Life Still Goes On
Harry got back to Gryffindor Tower. The boys' dormitory was not damaged in spite of the terrible battle. His four-poster was still waiting for him. He was too exhausted to stand up any longer so he lay down on the mattress, but his stomach began churning so he sat up on the mattress and called Kreacher.
Kreacher apparated with his usual loud crack and he bowed low and croaking in his bullfrog's voice,"Master, Harry,What can I do for you?"
"Will you do me a favor? I'd like some sandwiches. With ham or chicken, please," Harry said.
"Of course, master. Kreacher will bring them for you. Anything else? "
"Well, are there any clean clothes for me in Grimmauld Place?" Harry asked.
"Master Harry left his old clothes at Grimmauld Place. Kreacher can bring him some," Kreacher answered.
"Thank you. And towels and something to drink, if it wouldn't be too much trouble?" Harry asked.
"Of course, master," Kreacher vanished with a loud crack.
Soon, Kreacher reapparated back to the dormitory with a plate of sandwiches, a pitcher of pumpkin juice, mugs and a stack of clothes and towels. Harry thanked him, picked up a ham sandwich and took a bite. He poured pumpkin juice into a mug. Just then Ron and Hermione came into the boy's dorm.
"Sandwiches! Where did you get those?" Ron asked.
"Kreacher. Want one?" Harry offered Ron the plate.
"Yes, please. I'm starved," said Ron, taking a sandwich and shoving it in his mouth.
He sank down on his own mattress and Hermione sat next to him. Ron handed a sandwich to her and he took another.
"Have you seen Kingsley or Professor McGonagall?" Harry asked.
"No, why?" Ron mumbled through a mouthful of sandwich.
"Well…" Harry pointed to the Elder Wand, which was on the side table. "I need to get this wand back to .. to.."
"To Dumbledore's tomb?" Hermione finished gently.
"Yeah."
"We can find them after we have finished eating. And I want a shower. Hermione, do you have my extra clothes in your bag? "Ron asked.
"I'm not sure. Wait a second." She rummaged in her beaded bag for a while saying apologetically, "I'm sorry, Ron. I can't find any."
Ron sighed. "It's okay. I'll ask mum later."
After they finished eating, Ron and Hermione left to find Mrs Weasley. Harry went to the Gryffindor boys' bathroom. He touched the tap with his wand. The facility functioned as usual in spite of the destruction caused by the battle of Hogwarts castle. While waiting for the water to heat up, he was astounded at finding many bruises across his body, probably caused by dark magic during the battle. Perhaps he got some of them while he was being tortured by the Cruciatus Curse. Among them he found a big scar on the left side of his chest. It was the same shape as the one on his forehead. Below his Adam's apple, there was also a heart-shaped mark cursed by the Horcrux locket. When he stepped out of the shower wrapping a towel around his waist, Ron came in. Ron gaped at the new scar on Harry's chest. "Merlin's beard!" He gestured from the lightning scar on Harry's forehead to the new one on his chest.
"Yeah, and this, " Harry pointed at the mark on his throat.
"Oh, I got the same one, here," Ron took off his dirty shirt and pointed; there was the same heart-shaped mark on his throat. "Hermione's got one, too. We are all members of Heart-shaped Mark Club ." Ron joked. "But how did you get the new lightning one?"
"Tom Riddle used Avada Kedavra on me," Harry explained.
"You dueled with him twice?"
"Well, I didn't duel with him the first time, exactly. Ron, don't you remember? I told you about it yesterday."
"Oh yeah…sorry, mate. Got a lot on my mind."
There was a long pause, then Ron stepped forward and hugged him tight. "Welcome back to us, Harry," he said, his voice hoarse.
"Thanks, Ron," Harry choked, a lump in his throat.
After they'd hugged for a minute, Harry stepped back and asked, "So, we're all members of the Heart-shaped Mark Club , right?"
"Yeah, we're privileged. It's an honorable position," Ron grinned.
Harry grinned back and asked, "Could you find professor McGonagall or Kingsley?"
"No, but Dad said Kingsley has asked about you. He has a lot to ask you, I suppose. When dad finds him, he'll let you know. He told me he will be the temporary Minister of Magic!"
"Really? Wow, that's brilliant. He really deserves it."
