Harry awoke with a start. Something wasn't right. He took a quick whiff of the air - nothing - and then scanned the room with his eyes. Nothing. Harry had the feeling that if his heart weren't technically dead, it would be racing.
Harry climbed quickly off the couch. The Sword of Gryffindor was already strapped to his body, since he never slept with it far away. After checking the room over again, he decided to wake Diana.
"Diana," Harry said, gently shaking her. "Come on, now, wake up..."
Diana's eyes fluttered a bit. "What time is it?" she asked groggily.
Harry glanced at the clock. "Three-thirty in the morning," he said, barely noticing his own exhaustion. That could wait.
For a second, Diana seemed incredulous at being awakened at such an hour. Then, the emotion was gone off her face, and she was her usual passive self. "What's going on?" she asked, with the casual manner of someone running into friends at a pizza parlor.
"I'm not sure," Harry said. "I think they've caught up again."
Diana sighed heavily and got out of the bed. "Fine," she said, and walked towards the door. Harry followed her.
"Fine?" he asked. "Fine. What is that?"
"Four letter word, begins with "f" and ends with "e"." Diana replied, no emotion leaking through.
Harry was getting annoyed by that point. "See here, Diana," he began. "We're in this for our lives -"
She cut him off, whirling quickly to face him. The look of rage and fury on her face was scary. "Don't you think I know that?!" she shrieked at him. Grumblings arose from the other apartments they were walking past. "Don't you think I know that we both might end up like...like..."
Her fury dissolved just as quickly as it came, and Diana finally broke down. She started sobbing, leaning against Harry for support. "I left them," she said, through the torrent of tears. "I could have been there with them, but I left them, and now they're dead, and I never said good-bye, I just left..."
Harry stroked the back of Diana's head as she sobbed into his shoulder. "You had to leave them," he said. "You'd have died if you stayed."
"I wanted to die with them!" she said, still sobbing.
"Diana," Harry said, holding the young woman out to arms length. "You can't die yet. You are a wonderful person. You may not know it, but you have a lot to offer the world. I don't know about any deities in the world, or if there really is some master plan for us all, because frankly I've had enough of that in my life. What I do know is that you are still living, and while you're still living you can still do good things. You're good at that. You can still be good at that, if you live."
Diana's crying began to lessen. She wiped the tears from her eyes, and then hugged Harry again, tighter then before.
At that moment, Harry heard a series of car doors slamming. "Come on," he said, urgently. "I think our time is wearing down."
Harry was distinctly aware of the danger they were probably in, but he was still relieved to feel Diana moving more of her own free will then his. It was a pleasant change - even if they were about to be slaughtered.
Harry and Diana got through the front door of the hotel and came sprawling into the parking lot...only to find it swarming with dark creatures, non of which seemed to move like humans as they danced through the shadows.
"Mr. Potter," came a voice from the shadow. Harry recognized it from the incident at the cabin. "If you come with us now, we'll spare you and your companion any harm."
Harry planted himself firmly in front of Diana and drew the Sword of Gryffindor. "Why is it," he asked. "That everyone in this damn country seems to think I'll just give up if given the chance?"
"Suit yourself," came the voice, cold and indifferent. A single form emerged from the shadows of the parking lot, yet Harry's senses told him that there were others. For now, he focused on this one.
Harry had never seen anything quite like the creature that stood before him. It's hourglass shaped head possessed a mouth full of large, sharp teeth. It's right arm had what appeared to be a large sickle attached to it, and its left arm seemed more like a tentacle then an arm, with spiky protrusions at the end. It also had a tail that ended in a needle-like point.
"You like it?" came a new voice. Another thing without a scent, Harry thought. "It's called a Gresnek. The poisonous tail was the first of its kind in this dimension. Its so funny how nature so often copies our ideas..."
"Silence, you fool," came the first voice. "None of this banter is necessary."
"Right, right," the second voice said. "Attack, then, Gresnek."
The Gresnek charged Harry with surprising speed. Harry swung the Sword of Gryffindor at the thing in an overhead arc, but the Gresnek caught the blow on its sickle. The tentacle-like left arm came whipping at Harry, slashing him across the face.
Harry reeled backward, the blow to his face both shocking and painful. He couldn't ever remember anything moving that fast. He barely had time to throw up the Sword to deflect a strike from the tail. The Gresnek took a swing at him with the sickle, but the thing was large and heavy and therefore slow.
Good, Harry thought. At least he can't whip that thing at me.
The next minute or so was spent in a constant parry-thrust exercise as Harry searched for a weakness to exploit. Harry was fast enough to block or avoid most blows except that left arm tentacle/whip thing, but luckily the Gresnek didn't use it often.
Finally, the Gresnek made a mistake. It put its full weight into a forward swing with the sickle, attempting to bear Harry to the ground. Instead of blocking the slow but powerful blow, Harry sidestepped it and hit the creature two quick blows with the hilt of the Sword of Gryffindor.
It was only then, behind the creature, that Harry saw the two tubes running from the Gresnek's back to its head. They seemed like arteries. Harry made a quick decision and sliced both open.
The Gresnek uttered a soft, incomprehensible phrase before it fell over, clearly dead. Harry straightened up, grinning. What he heard next would chill him to the bones.
