Disclaimer: I only own Alex and Sam, the rest belong to JKR.
Author's Note: I'm sorry I haven't updated since Christmas Eve –don't hurt me– I've had writer's block, and I've been busy.
Chapter Three
Lives in Ruins
Normal POV
July 27, 1997
Molly Weasley was extremely worried. Ron and Tonks should have been back already, if all went well, Arthur and Fred should be next.
"Mum!" Alex and Sam called together, pointing at the sky. A blue light had appeared, it was growing closer and closer, but nobody was clinging to the ancient plimsoll.
"That should've been–" Mrs. Weasley began, but she was interrupted by Ginny.
"–Dad and Fred," she finished. Mrs. Weasley nodded. They sat in silence again, until Harry and Hagrid came spinning into view. Mrs. Weasley and Ginny screamed in surprise and rushed down the stairs by the back door, with Alex and Sam closely following behind.
"Harry? You are the real Harry? What happened? Where are the others?" Mrs. Weasley cried.
"What d'you mean? Isn't anyone else back?" Harry panted, but Mrs. Weasley did not answer, it was etched upon her face.
"Harry!" the twins cried delightedly.
"The Death Eaters were waiting for us," he told Mrs. Weasley. "We were surrounded the moment we took off –they knew it was tonight– I don't know what happened to anyone else. Four of them chased us, it was all we could do to get away, and then Voldemort caught up with us–"
"Thank goodness you're all right," she said pulling him into a hug.
"Haven't go' any brandy, have yeh, Molly?" Hagrid asked shakily. "Fer medicinal purposes?"
She could have summoned it by magic, but she headed back to the house to fetch it. Harry turned to Ginny, and she answered his unspoken question.
"Ron and Tonks should have been back first, but they missed their Portkey, it came back without them," she pointed to a rusty oilcan on the ground nearby. "And that one," she pointed to the ancient plimsoll, "should have been Dad and Fred's, they were supposed to be second. You and Hagrid were third and," she glanced at her watch, "if they made it, George and Lupin ought to be back in a minute."
Mrs. Weasley reappeared with a bottle of brandy, and handed it to Hagrid, who downed it in one gulp.
"Mum!" Ginny shouted, pointing to a spot several feet away. Another blue light had appeared, Lupin and George appeared, spinning, followed by falling. Lupin was supporting George, who was unconscious and his face drenched in blood.
Harry ran forwards and grabbed George's legs. He and Lupin carried George into the Burrow, through the kitchen, and into the sitting room onto the sofa. As the lamplight fell on George's head, Ginny gasped, and Harry's stomach lurched.
"Mum, where's George's ear?" Alex asked peering at the hole on the side of George's head, his face and necked were covered in blood.
"It's gone, sweetheart," Mrs. Weasley answered, cleaning the blood with magic.
"Gone? Can't you make it come back?" Alex asked.
"No, it's been cursed off by Dark Magic, I can't regrow it," Mrs. Weasley answered.
"Oh." Alex and Sam sat quietly watching Mrs. Weasley and Ginny tend to George's wound.
"How is he?" Alex and Sam looked round to see Harry there.
Mrs. Weasley looked round at him too, and said, "I can't make it grow back, not when it's been removed by Dark Magic. But it could have been so much worse… he's alive."
"Yeah. Thank God," Harry said.
"Did I hear someone else in the yard?" Ginny asked.
"Hermione and Kingsley," Harry replied.
"Thank goodness," Ginny whispered.
There was crash from the kitchen.
"I'll prove who I am, Kingsley, after I've seen my son, now back off if you know what's good for you!" Mr. Weasley shouted. He burst into the living room, his bald patch gleaming, his glasses askew, Fred behind him, both pale but uninjured.
"Arthur!" Mrs. Weasley sobbed. "Oh thank goodness!"
"Fred!" Sam shouted happily. "That is Fred?"
"Yes, George is missing an ear, and he's on the couch," Alex said.
