Fic
Title: Subtle Rivalries
Chapter the First- Introduction
Author/Artist: Anneko
Rating: Teen
Warning(s): Mmm, 'cesty! (it's like zesty, only different?)
Disclaimer: I totally disclaim.
A/N: Never afraid to have several things going at once, am I? Anyway, feedback is much appreciated. As you can see from the icon, points are my drug of choice. And I will read the credits in the style of your choosing.
Summary/Excerpt: Fred and George never experienced it firsthand...
Rivalry was a funny thing.
At least, the Weasley twins thought it was funny.
People might think that growing up in a family as big as theirs meant they'd know a lot about sibling rivalry, but their lives had been surprisingly devoid of it-- Bill was too cool to get into squabbles, and way out of their league. Charlie was just old enough that there was no pressing sibling rivalry there, either. Percy was just too different for the discord between them to be called a 'rivalry'. They didn't consider Ron quite worth the trouble of real rivalry, and to be honest they hadn't been that put out when he'd been born and their parents had turned their attention on him. They'd had each other, after all. And Ginny was the baby, and the only girl, and seemed rather out-of-bounds.
As for a rivalry between the two of them, that was inconceivable. There were other twins who balked at the label, at the sameness, at being considered two halves of a single entity. Fred and George were not those twins.
The only rivalry they had any intimate experience with was between Gryffindor and Slytherin-- playing Quidditch put them on the front lines of that one. The idea of being part of an even bigger united front, against a common enemy that could be hissed and booed and pranked, was exhilerating. They loved it. They devoted themselves to the idea of rivalry.
Maybe that was why they noticed, when most people didn't. Certainly nobody else in Gryffindor seemed to know, and nobody in Slytherin. Not even everyone in the two houses involved really realized it, but there was a much subtler rivalry at play between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. It was not the all-out war that Gryffindor and Slytherin enjoyed, it had naught to do with the Quidditch Cup, or the House Cup. Friendships could flourish between the houses, the two often united to support Gryffindor against Slytherin, but it was *there*, insiduous and delicious.
Ravenclaws thought Hufflepuffs were... just a little less intelligent. Sweet but dull, like a labrador retriever. Hufflepuffs thought Ravenclaws were intellectual snobs. Well-read but boring, and completely stuck-up about it.
It was over Christmas break that Fred and George were really able to enjoy the flourishing of the lesser Hogwarts rivals, when classes let out and the school became a microcosm of itself. Students fit at one or two tables and seating had little to do with what house you were in. And the twins met Francis Bellephron-Sanderson.
"A friend of a friend of mine said you were the guys I should talk to." The boy slid into the seat opposite the twins.
"Oh, everyone should talk to us." Fred smiled.
"What did your friend's friend say, exactly?" George leaned forward.
"Skiving Snackboxes."
"Excellent."
"Come with us."
They were halfway to a really good secluded location when the Ravenclaw prefect appeared so suddenly it looked as though he'd apparated.
"Francis." He said, as though the name itself was oily.
"Jacob." Francis imitated the tone.
"Weasleys."
"... Jacob." Fred nodded to him.
"Might as well play along." George sighed.
"If you're doing what I think you're doing--"
"I'm not doing anything. I'm merely taking a walk with these two gentlemen."
Fred and George exchanged glances. They had to give him credit for keeping a straight face.
"You can't skive off lessons. Do you want to graduate or not?"
"Not fussed about it, really. So," He turned to Fred and George. "What do I owe you?"
"I'll write mum!" The prefect threatened.
The world came grinding to a halt.
"You're related?" Fred goggled.
"No." Francis crossed his arms, glaring at the other boy. "We're not. I'm a bit adopted."
"A bit?" Fred's eyebrows lifted.
"His birth mother was only sort of pregnant." George shrugged.
"You're not in the same house." Fred blinked.
"Lots of siblings aren't in the same house."
"True." George touched Fred's elbow briefly. These two weren't even related, it wasn't nearly as weird as the Patil twins. That case in particular bothered him, because the idea that twins could be in different houses shook his confidence in the simple truth that the world could not allow him to be split from George. Clearly anything was possible.
