Changing My Life

Flashback

Chapter 29: Little Off Course

Harry had just sent the anonymous message to Tom. Now he just had to wait three minutes. No more, no less before he floo'd to the headmasters office.

Everything was planned out. To a T, Harry had made sure of it.

Three minutes passed and Harry stood and went over to stand in front of the fireplace. It was time.

Taking some powder, Harry threw it into the fireplace and disappeared into it.

He reappeared in the fireplace in the headmasters office.

Hogsmeade

Hermione and Draco landed on the outskirts of the town.

"Alright, remember we just have to walk around and what until we see Death eaters. Then we inform Harry." Hermione reminded Draco, who nodded in response.

They spent the next ten minutes walking around town until they heard screaming. They shared a look before ducking into the nearest alley and sending a patronus to Harry. Just as Hermione was able to cast the spell, they saw people running in one end of the alley they were in. If they saw Draco it was game over for him. Hermione looked back and forth between either side of the alley not knowing what to do. They couldn't apparate either due to the anti-apparation wards.

The people were getting closer. Hermione throwing caution to the wind pulled Draco close against her and cast a disillusion charm on herself and Draco. With them being close together it was less of a chance that they would disrupt the air causing them to be seen. Pressed together neither of them dared to move until the people passed them and ran out the other side of the alley.

Once it looked to be all clear Hermione waved her wand, removing the charm. The pair separated and Hermione sent Harry the patronus with the message.

Headmasters Office

A otter patronus appeared in front of Harry.

"It's begun Harry." Hermione voice came out of the otters mouth before the otter evaporated.

Harry left the office before making his way to where he was supposed to meet Neville and Luna.

Harry rounded the corner only to see Bellatrix standing across from Daphne holding her at wand point. He saw her wand begin to move and knew what her next spell was going to be.

"No." He mumbled under his breathe before mustering all the power he could and he vanished without a sound only to reappear just in time for Bellatrix curse to hit him and force him to his knees in agonizing pain. Daphne was in shock that he would take the torture curse for him after everything she said.

"Ehhh." Harry groaned panting.

"Aww Potty came to save his beloved. Hun, shouldn't you have learned by now that love is a weakness eh Potty?" Bellatrix taunted as she held the curse. Harry was looking down at the ground before he rose his head and looked at Bellatrix dead in the eye.

"So is being so blinded that you don't even remember one of the most basic rules in fighting." Harry chuckled breathlessly. Bellatrix looked at him like he had another head. "Always watch your back." He smirked and as her eyes widened and she was about to spin around only to be stabbed through the stomach with a sword before she could. Gasping, she fell to her knees and you could see Neville standing behind her with the sword still in his hands. The curse on Harry released and he pushed himself to his feet.

Standing he moved over to Bellatrix before crouching in front of her. "Just so you know hun, your cruciatus is nothing compared to Tom's." He said in a tone that would make chills go up your spine. Standing he turned to face Daphne who was looking at his in shock. He looked back to Neville and sent him a nod.

"C'mon." Harry ordered as he took hold of Daphne's hand and pulled her along with him. Once they rounded the hallway she yanked her hand out of his. Harry took a few more steps before realizing she wasn't following and turned around to face her. "What're you doing? We have to move."

"How would know that? You would only know that… you would only know that if you planned for this to happen. I could've been killed, any one can be killed. Is that part of the plan? Or do care so little about me or anyone else to risk our lives carelessly." When she saw the look in his eye she continued. "Your unbelievable you know that. I never would've thought you'd be that person. To care so litt-"

"ENOUGH! Don't act like you understand what is happening here. Because you don't. Yes this is the plan. And I have several people backing me on it. And for the fact that you never thought I'd be this person. The person that has so little care for anyone but themselves well let me tell you something, there are very few people that I actually care about. But because of idiots putting so much stock in a stupid f**king prophecy I am left with people expecting ME to save THEM! Expecting ME to care enough to save THEIR lives. Because THEY are too scared or useless to SAVE THEMSELVES. I always should've been this person. It's just taken me years and a lot of slander and heartache to see that. So let's get one thing straight, I am not doing this for all of the people in the wizarding world. I am doing this for ME, and the select few people that I actually care about. I am doing this for MY future." Harry fumed before turning and starting to walk about.

"You're a jackass you know?" Her words caused him to stop and face her again. "You have everyone fooled. They think you're a hero. The ones that's going to save them. But really all you are is a coward." She stressed the last word. Harry's eyes flashed, and he strode forward until they less than a foot apart.

