The following week passed by in a blur of work, nights in with Fred, visiting your parents on your days off, and having dinner or lunch with the twins and Lee which was like being at Hogwarts again. The morning after your first time sleeping with Fred, George saw your blissed out expressions and had immediately held up his hands, "I don't want to know, but thank you for being considerate enough to charm the room so I didn't hear anything that would've given me nightmares for weeks." You'd just laughed and slapped his chest halfheartedly while Fred smacked him across the back of the head, which turned into a minor playful scuffle between the two as you made breakfast.
One morning at the end of June, you were in work early as you volunteered to open the shop so the twins could sleep in a little longer. Before it was time to open the shop, the owl arrived with the day's post, which included a few letters addressed to each of you and a postcard from Angelina and Alicia who were currently exploring Barcelona. What caught your attention as you put the Bronze Knut in the owl's pouch was the breaking news headline on the front of the Daily Prophet. Just an hour earlier that morning, Death Eaters had attacked London and conjured the Dark Mark above the Thames, and what almost stopped your heart was the reports of them collapsing the Millenium Bridge, which was near where your parents worked in the city.
You dropped the newspaper onto the counter and ran back up to the flat and into the bedroom, Fred was still asleep so you ran to his side and shook him lightly.
"Fred!" he cracked an eye open and then he immediately sat up upon seeing your panicked expression, "what is it? What's happened?"
"Death Eaters attacked London, near where Mum and Dad work, I have to go and make sure they're okay," you tell him urgently and he immediately jumped out of bed and changed out of his pyjamas and into a shirt and jeans, "I'm coming with you, grab your things and I'll tell George." You nodded as you pulled on a cardigan over your pinafore and grabbed your bag and threw the strap over your head and across your body.
"Bloody hell," George said in the kitchen as Fred finished explaining what was happening, he was clearly just after jumping out of bed and he was still in his pyjamas as he shared a grave look with his twin. They both looked at you as you ran into the room and a beat of silence passed between you, and then George spoke to you and Fred, "be safe, please. Both of you" You gave him a quick hug and Fred squeezed his shoulder reassuringly, and then you both ran from the flat and took the stairs directly down to the street.
Fred locked the front door behind you as you looked around at the deserted streets, it was still only eight-thirty in the morning, and the attack on London had happened an hour beforehand when a lot of people would be commuting to work, including your parents. You tried to push your panicked thoughts of them being hurt, or worse, out of your mind as you walked.
You quickly made your way to the Leaky Cauldron and followed a couple of other anxious witches and wizards who were also making their way to London. As soon as you stepped out into Charing Cross Road in London city you grabbed Fred's hand and ran to the nearest phone booth.
"What are you doing?" he asked as you rummaged through your enchanted bag.
"I'm going to ring my parents' house, if I could just find- damn it," you scowled in frustration and took out your wand, careful to keep it hidden from passing Muggles and Fred shielded you from view as you pointed it at your bag.
"Accio purse!" you whispered and your small coin purse flew out and you caught it. You rummaged through it and pulled out Muggle money, counting how much you'd need to ring your parents.
Fred looked at you in confusion and you explained, "I always carry a bit of Muggle money with me, just in case." You put the coins in the slot and punched in the numbers, then waited anxiously for the call to connect.
Each ring that wasn't picked up made your heart pound and Fred rubbed your back as you held your face in your hands, waiting for someone to pick up.
"Hello?" a voice came and you sobbed in relief.
"Mum? It's Y/N, are you both okay?"
"Oh Y/N, love. Yes we're both fine! Today's my day off and your dad wasn't supposed to be in until later. Are you alright?"
"Yes I'm fine, Mum. Did you see the news?" you asked her, fiddling anxiously with the wire of the phone.
"Yes we did, is it those bad people you warned us about?" she asked nervously and you nodded before remembering she couldn't see you.
"Ahem, uh- yes it is. Could you get Dad on the phone as well?" you asked her and you heard her calling your father and he greeted you in relief and you took a deep breath.
"I need you both to listen to me carefully. Remember at the start of the summer, when I told you I was moving in with Fred? Dad, you made a joke about how both of you should pack up and travel for a few years now that I've properly left home? Well you need to start planning that, or go and stay with your cousin in Canada."
"Y/N, what are you saying, sweetheart?" your father asked you and you could hear the panic rising on the other end of the phone.
