With The Help of a Green-Eyed Ravenclaw
Students of Hogwards marched to the Great Hall with puzzled expressions on their faces. None of them was brave enough to ask what was going on and why they were gathered here by the Headmaster at that late hour of the night. They were all standing in their group houses. There was tention in the air and no one spoke until The Headmaster walked intensely passed them and up to the front of the Great Hall.
He paced along the students and with a sharp gesture, he turned on his heels as the finally climbed up the three steps of the Great Hall. With his hands in his pockets, he started to talk with his deep voice:
"Many of you are surely wondering why I have summoned you at this hour. It's come to my attention that earlier this evening Harry Potter was sighted in Hogsmeade..."
The mention of Harry Potter caused a commotion between students and everyone started talking to eachother. The Headmaster stayed silent until he continued:
"...Now, should anyone, student or staff, attempt to aid Mister Potter they will be punished in a manner consistent with the severity of their transgression. Furthermore, any person found to have knowledge of these events who fails to come forward will be treated as equally guilty..." he emphasized the last two words.
Everyone stayed silent as he spoke.
"...Now then, if anyone here has any knowledge of Mister Potter's movements this evening, I invite them to step forward now!"
There was another silence in the room. He carefully watched the students. Then the foodsteps were heard and soon there were gasps. Harry Potter walked forward wearing his school gown. The Headmaster raised his haed proudly as his hearth skipped a beat.
"It seems despite your exhaustive defensive strategies, you still have a bit of a security problem, Headmaster." Harry spoke as the giant doors of the Great Hall opened, letting the other members of the Order in.
"And I'm afraid it's quite extensive. How dare you stand where he stood? Tell them how it happened that night! Tell them how you looked him in the eye, a man who truested you, and kill him! TELL THEM!"
With a saddened and fearful expression on his face, Severus Snape pulled out his wand. All the students backed .Harry gasped as Minerva McGonagall jumped in front of him to protect him. They started fighting. As a matter of fact, McGonagall started attacking and Snape kept backing as he was blocking her attacks. Finally he hurled his wand around and apparated out of the Great Hall through the window.
"Coward!" McGonagall called behing him.
There was a moment of cheering between the students until Harry Potter raised his hands and asked them to be quiet and listen to him.
"I know you all are relieved with the departure of the Headmaster. But you need to listen to me. We don't have much time. Voldermort is approaching and he is very powerful now. We have to stop him before he finds us. He has got The Elder Wand now, which is the most powerful wand there is. He won't hesitate to use it against us." Harry spoke.
Students gasped as they saw something like black smoke approaching through the window which was broken into pieces by Severus Snape a few moments ago. It was a Death Eater.
Everyone backed again as the smoke landed on the floor of the Great Hall and turned into a black-haired young man who was furiously walking towards Harry, his long black robes billowing out behind him.
"Potter, you bloody idiot!" he yelled as he grabbed Harry by his collar.
Minerva McGonagall gasped as she realised who the young man was. She kept her spot as she and the students watched the scene before their eyes. On the other hand, the members of the Order was alarmed. They whipped out their wands, all ready to act in every protective way possible.
The Death Eater was a tall, young man. His long black hair was neatly tied behind this neck. His arms were strong and he had broad shoulders. His hands were big and with his long fingers, he had a fair grip on Harry's collar. Harry gasped as he looked into the furious green eyes of the Death Eater.
"You stupid brat, always jumping into the wrong conclusion!" he hissed, "If only you Gryffindors had a little bit of a brain then maybe you could have guessed that my father's life was in danger just because of you!"
"Your father?" Harry was puzzled.
The young Death Eater nodded his head as he let Harry's collar go. Everyone was silent one more time.
"Who are you?" Harry asked again.
The young man suddenly seemed to have come to his senses. He offered his hand for a shake as he proudly told his name:
"Luglius Prince Snape, pleased to finally meet you, Potter."
"Snape?"
"Yes. And now I need to talk to you." he spoke, "Alone!"
With that, he grabbed Harry by the arm and walked him to the dungeons of Hogwards, into his father's old chambers.
"What do you want from me?" Harry asked, as he yanked his arm from Luglius' grip.
"Listen to me!" Luglius started, "I heard you telling them about the Elder Wand earlier in the Great Hall."
