When the War is Over: Chapter Nine
(I don't own any copyrights to the Harry Potter Series, or anything to do with it.)
"Please, come in," Mcgonagall gestures, as she leads us into her office. It's obvious she hasn't bothered to get rid of any of Dumbledore's personal effects, and it feels as though he might only have stepped out for a moment, leaving her in charge. The whirling little silver instruments continue their endless motions, and the sorting hat lies still on the table; The only thing that is missing is Phawkes, but Phawkes won't be coming back.
"As I said," she gets right down to business, as usual, "I have quite a lot of information to tell you, so this might take a while. Please, help yourself to some refreshments, and I will attempt to explain this as clearly as I can."
With a wave of her wand, a plate of sandwiches appears in front of us, along with a teapot and three porcelain tea-cups. I only politely sip some tea. "As I'm sure your aware," she begins, "the second prophecy was told by Professor Trelawney to Master Olivander while she was out buying a wand. At first You-Know-Who was only interested in acquiring Master Olivander because of his wand-crafting abilities, but, after hearing of the prophecy, he naturally wanted the two of them close at hand. I am very sure that, by now, You-Know-Who has extracted the second prophecy from Professor Trelawney, and it is only a short while before those involved in the prophecy are found. We know one of those in the prophecy is Potter, but as to his whereabouts, we are still totally in the dark." She glances at me sadly for a moment, and I know why. "I think it is safe to assume that he has been captured by the enemy."
"Actually," Hermione puts her cup down and places her hands in her lap, "we came to ask you about Harry's parents. You see, a woman named Catherine Jones claims that they had some connection with Dumbledore, and I- we," she hesitates, "don't believe that it involves just the known things, such as Dumbledore turning down the job of secret-keeper, or how they were close friends."
"Miss Granger," Mcgonagall sighs, "always so perceptive-- what a gift! And a curse... Yes, they go farther back than you would believe." She stands up and walks over to a silver bowl; From her robes she extracts a tiny bottle and dumps it into the bowl. She turns and beckons us to gather around it. Nervously, we lean over it;
"I would like to show you something very important," Mcgonagall says.
Suddenly I am falling downwards through blackness, only to land suddenly on my feet in an empty corridor, somewhere in Hogwarts. Mcgonagall and the others are waiting for me, and she briskly begins leading us away down the corridor. At the end of the corridor, she stops suddenly; I can hear the sounds of voices growing closer. I open my mouth to say something, but Mcgonagall silences me. Hermione and Ron look confused.
Two people are walking up the hallway, a woman with bright red hair, showing the signs of heavy pregnancy, and a man...who looks like Harry? I gasp, suddenly realizing that these two must be Lilly and James Potter-- Harry's parents! She must be pregnant with Harry! Mcgonagall smiles as she watches me.
"Yes, those are Harry's parents," she says, "they loved one another very much. This was only a few weeks before Harry was born."
"What happened?" I breathe as their backsdissapear around a corner.
Mcgonagall's smile vanishes, and she says, "you'll see."
She leads us up familiar pathways to the head master's office of old. We step into the office, to witness Harry's parents confronting Dumbledore.
"Albus," James's face seems strained, even with that handsome messy black hair, glasses, and bright green eyes, "you wanted us to be here, but what is so important that you'd risk us coming out of hiding?"
Dumbledore seems to consider everyone for a few moments over those half-moon spectales.
"I need you to listen to me," he replies softly, "even though you may not like what I have to say."
"You've never said or done anything to make us dislike you," Lilly smiles. She's beautiful, with long red hair falling down her back, her eyes are gentle, and her voice is kind. "Someday wewe like our son to trust you as much as we do."
"That is precisely what I must speak to you about," Dumbledore replies, "I must be the one to bear troubling news, and I hope you will not think any less of me for it."
"Never," they reply together.
"I was down in the pub the other night, (the details are not important), and I met Professor Trelawney. She foretold of a prophecy. I feel that I must make absolutely clear, that at no time in the future after hearing this, should you go back to Godric Hollow."
Both Lilly and James lean forward expectantly.
"Well?" They ask.
"I believe that your son could possible be destined to defeat an evil wizard...one who will wage war not only on the Wizarding world, but the Muggle world as well. His name is Voldemort. The terrible news I must give you is that in order for your son to grow up and defeat him, the both of you must sacrifice your lives to save him."
"Wha-?" James's mouth is hanging open.
Lilly takes a step back, holding her protruding belly protectively. For the first time, there is fear in her eyes.
"You must be joking--" she breathes, but Dumbledore shakes his head.
"I am going to attempt to save you both; Perhaps we can change the future."
"Albus--" James embraces Lilly and strokes her hair softly as she sobs into his robes. "--Are you sure?"
"I am afraid so," Dumbledore's voice shakes.
"That should be enough," Mcgonagall says as I suddenly feel my body being lifted back through blackness. I land back in her office, tears falling down my cheeks.
"What happened?" I breathe.
"From what I have pieced together, Lilly and James accepted their fates, believing that they had to do it for Harry, and for the rest of the world."
"They knew--" Hermione sobs into Ron's chest, and he kisses her temples and soothes her hair, "they knew-- and they let it happen!"
"This leaves us at a dead end," Ron comments, "we still have no idea where they might have taken Harry, Olivander, and Trelawney."
"I'm sorry I could not be of more help, but perhaps this memory will give you some insight," Mcgonagall replies.
We say goodbye to Hagrid on our way out, with the sun setting in a fierce red ball on the horizon.
At headquarters I seek the solitude of my room, forgoing dinner or companionship. Knocks on my door are met with silence, and eventually the sounds of footsteps fade away. I lay for a long time on my bed, staring at the ceiling, thinking of the sacrifice Harry's parents made for everyone. At first I feel angry, than sad, and than confused. Why would they do that? In the complete darkness of my room I roll over, the letter inside my back crackles, and I turn on a light, just now remembering it. The envelope is large, with a strange seal on it in red and gold ink. Harry's handwriting on the front makes my heart beat a little faster, and I tear it open. The letter inside says:
Dear Ginny,
I am writing this letter from Hagrid's, just before I embark on a personal quest. I know I haven't written you, and that you must be somewhere between anger and grief. First, I need to apologize for that...I am so overcome with the need to see you, that every time I try to write a letter, my hand becomes to shaky to write, and my mind draws me into a wonderful daydream of you. How I want to kiss you. How I want to hold you. How I want to spend every minute of my life with you, and never leave you again. Secondly, I need to apologize for this letter, because it is unfair of me to write such things to you, knowing how you must feel. I promise you, that when this war is over, I'll come home to you. The last thing I should apologize for, is forcing you to stay out of the war, because my own personal feelings have gotten in the way. I need to know your somewhere safe; That when all the bloodshed and pain is at it's fiercest, you will be as far away from it as you can possibly be. And now, I will embark on what I hope is the last part of this war. Soon love, I'm coming home soon. I love you!
Love, Love, Love Harry
Did I sigh? I can feel the heat radiating from my face. My determination, which had momentarily wavered again, is stronger than ever before. I slide off the bed, determined to gather the others right away and plan our next move when suddenly-- I realize the door is cracked open. Did I leave it open? My wand is on the bedside table...slowly, keeping my eyes on the door, I reach for it-- Before I can react, strong arms wrap around me and lift me off the floor! I kick with all my might! I try to scream but a bitter tasting hand is clamped over my mouth; I sink my teeth into the warm flesh and there is a muffled grunt; Something collides with my head. Darkness takes me.