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A Time for Healing | ||||||
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Category: Alternate Universe Characters:None Genres: Romance Warnings: None Story is Complete Rating: PG-13 Reviews: 211 Summary: In the early summer of 2005 Ginny Weasley watches a lone figure walk past her window. She sets a bouquet of flowers on her window sill. Will the young man she’s set them out for understand what she’s saying with flowers? Hitcount: Story Total: 30552; Chapter Total: 1493 Awards: View Trophy Room |
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Chapter 14 Harry could hear the murmur of voices. They sounded very far off and a bit tinny, but he recognized them and took comfort from them. One was Hermione�s; the other belonged to Neville Longbottom. There was a third, but Harry didn�t recognize it. He concentrated on what Hermione was saying and found she was planning something with the third voice. It was as if she was anticipating a catastrophic event that centred around him. What could she be afraid of? he asked himself. He listened harder and discovered the two were discussing shielding the other people in the room. What do they think I�ll do? It wasn�t until Neville mentioned accidental magic that the discussion began to make sense to Harry. As he began to slide back into the silent depths that pulled at his consciousness, he resolved to control his magic as much as he could. He really didn�t want to blow up St Mungo�s. That would count as one of his major cock ups� It took a month for Harry to recover his strength. Over time and with a lot of rest, his body aches slowly faded until he finally felt like himself again. He was amused that Hermione was so attentive in the days after he�d poisoned himself and one afternoon, to stop her from hovering and asking a million questions about his health, he asked her to get the locket from their cache of ruined Horcruxes. �What do you want that thing for?� she asked as she fished in the bottomless bag where she kept their valuables. �It�s been over a week and I�m burning to find out if I can still speak Parseltongue,� Harry admitted. �While not having a clue how to form the words will prove that I�m well and truly rid of Riddle, the ability to understand Nagini might come in handy during the battle we�re planning.� �I don�t like it, Harry. If you can still speak Parseltongue, that means you poisoned yourself for nought and he�s still lurking in your head,� she said as she pulled out the locket and handed it to Harry. Harry sighed. �Your logic is spot on, Hermione,� he said. �You always know when to temper my wishful thinking.� She smiled at him and gestured towards the locket. �Go on, then.� Harry held it up so he could see what was left of the bejewelled S on the front and concentrated on saying the word �close,� willing the mangled little doors to swing shut. Nothing happened. �English,� Hermione said, and she kept saying it for the next fifteen minutes until Harry gave up, concluding that his inability to speak even a familiar word in Parseltongue was evidence that he was no longer attached to a piece of Tom Riddle�s soul. As he handed back the locket, he asked, �Have we heard from Professor Longbottom yet?� Hermione smiled. �Yes, an owl left a letter at the Gretna Green Post Office for James Gene and I picked it up this morning when I went into the village,� she said. �Neville says that the non-Death Eater teachers are eager to avenge Professor McGonagall�s death and are surreptitiously preparing for battle.� �And you know all this how?� Harry asked. �Disappearing, enchanted ink,� she said smugly. �The last time we met with Neville, I smuggled him a bottle. We�ve been corresponding since last November without being caught after I discovered he was teaching at Hogwarts. He helped me research the potion you took to get rid of Riddle.� �I�ll have to thank him,� Harry said. �Did he have any suggestions for how to get Voldemort to Hogsmeade and the students out of the castle?� �He had several and I like this one because it�s so simple�� Over the next several hours he and Hermione finalized their plans to trick Tom Riddle and his Death Eaters into coming to Hogsmeade and then what needed to be done once they arrived. This second phase was new to their battle planning, mostly because they didn�t want to repeat what happened in Little Hangleton at the beginning of the war when they didn�t know what would happen once they lured Voldemort to a location. When at last they sat back and surveyed their work, Harry looked at Hermione and said, �Thank you. I couldn�t have planned this without you.