Disclaimer: The world and characters of Harry Potter are not my own. If they were, it would be either Luna or Hermione who married Harry, not Ginny.
A/N p1: More to follow after the story, but to get it going you might find useful:
Memory/thought segments are marked with italics whereas 'real-time' events are normal text. Any place else where there are italics is for emphasis. This is AU so read it with an open mind and allow yourself to fill in the gaps as needed. Also note that his is rated M for language and suggestive themes. Hopefully that helps. R&R if you feel it worth your time.
What They Sacrificed
"Harry!"
"Harry hold on!"
"You can do it, 'arry! Don't give in!"
"HARRY!"
So many people were yelling and screaming his name it was starting to give him a headache. When Voldemort angrily called for silence, Harry nearly thanked him but stopped himself, realizing the irony of it all.
Yes, the bloody irony of every bloody thing.
Harry closed his eyes and steadied his breathing, willing the anger and rage to recede. So much raw emotion was aimed at the Fates, God, Allah, Merlin, whoever the hell it was that had written his life out before hand without consulting him first. They had done a piss poor job and now, here he stood in front of everyone in the Great Hall of Hogwarts, the mythical 'Final Battle' about to commence and he had to clean up the mess the higher powers left him.
Truly, it was all very fucked up.
"Are you ready, Harry Potter?" called Tom Riddle as he seemingly strutted to the center of the hall, "Are you ready to finally die by my hand?"
The sarcasm and caustic humor that had been swarming through his mind vanished and it was replaced by the reality of the situation before him.
Harry closed his eyes, took a deep, soul reaching breath and the world slowed before him.
How much has been sacrificed for this moment? What was going to prevent another Tom from coming into the world, seeing the bigotry and stupidity of mankind (to hell with limiting it to magicals, muggles were just as bad) and deciding to turn against it all? To make war with the status quo and kill, hundreds, thousands, millions even to ascertain their own goals?
Harry never admitted it anyone, well, that wasn't entirely true. He had told someone. Told her of how, if he separated the Light and Dark aspects of magic, removed the so called adults' decisions and the methods that both sides used to favor their lot in the war…
Harry understood why Tom was doing what he was. He understood the anger, the fear and loneliness that drove someone to the point that Tom Riddle, now defined as Voldemort, had reached. After all he himself had been there, been at that precipice that he no longer doubted Tom had stepped off years before. Two completely different individuals who experienced the same horrible beginning were separated only by luck and circumstance. Both abused, both unloved, both with no parents to know of initially. What must have gone through Riddle's mind when he realized his origins were the very thing he was trying to destroy? That he himself was by his own definition, trash and worthless?
Maddening it must have been. Would explain a lot of his actions really, if you took a slanted view of things.
Again, the humor at the irony quickly died as Voldemort's words echoed through his mind, "Ready to die?"
"Ready to die? Die… Potter, you must die. I will be the one to kill you, Harry Potter. Die!"
Words and phrases from previous encounters now collided together, forming a haunting, terrible chant.
Death revolved around him so much it was a wonder he wasn't the Reaper himself.
The gritting pain of loss consumed Harry, recalling again, just how much was sacrificed for him to stand where he was now.
Mad-Eye, Kingsley, Bones, Tonks and Remus, their son, Teddy, Sirius, Snape, Pettigrew, his father and mother: James and Lily. Dumbledore, Dobby, Ollivander, Draco, Fred, Parvati, Cedric, Flitwick, Griphook, Kreacher, Molly, Colin, the list did not end.
Tears now streaked down his face, his eyes still calmly shut and he heard mocking laughter and a collective intake of breath from the spectators but he ignored it.
No one could know, could understand or even fathom the tears were not for himself but for those who died before him. Those deaths that in some capacity ensured his survival, either by accident or design, it was life needless destroyed. No matter how much he may have loved, or hated the one who perished, the fact still remained it was all meaningless slaughter.
Death and sacrifice for something that could not be saved.
Tears still leaking out of his eyes, he opened them now, and stared long and hard at the form of Tom Riddle who now stood some feet away from him, his face full of a mocking glee towards his enemy.
"I am ready, Tom," Harry said calmly, his voice betraying no fear or sadness, no discomfort or pain. It was clear, unyielding and defiant in its own way, and Riddle floundered for a moment. It was obviously not the reaction he was expecting.
