Merry Christmas 2008 everyone!
At the time of writing my beta still hasn't contacted me, so this is another unbeta'd chapter.
Anyone interested in becoming my beta reader email me, my email is on my profile.
Please review!
Chapter 12 – The best laid plans...
As soon as he had opened it a crack, the door exploded with a deafening bang, slamming Harry painfully into the ground and causing him to smack his head into the wall of the coach, sending him into unconsciousness.
Several minutes earlier...
"I'm just off to the toilet," Harry muttered, having recently woken up from his slumber. Ron nodded absent-mindedly and helped himself to another chocolate fog, biting down on the chocolate with aplomb. Harry left the compartment and Ron looked out of the window at the scenic countryside passing by as Hermione and Neville talked about the classes they were taking that year; frankly, Ron thought Hermione worked too hard.
He munched happily on the rest of his frog and glanced at the card – Dumbledore again. He was beginning to feel like he would never get Agrippa at the rate he was going.
However he was distracted from his chocolate-frog centred thoughts by the train slamming its magically-enhanced brakes on, causing Ron to fly from his seat into Neville, who was sitting opposite. Cursing, he untangled himself from his friend and looked out of the window, ignoring Hermione's urgent queries as to whether everyone was alright.
What he saw made him squeak with terror. Death Eaters. It was like a nightmare, his worst dreams come true. Those impassive monsters had been one of his chief fears since his parents had told him of You-Know-Who's return – if he was honest with himself he hadn't truly believed You-Know-Who was back until now.
And where the hell was Harry?
"Ron, Ron! There are Death Eaters outside!" Hermione moaned in terror. "Where on earth is Harry? We need to get him and lock ourselves in this carriage!"
"Blimey, Hermione, but there's Death Eaters right there!" Ron replied, feeling a pang of fear in his gut. Neville had gone completely white and was gripping a pumpkin pasty like it was a Portkey to safety. Deep down Ron knew Hermione was right; but then again, she always was. Hermione brushed the detritus of their snacking off of herself and quickly but cautiously opened the compartment door, Ron right behind her. Neville nervously volunteered to guard the compartment – Ron cursed himself mentally for not thinking of that excuse.
Come on Weasley, where's your Gryffindor courage? he thought to himself as they inched down the carriage towards the toilets, moving part compartments full of terrified people. Ron could see the Death Eaters were on the other side of the train to – they were surrounded. Hermione reached the toilet doors and began knocking firmly on the only occupied one – but there was no reply. She knocked harder and began to call Harry's name, but there was no reply.
"Hermione, he might be knocked out or something! Reckon we should get a prefect?"
"We should go to them anyway, they're the only ones who know how to unlock these doors. Come on and be quiet – we don't want the Death Eaters to realise we're here."
Ron swallowed and nodded, glancing out the window by the toilets and seeing the Death Eaters still outside. Hermione jogged off down the carriage, and Ron followed her, passing compartments full of petrified students, some locking their compartment doors and others whispering frantically to their friends. They passed through several carriages in quick succession, before coming to the one before the Prefects' carriage and seeing the Prefects themselves, led by the Head Girl, pile out, looking frightened.
"Thank goodness!" said Hermione, breathless from the journey up the train, "Where's the driver and trolley lady? What's happening outside? We need help getting our friend out of the toilets, we think he's unconscious!"
The Head Girl, leading the group of Prefects squashed into the narrow corridor, frowned. "We've got someone helping us, don't worry. The trolley lady is in her private area right at the rear of the train. You're too young to help us you two, go back to your compartments and lock the door, we'll try to help your friend in a minute." As she said that, the train resounded with the sound of clicking as, one by one, the doors all locked themselves. "... Or we could do that." The Head girl said, scratching her head.
"Nisha, we should try to get people into the Prefects' carriage, its larger," said a Prefect behind her, Ron was sure his name was Cedric. The Head girl nodded and glanced out the window, seeing the Death Eaters remaining motionless.
"Right. You two," she pointed at Ron and Hermione, "go get into the Prefects' carriage, unlock it with Alohomora. Prefects," she looked over her shoulder, "come with me and get as many people as possible into the Prefects' carriage.
