We will meet again ~ Fred Weasley

- The Burden Was Never Mine -

"For the first time, I saved him because it was right—not because I believed he was mine to save."

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The following morning felt strangely normal.

Which, Katherine thought bitterly as she pushed a piece of French toast around her plate, was perhaps the strangest thing of all.

Only days earlier she and Ron had nearly died.

Only yesterday Fred had punched Draco Malfoy in the face in front of half the school.

Only yesterday Katherine had finally admitted to herself that she could not spend the rest of her life trying to save someone who refused to save himself.

And yet Hogwarts continued exactly as it always did.

Students complained about homework.

First-years spilled pumpkin juice across the tables.

Owls swooped through the enchanted ceiling carrying letters and parcels.

Life moved forward regardless of whether your heart was ready to move with it.

Katherine sat amongst the Gryffindors as she always did, though she technically belonged several tables away.

At some point over the years, everyone had simply stopped questioning it.

It wasn't unusual to see the Slytherin girl sitting beside Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger.

In many ways it felt more natural than sitting amongst her own house.

Today, however, the familiar comfort felt slightly fragile.

The fractures were still there.

Ron and Hermione were slowly finding their way back to one another, though neither would admit it aloud.

Harry was growing increasingly obsessed with Draco.

And Katherine...

Katherine was tired.

Tired in a way sleep couldn't fix.

Not because she regretted what she had said to Fred.

Quite the opposite.

For the first time in months she felt lighter.

As though she had finally set down a burden she had been carrying for far too long.

The conversation in the abandoned classroom lingered in her thoughts.

Not the sadness.

Not the guilt.

The peace.

The certainty.

For years Draco had occupied a space in her heart that nobody else could touch.

Not because she loved him more.

She didn't.

Perhaps she never had.

But because part of her had always believed she was responsible for him.

Responsible for the frightened boy hidden beneath the arrogance.

Responsible for helping him become better.

Responsible for making sure he didn't disappear entirely.

Yesterday she had finally understood something important.