It's Better If You Do

As Bellamy drifted down the stairs to go cook their lunch, Rose began arranging the shield and invisibility hats out of boredom. The children had left them strewn all of the floor and shelves, and it was a mindless task to sort them. She had to admire whoever had made them, for they had a lot of creativity; there were soft hats, tall hats, bonnets, bowlers, top hats, berets, and more all in different assortments of color. If they hadn't been for a specific purpose, she might have borrowed one.

"Rose? Are you alright?" Fred asked, and she turned to see his eyebrows furrowed in concern. She gave him a soft half smile, and shrugged.

"I'm fine," she said reassuringly, as he gave her a look full of skepticism. "It was just a Pygmy Puff and Bellamy helped me laugh it out."

"She helped you laugh?" he asked with a grin at the backwardness of the statement. Rose gave him a rueful smile, and nodded.

"She wasn't always cross and bitter like she is now. I've told you that," she said with a soft sigh. "It was nice. It felt like it had before when we used to joke and laugh about everything."

Fred smiled, picturing the two playing and hassling each other like he and George did all the time. That reminded him of their previous conversation, and he grinned at her, "If it makes you feel any better George is going to the Leaky Cauldron at seven to meet up with a girl about a business proposition."

Rose gasped delightedly, and threw her arms around Fred's neck, grinning and her voice a bit higher than normal from her excitement, "That definitely makes me feel better! Thank you! That idea is genius!"

"I have been known to come up with a few brilliant plans every now and then," he said casually, grinning widely at her. "But he almost didn't believe me when I said you'd be jealous if I went." A blush spread across Rose's cheeks, and her nose wrinkled a bit, considering a pretty girl like the waitress alone at a restaurant with Fred. He let out a startled laugh, grinning from ear-to-ear, "So you would be jealous. I figured as much since the restaurant."

"I was not jealous," she grumbled sourly, while he raised his eyebrow, smirking. Kissing her forehead, he chuckled.

"You're a right terrible liar, did you know that?" he said quietly, before whispering, "I didn't even think she was attractive, to be honest. I was too busy looking at you."

Rose's eyes brightened and a pretty smile swept over her face, causing him to smile in response. "Really?" she asked.

"Really." he replied sincerely. She let out a slight hum and hugged him close, to which he gladly complied, holding her close and laying his cheek on the top of her head. They stood like that for a moment or two before he said in a slightly awed voice, "You're so tiny."

Frowning, she began to pull away giving him a mocking glare, "The best things come in the smallest packages, you know."

"Like broomsticks?" he asked with a loud laugh, while she rolled her eyes and detangled herself gracefully before sorting out hats again with him watching her with a curious expression. There appeared to be a certain system she was matching them up with, though he couldn't pick out a defined pattern. He leaned against the wall and settled in to figure it out. In the distance, the shop bells were ringing less and less until customers couldn't be seen in the store at all, and the sweet smell of Bellamy's cooking drifted up meet their noses, each of them sniffing appreciatively.

"Mmm," Rose murmured with a happy smile. "Stromboli. It's one of her specialities. Neighbors used to hire her to cook on special occasions, because it was so good."

A fevered look came over Fred's face and he said reverently, "The day you two came is the best day of my life."

This incited a long merry laugh from Rose, and George looked up at them in suspicion. He decided to burst their bubble a little bit, and yelled, "Oi! Just because it's almost lunch time doesn't mean you two can stop working!"

"Oh, dearest brother of mine, you wouldn't be able to work either if you smelled what Bellamy's cooking us for lunch," Fred called smoothly, earning a giggle from the blonde next to him. George looked at the back room, indecision obvious in his features.

"What- what is it?" he asked slowly, his eyes full of wonder. Italian food hadn't ever much been on the regimen at his house or Hogwarts, but whatever it was smelled so appetizing he found his mouth watering. Rose crossed over to the railing and leaned over with a smirk.

"Four cheese stromboli from the smell of it," she said nonchalantly, trying not to laugh at the wild look of happiness on George's face. "Of course, I could be wrong."

"I'll go see!" came the cheerful reply, and he immediately began walking to the back room at a much faster pace than one would normally move. Chuckling, she turned to Fred with an amused smile. "Are you as swayed by food as he is?"

"Not particularly. Not when something else has my attention completely," he murmured, sauntering over to her, a look of mischief in his eyes. Rose's heart began to pound, and she bit her lip delicately. The look was so reminiscent of last night that it was no surprise to her when Fred pressed his lips to hers, his hands tangling in her hair a bit harder than she would have expected, but she didn't mind in the slightest. Her arms went around his neck quickly, and he pressed her tighter to him, his tongue gently sweeping over her bottom lip.

The hell with them, she though indifferently when she remembered all of George and Bellamy's teasings. Who wouldn't want to be kissed all the time? It was beyond anything else she had ever felt and she never wanted that feeling to end. Never had she been kissed like this, and never by someone she cared about. With a bit of satisfaction, she noticed that his heart was beating just as hard as hers, for she could feel it against her chest. Then she realized they were in plain sight and would probably get even more jokes if either one of their siblings saw them together.

Sighing, she pulled away to a surprised Fred who looked down at her confusedly. Rose saw that his lips were swollen and red, undoubtedly looking just like hers. She touched them softly, before murmuring, "I think we need to stop before they see us. As much as I enjoy kissing you, I don't enjoy all the teasing."

Fred nodded, though looking very mutinous. She smiled and pecked him on the lips, before grabbing his hand, intertwining it with hers, and following the smell of lunch.