We sat in silence on the lawns, waiting on white chairs while we face a marble tomb. There were more people here than I had seen gathered together in a long time. Every student, professor, and member of the Order was there. There were Ministry officials and loads of people I didn't recognize. We all waited in perfect quiet.

I had never been to a proper funeral before.

I sat near the front with Harry on one side, Cedric on the other. Harry's knee was tense under my hand, and I could sense he was holding something back. I wished I could say something, but I had no idea what would be comforting. I opted to squeeze his knee instead, and he gave me a small nod. That would have to do for now.

We listened to long, weeping speeches about Dumbledore's greatness. His body is incased in marble. I watched Harry's shoulders shake and a few tears fell off his face. I felt too hollow to cry. The feeling of hopelessness was so familiar to me now. What were we going to do without Dumbledore?

A haunting tune rang through the grounds. I looked up to see Fawkes soaring above the funeral, circling the grounds once before taking off over the forest. My lips trembled, but I managed to keep it together. I guessed there really wasn't much keeping Fawkes here now that Dumbledore was gone. The smallest changes were sometimes the saddest.

People around us began to stand and move away. Harry tugged me along beside him, and we met with Ron and Hermione at the edge of the chairs. He glanced around before fishing the locket out of his pocket.

"It's fake," he told them, opening it up for them to see. "There's a note in here from whoever got the real Horcrux."

He passed Ron the paper. He and Hermione read it with frowns on their faces.

"Who's R.A.B.?" Ron asked.

"No clue," I answered. "I can't think of anyone with those initials. I'll go through my history text books later, but I doubt there'll be something there."

"So, what's the plan then?" Hermione was looking intensely at Harry.

"Well, I'm going to go find the rest of the Horcruxes," he said shiftily.

"Then we're coming too," she replied.

"Yes, but let's wait to leave after the wedding. Bill and Fleur are expecting all of us there," Ron added.

"It'll be dangerous—" Harry started.

"And we don't even know where they are," I added.

"We'll figure it out," Hermione said firmly. "We always do."

"You know what they are, at least," Ron said. "So that's a start."

"And we can start with tracking down the real locket," I said. I looked at Harry. "You can't do this alone. We all have to work together. And you're thinking something along the lines of, But I don't want you to get hurt. Well, we're at war. People get hurt. People die. That's what happens." I took the locket back from Ron. "This is a clue. This gets us closer to defeating him. We can do it."

Harry sighed. "After… after the wedding then."

Ron grinned. "After the wedding. Then we'll go Horcrux hunting, mate."

I look up and see Cedric standing not far off with Jared and Colin, and we lock eyes. He sends me a small smile, and I hand the locket to Harry. "I'll see you soon. I have some business to take care of," I said before pulling him into a tight hug. He nodded against my shoulder, and I released him. I walked past rows of white chairs, and Cedric intercepted me.

"Hey," he said. He smiled, but it didn't quite reach his eyes.

"Hey. Let's… walk?" I asked, and we left the funeral crowd side by side. We walked to the shore of the lake, Cedric's hand slipping into mine as we continued away from everyone. I finally sat down on the grass, only the slight wind and quiet lapping of the waves to keep us company now.

"So, did you… get it?" Cedric asked. "The Horcrux?"

"No," I answered, wrapping my arms around my knees. "It was fake."

"Fake?"

"The real one had been stolen by someone named R.A.B. some time ago. Initials sound familiar?"

"Should they?"

"I don't know." I gazed out over the lake, amazed that such a lovely day could be so sad. "But the plan is to track it down after Bill and Fleur's wedding."

"You and Harry?"

"And Ron and Hermione."

He nodded. We were quiet for a while, side by side, watching the water ripple. "Jennifer, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure."

"About Lance."

I stiffened. "What's your question?"

"I guess I have two. Why were you hitting him? I mean—"

"I didn't need my wand." I glanced down at my right hand. The knuckles weren't broken any more, but they were bruised black and sore. "I… I knew I couldn't beat him in a duel. He was raised in the wizarding world, I knew he wouldn't stand a chance if I could just use my fists."

"Would you have killed him?"

I looked at Cedric now. His expression was completely serious. "Would you hate me if I would have?" I countered.

"I… no. I wouldn't hate you."

"I don't know if I would have done it," I sighed. "In the moment, I thought I would. I had him. I hate him so much, and he's done such horrible things to me, but…" I swallowed my nerves. "The thought of killing anyone, even Lance, even that Death Eater I got when we were in the graveyard… it turns my stomach." I ran my hands through my hair. "But in that moment… I was ready to. I was so angry, so tired of being made helpless and afraid and worthless that I was ready to kill him. So I don't know. I might have." I looked at him again. "Does that scare you?"

He looked at me for a long time, searching my face for something. "I don't think you would have," he finally said. "You're not a killer."

"But—"

"You're a lot better person than you give yourself credit for," he offered. "At least, I think you are. And I don't think you would have killed Lance. Not then. Maybe in a split-second moment where it was either you or him, but you're not cruel." He reached over and tenderly took my bruised hand in his. I flinched at the contact. "Though I will say I'm a bit scared and impressed with how you throw a punch."

I snorted. "I just don't take any issue about throwing away my wand and punching someone on the nose."

"You really don't."

He brought my hand up to his lips and gently kissed it. "If you're… leaving then, I guess, in a month or so, will you… will you come home again?"

A horrible realization hit me. If I left with Harry to go Horcrux hunting, then I wouldn't see Cedric. At all. Maybe ever again, if something happened to one of us. Tears stung at my eyes.

"Yes. I will."

We made our way back to the funeral. I said goodbye to Harry, Ron and Hermione before Cedric and I walked to Hogsmeade and Apparated to London. He led me into the building and to the half-bare flat. I could get my things from Brittany's later when I knew she'd be home. Cedric shut the door and pulled me into a tight hug, his lips pressed against my shoulder.

"Welcome home."

Appologies for the short chapter/late update. I'm working on moving and starting grad school. Good news: We've finished HBP and are halfway through! Woo! Sad news: Because I'm about to move across the country and start graduate school (not sad), I'm going on a brief hiatus (sad) until Monday, August 22nd. I'm going to spend the time getting my house set up, adjusted to life, and getting a few chapters written of a buffer so that I can keep updating on Mondays when school starts again!

Thank you for all the support, it really means a lot to me 3