Author's Note: I didn't know when I first started writing this chapter that the plot would take such a turn. I guess I better go into it in the author's note I'll include at the bottom of the chapter...but anyway, thanks for the reviews and I hope you all like this chapter.

Summary:

Three months have passed since that fateful night when Dumbledore was killed and Harry vowed to kill his murderer, and it's been a year since Harry found out Severus Snape was his father, but this time it is not the worries of making a relationship work that cloud Harry's mind but how he will deal with the war that has now become all too clear, how he will find the Horcruxes in solitude, and how to distract himself enough to not think about his father. But how can he accomplish all of this when he's worried sick about his best friend and he has no idea where to begin searching for the pieces of Voldemort's soul.

Disclaimer:

I don't own anything but maybe the plot, Faye, Imogen, Echo, Artemis, and I almost forgot him...Sawyer.

Chapter Eleven

Moments of Quick Decisions

September 5, 1998

Echo was still a little surprised and a tad fearful. When Harry had explained to them exactly what he had done, and how, and why, she had been in shock, unable to utter even a single word to protest that it was unnatural. Artemis, however, had had her wits about her and exclaimed within moments about how great it was that Harry could do something like that. She wasn't at all worried that someone had tried to kill them – or rather kill Harry – or thought about the fact that Harry Potter could also kill them if he wanted to.

"Table four needs clean up, Echo," her aunt said, while breezing past her to the register where a man in the most unusually colored bowler hat, stood waiting.

Echo sighed, and walked to table four, incidentally the one where she and Harry had sat to eat on four days previous. Having honed the ability to carry a number of things after years of being a waitress, Echo picked up the three empty tea cups, and the medium sized plates. She walked back to behind the counter and, pushing the swinging door open with her foot, made her way into the kitchen where her older brother, Ares, and her uncle were seated around the island, eating while the cook and two of the cook's helpers walked around them making breakfast for the usual crowd out in the front of the restaurant. Echo put everything down gently in the sink and made to walk back to finish cleaning the table when her brother waved her over.

"So, how's Potter?" Ares asked.

"Haven't seen him in the past forty eight hours," Echo said. "Artemis might know more. I think she's with him now."

Ares had not properly met Harry and Echo knew he was as interested in him as Artemis was. If only he knew that Harry was really a wizard and that he was in the middle of some sort of wizarding war.

"Ah, Mr. Potter is a very well behaved young man," her uncle said. "I rather like him. He seemed a little strange – but then all of the Potters were like that. I wonder if he has found what he is searching."

"Searching?" Echo asked.

She had seen her uncle and Harry talking just a day or so ago but hadn't joined them and now she wondered just what Harry could have done to impress her uncle so much.

"Asked some odd questions, he did. Had I, he asked, ever seen any odd folk enter the house or come near it? Well, of course not, but then again, one never knows with that house."

"Echo! Table four!"

Her uncle looked like he had a lot more to say, but nodded for her to go and continue with her job. Echo frowned but walked back out to the restaurant and grabbing a small cloth walked back to the table and made sure all the crumbs had been bushed from the table and that it was clean as could be.

Echo returned to her spot behind the counter.

"What are those two doing back there?" Her aunt asked.

"Eating," Echo said, "when aren't they?"

Her aunt laughed. "Ah, Echo, things will forever be the same around here."

Echo doubted it. With Harry Potter staying within their small little community, they were bound to have more trouble than just two wizards attacking them. Harry had voiced his concerns over that, when explaining things to her and Artemis. He had hoped only that he would be enough to keep Godric's Hollow intact when and if they came after him.

"Well," her aunt continued, "there is that Potter boy, come back from who knows where."

"There is that," Echo whispered. "There is always that."

-

-

-

"So, basically you're their savior," Artemis said.

Harry nodded. "I never wanted to be anything other than normal, but I guess this is my fate."

"Then what are you doing here if there's a war going on out there? Shouldn't you be fighting it?"

Harry didn't answer. He had been very surprised when Artemis had shown a big interest in how the wizarding world worked. She had been asking him questions since. At first she had only listened and been alright with it, dragged off to home by Echo, leaving Harry alone with the house his parents had lived in. The next day he had seen neither of them and then Artemis had shown up the day after that, and after staying the night was helping him sort through everything in a small office he had found full of things that had obviously been James' and Lily's. That everything was still so intact bothered Harry greatly.

