Chapter Forty-seven: The Spell
Summary: Forth-seventh chapter. Two to go. That about sums it up.
Harry congratulated himself that, even past his growing fear, his attention wasn't focused on Voldemort at all. Instead from the moment he regained his focus from the pain that nearly blinded him, his attention fell solely on the woman standing next to him.
Arabella.
Though she looked tired and shaken, Harry was grateful that she did not look as though the Deatheaters had hurt her in any way. Harry had been haunted by thoughts of his godmother returning to the castle in much the same condition Sirius had been returned there days before from this very place.
As Arabella stood next to Voldemort, she managed a small smile for Harry, assuring him she was all right.
"Here is the woman as promised, Dumbledore." Voldemort stated. "Send me the boy, and then you may leave."
When Arabella didn't move on cue, Voldemort placed a hand behind her and shoved her forcefully forward, sending her to the floor with a slight cry, several yards in front of him.
Harry reacted immediately to his godmother's cry. Dodging Sirius' grip on his shoulder, he ran to her, falling on his own knees as he wrapped his arms about her in a protective embrace.
"Harry! No!" Sirius cried out. He moved as quickly as his good leg would let him, pulling himself about Harry and Arabella.
"Analisa." Voldemort stated, turning to his follower. "You have served me long and well. You have always been among my favorites. So do I offer you a reward for your service." He added, pointing to Sirius, Arabella, and Harry. "Kill them."
Analisa stepped forward. As Harry watched her, he noted that the look on her face was as vacant as Sirius' had been walking through the main chamber. Harry wondered in those few fragile seconds what was going through her mind. But he didn't have long to wonder. Stopping before them, Analisa raised her wand above them.
In a split second she turned suddenly and direct the tip of her wand at Voldemort.
"Now!" She cried, positioning herself for the spell.
Four bolts of light suddenly erupted from the four corners of the room, catching Voldemort where he stood.
Harry watched in stunned amazement as a ball of light formed around Voldemort, then erupted outward, covering every inch of the interior of the room.
As soon as the spell was cast, Sirius had grabbed Harry and Arabella and directed them back to where Dumbledore was standing. When Harry turned around again, Voldemort was on his knees in the center of the room. For a moment Harry thought the spell might have actually done his work for him. But a low, sinister laugh answered the question for him.
"Very good, Dumbledore." Voldemort rasped, his head bowed. "A containment spell. I wasn't expecting that. But tell me," he added, without moving so much as a muscle, "were you expecting this?"
The dark wizard suddenly drew his wand and pointed it directly at Harry. He spoke a spell so quickly, Harry didn't even catch what it was. But with a well practiced move from Lupin's teaching, Harry parried the shot, which struck the far wall with a blast of light.
"Harry!" Sirius stated, standing just behind him. "Use the spell. Just like I taught you. Do it now."
Harry didn't paused a second more. He raised his own wand and pointed it at Voldemort. Quickly he began to recite the spell.
As he spoke, Harry watched Voldemort expression suddenly change from one of outrage at having missed his intended victim again, to one of surprise, to actual fear.
"No!" He screamed. "Potter! What are you doing?"
"Don't stop, Harry!" Sirius called over a rising sound that Harry couldn't locate the source of. "You have to keep going."
Harry had no intention of stopping. He watched with a numb sort of satisfaction as Voldemort's expression became more and more contorted by fear with each word he spoke.
But suddenly Harry went silent.
"Harry?" Sirius quickly turned to his godson. He knew the spell as well as Harry, and he knew Harry hadn't finished it.
Harry turned to Sirius over his shoulder, the rising fear in his eyes telling Sirius all he needed to know to understand what had happened.
Harry had forgotten the next line of the spell.
Without hesitation, Sirius leaned next to him and recited to forgotten line in Harry's ear.
Harry closed his eyes and repeated the line. Whatever emotions he may have been feeling before, they were all swept away to be replaced by only one. It was the same feeling he had held onto so tightly from the day Sirius had entered his life. The feeling that no matter where he was or what he was facing, he was wasn't alone any more. Somewhere in the world there was at least one person who cared about him and wanted him to be safe.
Harry finished the last word of the forgotten line. But before he could even begin the next, he heard it softly whispered in his ear. Sirius apparently wasn't going to take any chances that Harry would forget anymore of the spell. He had had such a short time to learn it, even Harry admitted the chances were good he might forget another part. He listened carefully to his godfather's voice. Even if he had had weeks to study the spell and could recite it in his sleep, he wouldn't have turned away Sirius' help. Somehow, having his godfather standing behind him with his hands on his shoulders chased a bit of the cold away from his body. With his eyes still closed, Harry repeated the line. He wasn't going to let anything have the chance of distracting him anymore. He ignored the sound around him that was like the howl of a violent wind, and the scream that was growing louder before him. He simply pressed on, listening to his godfather's voice, and telling himself with each word and each phrase recited, he was closer to the end.
Finally, what seemed like hours later to him, Harry heard himself speak the last word of the spell. And suddenly silence fell on the room.
Harry slowly opened his eyes and stared at the sight before him.
Voldemort lay on the stone floor before him. No movement at all coming from the body.
Harry took a slow, deep breath, almost unwilling to believe the nightmare was finally over. A soft squeeze on his shoulders caused him to turn to look up at his godfather. The look on Sirius face spoke more than any words could to Harry. But the hug as Sirius slipped his arms around his godson certainly didn't hurt.
