It's Better If You Do

"You're a very good tour guide, Fred. It's not my fault I forgot to eat breakfast." she said softly, chiding herself for letting her appetite spoil the series of questions she was going to ask.

"Yes, but we gentlemen must think of such things, so pretty flowers such as yourself don't starve to death out of courtesy." he said with a wink, standing up. He offered his hand, and pulled her up quickly, and looked about to apparate before she cut in timidly.

"Fred? Where are we eating?" she asked. He paused, and looke down at her, a half smile on his lips.

"Anywhere you want. What food do are you in the mood for?" he asked sincerely. He would have just grabbed some more fish and chips, but she probably didn't want that two days in a row. He and George were just used to satisfying their stomachs. It was a wonder they hadn't gotten fat yet.

"Well, I was, maybe thinking, if this is alright-"

"Just tell me what you want, Rosie." he said amusedly.

"Maybe some French food? I understand if you don't want-"

He cut her off again, smiling patiently at her. "This is about you seeing the city. Besides, I'll eat anything you put in front of me. Stop worrying. Okay?"

A blush painted over her cheeks, and she gave a small smile. "Okay."

"Good." he said, before turning them on the spot. The reappeared on the corner of a busy street, though no one paid them any attention, as each of them were rushing to meet their own agendas of the day. The very few who did even think to look twice at the two shook their heads at the nonsensical ideas, and firmly decided they needed to get something to eat. Fred murmured, taking her hand, "This way."

He gently tugged her down the street, looking this way and that for a shop that might give them some restaurant information. His eyes lit up when he saw a small bookstore. He looked down at her and said, "Now, I want you to run with me across the street on the count of three."

She wondered for a moment if he was crazy, as she glanced up and down the extremely crowded street; cabbies were zooming past, people were barging past, occasionally knocking people over, and he wanted her to run across the street? Seeing the obvious indecision in her eyes, he said, "Trust me."

Rose took a deep breath, and nodded, to which he smiled encouragingly. He looked back to the street, his eyes narrowing in concentration. "One... Two... Three!"

Taking off into a run immediately, they dashed across the street, laughing loudly at the cabbies honking their horns, people yelling, and the adrenaline rush all together. Bellamy never would have done this with her, and it was nice to be a bit stupid, she thought smiling widely. Still laughing, Rose and Fred entered the bookstore in high spirits, only to be chided by the owner inside for being too loud.

For once though, she didn't care. She forgot her hunger as she looked at all the books, longing clearly spelled out in her blue eyes. Fred noticed, and said, "Go on. I won't be too long. I've just got to ask for some information."

She smiled gratefully, and gave his hand a gentle squeeze before taking off in quick steps towards the tall, dusty bookshelves. He watched her go with a fond smile, before turning to the older woman behind the counter. "Do you know where the nearest french restaurants are?"

She paused for a moment, a look of concentration on her wrinkled face. "I'll have to check and see. It may be a few minutes," she warned as she pulled out an extremely thick yellowed phone book.

"That's fine. I'll just browse," he said politely, nodding his head. An idea suddenly forming in his head, he asked, "Do you have any English- French dictionaries?"

"They'll be in the foreign section at the very back to your left." she said distractedly as she flipped through the book. He smiled wickedly, and took off quickly, knowing he and George would put that book to very good use if he could find it. Once he reached the easily identifiable foreign section, he began looking for any french translations. It turned out there were quite an assortment, but he chose one that looked promising enough. He began flipping through out of curiousity, recognizing some of the phrases the sisters had used.

He decided he'd better pay for it before Rose saw, or she and Bellamy would torch it. Their secrecy was obviously a nice thing for them, but it'd be nice to know what they were talking about, especially when they were talking about himself and George. He walked up to the counter, and set it down quietly, for she was still flipping through the heavy book, a scowl on her face.

Fred quietly said, "If you want, I can just-"

She cut him off, not even looking up. "No, it's fine. I've almost found it... Ahh. Okay, I was right. There's one on Chancery Lane called Chez Gérard."

"Thank you very much. Can you ring this up for me?" he asked, sliding the book across the counter towards her.

She nodded, and began typing away on her muggle contraption, before telling him, "That'll be fifteen pounds."

He handed over the allotted change, and waved her off when she went to bag it. "That won't be neccessary. It'll fit in my pocket just fine."

"Alrighty then. Have a good day." she said, giving him a smile.

"You too," he called over his shoulder, putting the book in his pocket quickly, as he went to find Rose. It took him a minute, but he found the small blonde cross legged in an aisle, with her back leaned against the book shelf, reading. Her hair was falling into her eyes, and she pushed it back behind her ear absentmindedly. It wasn't a big thing, or anything out of the ordinary, but for some reason it made him slightly breathless.

She seemed to sense his presence and looked up, smiling. "Did you find out where the restaurant was?"

"It's on Chancery Lane. You ready to go? Or do you want to buy that book?" he asked, trying to read the title.

She shook her head, "I was just passing the time," she put it back on a random shelf, and looked up at him, slightly amused. "Can you help me up?"

He obliged, holding out his hand to her, and pulled her up noticing how cold her hands were. "Blimey. Are you cold?"

"Not too bad," she lied. She had lost the sense of feeling in her hands a while back, and she cursed herself for wearing something that would give her no protection in any muggle building. They always had to keep it like the artic, for some reason she had never been able to fathom.

"I would offer to warm you up, but I fear that it would make you uncomfortable," he said, smiling at her.

"It wouldn't," she disagreed quietly, blushing. "I might need a change of clothes though," she murmured, thinking of the restaurant they would soon be going to.

"No problem." he grinned. "Your wish is my command, mademoiselle."