A/N: Gah, sorry this is a bit late guys. Life is slightly hectic right now. Anyway, this chapter is a bit of a… well, not so much filler, but more of a chance for Fred and George to just talk. Because talking is good, I think. So yes. As always, gigantic thank you to my reviewers: chocolateMnMs, runeaglerun, MaddyGervais, TeZan and midnightstar19. Your reviews mean more to me than you will ever know. And I hope the rest of you enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 4

Fred and George arrived with a loud crack at their destination, George stumbling slightly. Fred grabbed his arm, holding him steady.

"How do you feel?" He asked, worried. George blinked, and gazed up at Fred before groaning.

"Guess the potion didn't work well, huh?" Fred asked sympathetically, helping George sit on the grassy floor. "Or do I just look particularly dashing today and you can't bear the competition?" George made a move to shake his head, instantly regretting it.

"Oh Godric," he muttered, hands clamped tightly over his forehead. Fred gripped his brother's shoulders sympathetically, ruffling George's hair gently.

"That bad?" He asked, forehead creased in concern.

"The nausea's gone," George commented feebly. "But the dizziness just got worse."

"Well do you prefer the dizziness or the nausea?" Fred asked, sitting down beside George, who groaned again.

"Neither!"

Fred chuckled, looking out at the scenery as he kept one hand on George's shoulders. Several minutes later, George was finally able to think without experiencing the uncomfortable sensation of drums pounding inside his head. He raised his head and looked out at the wide lake in front of them, surrounding by tall grass. Several birds flew overhead, and in the distance they could see mountains. Behind them loomed hundreds of tall trees.

"It's just as beautiful as I remember," George breathed deeply, a smile on his face.

"Yeah," Fred echoed, grinning as he recalled the last time they had visited. It had been many years ago, in the summer holidays just before the twins had started at Hogwarts. The entire Weasley family had gone camping, and Fred and George had fallen in love with the place immediately, with its gorgeous scenery and numerous hidings spots. Unfortunately they had never been able to visit again, but they had always sworn they would return one day. It seemed that day had finally arrived.

They stayed for some time, talking and reminiscing on their days at Hogwarts, past family holidays, all the pranks they had played. It was almost like old times, no war to think about, no injuries, and no deaths. Just Fred and George together, united as one. They watched the sun set over the lake, casting a magnificent reflection on the water.

"Fred?" George asked as the sky began to darken.

"Yeah?"

"Do you ever wish that none of this had happened? I mean, the war and You-Know-Who and everything?" George asked quietly.

Fred was silent for a moment. "I didn't use to. I always thought a final battle would be epic, you know? I mean, the good guys versing the bad guys, spells flying everywhere, it always seemed so cool. But now…people die in those battles, George. And not just the bad guys, good people as well. I mean, we've lost Sirius, Dumbledore, Mad Eye, your ear…"

George smiled at that, but nodded.

"It's not what I thought it would be," Fred finished. "So yes, I suppose I wish it hadn't happened. But it's not really up to us to decide that, is it? If none of that had happened, who knows, maybe we wouldn't be here today."

"Eurgh, the dreaded 'what if' situation," George muttered darkly. Fred chuckled.

"Well, what's got you in such a contemplative mood?" He asked. George shrugged.

"Oh you know, just thinking about life and death. Hypothetical scenarios just sort of came up," he said with a grin.

"George, you know you're not going to die right? The healer said it himself; it might get worse with time, but it's not life threatening in any way." Fred reminded George.

"Maybe it's not threatening in normal times, but during a war, it is." George declared.

"What? Why?"

"Fred, if we're attacked for some reason and I feel dizzy, I'm as good as dead," George said bluntly. "I can barely stand, let alone duel. And you'd be just as vulnerable, because you'd be trying to protect me. Face it, this- this condition I have, it's not ideal when we're in the middle of a war."

"We'll make it work," Fred said determinedly.

