Chapter 31: Til Death Do Us Part

Dammit. I was right. Dumbles asked me for a favour to repay my debt. He wants me to spy for him in Knockturn Alley - using my Black connections to pass through. The thought makes me sick to my stomach but... I always repay my debts.

Harry fought hard against Rabastan alongside Ron. Rodolphus had been easy enough to defeat – he had underestimated how skilled Harry was and wasn't prepared for how quickly and viciously he duelled. That duel with Leo paid off. Harry mused as he put up a shield to deflect Rabastan's Stinging Hex. If I hadn't fought him – if he, Cas, Remus, and Sirius hadn't prepared me, I might've lost. Harry couldn't help but thank his lucky stars that he had his cousin in his life. That he had someone to love, support, and teach him since he was young. All this was possible because of him. Harry concluded as he disarmed Rabastan and Ron sent him blasting back into a wall with one of Leo's favourite spells.

Rabastan sunk to the ground unconscious as Harry snapped his wand after catching it in the air. He turned away from the man, eyes alighting on the passed out form of Rodolphus before settling on the dead, bloody form of Augustus Rookwood. I know Leo's vicious and fierce in a fight but... He shook his head. Just be glad he's on your side, Harry. He told himself resolutely as he turned to see how Draco and Leo were faring against Bellatrix.

Things seemed to move slowly to Harry as he watched the jet of green fly from Bellatrix's wand. Leo was running, pushing Draco out of the way as he raised his own wand. The light hit him in the chest and he fell back, the back of his head smacking onto the ground. Harry stood there for a moment, waiting for his cousin – his brother – to jump back to his feet, say something inappropriate, and engage Bellatrix in a duel. Leo didn't get up. He remained on the ground, unmoving.

"LEO!" Harry screamed, running toward him with Ron at his heels.

He fired off a furious onslaught of spells, hearing Ron do the same. Draco rose to his feet, screaming the names of spells that Harry had never heard of but he was sure were quite Dark. Bellatrix cackled gleefully at first before her expression turned serious. She deflected a few of their spells with a Shield Charm. Harry, Draco, and Ron stood beside each other as they pointed their wands at Bellatrix's invisible shield.

"CONFRINGO!" shouted Harry.

"BOMBARDA!" yelled Ron.

"EXPULSO!" exclaimed Draco.

The spells combined as they hit Bellatrix's shield, shattering it and sending her flying past the benches and landing at the top. At first, Harry wondered if they had killed her. Much to his dismay, the witch rose to her feet, her wand arm dangling uselessly at her side and her left hand clutching her side. She stooped down to pick up her fallen wand, coughing up blood as she did so. She stared down at the three boys, seeming to debate re-engaging them. She appeared to think better of it as she turned and hobbled out of the room as quickly as she could.

Harry didn't hesitate as he ran after her, the only thing occupying his mind the memory of Bellatrix killing the most important person in his life – the focus of one of the oldest memories he had.

Harry, four years old, sat in the cupboard, crying. Dudley had broken his glasses and the Dursleys had sent him to the cupboard, saying it was his fault. He could hear clamouring on the stairs above him and wondered if Dudley was running up and down the steps just to annoy him. Harry wanted to shout at him to stop but didn't want to risk his cousin hitting him in the face again or having his stay in the cupboard extended.

He heard rapid movement down the stairs before something heavy collided with the wall next to the door, a sickening 'crack' and a thump accompanying the noises. He heard loud wailing that he managed to identify as Dudley since he had never heard Leo cry in all the time he had known him.

Aunt Petunia was shrieking loudly and Uncle Vernon was angrily yelling. He could hear Leo's voice reply, but couldn't quite make out what he was saying. He heard tussling on the stairs again before he heard Uncle Vernon give a shout of mingled pain and surprise. The man's yelling resumed, and Harry heard Leo's shouts mingling with them now. The door to the cupboard opened and a shape flew into him, knocking the wind out of him as the door slammed shut and locked.

The shape rolled off him, tugging a thin string and turning the light on in the cupboard. Harry stared at Leo, his face covered in blood. He was sporting a slowly-forming black eye and a busted lip, blood was dripping from his nose and down his lips and chin. Despite how much pain he must be in, Leo was smiling, his eyes twinkling in triumph.

"Why so sad, Harry?" the blonde inquired.

