Chapter 13: Bullet with Butterfly Wings
A/N: The title of this chapter is taken from the song of the same name by Smashing Pumpkins. I had this song in my head while I was writing this chapter, and it just seemed to fit.
The Caribbean sun was beating down on Hermione and Ginny, and they were soaking in as much of it as they could. "What do you want to do today?" Hermione asked, as she applied the sunscreen charm to her face.
"Absolutely nothing," Ginny sighed, rolling over onto her stomach and covering her head with a large beach towel. The two witches had been in Barbados all of 30 minutes before changing into their bathing suits and heading for the beach. They had not left to explore any part of the island in the two days since they had arrived, leaving the beach only to eat their meals and return to the room. Hermione was turning a lovely shade of brown, while Ginny, who preferred a stronger sunscreen charm, was a healthy pink owing to the fact that she rarely tanned given her fair complexion. The light in the carribean seemed somehow brighter than in the U.K. Even the sunniest day in England couldn't compare to the brilliant blue sky in the West Indies.
From the little that they had seen of the island, they could tell that it was truly paradise. The pink-sand beach, which seemed to stretch on forever, was surrounded on one side by cliffs that had been washed away over millions of years by the sea. The sand itself was the softest either woman had ever felt between their toes. It was a far cry from the rocky pebbles of the beaches back home. The ocean was a magnificent turquoise, so spectacular it hardly seemed real. At first, Hermione had thought that the hotel manager charmed the sea to make it seem so sparkling, but he assured her that it was indeed natural. Just watching the waves gently lap the shore was enough to make them forget any cares or worries they had when they arrived. Hermione had never felt so at peace before in her life.
The resort was completely private, owing to the fact that the location was a bit remote, and the beach had no access to the ordinary muggle. This made it an ideal location for a wizarding resort, because the patrons could simply apparate and disapparate to the beach at their leisure. A muggle looking at the property would only see an overgrown jungle of half-dead plants and rocky cliffs, thanks to the anti-muggle security measures. On the contrary, the resort itself was quite stunning, with its coral walls and marble columns. Ginny had commented on their first day that she had never seen so many species of flowers in one spot.
A Bob Marley song came over the wireless network and Ginny began nod her head and sing along to the words. "There's a natural mystic blowing through the air
if you listen carefully now you will hear, this could be the first trumpet, might as well be the last, many more will have to suffer, many more will have to die - don't ask me why," Ginny sang. It was well known that while Bob had been very popular with the Muggles, he was in fact a wizard. He had been a leader in the resistance against you-know-who during the first wizarding war and had been killed by the dark lord personally. Since the muggles couldn't figure out what had killed him, they made up the story that he had died from cancer.
"This is just about perfect, don't you think?" Ginny asked.
"Yeah, it is. I wonder what the boys are up to," Hermione thought aloud. A pop was heard and both women turned to see the bartender holding a tray with two colorful frozen drinks, each with a little umbrella on top.
"Here you are, ladies. A rum punch for you," he said as he handed Hermione the red drink, "And a BBC for you, ma'me. Can I get you anything else from the bar?"
Ginny took a sip of her creamy drink. "No Charles. I think these will hold us for a while."
"Very good. Call if you need anything." And with a pop, he had disappeared.
"Knowing those two, I imagine they've gotten themselves into some sort of trouble already. Probably burned the house down or something." Ginny took another long sip on her drink.
"I doubt it. Ron isn't up to getting into too much trouble these days. I bet the sink's overflowing though. Socks and underwear littering the house." Hermione thought back to the time when Ron and Harry had shared a small flat. She couldn't ever remember seeing the floor in that place.
"Well then, guess we'd better enjoy ourselves now. Who knows what we'll be coming back to?" Ginny closed her eyes again, facing toward the sun.
Harry and Ron sat comfortably in big squashy armchairs, listening to the Cannons game on the wireless. So far the Cannon's were only down by 20 points, which was quite amazing, considering that they had lost the last 5 games by an average of 150 points. Ron continued to have hope that they would rally back, but Harry was much more pessimistic about the Cannon's chances, although he would never dare utter this out loud in Ron's presence.
