Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all related plot events and characters are the property of JK Rowling.
Summary: PostHogwarts. Harry must deal with the horrors of war, and in doing so he will embrace his heritage and leave a lasting legacy on the world.
A/N: I hope you enjoy! Please take the time to review if you can.
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Chapter 2: New BeginningsHarry and his three friends – his three battle partners, best mates, and those that he had shared his soul with – emerged out from the heavy door into the glittering sunshine. Harry had to stop for a moment and collect himself; it was such a drastic change from what he had just left. Behind them, stretching back and down into the Earth for miles, it seemed, was the fortress of the defeated Dark Lord. The inside was cold, stony, and had an iridescent green glow. The glow seemed to only heighten the gloom, though, because they had been forced to ignite their wands at various points. Harry grimaced and shook his head before he let his memory relive the last few hours any further. Ron, Hermione, and Ginny had stopped and were looking at him. They still were a little awed at what Harry had shown them, but it was quickly wearing off to be replaced by the usual Harry can never surprise me sentiment. He looked at them, smiled briefly, and then continued on. They moved along side-by-side to face the new world ahead of them, together. Just as they neared a sharp ninety-degree turn in the path, around some hedges, McGonagall come hurrying around the corner.
She stopped in shock at what she saw – the four teenagers were walking toward her, projecting a confidence and unity she had never felt from them before. She had sensed the breaking of Voldemort's powers, but she had no idea how it happened or how many of the four were left after what was sure to have been an impressive battle. In this moment, she saw them not as her students, but as her equals and possibly her superiors. Evidently, they had survived the onslaught of the Dark Lord's forces and, it looked like, the Dark Lord himself. She got over her shock quickly and assumed her usual stern look, her hands on her hips with a sharp glare in eye. The four stopped a few feet from her. They just stood there, looking at her.
"Well?" she asked sharply, but there was a shrill tone in her voice. She wanted to hear what had happened very badly, and could barely contain herself. Wait…something was wrong with this picture. Snape! Her face lost some of its color as she realized the only thing that could have kept him.
"Where is Severus?" she whispered quietly. The small flinch from Ronald Weasley and the pained look from Harry told her all she needed to know. Her heart immediately went out to the fallen warrior of the Light, shocking herself at how powerful her own feelings were. The man had been misunderstood for so long, and now that he had finally earned redemption, he had been killed. Small, hot tears started to leak from her eyes as she remembered Snape as she last saw him – confident, willing, and completely capable of leading the strike team into the heart of the fortress before them. He had even joked with her before they set out, commenting that Voldemort wouldn't know what hit him. Then images of others – Dumbledore, the Weasleys, a few Aurors, and various students – came to her mind and she started crying much harder. The tears were slipping out of her eyes unhindered.
McGonagall let out a soft moan, as the full cost of the war seemed to hit her all at once, and sank slowly to the ground. Immediately, Harry moved to his longtime Professor and friend, and knelt beside her. Through her tears, she noticed that he seemed to move with a certain grace she hadn't noticed. He placed a hand on her shoulder, and she immediately began to calm down. She couldn't understand it; Harry Potter was simply touching her shoulder in his affectionate way that he was towards most people, and she was feeling physically and mentally better – no, not just feeling; she was better. She looked at him thoughtfully for a moment, through clearer vision now that her tears had dried up, and then stood up. The others hadn't moved throughout this whole episode.
"Thank you, Harry, I don't know what came over me," began McGonagall.
Harry just shook his head slowly. "You had every right to that, Professor. As I'm sure you've just fully realized, though the war is over, the grieving will continue for a very long time." She stared at Harry. He sounded so much like Dumbledore there, for a second, and she could have sworn she saw that maddening twinkle in his sparkling eyes. She looked at him closely for another, felt him grow uncomfortable under her gaze, and then shifted her attention. She looked from one friend to another, until she had landed back onto Harry again. "Well?" she said impatiently, as if this was some particularly juicy gossip.
