It was like a dream and a nightmare fused into one. Three months had passed, and still he felt the same every morning he woke up. The world around him had been rebuilt like nothing had happened. The rubble, dirty streets, boarded shops and the eerie cold feeling of Diagon Alley had disappeared. It had been changed to what it was before the war. Inside him, the gut-wrenching guilt and the gaping hole of emptiness and misery threatened to consume him all over again. His thoughts were interrupted by the hooting of an owl. Letters from home scattered near the window sill of his room. George Weasley let out a loud sigh. Another day had come.

"Morning, George!" a dark man in burgundy robes shouted as he sprinted towards the counter of a very colorful shop.

George merely nodded at him.

"Not slept well, eh?"

George shrugged, "I'll be in the back in case there would be a problem."

"Okay!"

George disappeared on the curtain at the back of the cash register.

The door tinkled.

"Hey, Lee," a tall and lanky red-haired man entered the shop together with a bushy-haired girl.

"Hey, Ron, Hermione. Going back to Hogwarts?"

"Yeah, but just for the NEWTs. Hermione here had been pestering us to review again and again."

Hermione slapped Ron in the arm lightly, "I only told you twice!"

"Twice….. twice every hour!" Ron huffed.

Lee shook his head while chuckling, "I'll definitely miss you two. So, what can I do for you? Skiving Snackboxes? Trick Wands?"

Hermione got close to the cash register, "We're here to check on George…"

Ron nodded vigorously, "Mum threatened us at wand point that we should go see George…"

Lee rolled his eyes, "He's in the back, same as usual…"
There was a banging noise in the back room.

"Inventing stuff again?"

Lee nodded.

Ron walked to the back room. He knocked on the door.

"George, it's Ron. Open up!"

The door swung open.

George appeared with soot on his face, "What do you want?"

"Arthur and Molly wanted you to come to dinner tomorrow night."

"What for?"

Ron's face reddened, "What for? What for? We're family, that's what!"

George let out a sigh, "I suppose I could come after I finish with what I'm doing…"

"No, you'll come at six sharp!" Ron exclaimed, "Or we will come and drag you back to the Burrow, if that's what you want!"

George slammed the door on Ron's face.

Ten people stared at the clock that bore many faces.

"Ron dear, maybe he heard wrong. Are you sure you told him it's six o'clock in the evening?" a plump red-haired woman asked.

"Yes, Mum."

"Then what is he still doing at the shop?" she asked once again as she pointed on a face that pointed at "Work".

"Molly, give him time…" Arthur Weasley placed his hand on top of his wife's.

The hand that bore George's face turned to "Travelling", then to "Home".

"Thank, Merlin…" Bill whispered.

A pop was heard outside and someone knocked on the door.

Molly Weasley stood up and opened the door.

"George!" she exclaimed as she held her son tightly in her arms.

"Mum, I can't breathe!"

"Oh, sorry…" she let go of her son, "Come on, dinner's already served…"

George looked at the table and found a place to sit right next to Harry.

"Hi, George," the black-haired man whispered.

"Hey," George replied after he sat down.

"Come on, let's eat!" Arthur pointed at the mouth-watering dishes.

After the remnants of pot roast were taken by Ron, Bill got up and cleared his throat.

"I would like to make a very important announcement."

"Go on, son."

"It had been a year since Fleur and I were married," he smiled at his very beautiful wife.

"We all know that!" Ron exclaimed between mouthfuls of potato salad.

Bill smiled, "We thought it was high time for an additional Weasley."

Cheers and pats on the back were given to Bill.

Molly tearfully rushed to her son and daughter-in-law, "This is good news, good news!"

Arthur hugged Bill tightly, "Now you'll know what it's like to be a father…"

Dessert was a very happy affair for the married couple and the other Weasleys, except for one. George sat down on the grass outside the Burrow.

"Thought you would be here," a man's voice said.

"Why aren't you inside celebrating?" George asked.

"I should be the one asking you that…" Harry chuckled as he sat down beside the other.

"How's Teddy doing?"

"I just got back from visiting him at Andromeda's place. He's thriving but a little mischievous. Don't change the subject, George."

George shrugged, "I feel disconnected in a way…"

Harry exhaled loudly, "I suppose so… I couldn't tell you to stop sulking because I think I can understand what you're feeling…"

"Fred and I promised to each other that we'd travel around the world disguised as Muggles after the war. We never thought…." George never finished his sentence.

"Nobody expected it to happen."

"It was just…." George stopped mid-sentence.

"Too soon?" Harry asked, "One thing I have learned from all of this is to live life to the fullest because we live in borrowed time. Who knows, I could get trampled by Grawp or something…"

George smiled, "I think suffocation by Hagrid's hug might be more plausible…"

Harry chuckled, "Probably…"

"Nah, seriously Harry. How do you cope with all of the mess we were in?"

Harry pointed to the laughter inside the house, "Hold on to those people. They will never let you down."

George smiled, "I've been acting like a jerk, haven't I?"

"Ginny had been itching to hex you for some time now…"

"I could sense that… Anyway, I need to go… Let's just keep this conversation between us…"

Harry smiled, "After all, it's not bloke-y to divulge your feelings to others…"

"Bye, thanks again…" George gave a salute and Disapparated in front of Harry.

That night, George Weasley sat down and wrote two letters. One is for his family, and one for Lee Jordan.