The Potioneer | Fred Weasley

Chapter Eight|Hogsmeade

Fred woke up a bit early on Saturday morning. Once his eyes opened, he immediately looked over at George who was still asleep.

"George!" he whisper-yelled.

George was still snoring.

Fred got up and poked his brother until he woke.

"The bloody hell is it Fred?" George groggily wiped his eyes and sat up.

"Let's go get some food! I'm starving!"

George groaned while getting off the bed. He pushed Fred lightly and went to get dressed.

"You seem so eager to get to Hogsmeade, Freddie." George pointed out the obvious.

"I want to get to Zonko's, Georgie."

The girls all sat in the common room waiting for the boys to come down. Angelina was beginning to get annoyed while Alicia just walked around looking at the common room.

Leah found it strange that Marisol was studying from her charms book on the weekend, but decided to ignore it for now.

"We're here!" announces the twins in unison. Lee trailed behind him and waved to the rest of the group.

Marisol looked up and saw Lee trailing behind. His long dreadlocks were tied back and he had on his Hogwarts robes.

Marisol saw him in a different light for the first time.

He was cute in her eyes.

"Mari? Marisol!" Leah lightly nudged her friend, finally getting her attention. Marisol stepped back and finally got back to reality.

"Sorry, so sorry. Let's get going."

It was a fairly nice day out. Somewhat windy, but the group of fifth year Gryffindors we're having a good time.

They were walking around Zonko's joke shop looking at some fun products. George was explaining the purpose of a quill that turned your hands pink to a confused Angelina.

Fred looked over and saw Leah looking at a box that was very likely going to blow up in her face soon. He quickly walked over and stopped her before she could open it.

"That's going to explode all over your face if you open it," he said flatly. Leah just rolled her eyes and continued to hold the box.

"And how do you know that?" she said somewhat jokingly.

"Oh you have no idea, this is my area of expertise." he said. "Lee! Get over here!" He took the box from Leah and waited until Lee now stood in front of him.

"Enjoy!" Fred then opened the box and all the dessert sprinkles exploded on him. Lee jumped in shock with a small yelp while Leah just gasped.

Fred grinned when she began laughing.

"See? I told you that it was going to explode. Perhaps you'll listen to me next time, you think?" he said. Leah rolled her eyes once again and shrugged.

"We'll see." and she walked away without another word.

Fred turned back around to find Lee brushing the sprinkles off of him.

"Hey, mate have you seen Marisol?"

Alicia was first to realize Marisol had been missing. She has left the shop in search of her friend. While Hogsmeade was a small village, she knew finding Marisol could take some time.

She checked the major spots first. The Three Broomsticks, the candy shop, and the clothing store Marisol enjoyed.

Alicia didn't find her in any of those places, so she set out to check some of the smaller stores. As she passed on her way to check the music store, she found Marisol in the Tomes and Scrolls book store.

Alicia looked through the window to see Marisol sitting at a desk reading to her self incredibly fast. It almost looked as if she had been straining her mind.

The quidditch player stepped in and headed straight for Marisol.

"Mari, what're you doing in here? Why don't you come join us?"

Marisol jolted and seemed to be shaking almost. "I-I have to study for this charms assignment, I can't risk getting low marks on it."

Alicia sighed and reached for Marisol's book. "I understand, but we're in Hogsmeade. Come out and have some fun with us, this is a time to rela-" Once Alicia closed Marisol's boom, that was it.

"NO, YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND! JUST LEAVE ME ALONE, WOULD YOU?" And with that Marisol snatched her book backs and began reading again.

Alicia stepped back in shock at how violent her friend had become. Marisol had never snapped at anyone like that before, and Alicia suddenly began to worry.

She did what she was asked and left the Tomes and Scrolls.

On her way back to join the group, she bumped into Lee once again.

"Alicia, where's Marisol?" asked the boy. He looked slightly flustered and a bit worried.

Alicia decided that for his well being that she was to lie. "She went back to the castle, she wasn't feeling well. She asked that we all stay here and enjoy the day. Didn't want us to worry about her."

Alicia looked up at him and wished for him to believe the lie. Lee sighed heavily and nodded.

"Alright. Hey, I'm going to head back to the castle. Tell the others I had some work to catch up on, would you?" He motioned backward the school whilst awaiting her response.

Alicia nodded. "Yes of course."

Lee then began walking back to the castle. Alicia noticed how he had actually begun running once he got to the bridge.

She was now not only curious about what was happening with Marisol but what was happening with Lee as well.

Fred, George, Leah, and Angelina were now sitting in The Three Broomsticks towards the end of their visit. They had managed to lose track of three of their friends.

Alicia walked in and joined them at their table. "Hey, what did I miss?"

They all just stared at her emptily.

"What did you miss?" Angelina said, "What did we miss." She motioned to those who were not wherever Alicia was.

Alicia casually shrugged as if nothing happened. "Just left the shop to go check out some things. You didn't really miss anything."

"Okay, so where are Marisol and Lee?" questioned Leah.

Alicia quickly recited her plan for when this question came up. "I believe Marisol is shopping around. Lee said he was going back to the castle to finish some work."

Fred and George immediately turned their heads towards each other.

"That's not like old Lee now is it, Freddie?"

"No, it's really not, Georgie."

They then squinted at each other for a second before they both gasped. They turned towards the girls and dropped their hands on the table.

"He fancies Marisol." they said in unison.

Angelina looked shocked while Alicia looked as if a light bulb had appeared over her head. Leah didn't look the least bit shocked.

"He does?!" exclaimed Angelina. "That's not good!"

Fred and George then looked confused. "And why is that?" they said in unison once more.

"Because Marisol doesn't exactly adore this whole dating thing. She thinks it's a waste of time and emotions." explained Alicia.

"Someone broke her heart, actually if we're going to be completely honest." said Leah while scratching her head.

"Who?" George asked.

The girls all pursed their lips and looked at each other before nodding. Angelina sighed and reluctantly revealed it herself.

"It was Wood."