"How is he?" Mr. Weasley asked, dropping to his knees beside George. Fred gaped at his twin's wound. George stirred.
"How do you feel, Georgie?" Mrs. Weasley whispered.
George's fingers felt for the side of his head. "Saint-like," he murmured.
"What's wrong with him?" Fred croaked, looking terrified. "Is his mind affected?"
"Saint-like," George repeated. He opened his eyes and looked at Fred. "You see… I'm holy. Holey, Fred, geddit?"
Mrs. Weasley sobbed harder than ever. Colour flooded Fred's face.
"Pathetic," Fred told George. "Pathetic! With the whole wide world of ear-related humour before you, you go for holey?"
"Ah, well," George said, grinning at his mother. "You'll be able to tell us apart now, anyway, Mum." He looked around.
"Hi, Harry– you are Harry, right?"
"Yeah, I am," Harry said, moving closer to the sofa.
"Well, at least we got you back okay," George said. "Why aren't Ron and Bill huddled 'round my sickbed?"
"They're not back yet, George," Mrs. Weasley answered. George's grin faded. Harry motioned to Ginny, and they went outside. Alex and Sam sat on the floor playing with their Slinkys quietly until Ginny came in.
"Mum, Ron and Tonks are back, but they're okay," she said breathlessly. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley looked at each other then ran outside with Ginny, Alex, and Sam following. Both Mr. and Mrs. Weasley hugged Ron, before turning to Lupin and Tonks.
"Thank you, for our sons," Mrs. Weasley said.
"Don't be silly, Molly," Tonks said at once.
"How's George?" Lupin asked.
"What's wrong with him?" Ron inquired.
"He's lost–"
But the rest of Mrs. Weasley's sentence was drowned in general outcry. A Thestral had just flew into sight and landed a few feet from them. Bill and Fleur slid from its back, windswept, but unhurt.
"Bill! Thank God, thank God–"
Mrs. Weasley ran forwards, but the hug Bill bestowed on her was automatic. Looking directly at Mr. Weasley he said, "Mad-Eye's dead."
Nobody moved; nobody spoke. Alex and Sam looked confused.
"We saw it," Bill added. Fleur nodded, tears glistening down her cheeks. "It happened just after we broke out of the circle: Mad-Eye and Dung were close by us, they were heading north too. Voldemort –he can fly– went straight for them. Dung panicked, I heard him cry out, Mad-Eye tried to stop him, but he Disapparated. Voldemort's curse hit Mad-Eye full in the face, he fell backwards off his broom and– there was nothing we could do, nothing, we had half a dozen of them on our own tail–"
Bill's voice broke.
"Of course you couldn't have done anything," Lupin said.
They all stood looking at each other, Alex and Sam sitting contently pulling at the grass. At last, it seemed to dawn on everyone, that there was no point in waiting in the yard anymore. In silence, they followed Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, who were carrying Alex and Sam, back into The Burrow, and into the living room, where Fred and George were laughing.
"What's wrong?" Fred asked scanning their faces, as they came in. "What's happened? Who's –?"
"Mad-Eye," Mr. Weasley answered. "Dead."
The twins' grins faded into expressions of shock. Nobody seemed to know what to do. Tonks was crying quietly into a handkerchief. Hagrid, who had sat on the floor where he had the most space, was dabbing his eyes with his tablecloth-sized handkerchief.
Bill walked over to the sideboard and pulled out some glasses and a bottle of Ogden's Old Firewhisky, and poured pumpkin juice into two.
"Here," he said, and with a wave of his wand sent a dozen full glasses to everyone in the room, and handed Alex and Sam theirs, for they had appeared at his side the moment they saw pumpkin juice, and held the fifteenth glass aloft. "Mad-Eye."
"Mad-Eye," they said, including Alex and Sam.
"Mad-Eye," Hagrid echoed.
