Status: work in progress
Tough Love
Chapter 7
Isabel was worried about Anya, she’d barely eaten since her encounter with those two knuckle heads in the dungeons and she’d spoken even less, and now Isabel couldn’t even find her. Usually Anya would spend hours at a time in the library or hiding out in the girls’ dormitory, but for some reason, she hadn’t been in either place. How she could hide herself so effectively was a complete mystery. Isabel shook her head and continued looking, the castle wasn’t that big and didn’t have that many hiding spots, and she couldn’t have gone too far. She hadn’t gotten far when blondie stormed past, muttering something about filthy, girl stealing blood traitors; Isabel just stared at his retreating back before turning around and walking straight into Fred. “Whoops… sorry” she mumbled, trying to get past him.
“No, it’s ok,” Fred replied, blocking her path, “where ya headed?”
“I’m trying to find Anya, have you seen her?”
“Nope. Have you seen George?”
“Not today I haven’t. I’d suggest they were together, but that would mean that they’re actually talking again,” Isabel told him, rolling her eyes.
“True,” Fred said laughing, “but stranger things have happened.”
The two started walking down the hallway Draco had just come out of, chances were that if he was going one way muttering about “girl stealing blood-traitors” then George, and possibly Anya, was most likely in the opposite direction. “How did you guys meet Anya anyways?” Isabel asked randomly after a few minutes of walking in silence.
“I guess we’ve technically know her since she was born,” he replied after considering Isabel’s question for a moment, “although we spent more time with her twin than we ever did with her back then.”
“Wait, Anya has a twin?” Isabel interrupted, “why didn’t she tell me?”
“It’s complicated…” Fred answered slowly, “you see, when Anya was four years old, back before You-Know-Who had fallen out of power, Death Eaters attacked her and her family in their home. Her parents died protecting her and her brother. That’s why she lives with RJ; her parents’ will said that if something happened to them, that Anya would be sent to live with her Godfather.”
Isabel abruptly stopped walking, “But what happened to her twin brother? Did he…” she didn’t know how to finish the question, mostly because she didn’t know if she wanted to hear its answer.
“No one knows for sure,” Fred replied, stopping and turning to face her, “but they never found him or any sign that he’d been killed during the attack, he just vanished. Anya probably hasn’t told you yet because she doesn’t have answers or explanations to what happened, and she doesn’t want anyone’s pity or for them to feel sorry for her. She just wants things to me the way they were before people find out about her past.”
“I had no idea…” Isabel said softly. “So how did she become so close to you guys then?”
“That story is actually kind of ironic,” he told her grinning, “when we were little, we’d always be getting into stuff with Anya’s brother. He disappeared when we were five, we kept on driving our mum crazy with our antics and pranks, but in some ways it just wasn’t the same for a long while. Eventually we got to Hogwarts, met Lee Jordan, and created quite a reputation for causing mischief and mayhem. In our second year, we ran into Anya and R.J. at Platform 9 3/4, we hadn’t seen her in years, but it was still quite a shock of how much she resembled her brother. Somehow, a rather large Slytherin got between me and George and was trying to decide the best way to curse him when he was attacked by a flying squirrel. Needless to say he left us alone after that.”
“Let me guess, this particular squirrel belonged to a soon to be first year Gryffindor.”
“Correct as usual,” Fred said smiling, making her blush, “and thanks to her fast thinking and amazing flying squirrel, whose name I never seem to be able to remember, we’ve been friends since.”
“And I’m guessing that your brother’s had a crush on her since that day as well,” she stated, leading him down the hallway.
“Correct again, that’s two for two. Not bad chica.”
“If that’s all the Spanish you’ve picked up after almost a month and a half of knowing me, then we’ve got some problems,” Isabel told him, trying to hide her now crimson cheeks.
“Hey, not my fault you and Anya speak Spanish at a zillion miles an hour and I can’t figure out the meaning of anything else,” he retorted.
“Well, I guess I’ll just have to teach you, won’t I?”
“That’d help,” he replied, “now back to finding my brother and your best friend, they can’t be but so far considering the size of the castle.”
“True,” Isabel replied, happy for the change in subject. She led the way down the hall and past a few open archways, seeing only a few mischievous first years and a happy couple sitting on a window sill talking about who knows what. Isabel abruptly stopped walking, causing Fred to walk right into her. She cut off his apology by grabbing his arm and pulling him back a few feet to the archway were she had seen the couple talking, she recognized that red hair from somewhere. Sure enough, it was George sitting on the window sill with the view of the pouring rain, and next to him, surprisingly, was Anya.
“There you guys are, we’ve been looking for you for ages,” Isabel exclaimed, towing Fred down the corridor.
“Sorry, we didn’t know you were looking for us, or we’d of made ourselves easier to find,” Anya said, smiling as she hopped off the window sill, bringing George with her.
“Oliver’s going to wring us alive if we aren’t at practice in half an hour, you know we’ve got that match this Saturday. We can’t afford to lose to Slytherin,” Fred told his twin, leaning against the wall opposite him.