"Yes, Voldemort's got it. And now his powers are beyond the limits." Harry replied.
"Wrong!" Luglius hissed.
"What do you mean? He has got the Elder Wand!"
"Yes! But he cannot use it."
"He cannot? Why not?" Harry was puzzled one more time.
"Because the wand does not answer him. Voldemort is not its true master!"
"Then who is?"
"Don't give me that stupid Gryffindor look again, Potter. Who is it? Think!"
"Me?" Harry's eyes widened, "I am the master of the Elder Wand?"
"There you go, finally. Congratulations. 50 points to Gryffindor!" Luglius despised.
"Stop it!" Harry shot.
"He doesn't know it, yet." Luglius spoke again, "and that is the point where I need your help to save my father."
"Why?"
"He thinks the wand is his own now. But eventually he is going to discover that the wand does not answer to him. Then he will turn to my father, because he thinks he was the one who defeated its last owner, Dumbledore." Luglius paused, "And in order to be the real master of the Elder Wand, you know what he has to do."
"Why would I care about your father?" Harry asked, agrily, "As long as I live, I will be the true master of the wand. Why would I care if your father is dead or not? He killed Dumbledore with cold blood! He is a betrayer!"
"Here you go again jumping into the wrongest conclusion, Potter." Luglius smiled stiffly. "You think my father is a betrayer?"
"Yes!" Harry replied.
"You're right, Potter. He is a betrayer. He betrayed the most dangerous wizard on the face of the earth. He betrayed him once.. and he kept betraying him over and over again since... since the..." Luglius paused, "Since he..."
"Since what?" Harry asked, not believing him at all.
"Okay," Luglius inhaled, "Since the day he learned mum was in danger. He betrayed Voldemort in order to protect her and her family and he went to Dumbledore, asking him to hide them."
"I don't understand." Harry mummled, he was tired of this nonsense anymore, "Who is your mum?"
"My mum, Potter..." Luglius smile again, looking, with his beautifully bright green eyes, right into the Harry's, "...was your mum. I am your half brother."
"That's impossible! My mum wouldn't ever... I mean... with your filthy father..." Harry hissed this time, hot tears filling up his eyes.
It was the time that Luglius grabbed Harry's hair and angrily threw him to the one of the cupboards in the chambers. He took his father's pensieve out of the cupboard and thrusted Harry's head into it.
"See it for yourself then, you bloody idiot!"
For a few seconds Harry couldn't breathe. But then little visions started to come before his very own eyes:
"Come here! I'ma tell mummy. You're a freak. You're a freak, Lily! Come here!"
"She's jealous because she's ordinary and you're special."
"That's mean, Severus!"
"Gryffindor!"
"Hi, I'm James."
"Hi, I'm Lily."
"Just like your father. Lazy, arrogant..."
"Don't say a word against my father!"
"Severus, I'm pregnant! I cannot raise this child. We're too young for this!"
"I will raise my child on my own, Lily. I want my child. Even it means I won't be seing you again!"
"Don't do this, Severus."
"Farewell, Lily. I love you. I already belong somewhere else now."
"Blood shell be split and servant and master shall be reunited once more."
"Severus!"
"No, don't kill me!"
"The prophecy did not refer to a woman. It spoke of a boy born at the end of July."
"Yes, but he thinks it's her son. He intends to hunt them down now, to kill them. Hide her. Hide them all. I beg you."
"What will you give me in exchange, Severus?"
"Anything..."
"Harry... Harry you're so loved. So loved. Harry, mama loves you. Dada loves you. Harry, be safe, be strong..."
"Avada Kedavra!"
"You said you would keep her safe!"
"Lily and James put their faith in the wrong person, Severus. Rather like you. The boy survives."
"He doesn't need protection. The Dark Lord is gone."
"The Dark Lord will return. And when he does, the boy will be in terrible danger. He has her eyes. If you truly loved her..."
"No one can know!"
"That I should never reveal the best of you, Severus? When you risk your life everyday to protect the boy?"
"Come here, Luglius my boy. You really remind me of your mother."
"He possesses no measuralbe talent, his arrogance rivals that of his father, and he seems to relish his fame."
"Don't say a word against my father."
