Authors Notes:
Okay guys. A couple people have commented about how much they like the twins and I thought about adding in another chapter for them. This chapter is longer than I intended. It could have been split into two but I really didn't see the point in doing that so hopefully you guys like it.
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Fred and George apparated right out front of their shop and checked to make sure that Verity had closed things correctly.
As tired and exhausted as they were, they still walked through the store and started cataloguing everything. Fred stifled a sigh, ugh he just wanted to crawl into bed and wrap his arms around Blaise and not get up for weeks. Dinner had worn him out completely. He was pretty sure that he experienced every single emotion possible during dinner. His family sure was something else.
George registered the tired look in his brother's eyes and tried to work faster. He wasn't as tired as his brother, mainly because a part of him thrived off of conflict. George knew how much tonight must have frazzled Fred's nerves so he started going through some of Fred's checklist to help him out. At least no one could say he wasn't a nice brother.
"We should probably give her a raise." George said happily as he noticed that she even cleaned up their office. Verity was the best thing that could have happened to their store. Awful attitude, unapproachable and rude to the customers but definitely got the job done. Perfect recipe for a successful store.
"Agreed. Maybe even promote her to store manager while we focus on getting the shop in Hogsmede up to standard." Fred said as he looked over the sale records for the day. He was mildly impressed with the traffic in and out of the store. Good to know that they didn't have to be here for things to run smoothly. Damn Verity was good.
"That is a brilliant idea." George started waving his wand and summoning product to restock the shelves as he looked everything over. "Hey Freddie I thought that we had more Everlasting Eyelashes stashed somewhere." He frowned as he made his way over to check the storage. They would have to be out, Verity always placed the rotations in front.
"Fuck." Fred exclaimed. George looked around curiously. His brother wasn't usually one to get upset. "Sorry George I wasn't thinking. The sticking solution needed for the eyelashes was out of stock when I tried getting some from our dealer. He said he could get us some out of the country for double but that was just too high to make a decent profit. I was going to talk to Draco and see what he thought about making some if it wasn't too difficult or maybe see if he knew someone but with everything that happened the past couple of days it slipped."
George hummed in thought. "Hmm. That is our most popular product from the WonderWitch line. We are completely out. That's alright. We can talk to Draco tomorrow and for now replace it with Everchanging Eyeshadow."
Fred raised his brows. "Are you sure? We were going to wait until we completed Lingering Lipwear and market them together."
George shrugged. "I know but we need something to fill the gap or we will lose profit. Witches like all this gunk on their faces for some reason."
Fred snorted. That was an understatement. Just another reason why he was into men. "Alright. I suppose we can figure out something to go with the Lingering Lipwear later or just market it alone."
George frowned as he carried the Everchanging Eyeshadow boxes to replace the empty spot. "I don't fancy marketing it alone. We did that with the Flirting Fancies and it took ages to see a profit." George pointed out. Fred paused looking over the sales parchment and frowned in thought.
"What about Blushing Beauties? The one that covers up every time you flush in embarrassment? I think that would be a hit with the Lingering Lipwear." Fred offered with furrowed brows.
"Genius." George complimented. He hadn't even considered those. This is why they were the perfect team. "But we would need to start the final trial stages soon if we want them marketable in time."
Fred groaned. "Ryker quit after the Fungus Fingernails grew fungus instead of clearing it. We need more testers." He moaned pitifully. It was so hard to get people interested in testing out their products. And George was no help, he just made everything worse by laughing at them all.
George snorted at the memory of the angry guy. If he hadn't sprouted fungus on all of his nails and the edges of his palms George might have taken him seriously. But he found the entire thing hilarious and he supposed that was when Ryker walked out.
"That was priceless and it led us to make Fungus Fingernails a joke instead of trying to clear fungus. It is a huge money maker. " George said with a nostalgic sigh. Fred shook his head but he had to agree that it had been the highlight of his day. "Think we can get him to come back?" George wondered. Ryker had been their best tester, he complained constantly but he never turned down a product. Even the ones in the early stages that they hadn't even tested fully yet.
Fred considered this. "Possibly. We would have to up his pay and probably not laugh at him when things go wrong. He wouldn't talk to you for a month after you laughed yourself silly when our Happy Hairless Haunting cream took off all his body hair instead of just the target area.
George busted out laughing. "That was the best part. His face still cracks me up just thinking about it. He had been growing that beard for years." Fred sighed at his idiot brother.
"That was exactly his point when he was complaining." He pointed out. George waved away the statement. "Yeah but that is what makes it so funny." Fred rolled his eyes.
"It is probably best that we find someone else. I doubt you could stop yourself from laughing at him." Fred warned.
George smiled slightly. "You are probably right. You know I miss ole Ryker." Fred snorted. "No you don't. You miss someone to laugh at you wanker." George didn't even bother denying it.
"What about that one girl? You know the one that drowned herself in that puke water?" George asked pausing in his stocking duties to look at his brother.
What? Fred shook his head, he had to have heard him incorrectly. Fred looked up at his brother with his forehead wrinkling. "Puke water? What are you-" Fred's eyes widened before he started laughing uncontrollably. "George that was her perfume you moron."
