You know when you're down, they won't come around Date: March 17, 2006 Characters: Fred Weasley, Mentions of many people (feel free to write your reactions if you wish, if you know Fred, what he’s going through, or if your charrie was mentioned in the post) Location: 7 Oddington Road, Hogsmeade Private/Public?: Private Rating: R Warnings: Introspective with Dark thoughts, worry, thoughts of suicide Summary: Fred is at Katie and George’s bedsides while they’re both in comas
Fred was beyond weary, sitting between two beds in the largest bedroom of Neville’s house. One bed held his twin brother who lay in his second coma in one ruddy year... and the other held his wife, still barely back from their honeymoon and she too was in a coma. They both succumbed to the pain of this illness that was spreading around. They had decided not to move them, for fear of causing any injury or further harm, and since 7 Oddington had been their home for many months, they were in a comfortable place. No doubt the shack had been overrun... and there were ingredients for concoctions close at hand, so home was the best place for them.
Neville had told Fred what he had heard from one of the healers after bringing Millicent in - that this illness was either branched from Chicken or Dragon Pox. And it would make total sense if it was Dragon Pox. Even though Fred had never seen a case like before, he knew it couldn’t have been Chicken Pox because of the severity - bleeding out of every orifice in your body, hallucinating through dangerously high fevers and bleeding lesions were not from your garden variety case of Chicken Pox. No, something that drew both his twin and his wife into comas was something more dangerous indeed.
He had stayed by their sides, having levitated both beds with his most loved ones into the largest room that Neville said could house them until they recovered. His friend was adamant that they would recover but Fred wasn’t so sure. Sitting there between the both of them he began to have very dark thoughts. His own fever didn’t help much when it came upon him. Fred had wicked nightmares and woke with his pox burning on his skin and hallucinations that Katie and George had already died while he was asleep. Ginny had found him that time, screaming and clutching Katie to him, his head turned and pressed to Katie’s chest, but all the while watching George - feverish ghouls making his twin’s eyes blank and lifeless, when really they were closed in his comatose state, as were Katie’s.
When Fred wasn’t overwrought with worrisome grief, he was snapping at everyone - Neville, Toby... though he was very quiet around Parvati. Parvati was there most of the time as well, looking after George and helping as best she could... but she too was sicker than most and Fred tried to help her too, as best he could.
Though, most of the time Fred only sat, scratching absently at his own pox marks until they too started to bleed. He didn’t care though, he was feeling something other than despair. Several times he’d cursed and pushed Ginny away, threatening to hex anyone who came near him... and minutes later, the clouds lifted from his battered and weary soul, urging him to seek out the one sibling who could be, who was there for him. He’d be overcome with remorse and end up monopolizing Ginny, holding her for comfort if not anything else while Neville worked tirelessly in the greenhouses at home and at the shelter to help the healers and bring things that would ease the two comatose forms while they were in their slumber.
Each time Fred closed his eyes he saw a funeral, a double funeral and several ways to get out of a life that didn’t include his twin and the woman he loved. He had no care for anyone else in those dark moments. Upon waking he wanted to drink - drink so hard that he could rest, but he knew the demons would be all the more powerful fueled by drink.
So there he remained with little to no comfort save for his sister and soon to be brother-in-law. He wanted it over - either for them to recover, or if the worst should happen, end his life in a world not worth living in if he didn’t have them both. In short, Fred sat without sleep, food, his fingernails bitten to the point they were bleeding like his open wounds.... and slowly going mad.