Gred and Forge and the Muggle Computer

 

- Chapter One -

"Oy, Fred!"

"Yes, George?"

"Look at what I just found!" George exclaimed excitedly as he showed Fred his precious find.

"Blimey, it seems that our hard work of cleaning the attic paid off!"

"C'mon, Fred, we'd better sneak this thing into our room before anyone else spots it."

The twins heaved the heavy Muggle computer into their room. Mr Weasley had carelessly left the computer in the attic after repeated failures of operation.

Just as the twins were dusting the old thing, Ron peered into their room curiously. The twins leapt in front of him, blocking everything else out of his sight.

(Fred) "Hey, little brother, what brings you here today?"

"Nothing, just wondering what you guys were up to."

(George) "Well, if there's nothing, then get out, you git. Can't you see that we're busy with work?"

With that, the twins shoved Ron out and locked the door, leaving him to ponder about what work the twins could possibly have.

"Honestly, Fred, that boy's growing up! His sense of detection is finally perking up and he seems to know when we're up to something... it really worries me..."

"Hmm... we still haven't gotten him some new dress robes yet. Maybe a couple of 'Madam Malkin's Best Dress Robes for All Occasions' might temporarily disable his detection system?"

"You're right... one of these days we will have to find an excuse to pop down to Diagon Alley to replenish our joke supplies, get some maroon dress robes, and buy some books on muggles."

"Muggle books? What for?" Fred scratched his head.

"Honestly, Fred! You're so thick in the head! Call yourself my twin? 'You're such a disgrace to the family!'" George mimicked his mother's voice for the last sentence. He continued,

"We have to find this particular book called 'The Wizard's Guide to Muggles: Computers and the Internet'. Dad wanted to buy it last summer, but Flourish and Blotts was out of it, and he practically cried."

"Hey George, I finally see some brains in you! You know, you might even be able to get a house transfer to Ravenclaw next year!" He dodged a book from George and became more serious.

"I have an absolutely wonderful excuse for going to Diagon Alley. Lee Jordan's spending a week staying at Diagon Alley, remember? Ron will be visiting Hermione with Harry then, so they won't be tagging along, and then we could meet Lee at Diagon Alley and buy our stuff on the way! Mum can't stop us from meeting our old pal, can she?"

The twins looked at each other and grinned.

- Chapter Two -

Fred and George spent the most of next week visiting Diagon Alley for tricks and books, occasionally sneaking out of Diagon Alley into Muggle London for parts needed for the Internet Connection setup. They even took to painting the computer a wonderful sky-blue colour for camouflaging purposes. It was even charmed to glow in the dark, enabling its secret usage during the night.

Finally, after a week of hard work (especially at trying to shut their mouths to prevent themselves from spilling out their secret to Lee Jordan), the computer was successfully set up. Even Mrs Weasley would have been impressed by the masterpiece – it was a result of excellent technical skills and creativity.

Just that night of completion, unable to wait till the next day, Fred and George started up the computer in the middle of the night. Afraid of waking up the others, the first thing they did was to mute the sound. However, even with frequent consultations of the Wizard's Guidebook, they tried unsuccessfully to connect to the internet. Sighing in frustration, they had a not-too-silent fight over who was the cause of all these troubles, only to result in Ron's untimely appearance at their door. Deeply engrossed in their fight, the twins only noticed Ron when he hissed, "Will you guys shut up? You're waking up the whole – "

He was cut off by the sight of the glowing computer, which left him goggling in amazement instead.

He commented knowledgeably, "Hey, is that a compewter? Where did you get it, it's cool! Hermione showed Harry and I how to operate it when we visited her house last week. Hmm... it seems like you're having some problems here, connecting to the innernet, isn't it? Let me take a look..."

Fred and George were too shocked at the sight of Ron and his knowledge of Muggles that they did not even stop him. They just stood there gaping at him like two idiots.

"You dudes!" Ron exclaimed, yanking the twins back to reality. "You did not plug in the modamn! Really, and you call yourselves Weasleys?" Ron shook his head in mock disappointment.

With Ron's help, they finally managed to connect to the 'innernet'. Fred and George were just about to thank Ron for his help when he grinned evilly at them.

"Now, Ron, what exactly is going on in that simple mind of yours?" asked Fred.

"This is not allowed by Mum, isn't it? I mean, nobody else knows about this thing, right?"

It finally dawned on the twins what Ron was thinking about.

"Okay, baby brother, you keep this secret of ours and you can use this... compewter... whenever you want. Deal?" asked George.

"Even when you are using it, George? Am I allowed to barge in and disrupt your highness?" Ron asked with a smirk.

"Fine. Just shut up about this."

"And by the way, this is for you, just an expression of gratitude. Mind you, young Weasley, you'd better be grateful for this."

Fred shoved a bag of brand new dark blue dress robes into Ron's hands and George did a curtsey. Then both of them said "Buzz off" and pushed Ron out of their room.

- Chapter Three -

The internet had been a great source of information for Fred and George. They went to chatrooms under the nickname "Gred and Forge", only to find a number of their school mates online as well. Angelina was one, Oliver Wood (who kept pestering them about Quidditch moves) was another, and surprisingly, Hermione Granger. Hermione had been extremely helpful, giving Fred and George some friendly advice on the internet and homework, and sometimes chatting to Ron when he went online.

 

Hermione_G : Hey, Ron

Ronniekins : Hi, Hermione, can you help me with my Potions essay?

Hermione_G : How?

Ronniekins : For a start, you could show me a copy of your essay...

Hermione_G : Honestly, Ron! When will you grow up to be more independent? Even your username is so childish!

Ronniekins : I can't help it! Those two annoying gits permanently changed my username and I'm stuck with it forever!!! How can you blame me for it?

Hermione_G : Too bad...

Ronniekins : Hey! How can you do this to me? You're supposed to pity me! Me, your best friend!

Hermione_G : Okay, okay... ickle Ronniekins, I hereby give you my deepest condolences and regrets...

Ronniekins : Yeah, thanks a lot for that...

 

Hey Ron, have you finished chatting with your girlfriend now? I need to chat with my girlfriend, it's Angelina by the way, so buzz off now!" yelled Fred impatiently.

The tips of Ron's ears went red. He yelled, "She's not my girlfriend! Will you shut up about it? Or I'll tell Dad about... "

"About what?" asked Mr Weasley as he went to see what the commotion was about.

"Nothing... nothing..." the boys hastily replied as they tried to block the computer out of Mr Weasley's view.

"Hmm... I know the symptoms! It's a 'I'm trying my best to hide something from my old Dad' disease. Now boys, why don't you let me investigate?"

The boys had no choice but to step aside, revealing the masterpiece.

"What's that? Oh my... that... that's a muggle computer!" he exclaimed excitedly. "Isn't that the old and rusty one I dumped in the attic last summer? You mean you boys set it up? You are smart! I can't believe it! Fred, George, Ron... I congratulate you for your brains! You must teach me how to use it!"

The boys told him about how they had set up the computer, connected to the internet, and chatted to their friends almost everyday. Mr Weasley was extremely impressed.

"Molly, come and look at the surprise the boys have for us!"

The younger Weasleys turned green at the thought of endless lectures afterwards.

Mrs Weasley appeared at the door. She took one glance at the computer and knew what was going on. For once, however, she did not yell at them, but instead muttered, "Really... 'accomplished'... males are really an intellectually-retarded species..." and went away.

Mr Weasley winked at the younger Weasleys. "Now boys, why don't you show your old Dad how to operate this?"

- The End -