George huffed. "Is that what girls are calling it these days? Great Aunt Muriel's wrinkly skin smells better than that girl. I swear every time I got a whiff of her my nostril hairs were singed off." George relaxed when he saw the way the tension left his brother's shoulders and he knew that Fred was alright. He didn't mind playing the idiot if it cheered his twin up.
Fred covered his mouth as his body shook with the force of his laughter. "I am not even going to ask about Great Aunt Muriel. I don't want to know. It would probably give me nightmares. You are right though, Charlotte did smell horrid. It might have been a tactic to keep the boys away." He said with a smirk.
George snorted loudly. "Well then it did a bang job of it. Is it rude to tell someone they reek?" George wondered out loud.
"I don't know. I tell you all the time and you don't take offense." George rolled his eyes. "Yeah but you are my brother so it doesn't count."
Fred shook his head. "Well it doesn't matter because she quit too." George whined. "Why? What did you do to her?" Fred snapped his head up to glare at his brother.
"Excuse me? You are the one who told her that the Bloating Bellies really did make her look fat." Fred pointed out before smirking at the way George winced.
"She was the one who asked! Why ask if you don't want an honest answer?" Sometimes the inner workings of the opposite sex eluded George.
He really had to wonder how George made it this far in life without someone hexing body parts off of him. "How in the world does Pansy put up with you?" Fred said shaking his head at his clueless brother. "Don't answer that!" He said quickly when George started waggling his eyebrows suggestively.
George laughed warmly and got back to stocking the rest of the shop. Sometimes running a business wasn't all that it was cracked up to be, but he would rather do this than to pay someone else to.
"Alright, since puke water girl is out." George ignored Fred' mumbling of 'her names is Charlotte.'
"What about the guy with the funny voice? Mark… Marvin… Maverick… or something like that." George questioned.
Fred sighed heavily. "Are you talking about Jason?" George made a triumphant noise as he carefully started to feed the Pygmy puffs. "That's it! I knew I was close." Fred stared at his brother incredulously.
"How in the world does Jason sound like any of the names you said?" He questioned George. George waved his hand in the air. "Details. You are getting caught up in the details. Yes, what about Jason? He was decent, sort of. His voice always distracted me."
"Well that would be because he was from the states." Fred said dryly. Honestly, sometimes he worried for his brother. George stopped tickling the tops of the Pygmy puffs to stare at his brother in surprise.
"Was he really? Huh, go figure." George said ignoring the way Fred smacked his face. It was fun baiting his brother. You would think that after all these years Fred would figure it out.
"Jason moved back after you launched a Rocket box at him during the final testing stages of our Sleepy Snoozing Sachets." Fred reminded him with a scowl. George was the main reason they couldn't keep employees around here.
George grinned unrepentantly. "I had to make sure he was really asleep or the data would have been compromised."
"Right." Fred said sarcastically. "Because setting off Rockets straight at his crotch was a surefire way to control our data."
"Now you are getting it." George said proudly before quickly kissing the top of the nearest Pygmy puff when Fred wasn't looking. He loved these little guys.
"There has to be some employees left over that you haven't scared off." George pondered ignoring the indignant squawk that Fred released. Geez, his brother was such a drama queen. "Why are we still selling these ugly things?" George asked pointing at the Pygmy puffs. George waited till he was sure Fred wasn't going to turn around before leaning in to whisper apologies. "Daddy didn't mean it. You are my pretty babies, aren't you?" George cooed softly stealing glances at his brother.
Fred snorted not even bothering to turn around. "We both know that you will never stop breeding them. You have a weird obsession with them." George pointedly ignored him knowing that he was right. They were just so fluffy.
"To answer your first question, we still have a couple left." George stopped petting the animals to look at his brother curiously. Fred could practically feel the interested gaze on his back.
"There is still Imogen, Lucas and Finley." George scoffed.
"Fred! Imogen is in her eighties. We don't need her breaking a hip and suing us for malpractice."
"I don't think malpractice is the right term but I see your point. When we had her test out the Galloping Gears that were supposed to make her as fast as a centaur, she over did it and couldn't walk properly for weeks."
George was disgruntled at the correction of his grammar. Did Fred pick up any lingering intelligence from Hermione from dinner? George sure hoped not. If intelligence was contagious then he wanted no part of it.
"We could keep her on for simple easy tests. Like the Geriatric line. I mean who better to test old people products than an old person?" George offered. Fred wrinkled his nose at George's lack of consideration. Imogen could do more than just 'old people' products.
"Fine." Fred conceded reluctantly. You have to pick your battles when it came to George and arguing about Imogen would be pointless. "What about Lucas and Finley?" George shook his head.
"I don't like either one of them." He said crossly while glaring at the floor. Fred stepped away and put a hand on his brother's shoulder.
"I can understand not using Lucas. I shouldn't have even have brought him up." Fred said apologetically. George grunted inelegantly. George knew his brother meant well but he really shouldn't have mentioned Lucas. George was still peeved that the same day Angelina dumped him for not choosing her over Fred, he caught her making out with Lucas in the supply cupboard. Technically they had been broken up already but only by a half hour! Here he was gutted over losing his longest relationship and she just moved on to the next pair of lips.
