I started school, and I didn't come back to this. I'm so sorry :(
But here's this chap, and I'm cleaning up the next chap to put on, hopefully tonight.
Hope you enjoy.
Chapter 11- Final Battle
The day seemed to never end for Harry. Nathan was healing ok in the Hospital wing, but still didn't want to see Harry. Ron's actions hurt Nathan more then he wanted to admit, and the injuries weren't all physical. As much as Nathan admitted that Harry was different then before, that he wasn't homophobic, he remembered when Harry was just as cruel as Ron not even a year ago.
Harry never knew that he could feel guilty about something he couldn't remember, being homophobic towards his brother. But he was. Part of him wanted to abduct Nathan and run away. To their home.
He met with Neville in the potions lab. Neville grinned up with him, his forehead covered in sweaty bangs as the moisture from the potions steamed into his face.
"We're close, Harry" Neville said, his grin getting wider. Harry looked over the notes and at the potion. "We've only got to figure out how to stabilize it, and we're good!"
Harry looked over the base once again. "Porcupine Quills."
"Porcupine Quills?" asked Neville.
"Porcupine quills. Only a dash" he replied.
They started three new batches of the potion, adding the dash of Porcupine quills at different stages. One blew up, one curdled. The other turned a vibrant blood red.
They both peered into the cauldron filled with red potion, heads nearly clashing together.
"Looks right" whispered Neville.
"Smells right" whispered Harry back.
"What are you two blabbering about now" muttered Professor Snape, sneering down at the cauldron.
"Did you-" Snape started to ask, eyeing the cauldron. The professor ladled a bit of the potion out, checking for consistency. "Have you-".
"Cat got your tongue, Professor?" teased Neville. Snape turned and glared at him, both eyebrows raised.
"Did YOU do this Neville?"
"The two of us." Neville grinned back proudly.
The three of them spent the next three hours testing the potion to make sure it was safe, before they finally collapsed. Harry smiled, overjoyed at seeing both Neville and Professor Snape dishevelled after hours of Potion brewing, both completely at ease with each other, both also with the fresh sheen of sweat mingled with potion fumes. Disgusting. Harry wiped at his own face, finding himself in the same condition.
"We need to shower" proclaimed Harry with a grimace.
"And then we can give it to my parents!" said Neville excitedly.
"And then I can give it to your parents," corrected Professor Snape. At Neville's downcast look, he said "And you can come once they start waking up. I imagine it'll take about a week for the potion to finish healing their minds". Neville looked a bit less depressed at that, but he shrugged.
"Well, go on with it then!" Neville said, his eyes lighting up again. "Go cure my parents".
Snape snorted at him before instructing the boys to clean the lab while he bottled the potion.
The two boys made their ways down the halls, both grinning madly.
"We did it!" said Neville.
"Yep, we did," replied Harry, feeling above the world.
"Quidditch pitch in 20 minutes?" asked Neville. Harry gave him a befuddled look. Neville was terrified of flying.
"Hey, my luck is going great today!" stated Neville with a crazed grin, "I bet I could even fly better then you!" Harry laughed.
"And if I fall, you can catch me" quirked Neville, who then ran away from Harry towards Gryffindor Tower, leaving Harry laughing.
Harry stumbled down the stone passageway towards the Slytherin dorms in the bowels of the castle. He scared some of the younger years by grinning at them stupidly, but he was so elated. That potion with Neville. It took months to make!
A dull ache started building in Harry's head. He stopped walking and leaned against the wall. The ache turned to a blinding pain, and he lowered himself to the ground, willing the pain away. The pain suddenly turned sharp, carrying Harry away into a vision.
Voldemort stood at Hogsmeade village. The entire area was sectioned off by fire, screaming villagers were trapped in the different stores as each building was lit on fire.
Harry awoke from his vision, hit with a startling clarity. Voldemort was killing people, and Harry could stop him.
