Beyond the Veil

Black shapes emerged out of thin air all around them, blocking their way left and right; eyes glinted through slits in hoods, a dozen lit wand-tips were pointing at them.

'To me, Potter,' repeated the drawling voice of Lucius Malfoy as he held out his hand, palm up. No one moved. 'To me.'

'Where's Sirius?' Harry said.

Several of the Death Eaters laughed; a harsh female voice from amidst the shadowy figures to the left said triumphantly, 'The Dark Lord always knows.'

John's wand wobbled at the sound of her voice, and he could feel visions tugging at him. His nose started to bleed again, but he daren't move to mop it up.

'Always,' echoed Malfoy softly. 'Now, give me the prophecy, Potter.'

'I want to know where Sirius is!' said Harry.

'I want to know where Sirius is!' mimicked the woman to their left.

She and her fellow Death Eaters had closed in so that they were mere feet away.

Dean was standing close behind Cas, the faint static around him showing he was resisting the urge to throw out his Shield Charm.

'You've got him,' said Harry. 'He's here. I know he is.'

'The little baby woke up frightened a fort what it dweamed was twoo,' said the woman in a horrible, mock baby voice.

Ron stirred, but Harry muttered, 'Don't do anything. 'Not yet-'

The woman who had mocked Harry let out a raucous scream of laughter.

'You hear him? You hear him? Giving instructions to the other children as though he thinks of fighting us!'

'Oh, you don't know Potter as I do, Bellatrix,' said Malfoy softly. 'He has a great weakness for heroics; the Dark Lord understands this about him. Now give me the prophecy, Potter.'

'I know Sirius is here,' said Harry. 'I know you've got him!'

More of the Death Eaters laughed, though Bellatrix laughed the loudest.

'It's time you learn the difference between life and dreams, Potter,' said Malfoy. 'Now give me the prophecy, or we start using wands.'

'Go on, then,' said Harry, raising his wand to chest height, as did everyone's around him. But the Death Eaters did not strike.

'Hand over the prophecy and no one need get hurt,' Malfoy said coolly.

It was Harry's turn to laugh. 'Yeah right!' he said. 'I give you this - prophecy, is it? And you'll just let us skip off home, will you?'

The words were hardly out of his mouth when Bellatrix shrieked: 'Accio proph-'

But Harry was ready for her: he shouted 'Protego!' before she had finished her spell, and though the glass sphere slipped to the tips of his fingers, he managed to cling on to it.

'Oh, he knows how to play, little bitty baby Potter,' said Bellatrix, her mad eyes staring through the slits in her hood. 'Very well, then - '

'I TOLD YOU, NO!' Lucius Malfoy roared at her. 'If you smash it - !'

Dean's mind was racing, eyes flicking from the ball in Harry's hand, to the rest on the shelves, to the Death Eaters' whose gazes were all firmly on Harry.

Bellatrix stepped forward, away from her fellows, and pulled off her hood. Azkaban had hollowed out her face, making it gaunt and skull-like, but it was alive with a feverish, fanatical glow.

'You need more persuasion?' she said, her chest rising and falling rapidly. 'Very well, take the smallest one,' she ordered the Death Eater beside her. 'Let him watch while we torture the little girl. I'll do it.'

They all closed in around Ginny, and Harry stepped directly in front of her, holding the prophecy up to his chest.

'You'll have to smash this if you want to attack any of us,' Harry said to Bellatrix. 'I don't think your boss will be too pleased if you come back without it, will he?'

She did not move; she merely stared at him, the tip of her tongue moistening her thin mouth.

'So,' said Harry, 'what kind of prophecy are we talking about, anyway?'

With the Death Eaters distracted, Dean shuffled as close to Cas as he could and gently pressed a hand into his back.

'That white glowy thing you do…' he murmured as quietly as he could. 'Can you do it on purpose?'

Cas nodded almost imperceptibly.

'When I say, dazzle them. Bring these shelves down on them, then we can run.'

Cas nodded again, and managed to surreptitiously pass the message around to the others to make sure they covered their eyes at the signal, while Dean watched closely for his opening.

'What kind of prophecy?' repeated Bellatrix, the grin fading from her face. 'You jest, Harry Potter.'

'Nope, not jesting,' said Harry, now aware of the plan but stalling for time. 'How come Voldemort wants it?'

Several of the Death Eaters let out low hisses.

'You dare speak his name?' Bellatrix whispered.

