Who: Michael Corner and Fred Weasley What: Fred is starving, Michael saves his life When: This weekend Where: Ahh, St. Mungo's Rating: PG-13 Status: Complete
Fred was growing antsy. He didn't like being cooped up at St. Mungo's, and now that he was awake, he was grumpy. As far as he was concerned, he felt fine and was ready to get the hell out of there and get back to his real life. But the Healers still had all sorts of potions they wanted to shove in him, a few different powders, and not to mention the severe amount of therapy they were giving him to make sure he hadn't gone and lost what little brain he had due to the length of time he'd been unconscious.
That and there was the little detail of finding out how the poison had entered his system in the first place. Fred had a feeling that it hadn't been meant to be a warning and he'd just gotten very lucky. And whoever had done it was likely to try again. He'd be eating strictly at home for a while.
Or eating hospital food, and that was less than a pleasant experience. Fred had actually offered to go down to their kitchens and offer the elves or wizards or whoever the hell was down there a few lessons in how to cook edible meals. The mediwitch had simply laughed, though, and took his only partially empty plate out of the room. So when there was a knock on the door around dinnertime that evening, he groaned out loud and more than audibly. Fred Weasley was not a pleasant patient. "Unless you've my mum's Shephard's Pie with you, you can turn right around and take it out of here!"
Michael had been working himself up to visit Fred ever since Leanne had posted the good news. He still wasn't quite sure he belonged going and somehow seeing Fred awake seemed scarier than seeing comatose Fred. When Fred called out rather grumpily, Michael grimaced. Perhaps it was a very bad idea indeed. "Not your mum's," Michael admitted, "But I swear these are edible." He held up the large basket of biscuits his step-mum had made at Michael's request. The woman could be a pain in his arse, but she could also prove useful.
Michael shouldn't have been worried. Fred was so bored that even a mildly familiar face would've been welcomed, but Michael's brought a splitting grin to the redhead's face. "I'll take them! They have to be better than the stuff this place has. The bread they served with breakfast this morning could be bounced off the walls." And Fred would know because he'd done it. He really was a dreadful patient to have. "How are you, come in, sit, talk, do something!"
Unable to help himself, Michael chuckled as he fully entered the room. "Something? What do you want me to do? Hop on one foot? I'm pretty sure I'd drop this thing." To illustrated he groaned loudly as he placed the basket down besides Fred's bed. The man appeared well; Michael wasn't sure what he had been expecting, but he wasn't in the mood for any more nightmares. War ones were bad enough.
Mmm, Fred was ready to devour the biscuits right that second. Molly had been terrified to bring him anything yet, afraid the Healers would yell at her or some such. He was going to starve to death at the rate they were going! "I don't know, can you juggle? Sing a rousing chorus of The Hippogriff Sleeps Tonight?"
"So happens I can!" Michael cleared his throat while moving to the center of the room. He grabbed one of the many "get well plants" to use as a microphone and broke out with the worst rendition of the poor song.
Feigning tears, Fred grabbed one of the scratchy, sorry excuses for a tissue from the box by his bed and dabbed it at his eyes. "That was beautiful, just beautiful," he assured, nodding solemnly. Even if it had probably woken up those already sent down to the morgue. Hmm. He should look into that later. Clearly, this was one patient who shouldn't be left alone for too long. "Now feed me, Corner, and tell me how things are going. Rumour around town is, you've got yourself a girl."
"As the boss requests," Michael replied though, naturally, the clown had to take an exaggerated bow. He looked rather like a silly child instead of the business man he was by day. "And here. I think there's every biscuit imaginable." He unwrapped the basket, holding it out for Fred to examine.
Eagerly, Fred reached for the least healthy looking one he could find. Chocolate with chocolate chips in it and were those marshmallows? Oh, he was pretty sure they were. "Your stepmother may be my new best friend. Tell her if she ever needs an additional husband, she's got one." Mmm, the melt in his mouth kind of chocolate chips. He could die happy. Wait, better not to joke about that. "Now, what's this about a girl?"
