Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter
Half-Blood Blessing
Chapter Fifty-Two: The Solstice
There was snow on the ground at Remus' cottage, not as deep as at Hogwarts, where the wards seemed to exaggerate the weather, but it was enough to make the world seem a special place. I trudged in from the edge of the anti-apparation ward and by the time I got to the door I had to dry my robes from the knee down. I did the same for Vox as he entered the cottage a few steps behind me.
The whole house had a glow about it, a warmth that was not physical, something I had not seen before. The fires in the manor may have blazed but they might as well have been ice as welcoming as they were. Five people were scattered around the place. Remus was pouring tea and, on seeing us, summoned another cup. Vox of course would not have tea but I would. Despite that, a cup appeared before the vampire, the result of one of Harry's thoughts. Vox took it from the cushion of air. Sirius was stretched out in an armchair, appearing very much like a large friendly dog. Neville and Tesla were sitting very close on the opposing sofa. I looked carefully around for Harry. He was sitting in the window seat staring out at the pale morning.
I settled myself at a table that had a checkered pattern built into its surface and gestured, asking Vox if he wished to play. He grinned toothily; it meant I was going to lose today and badly. Vox was an exceptional chess player as long as he kept his mind on the game. I resignedly set out my pieces taking white and hoping that the advantage might turn a rout into a mere loss.
We played three games before the other guests arrived at midday. Ron, Hermione, Ginny and Luna tracked snow into the hall before waving away the icy water. They joined the circle around the fire and voices raised in merriment. It was precious to hear it, seldom as it was now. Fred and George were not far behind them, then Bill and Charlie, and finally Severus and it was frankly odd to see him in company. I wondered why he had chosen to come even; I had asked him but he had only offered to think about it, perhaps Harry had something to do with it. Or, knowing Severus, it could be something else entirely. Harry got up and wandered into the kitchen and after three more well thought out moves on the chessboard, lunch was served.
The afternoon was spent in lazy conversation and sleep. Many of us were not sleeping tonight because of the full moon. The four non-Heron students were returning to Grimmauld place but Hermione said she would be back for moon's rising. She was an Animagus too now though she had parried all our queries into what animal she turned into.
Ron and Ginny wouldn't be going back at all except they didn't want to break their mother's heart. Bill and Charlie were also returning to Grimmauld Place for similar reasons.
The twins however stayed since they were not wanted.
"Full Moon tonight," one said excitedly.
"Hands up if you're an Animagus," the other said infusing the room with his enthusiasm. The question left only Harry, Snape, Vox and Remus with their hands in their laps. Remus was sipping his last dose of Wolfsbane potion, grimacing over the taste, but even so he smiled that so many people were going to join his lunar frolic.
"So who's going to teach us?"
That caused a variety of reactions ranging from Harry and Sirius sharing bemused knowing smiles to Tesla's scandalized shock.
"You'll not have a chance to do it by this evening," she said.
The twins grinned impishly. "Just show us," they said together, "We'll figure it out."
Those of us who did have true Animagus forms traded looks; some of us remained skeptical. I did not transform, a horse was a little big for the cozy room, but the others did, Neville into a fox, Sirius into a large black dog, and Tesla into a bird with a red face and black quill like feathers sticking out looking like a frenzied secretary. It was obviously not a native to the British Isles, looking like it belonged in grasslands. Fred and George peered about as the others morphed back. As they smiled I remembered their little talent. I could hardly believe that I had forgotten that they could see magic, and I had to admit that I admired how smoothly they kept the secret.
"What do you think, Gred?"
"Looks like a synch, Feorge." They shook hands in mock seriousness and then morphed, slowly at first and then gaining speed as their bones started to snap towards their animal form. Fred became a small bear with a dark brown coat and George became the largest rook I had ever seen.
Harry started laughing, "Nice Fred, George, I think you certainly fooled them all."
I looked around, everyone's jaws were slack and I belatedly realized mine was as well. I had not really expected them to have such success on the first try, and I felt a little spark of disgruntlement at being tricked.
The twins morphed back and saluted Sirius and then bowed to Harry. That was a little much for Tesla who had worked on the transformation the longest of any of us (at least by a count of hours) and she hexed them.
