Chapter Thirty-Four: Out of the Frying Pan and Into the Fire
"Harry Potter," said the Dark Lord in his silky, sibilant tone. "I do not often find myself caught unaware, but I must admit my in surprise in finding you here."
"Yeah…the feeling's mutual," Harry responded breathlessly, subtly shifting Astoria to where she was standing behind him.
Right at that moment, Harry felt an unusual pulse of magic from somewhere near the front gate. Bellatrix must have noticed it to, because she suddenly looked behind her and stared in the direction Harry had felt the pulse.
"Someone is attempting to breach the protections, my Lord."
Voldemort tilted his head back slightly. "Indeed, they are," he said. "No matter; this will not take long."
A spark of hope suddenly blossomed in Harry's chest. With any luck, it was Dumbledore at the front gates, and all Harry had to do was buy enough time for him to break through.
"Tell me, Bella," continued Voldemort, just loud enough for Harry to overhear. "Are you hiding anything here that might be of particular interest to young Harry?"
"Not — not that I know of, my Lord," she gulped. "Unless you mean —"
Voldemort turned and levelled a piercing gaze at Bellatrix.
"No, my Lord," said Bellatrix, with a slight bow. "I can assure you that remains well hidden, in the place we discussed."
Something about the exchange struck Harry as odd, so he filed it away for later.
"Very well. If that is the case, then am I curious as to what brought our young friend to your home today," replied Voldemort, turning back to Harry. "Surely, you should be at Hogwarts, should you not? I very much doubt that Dumbledore approved of this little field trip."
"Just keep him talking," Harry said to himself, before replying. "I'm only here because her moron of a husband teamed up with Malfoy to kidnap my girlfriend," he said, jutting his chin towards Bellatrix. "Believe me, I would've much rather finished my date — the hospitality here is dreadful."
"You dare!" spat Bellatrix, who had moved to advance on them before being held up by Voldemort.
"Patience, Bella," smirked the Dark Lord. "These…children…will pay for their insolence. But first, I must ask — were either of you aware of Rodolphus and Lucius's…plan?"
"No, my Lord," Bellatrix and Wormtail replied in unison.
Harry took the opportunity to glare at Pettigrew. Whatever happened next, if a clean shot at Wormtail presented itself, he was definitely going to take it.
"Head for the gates as soon as it starts," whispered Harry, while Voldemort was addressing his subordinates. "I'll try to hold him off long enough for the rest of you to get away."
"We're not leaving you, you git," Ron grumbled in reply.
"We're with you, Harry," added Neville, though his gaze was fixed on Bellatrix.
Voldemort's eyes flashed as he turned his attention back to Harry. "Tell me, where is Rodolphus?" he asked dangerously. "I wish to express my…displeasure…with his choices."
Harry exchanged glances with Ron, who merely shrugged.
"He's — er — inside, having a bit of a lie-down," Harry replied cheekily. He couldn't be certain, but he was pretty sure he heard Hermione swear under her breath.
"He was looking more like a Sunday roast, though, last we saw," Fred chimed in.
Not one to be left out, George added, "Overcooked too, the poor sod."
"Too right — got a bit hot under the collar, he did," his twin added as a follow-up.
"Feel free to torture Malfoy, though," offered Harry, pretending to be helpful. "We'll even help, if you'd like. I think Crabbe might still be alive, too, but that's probably about it."
"I see…" Voldemort replied thoughtfully, raising his hand yet again to prevent Bellatrix from lashing out. "It seems you have become quite ruthless, Harry. And is that Dark Magic I smell on you?" he added tauntingly, as he mimed sniffing the air. "Whatever would Dumbledore say?"
"Get ready," Harry hissed to the others.
"Wormtail — go and investigate the truth of their claims."
"Yes, my Lord," bowed Pettigrew, before turning on the spot and vanishing with a loud crack. That told Harry that the protections at Chateau Lestrange were similar to those at Grimmauld Place, in that one could Apparate within the boundaries of the property if they were already inside, causing him to slightly alter his plans.
"Now Harry, I am afraid it is time to for us to settle matters," stated Voldemort, as he slowly drew his wand from his sleeve. "Are you finally prepared to die?"
Out of the corner of his eye, Harry caught a glimpse of Neville setting down Daphne's body as if preparing to fight.
"Er — not quite yet; hang on a minute," replied Harry, before quickly turning to grab hold of Astoria and Apparating with her to the far corner of the property. His move had obviously taken her completely by surprise, but he didn't give her a chance to speak up. "Stay here for now — I love you," he told her quickly, and then vanished again before reappearing in front of Voldemort.
"Ah, young love. How…pathetic," scoffed the Dark Lord, his red eyes flashing menacingly. "Love is, and has always been, the province of the week. As is luck," he added, while slowly caressing his wand. "Luck has saved you on more than one occasion, Harry Potter, but that ends today. You will now be punished for interfering with my plans, killing my Death Eaters, and destroying my prophecy."
"I thought it was our prophecy," replied Harry, slowly moving to his right in an attempt to put some distance between him and his friends.
