I know that I mentioned another chapter wouldn't be up for another three weeks…but I figure if it's ready, why not? This is very action-packed – enjoy!

XX. Holyhead

Harry

Time had lost all meaning in the Pit. I did not know if I had been caged in there for hours, or days, or weeks. In the absence of light, amidst total desolation, there had been no reprieve from the Dementors.

Yet somehow, I endured.

Somehow, I didn't lose my mind.

To this day I don't know how I survived, but I knew I hadn't lost my sense of purpose.

And as I opened my eyes, coursing energy flowing through me, I was sure of just two things:

The first: I had my magic back.

The second: Rookwood was going to die.

I stood within the confines of the cage, and focused on that thought.

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!"

Brilliant white light exploded from my body.

I laughed. It was a sound I had not heard in a long time.

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!"

I yelled again. It felt good just to say it.

The bright light intensified. Accustomed only to darkness, my eyes stung. Then, the light from my Patronus pushed outwards. The Dementors, constantly circling around my cage, shied away from the golden bars, their sudden shrieks of torment music to my ears.

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!"

In the darkest place on earth, I had found light.

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!"

I inhaled slowly.

I looked up, and gripped the bars of the cage.

"Ascendio."

Nothing happened.

"Ascendio!" I tried again, concentrating with all my might.

This time, the cage jolted upwards a few inches before stopping.

I grinned.

"Ascendio!"

Ginny

"You move in Monday, with orientation in the afternoon," Hermione said, idly flicking through the Harpies schedule that had just arrived by express owl. "Tuesday and Wednesday will be full training days. You get Thursday morning off, and then the afternoon is prep for the Press Conference that night."

I stretched out on my camp bed. The MLE safehouse wasn't terrible, but I really couldn't wait to get out of here.

Ron had been particularly irritated about the whole ordeal, not wanting to close the joke shop, but Hermione had told him that all the jokes in the world wouldn't make her happy if she lost him.

With that, he had ceased complaining immediately. I had to hand it to her, really.

Mum, Dad and Percy were staying at the Ministry proper, and Bill and Fleur had taken Andromeda and Teddy in to Shell Cottage. Bill had assured Mum that it was perfectly safe, and even if Death Eaters managed to break through his wards, they would have ample time to make an escape.

Charlie was in Europe, far from Rookwood's reach, and George was staying with Angelina. He had started to improve in recent weeks, and I could only hope that I would have my brother back soon.

Harry

I clambered out of the cage as my eyes grew accustomed to the dim light, and immediately kneeled over and vomited. My head was spinning, and I lay on the ground, exhausted with the exertion of my escape from the Pit.

My Patronus, the shimmering silver stag, stood nearby, surveying the bleak cave. Not a Dementor was in sight, although I could feel their chill to the bone.

Gratefully, I slept.

When I woke, my head was clear.

I knew what I had to do.

I wouldn't have the resources of Wrath of Merlin available to me. I wouldn't have help from X or Y.

But I was going to exact vengeance on Rookwood and his Death Eaters.

They would pay the most terrible price.

But first, I needed to get out of the prison.

On my previous visit, I had seen a number of boats tethered to the dock. So long as the wards didn't hold me back, I could cross the North Sea and return.

I remembered then, with a sinking feeling, that Rookwood had thrown my wand into the Pit. I would retrieve it later - after I figured out a way how - but in the meantime, I was gong to need a new wand.

Ginny

"Wow," Hermione exclaimed as we arrived at the front gates, early on Monday morning. Hermione had leapt at the chance to accompany me out of the safehouse.

'Wow' was right. The home of the Holyhead Harpies was a large Manor House that sat on the hillside overlooking the beachfront and the township. Behind it, invisible to Muggles, stood the imposing Holyhead Bowl, a four-tiered stadium that had stood for over half a millennia. Inside the stadium hung thirty-three banners, each denoting a year when the Harpies had won the League Cup.

We met a guide at the front entrance. I looked around, and noticed several nondescript figures standing still, but their eyes were constantly moving, and the majority had a hand resting on a wand holster.

