Merging With Traffic
Disclaimer: All things Ats, BtVS, and Harry Potter belong to their respective owners, Joss Whedon and JK Rowling. However, the plot is mine as far as I can tell, so please ask if you want to use it.
00000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Harry and Hermione had just reached Gryffindor Tower and were about to begin their essays when Ron burst through the portrait hole, red-faced and panting. He looked wildly around the room for a moment before his eyes came to rest on his friends. "Harry! Snape. . .big fight. . .Cordy. . .Hospital Wing!" he panted. Harry leapt from his chair and was out the door before Ron could finish explaining.
Ron stood in the center of the room for a moment, still panting from his long run. Suddenly, his eyes got very wide. "Hermione! I told Harry that Snape did it! If he thinks Cordy's really hurt, Harry might lose his temper."
"He could get expelled!" she said, horrified. She jumped from her chair, scattering papers on the floor and the two of them ran after their friend.
When the two Gryffindors reached the Hospital Wing they realized immediately that Ron had been right. Harry stood in a defensive stance in front of Cordelia's bed, wand drawn, yelling at Professor Snape. "What did you do to her, you great git?" Snape started to walk forwards, probably to scold Harry for speaking to him in such a way, but Harry pointed his wand and said, "If you take one step closer to her I'll curse you into the next century!"
Snape stopped, a truly shocked expression on his face that quickly settled into his trademark sneer. "Please do Potter," he said softly. "Then I shall be rid of both of you in one day. You would be expelled in an instant for cursing me."
Harry glared at his teacher. However, he relaxed his posture and lowered his wand, although he did not put it away. "What did you do to her?" he asked again, quietly this time.
"I assure you, your lying little friend is here through no device of mine."
Harry's eyes narrowed, what did he mean, 'Lying?' However, that didn't matter at the moment, Cordy did. So, without turning to look at him, he asked Ron, "Is he telling the truth?"
"I think so. I mean, I'm not really sure. He used Legilimency on her, and she was really shook up, but I don't think that's what made her pass out. She was yelling at him, and then all of a sudden she started screaming, grabbed her head, and fainted."
Harry turned then and looked at Ron, clearly surprised. "She grabbed her head right before she passed out? Are you sure? And she was screaming?"
"Yeah, she said something about Lupin too."
Harry's eyes widened. "I thought she said he took them away," he muttered. Then he frowned. "But they're not supposed to hurt anymore." Louder he said, "Hermione, get Professor Dumbledore, quick!"
Hermione ran from the room and Harry turned back to Professor Snape, raising his wand again. After a few moments, they heard a low moan.
"Cordy, You're awake! Oh, thank Merlin!" Harry said, leaning over her.
She moaned again and shut her eyes against the bright lights of the room. "What happened? I feel like I got hit by a truck."
"You and Professor Snape were fighting and then I think you had a vision."
"A vision? No, I didn't. He took them. . .Oh, my God!" she said, eyes flying open. "That spiny-faced little bastard. Oh, if he wasn't dead what wouldn't I do to him!"
"What are you talking about?" Harry asked, confused.
"Doyle! The no-good little meddler didn't take my visions, he took my demon!"
"I beg your pardon?" Snape asked, at the same time Ron bellowed, "WHAT?"
But Cordelia ignored them. She had climbed shakily out of bed and was now shaking her fist at the ceiling. "You just wait, you stupid little Irish man! The next time I see you I'm kicking your ass straight back to LA and feeding you to Spike. When you and your interfering bosses decided to do this to me did you forget about the part where MY HEAD EXPLODES! Damn visions!"
At that moment Dumbledore and Hermione entered the hospital wing, followed by Ginny, Neville, and Luna. All five of them looked very worried. "What happened?" the Headmaster asked.
"Snape attacked Cordelia," Harry said, sending another glare in the direction of the Potions Master.
"And after I tell you what I saw, you'll thank me more than anyone, you arrogant little brat."
Cordelia stopped yelling at the ceiling and spun to face Snape. "Don't you dare, you arrogant vampire wannabe. You don't know the whole story. There was more going on than it looked like. It wasn't me."
Snape said coolly. "Legilimency doesn't lie Chase. All we need to convince the Minister you deserve the Dementor's Kiss is right there, inside what I thought was just an empty head. Tell me, what pretty lies were you planning on telling when Potter found out about you slitting women's throats?"
The room immediately became silent. Everyone turned to look at Cordelia, fear shining in their eyes. Except Harry. He just looked devastated.
