Possession
Chapter XXXVIII - Dying to Love You
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Sirius looked up at Harry. His claws clicked upon the stone as he trotted beside his Godson. The boy... He shook his head. Harry was no longer a boy; he had grown up. He had had no choice but to grow but he was still utterly transparent in some ways. And Sirius could see that he was worried about something. He was tense. There was a slight creasing of his forehead and his lips were pulled taunt. Snuffles growled slightly and he changed his form as he walked.
"Harry," Sirius began. "What's wrong?" Not the most original opening but direct and to the point and while he hadn't always been there for his Godson, he did know enough that you had to be direct.
"Harry..?" he asked again after receiving no response.
"Sirius," Harry's voice was soft.
"What is it?"
"I... I don't know."
"What's bothering you Harry? You can tell me."
Harry eventually looked towards his Godfather and sighed... "I had a dream," he began uncertainly.
"And?" Sirius prompted.
"Voldemort had lost."
Sirius frowned. Harry wasn't telling him something. "That's good, isn't it?"
"The Dark had a new Lord."
"Who?"
"Lucius Malfoy."
Sirius nodded, black eyes lost in thought but inwardly he breathed a sigh of relief. He'd been afraid of Harry saying his own name. "Snape did mention something about a rebellion brewing in the Dark Lord's forces but Malfoy ought to be easier to defeat than Voldemort. What was the problem with the dream?"
"The Light had also lost," Harry said heavily. "Lucius succeeded where every Dark Lord has failed. He was the Ruler of the World - Muggle and Wizard alike."
"That's not possible, Harry. There are plenty of Wizards and Witches who can match Lucius' power and there is no way to increase your power that much. Someone would have defeated him."
"The Vampires backed him."
Sirius felt his eyes open wide. Harry hadn't got to Vampires in his studies... There was no way he could know about the power a Vampire could give a Wizard. But the price... "Harry," he began, putting as much power into his voice as he could. "That's not going to happen."
"I was there too," Harry continued, almost as if he hadn't heard Sirius. "I was chained... Draco's pet, but Draco was a Vampire... He said Lucius was no longer his Father..." Green eyes unfocused as he looked around wildly, remembering before he fixed his stare on Sirius. "I killed me... I didn't even think about it. I killed me and the chained me was grateful."
Sirius enfolded Harry in his arms, stroking his hair. "If you dreamt that, no one would blame you and any one would have done the same." He stepped back, looking at his Godson.
Green eyes blinked, coming slowly back into focus. "He warned me though... He told me 'Be true to your heart' and then I had another dream..."
"This one was different... Everything was intact; it was almost as if there had been no war. Hogwarts was fine. The students were happy but a flame snake banner surmounting the castle but everything else was fine. Then I went somewhere else... I went to another castle and this one flew only that banner...
"There were many wizards there and a basilisk came in and spoke to someone. I don't know who... I never saw that persons face but there were three people on the dais, one enthroned, the other two served them. After the serpent spoke three more people appeared - Charlie Weasley, Professor Lupin and you."
"Harry... A snake isn't necessarily bad... You can speak parceltongue but that doesn't make you evil and serpents aren't all evil."
"I know," Harry gulped. "That's not it. You called... You called one of the people on the dais Voldemort," he finished the sentence in a rush.
"No..." Sirius whispered the word. "That wouldn't happen."
"It... it wasn't Voldemort though... He was too young and even if it was Voldemort he wouldn't bow to anyone... And he was. He was bowing to someone. Who has that type of power?"
Sirius frowned. No one had that type of power... No one had had that type of power for over a thousand years. "It was a dream."
"It was more than a dream! Divination isn't exact but even I know the difference between a true dream and something my imagination brewed up. This was a true dream. It was the future I dreamt, both times..."
"Harry even when you dream the future, it doesn't have to be. I know. Believe me I know. Only you can create the future. So create the future you want Harry, but I would still agree with your doppelgangers advice. Be true to your heart."
"Sirius..?" Harry tried to interrupt but his guardian was speaking, remembering the past and determined to get the warning out.
"I don't know what you are afraid of Harry but if you are happy, that is what is important. Don't worry about the rest of us Harry - follow your heart. If I'd have truly followed mine perhaps we wouldn't have been in this position, perhaps Lily and James would still be alive because we would have dealt with the suspicions we had at the time, rather than letting them fester and letting them make us make our mistake."
-Master...-
-Yes?-
Harry gasped as he felt a wave of emotion come from Red Eyes. It was a mixture of thanks and love. He sent a wave back but couldn't hide his confusion at the thanks. He hadn't done anything.
