The funeral of Harry Potter was just as populated as Albus Dumbledore’s almost 14 years prior, if not more. Wizards and witches poured into Hogsmeade from all over the world, and the Ministry had to be on constant alert for fights breaking out over reservations at hotels. Finally, at seven ’o clock, people filled the thousands of chairs set out on the grounds, ready for the funeral to begin.
Next to the white tomb where the body of Dumbledore lay, another white tomb had been erected. No body would be laid to rest there, as Harry Potter’s body had never been found in the rubble of the Death Eaters’ hideout. It was simply there as a symbol, to remind everyone that, although he was over 100 years younger, Potter was no lesser man than Dumbledore.
As Ron sat in his chair in the front row, next to his entire family of Weasley cousins, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins, he read the plaque that was engraved at the foot of the tomb:
but he sacrificed his flesh and bone to save others.
His spirit resides in this hallowed place,
and in the hearts of his loved ones.
(1980-2011)
Ron found that tears formed in his eyes when he read the well-crafted words, and his mother gripped his shoulder as she, too, cried silently. The entire Weasley clan was devastated by the loss, but none as much as Harry Potter’s wife and two kids. Finally, after everyone muttered quietly about various things, the ceremony began.
First, Rufus Scrimgeour stood up and gave a few words. He talked about what an incredible wizard Harry Potter was, and what an awesome Auror he had been for the ten years he served before teaching at Hogwarts. He sat down to scattered applause, and then, to everyone’s surprise, Severus Snape stood up at the podium and cleared his throat.
“I admit, I never got along with Potter,” he said, and a few people who knew of the two men’s relationship, such as Ron and Harry, laughed quietly. “From the moment I first met him, as my student twenty years ago, to the time he joined me on staff here at Hogwarts, we never had a true bond between us.
“Many, many years ago, when I was a student at Hogwarts, I formed a close bond with Potter’s mother, Lily Evans. Unfortunately for me, she chose to marry James Potter, whom I admit I despised. James teased me and bullied me, and I hated him for it. When Lily and James was murdered, my combined anger towards the death of Lily to the continuing hatred of James channeled towards young Potter. Every chance I got “ and believe me, there were ample chances “ I punished Potter as severely as possible.”
Everyone was watching Snape, in awe at what he was saying. Snape continued: “All throughout his six years at Hogwarts, Potter was constantly in trouble. He also eluded the Dark Lord time and time again, and on one occasion, when Potter was nearly killed by an accomplice of the Dark Lord, I saved Potter’s life...as his father had once done for me, to my immense displeasure.
“When Potter defeated the Dark Lord thirteen years ago, although I still didn’t particularly like him, I admit, I respected him greatly for what he had done. Even the great Albus Dumbledore “ whom I regret playing a part in the death of “ couldn’t do what Potter did. And for that...although until the end, I didn’t like him very much...I tip my hat to Harry Potter.” Snape nodded briefly, and then stepped off the stage. After a few seconds of stunned silence, everyone clapped, and the applause for the man everyone had once thought was intent on Harry Potter’s death didn’t cease for two minutes.
After the applause had died down, various people shared anecdotes about Harry Potter, from Tom, the owner of the Hog’s Head, to the Weasley twins, Fred and George. Finally, after almost everyone had laughed and cried at the various stories of Harry Potter’s adventures throughout his 31 years of life, Ron’s mother stood up and walked up to the podium, clearing her throat.
“As you all know, Harry Potter was my husband of eleven years,” Ginny Potter said to the collective crowd. “He was, besides being a great wizard, a wonderful friend, and always thought of others before himself. I admit, for the first few years of having known Harry, I was scared silly to be around him. It was a silly childhood crush, I was told, and I finally dropped it.
“And then, believe it or not, the great Harry Potter took notice of me. When I was only fifteen, just being myself and no longer afraid of humiliating myself in front of him, he noticed me. The moment I knew I loved him most, even after we dated for a month or so, was when he broke up with me. It was out of love, not disinterest, that he did so. He wanted to protect me from You-Know-Who, so he distanced himself from me. At first, I hated him for it, then a realized how hard it had been for him to do so, and it only increased our love for each other when we met again.”
