CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE A PROPHECY RELIVED

Hours, possibly days went by, and only faint breathing punctuated the dungeon. No one seemed to be coming back to release the two prisoners of war and yet they were not forgotten. Although it seemed to come farther in between, they had continued to be tortured by an unseen force. Tear- like droplets of blood ran from the corners of Harry's eyes as he continued to hit his head against the wall behind him. They knew they were going to die. It was inevitable. They just had never thought they would welcome it so easily.

"Harry, are you still...awake?" Ginny asked weakly. When he didn't reply immediately she twisted her head around to look over at him. His head had fallen to his chest, but he was breathing. "Don't leave me here, Harry. You have to hold on."

At this, he lifted his head slowly and attempted to give her a reasurring smile. "I won't leave without you, kid. That's a promise." They shared a sweet smile of hope before once again being thrown into seizing fits against the stone to which they were both held. After this fit, however, a side of Harry came out that made Ginny jump farther from the slab than she had yet.

"That's it, you mother-fucking piece of shit! I've had it! Either get your pussy ass, cock sucking, fuck faced dick hole down here and face me now or let's go and find another way to jack yourself off! I'm tired of this bullshit stalling. You know you can't beat me! You're just too chicken shit to admit that your gonna get your ass handed to you by a seventeen year old kid. Now get down here so I can make you my bitch!"

"Harry!" Ginny sounded offended, as if she had virgin ears from such obsenities. "Do you really think it's such a good idea to use such...controversial...ways of calling him out? I mean, he does sort of have the upper hand, doesn't he?"

"It would do well to listen to your lady, Mr. Potter." A chilling voice echoed down the hall. Voldemort appeared, looking ready to accept Harry's outburst. "I wouldn't be so prepared to see me again. Now, if you're quiet finished being rude." Harry glared at him, his teeth grinding before he spat on the floor. "Now, now. That's not very gentleman like. Honestly, what did you ever see in him?" He posed the question to Ginny as he walked through the flames to stand next to her. Her shivering naked form clenched at his hands which breezed overtop of her, only nearly making contact with her sweating skin. His hands were tomb cold and her skin crawled with goosebumps as he ran from her ankles to the top of her head before walking past to cross to Harry.

"Now, assuming that my bidding has been done, I'll need a new heir. If you can keep that pub mouth under control, Potter, I have a ceremony to continue. You are quite lucky, Potter. You have spent an evening in my presence, getting personal attention, and now you get to watch as my heir is conceived before being of enough importance to be personally killed by me. Only those of importance of the likes of my filthy muggle father have had that honor. And you..." He crossed back towards Ginny. "Only two others have had the honor of being a vessel for a God the likes of me." He looked over at the still form of Narcissa, greying from the lack of blood from her limbs. "You are very lucky, little one." Ginny's eyes nearly jumped from her head as she realized what path had been planned ahead of her.

"Leave her the fuck alone, you fucking git! If you lay as much as one fucking goddamn hand on her...." Harry appeared to be choking on the end of the sentance as his throat visably began to clench shut. Unseen hands strangled him from breathing and his lips began to taint blue.

"Breathing, for you, will now be earned, not gifted." He pulled his hand down and Harry's lips retained a little of their color although not completely. He was obviously still struggling, but every minute or so he was allowed an audible gasp to sustain him. "I'm sorry, my dear. He obviously doesn't know how to behave in front of a lady. You are a special breed, Miss Weasley. A pure blood witch from a pure line. Not many women are left that have such amazing claim to a great race of Magic. I've been searching your family lines for one worthy of carrying my child and I thought I had found it in Narcissa. Her son was everything I had thought worthy of carrying on my work. Perhaps your child will not defy me. She was obviously not strong enough. I just wish she had shown her true weakness before I had wasted my seed on her traitor son. You have withstood several hours of testing, with very little signs of breaking down." He passed his hand once again over her body and noticed there was very little bruising or open wounds. "I think I may have finally found a woman worthy of this great honor."

"Take....me." Harry gasped through clenched teeth.

"Are you ready to play nicely? Or do I have to wash you mouth out with soap?" Voldemort sneered as he released Harry from his strangling hold.

