Chapter 21
Daphne walked quickly down the poorly lightened hallways, Tracey and Blaise trailing right behind her. The number of students was starting to dim; most people had already started retiring to their common rooms for the night. Those times Hogwarts seemed too much like an old haunted castle, which in fact, it was; it had too many perfect ambush places. More than once, Daphne had asked herself why the staff had let the castle go array so much.
She knew Harry was on the grounds, probably training with the only suitable person he could get so close to the full moon. Daphne could only hope Katie had not revealed the entire conversation the girls just had. The bond was Fleur's secret to tell, and Harry needed to decide for himself what he wanted to do with it. And in the end, it all palled in the face of what was happening now. Once again, the Slytherin remembered the truth about the person she loved.
Harry had enemies, many and powerful enemies. People who wanted him dead.
Daphne found him on the spot near the lake where they used to sit and talk; strangely, Harry and Katie were not training or fighting. Both werewolves were just talking under the moonlight. They turned to look at Daphne approaching. With the full moon so close, both had an almost feral look to them that she found scarily beautiful. Daphne saw his glowing green eyes, and memories from the last night hit her, but she shoved them aside for now; there were more pressing matters at hand.
"Daphne," Harry called. "Katie was talking to me about the meeting you had…"
"We can talk about that later, Harry. There is something else going on right now!" Harry must have heard the urgency in her tone, or perhaps he smelled her concern, but he looked into her eyes, then at Blaise and Tracey, and gestured to her to continue.
"Harry, we found out what Malfoy was bragging about! It turns out his father is on to something! He plans to steal something at the department of mysteries, something related to you and the dark lord!" Daphne said.
"How do you know that?" Harry asked.
"Do you really need to know?"
Harry sighed. "Not right now…"
"Harry, whatever he plans to steal, he will do it tonight. What if there is something he can use against you?" Daphne realized she let much more of her worries show in her voice than she wanted. Harry meant too much for her to pretend right now. To her surprise, Harry just scoffed.
"He wants the bloody prophecy. Let him have it, it is not like I believe in it anyway, and if the Dork Lard does, he can't do much as a wraith…"
"There is a prophecy about you?" Daphne was baffled, and Katie had wide eyes looking at the young wizard. Blaise and Tracey looked at each other, then at Harry with open mouths.
"Yes, Sirius told me the day we… fought." Harry shrugged. Daphne was getting really annoyed by how lightly he was treating the subject.
"And you at least know what it says…?" The witch hissed.
"No, and neither does Voldemort. That must be why Malfoy Sr. Wants it, and I say let him have it…"
"Harry…" Blaise stepped forward. "I couldn't care less if you believe a prophecy or not. That is not the problem." Harry gave the boy a piercing gaze. "Harry… mister Weasley is on duty tonight, and he is the guardian of the DoM… Lucius thinks he is a blood traitor and hates his guts. Harry, he may kill Ginny's father!"
.OvO.
Harry ran through the hallways with his friends behind him. "Fuck! I can't believe I'm being pulled at it again! But I will damn not let another person be hurt because of me!" Deep, somewhere else in his mind, a little voice asked if he would jump into it like that if the full moon were not so close, numbing his mind. The werewolf solemnly ignored his little rational part, diving more and more into his instincts.
Harry was just going to get there, give Mrs. Weasley a warning and ask for help, and just that.
Who was he kidding? This was an obvious trap. Everything was going to get wrong anyway. It always did.
"I will use the rigged floo at the hospital wing to get there. Tracey, go get professor McGonagall." Harry asked.
"What? Why me, I want to…" The girl started to protest.
Harry turned around; he had a hard face and glowing eyes. Tracey stopped on her heels. "Tracey, NOW!" Harry's voice surprised even himself. It was firm and commanding. Tracey looked back at him and simply nodded before turning and running in the Gryffindor tower's direction. Harry felt a little bad for talking to her like that but quickly brushed the feeling aside. Right now, he needed to do this. The werewolf needed to be the alpha now. They kept running to the hospital wing, receiving strange looks from the few students still in the corridors. Harry didn't care right now, and despite Ron's latest behavior, the Weasleys had been nothing but loving and understanding to him. They welcomed Harry into their lovely little mess of a family, giving him more than the young wolf ever thought he deserved. Lost in those thoughts, he barely registered Cho Chang and her merrier group of "ministry" inspectors, using their flashing ministry badges, turning the corner of the corridor. Harry once thought of her as one of the most beautiful girls he knew and even admired her quidditch skills, but after he learned how badly she treated Luna and what she had done to Katie, taking the post of ministry watchdog, any sympathy he had for the girl evaporated.
