Secretly

Stay out of trouble, stay in touch.

Try not to think about me too much.

~ Stay Out of Trouble by Kings of Convenience

That summer at the Burrow was both happy and painful for all of them.

Ginny and Harry appeared to have resigned themselves to having a doomed, forbidden love. They disappeared for walks together whenever they could, though this was somewhat impeded by the insistence of all adults that none of their young charges were to go anywhere unaccompanied by an adult member of the Order, usually an Auror. They talked and kissed and laughed and cried and sighed mournfully at the tragedy of the situation. They wished above all else that they could be two normal teenagers in love. Those around them half-sympathised and half-despaired at their melodramatics, but they loved them all the same.

Ron and Hermione had a serious talk. They decided that it would be best if they remained friends for the foreseeable future. Romance was not a possibility when they had Voldemort to consider. They didn't see the point in making a song and dance about it in the way that Ginny and Harry did. They just got on with it. Hermione spent much of her time researching. Occasionally Ron could be found accompanying her. They lost the bitter edge to their friendship after that conversation. He no longer snapped at her for overwork. He brought her food and drink instead and gently encouraged her to rest. She no longer snapped at him for his blunt manner, she just smiled and learnt to appreciate the sentiment, rather than focus on its poor execution. The two became more comfortable in their friendship. They were happier all in all.

Fred and Angelina had settled into married life with relative ease. They knew that bad times were ahead, and were prepared to enjoy what peaceful time they had together, before the war was in full force. They went out for picnics, watched Muggle movies, and visited friends and family. Fred worked in the shop with George, putting more emphasis on the products that could be used in defence and healing. They even decided which products could be useful in an attack.

George missed his brother. He did not resent Angelina; he didn't begrudge his brother that happiness. But he missed him all the same. So he enjoyed the time they spent together, working on products and joking around. And he made sure to fill his time as best he could, visiting friends and staying at the Burrow more and more.

One night he got Harry, Ron and Hermione together to tell them his intentions. They were all a little taken aback when he announced that he was going with them to search for and destroy Voldemort's horcruxes. As he reasoned with them they began to understand.

1. It was unlikely that Voldemort's followers would notice that there was only one Weasley brother working at the joke shop, not two.

2. Ron and Harry had not been of age for very long. Hermione had been for almost a year. George had been for almost three, and therefore had more practice at certain things than they did. The older Order members would harass them less if they travelled with a slightly more experienced wizard. And did they really want Mad-Eye or someone sent with them? It's hard to be stealthy with a mad old man yelling 'Constant Vigilance' at you persistently. They'd be found and/or crazed with paranoia within a week.

3. He wanted to do something useful, not sit about and leave it up to others to save his arse. And the world, obviously. He didn't think it was all about his arse. Although some things were.

Trying not to laugh at George's sudden fascination with his own body, the trio agreed that it would be good to have George with them. They didn't want any other Order members with them. They had plenty of training in Defence Against the Dark Arts, so that wasn't too much of an issue. They had ways of communicating with the Order in case they needed back up, but they didn't intend to do much fighting. After the loss of Dumbledore, the Order needed to regroup and plan strategies for the war, which was by now inevitable. And with Harry and Ron's brawn, Hermione's brain and George bringing a bit of both, they had all they needed.

And so it was that a tearful Molly Weasley and a sobbing Ginny Weasley waved off Harry, Hermione, Ron and George as they went off to save the world. Again.