We will meet again ~ Fred Weasley

- Loneliness -

"That summer, my twin and I stopped feeling like kids. Every day was filled with grief we didn't know how to carry and fear we were too exhausted to speak out loud, and somewhere between it all, we both changed forever."

______________________________

The summer at Privet Drive had been one of the worst of Katherine's life.

Not because of the cramped box room she shared with Harry, or Aunt Petunia's constant disapproving looks every time Katherine laughed too loudly or used words like "owl post" or "charms" at the dinner table. It wasn't even Uncle Vernon slamming doors whenever Harry entered a room, or Dudley muttering freak under his breath whenever he passed them in the hallway.

It was the silence.

The silence after Cedric.

The silence from the wizarding world.

The silence from Fred.

For weeks, Katherine had lived in a strange sort of numbness. She and Harry existed in that tiny room like ghosts haunting each other's grief. Some nights Harry woke up shaking from nightmares, lightning-bolt scar burning beneath sweaty curls, and Katherine would quietly hand him water without saying a word because there weren't any words that could fix it. Other nights she was the one crying silently into her pillow while Harry pretended not to notice until eventually he'd mumble something sarcastic just to make her laugh.

Neither of them said Cedric's name very often.

It hurt too much.

The Dursleys made everything worse without even trying. Aunt Petunia treated them like unpleasant stains in her perfectly normal home. Uncle Vernon barked constantly about "freakish behaviour," especially after Harry's nightmares became louder and more frequent.

But somehow, despite everything, Katherine and Harry survived the summer together.

They played exploding snap under the blankets late at night using a secretly enchanted deck Ron had slipped Katherine before term ended. Harry spent long evenings pacing the neighbourhood while Katherine sat on the roof outside the window waiting for him to come back because she hated when he disappeared for too long now. Sometimes they talked about Hogwarts for hours just to avoid talking about the graveyard.

And sometimes they talked about nothing at all.

That was the strange thing about grief. The people who understood it best often sat together in silence.

The worst part for Katherine had been the letters.

Or lack of them.

She received exactly three from Fred all summer.

Three.

The first had been barely coherent excitement about finally being able to publicly date her without sneaking around corners at Hogwarts. The second was mostly George complaining that Fred had become disgustingly romantic. The third was different. Shorter. More serious.

Be careful this summer, darling. Something feels wrong. Mum keeps whispering when she thinks we can't hear her. Dad's been summoned away twice this week. Wish I could come get you myself. Miss you like mad.

Love you always,
Fred

Katherine had read that letter so many times the edges had begun to curl.

So by the time the Dementors attacked Harry and Dudley in Little Whinging, she already felt like she was balancing on the edge of something terrible.

Which was why, almost two months into summer, when Harry stormed back into Privet Drive looking pale and furious, Katherine immediately knew something was wrong.