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Disclaimer; wouldn't it be nice if I did own it? but alas I don't!
Chapter 19 Giants in the playground
The next day was surprisingly uneventful and Harry was disappointed, he had expected to feel some amazing differences, but he didn't notice anything new. His classes seemed monotonous. He went from lesson to lesson in a bit of a fog, his mind occupied with the day before. The sense of detachment lasted until dinner time, when several odd things seemed to catch his attention.
He was drinking from his goblet, sure he had drank a least half of it, when he looked down and found it almost full. He didn't give it any more thought at the time. Then Snape stood up, his right hand pressed on his left fore arm, he looked at Dumbledore and the two nodded, than Snape left through one of the doors near the teachers table.
Harry finished eating, and then followed the others up to their common room. Half way there Harry began to feel dizzy.
"Are you alright?" Ron asked.
But Harry could only shake his head, hoping to clear it.
"I think we'd better take him up to Madam Pomfrey," said Hermione, "remember the last time he fainted?"
Ron grabbed Harry under one arm and Hermione took the other and they began to change direction.
"Wait," Harry said as they approached the first flight of stairs, "I just need to lie down for a while. I don't want to go see Pomfrey."
They helped Harry into the common room and upstairs to his room. Harry stretched out on the bed and slipped into unconsciousness. The last thing he heard was Ron's voice saying, "Are you all right Harry?"
But Harry didn't respond, he could feel his energy draining away and knew he was going to pass out. Focusing on the air he tried to draw energy from it, but his body didn't seem to belong to him.
Harry watched from behind his closed eyes, powerless to do anything. At first he thought he was dreaming but the details were too precise, the imagines too real, he watched it unfold as though watching some muggle film.
McGonagall closed and locked the main doors casting a protection charm on them then turned and walked to Hagrid's cabin. Harry saw a large gathering of witches and wizards all listening intently to Dumbledore. Harry saw that Mad-eye Moody, Tonks, Maroon, Bill and Charlie Weasley were among the large crowd. Hagrid was standing near the edge of the dark Forest and beside him stood Grawp and Firenze.
The group split up and started to make their way into the Forest, Harry tried to scream for them to wait for him, but no sound came out. Suddenly his perspective shifted and he was directly behind Dumbledore. There was a loud rumbling noise in the distance and Dumbledore signalled to those closest to him to move forward slowly. For what felt like hours they moved through the Forest, the rumbling growing ever louder. The air shifted and Harry felt a chill. 'Dementors' his silent voice tried to warn the others, almost instantly he noted the change in the group, their steps slowed and a few stumbled.
The dementors swept through the Forest in their hundreds, gathering around the wizards, many of the wizards called their patornus' and the dark forest was brightened by the ghostly silvery lights. Harry watched as Hagrid feel to his knees, begging and sobbing, no one seemed to notice and Harry tried to scream. The dementor closest to him threw back its hood and approached the fallen man. Suddenly it was flung through the air, along with the dozen closest to it.
Grawp was ploughing through the dementors his huge face contorted in rage; he was batting the dementors high in the air. He bent down and lifted Hagrid, as though he were a small doll, and placed him gently over his shoulder. Harry let out a sigh of relief.
A large silvery Phoenix swooped down and was joined by a large bear, they charged the dementors who gradually fell back and the screams quietened. Harry looked about and noticed several of the wizards lying on the ground, lifeless, they had been kissed by dementors. Dumbledore hurried around and collected them together, cast a protection charm on them, then ordered the others to move forward.
The next sign of danger crashed like an earthquake as a giant hand reached through the trees and threw one of the wizards leading the group through the air. There was a burst of stunning spells from the group on the right and the giant toppled like an overgrown tree.
More giants moved in, felling the trees in their approach, and began to swipe at the wizards. In groups the wizards were able to take on the giants but, just as it looked as though the wizards were gaining an advantage, death eaters appeared. The colour of spells bursting through the trees changed from red stunning spells to bright green curses.
Harry was struggling to wake himself; he had to go to them. He had to help. But he could only watch helplessly as the death eaters picked off the wizards too focused on the giants to defend themselves. Harry held his breath as he watched Tonks fall, then Mad-eye cast a spell in her direction and she rolled over and bound two of the closest death eaters with thick ropes, not missing a beat, she jumped to her feet and added her stunning spell to take down the closest giant. Harry was surprised by her coordination, she always seemed so clumsy, yet now she looked like the trained aura that she really was.
Dumbledore was facing a giant alone, he was sending spell after spell towards his huge opponent, Harry watched in awe as the old man danced around the giant, managing to stay out of its long reach. Firenze had joined the battle with several other Centaurs, who had obviously suffered injuries along with the wizards. The forest now looked like a flattened field; most of the trees had been toppled or ripped out from the roots and used as clubs by the giants.