"Miss Weasley, welcome to Holyhead. I wanted to let you know that season ticket holders are at our highest levels in years, and we're hopeful for a breakout season with a legitimate title chance," the guide said. It seemed like a strange way to greet someone.

"Augustus Rookwood is on the loose and the threat level is the highest it's been since Voldemort was alive, but nothing stops for Quidditch," remarked Hermione wryly.

"We've hired additional security for the town, and the MLE have increased their beat patrols as well. A Hitwizard squadron will also set up base at the stadium complex," said the Holyhead guide. "All paid for, of course, by Harpies Quidditch."

"So reassuring," Hermione replied.

"Ignore her," I said to the guide with a smirk. "She just doesn't understand Quidditch."

Harry

I arrived on the outskirts of Hogmeade.

Only a few lights shone from Hogwarts. The students were not there. Slowly, I made my way around the Black Lake to the White Tomb, and with a gesture, opened it. Dumbledore lay peacefully there. His body, magically preserved, looked the same as when I had originally returned the stolen wand to his tomb.

"I wouldn't take it, Professor. But it's an emergency."

I felt once again like a sheepish schoolboy making an excuse. Carefully, I lifted the Elder Wand from his chest.

It felt warm in my hand. The Deathstick recognised its master.

I had my wand back. Now I needed intel.

I closed Dumbledore's tomb, and disappeared again with a crack.

Kingsley made his way into his office, and closed the door. With a simple wave of his hand, the dim lights grew brighter.

"Good evening, Kingsley."

Kingsley drew his wand out in a flash.

Harry Potter stepped out of the shadows, pulling the Invisibility Cloak off his shoulders.

"Merlin's beard. You're alive!"

"I'm the Boy-Who-Lived," Harry replied with a wry smirk. "Don't sound so surprised."

"I just…how…?"

"Get Arthur in here," Harry said impassively, before his visage darkened. "And then you're going to tell me everything you know about the Nostradamus Light."

Harry

"Well, I suppose you want an explanation too?" I asked, addressing Kingsley, Arthur, and someone new to me: V, who Kingsley had invited.

"You bet I do."

"They put me in the Pit, Kingsley," I replied hollowly.

"Fuck…" Kingsley said in an incredulous whisper.

"Somehow, I got my magic back."

"How did you get here?" V asked.

"Broke through the wards, took a boat and crossed the North Sea."

She raised an eyebrow, but I could not tell if she was surprised or impressed.

"What of X?" I asked.

"He died, Harry. A Kill Squad broke into St Mungo's - this was just four days ago. He managed to defeat them, but at the cost of his own life. His last memory was of Creedy telling him that you were still alive."

"Without X and Y…we're done, Harry," Kingsley concluded.

"Not before I get Rookwood," I replied in a tone that left no room for argument.

"I want him alive."

"Perhaps," I said. "Tell me about Nostradamus."

"The Nostradamus Project was born of necessity. We needed more than you, more than the Aurors. If you had failed to stop Voldemort, what would have stopped him?"

"The Nostradamus Light is that answer. A Light can end all magic inside any being or object. We even believe it could counter a Horcrux," V added.

"Rookwood said something to me, before putting me in the Pit. He said that the Light had been created because of me," I said.

"No. We created it because of Voldemort."

"But you feared that I might go dark."

"We did."

"You admit that the contingency was in place, then?" I pressed.

Kingsley sighed.

"Harry, I-"

"I understand, Kingsley."

I stood, and when I spoke again, I was, in a way, a different man.

"Don't doubt me again."

Harry

I returned to my quarters in the Department of Mysteries, and collapsed into my bed, overcome with exhaustion.

Nearly twenty-four hours had passed when I woke, starving. I made my way out to the living quarters to find a spread laid out on the dining table, magically preserved. Grateful for food, I tucked in.

After my meal, I went straight to the operations room, pausing at the doorway.

It felt wrong not seeing X there, drawing magical threads between photos and reports, or attending to the map on the wall; or Y, idly twirling his wand in his hands, leaning back on his chair with his feet up on the table.

Y had imploded the magical energy inside his soul.

X had duelled twelve Death Eaters to their end.

And now they were gone.