I apparated back to the edge of the cottage wards after finishing an early dinner with the Weasleys. I felt a little guilty, I had told Mr. and Mrs. Weasley that I was going to eat another meal with my parents, and that was a lie. My parents didn't recognize the solstice as anything more than the longest night of the year but the Weasleys would forget that. Ron knew and so did Ginny and Luna but none of them had mastered the Animagus transformation yet so there was no point in them sneaking out when they would be just as stuck indoors as they were at Grimmauld Place.
I trotted towards the door only to be met by everyone except Professor Snape exiting the small cottage. Vox was buttoning his cloak but there was no point in anyone else having one since they would all grow fur coats in a few moments. The sun had already set, leaving only the faintest glow at the western horizon, but the moon had not risen yet.
"Okay, Hermione, now you have to show us what you are." Neville said. I blushed; I had not had any reason to hide the identity of my animal, just the wish to frustrate them. I gladly transformed, knowing my own fur coat would be better than my fabric one. I hopped a few steps into the center of the circle, nose twitching. I was a white rabbit though I didn't know if that was just my winter coat and that if I transformed in the summer that I would be brown or if my nature made my fur white. That would be an experiment for the spring and hardly mattered now since there was snow on the ground. There were some congratulations from above my head but quickly everyone else was transforming into their shapes before Remus did. Vox did not; he leaned casually against Draco's equine shoulder, fingers twisting in the mane at Draco's withers. He was not wearing his typical robes but sturdy boots that reached his knee, black pants and a double breasted coat that flared at the waist. It was old-fashioned but he was handsome in it. It looked like he had dressed so that he could both easily run in the snow and ride, something I knew robes inhibited. Harry had again chosen to be a panther though his shape was still flexible since he had not found his true form yet (though I had to wonder if even that would stop him,) Neville was a fox, and Sirius his oversized dog. I had not seen Tesla's form before and I recognized it as a Secretary Bird, not exactly at home in the snow.
It was ten more minutes before the moon rose above the horizon and Remus became a wolf. Then we ran. I suddenly understood why they looked forward to it so much. We were free, we could forget that there was war, it was just us and snow and moonlight. Even being the smallest animal, I was not outrun we stayed so close together. The dogs chased each other and snapped playfully at the birds. Vox was running but his hand was still gripping Draco's mane so that he could practically fly as his steps left the ground in giant leaping strides. Harry of course grew bored quickly and shifted shapes, matching each of us for a few minutes as if trying it out. He spent the longest time as a horse, bucking and jumping about, but then he took wing.
Each of his forms before had been black or white never the faintest hint of color except in the eyes. This time though he was scarlet, the size of a swan. A phoenix. How could he? No wizard had ever been a magical creature, it was unthinkable. He swooped gracefully but then decided that the shape was not for him. He changed again into a tiny dove, white once more. That shape did not stay long either and he returned to the panther form.
We did not stop moving, though sometimes we went no faster than a walk. The snow deepened as we left the true forest and even at a full run it was nearly impossible to go very fast. After Tesla and George, who were both birds, I became the next fastest since I was light enough to run on top of the ice crusted snow. Though, the others all seemed to enjoy crashing through the white in showers of powder.
The moon passed the middle of her arc and was halfway to the horizon when Harry froze and looked back. He crouched, a low warning growl in his throat. The rest of us stopped, ears laid back in uncertainty, my sensitive nose twitched, something smelled wrong though it was the first time I had sensed it. Tesla and George wheeled and landed; George on the shoulders of his brother, Tesla, knee deep in snow. All the predators in the group took crouching tense positions, Draco and I, instinctively prepared to flee. I heard growls and howls in the distance, and instinct told me they belonged to the full moon. They possessed an unnatural quiver in them that I remembered well enough from the end of third year. I felt my hackles rise with fear. Already tense muscles drew tight. The howls stayed far enough away but human figures walked out of the distance, magic keeping them from sinking into the snow. One pushed a man roughly ahead of him, Snape I thought it was by posture. They came within fifteen feet of us, ringing us. Eleven wizards, there was one for each of us. I didn't understand how they would dare be unprotected on the full moon; we dared not change back for fear of being bitten. It left us with only our teeth and claws and whatever Harry and Vox could do. Nothing happened though, it seemed each side was measuring, weighing what the other side was capable of, or maybe Harry and their leader were just waiting.
