"I…had a funny dream last night," he said hesitantly as they made their way down to the Great Hall for breakfast. Luna stopped adjusting the tassels on her school bag and looked up at him with great interest.
"Dreams can be more helpful than most people give them credit for. I dreamed up the perfect gift for Cousin Tabitha's birthday, and she's always telling people how those ice skates saved her life last Christmas in Tahiti." Harry grinned. As descriptions of his dreams were usually met with horrified looks from Ron and Hermione, he hadn't realized how nice it felt to speak openly about things that (for most people) were pleasantly ordinary. Encouraged by her enthusiasm, he strove to remember every last detail.
"I dreamed that Sirius sent me a message using an enchanted mirror, asking me to meet him at the Department of Mysteries, in…in that room. I went to the Ministry, snuck inside, and walked through that old archway into another world, where Sirius was waiting for me. He told me the time was coming when I would have to fight Voldemort face-to-face, when we could get rid of him once and for all. He took me to a sort of coliseum, where everything had this reddish, golden glow, and he taught me spells and strategies that would keep me safe in the final fight. While we trained together, these shadowy figures stood around us, watching."
He glanced at her as they continued down the corridor, but she smiled encouragingly and he smiled back, glad to see that she was not put off by his mind's strange musings.
"Well, next thing I know, it's the day of the final fight, and I'm back in that strange world on the other side of the archway. This time it wasn't just me and Sirius. Voldemort was there, with all of his Death Eaters, but Ron and Hermione were with me, along with the Order of the Phoenix and the Weasleys and the DA and, well...you were there, too." She gave his hand a gentle squeeze as he cursed his face for coloring so easily.
"We squared off in the middle of the coliseum, with Sirius close behind me, giving me some last minute advice, then he stepped back to stand with the others and watch. I was really scared, but I knew it was time, that I could do this because of his help, because of everyone's help. We dueled, and I won. Then the shadowy figures from before came and took Voldemort's body away."
He paused, and they stopped at the foot of the staircase in the entrance hall, mulling over his strange, imagined victory. Seeing as how their conversations had thus far been thoughtful and devoid of hysterical screaming, he was able to muster enough courage to voice the question that had bothered him from the moment he got out of bed that morning.
Harry turned to her and asked, "What do you think it means?"
She smiled again and said confidently, "It means that when everything comes to an end, no matter what happens, you won't be alone."
Harry made no attempt to suppress his growing grin as they made their way into the Great Hall together, and as he watched her meander over to the Ravenclaw table with a final wave, he had a feeling she was right.
Author's Note:
Way back when, before Book 7 was published and the cover art had just been released, this was how I imagined Harry's final showdown. Although I think my idea was pretty awesome, I thought Deathly Hallows rocked and loved the way JKR wrapped everything up : )
If I can get my ideas together, my full Larry story should be up in the next week or so, in 3 or 4 parts. Stay tuned, and thanks for reading!