Well, due to world events this chapter nearly didn't get posted today, but I finally found time. The nature of my work means that I might not be able to stick to my usual uploading schedule in these difficult times, but I'll try.

"Hey," said Fred, reaching Hermione's desk in two strides and then kneeling in front of her chair. He had, if he was honest, initially been a bit annoyed when he realised that Hermione had forgotten their agreement to have brunch with George and Angie. But now he felt ashamed, and his feeling of annoyance was overwhelmed by one of concern when he sensed how awfully sad Hermione felt about everything. And Fred would do anything he could to stop Hermione feeling sad.

He didn't know where to begin, though. Partly because he was also feeling guilty. He should not have allowed them to become so carried away with the lust they felt from George and Angelina's bonding magic that they made themselves both feel sore. He could have just as easily thought about the kitchen window, and the shopping. He felt dreadful that he had been so focused on the shop that he hadn't realised how much Hermione must still be missing her parents. And, given the night they had had, he should have thought to insist that she took the day off before it had come to this. Tears pricked at his own eyes.

"Come here…" He pulled her towards him and stroked her head as he cradled it into his shoulder. "I'm so sorry," he whispered into her ear. "Those things are my responsibility too. I'm so sorry about your parents, and I promise we'll make finding them our main focus from now on."

Fred was relieved to feel Hermione's body respond and relax to his touch. He held her closely, stroking her back and feeling a wave of love as she turned into him and pressed her face to his. Fred silently spat out a chunk of her hair that had sneaked between his lips.

"Kingsley's on that," she mumbled into his ear after a few moments. "I know he's doing all he can," she said, pulling away slightly and looking into Fred's eyes while stroking the hair on the nape of his neck. "And I know it's safer for them to stay hidden for now. I just miss them," she told him, fresh tears forming and causing Fred to bring her closer to him again.

"I love you," he said simply.

"I love you too," she replied. "And it's OK," she said quietly. "Sometimes I just need to say stuff and have a cry while you hold me. You can't fix it, and you don't have to try," she said.

The stillness of their chat was broken by the sound of footsteps and then loud knocking on the door to their office.

"Morning! Oh Gods, sorry!" Charlie's voice went from cheerful to apologetic when he saw the two of them cuddled together by Hermione's desk. "Oh, love!" he added, looking around for somewhere to drop the things he was carrying when he saw Hermione's tear-streaked face.

"Hi," said Fred, still slightly choked up himself and a bit surprised to see his brother not wearing his son. Perhaps he had left Elliot in the play area, under Lee or Verity's watchful eye.

"Shall I go away?" Charlie asked, his voice full of concern. "Or is there something I can do to help? I brought tea," he offered, holding up a cup.

"No, you don't have to go, Charlie," Hermione said quietly. "I'm just having a moment. Or six. But please shut and ward the door. I don't want all the new employees to see me like this."

Fred and Charlie exchanged a glance once Charlie had done as Hermione requested. "Why don't we move to the sofa and make a sandwich?" Fred asked.

"I'm not hungry," Hermione said, shaking her head, and the two men let out an identical half-laugh.

"Not that kind of sandwich," Charlie said, setting three takeaway cups down on the coffee table and setting himself to tidy up. By the time Fred had persuaded Hermione to stand up and move to the middle seat of the office sofa, Charlie had removed Fred and George's product notes, relocated a slightly squashed box of fainting fancies and plumped up the cushions. He sat down on one side of Hermione, Fred sat on the other and, before she even realised what was happening, both men had wrapped their arms around Hermione and were encasing her in a tight snuggle.

"Now THIS is a proper Weasley sandwich," Fred murmured into her ear. "Invented for Gin-bug when she was little, and guaranteed to chase away nightmares and make anything feel a bit better." He looked up and caught Charlie's eye. "My lovely wife feels overwhelmed by everything, and sad about her parents," he said. "And we were drinking and up late and then up in the night and a couple of things went wrong in the flat this morning and we're both a bit … run down." He decided that that was a better word than sore.