"Running through the corridors, Potter?" Cho said with a smirk as three older Ravenclaw boys, the beaters from their Quidditch team, also flashing the official badges, stood behind her. "You know I have been assigned power to give detentions?" The girl gave Katie a disgusted look. "One you can't escape now…" Cho stopped talking as Harry moved inches to her face. His green eyes were glowing, and his predatory pupils were dilated. The girl gulped.
"Move!" Harry commanded. Cho shivered, she could see there was something wrong with him, but she had a job to do. The girl took a step back nonetheless.
"N… no… I…" Cho started saying, but suddenly her body became rigid, and she fell to the ground. Harry looked back to see Katie with her wand out and a grin. Harry sighed; he didn't have time for that. With an astonishingly quick move, Harry's wand was in his hand, and two stupefies had been thrown, hitting two of the beaters before they could even process what was happening. The first one flew to the wall with a cracking noise, and Harry cursed inwards for pushing too much magic on the simple spell. He looked at the third boy and Marieta, projecting the wolf outside, a trick he learned watching the headmaster. The boy raised his hands in surrender, and the girl started sobbing in fear.
"Fuck this!" Harry said before continuing running.
They entered the hospital wing and moved to the fireplace; Harry cast a quick spell to lit it, and thanked the Greengrasses internally for rigging it at the beginning of the year. The wizard turned to his friends to tell them to wait for him, but a look on his face promptly told him otherwise. They would not wait for him, especially Katie and Daphne. Those were his pack. Harry thought about Fleur and sighed. The veela could kill him later.
"If you are coming, stay close together, Lucius is dangerous, and we don't want to fight him, ok?" They nodded, determination in their eyes. Harry tossed the green powder into the fire and said. "Department of mysteries, ministry of magic!" and stepped in.
When Madam Pomfrey arrived to check all the noise, it was only to see Blaise Zabini stepping into the green flames, leaving an empty room behind him.
.OvO.
Dumbledore felt the shift in the school wards and knew Harry Potter had left, but not alone for his complete dismay. "I told you, your plan was too convoluted to work…" the annoying voice in his head sounded almost pleased. "There is still time to call it out…"
"No! Lucius can handle a group of kids for long enough… besides, it is even better; that way, no one gets badly injured." The headmaster sighed to himself. "What about Arthur? He has been your friend for years!" "Some sacrifices are necessary. I don't believe Lucius will kill him anyway, and the man is a coward; even Tom knew it."
The headmaster's internal discussion was suddenly interrupted by a familiar voice calling in the fireplace.
"Dumbledore! I need to talk to you NOW!" Narcissa's beautiful face appeared at the fireplace with an exasperated tone. "Something happened!" Dumbledore sighed; of course, it did. Something always happened.
"What seems to be the problem, my girl? Did Lucius not bite the bait as you told me he did?"
"He did; he had departed half an hour ago. But He was not alone, Dumbledore!"
The headmaster raised an eyebrow, that was unexpected. "Did you happen to know who he took with him, Narcissa?"
"Lucius took my sister, Albus! He left with Bellatrix and that beast man called Greyback!"
That was certainly a most unexpected and inopportune development; Lucius was little more than an average wizard, magically speaking, his true strength laid on his silver tongue and somewhat almost endless cash flow. Harry could deal with him long enough, even by himself. But Bellatrix was a powerful witch, way more than most people believed, and Greyback was a monstrous powerhouse, an example of everything wrong with the Bell's way of dealing with the curse. But at the same time, this was an opportunity. The headmaster's quick mind started working.
"Thank you for the warning, my child…" Dumbledore finally said.
"You said no one would need to die, Dumbledore! If Potter gets killed tonight by my husband and sister, any chance for Draco and me to escape is gone!" The woman seemed on the brink of a nervous attack.
"Don't worry, Narcissa, no one will die tonight; I will make sure of it. But I need to get ready." With a wave of his hand, the connection was severed. "I told you it was a convoluted plan, destined to go wrong." The damn voice chastised.
"No, it still can be salvaged, Harry must be at the prophecy hall right now, I still have some time."
"I hope you are right… I hope I am right."
Albus Gathered a handful of the green powder and threw it at the fire, calling, " 12 Grimmauld place…"
.OvO.
Harry walked out of the fireplace and instantly knew something was wrong. He was not at the ministry atrium like he was supposed to, but inside a small, dark office. The place was a mess, illuminated only by the fire that now allowed Katie to enter. Papers and furniture were thrown all over the place as if some kind of fight had taken place. Harry looked at Katie with her glowing, almost yellow eyes and nodded. The fireplace glowed green again and Daphne entered, carefully looking at her surroundings.
