Choices of the Heart Chapter 20 to 22, a harry potter fanfic

Harry Potter and the Choices of the Heart
by Ydnas Odell aka DA Jones

Chapter 20: Kodikas Galonos!

Quote: First we attacked the Russian soldiers with our gases, and then when we saw the poor fellows lying there, dying slowly, we tried to make breathing easier for them by using our own life-saving devices on them.

Attribution: Otto Hahn. German Poison Gas Scientist WWI

Michael Corner stumbled back clawing at the white stone handle of the black dagger that protruded from between his ribs. His flowing blood seeped between his fingers. The pain was horrid, but he couldn't draw breathe to scream.

"Marietta…" he managed to whimper as he fell into her chest. She staggered against the unexpected weight, but wrapped her arms tight around him, almost as if in a lovers embrace and then lowered him, after nearly tripping over the body of the stunned Bill to the ground with a careful clumsiness . Placing him on his side. A ton of stone was pressing down on his chest, the pain was awful.

She kneeled next to him, touching his hair. "I'm sorry Micheal, but I couldn't let you stop me." Soft tears were glistening in her hard mad eyes.

He couldn't breathe. Oh, Merlin, he couldn't expand his chest. Now her hands were on his breastbone ripping aside his robes and prying at the leaking wound with her wand and fingers.

"Merlin, I'm sorry," she whispered. Coolly grasping the handle of the dagger she pried it out in one jerk. The searing, twisting, and tearing agony was unbearable. If drawing breathe were possible he would have screamed, but instead he vomited up blood. She wiped the blade on a sheet and put it away and then took his wand.

He started to choke on and aspirate the vomit, but Marietta knelt and quickly said: "Apaneo!" and for just a brief moment his airway cleared and he was able to get one long gasp of air before it closed off again. Marietta tried the spell again, but this time it had less effect.

He was dying. Suffocating. In his mind if not his lungs he screamed for his mother, for his aunt and for Cho. He spit up blood again. He couldn't breathe, he was dying. Oh God, he was dying.

"Apaneo!" said Marietta. "Apaneo!" "Episkey!" Apaneo!" "Amplus Aeris!" "Apaneo!" "Spirtus Maximus!" Apaneo!" None of them did any good.

She was trying everything for him, but he still couldn't inhale. He was turning blue. No matter what she did he still gagged, gasped and wheezed.

He was dying. Oh, Merlin, Marietta had killed him. One of his best friends had killed him. A tear-streaked Marietta knelt next to him, took his wand and then retrieved a a pillow from one of the beds and placed into under his head.

She held his hand while he suffered rocking on her heels and saying: "I'm sorry," over and over again. It was so hard to move his chest. His stomach moved in and out like a broken bellows. It was cramping, and was of little use in moving the enormous weight. He was going to asphyxiate.

Michael looked through his narrowing circle of vision at Marietta.

Her expression was full of despair. "I can ease your pain Michael, but I don't know the counter curse, and I can't stay."

Meanwhile, Harry was hurrying with the others to the hospital wing. Tonks, Cho and Madam Pomfrey led the way while Harry and Hermione followed behind, floating Pansy on a stretcher. Luna who looked as serene as usual, held her staff with a stone handed left hand grip and Justin's hand loosely in her right. They were swinging there hands as they walked just ahead of Harry. Justin face was a confusing mixture of rapture and worry. Luna's wand was as always tucked behind her ear.

Angelina had been sent to find Professor McGonagall and update Pansy's parents and Anthony.

Tonks wanted to talk to Bill about Pansy's situation and Luna's staff before sending Pansy and Luna on to St. Mungo's through an emergency use of the floo network. Madam Pomfrey would also examine Marietta and probably send her after; since neither Cho nor Luna seemed willing to file charges.

Harry didn't blame Justin for looking for being worried. Luna's last statement had been horrifying.

"It means that if I'm parted from Four-Q for more then an hour I will die," she had said, as if the it didn't matter at all. But the staff was cursed.

