The Elements.
AN: Now my readers, we must travel back in time a couple of hours. Back before Ron and Hermione ended up in the cave and back to when Harry left them.
Harry felt at a loss. He didn't know what was right to do. Struggling he clenched his fists and looked angrily around him.
"I'm not leaving!" he practically yelled over another bang from down the street. He looked madly into Ron's face, scowling at what his friend was telling him to do.
"No one knows where she is. Get Dumbledore. McGonagall. Anyone who can help. Just go Harry before they find us."
Harry wanted to hit him. He didn't want to be put in a position where he had to rely on others for his own safety. Couldn't Ron see that he couldn't leave them now? Not when they needed him most? Screw the damned prophecy, it meant nothing compared to the safety of his friends.
But what would happen if the Death Eaters came now? They had defeated them before but they were stronger now, and he was the one who needed to take on Voldemort.
Angry at this thought he looked away from Ron. Could Ron protect himself? Was he afraid that his friends were defenceless without him? No, he had known them too well to think that. For once he needed to trust his friends. There was more to be done here than he could do alone.
"I'm not a coward, Ron." he whispered.
"I know your not," Ron looked over Harry with a trusting expression on his face.
Harry made his decision. There was nothing more that he could do here. Ron would be alright. He had grown stronger, fighting beside him as a true friend. If anyone would find Hermione it would be him. They would be fine, they were the bravest wizard and witch that he knew and could always trust.
"As soon as I get help, I'll be back." Harry made the statement in determination, so as not to sound as if he were simply abandoning them.
Ron just nodded. He looked agitated and anxious to get away. Harry silently agreed. They were wasting precious time that they had left. Who knew what was happening?
Slowly he turned, took a deep shuddering breath and ran through the gapping fallen wall. He ran out through the street, back through the route that they had taken to get to Chimney Sweep. He kept his line focused; he didn't want anything to distract him from the task at hand.
Head down, pounding steps, his feet unbalanced over the debris, he finally saw Hogwarts castle appear in front of him.
"Quickly! To the castle!" A snide voice yelled from behind him.
Quickly Harry ducked back into the alleyway that he had just come out of. He pressed his back to the wall and only wished that he had his Invisibility Cloak with him.
He heard footsteps go by and he slowly pulled his head out to see who it was. There was a group of five, all wearing the same black robes and masks that Harry instantly recognised them as Death Eaters.
The group stopped at the gates and stared at the castle before them. Suddenly a voice spoke, whom Harry recognised to belong to Lucius Malfoy.
"The Dark Lord has ordered it. We must take the castle." His voice sounded angry. Harry's heart pounded in his ears and he hopped that they didn't notice that he was there.
"But what of Dumbledore, Lucius?" A voice came from the mask, which Harry recognised as Macnair. He seemed to be cowering a little.
"Ah!" Lucius twiddled his wand between his fingers. "The Dark Lord has his ways. Now quickly, follow the plan. We don't want a repeat of what happened at the Ministry."
At the last command the group headed towards the castle at a run.
Harry breathed, steadily. What was going on? What were the Death Eaters up to? He had to warn Dumbledore, but how would he get there without being seen?
Frantically he looked around him, hoping by some miracle that something would give him inspiration. His eyes caught into a house across the street. Surely every wizarding family had a broomstick... shouldn't they?
Clumsily, he hurried over and scrambled through the doorway, where the door had been blown off. Cautiously he went in, warily looking about him. The house was deserted and by the state of things, the family had left in a hurry.
It was a small house, furnished in ocean blues and the shattered remains of family portraits laid smashed on the floor. Broken chairs cluttered the hallway that lead to what Harry recognised as the kitchen.
With great difficulty, he clambered over the broken remains and fell into the kitchen. Pans were strewn everywhere and the table tops had burst scorch marks upon them.
Frantically he pulled open cupboards, pulling out their contents. Grease proof paper, more pots and pans… Where was it?
