A/N: Wow. I could hardly believe when I saw it, but this story has officially passed 100 reviews! I never thought I'd see the day! I am truly awestruck by you guys… my wonderful reviewers who keep this story going. Not only have you guys been truly amazing with your consistent reviews, but I was actually quite stunned at the speed in which you reviewed the last chapter! Either I picked a really good time to post up the chapter, or you guys are extremely enthusiastic. Or a bit of both. Either way, enormous thanks to everyone who reviewed: SlyDevil. COOKIES, TeamGredAndForge, Lamb, Dimcairien, ncis-lady, MaddyGervais, Aris1013, snitch-bewitch, midnightstar19, and chocolateMnMs. You guys are just pure awesome. :D

Just to respond to the reviews of those I can't PM back:

Lamb: Glad you liked the other stories, and this one as well :)

SlyDevil. COOKIES: Haha well, I think half my chapters are slightly bipolar, because the mood of the chapter usually depends on the mood I'm in when I write it. But I'm glad you like the humour :) Also, I'm still not actually 100% sure how I'm going to end this. I'm leaning towards an ambiguous ending so that it could fit in with the books (as I originally intended it to be) but I'm a really indecisive person, so I still don't know.

Chapter 13

Fred and George were stacking shelves when there was a loud, urgent rapping on the door.

"Guys, it's me! Open up!" Both Fred and George were surprised to hear Bill's voice. Fred immediately moved to open the door, however George held up a hand to stop him.

'How do we know it's you?" He called through the door.

"You once turned all my underwear pink when you were eight," Bill replied, sounding half amused, half annoyed at the memory. With a grin, Fred opened the door. Bill has sworn them to secrecy about that prank, threatening to tell their mother they had stolen her wand if they ever revealed it to anyone. Although it was a difficult choice, the twins eventually decided they valued their life more, and so the prank remained undisclosed.

"Bill, what are you doing here?" Fred asked. Bill rushed into the shop, closing the door behind him. He turned to face the twins.

"You need to leave." He said firmly.

"What?" Fred asked, although he'd heard Bill clearly.

"The Ministry know Ron's helping Harry. They're coming after our family."

"What?" It was George this time, although he sounded more worried than disbelieving. "Is everyone okay?"

"Aunt Muriel's offered her house. You guys need to go now," Bill emphasised. "They could be here at any minute; they've already gone to the Burrow. Luckily we had forewarning. Everyone got out just in time." Fred and George exchanged a look before racing upstairs, Bill at their heels.

"Essentials only," Bill hollered as he followed them.

"Catch!" Fred threw a small bag at him. Bill easily caught it, then nearly dropped it.

"What the hell did you put in here?" He asked incredulously, struggling to sling the extremely heavy bag over his shoulder.

"Essentials," George shot back as he raced into their bedroom, apparently checking to make sure they hadn't forgotten anything.

"Do we need our brooms?" Fred's head poked around the corner of a door.

"Essentials, Fred!" Bill reprimanded.

"Just asking!"Fred said defensively as his head disappeared. He reappeared a few seconds later, wand in one hand, and a small picture frame in the other. Bill raised an eyebrow but didn't question as Fred placed the frame in the bag with an unusual tenderness.

"Okay, done." George ran out of their bedroom, tossing an overly large gold galleon at Fred, who tucked it into his pocket.

"Let's go," Bill urged. They ran back downstairs, the bag uncomfortably weighing down on Bill's shoulders.

"How are we getting there?" George asked, looking slightly nervous, although Bill attributed it to the possible threat of a Death Eater raid.

"Apparition. The house is protected by the Fidelius Charm, but we should be able to apparate nearby." Bill shifted the bag onto his other shoulder, missing the concerned glance Fred shot George. "Do you guys remember the field outside her house?"

"Yeah." Fred spoke for them both. He turned to look at George.

"Can you-" he began, but George cut him off.

"Yes," George said determinedly, but they could both detect the underlying fear in his voice. Outside, they could head voices growing louder as they approached the shop. Bill turned and nodded to the twins, who removed the wards surrounding their flat momentarily. Closing their eyes, Bill and the twins disapparated with a loud crack.

Bill landed on his feet with a great deal of force. The weight of the bag threw him off balance, and he stumbled slightly, trying to stay standing. Regaining his balance, he immediately glanced up to check on his brothers. To his surprise and concern, George was seated on the ground, struggling to stay conscious while Fred knelt beside him, pulling George into his arms.

"Just breathe George," Bill heard Fred say gently as he ran towards them, heart racing. Had they been attacked on the way? Was George sick?

