Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.
Almost Easy
"I thought things would go to hell without me to keep everyone serious and focused."
Luna Lovegood was in a happy and committed relationship with Ron Weasley, as everyone at Hogwarts knew, but she still couldn't help but be fascinated by Harry Potter. Not because he was the Boy-Who-Lived of course, but because of who he was. Despite everything he had been through in his life he was still kind and loving and generous. His bravery was without limit but what she admired most about him was his never ending passion. He was teaching them more about dueling and his excitement was obvious to her. As he stood up in front of the DA with Hermione and Ron at his side she could almost literally feel his barely contained enthusiasm.
It was a good subject to learn and Harry was probably the best person to teach them. He was the only person in the world who had dueled Voldemort on more than one occasion and was still alive to tell the tale. Of course he himself admitted that most of that was more luck than skill but there was no denying that Harry was an excellent duelist. He had held his own against, and even defeated, some of the most powerful Death Eaters and wasn't matched by any other student at Hogwarts, though Hermione came very close. His dueling style was very aggressive and definitely wasn't right for everyone but they all recognized that just knowing the spells wasn't enough in a duel.
Ron watched Luna as he stood at Harry's left side, a light smile playing at the corners of his mouth. He wasn't stupid, he knew how his girlfriend felt about his best friend, but he also knew that he didn't have anything to worry about. The two of them had already had discussed this and she told him that she saw Harry only as a friend. Besides Ron was very well aware of the intensity of Harry's feelings for Hermione and knew that no one could compare to the brunette Witch in his mind. With a shake of his head Ron brought himself back to reality when he realized that he was starting to zone out. He heard Harry announce that he and Hermione were going to give a quick demonstration on the art of dueling and his jaw dropped. Duels between Harry and Hermione were never quick, as both ended up giving in to their competitive nature and trying to outdo each other.
He didn't have the chance to voice his concerns before the raven-haired Wizard ushered him out of the way. The redhead recognized the look in both of his best friends' eyes and knew that he wouldn't be able to talk them out of the duel anyway. He moved to stand by Luna and kept a firm hand on his wand, ready to intervene if necessary. The couple had just barely turned to face each other when Harry sent a spell towards Hermione. She effortlessly batted it aside and retaliated, only for Harry to swat the spell away with an almost lazy flick of his wand.
Things immediately escalated after that, almost as if casting those two spells was merely a preliminary action before the real battle began. It was a sight to behold despite their very different dueling styles, which may have been the point of the entire lesson. Harry was very aggressive and stood his ground, choosing to block or deflect spells instead of dodge them. He wasn't in a duel, he was in a fight and he acted accordingly. On the other hand Hermione preferred to use her mind over power, though that wasn't surprising to anyone. Her dueling style was unorthodox, utilizing noncombat spells to throw Harry off guard before using seemingly random attack spells to attempt to capitalize on his temporary bewilderment.
It seemed that the two of them forgot where they were at or became lost in the duel, which was the more likely option, because they had been dueling for nearly ten minutes with no sign of stopping. Ron decided that it had gone on long enough and, with a nod to Ginny, sent out a Shield Charm with her that blocked the two duelists. Harry blinked in surprise and looked around as he suddenly remembered where he was and what the point of the duel had been. Hermione looked abashed at her sudden lapse in memory, though everyone who knew her well enough wasn't at all surprised.
"Er, so as you can see," Harry began, trying to regain his composure, "everyone's dueling style will differ depending on a multitude of things. I try to overwhelm my opponents so I tend to be very aggressive. Hermione takes a very different approach and tries to keep her opponent off balance. Most of the time our dueling style ends up being an extension of our personality. Now we don't have time to go over it today in detail today but I want all of you to think about how you duel, or would duel as it may be. We'll pick up from here next time."
Ron gave his best friend a pointed look as everyone started to pack up. It had been two weeks since they destroyed the locket and, while they weren't exactly upset over their lack of further progress, they didn't have much of an idea of what else to look for. Ron had suggested that Harry ask the other students if they knew anything, which Hermione was also in favor of, but Harry absolutely refused. He didn't want to involve the other students and it seemed he hadn't changed his mind, since he shook his head at Ron and mouthed "no." Hermione, obviously not pleased with his reaction, reached over and pinched his arm hard.
