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SIYE Time:22:03 on 28th March 2024
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Love Enough for Both
By Manwe Valarian

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Category: Alternate Universe
Characters:All
Genres: General
Warnings: Death, Mild Language, Mild Sexual Situations
Story is Complete
Rating: PG-13
Reviews: 356
Summary: Harry heard a goblin speaking and he came out of temporary stupor. He was surrounded by witches and wizards all staring at him. The most shocking thing was he had his arms around someone. Who was she and how did they get here?
Hitcount: Story Total: 214748; Chapter Total: 4867
Awards: View Trophy Room




Author's Notes:
Well it has taken a long time to get here, four chapters, but it is finally the end of the day the Voldemort took over the Ministry. There were so many story threads to create going forward that needed started. I promise that the rest of the days will move along at a faster pace.
I would like to once again thank my Bet, Lief, for his wonderful work.




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Vernon Dursley drove down the street to his house while weaving left and right on the road. He was too busy looking around at the people along the street and for people in the sky to pay attention to what side of the road he was on. He had been listening to the news on the radio today at work. The country was under attack from terrorists. That didn’t concern him as much as who the terrorists could be; they were all freaks like his worthless nephew that lived in the country. One of the eyewitnesses said the terrorists were aliens because they were shooting ray guns at people and killing and maiming them. The reporter and everyone else at the office laughed at the witness, but he knew the truth.

The brakes screeched as he slid to a stop in his driveway. The car was actually parked at an angle with the left front tire the grass, but he didn’t care. He flung the door open and, as quickly as a man of his girth could, he ran for the house.

He didn’t bother to say good evening to Petunia. He went straight to the telly in the sitting room. Grabbing the remote he plopped himself down onto his chair and turned on the telly. The news was on the channel the telly had been set to. It probably didn’t matter what channel he turned to everyone would have the news story.

“Vernon is everything all right? You are home early,” said Petunia. She wore rubber gloves, apron, and the odor of bleach. “Is that Parliament on fire?”

“Yes, haven’t you been listening to the bloody news? Our country is under attack! You know who is attacking our government?” Vernon stopped talking and turned the sound up as the newscast went to an on the scene reporter.

“Hello, this is Bob James, and I am at the scene of the terrorist attack earlier today. As you all have heard…,”

“Except you,” Vernon growled at his wife.

“…Parliament was attacked today at noon. It was a calculated and planned attack that has left over one hundred people dead and many more injured. The terrorists started the attack just behind me on a crowded street. It was fifteen past noon when they attacked so the streets were filled with people. It was reported that they first shot a rocket at Big Ben destroying the historic landmark. They then proceeded to attack the innocent bystanders as they moved inside of the Parliament building. Once inside they continued to attack people before meeting up with security who were able to shoot and kill three of them. The terrorists then released some type of an incendiary device before fleeing. The resulting fire raged out of control for several hours before it was finally contained. If you look behind me, you will see the firemen are still busy putting out the fire. I have been assured that the fire is under control and it won’t be spreading any further.”

“Bob, I need to interrupt you,”
said the anchorman at the station as the broadcast turned back to the studio. “I have been told by our director that a person has turned in a video of the attack. This is breaking news ladies and gentleman, a video of the attack on Parliament. It is also been said that there was an incident at Number 10 at the same time. The authorities have yet to confirm that report, but if this was an organized attack it would make perfectly good sense to attack the Prime Minister and Parliament at the same time.”

The News anchor held his hand over the microphone and spoke to someone of the set for several seconds before focusing his attention back at the camera.“I understand the video is ready to be seen. Here it is the exclusive video everyone.”

Vernon leaned in closer to the telly so he didn’t miss any detail. There on the screen were ten people dressed in those ridiculous outfits that those ruddy freaks wore. As soon as the one freak aimed his stick at Big Ben and shot a beam of light at it blasting a hole in the face, the rest of them attacked. There were flashes of light of all colors coming from the freaks. The video suddenly stopped. The news anchorman looked shocked at what he saw. He stared at the camera with a blank expression on his face and then off the set at someone. It appeared he was looking for guidance at what to say.

“I have been told that Scotland Yard has demanded that we are not show the video as it contains graphic scenes and not all next of kin have been notified.”

Vernon didn’t need to see any more. He turned off the telly and turned to face Petunia. “I knew it. It was those ruddy freaks like your sister and nephew,” he shouted at Petunia. “Well, they will find out Vernon Dursley is no man to be trifled with. I am going out and getting ready for them to attack.”

“Vernon, What are you going to do?”

“I am buying myself a gun!” he shouted, as he marched out the front door.

[ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ]

Lucius Malfoy stood staring at the gates of Hogwarts. He had to break through the wards and so far he had not been successful. He didn’t want to return and ask the Dark Lord for help. He knew he would be punished for failing again. He had to figure a way through the wards. He had arrived outside of the gates to find his son and several other Slytherin children sitting and waiting on them.

Evidently, Dumbledore had already evacuated the school. He had sent most to Hogsmeade and the remaining ones, all the undesirable ones, he held back. Draco said he saw them and Professors McGonagall, Flitwick and Sprout leading them towards Hagrid’s hut. It was obvious they were trying to escape through the forbidden forest. He would look for the survivors after he rid the school of Dumbledore.

But first he had to get through the wards.

