It's a Secret

Jane had quickly showered off, charming her thick hair to dry and straighten. She made sure her robes had been completely clean, along with the clothes she had worn with them before heading back out to the dungeon common room. She quickly spotted her friend walking in from outside, the usual smirk still on his pale face.
She puts her own smirk on, "How was the food fight?"
Draco stops a little shocked to see his friend before regaining his voice.
"It was. I got Potter a couple times." He lies smoothly, putting a proud smile on his face.
Jane could see right through it but decided not to question it. "Well go clean up. You've got pieces of potatoes in your hair.."
Dracos skin begins to turn a slightly pink rosy color, "Shut up."
Jane smirks at him, "Hurry up. You know I don't like waiting."
He rolls his eyes and quickly going to the boys lavatories.

The walk outside was surprisingly quiet, something that didn't often happen for the two Gryffindor best friends. Usually, they were joking and grinning like complete idiots.
In an attempt to try to mend that, Fred grinned over at Amelia. "We don't get to hang out outside like this too much, huh?" he asked with an arched eyebrow.
"Not unless you count when you're practicing for Quidditch," Amelia mused with a shrug, offering her friend a smile in return. "Though you obviously need all that practice, don't you?"
Fred gaped at her, acting as though her words wounded him as he placed a hand over his heart. "How cruel of you to say such a thing!" he laughed before shaking his head.
With the feeling of normalcy settling in, Amelia honestly couldn't help but to laugh along.

Draco had finished getting ready quickly, meeting his friend in their common room.
They both got up and began to make their ways outside and towards the lake by the school. Professor Snape would let them sneak out after hours and wouldn't write them up if he had caught them. That was how they had always managed to skip out of detention.
They both idly chatted walking to the destination and plopping down next to each other.
"That food fight was really something eh?" Jane asked watching the ripples from the lake.
Draco watched her for a moment before turning towards the lake, "definitely. It was a lot of fun though."
She nodded, "Agreed. I love that I got to get a few of the snot nose Gryffindors."
Draco snickered slightly, "Yeah. I did too."
They continued to bond over the food fight, not noticing the two approaching Gryffindors, who had also not noticed the two Slytherins.

Amelia couldn't help but grin after hearing her friend's words and rolled her eyes slightly. "No need to be so dramatic," she hummed before glancing around a bit.
"Oh, that was hardly dramatic," Fred said with a roll of his eyes, though a frown soon came to his features when he heard Malfoy's voice. He also heard Jane's voice, though, and he glanced around, his eyes searching for the two, though it didn't take long to find them.
"By the way, next time you start a food fight -" Amelia started, but frowned when she saw that Fred was currently distracted. Following his gaze, she nearly cringed at the fact that Draco was nearby.
Hopefully, he and his friend hadn't notice her and Fred.
So, she took hold of Fred's wrist and tried to tug him away, not wanting to deal with the drama that would likely ensue if they got caught there, but he wouldn't budge.

Draco had heard the commotion between the Gryffindors and had turned away from his friend. His heart was thumping loudly against his chest at the sight of Amelia, but he remembered who he was sitting next to. He was supposed to hate those two. Then he saw Amelia's hand around the Weasals wrist. Jealousy swelled up in his stomach. His eyes quickly went from admiration to pure hatred. He put a sneer on his face.
Jane saw him doing so and stood up, "Don't you dare Draco Malfoy!" But he wasn't listening. He starts to walk that way when she caught him by the back of his robes. Admittedly, she was happy to see Fred. She knew that she had just seen him a mere 30 minutes ago, but she saw him for him this time. Not for being a Weasley.
Draco furiously turned around to face his friend, "What you think your doing?!"
Jane sneered at Draco, "You are not starting anything tonight Draco Malfoy!" Draco tried to pull away from her but she had a tight grip on him.
"You let me go Jane Cerberus!" Draco fumed, his face turning a red color.
Jane suddenly started laughing, nearly letting go of his robes. A confused expression took over Dracos face. "What?!" He demanded. Jane spoke through her laughs, "I can't ta-take you s-serious when you try to y-yell at me using my l-last name. " Dracos face turned from a red color to a rosy pink. "Shut up!" He demanded, folding his arms over his chest. She giggled for a bit before standing up straight. "Alright then. Now come on. Let's go before I make you blush again." Jane smirked, nudging her best friend. Draco slightly pouted, and for Draco's sake, she threw a glare towards the Gryffindor pair, who seemed to watch them. She had forgotten they were there and just realized that she had embarrassed Draco Infront of them.
She smacked her forehead before leaning close to Dracos ear and whispering a quiet apology.

