Pale
Sinister Spiders
Harry stood at the large oak doors of Hogwarts, war and destruction all around him. There were dead bodies strew liberally over the floor, and hundreds of wizards dueling, hoping to see an end to the war. Ginny placed her hand in his and he turned to face her.
"I am ready." She whispered, voice strong and unfaltering. He blinked back the tears as she handed him her wand.
"Ginny, I can't do this." He hissed, squeezing her hand. He refused to do it.
"Harry, please. We have no choice." She said, a smile spreading across her face. Damn you, Harry thought, how can you smile?
"Ginny. We can't do this. I love you." Harry told her, he pulled her into a hug, she looked up into his eyes. The sound of fighting blasting through their ears, the smell of death wafting into their noses.
"I love you too." She whispered before she kissed him softly. "I wont let any more people die Harry. I want to be the last." Harry shook his head.
Harry walked down the staircase and into the Gryffindor common room. He saw Ginny sitting by the fire, looking as though she was drowning in her memories. He walked over to her slowly. Dreading the conversation he knew they had to have.
"Ginny. Have given some thought to what we talked about?" He asked softly, she could tell he was scared. She looked into his eye before speaking with a confidence she did not know she had.
"I gave him my soul," She told him, he looked away "And he gave me his." Harry turned back to her and looked at her in despair.
"I am a horcrux." She stated. A lone tear rolled down her cheek. Harry's heart shattered, he sat down on the lounge and put his head in his hand, knowing what he had to do.
"Ginny, I cannot do this to you. You have done nothing wrong." Harry whispered furiously, Ginny shook her head slowly.
"This is the only way Harry." She told him, pressing his wand into his hand firmly. He shook his head.
"No." He said defiantly, glaring at his girlfriend.
"We will meet again." She told him, caressing his face. He looked at her, tears escaping his eyes. "Please Harry, do it." Ginny looked up into his eyes and he took a step away from her slowly, unwilling to fulfill her request. He raised his wand.
"I am sorry Ginny." He whispered, she smiled bravely. "Avada Kedavra." He said, a green stream of light shot out of his wand and coursed through Ginny's body. A split second later she fell to the floor, lifeless. Harry fell to the ground and wrapped his arms around her body. Just as he realized that he would never hear her voice again, he heard cold cruel laughter from behind him. He stood up and turned around slowly, hate blazing through his eyes.
The world seems not the same,
Though I know nothing has changed.
It's all my state of mind.
I can't leave it all behind.
I have to stand up to be stronger.
Harry turned, coming face to face with Voldemort. The snake-like fiend laughing cruelly. Harry Glared at him with all of the hatred he had ever known in his life. His mind flashed over the image of Ginny falling to the ground, dead from a spell he cast on her. He fought back tears as he remembered all of the good times they had together, the love that they shared. Harry knew that no one that he loved would escape from this battle unscathed. No one.
"Harry Potter." Voldemort hissed, Harry's raged continued to boil ferociously. "So, this is where it shall end. Standing on the threshold of Hogwarts, with all the people you ever loved dead. Your poor girlfriend slain by your very own hand. Tell me Harry, how does it feel to be a murderer?" Voldemort said, Harry tried to focus, but all he could think about was Ginny lying dead behind him and his broken heart aching for release.
"You should know." Harry said, Voldemort laughed again.
"You didn't have to kill Ginny you know." He said, Harry turned away from him, his new felt loneliness too overwhelming.
"What else could I have done?" Harry growled.
"You could of let her live, and sacrificed yourself." He said, now it was Harry's turn to laugh.
"You are ill-advised Voldemort. I know that your soul plagued her body. She was a horcrux. She did not want any more people to die on her account." The words stung Harry's heart as they left his mouth. It was too much pain for him to bear. He was almost too preoccupied with his memories to talk, even to breath.
"Yet I am still here." Voldemort yelled.
"You are weak." Harry told him, Voldemort raised his scar-like eyebrows.
"Ginny, there is no way that I am going to kill you." Harry said, tone final, Ginny held his hand and looked into his eyes.
"There is no other way. Harry, you have spent a year trying to find the final horcrux, and here I am. Please, there are innocent people dying because I am alive." She whispered, a tear rolling down her smooth cheek. She hugged him.
"But I love you." He whispered, Ginny looked up at him.
"I know Harry, I love you too. But there are some things that just have to happen."
"You are all I have left." Harry whispered, the loneliness seeped into his skin. He knew she had to die, but he did not want her to. He wished that he could spare her life, he did not care who was sacrificed by her being alive, he wanted her.
"Harry. If you don't do it I will." She told him, his inside turned to stone, all emotions fled his body for a few short moments.
"Fine." He said, voice even "but I wont do it until it is absolutely necessary."
I have to break free
From the thoughts in my mind.
Use the time that I have,
I can't say goodbye have to make it right.