Harry signed her to be silent and took a deep breath trying to gather all the smells in the office. The first that hit him was blood, just a little, and a scent that reminded him just a little of Ginny and Ronald. That must be mister Weasley's new office, he thought. There were also three other very distinct scents flowing, smells he had not caught before. One of them was so intoxicating and powerful, like the smell of dead meat under the sun, that Harry had to calm his stomach. A look at Katie, and he knew she had captured the same scents. Just now, Harry realized that Blaise was there with them.
"They took mister Weasley…" The werewolf whispered. "But I think they didn't hurt him too much, at least not yet."
"They, whoever they are, need him to open the doors," Daphne said.
"Ok, if you guys are coming with me, do as I say, and remember the lessons from the club." Harry turned his glowing gaze at Daphne and Blaise. "I reckon you both know way more destructive spells than the ones we've used there, right?" Blaise gave him a grin, and Daphne only nodded. "Right, we are not going to get anywhere with stunners and disarm spells; we need to do real damage. Broken bones and cuts. They are death eaters, and they deserve it."
"I like your style, Potter." Blaise smiled.
"Let's go then, I think Katie and I can smell them," Harry said, walking to the door. Blaise looked wide-eyed at Daphne, who glared back at him in silence.
Harry slowly opened the door, trying to be as quiet as possible. He found himself in a big corridor, dimly illuminated by what looked like glass lamps. A couple of signs gave the directions to the immaculate walls and dark floor. Harry was surprised by how sterile everything looked, almost like a hospital. A couple of doors appeared from time to time in the corridor that seemed to go on forever, almost too big even to exist. But one of the smells was strong enough to follow. Harry turned left.
The werewolf started following the smell of dead meat.
.OvO.
Tracey, exasperated, ran into the library, ignoring madam Prince's calls. The girl had realized she didn't know where professor McGonagall's office was in the castle after Harry had sent her for it; she needed to find someone who knew.
Tracey was really afraid for her friends. The girl tried to tranquilize herself over and over, She would find Hermione, go to McGonagall, and she would go to the headmaster, and Daphne, Blaise, and Harry would be ok. She kept repeating that, trying to avoid a panic attack.
While she scanned the tables, Tracey cursed herself for letting Daphne drag her into this kind of a mess. All she wanted was a nice little school life, to flirt a little, shag some nice-looking boys, maybe experiment a little with girls (too bad Daphne was not into that…), then find herself a nice easy job and settle down. And later be a calm, cool, laid-off mom. But here she was, interrogating classmates, friends with a werewolf and a veela, and living in a conspiracy story.
It was exciting, true, but also horrifying.
Tracey finally found the mass of curly hair she was looking for and sprinted to the table at the back, getting attention from Hermione.
"Tracey, we are at the library!" Hermione started chartering but stopped as soon as she saw the expression on the other girl's face. "What happened?"
"Hermione, we need to get to Professor McGonagall. Harry and Daphne are in trouble!"
Hermione threw her books on her back, getting up. She had known Tracey for years, and if the sapping girl was this worried, something was happening.
"Come with me, and tell me everything!"
.OvO.
Daphne knew something was wrong when they did not arrive at the atrium. The witch knew the floo in the infirmary was rigged, and her father had done it himself. The only explanation was that someone knew it and changed the destination. This was a trap, and she hoped that Harry knew it. They walked in silence through the immense corridor, with a couple of doors appearing to be in perfectly equal intervals, every twenty paces, she had counted. Daphne also had the clear sensation they were always going slightly downwards. It was one thing hearing about Harry's escapades, and it was another completely different from being part of one.
Daphne reached for Harry's hand, making his emerald gaze turn to her. In the dining light, his eyes glowed like fire.
"You know where to go?" the witch asked in a low voice, Harry nodded and pointed at his nose. Daphne looked at Katie, who also nodded. "Harry… this may be a trap… the floo…"
"I know, Daphne, I'm pretty sure it is. Malfoy wants me. But he will get more than he bargained for. If you want, you can turn around and go back." There was something in his voice that said to her he would not judge her if she did it. And it was precisely that what pressed her to move forward.
They walked down the disconcerting sterile corridor for what seemed like hours, but Daphne was sure it couldn't be any more than minutes until they reached its end. There stood a big double door with a sign. "Hall of the prophecies 3676". Harry moved forward, and she could noticed the door was slightly open.
The werewolf looked back at them, nodded, and moved in.
Daphne had never been so afraid all her life. But she promised never to leave his side, and she would fight.
The girl passed through the door only to enter an unbelievable big chamber, filed through the ceiling with shelves covered in shiny orbs of many different sizes. Daphne looked close to one of them, and it felt like looking at storming skies like clouds and lightning were trapped inside of them. Each one also had a tag with names and dates.