"Take me. I'll do it. I have as much pure blood in my fathers lineage. Even founders blood. Slytherin and Gryffindor blood mixed. You couldn't ask for a better mix than that. Let her go, and leave her alone, and I'll do whatever you ask." He looked over at Ginny. "Even if it means being you're heir."

"Truly a noble proposition, Harry. I never thought it of you. Of course, you've forgotten that you find yourself too good to follow orders, even something as simple as school rules, so what do you think makes me believe you will be worthy of following my footsteps. I need someone that will bow to my every whim, follow my every order, and not question anything I say. You have proven time and time again that you find yourself above such things, but Miss Weasley here, she's followed every crazy notion that you have thrown at her. She's obviously worthy and willing." Voldemort began to lower himself over Ginny's shivering body as she choked on the scream that wouldn't come.

Ginny trembled as she felt the weight of Voldemort lower over her, his breath, ice cold against her tear and sweat covered cheeks. As he lowered his body, Ginny saw the red glint in his eyes narrow into slits as if like an animal preparing to strike. As he began to disrobe, Ginny felt a heat begin to rise that had nothing to do with her throbbing heart. As she prepared herself for the pain that was sure to come she felt the air in the room becoming thicker, almost harder to breath. The hair on her arms began to stand on end and even in a room full of Death Eaters, Ginny had never felt the power that was filling the room like water flows over a damn.

They say that lightening will never strike the same place twice, that power corrupts, and that love is blind. In that instant, however, Ginny found that power can also be an incredible ally, that love sees and knows all and that even lightning will disobey Gods laws if needs be.

Ginny watched as a bolt of lightening shot over her head and pierced Voldemort in the chest, knocking him backwards into the staircase nearly fifty feet behind him, cracking the stone. Ginny turned her head as another lightning bolt streaked by and she continued to struggle on the thick air as Harry pinned Voldemort to the staircase with his wand pointed at his chest, his mop of black hair nearly standing on end as more power then Ginny had ever seen emanated from his body.

"Well, played young master." Voldemort gasped, obviously having trouble catching his breath as he had not expected the attack.

"I let you live, for the moment, on two conditions." Harry said, his voice steady even as his body compulsively jumped back and forth as if he was trying to fight himself to keep from killing him right then.

"Do you really believe you are in any place to give me conditions?" Voldemort laughed as he tried to stand up. A shot from Harry's wand hit the ground between Voldemort's legs causing a three foot creator in front of him.

"I could just kill you now." Harry said.

"Just kill him Harry. What are you doing?" Ginny screamed.

"What the hell you stupid git, just kill him now!" Harry screamed at his past self.

"You were trying to show nobility in front of your lady." Harry jumped as he had almost forgotten that Snape still stood beside him. "Nobility in war is an amazing attribute, one you were trying to show you had so you would not be just a senseless murderer. In order to show nobility, however, you must know the position of your enemy on the matter. It doesn't do well to show a weakness like nobility to someone that will take advantage of it." Harry suddenly felt as if he was sitting an exam with his professor, one he had already failed. Slowly, as if afraid to see what would happen next, Harry turned his head.

"Alright, young Potter, what are your commands?" Voldemort bowed his head in a mocking surrender.

"You let her go, right now, and you never touch a single hair on her head again."

"Done, and number two?"

"You look at me while I kill you. I wanna see the light leave your eyes." Harry's voice trembled as the memory of the pain those words had caused him returned. He had hoped to see the same fear in Voldemort but he only received a simple nod. Harry began to back up until he felt the cold of the stone against the back of his knees. He reached behind him, wand still set on Voldemort to try to untie Ginny's wrists manually. Unable to do so he turned to untie them.

Ginny felt the furiousity that Harry was tearing at the ropes with and in her tear streaked eyes she saw the worry of having his back turned racing over his face. "I'll get you out of this Gin, you're safe." Harry forged a smile before his face was stricken with an unfamiliar expression. He stopped his mad tear at the ropes and began to play with Ginny's hair.

"Harry, what are you doing? We have to get out of here."

