Chapter 16

Fred sat quietly next to George at the family table, listening intently to Tonks as she slowly recounted her abduction to their entire family. Even Bill and Charlie had come home for this meeting, as they had all been told it had something to do with their little brother. When everyone had arrived Fred and George hadn't even tried to keep the mood light with any jokes or banter as was their usual want. This was no time for joking, as their mother sat close to their father and both looked like they were trying to be brave for the family. Her eyes were red and their father fidgeted with his tea cup. When Dumbledore himself had arrived they had known that the situation was serious, but none of them had asked questions. They knew all would be told in due course, but that didn't stop Fred's stomach feeling like he'd eaten one of his experimental products. From the way George sat next to him he knew his brother felt the exact same way.

Then Tonks had arrived, looking pale but healthy, knocking over her chair before righting it and sitting down as Kingsly Shakelbolt sat beside her.

"What's this about Ron then." Ginny spoke first, her blue eyes flashing in trepidition as she looked down the table, trying to be brave. Tonks smiled kindly, but Fred could see the sorrow in her gaze.

"He's alive, and roaming around the countryside as he wishes." She said softly, Fred squeezed George's hand briefly under the table in relief before leaning forward to listen more intently. Now that their biggest fear had been wiped out he could sense the tension break slightly in the room. They hadn't said it at all these last eight months, but they had all feared that Ron had died and that was why they couldn't find him. Only one of them had been absolutely adamant that he wasn't dead.

"Let her tell her story before you launch into questions please," Shakelbolt spoke up commandingly, leaving no room for argument and they all forced themselves to still. The only Weasley who could ever sit still for any length of time was Percy, and Fred was still a firm believer that he was adopted. He listened intently as she described how she was abducted and locked up. She described the ceremony she heard taking place in great detail, looking to Dumbledore several times during this recounting, and Fred had become sicker as each detail came out. He didn't understand what she had heard, and neither did she it seemed, but it hadn't sounded pleasant at all. She had paled drastically while recounting it, but doggedly kept on as everyone stared at her horror. Then she described how Ron had somehow broken free of the controlling curse and Fred and George both crowed out proudly.

"That's our boy!" There had been grins around the table, and Charlie had looked downright feral (spending too much time with Dragon's) as he relished in Ron's victory. They lost their smiles though as she described how Ron had curled in on himself, bleeding from his neck and forehead before she had passed out.

"Next thing I new I was in the hospital."

"How'd you get there?" Ginny asked quietly, tears in her eyes.

"The receptionist said a boy with blue hair made a fire call, demanding to know if they took international patients, and then, five minutes later, I was lying in the floo with a note on my chest." Kingsly produced the paper and Molly snatched it up, her eyes gazing intently, reading every word as though it was her last. Their dad was reading it over as well, and he nodded in confirmation.

"That's Ron's scrawl, I'd recognize it anywhere."

"How was…" An unsure voice carried across the table and Fred looked over at Percy, who was sitting straight in his chair as though awaiting his death sentence. "How did he look?" His eyes flashed with worry but he waited patiently for the answer, staring at Tonks.

"He looked…he was fed, that was sure, and he looked strong, but he refused to meet my eyes, and he…he wasn't how I remembered him. I'm sorry."

"No, there is nothing for you to be sorry for." Arthur cut in sharply. "You were as much a victim in this as he was."

"Indeed. There is no blame to place at this table tonight, on any of us." Dumbledore spoke for the first time, looking solemnly at everyone. "I am glad to see that Nymphadora survived, had a wizard of lesser will then Ron been subjected to that curse I fear there would have been no chance of survival. You have a very strong son Arthur, Molly." Tell us something we don't know, Fred silently scoffed, his brother squeezing his hand at that moment, sharing the same thought.

"You know of the curse he used?" Kingsly asked, his eyes narrowed.

"Unfortunately I am aware of it, though it hasn't been used in many years and I had hoped it had been forever lost. I assume young Mr. Weasley was kept prisoner for at least seven months?"

"We determined that he was taken one or two days after he ran from Hogwarts and was kept in that basement for the duration, yes." Molly gasped and Fred had only seen his fathers face turn that shade of red once before: right after Ron had run away from Hogwarts and they had learned that Fudge (though they didn't know what he said to get himself stunned) had been to see him. If Fudge had been in the room at that time Fred was certain his father would now be serving a sentence in Azkaban.

"The dark spell cast is called Chakra Incantata, it is a spell that binds a person as a slave through their blood and power centers. Had Ron been subjected to the eight necessary ceremonies there would have been no freeing him from the caster. Even the strongest wizard will fall victim to it on the eighth ceremony, though most are usually completely indentured by the sixth casting. That Ron was able to break it speaks very highly of his strength of both character and as a wizard."