The wizards seemed to be gaining the upper hand, only two giants remained standing, the wizards were collecting around them. They managed to subdue one of them and they were turning to the other when two of the wizards fell under a bright green flash. Turning another two of the wizards threw spells at the death eaters responsible, seeing their attack failing, the remaining Death eaters fled for cover.
Harry looked as the last giant toppled and watched the wizards start to search around, looking for their fallen comrades. Harry saw Hagrid kneeling on the ground beside a fallen giant, he was sobbing and Harry realised it must have been Grawp. Hagrid stood up slowly and looked around then charged away in the direction the last death eaters had fled.
Harry was trying to get someone's attention, they had to follow Hagrid. He couldn't take on the retreating death eaters alone. But no one noticed, Harry followed the path Hagrid had taken and his mind screamed in terror as he emerged through a small clump of the remaining trees. Hagrid was surrounded by seven death eaters; he was aiming huge punches at them. He contacted with one of them, and sent him flying through the air. But his distraction cost him, another two of the death eaters hit him with spells at the same time, Hagrid roared in pain and turned towards them.
They were ready for him; he managed to knock one of them out as the remaining five cast a curse at him. Harry watched in horror as in slow motion the green lights burst forth from their wands and Hagrids face contorted in pain, he fell to his knees and toppled forward in slow motion. Then he didn't move. The death eaters kicked him as they passed and one by one disapparated from the scene. Harry realised that they must have been at the very edge of the Dark Forest where they could escape unnoticed.
"HAGRID! HAGRID!" Harry screamed silently, but no one could hear him, he wasn't really standing there, he was watching it all in a dream, unconscious somewhere inside the castle.
As though someone had paused the film, Harry was left staring at Hagrid, lying unmoving on the ground. Emotions swelled in him and threatened to suffocate him. Could Hagrid really be gone? Try as he might, Harry couldn't make himself wake up and couldn't block out the image in front of him.
"Harry, Harry, can you hear me?" A voice said.
Harry opened his eyes, sat bolt upright on a bed and screamed, "HAGRID!"
"Harry, calm down," Hermione grabbed for his arms as they thrashed about. She wasn't fast enough and he knocked her to the floor.
"Hey, look out," Ron yelled, bending to help Hermione up. "What the hell's wrong with you?"
Harry came to his senses and looked at his friends, amazed to find them looking so calm after all that had happened. Then he realised they hadn't watched it with him, they didn't know.
"It's Hagrid….he's …" but Harry couldn't say the words.
"Harry you've been dreaming," Hermione said quietly.
Ron handed him his glasses and said, "Yeh, you were out for hours."
"How long?" Harry asked.
"It's just after 3 am," Hermione replied. "So about 9 hours."
"I have to go, maybe there's still time," Harry pushed himself off the bed and felt his legs wobble a bit.
"Go where," Hermione called after him as he headed for the door. "The Portrait won't open. We tried to go and get help earlier, but we couldn't."
"Wait, we'll come with you," Ron grabbed Hermione's hand and followed.
Harry ran to the Portrait and waited for it to swing open, it didn't. He called the password and pounded on the back of it, to no effect. Then he placed his hands instinctively and thought about it opening, suddenly the door swung open and he burst out. Ron and Hermione were running to keep up.
They had made it about halfway down to the entrance hall when a loud rabble broke through the eerie silence of the castle.
"Oh my God," Hermione whispered with her hands over her mouth in horror, "what happened?"
But Harry wasn't listening; he was racing down the stairs towards the large group of dirty and bloody wizards. Searching trough the dirty and blood stained faces for the tall, bearded man, in a moleskin coat. He pushed passed Tonks, who was helping a short dark haired witch with blood pouring down the side of her face. He side stepped Mad-eye Moody, who was ferrying an unconscious body on a stretcher.
He kept going until he saw the bright purple robes of Dumbledore, grabbing the front of his robes he demanded, "Where is he, did you bring him, he needs to see Pomfrey, now!"
Dumbledore looked at Harry, with tear filled eyes and said, "Harry, it too la…"
"No," Harry yelled, "Don't you dare say that, it's not, it can't be."
"Harry, please calm down, you mustn't lose control," Dumbledore said quietly.
The air in the entrance hall crackled with tension and Harry yelled at the headmaster, "You did this! You drugged me so I couldn't go…and now he's….you killed him!" The castle shook, for a moment it felt as though it was rocking on its foundations, then it stopped as Harry pushed his way out of the door, passed the many wounded still coming in.
