A/N: It has been a while since my last update. I've had quite a busy few years and some recent reviews have incentivized me to write some more. I've also made a few friends recently who have been encouraging my writing hobby. I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter right now, so please leave me a review so that I can get an idea of how my readers feel about it. Thanks.
-PP
The first Hogsmeade weekend fell on the last week in September and Harry was glad to see the first month's end. Ron and Hermione were celebrating her birthday belatedly, as a couple, and Harry was happy to see them walking down to the village in front of him, a grin on his face. Ginny had made plans with a fifth year Ravenclaw, William Webb who had met her in the entrance hall and they were already off on their own. Neville had been asked by Susan Bones to accompany her to the village, which had surprised everyone, including Neville. He was thinking about his friends and how they were slowly growing up and apart when he felt a small hand snake into his and grip it firmly. He looked to his right and found the hand was attached to Luna who was now pulling him toward the village.
"Come on Harry, no time to mope about we've got things to do." Harry laughed and allowed himself to be led down the path from the castle. They strolled slowly through the streets of Hogsmeade, looking in the windows of some shops and going into others. True to her House, Luna spent a lot of time in the bookstore, though not where Harry had expected her to go. She loaded what seemed like half of the new releases from the fiction section into Harry's arms before dragging him to the checkout queue. "Charge it to the Quibbler account Tobias, for…research." The old man nodded and scribbled out a receipt and had her sign it. He shrunk the books and handed them to Luna who dropped them into the hip pocket of her jeans.
"Where to now? Please don't say Madame Puddifoot's." Harry grinned as he retook Luna's hand and continued down the main street of Hogsmeade. He felt normal for the first time since Sirius fell through the veil. His heart wasn't as heavy as it once was, he didn't feel like he had a target on his back and he was genuinely enjoying his day out. He was about to thank Luna for the company and the time out when he felt a lot of aggression suddenly appear in the center of town. He barely had time to turn toward the presence when he heard the calls go out, "AVADA KEDAVRA!" Green light shot out in every direction from the center of Hogsmeade.
Instinct took over for Harry and he willed a wall between the attacking Death Eaters and the students who were reacting, just not nearly as fast as Harry was. Time seemed to slow as the spells flew through the air. Half of the first volley made it past his shield but the rest was redirected toward the sky. His PPK was in his hand before he realized he had drawn it. Tug, recoil, Death Eater down. Tug, recoil, Death Eater down. He walked calmly toward the group of terrorists and emptied his clip into the group. The Pureblood extremists didn't know what he was hitting them with but the last few had managed to deflect his shots with their shields. Half their number was on the ground with holes in their chests and blood staining the grass. This was supposed to be a quick shock and awe attack but it had ended before it began, and headed toward them without an ounce of mercy was a stone faced Harry Potter.
Harry growled as he saw the first few flee with their emergency portkeys and reached out with his mind. He found their essences winking away on a magical bungee cord and he grabbed them with all of his mental might and tugged as hard as he could. As soon as they were gone they were back again, sprawled on the ground and groaning. Flicking his wand he summoned the Death Eater's wands and the remaining port keys and gathered them in his satchel. Veteran members of the DA had arrived at this point and began binding the Death Eaters with ropes before Harry could order them to do just that.
Looking around Harry surveyed the aftermath of the short battle. The curses that had escaped his shield had nearly all struck inanimate objects, one had hit home however. Sullenly Harry made his way over to the small form that had been racing towards the door of the Three Broomsticks. Gently he turned the young girl's body over and gently closed her eyes with his hand. She was a third year Slytherin, actually quite a bright girl who hadn't acted out when his classes began a month before. He was still crouched over her when he heard the pops of apparition and looked over his shoulder to find an Auror squad looking dumbfounded. Harry looked at his watch and saw that their response time was only about 5 minutes; Madame Bones must have had a team ready to go should an alarm be sounded.
