Harry stepped out of the fireplace at the Burrow with as much grace as he could muster. He dusted the black soot off and looked around. No one was in the living room so he decided to go up to his room. He opened the door and looked around. Everything was in the exact same place that he left it. Even the shirts he had thrown on his bed, were left in the same place he put them. He wouldn't lie. The room was a mess. He would have to clean it soon, but he just didn't feel like it at the moment. He pushed off the close on his bed and flopped down. As soon as his head hit the pillow, he was asleep. He didn't hear the door opening and he didn't Ginny step inside.
He woke up to the sound of voices from somewhere in the room. He heard a familiar voice, but he just couldn't come to the realization of who it was.
"He's really tired, Mum. Just let him sleep. When he wakes up he can eat."
"It isn't normal for someone to sleep so much, Ginny!" So that's who it was. Ginny was arguing with Mrs. Weasley. "The boy needs to eat. He's gotten so skinny. I'm going to wake him up."
"Mum! He's just sleeping. I'd be pretty tired too if V-V-V… You-Know-Who tried to kill me." She still had trouble saying his name. That was to be expected. Everyone going there whole life not being able to say his name, and suddenly they were allowed to. No, they were expected to. People would get used to it though. Harry sighed and sat up. Mrs. Weasley and Ginny's heads whipped around. Harry took off his glasses and wiped his eyes. "I'm sorry, Harry, dear. Get freshened up and then come down for dinner. We're having treacle tart for dessert. It's your favorite. She gave him a warm smile and walked out the door.
"I'm sorry. I tried to get her to just leave, but she wouldn't have it. You know how my Mum is," said Ginny. He nodded his head and put his glasses back on. They were scratched beyond repair. Well, he was sure Hermione could fix them, but he just didn't want to wear them anymore. That was a part of how people recognized him, and he just didn't like it anymore. He took the glasses back off and threw them on the table.
"You know Harry, if you don't like those glasses anymore, you could always wear contacts or something. Or you could just get a different pair of glasses." Harry picked the glasses back up and put them back on. She was smiling at him. He couldn't help but smile back.
"I might be able to get used to the idea of contacts. Would I still look like me without my glasses on?" She stood up walked over to his bed and sat down. She put her hands over the sides of his glasses. She took them off slowly.
"Yes. You would still look like the same old Harry to me." She slid them back on his face. She put her hands on his cheeks and Harry wrapped his arms around her waist.
"Ginny, I-"
"We'll talk later. Just not right now." She stood up and walked out the door. Harry let out a huge sigh and pulled the covers off his legs. He grabbed a shirt and a pair of jeans since he was still wearing his dress shirt and khakis. He stood up and walked to the bathroom. He washed his face and tromped downstairs. Everyone was still there. There was an open seat next to Ginny and he sat down.
"Oh, there you are, Harry dear. I'll get you a plate," said Mrs. Weasley. She walked over to the table with a plate filled with turkey, potatoes, and carrots.
"Thank you, Mrs. Weasley."
"It's no problem at all, Harry," she replied. After a few minutes of eating in silence, Ron spoke up.
"Hey George. Do you remember the last time Mum fixed this same exact meal?" George's face slowly turned into a grin.
"How can I forget? Fred put a bomb thing on my plate and I got food all over my face." George's voice still wasn't full of life like it used to be, but it was getting better.
"Didn't you even get it up your nose too? Didn't Mum have to pick it out?" Said Ginny. Her face was scrunched up.
Ron said, "Yea and Harry was here too!" Harry remembered that. That was the first time that Harry felt like he belonged somewhere. All because George got turkey stuck up his nose. That day they were all laughing and joking about it. It made Harry feel like he didn't always have to be alone. He started laughing and eventually everyone else joined in. The rest of the meal was spent remembering funny things that Fred did. Even Harry had a few to tell. Harry could tell that the Weasley family was on the road to recovery.
