Chapter Nine

The small group of Death Eaters looked momentarily shocked but recovered quickly. Rodolphus Lestrange and the two other unknown Death Eaters had their wands drawn before anything could be spoken. Instantly, Ron, Hermione and Ginny's wands flew out of their hands, leaving them shocked. They had not been ready, they were not expecting this.

After recovering from the momentary shock of seeing both Harry Potter and his son in the same room, Lucius issued orders. "Make sure those three don't escape!"

Once again Rodolphus and the other two men raised their wands, each firing a different spell at their enemies. Ginny lay bound on the floor, ties of magic preventing her from moving. Ron had been hit with petrificus totalis, with his size he would have been a physical threat if left conscious. Hermione had merely been stupefied, Lestrange deciding that he would rather restrain her physically.

Draco had been relatively left alone, Bellatrix had her wand pointed at him but as of yet had not cast a spell.

All of this had taken only a few moments to transpire and Harry didn't seem especially concerned. He still stood in the same spot, his eyes locked on to Voldemort's. "Surprised to see me?" Harry mocked, knowing full well that Voldemort had never expected him to be there.

Voldemort, as always, acted smooth, like he had planned for this to happen. He stepped forwards towards Harry, glancing around the room.

"Looking for the girl?" Harry queried and Voldemort's gaze snapped back to him. "She's not here." He nodded to the stuffed dragon on the floor. "So nice of you to leave that for me. You really saved me much trouble, you know, searching for you myself, it could have been months more before we met again."

"Come now, Harry, the girl is no concern of yours. She belongs with her father. You and I both know, don't we Harry, that a child needs it's parents."

"Ha." Harry laughed. "This coming from the man who murdered mine. Since when have you ever taken an interest on what's best for others, my Lord?"

Voldemort's face darkened. "Now, Harry, I let your mockery slide the first time, but I will not tolerate it again. Now, give me the girl, or I start hurting your friends."

To drive the point home, Rodolphus tightened his grip on Hermione. He held her close to himself, barely conscious and still recovering from the stupefy. He stroked her cheek with the back of his hand and smiled a crooked smile towards Harry.

"Do what you like, they're no concern of mine." Harry's fingers twitched, his hand edging closer to the hilt of his sword. "What I intend is only between you and me."

Voldemort turned his attention to Draco for the first time. "Amazing you've managed to survive all these years, Draco, you-"

"No more games, Voldemort, I'm-"

"Crucio!" Voldemort bellowed, firing his yew wand at Harry.

"No!" Draco yelled and attempted to leap forwards. His aunt and his father both grabbed one of his arms, restraining him from moving any further. A quickly spoken stupefy had him on his knees in moments, Bellatrix holding firmly to his fine blond hair, keeping him partially upright.

The curse hit Harry dead in the chest but all he did was grit his teeth, his cold eyes boring into Voldemort as he took the pain effortlessly. Harry centred his magic in himself and pushed it outwards, dissipating the curse. Everyone in the room felt the strange magic that had come from the raven haired boy. He saw a flicker of surprise pass over Voldemort's face.

"Doesn't it get old." Harry stepped forwards. "Using the same tricks over and over again, to no avail? You must be getting awfully frustrated by this point in my life, having never successfully bested me." Harry smirked.

Harry saw a muscle twitch in Voldemort's jaw and he knew he was getting to him.

Voldemort nodded slightly to one of his Eaters and he stepped towards Ginny, who lay silently on the floor, extremely unsure of what to make of the whole situation. The man knelt down next to her and grabbed her chin in his hand. Ginny squirmed, trying to move around enough to kick him, but she was too tightly bound. "Crucio." He mumbled casually.

Ginny's piercing scream tore through the room, her body convulsing painfully on the floor. Hermione was beginning to be aware again and her shouts soon joined Ginny's as Rodolphus cast cruciatus as well.

Harry's right hand twitched next to the holster at his side. Voldemort obviously didn't know what the thing hanging at Harry's side was or he would have been paying much closer attention. "I don't know why you bother, I told you, they are no concern of mine."

Voldemort looked confused at Harry's apparent lack of concern for his former friends. "And I told you, Harry, the girl-"

"Enough!" Harry burst out. He pulled the magnum from the holster so quickly that Voldemort did not have time to process what was happening. He quickly aimed and fired, the explosion out of the barrel of the gun nearly deafening in the small space. Three quick shots all hit their marks with deadly precision. Nearly in the blink of an eye, the three Death Eaters guarding Hermione, Ron and Ginny were on the floor, trails of blood leaking from each of their foreheads.

