Harry Potter and the Year After

Chapter Forty-five: Halloween

Chapter 45: Halloween

September passed into October with the usual shift in weather to cooler days and more rain. Without Ginny to distract him, Harry found his days passing in blur of teaching mixed with his own classes in a jumbled mess of work and homework. He was frequently up well into the night grading assignments or else doing his own assignments only to fall asleep without extinguishing his candle. Then he'd start it all over again the next day.

He didn't even have Ron and Hermione as a distraction most evenings and weekends. Hermione seemed more serious than ever about her studies anymore, and had become more of a maniac when it came to studying than she had even in fifth year when studying for O.W.L.s. Thankfully though, she had stopped rubbing her chest all the time and seemed to have healed from making the Pensieve.

Ron seemed low, as though he had found another horcrux to wear around his neck. Harry even found himself looking for a chain around his neck once or twice but never did see one. He assumed it must be because of all the studying Ron had been doing with Hermione rather than goofing off as he'd done in past years.

Harry had only barely realized it was October by the time Halloween had come around. He realized it was Halloween only because of the Jack-o-Lanterns floating above their heads during breakfast instead of the normal candles.

"How has therapy been going, Harry?" Hermione asked after swallowing a sip of pumpkin juice.

"Fine," Harry lied. He'd actually skipped the last two weeks of sessions. They weren't helping at all. He didn't like talking to Madam Pomfrey about memories that bothered him. Really, he didn't want to talk to anyone about it. He wanted to just put it all behind him. It had crossed his mind to ask to be Oblivated of all his bad memories. But then he was afraid that he wouldn't have enough memories left and would end up like Lockhart in the hospital...

"So I've been thinking," said Hermione after silence ensued after Harry's one-word answer. "Since I went through all the trouble of making the Pensieve, we might as well use it."

"Hmm?" said Ron, with a mouthful of sausage.

"You mean that thing you were saying that day we were in Hogsmeade? With the charm to see what your life would be like without you?" Harry asked. Ron looked up abruptly at Harry as though just remembering something.

"Yes, I thought... since it was Halloween... we could do with a bit of a laugh. Or we could go to that thing that the Slytherins are having. The memorial? That's tonight," said Hermione.

Harry automatically glanced over at the Slytherin table where Ginny sat eating with Malfoy. Hermione insisted they weren't together every time Harry brought it up. But, Harry always reminded himself, she also didn't know about how Ginny and he "hadn't been together" either...

"Seems a bit dodgy to me to have it in the Forbidden Forest though, don't you think?" Ron said. "I'm not sure why they want to have it at midnight, either."

"It's by invitation only anyway," Harry said. Harry had been relieved he didn't have to go. He hadn't enjoyed the memorials he'd had to attend over the summer.

Without meaning to, he'd stared at the back of Ginny's head for too long. She looked over her should at him, attempted a smile and then turned away once more. "You know, for weeks I've been meaning to crack open that bottle of firewhiskey that's in the bottom of my trunk. I'd be willing to share."

"Now there's an idea," Ron said, raising his eyebrows.

"Yes, a terrible one," Hermione said stiffly. "It'd be wonderful for the Head Boy, Head Girl and a professor to get caught drunk on school grounds."