Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter


So Much for my Happy Ending

"He's too young for that kind of responsibility."

"So V-Voldemort actually split his soul into seven pieces all total, including you, and they keep him from dying?" Harry had just finished telling Hermione and Ron what Dumbledore had told him and Ron couldn't seem to believe it. "And Dumbledore wants us to do destroy them?! And the only way to get rid of the Horcrux in you is to kill you?! Even though he seems to think that you'll live through it-"

"Ronald!" Hermione quickly silenced him, seeing the distraught look on Harry's face. She knew that after everything that had happened that night, especially with Dumbledore's death, that Harry needed support, not someone who was blown away by this information. She knew that Harry had his doubts, after all it was a miracle that he had survived the first time and most people weren't in the habit of surviving the Killing Curse at all, and he didn't need someone else to bring that fact up. He had been through enough tonight as it was.

"We're here for you, Harry. We'll help you any way we can, despite someone's," at this point she glared at Ron, "inability to comprehend anything." Harry looked up at her, thankful for what she had just said. No matter what she had always stuck by him, even when he didn't expect her to. He couldn't put his thanks into words but she could see the look in his eyes. Ron, of course, was seemingly oblivious to all of this. He apparently calmed down and accepted everything though.

"So did he tell you what any of the other Horcruxes are mate?"

"Well not tonight. We had already discussed that actually, I just never had the chance to say anything. We're sure that three of them are something that once belonged to Rowena Ravenclaw, Helga Hufflepuff, and either Godric Gryffindor or Salazar Slytherin, probably Slytherin. We think that Voldemort's snake Nagini is probably one too. The diary that I destroyed second year was a Horcrux, and so was the ring that Dumbledore destroyed over the summer. So that leaves us with three unknown, two known, and two already destroyed."

"So how are we going to find these three then?"

"Well we think that it's possible that he used Ravenclaw's diadem, Hufflepuff's cup, and Slytherin's locket, so that gives us some leads to go on. I have no idea where to start looking but at least we have an idea of what we're looking for. Besides, those are all one-of-a-kind objects so it's possible that someone might know where they're at."

"How are we supposed to destroy these things?"

"He told me that it has to be damaged beyond magical repair. I know that Basilisk fangs work because I destroyed the diary with it and apparently the Killing Curse will work on me. Beyond that though, I have no idea. Anyway what we do know doesn't help us much, since we don't exactly have a collection of Basilisk fangs with us. Actually, now that I think about it, he did mention that anything Goblin-made will never rust and takes in that which makes it stronger. I feel like it has a connection to this but I have no idea what it is." Fortunately for them, Hermione had instantly picked up on what Dumbledore was trying to tell Harry.

"You used Gryffindor's sword to kill the Basilisk, right?" Harry nodded at her. "It's been around for over a thousand years and it hasn't rusted." Realization dawned on Harry's face as he understood what both her and Dumbledore were telling him. Ron it seemed had also picked up on it.

"So you're saying that Gryffindor's sword could be used to destroy them?" Hermione nodded. "Well that helps, but how are we going to get it? I don't think McGonagall will willingly hand it to us."

"Maybe we could just tell her that we need it in the fight against Voldemort. If it has anything to do with defeating him I'm sure she won't mind too much." The three of them sat in silence for a while, each contemplating their own thoughts. All of them were worried, there was no doubt about that. Yes, they did have an idea of what they were looking for, but they had absolutely no idea of where to start looking. It seemed that there was no way that they could continue to go to school while they searched for these Horcruxes.

"Harry, we won't be coming back here next year, will we?" Harry smiled at Hermione's question. Of course she would be worried about not being able to come back to Hogwarts, even if the reason was one of grave importance.

"We don't have any reason not to. If we knew where they were it'd be a different story. As it is now we'll have to travel around the country randomly looking for something out of the ordinary." Harry's response earned himself a bone-crushing hug from his best friend. "We need to figure out some way to find them though, so we'll probably have to leave the school at times; it's likely that we will miss some classes." Ron finally spoke for the first time since mentioning the sword.

"Harry, didn't you say that Snape really is on our side and that Dumbledore trusts him?" At Harry's agreement he continued. "Why can't we use his status as a double agent to help us? I know he can't exactly mention the Horcruxes to V-Voldemort but maybe he could find out some other way. If he knew that we were looking for something specific like that he could be actively listening for anything that might remotely sound like one of them." Harry momentarily looked stunned before telling his other best friend how brilliant that was.

