Work Text
Fred Weasley and the rest of the Griffindor Quidditch team were all gathered in their changing room, just having put on dry clothes after their overcast practice. All eyes were on Oliver Wood, who had just informed the group that he had some bad news to share.“We’re not playing Slytherin!” he told them, looking furious. “Flint’s just been to see me. We’re playing Hufflepuff instead.”“Why?” chorused the rest of the team.“Flint’s excuse is that their Seeker’s arm’s still injured,” said Wood, grinding his teeth in anger. “But it’s obvious why they’re doing it. Don’t want to play in this weather. Think it’ll damage their chances…”“There’s nothing wrong with Malfoy’s arm!” said Harry heatedly. “He’s faking it!”“I know that, but we can’t prove it,” said Wood bitterly. “And we’ve been practicing all those moves assuming we’re playing Slytherin, and instead it’s Hufflepuff, and their style’s quite different. They’ve got a new Captain and Seeker, Cedric Diggory-”Hearing that name struck an image in Fred’s head of a very handsome fifth year with thick dark hair and piercing eyes. His cheeks flushed brilliant red at the mere thought, though he didn’t know why. Angelina, Alicia, and Katie suddenly giggled.“What?” said Wood, frowning at this lighthearted behaviour.“He’s that tall, good-looking one, isn’t he?” said Angelina. Fred could feel his cheeks get warmer.“Strong and silent,” said Katie, and they started to giggle again. Fred realized with a start that someone may have seen his reaction to the mention of Cedric. Refusing to be put in alignment with the giggling girls, he decided to speak up.“He’s only silent because he’s too thick to string two words together,” said Fred, hoping his words masked his thoughts. “I don’t know why you’re worried, Oliver, Hufflepuff is a pushover. Last time we played them, Harry caught the Snitch in about five minutes, remember?”“We were playing in completely different conditions!” Wood shouted, his eyes bulging slightly. “Diggory’s put a very strong side together! He’s an excellent seeker-” Fred willed the color not to return to his cheeks- “I was afraid you'd take it like this! We mustn’t relax! We must keep our focus! Slytherin is trying to wrong-foot us! We must win!”“Oliver, calm down!” Fred decided to solidify his indifference to the Hufflepuff team with a small joke. “We’re taking Hufflepuff very seriously. Seriously.”The day of the match came very wet and dark. Ominous clouds that hung over the castle cast a dreary mood over the team. The game itself was very confusing, as no one could see much of what was going on for the heavy sheets of rain. After the miserable end of the match, George was ranting furiously to Fred for the whole walk up to the hospital wing to check on Harry.“And it’s completely unfair that that git Diggory decided to catch the Snitch once the dementors came, I don’t know what he-”“It wasn’t his fault, and you know it,” Fred said without thinking. “No one could see anything in that weather; he wouldn’t have caught it if he knew what was happening.”“Yeah, whatever,” was all George had to say in reply.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
The twins’ summer was spent locked away in their rooms taking notes on experiments or out on the makeshift Quidditch field practicing on their brooms in the fresh summer air. The days went by in a fast-paced blur until all that stood between the twins and returning to Hogwarts was a fortnight.One morning, Molly Weasley was chatting excitedly away at the breakfast table about how all of the family was going to get together the following night for a nice dinner in the Burrow.“Even Bill and Charlie, if you can believe it! The whole family, plus Harry and Hermione, of course.” She gave the two a loving smile and took another bite of her sausage.“Yes, Molly dear, I’m sure it will be lovely,” said Arthur.The following afternoon, Bill and Charlie Weasley arrived with their bags in hand. Molly was immediately fussing over them, asking if she could get them anything, exclaiming at Charlie’s burns, and making snide comments about their hair lengths. By evening, the table had been magically extended to fit the many members of the house and covered in countless dishes and plates. The room was soon filled with laughter, stories, and stuffed stomachs. Then, Charlie cleared his throat. His face had taken on a serious and slightly anxious expression that quieted the room.