Chapter Twenty-Nine “ The Prophecy Fulfilled
A distant clap of thunder met his ears. Harry’s eyes fluttered open to reveal that familiar cracked ceiling. Violent raindrops were slamming against the darkened window. His head was aching mercilessly, and it took him a moment to realize that he was alive, and he marveled at this. Then he noticed that there was something heavy on his chest, and he attempted to dislodge it, groaning with the effort.
“Ow!” A gasp. “Oh my god!”
Searing pain shot through his arm, the one he’d burned while fighting the Inferi. Luci must have been lying against him, and he’d shoved his wounded elbow into her.
“Oh my god, Harry, I thought you were…”
“What?”
But she was smothering him in kisses and he was engulfed from head to toe in tingling sensations. Her soft hair tumbled into his face, and her lips were on his mouth, his forehead, his neck, his cheeks, his mouth again…
Leaving trails of moisture.
“Luci, are you crying?”
She sniffed, lifting her head, but their faces were still almost touching.
“It’s just… they said you were going to die… and I was so… terrified. I thought you’d never wake up again and someone would just come to my room one day soon and tell me you’d“” She broke off and sniffed again.
Harry was confused, not knowing what had happened and how he’d gotten here, but the emotion in her voice made him want nothing else but to comfort her. A tear dropped down onto his cheek, but he didn’t move to wipe it away, instead running a hand lovingly along her back. “I told you that I wouldn’t leave you and I meant it.”
She inhaled slowly, deeply. Then she resumed with covering him in salty kisses. He grinned and made no effort to stop her, only kissing her in return when her mouth met his.
Finally, he mumbled, “Luci?”
“Hmm?” She kissed his nose.
“Why are you in my bed?”
She sat up and looked quizzically down at him. He could only see her face due to the lightning illuminating the room every now and then, making her hair appear as silver as the moon. “A boy should never question a girl in his bed.”
He smiled. “No, I agree! What I meant is “ why am I in my bed?”
“Oh! Well, we found you and… and the Healers, they told us you would die, and I thought I would die if you died, and they said there was nothing we could do, so we brought you back here to… to wait, I guess… I’m sorry; I am so elated that I can’t talk straight!”
Laughing, Harry pulled her back down against him. She nestled her head against his chest.
“It’s the middle of the night. So what are you doing in my bed?”
“Being near you. Praying for you to wake up. I couldn’t sleep.” She paused. “How do you feel?”
He sucked in a breath. “Damaged.”
“What do you mean “ damaged?”
He shrugged beneath her weight. “I just feel… different.” He searched his mind for the right word. “Tarnished,” he explained.
Luci raised her head and he could tell that she was looking at him curiously. “What on earth for?”
He swallowed, hesitating. Thunder cracked ominously outside the window.
“You can tell me anything, Harry, you know that. I’m never going to judge you for what happened in that basement.”
He nodded and answered slowly, “I… I killed Peter Pettigrew.”
Luci laughed unexpectedly, and his eyebrows flew up in response.
“You didn’t kill him, Harry!”
“What? Yes, I did! I used the killing curse on him! He… he fell right over!”
“You must not have meant it, because he was alive when we found you. Barely, but barely is enough.”
Harry sat up. “He’s alive?”
“Yep. Upstairs, in fact.” She sat up too.
“Sorry?!”
“Actually, Hermione and I… we took care of some things…”
“What did you do, Luci?” he demanded.
“Don’t get worked up. This is good news.”
“Wormtail in my house is good news?”
“Just listen. I had an idea, and I dragged Hermione into it a little bit, but it was mostly me, so don’t be angry with her. I just… I wanted to do something for you, because you’ve done so much for me. Even if you weren’t going to survive, I wanted to. So I…” She stopped, as if she thought he might not like the next part.
He got impatient. “Well?”
She sighed. “After you’d been gone for too long, I got worried and went to Spinner’s End to look for you. Moody and Remus and Tonks, they all came too. We brought you and Peter to St. Mungo’s, and they thought for sure that you wouldn’t make it, but they said that Peter would live, and they’d just send him to Azkaban, but... but I thought that was too good for him, and I had a better arrangement. So I enlisted Hermione to help me brew up the Draught of Living Death“”
“You brewed it?” he cut in, remembering the potion’s difficulty. “Did you crush the sopophorous beans? It works better.” It was a stupid question, and Harry didn’t know why it had just slipped out. Lack of clarity, perhaps.
“What? The potion was fine! Anyway. When the Healers were convinced that Peter was dead, we took him from the hospital, and now he’s upstairs. All we have to do is get him to the Ministry and we can trade him for Sirius. He’s plenty tortured, from what you’ve told me.”
