Can always be fixed.
You don't know how long you sit there crying with your pal by your side for every moment but eventually the tears begin to slow, your breath finally evening out though your heart still pounds, much like your head. Fang lifts his head slightly, his big eyes peering into yours and you give him a thankful smile through the tears, even if he doesn't know exactly what you're trying to convey. He gives your arm a little nudge and in your near delusional state, you assume that it's a reply to your thankfulness. You chuckle, giving him a good scratch of appreciation on his wrinkled forehead at the absurdity of the situation, but you'd be forever thankful that of all things, Fang was the only one that had held you together in your darkest moment.
It was nearly dark now and you knew that you'd have to move soon, to complete the favour for Hagrid even if your side of the bargain was now moot. You walk over to the cupboard and find fang's food, giving him a healthy amount in his bowl and replacing his water so that it was fresh. You know better than to disturb the oversized hound when he was eating and so you set to preparing yourself for the task, reaching into various cupboards and pulling out the equipment you'd need as Fang ate his dinner in peace.
To say you were in complete misery would almost be an understatement as you trudged down the path towards the tree line of the forbidden forest with fang dutifully beside you. Almost as it acting on autopilot, you made your way to the small dell in the woods where you'd been coming twice a day at least for the past two weeks, your side of the bargain with Hagrid.
You opened the gate to the wooden pen, fully equipped with the fire retardant boots and long sleeved gloves that Hagrid had given you and reached for the bucket at the end of the pen, scooping up the vile contents and leaned over the inner pen to dump out the contents into the little trough. Immediately the inhabitants of the pen came scuttling out, their glittering shells creating a magnificent display of light even in the limited lamp light.
The firecrabs scuttled on their six legs towards the food and instantly began nibbling at the food you'd laid out as you kept yourself back from being in the firing line of their flames. You'd already been caught out a few times, most notably on the side of your neck where you now sported a very sore and angry pink mark that had inadvertently caused the worst heartache of your life. You looked at the beguiling creatures, so beautiful and yet grotesque and wondered how in the hell you ended up here. You were covered almost head to toe in a slimy gel like substance that Hagrid had warned you always to use to protect your skin if you ended up in the line of fire. An old and grimy hat sat upon your head to protect your hair and though your robes were naturally fireproof, hagrid had provided an old coat for you to wear that he'd found in lost property. You looked dreadful, felt worse, but at least you were warm.
A little sparkle of fire caught your eye and you noticed one of the firecrabs becoming slightly aggressive with another. Usually Hagrid would step in at this point, telling you to stay clear back as he broke apart the two crabs but he wasn't here tonight and the duty fell on you. Fang barked at the sight and you were quick to silence him, not wanting to attract any other creatures from the forest. You quickly leapt over the pen and made yourself known to the crabs, careful to avoid any unnecessary burns and pulled the two fiery crabs apart with a definitive shove, your over emotional day causing you to lose all patience and therefore take necessary action without the hindrance of fear or emotion.
You climbed out of the pen, breathing heavily from inhaling the smoke around the two flaming crabs and dumped the bucket back beside the food pen, wanting to get away as soon as possible, hoping that Hagrid would already be back with the kettle brewing. You dumped the protective gloves and the hat on the side of the food pen and pulled out your wand to rid yourself of the suffocating gel that covered every inch of bare skin with a simple charm, though you'd need to bathe to really be rid of it. You kept the boots on for good measure, not wanting to dirty your shoes on the walk back up to the hut.
Fang guided you back to the tree line of the forbidden forest with you trailing a little behind, hardly able to drag your body any faster. Your stomach growled loudly at you and you realised that you'd barely eaten anything today, from your quick exit at breakfast to the skipped lunch which left no time to eat. Once you were clear of the trees, you let out a deep sigh at getting a clear view of the castle, dreading what was waiting for you inside. Instead, you looked towards Hagrid's hut and froze when you saw that all too familiar figure awaiting for you once more.
