The Tale of Guinevere

Romania

I was leaning against the door as I looked inside the room Cedric and I shared for the past seven years. Blankets were pulled from the beds, closets empty, walls bare. Only two trunks were standing next to me. Another part of our lives came to end, another chapter to close. A pair of strong arms came around me and pulled me against him. Cedric kissed my neck before he leaned his head on my shoulder.

"I never seen it so empty." He whispered. "This feels like the end of something."

"I rather see it as a beginning." I smiled as I put my hands on the ones that rested on my stomach.

"You always see the bright side of things." I smiled as I leaned my head back, against his chest. "I'm so happy you're with me for the next part." He turned me around, so I was facing him. A sweet smile on his lips as he looked at me. "I'll be there for all the parts." He stroked my cheek softly before he leaned down to place a small kiss on my lips. "Ready?"

"Yes." I smiled as he grabbed both trunks. With one last look at the empty room, I followed him down the stairs. His parents were waiting for us in the kitchen, with a steaming pot of tea in front of them. "I'm going to miss you." I said as I hugged Olive tight.

"I'm going to miss you too." She kissed the top of my head. "Will you pop by before your first stop."

"We'll stop by at the end of August before we start our travels." I said as Cedric and I switched between his parents.

"Be safe, the both of you." Amos smiled as he stepped back from our hug. I felt the key chain starting to shake and turned to Cedric.

"It's time." I spoke. He gave his parents a last kiss on the cheek, and he handed me my trunk while he held his. I took the keychain out of my pocket and held it out for Cedric to take. "Thank you for everything." I said to his parents. They smiled sweetly at me, before I felt the familiar pull behind my navel, and we disappeared out of the Diggory kitchen.

We landed in the small living room of Charlie and Bash's cabin. I've never been here without Charlie or Bash, so the empty cabin felt a bit eerie as we stood there. I placed my trunk on the ground and waved my wand, lighting the room and starting a small fire in the fireplace. The walls were filled with pictures. Pictures of Bash and Charlie, one of me when I was young. Pictures of Charlie with each and every one of his family. There was only one picture of our parents. I walked closer to it as I examined the photograph. It was one when we were just kids as we had a day out in the zoo. It was the last family picture we had together, I was eight years old.

"Do you miss them?" Cedric asked as he came to stand next to me.

"Yes and no." I shrugged. "I used to miss them, but I'm used to not seeing them for a while now. I'm angry they didn't take the time to come to the wedding."

"They don't know what they are missing." He said as he intertwined our fingers. "They're missing out on two of the greatest people I know." He squeezed my hand. "Let's unpack." I nodded and guided him to the spare bedroom.

Cedric and I introduced ourselves at the people at the sanctuary who were expecting us, before I gave him a tour of the grounds. We passed the large enclosures where the adult dragons were being held until they were healed and ready to get back into the wild. We stayed at the baby dragon enclosure until late that night before heading back to the cabin. We were sitting on the couch in front of the fireplace, me with my back against the couch rest and my feet on Ced's lap. I was reading Charlie and Bash's itinerary and tips and tricks to work with certain dragons, while Cedric read the book from Bill about curse breaking. I glanced over the notebook to my boyfriend, a small smile tugged on my lips. The whole day was light and fun, after the tour, we made dinner together and sat together at the kitchen table as we ate. Now we were reading together in front of a roaring fire. It was rather... domestic. And I loved it. I could see us years from now, in our own house, kids cuddled with us on the couch as we read together. Cedric was holding his book in one hand while the other was placed on my calf, rubbing small circles beneath the fabric of my trousers. With the same smile I looked back down before he would notice my staring, but from the grin that appeared on his lips, I knew I was caught. But he didn't say anything, he just kept reading as he rubbed circles on my calf.