A/N: This chapter is kind of short, but it seemed like a good place to end it. The next, and probably last, chapter will be up soon.
A/N2: Oh my gosh! Thanks to Sauron the Deciever for pointing out to me that I wrote Penelope instead of Pernelle. Ooops!
CH30: Conversations In The Wing
The first thing Harry was aware of after the blackness ended was that his eyes burned. He groaned slightly and rolled over. He vaguely remembered his eye doctor telling him not to fall asleep with his contacts in. This must be why. He sluggishly tried to raise an arm to his face, only to have it hit the mattress with a thump after only a few inches.
'That's odd' he thought. Then he remembered. 'The mirror.' Pushing away his exhaustion, he sat straight up in the bed. 'Hermione!'
"Calm down, Harry," said a voice beside him, their image blurry. "Here. Let me help you with that." Harry felt a burst of cool moisture in his eyes and the figure of Albus Dumbledore came back into focus, his silver beard only outshined by the vast whiteness of the Hospital Wing walls. "How are you feeling?"
"Where's Hermione?" he asked immediately. "What happened? Are my friends okay?"
"Relax. Everything's fine. Jellybean?"
"Albus ... "he growled, but the older wizard just chuckled.
"Your friends are fine. They are pretty concerned about you, but other than that ... "
"How long have I been out?"
"Only a few hours. You have the miraculous ring of yours to thank."
"My ring?" He fingered the chain on his neck.
"Harry, a Phoenix Ring has miraculous healing properties."
"Oh." Harry bit his lip in thought before speaking up again. "What happened down there with Voldemort and Quirrell?"
"You don't recall?"
"I can remember up until the point where he was going after Hermione. Are you sure she's alright?"
"She's fine. Thanks to you." At Harry's puzzled look, he elaborated. "Child, do you know why the Killing Curse rebounded on Voldemort all those years ago?"
"You said it was because of my being the Silver One ... "he trailed off, puzzled.
"That is why you survived, yes. But it rebounded on Voldemort because of your mother. Lily died to protect you as a baby. And in that sacrifice she left a trace of a power that can not be surpassed by anything. That power is now in you."
"What is it?" he asked softly.
"Love, Harry. She left you love."
Harry reached up to wipe his eyes, again feeling moisture though it wasn't spell related this time. Albus politely looked towards the window.
"So," he questioned as soon as he got under control. "When I touched Quirrell – "
"– the love your mother left in you acted against the darkness in Quirrell's body and it burnt the evil out of him."
"And Quirrell?"
Dumbledore shook his head slightly. "He didn't make it."
Harry swallowed. He had killed a man. Hoping to drive those thoughts out of his head, he asked a different question. "What's going to happen to the Stone?"
"It will be destroyed."
"But Flammel!" Harry gaped. "And his wife! What will happen to them?"
"I had a long talk with Pernelle and we decided that it would be for the best. She has enough Elixir stored up to set her affairs in order and then she will die. But don't worry. She has lived a long and fulfilling life and his looking to the great beyond."
His brow wrinkled in thought. "Just Pernelle? What happened to Nicolas?"
"I'm afraid that book you got out of the library was a bit outdated. Nicolas passed on already. Eleven years ago, in fact. But you already knew that."
"I did – "He stopped. "Oh. Oh! That – that's how he knew how to make the Philosopher's Stone! He was – "
"Yes, Harry. Nicolas Flammel was the last Silver One."