He kept trying to remember everything he had learned about the wards at Hogwarts. He remembered that the wards were put into place by the Headmaster. He couldn’t remember if the Ministry and the board of governors could change the present headmaster and rename someone else like himself. He could then lower the wards to allow him access.

“Are we gonna stand here all bleedin’ day?” asked Crabbe Sr.

“Aye, I say we go find those Mudbloods and use them to have Dumbledore lower the wards. He would never allow us to torture and kill Mudbloods,” said a newer Death Eater Mangus.

“Do you know where they are?” asked Lucius.

“No, we could go lookin’ fer dem.”

“If you wish to go find them and bring some back here, then by all means do it,” said Lucius. “However, you will go alone. We do not have time to try to search for a group of children. The Dark Lord wants this castle taken today. He is not a patient man.”

“You ain’t gonna break through those wards with this group, Malfoy,” laughed Mangus. “You’ll still be here when I come back with about a half dozen o’ Mudbloods.”

Lucius realized the option of having the board of governors or Voldemort naming him as the Headmaster of Hogwarts were slight to nonexistent. Mangus might be wandering around out there for a week. He had no choice. “Bombardia,” he shouted at the persistent wards.

His spell exploded on the surface of the wards. Soon everyone was firing spells at the wards guarding Hogwarts. The constant barrage of spells on the ward created a hammering sound like a heavy hammer hitting steel at about one beat every three seconds.

The ward started to flex and move. It hadn’t done that before. Maybe if they kept up at it a little longer, they might be successful.

[ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][

Minerva McGonagall stumbled along the path in the Forbidden Forest. She was presently walking at the back of the long column of students and Centaurs. The high canopy of trees blocked out most of the sunlight. She could tell by the angles of the shafts of light that it was getting near dinner time. For the most part the students didn’t complain. Ron Weasley didn’t openly complain to her or the other teachers. He did complain to some of the fellow students. He was already hungry and nearly dying from malnourishment.

The Centaurs were getting on Minerva’s nerves. They have been galloping around the column of students and their own foals at full speed. Many of them have their bows with the arrows already notched.

“We need to pick up the pace. We need to leave the forest before nightfall,” whispered Bane the lead Centaur. He had moved back the line and spoke to everyone along the column.

Minerva wasn’t going to argue with him, but she did have some questions to ask him. She had been watching the sun all day and they seem to have marched the entire column in almost every direction of the compass. They seemed to be coming around to the correct direction as she thought they should be going. She knew the forest was most dangerous at night, but certainly nothing would attack this many people and centaurs all gathered together.

A pounding could be heard at a distance. They had heard it before, and assumed it was the Death Eaters trying to gain access to Hogwarts. She hoped that Professor Dumbledore would be fine. She didn’t know how he could hold off all the Death Eaters indefinitely. It was a noble but foolish gesture on his part and she didn’t believe what Bane had been saying about Hogwarts being destroyed by the Headmaster. She even considered using Hogwarts as the Orders stronghold until they could defeat Voldemort. It will now be a lot more difficult without Harry Potter.

Something moved in the forest in front of her to the right hand side by the middle of the column. She was just able to notice several branches moving before the Centaurs sent a volley of arrows into the brush. Whatever was in there let out a strange high pitch scream that made her skin erupt in gooseflesh.

Bane reared up on his rear legs and shouted. “We have been spotted. Don’t worry about making noise. Run, we must get to the boundary as fast as possible.”

Minerva pulled up her long robes up so she could try to keep up as everyone broke into a run. There had better be a Chimera out there for the Centaurs to act like this. She hated running and she didn’t know how far she could run at her age.

[ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ]

Albus Dumbledore stood on the Astronomy tower and stared out at the main gate. He could sense about twenty wizards and witches out there along with many more children. He was actually disappointed. He realized that he had gotten old, but he still felt he could defeat twenty at his present state.

He was concerned about the children. If he does what he planned, he would hurt them. Most of them are children of Death Eaters, accomplices, or just plain Slytherins. It didn’t matter what family they came from, they were still children and he didn’t want to hurt them. It would figure that Tom would send children against him, knowing how he hated to see children hurt. He was once responsible for the death of one child. He never wanted to feel that guilt again. He will need to figure something out, and he didn’t have much time. Once they break through the wards, he will only have about five minutes to spring his trap.

He held the book written by the three founders behind his back as he paced on the top of the tower. There had to be a solution to his dilemma. How could he protect the children and still make the older ones pay for their attempts at attacking this school? If he springs the trap before they make it to the door of the castle, they could escape. It would mean the school would be protected, but they could rejoin the war. He didn’t know what the outcome of the war will be, but he won’t be around to see it.

He never had a problem with sacrificing himself for this noble cause, but he always thought that he would die by another person’s wand. He never figured he would be the one responsible for his own death. It seemed too much like suicide, and yet from what he read it won’t exactly be suicide.

Whether it would be suicide or not doesn’t matter, it must be done. There are some secrets that are too dangerous to be revealed. If Tom discovers what this castle was built on, he truly would have the power to rule the world.

Albus stopped his pacing to stare out at the main gate. They were weakening the wards surrounding the grounds. He must come up with a solution to his problem soon, because he needs to leave this place and arrive at the moving staircases long before they break though the wards.

Taking a deep breath, he tried to block out everything that was going on in the world and look at the castle and grounds of Hogwarts one last time. It was such a beautiful place. One of the most beautiful places he had ever been to in his life. He may be a bit biased, but he truly felt that way.