"D-Dudley broke my glasses," Harry sniffled. "And he hurt you -"

"Don't worry about me, Harry," Leo continued to smile. "Worry about Dudley – he has to go to the hospital since I broke his arm."

"You broke his arm?" Harry asked incredulously.

"Was an accident," Leo shrugged, not seeming the least bit sorry. "But now the Dursleys will be gone for a long time so we can play Dud's video games and eat his candy."

Leo lifted up his shirt, revealing several Mars Bars that he had taped to himself. He pulled one off his chest, wincing slightly as he did so before handing it to Harry. The green-eyed boy took it, unable to help the smile that crept over his face as he took a bite of his chocolate.

"We gonna be alone?" Harry clarified.

"Harry, you're never alone," Leo chuckled, patting Harry's head. "You'll always have Leo. Leo never leave you."

You lied. Harry seethed as he scrambled up the steps. The hem of Bellatrix's robes whipped out of sight ahead and they were in a room where brains were swimming in tanks. You said you'd never leave me. He dodged a spell Bellatrix threw over her shoulder, her aim slightly off now with her using her left hand. You promised you'd always be here – you promised you'd protect me. He wrenched open the door into the circular black hall and saw Bellatrix leaping over the bodies of three of her fallen comrades and disappear through a door on the other side of the room — beyond her was the corridor leading back to the lifts. He ran, but she had slammed the door behind her and the walls had begun to rotate again. Once more he was surrounded by streaks of blue light from the whirling candelabra.

"Where's the exit?" he shouted desperately, as the wall rumbled to a halt again. "Where's the way out?"

The room seemed to have been waiting for him to ask. The door right behind him flew open, and the corridor toward the lifts stretched ahead of him, torch-lit and empty. He ran...

He could hear a lift clattering ahead of him. He sprinted up the passageway, swung around the corner, and slammed his fist onto the button to call a second lift. It jangled and banged lower and lower; the grilles slid open and Harry dashed inside, now hammering the button marked Atrium. The doors slid shut and he was rising...

He forced his way out of the lift before the grilles were fully open and looked around. Bellatrix was almost at the telephone lift at the other end of the hall, but she looked back as he sprinted toward her, and aimed another spell at him. He dodged behind the Fountain of Magical Brethren; the spell zoomed past him and hit the wrought gold gates at the other end of the Atrium so that they rang like bells. There were no more footsteps. She had stopped running. He crouched behind the statues, listening.

"Come out, come out, little Harry!" she called in her mock-baby voice, which echoed off the polished wooden floors. "What did you come after me for, then? I thought you were here to avenge your dear cousin?"

"I am!" shouted Harry, and a score of ghostly Harry's seemed to chorus I am! I am! I am! all around the room.

"Aaaaaah... did you love him, little baby Potter?"

Hatred rose in Harry such as he had never known before. He flung himself out from behind the fountain and bellowed "Crucio!"

Bellatrix screamed. The spell had knocked her off her feet, but she did not writhe and shriek with pain — she was already on her feet again, breathless, no longer laughing. Harry dodged behind the golden fountain again — her counterspell hit the head of the handsome wizard, which was blown off and landed twenty feet away, gouging long scratches into the wooden floor.

"Never used an Unforgivable Curse before, have you, boy?" she yelled. She had abandoned her baby voice now. "You need to mean them, Potter! You need to really want to cause pain — to enjoy it — righteous anger won't hurt me for long — I'll show you how it is done, shall I? I'll give you a lesson —"

Leo could do it. Harry thought angrily. Leo could make her hurt – make her feel a fraction of the pain she's caused. He leaned his head back against the fountain, trying to swallow down the emotions that threatened to swamp him. Leo wasn't here anymore – he would never be there for him again. He would never hear his cousin's infectious laugh, would never laugh at the blonde's witty remarks and sarcastic comments.

"Potter, you cannot win against me!" Bellatrix cried. He could hear her moving to the right, trying to get a clear shot of him. He backed around the statue away from her, crouching behind the centaur's legs, his head level with the house-elf's. "I was and am the Dark Lord's most loyal servant, I learned the Dark Arts from him, and I know spells of such power that you, pathetic little boy, can never hope to compete —"

"Stupefy!" yelled Harry. He had edged right around to where the goblin stood beaming up at the now headless wizard and taken aim at her back as she peered around the fountain for him. She reacted so fast he barely had time to duck.

"Protego!"

