Chapter 5

Disclaimer: JKR owns everything, and I don't make any money with this story. The idea of the Marriage Law originated at wiktt, I believe. I'm just borrowing...

a/n: AU since DH.

Chapter 5

The next morning George indeed returned before either Fred or Hermione woke up. He let himself into the flat at a quarter to eight. Eight was the usual time for the twins to open up their shop.

George knocked lightly on Fred's door and entered. He was greeted by the sight of his sleeping brother snuggling close to an equally comatose Hermione. Her head lay on Fred's chest, and his arms were closed protectively around Hermione. Their bodies had unbeknownst to their owners found a position where neither was forced to die of suffocation or hypothermia.

George just smiled and quietly closed the door. He could open Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes by himself for once.

***

Tommy Morgan was stacking a pyramid of Skiving Snackboxes ('special after holiday sale – two for the price of one'). He was concentrating very hard, determined not to make another mistake. The mishap with the Pygmy Puffs the other day was still fresh on his mind. Who would have thought those little fur balls could cause such a ruckus?

He had been afraid to get sacked. Luckily, both his employers were blessed with a somewhat wicked sense of humour. They actually thought the chaos was good publicity and added to the atmosphere of their shop. Tommy was relieved. He thoroughly enjoyed his job at the joke shop and would have been very sad to lose it.

Still, he had been a bit nervous this morning when one of his bosses (he never could tell which one was Fred and which one was George) gave him the task of erecting the pyramid; especially because he had to do it by hand instead of using magic. The Weasleys had, soon after opening their shop, discovered that it was safer to stock their shelves without magic rather than to risk accidentally setting off some of their more sensitive products. But the morning had been quiet, as it was usual for that time of the day. Tommy made good progress.

That is, until the entrance door was thrown open with such force that glasses rattled in their shelves. Tommy, who was in the process of adding the top piece to his Skiving Snackbox pyramid, lost his balance and almost fell off the ladder on which he was standing. He caught himself just in time to see a redhead storming into the store.

The obviously angry man marched up to the counter where Tommy's boss, the only one that had shown up that morning, was currently busy filling out some ordering forms.

"Is she here, George? With him?" the redhead, whom Tommy concluded must be another of the Weasley brothers, demanded in a rude and impatient tone.

"Now, Ron..." George, if his brother was to be trusted to tell the twins apart in his anger, started with the obvious intention to try and calm his angry brother down.

But Ron wasn't even listening. Without another word he marched behind the counter and through the door that led to the flat above the shop.

Tommy watched as George hurried after him, his face worried. Just after the last of George's robes vanished behind the door, another man, this time with jet-black hair (ergo not a Weasley), entered the store. He seemed to be in a hurry as well, though his progress was slower due to the fact that he was limping slightly.

"Are they upstairs?" the black haired boy asked Tommy, who was still clutching the ladder. As he passed by, Tommy noticed the lightning shaped scar on the forehead. Tommy could only nod and then watched as the Boy-Who-Lived hobbled towards the staircase.

Before Tommy even had the chance to think about climbing off the ladder, the entrance door was thrown open again and a girl with flaming red hair, closely followed by two men whose hair was – not surprisingly – red too, appeared in the doorway.

"Upstairs," Tommy said, having a good idea what they were going to ask. The three Weasleys ran past him, almost tipping over the ladder in their haste to join the others, making Tommy struggle again to keep his balance again. Clutching the ladder, Tommy watched them go, curious about the reason for this invasion of Weasleys and their famous friend.

Just as Tommy was about to climb down the ladder, he heard a furious scream coming from the flat above him. Startled, he lost his footing and fell off the ladder – right into his pyramid of Skiving Snackboxes.

***

Upstairs another fight, similar to the one at the Burrow on Boxing Day, was close to breaking out. George had been unable to catch his younger brother before he reached the flat. Finding the living room empty, Ron had immediately surpassed his search to Fred's bedroom.

Hermione and Fred were still asleep when Ron barged into the room. The sight of them cuddled close together made him scream. Luckily, George reached the bedroom at this moment and he was able to prevent Ron from flinging himself at Fred. Hermione and Fred had woken up at this point and were sitting in bed, albeit a bit disorientated and confused. Harry arrived soon afterwards. With a curious glance at the couple on the bed, Harry helped restrain Ron.

"What are you doing here?" Fred asked, clearly unhappy to be woken in such rude fashion.

"What am I doing?" Ron screamed at his brother, still trying to break free from Harry's and George's grips. "What are you doing?"

"I was sleeping," Fred stated dryly, his tone indicating that a three-year-old could have figured that out.

"With Hermione?" Ron screamed.

Fred was about to answer his brother, but Hermione spoke before he had the chance.

"I fail to see how this is any of your business."

"Not my business?" Ron choked.

"Exactly! Where or with whom I spent the night does not concern you," Hermione replied angrily.