He would do anything to keep it from falling into Tom’s clutches. With that thought, Albus left the Astronomy tower. He even took the time to close and latch the trapdoor.

[ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ]

Minerva gasped for breath as she forced her feet to keep pace with everyone. There was not any underbrush in this section of the forest because the trees were so high and the canopy so dense. They had been running for fifteen minutes and it looked as if they had reached their destination. Centaurs and students were gathering around a tree with a split trunk. She could hear Hagrid calling for her.

The Centaur called Firenze trotted back to her. “You are needed in the front, Transfiguration Professor.”

She had to wait several seconds to catch her breath before speaking. “I will be up as soon as possible. Was that run necessary?”

“Yes, it was very necessary, and you need to get to the tree if we are to escape a terrible death.” Firenze turned and trotted off to the tree.

“Well excuse me for asking,” she huffed under her breath. The Centaur’s attitude irritated her enough to make her forget how tired she was or how much her feet and knees hurt right now. Gripping her wand she strode through the crowd to the tree. She doesn’t even know what was so important about the tree.
The Centaurs had taken a defensive position around the students with their bows drawn.

“I am here,” she announced unnecessarily as it seemed that everyone was staring at her.

“The opening in the Wards are the gap in the tree,” said Bane. “It has grown since the last time we were here. My herd cannot climb up that high. We need you to make a ramp up and back down the other side.”

Minerva stared at the tree. It was an ancient oak tree with a split trunk that grew apart and then back together to make an opening about ten feet high and four feet wide in the middle. The opening started about six feet above the ground.

“I offered to hand people up through, but they said it would take too long and no one could help them down the other side,” said Hagrid. “We don’t need to hurry. They won’t hurt us.”

She was about to ask who wouldn’t hurt them. When she heard a little girl scream. She spun around to see who it was and was surprised to hear the scream coming from Ron Weasley. He was screaming and pointing at something high in the branches above them. Everyone else started screaming as they all saw the same thing. Acromantulas were dropping down from the branches.

The Centaurs fired arrows at them. Some of the arrows hit the descending spiders. One or two stopped their descent but the others kept coming.

“Professor McGonagall, the ramp,” shouted Bane.

She turned and with two quick whips of her wand she produced a three foot wide ramp leading up to the opening between the split trunks. She walked up the ramp and produced another ramp leading back to the ground on the other side.

“Come along everyone,” she said loudly. “Don’t push or run we can make it if we don’t panic.”

Professors Flitwick and Sprout started getting the students moving up the ramp while a female Centaur did the same for the foals. She kept an eye them as they passed through the opening in the wards. She kept checking on the other side to ensure the Acromantulas had not made it through the ward.

The Centaurs were keeping many of the spiders at bay with drawn bows. The Spiders were afraid of the arrows. Hagrid approached the largest spider.

“Get outta ‘ere and leave us alone,” he shouted. “Aragog guaranteed our safety.”

“My grandfather guaranteed only your safety, Hagrid,” said the spider with a high pitched wheezy voice. “He never guaranteed the safety of anyone else.”

“I don’ care. You leave us alone,” shouted Hagrid again. He pulled a crossbow from under that large moleskin coat. With two fingers, he pulled the string back and notched a bolt. “Leave now,” he shouted. “I won’t let you hurt anyone any of my friends.”

“You can’t stop us if you are dead, Hagrid,” wheezed the spider.

The Acromantula’s attacked in full force. The ones from the trees dropped quickly and it looked like there were a hundred smaller ones running out from behind every tree. Minerva was busy helping everyone thought the wards as the group was almost in a panic. Fred and George had to nearly drag Ron up the ramp because he was so scared. Filius and Percy Weasley stood at the base of the ramp and fired curses at the attacking spiders. Bane and the other Centaurs were sending volley after volley of arrows at the spiders. Several of the House Elves were also blasting the spiders with their magic. It seemed for every spider they stopped two more would take its place.

The battle raged for only about fifteen minutes until the students and the Centaur herd had made it through opening in the wards. As Percy, Pomona, and Filius turned to run up the ramp. She started firing off Arania Exumea spells to stop the still advancing spiders. Bane sent his warriors up the ramp as they were about out of arrows. Hagrid had also run out of arrows. He was now using his crossbow as a club against the attacking spiders.

“Hagrid hurry and get up the ramp,” shouted Bane.

“You go,” shouted Hagrid. “I’ll hold these ungrateful spiders off.” A spider had jumped at him and he hit it with his crossbow sending flying like it was an eight legged Bludger.

Bane turned and started up the ramp as the last of his herd. She kept firing spells at the spiders, but they just kept on coming. Hagrid stepped onto the ramp as the last of the Centaurs trotted up the ramp. He kept clubbing the oncoming spiders. Minerva was casting spell after spell at the spiders that were trying to get behind him.

“Hagrid, I can hold them off while you squeeze through the portal.”

“No, Perfessor, you go. My giant hide will protect me. I saved Aragog an’ gave him a life back here and this is how they repay me. Go!”

“Hagrid…,”

“No Perfessor, go now. They must learn that they are not gonna win an’ leave. Now go, lead the children to safety.” Hagrid sent two spiders to their death with a mighty swing of his crossbow.

