What Is Left When All Is Said and Done

Epilogue

The next morning, a Patronus was sent from Headmistress McGonagall to the Burrow requesting that Harry Potter be brought to the Hogwarts Infirmary accompanied by Ginevra Weasley alone. The Floo network would be opened temporarily between the two fireplaces for just this function. The strangeness of the request did not go unnoticed by the family, but they abided by it. There was still too much tragedy in the house, and to be able to hand off Harry to someone they trusted and probably far more qualified was an added grace.

Thus, at a quarter to noon, Ginny was standing in front of her fireplace with Harry's body floating by her side. She looked back at her family one last time before throwing the Floo powder into the fire and pronouncing, "Hogwarts Infirmary" in a loud and clear voice. Using Mobilicorpus, she guided Harry through the fireplace.

Professor McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey were waiting on the other side.

"Hello, Miss Weasley. Thank you for bringing Mr. Potter with you," the once again Deputy Headmistress said in her stern, crisp voice. "You may lay him down on the bed over there." Ginny did as she was instructed.

"Professor McGonagall, do you know what happened to Harry? Is there a way to save him?" she pleaded.

"I believe I can answer that," came a familiar voice from the shadows. In her excitement, she did not notice the other two women slip away.

"Dumbledore!" She ran over and hugged him. "You're alive, sir! But how -- we all thought Snape had killed you!"

"Yes, I believe that nasty rumor has been making its rounds. But as you can see, I'm still very much alive, although perhaps not in the best of health."

"Oh, sir!" She started crying in relief.

"My dear, please don't shed any tears over me."

"It's not -- sniff -- it's not you. I mean -- sniff -- I'm happy to see you, but, oh, with everything that's happened ..."

"Yes, yes. I'm afraid much tragedy has happened in my absence."

"My brother -- sniff -- and Harry -- sniff --"

"Yes, I've been meaning to have a word with the two of you about that."

"Sir?" Ginny wiped her eyes and looked up. He patted her on the shoulders and led her to the bedside. Harry looked much as he did when Hermione had last left him. While conscious, he was still paralyzed. A new, pitted scar graced the skin above the outside corner of his right eye. There were tears in his eyes, but this had to do more with the man approaching him than with his own condition.

"Oh Harry, I'm so sorry for the pain that I had to put you through," said Dumbledore, resting his hand on Harry's shoulder. "Perhaps I charged you with too much, gave you more than you could handle."

"Sir, what are you talking about?" asked a puzzled Ginny. Dumbledore sighed and said his next words in a very tired voice.

"How many times have I told you, Harry, that Severus Snape is to be trusted? I realize I forced you to watch him kill me, but surely you could have seen through the action and known that he was still my man through and through." That he repeated Harry's own words regarding his loyalty to Dumbledore was not lost on him. Ginny watched his eyes fill with shame.

"I fear now that because of your stubborn hatred of one of your allies in the Order, your best friend is dead, by your own curse. And you've been left in this state." The Headmaster closed his eyes. "No, this is not how I had wanted things to happen."

"But sir, can you still heal him?" Ginny insisted. He turned his blue eyes to her then and as they bored down into her, Ginny felt the full power behind those eyes for the first time.

"And you, Miss Weasley. Am I right in assuming that it was you who communicated with your brother in the Ministry and called the Aurors down on Miss Granger and Professor Snape?" At first she was speechless, but then a hail of reasons tumbled out of her mouth.

"She just disappeared! Ron was dead, and Harry was like this, and she just ran away saying she had protected Snape! I didn't know what else to do --"

"You could have trusted me too," said Hermione, stepping out of the same shadows that Dumbledore had previously emerged from.

"Hermione! But how --"

"Fortunately, I was quickly enough to prevent our capture," said another voice. Ginny and Harry both watched in horror as the last person stepped out of the darkness and into view.

"Snape!" exclaimed Ginny, as would have Harry, if only he had been able to speak. Instead, his blood pressure soared and he started to hyperventilate. Since all eyes except hers were focused on the Potions Master, Hermione noticed Harry's condition first.

"Harry!" she said, running over to him. "Harry, it's all right. Snape's on our side. Please, you have to try to calm down." Dumbledore waved his wand over Harry and blue sparks rained down over him. Instantly, Harry's body relaxed.

"What is going on?" asked an increasingly confused Ginny.

"If you'll be so kind as to take a seat," -- a chair popped into existence behind her -- "I'm sure we can fill the two of you in." She did just as he asked her to, and then Hermione, Severus, and Dumbledore explained what had happened, beginning with the Unbreakable Vow. No one noticed, of course, when both Hermione and Snape left out the bits and parts that had to do with Lily. It started when Hermione failed to mention her discovery in his textbook, and by the brief exchange of looks that took place between her and Severus then, she knew that he would keep the secret safe as well.

Their storytelling was only interrupted once, when they shared where they had sent Wormtail off to.

"Ugh, that's gross, Hermione," was Ginny's response, accompanied with a revolted look. Severus' timely sneer, however, prevented her from any further comments. When they had finally caught the other two up to the present, it was Dumbledore's turn to speak.

"Harry, I trust the life of one friend was enough to teach you the importance of believing in me?" Harry closed and opened his eyelids in a very deliberate gesture.

"And Miss Weasley, may I assume the same for you as well?"

She nodded. "Yes, sir."

Dumbledore clapped his hands together. "Very well. Then I think we may be able to have ourselves a happy ending here."

"Sir?"

"As you well know, when Harry's mother died trying to save her son's life, her sacrificial love gave Harry a magical protection that thwarted Voldemort's plan to kill him, even almost killing him in the process. What we have here is a similar, but altogether different story." He paused for dramatic effect. "Ronald Weasley died to save the life of one he loved." Both women in the room tried to hold their tears back. "However, he also loved Harry, and because of that, his act of love transformed and reflected the spell back towards Harry so that he could do no more harm. It was his last gift to you, preventing you from doing something else you would regret forever." It proved to be a futile battle for the two ladies, and the crying began.

"So then...how do we...?"

"Love was the key that locked Harry into this condition, and I believe it is the same key that will unlock it." Severus nearly choked at Albus' saccharine explanation, but years of self-control allowed him to hide his reaction.

"Sir, I still don't understand."

"Kiss him, you blithering idiot!" There was only so much discipline one could have.

"Now, Severus --" Dumbledore turned to address the surly professor, but at that same moment Ginny swooped down to plant one on Harry's lips. On contact, a crackle of golden energy could be seen and heard spreading over the boy's body. With a loud crack the curse was lifted.

"Harry!" Ginny exclaimed. He smiled weakly in response.

"I love you too, Ginny." Her sobs only grew louder as she smothered him in her embrace. He brought a hand up to awkwardly pat her shoulder.

Hermione was so ecstatic that it had worked that she turned around and hugged the body closest to her, that being the one belonging to her former Potions professor. He stiffened at first, but eventually relaxed in her arms.

"You did well," he confessed as he patted her head.