"I'm a coward? What about all of those people out there that are scared of a damn name? All of those people who are to scared to actually fight to live? What about them huh? I am actually fighting for my future. I am fighting to live. So if that makes me a coward. Then I'd hate to know what that makes everyone else."

"Your right, your not a coward. You're just as blinded as Bellatrix. You don't see what's really happening in front of you." She smirked. Harry's eyebrows furrowed and he had a slight frown, as he tried to figure out the hidden message. His eyes widened when he felt a wand jab his stomach.

"Your going to curse me? Are you going to betray me? Or were you never really on my side?" Harry whispered just loud enough for her hear.

"While my parents may have sided with you. I always saw the real you. That scared little boy with glasses and a lightning bolt scar."

"Why're you doing this?" Harry questioned all too aware of the wand jabbed to his abdomen. Daphne tilted her head to the side slightly and thought. Harry glanced down at the wand jabbing him before looking back up at Daphne. "You're not really Daphne are you?" 'Daphne' looked at him with slight shock. Harry took advantage of her moment of weakness and grabbed the hand that had the wand and twisted before he brought it behind her back and kicked out her knee making her fall to her knees with Harry's arm holding her in a headlock.

"Where is she?" He demanded. 'Daphne' just smirked.

"Seems like you broke your own rule. And to think weren't you just reminding Bellatrix of this?" 'Daphne' chuckled at the irony. Harry's eyes widened before he whipped around only to be thrown off his fight and land about ten fight away. He groaned and rolled onto his back. 'Daphne' crouched in from his face.

"Unlucky break huh?" She taunted before he was knocked out.

Down in Hogsmeade and on the Hogwarts ground, fighting had broken out. Auror's and students were battling death eaters but Harry Potter and Tom Riddle were no where to be seen.

When he came to, Harry shot up into a sitting position, quickly taking in his environment. It was a tad dark, he was on the floor.

"Finally. You've been out for what feels like an hour." A voice came from his left. Groaning, he stood turning to face that direction while giving the area a proper once over. "We're locked in a broom cupboard." The voice commented seemingly knowing what he was trying to do. Looking at the person that was sitting on a crate in one of the corners he recognized them. It was Daphne. His eyes narrowed.

"How long have you been in here?" He questioned still not entirely sure if this was the real Daphne.

"Not sure. At least two hours. What's going on out there? Sounds like fighting." She responded.

"That's exactly what it is. So, are you the real Daphne?" He questioned randomly.

"The real Daphne? There's some bi*ch impersonating me?!" Daphne looked pissed at this information.

"Oh yeah, kicked her ass too." He remarked grinning. One of Daphne's eye brows rose.

"And was this before or after you found out it wasn't really me?" She questioned teasingly.

"After. She called me a coward and jabbed a wand in my stomach all after I took a cruciatus for her." He replied nonchalantly. Her eyes widened.

"You took the cruciatus for her?!" Daphne asked incredulously.

"I thought she was you." He admitted. "Bellatrix had her at wand point and I just knew what she was going to do and I couldn't let 'you' be hit with it. So I apparated in f-" He was cut off.

"You can't apparate in Hogwarts." Daphne interrupted.

"I guess I was desperate enough and just did it. Either way, I took the curse. And Bellatrix was stabbed through the stomach with a sword curtesy of Neville. Thinking back to it, I guess it was them setting us up while we set them up." Harry commented.

"That's makes little to no sense." Daphne remarked dryly.

"I promised Neville that if anyone died today it would be Bellatrix. We counted on her hubris and her cockiness. But in the end, I still got played. Even when I thought I was the one controlling the board." Harry trailed off.

"I'm still on the part where you took a cruciatus for 'me'."

"Don't worry about it." Harry waved it off.

"Harry's it's known as the torture curse for a reason." Daphne said exasperated.

"Tom's curse is worse. Trust me, it's okay." She didn't look convinced. "So, you don't seem mad at me anymore. Last time I talked to Neville he said you still didn't want to hear anything me." Harry turned the conversation to what he was curious about. Daphne sighed.

"Should've known he was reporting back to you." She muttered and shook her head.

"Don't blame Neville. It wasn't his fault. I asked him to tell me. Just because I wasn't here doesn't mean I didn't want to know how much you hated me." He chuckled.

"I didn't hate you." She defended. "It was my pride. I didn't want to give into the fact I had to be saved by you after being thrown into something by you and then not being consulted. I'm not an overly controlling person Harry, but the decision was mine." She responded looking at him.

"I know. I knew that then, and I knew you'd be angry at me and maybe even hate me but… I've lost almost everyone I've lo- cared about." He caught himself but not before Daphne heard the beginning of what he was going to say.

