Redemption

War changes people. Two bullies regret their past and try to redeem themselves, each in his or her own way, yet their ways cross.

As usual, I don't own any of the rights to Harry Potter characters and world. These belong to J.K Rowling and her associates. I'm only here to play with them for my pleasure and yours.

1 Funeral

Privet Drive had never looked so unattractive to Dudley. His parents had been eager to return to their "perfectly normal house" and seemed very excited to be back after nine months away from home. His mother was checking for dust and cobwebs while his father was just watching TV and grumbling, as usual. They seemed to have ignored the information that their house had been burned completely. It was only restored by magic and the neighbors had been told that it was all part of a special-effects film. Yet Dudley knew the truth.

He mounted the stairs to his room. It was much easier now than last summer. He had lost some weight since, but he mostly gained some muscles. He didn't like remembering how climbing these stairs seemed so exhausting just a few months earlier. This change involved no magic at all, though. It was just his willpower and perseverance which got him these results.

Still, Dudley was glad to be home, despite feeling it was much less of a home than it had been before. Seeing magic around him had been fantastic, but it was also quite unnerving. He knew for certain that each of those kids carrying sticks could easily turn him into a toad or make him float in the air and he would be helpless against them, just as he had been when those de... something attacked him and Harry. If it wasn't for Harry's proficiency with that stick, Dudley would have been dead. These kids were also nice. They made sure to keep him informed on what was happening, to let him join their games as much as he could and to just make him feel welcome, despite knowing who he was. They were also the ones to first tell him of Harry's victory.

Harry Potter, his cousin... He knew his parents didn't want to hear that name ever again. Still, his mother had been listening to the news just as attentively as he had, although when news of the victory came, she tried to look indifferent. Dudley knew she had some feelings towards his cousin. Why she hid them for so long was still a mystery to him.

/\/\/\/\/\

Miles away from there, another person was contemplating the same events. Pansy had never considered herself a fighter, nor a brave person. Even though the sorting hat had told her she could do well in Gryffindor, it placed her in Slytherin. Well, she was ambitious and cunning, or so she liked to think of herself. In retrospective, she felt she was neither.

It was Draco Malfoy, throwing his father's political and financial weight, who set the tone in the Slytherin common room from the beginning. She thought it would be in her advantage to become close to the Malfoy scion. It even seemed to work for quite a while. She soon became his unofficial girlfriend. She did almost everything he asked her. She acted nastily to the Gryffindors and publicly despised Muggle-born. As she grew up, she found out about other things. Draco was not really interested in her or in any other girl. He thought he could command her and use her as payment for his minions, but Pansy put the limit there. She may have considered letting Draco use her for his own pleasures, had he been interested, but none of the other boys made her want to be physical with them. She still kept dating Draco, though. They both needed this. Draco was reluctant to let his true preferences known and dating him gave her a certain protection from unwelcome courting by others.

The war changed everything. The Dark Lord didn't bring prosperity and honor even to his supporters. He only brought terror and fear everywhere. Her father was forced to join the Dark Lord's forces, yet he showed so little talent that he was assigned only guard duties, if any. Her mother decided it was a good time to visit her family in Canada. Pansy needed to stay at Hogwarts, though. As the Malfoys seemed to have lost their high position at the side of the Dark Lord, Draco was too worried to pay her much attention, yet nobody else did.

And then Potter appeared at Hogwarts, defeating both Carrows, making Snape flee, and bringing the war to the grounds of the school. She didn't leave in the evacuation of the school. She had nowhere to go, really. She wasn't sure if her home was still standing and she didn't want to go with any of her class mates. She had no real friends there, or anywhere else. She hid herself in one of the unused rooms in the dungeons and hoped nobody would find her until the battle was over.

It worked, in a way. She could still hear all the fighting and some stray curses hit the walls near her hideout; she heard the Dark Lord calling for Harry to come to him and she even overheard some of the talking between Harry and his friends when he decided to go to the forest. She had never been friendly with "The Golden Trio" but she wished them success with all of her might. She dreaded what could happen if they were defeated.

She then heard about Potter's demise as the protectors of the school came out to confront the Dark Lord. She found a crack in the wall where she could hear everything and see a bit without being spotted. It was chilling her blood to see Potter lying dead in Hagrid's arms and Longbottom defying the Dark Lord and killing his snake a bit later.

Then all hell broke loose. Potter had suddenly vanished and the fighting resumed with full force, until finally it went silent. She couldn't hear what was happening and for the first time since going into hiding, she left her hideout, still using disillusion charms to stay invisible.

