"You're joking Percy! You're actually joking!" Fred gasped in pure shock and delight.

Unfortunately he didn't have any more time to process the joy that he felt at his brother gaining his marbles back, not that Fred was sure Percy ever had any in the first place, but that's an aside. Instead, he felt more than heard the explosion.

A wave of heat enveloped him.

Pain. White hot pain.

Then nothing.

Blackness.

A sort of floating sensation.

"-ed! Fred!"

More blackness.

"He's still-"

A warm feeling wrapped over his body.

"No, no, no. Come back."

Fred was comfortable. It felt like his bed. He could hear George breathing in the bed next to his. His mum was busy shouting at Ron and making breakfast. Some other chatter that he didn't recognize was audible too. Maybe someone stopped by. He didn't really care. All he wanted was to sleep.

"Have we found Ron yet?"

Why would Ron be missing? He never missed breakfast. It was his favourite meal, after supper and lunch. Mmm, food. Now that he thought about it, Fred felt hungry. He tried to open his eyes but he couldn't. He tried to roll over but he couldn't.

Then a wave of realization hit him. Hogwarts, the battle, the wall exploding... and then nothing.

Was he dead?

Internally he frowned. It didn't really feel like being dead. Not that he knew for sure but this just seemed strange. Dead would be all... something.

He didn't think this was something.

Maybe they should make a fake death product. It could be used as a joke and a tool to escape the Death Eaters. He'd run it by George first but Fred figured it sounded like a good idea.

But didn't death mean you didn't feel pain anymore? Cause Fred was pretty sure that half his head wasn't supposed to burn like this.

"Oh, Georgie. He's alive."

That muffled voice sounded like mum. And someone was alive. That was good.

But the pain.

Fred tried it once again to open his eyes and slowly, they opened a crack. Everything was blurry and all he could make out was a face identical to his. Well, they weren't identical anymore, not since George's ear got blown off.

Fred blinked slowly and twisted a grin onto his face. He had to show people that this, whatever this was, hadn't changed him. "Gave you a bit of a scare there did I?"

"Oh Fred!" Mum exclaimed. "How do you feel?"

Everyone started clamouring at once and Fred couldn't hear them all. He slowly sat up, staring all the while at George, who helped him by giving Fred something to hold onto.

George was staring at Fred with an unreadable expression on his face. And that wasn't normal because Fred could always read his face.

Several potions were passed to him and he downed them, breaking eye contact with George. Fred glanced at mum.

"A bit unbalanced really. That explosion about knocked the stuffing out of me. But I'll be back on my feet in no time." Fred sounded a little hollow even to himself. Not because he had been injured, even though he didn't know what way he was injured, but because of the look on George's face.

"What's all happened? Did we win?" Fred asked, trying to lighten his mood. He hated feeling this way. But when everyone was gone he would talk to George.

Dad cleared his throat. "The wall exploded and knocked you out... and injured you. We thought you were dead for a bit, and you were buried under rubble. We haven't won, not yet, but You-Know-Who has given an hours respite so we can give up Harry."

Fred nodded and again felt lopsided. He rubbed his hands over his face and froze when he felt cloth under his fingertips. He patted along the side of his head until he realized that the bandage only covered half his head. All his family was staring at him with worried expressions, everyone but George. George almost looked satisfied, which was strange.

Fred raised an eyebrow.

George twitched his lip.

Fred touched his head and understood now.

He understood the expression that he couldn't read before. He understood the satisfaction that George was displaying even through the worry.

Of course he understood.

George was his twin.

His identical twin.

Fred grinned a little. "I think I like this."

Mum almost looked angry, but then switched to very worried. "Did it affect his brain too?"

George smirked, the first positive expression that Fred had seen from him since waking up.

Fred smirked back. "Don't worry mum, I'm completely whole. Still as sane as I ever was and even more holey."

"I actually think I'm holeier that you, because I've been holey for longer." George retorted.

Fred was happy. He had never before thought he could be happy to be missing an ear but here he was. "Yeah? Well I've always been the better looking one, now I'll be the better looking holey twin."

"Fred, we're identical. We're identical..." George trailed off.

"Yeah, I know." Fred said softly. It wasn't like him to be this mushy in front of other people, but he couldn't help it.

Eventually people wandered off to help others or to mourn their friends, but George stayed. Soon it was just the two of them.

Fred turned completely serious. "Georgie I'm sorry if you thought I was dead. I wouldn't want to go through that and I don't want you to ever again."

George stared at him. "I did think it Freddy. But only for a minute. I had to believe that you would make it. Mum... was very distraught. You were out for a while. A good half hour."

Fred sighed. "If we both survive the rest of the night, we better be a bit kinder to everyone for a while. But, now they can't tell us apart anymore."

George cracked a grin again. "I missed that."

"Me two."

The was a short silence.

"I had a thought for another product. A fake death one. But I don't know if it's such a good idea. I don't want parents to sue us." Fred mused.

George's voice cracked. "Yeah. Best leave that one alone."

Fred wrapped an arm around his twin. "Hey, I'm not going anywhere and neither are you."

George nodded and reciprocated the gesture. "That's an order."

"Gred?"

"Yeah Forge?"

"We are still whole. The both of us together won't be anything but that."

"Yeah."

"Remember that Gred. We're still whole."

"'ear, 'ear." George replied.

Fred smirked. They could conquer the world if they wanted. And all because they matched each other.