Disclaimer: None of this belongs to me, it all belongs to J.K.Rowling, who, I'm glad to say, made a good job of the Half-Blood Prince…
Warning: This chapter contains a slight, very very minute trace of HBP, nothing plot revealing or anything… so go ahead and read, it wont spoil the book for you!
Chapter 10
First Blood
For a moment, they all stood there stupidly, wands drawn, standing around the small table outside the shop, while the not-so-light drizzle pattered against the umbrella above their heads. A woman's terrified scream quickly brought them to their senses.
"Right," Lupin began, looking as calm and unruffled as ever. "I don't know why the portkeys didn't work…" he trailed off as he shared a glance with Tonks and nodded grimly. "But all of you, get inside the parlour and stay there."
Despite their protests, the six of them found themselves ushered inside the building, where they gave a dreadful shock to old Fortescue, who was hidden under one of his tables. The sounds from the Alley were somewhat muffled now. Harry looked around. They were sort of safer where they were, he supposed… it was better than being out in the open at least. However, as he pressed his nose against the glass door, trying to catch a glimpse of Lupin and Tonks, who had ventured into the alley, he could see smoke spiraling from a few shops in the alley, they had apparently been set on fire…
He looked around at his friends, to see how they were reacting to the situation they found themselves in. Ron and Neville stood still, fear in their eyes, but with determination in their faces all the same. Hermione was comforting, or at least trying to comfort a visibly shaking Fortescue. Luna, he was glad to see, looked unusually alert, but Ginny… she had a hard blazing look on her face, as she looked through a window outside.
"See anything?" he called out to her. Ginny finally tore her eyes away from the scene outside and replied flatly, "Death Eaters, lots of them."
"Aurors?"
"The A-Auror he-headquarters is at the o-other end of the alley," squeaked out Fortesue, whimpering piteously, his white hair, which was neatly combed, was getting messier. Well, they were on their own now…
Still, despite the situation they were in, Harry found himself wondering why, what reason the Death Eaters could possibly have to destroy Diagon Alley. He realized he had spoken out loud when Ron asked puzzled, "What do you mean, why? These are Death Eaters, Harry, they…"
"Why would Voldemort attack a bustling market place? Many are going to die, many more will be thirsting for revenge afterwards… How on earth is this beneficial to him?"
There was silence in the room, it seemed no one could answer his question. "Never mind that for now," Ginny spoke in a voice of forced calm. "What do we do now?" she asked, looking at him directly.
Harry blinked, and looking around, he realized that everyone was staring at him. Expecting him to take the lead, issue orders… just as though he had always done so before?
Harry breathed out slowly, and forced himself to think rationally. "Right," he said, somewhat less nervous, "We should ward the doors and windows, I suppose, if the Death Eaters try to enter the building… Hang on," he added, struck by a brilliant thought, "Where's the fireplace?"
Fortescue shook his head mournfully, "The Ministry shut down all the private Floo systems in Diagon Alley…"
"Making this place a death trap," Harry finished, disgusted. "What were those…" He added an expletive that made Hermione say "Harry!" reprovingly. He smiled… typical Hermione, she was probably the only person in the world who would reprimand people for their language when their lives were in danger…
Fortescue looked up at him suddenly. "Harry?" If Harry thought his voice couldn't get any squeakier, he was mistaken. "Harry Potter?" He was about to reply, when he was thrown off balance by the look in the old man's eyes. It was a mixture of incredulity, wonder and… hope? He finally found his voice. "Yeah, that's…"
He was interrupted by a loud scream outside, followed by a roar, "NO!" That was…
"Lupin," Neville whispered, just as it hit him as well. In an instant, Harry had flung open the door, and was standing at the doorstep. Tonks was lying crumpled on the ground, some thirty feet away, a small pool of blood forming on the ground, the red colour growing fainter as the blood flowed into a small puddle, getting diluted. Lupin was standing over her protectively, spells streaming from his wand, taking on three Death Eaters at once.