Have to fight, cause I know
In the end it's worthwhile,
That the pain I feel slowly fades away.
It will be alright
Harry looked at Voldemort. He was weak, it was plain to the eye. Harry wondered whether his seventeen years of life amounted to this. Was that what he was created for? Is this his destiny. Did someone plan for everyone he ever cared for to be sacrificed for a so-called 'greater good'? The faces of his loved ones flashed through his mind, his father, his mother, Sirius, Dumbledore, Ron, Molly Weasley and then Ginny. Why did so many innocent people have to die? Why did he have to outlive them all?
Harry and Ginny sat in the lounge room of Grimmauld place on the lounge, Harry's arms around her as she laid against his chest. He kissed her forehead gently.
"I am nothing without you." He told her, she smiled and shook her head.
"Nonsense Harry. You will find someone to love, you will have a family and you will die old and in your sleep. Once this war is over you will have everything you have ever dreamed about." She told him, he kissed her again.
"I don't want someone else Ginny. I want you. I need you." Ginny smiled.
"You cant have me Harry, I am sorry. I was stupid to open that diary, I should have known better." She said somewhat sadly, Harry grew angry.
"You were eleven Ginny! Eleven! How were you to know? I will kill Voldemort Ginny, I will make him pay for what he did to you." Harry growled.
"When the time comes Harry, I want you to forget about me. I want you to think only of Lord Voldemort dying, by your hand. You will need all of the concentration you can muster at the final battle." She whispered, nuzzling her head into his chest for comfort.
I know, I should realize
Time is precious, it is worthwhile.
Despite how I feel inside,
Have to trust it will be alright
Have to stand up to be stronger.
Harry held his wand up to Voldemort, who mirrored his actions. He had to stop thinking about Ginny. He had to use the time he had, he had to end this war. His eyes locked with Voldemort and a voice slithered through his mind.
"I will kill you just like I killed everybody you ever loved." Harry took a deep breath.
"I look forward to it." Harry yelled before he let spells fly from his wand tip. "Avada Kedavra" He yelled, for the second time in one night the foul green stream stop from his wand.
"Orianis" Voldemort shouted, a vast orange shimmer appeared infront of him and deflected the curse, it redirected to the nearest person, killing them innocently. Harry tried to ignore the pain he felt tearing at his heart, another innocent person killed at his expense.
"You were never loved Tom." Harry yelled, Voldemort glared at him with eyes of acid. "That is why you took advantage of Ginny. You want to take what is good in this world and destroy it. I wont let you do it." He said, a yellow orb flew out of Voldemort's wand and hit Harry in the side, a large chunk of his skin was ripped off, blood spilling freely, he fell to his knees. He had to pay attention, forget about everything.
"As you were saying Potter?" Voldemort laughed, Harry took a breath in and cleared his mind, Harry struggled to his feet, another yellow orb hit him, this time in the shoulder, Voldemort cackled maniacally. Harry cleared his mind again. "Stay where you are and die with dignity." Voldemort commanded, Harry looked up into his cruel eyes and Voldemort raised his wand for the final times.
"Avada Kedavra." The words seemed slow to Harry's ears, they slurred out, letters joining with other letter, it was nigh impossible to understand. Harry blinked as a jet of green headed for him slowly, he raised his own wand.
"Missilict Refunction." He breathed, barely able to talk from loss of blood. Voldemort laughed when nothing happy, but it was Harry who would have the last laugh.
"When I die will you be waiting for me?" Harry asked.
"I would wait an eternity for you." Ginny replied.
When Voldemort's curse reached where Harry's wand had been it stopped dead in its track and hovered for a moment before pelting back towards Voldemort, in a blink of an eye the serpentine man fell to the ground, a vast green light erupting from his body. The people on the lawn of a decrepit Hogwarts stopped as the light reached for the heaven. There was a loud yell and then there was no more. Harry fell back to the ground, head on the cold stone step. A searing pain ran through his body and his eyes shut, his scar burnt with the heat of a thousand suns. His breath became slow and ragged, time passed slowly as he waited, wishing for the end to come.
Harry tried desperately to open his eyes a tiny bit. In front him he saw the face of the woman he loved, her blazing red hair transparent, her eyes deep and filled with love, she reached a hand out to him and through his pain he raised his own and clasped it.
Oh, this night is too long
I have no strength to go on.
No more pain, I am floating away.
Through the mist I see the face
Of an angel, who calls my name.
I remember you're the reason I have to stay.
A/N: The lyrics in this chapter are from the touching song "Pale" by Within Temptation. I hoped you enjoyed this chapter, and that I did justice to the last moments of Harry's life.
Oh, and just a random note, this story was going to be a one-shot, but I figured that I could use this song to conclude the story… There isn't anything else I can do with it now, but the whole idea that Ginny is a horcrux really goes along with my theories about the next Harry Potter book!
Thanks for the reviews!
Peace,
Sinister Spiders