Title: Beware of Potions

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Summary: Fred and George create a new product in the summer before their 6th year, but when one of them samples it, they find that it has far different effects than they'd hoped for.

Remember me? I am SO sorry for abandoning this and all of you for so long! Stupid life… Anyways, I hope that everyone is doing well and that you're still interested in this story. To any new readers, welcome and please let me know what you think! I am worried about this chapter because it was hard to write for me… they all are, but nevertheless…

LOL Cristina Weasley ~ Ha habido un error en capítulo 16 – lo siento. Ahora, me intento revivir a Fred. How's that for google translate? My Spanish… muy terrible… someone review in Japanese, quickly!

Chapter Eighteen

"Thanks for all your help there, Snape," Wormtail bit out as he lowered his wand. Across from him in the clearing was Fred, who had dropped to the floor just moments before. "Now we'll have to deal with it ourselves."

Severus sneered at the other man and replied, "I do believe that you should be the one dealing with it, seeing as how you were the incompetent fool that could only subdue a mere child by killing him."

Wormtail glared but said no more as he moved in the direction of the house. Severus clenched his hand into a fist as the filthy rat stepped over Fred's body. As discreetly as he could, he moved his wand over Fred's still form as he crept past the boy. He had worked tirelessly in an effort to somehow prevent this situation from happening, and though he had tried to prepare for it and had done all he could, he wasn't entirely certain that it had worked. There would be no way to check if he had cast his own spell over Fred until Wormtail was clear of them.

Grudgingly, he trudged up the hill behind Wormtail while considering if sending out a Patronus to Dumbledore would be cause for suspicion. The old man would surely be impressed with his desire to help the boy, even though the headmaster had expressly told him to steer clear of it for his own good. His thoughts were interrupted by a blast of wand light that shot towards them. Wormtail dove out of the way dramatically as Severus put up a shield to protect himself from it.

"Have you been taking lessons from Potter, Wormtail? Diving out of the way when you have a perfectly functional wand on you?" Severus scoffed at his unwanted companion.

Wormtail ignored his comment in favor of firing back his own spells at their opponent. It seemed that they were not welcome, and Severus found himself hoping that the encounter would go poorly for Wormtail so that he could verify his suspicions about Fred. At this point in the situation, Severus was almost more curious to see if he could have found something to best the killing curse than he was worried about the boy's actual life.

Growing tired of the barrage of spells and hexes that were coming their way, Severus fired off a blasting curse that decimated the front porch of the house, if it could be called a house, which caused their opponent to stumble out onto the grass. The man was paper thin with dull, brown hair and would have looked completely normal if not for the slightly deranged look on his face.

He whipped his wand around and sent a curse toward the two Death Eaters that looked toxic in nature, but the spell was cut short by another of Severus' shield spells. He was about to fire a stunner at the enraged man when a brilliant blast of green light lit up from his left. Their opponent dropped to the ground as the killing curse struck him, not even having the time to look surprised at his defeat.

Wormtail was breathing harshly with his wand still pointed at the dead man when Severus commented dryly, "And how, pray tell, do you intend to get the information that we were sent to retrieve?"

The rat-like man stuttered angrily before turning to march back to the clearing that they'd originally arrived at. Severus once again found himself in awe of the man's sheer intellect.

The clearing was completely silent as they stepped into it and Wormtail headed straight to Fred's body. Against his will, Severus found himself holding his breath in worried anticipation of what Wormtail would do or find. The spell that he had cast just as the killing curse was cast had not been noticed earlier, since it was nearly invisible unless one was looking for it. Regardless, if Wormtail found evidence that Severus had somehow tried to spare the boy…

Then again, he needn't worry. Wormtail was an incompetent fool after all.

Wormtail pressed his fingers to Fred's neck and almost recoiled at the touch. "He's already cold as the night!"

Severus released the breath he'd been holding at the knowledge that the spell he had cast at least worked in one way. Feeling the need to mock the idiot once again, he said, "What did you expect, Wormtail? As is usually the case, bodies tend to lose their heat when you kill them. I imagine his temperature would be much more tolerable if you had been capable of something other than murder…" At this, Wormtail directed a glare his way. "Granted, I can only imagine how terrifying he must have seemed to you. A boy with no wand and little else in the way of defense… The Dark Lord will surely be impressed."

