A/N: I know it's a short fanfic, I think it deserves three chapters though. It needs them.
DISCLAIMER: As far as I know, I'm not JK Rowling. She owns these characters. I, sadly, don't.
Angelina had come to visit, George noticed with the detached part of his brain. He could hear her talking to his mother.
He glanced at the calendar. 11 months since Fred's death. A part of him was briefly surprised about how much time had passed, but that was soon squashed.
He heard footsteps on the stairs, but ignored them, staring out of the window but not seeing the view.
"George!" Angelina called, flinging open his door and standing there like some avenging angel of death.
He turned and looked at her, pulling his features into a frown.
She walked across the room to him. "Wanna come for a walk?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.
He stared at her for a second, then shook his head.
She bit her lip, as if trying to keep the lid on something she wanted to say, then exploded.
"George, you've got to do something!"
He stared at her blankly.
"Are you gonna go into the shop again?" She challenged, then, getting no response: "Are you gonna close it?" She sighed and then folded her arms, glaring at him. "George, would Fred want you to be like this?" She asked softly.
He shrugged.
"He wouldn't want you to waste your life, George!" She snapped. "He'd want you to do something–"
"What?" He interrupted.
She frowned at him for a second, then her expression cleared and she let out an exasperated sigh. "Something. Anything! Play Quidditch. Play stupid pranks on people. Tell a joke!" She watched him for a response.
"I... I can't." He muttered.
"Look, I know Fred died – hell, we all know it! – and I accept that you're finding it hard. But it's been nearly a year now. You can't spend your whole life wallowing in grief and guilt."
"Why? What's the point?" He asked.
She looked like she wanted to slap him. "Fred would want you to move on! If he was here, he'd be shaking you and telling you to stop being such an idiot!"
He glared at her, temper flaring for a split second, before his energy ran out. "Whatever."
"No! Not whatever! George, have you looked at yourself? You're like... a husk. Like something in you died."
"Well, something did." He muttered. "Look, I'm too tired to have this argument..."
"YOU'RE NOT ARGUING! THAT'S THE POINT!" She yelled, taking him by surprise. She yanked him to his feet. "You're not even George anymore! It's like you died when Fred did! And I'm sorry he died, and I miss him so much, but you gotta get over it! MOVE ON!"
"Why should I? There's no point!" He argued, finding a spark of life and defiance.
"No point. George, you're 19! You can get a girlfriend, or a job, or get married and have kids, or turn gay..." she stared at him pointedly, then rolled her eyes. "See? You're not George anymore. He'd have reacted to that last one."
"I am." He protested, then he glared at her suddenly, filled with venom. "It's like nothing you can imagine, having your twin taken away from you! It's like... oh, why the hell am I trying to explain to you?" He turned his head away.
She slapped him around the face. He gasped, trying to find words to respond. "For God's SAKES! George, he's dead. He's not coming back. Ever. You have to accept it and move on! You're a Gryffindor. Be BRAVE!"
"But I'm not brave," he protested feebly.
"You were Sorted into Gryffindor! You're brave! You joined the Order, fought Voldemort, insulted him for God's sakes!"
"I had Fred then." He answered.
"GEORGE!" She screamed at him. "Fred is DEAD. You gotta look towards the future!"
Her words were pulling him out of the numb shell he'd retreated into. "What right have you got to come in here and yell at me?"
"I'm your friend, I have every right." She replied with a fierce look.
He shrugged, sitting back down on his bed.
She knelt down in front of him. "George. Remember who you were before? Be him again."
He stared at her, then turned his face away. It felt like inside him, something was waking up.
He didn't want to, but he felt it, as well as a huge lump of overwhelming grief. He collapsed sideways, lying in the foetal position on his bed, tears running down his face, thick and fast. Angelina sat gently next to him, then curled herself around him carefully and just held him. He cried for a long time. Sorrow like the sadness he felt wasn't going to go away easily.
After a time – it could've been minutes, hours, days... – the clench on his heart loosened.
He uncurled, sat up, ate, slept normal hours... Angelina had left by then. She visited as much as she could take out of her work.
His family were glad to have him back, properly. But he still didn't leave the house. He didn't feel up to it.
The anniversary of Fred's death came and went. George cried for the majority of that day, and didn't join the family when they went to lay flowers on Fred's grave.
A few weeks later, Angelina bounced into his room with a grin on her face, throwing open the curtains. "Happy Birthday!" She announced.
He squinted against the bright light. "You... what?"
"You're 20 today," she pointed out with a beam.
His eyebrows hit the ceiling. "How the hell did I leave my teenage years without noticing?"
She shrugged gently and sat on the end of his bed, passing him a present. "We-ell, you were still in mourning last year."
"Actually, I was born in the afternoon." He said vaguely, attempting to open the present.
She placed her hand on her heart and stared at him in wonder. "Woah. You made a joke."
He snorted and shook his head. "Sign of the apocalypse, now, is it?"
She nodded and leant towards him as he managed to open the present, eyes wide with anticipation.
It was a framed picture of Fred and George, standing with their arms around each other, in front of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes.
He stared at it for a few moments, then looked up at Angelina.
She squeezed his hand. "Fred would have wanted it to carry on." She murmured.
He nodded and squeezed her hand, before placing the picture on his bedside cabinet. "Thanks." He choked out. She hugged him tightly.
A/N: I know Angelina's a bit of a bitch, but really, she just wants him to move on and be happy. :3
