Chapter 54
How he had gotten out of Azkaban, Harry didn't know, but the fact remained that he was standing before him right now, and he had his wand aimed right at the black wolf.
"Avadra Kedavra!" he bellowed, and for the second time in nearly as many minutes, Harry was struck by the killing curse, and this time, the force of it was enough to knock him from his feet and send him skidding across the hard ground, stirring up a thick cloud of dust that completely hid him from the view of the death eaters, but to the amazement of those standing around the wolf, a deep growl was heard coming from with in the cloud of dust.
Shaw's eyes grew wide, and he starred at the place the wolf had once stood as the dust began to clear away, and the first thing he saw was a pair of piercing green eyes starring right back him, shining in anger and reflecting the light of the half moon overhead, from the wolf who was now standing on his own four paws once again, very much alive
"What the." the man muttered before a sudden realization struck him and a broad smile broke out on his face as he glimpsed the small white lightning bolt on the wolfs chest. The other men looked to him in curiosity before he began speaking directly to the black animal. "Well, well, well, who would have thought you would be stupid enough to come to us" he said to the wolf, causing the rest of the death eaters to look to him in concern, fearing for his sanity.
"Sir?" asked one of them nervously, not wanting to anger the clearly delusional man.
"Well gentlemen, it appears that we have no need to lure Potter to us after all, he is already here" he said, and the other men all looked to the black wolf as their own eyes lit up in recognition. "Come now, Potter, why don't you face us like a man?" he asked mockingly
With one last growl, the wolf walked up to Shaw until he was only a meter away from him, before he shifted effortlessly into his human form. When the other men saw him change, they all looked to him in shock and no small amount of fear, taking in his calm expression, and his sword and dagger hanging from his belt as well and the staff held in front of him defensively.
"Well now Potter, why have you decided to grace us with your presence tonight?" asked Shaw mockingly
"Shaw, how did you get out of Azkaban, you should have remained there until your death" growled Harry, sounding very much like an angry wolf as he looked intently into the eyes of the older man.
"Potter, did you really think that a man as high up in the ministry as myself would not have connections to get out of situations such as that?" he asked with a maniac grin on his face "Now, why are you here?" he demanded, but instead of answering, Harry just smirked back and drew his sword from his belt and held it in his left hand while his right aimed his staff at Shaw. "Revenge on those who tried to kill my family" he said calmly, noting the look of fear cross the death eaters faces at his words.
"Get him" Shaw ordered, and the other death eaters obeyed and began to advance on Harry, some firing stunning spells, and others using the unforgivable curses, but none of them were able to hit Harry even though he was able to take out nearly half of the death eaters himself. The barrage of curses continued for several minutes before Shaw fired one of his own, one Harry was not prepared for and therefore could not deflect and an instant later he fell to the ground, ropes binging his hands and ankles together tightly and causing him to fall to his knees hard on the forest floor, dropping his sword and staff on the ground beside him. "Well then, Potter, the time has come for you to surrender to the dark lord" said Shaw as he approached the boy who was sitting on the floor before him, but to his shock, Harry didn't show any signs of defeat, instead, he looked directly into Shaw's eyes.
"Wrong again, Shaw, you will be the one to surrender to me, perhaps not tonight, but in the end, the light will always win. Consider this your warning, if you ever harm any member of my family again, you will not leave our next meeting alive" he said tersely, and before they could do anything to stop him, he began to transform again, but this time into the from of a black falcon with the same patch of white on his chest, and the same green eyes that the wolf had possessed. Without any warning, the falcon spread his wings, causing the ropes that had been around Harry's wrists and ankles to fall to the ground. With a mighty stroke of his wings, he was lifted into the sky, and an instant later he dove to the ground and picked up the sword and staff in his black talons before he began to flap his wings furiously, ignoring the curses that were constantly flying through the sky toward him as he set of through the sky, and trying desperately to dodge the poisoned talons of the hawk that was following him and trying to take him down herself. He flew as quickly as he could, straight in the direction of the castle, amazed that a falcon was able to move so swiftly. Since this was the first time he had ever changed into this particular animal, he had no idea just what strengths and weaknesses it had, and he wasn't willing to hang around and find out. It took him the better part of the night to reach the edge of the forest, and when he did so, he looked quickly over his shoulder and was relieved to see that the hawk was no where in sight.
Exhausted, he slowed his breakneck speed and flew casually into the great hall through the high windows, and when he entered, all conversations that had been occurring over breakfast ended abruptly and all eyes looked to him in dread mixed with a small amount of fear since the last black bird to enter the castle had attacked a teacher and nearly killed him. Of those in the hall, only two were aware that Harry was able to assume such a form, Sirius and Dumbledore, since Ginny and the students from the past had not arrived in the great hall yet. Because of this, the sight of him flying in with a sword and very recognizable staff led the others to assume the worst. Deciding to worry about their reactions later, he flew right up to the head table and upon recognizing the green eyes and white scar, both men stood abruptly and followed him from the hall and into the chamber behind it.
Once the door was closed, Harry changed back into himself and looked right into the eyes of Dumbledore before he spoke "I found them, they are on the far north side of the forest, only about thirty so far, but Shaw is their leader" he said, and upon hearing his words, both men looked shocked.
"Are you sure it was Shaw?" asked Sirius
"Yes, he recognized me and tried to capture me, but I got away" said Harry, and the two men only now realized how exhausted he looked as he leaned heavily on his staff for support.
"Harry, are you all right?" asked Sirius in concern
"Fine, just tired" was the mumbled reply as he waved his hand dismissively
"You don't look fine, what curses were you hit with?" demanded his godfather sternly
At first, it looked as thought Harry wasn't going to answer, but upon seeing Sirius' determined expression, he sighed and obeyed "When the other death eaters found me, they thought I was just a wolf, so they hit me with the killing curse, and when it didn't work, Shaw tried it, that's when he figured out who I was" he answered
When he heard this, Sirius swore heavily under his breath before he spoke again "Come on, you're going to the hospital wing, you need some rest" he said as he grabbed Harry's arm.
"Sirius, I'm fine, I just need a hot bath and a warm bed" he protested, but his godfather was not about to give in any time soon, so he followed behind him grudgingly. Secretly, he was glad to be heading for the hospital wing, even though the killing curse didn't kill him, it hurt badly and he could clearly feel the two different spots where it had struck him, one on his chest and the other on his left side.
'Well' he thought grimly to himself 'at least it doesn't knock me out any more, if it did, I'd defiantly be a lot worse off'
When they reached the hospital wing and told Madame Pomfrey what had happened, she gave Harry some fresh pajamas to change into which he did obediently before laying down on the bed furthest from the door. She came back a moment later and gave him a thorough exam, muttering angrily about the dark bruises that were the result of the killing curse before giving him a strong pain killing potion as well as a dreamless sleep potion, both of which he was grateful to drink and within moments he was sound asleep.
