Fourth-year Hermione Granger sat doing her homework on the couch of the Burrow on her own. Everybody was wrapped up in their own lives right now to pay attention to what she was doing, but that was completely fine with her. She needed to finish the last bit of her homework: her Potions essay.

Mrs. Weasley was in the kitchen. Mr. Weasley was at work. Bill, Charlie and Ron were outside playing Quidditch. Percy was doing his ridiculously overstated Ministry work. Fred and George were creating whatever model of Skiving Snackboxes they were on now. Ginny was doing something in her room, probably de-stressing so that when Harry arrived, she would be calm and cool, or she might be playing with Pigwidgeon or Crookshanks.

So Hermione ended up in the sitting room, trying to ignore the click-clack of the needles in the chair next to her knitting a maroon sweater. Her Potions essay was deadly dull, and the weather was unusually good for England.

To add lacewing flies at this point in the potion, you must first stir counterclockwise six times. If

BANG!

Hermione jumped, startled, though it was probably to be expected, since it came from Fred and George's room. She tried to slow her heart rate by returning to her essay.

If you add the lacewing flies after you have stirred it an incorrect number of times, then the potion will explode and stick to whatever surface it has landed on, human or otherwise, for exactly three hours.

Now the twins were coming down the stairs discussing something in hushed tones of unmistakable disappointment. They stopped suddenly when they saw Hermione.

"Hello," she said. "I don't think I want to know what just exploded or imploded in your room, so I'm not going to ask."

"Good," said Fred, nodding gravely. "It's best you don't. Blimey."

George smirked. "We've been keeping it down for your sake, but that was probably the biggest explosion yet, I think. Not ever, of course, but definitely for this summer."

"I heard," said Hermione drily.

After you add the forty-two lacewing flies, you must put in powdered griffin claw, which should

"Have you been down here long?" Fred asked her.

She shrugged. "About an hour or so. It's so much simpler when you can finish your homework quickly and enjoy the rest of your summer."

"There's also a school of thought that says it's better to leave it all to the last minute and that the other theories are ridiculous," George pointed out.

Fred nodded. "Preposterous."

"Absurd."

"Complete waste of time."

"Ludicrous."

"It's for Snape," said Hermione flatly. "I'm not facing him with unfinished homework or he'll finish me off, then tell my lifeless corpse to finish the essay by Tuesday."

which should turn the potion scarlet. Add four snowy owl feathers to lighten its colour.

George's mouth twisted into a reluctant smile. "Every time I start to think you're all square, you say something funny like that."

She glanced up. "Thank you."

"I can see why Ron's so taken with you," Fred admitted.

"I didn't think he'd tell something like that to you two," Hermione said.

"Well, he's not exactly subtle, is he?" George asked with an eye roll. "Did you see him staring at you when you arrived here?"

She giggled, which was unusual for her. "I think the only reason he stopped staring was because Ginny stomped on his toes!"

"That's our sister," said Fred proudly. "Just as subtle as a brick."

"Subtlety doesn't run in the family," George admitted, then did a good impression of Ron's dazed stare that started all three laughing.

"Hey," said Bill, walking into the sitting room with Ron and Charlie behind him.

Ron glanced at the twin angelically freckled faces and the face that was struggling to keep straight. "What're you laughing about?"

"It's nothing important," said Hermione, choking back her laughter.

She finished her Potions essay later.

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