Well, read the title and continue at your own risk. See you at the bottom. This is an extra long chapter for you. Enjoy...

Chapter 10

Till Death Due us Part...

Harri spoke to her godfather about the concept of the last horcrux, but he told her that the teenage Voldemort was most likely lying. What horcrux would they not want to willingly destroy? She begrudgingly agreed with him. Though, deep down she felt that there was another horcrux, another piece of Voldemort somewhere. She would need to find proof that there was another one out there somehow and destroy it, no matter the risks or the consequences.

Harri didn't know when the shift happened, but she found herself becoming more serious and distant from her friends and family. Maybe it was her impending battle against Voldemort, quidditch practice, OWLs, tutoring, homework, or the extra lessons on dark magic...they were draining the life out of her. She rarely spent time with her friends and she hadn't seen Sirius outside of the classroom to talk to him in weeks.

For the first time in her five years at Hogwarts she was happy that quidditch was ending in a month. They had steamrolled Ravenclaw, they were having a rebuilding year, since most of their teammates graduated the previous year.

The only problematic team she figured was Hufflepuff, Cedric was their captain after all.

George found her more often than not sound asleep in the common room. Harri didn't even remember the last time she had slept in her own bed.

During one of her more in depth study sessions she found a rune that perplexed her. She was going to turn the page to read more, but a hand came down and shut the book on her and another pair of hands took it away. "Hey!" she complained getting out of the chair, only to find Fred and George holding her book captive. Fred had the book dangling in the air, Harri cursed the Weasley twins' heights and jumped at the book, even though she knew that she couldn't reach it. She crossed her arms.

Suddenly, another pair of arms grabbed her by the waist and lifted her over his shoulder. "You need a break," George told her, carrying her like a sack of potatoes. The twins marched her through the hallways, led her outside and approached the Black Lake. It wasn't a cold day, it was actually rather warm, winter had passed and exams were right around the corner. Surprisingly, there weren't that many students out, even though the weather was lovely.

When she realized that George wasn't putting her down on the shore she figured out what they were planning. "George Fabian Weasley, put me down!" she shouted, struggling in his grip. She was only wearing her white blouse, her school skirt, and her knee high socks. She did not want to be thrown in the water, but it seemed that George had other plans for her. He took her to the docks and jumped in with her still in his arms. The water wasn't freezing, but it was still cold.

When she broke the surface of the water, hair plastered to her face and eyes burning from the water that got in them, she saw George grinning at her and surprisingly, she laughed. Harri swam over to him and pushed his head under the water for a few moments, just for revenge. The ginger came back up for air, spluttering and flailing around, only making Harri laugh louder, she was floating on her back, kicking with suppressed chuckles.

After she calmed down, she pulled George closer to her with his Gryffindor tie. He got a mischievous glint in his eyes that was mixed with another emotion that Harri didn't recognize. They brought their lips together for a brief kiss.

Moments later, Fred decided to dive in and join them, breaking up their little moment. "You've been too serious lately, Harri. We made an executive decision to stop you from studying today, tomorrow and this weekend. We're going to Hogsmeade! We need you to have some fun! You're turning into Hermione!" Fred told her, pointing his finger at her accusingly.

Harri moved her hair out of her face and sighed, "Sorry, I've just been stressed about exams and all this Voldemort business. I have an appointment with McGonagall tomorrow about possible career options and I'm still trying to decide..."

"Harri, just go into rune research. I know that's what you've wanted to do for months. You don't have to be an Auror to make Sirius happy," George said sternly. He knew that she had been having trouble picking a career. She wanted to make her godfather proud, but she didn't want to fight dark wizards for the rest of her life. The sad part was that everyone expected her to follow in her Sirius' footsteps.

"I don't know if I want to research runes my entire life. It's a lot of fun now, but what if I get bored later?" she asked, punching her hands into the water out of frustration, splashing water around.

"Harri, you've been reading about runes for years. If you're not bored now, you won't be bored later. On top of that, you could translate runes for other people, like a side business. It would be fun. You'd get to travel the world and take your dashing boyfriend with you! Imagine all the trouble we'll get into!" George exclaimed and Harri laughed splashing him in face.

That was when the all out war began. Harri was surprisingly a very fast swimmer. Fred and George just couldn't keep up with her, that was until they saw that she transfigured her legs into flippers. "You little cheater!" Fred shouted diving after her.

