Once the dust settled and the wounded were moved to St. Mungos people slowly started to trickle out of what was left of the school. They found reasons not to be at the school. McGonagall even said she was going to go home and just rest for a while, go to the funerals and try to make sense of what was left.

But George couldn't bring himself to leave, so he stayed at the school during the day and flooed to Grimmauld place at night when he was so tired he was ready to fall over. He stayed and helped Filtch clear the debris and mend small things as they went. The house elves worked on rebuilding what was cleared once they went on to the next floor. They worked slowly but efficiently with little conversation or distractions. Winky would bring them a platter of sandwiches and a pitcher of pumpkin juice at lunch and if they were still working again by the time dinner rolled around she would bring them another plate of something to eat. It took them a full two weeks to reach the floor that Fred died on; the same day as his funeral.

George fell to his knees at the spot and didn't notice when the old caretaker left him to grieve and didn't touch the plate of food Winky brought. Nor did he notice when Lee Jordan came to get him or Mrs. Weasley who couldn't bear to be at the same place where her son died.

He jumped up, wand drawn on the other boy, with a wild look on his face when George felt a hand touch his shoulder. It took a moment but he lowered his wand once his vision cleared and he realized it was just Lee.

"Your mum sent me." He said roughly as he put his arm around George in a manly hug. George only nodded as he looked back down at the spot where Fred last laughed.

Lee stood motionless for a while lost on how to comfort his friend on the loss of his twin before an idea came to him. With a grin he silently cast a charm and they watched the base of the wall engrave deep into the wood.

Fred Weasley

Mischief Managed

May 2, 1998

George fell back to his knees with a loud slap as his hands hit the floor as the grief finally overcame him. And for the first time since he and Fred were little did he cry.

It was a good thirty minutes or so before he calmed enough to stand again.

"Ready?" lee asked once George looked at him and with a silent nod they made their way to the closest fireplace and flooed to Grimmauld place. The flat above the shop and the Burrow held too many memories of his brother for him to bear. Harry was coming out of his room as they reached the landing.

"Hey guys. Lee I need your help with something if you don't mind."

"Sure…" Lee said a bit confused before looking back at George. "see you in a bit."

George watched as they walked down the stairs talking quietly as they went, he waited for the sound of the floo before going into his room.

(o)^(o)

Showered and changed George walked back down to the kitchen where Hermione was sitting with a blank stare with a steaming cup of tea in her thin hands. Life on the run had made all three of them too thin. He quietly pattered around the kitchen and made himself a cup of tea and found some biscuits in the cabinet that his mum had made at some point the last week or so. She had been cooking and baking so much to keep her mind busy that Harry had been putting money into the Weasley household account at Gringotts to repay her and make sure she had enough to keep her busy as well.

The plate made a much louder noise than intended when he sat it on the table in front of Hermione making her jump and slosh her cooled tea a bit.

"Sorry." He mumbled as he handed her one of the paper napkins from the middle of the table.

"S'ok." She breathed as she wiped off her hand.

They sat in silence as they sipped their cooling tea and ate the soft biscuits. Hermione jumped when the grandfather clock in the hallway chimed for 2pm.

"We should get going. Harry said to be at the Burrow around 2:15 or so." Hermione said softly as she sat her empty tea cup down on the worn wood table.

George drained what was left of his tea and sat it next to hers as he stood and made sure he had his wand before they apparated out of the old house and to the Burrow.

He was momentarily shocked by the sheer amount of people who had showed up for his twin. Hermione gently tugged on his wrist as she moved to the large tent in the back yard. It had to be the same one his brothers and himself had put up for Bill and Fleur's wedding last June. Ignoring the stares, George followed Hermione to where Charlie was sitting alone in the front row of empty seats.

"Hey Georgie," His voice was rough and caught in odd places George noticed as he pulled free from Hermione's fragile grasp and hugged his older brother tightly. "I still can't believe today came so soon." He whispered harshly in Georges ear before adding in a much softer tone, "I always thought when he did go out it would be with you."

George felt the distinct sting of tears behind his eyes and the oddest constriction in his throat as he let go of his brother.

Looking around the empty tent he noticed Hermione had left and had closed the flap on the tent to keep others out. When he looked back at Charlie he was looking at the long marble sarcophagus with Mischief engraved calligraphy style on the side on the small platform.

"Do they expect me to say anything?" George asked making Charlie jump slightly.

