Chapter Nine: The First Memory
Author's Note: I just wanted to waste some of my precious page time and word count here for a second to thank all of those who have reviewed the story and been checking back here for updates. I actually haven't had a response like this on here before so it kind of took me by surprise. Thanks again.
The smoke smell was apparent as they crested the hill together, Ginny was slumped against the side of a tree with her wand drawn and her brown eyes flared wide open. "Who's there?" she called.
"Ginny, Ginny—it's us," said Ron charging toward her.
She lowered her wand. "Us?" she asked.
The figures with their lit wands emerged through the trees and started down the hill toward her. Ginny was sitting in front of a fire that she had seemingly built. Her scarf was wrapped about her leg and there was blood down her boot and up part of her pants leg. She winced as she moved and then spotted Harry and Hermione.
"Oh, you're here," Ginny said weakly.
"Ginny, we're really sorry, but we need to get you out of her fast!" Hermione said. The wind was picking up and snow was whipping around the forest and whirling up into the air.
"Did you bring Draco because you were sorry? So he could mock me more…" Ginny said.
Draco grimaced. "I'd mock you but it's not like I wished death on you—though I wouldn't have risked my neck if I wasn't getting to look at those Dementors…"
"That's what they were?" Ginny said. Ron and Harry tried to lift her but she screamed out in pain. "My leg, it's really bad, I think the bone is…sticking out," up close they could see her face was flushed and the lack of color made her freckles apparent in the wand light.
Hermione ran to Ginny's side. "She lost too much blood, I might be able to close this wound but…the bone I can't set the bone," she said.
Stalking around the edges of the little area where they stood, Draco held his wand up high and surveyed the trees. "If she's bleeding so bad then it won't be much longer before the predators show up…they've no doubt smelled it already and this storm won't stop them.
With a sharp tug at Ginny's leg to sit it straight, Hermione prepared herself to start the spell. Ginny's cries of pain were distracting and she glanced over at Ginny's face glazed over and her head rolled to one side. Ron almost bowled Harry when he stepped in closer to Hermione. "You have to do something! She's going to pass out!"
"It's okay, Gin. It's okay," Hermione said rubbing back the red tendrils of hair with her hand still pained in Ginny's blood. She took a deep breath and held the wand down over the wound. "Episkey!" Hermione said.
Ginny let out a sharp cry and the bone could be heard scraping, trying to get back into place, but it wouldn't make it and in the end Hermione had just stopped the bleeding. Draco pushed through Harry and Ron and shoved Hermione aside.
"Out of the way, Mudblood—and you think you're so clever. We can't move someone with a broken leg like this. "Ferula!" a waxy liquid dripped from Draco's wand down onto Ginny's leg, wrapping around it and forming a tight splint. "There, now what?"
"There's something coming…" Ron said raising his wand. "Over there!" he pointed between the trees where a large beast was stalking through toward them through the woods. It raised its head and the horn mounted above its eyes seemed to catch a glimmer of light.
"A unicorn," Hermione said.
"It's hurt," Harry uttered. "Ron, Draco—stay back, they don't like men," he said.
Hermione stayed with Ginny as the other three backed down. She saw then what Harry had meant, its side was torn open and thick bluish-silver blood was spilling out. The unicorn brought its head down and nudged Ginny and then looked to Hermione. By this time Ginny was laying over on her side, passed out.
"I think I understand what it wants now…" Hermione started.
"Hermione, we've got a problem," Harry said.
Ron stepped back and glanced at Hermione and Ginny. "They're back."
Hermione rose up from the ground to glance out through the woods to see hood figures closing in on them with cloaks billowing out behind them.
"It wants me to take Ginny out of here on its back," Hermione said. "Someone help me get her onto it, you can follow on the brooms," she added.
Draco helped Hermione to get Ginny onto the horse. "If we go with you, there won't be time for any of us to get away…" Draco said.
"We'll hold them off, then," Ron said. "Go," he yelled.
Hermione climbed on back of the unicorn. "I'll have to break through their lines to get out," she said.
"Just worry about getting her back to Hogwarts," Harry said.
"Remember, the Patronus Charm is the only way to keep them off of you," said Hermione as she clutched her arms around Ginny to keep her on the unicorn's back. "Hurry after me!" she said as the creature burst into a gallop for the Dementors.
With her wand at the ready, Hermione whipped it down in an arcing motion and yelled the incantation. "Expecto Patronum!" a silky bluish wisp drifted from her wand and came to a stop between the Dementors. The unicorn dashed through as the Dementors while they were distracted and took a sharp turn to the east.
I hope this thing knows where it's going.
Hermione glanced back at the gathering darkness around where Harry, Ron and Draco still were. The unicorn banked to one side and picked up speed, the powerful creature thundered between two trees, jumped another downed log and its breath stifled. At this rate it wouldn't last long and Hermione had tried to heal it, but the magic wouldn't take.
If they didn't make it to the edge of the forest very soon, the unicorn would die and she'd have no way of safely transporting Ginny.
