I kept looking at everyone, but they all seemed speechless. "Well?" I demanded, my heartbeat speeding up.

        "I-I haven't seen him since we got here," said Lupin. Although seeing the look of horror on my face, he continued, "But I'm sure he's fine."

       "I'll go look for him," I said, trying to leave the hospital wing, but Lupin stopped me.

       "You can't leave the castle," he said. "It's McGonagall's order."

      "Look, it's not just about finding Sirius," I said firmly. "A woman has been hurt. I didn't know her but she saved my life. I need to make sure she's all right."

        "Listen, McGonagall wants all the students inside," he tried to reason. "We're still not sure if all the Death Eaters are gone. You can't go out there on your own. I'm sure McGonagall would take care of everything."

At the sound of footsteps entering the hospital wing, we all turned around and looked up, seeing Harry walk inside with Ginny.

Hermione ran to Harry and hugged him; Lupin moved forward too, looking anxious.

"Are you all right, Harry?" Lupin asked.

"I'm fine... How's Bill?"

Nobody answered. Harry looked over Hermione's shoulder and his eyes got filled with worry as he saw Bill. Madam Pomfrey was dabbing at his wounds with some harsh-smelling green ointment.

"Can't you fix them with a charm or something?" he asked her.

"No charm will work on these," said Madam Pomfrey. "I've tried everything I know, but there is no cure for werewolf bites."

"But he wasn't bitten at the full moon," said Ron, gazing down into his brother's face. "Greyback hadn't transformed, so surely Bill won't be a — a real — ?" He looked uncertainly at Lupin.

"No, I don't think that Bill will be a true werewolf," said Lupin, "but that does not mean that there won't be some contamination. Those are cursed wounds. They are unlikely ever to heal fully, and — and Bill might have some wolfish characteristics from now on."

"Dumbledore might know something that'd work, though," Ron said. "Where is he? Bill fought those maniacs on Dumbledore's orders, Dumbledore owes him, he can't leave him in this state —"

"Ron — Dumbledore's dead," said Ginny. The room fell silent as everyone gaped at those words.

"No!" Lupin looked wildly from Ginny to Harry, as though hoping that someone would deny it.

But when no one did, Lupin collapsed into a chair beside Bill's bed, his hands over his face.

"How did he die?" whispered Tonks. "How did it happen?"

"Snape killed him," said Harry. "I was there, I saw it. We arrived back on the Astronomy Tower because that's where the Mark was... Dumbledore was ill, he was weak, but I think he realized it was a trap when we heard footsteps running up the stairs. He immobilized me, I couldn't do anything, I was under the Invisibility Cloak — and then Malfoy came through the door and disarmed him —"

Hermione clapped her hands to her mouth and Ron groaned. Luna's mouth was trembling as Madam Pomfrey started sobbing.

"— more Death Eaters arrived — and then Snape — and Snape did it. The Avada Kedavra." Harry couldn't go on.

Soon, we started hearing a beautiful music. Looking out of the window, we saw a phoenix flying away. It sounded magical, and we all stared outside, as if enchanted by it.

But we were snapped out of our daze when Professor McGonagall entered the ward. There were grazes on her face and her robes were ripped.

"Molly and Arthur are on their way," she said. "Harry, what happened? According to Hagrid you were with Professor Dumbledore when he — when it happened. He says Professor Snape was involved in some —"

"Snape killed Dumbledore," said Harry.

"Snape," repeated McGonagall faintly, falling into a chair nearby. "We all wondered... but he trusted... always... Snape... I can't believe it..."

With that, everyone started explaining how Snape and Draco had ran past them along with the other Death Eaters. But they were silenced once the sound of many footsteps approached us.

Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were striding up the ward, Fleur just behind them. But what caught me off guard, was when Fred and George followed them inside; they weren't supposed to be here.

"Bill," Mrs. Weasley whispered in horror, darting past Professor McGonagall as she caught sight of Bill's mangled face. "Oh, Bill!"

Lupin and Tonks had got up hastily and stepped aside so that Mr. and Mrs. Weasley could get nearer to the bed. Mrs. Weasley then bent over her son and pressed her lips to his bloody forehead. Madam Pomfrey then went to close the doors to the ward.

Fred was standing there, looking shocked like everyone else. Then, with one glance at Bill and another at me, he suddenly ran forward and threw his arms around me, hugging me tightly.

"Thank God you're all right," he whispered, placing a kiss on my head. "I came as soon as I heard."

"You said Greyback attacked him?" Mr. Weasley asked Professor McGonagall distractedly and Fred and I pulled away. "But he hadn't transformed? So what does that mean? What will happen to Bill?"

"We don't yet know," said Professor McGonagall in a quiet voice. She then turned to look helplessly at Lupin.

But before he could open his mouth and answer, Harry suddenly turned on me sharply. "Why didn't you do anything?"

      I gulped as I felt all eyes turn on me. "Dumbledore himself had forbidden me," I said, trying to keep my voice from cracking.

       "So you did know that this was going to happen!?" Harry questioned loudly, raising his voice.

       "Easy there, buddy," said Fred, but his voice lacked any sign of joking.

      Harry ignored him. "Then what are you even doing here if you're not even supposed to be changing anything!?"

       "I already did, in case you've forgotten!" I snapped back, mentioning Sirius.

       But my heart sank as I remembered him again, forgetting about how I knew nothing of his fate.

       "Dumbledore trusted me," I said in a small voice.

       "He trusted Snape, and look where that got him," Harry said shortly.

        "Well, we trust her too," said George, walking in front of me protectively along with Fred. "Got a problem with that?"

       Harry fell silent. He looked around at everyone else for support, but no one said anything, obviously knowing that Harry wasn't thinking straight at the moment.

"Dumbledore knew what he was doing, Harry," Lupin said gently. "He might not have told us about it, but he already knew this was going to happen. He must've had a reason for not stopping it. He already knew everything."

"He — he knew everything?" I asked, blinking a few times in confusion. "But how could he? I never said anything — he asked me not to —"

"He didn't want you to tell the others, knowing that they wouldn't act rationally after hearing about their fates," Lupin went on with a small smile. "But that doesn't mean he didn't know himself. Dumbledore was a skilled Legilimens. I wouldn't be surprised if he had seen everything through your mind on your first night here."

Now, when I thought back about it, I remembered that on the night I had arrived here when I was fourteen, Dumbledore already knew who I was before even talking to me.

       But just then, our attention was caught when the doors to the ward burst open once more, making us jump.

      We all looked up, seeing Sirius hurrying forward, carrying the woman I had seen before in his arms, who seemed unconscious as blood dripped down her forehead.

"Quickly! Someone help me!" Sirius shouted desperately, laying her motionless body down on one of the empty beds urgently.