Disclaimer – I own nothing and I make no money from this.

L4D

"Everyone alright?" Coach asked as they panted, worn out from the run. The group nodded and in an instance Coach took it upon himself to shove Harry into the wall, a gun resting against his cheek. The others immediately rushed forward to help Harry, but Coach held a hand up to stop them.

"Is this some sort of sick experiment?" the man demanded, eyeing Harry furiously, who just looked back at him blankly. He gingerly stroked Ethelinda in an attempt to calm her; Coach's proximity was riling the snake.

Coach seemed to notice the movement and he backed away slightly, gun still trained on Harry.

"Are you like some mad scientist?" the older man continued. "Have you released a disease on the world to see what would happen and now you're spying on the survivors? Did you plan on meeting us from the beginning? What were those code words you were shouting? When things get rough do you call for help?"

Harry scowled and pushed Coach's gun away from his face and motioned for Ethelinda to reach towards Coach, making the man back up and give him some room.

"No Coach, I am not a mad scientist, and besides, I haven't lived the life I've lived just to create some vile disease to wipe out the population" Harry hissed. "And how dare you imply that I lied about watching my best friends, probably the people I was closest to in the world, die so viciously."

Harry could feel his temper fuelling at Coach's words, although given the circumstances and the lack of sleep, there was no wonder that tensions were running high among them. Admittedly though, Rochelle and Coach had no clue about Harry's magic, so it wasn't a shock that they had come to their own conclusions about Harry's actions. Despite Coach not really being to blame, it still couldn't stop Harry feeling annoyed with the accusations.

Coach locked eyes with him before his expression softened.

"I'm sorry young'un, I didn't mean to get angry, it's just that something seems weird about you, and I don't want to lose anyone else" Coach part way apologised, and Harry couldn't help but feel sorry for him after hearing the sorrow in his voice.

"Trust me Coach, I've been around weird my whole life, and I'm only trying to help you all out" he responded, his own voice lower as well.

"Why?" Coach asked simply. Rochelle was looking intently at him too.

He sighed and looked at Ellis and Nick. The conman shrugged while Ellis grinned and nodded.

"I'm…a, um, wizard" he told Coach and Rochelle awkwardly, holding tightly onto Ethelinda; not that he was planning set the snake on anyone but they didn't know that.

The pair both looked at him as if he had grown an extra head, before Coach shrugged.

"You know what? Just a few days ago I'd have checked you into the nearest mental hospital but now I think anything is possible" the man muttered, pressing a hand to his temple.

"Wizard, as in you can do spells, wizard?" Rochelle asked with a grin on her face. She didn't seem put out by the revelation at all.

"Look, I know it seems strange but just believe me" Harry begged, and Coach nodded, as did Rochelle. "Good, but look, I can't do much magic at the moment because I don't have my wand, so I'm trying to find one and when I do it will come in very handy. I should be able to get my hands on one in New Orleans."

"Right, we just gotta find you a new wand in New Orleans" Coach repeatedly dumbly, and Rochelle smirked.

"I think it's pretty awesome" Rochelle said, eyes lit up.

"I'm gettin' too old for this world" Coach muttered, shaking his head.

"Aw, come on Coach, all this excitement should make you feel young again, er, not that I think you're old or anything, but-"Ellis stammered awkwardly, breaking off when Coach started to chuckle.

"I guess one day nothing'll surprise me no more" the older man smiled. "I know you said you can't do much magic at the moment, but I don't suppose you can get me a cheeseburger can you?"

"Not out of thin air, no" Harry answered, causing a disappointed look to cross Coach's face. "I might be able to multiply food once we get our hands on some though" he added as an optimistic afterthought.

"That is so cool" Ellis said excitedly, almost jumping on the balls of his feet.

"So can we just clear up what you can and cannot do?" Coach asked, turning everyone's attention fully back on Harry.

"There are lots of spells, so I guess theoretically I could do anything. Only thing is the more powerful the spell, the more energy it takes, so I can't really do more than two at a time if I'm lucky. I'm hoping my body might start getting used to it, but at the moment I'm trying to save it for when it will really help; like with Tanks and things."

The others seemed fairly happy with the answer despite the limitations it expressed.

Coach nodded and cleared his throat. "Alright. Well we've already wasted enough time. Let's get a move on people."

The group followed Coach's lead and grabbed hold of what they could from the room and topping up their ammo.

When Coach seemed satisfied that everyone was ready, he opened the door, leading them back into the open area of the amusement park.

They shot at the nearby zombies, taking out as many as they could before they noticed them. Harry found that killing the general infected seemed to be getting easier for him, not that he was overly pleased with that.

