The Memorial.
Harry arrived at the Weasleys' on the day of the ceremony about mid afternoon. Hermione was already there. On the plus side, she and Ron seemed to be talking again; on the other hand, they looked tense and were uncharacteristically staying at arms length.
The port key they were to use that day was an old wicker basket with a broken handle. They gathered around it in the backyard. Arthur counted to three. Harry felt the now familiar rushing through space, his hand glued to the key, as they were whisked to Hogwarts.
They landed in the meadow between the Quidditch pitch and the castle. There was already a good-sized crowd gathered. Booths and stalls were erected around the meadow selling food, drink, and various amusements. Younger children were running around, laughing, flying magical kites shaped like dragons and hippogriffs, while the adults strolled around the grounds talking quietly.
Harry could see Dumbledore's Tomb, large and imposing, gleaming in the sun. It had been repaired after Voldemort's desecration, of course, and looked like new. There was a new, wide stone walk that wound from the castle to the Tomb and then continued on along the lake where it came to an even larger edifice that was now draped in black velvet. The path completely encircled the new Monument, so a visitor could walk past the Tomb, down to and around the Monument, and return to the castle the same way. A stage had been set near the Monument that faced away from the lake, towards the meadow. Grand stands had been built beside the stage to hold the Ministry officials and others who were expected to speak at the ceremony.
Harry remembered from his official invitation that this event was not open to the general public. There would be no way for Hogwarts to accommodate a crowd that size. The invitees included all current Hogwarts students and their families, prospective students and their parents, who were encouraged to see for themselves that Hogwarts was whole and secure again and, finally, anyone who was in school the year of the battle or participated in it. This last group included the surviving members of the Order of the Phoenix, many alumni, the Centaurs, house elves, and most of the population of Hogsmead.
"Great! You're here," George exclaimed when they appeared. He and Ginny had been waiting for them. "Ron, come and see the booth." He grabbed his brother's arm and dragged him to the edge of the meadow where they could see the stall and it's huge "WWW" logo. The elder Weasleys spotted some Ministry people and wandered off in that direction while Hermione, Harry, and Ginny followed Ron.
The joke shop's booth was one of the larger ones, and a crowd of mostly adolescent boys had already surrounded it. As they drew closer they glimpsed through the throng what the actual attraction was. There were two extremely attractive young ladies staffing the booth, chatting charmingly with the boys, giggling and batting their eyelashes. Harry immediately recognized them as Fleur's Veela cousins. Fred and George had spent a good deal of time with them at Bill and Fleur's wedding. Harry and Ron stared slack-jawed until they were elbowed in the ribs by their respective girlfriends.
"Amazing..." Ron said. Hermione groaned at him. "I mean..." he implored, trying to recover. "The idea... to use the girls to draw in the crowds." But, by the time he'd finished she was already shaking her head and walking away.
"Genius," Harry added. Ginny gave him a withering look and ran off to catch up with Hermione.
"Thanks," George said with pride, ignoring the girl's reaction. As they watched, groups of young boys walked away with arm loads of trick sweets and fireworks assortments. "Fred was the creative one when it came to new product design" George continued. "But my strength has always been marketing. And," he added in a conspiratorial whisper as he leaned close to Ron's ear. "You haven't seen anything yet." He straightened up and glanced back towards a crowd of Ministry types that were milling around outside the castle. "Got to go! Things to do. I'll catch you up after the speeches," and he hurried away.
Ron pulled his eyes from the Veelas and watched George's back retreating through the crowd. "Still not including me, is he?" he asked. Harry just shrugged.
"Oh?" Hermione asked, casually, as the boys caught up to them. "Tore yourself away did you? Thought it might be alright to be seen with two hags like us after all?"
"Just temporarily," Harry said, looking at Ginny out of the corner of his eye. "They're busy for the rest of the afternoon, but we're meeting them later…- whoa!" He didn't get to finish because Ginny took a swing at the back of his head, which he anticipated. He ducked and ran for it.
"Potter!" she yelled, laughing as she gave chase. "I'm gunna kick your..."
