Ginny and Harry stayed by the lake until the afternoon heat blazed down upon them. They had chatted about meaningless things at times, but spent most of the day in silence just happy to be in each other’s presence.
“We really should be getting back now. Mum will worry and there will be…things to do, you know…” Ginny trailed off and Harry sensed her sadness returning. He wrapped his arm around her and they made their way back towards the castle. Harry felt much more confident in facing the crowd with Ginny at his side. They met up with Ron and Hermione outside of the Great Hall and together, the four of them set off toward the rest of the Weasley family, who were still situated at the far end of the hall. They ignored the stares and whispers that followed their footsteps.
“There you are! We were hoping you hadn’t wandered off too far. We’re all going to go back to the Burrow. Mum and Dad already left. We’re going to…have a proper funeral…f-f-for Fred...tomorrow.” Bill Weasley choked out the last few words. Fleur hugged him and they headed towards the grounds to apparate. George and Charlie followed them with nothing more than a nod of acknowledgment to the group of them.
“Well, I s’pose we’d better follow them, then…” Ron said and he pulled Hermione into a hug and then the four of them set off toward the grounds as well. By the time they reached the grounds, the others had already disapparated. “We’ll see you two there then.” Ron added before grabbing Hermione’s hand and then he turned on the spot and they were gone with a loud crack! Harry took one last look at Hogwarts before turning his back and then he too grabbed Ginny’s hand and disapparated.
They arrived seconds after Ron and Hermione, landing right in the front yard of the Burrow, only feet from the door that led to the kitchen. The last thing Harry wanted to do at the moment however was see Mr. and Mrs. Weasley because he was unsure of how they would feel. What if they blamed him or were angry at him for Fred’s death? He knew they had every right to be…
But Harry was very mistaken, for when Ginny pulled him into the kitchen Mrs. Weasley flew at him and gave him a huge hug!
“Harry we are so p-proud of y-y-you, for everything you’ve d-d-done.” Mrs. Weasley spoke, though sobbing. Harry looked at her and hoped that she could see how sorry he was. She shook her head and gave Harry the biggest smile she could muster, letting Harry know that they didn’t blame him at all. “We love you Harry. Arthur and I are s-s-so th-tha-thankful for y-y-you.” And at that Mrs. Weasley waddled back into the sitting room and sat down. Arthur Weasley took a seat next to her and comforted his wife as silent tears slid down his face.
Harry, Ginny, Hermione, and Ron joined the rest of the Weasley family, along with Fleur, in the sitting room. And just as they had on the night that Mad-Eye had died, they toasted in honor of Fred and drank in his name. The fire whisky burned Harry’s throat, making him feel raw inside. He was filled again with sadness, but he was glad to be able to go through this pain with the people surrounding him. For the first time in a long while, Harry realized that he didn’t have to do it alone anymore...more so he learned that he had never been alone.
And as the night grew later everyone slowly went up to bed and with a heavy, but hopeful heart, Harry walked with Ron up to his room and lay down. He anticipated a night with little sleep and many nightmares, but Mrs. Weasley came up after a few minutes with a potion for “A Night of Dreamless Sleep” which is something they all could use. And Harry had barely taken of his glasses before sleepiness overcame him, and he drifted off into a peaceful slumber.
A/N- Another sort of filler chapter. I know it seems like there have been alot of those, but please trust me- it will get better! I have a lot planned for this book. I just really wanted to convey the despair that the family, along with Harry, are feeling. The following chapters are much longer than these have been. Thank you for reading, it makes my day when I see another view. Please review:) Thanks!
Happy Reading- potter4ever731
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