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Harry Potter, The Boy Who Lived | ||||||
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Category: Post-HBP Characters:Albus Dumbledore, Draco Malfoy, Harry/Ginny, Hermione Granger, Luna Lovegood, Minerva McGonagall, Neville Longbottom, Nymphadora Tonks, Remus Lupin, Ron Weasley Genres: General Warnings: Death, Sexual Situations, Violence Story is Complete Rating: R Reviews: 28 Summary: This is my version of Book Seven. It picks up where Book Six left off, and follows Harry and his friends through their trials and tribulations. Everyone know that Harry has to defeat Voldemort, but does he have to do it alone, without love? All of your favorite characters are here. This story follows canon closely. H/G, R/Hr, and other pairings are included. Hitcount: Story Total: 86989; Chapter Total: 3113 Author's Notes: Author’s Note: J.K. Rowling created the world in which I work. Everything Harry is hers alone. |
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Harry, Ginny, Hermione, Ron, Luna, and Neville stared at the space Malfoy had just occupied. “Did he just say that the Burrow is under attack?” Ron managed to squeak out. “I think he did,” Harry confirmed. “Do you think it’s a trap?” Ginny wondered. “I don’t know,” Harry admitted. “Should we go?” Neville questioned. “I don’t think we have much of a choice. Be prepared for anything.” Harry and Ginny grabbed Neville at the same time Ron and Hermione grabbed Luna. They all disappeared silently. When they reappeared, there was no amount of planning or background that could have prepared them for the destruction they found. The last of Voldemort’s followers had attacked with a vengeance. It seemed that they were out for retribution for every good act that had ever been committed. Their numbers were few, but they fought as if their master’s vicious anger empowered them. Flames erupted from the second level of the Burrow. Harry heard Fred and George calling out to him, their voices all but blocked by the thickness of the smoke billowing from the upper levels of the Burrow. He was grateful that the Death Eaters still hadn’t noticed the newcomers’ arrival. They were locked in battle with members of the Order who had arrived previously. Their preoccupation gave Ron a chance to form a plan of attack. “Harry,” Ron hissed. “Harry!” Harry jerked himself out of the horrific nightmare he had been reliving. He looked around frantically, searching for Charlie, Bill, Fleur, and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. He couldn’t find any of them. Instead, his eyes fell upon the two people he had not expected to see. “Harry,” Ron repeated. “Malfoys,” Harry choked out. “We don’t have time for that,” Ron commanded. “Get it together.” “Draco? What about him?” Ginny asked Harry. “Not just Draco,” Harry grunted. “We don’t have time for this,” Ron bellowed, growing more impatient and taking a chance that he might reveal their location. Instantly Harry and Ginny stopped having their own conversation and looked at Ron. “What’s the plan?” they asked in unison. “We need to split up,” Ron asserted. “Neville, Luna, and I will take the left side of the house. Harry, you, Ginny, and Hermione will take the right side. The goal is to trap them while the Order is distracting them. Ginny, keep your shield spell up as long as you can.” Ginny looked at Ron while Harry said, “I don’t think that’s a good idea, Ron. I think someone else should be responsible for the shield.” “Harry,” Ginny exclaimed in a furious tone. “Fine,” Harry conceded. “I don’t want a repeat of your last performance though, keep it in check,” he said sternly. Ginny grinned devilishly, looking startlingly mysterious. “I will.” Suddenly, before they could separate for their attack, a loud explosion ripped through the tumultuous air. “What was that?” Ron screamed, trying to make himself heard over the racket. Harry and Ginny, who were the only two facing the Burrow, gasped in shock and rage. Harry’s jaw dropped to the ground and it was all he could do to point in the direction of the house. Ron spun on his heel, catching the last of the destruction as the house collapsed. When the noise subsided, the roof of the house was flush with the ground, and several people had been forced out of their hiding places. The battle began again in earnest as Molly, Arthur, Charlie, Bill, Fleur, Fred, and George rejoined the fight against Death Eaters along with the latest batch of Order members who had just recently arrived. Neville, Luna, and Ron made their way to the left side of the house stealthily. Ron, who was leading them through the middle of the battle, nearly tripped over Fleur’s legs when he got to the edge of the rubble. “Ron!” Fleur exclaimed. “Bill, Ron ees here.” Bill and Charlie both called out words of warning. Fred and George appeared through the smoke right behind Charlie. “Where are Harry and Ginny?” Fred asked loudly. “Where’s Hermione?” George added even more loudly than Fred. “They’re on the other side with Mum and Dad,” Ron bellowed. They were all having difficulties hearing over the cacophony of spells. Harry, Ginny, and Hermione had made their way to the