"Alright," Ron agreed before Hermione could protest, grabbing her hand and squeezing through the crowd of Prefects to the door at the back, which was locked. Hermione whispered the unlocking charm and they both entered, open-mouthed at the relative luxury of the compartment. Ron crossed to the food and drink and grabbed another Chocolate Frog, before Hermione frowned and pointed to the door at the back of the carriage.
"Something's punched through that door... agh!" she cried as the train lurched into motion abruptly. Food scattered onto the floor at the sudden movement, and Ron was thrown onto one of the couches. The train started slowly but began to pick up speed with every passing second. Ron stood up, helped Hermione to her feet, and peeked out of one of the windows to see the nearest Death Eaters firing at something he couldn't see, multicoloured jets of light whizzing just out of sight. He turned around to speak to Hermione and saw through the other window that the Death Eaters were aiming at the train.
"Hermione! Look out!" he cried, grabbing her and ducking just as a yellow spell slammed into the window with a shriek, sending glass all over the carpeted floor and nearest couches. They yelled in terror as a second spell stuck further down with a bang, breaking more glass and upending the table with food on it. I wish Percy were here, or Bill or Charlie, Ron thought to himself as the windows shattered and Hermione screamed. Percy should have been there.
The entrance to the carriage suddenly slammed open, allowing Prefects accompanied by frightened students of all years to enter in droves. The compartment quickly filled over the space of a few minutes with what looked like half the train piling in. Ron noticed Ernie Macmillan, Lee Jordan and Justin Finch-Fletchley among the crowd, but was quickly forced to the back, near the broken driver's door. He couldn't see the twins anywhere. Finally, the Head Girl entered and shut the door firmly behind her. The compartment was reasonably full, but Ron could see there were definitely people missing. Harry, for example.
"Students, you're going to have to remain here with us. We managed to evacuate a few carriages but we saw Death Eaters apparate inside the train, so we couldn't go any further," said the Head Girl.
"What about our friends?" a second year demanded.
"They're inside locked compartments, and help is on the way, don't worry. We have to sit tight and guard this carriage for now."
"What help?" said another person from the crowd. The Head girl paused for a moment before speaking and frowned slightly.
"Someone assigned to protect the train by Professor Dumbledore. Now, Prefects and upperclassmen to the front of the crowd please, closest to the door." Her orders were quickly obeyed, leaving Ron and Hermione still stuck at the back.
"I'm still worried about Harry," Hermione whispered to him.
"Same. He'll be fine I reckon, no one will know he's stuck in that toilet," Ron muttered back, before falling silent along with the rest of the carriage. Several loud cracks were heard, like small fireworks, and there was a lot of shouting and banging over the noise of the train. The people at the front fingered their wands nervously as the minutes passed, until everyone jumped as a yell of pain was heard just outside the entrance to the carriage, along with banging noises that sounded like someone kicking the floor and walls. Ron strained his ears and heard the yells stop, followed by a woman crying out and a sharp crack of disapparition.
The Prefects and other students aimed their wands at the door, some of them visibly shaking in fear. Hermione grabbed Ron's arm, and Ron stood on tiptoes to see over the sea of heads in front of him. One first year started crying as the silence stretched on, until the door began to creak open.
Every person with a wand on the door shouted a different spell, sending a rainbow of colour and a deafening burst of noise into the door of the carriage, blasting it and its frame apart in a spray of sparks and sending whoever was behind it hurtling down the corridor. Hermione squealed and clutched Ron's arm painfully hard as the Head girl called for the spellcasters to stop and crept out of the room with some Prefects moving to cover the door behind her.
"What do you reckon they'll find?" Hermione whispered frantically.
"I dunno..." Ron replied uncertainly.
Harry felt a sharp pain behind his eyes as he awoke, moaning reflexively and causing the girl leaning over him to squeak in fright and jump back. He opened his eyes and blinked blearily, seeing an unfocused person standing over him. He shifted himself from where he was lying uncomfortably against the wall of the compartment and groped for his wand and gun, which were lying next to him.
He picked up his wand and cast a quick charm on his head, smiling stiffly as the throbbing pain behind his eyes abated and his vision cleared. The Head Girl from earlier was the figure in front of him, and she looked worried.
"Are you alright?" the girl asked.
"Fine..." Harry muttered, before starting and checking himself. His outfit was still active, hood and all, and he still had both the rings on, which were Disillusioned despite his full-body charm wearing off. Calmed down somewhat, he unsteadily got to his feet, ignoring the transfiguration pains in his legs.
