Act 4

Harry, for some odd reason, was sitting in Professor Snape's office and chatting with him.

"On Thursday?" asked Snape. "That's a little early, don't you think?"

"That's how Mr. Weasley wants it, and I can't do anything to slow him down," said Harry.

"And how does Ginny feel about this?"

"I don't know. She is still mourning for Ron so I haven't really brought it up. Mr. Weasley just thinks its best for our marriage to happen soon so she has something to be happy about, you know?"

Snape nodded as Ginny came in with a flushed face. "Good afternoon, Ms. Weasley."

Harry lit up. "Ginny, my wife! It's good to see you!"

"I'm not your wife yet, Harry," she said coldly.

"But you will be on Thursday."

"Yeah…"

Professor Snape spoke up. "Did you need to speak to me, Ms. Weasley?"

"Yes," said Ginny as she pushed past him, tears streaming down her face.

"Poor thing..."

"Now if you don't mind, Mr. Potter, I believe I need to talk to Ginny. Goodbye," said Snape.

Ginny was sitting in a large armchair with her knees to her chest. "It's hopeless!"

"Ginny, I know you're in pain but you get to marry Harry on Thursday."

"But I don't want to marry Harry! I'm already married! I want to see my husband!" She pulled out her wand and pointed it at her head. "I don't want to fucking marry Harry!"

"Ginny, please, put down your wand. It's not worth it. If you are willing to take your life rather than marry Harry, then you would be willing to do something just as risky. I have something to get you through this."

"I don't want to fucking marry Harry!"

"You don't have to." Snape walked over to a cabinet and pulled out a small vile. "This, Ginny, is the answer to your problem. This is a Sleeping Tonic- one of the most powerful known to the wizard world. This potion will put you into a sleep so deep that you will appear and pretty much be dead. Tomorrow night before you go to bed, drink this. Your veins will go cold and you will feel almost drunk. Then, you will basically die. Then, in a whole day's time, you will wake up and be as good as new. When they find you in the morning, they will see you as dead, and well, no one wants to marry a dead person so they will call off the wedding. I'll owl Draco and he can come and get you."

"Give it," said Ginny as she snatched it out of Snape's hands.

"Right. Well, you better be off. Have faith, Ginny. I'll send an owl out to Draco as soon as possible.

Ginny nodded, walked out of Snape's office, and closed the door behind her. "Love, give me strength."

---

Mr. Weasley was standing in the kitchen and sending out invitations for Ginny's wedding to Harry. Hermione was sitting in a chair reading. "Where's Ginny?" he asked Hermione.

"She went to go see Professor Snape," she answered without looking up from her book.

"She takes after you. Always looking to learn."

"Oh, wait, here she is," said Hermione as she put down her book.

Mr. Weasley stood up. "Ginny, where have you been?"

"I went to go talk to professor Snape. He's what you might call a mentor to me. I decided that I'm very sorry for defying you."

Mr. Weasley nodded. "Good. Go tell Harry."

"I already did. He was at Hogwarts also."

"Good girl. Someone go find Harry, anyway. I want to speak with him."

Ginny turned to Hermione. "Will you help me get me ready for the wedding?"

"Not yet. There's time to do it on Thursday."

"No, no, go get ready now. It'll save time," said Arthur. Ginny and Hermione walked up the stairs to her room.

Mrs. Weasley spoke up. "Arthur, I still don't know if she is ready…"

"Nonsense, Molly! She's plenty ready! Now go help her get ready."

---

"Those are really nice dresses, Hermione, but can you please leave me to myself tonight? I have some things I need to think about," said Ginny as she began to take off the dress she was wearing.

Then, Molly walked in. "Ginny! You look beautiful! Do you need my help?"

"No thanks, Mum. I'm kind of tired and I'm sure that you have more than enough on your plate already."

"Oh, well, good night then, Ginny. Sleep well," said Molly as she walked out of Ginny's room.

Hermione ran over and grabbed Ginny in a big hug. "Don't worry, Ginny. Harry is a great guy and you'll be happy with him." Ginny simply smiled and nodded. "Well, goodnight, Gin."