right side of the house with far more difficulty than Ron’s group had. Molly kept trying to protect them by sending stunning spells at the Death Eaters directly behind them. Twice, she missed and hit Hermione. Twice, Harry and Ginny had to revive Hermione. When Molly took aim for the third time, Ginny tossed the gentlest blocking spell she could muster at her mum. Molly was shoved backward, grabbing the sleeve of Arthur’s robes as she tumbled to the ground. Arthur was thrown off balance and the bright light of a rather nasty hex flew by, barely missing his ear. “What in the blazes?” Arthur bellowed. Harry, Ginny, and Hermione rushed to Molly’s side to help her up. By the time they reached her side, Cordi had already helped her up. Molly had steadied herself on her knees and was brushing the dust off her face. “Where have you been?” she asked shrilly. Harry opened his mouth to respond, but was cut off by Ginny’s hand on his arm. She whirled him around just in time to see Draco, who was standing just a few feet in front of them, duck an Unforgivable. Harry’s neck snapped to the right to see where the curse had come from. While Harry still didn’t trust Draco, he had to concede that Draco had come to the Ministry to warn them of the attack. “It definitely wasn’t in his best interest,” Harry hesitantly admitted to himself. Charlie was crouched on the ground, firing curses at Draco in a violent attempt to protect Molly. There was a sharp pain in Harry’s neck as his head jerked from right to left as he watched the bolts of light fly back and forth. Charlie had just gotten the upper hand when someone else joined their duel. Harry stopped gaping long enough to stun a Death Eater who had crept closer to the rubble and was attempting to stun Arthur. Arthur and Cordi were both enthusiastically engaged in a struggle with a particularly large Death Eater. Neither of them had noticed the scrawny wizard approaching from the left, Harry had noticed because it was the same direction that Draco had come from. Harry heard a terrified scream from behind him followed by a word that he had never heard Molly use before. He snapped his head back to the skirmish between Draco and Charlie, still firing spells at the Death Eaters, and noticed the new player. Blasts of blinding light flew from Narcissa’s wand and she strode closer to the wreckage of the Burrow. She planted her feet firmly on the ground and assumed a defensive stance once she was in between Draco and Charlie. Narcissa threw a hex at Charlie, clipping his shoulder and spinning him around. He fell to the ground with a loud thud, the sound of his arm snapping piercing the clamor of the battle. Fred and George hurried forward to heal Charlie’s arm while Molly let loose with a string of words. Harry was positive that if Molly had heard one of her children using those words, no amount of cotton stuffed into their ears would have protected them from her lecture. While Narcissa was distracted by the appearance of Fred and George, Molly got off one spell. Narcissa’s wand arm was sliced deeply from her shoulder to her wrist. Blood poured from her wound and she dropped to the ground. She muttered a spell and watched carefully as her skin on her arm mended itself crudely. She glanced up with hatred in her eyes. “You have no part in this,” Narcissa ranted. “Why did you have to get involved?” Molly stared at Narcissa. Two mothers, with identical steely glares, cautiously eyed each other, each of them bent on protecting their own. Narcissa fired a hex at Molly. Molly dodged the curse but tripped over Cordi, who was still helping Arthur fight the Death Eaters. The Death Eaters didn’t seem to diminish when one of them fell. Ginny was using her shield spell to protect her dad, Cordi, and Hermione as they shot spell at the Death Eaters. The sounds of fighting raged on around him. Harry was too involved in the duel between Draco and Charlie to worry about the Death Eaters. He couldn’t allow anything to happen to Charlie. Never the less, Harry continued to fire spells at the Death Eaters. He moved into position to stun Narcissa when Molly, who had managed to crawl to a spot where she could return fire, sent a curse straight at her. Narcissa absorbed the brunt of the curse, reeling backwards but managing to remain upright. She steadied herself quickly and sent a curse flying at Molly. Molly was in the open and had nothing to hide behind except her husband, so she steeled herself for the impact of the curse. She closed her eyes as the seconds ticked by slowly. Time seemed to stop as images of her children flashed before her eyes. Percy’s face flashed before Molly’s eyes. Not the wizard that he had become, but the innocent child he had once been. There was a loud ‘clang’ followed by a muffled cry of pain. Molly’s eyes flew open as the dead weight of a body fell on her. Before she cold move, the body was dragged off her and Ginny pulled her behind the protection of the remains of the house. Ginny helped her to her feet and returned to the fierce battle with the Death Eaters. Harry looked at Draco in amazement. The fall of a Death Eater had temporarily distracted Harry. He had returned to the fight