𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘯𝘦𝘸 ; 𝒽.𝒷.𝓅

twenty-seven

Later that day, Aurora was back at the Burrow getting ready for her dinner. Despite the horrible past 24 hours she had, none of that seemed to matter anymore.

She put on a white jumper over one of her mother's dresses and slipped on a pair of boots. She walked downstairs and found Molly and Arthur sitting together in the living room talking amongst themselves, "I'm going to dinner."

The two looked up at her, "With who, dear? I don't think it's wise for you to be out in public right now." Molly said.

"I'll be with George at his flat. We're not going out anywhere."

Molly looked at her interestedly, "George you say?"

She nodded, "Yes. I-Is that all right?"

Molly got up with a bright smile and gave Aurora a hug, "That is wonderful."

Aurora apparated to the Joke Shop, making her way up a flight of stairs. She passed by Fred and George's office, stopping when she saw that the light was still on. She walked inside, "Fred?"

He jumped lightly at her presence, "Bloody hell, Aurora. Nearly scared the magic out of me."

"Are you still working?"

He nodded, "Always something that needs to be done. Besides, I don't want to be there for when you and George start snogging."

"We are not going to be snogging." She said with a small eye roll, "Put the work away and visit your parents or something. I swear, you're going to die by your desk if you don't start socializing again." She said, walking out of the office.

She made her way to the flat and knocked at the door, and it opened not even a second later. George gave her a bright smile, "Fancy seeing you here."

"Someone was desperate for my company." She teased as she walked inside, taking her boots off.

"That someone being me." He proudly said as he walked to the kitchen.

She sniffed, "Is that?..."

"French toast." He excitedly said, "Thought I'd switch things up."

She sat down at her usual spot to watch him finish cooking, "You never fail to surprise me." She said with a large grin.

It didn't take George long to finish up the French toast. She moved to the small dining table that was right by the kitchen and George brought the plate over to her. He sat down the plate in front of her, and the French toast had powdered sugar sprinkled on top along with maple syrup drizzled over.

"This looks amazing." She said, "Smells amazing."

He also sat down a cup of cocoa for her, "Got the recipe from Estella." He said. He went back to the kitchen to make himself a plate before sitting in front of her, "Was gonna actually take you somewhere, but after the events of last night..."

"I think I would have rather just stayed here regardless. It's much more comforting." She said as she took a bite of the French toast. Her eyes widened in delight, "Merlin's beard, that is amazing!"

He gave her a shy smile, "Think I'm getting good at this chef thing."

After many pieces and cups of hot cocoa later, Aurora helped George clean up the kitchen before he walked to the couch and plopped down, "I'm stuffed."

She sat down beside him with a deep breath, "Me too."

He stared up at the ceiling, "Are you scared? For the war?"

"Are we not already in it?"

"The fight. The big one. It's bound to come any day now." He said, "Does it scare you? The possibility of not making it out?"

"Losing more people that I love scares me more than dying." Aurora truthfully said, "But, it's not really something I can prevent from happening. Knowing that there's more to come makes me grateful for quiet times like this." She said as she laid her head against his shoulder.

Something Aurora quickly learned with George, was that sitting in silence with him was oddly comfortable. They were always able to say nothing yet feel just as full as they would if they were having a conversation.

Aurora finally shifted her head, resting her chin against his shoulder as she looked up at him. Her hand messed with the hair at the back of his head, "You know, I've always envied you a bit."

"Why is that?" He asked, enjoying the feeling of her hand through his hair.

"I've always wanted to be a ginger."

He chuckled, "Yeah? I think you'd make a good ginger. But, your hair beautiful as it is."

"You're sappy."

"So are you." He quipped back as he tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear. He slowly leant down, softly pressing his lips against hers.

Aurora melted into him in an instant. He shifted lightly so that he was facing her completely without breaking the kiss. She pressed her hand to his chest, feeling the rapid beat of his heart as they pulled apart. He touched his forehead to hers, "Been waiting to do that since our first year."

She couldn't help but smile, "Yeah?"

He brushed more of her hair from her face, "You don't happen to be seeing anyone else, do you?"

She pretended to think, "Maybe, but I don't think it's too serious. Why are you asking?"

"Well, if it's not serious, then I was wondering if you wanted to maybe be my girlfriend. Something a little more serious." He said, trying to push down all of his anxiousness.

She gave him a bright smile, "Sounds like a deal."