"So Mundungus disappeared?" Lupin asked. The atmosphere changed at once. Everyone looked tense, watching Lupin. Alex and Sam were confused.
"I know what you're thinking," Bill said, "and I wondered that too, on the way back here, because they seemed to be expecting us, didn't they? But Mundungus can't have betrayed us. They didn't know there would be seven Harrys, that confused them the moment we appeared, and in case you've forgotten, it was Mundungus who suggested that little bit if skullduggery. Why wouldn't he have told them the essential point? I think Dung panicked, it's as simple as that. He didn't want to come in the first place, but Mad-Eye made him, and You-Know-Who went straight for them: it was enough to make anyone panic."
"You-Know-Who acted exactly as Mad-Eye expected him to," Tonks sniffed. "Mad-Eye said he'd expect the real Harry to be with the toughest, most-skilled Aurors. He chased Mad-Eye first, and when Mundungus gave them away, he switched to Kingsley…"
"Yes, and zat eez all very good," Fleur snapped, "but still eet does not explain 'ow zey knew we were moving 'Arry tonight, does eet? Somebody must 'ave been careless. Somebody let slip ze date to an outsider. Eet eez ze only explanation for zem knowing ze date, but not ze 'ole plan."
She glared at them, tears still etched on her beautiful face, silently daring them to contradict her. No one did. The only sound being made was by Hagrid, who was hiccoughing from behind his handkerchief.
"No," Harry said, they all looked at him, surprised. "I mean… if somebody made a mistake, and let something slip, I know they didn't mean to do it. It's not their fault. We've got to trust each other. I trust all of you, I don't think anyone in this room would ever sell me to Voldemort." More silence followed
"Well said, Harry," Fred said.
"Yeah, 'ear, 'ear," George said, with half a glance at his twin.
Lupin was looking at Harry with an odd expression.
"You think I'm a fool?" Harry demanded.
"No, I think you're like James," Lupin said, "who would have regarded it as the height of dishonour to mistrust his friends."
"There's work to do. I can ask Kingsley whether–" Lupin said, addressing Bill.
"No," Bill said at once, "I'll do it, I'll come."
"Where are you going?" Tonks and Fleur said together.
"Mad-Eye's body," Lupin answered. "We need to recover it."
"Can't it–?" Mrs. Weasley began.
"Wait?" Bill finished. "Not unless you'd rather the Death Eaters took it?"
Nobody spoke. Lupin and Bill said good-bye and left.
"I've got to go too," Harry said, still standing.
"Don't be silly, Harry," Mrs. Weasley. "What are you talking about?"
"I can't stay here. You're all in danger while I'm here. I don't want–"
"But don't be so silly!" Mrs. Weasley said. "The whole point of tonight was to get you here safely, and thank goodness it worked. And Fleur's agreed to get married here rather than in France, we've arranged everything so that we can all stay together and look after you–"
"If Voldemort finds out I'm here–"
"But why should he?" Mrs. Weasley inquired.
"There are a dozen places you might be now, Harry," Mr. Weasley said. "He's got no way of knowing which safe house you're in."
"It's me I'm worried for!"
"We know that," Mr. Weasley said quietly, "but it would make our efforts tonight seem rather pointless if you left."
"Yer not goin' anywhere," Hagrid growled. "Blimey, Harry, after all we wen' through ter get you here?"
"Yeah, what about my bleeding ear?" George said, hoisting himself up on his cushions.
"I know that–"
"Mad-Eye wouldn't want–"
"I KNOW!" Harry bellowed.
A long and awkward silence followed, which Mrs. Weasley broke.
"Where's Hedwig, Harry?" she coaxed. "We can put her up with Pigwidgeon and give her something to eat."
"Wait 'til it gets out yeh did it again, Harry," Hagrid said. "Escaped him, fought him off when he was right on top of yeh!"
"It wasn't me. It was my wand. My wand acted of its own accord," Harry said flatly.
After a few minutes, Hermione spoke. "But that's impossible, Harry. You mean that you did magic without meaning to; you reacted instinctively."
