AN - Okies! Here is your action! This chapter is longer than most, and I am hoping that is a sign of things to come. I want to start writing longer chapters sooo, hopefully this is the first of many. I am starting to fall into the main plot line now, so be prepared for some more stuff. For once I know what I want to do with the story, so we are getting rolling now! I hope you like what I did with this chapter, and I know it is slightly a cliffy, but it had to be done. I will have the next chapter up VERY soon anyways. I am actually getting ahead in the writing, so I will have a new chap for you soon. So that way you don't have to wait too long. (I hope you all aren't going to hate me for what I do next….)
Thank you so much, PhoenixFirebolt, I totally love you. You have helped me soooo much with this story so far. And I can't say it enough. You absolutely rock! This story wouldn't be where it is at without you! *hugs*
And without further ado!
Chapter Eight: A Little Bit of a Big Fight.
Harry and Hermione appeared outside of her parents' house in an instant. He hated side-along apparition, but it was the only way he could have gotten to Hermione's house. The cracks that they created echoed around the yard and Harry took account of the surroundings, a hand resting on his new pistol. He had yet to come up with a name for the guns, but having his hand on the cold metal made him feel better. For some reason, the fact that he would be able to fire off a stunner faster than any other wizard made Harry feel very comfortable walking around. Even though he hadn't even pulled the gun out of the holster, he knew that it would find his hand if he needed it.
Hermione's house was as Harry remembered it from the months before. The sight of it made her sigh, showing it must feel good to have a place to come home to. Harry wouldn't know, of course. Maybe it was because they hadn't left Godric's Hollow for a few weeks, but Harry got a strange feeling as they walked towards the door. Reaching down, Harry pulled out his gun and switched it to stun. Hermione looked at him strangely, but Harry shrugged and kept it out. Something wasn't right, and a long time ago, Harry had learned to trust his instincts. Normally, they were the thing that saved the day. As Hermione reached out to open the door, Harry slapped her hand away and leaned against the door. Sure enough, he got that tingling sensation; someone had just used magic there.
"Get your gun out. I think we have trouble," Harry said through gritted teeth.
"But…" Hermione started.
"Just do it," Harry cut her off.
Once she had her gun out, Harry turned and kicked the door in. It shattered under his foot and they were witness to a scene which Harry would have preferred them not to have seen Inside the elegant living room that he remembered, were two screaming muggles; Hermione's parents. Somewhere among his thought process, Harry was grateful for the fact that they were still screaming. It meant that they weren't dead yet. Swinging his gun to the side, Harry pulled the trigger three times and stunned the Death Eater standing there instantly, with enough force to throw him into the opposite wall. As Harry fired the stunner bolts, he could feel the gun tap into his magical ability and take some out of him, the same way a spell did. The Death Eater didn't even have a moment to blink before he was smashed against the wall. Harry smiled grimly, liking the new weapon.
Hermione, on the other hand, had whipped her gun around to aim at the other Death Eaters that were standing in the kitchen area beyond and the ones staring in a sort of awe at Harry. In the moment of confusion, she fired off about ten stunners and within a few seconds more anyone who wasn't stunned had apparated away. As the Death Eaters had one by one fell unconscious to the ground, the curse had lifted off of her parents. They were breathing heavily on the ground, but they were still alive. Hermione quickly holstered her gun and pulled out her wand. Muttering the incantations for different wards around the house, they bubbled into place immediately before she made sure her parents were okay. Hermione was always cool and collected about things, and very rarely did she go in to hysterics mode, but she now couldn't control herself.
"Mum! Dad!" She basically screamed as she threw herself down near them. She wrapped them both in a hug and there was a little crying going on from all three.
"Oh, Hermione, we thought that if they were here that meant that they had killed you! We were so scared. Then they used that terrible curse on us. I don't think I have ever hurt that bad!" Hermione's mother said, as she wrapped her arms around her hysterical daughter. "It's okay, we're fine now," she said, trying to comfort Hermione.
Hermione's father stood up though, still shaking slightly from the effects of the curse, and the whole time looking Harry directly in the eye. For a split second, Harry thought that Mr. Granger was about to call him down for something, but that never came.
"Harry," he said, extending his hand, "I can't thank you enough right now. Obviously, for our own lives, but you seem to have protected Hermione as well. I can't think of anyone better to place my daughter with."
Harry took the extended hand. "It was nothing really. But I have to admit I would do anything for your daughter. Without her, I would be more lost than I care to admit," he replied, never taking his eyes off of Mr. Granger's.
