Ultimate Sacrifice

Chapter 37

The explosion lit up the heavens, briefly making it seem like there were two suns in the sky. Waves of light rolled outwards from the centre of the explosion.

Ron's stomach churned. He couldn't imagine anything surviving that. Harry and George, dead on the same day. And Wolfe too. If Malfoy was still alive, he was going to pay.

"The one is gone, but there are two once again," Holly said. "They're alive. The last of the magic is keeping them warm and breathing, but they won't survive the fall. I have to catch them. You have to let me out, quickly!"

Gudrun didn't argue. She patched into the speaker of the lower deck. "Hermione, I'm going to open the ventral access hatch so Holly can jump out, so make sure no one is sitting there." She turned to Holly. "Go on down."

Holly hurried over to the levitation surface, which took her down in the blink of an eye.

"Is there anything we can do?" Ron asked worriedly. "D'you think she can catch both of them in time?"

"If anyone can, it's her. I read some reports about the weeks that Ironheart was chasing her. Before she learned to Apparate she just flew away every time. They've measured her speed at over two thousand miles an hour. She can cover enough sky to catch them before they fall into the lake. We ought to worry more about whether the magic that's keeping them alive will remain effective until they Holly gets to them. They were only about six miles shy of the ozone layer. It's a fifteen-mile drop to the atmosphere's cold-trap—which by itself can freeze them to death at minus a hundred and thirty-three degrees Celsius. Then it'll be at least another five miles before the air becomes marginally breathable for anyone without Holly's powers—ah, there she goes."

Holly had shot out from beneath the Cruiser and was rising at a dizzying speed, and Gudrun accelerated the Cruiser to keep up with her.

"How does she go so fast?" Matt asked.

"Same way we're doing it," Gudrun said. "In case you haven't noticed, the Cruisers aren't aerodynamic. There's an invisible conical shield in front of us that forces the air aside when we fly at high speeds. Holly creates the same type of shield on a smaller scale. Her flight is magical. Those wings are mostly for show."

"Her shield protects her passengers too, right?" Ron asked

"I'm not sure she's ever carried any before she caught Montalban and Farouk today, but I'd have to say yes. I'm more concerned with whether she'll be able to give them some kind of life support at high altitudes. I know she can survive there herself, but I'm not sure she can share that ability with a passenger. We'd best take precautions," Gudrun decided, and keyed the speaker of the lower deck again. "Hermione, we're going very high. I want to slide down the inner bulkhead so Holly will be able to fly in through the loading ramp if she needs to, without me having to decompress the entire lower deck. Is everyone behind the safety line?"

"Yes, go ahead," Hermione replied a few moments later.

"Gudrun, she's slowing down," Matt warned. They'd been ascending for about two minutes. The altimeter indicated that they were at an altitude of about nineteen miles.

Gudrun adjusted the Cruiser's speed to match Holly's, and followed her into a steep dive.

Ron saw Holly closing in on a falling body. It was Harry, completely naked save for the faint golden aura surrounding him. The explosion must have ripped his clothes to shreds.

"I've opened the loading ramp. Let's hope she gets the idea," Gudrun said, as she surged downwards and overtook Holly's dive.

"She's dropped him into the hold. Close the ramp and re-pressurise!" Hermione said.

Ron heaved a sigh of relief. One down, one to go.

Gudrun manipulated a few controls. "There. It'll take three seconds. The inner bulkhead will rise enough for you to pull him in when re-pressurisation is—damn, where'd she go?"

"To the left," Ron said, glad that he'd kept track of Holly while Gudrun's attention had been elsewhere.

"Got her," Gudrun nodded, and banked the Cruiser in pursuit of Holly. "The explosion must have hurled Wolfe in the opposite direction. Holly's gone to top speed again."

"I think she's having trouble finding him," Matt said, when there still wasn't any sign of Wolfe after four minutes.

"She'd better find him fast," Hermione's voice came through the speaker. "Harry's protective aura is fading, and he wasn't in great shape when I got him. He was showing signs of oxygen deprivation, but he's looking better now."

Gudrun groaned. "We're still eleven miles up. We're about to enter the cold-trap."

"Wait, she's found him!" Matt exclaimed, pointing at Holly moving towards a distant speck and slowing down in her approach to match its speed.

"Bloody hell, there's almost nothing left," Ron cursed. As they got closer, he only spotted the barest traces of the protective aura on Wolfe.

"If we don't get him in here soon, he'll die of exposure to the low pressure and the cold," Gudrun said. "Hermione, you'll have to tell me the moment they're inside. A second can mean the difference between life and death."

"She's got him, get under them," Matt coached.

Gudrun deftly slid the Cruiser into position.

"Holly's inside. Close the ramp," Hermione shouted.

"Closing the ramp!" Gudrun confirmed.

Ron shot out of his seat and headed towards the levitation surface. The segmented inner bulkhead still separated Hermione, Harry and Ginny from Wolfe and Holly when the levitation surface touched the floor of the lower deck. The red light on the ceiling turned green after a second or so, and the inner bulkhead slid upwards.

Wolfe was in Holly's arms, and her wings were wrapped around him. Ron had to shield his eyes from the light she was producing. The process lasted much longer than it had when Holly had repaired Hermione's womb. When the light receded, Ron saw that Wolfe must have been seriously hurt. His cheeks were covered in blood, making Ron suspect that his eyes had been bleeding.

Wolfe's first sign of life was a soft moan. In a flash, Hermione was bending over him, prying his eyelids open and rinsing the blood out with gentle sprays of water from her wand. "Max, can you hear me?"