"What happened?" the Phoenix asked, thankful his voice spells were still intact.
"We... we thought you were a Death Eater and fired spells at you," said the Head Girl quickly. Harry started again. Death Eaters! There were Death Eaters attacking the train, he remembered now.
"Bugger, how long have I been out?"
"Couple of seconds?"
"Right. Who's in the Prefects' carriage?"
"We managed to evacuate about half the train into there, as its larger," supplied the girl nervously. "Are you alright? You don't look very steady."
"When you've been hit by the Cruciatus curse and hit by a dozen spells, you tell me how you feel," Harry muttered darkly, stepping over large splinters and moving past the gawping Prefects by the shattered door and into the room ahead of him, before stopping at the sight of dozens of students looking at him.
"Its the Phoenix!" some of them whispered, while others quietly withdrew their wands. Harry holstered his gun, but the Head Girl butted in before he had a chance to speak.
"He's helping us," she said loudly, "he's the help I told you about."
Harry scanned the crowd, picking out some familiar faces. He smiled under his bandana as he noticed Ron and Hermione right at the back, near the door. He glanced out of a broken window and noticed that the train was still rattling along at a fair clip, something which he needed to rectify.
"If you'll excuse me, I need to get to the driver's cabin," he announced, advancing through the crowd who parted as though desperate to avoid touching him. Harry walked quickly through them, ignoring the stares and whispers, and avoided looking at Ron as he passed him. He opened the broken driver's door and entered the cramped cabin, shutting the broken door behind him.
The train's lever was at nearly maximum from when he had been caught on it earlier, so Harry quickly moved it back, feeling the red train begin to slow. He then pressed the EMERGENCY button with aplomb, before looking out the front windows with relief.
What he saw made him go slack-jawed with horror.
A long bridge spanning a large glistening lake, with the rest of the Death Eaters clustered around where it met the tracks. Harry swore and shoved the train lever to its minimum, looking frantically on the panel for some form of emergency brakes. He found nothing and began to panic slightly, as the train wasn't slowing nearly fast enough for his liking. He looked up again and saw the Death Eaters making hand signals and moving around, getting slowly closer.
Finally they all stood back, pointed their wands at the bridge, and fired several curses into the stonework of the viaduct, cracking and pulverising a large section and causing it to fall into the lake below. Harry swore again, still feeling sluggish from his torture and fighting. He jabbed the red button labelled EMERGENCY again, and went back into the Prefect's carriage, which was still full of wide-eyed students.
"Did it work?" asked the Head Girl, pushing her way through the small crowd, "I felt the train begin to slow down."
"We have a problem," Harry said. "I need you to move everyone out of this carriage and into ones further back. Don't try to help anyone, we don't have time. This train may be about to crash."
"Crash?"
"Did he say crash?"
"Oh my god!"
"Right," said the Head Girl over the whispers and cries of the crowd. Harry nodded sharply and turned back into the driver's cabin, shutting the door behind him to cut off the noise of frightened people leaving. He looked out of the front windows and saw that the Death Eaters had disapparated, leaving the broken bridge behind and, to Harry's disgust, the Dark Mark glittering in the sky. The train was dangerously close, and was still not slowing fast enough, having been going at maximum speed. Harry estimated that he had two or three minutes before they careened through the gap left by the Death Eaters and into the lake, which looked deceptively tranquil in the afternoon sun.
Harry made his decision, raised his wand, and disapparated, arriving by the broken bridge ahead. He could see the Express, broken in several places along its side, and still gushing snow-white steam as it chugged obliviously to its doom in a field in the north English countryside. Harry strode to the middle of the tracks, watching the train bear down on him under the Dark Mark with his face devoid of emotion.
The wind picked up as the several hundred tonnes of metal, flesh and steel bore down on him, causing his cloak to play around his booted feet. He raised his wand in his right hand, his other weapon holstered at his side.
He exhaled deeply, closed his green eyes, and focused.
"Arresto Momentum!" he roared, pointing his wand dead-straight at the scarlet steam engine which was a mere 100 metres from where he stood on the lip of the broken bridge. Rocks and pebbles flew away from him as he expelled his power in an invisible beam, splashing softly into the lake behind him.