(sorry this kinda sucks. It was a spur of the moment thing, I guess.)

(No worries, it was great! xD I found a lot of amusement in Draco's sudden jealousy - then Jane embarrassing him, haha!)

Fred frowned as he watched the entire thing unfold. He didn't quite understand what had gotten into Draco all of a sudden, but just assumed that he had gotten angry because, well, Fred and he hated each other. Regardless, he shrugged the thought aside and just watched.
Until he saw Jane whisper something into Draco's ear.
Normally, it wouldn't have bothered him. But he was a little worried that she was telling him something about Fred, or speaking about the encounter earlier. Or worse, she could be whispering sweet little nothings to Draco.
The thought both angered and bothered him.
Not wanting to think about it, he glanced down at Amelia, whose eyes were on the two as well. She seemed just as bothered and uncomfortable as he felt and he didn't like that look on his best friend. So, he smirked and ruffled her hair to get her attention.
It only made her try to fix her hair, though, and offer a quick, "Hey!"
It made Fred grin and he shrugged. "Let's get away from the snakes, yeah?" he offered, not really wanting to be around Jane and Draco together.
He'd rather be around Jane alone, without Draco there to ruin everything.
Amelia blinked several times, processing his words before eventually nodding. "Alright, sure," she mused, gesturing for him to lead the way once more as she dropped her hand from his wrist.
She refused to look towards Draco, a little worried that she wouldn't be able to keep up the act of hating him if she did.
Instead, she followed after Fred quickly, trying to keep up with his quick, long strides.

(Oh good XD. I was afraid that I made a bad decision!)

Jane pulled Draco back to their seats, throwing one last glance at the pair. She looked at them both, but she watched Fred more closely. She shook her head and quickly turned to her best friend. "What was that all about?" She asked, eyeing him carefully.
Draco hadn't noticed how rash he had acted. "You know those two piss me off. Especially the Weasal."
Dakota opened her mouth to defend Fred but quickly slammed it shut. She couldn't say anything good about Fred or Draco would get suspicious.
So instead, she nodded as if she understood. "You shouldn't let them get under your skin. They're not worth it."
Draco shrugged, "Whatever. As long as they're gone now."
But yet, his mind was still on Amelia. Had she played him? Had she lied when she felt something. He really hoped she didn't.

(No, it was great, don't worry! xD)

Amelia chewed on her lip as she followed her best friend, away from the other two. Neither she nor Fred spoke during the walk and they eventually settled on the other side of the lake, sitting down.
Even from there, Fred could see Jane. His attention stayed focused on her before he eventually glanced to Amelia. Neither of them seemed to want to talk about whatever had just happened and he let out a sigh.
"Sorry about that. I know I can get a bit... Well, out-of-it sometimes," Fred eventually said, frowning slightly.
It took a few moments for Amelia to even process what her friend had said because she was still thinking about what had just happened. Eventually, she blinked and shook her head. "No, it's fine. It's just... You usually don't get so close to them when we hear them. We usually just turn and walk away," she murmured with confusion.
Fred cringed slightly at the mention of it. So he had acted differently despite that he wasn't supposed to, despite how much he had tried to act as normal as he could. "Sorry. I heard them say something about Gryffindors, so I over-reacted," he offered as an explanation.
Amelia seemed to buy it, but it was mostly because she was distracted.

(Okay! Good XD!)

