Declaimer : None of this belongs to me. All characters are property of J.K. Rowling
One Sweet Day
Chapter 1 - Restless nights
"Ah, Malfoy, so good of you to join us…eventually," Lord Voldemort hissed as Draco Malfoy Apparated directly in front of him and immediately fell to his knees. "Your latest attempt at killing Dumbledore was a success, I hope?"
Draco swallowed hard. "M-my lord, I-" His explanation was cut short as four other hooded, masked wizards Apparated with loud pops."What happened?" Voldemort demanded as he turned to address the four Death Eaters who were now standing beside the hapless creature.
Fenrir Greyback approached the Dark Lord on his knees and kissed the hem of his black robe; he hesitated slightly before answering his master. "My lord, we were fighting them and managed to go up the tower where we found Dumbledore wandless and alone."
"He was cornered, my lord, " said Amycus as he and Alecto knelt before Voldemort, who was sitting comfortably in his throne. "We argued Draco to do it or stand aside so one of us could," Alecto said, not yet rising from her kneeling position.
"So," Voldemort softly addressed the young man curled at his feet, "you weren't the one who did it, I take it?"
Trembling with fear, Draco gulped several times; not a single sound fell from his lips as he watched his fellow Death Eaters back away from Voldemort's expected anger. He finally managed to say in a squeaky voice, "M-my lord, I was about to kill the old fool but Snape just came in and-", Draco tried to defend himself, but the Dark Lord held up his pale, spider-like hand, silencing the boy .
"Silence, Draco," the Dark Lord warned. "You have disobeyed my specific orders."
"But…"
"Crucio!"
The young man screamed and thrashed around. Just then, a faint pop was heard, and Severus Snape appeared behind a group of new arrivals.Without even bothering to look the junior Malfoy, who was writhing in agony, Snape parted the group of Death Eaters and moved within the circle.
The Dark Lord slowly turned his attention from the sniveling young man sprawled on the floor; he watched Snape standing with his usual aplomb in the circle of Death Eaters, very few of them (if any) appeared as relaxed in his presence, and it pleased Voldemort in some indefinable way, power mirroring power.
Lord Voldemort took a dim view of any sign of weakness in those of his ranks.
"Ah Severus," Voldemort purred, satisfaction coloring his speech, "I always knew I could count on you in a crisis"
Snape strode forward, unlike his fellow Death Eaters; he didn't kneel before the Dark Lord, but merely bowed his head. Strangely enough, Voldemort hadn't seemed bothered by his most valuable asset behavior. Apparently he was used to the potions master lack of etiquette.
"I am most sorry my lord, it wasn't my intention to defy your Lordship's orders, but the boy didn't seem able to accomplish the task, and we had a golden opportunity to silence Dumbledore once and for all" Severus answered with calm assurance.
"Do go on," the Dark Lord demanded. "I would love to hear how you send the Great Albus Dumbledore to eternity."
"Oh no my lord," the small smile that had been playing about Snape's lips grew to a sinister grin "It would be a mistake to call Dumbledore - I mean, my ex-employee, the late headmaster of Hogwarts - at all Great." he continued with a smirk, "I don't believe I've ever seen him in such a terrible state before. I'm not sure how to celebrate the dispatch of Albus Dumbledore and his unwavering support of Potter that has been a constant threat to our cause." Voldemort scarlet eyes flashed with satisfaction and a wicked grin split his snake-like face. Snape turned to the crowd and mused, "I wonder -- shall we celebrate Dumbledore's death by Syrah or Champagne?"
His speech met with cheers and loud applause.
With a swift motion of his wand Severus conjured a glass of blood-red wine up. He raised his glass in a toast "The Dark Lord" he said smoothly before taking a large gulp of wine.
As a lipless smile spread across the vindictive's face, "The Dark Lord" the crowd began to chant in victory.
"My, my," cooed Voldemort, immediately silencing the crowd," Severus Snape, you are a joy!"
"Thank you my Lord," Severus said, with another bow of his head.
The Dark Lord's attention turned to the scion of the Malfoy line, who was twitching feebly on the grass. "You turned out to be of no use at all Malfoy, just like your father!" Voldemort voice started to rise into a screech, and the gathered Death Eaters quailed, except for Severus. Voldemort noticed this, but as his right-hand man had never been a crowd follower it did not surprise him.
