"Oh Fred! It's wonderful!" Hermione squealed after Fred took her on the full fledged tour. The house was perfect. On the first floor, when you walked through the front door you stepped into the living room. Branching off the living room was a spacious kitchen, fit with all necessary appliances, a sun porch, complete with rocking chairs and flowers, a bathroom, and an outdoor deck. On the second floor were the master bedroom and a second bedroom, as well as another bathroom. It was a small house, and wasn't fancy at all, but it was perfect and simple and Hermione loved it. They walked back out to the car so they could get Hermione's bags and they could get her unpacked. Hermione turned back to look at her small cottage. It was perfection in itself, and she just wondered how Fred knew exactly what she wanted. He grabbed her bags and slammed the back doors as Hermione grabbed her purse and small case that'd she'd had in the front with her and he took her hand and led her inside. Fred put her in the master bedroom and said:

"I thought you'd like this room…I'm going to be in the second bedroom, so…" Hermione had never seen Fred turn this pink. She laughed and agreed that using both bedrooms would be good for now.

"Well, we should probably be heading to the Burrow now…we've got a lot of explaining to do…"

"Yeah…let's go." She took Fred's hand and they walked towards the fireplace.


Meanwhile, back at the Burrow, Mrs. Weasley sat in the kitchen with Mr. Weasley, George, and Ginny. She stood up to stir a pot of soup on the stove with her wand, tasted it, shook her head, added a few ingredients, then returned to her seat. She sighed.

"I wonder what's keeping Fred and Hermione…they had plenty of time to be here and all the way back to Kings Cross by now! I hope they're alright…." George shot a look at Ginny and noticed her turn her face away from her mother and bite her bottom lip. George took one last swallow of his coffee and put the mug in the sink.

"No idea. Ginny, can you come upstairs for a second? I want to talk to you about this whole Harry thing." He motioned with his head towards the stairs. "C'mon…" He said quieter. Ginny nodded and followed him up the stairs. He went into his room and shut the door behind him. He looked at his watch, glanced at the fireplace in the corner of his and Fred's room and glanced at his watch again.

"Are you waiting for something?" Ginny said impatiently, expecting him to start harping on how Harry better keep his hands to himself. George nodded.

"Should be here soon…" He muttered.

"Are you going to yell at me about Harry or not?" Ginny asked impatiently.

"Harry? Oh—no, of course not. That was just an excuse to get you away from Mum…we need to talk. Actually, go on and get Harry." She left the room and found Harry, who was reading in Ron's room waiting for Ron to get back from degnoming the garden.

"Hey babe---George wants you." She whispered. He grinned up at her, folded over the page in his book, hopped off the bed and led her by the hand back to George's room.

"Ah!" Ginny jumped as she walked in the room and saw not only George, but Fred and Hermione as well. George was sitting on his bed, Fred and Hermione sat close together on Fred's, and Ginny and Harry soon took seats on the floor. Ginny leaned back against Harry's knees and closed her eyes and relaxed as he ran his fingers up and down her arms.

"I guess you guys are wondering…" Fred started, tightening his grip on Hermione's hand.

"No—wait. Katie isn't here yet." George said, glancing at his watch again. As he did so, great green flames ignited and Katie stepped shyly out of the fireplace. She waved at everyone and stepped lightly over Harry and Ginny towards George, curled up next to him on the bed and George nodded.

"Okay. Here we all are. The Weasley—erm, 'couples'? Let's see…we know Ginny and Harry know about Fred and Hermione, Fred you know about me, I know about you two, Katie is clueless and I'm assuming so is Hermione." George blurted out. There was a chorus of---

"What?"

"Huh?"

"What in Merlin's name—"

"Did you get in the Canderflorm again?"

"Hold on!" Fred said, putting up his hands. "I'm the only one who knows everything that is going on. Let me tell the story." Everyone seemed to agree and settled back to listen.

"Okay, here's where it starts.

After George ran off with Katie in October, he and I learned that our parents had entered us into Wizarding Contracts. You see, when George and I were born, according to our parents, Narcissa Black came to visit them. She had a chat with our father and mother, and they agreed to have us bound into Wizarding Engagement Contracts—for some bogus reason. George was supposed to marry her cousin Antigone Reid; and I was supposed to marry Antigone's sister, Nicola Reid. Well, of course, we were both horribly upset at the prospect of marrying anyone associated with Narcissa—especially the Reid sisters. We also found that Katie was bound in a contract as well. We, well, George and I, started looking for loopholes. And I found one. It involved George and I finding our 'matches'—the two girls put on earth strictly for George and I. They weren't hard to find. There's a witch in Dagon Alley that tells what your heart most desires. We went to see her, asking if she could help us. She said she could, and soon she had told us…or at least helped us figure out who our match was. She told George that he had already found his match—she was waiting patiently for him to come rescue her from the one who could steal her away…we took this to mean Katie was waiting for him so they could break the contract with Michael. George immediately left—knowing Katie was the girl for him and they eloped once again and succeeded this time. I—on the other hand—was much more difficult. I had hardly any previous relationships—none of which were serious enough for marriage, and I had no current interests. Well…none that I had acted on anyway. The witch asked me over and over again if I'd ever been in love…if I fancied anyone in anyway at all right now. I kept replying that I did not. Finally she looked me in the eyes and calmly shook her head. 'You lie.' She said. She was right—I was. I had fancied one girl for—oh three years—and never had the nerve to ask her out. See—she was my brother's best friend…" Fred looked over and squeezed Hermione's hand…smiling. He'd tried so hard to go for the "just friend's approach…" but he just had a feeling now that Hermione loved him as much as he loved her, and all he could think about was proving how in love he really was.

"…she told me that I should act on my feelings. That this girl—"the smart, coy beauty with unknown spirit" as she said—was my match, and that she really liked me as much as I fancied her. So I wrote Hermione and asked her to help me—to marry me. She agreed for reasons unknown to both of us. We ran off and were married by Dumbledore a few months ago. We've been hiding it from everyone. Finally a few weeks ago I cracked—I couldn't bear to keep secrets from George, other than one. I had been keeping secret the feeling I felt for Hermione for so long I didn't know how I was going to tell him. But I did—and he understood. And I heard that Hermione told Ginny as well. So our secrets have been kept well until tonight. And George, Katie, Hermione and I have decided that we're telling our parents tonight. Hermione and I have bought a house and we'll be staying there. George and Katie are going to live in the flat above the store. I have only one question—Harry, how did you find out about Hermione and me?" Everyone was silent and turned to look at Harry. He shrugged.

"I was there when you were married." Hermione's jaw dropped and Fred's eyebrows rose.

"No…" Hermione whispered.

"Yes." Harry replied. "You forgot…every marriage needs a witness. Dumbledore sent for me while Fred was getting Hermione. He told me to bring my Invisibility Cloak and stand in the corner while you two were wed, then sign the certificate after you left. Then he swore me to secrecy. He didn't want to betray your trust Fred…and I know that he knew he could trust me. I am Dumbledore's top admirer, and no one would keep his secrets—and the secrets of his best friends…" He nodded at Hermione, "…better than me." Everyone nodded and Fred choked slightly.

"Thanks Harry."

"Anytime Fred—anytime." They all sat together in silence for a moment. After a few minutes, Ginny suddenly sat up and threw her hands up to her face.

"Oh no! Ron is the only one who doesn't know—other than Mum and Dad! He'll be crushed!" The door blasted open suddenly and Ron stood there, face pale, and hands in fists— shaking.

"Don't worry…he knows." He whispered, then before anyone could stop him, had jumped out the window, landing on his broom, and took off to no-one-knew-where.