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A One-Shot by Weasley Genetics
There was a low murmuring of many cumulative voices which he found oddly comforting. There was no loud banging or screaming, no explosions or cries of pain.
He just lay there blissfully, conscious of unnatural warmth in the air and a hard, cold but comforting surface which he felt grounded him. He didn't want to move; he was perfectly content to just lie here, with his eyes tight shut.
He didn't have to move if he didn't want to.
Suddenly, he felt a firm, protective hand on his chest. Feeling strangely defiant, he kept his eyes closed. The person sighed.
"Oh no, Fred," the familiar voice was soft, but full of pain and a quiet despair, "not you too,"
His eyes flew open, and looking down at him with tear-filled eyes was his favourite Defence Against the Dark Arts professor.
He was shaking, tears falling silently down his face. It was then that Fred Weasley became aware of his surroundings. Everything was white, and there was a strange ethereal atmosphere. He knew he'd been to this place before, but had no idea when.
He rubbed his eyes, like he'd just woken up after a long dream which he forgot more of the longer he was awake.
"Remus?" he asked hoarsely. The man cupped his cheek with his hand.
"I'm so, so sorry, Fred,"
What was he sorry for?
Then he realised that Remus' scars were gone, his once flawed skin was now smooth, and younger; his face had more colour and the bruised bags under his eyes had vanished.
"Where am I?" he asked, pushing himself up. Remus looked suddenly sick.
"Fred, something happened. I'm not sure what, or if you can remember; but something happened in the battle and …"
And then he remembered.
The explosion, flying backwards …
His mouth fell slightly agape in shock as Remus covered his hand with his.
No. No, he couldn't be.
"I'm so sorry, Fred,"
He stared into space, completely unaware of the other people around him.
He, he was dead.
He'd never get married, never have a family. Never see the shop or his home again. Never see his family again.
George.
Oh my God, George.
He choked, and a cry of utter despair tore through the air. The room fell silent. Only his noisy gasps and sobs echoed in the vast space. He didn't care about the people staring at him as Remus pulled him into a hug.
He clutched his role model and sobbed like a child. He was gulping and shaking uncontrollably.
He'd left him.
He felt sick and his head was throbbing he cried so hard, but he didn't care.
He was never going to see them again. He'd left George all alone; his twin, half of him. They would never finish each other's sentences or play pranks on Percy. They wouldn't run the shop together, grow old together.
They wouldn't die together.
He'd broken his promise to George. They'd promised that they would never leave each other, that when the time came, they would go together.
He screamed into Remus' shoulder.
After a long time, he calmed down. Breathing heavily, he wiped his eyes and pulled away to look at the bleary eyed werewolf.
"You are too?" he asked. Remus just nodded, and Fred pulled him back towards his body.
"Tonks-" he began,
"Is here," Remus finished. Fred pulled back abruptly, and gripped Remus' arms tightly.
No. No, no, no.
"What?"
Remus just nodded again, and gestured towards his right. Fred looked and saw Tonks sobbing as she was held by an older woman who was stroking her hair. Her chest was heaving and tears were cascading down her face.
"Teddy," he whimpered. He let go of Remus and scrambled onto his feet. He strode over to her, his own pain temporarily forgotten.
Once she spotted him, Tonks left the consoling woman and stumbled into his arms. He held the small woman and rocked her as she choked out various sentences. Fred could make out,
"Not you, not you … it isn't fair … I've left him,"
He just held her.
It was then that he noticed his hands. They were clean. Awkwardly checking himself with his arms still around Tonks, he realised he was no longer filthy from the battle; the cuts, bruises and gashes that had covered his arms, face and body were gone. His clothes weren't covered in dust, dirt and blood anymore.
He was drawn out of his amazement when he suddenly heard Tonks screaming against his chest,
"REMUS! WHERE'S REMUS?"
He frowned and scanned the room.
"I don't know, I-"
Tonks tore away from him, and was running around looking for her husband. He soon realised that Remus was in fact nowhere to be seen.
Fred was close behind her, frantically searching all the people. He grew gradually more nauseous as he recognised more and more of the tearstained faces.
Colin Creevey stood silently alone, staring at the floor with his fists clenched. He saw so many students, people from Hogsmeade, and members of the Order. All of these people, dead.
It was then that he recognised where he was. The huge room was in fact the Great Hall. But everything was completely white and the house tables and head table were missing; it was just the bare skeleton, it felt so empty but also, like home.
Why were they all here?
Fred wasn't sure if he should have felt relieved or not when he saw Remus reappear. He'd suddenly realised that it might have meant that he was now alive.
Tonks spotted him and sprinted towards him, throwing her arms around his neck.
"Where the Hell have you been?"
Remus just inhaled.
Fred looked at him questioningly, but he just closed his eyes.
