Chapter Six:

Remembering

Harry's next few days were miserable. He couldn't stop thinking about everyone he had recently lost, and felt as if he weren't whole anymore, as if a big chunk had been taken out of his life. Finally, to try and find peace, he went to Ginny one night in the Gryffendor Common Room.

"Hey, Ginny, can I talk to you?" He was standing behind her and the Marauders. They were all talking in hushed whispers, and hearing Harry's voice made them all jump.

"Sure, Harry. What do you need?" Ginny said innocently.

"To talk. Let's go for a walk. And, I would turn all of the Slytherin's robes Gryffendor colours. It'll be better than pink. Also, if you were to somehow change their banner to some sort of message that says something like 'Gryffendors Rule!' Let's go."

Harry and Ginny left the Marauders staring after him. Finally, Sirius said, "I like it. But, let's go see where they are going. I'm interested."

They all followed Harry and Ginny in the shadows, until they went out onto the grounds. They were stopped in the Entrance Hall by Lily.

"What are you three doing here?" Lily asked them, "And where's Peter?"

"On a date with some girl from Hufflepuff. And, we are following Harry and Ginny. They just went out onto the grounds, and I'm curious," Sirius said.

"Really?" Lily asked. This had sparked her interest. "Well, I'd advise you all to stay in here and watch. You can see pretty well from here, and they'll have to come in. They'll notice if you open the doors."

James raised an eyebrow. "Is the Head Girl allowing us to stay here, after curfew, as well as staying here herself?"

Lily gained a slight pink tinge. "Well, I believe the Head Boy is too, so I figure that it's okay. Plus, I'm interested as well. Ginny is my friend, as well as yours."

They watched the pair on the far side of the lake. It looked like they were arguing, but they couldn't tell. Then one, whom they guessed was Harry because he looked taller, put his hand to his mouth, then jumped into the lake.

Lily gasped, as he stayed under. He didn't come up. To their surprise, they were all watching and waiting with baited breath. Then, something popped out of the lake; in the area closest to them.

"Is it him?" Lily asked.

"I think so. But, how did he do it?" Remus asked, "I mean, the only way I know is he would be an animagus fish, but, I know for a fact that there are only six witches or wizards registered as animagi, so-"

"Remus, shut up. He's coming. Hide," James said, and they all slid deeper in the shadows. Harry stormed past them. Ginny appeared shortly after. She looked slightly mad, but also as if she was crying.

Meanwhile, at the lake:

Harry and Ginny were strolling around to the lake, talking about all of their fallen friends, then in silence.

Suddenly, Harry asked, "Where were you? When I woke up?"

Ginny sighed, "Well, I had gotten out just a few days before you had woken up. The healers made me leave, but said that they'd contact me as soon as some improvements had come. Also, they said that you probably wouldn't make it. I waited for a month. Surprisingly, I was busy. I went to funerals five times a week, then I had to attended some will readings, since I had gotten lots of things from my family and Hermione. Anyway, after a month, I went back to St. Mungo's, as they hadn't contacted me. I was so mad when they said that you had been out for a month. I went everywhere I thought of to look for you, but all were empty. Finally, I got some brains and went to Dumbledore. I mean, if anyone knew where you were, it would be him. Anyway, he said I couldn't come, and it took me two weeks to convince him to allow me to come."

"I thought you had died too. The healers didn't say anything to me about anyone. You know, I think that you're lucky. You got to go to all of their funerals."

"Lucky? You have no clue how it was. Everyone was crying. At most of them, the only people I really knew were Bill and Remus. Others I know by face, as they were part of the Order, or a student at school, but they were the only ones I could confide in. And, it's my brother, plus your guardian. It's kinda creepy, if you know what I mean."

"But, you got to do lots of things I didn't."

"Like what?"

"You got to-say-say-good-bye." Harry took some gillyweed out of his pocket and shoved it into his mouth. He jumped into the lake and swam around, under the water. Once he started to get cold, he went out and stormed into the castle. He could see Ginny hurrying after him, but didn't slow down or stop for her.

Ginny ran to Harry's room, and said the password. The portrait of the snake didn't open. She tried others that Harry said he'd use, but none of them worked. Frustrated, she started banging on the portrait, demanding that he open it. She didn't stop until a voice from behind her said, "He's in the Room of Requirement." She didn't even look at who told her, but dashed away, using secret passageways that she, Harry, Ron, and Hermione had found while they were looking for a place to hide the potions that they were brewing. They couldn't use Moaning Myrtle's toilet anymore, because the miserable ghost had left Hogwarts, and that toilet in particular was popular.

"He's in the Room of Requirement," James told Ginny. He, Lily, Sirius, and Remus watched her run off, looking slightly confused that she knew where it was, and what it was called. Regardless, they followed her, only to find that she had disappeared. The passageways she was using was a secret to everyone except her four friends, the knowledgeable Marauders included.

'I need to say good-bye. Give me a place to say good-bye. I need somewhere that I can say good-bye,' Harry thought as he paced on the seventh floor.

A door appeared, and he entered, to find a room full of pictures of all the people he had lost, a black, pleather couch sitting in the middle. He sat on it and summoned a picture to himself. It was one of Ron, Hermione, and him on the Hogwarts Express right after their first year. He kept summoning pictures, then banishing them.

After five minutes, his peace and solitude was interrupted by the door creaking open. He looked up to see Ginny, slightly out of breath. "Look, Harry, I'm sorry. What are you doing?"

Harry, now cooled off, accepted her apology. He then motioned for her to sit next to him, and the two of them looked at pictures.

They had only looked through half of the pictures when Ginny started to cry. "Don't cry Gin," Harry soothed her, hugging her, "It'll be okay. Don't worry."

"I know Harry, it's just they're all gone. Ron never got-" Ginny sobbed.

Harry cut her off, "Don't think of the things they never got to do, think of the things that they did. The things that made them happy."

"Do you think she's here?" Sirius asked the others.

"I suppose, unless she went back to the tower, which I doubt," Lily said.

"Do you reckon we should go in?" James asked.

"Yeah. There has to be someone in there. There's a door," Sirius said, and lead his friends into the room.

Harry heard the door slowly creak open and he thought, 'I need this place to change into something comfortable. Really comfortable. Quickly, so they don't realize-'

His thoughts were cut off by the room morphing into a room that looked like the Gryffendor Common Room. He and Ginny were still sitting on the couch, but, instead of black pleather, it was scarlet and cushiony.

"Hello?" Remus called.

"Hi, what are you doing here?" Harry asked, sounding slightly cold.

"We were just-" Lily started.

James cut her off, "We knew that you were in here, and we were wondering if you could give us some spells to get that prank."

"Sorry, but I want you to figure that out on your own. Sort of a extra credit project. When you perform the prank, I will evaluate it and give you a mark out of ten. Does that sound good?"

"Sure. Well, we'll just be leaving then. Ginny, do you want to come with us?" Sirius asked.

"No, she'll stay with me. We still have to talk. Good-night." Harry pushed them out, and most of the rest of the night was spent talking about their close friends and family that they had lost, remembering.