Hello! I tried to get this out as soon as I could, and I believe I have sparked my interest in this story again :) There will be about 6 more chapters, then a few one-shots of the girls finding out they're expecting, and other mayhem. Then … a sequel :)

I've begun adding the dates the chapter is in to help keep track of everything happening. I will be going back to previous chapters to fix this as well.

.: *Aparecium*\:.

August, 1998

*.*.*

Hermione woke up for the second time today, much warmer and happier than earlier. The room was much brighter with the sun facing directly into the window. Shifting carefully, Hermione stretched her legs, finding them pinned down. Lifting her head off Fred, Hermione looked down at the foot of the bed where their feet were tangled together. Treacle was curled over her foot, purring happily in a patch of sunlight. Smirking, Hermione rolled back into Fred's chest, humming into his shoulder. His arm came up from around her waist, petting her hair back to place a kiss against her temple.

"Good morning," he croaks, his voice rough from misuse. Hermione peers up at him, smiling as he tries to open his eyes fully.

"Morning," she says, placing a kiss on his chest before propping herself up, "we should really get dressed sometime today."

"Nah," he says, eyes finally opening properly, "I'm totally open to a day in bed."

"Ginny and I are meeting up later."

"Okay, then I'll stay in bed, and you go out."

Hermione gave him a smack on the arm, teasing out a smile from him, "We're going to my parents house to find my mum's wedding gown."

Fred was silent, but Hermione waited for a reaction. Bulldozing forward without waiting for the other's opinion was what caused last night's misunderstanding.

"Oh,"

"You ok?" Hermione asks, not sure how to read Fred's reaction.

"Yup, I'm," he coughs, clearing his throat, "totally normal."

Hermione lifted a brow at him, not even bothering to hide her smirk, "Are you imagining me in a muggle dress again?"

He grins up at her, "No…"

"That's alright, just remember you're not allowed to actually see me in it until our wedding." She says consolingly, patting his hair back. Fred pouted, pulling her down onto his front.

"Who made that rule up? That's dumb."

"Some muggle tradition. Which we are sticking to, mister." poking his sternum to make her point, Fred catches her finger in his hand, pulling her hand out from under her. Hermione lets out a shriek, landing flat against him, able to feel the tremors of his laughter in his stomach. "Alright, get up. You're obviously awake enough to be laughing."

Fred groans playfully, but dutifully swings his legs around to get up. Unfortunately, Fred had been unaware of the extra presence on the bed, and accidentally kicked Treacle in the side. The kitten sprang up with a wicked hiss, swiping at Fred's toe when it rose from the blanket.

"Bloody hell, where did that thing come from?!" Fred sprang from the bed, pointing accusingly at the cat. Treacle sat back on her haunches, licking at her front paw laboriously. Fred looked from Treacle to a smirking Hermione, "Has that thing been in here the whole time?"

"Of course."

"We just — Hermione, did we just shag in front of a cat?" Fred looked so disturbed Hermione burst out laughing, moving to reach into her bag for a change of clothes. Fred stood staring at Hermione, finger still pointing accusingly at Treacle. "I thought George got rid of it ages ago!"

Hermione looked at Fred over her shoulder, "Did you really expect George to get rid of a cat?"

Fred drooped, pouting at her, "Yes."

"Well," she shrugs on a shirt and moves back in front of him, "better get used to it, since Crooks will be moving in eventually too."

Fred's pout only became more pronounced, but it disappeared as soon as Hermione gave it a kiss. He sighed in resignation, and nodded. The cats had won.

.: *Aparecium*\:.

Hermione sent Ginny an owl after she and Fred had a late breakfast; or early lunch if she had looked at a clock. Ginny told her to meet her in Diagon Alley by Fortescue's at one, so Hermione was tucking the food away while evading Fred's wandering hands.

"Fred, I need to leave if I'm not going to stand Ginny up."

"I'll put everything way if you come a sit down with me."

Hermione looked at him, debating if that was a good idea, and decided it definitely would not be. "Why don't you send an owl to that reporter, and you and George could have her come over this afternoon during the evening lull? Once I'm done with Ginny, I'll stop by and we could go and get dinner down the Alley?"

Fred smiled, delighted at the idea, "Sounds like a plan. I'll send one of the store owls after you've left."

"Alright, well, I'm going to head out then. Have a good day." Leaning down for a quick peck, Hermione Apparated away before Fred could try to snag her again. The Alley twisted into sight, the sunlight warm and reflecting off the sparse puddles leftover from the night's rain showers. The street was busy enough that the bustle of people was thick enough for Hermione to fit herself in between bodies, sidestepping and moving around everyone until she was standing in front of Fortescue's ice cream shop.