"Prophecies…" Daphne murmured. "There must be dozens of thousands here…"
Harry nodded and kept walking.
"We are close now. Daphne and Blaise, you take this corridor to the left, and Katie, the one on the right that way, they will think I'm alone, and we can surround him.`` The teens nodded and obeyed his orders.
Daphne walked in silence beside Blaise. She had to admire his friend's courage; after today, he would be forever marked as a blood traitor. She was sure his relationship with the Weasley girl was not the only reason, but now it was not the time to ask. Especially after turning around, they discovered that Lucius Malfoy was not alone.
.OvO.
Harry took a deep breath. The werewolf could smell Lucius, Arthur, and two other people. He cursed inwards; he hoped Tracey would get the help fast. Although really capable, Harry was not sure his friends could take on three fully trained death eaters yet. He didn't even know if he could. But that was his best chance. Give them what they want, and hope they leave. The prophecy be damned. Harry was trembling, sweating, and afraid. But he gathered all his courage and walked forward.
"I'm here, Lucius!" Harry called, walking in front of the man. The death eater was holding a beaten Mister Weasley, with his wand pointed at his neck. Behind him, Harry could see two more robbed figures; one was a big man, the source of the death scent, and the other was a woman. "Yes, Malfoy, I know it is you; your spawn is not good at keeping secrets; he should have been a gryffi, you know…" Harry kept his wand high, and his senses focused on the three people in front of him.
He could hear Lucius groaning low.
"That's for the better, Potter. That way, we don't need to keep pretending. After all, if it weren't for my son, you wouldn't be here. And what was my surprise to discover that only those who the prophecy is about can take them from the shelves. Thank you for not letting me waste my night." Harry could hear a slight hesitation in the man's voice and smell his fear. But what was troubling him was the scent from the man behind him.
Harry was starting to realize that the man was also a werewolf and an Alpha, which meant he could smell his friends around him.
"Well, I'm already here, Malfoy; you can let Mrs. Weasley go."
"No, no, no, Potter. Firstly you will retrieve the prophecy, and then, I will trade his life for it. Do we have an understanding?"
Harry groaned.
"Come on, Potter is a simple trade, and you are actually getting the better deal here. We are three against one, we could only subdue you and get what we want, but there is no need for violence. Now, my dear blood traitor Weasley, where is the Prophecy."
"Don't do it, Harry, don't let him… argh!" Lucius's wand made a cut over Arthur's neck.
"You will tell only what was asked, blood traitor!"
"Please, Mrs. Weasley, just tell me where it is, I don't care about some prophecy, I don't believe in it." Harry could see the wide eyes of the man. "Let the death eaters have it and shove up their arses, and they can fuck themselves with it for all I care."
"Ha!" Came a feline voice from the smaller death eater. "I like you, Potter!"
"Shut up!" Lucius called. "Now, Weasley, one last time, where is it?"
Arthur looked at Harry, who simply nodded before pointing at one of the shelves to the left side of Harry. "Fifth shelf from the bottom…" Arthur whispered. Harry walked and looked for some indication of his name amidst the many spheres. He saw his name written on the tag and reached for it. The words echoed through his head the moment he touched the shining ball, but the werewolf didn't care about them.
"Perfect…" Lucius said in a singing voice. Harry noticed the other two death eaters moving to their sides, trying to surround him. It was clear they didn't want just the prophecy. "Now, be a good boy and handle it to me…"
"Only if you release Mrs. Weasley first!" Harry said, giving a step back.
"Now Potter, I will release him as soon as I have that… give… it… to...me!" Lucius hissed, starting to lose his patience.
"Fuck you, Malfoy, release him," Harry called.
"Bloody hell!" The feline woman's voice said again. "Would you two shut up?" She raised her wand and flicked it, making an enormous cut appear on Arthur's belly. The wizard screamed in pain at the same time Harry screamed in rage.
.OvO.
Fenryr could feel the delicious rage emanating from the young alpha when Bellatrix butchered the red-haired man like the little pig he was. So much magic, so much power. The boy moved fast, almost as fast as he could, with a spine-chilling roar. Bellatrix barely had time to erect a shield before the bone-crushing spell hit her, sending the woman almost ten feet back, hitting one of the shelves. The witch dodged an overpowered stunning hex and shielded a reducto fired in incredibly fast succession. The woman was laughing.
His new mate loved power. And the boy had it in spades.
Lucius dropped the panting, bleeding man to the ground before screaming. "Stop it, Potter, you are alone!"
No, he wasn't. Fenryr could smell the other brats, including his own blood. But it would be fun to let Lucius discover it on his own. And even if the Potter boy was all one, he was the rage right now. There was almost nothing that would stop him. His glowing eyes were the eyes of the wolf.