-We did Master. We healed him.-
-Thank you,- Harry whispered in his mind softly but the Shadows weren't finished yet.
Around the corridor they came to life, flittering and flickering, skittering softly over the stone floor. -Master, it is time.-
"What is this?" Sirius exclaimed jumping back.
"Master, you cannot let your first vision occur," the Shadows actually spoke, their echoing voices serving to confirm their existence to Sirius.
"I will not let the second one happen!" Harry snapped back.
"We only want you to be happy. Do not let the first one occur, change the second but do not let the first one occur," they almost seemed to beg.
"Who? What?" Sirius' eyes were wide.
"We are Harry's power."
"So why do you care?"
"We want our Master to be happy. We have to obey him but it is easier for us to get what we want when he is happy," they explained to Sirius before turning their attention back to Harry. "And we will protect your happiness. Master, the vampires do not understand. They do not understand what we know, what he knows."
"What?"
-Without light Master, there is no dark. They are arrogant enough to believe that they are the dark and that they can survive without light. But that is not true. Without dark, there is no light. That is the other truth. Even Dumbledore knows that.- The Shadows responded silently again but they were still present.
Sirius watched as Harry nodded. He knew his Godson was conversing with the Shadows and despite the fact that he was now excluded from the conversation he didn't feel excluded. He trusted them. He'd felt them before. The one time at the Quidditch game they had been there, mixed with other power but they had been the one's who had destroyed the Bludger. And they had claimed to be Harry's power, Harry's inheritance. It made sense. James had always had more luck that anyone should rightfully have, when hiding in Shadows.
-But Dumbledore wants to defeat Voldemort.-
-Yes. It is a balance. We want it one way, he wants it the other but both know there is a balance. Dumbledore wants to defeat Voldemort, he would like to defeat the Dark but he knows that is impossible. Xeoaph does not understand. Lucius does not understand. So you have to help the Dark Lord.-
-I have to help Voldemort?- Harry hissed -I will not let the second vision occur.-
-You do not have to, Master, but you must help him or else you will never be whole. The vampires are helping Lucius and they do not understand. Xeoaph does not understand.-
-What don't they understand?-
-Without light there cannot be dark so some light must be allowed to exist and the Dark Lord, like us, has chosen what light he will allow.-
-What light..?-
-Master,- the Shadows laughed -You...- they whispered in a tone full of amusement.
-What?- Emerald eyes snapped wide.
-Voldemort has not lied to you Master. He is the one you know as Red Eyes and everything he has said and feels is the truth. You cannot lie mind to mind Master, not when you are tied as deeply as you are.-
-No...-
"Harry?" Sirius questioned as his Godson stiffened.
-Master, be true to your heart. Whatever future you create, be true to your heart.-
"Harry?"
"Sirius," Harry's voice trembled. "I don't know what to do." I can't... I can't love him...
"Harry, no matter what happens there is only one thing to do. Know no regret and be true to your heart."
How can I love him? How can I even like him? Why would he even...? Harry's thoughts swirled and he swallowed hard. "No... You don't understand... I don't know what to do."
"You can die."
Sirius didn't even blink he was reaching for his wand before the sentence was finished and had a Protes charm around himself and Harry before he looked towards the voice. The Shadows skittered and stilled, settling back into darkness, for the moment unwilling to act.
"Draco," he hissed. "Too afraid to strike him from behind as before?" Sirius added the jibe, moving Harry to a position behind him.
The blond boy smiled. "Last time was a mistake. This time, we finish it."
Black eyes flashed and Sirius growled softly as other black robed Slytherin students stepped forth, their wands drawn and a fanatical light in their eyes.
"You might be fully trained," Draco began, casting a light charm at the shield, "but we far out number you and you can't hope to hold up to our strength."
$Sssh shss sshs ss shshhss.$
Sirius' spared a glance at Harry and saw a smallish serpent slithering its way out of his godson's clothing. It was black, with a red crest and its green eyes were slowing changing colour becoming yellow before their glow intensified to a deep and angry red. Its tongue flickered constantly sampling the air and with a sudden surety Sirius knew the serpent would report this back to its Master. No matter what happened now, everyone here was doomed.
"Xaos," Harry murmured as the snake surged forwards, through the shield charm, its mouth opened wide, striking at one student who'd gotten too close.
Before anyone could react it was too late and a girl Sirius vaguely recognised as being a Slytherin seventh year screamed, falling to the ground, trying to clutch her leg as she convulsed, foaming at the mouth, gurgling as she tried to draw breath against the poison now burning through her system. The serpent hissed again at her, dismissing her thrashing with a sharp flick of its tail before it turned brilliant ruby eyes towards one of the others who was watching it with morbid fascination. A fatal mistake.
