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Harry Potter and the Ritual of Love's Memory | ||||||
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Category: Post-HBP Characters:All Genres: Action/Adventure, General, Romance Warnings: Death, Mild Language, Mild Sexual Situations, Violence Rating: PG-13 Reviews: 259 Summary: After the horcrux hunt implodes leaving most of those Harry loves dead, he starts a new life with a few fellow survivors far away from wizarding Britain. But the discovery of an ancient ritual that promises to send a single memory back in time sparks hope that maybe things can change. Dark ending to DH followed by a tweaked retelling of GoF through DH. Harry/Ginny. Friday updates. Original Timeline Voldemort's Victory - Chapter 1-5 (Feel free to skip if you don't like major character deaths) Tenochtitlán - Chapter 6-9 New Timeline Harry's 4th Year - Chapter 10-28 Harry's 5th Year - Chapter 29-68 Harry's 6th Year - Chapter 69-Current Hitcount: Story Total: 169564; Chapter Total: 1247 Awards: View Trophy Room |
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Harry beamed with pride as he surveyed the absolutely packed Defense Chamber the following week. It was easily the best-attended meeting they'd yet hosted by far, even five minutes before they were scheduled to begin. Many students who had been in the village had noticed that it was Defense Club members who had stepped up to help, and word had spread that the group practiced for just that sort of situation. With so many people crammed together, Harry wondered if he and the five other leaders could effectively manage the group. Judging from the panicked look on Hermione's face as she watched more students enter the chamber, she was feeling similar trepidation. "Harry, I think we're going to have half the school here," she whispered urgently. "It makes sense that more people would show up after Hogsmeade, but I never would have imagined…" She trailed off as three more Slytherin fourth years tentatively entered, their eyes wide as they marveled at the room. While many of the students who were new to the Defense Club coalesced into small groups based on which house they were from, most of the more established members could be seen jumbled up with various others. "Yeah, it feels like a lot more than just a little club for us to get around Umbridge," replied Harry. "We probably should have asked for a professor or two to help out today. We're going to be overrun." "I was thinking about that. Maybe we can still manage to find some willing helpers." Hermione frowned as she scanned the room. "Would you gather the other leaders? I've got an idea to run by everyone." Even in the crowded room, it didn't take Harry long to locate Ginny, Ron, and Blaise. By the time they made it back to Hermione, she'd already found Cho. "Okay, so we've got a bit of a numbers problem," she began quickly. "It's going to be really hard to keep up with everyone with just the six of us. What do you think about asking the other Advanced Defense students to help keep things running smoothly?" "We could use the help," supplied Cho, her eyes darting to four more students who were walking into the chamber. "And we know they've got enough skill just by making it into Advanced Defense." "I bet Padma would be glad to help," added Ron, glancing to where his girlfriend stood with her sister and Luna. "I'm for it." "It's not like we didn't consider some of them for Cedric's spot," said Ginny with a shrug. Blaise looked skeptical as he peered out at the mass of students. "Requesting their help would certainly help for tonight and might be necessary if our numbers stay this high, but it would be better not to promise a leadership spot without thinking about it for more than the two minutes we've got before things get started." Ron started to say something to disagree, but Hermione let out an "Eep!" when the time was brought up. "Blaise is right: we shouldn't decide something as important as changing the makeup of our leadership group on a whim. Let's just ask for their help for tonight and talk the rest over later." None of the group argued with the plan, leaving Hermione the task of debriefing Padma, Parvati, Daphne, and Shannon while the others introduced the evening's topics. Harry was almost ready to call for everyone's attention when a final straggler sheepishly entered the chamber. "'Lo, Harry!" boomed Hagrid from across the room, smiling a little self-consciously as he strode forward. Quite a few of the students gazed at him questioningly. "Almost got stuck tryin' to squeeze down that tiny staircase, but I figured that it'd be worth learning a little more defensive magic, in case I ever end up in another tight spot like before. Professor Dumbledore suggested I join yeh down here to brush up since I never finished my schoolin'. If yeh don't mind, that is." Few things could have pleased Harry more, and he assured Hagrid that they would all be thrilled to have him practice his magic with them. The huge man beamed as he withdrew something from an inner pocket on his cloak. "I'm excited to try out my new wand! Professor Dumbledore got it fer me from Mr. Ollivander after the Hogsmeade business. Thought it was high time I carried sumthin' a bit more powerful than an old umbrella." Hagrid's enormous hand gripped