"Yeah," Wolfe croaked. "Harry?"

"I'm okay," Harry said.

"No you're not," Ginny said, pressing him back onto a conjured stretcher. "Take it easy."

Harry's eyes met Ron's when he sat down next to Ginny, alongside Harry's stretcher. "I'm sorry about George. If I'd got here sooner—"

"It's all Malfoy's fault," Ron cut him off. "Not yours, and not Ginny's."

Ginny shied away from his penetrating stare, and began to sob softly.

Harry struggled upright and put his arms around her. "Malfoy won't get away with this."

"No, he won't," Wolfe said. "Err, can I have something to wear? I feel naked."

Hermione smiled weakly. "You are naked." Then she conjured him a blanket and proceeded to wrap it around Wolfe when Holly had removed her wings.

"What's that on your chest?" Ron asked, seeing a mark where Wolfe wasn't covered.

"Looks like a scar," Wolfe said. "It's shaped like the pendant I wore."

"What happened to the pendants?" Ginny asked.

"Destroyed," Wolfe replied shortly.

"Harry's got it too," Hermione said. "But on him it's still a burn. Holly, couldn't you heal Max cleanly?"

Holly shook her head slowly. "The lingering magic wouldn't let me take away the scar."

"Are you all right?" Hermione asked, suddenly worried. Ron too had noticed that Holly looked rather peaky.

"Just tired," Holly said.

"It's because you've healed Max, isn't it?"

"And the others today. I haven't had time to recover. Don't worry, I'll be all right. I'll go upstairs to rest," she said, and rose with visible difficulty before she slowly walked over to the levitation surface.

"Don't worry, Ginny. I'm sure she'll be all right," Harry said.

Ginny looked at him oddly. "How'd you know I was worrying?"

"I'm not deaf, you know."

"But I didn't say anything."

Harry frowned. "I know what I heard."

"Merlin's beard," Ron exclaimed, his mind making the connection. "Harry, you can read minds! I reckon the abruptness of your separation and the destruction of the pendants has something to do with it. Hermione, d'you think it's permanent?"

"Harry was still a Parselmouth after Voldemort died, wasn't he? So I'd have to say yes. I wonder if it works both ways?" she said, drawing her wand. "Serpensortia!"

A snake shot out of her wand and landed on the deck, hissing and looking around.

"Talk to it," Harry told Wolfe.

Wolfe's reply came in Parseltongue, causing the snake to twist around and regard him with curious eyes.

"Look away from the snake when you're trying to talk to us, Wolfe," Harry instructed.

Wolfe looked up. "Why?"

Harry smiled. "Because when you asked what you ought to say, it was in Parseltongue."

Wolfe blinked. "It was?"

"Yes."

"Wow."

"I know exactly how you feel," Harry said. "So, how do I read minds? Or maybe I ought to ask how to shut it off. Ron and Hermione are thinking too loudly."

Hermione, who had just vanished the snake, blushed slightly.

"If you want silence you'll have to find Crabbe and Goyle," Ron said. A sharp jab of emotional anguish punished him for his forced attempt at humour. Crabbe and Goyle reminded him of Malfoy, and Malfoy had killed George.

"I'm going to check on Holly," Ginny said suddenly, mercifully drawing attention away from Ron.

"I'm afraid this isn't as straightforward as speaking Parseltongue," Wolfe said to Harry, after Ginny had gone to the upper deck. "You'll have to suffer for a while, but eventually you'll learn to tune out the outside chatter." He paused, looking at the blanket wrapped around him. "Hmm, I suppose our clothes were destroyed by the explosion?"

"Can't imagine anything else being the cause," Ron said.

"Then it's a safe bet our wands have been destroyed too."

Ron nodded.

"Great, I don't have a wand to curse Malfoy with," Harry grumbled.

Wolfe looked at George's lifeless form, sighed, and faced Harry again. "You might not need one."

After briefly meeting Wolfe's gaze, Harry shook his head. "No, I don't think I'll ever be able to do what Phoenix did. That was the result of our combined power. And maybe the pendants augmented our power too."

"The rest of us can't read minds, so could you two please use speech?" Hermione asked.

"I told Harry that I think he'll be able to do almost everything that Phoenix did," Wolfe explained. "Maybe I saw it because I have more experience with accessing the power within, but I can almost picture the power we wielded in my mind. Though I made a contribution too, I'd say that about sixty to sixty-five percent of Phoenix's power came from Harry. I reckon he'll never be as powerful as Phoenix was, yet the golden aura of power ought to be achievable for him if he works really hard at it."

"But the pendants—" Harry began, before Wolfe cut him off.

"Focussed our powers more than anything else. I'm fairly sure they didn't boost Phoenix's power. They did have some enchantments on them that gave Phoenix some abilities he otherwise wouldn't have had. I can feel some powers within me that I didn't have before," Wolfe said. Then he grinned and turned to Hermione. "Don't worry, little sister. You'll get plenty of opportunities to analyse Harry and me."

Ron frowned, wondering what sort of powers could Wolfe be talking about.

"When the pendants clasped together and we became Phoenix, we gained access to the magic of the pendants. It was like having a book with lots of spells inside your head, and you'd instantly know how to do the spells."

"Without a wand?" Ron asked.

"That's what the pendants were for. They focussed the spells like a wand would focus normal spells." Harry frowned and looked at Wolfe. "Are you sure we still have that magic?"