You blinked back tears, "I'm saying you need to get yourselves out of the country, and I don't know for how long. I-I left a few brochures in the kitchen drawer last week when I was there, just in case something like this happened. But you need to leave, and I can't come to see you because-" you choked up and Fred rubbed your back in silent support, "-because things are going to get bad here, really bad, and I can't draw attention to you. I need to know that you're both out of harm's way, so you need to make arrangements right away."
You heard them exchanging panicked whispers and then your mother spoke again, "okay honey, we'll get organised. But what about you? Can't you come with us?"
"I can't go with you, my fight is here," you told her and you wiped your tears away before you continued speaking into the receiver. "I have Fred and George with me all the time, so I'll be safe. The rest of the Weasley's aren't too far away from us, and you know Molly and Arthur will look out for me," you reassured them and they were quiet for a moment.
"Is Fred there with you now?" your father asked and when you told him he was, he asked to speak to him. You guided the phone up to Fred's ear and showed him how to hold it, "don't shout, just speak," you told him as he stared in confusion at the phone, "um, hello?"
Your dad started speaking to him then though you couldn't hear what was being said, you just saw that Fred was listening carefully.
"Yes, sir," he answered and then whatever was said next made him grip your hand tightly. "I will, with my life," he said firmly and before you could ask him what they were talking about, he handed the phone back to you. You exchanged tearful goodbyes and 'I love yous' with your parents, not knowing when you'd speak to them again, and then you hung up the phone.
Fred hugged you while you cried into his chest and rubbed your back in comforting circles until your cries subsided. "What did my dad say to you?" you mumbled into his chest as you wiped your eyes.
"He asked me to promise to keep you safe," he told you quietly and you pulled back to look at him. "We'll keep each other safe," you told him and he nodded and pressed a kiss to your forehead.
You made your way back through the Leaky Cauldron, and as soon as you stepped out into Diagon Alley, you knew something was terribly wrong. The streets that would normally be bustling with early-morning shoppers and workers at this time, were completely empty. You and Fred exchanged an uneasy look and he took your hand tightly in his, "something's not right."
You slowly walked the street with your wands at the ready, and loud smashing and shouting made you both jump with fright. Fred pulled you into the small alleyway between Flourish and Blotts and Quality Quidditch Supplies as people went running past. You both peeked around the stone walls to look down the street to the joke shop, and you could just about see the purple and orange building ahead of you from around the wall when fire and glass exploded into the street.
You gasped and ducked behind the wall, and Fred sheltered you as glass went flying through the air. People were screaming and crying in the street and you gripped tightly onto Fred's arm as your heart pounded in panic. Fred looked around the wall and his eyes widened, "oh, Merlin, they've got Florean Fortescue." You looked around just as a black cloaked figure beat the older man to the ground and raised his wand at him. You were too far away to do anything and anyone nearby who attempted to intervene was shoved to the ground.
You heard the first word of the Killing Curse being uttered and you immediately pulled Fred's face to yours just as a green light flashed through the street. He stared at you with wide eyes, and you forced him to look at you, "there are some things you can't ever forget if you see them. You didn't need to see that man die."
He swallowed heavily and nodded, pulling you close to his chest. You'd seen someone die in front of you before and you would never forget it for as long as you lived, and you couldn't bear for Fred to have to see the same thing.
Things were eerily quiet for a moment and you stepped into the street just as Ollivander's Wand Shop was set ablaze and the wizard in question was dragged out with a bag over his head. The two cloaked Death Eaters and the taller, feral-looking man Disapparated, leaving the smoking remnants of two well-loved shops in their wake.
You and Fred ran out into the street as soon as they disappeared and you ran to where Florean Fortescue lay dead. You were saddened by the death of the lovely Italian man who was always welcoming and full of knowledge about historical witch burnings and the like, he'd even brought a large supply of gelato to the joke shop as a welcoming gift to the twins. Others emerged from their hiding places to inspect the aftermath of the attack, and someone covered Florean with their cloak out of respect.
A small, crying child ran into the street covered in soot, he was screaming and wailing for his mother but you couldn't see anyone around looking for him. You scooped the small child into your arms before he could see the dead man on the pavement under the cloak. You rubbed the child's back and gently rested his face against your shoulder as you consoled him, and then you looked up at Fred and saw that he was pale with shock. "Fred, you should check on George, make sure he's alright," you told him to pull him out of his daze, and he nodded and took off towards the joke shop.
You carried the child away from the glass and smoking debris and looked around for any more injured people. Apart from a small number of people with a few bruises from being shoved by the attackers, Florean appeared to be the only casualty, as well as Ollivander who had been abducted but was hopefully still alive.