"It's different than a war in the muggle world," Harry said, finally. "I guess battle is inevitable, but it is my move now and rather than to fight, I choose to find a way to make the battle shorter – to make his life shorter."

Artemis frowned and sunk into the chair nearest to where he crouched, trying to pry a small box open.

"What are you looking for?"

"Anything. Everything." Harry laughed.

Artemis sighed. "You don't look like your father," she said a few minutes later. "My mom said so the other day."

"When I was younger," Harry said with a grunt, "I looked very much like James Potter. I used magic to make sure my eyes were not going to be burdened by the need for glasses, and my hair I assume tidied itself up more like my mother's was, although it also darkened considerably to match my father's hair."

Artemis nodded and they fell into silence and watched while Harry managed to open the box. He carried it to the desk she sat behind and took the seat across from her and pulled the box towards him.

Harry enjoyed Artemis' company. She was quiet when she had to be, and noisy when she wanted. She was very opinionated and although Harry had not seen it upon his first meeting of her, she was fascinated by the world around her. It was too bad, she had lamented just the day before, that she would never really get to see it. Her family had always and would always live in Godric's Hollow for as long as it would have them and as far as she was concerned that heavily applied to her. She would never leave this small village and explore the world like she wanted to. Artemis was also, Harry was glad he had found out, very open-minded.

"I always wanted to know. And I meant to ask before," Artemis said, suddenly. "Why are you here alone? I mean, you mentioned friend, and I guess you must have some sort of guardian."

Harry sighed and stopped flipping through the yellowed pieces of parchment in the box. The mention of a guarding brought Snape floating to the front most part of his thoughts, as had most of the things he had found in Godric's Hollow – particularly when he remembered that he wasn't exactly entitled to this house seeing as he was only a Potter in name.

"They're dead," Harry said finally. "My aunt and uncle, that is. They died on my birthday last year – a gift from Voldemort."

"Oh," Artemis said. "That's terrible. What about magic? Why didn't they fight back?"

"They weren't wizards. My mom's sister and her husband were both muggles. She came from a muggle family – it happens sometimes, a lot recently, my best friend is muggle born, she –" She was unconscious in some sort of coma state at Hogwarts and Harry couldn't help but wonder if they had found something to help her yet.

"And you weren't there to help them?" Artemis pressed on.

"I had left for the summer because they were afraid the wards, the things protecting me were falling so I had to go somewhere safer and we never thought that they would be attacked."

Harry stood up and walked to one of the clean, mostly empty bookshelf. Thinking about the Dursleys wasn't hard. Not like thinking about Cedric, Sirius, or Dumbledore, or even Hermione was. It was too easy to think about the muggle relatives that had made his childhood terrible. Thinking about Hermione on the other hand was terrible. He tried to shake the thought. He had left only a week ago, and already he couldn't help but want to know what else was going on with the rest of them. Were Faye and Lucius okay with all the Weasleys now invading the place they had made into a home? How were Imy, Ron, and Ginny doing at a Hogwarts where Order members hid in plain sight planning and plotting for the war, and one in which Albus Dumbledore no longer existed?

"But your friends, surely someone must have wanted to come with you in light of everything – that attack a few days ago. It could happen again soon and you might not be so lucky."

And then there were thoughts of the Ministry. Voldemort still quite obviously controlled it, and although the Order had managed to keep a few of their spies working within, the Death Eaters and Voldemort himself had so much control of the Ministry that new laws and edicts were probably being passed at that very moment that made it easier for Voldemort to fight the Order. Harry was surprised that nothing against Muggle-borns had been issued yet, but as Harry had begun to suspect, Voldemort was waiting for something from him – maybe the show of a weakness that he could attack. Harry would not let him get that. After all, Voldemort knew he was in Godric's Hollow and beyond the two Death Eaters he had encountered – probably waiting there to tell Voldemort when Harry entered this house – he had not seen it fit to attack him just yet or for that matter have someone bring him to him.

"I didn't tell anyone where I was going," Harry admitted, shaking himself from his thoughts. "I've hidden a lot from my friends in the last year and one of them is just fighting for her life, waiting for a spell or potion to be found that can help her, and my other friend just shouldn't be involved in this, he's so hot headed. I don't want to get them hurt."

