George stood, motionless on the grassy hill overshadowing The Burrow. He watched as groups of dull mourners gathered at the foot of the bank. Some hugging, some laughing as friends and family discussed the stunts and pranks that had made the Weasley twins so very famous.
A faint breeze tickled his skin and clothes and George took in a deep, lasting breath. A sudden pressure of a hand squeezing the flesh of his shoulder made him jump and he turned to face the person. There was noone. He lightly touched the space on his shoulder, he must be going mad.
'George?' his mother stood at the bottom of the hill. Her chapped lips shaking and her arms outstretched. 'It's time Georgie'. George walked robotically towards his grieving mother. He had been unable to cry, to grieve, for the twin brother he had so tragically lost. He had been emotionless and empty for the past week, but, as he slowly walked towards the black chairs seated in rows on the grass, he felt a heavy feeling shift itself on his chest.
He sat down. His hands shaking and a lips trembling, he felt an arm wrap around his shoulders and he turned to face his eldest brother. Bill. Who smiled thinly at him encouragingly.
He couldn't do this.
All through the service, all through the kind words and the quite but still mournful laughter. George's eyes lay fixiated on the black coffin. On his brother and at the end of the service, when his father, Harry, Ron and Charlie got up to lower the coffin into the cold ground he couldn't take it.
'No' he cried his body lurching forward. Bill arms wrapped around his chest to hold him back. 'Take me too! He can't be on his own, please!' George tried to force himself forward and away from his eldest brother, arms outstreatched towards the coffin. 'I can't be on my own' he cried pulling himself free and running towards the coffin, Bill close behind, trying to grab hold of his younger brother.
The coffin hit the bottom of the 8ft ditch and George's heart lurched in his chest. He dived forward trying to fling himself in after his brother. Bill arms locked themselves around his chest preventing him from moving. George felt the strength leave him and he fell, limp in his brothers arms,
heaving sobs escaping his chest.
'I...need him' he sobbed and Bill let him go and his knees hit the floor hard. Leaning forward, George took his anger out on the ground. He hit the floor with his fists until they were bruised and bloody.
'Why?' He shouted 'did I do something wrong? Was it because I copied my homework, because I didn't complete my NEWTS or was it the time our prank went wrong and ten people got hurt?'
Arms grasped his shoulders and he felt himself being pulled up and into the arms of his stocky brother Charlie. He burried his head in the familier feel of his brothers chest and his tears dribbled onto his best suit.
He felt himself being half carried, half dragged away from the funeral, the crowds... Fred. 'He's gone Charlie' he sobbed 'he's gone, he's gone. I'm half a person' George sobbed. His hands clutched at Charlies shirt like a life line but slowly, after God knows how many minutes, the hold began to loosen.
Charlie continued to hold his brother, his hands drifting absent-mindly through his baby brothers hair. 'Shhh, shh' Charlie whispered 'Fred loves you, he really loves you. Even now. Even though he's not here physically he's here in you. You have to keep Fred living George.'
George took a heaving sigh. 'You don't understand Char' George whispered in a broken voice. 'You can't keep half a person. I'll never be whole again not when i'm here and he's 8ft under' George said sobbing again. 'I don't know who I am anymore. Am I even a person? How do I continue living when half of my soul, half of my body, half of what makes me, me is gone forever.'
'You'll get through this Georgie, Fred will always be here with you, he's here right now watching over you and wishing to hell that you'd laugh just once for him' George contemplated what his brother had said for a few minutes. A breeze ruffled his hair and the faint whisper of laughing echoed in the wind.
'Yeah' he answered and allowed the distant sound of laughter comfort him one last time.