Trust Me // George Weasley

Chapter 8: The Truth

"Anna, I'm not joking. I'm a Wizard."

His words rang through her mind. She still could not believe it, or perhaps she did not want to. Wizards did not exist. Well, they did, but only in children's books. They existed in the stories that she used to read in the corner of the classroom when she was six years old. They did not exist in the real world. She still believed that he was pulling some sort of prank on her. He was a known prankster after all, who was to say that this was not one of his famous pranks?
She took a slight step back and shook her head. Why would he do this? Why would he joke around like this? She let out another nervous chuckle but again, George did not even crack a smile. He was not joking. He was genuinely being serious. He was a Wizard.
"You're," she started, but she choked on her words. "You're a- You're a-."
"I'm a Wizard," he spoke softly again, still holding the wand in his hand. Her lips parted slightly and her breathing pace increased. Her head started to feel light as she started to process what he had said.
"Magic... Magic isn't real," she muttered and grabbed onto the backrest of one of the chairs. Her body was starting to feel numb. The owl, their shop, Fred asking if none of the paintings moved, the private school, his hometown that she had never heard of, his accident. Everything would fall into place if she would just hear him out.
"It is. It's real," he said softly. Her knees felt weak and she felt her stomach twist. He had a worried expression on his face and he tried to reach out to her to support her but she took another step back from him. "Anna, I'm not going to hurt you. Wizards and Witches... We're just like you but we- we can do magic." She looked away from him for a moment. Her breathing became heavier and heavier. She did not think he would hurt her but still, a certain fear crept up on her.
Magic was real. Wizards were real. George was a Wizard. What else was real then, she thought. Werewolves, mermaids, talking animals and giants? They were. But they hadn't gotten to that part of the conversation just yet.
She pinched her arm once, trying to wake up from this weird, extremely realistic dream. But it wasn't a dream. This was the truth. This was the truth she had been so anxious to hear. This is what he wasn't allowed to tell her. This is why he was a little odd, a little different. Well, a lot different.
Her ears were ringing and as her thoughts raced through her mind, her vision became blurry. The last thing she heard before she passed out was George calling out her name.

The second she awoke again she shot up straight. George was dabbing some water on her forehead but she gently pushed him away. Her eyes were open wide and her mind was still trying to process what he had told her only a few minutes before. She was sitting on the floor and George was on his knees next to her.
"George," she spoke, breaking the silence between them. He nodded but didn't say anything. She rubbed her forehead a little and took a deep breath. "How long was I out for?"
"Not long. Only a few minutes I believe," he said softly. She tried to stand back up and he supported her in case she was still feeling a little lightheaded. This time she did not push him away, but she let him help her stand up. He guided her onto one of the chairs and she sat down, her hands still shaking slightly.
"A Wizard?" she questioned softly, glancing over at him. He nodded and sat on the chair next to her.
"Yeah, I'm a Wizard. You're a Muggle," he said with a careful chuckle. With a confused gaze, she turned her head in his direction. "That's what we call non-magic people," he explained quickly. She nodded and fumbled a little with the hem of her shirt.
"A Wizard," she said again and stared at the table in front of her. He did not say anything for a moment. "What else is real?" she chuckled, though she was not feeling very joyous. "Mermaids? Is Ariel still hiding somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean? What next? Trolls? Vampires? Werewolves? Unicorns! There must be unicorns right?" she laughed and looked over at him again. He still did not laugh. He bit his bottom lip and inhaled deeply through his nose. Her smile faded once more and she shook her head. "All of those..?" she whispered, her eyes widening once more. He nodded slightly and her jaw dropped a little.
She stood up again and ran her hands through her hair. Everything was real? Everything was real and she had never known?
"What the fuck?" she muttered. "Unicorns? Really? Werewolves?" She was genuinely convinced that she was going mental now.
"Anna, I can explain everything but I think you should-"
"I need to take a walk. I have- I have to get out of here. I need some air," she said and shook her head. There was no way that she could hear everything about magic right now, at least not without passing out again. She picked up her skirt off the floor and put it back on, followed by her shoes. She was about to pick up her jacket from the hook when George stopped her.
"You can't go on a walk right now," he said and shook his head. There was anxiety, worry and distress expressed on his face still.
"Why not?" she asked calmly. They were both holding onto the jacket now, but he was not willing to let go just like that.
"Because, Anna, it's almost midnight. You can't walk alone through the city at this time, I wouldn't exactly call it safe, not to mention the fact that you passed out two minutes ago," he told her. He was right. In about twenty minutes it would be midnight and wandering alone in the city in the dark was not the best idea, especially for a woman. However, she needed to go outside. She needed to clear her head and what better way to do so than by taking a walk?
"I know," she said and sighed a little. "But I really have to get out of this flat. I- I need to get out, okay? I'll take my phone. I know my way around. It's Friday night, the streets will still be crowded with people that are looking for clubs and parties to crash. I need some fresh air, please," she explained to him.
She just needed some fresh air. She needed to process this news, though she had not even heard a quarter of it all. This entire week she had been filled with anxiety and today was completely mental. She needed to take a walk. Her body was craving a walk.
After a short moment of hesitation, he let go of the jacket again and nodded. "Please call when there's something and don't go too far, please," he begged her. She nodded. "Do you want me to leave?" No, she thought.
"I don't know," she said instead. "Just- just stay. I will be back in a jiff. I promise. I just- I don't know, George," she sighed. "This is a lot. Like, a lot. It still feels like a prank but I also want to believe you but at the same time I feel like this is just me going completely mental, I don't know what to feel right now."
"I know. I know it's a lot. Take all the time you need just don't wander around for too long and stay on the busy streets. We can talk about it when you're ready but I just have to ask you to promise me that you won't tell anyone else," he said.
"I promise," she immediately said. Not a hair on her body was even considered telling anyone else and so endangering him. She put on her jacket and gave him one last look before she walked out.