Harry closed his eyes once more, merely blinking, but again time slowed when his emerald eyes were shielded from the world in front of him.
Images flew past his mind's eye, images of past battles, skirmish and struggles.
The hunting of the horcruxes had been a spectacular failure.
He, Hermione and Ron had scoured the British landscape for over a year and the journey nearly broke them.
They had found the supposed unholy artifacts, they had collected them too. But the three of them had no known way to destroy them at the time, so all they could do was continue to collect and further the research and explorations that Dumbledore had started before them. A great wizard that he was, his death at the hands of a horcrux had made them cautious, especially so since the item itself was not yet destroyed. Or so it had seemed.
For months they were on the run from Death Eaters, the Ministry even turned against them too. By that point, Voldemort's supporters (and surprisingly there were many) had killed most of the political dunderheads who were still only in the game for their own benefit. Apparently true politicians believed that harm could not possibly come to them. After all, they were the policy makers, the so called leaders, the pioneers. No one would have the resources, nor the stones to actually do them in would they?
'The Massacre of the Ministry,' or as the Death Eaters had called it, 'The Purge,' was when Voldemort himself lead a massive attack on the Ministry Building. It just so happened that the Wizengamot was in session at the time, and many of the region's powerful political figures were in the same building, pretty much on the same floor even.
Harry had to acknowledge the cleverness of the attack. Even Hermione recognized it, as did Ron, simply because the general public had no clue it even happened. For all intensive purposes, it was a silent coup.
Voldemort had ransacked the place, restocked the so called leaders with his own men, and left without even breaking a sweat and the public were none the wiser.
The only reason the Trio had come to know about it was from a tip from none other than Peter Pettigrew.
The encounter was almost casual as Peter crawled up to their tent in the middle of an unknown wooded area, bloodied and dying. Somehow, he had escaped Voldemort's punishment for cowering during The Purge and he was there to warn them. Warn them of what had happened at the Ministry, warn them of Voldemort's plan to ransack Hogsmeade, then Diagon and finally Hogwarts. All in the name of repaying the Wizarding debt he owed Harry.
As if that wasn't enough to surprise the Trio, in Pettigrew's cloak, was a shrunken pet snake in a jar: one of the rumored Horcruxes.
Clearly, the man wanted to make an effort to atone for his past sins and Harry had nearly accepted his debt and almost declared it repaid then and there.
But then Peter stiffened, foamed at the mouth and died. Not ten seconds after, dozens of pops echoed around them.
They had all realized it too late, but Peter hadn't escaped like he said he did, although in truth, Peter himself believed it. The actual truth of the matter was far more logical.
Voldemort had set him free.
He must have known about the debt and also knew that death would not come to a wizard until his debt be repaid and acknowledged from the debtors party. Until that time, pain to the extent of wishing for death's release would follow the debtor everywhere.
Harry learned the truth of what a wizard's debt really was in that instant, as did Hermione.
They had escaped, barely, what with deep lacerations on all of them and the news of the Ministry now against them, their spirits had been crushed.
Once healed to the point of mobility, the wedge that almost drove them forever apart was hammered into place: Ron left them in an explosive manner, denouncing Harry and simply left. He even left Hermione, the girl that Harry knew Ron loved and was loved in return but left anyway. Just like that.
Harry and Hermione had clung to one another for support, and somehow, through the grief and pain of losing a brother for one, and a lover for the other, they pushed forward. Both of them found a terrible means to alleviate their pain: the hunt.
And hunt they did. Seven horcruxes were rumored to have been created, and four were in their possession when Ron left them. By the time he came back, only one remained to be found.
The reunion was anticlimactic, Ron, being surprisingly mature, said to the both of them they had every right to hex him to death and should they chose to, he would not stop them. He only asked that they both wait to do so, until the war was over. Or at least until he had no more use for them, he asked for his punishment to be withheld.
Brought back to the scene before him, Harry actually smirked, then snorted and started laughing aloud, his voice echoing in the hall and everyone stood silent and dumbfounded.
Voldemort looked at him strangely, "What is there to laugh at Potter? Is my threat so meaningless to you?"
Harry ignored him for a moment and looked in the direction where Ron stood in front of Hermione protectively, while Neville had put both arms around her waist, clearly trying to restrain her from running to help him.