"First," said Harry, "what about the others? All of the Aurors that came in with us couldn't go into the room with the Death Eaters. They weren't powerful enough to cascade through the magical seal. Snape – Professor Snape – and us four were the only ones that could go on."
"They were forced to come back," replied McGonagall. "Tonks led them out, picking up the wounded and dead of the Light as they came. She told me the entire story up to the point that they had been forced to go back, and was incredibly anxious for you…all of you. We could do little but pray, hope, heal the wounded, and wait. Then, a little while ago, we all felt the power of Voldemort break and then die off completely. They all wanted to rush into the fortress and see what had happened, but I warned them and told them to stay there in case it was a trap. And here we stand," she finished. "Now, if you please, what in bloody hell happened down there?"
The four friends had never heard their Professor curse before, but they took it as a sign of the magnitude of the stress she was under. She was Headmaster of Hogwarts, second in command of the Order (to Harry), leader and mentor to many people, and trusted confidant of many of the most powerful beings of the Light. They could certainly see why she was a little tense at the moment. Harry looked to the others and wordlessly asked them who should tell the story. Without hesitation, the looks they gave told him that it would, of course, be him.
"Why don't we all sit down on the grass over here," urged Harry. He led them to a small patch of grass, just out of sight of the Aurors, who were most likely hotly anticipating the return of someone from around the hedge. "Once we entered the room the Aurors couldn't get into, we were quickly surrounded by the twelve senior Death Eaters…" and Harry went on to tell the entire story to McGonagall. He told her about Snape's noble sacrifice, meeting Voldemort in the cavernous dungeon, the images that he had sent of the torture (not exactly what he had seen, though, as he didn't think his friends should ever have to know that), and the change they had seemed to trigger in him. "He, uh, screamed and then collapsed, and then it was all over," Harry finished. All were silent for a moment, collecting their thoughts. The four teens were quietly reliving the nightmare that had just unfolded before them and McGonagall was using her razor-sharp powers of deduction to make some assumptions about the remarkable boy in front of her. He had achieved something that Dumbledore had only mentioned in passing – it was something that he had immediately regretted revealing, too. She thought it was odd, at the time, because her and Dumbledore had few if any secrets between them.
She stood up and said, "It will take some time to absorb all that you have said and done, Harry. As for you three," she smiled, "I wouldn't have expected any less from you." Her smiled turned warm, inviting, and grateful. She had a hard time hiding just how grateful, and Harry noticed it.
"None of this would have been possible without your support over the years. We all played our part and did the best that we could. Now that he's finally dead, it will be awhile before we really see what we accomplished…as a team," he finished emphatically. Harry looked at the four people around him and felt that wondrous feeling of love welling up inside of him again. He had nothing but the utmost respect for anyone who had stood by his side during the darkest times. "Shall we go meet the others?" he asked. They all nodded in agreement, and followed him around the corner.
"Harry!" someone shrieked almost immediately. It was Tonks, and she already moving swiftly toward him. The other Aurors looked up sharply, and started toward the five people coming around the corner almost as quickly as the Metamorphmagus had. They were all personally surprised it was the four teens that had returned, especially without Snape. Some of them were still stung by the fact that the four friends were individually more powerful than any of them. They had all been repelled at that last door, but the five had just walked through.
Harry accepted the warm embrace from Tonks when she reached him, and smiled into her face. He then looked around at all the other Aurors who had been able to come over to them, and smiled at them all. Some noticed a certain twinkle in his eye, which reminded them of a certain someone who they had lost…
"My friends, we have done it!" Harry suddenly exclaimed. He realized that none of them had really reveled in the glorious thing they had accomplished that day. Yes, they had suffered losses, as they would have in any war, but the dead would have wanted to be celebrating at the time of victory. They could be honored formally later. For now, he sensed that it was appropriate to enjoy the next few hours with the Light. They had erupted in cheering and whistling, even though most of them still had curious looks on their faces. Harry laughed when saw this – a deep, joyous laugh that none of the others had heard in a long time – and tried to quiet them down.