There was a chilly breeze tonight. The wind blew through her hair and she hugged her jacket tightly around her body. She was glad to be out of the flat and on the street for a moment. She felt much freer here.
There were groups of people running and walking down the street. Some were singing loudly, others were laughing. Taxies were driving drunk people around and some people had yet to begin their wild night out.  All the noise kept her alert, yet she was soon lost in her thoughts.
In her mind, she chuckled, the people on the street were having an amazing night with their friends and loved ones while she was trying to process the fact that magic was real. Not the 'magic' that 'Muggle' magicians used, actual magic. The magic that made owls find your address.
All week she had worried that George was deceiving her. That he was just playing her and that he was a liar. In a way, he did lie, or perhaps he just bent the truth. On a positive note, he at least was not planning on seeing anyone else or hurting her. She was not being as stupid as she thought she was being. Right now she just felt a little crazy.
She could not help but wonder what this would change between them. Would he have to turn her into a Witch now? Was that even possible? Did she have to take some sort of oath now to promise not to share this secret? Was he in trouble now that she knew? Did they have to stop talking now? Was he allowed to go out with a Muggle?
There were a bunch of practical questions going through her mind. All of them were related to their future. She did not want to stop seeing him. Not at all. The way he made her heart race and the way her days were instantly better when they had seen each other or chatted was not something she wanted to let go of just yet. She wanted to know what this meant for them.
She hoped that he did not get himself in danger now that he told her and above all she hoped that he still wanted to continue to date her. Him being a Wizard did not change as a person. He was a Wizard, which was of course an intense finding, but he was still George.
She inhaled sharply and breathed out through her nose. Wizards and Witches were real. Almost every creature from the books she read as a child were real, apparently. Though it was a scary thought, it was also kind of wicked. Magic was real. Actual magic. A feeling of excitement joined her anxiety. 
Perhaps the thought of trolls and werewolves being real was not as intriguing but magic was so cool. She wondered what George could do with his wand. She wondered what kind of shop they had, as she by now figured that it was probably magic-related. She was getting curious, which was a good sign.
She wanted to find out more about this world, about his world. She wanted to hear everything about it. Were the stories she had read as a child based on true events or were those still just fiction? Could he make her flat a little bigger for her? Was that 'private school' he had mentioned a school for Wizards and Witches specifically? Did his entire family exist out of Witches and Wizards?
She was ready to talk. So after walking for about ten minutes she turned around and made her way back. The sky was cloudy tonight but it started to clear up a little the closer she got to her flat. The stars were as bright as ever and the moon was greeting her with a bright white light.
In front of the door of her flat, she stopped for a moment. Her hand hovered above the doorknob and she took a few more deep breaths. She closed her eyes for a few seconds. She would just hear him out. She would hear him out and then figure out how they would go on. Communication is key, she reminded herself. He needed a chance to explain himself and she was ready to give it to him.

As she stepped inside, George was sitting on the edge of her bed, fully dressed again. He immediately stood up when she stepped inside. He looked very stressed and anxious, but the calm look on her face instantly calmed him down a little as well.
"Are you okay?" he asked her right away. She nodded and put her jacket back on the hook. "Do you want me to leave?"
She walked over to him and shook her head, but not a single word came from her mouth yet. They gazed into each other's eyes and for a moment everything felt as it had before. The stress of this news was gone for what felt like hours, though it ended up being only two seconds.
She reached out for his hand and pulled him onto the edge of her bed with him. They sat down next to each other and she intertwined their fingers.
"Okay. I'm ready to hear it. I'm ready for the truth. The full truth. So tell me," she said and looked at him. "Tell me everything."