A/N-
Hello everyone! So, it's come to it- the end of Darker Shadows.
It isn't however, the end of Ava's story as there is still one more book to write in the trilogy! It will be called Out of the Shadows and I will be publishing it as soon as I can :)
Thank you so much to everyone who has carried on reading this far. It means the world to have fans like you who still read even though I've been writing this for almost two years.
I hope you all enjoy the epilogue, and I shall post the link to Out of the Shadows on my profile and also as an update on here.
Epilogue
The kitchen was quiet aside from Mrs. Weasley’s hustling and bustling within it as she cooked the food for dinner. When I walked in, she looked up at me and smiled, dropping the potato that she was holding on the side.
“Everything alright?” She asked, stepping towards me.
I nodded quickly,
“Yes thanks- I was just coming to get a drink.”
I supposed that Remus must have told Mrs. Weasley what had happened to me over the past year, as she had been very concerned about me since the end of the school term. Every time I walked into a room that she was in, she dropped whatever she was doing to talk to me and to ask if I was okay.
I didn’t always meet her eye when I answered for fear of her seeing that I wasn’t okay- normally, this didn’t stop her. I could tell when I looked at her that she knew that I was lying, but she didn’t pry.
I had been staying at the Burrow for a couple of weeks now, ever since the term at Hogwarts had ended. The Weasleys made me feel very welcome, and that had been exactly what I’d needed. I was glad that I didn’t feel like a nuisance.
I picked two mugs up out of the cupboard and started to make hot chocolate. Mrs. Weasley smiled,
“Is the other for Fred?”
I nodded, “He specifically demanded to have a total of five marshmallows on top. Is he always like that?”
Mrs. Weasley laughed,
“He’s wanted five marshmallows on his hot chocolate since he could talk.”
I cracked a small smile and looked into the mugs as I stirred the drinks. As I picked them up to make my way out of the kitchen, Mrs. Weasley called out,
“If you need anything, just come and let me know.”
I thanked her and walked through the corridors to the living room, where Fred was sitting on the sofa and staring out of the window.
I placed the mugs down on the table and sat down beside him, pulling my legs up underneath me.
Fred pulled a home-knitted blanket out from beside him and laid it out over the both of us. I leant my head on his shoulder and sighed.
Neither of us said anything, and as I sipped my hot chocolate, I started to feel sleepy.
The moment my eyes slid shut, I saw a flash of green light and the silhouette of Dumbledore’s body falling through the green-tinged sky.
I awoke with a jerk, my heart pounding, my hands shaking.
Fred turned to me, his voice soft,
“Hey, hey- ssh, it’s okay”
My eyes were wide, and I shook my head, trying to control my breaths.
“You have to remember, Ava- it’s not your fault.”
I shook my head, ignoring the tears sliding down my cheeks,
“I haven’t- I haven’t told you everything… I’ve lied to you.”
“Ava, I know all I need to know…” Fred soothed.
He grabbed hold of my wrists as I sobbed,
“You don’t understand… I-”
Fred tried to still my hands, “You couldn’t have stopped-”
“Yes I could!” My voice was loud, and I stared at him, “I had a choice, Fred!”
His grip on my wrists loosened in confusion,
“What are you talking about? A choice?”
“When…” I gulped, taking a deep breath, “When Lord Voldemort gave me the mission… the mission to take Harry to him- I had a choice.”
Fred didn’t say anything, he just simply stared at me.
“He told me that he would kill… he would kill you if I didn’t do it. It was a choice between your life or Harry’s. I could have stopped it all- I could have told someone everything about Draco’s mission and what Voldemort had asked of me- but at the price of your life. I didn’t want to lose you.”
Fred looked at me, his eyes wide, his hands frozen. I shook my head,
“I didn’t know what to do- I had no choice.”
Before I could say or do anything else, Fred’s lips were against mine, sending my nerves into overdrive and the blood rushing to my fingertips as I reached out for his hair.
I could taste a mixture of sweet hot chocolate and salty tears. I deepened the kiss, brushing my hand against the back of Fred’s neck.
I heard him start to whisper something against my lips,
“I am so sorry… so sorry that you had to go through that. You could have… you could have chosen to save Harry instead of me. I can’t believe that you would do that for me.”
I pulled away slightly so that I could see his face more clearly,
“I couldn’t bear the thought of losing you, and I knew that somehow there would be a way for me to save Harry. I knew it.”
Fred’s lips brushed against mine again, and it was as a kiss should be- soft and warm, causing my cheeks to flush red.
I pressed my forehead to his, and Fred whispered softly, his eyes locked onto mine,
“I will never leave you again, not for a single second. Not after you did that for me. Not after you saved my life.”
And then he wrapped his arms around me, resting his head on my shoulder. I relaxed in his arms and closed my eyes.
And in that moment, I felt safe, I felt trusted and I felt as if- for the first time- I had made the right decision.