dorothymin·:
Dorothy was having trouble being alone. For years, she had prided herself on her independence, but after the attack, she couldnât go much longer than a few hours at a time without needing the presence of someone she could trust. Tonight, it happened to be Effie. Dorothy sat at the Potterâs table, a mug of tea going cold in between her hands. Shaking her head slightly, she spoke. âYou canât blame yourself, Effie.â Her voice was low, lingering fear stealing volume. âYou couldnât have possibly known what was going to happen. None of us could have seen that coming.â Survivorâs guilt was an anchor dropped into the sea of shame. Dorothy knew firsthand what it felt like, a cloying gratitude wrapped in a sickening relief, marred all by guilt. Theyâd all regained their magic, in the end, but a few hadnât made it out of the arena alive. The manâs last words seemed to hang thick over London. âIâm sure Monty is glad you didnât have to suffer like he did.â
Effie finished cleaning up the kitchen and sat across from Dorothy with a sigh. âWhat would James and I have done if Fleamont had gotten hurt? I mean-- Iâm fully capable of taking care of him on my own but,â Effie bit back at once. She hated thinking about what would happen to their family if they lost Monty. âI donât want to take care of James on my own. I want Fleamont to be there the whole way. Another war is about to start, Dorothy, and a lot of us have kids now- and families. I donât know what to do. I want to fight this go around, but I canât leave James alone.â Effie shook her head as she stared down at her hands. âAnd at the same time, Iâve got to fight for Monty.â





















