Disclaimer: You'd think after so many chapters they would let us stop putting these things up. I mean, you all already know I'm not J.K. Rowling, and you all already know I own nothing…so why? –Sighs.- A question for the ages… Anywho, in case you 'don't' know, I am not J.K. Rowling, and I own nothing. -Smiles sweetly.-
Chapter Summary: Harry is reunited with Moony...but is coming face to face with Voldemort an easy price to pay?
A/N: Wow, long time no see, my readers! –Tear.- I have been computer deprived for quite some time but have finally been able to get online to post this next chapter! I'm sorry it has taken so long! T-T Anywho, thank you all so much for your reviews! I've read all the new ones and each one means a lot to me. My writing/typing is for all of you devoted people. -Nod, nod.- Consider this a late Christmas present from me. :-) And now on with the long awaited chappie!
Chapter 30: Teamwork and Rescuing - Part 3
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The floor beneath him gave way, and the young Potter quickly felt the horrible sensation in the pit of his stomach that comes with falling from a great height. His eyes shut in fear as he fell, hearing the alarmingly crashes and thuds around and below him. His first instinct, as with any child his age, was to scream, but before he could open his mouth to even utter any form of sound…it was over.
With a yelp and a thud, he hit something - although, if the surprised grunt and human-like groan that came from the thing underneath him when they both went crashing to the ground was anything to go by, it was more of a 'someone' - hard, yet soft, that prevented his fall from causing him the type of damage that it could have caused him if he had hit the ground on his own.
Dust rose into the air casting a soft haze across the room in conjunction with the dimly lit torches. The debris from the center of the ceiling littered the ground almost completely, but the focus of those in the chamber was not directed to the debris or dust, but to the figures, barely visible, on the ground. It was not everyday someone made such an...unceremonious entrance.
Groaning, Harry pushed up against the chest of the person he had fallen on, his body trembling from the fall, head spinning, trying to stable himself so as to get a glance around the room. His mind had yet to register where he was, or whose company he was in. The only thing he was thinking of was Moony, and if he was safe.
It was in this moment that he felt it…a sharp stabbing pain on his forehead. His eyes snapped shut as he took in a painful breath before, to his surprise, a powerful set of hands grabbed him by the front neck of his collar, pulling him harshly upwards. A whimper escaped Harry's lips, his hands moving impulsively from his scar to the wrist of the hand that was holding the neck of his collar, as the person he had previously landed on yanked him off and stood up with him.
"Harry!" came a concerned, hoarse voice that the emerald eyed boy immediately recognized.
Oh, no…Moony! Harry thought worriedly through his pain. He was more worried about the fact that Moony was here in the presence of these… hate-filled people. He could feel it, in the course of his pain, he could feel the hatred, anger, and ill-will that crackled like electricity around the room.
Opening his eyes against the throbbing pain in his scar, the dust finally beginning to clear, Harry looked, as far as he was able, thanks to being held a few feet above the ground, towards his right and saw Moony using the wall next to him as his support to stand. As Harry opened his mouth to notify Moony that this was not the place to be, the masked person that was holding him above the ground tightened his hold on the neck of his collar, making it difficult enough to breathe that the young boy could not utter any words.
Upon realizing this, Harry's emerald eyes shifted from Moony's warm and worried amber ones to the hard, cold, hazel ones of the masked man holding him. The Death Eater's eyes stared intensely into Harry's fearful ones, almost in a calculating way, before dropping him with a thud as though he were nothing worth holding. Scrambling quickly to his feet, Harry took an impulsive step away from the person who had grabbed him, and looked around the room, completely, for the first time. There's…so many of them… he thought to himself, having sensed them but…as it is said: seeing is believing.
To say the Potter heir was in his comfort zone would not be anywhere near true. He was scared…yes. To not admit that to himself would prove him to be far from brave, for true bravery comes from accepting ones fear. The fact that Draco – from somewhere in the small passage above them - kept mentally repeating to Harry that he was a goner, throwing to the wind his 'I'll be positive about the situation' attitude, did not help the raven-haired boy feel any better about things. But beyond all this, he was more scared for Moony's sake.
"Harry Potter…" a venomous voice hissed from somewhere behind him, causing him to whip around, feeling as though he had been dowsed with ice water. Emerald focused on ruby and a pain far greater than the one he had been feeling earlier erupted on his forehead. His small hands jumped to his scar with a sharp intake of breath as he took a few more - though a little clumsy-ish - steps backwards.