"You need to learn to quiet your mind, look inside yourself and see the magic," Wolfe said. "I can see your magic—"

"How can you see his magic?" Ron interjected.

"For the same reason my ability was duplicated in Harry, and his was duplicated in me." Wolfe touched the scar on his chest. "We're connected now."

"And how!" Harry added. "I've got loads of memories in my head that don't belong to me."

"Same here. I know everything Harry knows. A lot of crazy things have been happening while I was gone," Wolfe said, eyeing Harry curiously.

Harry managed a half-hearted grin. "Hard to believe, isn't it?"

Ron sighed. Normally this wealth of information would have captivated him. But every time he glanced at his brother's body, his mind lost focus as it was swarmed by other thoughts.

Odds were that his mum already knew because of the clock. He'd have to go to the Burrow as soon as possible to tell her how it happened. Though Malfoy's capture and eventual punishment wouldn't bring George back, it might soothe her anguish a bit when the immediate pain had faded. The same went for Angelina—Ron barely suppressed a wince as his thoughts crossed his sister-in-law. She'd been widowed for the second time in a relatively short period. Six children had lost their father. It was enough to make Ron's blood boil again.

Hermione wrapped her arms around him, and it made him feel a bit better.

"I can't say I've lost a brother, but I know how you feel. And seeing the pain he's caused you, I want to hurt Malfoy in the worst way too. But if we indulge ourselves like that, we allow him to dictate our actions and it'll be another victory for him," Wolfe said.

Ron snorted. "If you knew how I felt you wouldn't be so philosophical about it. You were too young to remember when your family was killed."

Wolfe's eyes narrowed. "You need to redefine your perception of family. George wasn't Harry's brother, but Harry is hurting as much as you are. George was his family too. Though I tried very hard to keep my distance, I've ultimately come to regard many fellow Rangers as family, and it hurt me when they died. I've seen too many of them killed, and I felt anger every single time. Sometimes I indulged my thirst for revenge, and when I did, I changed bit by bit. Not for the better, either. It made me willing to risk your sister's life by allowing Malfoy to take her. Or have you forgotten about that?"

He was right. But Ron couldn't help the way he felt right now.

"Pain is good. But you shouldn't let it consume you or control your actions."

"You're right," Ron ground out the words reluctantly.

"Malfoy will pay for what he's done. Justice will be served. But if you take things into your own hands, you'll find that it doesn't offer the closure you seek. It'll add to the hollow feeling."

"I get the point," Ron snapped. He closed his eyes. "Sorry, I just—"

"You don't have to apologise."

"And don't carry the burden of your grief alone," Harry added.

*

"Though one might be tempted to say that the overall outcome today has been positive, even the relatively few losses we've incurred are too high a price," Ironheart said pensively. "I would have gone to Mrs Weasley's to personally extend my condolences, but over the years I've found out that grief-stricken women are particularly vulnerable to my demon side. Though I can control the demon better than I could in my youth, there is always a danger."

And the commander didn't want to compromise his professional relationship with Ron and Ginny. "I understand."

"Yes, you do. It's an advantage of your new ability. Though I should tell you that at times, it is somewhat of a curse. You'll eavesdrop without meaning to, and sometimes the information is quite private."

Harry nodded. He definitely hadn't wanted to read Montalban's mind while he'd been fantasising about Captain Kovalenko.

"Yes, that is precisely what I'm talking about," Ironheart said.

Harry perceived a thought that had managed to slip through one of the cracks in Ironheart's otherwise well-shielded mind. Ironheart's bashful grin resembled that of the proverbial boy caught with his hand in the cookie jar. It reconfirmed something that Harry already knew, and he realised he'd got the knowledge from Wolfe's memories. Captain Kovalenko was one of the many women Ironheart had been with. "You didn't…" he muttered feebly.

"I couldn't help it. When Ranger Larsson died, she was so distraught I couldn't just let her be. That's Martin, not Rolf," Ironheart clarified quickly.

Harry rolled his eyes. "So you took it upon yourself to comfort her?"

"This stays between you, me and Max, all right?" Ironheart said in a hushed voice. "If Nehanda finds out there will be hell to pay. All these years I held her off with the reason that I didn't want to get involved with a colleague."

"You broke your own rule, sir."

"I didn't mean to sleep with Irina, but when you're half-incubus sometimes you can't control it. I admit that at times I hid behind my heritage as an excuse to indulge myself, but that time it really was an accident. I mean, think about it, eh! If Nehanda ever finds out it will be disastrous for the Order. Do you actually believe I would have taken such a risk for one afternoon of passion?"

Harry would have been sceptical, except that he was now able to read the commander's mind. The old man seemed sincere enough.

"If Commander Nomvete were to find out, what would happen?"

"She'd make the remainder of my years in the Order extremely difficult. And seeing that I violated the rule I gave her as an excuse to keep her at bay, she'd insist on equal treatment, if you know what I mean."

"Not completely unreasonable if you ask me," Harry frowned. "Sir, if I may be so bold—"

Ironheart smirked. "Why I never gave Nehanda what she wanted? No, she isn't an unattractive woman, and in her younger days she had a number of suitors. Truth is, there are several reasons why not. First of all, my wife would give me too much grief because she sees Nehanda as her chief rival. No idea how she reached that conclusion, but she threatened to leave me if I ever did anything with Nehanda."

"Wouldn't Captain Kovalenko be worse? I mean, she was best friends with your eldest daughter, wasn't she? A woman young enough to be your daughter—"

Ironheart cut him off. "Don't remind me."