"James Potter! Lazy, arrogant!"
"My father was a great man!"
"Your father was a swine!"
"Drink the rest. It will contain the curse to your hand for the time being. It will spread, Albus."
"How long?"
"Maybe a year."
"Don't ignore me, Severus!"
"Dad, I'm dropping school to be a Death Eater just like yourself."
"Harmania Nectere Passus"
"We both know Lord Voldemort has ordered the Malfoy boy to murder me. But should he fail, one should presume the Dark Lord will turn to you. You must be the one to kill me, Severus. It's the only way. Only then will the Dark Lord trust you completely."
"Avada Kedavra!"
"There will come a time when Harry Potter must be told something. But you must wait until Voldemort is at his most vulnerable."
"Must be told what?"
"On the night Lord Voldemort went to Godric's Hallow to kill Harry, and Lily Potter cast herself between them, the curse rebounded. When that happened, a part of Voldemort's soul latched itself onto the only living thing it could find: Harry himself. There's a reason Harry can speak to the snakes. There's a reason he can look into Lord Voldemort's mind. A part of Voldemort lives inside him."
"So when the time comes, the boy must die?"
"Yes. Yes, he must die."
"You've kept him alive so that he can die at the proper moment. You've been raising him like a pig for slaughter."
"Don't tell me now that you've grown to care for the boy?"
"Expecto Patronum!"
"Lily? After all this time?"
"Always..."
"So when the time comes, the boy must die?"
"Yes, he must die. And Voldemort himself must do it. That is essential!"
"Oh my..." was all Harry could say as he open his eyes and started breathing again.
"All this time... He was... Snape... He..." he panted, "He was the doe. He wants me to end this war too. He wants Voldemort gone too. I have to... we have to..."
"Yes, Harry okay. I understand you're shocked. But I have a father to save, okay?" Luglius spoke.
"The Horcruxes!" Harry stopped. "The last one. It's Rowena Ravenclaw's Lost Diadem. We have to find and destroy it. After that it's only the snake and him. After that, we can defeat him."
"That's great." Luglius smiled. "It's easy then!"
"But I don't know where the lost diadem is. It's lost, I mean!"
"It's alright, Harry. I know where it is." Luglius assured him.
Harry looked at his half brother puzzled. "Wha...?"
"I used to be a Ravenclaw!" Luglius spoke, "a very naughty one. I know where it is hidden. Come on!"
With that, they started to run along the empty corridors of Hogwards until they found themselves in front of a giant wall.
"Room of Requirements" Harry gasped.
"Yes, it's in here." Luglius smiled with his shiny green eyes again.
They walked inside in a hury and set on looking for the diadem. After a fair time of searching, Harry finally called for Luglius.
"Here, I think I've found it!"
Luglius walked to Harry and examined the old wooden box carefully. After that he took the box from Harry and slowly opened it.
"Yes, that's it!" Luglius replied. And he noticed that Harry was acting a little weird.
"What's the matter with you, Harry?" he asked.
Harry sighed. "It's one of his horcruxes. In a way he can feel what I do and now he knows that I've found this one."
"Okay then," Luglius kept asking, "what do we need now to destroy it?"
Harry looked at him with hopeless eyes.
"We need the sword of Godric Gryffindor," he sighed again, "or a tooth of a basilisk. Would you happen to have either of them?"
With hearing Harry's question, Luglius started laughing very hard. "Oh, you old brat!" he said as if he was talking to someone inside of his head and he just kept laughing.
Harry was annoyed.
"I'm sorry.." he spoke, "Excuse me, but I cannot see anything funny."
"Then I will show you the funnies thing, brother." Luglius said and he reached his hand through his collar into his robes. He grabbed his own necklace and took it off. It was a giant tooth which he was showing Harry now.
"Merlin's beard!" Harry exhaled.
"My father gave this to me one of the days which I was asking him about my mother. I was very young. He told me that I had a half brother and someday I would meet him. He then offered me this necklace and said it would be a polite thing to give it to my brother as a symbol of my loyalty and love."
Harry's eyes grew wide as he kept listening to Luglius.
"So here I am, brother, giving you this tooth of a basilisk as a symbol of my loyalty and love. Just take it and destroy your horcrux!"