Hermione screamed as she fell to the ground, her face splattered in Rodolphus Lestrange's blood.

In the split second after Harry had fired the gun, Voldemort had gone stiff. Harry saw this and took his opportunity to strike. Replacing the magnum in the holster, he drew the sword of Gryffindor from the scabbard at his left hip in nearly the same motion.

Time seemed to move in slow motion as Harry launched himself forwards, the sword moving up in a graceful arc. Voldemort's eyes drew open wide as the gleaming silver blade drew closer to him. He could not get out of the way in time, neither could the slithering snake still coiled around his shoulders. Nagini's head had been raised, always alert. This had made it very easy for Harry to bring the sword down quickly, easily divesting her of her head.

The snake's body tensed as all it's muscles went into spasm and Voldemort hastily flung the cold-blooded creature to the floor before it could constrict around his throat.

Strange black smoke floated away from it's body, black ooze pouring out of it's severed body. The sound of faint screaming accompanied the smoke as it slowly disappeared into the air.

Harry held his stance on the other side of Voldemort, a wide grin plastered on his face. Harry held Voldemort's gaze with his own and saw the panic present there. "That's all of them, Tom, it's only you and me now."

Voldemort chuckled. "All of what, Harry? Surely I don't know what you're talking about." He tried to unsuccessfully brush off Harry's comment.

Ron, now conscious again thanks to the death of his curse caster, was at the side of his wife. Hermione had taken the cruciatus curse hard and was not coping well, her body still twitching, she fought hard to stay conscious. Ginny had come free as well, at her captor's death, but she was not as eager to get up.

Harry's smirk grew wider. "You know, Tom. you know what I'm talking about. Only, you're hesitant to say because there's no way I could know about them, right? The ring, the diadem, the locket, the cup, the diary. Am I making sense now Tom? Horcruxes. And there's none left to stand in my way."

Bellatrix laughed once in a short, manic burst. "The boy speaks nonsense, my Lord." Her eyes kept glancing to the lifeless body of her husband though she certainly didn't seem too choked up over his loss.

Lucius was shocked at the mention of the diary. If he had known that it had contained a piece of his master's soul, he would never have left it out of his sight.

Harry could see Voldemort processing Harry's words. He could imagine Voldemort trying to search inside himself, trying to feel for the pieces of his soul that had formerly held residence inside various objects.

Harry was getting bored of the game of cat and mouse that was happening, and intended to put it to an end. He saw Voldemort raise his wand, his senses piqued as adrenaline raced through him. "Not here, Tom. This needs to be much more public." A beam of red light burst from the tip of Voldemort's wand, aimed straight for Harry.

Harry held his hand out in front of him, a blue convex aura of magic flowing from it. The magic surrounded Harry, forming itself to the shape of his body. The light grew brighter as the red spell contacted it. Nothing happened. The spell didn't bounce of the protective shield, neither was it absorbed into it, the spell was simply nullified.

Everyone in the room could feel the immense amount of magic crackling in the air, the hairs on the back of their arms all standing on end. It seemed to be building to a crescendo and without warning, everyone in the room disappeared with the familiar crack of disapparation.

Draco glanced frantically around as his eyesight slowly returned to him. There had been a blinding flash of white light just before Harry had somehow transported them all at once. Draco hadn't even known that kind of magic was possible.

He was on his knees, just as he had been when his father had stupefied him. His father and aunt had both rushed to their master's side upon reaching this destination. Voldemort seemed a touch unsteady and they were both ready to help him in any way they could.

Now able to clearly see everything around him, Draco panicked. They were right in the middle of Diagon Alley. The street was full of people, a large crowd had already gathered. Astonished murmurs filled the air.

"This is much better, don't you think, Tom." Draco heard Harry's voice yell over the crowd. "Let the people see who's really behind their Minister. Are you ready Tom? I know I am." Harry sped forwards, his sword tucked low. The crowd followed the movement of the strange ebony haired man. Not many had figured out who he was yet.

Voldemort, Lucius and Bellatrix all had their wands at the ready, firing spells at Harry in rapid succession, not a single one penetrating the protective shield that encompassed him.