"I can tell that you are all anxious to hear what has transpired," Harry said, and again many of them thought how remarkably like Dumbledore's speech his was at the moment. Harry began on a serious note, by saying that, "Without Snape, this would have failed. We would have all been killed and Voldemort would have won. Snape is truly a hero – as are all the fallen – and will be remembered as such." Some of the Aurors looked very sour at this because the fate of Dumbledore was still fresh in their minds. Harry saw this and added, quietly, "He sacrificed himself. He got in the way of an Avada Kedavra to allow us to overpower the last of the Death Eaters." Some of the Aurors around him softened a bit at this, but he could tell that some were still very reluctant to trust the man, even from beyond the grave. Their trust would have to come later.
"Harry, earth to Harry!" called Tonks. He realized that he had slipped off into a daydream about what Snape had done. He shook his head and smiled guiltily at those around him, his eyes twinkling even more now. "Sorry about that. I was just lost in thought. All right, I suppose I'll have to tell the story again…" and Harry told the Aurors all that had happened. When he had finally finished, no one talked for a very long time. Harry started to become uncomfortable, and looked to his friends. They were just looking around in amusement. Harry gave them a questioning look, to which Harry nodded in the general direction of most of the Aurors. He looked at their faces, and was momentarily taken aback. Most were staring at his face – some intently, some in wonder, and some in envy. His face grew hot as he felt a blush rise. Ron sniggered at him and Ginny couldn't help but start to laugh. Soon Hermione and McGonagall joined in, and then slowly the Aurors began to as well.
Harry looked around for a moment, and then smiled inwardly to himself. He wasn't letting them get away this easily. "What in Merlin's name is wrong with you people?" Why are you laughing at me?" to which they started laughing harder, taking his false indignation for seriousness. He tried to keep a straight face for as long as he could, but that wasn't long. He couldn't help himself, and broke into fits of laughter with everyone else. They all laughed like they hadn't in a very long time. They laughed because it was finally safe to do so, because the powerful being that had plagued so many of their dreams had finally been vanquished. And, realizing with a sobering thought, that it was this good-looking 17-year-old standing in front of them who had done it, so willingly and without question, they slowly quieted down.
"Well, now that that's out of our systems, I was wondering if you could answer a question for me, Harry," said Tonks, looking intently at her younger friend. Everyone quieted down completely at this statement, because they all knew that Tonks had an extremely sharp mind. They wanted to hear what she had to say.
"Yes?" Harry asked, looking expectantly at her.
"Well, the…thing…you did with your powers…would it be possible, I mean, is it possible for you to duplicate that?" Tonks asked, tentatively. She watched as Harry thought about it for a moment. All those around could almost feel the wheels turning in his brain.
"I'm not really sure. From what Ron, Hermione, and Ginny told me, it seemed to originate from my scar, which as you can all see, I don't have anymore," he explained, as he brushed the hair from his forehead for them to see. Some gasped, but Harry thought that most of them had been expecting something similar if Voldemort were defeated. "Because of that, I believe that it was somehow part of the blood protection my mother left me when she was…murdered; maybe the last and most powerful part of it. I've always thought it was somehow tied to the scar, but I guess if I could reproduce what happened earlier, that would prove that it wasn't." He paused, looking around, seeing if they understood what he was saying. Some nodded. Harry continued, by saying, "If I could reproduce it, that would mean that the scar was the easiest outlet for the magical transformation that evidently took place…" Harry surmised. He had wondered about that. He had never thought to look at himself during his heightened power. He was too focused on the task at hand; it wasn't until Ginny had told him how much different he looked and felt, physically and magically; that he had realized the new powers needed a catalyst and an outlet. If he were going to try this again, he would have to be careful. He didn't want to hurt himself or, more importantly, the others around him.