The two men had enjoyed the last two days without their wives, because they felt free to do what they liked, when they liked. For instance, the women surely would have scoffed at them sitting around, listening to the Quidditch match, when there were other things that needed tending to around the house. Like the pile of empty take-away containers currently littering the kitchen counter or the overflowing trash bins. The men reasoned that they could take care of all of the mess at once with the flick of a wand before their wives returned. Why waste precious minutes cleaning up as they went when they could do it once and be done with it? The only thing missing was the fire whiskey the two would have consumed in great quantities a few months ago when given the opportunity. However, with Ron pregnant, Harry felt it would be unfair to be pissed when his friend couldn't partake in the fun. Besides, it wasn't much fun being drunk alone. So here they were, surrounded by empty containers, listening to Quidditch, and generally doing as little as possible. It was as close to a perfect bloke's weekend as they could imagine.
The dimming light seeping in through the windows told Harry that it was now late afternoon, and approaching dinner time. As if on cue, his stomach rumbled. "So, what do want to order tonight? I'm a bit peckish." Harry said, lazily stretching in his chair.
"Anything but Mexican. My stomach hasn't been right since the other night." Ron rubbed both hands over his large belly.
"You're telling me. You actually drove me from the room a couple of times, mate." Harry gave his friend a look somewhere between disgusted and impressed.
"Sorry, it's all the kids' fault. Guess they don't like bean burritos."
"That's it, start blaming it on the kids already. You know you won't be able to use that excuse when you actually hatch them."
"Hey, what good is it if I can't even use pregnancy as my defense? Besides, what kind of excuse are you going to use? You didn't exactly smell like a rose yourself."
Harry shrugged, a lopsided grin on his face. "What can I say? Guess Mexican didn't agree with me either. Hey, how about a pizza?"
"Sounds grand. With anchovies and peanut butter." Obviously, the strange food cravings had not stopped. Ron stood up from his chair, which took a little more effort these days with his growing belly. He began rummaging through the drawer that contained the menu for the Maggio's Magical Pies.
Harry screwed up his face upon hearing Ron's suggested meal. "Ugh, you do know that's disgusting, don't you? How about pepperoni and mushroom."
"Fine, but you have no sense of adventure. I'll put the order in."
Just as Ron was heading over to the fireplace, the head of Lt. Shanks appeared in the flames. "Potter, you there?"
Harry stood in front of the fireplace, surprised to see his boss on his day off. "I'm here. What's going on, Sir?"
"I know you're off duty today, but we just had a report that Delroy Amato has been spotted in London. I figured you'd want to be on the team to bring him in. Sam's here and ready to go, so get here as fast as you can."
"Yes Sir, I'll be right there." Without another word, Shank's head disappeared.
"Sorry Ron, you'll have to eat without me. This shouldn't take too long."
"I hate this, Harry. I should be there with you. Especially since it's my fault he got away last time." Ron's ears were red with anger and embarrassment over his fainting spell that gave Amato the time he needed to escape a couple of months ago.
"Listen, it's not your fault. Delroy's not dangerous, just stupid. It won't take long to round him up. Before you know it, we'll be working together again. I'm sorry about this, but I've got to get going." Harry said, a look of concern on his face for his friend.
"I know. I just wish it was me out there watching your back. Go on, I'll be fine." Ron's voice, however, had an edge of sadness to it. "Just be careful, Harry."
"Aren't I always?" Before Ron could answer, Harry had disappeared into the flames.
Ron couldn't help the feeling of foreboding that washed over him.
Harry and Sam had apparated to the area where Delroy Amato had last been spotted. With their wands at the ready, they carefully began to make their way into the abandoned building. Everything inside was pitch black, and the only sound was the echo of water dripping somewhere inside. They continued to move carefully along the narrow hallway, until they came to the junction of two more hallways.
"You take the one on the left, and I'll take the right," Sam whispered, as she turned toward the right hallway.
"Wait, this doesn't feel right. We should go together instead of splitting up," Harry whispered back in an urgent voice. "What if he's not alone?"
"And what if he hears us coming? There'll be no one to stop him if he goes another direction. We have a better chance of catching him if we split up." Sam had a look of resolute determination on her face.