The jet of red light, his own Stunning Spell, bounced back at him. Harry scrambled back behind the fountain, and one of the goblin's ears went flying across the room.

"Potter, I am going to give you one chance!" shouted Bellatrix. "Give me the prophecy — roll it out toward me now — and I may spare your life!"

"Well, you're going to have to kill me, I don't have it!" Harry roared — and as he shouted it, pain seared across his forehead. His scar was on fire, and he felt a surge of fury that was quite unconnected with his own rage. "And he knows!" said Harry with a mad laugh to match Bellatrix's own. "Your dear old mate Voldemort knows it's gone! He's not going to be happy with you, is he?"

"What? What do you mean?" she cried and, for the first time, there was fear in her voice.

"Leo switched it out ages ago," Harry informed her, his mind flashing back to Draco's whisper in the Department of Mysteries.

"Leo's close and he has a plan," the pale blonde hissed. "He has an orb that looks like the prophecy. You'll both swap then he'll create a distraction and we all run for it."

"The prophecy's not here anymore!" Harry continued, recalling as he watched Leo slip the orb into Luna's robes while they exchanged their brief kiss. "It's long gone, Dumbledore or Uncle Castor'll have it by now! What do you think Voldemort'll say about that, then?"

His scar seared and burned... The pain of it was making his eyes stream...

"LIAR!" she shrieked, but he could hear the terror behind the anger now. "YOU'VE GOT IT, POTTER, AND YOU WILL GIVE IT TO ME — Accio Prophecy! ACCIO PROPHECY !"

Harry laughed again because he knew it would incense her, the pain building in his head so badly he thought his skull might burst. He waved his empty hand from behind the one-eared goblin and withdrew it quickly as she sent another jet of green light flying at him.

"Nothing there!" he shouted. "Nothing to summon! Leo got one over on you lot in the end!"

"No!" she screamed. "It isn't true, you're lying — MASTER, I TRIED, I TRIED — DO NOT PUNISH ME —"

"Don't waste your breath!" yelled Harry, his eyes screwed up against the pain in his scar, now more terrible than ever. "He can't hear you from here!"

"Can't I, Potter?" said a high, cold voice.

Harry opened his eyes.

Tall, thin, and black-hooded, his terrible snakelike face white and gaunt, his scarlet, slit-pupiled eyes staring... Lord Voldemort had appeared in the middle of the hall, his wand pointing at Harry who stood frozen, quite unable to move.

"So, the prophecy is gone?" said Voldemort softly, staring at Harry with those pitiless red eyes. "No, Bella, he is not lying... I see the truth looking at me from within his worthless mind... Months of preparation, months of effort... and my Death Eaters have let Harry Potter and Leo Black thwart me again..."

Leo would like that. Harry decided. He'd like knowing that the last thing he did was mess up Voldemort's plan. He'd think it was hilarious what we did to Bellatrix. He'd be proud. He watched as Voldemort raised his wand and levelled it at his head. I'll tell him when I see him, and we'll have a laugh about it. The thought brought a smile to his face.

"Something amusing, Potter?" Voldemort asked, his eyes narrowing.

Harry merely continued to smile in response, knowing it would irk him and make Leo proud at the same time. He saw Voldemort's lips part and could've sworn he felt something wrap around his ankle. The Killing Curse fell from his enemy's mouth and, at the same time, he felt something yank on his leg and drag him across the floor. He slid to a stop and looked up as he felt a hand on his shoulder, his eyes widening in astonishment.

Voldemort turned slowly, his own eyes widening.

"You should not be here."

Leo blinked awake slowly, sitting up with a small groan as he clutched his head. Surprise rippled through him when he found it didn't hurt. Another jolt of surprise shot through him when he looked around, finding himself in the Forbidden Forest. He rose slowly to his feet, flicking his wrist and finding relief as his wand fell into his hand. How did I get here? He frowned in confusion. He hefted his foot, about to take a step forward when he saw a bright light out of the corner of his eye.

He lifted up his hand to block the majority of the light, lowering it slowly once his eyes had adjusted. It was a unicorn, brighter and whiter than Leo had ever seen. Its entire body – hooves and horn included – were a blue-tinged white. That's not a unicorn, it's a Patronus. He realized. He tightened his grip on his wand as the Patronus faded, revealing a slim figure behind it.

