XX

Happiness is something we all try to attain. A concept that when you have it seems so trivial, but when it is so far out of reach it seems impossible. But what makes it all the worst is that happiness isn't a destination, it's a mood to be felt along the journey, and yet many of us have never felt it, or just don't remember what it felt like.

Happiness was something that Ron felt he could have again as he lay in bed with Hermione lying beside him as she snored softly in her sleep. Harry was in his bed still fast asleep, a smile on his face as Ron watched the sun slowly rising, thinking about Fred. Happiness could not be present on a day such as today, there was no chance of happiness today, as today was the day they buried Fred. They had tried to put it off as they decided where to bury him, and then Ron was attacked and asleep in St Mungo's. But now, now it was time to put their brother to rest, it was time.

Ron didn't want to remember Fred like he did. He didn't want to remember his limp body, a smile frozen on his silent lips, the blank look in his eyes, his usual spark gone, and never to return again. As the sun slowly rose into the sky Ron tried to push that image out of his head, but instead he got the replay, watching Fred die in front of him a hundred times over. He could feel it again and again, like it wasn't just a memory but it was the present, he could feel the pain, the adrenaline, the shock, the desire to hurt anyone who hurt his family, his friends, or his school mates.

Lost in his head he slowly began to fall asleep, falling into a dream that was actually a memory, and unlike the ones he had been frequent to, this one was a good memory. It was the first day that the twins had let Ron play chess with them, and it was the first time they let him win. Fred had helped him, as he played against George. At the time, Ron had just seen Fred as teaching him the game, not making him win against George, but it was Fred's way of saying sorry for what the twins had done that morning. Saying sorry for the small explosion they caused, that had blown Ron back against the shed and taken his eyebrows from his face. As he sat there playing with the two of them by his side, his eyebrows back, and his mother none the wiser, he was happy, truly happy. A happiness that he hoped he could attain back in the present day, he thought as he woke up slowly. Not yet ready to leave this memory, knowing that the best part was still to come.

"Morning." Hermione breathed as Ron opened his eyes, she had been watching his face for the last few minutes, watching the smile form on his face, as she wondered what he was dreaming about, glad that he was happy. She had spent the last hour reading, but having finished her book, she lay back down and watched Ron sleep.

"Morning." Ron replied as he stared into Hermione's big brown eyes before he moved his mouth a fraction closer to hers, closed his eyes and kissed her lightly. Removing his lips from hers, he started to move his head back before Hermione pressed her lips against his and moved her body closer to his. Behind them, Harry coughed as Ron's arm snaked around Hermione as she found herself running her fingers across Ron's skin. Slowly pulling their lips apart, they smiled at each other before sitting up.

"Morning Harry." Ron grinned as he turned, leaning against the wall and facing Harry, his legs stretched out and dangling over the edge of the bed. Beside him, Hermione crossed her legs and leant against the wall beside Ron, taking his hand in hers as she faced Harry who mirrored Ron, his back against the wall and his legs stretched out in front of him.

A silence was seeming to crush down on the three of them, they couldn't quite put a finger on what they were feeling, the emotions were overlapping, the fear and the grief, the anxiety and the sadness, and a heaviness on their hearts. After everything they had been through, everything, the death of Fred was the worse, it was by far the worse and they didn't know what to say to each other, and even if they did, they would have no idea how to say it. They couldn't discuss today, they just couldn't, they all knew what would happen, but they couldn't push the words out of their mouths, they simply couldn't. Today was the day that they buried Fred, an unimaginable day, a day that they wished would never come to pass, and if it did, it would be years from now when Fred was old and bearded. They couldn't bury him today, he wasn't done, he couldn't be dead, it couldn't be over for him, and yet it was, he was dead, they would no longer hear his voice, see his smile, scowl at his teasing. The eternal lack of Fred made today one of the most difficult days of their lives. For George upstairs, it would be far more difficult, and they all knew that, but since none of them had any idea what to say to each other, there was nothing that they could say to George, nothing.