Standing he walked over to them and recognized Kingsley along with the Auror that had tried to arrest Dumbledore the year before, Dwalish. He walked up to his fellow Order member and nodded at him gravely, "Hey Shack, the assailants popped into town about five minutes ago and blind fired a barrage of killing curses into the crowd. I drew my sidearm and began returning fire. I must have spooked them or confused them with either my resistance or my weapon and those three," he gestured to the ones that weren't bleeding, "attempted to flee via port key. Luckily I was able to stop them before they activated and the students I've been training in defense showed up to bind them and keep guard." Harry's eyes travelled around to his friends whose wands were still pointed at the downed Death Eaters, silently thanking them for their action.
"There is one casualty, a third year Slytherin girl who was in the wrong place at the wrong time, Cassandra Wilkinson. She was a good kid, never acted out in class and was learning a lot from me, I wish I had acted faster." Harry shook his head and Kingsley laid a hand on his shoulder.
"Harry, you captured six Death Eater's with minimal casualties, you saved more lives than any of us could have, even with our increased response time. Don't beat yourself up for not being Superman." Harry sighed heavily but nodded to the Senior Auror. He knew he couldn't save everyone, but there was no reason a thirteen year old girl had to die, no matter the circumstances. He tapped the Headmaster and minutes later the Headmaster strode onto the green. Anger hardened his bright blue eyes as they scanned the scene in front of him. When they fell on the body of Cassandra he almost lost hold of his aura, Harry was being flooded by his mentor's emotions but on the outside he looked calm and collected.
"Auror Shacklebolt, thank you for your prompt response time, I see that Amelia has taken these threats seriously. Harry, can you tell me what happened?" Harry nodded and relayed his story, explaining how he noticed the incoming strike team and his attempts to prevent injury and loss of life. Dumbledore nodded as he finished his tale, "I know I don't need to tell you to make sure that you secure your weapon and don't let anyone get a hold of it. You have had special training to use it, but others, especially those from non-muggle backgrounds do not have any thought of the danger they could cause themselves if they got a hold of it."
Harry readily agreed, "Don't worry Headmaster, I know exactly the danger involved. I have a special government permit to even have a handgun; I had to take a ton of tests to show that I know what I'm doing and that I'm responsible. Now that you bring it up, I was wondering what the overall opinion of muggle weaponry is among wizarding kind." Dumbledore gestured to a nearby bench and the two wizards took a seat, watching the activity on the green as the Aurors identified the assailants and matched them with their wands before shipping them via port key to a holding area in the Ministry of Magic. The veteran members of the DA were comforting students that had been outside when the attack occurred, standing by as other Aurors took their statements. Both men smiled as the students banded together across house lines to ensure that everyone was ok. Members from all houses comforted the classmates of Cassandra, worried more for the well being of the younger students than they were for their petty rivalries.
"Muggleborns have been coming to Hogwarts since the time of the founders, and back in those days it wasn't uncommon for students of noble birth to be seen throughout the castle with a sword on their hip, it was their way of fitting in with their countrymen when they returned home after schooling. As muggle weaponry advanced so did the accessories of our students. Rules were made and broken about carrying firearms around the castle and they were cause for much strife between muggleborn/half-blood students and their pureblood counterparts. The purebloods, of course, believed magic to be the most powerful weapon and they saw no use for what they referred to as 'toys'." Dumbledore stopped here as Professors McGonagall and Flitwick arrived from the castle.
"Minerva, Filius, could you please organize the students and have them return to the castle? If you see Aberforth have him send up a few cases of Butterbeer on the school's tab. Advise the House Elves we will be having a memorial service after dinner for Ms. Wilkinson." The faces of the two Professors hardened as they glanced at the aurors and then nodded at Dumbledore and then McGonagall smiled at Harry, patting his shoulder before moving away to gather the students. "Now where was I Harry? Ah yes, so as time went on things evened out and muggleborns were less likely to have weapons of their own while in the teens beyond their wands and a knife, nothing more than any wizard in the school. Then the first World War began and our muggleborn Seventh years didn't return for their final year - most of them never made it back to finish their studies." Dumbledore looked off into them middle distance and Harry saw his eyes glisten before he began speaking again.