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Only moments after he had left the great hall, Ginny and Lily arrived with the marauders, and none of them were able to miss the students who were starring at them. "What's going on?" whispered James to the other four
"I have no idea" answered Sirius as he looked around the hall, but Ginny had a better idea, as well as a suspicion of her own
"Come on" she said quickly as she walked to Colin "Colin, what happened? Where is the headmaster and Professor Black?" she asked once they reached the blonde boy, who looked hesitant to answer her "Tell me what happened" she growled and he nervously swallowed as he looked to those around him for support.
"Well, a few minutes ago, a falcon came in, and it was carrying a sword and Harry's staff. Dumbledore and Professor Black followed it out into the chamber behind the hall" he said quickly.
Ginny was terrified, how could Harry have lost his staff and sword, this meant only one of two things, that Harry had been captured, or that he had entered in one of his animagus forms, and she wished with all her heart that it was the last option that was the truth as she spun around and sprinted from the hall, Lily and the three marauders right behind her.
Once in the entrance hall, James was able to pull Ginny to a stop "Ginny, where are you going?" he demanded breathlessly
"To find Harry" she answered before setting off again, this time in the direction of the fourth floor to see if Harry had returned to his room. After a quick conversation with the painting, telling her that no one had entered, she turned and sprinted for the headmasters office, yelling out the password and running up the stairs, the others still right behind her, but when she opened the door, it was to find that the office was empty.
"No" she said quietly after she had looked at the empty room
"What's the matter, Ginny?" asked Lily in concern
"He's not here" she mumbled quietly
"Well, where else could he be? We haven't checked everywhere yet" said Remus
"No, you don't get it, if he's not here, then he's in the hospital wing" said Ginny and the others all looked at each other with worried expressions
"Maybe, but I'm sure he's fine, why don't we go and see?" suggested James, and Ginny nodded her head before leading them from the room and in the direction of the infirmary, her pace much more reserved than it had been so far.
When they reached the doors to the hospital wing, James knocked lightly, and they were immediately opened by Madame Pomfrey "Ah, yes, I was wondering when you would be here Miss. Weasley" she said with a kind smile to the red headed girl.
"Ma'am, is Harry here?" she asked hesitantly, dreading her answer
"Yes he is, and don't worry, he's fine" she said in reassurance and Ginny let out a sigh of relief
"Can I see him, what happened? What is wrong with him?" she asked quickly
"Calm down, he's fine, just bruised and tired. I gave him a sleeping potion, but you may see him, come on in" she said and the five students followed her into room and back to the bed furthest from the door that had curtains blocking it from view "Try not to wake him, he's had a hard time since yesterday morning, he needs his rest, his godfather will be here shortly to take him back to his own room" said the mediwitch as she pulled aside the curtains and allowed them to enter. Ginny went immediately to the chair next to the bed and pulled Harry's hand into her own, tears of relief pooling in her eyes, but the three marauders and Lily could only look at him in horror.
He was lying flat on his back in the bed wearing only a pair of striped pajama pants, and he looked completely at peace and deep in sleep, but what captured their attention the most were the hundreds of scars that covered his chest and stomach, as well as the two dark purple bruises the stood out starkly against his skin, one on his left side, and the other on his stomach, both nearly a foot in diameter and very sore looking despite the thick layer of salve that the mediwitch had covered them with to speed up the healing process. But their attention was soon drawn away from those when Ginny shifted her weight and they caught sight of the dark mark on Harry's arm. They had known that he had the mark for quite some time now, but none of them had ever seen it, and the sight of it chilled them to the bone, especially since it was almost as black as it could possibly get. They forced themselves to pull their attention away from it though and went to stand next to Ginny.
"Are all those scars from the battle you told us about?" asked Lily hesitantly
"Yes, all but a few anyways, the one on his forehead is from the killing curse when he was a baby" she said as she pointed to the lightning bolt shaped one "He also has one on his arm from when the death eaters took his blood to resurrect you-know-who at the end of his fourth year, and one on his side is from the head auror stabbed him right before Christmas last year" she said without looking at them.
"Is that all?" asked Remus hesitantly
"As far as I know, why do you ask?" answered Ginny
"He didn't tell you?" he asked in amazement
"Tell me what?" asked Ginny, now getting very confused and a little worried
"Well, while he was in the past, he went out with us one full moon, and their were death eaters in the forest, so he tried to stop us, but they were summoning all the dark creatures to them and I didn't know what I was doing, and I attacked him, I bit him on the shoulder" said Remus quietly, looking ashamed of himself
"You bit him during the full moon" said Ginny quietly, not believing what he said was true
"Yes, but it was an accident, I swear" he said quickly "I didn't realize what I was doing"
"Don't worry, Ginny, he was in his animagus form when he was bitten" said James and Ginny let out the breath she had been holding
"Oh" she said quietly as she turned back to Harry
After several minutes of silence, James spoke up again "What are those bruises from? They look painful" he said as he grimaced as he looked at them
"He said he was hit by the killing curse" answered a voice from behind them, and they all turned to see the older Sirius standing behind them looking grim "You guys had better get to classes, breakfast is over and I need to get Harry back to his room" he said and the five students obediently left the hospital wing and hurried off to potions, hoping that Snape would be in a forgiving mood if they walked in late, but to their surprise, the potions master was not even there yet when they ran in. They quickly took their seats and not ten seconds later, Snape entered and began the class, not even giving the students a second glance as he wrote ingredients on the board before sitting behind his desk and beginning to mix a potion of his own, and Ginny knew without a doubt that it was the one that Harry would have to drink in just two weeks.
Once the students had left the infirmary, Sirius gathered the still soundly sleeping Harry up in his arms after wrapping a blanket around him and left the hospital wing in the direction of his and Harry's rooms. As luck would have it though, he didn't make it there uninterrupted, meeting up with Snape who was on his way to the dungeons from the headmasters office.
"Black" he said in way of greeting, and sighing heavily, Sirius stopped and turned to face the other man.
"Snape, I trust you heard?" he asked
"Yes, Albus just told me. Will he be ok?" he asked in concern, startling Sirius who thought he worried about no one but himself
"He'll be fine, he's just tired, he really didn't need to go off like that, not at a time like this" said Sirius as he shifted his godson's weight carefully
"What do you mean? He's the most powerful wizard in the world, surely he can handle a few death eaters" said Snape with his brow furrowed in confusion
"That may be, but he is beginning to get weaker" said Sirius heavily
"What?" asked Snape in shock as he looked at the peacefully sleeping boy "What makes you think that?"
"I know my godson, and he hasn't acted like himself for quite some time now. He has nightmares nearly every night, and he gets tired after doing the smallest things. Take this for example, how many other eighteen year olds are completely exhausted after staying up for twenty four hours? When I was his age James and I could go for days on just a few hours of sleep, and yet Harry can't even stand up after just one night up. I'm afraid he will loose this battle if things keep going as they have been, I don't know how much more pressure he can take, especially after what happened yesterday at breakfast" at this he sighed heavily
"You really care about him, don't you?" asked Snape, no trace of his usual malice lacing his words
"More than you will ever know. He's all I have left besides Moony, I don't know what would happen if I ever lost him" he admitted gravely, for a moment forgetting that it was his one time enemy he was speaking to.