She reached the Great Hall just in time to see the Dark Lord fall, as Potter was catching his wand in triumph. The rest of that day was a blur. She went back to her hideout, waiting for the celebration and the mourning to quiet down. She had eaten something, but she couldn't remember if she had taken some food to her hideout or was served by a house elf. These small creatures were very good at helping when needed, even without being asked.

Once night fell, she left Hogwarts. Her own house-elf took her back home, which stayed miraculously untouched. In the hidden safe under the rug of the study, she found a letter from her father. "My child, I can't stay in Britain any longer. My lack of magical powers saved me from being marked, but now it looks like He wants all His servants marked, like cattle. I intend to use my chance during my guard shift and flee out of the country if I can. Follow me, whenever you find the opportunity, and try to reach your mother's family. If I die trying to escape, my ring will come to you, declaring you the head of house. Love, Dad." It was evident he didn't want to leave any details which might help others find him or his wife.

She hoped he was all right, as she had not seen any ring appear on her fingers, yet she could not follow either of her parents yet. She had seen and mostly heard about some of the people who died in that battle. She needed to attend the funerals. It was probably her hidden Gryffindor, as most families would shun her or even chase her away, yet she felt this was what she had to do. She could stand whatever hardships her decision would bring.

/\/\/\/\/\

Dudley found an owl waiting on his window sill after dinner. It was delivering him a single sheet of parchment. It had a list of names, places and times, titled "Funerals of the Fallen". Some of the names were underlined: Fred Weasley was the topmost, Remus Lupin, Dora (Tonks) Lupin, Theodore Tonks, and a few more. He recognized the first name and felt a shudder go through his body. He didn't know the others and didn't know who had sent this to him. It could be Harry, though he seriously doubted Harry would do this, knowing how his family despised the magical world. It was probably one of those he befriended while in hiding. There was a small note attached, written on what looked like a page torn out of a regular notebook. "The parchment will take you to any funeral location and back. Touch the appropriate line and say 'funeral' to be transported there. Hold the rolled up parchment and say 'home' to be back where you came from." It was unsigned and he didn't recognize the handwriting.

/\/\/\/\/\

An owl brought Pansy a list of funerals. She thought it was from one of her classmates, maybe Daphne or Millicent, but it was unsigned. She was actually surprised to find it had both light and dark fighters, titled "Funerals of the Fallen". Some names she had known from the Slytherin common room were lined out. She was glad not to find more familiar names within, yet she was determined to attend all funerals, if she could.

/\/\/\/\/\

Dudley was very apprehensive of traveling the magical way, but there was no other way he could arrive there. He couldn't find that address on any map. He held the parchment firmly in his left hand and reluctantly touched the Weasley line, muttering "funeral".

It was not a nice feeling. He felt as if he was being squeezed and tumbled and stretched. Landing on his behind and rolling over was actually a relief. He stood up, wobbling a little, brushed himself with his hands and then advance towards the group in mourning clothes which was standing a short distance away, noticing several red heads and one with a mop of unruly black hair.

He found himself back on the ground as another person materialized out of thin air just in front of him. He quickly stood up and held both hands to help the other person stand as well. He knew he was a stranger there. He didn't want to make too bad an impression.

"Thank you," a feminine voice said as he felt his hand grabbed by a hand much smaller and softer than his. He looked at the bundle of black robes and saw a young woman, about his age. She stood up quickly and brushed her robes clean. She then looked at him,

Pansy was surprised to see that a young man in muggle clothes had helped her up. He was still holding a parchment similar to hers, which made it clear why they had bumped into each other. He didn't look familiar, though. She couldn't place him in any of the houses, either her age or a year or two older or younger. Could he be a real muggle? At a wizard's funeral? That was odd. Yet he also looked uncomfortable, even more so than her.

"I'm sorry," he blurted. "I didn't..."

"That's fine," she cut him out. "This may happen when several portkeys need to bring people to the same place."

Disregarding his clearly muggle clothing, she was surprised to find that the blond young man looked quite nice. He was a bit overweight, but looked strong and healthy. He could be a good catch. "I'm Pansy Parkinson," she said, noticing that he didn't seem to recognize the name.

"Dudley Dursley. Pleased to meet you." He grabbed her hand and shook it. This was clearly muggle behavior, but he could be muggle-raised, she thought.

Dudley liked the feeling of her small hand in his. It was a new experience to him. He kept holding her hand as they approached the group. He could now see the balding older redhead, the father, holding tight to a plump redhead lady who could barely stand her grief. One of the twins was on the man's other side. He was missing an ear and looked devastated. A redhead girl – he estimated she was a bit younger than himself – was standing nearby, hugged tightly by a young man whom he could recognize anywhere.

