Which one is the father? By: Renor Faer
It had been three years since Fred and George had made their legendary escape from Hogwarts. Three years since Weasley's Wizard Wheezes had opened. Three years since either of them had seen her.
And oh, how they missed her, though neither knew the other did. This was strange, since the two almost always either knew everything about each other, or they told each other everything.
However, this was a special case. You see both of them were crazy about her. Both of them had been attracted to her since they first set eyes on her. Both of them made it insanely obvious to everyone but themselves, and yet both of them had a problem. She had no clue of either of their romantic feelings. Sure, she was great friends with the both of them… had the same friends they did… liked the same things… but while they had so much in common, she was still utterly oblivious.
"Oy! Fred! Can you watch the store tomorrow mornin?" yelled a 20 year old George as he clamored down the stares of the flat that was above their joke shop. He was quickly buttoning his shirt and grinning madly. His twin merely glanced up at him and shook his head. Though the two of them were so awfully alike, they definitely had some distinct personality differences.
George was the epitome of a partier. He was always on dates, at bars, or out dancing. He hated sitting still and figured the best way to remedy that would to be around as many women as possible. All those who knew him said he was a complete scoundrel, and that he had no decency towards women.
Well…maybe not everyone said that, but Fred certainly did.
Fred was the quiet side of the duo. While he wasn't completely unsociable, on the contrary he went on quite a few dates himself and had the same friends as his brother; he was more subdued in his actions. While George was at bars drinking and picking beautiful women, Fred was at bookstores and coffee shops charming beautiful women with his wit and intelligence.
Both thought the others tactics to be completely idiotic, yet neither of them could deny that both tactics were flawless when it came to picking up women. The only difference was the type of women they picked up.
"Out on one of your many escapes eh George?" Fred said as he watched his brother mess his hair in the mirror. George turned and flashed him a pearly white grin and just winked, making his brother shake his head at his antics.
"Yeh, but not just ANY escapade, Fred! This one is unbelievable… her name, is Esmeralda. She's from Spain and she doesn't speak a word of English. Which is perfect as…well you know me… talking isn't exactly my strong point. We're going dancing, and well… I just figured I'd need to get you to watch the shop tomorrow morning is all I'm saying." He smiled at his reflection in the mirror before making his way to the door, waving a quick goodbye and setting off.
Fred just sighed, closed his book and went to bed.
---With George---
He was bored to death.
No, really, he was just waiting for the men in black coats to take him away to the happy place.
He had been sitting on a stool in the club 'The Two Windmills' for the past hour, listening to his date jibber on in Spanish about one thing or another. The problem was she somehow got it into her head he understood her, and she wouldn't take a breath long enough for him to get her onto the dance floor. So here he was, downing his third beer when he saw her.
There, sitting behind Esmeralda, sipping from her glass was the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen. Long brown hair, tan skin, and a figure he just knew was perfect, even with her sitting. All thoughts of the date in front of him vanished as he approached the beautiful woman and sat beside her, ready to introduce herself.
Too bad that never happened, as his forgotten date walked up, shrieked something in Spanish, (making the girl jump and turn to stare at him with wide eyes) and decked him on the side of the face, making him fall of his seat and crack his head on the hard floor.
--With Fred the Next Day—
Fred awoke early, as he always did, and rolled out of bed. He loved getting up in the early morning… it was a great time for him to think. After showering and getting dressed, he made his way downstairs to open up shop. He was use to occasionally running things by himself for a while, as George usually had hangovers to take care of or was out for the night like today. Everything ran smoothly as usual, business was done and things were sold, until Fred glanced at the clock, realizing the time and that he was in fact quite hungry.
So as his latest customer left he went around the counter, put up a sign saying where he was going and set off for lunch.
After eating a quick bite, he decided to go get a coffee and relax a little. As he was sitting outside of his usual café, he saw a girl walk by that he knew looked familiar. Upon closer inspection his heart soared. It was her! He quickly shouted out to her, praying she would remember him.
"KATIE! Hey Katie!" he watched as the girl turned and looked around before focusing on him and grinning madly, running over to where he had risen from his seat and giving him a long 'it's good to see you' hug and sitting down across from him.
"Fred! Wow, I can't believe I'm running into you! This is a very ironic coincidence…" she said, catching his bemused expression and shaking her head, laughing.