"Don't worry, he's strong, he'll pull out of this, I'm sure of it" said Snape "I better get to my class so I can start on the potion so it'll be ready in time" he said as he turned to leave
"Thanks for everything you have done for Harry, Severus" said Sirius quietly, and the other man merely nodded his head and continued walking and Sirius continued on his way toward his own room.
After giving the panting the password, he carefully entered the room and took his godson to his bedroom and gently laid him onto the soft bed. He then pulled the covers over the black haired boy and gently brushed the hair from his face to reveal the thin lightning bolt shaped scar on his forehead.
"Harry, why do you get yourself into these situations?" he asked quietly "You should have never left like that yesterday, you could have been killed" he added as he looked down on the sleeping face of the boy he considered his own son in James' absence. After making sure he was comfortable, Sirius left the room and went into the living room to get caught up with marking the homework the seventh years had turned in the day before.
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At around dinner time, Harry woke up, feeling a hundred percent better than he did when he fell asleep. He jumped out of bed and pulled on clean clothes before grabbing his staff and sword and dagger. He didn't know why he felt the urge to take his weapons with him, but he didn't think it would hurt anything to do so. He then walked from his room and saw Sirius sound asleep on top of a pile of parchment with a quill still in his hand.
Chuckling quietly, he approached his godfather and gently shock his shoulder to wake him up.
"Huh, what" he mumbled as he turned his tired eyes to Harry "What time is it?" he asked as he rubbed his eyes and stretched his arms over his head.
"Time for dinner" answered Harry "Have you been here all day?" he asked in concern
"Yeah, pretty much" he answered "Why?"
"You look exhausted, did you sleep at all last night?" Harry asked
"No, I was more worried about my godson who stormed from the great hall on some suicide mission" he answered and Harry knew he had crossed a line
"Sorry about that, but I had to find out who did that to you" he answered
"That may be so, but that was not the best way to go about things, Harry, you could have been captured, or worse, killed and you would have died twice if you were anyone else" said Sirius sternly, all previous fatigue gone
"Sirius, I know, but I had to find them" said Harry desperately, and seeing the look in his eyes, Sirius relented
"I understand where you were coming from, but promise me you will never do something like that again" he pleaded
Harry gave him a lopsided smile "I promise, now can we get to dinner, I have dueling club tonight" he said and the older man nodded his head and the pair left the room and walked toward the great hall, discussing what Harry was going to do as far as a lesson tonight.
When they walked into the hall, Harry wasn't in the least bit surprised by the looks he received, but he choose to ignore them and after greeting Ginny, Lily, and the marauders, he proceeded to the head table to eat his dinner, talking the entire time with Sirius, Remus, Ron, Hermione, and Draco about what had happened in the forest. The pleasant meal was quickly interrupted though when an all too familiar shrieking was heard from outside the window. The hall fell into a frightened silence and Harry jumped to his feet and with a wave of his hand, all the high windows slammed closed, and not a moment too soon as they saw the black hawk circling outside one of the windows.
At the sight of the bird, many of the younger students began panicking, and several began to run toward the door, but with another wave of Harry's hand, the doors slammed shut as well.
"Everyone, please stay calm, and stay seated, I will take care of this" Harry growled as he set off toward the doors himself, and the frightened students returned to their seats. Once he was sure that no one would follow him out, Harry opened one of the doors and left the great hall as he headed toward the front lawn, his staff gripped tightly in one hand and the other resting on the hilt of his sword. Anxious to see what was going on outside, many of the older students cast a transparency charm on the exterior wall and within moments, they were able to see what was happening, and since the professors were just as curious, they didn't stop the students casting the spells.
They watched as Harry exited the castle and walked toward the middle of the grounds. Within seconds, the great black bird had flown down to him and dropped another blood red letter onto the ground at his feet. Instead of bending over to pick it up, he summoned it to his hand and opened it, reading it quickly before turning back to the hawk and saying something that only made the bird angry. It left the sky and dove straight at Harry, but before it reached him, a jet black lion with a silver mane and magnificent silver wings stood in his place. With a roar that those in the great hall could hear and feel, the lion spread its massive wings and took to the sky.
The terrified hawk tried in vain to pull out of its frantic dive, and was barely able to before the lion tried to grab it with its razor sharp claws. An instant later, both animals were airborne, and the hawk was trying desperately to stay ahead of the ferocious beast that was trying to eat it for dinner. Both creatures were flying as fast as possible in the direction of the forest, but as soon as they reached its borders, the lion stopped and allowed the hawk to keep flying, but not before he let out another earthshaking roar as a warning not to return. He held his ground for another couple minutes, until the hawk was out of sight, before he lowered himself to the ground. He then shifted back into himself and began to walk back toward the castle. As he approached the school, he looked up from the letter he was reading and directly to the students gathered within, as though he could see through the charm on the walls even though it could only work one way, and with a shake of his head, he lifted his hand dismissively and the wall returned to normal, not allowing any of the students to look out onto the grounds anymore, and it left them feeling sheepish about watching what he had done, even though the general consensus was that it was amazing to see.
A few minutes later, the doors opened again and he walked in and straight to the head table where he gave the letter to Dumbledore who read it quickly, the lines on his face going grave before he passed it on to Sirius.
"So, what are you going to do?" asked the headmaster with a frown
"Nothing, those are just idle threats, there is no way they can carry through with them" said Harry with confidence that he didn't feel inside
"Are you sure?" asked Sirius once he too had finished the letter and passed it on to Remus and Snape
Harry only nodded his head as he began to finish the food on the plate in front of him, but seeing as they wouldn't accept that answer, he spoke up again "Listen, nothing they threaten to do they will ever accomplish, so why take their threats seriously?" he asked the men around him
"Merlin, Harry, when did you get so smart?" asked Sirius in an attempt to lighten the mood and he was answered with a smirk from his godson.
"Very well, but I would recommend that you don't take their threats too lightly, Harry. These are very powerful wizards you are dealing with, and they will stop at nothing to get what they want" warned the headmaster seriously
Harry nodded his head and the rest of the staff sat down to finish their meals, those who didn't know what was going on looking decidedly confused by the strange conversation.
Once the tables were clear once again, those few students not participating in the dueling club left the great hall and the others stayed in their seats awaiting instructions, and while they had a few minutes, Ginny, Lily, and the marauders joined Harry, Ron, Draco, and Hermione at the head table.
"Harry, what was that letter about?" asked Ginny once she was sure they wouldn't be overheard, and mutely, Harry handed his girlfriend the red parchment and she hesitantly started to read it.
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Potter,
Your display last night was quite impressive. Obviously your powers have increased greatly since out last meeting, but rest assured that no matter how strong you are, we will still win. You will never be able to resist the dark lord, and you will submit to him, weather of your own free will or not, it does not matter. We will use whatever it takes to get you, even if it means killing all of those you hold dear, or better yet, killing your dear parents so that you will never be able to cause us this much trouble. Why don't you save them all and just surrender now, we promise to leave them alone if you do so. Just give in to us and they will all be safe. This is your last warning.
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Once all of them had finished reading the letter, they all looked to him in wide eyed shock, but Ginny was the first to speak up.
