Chapter 4

"Are you sure you want to do this Harry?" asked Ginny, shading her eyes from the late summer sun.

"Yes, I'll meet you back here in a hour."

"Ok, see you later then," Ginny got back into the car and drove off. Harry watched until she was out of sight then turned and walked along down the path, ears filled with the sleepy sounds of summer.

He stopped when he reached the graves. Four them, neatly aligned in a row: James Potter, Lily Potter, Sirius Black and Remus Lupin. A small oak tree grew behind the headstones; it was around two meters high and someone had placed a plaque at its base. The inscription read:

For those who have fallen, may they rest in peace.

A note at the bottom certified that it had been commissioned by Remus Lupin some eighteen years previously.

Harry knelt down and laid a wreath of flowers on the third grave tracing the gold lettering with one finger.

Sirius Black, beloved friend and godfather. May rest at last.

Harry heard a noise behind him and looked down to his left to see a small grey rat sitting by his feet.

"Hello Peter," he said nonchalantly, looking back at the graves and standing up.

A few moments later Peter appeared beside him, his initially pudgy face now bearing the marks of a lifetime's service under the rule of Voldemort. There were dark lines under his small black eyes and his yellow skin was stretched taut over his cheekbones given him a decidedly gaunt appearance. In some ways it was an improvement.

He flinched as Harry said, "What brings you here?"

Peter stared up at him from his forever hunched stance as Harry turned to face him.

"I..." he faltered, something about Harry had changed since Peter had last seen him. He looked the same, his messy black hair still stuck up in all directions emphasizing his vivid emerald eyes, but he seemed a lot taller, more confident and much, much more powerful.

Harry raised an eyebrow expectantly and Peter was reminded forcefully of Voldemort.

"I, they were my friends."

"'Were' being the operative word," muttered Harry under his breath.

"I didn't want to betray them you know. It wasn't as though I planned to do it," shrilled Peter, "But-"

"Voldemort forced you to I know. I've heard it all before," cut in Harry, gazing at the graves.

So many unnecessary deaths, all his doing. He, Harry had caused them, but he hadn't meant to, he hadn't had a choice. It was all the fault of some stupid bloody prophecy. That was what it all came down to ultimately. Even Peter was not entirely to blame; if there hadn't been a prophecy, his parents wouldn't have gone into hiding and Peter wouldn't have become and Death Eater and...

And things would have been different. Maybe. Fate, destiny, circumstance; maybe things would have turned out differently and maybe they wouldn't have, but this was the way things had happened and there was no changing that. And now there was only one last matter to be dealt with before he could finally put the past where it belonged.

"You know, Sirius and Remus wanted you dead Peter. In the Shrieking Shack, remember? But I stopped them killing you, I saved your life and then you repaid me by bringing about Voldemort's return."

"I had no cho-"

"There's always a choice Peter," yelled Harry, glaring at the small man cowering beside him. "But you chose the easy way out. Yes Peter, it was the easy way, compared to the other option at any rate," he said quietly seeing the man start to protest, "And you caused hundreds of deaths because of that decision including those of Sirius and Remus; so much for everlasting friendship. Personally I don't know how you've made it this far, but you have which is more than they did." Harry paused, glowering at the ground, there had been too many deaths, far too many. How much damage could one more do?

"Are you going to kill me?" asked Peter softly staring at the ground.

Harry continued staring at the grass for a while then said levelly, "Why did you come here today?"

"It's the anniversary of Sirius' death," said Peter in a subdued voice.

"Right. Didn't you realise I'd come here too?"

"Yes." There was a pause then, "I was waiting for you."

Harry smiled grimly, he'd suspected as much. "Why?"

"I don't know," said Peter wretchedly, "I just, I just can't stand hiding anymore, I've been doing it for eighteen bloody years!"

"It was your own choice." Harry looked into Peter's haunted eyes and asked softly, "Was it worth it?"