The Dementors were advancing rapidly, bringing the temperature around Harry, Draco and Ron lower. The frigid air seemed to crawl under their clothes, under their skin and through their veins. The world darkened as the cloaked forms fought through the storm winds to get at them. Raspy, whispered voices siphoned the feeling from them.
"You'll fail…"
"You'll die here…alone and scared…"
"Dead here and unloved."
"Hated."
Between the three of them, there was this sort of staggered order that left no lull between the cries of the incantation. "Expecto Patronum!" but their spells grew weaker and they were forced back to back in a tiny spot in the clearing near where Ginny's broom lay snapped in half.
"We're proper fucked," said Ron. "Expecto Patronum!"
Draco collapsed back against a tree. "Look at the…Ex-expecto Patronum!"
Harry swept his wand side to side, looking for the closest target. "I just hope Ginny and Hermione got out of here…Expecto Patronum!"
Their casting of the spell formed a thin veil of energy around them, keeping most of the Dementors out. There were so many of the creatures and they fed off the entire shield within a moment of its casting forcing them to keep cycling through, all the while taking the mental assault the creatures unleashed in the small gap between the shielding.
Draco dropped to the ground, clawing at the snow to try and get up. He still managed to cast his spell in them. Harry could feel a deepening, burning regret and remorse in the pit of his chest. His heart felt as though gripped by an icy claw that was tightening its hold. Slowly, his back slumped against the tree and he continued to cast back and forth with Ron.
Now Draco was unable to get the words out, still attempting to make his timing, though he failed to do so. Harry's hand trembled and he summoned up the last bit of anything that he could grab onto inside of himself…
"Failures. All of you."
He raised his wand and glanced to Ron whom looked as though he couldn't move.
"Die here…alone…"
Harry swung his wrist back to cast. "Expecto—"
THOOM!
In a brilliant burst of cerulean light a spectral stag leapt down in front of Harry and stood majestically there while the Dementors recoiled back in horror, their tar-black boney hands covering their eyeless faces.
Harry sat up straight as the stag stared down at him and thought that for sure he couldn't have…he hadn't said the incantation. He glanced to Draco and Ron who were slowly recovering, both of them staring at the bluish Patronus Avatar that stood before them.
Then, as if playing through some unseen recorder inside of the creature, it spoke. "We've got it, Harry…we're here," came the voice of Harry's dad.
Dementors scattered as a second blue Patronus creature slammed into the staggered Dementors, this one was a doe. The two of them cast enough light to cover the whole area and drive the Dementors off through the woods. All of the cold air was cast out Harry, Draco and Ron and suddenly the glow was gone, along with the Dementors.
Soft hair brushed against Harry's face and his vision snapped back into focus as someone hugged him. The overwhelming smell of apple shampoo called him to attention. "Mum, what are you doing here?" he asked.
She smiled down at him, framed in red hair. "We came to surprise you for Christmas, I guess it's a good thing too," she said.
"Some of the other students at the school said you went out to search for Ginny Weasley," said James Potter. "We took a chance on a broom and smelled the smoke—so we followed it here."
Lily glanced around. "Where is Ginny?"
"She and Hermione left together on a unicorn," Draco said. "I can't believe I'm saying that."
"Did you knock Snape out?" asked James.
"Hermione did," Ron said.
James started to laugh and Lily slugged him. "Don't laugh at that, it's not nice!" she chided.
"Okay, okay. We need to get back to the school though, this storm is only going to get worse," said James.
The forest was thinning as the unicorns gait became slower and its breathing suggested that each movement grew more onerous. Hermione held Ginny in place as she stroked the creature's mane. "Come on," she encouraged it. "Just a bit further…we can get you help there…"
Turning slightly, the unicorn made its way around a downed log instead of leaping over it as it would have before. It stumbled slightly, righting itself at the last second. Hermione tried the healing spell one more time but there was still no result. She clutched Ginny tight as they made for the castle—not even sure that the unicorn knew the way to the castle.
She glanced around the woods and for a brief moment she though she saw someone shirtless and barefoot running through the woods. Though he was somewhat man, he clearly had something of an animal in him. His hair extending down into his beard so that his face was framed in fur. He paused, turned to look at her and then vanished out of sight behind a high ridge.
Prickles of cold plucked at the back of her neck and when she chanced a glance over her shoulder three Dementors were chasing after them with hands outstretched. She could feel the ice water like bite in her veins and she summoned up a memory, the first happy memory that came to mind and spun around to cast.
"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" she bellowed, leveling her wand back at the cluster of Dementors. With a thunderous explosion a huge otter burst from her wand-tip and pushed the Dementors off back through the forest.
The edge of the forest was in sight now, Hermione rubbed back Ginny's hair. "We're almost there, I'm so sorry I did this to you."
As they reached the fringe of the forest and emerged into the storm, the unicorn slowed to a stop and lowered his body so that Hermione could slide Ginny onto the ground. Hermione rubbed the creature's forehead. "Thank you," she said.
The unicorn rolled onto its side, exposing the gaping wound and spilling sprinkles of silver blood over the snow. With an exasperated breath it closed its eyes and ceased moving. Hermione held Ginny in her lap. "Help! Someone help!" she raised her wand to fire a signal jet of red light into the air.