Harry couldn't argue with her logic; they would be completely out of luck if Delroy heard them coming. He was at the advantage in this case by knowing the layout of the building. "Fine, but just be careful. If you get into trouble, activate your emergency alarm. I'll be able to find you with a locator spell."
Sam nodded, and disappeared into the inky darkness of the corridor as Harry made his way down the other hallway. Harry muttered the occulus nocturnes spell, allowing him to see in the dark, albeit with a strange green cast to everything. Without it, he was completely blind. There seemed to be many small rooms off the hallway, but so far there was no sign of the suspect. Harry had almost lost hope that Delroy had even been in the building when he noticed an empty take-away container lying on the ground outside of one room. 'Someone's definitely been here recently,' Harry thought to himself. As he carefully made his way into the room, he made note that there was one small window in this room that emitted a pale blue glow from the streetlamps down the street. Harry could barely make out a pile of rags, and what appeared to be a foot on top of them. He had obviously found Amato, and had managed not to wake him up. At last, he had caught the man who by sheer dumb luck had managed to always escape capture. 'Well my friend, looks like you luck just ran out,' Harry thought to himself.
Harry cast his wand into the air, shouted "finite incantatum" to end the night vision spell, and then "lumos", making the room very bright. Harry had to squint against the light until his eyes adjusted. Amato had obviously made himself at home, with a wireless radio, rags for a bed, and several boxes in the corner which must have contained his latest supply of Class 3 non-tradables. "Wake up Delroy. I can't believe you were dumb enough to stay in London, but you never were particularly bright. Come on, get up," he said, as he kicked Amato's foot. The man didn't stir. Harry looked at Amato more carefully, and realized that his eyes were wide open, as if in shock and a pool of blood had soaked the rags around his head. His throat had been cut, and he was very clearly dead.
Harry stared in disbelief at the man's body. Sure, Delroy Amato was a slimy git who never knew an honest day's work, but who would want to kill him? Surely Class 3 non-tradables were not worth killing over. And to have him die in such a horrible way when a simple killing curse would have been quicker and less messy. Either his murderer was a muggle, or someone wanted to make sure that his death sent a message. Harry couldn't help noticing the irony that Delroy Amato's luck had finally run out in the worst way possible.
Harry didn't notice the sound of soft footsteps coming up behind him as he was so engrossed by the crime scene. When he felt a presence behind him, he whipped around to be confronted by Sam. "Is he dead?"
"Yes. I found him like this a few minutes ago. I can't believe someone killed him though. He obviously bled to death." Harry stood transfixed, unable to take his eyes off the body.
"I know. I killed him," she said without the slightest trace of emotion in her voice.
Harry couldn't have heard what he thought he had just heard. "Excuse me? What did you say?"
"That's right, Harry. I killed him. His death was meant as a message. This is what happens to people who betray me." The Sam standing in front of him was not the woman he had known for the last couple of months. This person was heartless and a cold-blooded killer.
"I don't understand. How did you even know him?"
"I can see that you're confused, and I don't blame you. Expeliarmus!" Sam skillfully caught Harry's wand while keeping her own trained on him. "You won't mind if I just keep this," she said as she pocketed his wand.
"Let me start at the beginning. I was born in Hertfordshire to Marketa Zhivoin. My mother was a Bulgarian Quidditch player who was playing for the Hertford Hornets. I never knew my father, and all my mother ever said about him was that he was Irish and had a good sense of humor. My mother was a complex woman, you see. She was many things; a dancer, a good quidditch player, a loving mother, a talented musician, and a Death Eater. In fact, she was with the Dark Lord during his attack on Hogsmeade, a battle from which she did not return. She was killed by you and your friend Ronald Weasley. I was left an orphan at the age of 10, and adopted a short while later by the Fergusons. They were a nice enough couple and I got along alright with their son and daughter, but they weren't my real parents. I missed my mother terribly and I vowed to get revenge on you and Ron once I was old enough. I've waited a very long time for this Harry."
"I met Delroy Amato about a year ago, and I paid him to work for me. He wasn't very bright, but he was greedy and that worked to my advantage, at least for a while. He spied on you and Ron for me, so that I had as much information as I needed to get close to you. In the mean time, I was completing my Auror training so that I would be in a position to work near you. I couldn't imagine my luck when I found out that you needed a partner. I have gotten close to you and Ron and your families over the last couple of months. That is regrettable, but it doesn't change what I have to do. In another lifetime, we might have become friends."
