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A/N: Hey, thanks for reviewing! In response to your question, no, not everyone will die from the flu.
I never thought of the Death Eater thing... interesting. It's not the direction I'm headed for (possibly), but it's a good idea.
I hope you get better from your cold! I hope this helps you feel a little better... I don't even know how you can read with a cold... my brain loses all function during times of illness, especially my reading comprehension skills.
Enjoy!
Chapter 13: A Meeting at Weasley's Wizard Wheezes
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Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, a joke shop opened by the twins, Fred and George Weasley, was booming with business. Not only were shield hats selling like hotcakes (the Ministry ordered them for protection), but also, their new line of gourmet cough drops was a big hit. Sure, it had been, of course, a joke, a twist on a Muggle product used when one had a sore, dry, itchy, or irritated throat (not to mention excessive coughing), but now, it was being taken seriously. Dumbledore had stopped by and gave them some of his assorted ones that he made himself and told the two brothers that they should make a line of the product and sell them. Therefore, the brothers got to work. They first only had a few flavors; now, they had expanded the line to include flavors only Bernie Bott's Every Flavor Beans would dare to have. They even had a 'mystery' one, which changed colors every few minutes, and with the color, the flavor. For example, it was unfortunate if one ate it when it was in the middle of changing colors when the previous flavor was 'barf' and the next was 'slug'. George had experienced this trauma while testing the product. The next best thing would have been to have been actually barfing slugs as Ron had done in his third year.
Ron, Harry, and Hermione were going to Diagon Alley today to see Fred and George. They weren't going for school things, seeing as they had already been dropped off, but rather, they were going for other supplies. If they were going to go get Ginny, they would need stuff, and Fred and George would provide. Harry didn't want anyone dying like the last time he tried to save someone, only a few weeks ago...
Fred and George didn't even know that Ginny had been missing yet. Mrs. Weasley had been too distressed to write a letter to them.
This was the perfect excuse for Harry, Ron, and Hermione to go to the shop. Mrs. Weasley let them go without objection, with a stern warning to be careful- for Voldemort, and for coughing, sneezing wizards.
They used Floo Powder to get there. Harry brought the Invisibility Cloak, but seeing as they didn't need it yet and their feet now showed from the bottom of the cloak when they all wore it, they did not wear it.
Instead, they rushed to the shop.
"Fred, George!" yelled Ron as they entered the crowded shop.
"Ah, look who it is, Fred!" said George, who popped his head out from behind a display of miniature fireworks.
"Why, if it isn't Ronniekins!" said Fred, jumping off a ladder with a Shield Hat.
"Yeah, yeah, guys..." said Ron, looking about as red as his hair.
Harry looked at the jovial pair of twins. "Look, we came for two reasons: one, seriously bad news: Ginny was kidnapped by Voldemort. We know this through my Voldy-sense. Two: we need some DADA stuff if we're going to save her, and we heard that you have a new line of exactly that."
The news of Ginny's disappearance shocked the twins. After a few seconds of letting it sink in, George said, "Seriously? This is bad, Fred."
"No kidding, George," said Fred sarcastically, his jovial personality poking through the somberness. "Luckily, you've heard right. We'd probably mess the whole thing up if we came... but I'd love to set off a few mini-fireworks for You-know-who and friends."
Harry wasn't sure if that meant they were coming or not. Either way, Fred led them to a room full of Defense Against the Dark Arts stuff.
"Well," said Fred, "we've got Shield Hats, along with a whole line of Shield Clothing. Highly fashionable, I say, as George and I modeled them around Diagon Alley... Ministry has been taking a lot of stock on this particular area of our shop- I wouldn't be surprised to find recommendations in their purple posters and packets. We've got a whole lot of good stuff besides that, Harry, look around!"
They looked around and grabbed as much DADA stuff as they could. Just when they were about to leave, Ron saw the cough drop section.
"Ooh, Harry! Look!" There had to be billions of cough drops in various colors and odors. Harry grabbed some.
"You know," said Fred, "These actually have small doses of flu anti-virus in them- Dumbledore gave it to us."
"Brilliant," said Ron, and immediately put one in his mouth. In a short amount of time, Ron spat it out.
"Ew, slug!"
"Ah, little brother, you've experienced the joy of 'mystery flavor', which can change from good to slug any time, even while eating. I recommend you keep it in your mouth, it's bound to change back soon... besides, I don't like cleaning up after you, Ronniekins." Ron reluctantly did so to find that it had pleasantly changed to BBQ chicken.
With the stuff needed in tow, they began to leave.
"Aw, come on, Harry," said George, who they just walked by, "you're seriously not going to let us come, are you?"
"Well..." began Harry, unsure of what to say.
"Of course not!" said Fred. "She's our sister, we have the right to come! Katie," Fred said, calling a purple robed employee, "man the fort while we're gone! We have a sister to save!"
George looked excitedly at Fred. "Oh, man, we finally get to try out our Filibuster Fireworks!"
"Filibuster?" Hermione asked. "Isn't that an annoying technique politicians use?"
"Oh, no, Hermione," said George, " not anymore. Now it's an annoying technique harnessed by the Weasley brothers put into the power of fireworks! It's supposed to hypnotize an opponent... only problem is, right now, it hypnotizes everyone. But we invented glasses to wear during the test to prevent hypnosis... we haven't tested those yet, though."
Hermione looked at him, amazed and terrified that they wanted to test products while possibly confronting Voldemort.
Without a further word, Ron, Hermione, Harry, Fred, and George left the shop.
But not before a run-in with a most unwelcome friend...