June 2000

Eloise had been quite busy at work as of late. Both she and Audrey had been putting in many late hours at the Ministry to prepare for an upcoming work trip to France.

Luckily, it all aligned perfectly for her to be able to stay with her parents over her birthday. Despite how busy the two women would be each day at the Ministère des Affaires Magiques de la France, she still looked forward to being able to spend all of her free time at home with them - even if it was only for a few hours each evening.

All of her promises to visit home more often had been broken ever since she had moved to England. The only time she returned to France was over the holidays and she honestly felt quite guilty for it, even though her parents never said anything to make her feel that way. Regardless, she wanted to make it up to them but with her new promotion, it was harder to find time away from work than she ever expected.

Using the excuse of a work trip to return to France didn't feel very good, but it was the only option she had. Thankfully, her parents seemed thrilled regardless of the reasoning behind her visit.

George had been patient and understanding throughout her chaotic work schedule. Every evening when Eloise walked through the door to his flat, he'd get up and prepare dinner for her - whether it was at seven or as late at eleven in the evening. Tonight was no different.

It had only come to her attention that he had no idea she would be gone for a week when he casually asked her what her birthday plans were as he was washing dishes after another late night dinner.

Between the hours of overtime at the Ministry and making plans with her parents, Eloise had been so distracted that she hadn't thought to tell George anything about the trip. Guilt grew inside her chest as she listened to him brainstorm ideas for her birthday.

"I was thinking we could have your birthday dinner at the Burrow, you know my mum would love to cook for you. But I also know you've been missing Shell Cottage and I doubt Fleur would mind hosting if we asked. Honestly, we can even have it here if you think that's easiest. It can get a bit crowded but I don't mind if you don't." George rambled while drying his hands off with a tea towel before putting the last of the clean dishes away.

Eloise remained silent at his suggestions, which George took notice of immediately. As he turned around to face her, he found her chewing nervously on her bottom lip and futilely picking at her non-chip nail polish.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Please don't be upset," she began as she took a step towards him, "But I'm going on a work trip to Paris starting Monday. I meant to tell you, I really did, it honestly just slipped my mind."

George didn't seem to care much about her forgetting to tell him that she would be out of town, in fact, what bothered him had nothing to do with him at all.

He reached out to grasp her hands, putting an end to her nervous habit George knew all too well, "Your birthday is on Monday. Tell me you're not working on your birthday."

The blonde nodded her head, as if she hadn't even considered the idea of taking the day off. In response, George merely pressed his lips into a thin line and gave her somewhat of a disapproving look. Eloise always worked so hard and all he wanted her to do was take some time for herself every now and then. Her birthday seemed like the perfect time to do just that, but clearly he was mistaken.

"When will you be back? We can celebrate then, if you like."

"Well, I'm meant to be back Friday evening. But I was sort of thinking that you could come along with me. We could stay with my parents, you could get to know them, I could show you around Paris." she suggested cautiously.

As the words left her lips, George released his hold on her hands and instead placed them in his pockets. The look on his face was wary. It was as if her casual suggestion had been a bombshell dropped on him out of nowhere.

"I don't know, Ellie."

"You've already met my parents before, if that's what you're worried about."

"Right, at your birthday party last year when you and I were barely talking. Oh yeah, and then when I showed up uninvited on New Years Eve. I don't think I've made the greatest impression on them. Besides..." he paused briefly, "Don't you think it's a bit early for me to really meet them?"

"I've known your parents for nearly two years. I met them a few days after moving to England, for Merlin's sake. I think you can handle a few days with mine." she insisted.

"You meeting them was different. That was Fleur's doing, not mine. Plus we weren't together then." he objected.

"It'll be fine, they'll love you."

George highly doubted that, but he knew he wouldn't win that argument.

"Well, what about the shop? I can't take that much time off with such short notice."

Eloise raised a brow at his excuse, "We both know Verity and Charlie have been trying to get you to take some time off for months now. It's only five days, they'll be alright without you."

She could tell that George still didn't seem too keen on the idea based on his facial expression alone. So, she walked across the kitchen and used her secret weapon.

Her arms snaked around his waist as she looked up with him with her ocean eyes, silently pleading with him knowing full well that it was his one weakness.

George let out a sigh, "You really want me to go with you?"

Eloise nodded with an innocent smile, "That's all I want for my birthday."

