Fred ran his fingers through his long-ish red hair, staring at himself critically in the mirror. It was still odd, getting dressed without somebody to coordinate his clothes with.

He hoped that he would never get used to it.

Shrugging his shoulders, Fred turned away from the full-length mirror, glancing around the room one last time, before closing the lid of his trunk and beginning to drag it out of the room.

He met Charlie at the stairs, leaning against the handrail and reading over what he could only assume was his parent's will.

It wasn't the first time that stack of papers had first appeared, and the effect they had on him was obviously diminished. Now, he simply ignored them.

He did that with a lot of things.

Smiling weakly at his older brother, he followed after the older man as Charlie levitated the trunk downstairs.

Onward to Hogwarts, then.

--

Draco Malfoy was many things. A liar, a cheat, a scoundrel. He was not, however, sadistic.

As the now youngest Weasley boy boarded the Hogwarts Express before him, Draco watched his every move until he could no longer be seen.

He'd been there, at the Weasley residence on that fateful night. He was supposed to have been responsible for the death of Ron Weasley. Probably because of his long-standing feud with the other boy. His father had been forced to do the job for him. He'd just........ clammed shut, shaking like a leaf.

Apparently a lot of young initiates did. But that didn't stop him from punishing himself for even entertaining the thought of following in his father's Death Easter footsteps. He'd seen what it had done to his father, the way it had changed him. The monster it had turned him into. He didn't want to become that........ but what choice did he really have?

--

Fred sat in one of the last compartments on the train, his head leaning against the window and his eyes staring out at the passing scenery. He didn't really see, or take note of that scenery, however, as his mind was preoccupied with other matters.

All of is old friends -- at least those he had initially entered into Hogwarts with -- were gone, either headed off to university, or into the workforce. Oh, he knew a couple of this year's 6th and 7th years, and even a couple of 5th years, thanks to Tom, but nobody he would really consider a "friend", save perhaps Harry and Hermione.

Funny, that he could think Ron' name without even a twinge of pain (well, okay, maybe a tiny one), but when it came to his twin, just the merest mention of his name brought on a wave of pain so sharp that he was surprised it didn't knock him clear off his feet.

Glancing up in surprise at the sound of the compartment door opening, Fred just barely held back the sigh of frustration that rose to his lips at the sight of just who had intruded upon his solitude.

-

- Change of perspective -

-

Sliding the compartment door closed behind him, Harry Potter stared the red-head before him for a second before sliding into the seat across from him.

It was odd, to see one twin without the other........ but that wasn't what was currently in the forefront of his mind.

Nobody would tell him where Ron was. Or where Ginny was, for that matter. They just stared at him with wide eyes, before mumbling something about needing to be someplace. It didn't matter who he talked to, the response he got was always the same ........ and it was kind of starting to worry him.

But Fred was here -- or was it George? He could never really tell -- and maybe now he could get some real answers.

"Fred, has something happened to Ron and Ginny? I tried to as a couple of other Gryffindor's in my year, but nobody would tell me anything ........" Harry allowed his sentence to trail off into silence at the looks of horror that had suddenly entered into Fred's eyes. "Fred?"

"Harry ........ They're dead. Everybody except for me, Charlie and Bill. There was ........ a Death Eater attack, the Burrow. It was all over the Daily Prophet."

Harry sank back into the seat behind him, staring at the red-head before him in shock, but not really seeing him. Instead, he saw, in his mind's eye, the last time he had seen the majority of the Weasley family, clustered together at the Train Station at the end of the last year. He hadn't really said anything special to them by way of Good-bye, too wrapped up in his feelings of guilt over his Godfather's death.

Ron had been understanding, letting him keep his distance and grieve in his own way, seeming to somehow understand that the best thing for him at the moment was to be lest alone. But no too alone.

Hermione, for all of her book smarts, hadn't really known how to handle him, or his grief. Sure, she had missed Sirius and mourned his passing, but that was nothing compared to the pain he had felt.

Ron, however, had understood, at least to some degree, and had been the one to sit with him in the middle of the night, strong arms wrapped around his body as he shook with the force of his sobs. Ron had been the one to stop him from accidentally overdosing on Dreamless Sleep Potion, to listen as he ranted and raved, blaming everybody possible, including himself, for Sirius' death. Ron had been the one. Always there, always ready to pick him and set him back on his feet again.

So how could he be dead? Was it even possible? Ron had fought against the Death Eaters before, stood with him against nearly every battle he had ever fought against the forces of evil, and had always persevered. How could one measly Death Eater attack do him in, when all of that, even the whole debacle at the Department of Mysteries, hadn't been able to?

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shazia)Riavera > it made you cry? erm, i'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing, actually. hope you like this newest installment :D

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hmm, only one review. oh well. i'll probably work on one of my other stories soon -- most likely life's blood soul's essense, since that's the one that seems to be getting the most reviews. anyways, hope y'all enjoyed!