Harry looked down at his fallen professor. He was alone once again. Unlike the rest of his summer holiday, however, now he had twelve Death Eaters and Voldemort to contend with. A grim smile crept across his face.
"It'll be a nice change. Be good to fight something other than my own thoughts for once." He breathed into the night air as he made his way to the end of the alley. His mind raced with possible strategies as he approached the corner. If only Hermione was here, Harry really wished he had her brain to pick. He reached the end of the alley and slowly poked his head out again. The Death Eaters hadn't moved, and Harry was relieved to see that Lord Voldemort had not yet arrived. He retreated around the corner once more, placing his back against the cool bricks.
"How am I supposed to get past twelve Death Eaters and Voldemort?" He whispered, beginning to wish he'd taken Professor Lupin's advice.
"Think, Harry, think!" What had he learned that would help him fight his way through thirteen of perhaps the most powerful wizards on Earth? When he'd been up against these kinds of numbers before, at the Ministry of Magic, he'd at least had the others with him. And if it hadn't been for Dumbledore, Voldemort would have killed him right there in front of the fountain. There was no way he could take on these wizards by himself, was there?
"Don't be a stupid git." This time it was Ron's voice in his head. He peaked out of the alley once more. Voldemort still had not arrived. There couldn't be much more time though. Harry had to get into the house and back out again, with the Dursleys, before Voldemort and his followers got inside. Speed was of the essence.
"Fast," Harry said. If only he had his broom. He thought of the time in the TriWizard Tournament that he had summoned his broom to get past the dragon. That's it! Harry gripped his wand. He knew he'd left his bedroom window open in case Hedwig returned; he just hoped he hadn't closed his chest after retrieving his wand. He stepped out from the shadow of the wall into the center of the alleyway, and focused all his thought on his father's gift to him.
"Accio Cloak!" He had tried to keep his voice low so as not to alert the Death Eaters, but not so low that the spell wouldn't have any power; he hoped it had worked. He peered around the corner once more. The Death Eaters appeared not to have moved, and Harry let out a sigh of relief. Straining his eyes, he focused on his bedroom window, looking for any glimpse of his cloak flying towards him. He hoped that in the dim moonlight, and because of their hooded masks, Voldemort's servants wouldn't be able to see it flying through the air.
He looked from the window to the shadowed group, his eyes flicking back and forth searching for signs of movement from either. Nothing. Harry's heart pounded in his chest and his breath sounded like thunder in his ears.
There it was! His cloak flew from his room out into the night air. He trained his vision upon the Death Eaters. None of them seemed to notice as the shimmering garment, translucent against the night sky, floated across Privet Drive and down to Harry's hand. Harry threw the cloak over his head, and after taking a last, quick look back at his professor, stepped out into the street.
Moving as quickly as he dared without giving himself away, Harry crossed to the Dursleys' neighbors' driveway. From there, he could hear the Death Eaters chanting in a low, continuous murmur. As he moved down the drive he tried to pick up on what it was they were saying, but was too far away to make it out. Once in the backyard and out of sight of the chanting Death Eaters, he risked removing his cloak and slowly, as quietly as possible, crept under and through the hedge as he had seen Dobby do four years earlier.
From the backyard, he could see into the Dursleys' dining room and kitchen. Uncle Vernon, still scarlet with rage, was stomping around the kitchen opening and slamming closed cupboard doors. Harry watched as he took a glass down and filled it at the sink. Dudley and Aunt Petunia were nowhere in sight, although Harry did see the light in his aunt and uncle's bedroom was on. Aunt Petunia was probably lying down trying to recover from her fainting spell.
He took one step out of the bushes onto the back lawn and a searing pain, as if someone was jamming a white-hot poker into his flesh, ripped across his forehead. He fell to the ground clutching at his scar, scraping his fingernails against his flesh like an animal trying to claw out some unknown pain. He bit his lip so hard in effort to quell his cries of agony that he felt his skin give way and his teeth sink into the soft meat just below the surface. Harry's mouth filled with the warm, metallic taste of his own blood.
Lord Voledmort had arrived and he was happy.