Indeed, he felt a rush of guilt run through him as a single bullet from his gun went straight into the chest of a teenage zombie, killing it instantly.

"Good job kid" Nick complimented, twirling a pistol in his hand before shooting. Why Nick enjoyed guns so much was beyond Harry.

They headed down a stretch which was decorated with fairy lights dangling above them, attached to a number of poles dotted about. Set amongst the early morning sky they looked incredibly eerie. The path came out into a picnic area; Coach's stomach growled appropriately.

"Would you believe it? Not a single scrap of food left over" he moaned, punching a zombie that had run at him as if it was their fault that the food was gone.

A rumbling growl reached their ears, and they span around, trying to find where the Boomer was hiding.

They inched forward slowly, all taking a different direction to watch as the growling got louder.

Rochelle was the unlucky one. As it jumped in front of her she panicked and fired, causing the Boomer to explode and cover her in the sticky green goo.

Almost instantly a crowd of zombies appeared from nowhere, ignoring everyone but Rochelle. They swarmed to her, backing her into a wall, where she tried desperately to punch and shoot them off. The others tried to shoot as much as they could, and Coach eventually decided to get in there himself and throw them off the girl; so long as the Boomer bile still lingered on her they wouldn't go for him so he was perfectly safe to do so, providing he worked quickly.

As Coach worked on the small horde, Nick, Ellis and Harry were on alert for another infected that they could hear nearby; a Spitter.

Much to their displeasure, she showed herself by spitting acid at them, making them yelp and scramble away from the burning liquid. Ellis shot at her retreating form and she collapsed, melting in her own goo.

Rochelle had managed to avoid any injuries bar a few scratches, and the group were ready to move on. They looked around, trying to find a way that they could go; CEDA had a lot more fences up in this area.

"Through the bumper cars" Nick called; pointing to where there was a small gap they could get through on the other side of the ride.

"My cousin loved Dodgems" Harry said casually as they clambered over the queue fences and onto the ride platform. "He'd come home bragging about how many people he had bashed into. I guess for him it was a socially acceptable way to bully people."

"He sounds nice" Nick said sarcastically, and Harry simply pulled a face. He hoped Dudley wasn't a zombie, but he certainly didn't miss being bullied by him.

They walked around the empty cars and left the ride through the fire exit, which took them through a small, narrow room before opening up to the outside again.

They heard a coughing from the other side, and they stilled for a moment before tentatively moving forward, Nick in the lead.

Just as they reached the opening a thick long tentacle darted through, flying past Nick and wrapping itself around Harry and yanking him into Nick. Ethelinda bit down as Nick fired, and the dual attack made the Smoker screech and loosen the tongue. Nick popped his head round the corner to check that the creature was dead, and then he turned back with the most genuinely amused smirk Harry had seen on the conman.

"It really isn't funny anymore" Harry stated. Ellis sniggered from behind him.

The Gryffindor scowled but followed Nick forwards. They turned a corner, leading them into a small but crowded area. They could see a safe room below them, blocked by a high ledge and fence. There was no way they'd be able to climb over; the fence didn't look that sturdy and the drop would have been too high even if they managed it. They silently agreed they'd have to find another way round.

A number of stalls were scattered about the area, most of which were boarded up, and a large brown barn was up and across from them, the doors broken off the hinges and lying across the ground.

The easily killed the zombies that had come running at them, but the sound of crying always got Harry slightly panicky, and that was all he could focus on now. Witches tended to sit in awkward places, and Harry really hoped that she wouldn't be this time.

They edged forward, turning off their flash lights in case they ran into the Witch at short notice. Harry had seen a startled Witch in action and he liked to make sure that wouldn't happen again.

As they neared the barn the crying got louder, and they crept inside, trying not to fall as they walked almost in the dark.

A glowing pair of red eyes landed on them, and they instantly jumped to the side, hiding from the Witch's view. Her crying had stopped and she was making small confused growls.

Ethelinda slithered off Harry and went along the ground, coming back moments later.

"She is hidden slightly by a wall" the snake told him. "She can only see you when she looks a certain way. I will keep watch and let you know when it is safe to run."

Harry nodded and the Copperhead moved back out to the front.

"Now" she hissed, and Harry urged them forward.

"Quickly" he whispered. The gang were happy to comply unquestionably and moved as quickly as they could, avoiding the confused Witch's gaze. They hurried to move away from her, turning their lights back on and going through a door to a large but empty room.

"I worry when it's this dead" Rochelle admitted quietly.