� �You could have, but it would have been harder and would have taken much longer for you to suss out all the possibilities, problems, and solutions on your own.� �Yeah, two heads are better than one!� The dream concluded and Harry heard a small sigh and a low chuckle and wondered if he had managed to stop his magic from escalating out of control. The only way he would know was if Hermione and Neville talked about it. He had his answer a few moments later as Neville said: �He was calmer tonight, wasn�t he?� Hermione�s tone was filled with relief. �I think he was. The Healers were right about Harry allowing himself to dream or reminisce while I�m here. Maybe he heard us discussing the shielding of the ward earlier,� she mused. �Whatever he�s doing I hope he keeps it up. I�m not looking forward to coping with the aftermath of the last battle a second time,� Neville commented. �Neither am I.� Chairs scraped across the floor as someone stood up. Neville�s voice was full of regret as he bid Hermione farewell. �I�ll see you next Friday,� he said. Hermione responded and the two walked away from Harry�s bed. He wondered when the change in their friendship had taken place as he turned over and sank into restful sleep. * Ron Weasley closed the door to his supervisor�s office and leaned against the wall next to it. He couldn�t believe he�d been offered only a part-time position for the next year, less than twenty hours a week! He had heard rumours about what the management was doing to other employees, cutting back their hours or outright letting them go, but he had thought himself safe� and now here he was, his hours cut to the minimum with the very frightening thought that he was essentially unemployed! How could he keep his flat and his car on so little renumeration? He would most likely need to move back in with his parents in order to survive and he definitely didn�t want to do that! At least I have a letter of recommendation for my CV, he thought sourly. He pushed away from the wall with a monumental sigh and trudged back to his desk. He had been given two days� notice before he had to inform his supervisor of his decision to stay with the company or seek other employment. He had a lot of thinking to do by Friday. A knock on his cubicle wall made him look up. Bert, a coder who had been hired at the same time as Ron, stood there, looking grim. �You, too?� he asked. �Yeah. I have until Friday to tell them whether I�m taking their offer or not,� Ron said miserably. �Don�t take it, Ron,� Bert urged. �You�ll just be miserable staying here, knowing that the management�s forcing out good people and slowly running the company into the ground. Take what you�re due and go look for a better job. That�s what I�m doing.� Ron sighed. �When�s your last day?� he asked. �Friday,� Bert answered. �I may have to join you at the exit,� Ron said, and began cleaning out his desk. * A bouquet of flowers appeared in a flat window. Harry looked up to see the most beautiful woman standing behind it. �Ginny�� he mumbled. �My Ginny�� * Ginnyï ¿½s hair fluttered in the wind as she passed him on her bicycle. �C�mon, slow poke,� she teased. �Ride like the wind. It�s fun!� Harry leaned forward and began peddling faster. �I�ll show you who�s a slow poke,� he laughed as he zoomed by. The speed was invigorating; he hadn�t had so much fun in years. Looking over his shoulder at Ginny, he knew there was something magical about this woman who had chosen him as her friend. �Ginny�� he mumbled. �My Ginny�� * The fire burned low in the grate, unnoticed by the two people occupying the sofa, they were so wrapped up in each other. One of his hands was under her blouse, the other tangled in her long, red hair. She stroked the nape of his neck and caressed the burn scars across his shoulders. Their lips met yet again in a passionate kiss� A murmur escaped him, �Oh, Ginny. My Ginny�� * Hermione jumped a little as a hand appeared in front of her nose, holding a Starbuck�s cup with the tantalizing aroma of her favourite cinnamon latte wafting towards her. �Neville! It�s so good to see you!� she exclaimed, putting down her book and taking the cup from him. She took a sip, savouring the drink as it slid down her throat. �Mmm. Thank you. I didn�t know you knew about Starbucks.