Early in May, Evey was reclining against Walden as they watched Jurassic Park for the umpteenth time. Tony was sprawled on the other bed, seemingly transfixed by the screen. Evey didn't think he'd blinked in over an hour.

There was a knock on the door, and they all sighed in annoyance. It wasn't that they had to interrupt their viewing – they knew the film by heart – but it seemed that the less they did all day, the less they wanted to do. Practicing with Sirius only kept them occupied for an hour or so every day.

When she saw that Tony remained stubbornly in place, Evey stood up and went to open the door. It was George and Fred.

Her eyes widened in surprise as they both grinned at her. "Hello there," they greeted her at the same time. How did they manage to be so synchronised? It had always amazed her. It was as though they were using telepathy.

"Hi," she replied uncertainly. "What are you doing here? Is everything alright?"

"We just escaped from Hogwarts in the most glorious way imaginable," Fred explained brightly. He looked incredibly smug; they both did, in fact. "Well, it's not really Hogwarts we were fleeing from, so much as the pink-attired toad that now has custody of the place. Did we mention her before?"

Evey laughed. "Yeah, I think you might have, once or twice." They had all complained loudly about Dolores Umbridge, who had overtaken the school. Somehow, she had even managed to become Headmistress.

Walden had joined her by the door. "What's going on? Trouble at Hogwarts again?" They'd heard recently that Umbridge had attempted to arrest Dumbledore. He had eluded the Ministry officials and was now in hiding, although Evey hadn't seen him at the Headquarters.

"No more than usual," Fred said with a shrug. "But it was becoming unbearable. You wouldn't believe the things she's done, and it's gotten worse since Dumbledore abandoned us."

"He didn't abandon you," Evey told him chidingly. "He didn't have much choice, did he?"

It was George's turn to shrug. "Maybe. But still, we're glad to be out of there."

"But what are you going to do? You won't finish your studies at all?" Evey asked them with a frown.

"No, Mum, we won't," Fred said teasingly. "But fear not: we have a plan. Well, it's more than a plan. Everything is in order, or near enough. We've been thinking about this for a while, see. We had initially decided to wait until the end of the year, but given the circumstances…" He trailed off with a smile, obviously expecting her to ask what he was talking about.

"Fine, I'll bite," Evey said exasperatedly. "What's the plan?"

"We're going to open a joke shop," George told her very seriously.

"In Diagon Alley," Fred added.

Tony had joined them by the door as well. "A joke shop? That's nice," he commented.

"We don't need your approval, bloodsucker," George said with a grimace.

"Ah, come on. Don't be like that," Evey said with a rueful sigh. Tony's face hardened, but he went back inside the bedroom without another word.

She often thought back on what George had said, back in July. How would Evey react if Greyback decided to join the Order, and was accepted? She had no reason to believe that Dumbledore would refuse – according to him, everyone deserved a second chance. The remark had outraged her, especially coming from George, but he did have a point. Antonin – and Walden, though the twins didn't know that – were responsible for the death of their uncles. Fabian and Gideon Prewett hadn't been killed in cold blood, not like Evey's family, but what difference did it really make? The result was the same.

How would she feel if she were in their situation? She didn't think that she could live at Grimmauld place if Greyback joined them. She wasn't even certain that she could refrain from killing him. Preferably slowly and painfully.

She shook her head, dispelling the unbidden images that always accompanied mentions of the werewolf, and returned her attention to the conversation. "But um, guys… Don't take this the wrong way, but with what money are you going to open a shop in Diagon Alley?" It had to be one of the most expensive areas in London to rent a concession.

Fred's smile was back, brighter than ever. "Oh, don't worry. We've got that part covered."

"We have a secret investor," George whispered mysteriously.

Evey rolled her eyes. "Alright, fine. Keep your secrets. Does your mother know about any of this?" she asked, though she already knew the answer.

Fred's smile didn't look as steady as before. "We've only just escaped," he complained. "We thought we'd come by and say hi before we did anything…unpleasant."

"Merlin knows, the past few months were unpleasant enough," George said.

Evey smirked. "I see. Well, this should be fun. I hope you'll consider allowing me to be there when you tell her. I'll bring some popcorn."

