Hidden → George Weasley

1

If your heart wears thin I will hold you up
And I will hide you when it gets too much

BESIDE YOU // MARIANAS TRENCH

Chapter One

Ella sat on her bed and sighed. Her Charms homework wasn't going very well at the moment, and it wasn't because Ella was terrible at it. Instead, there was something or rather, someone on her mind. 

George had invited her to stay over the Christmas Holidays.

Other than pranks that had involved Fred (on either end), George hadn't said anything about his family. He had said to Ella that they weren't very impressive, but Ella thought otherwise. Or at least, compared to her family. 

Ella tried to avoid anything about her family, for they really were not impressive. After 16 years of almost complete ignorance, they really weren't her family. 

Ella fell back onto her pillow with a sigh. She felt like this really would take their relationship to the next level- coming out to everyone. They had kept it silent for near seven years; Ella felt this was a record. But the only thing that had put Ella off telling everyone was what they would think. And this was the exact reason why she was worrying about meeting George's family. She didn't know how they'd react. She had said this to George, who'd laughed and eased off her worries with the fact that it would be Christmas, and Fred would be bringing his girlfriend as well. Ella knew her as Charlotte Malfoy, a really lovely Slytherin in her year. They were once partnered up in Herbology, and passed the class successfully. 

That still didn't help.

But then, the worst that could happen was that Ella could get rejected. Which meant that George could leave her, which she didn't want. She hadn't said this to him, because she felt that it would have been stupid, but it really was on the top of her head. But then, why would the reject her? She came from a respectable family, was in a respectable house. Maybe her social skills would fail her. Probably. 

Ella went along with it anyway, and here she was, a few weeks later on the Hogwarts Express. George went home early, but said he'd be picking her up from the station. As usual, she was sitting alone, but that was okay. She liked to look out at the countryside, even if it did make her travel sick. And she always had a book or two handy.

After a good few hours, the train slowed to a stop. Ella gathered up her stuff and got out, dragging her trunk along with her. It took her a bit of time to find George, but when she finally did, he was there with Fred and his girlfriend. 
"Ready?" George asked. Ella nodded, just wanting to get to somewhere warm. 

It wasn't that far away, and George and Ella got there a few minutes ahead of Fred and Charlotte. "Are you ready to meet my parents?" 
"Well, no. But it's got to happen, right?" George chuckled, and opened the door. 
"That's the spirit," he muttered, letting her in. Once the small group was in, and the door was closed, they set off down the dark hallway, then into a contrastingly bright room. It looked like a kitchen/dining room, with the Weasley Family (excluding two; George said that Charlie couldn't make it, and they didn't talk about Percy) and a man who looked like Sirius Black. It didn't really surprise Ella, though, as George had explained the situation beforehand. Also within the group, there was Harry Potter and Hermione Granger. She and Hermione had met before, so they nodded to each other. Otherwise, the situation was quite awkward. 
"Er, Mum, Dad," George started, pulling me into him, "this is Ella. Ella, this is Mum (he pointed to the plump, friendly looking woman behind the stove), Dad (the man with the bandages), Bill (the one with a load of ear piercings and a ponytail), Ron (the one eating), Ginny (the only ginger girl, who happened to be playing with a cat), Harry and Hermione. Oh, and Sirius." 
"Hi," I said quietly, giving a little wave. 
"Hello, Ella," Mrs. Weasley said, wiping her hands on her apron and coming round to give me a hug. It was a nice hug. "Look at you," she said, patting my cheeks. "We need to fatten you up. Do your parents even feed you?" 
"Well, I learnt to cook myself so they wouldn't have to. But yeah, the kitchen always has food." Even if it's all Costco boxes. 
"Sit down, sit down! We must fill you up!" 
"And what about you, Fred? Who's this lovely young lady?"