Ginny was already standing in the doorway, a small handbag around her shoulder and Teddy perched on her hip. They were both facing inside the shop, Ginny waving Teddy's hand merrily, giving the little boy a kiss when he grinned back. The old man behind the counter looked very excited, and Hermione had to hazard a guess he was going to be telling every customer after them about meeting Ginny Weasley.

"Hello!" Hermione called, waving when Ginny turned around with Teddy. The little boy's arms waved around, like he couldn't figure out the emotions he was feeling. Ginny grinned, stepping down from the door towards Hermione, exchanging Teddy over to her.

"Good morning, Mr. Lupin. Are you coming shopping with us?" The boy just grinned back, squishing Hermione's cheeks between his hands.

Ginny nodded as she tucked the blanket she had had squished between her and Teddy into the handbag hanging from her hip, "He is now since Harry decided today was the perfect time to meet with Kingsley. He's been putting it off for ages, and picked today to do something. Typical." Ginny scoffed, missing Hermione trying to hide her grin.

"Well then, shall we?" Hermione juts her chin forward, and the trio begin their trip along the Alley shops. Both girls enjoy the deja vu of shopping together apart from all the boys before their year at Hogwarts. While the necessity to avoid a few shops in order to avoid crowds of admirers was there, the girls managed to go into each shop they had been looking forward to. Madame Malkin's was their favourite; the lovely witch had cleverly hidden the trio in the back corner usually kept for private fittings. She set them up with her book of fabric swatches and left them in peace, giving Teddy a fond pat on the top of his head.

"This is nuts," Ginny grumbles again, holding up two different tones of burgundy. Teddy changes his hair to match the one of the left, so Ginny sets it aside and puts the other away.

"It does seem like some of these colours have been copied and given a new name." Hermione wrinkles her nose at the chartreuse Teddy picks out, removing the swatch from their pile.

"Definitely," Ginny agrees, setting the whole book filled with pinks aside, "So, did you talk with Fred yesterday?"

Hermione winces, hoping the blush she can feel on her cheeks isn't as bad as it feels, "Er, yeah, this morning." She misses the look Ginny throws at her before hiding behind Teddy's hair.

"Oh? Did he apologize?"

"Mhmm, we both sort of did," Hermione mumbles, picking up a shade of blue she already knew was all wrong, but needed something to change the subject, "This one's pretty, right Teddy?"

The little boy waved his hand at it, but his hair stayed a deep brown colour. Ginny grinned over his hair, catching Hermione's eye, "Something you not telling me Mione?"

The blush was definitely worse now, "Nope."

"You sure?"

"Nope."

Ginny's grin was wider than a dragon's, "I knew it. What happened? Dish,"

Hermione wrinkled her nose at the younger witch, "That's your brother, remember."

"Yes, but if we don't speak of him by name, I'm much better at ignoring that fact. Spill! I've never had this kind of girl talk before, it's exciting." Ginny places a placating kiss to the back of Teddy's hair, trying to get the boy to quit his squirming.

Hermione on the other hand, couldn't stop squirming in her seat, "Fine, but I'm not going into detail."

Ginny shrugs, "Probably for the best. I'd like to look my brother in the eye later."

.: *Aparecium*\:.

Moments after stepping foot in the shop, Fred made a beeline for the shop owls to send off a note to Audrey Pennison. Verity caught his attention before he could open the window for the owl, beckoning him over to the tills. Deciding the letter could wait for a few minutes, Fred kept the owl perched on his shoulder as he made his way over to his employee. The necessity of the owl was proven unneeded however, as Audrey herself was standing in front of Verity.

"Ah, hullo Miss Pennison." Fred greets the witch, taking the note away from the owl, shooing her back to the roost in the back room.

Audrey smiled politely, reaching her hand over the desk to shake his hand, "Hello Mr. Weasley, I hope I haven't caught you at a bad time."

"No, I was just about to send you this," Fred waved the note in the air between them, causing Audrey to smile in relief, "I was going to suggest you come over this afternoon. I'll go get George now, and we can sit in the back."

Audrey seemed much more relaxed now, smiling easily a she lifted the large bad she had over her shoulder, nodding for him to lead the way. She thanked Verity before leaving, getting a reluctant smile from the overworked girl before she waved the next customer over.

