Summary:
The times were listless and stony in 12, Grimmauld Place when some sudden and shocking discoveries were made about the nature of Fred and George Weasley. One-shot. Not quite what you expect, and kinda weird.
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Disclaimer: I disclaim everything.
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Grimmauld Place was a unique and mysterious mansion in many ways, and was capable of concealing useful material for the curious mind. But none of its oddities were as unsettling as its uncanny ability to remain completely impassive. A large group of people could hustle and bustle through the straight doorframes and up and down creaky stairs, yet have no affect whatsoever on the atmosphere in the house. The dark manor could stoically ignore the emotions of its inhabitants.
Though busy with the commands and questions and high-strung voices of a desperate group of people in the midst of a war effort, the house maintained its deadpan.
So it was with a strange feeling of chilly numbness that six child-adults sat together by the empty hearth, draped over couches, chairs, and one another like so many damp sheets. The open windows let some sun in, but offered no brightness.
It should have been like any other normal August thirtieth, but the four students still attending school knew it wasn't. The murk of the Black Manor crushed the usual rushed excitement of leaving day, and normality had to be forced. What little enthusiasm existed was at that point all-together feigned, even on the part of the two animated twins notorious for their gusto.
They were currently bent over a book together, heads close, as two boys faced off at chess, and two girls sat together on the chaise longue.
"Well. Ginny. Now that you're a prefect we'll be seeing you at meetings and things." The older girl commented. "Maybe we'll all be a lot closer this year than last. If that's possible"
"Like we don't already see enough of her." A red haired boy grumbled, and his chess opponent chuckled faintly as he pushed his bishop forward.
"Well excuse me! And I thought you guys were my friends." The youngest Weasley didn't sound at all offended and even smiled a bit, as she crossed her arms across her chest and leaned back, further into the scratchy pillows of the couch, leaning her head on Hermione's shoulder, the regularity of the familiar action feeling fake.
"Let's not get into this conversation again." A red haired twin moaned, looking up from his work.
"You guys get so soppy." Fred nodded, holding out his hand to George.
George handed him a pen wordlessly, and Fred began to scrawl on a pink sheet of paper clearly marked with a triple "W" at the top.
"What do you want to talk about, then?" Hermione snapped; Ginny's head lifted, but neither boy flinched.
"What are you two working on?" Ginny interjected, interested. Hermione looked at her, then back at the twins expectantly.
"If you must know, we've been working on a complicated new combination of streeler venom and demiguise hairs."
Fred hissed at George, and George bit his lip, smiling sheepishly and roguishly at the same time, a common expression for the twins.
"But streeler venom is highly dangerous!" Hermione cried, eyes wide. Harry and Ron looked up from their game in curiosity.
"Well, normally, yes." They nodded seriously.
"But when blended properly with salamander blood, it is rendered harmless-"
"-yet still has all the chrome-changing effects of the streeler." They finished, smiling, and Hermione whistled quietly.
"You guys could get into some serious-"
"FRED AND GEORGE WEASLEY!"
A raging Mrs. Weasley stormed into the sitting room, but the effect was slightly diminished compared to the temperature drop that occurred at the Burrow at times like these.
"WHAT'S THIS I HEAR FROM MUNDUNGUS ABOUT ILLEGAL SUBSTANCES!?" She was above howler level, and the four children not in trouble cringed at the resonance.
"Mum, we-"
"I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU WOULD ENDANGER YOURSELVES LIKE THIS!"
"You can't tell us what-"
"YOU BOYS ARE IN SERIOUS TROUBLE, OF AGE OR NO!"
She then grabbed each by an ear and pulled them backward out of their seats, straggling over the back of the couch. Ginny giggled a bit, but quickly stopped abruptly when her mother continued.
"I HAVEN'T SAID ANYTHING ABOUT YOUR QUESTIONABLE ACTIVITIES, BUT THIS IS THE LAST STRAW! PUTTING EVERYONE AT SUCH RISK FOR SUCH CHEAP TRICKS-"
"MUM!" They bellowed together, each slapping a hand away from their ears angrily. She was startled into silence. The four teenagers were frozen in shock, Ron's hand hovering over his chess piece. All attempts at normalcy were lost, and the faces of the onlookers were wide-eyed and distressed. The faces of the three combatants showed an impending all-out row: Mrs. Weasley was bright-faced, livid, and the twins' faces were identical masks of twisted fury.
