Chapter 19: Betrayal
Harry had, in part, been grateful for the way the older masters had kidnapped them, in the guise of a training exercise. It had kept him distracted enough to forget that they were going to be attempting to rip a piece of Voldemort's soul out of his head the next morning, with few guarantees of success.
However, as he lay awake in his bed that night, tossing and turning, he couldn't stop thinking about the morning. It wasn't that late, only ten thirty, so he decided to get a cup of tea and do some reading.
Grabbing his wand, and putting on his slippers and night robe, he padded quietly into the small kitchenette of his and Snape's living quarters. He was just settling in with his Earl Grey and a copy of a book on military strategy, when Snape came out with a Potions journal.
"Water is still hot," Harry muttered from where he sat on the sofa. "Couldn't sleep."
"I imagine not," Snape said wryly. "I couldn't either. You'll be fine."
Harry shook his head. "Maybe. It's unnerving. And to know how much pain you went through with the Mark being removed…"
"Would you have preferred I lied?" Harry was sure he was mistaken, but thought he had heard a kind of gentleness in the man's voice, perhaps a regret in his words. He thought about it for a moment, but knew the answer was unmistakably 'no.'
"Why are you up yet?"
Snape watched his tea steep. "Knew you'd be awake. You're worried about tomorrow. It seems cruel to make you worry alone."
"I'm worried about Ginny," Harry said quietly. "I didn't realize how much her first year had affected her."
"The mind is a fragile thing," Snape admitted quietly. "Our history has a way of breaking into who we are. Pandora is one of the strongest children I've met, not unlike you in your early years."
Harry nodded. "I know…"
"A word of advice, Aeter? Don't let your feelings for somebody interfere with the choices that are theirs to make. Doing so will only push her away from you."
"But if I can help protect—"
"It is not your place to push your aid on others," Snape's voice hardened. "If I were to declare you could not help in the war effort at all? To suggest that you stay here, an obedient apprentice and focus on your studies, while I go to War Council meetings? Pandora is no happier with your role in war than you are with hers."
Harry nodded, thinking about that. He had never considered how his friends had felt about him stepping into danger.
"Perhaps some distraction? We don't spend near enough time on Latin anymore," Snape sighed wistfully. Harry laughed. His mentor enjoyed the challenge of languages. Like Potions was an exercise in discipline and routine, the very act of learning languages seemed to soothe those tendencies in the man. Harry could see the excitement soften his features as he talked about translational choices.
Finally, his mind sufficiently distracted, and Snape seeming much calmer through the language practice, they called it a night at eleven.
As Harry pushed open the door to his bedroom, Snape stopped him. "Aeter, I am proud of you. You will be okay tomorrow."
Harry nodded. "Thank you, Sir."
In addition to Masters Saldor and Atwater, they had brought in two other healing masters to assist in the removal of the Horcrux, should anything for wrong. So at 10 am, Saldor, Atwater, Snape, Richards, Voss, Sterling, Dumbledore, and Pomfrey all crammed into the private room, Harry and Ginny already lying on the beds.
Saldor had already explained that he would place the two into a magical coma, enabling them to not feel what was happening, where they would return to the waking world, hopefully, once the soul pieces had been eradicated. They explained that they felt it best to do both at the same time, as they had no idea if one soul-piece would seek the other, if done at different times. Harry doubted it would make a difference, though he was hardly the expert.
Breathing deeply, Harry closed his eyes as he waited for Master Atwater's spell to render him unconscious. He was grateful for the impact, as he drifted into the nothingness.
Harry didn't know, nor did he truly care, how long he drifted in that space between time and place. He was aware, in the back of his mind, what was happening in the Hospital Wing behind him, of course, but he was calm in this space.
However, as Harry drifted, he slowly became aware of the sensation that there was a beating drum beginning in his mind. He cringed for a moment, even as the beating became louder, and steadier, as though the beat had found its rhythm. The stronger it got, the more keenly aware Harry was that his head was beginning to throb in time to the beating. As it throbbed, Harry couldn't resist the sensation that the darkness around him had become far less peaceful and more nefarious in nature.
The darkness now felt like an entity closing in around him, but he could not move. He tried to force himself to wake up, but found himself still in the clutches of the ever-reaching sensation of hopelessness. Time still had no meaning, here, but that was precisely what allowed hopelessness to grow, until his heart beat in time with the drumming, and his gut turned inside out. His head was heavy, and he felt his spirit burdened with the darkness.
The sensation of being squeezed gripped his head, harder and harder, as though it would never release him, and suddenly—though they had grown slowly—the beating stopped, and the squeezing sensation stopped, and the hopelessness receded a small bit, not disappearing, but just out of immediate reach, leaving only the darkness still grasping around Harry.
