Remember Me

It was over.

Those were the words repeated over and over in the following three days. It’s over. It’s all over. And we’re safe. I’m still here.

Ron said the words to Hermione as they sat in a window seat together, looking out over the grounds, perfectly content in each other’s company and holding hands. John said them to Debbie as they finally returned to their house together, and the words melted all awkwardness between them. Cassandra said them to Harry as he lay in the hospital wing, and although neither of them truly believed it yet, she felt they would someday.

The war’s over. And I haven’t gone. I’m still here.

Hogwarts, the proud, beautiful castle which the four founders had striven to build was severely damaged. The astronomy tower was now reduced to a giant heap of stones, the Great Hall shattered, and rubble from all over the castle was smeared across the grounds, covered in dirt and blood. Lessons were over in those days after the battle. Students that remained at school either helped with the repairs, or else stole off together to a secluded corner of the grounds.

Dean took Cassandra away to a corner after dragging her away from visiting Harry in the hospital wing with Ron and Hermione.

“I really missed you Cass,” Dean began when they were sitting by the lake in the sun. “When we thought you’d lost your memory.”

“Mmm,” said Cassandra, but she did not elaborate. The sun made her hair look like strands of gold, and Dean looked at it before he started again.

“And I…I really…I really care about you, Cass.”

He watched her hopefully as she swung round to look at him, her grey eyes startled. She raised her eyebrows and drew her knees up to her chest. Her mouth quirked, and Dean realised with annoyance that she was trying to hold back laughter.

“Dean, I…” She stopped, smiled and began again. “I really like you too, Dean, but I…I’m not…” It seemed to be hard for her to put her thoughts into words. “I’ve changed, maybe, and I just…” she sighed, and grinned at him. “It’s not that I don’t like you, Dean, it’s just that you weren’t there...” Cassandra’s face turned bright scarlet as she stared determinedly at the lake, tearing a strand of grass to shreds.

And Dean understood what she hadn’t been able to put into words, and thought how stupid he had been not to realise. There are things that forever change you. War and sorrow, hope, happiness and fear. And sometimes it’s only the person who shared that with you that you can truly be with.

Together they sat by the lake, and watched the sun set behind Hogwarts, turning the walls of their beloved castle, where the spirit of Godric Gryffindor now lived, a glowing, dusky gold.

I’m here. I haven’t gone. And the war’s over and we’re both still here.

Harry was forced to say those words to Mrs Weasley as she hugged him tightly, sobbing into his hair. He let her hold him, even though it hurt, because he understood the need to make sure those you loved were alright.

She pushed him gently back onto the pillows and sat by the side of his bed.

“You’re coming to ours for the holidays, Harry. Madam Pomfrey says you should be alright to travel, and we’ve cleared it with Dumbledore; he says there’s absolutely no need for you to go back to the Dursleys now You-Know-Who’s gone.”

“Oh good,” said Harry fervently – a whole holiday spent at The Burrow made the summer seem much more promising than having to spend long weeks with his Aunt and Uncle.

She smiled at him a little sadly – the tears had not yet disappeared from her face – and stroked the hair off his face. “You’re far too thin, all four of you are.”

“Mrs Weasley, we lived off sandwiches for a long time. I’d be surprised if I ended up as fat as Dudley after that.”

She laughed. “Yes, well, now we’ll be able to feed you up a bit.”

Harry reached over for yesterday’s Daily Prophet, ad Mrs Weasley nodded enthusiastically. “Did I tell you? Arthur’s been promoted! Kingsley’s replaced Fudge as Prime Minister and that was one of the first things he did!”

“Good choice,” grinned Harry approvingly.

“So now…well, it’s much better,” nodded Mrs Weasley. “And…” She trailed off, and her eyes suddenly brimmed full of tears again.

“What?” asked Harry, struggling to sit up instead of lying helpless on the bed. Pictures flashed through his mind, thoughts of Voldemort and Death Eaters, and worse of all, pictures of a red headed figure lying pale and broken on the ground…if one of the Weasley’s was…

“It’s Percy,” sobbed Mrs Weasley, wiping her eyes and Harry suddenly felt very cold and had a sensation of something heavy dropping into the pit of his stomach. He didn’t particularly like Percy, especially after what he had said to Mr Weasley last year, but of he was dead…

“What happened?” he asked urgently, pushing himself into a sitting position and ignoring the pain around his chest.

“Oh, he…he’s back with us now. He said he was sorry, that he was wrong, and…oh, Harry!” she smiled wetly. “I was so worried about him!”

Harry opened his mouth to reply, but before he could say anything the doors to the hospital wing flew open to reveal Dumbledore, resplendent in robes of rich purple. Their eyes met.

“I’ll see you later, Harry,” said Mrs Weasley, dropping a kiss onto his head as she scurried out. Dumbledore nodded courteously at her and went over to Harry. His bright blue eyes were gleaming and shining and damp. He was beaming.

“Harry,” he said. “You wonderful man. You brave, brave man.” He sat down in the chair Mrs Weasley had recently vacated.