Ginny then pointed to her two children in the front row. “I know that my son and daughter, Ron and Veronica, miss him as much as I do now. Some of my best memories are of the past ten years, as I watched Harry grow up to be an incredible father, and he loved his children dearly. Ron was just as courageous and fearless as his father, and Veronica was just as caring and noble as Harry. I thank you, Ron and Veronica, for making these years such a wonderful experience for me.”
Ginny sniffed, and everyone could tell she was on the verge of tears. “I’m sorry,” she muttered. “I’m normally more composed than this...but I am going to miss my husband dearly. And if he can hear me, somewhere, wherever he is, I just want to say...I love you, Harry Potter, and I always will.”
“As will I to you, Ginevra,” a voice rang out from the back row, and everyone turned around to stare in shock at the man walking up the aisle towards Ginny: Harry Potter. A few people screamed; the rest began muttering nervously as they watched the green-eyed man walk up to the podium kissing his stunned and immobile wife, who walked back to her seat as her husband took the podium.
“This has been a wonderful ceremony to watch,” Harry Potter said, a twinkle in his eye. He had the air of a boy who had just pulled off the ultimate prank. “I thank you all for your kind words about me, and the rest of you, for attending. It means a lot to me.”
Everyone was still staring at him in shock, stunned at his sudden and unannounced appearance. “You’re probably all wondering how I’m alive and here right now,” he said, and everyone murmured their agreement. “Well, as you all know from the papers, I had been weakened by the Poisoning Curse, compliments of a one late-Draco Malfoy. I intended to save everyone else by sacrificing myself and bring the structure of the hideout down on myself. I daresay it worked.
“I knew I wouldn’t be able to make it to the elevator in time, and I couldn’t Apparate out because of the charm cast by the Death Eaters, but I summoned enough energy to cast a Shield Charm around myself to deflect the falling debris. I then managed to crawl out of the rubble, away from the anti-Apparation charm, and Apparate to the castle. I met Severus along the way up to Hogwarts, as he was headed to the site of the incident, and he helped me down to the dungeons, where he brewed me an antidote, which cured me completely. Thank you, Severus.” Harry nodded to the Potions master, who nodded curtly back to him.
Rufus Scrimgeour stood up and faced Snape angrily. “Professor Snape, you have known Potter was alive all this time, and said nothing to anybody about it?”
Up at the podium, Harry Potter held up a hand for silence from the recurring mutterings. “Please, Minister, do not blame Severus for this. I asked him to remain quiet until the funeral, because I wanted to do a few things. There are many things you don’t get to hear about yourself unless you have died.” A few people chuckled in agreement.
“Of course, I owe everyone an apology,” he said. “My family in particular. I kept you in the dark, and you all thought me dead, and I’m deeply sorry. But you must agree...I wanted to see just what would happen if such a thing would happen to me, and as expected, the wizarding world was in shock. It was a bit disconcerting to read my own obituary in the paper, I must say. Well...that’s about it. I hid out all of yesterday, and now I’m here. I hope you all do not hate me.”
There was a silence for several minutes as everyone processed this new information. Professor Potter stood at the podium with his hands behind his back, waiting. Finally, Fred and George Weasley stood up. “Brilliant!” they said simultaneously, and began clapping. After a few seconds, everyone else joined in, and although everyone was somewhat angry at having the wool pulled over their eyes, they all had to admit to themselves, what Harry Potter had pulled off was brilliant.
“Thank you, Severus, for playing your part brilliantly,” he said finally. “You may all go now.” He stepped off the podium, and was instantly mobbed by his family, all crying and hugging him. “Everyone, I’ll say hello to you all in due time,” he told them all. “Right now, I wish to speak with my son.” Everyone looked curiously at Ron, but conceded to let father and son talk. Harry Potter put an arm over Ron’s shoulders, and they walked up to the castle to talk. There was a lot that needed to be said.
Author’s Note: Harry Potter lives! If you are reading this, obviously you trusted me enough to continue with the story, and hopefully it was paid off by reading this chapter. I am nearly done; there is one more chapter and an epilogue still to come. We’re almost there; thanks for reading! Please review!