"Oh never mind, don't listen to me I'm rambling. So, how are you? It's been what? Three years?" He quickly pulled himself together and tried to ignore her brilliant smile and perfect face that he had cared for, so long ago.
"Yeah, it's been a while. I'm doing great though. The store is in full swing, we're getting great business, and we're even thinking of putting up shop in a couple other cities." He said.
"And how have you been? After we left Hogwarts and the war started we lost contact." As Fred mentioned the war, his tone grew somber, remembering all that had happened. Katie just smiled and changed the subject, telling him about her recent carrier. The two were in their seats for so long the manager told them to get going if they weren't going to buy anything, so Katie offered to make coffee at her house so they could keep catching up. Fred made a quick call to the store to see if George was in, then left with Katie.
--Two Weeks Later With The Twins—
Neither had spoken of their recent romantic events, as neither thought the other would think them important, but both were surprised when they saw their dual love interest walk into their shop, head down and blushing.
"Katie!" the both of them exclaimed, then looked at each other in shock.
"Um…hello you two… I was wondering…could I have a word?" She looked around nervously to see if anyone was around, but business had been light that day so she was the only one in the shop.
"Sure Katie, let me just put up a sign real quick." Fred said, recovering from his shock that he had his brother had both been so eager upon her entering the shop.
After temporarily closing, the three of them made their way upstairs to the loft to talk. Katie, opting for sitting on the coffee table in front of the couch instead of ON the couch, motioned for both of them to sit. Both looked slightly apprehensive at the look on her face and even more so by the fact that they were both so nervous.
"Well… first I'd like to say it was great running into the both of you--" but before she could continue she was cut off by the twins shouts
"The BOTH of us!"
"When did you run into him!"
Katie pinched the bridge of her nose before continuing. "Look, this will be a lot easier if you would just…not talk until I'm finished alright?" she looked between them and waited until they both had nodded in agreement before continuing.
"Now, I suppose from your reactions you didn't tell each other about meeting me, so let me make it clear for both of you. George, I met you that night at the club when that Spanish woman knocked you out. Fred, I met you the next morning at the coffee shop." She waited a moment for them to process their sides of the information before pushing on.
"So… both of you…know what went on…after our initial reunions…and ah…that would be why I'm here…" she said, making both sets of Weasley ears turn their trademark red. They both glanced at each other with sheepish looks on their faces, both becoming more and more nervous as the moment ran on.
"You see um… there's a slight problem. Before I say it remember you both promised not to say anything until I'm completely finished talking… alright? Okay, now the problem is… Somehow I'm pregnant…and as I was with both of you in such a short time, I have no clue which of you, if either of you it was." She took a deep breath after her slightly shaky confession, and waited for the storm…
…that never came…
She sat there for what had to be at least 10 minutes waiting for a reaction from either of them, but neither said a word. They just sat there, staring at her in complete shock, neither quite knowing what was going on.
The room was unbearably silent…until George started laughing.
This made the two other occupants of the room jump and stared at him incredulously. Finally, after almost doubling over in laughter, he straightened and looked at her, on the verge of laughing yet again.
"I don't believe it. You can't have been with both of us! There's no way the Fred ever sleeps with a girl unless he really likes…her…" at this he paused and looked at his brother, who was coincidentally looking anywhere but at him.
"You…you SLEPT with her? You LIKE her? AND YOU NEVER TOLD ME?" George yelled, steam coming from his ears as he looked at his equally red brother. Katie just stared on in shock.
"Yeah… as a matter of fact I did. But what gives YOU the right to jump at me eh? At least I slept with her because I have some feelings for her! YOU probably did because your ego was bruised after your Spanish flounce shut you down!" he yelled, getting redder and angrier by the minute.
Soon it was an all out row. The two standing on either side of the couch, roaring and yelling and cursing at each other, while Katie just sat on the coffee table with her head in her hands.
"Well at least I know the names of the women I sleep with!" yelled Fred.
"Yeah? Well that's because you hardly EVER sleep with anybody! AND THE ONE GIRL I HAPPEN TO ENJOY SLEEPING WITH THE MOST YOU HAVE TO TAKE!" roared George.
"YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW MANY WOMEN I SLEEP WITH!"
"YEAH? WELL YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW MANY WOMEN I SLEEP WITH!"
"NO? REALLY? MAYBE THAT'S BECAUSE YOU SLEEP WITH ANYTHING THAT'S FEMALE AND BREATHES?"
