[2] The Great Orangenie | FRED WEASLEY

Chapter Twenty Seven

Up until the Quidditch match, Fred was pretty booked up but was unwilling to let his plan to harness old magic disappear so easily. If his entire evening was booked up, then he'd simply have to visit Aubrey at night. He wanted it to be private after all, failing in front of her entire dorm, for instance, would be incredibly embarrassing.

"Um ... Lexy," She was alone for once when Fred approached her as she left Charms, "You're a muggle born right?"

"Yes..." She replied.

"Well, I was wondering do you have a music thingamajig," He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, "I sort of need some ... soppy music."

Lexy came to a stop, raising an eyebrow, "Soppy music, huh? What's this for?"

"Nothing."

"Oh my God, is it Aubrey related?"

"Well ... yeah."

"Old magic related?"

"You're annoyingly good at this."

"They don't call me Sher-lex Holmes for nothing," She clicked her fingers, "Well, I do have a wizard record player stashed away somewhere that my parents bought me when I came here - wizard music players are so primitive compared to muggles but I digress. The man we brought it to in Diagon Alley said it would work although I never tested it. I assumed we'd have separate rooms and I could play music whenever but Hattie gets headaches very easily so forbade me. There are a few old records though, I can fetch them if you'd like. I'm warning you, Fred, they're ancient muggle ones though."

"I reckon that's exactly what I need," Fred said, clicking his fingers at her.

Lexy managed to come through and Fred set up his plan by the lake with a little help from a semi-willing crew that consisted of one enthusiastic twin, a grumpy younger brother and several friends with too much time on their hands. He knew he didn't need to be this decadent for testing old magic but Saskia said it was emotional and he needed to get the mood right, ensure that the emotions were intense as they could be. Plus, it was a very subtle jab at the girl ... Saskia had known Aubrey for a mere few months, no way were they that connected already in a way that Fred couldn't achieve.

"What will you do if Filch catches you sneaking out?" George asked as they watched Fred get ready, actually brushing his hair for once.

"He won't," Fred shrugged.

"What if he does though?" Lee followed on, "Will love power you through?"

"Sod off," Fred grinned, turning around from the mirror, "Alright, how do I look?"

"You looked wicked," George replied, "Knock 'em dead, Fred!"

Fred's confidence that he wouldn't be caught by Filch was warranted. In fact, everything was going great, he'd even managed to remember the rhythm for the Hufflepuff common room which was possibly the most unsafe security measure of all the common rooms. He strode through the empty common room, neglecting to realise there was a fourth year still up.

"Oi, you're that twat that nicked our cushions!"

Fred spun around, cursing that he had been thwarted a mere few meters away from Aubrey, "Er ... no, you've got me confused with someone else. That was Percy."

"Who the hell is Percy? It was you, at least admit it," The boy replied, forcing his lips into an angry pout, "You know I had a sore arse for a week after that."

"It was for love," Fred shrugged, "Just like this."

"Wait, you can't be here - "

"I just said it was for love, let it go!" He said, with a flippant hand gesture. The Fourth year didn't look happy but knew his cushion might be in danger if he continued to fight so chose to remain silent, returning to his book with a Fred-worthy eye roll.