Unofficial Portkey Archive

What is Love

CHAPTER XXXIII

Out

We've been seeing what you wanted, got us cornered right now
Fallen asleep from our vanity, might cost us our lives
I hear they're getting closer
Their howls are sending chills down my spine
And time is running out now
They're coming down the hills from behind

(.- The Howling by Within temptation)

Tired and still confused from the Fwooper's chant, the foes had an advantage over the nine of them and they found themselves quickly surrounded by a dozen Falange members.

Twelve jets of light flew their way, and Harry and Draco were the first to react. "Careful!" he yelled at all of them and the chamber exploded into a silver light that engulfed the nine witches and wizards, protecting them from the jinxes sent by the Falange members.

The protection spell lasted enough to give the others a chance to react just before Harry's knees gave away in exhaustion from the long-range silent spell. Draco, who was on Harry's left, managed to catch his former enemy and cast a small protection barrier for the two of them. Without him, all of this will have been for nothing, he thought darkly as he silently cast an energizing spell on the raven-haired young man in his arms.

Harry sat up and stared at Draco with wide eyes, then narrowed them.

"No time for banter, Potter, just get on your feet and help the others!" Draco said, reading what Harry was about to say in his mind.

"Stop it with the Legilimens!" Harry said and pushed the other man aside as the others fought off the Falange Death Eaters.

"You're welcome!" Draco answered irritably and joined the sight just as three Death Eaters were closing in on a weakened Remus Lupin.

Harry quickly got to his feet and couldn't help but appreciate the effect of the energizing spell Draco had just cast upon him. "Flagrate!" Harry cast a fire whip from his wand and got rid of two Death Eaters that were cornering Hermione.

She took the small advantage and neutralized the other Death Eater she was fighting. "You all right?" she asked and Harry nodded with a small smile.

"Regroup!" both Harry and Remus called at the same time and each managed to repel their foe long enough for the scattered nine witches and wizards to come together, back to back, in a tight formation just as another twenty Falange Death Eaters appeared, and outnumbered them three to one.

All Harry and the rest could do was to deflect curses and manage an offensive attack or two to the surrounding Death Eaters.

"Harry, let's use the spell!" Ginny cried from his far left.

"Are you mad? They would have us for dessert after we were done!" he countered at the same time he managed to knock out a Death Eater. They had needed numerous energizing spells after performing that spell so that they could break through the attackers and reach Lord Voldemort.

"How do you plan on fighting all of them at once?" Ginny insisted after knocking another Death Eater down. She remembered how one of the two joint spells they'd prepared before the final battle had given them the advantage they needed so the others could open the path for the six of them to get to Voldemort.

"Like this!" Harry sent a particularly nasty silent Sectusempra, and it caught two foes at once.

"Don't! You'll wear yourself down!" Hermione warned, noting how the shadows under Harry's eyes were growing, even after the spell from Draco.

"If you have a secret weapon, this would be the time to use it!" the blond called from Harry's back.

"It'll leave us all vunerable!" Neville added.

"We'll be extenuated," Ron added.

"Only if we leave any of them alive and standing," Luna provided to Ginny's case just as ten more Death Eaters came down from the opening where the potion had just been.

"I think Ginny's right," Hermione finally conceded and earned a stunned look from Harry, who unknowingly lowered his wand just as a curse hit him and sent him flying back. "Harry!" Hermione focused on the smirking Death Eater who had just knocked him down and he simply fell to the ground, unconscious after Hermione's nonverbal hex. "Cover me!" she called to Ron, who took over his and Harry's defensive positions.

She kneeled next to her partner and shook him. "Harry, please be all right!" After an infinite couple of seconds, he stirred and opened his eyes.

"I will be," he whispered and shook his head to clear his mind. Hermione helped him up and he nodded. "The spell, let's do it."

"Are you sure you can?" she asked, worried; Hermione hadn't seen him so tired in years; since the times of the war.

"I have to," he simply stated with a bit of defeat in his voice; he never wanted to revive this ever again.

Hermione nodded in return and looked up at her friends, who were barely hanging. "Draco, Remus, Tonks, can you hold them for just a minute?"

"Yes, do it, Hermione," Remus conceded and the three of them advanced and made a protective triangle around the sixsome.

"Are you ready?" Harry asked and quickly moved to the middle of the protective triangle Remus, Tonks and Draco had just formed.

The others drew a pentagram around their friend; a five-point star with Harry in the center and Hermione on the top. They connected hands and a purple glow started to surround them, emanating from the sixsome.