"The prophecy is meaningless, so it makes little difference," Voldemort replied irritably, and Harry knew it wouldn't be much longer before the Dark Lord lost his patience. "The very idea that a pathetic child such as yourself could ever defeat the greatest wizard in all of history is laughable."
By this point, Harry could actually feel the malicious intent of Voldemort's magic building as the inevitable conflict drew nearer. Off to the side, Bellatrix was practically bouncing on her toes in anticipation. Based on her reputation alone, he knew that his friends would have their hands full with the mad witch even if they fought together, so he was really hoping that whoever was trying to come through the front gates would hurry up and get on with it.
"Right, well…in that case, why don't we all just pack it in and go home?"
"I'm afraid not, Harry…Crucio!"
Having anticipated the attack, Harry was able to quickly move to avoid it while preparing his rebuttal. He snapped his wand upwards and fired off another Expulso — only aimed at Bellatrix, rather than Voldemort. However, his hopes of catching her off-guard were dashed, unfortunately, when she turned at the last moment and batted his spell away with a snarl.
Ron and Neville took that as their cue to leap into action and immediately went on the offensive, forcing Bellatrix to forget about Harry and concentrate on her own fight. Hermione and Terry seemed unsure of what to do, but Harry was relieved to see that Fred and George had taken a page out of his book and Apparated away with Hannah and Daphne.
Harry quickly realised that the main drawback of keeping an eye on his friends was that it carried the side effect of drawing his own attention away from Voldemort. He had only looked away for the briefest of moments, but that had been long enough for the Dark Lord to place him under the Cruciatus Curse. Harry writhed on the ground as his every nerve ending lit up in pain, as if white-hot knives were lancing through each and every inch of his body.
After torturing him for several seconds, Voldemort ended his spell and laughed cruelly as Harry gasped for breath. "Just a taste of what is to come, my young friend," he taunted in his high, cold voice. "Unless, of course, you would prefer I end our little charade immediately."
"If that was a Killing Curse, I'd be dead," thought Harry, dragging himself to his feet. "I can't let myself get distracted again."
There was no way Harry was going down without a fight. For months, he had been training for this moment, and even though it was happening much earlier than expected, Harry knew he had no choice but to rise to the challenge. His friends were depending on him to at least hold out long enough for help to arrive. Daphne had already been killed, and he would be damned if he let anyone else die because he wasn't good enough.
Before he had even fully stood up, Harry flicked his wand upward and fired off a Stunner as a distraction. As Voldemort swatted the spell away with a look of annoyance, Harry employed a trick he had first used against Daphne and caused a pillar of earth to shoot up from the ground beneath Voldemort's feet. He experienced a brief flicker of excitement as the Dark Lord was tossed into the air, only for it to be quickly extinguished when instead of crashing to the ground, Voldemort simply hovered in midair with his cloak billowing around him.
"An amusing attempt, but disappointing nonetheless," remarked Voldemort, as he rose even higher into the air. "It is time for you to realise the truth, Harry. You will never come close to matching me — not even if you worked at it for a thousand years."
Harry responding by sprinting to his left while launching every spell he could think of at the Dark Lord, and not just the standard offerings. He even delved into his repertoire of Dark spells, including the Blood-Boiling and Bone Exploding Curses, but he may as well have been sending paper airplanes at Voldemort, for all the good it did. The only thing unusual he noticed was that Voldemort seemed to be carefully picking his moments to attack, until he eventually realised that the Dark Lord was attempting to avoid having their wands connect, like they had in the graveyard.
"Is that really the best you can do?" mocked Voldemort, as he deflected Harry's latest offering. "I see now that it was foolish to expect more from the last of the Potters. If that really is all, then — Avada Kedavra!"
With practiced ease, Harry conjured a stone block into the path of the spell, and then did the same with the two additional jets of green light Voldemort directed his way. Deciding a change in tactics was needed, he quickly transfigured the debris from the pulverised blocks into two spears and spelled them both to fly towards Voldemort, one after another. The Dark Lord managed to undo Harry's transfiguration on the first spear before it reached him, but the second sped towards him so quickly that he was forced to drop back to the ground.
Sensing an opportunity, Harry called out "Bombarda Maxima!" before his target had even landed. His aim was true, but Voldemort was at least able to conjure a golden shield to absorb most of the spell's impact, even if he couldn't completely avoid it. Pressing his advantage, Harry followed up by producing a torrent of flames from the tip of his wand, which he then directed to split into two and attack Voldemort simultaneously from either side. Harry's heart raced in anticipation as the twin flames bore down on the Dark Lord, but a moment before it struck, Harry's fire was redirected skyward, and the two fiery tendrils recombined into a swirling column of flame.
Any traces of amusement had been wiped from the Dark Lord's face. The hood of his cloak had fallen back, revealing his pale, hairless skull, and his lipless mouth was now twisted into a furious snarl. Harry ended his spell the moment he realised it was no longer under his control, but that didn't seem to have any effect on the blazing column. In fact, it seemed to be growing in size, prompting Harry to start backing away.
