Ok. Everyone knows the drill. Still here goes nothing -
Harry Potter & the other characters of J.K. Rowling are strictly hers (though this plot here is mine :)). I am not the original writer (though I wish I could be) & I do not wish to make money from this. Most Importantly, I DO NOT want to get sued. So if anyone has any problems with anything I write, then just tell me.
There's plenty more...blah blah blah...forget it & let the story begin :).
Note: US English has been used here.
Warning: There are some fight scenes which mention the human body getting split and things like that. Please skip those scenes if you find them offending.
HARRY POTTER & THE POWER OF HOGWARTS
Chapter 21 - Holiday Events (Part II)
"You are coming with us tonight Potter" Malfoy said as he shot a spell at Harry. Harry, who had been expecting such a thing, evaded the spell easily.
"Of course" Harry said. "But only if you can catch me". With that, Harry picked up his Firebolt in a flash from where he had placed it and flew off into the darkness of the night-sky.
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"Don't you think you have done enough shopping?" Remus asked Tonks for the umpteenth time.
"Just finishing up" Tonks replied as she looked around for something.
"You have been saying that for an hour now" Remus said as he glanced at his watch. "Oh...Hi Frank". At this, Tonks turned to see the person whom Remus had apparently greeted.
"Who's this Frank?" Tonks asked as she looked around. "And where is Frank? I don't see him"
"Don't worry about not seeing him" Remus said carelessly. "He just bounded out of the shop"
"What do you mean by that?" Tonks arched up an eyebrow. Remus came very near to her and whispered "You know how some people treat werewolves. Thank god no one recognizes me here"
"WHAT!" Tonks staggered back slightly. "You...mean this...this Frank..."
"He is quite a known face here" Remus started to speak casually once more. "Great story behind what happened to him. It was back in..."
"I am finished" Tonks interrupted Remus hastily. "I mean...I am finished with shopping here". Tonks glanced around nervously as she took out some muggle money from her pockets. She quickly paid the girl at the counter and almost started to run towards the subway station.
"Hey...slow down" Remus called out from behind. Inwardly he was feeling very satisfied with himself because he had invented a great story to stop Tonks from shopping any longer.
"No" Tonks shouted back, drawing the attention of many people around them. "You walk faster"
"Hey" Remus was trying his best to catch up with the red haired witch. "You have no need to panic. Frank is quite harmless"
"Frank! Harmless?" Tonks seemed to slowdown slightly at this. "Who said anything about Frank? I am just in a hurry, that's all" Tonks continued as she weaved her way through the evening crowd.
"Yeah...yeah" Remus replied, a grin on his face. "You have been in a hurry ever since Frank showed up". Tonks didn't bother to reply and turned down the corner towards the station.
"Now why the hell am I hearing a music being played?" Tonks asked herself as she climbed down the stairs of the station followed by Remus. "Damn it, it's the mobile Harry gave me" Tonks realized as she became aware of the vibration in her right jacket pocket. "Why does he have to bother me now?" Tonks thought, even as she put her right hand in the pocket to retrieve the mobile. It was then that her auror senses alerted her that something was wrong because many of the people seemed to be looking at someone. A split second later she saw a flash of light coming towards her out of the corner of her eyes.
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As Harry took to the air and the wind rushed through his hair, he felt a strange calmness coming over him. He seemed to be free...free from all the troubles which Harry Potter had. He could do anything in the air. He smiled as he raced on his Firebolt. This was his home.
"Are they following me?" Harry wondered as he cruised ahead on his Firebolt. It had seemed a good ploy to fly away and have the death eaters following him, but what if they didn't? This thought made his heart skip a beat as he imagined the Delacour family being tortured by the death eaters. These people were capable of anything and everything and Harry had to make sure. Taking his wizard radar out, he saw that many dots were following him as he flew high above the clouds. With a sigh of relief, he put back the radar in place and wondered how the death eaters had got hold of broomsticks in such a small amount of time. Coming to the conclusion that it could wait for a while, he dove between a split in the clouds and slowed down. After all, his plan would backfire if the death eaters lost sight of him and decided to go back to the manor.
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"Where the hell did Potter disappear?" Malfoy shouted out to one of his followers as they all flew in the direction Harry had taken off.
"Checking sir" came the reply from the flyer in lead. Quickly, he made a survey of the area and joined the rest of the group. "He is about 300 meters in front"
"What?" Malfoy looked puzzled at this. From what he knew, Potter had a Firebolt and he was a damn good flyer according to everyone who didn't matter very much. And yet, he was just 300 meters in front.
"Yes sir. He seems to be checking back time and again" the death eater said, his broomstick trying to pace itself with that of his group leader. "I think he is a bit shaky"
"Did anyone ask you about your thoughts?" came a question in the gravest of voices. The death eater looked around to see who had said these words. As he saw the person, he gulped visibly and looked as if he would fall off his broom.
"Follow Mr. Malfoy and don't think anymore. Follow your orders" the man continued. "And bring back Potter to me - alive. I have a few scores to settle with him". With that, the death eater who had just joined them, maneuvered his broom towards the manor. The wound of the Azkaban defeat was still stinging him and today he was going to have his revenge.
On Malfoy's signal, 2 different teams of death eaters changed directions and accelerated on their brooms as fast as they could. Leading the final team, Malfoy sped forward at full speed.
&&&&
Harry was now flying well over the city and he knew that if anyone looked up, then they would see something small gliding over the city. Even though there was enough moonlight, Harry hoped that he will not be taken more seriously than an owl flying at a height of over 1000 meters above the ground. Even as he flew over another portion of the city, he saw a bright lights and fireworks going off in parts of the city.
"How much slower should I fly to let those idiots catch up with me?" Harry said in frustration as he saw no one coming even close. After squinting his eyes and scrutinizing the area behind him, he saw a group of specs visible in the moonlight. Satisfied that he was being followed, Harry slowed down a bit more and turned slightly to his left. What he had not expected was to see a flash of light coming towards him from close on the left. The spell missed him by a whisker.
"What the hell!" Harry looked startled. Looking closely, he saw something move against the black sky...something which covered up the stars for a split second before merging with the sky again. Harry sped up slightly as he understood that there was at least one more group which was on his left side. It also seemed that group had used the disillusionment charm to make themselves unnoticable.
"Oops...underestimated them" Harry muttered and started to fly a zig-zag route. He also took out his wizard radar and saw a total of 3 groups of death eaters. The groups on either flank were much closer than the group behind. Harry cursed himself inwardly for letting the two groups to come in that close but knew that there was nothing gained by crying over spilled milk.
"Let's see what you are made of" Harry thought as he put away his radar and gripped his Firebolt strongly. This was going to be one heck of a ride.
&&&&
"Why isn't she picking it up?" Fleur whispered desperately as she disconnected the mobile for the fifth time in a row. "Dobby, can you please check on them?" Fleur asked.
"Dobby is unable to leave this place" Dobby replied grimly as he kept a lookout through the window for death eater movements.
"But why are they not responding? Have they lost the phones?" Fleur looked helpless as she asked this.
"Dobby is not knowing" Dobby replied before turning around in the dark room. "And Dobby is having work at hand"
"Work?" Mr. Delacour looked puzzled.
"Dobby is seeing bad wizard coming"
&&&&
"Death eater" Tonks had barely managed to avoid the first spell shot at her by a hooded person in the subway. Most of the people at the station were looking bewildered as to how a jet of light had come out of a short 'stick'. Tonks, seeing the situation was a dangerous one, had her wand in her hand now while Remus had ducked behind a group of people. He did not want to expose himself unless he thought it was the right time.
"Surrender" Tonks said to the hooded guy. By this time everyone had a inkling who the bad guy was but no one made any move. After all, who were these people with sticks in hand?