"How nice of you to drop in…we had been about to send a search party out for you…" Harry heard, yet did not hear, what was being said to him. Why was his scar hurting 'this' much? So much so that he could barely discern anything else. Was this person…could this person…be Voldemort? Yes…it had to be… I can't sense his feelings…
"At long last…Wormtail!" the Dark Lord ordered, gaze never leaving Harry's, a look in those ruby eyes that Harry could not distinguish. The doors to the circular chamber banged open as a short man entered, wearing the same kind of black cloak as the rest around the room, dragging a large cauldron, panting and heaving from the effort he was exerting.
Xantos rolled his eyes at this pitiful display. "Wormtail, you always find ways to give us reason to doubt what little intelligence we occasionally think you have," he said with an exasperated sigh before waving his wand in a silent cast of Wingardium Leviosa, bringing the cauldron over to the center of the room and setting it down gracefully. "Our Lord would more than likely prefer to 'not' wait another year, I'd believe." Wormtail stumbled slightly before nodding embarrassedly and scurrying over to his place in the circle of Death Eaters, pointedly refraining from glancing over at Remus.
Concern echoed through the Potter heir's mind.
Moony… That one thought stuck to him through his pain, he had to get to Moony. They had to get out of here. But how?? he wondered to himself, snapping his eyes shut. They were surrounded, and merely trying to think straight caused the throbbing in his scar to increase!
I'll block it.
That had been a thought. One that had not been his own and that had pierced straight through Harry's pain.
Draco? …What are you doing?
What did I 'say' I was going to do, Potter? The blond thought back, annoyed. I'm not sure how long I can hold it, but I'll block the pain for a little while. You get to Moony…
Harry nodded, not needing to be told twice. Lowering his hands from his forehead, he immediately realized that the throbbing in his scar had been reduced to a tingling sensation. The sounds around him steadily came into a clearer focus… Opening his eyes, he was greeted with - what to him was - a confusing sight, one that momentarily paused him from his mission.
"What??" Voldemort demanded icily from the trembling Death Eater before him.
"W-we're holding them back as best we can, my Lord. The wards to prevent apparition into the manor are still up, but the wards surrounding the grounds have fallen."
What were they talking about…what was going on? Many, though not all, of the Death Eaters around the chamber whipped out their wands before apparating with loud resounding 'cracks'.
"You obviously aren't doing you're best, or the wards would still be up," the Dark Lord hissed lowly…dangerously.
"Y-Yes, my Lord—" And before another word could be uttered, Harry watched, a silent gasp escaping his lips, as the man fell to the ground screaming and convulsing in pain...his own master having turned wand on him.
No, Harry told himself firmly, pushing the horrid feelings this person was going through out of his mind so as to not let them get to him. Moony, where was Moony? Centering himself completely and fully on that name, he turned away from the sight before him. Emerald eyes fell on the man who was still attempting to maintain himself upright by leaning against the wall…doing that much seemed to take as much effort from the man as sprinting a mile would. Harry dashed as quickly as his small legs could carry him towards his Guardian.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk..." said a rasping voice from the shadows that immediately froze the young Potter in his tracks…
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Darkness had long fallen as spell after spell was sent from both sides, light and dark, as the Order of the Phoenix fought their way across the grounds of Malfoy manor. Dumbledore had opted for a tactical, wise way of infiltrating the place. But Sirius had had no patience for the operation. He wanted his friend and his Godson, and he wanted them 'now'. Hence this straight-forward approach. Tactless, a little reckless, but so far things had not gone astray.
There were duals between wizards and witches being held all over the grounds, and from what Sirius could see, the light side had the upper hand.
"Hey, Paddy, you look a little far from home," said a mocking voice from behind him…a voice all too recognizable. Whipping around, Sirius sent a Stupify in the direction of the voice. A loud crack informed him that the spell had missed its target. Another crack was heard as a black cloaked figure appeared in front of him. "Any closer to me, and I would've thought that spell had been meant for me!" the masked figure declared, his smirk evident in his tone.
"Stupify!"
"Protego! Come now, Paddy, if you Stupify me I won't be able to tell you how you're little Prongslet and wolfie are…"
Sirius snarled at this, almost not caring for whatever information Xantos could give him. If there was anyone he hated almost as much, if not as much, as Snape, it was this person before him.
"Come on, when did you stop trusting in Potters?" the golden brown-haired man inquired reasonably.
"You're no Potter to me, Xantos," Sirius whispered dangerously. "You stopped being a true Potter years ago!"
"So harsh you are!" Xantos chuckled, spells flying around them as Order members fought Death Eaters. "Well fine, be that way. I think I've done enough stalling you as things stand anyway."