"No, Harry is supposed to be taking care of it." Charlie explained quietly looking back at the sarcophagus. "You should see him before everyone is watching. The whole family has. Mum collapsed and dad had to take her inside to lay down earlier." Charlie said, his voice catching again as he sat down to give George his privacy.

Slowly as if by a gravitational pull George found himself looking down at his twin in a macabre fashion. It was as if he was looking at what could be his own body; but Fred looked peaceful and serene in his burial robes and completely ridiculous, he almost didn't really recognize him.

Shaking with silent laughter at the situation and unable to stop before he was laid over his brother laughing harder and harder but still no sound coming out he didn't know why it was so funny but it was. Whoever had done the pre-burial duties had combed his hair back far too neat and had laid his hands together on his chest and had given him the more serious look on his face George had ever seen.

Once he was able to pull himself together he looked back at Fred again and could almost feel him looking back up at him with a pleading look on his face and could have sworn he heard his brother whisper, "George, help a brother out here. I look bloody ridiculous here. Mum hasn't been able to catch us since we were tots to comb my hair this way and what the bloody hell did they clothe me in?" George felt himself silently laughing again. "It's all fun and games to pick on me Gred but come on now… fix it please. I look like a bloody chicken here."

With very little wand movement George transfigured the burial robes into a purple suit with a orange shirt and green tie before conjuring a rubber chicken and a small deck of muggle poker cards for him to hold onto. Looking at his brother's tight emotionless face he quickly cast a few charms to look as if he was laughing with his mouth shut and made sure to fix his brothers hair before silently making his way to the back of the tent to use the loo before the ceremony started.

When he came back outside he say the tent flap was open and it looked like everyone was inside. Quietly he slipped around the back row and along the tent fabric to the front row where Charlie had left a seat open for him.

He didn't bother listening to whatever Kingsely or McGonagall had to say about his brother and his life but when Harry walked up to the podium over an hour later and cleared his throat he looked up from the flat grass he had been shifting under his foot.

"Everyone sitting here today was touched by Fred in some way, but most of us will always remember how he made us laugh when we felt like we couldn't manage a smile. He had a way that everything just seemed a bit more colorful in life with him and George around. And I for one, have to say I look at George and it takes a moment for my eyes not to see Fred standing next to him. Other than Ron, Fred and George were the first people to ever accept me and treat me as an equal. Even if it meant picking on me just as much as they did Ron." Harry laughed softly before looking over to George and his family. "this family is my family. This loss is just as great to me as if I lost my brother as well. And if they are half as numb as I am I don't know how they are sitting here today. I only knew Fred for about eight years but he and his twin touched my life in ways I can never fully express. And I know Fred is wanting us to get on with it so if everyone would like to come forward and pay their respects in a timely manner please." Harry said stepping down from the podium and walking over to where Ron and Hermione were holding Ginny as she shook from crying so hard. He took her quickly in his arms before she fell over from trembling as she tried to meet him part of the way.

George nearly jumped out of his skin as he heard soft, sad lyric-less music play from somewhere in the tent. George helped his dad with his mum as he noticed how pale and drawn she looked. She took his face in her hands and looked at him deeply for a long moment before her hands started to tremble.

"It's George, mum. See?" he said turning his head so she could see his missing ear. "Just George." He whispered as she pulled him close and didn't let go, and he let her hold on while everyone made their way through the tent and back out. When Professor McGonagall came by she whispered that she was the last one and that Harry and Lee wanted everyone outside for a moment before most people left.

George staggered a bit as his dad took his mums full weight and led her away to the back of the tent. Making sure his knees weren't locked or weak he followed slowly out the tent and away from his brother.

As soon as he stepped out of the tent a loud boom went off and made half the procession draw their wands at the ready but George looked up and saw one of the Weasley Wizarding Wheezes fireworks shine brightly in the afternoon sky. A few more good fireworks went off and George found himself smiling at them before looking next to him to say something the Fred, only to find an empty void. With a heavy heart George looked at his family and saw them smiling up at the brightly colored sparks and found himself pulling Ginny to him and hoisting her up on his shoulders like he used to do when she was little.

"I love you George." She whispered down at him before clapping at a powerful set of fireworks.

Once everyone had left and George was still standing there with Ginny on his shoulders and his family, Harry, Hermione, and Lee George looked around and knew while he would never have his twin he still had family that loved him very much and friends that were willing to try to cheer him up.

Whatever tomorrow brought for him, George Weasley would be ready.