"As you probably know we were more involved in the Second World War. Grindelwald was involved and the queen recruited shock troopers from the Auror Corps to combat his troops, and the day Berlin fell Gellart and I had our final showdown. Those Aurors brought back stories of the horrible weapons the muggles had manufactured to bring pain and suffering to their enemies. The statute of secrecy was updated and laws were enacted along with the Geneva Convention that barred the use of biological weapons against wizarding kind. The protego charms of the aurors involved in the war were more than enough protection from bullets so firearms such as your handgun were never made illegal or of much concern to the average wizard. The point, Harry, of my very long story is that while purebloods may look down upon your using a muggle weapon to defend yourself, it is not inherently illegal or taboo."
Harry nodded and pointed as Professor Snape stalked onto the Green and stopped short as he saw the sheet over the small body being guarded by Aurors. He made to push through them but Dumbledore called him off. "Severus, if you would leave them to their duties I think Harry can tell you what you need to know." The grim professor frowned slightly and then made his way over to where they were sitting. Harry filled Professor Snape in on the attack, rolling his eyes at Snape's grimace when he explained that he shot half of the attackers before preventing their escape. "Why is it, Mr. Potter, that the only student that was not protected by this shield was one of my house?"
Harry stood and met eyes with the Potions Professor, his growth spurt over the summer negating the height advantage the man once had on him. "She was at the furthest side of the green and I was erecting a shield that would deflect a bloody KILLING CURSE. I am not a god Professor, and I don't pretend to be. There are limits to my power just like anything else and unfortunately one of my favorite students paid the price for that limit. If you could possibly think that I would let a student die just because of their house than you have no IDEA who I am or what I believe in." He turned to Dumbledore and nodded, "Headmaster." Before turning on his heel and storming out of the center of the village and towards the gates of Hogwarts.
"I think, Severus, that you may have been more than a little out of line." Commented Dumbledore, standing from the bench and stretching in the autumn sun. Snape just growled and crossed his arms, glaring at the Auror's keeping watch over the corpse of the sole victim of the attack.
Harry got halfway to the gates of Hogwarts before someone calling his name stopped him. Turning he saw Luna, Ron, Ginny, and Hermione jogging up the path behind him. Hermione, in her typical fashion, threw her arms around him when she got close enough, "Harry are you okay? That was crazy. We were waiting for you to finish talking to Kingsley and Dumbledore but then you got mad and stormed off." Harry squeezed her back before she let go and stepped back, her hand falling to meet Ron's. Luna slid into place next to him and wrapped her arm around his, leaning into him, silently lending him her strength and support. "I'm fine Hermione, I promise. Professor Snape was upset because one of his students needlessly lost her life and he took it out on the most convenient target. I can't blame him, I want to go to the Aurors' holding cells and beat some sense into those Death Eaters." Harry sighed heavily and looked up at the orange sky, a few post owls making their way from the owlery crossing his vision.
"I know I can't save everyone, and I know that nobody expects me to, but I still feel like I should have done more. I spend time training but I'm going to spend some time re-thinking how I'm going to structure my training sessions. I need to be able to approach situations and evaluate them quicker than I did today. I may have hesitated for only a few seconds but those seconds could have saved Cassandra." All four of his friends began to speak but he put his hand up, "I know, I can't hold myself responsible, I'm not looking at the past, I'm looking forward and seeing how I can be better. Ron, I have some ideas for you and Neville, it is a litter bit unorthodox but it will be building on what you guys have been learning from Simon and Coggy." Harry turned and gave Luna a hug. "I'm going to go visit Professor Smith, I have a few things that I need to talk to her about. I'll be back before dinner, if you guys see any of the lower years of Slytherin tell them that I'll be stopping by later to check in on them." His friends readily agreed and he turned and translocated to the hallway outside of Elena's office.
