A/N: This is the final chapter of This is Home!
Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.
Chapter 15 – The End of the Year
The morning following their adventure, Lucy, Ron, and Hermione went down to breakfast together. There was no sign of Harry. They were starting to worry when Dumbledore approached them at the Gryffindor table.
"Is Harry all right?" Lucy asked immediately.
"Yes, Harry will be just fine," Dumbledore replied gently. "He's in the hospital wing. I've also come to ask you to keep this business about the Philosopher's Stone quiet. I would rather not have the whole school knowing about it."
The three Gryffindors promised that they wouldn't talk about it, and when they were finished with their breakfast, they ran up to the hospital wing to see Harry. Unfortunately, he was unconscious, and Madam Pomfrey wouldn't let them in to see him.
"He'll wake up when he's good and ready!" was all she told them. "He needs rest. You'll just have to wait and come back later. Now, shoo!"
Lucy glared darkly at the door that Madam Pomfrey shut in their faces.
~LJ:TH~
Their fellow Gryffindors quickly noticed that Harry was missing. In fact, by that afternoon, the whole house knew that Harry was lying unconscious in the hospital wing. Oliver Wood was particularly upset, since the next day was the final Quidditch match of the year. Gryffindor was scheduled to play against Ravenclaw, and Gryffindor didn't have a back-up Seeker.
"You lot!" Oliver called to Lucy, Ron, and Hermione that afternoon. He stomped over to where they were sitting in the common room.
"What's up?" Ron asked.
"Don't what's up me!" Oliver exclaimed. "What did Potter do that landed him in the hospital wing the day before the biggest match of the year? He knows that this game is important to us and that we have no back up for him!"
Lucy began, "Calm down, Oliver—"
"Calm down!?" Oliver cried, cutting her off. "We are so close to winning the cup! We were going to win it this year, and then McGonagall tells me that Potter won't be able to play in the final match!" He glared down at the three first-years.
"I'm sorry, Oliver, but even if we knew exactly what had happened to him, we couldn't tell you," Lucy snapped back.
Ron and Hermione nodded, and Oliver angrily turned on his heel and stalked away from them.
At dinner that night, Dumbledore announced to the school that Professor Quirrell had passed away. Lucy, Ron, and Hermione exchanged startled and confused looks. There were many whispered conversations that broke out after this announcement, but Dumbledore didn't elaborate on the subject.
~LJ:TH~
The next morning before the Quidditch match, Lucy, Ron, and Hermione attempted to visit Harry in the hospital wing again. Now that the rest of the school knew that he was in the hospital, many other students tried to get in, as well. However, he was still unconscious, and Madam Pomfrey refused to let anyone in to see him.
At eleven o'clock, Lucy, Ron, and Hermione joined the rest of their house down at the Quidditch pitch. The Gryffindor team only had six players, since they had no back-up Seeker. The game was hardly entertaining for their house, and Ravenclaw beat them soundly. Slytherin ended up being awarded the Quidditch Cup for the year.
Unfortunately, after the Quidditch match, a rumor started to spread. There were whispers going around about how Harry had gone after a Philosopher's Stone that had been hidden in the forbidden third-floor corridor, which was why he was in the hospital wing. Lucy wasn't sure how the rumors began, as the only people who truly knew what had happened that night were Harry and Dumbledore.
The story began to grow, and soon the students were talking about the entire adventure Lucy and her friends had been on. Lucy was bewildered when she overheard her fellow Gryffindors talking amongst themselves about the Devil's Snare, the flying keys, and the giant chess match. She had no idea how any of them had found out, since she, Ron, and Hermione hadn't said a word on the subject.
That afternoon, students of all ages and from all houses were badgering Lucy, Ron, and Hermione to find out what really happened. However, they stayed true to the promise they made to Dumbledore, and the three of them refused to answer any questions. They spent a majority of the afternoon outside to stay away from the other students.
~LJ:TH~
They couldn't stay away from everyone all day, though. When they returned to the common room before dinner, Sally-Anne came up to Lucy.
"Everybody's talking about it," she began. "Did you guys really try and save the Philosopher's Stone from You-Know-Who the other night?"
"Where are all these rumors coming from?" Lucy asked, trying to dodge the question.
"Well, I heard it from my sister," Sally-Anne replied, "who heard it from Tom McLaggen. He heard it from his sister Opal, who says that the person who told her had heard it from a portrait somewhere in the castle."
"The portraits around here gossip more than the students do," Lucy grumbled.
