Sunflowers

Moving On

Thia stepped into the apartment, a sigh escaping her lips as she tossed her overrobes onto the couch. Her shift at St Mungo's had run long when one of the other healers was sent home. She rolled her neck, hearing a series of pops.

"Gross, Thia," Mo said from the kitchen, scrunching her nose, "I hate that sound."

She laughed, kissing her girlfriend on the nose, "Sorry, love. Cosette, come." Removing the harness, she set it on the floor, giving her dog a good scratching.

"I got a teaching offer," Mo said suddenly, twirling a piece of paper between her fingers. She didn't meet Thia's eyes.

"That's fantastic—"

She cut her off, "It's in the States."

"Oh." Silence reigned as Thia processed it. "You should take it. If you want it."

"I don't want to leave you, though," Mo looked up, tears in her eyes, "I love you, Thia."

Thia stood, hugging her, "I love you too, Mo, but I can't leave Ellie and Remus. They need me here."

Mo leaned her head against Thia, her arms wrapped around her waist, "I know. But this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. I can't pass this up."

She blinked away tears, pressing a kiss against the top of her head, "When do they want you there?"

"Two weeks."

Silence fell again, and they stayed there, Thia's chin resting on Mo's head, both of them wiping tears away. Holding on to each other for just a little longer, neither saying what they were thinking. Because speaking would make it real, and neither wanted it to be.

~

Two weeks rolled around, and Mo's stuff was boxed up and shrunk, fitted into a carry-on. Thia had watched as it had slowly disappeared, watched as the girl who had been a part of her life for the last nine years began to fade out of it. They tried to make the most of their time together; Thia took a week off of work so they could travel around. They went to Hogsmeade, to the Cliffs of Dover, to the Chester Zoo. 

But it was over far too quickly, and soon it was time for Mo to leave. 

"Can we still be friends?" She asked, stopping beside the door. Thia stared at her, memorising her face.

"Of course," Thia hugged her tightly, hiding teary eyes, "I'm going to miss you, Momo."

Mo didn't respond, just hugged her tighter. They didn't move for long minutes until her watch chimed, reminding her about her plane. Thia stepped back, wiping away tears.

"You should get going, love." Mo nodded, taking in this little space that she had lived in for near a decade. Then she kissed Thia once more and disapparated.

~

Slowly, Thia began to move on. She threw herself into her work, trying to help the survivors of a war that had left no one unscathed. Eventually, she packed up what was left in the apartment and moved into her parents' old house. New pictures joined the old ones, and she had tea with Emily every Sunday.

For every full moon, Thia went down to Remus's house to pick up Ellie. Those were the few times when Thia took time off work. Sometimes, though, she was called in on an emergency, and Ellie came with her, learning the best ways to soothe a person in a panic attack or help someone refocus.

Every break, she saw Amos and his family, catching up of sixteen years of history. She helped Cedric with his schoolwork and spent hours baking with Beatrice. Jeremy was always there for her if she needed something, and Teddy was right around the corner.

She was happy with her family. Really, she was, but sometimes she couldn't help taking out that sunny yellow journal and trace those words. They never had finished the pages.

~

Thia flicked her wrist, sending her books to form neat rows on the shelves. Aunt Poppy had already taken all of her things out of the office, and now it was up to her to fill the space again. Beck, Thia's new service dog/Hogwarts therapy dog, lolled happily in a patch of sunlight.

The Second Wizarding War had come and gone, leaving behind a shattered world. Thanks to her godson and his friends, Voldemort was well and truly dead. Not without casualties though. That's why her aunt had retired and she had taken her place. Who better than a matron studied in psychology and grief to help students who had just fought a war?

"Hey, Madam Pomfrey, do you have a moment?" Thia turned around, opening her mouth to respond when she froze.

"Mo?" The woman's head shot up, a gasp falling from her mouth. Suddenly, a rush of emotions and memories flooded through Thia's mind.

"A stór?" Mo's face split into a grin, "You're the new matron?"

Thia swallowed her shock, nodding. Her eyes fell to Mo's arm, which was dripping blood. "What the hell did you do?"

She forced her to sit, taking her arm in her cool hands. Carefully, she healed it, stitching together muscle, tissue and skin. Then she vanished the blood.

"I was cutting sopophorous beans and my knife slipped." Thia glanced up at her through her lashes raising a brow.

"That's quite a deep cut for a silver knife." 

Mo just shrugged, "I always did have a talent for hurting myself."

Thia rolled her eyes, summoning a blood replenishing potion. She measured out a small amount and handed it to her, "Drink."

She stuck out her tongue, but swallowed it, gagging at the taste. Thia giggled, and for a moment it felt like they were back in their little apartment all those years ago. A silence fell between them until Beck woke up, spotting the new person. He sped over, sniffing Mo as she laughed.

"A new service dog?"

"Therapy dog, actually. For when the students come." She went quiet, "But yeah, he's helped me too. The war was hard on everyone."

Mo tucked an arm around her shoulders, "Want to go get lunch and talk about it?"

Thia looked up into those familiar green eyes and smiled, "Yeah. I'd like that a lot."

~

A/N - And there we have it - the end of Sunflowers. This story has been very comforting for me to write, but such a challenge as well because I had to get used to drawing on my own emotions. 

If there are any characters you'd like to see in their own stories, please tell me in the comments! Otherwise, you can see more of Thia and Ellie in Ellie's story, Forgotten Girl.

Thank you for reading!
Cinder