Except For You ~ {Fred Weasley}

Chapter 38

There was a massive amount of chatter of excitement as everyone walked to the Great Hall. The story about Draco and y/n had spread quickly thought-out the school, and people kept cheering for her.
A little girl ran up to her and hugged her around the middle. She couldn't have been any older than a second year.
y/n's breath caught in her throat as she stared down at the little girl, tears threatening to roll down her face. She embraced the little girl with a small smile.

I snap back to reality when Dumbledore calls for attention. I turn to face him, awaiting the news. Everyone goes dead silent, waiting for him to tell everyone the news that spread on the train. Something was going on at Hogwarts. Something fun.
"Students! First, welcome back or welcome to Hogwarts. We are delighted to have you all here."
There is a snort over at the Slytherin table that can only belong to Malfoy.
Harry scoffs as well. Dumbledore ignores them both and continues.
"Secondly, I am excited to announce that this year, Hogwarts is hosting the Triwizard Tournament!"
Everyone starts murmuring to each other, which probably isn't exactly the uproar Dumbledore was hoping for. I decide to help the poor guy out.
"Whoo! Whatever that is, sounds really fun!" Someone beats me to it. I scan the Great Hall and see y/n standing on her chair and cheering as her friends tug on her robes to try and get her to come down. Dumbledore smiles gratefully at her, and she hops down with a grin.
"Thank you for that demonstration of enthusiasm, Miss Mathias." She grins while we wait for him to continue. "The Triwizard Tournament is a series of three challenges in which three wizards will compete, hence the name, Triwizard. The schools of Durmstrang and Beauxbaton Academy will join us for the event."
y/n and her roommates start whispering very excitedly to each other, as does everyone else at school.
"Two different schools?" George whispers to me. I nod, my gaze fixed on my girlfriend.
"We will discuss the event further when they join us in a moment," Dumbledore finishes. We all turn to watch the doors expectantly, and a few seconds later, they burst open. "Please welcome the Durmstrang Institute and their headmaster, Igor Karkaroff!"
An old man who gives off vibes like, 'I hate personal hygiene', walks in with many bulky wizards and noticeably fewer witches following, performing a show with staffs and fire. It's kind of impressive. Hogwarts is better.
Dumbledore waits for them to sit down (they sit at the Slytherin table, of course), before continuing.
"Now, please welcome Beauxbaton Academy of Magic and their headmistress Olympe Maxime!"
A massive woman walks in, this time giving off vibes like, 'I can be nice and mean'. Delicate witches and wizards adorned in pale blue clothes waltzed after her, performing gymnastic tricks. I noticed how in both academies, only older students were present.
I shake the thought from my mind as I watch the second school sit at the Ravenclaw table, y/n throwing her arms around one of the girls from Beauxbaton Academy. She looks oddly familiar.

Life is good. I have an amazing girlfriend, I'm not in any imminent danger and I'm not failing out of school. Yet.
y/n's stare makes me shut up and remember these things after I start protesting about the age minimum. That doesn't make me stop thinking about ways to break the rules though. It's coded into my blood.
Dumbledore quiets everyone down and finishes telling everyone the rules.
After everyone is dismissed, I try to find the one I am so lucky to call my girlfriend. That's only sarcasm if she punches me in the nose. Trust me, after the train, I do not want to be on the receiving end of one of those blows.
I easily spot her and her entire Ravenclaw year obsessing over the same girl from earlier at dinner. Scaring her probably isn't the best idea, so I simply slip my hand into hers. She glances up at me with a smile. The girl from Beauxbaton starts freaking out.
"No. Way. Really?" The girl squeals when y/n nods.
"Okay, I'm sorry, who are you?" I interrupt, earning a whack in the chest from y/n. I scowl down at her. "What? You and your friends have been obsessing over her all evening, and I have no idea who she is!"
"That's Amelia. She used to go here, was in my year and house..." She sighs when I still look confused.
"Oh, I know!" Amelia pipes up. "Fred, I was the one who gave you five points for successfully insulting Draco beyond speech."
I grin. "I remember now! Great to have you back Amelia."
y/n turns to me with furrowed eyebrows. "I never heard about this?"
I chuckle, giving her a brief kiss before leaving to find George, her cheeks now flushed as she tells her friends to 'shut up'.
George grumbles at me as I pull him away from Del. "Sorry mate, but we have to come up with some way to get our names into that cup. You still want to do that, right?"
He glances down at his hands. "Del lectured me," he mumbles.
"Well, I didn't give y/n a chance to lecture me, so let me fill your head with junk again."
George laughs as we make our way to the common room.

After about an hour, we have many ideas.
"I think we go with the aging potion," I mutter, scribbling on the page. "It makes the most sense."
George nods. "Trust me, I'm excited, but can we go to bed now?"
I roll my eyes, but start gathering the small amount of parchment. George stands, yawns, stretches and heads up the stairs.
I sit there for a moment, thinking over the day. y/n had been quiet on the train after the Draco incident, which was natural for her. But for some reason, when we got to the carriages, she didn't even sit with Del, George and I. She sat with her roommates. I'm not going to complain, they're nice, but it was weird. Her face drained of colour when she spotted the carriages.
I shake the moments from my mind, standing and climbing the stairs. Instead I focus on the Triwizard Tournament. It was bound to be fun, right?

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This is a pretty short chapter, because it's kind of a filler one :/
Thanks for reading :)