Armed with this new plan, the three made more in depth details. Hermione brought to light that Voldemort might have given one of them to one of his followers, since he had given the diary to Lucius Malfoy. Harry pointed out several things that he knew were unlikely, such as several of the places that Voldemort may have hidden his Horcruxes. Ron on the other hand, was all about strategies: how to actually get the Horcruxes, what to do with them if safekeeping was necessary, how to prevent Voldemort from knowing, etc. It was almost one o'clock when the three of them finished. Ron announced that he was going to bed and disappeared up the stairs. Harry had no desire to go to sleep and sat on the floor in front of the couch; after a moment's hesitation, Hermione joined him, all the while chewing her bottom lip. Without looking at her, Harry began telling her what was on his mind.

"Everything's happening at once 'Mione. It feels like I'm drowning; I don't know what to do. I probably killed at least one person tonight and tortured Lucius Malfoy. I'm no better than Voldemort! After Dolohov almost hit you with that curse again, I lost it. I can't lose you, and I was going to make sure that they all knew that. Then, after Dumbledore was killed, all I could think about was causing them all as much pain as possible. I wanted them to feel what I felt.

"But the worst part about it is what happened with Ginny. Holding her after the battle didn't feel as right as when I was holding you. Hearing that Ginny had been knocked out didn't bother me as much as when you almost hit by Dolohov's curse. Not to mention that I didn't realize that she wasn't with us for a while." Hermione looked at him full of sympathy.

"Harry after all that happened tonight you needed comfort and it didn't matter who gave it to you. Besides your relationship with Ginny is still fairly new, while we've known each other for years. It's natural that you would seek comfort in me first." Saying this out loud caused a slight blush to appear on Hermione's cheeks. "After the two of you are together for a few months she'll be the one you immediately look to for comfort." She hated saying that, even as it came out of her mouth, but she needed to make Harry feel better.

Apparently it worked because Harry nodded his understanding and went quiet again. Hermione sat by his side for a while longer, the two of them staring into the fire, before she finally announced that she was going to bed as well. She bid Harry goodnight before venturing up the stairs, knowing that he would get very little, if any, sleep tonight and that there was nothing she could really do for him. She was rather upset with Ginny at the moment; she understood that Ginny had been through a lot that night too but none of them had been through more than Harry had and he needed someone there to help him through it. Besides, no matter what Ginny was going through it would be better if she went through it with her supposed boyfriend, that way they could help each other. It was a very angry Hermione Granger that climbed into bed that night.


On the other part of the castle, in the Headmaster's Office, Professor McGonagall had just finished reading Dumbledore's letter to her for what must have been the tenth time. It seemed that every time she read it something else seemed to click into place, while something else seemed to make no sense. She trusted Albus Dumbledore, even in death, and knew that he had only the good of the Wizarding world in mind. Yet the fact remained that he had kept many important things to himself over the years, none more important than the key to defeating Voldemort. While his letter didn't come right out and say what it was, she easily gathered that Voldemort had made Horcruxes; that was the only thing that made sense. What shocked her even more though, was that Dumbledore wanted three students, one of whom was still underage, to find and destroy these abominations.

"Why, Albus?" she asked the portrait as she turned to face it. "Why take away what little childhood they have left? They should be enjoying what time they have as teenagers, not making plans to do something that the Order could easily do."

"You know as well as I that Harry wouldn't have it any other way, Minerva. He wants to end this, and for the right reasons I might add. Harry wants to stop Voldemort from killing anyone else and he wants to be the one to finally finish him. You can't blame him either, after all that Voldemort has taken from him. And of course Ms. Granger and Mr. Weasley won't let him do this by himself."

"Why do you want him to be the next leader of the Order though? It was you who established that anyone in the Order had to be out of school before they could join. He's too young for that kind of responsibility."

"You and I both know that Harry has faced more than many in the Order, that mentally he's much older than he is physically. I don't think anyone currently in the Order is more powerful than he is right now, even if no one realizes it yet. As for inducting Ms. Granger and Mr. Weasley as well, I think they both deserve it. They've both proven that they're more than capable as well, and Ms. Granger's power isn't far behind Harry, though she doesn't know it either. The fact is that those three are the ones that are going to win this war and stop Voldemort. Why should we deny them the help that we can give them if they're part of the Order?"

