That's the hardest pill to swallow (Ginny)

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James felt like he had had plenty of time to process the news of Abigail Shacklebolt's death at this point. He had had Natalia for support, and he had even ran into Irina and talked to her. But James still felt like he had a gaping hole in his heart, separate from the hole that Abby had left. He needed to speak to someone who could help him know what to do, who could comfort him, and make him feel like everything was going to be alright even though with all that was going on in their world lately, things probably weren't going to be alright. James had yet again called off of work, sending an owl to Raleigh telling him he would not be in again. Hopefully he would understand, considering the circumstances. Plus, Alice was helping run the Cauldron with both her parents being at Hogwarts, so he knew she would understand.

The Gryffindor alum was walking up the front steps to his home from just seeing Irina Krum in Hogsmeade. He thought maybe seeing an old friend would have helped him, but it just made his heart feel heavier. And it reminded him how he would never get to speak to Abby again. James hesitated for a moment at his front door, and he realized then just who he needed to speak to. And that person was right behind this door where he lived. James walked inside, not knowing for sure if that person was still home or not so he called out for them. "Mum?" As he called out, he felt his voice crack a little and it took everything he had not to start crying again.

@ginevra

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It hadn't been very long since the latest deaths—and even simply thinking of the lives of two teenagers that way felt horribly wrong—but it had been long enough that the “acceptance” part of the grieving process appeared to be kicking in again. That heartbreak that she felt for Hestia after the loss of one of her children so soon after the loss of her husband, the sadness she felt for her eldest son for the loss of his dear friend, and the understanding that this feeling was one that wouldn't be going away were all enough to propel Ginny forward.

She had to keep looking forward. The one thing that she knew that she could handle was tragedy, as awful as it might have sounded to express that aloud. And, even though she was home alone, she knew that she couldn't sit around and wallow in her thoughts. There was still plenty to do—people to organize and mobilize—and she was in the middle of writing a few letters when she was interrupted by the sound of a voice.

“Mum?”

Ginny's heart sank. It was James, and, even from a room away, she could hear the brokenness in his tone. She didn't hesitate to stop what she was doing, getting up and walking out to the front door to meet him.

“James…” Immediately, she pulled him into her embrace, sighing softly as she held him close. “Is it Abby again?” she asked quietly, almost expecting it. None of the death and destruction had been easy on James—not that it could have been easy on anyone—but it seemed as though her death had hit him the hardest. And, while Ginny knew that a hug wasn't going to fix everything, she thought that it might help to ease the pain.

@jams