"George, what-" Bill started to ask, but Fred glanced up and shook his head. Bill bit back the question currently on the tip of his tongue, fighting every brotherly instinct that was telling him to get George medical attention immediately.

"It's okay George, it'll go away," Fred was telling his twin, one hand rubbing George's back soothingly. George nodded slightly, his eyes squeezed shut, looking as though he was fighting the urge to hurl.

"Worse than the shop," he muttered, and although it sounded like complete rambling to Bill, Fred let out a small chuckle and pulled George closer to him.

"Well what did you expect? It's a few hundred kilometres further. But you did it George, you apparated by yourself," he said with an affectionate, proud grin. George merely groaned into Fred's side, and Bill couldn't take it anymore.

"Fred, what's going on? I thought George's ear was getting better," He demanded loudly, regretting it when George winced and twisted his head so his ear was resting against Fred's shoulder, trying to block out Bill's voice. Fred sighed, reluctantly looking up at Bill.

"It was. But ever since that attack on Diagon Alley, he's been having trouble. We've been practising, but he's never had to apparate so far before." George groaned slightly in agreement, and Fred tightened his grip protectively.

"Mum said George felt sick when he apparated, but she never said it was this bad…" Bill looked horrified that his younger brother was subjected to so much pain every time he apparated.

"She doesn't know. She thinks he's made a full recovery."

"Why?" Bill asked suspiciously.

"Because we told her so. And George was on his way to recovering, at least until the Death Eater attack," Fred said defensively as he saw Bill's disapproving look.

"Fred, you can't hide this from her," Bill began, but he was interrupted.

"Why? What possible good can it do to let mum know that George still collapses every time he apparates? She'll just worry and stress and I think she does enough of that already."

Bill sighed, knowing Fred was right but not liking their decision any more than he had before.

"Well you should have told me," Bill muttered. "I could have helped somehow." Fred looked at him for a moment.

"We didn't want to worry you," he offered, but Bill shook his head.

"I'm your older brother, Fred. It's my job to worry. Particularly about you two" he said, recalling the numerous times he had fished them out of trouble, healing their broken bones as children. Of all his younger siblings, Fred and George had always been the most adventurous, apart from Charlie, but that was a whole other story.

"We're nearly twenty Bill," Fred reminded him.

"It doesn't matter how old you guys are, you'll always be my younger brothers," Bill shot back. Fred gave him a strangely soft smile before looking at George, still huddled at his side.

"How are you feeling?" He asked, concerned.

"Bit better. I think I can stand," George said, struggling to rise to his feet. Bill offered a hand, and a few seconds later George was on his feet, looking pale but not in danger of collapsing anytime soon. For the first time since they arrived, he and Fred looked around, noting with some surprise that there was no house nearby.

"Bill, what-" Fred started to ask, but stopped when Bill handed him and George a piece of paper.

"Fidelius charm remember? As the secret keeper, I need to tell you the address for you to be able to see the house," Bill explained. Fred and George nodded, and must have concentrated on the words because a second later Muriel's house appeared before them. They hadn't been to Muriel's since they were extremely young, so the several stories tall house, with its neatly kept garden and intimidating structure shocked them into silence for a few seconds.

"The old bat must be loaded," George eventually said, slightly awed. Bill laughed at the George's crude description.

"Come on you two," he ushered them closer to the house, adjusting the bag he was still carrying. They eventually reached the front door, Fred checking to make sure George wasn't going to collapse or pass out as a side effect of apparating before knocking sharply on the door.

It flung open immediately, and Fred let out a squeak as Molly attacked him with hugs and kisses.

"Fred! Oh, I was so worried about you and- George!" Molly released Fred from her death grip and turned to George, who had been standing behind his twin, smirking. His eyes widened when he realised what was awaiting him.

"Mum, no-" he began, but whatever he had planned on saying was suffocated out of him by Molly's enthusiastic arms. Fred was grinning at his twin's predicament when another pair of arms wrapped around his waist.

"Hello Ginny," Fred grinned warmly at his younger sister.

"I'm so glad you're both okay," Ginny mumbled, burying her face into Fred's shoulder. He patted her back awkwardly in an attempt to reassure her that he and George were alright, before lifting her up and spinning her around, laughing as Ginny squealed in surprise.

"Missed you too," he said softly and Ginny beamed at him.

"But not as much as I did," George said from behind him and Fred found himself once again released as Ginny launched herself at George, who stumbled back from the impact, still weak from their Mother's hug. Fred laughed, walking down the hallway before jumping back, startled, as Auntie Muriel suddenly appeared in front of him, scowling.