A stunning spell flew towards Lucius, who parried it as two other kids ran through the shelves. Those were smart, using the furniture to hide themselves, making the blond weakling step further away from the gasping bleeding man.
"Help me, Greyback!" Lucius called, and Fenrir shrugged; he didn't care about Malfoy. There was something way more intriguing happening.
Bellatrix was an extremely powerful witch, her fury fueled her magic, and the boy was no match for her magically. Yet. If he lived, he would be a match for the werewolf himself. There was a worthy successor. A powerful cutting curse was shot against Bellatrix from the side. The woman parried it with relative struggle, and Fenryr saw the caster. There she was, the other werewolf, his own blood.
The curse was relatively strong and was enough to give the young werewolf some ground. By now, he had realized he would not magically overcome the witch, but he could do it physically. With a roar, he jumped on Bellatrix; what a sight; Fenryr smiled. So much rage. The man jumped and intercepted the boy in the air with a roar of his own, tackling the younger werewolf and rolling with him to the ground. The boy knew how to channel magic through his body, but Fenryr was simply stronger. They rolled on the ground, and the bigger man ended up on top of the younger, laughing. The monstrous werewolf hit the boy's head on the floor, getting a pained scream in return, but some lucidity came back to his eyes, as Fenryr wanted.
Fenryr reached for the annoying mask and tossed it aside, showing the boy the face of a true alpha.
"You have seen it, haven't you? The true colors!" Fenryr roared, and the boy looked at him with wide eyes. "Look at me, boy, look at your alpha and submit!" Fenryr slammed the boy's head to the floor again. He needed to prove his superiority now, to make the boy submit to him. The dark lord be damned, the boy was his now. He would break his spirit and take pleasure out of his body, he would break him until the rage was all that was left; then, he would finally have his cub.
.OvO.
Katie watched Harry struggling with the enormous man that smelled like dead meat. She was ready to jump on him when he removed this mask, and she could see his face. Katie froze. It was the face of a monster; yellow eyes glowed in a face covered with scars, and a big mouth under his beard, with incredible point teeth. Katie knew that face all too well.
Fenryr Greyback.
Her great grandfather. The cursed alpha, the reason people through her family was a gathering of monsters. The cannibal. Katie knew all this, and yet, the aura of authority the monster carried almost overwhelmed her. This was way more than they could handle. If he beat Harry into submission now, everything would be lost.
"I hate being ignored, you know, girl…" The feline voice from the death eater called her attention. "But I can say I love your glowing eyes, and I swear to keep them if they keep glowing after you die."
The woman had a strong scent. A leading one, like Fleur or Daphne. But she was corrupted, wrong. And she smelled of Greyback all over her. Katie held her wand, ready to fight. Harry needed her, she was his hunter, and Katie would not fail him now. "Reducto!" Katie screamed, and the powerful curse left her wand, but the black-robed woman just parried it.
"Strong! I like it!" The woman laughed. "But not strong enough!" The death eater waved her wand, and Katie ducked before the shelf behind her exploded. "FAST!" The woman screamed, flicking her wand, shooting curse after curse. Katie rushed in front of The witch, her reflexes saving her life from the powerful cutting and bone-crushing curses. The young she-wolf started remembering everything her grandfather and Harry had told her. Focus your senses on your prey. Find her weakness. Strike to kill. At that point, only she and the death eater existed in the world. The laughing woman attacked her with relentless speed. Katie saw the magical colors around her, she was amazed about how much magic the robed woman was able to command, but Katie was faster. Years of quidditch, hunting, and the closeness of the full moon were on her side.
It was too late when the death eater realized what Katie was doing. The young werewolf pounced on her, throwing her to the ground. The woman's mask flew, and Katie could see the insanity in the woman's purple eyes and smile. Katie roared; it was infuriating, that maniacal smile, and her hand found its way to the witch's face. Katie punched the older witch, breaking her nose. It was not enough to bring her down, though. Katie felt a thug on her rib before a loud crack. Katie could feel her bone breaking before she hit one of the shelves. Katie got up, ignoring the pain, channeling her magic through her body, and looked at the witch, who was also getting up, cleaning the blood from her face.
"I like you, girl, I really do. Let's finish this. Bomborda!"
.OvO.
Daphne silently thanked Harry for the combat training and now was silently thanking madam Pomfrey for the healing internship.