'Yeah,' Harry said, maintaining his tight grip on the glass ball. 'Yeah, I've got no problem with saying Vol-'

'Shut your mouth!' Bellatrix shrieked. 'You dare speak his name with your unworthy lips, you dare besmirch it with your half-blood's tongue, you dare-'

'Did you know he's a half-blood too?' Harry said recklessly, and Hermione let out a quiet groan. 'Voldemort? Yeah, his mother was a witch and his dad was a Muggle - or has he been telling you lot he's pure-blood?'

'STUPEF-'

'NO!'

A jet of red light shot from the end of Bellatrix's wand, but Malfoy deflected it; his spell caused hers to hit the shelf a foot to the left of Harry and several of the glass orbs shattered.

Two figures, pearly-white as ghosts, fluid as smoke, unfurled themselves from the fragments of broken glass and each began to speak. Their voices vied with each other, so that only fragments of what they were saying could be heard over Malfoy and Bellatrix's shouts.

John's head spun. He couldn't hold on much longer, the voices of the figures adding to the din already pressing in on him, and his knees began to feel like jelly.

Focus, came Sherlock's voice, as much to himself as it was to John, and a little of the pressure was relieved, but not much.

'...at the solstice will come a new…' said the figure of an old bearded man.

'DO NOT ATTACK! WE NEED THE PROPHECY!'

'He dared - he dares - ' shrieked Bellatrix, 'he stands there - filthy half-blood -'

'WAIT UNTIL WE'VE GOT THE PROPHECY!'

'... and none will come after…' said the figure of a young woman.

It had been the distraction Dean was waiting for, and Cas glanced over his shoulder at him, as if to say they should go, but Dean could see John struggling out of the corner of his eye, and he didn't rate their chances at the currently seething Bellatrix.

'You haven't told me what's so special about this prophecy I'm supposed to be handing over,' Harry said, still stalling.

'Do not play games with us, Potter,' said Malfoy.

'I'm not playing games,' said Harry.

Dean gripped his wand, sensing the moment was coming now that Bellatrix had cooled down.

'Dumbledore never told you the reason you bear that scar was hidden in the bowels of the Department of Mysteries?' Malfoy sneered.

'I - what?' said Harry, surprising him enough to distract him from the plan, even though Dean was ready to spring. 'What about my scar?'

'Can this be?' said Malfoy, sounding maliciously delighted, and some of the other Death Eaters were laughing again. 'Dumbledore never told you?' Malfoy repeated. 'Well, this explains why you didn't come earlier, Potter. The Dark Lord wondered why you didn't come running when he showed you the place it was hidden in your dreams. He thought natural curiosity would make you want to hear the exact wording…'

'Did he?' said Harry. 'So he wanted me to come and get it, did he? Why?'

'Why?' Malfoy sounded incredulous. 'Because the only people who are permitted to retrieve a prophecy from the Department of Mysteries, are those about whom it was made, as the Dark Lord discovered when he attempted to use others to steal it for him.'

'And why did he want to steal a prophecy about me?'

'About both of you, Potter. Haven't you ever wondered why the Dark Lord tried to kill you as a baby?'

'Someone made a prophecy about Voldemort and me?' Harry said quietly, gazing at Lucius Malfoy. 'And he's made me come and get it for him? Why couldn't he come and get it himself?'

'Get it himself?' Bellatrix shrieked, then cackled. 'The Dark Lord, walk into the Ministry of Magic, when they are so sweetly ignoring his return? The Dark Lord, reveal himself to the Aurors, when at the moment they are wasting their time on my dear cousin?'

'So, he's got you doing his dirty work for him, has he?' said Harry.

Dean finally saw another opening, Malfoy smirking at Harry and the rest of the Death Eaters chuckling amongst themselves, but most importantly, John seemed to have recovered from the smashing of the other prophecies.

'NOW!' Dean yelled.

Cas jumped forward, pushing the Death Eaters over with a powerful force, then dazzled them with a bright burst of light. As he did so, the others yelled, 'REDUCTO!' blindly throwing curses at the shelves around them and raining glass orbs down on the Death Eaters.

'RUN!' Harry yelled, seizing Hermione's arm.

Dean turned to run, grabbing Cas. 'Come on!' he shouted, yanking him away from the Death Eaters he was holding back.

Cas resisted for a moment, swiping his hand and bringing the shelves down on them, then followed Dean, sprinting down the row.

Hermione and Harry were holding John up by the arms as they ran, with Neville a short way behind them. Dean and Cas ran ahead, but it was difficult to see through all the glass shards raining around them, and smoky figures of Seers shouting their prophecies.

