Hermione keened under his adoring touch and words, becoming lost in the sensations she barely noticed the creak of the staircase outside the room.
"Fred." She forced out breathily "Freddie stop."
His lips hovered over her shivering abdomen as they listened to the footsteps grow nearer.
"Hermione?" Ginny's apprehensive voice spoke through the door "Can I come in? Mum said you ran in crying…"
Taking a steadying breath Fred rested his forehead against Hermione's navel.
"One sec Gin." Hermione replied, her voice surprisingly steady considering the storm of emotions barreling through her.
"I just need a minute, sorry." Fred whispered against her velvety skin. "Fuck, Hermione you're so bloody sexy."
Fred's eyes had darkened again the moment he lifted his head.
"Come on" Hermione replied with a giggle, tugging gently on Fred's hair to pull his face away from where he was now trying to bury it in her cleavage.
With a muffled groan Fred sat up while Hermione threw her wet top back on and sat on Ginny's bed opposite. At Hermione's questioning look Fred grabbed a pillow to place over his crotch and gave a nod.
"Come in Ginny."
"I just came to check on you. Oh! What are you doing here Fred?" A bewildered Ginny asked.
"My being an idiot was the reason Mione was upset." Fred replied, truthfully ashamed.
"I was just being sensitive about my scar, I thought Fred was being mean about it but he's since shown me that's not what he thinks of it…" Hermione trailed off and impressively contained her blush.
"Hermione is a bloody hero Fred! You better be sure I never find out about you being mean to her again or you'll never be free of bat bogeys." Ginny said feistily.
The Wealsey boys knew better than to underestimate their highly competent, and often scary, little sister so Fred nodded his understanding emphatically.
…
After taking it in turns to shower and get dressed in some dry clothes Fred and Hermione joined the rest of the Weasley clan for the farewell dinner. It was a joyous affair filled with hope for the new school year now that Dumbledore was back in charge and the school had been separated from ministry influence with Umbridge gone. The shop had done a roaring trade in the build up to the students going off to school and the twins shared their plans for expanding their healing and protection products.
Molly and Arthur were beside themselves with pride over the seriousness their sons could channel when the situation required it and in a shared glance agreed to invite the twins to join the order if they wanted, after dropping off the four younger witches and wizards for the train the next day of course.
The four students plus Fred and George ushered their parents from the kitchen after dinner and persuaded them to relax. The twins, being of age and therefore allowed to cast magic at the burrow, made quick work of the washing and drying up while the other four worked together to get everything put away in record time. Joining Molly and Arthur in the lounge, George brandished a set of exploding snap cards and set up a game that lasted several hours thanks to Fred and George's continued cheating that prevented anyone from running out of cards.
Despite everyone knowing that the cheating was going on, and probably because of it as the twins weren't being very subtle, the room was filled with laughter and love as the rag tag family enjoyed each other's company for the last time until Christmas at least.
"Fred?" Hermione whispered through the crack in his and George's room on her way back from the bathroom later that night.
"Mione?" A groggy sounding Fred replied and the door opened to reveal the pajama clad tall redhead rubbing his eyes sleepily. They'd had a very early start that morning to prepare for the last super busy day and then the greatest traffic flow through the shop since they first opened thanks to all the last minute Hogwarts shoppers. "Fuck, Mione!" He exclaimed under his breath, raking his eyes lustfully across her tiny summer silk pajama shorts and cami "how are you even more breathtaking each time I see you?"⁷
"I've been learning to knit and…" Hermione brushed off Fred's comment with a blush and took a confidence boosting breath "I made you this."
She handed over the magenta and yellow striped scarf and her heart leapt at the look of gratitude in Fred's eyes and the easy smile that showed her he loved the gift.
"I thought you could maybe add a shield charm to it, like my bracelet. I would have but I've still got the trace on me and I don't want to give the ministry any more reason to go after me just yet." Hermione's words of 'just yet' weren't lost on the redhead but he decided to let it go, worrying over her wasn't going to help at all.
"Thank you Hermione." Fred said earnestly while running the soft wool through his fingers repeatedly and delighting in the fact she had remembered and chosen to use his favourite colours, it made him feel special and as one of a set of identical twins that feeling was exceptionally rare.
...
Autumn arrived suddenly in Wizarding London, the leaves on the trees in the parks behind Diagon Alley changing their green hues to the colours of flames. The shop had become quieter since Hogwarts students went back but, thanks to the steady foot traffic of small children spending pocket money and scared adults interested in the protective line, Fred and George continued to rake in a sizable profit. Thanks to their Dad training them on saving for a rainy day coupled with the war building up with worse and worse news in both the Sunday prophet and muggle newspaper Fred collected each week, the twins were either pumping that profit back into the business or prudently squirreling it away. It would only be a matter of time until their shop became a target and they both knew that they wouldn't close up without a fight.
The U-No-Poo posters in their windows, Umbridge toys on the shelves, their blood traitor status being well known just from their names, their friendship with Harry Potter and the fact that they were both members of the Order of the Phoenix would mean that they were already an unattacked target. Gryffindors however are known for their reckless courage and Fred and George were both Weasleys and Gryffindors through and through, so despite their mother's weekly pleading requests at order meetings and over Sunday lunches they weren't going to back down until they had no other choice.