The exact moment she said those words, Ginny, Bill and Charlie stormed into the bedroom. All three of them stopped dead in their tracks, staring open mouthed at Hermione. Ron, however, could not be deterred.

"Of course, it concerns me. I am your friend and I have the right–"

"Being my friend does not give you the right to decide what I do with my life, Ronald. Besides, I don't even know if you are my friend anymore considering your behaviour towards Fred and me!"

"I certainly don't want to be friends with you anymore," Ron spat.

"What are you even doing here then?"

"I was looking for you because your parents contacted mine after you ran away from home. Apparently, they're worried about you. Imagine that."

Throwing one last insult at Hermione and his brother, Ron turned on his heel and stormed out of the room.

"Unbelievable!" Ginny muttered in the general direction of the bed and followed Ron. Both Charlie and Bill went after their siblings. They hadn't said a word since they came to the flat, and Hermione had the distinct impression that they had only come to have an eye on their younger siblings.

When only the twins, Harry and she were left in the apartment, Hermione let herself fall back on the bed, where she had been sitting the whole time.

"We Weasleys certainly know how to throw a party," George commented dryly.

"That we do," Fred replied heavily.

"Are you alright?" Harry asked Hermione worriedly. She had her eyes closed and didn't move.

"Hermione?" Fred asked as well. He was still beside her in the bed and extended a hand to her shoulder to get her attention. Reluctantly, Hermione opened her eyes, and all three guys in the room were relieved to see they were dry.

"I'm okay. I just don't think Ron will ever forgive me."

"I'm sure he'll come around," Fred consoled her.

"Yeah, he's always been a bit slow on the uptake. You need to give him some time," George assured her. Hermione snorted and looked doubtful.

"Did you hear the things he said just now?" she asked George.

"Yeah, well, I'm just saying he's not going to hold a grudge forever. I mean, Harry is okay with this, too," George said, gesturing towards Harry. Harry shook his head.

"I don't think that's the same. I never wanted to date Hermione. No offence..." Harry paused for a second and scrunched up his nose, "but dating Hermione would be like dating my Aunt Petunia."

"Excuse me!" Hermione shrieked, finally sitting up again. She looked scandalized at being compared to the older woman, about whom she had only heard bad things.

"Well," Harry tried to explain his rather disturbing statement. "You're like a sister to me... and she is my only living female relative..."

Hermione still looked like she wasn't sure if he was paying her a compliment or insulting her.

"Blimey, Harry," Fred said, shaking his head disbelievingly. "You better hope that you stay famous..."

"...because you certainly can't rely on charm and eloquence when trying to woo a girl," George finished the sentence.

Everybody laughed.

"Well, I better be off then," Harry announced when they had all calmed down. "I'm going to try to pacify everyone at the Burrow." Hermione was once again glad that Harry was on her side. It would make returning to Hogwarts for the second half of her last year a bit more bearable.

"See you at the train," she told him.

When Harry was gone, George went back down to the shop (presumably to oversee Tommy Morgan's second attempt at a Skiving Snackbox pyramid), and Fred and Hermione stayed upstairs.

"I should probably let my parents know that I'm okay. They are mad enough as it is."

"How bad was the fight you had with them yesterday?" Fred asked tentatively. So far, Hermione hadn't been very forthcoming with information regarding that topic, and he didn't want to push her.

"Bad," Hermione said slowly, choosing her words carefully. "I don't think it was just about me being with you. That was only the catalyst. There were a lot of unresolved issues between us, and my Dad said some really hurtful things."

Fred very much wanted to assure her that her parents were going to calm down and that everything would be alright again, but he thought this would sound stupid given the fact that he didn't even know the Grangers. Besides, he knew his own family, and he couldn't even tell if his fight with them would ever end.

"You can always stay here if you don't want to go back to your parents," Fred said instead.

"Are you sure?"

"Of course. You're going back to Hogwarts in a few days anyways. I'm sure George won't mind."

"That would make things a lot easier." Hermione sounded relieved, and as an afterthought, she added, "I guess, it will really convince everyone that we're a couple."

***

Hermione Apparated to a secluded spot near her home and walked the rest of the way. She hesitated for a brief moment, but then stretched out her hand to ring the bell. Just like the other night, her mother opened the door.

"Hermione, thank God, you're alright," her mother called out, relieved. She engulfed her only daughter in a hug. "I was so worried."

"I'm alright, Mum," Hermione mumbled, feeling bad about causing her mother anxiety.

Hermione followed her mother inside the house into the living room. There, her father got up from the couch on which he had been sitting with a glass of Brandy. His face looked less welcoming than her mother's. Hermione took a few steps towards him.

"Where have you been?" he asked.

Hermione looked her father straight in the eye when she answered, "I was with Fred."