"Lupin!" A sharp voice cut into Harry's thoughts. He turned to see Snape standing at one of the doorways to the room, running his hand over it as though it were covered by a sheet of glass. "The room is still sealed. What's wrong?"
Everyone in the room turned to Snape, watching as Lupin walked over to the doorway and equally ran his hand over the doorway.
"I'm not sure." Lupin muttered. "The spell was very specific. Let me think."
But Lupin didn't have much of a chance to reconsider the basis of the spell. Suddenly a bolt of light shot across the room.
To Harry's horror, the voice he heard cry out in pain was that of his godmother.
While everyone's attention was focused on Lupin, the crumpled figure of Voldemort had raised itself on one hand and had its wand pointed at Arabella. The spell had caught her in the back, and she collapsed immediately.
"Arabella!" Sirius cried.
Leaving Harry where they had been standing since Harry finished the spell, Sirius ran to Arabella's side.
The last thing Harry remembered seeing was his godfather pulling Arabella into his arms. Past one brief moment of pain, his world suddenly dissolved into darkness.
Sirius saw the second flash of light erupt several yards away as it found it's target. In mute shock he watched his godson's body collapse to the ground without a sound.
In the silence of those few seconds, Sirius watched his entire world fall apart before him. A frightening realization coming over him as he stared at his godson's collapsed form.
He had sworn to Harry he wouldn't leave him that night. Not even for a second.
And he had.
He had left him standing completely unprotected.
And before him lay the results of his broken promise.
A low, sinister laugh drew Sirius' attention away from Harry and Arabella. Turning he saw Voldemort laying on the floor, his wand still in his hand, pointed at where Harry lay.
Sirius screamed out in rage as he leapt to his feet and ran at Voldemort.
The dark wizard seemed to do nothing to try and protect himself against Sirius' attack. Reaching where Voldemort lay still, Sirius grabbed him by the front of his robes and pulled him up until Voldemort was staring directly into Sirius' enraged face.
The same low, sinister laugh was all that Voldemort gave Sirius. But it was enough to prompt Sirius into making one last decision.
Reaching down, Sirius grabbed the dark wizard's wand, still held tightly in his hand. But it took almost no effort at all for Sirius, backed by his rage, to pull the wand free of Voldemort's grip.
Staring down into Voldemort's face still, Sirius turned the wand about and thrust it with all his might directly into Voldemort's chest.
Sirius never saw Analisa suddenly run to Lupin or heard her frantically conversing with him. Nor did he hear Lupin in turn shouting something at him. All he heard was that laugh as Voldemort, smiling up at him with a light of triumph in his eyes, slowly slid from his grip. But before contact was completely broken between them, a sudden tremor ran the length of Voldemort's wand. It caught hold of Sirius, freezing him with his hand still wrapped tightly about Voldemort's wand. With a sudden cry of agony, Sirius was thrown the length of the room, hitting the opposite wall with a great deal of force.
"Sirius!" Lupin ran to his friend's collapsed form. For all the force that Sirius had hit the wall with, Lupin was startled to note that Sirius had managed to hold onto Voldemort's wand.
Lupin turned rapidly to where Voldemort's body lay, just in time to see the crumpled form disintegrate into dust.
"Lupin!" Snape called.
Lupin turned to see Snape with his arm half-way extended out the doorway.
"The spell is broken. We can get out."
Lupin quickly grabbed Sirius while Dumbledore took Harry and Snape took Arabella. The three hurried out of the room, led by Analisa.
Running as fast as they could, the small party found that they were hardly opposed at all on the way toward the entrance. Several Deatheaters, in fact, even got out of their way.
Once outside they were met by Mad-eye Moody and several other ministry wizards, who quickly transported them all back to Hogwarts.
Back in the infirmary, awake herself now, Arabella was frantically running between Sirius and Harry's bed, begging Madam Pomfrey for any news as to their condition and ignoring the nurse's pleas for her to get back in bed herself.
The head nurse finally turned from examining her remaining patients after several tense moments.
"They only seem to be stunned, Arabella." She informed her. "They should be just fine."
Almost on cue, Harry moaned softly from his bed.
Arabella immediately ran to her godson and gathered him up in her arms.
"Harry!" She cried with joy. "Oh thank the heavens above he didn't hurt you. He could have killed you. And Sirius."
"I don't believe so, Arabella." Dumbledore stated, coming up next to Harry's bed. His usual whimsical smile on his lips. "Voldemort was far too weak to cast any spell with any real power at that point. I'm pleased to say it seems the spells that hit you and Harry were just vain, last attempts to finish his work."
Arabella was quick to note that Dumbledore had not included Sirius in his assessment of the spells that Voldemort hit them with.
"What about Sirius?" Arabella asked quietly. "Is he going to be all right."
Dumbledore turned to Sirius' still form with a thoughtful look. "Ah, now, that we will have to wait and see. Voldemort apparently tried to cast one last spell as he was dieing. Possibly the strength of that spell was simple due to the fact that Sirius and Voldemort were in such close contact."
Arabella turned a worried stare to Sirius' still form.
"Give him time, Arabella." Dumbledore offered.
Arabella only nodded numbly as she continued to stare at the still form with tears in her eyes.