“Assuming that Draco stops pretending to have a severely damaged arm so he’ll be able to play in this God awful weather,” Anya remarked, turning to stare at the dismal weather out the window.
“Very true,” Isabel chimed in, “and I wouldn’t count on him manning up to play in this wonderful weather when he could stay safely on the ground as an observer.”
“I can see him doing that,” George put in, going over to stand next to Anya by the window sill.
“So you two made up?” Isabel asked tentatively.
“Yeah, we’re cool again,” Anya answered, reaching over and holding George’s hand.
“Ok… and on that note, we’ve got to get to practice before Wood murders us,” Fred stated, pulling his twin away.
“I’m coming, I’m coming, hold your horses,” George laughed, leaning over to kiss Anya’s cheek.
With that they were gone, leaving a blushing Anya and a slightly lost, but very happy, Isabel behind. “You said yes!!! I knew you’d make the right decision!!!” Isabel yelled in glee, bouncing up and down in celebration.
“Yes, I said yes,” Anya responded, laughing at her best friend’s reaction.
“Why is this so funny? It’s not my fault that I’m happy that my best friend made up with our other best friend whose twin has been bugging me for the past week because the fore mentioned twin’s been too busy sulking in some corner because you wouldn’t answer his question.”
“Really? He resorted to bugging you? I’m sorry,” Anya responded, barely able to keep form laughing.
“Yes really, and why is that so funny!?!”
“No reason, so… what have you been up to today?”
“Trying to find you, helping Fred find George, and stop trying to change the subject.”
“I’m not! Anyways, let’s go up to the common room before the feast,” Anya said, pushing off the wall and heading towards the stairs.
“What’s so important about this particular feast?”
“It’s the Halloween feast, which is always a big deal here for some reason,” Anya responded.
A few days later, on a particularly soggy Saturday morning, Anya and Isabel were sitting opposite a nervous Fred and George. “You’ll do great, with Harry as your seeker you’re most certainly going to win,” Anya reassured them.
“Yeah, I’m sure you’ll do great,” Isabel chimed in.
“You think?” Fred asked.
“Yeah, I do,” Isabel answered him.
“Wood’s rounding up the team, you’d best get going,” Anya told them, “good luck guys.”
“With this weather, we’re gonna need it,” George answered.
Soon after, Anya and Isabel walked out to the field in the pouring rain, to see that it was Hufflepuff not Slytherin that their team was playing. Not long after the match had started, dark cloaked figures descended onto the playing field. Their presence started a great disturbance in the stands, and on the field. Suddenly Fred and George were diving after a free falling figure. They caught the unconscious Harry and were taxing him towards the ground. Seconds later Cedric Diggory appeared clutching the golden snitch, making Hufflepuff the winners of the match. Anya had never seen Dumbledore or Wood so mad in her life. It was going to be a long night.
“No, it’s ok,” Fred replied, blocking her path, “where ya headed?”
“I’m trying to find Anya, have you seen her?”
“Nope. Have you seen George?”
“Not today I haven’t. I’d suggest they were together, but that would mean that they’re actually talking again,” Isabel told him, rolling her eyes.
“True,” Fred said laughing, “but stranger things have happened.”
The two started walking down the hallway Draco had just come out of, chances were that if he was going one way muttering about “girl stealing blood-traitors” then George, and possibly Anya, was most likely in the opposite direction. “How did you guys meet Anya anyways?” Isabel asked randomly after a few minutes of walking in silence.
“I guess we’ve technically know her since she was born,” he replied after considering Isabel’s question for a moment, “although we spent more time with her twin than we ever did with her back then.”
“Wait, Anya has a twin?” Isabel interrupted, “why didn’t she tell me?”
“It’s complicated…” Fred answered slowly, “you see, when Anya was four years old, back before You-Know-Who had fallen out of power, Death Eaters attacked her and her family in their home. Her parents died protecting her and her brother. That’s why she lives with RJ; her parents’ will said that if something happened to them, that Anya would be sent to live with her Godfather.”
Isabel abruptly stopped walking, “But what happened to her twin brother? Did he…” she didn’t know how to finish the question, mostly because she didn’t know if she wanted to hear its answer.
“No one knows for sure,” Fred replied, stopping and turning to face her, “but they never found him or any sign that he’d been killed during the attack, he just vanished. Anya probably hasn’t told you yet because she doesn’t have answers or explanations to what happened, and she doesn’t want anyone’s pity or for them to feel sorry for her. She just wants things to me the way they were before people find out about her past.”
“I had no idea…” Isabel said softly. “So how did she become so close to you guys then?”
“That story is actually kind of ironic,” he told her grinning, “when we were little, we’d always be getting into stuff with Anya’s brother. He disappeared when we were five, we kept on driving our mum crazy with our antics and pranks, but in some ways it just wasn’t the same for a long while. Eventually we got to Hogwarts, met Lee Jordan, and created quite a reputation for causing mischief and mayhem. In our second year, we ran into Anya and R.J. at Platform 9 3/4, we hadn’t seen her in years, but it was still quite a shock of how much she resembled her brother. Somehow, a rather large Slytherin got between me and George and was trying to decide the best way to curse him when he was attacked by a flying squirrel. Needless to say he left us alone after that.”
