A/N: This is it: the final chapter. I hope you all have enjoyed the story.
Chapter 70: Cherished But Gone.
“Harry? Harry!”
“He’s alright?”
“Oh thank goodness…”
“Let me through, I have to get him into bed…”
“Is that Ginny with him?”
“Mr. Potter…Ms. Weasley…”
“Ginny? Where’s Katie?”
“Oh no…”
“What’s wrong?”
The flurry of voices came to a standstill. Harry felt his head pounding.
Katie and Ginny are dead…
“Everyone get back,” Madam Pomfrey said, her voice breaking slightly.
“What’s wrong?” Hermione asked.
“Are they alright?” Mrs. Weasley asked.
“Mr. Weasley “ no!”
It was too late “ Ron had rushed to Harry and Ginny’s side.
“Ron…” Harry said weakly. “I’m sorry…”
Ron didn’t respond. He was looking at Ginny’s body.
“She’s dead…” he choked. “Mum “ Ginny’s dead.”
“No…” Mrs. Weasley said. “No “ she can’t be…”
“I’m sorry…” Harry choked. “I tried to save her…”
“She’s dead?” Hermione cried, rushing to Ron’s side to see Ginny for herself.
The door of the Hospital Wing burst open, and Lupin came in carrying Katie. Harry stood up and rushed to him.
“Katie…” he said painfully, touching her pale face with his hands.
“Harry, you can see her later “ but I need to get her into a bed,” Lupin said quickly.
“No, please “ Katie…”
“Harry “ please, she needs rest…”
“What…” Harry said, dimly
“She needs rest, Harry…”
“But… she’s dead…” Harry said.
“Harry “ she’s not dead,” Lupin said, sounding confused. “But she’s weak “ I need to get her to a bed…”
Lupin began to walk away, carrying Katie in his arms.
“She’s alive…” Harry said in breathless relief, feeling happier than he’d ever remembered being. “She’s alive…”
He let the realization sink in on him for a moment, before remembering that Ginny was dead. Katie was alive “ but it didn’t change that Ginny was gone. He felt equally overjoyed and miserable at the same time.
All the emotions washed over him, and Harry dropped onto his knees and began to sob.
---
“Good morning, Harry… are feeling alright?”
Harry nodded tiredly. It was barely dawn, and Katie, Hermione, and Ron were still asleep. The hospital wing was eerily peaceful. He looked over at Katie and saw her body rise and fall with her breath.
“I’m sorry about what happened, Harry “ I must take some responsibility…”
“Don’t do this Professor “ please don’t do this now…”
Harry knew what Dumbledore was going to say “ he was going to claim that he shouldn’t have allowed Pettigrew on the grounds, that none of this would have happened. That Harry and his friends would not have been abducted, and that Ginny would not have died. As he sat there watching Dumbledore’s tired face, Harry felt some of the anger he had harbored towards him over the past year resurface.
“Very well, Harry…” Dumbledore said sadly. “But I feel there are a few things you are entitled to know…”
Harry just nodded.
“Draco Malfoy has been apprehended by the Ministry. He confessed that Pettigrew observed you spending a lot of time on the ground in the weeks following Easter Break, and that he suggested to Pettigrew placing a Portkey on the grounds; a Portkey designed only to transport to Voldemort’s Headquarters if touched by you. It seemed the least inconspicuous way of transporting you without blowing their cover “ they did not know, however, that we were fully aware of the presence in the castle.”
“Malfoy shouldn’t be sent to Azkaban…” Harry muttered. “He wouldn’t do it…”
“He wouldn’t do what?”
“He wouldn’t kill Ginny “ he told his father no…”
“Katie told me the same thing…” Dumbledore said quietly. “Lucius left him to murder Katie, too, but he refused to do it. Instead, he hit her with a curse to make her appear dead. It injured her quite badly “ but nevertheless, he did not kill her. Lucius did not know that Katie was alive, and subsequently led you to believe she had died.”
“Mm-Hm..” Harry said.
