Fickle Fate: Chapter 55
The last time I updated it was so fast and I was so tired I didn't get to read the reviews from chapter 53 before posting. I did this time and got to read double the reviews and just...you guys make me smile so hard my cheeks hurt! Thank you so much! Hope it didn't hurt too much waiting for this chapter. ;)
Warnings: Just...a lot of feels. Yeah, that's it.
Disclaimer: I wish I did...but I don't.
Please enjoy!
Desperation
Severus watched as the green bolt of the Killing Curse flew from Dumbledore's wand and struck Harry right in the chest. He watched as his son didn't even see the spell coming and then fell backwards...dead. Snape didn't hear everyone else around him screaming. He didn't see his wand coming up or notice himself bellowing a curse at the old man. He didn't see the children around him suddenly falling into utter despair at seeing their friend/brother die before their eyes.
What Severus did see was the man who murdered his son disappearing with a smug smile on his face. He saw Tom trying to drag himself over to Harry's body in his exhausted state. He saw Harry's body laying on the cold damp ground of the Chamber of Secrets not far from the "Lost Diadem of Ravenclaw".
The Potions Master felt cold, numb as his feet dragged him across the stone floor and over to Harry. He vaguely registered Lucius struggling to hold onto Sirius as the man utterly lost it. Snape finally reached Harry and collapsed to his knees. His dark eyes flicked up and met Tom's. The guilt and sympathy in them was too much for him to comprehend so he quickly turned away from his Lord.
A tear fell from his cheek onto his trembling hand as he reached forward to turn Harry's face towards him. Harry had already started to grow cold (likely due to the chill from the floor seeping into his body) and feeling the icy flesh against his fingertips made it all come crashing down onto Severus. Wretched sobs wracked his body and he clumsily gathered Harry to his chest. He trembled and rocked back and forth in some dark parody of a mother comforting her crying child.
Meanwhile, behind him, Lucius held Sirius against his chest to prevent the man from running off and doing something drastic like he had done the night Lily and James were murdered. Ron was holding Hermione close as she sobbed into his chest and he cried quietly into her hair. Draco and Neville watched everything in a silent shock, Draco gripping Neville's wrist so hard the Gryffindor's hand was going numb.
After what felt like an eternity of despair, and as Severus clutched Harry's lifeless body to his chest, Tom reached forward and clasped Snape's shoulder.
"Severus, we have to leave." Snape didn't look up only clung to Harry as tight as possible. "Severus, you don't have to leave him. We'll take Harry with us, but we can't stay here." That got Severus to look up and meet Tom's eyes. The Dark Lord looked more weary than Severus had ever seen. Somehow that got his attention enough that he was able to pull together some semblance of control. He nodded sharply.
Tom struggled to stand but managed to get to his feet as Snape maneuvered his son's body in his arms. Finally the Potions Master managed to stand with Harry held securely in his grasp.
"I sent a message to the Lestrange brothers and Lupin to wait for us in the Great Hall," Tom spoke to Severus quietly. Then the Dark Lord turned to the crowd still gathered at the entrance to the Chamber. He saw that, thankfully, Sirius had stopped struggling but now he was behaving like a zombie, a shell of a man. "Follow me. I know another way out of here."
Slowly, the group stumbled their way out of the Chamber. Tom's limbs were still shaking from the ritual and the emotional toll of Harry's murder but he pushed on without any help.
By the time they finally reached the surface and found themselves on the first floor near the stairs leading to the dungeons, everyone was silent and numb. No one said a word as they walked towards the Great Hall. Snape kept his eyes straight ahead, clutching at Harry's body but unable to look at it. In his mind he begged for Lily's forgiveness and apologized repeatedly for not being able to protect their son. Severus didn't think he would have noticed that they'd finally reached the Great Hall if they weren't suddenly mobbed by faculty members.
"Dear Merlin! What...what happened," came the distressed cry from Minerva McGonagall. When it was clear that no one would answer Tom spoke softly to the crowd of teachers, Aurors, Madam Bones and more as the crowd around them grew. Remus was staring at the body in Severus's arms and was shaking his head in denial before Tom even said anything.