With the suddenness of lightening, we all moved. The eleven wizards picked their fight with one of us, though I knew someone needed to rescue Snape, who was at the mercy of his captor. My size allowed me to elude capture for some time. Though, I had to be as careful of being trod on as being hit with a spell. Vox was vicious with his knives; there was a circle around him that no one would enter. Even so his knives flashed, deflecting spells off into the darkness. The birds also had an advantage. I realized exactly how cruel a beak Tesla had, she was a bird of prey and the species was best at killing snakes. How appropriate⦠George was a heavy bird and while not as fast as a hawk, dive-bombing proved to be an effective tactic. The others seemed reasonably matched even against magic though that was likely the twins' shields, we all had a set that whirred invisibly around us. The werewolves came leaping into the fray then. Their numbers matched the wizards, so the odds were now two to one, or would be if we had not already taken a few of the Death Eaters out of commission. The Death Eaters split up, the werewolves attacked Remus, Draco, Fred, Neville and Sirius, and the wizards attacked Harry, and a few occupied themselves with trying to capture the birds and me. Vox was also attacked exclusively by the wizards but that was because he bore silver knives and none of the werewolves were going anywhere near that threat. Harry became human again, but too shadowed for the bright full moon. The wizards landed no spells but not for the reason that I expected. I was so shocked that I stopped in my tracks. The spells approached him and slowed several feet away. The light seemed to unravel so that he had a hundred unfocused fireworks slowly dispersing around him. It was as if the air became too thick for magic to pass. He however was not paying them any mind, his attentions were on the twisting mob of animals and then briefly on me. Then I was snatched by the ears and stuffed in a sack.
I struck out with a hoof and caught the largest of the werewolves in the neck. I had kept eyes on Remus; thankfully he was not identical to the others who seemed made from the same mold. Remus was tawny rather than dark gray and scrawny by comparison to the over-muscled brutes that had attacked us. I hoped dearly that it was Greyback that had gotten his neck broken not that that would be a lasting hurt if he escaped and got help. I looked for Remus again, he had moved around to my other side and was trying to fight off two at once, but before I could join him Sirius had kicked off his own attacker and charged one of the two. I then turned my attention to escaping the circle and rescuing Severus. So far I had failed; each time I was blocked by two or more hulking werewolves. I was met with three when I turned, so I reared and struck down with my fore hooves, I made contact with the skull of a werewolf that was too slow to get out of the way. Leaping over the fallen werewolf I tried to escape the circle that way. Claws and teeth grazed my back and then jaws clamped around my ankle. I screamed and kicked. They let go but blood dripped too quickly from the wound. Then as I looked around there was a gap in the fight. I took it, galloped around to where my godfather was and knocked down his torturer. He was still capable of mounting though not well, his right arm was curled into his chest. We left as fast as I could run. I knew I was leaving a splattering of blood behind me but hopefully they would be too occupied to follow.
I had already earned a gash that laid open my shoulder but it wasn't too bad. My brother was still uninjured and likely would stay that way with the tactics he was taking. The werewolves were almost my size, we probably weighed the same but I was taller at the shoulder. One leapt for my throat and a heavy swipe knocked him off balance. My side seemed to have formed coherent pairs, Tesla and George were looking out for each other, and Sirius had just gone to Remus' rescue, Draco it seemed was trying to get out of the mob of fighting but I had seen his godfather at the wand-point of one of the Death Eaters, likely Draco was trying to save him. Harry was well and truly on his own, but there was no doubt he wanted it that way. I looked around for Neville and found him pinned on his back by a werewolf. He was clawing at the werewolf with all four paws but that was making little impression. I shoved the werewolf off of him. From then on, Neville and I stayed close together, he taking my protection gratefully.
I swerved to the left to avoid a spell even as I tried to watch the fight going on below. Neville was pinned to the ground and fear made me tremble. He was easily the smallest out there besides Hermione. I hadn't seen her since near the beginning of the fight but with her white coat it would have been hard without the chaos of the fight going on. She could easily have escaped into the white night. Draco had left, godfather on his back, blood trailing behind. George made another dive at a Death Eater. I circled and watched Harry. He was surrounded by multicolored light and as the Death Eaters cast spells it only grew. I made another circuit and came back after scraping one of the Death Eaters across the face with my talons. Harry's part of the fighting was frozen or near enough. I made another circuit and scratched a few other attacker's, I think even half-blinding one. Then as I flew past Harry again he sank to his knees one hand pressed against his forehead.
