No Laughing Matter

Chapter Two

Fred was anxious all the next day. He had woken early and gotten the bulk of the work he'd had planned for the day out of the way by lunchtime. He wanted to be available to spend as much time as possible with Carly, to explore what he was feeling. He'd reasoned that perhaps the strong attraction that he'd felt had been the result of adrenaline. He had been churned up over the thought of some man attacking Ginny, after all, and might have mistaken what he'd felt upon seeing Carly for the first time. Maybe this time she would walk in the door, and seem like any other ordinary girl he'd met. Maybe.

Then again, even if he was as drawn to her today as he had been yesterday (which he probably wouldn't), she might not feel anything remotely similar toward him. The lunch invitation might be nothing more than a 'thank you' for helping her out. But if he did feel the same as he did yesterday (and she didn't), he could remedy that, couldn't he? He could always pour on the charm and win her over. Feeling a little better about things, he locked the cash box and put it away in the heavily charmed compartment behind the counter. He was just turning the Open sign to Closed when she walked in the door in pretty gray robes and a green cloak. He knew immediately that it hadn't been the stress of everything yesterday that had caused the attraction. His charm fled on the heels of rational thought, and he simply blurted out the first thought that came to his mind.

"You're beautiful."

He could feel his heart stutter in his chest as she laughed musically, stepped forward to kiss his cheek and said, "Oh, I can tell I'm going to like you! Are you ready to go? I don't really know what's good around here, so I'm going to have to ask your advice. Any favorite places to eat around here?"

Fred suggested a restaurant not far from the shop, and was delighted when she took his hand and led him into the sparse crowds of Diagon Alley. Keeping his hand in hers, enjoying the tingle it sent up his arm, he listened to her animated conversation as they made their way to the Wander Inn. He supposed he made the appropriate responses, but he was having a hard time thinking about anything but her fingers intertwined with his own. They entered the dimly lit restaurant and found a table near a window, ordering their meal before settling their attentions on each other.

"So, Fred Weasley," Carly began, smiling playfully, "let me see what I already know about you. You have a sense of humor; that explains the life long dream of having a joke shop. You're brave, and aren't afraid of rescuing a damsel in distress. You have a sister whom you are protective of, and a brother whom you run a shop with. You also have amazing eyes. Am I missing anything?"

"Pretty good so far." He smiled back; trying not to blush over the compliment about his eyes, and took her hand across the table. "But you missed something."

"What's that?" It was hard not to be charmed by a man who blushed over such a simple observation.

"I seem to be a sucker for pretty red-headed Americans." Merlin, but he could spend the rest of his life getting lost in those eyes! He'd barely known her for twenty-four hours, and already he was fighting the urge to just pull her across the table and press his lips to hers.

"Do you, now?" she asked with a raised eyebrow and teasing tone.

"It's looking that way," he said, amused at them both.

The meal arrived, and he reluctantly let go of her hand. As they ate, he tried to learn a bit more about the object of his sudden affection. He learned that she, too, was from a large family. She had three older brothers, and two sisters, and she was the youngest of the lot. They talked about the ups and downs of being from a large family, and laughed at the fact that both of their families seemed to have a strong disposition toward red hair. Carly, it seemed, had also been a Quidditch player when she had been at school. A chaser. They talked about British Wizarding Education vs. American, and found that they weren't so different from each other as they had supposed.

Too soon, it was time to go back and re-open the shop. Fred tried in vain to pay for the meal, but she had insisted that she had initiated the date, and so it was her responsibility to pay. As they left the inn, they both noticed dark clouds beginning to gather in the sky, but Fred wasn't worried; they would reach the shop long before any rain began to fall. He took her hand in his, and led Carly back in the direction of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, wondering how long he could make a tour of the shop last. Many of the people that knew him waved in greeting, then did a double take at the sight of his companion. Like Fred, they assumed that it was Ginny with the long, fiery hair at first glance, but quickly realized that it wasn't so. He pointed out different shops and interesting things along the way, then sighed audibly when they arrived on the front step.

"Thank you for a great lunch," he said as he unlocked the door. "I haven't eaten that well since the last time I visited the Burrow."

"You're very welcome. You miss your mother's cooking?" she asked, following him inside, and turning the sign back to open for him.

"Yeah. She's a great cook. Especially her treacle tarts," he confided with a wistful note in his voice. "I haven't had them in ages."