Harry leaned down and gently kissed Ginny's lips before bitting fiercely on the bottom lip, drawing blood. "I'm not coming home." Harry said in a voice very different from his own. As he was thrown into the stone, Ginny's face became splattered with blood as Harry's shirt was torn open from the back. Harry's wand snapped loudly in half against the slab before hitting the ground.

Ginny's face distorted in a sneer as Harry felt the gash that was soaking his clothing. Her voice was breathy and very unlike hers as she began to fiendishly laugh. "You've fought me enough to know you should never have turned your back on me, boy." Harry was once again hit in the back and lifted forcefully into the air before being thrown across the dungeon into the opposite wall, his glasses falling to the ground and shattering into unrepairable pieces.

Regaining herself, Ginny struggled madly at her binds until she realized that she could pull her wrist out of one of the ropes. She sat up and began to tear at the rope around the other arm, tearing her fingernails and skin in the rush to get herself freed.

"Get up Harry!" Screamed three sets of voices. Ginny in the hopes that he was OK, Voldemort as a challenge to continue, and present Harry because he knew he was going to get hit whether he stood or not. Very slowly, Harry pushed himself off the ground, wincing in pain, as he stood and tried to regain his composure. Ginny saw him frantically dig in his pockets and she looked down at the shattered remains of his wand he would not find.

Future Harry pulled his own glasses down his face and knew that even though his eyesight had worsened a bit since school, his past self was now fighting blind. "I get out of this, right Professor? I mean, I'm standing here, aren't I?" Harry asked Snape, but the only response he got was a long pointed finger.

Ginny watched in horror as Voldemort's wand began to emit a familiar green glow as Harry continued to search his pockets, completely unknowing of the danger that was unfolding right in front of him. Ginny screamed out Harry's name as the light shot across the room from the tip of Voldemort's wand. She turned her head, unable to force herself to watch the death of her beloved. She waited with bated breath to hear the sound of his body hitting the ground, the final sounds of his life, but as the minutes ticked on, it didn't come. Knowing it could not last this long, Ginny forced herself to look over her shoulder. She almost jumped off the slab at the site in front of her.

Harry still stood, his hands in front of his face in protection, a shield of energy surrounding him and keeping the green glow of the spell at bay. His hair stood completely on it's ends and even Voldemorts jaw had dropped at the power Harry was using. Harry began to reach behind him pulling the energy closer to his body before he threw it forward directly back at it's sender who only barely reacted in time to divert it harmlessly into the wall behind him.

"Damn it, Potter. Why won't you just die!? You're arrogance and inability to follow orders is trying. You've lost. Admit defeat and bow to you're master. You're refusal to do so is only making me think that death is not enough of a lesson for you." Voldemort got a sinister look on his face as a sneer began to creep up his otherwise furious face. "No, not enough of a lesson for you at all." The expression on Harry's face made it very clear to all that he hadn't seen Voldemort turn and face a now frantically trapped Ginny.

"Avada Kadavra." Ginny turned her head, not able to face her almost welcomed death. Her hair brushed quickly past her eyes as a figure dashed in front of her. The tears for her own life now chocked her as she realized her life had been spared at the cost of another.

Harry's body was immersed in the glowing light and began to rise bodily off the ground. Voldemort screamed in agony as if holding his wand was searing through his flesh. The agony turned to anguish in final breaths as he saw the slight flutter of Harry's eyelids. Harry began to scream as he awakened to his limbs being torn from his body and his forehead splitting open. Long after the following explosion that shook the granite wall and set the stones ablaze, their screams still echoed across the collapsed walls. Voldemort's body and robes had become nothing more than ash that mixed and sifted away with the billowing smoke.

Harry fell the fifty feet to the floor and hit, side first, with a sickening thud. Ginny held her breath as she waited for him, once again, to show signs of life. The boy who seemed to have nine lives now lay still as the stone he had fallen onto.

"Harry, don't you dare do this to me!" Ginny screamed as she ripped her remaining hand from the ropes. She ran over to him and knelt besides his body, afraid to touch it in case it was becoming cold. Even in the flickering of the flames growing around them, Ginny recognized the thick feel of the puddle she had knelt into. Slowly, she turned Harry over to examine the gaping hole that the jagged rock had ripped into the side of Harry's head, allowing his life to escape slowly around Ginny's knees.