"Wha—"
"I just wanted to say 'hey'. Did you actually think I came out here to 'fight' with you? Black, you're denser than I remembered, and that's saying something! Heh…I've got someone more important I need to get to at the moment." And with that said, a loud crack indicated Xantos' departure.
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Draco kept the better part of his concentration on mentally blocking the pain in Harry's scar from crippling the Potter heir as he crawled back towards the dungeon he and Harry had been at earlier, crossing over the four-way they had pit-stopped at.
Keeping this block up is getting a lot harder… he thought to himself with a slight grimace as he reached the end of the crawl space, entering the dark dungeon. No time to stand around… The Malfoy heir ran down the length of the dungeon chamber, exiting the still open door, and proceeding up the steps to the next level of the manor…
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"Been a good while, Potter. How've things been going?" the cloaked figure indifferently asked as he stepped out from behind the shadows, hood down, revealing himself as none other than Fenrir Greyback. "Well…supposing just from the situation I wouldn't guess 'marvelous'."
Harry opened his mouth, whether to scream or say something, he was not sure, for his mouth had run terribly dry.
"You know…I've had a craving for a taste of you ever since that time in the forest…" The werewolf informed the young boy as he came ever closer, a ravenous look crossing his animal-like eyes.
"Greyback!"
"My Lord…" the werewolf replied, turning towards his master.
"I don't recall 'eating' Potter to be apart of the plans for the evening…" the Dark Lord said coldly.
"...My apologies, my Lord…"
A loud crash was heard not horribly far from where those occupying the chamber were situated.
"Dumbledore never ceases in being an ever present thorn in my side!" Voldemort growled, incensed. "Bring the Potter boy over to the cauldron. At least one thing will go as according to plan this night…"
Fenrir easily grabbed a hold of Harry by the arm and forcefully dragged him in the direction of the cauldron, controlling his strong desire to just take a chunk out of the boy. The physical contact snapped Harry out of his shaken state, and he planted his feet as firmly as he could on the ground in an attempt to make himself hard to drag …but to no avail. Fenrir was physically much stronger than he was, but even though Harry knew this, he continued his struggle to free himself.
"Still as troublesome as ever," the werewolf muttered, annoyed, pushing the boy up to the cauldron.
If he were worried solely about himself, Harry would run. Fast and far. But to escape, to get away from this terrible place, he 'had' to have Moony. He had to. Padfoot had explained to him why Voldemort had come to his house when he was a baby. Why he had killed his mommy and daddy… This thought ached at him but he pushed it away for now. But now to bring Moony into things, too? He believed he knew why Voldemort had brought he, himself, here. He wanted him dead. But to bring Moony, too? What reason was there?
Fenrir grabbed a hold of Harry's wrist and raised it above the cauldron, Voldemort bringing his wand up to Harry's arm.
"No!" Harry yelled - on instinct raising the heat around his body to a degree that caused not only Fenrir to release him, but for the two wizards to take a partially stunned step back from him.
Breathing deeply, Harry looked defiantly at the two in front of him, the heat around him slowly returning to normal as he lowered his arm back down. He was not exactly sure what had overcome him to react like he had, but his senses had all but screamed 'don't let that wand touch you'. Outside the chamber, what sounded like a large commotion could be heard.
"Impressive…" Voldemort hissed icily, and again that indistinguishable look entered his ruby eyes. Similar to the eager look Fenrir had, yet all too different…"Planning on not cooperating then?"
Without a moments pause, Harry shook his head. And at that precise instant Harry's definition of pain was changed for the rest of his life…
"Crucio."
It was like nothing he had ever been put through, including the Dursley's. It felt as if the pain that had resided in his scar earlier had quadrupled and spread throughout his entire body. To all nerves, making it seem as though a million needles were piercing every inch of him inside and out. A child's pain filled screams filled the circular chamber as Harry convulsed on the floor, experiencing the Cruciatus spell for the first time…
Out of nowhere a figure flung itself, breathing heavily, in front of the screaming child, breaching the connection the wand had with Harry, the curse breaking. The young messy haired boy lay on the ground panting painfully, his face wet with tears.
"Why, Lupin! After all you've been through you actually found the strength to get over here and 'still' be standing??" Fenrir inquired with a condescending smirk.
"And all for nothing. The only thing he's managed to accomplished is to annoy me further." Voldemort said maliciously.
"Don't…don't ever…ever cast that spell on him again," Remus growled dangerously, amber eyes holding an anger and a hatred they had not held in years.