"Fuck, that hurt Mione. Alright fine then." In a louder voice he said, "Hold on before you go." Everyone stopped what they were doing and gave the Head Boy their undivided attention. "I'm looking for something that may help defeat Voldemort. It most likely belonged to Ravenclaw. I can't tell you what it is for your own safety, but does anyone know of anything?"
"There's Ravenclaw's lost diadem," Luna suggested without hesitation.
"Luna the diadem's been lost for years," Terry Boot stated. "That's why it's called the lost diadem."
"If anyone found it then it would be Voldemort," Harry spoke up again, trying to cut off an argument. "That plays into his hand pretty well actually. What exactly is a diadem though?"
"It's a kind of crown, sort of like a tiara. I'll show it to you if you want Harry. The bust of Ravenclaw in the common room has one."
"Alright thanks Luna. We need a reason to go inside though, to keep everyone else from knowing the real reason and getting suspicious. Do you think you could come up with something?" The dirty blonde Ravenclaw nodded. "Good, we'll be in the library." The students filed out, most going back to their common rooms while Harry and Hermione went to the library. Anthony Goldstein came in thirty minutes later.
"There you two are. I'm glad I found you. Your friend Luna's in trouble. She walked down the stairs and just fainted. It looks like a spell but we're not quite sure what kind and we decided we'd let you take a look at her first, because we all know how Umbridge is. We thought you might know what happened to her and be able to heal her without the Headmistress finding out."
The Head Boy and Girl nodded simultaneously and followed the Ravenclaw prefect to Ravenclaw tower. Anthony grabbed the eagle knocker and rapped it against the wooden door three times, causing a voice to materialize.
"What is the only thing that can't survive without light?"
"What the fuck was that?" Harry asked, startled.
"We don't have a password," Anthony explained. "To get into our common room you've got to answer a question. If you get it wrong you have to wait outside until someone else answers it right, that way you learn."
"Well we don't exactly have time to wait around for someone else to come along and answer it right, Anthony."
"We won't have to sweetheart," Hermione piped up. "The answer is darkness. It can't exist without light."
"Very good," the disembodied voice said as it opened. Inside they found Luna lying on one of the couches, evidently having been moved there by the other students, and rushed to her side. Hermione pulled out her wand and began waving it over the younger Witch while Harry stood behind the couch, looking up in thought. He appeared to be considering what the spell could have been or who attacked Luna but in reality he was studying the statue of Ravenclaw above the fireplace. Sitting on her head was an exact replica of the diadem, which Harry knew he had seen before but he couldn't be sure where. He didn't get much chance to contemplate it before the sound of Luna waking up caused his attention to avert back to her.
"Harry, Hermione," Luna said, seemingly surprised to see them. "What are you two doing here?"
"We heard you fainted and someone hit you with a spell. Anthony came to the library to get us and here we are. How do you feel?"
"I'm fine Hermione. No one attacked me, it was just an accidental spell. I had my wand in my pocket and it went off when I mentioned the incantation for a spell. It's nothing serious, I'm alright now. Thanks for coming to check on me though." Harry and Hermione returned the smile she gave them and started walked out of the common room.
"Well did you get a good enough look at it?" Hermione asked as soon as they were alone.
"Yeah and I've seen it somewhere before, I just can't remember where. Wait, that was in the Room of Requirement when I went to hide my Potions book last year! I remember putting it on top of some old, ugly bust."
"Great! Now we know where it's at, so let's go find it."
"Hold on we've already destroyed one thing that belonged to the Founders, I don't want to ruin something else if I don't have to. You go get Ron and explain things to him. I'm going to find the Grey Lady and see if she might know anything about it. She is the ghost of Ravenclaw after all, maybe she can help us." Hermione nodded and took off for Gryffindor Tower while Harry pulled out the Marauder's Map. He began searching for the Grey Lady and found her outside the Great Hall.