'Stupefy!'

Dean ducked as the spell flew over his head and Sherlock pulled him into another row of shelves, and Cas, Ginny, Luna and Ron followed them.

They crouched down just out of sight, listening to the shelves toppling over a few rows away.

'Where are the others?' Ginny asked, craning her neck as far as she dared.

'We went the wrong way,' said Sherlock, pressing a hand to his forehead and wincing at every loud crash. 'They're back in the circle room.'

'What do we do now?' said Ron.

Dean looked back the way they had come. 'Find a door and go through it,' he said shortly. 'Question is, which way? Any of you remember where the exit is?'

Sherlock shook his head and winced again. 'The doors in here change anyway.'

Dean groaned. 'Seriously?'

Sherlock looked down the row, thinking quickly. 'This way,' he said suddenly.

'You know the way?'

'No, but I have an idea.' He led them, crouched low and quiet, back to the section of prophecies that had a faint blue light. He pointed to the one that had Cas and Dean's names on. 'Take that down,' he hissed to Dean.

'Why?' Dean whispered back.

Sherlock rolled his eyes impatiently. 'It's not the prophecy they want, but they don't know that, and it might make them hesitate before they, you know, kill us.'

'All right, all right, jeez.' Dean lifted the prophecy down. He expected the glass to be cold to the touch, but it was surprisingly warm - almost hot.

'John made a prophecy about us?' Cas said, squinting at the label in the dim light.

'What?' said Dean.

'It says "J.H.W to D.W", those are his and your initials,' Cas said to Dean. 'What did he say?'

'Could we discuss this later?' Sherlock said irritably. 'We have to go.'

'Right, come on.' Dean poked his head around the end of the row and saw the way was clear. He beckoned to the others to follow him, and they crept through the room looking for a door.

'There!' someone yelled. They were spotted.

'Go!' Dean shouted, and they took off running again.

They found a door, but it was locked, and their trying to force it open gave the four Death Eaters chasing them enough time to catch up and start throwing spells.

Cas tried to collapse another shelf on the Death Eaters, but missed.

'This way!' Sherlock shouted, sprinting off along the wall, spotting another door on the other side of the room.

Two of the Death Eaters chased after them, and the other two ran around to try and cut them off.

Ron, Luna, Ginny and Sherlock all got to the door, but the Death Eaters ran out from the shelves in front of Dean and Cas. One of them continued on after the others, but the other stood in front of them, with the two behind them slowing to a stop. This time, Cas didn't hold back his Shield Charm, while Dean held up the prophecy.

'This one has the prophecy! Over here!' One of them shouted.

'Stupefy!' the one in front cried, but it bounced harmlessly off Cas's shield.

'Do that again and I smash this thing!' Dean growled. The Death Eaters stopped yelling curses, but still held their wands aloft.

Dean thought quickly. They were three against two, so if he could even the odds, he was confident they could overpower whoever was left. 'You want this?' Dean said, holding out the prophecy. 'Catch!' He chucked the ball as hard as he could, and felt Cas pushing it through the air, giving it an extra, superhuman speed. The two Death Eaters behind them ran after it, and Dean charged at the one still standing in their way. Before Dean reached him, he yelled something they couldn't make out, and a jet of something inky and black shot out of the end of his wand. It bypassed Cas's Shield Charm completely, and his eyes widened as it hit him in the stomach, throwing him backwards.

Dean shouted wordlessly and barrelled into the Death Eater, knocking him clean over. Dean knelt down and punched him in the face, then, as he got up again, Dean kicked him, knocking him out completely. He then hauled Cas to his feet.

'You okay?' he asked, looking Cas over.

'I think so,' Cas said, running his hands over his stomach. 'I don't think that did anything.'

'Okay, let's go.' They ran through the door Sherlock and the others had gone through, just as the Death Eaters Dean had distracted came chasing after them again.

As soon as they went through the door, their feet lifted off the ground, causing Dean to swear loudly and flounder, weightless.

Cas grabbed him and helped him align himself, aiming them towards the others who had made it half way across the room. A Death Eater frozen in a Body-Bind was drifting aimlessly around Saturn.

Around them was a huge replica of the solar system, the planets floating, suspended in the air, rotating slowly.

'You guys okay?' Dean called.

'We're okay,' Ginny called back.

But then the three other Death Eaters jumped into the room, the one Dean had knocked out with a split lip freely bleeding. Before any of them could react, one of them hit Ron with a spell that made him burst into uncontrollable laughter. Luna pushed him out of the way, knocking him into Venus, and they scattered as best they could.

