Disclaimer: I do not own any words, characters, or plot relating to the Harry Potters series as obviously they belong to J. K. Rowling. Also, I do not own the song, Almost Lover, by A Fine Frenzy.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Your fingertips across my skin

The boy's thin fingers traced soft spirals up and down her arm; he traced each finger before kissing each tip gently. Her eyes were soft, curious, as she watched him.

He lay on his side facing her with his red hair hanging into his face; his fingers traced her jaw, then the outline of her nose. Her eyes slid closed as he faintly ran his fingers across her eye lids. He traced the shape of her lips before leaning in and placing his own gently against hers.

The palm trees swaying in the wind

Images

"Surprise." He whispered as he removed his hands from her eyes.

Slowly, her eyes opened and adjusted to the sight before her. She turned to ask him why they were here and where they were but the boy already grabbed her hand and pulled her down the beach.

Her toes squished into the warm, golden sand.

"What are we doing here?" She asked, laughing as the boy tried to light a small fire with two sticks.

"Well," he said, abandoning his sticks and simply pointing his wand at the pile. A fire sprouted from his wand and lit the pile of wood on fire. He crawled through the sand toward her. He laced his fingers tightly with hers. "You said you've never seen the ocean. So I…"

"Apparated us to Hawaii." She finished.

"Do you hate it? I know it's not a great gift…especially for our one year anniversary but I figured we have to go back to school soon and it's our last year at Hogwarts and I know you'd be freaking out and I just wanted us to have a relaxing day together. But if you hate it-"

She placed her lips on his, to shut him up.

"I take it you don't hate it then..." He said laughing, after she pulled away.

"You should," She smiled as her head fell naturally upon his shoulder.

They were silent for a moment and she was enjoying the peace and quiet…until he pushed her over into the sand and took off running.

"Git!" She yelled and chased him down the beach. Finally, she tackled him to the ground, underneath a couple of swaying palm trees. "You are a jerk." She said, out of breath.

"But I'm your jerk," He smiled cheekily before clasping together their hands and kissing each knuckle.

"Yes you are." She agreed before laying her head onto his chest.

You sang me Spanish lullabies

"I'm scared." I whispered into the crook of his neck.

"I know." He whispered. "But everything will be alright. Close your eyes. Go to sleep."

"I can't. I'm afraid to close my eyes."

"Why?" He said gently.

"I'm afraid I'll go to sleep one night and wake up the next morning and everything will be different. Everyone I love will be dead. I'm afraid you won't be here when I wake up. He's back...Harry saw him...what if-"

"No…don't worry. Not tonight. You need your sleep. We've got class." he said softly, but his voice echoed off the walls of the empty common room.

"When have you ever cared about classes?" She fought. "And besides, I'm not tired."

He sighed, "Yo la quiero ver bailar-"

"What are you doing?" She giggled lightly.

"I'm singing you to sleep," He smiled. "At least, I was before you interrupted me," he poked her in the nose. "Now close your eyes and just listen…Yo la quiero ver bailar saltar y brincar, andar por los aires y moverse con mucho onaire déjenla sola solita y sola…"

Her breathing slowed. She was asleep.

"I love you." He whispered, before kissing her temple and falling asleep..

The sweetest sadness in your eyes

Clever trick

"Please…" She whispered.

"I'm not letting you leave. George and I…we know what we want to do and we don't need to finish our education to know that…but you…you are brilliant and I'm not letting you ruin your future by letting you come with us. I'll see you soon. We'll stay in touch. Its only for a little while, you're going to graduate soon."

"Fred-"

"You can't come Annie. It's best for you."

"I-"

"We'll keep in touch. We'll write letters."

She sighed and knew she wasn't going to convince him. "How do you two plan on getting out of here?"

"That," He smiled, "Is something you'll have to wait and see."

Well, I never want to see you unhappy

I thought you'd want the same for me

"Be careful, Fred." She said as she pulled him into a hug.

"Everything is going to be all right," He said, holding her close. "We'll all be fine. They don't know we're getting now. All of us are just decoys, for protection in case something happens. Everyone will be back soon. Alive and in tact," he smiled at her before kissing her lips.

But she saw it. She saw the doubt in his eyes.

Goodbye, my almost lover
Goodbye, my hopeless dream
I'm trying not to think about you
Can't you just let me be?

"Who came back?" She asked as she ran into the yard of the Burrow. Her eyes fell upon the large shadow of Hagrid. She was relieved Harry and Hagrid were safe, but that did nothing to quell her worries about Fred.

"What happened?" She asked as she embraced Harry quickly before giving Hagrid a hug as well. Harry quickly recapped what happened, telling how the Death Eaters surrounded them.

"Who else arrived back?" Harry asked, and she didn't have the strength to tell him the truth. Ginny answered for her.

"Ron and Tonks should've been back first…they missed their portkey, and Dad and Fred's arrived without them. You two were supposed to be back third." I glared down at the ancient sneaker that was supposed to have brought Fred back to me.