"Mum's started the day by crying, very loudly in the kitchen, so I brought food for you all. George will be down in a few minutes he said, and Kreacher is back at Hogwarts, he only stopped by to make breakfast." Ginny announced as she opened the door, a plate of breakfast in her hand, and her shining red hair snaked down her back in a long French plait, that was still wet from the shower. For Harry, Hermione and Ron their day had just begun but Ginny had been up for over an hour.

"I didn't ask him to." Harry said, wondering if Kreacher knew that today was the day that they buried one of the 'blood traitors', that little elf was hard to read, and he didn't want to try and ascertain what that elf was thinking, not any day, and especially not today.

"Thanks Ginny." Hermione grinned. Ginny flicked her wand and sent the plates into the room, one towards Harry, one to Hermione, one to Ron and one to rest on the end of Harry's bed for George. Shutting the door shut behind her, Ginny smiled at them all before sending a quick muffling charm, making sure that Molly wouldn't hear them from downstairs, and for their benefit, that they wouldn't hear her. Ginny's plate remained firmly in her hand as she dropped onto Harry's bed, kissed him good morning before she leant against the wall next to him.

"Should we go down?" Ron asked, his voice hesitant and torn. He wanted to go down and comfort her, but he knew there was nothing that would stop Molly's tears, especially not today. The others exchanged looks, having been down there herself already Ginny shook her head, and Harry simply gave Ron a look that said, 'If you go, I'll go' which for an undecided Ron was nice, but not at all helpful. He didn't know how to be today, he didn't know how to act, what to say, especially to his mother, and he couldn't go there, he couldn't, not yet, so he stayed where he sat.

Biting into his toast, Ron let go of Hermione's hand as he picked up his wand, and opened the door, sending five glasses of orange juice into the room. With a flick of his wand Ron shut the door swiftly behind the last glass, kept the rest of the piece of toast in his mouth as he wrapped his fingers around the glass floating in front of him, before dropping his wand and continuing to eat his toast.

Hermione took a sip of her orange juice before taking a mouthful of her cereal, and next to Ginny, Harry was already on his second piece of toast as Ginny finished her bowl of cereal and took a bite of her apple. There was so much that had to be said, but nothing that they needed to say, just eating together, quietly was enough for now. And hopefully, it would always be enough.

George had been up almost all night organising Fred's funeral, well not really the funeral itself, but the way to make the funeral worthy of Fred. Molly had wept her way through the actual planning, and George couldn't possibly be around that, it was all too hard. But staying awake all night, putting out fires that broke out in his room, wondering if the others could feel the walls shaking and if the muffling charm covered explosions, was the perfect way for George to spend the night before Fred's funeral, an event that he never wanted to be at. But Fred was dead, there was no way out of that, and George was going to make sure that it wasn't the same as every other causalities funeral, this would be for Fred and Fred alone. It would make a few of them laugh, maybe even make Molly yell, and that was what Fred would have wanted, normalcy, and happiness, although with Fred gone it seemed damned near impossible for George.

"Morning all." George said as he pushed the door open and headed straight to the plate resting on Harry's bed. With a wave of his wand the door shut behind him and his plate was in his hand, and he dropped down onto the end of Harry's bed. His face tired, his body slightly slower than usual due to his obvious exhaustion, but he was trying to put a brave face on for today, not only for his siblings, but to get himself through the day.

"I assume you've finally finished then?" Ginny asked, smiling at her brother, not wanting to dwell on what they would all spend today dwelling on.

"More or less." George gave a sly smile as he took a bite of his toast. The five of them sat in silence for a few seconds, as they ate and drank, not sure what next to say, not sure if there was anything that they needed to say.

"Are you going to give us a hint?" Hermione asked, as she rested her plate on the bed beside her and bit into the last piece of fruit, her glass in one hand as she looked at George. Like everyone, she had a fair idea of the shenanigans he was planning, but no one actually knew exactly what he was planning.