Those last words stunned McGonagall into silence. She knew that what she had just been told was sound logic, and very true even though she hated to admit it, but she still didn't think it was right. Even if those three were going to play such an important role what was the point of throwing them in like this? Yes they were already in the thick of the fighting but keeping them at an arm's length helped protect them, didn't it? The more she thought about it the more she realized that it actually put them more at risk to be so ignorant of the situation. Voldemort was going to come after Harry, no matter what the young wizard happened to know or to not know. All that mattered was that Voldemort wanted Harry Potter dead.

It suddenly dawned on McGonagall that she had taken a motherly role in the three students' lives. Since when had that happened? Yes, she cared about them and would willingly protect them, but she was that way towards all the Hogwarts students. Maybe after all this time, she had finally allowed herself to accept the circumstances that these three young adults had been thrust into and was finally allowing herself to be what she had wanted to be all along. In all honesty it didn't really matter. What did matter was that she understood what Dumbledore was telling her and that she agreed with him: Harry Potter should be the leader of the Order of the Phoenix and Hermione Granger and Ronald Weasley should both be part of the Order as well.

"What about the others, Albus? I don't think many people will go along with this, especially Potter becoming the new leader. I know that Molly definitely won't allow it; she sees both Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger as her own children."

"Alastor, Kingsley, Remus, Nymphadora, and Arthur already know that I want Harry to be the next leader and Sirius knew before he was killed. They all agree that he does have definite potential and that he'll make a good leader, once he's been trained some. They also agree that Ms. Granger and Mr. Weasley would be welcome additions. I know that Molly will have difficulty accepting this but she'll have to. They have more of a right to be part of the Order than anyone else, since Voldemort will stop at nothing to kill Harry and by extension Ms. Granger and Mr. Weasley." McGonagall nodded her understanding and sat back to digest everything that had happened that night. Though she still didn't like what she had just been told, she admitted that Dumbledore was right. She could only hope that this actually did help the three, instead of making them even bigger targets.


The next couple of weeks passed quickly for Harry. As was expected, all classes and exams were cancelled in honor of the greatest wizard of the century. Even though he was spending a lot of time with his friends, especially Ginny, it still didn't seem right to him. He had always envisioned them all relaxing at the end of the school year with everything behind them and nothing more than usual weighing over their heads, able to escape the stress they were under if only for a little while. As it was now even the time he spent with them was stressful for him. He just couldn't get over the fact that Dumbledore had been killed.

Of course it didn't help anything that he had tortured someone and killed two others. He had been told that Thorfinn Rowle, the huge blond Death Eater that had been hit with the Sectumsempra curse, had died due to blood loss and that Dolohov had died instantly after being thrown into the wall with a massively depressed skull. This news wasn't surprising to him, as Snape had only healed Malfoy with the Vulnera Sanentur spell and the wall had a large depression in it where Dolohov hit it. What did surprise Harry was that he wasn't bothered too much by any of this. In fact he felt that Lucius Malfoy had deserved to be tortured and so much more, that Dolohov had tried to kill Hermione earlier and probably would again, and that Thorfinn Rowle probably killed in the past and probably would again in the future. At least those two wouldn't be able to kill anyone ever again now.

What bothered Harry more than anything was the fact that his friends, Ginny included, seemed to be acting differently towards him after everything that had happened. Ron had a primal look whenever he was with him now; he looked similar to the way Harry felt when he was torturing Lucius Malfoy. It actually made him think almost of the relationship between Voldemort and his Death Eaters. Hermione seemed to be holding back whenever she was with him, like she wanted to do or say something but couldn't bring herself to; he was sure that she was holding back until she had the chance to get onto him about using an Unforgivable Curse, even against a Death Eater. Ginny was the worst one of them all though: whenever she was with Harry it always seemed like she was forcing herself to be there, like she didn't want to even be around him anymore.