So long, my luckless romance
My back is turned on you
Should've known you'd bring me heartache
Almost lovers always do

A blue light appeared suddenly in the yard. It was darker still and she couldn't make out who had arrived. Her heart leapt with hope, but fell suddenly as she recognized the pair as Lupin and George.

She could tell one twin from another easily and he was not her twin.

Harry rushed forward and helped Lupin carry the bloody body of George into the house. She and Ginny followed silently. In the light of the sitting room, she, along with Ginny and Harry, gasped as she noticed that the blood covering George's face was coming from the hole were his ear should be.

She barely paid attention as Harry explained yet again what happened to Lupin. She instead busied herself with helping Mrs. Weasley stop George's bleeding.

She was distracted for a moment as Harry ran outside, toward two more figures. She ran to the doorway but her hope fell again as she saw Hermione and Kingsley. She embraced the pair quickly, glad for their safe return.

There was a loud crash from the kitchen. She heard the shouts of Mr. Weasley just before he burst into the living room, followed quickly by Fred.

Both ran immediately to George. Fred, for once, was speechless as he stared at his brother's wound.

"How do you feel?" Mrs. Weasley asked.

"Saintlike." He murmured.

"What's wrong with him?" croaked Fred. "Is his mind affected?"

"Saintlike…You see…I'm holy. Holey, Fred, geddit?"

The color flooded back into Fred's face. "Pathetic," He muttered. "With the whole wide world of ear-related humor before you, you go for holey?" Fred exclaimed.

And as George told Mrs. Weasley that she'll finally be able to tell her twins apart, Fred looked away from his brother, his eyes quickly darting around the room. They landed on her soon, where she was standing in the doorway, with tears rolling down her cheeks. She couldn't move.

He quickly took long strides to get to her and pulled her to his chest quickly.

"Thank God. Thank God. Thank God." She whispered again and again as her tears stained his shirt.

We walked along a crowded street
You took my hand and danced with me
Images

"I can't believe it." She whispered.

"We should've known it was going to happen." He said.

"I'm just glad you and George and Verity weren't hurt. I don't know what I'd do if I lost you," She said, shaking her head at the mere thought.

"Once…once the war's over, we'll open up the shop again. And you and me…we'll get an apartment together. And we'll dance down Diagon Alley, just like we've done before."

"Don't make promises you can't keep," She said as they heard Aunt Muriel lecture George downstairs.

"Who's doing that?" He asked with a smile. "I love you Annie. And once the war's over, when he is dead, we'll live together. Because I will simply go mad if we have to stay in hiding at Aunt Muriel's for the rest of our lives."

She laughed loudly as he kissed her, with a smile still on his lips.

And when you left, you kissed my lips
You told me you would never, ever forget
These images

Harry, Ron, and Hermione had disappeared as they went off to do whatever it was that Dumbledore had trusted them to do.

Amidst the fighting and the flashes of spells and curses, Annie and Fred stood hidden for a moment, saying a quick goodbye, knowing they would be separated during the fight.

"Please stay alive," she pleaded.

"I promise because you and me, we're getting married once this is over." He swore as he twisted the engagement ring on her finger. They had yet to tell his family. "We'll be together. But you need to promise me that you'll be safe too." He said, unintentionally allowing the worry to bleed into his eyes.

She nodded and wiped the tears from her eyes. "I will."

He kissed her lips, lingering for a moment. A loud crash made him pull away.

Well, I'd never want to see you unhappy
I thought you'd want the same for me

He took a few steps away from her in one direction and she began off in the other.

"Annie, wait." She turned on her heel to face him.

Quickly, he swept her into his arms, taking in the scent of the girl before him. "No matter what happens Annie, I'll always love you. I'll never forget everything we are."

"Fred," She whispered with the desperation and the fear resounding in her voice, "I love you too." She said finally.

With that, he left her grasp and went off to fight.

Goodbye, my almost lover
Goodbye, my hopeless dream
I'm trying not to think about you
Can't you just let me be?

Spells were flying. People were falling, Death Eaters and friends alike. She couldn't stop it. She couldn't help it. She fought as hard she could but he was all she could think about.

They were getting married. He proposed because he knew that they needed something to look forward to. And she was looking forward to being his wife.

She knew there was something amazing about that boy.

So long, my luckless romance
My back is turned on you
Should've known you'd bring me heartache
Almost lovers always do

She loved him. She loved his red hair and his freckles. She loved that even though there was someone who looked exactly like him, she knew exactly which one was him. Fred's eyes shone differently than his brother's did.

She loved that he could make her laugh when all she wanted to do was cry. She loved that she felt safe with him. She loved that she just wanted to spend forever with him.

I cannot go to the ocean
I cannot drive the streets at night
I cannot wake up in the morning
Without you on my mind

But she didn't know that they would not have forever together. She didn't know she would never be able to stand to see the ocean again. She didn't know that she would never be able to walk down Diagon Alley without thinking about him. She didn't know that every morning she would wake up and for a horrible, horrible moment, she wouldn't remember. She would expect to see him next to her.

So you're gone and I'm haunted

There is a singular moment that she cannot forget. Of everyone who had been lost, that moment will always stay in her mind.

In that moment, everything was lost.