Over Christmas break, they observed the two bickering, and observed the ways in which the two houses considered the other inferior. The cold, logical Ravenclaws versus the warm, fuzzy Hufflepuffs.
Except that Francis was not entirely warm and fuzzy. As he explained to the twins when they finally gained the opportunity of selling him the Skiving Snackboxes, the other houses wouldn't have him.
"Not particularly loyal." He kicked at the ground. "I mean, I'm not particularly *dis*loyal, but... come on."
"Mm-hm. And that's three of the nosebleed nougats?"
"Thanks, yes."
"Which classes are you planning on getting out of with these?"
"All of them." He groaned. "Obviously I don't belong with Jacob. He *loves* studying. Can you imagine? Sure, I guess Gryffindor would've been cool and all, but I'm not that brave. More of a... you know, not brave guy."
"Be careful not to give up the game, right?" George handed the boxes over. "If you overuse them, teachers'll know something's up."
"Right, right. Your OWL year?"
"Yeah. I probably could've got in Slytherin except I'm muggleborn-- well, maybe my dad was a wizard, my real dad, I don't remember him at all. He could be dead or in prison or living with another family somewhere... Probably the last one, but prison's a lot more exciting if I'm relating the romantic story of my origins to some girl. Buy you know what I figure? Slytherin's a shark tank. Hufflepuff's a herd of sheep, and I'm the only shark."
"Are the sheep in a tank?" George cocked his head to the side.
"For the shark's sake, I hope so." Fred smirked.
He could have done all right in Slytherin, but the funny thing was, they didn't hate him for it. He *wasn't* in Slytherin, that was the important thing. And for all his talk of being the lone shark in a field of sheep, he didn't seem evil.
But you couldn't tell his brother that.
Fred and George watched the pair with an undisguised delight. Their family had always had its share of sibling squabbles, but nothing like a real rivalry. It was a joy to watch.
"Their sister's in my year." Ginny remarked, joining the twins at breakfast and following their eyeline to the fighting boys.
"Which house?"
"Ravenclaw, I think." She pointed the girl out. She looked like a brunette Ginny-- maybe it was because of her size, or maybe it was because the expression she now favoured her brothers with was one the twins were all too familiar with seeing on their sister. Contempt, annoyance, and a little bit of amusement. "I don't think she gets along with them."
"The war is three-sided!" Fred whooped gleefully.
"If it came down to it, where do you think the line would be drawn? Boys against girl or Ravenclaws against Hufflepuff?"
"I think it's sick, you treating sibling rivalry like a spectator sport." Ginny said. Contempt, annoyance, and a little bit of amusement.
"But it is a spectator sport!" Fred called after her.
"Aw, she just doesn't understand."
"Doesn't understand what?" Harry joined them just as Ginny disappeared.
"Nothing." George shrugged.
"Just sibling rivalry." Fred waved the question away.
Harry looked at them askance. It was only as he walked away that the twins realized he didn't know they weren't talking about themselves.
Alone in their dorm room later, they cemented the lack of rivalry in their relationship with languid kisses and roaming hands.
"Suppose this is the key to peaceful relations?" George dropped his head back, letting Fred bite his throat.
"For us at least."
"Suppose we could tell them."
"They'd be horrified." Fred grinned.
"What better reason to tell anyone anything?"
"True, true."
"After all, at least one of them is adopted."
"A bit, yeah."
"Of course..." George paused. "We can't really, can we? Say anything about it, to anyone. Us. I mean, it'd all be over if we did."
"It'll never be over, you know that."
"Yeah, but-- it wouldn't ever be right again. If anyone knew."
"We were never really going to tell."
"Yeah. I just-- It hits me sometimes, you know?"
Fred sighed, resting his forehead against his twin's shoulder. "Love you, Georgie."
"Love you, too, Fred."
"Forget the sad, 'kay? C'mere... I'm going to gnaw on you some more."
"Well, if you put it like that, who could refuse?" George drawled, rolling his eyes. But he was more than happy to comply.
