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George shouldered his backpack and scratched absently at his ear as he gazed out the window at the flying metal boxes, planes apparently, that were coming and going. It was the first time he’d seen anything of the sort but with no easy way to travel long distances via wizarding means, Hermione had been the one to talk him into travelling the muggle way. Somehow, Charlie’s suggestion of flying on a dragon like he tended to do, really wasn’t going to cut it. His dad would love to see these things. Maybe when he came back since he’d convinced his whole family to let him do this alone.
With some help from the muggle-born witch who was more like a sister at this point than a friend, George had gotten himself a passport and exchanged a good amount of money from the shop’s account to purchase a plane ticket to some place in Canada called Vancouver. Hermione said it was nice, that the weather was similar to what he was used to in England and that there was a sizable wizarding community there. It wasn’t like George actually cared though. He just needed to get away. From people knowing his name, from people asking when the shop was going to open again, from people asking if he was okay, from people saying they were sorry for his loss, from people talking about the war that had taken literally everything from him while they just went on about their lives as if they weren’t missing half their soul. He just needed to get away.
A musical chime came over the intercom before an announcement startled George out of his thoughts. “Attention travelers. Flight BA85 to Vancouver is now boarding. Customers with tickets for Zone A and customers with accommodations, please make your way to the gate to board.”
George looked down at the ticket in his hand. Hermione had pressured him to fly first class since it was his first time on a plane and he had the money to afford it. Whatever first class meant, anyway. A small box in the corner indicated that he had a Zone A ticket so, with a glance around to see what other people were doing, he followed the crowd to a line and paid attention to what he’d be asked to do once he got to the desk. The attendant just smiled at him when it was his turn and took his ticket briefly before handing it back with a nod. “Enjoy the flight, sir.”
A slanted corridor was his next destination, following the line of chattering muggles towards an ever noisier destination. He heard whirring and as he reached the end and stepped through a rounded door, cracks of sunlight came in around where the hallway was apparently attached to the plane. It was strange inside, the ceilings low and rounded, the chamber he was funnelled into was filled with cushioned seats and the people ahead of him were already settling in and looking through what appeared to be menu cards like those he’d seen in muggle restaurants. After a little bit of looking around, he managed to find the seat with his ticket number. It was next to a little round window that currently looked out onto the runaways... Was that the word? No, runways. Hermione had called them runways when she explained the whole thing to him. As he watched, another plane landed and began to taxi to its gate.
“Hey, name’s Morgan,” a voice announced behind him, drawing George’s attention away from the window. A young man was smiling at him as he settled into the seat beside him. He offered a hand once he realized George was looking at him. “Looks like we’re going to be travelling companions. Nine hours is a pretty darn long time to go without talking to the person next to you.”
George allowed himself to smile and took the young man’s hand. Morgan had a firm grip and shook in greeting before releasing him. “I’m George.”
“A pleasure, George! So, what awaits you in Vancouver, eh?” Morgan asked as he tucked his own backpack under the chair in front of him. George followed suit, having been sitting with his own in his lap until then.
What awaited him in Vancouver? That was the question, wasn’t it? Honestly, George had no idea. Escape, for one. But he didn’t feel like explaining that. A moment of brilliant inspiration struck him as he thought of what Fred would say about this sudden drastic decision to upend his life and run away to a new place to get away from it all for a while. “Adventure.”
Morgan gave a hearty laugh. “Adventure? Well, alright. Here’s to adventure, then!”