Title – Harry Potter: Return to the Chamber

Author – Grace the Amazing Cracker

Rating – PG13

Genre – Romance

Disclaimer – You should know by the eleventh chapter that I don't own anything except my Dream Street merchandise, some paper and a crappy mechanical pencil. Oh, and the idea of Life Breathers. If you wanna use those in your fic (not that anyone will), go for it. You dun have to give me any credit, but just don't say you thought it up. And just leave a review saying you're using it because I'd like to know who's using my stuffishness. Oh yeah, and I know Dumbledore said there's no way someone can bring back the dead, but Life Breathers, as you're gonna find out in a moment, don't bring back the dead. They just make them alive until they can settle themselves (you'll see), then they die again.


Summary – It's Ron and Hermione's wedding day. The day they've been waiting for all their lives. Yet, something is missing…

***

"Yes," said the figure, straightening up. "It is I. Wormtail."

Hermione gasped.

"B-but… how… we asked for…" she stammered.

"Ah, yes," Wormtail muttered. Death certainly had changed his personality, or perhaps it had simply changed naturally over time. Nevertheless, he was different, no longer the stammering idiot he was before. "The clues you gave to the Life Breather." He gestured behind himself at the strange creation. "Perhaps they were too vague. They matched me as well as whoever-"

"Harry," blurted Ron. "We were trying to bring back Harry."

"Harry." Wormtail spat out the name like one would spit out something distasteful. "Yes… He and I were a lot a like. We had few friends, few but loyal… as you pointed out to the Life Breather." He peered around at the odd little birdbath thing. "And both of our demises were brought on by my master." He stopped, looking as though he wanted to kill himself. "My old master," he corrected himself. "I remember it like it was yesterday… I had just come back to the Riddle House to report to him…"

"I'm here, My Lord," he mumbled.

"Good, Wormtail. I've been getting impatient. Now what information have you brought me? It had better be good if it took you that long."

Wormtail gritted his teeth. Why don't you get off your lazy butt and get it yourself, you bum, see how long it takes you, he thought, but he didn't say anything.

"Well, your Lordship, I know of a witch in Surrey, her name is Arabella Figg, she knows-"

"Wormtail, you blundering idiot! You incompetent fool!" Lord Voldemort cried in his raspy voice. "I asked for information on the boy, the one our whole operation has been based on the past decade and a half!" He rose from his chair. He stood shakily, as though he hadn't used his legs in years, which, Wormtail reminded himself, he probably hadn't.

"I-I'm sorry, My Lord," he stammered.

"No, Wormtail, you have failed me too many times. You are not fit to be my servant. You cannot do something as simple as telling me where the Potter boy might be!"

"But, Master, I-"

"Silence!" He whirled around to face the quivering man. Voldemort pointed his wand. "Avada Kedavra!"

Wormtail collapsed in a lifeless heap on the floor. He had died before he could tell Voldemort that the witch, Arabella Figg, was caring for the boy at that very moment.

Hermione and Ron stared at Wormtail, stunned. Wormtail stared at the wall, hating Voldemort.

Suddenly, Wormtail snatched Ron's wand – since his own had been removed from his body when he died – and uttered an incantation under his breath. He made a sort of twirling motion with the wand, and Lord Voldemort materialized right before their eyes.

"What?" spat Voldemort. "What am I doing here?"

"You're here," began Wormtail, regarding Voldemort coldly. He spoke not as a servant would to his master, but rather the other way around, "because I wish to seek my revenge upon you for my death."

"Wha-at?" Voldemort stammered. His eyes flickered from Wormtail to the Life Breather and back to Wormtail. "Wormtail, don't be a fool-"

"AVADA KEDAVRA!" Wormtail cried. The green light Ron wished he would never have to see again issued from the wand, finally ending the life that had ended many others. Wormtail, Peter Pettigrew, had killed Voldemort.

Wormtail stared at Voldemort's limp body with a look of intense disgust on his face. He kicked the body and spat on it.

"That's all I needed to do," Wormtail said to Ron, handing him back his wand. "I'm going now."

That's right, Ron realized. Uneasy souls obviously die again once they have settled themselves…

Hermione and Ron watched Wormtail slowly fade away until he had vanished completely.

"Wingardium Leviosa," Ron muttered. This would be the second body Ron would have to levitate in his life – he considered one to be too many. He and Hermione went back up to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, still carrying Voldemort's body.