---/-/---
To be continued...
Chapter the First- Introduction
Author/Artist: Anneko
Rating: Teen
Warning(s): Mmm, 'cesty! (it's like zesty, only different?)
Disclaimer: I totally disclaim.
A/N: Never afraid to have several things going at once, am I? Anyway, feedback is much appreciated. As you can see from the icon, points are my drug of choice. And I will read the credits in the style of your choosing.
Summary/Excerpt: Fred and George never experienced it firsthand...
Rivalry was a funny thing.
At least, the Weasley twins thought it was funny.
People might think that growing up in a family as big as theirs meant they'd know a lot about sibling rivalry, but their lives had been surprisingly devoid of it-- Bill was too cool to get into squabbles, and way out of their league. Charlie was just old enough that there was no pressing sibling rivalry there, either. Percy was just too different for the discord between them to be called a 'rivalry'. They didn't consider Ron quite worth the trouble of real rivalry, and to be honest they hadn't been that put out when he'd been born and their parents had turned their attention on him. They'd had each other, after all. And Ginny was the baby, and the only girl, and seemed rather out-of-bounds.
As for a rivalry between the two of them, that was inconceivable. There were other twins who balked at the label, at the sameness, at being considered two halves of a single entity. Fred and George were not those twins.
The only rivalry they had any intimate experience with was between Gryffindor and Slytherin-- playing Quidditch put them on the front lines of that one. The idea of being part of an even bigger united front, against a common enemy that could be hissed and booed and pranked, was exhilerating. They loved it. They devoted themselves to the idea of rivalry.
Maybe that was why they noticed, when most people didn't. Certainly nobody else in Gryffindor seemed to know, and nobody in Slytherin. Not even everyone in the two houses involved really realized it, but there was a much subtler rivalry at play between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. It was not the all-out war that Gryffindor and Slytherin enjoyed, it had naught to do with the Quidditch Cup, or the House Cup. Friendships could flourish between the houses, the two often united to support Gryffindor against Slytherin, but it was *there*, insiduous and delicious.
Ravenclaws thought Hufflepuffs were... just a little less intelligent. Sweet but dull, like a labrador retriever. Hufflepuffs thought Ravenclaws were intellectual snobs. Well-read but boring, and completely stuck-up about it.
It was over Christmas break that Fred and George were really able to enjoy the flourishing of the lesser Hogwarts rivals, when classes let out and the school became a microcosm of itself. Students fit at one or two tables and seating had little to do with what house you were in. And the twins met Francis Bellephron-Sanderson.
"A friend of a friend of mine said you were the guys I should talk to." The boy slid into the seat opposite the twins.
"Oh, everyone should talk to us." Fred smiled.
"What did your friend's friend say, exactly?" George leaned forward.
"Skiving Snackboxes."
"Excellent."
"Come with us."
They were halfway to a really good secluded location when the Ravenclaw prefect appeared so suddenly it looked as though he'd apparated.
"Francis." He said, as though the name itself was oily.
"Jacob." Francis imitated the tone.
"Weasleys."
"... Jacob." Fred nodded to him.
"Might as well play along." George sighed.
"If you're doing what I think you're doing--"
"I'm not doing anything. I'm merely taking a walk with these two gentlemen."
Fred and George exchanged glances. They had to give him credit for keeping a straight face.
"You can't skive off lessons. Do you want to graduate or not?"
"Not fussed about it, really. So," He turned to Fred and George. "What do I owe you?"
"I'll write mum!" The prefect threatened.
The world came grinding to a halt.
"You're related?" Fred goggled.
"No." Francis crossed his arms, glaring at the other boy. "We're not. I'm a bit adopted."
"A bit?" Fred's eyebrows lifted.
"His birth mother was only sort of pregnant." George shrugged.
"You're not in the same house." Fred blinked.
"Lots of siblings aren't in the same house."
"True." George touched Fred's elbow briefly. These two weren't even related, it wasn't nearly as weird as the Patil twins. That case in particular bothered him, because the idea that twins could be in different houses shook his confidence in the simple truth that the world could not allow him to be split from George. Clearly anything was possible.