The death eater got into a dueling position. Tonks, seeing no other option, decided to do the same. But just as Tonks was planting her feet firmly in a dueling stance, she saw something which caused her to stop. The death eater had just smiled. Sensing that there were more of these scum's around, Tonks quickly moved towards her right side and cast a glance around. Three more hooded figures had come out of nowhere.
"This is going to be one hell of a fight" Tonks thought to herself even as her mobile phone kept ringing.
&&&&
"Dobby, what are you going to do?" Mrs. Delacour asked.
"Dobby is going to setup barriers" Dobby said and stepped towards the door of the room.
"You need any help?" Mr. Delacour asked.
"Yes" Dobby replied. "Dobby is wanting all of you to stay right here...and do not scream". With that, Dobby gave a snap of his fingers and the door shut itself tightly. He knew he had to do something special to stop death eaters from entering the manor. Quickly, Dobby popped into the living room and snapped his fingers again. An invisible barrier seemed to have been created between the entrance and the rest of the house. The barrier kept on spreading throughout the perimeter of the house and soon the whole world seemed to have been shut out. Satisfied with his work, Dobby moved a few steps backward and snapped his fingers again. Another barrier seemed to be created and this too spread through the entire house. Dobby knew that these barriers were hard to break but not impossible. He had to create as many obstacles as possible and he had a very small amount of time to do so. As Dobby stepped back another few steps, he heard a spell hit the first barrier. From the force of the spell, Dobby knew that he was dealing with very powerful wizards and witches. He knew he had to hurry if he had to keep his word - to protect the Delacours.
&&&&
"C'MON" Harry shouted as yet another spell missed him. "You are missing me". The two flank units of the death eaters were really close now and the back unit seemed to have picked up speed too. Harry knew he had to maintain a very delicate balance so that he was always within range but still far enough to make a getaway.
Harry saw another spell being cast from his right side and pulled back his broomstick. The spell passed just in front of him and Harry gave a sigh of relief. He would have been exactly at that position if he had not braked in time. Still, Harry knew he couldn't wait as another spell came from the same direction. Harry put on a spurt of speed and evaded the spell. He pulled hard to the right and the Firebolt made a 60 degree turn. Harry took out his wand and sent a stunning spell towards the spot where the spell had come from. Seeing the spell go harmlessly through the spot, Harry knew that the death eaters had moved away.
Harry knew that it would be very difficult to hit the death eaters because they were almost undetectable. Maneuvering the Firebolt with great skill, Harry made a steep dive and pulled out about 200 feet below where he was seconds before. He saw some spells going past him as he had made his dive but he had been too fast. Thinking hard, Harry decided that there was only one way to get the death eaters to reveal themselves.
"Malfoy" Harry's slightly magically magnified voice could be heard clearly by all the death eaters. "Too afraid to reveal yourselves in front of a kid?" Harry's taunting voice said. A jet of light came speeding towards him and Harry set up the glove-shield to absorb the spell. As soon as he had absorbed it, Harry cast the stunning spell towards the spot with great power. Alas, no one was present there any longer.
"You all are pure-blooded wizards and you have to hide yourselves from me?" Harry continued his taunting speech as he zig-zagged his way forward. "Show yourselves if you think you are worthy of fighting me"
"Potter" Malfoy's voice reached him. "We do not need to hide to catch you". As if on cue, the two flank groups became visible once again. "Let's see what you are made of Potter"
"That's more like it" Harry shouted back.
Harry pulled up the Firebolt through a steep climb and soon he was about a 100 feet above the death eaters. Looking around, Harry saw quite a number of wands targeting him. Almost at once, five to six spells were shot towards him. Harry quickly changed directions and steered his broomstick to the right which caused the spells to miss him by a long distance. Looking around, Harry saw 10 death eaters on each side with 10 more following him. There was a distance of 50 feet between Harry and each of the groups. The whole scenario was more than he had bargained for but there was no way out of it now.
One of the death eaters on the left side put on a huge spurt of speed and came quite close to Harry who was flying much slower than the maximum speed of the Firebolt. The death eater sent a spell towards Harry. Harry rolled over at the last moment and steered him broom hard to the left. The death eater looked astonished as he saw that the Firebolt was about to crash into him. But at the last moment, Harry dove beneath the broomstick of the death eater, but not before putting on a Slowing spell on the broomstick. As the death eater watched to his horror, his broomstick started slowing down rapidly until it came to a dead stop - in the middle of the night sky.
"One down, many more to go" Harry thought to himself. At the same moment, he heard a huge swish sound filling the air. Looking around, he saw that most of the death eaters had closed the gap between themselves and him. Harry put on a huge spurt of speed and widened the gap. Just as the death eaters started to accelerate themselves too, Harry started a steep climb. Flashes of light sped by him but he continued the climb and went straight through a cloud, drenching himself. He was now almost a mile above the nearest death eater and he could feel the slight lack of oxygen in the air. Harry knew that he was out of sight of the death eaters and decided to take advantage of this. Quickly saying the magic words, he transformed his pants to reveal the hidden pockets. He was now all set to take on guys at hand.
&&&&
"What to do...what to do...think, you damn fool" Tonks kept thinking this over and over again as the four death eaters in front of her raised their wands. "And these innocent people...why the hell don't they move out of the way? And why does this phone have to ring now?"
"GET OUT OF HERE". Tonks shouted to everyone in general. As Tonks cast another glance around, she noticed Remus hiding behind some people. She knew Remus would come to her help when needed and showed no sign's of surprise. But what astounded here was the fact that, except for a few people, everyone seemed rooted to their places.
"ANYONE EVER HEARD THAT CURIOSITY KILLED THE CAT?"
Still no one moved. The hooded figures smiled at this. The problem with the good guys was that they always thought about the general public before thinking about themselves. And the problem with the general public was that most of them lacked common sense.
Tonks gave a deep sigh at the lack of response from the public. She could understand why some people were still standing there - it seemed as if a show of sorts was going on. How could anyone ever imagine that a person with a wooden stick could kill them? Unable to find a solution to the problem at hand, her eyes met those of Remus for a brief second. In that split second, both came to an understanding and Remus knew he had to come out in the open to save the other people.
"No more pleadings with these muggles?" the death eater on the right mocked Tonks. "Given up so easily? Don't you want to save these mudbloods?"
"Try to save yourself, you pig" Tonks remarked and pointed her wand straight at the guy. At that very moment, Remus came out in the open and cast the stunning spell on two of the other three wizards while Tonks stunned the death eater who had just taunted her. The last death eater looked around in a bewildered fashion.
"So..." Tonks said as she pointed her wand towards the last death eater. "...It's now in our favor. Now..."
"Wrong" a squeaky voice could be heard throughout the station as more swishing noises filled the air. "My master had estimated that we might require additional people...so I brought them here"
"WORMTAIL" the voice of an angry werewolf threatened to tear apart everything in its path.
&&&&
Harry decided that he would have to take the initiative if he was to survive the night. Without even thinking twice, Harry dove straight through the cloud and towards the area where he assumed the death eaters would be. As he emerged through the cloud cover, he saw that some death eaters were also climbing towards him. An astonished look came over the faces of all of them but one of them managed to send a spell towards Harry. In the meanwhile, Harry had already cast a drying spell on himself. Harry flattened himself against his broom but still felt the spell grazing the back of his dragon-hide jacket. Another spell came from of the death eaters but Harry rolled over and the spell passed by harmlessly. As he was rolling over, Harry cast the Slowing spell as many times as he could. Once he had straightened again, he saw that he had hit two more broomsticks which were decelerating. Harry kept on diving and went past the two broomsticks which had now stopped completely. He noticed that only one group had started the climb while another group had spread out and was circling the area. The third and final group seemed to be waiting still in mid-air.
