Harry Potter and the Jade Heart
Chapter 17
"A Little More"
Everything was pitch black, but Harry wasn't at Hogwarts. It was complete darkness all around. Harry's head ached from slamming onto the ground. He stood up and looked around. Trees surrounded the clearing, and beyond the trees behind him Harry could barely see some houses. In front of him he saw a massive group of cloaked figures. Harry grasped tightly onto his wand. "Lumos!" he said, but immediately wished he hadn't.
It had been a strange sequence of events that brought Harry to the clearing in the forest outside of Hogwarts grounds. After he had left Dumbeldore's office that one day, Harry made an attempt to talk with every person who cared about him.
"I'm fine, Harry," replied Ginny Weasley. "The year has been okay. Fourth year is quite tough really. Although I am quite enjoying Care of Magical Creatures. I probably won't work with dragons like Charlie. Perhaps unicorns are more for me. No, Harry, I'm not feeling left out of anything. Left out of what exactly? I'm fourteen now, and plus, I have six older brothers. I don't need you to act like a seventh."
"Professor Sprout told me I might make a good assistant after I graduate from Hogwarts. Isn't that fantastic? Me working at Hogwarts. Would you have believed it?" Harry smiled as Neville rattled on about Herbology, the one subject he was actually good at. Neville seemed extremely content. Harry didn't have to worry about him.
"Go away. I knew I shouldn't have said anything! I don't want pity from you or from Ron." Hermione wasn't as warming as the others. Harry thought she had good reason. Sort of. But Harry had suspected Hermione before, and Dumbledore said suspicions prove innocence.
"Uh...Harry? Are you feeling alright??"
"Doesn't look like it to me."
"I'm fine," Harry assured Parvati and Lavendar. He figured he would cover all the bases though in the front of his mind he knew that if either of them had Jade Hearts they'd most likely just turn on each other.
"Exams?!" Harry yelled. "That was quick!" The end of the year had crept up on Harry. It's not that it went by fast; Harry just wasn't paying attention as it went by at all. "I need to study." Harry wished that Hermione hadn't abandoned him and Ron. Maybe he would have realized exams were coming up long before. Now he only had a week to study and no Hermione to study with. 'Is that all I mean to you?' he imagined Hermione saying.
"Harry?"
Harry was laying on his bed reading. He had been slowly drifting off, and the book fell on his face when he heard his name. The door creaked open and a head of bushy brown hair peaked in. "Hermione," Harry said, surprised. He got up and motioned for her to come in. She slid through the door and closed it behind her.
"What are you up to?" she asked as she approached his bed where he was sitting. She remained standing.
"Just studying for exams. I completely forgot about them."
"I sort of forgot about them as well." Harry had a sort of shocked expression on his face. "I know. I've just been thinking about other things."
"Like what?"
"Well, like learning new spells."
"We learn new spells every year. Why would that distract you from your studies? I mean, they are a big part of your studies."
"I mean learning spells they don't teach at Hogwarts."
"Oh. Well, what kind of spells?"
"For instance," said Hermione, taking a step back and pointing her wand at the foot of Harry's bed, "this one." She quickly redirected her wand at Harry and said, "Privor sensus!"
Harry thought she killed him. Everything went dark, and he could no longer hear anything. In fact, he could no longer smell or feel either. All of his senses had just stopped. He could still think, but he was completely oblivious as to what was going on around him. He wanted to say something, but he couldn't feel his mouth. He couldn't feel exactly, but he knew when pressure was applied to him. Someone had picked him up or was just holding him. Next thing he knew, he was getting back to his senses and found himself in the middle of a forest.
"That was just too easy," he heard a familiar voice say. That's when he lit up his wand. There in front of him were the death eaters from last year plus many new ones. He couldn't see their faces, but he knew that voice.
"What did you do to me? Why? Where are we?"
"So many questions, Mr. Potter," said another less friendly voice. "That curiosity of yours will only hurt you...may possibly even lead you to an early death."
"Voldemort," Harry said, darkly.
