Chapter 12 - The Let's Blame Harry Potter Club

Funerals.

A word Harry had not grown very fond of.

He tried not to hear the somber words spoken by McGonagall intermingling with the low sound of muffled sobbing amongst the crowd. Not all were in control of their emotions as he was and the broken sounds tearing from their hearts was testing his reserves.

He also avoided looking over at Ron at all costs, for the accusatory stare was too much. Too look at Ron meant to acknowledge how much pain he was in, to know that he was feeling the same pain. Acknowledging this pain was something he did not want to do.

Attempting to avoid the probing gaze that Ginny was giving him was proving slightly more difficult. He could only hope that he would be able to dodge an encounter with her afterward.

The disapproving glare that Hermione's mother was giving to Luna Lovegood and all who surrounded her was almost unbearable. Luna sat to the right of Harry and wore a bright red outfit. She believed that it was a happy occasion when people passed on to the other side, reuniting with their loved ones and finding peace.

Clearly many did not agree with her belief…especially Mrs. Granger.

But most of all, he was trying to avoid his own thoughts. For what seemed like hours he stared at the fallen orange tinged leaf that had blown into Pavarati's hair and had gotten stuck in her hair clip. The leaf seemed to struggle to free itself each time a gust of wind passed by. And after what proved to have been only five minutes, it was free to float amongst the grassy plain once more…far away from here, the funeral, the angry stares, but upon all else, the pain.

The seventh circle of hell that he seemed to be stuck in finally ended. His intense discomfort somehow lessening as Mr. and Mrs. Granger finally stood, striding down the aisle, two small books clutched tightly to their chests. At the aisles end they too placed the books besides her photograph, besides the carnations surrounding her urn, besides her memorial board full of moving photographs.

A moment later the carnations were set aflame, slowly burning the photographs, the books and the memorial board. The ashes of these were scooped together, joined with Hermione's as they were cast across Hogwart's lake, forever to float and remain upon the breezes and gently crashing waves.

Harry found himself being led away by his hands. Had it not been for the vibrant red bangles clanging together against her wrists, he probably would not have noticed that it was Luna leading him away. It was then that his composure finally broke.

She sat with him, hidden from the views of the others behind an ancient oak tree, as he struggled to regain control of himself. It was when he saw someone approaching them that he turned his back to her. She didn't say a word the whole time they were secluded by the tree, only whispered a goodbye when her father finally reached them.

He was now left with the thoughts that caused him to lose his composure. Hermione's limp, half charred form, Ron's angry, hate filled eyes and the sound of Brooklyn's footsteps on the cold, wooden floor as she left 12 Grimmauld Place.

Now he was truly alone.

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If it had not been for the Creevy brothers sighting of Harry as he prepared to apparate far, far away from Hogwarts, who knows where he would be right now.

Wherever the far away paradise might be, it was definitely not where he was…forced to mingle amongst the mourners inside of the Great Hall.

Or in Harry's case, attempting to avoid the mingling, for he was drawn to any space or corner that was unoccupied, constantly ready to make swift movements to avoid conversations…friendly or not.

As his eyes stealthily scanned over the Great Hall, he briefly paused on Neville. Harry immediately recalled yelling at him in Diagon Alley months prior and now guilt was added to his growing list of unwanted emotions for the day. Neville immediately turned away as soon as eye contact was established between them both.

Blatantly Harry's outburst had a lasting effect on Neville.

As Harry continued to scan the room, he saw Ron quickly approaching with his hated filled eyes. Upon swift inspection of the room, he decided his best option was to leave the Great Hall as fast as humanly possible. This in Harry's case would have been a lot faster if he didn't have to weave in and out of people who would keep trying to stop him to talk.

Harry exited the Great Hall and rounded the corner, leaning up against the wall to catch his breath from sprinting down the hallway. Ron was no where in sight. Harry breathed a sigh of relief as he slid down the wall until he was sitting on the ground.

As he held his head in his hands, he heard footsteps coming closer to him. Without looking up he knew it was Ron and he saw no point in trying to outrun him again. His face remained hidden in his hands until the footsteps stopped in front of him.

"Fancy seeing you here." Ron said with the utmost sarcasm.
Harry did not respond, nor did he raise his head to look at his best friend.
"Wonder why the Harry Potter was running away from his supposed best friend's funeral." Ron said with fake thoughtfulness. "Oh! I bet it was the guilt he finally feels for treating her like crap and defending her murderer!"
Harry let his hands drop from his face and was now staring at Ron's shoes, but he still did not respond.
"It's only a matter of time now before everyone here finds out what you've done and once that happens…well, let's just say I definitely wouldn't want to be you." Ron sneered.
"It's Hermione's funeral Ron, lay off the accusations for today." Harry finally responded.
Ron knelt down until he was at Harry's level, forcing Harry to look into his eyes. "I'm holding off from hexing you into oblivion for today, that's more than enough."
Harry had lost all energy he had to defend himself against Ron's accusations and threats and found himself just staring blankly into eyes that clearly wanted to cause him harm.
Ron fiercely stood up. "The best thing that ever happened to my sister was when you left her. Now the best thing to ever happen to my family is when you stopped associating with us." Ron glared down at Harry with such hate he had never seen before from him. "Are we clear on that, Potter?"
Harry found his eyes observing the ground once more. "Crystal…" He whispered.