"Oh, you're here are you?" She sniffed, looking distastefully at him. "Where's your double? Goodness knows what Molly was thinking when she had you both, as if one at a time isn't bad enough…" George appeared at Fred's shoulder, interrupting Muriel's rant. "Ah, there you are! Still haven't fixed those ears, I see. You'll never find an attractive girl at this rate." Auntie Muriel didn't seem to notice that Fred was glaring fiercely at her. Molly quickly appeared at their side, pushing them past Muriel before Fred did anything drastic.

"I suppose you're both hungry?" She asked hurriedly, trying to drone out Muriel, who was now discussing methods of fixing lopsided body parts with Bill, who was looking pleadingly at their father to save him.

"Starving, we didn't have time to eat dinner before Bill brought us here," Fred said loudly, and Bill shot him a relieved look as he escaped Muriel's loud one-sided conversation.

"What's up?" He prompted as he reached them.

"Just telling Mum how you rescued us like a knight in shining armour." George replied, smirking.

"Ungrateful gits," Bill said as he cuffed George lightly over the head.

"Boys! No violence in the kitchen," Molly scolded as she began preparing a meal for the twins.

"So how long have you been here then?" Fred asked Ginny, who was seated on a kitchen stool beside him.

"We only got here about an hour ago," she said, tapping her fingers nervously on the counter, obviously still feeling the adrenaline from their escape. "We barely made it out in time, they saw us leaving and tried to grab us, but they just missed. Mum made us dinner as soon as we got here. I think she just needed to do something, she was so worried they would get to you both."

"We're sorry we didn't come pick you up from Kings Cross," George said as he wrapped an arm around Ginny's shoulder. "We were planning on dropping by the Burrow tomorrow, but I guess the fate's planned otherwise," he finished dramatically. Ginny snorted.

"It's alright," she replied fondly, placing her arms around Fred and George's shoulders. "As long as you promise to be my slaves for the next week." Fred and George exchanged a glance over Ginny's head.

"And what exactly does that entail?" Fred asked cautiously.

"Oh you know, making my bed, bringing me food whenever I want it, taking the rap if I play a prank and mum finds out… the usual." Ginny grinned sweetly up at her older brothers. George sighed.

"Two days?" He offered.

"Four," Ginny replied immediately.

"Three," Fred shot back.

"Three and one of your Patented Daydream Charms." Ginny smirked. Fred and George looked horrified.

"What do you want a Patented Daydream Charm for?" George all but squawked in shock. Fred's eyes had narrowed.

"When I get my hands on Harry-" he growled, and Ginny burst out laughing.

"Oh, you guys are so easy. I don't want your Patented Daydream Charms, I just wanted to see the look on your faces," she giggled. George looked at her in awe.

"Fred," he whispered. "We did it. We successfully passed on our pranking genes to one of our siblings." Ginny looked rather pleased until both Fred and George ruffled her hair, making it stick out at odd angles.

"Dinner's ready," Molly declared, interrupted the moment by placing two plates before the boys, who eagerly devoured the meal. Bill raised an eyebrow at his younger brother's animalistic displays.

"Well, I'd better head back home mum, Fleur will be worrying about me," he said, shrugging on his coat. Molly gave him a tearful hug, followed by Ginny.

"Bill, thanks-" Fred began, but Bill waved away his gratitude.

"You two just stay safe, okay? Particularly you George, I want to hear if anything happens," he said warningly. George nodded, and Bill ruffled his hair affectionately. "I'll see you guys later."

"Say hi to Fleur for us!" Fred yelled as Arthur showed Bill out.

"Stop hitting on my wife, Fred!" Bill joked back, and both Fred and George chuckled.

"Alright, it's getting quite late and I think it would be best if we all went to bed," Molly insisted as Arthur walked back into the room.

"But Mu-um…" Fred, George and Ginny all groaned.

"No buts. Fred and George, we have a spare room ready for you," Molly said as she ushered them up the stairs. Fred stopped to grab their bag, which was resting on the floor.

"And I don't want to hear any weird noises from anyone, thank you very much," Auntie Muriel suddenly proclaimed, glaring at the three adolescents, who looked slightly surprised.

"What classifies as a weird noise?" Fred whispered. George shrugged.

"No clue, but I'm guessing it includes anything fun, entertaining or interesting," he said gloomily. They passed the first landing, where Auntie Muriel bid them a haughty goodnight, and continued to the second landing.

"Here we go," Molly proclaimed, opening a door on the left. Fred and George peered in, seeing two beds and not much else in the room.

"Sleep well boys," Arthur said, as he and Molly left for their own bedroom. Ginny, who was in a room several doors down, gave them a hug before leaving. George sighed as he closed the door, turning to their practically empty room. Fred had already claimed one of the beds and was seated upon it, opening their bag and digging a hand in.

