Title: Inamabilis
Author: Iskjif
Beta: Masked Deception (kind of… I haven't had her input of this one much though…)
Pairings: If you squint…
Warnings: Not anything I can think of for this chappie
Summary: Post HBP:Possible future HPLV:Harry has a choice. Is he to watch as his ultimate tormentor, who has been the focus of his hate, of his obsession, of his life, fades? Can he be satisfied with a victory that tastes of ashes and feels utterly empty?

A/N: So here's the next chappie of Inamabilis my darlings! I'm so sorry for the wait; my beta has been extremely delinquent lately. I still haven't heard back from her on this one, but I just felt the need to post something! Mostly this is a transitional chappie, but I hope you enjoy it anyways!

If you're feeling a bit rusty on this story, I recommend that ya reread the first chappie. It's not very long and you'll probably like this chappie a little better.

OoToO

He was still unconscious by the time the young Auror had made it safely outside.

It had been quite an ordeal to get past all the guards. Slinking through the many corridors, using no magic to conceal himself, knowing that it would only draw attention to his escape and having to take great care with his burden all at the same time. The only reason it had been possible to escape unseen had been because Harry had set the watches himself.

When the Dark Lord had fallen on that battlefield, it had been no easy task to take him and keep him.

Though many in the Light had always believed the members of the Dark to be disorganized and wholly disloyal, the followers of the Dark Lord had proved themselves to be exactly the opposite over the last couple months.

Harry paused in his thoughts to listen for anyone who might have noticed him despite his caution. He heard no one, so he started into the woods that surrounded the base.

After a few minutes, he felt safe enough to continue his thoughts.

After that battle, after that device had been used against the Dark Lord, it had seemed as if the Darkness itself had risen up in ferocious opposition of the Light. The Dark Lord's followers had been relentless in their bids to rescue their fallen Lord. Magical creatures that the Ministry had written off as harmless had begun viciously attacking important Ministry bases in an effort to find the man.

It had been utter chaos for the Light.

But the worst had been the Dark Lord's Inner Circle. They had been the most strategic. Time and again they had found the place where the Dark Lord was being held. Each time, the man had just barely been moved in time.

Harry had not been informed of the situation until the Ministry was frantic with its inability to handle the situation.

He had immediately set to work finding and spelling a place to hold the Dark Lord. He had a knack of sorts for constructing wards and making a place impossible to find. The young Auror had been too focused on making the place secure to truly think about the situation. And Harry had been quite content to continue to not think about it up until Minister Scrimgeour had insisted that he would be coming to view the 'prisoner' during his last hours. By then the man had been locked in a cell in Harry's new base for a time and the complicated guard schedules he had devised had long since become like second nature to the Auror-trained guards selected for the task.

It had only just dawned on him how disturbed he was over all of this.

Before they had come begging for his help, the young Auror had heard nothing of this course of action that the Ministry had decided on and he had heard nothing of the Dark Lord's capture.

All his sources had known was that the Dark had been in frenzy.

The public knew even less than that.

Harry wondered if the Minister had planned to tell him anything. If his warding skills hadn't been so desperately needed would they have kept him in the dark?

Would he have found out when the Dark Lord died, by some magical connection he shared with the man? Or would he have just been left to wonder, the last Horcrux long destroyed and his nemesis nowhere to be found?

He shook his head in disgust and had to be mindful not to bump the depleted man he was carrying.

The young man felt a thrill of something terrible as he turned his attention to his burden. The Dark Lord must have truly been at the edge of death when he had freed the man, not to regain consciousness after all that Harry had had to do to steal the man away.

The so-called 'Savior' mentally shook himself. He couldn't quite figure out his emotions. Why was he so bothered by his enemy's current state? It was irritating. Something to dwell on. But before he could follow that train of thought very far, he felt himself pass out of the magical detection wards.

Despite the high probability of discovery, Harry had to take a few moments to enjoy the quiet surrounding him. He truly loved this forest and was somewhat loath to leave it. There was a wonderful warmth to the shade of the old trees. He stood amongst the bushes and undergrowth for a few more minutes of stolen peace.

Harry let out a low sigh. Now that he was feeling more clear headed, he could get the Dark Lord to a more secure location.

But just as he was about to apparate, he realized his mistake. So much for being clear headed! The young Auror had to be truly out of sorts to forget such a fundamental rule. You couldn't apparate with an unconscious person. If you tried it, their magic would automatically fight against it, resisting the movement without mental consent. It could cause serious damage to even a relatively healthy individual.

That sort of thing would easily be enough to kill the man in Harry's arms.

The young Auror's only choice was a portkey. He couldn't stifle a slight shudder at the thought.

Bad memories.

There were other disadvantages to that method; his distaste for the mode of transportation was a minor concern in comparison. Even outside the magical detection wards, the creation of a portkey would alert every wizard or witch of any skill within the immediate area that something wasn't right. There was certainly quite a few of those nearby.

Harry gave a mental shrug. He was screwed now anyways, and if he set the portkey for his cottage, no one would be able to track him. He didn't have many other options. The dark-haired young man needed to get somewhere safe, fast.

So he had made his decision.

He quickly glanced around and a hand-sized rock caught his eye.

It took him a few minutes, but he was able to carefully shift the man he was carrying so that he could reach for his wand. He tried not to let himself become alarmed at the fact that his burden didn't even grunt at what Harry imagined was a rather uncomfortable process.

The young Auror merely pulled the piece of familiar holly out of his back pants pocket and leveled it at the rock.

"Portus."

OoToO

A/N: blearg… I really wish that this had been betaed. I'm really unhappy with it. But anyways though! I hope this was worth your time lovelies! Please review and tell me what you thought. Did you love it? Did you hate it? Did you spot any glaring grammatical or spelling errors? Have you entirely lost all love and respect for my writing? Honesty darlings!

Sorry it was so short!

Thank you guys for all your loverly reviews! Loves to jenae and Aki Wildqueen, my awesome anonymous reviewers! You guys always make my life better!