"Why not? I got the impression that she doesn't live all that far away," Carly asked, looking up from a display of gross-flavored trick chewing gums. Something in the tone of Fred's voice told her that there was more to it than he was letting on.

"No, they don't. It's just that, well...." He grinned sheepishly. "There was a little, er, incident the last time George and I were at home. To say it wasn't pretty would be an understatement. We figured that we would have to give her a little cooling down time, and er, time to get her hearing back before we visited again."

"Sounds like more than just a little incident to me," she said, raising a brow with mock disapproval as she picked up a package of Puking Pastilles. She was looking the package over and suddenly looked up at him, "These are fabulous! Do you know you could probably market these as a medical product? To induce vomiting in people who've drunk unsafe potions?"

Fred merely grinned at her in admiration and made a mental note to check into it. He liked seeing her wander around his shop discovering different items. She was collecting quite a few items as she went, and so he retrieved a shopping basket, and followed behind, holding it for her. She chose an extra large container of the Shrieking Snaps, declaring that the next time she saw her brother Shawn, he was going to pay for the regurgitation charm he had placed on her cauldron last month. Leading her around the shop, he laughed at her plans for many of the items she chose, and made helpful suggestions for others. By the time they had traveled the entire store, the basket was full and his mischief-maker's heart was lost to her. She paid for her purchases; not letting him make a gift of it as he had planned to do to make up for not being allowed to pay for lunch, and then said it was time for her to go.

"When can I see you again?" Fred asked on a note of mild panic as she turned toward the front of the shop.

"How about tomorrow?" she suggested without hesitation. "After you close up here?"

"It's a date. Before you go, I have something for you." He swallowed hard, and then he did what he had been dying to do since he'd first laid eyes on her. He stepped forward, took her face gently in his hands and laid his lips firmly on hers, giving her plenty of time and opportunity to move away if she wanted to.

She didn't want to. She dropped the bags she had been holding, and leaned into the kiss, offering her mouth with a sigh of pleasure, and didn't pull away when his arms found their way around her. She returned his embrace eagerly and wound her arms around his neck; one hand finding it's way up into his hair. It was a great deal better than he had imagined it would be. He lost himself in the flavor and texture of her, and never wanted it to end. It wasn't until there was a loud crack of thunder overhead that they came back to themselves and stepped reluctantly apart. They both looked out the front door of the shop to see the rain that had been threatening earlier come falling down in a heavy curtain.

"I'd better go," She said, looking back at him and then reaching up to wipe a bit of her lipstick from his mouth. "See you tomorrow night?"

"Yes," he answered, picking up her bags and handing them to her again. "Would you like me to pick you up?"

"I'll just come here," she told him, only slightly playfully. "It's easier for you, and I don't know if I trust myself to be alone in my apartment with you.... That was some kiss; a bit more potent than I expected."

"Yeah. For me, too," he admitted with a grin. The weakness in his knees told him that she had a valid point. He was already tempted to devour her right now, starting anywhere at all.

The bells over the door chimed just then, and a customer came in out of the rain. The sound of the storm came through the open front door and made her cringe. "Mind if I borrow one of these?" She picked up a bright purple umbrella from a stand near the door, lifted it up above her head, and had begun to open it.

It was too late by the time Fred cried out, "Not that one!"

She lifted it above her head and opened it, and was promptly treated to a deluge of icy water from under the 'sheltering' side of the umbrella. Fred couldn't help the laughter that erupted out of him at the sight of her astonished face and the sound of her gasping scream. His customer, too, had broken into laughter at the sight, and promptly turned to Fred.

"I must have one of those!"

This only made Fred laugh harder, and Carly joined in, folding the umbrella closed and dropping it back into the stand saying, "I guess I won't need to borrow it after all! See you tomorrow!"

He watched her through the store's front window, temporarily forgetting that there was a customer standing nearby, examining the Raining Umbrellas. Her red hair was still the brightest thing out in the street, even soaking wet, as she picked her way around puddles toward the Leaky Cauldron. Just before she disappeared from sight, she turned as if she knew he was watching, and waved. He waved back and watched until he couldn't see her anymore, then sighed heavily.

"Looks like you could do with a cold shower yourself," the customer observed sagely.

"That's the truth." Fred grimaced, and then turned away from the window and set his mind back on his work.