Whispers

Forty

The Death Eaters were called to retreat by Voldemort, leaving the fighters of Hogwarts to gather their dead and tend to their wounded. 

Walking into the Great Hall was a strange experience. There was so many dead in that hall and Calliope knew that she should feel something, anything, however, the whispers were uncharacteristically silent and the crushing weight of all of the death that she expected was completely absent.

Towards the top end of the hall, Calliope saw a group of redheads gathered all facing something on the floor. As she neared them she wondered who of her family had lost their life for the group was gathered around a body on the floor. 

In her head and her empty heart, she knew what the severed ends of the chords that had once been the bond meant, but it was not until she saw Fred's body on the floor that she realised what had happened.

Fred had died. Fred was gone. 

Molly was hugging her son's chest and sobbing into it, with Remus rubbing her back comfortingly. Percy was crouched near Fred's head leaning back on his heels sobbing into his palms. George was staring at his brother's face nearby, violent sobs wracking his entire body. Ginny was sat slightly away from the others with Sirius, neither of them talking, simply staring at Fred's body. Bill and Fleur stood to one side, Fleur's arms wrapped around Bill and he sobbed into her shoulder. 

Sirius was the first to notice Calliope frozen in place several feet away from the group, he leapt to his feet and strode over to her seemingly expecting her to collapse at any second and for him to need to catch her.

Calliope did no such thing. She simply stared at Fred for several moments. His lips pale and his skin as white as a sheet. She stared for a long time and it was only when Ron's sobs came from behind her and he and Hermione passed Calliope that she turned and left the hall without any more words. 

Sirius didn't try to follow. He and Remus exchanged a momentary look before Sirius returned to comforting Ginny. 

Calliope headed straight out into the grounds again, where many people were helping the wounded inside, or carrying the dead on stretchers. She wandered aimlessly for a while until she came across Harry. 

"Harry, you're going to the woods aren't you?"

Harry pulled the invisibility cloak off with a confused look on his face, "how did you know I'm here?"

"You're about to die," she said matter-of-factly, "death is what I understand."

"Well if you understand then you'll let me go," said Harry, moving to pull the cloak back on.

"Would you like a guide into death?" Calliope asked.

"What do you mean?" Harry frowned.

"I will come with you to the forest."

Harry regarded her strangely. The pair were not as close as the could have been. Had things been different and their parents never died then they would have grown up as close as siblings. The two children of the Marauders both understood death in ways that no one should.

"Do you not want to be with Fred?" Asked Harry.

"Fred is gone," said Calliope, "I'll be with him when this is all over."

Harry nodded his head at the door, a clear gesture that he wanted to get moving. Calliope fell into step beside him, and he tossed the invisibility cloak over the pair of them.

"How many?" Harry asked as they walked down the steps that lead down to the grounds from the entrance hall.

"Too many," replied Calliope, "Too many to count."

They walked in silence for a while, "What you're doing is very brave," said Calliope, "death is nothing to be afraid of. I will make sure that Nagini is gone if you take care of the part of him that's inside of you."

"How long have you known that I had to die?" Harry asked, his voice barely a whisper.

"Since last year," Calliope confessed, "you should have heard what I said to Dumbledore when I found out. He didn't want you to have this hanging over you, so I promised that I would keep it to myself."

"And did you know what all of the Horcruxes were?"

"No," said Calliope, "but I knew you were one."

There was a pregnant silence, weighted with many words left unsaid. 

"Thank you," Harry said eventually, "thank you for being here."

Calliope smiled faintly as they neared the edge of the forbidden forest where dementors could be seen swooping around the edge of the trees. 

"You will have to do this final bit by yourself," Calliope told him.

"I know." The pair stopped for a second and Harry turned to look at Calliope, "is it hard? Dying that is?"

"Yes," said Calliope, "but that's what makes it so worth it, we can't really be happy unless we undergo suffering." 

With that, Calliope slipped out from under the cloak and headed back towards the castle.