For as long as she lived Luna would need to have it near. If Hogwarts opened next year and the Ravenclaw's continued their nasty tradition of hiding Luna's stuff and took the staff they might accidentally kill her.

Normal life would be difficult. How could she ride a broom holding the staff; how could she sleep? How would she make love?

The last thought bought images and a warm blush to his cheeks. He had never thought of Luna in that way. Yet, today he did not seem able to stop.

Why? It was wrong. He had Ginny and now Luna had Justin and Ginny was all he needed. And now unbidden thoughts of Ginny creped into his mind deeping his blush. He shook his head to clear his thoughts. If he could not defeat his own hormones, how could he defeat Voldemort?

From now on Luna's survival depended on a strong grip. True, Luna had given the staff a whimsical name and seemed to think it a privilege to have, but so far it had caused nothing but misery. It had frozen Pansy into an alternate time frame and Marietta's attack on Luna had to be related to it.

Why hadn't Luna listened to Tonks and left it? The problem with Luna was that she was to free a spirit and often acted on every crazy whim. If you did that during a muggle war you were likely to step on a landmine. Was Four-Q the magical equivalent? He decided that between all the horocrux hunting and Voldemort slaying he would have to find someway to free the sweet and foolish girl from her curse.

Michael coughed hard once and Marietta wiped bloody spittle from the corner of his mouth with the sleeve of her robe and gently waved her wand over his chest and whispered: "Redigo Patientia." The pain largely lifted but not the stiffness or the crushing weight.

She placed his head on her lap, tilting his neck to ease his airway. "If you want I can help you to let go," she murmured, "but you need to live. Oh, Merlin. Mike, Cho needs you."

She held him for several long minutes as he rattled and wheezed.

"Apaneo! Keep breathing, Michael. You have the strength. I know you do. You saved me, you saved us the night my mo'…my mum died. …Please, don't die. I…I didn't want to kill you. Please, just keep breathing."

But his breathing was becoming very shallow, rapid and irregular, his vision blurry around the edges and his thoughts fuzzy. He was shuddering now for air.

"Apaneo! Apaneo!"

Again it worked for a moment. He fell back, sucked in air. She grasped his hand even tighter.

"Michael, Cho and the others will be here any minute…you can hold on for them. For Cho Mike."

He was wracked with another coughing fit, and sat up to spit out more blood. It coated his teeth and tongue. She wiped some of it away.

"If you love Cho stay with her, stay with her for me. Hold on. She needs you. She can't lose you too… She thinks she's lost me, but I can't be here. I can't be with her. I have things to do alone. You need to stay for her, to keep her safe. I love you both so…so very much."

Suddenly the weight increased threefold pinning him to the ground, the stiffness impossible. Marietta's image collapsed into darkness like wet sand down a drain.

He arched and gasped and his vision flared back with an unbearable burst of brightness. In the center Cho's face hovered over him with angelic grace.

But, she looked so sad.

Marietta was right, if he died, it would break Cho. He had to fight. He wasn't supposed to die now. This had nothing to do with the war. If he was going to die young, he had supposed it would be during the war. He should have died in glory, in battle for those he loved. It should have been for Cho or Harry. Not at the hands of Marietta.

This wasn't fair. It wasn't right. All he had to do was breathe. He couldn't. F-ing Marietta.

As his body sagged back against Marietta, a last all too feeble wheeze of air escaped his lips and he shaped them into a low whisper:

"Cho, I love you."

Marietta shook him. "MIKE! Michael! No!"

He couldn't be dead. Merlin, he just couldn't be. She felt for a pulse. He had no pulse. He wasn't breathing! Michael!" She used Michael's own wand to try Rennervate.

Suddenly a disembodied voice shouted from above:

"Kodikas Galonos! Kodikas Galanos! All professors and staff and trained house-elves able to assist please report to the Hospital wing immediately. Kodikas Galonos! Kodikas Galonos! Kodikas Galonos! All able to assist please report to the hospital wing immediately. Kodikas Galonos..."

