Before the Beginning

As his family grew, so did the Burrow, just as Arthur had promised Molly. Two years after Bill had been born another son came their way that they named Charlie. He was a bit huskier than Bill had been and Arthur saw him being a great athlete. Bill loved having a new brother. The two year old was constantly trying to get into his mothers lap whenever she was holding Charlie just so he could look at him and talk to him.

Three years after the arrival of Charlie they were blessed with Percy. Molly was constantly laughing at what a serious baby he was turning out to be. But it was hard for any of them to take him seriously since he was slightly cross eyed at birth.

Arthur was once again amazed at how efficiently Molly ran the household. He often had to be at work, yet when he'd come home everything was in perfect order. However, Molly had seemed a bit more tired as of late. Bill had turned five and she decided it was time to start home schooling him. But it proved to be fairly difficult since she also had three-year-old Charlie to watch and a newborn baby. Yet somehow she found a way to manage.

Molly found her hands truly full two years later when they got a huge surprise about the latest addition to the family... they were going to have twins. Naturally Gideon and Fabian were thrilled, but Molly and Arthur couldn't believe their ears when the doctor told them.

On April first little Fred and George Weasley came into the world.

"Well, I'll be," Gideon said, holding George while his brother held Fred. "Little April Fools babies. I think we have some regular pranksters on our hands, Fabian."

"I have a feeling they're really going to like their uncles," Fabian agreed.

"I told you that you jinxed it," Arthur said, teasing Molly. "You said with your luck you'd end up having two just like them and look what happened."

Molly sighed as if exasperated, but was really actually quite pleased to have twins.

"Well, if they end up being a handful, I'll know exactly who to blame for that," she said eyeing her brothers. They just grinned at her.

"Uncle Gideon, Uncle Fabian, can Charlie and I hold the babies?" seven year old Bill asked.

"Go sit on the sofa, boys and you can hold them," their mother said softly.

Arthur put an arm around Molly and smiled with pride at his sons. He watched Percy climb up next to Charlie to look at baby Fred. Fred proceeded to vomit on him.

Percy cried out, disgusted and shocked by what had just happened. Molly quickly scooped him up went into the kitchen to clean him off. Arthur could have sworn he saw a small smile form on little Fred's face.

Arthur wished he had more time to spend at home with his family, but the group of dark wizards called the Death Eaters were wreaking havoc all over Europe. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was becoming one of the most powerful wizards known to man. It seemed that even the aurors were beginning to have difficulty battling the ever growing dark side. Giants and dementors had joined with them and it seemed that more were following.

Arthur often feared that his family was in danger of being attacked. He remembered Gideon's warning from several years before about his family being well known as blood-traitors. What better target for a group of wizards that hate muggles and half-bloods?

"What's been bothering you, Arthur?" Molly asked one night after they had turned in for the night.

"I'm just worried about all the recent attacks. I'm gone so much... who will protect you if something goes wrong?"

Molly snuggled closer to him and kissed his cheek lightly.

"I can take care of myself, Arthur. And if anything goes wrong I will get help. You shouldn't worry so much," she said kissing his nose. "You're starting to lose you hair because of it."

He ignored the remark about his ever thinning hair.

"I don't know what I would do if anything happened to you or the boys, Molly. I don't think I could ever live with myself knowing that if I hadn't been around you could have found a wonderful guy with money that your parents didn't hate and that wasn't considered a blood-traitor by the entire wizarding community."

"Don't talk like that, Arthur. I couldn't imagine myself with anyone and I have never been happier. I don't regret a moment of it and I never will."

He sighed with contentment and kissed his wife.

"Thank you, Love."

"Always," Molly said hugging him tightly.

A year later, when Fred and George were celebrating their first birthday, life began changing rapidly for the Weasley's.

"Blow out the candles boys!" Molly exclaimed fondly at her two youngest boys. They laughed gleefully in their uncles' laps and did as they were told, even though they didn't quite understand what was going on. Molly loved how close a bond her brothers seemed to be having with Fred and George. She was also glad they were active in her family's lives. While she could handle her parents being cool about her marriage and family, the thought of Gideon and Fabian not speaking to her would have been heart breaking.

"Mum," Molly felt someone tugging on her skirt. It was Bill. "Uncle Gideon says that he and Uncle Fabian get to fight bad guys. When will I be able to do that?"

"Me too!" Charlie added from the kitchen table, ice cream dripping off of his nose.

"Hopefully there won't ever be a need for you to fight anyone, Darling," Molly said, ruffling his hair and giving Gideon one of those looks that could kill. "And if you ever do you'll be much older."