They both went quiet for a few moments before Jane decided to poke Draco. She realized she and her friend needed to forget about their run-in with the Gryffindors and enjoy some time together.
Draco looked at her before poking his pale finger into her side. She squirmed slightly, moving away from him. A evil smirk spread across his face, an idea striking him. Jane caught onto what it was about right away. "Don't you dare..." She hisses, standing up and slowly backing away from him.
He holds up his hands, outstretching them as he looks to her. Her eyes grow as she takes off into a run away from him. Draco let's out a loud snicker, chasing after her.
He was well aware of their audience but he knew that if he said anything about them that Jane would question him about it. He already knew that she was already suspicious, and he had paid anymore attention to them, she would definitely never let him live it down.
Finally after 5 minutes of running, Jane had stumbled over a root from a tree and fell to the ground. Draco approached her slowly, and she glared at him. "Don't.." She starts, but before she is able to Draco rushes forward and pokes her sides. Jane can't help but to burst out laughing, trying to squirm away from him.
After a few moments, she gasped out with laughs, "I can't breath! Stop tickling me!'
He finally let her go, a proud smirk on his face.
She regained her breath before glaring at him. "I'll never forgive you for that." She says, crossing her arms and fakely pouting. Draco laughed quietly, "Consider it revenge."
Jane just continued to glare at him, ever though he offered her a hand up. After another moment of glaring she finally took his hand and he helped her up. They both dusted off before deciding to go inside.
They both walk back in together, being careful to avoid all of the Professors.

Both Fred and Amelia had watched the entire thing. Well, Amelia had stopped watching after Draco had first started tickling Jane, but Fred had watched it all, a frown etched onto his features.
After a long moment, Fred looked to Amelia and smirked slightly. "Race you inside?" he suggested, figuring it would be best to get away, especially with his jealousy boiling to the point that he wasn't sure he could control it much longer.
Amelia blinked several times, glancing up at him. "No way," she declared, but within moments, she was up and running towards the castle.
"What? Hey! That's not feel, little miss Thorne!" Fred called before pushing himself off the ground and chasing after her.
Amelia couldn't help but to laugh. "Please! It would hardly be fair if I didn't get a head start with your freakishly long legs!" she joked, grinning over her shoulder at him before returning her attention ahead. "Last one inside owes the other chocolate cauldron cakes for a year!"
Fred gaped at the mention of it, but it only urged him to pick up his pace. She had a good head start, but, as she said, his legs were longer, so it didn't take him long to catch up with her.

Once they arrived at the dungeon Jane excused herself and said that she would be roaming around if he needed her. She bid Draco a goodnight and stared walking around. She easily avoided Filch and all of the professors, wondering around the halls until she found an empty one and slid down against a wall. She couldn't lie and say that seeing Fred and Amelia together didn't make her jealous because in all honesty, it did. She was envious of Amelia, not because of her looks or anything, but how she could just generally be around Fred without being rejected by her house and friends. She was jealous because she wanted to be as close to Fred as Amelia had. She was well aware that they both claimed to be 'just friends', but it wasn't difficult for her to see why people thought different. It was the same with her and Draco. Meaning that, Draco and Jane were always found together, just as Amelia and Fred were.
Yet, she was slightly suspicious of the way Amelia and Fred were. She felt like they could be hiding a possible relationship, but she quickly pushed it to the back of her mind. Why would they hide it? They're Gryffindors for Merlin's sake, they would admit to nearly anything. But still, The idea continued to shove its way back into the front of her mind.

-

Draco waited for Jane to be out of sight before wondering back to their previous destination. He walked back over to their place by the lake, plopping down by the edge of the lake. He loved the quietness that it offered and figured if there was any place to really think, it would be here. His mind wondered back to his previous encounter with the two Gryffindors. He couldn't care less about the Weasal, but Amelia is what plagued his mind. Draco was surprised at how jealous he had gotten over the girl. He's never experienced such intense feelings and he couldn't help but be a little scared by them.

Fred grinned as he got to the castle before Amelia, looking down at her. "Honestly, Amelia, you should have learned by now that you can't beat me in a race," he teased lightly, nudging her, though he took note of the light outside. It was almost too late to hang out with Jane like they had arranged - and he didn't want to miss out on that. What if she was too busy hanging out with Malfoy, though? He frowned at the thought, but tried to ignore it, tried to tell himself not to think about it.
Instead, he looked down to Amelia and smiled. "I've got to go find George. I'll see you around," he told her before he walked off, figuring that it was a good enough excuse. He just hoped she didn't run into George and ruin his alibi.