"Dead probably wasn't the best choice of words" Harry murmured, glancing around nervously. He knew what Rochelle meant though; when the general infected stayed away, it was normally a sign something worse had scared them away.

They listened out for any sort of noise, but could hear nothing, but they still cautiously wandered back to the outside.

They gathered together, looking up at the roof which it appeared they would have to climb across, but as they stepped forward to go, a hand grabbed hold of Harry's wrist and he felt a familiar wooden object being placed against his temple.

"Well Harry Potter, it appears even in his death you underestimated the Dark Lord" a voice hissed in his ear, and he felt a chill run through him as he glanced sideways, looking directly at the crazed looking face of Antonin Dolohov. He told Ethelinda to get off him and leave the man alone unless he asked her to attack; he didn't want to risk Antonin cursing someone in a panic.

The others turned, shock of hearing another human voice evident on their faces, and they looked confused as to what Dolohov was doing, but Nick came to realise what was happening first, and he raised his gun threateningly but Harry shook his head.

"Leave it Nick" he warned, and Dolohov laughed in a way which reminded Harry of Bellatrix Lestrange.

"Yes, leave it Nick" he mimicked, pressing the wand to Harry harder. "Can't have these muggles fighting their betters now, can we?"

The foursome looked confused, and Harry had no idea what to do. He'd have to play it safe for now; any rash action could cause a similar result from the Death Eater, and that would likely end up with someone dead.

"Why are you even here?" he asked instead, making Dolohov laugh further.

"You think the Dark Lord didn't know what he was doing? No, no, no, he knew what he was doing. Couldn't let the filth live. Couldn't let the filth live. We faked our deaths; we followed you, followed you here. But his plan didn't work as it should. It didn't work! It killed them too, twisted Yaxley into something huge and wrong. We weren't meant to kill you, we were meant to save you, take you back, give them the cure in exchange for you, but it got them instead. It got them all. It won't get me though, it won't get me. I'm gonna kill you like I did your werewolf, I'm going to-." Dolohov stopped ranting all of a sudden and let out a growl, the wand snapping in his hands. He let go of Harry in shock and Ellis grabbed him quickly, pulling him back and standing in front of him protectively.

Meanwhile Antonin was staring at his hands in terror, and then Harry saw the large chunk missing from his arm, surrounded by green goo. None of their wounds had become infected like that.

They watched transfixed as the man's hands split open slightly, claws stabbing their way through the ends of his fingers. Blood began to drip from his mouth and nose, and his eyes clouded over as all colour seemed to drain from his skin.

"He's turning" Harry whispered, horrified.

A gunshot went off, and Dolohov fell forward, collapsing in a heap on the ground. Nick shot the body through the skull a number more times, until there was no denying that he was dead.

"What you doin' Nick? He mentioned a cure!" Ellis cried and Nick turned to him with such a viscous expression that it made even Ellis back down.

"He was turning into a zombie Ellis. He wasn't a friendly to begin with, so I don't think we'd have all sat down and had a nice chat with a Hunter about a cure" Nick growled, and Ellis sighed in defeat.

Harry said nothing, still horrified at what the Death Eater had said. If Harry had understood correctly, Voldemort had a direct involvement in the infection somehow, almost like a back-up plan for if and when he died. They had never thought of the Dark Lord doing anything like that. If only they had researched properly then maybe the whole thing would have never happened. But then again, perhaps Voldemort had planned to release the disease anyway, and the fact he had released it earlier than planned was why it wasn't working like the Death Eater's had thought it would.

He dropped to his knees and crawled over to the broken wand.

"I don't suppose any of you have any sellotape on you?" he asked, greeted by people shaking their heads. He pocketed the pieces anyway; if he could fix it then it could help him a bit more, despite how temperamental it would be.

"This was the wand that killed a man very close to me" he told the others sadly, and Ellis wrapped an arm comfortingly round his shoulders as he helped him up.

"I'm sorry" the mechanic said gently, and Harry shook his head to avoid the memories.

"I suppose though, that I really, really have to get back home now. Apparently that's where this whole thing started and that's where the cure should be, as long as they were being honest" Harry said, and to his surprise Coach nodded and stepped forward.

"I didn't know much of what that man was on about, but I'll do anything to make the world like it used to be, even if it means escorting you back to England."

"How are we gonna get to England exactly?" Ellis enquired. "It's hard enough gettin' to New Orleans."

"Well we'll go there first" Coach answered. "We'll get Harry his, his er, wand, and then he'll be able to get us there."

"Alrighty then, let's go to New Orleans!" Ellis cheered happily, smile faltering as a thought struck him. "How exactly are we gonna get out of this place though?"

