Heaven ♡ Luna Lovegood

18.

Chapter Eighteen;

It was over.

Annie picked her way through the ruined castle that, mere hours ago, stood so tall and strong that it was impossible to think it could be defeated at all. But war brought sorrow to all, including the old, proud building. The House hourglasses were now all destroyed, the gemstones scattered across the floor like the blood of the students whom belonged to them. Debris lay scattered where staircase bannisters had been destroyed, or great chunks had been brought out from the walls. A layer of dust hung over everything, and in some cases small splatters of blood were found on the floor.

Annie took in a deep breath as she left the Great Hall behind her and wandered outside, her head swimming with thoughts.

They'd won. Harry Potter had defeated Lord Voldemort with his own curse, and the body of the man who had turned more evil than any magical person in history now lay in a separate chamber from all those who had defended Hogwarts, no doubt to be discarded in the most unceremonious manner later. They had won, yet Annie still felt so empty.

What cost was their victory? Family, friends, and loved ones were dead. Tiny figures like Colin Creevey, who had barely tasted life or experienced any of what it had to offer, were gone from the world. The click of his camera and excited, enthusiastic smile would never be heard or seen again. Ginny's brother Fred lay dead, his jokes never to entice laughter again. Annie had been horrified to discover that Felicity had been killed during the battle. Having turned seventeen the day before the battle, Felicity had needed no encouragement to jump into the fray. Seeing the body of her friend had made Annie feel sick as a thousand regrets poured over her at once – she should have made more of an effort to know Felicity, to understand her, to know the dreams and secret desires that would now never be fulfilled.

It had been too much for Annie to take. Tasting bile in her mouth, Annie had fled the Great Hall and all the death and destruction to instead be able to come to terms with everything that had just happened outside, away from everything and everyone. She'd gravitated to one place that was sure to calm her and make her feel better – the greenhouses.

Only one of the greenhouses had been destroyed by the battle, but because the fighting had tended to occur elsewhere, the greenhouses remained relatively untouched. Annie entered one of them and, standing still, closed her eyes, allowing the smell of earth and dirt to fill her nose. Her anxiety calmed down somewhat, as the smell had always made her feel grounded, like she too was a plant being rooted to the earth. Here, she was surrounded with life, not death.

She stayed in that position for some time, waiting until the hammering of her heart receded to its usual rate. Only then did she inhale one last deep breath and slowly open her eyes, reconnecting herself with reality. For, while the presence of plants calmed her, she could still see signs of destruction in the neighbouring greenhouses, and make out thin wisps of smoke still rising from the castle.

In need for something to distract herself with, Annie's eyes rested on a nearby watering can. Without thinking she picked up and tended to all the plants, as though it were just another Herbology lesson, or she had come down to the greenhouses after school hours with Luna.

Nothing was done with magic; instead, Annie watered the plants and tended to them with only her hands. There was something reassuring and satisfying about not using magic to look after the plants. Magic, Annie had learned, was devastating – more so than anything Muggles could use. Magic, in the wrong hands, was a dangerous tool and could be used in too many ways to bring horror and destruction upon the world, and almost tear the fabric of their reality apart. With the utterance of just a few words, magic could be so easily abused and used to rain terror upon the world; this was something Voldemort had proven far too many times.