George was about to argue, but didn't, preferring not to ruin the otherwise peaceful location. Instead he sighed and lay back, staring up at the stars. A few moments later, he felt Fred do the same.

"Do you remember when dad taught us how to read the skies?" Fred asked after a moment's pause. George grinned.

"Yeah. We were so excited to find out about the Gemini constellation. Twins just like us," he reminisced.

"Yeah. Sometimes I wish we could go back to that time. When You-Know-Who was just a person of the past, and the biggest thing we had to worry about was whether Bill and Charlie would play Quidditch with us," Fred said sadly. George rolled over to face Fred, the moonlight reflected in his eyes.

"We should play a game of Quidditch when this all ends," he remarked.

"Yeah?" Fred asked with a raised eyebrow. George nodded enthusiastically.

"Yeah. You, me, Bill, Charlie, Ron and Ginny. And maybe even Percy, Harry and Hermione. It would be brilliant!"

Fred laughed, before gazing thoughtfully at the darkened sky.

"You know, Mum and Ginny are probably wondering where we are," he said casually, but George understood the hint. With a reluctant sigh, he rose to his feet, Fred following suit.

"What do we tell them?" George asked worriedly.

"The truth," Fred replied. George bit his lip, sighing.

"They would have been expecting up back hours ago. Mum is going to blow," He groaned.

"Mum? Try Ginny!" Fred shot back.

"Can't we just… hide away for a little while?" George asked pathetically. Fred rolled his eyes, before grabbing George's hand.

"Come on, we've hidden long enough."

With a loud crack, they apparated to the Burrow, landing in the field just outside their house, beyond the wards. George dropped to his knees instantly, clutching his head.

"I think the potion wore off," he gasped. Fred knelt beside him quickly, holding George's shoulders.

"George, tell me what I can do," he said firmly. George shook his head slightly, his hand reaching forward blindly in the darkness to grip Fred.

"Just… just stay there," he panted through the nausea. Fred nodded, holding George close.

"Okay," he whispered, staying still. George rested his chin on Fred's shoulder, trying to slow down his breathing. Fred rubbed George's back reassuringly, occasionally murmuring words of comfort as George fought off the dizziness. Several long minutes later, George rose to his feet on unsteady legs, Fred still offering a supportive arm. The two slowly trudged to the Burrow, their pace due to George's near collapse, but also a feeling of dread that was beginning to creep in.

As it turned out, they had a good reason to be worried.

"Where have you been?" Molly screeched the moment she saw them. "St Mungo's should not take a whole day, I have been worried sick!"

"Mum, we're sorr-"

"You couldn't even send an owl saying when you would be arriving? I have been staring out that window for the past four hours waiting for any sign of an owl and nothing! We are in the middle of a war, or did you forget about that? People are dying every day, it is a serious matter and I do NOT APPRECIATE YOU TWO WANDERING OFF WHENEVER YOU FEEL LIKE IT!" Molly's yells were causing the house to vibrate. George shot a glance at Fred, who was cringing. His own ears were protesting at the loud volume.

At that moment, George's breath hitched as he spotted Ginny walking down the stairs. The glare she shot him was enough to make him take a small step back towards Fred, who looked up.

"Oh Godric," Fred mumbled at the sight of their sister. They both turned back to Molly, who was still yelling, although she seemed to have lost some of her steam as she noticed that Fred was still half supporting George.

"What happened?" She asked worriedly, taking a step forward.

"It's just a headache," George replied with a faint smile, reminding them all of where he and Fred had been.

"What did you find out?" Molly finally asked. Fred and George exchanged glances, having a silent argument over who would be the one to speak. Eventually coming to an agreement, Fred stepped forward.

"The Healer said that there is some internal damage in George's ear," he began, and Molly hands rose to cover her mouth in horror. "But it's not life threatening or anything," he added hastily. "We got some potions for him to take, but they only seem to stop the nausea, not the dizziness."

"Isn't there anything else they can do?" Ginny asked from across the room. Fred shook his head.