Harry was now traveling at a high speed now and he saw an opening of about 20 feet between two death eaters. He aimed straight for the opening even as both raised their wands. As Harry came closer, he saw both the death eaters tracking him with their wands and trying to get a clean shot. Just as Harry was about to pass between the two, the death eaters cast their spells together. Harry rolled over in his broomstick and hung upside down as he went through. He heard the spells hit something but didn't bother to look back. For all he knew, the two of them had hit each other.
Harry quickly rolled back to the normal position and again saw two death eaters, only about 2 feet apart from each other, approaching him. Both cast their spells but Harry set up his glove-shield quickly. Absorbing both the spells, Harry tried a very dangerous move. He let go of the broomstick and pointed his wand at one of the death eaters. At the same moment, he took out the largest and sharpest knife he had in his left hand. All this happened in a split second. As the death eaters started to mutter their second spells, Harry speeded up even more. What happened next looked like a stunt out of the movies.
Harry was now only about 10 feet away from them. He cast a strong stunning spell on the wizard on the right and raised his left hand. The wizard on the left side looked astounded when he saw the 7 inch magical blade shining in the moonlight. He had stopped muttering his spell mid-way in sheer fear. Just as he thought Harry would crash into him, he saw Harry diving beneath him. Following Harry's movements, he saw Harry swing his knife at his broomstick and cut off the back portion. Eyes wide in fear, he saw the bottom half of the broomstick falling towards the ground. An ear-splitting shriek ensued from his mouth as his own fall started.
Harry could feel his heart beat rate had increased considerably but he didn't have any fear in him. After all, this was his territory and no one could threaten him here. Harry was now moving at a very high speed and saw another couple of death eaters approaching him. From the looks of things, it seemed that the death eaters had decided to move in pairs. Well, thought Harry, killing two birds with a single stone was not a bad idea at all.
Stone! Harry saw that the distance between the two death eaters was very small. Just as one of them fired a spell, Harry saw a second spell coming from his right side. Harry steered his broomstick sharply to the left side and barely managed to avoid both the spells.
In the split second when everyone was trying to see whether Harry had got hit or not, Harry said "Silex Clypeus". A wide block of stone was conjured in front of him. Taking a last look at the advancing death eaters, Harry said "Abutor Volatus Vis".
The two death eater froze as they saw the effect of the spell. The wide block of stone came hurtling towards them at a great speed. One of them had his senses working correctly and he said "Reducto". His spell hit the stone with great force and blasted it to a million pieces.
Harry had not expected the death eaters to react so fast. He was still about a 100 feet from the death eaters and he knew he had to think up something real fast.
As he avoided another spell from the death eaters, Harry said muttered another spell. This conjured up an object 30 feet wide just behind the approaching death eaters. Under the effect of the spell, the object block remained suspended in the air.
"Missed us Potter" one of them sneered even as Harry came to a stop. Harry conjured up an iron block and spelled it to hit the death eaters. The death eaters, not liking the idea of being sandwiched between two blocks of god-knows-what, shattered the iron block, still about 40 feet away, with great force. The block of iron got shattered into thousands of pieces and the look of fanatical glee on both the death eaters faces could be seen easily. They would be the one's to capture Potter.
But the look of glee didn't last for more than a second. For some reason the iron splinters hung in mid-air for a second and then started to move towards them with great speed. Both the wizards looked stunned as the pieces came nearer and nearer, gaining speed with every passing millisecond. One of them tried to move out of the way but saw that the splinters covered a large area. It would be impossible for anyone to move out of the way. Before they had a chance to cast another spell, long iron splinters had been embedded on their bodies while a few moved past them. The half-dead bodies of both the death eaters were dragged off from their brooms and hit the huge object block behind them which Harry had conjured previously. The last thing they heard was Harry's curious voice.
"Did you guys know that iron gets attracted to magnet?"
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"Dobby...you here?" Fleur asked tentatively as the front door opened and closed ever so slightly. From the looks of it, the elf had cast the whole building into pitch black darkness.
"Yes Missy Delacour" Dobby replied in a whisper. He moved in between Gabrielle and Fleur and sat down on the floor just like the others.
"You had said something about barriers" Fleur said in a whisper. They all knew that Harry had left behind Dobby for a purpose and it was best to follow Dobby's lead.
"Dobby is creating barriers but the bad wizards are growing in number" Dobby replied in a shaky voice. "Dark wizards are powerful"
"We should fight them" Mr. Delacour said with a vigor which had been missing for a long time. "We can't let Harry take all the risks and sit here waiting for someone to save us"
"You is not having..." Dobby stopped in between as his whole body shook up. If anyone had been able to see his face in the darkness, they would have seen the perspiration and strain he was under. "You is not having to wait for anyone to save you" Dobby repeated. "Harry Potter is saving us all"
"But Harry can't take on all of them" Mrs. Delacour said. "And, most importantly, he is not here"
"Harry Potter is going to be back soon" Dobby said. "Harry Potter is always there to help people". Silence ensued in the room after that. Fleur kept trying to reach Tonks from time to time but got no response. Gabrielle had curled up against her mother but she also held on to Dobby's right hand. Dobby had the little girl's hand in his hand and gave it a little squeeze. They were both hoping that Harry would return soon and save them from the death eaters but Dobby didn't say that Harry had about 25-30 death eaters to deal with already. If Harry Potter came back in fine shape, Dobby knew there would be nothing to worry about. At least, that's what his heart told him.
&&&&
"Remus...no need to shout like that" Wormtail replied. "I am just following orders"
"Just like you did in the old days, isn't that so?" the venom in Remus's voice stung the very air around it.
"There is still time Remus" Wormtail continued as if he had not heard a single word of Remus. Remus, on the other hand, could detect the ever so slight change in the voice and the tiny amount of quivering which was taking place now. Wormtail was just as nervous and as big a coward as he was before.
"Join us Remus and we could become great"
"You filth" Remus said even as he took in the scene at hand. Eight more death eaters seemed to have apparated along with Wormtail who, Remus was sure, would escape once a fight began. "How dare you even say that to me?"
"Times have changed Remus..."
"BUT I HAVE NOT" Remus shouted back, spit flying from his mouth. Tonks didn't dare to even say a word in between.
"You are right Remus..." Wormtail said after a long pause. "You are still as blind as before". Another long silence ensued which was interrupted only by the sound of a mobile ringing. Tonks, ever so slightly, put her hand in her pocket and tried to muffle the sound.
"Where is that sound coming from?" Wormtail looked around frantically.
"From here" Tonks said as she took out the mobile. As she brought it up to show it to Wormtail and the other death eaters, she read the name of the caller which was visible only to herself and Remus - Harry.
"What is it?" the tiny death eater squeaked in fear.
"A bomb" Tonks replied calmly. "5 seconds after the sound dies, everything goes bang". As luck would have it, the ring stopped at that moment.
"5..." Tonks started counting down. The other death eaters knew what a bomb was and it was a widely advised in the wizarding world to stay away from it. Bomb's killed people, irrespective of whether they were muggles or not.
"4..."
"Stop it!" Wormtail almost screamed at Tonks. The other death eaters also looked at each other hesitantly.
"3..."
Wormtail looked around and saw a tiny hole near the end of the area they were standing in. As he tried to make his way towards that area, Remus cast a spell which caused the interior of the whole station to become thrice as long and wide it was before. Many people screamed at this while some started to run towards the stairs.
"2..."
"Avada..." Tonks looked up to see one of the death eaters targeting a woman running towards the stairs "...Kedavra". A flash of green light was emitted from the wand tip and raced towards its target. As much as Tonks wanted to do something, she couldn't. She looked on as the light hit the woman, killing her instantly.