“Er… I’m not really sure where to start, but, erm… I guess I’d better say it now, or else it will take ages for me to do it. So, I’m bi…sexual. Bisexual. I like men and women.” He cleared his throat and shifted in his seat. “Just thought you might want to know, in case I come home with, er, a boyfriend or something.” Ginny was the first to speak.“Got it. Changes nothing, of course. We love you just the same.” She gave Charlie a little smile and took another bite of the berry crumble on her plate.Bill, who sat next to him, gave him a pat on the shoulder. “Definitely. I couldn’t have said it better myself.” Everyone around the table murmured in agreement. Molly, who took any opportunity to hug her children, came around the table and wrapped her son in a warm embrace.“We’re sorry if we ever made you feel like you couldn’t tell us,” Arthur said. Meanwhile, Fred was sitting back in his chair, mind reeling with what he had learned. His brother liked boys? The most ripped and manly person in the family got crushes on men? Fred was far from upset, but he was taken aback by the revelation. He had not expected it in the least. That night, he lay awake in his bed, staring at the ceiling, thinking about Charlie and the warm acceptance he had received.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
A few days later, Mr. Weasley, Ron, Harry, Hermione, Ginny, Fred, and George left for the Quidditch World Cup. After a long and difficult hike in the dawn’s light, they all stood atop a hill, searching for their portkey. They had only been at it a couple of minutes, however, when a shout rang through the still air.“Over here, Arthur! Over here, son, we’ve got it!” Two figures were silhouetted against the starry sky on the other side of the hilltop.“Amos!” said Mr. Weasly, smiling as he strode over to the man who had shouted. The rest of them followed.Mr. Weasley was shaking hands with a shorter wizard with scruffy brown hair and rounded spectacles. In his free hand was a moldy-looking old boot.“This is Amos Diggory, everyone,” said Mr. Weasley. “He works for the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. And I think you know his son, Cedric?” Sure enough, the tall, handsome boy walked up next to his father, the soft glow of the early morning highlighting his stunning features.“Hi,” said Cedric, looking around at them all. Everybody said hi back except Fred, who couldn’t seem to get words to come out, and George, who looked as though he had never quite forgiven Cedric for beating Griffindor in the previous year.“Long walk, Arthur?” Cedric’s father asked.“Not too bad,” said Mr. Weasley. “You?”“Had to get up at two, didn’t we, Ced? I’ll tell you, I’ll be glad when he’s got his Apparition test. Still… not complaining… Quidditch World Cup, wouldn’t miss it for a sackful of Galleons- and the tickets cost about that. Mind you, looks like I got off easy…” Amos Diggory peered good-naturedly around the group. “All these yours, Arthur?”“Oh no, only the redheads,” said Mr. Weasley, pointing out his children. “This is Hermione, friend of Ron’s- and Harry, another friend-”“Merlin’s beard,” said Amos Diggory, his eyes widening behind his glasses. “Harry? Harry Potter?”“Er - yeah,” said Harry.“Ced’s talked about you, of course,” said Amos. “Told us all about playing against you last year…” Fred and George shared a look “...I said to him, I said- Ced, that’ll be something to tell your grandchildren, that will… You beat Harry Potter!” Fred noticed that Cedric looked embarrassed.“Harry fell off his broom, Dad,” Cedric muttered. “I told you… it was an accident…” Fred gave George an I told you so look. He looked back at Cedric, whose deep green eyes were illuminated by the sun’s creeping light. He couldn’t help but feel surprised that someone so good-looking could be so modest. He sensed a growing appreciation for the sixth year. Then without warning, a voice came from beside him.“Hey,” Cedric said. Fred gasped in surprise.“Oh- er- hey,” he said, trying to get his heart rate back to normal.“Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you.”“N-no problem,” Fred said, unable to peel his eyes away from Cedric.“Your brother looks like he hates me,” Cedric confided, gesturing at George.“Ha! Erm, I wouldn’t take it personally. It’s just Quidditch, is all,” said Fred. Cedric laughed, and Fred felt a warmth that had nothing to do with the rising sun.“Glad to hear it. Honestly, if looks could kill, I’d probably be lying stiff in the grass right now.”“It’s just last year’s match, promise.”