"So if your wife finds out about Captain Kovalenko, she'll leave you?" Harry asked.

"Technically, I never made any promises about any other female Rangers. Just Nehanda," Ironheart chuckled.

"Honestly, sir, we both know that hardly makes it an excuse. You might as well go ahead and sleep with Commander Nomvete."

"I would, except for one thing."

Harry eyed him expectantly. "Which is?"

"I made a promise to myself that there would be at least one woman in my life whom I could love platonically—besides any women related to me, of course. I've worked closely with Nehanda for the better part of my life, and I care a great deal about her."

"Can't you pick another female Ranger as the object of your vow?"

Ironheart raised his eyebrows. "Are you encouraging me to find a way around my vow?"

Harry chuckled. "I don't mean it like that, sir. I'm just thinking of a way to defuse situation if Commander Nomvete were to find out. Not that she'd hear it from me, but you never know. And if you just indulge her, that wouldn't be a problem anymore, right?"

"I can't just shift my vow to someone else at this point…that would be cheap. Besides, I don't have a long professional relationship with the younger female Rangers, so it wouldn't be the same anyway."

"So what about the older women? Captain Chipeta, Sanzotti and Yee each have been in the Order around for over thirty years now, right? Don't they qualify for long, strictly professional relationships?"

"Actually—"

Ironheart didn't have to finish his sentence, and Harry didn't even have to read his mind. The commander's sheepish grin gave him away. "Oh, you didn't," he groaned. "Which one? All three of them? Wait, don't answer that, I don't want to know. And Basham let all of this just happen? Or did you shag her too?" Harry immediately regretted that final sentence. "Sorry, that was uncalled for."

Ironheart smiled. "That's all right. As for your earlier suggestion, I'm afraid I can't indulge Nehanda. She sees my wife as her rival too. If anything were to happen between us, I'm sure she'd call my wife to gloat."

Harry groaned. "I did not want to know any of this."

Ironheart nodded sympathetically. "I've often felt the same way you did. Consider keeping my secret a means of practising to keep all the other secrets you will stumble upon."

Harry massaged his temples to soothe the headache that had suddenly taken residence in his skull. This ability was going to cause trouble for sure. He needed to start a fresh topic. Anything would be better than dwelling on the Commander's escapades. "Is everyone free of Malfoy's influence?"

"Yes. When you pulled the stone out the web was broken. Nobody remembers a thing, except me."

"How is that possible?"

"I'm not sure, though when we were looking the element that set me apart from the other wizards who'd been assimilated, a possible answer came quite easily to us."

"Mind Reader," Harry voiced the commander's thoughts.

Ironheart nodded. "My mind can extract thoughts and memories from others, and remember them. The downside to this is that my head feels about ready to explode. I'm heading to Caer Sidi to empty my mind. Matthias will answer any other questions you may have."

"Yes, sir."

"And Harry, thanks for saving our hides today. You saved the world from catastrophe."

Harry sighed. "Story of my life."

Ironheart's laughter died as the Portkey whisked him away. Harry set off to find Captain Faust. He waded through a crowd of confused wizards, bumping into Lee Jordan along the way. His merry face told Harry that he hadn't heard about George yet. Harry gathered his courage and broke the information to Lee as directly as possible. Then he directed him to where Ron or Ginny would likely be.

Leaving a shocked Lee behind, his resolve to make Malfoy pay grew with every step he took. The unceasing buzz of thoughts around him also added an unwelcome degree of agitation. On the bright side, it did allow him to find Faust faster. The captain's thoughts rang like a buoy in the darkness. He was extremely vexed about the fact that Medea Aconit and Yamato had got away—Medea Aconit? Hadn't she been delivered to the French ministry after her capture at Caer Sidi?

"The French let Aconit get away?"

"It looks like they did." Faust twisted his moustache nervously. He froze, still pinching the left tip of his moustache between thumb and index finger. His thoughts became jumbled as many questions raced through his mind.

Harry tried to answer his questions as best as he could. "Yes, I'm alive. No, I didn't kill Wolfe. He and I became a single being and I was able to expel the parasitic personality. When we destroyed Korumu's stone—"

"Whose stone?"

"The Periapt of Absolute Power was created by a Draconian called Korumu," Harry explained, before he continued. "So when the being that was comprised of me and Wolfe destroyed the stone, the medallion that sustained the fusion enchantment was destroyed, separating us. Separation wasn't meant to happen that way. The normal way would have been to unclasp the medallion and turn it into two tear-shaped pendants again. But the separation by the destruction of the pendants had some side effects. Wolfe became a Parselmouth, and I'm a Mind Reader now. Try not to be too surprised. I'm still at the stage where the constant buzz of thoughts is a bit overwhelming. Your astonishment will make it worse."

"Ah," Faust replied. To his credit, he was doing his best to keep his mind as blank as possible. "So you did read my mind."

Harry nodded. "And I read nothing about Malfoy. Please tell me he didn't get away, too?"

"Don't worry, he's still unconscious, so he didn't go anywhere. What did you do to him? I'm sorry you have to tell the story all over again, but it seems only Donovan can remember anything from the time he was part of the web."

"I knew I had to weaken him to extract the stone, which was a part of him. But I didn't really try to hurt him. I reckon being reduced to his insignificant self upon separation with the stone must have been very taxing."

"It definitely must have been. He won't respond to resuscitation spells."

"He'll live, won't he?"

Faust raised his eyebrows. "I didn't think you'd be concerned."

"I'm not," Harry growled. "I don't want him to escape his punishment through death, that's all."

