The Crown (Prince Harry fanfic #5)

Chapter Thirty

Sunday, twelfth of November, two-thousand and twenty-three rolled around, and Lucy was perfection to the world. Cameras waited outside the high school, still used to this day, where fifty-six people were killed, over a hundred shot. Lucy had been shot eighteen times. Here, she lost her mom and dad, and her brother, and her boyfriend, and her best friend. When Lucy looked out to the crowds, Sydney couldn't be seen. She couldn't look long without someone noticing. She was watched here-- she was always watched.

Church bells rang off in the distance as the memorial service truly began at noon. Many people had already shown up, already in the high school and already around the memorial service. Lucy wasn't the only one of her classmates to have a child now, but she was the only one pregnant. Lucy was also the only one closely watched. It continued even on the inside of the high school. Instead of the commons being used to show the humans lost on the day, classrooms were taken to be made into works of history.

The commons, or lunch room, had taken a lot of the force of the day of the attack. Blood had run down from the tables as kids were shot at lunch, during lunch C. Lucy remembered how she used to eat in lunch D. Her brother ate in lunch B. Sydney ate in lunch A. The lights were turned off, as if no one would look into the massive room with the high ceiling and hundreds of flags flying. The library looked over the whole thing. In fact, kids had watched from the library windows as their fellow student opened fire.

Lucy looked away.

No matter how much Harry wanted to hold Freddie, Freddie wished to be with his mother. It was like he felt his mother's pain and wished to comfort her. He put his head on his shoulder, staring at all the people that walked by. They were everywhere, and they never talked to each other. He didn't understand. Yet, Freddie was quiet like everyone else.

At the five year anniversary, people talked to each other. They welcomed each other back, as if they could've accomplished anything. The memorials were so beautifully done, but now, people were forced to remember. Everyone had moved on with their lives, and then the notice came in the mail, like a rude awakening to beautiful dreams. They were pulled back to reality, and this wasn't where they wanted to be.

Harry stayed close to his wife the whole time, blocking her from the photographers and journalists outside and inside. He blocked his son too. His blue eyes looked through the crowds of people, searching for Sydney. He liked to call her a friend too, but she apparently didn't. Still, he searched. Sydney wasn't here.

His eyes came back to his wife who watched him closely. Harry shook his head and Lucy nodded, focusing back on Freddie who played with her hair.

When they came to a room, by last name of S, there laid information of all people shot. This included Lucy and her family. Harry kept an arm around his wife, but Lucy wouldn't cry now. She didn't feel pain anymore. She felt numb. Everything was numb.

Freddie looked at pictures of his uncle and his grandparents, from Lucy's side. Andy, her older brother, and her had looked a lot alike, with the same chin and face, different colored eyes, though, and hair. Andy and Lucy were both perfect mixtures of their parents. Lucy had her mother's blonde hair and Andy had her mother's blue eyes. Lucy had her father's green eyes and Andy had her father's brown hair. Freddie, though he looked a lot like his father, had the same round face as Lucy.

When they came to Lucy's table, it was almost filled. There was information about the events of the day. There were newspaper clippings. There were personal belongings of Lucy's. There were pictures of her clothes. There her pictures of her with other friends. Lucy's eyes hovered over a picture of her and Sydney, when they were young. Then there was information about Lucy's life today, a picture of Lucy and Harry on their wedding day and a picture of Lucy holding newborn Freddie for the first time with Harry's arms wrapped around her. There were some more recent snapshots but they included her in fancy dresses doing fancy things. Lucy rolled her eyes at no mention of Lucy's ability to be a humanitarian aid worker; Sydney would've put that in there.

Lucy felt used at this table, like she was the most famous person to come out the town. She was, but Lucy felt paraded around, like she was in her life already. She felt like she was a prize. She was more than that.

"Are you okay?" Harry whispered.

"Yes." Lucy swallowed. "Why?"

"You look like you're about to vomit."

She smirked. "Only every day of my life." Taking his hand in hers, she led him from the room and to the next room.

Returning outside, the black marble memorial wall stood with white lettering of indents. Each name of the dead was written. It went her brother's name, then her mother's, then her father's. Lucy pointed to the names. Slowly Freddie reached out and put his small fingers in the indents, running his hand over her father's name. He did this to her mother's name and then her brother's name. When he finished, Freddie curled back into his mother.

For a little while longer, Lucy stayed staring at the memorial wall. She knew she couldn't stay there forever, even if she wanted to do so. Soon, they had to go to the next memorial stop, to make a public showing. That place was the worst, but Sydney did it well. It gave all information about that day. It was a timeline of true events. Lucy felt exposed there, like everyone knew the truth. She wished to keep it a secret.

This was different for Lucy, because this was her actual history. When she went to memorials and remembrances, she felt sadness most of the time. She knew what happened, but it didn't threaten to overtake her. It was just something that happened. Here, this was her past. It threatened to drown her. It was like Harry felt the same way because he swallowed roughly. He put his feelings down. This wasn't the time or the place. Some things needed to be kept inside.

"Ready?" Lucy asked.

"Yes."