"What did you tell the hawk?" she asked in a trembling voice
"I told it that I would never give in to these idle threats. I don't think she wanted to accept that answer though" he said with a rueful smile on his face, and the others immediately relaxed under his calm influence "Come on, we had better get this started or we're going to be here all night" he said as he stood and began the lesson.
The next three hours were spent learning and practicing many advanced protection spells, and after the last student left the great hall, Harry walked Ginny and the others to Gryffindor tower where he bid them goodnight and set off for bed himself, full of nervousness and doubts about what was to come in the next few weeks.
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For the next two weeks, no students were allowed to leave the protective walls of the castle, and even though the hawk never returned, they were all till nervous. After his display as a lion, rumors were flying about Harry's abilities and what the hawks letter had said, but there were only a few who knew the truth, and all of them were nervously counting down the days until the potion would be ready and the first step in destroying Voldemort would be at hand.
When Harry awoke on the morning of December 21st, it was with a sense of terrible foreboding mixed with anxiety at what that afternoon would bring. At eleven thirty that morning, those students going home for Christmas would leave aboard the Hogwarts Express, but only a small percentage of the students would be leaving, many feeling safer at the castle because of the constant death eater attacks, and at twelve o'clock, he was expected in the potions classroom to take the potion that Snape had completed just the day before. All that was left was for James and Lily's blood to be added, then he would drink it, and hopefully, be able to remain the strongest when he was done, if not, well, he didn't want to even consider that possibility right now.
Harry walked silently to breakfast, after convincing Sherlock that it would be best for him to remain in his room, ignoring those he passed on his way, as well as the several conversations that Sirius tried to start with him. His mind was elsewhere, thinking about what the afternoon was to bring, and try as he might, he couldn't block out the voice inside his head as Voldemort tried desperately to use any idea he had to prevent Harry from taking the potion, from telling him that it wouldn't work, to telling him that he wasn't strong enough, but Harry refused to acknowledge him, even though the doubts were already firmly imbedded in his already stressed head.
"Harry" said Sirius firmly, pulling Harry from his own thoughts
"Huh, oh sorry Sirius" he mumbled as he turned his attention to his godfather "Did you say something?" he asked politely
"It's all right, I asked if you could pass me the eggs" said Sirius and Harry obediently handed the platter to the other man without saying another word.
The rest of the meal passed in silence, none of the other professors knowing why Harry, Sirius, Remus, Snape, and Dumbledore were looking so tense, and none of them willing to ask about it. Even though they noticed the tension at the staff table, they were oblivious to the nervous shifting and silence among five of the Gryffindor students as well as Ron, Hermione, and Draco.
Before he realized it, breakfast was over, and Harry silently stood and left the others behind. He walked quickly out to his favorite spot on the grounds, beside the lake, where he sat down heavily and stared out over the almost frozen surface and into the trees of the forbidden forest which were covered by a thick layer of snow. He sat there, completely still and ignoring the cold chill that crept into his bones for nearly three hours until he heard the sound of the students who were leaving depart for the train. Once the last student was out of sight, he stood and slowly made his way back into the castle, stopping ever few steps to look at anything that caught his attention, from the snow that was gently falling to a small white rabbit that emerged from the underbrush of the forest in search of something to eat that wasn't frozen. Finally though, he took a deep breath and quickened his pace to close the remaining distance between himself and the school.
When he entered the unnaturally quiet castle, he shook off the snowflakes that were still clinging to his cloak and robes, and as he was doing so, he was joined in the entrance hall by Dumbledore.
"Are you ready, Harry?" he asked gently
"As ready as I'll ever be" Harry said heavily "Who all is going to be there?" he asked hesitantly
"Myself and Severus, as well as anyone else you want to be present" said the older man kindly
"If you don't mind, I would prefer if everyone, including you two, waited outside. I don't want anyone to get hurt if something goes wrong, but I would rather everyone who knows what is happening to be nearby in case I do loose control and something needs to be done. It would be best if there were more trained people there to help. James, Lily, Remus, Sirius, and Ginny should stay in the common room though, and Ron, Hermione, and Draco should stay with the other houses, they will be able to protect the other students" said Harry quietly, not wanting to think about that option, but being forced to in order to protect those he cared for.
"As you wish, but are you sure you want to be alone when you take the potion?" he asked in concern
"Yes, I don't want to endanger anyone. Professor Snape will be able to tell you if Voldemort gets control so at least you can be prepared if that does happen" he said, and by now, they had reached the potions classroom.
Taking a deep breath to steady his trembling nerves, Harry entered the room and was met by the concerned faces of all twelve people who knew what was going on, other than himself and Dumbledore.
Snape was standing next to a simmering cauldron, and beside him stood James and Lily, both of their faces set in grim determination.
"Are you ready, Harry?" asked Snape with no trace of his usual cold attitude, and at Harry's nod, he turned to the two students beside him "Lily, hold your hand over the cauldron, don't worry, this won't hurt" he said, and the girl obediently held her hand over the steaming black liquid, and using his wand, Snape made a small cut on her palm, and once one drop of her blood had dripped into the liquid, causing it to turn into a deep red color, he closed the small wound and turned to James "All right, same thing" he said and the black haired boy held his hand over the cauldron as well and the same process was repeated, this time causing the potion to turn a dark green color before Snape took a ladle and stirred it exactly six times counter clockwise. When he was done, he took a glass goblet from the desk behind him and filled it with the green potion. He then set the goblet on the desk and faced the headmaster and Harry "It's ready" he said simply and all Harry could do was nod his head in response as he starred at the still steaming goblet.
Without him realizing it, Dumbledore had asked the others to leave before he, Sirius, and Ginny approached Harry "Harry, are you sure you want to do this alone?" he asked one more time, and Harry mutely nodded his head "Very well then, we will be outside" he said as he left the room.
Ginny then approached him and he looked lovingly into her beautiful eyes before she spoke "Harry, I know you can do this, I love you" she said softly as she gave him a tight hug
"I love you too, Gin, now go up to the common room with the others" he said before he released her and she walked quickly from the room and into the hallway beyond, leaving only Sirius and Harry.
"Harry, stay strong and you will win" said Sirius confidently
"Thanks, Sirius, for everything" said Harry quietly as he looked into his godfathers face
"Don't thank me for anything, Harry, it's my job" said Sirius with a smile as he too headed for the door, but before he reached it, Harry called back to him
"Sirius, please remember your promise" he requested, and upon seeing his godson's desperate face, he nodded his head and closed the door behind him, leaving Harry alone with the ominous potion.
He tentatively approached the goblet and picked it up in his trembling hands. He gripped it so tightly that his knuckles turned white, and with no further thoughts, brought it to his lips and threw back his head, swallowing it all in one large gulp
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A/N: All right, here's the next chapter, hope you enjoy it! Next one should be up later this week, I have an exam on Wednesday, so it will be sometime after that. Ok, just so you know, there will probably be only maybe five or six more chapters until this is finished, even though I never want it to end, but there has to be an end sometime, right? Well, anyways, let me know if there are any loose ends that I haven't tied up yet and I'll try to before the end, otherwise, give me some ideas about what to write next! Please review this and let me know what you think, sorry about the cliffhanger (again). Please review!