Ron and Hermione, the tension momentarily forgotten, had laughed and clasped hands out of habit. They realized it at the same time. Hermione made to let go, but Ron held tight and turned to look at her.
"Look," he said. "I know I've been a git. I'm sorry."
"Yes, you have." she said, annoyed, but she didn't pull her hand away. "Is it something about my job? My trip to Paris? Because, I don't intend to stop..."
"No! It's nothing like that." he interrupted. "I've just had a ton of stuff on my mind, and it's made me kind of crazy. I never meant to take it out on you. Your job…it's exactly what you should be doing. I'm proud of you."
"Proud of me?" she said quietly. "Ron, you've never said you were proud of me before."
"Yeah, well," Ron said quietly as he shuffled his feet and avoided looking directly at her."I thought you knew."
"No," she said, and her tone changed from surprised to something else entirely. "How was I to know?" She put her arms around his neck and forced their eyes to meet. "I do know that all the while I was in Paris... " she rose slowly on her toes, "all I could think about was how much more fun it would have been if you were there." Ron tilted his head down, and just as their lips met-
"Attention please, everyone!" Professor McGonagall's magically amplified voice boomed across the lawn.
Hermione dropped back onto her feet, sighed, and rested her head on Ron's chest.
"We are about to start the dedication," McGonagall continued, sounding stressed. She repeatedly cast nervous glances in the direction of the grand stands as the VIPs started to take their seats. "Would you all kindly move towards the stage? Thank you… that's the way. We will begin in a few minutes."
"We'll finish this later," Hermione said, smiling up at him. They linked arms, turned toward the stage, and almost walked right into Ginny and Harry who stood watching them gravely. .
"I guess we won't have to lock them in a broom cupboard after all," Harry said to Ginny, as they turned and headed towards the stage. "We'll see," Ginny said, glancing briefly over her shoulder at them. "I'm not completely convinced. It was only half a snog, after all."
Hermione giggled, Ron blushed.
They found the Weasley family stretched out on a huge, crazily quilted blanket not far from the stage. Other groups had done something similar, though most had more dignified lawn coverings. Harry saw oriental rugs, folding chairs, even a complete sitting room with stuffed chairs, ottomans, and coffee tables. The sun had started to set and magic glowing orbs began to appear, scattered around the field floating slightly above head heighth. The stage, the tomb, and the Monument draped in black, all seemed to be lit from above, though there was no visible light source.
The speeches started with Professor McGonagall welcoming everyone and thanking the Board for their support, without which, she assured everyone, Hogwarts would not have been able to reopen at all. She thanked all those who worked tirelessly to repair the castle and the grounds and the current student body and staff for forging ahead in the midst of the construction. She particularly thanked those who worked on the renovation of Dumbledore's Tomb and the new Monument, which led her to introduce the head of the Monument Committee.
Harry's mind wandered. It was the first time he had been back since the week after the battle. He thought how different it had been that night, the darkness and violence, and how nice it was now, a pretty spring sunset. He thought about how nice Ginny's hair felt against his cheek and how good it smelled, when applause roused Harry back to the moment. Kingsley had been introduced.
"Thank you all for coming." he began. "I know how difficult it is for many of us to remember that day, one year ago. The wounds have not entirely healed; the pain is still too acute for many. But we would like you to try. And from this day forward, each year on this date, remember this day not only as a time to honor those we lost, but to celebrate that which was won. Our freedom from tyranny, hatred, and fear."
"To that end we would like you to stay as long as you like after the unveiling. There will be food, entertainment, and, most of all, plenty of time to enjoy each others' company. Also, I would like to announce that this monument has a twin that will reside in the Atrium of the Ministry of Magic where anyone can come and pay their respects. Now, without further delay," He waved his wand and the black velvet drape rose slowly up. As it cleared the Monument the drape swirled and transformed into smoke that silently drifted away on the breeze.
The Monument was made of the same glowing white marble as Dumbledore's Tomb. It was a wall about two stories tall and several paces thick. It stood on a black marble pedestal base. The words "Battle of Hogwarts" were clearly visible from the vantage point of the crowd. Below that the date could also be seen, as well as smaller print that was not legible from this distance.