"THAT'S A LIE AND YOU KNOW IT!"
"OH HOW RUDE OF ME. YOU JUST SLEEP WITH ANYTHING!"
By this time Katie had heard enough. She quietly stood up, put her coat on and looked at the both of them, neither paying attention to her nor noticing her annoyance.
"Look you two. I can't get a paternity test for another 2 anda half months. Until then I'm in the dark. Now I'm going to leave you to morons to argue on your own terms. Quite frankly you're giving me a headache and I'd rather not listen to the possible father of my and his brother...whichever each of you are… argue about who sleeps around more." With that she took her leave, slamming the door behind her.
The loud noise made them jump and stop yelling long enough to realize she had left. Fred sat back on the couch, rubbing his temples and said, "What the hell are we arguing about George? Yeah, so we both slept with the same girl, but one of us is gonna be a father. Do you realize that? I mean… think about it. Neither of us knows what we're doing when it comes to kids…and babies are harder then kids! Your life may change completely… or mine… what are we gonna do?" He shook his head and just stared at the door.
George stood there for a minute before an idea came to him.
"Hey…we don't know who the father is, but we can do SOMETHING. Come on, we're going to the Burrow." With that he apparated, leaving Fred to stare incredulously at him before following suit.
---At the Burrow---
Upon arriving Fred realized exactly what George's plan was, and now, 2 hours later he found himself thinking of ways to kill his 'ingenious' twin. There mum had berated them the first hour, finding out one of them had gotten someone pregnant, and ranting about how irresponsible they were. After burning that side out, she immediately switched back to 'motherly' mode and decided to give them advice on childcare. And Molly Weasley knew child care.
"Now you see, babies on the other hand are quite different from any other type of child. They have to be constantly held, cared for, and doted upon. They're very fragile little beings. They get sick much more easily than a teenager or a toddler or what have you. What you feed them is different from what you eat. And YOU have to feed them, they can't feed themselves. Now the way to feed them…."
Molly's voice faded as George dozed in and out of conscious, miserable and hating himself for his ingenious idea to ask his mother for advice. He knew Fred would kill him once they left… IF they left. His mother could talk waaaay to long sometimes…
"And furthermore, there are so many expenses!" Molly said, waggling her finger at that shamefully.
"Mum… look, we just came here to tell you and maybe get SOME advice. The advice quota has been fulfilled so we'll be going now." George said, standing quickly and pulling Fred with him to the door.
"Alright you two… before you go though, let me tell you one last thing." She looked at them both, an unusual smirk on her round face. "If you have a boy, make sure to keep your mouth shut while you're changing him. He'll be YOUR son after all, so he'll have your quirks." She grinned at the shocked looks on their faces before waving her hand and telling them to be on their way.
---2 ½ months later –--
It had been almost 3 months since Katie had come by with the news, and since then she hadn't come by again. All they had gotten was an owl explaining that she would get the paternity test as soon as possible and come by to let them know the results.
The Twins had been waiting uneasily that week, waiting for her to come walking in the door and changing one of their lives forever. So, when the bell above the door to the shop dinged, they both glanced up only to have their draws hit the countertop.
Oliver Wood was walking towards him, his arm around Katie Bells waist.
Neither said anything, as both were having trouble getting their mouths off the counter. Katie smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of her neck.
"Hey you guys… I know this is a bit of a shock… I had the test done and realized neither of you were the father! It was actually Oliver, who I'd just broken up with for stupid reasons before meeting up with the two of you. I just got the time wrong I suppose… but anyways, we came by to tell you and also to give you this…" She then handed the two still speechless boys an envelope. Finally, they snapped out of it and George reached for the letter, opening it to reveal a wedding invitation.
The twins looked up at her in surprise, "You're getting married? I thought you broke it off with him?" she laughed a this and explained.
"I did, but we talked even when I thought one of you was the parents and realized it was a mistake. I always planned on marrying whoever the father of my child was. I was just planning on being married already, but at least I'm marrying the man I love more than anything!" she beamed at them and looked at Oliver, who had a slight blush on his cheeks.
"Anyways, I'd really like to apologize for all the trouble I caused you two. I hope you make it to the wedding and that you find the right person for each of you! We have to go though, so we'll keep in touch okay? Bye!" and with that she and Oliver left, leaving behind shocked but utterly relieved twins.