In the Melancholy Moonlight

Chapter 195: Dear Cedric,

August 4, 1996

Dear Cedric,

So much has happened since I last wrote you. I'm sorry it's been so long, but Merlin, you would not believe how busy I've been. This summer is incredible. If you had told me a year ago that I would ever be this happy again, I never ever ever ever would have believed you. But I am. Even if it's just for now, I'm happy again.

Life with the Weasley twins is unlike anything I've ever known. It's chaotic and busy, of course, it's wild and indescribable, obviously, but I think what's surprised me the most is how sweet everything is, too. George makes me coffee every morning, Fred has perfected the art of making me laugh harder and harder until I think I'm going to stop breathing. Oh, AND they're both Animagi now. They were inspired by Ginny. Full moons are safer here than I think they've ever been. Oh, and Henry's been spending a lot of time here, too, and he stayed with me when we went back to our old house.

You're still with me in so many ways. Most recently, in the form of the Daydream Charm. We used that book you gave me on my birthday last year to invent something new, something that will make so many people happy. It's already made me the happiest I've been since you died. I went to the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary! Because of that Daydream Charm! Can you believe it? It was absolutely incredible, I could write about it forever. Truthfully, it deserves its own letter, and it's been through sheer willpower that it's taken me this long to mention it. We just got back a couple hours ago, the three of us immediately fell asleep on the floor of the den, but Fred woke up and headed to the kitchen so I woke up too. I'm not upset about it, though, because it gave me the chance to head up to my room and write you about everything. (George sleeps like a log, he didn't notice.) I got to fly a dragon! Norbert, actually, if you remember me talking about her? That was yesterday, and then today Charlie (Weasley) walked me through a day in the life of a dragonologist. He thinks I'd love working there, and I think I would too. I'll always mourn the life we never got to live together, and I'll always wish we'd gotten to do what you planned for us, but I didn't know there were so many other options available to me. I guess I have a lot to think about.

I'm guessing you want to hear about Harry, since my last letter talked about him so much. Before you ask, no, we aren't together yet. I want to be. I think maybe he wants it, too. Time will tell, I suppose. For now, I'm happy where we are. We got to spend time alone together on his birthday. You helped with his birthday gift too, not just with the Daydream Charm. I chose ten memories of Harry that I really love and gathered each one into two vials, one to smash and one to save. The ones we smashed played like Muggle films, which we watched in the Burrow's orchard together.

I love him so much, Cedric. I just want him to be happy. He deserves that. I think we all do.

I wish you were here to enjoy this summer with me. I wish I could talk to you about all of this, instead of just writing and trying to guess what you would say in response. I think know you would be so happy for me. I know you'd be proud of me, if you could see me now. The past couple of days have been particularly difficult, since I was in the caves a year ago. If anyone else is remembering, they haven't said anything. I think maybe taking me to the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary was the twins' way of acknowledging it without acknowledging it, in a sense. It was a nice reminder of why I'm happy to be alive. I never would have gotten to do any of this if I had stayed in the caves. You saved me. Harry, too. You both saved me that day.

Sorry, I feel like this letter has been a bit chaotic. Fitting, isn't it? Truthfully, I'm quite tired, so I think I'm just going to take a shower and head to bed, because tomorrow is Monday and Monday means the joke shop is back in business!

I love you. I miss you. I love you. I miss you. I love you. I miss you. I love you. I miss you.

Saying goodbye in these letters never gets easier.

I love you. I miss you. I promise.

Love always, Lucy

~

August 4, 1996

Dear Cedric,

Well, I did it. I'm a Magpie, and I have been for a little over a month now. It's not quite what I expected it to be, if I'm being honest, but I think it's going to be okay. Alasdair Maddock and I are becoming friends, if you can believe that. We've made a habit of going out for drinks after practice on Friday nights, which is a good way to decompress after whatever the week has brought our way. Cormack McLeod is... difficult. That's all I really want to say about that right now.

I've been spending a lot of time at the joke shop with George and Lucy and Fred. I tried to visit last night, actually, but the shop was closed. I thought that was odd and I was concerned, but I bumped into Archie in Diagon Alley, who assured me that they hadn't been attacked or anything because he would have known if they were, with his Order connections. (He's in Dumbledore's secret organization now, can you believe that? Something about it isn't sitting right with me, but he seems thrilled and no one else shares my concern, so maybe I'm just acting like an overprotective older brother.) I was still concerned, though, so I Flooed over tonight. I found all three of them sprawled on the floor asleep, using backpacks as pillows. It was genuinely one of the funniest things I've ever seen, in a sweet way. Lucy was curled up facing George, who had an arm over her, and Fred's legs were completely tangled up in hers. They're so very protective of her, even when sound asleep. Anyway, my arrival woke Fred, who managed to escape without waking the others. He set up a silencing charm, and the two of us just talked in the kitchen for a while. He filled me in on everything they'd been doing, and I told him everything I had already told George about the Magpies. We agreed not to mention it to Lucy. They've made sure she can enjoy this summer as much as possible while worrying about as little as possible, and they've appeared to do a really swell job of it.

They haven't told her anything about the war as far as they could help it. She's going to find out once she gets to school, of course, but she doesn't need to worry about that yet. There's nothing she can do about it anyway, even though she's really more central than I think any of us want to admit. She's close to Harry, who IS central to the war, and she's close to you, who... well, you were kind of the first indication that there was any war on the horizon at all. And then there's the whole kidnapping ordeal from last summer, and it's scary to think about what could happen to her in the future if that's what happened in the past, and then there's the whole werewolf factor. Just because those of us who know love her doesn't mean that other people who find out will love her. I worry for her, mate. I know she's in good hands, with the twins, with her friends at school, with the Order, with me if she needs me, but I just hope we're enough. The world is getting scarier by the day. We need each other more than ever.

I've been getting close with George. I don't know how he feels about me, or about the idea of a possible "us." I genuinely have no idea if he'd even consider it, let alone want it. But... well, I think there might be a chance, based on what Lucy and Fred have been telling me. They're equal parts angels and demons, those two. They keep setting the two of us up to be alone together. Lucy's a menace, Ced, you never warned me. She's too smart for her own good, and on top of that, she teases me relentlessly every time George isn't around. Is that the twins' doing, or has Lucy always had a little mischievous side?

The world is dark and getting darker, but at least we have each other. I wish we still had you. I think you'd be proud of us, though, the way we've grown together and watched out for each other every step of the way. I think we're going to be okay.

I love you. I miss you. We love you. We miss you.

Love, Henry