The front of the Express crumpled abruptly, metal tearing and wailing as it was contorted by the force of Harry's spell. Harry himself merely grunted and stood stock-still, sweating slightly as he poured power into the small stick in his hand. The engine of the Express was crushed by the magic, yet the train kept moving forward as its raw momentum carried it through. It got closer and closer, yet Harry refused to move from where he was standing. He began to sweat even more under the bright sunlight, and felt a small ache in his temple which started to grow the more he willed the train to stop. It was now fifty meters away from him, and still going despite its ruined locomotive, its wheels making a horrific screeching noise and spitting sparks.
Forty meters, Harry still focused on the stopping spell. The pain in his temple blossomed into a full-blown headache, yet he refused to move.
Thirty meters, his eyelids began to flutter as the screeching, steaming train refused to slow entirely. Behind him the lake's surface was churned into motion by some invisible force and the broken bridge began to crack further.
Twenty meters, his chest spiked with hot pain as he continued to force magic from him into the broken, limping train. The Dark Mark above him flickered and vanished under the pressure.
Ten meters, he began to smell ozone, steam and metal as the train came close enough to touch. The air became charged, like lightning was about to strike.
One meter, the train finally ground to a halt.
The broken, ruined train filled Harry's vision, which had dark spots dancing in it. Steam, black rather than white, spewed from in-between cracks and fissures in the metal remains and Harry coughed and hunched over as he struggled to remain standing. His hood slipped down and he scrabbled to do it back up and cover his face as the distinctive cracks of Apparition resounded throughout the verdant field the train was in.
Harry stumbled off of the tracks, wheezing. His chest felt like it was on fire, and his head was throbbing like he had been hit with a sledgehammer. He saw vague figures, clad in Auror robes, swarm towards the train. As he backed up, he bumped into someone.
Albus Dumbledore, dressed in his usual garish flamboyance and with a broad smile on his face.
"We meet at last, Phoenix," Dumbledore said softly as Harry straightened up and looked him in the eye. "You look slightly worse for wear."
"You have no idea," Harry said, his voice hoarse and the voice charms beginning to fail. His outfit was now bedraggled compared to earlier, and he was still coughing.
"I would advise vacating the area before my Auror companions decide to try to stop you. Madame Pomfrey will see to any injuries under my supervision." He lowered his voice further. "And Harry? Thank you."
Harry nodded and unsteadily disapparated back into the bathroom he had started in as quietly as possible, his feet crunching on broken glass as he slumped onto the toilet. He mumbled the words to remove his outfit and transfigurations, leaving him in a nondescript school uniform looking a bit ruffled with several bruises beginning to form. Inside he felt like shit. His vision was beginning to go as he tried to remain focused and see if anything incriminating was left on his person.
His last thought before he slipped into semi-unconsciousness was that Rita would have a hard time making the Phoenix look bad this time.
Someone knocked on the door, the noise sounding like a firecracker in the enclosed toilet. Harry jumped and groaned, feeling his neck stiffen uncomfortably and his headache slam into his senses with a vengeance. The lock clicked and the door unlocked, revealing a tall black Auror with a characteristic shaved head. Kingsley Shacklebolt.
He nodded at Harry and turned his head to call to someone out of sight. "We've found Potter! He was where those kids said he would be. C'mon, lets get you to the nurse," he said gently, stretching out a hand to help Harry to his feet and out of the cramped cubicle. Harry blinked blearily and glanced down the carriage; it was full of broken wood and glass from where the Death Eaters had fired spells into the train. Following Kingsley, he passed several muttering Aurors in red garb who were casting diagnostic spells on the holes in the walls and broken glass.
Outside the sun lanced into his eyes, causing him to curse and squint until his vision adjusted. The students were clustered into House groups on the grass, talking quietly, while some of the Hogwarts staff were on the scene talking to the Prefects; Harry could see the Heads of the various Houses, Dumbledore and Madame Pomfrey, who was tending to a small group of children, none of whom looked seriously injured. He noticed dispassionately that four corpses were covered with sheets further down the train; the Death Eaters he had killed inside the Express. Aurors swarmed over the train like ants, especially near the front, while others worked on repairing the bridge over the lake.