Harry couldn't hold himself anymore and simply smiled at the idea that Severus Snape was helping him in so many ways. All those years... All the way along, he had planned everything for him. As a matter of fact, he was the only one who had stayed devoted and loyal to his promises, his love and his heart. Not Sirius... Not Lupin... Not Dumbledore... Not Malfoy... Not anyone... But him, Severus Snape!
Thankful for that man's intelligence, he grabbed the tooth and simply put it right in the middle of the diadem. The diadem just exploded with a noise and a big fire. Running towards Harry, Luglius kicked the diadem and sent it back to the deep end of the room of requirements just in time before the giant doors of the room were closed. The horcrux was destroyed. Again.
Suddenly, Harry felt limp and grabbed Luglius' arm.
"Harry, what is it?" he asked, concerned.
Harry was having a vision about Voldemort's whereabouts.
A few seconds later, Harry looked back at his brother and said:
"He is in the old boat house. The snake is with him."
Luglius nodded his had with determination as he was getting up to his feet.
"He's got Snape!" Harry added.
Meanwhile at the old boat house:
"You have performed extraordinary magic with this wand, My Lord, in the last few hours alone." Snape spoke prudently.
"No. No, I am extraordinary but the wand resists me."
"There is no wand more powerful, Ollivander himself has said it. Tonight, when the boy comes, it will not fail you. I am sure of it. It answers to you and only you."
"Does it?"
"My Lord.."
"The wand, does it truly answer to me? You're a clever man, Severus. Surely you myst know. Where does its true loyalty lie?"
"With you, of course, My Lord."
Harry and Luglius arrived at the boat house soon enough to hear and see what was going on inside.
"Kill the snake, Luglius." Harry spoke, "And I will take care of him!"
"I don't know how to kill it." Luglius nearly cried.
At that moment, something catched Harry's eye. There was somethin laying on the ground behind them. He slowly walked to it and saw that the good old Sorting Hat was there, presenting them the legendary sword of Godric Gryffindor.
"Everyone, dead or alive, wants him gone!" Harry chuckled to himself. He grabbed the sword and gave it to Luglius. "You kill it with this, borther!" he answered.
"The Elder Wand cannot serve me properly because I'm not its true master. The Elder Wand belongs to the wizard who killed its last owner. You killed Dumbledore, Severus. While you live, the Elder Wand cannot truly be mine. You've been a good and faithful servant, Severus. But only I can live forever!"
Voldemort spoke and with a sharp move with his wand, he simply sliced Severus Snape's throat to bleed.
"My Lord..."
"Kill, Nagini." he commanded.
But just before the giant snake attacked the bleeding form of Severus Snape, Luglius swung the sword and sliced right through the animal.
"NO!" Voldemort screamed with devastation and pain as the snake turned into a black smoke and disappear.
Voldemort aimed his wand to Luglius this time.
"Avada Keda..." but just then Harry hit him with his own spell.
"Expelliarmus!"
Their spells collided. Both wands connected through jets of light coloured by their respective spells, with Voldemort's green killing curse struggling to overpower Harry's red disarming charm, and eventually failing. The Elder Wand refused to harm its true master and flipped over, flying high toward its master. The rebounding killing curse hit Voldemort, and finally his lifeless body hit the floor.
He was gone now. For good...
Lord Voldemort was dead!
Luglius rushed to his father's side to check to see if he was alright. He put his hand on his wound and put pressure on it. Snape took his hand and looked his son in the eye.
"Where is Harry?" he managed to ask, "Is he alright?"
"I'm right here." Harry replied, coming to his side.
"It's over, dad." Luglius spoke, "Harry killed the Dark Lord, for good!"
Severus Snape exhaled deeply as if a heavy burden had been lifted from his shoulders.
"I'm so proud of you, my boys!" he smiled exhaustedly.
"No Professor," Harry replied, "We are so very proud of you, actually!"
For a little moment, Snape looked at Harry's eyes. He saw greatfulness and admiration there. There was no reason for him to cast him or hate him anymore. He didn't have to act or play. He could love the boy freely, as much as he loved his own one.
"Enough already!" he spoke, "Will you two dunderheads take me to the hospital wing or should I apparate there by myself?!"
THE END
Thank you for reading.
And please let me know what you think...