As soon as the purple light closed around the six, they started chanting:

Gaia, invocamus,

Corde et vi naturae,

Merlini, invocamus,

Spiritus Magicam

Maiores, invocare

Sua essentia opus

In potestate collata amplecti

Bonum enim utimur ipso

Eliminate his perfidis animas

Conprehendite eos ad tenebras

Aperuerit ostium

Ut permanerent semitam

Et lucescit, quod duplex

They called upon Gaia, Merlin, their ancestors, asking for them to free their way from the dark around; from their foes, so they could reach the light beyond them.

The air began to vibrate in the cave and the purple glow extended beyond the six casters. It would only touch the dark souls of the Falange, who had gone pale and many had paralyzed, stopping their attacks on the three guarding the pentagram.

But the events of the night had taken a toll on them and in their magic, and the effort they were making could be seen in their features. Remus could see the strain on his former pupils' faces and couldn't help but fear the spell was too much this time, after so much magic in the previous hours. He looked at Draco; he knew the other wizard was very powerful as well, and made a decision.

"Draco, go stand opposing Hermione. Help them."

"How?" Draco asked in a loss.

"Just lend them your magic," Tonks explained, "in genuine sincerity," she warned the blond with narrowed eyes. Like Harry she still didn't quite trust Draco either.

"Oh, you won't get a more genuine will to live!" he said and hurried to where the pentagram was formed. He stood opposing Hermione and made a six-point star, a just-as-powerful shape in ancient magic. "Ginny, Luna, let me in!" he called to the two girls standing at the bottom of the pentagram.

The two looked at him, scared to break the bond but tired to the bone. Draco opened his arms and lent them a little of the magic, only the amount he could lend while standing outside the pentagram. Both girls felt a small relief and Luna nodded at Ginny.

Arms wide open, Draco stepped into the core of the spell and took both Luna and Ginny's arms, to extend the magical shape. Slowly, their hand trickled down and at last, the three were completing the six-pointed star.

In the matter of seconds, the purple light shone brightly and exploded, sending magical ripples throughout the cave, making the walls tremble. The three dozen Death Eaters that were fighting fell to the ground, as if the strings of a puppet had been cut. Not a breath came out of them.

When the ripple stopped extending throughout the cave, it was the seven wizards who cast the spell that collapsed to the ground. Remus and Tonks hurried to them, but surprisingly, none was as expended as they were in the Final Battle at Hogwarts; the only time they'd cast that spell.

Tonks and Remus circled the room tending to each the younger men and women; giving them the small energy lift they needed to get back on their feet. One by one, they got up and found a space on the cave's wall to lean on.

"We should get out of this place. All these bodies…" Hermione said and shuddered.

Immediately, Harry hurried to her side and wrapped his arms around her, burying his nose in her hair. Tiredness and Hermione, he didn't like that smell. "I'm so sorry, Mione," he apologized in a whisper.

"You don't have to apologize, Harry," she responded and looked up at his eyes, then took his face between her small hands. "It was fine. You see? We're all alright."

"Yes, but if Malfoy hadn't helped up…" he stole a quick glance at the Slytherin across the cave and nodded a small thanks.

"But he did. Now we have to get to the bottom of this…" she said and led the way across the cave full of dead foes. They all followed.

"So, what now?" Ron asked as they reached yet another huge room, not really sure of what to do now.

"Stop," Remus ordered and hurried in front of Hermione. The group had halted upon his order. He cast a magical signature spell. With a sigh of relief saw there were no magical folk around.

"So?" Tonks echoed Ron's previous question. "Now?"

Hermione looked around, "now we should−" but she didn't know what they should do; she had no idea. The potion was gone, they were alive, no new magic had happened. She had no idea of what was going on or what would happen next, and she couldn't take another step, tired and frustrated as she was.

Everyone was paralyzed. This didn't make any sense; even Hermione seemed to have run out of explanations. Harry ran a frustrated hand through his already unruly hair and shook his head as he paced the space they'd just entered.

"No, this can't be. Why would they need such concentration of magic if they were only brewing a potion," he muttered to himself and kept pacing. A second later he stopped to look at the eight witches and wizards around him. He studied each face as to find some logic to all this in them. His eyes traveled from one to the other and then back.

"A trap? We would have already been ambushed…" Ginny tried.

"No, no, why do all this just to ambush us. They would have saved a lot of time and effort doing something else if that was their goal," Neville countered.

"Plus, how would it help in bringing Lord Voldemort back if they just killed us?" Luna helped.