Harry ran sightlessly towards Hagrids hut, flung the door open and searched for his friend. Finding the hut empty, he sank down onto one of the over stuffed arm chairs and felt his energy drain. He kept his eyes closed, hoping that they had been mistaken, hoping that Hagrid would turn up with his usual cheery, "O'right there 'arry?" but the greeting never came, and eventually Harry stood up, took one last look around and walked slowly up to the castle.
The doors to the Great Hall were open and Harry saw that they had used it instead of the infirmary to treat some of the injured witches and wizard. Ron and Hermione were among the crowd, it looked as though they were acting as gofers for Madam Pomfrey and Professor McGonagall, as they passed through the others and handed out potions and salves.
Then he saw him, standing over a large cot, tears slipping down from under his glasses. Harry approached and saw Hagrid stretched out motionless on a large cot, his expression peaceful, it looked as though he were asleep. Harry stomach tighten as he realised it was a sleep that he would never wake up from. Dumbledore stood unmoving, crying over his one time student, grounds keeper and Professor.
"How many others?" Harry asked in a quiet voice.
"Too many," Dumbledore sighed, then he whispered so quietly that Harry wasn't even sure he had heard it, "Damn you Tom, how could you let it go so far."
"He wasn't there was he?" Harry asked.
Dumbledore turned and looked Harry in the eye, "No Harry, he was busy elsewhere, just as we feared."
"There was another attack?" Harry asked.
"In Manchester, London and Newcastle," Dumbledore replied.
"What about Moony, he was supposed to be at one of them," Harry asked sharply.
"We don't know yet what happened, they were set up as a diversion, the real target was Hogsmead," Dumbledore answered.
"Hogsmead? Not Hogwarts?" Harry asked.
"I don't think so; he knows that he would need a much larger force than that to breach Hogwarts protections."
"But they got into the Forest," Harry always assumed that the Forest was protected as well.
"Well the protection is much weaker there, because it is hard to set solid protections in such a terrain," Dumbledore explained. "I should help, with the others." Dumbledore moved away, leaving Harry to stand alone with his fallen friend.
Harry reached a hand out to Hagrid, placing it on his unmoving chest, he wanted to do something. What was the use of having all this powerful magic, if he couldn't save the lives of his friends. He started a little at the voice behind him.
"Harry, Dumbledore asked if you would go to the anti-chamber for a minute," Tonks was standing beside him, her hair an uncharacteristic brown colour, her face very pale.
"What does he want?" Harry snapped.
"He didn't say," Tonks replied. "It's not your fault." She added, indicating to Hagrid.
"Oh I know exactly who's fault it is," Harry growled, "Bloody Dumbledore and of course Voldemort." Harry turned on his heel and went in search of Dumbledore. He found him in the room that Harry had been sent to, after his name was called from the Goblet of Fire, the night Voldemort's plan to return had begun.
Dumbledore was standing near the fire observing eight wizards, all who seemed to be staring lifelessly ahead, unaware of their surroundings.
"Harry, they were kissed by dementors," Dumbledore said quietly. "I wanted you to try and see if you can contact them somehow."
"Bring back their souls?" Harry asked incredulously. "How?"
"I have no idea," Dumbledore replied, "But I thought it would be worth a try."
Harry shrugged his shoulders and approached the first one. Taking the cold hands in his own sweaty ones Harry tried to block out the image of Hagrid and force himself into the cold void of the wizards mind. It was like stepping into a deep freeze, vacant and abandoned. Harry let the warmth of his own blood pulsing through his heart, flow through his fingertips into the wizards. The coldness mellowed and a small warm breeze began to form. Harry remembered the energy he had felt contained in the forest the day before and the way the flowers had bloomed in the small lake he had created. He forced the images into the mind of the wizard.
Suddenly the wizard coughed and released Harry's hands, falling with a small thud to the floor. Harry blinked as he became aware of the room again and bent down to examine the wizard. The man's face had some colour in it and his breathing seemed stronger. Slowly his eyes fluttered open and he whispered, "What the hell happened?"
Harry smiled at him and said, "You're safe, the battles over, for now."
Dumbledore hurried forward and helped the man to his feet saying, "Come with me, I think you should probably lie down for a while." He smiled at Harry and led the man out of the room.
Harry repeated the process on the rest of the wizards in the room and slowly one by one they were led out by Dumbledore to be checked over by Madam Pomfrey. The process took a lot of energy from Harry and after two long hours he sat down heavily on a chair by the fire, he energy spent. Dumbledore came back in and handed him a steaming cup of hot chocolate. Which Harry drank, gratefully. When he finished, he placed the cup on the table and stood up.