I took a seat at the table, ignoring the stack of parchment that had accumulated. Evidently, the Mysteries Intelligence Division had seen fit to continue sending their findings our way.

With a wave of my wand, I cleared one of the walls, and stuck a picture of Rookwood in the centre. I drew lines to information we had on members of the London Group of Death Eaters, and Julius Creedy.

"Need a hand?"

I whipped around, with the Elder Wand outstretched, a curse on the tip of my tongue.

V raised her hands.

"Er, sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

I lowered my wand, and nodded. I didn't know how much I could trust the secretive witch.

Her eyes flicked to my wand.

"Is that-?"

"It is," I replied.

"Master of the Hallows. Perhaps that is how you cheated death, Mr Potter."

"Call me Harry."

She gave me a curt nod herself, and then eyed my work on the wall.

"You want him dead."

"Yes."

"So far, we've been reactionary. Rookwood strikes, and slips into the shadows before the Aurors arrive. We need to take the fight to him."

She took a seat at the table, and began taking files from the top of the stack of parchment.

"We've got the element of surprise. Rookwood assumes you're contained in the Pit," she added, her face shrewd.

"What do you suggest?"

Her face hardened.

"Let's catch the rat in a trap."

"You've taken out the Auror Commander. If you are Rookwood, who do you hit next?"

"The Cabinet. Seniors in the Wizengamot."

"They're all residing inside the Ministry. I've got to hand it to Kingsley. He's turned the place into a fortress. Rookwood's too smart to launch a frontal assault."

"You go after their friends and families," I remarked.

"Most have been transferred to MLE safe houses. Your friends, Miss Granger and Mr Weasley, for example, have been relocated to Birmingham," V said.

It had been two days, and we had seemingly made no progress. To my frustration, V had steadfastly rebutted my desire to go topside, reasoning that we depended on the element of surprise, and that the Intelligence Division was perfectly capable of finding information.

"We just have to be patient, Potter."

—

Ginny

"Ladies and gentlemen, if you could please take your seats, we'll be underway shortly," announced the media representative for the team, a short blonde witch dressed in a Muggle blazer.

There was a murmur of assent from the assembled Press.

"Good evening. Team Captain Gwenog Jones will begin proceedings with a short statement, and then we'll hear from the team coordinators. The players will then field questions."

Gwenog stood and took her place at the lectern.

"Right. Hello again. This year sees a number of new faces joining the team, and if they're any good, they might actually get some playing time this season. Which we plan on winning. Thank you."

She made her way back to her seat as the media witch, a resigned look crossing her face, gave an audible sigh.

Harry

Fate, perhaps, is the only explanation I can really give for what happened that Thursday evening.

Too many times we had been dealt the cruelest hand, and paid the price.

So when V dashed in with a piece of parchment clutched in her hand, I knew our luck had changed.

"One of my Unspeakables is undercover with a Hitwizard squadron based in Wales. Julius Creedy has just been spotted. We believe they're going to attack Holyhead."

I froze.

Ginny. It had to be. Thanks to the Sports section of the Prophet, I knew they were having a press conference tonight. The Weasleys were Rookwood's next target. And he would strike at the youngest, their only daughter, whilst the media had front row seats.

Part of me was screaming no - that I should be evacuating every single person in Holyhead, with Ginny first to leave.

But another part of me wanted Rookwood dead at my feet.

It was that part of me that won my internal battle.

"I can order an evacuation now. Set up a secure Portkey. Or a Floo line," V suggested.

"No. Let them come."

"Harry, I know that you and Ginny Weasley were involved-"

"She'll be okay," I reasoned. "The Hitwizards will protect her."

V nodded.

"Come with me, we're going down to Intelligence."

I had visited the Intelligence Division a couple of times with X before. The crux of it was a large hall, with cubicles similar in many respects to the Auror Office. Several two-way mirrors were set up around the room. There was a steady stream of chatter, and I reckoned it was easily the noisiest place in the Department of Mysteries. V made her way over to a senior analyst - one who I recognised as having briefed Y and myself on a mission back in January.

"Any further news?"

