Sorry, but the casualties aren't quite done...
Chapter 35 - Counting the Cost
Harry rose gingerly to his feet, where he swayed on the spot. It was over, Voldemort had been beaten and he had retreated. Relief swept over him in such quantities that it was almost dizzying, but then, as he looked round the hall, it was overhauled by another emotion: sadness.
Cho Chang's body still lay over in the corner where she had fallen. Her soft black hair hung like a beautiful veil across her face, and her lifeless eyes stared out in the grimness of Death. Harry felt racked with grief as his eyes continued their tour of the room. Over in one corner, Harry could see the captured Death Eaters were sitting, many were unconscious, though some were sitting upright and looking fearful. There were eight of them in total, but Harry's eye met those of Lucius Malfoy. His lip curled at Harry and then he turned a spiteful gaze at his son, who was still lying on the floor.
Then Harry's eyes fell on another pair of figures. One was Kingsley Shacklebolt, and he was bending over the limp form of Remus Lupin.
"Remus!" Harry yelled, and he leapt out of Dumbledore's reach and over to his former Professor. "Remus!"
"Calm yourself Harry," came Kingsley's deep, steady voice. "He is hurt, quite badly, but he is not dead. Look! His chest moves."
Harry breathed a sigh of relief. "We should get him to Madam Pomfrey," Dumbledore said quietly, obviously also relieved at Lupin not being dead. "Where is Minerva?"
Dumbledore was looking around for Professor McGonagall. "She's out there Professor," said Harry quietly. "She didn't look good."
Dumbledore strode off out of the hall, and Harry followed suit. Harry found him crouching over Professor McGonagall, who was miraculously awake. She was clutching her side slightly, but she sat upright all the same.
"What happened?" she said alarmed, "And where is Voldemort?"
"Hush, my dear Professor," Dumbledore said mildly, and Harry saw his mouth twitch into one of the brightest smiles he had ever seen from Dumbledore. "You are safe. Voldemort has gone. He will not challenge Hogwarts again."
Professor McGonagall narrowed her eyes as she examined Dumbledore piercingly. She spoke almost in a whisper. "Who have we lost?" She said it quietly, and Dumbledore looked away. Harry saw that there was a tear trickling into this fine silver beard.
"We have lost several wonderful people," he said, his face contorted with sadness and anger. "I am sorry to be the one to tell you this, and I wish it were not true, but Professor Sprout died defending the pupils entering the school, when she was hit by a stray spell from a Death Eater."
Professor McGonagall and Harry both blanched. "Oh no!" Professor McGonagall wailed, and she let out started sobbing into her robe sleeve. Harry stood there in numb shock as this was going on: shock at the death of his Herbology teacher, but also at the effect it had had on Professor McGonagall, who tried to never show emotion if she could help it. Once she had gained control again, she spoke again.
"Who else?" she asked quietly, and Harry was already dreading the answer he would have to give.
Dumbledore sighed heavily. "From Gryffindor House, Colin Creevey and Lavender and from Ravenclaw Cho Chang. Remus and Draco Malfoy are both injured, and many of the Order and Aurors are as of yet, unaccounted for."
Harry let out a gasp of horror. Lavender? He didn't know that she had died too, and he felt a fresh pang of guilt and horror form in his gut.
"How did Lavender die?" he croaked.
"She was knocked off her broomstick, and she landed on her back." He was direct, but he could not look Harry in the eye. "She did not suffer."
Harry could not take this, and he sank to his knees, ravaged by sorrow and guilt. "It's all my fault..." he whispered to himself, his face buried in his hands. "It's all my fault!" he cried these last words out and felt hot tears of pain and grief rip themselves out of his eyes as he remember his friend. He remembered her taking off on the broom, prepared to do what she must... then another thought crossed his mind suddenly.
"Ginny," he said suddenly, standing up. "Where is she, is she ok?"
Dumbledore gave Harry as close to a smile as he could manage in the circumstances. "She will be fine, Harry," he said gently. "You may see her if you like."
Harry nodded gratefully, before looking around. "Where is Ron?" he asked suddenly. In answer to his question, there came a sob from further down the hall, by the stairs.
Harry turned and ran towards them, the Death Eater was still there, bound, half hidden in the shadows of the corner where Harry had left him. He heard Ron's voice cracking with emotion before he turned the corner.
"No... No. I couldn't, no..." Harry turned the corner, and saw Ron's ginger covered head bent low, and he could hear Ron's sobs. Beneath him, was a sight that Harry would not forget to the end of his days.