Michael felt that familiar warm sensation that often came when Lisa was mentioned. Still, as easy as it was for Michael to normally brag, Lisa was a different story. What they had seemed special and sacred and something that could be ripped away if he jinxed it too much. "I have a girl, yeah," Michael said, trying to sound very cool and mysterious.
"Look, mate," Fred began, sounding very confidential, "I've been cooped up for weeks. The only girls I've seen are the mediwitches who are dog ugly, my mum who's my mum, and Leanne who..." His cheeks turned slightly pink. "Who is around a lot but..." Okay. So he wasn't sure how to describe Leanne. Good looking, yes, brilliant, definitely, but was he really attracted to her or just interested in the fact that she wasn't Alicia and was interested in him, too. "So yeah, I'm trying to live vicariously through you here, do you mind?"
"Leanne who didn't leave your bedside for weeks and practically told us whoever hurt you was going to have to answer to her?" Michael snickered. "That Leanne?"
Fred turned a bit more red than pink, his complexion nearly matching his hair. "Uh. Yeah. That'd be the one. She can be awfully vicious when you're on her bad side. Which is why I tend to try to stay on her good side." He gave a short laugh and shrugged. "Try being the key words."
"Hmmmm." Michael nodded knowingly. "Fierce when they're angry. Birds. Can't live with them; can't live without them." He didn't like the idea that he was falling so hard for another girl, but what could he do? He went to bed seeing Lisa's face and woke up feeling like he wouldn't last another second without seeing her. It was both terrifying and exhilarating.
Fred wasn't the more intuitive twin. Impulsive would've been the better 'i' word to describe him. But he could sense there was something just under the surface that Michael wasn't talking about. "Eh, it's what I like in a girl. Feisty, can take care of herself, doesn't need me being the child minder." Leanne was all of those things. So why didn't Fred just suck it up and ask her on a proper date? "I think it's a Gryffindor thing, personally."
Michael's eyebrows shot way up over that. "Oh, I beg to differ, and by beg I mean I insist you are wrong. Lisa is each and every bit those things."
Ha! It had worked, though, thank you very much. Fred wasn't stupid, he knew exactly what he was doing. "Oh, yeah?" he asked, trying to sound completely casual. "Lisa, hmm? What else is she, then?"
Michael exhaled in annoyance. Some Ravenclaw he was! "Yes, Lisa," he granted. "Nice, yeah?"
Poor Michael. Even the smartest and most clever of students didn't usually stand a chance against the wily ways of one Fred Weasley. Even his own mother still fell for it at times. The only one he could never trick was George. "She seems alright," he replied, considering. "Cute, too, if I remember. The blond, right? In your house?".
"Cute? Try gorgeous. Better tha--" Michael caught himself just in time. His father would have been proud; Michael managed to think before speaking for once. "Well, I'm just lucky to have gotten her."
"Better than who?" Fred prodded, eagerly. "Look, I'm pitiful here. I have nothing. My last girl cheated on me with the bane of Slytherin. The least you could do is humor me with some details."
Michael groaned. "Flint then? Please tell me not Flint." He faked a shudder as he snuck out another cookie. "Better than anyone else I've dated," he said carefully, remembering he had dated Ginny.
Fred wasn't an unreasonable man, though. He knew some relationships worked better than others. Ginny was happy with Neville, Mike was clearly happy with Lisa. And Fred... Well. He was getting there. "Flint," he confirmed, though not in that bitter, angry tone he'd once used. He was resigned by that point. It wasn't the end of the world, what Alicia had done. It had hurt, it still hurt, but he had to get on with his life. He just wished it hadn't taken a near death experience to figure that out. "Worse things have happened. Just know that if Lisa pulls anything, we're well stocked in exploding carrot cakes."
Michael still felt poorly about how things turned out with Ginny, but they had been young. He still didn't know if he was ready for a relationship, but Lisa made him want to try. Still, when Fred spoke about Alicia and exploding cakes, Michael couldn't help but worry. His parents marriage had ended in divorce and there was no way he wanted to suffer the same fate. "That really blows," Michael replied. "I'm sorry, mate." He pushed the basket closer to Fred again. "Eat and forget it. You've got another eating out of your hand."