Try as he might Harry just couldn't get over the appeal of a so-called "normal" life. What was normal though? To him it was having his parents, having an actual family that loved him, having a true and meaningful relationship, to have friends that didn't shy away from him, and above all not having the most feared Dark Wizard in history constantly trying to kill him. While four of those five things were indeed possible, things weren't off to an auspicious start. He had what he thought was a meaningful relationship with Ginny but apparently, judging from her current behavior, she didn't feel the same way. He was admittedly in the process of getting Voldemort to leave him alone but things were definitely not going good. Having a loving and caring family seemed to be out of reach for him until he was older and knew that he would be able to one day have said family.

As far as his friends shying away from him, that was something that he was going through at that moment. The fact that he was currently lying alone in his bed staring at the ceiling was all the proof anyone would need. He would rather be by himself than be treated so differently just because of the way he handled things. There were members of the Order who had done much worse than he had, yet no one thought any differently of them; why was he so different? The only thing he could think of was his status as "The Boy Who Lived," and now as "The Chosen One" it seemed, but he thought that that had never mattered to any of his friends.

As he continued to lie there he heard the door open and someone walk in. Thinking nothing of it he continued to stare ahead of him, directly at the ceiling above him. He was sure that Ron had come up again to stare at him hungrily before rolling over and taking a nap, as he was accustomed to doing lately. Therefore, it surprised him to hear a voice that was very familiar, yet one that not been given enough credit, by Harry himself or anyone.

"Are you alright, Harry? I know things must be difficult for you, with everything's that's happened lately."

"I'm fine Neville. Thanks for asking mate."

"Well it can't help that everyone looks at you differently now. Hermione, Ron, even Ginny, everyone seems to be keeping their distance from you."

"So why aren't you?"

"I know what it's like to want revenge like that. You haven't forgotten last year in the Department of Mysteries, have you? If I was in your position I probably would have done the same thing. I understand and everyone else will too, you just need to give it time. You being in the spotlight doesn't help anything either of course. Anyway, Dumbledore's funeral is in a couple of hours. You should probably start getting ready."

Harry nodded his agreement and slowly got out of bed to start making himself presentable. As he passed Neville he put his hand on his arm as a show of thanks and received a pat on the back. Neville was behind him at least, and that was better than being all by himself. As he got ready, Harry could only wonder how long it would be before everyone else, at least those he cared about, would come around.


When Harry came downstairs an hour and a half later he saw Ron, Hermione, and Ginny all sitting in the chairs by the fire. They were all talking softly and got quiet when they noticed him. Ginny got up and went over to him, meeting him halfway. She pulled him into a passionate kiss, during which time Ron suddenly found the window very interesting.

For his part, Harry was very surprised by this sudden display of affection. Since that night Ginny had been acting like she wanted nothing to do with him, yet now here she was kissing him like her life depended on it. Part of him wanted to know what this was all about and part of him couldn't care less. The two thoughts seemed to be waging a war with each other.

When she finally broke the kiss the side of him that wanted to know won. Before he could say anything though, as if reading his mind, Ginny put her finger to his lips to keep him quiet. Though she didn't say anything, Harry could see in her eyes that she would explain everything to him later. He nodded his understanding, took her hand in his, and led her over to the seat she had just vacated. The four of them talked about nothing important for a few minutes before heading to the funeral to find seats in the back.

The funeral itself was nice enough. Everyone from Hogsmeade and the Order of the Phoenix was there, as well as many others from magical Britain. Even the Centaurs and the Merpeople were there to show their respects to the greatest wizard in centuries. Tears flowed freely from everyone and people unashamedly comforted each other. At the end of the ceremony white flames had erupted around Dumbledore's body and encased him in a marble tomb, a fitting resting spot for the greatest Headmaster Hogwarts ever had.

Before the ceremony began, Harry had noticed the Minister for Magic, Rufus Scrimgeour, and several other Ministry officials arrive. While he had no doubt that they were indeed there to pay their respects, he was sure that they had some other reason for being there. After the ceremony was ended his suspicions proved to be correct: he spotted Scrimgeour making his way over to him. Ginny noticed this as well and was quick to wrap an arm around Harry to calm him down.

"Mr. Potter, first I would like to offer my condolences. I know that this must be a very difficult time for you. If there's anything we at the Ministry can do for you right now just let us know. We'd be glad to help you in any way possible, for a price of course." Harry didn't need to question what that price was; he still hadn't forgotten what the Minister had said to him at Christmas.