Harry opened his mouth to shout a warning to Lupin, as a fourth Death Eater sneaked up behind him. It happened, just as Lupin felled one of the Death Eaters he was dueling with. A jet of red light struck Lupin on his back, and Lupin fell on to the ground, flailing his arms wildly, screaming, clearly in terrible pain.
The Cruciatus Curse…
The one he had used on someone… the reason why he had been sent to Azkaban…
NO! 'Now's not the time…' he told himself sternly. The Death Eater finally released Lupin from the spell, and was smiling at Lupin's attempts to stand up. Harry felt slightly sick.
"Out of the way!" snarled the one Lupin had felled barely a minute ago. He was on his feet, wand pointing at Lupin, and his face was twisted with anger. "Die, werewolf!" he hissed, his wand pointing straight at Lupin's heart. Before his lips could form the fatal words, however, Harry acted.
"Accio Lupin," he cried, brandishing his wand. The Death Eaters were momentarily stunned when Lupin zoomed off down the alley. "Trouble…" Harry thought to himself as they turned in confusion and spotted him at the doorway of Fortescue's Ice-cream Parlour. "Accio Tonks," he added for good measure, willing both of them to move faster.
It took about four seconds for Lupin and Tonks to fly across to Harry. With a flick of his wand, Harry sent them inside the shop, just as the Death Eaters recovered from their shock and sent spells flying at him. He stepped inside hurriedly and slammed the door shut. "Now," he cried, pointing his wand at the door.
"Protego," six voices roared. The door shuddered under the onslaught of the curses, but the Death Eaters' spells, most of them Reductors, dissipated on touching the conjured shield.
The shield would hold for sometime. He turned around, remembering that Tonks was injured, but he needn't have worried. Fortescue apparently had a first aid kit handy, and he was pouring a purple potion into the nasty wound in her head. Before his very eyes, Harry saw the blood stop gushing out, and the wound rapidly closed. Tonks slept on, her breathing regular now…
Lupin stood up, his relief evident in his eyes. Harry snapped his eyes back towards the door, a frown crossing his face. No attempts were being made to enter the building.
"What are they waiting for?" Harry asked Lupin.
"They don't know how many of us are holed up here. After all," he added with a small smile, "What you did was incredibly foolish…"
"But I couldn't just…" Harry protested, but stopped when Lupin held up his hand.
"Let me finish. What you did was incredibly foolish, but incredibly brave as well. And I'm grateful."
When Harry didn't respond, Lupin spoke again, "They probably think that there are quite a few fighters in here. Perhaps they even think this is a trap set by Aurors, I don't know… In any case, they won't do anything until they get reinforcements."
"That's a relief, that is" Fortescue snapped, waspishly. Harry could somewhat understand his feelings, it was his store after all, and he had been put in danger by those he had given shelter to.
"I'm sorry for dragging you into this, Mr. Fortescue," Harry told him. "But I couldn't leave my friends out there to die. However, I shall take it upon myself to ensure your safety until this is over."
Fortescue's demeanor seemed to change in an instant. "Rubbish, dear boy! You can count on my help," he added, puffing out his chest proudly, "You can count on my help, that you can. Really, if we manage to live through this, it'll surely be a tale to tell my grandchildren, that it will!"
"Er… right," Harry didn't know what else to say.
"Harry, keep your hood up," Ginny warned, "If the Death Eaters see you…"
She didn't have to finish the sentence. Harry pulled the hood closer to himself and shivered.
They waited. There was nothing else to do, they couldn't leave the safety of the shop. Ginny wanted to take a peek out of the window, but Lupin wouldn't let her. There was absolute silence in the room, Tonks's heavy breathing was the only sound heard.