"Remus?" Tonks pulled away to look at him. He didn't answer again.
"Don't worry about Teddy, Sweetheart, okay? He'll be looked after," he said changing the subject.
"But I've left him!"
"No, Dora, he will know that we died fighting so that he could have a better life. And he will never be alone," Tonks stopped crying and after running her finger over his cheekbone, she pulled him against her again. Fred stood watching them for a moment. Something was wrong.
"I was with Harry," he finally whispered. As the penny dropped, Tonks' hands flew to her mouth, and Fred's knees nearly buckled. But he couldn't dwell on the sudden grief that had begun to overwhelm him for too long.
Because then he saw him.
Enraged, he flew across the white room and pulled Severus Snape by his black robes up to his face.
"YOU!" he screamed. Everyone turned to look, clearly no one had realised he was there.
"Fred, listen to me-" Fred was too angry to even take in that he had called him by his first name and threw him to the floor.
"YOU COWARD! YOU KILLED DUMBLEDORE! YOU BLEW GEORGE'S EAR OFF! YOU BETRAYED US!" he bellowed at the man, spitting into his face.
"I was always on your side!" he attempted to prize Fred's fingers from his robes, but Fred wasn't having that.
"Shut up!" he snarled.
"Fred, let go,"
Fred didn't know why, but for some reason he did let go. It was something about the voice.
Someone was holding his arm, but not forcefully, more like helpfully. He exhaled, and roughly let go of Snape, dropping his chin to his chest and stepping away. Snape rubbed his neck and adjusted his robes as he stood. His eyes went wide, and an extremely rare, knowing smile graced his face.
Perplexed, Fred turned to see who had managed to stop him. His jaw dropped as the tall, dominating figure of Albus Dumbledore smiled warmly at him. He stepped closer to him, holding his upper arms in a fatherly way as he looked into his eyes.
"Thank you, Fred. Thank you for being so loyal to Harry. I'm sorry for everything you've lost and … I am so very, very sorry," he then leaned in to whisper as the pair were being gawped at by everyone there, "I am going to help you through this,"
Fred just nodded, amazed.
"Harry is like a brother to me," was all he could say.
"I know that, and I understand your resentment towards Professor Snape, but what he says is true. He has always been on our side,"
"But what he did to Geo-" Fred's voice caught in his throat as he said the name. It was too hard.
For the first time, Dumbledore looked sad.
"I am so sorry, Fred, I will explain all in a moment. If you will excuse me,"
And leaving Fred in the care of Tonks and Lupin, he glided over to Snape and they embraced. Fred couldn't get over the sight. Dumbledore was hugging the man who killed him!
He watched the two of them conversing, and was shocked when he was sure he heard Dumbledore say "thank you". Eventually, Dumbledore stepped up to the raised platform where the head table usually was.
He looked so majestic in his spangled, purple robes, that he seemed to emit power in the surreal glow of the room. He simply raised his hands and the room fell silent.
Dumbledore looked at each of the awed faces.
"First and foremost, I would like to thank you. Thank you for your sacrifice, bravery and loyalty. And I am deeply, truly sorry. But don't despair please, death is but the next great adventure. And those you've left behind, you haven't left them really. You will meet again one day. You have died fighting to give them a better life, a better world to live in. Be proud, for you have done a wonderful thing. You will always be remembered for the sacrifice you've made,"
Fred didn't really know what to feel. He felt like a failure and weak. He was the only one out of nine to die. He felt a terrible sorrow which he was desperately trying to keep at bay.
"And you most certainly have not died in vain," Dumbledore continued. He smiled widely and clasped his hands together. "Harry has defeated Lord Voldemort,"
For the first time, everyone in that place was happy. Fred had never felt more relieved. So they were all well and safe.
Mum, Dad, Ron, Ginny, Percy, Bill, Charlie, Harry, Hermione, Fleur.
George …
He was so happy he was alive but now, they would be apart. He tried to quash his grief; things would be good for them all now. He tried to carry on listening to their leader.
Dumbledore told them the entire events from when Harry walked into the woods. Fred wanted to cry when he knew Harry had gone alone; he couldn't even imagine what that had been like for him. Fred knew he would have been distraught and it would have killed him to have seen Harry dead.
God knew how his family reacted to that. Ron, Mum, Dad, Ginny.
He went on to explain Snape's part in the war, and even as Dumbledore went through everything he had done for their side, Fred still found it very hard to believe that it was all that simple.
"You might like to know that when people normally arrive at their place, they are alone and are naked," he said when he'd finished. Fred was thankful his dignity had been preserved, "but I think you will all be going to your own place soon enough,"
What did he mean by 'place'?
"But this situation is special to say the least. I think it was decided that things would be easier for you all this way. To come together first," Fred had to agree there.