Harry snorted again, as the memory of what happened a week after Ron's return surfaced. Hermione loved Ron, Harry knew that hell, even Ron knew it as he loved Hermione.
So when he found them in the tent not even a week after, shagging each others brains out, he couldn't help but crack at the madness that surrounded him. Betrayal was something Harry knew well, but he also knew fear and understood what Ron's actions had meant. He just couldn't help but laugh at the fact it took them a week to literally 'kiss and makeup.'
Harry was chuckling loudly, "Not at all Tom, not at all. Just remembering something from one of my many adventures. As to your threat, I know it not to be a threat anymore but a fact, Lord Voldemort. You will kill me, and there is nothing I can do to stop it."
The gasps from everyone were so well synchronized the halls reverberated from the collective shock. Once again, Voldemort was clearly surprised, although Harry noted he was pleasantly surprised, if the hideous smirk was anything to go by.
"And what, Harry Potter, made you finally realize that you could never defeat me?"
Harry's eyes darkened as he looked towards the floor.
"It's actually quite simple, really."
He brought his gaze to meet Voldemort's once more, and Harry this time was pleased by the almost not noticeable flinch in Tom's own glare.
"I found all of your horcruxes, Tom. I tried, but I discovered I could not destroy them. No one can, thus it was only a matter of time before my luck finally ran out and you succeeded in your goals."
This time the hall was stunned into silence, which included Tom Riddle.
Harry chuckled again and closed his eyes, the memories of the last months after 'the hunt' surfacing again.
With all of the horcruxes safely stored away in a shrunken trunk in his pocket, Harry, along with Hermione and Ron returned to the Order, only to find that everything was in chaos. With the Ministry effectively gone, the Order had taken over trying to reassure the public, and one of the ways they had done so was through the Quibbler.
When the Trio returned, they quickly learned that a week prior to their arrival, Luna Lovegood's father was murdered and she imprisoned.
Something odd happened then, when that information was passed to Harry. Only Hermione, Harry's true confidant, knew of the connection between her adopted brother and the seemingly always airy blonde haired girl.
Only she wasn't surprised when Harry's eyes suddenly glowed an ominous green. Grimmauld, where the Order was currently stationed, began to shake and an audible low hum resonated in the house.
"Where?"
Harry's voice was cold, so much so the room dropped several tens of degrees and everyone could all of sudden see their breath in front of them.
Remus, who was with them at the time, somehow found his voice and replied with, "Malfoy Manor."
All who were present felt the hair stand up on the back of their necks as the air around Harry sizzled and he disappeared with a thunderous clap… right through the anti-apparition wards.
If their ear-drums popping from the noise wasn't enough, the hum in the house grew in intensity, fear oddly synchronized with the sound, now growing within everyone. A few tense moments later and another thunderclap occurred, this time accompanied by an unseen physical push outward from the epicenter which resulted in everyone on their backs, groaning from the sudden change in position. As they all gathered their bearings, Hermione gasped, and everyone followed her now stunned expression to where Harry stood just moments before.
Except now he was standing there again, but this time, Luna was in his arms.
For the following weeks, they took turns in nursing her back to health. She was severely malnourished, although she somehow escaped physical torture and was relatively unharmed. Harry had shaken visibly, more then once, when he realized what would have happened had any of her captors known just who it was they had in their cells.
He had spent the most time with her, eventually becoming her sole caretaker. In between nursing her back to health and reminding her how much she meant to him, they talked of his 'hunt' and the Trio's collective findings. For a brief amount of time, roughly three weeks, the others had forgotten about the Horcruxes as they did their best to continue to reassure the public.
It was Harry and Luna who continued the research in secret and it was the second day of the others' three week 'break' that the couple realized the truth behind everything.
And it happened in the most horrible of ways imaginable.
Luna, who was feeling much better but now dogged down by current events, and Harry, who still had yet to get a decent nights sleep in months, were both fairly stressed out. So, as any couple in love who met these conditions, they took some time to themselves to help both of them remember what it was they were fighting for.
Luna was just nearing her climax, her eyes that were usually so clouded but now incredibly clear came to focus on Harry's scar, and that's when she saw it. That's when she screamed.