"Ma'am, we're getting another report through now," he said, pointing towards a piece of parchment placed on his desk.

The parchment glowed blue and a scribbled message appeared.

The Unspeakable's face went white, and he handed the parchment to V.

I had only known her for a short while, but considered her to be the most composed woman I had ever met.

That composure was gone now, as her features betrayed sudden shock and fear.

Ginny

"Miss Clarke, you've played professionally in the Oceania League for three years. What are you looking forward to the most about playing in the British and Irish League?"

"The top flight talent that this League attracts. More World Cup players belong to this League than any other. It'll be a great challenge," replied my Australian teammate, on loan for two seasons.

"You bring a Southern Hemisphere style of play to the team. Do you feel it will be well-incorporated into the game plan?"

"Absolutley. I-"

"INFERI! Inferi on the beach!"

Whispers of shock turned into chaos in a matter of seconds.

A woman nearby tried to Apparate, and found she could not.

"We're trapped!" she screamed.

The Hitwizards moved quickly to restore calm.

"QUIET! QUIET!"

"Please remain calm! The Ministry has been notified, and the Department of Magical Law Enforcement will be arriving with reinforcements momentarily. Once we can break through these wards, we'll evacuate you from the building."

"I assume you've heard the news?" Kingsley asked Arthur as he dashed into the office.

"Yes. What can you tell me?"

"The Inferi are massing on the beach. Holyhead is under a dark web, with no escape. Can't walk through it, can't Apparate through it either."

"The entire township?"

"Yes. We're working on breaking it, but it's laced with dark magic. And the person we'd ideally want cracking it died in St Mungo's last week."

"How soon can the MLE mobilise?" Arthur asked.

"We've got no contact with the local office, but we have four Hitwizard divisions on site. Every Auror not currently on active duty is heading there."

V entered the room.

"Minister…the Inferi…if not contained-"

"I know. I want you to prepare two Lights for deployment."

"You'd wipe Holyhead out of existence?" Arthur asked, shock in his voice.

"If necessary," Kingsley replied.

"Harry believes he can stop them," V said.

"What is he doing?" Arthur asked.

"He knows about Holyhead. He's already left."

"Alone?"

"Not quite. He said he's bringing an army of his own."

Harry

I made my way into the Forbidden Forest once again and traced a well-trodden path into the heart of the woods. I had been running for twenty minutes before I was found.

"Stop, stranger!" a voice cried out.

I paused, breathing heavily, and removed my hood to reveal my face.

"I am Harry Potter, and I need your help."

The centaur gave a curt nod.

"Follow me."

Crack.

I materialised from thin air on the high ridge above the beachfront. The stadium stood proud nearby. I staggered, breathing heavily. Breaking through the ward was one thing, doing it with company was something I hadn't even been sure I was capable of.

Fighting through the exertion, I stood and surveyed the beachfront.

A seething mass of black was emerging from the water, and the stench of rotting flesh filled my nostrils.

The undead walked here tonight, in their thousands.

"…they fear light and warmth…fire, Harry."

I recalled Dumbledore's words as I curled my hand around the Elder Wand.

Firenze trotted over to me.

"This is unorthodox, Harry Potter. Many of the herd has never left the Hogwarts grounds, let alone faced such a foe."

I turned to face him.

"You must trust me," I responded grimly, "I can protect them."

Firenze nodded.

Each centaur shimmered with ethereal light as they lined in formation along the edge of the ridge. As one, the centaurs unsheathed their blades. I had never seen one wield a sword before, let alone a hundred. It was an awesome sight.

Another horn blast rang out.

"Ride on my back."

"But-"

"For you, the herd will make an exception. Ride into battle with me, Harry Potter."

I took his proffered hand, and he lifted me with ease onto his back.

"It has been foretold that we would fight as allies against a common enemy. That day has come!" Magorian bellowed, cantering down the line.

"The beasts of Hell await! They threaten our world with vile magic. The very balance of light and dark has shifted. This day, we make it right!" I shouted.

"You have fear, as do I. Let me give you the strength to win this day!"

I waved the Elder Wand down the line, and each Centaur blade burst into blinding white flames.

