When the time came to hand Teddy back to his grandparents on Sunday, none of the three of us wanted to. Fred very reluctantly gave over the sleeping baby as George and I pouted. 

"Bye bye, Teddy." I said sadly. "Hopefully we can look after you again sometime soon?" 

"Oh, definitely." Ted said, his eyes twinkling. "Listen, we love our grandson very much, but looking after a baby at our age is very stressful. We liked having a lie-in this morning." 

"Thank you." Andromeda nodded. "Have a good night, you three." 

They both had a knowing look in their eyes as they glanced down at the snoozing Teddy - his mixup of mine and the twins' features still intact on his face - but said nothing more. And then they were gone, the crack sound of their Disapparation reverberating around Hogsmeade.

"Aw." I pouted again. "Well, we'd better head on up to the school again. It's getting late."

Before I could blink, the twins had both wrapped themselves around me. I beamed as their arms squeezed me, snuggling in between them. Their scent of gunpowder and marshmallows overwhelmed my senses, and I nearly purred. 

"We want you to be happy so bad, princess." George murmured into my hair. 

I knew instantly what he was referring to. "Georgie, Freddie, don't worry. I am happy." 

"Truly?" Fred said, leaning his forehead against mine. "Even if you don't have babies yet? Even if people are still after you?" 

"Yeah." I smiled up at them both. "Obviously I'd like to be out of school before I have kids, silly. And... people are always gonna be after me. I don't think it would be normal if no one was. We just have to be as safe as possible, and we'll be fine." 

"Yeah and you're as safe as possible with us two on either side of you." Fred smirked. "Aren't you?" 

"Oh, definitely." I said, grinning. He was referring to Friday and Sunday nights, when we either came down to Hogsmeade for the weekend or went back up to the school for the week - it was always dark by the time we'd leave and walk through the village, and the twins would act like my bodyguards, wands out and flanking me, on high alert and ready to fight at any given moment. It was kinda sexy. 

"And you wouldn't believe the amount of protective spells we've placed on the cottage, princess." George said as I shrugged on my coat. "Floppy couldn't get in if he tried." 

"And after Halloween we've increased the boundary so he can't get in the garden, either." Fred said, a muscle in his jaw twitching as he stared off into the distance. I remember telling them both after the party what had happened; Fred was pissed that Floppy had touched me and had informed me of all the ways he wanted to brutally maim the demon. 

"It's hot how you guys are so protective of me. Like, really hot..." 

"Well," George's eyes were twinkling, "that's an evolutionary instinct, Softpaw. Back in the day, the ladies were more inclined to make families with men who could protect said families from predators, 'cause then they'd have a bigger chance of survival and be more able to pass on their genes." 

"Wow." I said. "Mr George, the science teacher. Talk nerdy to me more, baby boy..." 

Fred laughed. George giggled, swiping at me gently. "Ahahaha, fuck off, Potter." 

"One day, you won't be able to call me that anymore." I batted my eyelashes up at George as we locked the front door behind us. 

"Why's that?" 

"Because she'll be 'Weasley,' won't she?" Fred teased. "Not so smart now, are you, Mr George, science teacher?" 