The fifth year winked at them and swam away quickly. The three of them goofed off for the rest of the afternoon and the twins made sure Harri didn't spend too much time on homework the next day. Harri was only allowed to see McGonagall for career advise. She was finally feeling like herself again.

When she walked into McGonagall's office the next afternoon she was grinning slightly. The transfiguration professor smiled at her student's behavior. She noticed that Harri had become slightly introverted over the past few weeks. She had voiced her concern to Dumbledore, but he said she had a lot on her plate and needed to focus on her studies if she was to defeat Voldemort.

McGonagall didn't agree. Harriet Potter was a student first, not a weapon. She might have voiced her concern to the Weasley twins after their lesson three days ago. It seemed that her plan worked and Harriet Potter was back to her normal self.

"So, Miss Potter, what profession are you thinking about?" McGonagall questioned. She knew that Harri was a powerful witch and could do a multitude of professions, she just wasn't sure which Harri would pick.

"I was thinking rune research in the Department of Mysteries. I know that they don't have enough people on their team as it is, and my professors seem to think I'm good with runes..." Harri replied, catching McGonagall off guard. She was expecting the girl to want to be an Auror like her godfather or maybe a healer like her mother. McGonagall would have never guessed she would want to work with runes. Now that she thought about it, Harri didn't want to follow in her parents' footsteps, or her godfather's. She just wanted to be herself.

"You will need nearly perfect scores on your exam to get into that field, Miss Potter, but there isn't a doubt in my mind that you will do it. I have been told great things about your skills with runes," McGonagall told her with a smile.

Harri sighed with relief, at least that was one obstacle out of the way. Now all she had to do was survive her exams.

Before she knew it, Saturday had come and she was expected to go to Hogsmeade with Fred and George. She tucked her books away in her trunk and locked it tightly. It was magic proof and melted lock-picks. Only someone with a key could open it and she hid it under her mattress. She didn't want to risk someone taking something from it while she was gone.

The only problem she ran into was with her cat. Harri had to pull Artemis off her jacket. The cat didn't seem to want to leave her alone today. Even as she put on the jacket, Artemis launched herself onto Harri's shoulder and wouldn't get off. "Fine, you can come, but you're going to have to behave," she told the cat sternly. If cats could roll their eyes, there was no doubt that Artemis would have that expression mastered.

She then tucked her wand in her jacket pocket and headed downstairs. Hogsmeade weekends were one of the few days during the school year where she wore her muggle clothing, a pair of tight jeans, a simple form fitting shirt with the Hogwarts houses on it and some lace-up boots.

When she went down to the common room, only George was there to greet her. Apparently, Fred had been violently ill, due to a prank product the previous night, and was sleeping it off. Harri didn't mind spending the entire day with George. It gave her more alone time with her mate, there wasn't more she could ask for on a Saturday afternoon.

Well, there was her cat, who was sleeping in her jacket hood, but Harri wasn't really complaining, the cat was quiet after all. The first stop they made was at The Three Broomsticks were they got a butterbeer and talked with Hermione and Cedric, who were discussing wizarding politics. It bored Harri and George, but they were curious as to why it interested their friends. Harri was also watching the interaction between Cedric and Hermione. They would look at each other a little longer than what was socially acceptable and their hands would brush each other more often than normal. The emerald eyed girl grinned, they were secretly dating.

She didn't really understand what was with her friends and dating in secret. Was it that her friends didn't trust her with their secrets? Or, had she been so out of touch with everyone that they didn't see the need to talk to her anymore? Harri brushed those thoughts away. She'd address them later.

The next thing Harri and George did was spy on Draco and Luna, who were walking hand in hand down the street. Harri knew that Luna had been daydreaming a lot more than normal since Christmas when Draco kissed her. She had honestly never seen the girl so happy.

It was obvious that they cared a lot about each other. Draco usually walked with an arm around Luna's shoulders, protecting her from harm, while she held his other hand, reminding him that she cared. George found their interaction to be sickeningly sweet, but Harri found it cute.

"I swear, they're going to give me cavities..." George muttered as they walked back towards the castle. There weren't many people on the streets, which should have been the first sign of trouble, but the two teens were too caught up in their own little world to notice. They had just about made it out of the village when Harri spotted something out of the corner of her eye. All of her training with Snape kicked in and she went to pull out her wand, but before she could get it out fully both of them were hit with a stunner.