"Let them burn!"

The herd replied with a deafening roar.

Firenze wheeled around, and I gripped his shoulder to steady myself.

"Are you ready?" he asked quietly.

"Yes," I replied with deadly purpose.

Magorian turned to us, holding his now-flaming sword aloft.

"The stars will talk of this day for centuries to come, Harry Potter."

He dashed a hoof against the earth, pent-up energy gathering inside him.

"CHARGE!" he bellowed, and as one, we descended onto the beach.

The herd fell upon the Inferi like a tidal wave, the inhuman strength of the undead countered by white blades that cleaved through everything they touched.

I propelled myself into the air, using one hand to levitate myself above the masses of Inferi, and unleashed a torrent of livid Fiendfyre with the Elder Wand.

Next to me, Firenze severed a lunging corpse in half with his white blade.

I cast another flamethrower-like burst into the ranks of the undead, their bodies disintegrating under the withering heat of my Fiendfyre curse.

Ginny

I watched in stunned disbelief as the centaurs fell upon the Inferi.

A giant tongue of flame grew into the form of a massive Hungarian Horntail that belched a river of flame upon the masses of undead.

The sight took my breath away.

Fiery wings crashed down on the horde as the dragon roared to the heavens, with lethal fire raging through the Inferi ranks.

"Miss Weasley, I need you to stand back from the windows. We don't know what else is out there."

I turned to the Hitwizard.

"Sure."

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for keeping calm. We'll get you out of here as soon as we can. In the meantime, I feel we'll be safer in the stadium than in here. Can we get there?"

"There's a tunnel that runs from the training rooms here to the dressing rooms at the stadium. We can make our way there, and barricade it," Gwenog suggested.

The Hitwizard nodded.

"Lead the way."

Harry

The flaming dragon crashed into the Inferi horde with a billowing explosion of flame. Beads of sweat ran down my face, and each breath I took was laboured from the smoke. The centaurs on my flanks were tiring, more and more were falling prey to the undead. Only a few feet away, a Centaur was pulled apart by the ravenous darkness, kicking wildly as they tore him limb from limb.

With a yell, I directed a raging torrent of flame towards them.

"There are too many, Potter!" Magorian shouted. His blade was moving faster than I could see, but they kept on coming.

"Fall back and regroup!"

The cry went up, and the Centaurs formed a close-knit line in retreat. Fewer than half remained.

I looked at my hands, black with soot and grime. The stench of the dead filled my senses.

I needed more power.

"Get back," I warned the Centaurs.

I launched myself into the air, fifty feet above the wicked horde, and gave silent thanks to Y for teaching me how to levitate myself in combat.

It started as a spark. It then grew in intensity - light and dark, fused into an unstoppable energy.

The combination of the magics of Fiendfyre and the Patronus Charm.

Fiendlight.

A torrent of blazing white fire shot from the Elder Wand into the masses of Inferi below.

Every fibre of my being shook. Sparks of magical energy danced around my body, as the livid maelstrom of magic surged through the ranks of the howling undead like an unstoppable tidal wave.

The exhilarating rush of power flooded my senses.

This, this was magic I had never known I possessed.

I was not tiring - if anything, my strength was only increasing.

I roared at the heavens.

And as the haze cleared and the fire faded away, as I slowly descended to the ground, I truly believed, that if I so desired, I could literally move a mountain.

Firenze and Magorian approached me with something akin to awe on their faces. Only small pockets of Inferi remained, being dealt to by Centaurs with burnishing bright blades.

"The stars foretold that you would be great, Harry Potter," Firenze said with only the slightest hint of a smile. "But I think they didn't quite do you justice."

Ginny

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your cooperation this evening. I assure you-"

He stopped speaking, as his face contorted grotesquely.

He gave a shudder, and then raised his head with a smirk, his features rearranging.

A murmur of confusion ran through the huddled throng, and then gasps of shock…

…as the man revealed himself to be none other than Augustus Rookwood.

Around the pitch and in the stands, the other Hitwizards were undergoing the same transformation.

"Fuck," I swore. Ron's vocabulary had really rubbed off on me.

