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SHE WAS WALKING TOWARDS A BRIGHT LIGHT. Squinting her eyes as she continued to walk forward, she wondered, Is this the afterlife? Because Caroline knew she was dead. Suddenly, the light shone less, revealing that she was in some type of hallway. No, it was...platform nine and three quarters? But it had a very pale shade of color, and at the far end was the light that blinded her eyes earlier, leading her to some place she didn't know of. But just as she was about to follow it again, a familiar voice greeted her from behind, almost bringing her to tears. "Now, my Carol, don't follow the light without me." Turning around slowly, she saw a face she longed to see again. "Look how much you've grown! You have no idea how much I missed you, my sweet child."
"D-Dad?" She stuttered, tears threatening to fall from her eyes. The older Wright could only smile at his daughter, and with opened arms he welcomed her. Caroline immediately came to his embrace, and sobbed onto her father's chest, making him chuckle softly. "I-I thought I would never see you again! I missed you...so much!" She cried, and looked up into his eyes. With the pads of his thumb, Thomas Wright wiped away Caroline's tears.
"I missed you too my sunshine. And I'm sorry if I had to leave you and Agatha so soon. You deserved a better childhood, Caroline, I-"
"No," She smiled softly and sniffed. "It's alright, it doesn't matter now. What matters is, I'm with you. And I'm far away from the land of the living that's for sure." The father and daughter laughed together at the sarcasm. Oh, her father's laugh. One of the things she missed hearing. "So, what are we waiting for? Shall we follow the light at the end of the hall now? Dad?"
Her father stood there and looked at her. Thomas sighed, and sat down on a nearby bench. Caroline shortly followed, string beside him. "Carol, sunshine, before we officially cross the border, I just want you to realise some things," He paused and the girl listened attentively, nodding at her father's words. "I want you to realise that forgiveness is essential. Now, I know it may be difficult to forgive someone, especially when they did you wrong. But, we forgive someone not because they deserve it, we do it in order to free ourselves from the weight of our grudges."
Caroline took a deep breath. "So what you're trying to say is..."
"What I'm trying to say is, please. Forgive your mother."I knew it. She thought to herself. "I know that throughout your life, because of what happened, you have been hiding behind this tough shell. Used sarcasm as a way of hiding your real emotions to the world because of the fear of getting hurt again. Because honestly, it is easy to be cruel and cold. I mean, look at your mother, for Merlin's sake!"
"But, it takes a whole lot of courage to be kind."
Caroline smirked and scoffed. "But father I'm not a Gryffindor."
"Oh, you and your jokes, Carol. Just because you're a Hufflepuff, doesn't mean you can't be courageous. Not all Gryffindors are courageous and not all Hufflepuffs are timid. Don't limit yourself, after all, my Caroline never limits herself, doesn't she?" Her dad gave her a light and playful nudge on her shoulder, causing the Hufflepuff to giggle. "Please, Caroline. Your heart has been holding onto the past for too long. It's time to let it rest. Be kind enough to it, and tell it to let go."
Silence filled the air, as the young girl closed her eyes and grinned to herself. It wasn't easy, but either way, she had nothing left to lose.
"Alright. Shall we?" Standing up, her father held out his hand to her, and with a genuine smile, she took his hand and stood up as well. Walking hand in hand. "Besides, you don't want to keep him, waiting don't you?"
"Oh? I see you two have met. How was he? Do you like him for me?"
"He's not that bad. As long as he doesn't do anything funny."
"Oh dad. I'm sure you and Reggie will get along quite well."
And with that, they walked into the light, leaving the land of the living forever.