Harry forgot all about meeting Neville and started running towards the One-Eyed Witch Passage, heading into Honeydukes Sweetshop. He entered the bottom cellar, smelling the musty undergrowth that permeated the underground room. He heard breaking glass above him. He slowly headed into the store.
"Sirius?" asked Harry, surprised to see his Godfather in the store.
"Harry, What the hell are you doing here!" Sirius yelled before throwing another spell into the streets outside. People crowded the back of the store, unsure what to do.
"Should we, you know. It's still open" said Harry, gesturing with his head towards the cellar.
"Yes yes" said Sirius, sending out another row of spells. "You there!" yelled Sirius to the store owner. "Grab all the customers and take them below. There's an open passage that will take you to Hogwarts, close it behind you. And send Back Up!"
Harry watched as everyone listened and started crowding down the stairs, a few of them tripping on the steps in their haste to leave.
"Go on" said Sirius, pushing him back.
"No, listen Sirius, I need to help" said Harry determined.
"Look, you're just a kid" started Sirius.
"You've never trusted me before. Will you please trust me now?"
"That's not fair. You're too young for this"
Harry snorted. "I am the only one who can defeat Voldemort," sirius looked at him with disbelief. "It's true, says so in the prophecy."
"The Prophecy" repeated Sirius. "The one that made your parents hide away when you were a baby... What's that got to do with you?"
"That's why they had to hide" explained Harry, getting impatient as the noise outside the store increased, the shouting seeming louder, more desperate. "It said I was his equal and I was the only one who could defeat him. Please Siruis, I need to go defeat him," begged Harry. He shot a worried look outside, before turning to look at Sirius again.
Sirius stood there, staring at Harry, until a blast shook the building and debris fell from the ceiling.
"Alright, let's get out there then." He muttered, shaking his head as if unsure of his decision.
"Wait"
"Harry" said Sirius warningly as a beam from the ceiling fell near them.
"I'm still your Harry" said Harry defiantly.
Sirius was silent for a moment. "I'm not sure if you are."
Harry's throat constricted, but he swallowed away the pain from that statement.
"Let's go then" Harry said, looking away from Sirius' face and towards the exit. Sirius hesitated a moment before moving towards the doorway.
"And we're coming too!" yelled a voice from behind him.
"Neville, Draco! What are you doing here?" shouted Harry over the loud noise.
"I saw Draco staring at the Honeydukes passageway; he said you went through but he didn't know how to open it. I did. So here we are."
"Leave, You'll get killed!" Harry yelled, eyes flashing angrily.
"Our choice!" said Neville boldly.
"Do you trust them Harry? Can they fight? Are you sure they will fight for you?" asked Sirius quickly. The ground shook beneath their feet as more blasts filled the sky outside the building. Various colors from the blasts and spells shone in through the windows.
Harry looked at Neville and smiled. He looked at Draco who stared back, lifting his chin.
"I trust both of them with my life." Draco gave a small smile before shoving Neville.
"Wand out you idiot, there's Death Eaters out there!" Neville just rolled his eyes at Draco before following.
Sirius looked at them warily again, before waving the three of them behind him. They followed him out of the store and into the battlefield.
They started shooting out spells immediately. Defensive spells to shield a man with a trolley under attack, offensive attacks against the oncoming waves of Death Eaters.
Black curly hair swirled under the mask of one of the Death Eaters.
"Bellatrix" growled Neville, before he started throwing curses at the witch. Harry tried to keep other Death Eaters away from Neville as he got closer to the witch, but too many of them got close to Harry; He couldn't see Neville anymore.
Sirius caught Harry's eyes, and pointed them towards the middle of the village. Voldemort was standing there watching the chaos with a small smile on his face. He looked more fearsome then even Voldemort in Harry's memory. No snake eyes and nose, waxy skin. The presence of the very human looking dark haired wizard was extremely powerful. There was no mistaking him for anyone else.
Harry made his way towards him, dodging the ongoing battles surrounding them. Draco and Sirius were there with him.