She looked at the area at the bottom of the ramp she had just created. The ground was covered with dead spiders with others crawling over them to get to Hagrid. They seemed to have given up trying to drop from the trees. She couldn’t believe that there were this many Acromantulas in the forbidden forest.

“Go Perfessor,” Hagrid shouted at her. With his left hand he gently pushed her through the opening as he again clubbed two spiders. They were attacking so ferociously that he would hit one with his fore swing and another with his back.

She stepped through the opening to see everyone was ready to leave. She looked back and only saw Hagrid’s moleskin coat filling the opening. Trees had grown along the barrier wards to the point where she couldn’t see the area they had just left. She could hear Hagrid fighting and yelling at the spiders as they kept attacking him.

She realized that Hagrid could defend himself against many wild beasts that could kill even a well-trained wizard. There was no way that he could fight off that many spiders by himself. There were too many they surely would surround him and eventually overwhelm him. He had to know that too. Hagrid had sacrificed himself for the rest of them. She had thought about creating a barrier in the portal, but the spiders seemed so determined to attack them, that they might have eventually broken through. It took all her resolve not to cry for Hogwarts Keeper of the Keys and Grounds, but she needed to be strong for the children.

“Where is Hagrid?” asked Pomona meeting her at the bottom of the ramp.

“He has decided to stay and keep spiders from following us.”

“But surely he will die,” said Pomona. Her voice cracked as tears formed in her eyes.

Minerva looked at her friend. She couldn’t say anything because she would start crying or do something very Gryffindor and go back to save Hagrid. They needed to ensure the safety of the children.

“We need to get everyone away from this place and up to the mountain,” she said to everyone who was gathering around her. “We must leave for our own safety. Hagrid chose to do this so we could escape.”

No one said a word. The sound of Hagrid clubbing and yelling at the spiders and their eerie screeches echoed from behind her. They all knew what he had done, but no one said a word. All the students looked like they too were close to tears, but they turned and started walking away. The Centaurs and House Elves also started to leave, except Bane and his warriors. They stopped to raise their bows and faced Hagrid before leaving. Minerva took one last glance back at his hairy coat before she followed everyone else. The group who had to be told to be quite a few minutes ago was now completely silent as they started off through the woods. She took out her handkerchief and dabbed her eyes as she walked.

[ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ]

Albus Dumbledore stepped into the stairwell with the moving stairs. He smiled up at the moving stairs. All the students always thought the stairs were just one of those funny and interesting things about the castle. Little did they know that they were so much more than a planned inconvenience? This castle was built on a magical location that radiated magic. The stairs moved because of the excess magic being emitted into the castle. They used up the magical energy and distributed it evenly throughout the castle. If it wasn’t for this ingenious design the castle would have collapsed years ago.

Albus walked into the center of the stairwell and opened the book. There were the words that once he spoke them there would be no return. When he was young, he never thought about spending his life teaching young children. His desire was to explore the world and discover and solve magical mysteries. Little did he know in his youth that he would learn so many things while teaching children how to Transfigure matchsticks to needles.

"Halt in the name of Merlin" he called out in Welsh. He smiled as the stairs stopped moving. He immediately could feel the magical energy building up around him. It had been a long time since he spoke Welsh or any of the other languages required of him.

"Grant me the control of the castle's power," he said in ancient Greek.He hoped his Greek pronunciation was accurate. Nothing seemed to be happening around him.

He looked at the book again. He wondered why they chose three different languages. The only reason he could think was to reduce the possibility of someone accidently saying them. He stared at the last phrase that he had to say. What would happen? It said that he would control the magic of the castle and the grounds, and there was no returning from this level.

What did the book mean by not returning from this level? Did it mean that the castle would be destroyed upon completing the phrase? He had hoped that he could chose the exact time.

“Yes, you can Albus Dumbledore Headmaster of Hogwarts,” a female voice whispered to him.

Albus looked around the stairwell. There was no one there. He knew someone had spoken to him. The voice had a slight French accent.

"Magic is for helping others not dominating them,"" he said in German. It was a strange choice for a third language. He wondered why they didn’t use Latin.

“Because the students learn Latin to cast spells,” said a man with a Welsh accent. This voice was louder and stronger than he had heard before.

Albus dropped the book when he saw four people standing before him. They were not actual people. They were wraiths that glowed and pulsed with magic.

“Hello, Albus Dumbledore the last Headmaster of Hogwarts,” said a woman with long dark hair that flowed down and across her shoulders. She wore light weight bronze colored robes that highlighted her slender figure. She was also wearing a diadem.

“Rowena Ravenclaw?” Albus said.

“Yes, I am or was if you want to be precise,” she smiled at him. “I wanted you in my house, but you decided bravery was a greater quality.”

“Bravery is a better quality,” said one of the male wraiths with a Welsh accent. He was tall and rugged looking with black hair that looked windswept. He wore a heavy cloak with heavy shirt, pantaloons, riding boots, and a sword at his side. “As you probably deduced, I am Godric Gryffindor and this gentle lass is Helga Hufflepuff. We invited her to help us with this school even though she is German.”

“Yes, you invited me because you needed me to help build this school and teach its classes, and I am a distant cousin,” she replied to him.

“Have you guessed who our fourth person is?” said Godric with delight.

