Secrets Unknown

Chapter 11: "The Drinking Game"

Dinner in the Weasley kitchen had always been a happy affair. Due to the frequent flow of guests through the house laughter and happy chattering was almost an anthem. Since Fred's death, however, every meal had been dreaded by the Weasley family and the other house guests. Tonight was no exception. When Angelina and George took their places, a feeble "hello" was all the greeting they received. George looked around the table at the anguish and total devastation his brother's suicide had caused to his fellow family members. Bill smiled weakly as he served up the meal of lamb chops and assorted vegetables that George knew before even putting a bite to his mouth that he wouldn't be able to taste; Ron and Hermione quietly held hands, not speaking to anyone, not even each other; Ginny, her cheek rested on her palm, poked her vegetables with a fork, showing no inclination of eating; Percy, usually pompous and eager to share his experiences with the Ministry of Magic was unusually subdued; Charlie and his father sat stony-faced, talking unenthusiastically about the news of a new species of dragon Charlie had been working with; and his mother, usually the pinnacle of bubbly personality and generosity of spirit, sat silently looking directly at the rest of her family but George knew she didn't really see them.

George ate in silence, terribly aware of the fact that he was seated next to someone who knew the same things he did about his twin. He looked up and saw Angelina looking at him. He smiled and quickly bent down over his food again.

Ginny and George cleared the dishes off the table when dinner was over. It was Hermione's turn to clean and Charlie's turn to dry so pending the fact that they were not needed anymore, George and Angelina went back to their room. Angelina commented that they probably should stay downstairs just to talk to the rest of the family but George shook his head.

"No," he disagreed, "really, none of us have anything to talk about at the moment."

Once back in their room, Angelina suggested a card game and George really didn't have the energy to disagree so he grabbed a deck of cards from one of the desk drawers and they settled down on George's bed to play a Muggle game Harry had taught them called "Go Fish".

It was nearing the end of the game (Angelina winning, much to George's displeasure) when a knock on the door interrupted Angelina's smugness.

Angelina looked at George who shrugged. Angelina gave him a strange look before calling out "come in!"

The door opened and George and Angelina both broke into smiles at the sight of the people who entered the room.

Angelina climbed off the bed and practically flung herself into the arms of a much older looking Oliver Wood. Alicia Spinnet and Katie Bell smiled at George who smiled feebly back while Harry Potter followed the three others into the room and closed the door behind him.

"Quidditch reunion!" Katie told George and Angelina.

George actually grinned at that. He had always been happiest when he had been around his six best friends. Then his grin quickly subsided when he realized that he was only ever going to be with five of them now. When Angelina finally drew away from Oliver's hug he walked over to where George had just stood up. He put his arms around George for a quick hug and said into his ear, "I'm sorry, man." He pulled away and gave him a pat on the shoulder, his eyes glistening slightly. George nodded, a slight smile on his lips.

Oliver stepped back into the rest of the company, "I'm sorry I couldn't get here sooner," he said apologetically, "but the coach wouldn't let me leave until now. And even so, I can only stay the night."

George nodded, "It's really good to see all of you."

Angelina agreed, "I like seeing us all in the same room again." She smiled sadly and everyone knew she was thinking an additional "if only we could all be here together."

Harry patted George on the back and told him he would be back in a while after saying hello to his two best friends. George nodded and turned back to Oliver who smiled and addressed the rest of the group.

"Muggle London tonight?"

Every so often the group had gotten together in the holidays or weekends when George and Fred had not been minding the shop or when the others hadn't been working, and when Oliver had time off from training, and traipsed casually into Muggle London to partake in an activity very popular among the non-wizarding population of the world: Clubbing.

Alicia and Katie nodded gingerly but Angelina turned to George for his reaction to the suggestion. For a moment most of the group thought he would decline the offer but he nodded.

"Okay."

That night the six of them plus Ron and Hermione stepped into the fireplace of The Burrow and said audibly, "The Leaky Cauldron".