"Not surprisingly, it's been a busy few weeks for all of us," replied Charlie, pressing a kiss to Hermione's face and receiving his own mouthful of hair, which he untangled with a finger and then a shake of his head.

"Yeah, occupational hazard, that," Fred laughed softly, gently stroking the rest of Hermione's hair back from her face. "It's attacking us; your hair," he explained, when he saw her quizzical look.

"Are you OK, Charlie?" Hermione turned to her brother-in-law, her eyes full of concern.

"Fucksake, love!" Fred's voice was a little sharper than usual, and he stopped ministering to her curls. Hermione turned to him, anxious that she had upset him now. He sensed that, and groaned. "Stop bloody worrying about everyone else!" His eyes were full of concern, but it was clear that he was feeling strongly about this. It wasn't the first time they had had words on this topic.

"I'm fine," Charlie said, his voice softer. He took Hermione's hand in one of his. "And Fred's right, lovely. You can't be constantly putting everyone else's feelings above your own. What do YOU need right now?" he asked, loosening his hold on her just enough to sit up and reach for his wand. "Other than this lovely cup of tea that I brought you; are you ready for it?" Hermione nodded. Keeping his arm around Hermione, Charlie levitated everyone's drinks into their hands, maintaining contact with Hermione until she had taken a sip of her tea and considered her answer.

"I need a time turner so I can meet all my commitments and not let anyone down," she replied. "But they all got destroyed."

"Bollocks!" Fred exclaimed.

"No, they did; Minerva is sure," she told him, and he laughed, breaking the tension a bit.

"No," he said, resting his face against her cheek, "I mean bollocks do you need to find a way to keep your commitments to everyone else. Let's deal with that first. Would you rather we reschedule with the others?"

Charlie used his coffee cup to hide a grin. In that moment, Fred sounded a lot like Bill, when he was in older brother mode, but he decided to keep that comment to himself. For now.

Hermione considered Fred's question for a moment and then nodded. "I think I would," she said.

"Alright. Watch and learn," Fred said, summoning a charmed quill. "We'll write rather than using the phone; it'll be quicker because we won't have to answer questions. Hello lovebirds," he said, after flicking his wand at the quill to make it begin writing. "I'm sorry, but we're both knackered and we've got too much on here to get away. So please forgive us, but we're going to let you shag the day away by yourselves rather than coming over for brunch. We're still on for date night on Wednesday…" Fred looked at Hermione, who nodded vigorously in agreement. That was one commitment she always wanted to honour, "so see you then. Fred."

"Thank you," Hermione whispered. She was a little surprised that she hadn't thought of that herself, but she knew that was often the consequence when she became overwhelmed, at least since the end of the war. She had always managed to think so clearly before then. Or maybe it was just that a wider variety of things were happening these days. Their efforts during the war had always been very focused, so perhaps that was the issue.

Fred was rolling up the parchment and using his wand to attach it to Oswald's foot. "That one's for George," he told the owl, "but don't go just yet, because we might have another." He turned to Hermione, who was now resting her head on Charlie's shoulder as he drank his coffee and absentmindedly stroked her hair. "Do you want me to send one to the boys as well?"

"I'll write it," Hermione said, sitting up straighter and balancing the tea that Charlie had brought her. "Thank you, by the way," she told him with a smile, and he nodded in return. "I haven't even asked why you're here," she added.

"Yeah," Fred chimed in, glad to see that Hermione now seemed to be feeling better enough to be engaging in the conversation. "This is the first time you've come on your own for ages! Did you want the play area to yourself for a change, or did you drop Elliot off in the shop on your way in?" He glanced at the door, knowing that Lee and Verity would have gladly offered to look after Elliot for a while. He was no trouble, and they both loved kids. It would have been hard for anyone who didn't to work at the store.

Charlie shook his head. "He's with Lauren, in the car. They're picking up Mum and Dad and bringing them over to her cottage for the afternoon and evening."

"You didn't fancy going?" Hermione asked.

