Chapter 5 – Running the Gauntlet

Harry could not believe what had just happened. Voldemort? Back from the dead? Surely it wasn't possible... Harry desperately tried to reassure himself of this fact, but then he remembered that Dumbledore himself had set out to monitor the reborn child. Could he have known that something like this would happen? Knowing Dumbledore, he probably would have done, and the fact that Harry thought he saw Aaron Shacklebolt in jeans leaning against the wall confirmed his suspicions.

Harry sat back, his mind racing over his memories, images of Voldemort sprouting through his subconscious raked from the past: the looming graveyard; the exploding ministry fountain; the monstrous prison; the grey temple. His mind returned to the graveyard and the figure emerging from the mist. Could it happen again? Harry couldn't avoid the twitch of fear; there was a strong likelihood that his previous victories had come to nothing. The sense of unfairness vied with fear, and Harry had no idea which one he felt more.

"LET ME GO!" Harry was jolted out of contemplation by a shriek from upstairs, followed by sinister laughter from the guards outside his cell. The plan! All thoughts of his ideas had been driven from his head, the plotted escape forgotten in the aftershock from the potion. Neville was upstairs, being tortured with Harry's wand. The moment had come.

Harry started to pace his cell. The guards raised their wands but, after a while and a signal of meek compliance from Harry, they turned away, lowering their wands again. Summoning all of his energy and his knowledge of wandless and silent spell casting, he focussed on the guards.

"Petrificus Totalus!" Twice the words echoed around his head, and the two guards fell rigidly to the floor. Harry hurried out, dragging the two guards into an upright position against the wall, slightly in the shadows so as to mask their plight. Taking both of their wands, he stowed one in his pocket and used the other to cast the disillusionment charm on himself. Remembering the vision he had just had, he crept quietly up the corridor to his right.

As he rounded a corner he had to flatten himself against the wall as a hooded death eater strode past him. Thankfully he neither noticed Harry nor went down towards his cell, instead taking another corridor to one side. Harry continued, following the path slowly upwards.

As he reached an intersection he heard another yell from Neville, very nearby. Taking the right hand corridor again, he felt it gradually bend to the right as he ran quietly along. He guessed that he was now right above his cell and he stopped, taking a quick breather, and using the time to have a listen. Just up the corridor he could just make out soft footsteps and, as he inched forward, he heard a cruel voice speaking.

"Do you love her?" he mocked, and Harry could almost hear the sneer on his face. "Do you love Mrs Potter? Is that why you went to protect her? Is that why you grovel to Potter – out of guilt? Or even hope that he will relinquish her to you? Do you want Potter to die, so she can be yours?" At this Neville let out a roar of rage which was doubled by the Cruciatus curse. This was too much for Harry. Drawing the second wand he rounded the corner and took aim at the two death eaters, one of whom he recognised as Stevens.

"Stupefy!" he whispered violently. Two blasts of stunning red light emerged from the two wands and the death eaters were blasted back into the rear wall with enormous speed, rendering both unconscious. Harry revealed himself and handed Neville the two wands he held as he retrieved his own and those of the two death eaters.

"Are you okay?" he whispered urgently.

"I'm alright," said Neville, though he looked very shaken. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it," Harry said quickly, putting Neville's hand on his should before placing the disillusionment charm on both Neville and himself, before moving Neville's hand from his shoulder.

Neville looked bemused. "What did you do that for?"

"It's a trick I learnt at the Auror training facility," he replied. "This way we can see each other but no one else can."

"Cool!" Neville answered, but Harry raised a finger to his lips. Petrifying and disillusioning the two guards, Harry beckoned for Neville to follow him. Looking around furtively, they proceeded back the way Harry had come to find Neville, until they reached the intersection. Heading past the left hand path which went back to Harry's cell, they followed the path straight ahead, which rose dramatically. Harry felt buoyed by this; up meant they were approaching the surface. Harry halted Neville as sound reached their ears from up ahead.

"It's the dining hall," Harry breathed excitedly. "We've just got to get past there and we're out!" They edged forwards until the dining room came into sight off to the left. Harry's spirits were rising; the path that ran around it meant that they did not have to even pass through the room. But just as they were half way around, inevitably, events went spectacularly awry.

