Stumble - A Fred Weasley Fanfiction

Chapter 7: 321 Days Before

Addie loved working at Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. She loved the atmosphere, she loved the constant laughter resonating through the shop, and she loved the two people she worked for. She loved more than anything that this joke shop was a sliver of happiness in a world that was getting increasingly darker by the hour.

Fred and George were the best bosses Addie could have hoped for. It wasn't just because they didn't put her under the Imperius Curse, or that they weren't Death Eaters working for You-Know-Who and using her as a spy. She had gone into this new job with extremely low expectations and they had surpassed them a hundred times over on the first day alone.

Working with the Weasley twins was fun.

She was mainly in charge of working the register, until she became familiar with the increasingly wide range of merchandise the Weasley's sold. She rung up a never-ending line of Pygmy Puffs and Love Potions, Skiving Snack-Boxes, and Extendable Ears. And in between she and the twins had more fun than she'd had in a lifetime.

George had a tendency for setting off filibuster fireworks when he was bored. Addie had to duck more than once to avoid being hit in the face, and then duck again when it rebounded from behind her and attempted to hit her once more. George would burst out laughing at her startled expression and Fred would lean in and ask "Ready to quit, yet?" Addie would only laugh and shake her head.

She had just finished the first two weeks of work when she was given her first paycheck. She was wringing up the last customer of the day when Fred sauntered over, looking quite cheeky, and slid an envelope across the counter to Addie. She finished up the transaction, accepting the money from the elderly man that was buying a toy for his grandson, and wished them a good day. After they had left the shop, she pointed at the envelope and asked Fred, "Is this going to explode?"

"I promise it's not going to explode." Addie raised her eyebrows. She had learned quickly. "Seriously, I promise! Just open it."

Addie did so cautiously, and when nothing exploded or jumped out at her, she slipped out the piece of parchment that contained the amount that had been transferred into her Gringotts vault. She let out an audible gasp. The number was almost double what she would have made at the Ministry. "Fred!" she exclaimed. "There's no way this is right."

He shrugged. "It's right."

She was speechless. She couldn't even look at him. "No," she said firmly and finally. "This is too much. You need to take some of it off."

"Addie..."

"I'm serious. I can't accept this."

"Yes, you can. Seriously, you earned it. You've been working overtime already, and the shop's been really busy this week. It was a lot to take on, and you've done a brilliant job. So take the money and start shopping for a place to live. I promise its what we pay everyone we hire."

Addie nodded reluctantly. "Thank you."

She was still in shock when she returned to the Burrow that night, greeting Molly before heading upstairs to go to bed. She collapsed into her pillow, falling asleep almost instantly.

*

She was awoken hours later by voices. Too many voices, and too loud. Addie sat up in bed quickly, her ears straining to hear what was going on. A man was yelling angrily, loud enough that Addie could make out some of the words. "That traitor...The bloody git...killed him...tricking us...traitor!" Addie recognized the voice as Remus Lupin's, and became instantly alarmed. She knew Professor Lupin as a calm, tired man who would never raise his voice in such a way.