"Harry, I think you should rest," Dumbledore stopped him at the door, "It's almost 6 in the morning, it has been a long night for us all."
"No, I want to try that on Hagrid," Harry announced.
"Hagrid is already dead Harry, it wouldn't work on him," Dumbledore said quietly.
"You don't know that," Harry replied. "You didn't know if I could bring all those wizards back, but I did it. You let me help strangers, but you won't let me help the first friend I ever had?"
"Harry, you must tread carefully, remember what I warned you," Dumbledore said, "You should never interfere with death, it is part of the natural order."
Harry pushed past the headmaster and went back to Hagrid, placing his hands on his chest Harry tried to feed his energy to Hagrid. Then he saw it, the bright green glow of the 'Avada Cadavra' curse, his knees buckled and his breathing became laboured, but Hagrid still lay unmoving. Harry felt the world around him slipping away, and lost his hold on Hagrid as he fell unconscious to the floor.
Someone must have lifted him to a bed, because when he opened his eyes, he found himself staring at the familiar ceiling of the infirmary. Feeling around on the bedside table, Harry found his glasses and put them on. The infirmary was full of adult witches and wizards, Madam Pomfrey was moving around between the beds, handing out potions and wrapping bandages. Silently Harry slipped his feet onto the floor, grabbed his wand and muttered the disillusionment charm, then walked freely from the room, before anyone could stop him.
Harry reached the Great Hall before he removed the charm, then he pushed the doors opened and found, to his surprise, the rest of the students sitting at their tables eating breakfast. Harry made his way silently down to the Gryffindor table and sat beside a very pale Ron and Hermione.
"Are you supposed to be up yet?" Hermione asked.
"Where did they put Hagrid?" Harry ignored her question.
"Dumbledore is setting up a marquee outside, for the funerals tomorrow," Ron said. "He said Hagrid would want to be beside Grawp."
"What about today? Where are all the teachers?" Harry asked, glancing at the almost empty top table.
"6th &7th year potions students, along with some 5th years, have potions all day today. The rest of them are to go to Herbology, the 1st & 2nd years have Charms and History and the 3rd & 4th Years have Defence, then Charms," Hermione replied.
"Why do we have to do potions all day?" Harry asked.
"We're making an antidote for some poison or other," Hermione said, "Dumbledore says that we need so much, all the students have to help as well."
Harry though about this, the riots in London, Manchester and Newcastle, Voldemorts lot must have released a chemical weapon, and now they had to brew the antidote for the muggles. Harry ate as much as he could and followed Hermione down to the dungeons; he was not looking forward to spending a full day with Snape.
"Quickly now, split yourselves into groups around these five tables, it is vital that you make this potion perfectly. We do not have time for mistakes," Snape said as they entered the room. "Miss Granger go to the first table and help the others, Miss Bones you will do the same at the second table, Mr Finch-Fletchley, Mr Corner and Miss Turpin, you three take tables 3, 4 and 5. Keep an eye on your fellow students; we have no room for error."
There was a rustle of movements as the students spread themselves around the classroom. Snape had placed their cauldrons on five large tables and all the ingredient they would need were placed in the centre. Hermione took her responsibility very seriously and kept an eye on the others at her table, making sure no one added too much or too little of anything and that they stirred in the appropriate manner.
"Sir, our first batch is finished," Hermione called to Snape, he left the table he was working at alone, with three cauldrons at one, and came over to inspect them. He took a sample of each and tested it on the mice in a cage in the corner. Obviously satisfied he returned and with a wave of his wand, dozens of plastic tubes appeared in the centre of the table.
"Fill each one with 150cc's of the potion and place them in the black bag," Snape told them. "When you have finished you may go to lunch. Be back here in an hour, you have more to make."
They did as ordered and left quietly for lunch. Harry was exhausted and glancing at Hermione, he realised that she looked just as bad, she and Ron had stayed up all night watching over Harry, he said quietly, "I think you could use some 'pepper up' from Madam Pomfrey."
Hermione nodded in agreement as she replied, "Why don't we nip up after lunch, before we go back to Snape's."
Harry was sure Pomfrey would be ready to lecture him for sneaking out that morning, but he didn't see how he could stay awake without some thing from her, so he nodded in agreement.
After their quick lunch, they headed up to the infirmary. Madam Pomfrey swooped down on Harry with a strict reprimand about leaving the ward before she could check on him. Begging forgiveness, he had to submit to a quick physical before she declared herself satisfied and gave them both some 'pepper-up' potion. Then they returned to the dungeons, to continue their potion making.