Living in the After
Chapter 1
"Ted Tonks… Nymphadora Tonks… Remus Lupin…"
The sweltering heat of summer was pounding down on the heads of the massive crowd of witches and wizards that had gathered on the grounds of Hogwarts. It had barely been a month since the Final Battle had ended… the soil beneath their feet was still soaked with the blood of their loved ones. Yet there they all stood, in the sickly-sweet smelling mud that surrounded the magical school, listening to a speaker on stage as he called out the names of the heroes who had bravely given their lives before, and during the Final Battle…
"… Albus Dumbledore… Alastor Moody… Severus Snape… Rufus Scrimegeour…"
Hermione bent her head to wipe her face with the sleeve of her robes as her tears continued to flow mercilessly down her cheeks and neck.
"... Colin Creevey… Fred Weasely… Bathilda Bagshot…"
Hermione felt someone slip something soft into her other hand, and looking down at it she saw that it was a green, silk handkerchief with the small letters "DM" embroidered at the corner, in silver thread.
She immediately knew who had given it to her, but couldn't bring herself to look up at the man standing behind her and thank him. Her emotional wounds needed more time to heal before that would be possible. All she could do was tilt her head to the side and give him a slight nod; platinum white hair flashed at the corner of her eye as he tipped his head in response.
She brought the handkerchief to her cheeks and blotted away the wet streaks left behind by her tears – subtly noting that the fabric smelled strongly of its owner – before turning her attention back to the man speaking on stage.
"… Charity Burbage… Dirk Cresswell… Gregorovitch…"
Hermione's head swam as the list of names went on and on… and then the speaker paused for a minute, shifting around the parchments he had been reading off of, as a very short man holding three big gold medals that were almost bigger than him, ran out across stage and handed them to the speaker.
"Will the next three people I call please come forward and stand in a line on the stage… Mr. Harry Potter… Mr. Ronald Weasely… and Ms. Hermione Granger."
The crowd erupted in applause, screams, shouts and whistles as the three friends made their way from their positions in the front row, to stand on the stage overlooking the masses of tear streaked faces that looked back up at them.
"I award these three heroes the Order of Merlin, First Class – " the crowd erupted in cheers again and the speaker had to pause and wait for their shouts to die down before he could continue on. "They are awarded for their outstanding courage in the face of danger, unsurpassable use of intellect, and the undoubtable amount of courage they displayed as they fought through the masses and weakened the opposing front… bringing down He Who Must Not Be Named!" and if it were possible, the crowd erupted in even louder applause; the noise level was making Hermione's ear drums vibrate.
The speaker turned from his podium and approached them. He shook their hands and congratulated them, then placed the huge medal around each of their necks as a Daily Prophet photographer continuously clicked away on his camera, blinding them with its constant flashes.
"Now! If the heroes would please each share a few words about their experiences and reflect on their triumphs with the rest of us!" the speaker stepped back and looked at them expectantly, but all three just stared back at him with wide eyes. "Potter, if you would please be the first to share…" the speaker added, then backed away from the podium again as Harry slowly walked up to it and leaned into the microphone.
"Uhh… I'm… sorry for your losses…." Harry said softly, and stepped away from the podium and made his way off stage.
"Um… not what I had in mind, but okay… Uhh, Ronald! Step forward! And please be a little more descriptive" the speaker looked at Ron with hopeful eyes, and Ron just gave him a disgusted look and shook his head, then turned and stalked off stage without a word.
Hermione understood where her friends were coming from because it was exactly how she felt… how disrespectful to all the lives that were lost and their grieving families to hold a ceremony a mere few weeks after their loved ones had been ripped away from them. And even more, to have it on the very ground where pieces of their bones were still littered across the muddy grass…
"Well then…. Ms. Granger… please." begged the speaker.
No… the last thing she wanted to do was give a speech about something so horrible… but she felt that the lives of the people who had died on both sides deserved much more than they were getting… much more than even she could give… but she had to try… that was the only reason she stepped forward to the podium, and screamed into the microphone.
"The Dark Lord is dead!" she yelled as loudly as she could, and was met with deafening applause as the crowd nearly became out of control. Security had to step in and calm people down, and Hermione waited until it was quiet again before she continued on. "Death… it's something we all understand, something we've all dealt with, and will be the final adventure for us all... Death is universal..." the crowd was beginning to look at her questioningly now, and Hermione allowed the anger she had been feeling towards the magical community for the past month to flow freely now: "Death is the ending of a human life, no matter whose it is! HOW DARE WE REJOICE IN IT!
