"What are you doing? We're supposed to be leaving?"
His older brother grins at him. "I'm gonna fight, Den," Colin says proudly. "I'm going back."
"But you aren't seventeen!"
Dennis' reminder falls upon deaf ears. Colin has made up his mind, and there's no talking him out of it now.
Kingsley Shacklebolt stands before him, and Dennis wants to run away. He knows that look too well. His father wore it when he told Dennis and Colin that their mother was dead.
If runs now, he doesn't have to hear the news. He can escape, and everything will be okay. It'll be just like their time on the run, only they've been split up.
"Dennis Creevey," Kingsley says gently.
"I could go with you!" Dennis insists. "Me and you, Col, we could team up! Remember those Snatchers outside of Dublin?"
His brother shakes his head, and Dennis deflates slightly.
They're supposed to be inseparable, always together. Even the few brief years when Colin was at Hogwarts without him was too much.
"You can't, Dennis. Someone has to go home, just in case…"
Colin doesn't finish the sentence. Dennis is grateful. He doesn't want to think about that possible outcome.
Dennis closes his eyes, breathing in deeply. The air sounds shaky as it enters his lungs. It takes several moments for him to realize that it's because his body is trembling.
"Your brother was a hero," Kingsley says.
"Dad will be happy when we come home," Dennis says.
Colin smiles and ruffles his little brother's hair. "I bet he'll let us stay up until midnight watching telly," he laughs.
"Later than that when he learns that his son played the hero," Dennis insists.
He doesn't want to notice the pain in his brother's eyes. If he sees Colin on the verge of breaking down, Dennis will crumble too.
Dennis wishes he could hate Kingsley. Over the past few hours, he's probably had to say those words to countless people who have lost loved ones in this stupid war. He doesn't mean them. He just says whatever he's supposed to.
But he can hear the genuine emotion in the new Minister for Magic's voice, real pain. He wonders if Kingsley had to see the body. It must have hurt. After all, even at sixteen, Colin was small for his age, as though he was still a child.
"He was always my hero," Dennis whispers.
"You be good, okay?" Colin says, his voice cracking under the weight of his emotions. "Be good. Tell Dad I love him. Show him the pictures I took when we were on the run."
Dennis feels his chest ache. This sounds too much like goodbye, like he's never going to see his brother again. He forces a smile. "You can show him, Colin," he says. "Don't be stupid. You don't need me to do that for you."
Colin removes the camera from around his neck. The gesture, so small and simple, feels like a punch to Dennis' stomach. He leans against the wall, trying to make his lungs work again.
"Just in case, Den," Colin says. "That's all."
Dennis holds the camera in trembling hands. Why does it feel so heavy to him now?
"We've located your father," Kingsley tells him, resting a strong, comforting hand on his shoulder. "If you want me to wait with you until he gets close, I can."
Dennis shakes his head. He's never liked being alone, but he doesn't want company now. He tugs at the strap of the camera around his neck, swallowing dryly. He wishes he could see the photos now. He could go and see Colin's body of course, but that isn't how he wants to remember his brother. Colin was always so happy, so full of life.
"If you need anything, don't hesitate to let me know," Kingsley assures him, and Dennis is surprised to see how hesitant he is before moving along.
"Go on," Colin says. "You'd better leave. You can't be here when it starts, Den. If anything happens to you…"
Dennis wants to argue. He wants to counter him with No, if anything happens to you…
But he doesn't protest. Dennis has grown up so much over the past year. Maybe too much, too fast. He barely needs Colin to guide him anymore. The least he can do is let his brother keep him safe this time.
Dennis hugs his brother. "Come back to me. Promise me."
As he pulls away, Colin shakes his head. "Promises are dangerous during a war, Den."
As Dennis sits on a bench outside the Hog's Head, just a boy with a camera, the tears finally overflow his eyes.
At least Colin didn't promise him.