He lifted his hand, looking at it, and reaching out, toward what, he did not know. Or perhaps, to whom, he did not know. All he knew was that he was reaching toward courage and hope, because he was alone here. In his imagination, he felt a hand grasp his, a hand on his shoulder, his hair pushed back lightly, a kiss placed on his brow, and warm arms embrace him. He closed his eyes and leaned into these emotions. This, he knew, is what it felt to be loved by family, both chosen and biological. He would never take that feeling for granted.
When he opened his eyes back to this dreamscape, he found that it had changed. Instead of darkness, he found himself in a sitting room, bathed in a warm firelight, in cozy sofas. Beside him on a love sofa was Ginny. And, he tried to shake himself awake, because holding hands on the other side of the coffee table, was a red-haired woman with his green eyes, and a man in eschewed glasses, with hair that wouldn't stay neat.
"I-" Harry's voice was hoarse. "How?"
The woman smiled, he dared not call her Mum, "Harry, dear, you know of the horcrux?" Harry nodded. "It is almost destroyed. I daresay, the two of you make quite a pair. You can still defeat it."
Beside him, Ginny grasped his hand in hers and squeezed. Harry had eyes only for the man and woman in front of him though. "Why are you here?"
James smiled sadly. "You have so much to give, and have already. Magic itself has taken from you, and magic would have you decide: are you willing to continue the fight?"
"What other option is there?" Harry asked. He glanced out of the window: where sunlight should have been, a swirl of black was surrounding, the same darkness, Harry realized.
"You could stay with us, here," Lily answered wistfully. "Both of you are permitted."
"We could?" Harry was excited. "But," he stopped, looking more intently out the window. "What of the rest? The world? Hogwarts? The Mastery?"
The pair remained silent, so Ginny answered. "They would fight without us, and perhaps win. But they would probably perish in the attempt, wouldn't they? That, out there, is the world, isn't it?"
Both adults smiled sadly. "You are right, of course," Lily smiles sadly.
"I must go back," Harry felt the tears prick at his eyes. "But why you?"
James smiled at his son. "Because even magic thinks it is a sin to tear a babe from its mother. We have a few minutes. Son, I am so proud of you, and everything you have become."
Harry smiled as he finally let the tears wet his face. "Thanks, Dad. I miss you. And you, Mum."
Lily was crying unabashedly now. "We miss you, too. But you have the best people watching out for you."
"Severus is doing a fine job," James admitted, looking as though he couldn't believe he said it. "Tell him to keep it up, he's a good man, and the father I could never be for you."
"Ginny, dear," Lily began, looking at the girl, "tell your mother thank you. She is the best mother my boy could have. And now that you two are bound-"
"WHAT?!" Both teens reacted loudly.
"Don't believe those trashy stories," Lily shook her head. "It's not a soul-bond, those don't work that way. You've experienced a lot together and have stood beside each other through everything. Yours is a bond of choice, broken and made only through choice. But I can see how deeply you care for one another. Yours is a friendship of deep respect and empathy for one another. When that happens, your magic can react in interesting ways. That was evident, as you both unconsciously reached toward one another through the darkness. It is why Ginny is here now, you brought her with you."
James reached his other arm toward his wife. "Time is running short," he announced. "You must choose to stay here, or walk out into the darkness. We love you."
After hugging both of his parents, Harry reached his hand out to Ginny. "Ready?" she asked him. Taking a deep breath, he nodded, and the two walked through the door, returning Harry to the peaceful nothingness that had begun.
The first thing Harry noticed was how hard his head was pounding. The second thing was the quiet whispers surrounding him.
"How much longer do you think it will be?" Snape was asking, anxiety creeping into his voice. "Surely he should have awoken by now?"
Saldor was the one who responded, though Harry wasn't sure if anybody else was in the room. "You saw how disjointed Ginny was when she awoke on Tuesday-"
Harry startled. Tuesday? They had done the removal on Saturday morning, surely it hadn't already been two days. He wanted to open his eyes, but his head pounded, and his eyelids felt heavy. Before he could fight it, he felt himself drifting back to sleep.
When he came to again, he felt a sigh. "I'm worried," it was Snape again. "Something has gone wrong, surely."
"Have faith in your boy," Dumbledore was here now. This time, Harry's head was still pounding, he didn't even try to open his eyes, though he desperately wanted to announce that he was okay. Instead, he waited, listening. "Harry has already proved he will not stop fighting, Severus, allow him to fight."
"Thank you, Headmaster," Snape said. Harry felt a wet rag wipe his forehead, and suddenly realized how hot he had been. "I hope this fever breaks soon, at least."
"He is a fighter, Master," Ginny's voice, and a soft hand in his, "he will be okay." Harry drifted off again, allowing Ginny's voice to soothe him to sleep.
"That's definitely a good sign," Master Atwater sighed, "his eyes are much more active now, I think he's just sleeping now, and has entered REM. He should be awake any moment now, Severus."
"Thank Merlin," the man sighed in relief.