~

Amelia watched her friend wander off, only slightly curious over why he seemed a bit out of it. Pushing the thought aside, she stayed at the entrance of the castle, mostly debating on whether to go inside and head to the Gryffindor common room or to stay outside and wander. She opted for the latter and retreated back towards the grass, glancing around a bit. Her mind wandered as she walked and she struggled to keep it off Draco and Jane. The last thing she wanted was to be even remotely jealous - especially when she wasn't even sure what was going on between herself and Draco.

Jane sighed softly bringing her knees to her chest. She knew that she probably had nothing to worry about, and if she did, what would it matter? She didn't even know if Fred felt that way towards her, maybe he just wanted to be friends. Friends. She didn't know why, but the word made her heart drop. Jane guessed that it could be because of the consequence of having a friendship with Fred, but deep down, she knew that it was because she wanted more than just friendship with him.

-

Draco didn't noticed the girl as he sprawled across the dewy grass. His eyes looked across the night sky as he breathed in the fresh air. Draco didn't know what Amelia thought about him. She just probably thought the same thing as everyone else - that he was arrogant, a bully and a jerk - but he wasn't. Draco was different, despite what everyone seemed to think, though, nobody really gave him the time of day other than Jane.

Fred glanced around, his eyes eagerly searching for Jane in hopes that she wasn't anywhere near Draco. It didn't take him too long to find her and he was immensely relieved to see that Draco was nowhere to be seen.
He decided, at that point, he was in luck and could spend time with Jane without anybody bothering them.
So, with a small smile, despite his earlier worries, he made his way over to her, tilting his head slightly. "All alone?" he asked before sliding down to sit next to her.

~

Amelia blinked slowly as she took notice of Draco. Part of her wanted to turn and run because her thoughts were still centered around everything that had happened earlier. But, a larger part of her made her move closer to him, to where she was soon leaning over him, blocking his view of the night sky.
"You know curfew is soon, right?" she asked, knowing the question was likely lame, but she tried not to think about it.

Jane jumped at the sound of the voice, but relaxed when she realized it was Fred. She could only nod in his direction, her thoughts still plaguing her mind. She quickly pushed them to the back of her mind. "I suppose." She answers, her voice quiet. "What about you?" She asked, turning her head to face him.
Her green eyes wondering over to his brown ones before moving to glance at his flaming orange hair.
Jane wraps her arms around her legs, letting her head rest again her knees.

-

Draco yelped at the sound of Amelia's voice. He scrambled to get up, his heart pumping against his chest loudly. He let out a sigh and tried to calm himself down. His cheeks began to grow hot and he looked away from the girl. He cleared his throat, "I-I know."
Draco was clearly embarrassed that he had been so frightened by the small girl. "What are you doing out here?" He asked, his voice smoother this time.

Fred let a frown take over his features when he noticed her quiet voice. Eyeing her carefully, he furrowed his brows slowly. "What's wrong?" he asked, ignoring her question for the time being, because he felt that asking what was bothering her was more important.
Part of him wondered if Draco had said something rude to her and upset her. He wouldn't put it past the Malfoy boy, really.
"Did Malfoy say something to make you upset?" he asked, taking in her features slowly, hoping that she would answer truthfully.

~

Amelia couldn't help but to giggle at the entire thing and she tried to stifle it by placing her hand over her lips. It got too difficult to keep her laughter down and she was in a full out laughing fit within moments.
Once she calmed down, she grinned over at him and shrugged slightly. "I was really just wandering around. I thought you went inside with Jane, though," she said, admittedly a little curious as to why he was out here without his friend.

Jane frowned back, not enjoying that way the frown found it's way to his face. She let out a soft sigh at his questions. "No, Draco didn't do anything. I just was just thinking is all." She eyed him carefully, before asking. "Are you alright though? You seem rather upset yourself."
She didn't want to push a question on him, but after seeing the frown on his face, she couldn't hold back her question.