The child cried into your hair and you rocked him gently and kept his attention away from the scene in front of you. "Daniel!? Daniel, where are you?" a woman's petrified voice screamed and you turned to see the florist from down the street running around she spotted you and ran over taking the child from your arms as he hugged her tightly, "thank you, thank you," she whispered as she squeezed your arm and ran back down the street, presumably to get somewhere safe.
You breathed a sigh of relief at the reunion and then hurried over to the thankfully untouched joke shop, and the front door was immediately opened by George. He hugged you tightly for a moment and then led you over to where Fred was sitting on the stairs with his head in his hands. You sat beside him, linking your arm through his and laying your head on his shoulder, and George sat on the step below your feet. The three of you sat in silence for a while, left speechless by what had just happened, and like every other business in Diagon Alley, you didn't open the shop for a number of days out of respect to Florean and Ollivander.
---
The rest of the summer saw the appointment of a new Minister for Magic, Rufus Scrimgeour, who would replace Cornelius Fudge. It also saw an increase in events that cast more darkness over the wizarding world, such as the murder of two well-known witches by Death Eaters, one of which was Emmeline Vance, a member of the Order.
At the end of July, you'd all gathered at the Burrow to celebrate Harry's sixteenth birthday, but a damper was put on the celebratory mood when you all learned of the occurrence of even more Dementor attacks, and when the news reached you of the discovery of the body of Igor Karkaroff, the former Durmstrang Headmaster, who had been killed by Death Eaters for being a deserter.
Despite the closure of many shops in Diagon Alley, you continued working alongside the twins in the joke shop. People travelled from across the country to provide a bit of solace for themselves or their families with the fun products, and before you knew it, it was the end of August and the shop was filled with Hogwarts students, who were shopping before catching the train the next day. The place was packed and even Lee, who was on his day off, had come in to help and he was currently manning the counter and till while you and the twins handled the floor.
"Step up! Step up!" the twins yelled to the crowd as they stood up on the stairs, "we've got Fainting Fancies!" George said, "Nosebleed Nougat!" Fred continued.
"And just in time for school-" George announced, "Puking Pastilles!" Fred finished. He winked down at you and then nodded over to the door where Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny had just walked in. You immediately hugged each of them and they were delighted to see you, you chuckled as they looked around in complete awe at the place. Molly hadn't let them come to Diagon Alley any earlier because of the attack, but she had no choice but to let them now since they had to get school supplies.
They all split up and went in different directions, and you followed Harry as he observed the glittering display of Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder.
"Real money-spinner that one," Fred told him happily as George rolled up beside you on the sliding ladder, "handy if you need to make a quick getaway!"
You grinned fondly at them and saw Hermione and Ginny walking upstairs to the WonderWitch section so you ran up after them. "Well, well, what brings you both to the love potions?" you asked them with a grin and they both rolled their eyes at you as you picked up one of the little pink bottles in your hand.
"Hello, ladies!" the twins greeted from behind you as they walked up the stairs as well.
"Love potions, eh?" George asked, gesturing to the small pink bottles the three of you were holding and he quirked his eyebrows at the girls questioning looks, "yeah, they really do work!"
"Not that you need it, love," Fred whispered to you with a wink and then he looked at Ginny, "then again, the way we hear it sis, you're doing just fine on your own."
"I didn't say a word," you held your hands up in surrender to Ginny, knowing exactly what he was getting at from her letters to you. You hadn't told them anything but you figured Molly had spilled the secret.
She raised a challenging eyebrow at her brothers, "meaning?"
The twins exchanged a mischievous look and you spotted Harry approaching behind them, "are you not currently dating Dean Thomas?" Fred asked and you saw Harry's face fall as he walked up behind George's shoulder.
You could've rolled your eyes, seeing as Ginny had reacted the very same way to him and Cho just last year, but you couldn't help but feel sorry for him as you saw how his eyes lingered on Ginny while she was completely oblivious to his attention.
"It's none of your business," Ginny simply said and walked away with a grin on her face. Hermione looked over her shoulder to see a good-looking blond boy checking her out with a cheeky smirk on his face, she went bright red and glanced at you with wide eyes. You quirked your eyebrows teasingly at her and she put the bottle of love potion down and ran after Ginny.
The twins had already gone back to the other customers and you walked over to Harry and Ron, "well boys, how are things?" they grinned at you and Ron picked up a tin of sweets and held them up to the twins who were standing on the steps above you.
"How much for this?" he asked them.
"Five Galleons," they told him in unison.
"How much for me?" Ron asked, grinning at them.