"1..." Tonks said in a hoarse voice as everyone seemed to have come to a standstill. Remus took this chance and, keeping his wand behind his back, muttered a quick spell. At once, all the muggles were thrown against the walls of the station and a thin, shimmering wall seemed to cover all of them. The death eaters looked from one to the other for confirmation that this was indeed what they thought it to be. Everyone now knew that apart from the unforgivables, no other spell would be able to pierce the wall. The death eaters didn't care about that but Tonks appreciated the effort. At least, the muggles now had some protection.
"0..." Tonks said and looked up. "Catch" she said and threw up the mobile in the air. Immediately, one of the death eaters blasted it away but not before Remus and Tonks had stunned one death eater each. Wormtail had changed into a mouse and had got away. Simultaneously everyone felt a tingling feeling in their bodies. Anti-apparation wards had been set in. As the muggles looked on, two light wizards started their fight against seven unharmed death eaters.
&&&&
"What the hell?" Malfoy said out loud as he saw two of his men literally getting pinned to a magnetic wall of sorts. Malfoy was cursing his luck at having to fight Harry in mid air. Obviously, this kid knew how to fly. He saw how Harry was still in the air for a few moments after his men had got killed and the rage inside him started to grow. He wanted this Potter kid out of the way.
"You four..." Malfoy shouted "...move in and stun him...NOW". The four hooded figures gave a nod and moved forward, their wands ready in their hands.
&&&&
Harry saw Malfoy shouting some orders and four death eaters rushing towards him. They were still about 100 feet away so Harry decided there was no point in cursing any of them. They would have loads of time to move out of the way. Harry knew that he would have to take them on one at a time if he wanted to have any chance of beating them. As Harry saw them coming nearer, he took out a small object from his left side pocket.
"Catch" Harry shouted and threw it with great force towards the approaching death eaters. The death eater on the extreme left saw the object arching up and then coming down towards them. Instinctively, he blasted it apart with a spell.
"Never do that to a WWW product" Harry muttered to himself even as a powdery substance filled the air around the death eater. "Especially the Sneeze Whiz". This was another of the twins ingenious inventions which caused the destroyer of the product to sneeze for over an hour and kept him covered in a powdery substance all the time.
Harry took a quick look at the death eater and steered his Firebolt to the left. He knew that he was now at a vulnerable distance from the death eaters and he wanted to get away as soon as possible. He pushed his Firebolt to greater speeds as he traveled a wide circular path, dodging spells almost every second. He himself cast a few spells but having to turn his body to cast a spell was an obvious disadvantage. He saw the remaining death eaters looking on in amusement and enjoying the cat and mouse game but they were the least of his concerns at the moment. He had to think of an idea to get rid of three death eaters first.
Seeing that they were getting nowhere, Harry started to dive. The death eaters followed suit but Harry soon pulled out of the dive and started another steep climb. One spell barely missed him while he had to once again flatten himself against his Firebolt to avoid another spell. After Harry had climbed well over the stagnant group of death eaters in the middle, he came to a stop.
"Hey..." Harry's magically amplified voice could be heard by the others present. The three others had climbed to his level and were getting ready to cast their spells once again. "...I give up" Harry shouted. Everyone was taken by surprise at this. The Potters were famous for not giving up and this boy had been no different in the past. He had not surrendered in front of Lord Voldemort himself and yet he was surrendering in front of the dark lord's followers!
"So..." Malfoy shouted back even as the three death eaters looked from one to the other. "...you have finally decided to think logically, haven't you?"
"Yes" Harry replied.
"What should we do?" One of the three death eaters asked Malfoy.
"Stupefy" a voice whispered in the ear of the death eater as he got stunned.
&&&&
"What should we do?" One of the death eaters asked Malfoy. Harry was waiting exactly for such a situation where all the broomsticks were stagnant in mid air and the death eaters were distracted. He quickly disapparated from his Firebolt and apparated behind the death eater who had asked the question.
"Stupefy" Harry stunned the wizard at point blank range and disapparated back to his broomstick.
&&&&
"LOOK OUT" Malfoy shouted as he saw Harry disappear from his broomstick. He knew that this kid had a full kit of tricks in store and could fool many people. Alas, he was too late as he saw the death eater getting stunned. Even as the remaining two were raising their wands, Harry had disapparated back to his own broomstick.
"Should we take care of him?" questioned a death eater hovering near Malfoy.
"Not yet" Malfoy replied and turned his attention back to the match at hand. In the meanwhile, two death eaters flew at top speed to catch the falling figure of the stunned person. Thankfully for them, they managed to save yet another of their number.
&&&&
"Like the move?" Harry asked the other two death eaters in a mocking tone. Even though Harry couldn't see their faces, he knew that they were furious with what had just happened. "If you two would prefer to stay still, I could give you another demonstration"
Being mocked at by a schoolboy was very insulting to say the least, and that too when you are a death eater. As a death eater, you had to take revenge for every insult thrown at you; otherwise you were not worthy enough to be one. Both the death eaters knew that they had to restore their pride and teach Harry a lesson. As such, both started to fire spells at will at Harry.
Harry knew that these death eaters were on their edges and a slight push could topple them. As the spells started to rain in thick and fast, Harry maneuvered his Firebolt skillfully to keep out of the way. Harry slowly started to move towards the death eaters who did the same.
"Stupefy" one of the death eaters sent the spell towards Harry. Another conjured iron club came from the other death eater.
Harry ducked the stunning spell and the club. As the iron club went past, Harry said "Ferrum Ferratilis" and a set of conjured iron chains went spinning towards their targets. One of the death eaters managed to escape the chains but the other one was hit on the leg by a part of the chain. Screaming out in pain, he shouted "Crucio"
Harry easily avoided the cruciatus and started to pick up speed. "Electriano Claustrum" were the words uttered by Harry and a bolt of lightning moved towards the death eaters. Both of them managed to evade the spell but the injured one started to accelerate faster than his partner.
"Crucio" this time both the death eaters said the same spell. Harry, moving quite fast now, did a complete 360 degree turn around his broomstick as the spells went harmlessly by.
"Illud Legio" Harry aimed the bone fracturing spell at the first wizard and turned towards the second one and said two quick spells - "Silex Clypeus" and "Abutor Volatus Vis ". A conjured stone block moved towards the second death eater. For some reason, Harry had come to like this stone conjuring spell.
Both the death eaters barely managed to avoid the spells. Harry and his opponents were now approaching each other at very high relative velocities. Harry had put up his glove shield once again and he only took the care to avoid the unforgivables. The distance of 200 odd feet had been reduced to only about 75 feet by now. Harry's shields had absorbed four spells but he had yet to cast one. Harry using all the skill he had and kept avoiding the spells as if they were mere bludgers on the quidditch field. As he came closer, he saw two cruciatuses coming towards him.
Knowing that the shield was of no use against the unforgivables, Harry knew he had to do something different to avoid getting hit. He was too close to move out of the way and rolling over was also not an option since one of the spells was aimed at his body while the other was aimed at the area below the Firebolt. Taking a split second to come to his decision, Harry rotated his body by 90 degrees. Body parallel to the ground below, Harry took aim and said "Stupefy" at the same moment as the spells passed by harmlessly. The ray of light emitted from his wand was so powerful that everyone nearby felt the hair on their necks rising.
At a distance of 50 feet, it was impossible for the death eater on the right to avoid Harry's spell which was traveling faster than normal. He got hit squarely on the chest and was thrown back a long way in the air. Harry, in the meanwhile, had regained his normal position and saw the other death eater moving straight at him. Harry's shield absorbed two spells cast at him by the death eater who accelerated towards his Firebolt. Even as Harry tried to maneuver himself out of the collision course, he knew it was not possible. As he steered his broom hard to the right, the tip of the death eater's broom hit him flush in the ribcage. For a moment, the death eaters and Harry's eyes met and Harry saw the look of untold hatred in them.