"Why can't you say it?" Daphne wondered.

"Say what?" Harry questioned even though he had a pretty good idea what she was asking.

"Love. You were going to say everyone you've loved but you caught yourself and said cared, why?"

"Because nearly everyone I've loved has either died, was never really there for me or betrayed me. Maybe Tom is right? Love is a weakness. All it leads to is pain and suffering." Harry answered. Daphne hopped off the crate she was sitting on approached him.

"Harry, love is not a weakness. You think love takes away your edge. But it doesn't. It gives you one. Because when you look Death in the eye with something to live for, you have a reason to fight, a reason to keep going and win. With no love, you look Death in the eye not afraid to die because you have no one. Having something live for is always better. It gives you a reason to fight."

"Then why can I never beat him?" He asked sadly.

"Every time you've gone up against him you've been fighting with one arm tied behind your back. Every time your were following Dumbledores policy. You were trying to be the honorable one. But Harry you can't beat a man with no honorable or morals with one arm behind your back. Your not under Dumbledores control anymore, and this is the first time your facing him since." She reminded him. He thought about her words before remembering something he once heard.

"Potter, why do you hide?" Draco questioned him.

"Hide? What the hell are you talking about?" Harry responded totally thrown.

"You hide behind being the rash, stupid, honorable Gryffindor, why?"

"I'm not hiding behind it, that's who I am." Harry argued. Draco rolled his eyes.

"No it's not Potter. I've seen you over the past couple days. When you came to get me? You played me to get me here. That was not honorable. These few days you've been calculating, cunning, willing to do whatever you have to. For the first time, your not fighting with one hand behind your back. Your fighting with any advantage you can get. That's how you win a war Potter. You can't pull your punches. And now you're finally not. Maybe you do have a shot at winning this after all." Draco responded before turning and leaving the room and Harry to think about what he had said.

Harry resolve hardened. They were both right. Every time he had fought Voldemort it had been with one arm behind his back. It had been under Dumbledores influence. Now he wasn't, and he knew he had any shot before, he had a much better one now.

Looking at Daphne, he realized for the first time just how close they were and it seemed she did as well. His eyes flicked between her eyes and her lips and he could tell she was doing the same. Licking his lips his lips parted slightly and his hand came up to gently cup her cheek as he leaned down and she leaned up. He closed his eyes just as their lips were about to touch when there was a bang and suddenly light flooded the room drawing both of their attention to the door.

There standing in the now open door was Neville and Luna wide eyed. Harry's hand still on Daphne's cheek and their heads were still inches away from each other even thought they weren't looking at each other anymore.

"Ahem, so um, um we-we g-got the um the-" Neville stammered.

"What Neville is trying to say is that we found the Daphne impersonator." Luna cut in, as she levitated said person into the cupboard. Harry and Daphne separated and moved apart as Luna set down 'Daphne'. "She had your wands on her, here." Luna offered them the aforementioned wands. Reaching out they both reclaimed their wands. Harry waved his over 'Daphne' and when she didn't change back he deduced what it was.

"Polyjuice. She must have a flask of it on her. Anyway, what's going on out there?" Harry asked as he stepped out of the closet with Daphne following behind him. They all started walking and rounded the corner only to a seen a woman surrounded by what looked like at least five death eaters. Harry was about to run into to help her when Neville grabbed his arm pulling him back behind the protection of the corner.

"What are you doing?" Harry snapped quietly.

"She can handle herself."

"Against five death eaters?! I doubt it." Harry snapped before trying to round the corner again only for Neville to hold him back.

"Watch." Neville ordered. Harry complied reluctantly and stuck his head around the corner like the others were doing. Neville gave a quick wave of his wand to allow them to hear what was being said.

"You seem real confident for someone about to meet their death." One of the death eaters sneered.

"You have no idea what we're capable of!" Another death eater through in when the woman didn't even flinch.

"And you have no idea what I'm capable of." The woman countered, shifting so her eyes could be seen. Her eyes glowed emerald green with power before the green was suddenly a gold and then in the next second all of the death eaters were laying on the ground unconscious.

The group looked on wide eyed all except for Neville.

"Told you." Neville commented after they saw what the woman did.

"How did you-" Harry started.

"I just knew." Neville answered with a shrug. Harry not Daphne looked completely convinced but when they went to look aunt the corner again, the woman was gone. The only proof that she had been there was the death eaters lying on the ground.

The group continued their journey to the grounds, finding a far amount of death eaters along the way that didn't last all of five minutes against the group.

