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Oh, wow. This story is almost complete! I already posted chapter ten today, but it was short and this one is short so I'm posting this one today too. Then, just one more chapter, which I'll post tomorrow, then an epilogue and this story is over! Yay! I have had a great time writing it and you've all been so nice and great to read it and the reviews have been just awesome! Thank you all so much! I wasn't sure if this story would be any good or not, but you seemed to like it and that's all that really matters to me! Thank you all again!
My Heart Burns
Chapter XI: Snuff
SsSsS
Where God has his church the Devil will have his chapel.
SsSsS
Flames will eventually turn to dust. Lovers will leave. The sun will set. Parents will die. It is inevitable.
All good things come to an end.
Harry understood better than most, but he never seemed to be able to prepare himself for the endings. He worked so hard to do his best, and though his mistakes were made, they were forgiven.
Sirius did not hate him. He was angry, yes. He was sad, yes. He did not hate Harry. He did not blame Harry, not fully. Harry was partially responsible for Lupin's death, but others needed to answer for it. Harry accepted this, he owned up to it. Though it hurt Harry to hurt Sirius, it was over now. Harry had told the truth, and it turned out to be a good thing.
Harry, for the first time in his life, had been the recipient of the phrase "I love you."
Life was good, but all good things come to an end.
sSsSs
The Slytherins thought it odd, how Harry was acting. Their classmate was no longer attacking them, though Goyle choose to stay away from him as much as possible. Harry seemed to be ignoring them completely, like he was better than them. They all took this as a personal offense, and decided he should just go find a group of Gryffindors to sit with.
So, when Snape entered the dungeon classroom for the potions lesson, he was surprised to find Potter on the Gryffindor side of the seating. He said nothing, as Potter was not causing trouble with the stupid lions, but he kept a close watch nonetheless.
Merlin only knew what was wrong with the brat now.
The same happened in Defense Against the Dark Arts. All the Slytherins refused to sit next to Harry, and forced him away. It wasn't like he really cared. None of them were anything important to him.
Besides, he was riding high on the secure knowledge that he was wanted. That Sirius would be there.
After class ended, Harry was held back by Moody. Harry didn't think much of it. He was preoccupied, and that's why the stunner came so unexpectedly. He woke up, magical binds keeping him in a chair. Standing before him was Moody. Fear crippled him. Did Sirius tell them? Did Snape? Was he being arrested?
No, it was much worse.
Moody- real name Barty- explained to Harry the situation they found themselves in. The Dark Lord wanted Harry back at the mansion in Little Hangleton. Now. Harry was informed that he had to leave school, via portkey that Moody would hand over, and return to their lord's side for good. Harry would not be coming back to school. Ever.
Harry would not be seeing Sirius again. Ever. It was all going to end, and if he didn't immediately go to Voldemort, well the consequences would be fatal.
Harry would be tortured and killed, left in a public place as an example. Then, Voldemort would start on Sirius. Sirius would murdered, violently, and it would all be Harry's fault.
None of this would be necessary, of course, if Harry had just followed orders. He'd forgotten about the plan. He'd went his own way, made his own decisions, and now, it was time for punishment.
Harry was let go, handed the portkey, and told to be at Voldemort's side in ten minutes. Harry would forgo packing, he would only grab a piece of parchment and write a letter. If he hurried, he could leave in time and say goodbye.
sSsSs
Sirius hurried down the hall. Class about just about to let out, and he wanted to be in his meeting spot with Harry before the kid got there. Harry was always complaining about Sirius being late.
Sirius would him this time. This time, Harry would be the one that was late.
Sure, Sirius had been in shock for awhile after hearing about Moony. To think, killed by James' son, it was strange, just wrong. Though, when they saw each other again, Sirius was sure they'd actually laugh about it, somewhere in the afterlife. Moony and Prongs were probably rolling in their graves right now.
Sirius chuckled lightly to himself as he slid into the room, back in human form. The trouble James used to cause…
He stopped, seeing a piece of new parchment laying on the floor, left underneath a plate of food. Harry had already been here? The was odd. He should have stayed.
Then Sirius read the letter. It was bad. Very bad. Runaway criminal or not, Sirius would fly through the halls of Hogwarts to find Dumbledore as soon as possible.
Sirius never had the chance. As soon as he read the last words Harry wrote, he world turned black. He was out before he hit the floor.
sSsSs
Sirius,
I apologize for leaving. No, that sounds so cold. Let me try that again.
Sirius,
I never deserved to meet you.
You have given me something I never dreamed of.
Before I met you, I knew nothing about honor, about courage. I didn't know if love really existed, or if it was just a belief, just the faith that everything was right, that someone was right.
I used to think that losing all hope was freedom. That if I could just let go of all emotion, all responsibility, that would free me. But I owned up to my decisions because of you, for you. And that was what set me free. It has made my last decision easier. But it's still so hard to do.
I swore I would never lie to you again. And this is my last chance to tell you the truth. So, here goes.
Voldemort wants me back. I'm going back.
Trust me, I don't want to. It's the last thing I want. But the choice has been taken away from me. He will kill me if I don't go now. If I go, it will be easy, and I may only have to endure a Cruciatus or two. If I refuse him, he will not stop hunting me until he gets what he wants, you know that. If I don't go, I won't be the only death, and I would never be able to rest knowing you died because of me.
So, it's really best this way, for everyone. At least I know that if I'm just going to my death, you'll be safe. And if he's going to kill me now, I promise you, I won't be going alone.
I guess what I meant to say is that I'm sorry for hurting you. You mean more to me than you know. Thank you for finding me, thank you for being there.
Thank you for saving me from myself. I will never forget you.
And most importantly… I love you.
Harry