"How many of you were there during the final battle?" Hermione was the only one that raised her hand, but nobody else in the crowd responded. "HOW MANY OF YOU WERE THERE?" Hermione screamed again, and slowly arms began to rise in the crowd as well. "… About twenty people, out of the thousands that stand before me… so then tell me, out of you 20, how many have nightmares every night of all the men you've killed during battle?" every hand stayed raised, including her own. "How many can't even blink without seeing their dying faces?" no one's hand fell. "How many of you rejoice in the number of people you've killed?" Hermione allowed her arm to slump to her side, and watched as other hands all over the crowd began to disappear, until not one stood up in the air.
"Martin Luther King Jr once said, 'I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Because returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.'" and with that, Hermione stepped away from the podium and slowly walked down the stairs, rejoining Harry and Ron in the front row; everyone's eyes were still on her, including a pair of silver ones that sparkled with gratitude.
Harry and Ron looked at Hermione with sad eyes that were on the verge of tears.
"Good job 'Mione" smiled Harry sadly, and Ron nodded, giving her a slight hug and whispering in her ear "Hit the nail on the head."
"Uhhhh… thank you for that Ms. Granger… we shall… uhhh… keep that in mind for the rest of our lives…" said the speaker awkwardly, pausing for a long time, before he came to his senses and continued on, "Uhh, now to name the other heroes that still walk among us that deserve recognition as well… with the Order of Merlin, Third Class."
The short man walked across the stage again and handed the speaker several smaller, silver medals; as he ran back across, he quickly glanced at Hermione, then jumped off the stage.
"Minerva McGonagall…"
The crowd parted, and Professor McGonagall walked down the path created and up the steps to the stage, where the man placed the silver medal around her neck and then said a few words in her honor.
This is how the ceremony proceeded as the speaker continued to call out names, each one met with applause as the medals were placed over their heads. But the tone that drifted through the crowd after Hermione's speech was different now… almost sadder in a way…
"Neville Longbottom… Rubeus Hagrid… Molly Weasely… Arthur Weasely… Ginny Weasely… Bill Weaseley…"
And the list of names went on and on as well, though much shorter than the list of the dead, it still felt like it had been over an hour when the last name was finally called.
"And lastly…" the speaker shifted awkwardly on the spot and then choked out, "… Draco Malfoy…"
No one in the crowd clapped as Draco walked up the steps and the speaker placed the medal over his head; silence echoed across the school grounds as more than half the crowd stared at him in shock, the other half in anger.
"Draco M-Malfoy," the speaker stuttered out as he began, "although played a great hand in the cause for the Dark Side, only did so because he had no other choice, being influenced by Death Eaters all his life… but when the time came for him to identify the famous Potter, Granger, and Weasley, so that the Death Eaters could take them to the Dark Lord…" the speaker glanced at Draco as he read the rest of the sentence in shock, "He refused to give a definite answer… even though he clearly knew who they were… and because of this show of treason to the Dark Lord, he paid greatly… being tortured endlessly for hours… and for this, and many more reasons, Draco Malfoy has been awarded the Order of Merlin, Third Class…"
Whispers of shock and scrutiny broke out amongst the crowd and then spread like wild fire until it was almost a deafening roar. Draco realized that the beads of sweat on his face and body were beginning to make his hair and clothes stick to his skin as he internally struggled to keep himself from bolting off the side of the stage. But as soon as he shifted and took a step towards the edge, the whole crowd immediately fell silent again, causing him to pause and look out across the sea of faces that were staring back at him; he gulped. He forced himself to slowly put one foot in front of the other until he finally reached the stairs… that's when it happened...
Someone slowly started clapping… for him. He looked up to see who it was coming from and his eyes locked with her familiar brown ones that were framed by her usual halo of brown curls - Granger… Granger was clapping for him…? And she had a soft smirk on her face as she looked up at him. It took only seconds before it was two people clapping… then three… then ten. Before he knew it, everyone in the whole crowd was clapping for him. And for the first time in a long time, Draco Malfoy smiled a real smile.
"Thank you Hermione." he whispered under his breath.
AUTHOR'S NOTE-
LET ME ALL KNOW WHAT YOU THINK! SHOULD I KEEP GOING? POSSIBLE IDEAS? ANYTHING =]
AND THANK YOU FOR READING!