Secret Love

Secret Love VI: To The Bitter End

Harry picked up his fork and swirled it through his oatmeal. He wasn't really hungry, so he stared blankly at the plate in front of him, wishing desperately that breakfast would end soon. He couldn't stand to be here any longer.

Finally, Harry gave up on any hope he had of eating and stood up from the table.

"I just remembered that I left my Transfiguration book in my trunk! I'll meet you in Professor McGonagall's room, Ron," and he walked quickly from the Great Hall. Harry had no real plan of where he was going to...he just let his feet do the thinking. A few minutes later, he found himself outside of the Gryffindor portrait hole.

"Password?" the Fat Lady asked him imperiously.

"Popkin doodles," Harry said quickly, and the picture swung open, allowing Harry to climb through the hole. Once the door was closed again, Harry glanced around the room, checking to make sure no one was still there. No one was, so he let out an anguished cry and sank into a chair. He closed his eyes, wanting to stop the prickling of the tears. Before he knew it, he was asleep.

Ginny laid back on her bed, the bittersweet taste of the poison still lingering on her tongue. She wondered how long the potion would take before it began to work, but her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of someone in the common room yelling.

"That's funny," she murmured. "I checked to be sure no one was here! Well, it's too late now. I can't put the poison back in the bottle!"

As she laid there quietly, waiting for the sweet forever of death to come, she thought again about what had pushed her to do this. Harry, the one person she loved, had betrayed her. And with a girl Ginny couldn't stand. It was too much for her to take... this was the only way to escape the pain, the betrayal, and the humiliation.

At that moment, a searing pain ripped through her chest. She sat bolt upright and clutched at her heart fearfully. Even though she was expecting the poison to take effect soon, the intensity of the pain shocked her. Slowly, the pain subsided, but seconds later, it came back, this time worse than before. Fresh bursts of pain tore through her body, each more agonizing than the last. Ginny could hardly breathe it hurt so bad. She let out a bloodcurdling scream as a scalding hot pain raced through her heart and with each beat spread farther and farther into her body. She could feel her lungs tightening as the poison slowed her heartbeat. At last, the misery started to fade and the pain stopped. That was the last thought she would ever have. Ginny was dead.

Harry awoke with a start at the sound of the scream. He'd never heard a sound so filled with pain and agony; not even when he'd witnessed the Cruciatus Curse a few years ago. Terrified, he hurdled up the staircase and flew through the door to the girl's bedroom. He looked around and saw five beds, three of the neatly made, one mussed from sleep, and the one farthest from the door whose curtains were drawn. Ginny's bed. Dread seeped into Harry as he walked to the bed and pulled the curtains aside.

Just as he'd feared, Ginny was lying on the bed, her hands gripping her chest loosely, her hair splayed across her face. Harry reached down and brushed the brilliant red hair from her eyes. They stared back at him, empty and expressionless. Harry began to panic; he grabbed her small shoulders and shook her, but her head just lolled limply from side to side.

"No! Please, no!" he sobbed, realizing that she was already gone. He bent down and kissed her gently. His lips tingled lightly, and he grew desperate. He kissed her harder, tasting an unfamiliar, bittersweetness on her lips. Harry pulled away and saw the tiny glass bottle on the floor, empty. He bent over to pick it up, but the gust of air blew a scrap of parchment off the night stand. He picked it up and read it, knowing that this was her last goodbye.

"I'm sorry for everything. Maybe if I was a better daughter, a better student, a better friend, none of this would have happened. But I'm not and it did. Mum and Dad, you always did your best for me and I love you for it. To my brothers, I'm sorry, I love all of you very much. To my friends, thank you for everything you've done for me. And finally, to Harry. What can I say? I'll always love you, even though you don't love me. Even when I'm gone.

- Ginny"

Harry couldn't believe his eyes. This was all his fault. He turned to face the door, about to run for help, when a brutal pain tore through his body. He fell to his knees, and realized suddenly what had happened. That bottle was a poison. And Harry had kissed her poisoned lips.

"I'll see you soon, Ginny," he said to himself. He felt the pain subside as he drifted off into an eternal sleep.