Harry fingered his wand impatiently. This waiting was the worst, he thought irritably, it was much easier to just get the whole thing over with. The Death Eaters certainly weren't taking them lightly, perhaps theirs was the only resistance they had encountered this side of the alley. The attack, when it came, would be well-planned and deadly…
His hands shook suddenly. This wasn't nerves, he thought, realization dawning… The Athletos potion…Damn, damn, damn…
The sudden spasm was succeeded by a flashes of pain in his elbow joints and knees. He gritted his teeth, forcing himself to avoid thinking about the pain. He glanced around at the others, thankfully none of them seemed to have noticed…
He suddenly stiffened, was that the scuff of a boot on the pavement outside? Suddenly he knew, as a sort of sixth sense, the battle was about to begin…
"They're here!" he cried, just as they heard the bellow of a dozen voices, "REDUCTO!"
"Protego!" they shouted, wands pointing at the door. But unexpectedly, a section of the wall crumbled… The Death Eaters weren't aiming at the door at all, they wanted to make the group inside as exposed as possible before engaging them…
Damn, this was a good strategy, Harry thought, furious with himself for not thinking of this before. Plus, they don't need to barge in through the door now, else we'd be able to pick them off one by one…
He quickly sent a Stunner through the opening, hoping against hope that he would hit a negligent Death Eater, but there was no thud outside, signifying that he hadn't hit anyone after all…
"REDUCTO!" came the voices again, this time a different section of the wall crumbled in a cloud of dust. Harry tried to peer through the dust, but couldn't spot anyone… These people were good…
"Everyone, back up against the wall," Harry ordered, his voice crisp, surprising even himself. He didn't know he could sound so commanding… "We'll use the tables as a sort of barricade." It was precious little, he knew, but perhaps they could just hold out until the Aurors got here…
"But… we'll be cornered if they break in!" Neville protested.
"Where can we run now?" asked Harry grimly, "Besides, we'll have to defend from them only in one direction. If they manage to surround us, we're as good as dead…"
No one offered any more objections, not even Lupin, who should have technically been in charge. Which only led Harry to believe that what he'd suggested was the right thing.
Fortescue and Lupin carried Tonks over to the wall, while the rest of them levitated the tables and placed them in a wide circle surrounding them. Meanwhile, two more sections of the wall, as well as the door had been blasted open. It wouldn't be long now…
He joined the others, behind their rather weak barricade, and stood shoulder to shoulder with them, wishing that Tonks was up and about, instead of lying prone on the floor. They would need the skills of an Auror in a situation like this.
Even though, he needed to concentrate on the attack that was soon to come, he took a look around at those standing with him. Lupin, Ron, Hermione, Neville, Luna, Ginny and Fortescue, all were with him, standing by him, ready to fight by him. Suddenly, despite the moment, he felt a surge of affection for all of them, even the wispy haired old man, who seemed to hero worship him so much… He met Ginny's eyes and smiled reassuringly, a smile which she returned. He turned back to face what he knew would come, but he was now filled with a new resolve, he would protect all of them…Whatever happened, not one of them was going to die today…
It happened suddenly, a barrage of spells came hurtling through the doorway, none of them seemed to be very powerful spells though, for they all dissipated against their collective shield. Which led Harry to believe that it was a ploy to distract their attention, while Death Eaters tried to force their entry.
A shadow at one of the openings in the wall led him to believe that he was correct. Lupin had noticed it as well, and both of them fired Stunners instantly. The shadow disappeared immediately, and two Death Eaters scrambled in through a third opening in the wall. Behind them, Harry could see a crowd of Death Eaters fighting to gain entrance.
NO, they could not get in, he would not allow them to…
"Incedio," Harry cried, causing a nearby table to burst into flames, and quickly Banished it at the two of them, who had their wands raised. Through the slits in their white masks, Harry could almost make out their eyes widen, as they dove out of the way. He caused the table to veer slightly and crash against the opening where the Death Eaters were crowding. They yelled as the burning table hurtled towards them, and an unfortunate Death Eater was struck full in the face by one of the table legs.
The two Death Eaters who managed to get inside the building were Stunned easily Harry summoned their masks, and looked to Lupin to see if he had recognized them. Lupin shook his head, and muttered "Newbies." It made sense, Harry thought, while Lupin bound them with conjured ropes, they would hardly send important people inside a suspected Auror stronghold. No, the big fishes were still outside, they would be the ones plotting the strategy, while the lower order Death Eaters carried out their orders. In any case, it looked like they had survived the first assault…
From outside, Harry could hear the sound of angry voices. He smiled, the Death Eaters had underestimated them and weren't too happy about it. Unfortunately though, when the next attack came, it would be delivered with a crushing force.