"Yeah, but dad told me Kingsley was very reluctant to be Minister. He would rather be back at Auror Headquarters."
The word "Auror" reminded Harry of the remaining Death Eaters. "How many Death Eaters are on the run?" he asked.
Ron shrugged, "Only the Aurors know."
Harry groaned in frustration and pulled on his faded jeans.
"Harry, what are you going to do now? Do you still want to be an Auror?"
"Well, fighting Dark wizards is the only thing I'm good at, so yeah, I guess so." Harry shrugged.
"What about Quidditch?" Ron pointed out.
"Play professionally, you mean?"
"Yeah, you'll be able to play a Seeker at a professional level."
Harry grinned at him. "And you can also play Keeper."
"Nah, I lack confidence. But Ginny wants to be a professional Chaser, you know. She is very dedicated."
Harry's mind went to Ginny's passion and energy during Quidditch games, and his old feelings came flooding back once more. "Eh..Ron? Is it okay if I go find Ginny? We have a lot to talk about."
Ron nodded, "I'm going to take a shower, see you later."
Harry went to the common room. Ginny wasn't there. He wondered she was in the girl's dormitory but he couldn't check so he went to the Great Hall. When he got there, he spotted Ginny sitting at one of the tables, but as he moved towards her he was stopped by Arthur Weasley.
"Good morning, Harry. Did you have a good sleep last night?"
"Good morning, Mr. Weasley It was alright."
"Good. I'm going to meet Kingsley at the Headmistress's office now. Will you come along?"
"Yes, I will, but before I talk with them, I would like to talk to Ginny. Can I?" Harry asked nervously.
"Sure. You have a lot to talk about, I suppose. Ginny, come here," Mr Weasley called to her.
Ginny looked up and her eyes met Harry's. She got up and took a step toward him.
"Harry," she murmured.
Mr. Weasley nodded and left the Great Hall. Suddenly Harry felt nervous and he stuttered, "Ginny, I , eh..,well."
Ginny looked up into Harry's face steadily, her eyes were as brilliant as the day he left her a year ago. She took a step closer to him and said,
"I've never forgotten about you. There was always the silver lining , a hope to meet you again. Whenever I heard about you, when three of you broke into Gringotts, even when I tried to take the sword of Gryffindor from Snape, even when the Carrows tortured us, I never gave up the hope of seeing you alive again. But the worst scene I've ever seen was, oh Harry, when Hagrid carried you in his arms… I thought you were dead!" she whispered.
Her eyes were filled with tears. Harry once again had a lump in his throat. He hugged her tight, "I'm sorry, Ginny. I'm very sorry I left you alone like that. But I came back. I'll never leave you again."
"I know," she answered in husky voice.
She kissed him like the first time as she kissed him, and Harry kissed her back passionately. Then he took her hand, and they left the Great Hall together and went up to the Head Mistress's office.
On their way up the stair case, Ginny asked, "Where did you sleep last night?"
"Gryffindor tower. You?"
"I slept in the girl's dorm of Gryffindor Tower."
Harry stepped in front of the statue of the gargoyle."Can we still go up without passwords?" he asked.
"Free", groaned the statue.
They moved slowly up the stairs. Harry pushed open the door at the top and entered. There were McGonagall and Kingsley. McGonagall looked very tired but spoke in her usual crisp voice. "Good morning, Potter. Welcome back to us. I'm very glad to see you again." She smiled.
"Thank you, professor. I'm glad to see you, too."
Kingsley took a step towards Harry and said, "Welcome, Harry. I'm very happy to see you again," in his baritone voice.
"You too, Kingsley," he said.
The sight of Kingsley reminded Harry that they'd lost a lot of friends- Moody, Dobby, Lupin, Tonks and Fred. Yet the people in this room had survived through the battle of Hogwarts. Harry wanted to cry or yell.
His emotion must have shown on his face, because Kingsley said, "I know how you feel, Harry. Please don't hesitate to express your emotion. You are only seventeen. You don't need to hold back."
"Thank you, Kingsley," Harry managed to keep smiling and asked, "Well, do you want to ask me something?"
"Yes, I would like to talk about your future plans. Do you still want to be an Auror?"
