Lost & Found ~ A George Weasley Love Story

12 ~ Aftermath

Saturday 1 August 1998
Diagon Alley, London

By the time Graham Montague reached Aino, Katie and Oliver, the duo he was trying to reach had disappeared to the crowd. Aino felt a bit startled by what had just happened, meeting the unnamed redhead again in these circumstances was something she could never have predicted.

"Did you see where they went?" Graham asked breathlessly. 

Only then did Aino notice that his nose was severely bleeding indicating that one of the two runaways had most likely hit him. She realised she did not know either of them, but she unintentionally refused to believe that the one-eared ginger could be violent. However, seeing bleeding Graham Montague filled her with mixed emotions.

Oliver and Katie shrugged clearly not wanting to tell Graham where the two had headed. Aino wondered whether this meant they had something against this guy as well.

Aino turned back to the brunette doorman. She was concerned about his injuries. Some of the blood had already stained his neatly pressed black button-up shirt. Luckily the colour of the clothe prevented the blood being very visible. 

"You should go to Tom, I'm sure he can help with this situation", she pointed at his nose. 

He shook his head to refuse the idea. Reaching to touch his nose he, however, immediately winced. Aino figured the nose could be broken too. 

Oliver scoffed, "I'm sure he's fine, don't you worry about it, Aino." His voice was like venom and the statement verified the feeling Aino had had. Oliver Wood did not like Graham Montague. 

Aino's brows furrowed as she examined Graham's face more. "No, I've seen this a lot, and he needs help. Do you manage alone, or will I come with you?" Aino had dealt with patients like Graham a lot when working at his father's surgeon. She knew how to fix it, but since she was still a bit tipsy, she did not trust her own abilities to do it. 

As if in response to Aino's question, Graham staggered a bit. Aino gripped his arm firmly, unsure if she could prevent him from falling since he was taller and much more muscular than her. 

"We'll go together", she turned briefly back to Oliver and Katie, "You know where to reach me. If you want to keep in touch of course."

"I'll write", Katie smiled. The smile, however, dropped as soon as Aino turned back towards Graham Montague. Another thing Aino could not see was the arrogant smile Graham send the two after Aino started to lead him towards the counter of the bar.

~

Aino had been right; Graham's nose was broken. Luckily this was not the first time Tom had seen the situation either. With a flick of a wand, Graham's nose was as good as new.

"Thank you for bringing him here. He tends to be even too scrupulous when it comes to his work", Tom winked at Aino. 

"I'm always glad to help", Aino flashed a smile at the older man getting one back from him. 

"And you", Tom had his attention back at Graham, "you can call it a night, and try not to end up fights on your free time." He started to laugh at his own joke before going back behind the counter leaving Aino and Graham alone in the backroom. Tom seemed to be quite chill manager; he had not even asked what had happened but that could also be due the fact Aino had been present.

"Are you feeling better?" Aino broke the silence. She knew that he was, she had cast the same spells multiple times, but she hated awkward silences even more than small talk. 

"Much, thanks to you", he shot her a cheeky smile.

Aino did not know what Graham was on about with all his flirty remarks, so she decided to once again ignore it, "That's good to hear." She took a step towards the door, "I should head back-"

"Wait", he grabbed a quill and a paper from a nearby table. He wrote something in hurry, ripped the corner of the parchment off and handed it to Aino. 

"Maybe, only if you want, you could owl me sometime", he had a nervous tone in his voice, but Aino could not tell if it was genuine or faked. "Your choice."

Aino glanced at the paper where Graham had written what she assumed to be his address. She folded the paper carefully and put in the pocket of her jeans. "Maybe", she smiled at the brunette before leaving the room. 

~

George unlocked the door of the flat and stepped inside as quietly as possible. He could immediately hear quiet sobbing. Before seeing Ron, he already knew it was him. There should not be anyone else home.

He found Ron crying on the living room sofa. He had a a pillow in his lap, head buried in it and arms wrapped tightly around himself. George felt a bang in his chest. He had caused this situation by following Lee and not staying to support his brother.

He quietly approached, careful not to startle his little brother. Sitting besides Ron, he gently placed a comforting hand on his back. Ron didn't look up but leaned towards George, finding the comfort something he had longed for his whole life. The twins had barely shown him any support or care. Ron saw it yet again when he had defended his older brother and all he got from that was him disappearing from the scene leaving him to deal with angry Graham Montague. 

The thought made Ron sob even harder. George wrapped an arm around his brother's shoulders and pulled him closer. 

The room remained still. No words were needed, George was not even sure if there were anything he could say to better the situation. His brother had done so much for him during the past months, and it would be his time to make up for it. To be a better brother. It could all start from a simple hug.

~

After the encounter with Graham, Aino did not feel like continuing the night and headed back to her room upstairs. The moment she entered the small room, she knew something was off. Aino could not tell what since everything seemed to be in place at first glance, but she felt it in her bones. 

She grabbed her wand. Lumos. When the room lighted up, she saw it immediately. The book she had bought just days before laid open on her bed, golden letters on cover gleamed on the dim light. The Second Wizarding War - 1st Edition. She was sure she had not opened it, not even taken it off the package. 

Shills went down Aino's spine as she stepped closer to the bed. Someone had been in her room. 

She examined the room, peeked under the bed and behind curtains. When she was sure she was indeed alone and if there had been someone in her room, they had already left, she went to look the book more closely. Maybe there was some kind of spell in the book, and no one had been in the room after all. 

Aino picked up the book and examined it, turning it in her hands. She could not see any signs of magic. Then she took a better look at the page the book was open to. The text covered death eaters and how the group had changed from First Wizarding War. What, however, took Aino's breath away was the picture of the death eaters from over 20 years ago. Her eyes abruptly spotted familiar face. The sudden recognition caused her to lose her grip, and the book slipped from her hands, hitting the floor with a bang.

Why was there a picture of her mom standing along with known death eaters?