for the one i love ; fred weasley

chapter 55

NARRATOR'S POV

"Nina... Please, come with me, join us for dinner..."

            "Star? Dad made your favourite... He even baked a delicious chocolate cake..."

                    "Carina, please. I can't stand seeing you like this... Please?"

                            "Darling, dad got a court date set in a couple of days... Come celebrate with us?"

Weeks go by with Carina barely getting up to use the bathroom and shower whenever Tonks comes around to help her. Each day she grows thinner, her skin almost grey and her green eyes dim and sunken. After realising she wasn't getting any better at the Burrow, Sirius and Remus settled on bringing her back to Grimmauld Place. Fred would visit almost daily, but he took people's advice and tried to give Carina as much space as he could while also trying to be supportive.

Whatever they did, they couldn't get a hold of Draco.

The only person who Carina let touch her, is her cousin. Not even her parents could get too close without her crying and having panic attacks that appeared to never end. Tonks tries to make conversation as she helps Carina in the bath, her knees tucked against her chest as she stares at the edge of the tub, not making an effort to chat back as her cousin washes her back with a rag. "You know, Kingsley and Moody asked for you yesterday," at the mention of the Aurors, Carina blinks. "They wondered why you never got back to them about your Auror training..."

Instead of replying, she stays still, listening to whatever else Tonks has to say. Her hair shines a soft white as she speaks, "They really want you to join the Force. What do you think about that? What do you want to do with the rest of your life?" The girl continues to talk, her voice chirpy as she mentions her own training, trying to fill in the uncomfortable silence.

What do you want to do with the rest of your life? Sadly, giving it to Adrian isn't an option. Carina can't help but think about Tonks' question. Deep down, she knows what she wants: the Orphanage, to become an Arithmancy Professor; she wants to help, to make the world a better place - but how can it be? How can it be possible to have a good, peaceful world when there are people like Bellatrix Lestrange? Unpunished, free... alive.

"I want to murder them," mutters Carina, interrupting Tonks mid rant.

The older woman stops, "What?" Tonks' breath gets caught in her throat, a little stutter-y, nervous exhale leaves her lips before she can stop it. "Carina... I know you want proper punishment for them -"

"- I don't want proper punishment," spits the younger girl, a scowl on her face as she glances at her cousin. "I want to kill them. I want to destroy their lives the way they destroyed mine... I want them dead, Tonks, do you understand?" Nymphadora's mouth opens and closes as Carina's words settle in. Revenge? Carina Black wanting revenge is not something she's used to seeing. "Let Kingsley and Moody know I'll be joining the Force," she finishes, turning back and glaring at the edge of the tub like she'd been doing almost daily.

"Carina, you shouldn't be joining the Force to take revenge," Tonks tries to explain softly, rinsing off the soap. She grabs the towel from the chair that's set beside her and holds it up for Carina. The green eyed girl stands, covering herself and shrugging slightly. "It will be detrimental in the long run..."

"I don't plan for my run to be that long anyway," she mutters sarcastically, wrapping the towel around herself a little tighter. With Tonks' help, Carina steps out of the bath and releases a long sigh. "I know what everyone's thinking. I appreciate all of you worrying about me but I don't deserve it, alright? I'll be just fine after we kill Voldemort," adds the Slytherin witch, walking over to the mirror.