"No," Harry said. "The bike was falling, I couldn't have told you where Voldemort was, but my wand spun in my hand and found him and shot a spell at him, and it wasn't even a spell I recognised. I've never made gold flames appear before."
"Often," Mr. Weasley began, "when you're in a pressured situation you can produce magic you never dreamed of. Small children often find, before they're trained–"
"It wasn't like that," Harry interrupted. He muttered something about fresh air and went outside.
Alex and Sam yawned simultaneously. Mrs. Weasley focused her attention on them.
"It's time for you two to go bed."
"But–"
"We want to–"
"No 'buts' about it, we'll be busy tomorrow, and you're both tired, and it's far past your bedtime. I'll be up in a few minutes to turn out the light."
When they stayed where they were, Mrs. Weasley said in a low voice, "Now."
"G'night," they grumbled before heading up the stairs.
Normal POV
August 1, 1997
The wedding of Bill and Fleur
Alex and Sam woke up earlier than anyone had expected, hoping for a bit more freedom before they had to wear their dresses. After a quick breakfast of toast, they went outside to play, but at eleven, Ginny and Hermione were sent to catch them. After ten minutes of continuous chasing, Ginny and Hermione managed to apprehend them.
"They were only outside for an hour, how did they get this covered in dirt?" Hermione asked incredulously. It was true, they were wearing t-shirts and shorts, their legs were covered in dirt, same with their arms, their faces were covered in dirt, and if you looked closely enough, you'd find dirt in their hair.
"You'd be surprised," Ginny answered with a laugh, and they brought the girls to the bathroom. Ginny passed Alex to Mrs. Weasley, and left to get ready. Mrs. Weasley quickly undressed Alex, and put her in the tub to get clean.
"I hate baths," she grumbled as Mrs. Weasley scrubbed her knees clean. "And I'm not s'pose to have one until it's dark."
"Alex, honey, if it was any other day, I wouldn't bath you until dark, but it's a special day today, and you must stay clean until tomorrow," Mrs. Weasley said, now scrubbing the dirt out of her elbows.
Sam laughed as Alex had her hair washed. Mrs. Weasley looked at her.
"Laugh all you like Sam, you're next."
Her amused look faded, and a mortified look replaced it. Mrs. Weasley rinsed out Alex's hair, took her out of the tub, and handed her to Hermione, who began to dry Alex's hair. When her mid-length hair was fully dry, Hermione threw a nightgown on her, and Mrs. Weasley passed her Sam. When Sam's hair was completely dry, Mrs. Weasley led the girls up to their room to put on their ivory-coloured dresses. The dresses were simple enough; made of satin, with little sleeves with lace at the end, knee-length with lace at the end, with a string of beads just above going around the whole dress, with two flowers to raise the beads, a ribbon around the middle with a flower (like a rose) in the middle on the front, a little pattern of flowers on the chest with beads hanging in the appropriate places, the back was simple too, the dress buttoned-up, and starting from the middle of the dress, in the middle, lace ran down the dress, the end of the dress about three inches longer than rest, the rest of the back was about an inch longer than the front, and when Mrs. Weasley tied the ribbon, there would be a bow.
Mrs. Weasley helped Alex into a pair of white stockings, while Hermione helped Sam into her stockings, followed by their white buckle-up shoes, and then finally the dresses themselves. Mrs. Weasley wasn't sure on what to do with their hair, but finally she decided on an up-do. She had just finished curling the last bit of Sam's hair when Madame Delacour walked in.
"Zey look très jolies," she said, not noticing the mutinous looks on Alex and Sam's faces. "You did a very good job on zair 'air."
"Thank you," Mrs. Weasley said, grabbing their baskets. "Hermione, why don't you go get ready, dear? We only have about two hours left until the guests begin to arrive." Hermione nodded and left the room. "You two will go sit with Ginny, Fleur and Gabrielle while I go get ready also."
