Under The Veil (Next Generation Harry Potter FF #1)

10 {Uncle Fred}

ROSE'S EYES STUNG at the sight of her dead Uncle. She had heard so many stories, saw the pain in her Uncle George's eyes every time his twin was brought up. There was never a family gathering where he wasn't mentioned. There wasn't a morning at Rose's house where she didn't pass the portrait of her Uncle Fred on her way to breakfast. Seeing him in front of her. It broke her heart.

She heard stories of how he died. It was an explosion right outside the Room of Requirements during the Battle of Hogwarts. Her eyes flickered to the bloody gash on his forehead.

"Rose," her Uncle's voice split the silence with his soft voice. His voice sounded so much like her Uncle George's. "Rose, you can see me!"

She nodded. That was all she could do. There were so many things she wanted to say, but her throat felt so tight it was already hard for her to breathe.

Behind her Albus, Scorpius, and Eloise watched as Rose stared into the Forest. Whatever she was seeing they had no idea, but they followed her body language and saw how rigid she went. It was so fast. There Rose was, like expected, reaching out for whatever was in front of her. In a dream-like state. Now her shoulders were stiff and her hands in tight fists.

Fred was just the same that night he died at the Hogwarts castle. He still wore his dark corduroy pants, his white turtle neck, and his brown checkered jacket. All of it was dirty with soot from the crumbling castle. He gave his niece a comforting smile, but all Rose could do was stare at the continuous blood flushing from his forehead and pouring down his face. It was never-ending as if he was stuck in a loop of his death. This didn't' seem to bother him.

"Rose..." he repeated and took a step towards her, "I've been trying to reach you for years now. I was so excited that you saw me that day at the lake with your friend. The fact that you can clearly see me now is thrilling. You're growing in strength faster than we all anticipated."

Rose's stance didn't move in hearing her Uncle's words. She stayed stiff in fright, her eyes still wide and her mouth agape in shock. She managed to take a breath in to say, "This is a trick..."

Scorpius didn't take any time in asking what was happening. Was she safe? What was she seeing? Is everything okay? Albus quickly shushed his friend. Rose needed to continue this.

Fred quickly shook his head and took another step towards his niece, "No! No, no this isn't a trick Rose. I promise you this." He looked behind Rose and saw her friends staring at her. "Rose - I'm real."

"You're dead -"

The three behind her looked at each other in fright.

"I know," Fred quickly explained, "I am dead, but that doesn't mean I'm not real. I'm a soul. I broke free from The Veil."

Rose bit her bottom lip to keep the tears in, "The Veil. We were right?"

Fred's smile became bigger and he nodded in excitement, "Yes! Thank Merlin you got your mum's smarts. Don't know where we'd be if you got my little brother's brains..."

She was supposed to laugh. Rose knew this. That is what would happen in a normal conversation, but this was anything but normal. She was talking to her dead Uncle.

"Why me?" was all she said in return.

There needed to be no further explanation of her question. Fred looked again at the three Slytherins behind her, and then back at his niece. "You already know. Albus and Scorpius were correct..." he sighed deeply as if this conversation hurt his heart. "When the Veil was cracked by Ravana power flowed through it and into him, but he's so old that the power to see through the Veil couldn't be held within him. You see, the people who tried to gain this power forgot one simple fact... death craves life, and what better life than a brand new baby?"