� Neville grinned at her. �You�ve had empty cups with the logo on them sitting on the floor beside your chair the last couple of weeks, so I decided to find out what you were drinking,� he told her. �I much prefer their selection of tea.� She put her cup on the floor and conjured a chair for him. �My traditional Englishman,� she giggled. �Come and sit a spell.� Neville grinned and hugged her before taking his seat. �How have you been?� he asked. �I�m doing all right,� she admitted. �I now have a routine that allows time for work, Harry-minding, and me-time.� �Harry-minding?� Neville chuckled. �I know it sounds stupid, but that�s essentially what I�m doing,� she said, making a sweeping motion with her hand that took in the bed, its occupant and the chairs she had conjured. �I just didn�t know what this was until I heard a co-worker talk about calling her minder to tell her she�d be late coming home. The term just popped into my head after hearing that. It fits exactly what I�m doing.� Neville nodded. �You still watching him go through the Battle?� he asked. �Not the battle moment by moment, but rather like chapters in a book or episodes of a telly programme. It�s as if he�s watching at certain times because the healers say he sleeps when I�m not here,� she told him. �I think Harry knows when you�re here and when you aren�t. He knows he�s safe when you�re here, I think. My parents are the same way, the healers say, because they�re more active when I�m visiting, apparently,� he said. Hermione glanced over at Harry, recognizing the tell-tale signs that he was beginning to live through another episode. * �I�ve found it!� Harry exclaimed, holding up a piece of parchment upon which he had been scribbling possible spells for the last half hour. Hermione hurried over to Harry�s bunk and sat down on the edge. She took his clipboard and turned the book of spells he�d been looking through towards her. �Yes, Discedere Vitae, Depart Existence gives a direct command� rather elegant, I might add�� Harry grinned. �It�s definitely easier to shout in the heat of battle than that four-word phrase I had decided on earlier.� �The only problem I see might be the amount of power and the intensity of intent needed to fuel the spell,� Hermione said, frowning. �At least with Eadem Autem Exsistentia Relinquo, which tells the victim to leave this existence, we knew exactly what it does to the victim and what it would take from the caster because it�s been used before with documentation. We don�t know what the new spell will require.� She was quiet for a moment. Then, she asked, �Do you want me to find some spiders?� Harry sighed. �Yes, but only one. I�m getting rather tired.� Hermione left the tent and returned ten minutes later with a spider in a jar. �You look knackered, Harry. I�ll do it,� she said, lifting her wand towards the jar. �Discedere Vitae! � she commanded and not only did the spider die, it and the jar vanished. �You all right?� Harry asked, concerned at the pallor that had suffused Hermione�s face. She sank onto the bunk. �I suppose� That�s one powerful spell, Harry.� Harry sighed. �It has to be. Tom�s not going to hit me with something that tickles, is he?� �I suppose not.� She paused. �I�m just worried about your existence after he departs this earth.� He closed the book and put it on the floor followed by his clipboard. �Me, too, Hermione. If the spell takes all my magic, I do know how to live as a Muggle,� he joked. When she scowled at him, he shrugged and said, �OK, I�ll stop joking about it. I�ll try the spell tomorrow and see what happens then.� Hermione patted his shoulder. �Get some sleep, Harry. I�ll keep watch.� The dream seemed to end as Hermione and Neville watched Harry roll over in bed and sigh in his sleep. �I�m so glad you�re here, Neville,� Hermione whispered. �Watching Harry relive some of these experiences has been scary. You help me find my Gryffindor courage.� Neville put his arm around her waist and Hermione lay her head on his shoulder. He kissed the top of her head and she looked up into his brown eyes. A moment later, they were kissing and she felt herself melt against him. He broke the kiss moments later, saying, �Wow! Hermione, let�s get out of here. Erm, we need more privacy.� Hermione breathed slowly through her nose, calming her pounding heart. �Where are we going?� she asked breathlessly as she quickly gathered her things and Vanished their chairs. �I know just the place,� Neville said with an enigmatic smile. He held out his hand to her. �Come with me�� * The look on her face said it all. �You don�t want children?