Artemis slowly got up from her chair, stretching herself like a cat. Harry mused that if she could have been an animagus he could have seen her as a cat, but as it was, muggles couldn't use such complicated transfiguration magic, or any at all for that matter.

"I don't want to lose them," Harry said. "They are the only thing I have left and frankly if I lost them I think that would be the end of me. To this war, I have given up the love of a mother and a father – I guess – and I've lost my Godfather and just about everyone that I came close to loving and not all of them to death. Some have betrayed me."

"Oh, Harry," Artemis said with emotion in her voice.

It wasn't pity, Harry noted at once, but something more like sympathy.

"You've lived a hard life," she said softly. "And you have more coming too from what you've said."

"It's not something I can run from." Harry said. "I've accepted my fate."

"It doesn't help that you're so bloody noble and sacrificial. You are ready to give up your life for this war, aren't you?"

It took Harry not even a split second to realize that he didn't know. He had never thought about it. Would he give up his life if the war needed him to? Perhaps, but it all depended on what stage they were in. But would he let innocents die for him? No.

"I think – maybe," he said to Artemis.

She walked around the desk, towards him. "You would," she said. "It's not in your nature to allow someone to die if you could stop it. In fact, I don't think you're anywhere near ready to kill someone in cold blood. No one should be, but in this war, won't you have to be?"

Harry didn't realize he was shaking. No, he wasn't ready to kill. He had vowed to kill his father, yes, but that had been a decision made with a flurry of emotions vying to get out and scream at the world for the tragedy that had occurred. He hadn't pictured himself doing it. Almost killing Draco had shaken him enough, and even then he had been in too much shock to really comprehend what he had done. He wasn't ready to take a life. He could use the dark arts now, but even that he used with too much caution and he never really caused anyone true damage.

As if she was reading his mind, Artemis spoke again, "those spells you used on those, what were they, Death Drinkers? Anyway, they were just enough to incapacitate them, but they weren't truly hurtful, weren't they?"

Harry wanted to argue that Langlock was rather painful, but he knew it would be futile. It was a spell that had been created by Snape, and not one of Snape's nastier spells, like the one that had been put on Hermione. There was a counter curse for Langlock, anyway, it had been a few pages away from the curse itself, and…

It hit Harry like a bunch of bricks. The spell Hermione had on her. It had been created by Snape. Lucius had not said when, but Harry was almost positive that Snape would not have just made a curse without something to counter it – he was just that meticulous about the spells and potions he created – and it had to be in one of the books he kept around in his rooms full of spells that he had created.

Harry knew without a doubt that Snape had never gotten a chance to go back to his rooms, and he had known that he wouldn't. He also had not keyed anyone to his rooms but Harry and Dumbledore and that meant that no one had been able to get within them to get them cleared for the new teacher who, Harry knew, would have rooms somewhere in the third floor even though that was nowhere near his classroom.

Harry had some idea, that Snape could have kept those things at his house, but Harry doubted he would have just left things like that in his office at home. In fact, Snape had probably forgotten all about this spell – how long ago had he made it? Lucius probably knew, and Faye had said she was almost positive on what the curse was.

He knew how he could help Hermione! He'd have to act on it, and fast. Would he be glad to see her again, looking less pale and awake. He wouldn't feel as if he were talking to a doll anymore if what he knew about Snape was true. Oh, he could jump for joy.

"What? What is it? Harry!"

Harry had not realized that he had been completely ignoring Artemis and once he did he broke out into a grin.

"I know how to save her!" he said and took her into his arms, dancing around the room.

Artemis laughed, all the while trying not to step on Harry's feet or trip to the ground.

"Oh, this is great!" Harry said. He could have shouted for joy. He knew how to save Hermione, and although it would take him maybe a week to find the counter curse, it was the fact that he knew where it was – where he hoped it was – that had set him off.

Suddenly, Artemis looked completely different to him. It was as if he had been blind when first looking at her, now she was beauty incarnate. She glowed. Her hair, blond and flowing down her back, her eyes looking greener than ever in that light, and her porcelain skin, flawless. Harry didn't know how it happened, but one moment he was jumping for joy, dragging Artemis around the floor, rather ungracefully, and then he had stopped, holding both of her hands against their sides. He had stepped closer and noticed that she stood about half a foot shorter than him. He had dipped his head closer and she had tipped her chin up.