He knocked and waited for Elena to answer before he opened the door and walked in. Dropping into one of her guest chairs he looked across the desk at her, the concerned look on her face told him that Dumbledore had already spoken to her about the events at Hogsmeade. After a few minutes of silently examining each other across the desk Elena broke the silence, "Do you want to talk about it?" Harry broke eye contact and looked down at his hands, flexing them on the arms of the chair before casting his eyes back up, "I did a lot of things today without much conscious thought. The shield? Sure, I've done that thousands of times, I know how strong it is. But I ripped those men back through the magic their port keys created and dumped them onto the ground. I have no idea how I did that, I'm a little bit scared of what I could do if I got mad at someone. My temper isn't exactly my best quality."
Elena touched her fingertips together and felt the worry flow from her pupil's psyche. "Harry, did you want to kill those men?" Harry sunk further into the chair, his hands continuing to flex on the chair arms. "I know whenever I draw my weapon that there is the possibility that someone may lose their life, but…no, I wanted to stop them. I wanted to protect the lives of the students and the people of the village." Elena nodded at this and took a moment to formulate her thoughts before speaking, "As you know, our power, the strength behind it and our ability to shape it is based entirely on our will and our intent. Magic works the same way, Dumbledore will tell you that. If you don't drive your magic or your psionic power with will and intent nothing will happen. If you blindly use your power as you did today, and your intent is to use less-than-lethal force then that is what will happen. Accidents happen of course, one of those terrorists could have landed on a shard of glass or hit their head exceptionally hard, but your direct action will be guided by your intent. Do not be afraid of the power you posses, embrace it, and it will not fail you."
"Thank you Elena, I appreciate your guidance. The students might need some grief counseling later on and the rest of the weekend if you have time to stop by." Elena agreed and Harry stood to leave. As he opened the door she spoke again, her soft voice causing him to pause halfway out the door, "You are no killer Harry. Any lives you take will be in the defense of yourself or, more likely, in the defense of others. Don't forget, you are a beacon for our side. If you ever need to talk I'll be here, and I'll stop by the castle after dinner for any students that feel the need to talk about what happened today. Please feel free to announce that at dinner when you get back." Harry turned and flashed a weak smile in her direction before continuing out the door and closing it behind him.
When he translocated back to the gates of Hogwarts the sun was beginning to set over the lake. He took his time climbing the path to the castle, not looking forward to the reactions and moods of his classmates. He was not looking forward to his Slytherin/Hufflepuff third years this week, Cassandra's empty seat already haunting him. As he entered the castle Dinner was already underway so he made his way to the Great Hall to join the rest of the school. Nearly every student in the room looked up as he entered but most of them returned to their meal after seeing whom it was. The walls were decorated in black and Slytherin green and students across the hall wore armbands of similar coloring. Harry made his way towards the Slytherin table and to the section where the third years congregated. He put a hand on the shoulder of Cassandra's best friend, Maggie, and asked how she was doing. In response she turned and flung her arms around his waist, burying her face into his jumper and sobbing. He shifted his hand and returned the hug as he explained to the students in earshot that Professor Smith would be by after dinner to schedule grief counseling for anyone that needed to talk.
Draco stalked down the table and sneered at Harry comforting his housemate, "Haven't you done enough damage Potter? It is because of you that we're one person short tonight." Shocked gasps spread through the hall as Draco's taunt had carried over the abnormally silent crowd of students. Snape had left his chair at the same time Draco stood to confront Harry and he made it to Draco's side in time to give Harry a slight shake of his head, causing the Assistant Professor to divert whatever response he had ready. "Draco, you know as well as the rest of us that we would be mourning the death of more students if it weren't for Professor Potter's quick acting and the actions of his Defense Group. This is not the way to honor the memory of one of our housemates. Return to your seat, we will discuss this further after dinner." Draco glared at his godfather for a long moment before turning on his heal and stalking back towards his friends. Snape gave Harry a curt nod and returned to his place at the head table. Harry followed him up and stood at the podium used for announcements.
"As I'm sure Headmaster Dumbledore has explained, we have unfortunately lost one of our family today in an attack on Hogsmeade. Cassandra was one of my most attentive students and was set to be the top of her year in Defense Against the Dark Arts. I for one will miss her in my classroom, as I'm sure the rest of you will miss her in yours," Harry paused ere to conjure an armband and slide it on his left arm, "For those of you in need of someone to talk to, Professor Smith will be around after dinner, please speak to her then to make an appointment for tomorrow. I am also available during my normal office hours this week if you need to talk about anything, Defense related or otherwise. Thank you." He stepped down from the stage and made his way over to the Gryffindor table where his friends had a place for him with a full plate of food under a stasis charm.