“Before the abduction, the Order knew that Voldemort’s headquarters were located somewhere in southern Denmark, though we were careful in finding it’s exact area because we did not want the Death Eaters to know how close we were,” Dumbledore continued. “However, after Ministry Officials reported seeing you and your friend vanish from the grounds, we felt that it was most likely that you had been taken to Voldemort’s base of operation, and we began seeking it’s absolute location more urgently. Luckily, Voldemort discovered this before he knew of our reason, and he fled without reporting back to his headquarters. Had he known why we were trying to locate the Headquarters, he most likely would have gotten back before we managed to find you.”
“Lucky…” Harry muttered.
Dumbledore sighed, and was quiet for a moment, and then he took an envelope from his robes.
“Professor Lupin wanted me to give this to you,” he said, handing Harry the envelope. “He left last night for Manchester…”
“But he wasn’t supposed to leave until this afternoon…” Harry said, slightly crestfallen.
“Actually Harry “ you slept all day yesterday. Remus tried to wait until you awoke, but he had to be in Manchester by midnight and could not wait any longer. He hoped you would understand.”
Harry just nodded and opened the envelope. Dumbledore said goodbye and left the hospital wing, leaving Harry alone with Lupin’s letter.
Dear Harry,
I’m sorry I could not say goodbye in person, but it was very important that I be in Manchester in time to begin the study. It will please you to know that we have received official permission from the Ministry to proceed with the program. I informed the students where I’ll be heading at the party they threw for my yesterday in class. Seamus was the host, but he told me it was your idea. Thank you, I loved it.
I am sad to learn of Ginny’s death. She was an amazing girl, and truly loved by many. I know she was like a sister to you, and I can barely begin to imagine how painful her loss is to you, especially on top of everything you are already feeling. Give the Weasleys my condolences.
Alex has informed me that she will be instructing you and your friends in advanced defense. She is very flattered that you went to her, and takes the responsibility very seriously. I hope that you come to enjoy her company as much as I do (well, not quite that much, but you understand…)
Good luck with everything next year, Harry. I will truly miss you. I promise to write often, and I hope you do the same. I hope to return from Manchester speedily, possibly a changed man. Until then, be safe, be careful, and stay strong.
Remus.
---
The last weeks of school passed miserably. Seeing Mrs. Weasley’s reaction to her only daughter’s death was possibly the most painful thing Harry had ever witnessed in his life, and it made the loss hurt even worse than he imagined it could have been.
Dean had been very upset to learn of Ginny’s death, too, but Harry did not feel sympathy for him. He was much too upset himself over Ginny’s death to think he should comfort the person who had caused her pain in the last months of her life.
The one good thing through all of it was having Katie. Sometimes he felt guilty for being so happy that she had lived, but then he realized that it might just be the one happy thought helping him get from day to day.
Harry and the others who had been kidnapped were excused from their final exams, and Katie received special permission to make-up the N.E.W.T’s she missed.
Finally the last day of school arrived, and Harry got onto the Hogwarts Express dreading the next week that he would be forced to spend with the Dursleys before leaving for Grimmauld Place, which he dreaded almost as much.
He, Ron, Hermione, Katie, found a compartment together and sat inside quietly, talking about the weather, and what Katie would be doing now that she had left Hogwarts. Nobody dared to talk about the year that had just passed, until finally, Hermione brought them all back down to earth.
“Quite a lot has happened since September, hasn’t it?” she said quietly.
“Dad, Mrs. Bell, Viktor…Ginny…” Ron said raspily. “They’re all gone.”
Hermione took Ron’s hand.
“We’re together…” she said, giving him a trembling smile. “And Harry and Katie have each other…”
“Lupin might be cured,” Harry said, smiling softly too.
“Bill’s getting married…” Ron said.
“Hermione slapped Charlotte…” Katie said. They all laughed softly.
“We won the Quidditch Cup, thanks to our brilliant captain…” Harry said.
“Harry inherited Legilemency from his mum…” Hermione said.
“Ginny stole Veritaserum from Snape…” Ron said, raising his eyebrows.
“That might have been the best one all year,” Katie said.
They all fell silent again.
“Maybe it wasn’t such a bad year, after all…” Harry said softly, looking out the window at the blurred landscape. Katie kissed him on the cheek, and he watch as Hermione laid her head on Ron’s shoulder and he kissed her forehead. He thought of Ginny and how much he had cared for her. Something he cherished really had been stolen from him, and he would never get her back.
He was going to see to it that her life was not lost in vain. He was going to see to it that Voldemort was destroyed once and for all.