"Luna´s got a point. There's got to be another reason!" Ron all but yelled and fell back against the wall with a tired sigh.

Harry scanned his friends' faces again. As it had become usual, when he looked at Draco, he felt a tug that told him that young man had something that belonged to him. But he shook it and concentrated in Draco's face. Much to his surprise, he didn't seem half as tense as the rest of them.

Without even processing his reaction, he stormed towards Malfoy, grabbed him by the collar of his cloak, and slammed him against the stone wall.

"Harry! What are you doing?!" Hermione and Luna exclaimed in unison.

"You know something! What do you know!?" he demanded, making sparks explode all over the chamber and ignoring the cries of the rest.

"Harry! Stop it!" Tonks yelled.

"What do you know, Malfoy! I swear to Merlin I will skin you alive if you have brought us to a trap!"

Draco was immobilized, and the inherent need of the stone inside Draco's heart to go back to his rightful owner, started to torture him. "Potter! No!" he was able to mutter.

"Harry! What are you doing?" Ron continued, just as scared as everyone else, to come closer to them.

"Harry Potter! Put that man down right this instant! That's an order!" Remus finally growled in a voice that boomed across the enormous chamber they were in.

"Harry! Please!" Hermione finished and threw a mild stunner towards the man she loved.

Struck square in the back, Harry's arms loosened and immediately after, the air went back to normal and Draco was able to breathe again. In the blink of an eye, he was all over Harry, throwing insults few would understand.

"Draco! What's the matter with you?" Hermione exclaimed and was forced to stun him as well. The young man in question fell to the ground right next to Harry. Hermione walked towards them. "Now you will stop this nonsense or I will portkey the both of you to the Headquarters!" she said angrily.

Neville and Remus came to stand on each side of Hermione. "Now what is it you know, Malfoy?" Neville asked before Remus could.

"Un… bind me first," he stuttered.

"Same here," Harry echoed.

"Will you behave?" Remus asked and both nodded. "Please, Hermione, could you?" he asked and a second later, they were both sitting on the ground.

Draco sighed. "All right, this is what I know."

"Oh, this better be good…" Harry said, narrowing his eyes at him and he started to lead the way towards what was left of the caves hoping they would get out soon, because all this musty smell and the sensation of being trapped was suffocating him.

So they spent the next twenty minutes walking and listening to Draco explain everything.

"You already know why they want me, but they want Harry because he used to have a part of Voldemort's soul in him, and so did Ginny…" Draco finished his whole tale.

"But that's stupid," Ron said determinedly, "they are grasping at straws, it won't work if they don't have a horcrux with a part of his actual and real soul."

"When have they been rational?" Hermione said, "and what they have planned might actually work. They kill all the bearers of the secret, the ones who performed the spell, then get the two who had Lord Voldemort's soul in them, then they get the piece of the Stone out of him and gather his essence in it so they can bring him back, it can even seem genius!" she finished, scared, and took a hand to cover her mouth.

After recovering from the shock of it all, Harry charged back. "Then why did you lie to us? You sniveling little creep?" he started towards Malfoy and had to use all his willpower to restrain himself upon seeing Hermione raise her wand again.

Draco was about to defend himself when Remus started speaking. "So, let me get this straight: Tonight is the new moon, the most powerful time of the month for dark magic, and the winter solstice reinforces this…"

Tonks continued to spin the web of magical happenings, "…thus making this dark-magic spell a hell of a lot stronger."

"Strong enough to bring Lord Voldemort back," Ginny finished with dread.

Draco nodded, glad he didn't have to say the last piece of information he held, which he and Dumbledore had woven together.

"So why didn't you tell us?" Neville asked, but his question was directed differently than Harry's, and Harry knew it, for he was eyeing Draco suspiciously and you could feel the magic emanating from him vibrating in the air.

"Because you wouldn't have been so diligent. Potter, here, would've seen it as too big a risk and decided to do it some other night."

"Of course I would've, you rat bastard!" Harry said and pointed at Draco, a small spark escaping his outstretched finger and burning Draco's skin.

"Harry! Chill out! He hasn't done anything to hurt us!" Hermione came forward and slapped Harry's hand.

"How can you say that? He's put you all in a bigger risk than you should have."

"Us, Harry! You too! Don't go back to that. You're not an island. I'm only saying we would've gotten her sooner or later, and better do it on a day like today."

Harry sealed his lips in a tight line, not really seeing the flaw in her reasoning but feeling there was still something Malfoy wasn't saying.

"I'm sorry to remind everyone of bad news, but they took the potion," Luna stated, biting her lip.