The last few days they had spent together had allowed Harry to see Artemis as a kindred soul to him, and she had been like a part that missing from him – he had thought they had been meant to be friends – but this, standing in such a close proximity to her, with their breaths mingling in the air, whispering in the air that they belonged even closer together, Harry couldn't help but feel as if he had nothing to worry about, because everything would be okay. This had happened so fast, but that was alright. And as much as Harry had not wanted this to happen, he had to let it. He had no choice on that matter.

Her lips were soft. That was the one and only thing that Harry got to think, before he heard the laughter of a woman, and the call of his name in her nettlesome baby voice.

The spell was broken and Harry's eyes widened. They were here, and this time he had no doubt that they had come for him – they weren't fumbling fledging Death Eaters, meant to keep watch. These were the big boys, ready to kill any and every muggle in this town if they had to – in fact they would do it for kicks – to get to him.

"Colloportus!" Harry yelled, his wand in hand, and then threw a bit more of his magic into the spell, as well as a ward for good measure. That might stop them for the moment, but it would only give them a few minutes.

He still held one of Artemis' hands, and she was shaking.

"Harry," she whispered, "What's going to happen now?"

Harry sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I don't know," he said in an almost defeated tone. "I have to get you out of here. I can't let them see you. If they do –" he trailed off.

Artemis nodded, eyes wide, but understanding, with just a hint of fear in her eyes. But there was also something else, bravely, Harry thought. She would have been in Gryffindor had she been a witch.

"Did I bring my bag in here with me?" He asked, surveying the room.

"Yes, over there," Artemis said.

Harry let go of her hand rather reluctantly and ran to the bag, he opened it quickly and began to ruffle through it. He took out his shrunken broom and then his invisibility cloak. He could hear them looking through the rooms, but they hadn't come upon this one yet. Harry was glad for the door being partially hidden into the main bedroom, but eventually they would find it.

"Are you afraid of heights?" Harry asked.

"What?" Artemis gasped. "What kind of question is that? Are we jumping out the window? That's going to kill us, that is!"

"We're not jumping out the window," Harry said with a chuckle. "We are, however, going to fly out the window."

"Fly? But –"

Harry had taken the shrinking spell off his Firebolt and was holding it out in front of him.

"Open the window," he instructed.

Artemis was still a little shaken, and Harry couldn't blame her, but she did as she was told.

"Alright, well, the window isn't tall enough for us to get on the broom in here, but we can certainly climb out."

Artemis nodded, although she did it somewhat fearfully. The sound of an annoyed yell somewhere on the other side of the door, however, helped her make up her mind, and it seemed that climbing out of a window onto a broom was a far better choice than facing those angry men and women out to kill Harry and probably her as well, only for being with him.

"Let's hope none of them were left outside to secure the perimeter, but as it is, I do want to put a little spell on you so we won't be noticed."

Artemis bit her lip, but moved away from the window towards Harry. Harry, noticing that despite that she was acting brave and knew this was complete necessary, Artemis was practically shaking in fear, Harry wrapped his arms around her. He knew they didn't have much time, but this – to him – was just as important as leaving if maybe a smaller priority.

"We're going to be alright. I won't let them hurt you. I won't."

Artemis nodded, against him, and Harry was surprised to feel a light moistness to his shirt. She was crying. For a moment he mused that every girl he had ever kissed somehow seemed to end up in tears, but he shook the thought out of his head and cupped her face. Even while in tears she was beautiful and Harry wanted to press his lips against hers again, but he restrained himself.

"We'll be okay, Art," he whispered. "I promise."

His wand was still in his hand, and it was easy to him to tap her on the head, using a nonverbal disillusionment charm. He placed one on himself and second later, shuddering at the feeling.

"We have to leave now."

She nodded, but seemed to need to have some sort of physical contact with him. Harry wrapped his left arm around her shoulders protectively and, taking one more look around the room he placed his disillusioned broom outside the window.

"Alright, I'll go first," he told her.

She nodded against him.

"Then you can climb out and I won't let you fall."

Artemis nodded again.