Suddenly, his hand brushed the stem of a thick piece of wood. His face lit up. Quickly he pulled it out. It was a broom alright, a bit old and worn but defiantly a broom. Hastily he took it outside and made a mental note to return it to the owners as soon as this was all over.
Harry looked up at the sky, the sun was setting and soon there wouldn't be much light at all. He grasped the handle of the broom tightly and straddled it. Mentally he hopped that this was a magic broom, not just and ordinary one. Cautiously he leaned forward.
Whoosh! He was in flight. The broom lifted higher and higher until he could see the whole of Hogsmead. Harry grinned as the amazing sensation of flying gripped him. For a moment all his troubles seemed to drift away as the wind caressed his face as he soared further upward. He wanted to stay like this forever, but a loud band from below shocked him back to his senses. He looked down and saw that yet another building was a blaze below him. He shuddered and urged the broom forward towards the castle.
So as not to be seen, he stayed as high as possible, which had the added benefit of keeping his shadow as small and as concealed as possible. He looked over the grounds as he travelled, from the grassy land to over the lake. He saw no sign of the Death Eaters and worry befell him.
Suddenly, the broom began to choke and Harry was afraid that he would be thrown off. He tightened his grip on the handle and urged the broom to continue. The North tower was in sight!
But the broom had other ideas. It seemed that the broom was so old that the magic was wearing out on it, and seemed to be giving out. Slowly, in irregular dips, he plummeted.
"Come on!" He urged the broom, gritting his teeth. "Just a bit further!"
He could make out the windows of the castle now. The brickwork becoming more defined and the looming gargoyles that seemed to be laughing at his bizarre flying.
He was so close! With a loud bang and a puff of smoke – the broom stopped.
"Oh Shit!" Harry closed his eyes, but felt nothing. He slowly opened them and noticed that the broom slowly drifted downwards, like a falling feather.
With a gentle bump, he landed on the roof of the North Tower.
Sweating slightly and taking deep steady breaths, he steadied himself to an upright position. He glanced at the broom and bade it a silent farewell ad he demounted and ran to the Tower door.
He yanked at its iron handle and pulled it open. He ran as fast as he could down the spiral staircase until the stairs became a sickening blur. It came as a shock when he finally reached the bottom.
Silently he pulled out his wand and crept down the corridor. The corridor seemed just as it had always done. Untouched and normal, yet it was quiet. Where were all the students?
Quietly he made his way down the corridors towards Dumbledore's office. Still, nothing seemed out of place. Surely there should have been some kind of struggle? He came to the gargoyle and came to a halt.
He didn't know the password.
"Step aside!" He yelled at the gargoyle in frustration.
The gargoyle came to life and bowed its head towards him, it's fierce eyes looking him over.
Harry gulped and looked up at it.
The gargoyle nodded as if in recognition and moved out of the way for him to pass.
Harry stared at it in bewilderment as he passed and went up the escalading stairs. When he reached the top, he opened the door and hurried in.
"Professor Dumbledore!" He exclaimed as he burst through the door.
A strange scene befell his eye. He watched as he saw a few students touch an object that Dumbledore had been holding out to them and they promptly disappeared. A portkey!
"Harry?" Dumbledore stared at Harry in bewilderment. "Why are you here?"
"Professor, Hogsmead was attacked! Hermione may be in trouble and the Death Eaters are on their way!"
Dumbledore surveyed Harry with sad eyes. "I know, Harry. That's why I sent Severus after you. When the attacks first stared I immediately knew that Hogwarts would be the next target so I instantly set about evacuation procedures. The whole school is safe, but it saddens me that you are not."
"I didn't see Snape. There was no one there!"
"Professor Snape, Harry."
"Well, Professor Snape wasn't there. He probably is involved in the whole thing!"
Dumbledore sighed and looked with tired eyes upon Harry. "Harry, that doesn't matter now. You must evacuate!"
"I'm not leaving Ron and Hermione!"
"They will be fine. I personally will find them."