The girl who lay there, who had fallen from several stories up, was Hermione. Her bushy brown hair lay strewn over her shoulders, but it was stained with the blood that coursed out of her hair like a river of red. Her arms hung limply by the side, one at an awkward angle, and each breath she took was laboured.
Harry's shaking legs just about carried him to the other side of her, but there they collapsed under him, and he sank to his knees beside her. Ron looked up at Harry, and Harry saw that his eyes had huge marks under them and he was weeping. Harry fought back his own tears and looked down at Hermione. She smiled up at him.
"And now it is perfect..." her voice was almost a whisper, a shadow of the former confident voice that had so many times confidently answered questions in class. She took another deep breath and Harry saw that there were tears of pain and sorrow in her eyes. "Perfect... I'm so glad you're here Harry... at the end of all things..." She coughed and Harry's heart wrenched with sorrow. He took hold of her hand; the hand that had shot into the air faster than any other student at Hogwarts had for many years.
"I'm here." It was the only words that Harry could manage, and after he had said it he closed his mouth sharply; he thought he would be sick.
Hermione squeezed his hand with all the strength she could muster. "Don't be sad," she said quietly, her tear filled eyes looking deeply into his own. "You are both with me. My two greatest friends... here with me when I go... perfect..." she repeated that word softly and Harry raised the corners of his mouth in the most reassuring way he could manage. Hermione appreciated the gesture.
"You'll be ok..." said Ron in a falsely cheerful voice, "come on, Madame Pomfrey will be right here..." But Harry could tell his heart wasn't in it. Harry's eyes met Ron's again, but this was not one of those amused glances they had so often shared. Indeed, Ron's eyes showed deeper grief then Harry had seen on a living soul before.
"Ron," Hermione said softly, and Harry could see her strength waning. "I love you Ron, and I will never forget you. Nor you Harry. You two have stood by me through all these years, and I will never forget it." She coughed sadly. "Take care of Ron, Harry. I know you will. You have always taken care of us. Did you beat Voldemort?"
Harry looked at Ron, and then up the tall form of Professor Dumbledore, who had an arm around Professor McGonagall, whose face was buried in his chest, sobbing softly. He turned back to face Hermione.
"Yeah," he said softly. "He's gone." Hermione sighed softly and tilted her head back and closed her eyes. For a horrible moment Harry thought that the dreaded moment had come, but she opened them again, her intelligent, full brown eyes taking in the castle, and the people around her.
"I have loved every minute at this place," she said, in a slightly husky voice, and Harry could see that now, although the pain seemed to be subsiding, she was slipping away from them. "And I have loved everyone in it, although none more so than you two." She turned to Harry for the last time.
"I don't know how much longer I can hold on Harry," she said, her eyes suddenly fearful. "Tell my family I love them. I will look for Sirius and your parents, Harry. And I will wait for you. I will find some way to speak to you from the next realm. I will wait for you."
She turned her eyes back to Ron, and Harry gulped back the immense surge of love and pride he felt for this amazing witch that lay before him. She drew another deep, ragged breath.
"I'll wait for you Ron," she said, her voice now fading even more. "I want you to enjoy life, and remember me, but not to let that worry you. I want you to love, and be happy, and not grieve. My love for you is eternal. But now, in my home, with my best friends, I must leave you. I will be with you always." She drew a last, heart-wrenching, shuddering breath, and lay still.
Ron let out a howl of pain and agony, and more terrible a sound Harry had never heard. He watched Ron place his head in his hands and weep unrestrainedly, but the image blurred with his own sudden tears. As one, they both got to their feet and, with Hermione's body still below them, they embraced as brothers.
Ron sobbed into Harry's shoulder and they stood there, united in grief for longer then Harry could say. They held onto each other, both unable to let go their grief for a long time. Ron pulled back, and Harry saw the deep sadness in his eyes change.
"Where is he?" he said, his voice shuddering with emotion and range. "The one who did this?"
Harry turned around to face the long-forgotten Death Eater. Harry and Ron advanced on him, wands raised. Dumbledore didn't try to stop them. But suddenly Ron dropped his wand on the floor and started punching the Death Eater, who tried to recoil but couldn't, still bound by Harry's spell.
"YOU KILLED HER!" Ron yelled. "I'M GOING TO KILL YOU FACE TO FACE, UNLIKE YOU DID TO HER!"
Harry stepped forward and pulled Ron off, before grabbing the top part of the Death Eaters mask. He pulled it upwards and both he and Ron reeled backwards in utter shock. Harry gasped.
"You!"
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Author's note: Just to say that was easily the hardest chapter I've ever had to write. It was one of the hardest decisions to make as well. She was a great character whom, like Harry's parents, and Sirius, will not be forgotten.