She didn't want to leave him. She didn't want to leave her friend to die alone, but that alarm would bring Madam Pomfey and the Aurors running. She couldn't be here when they showed-up. Her mission was too important.

She prayed that Madam Pomfrey would be able to save Michael.

Ashen faced she paused to also gather Bill's wand from the floor and then pushed open the double doors and left the ward. She could hear the sound of frantic running feet drawing near.

Chapter 21: Ron and the Riot

Quote: Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a
tribe, and call it a family. Whatever you call it,
whoever you are, you need one.

Attribution: - Jane Howard (1935-1996)

A half-whoozy Percy Weasley pushed his way out of a pile and rolled to his feet, spitting out teeth, dirt and dust. He seemed to have bruises throughout his body and someone had stepped on his wand snapping it in two, while someone else had ripped a large whole in his ministry issued robes right over his bum.

The riot had moved far past the rumor stage. Curses and insults were flying everywhere, while young children and most muggles scrambled for cover. Percy thought that rioting was improper. Order was precious. Disorder was chaos. And this particular sort of disorder was beneath the wizarding community and didn't show the proper respect for governmental authority. Furthermore, there was no reason for the public to panic just because a certain chosen-one was taking his sweet time boarding the train.

Minister Scimgeour was fully capable of teaching that ruffian who styled himself Lord V-Voldemort a lesson. True, the ministry was having a rougher time of it then expected, but Percy knew no ragtag bunch of Dark Wizards; no group of incompetent baphoons as the Death Eaters seemed to be; could defeat the fully trained Professional Aurors. Especially Aurors trained and lead by Minister Scrimgeour. No, the Death Eaters were no better than muggle terrorists and no matter what far cave or hovel they sought to hide-in Percy knew the ministry would track them down.

In fact, that was what the Minister was doing now. Intelligence had suggested that the Lord We-Speak-Not-Of was planning an audacious attack on the muggle government in London and the Minister had just left to aid Auror Shacklebolt in heading that off. No, there was no need for the public to panic.

But they had. The whole world had gone as crazy as the Quibbler. The fact that the majority seemed to believe that their only hope lay in a sixteen year old boy with a lightning-bolt shaped scar, middling Quidditch skills and a penchant for trouble didn't bode well for the wizarding world's sanity.

What was personally worse though, was the fact that rumors said that his gullible little sister had recently taken a fancy to the scarred wonder. This was dumb and dangerous. Percy knew Harry. He was nothing special and Minister Scrimgeour knew this too. But the Dark Lord didn't.

Harry was only important because the Dark Lord and the people thought he was. Percy knew Scrimgeour didn't want Harry as an ally. He wanted him as bait and a sop to the people. Oh, the Minister would try to protect Harry. He wasn't out to get poor Harry killed, but anyone or anything of interest to the Dark Lord was of equal interest to the Ministry.

Ginny was a different case. If Ginny pursued Harry she would place herself in unnecessary danger. Percy though she should've known better, this Tom Riddle had already tried to use her once and Harry had saved her. Harry was always getting in the way. If Harry and his idiot brother Ron and that know-it-all Hermione hadn't interfered he and Penelope would have had the thing solved.

No, the Lord We-Speak Not-of wasn't all powerful. He was mortal after all and Percy knew that anyone, even himself on a very good day could defeat the wizard-that-no-one-would-name. Harry wasn't really needed. Hell, maybe even Penelope could take on you-know-who. But he certainly hoped she didn't. She was perfectly safe on the continent, behind her desk at the Von Hohenheim Institute for the Study of Muggle Medicine and Alchemy, in Hanover in the part of Europe muggles called Germany and he wanted her to stay there.

It was all insane and ridiculous. He looked at the unlawful uncouth and ugly crowd that ungulated around him. (Percy had continued a habit that his father had taught him of reading a part of the wizard-modern muggle dictionary daily. Today's treat had been the 'un's.)