"Good," he answered and nodded in approval.
"Hermione, how did they get here before us? Was it coincidence? Or was someone following us in Diagon Ally?" Harry personally had some ideas of which of the two it was, but he wanted her opinion as well. She stood up from the floor and dried some of her tears.
"I think we might have been followed. Voldemort knew where Godric's Hollow was once, why wouldn't he know again? He probably has been waiting for us to leave for a while. We need to be more careful, Harry," she said chokingly, as she still was trembling from the sight of her parents being tortured.
"Harry, thank you," her mother croaked out.
Harry kneeled down and placed a hand on her shoulder. "No problem, Ma'am," he said comfortingly, smiling again.
"'Mione, finish explaining to them everything, I'm going to test out the phone." She nodded and Harry walked down the hall.
"'The King,'" Harry said into the cell phone. It buzzed to life and Harry placed it to his ear.
"Harry?" Ron's voice came from the other side, sounding extremely distressed. "We have trouble here, mate. Death Eaters are all over the village and my family is in the middle of it! They're everywhere! We managed to back them up into the village, but they are overwhelming us!" he said. Harry could hear commotion in the background as well.
"We had the same problem. We took care of it, but it sounds like you have a bigger problem than we did," Harry said back.
"Yeah, some help would be nice," Ron answered. He sounded cold and distant. Not something Harry was used to hearing from Ron. But then again, Ron had never had to fight alongside his family in a life or death battle.
"We'll be there in a minute. Keep safe," Harry said to his friend.
"You too, mate," The click was evident as the call was canceled.
Harry walked back down the hall, trying to decide what to do. They had Hermione's parents who needed protection, and then they had Ron and his family who needed help. Harry made a last minute decision.
"Portus," He said with his wand in his hand. The clock on the table glowed blue for a moment, and Harry walked into the living room.
"We're leaving. You have two minutes to grab anything really important." He stressed the words so that he knew this needed to be quick. "Hermione, Ron's house was attacked, too, but it sounds like they have a bigger force there, he needs help. Your parents are going to have to come, too. I have the portkey set for the Burrow's backyard. They can hide in the house while we help Ron and everyone else." It was more of a statement than a question. They didn't have time to do anything else.
"We don't need anything. We have our daughter with us, that's all we will need," her father said, her mother nodding in agreement.
"Mr. Granger…" Harry started.
"Dan, call me Dan," Dan Granger replied.
"Dan, this is important. You may never come back here, is that okay?" Harry asked.
"Material possessions mean nothing right now. We understand," his wife added.
"Thanks, mum," Hermione said quietly.
Harry held out the clock and they all touched it when he motioned for it. The familiar tug behind his navel was only a moment behind.
The Burrow came quickly into view, and Harry took a good look at his surroundings. He wanted to make sure this was safe before he just dropped off Hermione's parents. Harry had the gun in his hand, but Hermione had her wand out. When they walked in, she mumbled something, and her wand glowed green.
"There isn't anyone with ill intentions in the house," she said to Harry. He smiled at the brilliant idea that his girlfriend had.
"Excellent. Mrs. Granger…."
"Emma!" she said, correcting him just like her husband had.
"Right, Dan, Emma. Go upstairs and stay in one of the rooms, away from the windows. Keep safe," he said quickly, and hurried into the living room, Hermione close behind.
"'Mione, be careful out here, okay?" He asked tentatively.
She smiled in response before leaning up and kissed him. "Don't worry, Harry, I will. Let's go." They both left the house together.
The front yard of the Burrow was torn apart. It was evident that there had been quite a show there. Harry could see curses flying some way down the road and whoever it was using an overturned bunch of trees as a base. It looked like they were holding the Death Eaters away from the houses that were nearest. It was hard since there were plenty of Death Eaters. Harry started to sprint once he realized what was going on, Hermione right at his heels. Both had their guns in their hands now as they were dashing for the clump of trees. When they got there, Ron grinned at them.
"Finally decided to show up, eh?" He asked.
"Yeah, I made time in my schedule," Harry said offhandedly, as he fired his gun out into the charging Death Eaters. Three fell instantly as he and Hermione joined the fray. "Is everyone okay here?" Harry asked, afraid of the answer.
"Yeah, they were well prepared for all of this," Ron said, aiming and firing off some more stunner bolts.