Peter stared up at him fearfully, "Worth what?"

"Was it worth it? All the lying, all the deceit? Would you do it again if it meant avoiding Azkaban? Was it worth it Peter?"

Peter was shaking now; he tore his eyes away from Harry's gaze and looked away. Was it worth it? No, it had never been worth it. He'd never been worth it.

Harry looked down at the broken man in front of him and shook his head; he'd got the answer he'd been looking for. It was funny, if Peter had said yes, if he'd have been prepared to go through it all again then maybe, just maybe Harry would have been able to conjure up a trace of respect for him, but now there was no chance. Not a hope in hell. Which was where Peter was right now, his own personal hell.

He'd come today because he'd been looking for a way out; he'd probably welcome death even after working so hard to elude it all these years. He'd finally realised that there was something far more terrifying than dying; it was a pity it had taken him so long.

"Goodbye Peter," said Harry calmly, turning away from him and walking back along the path.

"Wait! Where are you going?"

"Home."

Peter ran after him and grabbed his sleeve.

"What about me?"

"What about you? That's your problem Peter, you're always thinking of yourself, never of anyone else," said Harry wrenching his arm out of Peter's grip. "And you know, if you could look me in the eye and say that you'd do it all again, I would have killed you. I'd have given you your way out. But you can't, so I can't kill you; you're already dead and one day, you'll realise that."

"Harry please-"

"Get out of my sight and for goodness sake get yourself some dignity." Harry looked scornfully down and Peter's bowed form, "You're always saying that no one ever respected you but you never asked why did you? It's rather ironic actually, that in all the hours of self centered grumbling, you never managed to grasp the concept that the problem was that you didn't respect yourself."

Harry shook his head in disgust and strode away from the pathetic excuse for a human being that was Peter. One day he'd release Peter from the torture chamber that he'd created for himself, but not today. Not on the day that Sirius had died, too much blood had been spilt because of the miserable piece of vermin and Harry wasn't yet ready to let him forget that.

The sound of car wheels on gravel reached his ears and he looked up to see a blue car approaching. It ground to a halt as he stood up and Ginny got out of it.

"You all right?" she asked brushing her windswept red hair out of her eyes so that she could see him properly.

"Yeah, just sorting a few things out."

"So everything's ok now then?"

"In a manner of speaking, just one more thing that needs to be done today though," he said, leaning on the roof of the car and gazing at her across it.

"And what's that?" she asked grinning at him impishly.

Harry paused to take something out of his pocket, it was a box. He walked around the car so that he was next to Ginny and asked softly, "Will you marry me?"

Harry saw her eyes widened in shock, then she laughed, the sound ringing out over the silent grounds.

"Yes."

He took the ring from its box, slid it onto her finger and kissed her hand. She put her arms round his neck and as he kissed her and the sun set in a fiery blaze of colours, he saw whole of his life stretched out before him and it was his to do with as he liked. He'd fulfilled the prophecy, he'd done what was expected of him, now it was time for him to start living the life that others had laid down their lives to ensure he got.

Harry and Ginny broke apart as the last ray of sunlight slipped below the horizon. They had a lifetime to be together now and to Harry, it seemed like an eternity. He held Ginny to him as they watched colours faded from the sky and a light breeze ruffled his black hair. He wanted to remember this moment forever, capture it in his minds eye and keep it with him always. He heard Ginny sigh and looked down into her warm brown eyes questioningly.

She smiled up at him, "I'm just so happy," she said resting her head on his shoulder.

"So am I," he whispered softly, "So am I." And for the first time in three years, he meant it.

And Peter? He could wait, wait for the day when Harry finally caught up with him and brought his miserable life to an end. It might be tomorrow, or next week, or next year and the only thing he could be sure of was that the day was coming, it had always been coming. Peter would have the rest of his life to think about that.

Forever was a long time to wait for revenge but the time spent anticipating it would an eternity hell in itself.