"Mum, you don't know what you're talking about!" They screamed in unison.
"How dare you!?" She cried in outrage.
"Can't you just trust us for once!?" They demanded.
"You boys have gone too far! You're being selfish! You just don't understand that what you do affects everyone in the Order! Stop being-"
"JUST SHUT UP!" George balled up his fists in rage.
Molly Weasley's heated face turned bright red, and she took a step back.
"I just…" She deflated. "I don't know what to do with you anymore. I don't know." She looked lost, looking back and forth between her sons. "Should I send you away? Do I have to split you up?" They didn't answer, glaring fiercely, as if to say 'just try it'.
She turned to the son on her right, reaching out tentatively. "George, honey-"
"Yeah?" The other twin snarled. She recoiled her hand, and sobbed.
No one moved for a shocked instant, like a train was bearing down on them.
Then the two boys looked at one another, ashamed. Their faces softened, and they reached out to embrace their mother.
"Mum, you're the one who doesn't understand." Fred said tenderly, and she shook as they held her.
"Just believe us that not everything we do is fun and games-"
"-and sometimes we do what we do for a cause-"
"-and maybe an end that will justify the means-"
"-even if it wasn't easy, or fun, or even legal."
"And to top it, you're always accusing us of unspeakable things-"
"- which makes everything ten times harder." Fred finished gently.
"So you need to trust us. Right George? We just want you to trust us."
She nodded tremulously, but then looked up in confusion.
"George…? But you're George, you just said so!" She wept, horrified at the thought that she couldn't tell her sons apart.
"I am George." He assuaged quickly. "I meant to say Fred. Right Fred?" Fred nodded vigorously. Molly hugged them tightly.
"I'll try to keep faith in you boys, but it's hard to trust when you never tell me anything! Please tell me what you're doing!" They nodded.
"We'll talk more later. Remus should be coming by soon with a report, and your father's come home, and I haven't made any supper." She planted a kiss on each of their cheeks, and left.
The twins turned back to their bewildered and astonished audience, looking to bolt.
"Wha.." Ron petered out. No one said anything for long moments. Then Hermione finally broke the silence with the only thing she could think of.
"So… what's the illegal streeler venom for?" She asked, with forceful non-chalance. Ron let out a hiss of air, relieved.
"Actually, streeler venom isn't illegal, it's legit for potions. Demiguise hair is class A untradable." Fred tugged his ear sheepishly.
"And it's top secret."
"For the Order?" Harry asked.
Neither twin said anything.
Hermione's mouth flew open, and her eyes grew. "You're making edible invisi-"
"Can it, 'Mione! It's top secret!" George rammed his finger to his lips.
"Jeesh! They don't call you the cleverest witch of your age for nothing!"
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"This room really doesn't suit you guys." Ginny plopped down on the twin's springy beds.
"This house doesn't really suit us." Fred sat on the floor in front of her, one leg extended and the other bent to rest his elbow on.
"That's true enough. But you know how mom is." She did and undid the last weave of her braid. Fred and George glanced knowingly at one another.
"Not that we mind, but what's the reason you're here, Gin-gin?" She smiled innocently.
"What, can't a baby sister visit her brothers without a reason?" She sighed, when it was clear they weren't buying it. "You guys keep underestimating Hermione, she'll figure everything out."
"What's everything?"
"You're top secret Order stuff. Your secret plans. What you're always lying to everyone about." She traced the worn pattern of the bedclothes with her middle finger.
"Well, it was pretty dumb of Fred to bring it up." Fred grimaced.
"Not just that, you guys, and you know it." Her jaw set, and she tucked her sock-covered feet under her. "I've wanted to talk to you about it for so long. Don't try to steer me off course."
"What are you on about?" George arched an eyebrow.
"You.. y'know. You guys. Your pretend game."
Neither gave a spark of recognition, only stared blankly at her.
She urged them to understand.
"You know, what you said! I want to know if it's true! Because I think it is!"
Now they stared confusedly, doubtful.
Ginny's eyes began glittering suspiciously, and she blinked furiously. "Y'know. The thing… the thing that nobody… 'cept me.."
Her beloved brothers just stared.
"You told me, when I was little… before Hogwarts." Her voice shook tremulously. "You told me not tell… I didn't! I promise I didn't! But 'mione… Hermione's gonna f-figure it out!"