“Alright, well it was nice chatting!”“Yep- er, yes… nice… chatting,” he called as Cedric walked up toward the front of the group. Then he just stood there for a moment, staring at a patch of dirt and thinking. What he was most confused about, out of the whirlwind of thoughts flying around his head, was how flustered and inarticulate he had become around Cedric. Usually, he was very quick witted. With ease, he could think up funny comments and one-liners at the drop of a hat. But put Cedric next to him, and all he could think about was the way his fringe draped above his intelligent eyes and how good his robes looked hanging over his shoulders. Fred was even more confused and uncomfortable than before, so he decided it would be easiest to push the thoughts out of his head and focus on something more fun: the Quidditch World Cup.The alarming array of sights, sounds, and smells of the camping site was the perfect distraction. Thousands of witches and wizards of all ages were an ocean of green and maroon that sucked Fred in until he could think of nothing else but the game that was to come.“Bloody exciting, isn’t it George?” asked Fred after they had found their seats. But George wasn’t listening. His eyes had a glazed-over quality, and his expression had gone vaguely blank. “George?” He clicked his fingers in front of his twin’s face. Slowly, George pushed Fred’s hand away from his face, keeping his eyes locked on the field. Following his line of sight, Fred spotted several incredibly attractive blonde ladies dancing far below their seats. They were doing some sort of dance which, Fred realized, had nearly every male around him slack-jawed and hungry-eyed. He saw a couple even get up on railings or seats in attempts to get closer. He also noted some women who wore the same expression as George had, though none seemed stupid enough to climb over railings. He waved his hand in front of his twin’s face, this time breaking his deep concentration.“Where’d you go, mate? You seemed lost.” Fred’s eyes were clouded with concern not only at his brother’s unresponsiveness, but also with the questioning of why he wasn’t affected by the blondes the same way all the other blokes seemed to be.“Must be veelas, I’m telling you,” George replied, his eyes locking back onto the dancers on the field. Fortunately, the veelas were soon replaced by a giant leprechaun, which Fred thought was much more to his tastes, especially with the raining galleons.Soon enough, the game was underway, violent and extremely exciting. The twins’ voices grew hoarse with all of their loud cheers and chants, which nearly doubled in volume when Krum caught the snitch, capturing their right to Bagman’s prize money. They returned to their tent exhilarated from the match’s events, adrenaline still pumping through their blood from the unexpected ending. Totally carefree, Fred spent the day’s closing hours celebrating with his family and friends until sleep finally guided him into the darkness.Not very long after Fred’s head had met his pillow, he was yanked unceremoniously from his bed that smelled faintly of cats. In the daze, he could make out yelling and rushed footsteps coming from outside the tent. He was wiping the sleep from his eyes, confused and somewhat irritated, when a scream in the distance sent a jolt like electricity running down his spine. Hearing two other screams made any tiredness fade away, and in an instant he was yanking on a pair of jeans and sticking his wand in his pocket. He stepped out of the tent and emerged in a dark, burning world so different from what it had been just a few hours ago. He and his family gazed in horror as the Roberts family were twisted and thrown about in the air by the masked figures below.“We’re going to help the ministry!” Mr. Weasley shouted over the noise, indicating himself, Bill, Charlie, and Percy. “You lot- get into the woods, and stick together. I’ll come and fetch you when we’ve sorted this out!”“C’mon,” said Fred, grabbing Ginny’s hand and starting to pull her toward the wood. Harry, Ron, Hermione, and George followed. Fred held fiercely onto Ginny’s hand, staring only at the ground ahead to avoid catching a glimpse of the nightmare above. Time was fuzzy with panic, and he didn’t know how much time had passed when George spoke up.“Fred! Where did the other three go?”