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Draco stood at the doors to the circular chamber that Harry was in, peaking in through the crack of the slightly opened doors. And as far as he could tell, the person standing in front of Harry - Moony, he realized, after a quick check of his thoughts - , was very...'very' stupid. Did he have any idea what he was doing?
"Hey, aren't you Malfoy's so—"
Draco yelped and turned around at the sound of the voice, the ground and walls of the manor beginning to tremble, and then shake. Silver grey eyes landed on a cloaked Death Eater who was promptly loosing his balance thanks to what he dubbed an earthquake before falling backwards against the fine stone wall with a crack as skull and stone connected, falling to the ground, rendered unconscious.
The Malfoy heir did not know whether to be happy he had knocked the Death Eater out or worried that he had been seen. Vouching for the second of his two choices he bent down next to the unconscious Death Eater as the shaking of the manor came to a slow stop. The blonde reached over and took off the white mask, revealing Nott.
Oh, if father finds out this was me, he'll kill me! Draco thought anxiously, before quickly scrambling to his feet. Down the long corridor he could see sparks and shots of spells signifying that what was going on outside was now going on 'inside' and that Potter's rescue was not too far from arriving. Something hard hitting the stone floor brought the blonde's attention back to Nott. A wand had fallen out of one of the inside pockets of the black cloak and was now rolling slowly across the ground. Silver grey eyes widening slightly, as Draco bent down and picked up the runaway wand. New screams escaped the chamber doors next to him indicating that Moony had not moved out from in front of Harry and was now paying for it.
I've gotta get away from here, if father finds me anywhere but in my room... He did not want to think about that. But this is... Yes, he was almost sure of it. This is that 'Moony's' wand... Shifting his gaze back to the chamber doors, Draco decided he could do one last thing to help Harry.
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The Dark Lord and his minion did not seem to have been fazed by the minor earthquake that had happened a few seconds earlier, apparently silently dubbing it something that had to do with the battle that was taking place outside. Remus convulsed on the ground still on the receiving end of the Dark Lord's Cruciatus curse.
"S-Stop!!" Harry yelled desperately, throat scratchy from his previous screams, pushing himself up and onto his feet as a barrier of fire jumped up between Voldemort's wand and Remus, cutting off the curse. Tears were slowly rolling down his cheeks. "D-Don't do that s-spell on Moony anymore...please..." He knew that 'that' pain was beyond all others, that it was a million times worse than anything the Dursley's could ever cook up, and to see Moony, one of the two who had saved him from his relatives, who had cared for and loved him, being put through that curse...tore the young boy apart more than any spell could.
A heartless sneer spread across the Dark Lord's face, the boy was going to cooperate now, it was evident in the child's uncanny emerald orbs. And all for his precious good for nothing Moony...
"...N-No...Harry...y-you can't..." Remas said, breathing heavily, attempting to speak through the throbbing pain that still echoed throughout his body. The Potter heir brought his arm up and wiped his tears with it before resting it up against the cauldron like Voldemort had done with it earlier. As long as the evil wizard was not going to cast that curse on Moony anymore, Harry did not care 'what' happened to him.
"Good..." Voldemort chuckled mirthlessly as he and Fenrir stepped over the fallen Lupin.
What in the... Remus thought to himself, what he was seeing slightly breaking through his worry-filled thoughts. If his vision was not playing tricks on him, he was positive he was seeing his wand coming towards him riding on a very thin, very small stream of water. Deciding some things were better left unquestioned, Remus reached out and gripped his wand, some of his energy returning to him as he forced himself to stand... A murderous look entered the Lupin's amber eyes for what the two who had their backs to him had done, and were planning on doing, to his Charge. He raised his wand and all hell broke loose in the circular chamber...
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Feeling lightheaded Draco took a few steps away from the chamber door. He had done what he had set himself to do, but it had left himself feeling very odd. He supposed it was because he had never used both earth and water magic in the same day before…not to mention all this blocking…
...Sorry, Harry... he thought to himself, before relinquishing the barrier he had kept on the pain in Harry's scar. If he had held it any longer he was sure he would not be able to stay conscious. Taking a few more clumsy-ish steps backwards he bumped into what felt like a pair of legs...a standing pair of legs.
So stupid... he reprimanded himself as he gazed hesitantly upwards, silver grey eyes meeting hazel behind a white mask.
"So you're the one..." the Death Eater stated, as though having realized something magnificent. "We need to talk...Somnifericus," he said, pointing his wand at the Malfoy heir, casting a spell he had invented himself.
