I've decided to start updating my three WIPs in a rotation, keeping two weeks between posting new chapters. I will also start putting the projected publishing date of the next chapter at the end of each update.
Thank you so much to everyone who has commented on this fic so far, every review I get absolutely makes my day!
Monday, June 30, 1997
Harry's mind was whirling, trying to calculate how the improbability that was standing in front of him had occurred. Regulus Black: the Death Eater who tried to back out and got killed for it… except he was alive and well.
"While I am pleased to know… of your continued health, Mr. Black… we must return to Hogwarts soon," Dumbledore said laboriously. Harry wrapped his hand around Dumbledore's waist, attempting to give the shaking man some support.
Regulus' keen gaze shot down to Dumbledore's blackened hand and shock entered his eyes. "Where did you come into contact with a Withering Curse?" he demanded.
"I became a sentimental old… fool and touched something… I should not have," the Headmaster explained, shaking the sleeves of his robes over his injured hand.
"You've clearly become more foolish since I last saw you, you brought Potter with you to deal with a bloody Horcrux!" Regulus spat.
Harry was only slightly offended by the vitriol directed toward him; his father had been a bully throughout his years at Hogwarts and it saddened him to think that Sirius' only brother may have been one of James' targets. It was also becoming more clear that Regulus, in whatever stasis he had been kept for the past eighteen years, had not been aware of the passing of years.
This thing all things devours...
Dumbledore's brow furrowed briefly at Regulus' antagonism toward Harry, understanding dawning on him soon after. "I believe… you are mistaken, dear boy —"
"It's currently 1997, and James Potter was my father," Harry cut in. While he was somewhat sympathetic toward the boy — waking up eighteen years in the future could not be easy — they truly did need to return to Hogwarts as soon as possible. Dumbledore was putting more and more weight on Harry's shoulder and Harry worried that he would not be conscious for much longer.
Regulus' mouth opened and closed soundlessly. His knuckles turned white as he attempted to strangle his own wand.
"Can you Apparate?" Harry asked, not unkindly. "We can figure this out after we get Professor Dumbledore to the Hospital Wing."
Regulus nodded. His arrogance had fallen away, replaced by a look of loss, as if he had been set adrift on an endless sea.
"Not Poppy, Severus… I need Severus," Dumbledore murmured.
Harry wanted to argue, but accepted that Dumbledore knew Snape's skills versus Pomfrey's better than him. He prepared to Apparate to Hogsmeade with Dumbledore, but something held him back.
"Here. I reckon people won't take too kindly to seeing a dead man walking about," said Harry. He held out his invisibility cloak to Regulus, the silvery material rustling in the wind.
"He's one of us, you know. Snape, I mean," Regulus said, warily accepting the cloak.
Who will be a traitor knave?
"Severus has my full trust," Dumbledore coughed out, sagging further against Harry.
Harry tried very, very hard to keep from panicking. He hastily told Regulus to meet them in front of the Three Broomsticks and then turned, feeling his way into the nothingness between the spaces of the world.
Once Hogsmeade blurred into being around the pair, Harry helped Dumbledore lean against the side wall of the Three Broomsticks, rolling out his shoulder in relief.
"Sir, just a little further now," Harry said, mentally cursing his past self's oversight in leaving his Firebolt in his dorm. "Perhaps I could find a broom lying around…"
"Rosmerta usually keeps a few spare brooms in the back room, if that hasn't changed," a disembodied voice sounded from behind Harry.
As if Regulus had summoned her, Rosmerta threw open the front door and ran toward Dumbledore.
"Albus!" she gasped, "What on Earth —"
"Long story," Harry interrupted, "Have you got any spare brooms? We've got to get back to Hogwarts."
"Well, yes, a few I suppose" Rosmerta sputtered, caught off guard.
"Accio Rosmerta's brooms!"
With a worryingly loud bang, two brooms burst through the front door and hurtled through the air to Harry.
"Professor, can you ride by yourself?" Harry asked, already mounting the broom closest to him.
"I must," Dumbledore replied, swinging a leg over his own broom with visible effort.
"Are you sure you want to head up there now, who knows what's happened," Rosmerta fretted, wringing her hands.
"What do you mean…" Harry trailed off as he stared at the castle in horror. A gleaming green skull with a snake extending from its jaws sat high above the Astronomy Tower — the Dark Mark.
"Rosmerta, please inform the Ministry," Dumbledore said, now deadly calm in the face of such danger, "We shall investigate."
"Of course, of course," Romerta hurried away, muttering to herself all the while.
"Let us fly," announced Dumbledore. He took the sky immediately, aiming straight for the blazing Mark.
"Get on the broom, Regulus," Harry hissed, making sure that Rosmerta was out of ear shot.
Regulus clambered onto the broom behind Harry, gingerly placing his hands on Harry's waist. He was forced to grip more firmly when Harry took off like a man possessed, easily catching up to Dumbledore.
"You fly like a madman!" Regulus hollered over the wind roaring in their ears.
"Youngest seeker in a century," Harry shot back, urging the broom to fly faster.
