A/N: Hi peoples! Sooo...before you murder me...I've been really, really busy! Went to a trip to Quebec, my birthday was yesterday, (14!) and...on top of all that, I'm sick. Home from school today with nothing better to do then to type fanfiction so...
Anyway, sorry about my lack of a consistent updating schedule, but I just write when I can, what I'm in the mood for writing. I've found that not being forced to cater to a specific date makes the quality better, as you actually enjoy writing it. So that explains the lack of updating for my other two stories...MMotCS is trying to kill me, I swear... And on top of all that, I was attacked by another plot bunny...sigh. I REALLY don't want to start any new stories, since, y'know, I've alread got three WIPs... (ah well-maybe I'll just type it now and not post it till MMotCS is done, it'd be a Blind!Harry fic...)
But, winter break is next week, and I'm not doing anything, so...expect looooots of updates next week! (hoping to finish or at least put a serious dent in MMotCS, that way it's done and out-of-the-way! I really don't want to abandon it, but I just want to finish it! So probably less memories...quicker updates...who knows!)
DISCLAIMER: Rowling and Patterson's empires! Not mine!
So...chapter ad time!
Hallowed Time Twists by Muffliato: Really good time-travel story of an adult-Harry and his kids traveling back to Harry's 5th-year. A WIP but with really quick updates! Enjoyable and a page-turner (screen scroller?)
Chapter Five: Death Sentence
"Alright Harry, just focus...Think about what you need to do. Put all of your heart and soul into getting off the ground."
"That it so unbelievably cheesy."
Max glares at me. "I've never done this before, okay?" she snaps, dropping the ninja-training-master act. "If you wanna figure out how to fly yourself, be my guest."
"Fine. Okay. Focus. Think cheesy thoughts."
"Good. Now, FLY!" And with that, she shoves me off the cliff.
I frantically flap my wings, managing to rise back in the air and wobbly make my way over to the cliff edge.
"Nice Max. Push someone who doesn't know how to fly off a cliff. Real sweet of you."
She waves me off. "It was only like, ten feet," she says. "And you did fine."
I sigh. We'd been at this for awhile, most of the day actually. I'd managed to get some altitude with a running start. So Max had promptly decided to take me up a cliff. Not enough of a drop to actually kill me but...
"Good. Now, watch me." She takes off gracefully and does a smooth, banking circle. "Now you try."
I struggle to copy her, promptly crashing into a tree. "Ow..."
She sniggers. "Ah...the joys of schooling a fledgling."
"...fledgling, Max? Fledgling?"
"Indeed," she says, regaining the ninja-act. "You have much to learn, Young Grasshopper."
"Ha-ha. So funny I forgot to laugh."
She pouts. "You didn't like my joke?"
"Let me think about it...no."
I turn back to the cliff edge, focusing on a nearby hawk. It made the banking maneuver look so easy, perhaps I should focus more on the right wing instead of...
"AHHH!"
And Max had shoved me off the cliff. Again. The image of the hawk was superimposed into my brain, so I did the only thing that came naturally. I tried the maneuver. A second later, I found myself soaring upwards, into the open sky.
What do you know? It worked.
I flap my wings once, experimentally. It takes me even higher. I'm above the trees now, surrounded by the sky. Max flies up to join me.
"Nice work. Now, let's see how good you are at follow-the-leader."
It turns out that flying is quite easy when you don't have to worry about hitting a tree. It comes naturally, even more so than a broom. A laugh bubbles up in my throat as I follow Max into an exhilarating dive. It's snatched away by the wind. I watch as Max snaps out her wings at the last possible second, and zooms into the sky. I pull up behind her and follow. It's as if I'm on an endless roller-coaster that I control. The sensation of freedom is one I've never truly experienced before in my life. Sure, there's broomsticks. But this is faster, more powerful, and it somehow makes me feel more alive.
Maybe I did gain something out of this whole experience after all.
It's when we're zooming back to Earth when it happens. I put my arms out in front of me, Superman-style, just for the heck of it, when I see something on my arm that wasn't there before.
We touch down a second later and I fall over in a tangle of limbs (need to work on those landings.) I clamber to my feet and examine my left forearm.
It's like a tattoo. Jet black and etched into my skin. But I never got one, and...it makes no sense. Why would anyone tattoo a date into my arm?
06/10/1996
"Harry! That was great, you flew really well-"
She trails off at my look of confusion. "What?"
I show her my arm. She stares at it for an instant, just an instant, before the grin fades from her face and is replaced by horror.
"What?" I ask in panic. "What's so awful about having a date on my arm?"
"We need to hold a flock meeting," she says shakily. "Now."
"Max, what's wrong? Please, tell me what's wrong!"
She shakes her head, tears starting to form in her eyes. Denial maybe? But over what?
Within a few minutes of flying, me in inner turmoil all the while, we've reached the rest of the flock, who are eating a picnic lunch.
"Everyone, meeting, now!" Max yells, sounding an inch away from panic.
"What's wrong?" asks Fang, looking at me, then at Max. Angel's eyes widen, and she gives me a look of grief.
"Remember what Angel told us? When she heard the whitecoats thinking about the expiration dates?"
"Yes. So?"
She grabs my arm and turns it over, showing the date to the others. They stare at it in shock.
"Would someone please tell me what is going on?" I ask, yanking my arm out of Max's grasp. "Please!"
"One day...when you were, um, gone..." Max begins. I wince. Gone translates into being tortured by the whitecoats. "...Angel heard the whitecoats thinking about expiration dates. We meant to tell you, but-"
"Expiration dates? What are expiration dates?" I cut her off, a feeling of dread coiling in my stomach.
"All of us...we have these dates...programmed into us."
"What happens on the date?" I ask frantically, staring at my arm. Please...don't let it be death...anything but that.
"I think you already know the answer to that."
I collapse to my knees, numb with horror. My brain feels like it's shutting down.
I'm dying, I'm dying, Someone help me...anyone...I don't want to die! I'm too young! I'm only fifteen!
"NO!" I scream desprately. "Please, Max...please...tell me I'm not dying!" My voice breaks and I manage to choke out a whisper, "...please."
"I-I'm sorry."
Those two stuttered words...they were my death sentence. Literally.
"...no." My voice cannot rise above a broken whisper. "Why?" I scream. "Why, why, WHY?"
None of them seem to be able to answer my desprate question.
"Harry..."
"Please, Max. Please...just...go..."
They each give me one final look, pain in their eyes, before they leave. And then I start to sob, and scream, and, although I've never been religious, I begin to pray to every deity I've ever heard of to remove the date from my arm. But it doesn't work.
As the sun fades from the sky, and my world breaks, I struggle to come to terms with one, simple, earth-shattering fact.
I'm dying.
A/N: *smirks* Poor, poor Harry...what is it in my stories making him know (or think) he's going to die in a matter of months? I did a similar thing in From the Ink...
AND! I have an idea for a story! (not sure when/if I'd post it, I'd love your input!) It would be set in the same universe as NTSNA and would feature all of fifth-year Hogwarts, the third-year trio plus Ginny, and maybe some other surprise guests reading the HP books! (and maybe NTSNA too-who knows!) Soooo...yeah, I've got two problematic plot bunnies and my automatic spell checker seems to have broken...sigh...
So, REVIEW! I believe I shall have them going to Diagon Alley next chapter...one more thing! Should I have Iggy's sight restored by magic? I've considered it, but I'd like your guys' opinion.
So, until next time!
-Winged Quil