"So, is any of it true?" Sally-Anne asked. "Did you guys save the stone or what?"
"Look, Dumbledore asked us not to talk about it," Lucy said in a low voice.
Sally-Anne whooped. "So, it is true!" she exclaimed. "You guys really did go to the forbidden corridor to save the stone! So, what happened? Did you actually get the stone?"
"I don't know," Lucy replied honestly. "I'm not sure what happened."
Sally-Anne's face fell. "Why can't you tell anybody about what happened?" she asked.
"We promised Dumbledore," Lucy repeated. "I promise that I'm telling you the truth, though. I don't know what happened that put Harry in the hospital wing. I don't know what happened to the stone."
"So, there was a Philosopher's Stone!" Sally-Anne exclaimed eagerly.
Oops, Lucy thought. "I—Look, it's not important," she said aloud. "I'm sure if we were in any kind of danger, Dumbledore would have made some kind of announcement." She knew it was too late, though; the damage had been done, and she could read the excitement all over Sally-Anne's face. "I'm going to go down to the Great Hall," Lucy said hastily. "I'll see you later."
At dinner, Lucy, Hermione, and Ron sat alone at the end of the Gryffindor table. They could hear the whispered rumors of things that had happened two nights previously, but they still didn't talk about it. When they were done eating, they went up to their common room and into their respectful dormitories to avoid the rest of their house.
~LJ:TH~
Finally, the next evening, Dumbledore once again approached Lucy, Ron, and Hermione in the Great Hall.
"I would like to inform you that Harry has finally awoken," he said in a soft but warm voice. "I daresay you wish to see your friend as soon as possible." The corners of his mouth turned upward as he bid them a good evening and moved on to the staff table.
Lucy exchanged glances of relief and happiness with Ron and Hermione. Then the three of them hurried to the hospital wing.
Madam Pomfrey let them into the ward after snapping at them, "Five minutes only!"
"Harry!" Hermione shouted as she and the other two rushed to Harry's bed. "Oh, Harry—we were sure you were going to—Dumbledore was so worried!"
"The whole school's talking about it," Ron informed Harry. "What really happened?"
"Yeah, Harry, what happened?" Lucy echoed. "People keep expecting us to know—they don't believe that we don't."
Harry grinned at his friends before launching into the story of what happened to him when he met Quirrell at the end of the trail instead of Snape. As Harry explained how You-Know-Who had been sharing Quirrell's body and that Quirrell's turban had been hiding You-Know-Who's face the entire year, Hermione actually screamed out loud.
"So, the stone's gone?" Ron asked when Harry was finished. "Flamel's just going to die?"
"That's what I said," Harry replied, "but Dumbledore thinks that—what was it?—to the well-organized mind, death is but the next great adventure."
"I always said he was off his rocker," Ron said with a note of pride in his voice, and Lucy chuckled.
"So, what happened with you three?" Harry asked.
"Well, I stayed with Ron, like I said I would," Lucy said. "I made sure I was there when he woke up, so he wouldn't be confused or anything. He came around not too long after you and Hermione had left, and we were just deciding what to do when Hermione showed up again." Lucy nodded at Hermione to let her take the wheel and finish off the story.
"We did as you said," Hermione continued. "We went back into the room with the keys and took some broomsticks. Then we flew back out into the third-floor corridor, and we were about to run up to the Owlery when we ran into Dumbledore. He was coming straight at us, and he just said, Harry's gone after him, hasn't he? Then he hurtled off after you."
"D'you think he meant you to do it?" Ron asked thoughtfully. "Sending you your father's cloak and everything?"
"Well," Hermione snarled fiercely, "if he did—I mean to say—that's terrible—you could have been killed!"
Lucy nodded in semi-agreement.
"No, it isn't," Harry argued lightly. "He's a funny man, Dumbledore. I think he sort of wanted to give me a chance. I think he knows more or less everything that goes on here, you know. I reckon he had a pretty good idea we were going to try, and instead of stopping us, he just taught us enough to help. I don't think it was an accident that he let me find out how the mirror worked. It's almost like he thought I had the right to face Voldemort if I could."
"That may be, but he should probably wait until you're older to let you have a try at You-Know-Who," Lucy disapproved. "Then you'll have more experience and more knowledge."
"Yeah, Dumbledore's off his rocker, all right," Ron said. Then he turned to Harry and launched into a different topic, saying, "Listen, you've got to be up for the end-of-term feast tomorrow. The points are all in, and Slytherin won, of course—you missed the last Quidditch match. We were steamrolled by Ravenclaw without you—but the food'll be good."
