DISCLAIMER: This isn't mine; it all belongs to JK Rowling. But you knew
that.
Lots and lots of thanks to all my lovely reviewers!
***
The Golden Wands, Diagon Alley. She'd been here once with Roger. That day had been rather a disaster, in fact, that had been the day they'd broken up.
While she didn't really mind breaking up with Roger, not now at least, Katie rather hoped things would go better today. She was meeting George for lunch - the first real time they'd spent together for four or five years. "No pressure, then," she muttered to herself, stepping into the fireplace. "The Leaky Cauldron!"
***
George sat at the table he'd booked, eyes trained on the doorway. He was absurdly worried that Katie wasn't going to show up. He was fairly sure she would - he'd recognised the look in her eyes on Christmas night. It was the same one he had, the one that said a thousand things, beginning with "I'm sorry" and "I miss you".
She'll be here, he told himself.
And then she was.
It was as simple as that; she'd walked in the door and was now coming over. George tried to force himself not to blush. Katie brought back so many memories, so many good memories. She'd been his only serious girlfriend; the only girl he'd ever considered spending his life with. It had gone wrong somehow, but today was their chance to make that right again.
"Hi," she said, hanging her coat over the back of the chair opposite George and sitting down. "How are you?"
"Good... cold out there, isn't it?" As soon as the words were out of his mouth, George blushed. The weather. He was talking about the weather.
"Freezing. London in December - what else would it be?" Katie picked up her menu. George contemplated her face as she read the menu, remembering the girl he'd fallen in love with. He'd watched Katie grow up faster than she should have done, during the war. They'd all had to do that. He knew her calm face masked pain; again, a trait common among those who had fought. She was beautiful, to him.
"George?" Katie waved the menu at him. "You know what you're going to order?" The waiter was hovering over her shoulder.
"Uh..." George scanned the menu, quickly. "I'll have the roast chicken, please."
"Make that two," said Katie, passing her menu back to the waiter.
"And a bottle of Honeydew," George added. "You like that?" he asked Katie, belatedly.
"Yeah, that's fine."
The waiter nodded and moved unobtrusively away, leaving them in silence.
"So..." said Katie, toying with her napkin. "How's the joke shop going?"
George sighed inwardly. Here was something he could answer without blushing or making a fool of himself. Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes, he told her, was going well. They'd expanded; had shops in Diagon Alley, Hogsmeade, Rome and Paris; and they were seriously challenging Zonko's for supremacy in the joke shop market now.
"I'm glad," said Katie. "You guys deserve it... you deserve something good."
The waiter arrived with their bottle of Honeydew. He poured them a glass each and left again. George picked up his glass and took a sip, grateful to have something to do with his hands. "What have you been doing for the last few years, Katie?"
"Not much. I'm a Healer - but you know that. Living a quiet life in Winchester, mostly."
"I've never been there. What's it like?"
"Gorgeous. Got a lovely old Cathedral. The wizarding community's very small, but I don't mind that. I can Apparate or Floo anywhere."
George looked at her. "I've missed you."
"I missed you, too. A lot."
"You knew where I was, Katie. You could've come, any time." George watched her, closely. He didn't want to hurt her, but the silence from her over the years had been painful. He'd been a little angry, at first, especially when she'd first started dating Harry. That had turned into numbness, feeling that perhaps she didn't feel the same away about him as he did about her; trying desperately not to remember the times she'd said she loved him. Everything he'd said or done over the last few years had been coloured by Katie and his thoughts of her. It was a strange way to live.
"I know. I thought about it... so many times. But I was.... scared, I guess." Katie was staring at her napkin, twisting it into a tight bundle.
"Why?" George reached across the table and prised the napkin out of her hands. Her skin was soft and warm, the way he remembered it. He didn't let go of her hands.
"I guess... when Alicia died... somehow I started thinking that... that I couldn't handle it if someone else I loved died. She was one of my best friends... all those years on the Quidditch team... and I got the idea that if I didn't love anyone, I wouldn't lose them." Katie was whispering. George cast a silencing charm over the table and she looked at him, gratefully. "And I missed you. At Alicia's funeral, all I wanted was for you to hold me. But I was too scared that something would happen to you and I wouldn't let myself... let you... well, whatever."
