Harry sat on the floor against the wall of his dormitory in silence. Ron, Seamus, Dean, and Neville were busy packing their suitcases. Hermione and Ginny sat quietly together on Ron's bed. No one spoke a word.
Harry knew he should be packing like the other boys, but he just could not bring himself to it. He was not going to come back to Hogwarts next year, regardless of whether or not it opened. He had already made up his mind. However, he still could not lift himself off the floor to begin gathering his belongings. The sooner he packed his bags, the sooner the reality that he really was not coming back would set in. He would feel completely detached from the school, the only place he ever felt at home. He could not yet bring himself to do it, not yet.
Dumbledore's funeral had just ended. The students had been sent back to their dormitories to finish packing. The Hogwarts Express would be arriving in less than two hours.
Harry could not believe that Dumbledore was really gone. Dumbledore had always been there, a powerful, indestructible force. Harry felt alone and vulnerable as he had never before. Yet he knew he had to stand up and defeat Voldemort, knew that he had no other choice….
"Harry…" Ginny's soft voice penetrated the silence and interrupted into his thoughts.
Harry lifted his eyes up from the floor and onto Ginny's tear-streaked face. Their eyes met for a split-second before they both looked away. Harry had just broken up with Ginny earlier that day. Harry cared for her deeply, but knew that he must put her safety first and his feelings second. He would never be able to live with himself if Voldemort used Ginny to get to him.
"M-maybe you should start packing, Harry," Hermione said quietly.
Harry shifted his gaze onto her. "I can't," he said simply.
"The train's going to be here in a little over an hour, and – "
Ron placed his hand on Hermione's shoulder. "Give him some more time," he said gently.
Hermione sighed. She brought a hand up to her shoulder and placed it over Ron's, holding onto it. Ginny glanced at the pair of them, thinking of how perfect the days were when she and Harry had been together.
Suddenly, the door of the room burst open, revealing a frantic Colin Creevey. His face was chalk-white and he was out of breath, obviously having ran there. His eyes were wide with shock and his whole body trembling with fear. All eyes in the room were on him.
"Colin, what happened?" Ginny asked nervously.
"The Death Eaters…" Colin gasped. "They're here…at Hogwarts…"