She hit the ground hard, her wand clattered to the floor. She felt Artemis wriggle out of her hood. Harri saw the cat grab her wand between her teeth and run back towards the castle. Harri couldn't see George at the angle she fell at, but she hoped that he was alright.

"Say goodnight, Potter," she heard Alya whisper before her vision went dark.

"Harri...Harri! Harri, get up!"

The fogginess in her head slowly subsided and she heard a voice calling out to her. It sounded familiar and comforting. She started to gain a decent idea of her surroundings and realized that she was on a cold stone floor. It felt like the dungeons at school. She had been falling on there enough recently with all her extra dark magic lessons with her grumpy potions professor.

"Damn it, Harri, wake up!" she felt her shoulders shake and she hesitantly opened her eyes. She was greeted with the sight of George's crystal clear blue eyes.

"George? What's going on?" she asked finally waking up fully. She blinked a few times to completely clear her vision.

"We were captured by Death Munchers right in outside of Hogsmeade. I'm not sure why they captured me," George explained and Harri's blood ran cold. She knew why he was still alive.

"George, I'm part Veela. Think about all the things they could make me do with you in their custody," she replied leaning back against the stone wall. She had to think, there had to be something she could do.

"So, basically, we're bloody screwed? I doubt the Order knows we're in trouble and we don't have our wands. How are we even supposed to survive?" George questioned hopelessly. That was when Harri noticed that they were no longer wearing their jackets, they must have taken them. What could they do without wands? She didn't even have anything to carve a rune with...

That's when an idea struck Harri, something that she should have realize. "Runes," she whispered.

"Harri, if you haven't noticed, they left us with nothing in here for you to carve things with. They know that runes and transfiguration are your strong suit. They left you with nothing," George told her impatiently.

"There are more to runes than just carving," Harri said turning one of her hands into a talon and slicing her palm with it till it bled freely. She let enough blood spill onto the ground so she could start drawing with it. Luckily, the stone didn't absorb the blood, so she only needed a little bit of it.

"What are you doing?" he asked, completely perplexed with a slightly horrified look on his face.

"There are runes in my family's ancient tomes that could help us here. There is one rune that is put on every nursery in every Potter home. It's ancient magic, it will protect the person behind the rune. You see, Potter's only every have one heir, so my family is pretty desperate to keep their young alive. The one in my nursery wasn't perfect. My dad didn't study runes the way I have," she informed him and his eyebrows shot upwards.

He had never heard her talk about Potter family secrets before. He wasn't sure if it was a welcome change, it only reminded George of the difference in class that her family had. He always forgot that she was from an Ancient and Noble House. He knew that her family had secrets, he'd seen her reading Transfiguration texts and Rune texts that no one but Harri could understand. He knew the Potter family had been around a long time and had many secrets, but he didn't think Harri had been told them before. There was no one left to give her the information.

"How do you know about your family's secrets? I thought that they were passed down from parents?" George asked breathlessly, worried about the answer.

"My father feared the worst when I was born a girl, there had never been a female Potter Heir before. So, he wrote journals and left them to me. They appeared on my fifteenth birthday. I cried for hours after receiving them, the only thing of my father's that I have are my looks, a transfiguration book and his last name. Learning more about where I came from and what was expected of me was something I had never experienced before," she explained, as her hands moved deftly on the ground.

"What do you mean that you're the only female Potter Heir?" he questioned, eyebrow raised. The Weasley family, Harri knew, didn't have many secrets, they were too large a family for it. Generally, the smaller families had greater secrets to hide.

"I'm the first and last female Potter Heir to ever be born. All the other heirs were male...I was supposed to be born Harry James Potter, but fate intervened and I was born a girl," she admitted as she drew a little bit more. George felt a little insulted that he hadn't been told about this before.

"Aren't blood runes dangerous?" George questioned, changing the subject and Harri nodded. He noticed that she had more than just one rune written on the stone, but it quickly disappeared into the rock. George could feel the magic tingling around him. Whatever she had done it was powerful.

"They're outlawed in most countries, but I have to protect you," Harri said with a sad smile as she brushed a bloody thumb on his arm and kissed him. It felt like she was saying goodbye. The magic settled on him and he realized that Harri wasn't protected like he was.

Before he could object voices could be heard from the entrance to the dungeons. There was a bit of yelling and a lot of apologies. "Narcissa, come down here after the deed is done and clean up the bodies or your son will be the next target!" a cruel voice ordered.

