93 Diagon Alley was home to the most popular shop on the entire street. Weasley Wizard Wheezes far outranked any other shop on the street. Both during the normal time and during the height of back to school shopping. No matter what other promotions any of the other shops put on, none of them were able to amass the amount of popularity the shop owned by George Weasley could. It also had probably the best curb appeal. After all the robotic figurine of the brothers was hands down the most intriguing looking thing going. It's funky colours on the outside also worked wonders in charming people inside.

So if this was the case, then why was Iris struggling to actually enter the shop itself. She had been stood outside for who knows how long just staring away at the shop. Unable to bring herself to enter. At first, she thought the most logical thing that was scaring her away was the owner inside. After all, he had made it pretty clear to her that he wanted nothing to do with the Ravenclaw. That would be enough to persuade most normal people to avoid the other person as much as possible. They wouldn't be going to their place of work to bother them. 

But Iris wasn't sure this was really the reason she was avoiding the shop. She already knew deep down the connotations this place had to her. Iris, probably unsurprisingly, hadn't been the biggest jokester whilst at school. She played little jokes on her friends and make the odd jokey comment. She was more under the bracket of playful. But Lavender loved to play bigger jokes especially on the people she roomed with. Apparently Lavender had a thing for focusing these mostly on the golden girl Hermione Granger. Therefore, she had been very much behind the joke shop opening up, considering Zonko's was outdated. And therefore, the twins had both put some funds into the initial stock whilst they had been selling at Hogwarts and then when the shop first opened. 

Lavender's love for the shop never wavered. Even when they had been shut down due to helping Harry Potter run from the military. Lavender was still purchasing items through the mail order system. When she passed there were items upon items in her personal belongings at the school, of which Iris herself had to pack and bring home, which had all come from the Weasley establishment. Items of which were now in Iris' possession as her parents weren't sure what to do with them and really didn't want them in the house. Considering they weren't sure what they were capable of doing. 

The thing that was holding her back, the real thing that had made her stand outside the shop for over 10 minutes staring at it and looking like an idiot. Was the fact that this would be the first time going in without her sister. Adapting to no longer being a part of a twin system had been challenging throughout the last 17 months since Lavender had passed away. Things that they always did together had to be learnt how to do them alone. Simple things like getting ready together when they were at home, Iris had to try to do them alone. And she had struggled her way through many of the different things they did together. It was one of the main reasons she moved out of home and into the rooms provided by her workplace. 

But this was one of the few things she had never got around to doing on her own yet. She had been in other shops, ones she actually had to visit like clothes shops and the book shop. Until now Iris had no intent on entering her sister's favourite shop. There wasn't an exact need to enter unless she was to reminiscence, and she supposed sucking it up and going in might bring back some of the nice memories the two had in the exact shop.

Getting the courage up, after finally deciding to go inside took less work than she thought it would. The front door to the shop was much heavier than she anticipated, like a very heavy front door. It took a little bit of force to push it open. But once she had successfully stepped into the store Iris was greeted by this warm happy feeling. She was surrounded by noise, the sound of laughter just off to the side. If it was possible for a place to just smell like that youthful joy and troublemaker than Iris was sure that was the smell she encountered the moment she walked through the door. 

The shop, inside, had barely changed from the last time Iris had been inside. It was an organised mess, in the best possible way. With items upon items piled sky high on the shelves and the little centre table trying to encourage you to purchase one of their more famous items. The two stories were as busy as ever, even if it was just younger children, pre Hogwarts age, and their parents having a shop around. Iris didn't know where to head during her walk around, she wasn't sure what to even look for. Lavender had always been the one directing them as she knew what she was looking for. It would seem that her standing outside the store and now cluelessly to the left hand side had brought her attention. Lee Jordan had approached Iris from where he had been stacking shelves. The bright magenta of the cloak he wore contrasting just about everything else in the store. 

"Well, well if it isn't Iris Brown. You look like a fish out of water." He greeted her.

"Lee Jordan, you look majestic today." Iris greeted back, she had never seen him in the new uniform and it would appear that he rather appreciated the compliment she gave as he did a little twirl causing the bottom of the cloak to rise up slightly. 

"Anything in particular you're looking for. Anybody." Lee emphasised the person aspect, he knew that part of the reason she had come in was for his best friend and boss. Yet he tried to not directly say it aloud. 

"I haven't been in for over a year now, I'm not even sure what you guys have." Iris chuckled as she spoke hopefully to hide how just she was feeling in that moment.