"The potion with all of us in it," Ginny provided.

"We really don't have a choice now," Remus said.

"Damn it!" Harry let out, frustrated, and sparks flew all over the place. "If we'd have only secured the potion first!"

"Then Ron would be dead, Harry," Hermione warned and deflated Harry in a second, "and control yourself or you'll kill us all! Might as well do the Falange a favor."

Harry closed his eyes and sighed, then put his hands on Hermione's arms. "You're right. I'm sorry. I just can't help it," he said, then added in a whisper, "and there's something he's not telling us! I don't trust him."

"Well, get over yourself, Harry. We're already here and all we can depend on is each other, and we need each of us to do this!" she finished and he nodded.

"Fine," he said to her, and to the rest, he added, "what now?"

"I think I might be able to help you with that," a familiar voice spoke from behind the group, and immediately, nine flashes of light went its way. The voice just chuckled. "Sorry to have startled you, dear children."

For a moment that seemed and eternity, they all just stared at the astral projection of their mentor.

"Pro− Professor Dumbledore?" Hermione was the first one to find her voice.

"I'm not your professor anymore, miss Granger. And congratulations on the baby, by the way!"

"But− but I saw you…" Harry began, paying no mind to the fact that he knew of Hermione and their baby.

"Vanish after the explosion. Yes, you did."

"And you didn't−" Neville asked.

"Die? Oh, yes I did."

"Then how−"

"Am I here? Projecting myself? Isn't this game marvelous?"

"Game? What are you talking about, Dumbledore?"

"Remus! It is so good to see you're well, albeit a bit poisoned by pixies still. Why the game of finishing each other's sentences, of course."

"And you didn't believe me!" Draco complained.

"Yes we did," Harry sent back.

"Yeah, right. You only put up with it because I had information," Draco countered.

"I see you never took your occlumency lessons further," Dumbledore pointed out.

Harry opened his mouth a couple of times to argue and then just looked down, flushed.

Having had enough of this, Ron stepped ahead. "Please, stop with this. Professor, how is it that you're projecting?"

Dumbledore regarded him for a moment and then smiled. "I'm glad you're growing to be the great man I knew you had in you, mister Weasley." He turned to the little blond Luna, and she just smiled when Dumbledore winked at her.

Ron turned red on the face and Ginny rolled her eyes. "Care to explain?" she asked.

"So feisty, as always. I'm glad you found your way back to each other, Ginivra," Dumbledore added and smiled.

"Please!" Tonks had finally had enough.

Dumbledore raised his hands in surrender. "Such a lack of patience always, Nymphandora," he said sternly, "I haven't seen you in so many years!"

"You're right, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for not just standing by after and attack while you reminisce and make mysterious comments. And don't call me that!"

Dumbledore chuckled. "You have a very good point, Tonks," Dumbledore conceded, "Draco?" he urged.

"This is how I've met Dumbledore in all these occasions. He's projected himself, that's why I couldn't tell you where he was," he looked at Dumbledore, "where ARE you?"

"Unfortunately, somewhere I can only project from."

"But you're not a ghost."

"Not exactly."

"Then what ARE you?"

Dumbledore sighed. "My meddlings with dark magic played me a bad joke, I guess…"

"What do you mean?" Remus asked.

"I guess you could say this was Gellie and mine's special place. He taught me of his experiments here. Experiments with dark magic mostly, because this is such a powerful place."

"Gellie?" Ron asked, bewildered.

"Gellert. Gellert Grindenwald."

The redhead stared at him, not really knowing how close Dumbledore and Grindenwald's relationship had gone. Hermione hurried to his side. "They were close. Partners, actually," she whispered and looked at her former professor, who nodded and smiled.

"Yes, we experimented with dark magic, and I sort of made a horcrux," they all stared in disbelief. "But I didn't really make it right. You see, I didn't really want to kill the poor man. Even if he wasn't the finest of wizards."

Hermione's eyes widened. "Great Merlin! You didn't make a full horcrux! I read about that back in sixth year!" All of the present paid close attention to what she was saying. "If deep down, you don't wish the magic to really work, then the spell might not work completely. Dark magic is especially sensitive to these variations of will, so to speak."

"Indeed, miss Granger. I didn't really mean to make that horcrux and therefore, it wasn't made right, thus condemning me to this half existence. I'm not a ghost nor can I cross over."

Harry stared at him, his eyes pooling over with unshed tears. He imagined how terrible it would be to be ready to cross over, to finally reunite with his parents and his sister, and not being able to do so due to one spell mismade. "I am so sorry, professor," he said.

