If any of them had said anything inappropriate or tried anything, Fred would have had them jelly-legged or with leeks sprouting out of their ears for a week. Being inappropriate about his girls was his job, damn it.
But as it was, they were tame, and he picked her up off her feet in the hug, then sat her back down with a grin and sat back on his stool. "The way the Ministry is over run by gits in masks with sodding Marks on their arms, you mean?" Fred said, and it drew a few looks - but Fred wore his blood traitor badge proudly, thank you very much. It shouldn't surprise anyone to hear him talk like that.