Suddenly, Madam Pomfrey was back, screeching at them, "You've had nearly fifteen minutes, now OUT!" She started to usher them out of the wing.
"Find us in the Great Hall tomorrow night for the feast, Harry!" Lucy called to her friend. "Unless you get out earlier. Then we'll probably be in the common room!"
"OUT!"
~LJ:TH~
The next day, Harry never showed up in the tower. When Lucy and Hermione had gone back up to their dormitory to get ready for the end-of-term feast, there still was no sign of him.
"Do you think Pomfrey will let him go to the feast at all?" Lucy asked as the girls put on their nicest robes.
"I hope so," Hermione answered. "That would be very unkind of her to keep him from going."
The girls went down to the common room a few minutes later and met up with Ron. Harry was still nowhere to be seen, so they decided to go to the feast without him.
"He'll show up in the Great Hall," Ron assured the girls. "C'mon, let's get down there quickly. We can save him a seat!"
When they entered the Great Hall, they noticed that it was decorated with the silver and green colors of Slytherin. Ron groaned at this, but Lucy glared at him.
"Whether you like it or not, they won fair and square," she hissed at him.
"Snape favors them," Ron argued back. "How is that fair and square?"
Lucy rolled her eyes.
The three of them grabbed their seats, saving one for if Harry showed up. Ron was getting impatient, claiming he was hungry and wanted the feast to start.
Then, suddenly—
"Harry!" Lucy breathed, looking at the Great Hall entrance.
The hall had gone quiet. Harry started walking quickly to where his friends were seated at the Gryffindor table, and everyone in the hall began talking all at once. Harry swiftly dropped into the seat they had saved for him next to Ron. People at the far ends of the hall were standing up to get a look at him. Lucy shook her head; he wasn't a zoo animal to be gawked at.
Then the talking died away as the entire school shifted its focus to the staff table. Dumbledore had entered and was standing before them, beaming away.
"Another year gone!" he announced. "I'm afraid I must trouble you with an old man's wheezing waffle before we sink our teeth into our delicious feast. What a year it has been! Hopefully your heads are all a little fuller than they were.… You have the whole summer ahead to get them nice and empty before next year starts."
Lucy laughed aloud at this, as did many other students.
"Now, as I understand it, the House Cup needs awarding, and the points stand thus," Dumbledore continued. "In fourth place, Gryffindor, with two hundred and sixty-two points; in third, Hufflepuff, with three hundred and fifty-two; Ravenclaw is in second, with four hundred and twenty-six; and Slytherin, four hundred and seventy-two."
The Slytherin table erupted into loud cheers. Lucy looked over at them and spotted Jeremy sitting in the middle of the table. He was smiling and clapping along with the rest of his house. Lucy grinned a bit, happy for him.
"Yes, yes, well done, Slytherin," Dumbledore said, bringing the attention back to the front of the room. "However, recent events must be taken into account."
The hall went deadly silent. The students at the Slytherin table were confused at best.
"Ahem," Dumbledore continued. "I have a few last-minute points to dish out. Let me see. Yes.… First—to Mr. Ronald Weasley."
Ron's mouth popped open and his eyes widened.
"For the best-played game of chess Hogwarts has seen in many years," Dumbledore said, "I award Gryffindor house fifty points."
The Gryffindors burst into cheers. Percy was shouting above the noise, "My brother, you know! My youngest brother! Got past McGonagall's giant chess set!"
After a moment, there was silence again.
"Second," Dumbledore announced, "to Miss Hermione Granger… for the use of cool logic in the face of fire, I award Gryffindor house fifty points."
Next to Lucy, Hermione lowered her face into her arms. Lucy could hear her crying. The Gryffindors were ecstatic but in disbelief all at once; all of a sudden, they were one hundred points up to where they had been.
"Third—to Miss Lucy Jones," Dumbledore said, and Lucy's breath caught in her throat. "For absolute loyalty in the face of danger, I award Gryffindor house fifty points."
Next to Lucy, George threw his arms around her shoulders and pulled her in tight as she laughed in disbelief. The noise coming from Gryffindor was becoming deafening. They were now ahead of Hufflepuff in total points.
"Fourth—to Mr. Harry Potter," Dumbledore continued.
The room went so quiet that a person could hear a pin drop.
"For pure nerve and outstanding courage," Dumbledore said, "I award Gryffindor house sixty points."
