Ethereal ✭Fred Weasley✭

22.

"You rotten little-" Fred cursed as a gnome bit him on the ankle and attempted to scurry away while laughing evilly. Sophia giggled when she saw Fred run after the ugly thing and picked it up, throwing it back over their fence out of sight. He turned around when he heard her laugh and a mischievous spark was seen in his eye.

"Do you think that's funny then Sophia?" he asked and he started taking long steps towards her. Sophia stopped her giggling and started backing away with now a much more nervous laugh. She knew exactly what he was going to do, and would rather not be man-handled by the boy who was much more stronger and faster than her.

"N-No," she said and Fred smirked, before bursting into a sprint towards her. Sophia squealed and went to turn away to take refuge into the house, only to be lifted up in the air from behind. Fred effortlessly lifted her from the ground and turned her frame in order to have her over his shoulder, keeping his arm securely around her middle so that she didn't fall.

"FRED!" Sophia yelled. Fred started to run around the garden, kicking gnomes out of his path whenever they tried to aim for his appetising ankles. Sophia's fists pounded against the boy's back, squealing and laughing uncontrollably as Fred circled around the small greenery.

"If you think my agony is so funny, then let's take a little spin my fair lady," Fred suggested and Sophia balled up the back of Fred's jumper in her fists, holding on tight as he began to spin in a circle on the spot.

"God they make me sick," Ron said in disgust from where he stood with Harry and Hermione. Bill and Charlie were beginning to fight each other through the tables they were levitating with their wands, attempting to knock each other's table out of the air. Ginny and George were rooting for each of their siblings, and Fred was now slowing down in his spinning with a near green complexion. Sophia looked no better but laughed at Fred's uncoordinated steps around the backyard.

"Oh Ronald stop being such a Negative Nancy," Molly Weasley had exited from the house with plates of food to the one table that was on the floor of the garden. "They haven't seen each other in a while. Remus was telling me about how excited Sophia's been over the summer about seeing Fred. And you know well that he's been just the same."

"You're only saying that Mum because you want her as your daughter-in-law," Charlie interrupted from next to Bill, lowering the table once he successfully knocked his brother's to the floor.

"Now that has nothing to do with it!" Mrs Weasley sternly said, but everyone knew that was exactly what she wanted. "Come on everyone, we're sitting down now! Oh Arthur welcome home darling!"

Fred and Sophia turned their attention to the Weasley mother, making Fred finally lower the girl back to the ground. He carefully placed his hands on Sophia's sides in order to lower her down smoothly, and it made Sophia's insides become jelly at the feeling of his warm hands against her ticklish torso. She steadied herself by putting her own hands on the side of Fred's arms, feeling his strong biceps that had obviously formed from his position as a Beater on the Quidditch team. Sophia's face had flushed from being hung upside down over Fred's shoulder, and Fred swooned at the sight of her pinks cheeks that made her look younger than she was. They exchanged lop-sided grins before making their way over to the tables that held plates and plates of food.

"Oh you must be Sophia!" another redheaded man spoke who had sat down next to Mrs Weasley, displaying a kind smile when spotting Sophia next to Fred. "My name's Arthur Weasley and I was very pleased to hear about you being able to come to the cup with us this year! Especially with how fond Fre-"

Molly had coincidentally jammed her elbow into her husband's side and made him make a sort of 'oompf' sound. She smiled sweetly at him yet had a hidden message behind her eyes, resulting in Mr Weasley clearing his throat and started chowing into his plate of food. Fred internally sighed and grumbled at his father's attempt to embarrass him even further, and looked at Sophia through the corner of his eye to see if she had caught on to his father's unfinished sentence. But she had already started eating and was too busy listening to a story being told by Charlie across the table.

"So Sophia,"Arthur called out once again more carefully, making the girl turn her attention back to the balding man. "Molly heard from your father that you're very interested in Astronomy. Wanting to become an Astronomer I hear!"

"Oh yeah I find it very fascinating," the girl nodded with a smile. "I've been getting better over the holidays too. Not to toot my own horn or anything, but I've started to be able to read predictions like Centaurs do in the stars. Not specific events, but enough to be considered useful."

"Better than Professor Trelawney's ever done," Fred exclaimed and the knowing students laughed, knowing full well that the woman hadn't made a proper prediction in years. Although Harry started to think back to his encounter with Professor Trelawney, when she had seemed possessed and said about servants and masters being reunited once more. But he kept this quiet as he didn't want to darken the happy mood that blanketed the table.

"That's extraordinary!" Arthur cheered at Sophia's explanation. "Have you seen anything recently that may be hinting towards anything in the future maybe?"

"Um not too much, I'm still learning," Sophia muttered, slightly embarrassed before perking up again at remembering something she had seen a couple of nights ago. "Although, there was something about Ireland maybe coming out of the world cup in good fortune-"

"No way!" George stated in disbelief with his eyes wide in shock. "Are they gonna win?! Fred we've gotta catch on to this-"

"Oh no you don't!" Molly cried from down the table, stopping her son before he could continue. "Don't you go making any bets or exchanges over this match! Sophia hasn't got this ability just so that you can go cheating people out of their galleons! I will not stand for it George Weasley!"

The Weasley children as well as Harry, Hermione and Sophia sniggered at Mrs Weasley's scolding, and Arthur was even seen holding back a chuckle. George lowered his head over his dinner and could be heard muttering to himself in irritation, glaring through his long red hair at his mother who apologised to Sophia for her son's misuse of her information. The dinner continued and finished, and the sky began to darken into nightfall. Everyone helped bringing their plates back into the kitchen and Bill and Charlie were left to rearrange the tables back to their usual positions. This led to another competition of trying to knock each other's table out of the air, and the watching children laughed through the evening at the entertainment.

---

The day of the Quidditch match was approaching fast, and it wasn't long before Mr Weasley was ushering all the kids out of their beds at five in the morning to start heading off. All yawning and stumbling over their feet, the Hogwarts students left The Burrow up the hill where Arthur Weasley said the portkey was. This would take them to the campsite where Wizards and Witches from around the world would be staying for the final of the Quidditch World Cup. Bill, Charlie and Percy would be apparating later today to the site as they were allowed to at being now of age, much to the younger one's dismay.

Sophia heaved her backpack higher up her shoulder, forcing her mouth to keep shut when a yawn attempted to escape. She walked next to Hermione and Ginny as they seemed the most awake out of all of them, and were chatting away happily so early in the morning. Ron and Harry were attempting to keep up with them from behind, and Fred and George were whispering to each other in front of the girls. Sophia tried to strain her ears to listen in on their seemingly private conversation, but gave up when all she heard was disjointed shushes and indistinguishable words.

"Dad! Where are we going?!" Ron yelled from the back and his father barely answered him, as he had seen one of his close friends coming to meet them up ahead.

"Arthur!" the small man cried in glee and the oldest Weasley greeted back.