George punched Fred in the arm, and the laughter of the three of us echoed around the village as we made our way up to Hogwarts. 

~~~ 

That week was filled with activity with not much time for pranking. I had my third detention with Professor Soot, where the twins and Terry joined me; Fred and George had gotten insanely jealous after I'd came back from my first two daydreaming about the professor's workout routine - he'd told me alllllll about it instead of actually making me do any punishment - so the next time I earned a detention, the two made sure to piss our Transfiguration professor off enough to earn one with me. And Terry felt left out, so he did the exact same. 

"Professor," Terry lounged back in his chair as the twins and I chatted, "why don't you tell ME about your workout routine? I'm sad I didn't get to hear about it." 

Professor Soot smirked at me. Fred and George immediately stopped talking and glared at him. 

"Well, Mr Boot -" 

"Homewrecker." One of the twins whispered. Professor Soot jumped, looking as if he was getting a traumatic flashback - his eyebrows were furrowing the exact same way that they were when he was being chased by all the Polyjuiced Weasley twins. 

"Right - okay - the four of you are to write a brief essay on a topic that - that -" 

"I think we should write it on why Daisy's such a hot, sexy woman of everyone's dreams." Fred said, stretching his arms out behind his head and leaning back in his chair. 

"Er - alright. Whatever you guys want." Professor Soot sat down wearily at his desk and unclipped his briefcase. Terry, Fred, and George immediately started writing, and I rolled my eyes, giggling to myself and lowering my own quill too. 

And the rest of the week was spent practising for the upcoming match against Ravenclaw. Professor McGonagall had decided to switch up the order of the matches this year for maximum drama, clearly (that woman loves a bit of drama, honestly), and we wanted to be on our A-game for the Quidditch scouts that were allegedly coming to watch us play. 

By the time the Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw match came up, my team was feeling pretty confident. I was confident in my own abilities as a Seeker as per usual, of course; the twins were swaggering around the corridors, all full of themselves (and when I told them this, they both looked at me with those wicked looks in their eyes, and creepily chorused at the exact same time, "You'd like to be full of us too."); Harry, Ginny, and Louis were all relaxed, putting faith in their exemplar abilities as Chasers, and even Ron wasn't shitting himself this time. 

Terry had told me, however, about how the quality of his team had gone up since two years ago, and I wasn't too sure how much of that was him trying to spook me and how much was actually true. 

"You ready for me to beat you, Softpaw?" Terry flexed at me as we all made our way down to the changing rooms after breakfast. I shook my head at him. 

"Don't flex, bro, your arms are puny." I said. "It makes you look like one of those -" 

"One of those what?" That iconic little Ravenclaw kid that I'd met before the Battle of Hogwarts, Frankie, bounded up beside us. 

I exchanged a glance with Terry. "Nothing. Nothing. Never you mind, kiddo. Off you pop!" 

"Okie dokie!" Frankie said cheerily, skipping off ahead of us. 

"That child is everywhere." Terry said, watching the twelve year old burst through a group of bewildered fifth years, screaming. 

We continued walking down the path amongst the giant chattering crowd of people. We split off from them as we reached the changing rooms, giving each other one last cheeky fist-bump before we disappeared into our separate buildings. 

"Hey, hey, here's our captain!" The twins chorused as I walked in. Everyone looked up and grinned or waved at me. I flipped my hair, sauntering over to my boyfriends and whipping off my shirt, leaving me in only my bra. 

"Sky's clear today, lads. Should be no distractions." I told the room casually. 

"There's two right in front of us." Fred whispered, his eyes locked on something below my face, and George sniggered. 

"So make sure you play your best! The scouts are watching." I said. "If you're wanting a future in Quidditch, this year is CRUCIAL, got it?" 

"Yes, ma'am!" My team chorused, the twins with a smirk. 

Just like how Fred and George had ogled me in my bra, I ogled them while they changed. And while the rest of the team headed out to observe the weather while the twins and I lagged behind, I turned to them both. They always looked so hot in their Quidditch uniforms, with their tan leggings and kneepads and cozy knitted red and gold sports jumpers and the light cloaks pulled around their shoulders... 

And then we were kissing; my lips were on Fred's, his moving passionately against mine; then mine were on George's, his tongue licking broadly across my bottom lip; Fred turned my head roughly to the side and slipped his tongue into my mouth as George kissed my neck; I was pressed tight in between them, their hands moving all over me... 

"Okay, okay..." I moaned, pressing against them both. "We're gonna miss the match... Freddie... Georgie..." 

"Ughhhh..." George leaned away from me, passing a hand over his face. "Who cares about Quidditch right now? I just wanna..." 

"Shh, baby." I purred. "Quidditch first, real workout later. Okay?" 

"Okay..." George blinked, shaking his head dazedly. 

"Dude, I can't believe you said that about Quidditch." Fred said as we left into the breezy, bright pitch. 

"Yeah, okay, I take it back." George grinned. "I wasn't thinking straight." 

"My guy, you two are ALWAYS thinking Straight with a capital 'S.'" 

Defeating cheers rang through the air as the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw teams walked toward each other in the centre of the pitch. I shook hands with their captain, and Madam Hooch blew her whistle, chucking the Quaffle up into the air. 

It felt great to feel the wind in my hair and the lift of adrenaline in my body due to a competitive match again after so long not playing one. I directed my Firebolt with ease around the other players, weaving in and out between them as I scoured the pitch for the Snitch. 