Dean twisted around and aimed an Impediment Jinx at one of them but missed, just barely dodging one himself, and the force of the spell sent him spinning until he hit the moon.

Sherlock flew past him, a Death Eater close behind him. He turned to aim at the Death Eater, but they were too quick for him. The Death Eater yelled a spell, hitting Sherlock in the face with a stinging yellow spell. Sherlock cried out, shooting a Body-Bind blindly, only just catching the same Death Eater with it. At the same moment, Luna Stunned another one and the third one - the only one still standing - barrelled into Ginny, grabbing her ankle and smacking into Pluto.

'Reducto!' cried Luna. The curse hit Pluto, exploding in the Death Eater's face, but a resounding crack reverberated through the room, followed by Ginny screaming and grabbing her ankle.

The Death Eater fell away, unconscious, and Luna flew as fast as she could over to Ginny.

Dean pushed off the moon and tried to take stock of their situation.

'Dean,' Cas called, and something in his voice made Dean's heart flip.

Dean turned, looking for Cas, and found him floating near Jupiter, bent double clutching his stomach. Dean used Mars to push himself in the right direction and bumped into Cas.

'What's wrong?' he said, gasping when he saw what looked like sores all over Cas's face.

'My stomach hurts,' Cas mumbled, a thin sheen of sweat covering his now ashen skin.

'All right, we gotta find the others and get out of here. Hold on to me.'

Cas groaned softly, but grabbed Dean's arm.

Ron drifted by, still giggling madly, and Dean grabbed him too, yanking him in the direction of the door.

Luna pushed Ginny along, but Sherlock didn't move.

'What is it?' Dean asked.

Sherlock blinked, rubbed his eyes, and shook his head. 'I can't see,' he said in a matter-of-fact tone. 'I'm sure Madam Pomfrey will fix it. We should go.'

'I'll help you,' Luna said, taking him by the arm.

Dean's nerves screamed at him. Only he and Luna were unharmed, who knew how the others were faring. They swam through the air as best they could towards the other side, and gravity seemed to return as they approached, landing gracefully as he could with both Cas and Ron in his arms. They tumbled through the door, and finally ran into Harry, John, and Neville who appeared to have a broken nose and was carrying an unconscious Hermione.

'Harry,' said Ron, giggling weakly, lurching forward and seizing the front of Harry's robes, 'there you are… ha ha ha… you look funny, Harry. You're all messed up…'

John ran over to Sherlock, who let go of Luna.

'I can't see,' he murmured.

John nodded, though visibly shaking. 'Stay close to me.'

'When don't I?' Sherlock chuckled, oddly calm about the situation.

Cas groaned, clutching his stomach.

'What is that?' Dean said, noticing something black and sticky trickling out of Cas's ear.

'I - I don't know,' Cas gasped.

'We gotta get out of here,' Dean said again.

'What on earth happened?' Harry said fearfully.

'I think her ankle's broken,' Luna whispered, bending over Ginny. 'Four of them chased us into a room full of planets.'

'Harry, we saw Uranus up close!' said Ron, still giggling feebly. 'Get it, Harry? We saw Uranus - ha ha ha-'

Cas let go of Dean and shuffled over to Ginny to heal her, but he stumbled and fell to his knees after only a few steps.

'You can fix her later, come on,' Dean said, helping him back up.

Cas whimpered, closing his eyes. The sores on his face were getting bigger and more numerous, spreading across his cheek and down his neck.

Ginny held onto Luna, Harry grabbed Ron, and led them all towards the closest door, hoping to find the exit. They were within a few feet of it when another door across the hall burst open and three Death Eaters sped in, led by Bellatrix Lestrange.

'There they are!' she shrieked.

Stunning Spells shot across the room and Harry smashed through the door ahead of them and flung Ron unceremoniously through it, then helped the rest of them through. They were just over the threshold just in time to slam the door against Bellatrix.

'Colloportus!' shouted Harry, and they heard three bodies slam into the door on the other side.

'It doesn't matter!' said a man's voice. 'There are other ways in - WE'VE GOT THEM, THEY'RE HERE!'

They were back in the Office for the Study of Thought and, sure enough, there were doors all around the walls. There were footsteps in the hall behind them as more Death Eaters came running to join them.

'Help me!' Harry cried.

Those of them that were uninjured went tearing around the room, sealing the doors, yelling 'Colloportus!'

More footsteps ran along behind the doors, every now and then another heavy body would launch itself at one, so it creaked and shuddered.

