I own nothing. Fred survived the war. A bit OOC.
George Weasley grabbed hold of the towel handing next to the sink and wiped off the cold water from his face. His head was facing the mirror above the sink and as he pulled the towel farther down he began to observe the features that were being revealed. He had the same eyes that graced many of his brother's faces the same lining in his nose as well. His lips were just as pink and filled as theirs were. There was nothing truly different about him when he was compared to them. He was one of the tallest of them but that was about it.
He was not as charming as Bill, or as strong as Charlie, nor was he as smart as Percy, neither was he as funny as Fred, a close second yes but still below and he was in no was as brave as Ron. He was the lowest of them all, the least likely of all to be chosen for anything. He hung back up the towel and looked back in the mirror one last time before walking out of the bathroom. He stood in the empty hall of his childhood home and took in a deep breath. He began to walk downstairs to see who all was up. Once he reached the bottom of the stairs his ears perked up at the sounds coming from the kitchen.
He speed up slightly and made his way into the kitchen. He pushed through the doorway into the kitchen and looked around, he found his mother at the stove as usual. He looked over to the dinning table and saw nothing but the plates set out for everyone. The set up was still short of three; Harry, Ron and Hermione still weren't back. After the war they had gone off in search of Hermione's parents in Australia it had been three months. George had begun to wonder if they were ever coming back. He had begun to think that they might have had an accident. There were still Death Eaters out there and they were scared but they were also angry and wanted revenge.
He looked back over to his mother before he sighed deeply. "Mum?"
Mrs. Weasley turned around towards George, "Yes dear?"
He paused for a moment before responding. "You haven't heard anything have you?" His voice was soft, almost hard for her to hear.
Her expression changed, her brows came closer together and the lines at the end of her mouth turned down. "No dear. I haven't heard anything." She looked back up at him and gave a light smile, "I am sure we will soon though."
George nodded his head and his shoulders slumped slightly. He moved over to the dining table and sat down in his usual spot. He looked straight ahead out the window and watched the sunflowers in the garden move as the wind passed through them.
The longer he looked out the window the more still the wind became until it stopped all together. It was how he felt. Everything was moving forward and then they left and now everything just stood still. Everything was unmoving now. I continued to stare out the window. He sat there still until his mother put some eggs on the plate in front of him.
"Thanks mum." He stopped looking out the window and looked down at his place. Before he had the chance to pick up his fork there was a loud bang that came from the direction of the door to the garden. He looked up to find it had been slammed open and Ron was standing there with tears slowly going down his cheeks. "Mum! George!" He whispered to the room.
Mrs. Weasley stood in place staring at her youngest son before throwing herself in her direction and wrapping him in one of her smothering hugs.
George looked at his brother in disbelief. He had finally come home but he saw no sign of Harry or Hermione behind him. George stood up and made his way over to his brother. Ron looked over his mother's shoulder and locked eyes with George.
Once Mrs. Weasley let go of her youngest son she placed a hand on both her son's shoulders and had a teary smile on her face. "All my children are home now." She looked back and forth between the two of them and once she looked at Ron the last time she spoke. "Ron where are Harry and Hermione? Did they not come back with you?"
Ron stiffened before answering. "I don't know where they are. We were all separated we all had to scatter. I haven't seen or heard from either of them in three weeks. The only reason I am back is because it was finally safe for me to come home. I don't even know if they are alive." He looked down to the floor with a pained look on his face.
George felt his shoulders slump. He looked back out the window waiting to see if there would be a miracle and both Harry and Hermione would show up. He looked and waited but nothing happened. He looked back at Ron and spoke "At least we have you back now."
Ron gave him a slight smile before walking around his mother and George and back up to his old room. George remained in the kitchen for a while with his mother before he too left leaving his eggs at the table. He walked back up to he and Fred's room his shoulders remaining slumped the entire way up.
He opened the door slowly and walked over to his bed sitting himself down slowly. He looked over to the other bed in the room where his twin Fred was still asleep. His elbows were on his knees, his hands drooping lazily. He looked down at his hands and rested his head in them. He moved his hands up and down his face slowly. He could feel the tears pricking at his eyes and was trying his best to hold them back.
"She still isn't back yet is she?" George looked up to where the voice had come from. Fred was looking at him in concern. He was the only person in the family who knew just how much he cared for Hermione. And now he was regretting having ever told him.
"No. Ron is though but apparently they were all separated and he doesn't even know if she is alive." George ran his hand through his hair.
"I'm sure that she will show up mate. She was always the smartest of them all. If Ron got back she will too." Fred had a small grin on his face; he pulled himself out of bed before he finished. "I am going to go see Ron."
Fred left the room leaving George alone, with his thoughts. All that he could think about were the different scenarios of what could have happened to her. He went on thinking like this for hours and soon days. It later became weeks before anything new happened. Everything had gone back to normal except for Ginny still pinning for Harry who had not come back either. Ron was still having trouble with adjusting to the fact that his best friends weren't with him.
