We will meet again ~ Fred Weasley

- Bound To Him -

"Winning the war meant nothing if there was no one left to come home to."

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The moment they stepped through the fireplace at the Burrow, Katherine knew from the silence that something was wrong.

Not because the house was quiet. The Burrow was almost never truly quiet. Even in the middle of the night, there was always something making a noise—the old grandfather clock ticking somewhere downstairs, floorboards creaking beneath wandering feet, pipes groaning in the walls, or the faint rustle of someone moving around upstairs.

This silence was different.

It was the silence of people waiting.

Fred stepped out of the fireplace first, immediately turning back towards Katherine and extending his hand through the green flames. His fingers closed carefully around her arm as she stumbled onto the hearth, steadying her before she could lose her balance.

"Easy."

"I'm fine."

The answer came automatically.

It was the same answer she had given him throughout the journey home.

The same answer she had given after the fight.

The same answer she had repeated to herself so many times that she almost believed it.

But the moment Katherine looked up, she knew she wasn't convincing anyone.

Molly stood frozen in the doorway.

Her eyes travelled slowly over Katherine's face, taking in the dried blood at her temple, the scratches along her cheek, the torn fabric of her clothes and the exhaustion that seemed to have settled into every part of her.

For several seconds, Molly didn't move.

Then her expression crumpled.

"Oh, my goodness."

She hurried towards them.

"What happened?"

"Molly—"

"What happened to her?"

Fred opened his mouth.

Katherine reached out and caught his wrist.

"Clara."

The single name was enough to stop him.

Molly's face paled.

"Who is Clara?"

Fred hesitated.

There were too many details.

Too many things that had happened in too little time.

And Katherine could see the question forming in Molly's eyes before she answered.

"She was someone Fred knew," Katherine said quietly.

Molly looked between them.

"Someone?"

"Someone who was pretending to be a friend."

Katherine swallowed.

"Only she was actually a Death Eater."

The words seemed to drain the remaining warmth from the room.

Molly stared at her.

"She attacked you?"

Katherine nodded.

"She was waiting for me at the shop."

Molly's eyes immediately flicked towards the windows.