As Harry reached the top of the room, Luna screamed and flew through the air, five Death Eaters surging into the room through a door she had not reached in time. Luna hit a desk, slid over its surface onto the floor on the other side, where she lay sprawled, knocked out.

'Get Potter!' shrieked Bellatrix, and she ran at him.

He dodged her and ran back down the room.

'Hey!' said Ron, who had staggered to his feet and was now tottering drunkenly towards Harry, giggling. 'Hey, Harry, there are brains in here, ha ha ha, isn't that weird, Harry?'

But Ron had already pointed his wand at the tank. 'Honest, Harry, they're brains - look - Accio brain!'

The scene seemed momentarily frozen. All of them, including each of the Death Eaters, turned in spite of themselves to watch the top of the tank as a brain burst from the green liquid like a leaping fish. For a moment it seemed suspended in midair, then it soared towards Ron, spinning as it came, and what looked like ribbons of moving images flew from it, unravelling like rolls of film.

'Ha ha ha, Harry, look at it - ' said Ron, watching it disgorge its gaudy innards, 'Harry, come and touch it, bet it's weird-'

'RON, NO!' John yelled.

Harry darted forwards but Ron had already caught the brain in his outstretched hands.

The moment they made contact with his skin, the tentacles began wrapping themselves around Ron's arms like ropes.

'Harry, look what's happen - No - no - I don't like it - no, stop - stop -'

But the thin ribbons were spinning around Ron's chest. He tugged and tore at them as the brain was pulled tight against him like an octopus.

'Diffindo!' yelled Harry, trying to sever the feelers wrapping themselves tightly around Ron, but they would not break. Ron fell over, still thrashing against his bonds.

Cas weakly held out a hand to try and force the brain off of Ron, but nothing happened. The effort drained him even further, and he heaved, throwing up the same black liquid that was coming out of his ears.

'It'll suffocate him!' Ginny screamed, still immobilised by her broken ankle. Then a jet of red light hit her square in the face. She keeled over sideways and lay there unconscious.

'STUBEFY!' shouted Neville, wheeling around and waving the wand he'd borrowed from Hermione at the oncoming Death Eaters. 'STUBEFY, STUBEFY!'

But his broken nose was preventing him from pronouncing the incantation properly, and nothing happened.

One of the Death Eaters shot their own Stunner and Neville and missed by inches. Dean was crouched on the floor by Cas, shielding him as best he could. John tried to do the same for Sherlock, who was still attempting to curse the Death Eaters himself. Though none of his spells were connecting, they still came uncannily close to hitting the Death Eaters; just enough to keep them on their toes.

Harry then held the prophecy up high and lured the Death Eaters away into the only door still open.

John and Neville jumped on Ron to try to help him remove the brain, while Dean crouched by Cas. Sherlock didn't move, the sudden decrease in noise exacerbating his blindness.

Cas pushed himself back into a sitting position and weakly pushed Dean. 'Go help Harry,' he croaked, covered in the black liquid.

'No, Cas,' Dean said, voice cracking.

Cas swayed, folding his arms over his stomach. His eyes rolled, but he pushed Dean again. 'I can wait. Harry has all of them on him.'

Tears rushed to Dean's eyes, but he knew Cas was right.

'I'll be fine,' Cas mumbled unconvincingly.

Dean nodded and kissed Cas's clammy forehead. With a lump in his throat, he gripped his wand tightly and ran the way Harry and the Death Eaters had gone. John and Neville leapt towards the door as well.

When they pushed through the door, they found themselves back in the room with the archway, and Harry backed against the dais surrounded by Death Eaters.

'You see, there are ten of us and only one of you,' Lucius Malfoy was saying, 'or hasn't Dumbledore ever taught you how to count?'

'He's dot alone!' Neville shouted, and Dean swore under his breath, hoping to take them by surprise.

Instead, the three of them scrambled down the stone benches towards them.

'No - go back to the others!' Harry cried, but it was already too late.

Dean, John and Neville shot spells at the Death Eaters - though Neville's did nothing - but their significant disadvantage left their curses all but useless.

They were all seized, arms pinned to their sides, by Death Eaters. Neville continued to struggle and kick; several of the Death Eaters laughed.

'It's Longbottom, isn't it?' sneered Malfoy. 'Well, your grandmother is used to losing family members to our cause… your death will not come as a great shock.'

'Longbottom?' repeated Bellatrix, and a truly evil smile lit her gaunt face. 'Why, I have had the pleasure of meeting your parents, boy.'