"Lucas is definitely out… unless we have something really dangerous to test." George said with a feral grin. Fred laughed in part humor and part horror knowing that his brother was serious.
"What about Finley?" asked Fred as he looked at his brother who was frowning. "There is just something about him that I don't like. I can't put my finger on it but I don't like it." George said with a shrug. There was something… off… about Finley. The teen had this creepy way of staring at you, George always got the impression that his entire soul was being seen and judged every time he caught the guys eyes. Not to mention there was just this darkness about him that irked George.
"Do you have anything concrete against him? Because we are in desperate need of more testers." Fred bit his lip in indecision. George and him almost always saw eye to eye when it came to a person's character but Finley is where they disagreed. Sure, the guy was plain creepy but he was a decent tester and never complained. Even when he would have been in the right to do so. They needed people and Fred was willing to keep using Finley.
George sighed. He knew Fred didn't understand it and he couldn't really pinpoint it either there was just something about Finley that made his gut clench and his stomach roll. He just didn't like him… but they were in a crunch for testers. He sighed again this time more pronounced. "Alright. We can keep using Finley but I am keeping my eyes on him." George warned
Fred quickly nodded his agreement. "Should we put an ad out in the Daily Prophet? That is the only way I can see us getting more people."
George wrinkled his nose. Putting an ad out would attract all kinds of weridos. But honestly there was no getting weirder than Finley. "I guess we will have to." He conceded after giving it some thought.
Fred agreed and looked around the store in surprise. "George you didn't have to do my share." Fred was a little embarrassed at the rush of affection he felt for his brother.
George shrugged not meeting his brother's eyes. "Yeah well I knew that dinner took a lot out of you so I picked up some of the slack." George was not prepared to have an arm full of his twin.
"Thank you." Fred said warmly. Honestly, he had the best brother out there. People really should be jealous.
"Yeah alright." George said before shoving his brother back to the counter so he could finish with the report.
Fred went back to looking at the sales list and groaned heavily. "There is so much that needs to be done. We have a lot of product to make to cover the sales." George frowned as he plucked the parchment out of his brother's hands.
"Damn. We are going to be up all night making all of this. Think we have enough pepper up potions to last us through the night?" George really really didn't want to do this tonight. He just wanted to fall asleep and hopefully that would be with Pansy if she was still upstairs.
"It is a good thing you have us then isn't it?" The twins looked up and smiled when Blaise and Pansy came into the room.
Blaise wrapped his arms around Fred's waist and kissed the tip of his nose. "Missed you." Blaise breathed. Fred smiled widely and leaned down to kiss his boyfriend properly. Blaise sighed into the kiss as he eagerly moved his lips against Fred's. This was a small piece of heaven. The way that Fred's slightly chapped lips molded perfectly to his own was breathtaking. He loved the little sighs and breathy moans that Fred would release. He would never get enough of this.
When they broke apart Fred ran his nose across Blaise's cheek. "I missed you as well." Blaise grinned and blocked out the noise of his best friend tossing spit back and forth with her boyfriend somewhere in the background. Gross
"How did it go?" Blaise asked tentatively. There was a wet sucking noise that made them both wrinkle their noses in disgust as Pansy and George broke apart.
"Yeah I want to know too." Pansy said ignoring their grossed out faces. Fred and George shared a look before they both sighed.
"It was a disaster."
"It was awesome."
Pansy and Blaise chuckled at the warring answers. Fred looked at George incredulously. "Did you go to someone else's house for dinner? Because I don't see how that was awesome."
George shook his head and gave his brother a mock pitying look. "Freddie, they totally got their arses handed to them. I have never seen mum so shocked before."
Blaise raised his brows. That didn't sound promising for Harry though. Blaise bit his lip as he worried about what Harry was going through. It was funny, he never would have imagined that in just two months Harry Potter would be one of his best friends. Blaise had never been one to openly mock or publicly taunt Harry. With his mother being a dark sympathizer and not ever actually on a side, Blaise had never felt the pressure to fit in like the others had. There was no Slytherin reputation to live up to. He didn't like or dislike Harry. He was just the golden boy that got away with way too much. Anyone else would have been suspended in their first year and kicked out by their second. That always irked him but not enough to get involved in any of the bullying.
So every time that Draco would start something with Harry he would always make himself scarce. Pansy had an issue with Hermione more than Harry but he avoided those conflicts as well. He wasn't a fan of muggleborns but he didn't see the point in harassing them. Conflict and confrontation just wasn't his thing. Which is why he loved that Fred was the same way.
Draco thought he was fooling everyone with his 'hatred' of Harry but Blaise had always been able to read Draco better than he let on. Draco must have had a reason or he wouldn't do it, so Blaise just pretended to believe that Draco really hated him as much as he said. There was definitely some dislike going on but hatred? Nah. Blaise knew a lot about hatred. Hatred was something his mother did very well when it came to her spouses. There was just this raw power to hatred that was always missing in the way that Draco spoke about Harry. He figured it was something residual from his father. Maybe Lucius was the one that put him up to it. He never asked Draco, that wasn't his business. Besides, Draco never would have told him the truth. Slytherin Rule #15: The truth is a weapon that can be used against you. – Lie whenever possible.