There were respectful 'oohs' and 'ahs' and scattered polite applause. It seemed the crowd couldn't decide what the appropriate response should be at such a solemn occasion. Kingsley led the Ministry group in a slow walk down the path towards the Monument. They were followed by the rest of the visiting dignitaries from the grand stand. The gathered crowd then formed a slow procession behind them, talking quietly as they shuffled into line. The Hogwarts band, seated in a grandstand of its own, started playing a soft arrangement of school songs and classical pieces to set the mood for the viewing.
Everyone on the Weasley blanket rose ... everyone but Harry, who remained reclined on the blanket.
"I think I'll wait till the crowd dies down a bit," he said. "You guys go ahead, I'll wait here." In response to Molly's stern look, he said, "Really. I'm fine. Go on." They hesitated, but then moved off slowly and joined the queue. Harry settled back down on the blanket to stare at the white marble wall in the distance, glistening from the setting sunlight.
"Harry!" a familiar voice called from behind. Harry turned to find Neville approaching the blanket.
"Neville!" Harry said, genuinely pleased, as he jumped up and hugged him. "Looks like they've got everything all fixed up, eh?"
"Yeah, I know they've been working non-stop for months. Not going up?" Neville asked, nodding in the direction of the line.
"I'll go later... when it's quiet."
Neville looked at him the way all his friends did these days, a mixture of concern and understanding.
"Considering you're alone, I thought I'd pop over and thank you for looking in on my parents."
"I don't know what you mean."
"Harry," Neville interrupted. "You brought them flowers. Gran saw them. She's like a terrier you know. She badgered the nurses until they caved and told her who brought them. Poor things, the nurses, they never had a chance really."
That made Harry smile, and Neville smiled back.
"I don't think they understood anything I told them, but I had to try," Harry said.
"Tell them?"
"That it was over," Harry said. "Once and for all- Voldemort, the Death Eaters- all gone. That no one will hurt them again. And," he added, smiling up at Neville, "that you were brilliant, of course. Couldn't have done it without you."
Neville looked embarrassed. "Thanks, Harry, but it wasn't that much."
"Wasn't much?" Harry jumped in. "Neville, it was huge! If you hadn't killed that snake he'd still be out there, like the first time, looking for a chance to come back."
"Well, I think any of the DA could have done it," Neville said. "But anyway," he said quickly, to head off another of Harry's protests. "The doctors say they seem to be resting easier since your visits. They'll never get better, of course, but I caught Mum holding Dad's hand last time I was there. She hasn't done that since..."
He didn't need to finish. He glanced back towards the Monument and let out a long sigh. "I guess I'll take my turn then. See you, Harry."
"See you, Neville."
As Harry sat back down the first of the viewers began returning to their places. The conversation was hushed and respectful at first, but as more people returned to the meadow it began to grow louder. The children played and laughed, oblivious to the seriousness of the occasion. The adults started conversing in normal tones again and the band started to pick up the tempo. Slowly, the mood lightened.
When the Weasleys returned there were a few moist eyes in the group but it seemed they had gotten their emotions under control on the way back.
"It's beautiful Harry," Hermione said with a sniff, as she sat down next to him. "They got it just right." There were nods of agreement from the others.
"I guess I should go," Harry said, as the lack of a crowd around the Monument eliminated his excuse. He stood, stretched, and started off towards the path. Ginny quickly jumped up and grabbed his arm.
"You've already been," he said. "There's no need to go again." She gave him a determined look and entwined her fingers with his. Obviously, wherever he was going, she was going too. Ginny exchanged a brief knowing glance with Hermione as she and Harry turned and started off toward the path leading to the Monument.
Ron and Hermione watched them walk away. They had sat down and she leaned back against him. He draped a protective arm around her. "She's so good for him," she said softly. "I don't worry as much when they're together."
"He does tend to get a bit moody otherwise," Ron agreed.
"Look who's talking," she said with a laugh. Ron winced.
"Yeah, so," he whispered, "how about a walk down by the lake?"
"THERE'S the one-track mind I've missed," she replied, a smile in her tone. "I bet it's lovely down by the lake."
They rose and headed off in that direction.