Chapter 20
“I am so very sorry about this. Beyond sorry, I am sorrow itself. I am awash with regret. Beset by shame. Rueful, is what I am.” With a pitiful sigh that was only a little bit gleeful, Fred cast another spell at the snowbank growing rapidly around their feet. “Self-reproach, thy name is Fred Weasley,” he continued. “The shame, the honest to Merlin shame is-”
“Do me a favour Fred?” Hermione attempted to lift a foot out of the snow, only for the snowbank to wrap even tighter around her ankles.
“Yes Hermione?”
“If you could just stop talking for a while, just a for a little bit, that would be marvellous.”
“Of course, of course!” Fred mimed zipping his mouth shut. They were standing very close together, Hermione’s right side pressing a line of warmth against Fred’s chest.
The light above the door of Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes made her glow and sent spirals of gold through her cloud of hair. Then she shivered and Fred parked all thoughts of snow-spun angels in favour of shrugging off his hoodie in the most dashing way possible.
“Why isn’t anyone else getting stuck?” Hermione asked, indicating the busy shoppers squeezing past and even walking straight over the snow without becoming trapped.
“Interesting question, young Granger. The portable Winter Wonderland is part of our Weasley’s Wonderful Wooing range and, it, ah, well yes, quite interesting how that came about. You see it turns out that back in the 1400’s a young chap by the name of Fillius Flobber had the bright idea to-”
“Put a sock in it,” George interrupted, appearing with three mugs of hot chocolate a rueful smile. “Really sorry about this Hermione. I’ve been going over the spell work and it turns out-”
“That the spell has evolved to only trap people who want to be trapped together?” This time Hermione interrupted, raising an eyebrow as she sipped her hot chocolate.
George barked out a laugh and began retreating towards the shop as Fred gaped down at her.