Harry could hear the chanting of the Death Eaters rise in both pitch and volume, faintly at first, but growing stronger. He looked towards the back of the house. His whole head throbbed; he had trouble standing; and his vision was blurry and doubled as if he'd lost his glasses. Staggering like a drunkard, he zig-zagged his way across the backyard. As he was about to step onto the patio, he realized that the chanting had stopped. Quickly he threw his invisibility cloak back over his head, and stumbled over to the back door. He crashed into it, and realized it was locked.
"Alohamora," Harry sensed his vision narrowing. The edges of his periphery were starting to go black, blotted out by the pain in his head. With a click, the door opened and Harry was inside. Over the sound of the TV coming from the front room, he heard a creaking noise like one of those old, wooden ships rocking with the waves while it sits in dock. He stumbled his way across the kitchen to the hallway, heading for the front room and Uncle Vernon. Once into the hall, he saw the source of the creaking. The front door bulged and Harry saw the stress cracks starting to form in the plaster around the hinges.
"What in the bloody hell is this now?" Uncle Vernon muttered. "If that's you playing around out there, Potter, I'll have your guts for garters!" He flung open the living room door. His eyes almost popped from their sockets when he saw what was happening, and he froze in the doorway. Harry shot past him, flattening himself against the opposite wall and made for the stairs.
"Run, Uncle Vernon! Out the back door." Uncle Vernon's eyes grew wider still as he heard Harry's disembodied voice. He ducked, frantically looking back and forth over his shoulder and at the ceiling, trying to determine the source of the warning.
"You have to get out now!" Harry called again. Uncle Vernon's eyes narrowed, as if realizing he was the punchline of a practical joke.
"Think you can scare me do you, boy? Well, I'll not fall for any of your parlor tricks." Uncle Vernon made forward, going to open the front door.
"No!" Harry cried and tried to stop his uncle from reaching it. It was too late.
The creaking had grown louder, first into a whine, and then a near scream as wood, glass, and mortar finally gave way. With a burst as if it had been hit with a rocket, the door exploded inwards, spraying Harry and Uncle Vernon with splinters of wood and shards of glass. Knowing who and what was on the other side, Harry took two steps up the stairs. Standing where the door had been mere seconds ago, was Voldemort his wand raised and behind him, two of his minions. The others had been left outside. Stationed, Harry assumed, on guard in case Dumbledore and the Order showed up
"Hello, Dursely." Voldemort hissed.
"Vernon, what's happening?" Aunt Petunia's head, once again popped over the banister. "Oh my God, no! It can't be. It can't be." Aunt Petunia stammered as she saw the Dark Lord stepping over her threshold.
"Yes, Petunia my dear, I'm afraid it is." His red eyes flashed up at her. "Tell me, Miss Evans." He smiled, an empty, cold, mirthless grin. Harry felt his nails digging into his palms. "Where is the boy?" The two Death Eaters behind Voldemort stepped forward into the house, filling the hall. Uncle Vernon backed towards the kitchen, stumbling over the carpet as Voldemort advanced on him. As quietly as he could, Harry continued up towards his aunt, stair by stair.
"I'll ask only once more, Petunia. Where is the boy?"
"B-b-b-but, Dumbledore said you couldn't – "
"Wrong answer. Crucio!" A jet of green light shot from Voldemort's wand and Uncle Vernon bellowed in agony. His great, ruddy face went ashen and his fat neck jiggled with the power of the spell. Voldemort relinquished his hold. Uncle Vernon whimpered; enormous tears rolled down his cheeks as he clutched at his chest gasping for air. Harry kept on up the stairs.
"I don't know where he is." Aunt Petunia sobbed. "Someone came, a wizard just a few minutes ago and took him." Voldemort turned on his followers and pointed to the larger one.
"You, continue with him." He gestured back to Uncle Vernon. "Petunia," he looked up again. "Where is he?" His voice was like honey.
"I t-t-told you-"
"Crucio!" The new Death Eater cast the spell on Uncle Vernon. Once again he screamed like a babe as his body contorted and writhed.
"Do you want him to suffer the same fate as your lovely sister, Petunia? How about your son? Shall he know the pain as well? Now," He commanded, "give me POTTER!" He screamed Harry's name; spittle flew from Voldemort's mouth as his rage mounted.