Harry stared at Kingsley and said, "I..er, well, yeah, I suppose."
"I'm really glad to hear that. We lost a lot of Aurors during the war. And we need to clean up. We desperately need to recruit younger people. You can join us this autumn."
"But Kingsley, I haven't got my N.E.W.T.s," Harry pointed out.
"Well, I have talked with Minerva about your education. You can start as a trainee Auror from this autumn at Hogwarts. Your friend, Ronald Weasley can join you. The two of you will be assigned to help professors to guard the school."
Ginny squeezed his hand and whispered, "I'm glad to hear you'll come back to Hogwarts. We can study together."
McGonagall nodded and said, "You and Ronald Weasley will be able to take subjects suitable for your career. We have a plan. We will talk about it later."
"That's brilliant. But I'm not sure Ron wants to be an Auror," Harry said.
"I heard Weasley wanted to be an Auror two years ago. If he hasn't changed his mind, you can both start training in the autumn."
"Wow, that's brilliant, really. Thank you, Professor." Harry fiddled with the Elder Wand which was in the pouch hung around his neck. He remembered what he needed to discuss with the two.
"I need your help, both of you."
Harry glanced at the portrait of Dumbledore and pulled the Elder Wand from his pouch.
"Can we return this to Professor Dumbledore's tomb? It was stolen by Tom Riddle. This wand should be left with Dumbledore. But I'm not sure how to seal the tomb forever. So I need your help. "
Harry glanced at the portrait again. Dumbledore's eyes were open and he was smiling.
Kingsley put his hand on Harry's shoulder and said, "I understand. We'll help you. When will you begin?"
"As soon as possible. This wand needs to be kept safe. If someone, a dark wizard or a Death Eater, found it, there could be another war," Harry said firmly.
Dumbledore's portrait beamed at Harry, "Well done, Harry! I'll tell Minerva how to seal my tomb forever. I'll also need your help, Kingsley. "
"Sure. We'll also need Bill Weasley, He's a curse breaker. His skill could come in handy ." Kingsley answered. He summoned his Patronus. His silver Lynx appeared and vanished out the window to find Bill.
Restruction and Funeral
The day after the sealing of Dumbledore's tomb, Harry walked down the hill to Hagrid's cabin. The sun was hot and there was no breeze. Hagrid was levitating timber to reconstruct his cabin which was damaged during the battle. Fang danced around Harry, trying to lick his face.
"Hagrid, is there anything I can help you with?" Harry asked.
"Nah. I've almost done. Oh yeh, feed Buckbeak. He's starving," said Hagrid.
"O.K. Where is his food?"
"Next ter the pumpkin patch," Hagrid bent down and scooped up nails with his big hands.
Harry walked past the pumpkin patch and he found dead ferrets hung over the fence bar. Buckbeak pecked at Harry's shoulder softly.
"Hello, Buckbeak. You were an excellent fighter," Harry patted Buckbeak gently.
He took a ferret and tossed it to Buckbeak, who caught it and began to eat.
"Want some morning exercise?" Harry said and flung another ferret to him.
As Harry fed Buckbeak a fourth ferret, he talked to him,
"You seem to have eaten enough. Are you ready to exercise?" He patted the Hippogriff's beak.
Buckbeak closed his eyes lazily. Harry put his foot on the top of Buckbeak's wing and hoisted himself onto his back. Buckbeak began to stride, then to gallop, then his talons kicked the ground and took off. They were soaring upwards. Buckbeak flew him around the sky above Hogwarts castle. Harry could see which parts of the castle had been destroyed during the battle. He saw some wizards and witches working on the Quidditch pitch, putting up new goal hoops. Just then a red-headed man on a broom soared up to Harry. It was Bill Weasley. Harry remembered Bill had helped him to seal Elder Wand into the Dumbledore's tomb. He used Ancient Runes mixed with Egyptian hieroglyphs. He'd sealed the tomb by creating letters in the air and casting them onto the tomb. His technical skill was excellent.
"Morning, Harry," Bill said,hovering next to him.
"Good morning, Bill. Thanks for helping to seal the tomb yesterday. Without you it wouldn't have been safe enough," Harry said.
"No problem. It was an interesting task indeed."
Bill and Harry descended together. They landed on the lawns on the hill near the Forbidden Forest.