The riot was unabated.

He shook his head to clear the last of the cobwebs and shouted: "WILLIAMSON!" and a pony-tailed Auror with a scarlet robe whisked past and pointed his wand at a skinny white haired bespectacled muggle with painfully arthritic knees who had hobbled over to hurl a broken bottle at them.

Percy ducked the bottle and Williamson cried: "Peninunctura!" and the man collapsed gratefully, his knees turned to sponge and pain free for the first time in a decade.

"WILLIAMSON, RESTORE ORDER!" screamed Percy again as out of the corner of his eye he caught a duel flash of red hair racing towards him.

"I'm Bloody well….Protego… trying sir," said Williamson "but…Dissendium… at the …Incarcerous…moment….Stupefy…no one…Peninunctura…seems to Awit Suyoni be …Impedimenta.. in the ...Digitas Lubricas...mood... Evaneseo...for... Conjunctivitis…. gentile discussions over bloody Fumauris … steaming tea sir."

"Dennis, Colin keep your family behind me," ordered Lee Jordan backing up towards the cupola of the last car and trying to shield the two younger DA members, and their muggle family. Only a couple of Aurors and a few ministry employees stood between them and the Slytherins. One was Fred and George's father.

"Look," said Arthur Weasley trying to persuade the mob as five year old Cathy Creevey bawled behind him: "these people are only harmless children and muggles!"

"No muggle is harmless. Well, they are mostly harmless, but children or not, my son is in danger because of you mudblood loving Gryffindors!" cried a green clad mother raising her wand threatingly. "This is precisely why neither muggles nor half-bloods should be allowed at Hogwarts!"

Inside his car Ron found he had no time for Ginny's pleas about Percy. Dependent only on Professors Slughorn and Vector and a couple of Aurors for protection he soon found himself trapped in his compartment.

Professor Vector opened the narrow window and Slughorn said: "Climb out young Rudolph for it's the only way," and shoving Ron's bum from the rear pushed him out head first onto the grass embankment where he did a roll and leapt to his feet right into the path of a huge and furious eagle owl who with a burst of feathers fluttered hard to Ron's right and just missed his face.

As Ron scrambled up the opposite embankment he heard Slughorn start to bluster through the open window: "My fellow Slytherins, this is a time for calm!"

From the crest of the embankment which was several feet higher then the top of the train Ron watched the eagle owl swoop low over the forbidden forest and then loop over the lake, Dumbledore's glistening white tomb and Hogwart's itself before following the tracks due south and disappearing over the horizon.

Meanwhile, most of the Aurors and Enforcement Officers had formed a thin line just off the platform and were hexing, stunning and wrestling the rioters that were trying to get at Percy, Flitwick, Umbridge and a knot of officials. The riot was worse on the northern Slytherin end of the platform, but at the southern Hufflepuff end rioters were trying to climb the locomotive and were being held back only by a few aurors and from the top of the cab his brothers Fred and George. He waved at the twins.

Then through the audiowyrm he said: "Ron to all DA, everyone try to stay out of this, even if your parents or family are involved. Leave it to the aurors. This is just a riot. Not a battle."

"And gnomes can sweep with a Quidditch broom," Lee Jordan grumbled back just as a red curse flew past Ron's right ear.

An arrogant sounding voice shouted up at him: "Expelliarmus!" and Ron's wand flew out of his grip and tumbled over the edge of the cliff. A grinning Blaise Zabini grabbed it and flourished his own wand at Ron.

"That owl who almost took off your face Weasley, she's mine. Her name is Lilith. She's the fastest at Hogwarts. She was breed for speed by Hoots & Scoots Ltd the elite thoroughbred Owl breeders. But you wouldn't know about that, would you…Weasley. Considering that you probably got your reject owl from a discount muggle pet store."

Ron just glared. His anger as always built rapidly. Zabini was lucky that he had taken his wand; otherwise Ron would have already torn the snake to pieces.