"You're telling me. I thought I was a goner for sure when his hair turned blue." Tonks muttered. Dumbledore raised his eyebrows at this but didn't comment, obviously coming to some new conclusions with information no other person at the table had.

"This McTagert, you're sure he's dead?" George asked, his voice low.

"Because we'd like to personally introduce him to the afterlife." Fred finished

"As dead as any man can be. Why he had a pile of swords lying about in that dungeon I have absolutely no idea. We found his wand chopped into no less then six pieces on the kitchen counter. We also think that Ron took some form of currency from a muggle safe upstairs, so he isn't without money. In fact, he did a fair bit of investigating before he left the small castle, which leaves me thinking he's still got his noggin on straight. Earned himself some fairy protectors as well, though they wouldn't tell us where he was."

"Did he?" Dumbledore brightened considerably at this news, which seemed to effect the spirit of everyone in the room, even though Fred wasn't sure why this was such a great thing.

"Fairy protectors? How? What could they do?" He asked.

"Fairies are remarkable creatures, usually associating only with themselves. You have all seen them floating around Hogwarts on special occasions, though I suspect you didn't realize what a treat that really was. They come to Hogwarts because they want to help spread joy to the children, as a favour that they feel they owe me for liberating them from the first war. Ron must have freed a good number of them from his captor's home, and two of them felt it necessary to repay the debt for all. They have a way of alleviating ones spirit, and Ron will no doubt need their light heartedness in the days to come."

"If he came home he wouldn't need it." Ginny muttered, glaring at the table's surface.

"We must all keep in mind that he is reacting through a fear that has been built up over a long period of time."

"I don't see why it had to build up at all, all he had to do was tell us when we started bugging him about it." She stated, starting off an argument that had traveled through this house no less then once a week since his disappearance. Fred didn't want to start it now though, it wasn't the time, so he asked a question that had been plaguing both his and George's minds for several months now.

"Him being afraid of being revealed as a chaneller isn't the only reason he's running away though, is it?" They all looked at him as his twin leaned forward and picked up on the questioning.

"There's something else, because while Ron can be stubborn, he is most defiantly not a coward."

"He would have fessed up if we'd spoken to him that afternoon."

"That's why he told Harry he was glad that they had been friends fer so long."

"He figured we'd all turn on him but he was goin' to tell us anyway."

"So what is it that we don't know?" George finished, they both looked at their parents as they looked anywhere but at their children, until their dad sighed and rubbed tiredly at his forehead. It soon became clear to Fred why his father was so angry with the minister.

"Fudge let him believe he would go to Azkaban for his crimes, unless he surrendered to the ministry."

"Surrendered to the Ministry? He wanted to use Ron just like that bastard McTagert has been all these months?" Charlie roared, slamming his fists on the table and spilling tea that had gone cold long before.

"Indeed. Ron, no doubt, knew at least a little of how strong his powers are from school teachings and stories, and determined that it would be dangerous for him to allow himself to be indebted in such a manner. He took the only course of action he felt he could under the circumstances."

Fred remembered all too clearly how they had been heading back from the quidditch match to see Lupin sprint past the hall towards Gryffindor tower like he was being chased by a pack of full moons. He and George had been staring after him (along with several of the others) only a few seconds when Pomfry had suddenly been rushing down the hallway towards them, robes billowing out behind her in her haste.

"Ron has left, you must find him before he leaves Hogwarts all together." She demanded of them. He'd heard McGonagall's heels click rapidly as she and somebody else instantly disappeared back out the main door of Hogwarts but the rest of them were still trying to make sense of what she had said. So what if Ron had left? That was great wasn't it? Because it meant he had woken up! The healer had immediately noticed their misunderstanding though and hastened to explain.

"I left to regain my strength and came back to find Minister Fudge, stunned, on his hospital bed. You need to find him before he leaves Hogwarts!" Well, it hadn't quite explained to them the severity of the situation at the time, but Fred and George had turned around immediately and followed Lupin's tracks to Gryffindor tower, the only place they thought he could be. They had found Lupin banging worriedly on the door and stopped at the top of the stairs. They pulled their wands and, with unspoken agreement, combined their strengths to unlock it. They saw Ron's foot disappearing through the narrow window and Fred just about passed out in fear. He jumped! He jumped, he jumped! He had grasped George's arm tightly, leaving finger shaped bruises, and they had only been able to watch in horror as Lupin rushed to the window, leaning through to see what had happened to their little brother. He had pulled back in almost immediately and looked at them with profound relief on his features.