"Haven't you noticed the helicopter flying around? We're gonna flag it down" Coach said, looking thoroughly impressed with his own plan. The others looked at him for more details and he grinned. "That safe room was in the stadium, and the Midnight Riders were supposed to have been playing there. Their light show is not gonna go unnoticed."

"Coach, that's brilliant" Rochelle complimented, and the older man actually blushed.

They finally got round to climbing up onto the roof, and as they looked down the side they could see a pile of zombie corpses looking almost like they were sleeping. Harry expected that Dolohov must have used the Killing Curse on them all.

The rooftops were clear, and it took them to the area that they needed to be at. A very deserted evacuation centre was placed before them.

There were still no other zombies around, a fact that was putting everyone on edge. Dolohov couldn't have cleared the entire area, especially not when the infection had clearly messed with his mind as well.

They wandered into a courtyard area which acted as the entrance for the stadium, where a gate was blocking the path to the safe room.

"Let me guess; to open it will involve a loud noise which will attract every zombie in the area" Nick mused bitterly, kicking the wall when he spotted the lever that would open the gate. "You ready?"

"Wait Nick, I found some'in'" Ellis called, running over to where he had seen something glimmering. He picked the object up; a rather dangerous looking katana. "What a beauty" he grinned.

Nick rolled his eyes and pulled the lever, the gates opening and setting off loud carnival music.

The path looked rather simple; a long and narrow path with the safe room just round the corner at the end, but then the zombies came.

Harry had never seen so many in his life; the path was basically covered with them. It was like they had all gathered in the same area, waiting to attack.

"We're gonna have to run for it" someone yelled, and then they all went, shooting wildly and punching their way through. Ellis went first, swinging the sword and beheading some of the creatures.

Harry didn't even have time to think about what he was doing; he just wanted to get through.

The zombies were scratching and biting at the survivors, surrounding them on all sides.

They could get to the safe room as long as they stayed on track and didn't get over swarmed.

It seemed for every zombie they killed ten more would appear. A Hunter had almost pounced on Nick, stopped by Ellis' katana, and a Charger had only been stopped from pummelling Coach because even he couldn't get through all the zombies.

They battled on, and were now just near the corner which would take them to safety.

Just as Harry was hoping for the best, an especially hard swing hit him on the side, and the dragon figurine he had forgotten about went flying from his pocket.

In a moment of horrified desperation he lunged for it, realising his mistake before he hit the ground.

His hand just missed the dragon, and in a second the zombies were on top of him, tearing into his skin. He tried to edge forward, determined to get hold of the figure, but the zombies were holding him back. He screamed as a particularly sharp claw dug into the arm he was reaching out of the zombie group to grab the dragon with. He glanced up and saw a Hunter waiting. The creature looked desperate to pounce, but he seemed rather content slashing Harry's arm for the moment.

He cried out again as the zombies on him dragged their sharp nails his back and sides, some of them pulling sharply at his hair.

The attacks stopped suddenly and he heard the whooshing of metal in the air, and Ellis' pants as he swung the katana crazily through the group.

Harry was now able to reach for the dragon, although then the Hunter would then be able to get him. He had no choice though, and he only hoped Ellis would stop the Hunter before it did too much damage to him.

He forced himself to move, hand closing over the figurine as the Hunter pounced. It took a swipe over his face, claws ripping over his lightning bolt scar. The pain that struck then was far worse than anything else he had felt in his life. His voice felt hoarse from screaming, and he couldn't see anything, mind clouded from visions of Voldemort; Voldemort chanting, him walking through the Chamber of Secrets, more chanting, images of people with blood dripping from them in rituals.

The images stopped and the pain in his scar subsided, allowing his mind to clear. He felt a sudden though about his father and so whispered 'Expecto Patronum'. The stag grew from his hand, and he watched as it galloped amongst the zombies, the bright light causing many of them to collapse to the floor, covering their eyes in pain, while others seemed to run away.

He vaguely noted that he was being carried, the stag running alongside him.

A door was slammed shut and then Harry knew no more.

L4D

I am super sorry that I've not updated this story for over a month now. I won't bore you with reasons, but I will promise that you shall never have to wait so long again.

Last chapter, I asked what people thought to a HarryxEllisxNick pairing. Pretty much everyone wanted it to happen, but to keep everyone happen, here's how I will run it. I'm keeping it very obvious HarryxEllis, and I'm hoping that the way I'm going to have Nick act will be able to come across as acting that way because he's in love, or acting that way just because he loves them as brothers. Then Nick will come in right at the end, so the people that don't enjoy threesome pairings will still be able to enjoy the story.

I hope the chapter was worth the wait =)