"Well, I guess I can try it, but I want to move a bit away from you guys in case something goes wrong." It was instinctual before – he had no idea how his body and magic would react if he tried to force it upon himself. He looked around for approval, saw that none was needed since, after all, he had killed Voldemort, and so he started to move away from them. Someone grabbed his arm and spun him around. It was Ginny. She had a stern look in her face. "Listen to me, Harry Potter, I don't want you doing any harm to yourself. Do your hear me? If you sense something is wrong, at all, stop immediately! Ok?" she asked, almost as an afterthought. Harry had to suppress a laugh. How she reminded him of Mrs. Weasley! When the image of her appeared in his head, he felt a twinge when he remembered that she was no longer with them. He nodded at Ginny, kissed her, and backed away a bit. She rejoined the others.
"Ok," said Harry, "are you all ready?" Some said yes, others nodded, and some just continued to stare at him. They had a hard time believing that this young man was capable of something that was apparently incredibly powerful. Harry noticed this, and was not surprised by it. He had always had skeptics, so why should this be any different?
"Alright, here goes nothing," Harry muttered. He started by focusing on his energies as much as could and tried to concentrate that energy into the feeling he had experienced earlier. He tried to drive the power out of him and up to the surface. He tried, harder and harder, but to no avail. The harder he tried, the further away the power seemed. He couldn't figure out what he was doing wrong. Dumbledore would know, thought Harry, and the moment that Dumbledore appeared in his mind's eye, it clicked. He could already feel the potential building up. The vision had produced a strong sense of love and protection from Harry, and realized that this was the key. He slowly carried his mind over the ones he cared about most, alive or dead, and let the well of power slowly build and simmer. He focused more clearly on Ginny, Ron, and Hermione, as he had done before, and this seemed to do it. The transformation started, but the white light did not appear from his non-existent scar; instead, it came from his eyes. The emerald depths there turned sparklingly bright for a moment, then started to emit that light. It grew stronger and stronger, pulsing as Harry was raised from the ground.
The Aurors were watching in amazement as the power levels of the boy had surged to the surface. It was unlike anything they'd ever felt, but it was certainly more powerful also. Dumbledore didn't even compare to the store of energy that was now being released. Some noticed that, even though his eyes were now closed, the white light was still pulsing from the lids. It grew incredibly, impossibly bright, as it had done before, and then the crack was heard. The gasps were audible now as the bright light faded and Harry came back into view. He settled to the ground and opened his eyes. He stood there, very still, trying to control the power that he could feel flowing through him. It had been easier, before, because there had been a conduit for that power – Voldemort. He now had to contain it within himself, though, because he did not want to risk the safety of the others. He noticed that many of them were staring at his eyes, and he smiled. Some of the eyes then shifted to his face in general.
"What are you looking at?" he asked sheepishly. It was anything but a sheepish feeling that the voice projected though – it was calming, yet empowering and loving. They all felt a bit soothed by him talking.
Tonks, who was unable to tear her eyes away from the crackling, rippling figure before her, was the first to speak. "Well, you see, Harry, you look like power. I'm not sure if I can even describe it right. We can feel your power…quite clearly," she added in amusement. "It's more than that, though. It's almost as if the power was a physical object, one that we could reach out and touch."
Harry nodded at this. He slowly walked toward them, trying to contain his power a little more as he heard the air sizzling around him. His wand had started to emit the bright red sparks again. "Yes, Ginny told me that was how she and the others felt. When I finally…unleashed myself upon Voldemort they said it felt like they were being bombarded by something…physical. The best explanation I can give is the one I gave Tom. I have become the physical representation of love." There were gasps and even mild chuckles from the group. Love? How could that much power be love? Some were skeptical and others thought that it was some kind of joke.