You didn't want to continue walking towards him but had nowhere to escape to other than back to the forest which was definitely not an option on your own. You didn't want to do this here, or now, with no energy left and your body crying out for rest. You were depleted of all energy, running on hardly any sleep and no food. At least you wouldn't have to stay up late into the night for your stupid project anymore.
"Taken up chimney sweeping in your spare time have you?" He jokes, no doubt seeing the soot on your face from the quarrreling crabs.
"Fred, can we not do this now," you say with a dismissive sigh, opening the door to the hut for fang who happily trotted in, collapsing into his soft bed so easily that it made you jealous, wanting nothing more than to do that yourself. Hagrid still hadn't returned and you briefly considered just walking inside the hut and locking the door behind you in a feeble attempt to make Fred and all your problems go away.
"Please," he says, his tone much calmer now, almost pleading with you. "You have every right to be mad at me, I should have never said that to you."
"You mean you shouldn't have said it out loud," you quip, knowing exactly what he was referring to.
"No," he says quickly, running his hands through his hair in frustration. "I never meant.. that. You know how much you mean to me, you're, well you're everything."
"Only in the bedroom," you snark, not dropping the hatred from your voice, hardly able to look at him.
"No, sweetheart please, you don't, you know I didn't," he says, sounding more contrite than you'd ever heard him, his hands reaching for you one again in an almost desperate scramble.
"No Fred, I don't," you snap, your emotions no longer able to be contained. "It's not just about your stupid comment or how it's made over four years of our relationship a cheap joke! I don't know anything anymore!"
You take a deep breath to steady yourself, voice quivering once again with your emotions, somewhat thankful that Fred doesn't even attempt to interrupt or interject. Despite the steadiness of your breath, your emotions quickly get the better of you and you can't help but let it all out, the mounting misery of the past two weeks free flowing now as the barricades shatter around you.
"Everyday for two weeks I've been looking after those sodding firecrabs for Hagrid so I'd have somewhere to work! Up at 5 everyday to come down here to clean and feed those evil like tortoises then back again after dinner. I've barely had time for my homework, I'm behind in every class, Snape's threatened detention all of next week because I fell asleep during his lecture on the history of cauldrons and their importance, like I give a single sodding shit! I've been avoiding you because I could never explain why I'd been doing it and it was harder to lie to you when I'm so exhausted all I wanted is to crawl into your lap and fall asleep because you're the only person that brings me comfort. I did all of this for you and all that it did was ruin everything!" You voice breaks as tears begin to stream down your face once more and you no longer care to hold it together in front of him, the pain no longer able to be contained.
"I ruined everything," you sniff, "I lost you. I tried so hard and all I did was push you away, I lost you." You sniffle again and your voice comes out weaker every time, voice breaking almost completely. "There was never anyone else. And now Angelina gets to take my place and I'm lost Fred, I don't know what to do without you. I was just trying to do something nice."
Your voice breaks one final time and you can no longer talk as a sob breaks through. Within seconds Fred has his arms around you. He holds you tightly to his chest, allowing you to sob into the material of his robe as his strong arms hold you together. His hand reaches up to stroke your hair and it only makes you cry harder for a few moments before it evens out again as Fred holds you still. You can hear him shushing you gently, cooing almost as he stands unwavering, letting you cry it out. Once your sobs stop, he reaches out to hold either side of your voice, forcing you to look up at his face. Even through your somewhat blurry eyes you can see that he'd been crying too, glistening lines trailing down his face and onto his nose, eyes a little puffy and lined with red.
"Sssh sweetheart, you didn't lose me, I'm right here," he says gently, imploring you with his eyes. Your lip wobbles as his words slowly sink in, the faint glimmers of hope and relief beginning to ignite within you.
"I'm right here," he assures you, thumb reaching out to wipe away another falling tear from under your left eye. "I'm not going anywhere, ever."
