Chapter 9 Now What

Thank you, darrelldeam and alix33, for looking this over. All mistakes are my own.

Believe it or not, I used to be a practicing Wiccan, but depression and other things took my spirituality away. So I do know a bit about rituals, and I used the net to get the definition of the candle and herbs. I know that meditation takes a lot more than one day, but I didn't want to draw it out, laziness on my part, and it plays into the powerful Harry aspect of the story. I hope you enjoy, this is mostly filler.

Thanks for all your reviews and support.

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Before they entered the door, Harry looked at Hermione and said, "Are you sure we should do this? I mean, even if you're correct, then what? How will I tap into this so-called power?" He was hesitant to go through that door; it might change his entire life —again. And considering that his life had never truly been stable since he got his Hogwarts letter, well… he broke off that train of thought. Still the thought to doing something that will change it made him pause.

"Harry," she said softly, laying a hand on his arm, "we really need to know. If it isn't you, it could be someone who isn't with us right now. If that's true then we need to find them and bring them here. If it is you then, well, we'll just have to find the right meditation to tap into your core."

"Right, okay, I can do this. I really hope it's someone else." And with that the four teens turned to the door and Harry reached out a hand, turned the silver-handled knob and opened it.

Inside the room was much like the ward stone room, only larger and without the crystal. The floor was hard packed dirt and the walls were white marble. There was no source for the light blue light that filled the room; it was like it was just coming from everywhere and nowhere at the same time. There were runes everywhere, even the ceiling, and only Hermione and Luna had any idea what they meant. They wandered around the room in awe, touching the walls and examining the large circle on the floor. This circle had a five-pointed star in the middle and there were symbols that were not runes.

"Hermione, what are those markings? They don't look like runes," Harry asked, looking at one that looked like a fat, naked lady.

"I think, I'm not sure, but I think they depict gods and goddesses. In Merlin's time they worshipped nature, though they called upon the deities," she explained as she joined him. "Well the druids did, and that is who it is believed to have trained Merlin. So these must be representations of them." She leaned over and examined the naked lady. "I think this is Mother Earth," she added after a moment.

"Oh, will we be calling them?" he asked, moving on to a marking that looked like a head surrounded by a mane of leaves. He wasn't sure how he felt about that, never being one of religion, but having a healthy fear of making demands on unknown gods.

"No, silly, those deities died ages ago," Luna answered, still looking at the walls. "Or they could be sleeping, one really never knows."

"I didn't know gods could die or sleep," Neville said as he joined Harry.

"If they have no worshippers, they fade," was the blonde's answer. "What do you think happened to the Roman and Greek gods, silly?" she flashed him a wistful smile and Neville gave a sheepish grin in return.

"Alright, let's get set up. It's only a few minutes until midnight," Hermione said as she glanced at her watch, and then she pulled a large royal blue, candle etched with yellow runes from her purse. "We need to stand at the direction points. Harry, you're at the north, Luna the east, Neville the south and I'll take the west." She walked the candle to the middle of the circle and placed it there. Then she took out a small bag of herbs. A pungent aroma filled the air as she sprinkled them around the candle.

"What are those for?" Neville asked as he did a point me spell to find the southern point.

"Well, the people from Merlin's time believed in the power of herbs. Each one had a power to draw an… essence from who they believed to be gods and goddesses. What I have here is Bracken for magical runes, Orange Bergamot to draw magical power and Wisteria for balance. The candle had to be soaked in an infusion of these three, and the runes were drawn on the new moon," the curly-haired teen explained as she took her spot on the west. "We really should be doing this on a full moon, but since it is during the waning moon we should be okay. We should also be sky clad, but that's to channel power, and I am sure our wands will do it for us. " She was more of the belief that it would be Harry's power that would help the ritual.

The two boys blushed, and they glanced at the very healthy bodies of the girls, glad they wouldn't be distracted, but a tad disappointed as well.

"Honestly, boys," Hermione huffed, though her cheeks were pink as well. Luna looked like she was more than ready to shed her clothes, but Hermione gave her a hard look, so she didn't.

"What do we do now?" Harry asked as he took his spot on the north, which happened to be the top point of the star. He had never been part of a ritual, unless you count Tom's return and he really hoped this wasn't like that one.

"First, I have to close the circle, so no magic escapes," Hermione said, worrying her lip. She left her spot and drew her wand, traced the circle clockwise, mumbled something under her breath, and then when she returned to her spot the etched circle flared white. "Now we call upon magic to assist us."

"What?" came two confused male voices. Luna just gave a dreamy smile.

"It's really simple; take out your wands, turn to the wall, raise them and say 'I call upon the Element of the… your direction… to aid me in my quest', Harry first, then Luna and so on."