"Harry didn't even get to kill Voldemort," Hermione whimpered between sobs. She was totally upset after the experience.

"I know," Ron whispered consolingly.

They showed Voldemort's body to the guard outside of the Chamber, who shrieked and ran off to fetch the Headmaster. Hermione disappeared back inside to get April, and was still trying to pry her away from Myrtle when the guard reappeared with Dumbledore.

"Well done, Mr. Weasley," Dumbledore said, looking at Ron with admiration. "Normally, I would award, oh, say, ten thousand points to Gryffindor, but the circumstances involving the fact that you don't attend-"

"Wait, sir," Ron said. "I didn't kill You-Know-Who." He gulped. "Peter Pettigrew did."

"He did, did he?" repeated Dumbledore. "May I inquire as to how?"

"We resurrected him when we meant to bring Harry back instead. A-and Peter was seeking revenge on him…" Ron told him the story, including Wormtail's narrative of the night he died. "But, sir, why did Peter Pettigrew come back instead of Harry?"

"Ah, Mr. Weasley, there are many answers to that question, some of them are unexplainable. I think, however, the most likely reason is that Harry's soul was, indeed, at ease, and therefore one could not bring him back using a Life Breather."

Ron cocked his head slightly, confused.

"Perhaps Harry was not completely obsessed with avenging his parents, Ronald," Dumbledore explained. "Thus, his soul was not restless."

Ron nodded to show he understood. Professor Dumbledore smiled.

Just then, Hermione appeared. She was short of breath and had just barely managed to tear her daughter from Moaning Myrtle's clutches, which was difficult, even if Myrtle was a ghost.

"Oh, hello, Professor Dumbledore, sir," she breathed.

"Greetings, Miss Granger," he said. "Or, should I say, Mrs. Weasley." He winked at Ron. "Ronald has already informed me of what happened in the Chamber. He insists that neither he nor you are responsible for Voldemort's" – Ron flinched – "death, however, I do believe that some sort of reward is necessary."

"W-what do you mean, sir?" asked Hermione.

Dumbledore looked at the guard, who reached inside his robes and pulled out a large, thick book. He handed it to Dumbledore, who handed it to Ron. (A/N: Why didn't I just have the guard hand it to Ron? *shakes head* I am a loser.) The cover was fashioned in red velvet, and the title, spun in smooth gold scrawl (A/N: I just realized that those are the Gryffindor colors… cool… I didn't even try to do that, it just kind of happened…), read, Fond Memories of Our Fond Friend, Harry Potter. Inside was page after page of pictures of Harry. Most were smiling and waving, but one wasn't moving at all (it was one of his pictures from his Muggle elementary school – Hermione giggled when she pointed out that he was missing his two front teeth), and Colin Creevey's picture of Harry and Gilderoy Lockhart together.

Ron was speechless as he flipped through the pages. Hermione looked up at Dumbledore, her eyes filled with tears. She flung herself on him, hugging him as she had done to Ron earlier. Dumbledore looked slightly surprised, but he hugged her back.

"Thank you, sir," she whispered when she finally released him.

Dumbledore only smiled and nodded.

Hermione collected April, then the three of them Disapparated.

When they were gone, Dumbledore turned and went back to his office to notify the Minister of Magic. The world was rid of Lord Voldemort at last.

*~ THE END ~*

Thankies to… all my reviewers: Kyree, Lady Norbert, Iris, Beankid88, 'u r a feakyo', Addrielinis daughter of Elrond sister of the Undomiel (Jess, your brother isn't a bag of wet cement, he just falls like one), Laura-Grace, Albus Dumbledore, Krum-Luver, JennyT, Adnap Nottap, Ronmi, Hermione, Samantha543, Fate, Mystique Meowth, I'm a BLONDE so read it, Toast, 'andysgf@hotmail.com', purplerain, mandy weasley, Jesse's-girl, Sara, Urien second heir to the steward of Gondor (Jake, R/Hr ROCKS DA WORLD! So there.) and anyone else who has read this and rudely insisted on not reviewing!

Thankies to… Kyree, my beta-reader!

Thankies to… J.K. Rowling, for letting me mutilate her characters.

Thankies to… Urm, me, I guess.

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If you didn't like it, remember this:

I didn't pay you to read it

I didn't bribe you to read it

I didn't use the Imperius Curse to make you read it

So don't flame me for wasting your time.