How he had gotten out of Azkaban, Harry didn't know, but the fact remained that he was standing before him right now, and he had his wand aimed right at the black wolf.
"Avadra Kedavra!" he bellowed, and for the second time in nearly as many minutes, Harry was struck by the killing curse, and this time, the force of it was enough to knock him from his feet and send him skidding across the hard ground, stirring up a thick cloud of dust that completely hid him from the view of the death eaters, but to the amazement of those standing around the wolf, a deep growl was heard coming from with in the cloud of dust.
Shaw's eyes grew wide, and he starred at the place the wolf had once stood as the dust began to clear away, and the first thing he saw was a pair of piercing green eyes starring right back him, shining in anger and reflecting the light of the half moon overhead, from the wolf who was now standing on his own four paws once again, very much alive
"What the." the man muttered before a sudden realization struck him and a broad smile broke out on his face as he glimpsed the small white lightning bolt on the wolfs chest. The other men looked to him in curiosity before he began speaking directly to the black animal. "Well, well, well, who would have thought you would be stupid enough to come to us" he said to the wolf, causing the rest of the death eaters to look to him in concern, fearing for his sanity.
"Sir?" asked one of them nervously, not wanting to anger the clearly delusional man.
"Well gentlemen, it appears that we have no need to lure Potter to us after all, he is already here" he said, and the other men all looked to the black wolf as their own eyes lit up in recognition. "Come now, Potter, why don't you face us like a man?" he asked mockingly
With one last growl, the wolf walked up to Shaw until he was only a meter away from him, before he shifted effortlessly into his human form. When the other men saw him change, they all looked to him in shock and no small amount of fear, taking in his calm expression, and his sword and dagger hanging from his belt as well and the staff held in front of him defensively.
"Well now Potter, why have you decided to grace us with your presence tonight?" asked Shaw mockingly
"Shaw, how did you get out of Azkaban, you should have remained there until your death" growled Harry, sounding very much like an angry wolf as he looked intently into the eyes of the older man.
"Potter, did you really think that a man as high up in the ministry as myself would not have connections to get out of situations such as that?" he asked with a maniac grin on his face "Now, why are you here?" he demanded, but instead of answering, Harry just smirked back and drew his sword from his belt and held it in his left hand while his right aimed his staff at Shaw. "Revenge on those who tried to kill my family" he said calmly, noting the look of fear cross the death eaters faces at his words.
"Get him" Shaw ordered, and the other death eaters obeyed and began to advance on Harry, some firing stunning spells, and others using the unforgivable curses, but none of them were able to hit Harry even though he was able to take out nearly half of the death eaters himself. The barrage of curses continued for several minutes before Shaw fired one of his own, one Harry was not prepared for and therefore could not deflect and an instant later he fell to the ground, ropes binging his hands and ankles together tightly and causing him to fall to his knees hard on the forest floor, dropping his sword and staff on the ground beside him. "Well then, Potter, the time has come for you to surrender to the dark lord" said Shaw as he approached the boy who was sitting on the floor before him, but to his shock, Harry didn't show any signs of defeat, instead, he looked directly into Shaw's eyes.
"Wrong again, Shaw, you will be the one to surrender to me, perhaps not tonight, but in the end, the light will always win. Consider this your warning, if you ever harm any member of my family again, you will not leave our next meeting alive" he said tersely, and before they could do anything to stop him, he began to transform again, but this time into the from of a black falcon with the same patch of white on his chest, and the same green eyes that the wolf had possessed. Without any warning, the falcon spread his wings, causing the ropes that had been around Harry's wrists and ankles to fall to the ground. With a mighty stroke of his wings, he was lifted into the sky, and an instant later he dove to the ground and picked up the sword and staff in his black talons before he began to flap his wings furiously, ignoring the curses that were constantly flying through the sky toward him as he set of through the sky, and trying desperately to dodge the poisoned talons of the hawk that was following him and trying to take him down herself. He flew as quickly as he could, straight in the direction of the castle, amazed that a falcon was able to move so swiftly. Since this was the first time he had ever changed into this particular animal, he had no idea just what strengths and weaknesses it had, and he wasn't willing to hang around and find out. It took him the better part of the night to reach the edge of the forest, and when he did so, he looked quickly over his shoulder and was relieved to see that the hawk was no where in sight.
Exhausted, he slowed his breakneck speed and flew casually into the great hall through the high windows, and when he entered, all conversations that had been occurring over breakfast ended abruptly and all eyes looked to him in dread mixed with a small amount of fear since the last black bird to enter the castle had attacked a teacher and nearly killed him. Of those in the hall, only two were aware that Harry was able to assume such a form, Sirius and Dumbledore, since Ginny and the students from the past had not arrived in the great hall yet. Because of this, the sight of him flying in with a sword and very recognizable staff led the others to assume the worst. Deciding to worry about their reactions later, he flew right up to the head table and upon recognizing the green eyes and white scar, both men stood abruptly and followed him from the hall and into the chamber behind it.
Once the door was closed, Harry changed back into himself and looked right into the eyes of Dumbledore before he spoke "I found them, they are on the far north side of the forest, only about thirty so far, but Shaw is their leader" he said, and upon hearing his words, both men looked shocked.
"Are you sure it was Shaw?" asked Sirius
"Yes, he recognized me and tried to capture me, but I got away" said Harry, and the two men only now realized how exhausted he looked as he leaned heavily on his staff for support.
"Harry, are you all right?" asked Sirius in concern
"Fine, just tired" was the mumbled reply as he waved his hand dismissively
"You don't look fine, what curses were you hit with?" demanded his godfather sternly
At first, it looked as thought Harry wasn't going to answer, but upon seeing Sirius' determined expression, he sighed and obeyed "When the other death eaters found me, they thought I was just a wolf, so they hit me with the killing curse, and when it didn't work, Shaw tried it, that's when he figured out who I was" he answered
When he heard this, Sirius swore heavily under his breath before he spoke again "Come on, you're going to the hospital wing, you need some rest" he said as he grabbed Harry's arm.
"Sirius, I'm fine, I just need a hot bath and a warm bed" he protested, but his godfather was not about to give in any time soon, so he followed behind him grudgingly. Secretly, he was glad to be heading for the hospital wing, even though the killing curse didn't kill him, it hurt badly and he could clearly feel the two different spots where it had struck him, one on his chest and the other on his left side.
'Well' he thought grimly to himself 'at least it doesn't knock me out any more, if it did, I'd defiantly be a lot worse off'
When they reached the hospital wing and told Madame Pomfrey what had happened, she gave Harry some fresh pajamas to change into which he did obediently before laying down on the bed furthest from the door. She came back a moment later and gave him a thorough exam, muttering angrily about the dark bruises that were the result of the killing curse before giving him a strong pain killing potion as well as a dreamless sleep potion, both of which he was grateful to drink and within moments he was sound asleep.