Over Christmas break, they observed the two bickering, and observed the ways in which the two houses considered the other inferior. The cold, logical Ravenclaws versus the warm, fuzzy Hufflepuffs.
Except that Francis was not entirely warm and fuzzy. As he explained to the twins when they finally gained the opportunity of selling him the Skiving Snackboxes, the other houses wouldn't have him.
"Not particularly loyal." He kicked at the ground. "I mean, I'm not particularly *dis*loyal, but... come on."
"Mm-hm. And that's three of the nosebleed nougats?"
"Thanks, yes."
"Which classes are you planning on getting out of with these?"
"All of them." He groaned. "Obviously I don't belong with Jacob. He *loves* studying. Can you imagine? Sure, I guess Gryffindor would've been cool and all, but I'm not that brave. More of a... you know, not brave guy."
"Be careful not to give up the game, right?" George handed the boxes over. "If you overuse them, teachers'll know something's up."
"Right, right. Your OWL year?"
"Yeah. I probably could've got in Slytherin except I'm muggleborn-- well, maybe my dad was a wizard, my real dad, I don't remember him at all. He could be dead or in prison or living with another family somewhere... Probably the last one, but prison's a lot more exciting if I'm relating the romantic story of my origins to some girl. Buy you know what I figure? Slytherin's a shark tank. Hufflepuff's a herd of sheep, and I'm the only shark."
"Are the sheep in a tank?" George cocked his head to the side.
"For the shark's sake, I hope so." Fred smirked.
He could have done all right in Slytherin, but the funny thing was, they didn't hate him for it. He *wasn't* in Slytherin, that was the important thing. And for all his talk of being the lone shark in a field of sheep, he didn't seem evil.
But you couldn't tell his brother that.
Fred and George watched the pair with an undisguised delight. Their family had always had its share of sibling squabbles, but nothing like a real rivalry. It was a joy to watch.
"Their sister's in my year." Ginny remarked, joining the twins at breakfast and following their eyeline to the fighting boys.
"Which house?"
"Ravenclaw, I think." She pointed the girl out. She looked like a brunette Ginny-- maybe it was because of her size, or maybe it was because the expression she now favoured her brothers with was one the twins were all too familiar with seeing on their sister. Contempt, annoyance, and a little bit of amusement. "I don't think she gets along with them."
"The war is three-sided!" Fred whooped gleefully.
"If it came down to it, where do you think the line would be drawn? Boys against girl or Ravenclaws against Hufflepuff?"
"I think it's sick, you treating sibling rivalry like a spectator sport." Ginny said. Contempt, annoyance, and a little bit of amusement.
"But it is a spectator sport!" Fred called after her.
"Aw, she just doesn't understand."
"Doesn't understand what?" Harry joined them just as Ginny disappeared.
"Nothing." George shrugged.
"Just sibling rivalry." Fred waved the question away.
Harry looked at them askance. It was only as he walked away that the twins realized he didn't know they weren't talking about themselves.
Alone in their dorm room later, they cemented the lack of rivalry in their relationship with languid kisses and roaming hands.
"Suppose this is the key to peaceful relations?" George dropped his head back, letting Fred bite his throat.
"For us at least."
"Suppose we could tell them."
"They'd be horrified." Fred grinned.
"What better reason to tell anyone anything?"
"True, true."
"After all, at least one of them is adopted."
"A bit, yeah."
"Of course..." George paused. "We can't really, can we? Say anything about it, to anyone. Us. I mean, it'd all be over if we did."
"It'll never be over, you know that."
"Yeah, but-- it wouldn't ever be right again. If anyone knew."
"We were never really going to tell."
"Yeah. I just-- It hits me sometimes, you know?"
Fred sighed, resting his forehead against his twin's shoulder. "Love you, Georgie."
"Love you, too, Fred."
"Forget the sad, 'kay? C'mere... I'm going to gnaw on you some more."
"Well, if you put it like that, who could refuse?" George drawled, rolling his eyes. But he was more than happy to comply.
---/-/---
To be continued...