"Ron was right about you all along. He kept saying there was something off about you, but none of us would listen." Harry didn't care if he made her mad. He needed to know the truth, now that it was becoming clear that she had fooled everyone. Well, almost everyone.
"Yes, well Ron certainly didn't make it easy on me. But I knew that if I blew off his accusations, everyone would just think he was jealous. I had to be the bigger person, coming off as almost perfect so that no would suspect my intentions. I'm surprised that Ron didn't uncover my true past, but the adoption was strictly confidential given my mother's background. I had intended to kill you both, but when I found out that Ron was pregnant, I couldn't do it. I would take the lives of more than just Ron – I would kill innocent children and despite what you think of me, I couldn't kill the innocent."
"You killed Amato, didn't you?" Harry wanted to keep her talking. Perhaps someone would come looking for them if things took too long.
"Believe me, Harry. He was far from innocent. He was scum, and you and I both know it. Besides, he was becoming a liability. All he had to do was keep an eye on you, and stay out of sight. The fool couldn't do it. In fact, he had just come from spying on you the other day when he met up with an old 'business partner', and he was seen by some ministry worker. I knew that if he was caught, he would rat me out to save himself. I was so close to finishing what I had planned at the age of 10. So I had to kill him."
"Do you intend to kill me like him? What about my wife, my child, my family? You said you became close to them." Harry was reaching now, hoping to find something to delay the inevitable. Harry could picture James and Ginny's faces, and wondered if he would ever see them again.
"Yes, that has been most unexpected and unfortunate. I didn't foresee getting attached to them or you for that matter when I started. Be that as it may, it doesn't matter. I still have a mission to complete."
"What about Ron? What's this going to do to him? Are you going to come after him once the babies are born?"
"No, Ron Weasley will be spared your fate. I plan to disappear once I kill you. He will just have to live with the knowledge that he helped to seal your fate as much as you did."
"And how do you expect him to know this if I'm dead?"
"Because I've written it all out in a letter." She pulled a sealed envelope out of her jacket. "I'll leave this with your body explaining everything."
"Sam, you don't have to do this. You can leave now, and no one will ever know the truth. I won't tell a soul."
"But you see, Harry. I want them to know the truth. I want the world to know who my mother was, and that she was a good person. Just because she was on the wrong side of a war doesn't mean that she deserved to be killed by the Famous Harry Potter."
"It was war, Sam. It's either kill or be killed. It wasn't personal."
"IT WAS PERSONAL TO ME! YOU KILLED THE ONLY PERSON I EVER LOVED!" Sam closed her eyes, and calmed her breathing before she spoke again. "I'm sorry Harry. This has to be done."
As Sam aimed her wand at Harry, he thought he heard footsteps from far away. The next moment, he heard "POTTER, FERGUSON, WHERE ARE YOU?" It was unmistakably Shanks voice. Harry's shoulders visibly relaxed, knowing that help was on the way.
Sam, knowing that her time was short, aimed clumsily and shouted the cutting curse. She missed his throat, but did quite enough damage as it was. Harry's shirt ripped apart in the middle, and he noticed the blood oozing out of his abdomen. He placed his hand over it, and felt the wetness, not quite believing what had happened. It was curious, but he didn't feel as much pain as he would have thought. He heard the footsteps running now, but the noise seemed to be farther away. His legs gave out and he fell to his knees, still clutching his stomach.
In the moment it took for Shanks to appear in the room with his wand lit, Sam stood transfixed, watching in horror as the life drained out of Harry. Giving him one last teary look and muttering "I'm sorry", she pointed her wand at herself and said the killing curse almost in a whisper. She was dead before her head hit the floor.
"Potter, what happened here?" Shanks asked, taking in the sight of two dead bodies, and one barely alive man. He ran to Harry to support him.
Harry was unable to answer his boss, as his world faded to black.
