Summers (with Fred & George Weasley)

What a Difference a Year Makes

Year 15 - What a Difference a Year Makes

Just like last summer the four friends were inseparable. Today, the day before Beca’s 15th birthday they were all hanging out at the pond, just outside of town. Beca and Lucy were just laying out soaking up some rare English sun. George and Fred were standing in the water taking samples for who knows what kind of potion they were working on, when two girls walked up to Beca. “I know what Fred and George are giving you for your birthday!” said Kelly.

One of Beca’s favorite things about her birthday was that it came in the summer after Lucy, George and Fred got home from school. “What?” said Beca, looking up at the girls.

Sabrina, Kelly’s best friend, and a witch like Lucy, explained, “They’re trying to make the water in the pond clear. They know you won’t get in it because it’s so dirty so they are trying to clean it up so you can go swimming.” Everyone assumed Beca was afraid of the water, because she’d never go swimming in the pond. Truth be told, Beca was afraid of the dark.

“At least that’s what they’re saying.” said Kelly sarcastically. Kelly was a muggle, like Beca, and had a crush on George so Beca really didn‘t like her very much. “All they’re really wanting is to see you in a bikini.” Kelly said smugly and she and Sabrina sauntered off.

Beca was sure Kelly was right and knew she should be furious with Fred and George, but she thought what they were doing was the sweetest thing ever. “Come on, let’s go.” she said to Lucy. They packed up their things, hollered to the guys that they had birthday arrangements to make and headed in to town.

They went straight to Martin’s Dress Shoppe. Martin’s was right next door to the bookstore where Beca worked. Rachel was working today. Rachel was the granddaughter of Mr. and Mrs. Martin. She was several years older than Beca, but she too had lost both her parents at a young age. Rachel lived and worked with her grandparents, who doted on her. Beca told Rachel that she and Lucy needed the cutest bikinis she had to offer. Rachel helped the girls find age appropriate bikinis and Beca paid for them with her muggle money.

The next day they all met at the pond. George and Fred were already there, standing in sparkling, clear water. It was beautiful. Beca couldn’t believe it. It was the best gift she’d ever received. “Happy Birthday Beca! Come on in, the water’s fine.” they chorused.

Lucy and Beca slipped out of their jeans and t-shirts. The boys just stood there, mouths gaping, unable to even blink. Yesterday, the guys thought of the girls as just friends they hung out with. Today, however, George thought to himself, “When did Beca get boobs?“ Fred gave a wolf whistle and it occurred to George that Fred might be looking at Beca’s boobs too. George didn’t like that one bit. He cupped his hand and threw a scoop of water right in Fred’s face. “That’ll keep him from looking at her that way.“ George thought. That it did, and the splash fight was on. It wasn’t long before the girls joined them. The foursome splashed and played and laughed.

There was a tree with a rope swing that hung over the pond. Fred, George and Lucy took turns swinging out on it, floating in the air a few minutes, then diving into the water. It looked like so much fun, Beca was dying to try it. George didn’t think she should, after all, she’d never learned how to swim. “You’re not swimming” Fred taunted, “you’re just dropping.” That was all it took. No way was Beca going to let Fred get away with doing something she couldn’t do. She climbed out of the water, grabbed onto the rope, and flung herself out into the air.

She knew the minute she’d let go of the rope that she’d made a big mistake, she should have listened to George. As she fell into the water she screamed. Unfortunately, you can’t hold your breath and scream at the same time. Beca went into the water and she was immediately plunged into darkness. The clearness of the water was just a surface illusion. Under the water it was dark and dirty. She couldn’t see, didn’t know which way was up or which way was down. She kept kicking her feet, but didn’t seem to be getting anywhere. In a panic she tried to scream again. Her lungs were filling up with water. Ironic she thought, this was how her parents had died. Their car had careened off a bridge and plunged into a deep river. Beca’s father was killed by the truck that hit them, but her mother drowned trying to save him; and now Beca was going to too.