with Narcissa just in time to see Draco throw a round object that looked curiously like a dinner plate into the air in front of Molly. The object grew to the size of a Quidditch goal hoop. Harry watched as the spell, burning bright green as it approached the object blocking its path, hit the shield, bounced off and sliced through the air near Draco’s head. Draco slumped to the ground, falling on Molly and inadvertently protecting her from any further harm. Harry rushed to their side, pulling Ginny away from the battle to help him. He grabbed Draco and heaved him behind the ruins. By the time Harry set Draco on the ground, he was soaked in blood. Harry quickly discovered that the spell had done tremendous damage to Draco’s head. It looked like she had used ‘Secumseptra’ against him. Luckily for Draco, the spell had only grazed him. Even so, the gash on his scalp was deep. Harry staunched the flow of blood and conjured a temporary bandage. He turned toward Ginny, secure in the knowledge that it appeared that Draco would survive. Ginny, with a physical strength she had not yet shown, managed to pull Molly behind the house and get her on her feet before returning to fight the Death Eaters. Harry turned to Narcissa again, prepared to block any more spells that might be aimed at Molly. The time that he had taken to save Draco had cost him dearly. Molly screamed, a heart wrenching scream that temporarily stopped the battle, when she saw Charlie laying face down in the dirt. Harry was knocked to the ground when the full force of Molly’s weight hit him. Molly collapsed, falling sideways causing Harry’s head to hit a chunk of rubble as he hit the ground. Fleur, who had been on the opposite side of the house, saw Molly fall and cried out to Bill. She rushed forward to resume the duel with Narcissa. Fleur’s spells were erratic but powerful. The spells hit the ground around Narcissa’s feet, throwing her off balance. She stumbled from side to side in an attempt to avoid Fleur’s curses. Fleur started to approach Narcissa. As she drew closer, her spells became more accurate. She stopped a few feet away from Narcissa. “Fleur,” Bill hollered across what used to be the garden in front of the Burrow. “Get back here, you’re exposed.” Fleur turned away from Narcissa for a split second when she realized that she was no longer protected by anything other than her wand. She threw up a shield spell, but it was too late. Green light jetted across the garden and hit Fleur in the center of her chest. The force of the impact threw her backward toward the rubble. Her body fell in a graceful arc. A horrified cry echoed though the battle before her body could hit the ground. “Percy! What have you done?” Bill screamed as he rushed to Fleur’s side. His mouth open wide in horror, Percy couldn’t react in time to save himself from the curse Narcissa sent at him. His face registered surprise as the green streak collided with his chest. He fell backward, in the same graceful arc as Fleur. His body hit the ground and everyone was momentarily distracted from their fighting by the chaos that erupted Molly, drawing herself up to her full height, advanced on Narcissa. Arthur tried to grab her arm and hold her back, but she wrenched free and continued on her way. Harry looked at Ginny, not knowing what to do. She had just lost a son, possibly two and she had every right to protect her family. Ginny nodded in understanding and concentrated on shielding her mother from the curses that had resumed flying through the air. Harry stayed by Ginny’s side, deflecting any curses that were aimed at her as she started to grow still with the effort of maintaining the shield so far away. Ginny’s body began to levitate, he feet at the same height as Harry’s shoulders. Her hair began to float on an imaginary breeze and her eyes hardened. Harry sent a curse at a Death Eater he didn’t recognize, knocking him to the ground before turning to check on Ginny. He couldn’t believe his eyes. Ginny was on the verge of destruction again. Her body had begun to emit a bright light. Hermione, who had been holding her own with a particularly powerful Death Eater, managed to stun him along with his companion. She made her way through the rubble to Harry’s side. Harry pointed at Ginny and silently asked Hermione what to do. She shook her head in response, staring across the garden for a glimpse of Ron and the others. She had been so preoccupied with her fight that she hadn’t noticed Charlie’s fall, Fleur’s death, or Percy’s arrival, let alone his demise. She tugged on Harry’s sleeve, her eyes wide with horror and pointed at the center of the battlefield. Molly, who, along with the other members of her family and the Order, was protected by Ginny’s shield, stood over Narcissa’s lifeless body. Narcissa had battled valiantly, but Ginny’s shield was too strong. None of Narcissa’s curses made it through, while all of Molly’s found their mark. After being hit by several curses, one after the other, Narcissa sunk to her knees and begged for death. “Finish me,” she cried. “I have nothing left.” Molly took no pity on her and, without speaking, prepared to grant Narcissa her wish. She raised her wand