Instead he thought about his day. It was brilliant and he had got to spend time with the people that he loved most in the world. After his morning nap with Ginny, he awoke to find her curled up at his side with her arm draped across his chest. Her face to him was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen but when she was asleep it took years of her face and she looked more like the little girl in the pictures on the wall than the young woman who had seen so much pain. As they had spent most of the morning asleep they had lunch surrounded by the Weasley- but not George and Harry took Ginny with him to meet his godson. Andi had asked Harry to do some jobs around the house which she couldn't manage while she and Ginny looked after Teddy. Finally when he had finished he had walked into the lounge and what he saw took his breathe away. Teddy was asleep in Ginny s arms in the old rocking chair in the corner of the room and she was quietly singing a lullaby. Harry didn't recognise it so it must have been an old wizarding song that Molly had probably sung to her children when they were young. Harrys mind wondered as he watched her. He imagined her with their child in her arms singing the same song. There child would have the fiery red hair of its mother and the emerald green eyes of its father. Harry s heart lifted at the thought but he stopped himself, they had promised to take things slow so a baby was well off in the distance after getting engaged and buying a home. Still it s nice to dream Harry thought and for the first time he realised he could think of the future because he had one.
"She's a natural" said Andi quietly making Harry jump and bang his head against the door frame.
"Yep she is" Harry smiled "You better hold on to her. She's a keeper"
"I'll never let her go again. I've already made that mistake once"
Andromeda gave him sad smile probably thinking about Ted. She had lost so much in the war but she carried on. Harry wondered how she did it.
Harry was brought back to the present by Ginny opening the door to his and Ron s room. Ron had left during his daydream.
"Earth to Harry, you there?" She asked as she kissed his forehead.
"What, yer why?"
"Well, Mum has been calling you for ages. Breakfasts ready if you want some" Her voice was flat and it sounded as if she was fighting back tears so Harry wrapped her up in a hug reassuring her that he would be there for her.
"Yer ok." Harry took her hand and led her to the kitchen.
Everyone was sat in an uncomfortable silence eating pieces of toast. The pair sat down and Molly filled their plates with toast. George hadn't made an appearance but had promised Arthur last night that he would go to the funeral. Finally after half an hour everyone was allowed to go back upstairs to get ready. As harry and Ginny got to her room Ginny turned and said, "I'll meet you in your room an hour"
"Sure" Harry said and pecked her on the cheek.
Harry had planned on going to his room but he found himself in front of Georges instead. He hadn't said a word to him for a week but then again he had hardly spoken to anyone. Harry knocked and waited but there was no reply. Harry knocked again.
"I told you mum. I'll be there just leave me alone" shouted an angry George.
"It's not your Mum, it's me Harry. Can I come in?" Harry was nervous as he waited for an answer. But then suddenly the door flew open and their stood George. He had a weeks worth of stubble on his face and his eyes were bloodshot and puffy. He had lost weight and his clothes hung off him like the trios had when they got back. He truly looked like he was half dead and smelt like it too. "What do you want?" asked George in the most standoffish voice Harry had ever heard.
"I just wanted to see how you are"
"How I am? How I am did you say? How the f... I am. I'm bloody fine so if that s all bugger off" He tried to slam the door but Harry caught it with his hand. "Go away Harry"
"No"
"What?"
"I said no"
George turned and stalked into his room. The room he had shared with his brother for his whole life.
"You're not George"
"Well done Merlin"
"We all just want to help"
"Yer well I don't need your help, from you or anyone else."
"I don't believe that and neither do you."
"How can you help?"
"I've lost people I love too so have your family, they lost Fre..."
"Don't say his name"
"Why?"
"Just because"
"You may have lost people too but it's not the same."
"Tell me" Harry sat on the bed next to George. He wished Ginny or Hermione was here, he was no good at all of this feelings stuff but he guessed that he could help.
"It's like half of me doesn't work," Harry sat their patiently listening as George sat against the closed bedroom door with his head in his hands, "it's like half of me died with him and, and" George broke down crying. Harry really didn't know what to say or do. But after a while he realised "you weren't going to the funeral"
"I can't" said George painfully.
"You can and you will"
"No I can't say goodbye because then it's real and I can't live without him"
"But you are and it is real"
"I don't want to feel like this forever."
"You won t"
"You promise?"
"Yep sure" Harry sort of lied, sometimes he still felt like it was his fault that all of those people had died, but then other times he felt fine, happy even, especially when his is with Ginny or even his adoptive family.
"It's not your fault you know"
"It's not yours either and you'll see him again you know... one day"
"What?"
"Well... one day you'll see him again"
"How do you know?"
"When I was in the forest and well... I had the resurrection stone and..."