"How dare you? Your mother and I have been sick with worry, and you were off having a good time with your boyfriend!" her father shouted.

"What was I supposed to do?" Hermione screamed back at him, losing her temper quickly. "After what you said about me being a witch–"

"You should not have run away like this."

"You should not have said–" Her father's glass, which he was still holding in his hand, exploded. Hermione abruptly stopped shouting and took a deep breath. Her father was still standing next to the sofa looking angrily at her. Shards of glass littered the floor.

Hermione's hands were fisted into tight balls, and she was controlling herself with difficulty. Taking one more breath, Hermione said in a forced but calm voice, "I am sorry I scared you. I didn't mean to. But I think it is best if I stay with Fred until I go back to school."

"You will not see that boy again, and you are certainly not going to live with him!" her father replied, still screaming.

"I'm sorry, but you can't tell me what do to anymore!" Hermione turned to leave and saw her mother standing at the door. She had been in the room during the whole fight, but hadn't said a word.

"I'm sorry, Mum."

"Hermione–" she began to speak, but Hermione sidestepped her mother and left the living room. Slowly she went upstairs and into her room to gather her belongings.

Once more, Hermione threw a few odd items into her mostly packed trunk and closed the lid. She looked around her room. It was very much the room of a young girl, complete with colourful wallpapers, as well as books and stuffed animals on every available surface. Hermione had spent too little time in there as an adolescent to change it.

Now she was a young adult, and even though she didn't dare to say it out loud, it was unlikely that she would return to her room; at least not permanently. By the time she finished with school, she would already be Mrs. Fred Weasley.

Hermione had never much thought about what to do after Hogwarts. Sure, she had looked into possible careers when trying to select her classes, but she had never sat down and made practical plans for her future. Part of it was because she knew that before she would be able to have any kind of future, she would need to stand beside Harry in his fight against Voldemort. No one would have a future before he was defeated.

Even if she had made plans, marriage at the age of 18 would not have been part of them.

There was a second reason why Hermione had avoided thinking about her future. It was because she knew that she would have to make a choice. She would have to decide whether she wanted to live in the magical world or as a Muggle. Doing both at the same time would be impossible.

She had neglected her parents over the last few years as it was, and she had lost basically all contact to her former friends. On the rare occasion that she happened to be home, there had just been nothing to talk about with them.

Without Hermione noticing, she had become a stranger to her Muggle friends and eventually even to her family. This was, Hermione was sure, why her actions today were so significant. She was leaving her home and she knew that from today on she could only return as a visitor; if at all. She was no longer a part of that world.

Hermione took one last look around her former bedroom. Then she grabbed her trunk and closed the door behind herself.

Her parents were still in the living room. Leaving her trunk in the corridor, she knocked on the door and went inside.

"I've got my stuff. I'll go now."

Her mother came over and gave her a hug. When Hermione saw her cry, she almost started crying herself.

"Be careful," Mrs. Granger advised, before squeezing her grown-up daughter one more time and then letting go.

Hermione looked over to her father. "Dad?"

"I've got nothing left to say to you," he said coldly and didn't even turn around.

Hermione felt like someone had kicked her in the stomach. Without another word, she left the living room. Taking her trunk, she slowly made her way out of the house. She didn't stop to look back, but walked continuously onwards until she was able to Apparate.

She didn't return to the flat right away. Dragging her trunk behind herself and ignoring the pain in her arms caused by the heavy weight, Hermione walked around the London streets for hours. In vain, she tried to think of something she could have done better, something that would have prevented the fight with her father.

In the end, she was forced to admit that she had decided to be a witch, to stand beside Harry and do everything she was able to do to help the Order fight Voldemort. The personal sacrifices she had to make were nothing compared to the pain Voldemort had caused others.

Anyhow, there was hope that one day they would defeat Voldemort, and life would be happy again. Still, she was sad her parents hadn't been more supportive of her decisions, even though they could not understand them.

***

Fred was at the flat when she returned. Without a word, he stepped towards her and engulfed her in a hug. Hermione let herself cry onto his shoulder. This had seemed to become a habit, for she had done so several times already during the last two days.

Fred didn't mind though. He would hold her close until her sobs died down and her tears subsided. While she cried, he remembered his first talk with Professor McGonagall about the Marriage Law. The Headmistress had repeated several times how important it was that Hermione were to be saved from the Death Eaters. Fred thought it to be ironic that now it was not the Death Eaters who were causing the girl in his arms any pain, but their own families.

When Hermione finally calmed down, Fred suggested they go to bed.

tbc

a/n: Sorry for the long wait, but I had to do loads for University and didn't have as much time for writing/editing as I'd have liked.

Thanks for all the reviews. I'm totally blown away. Keep the feedback coming.

Also, thanks to my awesome beta readers Lockofcurls and MBPrincess, who saved Fred and Hermione from death by 'hibernation'.