"I'm sorry, my lord" Draco croaked over a wave of pain "I will do better next time"
"There will be no 'next time'," Voldemort stated flatly as he raised his wand, "Avada Kedavra!" A jet of green light shot from the end of The Dark Lord's wand and hit its target.
"It is time to celebrate," the high, cold voice of Voldemort came as the corpse of his youngest Death Eaters collapsed at his feet.
Draco Malfoy was dead.
Several hundred miles away, a piercing scream awoke the whole residents of Hogwarts school of witch craft and wizardry castle.
The raven-haired teen called Harry Potter was screaming in pain and clinging onto his scar.
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The common room was jam-packed. Every person in the room stopped any kind of motion, slowly circling with either eyes or whole bodies, to regard Harry Potter as he climbed through the portrait hole. He made it straight for the boy's dormitory without so much as sharing a word about his close encounter with the Death Eaters and the headmaster's murder. The students were curious about any further explanation for why Dumbledore was dead and why Snape killed him?
Most of the Gryffindors still didn't know about his mission with Dumbledore and it was clear that Harry had no intention of enlightening them. There were too many unanswered questions, however under the circumstances, what he did was quite explicable. Harry wasn't yet prepared to recall the night's deeds after all he'd gone through.
He escaped everyone that evening.
Ron Weasely looked up as Harry entered their dorm. he was seated on his own bed, cross-legged waiting for him. Harry crossed the distance between them and sat next to his friend his head in his hands.
There was a brief exchange between the two teens about the Horcrux...
"R.A.B" whispered Ron "but who was that?"
"Dunno" said Harry
There seemed to be nothing else to say. He lay back on his bed fully clothed. Outside the grounds, Fawkes had stopped singing. Later that night a scream so shrill erupted from somewhere near the east towers of Hogwarts that awoke the entire castle.
Headmistress Minerva McGonagall stumbled out of her office and followed the screams. Remus Lupin and Arthur Weasley were right behind her. The three headed straight for the Gryffindor Tower. They ran through the portrait hole and almost cannoned into Ronald Weasley who was rushing along the common room. The boy looked nearly hysterical, "It's Harry, he wouldn't stop screaming, he is in so much pain!" Ron's eyes were ablaze with fear and he was pointing vaguely up the stairs. Just then they heard the ear-piercing scream again coming from the boy's dormitory, and ran for the stairs taking two steps in one.
A crowd of students were blocking the door; Minerva was the first to act. Shoving the crowd out of her way, she knelt by Harry who was thrashing on the floor, his legs wrapped in his sheets, screaming with pain and clutching his scar. "Dear Merlin, he's having a vision!" said Minerva with a worried look on her face.
Through the haze of pain, Harry could feel strong arms lifting him from the cold stone floor removed his hands from his forehead and held him close, he could hear concern voices coming from somewhere near him but he was in too much pain to say anything.
"Try occluding your mind, Harry!" Remus urged while holding him close to his chest.
"Damn you Snape!" Arthur muttered under his breath. Very few people knew about Harry's private lessons with Snape, in which he failed to master Occlumency 'because of the boy's lack of effort' Snape have claimed.
With quite an audible sigh of exasperation, Arthur turned his attention to the floor where Remus was sitting rocking Harry gently as the young man whimpered through the last remnants of his pain. Finally it got to the point that no more screams or whimpers were forthcoming.
Hermione Granger's eyes were mist up and Ron was having a hard time holding back his own tears. They watched as Arthur and Remus led their friend to his bed and helped him to lie down. It was another few minutes before they felt Harry relax and begin to breathe evenly.
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Emerald green eyes watched the white marble tomb reflected in the water of the lake. The face that held them was pale, carrying the mark of freshly shed tears.
He'd had little sleep the previous evening, the pain in his scar was nothing compared to what he saw in that dreadful vision. Voldemort had celebrated the headmaster's death in style. Twelve muggles were tortured to death by the Death Eaters who showed no mercy, killing the innocent men and women. Harry was witness to the tragic event.
He turned to survey the mourners who started to disperse, sporadically and soberly, making their way to what Harry believed to be Hogsmeade Station. The Hogwarts Express would be leaving in less than an hour. A crowd of Order members had gathered around Dumbledore's tomb paying their last respects to the Headmaster.
'Last respect' Harry slumped a bit when he thought of the meaning of the word, as if—until that moment—the solemnity of the occasion had escaped him. He couldn't believe that Dumbledore was gone. The last and greatest of his protectors had died and he was more alone than he had ever before.