“Let me guess, this particular squirrel belonged to a soon to be first year Gryffindor.”
“Correct as usual,” Fred said smiling, making her blush, “and thanks to her fast thinking and amazing flying squirrel, whose name I never seem to be able to remember, we’ve been friends since.”
“And I’m guessing that your brother’s had a crush on her since that day as well,” she stated, leading him down the hallway.
“Correct again, that’s two for two. Not bad chica.”
“If that’s all the Spanish you’ve picked up after almost a month and a half of knowing me, then we’ve got some problems,” Isabel told him, trying to hide her now crimson cheeks.
“Hey, not my fault you and Anya speak Spanish at a zillion miles an hour and I can’t figure out the meaning of anything else,” he retorted.
“Well, I guess I’ll just have to teach you, won’t I?”
“That’d help,” he replied, “now back to finding my brother and your best friend, they can’t be but so far considering the size of the castle.”
“True,” Isabel replied, happy for the change in subject. She led the way down the hall and past a few open archways, seeing only a few mischievous first years and a happy couple sitting on a window sill talking about who knows what. Isabel abruptly stopped walking, causing Fred to walk right into her. She cut off his apology by grabbing his arm and pulling him back a few feet to the archway were she had seen the couple talking, she recognized that red hair from somewhere. Sure enough, it was George sitting on the window sill with the view of the pouring rain, and next to him, surprisingly, was Anya.
“There you guys are, we’ve been looking for you for ages,” Isabel exclaimed, towing Fred down the corridor.
“Sorry, we didn’t know you were looking for us, or we’d of made ourselves easier to find,” Anya said, smiling as she hopped off the window sill, bringing George with her.
“Oliver’s going to wring us alive if we aren’t at practice in half an hour, you know we’ve got that match this Saturday. We can’t afford to lose to Slytherin,” Fred told his twin, leaning against the wall opposite him.
“Assuming that Draco stops pretending to have a severely damaged arm so he’ll be able to play in this God awful weather,” Anya remarked, turning to stare at the dismal weather out the window.
“Very true,” Isabel chimed in, “and I wouldn’t count on him manning up to play in this wonderful weather when he could stay safely on the ground as an observer.”
“I can see him doing that,” George put in, going over to stand next to Anya by the window sill.
“So you two made up?” Isabel asked tentatively.
“Yeah, we’re cool again,” Anya answered, reaching over and holding George’s hand.
“Ok… and on that note, we’ve got to get to practice before Wood murders us,” Fred stated, pulling his twin away.
“I’m coming, I’m coming, hold your horses,” George laughed, leaning over to kiss Anya’s cheek.
With that they were gone, leaving a blushing Anya and a slightly lost, but very happy, Isabel behind. “You said yes!!! I knew you’d make the right decision!!!” Isabel yelled in glee, bouncing up and down in celebration.
“Yes, I said yes,” Anya responded, laughing at her best friend’s reaction.
“Why is this so funny? It’s not my fault that I’m happy that my best friend made up with our other best friend whose twin has been bugging me for the past week because the fore mentioned twin’s been too busy sulking in some corner because you wouldn’t answer his question.”
“Really? He resorted to bugging you? I’m sorry,” Anya responded, barely able to keep form laughing.
“Yes really, and why is that so funny!?!”
“No reason, so… what have you been up to today?”
“Trying to find you, helping Fred find George, and stop trying to change the subject.”
“I’m not! Anyways, let’s go up to the common room before the feast,” Anya said, pushing off the wall and heading towards the stairs.
“What’s so important about this particular feast?”
“It’s the Halloween feast, which is always a big deal here for some reason,” Anya responded.
A few days later, on a particularly soggy Saturday morning, Anya and Isabel were sitting opposite a nervous Fred and George. “You’ll do great, with Harry as your seeker you’re most certainly going to win,” Anya reassured them.
“Yeah, I’m sure you’ll do great,” Isabel chimed in.
“You think?” Fred asked.
“Yeah, I do,” Isabel answered him.
“Wood’s rounding up the team, you’d best get going,” Anya told them, “good luck guys.”
“With this weather, we’re gonna need it,” George answered.
Soon after, Anya and Isabel walked out to the field in the pouring rain, to see that it was Hufflepuff not Slytherin that their team was playing. Not long after the match had started, dark cloaked figures descended onto the playing field. Their presence started a great disturbance in the stands, and on the field. Suddenly Fred and George were diving after a free falling figure. They caught the unconscious Harry and were taxing him towards the ground. Seconds later Cedric Diggory appeared clutching the golden snitch, making Hufflepuff the winners of the match. Anya had never seen Dumbledore or Wood so mad in her life. It was going to be a long night.