"I need to speak with you," Harry said, slightly winded when he had made his way to the ghost. "I need to ask you about Ravenclaw's diadem." The Grey Lady looked at him with a mixture of both sadness and disgust.
"You're not the first student to covet the diadem. There have been many who tried to seek it in the hopes of improving their grades."
"What do you mean?"
"The diadem enhances the wisdom of whomever wears it. Did you not know that?"
"No. Look, this isn't about getting better marks or becoming smarter. I'm trying to destroy Voldemort and I think he may have used the diadem for something. If he did I need to destroy it. Don't you care about that?"
"How dare you?! Of course I care! But...how do I know you won't end up like him?" Harry's heart began to beat faster when she spoke those words. He knew that whatever she was about to tell him would be important but she seemed very hesitant to actually say it. He had to choose his words carefully.
"You know I won't end up like him because I've been fighting him for the past two and a half years. I have no interest in cheating death, I just want him destroyed. If I had any other reason I wouldn't have taken the time to come to you." The Grey Lady thought about his words for a moment. She heard the sincerity behind them and realized that he was indeed telling the truth.
"I'm ashamed at what I did. He seemed so nice, so charming. He said he wanted to help me. Please, don't let him befoul my mother's diadem any longer."
"Your mother?"
"Yes. I am Helena Ravenclaw, Rowena's daughter. I was envious of her wisdom and importance and sought to make myself better than her. I stole the diadem and fled to Albania. No one knew what I did and my mother, ashamed at what happened, hid the fact until her death. On her death bed she wished to see me one last time and so sent a young man whose love I had rejected after me.
"I hid the diadem in a tree and tried to stay away from him but he still managed to find me. When I refused to return here for my mother he tried to persuade me with his love for me. I spurned his advance yet again and in a fit of rage he drew his dagger and stabbed me." At this point she paused and shifted her robe, showing Harry what could only be a blood stain over her heart. "The Baron always was a passionate man and easily got caught up in the moment. When he realized what he'd done, he stabbed himself to death in grief."
"Wait," Harry interrupted her. He knew that now wasn't the best time for this but his curiosity was piqued. "When you say Baron, do you mean the Bloody Baron?"
"Yes, he was the one. We both returned to the castle and the diadem was left in the tree in Albania. No one ever found it until he asked me about it. If only I had known."
"You can't blame yourself for this." Harry's voice was firm but kind, reassuring the Lady that he wanted to help her. "I've seen memories of what Voldemort was like in his younger days. He was charming, kind, and manipulative. No one would have ever thought that he would grow up to be what he is today. I can understand how easy it would have been to believe that he wanted to help you, to ease the burden you carry. And I promise to do what he didn't. I'm going to destroy the diadem so that his filth won't be in it anymore."
He left the ghost there and quickly made his way to the seventh floor where he found Hermione and Ron standing outside the Room of Requirement. They admittedly looked suspicious standing there but at that point none of them cared. All that mattered was that they had another Horcrux at the tips of their fingers.
"That is the next Horcrux," Harry announced upon joining them. "I remember where I put it, I just don't remember exactly where it's at. It's nine o'clock now, so do you two wanna do this tonight or wait until tomorrow? It's not going anywhere and one more day won't hurt us but getting it out of the way will be one less to worry about." Ron and Hermione looked at each other and immediately made up their mind.
"We're already here mate," Ron spoke for the both of them. "We could wait until tomorrow to do this but we might as well go on and do it now. It might take a while, fuck we might be in there all damn night, but we all knew there would be sacrifices. Let's go on and get this done so we'll have one less to worry about. Then we can focus on other things." Harry nodded and walked in front of the wall three times, a door appearing after the third time.
The three of them walked in and began searching, with Harry instructing the others to look for a chipped, ugly bust of a warlock with the diadem on top of it. They went off in different directions and rushed through the room. An hour later Harry was becoming frustrated and beginning to lose confidence. He thought he had an idea of where the bust was, and he had walked around that particular area several times, but he still didn't find what he was looking for. Finally he heard Hermione give a triumphant shout and he knew that she found the object of their search. He began his way back to the front of the room to reunite with the other two.