It was a woman with long blonde hair. She was lightly tanned and wore a simple white dress with a black and yellow scarf wrapped around her neck that Leo felt was a bit out of place. It wasn't her scarf, however, that drew his attention. It was her eyes. They were bright green and almond-shaped. Just like Harry's. I know that face.

"Mum?" Leo croaked.

The woman smiled and nodded, and Leo rushed forward at once, enveloping her in a tight hug that almost knocked her over. She hugged him back just as fiercely, one of her hands finding its way to his hair and stroking it softly. They stood there for a moment before they separated slightly to stare at each other. The woman moved her hand from his hair to cup the side of his face while the other swept the hair from his brow.

"My baby," she whispered softly. "My sweet little boy... look at you, all grown up. You look just like I always imagined you would... though a little more scarred than I would've hoped."

"Scars make us who we are," Leo responded. "I'm not ashamed of them."

"Nor should you be," Rose smiled at him, her thumb running over the scar under his right eye. "I always told Remus that he should be proud of his scars – proud of everything he's overcome. I don't think he ever really listened to me, to be perfectly honest."

"Yeah, he's a stubborn little furball."

The woman laughed, a soft musical sound that Leo felt he could listen to forever. He then gave a small frown as a thought occurred to him. If she's here, and I'm here, then...

"Am I dead?" Leo whispered.

Rose stared at him, biting her lower lip the same way he did when he was nervous or considering what he should say. Guess I get that from her then. He smiled to himself as he felt her lower her hand from his face. She moved it toward her scarf, reaching under it and pulling something out. She held up her hand, showing him the small, furry creature that sat in her palm.

"Fievel!" Leo exclaimed, his tone a mixture of shock and glee.

He then frowned again. If Fievel's here, he must be dead. Which means he took the Killing Curse. Which means -

"You're not dead," Rose informed him. "At least not entirely, anyway. Your friend took most of the Killing Curse. You got hit with the backlash and hit your head on the ground pretty hard -"

"If I'm not dead, then I have to go back," Leo said at once, the events over the past few hours finally beginning to catch up with him. "Bellatrix is still there – Voldemort could be on his way! My friends need me, I have to help them!"

Rose just stared at him as he talked, a smile stretching over her face and growing wider with every word he spoke. He was about to ask what she thought was worth smiling over when she patted his cheek.

"My loyal Hufflepuff," she whispered. "My brave Gryffindor. My wise Ravenclaw. My cunning Slytherin. I'd hoped you'd be one of those things when you grew up. You're everything I ever wanted you to be and more..."

She trailed off with a sad smile. She stood slightly on her tiptoes to kiss him on the cheek.

"Never forget that I will always love you no matter what, Leo Castor Black."

Leo sat up quickly with a loud gasp, feeling light-headed as he did so. He heard voices on either side of him saying his name and glanced around to see Draco and Ron. They both wore looks of mingled shock, relief, and confusion, all of which Leo could understand. What I don't understand is where Harry and Bellatrix are... Unless...

"Harry went after her, didn't he?" Leo surmised, getting slowly to his feet.

Ron nodded slowly, seeming at a loss for words.

"Black, what happened?" Draco demanded. "How are you still alive?"

Leo walked toward him, stooping to pick up a minuscule figure on the ground. He cradled Fievel in his hand, staring down forlornly at his friend and feeling immensely guilty for getting him involved in this mess. There'll be plenty of time to feel guilty later, Leo. He told himself firmly as he gently put the mouse back in his shirt pocket before bending down to pick up his wand, wincing as he did so.

Damn, that curse sure packs a wallop. He hissed, rubbing his chest. He looked around at Ron and Draco, both of whom were still staring at him as though he had just come back from the dead. Oh, wait. I guess I sorta did. Leo acknowledged before shaking his head. It was time to return to the task at hand. Harry was possibly in danger right now.

"Draco," he said, looking at the pale blonde. "You said my dad's been working with you on transportation magic. Can you get us out of here?"

"Out of the Department of Mysteries? No," the hawk Animagus shook his head. "Once we get back to the Atrium, I can get us back to Grimmauld though."

"Excellent," Leo nodded before turning to Ron. "I'll go on ahead to help Harry. You lot stay behind and either tie up the Death Eaters or kill them. Whatever strikes your fancy. At the very least, destroy all their wands. I'll meet you in the Atrium when you're done."

