War... Battle... Victory... Grief...
Say Goodbye, Harry
Say goodbye, Harry,
It won't be for so long,
I'll see you again, some day, real soon,
It won't matter what went wrong.
For many days the wizarding world's final battle had raged. Fires roared everywhere. Houses, churches, schools, refuge centres, hospitals, nowhere was safe. The evil had decimated everything they could. No one was left untouched. The light and heat radiated for miles around. There was nowhere to hide. The war had already lasted two years. There had been heavy losses. Those who were left had been lucky to survive. The people were desperate. All their hopes rested on the shoulders of one young man. The one young man who had no will to save them. He had no reason to fight, no one left. Evil had taken everyone he loved and no one had cared. Why should he bother to help them? But then came his angel; the beauty who guided him through his despair. She had taught him how to care and how to feel more than grief. She had pulled him from depression and shown him that there is good in the world as well as evil. She gave him a reason to live, a purpose. She was his everything. She was the world he was going to save; his world. It was the day of the last battle when he told her. She was the woman that he loved.
Say goodbye, Harry,
You know I won't forget
All those things you said to me,
That I hope you don't regret.
Seeing her smile as she returned his sentiments, and feeling her lips as she kissed him good luck gave him the strength he needed to fight. She had always been there for him, and in that moment he knew that he wanted to hold her forever and be with her forever. He wanted to be safe in the knowledge that she would be his and he could love her every day of his life. And he knew he could be. Only one task remained. To defeat the evil, he needed love, and only from her did he receive it. He fought his way through the enemy's ranks until he came face to face with his foe. He raised his wand and shot him down. Love had conquered all.
Say goodbye, Harry,
The end is here, it's done,
You have fought and you have conquered,
The battle's all but won.
Cheering broke out as people began to realise that he'd won. Men and woman broke through the crowds to congratulate him. Everywhere he saw the smiling faces of a race who were now free. They were dancing in the streets, all that they had feared for so very long was gone. They calle dout to him, their hero. But he did not care. He had defeated the great evil yet he could not celebrate, he could not even smile, for he did not see her. The panic gripped him. Why was she not here? Why was she not by his side? What if?
Say goodbye, Harry,
Let go of all your fears,
You'll find someone to love and cherish
So let them dry your tears.
She was lying crumpled against a brick wall. Her eyes were closed and her face was dirty and pale and her red hair was strewn all around her. Her robes were torn around her limp body. She had been hit by a curse, and a vicious one at that. And for a moment, the world seemed to spin, as he made his way slowly towards her. He wanted to run, but he could not move his feet through the concrete-like air that was now trying to suffocate him. The crowds moved apart, instinctively. They knew the fallen. They knew who she was. They knew whom he loved. And they mourned for her. He knew it was his fault. He had brought her into this. He had let her fight. He had led her to her death.
Say goodbye, Harry,
Please don't grieve for me,
I don't blame you for anything,
When you join me you will see.
He knelt down beside her, laying her body out flat. His tears dropped silently onto her skin as he wept for her. And as she had done so many times, she could not wipe away his tears. He cleaned up the dirt as best he could, knowing that no matter what, she would always be beautiful to him. He wanted her to speak, to comfort him as only she could. But in the depths of his soul he knew that she would no longer be there to say what he needed to hear. She would no longer be at his side to guide him when life got rough. She would never be there to love him. He would never hear the voice that could always soothe him, no matter how fraught his nerves were. He was alone. He was without her. She was gone. He whispered to her over and over again, 'I love you,' but there would never be a reply. After remaining silent at her side for no more than a few minutes he touched her lips gently with his and stood to address the crowd.
'She has fought for you more than you could know. It is for this, that we should honour her. Who will help me carry her?'
Three redheaded men pushed their way through the crowd. They helped him to lift her and carry her back through the village. The sky had an orange glow and this glinted in the woman's red hair. By saving him, she had saved them all and she would be honoured beyond all imagination. He was stony-faced as they walked through the gates, desperate to hide his true emotions. And as they laid her down, beside the other fallen, amongst the flowers in the student's garden, he brought a wooden plaque to rest by her head, so that all would know who she was. She was the love of Harry Potter and her name was Ginny Weasley.
Say goodbye, Harry,
You know it's for the best,
Lay me down, alone and silent,
In my eternal rest.