CHAPTER FOUR
Here I am,
lost in the light of the moon
that comes through my window
Bathed in blue,
the walls of my memory divide
the thorns from the roses
It's you and the roses
Touch me and I will follow
in your afterglow
Heal me from all this sorrow
As I let you go
I will find my way
when I see your eyes
Now I'm living in your afterglow
Here I am,
lost in the ashes of time,
but who wants tomorrow?
In between
the longing to hold you again
I'm caught in your shadow,
I'm losing control
My mind drifts away,
we only have today
Touch me and I will follow
in your afterglow
Heal me from all this sorrow
As I let you go
I will find my way
I will sacrifice
'til the blinding day
when I see your eyes
Now I'm living in your afterglow
When the faith has gone
as I let you go,
as I let you go
Touch me and I will follow
in your afterglow
Heal me from all this sorrow
As I let you go I will find my way,
I will sacrifice
Now I'm living in your afterglow
Bathed in blue,
the walls of my memory divide
the thorns from the roses
It's you who is closest
(Afterglow: INXS)
Harry loved this. He moved gracefully, almost, moving and twisting his limbs in moves that looked like they shouldn't be possible. The Death Eaters didn't stand a chance, they were already reduced to half their numbers, and Harry wasn't even trying. When he heard a noise behind him he turned sharply and saw the occupants of Hogwarts crossing the grounds, wands drawn.
He signalled to Samara and she hurried to meet them before they got involved, it was best not to get too close to the young samurai when he was in his element. Suddenly, one of the older pureblood Death Eaters drew out a sword, probably an old family heirloom. Pathetic Harry thought He can't even hold it right.
Harry withdrew his own katana from within the folds of his cloak and blocked the attack. The other Death Eaters followed and conjured up weapons of their own. Now its getting interesting he though, twisting and sliding, seeming to flow from one move to the next. Within ten seconds all his opponents were on the ground knocked out cold.
Hermione was watching the mysterious fighter with great interest. He's amazing she thought, marvelling at his speed and precision. Suddenly he disappeared only to materialize right in front of the group. Hermione saw he was tall and could tell he was powerful- it was rolling off him in waves.
For some strange reason, she felt like she used to know him, like she had known him all her life. Hermione was puzzled. Where did that come from? She studied the two people in front of her, not very well though, for their hoods were still covering their faces.
One was obviously a woman, small and curvaceous with blonde hair spilling over her cloak. Her partner was as she already said, tall and underneath his shirt, they could all see he was muscular, but lean. After a few moments of silence Dumbledore began to ask questions about the strangers.
"What are your names?" he asked, knowing they were not evil, but it was better to be safe then sorry.
"A name is just a name," the man answered cryptically, smiling slightly under his hood. Harry finally got to turn the tables on the old man.
Dumbledore seemed to find this enough, surprisingly, and asked the next best question. "Would you please roll up your sleeves?" he asked politely.
Harry and Samara looked at each other, seeming to communicate silently and simultaneously rolled up the sleeves, revealing their left forearms. They bore no Dark Mark, but instead, both had a small, black tattoo. It looked to be Japanese and Hermione recognised it on the man as the symbol for 'courage' and on the woman, 'spirit'.
Harry decided to have some fun and turned to Neville, on Dumbledore's right. "Hey Neville, what's it like being the 'Chosen One'?" he asked, smirking at the incredulous looks on peoples faces. He heard Samara laughing inside his head. Luna stepped forward.
"How did you know about that?" she asked, her voice firm, no longer dreamy and far away. Harry looked her over, noticing how much she had grown up. She used to be so little!
"I listen, I watch," he answered, still not giving anything away. Seeing the look on McGonagall's face he added with a smile "Don't worry, we're not here to hurt you. Except for maybe Ron- are you okay Hermione?" She looked up sharply and saw concern etched on his face.
"Yes, I'm fine," mumbled the bushy haired girl. Only her hair wasn't bushy anymore, but hung in stunning curls to just above her shoulders. She had grown as well, not too tall, and she had grown small curves in all the right places. To Harry she was perfect
Hermione was getting a little scared, the strange man continued to stare at her and she pleaded to whatever god was listening for something to distract him Luckily McGonagall noticed her discomfort and began firing questions at them, but Harry was still incapable of speech, still staring at Hermione. The poor girl looked kind of scared.
Samara answered the questions as best she could, while trying not to give too much away. She decided to answer truthfully and told them she was nineteen. They all looked astonished. Samara smiled; hardly able not to laugh when she told them Harry was only seventeen- Flitwick fainted.
The students watching from the windows were in awe- that guy just took out twenty odd Death Eaters by himself and didn't have a scratch on him. Now him and his friend were talking to the teachers like it was nothing.
Suddenly the two figures looked at each other and in perfect unison, turned to Dumbledore and inclined their heads in goodbye. They then melted into the shadows, leaving nothing but their defeated opposition and a stunned audience in their wake.
