A/N: I am so sorry for my absence... please don't hate me. This chapter was inspired by Your Song by Ellie Goulding :) Go and listen to it!

Chapter 31 - Your Song

It was dark. Beads of sweat had collected on my forehead. My breathing was labored, and my eyelids were heavy with sleep and restlessness. I was laying down, staring across the room at the opposite wall with a frantic gaze. My hands grasped at the sheets underneath me. Hair stuck to the back of my neck and to my clammy chest.

My thoughts were incoherent, a million things rushing through my mind in complete chaos. Images filled my head, replaying over and over again.

And then reality washed over me, offering me it's cool and relieving hand.

Lily Potter's room. That was where I was. I could hear her gently breathing above me in her bunk.

Sitting up, I steadied myself and realized that I'd pulled the sheets from the mattress, and that they were balled up beneath me. My stomach was in a knot, and I couldn't bring my vision into focus.

I took a moment to gather myself, forcing myself to take long and calming breaths. As my chest rose and fell in a consistent pattern, I could feel my anxiety begin to unravel, and my stomach release it's clenching knots. I swept a quivering hand over my damp face, my fingers lightly tracing the scar that ran from the corner of my eye to my jaw line.

It was no shock that after everything that I had seen and been through over the past few months that'd I'd be left scarred, both physically and emotionally. After waking up in the infirmary, the memories had been foggy and tainted. But the evening following my release from Madame Pomfrey's care, they started to plague my mind. When there was something to distract me, I could easily forget the frightening memories. But, when I was laying by myself at night, in a stranger's bed, there was nothing to keep me from opening that door.

The nightmares were the worst. I was forced to relive every touch and kiss Matthias had given me, finding Lily Potter suffering at the hands of Dolohov, the night I spent in the Forbidden Forest with the Baltazart Winter Wolf. They were real, so vivid and clear. The pain of the serrated claws, the discomfort at Matthias' caress.

I would wake up completely confused and distressed, like I couldn't tell the difference between reality and dream. It took an inordinate amount of time to convince myself that I wasn't really in trouble.

With the nauseousness fading, I fixed my blankets and pressed my cheek into my pillow. It was damp from sweat. I turned to my other side and stared at the pink wall blankly. Hugging the sheets to my chest, I tried to think of the situation at hand and put my thoughts in order.

Tomorrow (or perhaps today, depending on the hour), I would be going to the Weasley's Burrow. After being at odds with the Potters and Weasleys for so long, it was hard for me to assume anything. Would it be loose and fun, or formal? I had brought a nice dress, just in case. I figured I would ask Lily about it in the morning.

The Potters were perhaps the kindest family I had ever met. And they're weren't just unbelievably nice, but they were also selfless, considerate, and fiercely loyal. They made you feel warm inside, all the way through to the core. I couldn't stop comparing them to my family, and the more I did so, the more I also realized how horrible and cold my family had been, and I had been. How unhappy and selfish and cruel we'd been. And the strangest thing was to think that I'd thought that I'd been right.

That revelation was chilling, yet relieving at the same time. I was no longer striving to be that person, and that made me feel better. I was happy.

As I laid in my bed, thinking, my eyes shut subconsciously, and I drifted into a dreamless sleep for the rest of the night.

"Wow, you look so pretty," Lily commented sweetly, eyeing my dress. Apparently, Grandma Weasley was very insistent on dressing nicely every year, and required all of her children and grandchildren - and their guests - to wear semi-formal attire. I thanked my lucky stars that I'd thought of bringing that dress.

It wasn't my favorite dress, overall, but it was light and easy to fit into my trunk. It also covered the ugly scars on my thighs. It was a knee-length and sleeveless light, pink dress, with a pattern of white roses decorating it, and completed with a thin black belt. It had a halter top, with a neat bow tied behind my neck.

But Lily had advised me to bring a change of clothes, for when we played Quidditch. "You don't want to get your pretty dress ruined," she had warned.

"So do you," I replied, glancing at her own gown. It was a light shade of pastel yellow, reaching mid-thigh with lace sleeves. It fit her childish frame suitably.

She beamed. "Thanks! Hey, can I do your hair?"