The Dark Mark drew ever closer as the Professor, student, and Death Eater sped through the air. Harry did not know how Death Eaters had even gotten into the castle, Hogwarts had always seemed impregnable to him. Was someone dead? Only teachers were out in the corridors this late…Harry's stomach sank as a horrible realization hit him: he had asked the DA to patrol the corridors tonight.
Scenario after terrible scenario raced through his mind. Hermione and Ron dead in the corridors, Ginny lying on the stairs, red hair spread out like a fiery halo, Parvati and Lavender slumped against a wall, blood trickling from their mouths.
"Eighteen years of war; how did it come to this?" Regulus asked as loudly as he dared, ripping Harry out of his violent thoughts. Harry winced as Regulus' hands dug into his side with more force than necessary.
"It hasn't been that long, Voldemort only came back recently," said Harry. Regulus flinched at the name and Harry rolled his eyes.
"Came back?"
"It's a long story, you've got a lot to catch up on."
"Fantastic," Regulus muttered.
Harry was not looking forward to informing Regulus that he was the last surviving Black, Sirius having passed away just last year. From what Sirius had told him, the two brothers' relationship had been antagonistic at best.
Hunching down, Harry guided his broom over the railing and jerked to a stop, nearly spilling off his passenger. The stones were awash with an eerie green light, the Dark Mark shining directly above their heads.
Dumbledore then joined them, staggering off his broom and leaning against the wall.
"Get Severus, Harry, as discussed," Dumbledore directed, breathing heavily.
Harry went to open the door that stood at the top of the staircase, but pounding footsteps suddenly sounded from the stairs and Harry hastily retreated, nearly backing into Regulus, who had been hovering by his shoulder.
Just before the door was ripped open, Harry felt the oddest sensation, as if a raw egg had been cracked upon his head.
Realizing where he had felt this before, Harry looked down at his hands. He had become invisible. He whirled around to face Dumbledore, intent on questioning him. It was not to be, however, as Harry's limbs abruptly froze and he found himself motionless.
"Expelliarmus!" Draco Malfoy cried.
Harry experienced a brief flash of vindication — he had known Malfoy was up to something! — before dread pooled in his stomach as he saw Dumbledore's wand go tumbling over the ramparts.
"At last, old man!" Draco crowed, leveling his wand at the defenseless Headmaster. The trembling of his hand belied his confidence.
Harry assumed Regulus was immobilized as well; Draco had not been attacked by an invisible figure yet.
"Draco," Dumbledore acknowledged, "Come to finish your task at last?"
"What would you know of my task?" Draco snarled.
"A fair amount, I imagine," Dumbledore said, pausing to draw in a rattling breath, "You've not been subtle."
In this valley of dying stars
Harry was forced to stand there, helpless, as Draco recounted his various attempts to kill the Headmaster over the past year, all while fixing up a broken Vanishing Cabinet.
"You're finished, Dumbledore," Draco laughed brokenly, "There are Death Eaters in your school tonight!"
Harry redoubled his efforts to break free of his unseen bonds when more footsteps approached the open door, echoing loudly in the stairwell.
Paralysed force, gesture without motion
Four black-robed figures burst through the door, spreading out in a line behind Draco. None of them sported the trademark silver masks of the Death Eaters, and Harry did not recognize a single one of them.
"Excellent," the shortest of the quartet hissed, gleefully advancing upon Dumbledore's flagging form.
"Stop!" a heavyset man shouted, dragging the woman away from Dumbledore. "This is Draco's task, you idiot."
"Yes, it is," said Draco, stepping forward.
In this hollow valley
"For my family," he whispered, pointing his wand at Dumbledore once more, "For my family."
The gathered Death Eaters nearly held their breath in anticipation, but no curse came from Draco's wand.
"You are not a killer, Draco," Dumbledore said gently. His eyes were bright, conveying a sense of forgiveness that Harry did not feel.
"I have to be!" Draco screamed.
For the third time that night, footsteps pounded up the staircase and Severus Snape burst into the room, quickly taking in the situation
"Well, Draco, what are you waiting for?" he snarled, eyes glittering with spite as he looked at the venerable Headmaster.
"He can't do it," the woman who had tried to attack Dumbledore giggled.
"He hasn't got the guts," another Death Eater added.
"Is that so?" Snape asked silkily, stalking to Draco's side. "Then I suppose I shall have to do it for him."
Harry was terrified to his very core. He disliked Snape, anyone who had witnessed Snape's vitriolic comments in Potions could attest to that, but he had never seen the man in such fine form. He was malice incarnate.
"Avada Kedavra!"
This broken jaw of our lost kingdoms
The force of the curse pushed Dumbledore over the railing, sending his body plummeting down to the unforgiving ground below. For a moment, no one moved. The very wind seemed to still and time itself slowed to a crawl.
Then everything exploded back into motion. The wind returned with a vengeance and the Death Eaters cleared out of the room quickly. Snape grabbed a frozen Draco Malfoy's robes and threw him bodily into the stairwell, slamming the door shut behind them.