Harry somehow managed to hold onto his broom but the death eater threw himself on Harry. He was not letting Potter get away this time, not after his second brother had fallen that evening at the hands of Potter. The death eater toppled Harry from his broom but Harry had a clear shot at him. As he fell, he shot off a stunning spell and was satisfied to see it hit the target. However, his satisfaction was only short lived as the force of gravity pulled him downwards in a freefall.
&&&&
"How well are we doing?" Tonks asked Remus. As soon as the fighting had started, Remus had conjured up an iron wall while Tonks had taken down one of the seven death eaters and pocketed his wand. After that, the death eaters had also conjured up a wall and were shooting off spells from behind it.
"You mean how bad we are doing, right?" Remus asked as he peeked out once more. No sooner had he made his head visible that a spell came flying towards him. He reacted very quickly and the spell just grazed the side of the iron wall and hit the shimmering white wall behind them.
"Whatever" Tonks replied as she shot off another spell. Both sides kept shooting off spells but to no effect.
"We have to get out of here" Remus replied as Tonks shot off another spell. "Any ideas?"
"You mean any ideas apart from defeating six death eaters and walking up the stairs and going back home?" Tonks queried as Remus shot off a spell.
"Whatever" this time the reply came from Remus.
"Damn...I can't get a clear shot at them" Tonks said in frustration. "We should break up and take them from either flank". Remus gave a quick nod of the head and conjured up an iron wall nearby. Looking at Tonks for one last time, he ran over to his new 'post' and started shooting off spells. However, as soon as Remus had gone over, Tonks had a new idea.
"Creo Speculum". As soon as these words were said by Tonks, a small mirror got conjured. Tonks leviated the mirror to the far side of the wall until it was just in front of the shimmering area. Slowly, but surely, Tonks moved the mirror to the left side so that she could have a clear view of the death eaters. Within a few seconds, the mirror was in the correct position to show the whole of the death eaters conjured wall.
"Tonks..." Remus whispered. "...give me cover"
"Hold on for a minute" Tonks whispered back, keeping a lookout on the mirror. Almost simultaneously, she saw a death eater peeking out from behind the wall and taking aim at Remus's position.
"Expelliarmus" Tonks had gone down on her stomach and rolled out from behind the wall. The spell hit the death eater and his wand came flying towards Tonks, along with a spell from another death eater. To avoid getting hit by the spell, Tonks rolled back behind the wall cover but caught hold of the wand as it passed by.
"Gotcha" Tonks said in delight as she pocketed the wand. The next moment, a spell went past her and destroyed her conjured mirror. "Damn" this was the only thought which came to Tonks's mind.
Remus, on the other hand, was deep in thought. This fight didn't make any sense. These death eaters were not trying to kill them but were content with keeping them at bay. Also, from the level of spells being fired by these death eaters, it was clear that they were rookies and it was a kind of a practice lesson for them. But why were they being kept here? One Reducto spell would be enough to destroy the iron wall in front of them and yet they were not doing anything like that. What could be the cause?
"Remus...I am going out..."
"Reducto" these words could be heard loud and clear by both the light wizards. They knew that one of the iron walls was the target. Seeing that they didn't have the time to setup a shield, both of them started running away as fast as they could. But neither had managed to take more than one step when the wall in front of Remus was blasted away. Both Tonks and Remus jumped at the moment to avoid getting hit by the sharpnel. As Tonks was falling to the ground, she heard a scream from her right. Looking around, she saw the body of Remus, pierced by sharpnel all over, falling to the ground.
Tonks lay still for a few moments and gaped at the still body of Remus. He didn't move. As Tonks overcame the shock, anger took over her very being. She looked behind and saw that she was still hidden from the death eaters view due to the wall in front of her. Deciding to take the battle to the death eaters zone, she took out one of the two other wands in her pocket.
Backing away a few paces, Tonks shouted "Reducto". Two rays ensued from the two wands respectively and sped towards the wall. In a split second, the wall in front of her was blown away to smithereens.
"Let's see if you can handle me" an angry Tonks said, a wand in either hand.
&&&&
"Dobby!" Fleur's voice was frightened as she felt Dobby shiver beside her. It was almost as if something was happening to him from time to time.
"Yes Missy Delacour?" Dobby said.
"What is happening to you?"
"Dobby is feeling every barrier getting broken down" Dobby said in a shaky voice. "Dobby is having to fight bad wizards"
"WHAT!" Mr. Delacour exclaimed.
"Dobby is coming back soon" Dobby said and made his way out of the room. He was so preoccupied in his own thoughts that he completely forgot to lock the door of the room. Seeing the opportunity, Mr. Delacour stepped out in the corridor followed by his wife. Fleur also joined them after persuading Gabrielle to stay with her elder brother.
"Dobby is not letting you come any further" they heard Dobby's voice from the hallway. All three looked at each other in fear and hurried over. When they were close enough to have a peek, they saw a single elf standing in front of 7 death eaters.
"Get out of the way, elf" a death eater said. "You are just delaying us"
"Dobby is not moving an inch" came the stubborn reply.
"Then I will have to do the honors" the death eater replied in a sarcastic voice. "Ossis Contero" came the next words from the wizard's mouth. At the same moment, Dobby snapped his fingers and a red shield appeared in front of him. The death eater's spell hit the wall and dissipated, but not before the shield had also cracked. Dobby, who had been holding on the shield with his own magic, was thrown back a few feet.
"So this elf here knows some magic" one of the death eaters said. "Interesting! Anyway, let me just finish him off so we can find the others". With that, the wizard lifted his wand and said "Avada K…". Before the wizard could finish the spell, a fireball hit him. The wizard was thrown off his feet and he crashed into the wall behind him. As he slumped to the ground, the remaining death eaters trained their eyes on the newcomers - one wizard and two veela's who had turned into birds.
"You want to get us, don't you? Then come on" Mrs. Delacour said in a hissing voice as she turned her head to look into the eyes of one of the death eaters. The next moment, all hell had broken loose in the Delacour Manor.
&&&&
Tonks seemed like a possessed person. She seemed to be moving with increased agility and nervous energy. There was no denying the fact that her spells were very powerful which showed why she had been picked as an auror at such an early age.
"Creo Ensis". A conjured sword came flying towards Tonks.
"Flamma Orbis" came the shout from Tonks as she ducked below the sword. Two huge balls of fire erupted from the two wands and made their way towards the death eaters. All the death eaters got out of the way but Tonks had something else up her sleeve.
"Scindo Res" the next spell had Tonks pointing both her wands towards a single spot on the ground. As both the spells hit their targets, the very ground started to split up. In the blink of an eyelid, Tonks moved both the wands upwards. Two cracks appeared on the station floor and they moved in a criss-cross manner towards the death eaters. Four of the death eaters managed to scramble out of the way while two others tried to block the spell. But no one succeeded as the earth split between their feet and, as the rays moved forwards, both the death eaters found themselves in the way. The spell, which could split up any object, ended up cutting the death eaters bodies into different proportions.
"You started this damned bloody war" Tonks spat at the remaining four wizards. "Now, you are going to face the music". Even as Tonks finished this sentence, two of the death eaters were already casting their spells. Tonks barely managed to jump out of the first spell but managed to stop the second one.
"Aqua Flatus" Tonks shouted as jets of water shot towards the death eaters. As the death eaters tried to evade it, one of them sent the killing curse towards Tonks.
"Silex Clypeus" Tonks shouted and a stone block was conjured just in front of her. The curse hit the block and blasted it apart. But this time, Tonks somehow managed to create a shield in front of her to stop the splinters from hitting her. How, Tonks didn't know, but her whole body seemed to be working at top gear.