He could tell that Wormtail wanted nothing more than to snap at him to shut up, but even the rat knew better than to tempt him. Still glaring ridiculously, Wormtail stood and said, "Let's get back already."

With that, the other man disapparated from the clearing, leaving Severus alone with Fred. He stepped towards the teen and waved his wand diagnostically, looking for any signs that he had succeeded in possibly saving the boy's life. Just as Wormtail had done before, he rested two fingers against Fred's neck, quickly becoming shocked at just how cold his skin was. Beneath the freezing chill that completely surrounded Fred, he could read nothing. No signs of life at all.

Severus stood slowly and lifted his wand to send a Patronus out to Dumbledore. He stated their location and, with a last glance at the frozen teen on the floor of the clearing, he too disapparated.


George and Lee had reluctantly traversed the hallways to Snape's classroom that morning, neither of them really feeling up to dealing with potions this early on a Monday. Percy had left just after breakfast with assurances to write them if he thought of anything while he was at work. Since there was nothing the two sleepy Gryffindors could do, they stood just outside the door with their equally sleepy classmates, wondering how and why they had managed to be early enough to have to wait.

"I think we may have jinxed him, George," Lee said quietly, using his wand to check the time every few seconds in the hope that class would be cancelled.

"Either that or he's got something truly dreadful planned for us…" George remarked.

A rather annoying Slytherin girl giggled and said, "I hope he'll teach us to make love potions someday!" A few other girls, and sadly, even some Gryffindors, laughed and giggled along with her.

Lee rolled his eyes and commented, "Ha! Any love potion that Snape would make would be sure to disappoint you!"

"Perhaps he'd make a potion to make you fall in love with 'the subtle art of potion-making'," George added, snickering.

"Or a potion to fall in love with people who only have greasy hair!" Lee said, laughing outright at that idea.

"Or maybe even a potion that-"

"Would enable you to understand the language certain creatures, such as birds?" An amused voice cut in over George's comment and everyone paused to look over.

"Headmaster!" Someone exclaimed. The old man was standing just behind the crowd with his phoenix, Fawkes, on his shoulder. When he smiled at them and moved to open the classroom door, everyone had to refrain from actually cheering and whipping up some confetti to throw. George and Lee didn't refrain, naturally, but everyone else tried.

Dumbledore stood at the door as the students entered and when George walked by, he said, "Good to see you feeling a bit better today, Mr. Weasley."

George smiled at him before taking his seat next to Lee in the front of the classroom. Yesterday had done him some good, even though he wouldn't admit it out loud. Being able to discuss things with his closest friend and one of his family members yesterday had released some of the pressure that he'd been feeling on his chest as of late. That wasn't to say that he wasn't still upset and worried about his twin, but it felt that the loss was easier to bear now than before. Granted, he knew more of the situation now. He had seen Fred just a few short days ago, albeit he hadn't recognized him, but regardless of that, he had seen him and it looked like he was okay.

As reluctant as he was to the idea, George realized that the best thing he could do was to help think of ideas and wait for something to happen. Just the thought of waiting made his heart ache and he leaned over the desk for a moment to collect his thoughts. He had to believe that he'd see Fred again soon and that his twin would be alright.

He glanced back up to see that Dumbledore had spelled the ingredients to today's potion on the board. The old man's wrinkly face smiled out at them broadly before pointing to Fawkes, who was still on his shoulder. "Many of you have seen Fawkes before. Fawkes is a phoenix, and this form that he is in is fairly matured, which is probably his most beautiful phase. Do any of you know anything else about phoenixes?"

A Slytherin student to George's right raised her hand and said, "Their tears can heal, can't they?"

Dumbledore awarded Slytherin five points before adding on, "Indeed they can. They can stop even the most deadly venom, as one of Hogwarts' students has already observed." The Gryffindors smirked at this, knowing the old man was speaking of Harry Potter. Of course Harry would get to experience that.

Lee raised his hand enthusiastically to provide more information. George chuckled quietly at him, though he too recognized that this was probably their only chance to gain points in Potions class. Dumbledore motioned for Lee to speak with a wave of his hand.