All of a sudden, the fire morphed into an enormous, fiery serpent, coiled into a striking position, and with a flick of his wand, Voldemort commanded it to charge at Harry. There was no time to dodge, and all Harry could think to do was try to wrest control of the spell away from Voldemort. He held up both hands in front of him and pushed with every bit of magic his exhausted body could muster, and miraculously, the flames halted their progression only a few feet from where he was standing.
Sweat poured down Harry's face as he directed his magic to push the magical fire backwards, only to be met with fierce resistance as Voldemort tried to accomplish the same. Both wizards were pouring their magic into their efforts, and soon, what had started off as a simple fire spell had become a blazing, spherical inferno, hovering between the two wizards like a tiny star. The strain was rapidly becoming too much for Harry, so with a final, superhuman effort, he pushed straight down and drove the fireball directly into the ground, where it was quickly extinguished.
Harry swooned on his feet as he nearly blacked out from the effort. He knew his gambit had only succeeded because Voldemort hadn't been prepared for the sudden change in direction, but he certainly wasn't going to complain. Steeling his resolve, he raised his wand again only to suddenly find himself dragged to his knees. Before he could even react, both of his hands were encased in stone — wand included — as the courtyard's very flagstones reached up to grab hold of him. He strained against his bonds with both his body and his magic in a last-ditch effort to break free, but to no avail.
It was over; he had lost.
Furious with himself, he looked off to his left to where Neville, Ron, and Hermione were duelling Bellatrix three-on-one. They seemed to be holding their own, although he was disheartened to see Terry lying on the ground nearby. Even worse, it looked like the remaining Death Eaters had finally made their way out of the Chateau and into the courtyard. Even from there, he could easily recognise Malfoy and Wormtail, who were accompanied by two others. Fred and George were on their way to engage them, but as good as they were at fighting together, Harry didn't like their odds. That only left Hannah and Astoria, who were hopefully still tucked away in the far corner of the property.
Astoria…
He had led everyone there save her, but instead, he had managed to get them all killed. The only silver lining was that he wouldn't have to live with his guilt for very long. How had it come to this? As tough as things had been, and as much adversity as he'd been forced to overcome, the past few months had been among of the best of his life, and it was mostly thanks to Astoria. Against all odds, he had found something special with her and finally got to experience true happiness, and it was hard for him to accept that it was all over.
"Now do you see, Harry?" intoned Voldemort in a deadly whisper. "Your courage is admirable, but you were never a match for me. Soon, you will die, and your friends with you."
They were suddenly surrounded by the sounds of Apparition, but the new arrivals were not those he'd been waiting for. Six fully robed and masked Death Eaters had just arrived in the courtyard and were beginning to gather around Voldemort, all but cementing the outcome. Harry assumed something about their affiliation allowed them to bypass the Chateau's protections — perhaps even their Dark Marks.
"Come, my friends," said the Dark Lord, greeting his minions. "You shall bear witness to what befalls those who dare challenge the might of Lord Voldemort."
Harry braced himself, idly wondering how long Voldemort was planning to draw things out.
"Crucio!"
For the next several moments, there was nothing but pain — white-hot, excruciating pain. Harry had been subjected to Voldemort's Cruciatus Curse several times by that point, but that hardly made it easier to bear. His body sagged as the Dark Lord lifted his spell, and Harry's mind wandered back to each of his friends before settling again on Astoria, wanting her to be the last person he thought of before he died.
"I'm sorry…" he whispered, as a single tear escaped and ran down his cheek.
Voldemort was still talking, but Harry was no longer listening. Instead, he closed his eyes and attempted to calm both his mind and his magic, and that was when he first felt it — another pulse of magic from somewhere near the front gate. This time, however, it felt different from before. The magic felt familiar in a way, and instead of vanishing into the background like it had earlier, Harry could actually feel it getting stronger and pulsating ever more rapidly.
Harry opened his eyes to see that Voldemort and the Death Eaters had apparently forgotten about him for the moment and were staring towards the source of the disturbance.
"Dumbledore…" muttered Harry, finally recognising the headmaster's magic.
All at once, the world swam back into focus as hope was rekindled, and with one final pulse of magic, the sky flashed a blinding white as the magical protections surrounding Chateau Lestrange collapsed. Merely seconds later, Harry could hear the cracks of Apparition all around him as the Order of the Phoenix finally arrived on the scene.
"Hold on, Harry, I'll get you out of there," came a familiar voice from behind him.
"Sirius?"
"Who else?"
Harry couldn't help but grin in relief as he felt his restraints vanish, a moment before Sirius helped pull him to his feet. He could see Remus, Bill, and Tonks engaging some of the masked Death Eaters, while Mad-Eye and Hestia Jones took on the other half. Dumbledore, however, had immediately gone straight after Voldemort. Interestingly enough, it appeared to Harry as though the two magical titans were mainly engaged in conversation — at least for the moment — while only exchanging the occasional spell.
"Come on," said Harry suddenly. "We've got to help the others."
Sirius looked in the direction Harry was pointing and saw the other teens still fighting hard, his eyes narrowing when he recognised one of their opponents.
"Wormtail…" he growled.
"Just be sure not to kill him, if you ever want to be free," Harry reminded Sirius, and with a nod, they both Disapparated.