Harry, feeling really silly, did as she bid and drew his wand, turned, and said, "I call upon the Element of the North to aid me in my quest." He felt a cold breeze in the windowless room and shivered. He was going to ask, but decided to wait until the other three did their incantation and then he turned when Hermione said to.

Harry forgot all about asking, when he noted the blue candle was burning brightly, he didn't know if Hermione had lit it or it started burning on its own. The yellow runes were now bright gold and seemed to be waiting for something. The herbs that were scattered around the candle were… shimmering?

"Okay, point your wands at the candle and say, 'We ask magic to tell us the pair, who leads to light or gives despair,'" Hermione said, lifting her wand. "We have to say it together, so, on my nod."

Feeling even sillier the other three teens did as requested, and a white light flew from four directions and hit the candle. They watched as its flame flared. The light almost blinded them, and they had to shield their eyes, when it vanished so had the candle and the herbs. In their place was a single piece of parchment. Harry was just about to go and get it when Hermione stopped him. "Wait," she cried, holding up her left hand, "we have to dismiss the elements. This time I'll start, then Neville, and you all repeat after me." She turned to the wall and said, "Thank you, Element of the West for aiding on my quest, I release you."

The bemused teens followed suit and the chilly wind died when Harry said the words.

"Okay, now you can read it," the curly-haired witch said. She sagged a bit. It had taken more out of her than she thought it would. Perhaps she shouldn't have changed the ritual quite so much. She was just so sure that they wouldn't need to follow it exactly.

Unknown to Hermione had it not been for the fact that Harry was there, the ritual would not have worked, and they would be more exhausted. However, magic itself decreed that they know the outcome.

Neville and Luna weren't much better, but Harry was still standing strong, making Hermione sure what names were on that paper.

Harry slowly made his way to the center; he picked up the parchment and read: Harry James Potter and Tom Marvolo Riddle. The dark-haired teen sighed, his shoulders sagged; he had really hoped it would be someone else. The other three came up and read the paper.

Neville clapped him on the back and said, "Better you than me, mate." Harry gave him a defeated smile; he would've said the same.

"Oh, Harry, I am sorry. I know how much you did not want this. Don't worry, we will find a way to keep the wrackspurts from invading you," Luna said, giving the depressed teen a hug.

"Harry, just because you now know doesn't mean you're different. You are the same boy you were when you entered this room," Hermione stated firmly, putting her hand on his arm and gently squeezing it in a comforting manner.

"Now what?" Harry asked as he squared his shoulders, looking at his best friends, hoping they had the answer, because he was clueless. He would take this like he had every other change in his life— head on.

"Now, I am going to join you in your meditations. We are going to find your core and I will teach you how to touch it. It is really simple, Harry, do not fret so," Luna said from her spot on his shoulder as she patted his chest.

They all stood in thought for a few minutes, and then Harry sighed again and said, "Okay, now we know and like everything else we'll just deal with it. Don't tell anyone about this. I really don't want the hassle."

"Mum's the word," Neville said, turning to leave the room. When he got to edge of the protective circle he bounced back.

Hermione giggled. "We have to break the circle," she said and went to the western point, pointed her wand at the floor and started walking counter-clockwise to release the shield. When she was done, she rejoined her friends, still giggling.

"Right," Harry said with a chuckled and led the group out of the room. "Did anyone feel anything when they called their element? It was weird, I felt a chilly wind." He gave a slight shiver at that.

"I felt a warm summer's breeze," Luna answered with a dazzling smile. "It was quite a wonderful feeling." Her eyes glowed at the memory; it was like being hugged from her mum.

"I felt a hot wind, like sitting in front of a raging fire," Neville added thoughtfully.

"I felt the earth. I'm not sure how to explain it, it just felt… earthy," Hermione said, a confused look on her face.

"Well, I guess there's something to these rituals after all," Harry stated as they walked the halls, glad they weren't at Hogwarts, where they would get in trouble for being out of bed so late.

"Honestly, Harry, of course there is. They were used for centuries," Hermione huffed and smacked his arm.

The boys walked Hermione to her room and then Neville escorted Luna home, and then went to his house, while Harry snuck in the room he shared with Seamus. He crept to his bed, put his glasses on the night stand and sat and cleared his mind. He would never get to sleep if he worried about the results of the ritual, so he put those thoughts away, laid down and fell into slumber. His dreams were peaceful, full of sky clad women, and he got a good night's rest

The next morning he was met by Hermione, Ginny and Luna at the bottom of the stairs. Luna grabbed his hand in a friendly manner and skipped by his side. He gave her a fond smile and said good morning to the other two.

"What has you so perky today?" Ginny asked the smiling Luna, a small frown on her lips as she glanced at the entwined hands.

"Harry has consented to let me help him with his meditation. I am going to help him with his wrackspurts," the blonde answered, still skipping by Harry's side.

