Anthem (Fred)

[Anelisa Taelyn Lafayette]

Lisa drew the thin sweater closer around herself as she listlessly peered into windows of Diagon Alley. She'd quit her job, broken up with Alex and moved all the way to London. As of the moment, she was living in a cheap boarding house and doing odd jobs. She needed to find steady employment soon, though. Her sister would be returning to Hogwarts unprepared if she didn't.

Even in July, England was a chilly place, she noted. She sighed and glanced in the window of a...joke store? Though she wasn't in any mood, it brought a smile to her face. In Hogwarts, she'd enjoyed pranking. There had been those two funny Gryffindor first years that had come in her seventh that would occasionally tag along with her before she graduated. Fred and George Weasley, she believed their names were.

She briefly wondered what had become of them before reminding herself that she was supposed to be job-searching. The smile fell from her face and she urned away from the window, running a hand through her hair.

[Fred Fabian Weasley]

Ah, such a fine day! Fred was probably one of the happier people in the world right now. He was worried, yes, but his joke shop was still going with George and the two were doing quite good. Fred was working on stocking the shelves when he saw a girl he remembered from school peak in. Well, he was behind a shelf, but he knew he saw a face. When she smiled, Fred decided to pay a visit to the girl, whom he remembered was called Lisa, or Anelisa. Quietly, Fred moved through the joke shop and to the door.

He saw Lisa turn around and run a hand through her hair. Since she wasn't a random person on the street he felt safe quietly approached her. "See something you like?" Fred asked with a laugh as he leaned against the wall of his and George's building.

[Anelisa Taelyn Lafayette]

Lisa took a moment to force a smile on to her face before she turned to face Fred. She'd smiled and faked her way through school; she couldn't let anyone know she was miserable now. It was only temporary, anyway! She had to think positively! Nothing bad lasted forever. She just had to keep going...

And lying to herself and everyone else while she was at it.

"Well, you've grown up, Freckle-Face," she noted with a soft ('Fake, so fake...' she noted to herself, cringing internally.) laugh. "Is this your store, then, Fred?"

She'd always been able to tell the twins apart. It wasn't looks that gave them away; it was personality. Fred was much more outgoing than George.

[Fred Fabian Weasley]

Fred didn't sense anything wrong, but then again, he usually was able to cheer up those that were down. Fred smiled hearing his nickname from her. Freckle Face. Hey! He didn't have that many freckles, right? Well when they met he had quite a bit, so he didn't mind the nickname. And hey, Anelisa was a pretty cool girl.... And a prankster. Which made it all that much better .

"Yep, mine and George's. It's too bad our last worker quit, been having to do all the work ourselves. Do you know what all this work does to my face?" Fred asked with a laugh, over exaggerating it of course. It was fun anyways, the work, except for cleaning. Things could get quite dusty if they didn't clean them often.

[Anelisa Taelyn Lafayette]

She couldn't help but laugh genuinely this time. Fred was funny as ever, it seemed. He'd always been able to cheer her up in school, through fights with her boyfriend (he'd been and jerk, anyway, and she was glad they'd broken up) and Snape being...well, himself. By the time of her graduation, she'd considered him a pretty close friend. As a result of her long line of worthless jobs, though, she'd let herself lose touch with him. It was just awkward to tell her bright friend that she was a maid.

"Careful, you'll wind up old like me, working so hard," she teased. "It's kind of ironic. I just quit my last job a week or two ago. I'm living out that way."

She pointed in the general direction of the boarding house she was calling her temporary home. She'd never owned much to speak of, anyway, so moving hadn't taken long. (During Lisa's stint in Hogwarts, her lack of funding for anything had prompted Dumbledore to invent a student aid program. She was still grateful to him for it.)

[Fred Fabian Weasley]

So she quit her job? So that meant she was jobless and didn't have much of a home, or she did have a home just something temporary. Well, he liked her as a friend, she was cool. Actually, he saw her as a pretty good friend, and what sort of friend would let their friend go on jobless and helpless. That wouldn't be right! Fred pushed himself from leaning against the wall, with his large grin still on his face.

"No! I don't want to be old. My perfect face will get all saggy! And wrinkles! All that dust isn't good for me," Fred said with a fake sob before grinning and saying normally, "If you need a job, we do have an open position."

Fred was always a good sport and could find the good things in jist about everything, make people laugh, and bring people's spirits up. He liked laughing at others and himself, it really was great to be the Weasley twins. See everything in a good light, and not really ever get too sad, unless something really bad happened.

[Anelisa Taelyn Lafayette]

She laughed again at his usual antics. He was a silly guy, plain and simple; his outlook on everything had always been admirable. Fred was almost always upbeat and cheerful. His optimism was kind of infectious, to be honest. She didn't know anyone that could stay upset in the presence of the Weasley twins (mostly because they wouldn't allow it).

"You don't have a massive ego or anything, Freckle-Face," she pointed out sarcastically. "And that'd be great! Thanks so much."

She just wouldn't tell him that she intended to stay in the boarding house where she was currently residing; most of the money would go to her sister. Fred had caught her in that in his third year when she was working in Hogsmede and promptly became angry with her. It wasn't something she cared to repeat.