Draco shot out in front of him, tackling him to the ground. His shoulder slammed into the curb causing pain to vibrate through him. He looked down at Draco, whose face was in a grimace.
"Draco? You alright?" asked Harry, getting to stand up, refocusing his wand. Sirius cursed away a Death Eater making its way towards them.
"Yes, Fine. I got overly familiar with this curse when I lived at home. Dad's not very original, you see," said Draco. "Go on without me" he demanded. Draco got up, wand in hand, eyes only for this father.
Harry could see Lucius Malfoy watching them, a bit of his blond hair escaping the gruesome mask. Lucius started moving towards Harry and Draco once the boys steadied themselves. Then Draco charged after his father leaving Harry with Sirius.
"Come on Harry" grunted Sirius, pulling him forward. They inched further and further towards Voldemort.
Then Voldemort stared down at them. Harry was stunned. Blue eyes. Blue. Not red. Not the terrifying red eyes that have haunted his dreams for so many years.
"Harry, Move!" yelled Sirius, bringing Harry out of his pause.
Harry hardened his eyes and started sending the most destructive spells he knew towards Voldemort. The man frowned at Harry as he blocked the incoming spells. Harry kept throwing them and soon his spells started breaking through the shield. Voldemort looked annoyed, throwing a few well aimed curses at Harry.
Harry just dodged out of the way of a curse before another red one flew at him. He didn't have time to move out of the way. He was slammed back onto the streets, his wand thrown away from the force. Black encompassed his vision as a grunt echoed in his ears.
He looked up into grey eyes as his Godfather fell onto the ground.
"Sirius!" yelled Harry.
"And now it's your turn, young Harry" said an amused Voldemort, reeking like decaying meat due to his extensive use of Dark Magic. "Did you think you can beat me, young school boy?"
He laughed, his voice carrying like the echoes of exploding cannons.
"Let's see how you fair then! AVADA KADAVRA!!"
The haunting green light shot through the air towards Harry. Too startled to think, Harry moved automatically.
Raising his hands, he thought of his Charms class as he yelled "REVERTO AVADA!"
The green light struck the spot in front of his hands before zinging back towards its sender.
Voldemort's body stood there, even as the light of life in his eyes left. His body tilted back and fell to the earth as though Petrified.
Harry was too overwhelmed to see if Voldemort was really dead. Neville came up from where he was battling Bellatrix, sweating and bleeding.
"They all just stopped, fell to the ground Harry!" He said, appearing disturbed to have the battle end so quickly. "We've been tying them up in rope, in case they wake up."
Neville finally saw Harry, and Harry's stunned expression and fell silent. He looked over to where Harry was staring.
"That him Harry?" Neville walked over, casting a diagnostic spell on Voldemort's body. "He's dead Harry".
Pops started appearing all over, dozens every minute. Aurors and healers swarmed the area. Soon flashes of light flickered from every corner as reporters made their way, with Aurors and ministry officials yelling excitedly to each other over the capture and defeat of the Death Eaters.
Neville finally pointed one of them over to Voldemort's body and loud cheers screamed through the air, and the Popping of Apparation increased, until it was the only sound Harry could hear.
He looked down at his fallen Godfather. He won the war. But Sirius still died.
He was roughly pushed out of the way as an Auror laid Sirius down. She started throwing healing spells at Sirius at a hurried rate, yelling for help between spells. Two healers came over and joined in.
Harry's heart stopped as he saw Sirius's chest raise. And fall. And then Sirius took another breath.
He was alive. Sirius was alive. Harry fell to the ground in relief, not noticing as another Healer came over to him, trying to find out if the blood on him was his or not. Then his father showed up, followed by his mother. They hurried him out of the site, his father staying with Sirius once he confirmed for the fifth time that Harry was ok with diagnostic spells and Lily's persuasion.
Harry finally looked up at his mom. "Voldemort's dead".
She just smothered him into the tightest hug he could ever remember.
END
-
-
-
-