Tom greeted the eight of them warmly as they stepped out of the soot, clearly accustomed to the arrival of guests in this fashion. As was tradition of their clubbing nights, they sat down at the bar for a drink as Tom grabbed six glasses, pointed his wand at various bottles along the back wall and proceeded to fill the glasses with the choice drink of each group member he knew by heart. He then turned to Ron and Hermione for their orders. Harry grinned at the others as he drank his bourbon and cola in one huge gulp. George noticed Ron looking a little confused at the fact that the barman knew his preferred drink. He realized then that Harry never told Ron about the fact that he had been joining the others when they went out on the town for over a year. I guess it's easier than I thought, keeping information from your best friends, George thought as he sipped at his own drink.

Tonight was just what he needed. Something he heard numerous times throughout the night as he struggled to believe it himself. Sure, time alone with his friends was a comfort, but in reality, it was going to achieve absolutely nothing.

Sometime during the night Angelina came and sat down next to George who was brooding by the bar, a few too many drinks under his belt. He gazed blearily at the girl as she sat down on the stool next to his and he noticed with some difficulty that tears were running down her cheeks.

"It's not helping." She stated simply.

George, although heavily intoxicated, knew what she meant and nodded.

Angelina sniffed and wiped her eyes with a napkin from the bar. She looked at George and a look of concern crossed her face.

"Are you okay, George?"

The question lingered somewhere between his ears and his brain before registering and he nodded, accepting another drink from the bartender. As he fumbled with his wallet, trying to count the Muggle money with some difficulty, Angelina pulled out her own purse and handed the tender a 5 pound note.

"You're drunk." She said in dismay.

Another few seconds and the sentence reached his brain. Too tired and too aware of the fact that he could not pull off an act of sobriety, George nodded and skulled his drink, coughing and gagging when the last drop reached his throat.

"George? George!" Angelina jumped up from her seat in alarm as George out his hand over his mouth and gagged. She looked around for the others but they were nowhere in sight, dancing and unaware of the unhappiness of their two friends. She put her arms around George's waist and tried to pull him to a standing position. With some difficulty she got him off the seat and with his arm around her shoulders she dragged him outside where he promptly threw up on the pavement. The bouncer, unhappy at the mess at his feet told Angelina to take her friend home for they would not be permitted to go back inside.

"Damn," she said to herself as George slumped onto the ground, at least some distance away from the mess he had just made. She sat him down against the wall and watched fearfully as his eyes closed.

"Oh, God." She looked for the bouncer pleadingly and he grudgingly obliged by coming over and squatting down and slapping George firmly on the cheek.

"Come on, son," he slapped a bit harder when George did not open his eyes. Finally, to Angelina's relief he opened his eyes blearily, clearly unaware of his surroundings.

"My friends are inside," she told the bouncer who nodded.

"You go get them and I'll make sure this one stays awake."

Angelina thanked the man profusely before running back inside the club to find the others. She found Hermione and Harry first and told them briefly what had happened and told them to find the others then come outside. They nodded and went to find Katie, Oliver, and Alicia. Angelina hurried outside and found the bouncer holding a cup of water to George's lips, trying in vain to get him to drink it.

"Thanks," Angelina told the bouncer as she approached, "I can try now."

The bouncer nodded and told her she could come to him if she needed anymore help before regaining his post at the door, keeping half an eye on the two twenty year olds a little way away from him.

Angelina lifted the cup to George's lips and tried to force the rim into his mouth.

George grunted and pulled away.

Angelina was almost in tears.

"George, sweetie, please drink the water, it will make you feel better." Even as she spoke, she knew there was more than just a slight possibility that he did not want to feel better. She knew how he felt. As she kept trying to make him drink the water, at the same time trying to keep him awake, the others rushed outside looking for them. When the girls saw George they rushed over looking scared but Oliver just rolled his eyes and knelt down on the pavement beside George, slapping his face as the bouncer had done.

"Come on, mate," Oliver said firmly, "wakey, wakey."

