Chapter 23
On the outskirts of Godric's Hollow, there was a forest. Deep and thick was Godric's Forest, spanning to outline over half of the town's perimeter. Unbeknownst to the Hogwarts runaways, there was another, much larger campsite near the edge of this forest. Two pale, shoeless feet walked silently along the ground, pacing back and forth in front of a line of masked people, all dressed in black. A pair of red eyes opened towards the Death Eaters. "My friends," Voldemort greeted them. "Welcome. It has been far too long since I have walked on this earth, breathed this air. But from this time spent away, I have made a discovery. Death is no longer my enemy. The thing I fought for so long to avoid is now just another stepping stone on my road to infinite power. For now I know that not even death can defeat me."
"My Lord, your power is stronger now than it ever has been. You have possession of two of the Hallows. What is your plan?" asked one of the Death Eaters.
"With the resurrection stone, I will be bringing back some old acquaintances of mine. First, welcome back my most trusted servant who fought for me until the end, Bellatrix Lestrange," Voldemort announced. He turned the stone thrice in his hand, and soon a wicked laugh erupted in the silence. A head of wild, black hair appeared. Bellatrix immediately turned to Voldemort and bowed.
"Not even death will stop me from serving you, my Lord," she said. Voldemort nodded in acknowledgment, and Bellatrix ran off to join the line of her fellow Death Eaters. One by one, Voldemort brought back all of the loyal followers who had been lost during the second Wizarding War. Once he felt he had resurrected all of the servants who would still be of use to him in this role, he turned to face his now much larger group of Death Eaters.
"Now, I would like you to all meet someone very special," Voldemort began. As you may recall, Bellatrix was pregnant and gave birth right before the Battle. That child was my own, and I have broken her free from Azkaban so she may serve me. She does, of course, owe me her life, as I gave her hers. This is The Augery."
Delphini Riddle stepped out from the shadows, bowing deeply to her father. "I owe you everything. I live to serve you, Fa…my Lord," she said.
"Very good, Augery," he said, shooing her off to join his ranks. "Now finally, there is one more person to join our cause." A tall, handsome, blonde teenager stepped into view. "This is Gellert Grindelwald. He is a great asset to us for many reasons, but one in particular stands out. Grindelwald possesses something that nobody else has ever even come close to possessing," Voldemort explained.
"Indeed, I do," Grindelwald added on, smirking.
"And what might that be, my Dark Lord?" Bellatrix asked.
"Albus Dumbledore's heart," Voldemort answered.
—
The next day, Landry and her friends were sitting together in the living room of the tent, when, all of a sudden, the mood of the room seemed to change. Landry felt inexplicably sad. It felt like all the light had been sucked from the world, like she would never be happy again. Looking around, she noticed that she was not the only one who seemed to be feeling this way. Dumbledore was the only one who did not look utterly drained. In fact, he looked rather concerned. Landry shivered. Had the room really just dropped twenty degrees in temperature, or was it just her? "Take out your wands, children, and follow me," said Dumbledore. Everyone did as told, and they all followed him outside. As soon as they left the tent, it became clear what had caused the change of mood. Hundreds of black shapes filled the sky above, floating eerily together.
"Dementors," Scorpius gasped.
"Indeed," said Dumbledore grimly. "Known servants of evil. They are surely headed to find Voldemort or Grindelwald."
"Woah," said Albus.
"The force field will keep us safe while they pass, but once we're out from under it, we will have to rely on other forms of protection. I assume you are all familiar with the Patronus charm?"
Landry nodded. "We learned it in fifth year. I don't think I've cast one since then, though."
"I see. Would you mind if, for a moment, I revert back to my old role of Professor?" Dumbledore asked.
"Not at all, Sir," said Landry.
"Excellent. Now, if you could all gather round, that would be most convenient," continued Dumbledore, gesturing them all towards him.
The teenagers and Pippa formed a circle around Dumbledore.
"A Patronus is the embodiment of the light that is inside every one of you. This light can, if you believe hard enough, be strong enough to drown out even the darkest of things. Now, we will take turns practicing the Patronus charm. I will demonstrate," he said.