Luna, as Harry had found out over them growing closer, was given a very rare and beautiful gift. She could see past the petty emotions that humans most often always fell into, could look beyond the flesh and see the light of a person's soul. All souls, no matter how evil the individual, had light and she could see that light and know that whoever it was she saw or spoke to, that they had good in them, even if it was buried deep within.
It was how she could perceive things so clearly from the most murky of circumstances. How she could see past his disguise at the Weasley wedding and why her eyes were always clouded as relaxing herself to the point of euphoria was the only way she could see the world as 'everyone else could.' It was also why she had screamed and made the most horrific wail that pulverized any emotion either of them had been feeling during their love making.
Luna had cried, outright broke completely in a matter of seconds, and Harry spent the next several hours comforting her, coaxing out of her what she saw, what it meant, and then they both spent the next five days never leaving each other's embrace, crying together and drowning in a fate neither could escape.
Luna had seen a black apparition, a blotch of darkness that should never have even existed, buried deep into Harry's soul. It was centered at his scar, hiding in plain sight but had she not been in the state she was, Luna would never have seen it. Like a parasite, it throbbed and pulsed in a sickly manner, feeding off of its host and hiding so well even someone like Luna would have had trouble seeing it. It did not grow, nor did it overwhelm, but merely existed.
Luna's beautiful gift had brought her unimaginable clarity for any given situation and for the first time in her life, she hated her abilities. She hated that she herself existed, that she had to tell Harry the truth.
He was a horcrux: there was no debating or denying it.
Having being told what he was, Harry shot up from his bed, ran to his cloak and pulled out the shrunken chest. After enlarging it and retrieving seven of what were believed to be Horcruxes, he laid them out in front of Luna, who had then put on a nightgown.
As Harry dressed she cleared her eyes, knowing full well what he wanted.
What she found however did not help their cause.
Six of the seven artifacts were horribly tainted. The dark magic radiating off of them was clearly visible to her, and easily felt by Harry, but none of them were Horcruxes.
None of them held a piece to Voldemort's soul. Even Nagini, who had long since died in her jar, did not hold the residue of a human soul.
They puzzled, horrified over their findings and reviewed various notes that Harry, Hermione and some from Dumbledore that had been compiled over their various journeys.
It was Harry this time, who would have the terrible realization and then the burden of explaining it to his love.
Voldemort had screwed up. His research and understanding was incomplete.
A horcrux, by definition, was a container that held a portion of someone's soul. There was obviously a known means to create horcrux, but there was nothing that Harry knew of that described what the container had to be, and now he realized the truth.
Only another, living being could be a horcrux because a soul needs a body to survive. Perhaps with a homunculus, maybe then could a horcrux be created without a 'truly living' being as a host but inanimate objects, things that could actually resist the harshness of time? No, it just couldn't be done.
It was elegant, he marveled for a brief moment. Nature's own defense against those who possessed an intellect, clearly stating that death could not be cheated.
A soul always needs a body, another body similar to that which the original soul was taken from, that was the only way a horcrux could be remotely useful.
Harry had gone white as a sheet and his eyes as big as dinner plates
'And the Dark Lord shall mark him as his equal.'
Before he started shivering, Luna was already holding onto him, his body collapsing into her arms.
'One cannot live while the other survives.'
It all finally made sense. Voldemort's disfigured body, his own connection to the crazed man, the dreams, the pain in his scar.
Tom was no longer really living because a piece of his soul was inside Harry. His disfigurement was likely a result from failing to create the various horcruxes over the years. By using invalid containers, he wasn't storing his soul, more like precisely destroying it.
His rebirth was done with a black ritual, since he was anchored to this realm of existence properly through Harry, the soul fragments he failed to store into containers merely floated through existence, allowing him to come back but his previous failures contributed to his current form.
Harry was crying now, and Luna was nearly hysterical as well, trying to figure out what was wrong.
"Harry! Look into my eyes!" she kept screaming, "Let me see, love! Please, don't hide from me!"
He struggled, he truly did, but in the end, he wasn't able to lie to her and Luna saw his revelations through his eyes, searched his mind for what ailed him and she too had turned white before collapsing onto him and they both cried themselves into oblivion.