-

George had procrastinated on packing his trunk, partially because he had secretly hoped there would be a chance that Eloise would change her mind at some point over the weekend about him coming along on the trip with her.

But as soon as Monday morning rolled around, she'd yet to change course. With no time left to put it off, George hastily packed his things, making sure to not forget Eloise's birthday present in the process.

The man was in a rush, surveying each room, trying to make a mental checklist of what he might need over the week. As he scanned his bedroom, his eyes fell to his desk. The plans for the invention he'd been working on on-and-off for the last few months were scattered across it. For a moment, he contemplated taking a few of the drawings but worried that Eloise would object to it since she had been so adamant about him taking a break from the shop.

George rolled his eyes at the thought. It was quite hypocritical in his opinion; their entire reasoning for going to Paris was for Eloise's job after all and she'd been the one pressuring him to take time off.

In the end, he decided to pack a few blank sheets of parchment to at least brainstorm while he was away. If anything, he could use it as an excuse to escape from her parents if they didn't get along - which was a thought that George was doing his best to avoid thinking about at the moment.

With only seconds to spare, George latched his trunk as a green flash of flames emitted from the fireplace. Eloise emerged, dressed in her brown tweed suit with her silver Ministry pin secured to the lapel.

"Ready?" she asked with a smile, glancing at George's trunk as he picked it up.

"Of course." George said as excitedly as his nervous lips could muster.

Eloise shuffled aside in the hearth to allow George to step in next to her. He held out the small pot of Floo Powder for her to take a generous handful of before setting it back on the mantle and taking his place beside her.

The last time George had taken the Floo Network to her parent's home, it was after he had begged Fleur to take him there. Now, as he was quickly consumed by thick green flames, he realized he'd gotten everything he wanted since that night and everything he feared.

Nerves filled his chest at the thought of really getting to know her parents. It all felt too fast, too real. They'd been dating for only two months and already he was going to spend five whole days with her family. There were certain expectations that came with this step, even if Eloise denied it.

Would her parents ask him his opinions on marriage? On having children? They'd want to know his intentions with their daughter, surely.

Even if her parents didn't ask those questions on this trip, George knew those topics would come up eventually and he didn't like the idea of it. The mere thought caused a wave of anxiety to wash over him.

If he was being honest with himself, neither of those things particularly interested him anymore - not since losing Fred. The whole idea of starting a family of his own when it wasn't an option for his twin felt like betrayal. Not only to Fred, but to Angelina as well.

It was a ridiculous thought and deep down, he knew it. But the fact that the future that Angelina and Fred were destined to have was stolen from them made him feel as though he wasn't deserving of his own happy ending. If Angelina ever realized that's what was on his mind, he knew she would steal one of her teammate's bats and treat his head like a Bludger to try and knock some sense into him. But it was his guilt that would always hold him back.

As a means to preserve the relationship he and Eloise had fought for, they never brought it up. Of course, he knew the only reason Eloise never broached the subject was because she wasn't ready yet.

He just didn't know if he'd be ready ever.

George had been so consumed with his racing thoughts that he'd barely heard Colette Laurent greet him as they appeared in the fireplace of Eloise's childhood home.

The redhead whipped his head towards the woman who looked strikingly similar to her daughter. The biggest difference between them was her sleek dark hair and her lack of freckles which instead were replaced with faint wrinkles around her beautiful features that were only slightly slimmer than Eloise's. Their bright blue eyes, however, were identical.

George gave her a half-hearted smile as they stepped out of the fireplace, "Hello Mrs. Laurent, it's great to see you again."

Colette responded with a polite nod, which George instantly took to mean that she wasn't too thrilled with his presence in her home but he tried to avoid the thought.

"Let me take your bags." the brunette said in her thick French accent as she waved her wand at the luggage in their hands, instantly pulling them away from their grasps before they could even respond.

Colette followed the floating trunks down the hall and disappeared into the last room on the right - Eloise's childhood bedroom. His own trunk, however, disappeared through the door across the hall. At the sight, a frown fell on George's face. It was wishful thinking to believe that her mother would allow the couple to share a room for the duration their stay - his own mother certainly wouldn't allow it.

Colette emerged from the hallway a moment later and disappeared into the kitchen without a word and George was instantly convinced that this trip was already going horribly.

He felt a gentle grasp on his hand and looked down to see Eloise giving him a reassuring smile, "It'll be alright."

George's frown didn't waver, "If your mum isn't happy to see me, I can't imagine how your dad will be."