"He's on his broom! He's okay, he didn't fall." The world came zooming back into focus and Fred felt as though he had been slapped back into reality. He looked at his brother, seeing the same relief in his eyes that he felt, and then the anger.

"Oh my giddy aunts!"

"That bloody li'l git!"

"When we catch up to 'im he's gonna wish he had jumped!"

"We'll fong him till he's forgotten who he is!"

"Then we'll hex him till he remembers!" Fred rushed to the other narrow window, one that still had the glass in it, and strained to see out, pressing his nose almost painfully to the glass. He couldn't find Ron anywhere in the sky.

"Where is he?" George demanded.

"Dunno." Fred answered.

"He's flying off over Hagrid's, McGonagall and Hooch are almost on him." Lupin called back through his window

"Bloody good thing he took his broom and not Harry's." George remarked and Fred could just see a few dots in the sky coming into his sights. He squinted and frowned, he could only see two shapes buzzing around, and then they seemed to freeze in the sky.

"Lupin, what's going on?" Fred called, knowing that the werewolf's eye sight was three times better then his own. Fred pulled back to look over at their friend and frowned when he saw Lupin looking a bit weak in the knees. "What is it?" George demanded.

"He's apparated." Lupin quickly pulled himself out of his shock and started heading towards the door in long, speedy steps. "Come along now, McGonagall will tell us what's happened." They had followed in silence, not quite wrapping their minds around what he had meant. Apparated? Ron couldn't apparate that close to Hogwarts, it wasn't possible. It appeared they had thought wrong, as Dumbledore had later explained to them all.

"It's quite remarkable, though I can't say I had predicted him to already be that strong in his abilities."

"Please Headmaster, what are you talking about?" Percy asked, frowning as though he already suspected the answer but wanted it to be confirmed. That was just as well as Fred and his brother had no idea what the old wizard was finding so impressive, despite the fact that their brother had apparated under a warded area.

"As a chaneller, Ron has a subtle ability to work with magic around him, though I doubt he is even aware of this. Hogwarts' wards extend far over the Forbidden Forest and in all directions, right until the gates to Hogsmeade in fact. However, they weaken considerably once past a certain radius. Ron had surpassed the strongest of the wards, and I believe he pulled in enough strength from his surroundings that he was able to apparate through the wards themselves."

"Through them?" Hermione had intoned, shocked. "That's not possible! The fact that he broke through them in the first place should have collapsed the entire field of protection."

"Indeed Miss Granger, that would be the case if any normal wizard performed such a feat. However, we are all still coming to grips with the fact that he is, indeed, a chaneller, and we must realize that he can manipulate certain energies in ways that we never could. I do suspect, however, that it was his fear and instinct that drove him to break through the Hogwarts wards, if he were in his normal frame of mind and power such a task might not be possible. We know so little about how chanellers work…" he seemed to just trail off, thinking of all the things he thought Ron might be able to do but not knowing any certainties.

"He's done it before." Molly spoke up, her quiet voice easily carried around the group gathered in the headmasters office.

"What? When?" Their dad had asked, as pale as a vampire and looking for all the world like he wanted to collapse. Actually, he didn't look much different from anyone else in the room.

"After they were licensed to apparate, they popped right into the kitchen and scared the daylights out of me! Apparently Ron thought it would be funny. He didn't know we had placed the anti-apparating ward two weeks before."

"You didn't tell me they apparated right into the kitchen!" His dad looked shocked, and Fred could understand why. He and Fred had tried to get past the ward once, and the migraines they had suffered for three days afterwards had deterred them from ever trying again. Slamming into that ward had hurt more then being hit on the noggin with two bludgers, simultaneously. His mum was looking guilty and worried now as she remembered the event.

"I had thought Harry had somehow managed to break them past the ward, seeing as he is such a strong wizard in his own right. When they left I checked to make sure the wards were all in place and it was as though nothing had happened. I had no idea that Ron… that he could…" her eyes swelled horribly but she fought down her fears and managed to regain control as dad put his arm around her shoulders. Well, Ron could apparate through wards and take others with him. That could be bloody useful if they asked him, all they had to do (when he came home) was figure out how to get him to do it on purpose.

"So he can manipulate magic then? If he can jump through wards, how come our hexes still get him?" Fred remembered back to the last weekend they had all been at the Burrow, before the fight had happened. Ron had fallen prey to no less then three hexes, one which had had him unable to use his arms for two hours. That had been a riot at the time, though Ron's retaliating numbbutt hex still had Fred grabbing his behind at moments to check that it was truly there.