Albus could almost feel his joy at asking the question. It would be quite natural to think the fourth person was Salazar Slytherin, but this was a final defense against him taking over the school. So that man wasn’t Slytherin. He was tall with a long white beard and hair. He wore heavy robes with stars and planets embroidered on them. The tall pointy wizard’s hat also had stars and planets on it. He held a long staff that was almost as tall as he. Albus thought he had seen pictures of him before, but he couldn’t place a name to him. It was bothering Albus something terrible. He should know this wizard.

“Come, Come, Albus think about the hints we have left for you,” teased Godric.

“Gadric,” said Helga with a huff.

“The name is Godric,” he replied with an emphasis on the ‘God’.

“We wrote that book because we were afraid that Salazar would return and reclaim the castle,” said Helga. “Using the power available to him, he would have turned it into a school of Magical soldiers to dominate the nonmagical.”

“I would not have liked that. That is not the most divine purpose of magic,” the fourth person finally spoke.

Albus realized who it was, but that was impossible. “Merlin,” he said quietly.

“Is that your guess or are you just using my name in vain,” Merlin said. “I can hear many things in this school, particularly if it is said in the stairwell. Merlin this and Merlin that. I never realized that people would use my name that way. I will tell you something though.” He pointed the end of his staff at Albus. “I do not have saggy Y-pants. Whatever they are.”

Albus had to bite his tongue. He wanted to laugh, but it appeared that Merlin wasn’t pranking him. So he smiled and nodded politely to him. He still wasn’t sure why he was here. He was not surprised by the Founders, but he didn’t know Merlin was involved in the construction of this school.

“I am here because they built this castle on top of my cave where I was trapped for eternity.”

“You found Merlin’s cave,” Albus said with a great deal of enthusiasm to the three founders.

“It was actually Salazar’s grandfather that found the location. He had told Salazar that this location was the most magically powerful location in Britain,” said Rowena Ravenclaw. “He never told Salazar about the source of the power. We were building the castle, when I realized that there was something pumping magical energy into the castle.”

“It took us well over two years to realize what it was,” said Helga. “Salazar had told us about what his grandfather had said to him. We thought it was peculiar that he said the most powerful location in Britain. It seemed a bit strange because it does not lie on any Laylines. We investigated and finally realized that there was something buried under this area that was extremely strong. We had discovered the entrance, but we could not gain access to the actual cave. It didn’t take long for us to realize that we were building a castle on top Merlin’s cave.”

“Helga and Rowena left out one other thing that happened that made us realize the extent of magical power that was flowing from this hill. The first castle crumbled before it was halfway constructed. Stone blocks popped out of the walls and the walls became unstable before collapsing. We tried to build it a second time and the exact same thing happened. That was when Salazar decided to use the stone his grandfather had said never to touch. He had heard rumors of what his Grandfather had done in his life and the Resurrection Stone.”

“He drew me out of my slumber like his Grandfather had years before,” said Merlin.

“We then understood what we had here, and Rowena designed the staircase to distribute the magic evenly throughout the school,” said Helga. “It was also why Salazar didn’t want children from nonmagical families to attend. He felt they would draw or steal all the magical stored from Merlin’s cave. Leaving no magic for future purebloods to draw from when they attend school.”

“Which shows how much he knew about magic,” said Merlin. “Before we discuss anything more, Headmaster, you must decide.”

Albus looked at the patriarch of magic in Britain with a puzzled expression.

“You must decide if you want to sacrifice yourself and become one of us, or return to your body and to the living,” said Merlin. He pointed his staff behind Albus.

Turning around Albus saw something that shocked him. His actual physical body standing there staring straight forward as though in a trance.

“We did not want Headmasters to use the spell out of pure curiosity, so we made it sound as though there was no turning back,” said Godric. “Albus Dumbledore, if you wish you may return to your body and continue to fight against Voldemort in your physical form, you may. If you remain with us your only option would be the destruction of the castle.”

“Even if I would destroy the castle, Voldemort could still harness the magical energy flowing from the cave,” he said to the Founders.

“No he wouldn’t until he rebuilt the castle,” said Rowena. “The magic is like steam coming off boiling water. If you don’t put a lid on it, it doesn’t build up any pressure or sometimes you can’t even see it. If you put a lid on the cauldron, then the steam can build up pressure until it pushes the lid right off the cauldron.”

“You must decide quickly, Headmaster,” said Merlin.

“I will stay,” Albus said with finality. “All our plans fell with Harry Potter. The resistance is in shambles right now. They may eventually get reorganized, but they won’t stand a chance if he gains control of this castle. He will make it his home base and start to feed off its magical presence. I can do more good for the resistance, if I remain here. I may be able to keep him from using the magical powers coming from this site. If I return to my physical form, I may not be strong enough to defeat him. I gave away Salazar’s great uncle‘s wand.”

“You had the wand of Destiny?” asked Godric.

“I did. I never knew the history behind it or your history, until Harry Potter allowed me to see his family vault and his family history. His ancient name is Harry Peverell."

"I am glad to hear the Peverell line has remained strong and intact,” said Godric.

Albus didn’t respond to Godric. He watched as his physical body crumbled into a pile of dust. “No, it hasn’t. The heir to the Peverell line is dead.”

[ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ]

Arthur Weasley sat and listened to everyone relay information to the Queen. She didn’t say anything until they were finished. The latest had over two hundred Muggles perishing in the attacks, either from spells or the fire. Many more were suffering and dying because the Muggle healers could stop the bleeding or repair the burns form the victims. It was possible that almost three hundred could be dead by morning.