Ron and Hermione could tell that some of the others weren't taking it seriously, and they gave knowing looks to one another. They whispered in Ginny's ear briefly, and she giggled and nodded her head. Without warning, she approached Harry and embraced him. He hadn't had time to react, but he was now worried what the physical repercussions of his power might do to her. He tried to push her away, but she resisted, so he decided to melt into her hug. The energy around Harry popped and sizzled more violently, and a green aura started to show around him. Ginny started to glow red – the aura was the same color as her hair. This wasn't coming from Harry, though. It was all her own. The green and red auras mixed and mingled, and the air suddenly exploded in sparks. Green and red lightning started to be thrown off the auras. Some of it went towards the group, but they did not move. It was soothing, almost like a drug, but it did not have an incapacitating effect. They were still fully in control of themselves.
Ginny looked up at Harry, impressed and awed at the feelings of genuine and uncontrollable love that was reverberating from her body to his and back, and realized that he was looking down. She moved her head up and kissed him. The auras exploded in a dazzling and overwhelming pulse of green and red waves.
Those that were present that day would never forget the feelings they had as the waves washed over them. At first, they were all somewhat shocked and embarrassed at the raw love flowing between Harry and Ginny, but that was quickly replaced with awe at just how much Ginny and especially Harry appreciated them all. Hermione and Ron saw what they had before; McGonagall saw that Harry had always considered her a grandmotherly figure and would do anything to protect her; Tonks and the other Aurors saw how much Harry appreciated their support and help throughout the war. As the kiss continued, the waves grew in intensity and soon many of the people were sitting on the ground, marveling at the young man that had saved the wizarding world.
The two auras had mingled and were now violently cascading against one another. The air around Harry and Ginny shimmered and sparked as lightning from them shot off into it. Finally, they broke apart, and the waves died down. The auras were quick to follow and Ginny looked like her normal self. She was looking at Harry like he had never seen her do before – he knew that he wanted to be with this woman for the rest of his life. He had not come down from his changed appearance yet, as he had before, and tried to contain it to see how long he could stay like that. Ginny and Harry finally looked up to the rest of the people that were around. Hermione, Tonks, the female Aurors, and even McGonagall to a certain extent were looking at Harry with a slightly ravenous look. The men just stared at him because they could literally touch how powerful he was. Ginny swept her eyes around the scene.
"Now, none of you better get any ideas about Harry, here…" she growled territorially at the other women standing around. McGonagall was the first to start laughing and soon after many joined in.
"Ginny, Ginny…my, how you remind me of Molly," said McGonagall. She regretted it almost immediately as she saw twinge of pain flash over Ginny's face. "Oh my, I'm sorry…didn't think—"
Ginny held up her hand. "It's alright. Voldemort is no more. Let's concentrate on that for now." McGonagall nodded, relieved that she hadn't started something unintentionally.
Tonks chose this moment to speak up. She had a faraway, glazed look in her eyes. She wasn't looking at Harry, but through him, so to speak. "Wow…that was incredible. How in Merlin's name did you do that? And how long can you stay like that?"
Harry had forgotten that he still hadn't descended from his powers yet. He took the time to look at himself – the first time he did since he had transformed against Voldemort – and let out a small noise when he saw what the transformation did. His robes were swishing around, as was his hair, and he noticed a faint green glow around his body. He could now feel the air around him as it sizzled and simmered a bit. He surged his power briefly to see the effect, and he was rewarded instantaneously with an expanded aura and loud popping noises as the air grew warmer. He let the surge die away and looked up at the expectant faces in front of him.
"Well, to answer your first question, it didn't look like I was going to be able to do it again. I concentrated on my magic and tried to force it to come out and start the transformation, but the harder I tried the further away it seemed to be. I was getting frustrated and thought that if Dumbledore were here he would know what to do, and then it happened. Images of the people that I love and care about cascaded through my brain and the power took hold."
One of the Aurors moved slightly and said, "But I thought you said it came from where your scar was. It came out of your eyes this time."
Harry looked at him and replied: "Apparently it wasn't linked to my scar as I originally thought. The scar must have been Voldemort's doing and not part of the blood protection. If I can still do this, even with the scar gone, then it must be something entirely separate. As for the light coming from my eyes…" he said thoughtfully, before continuing on with, "…that must have been the second easiest outlet for the energy." He stopped and there was a heavy silence. He thought he could actually hear the thinking occurring around him.
