A/N – Okies peeps, you're all gonna hate me… But before you
read this chapter I have to ask that you promise not to abandon me on anger… The next chapter will be up soon… I hope you like it… Even though I get the
feeling you wont… Please don't hurt
me! And don't forget to review… J
Harry
slipped out of the invisibility cloak and left it by the boundary of the
forbidden forest. He pulled his cloak
more tightly around him and stepped into the shadows.
He
wasn't taken by surprise when the Death Eaters surrounded him. One of them grabbed his wand. Two others grabbed his arms.
He
didn't struggle, his heart was pounding, but he knew what he had to do… For
Dumbledore,
For
Sirius,
For
his own sanity.
Harry
felt the haunting sensation of the portkey that would once again deliver him to
Voldemort.
When
his feet hit solid ground he stood up straight, the two large death eaters were
still holding him.
Voldemort's
icy voice sounded pleased,
"Bring
him here, you needn't keep such a tight grip… We have a deal. He won't be
going anywhere… If he values his Godfather's life."
On
seeing the confused stance of the two bulky death eaters he yelled,
"Crabbe! Goyle! Just let the boy go… Now!"
Harry
wriggled his arms loose and went up to Voldemort, looking him in the eye.
The
blood red eyes that were staring back at him seemed amused and sinister.
After
a moments silence Harry spoke.
"I
trust you will be keeping your side of the agreement." He said, not wanting to show the anxiety
that was coursing through him.
"Of
course. Even as mighty Slytherin's
heir, even I cannot tamper with such things as this."
"So
Professor Dumbledore's curse will be removed, and Sirius will be freed?"
"Dumbledore
has already been released from the curse…" Snarled Voldemort, spitting out the name in pure hatred.
"As
for your Godfather… All in good time."
Harry
glared at Voldemort who simply smiled, and Harry realised with a sinking
feeling that Voldemort was completely in control of the situation.
~~~*~~~*~~~
Sirius'
head was pounding, he trembled with rage for a moment before the grief overcame
him once more… Harry! He'd failed him,
utterly and completely, as he had James and Lily… He couldn't believe it. He was too upset to cry he simply stared at the cold stone wall that was
facing him…
Where
was he anyway? If not in Azkaban… Then
where?
Sirius
pulled himself up and realised that he was lying in a large room, he turned
around and saw a sight that made his blood run cold…
Voldemort
was sitting on a throne in the centre of the room, surrounded by Death
Eaters. Opposite him, looking confused
and scared was… Harry!
The
realisation that Harry was alive washed through Sirius' body like a warm
butterbeer, but it was quickly followed by dread… What was going on? Struggling with his binds Sirius realised that they were fairly
loose. He listened while he struggled.
"So
Harry, you see, there is nothing you can do. That portkey will transport my entire army… Hogwarts will be mine, and
everyone you hold dear will join you… In the afterlife!"
Sirius
watched in horror, as the wand was raised and the cold perverse voice cried the
words of the deadly curse…
"Avada
Kedavra!"
The
green light hit his Godson in the middle of his chest, for a second he stood as
if merely stunned but then his lifeless form crumpled to the floor…
Sirius
screamed from the depths of his heart, the pain he felt was immeasurable, he
found that his binds were free, after a seconds hesitation he raced towards
Harry's lifeless body, he snatched him up in his arms and ducking the frenzy of
curses that were sent at him he leapt forward and grabbed the portkey that
would take him to Hogwarts…
~~~*~~~*~~~
Poppy
Pomfrey had just sat down wearily in her chair after a long day of mending cuts
and bruises, and one girl's arm, which had been bitten by an angry
mandrake. Her eyes were just beginning
to droop when she saw something that made her sit bolt upright, eyes opened
wide. Albus Dumbledore had just moved
his arm. She watched the frail old man
with mounting disbelief, she must have imagined it. She cursed herself and started to sink back into her chair when
she saw it clearly. He was
moving… He was waking up!.. But how?
She
watched on in numb shock as the elderly headmaster roused himself.
He
suddenly seemed to regain his senses.
"Poppy! He's gone!" Dumbledore shouted.
It
was all she could do to contain herself but Poppy Pomfrey managed to ask
"Who's
gone Albus?"
"Harry!" Said the exhausted man before his face fell
into a mask of despair… He's given
himself up to Voldemort… For me."
The
old wizard burst into tears.
Poppy
Pomfrey was beyond shocked, not only was Dumbledore suddenly returned to his
body, but he was crying… Poppy Pomfrey
could confidently say that she had never seen Albus Dumbledore cry… Until now.
She
managed to persuade her limbs into action and rushed over, enveloping the
headmaster in a sincere embrace.
"How
can you be so sure? There must be a way
that you're mistaken."
Dumbledore
shook his head in bitter resignation.
"I
know what he's done, I couldn't stop him. I can scarce hope that he will live."
Poppy
Pomfrey decided that she needed someone here to help her understand, she sent
for Minerva McGonagall straight away. She came almost immediately, followed closely by Arabella Figg.
On
entering the room they looked over to Dumbledore and their faces fell. Minerva put a hand to her mouth and grabbed
a nearby chair. Arabella held the
headmaster's gaze for a while before shaking her head and moaning,
"Harry… Why?"