"Harry, we've got to stop this bleeding and get you out of here." Ginny took on her motherly tone as her shaking hands ripped his shirt into strips and placed them firmly against the now familiar wound. Future Harry fingered the scar alongside his ear that now had an origin, his eyes growing with fear at the growing lake soaking his body.

Ginny began trying to place Harry's arm around her neck but it seemed he wasn't even trying to help her.

"Gin...Ginny, I can't see. I'm..not..." Harry began to cough out the words but was silenced.

"You're not going to leave me, Potter, but you've got to help me. I can't lift you." Ginny's voice was more frantic now as the flames grew closer.

Suddenly, redemption came in the cocky undertones of a familiar voice. "What the hell are you two doing down here?" Draco's drawl came followed by Hermione's light cough. "Can't you see this fucking place is on fire?"

Ginny was nearly jumping as she saw a way out. She threw away the last bit of soaked cloth and stared hungrily at the fabric hugging Malfoy. It was then that she saw the smirk on his face as he looked between Harry's tattered clothing and Ginny's, now remembered, naked form. She saw the wheels turning in his head and wished she had an idea of where her own clothes were.

"Not the time, Malfoy. Harry's hurt. I need help to carry him." Hermione had looked past Ginny's nude form to her blood stained hands and legs and Harry's seizing body.

"Just leave him, Ginny! He's as good as dead, that doesn't mean we have to be." Draco tried to drag Ginny away as he dodged her fists and legs flailing to get away from his grasp. Ginny, finally free of his arms, turned and slapped him fiercely across the face.

"He will not die for people like you that won't even respect what he just did for us." Ginny ran back to Harry's body and knelt back down, trying once again to lift him. "Come now, Harry. We have to get going."

"Gin..Gin...he's right. I'm not..leaving here." Harry began coughing, and Ginny flinched at the blood that splattered her face as he began to choke.

"Damn it, Potter! Don't talk like that." Ginny began to cry as she realized the truth in what she now knew to be his final words. She heard her sobs echoing from the shivering form of Hermione that had turned to start up the stairs, unable to watch this scene.

"I will always...Ginny..." Harry's voice was becoming so low that Ginny had to place her ear on his chin just to make out what he was saying. His breathing had shallowed and his focus dropped in and out. Each time he stopped speaking, she was sure that he would never start again. "I'll...never leave...I love you."

Ginny's tears began to freely flow at the sound of the words she had so longed to here. "I love you too, Harry. I won't leave you down here. I promise." Ginny leaned forward and began to kiss his blood soaked lips and felt them tremble as his breathing became impossible. His last breath shot directly down her throat, but even in the shock of his stillness, Ginny couldn't tear herself from his lips.

^_^

Down in Ginny's office, her eyes began to blur as portrait after portrait passed in front of her face. She had been working for hours and it seemed that the night would never end. However, when she came across a pair of familiar eyes, her heart as well as her movement stopped. The rest of her work and her jacket lay forgotten on the table as she clung the painting to her chest and ran across the empty lobby to the Ministry. She had never seen anything like this before, and she needed some answers.

^_^

As future Harry began to realize the severity of what he had just witnessed, everything turned to black and Snape's living room came into focus. "No, no. What happened? Where did it go? This doesn't make sense. I'm here aren't I? How did I die if I'm standing right here?" Harry was looking around as if trying to find where the dungeon had gone.

"That is all we see, because that is all you knew." Snape said as he began to rub his temples. "The rest of that memory rests in another person's mind. You were no longer there, so you'll have to find someone else that was. And with that, we have reached the end of what I can help you with. I wish you luck." Harry was on the porch staring at the closed doorway in front of him before he realized what happened. He had been dismissed with more questions that remained unanswered than when he had first come to this door.

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Chapter 26 Teaser

"Is there any answer that I could give you that would make you stop?" Hermione asked as she looked up over the top of her eyes, fear beginning to show as she felt the muscles in her shoulder spasm.

Downstairs in the kitchen, Draco spilled his butterbeer across the table as he heard the bloodcurdling scream that had dripped down the stairs and nearly knocked him off his chair. It took less than a second for him to pull his wand out of his pocket and began his race up the stairs, jumping them three at a time.