"Albus Dumbledore...has killed Harry Potter." Tom closed his eyes as cries of despair and anger and denial echoed harshly across the room and rippled through the crowd. Remus fell to his knees and howled in anguish. The sound actually got Sirius to shake out of his daze a little. The Black Lord joined Lupin on the floor and they clung to each other. Tonks, who had arrived as an Auror to get the children to safety rather than fight for Dumbledore, wandered over to the pair slowly as if unsure of her welcome. She knelt by them and simply held one of Remus's hands; her hair was a dull brown in her grief.
Madam Bones, though visibly shaken by the news, managed to gather her wits quickly. She eyed the Dark Lord, strongly suspecting who he was but not having the time to care. It was a judgement call but she decided to trust him.
"Some of his followers ambushed those we evacuated to the Ministry so we stopped sending people through. Just when we got word that the Aurors had managed to capture them all, the wards on the school slammed shut, tripling in strength. No one can get in or out," she reported grimly. Tom took the information in with a frustrated scowl on his face.
He searched the room for the Weasley Twins and they approached when he beckoned them over. The Dark Lord was not encouraged by the identical defeated looks on their faces.
"We tried using our Portkey…"
"But even that didn't work."
"We based it off of the original wards."
"He's altered them somehow..."
"Like he attached his life force to the wards…"
"Making them extra powerful."
"We're sorry…" George finished softly. Their red rimmed eyes told Tom that the young man wasn't just apologizing for not being able to get their invention to work. He knew the Weasley boys saw Harry as a younger brother. No doubt they feel they failed to protect him.
"We'll find another way. Even if it means killing the fool that attached himself to the wards," Tom said. Madam Bones gave him a quelling look.
"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that," she muttered, though a part of her was very much inclined to pretend she won't see the man murdered...or even help commit the act. While Tom continued to talk strategy with Madame Bones and a few of her top Aurors, Minerva and Filius approached Severus.
"Severus, I think you should sit. You've gone through a terrible shock," Minerva said, keeping her voice steady even while a tear escaped. Snape clung to Harry tighter as if they were going to take his son's body from him.
"No one is going to take him from you, Severus," Filius assured him. "We just don't want you to get hurt." With a little more coaxing Snape managed to be persuaded to take a seat at one of dining benches. He cradled Harry in his arms and Minerva subtly ushered Madam Pomfrey over to check Snape's health.
Remus's head whipped up when he heard Pomfrey fussing over the Potions Master. The werewolf pulled away from his best friend and Tonks and crawled over to kneel in front of the man.
"Oh, Pup…" Remus whimpered out. He reached forward and grabbed hold of Harry's hand. Those watching the scene were surprised Snape let the other man close but the Potions Master did not see Remus as a threat in this instance. He knew the grieving man, and Sirius, also considered Harry their son and he would not keep them from mourning the boy.
Ron looked around, still holding tight to Hermione, and finally spotted his brothers. Bill and Charlie were moving towards them quickly, Ginny in tow. Charlie quickly wrapped both Ron and Hermione up as Bill was currently wrapped around a crying Ginny. When the trio broke apart Ron really looked at his little sister.
"You okay, Gin?" His voice was weak but he didn't care. Ginny somehow managed to tuck herself closer to Bill.
"She went out to try and fight the spiders off thinking her friend was still out there. She got caught by a rogue Death Eater and...put under the Cruciatus for a little bit before we got to her," Bill said quietly. Ron grimaced at the thought of his little sister being tortured like that, even if they had had a severe falling out over Harry. He tried to give her a sympathetic look.
"I'm really sorry, Gin," he said. Ginny gave him a bitter smile and she shrugged shakily as if to brush the whole incident off.
"I'm...sorry about Harry," she said in response and Ron could only nod in acknowledgement, his throat tight with emotion. It was strange to him. It was as if, despite everything else, this was the moment that made him realize their world was in the midst of a war.
Their group was soon joined by the Twins who looked utterly despondent, both over the death of Harry and being unable to help everyone escape with their invention. The small Weasley clan, plus Hermione, huddled together for comfort, hoping a way out would present itself soon.
As luck would have it...things exploded right at that moment. Literally.