"I see. Well, the Healers say he doesn't seem to be in danger of dying just yet."

"Good."

"Oh, I nearly forgot. We caught another henchman of Yamato's. I believe the British Ministry of Magic has been looking for this fellow a while."

Harry's new ability meant that he didn't have to waste time guessing. "Peter Pettigrew?"

"Also known as Wormtail."

Harry couldn't help grinning broadly. He knew George wouldn't have minded if he'd still been alive, and that made him feel slightly better about his glee. "Thanks, I really needed some good news."

"You're most welcome," Faust said. "Shall I take you to them?"

"Lead on," Harry said, and began to mentally prepare himself for the sight of Malfoy. He didn't want to lose his composure and kill Malfoy, no matter how tempting it would be. He barely managed not to snap when they arrived at the Notus, where Kozminski was working on Malfoy.

"Any progress?" Faust asked.

"Complete physical exhaustion," Kozminski answered. "Evgenia's brewing a powerful restorative. It's a simple merging of two existing restoratives and adding a few ingredients. It won't take more than an hour."

"Excellent. The sooner we can interrogate him, the better."

A glint on Draco's little finger attracted Harry's attention. The silver ring with the green gem was unmistakable. It had looked much better the day he'd bought it. So good, in fact, that it had never occurred to him that the ring had Slytherin colours. Now he was fairly certain that he'd overpaid. In retrospect, it would have been a good idea to bring Hermione along.

He opened his hand and concentrated on Malfoy's finger. The ring slid off it and soared into Harry's hand. "I believe this belongs to Ginny," he muttered.

"That's the original ring? The one the hexed control ring replaced?" Faust asked.

"Yeah," Harry slid the ring into the pocket of his oversized robe. Not being a natural seamstress and thus not being a good judge of male sizes, Hermione had attempted to shrink it a little while he'd been wearing the robes, hoping to make it easier to produce a proper fit. But what seemed to have been residual magic from the pendant had prevented the charm from working properly. According to Hermione, her healing spells hadn't worked as well as they should have, either. Wolfe said that the block would wear off soon, and that Hermione's healing spells and Shrinking Charm would complete themselves.

"Where is Pettigrew?" Faust asked.

Kozminski grinned and pointed to a cage that stood on top of a crate. "We forced him back into his Animagus form. He won't revert back to human form until we let him."

"He's skulked around as a rat for a long time. I'm sure a couple of days in rat-form won't be that uncomfortable," Faust laughed, and Wormtail squeaked in protest from his cage.

Harry smiled, unable to block out the pleasure he was taking in Pettigrew's distress. The spell of trapping an Animagus in his animal form was the exact opposite of being forced to revert to human form. A minor twist of the incantation, however, and it would be permanent, unless it was undone by a more powerful spell. "Stop whining, Wormtail. Everyone—your former Death Eater mates included—thought you made a better rat than a human."

The rat fell silent.

Kozminski laughed. "Well said. That certainly got him to shut up."

Harry grinned and turned to Faust. "Got a communicator handy? I want to be here when Malfoy wakes up."

Faust handed Harry his own communicator.

"Ginny," Harry answered, before Faust asked his question.

It wasn't too hard to find her. Where Faust's frustration had made him stand out, Ginny's grief was doing the same thing. He knew she was close by, but he couldn't see her anywhere. Something akin to a sixth sense made him look up. He saw her, sitting on the ventral surface of the Boreas' hull, casting a tearful gaze into the distance

Before the idea to Apparate had even crossed his mind, he found himself standing in front of her.

She was visibly startled by his sudden appearance, but relaxed when she recognised him. He could tell she wanted to be alone, but he thought it would be better for her to have some company.

"May I join you?"

Ginny shrugged. It was neither a yes nor a no, but Harry chose to interpret it as a positive answer and he sat down next to her, drawing his knees up under his chin and wrapping his arms around his legs. He was mimicking Ginny exactly, and she noticed.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm seeing how comfortable your position is. So far I don't like it."

Ginny almost smiled. "This is not a time to joke around."

"Sometimes you have to laugh, or you'll cry. It's a rule Fred and George lived by. They wouldn't have wanted you to take it this hard," Harry said, feeling Ginny's resistance to his words. "I know what you're thinking, partly because I'm a Mind Reader now. But even if I hadn't been one, I would have imagined how you felt. It's like Cedric."

"No, it-it isn't. Y-You didn't try to kill Voldemort, only…to have him pass the deadly energy to Cedric," she said in between sniffs.

"Don't take it so literally," Harry said. "What I'm trying to say is that both were decisions that took a turn for the worse."

"But you didn't know the cup was a Portkey."

"And you didn't know what Malfoy was capable off. It was beyond your control," Harry said soothingly.

"I should have suspected something when I saw all those Malfoys."

"You didn't begin cursing randomly," Harry reminded her. "You did your best to find out who the real one was. Ginny, the ability to repel the Killing Curse goes beyond the imagination of every witch and wizard in the world. You say you should have expected it, but we both know that you couldn't have."

"But if I hadn't—"

"If Tom Riddle's father had accepted his mother and loved his son, the boy would have lacked the hatred that made him take Slytherin's doctrine so seriously."

Ginny blinked the tears out of her eyes. She found it odd to hear Harry defend Voldemort like that.

