Disclaimer: All characters seen in J.K Rowling's Harry Potter series belong to her. The rest of the characters and the plot belong to my twisted mind
Author's note: We've come to the end of our guessing game – for Rumplestiltskin is your name. The end, finished. This small chapter was just to tie up the end of George and Fred's relationship (because they never really got a chance to talk), so I hope you don't hate it. Thanks to everyone who reviewed this story. It meant a lot to me. I wrote this story because I really wanted to read a separation fic, and the ones I could find, while being awesomely written and wonderful, did not have the plot I craved. So I wrote my own and I hope that this story was able to satisfy the same sort of bug in someone out there.
When you're gone Epilogue
Fred raised his head when George's laughter reached his ears. Looking for his brother, he found George at a table across the common room, engrossed in an animated conversation with Alicia. 'Always Alicia,' Fred thought grumpily, 'What's so great about her anyway?' Fred was reluctant to admit that he was jealous of Alicia; but since his release from the infirmary two weeks ago, George had shied away from spending time with Fred, opting rather to be with Alicia. Fred knew it was silly to expect George to spend all his time with him, but Fred had thought they would at least spend some time together. He felt further from George than ever, and it hurt.
Angelina flopped down into the chair Fred occupied, sprawling herself across his lap. "Talk to him Fred. I'm sure he's not doing this on purpose. Don't forget where not talking got you last time. George almost died."
"You don't have to tell me – I'm quite aware of how close George came to death." Fred snapped peevishly. Angelina raised an eyebrow at him; Fred sighed, "Sorry Angel, it's not your fault, I shouldn't have snapped."
Angelina's eyes softened and she reached up and wrapped her arms around Fred's neck. Settling her head against Fred's shoulder, Angelina began speaking softly, "Fred, you're one of my best friends; I love you more than anyone in the world and one day I plan to marry you – whether you're willing or not. Therefore, it is my sole duty to drag you out of the fit you are in and fix your relationship with George. We'll probably need Lee's help, but first – let's go play a practical joke on Mr. Jordan, shall we?"
Angelina jumped to her feet and pulled Fred up with her. She dragged Fred across the common room towards the portrait hole with a cheerful grin lighting up her face, stopping only once to scowl disapprovingly at Alicia. Reaching the hallway, Angelina noticed she had lost Fred along the way. She popped her head back in to the common room to see Fred being held up by Ron and Harry.
"Come along Freddie dear, mischief waits for no man and Lee's been asking for green hair." Angelina called out in a sarcastically sweet voice.
"I'm coming, I'm coming." Fred surrendered, holding his hands up in defeat. Fred muttered his good-byes to Ron and Harry, and bounced off after Angelina.
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George looked up Alicia; he had fallen silent when Angelina had called out to Fred. Alicia felt her heart break again at the lost little boy in front of her. She loved him more than she ever thought possible and would do anything to fix his pain.
"I didn't know Angelina and Fred pulled pranks on Lee together." George said, trying to be nonchalant; Alicia could see the tears glistening behind his eyelids.
"They've only done it once or twice," Alicia said casually, subtly reassuring George, "Fred usually only pulls pranks with you."
George retreated into himself as he lazily drew circles on the table with his wand. "I miss pulling pranks. I miss hanging out with Fred." George sighed. "Not that I dislike hanging out with you though..." George hurried to correct himself.
"I know what you meant George." Alicia smiled, "Why don't you just tell Fred that you miss him?"
George started playing with his hands, "I promised myself I would give him space. He doesn't need me hanging all over him, getting in the way."
"George Weasley! Don't you know how foolish that sounds? I can't believe you think that way – you're both much happier when you're in one another's back pocket!" Alicia stopped to catch her breath; George opened his mouth to answer, but Alicia cut him off, "And don't you dare tell me it's because Fred said he wished he had more privacy. Let me tell you something – when Fred told me what he had said, nobody was angrier than I was, but I know he didn't mean it. You're both miserable apart because you're meant to be together. When Angel and Fred get married, I won't be surprised if you live with them until you're hitched yourself! So, stop all this nonsense and save me the trouble of devising a devious scheme to reconcile you two." Alicia pushed her chair from the table and rose, straightening her robes. She winked at George and headed to her dormitory.
George shook his head in astonishment as he watched her go. Then he rose as well, and left the common room in search of his brother.
*********************
Fred, Angelina and Lee were all sitting at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall. Lee's hair was a sickly green color and he had gill slits behind his ears, but he was being a good sport about the prank he had fallen victim too. Lee and Angelina were now drawing up a plan to force George to speak with Fred. Before Fred had tuned them out, they had been trying to devise a way to hog tie and gag George, and drag him through the common room, out the portrait and through the halls to the empty classroom on the second floor without raising suspicions. It had never occurred to the two that they could simply ask George to talk with Fred. They were all friends after all; it wasn't like they were trying to devise a way to get Malfoy to listen to them.
Fred was drawn out of his thoughts by a persistent tap on his shoulder. Looking up at the owner of the offensive hand, Fred was shocked to see his own face staring back at him. George had not initiated a conversation with him in two weeks.
"Um Fred…" George was nervous, "Do you think we could talk?"
"Sure George." Fred rose to follow George out of the Great Hall. He knew without a doubt Angelina would have a huge smile on her face. A quick glance at the table behind confirmed his suspicions, and he smiled behind his hand as Angelina made a show of ripping up "the plan". Fred had to smother his laughter when George stopped in front of the door to the empty classroom on the second floor; Angelina's plan hadn't been far from the truth. Fred let George enter ahead of him, and took notice of the tension in his brother's spine.
'I'll have to ask him what's wrong. Why is he nervous to talk to me?'
Fred waited in silence for George to begin speaking; when a few moments had passed and George was still silent, Fred moved to speak.
"I miss you." George blurted out suddenly. Fred closed his mouth and stared at George with shock in his eyes. George stumbled over his words as he began to babble. "I know I'm a pest and you wish you had more space and I really am trying to give it to you – but it's really lonely to be the twin who likes to have the other around constantly. Do you think we could at least hang out sometimes? Not all the time if you don't want to, but a few times a week, or even once a week, or even…"
"George!" Fred smiled, cutting off George's incoherent babble. "I miss you too. I really do like having you around; it feels strange when you're gone." Fred stepped forward and pulled George into a hug. "I'm sorry you heard those things I said to Percy and Ron. They weren't true – that's why I never said them to your face, even in anger. I was just so mad at myself, and taking it out on you was the easy way out. It will never happen again. I'm sorry." As he spoke, Fred remembered that he hadn't told George about the Twin link yet. "Oh man, I have so much to tell you!"
George grinned at him through his tears, "Let's not get all emotional anymore this month or Tag will make fun of me when I go to visit him and thank him and Laura."
Fred smiled, feeling peaceful now that his relationship with his brother was slowly mending, "We're worse than the girls!"
"Now that that's out of the way – I've got a wicked idea for a prank to play on Filch." George's grin turned evil.
Fred laughed and nodded enthusiastically, leaning forward to hear George's idea. 'It's good to be a twin.'
The End.
I know the end is sort of lame – but it's my story :P
Hope you check out my new story when it begins. Maybe if I get bitten by the bug, my third story will be more Fred and George!
Thanks for coming on the ride ~ J-mie