A/N: Yes, I know I'm evil for leaving such a huge cliffhanger. You've all told me many times before. But this chapter was originally intended to be much longer, and when I started moving on from this point, it didn't flow. The chapter wanted to end here, so I listened. For all of you who've been telling me that Sam is evil, you were right. Or at least partly right. She was a lost soul, another casualty of war who was unable to move beyond her loss as such a young age. She didn't want to let anyone into her heart because she was so bent on revenge. I think with a lot of counseling and some loving support, she could have given up her vendetta. She was already starting to let the Weasley's and the Potter's in, and she couldn't handle it. There's more to Sam's story, but I'm not going to delve into it. If anyone would like to take her character and create their own story, please feel free. Let me know if you do because I'd love to read it.
A/N 2: 10 bonus points if you can tell me what song Ginny was singing.
Thanks again to Michelleywelley and LJFan, my wonderful betas. What can I say that hasn't already been said? Thanks for putting up with me.
FuocoDeiDraghi: Yes, Sam was definitely underestimated. I do feel sorry for her, because she had been underestimated her whole life. No one ever got her help after the traumatic events of her childhood. Still, it doesn't excuse what she did.
Britni Puccio: I'm working on Fred and George's outtake fic now, but I want to get chapter 14 written first. I can't leave everyone hanging for too long.
Strayct: I'm not sure what's happening to fanfiction dot net, but it's changing a lot of people's names. You're now listed as straycat1. How bizarre. I'm glad you didn't hate Sam – she deserved some sympathy. She wasn't all that bad, except for being a homicidal murderer. I liked your theory about her being from the future and/or one of R/H kids. You certainly do have a big imagination. I'm working on the Fred/George story, but I need to finish chapter 14 first.
Lucidity: I have to tell you, I love your story. That being said, I kind of "borrowed" your idea for the stomach wound, although not carried out in the same manner. You too, were right about Sam. She did mean to do him in, at first anyway. I'm writing the Weasley twins story as soon as I finish Chapter 14. I think everyone will appreciate a bit of fluff after that. Thanks for the suggestion!
Huggles4all: I was wondering where the "4" went as well. I even checked your profile and it wasn't there. Nice to see old number 4 as made his way back home. About Rita's article, I've been toying around with actually including it, but I think that might have to wait for a re-posting of the story. Lets just say it was worded tactfully and didn't offend Hermione. After all, if it had, Rita would have the consequences to suffer.
WMG: OK, first of all, you are right on target. So much so in fact, that I couldn't say anything either to deny or confirm your suspicions. Sam was not a deatheater, and she didn't have the same beliefs as her mother. But she certainly did have something to hide, didn't she? She wasn't all bad, but neither was she good. She was confused about where her loyalty was, so she felt that she had to avenge her mother's death, even though it was during the war.
Arwentheelf: I hope this answered your question. Just to clarify, it was Delroy in the bushes watching Harry and Ron. He was working for Sam, but was spotted shortly after reporting to her.
Penguingirl266: You were right, Sam wasn't to be trusted. The eyes in the bushes belonged to Delroy. Ron's vibes were indeed correct when it came to Sam – he's a good judge of character, most of the time. He tends to see things as very black or white. Rita's okay, she's not going to risk the wrath of Hermione. She's not exactly a pillar of morality, but she's not stupid either. And I highly recommend Barbados. The description in the beginning of the chapter is pretty close to the place I stayed on my 2nd trip there, except for the magical bartender. Although the BBC's he made were pretty outstanding
Megumi Ohira / La'Ruelia: Fanfiction dot net is having some issues lately, so it's not just you. Thanks for the review anyway. Glad you like the twins scene. I'm working on their story as soon as I finish the next chapter.
Hp/charmed obsessed: Rita really doesn't want to test to see if Hermione is bluffing or not. She's a bit scared of her, as she should be.
Penelope Richmond: I can't really use Cletus the Fetus anymore, now that it's twins. What would that be, Cleti the Feti? I'm a little sad about that.
Triniroo: It's more of an impression of her character rather than anything that she did. Ron has a pretty good sense for who's intentions are good and whose are not. Sam really was cold inside because she didn't want to let anyone in. To do that would risk distracting her from her vengeance. That coldness and sense of loss is what Ron felt when he was around her.
Also, thanks to Allycat, Bob Bennit, romanceFreak, and b2bbrules3326 for your reviews.