In The Fight To Survive (Golden Trio Era) {4}

Rest In Peace

Fred quietly tiptoed to his and Mikayla's bedroom window, using the moon as his only source of light to write a note explaining where he's going. He couldn't turn on the lights because he didn't want to wake Mikayla up when she was finally getting a good night's sleep. Over the last four weeks she's barely slept a wink, her nights were filled with nightmares of what happened in Bishop's Wood, she felt responsible for everything that went wrong. She was angry with herself for not abandoning the campsite with her friends, instead she tried to pull one over on the Death Eaters which got people fatally hurt in the process.

'Mia,
I'm writing this note just in case you wake up before I get home. First of all, I'm sorry I wasn't here when you woke up, but Kingsley is holding an End of Month Order meeting to dissect what happened this month. I thought it was for the best that you finally got some rest, and I didn't want you to be forced to fake being strong in front of everyone. I'm hoping that you'll sleep through the night and won't even realise that I'm not here. And I'll make sure to take notes of what is said at the meeting to fill you in once I'm home for breakfast. I won't be long, I'll be bringing the pocket watch, because I can't miss watching the sunrise with you in the morning, meet you in the sun room for eight!
I love you,
Freddie'

Fred leaves the note on Mikayla's nightstand before dropping a gentle kiss on the top of her head, she stirred a little in her sleep but didn't wake up. A sigh of relief escapes Fred's lips, as he grabs the pocket watch Portkey from Mikayla's vanity, looking over at the peaceful expression on her face and deciding at that moment that he was doing the right thing. He didn't know how the Order was going to analyse what happened in Bishop's Wood, and I don't think it'll help Mikayla's already crippling survivor's guilt by sitting there and hearing people dissect each play-by-play of what went wrong.

Fred was the last one to arrive at the Order meeting, he wasted no time to inform Remus, Arthur and Kingsley why Mikayla wasn't attending. They expressed that some of the newer members might see her absence as something more than what it is, so they will have to address it to the room, but they ultimately confirmed to him that he made the right choice letting her rest. "Now, go take your seat, son." Arthur instructs him, gesturing to where George was sitting with Lee, Alicia and Angelina, all of which were waving him over. None of them asked where Mikayla was, why she hadn't come along with him, because they knew Fred would tell them if it was something to worry about.

Fred ignored the whispers that rippled through the room by others that noticed Mikayla's absence, theorising what she was up to, what was more important than being here. Fred enchanted a pen and notebook to copy down everything said once the meeting officially starts, he wanted his notes to be authentic when he showed them to Mikayla, no matter what is said. "Attention everyone, if you could quiet down so that we can begin this meeting." Kingsley called out, a respectful silence following his request, which made him nod out of gratitude for compliance.

"First, we want to address what all of you have been whispering about, that being the reason for Mikayla Black's absence from this meeting, because none of you are being subtle." Remus voices, sending a look of disapproval to the masses, at the wild theories he overheard of her swapping sides. "The reason being as simple as a loved one being worried about her health. Last night was the first night that Mikayla wasn't plagued with night terrors of what happened to Hazel Montague and Bastien Monet, or the things that have consistently been haunting her for over a decade. Her partner, Fred Weasley, decided to allow Mikayla to get some much needed rest, because she was still asleep when he was getting ready to leave."

Kingsley paused to gather people's reaction to his explanation, feeling the need to defend why Fred made the choice of not waking Mikayla up. "It's a rare occurrence that Mikayla doesn't dream of the terrors of what she has been through since the rise of You-Know-Who. She mourns each life that has been lost during this war, whether she knew the person personally or not, and her beautifully complex mind likes to taunt her with the darkness that surrounds us all. I want you all to know that she is not invincible to pain, and she does not see us as pawns in her game, she values each of our lives equally, and sometimes more than she values her own."

Arthur places a hand on Kingsley's shoulder, showing support for his words to the room, but sending a silent message to Kingsley that he needed to take a breath before continuing on. "Mikayla feels the overwhelming pain of each loss, sometimes she's just barely able to stop herself from drowning in it, as it clings to her very existence. Yet, no matter how bad she's struggling to keep her head above water, she continues to fight with and for us. It is her resilience that causes fear to our enemies, she has been beyond the point of breaking more times than anyone else in this room, and yet she finds the strength to go on."

Kingsley looked out at all the curious faces, knowing they were wondering why he was getting so worked up on Mikayla's behalf. He felt like a Muggle preacher trying to convince a nonbeliever of his cause, and he meant every word as he truly admired Mikayla's strength. "Mikayla wouldn't hesitate to protect a single person in this room, even those who have once wrong her before, and I know that most of us wouldn't be standing here without her. So, I ask you to remember that before you jump to discredit her character with childish schoolyard gossip." Those who had been a part of creating far-fetched theories of her absence, looked down to the ground, ashamed that they were being publicly scolded by the leader of the Order of the Phoenix.

Kingsley met Fred's eyes, catching some people watching his reaction to Kingsley's words. "And I want to make it very clear that Fred, who has given everything he has to this organisation, receives no negative judgement for choosing to let her sleep instead dragging her out of bed to attend this meeting. He knows what Mikayla needs better than anyone, and we need her in the best shape physically, emotionally, and mentally to have a chance of winning this war, and he wants that just as badly as the rest of us." Those who had been watching Fred, snapped their heads in Kingsley's direction, feeling sheepish that they had been just doing what Kingsley asked them not to.

Arthur cleared his throat once he knew that Kingsley was finished speaking on the topic of Mikayla's absence, "now, let's dive into why we were meeting in the first place. This month has been a rough one, we all made stupid mistakes in the heat of battle, and now we must air them out to improve our skills and prevent what happened this month from happening again." Remus told the room that they would work from the beginning of the month to the end, dissecting each move made. "Let's start with what happened on the Hogwarts Express and how it was different compared to what happened in Bishop's Wood..."