Magical wind blew through the Great Hall bringing dust and debris with it, forcing everyone to cover their eyes. Sconces and statues exploded around them sending sharp and heavy chunks of stone flying about. Students screamed and the adults tried to shield them all while ducking for cover themselves.
Severus threw himself over Harry's body to protect it from injury. When there was a brief lull in the attack (a magically enhanced evil cackle now echoed about the room), he laid Harry's body beneath a table for safety. Everyone looked about with their wands drawn as Dumbledore's laugh bounced around.
"I'd kill him just for the dramatics," Minerva muttered, eyes alight with the need for vengeance. She heard Remus growl beside her and knew she and many others would have to get in line behind the enraged werewolf to take a bite out of the Headmaster.
More screams erupted around the room as tapestries and tattered tablecloths suddenly sprung to life and tied most of the room's occupants up and hung them from the ceiling. The adults left standing scowled in indignation at the terrified children hanging dangerously high above them.
Ron, Hermione, Draco and Neville struggled as hard as possible against their restraints and Ron couldn't help but be proud of the curses spilling from Ginny's mouth as she too tried to fight her way free. A pile of fallen wands formed in a corner of the room and a shield was erected around them.
Only Tom and a few other adults on his "side" were left standing. The Dark Lord rolled his eyes so hard he gave himself a headache.
"I am done with you, Old Man! Show yourself and fight! You'd rather torment children than face me!" The demented laughter got louder and louder until there was a small, contained explosion at the front of the room. The blow-back of debris forced the standing wizards to cover their eyes and when it was safe for them to look, they saw him.
Standing on the raised platform where the faculty's dining table usually stood was Albus Dumbledore. He had a look of triumph on his face, Harry's invisibility cloak draped over his shoulders like a cape and the Elder Wand held aloft in his hand. The Headmaster truly looked like a mad man with his infamous eye twinkle and evil smirk.
"Oh, Tom. Still acting the part of powerful man, when you are nothing but a desperate orphan. Behold the Great Lord Voldemort!" Albus shouted and gesticulated like a ring leader at a circus. His declaration managed to draw a few gasps from the unwilling audience but most were either more concerned about Albus or already knew. "If only you and Harry continued to play your parts we wouldn't be here. Harry would have died a hero rather than a useless brat too desperate for affection he'd believe anyone who said a kind word," he continued mockingly.
As he'd intended his words caused Remus to snap and Severus to lash out. Albus batted the lunging werewolf out of the air with his magic and blocked Snape's Cutting Hex with barely a flick of his wrist.
"What could you possibly hope to gain you deranged fool," Tom asked in utter disbelief. There was a time when he knew he shared the same blood thirst and need for power but with the majority of his soul returned he couldn't wrap his mind around Dumbledore's madness.
"Simply: Power. Specifically: Power over death. I already have two of the three Hallows. Once I have the third I will be Master of Death and I will extend my reach past the Wizarding World and across the globe." A series of confused looks passed over those in the room. Lucius was the first to vocalize his thoughts.
"The Deathly Hallows? That's a children's' story!" Albus scowled and blasted a few curses at the Malfoy Lord that Lucius was only just able to dodge.
"They are very real and once I have all three I will give this world the leader it deserves! Don't you see?! This world needs order and if some must perish, then it is all for the greater good!" Tom decided he had listened to the old man long enough and attacked. Soon spells were flying left and right. Flitwick and Minerva who'd managed to escape getting caught up in the drapery focused their efforts on shielding those hanging above them. Everyone else (Tom, Lucius, Severus, Remus, Sirius and the Lestrange brothers) fought with all they had but Dumbledore blocked every single spell and sent ones back that were twice as deadly.
The Dark Lord knew the Headmaster was also drawing on power from the school since he had tied himself to the school's natural magic and wards. Rodolphus went down with a cry and Remus followed soon after. Tom felt genuine fear for the first time in a long time and didn't know what to do.
He knew they would lose and there was nothing he could do to stop it.
I've said it before and I'll say it again: I'm not good at battle scenes! Anyway I hope you enjoyed the new chapter and the new cliffhanger. ;) See you in 2 weeks!
Please review! :)