As intended, Harry reappeared only a short distance behind Bellatrix and immediately cast a silent Diffindo at her back. While he knew better than to underestimate the infamous Death Eater, he was still taken aback by how quickly she was able to detect his presence and avoid his spell. Bellatrix turned sharply around, her eyes wild with rage, but Harry's appearance had created enough of a distraction that Neville was able to land a Stunner of his own.
Harry stunned her a second time — just in case — and then bound her with an Incarcerous.
"Good timing, mate," panted Ron, who was sporting a long cut down his cheek. "I don't reckon we could've held out for much longer."
"All I did was distract her," replied Harry, refusing to take any credit. "All right, Neville?"
Neville had limped over to where Bellatrix was lying bound, and he was looking down at the Death Eater with an odd look on his face. A large bruise was beginning to form on one side of his face and he had a small cut on his chin, but otherwise, he seemed relatively unharmed.
"She's the last one," he murmured.
"I know," said Harry, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder. "She deserves whatever revenge you have in mind and then some, but we need her alive, for now," he continued empathetically. "I think she might have some important information we need."
"I'm not going to kill her," Neville replied with a grimace. "That's not really my style, if you haven't noticed."
"I know — but I don't think anyone would blame you if you did. I know I wouldn't."
"Bloody hell, are you guys seeing this?" Ron suddenly called out.
Harry was quickly reminded that they hadn't won the day just yet. There were still several ongoing duels scattered around the courtyard, but his eyes were quickly drawn to the battle raging between Voldemort and Professor Dumbledore. The area immediately surrounding the two was filled with flashes of brightly coloured light, somewhat reminiscent of a fireworks show. From where they stood it was difficult to tell who had the upper hand, but Harry took it as a good sign that Dumbledore didn't seem to be having much trouble keeping up with the Dark Lord.
"Look, it's the Aurors!" Neville said excitedly, pointing to where around a dozen red-robed wizards and witches had just charged through the wrought-iron gates marking the entrance to the property. For a moment, Harry thought he saw flashes of spellfire coming from the group, but he soon realised that somebody was actually taking photographs. He thought that seemed a bit odd, but he wasn't given much time to ponder.
"Harry?" Hermione called out to him in a broken voice. "Could you come here? I — I think Terry is really hurt!"
All three boys jogged over to where Hermione was kneeling next to Terry's motionless form.
"Do you know what he was hit with?" asked Harry, as soon as he reached them. Terry didn't seem to have any visible injuries, but he had seen enough magic to know that even some of the deadliest spells left no marks.
"I'm — I'm not sure," choked Hermione, as Ron put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "It was a bright purple spell, but I didn't hear an incantation. He was hit in the stomach, but he was clutching at his chest when he collapsed."
"Damn, I think I know what it was," grimaced Harry, as he rolled Terry over onto his back. "It sounds like one of the curses from the Black family's collection. It slowly reverses the flow of blood through the heart, killing the victim."
Hermione gasped and covered her mouth with her hand.
"I can do the counter-curse, but we need to get him to a healer as soon as possible," he continued, feeling a pang in his stomach as he recalled that it was Daphne who insisted they learn how to reverse all the Dark spells they practiced together.
Focusing his concentration, Harry passed his wand over Terry's chest a few times while quietly murmuring the counter-curse. He wasn't enough of an expert to be absolutely sure it had worked, but he was encouraged by the fact that Terry seemed to be breathing easier, even though he remained unconscious. His next priority was finding a way to get Terry to St. Mungo's, and he was standing up to do that very thing when a gruff voice called to him from over his shoulder.
"Why am I not surprised to see you here, Mr. Potter?"
"Auror Scrimgeour," said Harry, recognising the man approaching them. It was at that moment when he realised the sounds of battle had completely stopped. "The Death Eaters —" he continued, looking around. "Are they —"
"We managed to nab a few of them, but the rest Disapparated, along with You-Know-Who."
"You saw him, then?"
"Oh, we saw him all right," replied Scrimgeour. "Stands out in a crowd, that one. And don't you worry, by tomorrow morning, everyone will know he's back."
"So, I wasn't just seeing things? Someone really was taking photographs?"
"That's right. There's a bunch of vultures who like to hang around outside the Auror office, hoping to get a lead on a juicy story so they can sell photos to the Daily Prophet," the Auror explained, pointing towards a pair of shabbily dressed wizards walking around with cameras. "Usually, they're a right pain in the arse, but today they might actually wind up being useful."
"I guess so."
"Harry!" said Hermione abruptly, clutching at his arm. He looked in the direction she was pointing and saw his godfather with his hands held high in the air, surrounded by three Aurors with their wands pointed at him.
"Sirius!"
"Easy, lad," said Scrimgeour, grasping Harry tightly around his upper arm before he could rush to his godfather's aid. "If Black's as innocent as you say, then this might be the best possible outcome for him. Look," he added, pointing to where two Aurors were dragging off a familiar, rat-like man. "You see? My people already have Pettigrew in custody. Madam Bones rescinded the kiss-on-sight order for Black, just like she promised. We'll take him in, and he'll finally get his trial — just like you wanted."
