My Brother's Eyes: Part 1

The tinkle of the door bell rang as a redheaded, fair brown skinned boy with large ears rushed into the shop. Giggles and laughter exploded from a young girl with a wild tussle of red curly hair as she sprang after the boy. The noise from the children rang through the store as they ran around looking at all the jokes and prank items that cluttered the well stocked shelves.

"Fred," said a woman with umber brown skin in a light purple robe. Rushing in she grabbed the girl swiftly by the arm as a means to manage her outburst. "Roxanne. Don't run into your father's store like that. You could have knocked someone over."

"Don't you remember that feeling of excitement Ang," a tall man, resembling the same tufts of red hair, asked tilting his glasses down his nose, "Besides, no one was in the way. No harm, no foul."

"Father!" The children exclaimed, running into the arms of George Weasley. He hugged them close, pulling out a sickle for each of them. With a twinkle of mischief in his voice he asked, "Why don't you both go on to Florean Fortescue's and buy a nice treat while your mother and I have a chat?"

Nodding, they both scampered out the door. As the door shut, his face turned from the loving twinkle in his eye to just a glint of sadness.

The beginning of the school year was always hard for George. It reminded him that his twin was no longer with them. You would think that sixteen years after the Battle of Hogwarts would be enough to soften any despair he felt, but after all this time, it still felt like yesterday.

Angelina walked up to him, resting a hand on his forearm. "Why don't you come with us today? We're picking up all of his things for Hogwarts. You’d get a good laugh at how this list hasn’t changed.” She pulled out the folded parchment with the torn wax seal showing the Hogwarts first-year shopping list. Angelina looked over behind the counter, “Don't you think Ron can manage the shop on his own?"

"Manage on my own?" exclaimed Ron as he clambered under the counter door to the two. "It's madness today Angelina."

Looking around the store, there were a few customers, however not the 'madness' as Ron suggested. George walked over putting his brother in a headlock just like old times. "Oh Dung-brains when will you learn? This will be you in three years with Rose. You can have a day off then."

Ron finally freed himself from his brother, patting down his hair. They may not be children anymore, but George had to make sure to put his little brother in his place now and then. "Don't remind me," Ron muttered. "Hermione sure won't."

George smirked as he walked behind the counter to grab his hat and cloak. "Don't burn the shop down while I'm gone." Putting his hand on the small of Angelina's back they walked out of the shop.

The streets of Diagon Alley were alive and well. The new start to the school year was in full swing. Witches and wizards alike flocked to the Alley. Many were out getting their son's and daughter's first wands and school books. Others were getting their much-needed quills and parchment for those pesky O.W.L.s. Some just used it as an excuse to see their friends after the long summer holidays.

George's business has done very well after the Battle of Hogwarts. Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes had become a household name. Along with picking up their books, wands, and cloaks, young witches and wizards from around the United Kingdom flocked to the shop to stock up on all the best pranks and jokes for the school year. He had even expanded and opened shops in France and Russia. He planned to soon open up a new shop in America, but more research on the wiles of an American witch or wizard was needed. One could say they were quite different from your everyday European wizard or witch.

"George come on." Angelina tugged on his arm, snapping him out of his trance. It happened often. But Angelina, Fred, and Roxanne were always able to snap him out of it. If it wasn't for his family, there is no telling what would have happened to George Weasley.

Looking at his son he couldn't help but smile. The boy looked so much like his mother that if he didn't have the stark firey orange head of hair, he wouldn't be recognized as a Weasley. But the Weasley blood was strong, and the redheaded children continued with the new generation of Weasleys. Any Weasley couldn't deny that Fred was a part of the clan not because of his red hair, but because of his stark brown eyes.

George knew the moment Fred was born that he would bear the name of his twin. Those piercing brown eyes flooded the memory of his other half; how could he not name his son after his twin? Angelina didn't protest, in fact, she was the one who suggested it.

Young Fred had his letter in hand. On the second page was his list of what he needed to take to Hogwarts. It really hadn't changed since the days he and his brothers graced the hallowed halls of Hogwarts.

As a child, the Weasley family was poor. His parents always managed but they never could afford the finer things. When Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes took off, George made sure to change all of that.

While he did not spoil his family, he made sure they always had what they needed. He wanted to ensure that they could be just like every other witch or wizard. He didn't want them to end up like that sniveling Draco Malfoy when he was in school, but also he didn't mind splurging every now and then.

Placing his hand on Fred's shoulder he looked at the list, "What shall we get first?"