As they got older Blaise would see the lingering looks that Draco would send Harry when he thought that no one was looking and that was when a lot of things started making sense. Draco liked Harry. At the time, Blaise still couldn't see the appeal of Harry. He was still breaking rules and getting away with it and in some cases getting rewarded. What kind of message does that send? As long as you have a good reason it is okay to break every school rule imaginable? Or as long as you are Harry Potter it is okay to break the rules? Blaise just chalked it up to a case of hormones gone wrong because there was nothing likeable about Harry that he could see.
But after actually getting to know Harry and not what everyone else sees, Blaise can't help but feel guilty for all of the things that he used to think about Harry. Because Harry is honestly one of the bravest people he has ever met. Within twenty minutes of an actual conversation with Harry, Blaise could completely understand why Draco was so smitten. Harry was kind, considerate, loyal, generous, dependable, strong and brave. He could list positive attributes about Harry all day. Even in the early stages in the great hall, Blaise knew that Harry was going to stick around with them. The way that he looked at Draco had been adorable. It was like a kid that couldn't believe his parents had gotten him the gift that he had asked for. There had been this lingering want between the two of them and it surprised him. For two former enemies they really got along well.
Then when they had met again at Grimwald Place Blaise had been blown away at how incredibly close they had gotten. It wasn't until later that the soulmate bond explained that. But their relationship still astounds him. The love that they have for each other makes him ache with positive and negative feelings. Blaise is over the moon that they both have found such happiness with one another but at the same time his heart wants that. His soul yearns for that. But seeing them happy and having Fred by his side almost makes up for it. Almost.
Blaise could honestly say that Harry was one of his best friends. One that would always be in his life. Blaise goes to Draco when there are things he can't talk to Pansy about. Some things shouldn't be discussed with a lady present. But now Blaise also had Harry to go to and that thrilled him. Harry was a lot of things that Draco wasn't but not in a totally bad way. They were so alike but vastly different at the same time. Blaise knew that no matter what he brought to Harry he would never be mocked or judged for it. He could bring the same issue to Draco and Draco would help him in the end… after judging him completely and laughing his arse off. So it was nice to keep his options open.
He loved Draco and Harry a lot and couldn't imagine better friends if he tried. Which is why he was worried about this dinner. He could tell by Fred's expression that things had not gone as they hoped. To be honest, it had been a fools dream to think the family would have gotten over their issues. But considering they are fools they had hoped anyways. He was worried about Harry's emotional state. Blaise knew that Draco could handle Harry any day… but with Draco's death already happening, Harry was probably not all the way there and he really didn't need anything else messing with his emotions. So Blaise was crossing his fingers that it wasn't a total loss.
"Yes I will admit that was a little satisfying but think about Harry, George. I imagine he is gutted."
Pansy winced. "So things didn't go too well then." Blaise rolled his eyes at the obvious statement.
"Definitely not. A lot of things were said and it got pretty heated. They couldn't accept Harry's decisions in the end." Fred said frowning sadly. His heart went out to both Harry and Draco. He wished things could have gone differently.
Pansy frowned lost in thought. Part of her was incredibly glad that she had not been invited because she would have had a lot to say to that family. How could anyone treat her best friend like that? Because yes Harry was now her best friend just as much as Draco was. Harry didn't deserve the horrific treatment that they were bestowing on him. Harry was too kind and gentle to be treated like that. Pansy knew that if things had been reversed that there would have been nothing that Granger and Weasley could have done to make Harry stop talking to them.
One of the first things you discover growing up as a Slytherin is that you can't expect people to treat you like you treat them. If you are always looking for the best in people, then you will always be let down. That might be cynical or pessimistic but it was true. People tend to disappoint you and if you stop expecting the opposite then when it does happen you can never be caught off guard. That was obviously something that Harry had never been taught. Pansy wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not. Harry was one of a kind and she loved the different warring personalities inside him. He could be terribly naïve at times but it bordered on adorable. Then there were moments where there was just this incredible clarity to him that made you sit up and take notice. She loved how there was always something new to discover about him. Every time Pansy thought she had Harry figured out he would do something to surprise her and then she would have to start back over at square one. It was frustrating but liberating at the same time. He was a puzzle that she loved to attempt to solve. Pansy figured that Draco was the only one with all the answers to the mystery of Harry Potter.
"We should do something to cheer him up." Blaise declared suddenly and then fidgeted when three surprised pair of eyes landed on him. "If dinner went as bad as it sounds then he is probably a little crushed. I just think that it would be nice if we did something for him."
Fred couldn't help it. This was the moment that he knew without a doubt that Blaise would always be the person meant for him. It didn't matter that he had a soulmate somewhere. No one could compare to the man in front of him. No one. His soulmate could go fuck themselves for all he cared. "I love you."