At that, Fred had to blush. And pink didn't look good on that freckled red-haired complexion. "She's not eating out of my hand, mate. She's just...interested." That didn't stop him from reaching for another biscuit and burying his confusion in it.
"What is it then? Don't fancy her?" Michael had to admit he didn't always know what to think of Leanne, but she seemed cute enough and had...well, an alright personality.
Fred shrugged, meticulously eating his treat before coming up with an answer. "I don't know," he admitted. "I know she's fit, and she's... Well, I can't say there's anything wrong with her snogging. But I don't know if I fancy her or if I just like having her around because I don't do alone so well anymore."
Michael's eyes widened before he let out a low whistle. "You've snogged her? Very nice!" However, as Fred's more serious comment registered, Michael's smile wavered. "Fred Weasley in need of a bird to keep him company? Impossible."
The smile that crossed Fred's face was impossibly mischievous. "Well, I wouldn't say I need one. But they're certainly nice to have around."
"Oh, that they certainly are." Mike's face took on a loopy, silly expression. "Of course," he added, snapping out of his daze, "They are also expensive as Dad says."
But Fred smiled and gave a slight shrug, reaching for another biscuit. "Maybe," he said. "But they don't actually have to be spoiled to be happy. I mean, it's nice to get them gifts sometimes and the occasional nice dinner. But I've discovered over time that they're just as happy with drinks and Chinese takeaway on the couch in front of the WWN. So long as they're spending time with you and all." Oh, Merlin, he sounded almost snappy. He had to get out of this place.
Michael looked at Fred like he had grown two heads though he had a definite point. Still, Fred was saying that? "How many potions did they give you again?" He smiled as he elbowed the air as if he was elbowing Fred.
Fred offered a little grin. "Dozens. I don't actually have taste buds anymore, which is good considering the food in this place. I think the chocolate chips in these are slowly bringing them back to life."
"Leave it to me," Michael vowed, "I'll sneak you in real food. The healers love me."
Reaching over, Fred pretended to desperately grab for Michael. "Real. Food. With flavor! Don't listen to them, they're lying, I can handle anything! Stat! Oh, Godric, I'm speaking in medical terms now!"
"When do I ever listen?" Michael reasoned. "Tell me what you want and it's yours." He gave a furtive look around. "Quick, before they are on to me!"
"Anything!" Fred yelped. "Spaghetti! Curry! Chinese food, pizza, I don't care!"
Laughing, Michael stood up and saluted. "Aye, aye, captain. As your lowly servant, it's my command!"
Rolling his eyes, Fred grinned and leaned back against the pillows. "Lowly servant, please. Leanne said you helped save our asses the last few weeks with me in here and George trying to be here as much as he could."
"It was a useful distraction. Besides, someone had to keep it going while you napped." Michael kept his jovial tone, but a seriousness flickered in his eyes as he spoke.
"I'm fine," Fred reminded him, though he was easily reminded of how close he'd come to dying. Nothing put things into perspective in your life quite like that. "A couple more weeks and it'll be like nothing happened."
"Then we can properly celebrate. I'll even bring extra gold for a round." Michael glanced back at the door. "No one heard that!" He said as if willing the mediwitches to have gone deaf.
Biting his lip, Fred tried not to laugh. Really, he did. But he wasn't always a good boy. "I'm sure they didn't. I'm sure suddenly, magically, the entire hospital lit up with conversation and hectic emergencies. Besides, my hang out choice as of late is a muggle place. I know, I know," he said, holding up a hand as if fending off an argument to come, "I'm amazed, too. Blame Leanne."
"Well, fine then, I will just have to make sure she brings muggle money and I'll pay her back." Michael refrained from adding that Leanne certainly had influence over Fred.
"I'll just be so grateful to get out of here I'll buy rounds for the house. Multiple ones. Then George will have to scold me for managing finances poorly so I'll buy him another drink or two till he's too drunk to care. It'll be brills."