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CHAPTER 10.
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Hermione and Fred had a routine set up pretty soon after they had shifted and assumed their babysitting duties.
Since Fred was not the one to wake up early in the morning, it was Hermione who would wake the kids and make breakfast.
Fred had been surprised by her culinary skills. Being a Weasley meant having a hearty breakfast which was usually at the burrow or brought over by Mrs. Weasley and sometimes Angelina. But now with Hermione around, Fred started having more home cooked meals than he ever did. Its not like he dint know how to cook. He did. Mrs. Weasley had made sure of that when they had left to go live in their flat. It was just too cumbersome to cook all the time for for just one person.
She would bathe the kids and they would all have breakfast together. Fred would clean up the dishes and the house and Hermione would leave with the twins for class while Fred would lock up and head to the shop.
Hermione and the kids as usual had lunch at class and Fred would go back to the flat and warm the lunch Hermione would make along with breakfast for Fred to have later on.
After class, Hermione would either bring the twins home or they would go to Andromeda's with Teddy. Sometimes Fleur would take all of them and Victoire to her place.
Fred would close up by 5 and fetch the twins when ever they were out. He would then wash them up, show them the new products and give them some harmless pranks to play on their friends. He may have casually let it slip that they could also play pranks on Aunt Minny in class when she wasn't looking.
Hermione as usual would prepare dinner and the 4 of them would eat together. Most times it would be Hermione and Fred force feeding the twins because for some reason they would never eat without a fight.
Fred would do the dishes and Hermione would help kids with the homework and encourage them to draw, paint etc.
Both of them would tuck the kids in and then proceed to complete any of their respective work or watch TV or quite often make dessert for a late night snack because both of them had realised that they may be poles apart, getting on each others nerves and arguing all the time but besides the kids the other thing they had in common was an unholy love for anything sweet.
And contrary to what Fred had said earlier, he actually knew how to make plenty of desserts. And although at first Hermione refused to even touch anything made by him, her temptation got the better of her and they made a pact that the war would still be on but they would both stay clear from food related pranks. Also for the twins' sake. They dint want any of the kids accidentally eating something meant as a prank.
Fred was surprised at how living with Hermione actually wasn't a drag as he had thought to be. He had thought that living with a bookworm who was borderline neurotic about being perfect, he would be pulling out every red hair he had.
She let him clean the house however and whenever he could, didn't yell at him or judge him when he gave the kids stuff from the shop and taught them how be more efficient at pranking.
She had even helped with a smell product for their shop as she had promised. Hermione Granger! The one who would always threaten to write to their mother when Fred and George tried their products out on students in Hogwarts, actually helped him with a product! Miracled did happen!
Besides all that, she COOKED! Hell, he would gladly do all the work possible in exchange of having Hermione cook.
She was a bloody good one too. And she handled the kids very well. They may be his nephews, but Fred knew that being George's kids, even he alone wouldn't be able to handle them. Let alone maintain discipline , he'd mostly join them. So Hermione kept the kids pretty much grounded.
Not only that but he found himself enjoying her company. She was a good conversationalist and he would never admit, but he enjoyed hearing her talk about all things muggle. About her old life , various muggle stories , muggle inventions etc.
He found himself making excuses and not going out drinking or partying with his friends quite often. He rather enjoyed his dessert making sessions and night time talks.
Hermione herself was surprised too at how easily Fred had accepted his share of chores in the house. She had expected him to throw tantrums or just ignore all that she said being the prat that she knew him to be in school. But turned out he was fine with the distribution of duties and was grateful to her for minding the kids in George and Angie's absence.
She enjoyed his desserts tremendously. Surprising not only did he make them well but he also taught her how to make them. She was good with food but somehow had never tried her hand at sweets. But now almost every other day they would stay late till night eating what they had made.
He wasn't what she had imagined. She had pictured living with a spoilt overgrown child who loved jokes. When she had shifted she had thought that she'd be baby sitting 3 not 2 kids. But in truth, Fred had assumed equal responsibility with the kids like an adult.
He wasn't all jokes and laugh's. Although she found herself laughing quite a bit when she was around him. Her weekdays were not so long and monotonous as they had been. And she had discovered something that probably only George knew till now.
Fred Weasley liked to read.
