✔️ 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐓𝐄𝐆𝐎 → ℎ. 𝑝𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑡𝑤𝑖𝑛 𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑦

12 | T H E D A Y A F T E R

but "just friends" don't look at
each other like that.

"WHAT ON EARTH have you thought? Have you thought at all? I mean - gosh, Ember, it's Fred!"

Cutting onions with Ginny in the Burrow's cozy kitchen, Ember tried to play deaf on both her burning red ears, as the youngest Weasley wouldn't stop hissing whispers at the visible uncomfortable raven haired girl.

"I don't get it, really", Ginny mercyless went on her scolding, while the kitchen door swung open and in sneaked Harry and Ron. "I thought you and this slimy Malfoy prat were a thing! Otherwise I wouldn't really mind if you're cheating on this ferret, never really understood what got you that low. But my br-"

"Who's cheating on Malfoy?", Ron's voice suddenly appeared so close to Ember that she flinched, the knife slipped through her fingers and got stuck in the wooden floor, only an inch from her foot.

"Peeves is cheating on Malfoy, Ronald, what do you think?", Ginny snarled, rolling her eyes, while Ember's whole body stiffened as Ron bowed down to pick up the knife, placing it on the kitchen counter. "Get your nose out of what's not your business."

"You're cheating on Malfoy?", Ron asked, ignoring his sister's warning.

Ember could feel his glare on her, but instead of looking back at him, she decided to act busy, going on cutting onions, as she muttered, "I'm cheating on no one, I'm not dating anyone, so no way I could be cheating."

"Oh, to me eating the ferrets face seemed pretty much like dating", Ron scoffed, and out of the corner of her eye, Ember had a glimpse at Harry shifting uncomfortably on his feet as he was obviously putting any effort in holding his tongue.

"Eating someone's face, Ron, isn't automatically dating, and you from all the people in here should know that pretty well", Ember hissed, the spicy onion scent burning in her eyes. She didn't have to look at him to know that his ears now probably took the colour of raw meat. Harry and Ginny exchanged a glance, and Ember felt the dark forces inside her growling. "Really, who are the three of you to judge? You -", she turned towards Harry, "- got yourself fooled by Cedric's emotionally crippled girlfriend, and you -", she went on, glaring at Ginny, "- are changing boys like other people do socks. And you -", pointing the knife at Ron, she for the first time in days fully faced him, what immediately sent shivers down her spine she hoped he wouldn't notice, "- you are snogging Lav-Lav in every empty and not so empty corner of the goddamn castle all the fucking time." Slamming the knife onto the counter, she slowly took a deep breath to get her darkness under control, which threatened to overwhelm her with every word growing louder in her throat. In a much calmer voice she said, "No one of you is in the position to question my love life, thank you!"

There was a silent hanging heavy in the kitchen, and Ember took that as her opportunity to turn around and leave the place in a rush, a bit too forcefully slamming the door behind her.

With the Burrow being crowded like it was lately, there was no use in seeking peace and solitude inside those crooked walls. Even though the living room was empty - but as Ember suggested it wouldn't stay like that for long - she pushed the door open and stepped into the icy winter wonderland. A new cover of snow had layed onto the fields tonight, gone were the footsteps of the last days, leaving the grounds like looking a glittering fairytale.

"G'morning", a husky voice appeared behind her, and in shock, Ember twirled around, her face errupting in heath like a volcano, being faced with the warm chocolate brown eyes of Fred Weasley. "Hangover?"

"N-no", Ember stammered, hands tucking down her sleeves with hands that were way to sweaty for this cold December day.

"Solid drinker you are, huh?", Fred chuckled, looking down at her out of sleepy eyes, his hair ruffled, and still wearing his pyjama pants.

"Oh, erm, I ... had a lot of parties lately at Hogwarts, mhm", Ember muttered, begging her face to regain its normal pale colour.

"I see", he said, a grin plastered on his face. "Okay, listen, Emmie, we don't have to make this awkward -"

"Guess it's a bit too late for that ...", she mumbled and Fred's grin dropped.

"It was wrong", he said, his voice plain as his face.

"Ah, was it?"

"You were drunk, I was drunk ... I was a bit caught in the moment, I shouldn't have -"

"Have I told you to stop?", Ember cut him off, her eyebrow raised.

"Well, no, but -"

"Have I somehow signalled you to stop?"

"I don't think so, but -"

"No but", she silenced him once more. "I'm not a kid anymore, Fred."

"I never said that you are", he complained, now also cocking an eyebrow.

"You don't have to, it's the way you look at me", Ember replied. "Like you've done something wrong, because I'm too young and innocent, and you feel bad for actually have been treating me like I am more than the little girl you met on the Hogwarts Express six years ago."

"This for sure isn't the way I look at you", Fred said, a blush crossing his cheeks.

"So what is it then, huh? What is this regret in your eyes, Frederik?"

There was a long pause, and Ember heard her heart beat drumming in her ears, as he just stared into her eyes, and she was staring back at his, sinking, drowning, waiting ...

"You're taken", he finally said, and she felt her blood boiling.

"Oh please, for Godric's sake, I am not dating Malfoy!", she groaned, rolling her eyes. "I was possessed, I wasn't myself, and I am not -"

"I'm not talking about the ferret", Fred snorted, and the grin returned, enlightening his features, sending a warm glow through his irises.

"I'm not taken then."

"Well, your heart is", he chuckled. "You can ignore it, play it down all the way, but it's pretty obvious. The way you blush, the way you look at him, the way you run from him. You can deny it as much as you want, but sooner or later you'll have to face it, Emmie. You're madly in love."

-