"Harry?" he said, almost in disbelief.

Harry raised his head, noticing Dudley for the first time. "Dudley? I would have never expected you to be here. What made you come?"

Dudley lifted his hand, still holding the parchment. "An owl brought it. I just thought..." He wasn't really sure what he had thought and how to explain it. He left the sentence hanging.

"Who is your companion?" Harry asked. Dudley noted his tone was harsher, as if he actually recognized the girl and didn't like her.

"I've just bumped into her and helped her up. This is Pansy Parkinson." He turned to the girl. "Miss Parkinson, this is my cousin, Harry Potter."

He needed a moment to notice the silence which suddenly engulfed the group. He wasn't sure if it was his presence that brought it or Pansy's. He was still holding her hand. He looked around, noticing the glares directed at his companion. He didn't like them. She seemed to be a nice girl. He would protect her, if needed. It was much later when he realized that there was nothing he could have done had they really attacked her.

Pansy lifted her head and looked at Harry. "I'm here to pay my respects to a person who had brought much laughter and joy to people at times these were most needed, to a person who died fighting of his own free will for something he strongly believed in. I wish I could be as brave as he has always been."

Harry's glare softened. "Well, miss Parkinson, that's a welcome change of attitude." He looked at her hand, still held in his cousin's, but said nothing.

The openly hostile glares disappeared. She could still notice some glares, mostly just curious. She stayed with Dudley, though. The big young man gave her a kind of comfort which her life lacked for too long. Holding his hand, she could almost feel like a small girl being held protectively by her father. And he said Potter was his cousin... Interesting. She had heard that Potter had grown up with his muggle relatives. Was this... Dudley... one of them? She had not seen any sign of wand on him...

The ceremony was touching. Dudley found out it was one of the twins who had died in battle, as a wall collapsed over him. No wonder that the other twin looked so devastated. While Dudley had no brothers and his cousin had never been close to him, some of his friends had brothers and he knew how close they could feel. Pansy was thinking along the same lines. She had known how inseparable the twins had been during their school years. She could only guess at how much it hurt to lose one.

Pansy had tears in her eyes as the ceremony ended. She was reluctant to approach the family, though. Dudley didn't seem to have the same qualms. He was still holding her hand as they approached the family, where Harry Potter was still hugging Ginny while his friend, the Granger girl, was comforting Ron. Dudley addressed Harry first. "I'm very sorry for your losses. I've learned a lot during our time in hiding and I now understand much better. I hope that with time, you may be able to forgive me."

Pansy didn't know what he was talking about. There seemed to be some bad feelings there, just as she thought she would experience at these funerals.

"Don't worry about that," Harry told him. "I'll call you once things settle down a bit. I think some talking will do us both good."

Dudley nodded and moved a bit, letting Pansy stand in front of Harry and Ginny. "Potter, I wish I didn't act the way I did during our school years. I've been a foolish girl. Hopefully, I've learned a bit and maybe I can correct some of my past mistakes."

Harry looked at her with a sad smile and nodded. She turned to Ginny, taking her hand in her free one. "I'm really sorry for you and your family. I wish I could change some of my past behavior, but I can't. I can only say that I'm more than willing to give you any help you may need."

Ginny swallowed her tears. "Thank you, Miss Parkinson."

Pansy knew it would take time and a lot of effort before Ginny would trust her enough to ask for any help, yet she had just planted the seed of trust.

Next in line were Ron and Hermione, who just moved closer to Dudley, whispering, "I'm glad you've come. Both you and Harry need each other now, I believe. Do come to the other marked funerals, please."

Dudley nodded. He vaguely recognized this young and pretty woman as the bushy haired girl he had once seen at the train station, being Harry's friend. She had really grown up well.

Hermione frowned as she saw Pansy. "I hope this is not some new scheme to humiliate any of us," she said sternly.

"It would be very un-Slytherin of me to offend the victors," Pansy said with a slight smile before turning serious again. "I've been thinking and reviewing my actions since first year and I was feeling more and more ashamed. I feel that paying the last honor to the victims of this war is the first step in redeeming myself and becoming the person I'd like to be."

Hermione glance at Pansy's hand, still held by Dudley. "Is this?..."

"No. We've just met. It's more like two strangers finding solace with each other in unusual circumstances." She still didn't feel like parting their hands.

Ron seemed too deep in mourning to even notice her. Pansy was actually relieved. Ron had been known for his hot-headedness and his negative feelings towards the Slytherin house. The others accepted her condolences without really knowing who she was, which was fine for her. She only noticed that George seemed to have known Dudley, as he looked a bit surprised to see him there.

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