"Now where did I put it…" he mumbled, before withdrawing his hand, his pyjamas clutched in his fist.

"Good thing we put that undetectable extension charm on it," George commented as he sat on his own bed. Fred threw George's sleepwear at him.

"Good thing we had it packed," Fred replied back as he pulled out the photo frame he had put in the bag and set it on the dresser facing them across the room. Their family waved back at them as Fred continued unpacking. If Bill had been able to see the contents of the bag, the weight of it would have made a lot more sense; Fred began hauling out clothes, shoes, prank items, a folded up tent, cooking utensils, sleeping bags and blankets.

"Fred, what are you looking for?" George asked with raised eyebrows as he observed the growing pile.

"These!" Fred proclaimed, holding up their stash of Bertie Botts, Chocolate Frogs, and several other sweets.

"Brilliant," George said as he grabbed the boxes and placed them on the dresser beside the frame. Both he and Fred shrugged on their sleepwear, dumping their clothes lazily on the ground before heading to the bathroom to brush their teeth.

"How did it feel, apparating today?" Fred asked just as George began brushing his teeth. "And don't say 'worse than the shop' again." He was rewarded with several minutes of nothing but the sound of bristles hitting teeth until George finally spat into the sink and rinsed out his mouth.

"It was painful," George summarised slowly, thinking back. "Worse than anything we practiced."

"Worse than losing your ear?" Fred asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Different to losing my ear. Although I suppose in both situations I was struggling to stay conscious," George reminisced as he towelled his face.

Fred sighed. "George…"

"Hey, it's fine. I can do it, it's not that bad," George said gently. Fred looked at him, still concerned. "I mean it. I can handle it Fred, don't worry. Now brush your teeth," he ordered, channelling their mother, and Fred grimaced as he picked up his toothbrush. He flipped open the cap of their toothpaste, and squeezed hard. The minty toothpaste soared out of the tube, eventually landing on George's forehead. George went slightly cross eyed as he attempted to look at it, before lowering his gaze to glare at Fred, who looked sheepishly back at him.

"My bad?" He offered, gulping as George advanced on him.

Several minutes and a number of loud thumps later, the door to their room opened and Molly came rushing in.

"What on earth-" She began before pausing at the sight before her. Fred and George were both covered in toothpaste, which was smeared into their hair, their clothes, and the floor. George currently had Fred in a headlock, although both of them were laughing too much to cause any pain to the other. The stopped as soon as Molly entered, gazing up at her with wide eyes. She stared back at them, wearing a shocked expression. Moments later, Arthur came running in, coming to a halt beside his wife.

"What… happened?" Arthur asked slowly, gazing at his sons. To his complete shock, Molly burst out laughing.

"Molly?" Arthur asked in alarm, slightly fearful for her sanity. She looked at him through the tears in her eyes, still giggling.

"Mum, are you alright?" George asked as he released Fred from the headlock. She wiped the tears from her eyes before stepping forward and pulling both Fred and George into her arms. They didn't protest, still slightly shocked at her reaction.

"You two…" Molly didn't seem to know what to say, instead releasing them and giving them a watery smile before rushing out of the room. Arthur shot them a slightly perturbed grin before following her, leaving the twins alone in the toothpaste covered bathroom. George turned to Fred, eyebrows raised.

"What was that all about?" He asked. Fred shrugged, grinning as he looked at George's toothpaste streaked hair.

"No clue, but we should probably clean up before she regains her sanity and comes back to tell us off," he commented, picking up his wand and cleaning themselves and the bathroom up with a quick wave. George checked himself in the mirror to make sure Fred hadn't 'accidentally' missed any spots. Satisfied, he turned back to Fred, who was once again attempting to sneak out of the bathroom.

"Fred! Brush your teeth!"

Several minutes later, a grumpy Fred was climbing into bed. George was already settled in, shifting to try and adjust to the new mattress and sheets.

"You know, one good thing did come of this," George commented as Fred lay down.

"What?" Fred sounded tired, reminding George of the close encounter they had experienced only a few hours before.

"Well, they found out that Ron is helping Harry. That means-"

"That Harry, Ron and Hermione are still out there." Fred finished, understanding.

"Exactly. They're alive and fighting." George concluded.

"That is good," Fred murmured, and George nodded into his pillow. It was with this optimistic thought that they drifted off to sleep, their family waving happily out to them from within the picture frame, a reminder of younger, more innocent times.

Next chapter: Fred and George can only take so much of being cooped up at Muriel's. They come up with a plan to leave, but some members of their family are less than happy about it.

Thanks for reading, and please review! :)