and then dropped it. “I can’t,” Molly cried. “I won’t.” “How can you deny me a death that is so justly deserved?” Narcissa moaned. “Finish me.” “I can’t,” Molly repeated. “You have a son who needs you.” “He doesn’t need me,” Narcissa howled. “He joined the Death Eaters. I’ve spent the past weeks trying to keep him out of harm’s way, but he keeps running back to them. What good am I?” “You’re his mother,” Molly observed sadly. “He needs your love.” Her voice broke as she looked at the bodies of Percy, Charlie, and Fleur. “He will die without your love.” Narcissa raised herself up enough to see the area where Harry had propped Draco’s body, but the rubble was piled too high to see it. “It’s too late,” Narcissa whispered. “It’s over.” Molly opened her mouth to respond, but Narcissa had already aimed her wand at her own heart. “Love your own,” Narcissa demanded. “You don’t know what you say,” Molly roared. “Love them,” Narcissa pleaded one last time. Molly couldn’t make out the words that left Narcissa’s lips, but she had no need to. The green light hit her and she sunk to the ground with a look of surprise on her face. Molly turned to Arthur, her eyes brimming with tears. He rushed to her side and gathered her into his arms. He carried her back to the rubble, under the protection of Ginny’s shield and sunk to his knees. He cradled Molly in his lap, soothing her and petting her hair. The light emanating from Ginny began to illuminate the entire battlefield. Not a single shadow remained. Even the Death Eaters, hiding at the base of the trees were lit up as if Muggle spotlights had been aimed at them from every possible angle. “Merlin,” Harry breathed. “Ron!” Hermione screamed. Ron’s head could be seen above the ruins across the garden. His head bobbed wildly as he battled the Death Eaters. Curses flew at the Death Eaters from both sides. Ron, Luna, Neville, Cordi, Bill, Fred, and George ferociously fought them from the front while the members of the Order fought them from the back. He sent a stunning curse through the lower branches of the trees, effectively stopping the Death Eater from hexing Cordi. His head popped up and he scanned the grounds for Hermione. “What?” he hollered. Hermione pointed at Ginny. Ron seemed to be genuinely surprised, as if he had not noticed the sudden light that had flooded onto the battlefield. He nodded in understanding. He had created a contingency plan for just this situation. He grabbed Neville and Luna and they disappeared. Hermione disappeared, reappeared next to Fred and George, grabbed them and disappeared. “Stay here,” Harry commanded to Molly and Arthur. “We’ll be back shortly. Whatever you do, don’t leave the protection of Ginny’s shield.” When he got no argument, Harry disappeared and reappeared next to Cordi ordering her to grab Charlie’s arm without preamble. Cordi seemed genuinely scared for the first time since Harry had met her. She trembled slightly, but she reached down bravely and grabbed Charlie firmly. Harry struggled briefly, never having tried to disappear with a body before but managed to disappear after a few attempts. By the time Harry had managed to get both Cordi and Charlie back into Ginny’s protective shield, Ron and Hermione had returned with their charges. “I have one more person to get,” Harry said in a voice that allowed no argument. He returned empty handed to everyone’s surprise. “I was too late,” he said simply. “Is everyone ready?” Ron asked. Hermione, Luna, Neville, and Harry all nodded solemnly. This was their only chance. If Ron’s plan should fail, there was no telling what the outcome would be. Harry was sure of only one thing. If they didn’t succeed, Ginny would not survive. Harry joined hands with Neville and Hermione. Ron took Hermione’s other hand and grabbed Luna’s. Luna and Neville linked hands to close the circle they had formed. Molly, Arthur, Bill, Fred, George, Cordi all huddled in the center, the unusual silence caused by fear. Charlie’s back rested against Cordi’s legs and his legs were draped over Molly’s. Hermione hesitated for a moment. “What about the Order?” she asked. Harry broke contact with the circle. He was gone and back before anyone had a chance to argue with him. “We don’t have time for any more interruptions.” Hermione grabbed his hand while Neville grabbed the other one. They softly began to repeat the spell that Ginny had found in Lily’s diary. “Amatorius armorum.” Their voices were quietly nervous at first, their worries present in their voices. As the continued to chant and spell began to take effect, their voices grew with confidence. A black spot appeared in the brightness of Ginny’s light. The longer they chanted, the larger it got. It grew from a pinpoint of darkness to the size of a Knut. It continued to grow, casting a shadow of darkness over those it protected. Soon, the blackness covered them, like Harry’s Invisibility Cloak draping over the circle. Only a small beam of light was visible under the blackness of their shield. Harry, Hermione, Ron, Neville, and Luna broke the circle, raised their arms to the sky and uttered in perfect unison, “Amatorius armorum.” The blackness was complete. It was only seconds