Harry smiled at the sight of his professor after so long. They had both been on the run for a long time.

“You have done more than I ever expected of you, Harry. You have behaved admirably, and believe me when I say that I am so very, very proud of you.”

“But sir,” said Harry, frowning. “You knew that Voldemort and I would have to fight each other someday. It was in the prophecy.”

Dumbledore acknowledged this with a nod of his head. “True, but I had no way of predicting the outcome, and I certainly did not expect it to be over as soon as this.”

“Is that why you were away for so long?”

Dumbledore inclined his head again. “I did not foresee this coming, or else I certainly would have stayed to help.”

“What were you doing?”

“Your friend Miss James previously carried the spirit of Godric Gryffindor in her. She let it go, of course, in an attempt to save you from Voldemort. Gryffindor’s spirit now resides within Hogwarts own walls. You can almost feel it. And so I thought that there must be other descendants of the founders. Lord Voldemort was the last remaining one of Slytherin, as you know, and so I have been trying to find the descendants of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw.”

“And did you?”

“Yes and no,” said Dumbledore thoughtfully. “I found the last descendant of Ravenclaw, certainly; she is a girl of the same age as you in fact, but I fear she has got herself into rather a sticky situation…her name is Rachel Leroy.”

“What’s wrong with her?” asked Harry.

“Oh, nothing you need to worry about, dear boy. I am thinking of enrolling her at Hogwarts next year to keep an eye on her anyway.”

Harry noticed that Dumbledore was trying to change the subject. “Sir, there’s another question.”

“Ask as many as you like, Harry, what else am I here for?”

“Well, how did Cass let the spirit of Godric Gryffindor out?”

Dumbledore put the tips of his fingers together as he considered the question. “As to that, I cannot be entirely sure. I would imagine that Gryffindor’s spirit was linked in some way to her soul, and that by great force of mind Miss James was somehow able to break that link. That is only a guess, but my guesses more often than not have an astounding talent for being right.”

Harry grinned. “You knew she had the spirit of him in her.”

“Yes, I did. I knew this from her dreams. Ever since she was born she has been having dreams of the infamous argument between Gryffindor and Slytherin. The founders were extraordinarily talented wizards, Harry, and made into the most famous wizarding legends. Wizards such as these often leave traces of themselves behind and Gryffindor obviously decided to give Cassandra James control of his last remaining spirit. Perhaps he considered her as the truest Gryffindor since himself.”

“She is,” said Harry. “I bet she is.”

The sun that had been trickling in through the windows was beginning to fade. The sky turned as dusky blue.

“About the prophecy…” began Harry, and Dumbledore looked searchingly at him through his half moon glasses, “It didn’t come true in the end, did it. It said that I’d have power beyond Voldemort’s and I didn’t. It said that one of us would have to kill the other and…”he looked away from Dumbledore to the crisp white sheets on his bed.

“There was this time when Voldemort had his back to me and I had a wand and I was pointing it at him. I couldn’t kill him. I thought of all the things he’d done and yet I still couldn’t kill him. I didn’t kill him really, and he didn’t kill me.”

“Do you think that makes you weak, Harry?” asked Dumbledore. When Harry didn’t reply he shook his head. “No. It makes you strong. Strong enough to know that you must kill a person, know how to kill, and yet still not kill. Murder is easier than some would believe,” he continued. “If you think of the person as an object rather than a human being you can murder without really thinking sometimes. Do not think of your actions as weak, Harry. Think of them as strong. And as for the power the Dark Lord knows not…it was love.”

Harry frowned. “That’s it? Just love?”

Dumbledore smiled and repeated his words. “Just love.”

Harry raised his eyes to look at Dumbledore, and for the first time saw not the strong headmaster with the x-ray glance, the only one Voldemort had ever feared, but instead a frail old man with a wrinkled face and veins showing on his hands.

“And now, Harry, I must be going. But if you will allow me, I am rather partial to a Peppermint Toad…”

“Help yourself,” grinned Harry and Dumbledore picked out a sweet from the pile by Harry’s bed.

“Enjoy your summer, Harry.”

*

At first, their journey to Platform 9 and ¾ had not been peaceful. So many people had burst into their compartment to question or thank Harry, and shy first year girls spent the entire time with their noses squashed up against the window, staring at Harry with wide eyes.

Hermione had tutted loudly at this, and Harry’s face was now shining red from embarrassment. Ron and Cassandra had laughed loudly about it at first, but then the amusement slowly wore off until Cassandra was so annoyed by it that she threatened to hex the little first-year girls if they didn’t run away and stop making faces like pigs through the window and stuck notices that said ‘Harry Potter is this way!’ with a helpful arrow on it all down their train, missing out their compartment. The arrows led to a carriage full of sixth-year Slytherin’s, including Draco Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson.

With the glass doors covered, the four friends were able to sit back and enjoy a large supply of sweets un-interrupted.

“So much for healing the rift then,” said Ron, grinning at Cassandra. “Five knuts Malfoy’s going to come in here any moment now and start hexing you cause thousands of little midgets are crowding round him asking for Harry Potter’s autograph.”