Without waiting for confirmation, he dashed up the row of benches, shifting into his lion form as he ran so he'd move faster. He ran through the door and through the next room, watching as pink blobs blurred past his vision. He leapt through the open door into the black circular room, pausing to stare at the three Death Eaters on the floor. Ginny, Neville, and Luna... guess they got out all right. He nodded in satisfaction before running through the only other open door and racing down the corridor toward the lifts.

He shifted back into himself when he arrived, frantically jabbing the button. The lift came clattering to a halt in front of him. He rushed inside, pressing the button for the top floor and tapping his foot on the ground impatiently as the grilles closed and the lift moved upward. It seemed like an eternity before the lifts stopped and he ran out, stopping suddenly when he came within sight of the fountain. Harry was sat against it, and the familiar form of Voldemort stood in front of him with his wand out.

"Something amusing, Potter?" Voldemort's cold voice echoed out.

"Carpe Retractum," Leo whispered, pointing his wand at Harry's leg.

He pulled hard on his wand as he heard Voldemort utter the spell that had nearly killed him earlier. Harry slid across the floor, only stopping when Leo grabbed him by his shoulder. Leo didn't look down at him as he glared at Voldemort with cold fury, enjoying the surprise and shock flitting across the snake's face as he turned to face him.

"You should not be here," Voldemort hissed.

"Not exactly like I have anywhere else to go," Leo pointed out. "You're blocking the bloody exit."

"You're dead!" shrieked Bellatrix, reminding Leo she was there as well. "I killed you!"

Leo stared at her for a moment.

"... You're serving a guy who came back from the dead who's been hunting a kid that was supposed to have been murdered and just so happens to be the nephew of a guy who was supposedly dead for almost fifteen years," he slowly informed her. "Honestly, you should've been more surprised if I didn't come back."

"Leo... you're alive," Harry whispered, still staring awestruck up at his cousin.

"Yeah, we've established that, Harry," Leo rolled his eyes before striding forward.

"Decided to challenge me, Black?" Voldemort cackled softly. "It didn't end so well for you last time -"

"Oh, stuff it, pumpkin spice," Leo snapped, eyes alighting with glee as Voldemort's narrowed angrily. "I saved Harry, killed your snake, and put a pumpkin on your head. I'd say I did pretty well."

Voldemort raised his wand and sent a jet of green light at Leo, who cast the Bird-Conjuring Charm to take the blow for him. He then cast the Severing Charm, not entirely surprised when Voldemort used the Shield Charm to protect himself. Leo used a modified Depulso and was quite satisfied when it broke through Voldemort's shield. Voldemort didn't hesitate before firing off another Killing Curse, which Leo again stopped with the Bird-Conjuring Charm. He cast the Knockback Jinx, grinning when Voldemort cast the Shield Charm once more.

"Ebublio!" Leo shouted, making an 'e' motion with his wand.

A bubble appeared around Voldemort, who looked quite irritated as a result. I'd say I'd hurt to burst your bubble, but... Leo snickered to himself before shooting flames out of his wand. The flames enveloped the bubble, and Leo frowned when he didn't hear any screams of anguish. He dove to the side as another Killing Curse fired at him, missing him and instead hitting the security guard's desk, which burst into flame.

"Confringo Maxima!" Leo shouted.

Voldemort conjured a silver shield to deflect the blow and staggered back slightly at the immense explosion. A large dent was now in the shield, and the fountain behind Voldemort had been obliterated. Bellatrix was nowhere to be seen and Leo was hoping that she had got caught in the explosion.

"You seek to kill me, Black?" called Voldemort, his scarlet eyes narrowed over the top of the shield. "Finally decided to embrace the darkness inside you?"

"Mate, that is so four chapters ago. Get with the times," Leo rolled his eyes, smirking when Voldemort's brow furrowed in mild confusion. "I'd say ask Rookwood if I've embraced my inner darkness, but he's not really up to talk right now – or ever, really."

"You killed Rookwood?" Voldemort hissed.

"You know, if we're going to take a break in our fight to talk, you could at least pay attention when I speak," Leo stated in a mock affronted tone.

Another jet of green light flew from behind the silver shield. Once more, Leo conjured birds to protect him. He was starting to feel bad about that now. He then drew back his wand as though brandishing a whip. A long thin flame flew from the tip; it wrapped itself around Voldemort, shield and all. For a moment, it seemed Leo had won, but then the fiery rope became a serpent, which relinquished its hold upon Voldemort at once and turned, hissing furiously, to face Leo.

