Note from Fae: Merry Christmas everyone! Hope you have/had a good one! This is a short one, I know...but it's the one that gets to me...whenever I need a good cry, I fly to this chapter. So I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed being a part of it, as much as Stoneheart enjoyed writing it. Review!
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Chapter Twelve:
Darkness
Dumbledore entered the clearing warily, his wand before him. His astonishment at the devastation he discovered was not apparent in his eyes, though his insides churned with dread.
It was the sound of bitter sobs which drew him to that which he most feared to find.
Dumbledore waved his wand; a dozen candles appeared, spread out to ring a scene that brought a gasping cry to his lips.
A hunched form was revealed in the candlelight, shaking with unrestrained anguish. The figure over which it was bent was of a state to send ice through Dumbledore's veins.
Sirius raised his head, his eyes red with tears.
"Help him, Albus!" he sobbed pleadingly. "He can't DIE! He CAN'T!"
Kneeling opposite Sirius, Dumbledore extended his arms, spreading his long fingers wide. One hand he placed on Harry's bosom, the other on his forehead at the point of his lightning scar. He closed his eyes, reached out with his mind and heart. He plumbed deep, touching the utmost shores of Harry's body and soul.
He lifted his head at last, and Sirius looked hopefully into Dumbledore's blue eyes. The old wizard met the younger man's gaze, then lowered his eyes wordlessly.
Sirius buried his face in his hands, collapsing to the ruined earth in a paroxysm of wretchedness and misery.
Through the torment of his own tears, Dumbledore felt a pathetic shudder wrack Harry's body, saw the young man's lips moving feebly. He bent, placed his ear very close.
"T-tell..." Harry whispered very faintly, his tortured body trembling with the effort, "tell...H...L-lo..."
"She knows, dear boy," Dumbledore said to the still figure cradled in his arms, his tears coursing down his cheeks to dampen his moustaches. "She knows."
Chapter Twelve:
Darkness
Dumbledore entered the clearing warily, his wand before him. His astonishment at the devastation he discovered was not apparent in his eyes, though his insides churned with dread.
It was the sound of bitter sobs which drew him to that which he most feared to find.
Dumbledore waved his wand; a dozen candles appeared, spread out to ring a scene that brought a gasping cry to his lips.
A hunched form was revealed in the candlelight, shaking with unrestrained anguish. The figure over which it was bent was of a state to send ice through Dumbledore's veins.
Sirius raised his head, his eyes red with tears.
"Help him, Albus!" he sobbed pleadingly. "He can't DIE! He CAN'T!"
Kneeling opposite Sirius, Dumbledore extended his arms, spreading his long fingers wide. One hand he placed on Harry's bosom, the other on his forehead at the point of his lightning scar. He closed his eyes, reached out with his mind and heart. He plumbed deep, touching the utmost shores of Harry's body and soul.
He lifted his head at last, and Sirius looked hopefully into Dumbledore's blue eyes. The old wizard met the younger man's gaze, then lowered his eyes wordlessly.
Sirius buried his face in his hands, collapsing to the ruined earth in a paroxysm of wretchedness and misery.
Through the torment of his own tears, Dumbledore felt a pathetic shudder wrack Harry's body, saw the young man's lips moving feebly. He bent, placed his ear very close.
"T-tell..." Harry whispered very faintly, his tortured body trembling with the effort, "tell...H...L-lo..."
"She knows, dear boy," Dumbledore said to the still figure cradled in his arms, his tears coursing down his cheeks to dampen his moustaches. "She knows."