Blaise and herself had managed to make Lucius step back enough from Arthur Weasley so she could cast an Accio charm at the bleeding man, bringing him closer to her. Blaise kept the barrage of spells at the older wizard as the girl tried to take care of the wound. Daphne made the first inspection. It was a deep cut but clean. She cast a scrutchfie and stopped the bleeding, but the man would need a blood replenishing potion fast, or he would die. There was only so much she could do. The man was dying.
Daphne looked around, Blaise was handling Lucius Malfoy well; the girl didn't even want to know where he had learned some of the spells he was using.
"I know who you are, Zabini! And you too, Greengrass!" The blond death eater screamed. "Filthy blood traitors. When my master is back, not even that mobster grandfather of yours will be able to save you!" Lucius said, feeling a blasting curse at the boy, who quickly blocked it with a shield.
"Well, I can easily see where your son got his bravado from, Malfoy! But just like him, all talk and no biting!" The tall black boy said before shooting a powerful blasting hex at the wizard. At that moment, Daphne realized that Blaise was better than he showed in the club meetings.
Then, Daphne saw Harry and screamed. The monstrous man was hitting his head on the ground and roaring. He was fighting the best he could and screaming. "NO, NEVER! NO NO!NO!" there was blood under Harry's head. Daphne pointed her wand and pushed all the magic she could muster. The overpowered stupefy hit the man throwing him on the shelves. Daphne was breathing fast, feeling lost. Harry seemed dizzy, having difficulty getting up, blood pouring from the back of his head.
The monster looked at her with an evil smile on his face. For the first time, Daphne realized he didn't have a wand. And he was fast, too fast. Before she could do anything, in a blink of an eye, he was in front of her, with his enormous hand around her neck, lifting her from the ground like she didn't weigh a thing.
"I can smell him all over you, girl. You are one of his…" the man licked his lips, showing his yellow pointed teeth. "I will feast on your flesh in front of…" The monster couldn't finish his word, she screamed, and Daphne saw Harry jumping on the man's back and tried to pierce the roaring man's eyes with his fingers.
"Let go of her!" Harry screamed. The monstrous man released Daphne but grabbed Harry and threw him to the ground.
"You will submit to your alpha boy!" The monster roared.
Daphne gasped for air and saw Harry waving his hand, even without a wand, and a big cut appeared on the man's chest. A sound called her attention to the side and she Blaise hitting the ground.
"How dare you, boy!" Lucius screamed, blood pouring from his nose. "I just wanted Potter, now you will all die!"
.OvO.
Fleur rushed into the castle; she could feel it inside of her. Harry was in danger. She tried the charmed dragon bone and could feel that Harry was not there. He was far away. The only other thing she could feel was rage. He was burning, blinding rage. Harry was fighting for his life, and she had no idea where or why. The veela felt afraid and impotent. Fleur ran through the grounds and entered the castle, not even knowing where she was going. The witch stood at the entrance hall, feeling completely lost. Like a piece had been ripped from her soul. Her aura flared around, looking for him, but not finding her mate, and she couldn't do anything but scream.
"'AAAAAARRY!" She screamed until her voice faltered, and the veela started crying. "'Arry… I'm weak…" She held the dragon bone charm in her hand, feeling its warmth. "Please come back, I need you. Please…"
Fleur noticed a shadow over her and looked up to see Professor McGonagall looking at her, with Hermione, Tracey, and Ginny behind her.
"Miss Delacour, please, follow me…" The old witch said in a commanding tone. Fleur felt numb and could only obey.
.OvO.
Harry was almost blind by rage. Everyone was fighting around him, and the… thing… in front of him scared the young werewolf to no end. There it was, the personification of everything he was afraid to become. A true monster. And the worst was how his presence was almost too much, trying to force him to submit. That was a true alpha. And a reminder of everything he could become.
But instead of breaking him, it only strengthened his will. Harry would die before turning into that. He channeled all his rage into his magic, and for the first time, he was able to cause some damage to the monster. Blood split from the deep cut on Fenrir's chest, and the creature screamed in pain. Harry saw Blaise hitting the ground, hit by a stunner shot by Lucius before he himself felt the impact on his ribcage.
The witch, he had forgotten about her. Her bone crushing broke three of his ribs and would have been a lot worse if not for how his body was burning with magical rage. And yet, Harry found himself thrown ten feet until another shelf. The shining spheres rained around him., their shards cutting his flesh. Katie was trying to get up, coughing blood. For the first time, Harry felt his rage giving place to desperation. The giant monster towered over him in his bloody robes.
"Call me impressed boy…" His voice thundered. "It has been a while since someone managed to hurt me like that… and I love to see that you still have some fighting in you." Harry was trying to get up. "You are a strong cub. And you can become even stronger. Stronger than the so-called Dark Lord…" The creature looked around at Katie. "You want her? You can keep her, and we can teach her. She is family after all…"
"YOU ARE NOT FAMILY OF MINE!" Katie screamed.
