Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter
Written for the Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition: Round 6
Team: Kenmare Kestrels
Position: Chaser 2 (Reserve)
Prompt: Write about a light character committing the sin of SLOTH or a dark character demonstrating the virtue of DILIGENCE.
Written for the Emotion Challenge
Prompt: Hopeless
Written for the Percy Jackson Character Challenge
Prompt: Write about a funeral.
Written for the Drabble Club
Prompt: The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity.
Written for the Quidditch Pitch
Prompt: Dennis Creevey
Bells ring in the distance. The faint smell of roses hangs in the air. But it doesn't belong.
You drag your feet in an attempt to walk towards the procession. You nearly trip over yourself. You can see people mourning, though, you know most don't actually care. They only come to comfort you and your family. They don't know.
Know the pain of losing a brother that brought light to your day. Know the pain of losing someone. Because they can't.
They can't empathize without having been in that position themselves. They will never know. They will only try.
You see some of them laughing together! You can't believe they would do that in a time like this.
In a time like this...
You remember his face, a bubble of laughter, trapping you in it's euphoria. A time long ago…
A time that would never come again.
Ever.
The words sink in. Tears well in your eyes. You desperately wish it weren't true, but you realize it's childish. You can't keep everything. Sometimes, things will disappear, never to be seen again.
That's life.
You thud into your seat, keeping your head bowed. You can hear the funeral director, but his voice is only a soft buzz far, far away. You barely notice the time passing. Your mind is a clock, it's life tick-tocking down.
Then it's over. People get up out of their seats, eager to get away from the morbid graveyard. They trickle out into the dark night.
Soon only you are left.
In the distance and owl hoots, but other than that, it is silence. Silence.
You step carefully up to his grave.
Your eyes brim with tears, threatening to drop. They roll down your cheek and just for a moment, pause. Then they trickle to the waiting ground below. One after another. They each contact, with a resounding splash. Pit. Pat.
You think of all the times spent, relished and wasted. You realize time is the best thing a man could be offered. Time.
Flashbacks of the past surface. Your life replays. All those moments…
You bury your head into your pillow, as if to shut the world outside. It doesn't work.
Nothing changes. Nothing will.
It's hopeless.
You lay in your bed, unwilling to do anything other.
You hear the click of your door opening. You tilt you head to get a glimpse of who it is. Mother.
You watch as she comes over and hugs you.
"I am so worried about you, Dennis! You seem so melancholy. Over the past weeks you have been so inactive. So… lazy. I worry about your health. Is it Colin?"
You nod slowly, not meeting her eyes.
"You have to get over it. I am just as heartbroken as you are, but you have to learn to continue with your life. You can't let this ruin you."
You hate what she says but you know it's true.
"I understand you don't want to do anything, but you need to realize the most difficult thing is the decision to act; the rest is merely tenacity. You can't remain tethered to your past. You must forge a new future, one where Colin would be proud of you."
You remain in your pillow, unfazed. You know she speaks the truth, but you don't want to accept it.
She sighs then walks out, banishing you to silence. Silence.
You walk towards the grave that has been long forgotten. Dust formed a thick coating from years neglect. You run your hand down the stone, freeing the grave from the dust.
You think of the years past, which met the same fate as the tombstone: neglect. You think of your past and all the memories within.
One memory sticks out, begging for release. You welcome it. One last time...
You watch as people run past you in a frenzy. The air is heavy with screams. You feel a hand grab your arm, pulling you back.
Your former self turns, only to see Colin. He pauses, allowing silence to reign, then says, "You wouldn't think I would forget you, did you?"
Your former self nods.
"Well, I've got to go help someone. Do you know who?"
Your former self shakes your head.
"Harry Potter! The living legend!"
Your former self nods.
"I'll be back soon!"
His face becomes grave, "Dennis."
"What?" your former self asks.
"Promise me something. Promise me that you'll keep living, even if I don't return."
"Colin…"
"I'm serious Dennis. Promise me." He fixes his eyes on you, waiting.
"I promise."
Your former self watches as Colin disappears into the crowd, only a speck in the sea of people. Your former self starts to turn.
"NO!" you scream but you soon realize nothing will change. Not now, not ever.
The memory melts into a swirl of black.
You gasp, hacking into a cough. You lay sprawled on the ground.
You stand up, gaining composure. It too, soon melts.
You sob, breaking down, shattering into many shards.
"I was a coward, wasn't I?" you whisper.
You need no answer.
"I am nothing like you!" You let out a strangled sob.
You brush the grave in a tender caress, thinking. Thinking.
"I will live, Colin. Even without you. I will," you say, your voice almost inaudible.
"I promise."
You leave the grave behind.
And yet again, silence reigns.
You will live for him. You will not let yourself disappoint Colin with your laziness. You will continue to live for him.
I promise.