a massive wooden rod that more closely resembled a fencepost than Harry's wand. His face was alight with pride as he swished it back and forth. "Unicorn hair and oak, both from the Forbidden Forest!" "Hagrid, that's incredible!" exclaimed Harry, eyeing the wand appreciatively. "And it's perfect that it's made from stuff from the forest!" "I thought so, too," agreed Hagrid, his voice a little quieter. "Dumbledore worked it all out with Ollivander. He's a great man, Dumbledore is." "Well, I'm looking forward to seeing it in action," concluded Harry. "There are lots of first timers here today, so just jump in wherever you want. We're about to get started!" Hermione was still huddled with the other Advanced Defense students, but Ron caught Harry's eye and gave him a thumbs up. He almost forgot to cast a sonorus on himself like the leaders had agreed to do, but remembered at the last moment before calling out to the amassed students. "Welcome to Defense Club, everyone!" said Harry brightly, his voice magically projected to be much louder than if he was yelling. "We're excited to see so many of you back with us and quite a few new faces. Tonight, we're planning to go over two bits of defensive magic that ended up helpful back in Hogsmeade. "The first piece is using spells together. Some opponents are too powerful to bring down on your own, but teaming up can help. I could cast stunners at a troll until I'm blue in the face, but it wouldn't do nearly as much as firing one alongside a few others." There were a smattering of whispers and muttered conversations amongst the students that sounded generally amenable to the idea. After the display in Hogsmeade, many were all the more ready to listen to Harry's advice on the subject. With their attention captured, Harry glanced at Cho for the next instructions. "Professor Flitwick has provided us with a number of targets that he's charmed himself." Cho's voice echoed through the chamber as she indicated red and white circles dotting the walls. "We'll be splitting into groups of two, three, or four to practice. Aim for your target and fire together, which should make the combined impact greater than if you'd used the spells separately. Start out with stunners, but we might progress to something a little more powerful once we get the hang of it." "For the back half of our time together, we're going to be working on patronus casting again," came Ron's magnified voice. "Some of you saw how important the charm could be on the way back from Hogsmeade. A lot of us got better with the patronus last term, but it's important we keep working at it. Not that I want to face the damned things again anytime soon, but I'd much rather do it with a whole bloody zoo behind me!" Hermione shook her head but offered no admonishment for Ron's language as she continued the instructions. "Since there are so many people here today, we've asked for a bit of extra help from the other students in Advanced Defense. Shannon, Daphne, Parvati, and Padma are going to be coming around to make sure things go smoothly. Feel free to ask any of us if you need something." The four girls smiled out at the rest of the students, looking both eager and nervous. "Try to form groups based on skill level," added Blaise. "You'll be able to see the results better if you're closer to the same level as the people you cast with. Trust me: it'll feel even better when you and a couple of friends from your year blow up a target you've been working on for a while." Hermione nodded appreciatively. "I think that's everything we wanted to go over. Was there anything else?" From Harry's right, he heard Seamus call out while waving at them. "Not exactly related to what we're doing in here, but Dean, Neville, and I talked to the kitchens. Looks like there'll be some fresh baked treats for everyone up in the Student Lounge afterward!" The students chattered excitedly at the news as they began to split into pairs and small groups. Harry watched as Ron ran up to clap Seamus on the shoulder and exclaim, "Brillant!" at their dormmate. Harry began shuffling students toward the targets, very much looking forward to the rest of the evening. ~RLM~ Harry's head pounded after another failed attempt. He'd been at it for more than an hour and his patience was growing more thin with each successive try. He glanced at Professor Flamel, who wasn't even watching as he perused two different tomes laid upon his desk, his eyes darting back and forth every few seconds. Without looking up, the aged man reiterated the same instructions Harry had been trying to follow since the previous week's meeting. "Now, Mr. Potter, you are not simply trying to recreate a Patronus Charm fueled by your rogue memory," he chastised, his eyes affixed on the thicker of his open books. "It will not do to simply use the same wand movements and incantation that you know to work for an existing spell. You must focus completely on the magic within you. Feel the grooves and contours of that magic. Coax it into your physical being by responding to the ways it seeks to move you. The magic desires a way out into the world. It seeks a conduit. You must listen to its plaintive cry and lead it forth in the way it wishes to be moved." It took a great deal of restraint on Harry's part to refrain from grumbling under his breath. Whatever