Running AIAOY 7

Chapter 16

Rebecca fell to her knees at Fred's side.  His eyes were closed and his chest was still.  He was gone.  Her hands trembled as they went to his face, brushing against his cheeks and finding only cold nothing.  No life, no wisp to bring back.  This was only a body.  The sobs left her freely, shaking her body as she laid her head on his chest.

Cedric had George clinging onto him at Fred's side, watching in horror.

Ron shook his head, not believing was was in front of him.  "You'll bring him back!"  He cried out.  "J-just bring him back!"  He went to his knees and took Rebecca's hand, putting it on Fred's arm.  "Just do it like you have before, you-"

Rebecca tore her arm from his grip and brought it back to Fred's chest.  Her mind both raced and remained blank, struggling to find the answer to a question that wasn't there.  There was no solution.

Wherever souls went after their bodies failed, Fred had gone to.  There was no soul left here, she couldn't save him.

McGonagall wiped the tears from her face and looked away from one heart-shattering Potter only to find Harry searching the room for Sirius and Remus.  Harry's search failed.  Both men were missing.

Percy stepped forward, holding the chain he had removed from Fred's neck out to her.  "He-"  Percy's voice croaked.  "This was to go to you."

Rebecca took it, her eyes settling on Fred's face.  Irrationality had set in.  He wasn't dead, he had to be pranking her.  "Get up, Fred."  She whispered, leaning closer to him.  "Just get up and we'll pretend.  We'll pretend that nothing's wrong, we can do that again."  Tears dropped from her cheeks onto his.  "Get up!  Wake up!"  She shouted, her voice breaking.

Draco watched from feet away, Nigel and Louis on either side of him.  All three boys watched helplessly.  

Rebecca's hand tightened around the necklace, around the ring she had given him during their ceremony.  She held it so tightly the metal left an imprint in her palm.  She wished that the pain had felt anything close to the anguish engulfing her.  She couldn't remember if they had said they loved each other before it started.  She couldn't-

She couldn't stay there.  She sat up and left her hand on Fred's chest a moment longer.  Rebecca undid the clasp to the chain he had worn and exchanged his ring for hers.  Her hands shook still, but she managed to undo the mechanism.  It was quick and easy, and incredibly final.  She returned her necklace to her neck and left his lying on his chest.  She couldn't bear to life his head knowing he wouldn't open his eyes with a cheeky retort.

Harry followed her away from the grieving, not sure where they were going and not sure if she should leave them all yet.  She turned away from the Great Hall and stopped only when she was outside the headmaster's office a few corridors away.

"The vial, Harry."  Her voice was strict, cold, and demanding.

"Rebecca, we don't nee-"

"The vial!"  Rebecca repeated.  If she was to do so again, Harry didn't doubt that he'd be on the floor and she would have taken the tears by force.  Inside the office, the pensieve sat where it always had.  The liquid inside glimmering with the promise of reliving the past.

Harry poured the contents in, Snape's tears dropping into the reflection pool with inky darkness.  Rebecca leaned forward and entered the memories, leaving Harry to follow after her.

The memory was in a park, with a young Severus watching two girls fighting from behind a tree.  Petunia, Harry and Rebecca recognised, slapped a blooming flower out of the other girl's hand.  "Freak!  Petunia shouted at the girl, her back still towards Severus.  "I'm going to tell mummy you're a freak!"