Charlie pulled a face. "I don't like riding in the car," he said, looking a bit sad and making Fred laugh. "Anyway…" Charlie pointed her back to the hovering quill. "You're not supposed to be worrying about me," he said. "When you've done that, I'll tell you why I'm here," he winked. "It's a good reason. Might even be helpful, under the circumstances." But before Hermione could ask again, he again pointed to the quill.

"Harry and Ron," she began, and the quill scribbled her words onto the parchment. "I have neglected you horribly for the past few weeks, and for that I am truly sorry. I really hope that things will get sorted out after Friday, and life can be a bit more normal again. Whatever normal is." She gave a short laugh. "In any case, I need to rearrange my life so the three of us have more time together again. But I'm going to have to postpone our coffee date today, and I'm sorry about that too. But I just have too much on, so can we please reschedule for next week, when I promise that I will buy you both the most enormous piece of cake as compensation. Love you both," she finished, and then sat back.

"Hermione," Fred said to the quill, and then waved his wand, making the parchment roll itself up so that Fred could fasten it by a ribbon that he attached to Oswald's foot. "This is Harry and Ron," he said, by means of explanation. "We don't want to hurt their brains by sending an unsigned letter," he winked, stopping Hermione's protest with a smiling kiss. "Now," he said, "we still need to work out how to help you with your day, but let's hear what Charlie Bear has to say, as he seems to think he might be able to help in some way…"

"Well, I came to make an offer and ask a favour," Charlie said. "I'm a bit reluctant to ask the favour now, though. I want to take things off your list, not add more!"

Hermione patted his leg with her hand. "I do feel better now we've cancelled some things though. I think … well it's more that I could use a bit of time to catch up with myself and get organised," she sighed.

Charlie nodded, and made an encouraging sound. Fred watched him carefully. This relationship stuff was still so new to Fred, and he wasn't arrogant enough to think he couldn't learn a bit from a brother who was a few years his senior and much more experienced with women. "We're listening, love," Charlie said softly, and Fred made a mental note of how much Hermione seemed to appreciate that phrase.

After another few moments of thought, Hermione looked at Fred. "You're right that I should focus on what I need. And what I need is to take the day off and go and sit somewhere quiet and sort my lists, and just rest a bit." She turned to Charlie. "This keeps happening. Somehow I need to find a way to remember that I need to sit down with myself regularly and do this, but I forget, and then I get overwhelmed again."

Charlie nodded.

"And I need to prioritise. Groceries is pretty high on the list, else we'll have nothing for dinner!"

"Well, actually," Charlie put a hand on her arm, and paused until she looked at him. "That's one of the reasons why I'm here. I was wondering if you'd like to come over to the cottage for dinner tonight? We need to get Bill and Fleur over, and I was going to ask if you could pick them up on your way, but Dad and I can go and get them if that's too much. But it'd save you cooking, and no-one'll mind if you leave early..."

"That does sound nice," said Hermione, turning to Fred. "And it would give us more time to get groceries in." They paused to sense each other's emotions through their bond, confirming that they both felt good about joining the family dinner. She turned back to Charlie. "We could easily bring Bill and Fleur."

"Well that one's easy, then," Fred said to his brother. "We'd love to come, and we'll be happy to lend our location wisdom and apparition skills to bring the De La Weasleys to the party." He grinned at his own joke, and was pleased to see that it made Hermione smile too. He loved bringing a smile to her face, especially at times like this. "What time? Or shall I owl Bill?"

"Yeah, check with him," said Charlie. "Lauren thinks she and your folks will be back by three or four, so I reckon any time after about six would work."

"We can phone them, anyway," Hermione reminded Fred, tapping the pocket in her robes where she kept her magical phone.

Fred nodded. "OK."

Charlie patted Hermione's arm again. "I've got a few hours to spare," he said, and then looked at Fred. "Assuming Fred can't easily take the day off with George away…" He trailed off, pausing until Fred had confirmed that thought with a reluctant nod, which led Hermione to squeeze his leg in reassurance. "Well, I'm going to volunteer to be your assistant, love. I'll do whatever errands you need, I'll get groceries, and Fred can man the shop with Georgie away and you won't have to worry."