"Noooooooooooooooo!" Aunt Petunia cried out. "He's not here. I swear he isn't. Please. We don't know anything. Please!"
"If that is what you wish, then so be it." Voldemort smiled once more, ignoring Aunt Petunia's appeals, and pointed to the remaining Death Eater.
"Upstairs." The Dark Lord commanded over Uncle Vernon's cries of anguish, then turned, passed Uncle Vernon and his torturer and went into the kitchen. Harry reached the top of the stairs and the wailing Aunt Petunia as the hooded figure started his methodical climb. He grabbed her and pulled her into her bedroom, locking the door, and turning off the light. He could hear the Death Eater's feet on the stairs. Aunt Petunia sobbed, apparently unaware that some unseen force had shoved her into the darkness of her room.
Under the door, against the light of the hallway, he saw the shadow of the man's feet. Aunt Petunia's face was buried in her hands as she sobbed uncontrollably. Her body trembled as Vernon's cries grew higher and higher into screams. He sounded like a hog at slaughter
"Where is he?" He heard Voldemort bellow from downstairs. Uncle Vernon's screams grew louder.
"Alohamora." The bedroom door clicked and opened a crack. Light spilled in from the hallway and the figure entered the room. He closed the door behind him. Harry readied himself for action. Beneath his cloak, he raised his wand. The figure advanced on the still sobbing Aunt Petunia. The air was thick with Uncle Vernon's cries. The Death Eater raised his wand.
"Expelliarmus!" Harry cried, as he threw off the invisibility cloak. The wand flew from the surprised Death Eater's hand, knocked him back a pace and blew the hood from his head. As Harry advanced, he recognized the shadowy outline of a large nose and long, straggly hair.
"Potter! Potter?!? What the devil do you think you're doing?" Professor Snape spat as Harry stopped, completely stunned.
"Snape . . . Snape?" Harry couldn't believe what he saw. His mind reeled. His feet seemed to have become rooted to the ground.
"Good God, you're going to get us all killed!" Snape swore as he gathered his hood and wand, trying to figure out his next move. Aunt Petunia had apparently gone into a state of shock. She seemed almost catatonic.
"You have exactly two minutes, Potter. Take her and get out of that back window. Get out of here as quickly as possible and get to Grimmauld Place." With no more to say, Snape turned and exited the room silently closing the door behind him. Harry heard him open the door to the next room. Almost instantly the sound of Dudley screaming filled Harry's ears. From below him, Harry heard the house being torn apart. Uncle Vernon and Dudley's screams rang out. His scar erupted again, and he started to cry.
"Snape!" He heard Voldemort screaming, almost frantic now, from downstairs. As though in reply, Dudley's screams got louder. Aunt Petunia's dead eyes stared straight ahead. Harry heard footfalls on the stairs. He ran to the bay window and threw open both sides. He beckoned Aunt Petunia to come, but it was as if she didn't see him. Uncle Vernon's screams and cries for mercy had stopped. With tears streaming down his face, Harry reached out and grabbed Aunt Petunia's hand. With all his might, he pulled her towards the window. Although she was as slight a woman as Harry had ever seen, she was dead weight, and he had to struggle to lift her. He sat her on the edge of the sill.
"Wingardium Leviosa," Harry swished and flicked his wand, and prayed the spell worked. He pushed his Aunt Petunia backwards from the window. She dropped from sight, and Harry gasped. He looked over the edge and saw her floating softly downwards, as though she were a feather in Professor Flitwick's classroom. Harry pulled himself onto the sill, just as he heard Lord Voldemort reach the top of the stairs.
"Shit!" He whispered; "My cloak." He reached back for it as he heard Voldemort's voice.
"Where is he?!" Voldemort hissed; he was right outside the door. Harry climbed back onto the sill, and pushed off before he heard Snape's response, although he did hear Dudley stop screaming. Harry rolled as he hit the ground, and popped to his feet. Aunt Petunia lay, prostrate on the patio. Even with all his might bolstered by adrenaline, Harry still had trouble picking up his Aunt and putting her over his shoulder. With effort, however, he managed it and stumbled his way through back the bushes and into the neighbors' yard.