She paused, as if waiting for Harry to yell at her, but he just sat there with his eyes wide.
“Oh, and I forced him to confess to framing Sirius. Just in case this works. So Sirius’s record is clear; no need to run around like a criminal anymore.”
Harry’s mouth was now hanging open, but he remained silent.
Feebly, Luci prompted, “Yay?”
“I… I can’t believe you did this!” he exploded abruptly.
“I’m sorry, but I“”
“No!” exclaimed Harry. “You’re a genius!”
“You’re not mad at me? I would have asked you, but it wasn’t really possible, under the circumstances.”
“No, this is perfect! I didn’t kill Wormtail, and now we can send him to a fate that’s fit for all of his crimes!”
“Yes,” nodded Luci, sounding relieved. “But you did kill Voldemort, Harry.”
“No, I didn’t! He tried to kill me!”
“What? He A.K.ed you?”
“Yep.”
She made a puzzled sound. “But… that’s impossible… You’re alive, he’s dead…”
“Are we sure he’s dead?”
“Well, we’re sure you’re alive… but yes! Yes, I mean, I think so. He was human. Ugly, but human. Just a… a human body, lying there. We checked his pulse and I kicked him around a little…” She made a sheepish pause. “Then Moody burned his body.”
It was like a bolt of lightning, and it wasn’t due to the rainstorm.
“He’s dead,” breathed Harry faintly.
Then something cumbersome and gnawing lifted from his body, something he hadn’t been without for a very long time. He fell back onto his pillow in revelation. He closed his eyes.
Voldemort is dead, he repeated to himself.
Years of his life, spent with so much burden. And now it was gone. Dead. He felt a levity that he’d never known, not even when he’d thought he was a Muggle, not even when he was flying on a broom. He had won. There would be no more battles and no more losses and no more obligation. The prophecy, his destiny, had been fulfilled.
Voldemort is dead.
Even with the storm raging on outside, the world was vivid and hopeful. His life was vivid and hopeful, and it never had been before. This felt spectacular!
After what must have been several minutes, he opened his eyes and reached his hand out to her. She had been sitting there silently, letting it sink in for him. She curled her fingers around his, but waited for him to speak first.
Finally, he said, “It’s over.”
“Yes. And you didn’t even have to kill anyone,” she agreed cheerily.
“I just… I don’t know how he died. I think the curse backfired again, because he started going on about someone’s eyes and I don’t remember anything else.”
“Well, they are amazing eyes…” said Luci uncertainly.
Harry gasped in comprehension. “No, my mum’s eyes! He was saying, ‘Her eyes,’ and who else could it be? Maybe it was just like the first time!”
“The first time?”
“My mum, she died to save me. Maybe her love protected me again. And I had your spell too. He was so much more powerful and I had no hope at all, just… love, I guess.”
“Sounds like it was enough. Too bad I burned that damned book of protective spells after I thought it had failed me,” she griped, but her tone was merry.
“I feel great!” chimed Harry suddenly, releasing her hand and sitting up again. “Let’s go get Sirius!”
Luci laughed and pushed him gently back down onto his back. “It’s pouring, it’s the middle of the night, and we have to wait for the Draught to wear off anyway. So you’re going to rest and then you can take Ron and Hermione to get Sirius in a few days.”
“You’re bossy when you’re happy.”
“It’s a good thing you’ve had all those years with Hermione to get used to bossy girls, eh?”
He grinned, then questioned, “Why won’t you come with us to get Sirius?”
“Well, the three of you, it’s kind of your thing.”
“Our thing?”
“Yeah, rescue and whatnot.”
“You’re mental sometimes, Luci, you know that?” But he laughed.
“There’s a fine line between genius and insanity,” she retorted jovially.
“I want you to come.”
“That place… The memories are too fresh. I’d rather not. Besides, Harry, if it works, it’s going to be huge for you. Ron and Hermione have been there with you, and though I very much intend to occupy your future, this is about your past. Anyway, I have plans to make.”
He understood her position and decided not to push her, since the Department of Mysteries held particularly bad memories for him, as well, some of them the same as hers. So he simply asked, “What plans?”
“I need to go home.”
He almost choked on the breath of surprise.
“Temporarily,” she explained. “I have to tie up some loose ends, help Mama pack, say my goodbyes, that kind of thing. Shouldn’t take long.”
“You’re moving here?” asked Harry hopefully. “Both of you?”
“Of course,” she answered. “My home is near you and my brother.”
Malfoy. How irritating. Harry still wished that she wasn’t his sister.
“Where will you stay?”
“Draco offered to let me stay at the Malfoy Mansion until my mom gets moved here, and then we’ll get a place of our own.”
“No more midnight duels, then?”