That was a little over a month ago, and during that entire time, they had cried, planned, made love, and come to accept their place in the world. The Order had been busy, their friends scattered to the wind in an effort to calm the public, to keep Tom on his toes and they had succeeded. They had given Harry and Luna exactly what they needed.
Harry focused his gaze on the Dark Lord in front of him who was now cautiously studying him.
The young wizard searched the crowd, and he found his love, his source of strength.
She stood not far away from Hermione, Ron and Neville. Looking at him with pride, love and admiration that he had walked his path, followed his fate knowing full well that he would no doubt die in the end. She wasn't calling his name or screaming for him like the others were now. She had done enough of that over their darkest days together. Instead, she had loved him with all her heart and all her soul and in the process, sealed her own fate as well and she did so without a moment's hesitation.
A strong sense of guilt and misery almost overwhelmed him but he felt Luna's love and strength flow through him from the byproduct of her desires to love him with everything she could.
The people around them had started chanting, calling to Harry to give him hope, give him strength and Voldemort grew tired of it once more. He was tired and hated everyone's insistence and support for his most vile of enemies and he screamed in rage for their silence as he readied his wand against the nearest person, who happened to be a frightened little first year girl.
"Remember what you came here for, Tom. It's time."
The hall grew silent again and in everyone's shock, no one noticed Luna quietly weave her way out of the crowd and walked calmly to Harry's side.
"Luna! No!" cried Hermione but Luna stopped and raised her hand to let the girl know everything was alright.
"Its okay, Hermione. Really, everything is going to be okay."
Those exact words jarred Hermione and she felt her mind cloud as her eyes remained locked with Luna, whose own had become incredibly clear.
When Luna's eyes clouded again somewhat, Hermione came out of her daze.
"Mione, you alright?" whispered Ron and held her tight as Hermione began to shake and cry herself.
She didn't know how, but she understood. Luna had showed her everything, told her everything in the span of a few seconds and she knew. She knew now, what was going to happen.
Tears came freely, as she watched Luna walk next to Harry, and wrap her arms around him and as he did the same to her. Hermione weakly reached out to them, wanting to hug them, kiss them, hold her brother and her dearest friend and shield them from this hateful world, but she couldn't.
All she could do was watch two of the most important people in her life hold each other and ready themselves for a journey they never should have come to accept so soon.
Luna had tucked her head underneath Harry's chin and she stood with her back to Voldemort, an action Harry noticed, that didn't sit well with the Dark Lord. In fact, her entire presence was grating on Tom's nerves and he finally reminded everyone that he was in fact, still in their presence.
"So you've found a half-blood whore to shield yourself with? I must say, Potter, I didn't know you had it in you."
The Dark Lord sneered, expecting an angry remark, but when he got two beaming smiles in response, his rage overthrew his ability to reason. As Tom threw back the robes on his arm, readying himself for his most famous spell, Harry whispered to Luna.
"Thank you for coming with me, Luna. Know that I love you, so very much."
Time slowed, giving them one more moment as voices screamed, but out of the shouts, one voice rang clear.
"Avada…"
Luna smiled against his chest, "I love you, Harry."
"…Kedavra!"
The green spell shot forward from Voldemort's wand and hit Harry and Luna at he same time. They collapsed together, each falling into the other's arms as their bodies came to rest on the floor.
At the same time, the one true horcrux that Voldemort had created was removed from the living world, his only anchor, now gone.
Without a bang, even less then a whimper, the Dark Lord collapsed along with the couple to the floor except his fake, mutilated body dissolved into ash before it could crumple into a heap.
The hall was silent and stayed silent, even as the witches and wizards who had seen the event slowly trickled out of the Great Hall.
It took time, but eventually only Ron and Hermione were left. Everyone wanted to leave, wanted to forget what they witnessed and could not accept the reality at that point in time. No one was as sharp as Hermione or Luna, but they didn't need intelligence to see that the whole affair, the entire day's events had been planned. Carefully worked out to the smallest of details so that the young man and woman who lie unmoving in a corner of the hall would find themselves there, at the end of Voldemort's raid on Hogwarts.
Hermione waited, patiently, quietly, but crying the entire time. She understood, and she hated it. Hated it with every part of her being, the same way Luna had hated herself when she discovered the Merlin awful truth.
