Found
The grimy bar of The Leaky Cauldron sat beneath the freckled elbows of George Weasley. He stared blankly into the long emptied glass in front of him. The bar tender glanced over at him, as he had done for the past three hours.
George shook himself. He noticed his glass was no longer filled the precious Fire Whiskey, he ordered more, and began wallowing in that one too.
"George!" Ginny's voice rang out. It echoed through the whole room and effectively silenced that drunken talk of the other customers. The ginger girl's brown eyes scanned the whole bar, before resting on one of her brothers. As she rushed forward, she hoped it was the one she had been searching for.
His icy blue eyes came into view and Ginny released a sigh of relief.
"George." She sighed as she sat on the stool beside him. "I've got some news."
George shifted his gaze from his glass to her face, to let her know he was listening. This was clearly not the reaction she was looking for. She huffed.
"We found him." she whispered.
"Thank Merlin. I was afraid you were going to go crazy looking for that Pygmy Puff." George mumbled in a scratchy, hoarse voice. He returned to tracing the grains of the wood on the bar.
"Not him," Ginny mumbled. "Fred."
"What?" George cried, sitting up abruptly and staring at her.
"They found Fred. He's not dead." Ginny repeated, watching his expressions. George had recently developed a wild range of emotions. But before she could look close enough, he was gone with a crack. Ginny grumbled and threw down a few galleons before following him.
The Burrow's living room was crowded to the breaking point. Ron, Harry, Hermione, Molly, Arthur, Charlie, Bill, Fleur, Percy, George and little baby Teddy. They were anxious, fidgeting, and Molly was crying. George looked around at the family, clearly waiting for further explanation.
"Well?" he asked.
"We found Fred in the wreck. He was barely alive. He's at St. Mungo's now-" George hastily stood up. " But! But there's no visitors." Aurthur said.
"When can I see him?" George asked.
"It'll be a few days, three at the most." George, who was still standing, turned and practically flew up the stairs to Ginny's room. He couldn't stand being in his and Fred's room.
~O~
Days passed and in time, two people were allowed to see Fred at once. The only person to go by them self was George, and he went second after Molly and Aurthur. There he learned the awful truth.
When the wall was blown a part, a great deal of it had hit Fred's head. Not only did the wall hit him, he was swung back and crushed by the broken stone. This caused great brain damage.
For now, the Healers are keeping Fred alive, but he may never wake up.
George sat beside Fred's bed, his thumb rubbing circles into his palm. He sat in horribly uncomfortable positions for hours on end. He would rub his elbows raw on the rough bed sheets and soon, the Healers started making him leave. They weren't the only ones who noticed George's thinning form or his red, burning eyes. They also didn't miss his obsessive talking to Fred.
"You know Fred, I really do hate hospitals. They are so clean and orderly. Me and you don't belong here. We belong with mayhem and craziness. So if you would just please get better and wake up, we could leave. We could take care of the shop, and eat dinner at Mum's, just like old times. Doesn't that sound nice?" And George looked at Fred's closed eyes as if he were going to answer. And then he buried his head in his hands and cried.
~O~
"No!" George bellowed. Three Healers were crowded in a spare room. George had tears rushing down his face and his hands in tight fists. "No!"
"We just think it might be best-" A Healer started. She had blond hair.
"Best? You're not unplugging him! You can't kill him! Not yet! Not ever! I know he's in there! I know it!" George screamed, turning to reenter Fred's room. The Healers attempted to stop him.
"But, it would help you family cope. You could move on! It's no good trying to hold onto a false hope." Another Healer insisted.
"It's not a false hope! He's in there! I KNOW it!" George made a move towards the Healer. The third and youngest Healer anxiously pressed a button, and several people appeared to restrain the infuriated ginger man. They brought him out to Ginny and Harry, who were the only ones waiting in the lobby right now.
"He needs to leave." The second Healer practically growled. The extra Healers released George.
"T-they were trying to u-unplug him. T-they were trying to k-kill him!" George was sobbing into Ginny's shoulder. She patted his ginger hair.
"Shh." she cooed. "Shh. It will be okay. They won't unplug him." George shook his head and cried harding into her shirt, staining it.
~O~
The date was January 14, 1999. Almost exactly a year after the Battle of Hogwarts. And the day Fred Weasley opened his eyes.
George was sitting bed side as he had been doing all this year. A Healer he had made friends with during his many visits brought him a piece of pecan pie.
"Thanks." George said, with an attempted smile. He had taken a few bites, and when the sliver of icy blue first was seen, the pie, and the bites of it falling out George's gaping mouth, were forgotten.
George stared at the wide blue eyes, studying them like it had been a million years since he had seen them. He was shocked to silence. Healers came rushing in, shoving George out into the hall. He threw a fit, banging on the now closed door.
"Bloody hell!" He mumbled, kicking the door for the last time before sitting down in the hard plastic chairs with an angry huff. He watched the door with hawk eyes, and when a Healer would enter or leave, he would desperately try to get a glance.
As expected, Molly and Arthur were at St. Mungo's only a few minutes after Fred first opened his eyes. They made their way over to George.
"He opened them?" Molly asked tentatively, placing a hand on George's arm. He nodded.
"Most defiantly." Molly clutched Arthur's fore arm, and she quickly said good bye to George when the Healers came for them. George tried to go with them, but Molly kissed his forehead, and he was left in the lobby.
George was now pacing, much to the annoyance of the other patients. A motherly looking Healer was watching his track across the floor. George skipped up to the front desk.
"Can I see him now?" He asked. The Healer who was his friend, Adeline, sighed.
"No, for the hundredth time, and I will send for you when you can see him." She said, pinning up her blond hair with a quill. George nodded and continued pacing.
Half an hour later, George jogged back up to the tiled counter.
"Can-" George started, but Adeline held up her hand, with out looking up from her magazine.
"No." she interrupted, becoming irritated with his constant asking.
At two in the morning, Adeline got a message from the Healers in charge Fred' room. She thanked them graciously, and went to find George. He was asleep in one of the plastic chairs, his ginger clad head lolling on his shoulder and drool dripping on his shirt. He had been fast asleep when Molly and Arthur appeared out of Fred's room, which meant he had not seen their tears.
Adeline gently shook him awake.
"George? George!" She whispered. George woke with a start, surprise etched all over his freckled face. Deep circles were under his eyes, and he looked especially pale.
"Huh?" He mumbled.
"You can see him now." Adeline said, and George was out of his seat before she could say another word.
Fred was now sitting up on his bed, blankly slurping a think drink the Healers gave him. His eyes were wide and curious. A Healer was just leaving, after taking a few jotted notes. The Healer saw George leaning on the door frame, and he reached out a tentative hand.
"Can I talk to you?" He whispered. George started to panic inside, but nodded.
"Sure." he mumbled. He once again took a seat in the uncomfortable chair.
"Fred, as you know, suffered from severe brain trauma, and well, he has developed amnesia." The Healer said quietly as he pushed his glasses up his nose. George's breath was knocked out of him.
"What?" He gasped, holding his chest.
"He doesn't remember anything. Not his parents, not his favorite color or food, not even his own name."
There's my first chapter. It officially starts here. It's not all dates. I hope you like it. Please review with your thoughts.
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