"But Mum–"
"–we wanna go outside."
"We'll be outside the rest of the day, two more hours inside won't hurt you. Now go," Mrs. Weasley said pointing them out the door and up the stairs. Ginny found them a pack of crayons, and a colouring book to keep them entertained while she, Fleur, and Gabrielle got ready. Finally, at three, Mrs. Weasley allowed them outside, but only because Fred, George, Ron, and Harry could keep an eye on them. Shrieking with delight, they ran about chasing butterflies, trying to catch them in their bare hands. They followed at butterfly right to the front of the marquee, turned around to chase the butterfly but immediately stopped.
"Whoa, people," they said.
"Oh, blimey, brace yourselves– here they come, look."
Brightly coloured figures were appearing, out of nowhere, at the distant boundary of the yard. Within minutes, a line had formed, which began to wind its way up through the garden towards the marquee.
"Alex! Sam!" Mrs. Weasley called, now wearing a brand-new set of amethyst-coloured dress robes, with a matching hat. "Time for you to come back in!"
They ran back into the house, where Mrs. Weasley handed them their baskets, which were filled with red, pink, and white rose petals.
"Do you remember when you have to walk down the aisle?" Mrs. Weasley asked.
"After Ginny, before Fleur," Alex answered.
"Remember with every step, you throw some petals down," Mrs. Weasley reminded them. Monsieur Delacour who had been looking outside, said, "Eet iz time." They strolled across the yard to the front of the marquee Mr. and Mrs. Weasley sauntered up the aisle, waving at relatives, when they had taken their seats, Bill and Charlie stood up.
Gabrielle began to walk down the aisle, when she was halfway down, Ginny started to walk down, when she was halfway it was the twins turn. Fleur gave them a little nudge. They walked down the aisle dropping the flower petals along the way, smiling, but if you looked at their eyes, there was warning; call them anything that went against their tomboyish nature, and you were going to get it. The moment Alex and Sam were next to Ginny, the music swelled, and everyone turned to look at the back, except Alex and Sam, who didn't understand what the big fuss was about.
"Ladies and gentlemen," said a slightly sing-voice when Fleur and Monsieur Delacour reached the front. It was the same tufty-haired wizard who had presided over Dumbledore's funeral. "We are gathered here to celebrate the union of two faithful souls…"
"Yes, my tiara sets off the whole thing nicely," Auntie Muriel said in a loud whisper. "But I must say, Ginevra's dress is far too low-cut."
Ginny glanced round, grinning, winked at Harry, and faced the front again. Alex and Sam's minds wandered to what they would do, once they were freed from their dresses.
"Do you, William Arthur, take Fleur Isabelle…?"
Mrs. Weasley and Madame Delacour were sobbing quietly into scraps of lace, while trumpet-like sounds told everyone that Hagrid had taken out one of his own tablecloth-sized handkerchiefs.
"…then I declare you bonded for life."
The tufty-haired raised his wand high over the heads of Bill and Fleur, and a shower of silver stars upon them, spiralling around their now entwined figures. But Alex and Sam, being the little kids they are, didn't notice this, because they had looked away. As Fred and George led a round of applause, the golden balloons burst: birds of paradise and tiny, golden bells flew and floated out of them, adding their songs and chimes to the noise.
Normal POV
December 25, 1997
The Burrow felt… empty, despite the number of people in it. Bill and Fleur had opted to stay at Shell Cottage for their first Christmas as a couple, Charlie was back in Romania, Percy still refused to come home, and Ron, Harry, and Hermione were off somewhere doing Merlin knows what. In addition, Ginny had brought home the news that the Death Eaters had taken Luna Lovegood right off the Hogwarts Express.
Alex and Sam had received Pygmy Puffs (both purple, but Alex's was a darker shade than Sam's or Ginny's) from Fred and George, navy blue jumpers and homemade fudge from Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, some Chocolate Frogs from Ginny, assorted sweets and a new pair of pyjamas from Bill and Fleur.