Draco's heart was beating so quickly he thought it might leap out of his chest. How Harry could be so confident, so reckless was beyond him. His heart nearly stopped when, only 30ft from Voldemort, Harry disappeared. He was still there, that much was obvious to everyone, the magical aura that surrounded him was still present, but he was invisible. The crowd had gone so silent that his footfalls could be heard on the uneven cobblestone.

Lucius and Bellatrix threw themselves in front of their master but both were swept aside by a concentrated gale of wind. A bright light exploded in front of Bellatrix and when she hit the ground, she did not recover.

Voldemort tensed and his feet were lifted slightly off the ground as the invisible Harry slammed hard into him, and judging by the marks appearing on his neck, Harry had his hand wrapped firmly around it. A dark blossom of blood surfaced on Voldemort's back, barely visible because of the black of his robes.

Harry winked back into existence. His face was mere inches from Voldemort's, one hand gripped firmly around his neck, the other wrapped tightly around the hilt of the sword, which was buried deeply in Voldemort's abdomen, at least six inches of the sword protruded out of his back. Harry released his neck and leaned back, raising his leg and kicking straight forwards with all the strength he could muster. Voldemort flew back, dislodging from the sword and somehow managing to stay on his feet.

Lucius sprang to his feet to the side of his wounded master. "My Lord!" He cried as he ran towards him.

Voldemort clutched his abdomen, his face contorted in pain. The pain quickly faded from his features and he connected with Harry, whose grin fell from his face.

Draco watched in awe as, with a whispered spell, Voldemort cleaned the blood from his robes, no further flow replacing the stain. He was healing, and quickly.

Bellatrix's high, throaty giggle cut through the air as she still lay injured on the ground. Disbelief crossed Harry's face. This wasn't working, nothing was turning out as he planned. His facade was beginning to crack, his frustration showed. He slammed the sword back into the scabbard, its length still coated in the blood of Voldemort.

Voldemort let his head fall back, his arms spread wide and took a deep breath. His resolve, compared to Harry's, had never been stronger. His red eyes bored deep into Harry's soul. "You can't kill me, Harry." His feet lifted inches off the ground and in an instant, his body was catapulting across the square, his black robes trailing behind him.

Voldemort physically contacted Harry, their roles reversed, Voldemort's hands were now clasped tightly around Harry's neck. Just as their two wands would not function against each other, it seemed that it was the magic at their cores that refused to injure one another. Upon contact, all the protection around Harry disappeared, leaving him open, vulnerable to any magical attack as long as Voldemort kept a tight hold on him. Harry's shield exploding sent a shockwave of magic reeling through the crowd. None in the crowd had ever seen such visceral, raw use of magic before.

Harry seemed petrified on the spot and Draco didn't know whether it was a ploy or if he actually couldn't move.

Draco was torn, he didn't know what to do. He wanted to do something, anything, but what could he do? Glancing around, he saw that Ron and Ginny were gathered closely around a barely conscious Hermione. Ron's face looked pale as he held Hermione close to him, she seemed to be losing blood, judging from the red pool forming around her. They had not gotten their wands back and could not leave.

Harry never once spared his former friends a glance. Draco moved slowly around the square, entering Harry's line of sight. Almost all life had left his eyes. Draco pleaded with Harry silently to perk up, fight back. He moved even closer.

A heavy hand fell on Draco's shoulder and he felt the the tip of a wand press against his neck. "I wouldn't get any closer if I were you, my boy." Lucius' voice drawled from behind him and Draco stiffened. "So nice to see you've returned from being a coward. Now tell me where your sister is and I'll be happy to return you to your pathetic existence."

Draco struggled against his father, his and Harry's eyes still connected. They were still fading. "I would never give her up to you! You left her there to die!" Draco kicked out hard behind him, trying to get his father away, but before he could connect, his world went black.

Harry's world was quickly going fuzzy, the world blurring out of existence before him. He couldn't move, he was trapped in whatever spell Voldemort had placed on him. The only thing that stood out before him, the only thing that was clear, was a pair of grey eyes staring back at him. If this was dying, maybe it wouldn't be so bad.

The grey eyes in front of him, widening in what he recognized as extreme pain. He thought he heard a cry for help and something stirred deep inside of him. His fingers twitched, he could move. An emotion he hadn't felt in years swept through him, only for an instant, but it was enough. His vision cleared and his strength returned. With a combination of magic and brute force, Harry threw Voldemort off him, stunning the evil mastermind. "No!" Harry shouted as this happened.

