Fool Me Once (Book Two) - Fred Weasley

Them

I looked at the tree and smiled. I spotted all of the new, previously unused decorations that adorned most of the tree. However in very select spots there were some hand crafted ones. Angelina and Alicia had decided that they were going to teach the twins some arts and crafts stating that it was never too early to learn how to tie a perfect bow.

I laughed and didnt really understand it but the four girls (Angelina, Alicia, Elsie and Eden) and Lee got very into it, much to mine and Georges delight. It was amazing to watch my baby girls giggling away with their aunts and uncle. They were happy go lucky and so carefree. To them, nothing in their life was out of place, nothing was missing. They have even stopped looking for their Mama. Not that I have stopped showing them pictures and teling them about her, Merlin I could never do that.

I still tell them about her every night before they go to bed. And I show them pictures almost every day. I could never live with myself if when Aaliyah comes back her own kids dont remember her. They know what she looks like, and they know the sound of her voice thanks to all of the videos that we took messing around in seventh year. They also are aware that she is their mum, when they see pictures they recognise that it is their Mama in the picture, they just dont look for her to hold them anymore. 

I think that they just realised that it was really the three of us and their aunts and uncles so they accepted the fact that they may just have one parent. Maybe not forever but at leat for a while. I hope they are okay wuth that. I mean, I know I might not be perfect, Im an alcoholic and a drug addict, I admit that. Its what I am. But I hope that Ive been doing right by my girls.

And yes, I know that I drink every night. And occasionally I take drugs, but Im always sober when my girls need me. Im always there in the mornings. Im the only one that gives them their breakfast, the only one who brings them to bed at night. The only one who tells them nightly bedtime stories.

I bring them to work with me the four days a week that I work. And Im always on the till when they are awake so they can be with me at al times, and when they are asleep I put them in cribs in the office and sit in the office with them completing the morning or the evenings paperwork wheile they sleep. I really dont like having them out of my sight.

The more I think about it the more I think that Ange is right. I do have separation anxiety when it comes to my girls. I dont want to leave them and I would hate for them to ever think that I would, so I dont. Maybe sometimes I might leave them to run to the shop or run for a shower or to use the bathroom, but other than that, until they go to sleep at ten o clock them girls are with me all the time. 

Honetly sometimes I wonder how I would have coped if Aaliyah left me and we didnt have the girls? What if she had decided after what happened to Angel two years ago that she couldnt do this anymore? Couldnt be with me anymore? I honestly think that I would be in a terrible state. My two little girls, my Elsie Bella, my Eden Aaliyah. They are my reason to live, to live to the best of my abilities. To run the shop with Georgie and become sucessful. Merlin sometimes I think that I want to sit my NEWT exams just so that they wont be ashamed of the fact that I didnt do them. That I didnt finish school. 

But everything I do, I do for them I do with their futures in mind. Like asking Angelina, Alicia, Charlie and Amelia to move in. As much as I love all of them, and they are amazing friends to me. Well Charlie is my brother, probably the best big brother Ive got in this situation right now. I didnt ask them to move in to make life easier for me. I asked them for the girls. 

The thought of Elsie and Eden growing up without any constant female influences in horrible. I think I hate even thinking about it. And I know that George and Lee are here all the time. But two girls being raised by three men. Even though I know that we can do it. Im not sexist in thinking that men cant raise kids, I just feel that my girls deserve to have at least one woman in their lives. 

Thats why I was so happy when they were making the decorations with Angelina and Alicia because I finally realised that my girls are going to be okay even if they dont have their mum. To use Alicias words, they have the 'most amazing lesbian aunts any two little girls could wish for.' I laughed when she said it at first, but then realised, its true. My girls have the most amazing villiage of people surrounding them. 

They have me, George, Lee and Charlie to be their main male role models. Then they have Angelina, Alicia, and Amelia as their main female role models. Draco, Astoria and Ginny are like their siblings. Then they have my dad as the best Grandad they could ask for, or as they call him, Pop-Pop. My mum, is an alright Grandmother, although she hasnt spoken to any of us really since Aaliyah left, she said she warned me that something like this would happen and I couldnt listen to it any longer and so apparated myself and the two girls back to the house. 

Narcissa is really their main Grandmother at the minute, its cute when she calls to the house, the girls have just now started to call her Na-Na and it is the cutes thing. And though her visits started to become less frequent since Aaliyah left she assured me it was just because of the impending wizarding war and had nothing to do with Aaliyah, myself or Elsie and Eden. 

After pulling myself out of my thoughts once more, I looked under the Christmas tree at the huge pile of presents. Some from me, some from Santa Clause and a tonne from the rest of the family. I told every one that they didnt need to get presents for the girls. But looking under the tree right now I can see at least ten presents with each of the girls names on them. 

Merlin, these two are going to be way two spoilt. And their birthday is in just over a month, and everyone is going to buy them presents then too. I think I may have to impose a no present rule. And I can already see Astoria and Draco landing down with more presents, Pansy and Blaise obviously, Narcissa if she can get away from Lucius for long enough now that he is back out of Azkaban. Mum and dad will call down for a bit Im sure. Bill and Fleur will definately show up, probably brag more about their engagement. 

Ginny, Ron, Harry, Hermoine. They will all probably be here. And Amy and Justin, Georges friends from the villiage, they said something about showing up. Conor and Cyrpus I told to come over so that I could give them their Christmas bonus. 

So counting that there is bound to be at least ten more presents for the girls. I know we have a big house, but do we even have enough space to hold all of this stuff. Maybe I should turn the attic space into a play room for the girls. Or maybe I could move them into one of the bigger rooms. Maybe they are getting slightly too big to be in the nursery now. 

Im not sure if Im being honest. 

I walked back into the kitchen and decided that I should make up the girls bottles to bring ip stairs to them. Its nine o clock now, they would harldy be annoyed if I woke them a half hour early would they. I just dont think that I can contain my excitement for their first Christmas anymore. 

Walking up the stairs I turned around and glanced at the front door once more. I hope to anything that Aaliyah shows up today. Not even for me, but for them.