"So you were helping the professors with holding the protective charms on Hogwarts, were you?" asked Harry as he slid off Buckbeak.
"Yes, I was. It was very hard. I had to cast so many complicated Shield charms. We needed to conjure something strong enough to protect all of Hogwarts," Bill said.
Bill paused then told Harry, "Fred's funeral will be held this afternoon, with the other dead. Some of the families are short of hands. So we'll help each other to send them off."
Harry's voice failed him at that. Bill patted Harry's shoulder,
"The entire family will go back to the Burrow after lunch. See you in the Great Hall at lunch time", Bill went back up the hill to the castle.
Harry stood there and looked up at the sky. A breeze began to blow over the hill.
After lunch, Harry, Hermione and Weasley family took a Portkey back to the Burrow. Fred's body was in a coffin. He was wearing his old Quidditch robes.
"We wanted to bring him back here. Dad found his car in the Forbidden Forest. He repaired it and he brought Fred here in it. We wanted to dress him in his old red Gryffindor Quidditch uniform to express our respect for his bravery," Ron's eyes welled up and a few tears rolled down his cheeks.
"Right. He was indeed a Gryffindor." Harry answered and he felt a sharp pain rise in his throat. The Weasley family all gathered around the coffin.
Molly, who had been sobbing, told Harry and Ron,"It's time to change into your black school robes."
"Eh…Mrs. Weasley, I don't have any of my old school robes. Can I borrow some?" Harry asked.
"Sure, Harry. I'll bring of Ron's," Mrs Weasley answered. Her eyes were filled with tears again, and her voice was trembling. "Girls, come with me. You also need to change."
"Well, Harry, us men all are pall-bearers," Bill said after Mrs Weasley had disappeared upstairs with Ginny and Hermione.
"I've never been a pall-bearer," Harry said nervously.
"It's simple. I'll lead the way," Bill answered.
They all dressed in black robes and gathered around the coffin again. Ginny, Fleur and Hermione, whose eyes were red, put beautiful summer flowers into the coffin. Hermione was sobbing, leaning on the shoulder of Ron ; his right arm around her waist, and his red hair was disheveled. While Bill, Charlie and Percy levitated a glass panel using their wands, George was staring at Fred's pale face. They put the panel down on the coffin and sealed it. Molly's sobbing voice became louder. Harry and the Weasley men picked up Fred's coffin.
Outside of the house, wizards and witches were standing in black: Some of them were relatives of the Weasleys. Headmistress McGonagall was talking quietly with Lee Jordan and Oliver Wood. Angelina Johnson, Alicia Spinett and Katie Bell were standing by them solemnly. Nearby two big stage coaches awaited pulled by Thestrals.
"Thank you for coming, all of you. We're ready to go," said Mr. Weasley.
Then the old Gryffindor Quidditch team members and Lee Jordan gathered around. Oliver Wood, his eyes full of tears, shouted,"Our extraordinary invincible Beater, Fred Weasley, you are an honor to us. We'll never forget you."
They touched the transparent glass board of Fred's coffin all together. Angelina shed tears quietly. Alicia and Katie were sobbing. Lee Jordan was talking to Fred in a quiet voice nobody could hear clearly, his eyes red.
The coaches soared up to the sky. Passing by the outskirts of Ottery St. Catchpole they landed on the edge of the churchyard. Harry and the Weasley men carried Fred's coffin out of the stagecoach to the aisle between the pews . They placed the coffin carefully upon the table. Just then Harry noticed the other coffins next to Fred's. He could see who was lying in them through the transparent glass boards.
Right next to Fred was Remus Lupin. His face was pale. And on the left side of Lupin's coffin lay Tonks. Her hair was a light soft brown. Harry stared at Lupin's face for a while and murmured, "Remus. Thank you for staying with me in the forest. Without your support I couldn't have gone through the task. You are always my mentor."
He turned his gaze on Tonks.
"Tonks, I'll watch over your son as he grows up. I promise. "
Harry, the Weasley family and Hermione filed into seats at the front of a row. Harry glanced sideways, when he heard a baby's cry. Andromeda Tonks was holding Teddy Lupin in her arms on the chair at the left front of a row. He was crying; his hair was light, soft brown like Andromeda's. Harry stood up and went over to Andromeda, kneeling down to talk to Teddy.