"I wanna fight dragons like in my book!" Charlie said waving around a book he had close by his side.

"Well, you keep that in mind when you finally go to school and make sure you get good marks," Arthur said wiping off Charlie's nose.

"I'm so excited for school, Dad!" Bill exclaimed. "I've only got a few more years to go!"

"Well, don't go growing up too fast," Molly said giving her oldest son a tender hug.

Just then they heard a knock at the door.

"I'll get it," Arthur said. He opened the door and was greeted by none other than his old transfiguration teacher, Albus Dumbledore. He had heard that the old man had been promoted to headmaster of Hogwarts several years ago, however. Arthur could think of no one better suited for the job.

"Professor Dumbledore! What a surprise! Please, do come in."

"It's nice to see you, Arthur. I was told I could find Gideon and Fabian here."

"Yes, we were celebrating my twin boys' first birthday... is something wrong?" Arthur had noticed the grave look on Dumbledore's face.

"It's nothing you need to worry about; I just need to speak to those two about some... business."

"They're over here." Arthur led him into the kitchen.

"Professor Dumbledore! What a pleasant surprise!" Molly exclaimed in shock.

Gideon and Fabian both exchanged dark looks.

"It's getting worse, isn't it," Fabian said, gravely.

"You're needed now more than ever," Dumbledore said, quietly.

"Do you mind if we say goodbye to the family before we go?" Gideon asked.

Dumbledore nodded and headed toward the front hall.

"What's going on?" Molly asked.

"We have to go away for a while... Auror business," Gideon said, giving his sister a tight hug.

"I'm sorry we have to leave the party so early," Fabian said, also giving Molly a hug.

"When will we see you again?" Arthur asked, shaking both of their hands.

"We can't know for sure. But we promise that you will," Gideon said.

They gave each child a hug, lingering at Fred and George.

"I hope those two troublemakers never stop making you laugh," Fabian said with a smile.

And with that they were gone.

That night Molly found herself incapable of sleep.

"What's wrong, Honey?" Arthur asked, turning toward her.

"They were hiding something. They never keep secrets from me," Molly said indignantly. "I bet it has something to do with You-Know-Who. It's always been their idiotic fantasy to fight him and his Death Eaters."

"Molly, I'm sure whatever they're doing they have a good reason for not telling you," Arthur said slipping his hand into hers.

"It's just... it's just so unlike them," Molly said curling up next to her husband. "And I'm scared something might happen to them."

Arthur was about to say something when the door to their bedroom swung open violently, yet silently. It was Bill.

Neither Arthur nor Molly had ever seen Bill look so scared in his entire life. And the terror on his face was definitely scaring them.

"Dad! Mum!" he hissed. "Someone is in the house!"

Both adults shot straight up and hopped out of the bed.

"Bill, go up to Percy's room and wake him up and then I want you both to go up to Charlie's room until your mother or I come for you," Arthur said fiercely.

"What about..." Bill began.

"I'm going up to get Fred and George. Don't worry about them. Just do as your father says!" Molly whispered to him. The boy quickly shot off. Molly gave Arthur a forlorn look. "Be careful, Arthur."

"Don't worry about me. Just make sure the boys stay safe," Arthur said kissing her. "Now go!"

Molly quickly hustled up the stairs to the nursery that Fred and George were currently sleeping in.

Slowly Arthur made his way down to the main level, his wand in the ready position.

"Whoa, whoa!" Arthur had snuck up on the intruder and had stuck his wand right up against the back of their neck. "Watch where you stick that, Arthur!"

Arthur turned on the light in the kitchen.

"Cap? Caphis Collier? What the hell are you doing prowling around my house in the middle of the night?"

"Calm down, Arthur. There were reports of Death Eaters in the area and I was making sure you were alright. I thought I had seen someone near your house so I decided to investigate," Cap said as Arthur lowered his wand.

"Molly! Tell the children it's all right!" Arthur yelled up the stairs.

A few moments later Molly came into the kitchen holding a baby in each arm.

"Cap? What on Earth are you doing here?" she asked.

"He thought he saw a Death Eater prowling around the house," Arthur informed her. He turned back to Cap. "I take it you finally became a fully fledged auror?"

Cap nodded, proudly.

"I've been helping out here and there. You know how I am. I can't take orders and I can't settle into a routine."

"Have you seen Lij or Eddie lately?" Arthur asked. "I haven't spoken to either of them in ages. Not since the wedding I believe."

"Lij is still in America teaching at a small wizarding school somewhere in the Midwest. He writes to me every once in a while. And Eddie..." Cap's face fell slightly and he let out a long sigh. "Eddie died a while back in his travels. He came across some strange sickness or plague in a remote village in Africa."