Harry searched the face of the grizzled Head Auror and decided he was telling the truth — or at least, he believed in what he was saying. If there was even a chance that Scrimgeour was right, and Sirius really would be given a proper trial, then perhaps it was worth trusting him. Besides, if the Ministry decided to bollocks things up and send his godfather back to Azkaban, then Harry would simply have to break him out again.
"Okay, I'll trust you for now," Harry told Scrimgeour, not bothering to disguise the scepticism in his voice. "Just don't forget Pettigrew's an Animagus, or he'll scarper off again."
"You have my word, Mr. Potter."
"All right then," nodded Harry. "One more thing, though. Can you have someone bring Terry here to St. Mungo's?"
Harry quickly summarised the situation for Scrimgeour, who immediately summoned one of his Aurors to bring Terry to the hospital using one of their emergency portkeys. With that settled, Harry knew he needed to face Astoria — he just hoped she didn't hate him for getting her sister killed.
"If you'll excuse me, I need to go retrieve my girlfriend now," he announced to the others.
Scrimgeour broke off his conversation with another Auror and turned back to Harry. "So, you managed to rescue the Greengrass girl after all?" he enquired.
"Astoria is safe," he confirmed. "But Daphne…"
Harry found himself unable to finish the sentence. He shut his eyes for a moment and attempted to rein in his emotions, but Scrimgeour seemingly had no trouble deciphering Harry's pained expression.
"I see," the Auror remarked solemnly. "You have my condolences."
Harry nodded and turned back to Neville. "Hannah should be with her; do you want to come along?" he asked, extending his elbow towards the other boy.
Neville nodded his agreement and grabbed hold of Harry's elbow. It was probably the height of cheek to illegally Apparate directly in front of the country's highest-ranking Auror, but Harry figured the man had more important things to be getting on with. Once they reappeared at their destination, Harry's heart broke a little bit more at the sight of Astoria kneeling next to her sister's cooling body, holding Daphne's hand and staring off into the distance.
Astoria turned at the sound of their arrival and immediately leapt to her feet. "Oh, thank goodness you're all right," she cried as she threw herself into Harry's arms. "I — I saw you fighting him, and I was so scared. I couldn't bear to lose both of you."
"I am so, so sorry," Harry whispered into her hair. With the battle finally over and some of the adrenaline beginning to wear off, the gravity of all that had happened was finally beginning to sink in. "It — it's all my fault," he continued, his breath hitching slightly. "If it weren't for me…if I hadn't let them take you…if I hadn't asked her to come with me…then Daphne would still be alive."
"No no no, please don't blame yourself," sobbed Astoria. "If it's anyone's fault, it's mine! I was the one who let myself get taken, I was the one who froze when the curse was coming for me! Daphne came here to rescue me; she dove in front of that spell to save me! She…she —"
Unable to even finish her thought, Astoria completely broke down. Of course, that only made Harry feel worse, and so the two of them attempted to comfort one another while also commiserating in their shared grief and guilt.
"I'm sorry, but I have to say something," Hannah suddenly spoke up. She and Neville had apparently been lingering nearby and had heard at least part of their conversation. "I can confidently say that what happened was neither of your faults," she told them gently, but emphatically. "The blame belongs with the people who did this — I mean, they were Death Eaters!"
"Don't forget Malfoy and Nott," added Neville.
"Exactly!" said Hannah. "I'm really sorry about your sister, but please don't blame yourself for what happened. You didn't ask for this — none of us did."
Astoria quickly let go of Harry and gave Hannah a long hug to express her gratitude. "Thank you," she said hoarsely to the older girl.
"We should probably get back to the others," said Neville. "The adults are starting to look our way."
With everyone in agreement, they began slowly making their way towards where they could see Professor Dumbledore standing amidst a small crowd. Harry conjured a blanket to cover Daphne and used his wand to direct her body to float alongside them, while keeping his other hand firmly entwined with Astoria's. Apart from Harry and Neville giving the girls a brief update on everyone's condition, no one really spoke until they reached Dumbledore — who Harry now realised was speaking with Madam Bones.
Hermione, Ron, and the twins were there as well, and judging from the adults' expressions, they had just been filled in on everything that had happened from the time they left Hogsmeade up until the point Dumbledore and the others arrived.
"Miss Greengrass, I cannot tell you how terribly sorry I am for your loss," said Dumbledore, as they approached.
"Thank you, Professor," Astoria returned meekly.
"Your friends have already summarised their version of events," stated Madam Bones, addressing Harry. "Do you have anything important to add?"
"Theo Nott is tied up and stuck to a wall over in one of those rooms," he responded, gesturing towards the western wing of the chateau. "I'm not sure which one, but it'll be close to wherever you find the dead Death Eater in the hallway."
"I see…" replied Madam Bones, exchanging a brief look with Scrimgeour. "And Theodore Nott was the one who physically abducted you, is that correct, Miss Greengrass?"
"Yes, Theo is the one who brought me here."
"Don't forget Malfoy," Harry chimed in. "Draco was there too, but I managed to stun him before he could get away."