"I didn't know you had wrackspurts, Harry," the redhead said, looking at her long time crush. She was unsure of her feelings for this young man. He had, after all, broken up with her, but he never treated her unfairly. She was actually doing well with Dean and hopefully they would get to be more after the war. They had gotten back together these last few frightful months at Hogwarts.

"I didn't either, until Luna pointed them out," Harry shrugged as they continued to the dining room. "I thought your family moved to the village," he said, changing the subject. Luna he could understand being here this early, she seemed in charge of herself, but Ginny was still under the watchful eyes of Mrs. Weasley.

"We did, I was just spending the night with one of my year mates. She still gets nightmares about Hogwarts, so we take turns at sharing a room. Some nights she comes to my house, others I spend with her. Mum offered to let her stay with us, but she doesn't want to live with so many males," Ginny answered sadly.

Her friend, Carol, had been accosted by a group of male Slytherins who worshipped Voldemort. They were caught before it went too far. They only jeered at her and pushed her around, but Carol still had nightmares. It was one of the things that perplexed her about Snape. He was the one to prevent the assault, though he did blame Carol for wandering where she wasn't supposed to be, which was ridiculous since she was headed to class, but he still stopped the attack. Ginny still hadn't talked to her dad about it; it had just been too busy around here. She'd do that tonight.

"Oi, Potter," came an unwelcome yell as they entered the dining room. "Why wasn't I called to the meeting last night? I've done just as much as you. And what are you doing holding hands with Loony? My sister not good enough for you? First you dump my sister, then you steal my girl, and now you're cozying up with Lovegood. What the bloody hell are you playing at?" Harry's former friend shouted from down the table, food spraying the people in front of him, making them stand up and shout. "Oops, sorry," Ron said as he swallowed his food. The two people just glared and moved, leaving the redhead alone.

The group of friends stopped and turned to the redheaded idiot. "First of all, you would have to ask your parents why you weren't at the meeting. I didn't organize it. Second of all, who I date or don't date is none of your business," Harry stated as calmly as he could. Many people were already watching them and he didn't want to air his dirty laundry here.

Luna looked dreamily at Ron and airily said, "Oh, Ronald, you have nargles. I wonder where they came from, there is no mistletoe here." She glanced at the ceiling, just in case she was wrong, but it was free of the offending plant.

"Shut up, Lovegood, no one asked you," Ron snapped, causing three of the four teens to turn red with anger.

Harry opened him mouth to shout back, but Ginny beat him to it. She stalked up to her brother and pulled him off the bench by his ear. "You'd better watch out, brother of mine," she snarled in his face. "Or I'm going to hex you so bad you'll be out of training for a week."

"Aren't you upset that your boyfriend it holding hands with Loony?" the confused teen asked.

"Harry is not my boyfriend. We broke up. Luna is a dear friend that just happens to like to touch. Besides, like Harry said, it is not your business," she snapped. She still hadn't told her brothers about Dean, not after the way they hassled him the last time they dated.

"Well, well, well, what's going on here then?" Fred asked as he grabbed his sister's shoulder and gently pulled her back.

"Ron is being a prat," Ginny said as she shrugged his hand off, her eyes never leaving Ron's face.

"Ronniekins, do we have to have another talk?" George inquired in a neutral tone, though his eyes sparkled with mischief.

"I would think after the last… discussion, you'd've learned to leave Harry alone," Fred said just as blandly.

"I did, but look at him. He's holding hands with Loony right in front of Ginny," Ron defended himself; shuddering at the thought of last talk he had with the twins. They didn't hurt him, but the spiders they conjured up and made crawl his way were food for the nightmares he had for days after.

The twins turned and glanced at the intertwined hands and smiled. "Harry, you dog you," Fred said jovially.

"Why didn't you tell us that you were getting serious?" George added with a big grin.

"What are you on about? Luna is my friend," Harry said giving the blonde a fond smile, which was returned. Maybe after the war they could be more, but for now, he'd stick with friendship. She was, after all, very pretty and kind. She seemed to understand him as much as Hermione.

"Wait, why aren't you mad at him? He broke Ginny's heart. Now he's flaunting his new relationship in front of her," Ron said, glaring at Harry, which turned to a hurt expression when Ginny hit him on the head.

"You have rocks for brains, you know that, right?" she asked as she went back to her friends' side.

"Honestly, Ronald, even I can see there's nothing romantic going on here," Hermione scolded, trying to keep this from escalating. "Why don't we just sit and eat breakfast? You stay there and we'll sit over here." She pointed to the other end of the table, which she started for. She had hoped that there would be reconciliation, but Ron's attitude was preventing that. Sometimes she wondered why she put up with him. "When you can talk without insults and accusations, perhaps you can join us. Until then, I think it's best to maintain a distance," she called over her shoulder as she moved to the far end of the table.