"I'm not really defending him. I believe—like Professor Dumbledore did—that Voldemort would have been less likely to make the choices he made if he'd grown up knowing love. Yes, I know that I turned out all right even though my early childhood was somewhat similar to Riddle's," he said, voicing her thoughts and cutting off her question. "But believe me, Ginny, I was far more fortunate than Tom Riddle. Being the Boy Who Lived had its advantages. In the beginning everyone was kind to me, even though most of that kindness was due to celebrity worship. Still, it gave a positive spin to my first exposure in the wizarding world. If I'd been an anonymous half-blood raised by Muggles who didn't care, things might have gone differently. I imagine I could easily have grown bitter, like Tom Riddle did.

"The letters in if are the middle letters in life," Harry continued. "Life is full of ifs. But once the moment has passed, it's no use to dwell on what might have been. The pendants gave Phoenix the ability to deal with Malfoy. But if I hadn't possessed that knowledge, and if I'd been in your shoes when confronted with all those Malfoys, I'd probably have reacted the same way on seeing the ring."

Harry extracted the ring from the robe's pocket. "D'you remember the day I gave it to you?"

"No, Harry, I completely forgot about the happiest day of my life," Ginny said. Though it was probably meant as light sarcasm, Harry couldn't discern any trace of sarcasm in her tone or her feelings. She was completely numb inside.

"I suppose it was a dumb question—was it really the happiest day of your life?"

"Yes," Ginny said, the corners of her mouth almost turning up to form a smile. She was beginning to come out of her emotional shock too. "What's yours?"

'The night you told me we'd be together forever."

Ginny's mood shifted abruptly. "Times change, Harry!" she snapped angrily. "The two of us can't be together. The moment has passed. Don't dwell on what might have been," she added, viciously using his own words against him.

"You say you keep getting hints that the two of us getting together would be a disaster. What if I told you that I think this ring coming back now is a hint that things might be able to go back to the way they were?"

"Then we're clearly not seeing things in the same light."

She plucked the ring off the palm of his hand and tossed it away. It cleared the Cruiser's hull and fell out of sight.

"If I hadn't seen that ring, George would still be alive!" Ginny yelled. "How much more obvious a hint does it have to be for you to understand? Things can't go back to the way they were."

Harry opened and closed his mouth. There was no answer to that. Could it be that she was right? No, that couldn't be true. Even though he doubted he'd get through to her, he began to prepare an argument, hoping that he could convince her to believe that all the obstacles had been removed. A signal from Captain Faust's communicator forced him to put it off. "They're going to revive Malfoy." Harry had to force himself to look at her. "Are you coming?"

"In a minute," Ginny replied tonelessly.

Harry reckoned that it was best to allow her some time to compose herself. "All right."

*

Ginny quickly wiped away the nascent tears. Why couldn't Harry see what she saw? She didn't want to hurt him like this, but if he kept harbouring the illusion that the two of them could get together without anyone else suffering the consequences, it was inevitable.

Ginny knew it wouldn't be a good idea to Apparate like Harry had. Between her grief for George and her anger towards Malfoy, she was upset enough to splinch herself. Instead she lowered herself through the Cruiser's dorsal hatch onto the bridge. Doc was peering at runes scrolling across the mirror screen. Holly was looking over his shoulder inquisitively.

"Where are they keeping Malfoy?" she asked Doc, remembering that Harry hadn't told her where to go.

"Notus," the half-goblin replied, not looking away from his screen.

"Thanks," Ginny said, and turned to Holly. "Have you rested?"

Holly nodded. She still looked a bit pale, though loads better compared to a few hours ago. She joined Ginny on the levitation surface, which took them to the lower deck. "You're angry," she said, while they were walking down the loading ramp.

"Malfoy has a lot to answer for," Ginny replied tersely. She could feel Holly's gaze on her. Sometimes it almost seemed like Holly could read minds too.

"Will you let your anger prevent you from loving Harry?"

Ginny stopped and whirled around to face Holly. "Of course not. I'll always love Harry. You know why I can't be together with him."

Holly shook her head. "I know why you think you can't be with him. I heard what you told him on top of the ship."

"It's impolite to eavesdrop."

"I wasn't eavesdropping. I have very good hearing."

Ginny folded her arms. "All right. But you understand, don't you?"

"I understand, yes. And I don't agree."

"Take a number," Ginny grumbled.

"You are angry, and in pain. You shouldn't be deciding these things now. You should allow the pain of your brother's death to lessen first. Then you can better decide on matters of the heart."

"I don't want to talk about this, Holly," Ginny warned.

Holly fell silent, and didn't utter another word on their way to the Cruiser.

When they arrived, Pavel Kozminski was pouring a smoking restorative down Malfoy's throat. Malfoy's body went rigid, and began to tremble as more and more potion poured into his body. Ginny knew it was one of the brew's side-effects. And like Hermione, who, along with Ron, was also there, she knew it tasted awful.

As he gained consciousness, Malfoy gurgled and spat out traces of the foul-tasting potion. He struggled briefly against his bonds, before slumping back in the reclining chair he was occupying.

He glared at Harry. "Think you've won, have you, Potter?"

"It isn't limited to my thoughts, Malfoy. It's a fact. Another fact is, that without Korumu's stone, you're the same worthless loser we all know and hate."

"If I'm that worthless, why have you revived me for interrogation?" Malfoy smirked.

"Your co-operation will determine whether or not you will be fed to the Dementors," Harry said. "We have ironclad evidence of you using the darkest sort of magic and kidnapped who knows how many wizards. Not to mention the fact that you killed George Weasley, and a Muggle bartender."

Malfoy smiled maliciously. "I didn't kill the Weasel twin. Your girlfriend did. Cast the Priori Incantantem on her wand," he taunted, and turned to Faust. "Be grateful that I didn't choose to kill you!"