Two Months Later
It was October already and Halloween was fast approaching. Hermione and Harry had still not shown up. George had become far more withdrawn from his family as time went on. He had finally decided to send a letter to her and had bought a new owl that could travel for long distances. He had sent it in September for her 19th birthday. He had never gotten a response and over a month had already passed. He was beginning to give up hope but he knew that he couldn't give up on her until the owl came back and time had passed without a response. For all he knew the owl still hadn't gotten to her.
A loud shatter sounded from downstairs bringing George up to attention. He ran out of his room and down to the kitchen where the sound came from. He looked to the ground where there was potato salad across the floor with the shattered glass bowl it was in. He looked up and saw Ginny above the mess with a look of shock on her face. He looked in the direction she hadn't moved her eyes from. Harry was standing in the doorway smiling brightly at her. She had obviously been the one that had dropped the bowl. George watched as Ginny launched herself across the room into Harry's arms. George looked around to see if he could spot anyone else that may have come back as well but it was once again to no avail.
George greeted Harry quickly and then went back to his room. Everyone was too busy fawning over Harry being back that none of them noticed but Fred.
Before he knew it October turned into November, and November turned into December.
It was December 24th, Christmas Eve. George was sitting next to the window in he and Fred's room. He was still looking for the owl in the hopes that it might be a Christmas miracle. He watched all day holding an old photograph of her in his hands that was soon to be ripped in half from being held so much. He looked down at the picture and looked at her smiling face before wiping a tear from his eyes.
He looked back out the window at the white canvas that was everything around their house. His hart had begun to ache more every day. He didn't know how long he could take this. Everyday was a day that he hoped she would come back and everyday was another disappointment.
He turned away from the window and got up from his chair. He walked over to his bed and laid down. He soon fell asleep with dreams of Hermione returning and him finally being able to tell her how he felt.
Nine Months Later
September had come slowly for George, for the others it was much faster. Most everyone had tried to move on with his or her lives. Bill and Fleur had just announced that they were expecting a baby, which made Mrs. Weasley go into a frenzy of getting things ready for her first grandchild. Ginny and Harry had announced their engagement and Ron had even started dating Luna.
George didn't know how they were all able to do this and completely forget about Hermione. He knew that they hadn't but that was the way that they were living their lives. George was lying on his bed looking up at the plain ceiling as he thought of the woman he had lost. It had been over a year and he had finally begun to give up.
There was a light tap on the window. George looked over to the window to find the old owl that he had sent out a year ago to find her. He quickly jumped out of his bed and opened the window. The owl swooped in and perched itself on his bed. The owl had a small package attached to its leg. George leaned down to get a hold on the package. He was able to pull it off of the owl's leg and held it in his hand.
He opened the package to find a small charm of an orange feline. There was a small note that was wrapped around the charm. He unfolded it and read it carefully before following the instructions on a hunch. He set the charm down on the ground and spoke the words on the paper.
"Hear these words, hear this cry, and change back what has been done, to what others see as none."
A bright light began to sparkle from the center of the charm and spread out until it lit up the entire room in light. George closed his eyes shut from the light. When he opened them again he looked on in disbelief.
"He-Hermione? Is it really you?" George had fallen to his knees at the sight of her.
She looked down at him her eyes filled with tears. "George?" She kneeled down in front of him. She put her hands on top of his and looked into his eyes. "It's me. I'm back." She let her tears fall freely. George pulled a hand away from underneath her own and placed it on her cheek. Her eyes spread slightly from the way that he was looking at her. George decided to take the chance and leaned in and kissed her.
He pulled away slowly and looked down at their hands. "I'm sorry. I had too. I missed you so much and I have been dreaming of this day. I had begun to think that it would never come and that I wouldn't have the chance to tell you."
She looked at him confused. "To tell me what George?"
"Hermione, I love you and when you left I expected you to be back sooner I thought that you were dead. I-I'm sorry I shouldn't have kissed you and I shouldn't have told you all of this."
He felt her hand sweep across his face before she spoke. "Don't be sorry." He looked up to her as she spoke. "I have been dreaming about this day too, the only difference though is that I was the one who kissed you." She smiled up at him before placing her hand on the back of his neck and pulling him back to her and kissing him soundly on the lips. She spoke against them quietly, "I love you George."
He breathed in deeply at her words before pulling her closer to him then he ever had before. It was better then his dreams because he knew that he wouldn't be waking up to her not being there.
He pulled away slowly, "Hermione I know that this may be strange but I have known you for a long time and I have loved you for long enough that I know what I want. I just need to know that you feel the same way."
"What are you saying George?"
"I'm saying that I plan to live the rest of my life with you, if you will have me." George had jitters running through his body as he spoke.
She looked at him for a while before responding. "Strangely enough I feel the same way."
His face upturned into a smile before pulling her back to him. He kissed her like his life depended on it.
He knew that he would never let her go. He would hold her close for the rest of his life. He was never going to risk going through what he had when she was gone.
"I love you Hermione."
"I love you too."
They kissed each other into the dark of the night, as they would for many nights to come.
Thank you for reading! Please Review!
I hope you enjoyed it!
~ST