Fred wound around the isles of the shop, spotting George's tall frame surrounded by a group of young kids all watching him play with a bright yellow Puff.

"Georgie! I need you in the back, mate!" Fred calls over the din, catching George nod before handing the playful Puff to one of the boys watching.

George wound his way to his twin, eyebrows raised, "What's up, Freddie?"

Fred thumbs over his shoulder to the backroom, "That reporter is here, figured it would be better for both of us to talk to her." George agrees with a nod, following Fred into the back of their shop. Audrey is stood just outside the curtain, fidgeting with the strap of her bag once more, the large frame of her glasses slipping down the bridge of her nose. Once she spots them, Audrey hastily pushes her glasses back up, giving the both of them a hesitant smile, but she puffs up, immediately looking professional once more. George gives a small chuckle just behind Fred's shoulder, but when he looks back at him, George waves him off, muttering 'later'.

"Follow us," Fred says, brushing the curtain back and revealing the massive workspace. Counters and numerous shelves line the walls, each with bubbling cauldrons Most of the shelves have flattened boxes and packaging ready to be sealed. Audrey took a cursory glance around, her eyes alight at all the different smokes and candies.

"Impressed?" George grins, chuckling when Audrey snaps her head back to them, pink running over her cheeks and under her glasses.

"Er, are we going to start in here?" She asks, still trying to appear professional. Fred can't help but be reminded of Percy at school, always standing pin-straight, his glasses pushed up the bridge of his nose.

He grins easily now, becoming quite used to the girl's quirks, "Nah, we've got a breakroom in the back. We might be here a while,"

"Depends on how much," George pipes up.

"You're willing to listen to." Fred smiles, biting his tongue at the exasperated look on Audrey's face.

"I never believed you guys actually did that until now."

George smile was too wide, "You're going to enjoy the next hour, I can already tell."

.: *Aparecium*\:.

"For the record, please state your full names."

"George Fabian Weasley."

"Fredrick Gideon Weasley."

"Thank you, now, I have been tasked with recording and sharing the events leading up to and during the Battle of Hogwarts. Do I have your consent to share the information you are about to share?"

"Yes." Two voices echo together.

"Thank you. For the record, please share the events you experienced during this, the second Wizarding War."

There is a lengthy silence, and a shifting sound before the first voice asks, "Just how far back are you willing to listen?"

"As-as far as you are, Mr. Weasley."

"So, third year then Georgie?"

"Third year, Mr. Weasley?"

"The year one Mr. Harry Potter started at Hogwarts," the second voice states.

"Our youngest brother, Ron, became friends with Harry, and Hermione Granger, during their first year. As some students from that year may know, that was the first time Voldemort returned since the first war."

"No such knowledge was ever announced at the time to the public?"

"Course not! Neither was the fact that three first year students went into the dungeons of Hogwarts to retrieve something the teachers were hiding, and faced down the strongest dark wizard in history!"

Silence meets this answer, but the questions begin again, "Was this the beginning of your family's connection with Harry Potter?"

"Yes. He and Granger would come stay at our home during the summer between school years."

"Was this first year the only time you two were told about Voldemort returning?"

"Nope."

"Potter managed to find Voldemort every year, I believe."

"I would like to point out, we admittedly unknowingly threw snowballs at Voldemort's face during our third year, right Freddie?" both voices snicker.

"What all did the two of you do to help to defeat Voldemort and the Death Eaters?" the female voice asks, hiding a chuckle herself.

"I suppose Lee's radio was the biggest thing."

"Radio?"

"Potterwatch. As many people may know, Potterwatch was a radio show our mate Lee broadcasted, hoping to help people watch for Death Eaters, as well as keep track of friends and family they were taken away from."

"Fred and I would co-host whenever there was an update from Kings. We hoped we could help out Potter too; mentioning spots Death Eaters were spotted."

"Where was Mr. Potter during all this?"

"Classified, I'm afraid." the same voice sighs.

"Yeah, even from his future brother-in-laws. Prick." the opposite voice snorts.

"Gin's going to hand you your ass for that."

"I'm more worried about 'Mione, to be honest."

"One last question, if I may?"

"Go ahead." both voices chime together in tandem.

"Were the two of you involved in the Battle of Hogwarts?"

"Yes,"

"Of course,"

"We're members of the Order of the Phoenix, we followed our team."

"We lost friends there, and old professors,"

"I almost lost Fred too. It was dangerous, but we understood we needed to help Potter get to Voldemort."

"Sorry, Fred, you almost died?"