Tuesday came to quickly for the Weasley's, Harry, and Hermione. The first funeral that day was Fred's. By ten-thirty, all of the Weasley's had gathered at the Ottery St. Catchpole Cemetery where they were be laying Fred to rest. Only Fred's closest friends and family were there. Including: The Weasley's, Harry, Hermione, Lee Jordan, Angelina Johnson, Professor McGonagall, Hagrid, and Kingsley Shacklebolt. Harry and the rest of the Weasley men were dressed in identical tuxedos. Molly and Arthur wanted this to be done without magic, so there had to be pallbearers. Harry, Ron, George, Percy, Charlie, and Bill were all pallbearers. They had put themselves in order of how old they were so that meant Ron and Harry were in the back. Bill and Percy were in the front. They carried the casket from outside of the cemetery to where Fred was to be buried. The walk was a total of five minutes. They were all honored to do it though. Harry would have said yes a second time if he had to. Once they sat the casket down and they took their seats (Harry sat next to Ginny), the preacher started the service. Harry put his arm around Ginny's shoulders and she leaned into him. She started to cry and all Harry could do was hold her. The services lasted for at least 45 minutes. Harry thought 'One funeral down, three more to go.'
The next funeral was Colin Creevey's and everyone who was at Fred's funeral was at his. The funeral was even shorter than George's and before they knew it, they were back home at the Burrow. Once everyone was home and changed out of their tuxedos, they were all sitting at the kitchen table, trying to eat dinner. The funeral's had made Harry sick to him stomach. He didn't have much of an appetite.
"I'll be right back," said Mr. Weasley. He stood up and went upstairs. After a couple of minutes he walked back down again with a velvet box in his hands. Mr. Weasley motioned them all to follow him into the sitting room. Everyone followed and took a seat. Mr. Weasley walked over to the clock. Suddenly, it dawned on Harry what Mr. Weasley was doing and he closed his eyes. Ginny put her head into Harry's shoulder and sobbed. She could be heard all the way from Egypt at how loud she was crying. Harry just wrapped her in his arms. No one even seemed to notice it was funny that it was Harry that was comforting her. After Ginny quieted down a bit, George stood up abruptly.
"Now George, just because we're taking down his hand on the clock, doesn't mean we don't still care about him," said Mr. Weasley.
"Then why don't you just leave it up there! It's not hurting anything! Do you just not want to remember him! Is that it? You just want to forget and pretend like he wasn't even here from day one? Well let me tell you something, I'll never forget him. And I don't want to forget either. But why should you care? You only care about yourself and how you feel! Well I'm bloody tired of it!" With that said, George stormed out of the house, slamming the door shut behind him. That sent Ginny into more hysterics. Mrs. Weasley followed Ginny's example.
"I'll go see about him," said Ron.
"No, don't. He just needs some time to think. He'll be back by morning," said Bill. After that, they all started drifting off to bed one by one. Until it was only Harry and Ginny left in the sitting room. Her eyes were red and puffy and her face was tear stained.
"I'm sorry, Harry. I ruined your perfectly good shirt," she said.
"It's ok. I don't mind," he replied. She sniffled and smiled.
"Thanks, Harry. I'm going to bed. I'll see you in the morning. Goodnight." Ginny was already out of the room and didn't hear Harry's reply.
"Goodnight Ginny. I love you." He heard her door shut a moment later. He was still hopelessly in love with her, and he knew it.
The next day at eleven o'clock was Remus and Tonks funeral. This day was especially hard for Harry. He had lost another father figure in his life and his last connection to his parents. Tonks was also one of his friends and she was like his mother too. She would fuss over him when she saw him. He was going to miss them both. But, he just couldn't stop thinking about Teddy Lupin. There were so many similarities between him and Harry already, and Teddy was only a month old. But the difference was, he had a godfather who would do anything he could to make him happy and keep him safe. Teddy had people who loved him. He had Andromeda. That was enough reassurance to Harry that he would be okay.
Harry was up exceptionally early since he couldn't sleep. He would fall asleep, but then when his eyes closed, he saw green flashes of light and Voldemort himself. He would just wake back up. So he gave up sleeping at five-thirty in the morning. He took a shower, got dressed, and walked downstairs and out the door. He sat down on the ground and looked up at the stars. His mind started to wander. He didn't understand why everything he loved had to be taken away from him. He couldn't keep any of the people he loved safe and out of harms way. He felt like if he truly loved anybody, they would just disappear too. He loved Ginny. It was true. But he was afraid that if he told her, something would happen to her. He started to cry. He cried for Remus and Tonks. He cried for Teddy and he cried for Andromeda. He cried for Colin and his family. He cried for Fred and all of the Weasley's and he cried just because he wanted a normal life. That's all he ever wanted. He was still crying when the door opened. He felt someone sit down beside him on the ground and he felt Mrs. Weasley envelope him in a hug. He cried in her arms. He was lucky to have her and everyone else that cared about him. She was his mother for all intensive purposes. She was like his mother, because she loved him like one. He slowly stopped crying and just sat there.
