selena, figured I'd try something else."

She rolled her eyes, "I can't believe you. Beware, Weasley. I might just slip you some of those Puking Pastilles and see the side effects it has."

"You wouldn't dare," Fred smirked.

She shot him a playful look, "Yeah, right. Watch me," then turned to the pages again, leaving him to the fluttering of his heart. He quickly shakes his head to get rid of those thoughts again that keep crawling their way back, and shares the sketches with Selena, too, so he'd feel less nervous all of a sudden.