Intertwined

Chapter One

"Mum, Hugo's dad took him flying again today," Sebastian said as he snuggled next to his mother on the worn yellow couch.

"Where is my dad? Can he take me flying?"

She put her arm around her only son, hugging him to her side as she ruffled his hair. Ginny took a moment to study her son while she thought of a reply. Her fingers combed through his strawberry blond hair, marvelling at how light it was compared to her own dark red locks.

A moment of silence passed and Sebastian turned meeting Ginny's eyes. She loved his eyes; they were nothing like she had ever seen before. They were a deep brown like her own around the irises, but the colour faded to become a pale grey as it moved away from the centre.

"I have told you before, darling. Your father is a very busy and can't leave Australia, but I'm sure if here were here, he would love to take you flying." Ginny used the same lie she had told Sebastian for over five years. She hated the fact she had to deceive him, and she regretted her tendency to hold grudges and act irrationally, if only she had thought through the consequences of her actions eleven years ago. She didn't regret having Sebastian; it was just that she regretted that he couldn't grow up with a loving father.

"What's his name?" Sebastian asked, eagerly hoping to find out more about the father he had never known, who he had never even seen a picture of. All he knew of his father was that he lived in Australia and had never come to visit him.

A knock caused Ginny to jump off the couch and walk to the door. She was happy for the distraction, as it would mean that she didn't have to tell another lie to her son about his father.

Ginny unlocked the door that opened up to a small pathway just off Diagon Alley. The small lane went down past her bakery and came to a stop just past her flat, which sat behind the bakery.

"Uncle Fred!" Sebastian yelled as soon as the door was opened, running towards his favourite uncle.

"Sebastian!" Fred called out as Sebastian hauled himself into his uncle's arms. Fred set Sebastian back onto the ground before the pair launched into their secret handshake, ending with each of them tickling each other until they both fell on the floor, laughing hysterically.

"Where's George?" Ginny asked when the boys had calmed down, sitting back down on the couch.

"He's off with the wife. Hasn't been the same since he married Angelina. I'm happy for him, of course, but it just gets kind of lonely with him always gone." A hint of sadness swept across his face before he turned to Sebastian and smiled again, "So Seb, you excited for Hogwarts? Only a couple of days to go!"

"YES!" Sebastian yelled, jumping up from his spot on the floor where he was fiddling with something. "I get to go and have adventures of my own! I can't wait!" Sebastian knew the outline of most of the trio's adventures, but no one had ever told him about the part his mother played when she was in her first year, and Ginny was going to keep it that way.

Fred chuckled, and then noticed the pieces lying on the floor. "Hey Seb, what's that?" He asked motioning towards the ground.

"Well, it was your WWW aviatmobile and headless hat, but I pulled them apart. I'm using the invisibility fibres from the headless hat to make the aviatmobile able to disappear like Grandpa's car does," Sebastian replied waving his hand like it was no big deal.

"Wow Seb, that's actually really impressive," Fred said, truly surprised by his nephew's inventiveness. "That's not easy."

"Well it's not like I haven't tried it before. I just haven't got it right yet," Sebastian said with a frown. He usually got things right the first time he tried them, but the invisible aviatmobile was giving him something to really work on.

Ginny took that as her cue to start preparing dinner. The boys were lost in their own world while she was cutting and preparing the vegetables for a roast. She soon had no idea what the two were discussing, as Ginny was once again astounded at Sebastian's intelligence. 'He must get it from his father,' Ginny thought, 'He had almost perfect grades at school.' Ginny decided not to dwell on that thought and went back to preparing the roast and putting it in the oven before setting the timer. Ginny then strolled out into the living room to stop whatever mischief Fred and Sebastian were getting up to now.

"Wow, this boy is a genius!" Fred said as Ginny walked in. "He obviously doesn't get it from you," he joked.

Ginny stuck her tongue out at him in a very un-lady like manner. "He gets it from his father," she said, eyeing the pieces on the floor.

Fred looked at Ginny, frustration evident on his face. "Oh yeah the father who lives in Australia, can't be traced, and no one has ever seen," he said, his voice betraying all the pain the Weasley's felt. The whole family hated the fact Ginny didn't trust them enough to tell them who the Sebastian's father was. Everyone had seen the emotional distress Ginny had gone through during her pregnancy, only telling them it happened the night after the Battle of Hogwarts.