"No thank you, Minister. I have my friends to lean on if I need anything." At this point Hermione came to Harry's other side to offer her support. Ron seemed to be content to stay in the back, an expectant look on his face.

"Then I suppose you still won't consider working with us or telling us what Dumbledore was up to?" The glare Harry sent his way and the two Witches on either side of him holding him back was all the answer the Minister needed. "I'm sorry you feel that way. You indeed are Dumbledore's man through and through."

"Yeah, I am. Glad we've finally got that settled." With that, Harry turned around and headed back to the castle, Ginny's hand in his. Hermione was beside them and Ron brought up the rear looking slightly disappointed, as though he were hoping for Scrimgeour to suffer a worse fate. Scrimgeour watched the quartet go and with a shake of his head returned to his fellow Ministry employees.

When the four made it back to the Gryffindor common room Hermione immediately went on a tirade about Scrimgeour and the Ministry. The other three were surprised: they had never heard Hermione use the language she was using now. It was a while before she finally stopped her ranting to look at them. Ginny and Ron were both staring at her wide-eyed, not believing that she of all people would say that about a system of authority, while Harry was looking at her with compassion and understanding. It was this that calmed her down more than anything; she gave Harry a wry smile before perching herself on the arm of his chair. For the rest of the day the four of them talked and enjoyed each other's company, as if the past few weeks hadn't happened. They all knew that very soon this peace would be shattered.

Later that night, as Harry lay in bed contemplating his thoughts, he heard the door open. Knowing that it couldn't be any of his dorm mates, since they were all snoring less than ten feet away from him, he immediately grabbed his wand and pointed it at the intruder. He was relieved to find that it was Ginny, who had the good presence of mind to hold her hands up in a gesture of surrender. When he knew he wasn't in any more danger, Harry flopped back down on his bed and waited for her to come to him. Instead of actually getting into bed, as he originally thought (and hoped), Ginny sat on the edge and spoke two simple sentences to him.

"Come downstairs. We need to talk." Harry watched her as she left a slight frown on his face. What was so important that she needed to talk to him about at this time? Nevertheless he put on his glasses, wrapped his robe around his pajamas, and made his way down to the common room, sitting in the chair opposite Ginny's. She looked nervous and didn't seem to want to say anything now that he was actually in front of her. Before Harry could call her on this, though, she started to speak her mind.

"Harry I don't really know how to say this so I'll just come right out with it: I don't think we should see each other anymore. Neither of us are really happy and I think we just stayed together because it was easier with everything that's happened. When we first got together I thought that's what I really wanted but now I think I enjoyed the chase more than actually being with you. I feel confident that you have feelings for Hermione and I know that she does for you, even if she's not willing to admit it; my idiot brother helped her realize that. I don't want to hurt you but I think this is best for both of us." Harry sat looking at the fire for several minutes before he finally answered her.

"I think you're right Ginny. You've been distant from me sinceā€¦that night, and if you were truly happy you would've been there for me. And I think you're right about Hermione too; I realized it that night. I felt more comfortable with her holding me than you, no offense. I didn't want to say anything at the time because it was hard to forego my best source of comfort. I do agree with you though: we need to end this now before both of us become completely miserable over it. I don't want to be the reason you're unhappy anymore than you want to be the reason I'm unhappy."

"So we're both in agreement: this is the end of our relationship?" Harry nodded. "And we're still friends?" Smiling Harry pulled her into a hug reminiscent of the way an older brother would hug his younger sister in reassurance.

"Does that answer your question?" he asked her, as they pulled away. Slightly giggling, Ginny nodded. Harry looked strangely at her before uttering, "Wow."

"What?" Ginny asked, confusion written all over her face.

"Nothing. It's just that, normally I'd want to kiss you right now, but I don't anymore. It's just weird knowing that, just like that, I don't have any romantic feelings for you anymore." Ginny nodded her understanding, feeling the same way herself. The two of them sat there talking for a few more minutes before Ginny got up and headed back to her room.

"Night, Harry."

"Good night Ginny." Ginny smiled at him again and disappeared up the stairs, Harry going up to his own room without a backwards glance. While it had seemed very forward, Harry knew that Ginny had been right and over the course of the last few weeks his feelings for her had changed. He wasn't necessarily happy about this play of events but he was definitely not upset about it either. It was a content Harry Potter that climbed back into his bed and was asleep in a few short minutes.