"Here it is," Hermione sang, a light smirk playing at the corners of her mouth. Harry rolled his eyes and went to take the diadem but his girlfriend pulled it out of his grasp. He pulled her in for a kiss and used the opportunity to take the Horcrux, causing her to mockingly pout. "That's not fair, you knew that I'd let my guard down you prat. Oh I found something else while I was there and I think you might want it." She pulled the Half-Blood Prince's Potions book from behind her back and gave it to Harry with a shrug. "It's quite useful and I don't really care too much about you using it now. It's just a mark in the end and the important part is that the notes in here can help us."
Harry shrugged himself and took the book, accepting the peace offering for what it was. Though neither of them had ever brought it up, the incident with that very same book the previous year had caused problems between the two of them that still existed on some scale. Hermione's biggest problem with it, though she would never admit it, was that Harry did better than her in the class. She strived to be the very best at everything she did using nothing more than her own knowledge and it bothered her that Harry did better than her using someone else's notes. When she saw the book it finally occurred to her though that Harry didn't really care about the marks and all that mattered to him was brewing an exceptional potion. There was no reason for him to ignore what were obviously superior instructions to the book and he would readily admit that Hermione was better than him.
"Thank you Mione. I know how hard it must've been for you to give this back. For what it's worth I'm sorry about last year." Hermione quickly waved off his apology.
"It's not really your fault. You tried to tell me about it but I didn't want to pay attention to anything that wasn't in the book. You really shouldn't have tried using spells that you didn't know though. I think that's what bothered me more than anything else." Harry nodded, agreeing with her completely, and started walking out of the room with her and Ron. Back in the hallway, Harry pulled the map back out and signaled that the way back to the Gryffindor common room was clear. The three of them made it back without further incident, where the Head Boy and Girl used the fireplace to Floo back to Grimmauld Place.
Harry stumbled as he came out of the fireplace at Grimmauld Place, only for Hermione to grab him and help him stay on his feet. He thanked her and put the diadem and the book down on the kitchen table before grabbing two butterbeers from the refrigerator. He handed one of the drinks to his girlfriend and sat down at the table himself, staring at the diadem the entire time. Hermione could sense how troubled he felt and sat down beside him, raising her bottle to her lips as she did.
"What's on your mind sweetheart? I know that something's bothering you so there's no point in trying to deny it."
"I wasn't going to but it's no real big deal I guess. I just don't like that we have to destroy relics of the Founders in order to defeat Voldmort. I know there's nothing else we can do, since Dumbledore told us the Horcruxes have to be damaged beyond magical repair, but I still don't like it. We're destroying part of Hogwarts' history and I hate that Voldemort cared that little about someplace that supposedly meant so much to him. It's just another example of how little he cares about anyone other than himself. As long as he's immortal, or as close to immortal as possible at least, no one else matters.
"I hate having to find these things too. I wish we could just fight him without having to worry about anything else, just us and the Death Eaters, me against him. It just goes to show how much of a coward he is. He's so afraid of death that he puts forth more effort into becoming immortal than he does into taking over. That's what the Death Eaters are for." Hermione started rubbing his back in an attempt to console him.
"I know honey, I hate it too, but there's not much else we can do. We both know that Voldemort's nothing but a coward but if we want to defeat him for good we need to destroy these Horcruxes. I wish there was another way but we both know that there isn't. We have to defeat him Harry, and the only way to defeat him is to destroy these awful things." Harry nodded, still without looking at her. "Do you want me to destroy it?"
"No that's alright Mione, I'll do it. I hate it so much, which is why I have to be the one destroy this one. I know it doesn't make much sense but I just can't bear to let anyone else do this. I can't let my hesitation force someone else's hand."