More sections of the wall collapsed in clouds of dust. The Death Eaters weren't showing themselves either. There were frequent spells being sent through the existent openings, but Harry was sure that they were merely to keep them busy and to prevent them from trying anything of their own. Worry became evident on Lupin's face finally, they wouldn't last long if they attacked now.
Soon enough, the entire wall crumbled. There was a sudden flurry of spells, they were hard pressed to defend themselves. Hermione gave a small cry, a Cutting Hex had got through her shield and there was a deep gash on her shoulder now, from which blood was dripping on the floor.
Harry knew he had to do something. Even some of the most complex shielding spells he knew wouldn't hold up against this barrage. If only he knew what to do…
It suddenly hit him. Perhaps he did know what to do, he just had to do what he had done in his duel against Neville. He had to let instinct take over his actions. He remembered Hermione's words, his knowledge would come back to him in times of need. Well, if this wasn't a time of need, then he didn't know what was…
He tried to relax slightly, taking deep breaths and drooping his shoulders. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Ginny look at him in concern, but he ignored it. He had to protect his friends, but how?
Suddenly the knowledge came to him, it was a spell he had only read about in a book, which he had never tried before. He frowned slightly, recollecting the image, the pages were written in a language he had never seen before. For one thing, there didn't seem to be any words, the writing was continuous and consisted of little spikes in a somewhat horizontal line. However, he could understand the language perfectly.
He snapped his eyes open, and acted immediately.
"Serpensortia," he cried, concentrating hard on the kind of snake he wanted to conjure. The others watched on in a mixture of horror and incredulity, as a twenty foot long anaconda burst out from the end of his wand.
"Keep shielding," he cried to them, he needed a few moments to work the spell. The snake, meanwhile was rapidly uncoiling itself on the floor. Harry saw that it was a drab brown in colour, but met the snake's slitted eyes when it turned to him.
"How may I be of service, master?" it hissed at him.
Harry began chanting in Parseltongue, he could not have chosen a better moment to begin the incantation, the Death Eaters had just entered the shop, and were staring at the huge snake with horror in their eyes. There were no spells cast by either side, all eyes were on Harry, watching in fascination. He didn't know why, he didn't know that he made an shadowy, chilling figure, with his face hooded and green eyes glowing faintly in the dark of the shop, chanting, no, almost crooning to a gigantic snake, sending shivers down everyone's spine.
"Circle of death and life
Where everything comes back upon itself
Cycles that begin anew
As soon as they end…
And in this circle,
Forged by the bonds of friendship
We shall take shelter…"
The snake had started moving before Harry had finished his incantation, it had slithered across the floor and formed a large circle around the nine of them, including the fallen Tonks, with it's diamond shaped head almost touching it's tail. It seemed to look at Harry, as though waiting for something else…
"AEGIS!" he cried, pointing his wand at the snake's head. The anaconda's mouth slowly opened, the tail twitched slightly, and soon the tip of the tail was placed in it's mouth, which closed. Instantly, there was a bright flash of blue light, and a gigantic cylindrical shield, pale blue in colour shimmered into existence, with the snake's body as the circumference and extending till the heavens above…
There was complete silence in the room, the Death Eaters seemed mesmerized by the blue shield, which flickered lazily every few moments. Harry didn't know how long they would have stayed this way, but Tonks chose this moment to stir.
"Ugh… What is that taste in my mouth?" she asked no one in particular, standing up groggily. It was only then that she took note of the surroundings, and responded with an eloquent "Shit!"