They left not a moment too soon. The bindings keeping Harry captive released their hold and he toppled forward onto the hard stone floor. Stunned, Harry lay there for a second, trying to take in what had just happened.
"Bastard! I'll kill you!" Harry screamed, mind hazy with grief. He had not trusted Dumbledore, had not even particularly liked him toward the end, but he could not forget their relationship and the impact the Headmaster had had on him. His death was a huge blow to the Light.
He pushed himself up and ran for the door, intent on catching up to the fleeing Death Eaters. Regulus, however, had other plans. Harry hit Regulus' invisible arms and he choked, wind knocked out of him.
"Potter!" Regulus said, yanking the invisibility cloak off his head.
"Let! Me! Go!" Harry protested, fighting Regulus' surprisingly strong hold.
"Not until you calm down. If you go rushing off, you're liable to get yourself killed!"
Reluctantly, Harry ceased his wild thrashing. "I got the feeling that you'd rather like to see the back of me."
"I'm not about to let a good fighter and someone clearly important to the war go off half-cocked," Regulus spat, "What kind of idiot do you take me for?"
"How do you figure that I'm important to the war?" asked Harry, baffled by Regulus' deduction.
"Dumbledore wouldn't bring along just anybody to collect a Horcrux," Regulus stated, giving Harry a look that spoke volumes about his estimation of Harry's intelligence.
"It's Harry."
"Pardon?"
"Harry Potter," he repeated, pushing Regulus' arms away from him. The way Regulus had said his last name as if it was unworthy of even crossing his lips was too similar to Snape's for his comfort.
"Right," said Regulus, confused by Harry's abrupt change in mood.
"Let's go fight some Death Eaters, yeah?"
"Are you calm?"
"I'm as calm as I'm likely to get at the moment," Harry said honestly. He was still tense, body thrumming with furious energy. If he could not duel with Snape or Malfoy, he'd take the next best thing.
Regulus slowly grinned, nodding to Harry as he disappeared beneath the cloak once more.
"Let's."
The center of the fighting had not been hard to find, they simply followed the sound of screams. The Entrance Hall was unrecognizable. The walls had been painted crimson and blood liberally covered every surface, pooling beneath the various fallen fighters.
They dropped like flakes
Harry felt sick as he recognized several of the people moaning in pain on the ground. Neville was huddled in an alcove, pressing his hand against a sluggishly bleeding wound on his stomach.
They dropped like stars
Ernie Macmillan was lying beneath a giant tapestry, the slightest rise and fall of his chest the only indication that he remained alive. Justin Finch-Fletchley was crouched down next to him, seemingly searching for an opportunity to drag Ernie to a safer spot.
Like petals from a rose
Parvati Patil was fiercely duelling the short woman Harry had seen in the Astronomy Tower, using her own body to protect Lavender Brown, who was nursing a nasty gash in her leg.
When suddenly across the June
Harry let out an involuntary gasp when he saw a shock of brilliant red hair by the staircase. He felt guilty relief when he realized that the owner was too tall and bulky to be Ron. Picking his way across the outskirts of the fighting, he approached the man. Up close, he recognized Bill Weasley, his face slashed nearly in two.
A wind with fingers — goes
There was, thankfully, only one dead body that Harry could see — a Death Eater. The Death Eater was crumpled on the floor, his hands outstretched to his comrades, reaching out for salvation that would never come.
The supplication of a dead man's hand
With a snarl, Harry leapt into the fighting, shooting a Stunner at a Death Eater duelling Professor McGonagall. Startled, she cast Incarcerous before looking around for her saviour.
"Potter!" she gasped, "I thought you were out with Dumbledore."
"I was," Harry grunted, shielding against a nasty purple spell he could not identify.
"Good to have you back. Be careful!" With that, McGonagall strode away to help Parvati with her attacker.
Harry hadn't been able to bring himself to inform McGonagall of Dumbledore's demise; she did not need the distraction. Too much was at stake.
He did not know how long he fought, how long he dodged and cursed and vented, but eventually he found himself with no more enemies to fight. Red was all he could see, indelible blood staining his hands and skin.
Harry stumbled over to a nearby wall and slid to the floor. It was over. The Death Eaters had escaped. Dumbledore was dead.
"Harry!" a shout rang out, and Harry snapped his head up.
Hermione and Ron were running toward him, also coated in various shades of red. Hermione dropped to her knees beside him and crushed him in a hug.
"I'm so glad you're alright," she said, attempting to wipe some blood off his arm.
"Dumbledore's dead," Harry whispered dully.
"He can't be," said Hermione, her eyes filling up with tears.
"He's dead."
We are the hollow men
The next chapter will be published on 9/19/21.
Link to my discord server: discord. gg / UKJ9ehW7dZ
Poems Used:
"They dropped like Flakes" by Emily Dickinson
"Scots Wha Hae" by Robert Burns
"The Hollow Men" by T.S. Eliot
I also used a line from one of Gollum's riddles in The Hobbit, which is not technically a poem but I liked it, so I used it.