Against his will, a deep desire for sleep overtook the blonde and he found his eyes closing without him realizing it, sleep taking him. Bending down, Xantos grabbed up the slumped slumbering kid, glanced briefly at the unconscious Nott, rolled his eyes, and began walking down the corridor opposite that of all the interfering noise...
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Spells were flying every which way between Fenrir, Voldemort, and Remus. The amber eyed man was not exactly sure where he had found the strength to put up a fight, but he believed it to be the adrenaline and the desire to get Harry away from here.
Harry had backed and crouched behind the cauldron, watching the flying spells and hexes, when the pain in his scar returned full force, if not worse. He tried to call out to Draco with his mind, to make sure the blonde was alright, but all he got in reply was the solitude of his own thoughts...his own mind... This worried him, but the pain in his scar kept him from trying again.
Snapping his eyes shut, he brought his hands to his forehead in an attempt to sooth the pain away, missing two identical grey spells as they hit Remus, sending him flying backwards and into the wall. It was then that a huge explosion was heard as the two doors leading into the chamber burst open, a good group of six entering, breathing heavily, their wands extended and at the ready.
Voldemort growled in outrage, for in his current state, possessing the body of another, and with Dumbledore in this group, there was no choice but to retreat and regroup. If the boy had cooperated from the beginning he would have had his true body by now and these newcomers would stand no chance...but as things stood now...coming up with a new plan was pivotal. And with that, two loud cracks echoed throughout the chamber as Voldemort and Fenrir disappeared.
"Moony!" Sirius called worriedly, running out from the group and coming next to his slumped friend's side.
"...H-Hehe...you never were...prompt..." Remus said, attempting a smile, but it coming out as a grimace. Sirius shook his head apologetically.
"Moony..." the black haired man murmured, inwardly and outwardly relieved that he had not lost his last best friend. The Order members all ushered into the chamber, most rushing to Remus' side as well, other's glancing around. Sirius glanced briefly around before it hit him...Harry was not anywhere... Bluish-grey eyes snapped back to Remus as two Order members helped the werewolf up. "Where's Harry?" he inquired fearfully. Surprise entered the Lupin's amber orbs. Harry was not in the room? But...
"...P-Padfoot?" came a small voice from behind the cauldron. Sirius spared a glance to Remus who nodded slightly, before hurrying over to the cauldron and spotting his Godson sitting there, hands tentatively leaving his forehead as emerald orbs stared up into blue-grey. And without words, Sirius scooped his Godson up into his arms and held him tightly against him, as if letting him go would make him disappear, true relief flooding him.
And Harry, finally in the protective arms of his Godfather, with Moony safe, with the thought that everything was going to be okay now, lowered his defenses, and allowed himself to truly cry. Cry for everything that had happened, for the pain he had been put through, for the pain Moony had been put through, for being separated from his guardians for so long, for being so close to evil it was almost suffocating to think about. And Sirius just held him against him, feeling the small body rack with sobs, as he rubbed soothing circles on Harry's back. Thanking every higher being he could think of for reuniting the three of them once more. It was not until a few minutes after Harry had stopped crying that Sirius realized the young boy had allowed exhaustion to claim him. Running a hand through the tuft of raven-black hair Sirius looked over at Dumbledore, who was smiling softly. The two nodded to each other, and the elder of the two pulled out an old boot. Handing the object to Arthur Weasley, he said,
"Alastor and I shall stay to gather the fallen and call the Auror's, the rest of you return to Hogwarts and take these two..." He looked from the sleeping Harry to Remus. "To the hospital wing."
The group nodded and all but Dumbledore and Moody placed a hand on the old boot in Arthur's hand.
"Moony?" Sirius said, looking over at his exhausted friend.
"...Yes?"
"I told you. Books bring nothing but trouble..."
Remus looked at Sirius for a moment with a mixture of amusement and annoyance, opened his mouth to retort, but was cut off by the Portkey activating and yanking them all forwards by their navels...
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A/N: And chapter 30 finishes. For those of you who believed I had dropped this story, how very wrong you were! I love this story too much to drop it. –Grin.- Anywho, tell me what you all think about the chapter. No cliffy this time! I thought you'd all appreciate that. What do you all think is going to happen to Draco? Hehe, anywho...I'll do my best to update again soon!
And on to this chapter's 'Curiosity Filler'
"In the last book, do you all think Draco will turn good, or continue to fight for the Dark Side?"
Byes for now! Till next time...
-Chloe
A.K.A. – Japanime1