"Harry?"
It was Ginny's voice.
Harry climbed quickly off the couch. The Sword of Gryffindor was already strapped to his body, since he never slept with it far away. After checking the room over again, he decided to wake Diana.
"Diana," Harry said, gently shaking her. "Come on, now, wake up..."
Diana's eyes fluttered a bit. "What time is it?" she asked groggily.
Harry glanced at the clock. "Three-thirty in the morning," he said, barely noticing his own exhaustion. That could wait.
For a second, Diana seemed incredulous at being awakened at such an hour. Then, the emotion was gone off her face, and she was her usual passive self. "What's going on?" she asked, with the casual manner of someone running into friends at a pizza parlor.
"I'm not sure," Harry said. "I think they've caught up again."
Diana sighed heavily and got out of the bed. "Fine," she said, and walked towards the door. Harry followed her.
"Fine?" he asked. "Fine. What is that?"
"Four letter word, begins with "f" and ends with "e"." Diana replied, no emotion leaking through.
Harry was getting annoyed by that point. "See here, Diana," he began. "We're in this for our lives -"
She cut him off, whirling quickly to face him. The look of rage and fury on her face was scary. "Don't you think I know that?!" she shrieked at him. Grumblings arose from the other apartments they were walking past. "Don't you think I know that we both might end up like...like..."
Her fury dissolved just as quickly as it came, and Diana finally broke down. She started sobbing, leaning against Harry for support. "I left them," she said, through the torrent of tears. "I could have been there with them, but I left them, and now they're dead, and I never said good-bye, I just left..."
Harry stroked the back of Diana's head as she sobbed into his shoulder. "You had to leave them," he said. "You'd have died if you stayed."
"I wanted to die with them!" she said, still sobbing.
"Diana," Harry said, holding the young woman out to arms length. "You can't die yet. You are a wonderful person. You may not know it, but you have a lot to offer the world. I don't know about any deities in the world, or if there really is some master plan for us all, because frankly I've had enough of that in my life. What I do know is that you are still living, and while you're still living you can still do good things. You're good at that. You can still be good at that, if you live."
Diana's crying began to lessen. She wiped the tears from her eyes, and then hugged Harry again, tighter then before.
At that moment, Harry heard a series of car doors slamming. "Come on," he said, urgently. "I think our time is wearing down."
Harry was distinctly aware of the danger they were probably in, but he was still relieved to feel Diana moving more of her own free will then his. It was a pleasant change - even if they were about to be slaughtered.
Harry and Diana got through the front door of the hotel and came sprawling into the parking lot...only to find it swarming with dark creatures, non of which seemed to move like humans as they danced through the shadows.
"Mr. Potter," came a voice from the shadow. Harry recognized it from the incident at the cabin. "If you come with us now, we'll spare you and your companion any harm."
Harry planted himself firmly in front of Diana and drew the Sword of Gryffindor. "Why is it," he asked. "That everyone in this damn country seems to think I'll just give up if given the chance?"
"Suit yourself," came the voice, cold and indifferent. A single form emerged from the shadows of the parking lot, yet Harry's senses told him that there were others. For now, he focused on this one.
Harry had never seen anything quite like the creature that stood before him. It's hourglass shaped head possessed a mouth full of large, sharp teeth. It's right arm had what appeared to be a large sickle attached to it, and its left arm seemed more like a tentacle then an arm, with spiky protrusions at the end. It also had a tail that ended in a needle-like point.
"You like it?" came a new voice. Another thing without a scent, Harry thought. "It's called a Gresnek. The poisonous tail was the first of its kind in this dimension. Its so funny how nature so often copies our ideas..."
"Silence, you fool," came the first voice. "None of this banter is necessary."
"Right, right," the second voice said. "Attack, then, Gresnek."
The Gresnek charged Harry with surprising speed. Harry swung the Sword of Gryffindor at the thing in an overhead arc, but the Gresnek caught the blow on its sickle. The tentacle-like left arm came whipping at Harry, slashing him across the face.
Harry reeled backward, the blow to his face both shocking and painful. He couldn't ever remember anything moving that fast. He barely had time to throw up the Sword to deflect a strike from the tail. The Gresnek took a swing at him with the sickle, but the thing was large and heavy and therefore slow.
Good, Harry thought. At least he can't whip that thing at me.
The next minute or so was spent in a constant parry-thrust exercise as Harry searched for a weakness to exploit. Harry was fast enough to block or avoid most blows except that left arm tentacle/whip thing, but luckily the Gresnek didn't use it often.
Finally, the Gresnek made a mistake. It put its full weight into a forward swing with the sickle, attempting to bear Harry to the ground. Instead of blocking the slow but powerful blow, Harry sidestepped it and hit the creature two quick blows with the hilt of the Sword of Gryffindor.
It was only then, behind the creature, that Harry saw the two tubes running from the Gresnek's back to its head. They seemed like arteries. Harry made a quick decision and sliced both open.
The Gresnek uttered a soft, incomprehensible phrase before it fell over, clearly dead. Harry straightened up, grinning. What he heard next would chill him to the bones.
"Harry?"
It was Ginny's voice.