"Good." Harry leaned down behind the tree as a yellow curse blew over his shoulder. The blue defensive shield shimmered around his body as the robes took some of the hit, giving Harry an idea. "You two stay here while I go and distract them. They don't know I have the shield robes on. I'll do some damage and distract them, while you two can pick them off from here. Good?" Harry asked his two partners.
"Sounds good! But remember the robes can only take so much." Hermione cautioned as she ducked a nasty looking purple curse. "You should have the upper hand though, you have the gun." She smiled good luck.
Dashing out, Harry looked like he was going out there without anything to protect him. So, naturally, every Death Eater turned their wands on him. That was the plan, of course. Once that happened, Hermione and Ron would be able to nail them from behind. As Harry started to dive and roll to avoid curses, he watched as some of them fell from behind. Wielding his gun the whole time, Harry fired bolts off in every direction. Some of his shots got deflected, but a moment later, a Death Eater normally fell prey to one of the defenders behind Harry.
As Harry fought, he saw some other Aurors and Order members fighting, too, each wrapped up in their own duel. Harry felt really strange being in the middle of it all and holding his own. The gun enabled him to fight more than one person at once. Rather than taking on one person in a duel, he could keep firing, and fight as many Death Eaters at a time as he needed to. Maybe he wasn't as helpless as he thought. But, of course, with every perfect plan, there was a snag.
In Harry's peripheral view, he could see Ginny dueling with a Death Eater. There were tons of Aurors and Order members doing the same all around, and yet Ginny's stood out to him. He could see Ron and Hermione firing off spells from the woods. He could see everything that was going on. All the while, he was fighting his own battles, but yet at the same time, he was very conscious of Ginny. Why he was paying so much attention to her battle wasn't clear to Harry at the moment, but all the same, he was. Unfortunately, Ginny's battle wasn't going well; she wasn't trained to fight off Unforgivable curses. She wasn't prepared to take their intensity, though it wasn't her fault, she just hadn't grown up yet.
Stunned Death Eaters fell under Harry's assault all the time and their number was rapidly fading. Just as Harry found an opening to escape from his own battle, he watched as a sickly colored yellow beam shot out of a Death Eater's wand. The beam made a solid connection with Ginny's chest and she crumpled to the ground screaming a horrible noise. It was terrible to Harry's ears. Spinning low, he ducked under one Death Eater and aimed his gun. The stunner bolt flew out and hit true. The Death Eater fell and the curse was broken. Harry dashed over to Ginny as fast as he could. In his haste to make sure that she was okay, and to get to her side, he failed to notice the Death Eater behind him.
"Ginny," Harry breathed. "Are you okay?" She slowly started to respond, than all of a sudden her eyes shot open. It was then that Harry realized his mistake. Faster than Harry could move, Ginny did. She launched off of the ground and dove between Harry and the devastating looking purple flame. The flame caught her across the chest and tore open her skin. Blood flew from it and Harry was so stunned for a moment he couldn't even see straight. Then his body went into overdrive. For in that split second he knew who was behind the Death Eater's mask.
The finger on his right hand flicked the switch and changed the gun in his hands from a stunning weapon to a killing machine. Harry felt distant from his body, like he wasn't in control. The purple beam that had just maimed Ginny brought back memories. In Harry's mind, he saw Hermione fall again and again as the same curse flicked out and sliced her. He saw the lifelessness in her face. It blinded him, rage filling his mind. But then there was a part of him that wasn't rage, it was love. It seemed like a conflicting emotion at the moment. But his love for Hermione, and even for Ginny to some extent, was flowing from him. That was why he was in the battle, it was why he was there; for the people he loved. That was why he had to do the things he did.
All this came to Harry's mind in a split second. He realized everything that his life was about, everything that mattered to him. It all crashed down on him in a second. And in that same same second, while mixed emotions were running through him, Harry pulled the trigger. For a moment he didn't know what had happened. The barrel of the gun went from the red stun color, to the green killing color, to a bright pulsating blue. It was such a radiant color that it almost drew Harry's attention. Unknown to Harry though, his eyes had taken on the same color. The bright emerald that was normal to him had morphed into the same blue that was being displayed on his weapon. Then everything stopped. The rushing noise came to Harry's ears, and he watched as the electric blue curse smashed into the Death Eater's chest.
Then all was quiet for Harry. The man in the pitch black cloak who he knew to be Dolohov fell down dead. The color drained out of the gun and it turned back to green, as did Harry's eyes. Then a sort of draining effect seemed to take on Harry's body. He felt like something about him was missing now. Of course, his first thought was his soul. Had he torn it? Was it gone now?