Eloise shook her head, "Mum is always quiet. She'll warm up to you. Besides, I already know dad will be thrilled to see you."

Despite his extreme doubt that Patrick Laurent would be anything other than indifferent to George's presence in his home, a thought suddenly popped into his mind causing him to glance down at his watch.

"You have to be at the Ministry soon."

His tone was knowing, but she still confirmed his statement with a nod, "I'm meeting Audrey there at eight."

As Eloise released her grip on George's hand, he ran it wearily through his hair, weighing his options.

The way he saw it, there were only two choices. He could stay in the flat all day trying his best to get Colette and Patrick to warm up to him until Eloise returned from work, or he could explore Paris alone and likely get lost; both in translation and physically.

The longer he thought about it, neither option seemed ideal. The longer he thought about it, the more he wished he had stayed home in London instead.

At that moment, the door to the flat suddenly opened as a beaming Patrick entered with a large box of pastries.

"You're early! I bought us breakfast." he smiled, presenting the box to the two of them.

"We just got here. Let me help you, papa." Eloise replied happily as she took the pastries from her father's hands and disappeared into the kitchen, suddenly leaving George alone with Patrick with no warning.

A brief wave of panic hit him but quickly disappeared as Patrick clapped a hand on George's shoulder.

"It's lovely to see you again, George. Did you happen to bring any fireworks this time?" he asked with a sly grin.

"Oh, uh, no sir. Not this time." George stammered.

"That's a shame, Eloise says you have quite the talent for pyrotechnics. Maybe you can bring some next time you visit, hmm?"

"Yeah, 'course." George replied, trying to hide the tone of both surprise and confusion in his voice.

It was now perfectly clear to him where Eloise got her bubbly and charming demeanor from. Thinking about it more, Colette reminded him a bit of Fleur and she warmed up to him after a while. Maybe this week wouldn't be so bad after all. At the very least, it seemed like he'd get along with Patrick just fine.

Breakfast thankfully wasn't too uncomfortable, which George considered to be a very good thing. But Eloise made a quick departure for the Ministry before he had even finished his coffee. Without her around, he found there was much less to talk about with her family. Suddenly getting lost in Paris didn't sound so bad after all.

In the end, he decided to stay in the flat while Eloise was at work.

At first, the conversations were short and somewhat awkward. George always had a knack for disarming people but he had to admit that in recent years, it didn't come as naturally as it once did. By mid-afternoon Patrick had exhausted all of his stories about working at the Ministry and had gone through all of his questions about the joke shop. Eventually though, the conversation moved on to stories of Eloise's childhood.

Thankfully Eloise was one of his favorite topics of conversation. The two of them discussing their mutual admiration for her was admittedly much easier.

It was only when Patrick pulled out an old photo album that Colette finally decided to join the conversation. It was obvious that she adored her only child. Eloise was her world, that much was clear to see as the brunette immediately softened when her eyes fell on old photos of Eloise.

George also loved seeing pictures of the curly haired little girl with freckles on her rosy cheeks and missing teeth in her wide grin. That sparkle of innocence in her eyes was something she still had to this day, he noted.

Thinking about it now, George was surprised that his own mother never tried to force his baby pictures onto Eloise. But then again, the walls of the Burrow were already a photo gallery of Weasley memories.

At about quarter past four, the lock on the front door clicked as Eloise returned early from the Ministry. When she entered the room, she quickly took in the sight before her; George with her parents sat on either side of him, an open photo album on her boyfriend's lap, and a picture of her no more than two years old splashing in the bathtub.

"Papa!" she scolded her father with scarlet cheeks.

Patrick let out a warm laugh, "Come now, darling. We're just sharing memories with George, let us reminisce. This picture is probably twenty years old now, my little dove. You're all grown up."

George could see Eloise's embarrassment written all over her face, and he'd be lying if he said he didn't find it ever so slightly amusing.

"I'll be right back," he said with a grin as he closed the photo album and handed it back to Colette before standing from the couch, mercifully putting an end to Eloise's misery.

As he passed her by, he placed a quick kiss on her forehead before heading down the hallway into the room he saw Colette place his trunk into that morning.

Once George was out of earshot, the sound of her mother's voice tore Eloise's attention away from the back of his head.

"He's pleasant."