The pain in Fred's voice triggered the memory of that one night. Ginny, along with many other students, celebrated their victory and the fall of Voldemort. It had been a wild affair with a great deal alcohol consumed, and Ginny's emotions had been all over the place. She was confused and in denial about Fred, who had been injured in the battle, presumed to be dead. George was later seen leaving the castle with Fred's body, and no one had caught a glimpse of them since. She was so worried about Harry, who had nearly been killed by Voldemort yet again, but he had still pulled through. He had survived, but somehow he seemed different. She was so happy they had won, but was still scared that the Death Eaters who weren't killed would track down her family. But above all, she was angry. She hadn't been able to fight when she could have helped. Perhaps even prevented Fred's near-death. Out of rage, retaliation, and the grip alcohol had on her brain, she did the one thing that would anger her parents and brothers more than anything.

All she could remember after that was waking up with a splitting headache, next to someone who she refused to speak the name of.

"Fred," Ginny warned through clenched teeth. She shot Fred a glare that said 'not in front of Sebastian.'

But it was too late; Sebastian had already started to doubt the story Ginny had told him about his father. He pretended he hadn't heard the encounter between the pair and continued working on the invisible aviatmobile. All the while, his mind was processing different scenarios that had caused his whole family to know nothing of his father.

Ginny finally stopped glaring at Fred and instead shifted her gaze to Sebastian. Thankfully, he was still working on his project and had not noticed the harsh words that had just been exchanged between Fred and her.

Ginny soon left the room to do the laundry. She began manually doing the folding to help calm her down. She just got so frustrated with Fred sometimes! He acted again today without thinking about the consequences of his actions! She was grateful to him for coming around and for being a father figure for Sebastian. She did suspect it was mostly due to the fact Fred was extremely lonely now that George lived with his wife and kids.

A ding from the oven let Ginny know the roast was ready, and she hurried to the kitchen to serve dinner. With a flick of her wand, three plates were sent flying to the dinner table, along with the plate of roast vegetables. She then put her wand away before calling the boys to dinner and taking the roast to set on the table.

After dinner, Sebastian insisted on a few games of exploding snap. After five rounds, Ginny decided it was late enough and nearly had to drag him to his room. She made sure he was in bed before returning to Fred.

Upon entering the living room, she stopped, seeing Fred sitting there, staring into the fire. The look on his face was one of pain and utter despair. She sighed. Ginny had seen him like this many times over the last eleven years. He had never been the same since his near-death. Their family never noticed the difference in him, apart from George and herself. The Weasleys' attention was always on herself and Sebastian and making sure that he didn't miss out on anything because he was without a father.

Ginny felt dejected as she remembered Fred when he was at his lowest. It was a few days after Ginny was forced to announce her pregnancy, and the family had shifted all attention to her. Of course everyone was happy that Fred was okay, but what they didn't know was that he spent many days locked in his bedroom with George. Ginny had asked George many times, but even he didn't really understand just what his brother had gone through that night.

Ginny walked over and sat beside Fred. She placed her hand on his shoulder, making him jump slightly.

"Fred?" Ginny asked, worry evident in her voice.

He mumbled something about her worrying too much and being just like their mother as he stood up and poured himself a glass of Firewhisky, downing it in one go. Ginny jumped up from the couch, stealing the Firewhisky before Fred could pour himself another glass. He sighed, putting his used glass on the bench before walking towards the front door. Ginny ran in front of Fred, stopping him from leaving.

"No! I am not letting you leave tonight. Remember what happened last time? George found you the next day passed out with many empty bottles around you," she said, getting angry. Ginny was very protective of Fred, as George wasn't around all the time to make sure that he didn't get himself in trouble. Days like today, he really could not be trusted to be alone.

"Gin, please, let me go," Fred said, his voice betraying his tiredness. He didn't want to fight.

"Fred!" Ginny said, showing her anger in the hope that Fred would listen to her. "You are not going to leave this house! I swear if you do, I will cast a sleeping charm on you and bring you straight back here, do you hear me?"

"All right!" Fred said, holding up his hands to show his surrender. "If it really means that much to you, I will stay put, okay?" He knew not to mess with Ginny when she was in a state.

"Good," Ginny said, taking one step away from the door while keeping her eyes trained on him and making sure he would not make a run for it.

Fred sighed, making his way to Ginny's spare room and disappearing for the night.

Ginny poured herself a glass of Firewhisky, taking a small sip. After eleven years of holding onto her secret, she thought it would get easier. But it hadn't, and now that Sebastian was going to Hogwarts in a few days, her secret was in danger of being discovered. All she could do was hope for the best and start preparing herself for the worst.

A/N: Please review and tell us what you think!