Coming Home

The Leaky Cauldron

Fred Weasley, his wife Sofia, and his son, George were standing outside The Leaky Cauldron. Sofia was confused, because she couldn't see the pub at all. George was anxiously waiting for his dad to be ready. He really wanted to see wizards.

Fred was a mess. He was pacing back and forth. It had been 17 years since he had had anything to do with magic. And now he was going back to a place where he spent so much of his life. Fred remembered the war and how wanted all the Weasley's were. They were probably going to be kinda famous. And then there was George, the twin, not the son. George and Fred were identical, so someone could very well recognise Fred. He waved his wand over his head and transfigured himself to look differently.

Instead of the signature Weasley red, his hair was now a dark brown. He raised his cheekbones and made his eyes hazel instead of brown. He made himself grow a couple inches and vanished his freckles. He looked like a different person now. At Sofia's questioning look he turned to her and smirked.

"I have an identical twin. I can't go walking around where people might recognize me. I'm not ready for that yet." Sofia nodded, with pity in her eyes.

"You should really try to be ready. They are going to learn eventually. Either that or word will spread that there is an unknown Weasley at Hogwarts."

"I know," He took his wife's hand and pushed the door to the restaurant open. "Welcome to the Leaky Cauldron!"

He took his family over to a booth and waved to the waitress, who looked kind of familiar. She smiled and came over.

"Hello! Welcome to the Leaky Cauldron! I'm Hannah. What can I get for you today? I've never seen you around before. Are you muggles?"

Hannah, the name sounded kind of familiar too, but Fred could not place it. "We'll take three butterbeers please." He said, smiling at the thought of the sweet drink again. "I'm not a muggle, but my wife is. Our son just got his Hogwarts letter and it's their first trip to Diagon Alley. It's been years since I've been." He told the truth, but left out names on purpose.

"Well congratulations on your letter! Hogwarts is a great school. It's my daughter's first year as well. And I hope you find Diagon Alley nice. It really is an amazing place!" Hannah kindly rambled. Fred let out a silent chuckle. This girl was definitely a Hufflepuff. "I'll go get those butterbeers for you!"

"What's butterbeer?" Sofia asked.

"It's an old favorite. I promise you'll both like it. Everyone does!"

The door to the back of the pub opened and someone walked in and sat at the bar. This wasn't the first person to walk in while the Weasley's were sitting there, but this one caught Fred's attention. The bartender, who Fred recognized as Tom, waved to the newcomer and immediately started putting something together. But Fred wasn't paying attention to Tom, he was too focused on the not-so-stranger sitting only ten feet from him. His eyes were locked on the man's shock of red hair, his tall, lanky frame, his multitude of freckles, and his long nose.

Ron Weasley. Little Ron Weasley was sitting so close to his long-lost brother, and he didn't even know it. 

Fred's breath caught in his throat and he couldn't stop staring. Every fiber of his being wanted to run up and engulf his brother in a hug and yell "Pranked Ya!" But he didn't. Something was keeping him glued to his seat, unable to move except for his eyes.

He finally stopped staring when Hannah came back, floating three butterbeers behind her. She couldn't help but notice him staring.

"Here you are! Three butterbeers, I'll hope you enjoy." She paused, as if debating saying something. "I don't know how long you've been away from the magical world, but that's Ron Weasley. One of the famed Golden Trio and a big asset in helping to defeat Voldemort."