Ginny dimly felt her nails digging into her palms. Her rage was numbing her to most physical sensations. She clasped her hands behind her back to prevent herself from reaching for her wand.

"You'll pay!" Ron spat.

"Will I? I'm sure I'll be given a fair trial, won't I? Everybody is expecting Draco Malfoy to be tried for his crimes, right?"

"You'll be tried in front of an international criminal court," Faust growled.

"Excellent!" Malfoy smirked. "I can already see the headlines in all the major newspapers. Prisoner reveals unsavoury acts committed by wizarding world's top judges. You'd be surprised how many backs these so-called guardians of justice have stabbed to attain their prestigious positions. I reckon lots of countries will simply drop their charges against me, lest I pull their skeletons out of the closet too."

"Or we could just make you the main course at Azkaban."

"Of course you could do that, Captain. But you know how suspicious wizards are when it comes to your Order. They'll suspect that you silenced me for a reason. And you'll have to live with the knowledge that I beat you by playing by the rules," Malfoy drawled.

"Clearly you haven't heard about the purification crystal," Harry said slowly. "Unlike you, I didn't lose the ability to perform some powerful spells when the source of my transformation was destroyed. I still have knowledge of this purification crystal. You will be trapped until you let go of the evil inside you. If you get out, it means you've been rehabilitated. We'll only try you for highly illegal dark magic and exclude all the other charges, so a humane punishment like the purification crystal will be accepted as fitting the crime. It'll be clean and quick trial, an internal affair with minimal publicity, and you won't get the chance to stir up trouble and expose people."

"You can't do that!"

"Oh, but we can," Faust said. "You assimilated dozens of Rangers today. According to the recently restored treaties the Order of Illumination had with the International Confederation of Wizards, we get a go at you first!"

"Did I mention that refusal to let go of your evil inclination means you'll be locked in the crystal forever?" Harry added. "In case anyone wonders why you're not out yet, we'll be able to truthfully say that you haven't embraced your rehabilitation yet," he said, smiling broadly. "We'll put you in a place where no one will be able to help you get out from the outside, in case you still have some allies who are willing to try and break you out."

Malfoy's confident expression melted off his face when his eyes locked with Harry's. Whatever that purification crystal was, it had to be real, and not merely a bluff to unsettle Malfoy.

"You won't have the last laugh, Potter," Malfoy said. He looked at Holly with a manic gleam in his eye. "Your daughter was very pretty."

Then he uttered something that sounded like an incantation in an unintelligible language. The cage containing a rat exploded, and the rat grew into the shape of a small man whose glassy eyes suggested that he was in some sort of trance. Ginny recognised Peter Pettigrew.

Malfoy yelled something else, also in the same strange language, and Pettigrew pointed the index finger of his odd prosthetic hand at Holly. Time suddenly seemed to slow down as the part of Ginny's mind that had trained for battle situations took over and coolly assessed the scene before her. Ginny's instincts told her that the cleverly crafted hand held a deadly trap, but no one else appeared to understand the significance of Pettigrew's gesture. Harry alone seemed to suspect something was terribly amiss, but his lightning-fast grab for his wand came up empty, for he didn't have it anymore. By the time Ginny could have drawn her own wand, it would be much too late.

No. Never. Harry had lost his parents at a very early age. Malfoy couldn't be allowed to take Harry's own daughter away from him as well… Harry had lost too much already, and her loss would surely deal him a mortal wound from which he could never recover.

There was nothing else for it. Not when she could stop it. Yes.

Time sped up to its normal pace as the decision was made, and without a second thought, Ginny flung herself forward, twisting around as she struck and embraced a startled Holly, so that Ginny now stood between Pettigrew and Holly. Three sharp bursts of pain lanced through her spine and exploded across her back, and the sounds of screams—her own—or someone else's? —receded as the pain drove any other thought from her mind. It felt like all the cells in her body were on fire, slowly burning away, and she tasted a mixture of bile and blood in her mouth. Time seemed to slow once more as she was gently lowered to the ground, and the small part of her mind still numbed by battle-instinct registered disjointed fragments of the action around her as darkness nibbled on the edge of her vision—

—Malfoy, laughing like a madman as Faust, Kozminski and Ron Stunned Pettigrew—

—Harry, falling to his knees, his mouth open in horror so profound he couldn't even give voice to it—

—Hermione, shoving Holly aside and feverishly working with her wand over Ginny's torso—

Then, time began to move again. Her vision cleared just a little as there was movement at her side, and Harry gathered Ginny into his arms. His face was drained of colour, and his eyes were blank with shock, the green iris only a thin sliver around the wide and fathomless black pupils. Ginny dimly realised that she could no longer feel anything below her waist.

A moment later, Hermione sobbed in vexation. "The bolts completely severed her spine and the toxin is spreading through her nervous system too fast to counteract… I can't—I can't save her!"

Now her lungs began to seize up, refusing to take in enough air for her to breathe. Ginny knew she'd be dead soon. A combination of sorrow and fierce joy overtook her. At least she would see George again, soon. Then she could at least try to apologise for what she did to cause his death. Harry's wordless sob penetrated her thoughts. Harry… No. It was better this way, wasn't it? The darkness at the edge of her vision advanced again, and this time she let her eyes close.

Then something warm, light and soft covered her eyes.