"What would be the fun in that?" George replied. Wolfing down the rest of his toast, he drained his glass of juice and stood up, opening the door and sending his glass and plate to the kitchen with a flick of his wand, before he turned to the others. "I do remember that you all scrub up quite nicely, so do make an effort, by the looks of you, none of you got the beauty sleep you needed." George said with a smirk before heading out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

The four of them smiled, glad to see that there still was some George left in him, before turning to one another and discussing the small irrelevant details of the day, such as who was coming and when they would arrive.

...

"We should probably start to get ready. The funerals in a few hours." Hermione said breaking the silence, airing the subject that none of them wanted to talk about, that none of them wanted to admit was true. They had to bury him, they needed to celebrate his life, but they weren't ready for there to an end, and a funeral gave such a note of finality, a note of finality that they had all wished to outlive. Fred was Fred, he wasn't supposed to die, George and him were seemingly immortal, they would outlive them all, and the reality that they weren't, that they couldn't, was crushing.

Ron and Harry nodded in agreement, but made no other movement, they didn't say anything, they didn't get up, they just sat there, looking at nobody and nothing, staring blankly, trying to ignore the yelling in their heads.

"Come on." Ginny said with a sigh. With a flick of her wand she opened the door, sent their plates and bowls and glasses down to the kitchen and grabbed Hermione by the hand, pulling her out of the room behind her, flicking the door shut, leaving Harry and Ron alone.

Their eyes found each other's and they shrugged, standing up, the two of them flicked their wands before apparating to the bathroom. Ron took the larger shower and Harry took the other one. They both needed something to wake them up, they needed the warm water trickling down them, but they didn't need the thoughts that occupied the silence. Within seven minutes, they were both in their room, sitting on the ends of their beds, staring at the floor.

"Are you.." Harry started, his eyes straying for the floor to look up at Ron.

"No, are you?" Ron answered, cutting across him, knowing exactly what he was going to say, and not wanting to hear it.

"No." Harry shook his head. They couldn't lie to each other, and neither of them felt the need to, they didn't need to be strong about this, they didn't need to pretend that they were fine, after everything, they still had each other, and that was important and at some times it seemed nearly impossible and totally improbable.

"You guys are moving pretty, well, fast for the two of you." Harry added, trying to change the subject, trying to draw their attention to something else. He of course was referring to Hermione and Ron, how they kissed one another without pause, how they whispered 'I love you's, how after everything they were actually a couple now.

"Yes and no. I just figure, all that time we wasted, after everything that happened, it doesn't make any sense to be nervous and shy around each other. I love her and I want to kiss her and now I know that she feels the same way about me, I don't really see much point in not." Ron replied, a faint smile on his lips as he spoke.

He knew that them being so comfortable with each other as well, he grinned, as boyfriend and girlfriend, was because it was something both of them had wanted, for longer than either of them was willing to admit. To him it seemed preposterous to not kiss Hermione, to not wrap his arms around her, now that he knew how she felt, that she wanted him to do so. The two of them lapsed into silence, as Harry nodded silently, and Ron's thoughts strayed from Hermione and once again back to Fred.

"We should get ready, like suited up." Ron suggested after a minute or so. After showering they had both changed into their jeans, not bothering to put their suits on just yet. They would no doubt be helping Molly in some way or another and she would furious if they ruined their suits. George had insisted on suits, he didn't want to wear robes, formal or not, he wanted suits and dresses, so they were wearing suits and dresses, no argument.

"Or..." Harry breathed, his mind whirring as he looked at Ron, his green eyes sparkling.

"We still have a few hours." Ron said, a small smile growing on his face.

"Exactly." Harry smiled. Wand in hand he leant forward.

"What do you suggest?" Ron asked, his fingers wrapping around his wand as his eyes watched Harry, wondering if he was thinking what he was thinking.

XX

AN: Sorry about the wait, the next chapter will be longer and slightly more eventful don't you worry. Please spend a few seconds writing a review, they are much appreciated.