I tried hard not to look, but curiosity got the best of me.  My eyes slid away from the pitch and towards the commentator's stand, where all the teachers were watching; there, a stout middle-aged man with a sleek brown quiff, and a taller woman with long, straightened grey hair tied in a low ponytail, both observing shrewdly. The scouts. 

I took a deep breath, tearing my eyes away from them and returning to the hunt. 

The match didn't last that long; it was competitive but surprisingly not tensely so. Our teams were in good graces with each other, and we had a lot of friendly banter as we competed. Terry and I followed each other around the pitch, heckling each other and pretending to shove each other off our brooms. 

But soon I had the Snitch in my hand, and I was gliding down to the ground, beaming and waving it about, as my teammates flew down to join me, cheering. A nearby Ravenclaw Beater was landing; Terry was pretending to cry dramatically to the other one across the pitch. 

And then, suddenly, without any warning at all, Cormac McLaggen had flown up in view - he'd grabbed the bewildered Ravenclaw Beater's bat and was wielding it in my direction, a furious expression on his face. I looked inquisitively at him, tilting my head. 

"Where'd he come from?" I heard George's voice behind me. 

"Why's he on his broom?" Ron sniggered. 

"I could've done a way better job as Beater!" Cormac shouted, spinning the bat around in his hands. "Look, I'll show you, Daisy! Urgh -!" 

And he'd swung at the Bludger that hadn't been caught and caged yet - I felt a hard force slam into the side of my head and knock me off my broom. I fell - I heard two loud, desperate shouts of my name before my world faded to black around me. 

"DAISY! DAISY! FUCK, DAISY!" 

"DAISY! OH, PLEASE, DAISY!" 

The yells were desperate, heart-wrenching, aching with the only kind of grief watching the love of your life die could give you. I struggled against my heavy eyelids; my whole body was aching, I was laying on hard ground, someone was shaking me - 

"DAAAAISY! PLEASE DON'T BE DEAD!" 

His voice cracked as he was yelling my name. 

"NOOOO! NOOOOOOO! DAISY!" 

The other voice was strained, as if the owner was crying. 

"Guys - c'mon - it's okay, she's just unconscious, it was barely a fifteen foot fall -" 

"No, no, no, she's dead, she's dead... please, Ron, I can't live without her... please..." 

"DAIS-S-S-SY!" The other voice sobbed gut-wrenchingly. 

"What's going on over here? Someone get these boys to Professor Wells, they're not well in the head right now -" 

'Riddle was striding up and down in front of her. Draco was holding her in his arms. She was dead. Very dead. She was hanging so limp. It couldn't be... only Riddle's face was smug, triumphant, the only look he'd ever have on his face if he'd killed her. He was so proud of himself, and there she was... the love of my life... dead... dead... DEAD...' 

'He'd kissed her, violating her dead body as if she were a toy he could play with... the anger inside me was churning, but what was the point anymore if she was dead? The love of my life, my everything... all those years spent together, all those memories we made... never would I see her smile again, never would I hear her laugh again... the future we'd always dreamed of was just... gone...' 

Huh? I knew those were both memories of the twins', but I couldn't tell whose was whose, and I definitely couldn't tell why I was hearing them. 

But finally. My eyes fluttered open to see the bright blue sky above me... and chaos. Fred and George had been the ones yelling and crying; their faces were desperate, blotchy and red, tears streaming down their screwed-up faces - grief was written all over their features as they crouched over me, George's hands shaking me, Fred's clutching at his face and nails digging into his skin as he wailed. The rest of our team was trying to pull them away from me, and Professor McGonagall and Madam Hooch were striding over. 

"Boys, it's okay." I breathed, wincing as a shock of pain went through me. "Freddie... Georgie... I'm fine, I'm alive, I'm just a little bruised up." 

"Oh, baby!" Fred fell forward onto me, heaving with sobs as he held me tight to him. "Oh... Daisy, baby, I thought - I thought you were -" 

George hugged me too, his hot tears falling onto my face. I squeezed them both back, whispering reassurances into their ears, but my mind was reeling. What the fuck? They were still so traumatised by my apparent death in June. They definitely needed more counselling. 

"Daisy, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to -" 

Fred was off me in a flash. George followed a split second later. Cormac had come over to apologise, but the twins had leapt on him, and I let my head fall back onto the ground as I heard the thuds and crunches of the twins' fists landing on him and Cormac's subsequent yelps of pain. 

"Boys! Boys! Enough!" 

I couldn't pay attention to the fight as Madam Pomfrey crouched next to me, tipping a potion into my mouth. I swallowed, sitting up with her help. Terry was jogging across the pitch towards us, and we made eye contact. I nodded. 

"Thanks, Madam Pomfrey." I said, getting to my feet and wavering a little. "Yeah, no, I'm fine. Thanks." 

Professor McGonagall and Madam Hooch had managed to separate the three men. Terry and I reached them at the same time, and we each took a twin before turning away from the crowd now all watching with gaping mouths, and marched them towards the castle. 

And it was my turn, for once, to wrap them both in my blanket and cuddle them, stroking their hair soothingly as I whispered to them that I was right here and I was never going anywhere. And I stayed right in between them, in my bed, until they fell asleep in my arms. 

And as cute as it was... I was worried sick. What even was that? All I knew for sure was that it meant that Fred and George still had a long way to go before they were fine with what happened in June.