Fred's eyes lit up at the question. "I know it isn't on the list, but can we go to the Quidditch shop first? I want to look at the new racing brooms. The Daily Snitch said that the Bramby 800 would be out today. They say---"

"Dear," Angelina kneeled down to Fred’s level and said gently to him. "You know that first years do not get to play Quidditch for their houses. Maybe we can look at getting it next year."

George could see the dejected look on Fred's face. He squeezed Fred's shoulder. "Now Mum I don't think it will hurt to go look." Fred's face lit up.

"George!" A pinch of annoyance flicked in Angelina's voice. She got in a whispering distance to his ear, "We talked about this before that we were going to get what he needed and not what they wanted."

With a grin on his face, George leaned in. "What? It won't hurt to just have a look. Besides, Roxie has outgrown her practice broom at home. Won't she need a new broom?" A chuckle rang through his voice.

Roxanne squealed with delight as George lifted her onto his shoulders. She grabbed onto the top of his hat to steady herself. Much to her joy and excitement, they made a beeline to Quality Quidditch Supplies.

Over the years the shops on Diagon Alley had not changed much, receiving a new coat of paint every now and then. Some shops had been permanently shut after the war, and in their steadfast new ones took their place providing the witches and wizards of London proper with new experiences. A few shops were redesigned to fit newer styles, however, the wizarding world never fully went with the trends of the muggle world.

Cell phones and the internet hadn’t taken hold in their world. Sure there were curiosities associated with the like, something Arthur Weasley never lost, but much of the wizarding world stared clear of these technologies.

George nodded to the store owner as they walked into the shop. The man was thin and quite tall, standing well above George's height. Similarly, he had a thin blond goatee to match his frame. He wore a bright yellow and orange robe that seemed to swallow him whole. His name was Barnibus McDougal.

Over the years the shop owners on Diagon Alley became familiar faces to George and even a few became close friends. George knew Barnibus quite well. Because Ginny played for the Holyhead Harpies and he himself loved to indulge in a new broom now and then, Barnibus always kept any new things aside for him.

Roxanne squirmed around on his shoulders, twisting this way and that to look around the shop. George lifted her over his head and placed her on her feet. "Off you go," he said as she took off towards the quidditch robes. Angelina walked in close proximity to her daughter as Roxanne tended to get over excited easily.

George watched his son ran up excitedly to a purplish brown broomstick of the Bramby 800. The handle was slightly turned up with silver writing at the end and the foothold was coated in black titanium that allowed the feet to hook in nicely. They said it was one of the fastest broomsticks to date.

"So how much is the Bramby going for Barn?" George said as he leaned his shoulder against the wall. He knew it was a pretty galleon, but he wanted to give Fred something perfect. Above all, he wanted to give Fred something his parents could never give him or his siblings when they were Fred's age.

Barnibus chucked, "Angelina is going to kill you if you buy him that broomstick George. But for an extra fee I can send it to Hogwarts to be waiting for young Fred when he arrives if you like? It'll cost you though. 5,000 galleons to be exact."

George ran his fingers through his hair. Taking off his glasses, he cleaned them with the edge of his robe mulling it over. Eying the blond-haired wizard, the tip of his mouth curled up. "Barnibus, you know for that price it ought to come with something."

The shop owner chuckled. "Sure George, I'll throw in some cleaning oil and a tool kit. We have a deal?" George watched his wife out of the corner of his eye as he shook Barnibus' hand.

"I'll bring the galleons this afternoon." He walked over to Fred squatting by him and looking at the bristles of the Bramby 800. "You know when I was a kid, we would come into this same shop and look at all the broomsticks. Your uncle and I never had a fancy broomstick like this, but we could race circles around those Slytherin ninnies."

Memories of Fred and George soaring through the sky during quidditch matches flooded his mind. Nothing felt better than hitting a bludger with his club and having it sail toward a chaser during a match and watching them drop the quaffle. His twin always knew what his next move was. Fred was always the one who could get any plan successfully launched and executed.

George felt the presence of Roxanne and Angelina behind him. "Ready to go boys? Barnibus didn't have any of the new practice brooms in stock so I made an order. Fred, we have a lot on your list to get through."

Fred's shoulders slumped. "Yeah," he said as he headed towards the door, "Bye Mr. McDougal." George looked back at Barnibus giving him a wicked smile. Angelina was going to be livid when she found out, but by then the damage would be long done.

They spent the morning going to all the shops, picking up Fred's books, robes, and apothecary pieces needed for Hogwarts. They just had the wand shop left and there was only one place in London where a witch or wizard could pick up a wand: Ollivander's.