His own voice is strained and you can tell he's holding back, even as your grip loosens on him, feeling suddenly more steady as you begin to believe his words.
"I've loved you since the moment I saw you wearing my jumper to the quidditch match back in second year, I swear. You're it for me, the minute me and George make a killing at the shop I'm putting a ring in your finger like you deserve and making you my wife as soon as mum's talking to us again."
You can't help but let out a little chuckle at his words, watching as his face erupts in a little smile, knowing that he'd broken through your sorrow. You knew how Molly felt about their business and the inevitable rupture it was going to cause with them leaving their education early to pursue their dreams. Eventually she'd talk to them again, though you didn't know when.
He turns slightly more serious again, a little frown tugging at his brows.
"I can't believe you'd ever think that I could replace you. I've been such a bloody idiot," his head dropping slightly as he speaks. "This morning outside potions, I never meant for it to turn into that. I really was just asking you to the black lake. I just wanted my girl back, to tell her about how George had invited Angelina last night and how I saw them snogging when I came back from getting those good rocks from the bottom."
You look at him with wide eyes, your problems momentarily forgotten as you gasp at his disclosure, earning a wicked smile in return at your outburst.
"No way!"
Hearing his chuckle once again brings a smile to your face and in mere seconds his hands are sneaking around your waist, a much more comfortable affair, just as they used to.
"I tell you I want to marry you and the biggest reaction I get is to telling you about your future brother in law snogging someone! Typical!"
You reach out and give him a delicate swat on the shoulder before you bite the bullet and lean up to kiss him. It's one of those kisses that takes your breath away almost instantly, the power and the meaning behind the kiss so prudent. It's a reconciliation, an absolution and a forgiveness all in one. Your tears are long forgotten now as you hold on to each other closely, the playfulness and the connection between you having been cemented once again.
When you pull away, he's smiling. That special smile that seems as if it's only for you, eyes shimmering and looking greener than ever against the slightly red rimmed eyelids.
"Calm down Freddie, it's not like you proposed," you taunt with a playful roll of your eyes that makes him squeeze you tightly in reply.
"Maybe it was," he jokes with a playful raise of his eyebrows, earning a little nudge from you.
"You could at least wait until I'm not filthy and covered in soot," you joke, knowing that your face is probably covered.
"You look like a Weasley already," he beams, his smile only widening when he hears you bark out a laugh at the unexpected quip. "Want to head back to the castle?"
You nod, only to pause a moment later when you realise with a building amount of guilt that you had never finished your project, needing it for tomorrow. Your stomach growls loudly in protest at the prospect of missing dinner again and you're torn between what needs doing and what you want to do.
"Ah y/n! Hope those firecrabs didn't give yer much trouble. Fred, good to see yer! Happy birthday! How'd you like yer present? Spent weeks on it y/n has!" Hagrid bellows, appearing as if from nowhere, nodding his head excitedly as he steps inside the hut greeting fang. You sigh, not even slightly annoyed at the disclosure of your secret even after you'd tried so hard to conceal.
Fred's eyes widen, eyebrows raising as he smirks at you devilishly, acting like the cat that got the cream.
"My present eh?" He smirks, swaying you from side to side as his arms slip around your waist once more.
"Yes your present, for your birthday... tomorrow," you taunt, not giving him any hints. He whines like a petulant child but you simply roll your eyes, not giving anything away.
"But I've been such a good boy this year."
"You probably haven't, and I'm not Santa," you counter with a smirk, winning a kiss from him though you know it's just to shut you up.
"So that's what you've been doing? You've been making my present?" He says, no longer joking as he looks down at you with soft eyes, a stark comparison to the look you wish to forget from earlier. You nod, not wanting to give anything away. His hand comes up to your chin and cups it gently, pressing a delicate kiss to your lips, his way of a precursory thank you.
