That night, Ashleigh crawled into her cot in Ginny's room and let some more tears fall as she thought about the day that just finished. She hated funerals, but she was glad to at least say a final goodbye. She didn't know Arthur as long as everyone else but he had become a father figure in her life. That comforted Ashleigh, since her father had passed away. Hermione and Ginny seemed to be asleep already and she was on the brink of dozing off when someone sat at the end of her bed and whispered her name causing her to jump.
"Who's there?" She said, looking at the outline on the end of her bed. "George?" She asked.
"Yes", he whispered.
"What is it?" Ashleigh asked quietly.
"I can't sleep. I was hoping…" He stopped before finishing.
"That you could sleep with me?" She asked, she saw him nod. "Of course", she said, moving over and lifting the blanket so he could crawl in.
"Thank you", he whispered as he faced her.
"You're welcome", she said, wrapping her arms around him, cuddling. She could feel him start to shake and knew he was crying again. She pulled him closer to her and rubbed the back of his head. They lay like that for a while before both finally fell asleep, tangled in each other's arms.
The next morning everyone gathered in the kitchen, even Molly. The only people who weren't there were Ashleigh and George.
"Where are Ashleigh and George?" Harry asked. Ginny and Hermione looked at each other knowing, they had seen the couple when they woke up and decided to let them sleep. Everyone gave the girls questioning looks.
"Go look in my room. But don't wake them", Ginny told them. Everyone went quietly up the stairs and Ginny opened her door. Everyone looked in and saw the couple cuddled together on Ashleigh's bed and couldn't help but silently awe and stare. Ginny shut the door and made everyone go back downstairs, so the two wouldn't get woken up.
"So that's where he went", Fred said as he sat down. "I was wondering what happened to him when I woke up and he wasn't in his bed".
"I'm glad he has her. I have never seen him like this but she is the only one who can get through to him. You saw them at the hospital", Molly told them. They all nodded in agreement. Molly made up some eggs and bacon for breakfast and put two plates aside for Ashleigh and George.
Ashleigh woke up, the clock read 11:15am, she grumbled and looked at the still sleeping form of George, wrapped in her arms. She kissed his forehead which caused him to stir. "It's after 11 George", she whispered. He jumped and opened his eyes, not remembering where he was at first. When he saw Ashleigh, he relaxed. "Ready to start the day?" She asked.
"Ready as I'll ever be", he mumbled, sitting up.
"It's okay. I'll be with you every step of the way. It's only your family, Harry and Hermione", Ashleigh told him. He nodded as they left the room in their pyjamas and went downstairs hand-in-hand. They walked into the sitting room, where everyone was sitting.
"Morning love birds", Fred cooed at them. "Nice muscles", he said to George, who looked down. He realized he never put a shirt on before coming down. He shrugged and sat down, Ashleigh sitting down beside him.
"Did you sleep okay?" Molly asked George.
"Yeah eventually, when I actually got to sleep", he told his mum.
"Because of Ashleigh", Ginny smiled. George nodded as he put his arm around Ashleigh's shoulders.
"Always", he whispered, but everyone heard him and silently awed.
They knew, now that Arthur had officially been celebrated and spread along his favorite field, they could start to move on and heal, since they had the closure they needed. They sat there in a comfortable silence for a while before Molly spoke.
"We need to talk about school", Molly told the room at large.
"What about it?" Ginny asked.
"Tracie told me that she spoke with Dumbledore who had given permission for Ashleigh to miss some school and do homework by owl, if need be as she doesn't want to leave us", Molly started explaining. "I was wondering if you lot think you may need some time off?" She finished. They all looked at each other but didn't say anything. "I will give you guys another week but I don't want you to miss too much school. I'll be fine", she told them. "Harry, Hermione, unfortunately I can't give you the permission as I am not your legal guardian but if you write to your families, you're more than welcome to stay here". They nodded and wrote a quick letter each.
The week long holiday ended and unfortunately Harry had to return to school on his own as his aunt and uncle refused to give him the permission he needed and he couldn't get a hold of Sirius, who had given him Hogsmeade permission.
The second week they had off flew by. Everyone was completing their homework on time and owling it back to Hogwarts. Every night, George would end up going into Ashleigh's room as he found that was the only way he could sleep, in his girlfriend's arms. He was concerned once they were back at school, because he wouldn't be able to go to her room anymore. He ended up getting a sleeping potion from Madame Pomfrey every night so he could sleep through the night.
Professor Dumbledore ended up disappearing and Umbridge took over as Headmistress, Fred and George knew; this was the time to go.
They spent the next two months planning there exit and decided to do it when OWLs were taking place. They flew through the Great Hall on their brooms, lighting off fireworks every second. The students were cheering and hollering at the twins as they flew out the front door and let fireworks off in the shape of a 'W'. Ashleigh and Hermione looked at them as they hovered above them for a moment; they blew a kiss to the girls and sped off.