Thanking them profusely Harry dug enthusiastically into his meal, listening to his friends chatter on about the events of the day, lamenting the loss of a student, surprisingly few of them even mentioning that she was a Slytherin. Soon Harry was done eating and was enjoying spending the time with his friends without any responsibilities looming over his head. He knew as soon as he went to sleep Cassandra's death would be haunting him, but he knew that he would be able to handle it in time, fighting it as fact wasn't going to help anything. It wasn't until Hermione's hand was rubbing the back of his neck that he realized he had nodded off at the table. "Why don't you head to bed Harry, we'll be up in a bit, but you've had a longer day than the rest of us. Harry smiled at her and then looked around at the concerned faces of his housemates. He silently agreed and gave a wave as he stood before slowly making his way out of the Great Hall.
Exhausted, both physically and mentally, Harry didn't dare risk punching his way through the wards, as much as the idea appealed to him in his current state. He began to make his way up the moving staircase, being careful to avoid the hazards on the way. When he reached the seventh floor he became aware of the sound of footsteps coming up the stairs behind him. Reaching out he attempted to determine whether it was friend or foe based on the emotions they were emanating. When he felt nothing coming from his pursuer he relaxed, and when they reached the seventh floor he was leaning against the wall. "Hello Luna, turning in early as well?" The smile she returned in way of greeting invigorated him and he held his arm out to her, which she took and began dragging him down the hall.
"I am indeed Harry, and I thought that with all the excitement today it might do me some good to have an escort to ensure that I reach my dorm." Harry shook his head but followed her lead; that Ravenclaw tower was two floors below didn't seem to bother her. "You did good today Harry, you didn't let them get away, those men will pay for what they've done." Harry grimaced but silently agreed; pulling her into a hidden staircase that would take them down to the fifth floor. As they reached the tapestry that separated their path from the main corridor Luna tugged at his hand, stopping him from stepping through. He turned to her and raised his eyebrow, "Harry, our date today did not end the way that I planned." She pushed his back against the wall and looked up into his eyes. Her shield faltered momentarily and a wave of nervous anxiety washed over him and, smiling down at her, he took the initiative.
Wrapping his arms around her, Harry lifted her slightly into him, shifting one hand to brush her hair back before dropping his lips to hers, closing his eyes as he kissed her. It began as a soft, exploratory action, but before long it became eager and Harry had Luna held against the wall, bracing her there with his body as they melted into each other. Words escaped them as they smashed their lips together, Luna making small noises of pleasure as their activities continued. Harry's hands slid under her jumper, tickling her as he traced his way around her waist to the small of her back. Luna's arms hooked around his neck, holding him in place as her lips trailed
Some time later they were coming down from their high, lips bruised from over use and small smiles on their faces. "Come on," Harry said, taking her hand and pulling her through the tapestry, "Let's get you to your dorm before you turn into a pumpkin." This elicited laughter from the younger girl who practically skipped the last fifty yards to the passage that lead to the guardian of Ravenclaw tower. Harry pulled Luna into a hug before slowly letting her go, stealing a final kiss before watching her walk away. As she reached for the bronze knocker she threw one last mischievous grin over her shoulder before she answered whatever riddle it asked and slipped into her common room.
The grin on Harry's face remained the entire way back to the Fat Lady who simply raised an eyebrow at his goofy look as he gave her the password. Still early on a Saturday evening, the common room was relatively empty as he made his way across and up to his dorm room. Once he was in bed he began his now nightly ritual of clearing his mind and organizing his memories. As he reviewed the battle he made mental notes of things he could work on. Before long he was pulling his blankets higher and slowly allowing sleep to overtake him. By the time Ron and Neville made it back to the tower to check on him, he was fast asleep.