"Dementor Assimulo". This was a dark spell and Tonks rarely used it. This spell was a dementor effect simulator. It made the affected person feel as if all the happiness had gone out of the world. Aurors were permitted to use this spell only in the gravest of situations. Even as the death eaters put up shields to stop it, Tonks shouted "Ensis Neo Funis".
No sooner had the words come out of Tonks mouth that one of the death eaters gulped at the sight. A whiplash had appeared out of thin air, waiting for Tonks to point out the target. The difference between this whiplash and the normal ones was that this one was as sharp as a sword. One touch of this whiplash could mean a severed limb. Only talented and powerful wizards and witches could cast this spell as it took a lot of magical energy. Similarly, only powerful wizards and witches could come up with a shield to block it. A normal Protego charm was ineffective in front of this.
"Redeo Concupisco". This was a risky spell on Tonks part. This spell meant that, after reaching the target (and destroying whatever came into the path), the whiplash would boomerang back to Tonks.
The whiplash, rotating around its centre, made its way towards the death eaters with lightning speed. One of the death eater got out of the way of the shining, razor sharp object while another tried to destroy it with the Reducto spell. Luckily for Tonks, the death eater's spell missed the whiplash, mainly because of the very thin target area it provided. The other death eaters scrambled to move out of the way but the death eater who had cast the spell didn't have enough time for that. The whiplash went diagonally through his chest and showed what it was capable of doing. The parts of the body fell on the ground in a heap which caused many muggles to feel sick. Even the remaining death eaters looked shaken at this sight.
"Avada Kedavra" one of the death eaters shot the spell towards Tonks. But, as luck would have it, all he managed to do was hit the whiplash which was making its way back towards Tonks. The whiplash was blasted into pieces at the impact.
"Caecus Visum" the blinding spell was cast by one death eater followed by the cry of Enqueo Distinguo Castra by another death eater. This second spell was used to paralyze the any body part it hit.
"Multi Consulo Speculum" Tonks whispered and a transparent shield appeared in front of her. The specialty of this spell was that it reflected any spell cast on it into multiple instances of the same spell. As both the blinding spell and the crippling spell were reflected back, the three death eaters set up wide shields. After all, they had to save themselves from 18 rays of light speeding towards them. Even though they had setup strong shields, one of the death eater's luck seemed to run out as 9 spells crashed into his shield alone, causing it to break apart. The 10'th spell headed his way caused an ear splitting shriek to fill the whole of the platform. All the muggles who had felt sick after seeing the effect of the earlier spell threw up instantly as the death eater's eyes started to bleed. Soon, his eyeballs started to melt away even as he kept on screaming. The screaming stopped only when the death eater collapsed on the ground in an unconscious state, white liquid mixed with red blood still oozing from his eyes.
The remaining two death eaters looked nervous now. Five of their group had been taken out by this lady alone who seemed to be quite a skilled witch. Both looked at each other for a second before one of them pressed something against his chest. For a second, Tonks thought the death eaters were going to apparate away as she felt the anti-apparation wards being lifted. But neither of the death eaters moved an inch. Even as Tonks wondered what was going on, another seven death eaters arrived on the scene.
"Damn" Tonks thought to herself as she saw nine spells heading towards her.
&&&&
Harry could see the ground rushing nearer and nearer. He still had a firm grip on his wand but couldn't think of any spell which would cushion his fall. With every passing millisecond, the buildings below seemed to be growing bigger and bigger. Some flashes of lights seemed to pass him which, he guessed, were spells to stop his freefall. After all, Malfoy wouldn't like to be facing his lord with Harry's dead body when instructions were given to bring him back alive. As Harry continued to fall, a voice seemed to be calling out to him...a voice from within him. Though this voice was that of a foe, it made sense. It said "Play to your strengths". Harry instantly turned in mid-air and shouted "Accio Firebolt".
Harry felt the immense power behind the spell. This was mainly due to the two spells he had absorbed from the last death eater. As he continued to fall, he could hear a whooshing noise in the air. As he looked around, he saw a speck of light coming towards him. Squinting his eyes, he noticed it was the moonlight getting reflected from the polished surface of his Firebolt. Even as he saw the speck growing larger and larger, he could hear car horns and all kinds of noises from below. Looking downwards, he saw that he was headed straight for an alley next to the main road of the city.
As Harry's vision shifted between his broom and the ground down below, he started to estimate the distance. According to his estimates, he was about 100 feet above the ground level and the broom still had to come a long way. Harry nervously gazed from the broom towards the ground...from the ground towards the rapidly approaching broom. Approximately 75 feet were left when a group of kids opened the door of a house and stepped outside. They seemed to be waiting for their parents to come out. "What the hell?" Harry thought as he gazed from the kids to the broom. The broom was still about 10 feet away and Harry started to sweat in the cold. He was headed directly for the spot where the kids were present.
Approximately 45 feet left to go and the broom was only about 4 feet away. Harry tried to reach out to the broom but failed. As he gazed below, he was shocked to see the rest of the family making their way out. If he fell, not only would he get killed himself, but he would most probably fatally injure a couple of others.
Approximately 25 feet left to go and the broom was a couple of feet away. Harry gave one last look towards the people below and stretched towards the broom with all his strength. He had to reach it, not only for himself, but also for the people below.
20 feet left to go and Harry could almost touch the tip of the broom. 15 feet left to go and Harry somehow managed to get a hold onto the broom with his left hand. With all his might and strength, Harry redirected the broom to be parallel to the ground and gave a tug forward. The broom, which had slowed down considerably, followed Harry's instructions. Even as the broom came parallel to the ground by making one of the steepest turns, its distance from the ground was a mere 10 feet. Harry folded his legs as he neared one of the kids and passed cleanly over her. The next kid was taller and Harry somehow managed to get his right hand securely over the brooms handle and raised himself even more. His knees scraped the hair of the kid as he flew over him and towards safety.
&&&&
"MOM" the kid whose hair had been ruffled by Harry's knees shouted. "Look...a flying man"
"Yes dear" his mother replied casually as she locked the door.
"I am not joking...not this time" the kid said.
"I know...I know". His mother didn't seem too interested in this topic and kept checking other things.
"He's waving at me" the kid seemed enthusiastic and started to wave in the direction of the flying man. His other siblings were too busy in their own worlds to look at Harry.
"Nice to know that son. Let's go or we will be late for the celebrations". The woman grabbed the hands of her two small girls aged 3 and 5 years respectively. "Michael...come on" she shouted over her back as she moved towards the main road.
"Coming" Michael replied as he ran towards his mother. As he looked back, the flying man was nowhere to be seen.
&&&&
"Phew...that was close" Harry thought as he hung onto his moving Firebolt. His right palm was already starting to hurt because of the wand between the palm and the broomstick. As Harry tried to pull himself up on the broom, he saw one of the kids talking excitedly to the woman and pointing towards him. Waving at the kid for a second, Harry somehow managed to pull himself up on the broom. Feeling relaxed for the first time in the past 1 minute, Harry steered his broom upwards.
No sooner had Harry climbed more than 10 feet or so, he noticed a jet of light coming towards him from his left side. Harry rolled over for what seemed to be the hundredth time that evening and the spell went past him harmlessly. He tried to accelerate upwards but another spell came towards him. As he avoided this spell too, he saw that the remaining 20 odd death eaters had started to close in on him.
"Must have followed the Firebolt" Harry thought as he accelerated forward into another alley. A few death eaters followed him from behind while the others started cursing him as they traveled along the top of the buildings. In front of him, he saw the alley getting divided into two portions, one which lead to the main road while the other took him into another alley. He made a sharp right turn even as a spell hit the corner bricks, shattering them to pieces. Harry kept on accelerating to escape the spells. More and more death eaters were unable to target him even for a second. The more they anticipated his position, the faster he moved causing the spell to hit something behind him.
