The hand to the shoulder was appreciated, but hardly noticed. He was fuming, and trying not to fume at the same time, which was difficult. After she sat back down with the Prophet and he'd given her enough time to at least figure out what had set him off, he couldn't stop himself from talking again, still gripping the counter, and not actually looking at her. "This is just bloody brilliant. My brother gets attacked, called incompetent when he's trying to help someone, and of course the poor girl killed was probably the only person Percy has ever actually given a damn about in his life. I just don't understand, how does the Prophet get by insulting people when more serious things are going on? If I find out who decided that story was fit to run, much less who thought it was a good idea to write, I swear I'll..." he turned to face her finally and saw how she was sitting with her knees to her chest and felt the anger melt as it was replaced by worry.
George walked over and sat in the chair next to her and put his hands on her knees so she would look at him. "Als," he wasn't really sure what it was that had apparently frightened her so. "Did you know Penelope?" he asked, thinking maybe she was reacting to the bad news, but he really wasn't sure if they'd ever have had reason to cross paths much back in school or since. "Als, talk to me, what's wrong?"