George nodded. He remembered. Alicia's funeral had been an appropriately dark, gloomy day. They'd stood at the grave, him, Katie, Fred, Angelina, Lee, Alicia's parents and sister and a few other family members, as her coffin was lowered into the damp earth in the overcrowded Hogsmeade cemetery. Katie had stood, silent, her eyes following the coffin's slow path into the earth, twisting a pink rose the way she'd twisted that napkin. Standing behind her, watching the coffin over her shoulder, he'd put his arms around her. She'd shaken him off and moved away to stand by herself. "Leave her alone," Angelina had whispered. "She just wants to be alone."
That had been the day things had started changing. Angelina had been right. She'd wanted to be alone. She'd just never stopped wanting to be alone... until now, he hoped.
"I just got into the habit of staying away from people. There was Harry... that was stupid. We were both grieving, trying to find things we didn't want and that we weren't ready for, anyway. I never loved him, not in that way. He didn't love me, either. And then... I was still scared. I thought maybe... I thought you wouldn't want me back."
"I love you, Katie. I've never stopped."
"I love you, too." Katie finally lifted her head. Tears were glinting in her eyes. "I'm so sorry."
"I understand." George stroked her hands with his thumbs. He'd felt like that, a little, after Percy had died. Percy may have been a git, and a prat, and anything else you liked to call him, but they were still brothers. Katie had held him, had let him cry, had stepped back to let him grieve with his family, always ready with open arms when he wanted to sob like a little child instead of being strong for Mum and Dad and Ginny. He'd wanted to do the same for her. "Are you actually hungry?"
She shook her head, biting her bottom lip.
"Let's go, then." George removed the silencing charm from the table and put down enough Galleons to cover the cost of what they'd ordered. As they stood up to leave, he grabbed the bottle of Honeydew. "We've paid for it, haven't we?"
Katie grinned through the tears she was trying to hold back. "You haven't changed, George Weasley."
"How about you show me round Winchester, then?"
***
They went to Katie's first. When George stepped out of her fireplace into the living room he discovered that the tears had finally overwhelmed her. Automatically, instinctively, he reached out for her as he'd done so many times in the past. She kept apologising in between sobs; he wasn't entirely sure what she was sorry for. He just knew it didn't matter, because this was important for her, and because after all they'd only lost four years. They had a lifetime in front of them.
Right now, he was content just to let her cry. They could sort everything else out later.
Lots and lots of thanks to all my lovely reviewers!
***
The Golden Wands, Diagon Alley. She'd been here once with Roger. That day had been rather a disaster, in fact, that had been the day they'd broken up.
While she didn't really mind breaking up with Roger, not now at least, Katie rather hoped things would go better today. She was meeting George for lunch - the first real time they'd spent together for four or five years. "No pressure, then," she muttered to herself, stepping into the fireplace. "The Leaky Cauldron!"
***
George sat at the table he'd booked, eyes trained on the doorway. He was absurdly worried that Katie wasn't going to show up. He was fairly sure she would - he'd recognised the look in her eyes on Christmas night. It was the same one he had, the one that said a thousand things, beginning with "I'm sorry" and "I miss you".
She'll be here, he told himself.
And then she was.
It was as simple as that; she'd walked in the door and was now coming over. George tried to force himself not to blush. Katie brought back so many memories, so many good memories. She'd been his only serious girlfriend; the only girl he'd ever considered spending his life with. It had gone wrong somehow, but today was their chance to make that right again.
"Hi," she said, hanging her coat over the back of the chair opposite George and sitting down. "How are you?"
"Good... cold out there, isn't it?" As soon as the words were out of his mouth, George blushed. The weather. He was talking about the weather.
"Freezing. London in December - what else would it be?" Katie picked up her menu. George contemplated her face as she read the menu, remembering the girl he'd fallen in love with. He'd watched Katie grow up faster than she should have done, during the war. They'd all had to do that. He knew her calm face masked pain; again, a trait common among those who had fought. She was beautiful, to him.
"George?" Katie waved the menu at him. "You know what you're going to order?" The waiter was hovering over her shoulder.
"Uh..." George scanned the menu, quickly. "I'll have the roast chicken, please."
"Make that two," said Katie, passing her menu back to the waiter.
"And a bottle of Honeydew," George added. "You like that?" he asked Katie, belatedly.
"Yeah, that's fine."
The waiter nodded and moved unobtrusively away, leaving them in silence.
"So..." said Katie, toying with her napkin. "How's the joke shop going?"
