Disclaimer: Everybody you recognize belongs to J.K. Rowlings. Everything you don't recognize is probably mine.
AN: just a lil ficlet I came up with after reading an article about… well, you'll see. 9 This whole thing's actually a companion to my completely AU fic, "A Tabby and Her Kit" but I don't think you really need to read the other one first – this is just a little bit of fun ). Quick background summary for anybody interested: Harry got whisked away from the Dursleys as a baby, lives with his caretaker/mum outside Ottery St. Catchpole, and has gotten to know the Weasleys really well. So this takes place in the summer before his first year at Hogwarts. Hope you enjoy!
The Proper Application of Geometric Concepts
"Harry, Ron, wake up," whispered a voice from the window.
On the other side of the window, in a darkened bedroom, two twin beds stood on the opposite wall. Each bed had a lump on it. One lump was short and centered in its bed, while the other lump was long and lanky, sprawled over every available spot on its bed. Neither lump moved as it was summoned.
"Oi!" another voice hissed a bit louder, "Come on you two!"
"There's nothing for it, Fred," sighed the first voice, "I'll go get them – here, hold these."
"Ah, George, can't we leave them?" Fred protested. "Ron sleeps like the dead and Harry's no better! It'd take a whole bloody marching band to wake them – and then mum'd hear."
"We are passing on a very important tradition – Charlie showed us just before we went to Hogwarts and now we've got to show them, they'll be starting in September."
Pushing the window up as quickly as he dared, George quietly scrambled through the opening. Tip-toeing across the floor boards, he stopped between the two beds and leaned over the larger lump.
"Ron," he whispered into his ear, shaking him. Unfortunately, the lump's only response was to grunt and roll over onto his side, now snoring slightly.
Rolling his eyes, George turned around to Harry's bed.
"Harry," he said, prodding him in the head, "Harry, wake up."
The boy jolted awake with a snort and sat bolt upright in bed. "Wassamatta?" he muttered blearily, rubbing his eyes with one hand and fumbling around for his glasses with the other.
"Come on," the older boy said in a dramatic whisper, "we've got an important job to do tonight."
He knew the boy far too well, the twin mused as Harry's eyes immediately lit up with curiosity and excitement. Finally finding his glasses, he put them on and looked back at George expectantly. Raising a finger to grinning lips, George jerked his head toward the window where Fred waited impatiently, juggling three brooms and just barely balancing on his own. An eager grin lit up Harry's face and he silently slipped over to the window and accepted his broom from the twin.
Turning back to the stubborn lump, George glared and frowned, trying to come up with the most likely solution to wake his youngest brother. Shrugging, he reached out and none-too-gently flicked him square on the nose. With a yelp, Ron came awake, struggling blearily against the hand clamped over his mouth.
"Shut it!" George hissed in his ear.
"George?" Ron croaked, "Wha-?"
"Let's go."
"Where?" he questioned suspiciously, slowly regaining consciousness.
"Quiet, come on," George ordered hurriedly, hoping against his mother was still fast asleep. As his eyes darted towards the door, he heard Ron heave a resigned sigh and make his way over to the window.
"Follow me, George'll take up the rear," Fred ordered, his voice uncharacteristically quiet as he shot continuous glances towards the window two floors down. As Harry and Ron mounted their brooms, the smaller of the two glanced up at the black clouds creating the starless night and shot a mischievous grin at Ron, who grinned back, though a bit more blearily. George slid out the window silently, accepted a longroll of parchement from his twin, and motioned for Fred to start their journey.
"Now listen," George whispered fifteen minutes later as they arrived at their destination, "This is a highly covert, highly important we are about to undertake."
"George, we're in a cor-"
"Do not question the inner workings of the brave men who have gone before us!" Fred hissed.
Ron rolled his eyes at Harry, who bit off a grin at their antics.
"These," George continued dramatically, "Are the ancient symbols of the clans gone before us-" Ron snickered, earning a look of reprove from George and a thump on the head from Fred. "- gone before us, and we their sucessors carry on their ancient ritual."
With a whoop, Fred jumped and turned, releasing two practice snitches from their cases. They glowed eerily in the night, a milky silver and gold sheen and darted away in opposite directions before Harry could get a closer look. Meanwhile, George had unrolled parchment and laid it out on the ground. Raising an eyebrow in surprise, Harry nudged Ron, who had drifted back to sleep on his feet. Kneeling beside George, Harry took in the complicated lines and arcs that covered the entire parchment, with compass headings for each point and a time count for each stretch.
"What is it?" Harry whispered, awed in spite of himself.
"That, Harry, is the symbol of our forefathers," George explained with a grin, liking the boy's awestruck look as it was so similar to the one he wore two years before,"Young wizards up and down the country perform it just before they enter manhood, or school in our case."
"George, that's a lie," Ron pointed out levelly.
"I know, but it drives the muggles mad," Fred supplied.
"It's not a complete lie," George insisted, "It really is tradition. Just started a mite more recently than ancient times."
"It's our tradition," Fred said firmly, "Every Weasley upstart since our great great grandfather has done it. Some generations didn't, but that's why Charlie decided to reawaken it. It really is hilarious too," he finished with a grin.
As Harry and Ron grinned and reclaimed their brooms, George announced, "Let's get started then."
"Oh, look at this, Arthur," Molly Weasley tutted across the breakfast table, "Someone's gone and drawn another crop-circle in the Jervits's corn field and sent the muggles into an absolute uproar."
Her husband shot a stern look at the barely awake quartet who sat up a bit straighter at that comment. Shaking his head, he reopened his section of the Daily Prophet and whispered to the twin seated beside him, "Now that is impressive."
Fred grinned at his father, "Only the proper application of geometric concepts. Put to good use of course."
"Of course."