The brief compliment made Eloise smile. Colette was always hard to impress, she had a somewhat stoney exterior that hid a very sensitive and sentimental woman inside. Eloise never had a doubt that her mother would eventually warm up to him, especially when his sense of humor reminded her so much of her father's.

Before George returned to the room, Eloise set down her purse, briefcase, and stack of documents on the coffee table and took a seat in the armchair across from where her parents were sitting.

"How was work?" her father asked as he eyed her belongings, "I hope they didn't have you working too hard on your birthday."

Eloise laughed. She truly loved her job and getting to know Audrey more, she realized they actually had a lot on common, especially when it came to their ambitions as well as their fondness for Percy. Although, she was quite certain that Audrey liked him a bit more than she did. Even though she did have to work on her birthday, she wouldn't have had it any other way.

"It was good, but I'm home early because Audrey wouldn't let me work late. She said that was her gift to me."

George entered the room once more, holding a medium sized box in his arms - wrapped quite haphazardly as usual. When he approached Eloise, he saw all of her work belongings scattered on the table and a satisfied smile formed on his face.

"Happy birthday, love." he said as he laid the box in her lap and took a step back.

He placed his hands in the pockets of his jeans and looked at her expectantly. With a glint of excitement, Eloise tore the purple wrapping paper and pulled away the lid from the box to reveal a dark navy dragon-skin briefcase with golden clasps. It looked quite expensive and before she could even stop herself, her jaw dropped in awe.

"You have lovely taste, George." Colette praised as she watched her daughter pull the briefcase out of the box.

George chuckled, "I wanted Ellie to have something nice for work. Y'know, now that she got that fancy promotion that'll have her traveling all over."

"I love it." she beamed up at him.

"You haven't even seen the best part yet."

Eloise furrowed her brows but George quickly answered all of her curiosities by waving his wand, causing all of her belongings from the table to fly into the now opened briefcase, including her old tattered one.

The bag latched with a click and George pocketed his wand once more, "I did an extending charm on it. Took a bit of work but I think you could fit your entire desk in there now if you really wanted to."

"You're incredible." Eloise smiled.

"It's nothing." he shrugged with a smirk.

"Well, I personally think you should bring it to dinner. Maybe we could sneak away a dessert or two. Maybe even a fancy bottle of elf-made wine. Oh, or some nice silverware." Patrick jested with a warm laugh.

"Dinner?" Eloise questioned as she glanced towards her parents, ignoring her father's suggestion to steal.

"Oui, the reservation has been set for weeks." Colette clarified.

"Had to add a last minute seat to the table, of course. But no harm done." Patrick winked at George.

"Where?" Eloise asked.

The Laurents weren't fancy people, certainly not making-reservations-weeks-in-advance fancy.

"L'Escargot." Colette replied.

Eloise's eyes widened and she glanced at George for a moment before returning her gaze to her parents.

"C'est trop cher." she objected in a whisper.

Part of her felt rude for speaking French only so George couldn't understand her. But she didn't want him to know why she was so against the idea.

He had just bought her an expensive bag that she knew likely cost him at least one week's worth of his wages. George would never admit to it, but she didn't want him to feel bad about her parents paying for his meal at one of the nicest restaurants in Paris. Besides, she was much more content with staying home and eating a meal her mother prepared.

"Nonsense," Patrick laughed, "We haven't seen you since New Year's Day. There are so many things to celebrate - your birthday, your promotion, and of course your new relationship." he finished as he wiggled his brows teasingly at his daughter.

Eloise sighed in defeat, "What time is the reservation?"

"Seven, why? Have other birthday plans elsewhere?" her father asked with a chuckle.

"No, I just didn't think to have either of us pack anything formal to wear for the trip. I may have to Floo back home."

"Don't worry darling, I'm sure you have something in your wardrobe here and George can borrow one of your father's suits. Although, I may have to cast a lengthening charm on the trousers and sleeves." Colette reassured her.

Eloise glanced at George to gauge his reaction. His face showed no sign of worry and as usual, Eloise was jealous of his innate ability to simply go with the flow of things. With a weak smile, she turned back to her parents.

"Seven, then."

"On the dot." Patrick nodded happily.

A/N:

Thank you for being so patient with me when it came to updating. Some irl stuff came up suddenly and I wasn't able to sit down and write for an entire week, but I'm back now!

Also, I've never mentioned any face claims for Colette and Patrick Laurent. Neither of them really have an official one, but I personally imagine Marion Cotillard and Martin Freeman when I write them ☺️