Harry had made sure that his broom knew to catch him once he fell from the window. There was no other way to do this. Getting Artemis out on it would be much easier. Harry lowered himself out of the window, and fell right into his broom. The window was too small for this maneuver to work without some pain, and Harry felt it when he hit the broom, and wished had had thought of putting a cushioning charm on it before hand.

"Ready?" He called over to Artemis in a stage whisper.

"That looked like it hurt," she whispered back, but was already sticking her leg out the window, followed by her head. Harry had never imagined her to be that flexible, and mused that if he had done it the same way she was doing it, things would have been easier.

"Grab on to me," Harry said, hovering as close as he could.

Artemis leaned into him, her arms coming around his shoulders. She was holding on tightly as she pulled her other leg free, and then she fell into him. Harry quickly wrapped one arm around her and held onto the broom with his other hand.

"God, that was terrible, and my leg stings," Artemis mumbled into his collar.

She was sitting sideways on the broom, her arms around his waist, and her face hidden in his neck, and Harry could see a small gash on her ankle where the jeans of her left leg had ridden up. It didn't seem to be causing her any discomfort, as Harry flew the broom away from the Potter house. They would no doubt destroy it when they didn't find him and then they would go into the town, if they hadn't sent anyone there already – and to think mere minutes before he had been rejoicing in having found a way to find a cure for Hermione.

Harry didn't know what to do. He didn't know how many of them were there, and he was only one person, and there were the villagers to protect. He couldn't just leave them to face death. He would never forgive himself for that, but he also couldn't face them alone. He knew it was just a matter of his pride. But he prided himself in being able to make adult decisions, and if he really thought that, then he would use the object that was screaming in his bag, to be used.

Lucius had taught him how to do it. It was a mixture of a Protean Charm, and Portus. It would send Lucius, or for that matter anyone of his choice a message and a portkey to which they would have to simply utter his name and be brought to his location. It was the perfect, handy little spell that worked faster than a patronus ever would, and he knew he needed help, even if this wound up with him being taken back to Grimmauld Place. It didn't matter anymore. He would have gone back to Hogwarts eventually to search for that cure for Hermione.

Harry flew them to Artemis' house and landed behind the house. They walked quickly inside, and Harry searched through his bag. He found the ring Lucius had given him with the Malfoy crest on it and tapped it once with a mutter of the spell and his message, "I'm at Godric's Hollow, use the portkey to come to me, his lot are here. I don't know how many, but I think I'll need some help. Bring as many as you can, quickly. Harry. It's a stag."

He tapped it again and it disappeared.

Artemis was staring at him, looking fearful. "Do you think they'll attack the village?" she asked in a small fearful voice.

"I think so," Harry said. "They're murderers. Their souls are so twisted and evil. They enjoy it. They live for torturing and killing and maiming innocent people – the more innocent the better in their opinion."

Artemis shuddered. "Oh, Harry," she said. "What if something happens to Echo, or to my mum?"

Harry sighed. "This is all my fault. I should never have come here. Now I've endangered you and your family and your friends probably. I'm so sorry."

"No!" Artemis cried. "No, don't blame yourself. It's not you. You've been wonderful and they shouldn't be after you like this, and – it's not your fault."

Harry nodded somewhat reluctantly. He hated that he had brought her into this. And her family. They had been wonderful to him and he repaid them with this.

Artemis had crossed the small amount of space between them and folded herself into his arms. Harry wondered for a moment, why she fit so well there, and wrapped his own arms around her. A moment later, she pulled away, although she remained by his side. They were standing like this when Faye, Molly, Arthur, Fred, George, Bill, Fleur, and Sawyer appeared in front of them, all of them touching one piece of the ring he had sent them. Fred and George, having never mastered the act of using a Porkey without falling, were sprawled on the ground. They all looked worried and had their wands out, ready to attack.

Harry smiled faintly. Now there was just a matter of planning how to go about making sure the village would be undisturbed.

Author's Note:

Alright, so I know that the Harry/Artemis stuff in this chapter was random...it was sort of completely unexpected. That was the point. It was a spur of the moment decision for Harry when he felt attracted to her, especially when she was so I guess understanding and like him...but you'll see later why this is I guess semi-important to the plot.... I just wanted to point out that I know how it looks but that I as the author of this fic know what I'm doing with a scene like that.

Anyhow, please review and I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Next one will most likely be up Friday.

-Erika