Blaise's heart started beating fast and he blinked rapidly trying to get his brain to register if he was hearing things or not. But the nervous glint in Fred's eyes jolted him back to reality. Did Fred worry that he didn't love him back? Silly redhead. Blaise threw his arms around Fred's neck and peppered kisses to every possible freckle he could see. "I. Love. You. Too." Each word was punctuated by a kiss.
Fred wrapped his arms around Blaise and twirled him around with a freeing laugh. Every last bit of the tension that came from tonight melted away. Fred felt as if he had been freed from all of the stress with Blaise's presence alone. Blaise leaned down to press his lips against Fred's and he smiled softly when he could hear Pansy and George cheering in the background.
Pansy laid her head on George's shoulder and sighed softly as she watched the two of them. Her heart was bursting in pride and joy knowing that Blaise was taken care of. Blaise was in a way her whole world. Despite there being no romantic interests, she loved him more than she ever thought you could love a friend. When she had been younger it confused her. Why did she care for Blaise more than she did Draco? She had gone crying to her mother stressing that she was a bad friend, only to have her mother smile at her and tell her that she wasn't a bad friend. Just that she cared about Blaise in a different way than Draco. To this day she still isn't quite sure why that is. Or what way that even is. She knows without a doubt that Blaise was going to be in her life forever but not the way that people expect. Her mother keeps asking when they are going to get married, her mum refuses to believe that there is no romance between them. Everyone always expects that they are a couple and she can understand that even if it does frustrate her. Blaise held a piece of her heart that she didn't want back. He was more than her best friend and she was so happy to see him happy. Pansy loved that Fred was the one who brought him this happiness. They both deserved this. Pansy sighed again but this time with happiness.
George knew he was grinning like an idiot but he couldn't help it. They were just so adorable together. George had seen his brother go through date after date and his heart had ached because it was just so hard to get someone to be okay with the twin thing. Fred was the best brother that he could ask for and it killed him that no one else seemed to realize this. He had been tempted to post an ad in the Daily Prophet but he figured Fred wouldn't appreciate that. How could people not notice the great catch that his brother was? George decided that people must be blind because Fred was a real winner. So finally seeing him find happiness with Blaise thrilled him. Blaise saw everything in Fred that George had known was there all along and more, some things a brother just shouldn't know. Blaise was alike Fred in so many ways that at first it worried him. Shouldn't opposites attract? They almost seemed identical in their beliefs and characteristics but for those two it didn't matter. Fred liked the way that Blaise was just like him. Whatever works for them, George supposed.
George could see the love in Blaise's eyes as he stared at Fred, and George knew that he would remember this moment because this is the dream that he had hoped for his brother. This was the moment that he knew his brother would be okay. This was the moment that he knew Fred had definitely found the one he would be with for the rest of his life. Blaise would eventually become his brother in-law and George was ecstatic at the prospect.
"They are adorable." Pansy cooed as Fred started twirling Blaise again. Blaise's happy laughter was music to her ears.
George looked down at his girlfriend's happy face and smiled softly. "That they are." He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer. "But we are way cuter." He told her conspiratorially.
Pansy let out a little giggle that George adored. "Of that I have no doubt." She said a little haughtily, channeling her inner Draco.
George looked up at was startled to see two identical glares being sent their way.
"One, we are manly men and words like adorable should never be used to describe us." Fred said folding his arms across his chest. Blaise also had his arms across his chest and he was nodding along.
"Is that so?" George asked highly amused.
"Our sincerest apologies. Does gushingly sweet sound better?" Pansy offered with a straight voice. She couldn't hold back the smile when they both winced.
"Er on second thought we will keep adorable." Blaise said quickly before they could come up with something else revolting. Gushingly sweet? He shuddered.
"Two, there is no way that you two are cuter than us." Fred said sternly gesturing between Blaise and himself. "I mean I am the better twin, that much is obvious. So it only makes sense that we would be the better couple."
Pansy and George scoffed. "In your dreams lover boy." Pansy said in amusement. "You two wouldn't know cute if it smacked you in the face." George piped up.
Fred and Blaise shared a look before grinning wickedly at Pansy and George. Pansy shot an 'uh oh' look at George before gripping his hand tightly.
"Since you must be the expert on things smacking people in the face..." Fred trailed off suggestively.
"Run." George told his girlfriend before he ditched her in an attempt to escape whatever his brother was about to plan. Pansy huffed. Some boyfriend he was! She ran and hid behind one of the shelves.
"You now Blaise what luck is it that we just happen to be surrounded by all of these products?" Fred said loudly. Pansy cursed, it sounded like he wasn't that far away.
"Lucky indeed." Blaise said right behind Pansy making her scream. Fred wasn't far behind.
"Hey Georgie we have your girlfriend. We will hold her for ransom till you meet our demands." Fred yelled loudly.
"Keep her." Came the muffled voice from somewhere. Blaise and Fred busted out laughing.
Pansy made a squawk of disbelief. "I swear you are dead George when I get out of this mess!" Pansy warned darkly.
A large bang caused Fred and Blaise to jump sideways to avoid any attacks. Fred cursed when he recognized the black cloud caused by Peruvian Instant Darkness powder. Fred grabbed Blaise and hid behind the next shelf over. As soon as the smoke cleared they realized they made a terrible mistake. Pansy had escaped.