His thoughts were interrupted by a rather loud cry
"Bill! what's wrong?" Molly Weasley was holding her eldest son who was clawing at his face shaking uncontrollably on the grass. His hands were covered in blood.
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"'ow's Bill?" Fleur Delacour demanded, fluttering about Madam Pomfrey worriedly. Blood was still oozing out of her fiancé's wounded face. The medi-witch didn't answer her but instead pulled out her wand and magical wrist bands appeared to restrain her patient to the bed in order that Bill stops from clinging onto his face.
"I'll try to stop the bleeding but as I said before there is no cure for werewolf bites." Madam Pomfrey began dabbing at his wounds with some nasty-smelling green ointment.
Molly leaned her head on her husband's shoulder and began to sob. Harry, Ron, Hermione Tonks and Remus who wisely stayed out of the medi-witch's way were standing near the far end of the ward.
"Actually, Poppy, there might be a cure" came a voice from the door way. Everyone looked up as Professor McGonagall swept into the hospital wing, two large piles of books floating behind her.
"Minerva?" asked Madam Pomfrey, she along with everyone, had a puzzled look on her face.
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He was standing on the top of the Astronomy Tower, the breeze balmy and the Dark Mark blazing green against the night sky. Imprisoned within his own invisible, paralysed body yet again .He felt a surge of hate as he saw Draco Malfoy, his wand pointed at Albus Dumbledore.
The Headmaster looked awful. He was sagging against the balustrade, wand less and weak. He was struggling to remain upright , and his breathing was labored and shallow.
Suddenly the doors at the top of the stairs burst open and there stood Snape, his robes swirling about him, his wand clutched in his hands. His eyes were calculating the situation even as he pushed Draco roughly out of the way.
"Severus..." said Dumbledore,
'No..' he whimpered closing his eyes.
"Severus ...please"
'No!' Harry shouted despertly trying to clap his hands over his ears, he didn't want to hear Dumbeldore pleading it was too much , he couldn't take it any more 'No...No ...NO! STOP! I have to stop him' he told himself over again and again...
"Avada Kedavra!"
"NO!"
Suddenly a cold hand clasped his shoulder and pushed him. 'Now it's your turn Potter…'
"No!" His scream was muffled as he felt himself flying forward, crashing against the cold stone floor.
The hand was shaking him now.
"Harry? Wake up! Harry!"
''NOOOOOOOO!" Harry bolt upright in his bed panting, his world swam around him once again until he realized where he was, Hogwarts, his dorm. He reached blindly fumbling for his glasses; a warm hand placed the spectacles into his own, searching one.Glasses back on his face, Harry looked up at the red blob that was quickly shaping into his best friend.
"Harry, what is it?" asked Ron
"You alright, mate?" Neville's concerned voice came from the nearby bed.
"Yeah, fine"
"Was it another vision Harry?" Neville asked, as he drew closer
" No,not a vision , just a nightmare" he said hoarsely
"Are you sure mate, I mean you look a bit pale and you were screaming-" Ron trailed of as Harry shook his head
"I'm fine, honest" He assured them,
Neville and Ron nodded in agreement, though they didn't look convinced
"What time is it?" Harry asked trying to change the subject.
"It's three in the morning" Ron said as he handed him a glass of water "You look tired, mate, why you don't try to sleep again"
Harry smiled at him gratefully "Yeah thanks guys, sorry I woke you"
Ron shook his head "I'm the one who should thank you and Neville because you remained at the school to help Bill" He said quietly. His brother was looking quite healthy in the morning, but he suffered a relapse on the funeral and was taken back to the hospital wing. Professor McGonagall had brought many books and said that they might find a cure for werewolf's bite in one of them.
"Don't worry about it, Ron. I'm sure everything's going to be just fine," said Harry reassuringly, "Besides, Bill is my brother as well as yours. You and your family have always been there for me in everything I've wanted to do," Harry leaned forward and placed an encouraging hand on Ron's shoulder.
"Same goes here mate" said Neville, who was discharged from the infirmary recently, upon seeing Bill's condition, he remained to offer his help along with Harry and Hermione.
"Thanks mate, it means a lot." Ron smiled appreciatively at him
"Guess we should better sleep then, you know, we have loads of books to go through tomorrow" Harry said
"Yeah, you're right" Ron smiled again, feeling much better. He was ever grateful for the support his friends offered.
TBC