"We already have Draco Malfoy in custody, along with Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle," replied Madam Bones, checking her notes. "Lucius Malfoy was also apprehended on the scene here, in case you were curious. Anything else?"
"Nott used the Imperius Curse on me when I went to free Astoria," he answered after a moment's thought.
"Is that so?" said Madam Bones, adjusting her monocle. "I take it you managed to free yourself?"
"He wasn't very good at it," replied Harry, shrugging indifferently.
"Very well, then," she replied with a tone of finality. "I shall likely need a full statement from each of you in the near future, but for now, both Professor Dumbledore and I think it best if you all return to Hogwarts," explained Madam Bones. "I have authorised the headmaster to create a portkey that will bring you directly to the hospital wing, where Madam Pomfrey is standing by to tend to your injuries."
"What about…" began Astoria, looking down at where Daphne's body was still hovering next to Harry.
"If it is all right with you, I shall have her transported to the hospital wing separately," Professor Dumbledore replied gently. "Madam Pomfrey will be able to tend to her from there, until your family can make further arrangements."
"My parents — do they…"
"Your parents were made aware of your abduction, but I do not believe they have yet been informed of everything that has befallen since."
"The Greengrasses are awaiting news at the Ministry," Madam Bones informed them. "I expect they will be joining you at Hogwarts in the very near future. And as I can see that our esteemed Minister has arrived on the scene, I suggest that now would be the opportune time for you to return to school."
Harry took a glance towards the front gates, and sure enough, Cornelius Fudge was bumbling about with a cadre of hangers-on — attempting to exert some sort of authority over the situation, if Harry had to guess. Wasting no time, Professor Dumbledore summoned a chunk of loose flagstone to his hand, then tapped it with his wand while murmuring, "Portus."
"You have one minute before the portkey departs, so gather round, if you would," said Professor Dumbledore, as he handed Harry the broken slab. "I shall be returning to the castle as soon as things are settled here. I ask that you all wait in the hospital wing until I arrive."
At the headmaster's direction, the seven other teenagers quickly huddled around Harry, each of them placing a finger on the portkey. The last thing any of them heard before being yanked away from Chateau Lestrange was the sound of the Minister for Magic shouting after them, and before they knew it, they were standing in the centre of the Hogwarts hospital wing.
"All right, find a bed everyone," Madam Pomfrey ordered them in her usual business-like tone. "I will see each of you in turn, and I don't want to hear any arguments," she added, her gaze focused on Harry as she said it.
Knowing better than to argue when the matron was in that sort of mood, Harry sat down on the side of the bed nearest to him while the others fanned out to find a spot of their own. Astoria took a seat on the bed next to Harry's, facing his direction, but with a faraway look in her eyes as if she weren't totally present in the room.
"Are you hurt at all?"
Astoria blinked a few times and looked back at him.
"I'm sorry?"
"Are you hurt?" he repeated. "They didn't do anything to you?"
"Oh…no… No, I'm fine."
"That's good."
Harry was a bit concerned about how disconnected she seemed, but he didn't want to press her too hard, so he took a quick look around the room and silently observed while Madam Pomfrey tended to Ron's left arm. Aside from a few cuts and bruises, the others hadn't fared too badly — Terry, and of course, Daphne being the obvious exceptions. It had been a near thing, though; there was no telling how bad things could have been, had Dumbledore and the others not broken through when they did.
On his opposite side, Harry's other best friend was perched at the foot of her bed looking pensive, so he spun around to face her direction and attempted to engage her in conversation.
"All right, Hermione?"
"Yes…no…" she sighed. "I don't even know what I am."
"I get that," he replied understandingly, before leaning closer. "Did…did we do the right thing?" he asked, his voice dropping to barely a whisper. "Is this all my fault?"
"It's definitely not your fault," Hermione replied emphatically, though she kept her voice quiet. "As for whether it was the right thing…who's to say? It was a horrible situation, and you did what you thought was best."
"I know," sighed Harry. "It's just…Daphne…"
"She would have gone, even without you," Hermione pointed out. "I can't say that I knew her, but I'm fairly confident about that."
"She's right," sniffed Astoria. Apparently, his and Hermione's conversation hadn't been as private as he'd thought. "Daphne would've done anything to save me; she cared for me more than anyone. If it weren't for her, I — I'd —"
Her voice cracked slightly as a broken sob forced its way out of her. Harry was at Astoria's side with an arm wrapped around her in a matter of seconds, attempting to comfort her as she cried into his shoulder.
"I just can't believe she's gone," she said miserably.
"I know."
Madam Pomfrey took care of Neville after Ron, and then she methodically worked her way around the room tending to the others. Harry had some bruises and a few mild burns, but luckily nothing more, aside from a mild case of exhaustion from expending so much magic in a short period of time, and of course, the lingering pain from Voldemort's Cruciatus Curse. Once everybody had their turn getting patched up, they all reconvened around the bed Harry had chosen to wait for Dumbledore.
"I wonder how Terry's doing," Neville wondered aloud.