"Shh Ginny, shh, it's okay." George squeezed her shoulder, and Fred moved to the bed beside her.
"So, so.. you know.." She looked up at her brothers helplessly, here eyes puffing up.
"I feel like a st-stupid FIRST year again!" She burst out. "Just.. tell me if it's still true or n-not."
"Ginny, please tell us what you're talking about." Fred nodded solemnly.
"You HAVE to remember!"
"Shh, it's okay. You don't have to cry. Just tell us."
She nodded, and gulped. "I was.. m-maybe nine or something, and I was really, really, r-really upset for weeks because I couldn't t-tell you apart. I was supposed to be the special one, the little sister. The only one who could tell the twins apart! But I couldn't!"
Their eyes lighted with comprehension and acceptance.
"And I was crying so much… you two came to see me. And you whispered to me. You told me that it didn't matter, that you were both the same and both each other. And that you only-"
" –pretended." Fred and George finished for her, nodding. Her face relaxed with relief and she buried her face in their robes, nodding into their chests.
"Isn't it?" She asked, voice muffled.
"True? Yeah."
"That's what I thought." She lifted her face to meet theirs. "Why?"
The one on her left (did it matter if it was Fred or George?) asked "Do you really want to know? You might be happier not."
"No, I do. I want to know! I need to!"
"Okay, Gin. You're special." She smiled through her tears.
"Started when we were little. Used to forget who was who, which one of us had which name."
"We'd just go with whatever Mom or Dad called us."
"Then it became a game, pretending to be each other for long periods of time… see if we could get away with it. Switching it up, trying get them as confused as we were"
"After a while we figured out that nobody could tell the difference. At all. Even Mom and Dad."
"By that time it became a jumble, and we just kept up the habit, switching whenever we felt like it, letting whatever people called us be the truth."
"Nobody noticed. We didn't even notice."
"We were always one unit, anyway."
"But we never minded. We could be separate, or a unit, so long as we didn't get split up. Didn't mind at all."
They trailed off uncertainly, looking at each other and then Ginny carefully.
Ginny didn't say anything for a long, long while. They three of them sat in silence, Ginny between and the twins hugging her on either side.
"It's funny…" She said. "I was so sure I was the only one who saw you as individuals. I didn't want to believe that what you told me was true. In my mind there was Fred, and then there was George, and I was special because I knew the difference." She laughed lightly, tears still sparkling on her cheeks.
"Fred was slightly bossier, and George was more sensitive, but just a tad. Fred always came up with the best presents, but George always thought of the little things."
"Guess it was just in my head. You were tricking us the whole time."
They didn't say anything, just held her tighter, the three heads of bright red shining together.
"Guess it wasn't really your fault… didn't even know yourselves, did you?"
"Still don't." They answered in unison.
She nodded, her flame red hair falling everywhere, in their faces, blending with their hair. "But still. It's so weird…"
They held each other for a little while longer, Ginny gently curled between them, like she was a little girl again.
"Why now, Gin-gin? What made you think of it?"
"I've been noticing, lately. Ever since Kreacher… you weren't there, you don't know how much he went on about you two. I was thinking about it, and you've been messing up, switching mid-conversation and things like that.
"Then Hermione started acting weird yesterday, about you two, asking funny questions, and I just about panicked. What if she figured it out? I don't know what she would think or who she would tell…I'm 'spossed to be the only one that knows, y'know? Even though I didn't know for sure."
They nodded, their heads knocking together and into hers lightly.
"Gin-gin, you've always been our best confident."
She smiled, but a twisting in her stomach nagged at her consciousness. Her eyebrows knit in consternation.
"What are we going to do about Herms? She is the cleverest witch of our age, you know." She disengaged herself from them, and they detangled themselves.
"S'okay, Gin. We'll just be more careful." They both nodded quietly, seriously.
"You're still underestimating her." She sounded worried, and stood up.
"She'll be going back to school tomorrow! She's not going to see us! Right?"
"Right." They affirmed.
Ginny nodded slowly, doubtfully. "Guess so. Just be careful."
She turned to one brother, then the other.
"I don't know what to call you."
They looked at one another, then at her, and she looked at each of them in turn. No one said anything. And the unease of the moment died off as every other feeling had all summer: subtly but quickly. The diffused room, not cold but completely numb, seemed to dwarf their conversation into nothingness. They gave their fondest wishes, and Ginny crept off to bed, her tears dried.
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