"Thank you," Hermione whispered.

"Cheers." She caught the look of relief and gratitude that Fred gave his brother. He didn't want Hermione to be alone, but he did feel responsible for keeping things going at the shop, especially as they were all coupling up and settling down and, marriage law depending, perhaps starting families sooner rather than later. Quickly, he suppressed that thought, not wanting to add to Hermione's load.

Charlie grinned. "We'll have a great time," he said. "If you play your cards right, I'll let you in on my grand plan to show Lauren how we're not joking about flying on broomsticks." He raised his eyebrows and looked to Fred. "Even when we talked about flying the cottage yesterday," he chuckled, "she thinks we're going to drive under it in cars or something, and use wands to move the cottage from the ground!"

"Brilliant," said Fred. "What are you planning?"

"No idea," Charlie laughed. "But I'll figure something out." He turned back to Hermione. "And maybe you can help me, too…"

"Seriously?" Fred sounded incredulous. "You know she doesn't do brooms, right? Well, not without Georgie or I behind her. Though she'd probably get on with you," he mused, grinning at Hermione, who laughed, despite herself. She was feeling better for the love that she was feeling from two of her favourite men. But, with the way her body felt at the moment, she didn't think she would want to get on a broom ever again, with anyone.

"Nothing to do with brooms," Charlie said, smiling at his sister-in-law. "I need a bit of womanly muggle advice. Want to buy Lauren a present…" He smiled again, and Hermione's eyes flashed with realisation. Charlie wanted to buy Lauren an engagement ring, and he was keen to buy a muggle ring, but he needed help from someone who understood muggle shopping and money better than he did.

"I'd love to help," Hermione said, trying not to get too excited in case she had the wrong idea. "Is it urgent?"

Charlie pulled an apologetic face. "It kind of is," he said. "But you need to rest and make your lists and get on top of your own stuff, not have me adding things."

"But you're doing errands and grocery shopping for me this morning, and you're saving us from making dinner tonight," Hermione said.

"And I'll be your assistant until just before three if that would help," he smiled. "I've got nothing else to do til then. You could give me jobs off your list and I could get some of them done while you're resting and sorting things out. It's about time you learned the art of delegation," he winked.

"Too bloody right," said Fred, kissing Hermione's neck and making her smile. He relaxed a bit. Having Charlie take care of Hermione was a great solution. And, for reasons that Fred didn't fully understand, Charlie always seemed to be able to say the right thing when women were upset or in need. Perhaps it was because Tonks had been his best friend at school, he thought, feeling a wave of sadness at the loss of their friend and her beloved husband.

"Well why don't we start on your stuff and see how you feel by lunchtime?" Charlie shifted forward on the sofa and drained his coffee. "We could settle you on the sofa with your lists and maybe I can tidy the kitchen and the flat a bit while you get yourself organised, and then you can let me know what the plan is."

"Alright then," Hermione smiled. "That sounds really good." She looked at Fred, who nodded.

"The shop's under control," he said, nodding towards the door, "and I'll be fine. Enjoy your day off. You two do whatever you need to, and," he took Hermione's face gently into his hands and stroked her cheeks, "just make sure you get yourself sorted and rested so you can enjoy our dinner," Fred said. "And watching Dad have a lovely time visiting a muggle cottage! That sounds like a great way to de-stress!"

Fred gave Hermione a kiss before standing and then leaving the room. She watched him striding off towards the shop floor, knowing through the bond that he was smiling to himself. If Charlie thought he was being subtle about his shopping intentions, he was very much mistaken. It was very clear to Fred that he was ready to buy Lauren a ring and propose marriage, and Fred couldn't be happier at the thought that his brother was going to settle down with his family and be nearby to visit the shop on a regular basis.

But Fred was still concerned about Hermione. He really needed to put some things in place to support her more. Ever since George's wedding, the seed of a thought had been growing in the back of Fred's mind. He needed to send some owls.