magic resided within his rogue memory seemed quite content to remain well contained within his mind and showed no sign of a desire to become a spell. Since the time it exploded Dumbledore across his office, the only time he'd sensed anything magically different about the memory was in the Room of Hidden Things. He'd been using his patronus to hold back the protections from the diadem horcrux, and his thoughts had fallen to the rogue memory in their group's final push. Just before he passed into unconsciousness, he thought he'd seen a golden glimmer of light shimmering from his stag. Despite this, Professor Flamel insisted upon forgoing any spell creation ideas built around the Patronus Charm. He also bristled anytime Harry accidentally called what they were doing spell creation, but the distinction between that and "the birth of a new understanding of how this specific magic within you moves and flows" wasn't super clear to Harry. He attempted to placate his instructor as best he could but fell back into describing the process as spell creation when explaining things to Ginny and the others. "Concentrate on the feelings drawn up in you as you hold the memory gently in the forefront of your mind. Wand moments are likely the most readily distinguishable pieces of the magic's movement within you. Seek out the ways the magic wishes for you to move with it." Harry squeezed his eyes shut and tried to concentrate. He started to point his wand forward as he'd do to cast a patronus, but held back for fear of another admonishment from Professor Flamel. Instead, he thought of the variety of wand movements he'd learned in Charms and Transfiguration. Several incorporated a straight swipe of a wand in one direction or another, while others involved more of a circular motion. He had to bend his elbow while rotating his wrist for one tricky spell that'd taken him a while to master, while most required pointing his wand at a particular target. Despite his attempts to focus, Harry felt no tugging hint of how he should move his wand. Without strong inclinations, he squeezed his eyes shut more tightly and attempted to focus on the memory while allowing his wand arm to hang limp at his side. He pictured the dark green sprigs of grass beneath his legs as he leaned against the tree by the lake. There was a ray of sunlight that shone through a break in the foliage above him, causing warmth in his shoulder and chest where it fell. Ginny's voice, tentative but full of hope, was clear over the sound of the gentle breeze rustling through the leaves above them. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, Harry began to feel something. It wasn't much, barely enough for him to notice a slight tingling in the tips of his fingers as he gripped his wand. The moment his attention swung from the memory to the feeling, it dissipated into nothingness like one of his particularly enjoyable dreams that fled the moment his eyes fluttered open. He drew a sharp breath as he mentally strained to reconnect with the feeling, but it was long gone. "Oho! It would seem that you're finally starting to listen!" crowed Professor Flamel excitedly. Harry opened his eyes to see the man no longer focused upon his books. "Tell me, my boy… Where did you feel it?" "Err… I think I felt something in my fingers," answered Harry, unsure how Flamel had noticed the mini-breakthrough. He switched his wand into his other hand and rubbed his thumb across the pads of his fingers, "Yeah, right in the tips of them." "Was it only in your wand hand or across all of your fingertips?" questioned Professor Flamel. "I didn't notice anything else, except in my wand hand. Would that make a difference?" "Very much, indeed. Some magic is well suited to being channeled through a wand and may present itself there. Other magic may prefer to be cast wandlessly. I assume you have not studied the intricacies of wandless casting?" Harry shook his head. His ears had pricked up when Dumbledore mentioned that Professor Perenelle Flamel would be teaching some wandless magic in Advanced Defense, but the only experiences he had with it were his bursts of accidental magic when he was young. "It's just as well that this particular magic is more inclined to use a wand as a conduit, then," mused Professor Flamel, bobbing his head as he spoke quickly. "You've now broken through your first barrier by feeling the magic's leading. Now, you must incline your senses even more acutely to suss out how this magic wishes for you to call it forth!" Harry thought the process much more difficult than his instructor made it sound. By the end of his session with Professor Flamel, he'd only managed to regain the tingling sensation twice more. Neither attempt yielded any more results, with his mind urgently focusing on the feeling instead of the memory each time it occurred. Still, any progress was better than no progress. ~RLM~ Harry didn't consider himself exactly a keen observer of the Hogwarts social carousel. He'd been rather oblivious to much of the coupling that happened outside of his dormitory, other than what he learned due to how cavalier Dean and Seamus were about sharing their keen observations. In addition to Dean's short stint as Katie Bell's beau and Seamus's detailed recollection of how Martin had moved from supposedly straight to