Harry Potter

And the Grave of the Children

Prologue:

A terrible storm was coming. Ginny knew it before she stepped out of her warm room and ventured across the empty courtyard. Brittle snowflakes swam about the school, coming to land on top of her tiny freckled nose. Her eyes watered. The wind was being ruthless against her back, causing her to stumble with each step. In her hands she clutched the pale pink flowers that she had gathered earlier, silently wishing to be back inside Hogwarts, taking a lazy hot bath or in the common room, playing Wizards Cards with one of her mates. But Ginny knew there would be no card-playing or idle chitchat with friends once she entered Hogwarts once again. Nothing would be that easy anymore, nothing so kind to her now with everything she had ever known gone in the quickest moment. Ginny stopped before an impressive black-iron gate and kicked it with the tip of her boot. It swung open for her with a slight screech and she bustled through, not caring to shut it behind her. She stopped to catch her breath and looked up to peer through the fog that had gathered at her feet. She wished she had brought her wand so she could get a better view through this haze. Yet, she stood there, watching, and she knew it wasn't the blistering winter weather making her feel like a large block of ice had been planted inside her stomach. No, something else was at work still, here in this vast empty space of death. The shadows teased her from the forest, as if something was hidden there and was waiting for her, for this one moment she would be alone. Silently she kneeled down to drop her flowers on the ground and got to work quickly before her mind started to play tricks with her again. She didn't need her wand for this task and rather thought it more meaningful if she did her job by hand, even if it took most of the morning to get it done. One by one, she placed each set of flowers gently on the knoll of earth before her. She shuffled down a few feet and placed another one—and another until a whole row of graves stood dressed before her. Then Ginny gathered another dozen bouquets and continued down the next column and second row.

After what seemed to be several hours, Ginny finally made her way to the last line of mounds, these slightly larger than the rest. At the head of these graves stood three small tombstones with the names of people who were lost, engraved upon them. Ginny cast her eyes away and dared not look at the names or at the towering spire erected just several yards in front of her. Shadows drew close about her. For a brief moment her body trembled as the foul stench of dark magic drew closer to her.

"I thought I would find you here," a voice spoke from her ear.

Ginny who had been preoccupied with the dread that seemed to lie close to this cursed land jumped up and tripped over her own feet. Standing quickly, she dusted off her pants and gave Dumbledore a wry smile.

"Sorry about that, you startled me,' Ginny said.

"Miss Weasley, I think it best next time if you do not go on your own."

Ginny turned as if to walk away but then stopped and looked back at Dumbledore. "You shouldn't worry about what happens to me. No one should."

"But I do," Dumbledore said placing his hand at her shoulder. "And so does your father, he's waiting for you back at the castle."

Ginny grimaced. "I see."

Dumbledore looked pensive as he glanced around him. ""Some things cannot be changed Miss Weasley, I have found that out the hard way. Sometimes it is best to walk away from where you've been and continue on to where you are going. Even if you have to leave loved ones behind"

Ginny nodded and slid her hands into her pocket; she didn't want Dumbledore to see how bothered she was by his words. "I should be going then," she said. And before he could say anything else, she hurried back towards Hogwarts.