Harry bit his lip in annoyance. Why did everyone always want to protect him? He wasn't this fragile piece of china, which would break at the slightest touch. He scowled at Dumbledore.
"But, Sir!"
"Shh!" Dumbledore looked around slowly. Harry listened, he could hear angry calling in the distance.
"It looks like they have finally entered the castle." Dumbledore smiled to himself. "You must take this portkey, Harry." He picked up a book that was lying on his desk and tapped it with his wand. "Portus."
Harry knew that it had now become a portkey.
"I want to fight!"
"It's not the time, Harry!" He held the book out to Harry but he didn't take it.
"I…" Harry began but quickly turned around as the door flung open.
With a flick of his wand, Dumbledore flung Harry into a nearby cupboard and clicked the lock.
Harry's head banged against the backboard, and he muttered a silent disapproval but remained silent as he heard Lucius Malfoy's voice.
"Surprised, Dumbledore?" He sneered.
Harry bent down and peered though the keyhole. He couldn't see much but Malfoy's back and the side of Dumbledore's face over his shoulder.
"No, Lucius. Some things never cease to amaze me, but I always knew that eventually someone would come after me."
"The Dark Lord knows all."
"Ah. I see, Lucius. But may I ask exactly what you want with me? Although I think I already know."
Lucius moved obscuring Harry's view.
"The flame, Dumbledore. That is what I am here to get."
"You expect to get it so easily?"
"Of course." Lucius hand went to his back pocket and withdrew a vial.
It was a clear vial with a lead stopper in it. Within it there seemed to be blue smoke. Lucius moved again, so Harry could see both figures clearly. Lucius sneered while Dumbledore looked at the vial with disapproval.
"I see." Dumbledore's voice seemed slightly pained. "Tell me, was it so easy to kill Mr Douglas?"
"Nothing is in vain in the Dark Lords pursuit for power."
Harry heard a pop as if the stopper had come out of the vial. Slowly the blue smoke drifted towards Dumbledore. Suddenly the most unexpected happened. Dumbledore's cloak caught on fire.
No. Not his cloak, Harry thought, but his skin.
Dumbledore's whole body was alight but is did not appear to cause him pain.
Harry struggled at the lock but found its enchantment too strong. There was nothing that he could do but watch.
"This is not the end, Lucius. There is more to power than the mere elements." Flames exploded violently from around him, igniting his desk and chair. In a flash Dumbledore was no more but a flame, which entwined with the blue smoke and was sucked back into the vial.
Lucius quickly corked it and stared into its depths. The smoke had now become a vibrant shade of yellow and orange whish swirled within its confinement. He coughed a little as the flames continued to spread.
What had just happened? Harry's mouth hung open in amazement. Why did Dumbledore go up in flames? Who was this Mr Douglas? Was Dumbledore really gone?
The door to Dumbledore's office burst open and Bellatrix Lestrange flew through. She clasped a hand to her mouth and chocked as more of the office burst into flame.
"Is it done?" She choked.
"Of course. You expected any less?" Lucius turned to her his eyes still on the vial.
"No, Lucius. Of course not." Her eyes began to stream with the heat.
"Good." He took the bottle and shook it. "Not so high and mighty now are you Dumbledore?" He chuckled. "Did you find Potter?" He advanced towards her.
"We couldn't find him anywhere." Lucius shook his head and took her by the elbow as they exited.
"Hmm… There are other ways to get to Potter. Here take the vial to our master. I have other business to attend to." With that he disappeared from view.
Harry was still startled at what he had witnessed, and had no idea what it had to do with him. He began to choke as the flames intensified. Struggling he pounded on the cupboards door to get out.
"Let me out!" he choked and obligingly the door did. Harry scrambled out onto the floor. A table fell beside him, smattering him with ash. Harry grabbed for his wand and pointed it at the flames.