"Feel free to have a browse I'll get someone to give you a hand to find what you want in a couple minutes." Lee's bright smile seemed to only get bigger as if he suddenly had a really good idea and all Iris could do was leave him to it.

"Do you guys still do the Pygmy Puffs?" Iris remembered them fondly, remembered her sisters desire to own one when they had finally finished school.

"There's a pen of them on the second floor." With Lee's instructions Iris bid him a smile of a goodbye and headed up the stairs and in the direction he had pointed her in. 

The pen go Pygmy Puff's hadn't moved location since the last time Iris had seen them. With the familiar balls of pink and purple bouncing about inside. Pygmy Puff's in particular the ones currently being breed by Weasley Wizard Wheeze were an interesting topic if she ever heard of one. Knowing that they had to have a specific licence for the creatures, or at least she hoped they had obtained the licence. There was some sort of magical law on breeding of creatures such as the ones on sale. But Iris couldn't deny that they were cute, in a pin cushion with feelings kind of manner. She wasn't sure she was actually going to adopt one, she wasn't brilliant with caring for herself adding another creature would be unfair on them. 

"Are you interested in adopting one?" A voice spooked Iris out of the concentration she had staring at one purple one in particular. She spun to face who it had been that had interrupted her. Only to come face with the second half of the reason she stepped into the store. 

"How are you so silent on your feet?" Iris responded as she watched George laugh upon realising he had successfully scared her. 

"Practice, plus my shoes don't squeak got a silencing charm on them." He continued to laugh at Iris' face of shock, it was going to take her a little while to get over the jump scare he had given her. 

"To answer your question, probably not. I can't look after myself yet alone one of them, pretty sure it would be animal cruelty." Iris shrugged at her words she wasn't lying, she had no need to. It would be unfair she was sure of it.

"But you think they're pretty right?"

"My sister always wanted one, she wanted a pink one was gonna call it Brain. As in Pinky and the Brain." Iris smiled at the thought, Lavender's idea was stupid but it made sense. 

"Really Brain? I guess I can see it." George didn't seem to be hating the conversation which Iris took as a better step than the last time they saw each other. 

"Yeah she loved your work. Called you the genius' of our generation. My last two years worth of Christmas presents came from here." Iris liked the fond memories the shop brought up for her. "I hope you don't mind if I come in here sometimes just for her. She would have loved everything but the magenta robes."

"What's not to love about the pink." George's voice was obvious he was joking around with Iris which she personally took as a step forwards.  

"It rather clashes with your hair." Her smile seemed the most real it had been in a while now. Like she was truly enjoying herself.

"I take no loitering in my store you know. You better purchase something whenever you come in." George had picked up on her previous words. 

"Oh dear, well I have no clue what to buy, I'm going to need an expert hand." 

"Well I think the best first purchase for any scheming witch or wizard is a fake wand." 

"Lead the way." Iris could feel herself enjoying her time in somewhere she had thought she was most likely just burst out in tears in. And it all had to be due to the man who was stood with her. The pair weaved their way past all the customers and down to one of the very first stands in the shop. There was a variety of very convincing looking wands for sale, and Iris knew that they were fake.

"Any clue what you would use them for?" George shot Iris the question whilst she was properly browsing at the different options. She could see that the more money you spent the more dramatic the joke got. Though she knew to stay clear of the ones which would hit the user around the head. 

"Perhaps I could place them next to the patrons in the pub and watch the chaos." Iris wasn't brilliant with pranking people, unless it had been her sister. And therefore, wasn't sure whether the idea was a step too far.

"Sounds perfect, take two or three and see what happens." George reached forwards to hand Iris a small handful of fake wands. "Just be careful not to get them confused with your own." 

"No promises." Iris responded, knowing full well that she was prone to mistaking her own wand with someone else's and therefore she was likely to get herself at least once with the fake wands. Iris quickly went to check her watch, to see just how long she had left until her shift that evening. And then it dawned on her that she only had half an hour until she had to work, and she probably should shower beforehand considering it was going to be a very long night. 

"Shit, I should probably get going work starts in half an hour. I'll go pay for these and then I'll see you soon yeah?" Iris felt almost sad that she was having to end the conversation. She was enjoying her time with George and didn't want it to end and them return to being whatever they truly were, acquaintances forced to get married or go to jail.

"It's okay, they're on the house. I better see more of you soon." And with his words, Iris gained a little hope. They weren't exactly anything but their interaction meant something. And that would always be more than enough for her.