"My hair?"

"Yeah, I just learned how to do this really cool braided hairstyle!" She paused, before adding, "Unless you don't like people... doing that kind of stuff."

Taken aback slightly by her request, I swallowed before telling her, "Of course."

Lily grinned. "Alright, sit over here in the desk chair."

Her spindly fingers worked with expertise as she began to separate my hair. Lily remained silent as she labored, her concentration fully focused on the task at hand. There was no mirror, so I couldn't watch her while she did my hair. But having the tips of her fingers threading through my hair and brushing my scalp felt relaxing.

With observant eyes, she circled around me, fixing my thick, dark locks into a hairstyle I wasn't familiar with. When she stepped back, she seemed terribly satisfied with herself. The twelve year old gestured towards my head, and stated, "Voila!"

My hands tentatively reached up and touched my hair. Most of it was still down, but running over the crown of my head, like a headband, was a neatly woven braid. She'd clipped it behind my ear, holding the rest of my cascading hair back.

"Well, go on! Go take a look." She ushered me to the door and waved me towards the toilet.

Bare feet padding against the carpet, I stepped down the hallway and into the bathroom fluidly. Turning my head slightly, I peered at my reflection in the mirror with a curious expression. Pleased with the results of Lily's work, I allowed myself to run my fingers through the finished product, a happy glimmer in my eyes.

"I love it," I told Lily when I re-entered her bedroom.

"Good!" she squealed, already working on her own ginger hair. She had pulled it to the side and was busy weaving it into her own creation.

Clearing my throat, I said, "I would offer to do your hair, but I'm absolutely rubbish at that kind of stuff."

"Really? Well, I could teach you sometimes. I do all of my cousin's hair, when they come over or at school. I wish I had a sister, though, so I could do her hair all the time."

Albus knocked on the door and peeked his face in. When he saw my hair, he groaned. "Lily Luna, Rosalie is not your doll!"

Crossing her arms, letting her own braid fall, finished, Lily said defiantly, "She said I could!"

He brought his green eyes to me.

"I did say she could," I admitted. "Plus, I think she did a beautiful job."

Lily gave her brother a see-I-told-you look. He frowned slightly. "Anyway, we're flooing over to the Burrow now. Mum wants you in the living room."

"Okay, we're coming." As Albus disappeared, she turned to me. "Ready?"

Nodding, I walked over to my bed and slipped into the pair of simple flats that sat on the floor. Then, I retrieved my sweater and followed her out the door. It was much cooler in the hallway, compared to her bedroom. She led me down the stairs to the Potters' living room, smiling proudly when Ginny complimented my hair.

"I did it," she said happily.

"You did a very good job," she said endearingly.

Catching James eye, I watched as he did a once over, and I mirrored his actions. He was dressed nicely in a light, collared shirt and slacks, but his hair was as messy as ever. He winked at me, and I rolled my eyes, waving my hand.

"Come on, then, let's get going. Mum's going to throw a fit if we're late," Ginny commented, fixing her dress.

Clearing my throat, I listened as Lily volunteered to go first and stepped into the fireplace, gripping a handful of floo powder and shouting out her desired location. In a loud burst of green flames, she disappeared, leaving the fireplace empty.

"You next, Rosalie." Ginny pushed me towards the hearth. "Just repeat what Lily said. You've flooed before, right, darling? Remember to keep your elbows in and-."

"Your mum is showing," Albus said jokingly.

"Right, right. I'm just making sure."

Briskly, I stepped into the enclosed space, reaching for a handful of floo powder. I stuck my hand out in front of me and repeated Lily's words clearly, thrusting the dust at the ground. Before I could watch the glittery powder float to the floor of the fireplace, green erupted around me and I felt my body physically being whisked away. Breathless, I watched as different fireplaces appeared before me but disappeared just as quickly.

And then I jolted to a stop. Taking a stumbling step forward, I fixed the hem of my skirt distractedly, obsessively smoothing out all of the creases until the fabric was perfectly sleek.

That was when I realized that too many pairs of eyes were watching me.

"Dear, you're going to want to move out of the fireplace," said an older, ginger-haired woman. "Others will be arriving soon."