She was so shocked when one day she had returned home early from dinner with Luna, Fred had tucked the kids in and was sitting by the fireplace, reading. She had found out then that although he and George were essentially the same person, the difference between them was that George was great at charms and dint enjoy reading for leisure while Fred was good at potions and loved reading for fun.
They had kept this reading habit of Fred's a secret because they had to maintain their 'reputation'. Hermione had rolled her eyes at this when she heard that. But couldnt help smiling all the same.
Then feeling bolder, Fred had gone on to tell her that he had in fact , actually read Hogwarts, A history cover to cover quite a few times.
When she heard this she actually had to sit down. In all her years at Hogwarts, she had not known one other person who had read the book and if anyone would've told her that Fred Weasley was that person she would have laughed it off.
But turns out reading about Hogwarts made them efficient pranksters. And Fred boasted that George and he knew the castle along with all their secret passages inside out thanks to that book and a lot of midnight excursions they took.
After that there was no stopping Hermione. She questioned him on the types of books he read and what he liked and disliked. She offered to let him borrow some of her muggle books since he had shown interest in them.
Meanwhile, even though things were going great between the two and they were now more than civil with each other, neither had forgotten the war.
Every now and then Hermione's hair would change shape and colour, once when ever she attempted to say the word 'homework' only cats meowing noises would come out of her mouth. Needless to say that day the kids had no homework. Once Fred had hidden the bathroom with a special charm and whatever Hermione did, she could just not find it. Desperate for relief, after searching high and low and trying all revealing spells she knew in vain, she shot a dirty look at the smirking Fred and apparated to her own flat and ran stumbling to her own bathroom.
Fred, in turn had turned bald, lost some height, forgotten the cost of his products one day and had handed out products for free to almost 30 customers before Lee had to use force on him and body bind him for the rest of the day lest he give away everything incurring them a hefty loss. And to match his bathroom trick, Hermione thought that since he made the bathroom disappear she would make it appear in his room. So there were showers at every corner on his walls and ceiling propelling jets of water at intervals. He slept on the couch that night.
Even though the pranks infuriated the both of them they refused to back down and let the other have the satisfaction winning. So they kept at it. Although they now openly discussed and appreciated a good prank together once in a while.
One day Fred came home early leaving Lee to shut the shop. He had left a book at home that he needed to study before making a potion he needed for a new product.
He popped into the living room and saw Hermione and the twins all cuddled together on couch. Dan was sleeping with his head on her lap and legs on the couch while Bruce had his head on her other shoulder and her arm was around him in a protective hug. Fred smiled at the sight of his favourite bookworm and favourite nephews together. She was so good with kids. She' be a great mother some day.
Wait a minute. Did he think of her as HIS bookworm. And what was it to him what kind of a mother she would be. Shaking his head he looked at her again.
They had probably fallen asleep to Hermione reading to them from the book that lay open on her lap.
She was wearing a long checked button down shirt that came below her knees and no pants. Her legs were on the table in front of the couch and for the first time Fred noticed how long and slender they were. Her toenails were painted a bright red. Undoubtedly Ginny had forced her to paint them that colour. There was no way Hermione would willingly use red. But it looked good in contrast to her porcelain skin.
Hermione's now long brown hair was no longer as bushy as it had been in school. It had tamed a tad bit and was in a clip tied high but a few rogue tendrils had slipped and framed her face slightly on both sides. One rather thick lock of hair covered her right eye. And suddenly Fred had this irresistable urge to move the offending lock of hair that was blocking his vision of her face.
Jumping at his own thoughts he shook his head and mumbled to himself that he had seen her face plenty of times and there was no need to go about removing hair off other peoples faces when they were sleeping even though it was very tempting to do so.
Clearing the soup bowls and mug of tea that was on the table, he placed a warm blanket that covered the 3 of them and went in his room to read the book he had come for.
He barely got any reading done. For some reason he was unable to fathom, his thoughts were filled with those of an innocent sleeping form whose face radiated peace and joy and locks of brown not so very bushy hair.
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A more informative filler type chapter rather than anything concrete.
But had to let you'll know whats going on between the 2 caretakers!
And Fred is starting to get observant now!
Its not going to be all about the kids and pranks now !
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