Title: Little Miracles
Summary: They were little miracles, the two of them, perfect and healthy and innocent in a world that was falling apart.
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Angst, references to canon character deaths.
Featured Characters/Pairings: Arthur/Molly, and Fred and George
Word Count: 1,615
Disclaimer: None of the characters, situations, or settings from the Harry Potter series belong to me. If they did, my name would be J.K. Rowling, which of course, it is not.
Author's Notes: Written for deathjunke as a pinch-hit for the 2009 weasley_fest. It was a pleasure to write this for you, deathjunke! You asked for Arthur/Molly, parental bonding between Molly and the twins, and emotional dependency. I hope that I've managed to deliver what you wanted. My sincere thanks go to queenb23more for the beta.

Little Miracles

Gideon and Fabian were late.

It was nearly two in the morning, but they hadn't Flooed, and they should have been back from their mission hours ago. Molly Weasley was feverishly cleaning her kitchen, desperate for a distraction, but no matter what she tried, she couldn't stop worrying. She hadn't wanted them to take this mission in the first place, had thought it was too dangerous, too risky, but her brothers had merely laughed at her concerns.

"Don't worry, Molly," said Fabian. "We'll be back and..."

"…eating up all your food before you know it," finished Gideon with a smirk.

Exasperated, Molly huffed, "You two are incorrigible!"

"We know," said Gideon.

"But you love us anyway," Fabian added.

"Molly," said Arthur, who had suddenly appeared in the doorway. "Come to bed, love."

Molly sighed and stopped her frantic scrubbing, "I'm sorry, Arthur. I just can't rest."

"Okay, then," he said as he moved to put the kettle on. "I'll stay up with you."

Molly smiled and had just risen to her feet when a knock sounded at the door.

Arthur moved over to the door and asked cautiously, "Who's there?"

"My name is James Potter and I fly by the Phoenix."

Arthur quickly opened the door, James stepped in, and Molly could tell deep down in her soul that something awful had happened.

James looked at her, his brown eyes full of tears as he whispered, "It was a trap. I don't know how they knew we were coming, but somehow they knew. Your brothers…they died saving my life tonight. Oh, Godric, Molly, I'm so sorry!"

The world was spinning, and Molly was only vaguely aware of Arthur catching her as her legs gave out from under her.

"Thank you, James," she heard Arthur say as she recovered from her swoon. "You should get home to Lily. Feel free to use our Floo; I'm sure that she's worried."

"Why?" Molly cried as she turned and buried her face into her husband's strong chest. Wild sobs spilled from her uncontrollably, and she clung to Arthur as tightly as she possibly could. "Oh, Godric, why?"

The two of them sunk to the floor and Arthur held her steady in his arms as she cried.

"I love you, Molly," he whispered. "I've got you. Just let it out. I'm here."

And Arthur kept her safe in his arms, supporting and holding her until she had no more tears to cry.

*****

Ten months later, the twins were born on April Fool's Day, of all days. If her brothers had lived to see them, Molly was sure that they would have been overjoyed her new sons had been born on their favorite day of the year.

She cried as the healer handed her one of her boys and Arthur sat beside her on the bed holding the other one. They were little miracles, the two of them, perfect and healthy and innocent in a world that was falling apart.

"What should we name them?" Arthur asked softly.

Molly pondered the question for a moment as she looked back and forth between her newborn sons. She wanted to honor Fabian and Gideon, but she didn't want to name them directly after them either, especially so soon after their passing. She wasn't looking to replace the loss of her twin brothers with her own sons. Looking down at the baby boy in her arms, she said finally, "I think we should call this one George."

Arthur nodded in agreement and looked down at the baby he held. "What do you think about the name Fred for this one?" he asked.

Molly smiled warmly. It felt fitting, and somehow, she knew her brothers would approve.

"Alright," she said. "Fred and George it is."

*****

The little hellions!

Molly couldn't understand how those boys managed to get themselves into so much trouble. She had only left the room for a moment, and yet Fred and George had somehow managed to destroy Percy's favorite book, trample on Charlie's dragon figurine, and make little Ronnie cry, all in the time it had taken her to walk from the living room to the kitchen and back again.

Fred and George burst into tears after she finished yelling at them.

"We're sorry, Mummy," Fred whimpered.

"Please don't hate us, Mummy!" George pleaded.