Harry was now moving at a breakneck speed. One of the spells was very well aimed and Harry saw the light out of the corner of his eyes. He ducked and made a 90 degree turn into another alley. He heard a muffled sound from behind him and assumed that some of the death eaters had crashed into the walls when they had tried to follow him into the alley. Harry saw a host of sub-alleys branching off on both his sides and took the second on the left, making another 90 degree turn. Some of the death eaters failed to make this turn. Instead, they made the next turn which ran parallel with the one Harry had taken. Harry slowed down slightly as he passed between buildings on either side. There were many connecters between this alley and the next one and Harry caught sight of the death eaters flying in the next alley. Had he been a second late, he would have been unable to see a cruciatus heading his way. Harry sped through the alley but was surprised to find a single death eater matching him step for step. Harry knew that only a Firebolt could match another one and hence the conclusion was obvious.
Another fork came in front of Harry. Turning right would lead him directly into the other death eater, so he turned left. There was another gap in between two buildings on his right side and Harry steered his Firebolt into it, hoping that two quick turns would throw off the death eaters off his track. However, on hearing a sound from behind him, Harry saw that the same death eater seemed to have made the steep turn. In other circumstances, Harry would have stopped to meet the person who could fly so skillfully but now was not the time. Harry steered left at the next gap and made another left turn. The death eater also made the turns easily and Harry couldn't help but appreciate his skill. He knew he was up for a real flying match.
The alley Harry was currently in had a dead end. Harry went at full speed towards the building in front and, at the last moment possible, pulled hard to steer the Firebolt up the vertical wall. The death eater also did the same though the speed was lacking. Once Harry saw the death eater following him up the building, he made turned around completely and accelerated even more. Before the death eater had a chance to do anything, Harry had passed him and was speeding back the way he had come. The death eater followed him but the gap seemed to have widened a lot. Harry made two quick left turns and then a right turn. He quickly glanced around and knew that he wasn't been followed anymore. Giving a sigh of relief, he saw a bigger alley in front of him and turned left. This alley led straight to the main road from where Harry could easily take off in any direction.
"You fly well Potter" Malfoy's voice echoed in the alley as Harry saw the exit point getting filled with death eaters. Harry made a 180 degree turn once again but found the opposite end of the alley blocked by another set of death eaters. Looking from one group to the other, Harry understood that he had no other way than go upwards. He knew that going upwards was fruitless because at least 7-8 death eaters had been monitoring the area from the top. Still, Harry made a perpendicular climb only to stop midway up the 50 storey building. The death eaters had the top covered too.
"Like I said, you fly well" Malfoy repeated as both the death eaters groups rose to Harry's height, maintaining the distance all along. "But you lack tactics" Malfoy laughed and sent a spell towards Harry. Even as Harry put up his shield, he saw that Malfoy had hit an area 2 feet in front of him and blasted off some bricks. Soon, many spells were flying in from all directions, hitting areas all around Harry.
"You are so helpless" Malfoy mocked. Harry knew that the death eaters were just toying with him and they wanted some fun before taking him to Voldemort. The only thing that stuck him as odd was that the death eater flying the Firebolt didn't shoot off a single spell. Maybe he wanted to settle matters on a broomstick only, Harry thought.
"You are right Malfoy" Harry's voice caused everyone to stop cursing. "I lack tactics. But remember one thing..." Malfoy stirred slightly at this. "...never underestimate me". With that, Harry dived at full speed towards the ground.
&&&&
Tonks looked on as she saw nine spells coming towards her. Though none of them were the unforgivables, they had enough power in them to take any single person's life. Tonks knew she had to cast a shield and move as fast as she could. In a reflexive motion, she raised her wand and cast one of the most advanced spells known to aurors - one which had the capacity to block everything apart from the unforgivables and some other dark spells. Even as she was casting the spell, Tonks had already started to jump in the air. She had to get out of the way.
The shield created by Tonks managed to stop four spells while Tonks avoided three others as she bent her body in an amazing manner. But that didn't prove enough to save her from the remaining two spells. One of them hit her on her left arm while the other hit her on her left leg. The spells hit Tonks with so much force that she was thrown back and spun around in mid-air. She flew a few feet backwards and landed with a cry of pain.
"Looks like the auror finally got a taste of her own medicine" one of the death eaters remarked in a mocking tone. Tonks lay motionless for a few seconds before stirring again.
"I can...ahhhhhhhhh...take more" she said with great difficulty. As she tried to move, she felt an immense pain in the left portion of her body. Also her right hand felt strangely empty and she realized that she had lost her wand too.
"Really?" one of the death eaters summoned Tonks's wand and started dwindling with it. "I like your spirit. You could join us and serve our master"
Tonks didn't say anything in reply but slowly extended her right hand down towards her right pocket. The wand of one of the death eaters was still in her possession and it was her last chance. As soon as she felt the wand in between her fingers, she took it out in a flash and muttered two spells in a flash - "Arceo Cella" and "Plurimus Cella Propero". These were the same spells which Harry had used to defeat 9 opponents in the trunk during a practice session. A conjured room enclosed the death eaters and a huge iron ball started moving inside it.
The death eaters seemed taken aback at what had just happened. They had neither expected to be cornered in a conjured room and neither had they expected that an iron ball would be moving randomly in it. One of the death eaters blasted away the iron ball which only increased the number of balls in the room. As the death eaters watched in horror, one of their members got stuck by one of the balls and his head got smashed to pulp. Another one faced a similar fate while a third death eater was less lucky. Two iron balls broke his legs while two more broke his arms. One of the balls smashed his chest. He lay on the ground withering in great pain. It was quite a while before one of the balls smashed his head. One by one, all the death eaters seemed to be going down and the whole area seemed to be filling with pools of blood. The last death eater decided not to die such a horrific death. Instead, he cast the killing curse on himself and committed suicide.
Tonks quickly put on the anti-apparation charm on the whole station again and dragged herself toward Remus. Remus was lying in a small pool of blood but his injuries didn't seem as grave as Tonks had first estimated. Tonks quickly cast some healing charms and enervated Remus.
"Hey" Remus said weakly.
"Hi" Tonks's voice seemed even weaker.
"You are in worse shape than me" Remus looked alarmed. After surveying the scene around him, he added "I think we ought to get back to the Manor as soon as possible. We are needed there"
"Needed? What do you mean by that?" Tonks said in a surprised tone. She was feeling very weak and tired but her senses were on high alert.
"Don't you see it Tonks?" Remus said. "Most of these guys were newly recruited. They didn't cast all the deadly spells which experienced death eaters do"
"So?"
"That means the experienced death eaters must be someplace else" Remus said in fearful voice.
"Someplace named Delacour Manor" Tonks seemed shocked as the truth dawned upon her. How could she be such a fool as not to understand the plan?
Getting up from the floor with great difficulty and without waiting for another second more, Tonks summoned a torn piece of clothing. Turning it into a portkey, she looked around for one last time. The muggles looked terrified at what they had just seen while many had already fainted. They would all be obliviated by the French Ministry and hence, Tonks wasn't particularly worried. She was more worried about the Delacour family...and Harry. What would she do if something happened to...
"Tonks" Remus said in a whisper which bought Tonks back to the reality. Giving a nod, Tonks activated the portkey which Remus was holding. Almost instantaneously, they found themselves within a few meters of the Delacour Manor.
&&&&
Harry had seen a window open in a room on the seventh floor of the building and there seemed to be another window on the other side of the room which opened up someplace else. He knew he had to make his way through it at any cost. Harry setup a stronger shield as spells burst all around him. As he came nearer, he took out his wand and blasted off the window pane. In another split second, Harry was through it and out of the other window. But he was not alone to pass through the room. Within seconds, the death eaters had followed him through the room as well. What they hadn't expected was to come out in the middle of the Christmas celebrations.
