Percy Jackson and Harry Potter Halfblood Heroes (Book 6)

Chapter 15

For what seemed like forever, Harry stayed behind the body of Albus Dumbledore until Ginny pulled him away. Finally, Percy led himself to the hospital wing. When he entered, nobody was dead. He saw Neville lying, apparently asleep, in a bed near the door. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Luna, Tonks, Lupin have gathered around another bed near the far end of the ward. At the sound of the doors opening, they all looked up. Hermione ran to Percy and hugged him; Lupin moved forwards too, looking anxious.

'Are you all right, Percy?'

'I'm fine ... how's Bill?'

Nobody answered. Percy looked over Hermione's shoulder and saw an unrecognisable face lying onBill's pillow, so badly slashed and ripped that he looked grotesque. Madam Pomfrey was dabbing at his wounds with some harsh-smelling green ointment.

'Can't you fix them with a charm or something?' Harry asked the matron.

'No charm will work on these,' said Madam Pomfrey. 'I've tried everything I know, but there is no cure for werewolf bites.'

'But he wasn't bitten at the full moon,' said Ron, who was gazing down into his brother's face as though he could somehow force him to mend just by staring. 'Greyback hadn't transformed, so surely Bill won't be a – a real –?'

He looked uncertainly at his godfather.

'No, I don't think that Bill will be a true werewolf,' said Lupin, 'but that does not mean that there won't be some contamination. Those are cursed wounds. They are unlikely ever to heal fully, and – andBill might have some wolfish characteristics from now on.'

'Dumbledore might know something that'd work, though,' Ron said. 'Where is he? Bill fought those maniacs on Dumbledore's orders, Dumbledore owes him, he can't leave him in this state –'

'Ron – Dumbledore's dead,' said Ginny.

'No!' Lupin looked wildly from Ginny to Harry, as though hoping the latter might contradict her, but when Harry did not Lupin collapsed into a chair beside Bill's bed, his hands over his face.

'How did he die?' whispered Tonks. 'How did it happen?'

'Snape killed him,' said Harry. 'I was there, I saw it. We arrived back on the Astronomy Tower because that's where the Mark was ... Dumbledore was ill, he was weak, but I think he realised it was a trap when we heard footsteps running up the stairs. He immobilised me, I couldn't do anything, I was under the Invisibility Cloak – and then Malfoy came through the door and Disarmed him –'

Hermione clapped her hands to her mouth and Percy and Ron groaned. Luna's mouth trembled.

– more Death Eaters arrived – and then Snape – and Snape did it. The Avada Kedavra.' Harry couldn't go on.

Madam Pomfrey burst into tears. Nobody paid her any attention except Ginny, who whispered, 'Shh!Listen!'

Gulping, Madam Pomfrey pressed her fingers to her mouth, her eyes wide. Somewhere out in the darkness, a phoenix was singing in a way Harry had never heard before: a stricken lament of terrible beauty. The majestic bird landed on Percy's shoulder and wept. It was Fawkes, Dumbledore's Phoenix and by the looks of it, Percy was now the true owner of Fawkes.

'Don't worry buddy.' said Percy stroking his feathers. 'I'll take care of you.'

But Fawkes kept on singing.

How long they all stood there, listening, he did not know, nor why it seemed to ease their pain a little to listen to the sound of their mourning, but it felt like a long time later that the hospital door opened again and Professor McGonagall entered the ward. Like all the rest, she bore marks of the recent battle: there were grazes on her face and her robes were ripped.