Reaching the grounds they saw the complete havoc that going on. People were battling death eaters everywhere. As soon as Harry stepped foot off the steps of the castle, Voldemort came striding forward through the chaos staring directly at Harry. The group exchanged glances before Neville and Luna went off to locate the snake while Daphne went to join the battle and left Voldemort to Harry.

"Tom. At long last. This ends tonight."

"Yes it does Harry Potter. It ends with your body laying on the ground dead." And that was the only words spoken between the two before spells started flying.

If Harry had been the same as he was the last time he fought Voldemort, he would've been throwing stunners, disarming charms or reducto's, but Harry was not that person anymore. Not by a long shot. This time he was throwing any curse short of the unforgivable. It didn't matter if it was considered 'dark', Harry wasn't afraid of the labels anymore. No magic was dark. It was the intentions of the casters that make the magic bad. Not the spell itself, and Harry was using anything he could to get the upper hand.

His choice of spells had threw Voldemort at first. He wasn't expecting Harry to threw bone breakers or other lethal spells but that was exactly what he did.

So far they'd been going for ten minutes when they both cast a spell at the same time, exactly at the same angle, causing their spells to meet and a golden glow started radiating for the connection point of the two spells. The golden glow pulsed and the aura expanded over the entire battlefield and over even Voldemort himself.

A blinding white light flashed and seconds later when Harry opened his eyes again, there was no more screaming or the tall tale sounds of fighting.

Opening his eyes, Harry looked around. The grounds that was just covered with Auror's and students fighting death eaters were now empty.

"Harry!" A voice shouted from his left. He turned his head to face it and saw Hermione and Draco coming towards him.

"What the hell happened to everyone?" Draco questioned when they approached. Harry shook his head in response signaling that he was just as clueless. He turned to face the castle. The grounds were still covered in debris from blast but no people.

"Check the castle." He ordered as he strode towards the doors of the castle and entered in search of a single person. Behind him, Hermione and Draco shared a look before entering the castle and searching.

Nearly fifteen minutes later the entire castle was searched and Harry was back out on the grounds.

"Harry…?" Came a voice from behind him.

"She's gone." He said in a broken voice kneeling on the ground.

"There's no body, you don't know." Another voice said. Harry stood still not facing them.

"You're right. There's no body. THERE ARE NO F**KING BODIES!" He shouted whipping around to face them.

"Harry-" Hermione started but was interrupted.

"HOW THE F**K DO HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE DISAPPEAR?!" Harry shouted at them. "THEIR JUST GONE!"

"Harry, your not mad at us. So don't act like it." Draco snapped using Harry's first name for the first time in forever. Harry looked between the two of them breathing deeply before he just dropped to the ground sitting on some of the rumble from one of the blasts, with his head in his hands. He sighed and looked up.

"Your right. I'm not mad at you two. It's just- It's my fault." Harry spoke with his hand on his mouth as he looked around at whatever debris was there.

"It's not your fault. We don't know what happened. They disappeared Harry. Just gone. They vanished. It felt like time slowed down and this gold aura just washed over everything. And next thing we know they vani…" Hermione trailed off as herself, Draco and Harry all were surrounded by the very same golden aura. They all shared a look before Hermione grabbed Harry's hand and Draco's forearm before the three just vanished.

A/N: Woo, over 3,500 words. The last few chapters have been kinda shortish so I hope this one makes up for that along with the fact that I upload twice last week. Anyway, I just want to say we are at 298 favorites which is insane and I feel like I need to give back I just don't know how to other than to write for you. Now I always say thank you for all of the reviews, favorites and follows, but I want to show you I really see the support you guys give.

That's why I'm going to say thank you to: GG, Gime'SS, Kingrider6911, Guest, and Linda. They all reviewed on the latest chapter. So thank you for that, it is so appreciated.

Now I don't just see the reviews so thank you to: x30303, harryandhermiones43v3r, and Aquamarine-Orbs. They are the three latest people that have favorited this story.

Now I'm not going to do followers because following a story is something that can't be seen from a profile or is public knowledge so I am not going to disclose any of them, but I do want to say thank you to each and everyone of you. You have made this story bigger and better than I thought possible.

I'm thinking about paying thanks to the latest reviews in every chapter for this story. I haven't decided whether or not to yet but I would like too I'm just not sure if people are okay with that.

I've also made a decision concerning this story, I will throw the twist in this story but leave the possibility of a sequel in the end. So I will wrap up this story after the twist and everything and I won't leave to many lose ends but I do want to leave the chance of sequel there for the future.

As always, I'm DarkSuspense, it's been fun. I hope you enjoyed and Happy Reading. Happy Summer! And see you next time! -DS