Harry, Ron, Seamus and Neville lay on hard wooden benches, Hermione
sat alone in a far corner of the tent. "Do you think it's right," she said
suddenly. "Making the kids go through what we went through?"
"You've already lost your children Hermione." Neville said gently.
"I know, that's my point. They've already lost four of their friends, there's three of them left. What do you think they'll do if they lose someone else."
"They won't lose someone else."
"What a ridiculous thing to say-"
"Listen to your husband Hermione. He's right."
"Ron isn't my husband." Hermione said angrily. "And do you think we should be putting them throught this? Look what it did to us? Look what it did to my babies."
Ron sat up and put his arm around Hermione's shoulders but she shrugged him off and walfed to the tent door. Ron followed. "Why do I have the feeling that we're doing something terrible and cruel?"
"Because we are." Ron said. "We're thinking about not giving them the option to fight for their friends."
"But look at us, do we want our children to turn out like us?"
"What would you have done if your parents had told you to go off to some foreign school, instead of fighting for your friends?"
"I would have done it anyway." Hermione said quietly.
"And so would I. Let them fight Hermione. They've lost so much, we've lost so much."
"I always wanted to be part of your family." Hermione said suddenly when they returned to the others. "I wanted to be one of the Weasleys, and live in that splendid house in Ottery St. Catchpole, and have all those brothers and-"
"Just enough money to squeeze by. It's funny when you think of it now, but it was so hard then, especially with you and Harry as best friends. I wanted to be Harry so bad. I wanted to have money and power and a last name the meant something besides poor."
Harry shook his head. "Everyone wanted to be me except for me. For my part, I wanted to be Seamus. Don't let it get to your head old man, but you were everything I ever wanted to be. You were funny, smart, good-looking, you did what you wanted and didn't care what other people thought of you."
Seamus smiled. "If you spend too much time caring what other people think of you, you'll become what they think of you."
"What do you mean?"
"People think we're bad parents, letting our kids fight this, and if we sit for too long thinking about it, we'll do something that will make us bad parents. And in this case it would be taking them off that field." He sat back and looked at them all. "We all spent the first part of our lives wanting to be someone else. Are we going to spend the next part being what someone else wants?"
!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~ !
Lily sat on a rock, looking out over the battle field, formerly Hogwarts school grounds. The rock that she sat on was where the final battle between her father and Voldemort had been fought. It would not be where her battle with Marit would be fought. This was a sacred place for her, she waited here every day until Daniel finished his shift, a half an hour after her. They sat and talked for half an hour until Caroline came and then the three of them walked to their parents tent to eat, then they went to their own and slept, theirs was the smallest tent, with only three narrow cots. They followed this pattern every day without fail. They had been fighting for almost two years now. Lily, Daniel and Caroline would be turning fifteen in the coming months. There would be no party.
"Hey Danny," Lily said as Daniel came up the hill to where Lily sat. "How was todays haul?"
Daniel kissed her on the cheek and sat down. "War is a funny thing-"
"Uh oh."
"No I'm serious. It was so funny, we were down there by the Whomping Willow and these Darky's kept trying to get it to attack us and this car, I swear to god, kept coming and running them over. It was so funny! And then remember Cornelius Fudge? He's like a hundred years old and he used to be Minister for Magic? Well he was there too, and he was cursing people left, right and centre, and this car drives up beside him and opens its doors and Fudge goes flying, straight out into the lake!"
Lily laughed and Daniel continued. "There was this Darky, he was cornered by all these people and he didn't have his wand, so Uncle George threw him one, I couldn't believe it, he was helping this guy, but as soon as he tried to use the wand, it turned into a little pig and bit him on the ear. It was hilarious, I almost started laughing." Lily giggled again, and they sat waiting for Caroline to come up the hill. Eventually she did, pushing stray hair from her eyes, she grinned up at them.
"Guess what day it is." She said.
"The anniversary of the first day Liam O'Leary sort of smiled at you although it could have been gas?"
"Ha ha Daniel. No, on this day, seventeen years ago, Voldemort was killed in this exact spot, and if you guys don't hurry up, you'll be swarmed by pilgrims." They got up and went to their parents tent, laughing and grinning.
"Hey dad! Did you know it was seventeen years ago today that you killed Voldemort?"
"I'm more concerned with the fact that on this day, this year I dislocated my shoulder."
"What a whiner." Hermione said, grabbing his arm, twisting it and pushing it back into the socket.
"OW! What the hell was THAT for?"
"I was putting your bloody arm back in place."
"It's bloody? Oh no! What happened-"
"It's an expression Harry." Seamus said.
"Oh yeah. Right. An expression. I knew that."
"Are you going to go to that rock later?"
"Why?"
"Well because it's the anniversary of you killing Voldemort and all..."