"It's quite all right, Harry. If we do this right, I might be able to reverse the evil I did with that spell."

"So what should we do?"

"You just have to move forward. And do what you came here to do. Finish him once and for all. You remember the spell?"

"Of course we do." Six voices spoke in unison.

"You just have to do that," he said criptically.

"And how do we do that?"

"You move forward," Dumbledore said and made a gesture with his arm towards the silver light ahead. "That's the exit."

They followed the gesture and started that way. The nine wizards hadn't really realized how tired and battered they were after the events of the night until they started climbing through the cave to the light of the night outside.

They reached a meadow on the mouth of the cave and they stared at the green grass that seemed to glow as they watched. Tonks looked around. "That should give us a clues as to how much power is in these lands."

"It's no wonder Grindenwald chose this place to perform his experiments," Ginny observed. They could see the lands surrounding Stonehenge ahead, but they had to climb a good ten more meters.

"Better get going," Ron continued after trying to avert his gaze from the glistening grass around; it gave him the creeps. Harry, Ron and Hermione took the lead and started climbing.

"I'd be careful if I were you," Dumbledore began when they'd started climbing, but the warning processed in their brains a bit too late and a sort of force field threw the trio back down to the meadow as the other six yelled the same warning when all around them the sky opening started to glow.

Harry was the first one to recover, and his first instinct was to go see if Hermione was unscathed. She had a hard time getting up, but aside from a slight limp, she was all right. "Ron, all good?"

The redhead shook his head as his sister held him in her arms.

"Tell me you're all right," Ginny spoke.

"Yes, I'm fine. A little dizzy, that's all."

"It seems we've reached some sort of protective barrier," Neville observed, still disoriented from the Runespoor venom.

Remus walked forward with some effort and made a series of complicated wand movements along the length of the opening the trio had tried to climb through a moment ago. He started to speak, but Dumbledore interrupted him.

"Yes, it is what you think," the old wizard stated.

"So that means…"

"At least two have to hold the force field back as the others go through."

"And it can only be countered from this side."

"Clever idea."

"Yes. Divide and conquer. What now?"

"Your choice, my friend."

"Can someone tell me what's going on?" Harry asked, annoyed.

Remus looked at him, apparently just remembering he had other witches and wizards around. "Only seven of you can go through. Two of us have to pull back the force field."

Harry stared with huge green eyes. The last thing he wanted after getting the whole group through with no dire consequences was to split them.

"Yes, it's the only way," Remus answered the unasked question, "I should stay. My magic isn't at full capacity."

"I'll help you. The Runespoore's venom's still getting at me," Neville stated.

"No, you can't," Dumbledore stated simply. "Tonks should stay."

"Are you crazy? She'd be a much better foe than me once we face the Deatheaters!"

Dumbledore eyed his former pupil sternly. "Tonks wasn't part of the original spell. You need to be out there too."

Neville stared in silence. So did Tonks, torn between being there to take care of Remus or helping her friends.

It was Harry who broke the silence in a voice so cracked, you could feel all his fear and sorrow for putting his loved ones in danger yet again in that sole phrase. "It's the only way."

The two sighed and nodded. "Let's go then," Neville said and Remus and Tonks took their places on each side of the opening.

Remus and Tonks exchanged looks and reached a common silent agreement as to which spell to cast. They nodded and raised their wands, performing an old nonverbal spell that made the whole opening shine for a moment.

"Now!" Remus roared in a strained voice and the other seven plunged forward.

Halfway through, Luna stopped in mid-climb and Ron noticed. "What's the matter?" he asked, alarmed at how pale she had gone.

"We can't continue− down!" she yelled, but since no one could just let go because it was a good six meter fall down, they all just curled into the space they were occupying in the climbing wall as a jolt sent Remus and Tonks flying back and the seven of them into a sort of paralyzing stage.

"Harry, careful!" he heard his boss scream and curled upon himself as much as possible, while all his thoughts and protective energies went to Hermione, a mere meter from him.

As soon as they all curled upon themselves, a purple circle formed around the opening and started closing into them at an unbelievable speed. It reached them in the middle of their bodies and lifted the seven now-limp forms out of the opening of the cave and into the night sky, in the middle of the age-old ruins of Stonehenge.

A/N: I know I said it was only one chapter left. And I tried to, I really did! But it was too much information and too long a chapter. I'm sorry. Please be patient. Next chapter (which I hope to get out in the next couple of weeks) will really be the climax. And then just the Epilogue. Thank you all so much for your love and your kind reviews.