Hermione watched as his blue eyes gazed intently on the object in front of them, barely even sparing her a flicker as he bent closer to further inspect the ring, taking notes with every wave of his wand. Hermione wondered why she was even there – Fred's expertise far surpassed her own, now. It was only an hour later when Fred leaned back, a satisfied look on his face as he stretched and headed back to their table.

It truly was amazing how much he had changed since the Final Battle. Fred had grazed death, and that had changed him. He still helped George in their shop, but that wasn't the only thing he did anymore. Whatever had happened to him in those few moments before Fred woke had obviously shifted his axis.

George hadn't been overjoyed with the idea of running the business on his own, but Ron had offered to help and Fred had still been willing to help him develop new products so George didn't complain. Too much, at least. That didn't stop him from pranking Fred at every given opportunity, nor did it stop Fred from getting back at George, but the growing distance between the twins was noticeable now.

Being an Unspeakable put a further strain on that, with Fred not being able to talk to George about what he did on a daily basis – the silences between them usually filled by George speaking about the patrons that had come into the shop that day, and the new ideas he had. They would usually experiment for a couple of hours after that – how Fred had enough magic after a day at the Department of Mysteries for experimenting was beyond Hermione – with George returning with a slightly awed expression on his face, tinged with a bit of jealousy.

"He makes everything look so easy! It's unfair," George complained, collapsing onto the couch with perspiration clinging to his brow.

Fred came over to slouch next to him, "It isn't easier. Just simpler when you understand the magic better. It's like using multiple shortcuts instead of using the main path. I'm expending the same amount of magic you are. I've just gotten better at handling large usages of magic."

"See! I don't even know what he's talking about half the time either! What have you done to my twin, Hermione?" George gasped in faux despair. Fred rolled his eyes, poking his brother in the ribs.

"Top secret information," Hermione said primly, eyes shining in amusement. "I'm afraid I can't divulge trade secrets, especially since you are questioning our Creative Genius."

Fred sighed dramatically, "I'm afraid I've worked hard for that position, and we have a little upstart that's already trying to steal it from me…"

George gasped, appropriately upset before casting his eyes on Hermione in suspicion, "Are you sure you aren't distracting my dear twin, Hermione? I have it under good authority that Fred has a photo of you under his pillow… or was that top secret information, I can't remember…"

The momentary silence was filled with George's growing smirk, as Hermione's wide eyes locked on Fred's face, noticing that his eyes were glancing around the room determined not to meet her own. Fred wasn't making any move to deny George's words either, and that made her all the more suspicious – and surprised that she hadn't noticed something like that before.

"You didn't tell her?" George asked innocently, a devious smirk on his face as he walked out of the room. "I'll leave you two to it then, shall I? I hope I see you in one piece again, Fred!"

Written for the Ultimate Hermione Competition: Hermione/Fred

Written for Fanfiction World Adventures: Songshan Cultural and Creative Park [inspect, creative, official]