Harry shook his head. "I was there when it counted. Going back isn't going to change anything. As long as you're there when it counts."
"You've already lost your children Hermione." Neville said gently.
"I know, that's my point. They've already lost four of their friends, there's three of them left. What do you think they'll do if they lose someone else."
"They won't lose someone else."
"What a ridiculous thing to say-"
"Listen to your husband Hermione. He's right."
"Ron isn't my husband." Hermione said angrily. "And do you think we should be putting them throught this? Look what it did to us? Look what it did to my babies."
Ron sat up and put his arm around Hermione's shoulders but she shrugged him off and walfed to the tent door. Ron followed. "Why do I have the feeling that we're doing something terrible and cruel?"
"Because we are." Ron said. "We're thinking about not giving them the option to fight for their friends."
"But look at us, do we want our children to turn out like us?"
"What would you have done if your parents had told you to go off to some foreign school, instead of fighting for your friends?"
"I would have done it anyway." Hermione said quietly.
"And so would I. Let them fight Hermione. They've lost so much, we've lost so much."
"I always wanted to be part of your family." Hermione said suddenly when they returned to the others. "I wanted to be one of the Weasleys, and live in that splendid house in Ottery St. Catchpole, and have all those brothers and-"
"Just enough money to squeeze by. It's funny when you think of it now, but it was so hard then, especially with you and Harry as best friends. I wanted to be Harry so bad. I wanted to have money and power and a last name the meant something besides poor."
Harry shook his head. "Everyone wanted to be me except for me. For my part, I wanted to be Seamus. Don't let it get to your head old man, but you were everything I ever wanted to be. You were funny, smart, good-looking, you did what you wanted and didn't care what other people thought of you."
Seamus smiled. "If you spend too much time caring what other people think of you, you'll become what they think of you."
"What do you mean?"
"People think we're bad parents, letting our kids fight this, and if we sit for too long thinking about it, we'll do something that will make us bad parents. And in this case it would be taking them off that field." He sat back and looked at them all. "We all spent the first part of our lives wanting to be someone else. Are we going to spend the next part being what someone else wants?"
!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~ !
Lily sat on a rock, looking out over the battle field, formerly Hogwarts school grounds. The rock that she sat on was where the final battle between her father and Voldemort had been fought. It would not be where her battle with Marit would be fought. This was a sacred place for her, she waited here every day until Daniel finished his shift, a half an hour after her. They sat and talked for half an hour until Caroline came and then the three of them walked to their parents tent to eat, then they went to their own and slept, theirs was the smallest tent, with only three narrow cots. They followed this pattern every day without fail. They had been fighting for almost two years now. Lily, Daniel and Caroline would be turning fifteen in the coming months. There would be no party.
"Hey Danny," Lily said as Daniel came up the hill to where Lily sat. "How was todays haul?"
Daniel kissed her on the cheek and sat down. "War is a funny thing-"
"Uh oh."
"No I'm serious. It was so funny, we were down there by the Whomping Willow and these Darky's kept trying to get it to attack us and this car, I swear to god, kept coming and running them over. It was so funny! And then remember Cornelius Fudge? He's like a hundred years old and he used to be Minister for Magic? Well he was there too, and he was cursing people left, right and centre, and this car drives up beside him and opens its doors and Fudge goes flying, straight out into the lake!"
Lily laughed and Daniel continued. "There was this Darky, he was cornered by all these people and he didn't have his wand, so Uncle George threw him one, I couldn't believe it, he was helping this guy, but as soon as he tried to use the wand, it turned into a little pig and bit him on the ear. It was hilarious, I almost started laughing." Lily giggled again, and they sat waiting for Caroline to come up the hill. Eventually she did, pushing stray hair from her eyes, she grinned up at them.
"Guess what day it is." She said.
"The anniversary of the first day Liam O'Leary sort of smiled at you although it could have been gas?"
"Ha ha Daniel. No, on this day, seventeen years ago, Voldemort was killed in this exact spot, and if you guys don't hurry up, you'll be swarmed by pilgrims." They got up and went to their parents tent, laughing and grinning.
"Hey dad! Did you know it was seventeen years ago today that you killed Voldemort?"
"I'm more concerned with the fact that on this day, this year I dislocated my shoulder."
"What a whiner." Hermione said, grabbing his arm, twisting it and pushing it back into the socket.
"OW! What the hell was THAT for?"
"I was putting your bloody arm back in place."
"It's bloody? Oh no! What happened-"
"It's an expression Harry." Seamus said.
"Oh yeah. Right. An expression. I knew that."
"Are you going to go to that rock later?"
"Why?"
"Well because it's the anniversary of you killing Voldemort and all..."
Harry shook his head. "I was there when it counted. Going back isn't going to change anything. As long as you're there when it counts."