The spell on the Death Eaters was broken. The next moment, a multitude of spells was sent at them. The others responded with different shielding charms, but Harry didn't move a muscle, he knew that it was unnecessary…
The spells struck the blue barrier, and then… nothing happened. There were red spots on the cylindrical shield where the spells had struck, but not one of them managed to get through. In fact, it looked as though the shield had absorbed the spells and had become stronger, for it's colour was a darker blue and it looked more solid now… With a jolt, Harry realized that it was true, for the Aegis Shield was a spell absorbing one and grew stronger with each spell cast at it…
It was hard to say which of the two sides was more shocked. The Death Eaters stood rooted to the spot, staring at the mysterious shield before them, while Harry could see that Ron's and Neville's eyes were nearly popping out of their heads…
One of the Death Eaters snarled in annoyance, and raised his wand again, but he quickly lowered it on hearing a commanding "Stop!" from behind him. Harry was startled, it was a woman's voice, somehow he had thought that Death Eaters were only men…
The two sides had their wands pointed at each other in an uneasy stalemate. Harry saw the woman who had spoken approach. "Well, if it isn't my Mudblood niece Nymphadora… and her werewolf boyfriend as well!"
Tonks rolled her eyes, Harry was glad to see that she wasn't intimidated at all. "It's a pleasure to see you too, Aunt Bella." Harry felt a vague sort of recognition on hearing her name. He peered at the woman closely, somehow feeling that he ought to know her…
'Aunt Bella' didn't pay any more attention to her niece, she turned her attention to Ron and Hermione. "You!" she spat at them, and then spotting Ginny, Neville and Luna, she added, "And you as well! Looks like we're only missing…"
Harry was puzzled, how did she know them? He then realized that the woman was staring at him, then her eyes flicked over to the snake, and she seemed to make some sort of connection. She removed her mask, Harry looked at her pale face, her heavy-lidded dark eyes, she was so frustratingly familiar…
"So," she said, a smile of unholy glee spreading across her face, "After months of searching, we finally find you here… practically delivering yourself to the Dark Lord's hands…"
She whipped out her wand with lightning speed. "Avada Kedavra" she screeched, her wand pointing straight at Harry. Green light erupted from her wand, and passed right through the shield, as though it weren't there. Harry's eyes widened, he had completely forgotten that there was no defence for the Killing curse, the Aegis Shield did have it's limitations after all…
He watched in fascination as the green light sped towards him. In the background he thought he heard a cry of 'NO!'… The curse had the exact colour of his eyes… 'Move!" a voice rang in his head, "Get the hell out of there!"
Something told him to spin on the spot, which he did, for he had learnt to trust his instincts by now. He blinked, and the oddest sensation engulfed his body. He felt as though he was being squeezed into a narrow rubber tube, there was immense pressure on every inch of his body, he found it difficult to breathe. Suddenly, he felt a sort of resistance, blocking his path, but he batted it away impatiently…
Suddenly, he found himself able to breathe, he found himself on the other side of the room. Turning quickly, he saw the green light hit the spot where he had been moments before… The others looked at him with relieved expressions on their pale faces.
'Aunt Bella' turned to him with an incredulous expression on her face, her face twisting in anger and hate. She gave a mad cackle of laughter, as every Death Eater wand was pointed at him.
"Ah, poor waby Potter, still playing the hero!" she said mockingly in a baby voice. Somehow, for some inexplicable reason, Harry felt a great rage pump through his veins on hearing the voice. Unbidden, a memory played itself out in his head.
A dark haired wizard, once handsome, but whose face was now wasted away, was hit by a spell standing on a dais. The same insane cackle of laughter… it was clear who the perpetrator was… He fell, right through an ancient looking veil, from which vague whispers were coming… "SIRIUS!" he cried, as the man fell, a look of shock on his face…He did not reappear on the other side…
Harry shook his head to clear it. So, this was how Sirius Black had met his end… At the hands of this insane woman in front of him, he remembered her name suddenly… Bellatrix Lestrange…
"Is that… Potter?" one of the Death Eaters asked, almost timidly, fearfully?
"He's just a boy!" Bellatrix snapped at him, "Kill him, and the Dark Lord will reward you with riches beyond your imagination…"
The woman was grinning at him, with a mad glint in her eyes… Something snapped in Harry.