decidedly open to other options, Harry heard a great deal of speculation about how other potential romances were shaping up. Supplied with all the best tidbits from the rumor mill by Lavender and Parvati, Dean and Seamus often speculated about the topic while Harry was attempting to sleep or doing his Occlumency exercises. He tuned out a good deal of the chatter, especially because the two had both shared details about schoolmates that Harry felt more comfortable not knowing. He hadn't been able to make eye contact with Justin Finch-Fletchley for a week after accidentally overhearing some sordid details. But Harry's aversion was all but forgotten when the two of them entered the dimly lit dormitory relaying the latest news from their sources. "I'm just saying, Lavender knows all about concealment charms to cover up red marks on her neck," argued Seamus as he and Dean entered, a little more loudly than would be considerate of a shared room with three people lying in bed. Harry was just settling in after he and Ginny had been embarrassingly beaten by Neville and Ron in Exploding Snap. Both were already on their pillows when Harry emerged from the shower. Despite thoroughly washing his face, Harry still sported a singe mark on his cheek and another on his chin. "She says you can always tell if someone doesn't have experience casting them because the skin is a bit too shiny." "If it's true, then it's about time!" laughed Dean under his breath. He kicked off his shoes before heading toward the showers. "I mean, I get being upset that her boyfriend died, but that was ages ago. Maybe some quality time in a broom closet will help her relax a bit." Harry froze midway through reaching to set his glasses on the bedside table. He furtively glanced at Ron's four-poster, but his blurry vision didn't give him a good view of his friend. He thought the lumpy shape under the covers might have shifted around a bit, but didn't feel confident about it. As Dean and Seamus closed the door to the dorm behind them, Harry wondered whether their assumption was correct. His mind raced through people Hermione might be interested in, but he had a hard time coming up with viable options. Anthony Goldstein had shown interest the previous term by asking her to Hogsmeade and he was a prefect, so they'd probably spent extra time together. He seemed like the most reasonable guess, but something about the idea felt off to Harry. He considered the previous month for potential clues about Hermione's behavior. She had mentioned a few times that she was pleased with how Jerome was stepping up as Head Boy after a challenging start to the term. He gave the impression of being both intelligent and friendly, which was important for anyone stepping into the role after Cedric's excellent stint as Head Boy. Considering Jerome made Harry think of the seventh year's counterpart. Hermione's friendship with Cho had felt a little bit strained recently. He didn't know if that meant anything, but they'd gotten along pretty well the previous year. The two had managed leading the breakout sessions for Cho's year without complaint and Harry hadn't sensed any animosity between them. Then again, Cho had been generally less stressed and happier about life while she and Cedric had been dating. With a jolt, Harry wondered if Hermione might have secretly started a relationship with Cedric. She'd always admired his easy-going nature during their lessons and while leading Defense Club. He was a high achiever who cared about making the world a better place, which made sense as something she might be drawn to, which was especially apparent in his dedication to becoming a Healer. Not to mention the fact that he had been widely regarded as one of the most attractive blokes at Hogwarts and she had experience dating older boys. Dating Cho's ex would certainly account for their relationship turning frosty. The pieces of the puzzle would have fit together much more neatly if Cedric wasn't in London working on his first year of Healer training. At first, Harry couldn't see any way to get around the problem, but potential solutions began to surface as he lay awake. Hermione was certainly capable of writing extensive letters, as Harry experienced over the previous summer. She often slipped away to send an update to her parents, so it wouldn't be out of the question for her to owl something to Cedric, too. The potential marks on her neck were more challenging to explain. Hermione was enough of a rule follower that he didn't think it likely that she would smuggle Cedric into the school without permission, especially with all the added security protecting the castle. Likewise, he doubted she'd risk using any of the secret passages to steal away to Hogsmeade to meet up. Unless… "The Hogsmeade visit!" thought Harry so forcefully in his head that he almost said it aloud. She'd been invited to eat with the group at the Three Broomsticks, but had said she had other plans and not to worry about her. They hadn't seen her all morning and only stumbled upon her after the giants attacked. Cedric had probably returned to London before the commotion. Feeling quite proud of his powers of deduction, Harry settled himself into a more comfortable position as he closed his eyes. |
| Reviews 259 |
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