But for them, for Ron, and for herself, she would endure. She had too. She was his confidant, and her Maid of Honor. She would tell the world their story. That was her purpose now, not to idolize them, but to make the Magical World realize just what it was those people, her friends, had sacrificed.
They must be remembered.
Ron watched her silently, watched her eyes fall into despair and emerge with a startling conviction. He had made attempts several times, in an effort to comfort her, but each time, the look in her eyes made him realize that this was something he could not help her with. He realized this was, in part, some of his punishment for being weak, for not being there when they had needed him the most.
He turned towards the bodies of his friends, his eyes also wet with tears.
Ron sniffed, got onto his knees, and bowed towards them, the tip of his nose just barely touching the floor.
"Rest in peace, Harry Potter, Luna Lovegood. May my actions from this day forward always find your favor."
Holding onto what little control he had, he got back up, went to Hermione and kissed her on the cheek. She nodded once in understanding and kissed him back and he left her to wait outside.
Once she was by herself, Hermione forced herself onto her feet and walked slowly towards the two people who she considered family.
She smiled through the tears and wiped her eyes on her sleeves, "This is not, goodbye, Harry and Luna Potter" she said with a sense of pride, knowing she was the first one who had said that out loud but certainly not the last. She sobbed as she bent down and made sure their hands were holding one another. It was a request Luna had made to her during their brief mind link, and she would be damned if she didn't follow it through. She kissed Luna on the forehead first, and then Harry. She straightened his glasses one final time and stood up, preparing herself to leave.
"I promise you both, especially you Harry," she said between sobs, "I promise I will not forget and I will forgive."
She turned from them and headed towards the Hall entrance, towards Ron, her own love and source of life.
When Ron had left, he had cut her deeply, betrayed her greatest trust in him and sent her into a spiraling pit of despair. Even though they had 'made up' a part of her had yet to completely forgive Ron for what he did, for the pain he had caused her. But as she carried herself away, step by step, she knew, with each racking sob, knew from the bottom of her heart that the pain and misery she felt was nothing compared to what Harry had felt, both from Ron's betrayal, and his realization that his death was the only way to end Riddle's reign.
He never spoke to her about it after their time in the wilderness ended, the pain from Ron's betray or that of his acceptance of his death but she was sure, she was convinced, Luna knew the depth of his misery. Perhaps that was why she had bound herself to him, entwined her soul so tightly with his that they, in a way, became one and the same and in that way she could protect him from the harsh reality that was his life.
When their mind's had connected, she had heard the message Harry had asked Luna to give. It was the first thing she heard, as if Harry was speaking to her, whispering into her ear, but it was what followed after, what was given to her by Luna that put Harry's words into perspective.
Her tears ran anew, but she kept her stride steady, refusing to run from this pain, silently committing herself to never give into fear, to always fight, no matter what the end.
Harry had said, "Forgive him, Hermione. His fear, his fear of loosing you and me drove him away because he could not accept that one of us may die, but he couldn't bear to stay and watch it play out. I envy him. I envy his ability to make that choice, however foolish or how regretful he may be of it later. I do not fault him, Hermione. Please tell him that for me, tell him that I have forgiven him and you should forgive him too. Live your lives and be happy, be free. I love you both, and I will see you again someday."
She cried in earnest, reaching the doors to the hall and unable to stifle her need to be in Ron's embrace, she ran to him and buried herself into his waiting arms.
It was Harry's words that allowed her to move forward and see life as he saw it. But it was Luna's gift, a memory of everything Harry and she had experienced alone those last few weeks of their lives that made her realize and appreciate what they had done, what they had sacrificed.
A/N p2: I have no idea how it happened, but all of a sudden I find myself consumed with HP/LL. For the longest time I was an HP/HG fanatic (still am actually) but for w/e reason, Harry and Luna has taken the front seat, and thus this short little one shot. No lie, it all started with the HP trailer for DH part 1. There's a segment somewhere that has Hagrid (I think it's Hagrid) yelling out Harry's name when the music crescendos. Take that and multiply it a few hundred times you get what was buzzing in my head for a few days. Thus, the start for this story.
Hopefully it wasn't too bad. I realize I probably botched proper grammar and English semantics. I also told the story from an odd perspective but it was fun and makes sense (to me at least). I hope it made some sense to you as well and it was worth the time it took to read it.
Until next time,
Cr