“What?! Oh no no no…” his face took on a very un-Fred-like expression of dread. The three siblings spent the next quarter of an hour yelling for Harry, Ron, and Hermione, but they had no luck. Finally, Ginny suggested that maybe they had returned to the tent. When Fred, George, and Ginny made it back, however, they only found Bill, Charlie and Percy. Charlie’s shirt had been ripped, Percy had a bloody nose, and Bill’s arm was bleeding profusely. After they had all exchanged hugs, Fred ran off to get a towel for the crimson that was soaking through Bill’s sleeve. Soon, Mr. Weasley’s voice was heard in the distance. Charlie leapt up from his spot at the table and shouted out of the tent’s opening,“Dad, what’s going on? Fred, George, and Ginny got back okay, but the others-”“I’ve got them here,” said Mr. Weasley, inciting a sigh of relief from the siblings while he, Ron, Harry, and Hermione entered the tent. The four then proceeded to share the events of the night, which left Fred’s head buzzing with worry and confusion. Mr. Weasley directed everyone to get a few hours of sleep, and in the morning they were off to the Burrow.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
“Oh thank goodness, thank goodness!” Mrs. Weasley immediately came running toward them all in her bedroom slippers, holding a copy of the Daily Prophet and looking exhausted with worry. “Arthur- I’ve been so worried- so worried-” she flung her arms around her husband. “You’re all right,” she muttered distractedly, releasing Mr. Weasley and turning to the twins. “You’re alive… Oh boys…” She wrapped Fred and George in a tight embrace that banged the twins’ heads together. George protested, “Ouch! Mum- you’re strangling us-” but Fred melted into his mother’s touch, welcoming it after the stress he had been through. “I shouted at you before you left!” Mrs. Weasley said, starting to sob. “It’s all I’ve been thinking about! What if You-Know-Who had got you, and the last thing I ever said to you was that you didn’t get enough O.W.Ls? Oh Fred… George…” “Come on, now, Molly, we’re all perfectly okay,” said Mr. Weasley soothingly, prying her off the twins and leading her back to the house. The coming week was hectic for Mr. Weasley and Percy, but the Weasley twins spent good use of their time working on forms and plans for Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes. One morning, they were huddled in a far corner of the kitchen, quills out, talking in whispers, their heads bent over a bit of parchment. Other Weasleys were scattered about the room.“What are you two up to?” said Mrs. Weasley sharply, her eyes on the twins.“Homework,” said Fred vaguely.“Don’t be ridiculous, you're still on holiday.”“Yeah, we’ve left it a bit late,” said George.“You’re not by any chance writing out a new order form, are you?” said Mrs. Weasley shrewdly. “You wouldn’t be thinking of restarting Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes, by any chance?”“Now, Mum,” Fred said, looking up at her, a pained look on his face. “If the Hogwarts Express crashed tomorrow, and George and I died, how would you feel to know that the last thing we ever heard from you was an unfounded accusation?” Everyone laughed, even Mrs. Weasley. “No, that won’t work either; it’s too strong!”“Well then we’ll have to find a substitute for the roots.”“We might have an herb that would do the trick.”Quick conversation in quieted tones filled the enclosed compartment on the Hogwarts Express. The window of the compartment door was blocked by a beige curtain, and the window showing the outside of the train revealed a landscape blanketed in the luscious green grass of late summer. The sun shone into the train in thick, warm rays. On the worn fabric sat Fred and George. Fred held a hard-cover book topped with a piece of parchment covered with endless notes in black ink. George held a dark grey quill. “I’m not sure about the texture of the nougat, though, we want-” his sentence was interrupted by the sliding open of the door, revealing Cedric wearing his prefect badge.“Oh, damn, sorry! I thought this was a different compartment,” Cedric said. He made to slide the door back shut, but he was interrupted by George.“Wait, Cedric, before you go-” Fred gave George a curious look- “you’re really good in Herbology, right?” Cedric gently shut the door and took a seat across from the twins, crossing his legs and making himself comfortable. Fred eyed how close his knee was to Cedric’s.“...Not bad, why?”“We need an herb or pod that can be used as a thickening agent without resulting in a tough consistency,” George replied. Cedric cocked his head.