He risked a look back at the house. The light in Aunt Petunia's room had come on, and Harry heard Voldemort's hissing cry of rage coming from the window. He saw Snape and Voldemort's shadows dancing on the wall. Snape was on his knees, his master towering over him. There was a green flash, and Professor Snape's bloodcurdling scream pierced the night air. Harry took a last look and saw Snape's shadow contorting with the pain of the Cruciatus Curse.
Harry put his aunt down, and crept to the front of the drive. Upon hearing Snape's scream, the remaining Death Eaters had stopped chanting and were making their way into the house. This was Harry's only chance. He ran back to his aunt.
"Ennervate." Harry wasn't sure if this spell would work. Aunt Petunia's eyes blinked. She sat up and looked at Harry, confused. For a moment Harry panicked, realizing that his aunt was about to scream. Unable to think of anything else, Harry did something he never thought he would.
"Imperio!" He cried, casting the Unforgiveable Curse. His aunt's eyes glazed over again, but she remained upright.
"Okay," Harry wasn't sure how it worked, "follow me." He checked to see if his aunt was following; she was. He swiftly skulked around the neighbors' house and over to the alleyway where he had left Professor Lupin. Once there, he commanded Aunt Petunia to go and wait by his professor, and he peeked out of the alley again at the house.
He saw the Death Eaters coming out carrying three bodies: one was in black; that could only be professor Snape; the other two were obviously Dudley and Uncle Vernon. He saw his cousin and his uncle placed on the driveway. Voldemort exited the house, and went and stood over Harry's two fallen relatives. His wand glowed orange and both Uncle Vernon and Dudley's bodies rose from the ground. Voldemort pointed his wand up towards the side wall of the house. In unison, the corpses plastered themselves against the wall, their hands splayed out to their sides like two grotesque statues.
The rest of the Death Eaters, carrying Professor Snape, moved out into the street once again and Disapparated with a series of cracks. Now alone, Voldemort pointed his wand to the sky and summoned the Dark Mark. Under the green light of the skull devouring a snake, Voldemort walked into the street, and without a sound disappeared into the night.
Harry turned back to the two other survivors and made his way towards them. Professor Lupin was still unconscious, and Aunt Petunia had returned to her former state. Harry sat himself between the two fallen adults, pulled his invisibility cloak over the three of them, and placed his head in his hands. Before he knew it, the tears started to flow. His shoulders shook, and great wailing sobs came from his mouth. All his anger and sadness came spilling out.
He no longer cared. Two more people had died because of him. His family, as awful as they had been, was destroyed. It was only a matter of time until Voldemort got to him as well. A part of Harry wished that he would. Beyond the sobs, Harry heard a voice inside wishing that Voldemort would find him and kill him; end all the pain, all the sadness, all the loss. Harry would be reunited with his parents and Sirius. He wouldn't have to be 'the boy who lived' anymore.
Harry continued to cry. He didn't want to stop. He didn't want to do anything. He was just going to sit in the alley and wait for Voldemort to come and get him. Eventually he would find him and this would all be over.
Harry jumped as a hand touched his shoulder. A familiar voice spoke to him. It was gruff, but gentle.
"C'mon lad. It'll be alright. You done well."
Harry looked up to see the grizzled face of Mad-Eye Moody, his electric blue eye peering through the cloak. He got to his feet and embraced the ragged old man. He buried his face in Professor Moody's shoulder and bawled even more.
"No time to hang around crying, Potter. We've got to get to headquarters and sort this mess out." Harry nodded and wiped his nose on his sleeve. He heard Professor Moody mutter a couple of incantations and Professor Lupin and Aunt Petunia came around. Before she could say a word, Moody poured a vial of green liquid down Harry's aunt's throat. She appeared to be conscious, but complacent.
"Harry, you musn't go back there." Professor Lupin's strained voice pleaded.
"It's okay, Remus," Professor Moody assured him. "The fighting's over. Harry's safe. You look a mess though. Let's get to Arabella's and Floo to Headquarters, shall we?"
He put his hand out, and dazed, Professor Lupin grasped it and pulled himself to his feet. The four of them; Harry, Aunt Petunia, Professor Moody and Professor Lupin made their way down the alley and out onto Wisteria Walk.