"Potter's gone!" The alarm had been sounded, and the death eaters in the room, of which there were almost twenty, jumped to their feet.

"Find him!" yelled the one who was obviously in charge, "or there will be hell to pay when they return!" Harry had a pretty shrewd idea of who "they" were, and he wasted no time. He aimed back as far down the corridor as he could.

"Reducto," he muttered, and the stony wall exploded in a shower of rubble. Using the temporary distraction, Harry seized Neville and ran.

"Guard the exit!" The leading death eater had reacted first, and two death eaters ran up a side corridor. Casting another quick "reducto!" across the dining hall, Harry led Neville after them. Leaving the pandemonium behind them they ran, their footsteps well hidden amongst the activity behind them, they soon found themselves approaching sunlight. This was swiftly blocked out as not two, but four death eaters gathered at the tunnel entrance, wands drawn. Neville caught Harry's sleeve as they saw one of the death eaters fire a bright purple firework into the sky. Neville raised both the wands he was holding.

"Stunners on three?" he whispered. Harry nodded and Neville looked up at the death eaters. "I'll take the two on the left, you take the two on the right. Three... two... one... STUPEFY!" The words exploded from both Harry and Neville and beams of red crashed into their foes, the spells amplified by the thin corridor. They were blasted off their feet and Harry and Neville ran for it.

As soon as they were out into the open air, as they jumped over the stunned death eaters, Harry fired a spell into the air, and a shape appeared above his head; a shining golden phoenix. Harry shot another reducto curse over his shoulder and heard the entrance cave in, but neither of them turned to watch.

"We can't apparate here," Neville said breathlessly, "we've got to get off this moor!" Just as Harry was about to reply, three things happened. Firstly, a flood of Dementors swarmed into view, followed by five enormous giants. Secondly, the lair behind them exploded in a shower of stone as death eaters poured out in droves. Finally, in the distance, Harry could see members of the Order hurtling towards them.

Harry gestured to Neville at the Dementors, deciding that they were the most pressing matter. Harry focussed on his emerging from the veil from the next realm. "Expecto Patronum!" A silver stag erupted from his wand, as beside him Neville's silver lion chased after it. The Dementors were driven away, but the patronuses had given away their position. Harry pulled Neville to the ground as an explosion of stunners and other spells soared over their heads. Harry rolled over holding his two wands in the air.

"Impeditia!" he bellowed. Neville copied him and no less than eight death eaters were blown off their feet including, to Harry's satisfaction, Stevens. By this time the Order were engaging with the death eaters, and they would have been evenly matched had it not been for the giants. They rampaged through their midst, their massive hands flailing wildly, and Harry was horrified to see Minerva McGonagall knocked off her feet.

"Harry!" yelled a voice Harry recognised as that of Bill Weasley, "wherever you are, take Neville and run! You're the one they're after!" Lifting the disillusionment charm to ensure that they weren't hit by the Order, the two of them ran. This however drew not only the attention of the death eaters, but also one of the giants, who looked very surprised to see them. Casting a quick shield bubble around them Harry and Neville pelted as fast and far as they could from the melee, but Harry found himself being slowed.

The ring on his hand was glowing a violent blood red, and was desperately trying to stop Harry from running. Neville and Harry both grabbed the ring and dragged it off his hand as the giant, Stevens and several other death eaters bore down on them. Acting on a subconscious instinct Harry threw the ring at them and it landed on the grass, where the giant trod on it.

The ground underneath the giant exploded with a deafening boom and all the wizards within twenty feet were blown off their feet. The giant, despite its enormous weight, was blasted ten feet into the air, shouting in pain, before it landed heavily with a sickening crunch on top of Stevens. Harry acted immediately.

"Phoenix Aniservia!" His body shrunk as golden feathers sprouted all over him. Harry grabbed Neville with his powerful claws and lifted him from the ground. Neville cast another patronus as a group of Dementors closed in, and Harry let out a loud, harsh cry as a signal to those below as he tore across the sky. He sat Neville down and transfigured back, as the Order retreated to the trees where they were, Hagrid bearing Minerva McGonagall on his broad shoulders.

"To the ministry!" yelled Arthur Weasley, "quickly now!" Without hesitation, Harry raised his wand, and apparated away from the moor.