CHAPTER 86

                                    

                                          
Three weeks had passed since the war and I was still in the hospital, coming to terms with everything that had just happened. On the bright side, Voldemort was gone, I could finally live the life I've always wanted, as could Harry and the rest of the wizarding world.

                          
But at what cost?
                          
I had lost my child. My baby. My sister had lost a limb. Fred had lost consciousness. Remus, Nymphadora, Colin, Lavender and many others had lost their lives. Snape too had died. My heart ached for Edward Lupin, he had been left orphaned.
                          
My father had been killed in the battle, they had found his body under a pile of rubble. When they told me about it, I was already numb to emotions, to everything around me. It didn't occur to me that I had lost someone else too.
                          
And there was one more thing. Draco. Apart from my mom and Bella, Draco was the only family I had had left. I didn't know where he was but George said he saw him leave along with his parents. I didn't even get to say goodbye.
                          
Percy Weasley had told me that if it wasn't for Draco, me and Fred might not have even been alive.
                          
And if it wasn't for Fred, I would've died too. He risked his life for me.
                          
Today was the 23rd of May. Another day had gone by and Fred still hadn't woken up. During the day, Mrs. Weasley would be by his side, sometimes along with Mr. Weasley. In the afternoons would come Ginny, Ron and Percy and in the evenings would be Bill and Fleur. 
                          
Hermione and Bella, the latter of who was on crutches, came and visited us too.
                          
The only two people who remained by his side throughout the day were me and George.
                          
The heart monitor, which a muggle born Healer had insisted to be installed, beeped rhythimically in the corner.
                          
"George, you really need to get some sleep, I'm right here if anything happens to him" I said to him, he had fallen half asleep on the chair between mine and Fred's bed.
                          
His head snapped up, as if he had just woken up from a terrible dream.
                          
"Huh, what, what happened?" he said, looking around.
                          
I sighed, he had been having nightmares for the past week. I had been drugged by the Healers so I was fortunate enough to have a dreamless sleep.
                          
"I said, you should go home and get some sleep"
                          
"No, I'm not leaving Fred and going anywhere, and you. Both of you"
                          
"George we'll call you if something bad happens, I promise"
                          
"The only place I'm going to go to is the bathroom" said George, getting up and stalking off towards the bathrooms.
                          
I turned my head to look at Fred for the millionth time that day. I would have thought he was fast asleep, just like he was in the nights back at Shell Cottage, his head buried in my neck and his arm lazily draped across my waist. I expected him to wake up any moment and say,
                          
'What time is it love?' or 'Morning love'.
                          
But he didn't. He didn't so much as move a muscle. He was still breathing but that was about it.
                          
It was a terrible thought, but sometimes, I wished he hadn't saved me. At least he would have been alright.
                          
The door to the hospital wing opened and in walked an old woman with a baby in her arms. She whispered something to Madame Pomfrey who nodded before disappearing into a room. The old lady sat on the foot of a bed, looking at all the patients before her eyes locked with mine. I gave her a small smile which she returned, before walking over to me. She looked very familiar.
                          
"Are you Alice Malvolio?" she asked me.
                          
I didn't see the point of sticking to my fake last name, but it had become my identity.
                          
"Yes"
                          
"I'm Andromeda Tonks"
                          
"Nymphadora's mother?"
                          
"Yes, and, your distant aunt", "This is Edward, Teddy as we call him" she said, lowering the baby in her arms for me to see.
                          
His hair was brown and so were his eyes but the moment he saw me, his hair turned red and his eyes turned green.
                          
"He's a metamorphmagus?" I asked.
                          
"Yes, just like his mother" she said, her voice cracking.
                          
"Can I hold him?" I asked. Andromeda nodded and let me hold Edward.
                          
I took him into my own arms, cradling him. 
                          
"Hello there little one, you're rather cute aren't you?" I said, gently tapping his freckled nose with the tip of my finger. He closed his eyes and gurgled, earning a chuckle from me. His hair was flaming red, just like Fred's. My breath hitched in my throat as I realised that this was exactly how I had imagined mine and Fred's child to look like.
                          
"I heard you had a miscarriage? I'm very sorry about that" said Andromeda, taking Teddy from me.
                          
"I try not to think much about it" That was a lie, not a day went by when I didn't think of it.
                          
"I hope everything works out well for you" she said before bidding me goodbye and walking over to Madame Pomfrey.
                          
I thought about Edward, holding him felt surreal, for a second, I almost wanted to keep him with me forever. I wanted to hold him close and never let him go.
                          
"I'm sorry I lost our child Fred" I whispered to no one, closing my eyes. I wanted him to say something, anything. I reached out my hand and placed it on his, stroking his skin gently. I didn't know what I'd do if he didn't wake up.
                          
"Please don't go away and leave me here" I whispered, squeezing his hand lightly.
                          
Four years ago, when I had bumped into him, he was a sixteen-year-old boy, with his hair reaching down to his shoulders. Fred and George Weasley, the famed prankster twins, both inseparable. Joined at the hip. 
                          
So full of life they were, they'd always laugh and they'd always make people laugh along with them. Those were simpler times, when all I had to worry about was what dress I'd wear to The Ball or that I hadn't done my potions homework or that Fred had hidden my quills or that George had accidentally ripped my glove while trying to see if it fit his hand.
                          
I met Cedric, the most kind, compassionate boy you could ever meet. I had loved him like my best friend, my brother. Cedric didn't deserve what had happened to him, he deserved none of it.
                          
I started to build a relationship with my mother, the woman who sacrificed everything just so that I could be alive. I met my sister, Bella, feisty, funny, beautiful. Fred and George always said that if they had known her earlier, she would have been excellent at planning pranks. They loved her just as much as I did.
                          
I fell in love with Fred Weasley, the boy who showed me how to live life in the best way possible. Who made me laugh till my sides ached, who loved me like there was no tomorrow, who touched me and made me feel the way no one else ever could. 
                          
And then came our baby. 
                          
I didn't think it was possible for me to love anyone else as much as I loved Fred, but when our child came along, I felt as if everything in the world had snapped into place.
                          
Amelie and Draco. Two other people who had lost so much. I knew from the very beginning that Draco was always apprehensive about being on the dark side. And Amelie, how I missed her. I hadn't heard from her in weeks.
                          
How is it that just when things start to become alright, they fall back to the same circle over and over again?
                          
In one way or another, all of these people had had something snatched away from them. Life, sanity, consciousness, stability. We were all victims of the war. Victims but survivors.
                          
Nothing made me feel better, nothing.
                          
"Time for your potion Ms. Malvolio" said Madame Pomfrey, handing me a vial. I drank it thankfully, knowing that I could fall asleep without having to feel any pain or dream any dream.
                          
--