'I DOE YOU HAB!' roared Neville, and he fought so hard against his captor that the Death Eater shouted, 'Someone Stun him!

'No, no, no,' said Bellatrix. She looked transported, alive with excitement as she glanced at Harry, then back at Neville. 'No, let's see how long Longbottom lasts before he cracks like his parents… unless Potter wants to give us the prophecy.'

'NO!' John shouted, and both he and Dean fought harder against the Death Eaters.

'DON'D GIB ID DO DEM!' roared Neville, kicking and writhing as Bellatrix drew nearer to him, her wand raised. 'DON'D GIB ID DO DEM, HARRY!'

'Crucio!'

Neville screamed, and so did John, unable to stop the vision of Bellatrix torturing Neville's parents from surfacing. The Death Eater holding Neville dropped him and he fell to the floor, twitching and screaming in agony.

'That was just a taster!' said Bellatrix, and a couple of the Death Eaters aimed at John and Dean as well. 'Now, Potter, either give us the prophecy, or watch your little friends die the hard way!'

Harry gulped and held out the prophecy with a shaking hand. Malfoy jumped forwards to take it.

Then, high above them, two more doors burst open and five more people sprinted into the room: Sirius, Lupin, Moody, Tonks and Kingsley.

Malfoy turned and raised his wan, but Tonks had already sent a Stunning Spell right at him. Harry dived out of the way as the Death Eaters were distracted by the arrival of the Order, who were raining spells down on them.

John fell to the floor as he was let go, and Dean yanked himself out of the Death Eaters hands, twisting and hitting him with an Impediment Jinx. Dean ducked down, crawling along the floor towards Harry and Neville, but John could only think of Sirius who was duelling one of the Death Eaters perilously close to the archway.

John launched himself towards Sirius and fired spells at the Death Eater Sirius was duelling.

'You have to get down!' John yelled, tugging on Sirius's robes.

Sirius tried to brush John aside. 'Get back to the others!' he shouted, ducking under a jet of red light flying overhead.

'Get away from the arch!'

Sirius ignored him and hurtled towards Harry, ramming a Death Eater with his shoulder, then duelling him with their wands flashing.

Harry sprang up from the floor and yelled, 'Petrificus Totalus!' putting the Death Eater in a Body-Bind and sending him crashing to the floor.

John hurried over as well, dodging yet more spells, and found Dean supporting Neville, whose legs were flailing uncontrollably.

'You lot, take the prophecy and run!' Sirius bellowed, ducking under a jet of green light.

'Come with us!' John shouted, as Harry put an arm around Neville.

'Just go!' And Sirius dashed off to meet Bellatrix, firing curses at her.

Dean and Harry began dragging Neville back up the stairs, but John chased after Sirius instead.

'Stupefy!' John shouted at a Death Eater aiming at Sirius's back, knocking him to the ground. 'Sirius, come on!'

But still Sirius ignored him. John dropped to the floor again, holding his head in his hands, tangled up in a knot of Death Eaters duelling the Order. When he looked up, he saw Sirius and Bellatrix now duelling on the dais, even closer to the archway.

'No,' John groaned, forcing himself up and fighting his way closer. 'Sirius!'

Just then, almost everyone in the room stopped fighting. The Death Eaters shouted at each other and began scrambling towards the doors. John looked up and saw the cause for their fear: Dumbledore had appeared at the top of the steps, white faced and furious.

John took the opportunity to push through towards Sirius, who was the only one still duelling with Bellatrix.

'Come on, you can do better than that!' Sirius yelled, his voice echoing around the cavernous room.

John frantically ran towards Sirius, but just as he stepped up on the dais, a jet of light hit him squarely in the chest.

The laughter had not quite died from his face, but his eyes widened in shock.

John reached for him, but Sirius's robes just brushed his fingers before he sank backwards through the veil hanging from the arch. A tiny, 'No,' fell from John's lips as he stared at the place Sirius had disappeared.

Bellatrix let out a triumphant scream, and Harry sprinted towards the dais.

'SIRIUS!' Harry yelled. 'SIRIUS!'

John was numb and barely noticed Kingsley dragging him away from the archway. All he could hear was Harry fighting against Lupin, who was holding him tightly.

'Get him, save him, he's only just gone through!'

'It's too late, Harry.'

'We can still reach him -'

'There's nothing you can do, Harry… nothing… he's gone.'

Welcome back everyone! Thanks to Morgan Teri Befan and JasonToddLove for the reviews! See you again next time :)