Two hundred and ten points! They had caught up with Slytherin; in fact, they were tied! The students were beside themselves with excitement, shouting up and down the table that they were tied for first place.
Dumbledore raised his hand from the front of the room, and everyone settled down.
"There are all kinds of courage," Dumbledore said, smiling kindly. "It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends. I therefore award ten points to Mr. Neville Longbottom."
It was like a bomb had dropped. Every single Gryffindor student was on their feet, screaming and cheering. People piled on top of Neville, grabbing at him and hugging him for giving them the points they had needed to win. Even students in Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw were cheering just as loudly as the Gryffindors; finally, someone had beaten Slytherin!
"Which means," Dumbledore announced over the noise, "we need a little change of decoration."
He clapped his hands once, and the Slytherin decorations immediately became Gryffindor ones. Behind the staff table, the banner of the Slytherin serpent became one of a roaring Gryffindor lion.
The feast went well into the night, a wonderful celebration of the year coming to a close. As Lucy went to bed that night, it was with a smile on her face.
~LJ:TH~
The last thing remaining in the term was to receive exam results. Lucy was pleased with hers. Harry and Ron got good marks, as well, and Hermione was at the top of their class.
Everything was finished—the year had come to an end. Everyone's trunks were packed full of their things while their dormitories were emptied. Notes were handed out that told the students to refrain from using magic outside of school.
At breakfast on the day they were leaving Hogwarts, the seventh-years were called one by one to stand up. Once they were all standing, the rest of the school congratulated them on their graduation. They were then escorted out of the hall and down to the boats to cross the lake, so they could see all of Hogwarts for one last time.
The rest of the school gathered in the entrance hall, milling about and waiting for their transportation to take them down to the train. Lucy stood with Harry, Ron, and Hermione, feeling both happy and sad at the same time. She couldn't believe that she had to leave, yet she was excited for a bit of a vacation.
"Hi, Lucy," a voice said.
Lucy turned to see Jeremy standing nearby. He gave her a small smile.
"I'll be right back," Lucy said to her other friends. She stepped over to Jeremy and grinned at him. "Hi."
"Congrats on winning the House Cup," Jeremy said.
"Sorry for sort of stealing it away from Slytherin," Lucy replied. "I was thinking about it this morning, and it didn't seem very fair of Dumbledore to do."
"Maybe, but you guys did save the Philosopher's Stone," Jeremy said with a shrug. Lucy decided not to comment on that, since she had promised Dumbledore she wouldn't tell anyone, and Jeremy went on, "A lot of people in our house assumed that Dumbledore gave it to Gryffindor because you guys are his favorites, anyway."
"I don't know about that," Lucy said. "Anyway, are you looking forward to summer vacation?"
"Two whole months with my father? It's like Christmas has come early," Jeremy deadpanned. Lucy snorted, and Jeremy cracked a smile, too. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "He's not that bad. I'd just rather be here. Instead, I'll most likely be in France with my mother's family."
"Why in France?" Lucy asked.
"My mother's French," Jeremy answered. "Maybe you didn't notice it because you're American and all our accents sound so different to yours, but I've got a bit of a French accent. I'm fluent in both English and French."
"That's pretty cool," Lucy said.
Jeremy shrugged lazily. "It's all right," he said. "My father doesn't like it when I speak French, so I only speak it with my mother when he's not around. I nearly went to Beauxbatons, you know."
"What's that? A French Wizarding school?" Lucy asked curiously.
Jeremy nodded, but before their conversation could go any further, they heard Hagrid's voice calling over the heads of the students. "Firs'-years!" he was saying. "Firs'-years with me!"
"I suppose I'd better catch up with Harry, Ron, and Hermione," Lucy said. "Have a good summer, okay? Or at least, try to. I'll see you in September."
"I'll do my best," Jeremy replied with a wink. "You have a nice summer, too."
Lucy waved at him as she hurried away through the crowd to find her friends.
The first-years gathered around Hagrid, and like the beginning of the year, they were taken to the boats that would take them across the lake. As the boats glided across the water, Lucy looked over her shoulder at the giant castle. She was sad to be leaving, and she already couldn't wait until her second year began.
~LJ:TH~
Once they reached the train station, they all boarded the Hogwarts Express. Lucy and her friends found a compartment to share. They enjoyed their ride, swapping stories about what had happened during the year and sharing the candy they bought from the lunch trolley.
Towards the end of their journey, Lucy and Hermione split off from the boys to change from their robes into their regular clothes.
