𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑 𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐄 - 𝐝𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐟𝐨𝐲 (𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝟒)

33 - Gravestones and Forgiveness

May 9th

"I can't do this," Draco was freaking out. We were standing in his dormitory bathroom, him in his black suit, me in my black dress.

"It'll be okay, I promise," I wrapped my arms around his waist.

"What if they don't want me there?"

"Didn't you say Mrs. Weasley gave you a hug when I 'died'?"

"Yes, but-"

"Then it'll be fine, I promise," I gave him a kiss on the cheek, and he turned around, putting his hands on my waist.

"We have to get going," I looked up into his eyes, leading him out of the room.

"I'm really nervous,"

"You'll be great, he would've wanted you to be there," I whispered as we entered the great hall, where the Weasley's, Harry, Hermione and a few of Fred's friends were waiting.

Ginny gave me a big hug, tears already running down her cheeks.

"I don't even know what to say," I whispered, still holding her.

"You don't have to say anything," she sniffled, letting go to take Harry's hand.

"Thank you for coming, Caroline, it's good to see the two of you together again, you gave us a real scare," Mrs. Weasley gave me a hug.

"Of course," I smiled.

"Alright, are we ready?" she sighed, George immediately by her side. We all nodded, and began to walk down to the Hogwart's gardens, a segment now cleared as a memorial for the fallen students and professors. We passed grave after grave, Draco's hand squeezing mine tightly.

Severus Snape. Lavender Brown. Colin Creevey. Remus Lupin. Nymphadora Tonks. The list went on.

We finally came upon Fred's grave.

Bill Weasley would be giving the speech; George couldn't do it.

George wasn't doing very well.

Tears began to stream down my face as Bill gave his speech. I leaned my head on Draco's shoulder, my arm linked in his as we listened, clouds dotting the sky. Once the funeral had commenced, Draco and I stayed behind.

"Um, what do I say?" he whispered to me.

"Whatever you feel, just get it out," I assured him, standing next to him as we stood in front of Fred's grave.

"Um, alright," he took a deep breath, clearly nervous, but he knew it would help that last bit of pressure lift off his shoulders.

"I'm sorry for being harsh on you. I always thought yours and George's jokes and pranks were hilarious. I'm truly sorry for being a part of the reason you passed away, I feel awful for your family, I'm just- I'm really sorry."

a single tear slid down his cheek.

We stood in silence for a few more moments.

"Feel better?" I leaned up, giving him a kiss on the cheek.

"Much better. I think I'm ready to go now," he sighed quietly.

"One second," I said, crouching down. Before we left, I formed a single pink rose, leaving it on his gravestone.

Rest in peace, Fred Weasley.

We walked back up to the castle, hand in hand, the warm spring air filling our lungs as we walked back to the main hall.

"Anything we can do, Professor McGonagall?" I asked her, as she was handing out mugs full of tea to fellow clean up crew members.

"A bit of help is still needed in the northern corridors if you're up for it," she smiled.

"Alright, we'll head there now," I smiled back, Draco and I walking to the northern corridors. That's where the room of requirement was; and our courtyard.

It still smelled of smoke, parts of the walls from outside of the room of requirement burned, covered in black char. We slowly walked into the courtyard; it had been overgrown in vines, the fountain rusted, the flowers limp and dead.

"I say we make it our little project to fix this place up," Draco said.

"Let's get cleaning then."

That night...

The progress we had managed to make in just a day was incredible. We'd cleared the vines off the stone pillars, scrubbed down the fountain, replacing the water, and I replaced the flowers with roses. But this time, I made them an array of colors.

Reds, oranges, pinks, and white of course.

We walked back to the great hall for a quick dinner. Portions were small in order to feed everyone, but the teamwork everyone was putting in honestly gave me hope for humanity. There had been too much darkness these past few years; things were finally looking up.

We sat next to Ginny, George, Ron, Luna, Neville, Hermione and Harry. Draco was finally warming up to all of them, especially Ginny, Luna and Neville. We were all becoming one big family; despite Draco's shyness, I could tell he was very happy to finally feel at home. Blaise would even join us sometimes.

And as usual, I sat to the left, Draco on my right, our hands intertwined together under the table, completely inseparable.