"Oh, yeah," I muttered stupidly, stepping out of the space swiftly.

My own eyes swept over the crowd of people.

Most of them shared the traditional, Weasley-red hair. It was easy to establish that they were related. Others, not so much. I recognized quite a few of the people around me: Fred, and his sister Roxanne. Louis and Dominique. Rose. And Scorpius, peering at me from her side. I threw him a questioning look, which he chose to ignore.

"Everybody, this is Rosalie, James' girlfriend," Lily chirped, taking my arm.

"Oh, I-." I couldn't deny it. "Yeah. Hi."

There was a moment of silence. Then, a boy with bright blue hair stepped out of the very curious crowd and said boisterously, "Happy Easter! Hmm, James has done well."

An arm wrapped around my shoulder, startling me, though I made no move to show it. I hadn't heard James arrive, being so preoccupied with his family staring right into my soul. Or so it felt like. I took a deep breath.

"Rosalie, meet Teddy. He's obnoxious, you might want to stay away from him."

"Oi!"

The rest of the Potters showed up quickly, and the older lady from before pointed at Ginny. "Late again! Every year, I swear Ginevra, it's like you do this on purpose! Hello, Harry dear, so nice to see you! Of course, I don't blame you. Lily Luna, you are almost as tall as me! I can't believe this. And Albus, don't even get me started on you and your brother."

"So close," Ginny whispered under her breath.

"Grandma, this is Rosalie," James said, pulling me towards her.

"Ah yes, the girl you used to talk about all of the time," she said, bustling over to me. She took my hand with both of hers and shook it firmly. "She's not as bad as you made her out to be. I told you, didn't I? I told you that you two would end up together. I told everyone that, yes I did."

I gave him a look. "Oh."

James looked at both of us with a crooked grin. "Ah, well..."

"I'm so happy you could join us," Grandma Weasley said cheerfully. "Alright, then, let me get a good look at you, James. Haven't seen you since Christmas! Oh, you look more and more like your grandfather James every day."

"And there's the Ursa Major constellation," Louis said knowledgeably as we all stared up into the dark, starry sky.

"The stars are so pretty," Lily cooed from beside him.

I looked at everyone around me, within my line of vision: James at my right side, peering at me with his smiling eyes. Molly and Lucy lying together on the green grass, shoulders touching. Lily and Louis opposite of them, her ginger hair fanned out around the crown of her head like a halo. Farther away, Rose and Scorpius lay together, whispering quietly to one another and laughing at their own jokes.

"What?" James asked curiously, when he caught my eye.

"I had fun today," I said thoughtfully, my voice in a low whisper.

"I'm glad. My family didn't weird you out too much, did they?"

I stifled a laugh. "No." Feeling around in the grass, my hand found his. I intertwined our fingers, turning my head away, looking back at the night sky. Bright stars adorned the horizon like diamonds against black velvet. "We have to go back to school tomorrow."

"Ew," he grumbled.

"James," I said, before pausing. I took a shallow breath. "We're going to tell everyone at school about us, right?"

I felt his hand clasp mine tighter, as a sign of assurance. "Why wouldn't we?"

"Well, I don't know. I was just making sure that you wanted them to know. Because if you didn't, I would understand." I chewed on my lower lip, eyes glazing over in thought.

"Of course I want them to know," he said. "I want everyone at Hogwarts to know that you are mine. Can't have anyone getting any idea now, can we?"

"Really?"

"Really really."

My eyes found his once more, and I offered him a small smile. "Okay."

"We'll make a grand entrance," he began, voice enthusiastic. "We'll burst through the front gates and everyone will stare in awe at us. And if anyone has anything negative to say about it, we'll tell 'em to shove it right up their arse."

I chortled, "Sure we will."

"And Cassiopeia," Louis continued from beside Lily. "And the Perseus constellation."

I was so content, laying there in the soft grass with James and his family. I felt whole. For a long time, I'd thought at I could never possibly feel whole. And I had tried to fill the vast emptiness in my heart with so many things, only to discover that the one thing that could fill it, I'd been pushing away for years.

Who could have ever thought that James Potter would complete me?