ever prompt as usual {fred!}

[roxanne]

It was no secret that Roxy wasn't exactly a huge fan of studying. It wasn't that she didn't care about her marks in school; she knew they were important for her future and her career in the wizarding world. It was just so hard to focus on something as menial and tedious as research papers and potions ingredients when there were so many things that she would rather be doing out there already in the world. She got fair enough marks-- she wasn't a slacker per se-- but it was just such an effort to reel herself back in and slow herself down enough to sit down and do what she needed to do.

It was for this reason that Roxy was quite a bit late that afternoon for the study session she'd promised her older brother, Fred. They frequently met up for things like this, if only just to keep an eye on each other and act as accountability partners, in a way. The pair were about as close as siblings could get, and although Fred was older than Roxy by a year, they seemed to switch off that protective role depending on the situation. Right now, Roxy supposed, she was the one who needed to be kept in check, as she had about three different assignments due that week that she hadn't even started. But this most likely wasn't shocking considering she found herself in that same predicament at least a few times a month.

Hair dripping wet and still wearing sopping clothes beneath her robes, the fifth year dashed up to the fourth floor as fast as the moving staircases would allow her-- which was not very fast, to say the least.
"Just creak along at your own merry pace, then," she said frustratedly to the staircase she was on, leaning against the railing and wringing out her hair over it. "I was only hoping to get there before the week finished."

Before she'd taken off for the library, she hadn't even realized it had gotten so late, being that she'd left her watch in a pile with the rest of her things when she'd decided to take an unplanned dive into the lake in only her bra and a pair of short Quidditch shorts. By the time it had occurred to her to check, it was already a few minutes past when she was supposed to be at the library, and she'd had no time to even change before throwing her robes over her and running off. It wasn't that she thought her brother would expect her to be on time; now that would be uncharacteristic of her. However, she felt bad missing any time spent with Fred, since they both had classes and she didn't get to see him quite as much as she would have liked to.

Finally she squelched into the library and looked around for her brother, heading in the direction of where they usually sat. At least nobody in the library ever seemed to look up from their books long enough to notice when there was a drowned ginger cat entering the facility.

[FRED ARTHUR WEASLEY]

It had been another long and annoyingly slow day for Mister Fred Arthur Weasley. Classes had been a bit more dull than usual, conversations had gotten boring, and Greg was getting on his nerves. Thank goodness he had his sister to talk to, using a very familiar language that he didn't need to worry about others understanding. Roxy grew up learning ASL with him, so it was natural for them. And this, he was grateful for. Roxanne was definitely a person he found refreshing to see. His younger sister that he had quite the bond with. They grew up being super close -- he couldn't be sure if it was because of his deafness, or if they were just that compatible as siblings. He didn't mind at all, though. He loved her, completely. She was his blood, his connection to life, his most trusted confidant. Roxy was certainly his best friend - because he told her mostly everything. There were some things he kept private, but they were never huge nor were they significant. All of the important things, though? She knew about. It was as if they were the same age at times, because they never let the year that separated them get in the way. It was only a mere year, but they acted similar. Obnoxious, outgoing, optimistic, outstanding.. well, maybe not outstanding, but go with the alliteration. The biggest difference was the volume level. Fred was silent and Roxy was always over-the-top loud.

And, that's who he was waiting for this time. They had weekly study sessions, because he liked to make sure that she at least tried on her homework. Academics weren't a first priority with either of them - but that didn't stop him from worrying about her grades slipping. He had to take watch over her to make sure that she didn't get too far behind. That was one of his duties as her brother that he had given himself. The library was one of his favourite places and no, it wasn't because of the fact that everyone was meant to be silent anyhow. It was because of the homeyness of the area was, the comfort, and the books. It had a slew of information hidden within its books that he always got excited to continue reading. Fred could be rather lame, but he didn't care. And that was the attitude he had most often. Why care about things so minuscule that they shouldn't bother you at all? In that way, he was careless. Well, if he wasn't, he'd be self-conscious and timid. Luckily, though, his father was the infamous George Weasley - a prankster himself. Fred looked up to his wacky father and had always wanted to be like him, minus the loss of his father's brother- Fred Weasley I. That was a sore subject, so no one really spoke about it much. Although, a few times, Fred spoke about it to Roxy, because they had never met him. Even as much as they would've liked to. He seemed to be an epic uncle that have had around.