"Ms. Lestrange will have our message in mere moments. This….unexpected event should give us an opportunity to finish off Potter and catch the Aurors off–guard. The Dark Lord will reward us; Hogwarts will be ours and all your mud blood friends including your precious HO my OH! Knee... will be tortured for our amusement."

"DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH HER!"

"Oh, I will and then I think I'll go on to your sister. I hear she's fierce. I like that type. The more blood the better I always say. I bet that you'd like to watch, though."

"I'll KILL YOU!"

"Oh, you would if you could, but see unlike Malfoy I complete my missions, so I'm afraid you won't have a chance. I wonder if Ho'my'Oh knee! Knee will call your name when she cries for help. Oh, wait I forgot. She wouldn't do that anymore, will she? She cheated on you and loves Potter. Well, I suppose she'll call for Harry instead, then. Why not? She probably does it already when she shags him:

HARRY! Oh, POTTER HARDER! HARRY! OH, MERLIN, HARRY! Does she scream or moan? Do you know? I doubt it. You don't have the balls to fuck Weasley.

"You talk tough for someone with snitches for nuts. I thought you were going to kill me Blaise, not try to make me jealous."

"I'd bet you like her to call Harry's name don't you. I bet you watch when Harry has her. Hell, you probably fuck him too, Weasley! I always thought you swam on the other side of the river. Maybe, that is why the mudblood Granger dumped you. You don't swim go swimming in her type of creek do you? To bad. I'll let you in on a little secret. The rivers warmer if you swim on both sides."

Zabini added a lopsided smirk to his evil grin and made a flamboyant gesture with his wand. "But no matter, since there will be no swimming for you...and by the way Weasley, when you get to where you're going please say hello to Cedric Diggory for me, he always was a very fine chap….AVADA KEDAVRA!"

"PERCY!" A small young petite red head and an older plumper red head were running towards Percy while zigging and zagging around rioters, bottles and spells. Since he hadn't seen them in so long, it actually took a moment to actually register that they were Ginevra and his mother.

"Percy, are you alright?" shouted his sister.

As they drew near, Percy saw a dark mark jet to the sky from the Slytherin end of the train. Someone was dead. This wasn't just a riot anymore. Death Eaters were attacking. "WILLIAMSON!"

"I see it, sir."

Then initiate Operation Sawbridge."

"A riot… Stupefy…wasn't part of that plan, sir."

"No, and neither was Harry supposed to be missing, but we have to try!"

"Yes, sir."

Just then, Percy saw a middle-aged witch turn towards his mother and sister and raise her wand. Mum! Ginny! Oh shit, Oh, Merlin that witch might be a Death Eater and Percy didn't have his wand.

"MUM, GINNY LOOK OUT!"

Harry Potter & the Choices of the Heart
Chapter 22: Iron Men
by Ydnas Odell AKA DA Jones

Quote: "What broke in a man when he could bring himself to kill another?"

Attribution: Alan Paton -- South African Writer and Educator (1903-1988)

A faint, familiar but horrifically wheezy voice called to Cho in her ear as if speaking through a narrow reed: "Cho, I love you."

"Michael? Is that you?" she asked. There was no response. "Michael is that you?" If it was Michael he didn't sound right.

No one answered. She tried again, biting back the beginning of panic. "Michael, was that you? Michael are you ok? Michael?"

The only reply came from overhead where a disembodied voice began shouting:

Kodikas Galonos! Kodikas Galonos! All professors, staff and trained house-elves able to assist please report to the Hospital Wing immediately. Kodikas Galonos! Kodikas Galonos! Kodikas Galonos! All able to assist please report to the hospital wing immediately! Kodikas Galonos!

Hermione startled and almost dropped Pansy's stretcher and cried: "Oh, no!" as Cho, Luna, Justin, Madam Pomfrey, and Tonks suddenly sprinted off in the direction of the hospital wing.

"What is it? What's it saying Hermione?" asked Harry.