The twins looked at him as if he'd grown an extra head. "Five Galleons," they repeated.
Ron looked completely affronted at that, "I'm your brother."
The twins exchanged a look and then turned to their younger brother once again, "ten Galleons!" You and Harry burst into laughter as George ruffled Ron's hair and they walked away.
Ron scowled and you took the tin from him and leaned over to pass it to Lee at the counter, "Lee give him my discount," you told him and he grinned up at you and the boys, "on it."
He handed the tin back to you in a bag and you gave it to Ron. "You bloody legend, Y/N," he said and he slung his arm over your shoulder fondly and pulled you into a side hug.
After a few minutes of chatting, you walked down the steps with them to where Hermione and Ginny stood at the bottom of the stairs.
"How are you and the twins doing it?" Hermione asked, "half the Alley's closed down."
"Fred reckons people need a laugh these days," you told them solemnly as you walked them to the door and looked out at the dull and empty street outside.
"I reckon he's right," Harry said, "I want to go for a look around, you coming?"
Hermione and Ron nodded and you told him you'd better stay at the shop, Ginny shook her head as well, "I'll meet up with you later, it's just depressing out there." The Trio nodded and headed out.
"So you and Dean, huh? How's that going?" you asked Ginny and she shoved you playfully, "shut up, Y/N."
"Come on, let me show you the flat before you and the others head back to the Burrow," you linked your arm through hers and brought her through the office at the back of the shop and up the stairs.
She looked around at the place, impressed. You and the twins had made the place more homey since you moved in, Fred had put up a shelf for your books and you'd added some plants and photos around the place while George got an old antique console table for the hall where you kept your keys and wands when you weren't using them. Most of the surfaces were covered in books, journals and scraps of parchment and a few obscure Weasley products were stacked on shelves beside your novels.
"How on earth could they afford this place?" Ginny asked curiously and you smiled at her proudly, "they'd been saving for years with all of the orders they put out from the Burrow, and Harry gave him his winnings from the Triwizard Tournament."
"He did?" she asked you and you nodded in confirmation.
"So...you're over Harry then?" you asked her and she flushed and then sighed. "He probably only sees me as a sister, or even just as his best friend's little sister. I was foolish to get my hopes up. Besides, Dean is really lovely."
You hummed in agreement as you gave her a quick tour, "I wouldn't say Harry sees you like a sister, Gin. I don't think he was too pleased to hear about you and Dean."
"Really?" and then she sighed, "well I'm not going to hang around and wait for him just because he and Cho didn't work out. Unless...ugh, it doesn't matter."
You could tell she didn't want to talk about boys anymore so you changed the subject. "I've got my Auror interview next week at the Ministry," you told her and her face lit up and she grabbed your hands, "have you? You must tell me how it goes!"
You grinned at her, "I will, I'm meeting Tonks beforehand and she's going to give me some pointers." You and Tonks had become even more friendly since the battle at the Department of Mysteries, Remus had told her that you'd protected her after she was knocked out by Bellatrix and she'd written to you. You'd met her for coffee and lunch on a number of occasions at one of the only Diagon Alley cafés that was still open, and when you'd told her about your Auror interview she immediately offered to help you prepare.
After chatting a bit longer with Ginny, you walked back down to the shop and saw that the twins had closed up. The Trio came in then and Harry looked livid, "Malfoy's a Death Eater," he told you right away.
"We don't know that, Harry!" Hermione protested, glaring at him in exasperation.
"He did look shady hanging around Borgin and Burkes, to be fair," Ron said and Hermione rolled her eyes, "yes, well, he's a shady person. It doesn't mean he's a Death Eater! You can't just throw around accusations like that because you dislike a person."
Harry scowled at her and then turned to you and Ginny, "do you think it's possible?"
Ginny shrugged and wandered over to talk to Fred and George who were leaning over the counter with Lee, probably working on orders after the busy day.
"Well, with his dad being in Azkaban now, maybe he's been recruited to take his place," you said quietly and Harry gave Hermione an 'I-told-you-so' look, but you continued, "but at the same time, Harry, you can't know for sure so don't go throwing accusations around, that's just asking for trouble."
Harry reluctantly agreed with you and then you led them all upstairs as the twins said goodbye to Lee and locked up the shop. You said goodbye to your friends and wished them luck in school, they all promised to write, except Ron, which was to be expected, and they used your fireplace and Floo Powder to head back to the Burrow. You really hoped that they'd have a quiet year at Hogwarts for once, though realistically, that was very unlikely.