End of the Tunnel

V

Hannah had never been so nervous. She was wringing her hands, wearing a whole in their kitchen floor as she waited for George to be ready. She smoothed her dress for the thousandth time and glanced at her reflection in the microwave. Nothing was out of place, except for her, she was going to be ridiculously out of place.

"Ready to go?" he asked coming out of the bathroom. Hannah whirled around, terror written across every inch of her face. "Are you alright," he all but laughed, rushing to her side.

"No," she gasped, "They're going to hate me."

"No one is going to hate you, in fact my dad might want to adopt you the moment you meet," he laughed but she wasn't convinced. "Hannah, I'm telling you, it'll be fine. You've been wizards before."

"Not your family."

"You know Ron and Hermione; they'll both be there." That settled her nerves a bit, but she was still shaking from head to toe. He rubbed her shoulder before kissing her forehead. "Shall we go?"

"Fine, but if they hate me you must promise you won't abandon me."

"They're not going to hate you, and I most certainly am not going to abandon you." She sighed and he took her hand. "You look lovely by the way, I love this dress," he said twirling her around a bit to calm her nerves, admiring the red skirt of the dress that flowed away from her waist.

"Thank you," she laughed when he caught her in his arms.

"Ready?" She nodded and with a quick wink he apparated the pair to just outside the Burrow.

Her eyes were wide with delight at the sight, and all the little creatures running around the garden.

"It's magnificent! Even if they hate me I might have to sneak back," she gasped and he rolled his eyes.

"They're not going to hate you," he reminded her once more, but she wasn't having it. She simply shooed him away and took another deep breath.

"Lead the way," she finally managed to say, and he did so, hand on the small of her back. He pushed open the door and chaos ensued. Twelve people were darting around the kitchen, two of them no more than tiny children held in the arms of their keepers. When the door closed another wave of anxiety washed over her. Twelve very capable wizards were dancing around this kitchen and she was nothing but an insignificant spot in their room.

"Hannah," Hermione called over the masses, rushing towards her. The moment she was in Hermione's hands, George disappeared into the kitchen. "I didn't know you were coming to dinner, I would have insisted we apparate together."

"I'm just glad you're here," Hannah said breathlessly, looking around at the small room. "It's a bit much."

"Oh yes. It's a large crowd for your first day. Almost everyone decided to show up. I think just Fleur is missing. I wasn't even aware George was coming today, it's been ages since we've seen him around here."

"Oh."

"Shall I show you around?" Hannah almost dropped with relief.

"Yes, please, before we have to sit down," she managed to stutter, and Hermione offered her a soft smile before drawing her into the crowd.

"Charlie, this is Hannah," Hermione began before assuring her that Charlie was certainly the most relaxed of the bunch.

"Nice t' meet yah."

"You too, Charlie."

"How'd they manage to get yah in here on this fine Sunday morning?"

"She's George's."