"Kodikas Galonos is Greek for code blue. There…there must be a ward on the hospital wing to warn when someone's stopped breathing. Oh, Merlin Harry! Someone in the hospital wing is dying. That's why…Madam Pomfrey….Oh, God… Oh, Merlin… it must be…it's Bill! Harry!"

They raced down the hall like extremely fast scuttling crabs, Pansy still as a board on the stretcher between them. Luna and Justin just ahead and Tonks a bit further along, but Cho was leagues ahead of all of them having reached her own terrifying deduction.

"MICHAEL, MICHAEL!" she screamed and called for him through the audiowyrm. "Michael…Michael, I'm coming, I need you…don't you dare leave me too." But there was no reply.

As she swung at full speed around the corner of the third floor corridor that led to the hospital wing, a yellow streak shot right past her and blasted the wall just missing Luna.

Cho ducked behind a nearby suit of armor and looked behind her to see the dreamy girl rubbing a minor cut over her eye and curiously examining a head high smoking hole in the wall.

"Oh, hi Marietta," said Luna "that's a pretty if nasty yellow death curse you have. I've been seeing it a lot lately. It seems you need to improve your aim, though. Maybe you should practice shooting toads through Inca Hula Hoops. My dad says that You-know-who keeps a bunch in..."

"I have nothing to do with you-know-who!" snapped Marietta her wand once again pointed at Luna.

Tonks raised her wand and growled "I don't care if you're a Death Eater or not Marietta, drop the Wand!

"No!"

"Marietta," said Tonks. "I'm warning you, drop it! I'm placing you under arrest for the attempted murder of Luna Lovegood."

Marietta backed away a step or two, giving herself room. "Better it be for the actual murder then! "Corpus Morticus!"

Another yellow curse streaked from her wand right at Luna, but Tonks simaltaneously fired a small stone from her wand; which intercepted the spell and shattered in mid-air.

Marietta's response was a hail of rapid non-verbal stunners, which scattered them all and immediately put Tonks on the defense, she was only able to block about half of the stunners with a non-verbal shield charm and one of the strays almost took out Harry, but Hermoine shoved him to the ground in-the-nick of time and then pulled him and Pansy's stretcher into cover behind a desk. Harry struggled to rise, but Hermione pushed him down, and lay on his chest.

"Stay down Harry," Cho heard her hiss "or I'll stun you myself!"

Cho stuck her head out and screamed at Marietta: "Stop-it!" But Marietta reacted by clanging a stunner off the suit of armor in front of her. Marietta didn't seem to be actually trying to hit her, but it was impossible to do anything useful if she had to duck all the time.

"I can't Cho, you should know why, "said Marietta and then shouted: "REDUCTO!""

Some of the ceiling crumbled overhead, narrowly missing Tonks onits descent. Tonks scrambled back, talking cover behind the uit of armor opposite Cho.

Marietta took another pot shot at Luna, but Justin shoved her head down with his palm at the last moment and it just missed both of them. Then he shoved her down and lay prone over her. "Let me go! I want to help!" cried Luna as Justin and Madam Pomfrey tried to drag her from the fray.

Tonks retaliated with a low aimed tripping jinx, but Marietta just hopped back a couple of steps and nailed the helmet of the suit of armor in front of Tonks, with a stunner, which made it rattle.

Tonks sent a pair of stunners between the legs of the suit of armor, but Marietta shielded herself with Protego and fired back, forcing Tonks to roll away from the suit .

Marietta sent another ghosting hex straight at Luna, but this time Hermione saved her friend with Tonk's stone trick and fired a second stone just over Marietta's head.

Marietta backed up a couple of steps and then summoned and smashed a vase into Tonks, but Tonks blocked it with a another shielding spell and sent it violently back at Marietta as Hermione just missed with her own stunner.

Marietta wasn't using her own wand. Cho knew this because she still had Marietta's wand safely tucked away. She shouted at Marietta: "You're using Michael's wand Marietta. What did you do to Michael?"