His brain finally caught up to his eyes and he saw Lucius standing over the unmoving figure of Draco, his wand pointed down at the blond man. His body moved of its own accord and he sprinted forwards, drawing the gun out of its holster as he did. He cocked the hammer as the tip of the gun drew to its proper height. Lucius' eyes widened and there was a great bang. He crumpled to the ground beside his son, a pool of blood flowing freely from his now lifeless body.

Harry turned rapidly towards Voldemort. Once again, Harry's emotions had overcome his logic and in that instant he knew that he had let Voldemort get away again. Voldemort's face held a wide grin. The world existed in slow motion. Simultaneously, Harry pulled his gun around and aimed straight for his heart, while Voldemort raised his own hand and in a last mocking gesture, gave a cocky wave, apparating at the exact instant Harry pulled the trigger, leaving a crowd of people in the bullet's path.

"Fuck!" Harry screamed, throwing the gun to the ground. He turned his head away, completely unconcerned for the people in front of him. He looked back towards Draco and saw him stir. He sat up, supporting himself with one hand on the cobblestone ground. He turned his attention, next, to Bellatrix, still laying prone on the ground.

The explosion of magic which had forced her onto the ground had broken her back and she was unable to move, her wand thrown too far for her to reach.

Harry stalked over to her side and crouched low next to her, his face so full of rage and violence that it actually scared Bellatrix for a moment. "Where did he go?" Harry demanded. Bellatrix only laughed. "Answer me! Where did he go!"

The square full of people looked on in horror. They were dead silent, staring in absolute horrification at their former saviour. A great cry from Ginny broke the silence, but it was still the only sound other than Harry's voice. The sound did not distract him, he did not look over.

Bellatrix still would not speak. Harry placed his thumbs on each side of her face and looked deep into her soot black eyes. "You will tell me!" Harry forced his mind into hers, using this modified form of legilimency to try an obtain the information he needed. Her mind was too corrupted, all he got were violent images, manic thoughts. He slammed her head hard onto the street and she teetered on unconsciousness. "Why can't I kill him?!"

Bellatrix's eyes rolled into the back of her head but she still continued to laugh. "You are your own obstacle, Potter."

Harry took her words as nonsense and slammed her head again.

"Oh, wouldn't Sirius love to see you now? His precious godson, no better than the man who murdered his two best friends." She taunted, smiling up at him through unfocused eyes.

Harry had endured much in his years, but nothing had ever hurt as bad as Bellatrix's comment, and she knew it. She knew how to get to him. Harry warred with himself, taking her comment to heart. Was he really no better than Voldemort? He pushed the thought to the back of his mind and stood, turning away from her. His gun lay a few feet in front of him and he picked it up, replacing it in its holster.

"What's the matter, Harry, dear, don't have the conviction to do it?" She yelled loud enough so everyone in the square could hear. "You can't even kill a woman!"

The darkness returned, more apparent than ever. "Asphyxiate!" He screamed. He knelt by her side once more, his face right next to hers. Bellatrix clawed at her throat as she tried to take a breath, but for her, there was no air to take in. Her eyes widened, the upper half of her body convulsing, squirming in panic. "I should thank you, Bellatrix." Harry whispered calmly, eerily in her ear. "You have given me the conviction." He said nothing else, but kept his eyes locked onto hers for the nearly two minutes it took her to finally run out of air and lay still. He had given her a terrifying image to take with her on her way out, the icy gaze of his emerald eyes burned deep into her.

When Harry finally stood and surveyed the scene around him, he felt nothing, truly nothing, Bellatrix's comment had banished the last ounce of humanity that remained in Harry Potter. He looked towards Draco, but the man's eyes would not meet his gaze, instead, they stared off into the distance. Harry followed his gaze. Ginny held her brother tightly to her, the blood that had flowed from the wound on his neck already drying on his shirt. His face was ashen, his body limp, he was dead. Hermione was draped over his lap, her weak body clutching to his, her hand stroking his, kissing it.

In every direction that Harry moved, the crowd moved away from him, away from this cold warrior whom they wanted no part of. Harry had no support. His gaze turned back to Draco, whose eyes would finally meet his. They were tired, sad.

Harry didn't say anything. He held his gaze with Draco's a few moments longer before apparating away.