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Only moments after he had left the great hall, Ginny and Lily arrived with the marauders, and none of them were able to miss the students who were starring at them. "What's going on?" whispered James to the other four
"I have no idea" answered Sirius as he looked around the hall, but Ginny had a better idea, as well as a suspicion of her own
"Come on" she said quickly as she walked to Colin "Colin, what happened? Where is the headmaster and Professor Black?" she asked once they reached the blonde boy, who looked hesitant to answer her "Tell me what happened" she growled and he nervously swallowed as he looked to those around him for support.
"Well, a few minutes ago, a falcon came in, and it was carrying a sword and Harry's staff. Dumbledore and Professor Black followed it out into the chamber behind the hall" he said quickly.
Ginny was terrified, how could Harry have lost his staff and sword, this meant only one of two things, that Harry had been captured, or that he had entered in one of his animagus forms, and she wished with all her heart that it was the last option that was the truth as she spun around and sprinted from the hall, Lily and the three marauders right behind her.
Once in the entrance hall, James was able to pull Ginny to a stop "Ginny, where are you going?" he demanded breathlessly
"To find Harry" she answered before setting off again, this time in the direction of the fourth floor to see if Harry had returned to his room. After a quick conversation with the painting, telling her that no one had entered, she turned and sprinted for the headmasters office, yelling out the password and running up the stairs, the others still right behind her, but when she opened the door, it was to find that the office was empty.
"No" she said quietly after she had looked at the empty room
"What's the matter, Ginny?" asked Lily in concern
"He's not here" she mumbled quietly
"Well, where else could he be? We haven't checked everywhere yet" said Remus
"No, you don't get it, if he's not here, then he's in the hospital wing" said Ginny and the others all looked at each other with worried expressions
"Maybe, but I'm sure he's fine, why don't we go and see?" suggested James, and Ginny nodded her head before leading them from the room and in the direction of the infirmary, her pace much more reserved than it had been so far.
When they reached the doors to the hospital wing, James knocked lightly, and they were immediately opened by Madame Pomfrey "Ah, yes, I was wondering when you would be here Miss. Weasley" she said with a kind smile to the red headed girl.
"Ma'am, is Harry here?" she asked hesitantly, dreading her answer
"Yes he is, and don't worry, he's fine" she said in reassurance and Ginny let out a sigh of relief
"Can I see him, what happened? What is wrong with him?" she asked quickly
"Calm down, he's fine, just bruised and tired. I gave him a sleeping potion, but you may see him, come on in" she said and the five students followed her into room and back to the bed furthest from the door that had curtains blocking it from view "Try not to wake him, he's had a hard time since yesterday morning, he needs his rest, his godfather will be here shortly to take him back to his own room" said the mediwitch as she pulled aside the curtains and allowed them to enter. Ginny went immediately to the chair next to the bed and pulled Harry's hand into her own, tears of relief pooling in her eyes, but the three marauders and Lily could only look at him in horror.
He was lying flat on his back in the bed wearing only a pair of striped pajama pants, and he looked completely at peace and deep in sleep, but what captured their attention the most were the hundreds of scars that covered his chest and stomach, as well as the two dark purple bruises the stood out starkly against his skin, one on his left side, and the other on his stomach, both nearly a foot in diameter and very sore looking despite the thick layer of salve that the mediwitch had covered them with to speed up the healing process. But their attention was soon drawn away from those when Ginny shifted her weight and they caught sight of the dark mark on Harry's arm. They had known that he had the mark for quite some time now, but none of them had ever seen it, and the sight of it chilled them to the bone, especially since it was almost as black as it could possibly get. They forced themselves to pull their attention away from it though and went to stand next to Ginny.
"Are all those scars from the battle you told us about?" asked Lily hesitantly
"Yes, all but a few anyways, the one on his forehead is from the killing curse when he was a baby" she said as she pointed to the lightning bolt shaped one "He also has one on his arm from when the death eaters took his blood to resurrect you-know-who at the end of his fourth year, and one on his side is from the head auror stabbed him right before Christmas last year" she said without looking at them.
"Is that all?" asked Remus hesitantly
"As far as I know, why do you ask?" answered Ginny
"He didn't tell you?" he asked in amazement
"Tell me what?" asked Ginny, now getting very confused and a little worried
"Well, while he was in the past, he went out with us one full moon, and their were death eaters in the forest, so he tried to stop us, but they were summoning all the dark creatures to them and I didn't know what I was doing, and I attacked him, I bit him on the shoulder" said Remus quietly, looking ashamed of himself
"You bit him during the full moon" said Ginny quietly, not believing what he said was true
"Yes, but it was an accident, I swear" he said quickly "I didn't realize what I was doing"
"Don't worry, Ginny, he was in his animagus form when he was bitten" said James and Ginny let out the breath she had been holding
"Oh" she said quietly as she turned back to Harry
After several minutes of silence, James spoke up again "What are those bruises from? They look painful" he said as he grimaced as he looked at them
"He said he was hit by the killing curse" answered a voice from behind them, and they all turned to see the older Sirius standing behind them looking grim "You guys had better get to classes, breakfast is over and I need to get Harry back to his room" he said and the five students obediently left the hospital wing and hurried off to potions, hoping that Snape would be in a forgiving mood if they walked in late, but to their surprise, the potions master was not even there yet when they ran in. They quickly took their seats and not ten seconds later, Snape entered and began the class, not even giving the students a second glance as he wrote ingredients on the board before sitting behind his desk and beginning to mix a potion of his own, and Ginny knew without a doubt that it was the one that Harry would have to drink in just two weeks.
Once the students had left the infirmary, Sirius gathered the still soundly sleeping Harry up in his arms after wrapping a blanket around him and left the hospital wing in the direction of his and Harry's rooms. As luck would have it though, he didn't make it there uninterrupted, meeting up with Snape who was on his way to the dungeons from the headmasters office.
"Black" he said in way of greeting, and sighing heavily, Sirius stopped and turned to face the other man.
"Snape, I trust you heard?" he asked
"Yes, Albus just told me. Will he be ok?" he asked in concern, startling Sirius who thought he worried about no one but himself
"He'll be fine, he's just tired, he really didn't need to go off like that, not at a time like this" said Sirius as he shifted his godson's weight carefully
"What do you mean? He's the most powerful wizard in the world, surely he can handle a few death eaters" said Snape with his brow furrowed in confusion
"That may be, but he is beginning to get weaker" said Sirius heavily
"What?" asked Snape in shock as he looked at the peacefully sleeping boy "What makes you think that?"
"I know my godson, and he hasn't acted like himself for quite some time now. He has nightmares nearly every night, and he gets tired after doing the smallest things. Take this for example, how many other eighteen year olds are completely exhausted after staying up for twenty four hours? When I was his age James and I could go for days on just a few hours of sleep, and yet Harry can't even stand up after just one night up. I'm afraid he will loose this battle if things keep going as they have been, I don't know how much more pressure he can take, especially after what happened yesterday at breakfast" at this he sighed heavily
"You really care about him, don't you?" asked Snape, no trace of his usual malice lacing his words
"More than you will ever know. He's all I have left besides Moony, I don't know what would happen if I ever lost him" he admitted gravely, for a moment forgetting that it was his one time enemy he was speaking to.