� she asked slowly. �I don�t believe that for one minute.� �Well, I don�t. I won�t be like Vernon, and if I have kids, I know I�ll be like him,� Harry stated stubbornly. �You�ll never be like Vernon, Harry. There�s too much good in you,� Ginny said. �I won�t take that risk, I can�t,� he said, forcing his voice to remain calm. Then shutting his eyes tightly, he raised his wand arm that felt like lead as he shouted, �Obliviate!� She walked out of his life. �Ginny�� he mumbled. �My Ginny� I love you�� * Neville led Hermione to a secluded corridor two floors above Harry�s and Side-Along Apparated her to his grandmother�s estate, specifically, his greenhouse. While he now owned the property � he�d buried Augusta Longbottom a year after the war ended � he still thought of the house as belonging to his grandmother while the greenhouses in the garden had always been his. The place now had an overgrown look that came from his frequent absences due to his teaching schedule at Hogwarts, but the plants were thriving and he was still proud to bring Hermione here to his special place. �Where are we?� Hermione asked as he led her to a corner furnished with a small settee, a low table and several chairs. �My greenhouse at Longbottom House,� he answered. �This is where I grew up, learning about plants from my grandad and listening to him tell me stories about my father. He died when I was ten, so he never knew I actually made it to Hogwarts.� Hermione cocked her head to one side, looking thoughtful. �Harry would say your grandad knows just how successful you are, Neville,� she said. �He would also say your grandad is proud of you and your accomplishments.� �Yes, I think that�s exactly what Harry said to me one time we were discussing the subject over a game of chess. It�s nice to know that you think the same as Harry.� �I do, so could you show me what you�re proudest of accomplishing in this greenhouse, please?� Neville smiled and tugged on her hand. He led her to a table a few feet away where a familiar plant sat in pride of place surrounded by trays of seedlings. �I think you recognize my Mimbulus mimbletonia,� he said. Hermione nodded, seeming to wait for him to continue. �I�m proudest of this because I�ve kept it alive since fifth year and it�s helped me learn about the life cycle and usefulness of plants. �Right now, I have three experiments going, and one tray of control seedlings.� He pointed to the nearest tray on their left. �These plants provide a concentrated strain of Stink Sap used in an experiment I�m doing jointly with the Healers at St Mungo�s that might help them cure Spattergroit better than the conventional remedy. The plants in the tray behind that one have sap that is the key ingredient in a new magical cleaner I�ve invented. The tray on the back right holds the control seedlings and in the tray to our right are seedlings I�m preparing to use in another experiment.� �That�s really impressive,� Hermione said. �Will you be writing articles about your experiments in herbology journals?� �I�ve already had one published on the cultivation and growth of the Mimbulus mimbletonia, which paid rather well and impressed the heck out of the headmaster,� Neville said shyly. �Not very many read the article, though. I suppose the subject was rather boring to those who don�t love the plant.� �Don�t put yourself down, Neville,� Hermione scolded. �You�re doing great things and I�m proud of you.� She stood on her toes and kissed his cheek. He turned his head and captured her lips with his, then gently began walking her backwards toward the settee. When they reached it, they sank down and Neville deepened the kiss, claiming her mouth as she slid into his lap. * At Sunday dinner, Ron told his family he�d decided to look for a new job, since the offer he�d received from Video Visions wasn�t enough to keep himself afloat. He assured them that he had enough saved to get through the next few months and now that he was an experienced coder, he thought companies would want to hire him more readily than they had two years ago. The rest of the meal was rather subdued, although his brothers were rather sympathetic. As everyone was leaving the table after the meal, a hand on his shoulder made him look up. He was surprised to see Ginny standing next to him. �I�m sorry it came to this, Ron,� she said sincerely. �I know you really liked that job. Er, if you�re in London for interviews, you always have a place to stay with me. My sofa is quite comfortable.