"There is a distinct difference between manipulating the core energies of magic as they are already in place, and at being directly hit with a spell. Ron is as susceptible to any curse as any normal man, and always will be, and before you ask why this is I must say that I do not know. Very little is truly understood about the phenomenon of a chaneller's abilities, and most of what we do know is from battles fought against the few who wielded the gifts for evil purposes. I impress upon you the fact that a few of those wizards and witches were acting under the manipulation of other wizards and not their own choice."

Fred hadn't really believed that, because if chanellers' were as powerful as had always been implied, then he had honestly believed that the person containing that ability could overrule any kind of manipulation, even the Imperius curse.

Despite the knowledge that their little brother could slip past wards and, if he chose to do so, suck the life out of them simply by raising his hand, none of them had been the least bit deterred in finding him; he was still their brother! But as the days had turned into weeks and then months their hopes had dimmed and their fears had escalated. Ron's apparition signature was impossible to track (which was another account as to how unusual he was turning out to be) and he had placed a charm on himself that hid him from magical seekers. Even Dumbledore's Phoenix couldn't find him.

Not a day went by when every single member of their family, or close friends, cursed themselves for not being there when he woke up. The conclusions he must have jumped to…and now they heard that Fudge had convinced their brother that he was a murderer and he had to give his life over to the ministry like he was some sort of slave. Fred looked sharply at George, who looked right back. They came to instant agreement: Fudge was going to regret ever laying eyes on their little brother, how dare he threaten him with Azkaban for killing that Death Eater! They both looked back to the kitchen table though, as Kingsly decided it was time to share more news and roughly cleared his throat, getting everyone's attention.

"It seems that Tonks here wasn't the only one to sight your boy yesterday. Two of my Auror's, Willard Nox and Sarmis Doge, came upon him in Newmarket as they were investigating Tonks's disappearance. They might have known him right away, but he had bright blue hair that threw them off. Willard said they asked if they knew him and he denied it, leaving them to their search. He realized who he was five minutes later and they went after him." Shakelbolt looked tired, no doubt from having been up the entire night before searching for his Auror only to find her in the hospital suffering from an unexplainable loss of energy. The table was silent as they anxiously waited to hear what had happened next. They knew that Ron hadn't been found, but just hearing anything about him after all these months was a godsend.

"They caught up to him just outside the town, even saw him turn his hair back into his natural Weasley red as they tried to get to him. Seems Ron panicked at their approach and apparated again. We have no idea where he is now, but we know that he had a pack with him that looked stuffed with supplies. They had seen him coming out of a thrift store and figured he had been purchasing some clothes."

Tonks sighed at that and pulled a bit of hair down to her eye level, ensuring herself that it was still organge. It was obvious that she was still recovering from her encounter with him, as her normally energetic self was lacking, and Fred frowned. "If he can change his hair colour then it'll be that much more difficult to spot him now. Most Auror's rely on that trait alone to identify him."

The meeting broke up soon after that, everyone needing time to think about all this new information, and Fred felt George watching Harry (who had been pale and silent the entire meeting) as he shuffled up stairs to his room. He looked at his older brothers sitting in quiet conference, his parents moving about the kitchen cleaning up and Percy follow Ginny into the living room.

"Well, I reckon it's time we had a talk with Harry."

"Lead the way little brother." There was, for once, no argument about which of the two were older, as was their want, and they quietly followed the silent Harry Potter up the stairs. Ron sure as hell wouldn't want Harry feeling guilty about this situation and Fred and George had taken it upon themselves to try and get that fact through to the stubborn boy. They went straight to Ron's room, seeing as Harry had taken it after the first month of Ron's disappearance, and they barged in without knocking.

"Well, that was fun." Fred said, grabbing the old wooden chair that looked like it was on its last legs, and sprawling in it. George jumped onto the small bed, landing on Harry's feet. Their friend looked startled to see them but he quickly adapted and silently made room. Fred looked around the room and had to grin despite how worried they all were, the Chuddly Canons orange paint was grotesque on the walls, even the players in the posters looked sick of it.

"We have got to paint this room when he gets back." He muttered

"Why? I like it." George stated, looking up at the ceiling, a slight grin on his lips. "It's relaxing in an abrupt sort of way. Reminds me of carrots."

"It would."

"Ron's been sick of it for years." Harry spoke up, looking sad. He'd curled his almost nineteen year old body onto one corner of the mattress, leaning against the wall. He was staring at the wall, but Fred doubted he was seeing it.