"Yeah, a part of the wall of the Great Hall about fell on me after a Death Eater shot a hex off to the side."

"Good thing we had the Brightest Witch of Her Age around the corner, yeah?"

"Yeah,"

"Thank you, both, for sharing your story with us. Is there any final comments you would like to give?"

"We'd like to thank all the students who stood with us at the Battle, including those who unfortunately fell,"

"As well as the public for their continued support in our brother and his friends."

All three voices are silent, until the female gives them one last, "Thank you." and then silence.

.: *Aparecium*\:.

"That some kind of muggle thing?" Fred reaches forward, collecting the small contraption Audrey is clicking away at. She picks it out of his hands before he can accidentally push anything and delete their conversation.

"Yes, it's called a tape recorder. It allows me to record my meetings so I can write out my articles later. It means I don't have to rely on a Quick Quotes Quill."

"Huh," Fred muses, watching her rewind the tape and play a few minutes, their voices all coming out crystal clear, "That's an interesting idea; I know Harry for sure has a thing against those Quills."

"I would too if I was subjected to Skeeter in my fourth year." George agrees, nodding along, though not as interested in the recorder as Fred.

Audrey cocks her head at George, "What was Harry's fourth… oh! The Tournament!" She fumbles with the recorder, flipping a compartment up and taking a thin piece of plastic out before replacing it with another. "Can I ask you a few more questions?"

George shrugs, "Sure, not sure what else we could tell you. But, I think today went over pretty well, what say you Fred?"

"Agreed. I'd say we could definitely hook you up with another member of the Weasley clan for some more points of view."

Audrey was visibly shocked, before she was grinning so widely she stood straight up off the chair, leaning forward to grab Fred and George's forearms, "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

Fred had to laugh — this girl was such a young professional, it was endearing. George was grinning too, though he looked much more mischievous.

"I've got just the person for you to meet next. We'll send you an owl with his info later." Audrey was beaming, thanked them again, and left.

George grinned over at Fred, his grin mysteriously cocky. Fred couldn't help but smile back. "You thinking what I'm thinking, Georgie?"

"She's like a clone of Percy!"

"Oh, this is going to be too good."

.: *Aparecium*\:.

"Mum! We're back!" Ginny hollered as soon as they stepped in the front door, already taking Teddy out of his jacket. Hermione fluffed her hair out of the beanie she had purchased at Madame Malkins, placing it gingerly on the hook with her own coat. Molly came bustling out of the sitting room, a finished sweater laid over her arm.

"Good! Oh, just in time, dears. Here Ginny, have Teddy try this on. That's a good boy! Yes, this will do nicely." Molly shoved the knitted sweater over Teddy, the boy's coloured hair turned black for a brief moment before his wide eyes pop out the top of the sweater. He looks baffled, looking up at Ginny as if you say, 'What?' before he realizes the sweater is quite comfortable.

Molly nods, happy with the reaction, "Wonderful, I'll place the 'T' on it later today. Do try to get it off him sometime soon Ginny, I don't want it ruined before Christmas." Ginny struggles to get the young boy to relinquish his hold on the comfy sweater, but eventually prevails with a small cheer. Hermione in this time, has already started a pot of tea, and has sat down at the long kitchen table to begin laying out the day's purchases. Molly looks over the items briefly, taking in the bolts of cloth and stacks of paper.

"Finally beginning wedding planning I see? It's about time you two — Fleur and I have been itching to begin." Hermione smiles at Molly, allowing the motherly woman to have a seat and trail her fingers over the deep burgundy cloth.

"Yes, actually mum, I had some news for you." Ginny said loudly from around the corner, setting Teddy up in the travel cot set up in the sitting room. "Harry and I have set an official date for ourselves."

Molly clapped her hands excitedly, "Oh good! When is the happy day, my dear?"

"August 28th." Ginny says without any preamble, walking back into the kitchen.

Molly is quiet, "Ginny, the time limit dear. June is the cut off, August would be much too late. Though I'm sure Kingsley may try to give Harry Potter more time, I don't know if—"

"No mum, this August. As in one week from today."

Ginny was met with silence, and then the whirlwind that was Molly Weasley erupted.

"Ginevra Molly Weasley!"

.: *Aparecium*\:.

Hehe :) I kind of love finishing right here. I was going to go into the planning, but realized that wasn't really conducive to the plot.

I hope everyone is still enjoying this, and respects my decision on how many more chapters there will be. Once this is finished, there will be one-shots and a sequel! So never fear!