"But you are darling, you are my…" He stopped. With a quick movement, he grabbed the dark witch's arm and said. "They are here! Lucius!" He roared. "They are coming! If I were you, I would grab the boy and leave."
"Don't give me orders, you beast!" The blond wizard angrily answered.
"Suit yourself, prey…" The man turned to Harry, who was up again, holding his wand. "I will see you again, cub; think about what I told you. You know the truth!" He gave Harry a grin, full of malice and sharp teeth, before Disappearing with a loud crack, taking the witch with him. A couple of seconds later, another loud crack and a ball of fire appeared at the door, Lucius looked at him with wide eyes.
"You and that prophecy come with me, Potter!" Lucius said, reaching for Harry.
"NOOOO!" In a moment of courage and anger, Katie screamed and jumped at Lucius, who turned his wand and screamed.
"spata Obscura!" His wand moved from up to down in a cutting motion, and Katie stopped. A cut appeared over her clothes, and she looked at Harry before screaming. Dark flames erupted from the cut as she screamed in agony.
"NOOOO!" Harry screamed, trying to reach her, but the dark flames burned his hand. He wanted to help her, to save her. Lucius grabbed his arm, and Harry felt the rage burning again. All the pain in his hips was gone as he shoved the man into the shelf.
Harry barely registered the cutting curse hitting him in the face before he pounced at the blond man, throwing his wand aside. Harry roared on top of him, his eyes glowing and his teeth were turning sharp. For a moment, Harry saw the same fear he was used to seeing in Draco's eyes, and the werewolf felt an evil pleasure feeling the man's scent.
"Didn't you want the Prophecy?" Harry roared. "Take it." Harry brought his arm down, hitting Lucius's face with the orb, producing a loud crack; he raised his arm again and roared, hitting the older wizard one more time, breaking his nose and teeth. "TAKE IT!" the werewolf hit one more time, breaking the sphere on the once beautiful face, shards of glass piercing through the broken jaw bones. Harry could only see him now and his blood. He would kill him for what he had done, and Harry liked it. Harry raised his hand, drinking on the scent of fear and blood and the look on the only eye that still saw on the man's face. But couldn't bring his hand back down. Someone held his fist. Harry tried to fight, to let his rage go, but the person grabbed him into a tight hug.
"That's enough, pup… that's ok…" Harry took a deep breath and recognized the scent of his godfather. "Let it go. He can't hurt anybody anymore. You did it… it's ok…" Sirius half whispered, half chanted in his godson's ear.
"Katie!" Harry called. He got up from Sirius's arms and saw the girl, his hunter and his first lover, lying on the ground. Albus Dumbledore was attending to her together with Daphne. "Katie, no no no…"
"It's ok, Harry, my boy…" Dumbledore said. "Together with Miss Greengrass, I was able to revert most of the damage from the dark curse. But Miss Bell and Mrs. Weasley need proper care. We need to take them to St. Mungus.
"You too, Harry." Said Daphne. That cut on your face seems pretty nasty, and I'm sure you have at least a couple of broken ribs."
"I… I'm fine." Harry said.
"No, Harry!" Sirius said. "Listen to your girl; let someone take care of you."
Now that he was calming down, Harry could see some other people with them. A young woman with short pink hair and an enormous black man. Judging by their attire, they were aurors. "We will handle Lucius Harry; you go and take care of yourself and the others."
Harry looked at his godfather and felt a warm wave inside himself. There was so much care and love in his eyes. Harry nodded at him. "And we will talk about it later, pup."
Harry got up, feeling a lot of pain. "Headmaster, sir. Katie can't go to St. Mungos… tomorrow is the full moon…"
"That's true, mister Potter. It would also be dangerous to keep her at the hospital wing of Hogwarts."
"We need to take her to her family, sir. I need to do that."
"So be it, Harry, so be it." the headmaster answered with a soft smile.
.oOo.
Harry ignored the pain from the landing of the side along apparation. Daphne did her best to numb the pain in his ribs, but even so, he insisted on carrying Katie to her family. After what she had done for him, it was the least he could do.
The boy looked at the big Victorian house, with an impressive set of woods on the back, and could feel his magic and senses reacting to another's pack territory. They walked over the gates through the extensive and well-taken care front yard. To Harry, the house seemed enormous, with its pillars and arched wooden Windows. He couldn't help but imagine the generations of wolves who lived and hunted there. He was carrying one of them, unconscious, in his arms, making him feel guilty.
The big front door opened before they reached the middle of the front yard, and a group of four people left the house, wands in hands. One of them, Harry could see, carried a shotgun. Harry immediately recognized Benjamin and a woman he was sure was Katie's mother. The woman rushed in his direction, dropping her wand.