He saw another few students get lead off of the train as Kingsley smiled at him and nudged him in the direction of Madam Pomfrey, who waved him over as he trudged across the soft grass. She sat him down on a conjured seat and conjured a light at the end of her wand which she used to check his pupils, before tutting at the bruises she could see.
"Those Death Eaters... if I could get my hands on them. Were you banged about when the train stopped, dear?"
"Uhh... yeah, I hit the mirror and broke it, it was a bit rough for a bit."
"I understand. I'll just heal these bruises and you can be on your way, but you'll need a good night's sleep tonight."
Harry nodded and sat back as she set to work healing his various bruises and drank a sweet tasting (for once) potion which cleared up his head and vision. Feeling much better, he thanked her and walked over the field to the Gryffindor bunch, passing the Head girl and Dumbledore. He saw Percy talking to McGonagall, and nodded curtly at him, but got no reply.
He quickly spotted Ron and Hermione talking to the twins, looking worried. He pushed through the small crowd, nodding at people he knew, until he reached the four he was looking for.
"Harry!" Hermione squealed, hugging him tightly. "We were so worried!"
"You alright, mate? Did you go and see Pomfrey?" Ron asked, looking relieved that Harry was alright.
"Yeah I did, she patched me up. I was in the toilet and when the train stopped I hit my head and was out for a bit. What happened to the train? I heard there were Death Eaters!"
"Goodness Harry, it was so scary," Hermione said, shuddering. She launched into an overview of what had happened while Harry greeted the twins and pretended to listen intently. Eventually the crowds of students dispersed to their Heads of Houses, where they all grasped a long rope (house coloured, Harry noted) before being portkeyed away from the broken Express to Hogsmeade station. It was now later afternoon, a bit earlier than Harry was used to arriving, but it was beginning to darken. He smiled as he saw Hagrid, someone he hadn't greeted since time-travelling, and gave the half-giant a wave before following the crowd of students towards the Thestral-drawn carriages.
He paused before getting into his carriage, looking at the Thestrals. Every one of them was looking right at him, their dead, unblinking eyes scrutinising him. Harry looked around and saw a pint-sized Luna Lovegood (she looked even odder at twelve years old) looking at him as well before smiling and following her Ravenclaw friends. Harry shuddered slightly and joined his friends in heading up to the castle. It seemed that the Thestrals had sensed something wrong about him. There was a chill about them, something he could almost taste as they stared at him. He caught the smell of rotting flesh as he watched, but was broken from his reverie by Ron and Hermione. He boarded the carriage and tried not to think about the Thestrals as he watched Ron and Hermione debate about what Voldemort would do next.
They entered the Great Hall to a relatively subdued atmosphere. Harry looked at the teachers table and almost growled in anger to see Umbridge sitting next to Flitwick, wearing a repulsive yellow cardigan and looking ruffled. Dumbledore looked cheerful but something about him seemed... cold, likely in response to Umbridge and the day's events. Harry scanned the other tables, picking out faces he hadn't seen in years. Cho Chang, Dean Thomas, Colin Creevey. He noted with distaste that Malfoy looked very pleased with himself. Harry decided to keep an eye on Malfoy; the pale boy could have easily known about the attack today.
"Who do you think the new teacher is, Harry?" asked Seamus Finnigan from across the empty table.
"She works at the Ministry, I think," Harry replied bitterly, not taking his eyes off of the fat woman's smirking face. He hadn't seen Umbridge after she left the school in his fifth year, but he had laughed when he heard of her death when the Ministry had fallen. He had vowed not to cross her this time, but try to bring Voldemort into the open so she would be removed.
His dark thoughts were interrupted by the door at the back of the hall opening and McGonagall leading the frightened first-years in. She set up the Sorting Hat, allowed it to sing its song (identical to the one Harry remembered from his third year) and sorted the students. Harry slowly became bored as he saw the same tiny students as he vaguely remembered going to the same houses. He tried to work out what Voldemort hoped to gain from the attack that morning, other than fear and confusion. He concluded that the attack had been mainly opportunistic, and would have actually succeeded had Harry himself not intervened, so actually it made a lot of sense. Voldemort would likely now focus his attention on killing the Phoenix, however.
Finally the sorting ended (much to the joy of Ron, who looked forward to food), but Dumbledore first got to his feet to deliver a speech.
