Lunch with Megan

"I've been well. Work as usual and some research on the side. Aside from a kidnapping, which does sound interesting, how about you?"

"Same really, just working. No more one nighters." she grins, "So how's Charlie?" I feel her nudge me playfully under the table.

"He's been well, I think. We haven't had a chance to talk much since the other night," I feel my cheeks warming slightly.

She smiles at me sympathetically, "It's difficult when you're both working so hard. I was lucky with my last boyfriend...or at least lucky that I got to see him frequently, not so lucky how it turned out, but it was good while it lasted. Hopefully he'll have more time to spare with the Christmas holidays coming and you can see more of each other then."

I nod. "Maybe, though I know how hectic the holidays can be."

I realize she's watching me carefully, "What is it you do anyway? Where do you work?"

"Oh!" I bit my lower lip for a moment, remembering Aly's reaction. Most don't look kindly on where I work, but I like to think I might have done some good. "The Daily Prophet."

"Ah, reporter? Nice, now we know who to blame when we're given misleading facts and advice." she teases. "At least I can only be blamed for wiping out some unheard of muggle settlement by unleashing a zombie or something. You've got control of the media circuit, wicked power that."

"Not all of us are like that," I insist, but can't help smiling as I add, "The pen is mightier than the sword."

She grins mischievously, "Have you ever noticed, it's always the people who haven't been stabbed who say that?"

"I just prefer using words instead of my wand, though sometimes you don't have a choice."

She looks worried for a second and when she speaks her words are cautious. "Yes, sometimes action is unavoidable to protect you and yours."

I nod in agreement. I had no choice but to fight back at times. I instantly think of Caley and her broken arm.

"How come you're staying with the twins anyway?" She ask.

I hesitate. How much should I admit to? I doubt Katie would tell anyone, but I have been careful this long to not say too much. "Let's just say sometimes in investigative reporting, you get can in over your head."

"Charlie must be out of his mind with worry...although I can't think of anyone safer for you to be staying with." She seems to be talking to herself more than me so I decide to ignore it.

"If you ever need help with anything you know you can always owl me." she adds.

"Thank you," I give her a small smile. "So, while you're not singing karaoke or having a very...interesting sleepover, what do you like to do?"

"I know it sounds odd, but I'm finding work is more and more interesting. Mr Weasley's warned me about having a break from work and to have fun as well but...it is fun. I still like flying of course, although I broke my broom over a year ago in my last flight with the Magpies. Broom, collar bone, and wrist, havn't got a replacement yet." I sigh, I really should, but I loved that broom and it would hurt to just replace it because it went faulty on one dive just because Al's aim was off.

"Maybe you can get another then," she suggests. "I just got a broom a few months ago. I haven't taken it out too much."

"I should, but it was such a faithful old thing...it just had a slight hiccup at the last second...it was Alisdair's fault really." I'll never ever blame my broom for something, even if it was the blasted thing that sent me ploughing into the ground.

"You can't get it fixed, can you?"

"Unfortunately not, the handle snapped, splintered straight from tip to tail. I suppose it teaches me not to do a nose dive into the ground in January when everything's frozen." I grumble miserably.

"I'm sorry. However, it might be good if you started to fly again."

"Yes it would, I do miss it. I shall have to think about getting a new broom." I smile.

"Maybe you can show me some tricks then."

"Yeh, we should get together again sometime and go flying, when we're not on our lunch breaks that is." I tell her.

"I doubt it'd be wise to try and eat while on a broom," she laughs.

"Gets a little messy, and you get stitch." I agree.

"Let me know though, and we could go flying. Or if you want to do anything else sometime."

"Yeh I'd like that." I grin at her. "You can always owl me too if you have any ideas of something you'd like to do."

She smiles. "I don't think that will be too hard."

I nod in agreement, I like Megan. She's not over-the-top like the twins, and I don't know her quite well enough for proper girly chats like I did with Alicia, but given time and more chances to see each other she quite easily become a very good friend.

"I'm sure between the two of us we can think of several good activities!" Katie says with a grin. "If you think of anything, owl me."

I nod. "And you know where I am for the time being, so if you want to stop in, I don't think the twins would mind."

She grins, "If they did, I doubt they could stop me, I learned to play rough with them when I was a first year. I haven't done it in a while but I reckon I could still pin George down with his wand arm behind his back if he pushed me. Not sure how, since they're technically identical and I never could beat Fred...at least I think it was that way round."

I can't help but smile. It's clear she is close to the twins, though I knew that after last weekend too. "I could see it. Though I have to ask, how do you tell them apart? I've been living with them for weeks and still have trouble."

"Good question, to which the answer is...I don't. I have no idea which is Fred and which is George. I do however know there are subtle differences. During our time at Hogwarts together they each got their fair usage as human pillows, one squirms, the other doesn't. One calls me by my name with 'kins' or something on the end, so I become Katie-kins, the other changes all but the first letter of my name so I become Kibbles, or Kippary. One has three freckles in a line on his left bum cheek, the other only has two." She explains. I can tell she's trying to sound as serious as the teachers at Hogwarts. "As for which of our noble fellows posesses which qualities, I'm lost. Telling the difference is not the same as telling them apart."

I can't help but laugh at this, though one part of what she said stands out as fairly personal information. "I expect that is the way they like it."

"Oh definitely, they'd deny it if you did tell them apart somehow. Otherwise I go for a fifty fifty split, or just yell 'Weasley!' at them, that way you're right at least part of the time."

"I will keep that in mind." I pause then, before I can think on it too much I ask. "How do you..." I shake my head. "Wait, I don't want to know." That is too personal, I think.

"How do I what?" She ask, teasingly, "C'mon Megs, you can say it." Her face changes to a most uncharacteristically angelic expression "I won't tell anyone."

I feel my cheeks warming again. "About the freckles," I quickly answer.

She laughs, "With Oliver on the Gryff team and then later when Angie was dating Fred you really think us girls wouldn't take a sneak peak in the boys showers after Quidditch training?"

Now, I know I am blushing. My cheeks are a lot warmer now. "I can imagine."

I can see I've shocked her. I'm not surprised by this. I learned long ago that McGonagall was possibly the only one not taken in by my innocent puppy-dog expression, especially when the Weasley twins weren't too far away to take the blame. "Anyway I'd better get back to work. I'll see you soon I hope."

I see her glance at her watch and then sigh. "I probably should be getting back to work. We really should get together again, Katie."

I glance at my own watch and swear, "Yes I have to get back too."

She nods. "We'll have to do this again. Especially since now that I know...a bit more about my flatmates," she laughs. "It might make living there even more interesting."

I laugh and hug her, "I never thought anyone living with the Weasley twins could expect things to get more interesting."

"You'd be surprised," she hugs me back. "Take care."

"You too." I wave as I leave, heading back to Gringotts' as she heads back to the Daily Prophet offices.