Ron's footsteps faded away and Harry found himself alone in the hallway again. He was quite certain that if Ron's tried the Cruciatus curse on him again it would be much more effective than his last attempt. A conjured, somewhat small bottle of alcohol found its way into his hand and he soon felt the burning sensation of the liquid going down his throat. He wanted to forget everything that was happening and since he was no good with memory charms, he found this to be his alternative.

It worked for the wedding, why not for a funeral?

After a fairly quick consumption of half of the bottle, he felt no effects. Feeling frustrated by this, there was soon only a fourth of the liquid left in the bottle. He realized that much in such a short time span was probably not the best idea, so he decided not to drink the rest. When he finally stood up, he became aware why his still somewhat rational side got rid of the rest.

Harry knew he was a lightweight compared to most, but he knew he could handle alcohol better than this. But, to be fair, this was consumed very rapidly. Yes. That's right. That's why he was already using the wall as a guide to not accidentally wander off in the wrong direction…well, not stagger off in the wrong direction. No. He was not staggering. It had only been ten, fifteen minutes tops since he drank it, he couldn't be.

Thinking back on it, he didn't even know what exactly he had conjured. All he knew was that he was thinking high alcohol content and a second later there was a bottle in his hands…he just assumed it was firewhiskey. The fact was that whatever it was, he just drank it too fast.

He realized he was at the Great Hall again when he heard the moderate noise level of conversations going on. By now, he really wanted to get out so he could get into an apparation zone. He was going to pass in front of the Great Hall's open doors as fast as he could. He broke out into a run, only to come to a complete standstill.

"Don't think you're getting away that easily." An annoyed Ginny said.
As Ginny lead him back to the hallway he had just came from, Harry was wishing for the last fourth of that bottle.
"If Ron saw me talking to you, he'd probably kill you." She said. "Not that I don't think you deserve a good hexing for certain things…"
Harry closed his eyes and rolled them so Ginny couldn't see his reaction.
"Like how you treated me at the wedding." She said. "I think you owe me an apology."
"I-uh, yeah. Sorry." Harry said in response to his broken memory about the incident.
"Sorry for what, Harry? Completely ignoring me or lying to me about getting with that server? I saw the pictures in the paper you know!"
"Well, I-I-I was referring to ignoring you. And just so, just so you know, I did not get with that server…well, not until way after that at least."
"Ugh! You disgust me Harry!"
"Why? Because you never did anything like that with me?" Harry had a feeling he shouldn't have said that.
Ginny appeared embarrassed. Really embarrassed.
"I-I'm sorry. I shouldn't have, have said that."
"Are you still?"
"An-br-sh-wait…what?" Harry didn't know what he was responding to due to the fact he was distracted by the shadow of his hand moving on the wall.
Ginny gave him an odd look. "Are you still with her?"
"Oooohhh, Brook?"
"Well, if that's her name, yeah." Ginny said, blatantly losing patience.
Harry's shoulders slumped as he shook his head dejectedly. "S-she, she left."

Ginny mumbled something that Harry couldn't understand, nor was he about to ask her to repeat it. Her figure was moving slowly from side to side, but he knew it was from his current deteriorating state.

"I have some information for you." She said. "It's from a reliable source."
"Huh? What? What?" Harry had no idea what she was talking about and his attention span was basically nonexistent by now.
"I will send you an owl in the next few days. Remember, if Ron finds out…"
"Me kills dead."
"Uh, yeah, something like that."
"Ginny, do you think me Ron told you death was right?" He said quickly.
She rolled her eyes. "Whatever, Harry. Go home and sober up."

He wasn't about to argue with that statement, so he followed a short distance behind Ginny back to the Great Hall, still using the wall as his 'guide'. He proceeded to follow her into the Great Hall. Wait. That isn't right. He wasn't suppose to actually go into the Great Hall, he was supposed to walk passed it.

He slapped his hand to his forehead. "Brilliant job, Harry!"
The volume of his voice was higher than he had intended it to be and by now most people in the room were staring at him.
"What are you lot looking at?" He said while rolling his eyes, which only seemed to worsen the instability of his vision.
"You…" A very unfriendly woman's voice said. "The nerve of you to even come here today!"
Harry was already off staring at the ceiling. It wasn't bewitched like it usually was.
"This is your entire fault!" Mrs. Granger seethed. "My daughter would be alive if it wasn't for you!"
Harry only heard the first part before he got distracted by the man approaching them both.
"Honey, you need to-" Mr. Granger began.
"I don't need to do anything!" She screamed at him before turning back to Harry. "I know all about how my daughter died. I know all about why she dropped out to school to join you on your little quest."
For the first time, Mrs. Granger had is full attention.
"That's right, I know everything that you've been doing the past few months…and I do mean everything." She smirked evilly and elevated her voice. "Would everyone here like to know what Harry Potter has been doing instead of going to school?"
Everyone was silent, but curiosity plagued every pair of eyes.