"Who else?" he stated as he approached closer revealing his full, hideous human appearance. "And I do believe you already know the death eaters. As you see, I've made some additions."
Harry looked past Voldemort into the faces of the front death eaters. They were standing too far back for him to see who they were exactly, but he already knew who one of them was. "Why would you take a muggleborn?" Harry asked Voldemort, but keeping his eyes on the death eaters.
"Because I know how much it is eating you up inside. But don't limit your attention on just that. I have more surprises." Voldemort lifted his wand and pointed it along the ground and a wall of flames shot up. They reached to Harry's neck level. He was alone on his side. Why would Voldemort want to separate him from the others?
A handful of death eaters walked up and stopped behind Voldemort. One of them lowered his hood. Harry wasn't surprised at all to see Draco Malfoy. "Hello, Potter," he spat out.
Harry glared at him, but then ignored him. "Why, Hermione? How could you do this after how badly Draco treated you or the fact that Voldemort killed lots of people and tried to kill me? I thought we were friends."
Hermione lifted her head so Harry could see her. The light from the flames danced across her face. Her eyes looked particularly dark and angry; they weren't cold, but she spoke like she was bottling up a thousand emotions. "Are we?" she said, without changing her tone or expression. It was a side of her Harry never thought he'd see or could have imagined.
"I wouldn't be too concerned about her if I were you, Harry," said the person to her right. "You wouldn't believe the things she has done."
"Who are you?" Harry asked. It was more of a demand than a question.
Seamus removed his hood at the same time the other death eaters around Draco and Hermione removed theirs. Hermione's remained on. All fifth year prefects were standing before Harry. He looked at Voldemort. "This was part of your plan?"
"My plans go way above your head. You will die long before all my plans are carried out."
"Why don't you just kill me now then?"
"Because I want you to suffer."
"You killed my parents. What more can you do?"
The prefects all took a few steps back. Voldemort flicked his wand at the ground in front of his feet. Harry looked down and behind the flames he could barely see a figure lying on the ground.
Chapter 17
"A Little More"
Everything was pitch black, but Harry wasn't at Hogwarts. It was complete darkness all around. Harry's head ached from slamming onto the ground. He stood up and looked around. Trees surrounded the clearing, and beyond the trees behind him Harry could barely see some houses. In front of him he saw a massive group of cloaked figures. Harry grasped tightly onto his wand. "Lumos!" he said, but immediately wished he hadn't.
It had been a strange sequence of events that brought Harry to the clearing in the forest outside of Hogwarts grounds. After he had left Dumbeldore's office that one day, Harry made an attempt to talk with every person who cared about him.
"I'm fine, Harry," replied Ginny Weasley. "The year has been okay. Fourth year is quite tough really. Although I am quite enjoying Care of Magical Creatures. I probably won't work with dragons like Charlie. Perhaps unicorns are more for me. No, Harry, I'm not feeling left out of anything. Left out of what exactly? I'm fourteen now, and plus, I have six older brothers. I don't need you to act like a seventh."
"Professor Sprout told me I might make a good assistant after I graduate from Hogwarts. Isn't that fantastic? Me working at Hogwarts. Would you have believed it?" Harry smiled as Neville rattled on about Herbology, the one subject he was actually good at. Neville seemed extremely content. Harry didn't have to worry about him.
"Go away. I knew I shouldn't have said anything! I don't want pity from you or from Ron." Hermione wasn't as warming as the others. Harry thought she had good reason. Sort of. But Harry had suspected Hermione before, and Dumbledore said suspicions prove innocence.
"Uh...Harry? Are you feeling alright??"
"Doesn't look like it to me."
"I'm fine," Harry assured Parvati and Lavendar. He figured he would cover all the bases though in the front of his mind he knew that if either of them had Jade Hearts they'd most likely just turn on each other.