"For years? He should have said something." George groused, looking around as though he couldn't quite figure out what was wrong with it. Fred couldn't be responsible for his twins lack of taste, it was the one trait they didn't share.

"He didn't want to waste the money on paint." Harry replied, looking guilty for revealing this tidbit, avoiding Fred's gaze. Ron had always been more aware of the financial issues of their family then George and Fred had allowed themselves to be. They had never seen the point in worrying, but Ron had apparently been more frustrated then he let on. Though he had had to suffer the worst hand-me-downs, and those dress robes for the Yule ball had been downright embarrassin'. They all sat in silence a moment, not knowing quite what to say. Fred and George weren't the best at comforting talk, they usually resolved problems by making it into a joke, breaking the tension, but right now wasn't the time for a laugh.

"Knut for yer thoughts?" He asked and Harry blinked owlishly at him from behind his large spectacles. Honestly, you'd think he'd have gotten a nicer pair by now, he had the money.

"I was just thinking…'bout Ron and, and everything he's going through right now. I can't imagine being a prisoner for eight months! It must have been utter hell, and he still runs away when he's loose. It's the second time I've failed him as a friend."

"What?" George's gaze was incredulous as he looked over. "Don't go blaming yerself fer him not telling us the truth, that was his choice."

"As if you don't blame yourselves for him freaking out. I've heard you say how you never should have tried to corner him into talking. Besides, I knew something was wrong ever since we destroyed Voldemort, and I never pressed. Where is he now? For all we know he's in a muggle prison for trespassing, or he could be leaving for the America's and it's all because I was never able to tell him how much he meant as a friend and…he honestly thought I wouldn't be his friend once we knew he was a chaneller but I…" He trailed off, glaring at his knees as if they were the bane of his existence.

"You what?" Fred pressed, leaning forward.

"I just, I think I already knew. I didn't know the details or anything, what his title actually was, but I knew something was up. I honestly had no idea how I got the energy to defeat Voldemort, but I suspected…and know I know, and after all that he still..." He trailed off, still glaring at his knees. Damnit! It was true that Fred and George both blamed themselves for their part in his panicked flight, but they had come to grips with it and were now just doing what they could to make it right. Harry hadn't been able to come to grips with it, and Fred secretly thought that the dark haired boy wouldn't be able to properly recover if Ron never came back. He'd already lost so much.

"Shut it Harry, you know as well as us that Ron is the most stubborn bloke in the entire family if these last two years are anything to go by. You're his best mate, he values that friendship more then any other. He just didn't tell you his problems because he's an idiot and the second we have him back he'll never forget it." George frowned at him.

"Yep, apparently our little brother has an inferiority complex that we didn't recognize." Fred added.

"But now we do."

"And since he's now one of the most bloody sought after people on the planet -"

"-we figure he's going to have to get over that right fast."

"And you, being his best mate-"

"-are going to have to help him."

"So there's really no reason to feel guilty"

"because your plate is going to be full once he's back." George finished and Harry cracked a grin, a weak grin, but it was a grin all the same. Fred knew it wasn't enough, but there wasn't else much to say. They spent the rest of the evening playing exploding snap and reading until Harry abandoned giving hints for them to leave and flat out ordered them off. That night Fred had nightmares of his youngest brother being chained to the wall upside down by his feet, while giving a lecture about Chakra's and cutting himself in the appropriate places. He didn't sleep much that night, and neither did George, who had had the same dream.

TBC

Hey, so I think this chapter clears up a few anxious questions! Harry Lvr, you're hilarious! As for Ron splinching without thinking when he apparates…I'm using his uniqueness as a chaneller as a strength in his apparating skills, and I'm letting his instinct and subconscious aid his decisions when he is in his emotional panicky modes. Also, I didn't really understand the whole concept of apparating when I wrote this story. I don't remember how often it was mentioned in books one through five, but apparition was explained to me more in the Half Blood Prince and I read that after I wrote this :) I hope that explain my reasoning well enough! Thanks for commenting on it!

Kamonkey, I have the answer (thanks to the amazing Astronomy- a Visual Guide text I have by Mark A. Garlick:p132)! There are five phases in a moon cycle: new moon, waxing moon, first quarter, waxing gibbous, and full moon. Then it enters a "waning period" and cycles back to a new moon. This takes place in 27.3 days. Whew, I feel smarter now just reading that ;)

Thanks everyone for the comments! They are my bread and butter :)

Next Update: August 24, 2005 (I'm SORRY! I'm going to be nowhere near a computer until then and the next bit still needs a read over before I can post it!)