"Surrender your wands, or die where you stand."

I inched my hand towards the pocket in my robes.

"I wouldn't."

I stopped, and raised my hands above my head as I felt a wand jab sharply into my neck.

My captor put a hand on my shoulder and shoved me to the front of the group.

"We've got the bitch."

Rookwood's expression widened into a sadistic smirk and he leaned in close to me.

"Ginny. I must say, I wish we could have met under different circumstances. I feel so horrid. It really is so unfortunate that your brother had to die."

"YOU BASTARD!" I screamed, pulling free of the Death Eater and slapping Rookwood across the face with all my strength.

No sooner had I struck him, I was brought to my knees with a stunning blow to the back of my head.

Rookwood grimaced, rubbing his jaw, and appraised me.

"You will regret that immensely. I am going to enjoy breaking you, Miss Weasley."

Black lightning burst from his wand and hit me point blank. I collapsed to the ground, writhing in pain as the dark magic took its toll. Gasping, I coughed blood.

"AUGUSTUS ROOKWOOD!"

My heart leapt in my chest.

I knew that voice. I knew that voice like no other. I knew his whisper, his scream, his assured confidence, his inspiring cadence.

I knew that voice.

"Impossible!" Rookwood spat, his eyes wide with disbelief as Harry descended into the stadium.

He looked different, older, more assured. But there was no mistaking the jet-black hair, the steely green gaze, or the lightning bolt scar on his forehead.

Harry had returned.

"FACE ME!"

Sparks of magical energy discharged around him, and my senses were flooded with the sheer presence of his power.

If Rookwood felt any fear, he did not let it show.

"So be it," Rookwood said quietly, before his voice became a howl. "Kill him!"

And then the battle was underway with a vengeance.

One Death Eater raised his wand, only to find that Harry had torn it from his grasp, and blasted his wand arm clean off in a sweeping double movement.

Another was thrown through the air as Harry unleashed a series of complicated wand flicks, almost too fast for the eye to follow.

A third Death Eater had grabbed one of the Harpies coaches, and was holding her at wandpoint.

Effortlessly, Harry levitated the Death Eater by his ankle, and flung him into the path of an oncoming Killing Curse.

Harry moved impossibly.

In this close-quarter combat, nothing could stop him.

The Death Eaters he faced were not being defeated.

They were being decimated.

With a sharp, sudden flick of the Elder Wand, Harry cast an unseen curse that sliced a black-robed figure straight down the middle. His body fell apart in a gruesome manner.

Another one succumbed to a series of fist sized holes blown right through his chest.

All around me, people were screaming in terror as the battle raged on in their midst.

A green jet passed inches from Harry's face.

Harry paused for only the briefest second to send a Killing Curse back in return.

"Avada Kedavra!"

An awesome jet of green light exploded from the Elder Wand, blasting into the Death Eater.

Harry didn't even stop to watch the man crumple, instead turning again to cast black lightning at yet another assailant, parrying curse for curse.

Harry raised a shimmering blue shield to block a spell, then reached out with his hand and made a twisting motion.

The Death Eater's neck snapped and he collapsed as Harry sidestepped to avoid a Killing Curse, before firing back two green jets of his own.

His expression set with hawk-like focus, Harry duelled methodically, with absolute precision.

A jinx landed nearby me, and I turned to see another face.

A Death Eater leered at me with stained teeth. With a malicious gleam in his eye, the Dark wizard pointed his wand at me.

I was defenceless.

Crucio.

My vision blurred as every nerve in my body screamed.

Expelliarmus!

The cruelty on my attacker's face turned to shock as his wand was ripped out of his hand. A second later, his legs buckled beneath him as he cried out in sudden pain.

When my sight refocused, I dimly noticed Aurors and Hitwizards pouring onto the pitch, and red jets of light flying everywhere. My attacker was on his knees, held in a headlock by another figure.

And a wand was pointed into his right ear.

The new figure, his face obscured by shadow and smoke, spoke a single word.

Crucio.

The voice was quiet, but there was no mistaking it.

It was him.

It was Harry.

