It was time. Charlie led Lyra out of the cottage, dispatching the bag he held as he did so. From the Potters' old cottage it was a fair stroll to the church and the graveyard beyond, with leafy trees shadowing the road that led there. Instead, as Lyra was still quite shaky, Charlie led her down a small lane that sat beside her parents cottage, a narrow stream leading the way past fields. It was a beautiful shortcut to the church, to the graves they came to see, but Lyra tuned out the sound of the birdsong and cows mooing in the distance, of dogs barking.
She had never expected her parents cottage to be so distressing for her. Sad, she had expected, but she had not anticipated their deaths to be so tangible in that place, not anticipated feeling so close to them, not anticipated eighteen years of sorrow and grief to bubble up. Lyra's entire conscience was focusing on Charlie, on the hand that she held in hers. He had supported her, allowed her to cry on him, treasured her parents memories as she did. Respected her and her grief and her mourning.
Their hands linked together, they entered the graveyard and walked around the church, following the path to her parents grave.
Finally, Lyra and Charlie were standing above her parents remains. It had been a year since she had defeated Voldemort. Since she had avenged their deaths. Since she had last visited them. She knew, now, that they were always with her. She had known since the night she had 'died', since the night she had used the resurrection stone and spoken to them.
They lay beneath her, her parents, and at the thought of their reunion, just like the last two times she had visited, she felt so immensely sad, even homesick. That they remained forever in people's memories, and yet not her own, hurt her immensely.
But here she was today, her boyfriend by her side. She had lived, the reason they had died, and now she was happy and loved by so many.
"Hi dad" she said quietly, "hi mum", she smiled a watery smile, "I've brought someone to meet you. This is Charlie, he's my fiancé. He proposed in Romania. I'm sorry you won't see us get married, or rather that you won't be at my wedding, walking me down the aisle dad..." She swallowed, blinking back tears as Charlie stood beside her, his head bowed respectfully. "Sirius and Remus are both going to walk me down the aisle. I couldn't leave either out. Teddy is going to be a part of the wedding too, of course. Teddy's doing well" she added, as if in response to a question, "he's one now, and just starting to walk. He calls me Lyly! Remus is a lovely father, after", and here she rolled her eyes, "Dora and I had to beat some sense into him."
Beside her, Charlie muffled a laugh as Lyra tapered off. She stood there in silence for a few minutes, her confident façade faltering under the presence of her parents tomb. Charlie could feel her hand trembling in his, and spoke to his parents in law in an effort to reassure her.
"Hello, Mr Potter, Mrs Potter, I'm Charlie. I'm going to marry your daughter, and like she said, I proposed in Romania - in the dragon reserve there, on top of a mountain at sunset. We've been a couple since Christmas Day 1996, the day my life got so much better" he grinned, "and she's my best friend." He paused, studying the stone in front of him, "I'm going to look after her, I promise."
Turning, he faced Lyra and took her other hand in his.
"I love you, Ly." He said quietly. Her sparkling eyes met his.
"I love you too, Charlie" she said, never looking away from his face. They stood like that for a moment, Charlie gently caressing his fiancée's thumbs. And then Lyra rushed into his arms, fitting neatly within as they embraced. They stood like that for a moment, Lyra's new life and her old one together, at last.
A/N I've managed to make some time for writing, doing this in the evening and this morning before I leave. I've been really busy this week, volunteering every day so far (today's my last though), then coming home and having an hours rest before heading off to work.