At dinner, the missing people seemed to stand out; Bill and Charlie's absence wasn't too noticeable, because of their jobs and such, but the absence of Percy, Ron, Harry, and Hermione stood out. Mrs. Weasley had cried for a bit.
"What's wrong with Mum?" Alex had asked George.
"Oh, she's just upset that Percy, Ron, Harry, and Hermione aren't here, nothing to worry 'bout."
"Oh, where are Ron, Harry, and 'Mione?"
George shrugged his shoulders. "Dunno. No one does."
"And Percy's in London."
"Very good."
"Where's London?"
"Very far from here, but you've seen London, remember?"
Alex shook her head.
"It's where the joke shop is, and the train station."
"Oh."
Later in the evening, after crackers were pulled –Alex now had a sombrero, and Sam had a cowboy's hat– Fred, George, and Ginny were trying to teach Alex and Sam how to play Exploding Snap, while they listened to the wireless, but they gave up, and now were attempting to build a house of cards. They succeeded, but Alex noticed there was one card left, handed it to Ginny, who placed it on top. The house swayed, and in the end, it toppled, which resulted in all five of them having singed eyebrows.
"Let me see the damage," Mrs. Weasley said. Alex, Sam, and Ginny went over, their faces blackened, their red hair standing out. Mrs. Weasley sighed, and with a wave of her wand, their faces cleaned, and their eyebrows back to normal. Mr. Weasley came out of the kitchen with hot cocoa for everyone.
"Two hands," he reminded Alex and Sam theirs. They nodded.
After fifteen minutes, they were out cold. Ginny grabbed their mugs before any damage could be done. Fred and George picked them up to bring to them bed.
"Why do they feel heavier in their sleep?" Fred asked, picking up Alex.
"Because their not awake to help hold their weight," Mr. Weasley explained.
"Well, that explains it, I guess," Fred said.
Normal POV
December 28, 1997
Alex and Sam's fifth birthday
"Happy birthday, dear Alex and Sam, happy birthday to you," Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Bill, Fleur, Fred, George, and Ginny sang Alex and Sam blew out five candles each.
"What did you wish for?" Ginny asked.
"Can't tell you, otherwise, it won't come true," Alex said.
"Silly me, I forgot."
Mrs. Weasley began to cut the chocolate fudge cake.
"Here we go, a slice each for the birthday girls," Mrs. Weasley said, handing them each a plate with a scoop of homemade chocolate ice cream. "Eat quickly, so we can open your presents."
She handed cake and ice cream to everyone else and they began to eat.
Alex and Sam were very neat eaters (only because they hated getting clean), so, Fred, George, and Ginny attempted to change that. Each with a little bit of chocolate icing on their fingers, they quickly wiped a bit on Alex and Sam's faces.
"Hey!"
The next thing everyone knew was Fred, George, and Ginny were wiping cake and ice cream out of their eyes.
"What 'appened?" Fleur asked.
Mrs. Weasley looked at the twins shocked.
"Their first bit of accidental magic!" she cried.
"Just like Fred and George, except it was mud and the target was Percy," Mr. Weasley said.
"Oh, yeah," Fred said reminiscently.
"Good times, good times," George said. "Remember when we were five, you turned Ron's teddy bear into a spider?"
"We can do magic now?" Alex asked. Mrs. Weasley nodded.
Alex and Sam looked at each other, and said simultaneously, "Wicked."
"When do we go to Hogwarts?" Sam asked.
"Seven years from now," Mrs. Weasley answered.
"That long?" Alex said, disappointed.
"Yes, that long," Mrs. Weasley said. "Why don't we open your presents?
"Okay!"
Normal POV
Friday, May 1st, 1998
Aunt Muriel's home
9:30 pm
"Hello, Minister!" Percy bellowed, sending a jinx at Pius Thicknesse, who dropped his wand, and clawed at the front of his robes, apparently in terrible discomfort. "Did I mention I'm resigning?"