"Glacius!" Small spouts of water came out of his wand but it seemed to have no effect as the flames took up the whole of the office. Covering his face with his robe Harry edged out of the office. He coughed and spluttered as the flames advanced but he quickly escaped down the corridors. Quickly he hurried down the steps and through the entrance.
He stopped suddenly as he saw Lucius and Bellatrix ahead of him and he ducked behind a stone pillar. He was too far away to hear their conversation but watched them go their separate ways.
Lucius headed for the lake while Bellatrix headed for the forbidden forest. He knew that he had to follow them. Who knew what Lucius was up to? Bellatrix sounded as if she was heading for Voldemort and he needed to find out what was going on.
He made to advance and kept in the shadows. Silently he followed her, keeping as quite as possible. He could hear her chuckling to herself as she took the direction following the path of the lake closest to the forest.
Suddenly, Harry felt a sudden heat pressing against his thigh.
He reached into his pocket and withdrew the gold Galleon from the DA. For a moment he looked at it in amazement as if wondering what had caused it to get hot. Hermione and Ron! They must be alright! They too had their Galleons and they must have been looking for him. He could use their help more than ever now.
He looked ahead. Bellatrix was a good stretch away and she wouldn't notice. He quickly sent up a shot of red sparks. He watched the stars fade and thought that he had got away with it when he heard a voice over his shoulder.
"Potter!" Quickly he turned and looked into the fierce eyes of Bellatrix. Before he knew it he was knocked unconscious.
Harry awoke with a searing pain in his chest. He struggled to get up but his hands were tied. He looked around him to see that he was now in the Forbidden Forest. Its trees loomed in on him and the darkness of the night only intensified their cruel features.
"Mr Potter. How delightful it is for you to finally join us!" Harry struggled to sit up and then saw before him the snaky features of Voldemort.
"Voldemort!" Harry hissed at him.
Voldemort chuckled with a hiss. "It seems that I am always running into you. Our paths are always crossing are they not? Perhaps you should pay some heed, Harry. You do not know what you are up against."
"I know that you are a weak sneaky coward!"
"A weak coward - am I?" Voldemort's eyes peered into him. "Bellatrix!" he snapped.
Harry hadn't noticed her before, but Bellatrix came out from the shadows and bowed before him kissing the hem of his robes. "Master!"
"Bellatrix, you have done well to bring Harry to me. You shall be rewarded, as shall Lucius for bringing me the flame and water."
"Thank you, Master." She rose and backed away from him, her head still bowed.
"You see, Harry," He took the vial from out of his robes. "How can you control everything when you don't know the basics?" He uncorked the vial and before the smoke could escape he drank it. He shuddered for a moment and the vial crashed to the floor shattering into tiny pieces. Quite suddenly he looked up. He grinned.
"How can I loose, Harry, when I control the elements themselves?" He opened his arms wide and the earth began to shake.
Massive cracks began to appear in the ground around him with ear splitting rawness.
Hey guys! Sorry for leaving it there but it is the pivotal moment where we go back to Ron and Hermione. It will all happen in the next chapter! So for the long time to update but holidays, exams, essays and work got in the way! I hope it was worth it though and this shouldn't happen again! Tell me what you think of this!
Now for my reviewers:
NAZ1: Thank you for being my first reviewer! I'm glad that you liked it and when I wrote it I had a sequel in mind so I hope you like the rest of the story!
Hermione 2000: They are a cute couple aren't they?
JTBJAB: Yep, mugglenet sucks! Keep on smiling and yes I will continue the story, you can remove the gun from my head now! LOL!
eckles: Well glad you liked it and I hope you liked this one!
Magnolia Lane: Glad you enjoyed it. I guess it is up to me if Ron and Hermione will come out of this alive:P
xthexghostxwriterx: Thank you for the review! Chapter is up!
thesongremainsthesame: I am THE Evil Penguin! LOL! I love leaving cliffs, even if you guys don't really like me leaving them! Hmmm, to let them die… Wait and see!
scribhneoir: Thank you for the compliments! Hope you liked this chapter!