There was blinding pain and then my hands and face were inexplicably cold. Pain in my ribs and a sideways force made me flip onto my back. When did I lie down? Blinking back tears I squinted upwards, one hand still clasped to my scar. The pain waned enough for me to see clearly. Red eyes, stared down at me, cold, and no doubt disgusted by the show of weakness, the slits of the nose skewed by the twist of his mouth. I snarled and leapt to my feet stubborn against the pain that made me dizzy, made me sick. I felt vile standing next to him. I flung fire and ice at him, and was rebuffed like waves against a cliff. I felt the tickle of intrusion on my mind, and struck at that without really knowing what I was attacking, him or a probe of magic. He retreated from that front but a whip of flame slashed out from his wand. I sliced through it easily, and attacked again this time with daggers of solid air. Those were brushed aside lazily. Our fight was little more than a stalemate, defense and attack equal. I studied him; his dark wand swept with the casting of spells but in his other hand was a leather sack. Suddenly everything felt heavy, I had seen Hermione stuffed into that sack, and now Voldemort had her. I ripped at the sack, imagining it with a slash through it and Hermione freed and fleeing from the fight. Nothing happened. I tried summoning the sack, but it didn't leave his grip.
A cutting spell hit me in the shoulder, a dozen stinging wounds the length of my hand oozed, soaking my cloak with blood. I gritted my teeth and kept my focus on the sack, I imagined a seam splitting. Nothing. I imagined other ways for it to release Hermione, the leather weak and rotting or the knot coming untied. Again nothing.
"Harry Potter," Voldemort said smoothly, we had both ceased casting spells at each other and both of us were straining over control of the sack. He using incantations and I just will and wild magic and desperation now. His wand flickered, and I imagined it snapping. He wasn't expecting it and the wood cracked, red phoenix feather now exposed to the air. His spell stopped. Whatever else he was going to say turned into a furious growl as I lunged for the sack. His loss of magic weapons and the physical attack won me the sack but his reaction was swift. His clammy fingers wrapped around the back of my neck. The protection that had been stripped away from me at the end of fourth year had reversed the effect, now it was I in agony at the contact. Not as much as when he opened the link between us. Even so it felt like I was being ripped apart, something was being stretched to breaking. I dropped the sack so that I could cling to that part of me. The draw strings at the top loosened and Hermione struggled out. Voldemort picked her up by the scruff of her neck and Hermione twisted so that she could scratch at his arm with her long claws.
"Don't move, your neck is a delicate thing and I'd hate for it to break." He hissed malevolently, and Hermione froze, rabbit eyes wide and fearful. I struggled to free her but he held us easily separate.
Voldemort pulled me up, his strength extraordinary, and in the process he dropped Hermione. Casually, he touched my scar with a finger, like it was an experiment.
I opened my eyes. Voldemort still had me by the throat, but now he was leaning over me where I had fallen. But he was not looking at me any longer. Through blurred vision I could still see that the others fought but I was starting to think that the tides were turning against us. I clawed at his wrist, then remembered myself, and shifted away from him. Voldemort turned, shocked.
"I see," he said, musing, "Pain, Potter. You are your own trap, and you'll be your own death."
"I am," I answered coolly, knowing it would grate at him, knowing he would know that it wasn't agreement. The words brought back control. I felt him open the link, and I felt the usual sickness, still all consuming agony, vision failed. How could he still do this to me? I pushed back but it felt like throwing pebbles while he was raining boulders around my head. He frowned though; I could feel that much doubt from him. I thrust at that, breaking the crack wider and wider. I was not winning yet, but I was no longer losing.
There were loud pops off to one side; the aurors had arrived at last.
He apparated with the white rabbit still in his hand. His followers, those not dead, disappeared with distinct pops.
Author's Note: Oh dear, that's probably the worst cliffhanger I've ever written. I'm so very sorry about that.
Regards,
Shifted Illusions