"There's no permanent treatment. And- and the healer said that as time goes on, it might get worse," he added tentatively.

There was a tense silence, broken by a wail from Molly as she ran forward and wrapped her arms tightly around George.

"Mum!" He exclaimed in shock, face turning slightly blue as her grip tightened.

"Mum, you're strangling him!" Fred said in alarm. Molly let go, tears streaming down her face.

"Oh George," she said sadly. George offered her a smile.

"It's okay mum. I'm fine," he reassured her. She sniffed, before hurrying to the kitchen. Fred and George exchanged another glance.

"Well that went well," George said weakly.

"Oh really?" An angry voice sounded. Both Fred and George turned to where Ginny was still standing, arms folded, mouth forming a thin line.

"Ginny-"

"Do you two have any idea what it was like for us today? Your hands on the clock have been pointed at lost for more than half the day; we had no idea where you were." Ginny, unlike their mother, didn't yell. Instead her voice was low and dangerous, and about a hundred times more frightening. Both Fred and George were slowly backing away from her as she advanced.

"You could have been anywhere; you could have been kidnapped and tortured for all we knew. But no, as it turned out you were perfectly fine, just wandering around having a jolly old time. Well congratulation, I hope it was a day well spent," she said bitterly, storming back upstairs.

"Ginny, we're sorry!" Fred called out, and was rewarded with a door slam. He turned back to George, eyes wide.

"Women," Fred said, shaking his head.

"We should go talk to her," George said reluctantly.

"Talk to whom?" Molly asked as she bustled back into the room with cups of hot chocolate.

"Ginny."

"Oh, she's been worried sick about you two the whole day," Molly noted. Sighing, the twins grabbed the three cups and headed upstairs.

"Ginny?" George asked hesitantly as they stood outside her door.

"Go away," they heard her muffled response.

"Ginny, come on, let us in. We brought hot chocolate," Fred tried. A few seconds later, the door opened and Ginny was staring back at them, eyes hard. She walked back to her bed and huddled near the headboard, not saying a word. Fred and George shuffled awkwardly into the barely lit room, placing Ginny's cup on the table. George sat in the armchair while Fred took a seat at the foot of her bed.

"Ginny, we're really really sorry," George began. Ginny sniffed. "We didn't mean to make you and mum worry so much; I just needed to- to get away for a little while after hearing everything." Ginny glared at him, although they could both see her anger was leaving.

"We won't do it again," Fred promised, and was startled to see a tear slide down Ginny's cheek. "No- Gin, why are you crying? You never cry! Don't cry!" Fred panicked, moving forward to hug their sister. He could sense George hovering by his side.

"I'm sorry," Ginny sobbed into his shirt. "I was just so worried! I mean, Ron's gone off with Harry and Hermione, and Percy's still being an obnoxious git, and Bill's gone into hiding and Charlie's gone back to Romania, and I'm all alone here. You two are the only ones left, and I'm so afraid that something will ha-happen…" Whatever else she wanted to say was distorted by her sobs.

George moved to Ginny's other side, offering a comforting arm. Ginny clung to them both, still crying.

"Ginny, we promise nothing will happen to us," Fred whispered solemnly. Ginny blinked at him through her tears.

"You can't know that," she said, hiccoughing.

"Then we swear that we won't do anything that will put us in unnecessary danger," George amended. "Is that better?"

Ginny sniffled before nodding her head.

"You have to send me letters every week at Hogwarts," she warned them.

"We promise."

"We'll even send some of our products just so you know it's from us," Fred added with a grin. Ginny smiled at him.

"I love you both, you know?" She said, hugging them tightly.

"We love you too, Ginny," George said softly. Fred kissed the crown of her head, exchanging a glance with George.

"Always will."

Next chapter: the Weasley's get a visit from the Ministry. Also, George discovers that he and Floo Powder don't get along anymore.

Thanks for reading, and please review! :)