Chapter 1
Hermione Granger first became aware of her deeper feelings for a certain charismatic, red headed twin with a penchant for pranks sometime during the summer before her fifth year. In hindsight, her feelings had been developing for years. Fred Weasley had sat next to her during the first magical feast she had experienced in the Great Hall at Hogwarts. She had been so nervous to start her adventure into this brand new world that she had worked herself up into a complete frenzy. Yet, this wonderfully sweet boy with a kind smile had answered every single one of her rambling questions without any hesitation, allowing Hermione to slowly relax.
Fred was the first person at Hogwarts to show Hermione true kindness. He had found her one evening around three weeks into her first year, slumped over her Transfiguration homework in the library, tears slowly and silently dripping on the table. She had already been feeling lonely and missing home, yet to make a friend in this daunting world, when she had overheard some of her fellow classmates ridiculing everything about her - her hair, her teeth and, most of all, her know-it-all attitude. Hermione had never felt more alone and yet here was this lovely, gentle boy, wrapping his arm around her shoulders and murmuring comforting words to her. She had been there for over an hour and no one else had either noticed or cared enough to see if she was okay.
In her second year, Fred was the first person to have her back when pug-faced Pansy Parkinson had called her a Mudblood in the Charms corridor. He had marched right across the hallway, pining Pansy to the wall with his physique alone, never laying a finger on her but trapping her none the less, towering over her with his tall frame and broad shoulders. Hermione couldn’t hear what he had growled in Pansy’s face, but the girl had blanched, all colour draining from her face, before she had turned and scampered back the way she had come, as fast as she could, her eyes glued to the floor.
During the week they spent together at The Leaky Cauldron before beginning her third year – his fifth – they had wound up spending most mealtimes next to one another, discussing their favourite authors and swapping book recommendations. After spending so much time with his younger brother, Hermione had automatically assumed all Weasleys shared Ron’s distaste for leisurely reading. She had felt ashamed of what she had subconsciously done, but that was rapidly replaced with glee when she realised she could finally discuss the new book she was reading, without someone rolling their eyes or yawning obnoxiously at her. Hermione was pleasantly surprised that Fred enjoyed many of the same authors she did and was delighted when he shared some wizarding authors with similar styles with her. She recommended a couple of lesser-known muggle authors she thought he might enjoy, without thinking he might actually check them out. However, her face positively glowed with pride when he tracked her down in the Gryffindor common room roughly a week later, thanking her for one of her suggestions and raving about how he couldn’t wait to read more of their work.
Most recently, Fred had stopped Hermione from ruining her nail beds beyond repair during the final task of the Triwizard Tournament, distracting her from chewing on them by handing over sweet after sweet, as she anxiously waited for Harry to emerge from the gigantic, sprawling maze. She hadn’t even realised what he had been doing until long after the event. In short, Fred Weasley had always shown Hermione unwavering kindness. At times, he had been a better friend to her that Harry and Ron had been. After all, he was the only person to keep talking to her during the great Firebolt fallout of ’94. Being trapped inside number 12 Grimmauld Place with him the past few weeks, Hermione felt as if she could see Fred clearly for the first time.
She found herself gravitating towards him like a magnet, the force undeniable. His presence seemed to light up the room and she was being drawn to him like a moth to a flame. Hermione found herself longing for his attention – a cheeky wink here, a brush of his fingers against her arm as they were passing on one of the many narrow landings there. She had vivid dreams of Fred lacing his fingers with hers while leaving the kitchen after dinner, sneaking her into an unused room away from the others. He would tuck an errant curl behind her ear and cup her face in his large hands before declaring himself head over heels for her. He would gaze lovingly into her eyes, proclaiming she was the only one for him, drawing her closer before finally brushing his lips to hers in the most tender, gentle kiss. Hermione would wake up flushed and full of hope.
That was until, a week before they were due to return to Hogwarts, Hermione overheard a conversation that broke her heart into a thousand pieces.
Mrs Weasley had tasked her to fetch everyone for lunch. Hermione had already sent Ginny, Harry and Ron down and was climbing the final staircase to grab Fred and George. As she rounded the top of the stairs and began to head down the landing towards the twins’ room, she noticed their door was slightly ajar. She raised her hand to knock when she heard her name and froze.
“What, Hermione?!”
“Yeah, I reckon you’re in there, Freddie. Can’t keep her eyes off you mate”, came the playful tones of George Weasley.
“Come off it”, she heard Fred reply.
“Nah, honest. She’s practically drooling over you!”
“You’re mad, Georgie. I’m like her big brother!”
Hermione recoiled from the door as if she had been slapped. Tears welled in her eyes as she backed away from the door as quietly as she could. She was halfway down the stairs when a floorboard creaked beneath her. She rushed to the room she shared with Ginny and pushed the door as close to shut as she could without it making a noise just as she heard one of the twins calling over the banister to see who was there. After hearing them blame it on Kreacher, she heard the boys disapparate down to the kitchen to see if lunch was ready. She crept under her covers, letting her tears fall freely. She wasn’t sure how much time had passed when she heard the bedroom door open gently.
“Hermione?”, came Ginny’s delicate voice. “Are you okay, Sweetie? You never came back down for lunch.”
“Sorry, Gin. I started getting some cramps, so I came in here to lay down for a bit. I think it might be my period”, Hermione made up on the fly. She hoped Ginny bought it, even though she felt awful for lying to her. She really couldn’t face being around the chaos of the Weasley family right now.
“Of course, Mi. Get some rest and I’ll go see if I can find you some chocolate. Do you want me to get you a heat pad or ask mum for some pain potion for you?”
“No, no. Honestly, I’ll be okay in a bit. The chocolate sounds good though.”
She heard Ginny leave the room and let out a quiet sob. Hermione had never felt more humiliated in her life. Not even when Professor Snape had pretended not to notice the difference in the size of her front teeth after she had been hit with Draco Malfoy’s Densaugeo last year. To know George had not only noticed her feelings but described them to Fred the way he had made her feel like a pathetic joke. Had she really been that obvious? Oh God, how many of the others had noticed too? Was everybody talking about her and laughing behind her back? She would never be able to face them again, the embarrassment was burning through her like a wave of hot lava.
What hurt Hermione the most though was Fred’s reaction. True, he didn’t have laughter in his voice like George did, but the rejection had still stung her through to her core. He didn’t just not fancy her, which would have been bad enough. He also thought of her as a little sister, meaning he would NEVER look at her in a romantic way. This had to be way worse than the "friend zone" that she had heard Lavender and Parvati talking about one evening, as they gossiped in the beds next to her in the Gryffindor dormitory. Her heart hurt and she felt sick to her stomach with the thought of leaving her bed and facing everyone. Curling tightly into a ball on her side, knees to her chest with one had on her uneasy stomach and one over her aching heart, Hermione cried herself off to sleep long before Ginny returned, large bar of her favourite Honeyduke’s chocolate in hand.