It was six weeks later, George and Annie had been busy lately so this is the first time they've seen each other for more than a few minutes in a while.
It also happened to be the second anniversary of her mum's death so she hasn't had the best day so she took the day off.
"Hey Belle," George greeted, stepping through the floo.
She smiled sadly at him. "Hey George."
"Are you alright?"
"It's just the second anniversary of my mum's death," she said bluntly.
"Oh, I forgot about that. Are you not in the mood to hang out with me and my family then?"
"Actually, I'd like that for the distraction."
He chuckled. "Not for the company?"
"That too," she smiled reassuringly.
He smiled. They traveled through the floo to 'The Burrow'.
"Oh, hello dear," Molly greeted.
"You might remember Anabelle McCartney."
"I do."
"Or as your son likes to call me Belle," Annabelle smiled, her blue eyes twinkling.
"It's nice to see you again."
"You too."
George led her towards the kitchen where his brothers and their significant others were situated. "I think you might remember everyone here."
"I do, but that doesn't mean that I don't want to be re-introduced."
"Understood, Belle," he laughed. "That's Bill and Fleur, Charlie and his boyfriend Viktor Krum, Percy and his girlfriend Audrey, Ron and his girlfriend Lavender and Ginny and her boyfriend Dean. There's Harry and Hermione."
"Hi everyone," Annie waved.
There was a chorus of hellos.
"So, you must've gone to Hogwarts?" Arthur asked.
"I did. I was a Hufflepuff in George's year. I was in choir for four years until I got Prefect, then I decided to quit and focus on being Prefect."
"I would love to hear you sing, Belle," George smiled at her.
She stifled a blush. "Maybe you can hear me sing soon."
"Are you a muggleborn?" Arthur asked.
"I am. I'm the only one in my family that's magical out of the six of us."
"Another big family."
"Yes, My oldest sister Heather is sixteen years older than me, then my sister Mary is nine years older than me, then Stella is seven years older last James is eleven months older than me and my twin Nellie."
"You're a twin too?" Ron asked.
"Yes, I am. She's a few minutes younger than me."
Molly served dinner and they continued chatting.
"So, what do you have as a job?" Percy asked.
"I'm an assistant mid healer."
"More specifically my assistant mid-healer," Fleur clarified.
"Do you like Quidditch?" Ron asked.
Annie smirked. "I'm particularly fond of the Cannons."
"The Cannons? George didn't tell you to say that, did he?" Ron asked suspiciously, eying George.
"No, he didn't. I genuinely like the Cannons," she said, shifting in her chair nervously.
Ron's blue eyes lit up excitedly. "The Cannons are my favorite team."
"They are?"
"Yes, they are."
Annie nodded. Thankful to have someone to share her obsession with the Cannons.
"Do you like football?" Dean asked.
"I'm particularly fond of Everton FC, like my dad," she explained, her smile widening.
Dean's brown eyes lit up. "I'm a big Manchester United fan."
"They're good too. David Beckham is so handsome," she drooled.
"Is he now?" George teased nudging her as his brown eyes flickered playfully.
"He is but he's not ginger. And he's happily married with a son," Annie said with a flirtatious wink at George.
Before George could respond, Molly served dinner. Most of Annie's family were vegetarians so she rarely ate meat but Molly didn't know that so she didn't blame her.
"Oh, Annie. I forgot you're a vegetarian," George whispered to her.
"It's no big deal, George. I can eat some meat today," she assured him. "It would be rude to ask for your mum to make something else for me."
"And she didn't know you were coming either," George said.
Annie smiled at him.
After dinner, she was sitting on the couch in the living room when Percy strutted in. She had always found him pretentious and actually thought about giving up her Prefect status because she didn't want to deal with him for the year. It wasn't her fault that the guy she fancied happened to be his younger brother.
"Do you think it's wise to mix your professional life with your personal life?" he asked, sticking his nose in the air.
"No one besides you seems to care that I'm friends with George and also Fleur's mid-healer. Did you forget my boss is also your family friend?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at him.
He laughed. "I bet someone besides me cares."
Before she could respond, George walked in grinning mischievously at her. Merlin, she could just snog him, maybe she should to prove a point.
"Everything okay?" he asked.
"Your brother is being a judgmental prat, that's all," she shrugged nonchalantly as Percy glared at her.
George laughed. "You'll get used to it especially if you continue to come over regularly."
"I'd love that, George."
Percy stifled an eye roll before walking out of the living room.
A while later, George escorted her back home.
"I had a lot of fun today."
"I'm glad I could cheer you up."
She smiled at him. George left.