[Fred Fabian Weasley]

Fred couldn't help but be so optimistic. Now he wouldn't have to deal with all that cleaning and stress that went with being a shop owner in such dark times and part of the Order. They would keep the shop open, but then they might have to move around a lot, hiding from.the Death Eaters all their Order work. They would just have to hide.what they would do on the side. People needed a good joke shop in times like this.

"See, I knew people didn't see my ego as that big!" Fred replied joking with a laugh, "Hey, you are the one who are going to save me from wrinkles and dust!"

He didn't like when she was in need of something and he couldn't do anything about it. It was just in his nature to cheer people up. Even if he was upset. He also hated when people, like Anelisa was in a position where they were unhappy. He needed to spread the happiness.

[Anelisa Taelyn Lafayette]

It was nice, talking to him again. Even if he was still the same goofy Freckle-Face she'd met in her seventh year, the world needed more people like him and his brother. She didn't remember the older Weasley boys that well (except for that little prick Percy, who she didn't like anyway), but the twins were her favorite out of he ones she'd met...except for when they dragged her home and then left her at the mercy of their mother. In times like those, revenge was very necessary.

"I'm used to it; my last job was as a maid. If you want to see old and wrinkly, you should see my old boss," she reied, rolling her eyes at the thought of Alex.

[Fred Fabian Weasley]

Ah, good timea. Good times. He remembered when he first met her in his first year, and the times they had together. Very good times. Even if the two of them had drifted away over the years, Fred felt she was just as much of a friend as she was before they drifted apart. Fred was one of those types that doesn't care hiw much time has passed, one would be his friend if they were friends at 5 years old and then they meet up when their 50 not seeing each other since then... Well that's a bit exaggerated, but still.

"Oh no. Don't tell me that now I'm your boss, I'll turn into your last one, at least in appearance. It's the curse of the boss!" Fred laughed obviously not being too serious about being worried about growing old.

[Anelisa Taelyn Lafayette]

"I hope not; he was an old pervert," she replied, shrugging. "And anyway, I doubt you can transform into an aging Italian with a grumpy wife...that'd be some pretty crazy magic, even for you."

She remembered meeting him on the train in his first year; Percy had been on her case for some confetti-launchers that she'd snuck into his trunk. (Percy Weasley was a favored target of hers, prank-wise. At any other time, she preferred to avoid the pompous little salaud ((French for bastard)).) Fred had found it all very funny, until Lisa's short attention span had transferred to him and she'd asked if she could call him Freckle-Face.

[Fred Fabian Weasley]

"Well I would prove you wrong, but I wouldn't want the risk of staying that old, especially that grumpy old wife part. My wife would never be grumpy as I would always cheer her up!" Fred remarked. He hadn't really had anyone he thought was wife material for him. Usually the girls he dated tried to change him into what they considered grown up. It was quite annoying actually.

Percy had always been a prick, but lately he became more of one. At least before they were still brothers and had a lot of fun. Now, it was different. Percy called them liars and brainwashed by a crazy Dumbledore. Percy should just go and let them forget him so they could live happily ever after without that... He should stop there. He could almost hear his mothee's reaction to what he thought. Yelling, sobbing, and he'd feel really guilty. He shouldn't think so negatively.

[Anelisa Taelyn Lafayette]

"Carrot-Top and I wouldn't let you marry a grumpy lady like that guy's wife. She was sleeping around!" she recalled. "I met her boyfriend once; he's nice and everything, but still..."

At any rate, she'd hate to see Fred in a miserable marriage to a grumpy old woman. She didn't like seeing the usually upbeat and happy boy upset. Granted, Lisa didn't like seeing anyone upset (except for Percy), and usually went out of her way to cheer them up, her personal happiness be damned. There was no price too steep for her to pay for those that she cared for.

[Fred Fabian Weasley]

"At least I know I have some coverage there!" Fred said grinning,actually, she wouldn't make a bad wife, he supposed, "Tch. Stupid cheating married people. I would never cheat, and I would hope my wife loves me enough to not do that to me." He hated how some people cheated when married. It was something special to be married and he believed before you ru off with some other person, one should at least try to get a divorce. The vows broken during the marriage. That was just bad.

Fred actually thought for a moment that Lisa wouldn't be a bad wife or girlfriend. He was actually surprised he thought that, but really, that wouldn't be too bad, would it? He had a feeling she just wanted to be friends anyways, and he was her boss and it'd be unprofessional.

[Anelisa Taelyn Lafayette]

"I can't say that I'm unhappy to be getting away from that family, but the other household staff was very nice," she remembered. "And I've always wanted to get married, but...I guess it'll never happy. Guess I can't really blame anyone..."

She'd had terrible self-esteem issues, even as a child, but they'd only become worse after her very long (and very miserable) relationship with Jaden McKenna in Hogwarts. They'd never been very happy together, and they'd fought more often than they'd been happy. Jaden's impenetrable self-confidence hadn't been damaged, but Lisa's had. She didn't usually show her insecurities; it was a rare occasion when the armor fell and she admitted that she wasn't as sure of herself as she acted like.