later that an explosion ripped through the field of battle decimating everything that lay before it. Nothing was spared from the total destruction. Neville and Hermione were both knocked off their feet with the impact of the blowout. Harry, Ron, and Luna managed to remain upright, but Ron was forced to his knees. As the light faded into darkness, the chaos died along with the remaining Death Eaters. The discord of the battle faded into an eerie silence. Molly’s sobs could be heard plainly as she rocked the body of her son. Harry ran to find Ginny, her body no longer levitating in the air and missing from the destruction. He searched through the wreckage to no avail. Trees were uprooted. Large boulders had been flung and landed haphazardly. Even the ruins of the Burrow had been further destroyed. Boards from the side of the house were scattered throughout and some had landed on the bodies of the Death Eaters. Harry ran amongst the ruins, across the cracked foundation and tried not to trip over the wreckage. The tears flooding his eyes made it virtually impossible to see where he was going. He tried to find her, searching his mind for the faintest sign that she was still alive, but there was none. “Harry,” Hermione called. Harry ignored her and continued to search frantically. He was throwing the boards out of his way with inhuman strength. When he came across the body of a Death Eater, he would send it back to the Ministry. He continued to search even though his hands were bruised and bleeding. “Harry,” Hermione tried again. “What?” he screamed. “I have to find her.” “I don’t see her, Mate,” Ron said gently. “She’s gone,” Hermione sniffed. “She’s not gone,” Luna bellowed. “She’s just simply not here.” “What?” Harry asked, his eyes filling with tears and his breath catching in his throat. “Go to her,” Luna instructed. “We’ll clean up here.” “Where do I go?” Harry wailed. “Look into your heart,” Luna commanded, “and see beyond the pain. I know you can feel it. You felt it when you first touched the earrings, didn’t you. Stop hesitating. Her life depends on you. Go to her.” Harry couldn’t contain his emotions. Luna could be wrong, but she knew about the earrings. He hadn’t even told Ron about the earrings. “You saw?” he asked hopefully. “Go to her,” Luna shouted. “You’re wasting time.” Harry disappeared without another word. Within minutes, a single Phoenix feather flashed in the air where Harry had been. It glowed with a rich maroon light before fading into the darkness. “He’s found her and she’s safe,” Luna announced. “They have a great deal of healing to do.” Luna held up her hand when both Ron and Hermione began to protest. “There isn’t anything we can do to help. This is something that Harry has to do on his own.” Neville looked around in confusion. “What are we going to do?” The four shared a concerned look before they surveyed the debris. Molly was still sobbing. Arthur helped her to her feet and together they gathered Percy in their arms. Arthur held them both, rocking them slowly. Hermione shook off the sadness and assumed the role of leader in Harry’s absence. “We need to notify Penelope. We need to find a place for the Weasleys to stay. We need to get Charlie some medical attention, someone needs to take him to St. Mungo’s.” Ron stared at Percy’s body for a long minute. “We should…” A loud gasp interrupted Ron’s idea. Fred and George hugged each other tightly, anticipating the worst. Charlie was sitting up and coughing violently. Cordi held him tightly as he began to shake in her arms. After a few difficult breaths, Charlie opened his eyes. He smiled slightly when he saw Cordi’s face peering at him anxiously. “Gave you a bit of a start, did I?” he joked weakly. “Don’t do it again,” she sobbed. Charlie smiled weakly and his eyes wandered to Ron, who was holding Hermione tightly. He saw Neville, whose arm was wrapped around Luna’s waist. His smile slipped from his face when he saw his parents, holding Percy’s lifeless body. “Where’s Harry? Where’s Ginny?” he asked urgently, when he realized they were nowhere to be found. Ron turned to Hermione with a questioning look in his eyes. Hermione’s eyes told him, in no uncertain terms, not to reveal any information. “They’re safe.” Charlie nodded, but his face registered concern. “What do we do now?” “We were just trying to find a place to put Mum and Dad,” Ron told him. “They could stay with Gran,” Neville offered. “She’d be glad to have them. I think.” Luna chuckled at Neville’s continued uncertainty with regards to his grandmother. He had grown up and faced his biggest fears, but the mention of his grandmother still sent chills up his spine. “We’ll need help getting everyone settled,” Hermione announced practically. “What about Dobby and Winky?” Luna offered. “We could go to Grimmauld Place and get them. They could make all the arrangements.” “Yes,” Hermione said slowly. “We could.” Ron looked at Hermione in surprise. “What do you know that we don’t?” “Ronald, there’s no time,” Hermione exclaimed, sounding like herself once again. “Grimmauld Place it is,” Ron retorted. “No questions asked.” |
| Reviews 28 |
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