"G' M'rnn'," Harry tried to greet, trying not to acknowledge the pounding that was centralized in his head and tried to sit up.
"Those were hardly intelligible words, Aeternus," Snape snarked, though Harry could hear the relief in the man's words. "Here, water. Drink." Harry obeyed, keeping his eyes closed, gulping from the cup as he suddenly realized how dry his throat was. "Sip slowly, unless you wish to be sick."
Finally, ignoring the warning signal being sent to his brain, Harry opened his eyes, taking in the darkened room. Snape was sitting in a chair to the right of his bed, while Atwater was standing over him on the other side. At the foot of his bed, Harry saw a small pile of gifts, though he was surprised as he had not realized this would be made public.
Finally, he sat up, small as he could and said, "Hi."
A small smile settled on Atwater's face. "Hi, Aeter. Welcome back to the world of the living."
Harry leaned back into the bed, accepting the potions that Atwater gave him, unable to control his face at how foul most of them were. As he finished, he drifted back into deep sleep, allowing his body to continue healing.
It was not until the next morning that Harry woke again, though he felt much better when he did. It was only Ginny in the room, reading a textbook. "Hi, Gin," Harry smiled as she jumped.
"Harry! I'm so glad you're awake! I was so mad when I missed it last night!"
"How are you feeling?"
Ginny rolled her eyes. "I've been awake for a week now, and you're asking how I am?"
Harry closed his eyes. "Oh, it's been that long?"
"They removed the horcrux ten days ago," Ginny confirmed. "I have to get Madam Pomfrey or Master Atwater. Don't move."
"Like I could," Harry muttered as she hurried out of the room. His muscles all felt tight and heavy, and if he hadn't moved in ten days, well. Moving would take awhile.
It was Madam Pomfrey who came in with Ginny a few minutes later, bustling around the room, passing Harry potions and running scans. "You'll likely be fatigued for a time. It's important you get your rest. Pandora, dear, Master Saldor has asked that you join him in the Great Hall, if Harry were to awake."
Ginny looked reluctant, but eventually nodded, reaching down to hug Harry and walk off. "Everyone's at the Halloween feast, dear, but young Mister Creevey is asking to see you. Do you want to see him?"
Harry's eyes widened. It was Halloween? Now, likely realizing Harry was indisposed would be a fine time to-Harry frowned. There was no way Madam Pomfrey would allow him to leave, so he needed to get alone somehow. "Sure, Madam Pomfrey. Say, I would love to study my Latin, could you send somebody to get it? Colin and I will be fine alone for fifteen minutes."
After Madam Pomfrey had sent Colin Creevey into the room, intending on taking his pictures, Harry was already beginning to scurry around the room. "Colin, hand me my boots will you?"
Colin was surprised, peering at Harry. "Surely, Harry-"
Harry looked up. "Boots, Colin."
The boy meekly began to reach toward the boots, not wanting to fight the boy. After watching Harry, Colin finally spoke up. "You need to get back in bed, you are not ready to be up and around. I'm not letting you-"
Harry growled. "At risk of formal reprimand, Colin, help me." After a few minutes, Colin reluctantly looked down and helped Harry get dressed.
"Are you going to tell me what's going on?" Colin asked as Harry pulled his Guard robes on.
"I'm going to the feast," Harry responded, stepping toward the door, using every fiber of his being to make sure Colin didn't realize how unsteady he was on his feet still.
The Great Hall was a cacophony of noise, when Harry reached the doors, Colin scurrying next to him, objecting.
"For all that is good and holy," Harry muttered as they got closer to the door. "Colin, it is imperative that you are silent and act like nothing has changed."
Colin, dismayed at the scolding and confused at the order, closed his mouth. For his part, Harry sat outside the Great Hall, peering around the heavy doors, and watching. The tables had returned for the Halloween feast, and Harry noted a Ravenclaw seventh year had stood from her spot and was taking out her wand.
"Stupefy!" Harry turned and cast directly at Colin, whose eyes widened in surprise as the spell drew near. "Incarcerous!" Harry cast. "I'm not an idiot, Colin," Harry muttered, walking past the immobilized boy into the Great Hall.
By Harry's luck, the girl turned and saw him, her wand already in her hand. Her mouth drew into a small surprise. She glanced up at the head table, clearly bemoaning her original target, and began casting at Harry. Within seconds, she was lying unconscious on the ground, the target of no fewer than four stupefies.
Harry swayed for a moment, standing at the foot of the Mastery's table, on the far end of the Hall. "I guess we found them."
"Sit down, you idiot," Isaac, who had been seated at the end of the table pushed him into the seat. "Master Silverwood, it seems Aeter has already rendered someone unconscious in the Entrance Hall." Isaac was already on his way to check Colin, as Harry placed his head in his arms on the table and closed his eyes, sinking back into darkness.