"Can't they transport you to different places?" Lee asked.

Dumbledore seemed to laugh a bit before saying, "Now I believe your actual Potions professor would say something along the lines of, 'Are you asking me or telling me, Mr. Jordan?'"

Lee grinned and responded, "No sir, I think he'd probably just take points." The rest of the class, even a few Slytherins, snickered at that, mainly because it was true.

"Indeed though, you are correct. Fawkes has provided me aid to travel quickly several times, though when I do, he tends to want several treats…" Dumbledore trailed off and looked sideways at the phoenix. "I must ration yours treats, my friend, lest you become too large to carry us both."

Fawkes trilled indignantly and flew off of Dumbledore's shoulder, only to land on the back of Snape's chair.

The class laughed at the interaction between Dumbledore and his pet for a moment before Dumbledore asked them another question. "Now tell me, what do you think would be a benefit of being able to speak to creatures in the bird family?"

Everyone thought for a moment before George raised his hand and, when called on, answered, "You could ask them if they've seen anything from the air, if you're looking for something."

"Excellent idea, Mr. Weasley!" Dumbledore exclaimed, awarding Gryffindor another five points. George and Lee shared a look, knowing that Snape would be enraged to find that two of his tricksters had managed to earn points in his class.

"Today we'll be brewing this potion and then trying it out to see if we can ask Fawkes a question or two. If everyone can get their supplies and get started, we should be able to finish nearly halfway through class, at which point you can either leave early or continue to pester my dear Fawkes."

Everyone's faces held grins at the thought of a shortened Potions class and it wasn't long before the class got to work. The potion looked fairly simple since it only had about six ingredients, but the mixing of those ingredients was more complex than they were used to. The Headmaster was very helpful though by walking around and offering tips and pointers here and there. It was obvious from his extensive knowledge of this potion that he himself had brewed it a number of times.

After about forty-five minutes, nearly everyone had a perfect potion and those that did not, had achieved at least a satisfactory result. Dumbledore said that theirs may translate the speech into a slightly different dialect, but not to worry, since it was only their first attempt at it. He gave them a few minutes to brainstorm a question or two, and then he told them that once they had one in mind, they were to drink a small gulp of the potion and ask Fawkes something.

"What are you going to ask Fawkes?" Lee asked quietly.

George shrugged his shoulders and replied, "I guess I could see what it would take to bribe him to poop on all the Slytherins." This comment was met with an amused, yet disapproving look from the Headmaster, so George smiled apologetically and looked back down at his table.

"I'm going to ask him what the funniest thing is that he's ever seen the Headmaster doing!" Lee laughed.

Just at that moment, while most of the class was still devising their questions, a bright light shot out from a corner, startling some of the other students. Several people recognized it as a Patronus, while several screamed and backed away from it. As it got closer to Dumbledore, George and Lee could see that it took the form of a doe. The doe stopped just a couple of feet from the Headmaster and everyone was silent as the old man bent his head as if listening to something.

Dumbledore's face, old and wrinkled as it was already, drained of color and he turned to look directly at the doe. He nodded his head gravely and muttered, "Thank you, my friend." As he did so, the Patronus dissipated where it stood and Dumbledore stood upright and gazed out at the class.

"Students, forgive me, but I must take leave as an urgent matter has come up. Please be responsible and clean up your areas, bottle your potions, and leave them for Professor Snape." With that, the Headmaster strode out of the classroom and left the confused students where they stood.

"What do you think that was about?" Lee muttered as he started packing up his ingredients.

George looked at him blankly, his mind firing through all of the possibilities. The only thing that he could think of was that it could possibly be about Fred. If that was true, then there was no way that George was going to stand by and do nothing.

"Lee, I have to go check," George said, already moving towards the door.

Lee opened his mouth to speak but shut it as George had already left the room. He turned to Angelina and said hurriedly, "Can you please please please pack up our stuff for us?" Without waiting for a response, he turned and ran after George. He bolted up the hallway in time to just overhear George asking Dumbledore about the message that he'd received.