Ginny waited until Hermione had closed the door behind her before she said anything. "Farewell! Merlin knows when we shall meet again.

I have a faint cold fear thrills through my veins,

That almost freezes up the heat of life:

I'll call them back again to comfort me:

Hermione! What should she do here?

My dismal scene I needs must act alone.

Come, vial.

What if this mixture do not work at all?

Shall I be married then to-morrow morning?

No, no; this shall forbid it: lie thou there," said Ginny as she set her wand beside her on her bed.

"What if it be a poison, which Snape

Subtly hath minister'd to have me dead,

Lost in this marriage he should be dishonour'd

Because he married me before to Draco!

I fear it is: and yet, methinks, it should not,

For he hath still been tried a holy man.

How if, when I am laid into the tomb,

I wake before the time that Draco

Come to redeem me? there's a fearful point!

Shall I not then be stifled in the vault,

To whose foul mouth no healthsome air breathes in,

And there die strangled ere my Draco comes?

Or, if I live, is it not very like,

The horrible conceit of death and night,

Together with the terror of the place,

As in a vault, an ancient receptacle,

Where, for this many hundred years, the bones

Of all my buried ancestors are pack'd;

Where bloody Ron, yet but green in earth,

Lies fest'ring in his shroud; where, as they say,

At some hours in the night spirits resort:

Alack, alack! is it not like that I,

So early waking, what with loathsome smells,

And shrieks like mandrakes' torn out of the earth,

That living mortals, hearing them, run mad:

O! if I wake, shall I not be distraught,

Environed with all these hideous fears,

And madly play with my forefathers' joints,

And pluck the mangled 'Ron from his shroud!

And, in this rage, with some great kinsman's bone,

As with a club, dash out my desperate brains?

O! look, methinks I see my cousin's ghost

Seeking out Draco, that did spit his body

Upon a rapier's point. Stay, Ron stay!

Draco, I come! this do I drink to thee!" said Ginny as she downed the vial and fell back onto her bed.

---

"Hermione, dear, would you mind going to wake Ginny up?" asked Molly, hastily rushing around the kitchen.

"Sure. I'll be back in a minute." Hermione was gone for about 2 minutes before a scream was heard..

Molly put wiped her hands on her apron and then went to Ginny's room. "What's wrong?"

"Ginny… why Ginny? She was so young…and on her wedding day! Harry will be so sad!" Hermione was in hysterics.

"Hermione, you're not making any sense…" said Molly, slightly worried. She walked over to Ginny's bed, pulled back the curtain, and gasped.

"She's dead!" cried Hermione from the floor.

Mrs. Weasley looked down at the lifeless form that once was her child. Refusing to believe the fact, she reached down and cradled her daughter in her arms. "Ginny? Ginny, honey, wake up," she asked with tears streaming down her eyes. "My baby is dead! Help!"

Arthur and Harry walked into the room. "What happened here? For Merlin's sake, Molly, we have guests here. See, I brought Harry with me. Where's Ginny?"

Hermione looked at Mr. Weasley from the floor. "She's dead, you stupid bastard!" Mr. Weasley cocked an eyebrow and dropped her jaw. Harry, on the other hand, gave out a little laugh because he, too, did not believe that Ginny was dead.

Mrs. Weasley rocked her daughter's lifeless body. "My baby is dead!" she cried as her tears fell into Ginny's vibrant red hair.

"Dead? What the bloody hell are you talking about? Let me see her." Arthur walked over and put his hand on Ginny's cheek but drew it back quickly. "She's ice cold!"

Snape walked into the room. "Is the bride ready to go?"

"She's already gone!" said Molly through tears.

Harry was in shock of the whole situation. "I wasn't expecting this," he said as a lone tear trickled down his face.

"Oh, Harry!" said Hermione as she ran up to him and gave him a hug.

Snape put his hand on Arthur's shoulder. "I think we need to take her to church."

Arthur looked down and shook his head. "The joy of a wedding has turned into the woe of a funeral. Come on, everyone. We have to go to church." The crying crowd left the room to adorn themselves in black.