� He smiled miserably. �I just might have to take you up on that offer, Ginny,� he said, and pushed away from the table. He gestured for her to follow him into the living room. It was time to apologize for how he had acted the last couple of years. �We need to talk,� he told her as he closed the door to give them a little privacy. �Er, I need to talk.� She eyed him suspiciously. �All right. What do you want to talk about?� �Ginny, I�m sorry for being so horrible to you over the last couple of years. I never should have blamed you for Fred�s death, never should have suggested you had anything to do with it. I�m sorry that what I said the night we lost him got you fired from your job. I was jealous of the time you made in your schedule to be with Fred at the end and it wasn�t fair of me to accuse you of manipulating him into giving you more money from his estate than he did me. You made him feel loved at the end. I didn�t.� Ginny was silent for a long moment before she said, �I should be angry with you for what you did and said to me over the last two years, but it would take too much energy. I�m not sure we can ever go back to the way we were before Fred got sick, but I accept your apology and want to help any way I can.� Ron smiled sadly. �Thank you for that. I�ll let you know if I need to crash on your sofa. Percy and Mia offered their guest room, but a sleep-over with my sister sounds like a little more fun,� he told her. �I�m not as stuffy as he is?� she grinned. �Yeah, something like that,� he said. �Hug?� �Of course,� she said, stepping into his open arms. It felt good to hug his sister. If he admitted it to himself, he had missed her and their easy companionship over the last two years. * Ginny stood in Ron�s embrace and fought back her tears. She was still angry with Ron, but her talks about him with Harry had dulled the ache and tempered the harshness of her feelings so that she could now look at their situation without wanting to reduce her brother to a quivering pile of jelly. Now, all she had to do was rein in her manic emotions so he wouldn�t think he�d upset her. She sniffed despite her best efforts. Ron pulled back. �Hey,� he murmured, �I didn�t mean to make you cry.� She sighed and fumbled for a tissue. �Don�t mind me,� she said. �Ever since I broke up with Harry, I cry at the silliest things. I�ve turned into a regular hosepipe. Anything sentimental can turn on the waterworks. I�ve cried enough tears in the last six weeks to fill the duck pond.� He embraced her again. �Probably not the pond, it�s rather large, but if you want to talk about him, I�d like to know about the bloke who loved you enough to turn you into a girl,� he said, eliciting a ragged chuckle from her. Ginny pulled back, a watery smile on her face. �I�ve always been a girl, you dolt,� she said. �Nu-uh, up until we were about thirteen you were always one of my brothers,� Ron said, grinning. �It wasn�t until you started wearing dresses and skirts without Mum prompting you that I had to change the way I thought about you.� �Oh, that does make sense in a weird sort of way,� she said, turning towards the sofa and sitting down at one end. Ron joined her at the other end and swung his long legs up onto the cushions. Ginny did the same, taking the relaxed position she had often taken when they were younger. �So, what do you want to know about Harry?� �Well, the basics: how did you meet, what attracted you to him enough to go on a second date with him? What sets him apart from all the other blokes you�ve dated? That sort of stuff,� Ron said, ticking his points off on his fingers. Ginny sighed. This was going to be hard, but maybe it might help her sort out her feelings for Harry. �To answer your first question, Harry used to walk past my flat window every day early in the morning and again in the evening after I got home from work,� she began. She told Ron about how she�d been intrigued by Harry�s slow, determined pace and how she�d placed the flower arrangement in her window to see if he�d notice. She talked about how chivalrous Harry was, the amount of courage he had to have been hurt in the war and then finish his tours of duty, and what a confidante she had discovered in him. �We�re a lot alike,� she finished. �We like many of the same things, so conversation comes effortlessly. It�s funny how he had never gone to see a film or ridden a bicycle until he met me. But what sets him apart from all the others I�ve dated is that he makes me feel important.� �Then why did you break up?