She threw a Chocolate Frog wrapper at him.

Hermione didn’t seem to notice. “You’re right,” she said dreamily. “I didn’t really notice before, of course the rift isn’t really healed, is it?”

Harry, Ron and Cassandra stared at her.

“Hermione, are you still talking about Malfoy or have you not been listening at all?” laughed Harry.

Hermione resumed her stroking of Crookshanks, who was lying peacefully across her lap. “I have! I was talking about what Ron said on the rift.”

There was a slight pause.

Hermione sighed, and launched into her explanation. “Haven’t you been reading the Daily Prophet? The Death Eaters who managed to escape Azkaban aren’t exactly being nice to everyone, are they? Look at Malik Grimstone! Look at Bellatrix Lestrange!”

“Prefer not to,” muttered Ron.

Cassandra suppressed a grin. “Not exactly a contender for The Most Charming Smile Award, is she?”

Hermione sighed impatiently. “My point is, I don’t think the rift is truly healed. I mean, we’ve been getting along alright with Slytherin’s at Hogwarts, but people outside haven’t been. So what if the rift is only healed at Hogwarts?”

“Could be.” Harry thought for a while. “Maybe it’s because Gryffindor’s spirit is there.”

Cassandra rolled her eyes, and let Yolanda, her kitten, out of her cage. “Who really cares? It doesn’t matter anymore.”

Ron watched the little white kitten prowl across the floor, her claws out.

“Do Debbie and John know about Yolanda?”

Cassandra froze, and her eyes widened, following Yolanda as she sprang up to Harry’s lap. “Um…”

Harry, Ron and Hermione began to laugh. “So you’re going to turn up with a cat that they know nothing about, right?” asked Harry.

Cassandra fiddled with her hair nervously. “Umm…”

Ron’s laugher was drowned out by a yelp from Harry, which caused them all to jump and crowd round him anxiously.

“I’m alright,” he said rolling his eyes, slightly annoyed. “It’s that kitten of yours, Cass,” Harry continued, holding up his hand so they could see the long scratches down it. “She’s vicious!”

Cassandra picked up Yolanda, who snuggled cosily into her arms. “She was only protecting herself.” The kitten purred, and Cassandra stroked her. “Was the nasty boy trying to hurt you, baby? Clever girl, aren’t you darling…”

“I was just stroking her!”

“Idiot.”

Ron had been peering out of the window. “We’re here!” he crowed, as the train pulled up by the platform.

They stood up.

“Come on, Ron,” said Hermione, grabbing his hand, looking meaningfully at him. “Take Harry’s trunk and let’s go.”

“What, aren’t we waiting…”

“Come on!”

Hermione dragged Ron out of the carriage, leaving Harry and Cassandra behind. Cassandra was shaking her head at Hermione.

“When I next see Hermione, I am going to kill her. That okay with you?”

Harry grinned.

“Because you don’t get much choice, you know. Say your last goodbyes!”

Harry shook his head, laughing. “Could be a bit cruel to Hermione.”

"Oh, she won't mind," Cassandra shrugged, and reached for her trunk. Suddenly, Harry was very conscious of how close Cassandra was to him.

Cassandra had done so much for him. She had always been there, always fighting. She had sacrificed so much for him, and he didn’t know how to thank her. He couldn’t thank her. She wouldn’t let him.

Her grey eyes creased up as Cassandra smiled a little self-consciously. They still burnt with that bright grey fire.

They were very close to each other now. Harry was aware that the platform had turned much quieter.

So close, and he could see a little freckle that was placed on her right eyebrow.

He lost all sensible thought, and began to lean closer towards her, as she leant towards him.

Their lips met, and as they kissed the world turned gold for both of them.

They broke apart slowly, several shining moments later, and smiled.

“Come on now, dears.”

They jumped apart from each other, Cassandra raising her eyebrows and making a face. The lady who pushed the trolley stood in the doorway.

“Train’s about to leave soon. Best get a move on.”

Cassandra nodded. “Okay, okay, we’re coming, don’t rush us.”

The lady left, and Cassandra looked back to Harry.

“Was that what you’ve been trying to say?” she asked.

“Yes.”

She raised her eyebrows. “You really are the world’s biggest idiot. Why didn’t you just say it, Potter?” she asked, but her voice was soft and her eyes looked wildly happy.

“And why didn’t you just say it, James?” Harry retorted, smiling, and Cassandra rolled her eyes, looking away, smiling.

“You know, Harry,” she began, as they walked out. “Round glasses are actually becoming fashionable in the wizarding world.”

Harry made a non-committal noise in his throat. He didn’t want to talk about glasses.

“Yeah, because you wear them really. I tell you, everyone’s going to want a pair by Christmas.”

“Really?”

“I’ve bought my pair already.”

Harry looked at her, and began to laugh loudly. Her hand slipped into his.

“Idiot.”

“Thanks, Cass.”

And Harry and Cassandra jumped off the Hogwarts Express and went back into Kings Cross, ready for a summer that promised to be considerably better than the last.