“Why an herb or pod?”George shrugged. “Just figured it would be easiest to access.”“Honestly, it might seem backwards, but you might want to turn to the muggles for this one. Just cornstarch could do. Unless you wanted something fancier.” The twins looked at each other, then at Cedric. Fred looked as if he could pop with glee.“Genius!” he shouted, lightly slapping his hand on Cedric’s knee without thinking and then removing it as if he had just touched a stove burner. His cheeks grew warm, and he crossed his arms, looking uncomfortable. George appeared as if he hadn’t noticed, and continued the conversation. “Of course, it’s so simple! Thank you, thank you!”“Glad to be of help,” Cedric said, his eyes lingering on Fred. With a gentle grin, he wished them a good summer and left the compartment. With just the two of them alone again, they quickly returned to their work. Their speech was even faster and more excited than before now that they had a possible solution. The two got lost in their ideas and plans, and soon Fred’s interaction with Cedric was pushed to the back of his mind. The sorting went on as usual, but Fred felt his eyes draw to Cedric as if pulled by a magnet. As first year after first year put on the Hat, he repeatedly caught himself staring at the Hufflepuff and flicked his gaze back to Mcgonagall and the line of new students. At last, food of all sorts piled onto the tables, and the students and staff of Hogwarts ate and drank until they could no more. When the plates were cleared, Professor Dumbledore got to his feet. He ran through the standard rules, but then declared something that made many students’ jaws drop.“It is also my painful duty to inform you that the Inter-House Quidditch Cup will not take place this year.” Fred and George were so appalled that all they could do was mouth wordlessly at the headmaster. They heard Harry gasp, “What?” in utter dismay. Before Dumbledore could explain, however, he was interrupted by Mad-Eye Moody’s loud entrance into the Great Hall. Moody limped forward and shook the headmaster’s hand. He was introduced, and then he took a seat.“As I was saying,” Dumbledore continued,” we are to have the honor of hosting a very exciting event over the coming months, an event that has not been held for over a century- It is my very great pleasure to inform you that the Triwizard Tournament will be taking place at Hogwarts this year.”“You’re JOKING!” shouted Fred, and nearly everyone laughed. Dumbledore chuckled appreciatively. “I am not joking, Mr. Weasley,” he said, and he proceeded to explain the Tournament to the hall of eager listeners. “I’m going for it!” Fred hissed down the table, his face lit with the prospect of the glory and riches. Unfortunately, Dumbledore was not finished. “It has been agreed that an age restriction will be placed on contenders this year. Only students who are of age- that is to say, seventeen years or older- will be allowed to put forward their names for consideration.” Fred and George looked at each other with expressions of fury while noises of outrage bubbled around the hall. “I,” he continued, “will personally be ensuring that no underage student hoodwinks our impartial judge into making them Hogwarts champion.” His light blue eyes twinkled as they flickered over Fred and George’s mutinous faces. “I therefore beg you not to waste your time submitting yourself if you are under seventeen.”As soon as the students were released to their houses, the twins were scheming how they would submit their names.“Who’s this impartial judge who’s going to decide who the champions are?” Harry asked.“Dunno,” said Fred, “but it’s them we’ll have to foot. I reckon a couple of drops of Aging Potion might do it, George…”“Dumbledore knows you’re not of age, though,” Ron pointed out.“Yeah, but he’s not the one who decides who the champion is, is he?” Fred said shrewdly. “Sounds to me like once this judge knows who wants to enter, he’ll choose the best from each school and never mind how old they are. Dumbledore’s trying to stop us giving our names.”“People have died, though!” said Hermione in a worried tone.“Yeah,” said Fred airily, “but that was years ago, wasn’t it? Anyway, where’s the fun without a bit of risk?” Indeed, Fred was giddy with the prospect of entering the Tournament. His heart pounded with excitement at his vision of getting past the judge and participating in the dangerous rounds. All while everyone, and one person in particular, watched in awe.