He was glad that he could have seen Remus and Tonks before … whatever was going to happen, happened. He tried to calm himself down as he felt the panic rise.
He didn't want to go.
He didn't want to leave him.
"And now, I think it's time to go … on,"
And with that, he turned around and a blinding, white light filled the room.
Fred squinted and tried to block the light with his arm as the fear inside him grew dramatically. As quickly as it had arrived, the light faded again.
As his eyes adjusted, he realised he wasn't somewhere new, but was in the same place as before.
Most of the people had gone, but Remus and Tonks were still beside him, and Snape was still a little way away. They looked just as confused as he was. Dumbledore was still stood on the platform, now facing them.
He was smiling again.
Fred shuddered when he realised that his heart should be pounding against his chest right now. He tried not to dwell on the thought.
What was happening?
"You four," he said, smiling sadly, "there are some people who would wish to speak to you,"
It was then that Fred noticed that four figures were appearing, two either side of the old Headmaster.
He squinted to try and make out the vague shapes. They had to be people.
The misty apparitions became more solid and more defined, before he knew exactly who these people were.
It was obviously James and Lily Potter on one side, and of course, Sirius Black and Ted Tonks on the other.
He then knew that he would see his family again one day.
Sirius acted first. Fred was surprised though when he strode over to him and hugged him tightly.
"Thank you," he whispered tearfully. He pulled back, "you'll be sticking with me from now on, okay?"
Fred just smiled, shocked but grateful. But he really had no idea where that would be.
No one really close to him had died before, so he hadn't ever considered who he would be reunited with when he died. Yes, he'd always looked up to Sirius and considered him a friend, but he'd never have thought the man would be the one to be waiting for him. He smiled at the thought.
His eyes were brighter and his skin younger than before he died; he seemed less tired and bitter. He quite liked this new version of the man.
Sirius led him away with his hand on the small of his back. His old friends Remus and James were grinning at the dark haired man.
"Hello again," Remus said and the three of them hugged. Soon, they opened up the embrace, and James gestured to Fred.
"The new Marauder I think,"
Fred had never been more honoured in his life, or death. His only sad thought was that George wouldn't be one too. But he figured that when it was his time, he would become one as well.
As he joined the group, he grinned,
"I love your work,"
They all laughed as they embraced once again.
He looked over Remus' shoulder to see Tonks being held by her Father and another sight took him by surprise. Lily was holding Snape as he wept.
"Thank you, Severus, I can never repay you for what you have done for Harry," he heard her say. Snape pulled back with tears in his eyes.
"I did it for you,"
It was so unnerving to see a teacher cry, especially Snape.
He knew in that moment that the potions master had always been on their side. Without a doubt.
Tonks was still talking to her Dad, but once Lily realised that the men had pulled apart, she squeezed Snape's arm and headed towards them.
After kissing Remus' cheek, and quickly saying a few words, (Fred thought it seemed as though they had only just talked) she took James', and to his surprise, Fred's hand and led them aside.
"We'd like to thank you, Fred,"
She was beautiful, like a real angel. But not with wings, harp and halo, more like glowing, radiant and bright. She looked a lot like Ginny.
He felt that stab of pain in his heart again.
Fred suddenly realised how everyone knew he was Fred and not George. He guessed it was just a thing here.
"What for?"
"For accepting Harry into your family, for effectively being a brother to him," her voice was so soothing, it felt like his pain was slowly lessening the more she spoke. "You didn't have to do that. You didn't have to fight,"
"My whole family were in it, I didn't really have a choice," he said modestly.
"Yes you did," James said insistently, "you could have tried to persuade your family not to fight. You also didn't have to pay much attention to Harry at all; he was only your little brother's friend,"
Fred shrugged. Lily looked at him knowingly.
"It was never a question for you, was it?"
He chuckled lightly.
"Never even crossed my mind not to fight, or not to accept Harry," Lily hugged him.
There was a lot of hugging here.
Next thing he knew, Dumbledore, Ted, Sirius, James and Lily were stood in front of them once again. They were smiling beautiful smiles.
"See you in a moment," Dumbledore said happily.
And Fred felt utterly light.
The brightness came once again, and his eyes fluttered closed. He felt like he could fly.
He felt so … free.
When he finally opened them again, his eyelashes tickling his brow bone, he found himself alone in what appeared to be his joke shop, but also, this was completely white and glowing.
The shelves were empty of products and the clutter gone. No Wildfire Whizbangs crackling mischievously, or love potions bubbling enticingly. But still, he felt that sense of home.
This was where he'd first felt like a man, and not a boy anymore.
He looked around and saw the sliding ladder that allowed you to reach the topmost shelves. He walked curiously towards it.
He stroked one of the smooth, varnished, wooden rungs and looked up. It seemed to go on forever.
And then, he knew what he must do.
He took one final look back and then, he began to climb.