"How much did he have to drink?" Harry asked, worriedly. None of them were stone sober but they were not as bad as George. Ron looked on nervously, he was unaccustomed to the people he associated with drinking so much that they blacked out. He, Harry and Hermione had never been big drinkers during school. Or so I thought, Ron thought to himself as he glanced sideways at his friend. Harry stared determinedly at the scene before him, avoiding his friends gaze. Ron had been cool towards him all night and Harry was smart enough to know why.

A collective shout of, "George!" drew their attention back to the others. George had closed his eyes and slumped down to the ground. With Harry's help, Oliver lifted George off the ground, holding him up as Angelina had done to take him outside. George's eyes fluttered briefly but stayed closed.

"We have to take him to a hospital." Oliver said, hoisting George up as he said so.

"There is one two streets over," a deep Scottish voice behind them meant that the bouncer had come back to check on "the kids" as he had been talking to his colleagues about.

George's friends looked at each other uncomfortably. It was true that they needed to get George to a hospital but a Muggle hospital was not what they needed. However, the bouncer was involved now, and any protests of going to the nearby hospital would just look irresponsible on their part.

Oliver nodded, "Where is it?"

As the bouncer (who's name was Steve) explained the quickest way to get there, George opened his eyes and emptied an abundant amount of his stomach contents onto the ground in front of him. Unluckily, some of it onto Oliver and Angelina. However, they did not mind as much as George looked a little more aware of his surroundings after that. They sat him back down on the ground, moving away from the vomit on the street. Oliver shed his soiled shirt and Angelina attempted to wipe it from her shoes. George looked sheepish.

"Sorry," he mumbled.

Angelina knelt down next to him.

"George?" she asked tentatively, hoping to gain s response.

He raised his head, "Hmm?"

"Are you okay?" she asked, feeling very choked up.

He looked at her for a moment and nodded, leaning back against the wall, breathing deeply as he tried to control the waves of nausea washing over him.

Oliver sighed, "Up you get, mate. Time for bed."

With Oliver's help, George was able to get to his feet and they lead him back to The Leaky Cauldron. Not wanting to wake Mrs Weasley, they carried George upstairs as quietly as they could, Ron staying downstairs to look through the cupboards for any potion of concoction that could make George feel better. George was able to change his own clothes and lay down on his bed, wanting more than anything to go to sleep and not have to face his friends in the morning. Since Angelina was staying there anyway, she offered to take care of George while the others went home and Katie, Alicia and Oliver went back to the flat that Katie and Alicia shared. Oliver offered to stay behind and deal with the vomit but Angelina shook her head.

"It's okay," She told them, "go home."

George woke suddenly, feeling the bile rise in his throat. He ran to the bathroom, glad that he got there in time. Feeling the effects of alcohol poisoning ebbing, he climbed back into bed, trying not to make too much noise. He was glad to see that Angelina was still asleep. Sighing, he pulled the diary from under his pillow and lit his wand.

"Lumos."

March 8th 2004

I'm tired. I'm so tired I barely know what is going on anymore. I wish I could just curl up and sleep for a hundred years or more. This chronic cycle of fatigue is getting to me. George commented the other day that I sleep in too much. And even mum, when I saw her, fussed more than usual about the bags under my eyes. I sleep a lot. But sleeping is never enough. I need rest. Lots of rest. An eternity of rest. I feel terrible for the people around me that I am not happy. Not that they would be able to tell that the torment I feel everyday is killing me. "Torment?" They would say, "What torment? You are Fred Weasley. Co-founder of an illustrious joke shop that delights witches and wizards of all ages. Torment. Ha, you must be joking."

That's me, a big joker.

I have spent my life creating different gags that's trick people. And now that really has become my life. I trick people. I make them think I am happy and normal. But really, I am just like them.

I am so tired of acting. I need to rest. One day I will have my rest. Until then I will continue to be tired.

A/N: Took me long enough to update, eh? Well, there you go! Not much diary but a little more interaction with other characters. Please review! Even if you don't like it. I love my reviews. I won't update unless I get 15 reviews for this chapter :P So tell your friends and family that if they feel the need to be seriously depressed, read this story. Ciao!