The Last Battle

"There's no escape, Potter. Being the person I am, I'll give you five minutes with your friends before I rid the world of the Boy Who Lived." Voldemort walked through the doorway, locking Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Ginny in the room.

"Harry..." Ginny touched his face, maybe for the last time. Voldemort had his wand, so there was no way Harry could win.

"Ginny, don't ever give up. No matter what happens out there, I'll always be with you," he put his hand over her heart. Tears started streaming down Ginny's face. Harry turned to Ron and Hermione.

"If I don't make it back, take the house and all the money left in my account at Gringotts."

"Are you sure?" Ron asked.

"You're my best friends. I'm positive." Harry handed them a piece of paper and two keys.

"I need to make sure you guys can get into the house and my vault."

At that moment, the door opened. It was Voldemort.

"You three, out! I want you gone before I eliminate him." Harry's friends walked out the door.

"I'll miss you," Ginny whispered, hiding sobs.

Voldemort grabbed Harry by the collar and dragged him out into the graveyard.

"Any last words, Potter?"

Harry shook his head, and he closed his eyes, waiting for death.

Ginny watched from behind a gravestone as Voldemort raised his wand. Feeling a stab of - what was it, grief? Love? - Ginny stood up and raced out from behind the stone.

Voldemort focused all of his energy into killing Harry. He had failed once, and couldn't afford to fail again.

"Your mother won't save you now."

Ginny crept closer. Voldemort was so focused that he didn't notice her approaching. Harry's eyes were closed with fear as he sat on the ground.

"Avada kedavra!" Voldemort yelled, just as Ginny jumped in front of Harry.

She screamed "Not Harry!" as the life left her in a flash of green light.

Harry opened one eye, realizing the scream was not his. The crumpled body in front of him made him close it again.

"Ginny..."

"How sweet. Your little girlfriend decided she couldn't live to see you die. Now I'm going to end it, and you'll be together," Voldemort sneered.

Harry sat in silence, in disbelief. Why would Ginny die? Why didn't she leave?

"Avada kedavra!" Voldemort shouted again.

Harry's scar burned. He thought death would be quicker. Is this what they all felt? Time seemed to stop as he waited for it to end.

"No!" Voldemort screamed, and Harry heard a thud as Voldemort fell to the ground. The pain stopped. Harry opened his eyes, and stood up. He walked over to the silent figure of Voldemort. Harry knew, at that instant, that Voldemort was dead. Harry walked over to Ginny's body.

"You saved me, didn't you? You did that to protect me, and to get rid of him." Harry said no more, as the tears streamed down his face. He picked up his wand from the ground near Voldemort.

"Incendio," he said, pointing his wand at the tombstone behind where he was once sitting.

He reached into his pocket, and grabbed his Gringotts key, which he had copied for Ron and Hermione.

"I'll just take enough to get me where I need to be," he said to himself.

Harry walked over to the room where he had last spoken to his friends, and picked his invisibility cloak up from the floor.

He walked away, ready to say goodbye to everything he had once known.

***

Hermione and Ron looked at the Daily Prophet as soon as it came in the next day.

Voldemort Vanquished!

Yes, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is gone for good. His body was found last night, in a Muggle graveyard. Though this is good news, two valiant warriors also perished in the fight. Ginny Weasley, 16, was found near a burnt tombstone and You-Know-Who. By the looks of the scene, it is believed Harry Potter was killed in the fire that burnt the tombstone.

The two couldn't read any more of the article.

"Hermione, you know what Harry said," Ron said, after a long period of silence.

"Come on. Maybe we'll be able to see when his last withdrawal was." Hermione stood up from her chair, keys and paper in hand.

When they got to Gringotts, they asked when Harry's last withdrawal was.

"Just yesterday."

Hermione burst into tears.

"He died yesterday, Ron."