-

Draco frowned deeper at her laughter, his face becoming a darker shade of red. He politely waited for her to stop laughing at him before answering her question.
"I did, but I wasn't quiet ready to settle down. Plus Jane ran off somewhere after we got back inside." He shrugs, answering her simply. "I also just wanted to quietly think a little bit."
His mind wondered back to his dorm with the other Slytherin boys. It wasn't that he didn't like it in there, but it was often way to loud to think.

Fred eyed her carefully, taking in her features. He wasn't sure how to answer her question, though, and he eventually let out a sigh before glancing away and staring at the wall opposite him, a frown tugging at his lips.
"You and Malfoy are really close, aren't you?" he asked slowly, not really bothering to use the Slytherin boy's first name, despite that Jane had just corrected him on it. It was a habit to call him Malfoy - besides, he didn't have a reason not to use that name.
"I mean... Just how close are you two, anyways?" He tried not to let his jealousy leak into his words, he really did, but he was certain he had failed in that attempt.

~

Amelia blinked several times after hearing his words and nodded slowly. "Ah, should I leave you alone, then?" she asked with curiosity, wondering if he would rather be alone to his thoughts.
She really just wanted to make sure that she wasn't really interrupting his thoughts. On top of that, she couldn't help but wonder if he would rather his best friend be there than her.
She quickly tried to force that thought away, though.
So, instead, she just waited for him to give her an answer, to determine whether she should leave or stay.

Jane sighed, her frown only deepening, "You're avoiding my question."
She saw that he was looked away from her, which slightly hurt her feelings. She knew that it shouldn't have, but she wanted him to look at her, and for him to be truthful with her. Jane moved so that she was sitting in front of him, trying to understand why he seemed so upset.
"Malfoy and I? No, we're not friends. I absolutely despise Malfoy, but Draco? Dracos my best friend. He's closer to me than both of my brothers." Jane answers, feeling as though she explained herself.
She rose her eyebrow at the next statement. Was he jealous? No! No, he couldn't be. But it sure did seem that way...
"Like I said, he's closer to me than my own brothers. That's how I consider him, I guess. My little annoying brother that also happens to be my best friend." She answers before questioning him again. "Are you jealous?" She asked quietly. "Please don't avoid answering it. Please..." She frowns, feeling her hurt resurface slightly.

-

Draco shook his head, "No! No. I didn't really wanna keep thinking about what I was anyways."
He really didn't. His thoughts were about how fast he seemed to be taking a liking to her. He wanted to be with her and only her, but their seemed to be so many things in the way. For one, she was a Gryffindor, which happened to be his houses' rival! Two, she also happened to be friends with the damn twin Weasal! Speaking of the Weasal, he couldn't help but wonder if there was something going on between those two. They seemed so close to eachother, and it made his blood boil. He liked her a lot and he didn't know if he could handle her being with someone else.
Merlin, what was he thinking?! He had just met the girl for Godrics sake!
He couldn't like her this much. Yet, he did.
Draco liked her more than he had ever liked anyone, and he didn't know he was going to deal with it.

Fred cringed slightly at the mention of how close she was with Malfoy. The more she mentioned how they were best friends, how he was closer to her than her brothers, he could feel his jealousy building.
And then it seemed to diminish just a little when she said that she considered him as an annoying brother. It didn't fully go away, of course, but it diminished, and that was better than nothing.
He nearly scoffed at hearing her question, though. Part of him didn't want to answer truthfully, wanted to keep that jealousy to himself. But seeing her frown made him cave and he let out a sigh.
"I'm very jealous," he murmured as an answer, his eyes gazing into hers. "More so than I really care to admit."

~

Amelia, admittedly, wanted to ask what he was thinking about, but she figured it would be best not to since he had said he didn't want to keep thinking about it.
"Ah, I know what you mean," she eventually said, knowing that she had wanted to stray away from her own thoughts as well.
There was no point in delving into that, though, because she didn't want to admit to her jealousy. Nor did she want to admit to herself how she was starting to feel for the Slytherin.
So, instead, she plopped herself down on her knees in the grass, staring out at the lake as she tried to relax, but the silence between them seemed a bit... Awkward, perhaps.