� Ron asked. �This bloke seems too good to be true!� A melancholy sigh escaped before Ginny could contain it. �He doesn�t want children,� she told Ron. �At least that�s what he said the night we broke up.� She paused, rubbing the place where her engagement ring used to be, and then added, �But I just can�t understand it. One of the things Harry wanted most as he grew up was another child his age who would be nice to him, unlike his cousin who bullied him, and how he used to listen to his classmates� conversations about siblings with such envy that he often had to walk away. Ron, I know deep down that Harry wants children, but he�s afraid he�ll turn out to be like the only role model of a father he had� a bully who lashed out with fists and words and never apologized for the injuries he caused.� Ron was silent for a long time before he said, �Ginny, I think I understand where Harry is coming from, why he might think the way he does and what he fears. I was that person to you since Fred died. There�s a rage that consumes all rational thought when it�s triggered and while it has hold of you, you�re powerless to resist it. I think that�s what Harry is afraid of when he says he won�t make a good father.� �That makes sense, but I just can�t accept it. You didn�t see him with our nieces and nephews the Sunday we announced our engagement to the family. He was down on the floor playing with them, he told them stories about magical plants and beings; Tory was absolutely fascinated with them. I think Jill and Damien understood just enough to enjoy the stories, and because Harry had come down to their level, they all accepted him readily� and you know how shy Damien is,� Ginny sighed. She closed her eyes and tried to conquer her emotions. �Oh, Ron, I still love him so much that I can�t sleep sometimes. What am I going to do?� Ron swung his legs off the sofa and leaned forward to hug her, saying, �Take it one day at a time. That�s all you can do.� Then he added, �Either that or show me where he lives and I�ll knock his block off the next time he leaves his house.� Ginny pushed him away and surged to her feet. �You�ll do no such thing, Ron Weasley, or I�ll tell Mum that you�ve practically moved in with Patti.� Ron had the grace to look affronted. �You wouldn�t dare,� he sputtered. �Try me,� she challenged. They looked at each other for a long moment and then burst into laughter. It felt good to act like brother and sister again, she reflected as they embraced. * One of Hermione�s weekly habits was to stop in at Grimmauld Place to make sure that the few plants Harry owned were watered and no one had broken in. This day, she was earlier than usual, so she decided to take a walk past Ginny�s flat. It was a rather mild afternoon and after being cooped up underground with only fake weather to look at through the �window� in her office, she relished the opportunity to stretch her legs while she watched a real sunset. As she walked, she pondered the wisdom of possibly eavesdropping on Ginny�s conversation with someone. However, she justified her intentions by telling herself that she was just making sure the other woman was handling her break-up well. Harry would want to know. Ginny was indeed at home. In fact, she was standing next to an old Ford Anglia with a man who had the same colour hair as she did. Hermione instantly knew this was one of Ginny�s brothers and quickly Disillusioned herself and then cast a charm that amplified their voices so that only she could hear them clearly. Then, she stood behind a small lorry and focused her attention on Ginny and her companion. �Thanks for letting me use your sofa, Ginny,� the man said. �It helped a lot that I didn�t have to drive three hours both ways for the interview today.� �When will you know whether you have been hired or not?� Ginny asked. �Sometime next week. They said they�d email me with their decision. I�m hoping for a message containing the time for a second interview. I�ll let you know if I�m coming back to London soon.� �You know you can always stay here on a moment�s notice, Ron.� �Thank you, Gin-Gin.� There was a pause during which Ron exclaimed, �Ow!� �Don�t call me that. I�m not two!� came Ginny�s response. �Next time, I won�t aim high.