"If you hate it it's completely fine, I can change anything," you say, leading both Fred and George down to Hagrid's hut where their gifts are waiting for them.
"Princess," Fred warns, stopping you from spiralling.
"You know we'll love it," George says trailing slightly behind. "Especially because you made it, and we know you love us," he jokes with a wide grin.
"Some more than others," you bite back, earning a playful shove from the slightly younger twin and a loud chuckle from the elder.
"Baby, I can't, you..."
"Merlin y/n."
You'd never heard the twins speechless before and you wished more than ever that you could take a photo of their faces, to capture the moment you stole their words from them.
"You really did this? For us?" George asks, looking at you in bewilderment, his fingers sliding across the top of the sign that you'd so proudly painted. You nodded, tears beginning to rise as you look at your beloved twins looking at you with so much thankfulness and adoration that it makes it hard to breathe.
In front of you, displayed on thick boards are posters for all of their products, ready made and free to use for their shop. You'd designed all the packaging and promotion for them, even included their likeness on the skiving snack boxes poster that you were actually rather proud of. You were surrounded by a symphony of colour set against the muted pallet of Hagrid's hut. The posters were as fun filled and dramatic as their products and from everything they'd ever told you about their plans for the shop, you knew they'd fit right in.
"You have no idea how much this means to me," George says, suddenly turning all emotional at your gift. He reaches for you and pulls you into a strong hug that feels eerily similar and yet so different to his twin but nevertheless you sink into the hug with a smile. "Best present ever," he says when you both break apart, "can't wait for you to be my sister."
George turns to look at Fred who had remained eerily quiet and senses that it's time for him to leave, reaching for your shoulder to give it a little squeeze as he leaves you too alone. You look on hesitantly towards Fred who still stares at the paintings in front of him, his face incredibly hard to read in that moment.
"I'm sorry if you hate them," you say in a quiet voice, his extended silence suddenly making you anxious.
He turns upon hearing your voice and silently makes his way over to you, his eyes fixed upon yours until the last moment when his hands reach out for your jaw as he captured your lips in a blazing kiss. You're caught off guard but steady yourself quickly, kissing him back with as much need and affection as he's giving you.
He pulls away and there's a desperation in his eyes that you can't place, as if his mind is ticking over with juxtaposing thoughts.
"Marry me."
"What?" You ask, the breath completely knocked out of you.
"Marry me," he says again, the clarity in his eyes nearly forcing your knees to buckle. "I know I'm supposed to be down on one knee with a beautiful ring to tempt you," he says quickly, eyes shining. You let out a breath of laughter at his words, as if you'd ever need anything to tempt you towards marrying him.
"You deserve all of that and I'll give you all that and more, anything you want in life is yours. But this," he pauses, gesturing to the artwork around him. "You astound me everyday with your creativity and your talent, but not just that, with your generosity and your thoughtfulness. I know I'm impulsive and don't always think far enough ahead but I've never been more certain, never seen things as clearly as I do right now. I want to spend my life with you, I want to wake up everyday with you by my side and to go to sleep holding you every single night. I never want to feel like I did yesterday and it's only made me more certain that I need you to be my wife. I know we're young and we can keep it secret until the time is right, even from George. Marry me."
You leap forward the second his lips have stopped moving, throwing your arms around his neck as your lips fiercely claim his, a proclamation of your love and a wordless acceptance of his proposal.
"Yes Fred Weasley, I'll marry you!"
His smile is wider than you'd ever seen it as he places another kiss upon your lips, hardly able to kiss as your smiles are too wide, too contagious, the promise of forever sounding too perfect.
You pull away, still smiling like fools as you giggle at the sudden turn of events, a new secret to hide but this time it wouldn't come between you both.
"Well if some painting get me a proposal, wait till you see the window displays I've drawn up," you smirk, leading him by the hand out of Hagrid's hut and out onto the grounds for a walk, the past behind you and the future to look forward to.