Glancing at the clock, he shook his head whilst smiling to himself. Late. As usual. So like her. Actually, he had arrived late, because he knew she wouldn't be there. Why not grab some extra breakfast, right? He'd been sitting there for five minutes, just chilling, but then he figured he'd start getting to the assignments that were due later today. Pulling out books, quills, ink, and parchment -- he felt tired of schoolwork. It was as if they assigned things just to torture the students. He had to write a nineteen-page paper on the likelihood of a transformation going wrong if you say a certain spell in a specific way. How was that even possible? And how did the professor even expect to get the essay the next day? Did they not believe in sleep or something? It kind of angered him, but he didn't want to cause any troubles in class. No. If he did that, they'd think him weak. And he wasn't weak. But it didn't matter, because they could think what they wanted. He wouldn't let it bother him. Finally, he saw the infamous Roxanne Weasley.. looking like a drenched rat. A silly grin tugged at his lips as he sat back, watching her walk toward to their usual table. It wasn't on reserve or anything, but it was just the one they preferred.. it was semi close to the windows while being close to the books as well. A perfect medium. [ Well, it's about time you showed up. ] He joked, signing his words out. [ What kept you? A water balloon fight? ]

[roxanne]

Sign language was something that Roxy suspected she might never have bothered to learn if it weren't for Fred's existence in her life. It was almost uncharacteristic of her to go out of her way to learn something that wasn't required in life, but obviously, for her, it was required, because it was the best and most efficient way to converse with her older brother. She loved that it gave them sort of a secretive aspect to their conversations; not just anyone could pick up on and understand what they were saying. Around the house, of course, the family signed all the time, but it was different at school and in the wizarding world-- it was almost like growing up as normal siblings, developing a secret language all their own, except Roxy thought it was better. Signing wasn't just a way for them to communicate or say things no one else could understand; they relied on it in many ways. Signing was the connection they could never break or forget. They would always have it, and it would always be something they shared. She wouldn't have traded her Fred for anyone, whether he could hear or not. She loved him just the way he was.

When she had finally arrived at their usual table, she was looking a little bit miserable. After all, it wasn't exactly comfortable to run across a castle in sopping wet undergarments. She was cold, things were sticking to her, and she realized it probably wouldn't have hurt anything to go up and change quickly. After all, she was already going to be late, and it would have only taken ten minutes. Alas, these were things that she tended not to think about until it was too late, and so here she was. Nonetheless, when she saw Fred crack a grin at her ridiculous state, she couldn't help but crack one too. This was so typical that it could have been the punchline of one of those "funny because it's true" jokes, and she couldn't help but laugh around her brother anyway.

[Kidnapped by the giant squid], she signed in response to her brother's words. One might have thought it difficult to make jokes without being able to use tone of voice or anything else that assisted getting the point across that it was, in fact, a joke. They managed, though, if only because the tone of voice was implied between them. Things were usually a joke, and if they weren't, the two knew anyway. They just... did. Her eyes twinkled with amusement at her lame story.

[FRED ARTHUR WEASLEY]

Sign language is beautiful - at least to those who need to use it every single day. Yes, it can get boring and/or annoying, but it never really bothered Fred. Afterall, it's something he had known his entire life. Anyway, though. Roxanne Gemini Weasley. His blood sister that he loved so very dearly. Nothing could possibly separate them, even if they were only a year apart. To be honest, they were an abnormal set of siblings. They rarely fought, they were a lot alike, and they had quite a few of the same interests. Technically, they were like the stereotypical twins where they were more alike than opposite. But, they weren't twins. Just amazing siblings. Fred couldn't be sure if it was because he was deaf - from the beginning stages of bonding through ASL, or if it would've happened anything, without him having been born deaf. But, he'd never know. He didn't want to know either. Being deaf was his way of living and he loves it. No matter what, he wouldn't want to trade it for the world. It certainly didn't define him, but it made him.. unique. Not that he played on that or anything, it was just.. who he was. Fred embraced everything about himself, because he felt that there was nothing wrong. Why would there be? He was himself, confident, outgoing, and didn't let anything get in his way of what he wanted to accomplish. Not to mention, he had his best pal - the infamous Greg. What a great guy to have in his life. Surely, Fred had something of a mancrush on him. But - not really.

When Roxy came and sat down, he couldn't help but grin at her answer. She was quite hilarious and he loved when she made him smile. [ Really? The giant squid kidnapped you? And rogue mermaids? Yeah. True devotion. ] He responded, rolling his eyes and shaking his head. As he looked her over again, he realized just how dripping wet she really was. Fred took out his wand whilst wiggling his nose toward Roxy. She had forgotten that she could easily dry herself with a simple spell. Flicking his wand, he mouthed the spell, and allowed Roxy's robes to suddenly become dry. Magic these days, who knew? [ Anyway. We both know you have other things on your mind than studying. So, get to it, sis. ] There wasn't anything wrong, but there was always something on Roxy's mind that she wanted to burst about. Even though he couldn't hear her when she spoke, her expressions were animated enough to convince of him her loud voice and outgoing charm. Sometimes, it almost seemed as if the volume of her voice was to compensate for the fact that Fred didn't have one. Well, he wasn't sure if he had one, honestly. He had never tried speaking before.. and he wasn't sure if he wanted to. What if he didn't sound like everyone else and never knew it? He honestly didn't want to be made fun of for the way he spoke.. But then again, it might help if he were to take speech therapy lessons like his bestie, Delaney.