"Hey, please don't cry. Your mum and dad are there. They love you. And you're not alone. Your godfather is here, too," Harry touched Teddy's hair. Teddy stopped crying and his hair went jet black. Harry grinned. "Wow, you're a little wizard, aren't you? Your mum and dad are proud of you."
Andromeda, her eyes red, whispered,"Thank you, Harry."
Harry nodded and stood up and walked back to his seat.
A mass funeral ceremony started with a church choir song. When their singing came to an end, Kingsley got to his feet.
"We defeated the Dark Magic." He paused, and his eyes fell upon Teddy in Andromeda's arms in the front. "But we've lost many fine and brave witches and wizards this year. They showed great courage facing Lord Voldemort and Death. Honour their bravery and pray their souls may rest in peace."
McGonagall got her feet and unrolled a scroll of parchment. She read out the names of the war dead. Harry sat with head bowed. He looked up when he heard the name "Creevey, Colin" and he surveyed the others in attendance. Dennis Creevey was sitting with his Muggle parents two lines away back from Harry.
"The Muggle's church site is next to ours," Ron whispered glancing back to see what Harry was looking at.
"Lupin, Nymphadora, Lupin, Remus," McGonagall continued to read.
Harry could hear Andromeda's sobbing. He felt awful for her. She'd lost her husband and her only daughter. Harry swore to himself that he'd visit her and Teddy regularly.
"Snape, Severus ," McGonagall paused.
"Why is he, well, his body, here?" Ron inquired irritably.
"I'll explain later," Harry whispered back.
He'd explained the true nature of Snape's situation only to McGonagall and Kingsley. He had mentioned it while dueling with Tom Riddle, but many people had not processed his words due to the intense situation.
"Weasley, Fred," McGonagall read out.
Ron fell silent. Harry glanced at the right side where all Weasley family was sitting. Arthur, Molly and Bill were staring at Fred's coffin quietly. Percy's face was contorted. Charlie was gripping George's right hand. George was looking downward absent-mindedly. Ginny was staring at the coffin intensely. Hermione and Fleur were in tears.
A little tufty-haired wizard in black robes had got his feet and stood in the center. He was the same wizard who had attended at Dumbledore's funeral last year. He chanted long magical spells and swished his wand a few times before saying,"Family of the deceased, please."
Harry and the Weasley men exchanged significant looks and stepped forward. Lee Jordan and Oliver Wood assisted them and they carried Fred's coffin through the gate to the churchyard. Mr. Weasley followed them. They lowered the coffin to the ground. Mr. Weasley took his wand out.
"Incendio." Fire blazed up. Harry gasped at the flames and saw tears coming down Arthur's face.
Lee Jordan put his arm around George's shoulders. George's pale face was full of tense sorrow. The flames of the pyre flared in the wind with a small crackling sound. When the fire burned out, George started the cry. Arthur collected the ashes into a container with his wand, collapsed to his knees . Ron walked up to his father and lifted him to his feet. Mrs Weasley, Ginny, Fleur and Hermione were waiting outside the gate. Mr. Weasley handed the container to Mrs. Weasley, trying and failing to prevent more tears from falling.
Mrs. Weasley cradled it in her hands. "Fred," she sobbed.
The pitiful sight moved Harry to tears again. Ginny and Fleur, both with red-rimmed eyes, hugged Mrs. Weasley tightly. They were all crying. Hermione was rubbing Ron's back absent-mindedly, her face smeared with tears.
"Well, then, we must get back to Remus and Tonks," said Mr. Weasley decisively in a low voice.
They returned to where Andromeda was waiting for them.
They had lowered down Remus and Tonks to the ground, when Harry looked up and saw seven men, walking through the gate: Professor Slughorn, Minister Shacklebolt, Professor Flitwick, Hagrid, Auror Dawlish , Filch and Draco Malfoy. They were holding a coffin. Kingsley nodded to Harry and said, "Harry, please help us."
Harry realized they were carrying Severus Snape. Harry hurried up to help. He wondered where Snape's tomb would be. He guessed it would be Hogwarts or the place his ancestors were buried. He wasn't sure whether Snape's mother was alive or not.