"Why were you out her so early dear?" She asked.
"I couldn't sleep," he said. In truth he wasn't able to sleep ever since the war and Mrs. Weasley noticed the toll it was taking on the man she called her son.
"Harry, this isn't healthy. You need sleep." He shook his head back and forth.
"I can't. I just can't," he explained.
"Why Harry? What's keeping you from sleeping," she inquired.
"I keep having nightmares. Every time I close my eyes. I see him. I see him and everyone who died. People I love keep leaving me." His eyes started to water again.
"But Harry. We're still here. No one else from this house is leaving you. You have us Harry. You have us and you have Hagrid. I know you care about him. I know you care about your godson even though you haven't met him yet. I know you care about Ginny, too." He looked over her with wide eyes. She just laughed.
"Don't try and deny it Harry. She cares about you just as much as you care about her. You just need to talk to her. She's still angry. We don't get over things that fast." He chuckled. "She'll come around eventually though. You just need to talk to her. And as for Remus, I know this will be hard for you, but we'll help you through it. We'll be there every step of the way. Just like you were there for us all those times, Harry. If I remember correctly, Arthur and I owe you a life debt. This is the least we could do."
"You guys would have done the same thing for me, Mrs. Weasley. And plus, I didn't want to lose another Mum." He smiled. She got tears in her eyes and she crushed him in one of her bear hugs.
"I really wish you would call me Molly. Or Mum for that matter. As you know, Harry, I think of you as my son. Let's go back inside. You can help me with breakfast." Harry jumped up and reached out a hand to Molly. They both walked back inside. Bill, Fleur, and Ginny were all coming down the stairs. He could feel his eyes for still red and puffy so he took off his glasses so he could wipe his eyes. They all gave him sympathetic looks. But he didn't notice. At that second George stumbled through the front door and Bill helped him upstairs. Once breakfast was fixed and everyone ate. They all got ready for the funeral and apparated to Godric's Hollow where they would be laid to rest. Once he was there, he greeted everybody. He didn't see Andromeda so he walked over to his parents' grave. Hermione followed Harry. He didn't mind though. They had been there before and Hermione was like his sister. She could comfort him just as much as anyone else. The wreath was still there from the one she put on there last time. This time he crouched down and restored the wreath back to its former state. All of the Weasley's walked over to where they were standing by then. Hermione put her head on Harry's shoulder and put her arms around his waist. They all just stood there for a moment looking at the grave.
"We should go back to the church, it's about to start," Molly said. They all nodded their heads and walked up to the church. Remus' casket was open and so was Tonks'. Once Harry saw them, he started crying. He walked up to the casket and put his hand on his face. He wiped his eyes on his sleeves and turned around to walk back to his seat. He sat down in his seat, and it was like someone flipped a switch. The waterworks started again. Ginny was sitting next to him and she put her arms around his shoulders and pulled him close. She rubbed his back and he stopped crying within a few minutes. Harry sat back up straight and just in enough time to see Andromeda Tonks walk in. She walked up next to Harry and put her hand on his shoulder. Harry stood up. Andromeda hugged him and Harry got tears in his eyes. He felt some tears on his shoulder from Andromeda. Harry felt a closeness to her. Like he had known her all his life. He thought that maybe it was because her and Tonks were so much alike. Andromeda pulled back and patted Harry on the cheek.
"You're a good man Harry. You're going to make a good godfather to Teddy. You know Remus cared for you. He always came up with a way to talk about you when he stopped by the house with Tonks. He was so proud of you Harry. He thought of you as a son." Harry smiled and looked down. He suddenly noticed the small infant in her arms.
"Is that…Teddy," asked Harry. Andromeda nodded.
"Would you like to hold him?" Harry nodded his head and made an awkward cradle with his arms. Andromeda slid Teddy into his arms. Harry immediately got the hand of holding the little infant. Teddy opened his eyes and smiled at Harry. Teddy's hair and eyes turned the same color as Harry's. It was a raven black color and the green eyes that captured everyone looked in to.