"Professor Dumbledore seemed to think he would make a full recovery," Hermione informed them. "He told us so while you two were getting Hannah and Astoria," she added, in response to Harry's quizzical look. "Somebody should probably tell Lisa what happened, though. I'm sure she's worried."
"Wouldn't be a bad idea to let the rest of the Underground know, too," added Ron. "We all got the message on our coins, so you know they're all waiting for an update."
"I'll take care of it," volunteered Harry, but before he could do either, they were interrupted by the door to the hospital wing being thrown open with a bang.
"Where are my daughters?" demanded Mr. Greengrass, as he and his wife burst through the door.
"Father!"
Astoria stood up from the bed and crossed the room to embrace her father, while Mrs. Greengrass remained off to the side, her expression stony.
"She's gone, Father," she bawled into his chest. "They…they killed Daphne…"
"Where is she?" enquired Mr. Greengrass in a strained voice.
"Mr. and Mrs. Greengrass?" Madam Pomfrey had just come out from the connected office and was making her way down the aisle between the rows of beds. "I offer the both of you my sincerest condolences. Your daughter is in the farthest bed, behind the curtain, if you'd like to see her," said the matron.
Harry looked up in surprise; he had no idea that Daphne's body had already been brought in, and he was curious how Dumbledore had managed it without them noticing. Without another word, the Greengrasses marched towards the back of the room with their youngest daughter in tow, Astoria sparing Harry a glance backwards as she followed behind her parents.
In an attempt to calm his anxiety over the situation, Harry took the opportunity to send a Patronus message to Lisa, letting her know about Terry, and also to send a brief communication to the Underground via their charmed Galleons, letting them know they had returned and would be giving them a full update later. As Dumbledore still had yet to arrive, Harry took to pacing up and down the aisle, glancing every so often at the curtain at the far end of the room. He assumed the curtains themselves must have been charmed to protect the patients' privacy, because even when his pacing brought him nearby, the most he could hear were muffled voices from the other side.
"Harry, would you please sit down and relax?" requested Hermione, with a touch of exasperation.
"Relax?" he repeated, without interrupting his meandering. "How could you possibly expect me to relax at a time like this? You do realise this will be the first time my girlfriend's parents have ever met me, and it's right after I got their other daughter killed?"
"That's not what happened, and you know it…"
"Maybe not, but that's what they'll be thinking — I guarantee it."
"Harry…"
Instead of replying, he simply waved her off and continued his lap around the hospital wing while fretting over what he could possibly say to Astoria's parents. Before long, all three Greengrasses stepped out from behind the curtain, followed by Madam Pomfrey, prompting Harry to stop in his tracks, halfway between where his friends remained gathered and the Greengrass family. Astoria's red, puffy eyes locked onto his immediately, and she began walking quickly towards him and away from her parents.
"Astoria, get away from that boy this instant!" her mother commanded.
To her credit, Astoria did not falter one bit at her mother's harsh tone. Instead, she completely ignored the order and moved to stand at Harry's side, clutching his arm like a lifeline.
"Calm yourself, Penelope," said Mr. Greengrass warningly.
"I shall do no such thing," she retorted. "Surely, this…boy…is to blame for what has happened, and yet you would permit your daughter to continue her shameful association with him?"
"I already told you, none of this was Harry's fault!" Astoria replied hotly. "In fact, if anyone in this room is to blame, it's you!"
"How dare you?" seethed Mrs. Greengrass. "After all I've —"
"Oh, don't bother pretending you ever cared about us in the first place," Astoria shouted over her mother. "Daphne and I have always known that we were nothing more than props to you, only useful for bettering your own social standing. You wanted so badly to get in with the Malfoys, and look where that got us! Daphne is dead because of you!"
"Of all the absurd things to say," Mrs. Greengrass replied scathingly. "I have been working to secure our family's position for the future. If your father had simply —"
"Don't you dare blame Father," shrieked Astoria. "Not when your favourite cousin Talford is the one who killed Daphne!"
Astoria's mother recoiled as if she had been slapped, while Mr. Greengrass's face quickly contorted from sadness, to shock, to anger.
"Travers did this?" he practically growled.
"You mean the Death Eater who Mother invited to our house, along with some of his Death Eater friends?" Astoria replied sarcastically, tears streaming down her face. "Yes, and he knew exactly who we were, too. In fact, he was actually aiming for me, but Daphne —" A choked sob escaped her. "— Daphne dove on top of me…she…she saved me."
"That son of a bitch!" roared Mr. Greengrass, shooting his wife a spiteful look. "I'll kill him myself!"
"That won't be necessary, sir," Harry suddenly spoke up.
"Oh? And why is that?" enquired Mr. Greengrass, who appeared momentarily thrown off by Harry's interruption.
Harry fixed Mrs. Greengrass with a hard look before giving his answer.
"Because I already killed him."
He felt Astoria's grip on his arm tighten as Mr. Greengrass's eyes widened in surprise. Mrs. Greengrass, however, seemed to be in shock, with her mouth hanging wide open and a look of disbelief on her face.
"Is that so?" replied Mr. Greengrass evenly. "And did he — the one who killed my daughter — did he suffer?"