"I'm sorry Cho," said Marietta sadly "He's gone. I stabbed him, with this," she said opening her robe slightly with her left hand to show a bloody bone-handled dagger dangling from her hip. The gesture almost cost her, as Justin's hit her with a tripping hex, but she rolled quickly away and behind the suit of armor diagonally across from Cho and fired wildly back at Justin with a boil hex.

Cho took a shot but missed with an entanglement charm and then Tonks charged forward, but Marietta hit her with a tripping jinx and the Auror sprawled out in the center of the hallway. Her wand skittering away.

"Accio Tonk's wand!" said Marietta and it floated into her grip

Marietta was quite good and determined, but Cho knew there was no way she could last for very long against an Auror and her fellow DA members, even if she had caught them by surprise. But they didn't have time. Michael had been stabbed. He was dying. There was no time for her 'friends' bullshit

As if to reemphasize that point the ceiling screamed: '"Kodikas Galonos!" again just as out of the corner of her eye she saw Harry try to twist away from Hermione and crawl forward into the action, but Hermione wasn't allowing it.

As Tonks scrambled up and Marietta ducked under another of Justin's hexes, Cho screamed at Marietta, her voice wavy.

"Why? What did Michael do to you?"

"He tried to stop me! He and scarface!"

"He is your best friend!"

"He WAS my best friend, Cho!"

"He's… dead, then? You….you…YOU KILLED HIM!" said Cho hands over her face and tears streaming. "I...I don't blame you. I know it is not your fault. You're just sick Marietta."

Marietta waved Tonks wand in Cho's direction as if to make a point. "Stop saying that. I know what I'm doing and you know why even if you won't believe it. I'm perfectly sane. They'll call me a hero some day. I didn't mean to kill him, you must know that. I…I…I tried to save him. I'll miss him."

"If you're sane, than you're a monster you bitch!"

"I'm doing what's right, I know it."

"Then you're sick."

Meanwhile the wandless Tonks had closed in during the conversation and now physically leaped at Marietta, but Marietta caught her mid-air with a punching jinx and knocked her back. Overhead the ceiling screeched again:

"Kodikas Galonos! Kodikas Galonos! All professors, staff and trained house-elves able to assist please report to the Hospital Wing immediately. Kodikas Galonos! Kodikas Galonos! Kodikas Galonos! All able to assist please report to the hospital wing immediately! Kodikas Galonos!"

Cho had to get to Michael. If he died her heart would turn to ice. He wasn't dead. This couldn't happen twice. She leaned her head out from her protective suit of armor. "Let me past Marietta. Please, let me go to him."

But, Marietta shouted "Ferrati Movete!" tapped the suit of armor in front of her with Tonk's wand and then aimed Michael's wand at the suit of armor in front of Cho and suddenly metal arms wrapped around Cho's waist and held her tight and still as another half-dozen metallic warriors attacked her friends and Marietta let off another wild torrent of spells, including some of the killer yellow ones in the direction of Luna and Justin.

Cho squirmed and twisted against the iron man's grip, trying to free her wand arm. There had to be a spell she knew that worked against metal. There just weren't that many and in her panicked state she was having trouble thinking of one.

"Marietta, please let me go to Michael," said Cho. "I need to see him...help him." She needed to calm her emotions. She needed to think.

"I think he's beyond help Cho, I'm sorry."

"Please, Marietta if you won't let me past, at least let Madam Pomfrey go to him."

Just then another suit of armor with a clang ponderously raised a sword handle to bash her over the head and too late Tonks turned and leapt at it trying to save her, but just-in-time Harry screamed: "Expelliarmus!" and the sword clattered harmlessly away. Hermione followed up by blasting the attacking suit to pieces with: "Reducto!"

Then Harry and Hermione shouted again and another two suits-of-armor exploded. Justin tried to banish another from his knees but only succeeded in making its helmet disappear, however this seemed to disorient it and it blundered around until it banged into another and they both crashed down.