"That means he likes you. He normally squirms around and starts to cry when people hold him that he doesn't know. It looks like you two will get along just fine. You can hold him for a moment if you want. I'll be back in a moment." He nodded his head. She walked over to greet some more people. Harry turned around and sat back down in his seat with Teddy in his arms. Everyone was smiling at him and the little baby in his arms.
"He's so cute," said Ginny. She put her head in Teddy's line of vision. Teddy smiled. His hair turned Weasley red and his eyes turned the brown that Harry loved so much. Ginny smiled and looked at Harry.
"Andromeda said that Teddy only does that to people he likes." Ginny's eyes sparkled at the suggestion that Teddy liked her. Harry didn't know what it was about babies that made women go completely nuts, but there they were and he saw Ginny act like she never did before. Harry couldn't hide his smile. She just made his so happy. They would definitely have to talk soon. Ginny looked up and saw Harry smiling down at her.
"What," she asked. Harry smirked.
"Oh. Nothing. Nothing at all." She rolled her eyes. Andromeda walked back over to Harry.
"Thank you so much Harry. Talk to me after the funeral Harry. I need to talk to you about some things." He stood up and handed Teddy back over to Andromeda after kissing Teddy on the forehead. It elicited a small giggle from Teddy.
"That sounds fine to me." She turned to walk away but spun back around.
"Oh and Harry. Could you be the one to levitate Remus' coffin out to the cemetery. He would want you to do it."
"Of course I will Mrs. Tonks. I would be honored to."
"Just call me Andromeda from now on Harry. Mrs. Tonks is my mother-in-law. I honestly don't care much for her." She smiled and walked away. Harry sat back down just as the preacher started the sermon. In about half an hour, it was time for them to move the casket. Everyone walked outside to the cemetery while Harry and Kingsley Shacklebolt were the only ones to levitate the coffins outside. Kingsley nodded at Harry. They bother raised there wands and with an unspoken agreement, Harry went first. Harry nearly lost his concentration more than one time and he could hear Kingsley behind him not having much more luck. Once he reached the spot where he would be buried, he set the coffin down to the left of the hole and took a step back so Kingsley could get through.
Once another five minute speech from the preacher, Harry and Kingsley lifted the coffins back up and into the hole simultaneously. They lifted the dirt up and onto the coffins. Now they could both rest in peace. They wouldn't have any more worries and Remus wouldn't have to worry about talking his monthly potion. Harry walked over to Andromeda since she wanted to see him.
"I must be going soon Harry. I just wanted to ask you about taking Teddy a few times over the summer. I know you want to get close to Teddy. I know that Remus and Tonks wanted you to be involved in his life as much as possible." Harry didn't know what to say. He just nodded his head.
"I would love to do that. How about Friday? Would that work?" He asked.
"That would do just fine Harry." Molly walked up behind Harry.
"Hello Andromeda. It's so nice to see you again. How are you?" Harry just walked away and let them have there time to talk. He was sure he didn't want to hear it anyway. Kingsley walked up to Harry.
"Hello, Harry." Kingsley stuck out his hand for Harry to shake. Harry shook his hand firmly.
"Hello Kingsley."
"Well, Harry. I was wondering if you thought about my offer yet. I already talked to Ron. He hasn't made his decision yet. How about you," asked Harry?
"Well I don't really know yet. I haven't given it much thought actually. I've been really busy…" said Harry.
"It's okay Harry. You have till the end of this month to make your mind up. You could probably have longer if I pushed it, but let's just say the end of the month to be on the safe side, yeah?"
"Yes, sir. When I make up my mind, should I send an owl or go to the Ministry?"
"You could just come to the Ministry with Arthur Weasley. He'll show you the way to my office."
"Okay, sir. Thank you again."
"It's no problem Harry. I'll see you later. I must be going. Goodbye," Kingsley said. With that, he apparated away. Harry walked over to the Weasley's. Once he joined them, they all started to apparate to the next funeral, Colin Creevey's. Then the funerals would finally be over. It was a huge relief. He just wished that these funerals never had to take place. As much as he hid it, he still blamed himself for all of this. It was his fault they died. There was absolutely nothing he could do about it.