Dumbledore withdrew the wand that McGonagall had given him whenever he had first been resurrected. He closed his eyes, before uttering the words "Expecto Patronum." A blast of silvery light erupted from his wand, and it soon took the shape of a phoenix. It flew around Dumbledore several times, and he smiled fondly at it before it dissolved.
"Now then," Dumbledore said, looking up. "You can go first, Landry."
In order to cast a patronus, one must think back and remember one of their happiest memories. One so strong, filled with such light and joy, that it can drown out even the pure darkness of a dementor. Landry had always struggled with what memory she should choose, but today she had no hesitation. Landry closed her eyes and pictured the Halloween Ball. Her first kiss with Miles, the moment that she knew what love felt like. "Expecto Patronum," she cried. Silver mist appeared from her wand just as it had with Dumbledore's. But this time, it wasn't a phoenix, though it did have wings. A giant, silvery thestral dashed around the campsite. Everyone's jaws dropped at the sight, and as the creature disappeared, all eyes turned towards Landry with shock.
"Why did you never tell me that your Patronus is a thestral?" Scorpius cried. "Landry, it's a super rare Patronus, almost nobody has it!"
"I….really?" Landry questioned.
"What Scorpius says is true, Landry. The thestral Patronus is quite unusual. It takes a very unique witch to cast one," Dumbledore said with a twinkle in his eye.
"Wow. I had no idea. I guess I remember Professor Dagley saying something about the thestral being odd whenever I took my test on casting the spell in fifth year, but I never really thought anything of it," Landry recalled.
"Okay, we get it, Landry's special, blah blah blah, it's my turn now!" Pippa said, pulling out her wand.
"Have you ever cast a patronus before, Pippa?" Dumbledore asked.
"No, but it seems easy enough. Point your wand, say the words, think of something happy. Easy peasy," Pippa replied.
"Very well, then. Give it a try."
Pippa shut her eyes tightly, and cried "Expecto Patronum!"
Everyone was expecting some majestic beast to immediately pop out of her wand, but instead, all that emerged was a tiny puff of silver mist. Pippa opened her eyes, and her face fell. "It's okay, Pip, try again!" said Landry, trying to comfort her sister.
"Okay, I will. I can do it this time!" Pippa said, this time with much more determination. "Expecto Patronum!" she cried. But, to her disappointment, still only a small silvery wisp of mist appeared. "Ugh!" she cried.
"Pippa, what were you thinking about, if you don't mind me asking?" said Miles, approaching her tentatively.
"Mac and cheese," Pippa said, looking up at him.
"Oh, well there's your problem. It has to be your happiest memory. One that fills you with so much light that it can drown out the darkness of the dementors. Here, I'll show you," Miles said. He took his wand in his hand and cried, "Expecto Patronum!"
A majestic unicorn appeared, rearing up on its hind legs before walking over to Miles. He smiled at it, and reached out to stroke its nose. As soon as he touched it, the unicorn evaporated. He turned to Pippa. "I was thinking of the Halloween Ball, when Landry and I had our first ki…started dating," Miles said.
Pippa rolled her eyes. "Oh please, Miles, don't try and spare my little kid innocence. I was literally there at the ball. I saw you making out with my sister," she said.
Landry laughed. Miles sighed. "Okay, moving on," he started, "Think of the happiest moment of your life, Pippa. One that really stands out."
Pippa closed her eyes. She stood still, silent for once, for over a minute. Then she raised her wand and shouted, "Expecto Patronum!"
A bright, silver, serpent-like creature shot from her wand. It started off quite small, but then began to grow. It was an occamy, scaly and feathered, and it was getting larger and larger, until…..the occamy dissolved. Pippa let out a squeal of delight. "I did it, I did it!" she cried, jumping up and down in excitement.
"Excellent work, Pippa," said Dumbledore.
"Thanks, Miles," said Pippa, turning to face her sister's boyfriend. "You were right. I thought of the day that Daddy and Pops adopted me. That's much happier than mac and cheese."
"I'm glad I could help," said Miles. "Though, I must admit, mac and cheese is really tasty."