� The two were silent, and then they bid each other good-bye, Ginny asking Ron to pass on her greeting to someone called Patty. Hermione cancelled her charms as the Anglia drove away. She smiled to herself. It sounded as if Ginny had adjusted well and was even talking to this Ron. She remembered that Harry had mentioned a row between Ginny and her brother and wondered if they had reconciled. This was good news that she could pass on to Harry, if he ever woke up. With a spring in her step, she completed her walk back to Grimmauld Place, gathered her belongings and Apparated to St Mungo�s for an evening of Harry-minding. * At last Harry began to dream of the final battle. Neville noticed the change in Harry�s magic first. Hermione heaved a sigh of relief and went to alert the Healers, who erected a special shield around Harry�s bed to protect the other patients. The Healers had tried to persuade her not to sit next to Harry�s bed, due to the very real danger evoked by his wild magic that had continued to build with every dream until last week, but she refused to leave his side. Somehow, she knew that Harry would never harm her� Several days after they had finalized their plans to lure Voldemort to Hogsmeade, Harry stood in the Hogwarts Great Hall covered in dust and spattered with blood, having fought his way into the Hall from the upper corridors. He was certain the castle�s defenders would have been long dead if it hadn�t been for his and Hermione�s discovery of the room full of suits of armour. The armour had taken the brunt of the Death Eaters� attacks by forming a defensive barrier around the castle until civilian reinforcements began appearing in the village and in the secret passageways into the castle. Their lines had eventually collapsed, but by that time, the defenders were ready. Neville and his predecessor, Professor Sprout, had organized the flora defence using magical plants to disorient, confuse and kill anyone unlucky enough to be hit by a flying mandrake, chomping cabbage or Venomous Tentacula. Professor Flitwick and his merry band of seventh year Ravenclaws had organized mixed teams of fighters, both adult and student, who employed specialized spells and duelling techniques to keep the invaders hopping, while other teachers had used their specialities to creatively augment the defences, once the Death Eater teachers in the castle were bound and magically quarantined. A hush had fallen over the assembled fighters as Lord Voldemort faced Harry, his snake-like face red with fury. At his feet lay the body of his pet snake, Nagini. She had been decapitated moments before by Hermione who had trailed behind him under Harry�s Invisibility Cloak and when the opportunity came, had separated her head from her body. �You�re going to pay for this, Potter!� Voldemort snarled. He raised his wand at Harry who merely smiled at him and yanked open a small pouch that was attached to his belt. �I�m sure I am because that snake was the last of your Horcruxes,� Harry replied as he drew out a small, black book with a hole in the middle. �You also need to know that you are no longer immortal. I found every one of your other Horcruxes and destroyed them, starting with this diary that Lucius Malfoy put amongst a friend�s school books nearly ten years ago.� He tossed the book on the floor at Voldemort�s feet. �How dare�� �I did dare, and I succeeded! You are now just as mortal as the rest of us, so you�ve lost your bid for eternal life!� Voldemort�s face contorted in rage. �LIAR!� he bellowed and cast his first spell at Harry. Harry, who had been expecting the Killing Curse, nimbly jumped out of the way of the spell that gouged a six-inch-deep hole in the flagstone floor at Harry�s feet. Bits of stone flew in all directions, most of them hitting Harry�s legs. Without taking his eyes off his opponent, Harry cast his own spell, a non-verbal version of the Tarantallegra spell, and then quickly repaired the floor. Voldemort just stepped out of its way. �You can do better than that,� he taunted. �That spell is for first years!� �It might not have been,� Harry replied cheekily as Voldemort cast another spell. Harry ducked under it and returned fire with a spell that caught the edge of Voldemort�s robe on fire. He quickly extinguished the blaze and sent another spell towards Harry. This is going to take forever, Harry thought as they continued to trade rather mundane spells. He�s just playing with me like Bellatrix does. I need to wear him down. It seemed that Voldemort had the same thought because his next spells came thick and fast, causing Harry to throw up a Shield Charm to protect himself. He side-stepped several times to get out of Voldemort�s direct line of fire, dropped his shield and sent his reply back at his