"Clever George. You may have won that battle but you won't win the war!" Fred bellowed before looking around the shelves for anything that they could use. Blaise shoved a box in his hand and Fred read the title before kissing his boyfriend quickly on the cheek.
Fred lit the entire box on fire before pulling out the separate items and launching their Weasleys' Wildfire Whiz-bangs in different directions. A scream let them know where Pansy was at least.
"That came from the back of the store." Blaise whispered near Fred's ear. Fred shivered and sent a weak glare at Blaise but his boyfriend had a cheeky grin on his face, knowing exactly what he was doing to Fred. "Later." Blaise said suggestively causing another shiver to go through Fred.
"No! Pansy don't try stunning them!" Fred snickered as the giant dragon exploded with a loud roar that shook the building.
"How the hell was I supposed to know?!" Pansy yelled indignantly. She was seriously reconsidering this whole dating thing now that she was involved in some twisted prank war. But she had to admit her veins were pumping with excitement. She couldn't remember having this much fun in a long time.
"Whatever you do don't-" George was cut off by the nearest rocket splitting into ten giant fire breathing dragons. "-try vanishing them." He finished weakly.
"Oh gods." Pansy moaned pitifully. What in the world did she get herself into? George ignored the raging fireworks and grabbed the nearest box. "Do you remember where they were the last time you saw them?"
"Yeah." Pansy breathed eyeing the fireworks closely. "They were near the front of the store by the WonderWitch display."
George grinned widely. "Perfect." He pulled out a shiny square object that confused Pansy. "On." George said as he pointed his wand at the object before chucking in the direction Pansy had said.
Something landed a shelf or two over from them opposite duo. "That will be George's counter attack. No sudden movements." Fred warned Blaise.
"Resistance is futile. Assimilate or be destroyed." A tiny creepy voice said coming closer and closer to their hiding spot.
"Oh no." Fred groaned as he recognized their Rambunctious Rebel prank. It was modeled after muggle robots. "Don't let it touch you. It sends out a mild stinging curse that shocks the blood pathways and freezes you for a moment."
Blaise looked at Fred with wild eyes. "Why the fuck did you invent that?" He asked a little hysterically. Merlin this was an odd situation but at the same time he was loving it. Life with Fred would never get boring.
"It was George's idea!" Fred offered weakly. To be honest he thought they were rather funny. As long as they weren't coming for him!
"Is there a way to turn it off?" Blaise asked quickly as he caught sight of red eyes coming from a tiny rectangular head as the barely one foot tall thing came into their line of vision.
Fred shook his head rapidly. "No. Once activated it will stay on until it catches interest in something."
"Fuck." Blaise swore before looking around to try and find something of interest. He caught sight of the trick wands and started waving them around until he had a handful of rubber chickens. Fred arched a brow as he watched his boyfriend mess with the fake wands. How was that going to help?
Blaise ignored Fred and threw the rubber chickens at the thing and watched as it came to a halt and inspected them.
"Resistance is futile." The robot quoted before poking the nearest chicken. The chicken caught fire and exploded from the hex. "Holy shit." Fred breathed out. Maybe they needed to reevaluate selling this to children. Blaise's eyes went wide. What the fuck were the twins thinking?
"Assimilating did not work." Came the confused response from the toy. "Resistance is futile." The robot told the next chicken. Blaise whimpered when that one caught fire as well. What would happen when it ran out of chickens? Would it come for them next? As the robot tried chicken after chicken it became more confused and more frustrated.
"Assimilations have stopped working. Product is defective. Product is defective." It kept repeating the same sentence over and over. Blaise shared a confused look with Fred. Fred's eyes widened when the robot's head started circling around and around. That wasn't supposed to happen!
"Product is defective. Product is defective. Assimilations have stopped working." Each word the robot spoke became slower and slower till it just stopped talking. Blaise watched in relief as the eyes dimmed and the toy keeled over on its back.
"Thank Merlin." Blaise whispered before angrily grabbing a box off the self. No way were they losing this war. Blaise quickly read the instructions and made sure that he didn't have to do anything to it before chucking it in the direction that Fred had sent the fireworks.
Fred's eyes widened. "Blaise wait!" But it was too late. The opened package was already being lobbed away.
A dull thud had George and Pansy looking around wildly trying to figure out what they would have thrown. "You have got to be kidding me." George whispered. Pansy did not like the tone of her boyfriend's voice. She took a step away in worry.
"Pansy no! Don't-" Pansy let out a loud shriek when she felt something touch her leg and the shock of electricity set her hair to frizz. "move." George finished sadly.
Pansy looked down in horror as tiny little bugs were crawling all over her and zapping her! "What are these things? Get them off me!" Pansy shrieked.
Fred and Blaise could hear her shrieking and had to muffle their laughter.
George stepped up and starting beating the creatures with his hands sending them scurrying across the ground. "They are Electric Shock Shakers. The creatures send pulses of electricity into your skin." Pansy whimpered as she pulled one from the top of her head and gritting her teeth when it sent a last bolt of electricity into her. George watched in admiration as her previously panicked expression morphed into a very angry look and she stomped on the nearest Shock Shaker, the sickening crunch making him wince.
