Harry Potter and the Ritual of Love's Memory

Chapter 60

Despite the dire situation he had witnessed in his vision and the implications of how Voldemort could use it in the future, Harry found a rather meaningful silver lining: he finally had an earth-shattering piece of information that he could freely share with his closest friends. This was quite fortunate for him because Ron, Ginny, Hermione, and Neville all shared looks of deep concern by the time Harry arrived at the Gryffindor table for breakfast the following morning.

He had kept them in the dark regarding horcruxes for almost a year, more if Harry counted from when he first heard of the terrible magic through the rogue memory. This term, his role in the prophecy had been added to his list of secrets to keep, which meant one more incredible burden he couldn't share with his best friends.

Harry wasn't keen on sharing the crucial details of his life and the fight against Voldemort with the whole world, but he yearned to at least fill in Ginny, Hermione, and Ron. He sometimes quietly wondered whether they deserved the opportunity to cut ties with him, considering how much danger they risked by being connected with him, but reason mostly won out. Even without knowledge of the prophecy, none of them were under any illusions that Voldemort might suddenly decide to give up the mission to eliminate Harry, yet they continued to associate with him freely.

Neville was a tougher case. He didn't even know the basic details about the rogue memory that Harry had shared with Ron and Hermione, much less that Harry occasionally met with some of the most competent witches and wizards alive to make progress on ensuring Voldemort's mortality. A prophecy that had almost referred to his dormmate seemed far too much information to relay.

A back-and-forth argument played out in Harry's mind. Would it be wise to open up to Neville? If he shared about the rogue memory, would that put his friend in greater danger? Or make it more likely that the secret got out? Harry knew Neville well enough to trust that he'd never intentionally betray his trust, but he also wasn't the strongest at magic that didn't involve plants. Could Voldemort plumb the depths of Neville's mind for information to use against Harry? Or would the act of sharing help deepen the bond between them, which had been growing stronger from their time in Defense Club and hanging out more often outside of class?

Quick, decisive answers eluded Harry for the moment, so he decided to consider it more at a later date. Instead, he simply told his four friends that he'd explain about the previous night once the day's classes had concluded. He noticed that Hermione looked almost ready to push for swifter answers, but Ron preempted her by bumping his knee into hers while leaning over to pass some of the remaining eggs onto his best mate's plate.

Harry had a challenging time focusing on his classes that morning until his communication mirror vibrated in his pocket after lunch. Sirius was happy to report that Tonks was doing better than expected. He had returned to Grimmauld Place after giving an official statement about the night's ordeal to Kingsley but was now calling from Tonks' room at St. Mungo's.

Remus had remained at the hospital all night, only consenting to be relieved by Mr. and Mrs. Tonks after their daughter had woken up and assured everyone that she was going to be okay. From the periphery of the mirror, Harry could see the color rise to her cheeks as she described how concerned Remus had been while keeping vigil at her bedside. A remark from Sirius earned him a slap from the patient after he insinuated that Tonks had gotten injured to make Remus get his act together and properly ask her out.

Before Sirius ended the call, Tonks requested the mirror to say thanks to Harry for his help the previous night. From what the Healers had said, the venom was strong enough to do serious damage and even kill if not treated quickly. She was adamant that, were it not for his warning to Sirius, Remus, and Dumbledore, she likely wouldn't have survived in the Department of Mysteries until the first Unspeakables arrived in the morning.