"But it's not real"
"No it is" Georges eyes lit up and Harry could tell what he was thinking "No George, the dead are dead and are better off left that way besides I don't have it anymore"
"Oh" his face fell. "But I'll see him again you sure"
"Yep 100% and he hasn't really left you, you know"
"What do you mean?"
"He's here" said Harry as he pointed at his heart. George put his hand over his own heart and closed his eyed and more tears fell from them.
"Forever" whispered George and he put his head back to rest against the door. After a few minutes George opened his eyes but they now looked different. There was a new energy to them "I'll go"
"You're sure"
"Yep and there are some things that I have to do, we made a promise before... if either one of us... well you know..."
"Yer" Harry nodded sympathetically.
"Well then I have things to do so if you don't mind..." He opened the door and gestured for Harry to leave.
"Of course and George?"
"Yep"
"You need a shave"
George rubbed his new beard "You think I can't pull it off."
"No" said Harry simply "Damn, I heard chicks dig rouges, you know a bit devil may care sort of thing" there was the old George peaking through.
"Yer keep telling yourself that. I'll see you downstairs we are meeting at half ten"
"Sure, sure" but George had lost interest in talking to Harry and was now looking into a box filled with who knows what.
Harry went to Ron s room but Ron was nowhere to be seen, he had probably gone to find Hermione- they had been inseparable since the battle. Harry began to put on his best trousers but they were miles too big for him around the waist. He looked in Spellman s syllabus for a resizing charm and then after three tries he had trousers which fit him nicely. He had just put his arms in his sleeves when Ginny walked in. "I thought you would be ready by now"
"I went to see George"
"Oh" Ginny frowned and walked forward so she could do up Harrys shirt buttons.
Harry took a deep breath as her fingers brushed the skin on his chest," Yer"
"And?"
"And what?"
Ginny gave him a look, "how was he?" she asked anxiously.
"He'll get there eventually", not wanting to tell her the truth that he was a complete mess.
Ginny didn t reply but carried on with his buttons then smoothing the shoulders on his shirt. Harry grabbed his red tie which Mrs Weasley had given him yesterday and tied it. While Ginny grabbed his jacket. Only then did Harry look to see what she was wearing. A simple black dress which ended just above her knees and around her waist was a red belt. She looked beautifull.
"You look beautiful Gin"
Ginny gave a small smile and wiped her eyes because of the tears which had escaped. Ginny never cried really the last time was when Charlie had moved away to Romania. Harry took her hand and bent down as he kissed her knuckles. "Shall we go?"
Ginny nodded not trusting her voice.
Outside there was a tent sent up. Harry had not noticed it earlier but now it was full of red headed relatives and friends of Fred s. The Weasleys walked collectively into the tent. George next to Percy, Molly wrapped in Arthurs arms, Charlie next to Ginny who was holding onto Harrys hand like his was the only real thing in the world and trailing behind was Bill and Fleur. The coffin was placed at the front of the tent surrounded by brightly coloured flowers and next to it was the small old wizard who had performed Dumbledore s funeral. Everyone took their seats. Molly had already begun to cry and Hermione and Fleur looked close to tears so where wrapped up in their partners arms. Ginny on the other hand was leaning against Charlie but had Harrys had firmly in the both of hers, he wished that she would lean up against him.
The ceremony started and the wizard droned on and on about a person no one would have recognised if he hadn't been laid in front of them. However after ten minutes of the drabble, George stood up. "Stop"
Everything went silent.
"George..." Arthur warned.
"No stop, no offence here but that is not F...Fred" He said to the small minister. George walked up to the front and placed his hand on the coffin and whispered something no one else could hear. Then turning around he began, Fred was my brother. He was devilishly handsome and super funny. Apparently he looked like me." Everyone chuckled. "He was more than a brother though; he was my best friend and I never really appreciated how much of a part of me he was until he had gone. I remember swapping places with him all of the time and pretending to be each other. There wasn't really much difference. For most of you will you would know that he would hate all this attention," Everyone laughed again, the twin had always tried to make light of a serious situation. "So we decided that we needed to do this our way." George smiled sadly and flicked his wand. Then suddenly the tent burst into flames but everyone was still in too much shock to move then thousands of fireworks went off. All of them made different images to do with Fred life and the things he loved. Finally the last one wrote simply "goodbye Fred" Then the embers fell to the ground and settled on the grass where they made bunches of delicate flowers emerge. It was fabulous there wasn't a dry eye anywhere.
George looked at the crowd and said "Someone told me that the ones who die never really leave us, that they are here" and George pointed to his heart. " So I guess what I'm trying to say is this isn't goodbye forever just see you later"
OK SO I'VE DECIDED TO SPLIT THIS CHAPTER IN HALF SO THE REST OF THE FUNERAL IS NEXT, PLEASE TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK, THANKS FOR READING :)