She was silent for a second, and he wished that he could see her expression, but the room was far too dark at the moment.
He gulped. “Sorry; I didn’t mean anything by it. It’s just been… nice… having you down the hall.”
“Yes,” Luci sighed, “but you can’t imagine how hard I’ve had to try to keep my hands off of you all this time. I don’t trust myself to stay down the hall anymore.”
Harry’s stomach shimmied happily, but he merely said, “That’s a shame.”
She clapped him playfully on the leg. “You still wanna study to be an Auror then?”
“Yes, and I expect your help. If you’re striving to be like Hermione, bossy isn’t her only attribute! She practically got me and Ron through Hogwarts.”
Laughing, Luci replied, “It’s a deal. Hermione is my hero.”
“Wait… what about your license?”
“Mmm,” she responded. “Suspended for six months.”
Harry gasped and started to apologize.
“Hey, I’m lucky,” she cut in. “I could have been fined or tried or fired entirely. They were lenient because they took into account that I was just trying to protect someone that I loved, and then, of course, they took into account that I loved you in the first place, and they weren’t too pleased with that, so.”
“Well, I’m pleased.”
“Of course you are! You have me all to yourself, as I’m out of work for six months. Just don’t make me get a real job!” she pleaded jokingly.
“There’s the Luci I fell for,” he said, dragging her down again.
“Was I gone?”
“You went through a gloomy spell.”
She paused thoughtfully. “Did I?”
“Yeah, your first few months here, you were always joking around. You even made Malfoy laugh, which is something, believe me “ the guy is a bore.”
“Be nice,” she said lightheartedly, but then her tone changed. “Eh, I was always a little gloomy… I came here out of duty, you know. Because family is very important to me, whether I am to them or not. But I had no affection for Draco, at first. The jokes were a defense, to keep me from getting too attached. I knew that I couldn’t protect him as well if my emotions were involved. It didn’t work, obviously, with you or him. Not that I don’t have a sense of humor, of course, but when no one was looking, I was always a little gloomy. When the mask came off.”
“And how am I to know that this isn’t the mask?” teased Harry.
She pulled away, all mirth draining from her eyes.
“You can’t get past it,” she said accusingly.
“What?” he croaked in alarm, catapulting upright.
“You’re not ready to do this with me.”
“It was a joke.” He was floored by her mood swing.
She was affronted. “You’re joking about how I’ve damaged your trust?”
Harry reached out for her. “Luci, it’s the past. You’re putting words in my mouth. I thought we’d dealt with all of this?”
She inhaled deeply. “I’m sorry,” she breathed, succumbing to his touch. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I just have this lurking guilt over everything that I kept from you. I’m sorry. I’ll try to stop. I knew it was a joke; I just… I’m sorry.” She swore. “I must be out of my mind “ I just got you back and I’m snapping at you. I didn’t mean it.”
“I’ve forgiven you, so forgive yourself,” he murmured, stroking her arm affectionately.
She scoffed. “This from the guy who can’t forgive himself for anything?”
He shrugged.
“Do as I say, not as I do?”
“Huh?”
“It’s something we both struggle with, I guess,” Luci went on. “It’s funny, because you have so many wonderful qualities, but one that stands out is your ability to forgive. You’ve forgiven me, and loads of other people, for countless things, but you can’t forgive yourself. I, on the other hand, don’t forgive anyone, including myself.” Then she laughed halfheartedly.
“You forgave me for slicing you up,” he pointed out, attempting to change the mood.
“Sure, but that’s because I love you and you did it to protect me. You forgive people you don’t love, and I’m incapable of that.”
“Like who?” inquired Harry, his brow furrowed.
“Like Peter Pettigrew. You said you let him go all those years ago.”
“That was pity, not forgiveness!” he countered. “I did later try to kill him, remember?”
She shrugged. “Never mind all this. I will work on forgiving myself if you do the same. How ’bout that?”
“Ah, a competition?”
“If that helps,” she said, and he could hear the flippancy return to her voice.
“You should know that I rarely lose.”
“I do know that.”
He smiled through a yawn.
Luci stood abruptly and said, “Go to sleep, Harry.”
“You’re leaving?”
“Yep, and you’re going to sleep.”
“Now?”
A streak of lightning, and the corners of her mouth quirked up. “Yes, before I change my mind.”
“Change it.”
“We both know it’s not a good idea.”
“Stay,” he said softly.
She wavered.
“Please.”
“Ron’ll be back soon and I don’t think he’d appreciate my staying.”
“Ron?” asked Harry, sidetracked. “Is he here? Why isn’t he in his bed?”
“He’s… distraught,” she answered sadly. “Up at the pitch blowing off steam, I guess.”