He rose from the table with the precious diadem and walked out of the room as Hermione followed him with her eyes. She understood exactly what he meant and it made perfect sense to her. In a way he was trying to deaden himself to the idea of having to destroy yet another artifact of one of the Hogwarts Founders. Even more than that though he was trying to prove to himself that, when the time came, he could do something he didn't want to. His last sentence was about more than just his hesitation with the Horcrux. They both knew that if he hesitated during his inevitable final battle with Voldemort that it would undoubtedly cost another innocent life. Harry was doing what he could now to prevent that hesitation when it was vital.
She couldn't help but sympathize with her boyfriend. She knew the pain he was feeling and so desperately wanted to take it away. Unfortunately she knew that nothing would really take it away. She could always take it off his mind with sex but that would only postpone it at the most. This was something that Harry would have to get through on his own but she would be there for him every step of the way. She couldn't help but wish that there was someone else that could be there for him though. Obviously Ron would be but he wasn't available anymore tonight and Harry needed someone now.
Hermione continued wracking her brain as she stared at the ring on her finger when an idea suddenly hit her. She focused her gaze on the Resurrection Stone and mulled the idea over in her brain. She was incredibly nervous, there was no doubt about that and she wasn't sure how it would work out. In the end though she decided that Harry's needs at the moment were more important than her hesitations and if she was right, it would be one of the best things she could ever do for him.
Harry was on the third floor of the house, holding Gryffindor's sword and staring at the diadem he had placed on the floor. He knew that if he didn't destroy this foul thing that Voldemort would never be defeated but he had a hard time bringing himself to do so. The very idea of it left a bitter taste in his mouth and he hated the notion. Hogwarts was his home, his home, and the very idea of doing something like this to the Founders wasn't an easy pill to swallow. He suddenly felt dirty as he continued to stare at the elaborate piece of jewelry.
For the first time in his life he desperately wished he could cast the Killing Curse. After all Dumbledore himself said that he would have be killed in order to neutralize the Horcrux in his head. Harry discarded the idea as quickly as he thought it though. The Horcrux had to be damaged beyond magical repair. That meant death for him, as nothing could truly raise the dead, but the Killing Curse wouldn't work on an inanimate object. The only means was to use the sword to destroy the beautiful work of art in front of him.
Harry steeled himself and raised the sword high above his head. The Horcrux within the diadem seemed to know its time was up and the object began viciously vibrating, almost as if it was going to jump up and attack Harry. He watched it, expecting it to leap at him any time and knowing he had only one option. Minutes passed and Harry continued to stand there with the sword over his head while the diadem continued vibrating. After what seemed like an eternity he finally had the resolve to bring the weapon down on the Horcrux. When it hit a shrill scream pierced the silence of the house and a ghostly figure rose from what remained of the diadem, not unlike what had happened when Ron destroyed the locket.
Still utterly disgusted with himself, Harry picked up the warped object, the diadem of arguably the most intelligent Witch to ever be at Hogwarts, and made his way back downstairs. Looking back on it he really had no idea why he had chosen the third floor to carry this out. Maybe he wanted to give himself time to mentally prepare for it or maybe he wanted to make sure this really was the only way. Whatever the reason it didn't matter anymore. The Horcrux was destroyed, Harry felt terrible, and Voldemort was one step closer to finally being mortal again. Perhaps this was Voldemort's plan all along, Harry scathingly thought. Perhaps he wanted to make whoever tried to destroy the Horcruxes so demoralized that they had no fight left in them in the end.
That was a stupid thought to have though. Voldemort believed himself to be superior, that few others knew about Horcruxes, and he alone knew about his Horcruxes. It was a belief that would ultimately be his undoing, which admittedly did provide Harry with a small amount of comfort. At least he knew that his actions, though still incredibly vile in his mind, served some purpose. His thoughts were suddenly interrupted upon hearing voices in the kitchen, voices that didn't belong to Hermione. He didn't hear anyone else come in, and he knew that Grimmauld Place was safe from those who didn't know the Secret, so he couldn't help but wonder who it was, not to mention how long he'd actually been up on the third floor. Though he knew they were safe, otherwise Hermione wouldn't simply be waiting on him, he kept a firm grip on the wand at his side as he crept along the hall. The sight that greeted him in the kitchen was honestly probably the last one he ever expected to see.