"What?" he said. "Cordy? It isn't true is it?" When she didn't respond, but merely looked shocked, the expression on his face switched from devastation to revulsion.
Dumbledore moved to Harry's side and laid a hand on the young boy's shoulder. He said softly. "I was certain there was more to you than you admitted. Thank Merlin we discovered the truth before Harry was hurt again."
"Were you going to watch while Voldemort killed me?" Harry asked, looking at her like a bug he wanted to squash. "I can't believe I believed you. It's such a ridiculous story. If there are any Higher Powers, they don't care about me. That should be obvious by now. Who's Doyle, Cordelia, if that is your real name? Is he a death eater? Are you? That was a fancy trick the two of you pulled at the Dursleys, all that glowing light. All that stuff you told me, about Buffy, and Angel, was it just a lie to get me to trust you?"
Cordelia stared at Harry, unable to believe what she was hearing. How could he accuse her of that? He knew she loved him, knew she thought of him like a little brother, a friend. How could he think that, after she had told him everything. . .that was it. She hadn't told him everything. She'd had her reasons, sure, but with his history, how could she blame him for jumping to the wrong conclusion?
When Cordelia didn't answer, Harry became angry. "Tell me why you lied, damn it!"
Finally Cordelia snapped out of her trance and said, "I didn't lie! It's all true, Harry, I promise. Some of it I didn't tell you because it's too painful, and some of it I'm not allowed to tell you, or they'll take me away. Please believe me!"
"STOP LYING! THEY WON'T TAKE YOU AWAY! THEY DON'T EXIST!" Harry spun on his heel and marched towards the door. Let Dumbledore call the Aurors. Let her get thrown in Azkaban, or given the Kiss. He didn't care.
Cordelia was desperate. She couldn't tell him the truth, not all of it anyway. If she did she would get pulled back to White World. Really though, if Harry hated her, what did it matter if she got pulled out? She had nothing to lose. So, thinking fast, she blurted out the only thing she could think of that might make him listen to her. "I'm dead, Harry!"
000000000000000000000000000000000000
"No! Damn it Cordelia, stop!" Doyle yelled, banging his fist down on the table and almost causing Jenny to drop the files she had been flipping through.
"What's wrong this time?" she asked, glaring at him.
"She, she, ARGH!" Doyle clenched his hands and flopped dramatically into a chair.
"Stop being a drama queen and tell me what's going on. Is she taking up on the 'spiny-faced bastard' rant again? 'Cause if so, I want to watch. It was funny."
Doyle glared at his friend and then sighed. "I wish. She just told Harry that she's dead."
This time Jenny did drop the files. She rushed over to the TV Doyle was watching so she could see what was going on as well. "Oh, no! You don't think she's going to tell him the rest do you? The Jasmine bit? His Parents?"
"Of course she's going to tell him. She'll lose him if she doesn't."
Now Jenny flopped into her chair. "I knew this was a bad idea, right from the beginning."
"Oh, please. You thought it was a great idea. And I quote: 'Oh, Doyle, you're a genius, it'll work perfectly.' "
"I have NEVER said that, and even if I did, that's not the point. We've got to do something. Give her the vision again to distract them. You've got to anyway, we've only got a couple hours. If she doesn't remember soon, Remus and Percy are dead."
"Good point." Doyle stood, but just as he was about to send the vision a voice that belonged to neither him nor Jenny sounded in the room.
"Allen Francis Doyle, report to the Throne Room IMMEDIATELY!"
Doyle stopped what he was doing and gulped. He spoke, his voice shaking. "He sounded mad. Don't you think he sounded mad? You don't think they're gonna. . .?"
"Give you exactly what you deserve? Yeah, I do," Jenny answered, with a weak attempt at a smile.
000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Author's Note: Thanks so much to my brand-new beta Kat for all of her wonderful help! Yup, that's right, I have a beta. Unfortunately, this means that chances of ever having one chapter a day updates again are slim. However, it also means I will probably never have month long writer's block again, so yea!
Thanks to Victoria87, Ink Splash, Eternal Dragon 101, Cow As White As Milk, cyndur, Wickedmoemoe, QueenofWitches, Shezz, Blackwolf900, rcaqua, sired-by-spike, Tap Dancing Widow, The Cardboard Moon, lissa james, and The Lady Morgaine for your fabulous reviews. Loved 'em all.
Just one question to answer this time, it won't take long, promise.
The Cardboard Moon: The women "Cordy" was killing were the blond Darla look-alike that she and Connor sacrificed so Jasmine could be born and the brunette was Lilah.