"Katie!" the woman called. Harry finally gave in to the pain in his ribs and kneed on the ground, still holding his hunter.
"I'm so sorry, Ms. Bell…" Harry said. "It's my fault. She tried to protect me. It's my fault, she…"
Harry felt the sting on his face as the woman slapped him.
"Harry Potter. You are her alpha, and Katie is your hunter. Don't you dare be sorry; she did what was right! She fought alongside you by her own choice! She loves you! Please, don't you dare say that again!"
"But she didn't need to have come and gotten hurt…"
"No, Harry, that is what you need to understand. We live and die to our pack! If she had left you alone and you had died, she would be miserable the rest of her life, and you have no right to impose that on her."
Harry looked deep down into the woman's eyes. Benjamin was next to them, looking at Dumbledore.
"She took this curse to protect me from being taken…"
"Then she did what was needed for her alpha. Will you do what she needs and acknowledge her action?" Benjamin asked.
Harry was actually starting to understand. Feeling guilty like that not only was selfish but also disregarded what she had to do for him. At that moment, he began to understand more about being an Alpha.
"I hope you at least paid back to the person who did it…" The woman asked.
"Lucius Malfoy will need many corrective magical surgeries and will be forever blind in one eye…" Dumbledore sighed. "and at this moment, he is being held in a medical cell at the DMLE."
Benjamin smiled.
"Harry, that is not the last time Katie or the others in your pack will make sacrifices for you. Honor their sacrifices, and be ready to do the same for them."
One of the older women waved her wand over Katie; a series of runes shone around her wand. "She will be ok… she will have a harrowing night tomorrow, but the full moon will help her heal. You did right. In one weak, all that is going to remain from this is a scar."
"Thank you…" Harry whispered.
"Now… why don't you two tell me what happened?" Benjamin asked.
"They run into Fenryr Greyback…" Dumbledore said, and Benjamin's face turned into a mask of hate.
.OvO.
Fleur was getting crazy. Harry had not come back. Daphne and Blaise had returned forty minutes ago, and they were in the hospital wing. Daphne had bruises and some cuts, and Blaise had a broken leg; otherwise, both were okay. A young auror had taken Ginny and Ronald out of the castle to see their father. Daphne could barely speak with her before Madam Pomfrey shot her out of the room. She could only say Harry was hurt but alive. And he would need Fleur.
Would he need her? She needed him right now! How could he do that to her?
"How could I have done this to him?" Fleur thought. "Why did I let our petty fight extend for so long? I am older than him, and he is emotionally damaged. Why did I let my jealousy take the best of me? So much so that when he needed to fight, I was not there!"
Fleur was mad. Mad at Harry, mad at Daphne, and mad at herself. She had decided, after this night, that no matter what happened, she would stay by his side. Even if he fucked Daphne, Katie, Hermione, and half of this disgraceful school. She loved him, and Fleur would let Harry and everyone know it.
Fleur loved him. The weight of this fell over her. She loved him, and she was not there when he needed her. Fleur started crying.
That was when the doors opened, and Harry entered with the headmaster. Fleur felt like crying, even more, he was hunching in pain, holding his ribs, and a big, deep cut started at his upper lip all the way to his ear. He was dirty with blood and dust. Harry looked like a warrior, returning from a battle, and at the same time, the lost boy who was beaten by his relatives. Fleur lost control of her aura, her allure so strong that it hit Harry like a punch. The boy looked at her and smiled.
He fucking smiled.
How dare he smile at her after putting her through this? "How dare I think more of myself than him after all he had been through tonight!" The veela mentally kicked herself.
Fleur ran into him, that devilish smile on his face. She felt the tears burning her eyes before stopping in front of him and slapping his face.
"Ouch…" Harry said, scratching his face. "Two in one night…"
"You deserve it!" Fleur almost screamed. "Don't you ever do that to me again, 'Arry! I was so worried if anything happened to you…" She was crying now. Harry wrapped his arms around her.
"It's ok, Fleur, I'm here…"
The French witch held his face with both hands and kissed him. A deep, passionate kiss, full of carrying and promises.
"I love you 'Arry…" Fleur said when they parted. "I want to bond with you and be yours, no matter how or with whom I need to share. I love you, and I need you!"
Harry only touched his forehead to hers.
"Tonight, at the moment I thought everything was lost, Fleur, I saw your face. Many things happened, and many things have changed, but I need you to know that I love you too. If you still want to be with me after you heard what happened and what changed, you will make me the happiest man alive… I love you Fleur Delacour."
"I love you, Harry Potter."