"That. Is. It." She warned before just ripping open several boxes and throwing them. George watched with raised brows as she opened dozens of boxes viciously. "We are ending this war right now." She growled deeply.
Fred saw the sheer number of boxes being thrown at them and he grabbed Blaise and started running. Blaise scoffed and managed to grab a hold of some boxes as Fred was yanking him around. Blaise ripped off the lids and threw them as hard as he could, hoping that they would find their target. The scream from the pair of them let Blaise know that he had been spot on. He had no idea what he was even throwing but he knew that he was having the most fun of his life.
George grabbed Pansy and ran the opposite direction of where they were. He wasn't paying attention to where he was going, all he could care about was getting away.
SLAM. George and Pansy smacked hard into Fred and Blaise causing everyone to fall over onto one another. They all scrambled to get up, panting harshly and glaring at each other. "Watch where you are going." Fred and Blaise said at the same time.
"Us? What about you?" George demanded angrily. Fred scoffed. "You were the one who ran into us!"
"Do you have proof? Because I say that it was the other way around." George argued as he tried to gain control of his breathing. Merlin, he really needed to start working out more if he was this out of breath.
"Guys." Pansy tried interrupting.
"Proof! Are you kidding me?" Blaise asked incredulously. "You smacked into us."
"Guys." She tried again.
George scoffed. "You would say that wouldn't you? Well since there is no proof to back up your claim than it matters none." He said smugly at the furious looks he was now receiving.
"GUYS!" Pansy shouted as loudly as she could. "What?!" The three of them bellowed at her.
"We have a problem." She said pointing at the approaching toys and pranks now making their way towards them.
Fred's eyes widened. They were surrounded. "Oh my." Blaise whimpered stepping up closer to Fred. George let out a surprised gust of air. "Holy fuck." He whispered.
"We have to fight them together." Blaise reasoned. George and Pansy shared uninterested looks at teaming up with Blaise and Fred.
Fred rolled his eyes. "We don't want to work with you either but it makes sense. If we fight back to back and form a circle than nothing can get in between us."
Pansy sent George a brief nod. "Fine. But when this is done we can discuss how Pansy and I won this battle."
"In your dreams." Fred retorted before they all got into position.
"Don't go for the obvious spell! The more creative the better it will work." George told Pansy and Blaise.
Fred caught sight of a Demon Box and gripped his wand tighter. It was supposed to work like a boggart would but it was only programmed with the most popular fears. Blaise's eyes widened as a thousand tiny spiders started coming from nowhere. Fred had to remind himself that they weren't real. It was a good thing Ron wasn't here or he would probably wet himself.
Fred shot a stasis charm surrounding the box so that he could deal with it later. Stunning the spiders would only make the next fear come out. He didn't have the time to stop all five of the fears. They had other things to think about.
Pansy furrowed her brows when she saw a little doll making its way toward her. The doll looked normal other than the fact that it was walking. The doll had on a light blue dress with lace edges, white tights and pretty pink shoes. Her hair was in blonde pigtails and she had a small smile on her face. "Play with me." A little childlike voice said. Pansy thought it was adorable. She reached her hands out to pick it up but George slapped them away. "No!" He warned.
"Don't you like me?" The little voice said in sadness. Pansy glared at her boyfriend. "Why won't you play with me!" The little voice suddenly shrieked in an angry voice. Pansy gasped in horror and shoved herself backwards forgetting that Fred and Blaise were behind them. She ignored their angry cries. She couldn't keep her eyes off of the doll. It warped. It was no longer an innocent little doll. The eyes turned black and the smile turned into a snarl that showed pointed and jagged teeth. What the fuck was that thing? "I will make you play with me." The doll growled before raising an elegant little hand.
Pansy wanted to stand there and just stare at it in horror but there were so many other things in the distance and she knew she didn't have time to dawdle. She could hear Fred and Blaise wrestling with something behind her and her interest was piqued but she knew it would be a bad idea to take her eyes off of the twisted doll.
She raised her wand and shot a severing charm right at the dolls head. The doll screamed loudly before the sick thud of the head landing somewhere in the distance reached her ears. George was panting from having to take down more the Electric Shock Shakers. He winced when the head of the doll landed near him. "Remind me to never piss you off." Pansy let out a startled laugh.
"What was that thing?" She asked as she sent a severing charm at another one of the dolls.
"That was Crazy Cassie. She is a doll that is meant to be a prank on a younger sister." Pansy shot George a look of contempt. "I suddenly feel sorry for your sister." The admission cost her a lot of pride. George snorted but wisely said nothing.
Blaise could hear the tinkling of glass near him. He looked down and was surprised to see teacups with mouths trying to bite his ankles. He didn't even bother with a spell, he just stomped the glass cups with his feet. He vaguely remembered that he had been the one to release that. Nose Biting Teacup, that is what the box said but they definitely weren't picky on what they got their razor-sharp teeth on.
Fred was breathing a sigh of relief as the products started to wind down. Geez had they needed to open so many of them?