"Good evening and welcome, or welcome back as the case may be. I would just like to take a moment to congratulate you all on your excellent conduct today when the Hogwarts Express was attacked by Lord V-"
"Hem hem," Umbridge coughed, and Harry groaned, tired of the charade he had to continue with. He had bigger fish to fry than this woman, and had a burning impatience that made him almost shiver with anger when he contemplated how much time these people were wasting with regard to Voldemort. He hadn't even met the man face-to-face since he had summoned the demon; he could be up against something he wasn't prepared for.
"Headmaster, I feel that your information regarding the unfortunate attack on the Hogwarts Express is inaccurate. It was not the work of... You-Know-Who, but of a copy-cat group, as the Minister has already said. The people involved are being traced as we speak, as is their leader, the Phoenix."
Several gasps and whispers erupted from the House tables as people swapped stories about what they had seen on the train.
"Professor Umbridge, as I was about to say, the individual known as the Phoenix apparently helped the Head Girl and several Prefects to evacuate the train, no doubt preventing several casualties. I feel your information on this matter is inaccurate in this case, but I trust the Ministry will investigate the matter thoroughly."
Umbridge gaped, and opened her mouth to reply, before Dumbledore stonewalled her and continued with his speech. He announced that no one had been seriously hurt in the attack and that anyone wishing to talk about it was free to approach their Head of House. Harry snorted at that, picturing someone trying to talk to Snape. Food then appeared on the table, much to Harry's relief. He dug in appreciatively, his mind on the attack that morning.
There was something that worried him about it; they had had no intelligence beforehand. Snape was obviously kept in the dark, which meant Voldemort might know about him. Either that, or Voldemort was keeping his information close to his chest this time round. Harry would have to talk to Dumbledore about that. The Voldemort Harry had fought wasn't as cautious; then again, he hadn't had to be.
He was finishing his mashed potatoes when he felt a pain in his knees, which he attributed to the fighting earlier that day. The Cruciatus from Alecto Carrow was still lingering in the back of his mind and causing his joints to throb with pain when he moved, but his legs were hurting independently of that. It was a sort of numb buzzing, like receiving an electric shock. He was irritated by it through the dinner conversation, which was largely people retelling the train battle from different perspectives, which Harry kept out of. He was feeling drained, despite the potion Pomfrey had given him, and was beginning to lose track of his surroundings, his vision blurring like a camera in soft focus.
Once the food vanished and Dumbledore gave the usual after-dinner notices (stay out of the Forest, Filch had updated his banned list, similar to what Harry remembered), the congregation was dismissed without further incident, if you didn't count Umbridge glowering darkly from where she sat. Harry, still being bothered by the leg pains, slowly filed out of the hall with Ron and Hermione, noticing that Umbridge was having what looked like a heated (from her side) conversation with Dumbledore amidst the ruckus of everyone leaving. He made a note to talk to Dumbledore about that as well. The Headmaster hadn't mentioned Voldemort after the dinner, which meant he had sensed it would be less than wise in the current climate; Harry couldn't blame him with Umbridge sitting so near. Things were beginning to escalate, and Harry needed to help the Order keep a handle on things. The Ministry needed to be dealt with, the wand of Gryffindor Horcrux needed to be located and Death Eaters needed to be dealt with. Harry was also considering infiltrating Azkaban and killing the Death Eaters currently incarcerated there; it would make his job easier in the long run if lieutenants like the Lestranges were killed while they were weak. His brain had begun to fog by this point, so he decided to just get to the common room before he did anything else.
He walked to the common room in a haze, not taking in where he was walking or the various greetings he got. The leg pain was beginning to irritate and concern him; it had spread from his joints where the Cruciatus pains still lingered to his thighs, and he had to concentrate to support his weight. A low humming had also started up in his ears to go with the blurred vision, which Harry attributed to magic exhaustion. Deciding a good night's sleep was needed, he mumbled his excuses, stumbled up the dormitory steps into the deserted third-years dormitory and got into his four poster still fully dressed. The humming in his ears began to increase as he had climbed the stairs, and lethargy had gripped his limbs. Harry had tried to concentrate and work out what was happening to him, but he couldn't contemplate anything other than getting into bed.
Once he was safely in his four-poster, the noise in his ears turned into a keening whine and Harry yelled in pain before everything went black.
