"Damn them!" he said again, this time louder. Harry looked around him. It seemed to him that the Death Eaters had not been aiming to kill, for most of the people on the floor were groaning and starting to sit up. There were hardly any Death Eaters among the hurt. With a bolt of anger, Harry saw that the two Death Eaters that he had stunned, and the one Neville had tied up were gone; their fellow wizards must have released them before escaping.
Harry and Neville walked over to where Hermione, Ron, and Ginny were sitting. Ginny stood up and hugged Harry, then Neville. Hermione did the same. Ron gave each of them a pat on the back.
"I was so scared!" said Hermione shakily. "We saw Harry surrounded by all of those death Eaters and-."
Ginny interrupted her with a wave of the hand. "Neville, thank you so much for helping him. I- I don't think I can live without him," she gave Neville another hug and then wrapped her arms around Harry, staring into his eyes. "You'll find them Harry, you and Neville will."
He loved her. He loved her wide blue eyes and her long, wavy red hair. He loved her with so much power that he had not been able to propose to her months ago when he truly wished to. For he had been sure back then that he was going to die, and he hadn't wanted Ginny to feel like she owed him after his death. Even now he felt guilty about asking her, because he knew that the Death Eaters were still after him. But Ron had pointed him in the right direction (this had involved yelling, crying, and finally, understanding) and Harry had asked Ginny to marry him immediately following "The Final Battle". Harry could remember perfectly.
He walked up the hill and through the garden gate. The Burrow stood, tall as ever, but bearing the unmistakable signs of recent battle. The shutters were askew, and one of the many chimneys was cracked in half. There was scorch marks on the walls, and the front steps had a crater-sized hole blown threw them. Harry stopped, sadly looking at what had become of what had once been his second home.
The back door banged open, and Ginny ran into his arms. "Harry!" she yelled "Oh Harry!" She had been at the Final Battle, fighting alongside aurors and members of the Order of the Phoenix, even though she was not of age. But Harry had not been able to see her then because he was very weak after fighting and had been carted off to St. Mungo's. He shuddered at the thought of the hospital; it was there that Ron and him had fought about his relationship with Ginny. Harry turned back to her. She had tears running down her face, and she was hanging on to him as if she'd never let go. "Ginny! Ginny, it's ok! Everything is going to get better now! He's gone. Voldemort's gone, Ginny," he paused as she shuddered at the name that had caused the wizarding world terror for all these years. "But I realized something Ginny. I can't be afraid of what may or may not happen. I love you, I have always loved you, and we have to be together. It only hurts us both to be apart, and I don't want to hurt you anymore, I love you so much. I want to love you, I want to have a family with you, and I want to grow old with you. I want us to be together forever. Ginny, I realized that I'm hurting us both. We're meant to be together. Ginny, will you marry me? Will you be my beautiful bride?" "Harry, of course I will! I'll love you; I've always loved you. I was worried about you, I'm so glad you're ok. And that you've come to your senses," she added with a wry smile. "C'mon. Everyone's waiting for you. And we can make our announcement, all though I'm sure they already know. Extendable ears, you see."
She grabbed his hand and had started to lead him up to the house. "Ginny, wait." "Harry, you really need to rest. The only reason you're out of St. Mungo's is because I told them you would sleep for-" Harry pulled her into a passionate kiss. She trembled in his hold, and Harry kissed her harder, and then let go. They smiled at each other and walked up the stairs, happy to see the people who were in the kitchen behind the door, alive and well.
Now Harry was once again entangled in Ginny's arms, only this time it was she who was holding him. She knew how much Harry hated Bellatrix Lestrange, and she knew it must have been killing him to see her escape again. Harry knew that Bellatrix was to Neville what Voldemort had been to him: a torment, his family's murderer, and a known enemy. Ginny knew that Harry couldn't stand seeing the ones he loved get hurt, and Neville was certainly hurting.
"I'm going to go check on everyone else," said Harry suddenly. He walked to the front of the room, observing the scene that was playing out in front of his eyes. Neville followed and stood next to him.
Ginny smiled at the pair of them. Neville had looked up to Harry for as long as she could remember. Harry had always awed him. But Neville did not know that Harry felt the same way about him. Harry had always looked to Neville as an equal. Both of their parents had been lost in the "Dark". Harry could identify with him. Ginny knew that their friendship would be a major factor in their healing, for both of them had been hurt by a common beast: You-Know-Who and his followers.
Harry looked at the wounded, making sure none of his close friends were among them. Most of the members of the Order of the Phoenix were only nursing minor wounds, much like Ron, Hermione, and Ginny. Harry then checked over the government officials and the members of the Wizengamot. Everyone seemed okay, although one old man was bleeding heavily from his head.
"Hang on" said Harry loudly. "Where's Tykan Smidgskin? He's not here. Do you think that the Death Eaters took him? Or that maybe he went after them?"
"No Harry," said a quiet voice. Harry spun around and saw Remus Lupin leaning against a wall, looking tired but otherwise all right. "Smidgskin let them in," he continued, calm as ever. "I heard him and Nott, they were laughing about it. He's a Death Eater, Harry. He and Bellatrix were play-acting. I'm sure they thought it was hilarious that we thought this was a real trial, while they knew that Lucius would be coming through the door at any minute," he added angrily.
"No, that can't be right. Even if he were acting, his mind would still tell us what he was really thinking. I read his thoughts. He was thinking about his muggle-born wife and their half-blood children during the trial."
"Harry, Voldemort invented one last spell the day before you defeated him. Mens mentis contego. It is a shield charm for the mind. If you had actually said 'legilimens', then you would have heard his true thoughts. But with the shield charm the castor can have people hear what he wants them to hear. Ingenious, huh?"
"I can't believe this! Voldemort is still all-powerful. The Death Eaters continue to use his spells, and all of a sudden three very powerful Dark wizards are together, waiting to rid the world of good. I don't want to think about what Lucius Malfoy, Bellatrix Lestrange, and Tykan Smidgskin can do together on their own, but add in the Death Eaters and all they control, and it's going to be like Voldemort is still here. They're going to be unstoppable!"
"No. You can't start thinking like that Harry. They can be stopped, and they will be stopped. Everyone used to think Voldemort was unbreakable, and look what you did to him! You can do this Harry, you just need to believe."
Harry snorted. Lupin was holding him in too much esteem. He hadn't done anything that special. If he hadn't heard the prophecy…
"I know what you're thinking Harry." Harry was surprised to hear Neville speak; he had forgotten that he was there. "You're going to say that it was all just luck, like you did when you started the D.A, aren't you? You're going to say that if you had never heard the prophecy, then you wouldn't have prepared, and you would have died. But that's not true Harry. You're powerful. It shames me that you don't see that."
And Harry did feel very ashamed. Neville Longbottom, the forgetful boy from his childhood, was reprimanding him. Neville used to be frightened by the thought of speaking out loud, and here he was, not holding anything in. Neville had changed, and it was time Harry started to change too. If the people really wanted to look up to him, he should at least try to make an effort. Harry sighed.
"Alright, let's get to work."