"The change is pretty remarkable. You sound and move like a different person. You're confident, poised, and one look at you demands respect. Your body can hardly contain the energies. And those waves…what were those…" McGonagall said, trying to sort it all out.
"Like I said before – the waves are love manifested physically. No – snigger all you want – but that is the only explanation for it. That is all I really feel when I'm like this and how else would I have been able to counter the Avada Kedavra?" Harry asked them all. A few Aurors looked up sharply when he said this.
"You were able to counter the Killing Curse?" one asked, very hesitantly, because he had always known that it was impossible to block.
"Yeah, I got hit with about 15—" Harry heard many gasps around him, except from his three friends "—and they only made me stronger. Every time they hit me I felt more powerful. I was also able to neutralize several others," he stated while thinking of the ones that Voldemort had shot at his friends. "And there's more proof – Avada Kedavra is ancient Aramaic for 'let the thing be destroyed'. I know that because I asked Snape why that particular incantation is used for such a deadly curse. He said the spell is pure hate and that you have to hate with all your soul the thing you are using it on for it to work properly." He paused for a second, seeming to think. He then went on with, "They had no effect on me, and so I must have been using the exact opposite of it. And the exact opposite of hate is love," he finished.
Some nodded in understanding and acceptance while others still looked hesitant, but Harry did not care at this point. Voldemort was vanquished and life could now go on.
"Well, Mr. Potter, you never cease to amaze me. What would we do without you?" asked McGonagall.
Ever the modest one, Harry grinned sheepishly and said, "Don't forget that these three were also there. Without them we wouldn't be here right now."
"Eh, I don't know about that mate," said Ron. Hermione and Ginny nodded at what he said.
"What?"
"Well, it's just that, once we got to Voldemort we didn't really do much. You saved our asses-" McGonagall glared at Ron "-many times in that room. You might have needed us to get to him, but it was definitely you who took him on."
"Without your support this wouldn't have been possible, though." Harry said quietly. He was looking at them, marveling at how much he really cared for them. "Without all of your support and tireless effort, Voldemort surely would have gotten the upper hand," he said to everyone. "And," he added, his voice cracking a bit, "all the people that couldn't be with us today will never be forgotten." He turned away from them to hide his sudden anguish.
None of them realized how much had been on Harry's shoulder over the past seven years. He was constantly scrutinized, judged, made fun of, underestimated, taken for granted, and ignored, among other things. Yet, through it all, he had remained steadfast in his mission to rid the world of Voldemort. He stood strong against the wave of fear when the world had thought he opened the Chamber of Secrets and the wave of hatred when the world had thought he was a showoff and a liar. Somehow, he had managed to ignore that all and continue on, protecting the ones he loved and, in many cases, the very people that caused him the most pain.
With his words, they saw how truly remarkable Harry Potter was. He had led the group fearlessly into the fortress, fighting bravely to where he had thought he was going to die. He didn't question it though, because it was something he felt he had to do to protect all those that stood before him. He stood fearlessly against the Dark Lord himself, willing to give up his life for his three friends. He was nobility and selflessness personified. They realized that they all owed much to this 17-year-old.
"Harry…" Ginny said. His raven hair was mussed up, as usual, and had fallen over to cover his down-turned face. When he looked up at her, he was smiling, but she could tell that he was holding back some pain. His emerald eyes were flashing into her face, giving him a somewhat stormy appearance. "You know that I love you, right?" she asked him.
He nodded. "I know, Gin, I just got a little caught up there in the memories…" He smiled at her. "You help with it, though." He kissed her. His aura flashed again at this, but it was just a short kiss.
As the two turned, McGonagall couldn't help but think about how proud she was of them. They had suffered so much, but here at the end of it all they were still together and cared for each other more than ever. I wish Albus were here…she thought to herself. Harry eyed her somewhat curiously for a second, and then looked around.
"Sorry about that, everyone. Memories came back…" he began, but Tonks cut him off.