"Brace yourselves!" George warned the others before a strong gust of wind signified that a Tiny Twister had been released. Pansy caught sight of the swirling cyclone and let out a breath of disbelief. Goodness they sure didn't mess around with their pranks.
The good thing about the little tornado was that it was picking up a lot of the toys and jokes and spinning them out of control before they fell hard on the ground.
Just when Blaise had started to relax a stream of bubbles started foaming everywhere. He had to swat some of them to the side so that he could see. He looked around and his jaw dropped when he realized that the entire store was covered in different shades of colorful bubbles.
"What is going on?" Pansy asked as she was moving her hands all over the place trying to pop all of the bubbles near her.
"A bubble machine has been activated." Fred shouted as he popped a big bubble and then wincing when extra liquid from the bubble got on his head.
"They are time activated, there is no stopping them. We have to wait it out." George added.
"Well that-" Blaise was cut off when he slipped and grabbed hold of the nearest thing to steady him. Unfortunately, he grabbed Fred causing a chain reaction. Because Fred grabbed a hold of George who then grabbed onto Pansy. Soon they were all on the floor panting and groaning.
Fred started moving his arms and legs. "What are you doing?" Blaise questioned. He didn't have the energy to move and apparently neither did anyone else as they all laid sprawled out on the floor watching as the bubbles took over the room.
"I am making a bubble angel." He said as if that was the most obvious thing in the world.
"I want to make one." Pansy piped up before she started mimicking Fred's actions. Soon George and Blaise joined in and the laughter of the group could be heard reverberating off the walls.
"This was fun." Blaise said with a sigh. He had never imagined that this is where life would take him but impromptu prank wars in the middle of their shop was now one of his favorite memories. He could get used to this. Blaise reached over and stilled Fred's moving arm to entwine their fingers.
"Agreed." The other three said in unison.
It is safe to say that no paperwork was finished that night, no products were made and the store was trashed. The next morning when Verity came in and saw the sheer wreckage of the store she briefly considered walking back out and not coming back.
"I don't get paid enough for this shite." She grumbled before resigning herself to cleaning up the store. At least the twins were having fun, but even that thought wasn't enough to stop the murder plots that were swimming in her head as she picked up the severed doll heads. "What in the world do they get up to?" She wondered before turning the open sign to closed. It would take a bit before the store was even remotely presentable. "I just cleaned this place last night!"
Authors Notes:
I am not going to lie, this is legit my favorite chapter so far.
Poor Verity. Haha. ;)
Okay what were your thoughts on this chapter? I wanted to show some insight to how they run the store. (ignoring the prank war) I wanted to show a serious side to them because they are successful business owners. (First half of the chapter.) But also wanted to show more of their mischievous nature as well. (Second half of the chapter.)
I think that the twins have an interesting relationship and I wanted to show that with this chapter. Their bond is sweet and I loved how much George showed that he cared about his brother. I wanted to focus more on them and the relationships with Pansy and Blaise as well.
I told you guys a while back that there would most likely be more character depth showing Pansy and Blaise and hopefully this met your interests. I loved adding in the bits of Pansy and Blaise's mindset. Blaise had like two lines in cannon. Disappointing. So there is not much to base him off of unless you take account of other fan fictions. So I hope that you like my Blaise as much as I do. I adore Pansy as well. I wanted to show a soft side of her that was never seen in the books but that made sense to my story. I think that Pansy and Blaise are the perfect candidates for Fred and George. Do you have a favorite couple between the four of them? I think I am leaning more towards Fred and Blaise but I love the teasing between Pansy and George.
With the actual pranks and joke ideas, that was difficult. The names were the hardest part. I did find some of the titles in the books and just tweaked them or gave them an actual definition. The rest of the names I just made up. In the chapter I only explained what the products did that the title didn't really explain. Some titles like Lingering Lipwear was obvious what it did so I didn't feel the need to explain. But if there was a product that I mentioned that you are curious about don't hesitate to ask.
The prank war actually was impromptu for me as well. I hadn't intended to write that until I was already into the chapter. But that is how writing goes sometimes. It writes itself. So hopefully you enjoyed that part. I do think that life with the twins will most likely have tons of impromptu prank battles in them. Most of the pranks are a little scary. I hadn't realized that till after I had already read what I wrote. Now the prank war might not be your cup of tea and that is okay, you can't win them all. But hopefully you liked it as much as I did.
I would like to point out that suggestions are always welcomed. I can't promise you that I will always include it but if it fits to my plot or how the story is going then I will try and squeeze it in somewhere. :)
So hopefully you enjoyed this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. :)
I would like to give a shout out to the people who have been reviewing my chapters. For the guests that don't have an account, I would love to respond but the lack of account prevents me from doing that. But I appreciate the reviews anyways. :) Flamingpen18, thank you for your reviews. I really appreciate it. :)
Some more shout outs to, MintMousse, Kyriageraki, ldycajnmom, Simply Liquid Moonlight, lily-flower15 and dark blue princess
For the daily commenters that I have already given shout outs in past chapters. Thank you! It is still appreciated. :)
-XxTheDarkLordxX