"Exams?!" Harry yelled. "That was quick!" The end of the year had crept up on Harry. It's not that it went by fast; Harry just wasn't paying attention as it went by at all. "I need to study." Harry wished that Hermione hadn't abandoned him and Ron. Maybe he would have realized exams were coming up long before. Now he only had a week to study and no Hermione to study with. 'Is that all I mean to you?' he imagined Hermione saying.
"Harry?"
Harry was laying on his bed reading. He had been slowly drifting off, and the book fell on his face when he heard his name. The door creaked open and a head of bushy brown hair peaked in. "Hermione," Harry said, surprised. He got up and motioned for her to come in. She slid through the door and closed it behind her.
"What are you up to?" she asked as she approached his bed where he was sitting. She remained standing.
"Just studying for exams. I completely forgot about them."
"I sort of forgot about them as well." Harry had a sort of shocked expression on his face. "I know. I've just been thinking about other things."
"Like what?"
"Well, like learning new spells."
"We learn new spells every year. Why would that distract you from your studies? I mean, they are a big part of your studies."
"I mean learning spells they don't teach at Hogwarts."
"Oh. Well, what kind of spells?"
"For instance," said Hermione, taking a step back and pointing her wand at the foot of Harry's bed, "this one." She quickly redirected her wand at Harry and said, "Privor sensus!"
Harry thought she killed him. Everything went dark, and he could no longer hear anything. In fact, he could no longer smell or feel either. All of his senses had just stopped. He could still think, but he was completely oblivious as to what was going on around him. He wanted to say something, but he couldn't feel his mouth. He couldn't feel exactly, but he knew when pressure was applied to him. Someone had picked him up or was just holding him. Next thing he knew, he was getting back to his senses and found himself in the middle of a forest.
"That was just too easy," he heard a familiar voice say. That's when he lit up his wand. There in front of him were the death eaters from last year plus many new ones. He couldn't see their faces, but he knew that voice.
"What did you do to me? Why? Where are we?"
"So many questions, Mr. Potter," said another less friendly voice. "That curiosity of yours will only hurt you...may possibly even lead you to an early death."
"Voldemort," Harry said, darkly.
"Who else?" he stated as he approached closer revealing his full, hideous human appearance. "And I do believe you already know the death eaters. As you see, I've made some additions."
Harry looked past Voldemort into the faces of the front death eaters. They were standing too far back for him to see who they were exactly, but he already knew who one of them was. "Why would you take a muggleborn?" Harry asked Voldemort, but keeping his eyes on the death eaters.
"Because I know how much it is eating you up inside. But don't limit your attention on just that. I have more surprises." Voldemort lifted his wand and pointed it along the ground and a wall of flames shot up. They reached to Harry's neck level. He was alone on his side. Why would Voldemort want to separate him from the others?
A handful of death eaters walked up and stopped behind Voldemort. One of them lowered his hood. Harry wasn't surprised at all to see Draco Malfoy. "Hello, Potter," he spat out.
Harry glared at him, but then ignored him. "Why, Hermione? How could you do this after how badly Draco treated you or the fact that Voldemort killed lots of people and tried to kill me? I thought we were friends."
Hermione lifted her head so Harry could see her. The light from the flames danced across her face. Her eyes looked particularly dark and angry; they weren't cold, but she spoke like she was bottling up a thousand emotions. "Are we?" she said, without changing her tone or expression. It was a side of her Harry never thought he'd see or could have imagined.
"I wouldn't be too concerned about her if I were you, Harry," said the person to her right. "You wouldn't believe the things she has done."
"Who are you?" Harry asked. It was more of a demand than a question.
Seamus removed his hood at the same time the other death eaters around Draco and Hermione removed theirs. Hermione's remained on. All fifth year prefects were standing before Harry. He looked at Voldemort. "This was part of your plan?"
"My plans go way above your head. You will die long before all my plans are carried out."
"Why don't you just kill me now then?"
"Because I want you to suffer."
"You killed my parents. What more can you do?"
The prefects all took a few steps back. Voldemort flicked his wand at the ground in front of his feet. Harry looked down and behind the flames he could barely see a figure lying on the ground.