"You're joking, Perce!" Fred shouted, as the Death Eater he was duelling fell to three separate Stunning Spells. Thicknesse fell to the ground with spikes erupting all over his body, he seemed to be changing into some form of a sea urchin. Fred looked at Percy with glee.
"You actually are joking, Perce… I don't think I've heard you joke since you were–"
The air exploded. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Fred and Percy, plus the two Death Eaters, flew into the air. Some screamed and yelled. Part of the castle wall had been blasted away. Then another cry issued as Harry struggled to his feet, a cry that expressed agony which no curse, no spell, no jinx, no hex could cause.
"No– no– no!" Percy shouted. "No! Fred! No!"
Percy was shaking his brother, Ron kneeling beside them, and Fred's eyes stared without seeing, the ghost of his last laugh still etched upon his face.
"Alex! Alex! Alex, wake up! It was only a nightmare! Stop screaming!" someone shouted.
Alex's eyes fluttered open. Once her eyes focused in the semi-darkness she saw Fred and George kneeling in front of her bed, Ginny standing behind them, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley just behind her, and Sam sat on her bed, with a sleepy, but frightened look on her face.
Alex immediately flung her arms around her godfather's neck. Fred picked her up, and hugged her close.
"What's the matter, Als?" he asked.
"Don't go," she whispered.
"Where am I not supposed to go?" Fred asked.
"Sometime soon, there'll be a battle at Hogwarts, and you'll die there," Alex whispered into his ear, so no one else would hear.
"Is this about your nightmare? D'you want to talk about it?"
Alex shook her head.
"Why don't you go back to sleep? And when you wake up in the morning, I'll still be here, okay?"
Slowly, Alex nodded her head. Fred put her back down on her bed, and tucked her in. He looked at Sam, she had already gone back to sleep. His family had already left and had returned to their rooms.
"'Night, Fred. Love you," Alex said.
"Love you too, Als. Night," Fred said. He returned to his and George's room. He wasn't surprised to find George awake, waiting for him.
"So, what was her nightmare about?"
"She didn't say. She told me though, sometime soon, a battle will happen at Hogwarts, and I will die there," Fred said, grabbing a quill, ink, and some parchment.
"What're you doing?" George asked.
"Writing Alex a note, in case we're not here when she wakes up or any other day, Sam too," Fred explained.
"Why?"
"I've been thinking, you remember the night before Uncle Grant died?"
"Yeah, Alex woke up screaming like she did tonight."
"And the night Dumbledore died?"
"Mum said she woke up screaming like someone was murdering her," George said, not understanding where this was going.
"Exactly. What if she sees peoples death? The night before it happens?"
"Okay, say you're right? What about the night before Dad was attacked? Mum said she woke up to Alex screaming bloody murder. And Alex was two back then, there's no way she'd've comprehended what she saw."
"Well, Dad would've died if Harry hadn't had that dream, and Harry shouldn't have saw, so, Alex probably saw the version of Dad dying. If she did see it, she would've saw a great, big snake attacking Dad," Fred said. "And for the first couple of nightmares, she's too young to fully understand she's seeing the future. But now, she's beginning to understand and wants to warn me."
"She just might not want you to go in general, 'cause there's still a chance of anyone dying," George said logically.
"Or maybe she doesn't want be stuck here with Muriel with just Sam," Fred said grinning.
"That's the spirit, but let's face it, who would?"
"Exactly."
But at about eleven o'clock that they and Ginny received a message from Neville, they sneaked out of the house and Apparated (or in Ginny's case, Side-Along-Apparition) to the Hog's Head, and join the Battle of Hogwarts, where many would meet their doom.
Normal POV
May 9th, 1998
Fred's Funeral
It was a nice day, bright and sunny, not a cloud in the sky. The kind of day where kids would be outside playing.