And I bet you are just fine

She ran down the corridor, shooting a jinx over her shoulder at the Death Eater pursuing her. Further down, she saw them: Ron, Hermione, Harry, and Percy. And like always, her heart leapt at the sight of Fred, as she hoped it always would. Just barely she could make out what they were saying.

"You're joking, Perce!" Fred shouted as he shot a Stunning Spell at the Death Eater he was fighting. Fred turned to Percy with a smile on his face. "You actually are joking, Perce…I don't think I've heard you joke since you were-"

Did I make it that easy
To walk right in and out of my life?

There was an explosion suddenly. She was thrown into the air by the mere force. She heard their yells and screams. She scrambled to her feet as soon as she was able and was met with the wreckage of the corridor before her.

And then there came the truly most horrible noise that she'd ever heard, that she'd ever hear. Fright filled her senses.

She watched, unable to do anything at all, as Hermione and Harry stumbled their way over to the three red-haired men, of whom only two were moving.

She watched Percy shake his body. She watched Ron kneel beside his brothers. She watched as Fred's eyes stared without seeing, with the ghost of his last laugh still upon his face. She could only watch as her entire world crumbled before her.

Goodbye, my almost lover
Goodbye, my hopeless dream
I'm trying not to think about you
Can't you just let me be?

"Dear!" cried Mrs. Weasley as she threw her arms about Annie.

"Mrs. Weasley, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I couldn't do anything. I'm sorry that I just-"

"No, Annie." Mrs. Weasley shook her head furiously, sending her red hair flying out around her. "Never think that. There was nothing you could do. Percy…Percy, he told me how…it happened. If you had done anything, you would've died too, and I know that my son would not have stood for that at all." She turned her eyes away from the girl for a moment to wipe her eyes and her gaze happened across the band on the girl's finger.

"Dearie…" Mrs. Weasley said, bringing a hand to her mouth in surprise. "What is that?"

Annie followed her gaze to the ring. "He proposed, a month ago," she said as she fiddled sadly with the ring. "I can't…I can't bring myself to take it off."

"Annie, I just…" Her voice cracked from her tears. She tried again. "I just want you to know that you'll always be apart of this family and that Fred…Fred will always be in love with you."

So long, my luckless romance
My back is turned on you

The funeral ended and everyone gave her their condolences. She knew she hadn't been the only one to lose someone. The Weasleys lost a son and a brother. George lost a best friend. Teddy Lupin lost his parents. The Creevy's lost their son. She hadn't been the only one.

She could not forget what George said to her a few hours earlier. She had been dressed in her black robes for hours, she couldn't sleep. The very thing she feared had finally happened.

George found her in the kitchen. "You know," His voice startled her. She quickly wiped the tears from her eyes and threw a sad smile toward him. But she couldn't look him in the eyes. Just a glimpse of his face would be a painful reminder of the boy she loved with so much of her heart. "He made me go ring shopping with him," George chuckled. "He was so nervous. The bloody idiot was afraid you'd say no."

I laughed through my tears. "There was no chance I'd ever say no. He could've asked me while I hated his guts and I still would've said yes."

"Fred was always ready to risk everything. He didn't want to tell you, but he was worried. He was a nervous wreck every time he was away from you. He was ready to risk everything…everything but you. He fought so that you two could have a great life together."

"I miss him," she whispered, resting her head in her hands.

"I do too Annie." And together, they wept for the boy they'd lost.

Should've known you'd bring me heartache
Almost lovers always do.

Years passed. She couldn't move on. She couldn't bring herself to love someone else the way she'd loved Fred.

But she was happy.

She always remembered the way his laugh echoed in the air and the way his smile was contagious. She always remembered how he would take her hand and kiss each knuckle before pulling her toward him to place a kiss on her lips.

She still smiled when she thought of his pranks. She still shivered when she remembered the moment he told her he loved her and the moment he proposed to her. She still cried when she thought of the day he died.

Today, it had been ten years. Annie still loved him.

She arrived at his grave as she always did.

"Hi Fred." She said softly. "I miss you," She whispered as she placed the flowers on his grave. "I'll always miss you." She sighed. "Sometimes, I think it's not fair that we never really got a chance to be together. Well…I mean…I guess we did. We got years together, but it wasn't enough. I don't know…maybe I'm just being greedy. But I never thought it'd hurt this much to miss you. I never thought being without you would hurt this much. But then again, I guess I never thought I'd have to be without you. It was amazing whenever I was with you. They were the happiest years of my life…especially now. Every moment back then was bliss. And I'm just sorry that we'll never get to be everything that we could've been. We were almost there." She sighed. "Almost."

She wiped the tears from her eyes yet again. The tears consumed her, as they often did when she visited him. And she knew he'd hate to see her like this, he would make a joke to make her laugh. But now that he was gone, it was too hard to smile as she stared down at his grave. The tears choked her, making it hard to speak.

But finally, she whispered the only words that matter to her, "I love you."

The wind blew around her, swaying the branches of the trees just like the breeze had blown the palm trees those years ago. She swore she could hear his laugh echoing in the air, mixing with her fading words.