"How sad..." Molly said quietly. Arthur was completely dumbstruck by the news.

"Why didn't anyone tell me?" he asked angrily.

"Calm down, Arthur. I just found out not too long ago, right when I started up my little freelance auror deal. I would have written but I just never got the chance. And besides that, I'm telling you now."

Arthur bowed his head and sighed. "I know... it's just so shocking."

Just then, the window behind them shattered into a thousand tiny, sharp shards. Arthur managed to pull Molly out of the way before the rock that had caused the damage hit her square in the back of the head.

"Oh my...!" Molly breathed in shock. Both the twins had begun to cry, startled by the sudden jolt of movement and the loud sound of glass shattering. Arthur could see the other three boys poking their heads through the railing of the stairs in alarm. He noted that both Charlie and Percy had tear streaks fresh on their cheeks and Bill was trying his best to pretend he was brave. Arthur threw them all a sympathetic look before turning back to the chaos that had broken loose in his kitchen.

Cap had bent down to examine the rock that had been thrown. Arthur watched him pick it up and shake his head in disgust.

"What is it, Cap?" Arthur asked, moving a bit closer.

Cap held the rock out to him and Arthur saw written in crimson the words "Blood-Traitor." He flipped it over and saw "Muggle-Lover" written in the same fashion.

"When will they ever let it rest?" Arthur hissed in disgust.

"Arthur, do you think they're still out there?" Molly asked, her lower lip quivering slightly. He could have kissed her right then for having been so brave, but he knew it wasn't the right time for such things.

"I think they're gone, otherwise they would have thrown more insults through different windows," Arthur said, sneering at the darkness he could view through the broken window.

"I'll make sure to speak to some of my contacts and get you protection, Arthur. We don't want anything like this to happen again. And I'm sure the ministry will back you up as well," Cap said, quietly. He seemed nervous and distant for a moment. Arthur wondered what was on his mind at that exact moment. But in seconds that moment was gone and a familiar grin appeared on the face of his old friend.

"Well, you don't want to leave this mess just lying around with so many little imps running around. Repairo!" He waved his wand and the window was instantly restored, every last speck of glass back in its place.

"Thank you for being here, Cap. It means a lot to us," Arthur said putting an arm around Molly. "And it was really great to see you again."

"Likewise," Cap said tipping his hat. "Anything for a friend."

"Must you leave so soon?" Molly asked, noticing the way Cap seemed to be gravitating toward the main hall. "We could put you up for the rest of the night..."

"That's very generous of you, Molly, but I really must be on my way. I have a few more things I need to check out tonight. But I'll try and visit again something soon." He kissed Molly on the cheek and gave Arthur a hearty handshake. "Goodnight boys. Sorry I scared you!" He directed the last bit toward Bill. The oldest boy just nodded in return. "See you," Cap said and they watched him leave in silence.

After a few moments of complete quiet, Arthur broke the peace.

"Well, we should all get to bed. It's been a rough night."

"Dad?" Bill called, coming down the stairs, slowly.

"What is it, son?"

Bill seemed nervous, but pressed on with his question. "What's a blood-traitor?"

Molly sucked in her breath sharply and Arthur just bowed his head.

"A blood-traitor is someone that doesn't think being a pure-blood makes you better than anyone and you think wizards and muggles are both equally special no matter their blood or magical ability."

"So that's us?"

"Yeah, I guess so."

Bill seemed pensive for a moment. "I'm ok with that," he finally decided and headed back up the stairs with his brothers to go to sleep. Arthur felt his chest swell with pride for his oldest son. He just hoped that the name Weasley wouldn't get him killed.

"What a night," Arthur said, falling into one of the kitchen chairs.

"I'm going to go put these two back to bed," Molly said quietly. "I'll be to bed in a bit."

"Molly..." Arthur could tell she had been quite bothered by the night's events. "Talk to me."

She turned to him, tears pooling in her beautiful eyes. "They came wanting to kill you."

"Oh, Molly..." he breathed, pulling Fred... or at least he was pretty sure it was Fred... out of one of her arms and pulling her to him. "People are always going to want to try and scare me for not being true to the pure-blood standard. But I promise you no one is going to kill me because of it."

"But..." she began to protest. She was about to go off into a speech about how he couldn't be sure of such things, but he cut her off.

"I simply won't allow it. And I won't allow anyone to harm my family either."

She smiled at him then, and kissed his nose. "I really do need to get these two back to bed."

"I'll meet you in ours then," Arthur said with a low growl. She just giggled and bustled off up the stairs.