A/N: This story takes place after my story "To Make George Laugh Again", but it's all good if don't read it. My head canon for George might make more sense, but not required.

Chapter 1: 13 January, 1999

Being Fred and George's best friend was very difficult. The biggest attribute in said best friend would be to tell them apart.

The first person to do it was their little sister, Ginny. It was a stupid, little prank, but it was the first one directed at five-year-old Ginny. George sat in the barn, ready to pull a rope, while Fred snuck up behind her to jump-scare her into a bale of hay and mud. Before they thought their prank would be a success, Ginny spun around and smacked Fred to the ground. "Fred!" she screamed, running into the barn. She spotted her other brother, and yelled, "You better not push me like you pushed Ron, George!" Ever since, Fred and George took Ginny under their wing.

The next person to tell them apart was Lee Jordan. Fred and George got onto the Gryffindor Quidditch team, and Lee Jordan became an announcer. He was the only one to know which Weasley was which, even when the twins switched numbers.

Harry also eventually knew the difference, although they didn't exactly know how.

And then, there was Angelina, who seemed to know the twins inside and out. She was the only one who could talk to them one on one, without the other, although those times were very rare. When she'd talk with Fred, it was a laugh. Joke after joke after joke. Sometimes, they'd flirt, but Angelina knew that nothing serious would ever happen between them. George, although externally just like Fred, was a bit complex in Angelina's opinion. She could have decent conversations with George, and they were sometimes profound. George opened up to Angelina; it was somehow easy for him, and it scared him a little. Not even Fred knew about some things that he'd talk about.

Now, when Fred died, George felt as if he had no one. He was so used to Fred by his side that being alone was never a concept. The people that could tell them apart tried to help him, but he didn't want their help. In fact, he shut himself into his and Fred's old room for months. Ginny came knocking, but he didn't want her to see him this way. Lee and Angelina were busy keeping up the shop while he wasn't there. If George had it his way, he'd torch the place, but, deep down, he appreciated his friends trying to keep his business alive. George definitely didn't want to talk to Harry; he irrationally blamed Harry for his brother's death.

Ever since that Christmas 1998, George grew fond of Teddy; he shared a connection with the infant that only Harry could quite understand. Harry asked Andromeda to stop by at the Burrow more often with Teddy. This lifted George's spirits significantly from that point onward. He was still a working progress, but everyone saw some definite improvement.

Angelina was the most excited about George's change in attitude. She had more luck with talking to him and bringing him back to his old self. There were some times when their conversations would get heated or deep, but George felt comfortable talking to Angelina about such private things. It was like old times again. They'd talk about the latest Quidditch season, about getting George sober (which was always a passive aggressive subject), about their favorite classes at Hogwarts, about getting ice cream, anything really. But, the conversation always came back to Fred. And how could it not? George literally did everything with his twin.

This particular conversation was about the Yule Ball back in their sixth year. Angelina tried to steer the conversation away from that time; even for her, Fred was still a touchy subject. But with George's "liquid courage", there was no stopping him.

"When you said yes to- to him," George said, quietly skirting over his twin's name. "I was a bit disappointed. But he's always been that ladies' man…"

Despite trying to get off of the subject, Angelina couldn't help but laugh at this. "He asked me to the Yule Ball. What do you think we did?"

George shrugged. "He told me you two snogged-"

"Once!" she said, exasperated. "And if I remember correctly, Katie told me you two had hooked up. Did that mean you were boyfriend and girlfriend?"

"Of course not."

"Exactly." She took his hand in hers. "I would have gone with you if you asked me first."

This didn't help matters. "Wouldn't have made a difference," he slurred slightly. "We look the same. You would have just as well had snogged me if we went together."

"You don't know that, George."

"Oh yeah?" A vein twitched on his temple.

"You two were vastly different, you know that, right?" She knew this hit a bit of a chord with George, since this was the road block they've been facing for a while. He took his hand back from hers, but she boldly continued. "You are nothing like him, and he was nothing like you." George turned his head away from her, but she knew he was listening. "He was reckless, daring, the man of action. You," she touched his face, accidentally scraping over the hole where his ear used to be. She smiled. "You are more observant, thoughtful, introspective, and a bit unbalanced."

George gave a sad smile, but still had his head turned away. "Bringing back the ear jokes, I see…"

"I mean it, George," she whispered. She forced him to look at her. "You are George. You have always been George. Even with him. You two were always two separate people in my eyes. That night at the Yule Ball, that is history. We laughed about it later. It was nothing. Trust me."

He did.