As a child, I had always craved the affection and love of another person. Petunia and Vernon happily expressed their hatred for me, it didn't matter how old I was or how innocent, I had always known I was a 'freak' in the eyes of the only family I had ever known. I was naive enough to believe that maybe one day, they would see me for who I was, or as the daughter of Petunia's younger sister.
Unfortunately, that naivety followed me throughout my childhood, which led me to make the same mistake once I returned to the wizarding world. I was so eager and desperate to make friends, that I stuck to the first child I had seen and gave that person my undying loyalty and respect.
Looking back on my years at Hogwarts, I could finally see all the things I looked past. Ron's jealousy and bitterness were so obvious and yet, I gave him chance after chance because of everything we went through with one another. I allowed Hermione to control every and any aspect of my education because, at the time, I thought she wanted what was best for me and to be the best I could be. Oh, how naive I was... It made me sick to my stomach to think of my old best friends and think of all the times we spent together, knowing now, that none of it was real and was being forced on their behalf.
Due to having my life at risk every single year at Hogwarts, my love life was non-existent, but don't get me wrong, I've had my fair share of crushes but none of them went anywhere. My crush on George was something that I had developed in my first year, at the time I had thought it was something temporary and innocent. Of course, my feelings for him continues to develop as I grew older, though I had pushed it down so far that I was able to develop crushes on others, however, none were as intense as I had for George.
To now have him with me, in my bed, giving me the love and affection I had always craved and wanted, was the most amazing feeling I could have ever experienced. To think that he is my mate, one of the people that were quite literally made for me was something that I never thought possible, something that only happened in those muggle fairy tales.
"What's on your mind?" George's voice snapped me out of my thoughts. I raised my head and rested my chin on his muscular chest.
"I was just thinking about how lucky I am to have you and after everything we've been through, I never expected to find the person I could be with for the rest of my life" His face softened and his eyes watered, dragging his finger down my cheek with a loveable expression.
"You have been through a lot more-"
"No, you lost your twin, George. You lost the person that you shared the womb with, the other half of yourself. You are the one who lost more" My heart broke as I watched the tears escape his brown eyes, I immediately cupped his face in my hands and wiped the tears away.
"I-I'm sorry" He sobbed, clenching his eyes shut to try and stop the flow.
"Don't ever apologise for expressing how you feeling and showing it. You will always be grieving his loss but in time, it will get easier to live through the day" I said softly, smiling at him.
"Fuck, I love you" He whispered as he stared into my eyes, though his widened in sight panic when he realised what he had said. I was speechless, never have I heard someone say they loved me so genuinely before. Don't get me wrong, Sirius and Remus had both said those words and I knew they meant it but hearing it from George made me feel something I've never experienced before. My heart began pounding in my chest and the feeling of butterflies in my stomach was something I'd only ever experienced with him.
"I love you too, Georgie" I responded with a wide smile as he let out a sigh of relief. I leaned down and placed my lips softly on his, his hands immediately grabbing my hips and lifting me to straddle him. The kiss got more heated and his hands began to roam my body, I wanted him more than I'd ever wanted anyone in my life but I knew I wasn't ready to take that step yet.
"I-"
"I know and it's okay, we'll move at your pace," He said softly as he leaned his forehead against mine. A shy smile formed on my face and I gave him one last kiss before burying my face into the crook of his neck, inhaling his manly scent. Eventually, we both fell asleep and for the first time in years, there were no nightmares.
-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•-•
It was early the next morning and I found myself fully awake as the sun came up, my mind was swirling with so much information that I couldn't relax. I sat at the kitchen island, with a cup of coffee in hand and the parchment that showed the properties that I inherited. I loved New Orleans and had developed some amazing friendships but something in me knew that this wasn't the place I was supposed to be. The question was, where will I finally feel at home?
"Baby?" I turned towards the doorway where George stood, his bare muscular chest on display and his hair messy, though somehow it made him look ten times more attractive. His husky voice sent pleasurable shivers down my spine but immediately shook away the thoughts, knowing there were more important things to focus on at the moment.
"Good morning, love. Would you like some coffee?" I greeted him with a warm smile, his face softened almost immediately and nodded his head. I began to make his morning coffee and with a wave of my hand, breakfast ingredients floated out from the fridge and began to cook in the pans that left the cupboards.
"How was your sleep?" George asked with a concerned tone, knowing that I suffer from nightmares. I turn around to face him with a bright smile.
"I didn't have any! Isn't that great!" I responded cheerfully, making a large smile form on his face.
"I'm glad! It's clearly because I'm that amazing" He said smugly, making me giggle with a fond eye roll.
"Yes, I'm sure that's the reason" He gasped dramatically as he placed a hand over his chest, a feign hurt expression on his face.
"How could you? This handsome man right here brings you the comfort you need!" I raise an eyebrow at his dramatics, though he wasn't wrong by his statement. He did bring me a sort of comfort that made me feel like nothing could ever hurt me, even if I could protect myself, it's nice to feel that someone is there to have my back. I walked up to him and wrapped my arms around his neck, standing in between his legs as he placed his hands on my hips.
"You're rather handsome and most definitely bring me comfort" I whispered with a soft smile, his smug expression disappeared and his eyes softened immensely.
"I'm always here to comfort you, sweetheart" I immediately leaned forward and placed my lips against his, letting out a content sigh as my tense muscles eased.
"I love you" I whispered against his lips.