Harry sighed. “He’s never lost anyone, let alone two people at once.”
“Well, he’s got you to help him through it. And Hermione; she adores him. All of the Weasleys, their love will get them past this nightmare. Percy’s even here, actually. Begged for forgiveness, in fact, and has been nothing but devoted to everyone.”
“Too bad his mother never got to see it,” he said sardonically.
“Oh, yes, she did.”
“What?” Harry stammered.
“You missed more than I realized,” started Luci. “Well, after you left, Hermione told me that Molly had woken up and she was talking to everyone for a good while, and Percy apologized profusely and she forgave him. And soon after, she just closed her eyes, I guess. It was peaceful. She was happy.”
Tears had formed in Harry’s eyes, and his usual response would have been embarrassment, but he found he didn’t feel any. He knew that it wasn’t only because of the darkness.
“Stay,” he said again.
“Harry…” she said reproachfully, hesitating.
He knew that the simple truth would convince her. “I need you.”
“Oy,” she said in exasperation, as she crawled back onto the bed with him. He lifted the quilt to allow her beneath it. “You knew I couldn’t resist that, didn’t you?”
He chuckled, feigning innocence.
“Well, you still have to go to sleep.”
“I’m not the least bit tired,” he argued. “I feel like taking a lap around the pitch myself.”
“Too bad,” she said, pretending to reprimand him. “Why don’t you tell me what happened in that house instead? The place was in ruins! And what’d you do to your beautiful arm?”
So Harry started from the beginning, and when he got to the bit about the Inferi, he felt Luci shudder against him. He was just recalling how he’d fallen into the cellar when Ron walked into the room, illuminating the space with the light from his wand.
Harry squinted against the brightness and Luci shot from the bed, as if she’d been guilty of something.
“Oh, sorry,” Ron stuttered, and he went to close the door again.
“No, Ron, come back,” called Harry through his laughter.
Ron poked his ginger hair through the doorway again. “Didn’t mean to interrupt.”
“I was just leaving,” said Luci abashedly.
“No, you weren’t,” countered Harry, and then he turned to Ron and continued, “I was just telling her about my face off with Voldemort.”
This seemed to evoke something in Ron, because he swiftly tore into the room and said, “Hey, you’re alive! We thought you were a goner!”
Suddenly, he was shaking Harry’s hand zealously. “I’ve gotta tell Hermione!”
“No, no,” said Luci, on her way out of the room. “It can wait until morning. You boys go to sleep.”
She shut the door behind her, but neither of the boys went to sleep. There was far too much to be said.
Harry began by throwing copious apologizes at Ron for the loss of his family members. Ron, in turn, brushed him off and told him that every newspaper in circulation was publishing the story of Harry’s victory over the Dark Lord. He had never been so famous, Ron concluded. Harry thought that this was probably bad news and that he may be hearing from Rita Skeeter again soon.
They stayed up the rest of the night, Harry telling Ron all about Voldemort and the Inferi and Luci’s plan to feed Wormtail to the Veil. She and Hermione hadn’t conveyed this idea to Ron, apparently, because he was as shocked as Harry had been.
Though attentive to Harry’s account, Ron was not his enthusiastic self. The distance in his eyes had now grown deeper still, and the tone of his voice was littered with sorrow. Harry longed to make it better, but he didn’t know how that would be possible when he was harboring his own grief over the loss of Charlie and Mrs. Weasley.
Morning came quickly, and Harry felt well rested, despite being up half the night. He and Ron meandered downstairs, and when they entered the kitchen, they were greeted by a rush of people. Many sets of arms were thrown around Harry, and he managed to identify the twins and Mr. Weasley. Somewhere in the commotion, Ginny embraced him so tightly that, for a moment, he couldn’t breathe.
“We thought you…” she muttered.
“I know. But I’m O.K. Are you all right?”
She was crying and didn’t look all right at all, but she nodded.
Hermione was next to hug Harry, scolding, “Harry James Potter! Don’t you ever do that to me again, do you hear me?”
He laughed.
Luci was standing in the back of the room with her mother, apparently preparing breakfast, and she gave him a significant smile. His heart soared in response.
Fleur was kissing his cheeks and mumbling something about scaring her half to death. Bill clapped him on the back heartily. And then there was Percy, who shook Harry’s hand firmly and said, “Forgive me, Harry. I’ve been wrong.”
Harry hesitated, but finally replied, “It’s good to have you back.”
“You too,” said Percy, returning the smile.
Everyone was thrilled to see Harry in good health once more, but it wasn’t long before a cloud drifted into the room and stole the light from everyone’s eyes again. The sense of loss was palpable, and Harry found that he could hardly stand it. He had a horrible feeling that none of the Weasleys would ever be the same.