George sighed inwardly. Here was something he could answer without blushing or making a fool of himself. Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes, he told her, was going well. They'd expanded; had shops in Diagon Alley, Hogsmeade, Rome and Paris; and they were seriously challenging Zonko's for supremacy in the joke shop market now.
"I'm glad," said Katie. "You guys deserve it... you deserve something good."
The waiter arrived with their bottle of Honeydew. He poured them a glass each and left again. George picked up his glass and took a sip, grateful to have something to do with his hands. "What have you been doing for the last few years, Katie?"
"Not much. I'm a Healer - but you know that. Living a quiet life in Winchester, mostly."
"I've never been there. What's it like?"
"Gorgeous. Got a lovely old Cathedral. The wizarding community's very small, but I don't mind that. I can Apparate or Floo anywhere."
George looked at her. "I've missed you."
"I missed you, too. A lot."
"You knew where I was, Katie. You could've come, any time." George watched her, closely. He didn't want to hurt her, but the silence from her over the years had been painful. He'd been a little angry, at first, especially when she'd first started dating Harry. That had turned into numbness, feeling that perhaps she didn't feel the same away about him as he did about her; trying desperately not to remember the times she'd said she loved him. Everything he'd said or done over the last few years had been coloured by Katie and his thoughts of her. It was a strange way to live.
"I know. I thought about it... so many times. But I was.... scared, I guess." Katie was staring at her napkin, twisting it into a tight bundle.
"Why?" George reached across the table and prised the napkin out of her hands. Her skin was soft and warm, the way he remembered it. He didn't let go of her hands.
"I guess... when Alicia died... somehow I started thinking that... that I couldn't handle it if someone else I loved died. She was one of my best friends... all those years on the Quidditch team... and I got the idea that if I didn't love anyone, I wouldn't lose them." Katie was whispering. George cast a silencing charm over the table and she looked at him, gratefully. "And I missed you. At Alicia's funeral, all I wanted was for you to hold me. But I was too scared that something would happen to you and I wouldn't let myself... let you... well, whatever."
George nodded. He remembered. Alicia's funeral had been an appropriately dark, gloomy day. They'd stood at the grave, him, Katie, Fred, Angelina, Lee, Alicia's parents and sister and a few other family members, as her coffin was lowered into the damp earth in the overcrowded Hogsmeade cemetery. Katie had stood, silent, her eyes following the coffin's slow path into the earth, twisting a pink rose the way she'd twisted that napkin. Standing behind her, watching the coffin over her shoulder, he'd put his arms around her. She'd shaken him off and moved away to stand by herself. "Leave her alone," Angelina had whispered. "She just wants to be alone."
That had been the day things had started changing. Angelina had been right. She'd wanted to be alone. She'd just never stopped wanting to be alone... until now, he hoped.
"I just got into the habit of staying away from people. There was Harry... that was stupid. We were both grieving, trying to find things we didn't want and that we weren't ready for, anyway. I never loved him, not in that way. He didn't love me, either. And then... I was still scared. I thought maybe... I thought you wouldn't want me back."
"I love you, Katie. I've never stopped."
"I love you, too." Katie finally lifted her head. Tears were glinting in her eyes. "I'm so sorry."
"I understand." George stroked her hands with his thumbs. He'd felt like that, a little, after Percy had died. Percy may have been a git, and a prat, and anything else you liked to call him, but they were still brothers. Katie had held him, had let him cry, had stepped back to let him grieve with his family, always ready with open arms when he wanted to sob like a little child instead of being strong for Mum and Dad and Ginny. He'd wanted to do the same for her. "Are you actually hungry?"
She shook her head, biting her bottom lip.
"Let's go, then." George removed the silencing charm from the table and put down enough Galleons to cover the cost of what they'd ordered. As they stood up to leave, he grabbed the bottle of Honeydew. "We've paid for it, haven't we?"
Katie grinned through the tears she was trying to hold back. "You haven't changed, George Weasley."
"How about you show me round Winchester, then?"
***
They went to Katie's first. When George stepped out of her fireplace into the living room he discovered that the tears had finally overwhelmed her. Automatically, instinctively, he reached out for her as he'd done so many times in the past. She kept apologising in between sobs; he wasn't entirely sure what she was sorry for. He just knew it didn't matter, because this was important for her, and because after all they'd only lost four years. They had a lifetime in front of them.
Right now, he was content just to let her cry. They could sort everything else out later.