Hogwarts mail orders were flying in as well, it seemed as though the darkness of the war had seeped into the castle too, giving a grey tint to the home of so many magical teenagers. Despite the teachers doing their best to look after all students, regardless of heritage or affiliation, it wasn't possible to hide hundreds of insightful young people away from the escalating war entirely. So Fred and George continued to send in little parcels of joy to the mischievous teens, along with a few extra gifts here and there for their favourites.
At the end of another slow but steady day Fred was packing up a snowstorm in a bottle, he was filling out the owl orders while his twin closed up the shop front. Since the first of September had passed and the nights started to close in, they had drastically reduced their opening hours so when George came into the back to find Fred sending off the bottle it was only six o'clock.
"Finished?" He asked his twin with a hint of excitement in his eye.
"Yeah. Everything locked up?"
"Yep, just need you for the double wards and we can get ready."
With a nod Fred followed George back out into the main shop and cast their various protective wards, strengthened by their synchronised casting and the shared blood in their veins as they did so. Bill had taught them the wards and explained that any Weasley could be the second caster if one of them wasn't available, but being twins made the blood magic even stronger.
"Hurry up!" George shouted through the bathroom door half an hour later when Fred was having a lazy shower "I really don't want to be late!"
Fred huffed and leaned his head against the shower wall, it was the night of Halloween and George had accepted an invitation for the pair of them to attend the Three Broomsticks' annual party with Angelina and Alicia. The dark skinned quidditch goddess, Angelina, had thoroughly captured George's heart and so the four often went out together for drinks after work. Angelina and Alicia had moved in together after graduation so spending time with her became simply a convenience for George's twin. Alicia was clearly still physically and romantically interested in Fred from the way she was always touching him and the fact that they tended to end up entwined in cuddles by the end of a night out but it never even progressed as far as a chaste kiss anymore.
"Alright, alright." Fred called through the bathroom door at George's insistent banging.
"Finally!" George replied with a teasing air "I think even Ginny takes less time to get ready than you do!"
"I'm ready now aren't I?" Fred's tone was light but there was a clear reluctance in his eyes.
"We don't have to go if you really don't want to." George deflated, despite how much he wanted to make a move on Angelina he would give up almost anything for his twin's happiness.
"We're going" Fred countered firmly "you deserve your shot with the girl you've been pining over since fourth year and you're going to get it tonight at this ridiculous party."
"And what about the girl you've been pining over since our fourth year?"
"She'll be up at the castle enjoying another spectacular Halloween feast with her friends." Fred tried to sound nonchalant but he was never any good at hiding his emotions from his twin.
"Are you ever going to get her back?"
"I don't deserve her. No one does, but especially not me."
"Freddie-"
"No George. I'm serious, I'll be here for her always and if someday she miraculously deems me adequate then I will take everything and anything she has to offer." Fred said as he finished pulling on his shoes and wandered over to the floo.
"So will you give Alicia a chance then?"
"I told Hermione that I was hers at the start of our arrangement and with or without an exclusivity clause, with or without an arrangement at all anymore, I will forever more belong to that mind blowing witch. Even if she never feels the same way in return."
A heavy sigh fell from George's chest, he really wanted his twin to be happy but he couldn't blame him. It was so obvious to him that his twin had fallen irrevocably, head over heels in love with their younger brother's best friend, he just hoped that Fred would pluck up the courage to do something about it before she and Ron ended up as an item as so many people were predicting.
Madam Rosmerta ran one hell of a party. The celebrations were in full swing when the twins arrived, deafeningly loud and full of half drunk witches and wizards. Angelina spotted the redheads immediately and called them over to her table where she and Alicia sat huddled up with a small group of very attractive witches from their year.
"I thought I'd arrange some reinforcements so your brother might give us some alone time." she whispered huskily in George's ear, the numerous empty glasses of firewhiskey on the table having bolstered her confidence.
"Another round?" George asked before he made a fool of himself by turning into a puddle of goo for the witch of his dreams within the first two minutes of being at the party.
It didn't take long however until he and Angelina slipped back to the twins' flat to complete the celebrations there alone, with a bottle of firewhiskey in one hand and Angelina's bum cupped firmly in the other George disappeared with a salacious wink. Fred sighed, knowing he would not want to head back home for several hours at least. The giggling and incessant touching of Alicia and the other girls he had been left at the mercy of was starting to grate on his nerves however and he was glad of the breather when he noticed a few glasses were empty and jumped up to get the next round.
"Rosie?" Fred called out to the pub owner whom he had become fairly good friends with over his Hogwarts years, especially when sneaking out on non-Hogsmeade weekends. "Do you have an owl I can borrow? It won't be going far."
With a look that clearly said she thought that he was up to something mischeivous but couldn't work out what it was thanks to his expertly innocent poker face, the owner gave a slow nod and returned moments later with a young barn owl, parchment and quill.
"Thank you." Said Fred, after whispering the recipient's name to the feathered creature and throwing him out the window. "Another round of firewhiskey please, and can you make my glass apple juice again?"
The giggling girls were too tipsy and focussed on Fred's body to notice the slight colour difference of his drink compared with their own, but Fred found he was enjoying himself much more after sending that note. Alicia's hand had migrated to the top of his thigh while one of the other girls, who he couldn't remember the name of, had decided to stick her tongue in his ear when the bar's clock struck twelve.
"Right well, goodnight all. Lovely to see you ladies and happy Halloween!" He declared, jumping up to extract himself from the uncomfortable situation and, before any of their firewhiskey fogged minds could think to stop him, he had waved goodbye to Madam Rosmerta and vanished out of the front door with a wide smile.