It only took a few moments, but it seemed more like an eternity before the pain—the screaming, tearing, burning pain—finally receded into the darkness, replaced by numbness and light. Then the numbness was gradually replaced again by the normal sensations produced by her body. She felt feathers tickling her face, and Ginny realised that Holly was healing her. Finally, the wing slid off her, and Ginny opened her eyes, immediately meeting Harry's worried gaze.

"Ginny, are you all right?"

"I…think…so," Ginny said slowly. Fortunately there was no blood in her mouth, though a faint aftertaste still lingered. As she struggled to sit upright, her eyes fell across Holly, who gently held her down in Harry's arms. No one could mistake the wasted creature that was Holly for something that walked in the living world. Her skin was almost translucent, and the white feathers of her angelic wings were turning black. Her eyes were filled with pain and now she was the one panting as if she couldn't draw a full breath.

Harry noticed it too. He reached for her, and Hermione, understanding his intention, quickly moved to support her, preventing her from falling over. "Holly, what's happening to you?"

"No… not now. Not yet," she gasped. Her unnaturally pale body shuddered. "I'm sorry, Ginny… I can't finish the healing. But you won't die now, and…the pain and weakness that remains will totally heal on its own. But you must rest completely for three moons…or the damage will be permanent." She looked up and smiled at Harry and Ginny serenely. "I have no more life left to give. But I've gladly given it."

"What? No! You'll be fine! You just need to rest." Harry said anxiously.

With visible effort, Holly's trembling hand rose up to stroke Harry's cheek. "I didn't know I was in danger. Ginny wanted to give her life to protect me. I chose to replenish her life with mine. The embers are cold. I'm only ashes."

Ginny's eyes burned and she had trouble seeing through her tears. "You shouldn't have done it," she sobbed. "Harry needs you more than he needs me. Take your life back!"

"I cannot. And even if I could… Harry needs you, Ginny. Things can't go back to the way they were. You were right about that. But you can always move forward and experience new joy, which will make up for the pain," Holly shivered and closed her eyes for a moment. When she spoke again, her voice was fainter. "You said that getting together with Harry means disaster, but you're wrong. Not getting back together with Harry would mean disaster, because if you don't, all you'll ever have is the pain from the past without the joy from the future. You must not let your love be frightened and conquered by evil. You must defy it…"

"Holly… You can't die!" Harry sobbed. He turned to Hermione. "Hermione, can't you do something?"

Hermione looked helpless and shook her head.

"We'll see each other again, Daddy," Holly whispered. "Someday…"

"Don't…leave m-me."

"I'll never truly be gone." Holly reached down and plucked a couple of the few remaining white feathers out of her wing and placed them in Ginny's hand. "My spark… is part of your fire now." She clasped Ginny's other hand and one of Harry's hands together between her own chilled hands. "Take care of my dad-dy…" she uttered with her last breath. Her eyes fell shut and her head sagged back on Hermione's shoulder. Then her body simply faded away into nothingness. One of the feathers she had given to Ginny remained a moment more, then flashed. A dazzling amethyst glow enveloped Ginny for a moment before fading into her body, leaving Ginny clutching a single feather, the only evidence that Holly had ever been in their lives.

Harry's shoulders shook with silent sobs.

There was a sudden scuffling sound nearby.

"Ron, don't!" Faust bellowed.

Ginny weakly turned her head, the only movement she was strong enough to make. Ron was pointing his wand at Malfoy, who was still restrained in the chair, though someone had cast the full body bind on him. Pettigrew lay on the floor, unconscious.

"He has to die," Ron said, sounding remarkably calm, almost detached even.

Faust forced Ron's hand down. "I won't let him goad you into becoming a murderer. I'll take care of it myself."

A flick of the wand loosened the restraints on the chair, and with another flick, Malfoy's petrified body floated out of the Cruiser.

***

Author's Note: Two-Four-Six-Eight, who's the evil guy you hate? Mwahahaha. Seriously, I'm not just being evil. Her death served a greater purpose.

***

Wand*Light: I'm sorry I had to end Holly's development this abruptly.

InDepthServitude: Yeah, that's where I got part of the inspiration from.

Gogirl: You cursed prematurely. Now I'm a bastard.

Foxfur: As always, you ask good questions.

Earl: You guessed right, but lots of people did. I suppose I'm getting predictable at my old age.

Catatonic Reaction: One more chapter.

Potterscientist817: No, I don't hate Ginny.

Lady RotS: Hope you don't mind my shortening your name. It's exhausting to type it every time. Did you enjoy this chapter?

nycgal: No, Crystal isn't Harry's daughter. Mordecai's still around, don't worry. I can't give everyone screen time. BTW, I haven't forgotten about the e-mail I was going to send you. But it contains info that I'd like to withhold until the last possible instant.

Alice of Wonderland: I don't remember seeing your name before. If I'm right, welcome aboard. If not, I apologise for my leaky memory. Either way, thanks for the encouragement.

Zaz: Tadaa!

Ginny1946: Actually, I think I caught Anne by surprise with that one too.

Jake: I personally don't want to make Harry too powerful, which is why I destroyed the pendants.

Lord Dreadnault: If only we could get JK Rowling to write beyond book seven.

Casual Reader: Caught that little detail, did you?

The Bronze Snidget: Phoenix was destroyed.

Gypsydot: Ginny and Galatea will be fine, as you can see.

LadySiri: I prayed. Did it work?

Stefanie: Malfoy transferred the AK to George.

Chloe Black: If the powers that be will allow it, there is going to be one more story. But don't expect it to come out for some time. I want to have it mostly done before I begin posting, so you may not see it until PoA the movie comes out.