&&&&
"Ladies and gentlemen, those were the Sorenson Brothers for you..." Harry heard a booming voice announcing something to the assembled people. It seemed that about a few thousand people had gathered near a huge lake for Christmas celebrations and many kinds of shows were going on. The announcers seemed to be seated on a stage about 20 feet high.
"MOM...look...the flying man" a kid in the middle of the huge crowd pointed skywards towards the direction of Harry. "AND THERE ARE OTHER FLYING MEN WITH HIM TOO!". Michael seemed very excited at having made his point. His mother looked up to see where he was pointing and many others did the same. A buzz went round the crowd as they saw the twenty odd flying people.
"What is that?" one of the announcers asked his co-announcer just as he had switched off the microphone. "Who are they and..."
"I don't know" his co-announcer replied. "We don't have anything like this on schedule"
"Damn it" the aged announcer said angrily. "Well...we got to cover it anyway". With that, the announcer switched on the microphone again.
"Ladies and gentlemen...". Even though the announcer looked really angry, his voice didn't betray his emotions. "This year's surprise event - The Flying Show". The assembled people looked slightly bewildered but then nodded in appreciation. They had never seen something like this and they were surely going to enjoy this. A roar went up in the air and people started clapping.
"As you can see, this is an air stunt of the highest quality..." the announcer continued. "...with our lead man being followed by his whole team. The leader is now heading towards the waterfront. Watch out...hmmm…Steve…there is an electric pole ahead. Wow...he evaded the pole so skillfully. He is now heading towards the water front with his group shooting off lasers in mid air"
"What are they using to fly?" the announcer asked in a whisper to his team members. Getting no reply from any of them, he continued with "Steve's" group and their performance.
"Steve and his group are now above the water. It seems they have some special tricks planned for us. Steve shoots off a laser which has hit one of his group members. The guy has fallen straight into the icy cold water. Have a nice bath dear sir". Many people laughed at this. "Now Steve's group is shooting off lasers at him. Steve ducks below one and maneuvers his...flying machine...above the other. Oh my god...Steve seems hit". A collective gasp could be heard as everyone's attention was captured by the 'Airshow'.
"Steve is still flying on his machine. He seems to be straightening again. Thank god Steve, you gave us a scare there. Steve is still being followed by his group even as he does a large circle of the lake. Watch out, another laser is headed towards you...whoa...Steve does a last minute somersault and the laser passes just where he had been a second before. But what does he do now? Multiple lasers are headed his way. We got to hold...oh my god...Steve is picking up speed"
"Ladies and gentlemen...have you ever seen anything like this before? None of the lasers seem to be anywhere near him as Steve still keeps accelerating. No...hold...one member is breaking away from the rest of the group. He too is picking up speed. Whoa...Steve slows down slightly and dives. The lasers pass him and crash into some old buildings and fireworks go off. The other member has also dived and is trying to catch up with Steve. Don't you love it?"
"Who are these guys and why are they blasting apart buildings?" the announcer asked to no one in particular before resuming his live telecast.
"Steve is now almost touching the water. Here he comes, followed closely by the second member, and...he passes by in a huge rush. CAN YOU FEEL THE WIND IN YOUR FACE AS HE RUSHED BY AT FULL SPEED? CAN YOU SEE THE WAVES OFF WATER AS HE PASSES BY? This is one great show. Well Steve, you got competition from your team members. They seem to be picking up speed too but Steve and the other guy are way ahead of them. Hold on...do I have poor eyesight or are both the guys in front still picking up speed? I just don't believe my eyes! Steve is going round and...no...he is decreasing the radius of his circular movements. BUT...the second guy seems to be closing on him. Hurry up Steve or you will have to follow the other one" the announcer was almost on his feet now. Little did he know that a game of life and death was going on in front of him.
"Both these guys are almost a blur now. I can bet that none of you have ever seen anything fly so fast. Steve...where is he? The second guy...he is also a blur now. Many of his group members have given up any chances of catching up with him. Instead, they have encircled the whole area within which Steve is moving. It seems they are afraid to shoot lasers at Steve now. Maybe they fear Steve will be too fast for it and one of the members on the other side will get hit. But is there any way out for Steve in this? This is the question which we are asking ourselves now"
"God...who are these people?" the announcer threw up his hands in desperation as he switched off the microphone to take a break. The crowds below him were also gasping at the sight in front of them. The whole water front was now lit up by the high powered focus lights and they could see two blurs going in circles. They didn't know what exactly 'Steve' was up to but he seemed to be still accerlerating.
"These two are...hold on a second, what is that?".
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"Who is this guy? He seems a great flyer." Harry thought as he continued his circular motions. Even though the announcer was saying something like 'smaller circles', Harry was still moving in a circle whose radius had to be about 200 feet. He knew that getting out of here was almost impossible since the death eaters had cordoned off the whole area but the fact was that he liked it. He knew that something like this will not go unnoticed by the French aurors and they would be here any moment now. As he kept on moving, he saw flying figures coming from all sides. Looking carefully, he noticed that these new entrants were not death eaters. All had some kind of an emblem just near their shoulders and Harry came to the conclusion that these were French ministry people. His suspicions were proved true when a magically magnified voice was heard.
"In the name of the French Minister, I order you all to stop right now".
Harry knew this was the moment he had been waiting for and he had to grab it NOW. Even as he continued to fly, he pointed his wand at the water and said "Aqua Turbo". Instantly, a huge wall of water formed a circular wall around Harry, separating him from everyone's view. It seemed like a twister had hit the water where Harry had been. Harry knew he had to act fast as the spell's effect would be wearing off soon. Even as the twister continued to move around Harry, he took out a marble from his pocket and turned it into a portkey. Just as the water came down with a crash, Harry activated the portkey and arrived two blocks from the Delacour Manor, leaving behind a few thousand stunned people.
"Whoa..." Harry said out loudly as he cruised towards the manor. That had really been the ride of his life. But now, something seemed odd here. Everything around him seemed quite; rather everything seemed too quite for comfort. As the manor came into view, Harry came to an abrupt stop. Smoke was rising from every part of the Delacour Manor which seemed to have been devastated. As Harry looked around, he gulped in fear. A few feet from the Manor gate, Tonks and Remus were lying unconscious.
"What the hell happened here?" Harry thought and moved forward, his wand clutched tightly and all his senses on high alert.
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A/N:
The 21'st chapter! This chapter is one of the toughest I have written till now. Was this chapter fun to read or did I drag on unnecessarily? I really don't know whether you guys could visualize the flying scenes.
spike blade – Harry and Tonks will get to know about each others feelings soon (hopefully).
PzkwVIb – Thanks for pointing out the errors.
coolpig – Yeah…I messed up the 'quiet' word. Thanks for bringing it to my attention. And yes, I really appreciate all the reviews which help me improve the current story and my writing skills (though it is just a hobby).
xoRetributionox – Here are the answers to your questions:
1) The timeline for everyone is variable in their own rooms. So, if Tonks wants the time in her own room to be the same as Hogwarts time, it's up to her wish. But, there will still be a minor difference because the timeline in the dining room etc. are based on Harry's wish. So, there will be a minor (in many cases negligible) difference.
2) Yes. Harry eats some meals in the great hall and some in the trunk.
3) Harry will find out how Tonks feels for him.
4) Does Harry like Tonks? Hmmm…what should I do? Maybe I will make him like Bellatrix. And when Neville kills (will he?) Bellatrix, Harry and Neville will become sworn enemies. Just kidding. :)
Anyway, I really can't answer that question now.
To all those people who have reviewed - Thanks. Each and every word you write in your reviews is of great importance to me and I always take your suggestions/comments very seriously.
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