Voldemort vanished. The snake reared from the floor, ready to strike. Voldemort reappeared, standing where the fountain had once stood.

"Look out!" Harry yelled.

But even as he shouted, one more jet of green light had flown at Leo from Voldemort's wand and the snake had struck. Leo waved his wand, turning the snake into a lion that lunged at the Killing Curse, swallowing it in its open jaws and exploding. Leo threw his arms up to protect himself as he flew back. He sat up, coughing as the black smoke infiltrated his lungs. He was about to call out for Harry when he realized that doing so would give their position away.

"You are more skilled than I gave you credit for, Black," Voldemort's voice seemed to echo from all around the room. "Perhaps you are the one..."

Leo wasn't quite sure what he was talking about, nor did he particularly care, if he was being perfectly honest. He tightened his grip on his wand, keeping his head down as he edged slowly in the direction Harry had been. He started coughing again before he decided to cast the Bubble-Head Charm on himself and then continued forward, now able to breathe better. Can't smell Harry with all this smoke about. I'll have to listen for him...

He closed his eyes, straining his hearing as much as he could. He heard a faint, smothered coughing off to his left and edged in that direction. He stopped when he reached a crouched figure and kneeled down beside Harry, casting the Bubble-Head Charm on him and then placing a finger to his lips. The teen nodded and they slowly edged back toward the lifts. Just have to wait for Draco and we can get the bloody hell out of here.

All of a sudden, the smoke cleared, and the prickling on the back of his neck alerted Leo that a predator was behind him. His body turned as he raised his wand to shout a spell. The spell never left his lips as something rammed into his side and knocked him to the ground. He looked up, having to shield his eyes from the bright green light and feeling something thump down across his lap.

His body felt stiff and frozen. He wanted to look down and see what had landed on him, but at the same time felt he was better off not knowing. His eyes moved on their own to rest on jet-black hair and wide-open green eyes hidden behind broken spectacles.

No. His mind uttered numbly. He can't be dead. He can't be. He shook his cousin – his brother – lightly, hoping to awaken him from his slumber. Some still functioning part of his brain told him that Harry never slept with his eyes open, and he certainly never stopped breathing. He's just trying to scare me. He's not really dead, he's just playing a prank. He's not dead, he's not. I refuse to believe it. He's not... he's not...

Leo let out a choked sob as he felt his heart crack in two. Tears streamed down his face as he bit down so hard on his lower lip that he drew blood, trying to keep himself from crying out. He made the mistake of looking down at Harry again and couldn't stop himself. He turned his head upward and let out a cry of anguish, unable and unwilling to stop the tears as they flowed more heavily now.

Leo had experienced a lot in his reasonably short life. He had been tortured many times with the Cruciatus Curse, almost had his arms clawed off by a hippogriff, and almost been eaten by a werewolf. He'd been close to having his soul sucked out on numerous occasions, been attacked by a snake, almost lost his hand after repeatedly cutting into it with a cursed quill, tossed down a flight of stairs, and had sort of come back from the dead not too long ago. But, even after all that, he had to say this was the most painful thing he had ever experienced.

It felt as though someone had plunged a rusty object into his chest and tried haphazardly to remove his heart. But there it still remained, heavily damaged and yet still beating, a constant reminder that Harry's never would. The person he loved most in this world lay dead in his arms, having died to save his life.

Leo let loose another scream of pure agony, not even caring that he was wide open to an attack from Voldemort, who appeared to be enjoying the show. Leo paid no heed as the ground beneath them began to rumble slightly, too consumed with his own pain and grief as he held Harry closer to him, his hands taking on an orange glow. He decided to unshackle his power, seeing no need to keep it trapped and hindered any longer. He heard footsteps behind him, saw a burst of orange behind his closed eyelids as a wave of pure, fiery magic pulsed from his body toward Voldemort, eliciting a yell from him.

He felt a hand close around his shoulder but didn't turn his head to see who it was. He felt a sharp pull behind his navel that he usually associated with Portkey travel and gripped Harry even more tightly, adamant in his refusal to release him. His knees made contact with familiar wood floors, and he knew he was back in Grimmauld, but he didn't care.

Harry Potter was dead and with him had died Leo's whole world.

A/N: Might take a bit to upload book six. I've been under a lot of stress lately between work and bills - not to mention a very close friend of mine was hospitalized because of the 'rona. Please be patient while I try to get my life together.