Rescue me/ From everything/ I wish I could live/ I wish I could breathe- Rescue Me: Hawthorne Heights

Black. Black. With glints of white that hurt his eyes. Blurry spots of grey and white, merging...


"He's okay Katie, he's okay."

She sobbed blindly. "I thought- I thought-"

"I know what you thought Katie, but it's okay. He's alive. He's alive."

George knelt beside her as Fred's eyes flickered open.

"Fred!" Katie flung her arms around him.

"'M okay." He mumbled, patting her back, dazed.

"What happened?"

"A bloody wall fell on me." He shook his head, then stopped as it made him feel nauseous.

"I'm glad you didn't die." George said with a grin. Fred could hear the strain in his twin's voice. What would George have done if Fred had died?

"Me too- death by wall, how embarrassing."

"Don't joke about it!" Katie snapped. There was a pause. Fred tried to read what was running through Katie's eyes, but it was gone too fast.

"Oh, good, you're awake." Alicia was standing behind them. "Kate, George, budge."

Alicia began some complex looking healing spells. Katie was biting her fingers, something she did when she was trying not to cry. After about fifteen minutes Fred was hauled to his feet. He walked about experimentally, Katie watching him. He took her hand and wanted to ask her what was wrong, what had happened, who- because it had to be a death- who had fallen, but then the words they had never wanted to hear were echoing around his head and he forgot everything. Harry Potter is dead.

The crowds surged outside to deny it; to deny Voldemort. Fred tried to cling onto Katie, but amongst the rush he felt her fingers slip from his. He tried to find her in the crush, craning his neck, but when he saw Harry dead in Hagrid's arms, he gaped. He had seen Harry unconscious before, but never broken like this.

He watched it unfold, unable to catch his breath. What would happen, what would happen? What could he do? He watched Neville, Neville Longbottom, that hopeless, shy, incredible boy take on Voldemort, while he, the bold, brave Fred Weasley stood silently and stared. But he had slipped away from death once tonight, and everything in his body repelled the idea of facing it again.

And then Neville broke free and chaos reigned.

And he was ducking and weaving and jinxing and hexing and he'd never tried to curse so many people, but he was so busy looking for Katie that he didn't know what he was saying, or who he was hitting.

Then he caught sight of her, duelling fiercely with a burly man. Each of his curses missed her by barely a millimetre. Fear forced its way up from his stomach, long tendrils that wrapped themselves around his heart, squeezing tightly.

"Katie!"

She couldn't hear him, but he saw her cry out in pain as the Death Eater's wand slashed down her cheek and neck.

"Katie! Stupefy!" The Death Eater, mid- triumphant yell, fell. Blood was pouring down her face, blinding her, but before he could reach her another wave swept them away, back into the Great Hall.

"NOT MY DAUGHTER YOU BITCH!" Fred was astonished as his Mother pushed past and began to duel Bellatrix Lestrange. He grabbed Ginny and pulled her closer.

What was Mum doing? He'd never seen her in this way. Angry, yes. Strangely beautiful- no.

Bellatrix was prancing around, laughing manically and then Fred felt a surge of pride as his mother, another unexpected hero, killed for her family.

But it wasn't done yet, there was still a moment for Fred to be one of those heroes, as Voldemort turned his wands on her. Fred reached out with his wand to save her-

And then a shield cast by someone else protected Molly Weasley, and suddenly Harry was there.

"Harry!" Fred bellowed, then quickly fell silent, unwilling to be the one who distracted the Chosen One, afraid that Voldemort would turn on him.

Harry and Voldemort circled each other. Fred was only half listening, scanning the crowds for Katie.

"Accident, was it, when my Mother died to save me?"

Fred saw his own mother, the same but different to him, standing near, watching Harry with pride and terror. He saw his twin, white and afraid, opposite.

The tension in the air grew thicker and more cloying as Harry and Voldemort continued to circle each other. Fred had to fight the urge to help him. He could see Ron and Hermione, their eyes never leaving Harry's face, clutching onto each other.

"The wand chooses the wizard..."

What the hell was Harry on about? What did wandlore have to do with anything? Kill him!

"...we duel on skill alone..."

Come on Harry...Fred found himself praying. This is it...the end...

"So it all comes down to this, doesn't it?" Harry whispered, but Fred heard him as if he was right by him.

The sun suddenly burst through, shining on Harry and Voldemort's faces, blinding them, and blinding the hall to what was happening, who had won and who was dead, was it hope or fear?

Fred's mouth dropped as the wand arrived in Harry's hand- Voldemort fell back, finally dead.

Fred did not know what he was doing. He was shouting Harry's name and running to him. He was by George and Alicia, who was crying. He was hugging his mother. He was pushing through the crowds, because he could not find her and he needed to.

"Fred!"

She was forcing her way through towards him and slam, she was in his arms and kissing him and crying.

"It's over" she was shouting at him "We're safe, it's over, it's done!"

They sat at a table, any table, they didn't even know which, and he examined her wound while she threw food at Grawp. It was over. It was over.