Chapter Twelve

Harry knew the way around the castle in the dark by instinct. He had walked it and climbed it so many times the only difficulty he had was in guiding Neville's untutored steps in the dark. He took him by a circuitous route hoping it would give them time. Jonas would be able to pick up their trail and follow it very quickly.

As they hurried along, Harry thought of Nadya's face. Her dark black eyes searched the crowd for him. Her long dark curling hair was stuffed up under her hat and the usual gold earrings were missing. He could see her face as if she stood before him; the eyes, the cheeks, the full lips. He longed for her to smile.

"Harry," Neville stumbled behind him. They were on the edge of the forest. "I have to stop for just a second." Neville was gasping for air.

Harry realized he'd been in training for months and was in excellent physical condition. But Neville, on the other hand, was slightly pudgy and completely exhausted.

"When will thee learn that there are beasts in the woods more dangerous than thee," a silky warm voice spoke nearby. Neville gave out a little shriek and Harry spun around looking for the source.

Harry knew that voice. "Verillieon?"

A soft, yellow glimmer appeared in front of his eyes. A woodland elf stood between two boulders. Slim and about four feet tall, the elf was dressed in clothing that blended into the surroundings in late afternoon light. His hair was long, draped to his waist and pale yellow, the face narrow with high cheek bones and a narrow nose over sensuous, heart-shaped lips.

Harry thought he had never seen any creature as beautiful the first time he'd seen the elf; with the exception of the white unicorn. He'd also learned he had been very lucky to have survived his first encounter. The woodland elves were known for their hostility towards humans. Legends had been told of humans wandering away, lost in the woods, never to be recovered.

Harry knew this particular elf. Verillieon had saved his life the year he had left the Dursleys and ventured into unknown woods. Courtesy and respect dictated Harry address the elf in a formal greeting. He dropped to one knee, bowed and exposed his neck and said, "May you always find peace in the wood land, an arrow for your enemy and a friend in me."

"May you have a safe journey, Amal (friend)," Verillieon answered. He turned to Neville and shocked Harry by bowing slightly to the boy. "And, the Anointed one who goes with you."

Neville seemed to understand the deference he received from the elf and bowed his head in return.

"Verillieon, I'm in need of your help," Harry plead. "An assassin and a Romani Senseve are following us. I must get Neville back into the castle."

Verillieon nodded slightly, said, "This we will do for thee." He stepped forward and touched Neville gently on the chest. He immediately stopped gasping for air and calmed himself. The elf then turned a serious face on Harry and said, "Thee will become the target of the hunt."

Harry nodded. "I'll create a diversion. They'll follow me until you're safely away. Get him to Hogsmeade. He'll find his way into the tunnel." Harry nodded at Neville and checked behind them. "I'll be all right. Now go!"

They were gone in an instant leaving Harry in the dark. He knew if he listened he would not be able to hear the elf's footsteps, nor see them move through the forest. The woodland elves were a part of the forests in which they lived. There is no better protector, he thought as he began his climb across the precipice in the dark.

Harry and Neville had been out of the castle for a half hour. Harry thought he had at least a ten minute head-start on Jonas which would be slightly better because he would have Lupin with him and the imposter would slow him down. Harry didn't think the Lupin's double would be any better at traveling in the dark then Neville had been. Harry crossed the precipice in the opposite direction from the route Neville and the elf had taken. The growing night was moonless; it would make it even more difficult to follow his trail.

Harry recalled the words and the lessons Jonas taught him the night they met in almost the exact same place. Jonas had admonished him for leaving a trail of footprints in the snow. Now, Harry left a trail on purpose. He was hoping the Senseve would think he was in to much of a hurry and being neglectful. Harry's only concern was that the trail, no matter how invisible, was the trail of one person. Would Jonas follow it, he wondered.

Harry knew, before he heard the sound of breathing coming around the bend of the tower wall. He grasped the stone, still warm from the day, and began his climb. With any luck at all Neville would go through the tunnel from Hogsmeade, up into the school and contact Snape. Harry had to give him enough time to reach safety.

Like one of Ron's horrific spiders, Harry crept across the face of the tower, reaching for handholds in the crumbling stone. He held his wand between his teeth and thought about putting marks in the wood. Every so often he would wave his wand and a outcropping of stone would appear so that he had another area to grasp, then later he would wave it again and the stone shelf would disappear. Jonas would not use a wand; Romani used only wandless magic and so he might not be able to follow him. Harry also thought it wouldn't matter, Jonas would be able to climb the stone tower twice as fast as he could. He would find a way.

Harry didn't think about the space below him. He was never afraid of heights and dearly loved flying hundreds of feet in the air on his Firebolt. This was different; if he fell, there was little that would stop his fatal plunge to the bottom of the gorge. Keeping his mind focused on the stretch of wall above him, he continued to climb. The imposter Lupin would not be able to follow. Harry knew that Jonas would, and could follow him, and in fact, was probably not far behind.

Harry also was trying frantically to remember the details of the map he studied in the real Lupin's classroom. If he got into the castle through the tower, chances were Jonas would not be able to trail him as well inside where there were so many humans and other creatures. On the other hand, the imposter was very likely returning to the castle and going directly to the Source. Harry hoped Neville was fast in getting help.

He'd been wrong in his predictions. Suddenly a light illuminated the tower wall from below. A voice echoed up. "Come down, Harry." Harry glanced down and saw Lupin standing hundreds of feet below him; alone.

He continued to reach for the next handhold to raise himself another foot up the wall. The top of the tower was feet away from his head.

"Come down or I will bring you down," the voice said. It echoed strangely in the air.

Harry reached for the next stone, his eyes watering from a sudden gust of cold wind. He was thinking as he climbed. Could I have been so wrong? Is Jonas helping him or not? If I keep his attention on me then Neville has more time. Keep moving!

"Where is he?" Lupin intoned. "Where is the other boy?"

Harry didn't answer and found another foothold. His hand was on the edge of the tower wall. One more foot and he could pull himself over and be protected from the power of the wizard's wand beneath him. Then he heard a noise. Someone was crossing the apron curtain between the towers. Someone was running towards him. Harry thought it had to be help. They had seen the light from below and him climbing across the white stone face of the tower.

Lupin's wand remained steady. He wasn't aware of the people above coming closer towards Harry.

"All right," Harry shouted reaching for one more shelf. "I'll come down! Just don't do anything." The wind caught his voice and he wasn't sure the people that were still so far away could hear.

"Come down now!" Lupin shouted.

He knows, Harry thought.

Suddenly from above a head jutted over the top of the wall and looked down. It was Snape. From below Harry heard the spell and in the instant he looked into Snape's face, his hands were pulled from the small stone he grasped.

Just as McGonagall had done weeks before the spell yanked him from the face of the tower. This time the spell was not meant to safely lower him to the ground. He was yanked away from the wall and left helplessly to fall. At the last moment, he heard Snape's spell to slow his momentum as he fell.

It was perhaps two hundred feet to the bottom of the ravine with sharp rocks and bristling pine trees lining the sharp slopes. Harry fell silently, past the cone of light that was quickly extinguished from the imposter's wand and down into the dark.

He didn't hear Snape's shout, "Harrrryyyyy!"