Chapter Thirty

A/N: Thank you to Cecelie Jones for reviewing the last chapter.

The insecurity of trying to control her changes had made those few months feel like decades, but once the pressure was lifted from Lena's shoulders, time passed by in the blink of an eye. First year came to an end, then the second, then the third, then the fourth, all in a blur of childish joy. Of course, she knew that that innocence could not last forever, but there were many worse ways it could have been taken from her than through the approach of the O.W.L. exams.

"It's no use, I'm never going to get my head around all this." Fred exclaimed, throwing his bundle of notes across the room. Selena jumped forward to stop the parchment sheets as they skidded across the table, managing to catch them just in time before they sent her ink pot flying. The redhead scratched the back of his head sheepishly, trying to avoid his best friend's fearsome glare. "Sorry, Lena."

"I wouldn't mind if it wasn't the fourth time in an hour." the girl sighed in response, trying and failing to curb her irritation a little. "If you're that bothered about it, move on to something else and come back to it later."

"I've been doing that for the last three months." Fred snapped back, throwing his head back against the cushions. "The exam's next week, Lena. If I don't learn it now, I'm going to fail it."

"Fred, just stop panicking." Selena responded, forcing her voice to be a little louder than his. Five years of friendship had taught her a few little things about Fred; the more fearful he was, the louder he would become, and to try and quieten him down by lowering her own voice had never worked yet. "We've still got loads of time, it'll all work out fine in the end."

Fred opened his mouth to argue, but closed it again. He knew he was his own worst enemy when he allowed himself to be, and Lena was only trying to help. Instead, he leaned across the table, taking the pile of notes Lena offered him and smiling a little as she crossed the common room to sit on the sofa beside him.

"I find it easier to draw it out." Lena suggested, leaning across her best friend to reach a spare piece of parchment. Fred hid it well, but she heard him take a sudden breath as she brushed past him, like he was surfacing from under water. He had never behaved that way around her before. "Fred, are you okay?"

The boy looked up, startled, as if she had just asked if he fancied jumping out of the nearest window. "What are you talking about?"

"You just seem a bit on edge, that's all." Selena shrugged, trying to seem more nonchalant than she truly was. Fred already looked like he might bolt at any moment, she did not want to make him any worse. "Is it the exams?"

The redhead paused a moment, face blank, before he nodded eagerly. Had she been looking harder, Lena might have spotted the relief in his expression. "Yeah. I'm just stressed, you know? These exams are important, I can't afford to mess them up."

"And you won't." Lena whispered, like she was speaking the most obvious fact in the world. "It's just the waiting that makes it worse. Once the exams are over, all the worrying will just seem silly. You wait and see."

Fred chuckled under his breath, reaching over to wrap an arm around Lena's shoulders. They used to sit like that for hours when they were children, imagining the days when they would be at the top of the school and everyone would listen to them. Somehow, it did not feel quite the same any more.

"Do you ever think about what you'll do when we leave school?" Fred asked, his eyes flitting across to his best friend.

Selena shrugged gently. "I don't know, really. My gran's been trying to push me towards becoming an Auror, like my mum, but I probably won't get the grades for that. Teddy might. Maybe something else in the Ministry, though. I've always liked the idea of the Department of International Magical Cooperation."

"You'd be great at that, talking everyone round, bringing peace to warring countries." Fred smiled, nudging his best friend's arm. "You'd probably end up Supreme Mugwump by the end of it."

"No, I'd never be that good." Selena protested, her cheeks reddening a little. "How about you? You must have some ideas, if you're so worried about your Potions exam."

Fred frowned, looking from side to side in confusion. "My Potions exam?"

Selena plucked the bundle of notes from his hand, waving them in front of his face. This time, her laugh was more of a scoff, as she was no longer able to hide her concern behind humour. "What's the matter with you today? You've got the attention span of a Niffler in a Gringotts vault."

The young woman's bemused expression was no match for Fred's. The arm wrapped around Lena's shoulders fell limp, as Fred shuffled forwards, clasping his hands together on his knees. The brunette wanted to speak, to say something to comfort him, but somehow, she could not bring herself to interrupt. Instead, she sat by his side, her arms wrapped around her waist, until he finally spoke again.

"Lena, I've got something I want to tell you." Fred sighed, glancing up over his shoulder. "It's just… we've been through so much over the years, you've trusted me with so many secrets and… I don't feel right lying to you."

"Fred, please." Lena's voice was so low, she could barely hear herself. "I don't care what it is, I just want you to tell me. I won't be upset, I promise, I won't be anything. Just tell me."

The redhead took in a heaving breath, held it for a few moments, then blew out sharply, returning his arm to her shoulder. "It's nothing, Lena. I just hate talking about what'll happen after school. Things are great how they are, you and me. I don't want to think about that being gone."

Selena let out a joyful laugh, relief overwhelming her. Her mind had been running away with itself, imagining all the terrible things that could be coming to destroy her world when she had only just found happiness in her life. She nudged her shoulder playfully against Fred's. "Listen, Weasley, that's never going to happen. It's you and me against the world, always."

When she wrapped her arms around her friend's neck, the embrace felt just as it always did, comforting and warmth, and as much a part of her as her twin brother was. She did not see Fred's rapidly blinking eyes, nor his scowl of frustration. If she had done, perhaps she would have expected that the boy had kept the truth from her once again.

A/N: I was quite excited to introduce this storyline, which has been brewing in the background for so long. Lena loves Fred more than anything else in the world (except Teddy and Andromeda), but he is her best friend, and she would never have imagined he felt even slightly differently about her. Vaguely inspired by the storyline of one of my other OTPs- see if you can guess which one! Hope you enjoyed, please review!