"Yeah, why change a good thing? You've been avoiding me, and I, for one, have enjoyed the peace," Harry said as he dragged Luna away. The rest of the group followed, leaving a very confused Ron behind, that didn't stop him from shooting glares at them.

They ate a nice breakfast, which had the normal fare, but also had hot cereals to ward off the chill. Harry opted for oatmeal with cream and strawberries, stasis charms were wonderful. They talked about what they were going to do today and soon broke off in groups. The twins, Seamus, Dean and Neville were still looking for secret passages. Hermione, of course, was going to the library, while Ginny was helping her mum. Harry and Luna were making their way to the eastern tower, to go to the meditation room.

"Alright, Harry, sit where you normally do and start to clear you mind, only this time I am going to be speaking and guiding you to your core. Listen to the sound of my voice and try and let it direct you," Luna said after they lit the candles.

Harry sat in the middle of the circle and fed his thoughts to the candle. Luna's dreamy voice was like a whisper in the back of his mind. She was telling him to find his center, which should be in the middle of his chest. He drifted in a dream-like motion, following her instructions. He felt the energy he always felt filling up his body. When he found his center, he looked at the large rainbow column of light. It seemed to thrum in time with his heartbeat.

"Have you found your center, Harry?" came the soft, airy question.

"Yeah," he answered in a whisper, just staring at that column of light, watching it pulsate.

"Alright, now I want you to try and touch it," was the instruction.

Harry looked down and noticed that he was standing there. Like a ghost he really didn't have a body, just a form. He lifted his arm and moved forward. As he got closer to the light, he felt a warmth penetrate his soul. It was like feeling a mother's hug, all safe and warm. He reached out his non-corporeal hand and touched the light. Unknown to him his body was radiating a bright, colorful glow as it lifted off the floor. He vaguely heard Luna gasp, but he was too enthralled with the light in front of him. All he wanted to do was walk in to the center of the column and feel the power and the warmth. He felt that if he did, he would be the happiest he had ever been.

"Alright, Harry, now take a small beam of that light and connect it to your chest," the dreamy voice said, stopping him from doing what he wanted.

He did as he was told and now felt like he was in control of his magic for the first time in his life. What he had accomplished before was nothing to this overwhelming feeling of control. It was like he could take on anything and come out the victor. He wanted to stay here forever and just bask in the feeling.

"It's time to come back now, Harry. Let my voice lead your way." Slowly and softly Luna guided him back to reality.

This time he felt himself land on the floor. He opened the eyes he didn't even know he had closed and smiled. "That was bloody brilliant," he said, getting off the floor and stretching his entire body, feeling the power surge through him.

"You did very well," Luna said, getting up and giving him a hug, which he returned. "I thought it would take a couple of sessions, but you did it the first time. You cannot deny it anymore."

Harry's happy expression turned to a small frown. "Even now, with all this power, I still don't know all the spells Tom does. He has years of experience. How am I going to beat him?"

"Oh, Harry," Luna sighed, "Did you not learn anything? Use what you know, silly," she said, pulling away from the hug and smacking him on the chest.

"Right, I forgot that," he said absent-mindedly. He was going over what the 'power the Dark Lord knew not' was. "What time is it?" he asked.

"We have been at this for about an hour, so it is only around nine," she answered, once more grabbing his hand.

The two teens left the tower and made their way to the library, which was brimming with students and refugees. They found Hermione, who was talking to Bill, and made their way over. Luna sat on Bill's right, while Harry sat next to Hermione.

"So, what is up? Are we going to remove the Horcrux from my scar?" Harry asked as he glanced at the books surrounding the two researchers. They were all on soul magic.

"That's what we're discussing now, yes, but there might be complications," Hermione answered, looking up from the book she was reading.

"Oh, what kind of complications?" the dark-haired wizard asked with a frown.

"I've never done the spell on a human before, it shouldn't be too difficult, but I want to make sure nothing happens to you," Bill answered, still reading his tome and jotting down anything that caught his attention.

"Oh," Harry said, disappointed. He was hoping to get this done today.

"Don't worry, Harry, we'll figure this out. How was your meditation?" Hermione asked, changing the subject. She didn't want Harry to worry about this right now, not when he looked so happy. She glanced at Bill, making sure he wasn't paying attention. He wasn't.

"Great, I feel revitalized," Harry said, throwing his arm over her shoulder and giving her a hug.

"Wonderful," she said as she returned the hug. "I need to get back to this, but I'm glad you're feeling better," and she started reading her book.

Harry soon got bored and wandered to the sally. He was watching the adults and they were getting better. Now they were using knives to banish to the targets. A lot of them were hitting the dummies pretty accurately. One woman banished her knife and it buried right into the head. She got a sadistic grin on her face and Harry knew she wouldn't back down, which made him feel a whole lot better.