Chapter 35 - Counting the Cost
Harry rose gingerly to his feet, where he swayed on the spot. It was over, Voldemort had been beaten and he had retreated. Relief swept over him in such quantities that it was almost dizzying, but then, as he looked round the hall, it was overhauled by another emotion: sadness.
Cho Chang's body still lay over in the corner where she had fallen. Her soft black hair hung like a beautiful veil across her face, and her lifeless eyes stared out in the grimness of Death. Harry felt racked with grief as his eyes continued their tour of the room. Over in one corner, Harry could see the captured Death Eaters were sitting, many were unconscious, though some were sitting upright and looking fearful. There were eight of them in total, but Harry's eye met those of Lucius Malfoy. His lip curled at Harry and then he turned a spiteful gaze at his son, who was still lying on the floor.
Then Harry's eyes fell on another pair of figures. One was Kingsley Shacklebolt, and he was bending over the limp form of Remus Lupin.
"Remus!" Harry yelled, and he leapt out of Dumbledore's reach and over to his former Professor. "Remus!"
"Calm yourself Harry," came Kingsley's deep, steady voice. "He is hurt, quite badly, but he is not dead. Look! His chest moves."
Harry breathed a sigh of relief. "We should get him to Madam Pomfrey," Dumbledore said quietly, obviously also relieved at Lupin not being dead. "Where is Minerva?"
Dumbledore was looking around for Professor McGonagall. "She's out there Professor," said Harry quietly. "She didn't look good."
Dumbledore strode off out of the hall, and Harry followed suit. Harry found him crouching over Professor McGonagall, who was miraculously awake. She was clutching her side slightly, but she sat upright all the same.
"What happened?" she said alarmed, "And where is Voldemort?"
"Hush, my dear Professor," Dumbledore said mildly, and Harry saw his mouth twitch into one of the brightest smiles he had ever seen from Dumbledore. "You are safe. Voldemort has gone. He will not challenge Hogwarts again."
Professor McGonagall narrowed her eyes as she examined Dumbledore piercingly. She spoke almost in a whisper. "Who have we lost?" She said it quietly, and Dumbledore looked away. Harry saw that there was a tear trickling into this fine silver beard.
"We have lost several wonderful people," he said, his face contorted with sadness and anger. "I am sorry to be the one to tell you this, and I wish it were not true, but Professor Sprout died defending the pupils entering the school, when she was hit by a stray spell from a Death Eater."
Professor McGonagall and Harry both blanched. "Oh no!" Professor McGonagall wailed, and she let out started sobbing into her robe sleeve. Harry stood there in numb shock as this was going on: shock at the death of his Herbology teacher, but also at the effect it had had on Professor McGonagall, who tried to never show emotion if she could help it. Once she had gained control again, she spoke again.
"Who else?" she asked quietly, and Harry was already dreading the answer he would have to give.
Dumbledore sighed heavily. "From Gryffindor House, Colin Creevey and Lavender and from Ravenclaw Cho Chang. Remus and Draco Malfoy are both injured, and many of the Order and Aurors are as of yet, unaccounted for."
Harry let out a gasp of horror. Lavender? He didn't know that she had died too, and he felt a fresh pang of guilt and horror form in his gut.
"How did Lavender die?" he croaked.
"She was knocked off her broomstick, and she landed on her back." He was direct, but he could not look Harry in the eye. "She did not suffer."
Harry could not take this, and he sank to his knees, ravaged by sorrow and guilt. "It's all my fault..." he whispered to himself, his face buried in his hands. "It's all my fault!" he cried these last words out and felt hot tears of pain and grief rip themselves out of his eyes as he remember his friend. He remembered her taking off on the broom, prepared to do what she must... then another thought crossed his mind suddenly.
"Ginny," he said suddenly, standing up. "Where is she, is she ok?"
Dumbledore gave Harry as close to a smile as he could manage in the circumstances. "She will be fine, Harry," he said gently. "You may see her if you like."
Harry nodded gratefully, before looking around. "Where is Ron?" he asked suddenly. In answer to his question, there came a sob from further down the hall, by the stairs.
Harry turned and ran towards them, the Death Eater was still there, bound, half hidden in the shadows of the corner where Harry had left him. He heard Ron's voice cracking with emotion before he turned the corner.
"No... No. I couldn't, no..." Harry turned the corner, and saw Ron's ginger covered head bent low, and he could hear Ron's sobs. Beneath him, was a sight that Harry would not forget to the end of his days.