The shock of my sudden realisation was broken by the screams of my attacker. The yell that came from his mouth was unearthly. Desperate hands clawed at the arm around his neck. His feet struck at the ground, gouging into the grass as his legs wildly kicked about, much like a man on the hangman's noose.

From the ground, I stared up at the gruesome scene in pure horror. This was the stuff of nightmares.

His chest heaved, and a fountain of blood exploded from his mouth, running down his front, to mix with the trickle of urine that ran down the inside of his legs. Then, with a hideous pop, his right eye burst in its socket.

His face was coloured a sickly red, and the veins that stood out in stark relief to his mottled skin looked as if they were about to burst. I didn't understand how he was still alive.

It was too much.

"Stop it, Harry, stop it!"

He didn't answer.

He didn't even look at me.

He didn't stop.

Spasms shot through the man's body, and a bloody brown fluid was running from his nostrils. The howl had become a warped shriek that cut through the air like a knife.

I plastered my hands to my ears, and closed my eyes. I could still hear the muffled thumps as the Death Eater struggled in his death throes.

And then it was over. One last thump, and he fell to the floor.

"Ginny, open your eyes."

Tentatively, I inched my eyelids apart.

Harry had come into the light, and the haze had cleared some more. There were long gashes on his left arm, and his sleeves were soaked in sticky wet blood.

With one eye, the corpse on the floor stared ahead, straight at me. His face was hardly recognisable.

I began to rise from the floor, then vomited. Harry was there in a flash, a hand on my waist and the other sweeping the hair from my face.

"Breathe, Ginny," he said, soothingly. "It's okay, now. I'm here."

Something inside me snapped.

"Stop!" I said, jolting away from his touch.

He retracted his hands, as if he was stung.

I looked at him, shocked. How could he pretend that it was okay? After what I'd just seen him do?

"You're not you," I whispered.

"What?" he replied, puzzled.

That he didn't understand made it worse.

"You…you're not you. Not Harry, not my Harry. What are you? What have you become?"

"I'm still me!"

"You're not…you, you just Crucioed that man to death! How could you?"

"He attacked you!"

"I don't care…you didn't have to do…"

A flicker of anger crossed his face.

"Ginny, they were coming to kill you! You don't know what they planned!"

He closed his mouth too quickly, like he'd said something he hadn't meant to. Then it hit me. I suddenly understood. He had known about the attack. He knew that the Death Eaters, in one final ploy, had decided to target me.

He'd used me as bait.

"But you did," I said.

"What?"

"You knew…you knew that they were going to attack the Press Conference! You knew…and you let them."

Rather than argue, he bowed his head.

"You have to understand, Ginny-"

I didn't want to understand. I couldn't.

"Get away from me!"

"Ginny!"

"No, I…get away from me! It doesn't matter…I don't care what kind of excuse…we're done, Harry! We're done!"

Shock filled his eyes. He opened his mouth to reply, but was interrupted.

"Harry Potter, we've got orders to take you in."

No fewer than six Aurors surrounded us, their wands all trained on Harry. All around us, MLE officials were detaining the Death Eaters who had survived Harry's onslaught and tending to the hostages.

"You're wanted for questioning in relation to the secret Operation Wrath of Merlin," said another Auror.

"Now, stand slowly."

Harry did so.

"You'll need to surrender your wand, Mr Potter."

"I'm afraid that won't be possible, gentlemen," Harry said quietly, his face a grim mask.

"If you don't comply-"

"Merlin, is that…it is! It's him! It's Harry Potter!" yelled a reporter.

Harry whipped his head to the right, alarmed.

Flash. Flash flash. Flash.

Cameras went off in every direction.

Flash.

"Harry, Harry!"

"Mr Potter, put your wand down! This is your last chance!" shouted the Auror.

Harry looked at me, his eyes filled with an unreadable emotion. I met his gaze for only a moment before tearing my eyes away.

Suddenly, a brilliant burst of white light exploded around us, and when my vision cleared, Harry was gone.

"Harry Potter has escaped. Secure the perimeter," the lead Auror spoke with resignation in his voice.

A/N: Thanks to all those who review - as always I very much appreciate it - and please continue to let me know what you think!