"I love you too" Our moment was interrupted by the kettle, which signalled that the water was finally boiled. The smell of bacon and sausages lingered in the air as they cooked, along with hash browns and eggs.
"I hope you're hungry" I sang with a bright smile, making him chuckle with a nod of confirmation. With a wave of my hand, the cooked food began to pile on two separate plates and floated towards the kitchen island, along with the coffee and stack of toast.
"This looks delicious" George sighed in awe, his eyes full of hunger as he stared down at his meal.
"Eat up, I need to call Kreature" Before I could do so, a frustrated-looking elf appeared with a small 'Pop'.
"What's wrong, Kreature?" I asked in concern, however, it turned to slight amusement when he folded his arms over his chest and had an expression that resembled a pout.
"Mistress Raven, Kreature and Poppy be cooking for Mistress and master. Our Mistress should be relaxing" He scolded in disapproval, making me bite my lip to stop myself from laughing. I glanced at George, who stuffed his mouth with food to stop himself from smiling.
"I apologise Kreature, but you can help Lotty with cleaning the pans and counters" I negotiated, making his scowl decrease and was replaced by an approved expression.
"We do that right away, mistress Raven," He said with a smile before popping away, the moment he was gone, I burst into laughter, along with George who had buried his face in his arms.
"Oh, I've grown to adore that little elf," George said through his laughter, making me smile softly at him.
"He's great, it has taken him a while to remove all the prejudice he was taught but he has started to be more accepting of others" I smiled fondly, remembering the time he had met Marcel. At first, Kreature was unsure of having a vampire anywhere near me and made it quite clear that he disapproved of the friendship, but after a while of seeing Marcel every day, he had grown to like the vampire and vice versa.
"Wait, did he call me master?" George questioned with wide eyes, making me giggle slightly as I nodded.
"Well, you're my mate and a pureblood, despite being a 'blood traitor'" I rolled my eyes at the phrase that I've grown to hate, not quite understanding what made someone a blood traitor. George hummed in acknowledgement before continuing to devour his meal, making my face cringe up in slight disgust, remembering all the times I had to watch Ron stuff his face during our meals at Hogwarts.
"There's something I wanna talk to you about," I said nervously as I pushed my food around on my plate. From the corner of my eye, I saw him stop his actions abruptly and turned toward me, knowing that my voice had a certain edge to it.
"What is it, sweetheart?" He asked in concern, pushing his plate away slightly and turning his full attention to me. I let out a sigh and looked over at him, nibbling on my bottom lip as I built up the courage.
"You can tell me anything, Raven" He reassured me with a supportive smile, making my nerves ease instantly.
"I-I had a plan to move elsewhere, New Orleans was only supposed to be temporary but after meeting Camille and the vamps, I couldn't bring myself to leave-"
"Where were you planning on moving to?" He asked with a slight frown, not quite knowing where this conversation was going. I conjured up the parchment that I had sent away the moment he entered the room and slid the parchment so it sat in between us. He looked down at it and his eyes widened in shock.
"Well... That's a lot of properties" He chuckled breathlessly, making me laugh, though my nerves were heard as he looked up at me with another frown.
"Why are you so nervous?" He asked in confusion, I took my bottom lip in between my teeth, nibbling on it once again which had become a nervous habit of mine.
"Well, you're my mate and I know you live back in England but I don't want to be away from you. I'm sorry, I know it sounds selfish and I couldn't ask you to leave everything behind to be with me-" I was cut off mid-sentence as his lips slammed against mine, making me gasp slightly in shock. The kiss was brief but full of affection, leaving me in a breathless daze.
"Uh- I- what?" I stammered, my cheeks turning a rose colour, embarrassed by my reaction. He let out a deep chuckle and looked down at me with pure affection in his brown eyes, tucking a loose hair behind my ear which sent chills over my body.
"Wherever you go, I go. We come as a package deal and to be honest, there isn't anything left for me back home-"
"What about the shop?" I asked with a guilty frown, causing a sad smile to appear on his face.
"I-It's difficult to spend my days there, knowing Fred isn't enjoying it with me anymore. Lee has been running it mostly, and he's been great and I have been thinking of either selling it or giving it to him" to be honest, I completely understood where he was coming from. After the battle, Hogwarts and England, in general, turned into nothing but a constant reminder of those that lost their lives. All those that I spent my school years with and the adults that I saw as family, including Severus, who had given me his memories to watch as he was dying. It had shown me everything he had done to make sure I was safe, even when everyone thought of him as the villain, including me and that reminder weight heavy on my heart.
"Are you sure, Georgie?" I asked hesitantly with tears in my eyes, a watery smile of his own graced his face as he nodded in confirmation.
"Have you decided where you want us to move to?" He asked as he looked down at the parchment once again, making me sigh with a shake of my head.
"I'm stuck between two places. It's either in mystic falls or Paris" He hummed in acknowledgement and stared down at the list, I could see the gears turning in his head and I silently waited for him to complete his journey of thought.
"I think we should go to Mystic Falls" He announced, gaining a surprised look from me.
"Why there?"
"I don't know, I have a feeling that we will be happy there. Plus, it's in Potter manor, you never know what you might find from when your family spent their time there" My eyebrows shot up, suddenly intrigued to know what my parents had kept hidden away from England. Had they spent a lot of time in Mystic falls? Had my grandparents spent their holidays there when my father was a child? So many questions were swarming in my mind but they could only be answered if we experienced the manor first hand.
"Mystic falls it is"