A/N: I'll just begin by saying that I am aware that the ages are all wrong, but I've opted to mess around with them for the sake of the story and hope no one minds too much. Also, I chose Fred ll as my character, for the QL judge. Enjoy – and leave a review if you want to make a writer happy.

Fred leaned against the tree trunk, plopped his feet on Teddy's lap, and let out of a big sigh of relief.

Exams were finally over, and Hogwarts was experiencing a heat wave. Fred had long since ditched his heavy robes and opted for a pair of cooler, muggle shorts and a ratty T-Shirt. Teddy was similarly dressed, although, as Fred had already reminded him, his bubblegum pink hair clashed with his red T-Shirt.

One might have said Fred and Teddy were close. Fred often liked to remind people that Teddy was his favourite honorary cousin. Despite Fred being in Hufflepuff, and Teddy Ravenclaw, the two had remained as thick as thieves throughout their teenage years.

"It's too hot," Fred declared.

Teddy looked unimpressed. "What a novel observation. Really. I applaud you."

Fred kicked him weakly, too drained to do anything more. "Shut up." He looked up into the branches, wishing they offered him more shade. "What are we going to do this summer, Ted?"

"Well, I'm getting a job, and probably spending the rest of the time listening to your scrawny arse moan."

"Come on, we've got to do something. We're 16! Let's get laid or go on holiday or start a band."

"Well, neither of us are musical, so we can't exactly start a band. If we went on holiday, you'd almost certainly die - either at my hands or because you're an idiot. And I am, under no circumstances, going anywhere you think will get us laid."

Fred pulled a face. "You're so boring."

The pair of them lapsed into silence, both staring out onto the still waters of the lake. Their view was interrupted when a boy came charging towards them, crying, "Guys! Guys! Look at this!"

James Potter was only in his second year and, as twelve-year-olds are prone to, adoring of his older relatives. Fred resisted the urge to roll his eyes and Teddy fell onto his back.

James was waving a piece of blank parchment wildly and Fred raised his eyebrow. "How's it going, little bro?" he asked as James drew closer. While James may be annoying, Fred couldn't help but smile fondly at the scrawny boy. Teddy, on the other hand, was pretending to sleep.

"Look what I found! Look!" James almost shouted, pointing his wand at the map and saying in a steadier voice, "I solemnly swear I am up to no good."

Fred watched as lines appeared on the parchment, feeling James go up in his estimation when he opened it. "Is that…?" He sat up properly, looking intrigued. "Is that Hogwarts?"

"I think so," James nodded excitedly. "And look," he repeated, folding the parchment again. "Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs. Isn't Moony your dad, Teddy?"

Teddy had already sat up, and before Fred could reach out to examine the map closer, he snatched it away. Fred knew how testy Teddy was when it came to his parents. How could he be otherwise? It explained Teddy's occasional quiet spells, where he wandered off and thought. Fred never asked what he thought about.

"What are you doing?" James asked indignantly. "Give that back!"

But Teddy was already lying down again, parchment tucked neatly into the pocket of his shorts. "Sorry, Jim," Fred said, watching Teddy carefully. "But I think Ted should probably have it. It's his dad, isn't it?"

James huffed and sulked, but didn't dare threaten Teddy, for which Fred was grateful. He was never sure how far his friend could be pushed when it came to his parents.

Every summer the entire Weasley family came together for a week or two in the Burrow, setting up tents all over the place so as not to disturb Nanny and Granddad too much.

Fred loved those weeks. He seemed to have hundreds of cousins, all providing something to keep Fred entertained for the time, be it keeping an eye on little Lily or staying up late talking to Victoire and Molly.

He flooed to the Burrow only an hour after arriving home from the Hogwarts Express, ignoring his parents' requests to stay behind and help pack the family's things. Nanny was known to always take care of her grandchildren, protecting them from the cruelty of their harassed parents, and Fred trusted her protection would be enough to keep him out of trouble.

The moment he stepped out of the fireplace, he found the Potters had arrived, Teddy in tow, and that Nanny had prepared food in anticipation for the arrivals. After embracing everyone individually, taking a moment to admire Granddad's iPad and cram a few cakes into his mouth, Fred flopped onto the sofa beside Teddy.

"Alright, mate?" he asked, but Teddy seemed even more sullen than usual. Leaning over conspiratorially, he muttered, "You got the map?"

Teddy nodded and patted his pocket.

"Are you going to ask Uncle Harry about it?"

Teddy nodded again. Before Fred could ask anything else, Nanny interrupted them with a, "Teddy, you're beginning to look like Bill!" As she began reprimanding him for his dodgy tongue piercing and taste in clothes, Fred escaped before she could lay into him as well.

Several hours later, the whole family had arrived. Fred was supposed to be in bed, earlier than his cousins as a punishment for not helping his family. However, he considered the punishment a weak one, thinking of his father's usually impressive imagination, and chose to scorn the pathetic excuse by sneaking out of bed almost as soon as George had finished his rant and left. He padded through the tent, careful not to wake his sleeping sister, and sprinted across the damp grass.

As light was only just beginning to fade, the adults were all drinking and laughing on the other side of the house, avoiding the irritable gnomes. Fred snuck into the kitchen, and challenged himself to conceal as much food as he could manage on his person. However, just as his pockets were undeniably full, he thought he heard a familiar voice on the other side of the door. Being a Weasley, he crept to the door and pressed his ear against it.

On the other side were Teddy and Harry, discussing the map.

"Yes, our dads made this," Harry was saying. "Didn't use it for much good, I don't think."

"Did you use it as well?"

"Yes, and Fred and George, though I like to think I used it for the benefit of the wizarding world." He paused. "I was rather hoping you wouldn't find this until you'd left school, actually. I don't even want to think about what you'd do with it."

"My dad made this while he was in school?" Teddy asked, ignoring Harry's comment.

"Yes. He was a brilliant wizard, your dad." Fred shifted to press his ear against the crack between the door and the wall. He supposed he should feel uncomfortable for intruding on to this deeply private conversation, but his curiosity outweighed his capacity for guilt.

"Yeah."

Fred waited until he heard the heavier footsteps retreat and pushed the door open to the corridor. He half expected to see Teddy crying, but the teenager was staring blankly at the piece of parchment.

"Are you OK?"

"What if I don't live up to my mum and dad?"

Fred blinked. "Sorry?"

"They were amazing. They fought against Voldermort. They-" His voice broke. Fred stood uselessly, staring at him in horror. Unless the pair of them had been drinking, their conversations were never deep.

"Teddy-"

"It's nothing. Sorry." He sniffed and slipped the parchment back into his pocket. "Do you want to find the girls and steal some fire whiskey?"

Fred knew he should say no, knew he should make Teddy talk about it, knew he should take care of his friend.

"Let's get drunk," he said instead.