"You don't have to make excuses to us, Harry; or anyone, for that matter. We all are indebted to you and understand completely what you've gone through. We all owe you our lives."
Harry looked at her for a moment. "None of you owe me anything," he said. He shook his head when Tonks started to speak again. "I mean it. None of you owe me anything at all. I'm not holding anything against you and I never will. I did this because I wanted to and now that I have I'm just glad it's over. We can all move on with our lives and forget these silly debts. It wouldn't have been possible without all of you." Tonks started to speak again. "No, I don't want to hear it, Nymphadora. Do not think you owe me anything." He hoped that using her full name would produce the desired effect.
This is the bravest and most humble person that I've ever met. I just wish there were more of them, though Tonks, wistfully. And he sounds so much like Albus. She nodded at Harry, acknowledging defeat.
Harry looked around. "So what now?"
Ginny spoke up. "Why don't we all go back to Hogwarts? I don't know if I can handle any media or whatever right now." Others around her murmured in agreement, but some Aurors clearly wanted to go back to the Ministry to sort things out.
"That is an excellent idea Ms. Weasley. We can all apparate outside the gates of the castle," agreed McGonagall.
"But, Professor," started Hermione. McGonagall gave her a sharp look, which would soon be replaced. "There was one person that we didn't recover," she continued quietly. "Professor Snape is still down there."
"Oh, bloody hell, I knew we forgot something," said Ron. "Why didn't we…get him…on the way out?"
Professor McGonagall looked at Hermione solemnly. "Thank you for remembering, Ms. Granger. I will go, er, pick him up at once." Her voice held some strain as she went off toward the fortress.
As soon as Hermione had mentioned Snape, Harry's mind had wandered back to that fight with the Death Eaters. He saw the battle in his mind – the intense hexing and cursing, the errant killing curses, the Death Eaters falling one by one. They were down to two, when one unexpectedly shot an Avada Kedavra accurately at Ginny. Snape, seeing this and seeing that she had no chance, had stepped in front of it. As he was going down, Ron and Hermione had countered the spell with two of their own, killing the last two Death Eaters without remorse or regret. His mind's eye saw Snape as he lay there now, amid the bodies of the twelve Death Eaters. Snape had a passive face and his eyes were closed. That's odd…victims of Avada Kedavra are always left with their eyes open, thought Harry. He saw Snape laying there, his chest moving, sprawled there peacefully among the other bodies—his chest moving! His chest is moving! That means…he has to be alive! He looked up sharply.
"Professor, wait!" he cried out, stopping her, as she was just about to go around the hedges. He sprinted over to where she was looking impatiently at him.
"Yes, Mr. Potter? I am perfectly capable of—" she started, but Harry cut her off.
"He's alive. Snape's alive!" he shouted at her.
She had a confused look on her face. It would have been quite comical under different circumstances. "But…what? You said he was killed. Didn't you?"
"Yes, but, trust me, he's alive. I'll be back in a moment. Go back over there," Harry said, almost ordering his Professor. In his excitement he forgot with whom he was talking to. She glared at him, but soon found herself glaring at empty air. He must be able to apparate through some wards she thought to herself. She walked back to the group, who were all looking at her questioningly.
"Don't ask me. When Mr. Potter gets back he has some explaining to do," she told everyone. As she finished saying that though, Harry had reappeared before them. He had Professor Snape with him. Tonks and McGonagall immediately went to him to see if they could help. Sure enough, his chest was slowly rising and falling, as if he were in a very deep sleep.
"I don't understand," sputtered Hermione. "He was hit by a Killing Curse. How is this possible?" she asked as her confusion deepened. She had seen it – the curse going toward Ginny and then flaring brilliantly before hitting Snape, who had dove in front of her. He had tumbled to the floor, unmoving.
"I'm not sure what is going, either, Mione, but let me see if I can bring him out of this," said Harry. He was still 'ascended', as he had come to think of it, so he thought that he should be able to revive his Potions Master.