Harry, however, was focusing now and felt quite coherent. He had taken way too much for one day and this had pushed him too far. For Harry was about to tell off his dead best friend's mother and anyone else that so much as looked at him the wrong way.

Harry's eyes narrowed on her. "Well I'm sooo glad to see that you are the newest member of the 'let's blame Harry Potter' club! After all it's sooo easy to join!"

Mrs. Granger shook her head, appearing shocked that he just yelled at her like that. But he was nowhere close to being done with her. Nowhere close….

"You wanna know whyyy your daughter joined me on my little quest! DO YOU!" Harry answered his rhetorical question. "I told 'er to stay away! I told 'er, I told 'er it was too dangerous! But she wouldn't, she wouldn't take no for an answer, because she was my friend and she loved me too much to let me do this on my own! Are you happy now! Are you happy that I lost my best friend that I loved so much!"

Mrs. Granger opened her mouth to speak, but there was no way he was going to let her get a word in before he was done.

"If yoouuu wanna be the one wita prophecy hangin over your head sayin you're the ooonly one who can defeat Voldemort, THAN FINE BECAUSE I DON'T WANT IT!"

There were audible gasps throughout the room with frantic whisperings. Harry was momentarily distracted by Ron, who was now banging his head up against the wall.

A very drunk and belligerent Harry had let the biggest secret in the wizarding world slip and he could care less.

"What? Surprised!" He snapped at everyone in the room before turning his attention back on Mrs. Granger. "And that, Mrs. Granger, is why Hermione was helpin me. She knew that by helpin me she'd help stop Voldemort. She knew, knew that you and her family would be in danger EVERY DAY THAT, THAT HE IS ALIVE! Incase, incase you haven't noticed, THIS IS A DAMN WAR!"

Suddenly Tonks appeared beside him and grabbed him by the arm and began to drag him towards the doors. Harry was not very receptive to this and fought back, only to have her grab both of his arms behind him and drag him with all that she had towards the doors.

Harry, however, was going to finish is little speech, being dragged out or not.

"Why Hermione chose to leave school was not due to some teenage rebellion bullshit! Wake up and get out of the protective, naive bubble you Muggles live in and realize that some of us wizards, like your daughter, are dyyyiiinnnggg to protect you naive, unappreciative bastards!"

With that said, Tonks's wand was aimed at the doors and in a matter of seconds, every single astonished face was gone.

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"Stop fighting me, Harry!" Tonks pleaded. "I need to get you home."
"Home already! I was having a bloody brilliant time! Why stop the fun now!" Harry was finally able to shove Tonks off of him, causing her to fall to the ground.

He began to tread heavily away, making sure to step on every single cluster of dead leaves on the ground, their crackling sounds reiterating his anger. Missing a particularly large cluster he was aiming for, he stopped and scowled at them.

"Think you can escape from being crushed do ya!" He shouted at the inanimate bunch before him. "Well, well think again!"

He aimed directly for the center of the pile as he stomped, but only hit the edge. A gust of wind came and some leaves from the pile were carried away.

"Yeah, you do that! You go back to where you came from!" He turned to the trees that were in the not so far away distance. "Com'on and claim what you lost!"
"Harry, if you don't stop making a complete fool of yourself…" Tonks' voice came.
"OH! I know what the problem is! I bet they, I'm bettin they got lost on the way to the blaming Harry Potter club's first official meeting!" He started waiving his arms in the air in the direction of the castle. "They're ALLLL in there and I bet they would looooovvvvveeee to have sommoorr members!"
"Alright, Harry, I've had enough of this, now stop with this nonsense!"

Tonks had been trying to keep up with Harry, who was walking quite briskly on the grounds in constantly changing directions. He hadn't been aware of that fact until he decided to change directions again and ran right into her and fell to the ground…into the same pile of leaves he been yelling at previously.

He let out a disapproving grunt and attempted to stand up. He failed miserably. A hand that seemed to be forming into two appeared in front of him.

"Meave le alone." He muttered to Tonks' outstretched arm. "Back you there so they can blame on me."

Tonks rolled her eyes and grabbed his hand. With a forceful tug, he freed himself from her again and began to crawl away since standing was proving to be unattainable.

"One of them!" He shouted at her. "You are!"

He felt the back of his cloak being pulled at and soon found himself standing. Before he even had the chance to think of moving, he found himself completely frozen in place. Tonks was now levitating his immobile form to wherever she planned on taking him.

"Harry Potter, you are an insufferable drunk."