Meanwhile Cho's suit-of-armor had started lumbering about with its captive, but no one could take a shot, without risking injury to her. But finally she remembered the metal-cutting spell and cried:

"Scindus Lamminus!" and severed the sections of arm around her waist, which with a metallic screech fell to the ground and made a loud hollow clang. Stepping clear she then followed Hermione's example and blasted the suit of armor to smithereens.

"MARIETTA, LET MADAM POMFREY GO TO MICHAEL, PLEASE!"

"But…I don't think Madam Pomfrey can go," said Hermione softly and then Marietta screamed "NO! NO! The idiot nurse…I didn't mean."

Cho turned to look behind her. Madam Pomfrey lay prone over Luna and both were very still. A fine mist had gathered over them. Justin had crawled over and partially rolled Madam Pomfrey off of Luna and had begun shaking his girlfriend. "Luna! Please, no!"

Everything stopped, including to Cho what felt like her heart, but the blasted ceiling was still screaming:

Meanwhile, 4-Q had fallen from Luna's grip and rolled halfway across the hall.

Marietta picked it up and as with the previous Ravenclaws briefly shuddered with violent ecstasy as the staff flashed and pulsed.

But she quickly gathered herself. "I was right Cho. You didn't believe me, but I was right. This is the Staff of Barnabes and if Luna found it, than she must be the Heir of Ravenclaw."

But somehow the act of taking the staff had woken up Luna, who groggily pushed the still form of Madam Pomfrey off her, shrugged off Justin's hug, climbed to her knees and reached out with her wand. "Give her back! Give her back to me! Give me Four-Q!"

"No! I can't. You're the Heir of Ravenclaw."

"No, I'm not. But she's mine. Give her to me."

"Never!"

"Accio Four-Q!"

The staff pulled itself out of Marietta grasp and with the glittering runes flashing and rippling silver and gold, tumbled end over end into Luna's grip.

Rage turned Marietta's face red and she bellowed: "Sectumsempra!" and made a slashing motion with Michael's wand aiming the curse at Luna.

But Justin pushed Luna aside and toppled over, his right side flayed wide open and blood pumping freely onto the marble floor. "Justin!" Luna screamed, and crawled towards him, forgetting for the moment all about 4-Q. "Justin!"

"His death will do the job just as well as yours, I suppose!" sneered Marietta and taking advantage of the heroes' moment of paralysis summoned the staff back from Luna and fled past them down the long access hall to the wing.

Of them all only Harry and Hermione had the presence of mind to try to stop her, but Marietta blocked Hermione's stunner with a shield charm and Harry's Expelliarmus didn't retrieve back the staff but only Tonk's wand, which he gave to her, but by before he could follow Hermione in pursuit, Luna had grabbed his sleeve and let out another cry: "Harry, help me! Justins bleeding everywhere!"

And then the ceiling screamed again:

"Kodikas Galonos! Kodikas Galonos! All professors and staff and trained house-elves able to assist please report to the Hospital Wing immediately. Kodikas Galonos! Kodikas Galonos! Kodikas Galonos! All able to assist please report to the hospital wing immediately! Kodikas Galonos!"

Cho glanced around, tears streaking her face. Marietta had killed Michael and done all this. Harry and Luna were frantically trying to stench Justin's blood flow, Luna actually the calmer of the two, while Tonks was kneeling next to Madam Pomfrey and feeling for a pulse. Suddenly Madam Pomfrey's voice spoke from directly behind her and Tonks spun:

"No, need for that Tonks," said the spirit of Madam Pomfrey, "As a healer I can assure you that I'm quite dead."

Cho forgot everything else and ran for Michael.

a/n So what did you think of this chapter. I like reviews whether good or critical because they help to improve my writing. So is Marietta crazy or just misunderstood? Is Michael dead? Kodikas Galonos is great for 'Code Blue' and since all or almost all the 'healing spells in HP are Greek.