"Don't worry, he's strong, he'll pull out of this, I'm sure of it" said Snape "I better get to my class so I can start on the potion so it'll be ready in time" he said as he turned to leave
"Thanks for everything you have done for Harry, Severus" said Sirius quietly, and the other man merely nodded his head and continued walking and Sirius continued on his way toward his own room.
After giving the panting the password, he carefully entered the room and took his godson to his bedroom and gently laid him onto the soft bed. He then pulled the covers over the black haired boy and gently brushed the hair from his face to reveal the thin lightning bolt shaped scar on his forehead.
"Harry, why do you get yourself into these situations?" he asked quietly "You should have never left like that yesterday, you could have been killed" he added as he looked down on the sleeping face of the boy he considered his own son in James' absence. After making sure he was comfortable, Sirius left the room and went into the living room to get caught up with marking the homework the seventh years had turned in the day before.
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At around dinner time, Harry woke up, feeling a hundred percent better than he did when he fell asleep. He jumped out of bed and pulled on clean clothes before grabbing his staff and sword and dagger. He didn't know why he felt the urge to take his weapons with him, but he didn't think it would hurt anything to do so. He then walked from his room and saw Sirius sound asleep on top of a pile of parchment with a quill still in his hand.
Chuckling quietly, he approached his godfather and gently shock his shoulder to wake him up.
"Huh, what" he mumbled as he turned his tired eyes to Harry "What time is it?" he asked as he rubbed his eyes and stretched his arms over his head.
"Time for dinner" answered Harry "Have you been here all day?" he asked in concern
"Yeah, pretty much" he answered "Why?"
"You look exhausted, did you sleep at all last night?" Harry asked
"No, I was more worried about my godson who stormed from the great hall on some suicide mission" he answered and Harry knew he had crossed a line
"Sorry about that, but I had to find out who did that to you" he answered
"That may be so, but that was not the best way to go about things, Harry, you could have been captured, or worse, killed and you would have died twice if you were anyone else" said Sirius sternly, all previous fatigue gone
"Sirius, I know, but I had to find them" said Harry desperately, and seeing the look in his eyes, Sirius relented
"I understand where you were coming from, but promise me you will never do something like that again" he pleaded
Harry gave him a lopsided smile "I promise, now can we get to dinner, I have dueling club tonight" he said and the older man nodded his head and the pair left the room and walked toward the great hall, discussing what Harry was going to do as far as a lesson tonight.
When they walked into the hall, Harry wasn't in the least bit surprised by the looks he received, but he choose to ignore them and after greeting Ginny, Lily, and the marauders, he proceeded to the head table to eat his dinner, talking the entire time with Sirius, Remus, Ron, Hermione, and Draco about what had happened in the forest. The pleasant meal was quickly interrupted though when an all too familiar shrieking was heard from outside the window. The hall fell into a frightened silence and Harry jumped to his feet and with a wave of his hand, all the high windows slammed closed, and not a moment too soon as they saw the black hawk circling outside one of the windows.
At the sight of the bird, many of the younger students began panicking, and several began to run toward the door, but with another wave of Harry's hand, the doors slammed shut as well.
"Everyone, please stay calm, and stay seated, I will take care of this" Harry growled as he set off toward the doors himself, and the frightened students returned to their seats. Once he was sure that no one would follow him out, Harry opened one of the doors and left the great hall as he headed toward the front lawn, his staff gripped tightly in one hand and the other resting on the hilt of his sword. Anxious to see what was going on outside, many of the older students cast a transparency charm on the exterior wall and within moments, they were able to see what was happening, and since the professors were just as curious, they didn't stop the students casting the spells.
They watched as Harry exited the castle and walked toward the middle of the grounds. Within seconds, the great black bird had flown down to him and dropped another blood red letter onto the ground at his feet. Instead of bending over to pick it up, he summoned it to his hand and opened it, reading it quickly before turning back to the hawk and saying something that only made the bird angry. It left the sky and dove straight at Harry, but before it reached him, a jet black lion with a silver mane and magnificent silver wings stood in his place. With a roar that those in the great hall could hear and feel, the lion spread its massive wings and took to the sky.
The terrified hawk tried in vain to pull out of its frantic dive, and was barely able to before the lion tried to grab it with its razor sharp claws. An instant later, both animals were airborne, and the hawk was trying desperately to stay ahead of the ferocious beast that was trying to eat it for dinner. Both creatures were flying as fast as possible in the direction of the forest, but as soon as they reached its borders, the lion stopped and allowed the hawk to keep flying, but not before he let out another earthshaking roar as a warning not to return. He held his ground for another couple minutes, until the hawk was out of sight, before he lowered himself to the ground. He then shifted back into himself and began to walk back toward the castle. As he approached the school, he looked up from the letter he was reading and directly to the students gathered within, as though he could see through the charm on the walls even though it could only work one way, and with a shake of his head, he lifted his hand dismissively and the wall returned to normal, not allowing any of the students to look out onto the grounds anymore, and it left them feeling sheepish about watching what he had done, even though the general consensus was that it was amazing to see.
A few minutes later, the doors opened again and he walked in and straight to the head table where he gave the letter to Dumbledore who read it quickly, the lines on his face going grave before he passed it on to Sirius.
"So, what are you going to do?" asked the headmaster with a frown
"Nothing, those are just idle threats, there is no way they can carry through with them" said Harry with confidence that he didn't feel inside
"Are you sure?" asked Sirius once he too had finished the letter and passed it on to Remus and Snape
Harry only nodded his head as he began to finish the food on the plate in front of him, but seeing as they wouldn't accept that answer, he spoke up again "Listen, nothing they threaten to do they will ever accomplish, so why take their threats seriously?" he asked the men around him
"Merlin, Harry, when did you get so smart?" asked Sirius in an attempt to lighten the mood and he was answered with a smirk from his godson.
"Very well, but I would recommend that you don't take their threats too lightly, Harry. These are very powerful wizards you are dealing with, and they will stop at nothing to get what they want" warned the headmaster seriously
Harry nodded his head and the rest of the staff sat down to finish their meals, those who didn't know what was going on looking decidedly confused by the strange conversation.
Once the tables were clear once again, those few students not participating in the dueling club left the great hall and the others stayed in their seats awaiting instructions, and while they had a few minutes, Ginny, Lily, and the marauders joined Harry, Ron, Draco, and Hermione at the head table.
"Harry, what was that letter about?" asked Ginny once she was sure they wouldn't be overheard, and mutely, Harry handed his girlfriend the red parchment and she hesitantly started to read it.
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Potter,
Your display last night was quite impressive. Obviously your powers have increased greatly since out last meeting, but rest assured that no matter how strong you are, we will still win. You will never be able to resist the dark lord, and you will submit to him, weather of your own free will or not, it does not matter. We will use whatever it takes to get you, even if it means killing all of those you hold dear, or better yet, killing your dear parents so that you will never be able to cause us this much trouble. Why don't you save them all and just surrender now, we promise to leave them alone if you do so. Just give in to us and they will all be safe. This is your last warning.
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Once all of them had finished reading the letter, they all looked to him in wide eyed shock, but Ginny was the first to speak up.