~~~*~~~*~~~
Dumbledore
had managed to recover himself in time to comfort Minerva McGonagall who looked
extremely pale, tired and distraught. He managed to stem the tears that had been racing down all of their
cheeks with one simple sentence.
"He
was born to save us all… Even if he
doesn't know it yet. We can't give up
hope yet."
Poppy
Pomfrey was still feeling very dazed… She had obviously missed something very
important.
"Um,
excuse me Albus, what's been going on?"
"It's
quite simple my dear, Harry and I have been communicating telepathically since
the attack. He has gone to Voldemort, I
believe, in order to give himself up in exchange for the reversal of my curse
and the freedom of his Godfather, Sirius Black."
The
grim faces around her told Poppy Pomfrey that this was indeed the shocking
truth.
"But,
how could we let him do it? He'll be
killed for sure!" She cried without
thinking.
She
immediately wished she hadn't spoken as Dumbledore's piercing look and
McGonagall and Arabella's fresh despair made her feel tiny.
"He
is powerful Poppy, more powerful than I could ever be… There is some hope, however slight." Said Dumbledore determinedly.
The
room was filled with silence that seemed almost deafening.
"More
powerful than you Albus? Really?" Asked Poppy disbelieving.
"The
more important question is whether or not he is more powerful than
Voldemort." Said Dumbledore grimly.
The
room fell silent again. But the silence
was pierced by a low heart-wrenching howl that cut through the air thick with
tension like a dagger.
"Poor
Remus. I thought that the Wolfsbane was
supposed to help." Said Poppy shaking
her head.
"That… Was not Remus Lupin."
Said
Dumbledore, his eyes closed in dread.
"That…
Was Sirius Black."
Dumbledore
stood up swiftly and brushed down his robes, he hurried out of the Hospital
Wing and down the corridors towards Gryffindor Tower.
The
others looked at each other for a moment before hurrying to follow the
headmaster.
~~~*~~~*~~~
Ron
Hermione and Neville had searched everywhere for Harry, at first they were sure
that he was simply hiding from embarrassment after transforming in the middle
of Transfiguration. They bumped into
Hagrid at dinner who told them he'd seen Harry by the lake, they discussed going
to look for him, but decided that he would probably come and find them, when he
needed them.
They
had gone back to Gryffindor Tower expecting to find Harry there. When he wasn't, Neville began to panic…
"Hermione! Didn't he mention something about giving
himself over to V…V… You-Know-Who?"
"Neville! He would have told us… I'm sure… At least left a note." Insisted
Hermione.
"No
he wouldn't Hermione! This is Harry
we're talking about." Said Ron
nervously.
"Ron's
right. And wasn't it the full moon,
well that's tonight isn't it!" Said
Neville, growing paler by the second.
"Oh,
God! He's gone… Alone…" Wailed Hermione
in despair.
"He's
such an idiot! We could have
helped!" Shouted Ron angrily with a
worried frown on his face.
"Well,
what do we do now?" Asked Neville, his
eyes pleading the other two for help.
"I
suppose we should tell a teacher. Professor McGonagall… If only Dumbledore were here." Said Hermione looking downcast.
"Let's
go upstairs and see if we can find any clues. He might have left something." Said Ron, starting to make his way up the stairs to the Boys
dormitories.
They
heard a loud banging noise from above them, followed by the most terrible
howling that they'd ever heard.
They
ran up the stairs and burst into the dormitory.
There
on his own bed lay Harry's lifeless form. And next to it, the source of the howls, was a large black dog, who
looked as if his world was ending.
Hermione,
Ron and Neville stood transfixed at the sight that had met their eyes. They couldn't tear their eyes away from the
body.
They
stood there, unable to move for a few minutes, which seemed more like
hours. Then noises from below told them
that people were coming upstairs.
~~~*~~~*~~~
Albus
Dumbledore was first to come through the door, he lifted his eyes to the three
very pale Gryffindors, then his eyes swept to Sirius who continued to howl
uncontrollably, and finally rested on Harry Potter, who lay unmoving on his
bed, unmistakeably dead.
He
forced back the shock and fear that raced like ice through his veins and strode
over to the bed. He lifted the boy's
wrist, knowing that this time, no unexpected sign of life would emerge.
He
looked into the wide green eyes that no longer dazzled, they remained like
shining emeralds and contrasted sharply with the palled skin, but they were
empty, there was no sparkle of life, no emotion, simply a vacant stare.
When
Dumbledore looked up into the expectant eyes of the crowd they noticed that the
headmaster's own eyes reflected the dulled, vacant glaze that Harry's now wore
and the room was filled with cries that would soon fill the entire castle. Cries that signified a loss so deep that it
tore at the very core of existence.
Cries
from everyone, except one person…
Arabella Figg.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Okies…
There you have it! I'm afraid that's
all yer gonna get 4 now.
I
hope you don't want to kill me… Please have mercy!
But
it's important…
I
must thank Jess for agreeing to be my beta-reader… Everyone must praise her
immense bravery! I thank her deeply for
her help!
Thanx
also to the other riddles, Kelzery, Herm, Val, oh just everyone who has
reviewed! I love you all!!!!!!
I'm
expecting a lot of angry reviews/flames… Don't disappoint me!
Love
Jona
xxx
J