"Mummy, can we go to the pet shop? I want to look at the kittens!" A very excited Roxanne tugged on Angelina's arm and turned to George with big puppy dog eyes that any eight year old could accomplish. George knew exactly what his daughter was trying to do, but he knew the strong will of Angelina Johnson Weasley was not going to budge on another pet. He felt it best to support this by stepping in before an argument arose.

"No my dear," George said, smoothing back a curly lock from Roxanne's face, "We need to get your brother's wand. Maybe some other time as it would "

The pout on her bottom lip could have melted his heart, but he knew he could only fight one battle at a time. Kneeling down next to her, he took her hands in his, "I promise after we finish this list you can help me in the shop for the rest of the day."

Roxanne jumped at any chance to 'work' in the shop with her father. His children had often helped him come up with new ideas and inventions to sell in the store. Fred was the embodiment of George's twin, always having a laugh and getting into trouble with his cousins as often as possible. George's mother would often have crying fits about the likeliness of the two. She never really got over his twin's death.

"Okay, I guess that will work," replied a stern faced Roxanne. They walked together to Ollivander's. After the war, Ollivander had returned to the shop, providing first year Hogwarts students with the wonderful experience of their first wand. But the wild eyed wizard was never the same. He did well to hide it from shopgoers, and his son was able to help in the shop. The shop was just the same as it had always been, quiet and dark, with only a few candles lit to light the corridor of floor to ceiling wand boxes.

"Is it time already for another Weasley to grace the halls of Hogwarts?" A wildly unkept, white haired man exclaimed as he walked down one of the corridors of the shop. Besides Dumbledore, George would recon that Garrick Ollivander was the oldest wizard he knew. Ollivander pursed his lips as he took a closer look at young Fred. "Ah, I always love to see when everything comes full circle. It felt like just yesterday your mum and dad were getting their wands."

Looking at George he pointed a long crooked finger at him. "Thirteen and a half inches, maple wood with dragon heartstring core as I recall." George nodded in amazement that the he knew could remember such a thing. "And you Mrs. Weasley eleven and three quarters inches elm wood with unicorn hair, yes?" He held a smile as Angelina looked at him with disbelief.

"How do you remember that?" cried Angelina. George chuckled. "Mr. Ollivander forgets nothing."

Fred was taken to stand in the light. They tried out a few wands but finally, a fourteen inch ash wood wand with a phoenix feather core chose the young wizard. The handle had a knot in it where young Fred's thumb would set. This was a proud moment for George. As Ollivander wrapped up the package with precision and gusto, Roxanne walked out of the store with her mother.

"I can't wait to be eleven and get my wand Mother," she exclaimed.

George chuckled as he handed Mr. Ollivander, the son, the seven galleons to pay for the wand. "Thank you sir," said George as they left the shop.

They walked back to Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. The packages added up and all of them were carrying at least something. Roxanne and Fred argued over what she would carry, but they eventually came to an understanding that it was okay for her to carry his package of textbooks. When they walked in the door it was much busier than when they had left it.

"It's about time you lot made it back. I'm drowning here. We're totally out of Snot Drops and Electric Shock Shakes." Ron had his arms full of boxes of treats, sweets, and prank items. Roxanne set the package of books down and ran up to her uncle to help.

George smiled, "Well there is your helper for the day. I'll be right back to help you."

"What do you mean --" Ron was cut off as George walked out with Fred and Angelina.

"Are you sure you can take her? I was going to send them over to your mum's but if Roxie is going to stay with you then I guess it’s okay to send Fred over to Harry's." Angelina said as she tried to juggle a few of the parcels.

Fred's eyes lit up at the mention of going over to the Potter's. James was starting Hogwarts this year as well and when his parents and their friends got together the two could often be found getting into mischief. "Can I?" He almost shouted with joy.

"I don't see why not, but you need to help your mother get all these packages put away in your trunk before you do." Angelina gave him a look of thanks. "I've got to go back in before Ron scares away our customers with one of his outbursts. I'll bring Roxie home after we close shop. I promise we'll be in time for dinner."

He kissed Angelina on the cheek, gave Fred a hug, and watched them walk off towards the Alley to the Leaky Cauldron. They would use floo powder to get home.

George made a trip to Gringotts and the Quidditch shop before making his way back to his shop. As he walked in, placing his hat and cloak behind the counter once again, he watched with delight as Roxanne helped a customer find the right prank to play on a friend.

"She's definitely mine." He muttered to himself as he helped ring up a customer.

This isn't the end of the story! Part two will come out next week. See what happens as George gets his son ready for Hogwarts.

Thanks for reading! Please leave a comment if you want to see more!