"Back up, everyone," he stated firmly. They all backed away, trusting Harry completely because of what he had already accomplished.
He laid his hands on Snape's chest and started to gather his energy. His robes were whip cracking around him, his hair was standing up as though it was being blown ferociously, and his aura immediately started to glow and expand. Ginny couldn't tear her gaze away from his eyes, which had turned into a viridian well into his soul. He was concentrating on sending power through his hands into Snape, and he could see that it was working because of the green pulses that were now traveling through his arms. Snape started to glow green and he lifted off the ground about an inch or so.
The onlookers couldn't help but stare in wonder as Harry revealed more of his talents to them. He was using his raw power to revive Snape, sending the Professor part of himself to help the man out of whatever trance he was in. Snape glowed a brilliant emerald for a second, and then the light faded.
Harry stood up and looked at Snape expectantly. He took that glow as a sign that whatever healing he had done to the man was complete, and was now waiting for some sign of life other than his chest, which was still slowly rising and falling. The seconds ticked by, with each one making Harry more and more impatient. Just as Harry was settling back down to try again, Snape coughed. Everyone around him jumped.
Snape coughed more violently, and then sat up quickly. He was still coughing, wracking his body with his powerful lungs. It seemed as if he trying to expel something. His eyelids fluttered open and he looked around.
"Wha…?" he began, clearing his throat. He saw a young man before him that he didn't recognize. Wait…that's Harry. What the hell happened to him? "Er, Harry?" The young man nodded. Snape looked around to see the rest of the people staring at them in pure wonder. Their eyes were slowly going from Snape to Harry and back to Snape again. Snape got a little annoyed, and said, rather curtly, "Would someone mind telling me what is going on around here?"
Before he could get an answer, though, McGonagall rushed over to him and embraced him. He couldn't remember as warm an embrace from her in his life, and was rather surprised. The last thing that he remembered was a Death Eater firing a Killing Curse…
He pulled away from her and jumped up. He looked at the people around him. Something was different – it was almost a triumphant look.
"Well, is anyone going to inform me why you all are standing there staring gape-mouthed at me or did everyone lose the ability to speak?" sneered Snape. He was a little angry, but he was very confused. What had happened?
"Well, you see, Voldemort's gone," stated Harry, matter-of-factly.
Did he hear Harry right? Voldemort…dead? Finally, after all this time? But…how? It was just the four teens left when he thought he was killed…
"Voldemort's, uh, dead?" Snape asked, incredulously. Harry shook his head. This confused Snape even more than he already was. "But you just told me that he was 'gone'."
"His soul is destroyed," offered Hermione. Snape could tell she was being absolutely truthful. He's…really…gone! Albus will be so happy!
He pulled Harry to the side quickly. "You're sure? He's really gone?" Harry smiled and nodded his head at Snape, and then apparated away. Before Snape could react, however, he was back, with a limp, black form in his hands. Harry coldly dumped it on the ground, and in doing so the hood of the robe fell back. There were some shrieks as people saw who it was – Voldemort laid on the ground before them all.
Snape stared in wonder at the being that had caused so much misery. Harry had just deposited him on the ground like he was nothing - nothing more than a broken old man. He would have to get the story from Harry later. For now, he pulled Harry even further away from the rest of the group. He looked intently into the young man's sparkling green eyes. It wasn't until then that he noticed the overwhelming sense of power that this young man projected. I'll have to hear about this later, too.
"What's the problem, Professor?"
Snape stared at Harry, boring his black eyes into those green ones. The young wizard calmly stared back at the man he now considered his friend. Snape suddenly broke into a huge grin.
"I have some very good news, Harry. I've been waiting for a long time to say this, and I prayed that I would someday get the chance to. I hope this redeems myself fully in your eyes," said Snape.
Harry looked at Snape, unsure of what was coming.
"It's Albus - Professor Dumbledore, Harry."
"What about him?" asked Harry, sharply.
"He's not dead!"