Everyone knew the consequences of looking into the eyes of a basilisk but very few people had ever seen the deadly efficiency of its most potent weapon. There was no noise, no scream because there was no time. There was no sudden gasp of breath as the body knew surprise. There was no stiffening of limbs as shock passed through the nervous system. There was only death, irrevocable and silent as the body simply ceased to function and fell in a graceless formless heap.
The movement though broke through the confusion of the other Slytherin's and they jumped into action, casting spells at the shield charm Sirius had raised as the serpent retreated fully into its safety.
Harry blinked as the curses and charms splashed up against the shield, then he drew a shuddering breath, bringing himself back to the present. Whatever turmoil he might be feeling he knew one thing with absolute certainty, he was not going to let Draco get any further. "Xaos," he sighed happily, holding his left arm out to the serpent. The black serpent coiled itself there, resting his head on the back of Harry's hand, tongue flickering and eyes mockingly daring anyone to meet its gaze. $Good boy,$ he added the compliment as he drew his wand, eyes narrowing as he looked towards Draco. "If you start running now Malfoy, you might be able to outrun Xaos but I doubt it."
"And if you start begging, I might kill you before the end of the night."
Harry smiled grimly as he remembered his first dream. "Never happen, Malfoy, never happen," he said with conviction, feeling strangely reassured at the memory.
Draco flushed, grinding his teeth in annoyance of the confident tone underlying the Gryffindork's voice. Well... He'd have the last laugh, looking into glassy dead eyes. Oh yes... He would have the last laugh. His Father had spent the summer teaching him a number of very advanced charms specifically for this day and he wasn't going to fail now. "Shatterous."
"Argh!" Sirius groaned as the curse hit his shield sending brilliant lines of colour over it in a crackled pattern.
"Sirius, don't waste your strength," Harry said as he threw several minor curses through it. They were intended more to irritate than incapacitate. He had no illusions about this battle. It was kill or be killed or worse and he was not about to let that happen.
"All right," Sirius responded, licking his lips as he picked out his targets. "Three, two, one!"
"Stupify! Crucio! Petrifis! Stupefy! Sonici! Absenta! Crucio! Darkshale! Silettos! Furnunculus!"
Three more of Draco's cronies fell and Sirius snarled in pain briefly before he cast the counter charm for a curse that had slipped through his defences. They didn't want him. That much had been clear from the attack but they were prepared to go through him as necessary. Harry was covering his brief pause, sniping randomly at the various students and masterfully intercepting their charms as Xaos hissed spitefully. His Godson was good, he could not deny that. He was better than James. Harry might even be the best dualist in centuries but the Slytherin students were coming from everywhere and they were persistent. They couldn't hold them off forever.
"Enough," Draco snapped, stepping forward. "This ends now! Avada Kedrava!"
"NO!" Harry cried, pushing Sirius down, without thinking.
But even as Sirius fell he turned himself, looking up at his Godson. "No, Harry!"
It was too late. The deadly green curse had already impacted with Harry's chest, outlining him with an unearthly glow before it disappeared. Sirius held his arms out as Harry fell, cradling his body as they both came to a rest on the cold stone.
"Harry..."
Harry coughed, blood flecked around his mouth and his green eyes were dull. Xaos hissed softly, sadly, nuzzling his head into Harry's hand. Harry met Sirius' gaze as he swallowed the blood.
His mouth moved and it was a few moments before he could speak, his breath coming in small gasps. "I love him, Sirius," he sighed, blood gurgling in his throat and a tear tracing its way from the corner of his eye as he realised the truth. It didn't matter that Red Eyes was Voldemort, it only mattered that he'd never really get to knowingly say 'Thank you' to the man who had saved him. He'd never be able to look into those crimson eyes and say 'I love you'. He had slept with him, true, and it had been sweet but now that he knew how much more could it be? But it would never be and he regretted that. The chance had gone... Thank you...
I'm sorry...
"I love you," he voiced the statement he'd never get to make, as the Shadows wrapped around him, and he breathed no more.
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Note: Xaos hisses before he strikes 'Sssh shss sshs ss shshhs' - 'Stay away from my Master.'
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Petrifis - Petrification spell, but unlike the one Hermione used on Neville, this one uses time petrification so the person or thing affected ages. A person would become something akin to a dried up mummy.
Sonici - Sonic - A sound attack utilizing sound waves to paralyse the target.
Absenta - Blocks all sensory input so that the target cannot hear, feel, smell, taste, touch or speak.
Darkshale - Casts darkness around the individual targeted meaning that they can't see and thus can't fight.
Silettos - Stiletto - long thin blades are cast out at the target.
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