But not Alex and Sam Weasley, who would normally be out from the time they got up until dark. No, today found them waiting inside The Burrow for two o'clock in the afternoon, when they would have to say goodbye.
Mrs. Weasley had dressed them simply enough. A nice, black t-shirt, and a nice pair of black dress pants, and their hair was braided.
The hours slowly passed, but finally, it was two o'clock.
"It's time," Bill said. Charlie grabbed Alex, while Percy grabbed Sam, and they headed outside. The Weasleys, Harry, and Hermione were dressed in dress robes. In the orchard, there were about fifty chairs. In front of all those chairs was the tufty-haired wizard, and right in front of him was Fred's coffin. Everyone else was already there, they had left the first row vacant for the Weasleys. Mrs. Weasley was being led to her seat by Mr. Weasley, followed by Bill and Fleur, then Charlie with Alex, Percy with Sam, followed by George, all alone, then Ron and Hermione, and finally, Harry and Ginny.
"Do you want your own seat?" Charlie asked Alex, before Percy sat down. Alex shook her head. She was already crying.
When the Weasleys (and Harry and Hermione) were seated, the tufty-haired began to speak. Alex and Sam stopped listening the minute he began to speak. They caught a few words, like 'too young to die', 'had only just begun to live' and 'brave'. They thought words like, 'funny', 'troublemaker', and 'caring', should've been included. After the tufty-haired wizard was finished speaking, some people went up to speak. Bill first, then George, Lee Jordan, and Harry. When Harry recalled the Yule Ball, a small chuckle escaped Angelina Johnson, and when he recalled the fireworks and swamp, quite a few people let out a chuckle. When the service was over, people could go up and say goodbye. Except no one brought Alex and Sam up, everyone thought they shouldn't see a dead body, well, everyone except Harry. They had gone up by themselves, but were too small to see anything. They were about to leave, when Harry came up behind them.
"Would you like to say goodbye?" he asked them quietly, squatting next to them. They nodded. Harry picked Alex up first, as she was Fred's goddaughter. She looked at Fred's peaceful face.
"What do I say?" she asked Harry.
"Whatever you want," Harry said.
She thought for a couple of seconds. "Goodbye, Fred. I miss you, but I know you're watching us. You should've listened to me."
"What did you tell him?" Harry asked.
"Not to go." Harry put Alex down, and picked up Sam.
"Goodbye, Fred. I miss you. Everybody's sad without you here, even Percy, we all miss you," Sam said. Harry set her next to her sister. They looked around, some people were laughing.
"Why're people laughing, Harry?" Alex asked.
"Sometimes, at a funeral, people tell funny stories about the person to people who had never heard before, or to remind people who had, so you remember the person for all the good things they did, and not just the bad," Harry explained.
"Oh."
They stuck to Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny like glue as they talked to people. Neville had come, as had Luna, so did Dean, and Seamus, other members of the DA had come, including Cho Chang.
Gradually, people began to leave. Oliver, Angelina, Alicia, Katie, Neville, and Luna volunteered to help clean up. When they had gone, everyone traipsed into the house, and went into the kitchen where Mrs. Weasley served the left over sandwiches for dinner.
At seven, unable to take the silence and boredom anymore, Alex and Sam went to bed.
Author's Note: Okay, I know the funeral sucked, as did Christmas, and I'm sorry. I just want to get this chapter up, so I can begin writing them when they're older. And I know the ending was crappy, I just didn't know where to end it. Criticize all you like in your reviews, just don't come after me with torches and pitchforks and I'll be happy. Next chapter, they will be eleven, but they won't be going to Hogwarts just yet, there are… issues. And confrontational problems between Mrs. Weasley and someone I've briefly mentioned in a previous chapter. Virtual Bruschetta bread to anyone who guesses correctly, or virtual anything with sugar. Don't ask about the Bruschetta bread, we're having it for dinner, 'cause my brother's not here.
One quick question, when do you think George and Angelina were married?