Chapter Four: Ginny Sitting
Fred and George stared at the empty fireplace where their family had been just moments before. They looked at one another and grinned from ear to ear,
"So, where'dya think Dad put the keys to that muggle bike?" asked George.
"I don't know," replied Fred, "But we've got plenty of time to find out!"
They started in the kitchen; they opened drawers, looked in cupboards, behind books and mugs and in cauldrons but there were no keys. Fred raised one eyebrow, "Living room?"
"Living room," George nodded. Cushions were strewn about the room as the twins searched manically. Fred managed to knock an ornament off the mantle piece and it smashed loudly against the stone hearth, pieces of porcelain flew off in every direction. He cleaned it up as best he could and continued searching.
After almost an hour the boys slumped onto the couch in the living room. It felt like they'd looked everywhere, the only place left to look was their parents' room and the door was locked with a charm neither of them could undo. George stared at the ceiling as he lay on his back,
"So much for that idea," he groaned.
"They must be in their room," Fred stared at his patch of ceiling where what used to be a small damp patch was now expanding across the entire ceiling, "But the only way we can get in there is when they're actually in their room." They both sat bolt upright,
"We need that invisibility cloak," they said together.
Fred opened the door to the hallway slowly so as not to make it creak like it usually did; he poked his head through the gap and motioned for his brother to follow. They stepped on tiptoes onto the landing and listened for any sign of Ginny. Silence.
"She must be asleep," whispered Fred. George nodded and they padded in stocking feet up the uneven staircase. When they reached Ginny's floor they didn't dare breathe as they passed her bedroom door and when she coughed George almost knocked Fred back down the stairs. They giggled nervously and continued up the staircase. When they finally reached Ron's room Fred pushed open the door and ducked inside, he turned to his brother,
"Keep an eye out!" Fred whispered dramatically. George nodded but followed Fred into the room anyway.
Inside it was the usual messy state, along with a small pile of Harry's stuff next to the spare bed. Fred knelt down beside it and, when George did the same, Fred almost screamed out. He looked accusingly at his brother,
"I thought you were keeping an eye out!"
"And miss all the fun?" George asked, an eyebrow raised.
"Yeah right," they said in unison.
Fred opened the small satchel Harry had brought with him and started rooting around in it. He pulled out an old book, some socks, a spectacles case and a raggy looking jumper. George scratched his head,
"What if we can't see it?"
"It's only invisible when you wear it!" Fred laughed at his brother's confused expression.
"Oh…" George looked into the bag and there at the bottom, underneath Harry's toothbrush and soap, was the cloak. He pulled it out and held it up to the light, "Is this it?" He sounded disappointed. Fred nodded and flung it over his head. He disappeared. George grinned and looked around the room, grabbing now and then at the empty space. Fred leapt on his back and George slammed against the wall, knocking his brother off him and knocking the cloak off his brother. Something creaked outside the door. The twins froze.
"Quick!" George whispered, "Put it over us!" Fred fumbled with the cloak and George grabbed the other end of it. They both pulled at it to try and get it over their heads but it was too late. Ginny was standing in the doorway, she looked less pale than before and she had a puzzled expression on her face.
"What are you doing?" she asked.
"Nothing," George replied. He thought Fred would've said it at the same time but, when he turned to look at his twin, he was gone, along with the cloak. George's mouth fell open and he looked back at Ginny. "Err, we- I was just looking for something," he stammered.
Ginny looked towards the open satchel on the floor, its contents strewn all around it, "In Harry's bag?"
George swallowed, "Yeah. He said I could borrow his…" he grabbed the first thing he came to, "Soap!"
Ginny rolled her eyes and made her way back to her room. She shouted back towards George, "We've got plenty of soap!"
"We've got plenty of soap," George mimicked Ginny's girly voice and spun on the spot to try and find Fred, "Fred!" He whispered harshly, "Where are you?" There was no reply. George made his way back to his room and there, sitting on the bed with the cloak on his lap, was Fred. George marched over to him and grabbed the cloak; he flung it across the room and jabbed his finger into Fred's chest, "What did you do that for?"
Fred shrugged, "One of us had to escape to get the cloak away!"
"But we both could have escaped!"
Fred's face softened, "Sorry. I won't do it again, promise."
George was about to respond when a loud whoosh came from downstairs. The brothers looked at each other,
"They're back," they said.
When Fred and George got downstairs Ginny was already in the kitchen chatting to her mother. The twins exchanged a wary glace and perched on either end of the table.
"…and George was being all weird in Ron's room," Ginny said to her mother. Mrs. Weasley turned on George,
"George!" she snapped. George jumped off the table like it was made of molten lava and looked at his mother. She looked flustered, "What were you doing in Ron's room?"
"I-" he was cut off by Ginny, who was enjoying being the new Percy for a day,
"-He was looking in Harry's bag!"
Mrs. Weasley turned a strange shade of pink and Harry walked in at the mention of his name. George looked at him and winked slyly, "I was looking for some soap. Harry said I could borrow it, didn't you Harry?"
Harry, assuming George had been setting up a prank of sorts for Ron, nodded silently. Molly sighed and tapped Ginny's head, "Don't go telling tales Ginny dear, it's not attractive." Ginny scowled and flopped down in one of the chairs. Fred and George joined Ginny at the table and she stuck her tongue out at them both. Before she could decide to do something worse to them both Arthur walked in with a look of pure delight on his face; he crossed to his wife and smiled at the children. Ron and Hermione joined everyone at the table.
"Right," Arthur rubbed his hands together excitedly, "Your mother and I have decided to take you out for dinner this evening!" The teens stirred but didn't speak. "We're going to a restaurant!"
Mrs. Weasley looked nervous and Hermione looked down right terrified. Fred and George looked at their father and George asked,
"A restaurant? Where?"
Arthur's smile spread across his face and his eyes sparkled, "In London! Muggle London!" Everyone began chatting amongst themselves; Ginny stood next to Harry who smiled apologetically and the twins tried to decide how many fireworks to take. Hermione pushed her hair behind her ear and tried to look at least a little less panicked than she felt,
"I still don't know if it's such a good idea Mr. Weasley," she said.
Mr. Weasley waved his hand in the air, "Oh, nonsense Miss. Granger. We'll have a wonderful time, won't we?"
Fred and George grinned, "Wonderful."
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