The girl who lay there, who had fallen from several stories up, was Hermione. Her bushy brown hair lay strewn over her shoulders, but it was stained with the blood that coursed out of her hair like a river of red. Her arms hung limply by the side, one at an awkward angle, and each breath she took was laboured.
Harry's shaking legs just about carried him to the other side of her, but there they collapsed under him, and he sank to his knees beside her. Ron looked up at Harry, and Harry saw that his eyes had huge marks under them and he was weeping. Harry fought back his own tears and looked down at Hermione. She smiled up at him.
"And now it is perfect..." her voice was almost a whisper, a shadow of the former confident voice that had so many times confidently answered questions in class. She took another deep breath and Harry saw that there were tears of pain and sorrow in her eyes. "Perfect... I'm so glad you're here Harry... at the end of all things..." She coughed and Harry's heart wrenched with sorrow. He took hold of her hand; the hand that had shot into the air faster than any other student at Hogwarts had for many years.
"I'm here." It was the only words that Harry could manage, and after he had said it he closed his mouth sharply; he thought he would be sick.
Hermione squeezed his hand with all the strength she could muster. "Don't be sad," she said quietly, her tear filled eyes looking deeply into his own. "You are both with me. My two greatest friends... here with me when I go... perfect..." she repeated that word softly and Harry raised the corners of his mouth in the most reassuring way he could manage. Hermione appreciated the gesture.
"You'll be ok..." said Ron in a falsely cheerful voice, "come on, Madame Pomfrey will be right here..." But Harry could tell his heart wasn't in it. Harry's eyes met Ron's again, but this was not one of those amused glances they had so often shared. Indeed, Ron's eyes showed deeper grief then Harry had seen on a living soul before.
"Ron," Hermione said softly, and Harry could see her strength waning. "I love you Ron, and I will never forget you. Nor you Harry. You two have stood by me through all these years, and I will never forget it." She coughed sadly. "Take care of Ron, Harry. I know you will. You have always taken care of us. Did you beat Voldemort?"
Harry looked at Ron, and then up the tall form of Professor Dumbledore, who had an arm around Professor McGonagall, whose face was buried in his chest, sobbing softly. He turned back to face Hermione.
"Yeah," he said softly. "He's gone." Hermione sighed softly and tilted her head back and closed her eyes. For a horrible moment Harry thought that the dreaded moment had come, but she opened them again, her intelligent, full brown eyes taking in the castle, and the people around her.
"I have loved every minute at this place," she said, in a slightly husky voice, and Harry could see that now, although the pain seemed to be subsiding, she was slipping away from them. "And I have loved everyone in it, although none more so than you two." She turned to Harry for the last time.
"I don't know how much longer I can hold on Harry," she said, her eyes suddenly fearful. "Tell my family I love them. I will look for Sirius and your parents, Harry. And I will wait for you. I will find some way to speak to you from the next realm. I will wait for you."
She turned her eyes back to Ron, and Harry gulped back the immense surge of love and pride he felt for this amazing witch that lay before him. She drew another deep, ragged breath.
"I'll wait for you Ron," she said, her voice now fading even more. "I want you to enjoy life, and remember me, but not to let that worry you. I want you to love, and be happy, and not grieve. My love for you is eternal. But now, in my home, with my best friends, I must leave you. I will be with you always." She drew a last, heart-wrenching, shuddering breath, and lay still.
Ron let out a howl of pain and agony, and more terrible a sound Harry had never heard. He watched Ron place his head in his hands and weep unrestrainedly, but the image blurred with his own sudden tears. As one, they both got to their feet and, with Hermione's body still below them, they embraced as brothers.
Ron sobbed into Harry's shoulder and they stood there, united in grief for longer then Harry could say. They held onto each other, both unable to let go their grief for a long time. Ron pulled back, and Harry saw the deep sadness in his eyes change.
"Where is he?" he said, his voice shuddering with emotion and range. "The one who did this?"
Harry turned around to face the long-forgotten Death Eater. Harry and Ron advanced on him, wands raised. Dumbledore didn't try to stop them. But suddenly Ron dropped his wand on the floor and started punching the Death Eater, who tried to recoil but couldn't, still bound by Harry's spell.
"YOU KILLED HER!" Ron yelled. "I'M GOING TO KILL YOU FACE TO FACE, UNLIKE YOU DID TO HER!"
Harry stepped forward and pulled Ron off, before grabbing the top part of the Death Eaters mask. He pulled it upwards and both he and Ron reeled backwards in utter shock. Harry gasped.
"You!"
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Author's note: Just to say that was easily the hardest chapter I've ever had to write. It was one of the hardest decisions to make as well. She was a great character whom, like Harry's parents, and Sirius, will not be forgotten.