opponent. From then on, the two cast as fast as they could. Harry conjured arrows which Voldemort transfigured into daggers. Harry turned those into a swarm of Fanged Frisbees. The Frisbees engulfed Voldemort and he bellowed with rage as their teeth sliced into his robes. Voldemort converted the Frisbees he didn�t destroy into birds that were more distracting than destructive to Harry, but they allowed Voldemort to slip the first of many cutting curses past Harry�s shield. Harry retaliated with cutting curses of his own, landing more than he thought possible. Unfortunately, Voldemort was just as successful at finding new targets on Harry�s chest, arms and shoulders. The lacerations themselves weren�t deep, but they stung enough to side-track Harry�s attention. His casting faltered for several seconds until he was able to block the pain of each new cut enough to carry on with the fight. As the duel wore on, the crowd surrounding the two widened the circle around them, Death Eaters and defenders pressing together around the walls of the Great Hall in order to not be hit by errant spells. While the spectators in the hall were deathly silent, Harry could still hear sounds of combat coming from other parts of the castle. It heartened him to know that he wasn�t a spectacle for everyone and he renewed his efforts to take down Voldemort. With this resolve, his spells grew more lethal with each passing minute, but so did Voldemort�s; the simple curses and jinxes they had used at the beginning of the duel gave way to spells meant to maim or kill and the longer Harry dodged, cast and defended against Voldemort�s curses, the wearier he became. Just as he was beginning to think that Voldemort had the stamina of a race horse, his reaction time, too, began to slow; both were breathing hard by now and it had become harder and harder for Harry to vary the spells he used. Voldemort�s next spell was a bright blue ball of energy that Harry didn�t dodge quite fast enough. The spell hit his left arm and Harry heard the horrible crack as his arm bones separated at the shoulder and elbow. The force of the spell knocked him to the ground. He lay there, dazed and racked with pain, as he watched Voldemort advance on him slowly, step by agonizing step, until the distance between them guaranteed the next spell would find its mark. I�m not going to die like this! Harry thought and pulled himself to his feet, his left arm dangling uselessly at his side. �Very brave of you, Harry Potter,� Voldemort chortled, �but I�ve won. You�re broken. You�re in pain, very satisfying pain, I might add. Let me give you a little more. Crucio! Once again, Harry collapsed on the floor, crying out as the spell ravaged him, keenly aware of every nerve ending in his body. When at last the spell was lifted, he pushed himself to his feet, happy to find his wand still clutched in his right hand. �Did you enjoy that, Harry?� Voldemort asked in a conversational tone. Instead of answering, Harry silently cast Reducto, aiming his wand at Voldemort�s knees. Voldemort blocked the spell as Harry pushed himself to his feet again. �I tire of your paltry spells,� he said, sounding bored. �Corrumpere Corpore Cor Et Animam Meam! � he shrieked. Harry began moving as soon as the first word of the incantation left Voldemort�s lips. He wrenched his body to the side, spinning away from the spell. It caught him under his left armpit as the useless limb twirled with him at shoulder height, and ripped his body open diagonally from left to right. Blood gushed from the wound as Harry stopped moving and raised his own wand one last time. �Discedere Vitae! � he gasped, and felt the magic leave his body. The spell arced gracefully towards Voldemort as Harry guided it with his wand. Only when he saw the spell engulf its target did he succumb to the darkness that his injuries had wrought. * In a St Mungo�s hospital bed, surrounded by friends and Healers, Harry James Potter awoke. His magic didn�t burst from him as everyone feared, he just opened his eyes. �How long have I been here?� he asked while reaching for Hermione�s hand. A/N: Voldemort�s spell, Corrumpere Corpore Cor et Animam Meam, means �corrupt body, mind and soul.� Thank you for reading and reviewing my chapters. Each review spurs me on and I enjoy responding to every one of them. Thank you, too, to Melindaleo, Mutt n Feathers, Brennus, and Cackling Stump. Your comments and questions help make the story better. |
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