"Was it about Fred? Is everything okay? Can you-"

Dumbledore stopped and turned to face George, looking much older than he had five minutes ago. "Yes, my boy, the message was about your brother. And before you ask, no, I cannot take you with me to where I must go."

George seemed frozen in place, unable to say anything. Lee stepped forward and asked, "Is he alright? Are you bringing him back here?"

The two Gryffindors noticed that the twinkle had left Dumbledore's eyes, and George couldn't stop a terrible sense of foreboding that was creeping through his heart.

"I will bring him back here. Meet me in the infirmary if you will," and with that, Dumbledore again swept off up the hallway.

Lee turned his gaze towards George and noticed that he looked terribly pale. Lee couldn't blame him for being worried; the look on Dumbledore's face and his complete evasion of the question about Fred's wellbeing was somewhat alarming. Though Lee could understand how George would immediately think the worst, it was still alarming to see his friend be this pessimistic about anything.

Gently, Lee took George's arm and guided him up towards the infirmary. He was thankful that everyone was currently in class at the moment, except for the rest of the Potions students who were probably still cleaning everything up. The walk to the infirmary was spent in silence, which worried Lee even more, though he knew better than to try and disturb it.

Madam Pomfrey greeted the two boys quickly and led them to sit near the windows so that they wouldn't be in her way. They watched halfheartedly as she bustled about, trying to clear up things that had been left out and also leaving some things out that had been put away. Lee concluded that she must have known about the reasons behind Dumbledore's abrupt departure. The whole time that she spent moving about the infirmary, George hadn't said a word.

They hadn't been there more than twenty minutes when the doors to the infirmary opened once again. This time, Dumbledore walked in with Professor Lupin of all people following behind him. George shot to his feet, not from seeing his old professor, but from seeing what he was carrying in his arms. It was Fred.

George hurried over to the bed that Lupin was laying Fred on and stood next to him, staring at his twin's face. Fred wasn't awake, and he looked more pale and worn out than George felt. Several small scratches and a bruise littered Fred's face and arms, and his clothes looked like he'd been wearing them for weeks, which he probably had. He also noticed that Fred was much thinner than he used to be. He wasn't overly so, but it was a distinct enough difference from how George looked that it was obvious.

Cautiously, George reached out to pick up Fred's hand. The second his fingers touched his twin's skin, he recoiled, staring at his brother dumbly for a moment. Fred's skin was frozen to the touch. Earlier in the hallway, George had felt a foreboding squeezing his heart, but that was nothing compared to the terror that gripped him now.

Fred's skin was frozen. George felt along his wrist for any movement, anything that would show that he was alive. There was nothing. He could feel himself slipping and distantly noticed that someone had pushed a chair up for him to fall into. Shakily, he moved a hand up to touch Fred's face and felt that same frozen chill again. Breathing grew more and more difficult as he held his hand still over Fred's face in a desperate attempt to feel something, even one small breath of air flowing out, but again, there was nothing.

George couldn't breathe. He gripped Fred's arm that was closest to him with both hands and pressed his face against his twin's chest. He felt himself shaking and though the chill was intense, he knew it wasn't just that.

He felt a hand on his shoulder, a hand that was shockingly warm compared to Fred's skin. George didn't look up. There wasn't anything that he needed to listen to and there certainly wasn't any point in pretending to care. Nevertheless, the hand stayed where it was.

A gentle, calming voice washed over him and he found himself reluctantly grabbing onto each word as it they were little lifelines in the sea of despair. "My boy, all may not be as it seems…"

George wanted so desperately to believe that, to welcome the thought and let hope resurface in his mind. The hand move in small circles on his shoulder and the comfort only made George choke back a sob and grip his brother's arm tighter. Despite the pain though, he kept those words circling through his mind. 'All may not be as it seems…' he thought, 'all may not be as it seems…'

It took all of his willpower not to scream at the old man, 'What the bloody hell else could it possibly mean!' Instead of vocalizing the thought though, he simply nodded his head slowly and clung pathetically to that small bit of hope.


Okay, I realize that this chapter is shorter than usual, and I apologize, but it just felt like the right place to end it and I was getting depressed anyways. Please drop a review and let me know what you think, what you liked or disliked, or just tell me how your day was! I love to hear about peoples' days!