"What did you tell the hawk?" she asked in a trembling voice
"I told it that I would never give in to these idle threats. I don't think she wanted to accept that answer though" he said with a rueful smile on his face, and the others immediately relaxed under his calm influence "Come on, we had better get this started or we're going to be here all night" he said as he stood and began the lesson.
The next three hours were spent learning and practicing many advanced protection spells, and after the last student left the great hall, Harry walked Ginny and the others to Gryffindor tower where he bid them goodnight and set off for bed himself, full of nervousness and doubts about what was to come in the next few weeks.
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For the next two weeks, no students were allowed to leave the protective walls of the castle, and even though the hawk never returned, they were all till nervous. After his display as a lion, rumors were flying about Harry's abilities and what the hawks letter had said, but there were only a few who knew the truth, and all of them were nervously counting down the days until the potion would be ready and the first step in destroying Voldemort would be at hand.
When Harry awoke on the morning of December 21st, it was with a sense of terrible foreboding mixed with anxiety at what that afternoon would bring. At eleven thirty that morning, those students going home for Christmas would leave aboard the Hogwarts Express, but only a small percentage of the students would be leaving, many feeling safer at the castle because of the constant death eater attacks, and at twelve o'clock, he was expected in the potions classroom to take the potion that Snape had completed just the day before. All that was left was for James and Lily's blood to be added, then he would drink it, and hopefully, be able to remain the strongest when he was done, if not, well, he didn't want to even consider that possibility right now.
Harry walked silently to breakfast, after convincing Sherlock that it would be best for him to remain in his room, ignoring those he passed on his way, as well as the several conversations that Sirius tried to start with him. His mind was elsewhere, thinking about what the afternoon was to bring, and try as he might, he couldn't block out the voice inside his head as Voldemort tried desperately to use any idea he had to prevent Harry from taking the potion, from telling him that it wouldn't work, to telling him that he wasn't strong enough, but Harry refused to acknowledge him, even though the doubts were already firmly imbedded in his already stressed head.
"Harry" said Sirius firmly, pulling Harry from his own thoughts
"Huh, oh sorry Sirius" he mumbled as he turned his attention to his godfather "Did you say something?" he asked politely
"It's all right, I asked if you could pass me the eggs" said Sirius and Harry obediently handed the platter to the other man without saying another word.
The rest of the meal passed in silence, none of the other professors knowing why Harry, Sirius, Remus, Snape, and Dumbledore were looking so tense, and none of them willing to ask about it. Even though they noticed the tension at the staff table, they were oblivious to the nervous shifting and silence among five of the Gryffindor students as well as Ron, Hermione, and Draco.
Before he realized it, breakfast was over, and Harry silently stood and left the others behind. He walked quickly out to his favorite spot on the grounds, beside the lake, where he sat down heavily and stared out over the almost frozen surface and into the trees of the forbidden forest which were covered by a thick layer of snow. He sat there, completely still and ignoring the cold chill that crept into his bones for nearly three hours until he heard the sound of the students who were leaving depart for the train. Once the last student was out of sight, he stood and slowly made his way back into the castle, stopping ever few steps to look at anything that caught his attention, from the snow that was gently falling to a small white rabbit that emerged from the underbrush of the forest in search of something to eat that wasn't frozen. Finally though, he took a deep breath and quickened his pace to close the remaining distance between himself and the school.
When he entered the unnaturally quiet castle, he shook off the snowflakes that were still clinging to his cloak and robes, and as he was doing so, he was joined in the entrance hall by Dumbledore.
"Are you ready, Harry?" he asked gently
"As ready as I'll ever be" Harry said heavily "Who all is going to be there?" he asked hesitantly
"Myself and Severus, as well as anyone else you want to be present" said the older man kindly
"If you don't mind, I would prefer if everyone, including you two, waited outside. I don't want anyone to get hurt if something goes wrong, but I would rather everyone who knows what is happening to be nearby in case I do loose control and something needs to be done. It would be best if there were more trained people there to help. James, Lily, Remus, Sirius, and Ginny should stay in the common room though, and Ron, Hermione, and Draco should stay with the other houses, they will be able to protect the other students" said Harry quietly, not wanting to think about that option, but being forced to in order to protect those he cared for.
"As you wish, but are you sure you want to be alone when you take the potion?" he asked in concern
"Yes, I don't want to endanger anyone. Professor Snape will be able to tell you if Voldemort gets control so at least you can be prepared if that does happen" he said, and by now, they had reached the potions classroom.
Taking a deep breath to steady his trembling nerves, Harry entered the room and was met by the concerned faces of all twelve people who knew what was going on, other than himself and Dumbledore.
Snape was standing next to a simmering cauldron, and beside him stood James and Lily, both of their faces set in grim determination.
"Are you ready, Harry?" asked Snape with no trace of his usual cold attitude, and at Harry's nod, he turned to the two students beside him "Lily, hold your hand over the cauldron, don't worry, this won't hurt" he said, and the girl obediently held her hand over the steaming black liquid, and using his wand, Snape made a small cut on her palm, and once one drop of her blood had dripped into the liquid, causing it to turn into a deep red color, he closed the small wound and turned to James "All right, same thing" he said and the black haired boy held his hand over the cauldron as well and the same process was repeated, this time causing the potion to turn a dark green color before Snape took a ladle and stirred it exactly six times counter clockwise. When he was done, he took a glass goblet from the desk behind him and filled it with the green potion. He then set the goblet on the desk and faced the headmaster and Harry "It's ready" he said simply and all Harry could do was nod his head in response as he starred at the still steaming goblet.
Without him realizing it, Dumbledore had asked the others to leave before he, Sirius, and Ginny approached Harry "Harry, are you sure you want to do this alone?" he asked one more time, and Harry mutely nodded his head "Very well then, we will be outside" he said as he left the room.
Ginny then approached him and he looked lovingly into her beautiful eyes before she spoke "Harry, I know you can do this, I love you" she said softly as she gave him a tight hug
"I love you too, Gin, now go up to the common room with the others" he said before he released her and she walked quickly from the room and into the hallway beyond, leaving only Sirius and Harry.
"Harry, stay strong and you will win" said Sirius confidently
"Thanks, Sirius, for everything" said Harry quietly as he looked into his godfathers face
"Don't thank me for anything, Harry, it's my job" said Sirius with a smile as he too headed for the door, but before he reached it, Harry called back to him
"Sirius, please remember your promise" he requested, and upon seeing his godson's desperate face, he nodded his head and closed the door behind him, leaving Harry alone with the ominous potion.
He tentatively approached the goblet and picked it up in his trembling hands. He gripped it so tightly that his knuckles turned white, and with no further thoughts, brought it to his lips and threw back his head, swallowing it all in one large gulp
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A/N: All right, here's the next chapter, hope you enjoy it! Next one should be up later this week, I have an exam on Wednesday, so it will be sometime after that. Ok, just so you know, there will probably be only maybe five or six more chapters until this is finished, even though I never want it to end, but there has to be an end sometime, right? Well, anyways, let me know if there are any loose ends that I haven't tied up yet and I'll try to before the end, otherwise, give me some ideas about what to write next! Please review this and let me know what you think, sorry about the cliffhanger (again). Please review!