Molly dropped to her knees and quickly gathered the two of them into her arms. "I could never hate you, darlings," she said as they clung to her. "Just because I get angry at you doesn't mean I don't love you."

George vowed, "We'll be good, Mum."

"We promise!" added Fred.

"Alright then, off you get," Molly said as she released them and sent them upstairs.

She set about repairing Charlie and Percy's belongings and maybe three minutes had passed before a loud crash and an angry yell came from the direction of Bill's room.

Molly sighed. It was going to be a long day.

*****

FRED AND GEORGE WEASLEY!

DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MORTIFIED I WAS TO RECEIVE A MESSAGE FROM PROFESSOR MCGONAGALL THAT THE TWO OF YOU HAD BEEN CAUGHT RUNNING THROUGH THE FORBIDDEN FOREST A MERE DAY AFTER BEING INFORMED THAT IT IS OFF LIMITS?!?!

FIRST OF ALL, THEY CALL IT THE FORBIDDEN FOREST FOR A REASON, AND SECONDLY, WHAT ON EARTH WERE YOU DOING OUT OF BED AT THAT HOUR?!?!?!

IF I HEAR THAT EITHER OF YOU STEPS SO MUCH AS A TOE OUT OF LINE FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR, I WILL STORM RIGHT OVER TO THAT SCHOOL AND TAN YOUR BACKSIDES SO HARD YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO SIT ON A BROOM FOR A WEEK!

DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?!?

*****

"They just left, Arthur!" Molly wailed in disbelief. "They just jumped on their brooms without taking their N.E.W.T.s and left!"

"Now, Molly," Arthur said calmly. "I'll have you know that Delores Umbridge is a horrible woman who deserved every last bit of trouble our sons issued out to her."

"I have no illusions about how nasty that woman is, Arthur, but what about their futures? How will they survive? How will they ever find jobs without finishing school and having the proper qualifications?"

Arthur sighed, "Our sons are bright, Molly, but Fred and George taking Ministry jobs was always your dream, not theirs. You need to let them find their own path. I'm sure that they'll be happy and healthy and successful with whatever they choose to do; it just won't be behind Ministry desks."

"I hope you're right, Arthur. I hope you're right."

*****

Arthur was right.

Molly looked around the busy storefront the twins had set up for themselves, filled to the brim with every trick, treat, and joke she could imagine, as well as many she had probably never even thought of before. Fred and George's shop was magnificent!

Her boys were in their element, happily catering to their many customers and explaining the many uses of all their products. Their personalities were evident in every outlandish advert and in the vibrant décor of the shop. Most important of all, though, was that they had followed their own paths and had not only succeeded in doing what they loved, but they had done so with flying colors.

Molly still thought that jokes and games were a frivolous fancy, but she no longer believed they amounted to nothing. But what was more important than the shop and the customers and anything else in the world was that she was extremely proud of her sons.

*****

Molly's heart ached as she watched Fred and George together. They were still together, still the same, and yet no longer identical. It had been such a traumatic evening, and while she knew that she should count her blessings that every member of her family was alive and had returned to her, she couldn't help but be devastated by the loss of George's ear.

Arthur bid her to come to bed, and she curled up in his arms and cried in a way that she hadn't since her brothers had died. Once again, the world was falling apart, and she feared how much further it had yet to fall.

*****

She had to be strong. As devastated as she was, Molly knew that this was merely a calm before another storm and she had to pull herself together for the sake of her family, but especially for George.

He looked up at her from where he sat, bewildered, at Fred's head; his blue eyes filled with tears and with a tiny voice, he asked her, "Why?"

Molly gathered him in her arms and choked back her own tears. "I don't know, baby," she whispered softly. "I don't know."

*****

The dust from the final battle had finally cleared, and against all odds, they had done it. Harry had done it, but it came at a terrible price.

Molly moved silently through the halls of Hogwarts with Arthur at her side, seeking a quiet place for them to spend the night. They found an empty guest room in a wing where they had often stayed before and had no sooner closed the door when Arthur promptly collapsed against it.

"Our boy!" he sobbed with labored breaths. "Oh Godric, Molly, our boy!"

Molly rushed over and enveloped him in her arms, keeping him safe and sharing his grief the same way he had done for her so long ago. Fred and George were their little miracles, and now, one of them had been torn away from them forever.

She rocked her husband in her arms, added her tears to his, and whispered, "I love you, Arthur. I've got you. I'm here