George groaned. "We're adults, for Merlin's sake. She can't really stop us, can she?" He glanced at his brother, who shrugged. "Anyway, everything is ready. We'll be opening soon."

"And we know you're not allowed outside, so we brought you a few samples," Fred said enthusiastically. He picked up the box that lay at his feet. "Here. On the house," he told her with a wink. It overflowed with all sorts of brightly coloured gadgets. Several objects chimed and clanged as Evey took the box.

"So…" George went on, "that means we're both free from school, at long last. We're entering adult life in earnest. Nothing holding us back now." He looked Evey in the eyes. He wasn't talking about himself and his brother anymore.

"George…" She glanced at Walden. He nodded in understanding, took the box from her, and went inside the room to give them some privacy. Evey turned back to George. "I'm with him," she said quietly.

The stunned expression on the twins' faces was almost comical. "You're dating Macnair?" Evey nodded. "But he's a thousand years old!" George exclaimed. She thought she heard Tony chuckle.

"He's got scars everywhere!" Fred added.

"Not everywhere," she corrected him with a crooked smile.

"Merlin's purulent boils," George muttered darkly. "Did it have to be him? I mean, he's better than the vampire, but still…"

"Yes, it had to be. It was fated," Evey said dramatically. "Look, I'm sorry, but I thought it was obvious that we weren't getting back together, George. I'm happy, if it's any consolation," she added hesitantly.

"I guess," George grumbled.

There was an awkward silence. Fred cleared his throat. "Well, we wouldn't want to keep you off each other for too long," he said wryly. "We have much to do," he added with a meaningful glance directed at his brother.

George nodded. "We should go. Er…don't tell anyone we were here, alright? They must have notified mum already, but we'll talk to her tonight, when we've had time to…prepare ourselves. Psychologically."

"I doubt Sirius will care, and there's no one else we could tell. We haven't seen anyone in two weeks, actually, not since that business with Dumbledore," Evey explained. She didn't mind, personally, but Sirius was becoming gloomier by the day. If anyone could benefit from a visit at a joke shop, it was certainly him.

"We'll see you soon, in any case," Fred said. "They'll have to accept us in the Order, now, and it's about time."

"I wouldn't hold my breath," Evey said. Mrs Weasley wouldn't hear anything about Evey going on missions for the Order, and she was older than the twins. "The shop should keep you busy, though. Good luck with that."

When they were gone, Evey settled back on the bed with Walden. "I wish something would happen. Anything. I'm getting restless."

"We all are, cupcake," Tony said.

"I don't want to fight, not really, but doing nothing, the endless waiting, it's killing me," she went on. "Why aren't they making a move? Do you think Umbridge is a Death Eater?" she asked with a frown.

"Nah, I doubt it. A partisan, possibly, but I don't think she's acting on orders. Most likely, she's just a loony, power-hungry bitch," Tony said conversationally.

"Oi, watch your tongue," Walden muttered. How adorable. His daily average of expletives was sky-high, but some words were off-limits, apparently. "I agree about Umbridge, but just because we haven't heard anything means they're not up to something. Besides, the Order doesn't exactly keep us in the loop."

"I wish they'd let us help, at least," Evey said. "We could spy on people, or things like that."

"I'm sure we'd be great spies, sweetheart, but the Order doesn't know that we can turn invisible at will. So, unless you'd like to explain to them why you can…" Tony said. Evey shook her head firmly. "Molly won't ever let you out of here if she believes that there's any chance you might be in danger, anyway." He paused. "I'm afraid you will grow old and die here. Would you like to be buried in the backyard?"

Evey sighed in frustration. "But it's ridiculous! We're all in danger, whether we participate actively or not. And I want to be cremated, actually," she added as an afterthought. Someone ought to know, just in case.

"Alright, alright. Let's not talk about dying just yet," Walden cut in. "Voldemort won't delay indefinitely. Getting rid of Dumbledore, and likely Harry too, must be his priority. When he's gathered his forces, he will reveal himself publicly and attack the Order in earnest."

"Or he'll come at us in the sneakiest way you could imagine, which would be even worse," Tony muttered.