Harry, Hermione and the Weasley family got back to the Burrow in the evening to have a funeral tea. They created a tomb for Fred at the end of the garden. Hermione,Fleur and Ginny conjured heather ,lilies and daisies around it.
"We couldn't leave Fred alone in the churchyard, "Ron said shakily.
"Good idea. He can always see your family from here," Harry said.
"BANG!" Green and gold dragons sparked out in the sky. George had set off some 'Weasleys' Wildfire Whiz-bangs'. The fireworks emitted loud fiery blasts and bangs; shocking-pink Catherine wheels, rockets and silver stars and gold letters flew through the air, spelling out, "Fred Weasley Forever"
The next day, Harry, Ron and Hermione went back to Hogwarts. Hagrid and Mr. Filch were collecting debris and classifying the pieces by size in the Great Hall.
"We can recycle the debris to reconstruct the castle," Hermione said. "It's amazing that we can repair so much damage with magic."
She took a step towards Professor Flitwick who had been levitating debris into the wall. Kingsley had been talking with some wizards from Ministry and now approached them.
"Good morning, Harry. Good morning, Ron. Are you helping with the reconstruction?" he said.
"Yes, we would like to help as much as we can. We're not sure how much we can help you, though," said Harry .
"I'm sure you'll be a great help. We are short of hands."
Since the middle of May, Harry, Ron and Ginny and the rest of students who fought through the war had stayed at Hogwarts and helped the professors and Ministry officials with the reconstruction. Hermione, however, went off to Australia to find her parents.
One morning, Harry and Ginny sat down on either side of Ron, who was looking delighted.
"You got a letter from Hermione, didn't you?" Ginny said.
"Yes, I did. But how did you know?" Ron said.
"It's obvious. You're smirking like a Troll," Ginny said.
"How is she? What did she say? Did she find her parents?" Harry asked.
"How did she travel to Australia by the Portkeys?" Ginny asked.
Ron grinned. "Wait. Don't be too hasty. I'll answer your all questions."
Harry and Ginny went quiet. Ron cleared his voice.
"Well, first she traveled to Dublin from London. She stayed there for a day and left for Nova Scotia."
"To Canada?" Ginny cut in.
"Yep. From Halifax, she traveled to Boston. She also stayed there for a day and left for New York. From New York she took a Muggle europlane", Ron said .
Harry corrected him,"Aeroplane".
Ron shrugged, "Whatever. She could have used the portkey from England to Australia, but she insisted on traveling to Ireland and America before visiting Australia. The portkey in England was under repair after the war. She was very cautious. She was afraid to be attacked by the remaining Death Eaters. "
"So she moved through to Australia using four Portkeys and a Muggle transportation to trick them. Why didn't you go with her?" Ginny asked.
Ron grimaced. "She was too stubborn. She blamed herself for her parents' moving out."
Harry and Ginny could guess how serious their quarrel was from Ron's look.
"It's a really long way. So did she find her parents?" Harry asked again.
"Here, her letter to you," Ron held out a piece of parchment.
Dear Harry
Ron wrote to me about the rebuilding of Hogwarts. I do hope I can come back soon and help.
It was brilliant to travel here, to Australia. The Warlocks in Ireland were very mysterious. Their Gaelic lilting was very fascinating. I wish I would like to visit them again on my way back to England. The witches in Halifax were all friendly. In America I had to hurry to catch my connecting flight. So I didn't have a chance to talk with any wizards or witches there. There are Native American witches and wizards. I reckon ancestors of Dumbledore's mother came from there.
I've been here in Sydney for three days. Hestia and Dedalus are kind to me. They helped me with finding my parents. Well, it wasn't really hard to find the name 'Wilkins'. And only three of them were dentists! I restored their memories with Hestia's help. We'll all be back to London next weekend! I can hardly wait to see you again.
Love from
Hermione
P.S. Ron says you two will start Auror training this September. And he says Ginny's ambition is to become a professional Quidditch player. Did you know that?
Harry finished reading and grinned. "Well, she finally found her parents. I'm very relieved."
A/N: Thanks to chinaglaze and krazybotharryginny, great beta readers and friends I could meet at HPFF, I could rewrite this chapter.