“How many members of Parliament were injured or killed?” the Queen asked.

“None of the actual members were actually hurt. They were all on lunch break,” said Clyde Ferndock, Alastor’s Squib nephew. “Many of the killed and injured seems to be tourists. We do not have an exact number of countries that they were from, your Grace. The Prime Minister is compiling that information as we speak.”

“I will need to send a note of regret and an apology to the countries that those tourists were from. I also need to go to London. The people of this nation must see me at Parliament. I will not stay hidden away in a hole. I may not run the government, but my appearance will bolster the people’s courage. If everything that I have heard is correct, and I don’t doubt what you say about this self-proclaimed Lord. Only a monster would order the killing of innocent people without provocation. Things will be getting worse before they get any better.

“Clyde, make the arrangements. I want press and as many Ministers as is safe around me. I want the people of this nation to believe that its leadership hasn’t been cowered by that attack.”

“Your Grace,” said Moody, as politely as Arthur had ever heard him talk. “We cannot guarantee your safety.”

“That isn’t important. My heirs and family will remain here. I may die, but they will not eliminate the Royal Family. Mr. Moody, there are times where the death of a leader is less important than the actions of the leader. Clyde, I want to be in London by seven in the morning. That way the nation can see me before they go off to work. What time will I need to leave here to do that?”

“Fifty after six, your Grace,” said Arthur. “If you don’t mind a Portkey trip?”

The elderly woman looked at him for a second. “I will have only tea and toast in the morning around six. Good night everyone.”

Arthur, Clyde, Alastor, Tonks, Kingsley, Emmeline, and Gawain all left the bedroom suite that the Queen now occupied. It had been Harry and Ginny’s, but they don’t need it now.

“That is one tough old bird,” said Alastor.

“Don’t let any of the security detail hear you say that, Uncle. They will likely try to shoot you for not showing the Queen the proper respect.”

“I didn’t say I didn’t respect her. Hell, we need leaders like that not some stupid old Fudge.”

“I need to go to London and back here tonight,” Clyde said to the group. “It will take me about two hours to work out the details for tomorrow morning. How will I do that?”

“You have access to the Potter Manor,” said Arthur. “Gabriel can make you two Portkeys. One will take you to London and another will bring you back here. The second one will need an activation key set on it, so you can activate it when you are ready.”

“We don’t want you disappearing in the middle of a meeting with Muggles,” laughed Moody.

“After today, Uncle, I don’t think it will matter anymore. You will no longer be able to hide your and my former society from the Muggles.” Clyde stared at them for several seconds before speaking again. “Who is Gabriel and where can I find him.”

“I’ll take you to him,” said Tonks. She led the man away from the group when they reached the bottom of the stairs. The rest of them walked into the map room. Alastor glanced up at the map. It looked relatively quiet.

“He is right. After what happened today. There will be no way to repair the Secrecy of our Society,” said Gawain. “It is very possible that the International Confederation will sanction us.”

“If they want to do something,” said Kingsley. “Let them come into our country and defeat Voldemort without revealing our society. We have too many things to worry about here to be concerned about what a group of politicians have to say hundreds of miles away.”

“I hope Amelia was able to destroy the Magical Transportation Department,” said Moody. “If she didn’t we will be having Death Eaters knocking on our wards by tomorrow.”

“As long as the Wards hold up, we will be fine,” said Emmeline.

Moody looked at Arthur at Emmeline’s comment. “I bet they didn’t hear. I didn’t have time to tell them.”

“Tell us what?” asked Kingsley and Gawain together.

“I don’t believe it, Alastor,” said Arthur. “If Harry was dead, the wards would have collapsed.”

“Harry Potter is dead?” shouted Emmeline, Gawain, and Kingsley in unison.

“He was hit with a Killing Curse in the Ministry,” said Alastor. “Voldemort cast it. He looked dead when they Portkeyed him away.”

“Like I said. If Harry was dead then the Wards and all the protections from the blood Wards would have failed.”

“Is Ginny still alive?” asked Emmeline. “She could take over for the House of Potter. She is carrying the heir.”

Arthur looked at them. “Because of their soul bond, if one dies the other will quickly die. It could be within minutes to hours, but by this time they would most certainly be dead along with their child. The wards are still standing, so we can only assume that Harry and Ginny are still alive. I just wish I could hear from them, and my other children. Minerva is bringing them to us here at the Manor. So they must cross Scotland without being detected.”

“Your family will be all right Arthur,” said Gawain. “They had a smart father to teach them how to survive.”

Arthur chuckled at Gawain’s comment. “They survived growing up in that house, how much more difficult could it be dealing with Death Eaters.”

[ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ]

Harry was solely focused on Ginny. Her face was flushed with drops of perspiration beading on her forehead and upper lip. He gently wiped it away. It had been nearly ten hours since she went into labor. It didn’t seem that the baby was any closer to being born then when they first started. The contractions have been steady and unrelenting. Each one made her scream in pain. With every scream, he felt more and more helpless. He kept telling her that the baby was about to come out for the first four hours. When the contractions kept coming he had to think of something else to say. He had gone through almost every excuse/encouragement that he could think of, but the contractions kept making her scream in agony. He had finally relented to just saying that he was sorry that she was going through this pain.

“Ginny, don’t get discouraged,” said her mother. “You are two weeks early. Your body wasn’t ready to have your baby just yet. I wish I could take your pain away, but I can’t. Please don’t be angry at Harry.”

