Chapter 13 Dark Forces Rising

Harry wiped his sweaty palms on his robes as the class filed into the classroom. Dashall sat at the front watching them all come in. After they had all taken their seats Dashall stood up and smiled at them.

"Welcome to your final potions exam. I a sure you will all do very well. For the final exam you will be making the Craitus Potion." A large groan went through the class. The Craitus Potion was one of the hardest potions they'd had all year.

"You will have forty minutes to mix your potions. After forty minutes you will turn in what you have. If you finish early your are of course free to leave. Everyone is to do their own work, anyone caught cheating will be dealt with severely. Any questions? No? Very well." She waved her hand and the cabinet doors flew open.

"Forty minutes. Good luck." Everyone hurried to the cabinet for their ingredients. Harry frantically tried to remember them all. Was it three gristock roots or four. As he started to mix the potion his head began to hurt, a low dull throbbing behind his eyes. He saw several of his classmates finish before him. He just couldn't seem to get the mixture quite right. As more and more of his classmates turned in thier potions Harry's head started to hurt more and more. He looked at the hourglass as saw that he was running out of time. Only a few crystals were left and he was now the only student still working. Finally his potion turned a satisfying dark pink. He picked up the bottle and brought it to Dashall's desk just as the last crystal fell.

"Cutting it rather close, Potter," Dashall remarked taking the bottle from him.

"Sorry," he muttered. "I just couldn't get the mix right."

"No need to apologize, Potter. Perfection is something that should never be rushed. Too many believe that faster means better but when it comes to potions, quality must always take precedence."

"Thanks Professor," he said. Dashall looked him straight in the eye.

"I hope I've taught you as much as you've taught me this year Potter." Harry's eyebrow's shot up.

"What could I possibly have taught you, Professor?"

"More than you know," she said reaching out to lay a hand on his shoulder. Suddenly, Harry felt a seareaing pain as though his scar were going to split his skull in half. He heard laughing, dark and full of evil.

"Potter?" Dashall's voice broke through the laughter. The pain suddenly stopped. Harry blinked several times.

"Harry!" He lookedat Dashall who was staring at him.

"I'm all right," he said stepping away from her. "I'm fine." He turned and bolted from the classroom.

Harry fell down on his bed panting. Dashall had made it happen. Dashall had made his scar split open. He didn't know how and he didn't know why but somehow he knew she had made it happen. He'd been right about her all alongshe was trying to hurt him. It had probably been her that sent the dementors on him and Ginny. She'd fooled everyone into thinking she was on the side of good. Ron, Hermione, Dumbledore, McGonagall, Wood, even him. The whole time Dashall hada been the enemy. What was he going to do? Dumbledore, he had to tell Dumbledore. He shot up from his bed and dashed into the coomon room and out the portrait hole. He'd barely gotten a few steps when he heard Ginny.

"Harry!" she called.

"Ginny?" he called turning. He didn't see her but he could hear her. She sounded afraid.

"Where are you?"

"Over here," her voice called. "Help me!" Harry ran toward her voice.

"Help me, Harry!" Ginny was screaming now. He voice was fading. Harry threw open the door and ran up the winding stairs. "Harry!" Harry's heart felt like it was going to explode but he kept running until he burst out onto the roof of the school. He saw Ginny huddeld in a ball and ran to her.

"Ginny," he said touching her shoulder. "Suddenly a horrible sound filled his ears. The sound of laughter. He looked up and saw him. Not as he'd looked when he'd been forced to live as a parasite off of Professor Quirrell, but an older version of the sixteen year old memory of Tom Riddle he'd faced in the chamber of secrets. But this was no ghost. This was a flesh and blood wizard. Voldemort.

"Harry Potter," the dark lord sneered at him. "We meet again."

"How?" was all Harry could say.

"Yes," Voldemorte said. "I suppose you wonder how I have become of the flesh once more. I owe it to you really Potter. You should have let Black and Lupin kill Pettigrew when they had the chance. Mercy has always been nothing but a weakness. Had you not allowed my servant to return to me, I never would have become of the flesh." Harry felt himself suddenly grow cold. They were coming.

"You sent the dementors."

"Yes. You think once they saw what I had become once again they were content merely to guard Azkaban? Dementors feed off pain, and me, I cause it. They would have you and the Weasly brat in had Dumbledore not been there. I would simply kill you now Potter, but why demy them their fun."

"You can't kill me, Voldemort!" Harry snapped defiantly. "You tried it once and all it did was give me a scar and leave you a wreck."

"True enough," Voldemort said. "But I've had thirteen years to learn from my mistakes and to remedy them."

"Auugh!" Harry screamed out as pain filled his arm. He turned and was astonished to see Ginny staring at him coldly, her hand wrapped around the hilt of the dagger that was stuck in his flesh. He cried out again as Ginny pulled the dagger out and walked calmly over to Voldemort.

"The only thing that makes one weaker than mercy, Potter is love." Harry's mouth dropped open as Ginny morphed into Peter Pettigrew.

"I have done it, Master," Pettigrew said.

"You have served me wll, Pettigrew," Voldemort said. "Now finish it." Pettigrew nodded and without a word he stabbed the dark lord in the arm. Voldemort grunted and then pulled the dagger out. The wound in his arm healed instantly.

"My blood now has your blood, Potter. Your mother's love no longer protects you. Crucio."

"AUUGH," Harry screamed falling to the ground as his entire body was wracked with unspeakable pain. He tried to focus his mind on anything but the pain but he couldn't.

"Yes!" Voldemort shouted. "Scream Potter. The dementors feed on it. I promised them great reward if they served me and I do believe this will suffice." Through the pain he could feel them.

"Happy," Harry groaned. "Must think of something happy." There were so many of them,and he was in such terrible pain. But he couldn't give up. He had to try. He gritted his teeth and closed his hand around his wand. Happy thought, he had to think ofsomething happy. Searing pain shot through his chest and he could hear his mother scraming. He couldn't do it. He was ging to die. He was never going to see Hermione, or Ron, or Sirius, or Ginny...Ginny! That was it. Ginny sitting with him on the back porchat the Burrow, Ginny listening to his troubles and telling him hers, Ginny blocking the Quaffle from getting in, Ginny kissing him, Ginny telling him she loved him...

"Expecto Patronum!" Harry shouthed raising his wand. A small light shone fromhis wand and held the Dementors at bay but more of them were swooping in andthe pain was getting worse.

"Expecto Patronum!" he yelled again.'I have to survive' he thought. 'For Ginny. Ginny loves me and I lover her.'

"Expecto..." his voice died in his throat as the pain overwhelmed him and his mother's screams grew louder inhis head. His arm dropped to his side and his wand slipped from his fingers and rolled away. Suddenly a bright light shone all around him and the dementors began to flle. Harry rolled onto his side and saw a Patronus in the shape of adove. The dove flew at the dementors driving them away. The screaming in his headstopped and suddenly the pain was gone. He sat up and turned tosee who had conjured it.

"You!" he gasped.

How's that for a cliffhanger! Evil laugh. More soon I promise. Keep the reviews coming.