"SECTUMSEMPRA!" he cried, making a slashing movement with his wand. Bellatrix's eyes widened in surprise, as she reacted too late. Blood spurted from her face and chest, from deep gashes that seemed to be inflicted by an invisible sword.
Harry stared wide-eyed at her as she fell. One of the Death Eaters was galvanized into action, as he caught her before she hit the ground. "Kill them," she whispered, a whisper that was clearly heard in the silent room.
Both Bellatrix and the Death Eater in whose arms she lay limply, vanished, apparently by Portkey. Harry briefly wondered how the wards allowed them to leave, but his attention was soon caught by the Death Eaters whose wands were raised. There were fifteen or so Death Eaters in the room, more than half of them had their wands pointed at him, while the rest had theirs pointed at the eight people within the Aegis Shield.
His instincts kicked in again. Just as the fifteen Killing curses were fired, he Apparated again, this time back into the Circle. "Avis!" he cried. A flock of birds emerged from his wand, right at the Death Eaters. Six of them caught fire, and fell burning to the ground when the green light hit them. Out of the corner of his eye, he noted with approval that Lupin and Tonks had conjured wooden boxes to block the curses, although they weren't needed anymore.
The Death Eaters' wands were raised again, blocking or dodging the spells that were fired at them. He made up his mind in a split second. They were outnumbered, and were going to get killed, as they didn't have as much room to move around in as the Death Eaters did, for they had to stay within the Circle. All of them would die, unless…
Harry Apparated to the doorway. "Hey!" he called out loudly, distracting the Death Eaters. There was a cry from within, he could tell it was from Ginny, when she realized what he had done.
Well, he had to do what he had to do… There was no other way his friends could escape unscathed…
Harry stepped out to Diagon Alley, into the pouring rain…
.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.oOo.
A/N: Yo! Yes, I know it's been a looong time since I updated, and I do have lots of good excuses, which I'm sure you don't want to hear…
Anyway, about the status of the fic after the release of HBP, I'm leaning towards making it a summer fic… and maybe a sequel later if the response is good…
Okay, about Mendel… well, he's basically a sly, greedy merchant, who doesn't mind flouting the laws a bit if there's something in it for him and if there's no risk of him getting caught. There was a slight clue in the previous chapter, which one of my reviewers caught on to, (unintentionally, I think!)… Anyway, it's the powdered Basilisk fang that was on display. As Rachel Sedai rightly pointed it out, it's a pretty rare ingredient… Add to it the fact that Harry did not see the Basilisk's corpse in his vision about the Chamber of Secrets, and you just might guess how Harry paid for his potions… and why Mendel made him an illegal potion, of course… I intended to bring it into the story later… but you might as well know now!
And the spell in the previous chapter, Scaccus Deorc Incantatem… it's basically Check Dark Incantation in a mixture of Anglo-Saxon and Latin…
Okay, and the snake with the tail in it's mouth is called an Ouroboros, it's associated with many religions and has a fascinating history behind it… anyone interested may check out http / www . crystalinks . com / ouroboros . html after removing the spaces, of course…
Fallen-Legacy88: Those are good names, yeah… but they don't suit the fic, not the fic so far you understand, but rather how it's going to turn out… plus a few readers told me they actually liked the name and that I would confuse people if I changed it now… anyway, I appreciate it!
Mafalda Prewett 613: Sorry for the delay! 'Fraid it isn't Wormtail or Bellatrix, don't worry about it. All shall be revealed in due time!
Zaminieinstein: I think you're right too! Thanks a lot for the thought, we shall have a Harry-reflects scene soon!
Rachel Sedai: Of course it isn't Lestrange! That would make it really stupid…
Right, so… I'm extremely pleased the way the chapter has turned out, it's my longest yet… so do review with your thoughts… I always appreciate feedback… even if it's just a couple of words…
Anyway… the next chapter's going to be action packed as well, it will be titled… AVADA KEDAVRA!
Until then, folks!
shadylion