"Yeah he's on the third floor destroying one of the Horcruxes Mrs. Potter. I expect him to be down any minute-oh! Hey sweetheart. I thought this might help you feel a little better." Harry could only stare in disbelief as he saw his parents and Sirius standing around the table Hermione was still sitting at. Tears welled up in his eyes but he brushed them away.
"How-the Stone!" The look on Harry's face changed from disbelief to one of horror in a matter of seconds. "Mione what about the story? The woman was beyond upset at being torn from her resting place. I don't want to be happy if it means that they're depressed." Hermione smiled despite the circumstance. Harry was always thinking about others and putting himself last. This was one time though that both she and her parents agreed he needed to put himself first.
"Don't worry Harry. The woman in that story was brought here against her will and kept around for the man's own selfish desires. I'm not that selfish and I know you aren't either."
"We want to be here sweetheart," Lily spoke up before Hermione could go any further. "We weren't upset about being brought here in the first place and when your lovely girlfriend explained to us what you're going through we wanted to stay for a while and help you."
"We're proud of you son," James told Harry, who was beginning to well up again. "Despite everything you've been through you still give without any thought of reward and you're willing to do the hard things no one else is. You're the man we hoped you'd turn out to be and we couldn't ask for a better son."
"Yeah it's nice to see you've been keeping things going down here since I've been gone," Sirius added, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth. "I thought things would go to hell without me to keep everyone serious and focused." Harry and Hermione both snorted while James laughed and Lily gave them both a humorous look. "And it's good to see that you and Hermione are finally together. Damn it if I was still alive Tonks would owe me two Galleons. Fuck!"
"Language!" Lily told him. "Honestly I don't know how these two ever put up with you Sirius."
"Well it wasn't that fucking hard Mum," Harry said as he sat down, apparently accepting that the three of them were happy with being there for the time being. He sat the remains of the diadem and the sword on the table while Lily looked at him incredibly. When Hermione didn't say anything, the older woman turned her gaze to her instead.
"You don't mind him saying that Hermione? Based on what I know about you, I find it difficult to believe that you'd condone that kind of language." Hermione giggled and laced her fingers with Harry's.
"Truth be told being with Harry has changed me quite a bit. I'm a lot more calm now. Honestly I would say I'm worse than he is about language. Ron still has both of us beat though I think." Harry nodded and Hermione took the opportunity to point out the elephant in the room. "So it's done then?" She jerked her head towards the diadem, though it wasn't necessary.
"Unfortunately," Harry sighed. "I still wish there was another way to get rid of the Horcrux without completely destroying the container. It's a disgrace to the Founders' memories."
"I understand how you feel son," James piped up. "We're often called upon to do things we don't like but what defines us isn't that we do these things, it's how we handle them. You're taking this harder than most because Hogwarts means more to you than most but the most important thing is that you care. You get no pleasure from doing this and you realize the implications, both good and bad, behind destroying these objects. It shows that you understand that these objects belong to more than just you."
"Thanks Dad," Harry replied with only a touch of sadness to his voice. It surprised them all that he had referred to James as his father so easily. It was in that moment that Harry truly realized that his parents and Sirius were in the room with him and he instantly felt better than he ever had. Even though he knew that they weren't his actual parents, merely the memory of them, it was more than he ever hoped for in his life. For a short time, his family was with him. Lily could see the emotion in her son's eyes and decided to capitalize on it.
"So tell me how you met Hermione sweetheart." Harry looked at Hermione and smiled thinking about that day.
"She came into my compartment on the way to Hogwarts for the first time, asking if we'd seen a toad. We didn't become friends until a couple months later though. On Halloween there was a troll in the school and Ron and I went to save her. I might've ended up being held upside down while Ron actually saved her."
"You're the one who really risked your neck though," Hermione said as she gave his hand a gentle squeeze. He favored her with a small smile as thanks and the adults used the opportunity to press the teens even further about their relationship. The rest of the night was spent on casual conversations, embarrassing stories, humor, and a general family atmosphere. It was, by far, the best night Harry had ever had in his entire life.