Harry looked at his mother-in-law in shock. Why would Ginny be angry at him? He was going to make a comment about the baby being her idea, but decided to bite his tongue. He noticed Madam Pomfrey looking at Molly with a sad expression.

“Mrs. Potter, You were not ready to have this baby. Unfortunately, the circumstances have forced our hand. You are slowly effacing, so once your body completes that part, your baby should pop right out.”

“Effacing?” asked Ginny.

“Yes, Mrs. Potter, Effacing,” the Nurse said before launching into a long detailed explanation of what effacing was and how it was the problem.

Ginny lay there absorbing all the information without asking a single question. Harry could tell by her expression that she didn’t miss a single thing that the Healer had said. Finally, the explanation came to an end. It was more information than Harry ever wanted to know about the fertilization, gestation and delivery of a human baby. Sometimes it was blissful to be ignorant.

“Here comes another one,” Ginny groaned. Her groan quickly became a growling scream. Harry almost yelled and pulled his hand away, but he knew she was going through more pain then what he was feeling. It was one time that the soul bond was completely unnecessary to know what his spouse was thinking.

“Harry, I am going to need your magic. I am too weak right now. Please don’t fight it,” she said barely above a whisper.

She closed her eyes and started to concentrate. The pull on his magic was faint at first, but it quickly increased with each passing second. Finally, after only a minute, Ginny relaxed and opened her eyes.

“Poppy, I am going to deliver on the next push,” Ginny said.

“Mrs. Potter, don’t try to force the baby out,” admonished the Nurse. “You could damage the baby and yourself.”

“I am ready,” Ginny simply said.

Harry believed her. It wasn’t anything dealing with the bond. He just knew that she wasn’t lying at this time. He watched as Madam Pomfrey waved her wand over Ginny’s swollen belly. The nurse’s expression showed surprise when she finished casting the Diagnostics Charms.

“You are ready,” Madam Pomfrey said distractedly. “How, did that happen?”

“Magic, Poppy,” said Ginny with a smile. The smile quickly vanished as she let out a moan. “It’s time.”

Ginny crushed his hand as the pain of child birth overtook her. He focused on her and tried to be as supportive as he could under the circumstances. Time seemed to be speed up, as Poppy was quickly holding up a crying baby. Joy washed over him, when he looked at his son. Ginny was crying tears of joy. Suddenly, there was nothing else in Harry’s world, except his family.

“I’ll clean him up and then you can hold him,” said Poppy. She laid his son down on a small bed and started casting Cleaning and Diagnostic Charms on him.

Harry turned back to his wife. He wanted to tell her how much he loved her, but words were failing him, so he kissed her. As they were kissing, Poppy slid their son between them. They stopped kissing each other and both gently pressed a kiss on their baby’s head.

“Harry, could I ask a favor?” Ginny asked. He could hear concern in her voice and he could feel it through the bond.

“Sure, anything for you, love.”

“I would like to name our son Xenon James Potter,” she said.

“Xenon? Where did you get that name?”

“It was his name. The Elf that saved you and me. There is much I need to tell you about that Elf, but not right now. I am tired and I just want to spend tonight holding our son and you.”

Harry had no idea how she knew the Elf’s name. He was very curious about what she had to say. There were many things he needed to tell her. After being hit with the Killing Curse, he fell into a dimension that he never expected. It was like a strange surrealistic painting. There were no defined shapes, but there were plenty of things there. The most important part was the piece of Voldemort’s soul was gone from him, and will never come back. It had been pulled into a black abyss.

“If you want to call him Xenon, then that is fine with me. However, if he wants to know why we named him, Xenon, you can explain it.”

Ginny giggled at his comment and pulled him in and kissed him. Harry crawled into the bed with her, and he felt the bed expand so he could comfortably lay down with Xenon between him and Ginny.

[ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ][ ]

Minerva stood staring at Hogwarts. They had reached the place that Bane told them they must reach to be safe. They were now near the top of the highest mountain overlooking Hogwarts and Hogsmeade. They had covered almost ten miles that day through thick forest and dense underbrush. The only casualty had been Hagrid. She held out hope that he would appear to them tonight unscathed, but doubted that would happen. He was probably already dead. Killed by the Acromantulas that had bred in the forest because he had released one into the forest decades ago.

“I have never seen the castle glow like that before,” said Firenze.

“Nor have I,” she said. “I wonder what Albus is doing to cause that glow.”

“I don’t know Minerva,” said Pomona Sprout. She had walked up to them standing on the mountain top. “The children are all resting. They have been fed and some are even trying to take a kip. I don’t know how successful they will be considering the time.”

Minerva looked at her watch. “Yes, dawn will break in only a few hours.”

The three of them stopped talking. She glanced to the left and right and noticed both Firenze and Pomona were staring at the castle. It was nearly pulsing with magic. She had remembered her first boat ride to Hogwarts, how at that time she thought the castle seemed to glow. Now it is like a lighthouse in the dark. She was worried that Muggles would see it in the night. The clouds were gathering and covering over the stars. The castle’s blue-white glow was reflecting off them.

“We shall be going our separate ways in the morning, Professors,” said Firenze blandly. “We need to travel to the east and south. There is a place that has a magically protected forest. It isn’t as large as the dark forest of Hogwarts, but we will be protected there.”