"He was impaled on a sharp, metal spike, so I would imagine so."
"You dare!" spat Mrs. Greengrass. "You dare raise a wand against my family, you filthy —"
"Enough!" thundered Astoria's father, grasping his wife firmly around her upper arm. "You will wait for me in the corridor, and then we will discuss this at home. Now, go!"
Mrs. Greengrass's face was burning with anger and embarrassment, and she appeared primed to retort before coming to her senses and finally comprehending the situation she was in. Her husband was already in a towering rage, Madam Pomfrey had her wand out and seemed ready to intervene at a moment's notice, and Harry's friends — who had been edging closer and closer as the conversation escalated — were now standing behind him and Astoria, glaring daggers at her. Recognising that she had no allies there, Mrs. Greengrass yanked her arm out of her husband's grip and stormed out of the hospital wing without another word.
Once she had left, Mr. Greengrass spent a moment massaging his forehead before speaking. "I apologise for that," he said in a tired voice. "To both of you," he clarified, indicating both Harry and Astoria. He appeared conflicted for a moment, before finally stepping forward and extending his hand, saying, "Mr. Potter, it's a pleasure to finally meet you. My name is Elias Greengrass."
"It's Harry, sir. And it's nice to meet you, as well."
"Elias, then," he nodded. "I offer you my sincerest gratitude for returning Astoria to us. Regardless of what my wife said, I do not hold you responsible for what happened to Daphne, and I appreciate your bringing her killer to justice."
"With all due respect, sir, it was a team effort," replied Harry, gesturing to those behind him. "If it weren't for Daphne and the rest of my friends, I would never have even made it to Astoria, let alone escape with her."
"Yes, of course. Many thanks to the rest of you, as well," said Elias, offering them a short bow.
"Don't sell yourself short though, Harry," said Astoria, keen to make her boyfriend look good in the eyes of her father. "The others were brilliant, as usual, but you were the one who had to fight You-Know-Who all by yourself."
"You duelled the Dark Lord and lived?" Elias blurted out, perhaps a bit sharper than intended. He fixed Harry with an intense stare, almost as if expecting him to deny it.
"Yeah, he does that," George offered unhelpfully.
"Just barely," admitted Harry quietly. "We were lucky Dumbledore and the others showed up in time."
"Perhaps so, but I daresay you all more than held your own," came an unexpected voice from behind. Everyone's eyes were drawn to the front of the room, where Professor Dumbledore had apparently been standing, though none of them were quite sure when he entered. "I apologise for not arriving sooner," continued the headmaster, "but squaring things away with the Ministry took longer than I anticipated. Cornelius in particular was in need of several reminders related to our laws, and the proper protocols surrounding them."
"I'll bet," snorted Harry.
"Indeed," the professor nodded, before growing serious. "Elias, it is good to see you again, though I wish it were under better circumstances. Alas, I am afraid I can do little more than offer my sympathies to you and your family."
"Thank you, Headmaster."
"I assume there are things you wished to discuss with me, before you depart?"
"Indeed, there are," he replied darkly. "Perhaps somewhere more private?"
"Of course," said Dumbledore. "As long as there are no objections, I find my office is well suited to such conversations."
"That should be fine," nodded Elias. "Come, Astoria."
"No," she replied in a whisper.
"Pardon?"
"I can't be around Mother right now," she explained. "I want to stay with my friends — at least for tonight."
Elias stared at his daughter for a moment with a contemplative expression. His eyes quickly darted over to Harry before moving back to Astoria, and then with a heavy sigh that millions of other fathers with daughters would have little trouble interpreting, he nodded his agreement.
"Very well," he muttered, "but I shall be here to collect you in the morning. We will be having a funeral for Daphne within a few days' time, and there is much to do."
"Thank you, Father," said Astoria, walking up to give him another hug.
"You're welcome. And if you would like Mr. Pot — Harry," he said, correcting himself, "to attend the funeral, then I will make the necessary arrangements — assuming, of course, that he has permission to leave Hogwarts."
"I do not foresee any problems with Harry attending, if he wishes to do so," confirmed Professor Dumbledore.
"I want to go," Harry answered immediately. "Thank you for inviting me."
"Think nothing of it," replied Elias, shaking Harry's hand again. "I get the sense that your presence will be of great comfort to Astoria."
"I — er — well, I hope so," he replied, somewhat awkwardly. "But also, Daphne was my friend, and I want to be there to say goodbye. I — I'm really going to miss her," he added, getting a bit choked up.
Elias closed his eyes for a moment while attempting to rein in his own emotions, then nodded his head and moved to join Professor Dumbledore.
"As long as Madam Pomfrey has given you a clean bill of health, then you are all free to go," Dumbledore informed the students, a moment before he and Mr. Greengrass took their leave. "I shall make myself available tomorrow morning, in the event that any of you have matters of import to discuss with me."
Dumbledore spoke as if he were addressing everyone, but Harry knew it was mostly meant for him. He would allow himself the evening to mourn Daphne and be there for Astoria, but come the morning, there would be business to attend to: namely, telling Dumbledore his theory on how to find the next — and hopefully final — missing Horcrux.