"Lucy, I just wanted to say thank you," Hermione said quietly. "If it wasn't for you and your friendship, I don't think this year would have been nearly as great as it was."
Lucy turned and hugged her friend. "Of course, Hermione," she said. "I would do the same thing again."
The girls grinned at each other before hurrying to rejoin the boys.
~LJ:TH~
A few minutes later, the train was pulling up to platform nine and three-quarters. Lucy, Harry, Ron, and Hermione got off the train together and joined the line to go through the barrier.
"You must come and stay this summer," Ron said. "All three of you—I'll send you an owl."
"Thanks," Harry replied. "I'll need something to look forward to."
They continued to creep closer to the barrier. As they walked, people kept calling out to Harry.
"'Bye, Harry!"
"See you, Potter!"
"Still famous," Ron pointed out, grinning.
"Not where I'm going, I promise you," Harry said.
The four of them finally reached the barrier. One by one, they stepped through the wall.
"Well, back in the Muggle world," Lucy sighed as the four of them regrouped off to the side of the barrier.
"There he is, Mum! There he is! Look!"
Lucy whipped around; she recognized that voice. It was Ron's younger sister Ginny, and she was pointing at not Ron but Harry.
"Harry Potter!" she screeched. "Look, Mum! I can see—!"
"Be quiet, Ginny. It's rude to point." Mrs. Weasley came into view, her hand on Ginny's shoulder. She smiled kindly as the four kids walked up to her. "Busy year?" she asked.
"Very," Harry said. "Thanks for the fudge and the sweater, Mrs. Weasley."
"Oh, it was nothing," Mrs. Weasley replied, beaming. "Lucy, dear! Look who came all the way here to get you."
Lucy looked around Mrs. Weasley to see Dan and Sue standing a little way away. They smiled when she saw them and came over to join the group. Lucy squealed in glee and threw her arms around her parents.
"Ready, are you?" a gruff voice asked near their group.
Lucy broke away from her parents to see who had joined them. A big, beefy-looking man with a furious expression on his face stood before Harry. Behind him was a tall, skinny woman with blonde hair and a plump boy, both of whom were looking terrified at the sight of Harry and his companions.
"You must be Harry's family!" Mrs. Weasley said, smiling warmly at them.
"In a manner of speaking," the man replied in an annoyed voice.
"Harry? Harry Potter?" Dan repeated, his eyes widening as he finally took a good look at Harry. "Mr. Potter, it's wonderful to meet you. We've heard so much from Lucy." He hurried forward to quickly shake Harry's hand.
"Dad, c'mon—you're embarrassing me," Lucy said in a teasing tone.
The man collecting Harry looked at them as though they had some sort of disease. "Hurry up, boy. We haven't got all day," the man said. He turned on his heel and walked away, ushering the woman and boy with him away from the group as quickly as possible.
Harry didn't follow him right away, hanging back to say good-bye to his friends.
"See you over the summer, then," Ron said.
"Take care of yourself, Harry," Lucy added.
"Hope you have—er—a good holiday," Hermione finished, watching the man leave. She had an anxious look on her face.
"Oh, I will," Harry replied cheerfully. He was grinning gleefully. "They don't know we're not allowed to use magic at home. I'm going to have a lot of fun with Dudley this summer."
With that, Harry trudged after his family, waving back at his friends.
"I can't believe he has to go back with those people," Hermione said, sounding appalled.
"It'll be all right, Hermione," Lucy said. "He'll be okay, and we'll see him very soon." She smiled softly at Harry's retreating back. "We'll see each other soon."
~LJ:TH~
A/N: I've rewritten the first half of this chapter (up until they visit Harry in the hospital wing after he wakes up) so many times. This version is the best I could come up with. And I wasn't actually sure who won the Quidditch Cup this year, so I just said it was Slytherin.
The paragraph about the seventh-years all standing in the Great Hall at the end of breakfast and going across the lake in the boats one last time is actually similar to something J.K. Rowling mentioned in an interview way back in 2007. She said that she imagined some sort of graduation ceremony for the seventh-years, and I liked the idea so much that I wanted to add one into this series.
The final conversation Lucy has with Jeremy was something I thought important to add. It reveals a bit more about Jeremy, and it also touches on the fact that Gryffindor winning the House Cup seems a little too perfect of an ending, honestly. And yes, Jeremy's mother is French! More info about his family is brought up in future stories, too; this is just the tip of the iceberg about him.
And that's all for this story! The next story in the series is called Shadow of the Day, and the first chapter should be posted on Monday, January 7th! See you there!