Harri hissed and grabbed her forehead with her unbloodied hand. By the time the door slammed there was only one set of footsteps coming their way. A tall and pale figure came up to them. Harri recognized the inhuman form of Voldemort striding into the room. "Hello, Tom," Harri greeted calmly, standing in front of George.

Voldemort smiled at the fifth year before him. It was predatory and cruel. George shivered at the sight. How did Harri face him time and time again? He was a horrifying sight. Its red eyes landed on George, who was against the wall behind Harri.

"Ah, I see that my Death Eaters brought a pet with you. We can't have that," he said causally and Harri tensed.

"Leave him alone," she hissed and he looked at her with a curious gaze.

"So this is why you wouldn't give me your blood. You're a Veela. Interesting, so if I were to kill your mate, you'd die. Or I could have my Death Eaters come in here and have their way with you. That would kill you just as much. It would kill both of you to know that you tried so hard to be with each other, but were defenseless to protect the other," he taunted and Harri growled.

"You wouldn't dare! It would take too much time and the Order is no doubt looking for me. That's why you came down here, isn't it? You want to finish me off before the stop you. I am the only person who can defeat you, or so says the prophecy," Harri snapped and Voldemort's eyes narrowed.

"What do you know of the prophecy?" he hissed and she smirked.

"Just about as much as you do. Though, I believe in making my own fate. Let's end this Tom, all your horcruxes are gone. I've found them all," Harri replied casually.

"You're bluffing and for your lies I will kill your mate first. Now, step aside, foolish girl!" he commanded and Harri stood her ground, green eyes defiant, she wasn't going to move. Tom Riddle had a sudden flashback fourteen years... This was just like when he attacked the Potters, the only difference was that Harriet Potter was a defenseless child, not a full grown witch and she didn't have anyone to hide behind this time. She took her mother's place. He shook his head and drew his wand on the powerless girl. This was the end for Harri Potter and his rise to power would be flawless.

"No, kill me and be done with it. I won't let you hurt him!" she snapped. There was no fear in her voice. If she was going to die, she was taking him down with her. This rune would rebound and kill anyone that had the intention of hurting George. It was the ultimate defense when it came to defending family. The only flaw it had was that it requires a sacrifice and she was willing to make it.

Her father's rune hadn't been perfect, he had messed up the very top of the rune by fifteen degrees. The rune her father drew didn't kill the attacker, it just split his soul further and took her mother as the sacrifice. The curse should have rebounded right as it hit her mother, not when it hit Harri.

"Harri, what are you doing?" George shouted, trying to move, but found he couldn't move his arms or legs. He looked down and saw a rune on his arm. He didn't know when she drew it and watched in horror as she didn't move. He quickly tried to rub it off, but Voldemort had already raised his wand.

"You ask for death, Harriet Potter? So be it, die like your mudblood mother!" he snarled. "Avada Kedavra!"

She saw the green light come at her and heard George shouting her name and felt the rune activate...that was the last thing she felt before everything faded into black. The end of Harriet Potter was as quick and easy as falling asleep.

And let the angry reviews commence! See, death does come in threes! I might have just killed off Harri and Voldemort in one go. Got to love cliff hangers! You guys gave me a list of who you didn't want to die, well on that list was:

Fred

Draco

George

Remus

Sirius

and

Tonks

Nowhere on that list was Harri. (insert troll face) XD Bellatrix will come in next chapter, don't worry the story isn't over yet. One person did guess where Bellatrix is and I sent that person a PM telling them that they were correct. So, if you guessed and didn't get the message, you were wrong. Most of you are going to be beating you head against a wall when you realize where she was and didn't figure it out. I'm still giving hints in the chapter.

Okay another hint for the sixth book: Snape, Sirius, Remus, Alya and George are major characters in the next book, just not in the way you expect, well George is…the others are not. Maybe the sixth book is how everyone survives without Harri, who knows…(it's not)

Now, about the runes, I never understood how LOVE could stop death. I know love defies logic and reasoning, but it can't stop death. It didn't make sense to me, so I made Harri's survival a little darker. I'm making my own Potter History and it's fun! I'm going to have fun playing with the Ancient and Noble Houses. If anyone has any questions don't be afraid to PM or leave a review, especially in this chapter where I might have confused some people.

Speaking of reviews, the goal is 126! This is my last Friday update till May! Sorry! I start school again on Tuesday!

~Animerocker

PS
I don't own Harry Potter