“Are you going to Bowtruckle Estates?” asked Percy Weasley.

Minerva jumped at the sound of his voice. “Mr. Weasley, why are you sneaking up on people like that?”

“Professor, you told me to report when the students are in bed.”

Pomona was sniggering at her reaction to Percy suddenly speaking to her. “Since you are here, I can assume all the children are in their bedrolls.”

“All except my brothers and I. We are watching the perimeter of the camp. We received extra training this past year, so we are probably the best spell casters with the exception of you Professors.”

Minerva stared at him. “I admire your courage, Percy, but the Weasleys need to sleep too. We have the centaurs to watch over us until morning.”

“If it is all right with you, Professor,” said Percy. He swallowed thickly. “None of us can sleep right now. I will try my best to make it through the day. Fred and George said they are used to being up all night and staying up all day.”

Minerva wanted to snigger at the last comment. She was sure that the twins had spent many a night up wandering the castle and then go to classes all day. She didn’t want Percy to think she wasn’t sensitive to their loss. They have lost a sister, a brother-in-law, and a niece or a nephew. The very thought of their loss made her eyes get watery.

“There is something very large coming this way,” whispered Firenze.

Minerva turned back to face the forest that grew up the mountain slope to within a hundred yards of them. “Could it be more Acromantulas?” she asked.

“I don’t think so,” said Firenze.

By this time, Minerva could see the brush that covered the ground and the edge of the forest shake and the sound of breaking limbs reached her ears. Whatever was moving was very large, because a couple of smaller trees shook as something brushed against them.

“Could it be a giant?” asked a scared Percy.

“I don’t think so,” she said to him. “Go, quietly waken the children and have Filius come to this side of the camp.”

She could hear him running away. Her focus was on whatever it was coming through the forest. Firenze was clopping his hooves in a rhythm beside her. She wanted to tell him to stop it, but that thing was causing so much noise she doubted that it could hear Firenze.

“What is that thing?” said Pomona. “It almost looks like it is walking on all fours. There aren’t any bears in that forest are there?”

“No, I don’t think that is a bear,” said Firenze. He raised his bow and drew notched an arrow that she had created for the him. Minerva was in the good graces of the centaurs, since she created many top quality arrows from the sticks and branches around them.

Filius ran up between her and Pomona. “What do you think it is?”

The thing broke through the underbrush walking or crawling on all fours. It was Hagrid.

“Wait here. I am going after him,” she said before moving down the side of the mountain as quickly as she could. Several centaurs trotted from behind her and came along beside as she descended. They must have came at the sound of Firenzes rhythmic signal. The path wasn’t very wide and they had to be careful not to slip or slide down the slope.

Hagrid kept struggling to stand up and walk towards her as she descended towards him. He could take a couple of steps upright before falling forward onto his hands. He would continue forward on his hands and knees, while trying to regain his feet. His moleskin jacket was ripped along with his clothes. She could hear him wheezing as she approached him. It seemed that every breath was a struggle for him. In the moonlight, she could tell how badly he was hurt. His hair was even wilder than she had ever seen before. It was sticking out to his left. His beard was in the same state. He looked horrible in the darkness.

“’ello, Perfessor,” Hagrid wheezed out. “I taught dem. I show dem bloody spiders not ta mess wit me.”

“Hagrid you are a mess. Let me look at you,” she said as she cast a Lumos Charm. She almost dropped her wand. What was sticking out at strange angles from his hair and beard wasn’t hair, but Acromantula fangs. His face was swollen up to almost twice its normal size. His hands were also swollen. She saw at least four other sets of fangs sticking from his clothes.

“I’ll be all right, Perfessor,” he said. “I jus’ need ta get some rest dat is all.”

“Let me help you up the mountain, Hagrid. “

She didn’t wait for his response. She cast a Mortis Locomotor Charm on him. Hagrid floated awkwardly as she focused on floating him up the mountain side in front of her. It was taking a great deal of concentration to keep the half-giant afloat. The ascent was slow as she was trying to keep Hagrid from hitting into the side of the mountain. She finally placed him on the exact location where she had been standing. He landed on all fours.

The children had heard about Hagrid returning and were now also crowding the ledge. Pomona, Filius, and Firenze were trying to keep them back. She could hear Pomona tell the children that his clothes were dripping of Acromantula venom. The students became very quiet at that proclamation. As Minerva neared them she could see tears on many of the children’s faces.

Hagrid shifted on the ledge and slipped so that he slid down the mountain side about ten feet. Minerva lifted her wand to lift back up to the ledge. She hesitated though because Hagrid saw Hogwarts.

“Ain’t she a beaut,” he wheezed and pointed at the castle ignoring the fact that he was slowly sliding down the mountain. “Like a shinin’ jewel innna night, ‘at is what dat place is. Best thing to ever ‘appen ta me.”

Minerva stood on the mountain side so she was at Hagrid’s feet. She turned to look at the castle. He was right. Its glow was like a beautiful jewel glistening in the sunlight.

“Hogwarts, hoggy hoggy Hogwarts,” sang Hagrid. His voice was getting fainter with each word.

The students quickly started to sing the school song. She, Pomona, and Filius started singing too. They all sang the song as she watched Hagrid slowly fade away with a smile on his face and a sparkle in his eyes disappearing. The entire scene become blurry as tears filled her eyes. By the time everyone had finished the song, Hagrid was dead with a smile still on his face.
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