The Girl Who Saw Tomorrow II » Harry Potter

2.69 | Sherbet Lemons

If you're like me and you like listening to music while reading/writing, then try listening to The Ceremony from Fantastic Beasts The Secrets of Dumbledore soundtrack. To me, it captures Dumbledore's character perfectly. It's like magic turned into song.

Anyway, enjoy!

-x-

"Ginny, who else is dead?"

"Don't worry, none of us," says Ginny, one of her hands clasped in Harry's whilst her other arm was entwined into Margaret's as she led them through the castle after Hagrid had taken Dumbledore's body into the castle and Professor Sprout had began hurrying the students back inside.

"But the Dark Mark - Malfoy said he stepped over a body-" Harry croaks out.

"He stepped over Bill, but it's all right, he's alive."

There was something in her voice, however, that boded ill. "Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure... He's a- a bit of a mess, that's all... Greyback attacked him. Madam Pomfrey says he- he won't look the same anymore..." Ginny's voice trembled. "We don't really know what the aftereffects will be - I mean, Greyback being a werewolf, but not transformed at the time..."

"But the others," says Harry. "There were other bodies on the ground."

"Neville and Professor Flitwick are both hurt, but Madam Pomfrey says they'll be all right. And a Death Eater's dead, he got hit by a Killing Curse that huge blond one was firing off everywhere - Margie, if we hadn't had your Felix potion, I think we'd all have been killed, but everything seemed to just miss us-"

Margaret waves her off, feeling aches of burns and hits she had taken as they walked. She had not participated in the battle, however, so she was spared from taking hexes and jinxes too.

They reached the hospital wing, pushing the doors open.

Neville was lying, apparently asleep, in a bed near the door. Ron, Hermione, Luna, Tonks and Remus were gathered around another bed near the far end of the ward. Sirius was sitting on one of the neighbouring beds, shirtless, but with half of his middle wrapped in a long white bandage.

At the sound of the doors opening, they all looked up. Hermione ran to Harry and hugged him; Sirius made to move forward too, looking anxious, but he winced badly and stayed put. "Harry! Margie! Are you both all right? Where've you been?"

"All good," says Margaret quietly, walking up to sit on an empty bed next to his. "What happened to you?"

"Snape," he sneers. "Shot a horrible curse at me after I bit a good chunk out of his ankle."

At any other time, Margaret would have been amused. But at the moment, she only nodded.

"How's Bill?" asks Harry, coming up beside her with Ginny.

Nobody answered. There was an unrecognisable face lying on Bill'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 asks the matron.

"No charm will work on these," says 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," says 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 real- a real-?"