Then Harry heard the distinct pops of disapparition. He didn't care though. He knelt down to the small girl in front of him. That was all she was, a small girl that was in over her head, a small girl who was heartsick over someone who would never be hers. She was a small girl who had possibly just died.
The Weasley family came over and before Harry could say anything Mr. Weasley spoke.
"She needs to get to St. Mungo's. We will talk about things later, Harry." And with that, the whole seven person family was gone. Harry knew without looking that Ron was gone, too. He loved his sister dearly, even after all that she had put them through.
Harry didn't move though, he couldn't. He stayed there on the ground and remained motionless. He knew things were going on around him. Death Eaters were being tied up and taken away, people were being identified, but he didn't care. A sinking sensation was coming over him. Ginny could be dead. Why? For him. She had seen her mistake and had thrown herself in front of a deadly curse for him. She could be dead. One more stacked onto Harry's guilt list. How many more people could he lose? How many would die because of Harry's incapability's? All of a sudden, the weight that had a moment ago seemed bearable, was now crashing down on him with the weight of a mountain troll.
How could he do this? How could he save the world all by himself? Then a cool, delicate hand touched his shoulder. He knew without turning around who it was.
"You're not alone, Harry," she whispered. "And it's not your fault."
"Can you read minds?" Harry asked, slightly bitter. Even though she was right, it wasn't the moment.
"No, but I know you. I know how your guilt complex works," she continued softly.
"Thanks. I appreciate that…but what just happened?" Harry asked looking at his hands and the gun still lying between his knees. It looked so cold and cruel now. It had taken a life. Harry had taken a life. "I killed him, Hermione…." Harry whispered.
"Yes, but you did it for the right reasons."
"Is there ever a right reason to kill someone?" Harry asked wisely. "Who are we to decide who is deserving of life?"
"Very true. We aren't. But who would have died? Would he have taken that second chance with you? Would he have spared you? Obviously, he didn't do that for Ginny. Would he have done that with you?" Hermione asked, kneeling next to him.
"No." Harry answered sullenly.
"Exactly."
Harry stared at the gun on the ground. How could he pick it up and continue to do what he had to do, knowing what it cost him. Now he knew the toll that it took, the things that he risked, the things he sacrificed. The weight of taking that burden was huge. And yet, he still leaned down and picked up the gun and holstered it. This was his fight, his responsibility to finish this, and that was something that he could not turn away from. He could not turn a blind eye away from that and neglect the greater need. Maybe he had a saving people thing, but that was about to save the world.
Harry stood, but that hand never left his shoulder. It stayed there, much the same way that Harry knew she would always be there for him.
"Thanks, Hermione. You're right, as usual. It still hurts though," he said.
"I know, and I want to talk about what happened. Last time I checked, the killing curse was green. What was that that you used?" She asked as if she was in class.
"I have no idea. We will talk about that later though," he said as an Auror approached him.
"Mr. Potter, sir, I would just like to thank you for your assistance today. My name is Gabriel Madalin, I am the head of the Auror department. I don't know what we would have done without you and your team. You have two very well trained friends there. I saw the way your team fought today, and I couldn't help but notice that you were held back somewhat," the tall man said. Harry looked him over and noticed that he had slick salt and pepper hair that was smoothed back. The scars that crisscrossed some of his face didn't seem out of place with the combat suite that he wore. He did his job and there were no butts about it.
"Held back? How?" Harry asked, intrigued about what the man meant. He was interested by what he had to say, but as always he was wary of anyone who worked for the Ministry.
"Well, you three were still using stunners. A few weeks ago a law was passed that the Auror department had license to kill Death Eaters. That, of course, allows us to AK them without getting penalized. I am sorry to see the war come to this point, but all the same," Gabriel said, smiling slightly. "Between you and me, the heads of the departments have taken far too long to do anything about this war. We should have been doing some of this stuff three years ago at the Quidditch World Cup. But, of course, Fudge wanted to keep his head up his arse," he said. Harry's trust level in him went up somewhat, he could tell that there was no politicking with this man.
"If it has come to that, then it has. There is no changing that. There isn't any other way to handle them, what with Azkaban being fairly worthless," Harry replied bitterly.
"Exactly," Gabriel agreed. "After watching the way you three fought today, I would like to offer all three of you jobs. You obviously don't need combat training, and I am down members. We could use you," he said, offering his hand out slightly.
Harry's first reaction was to decline all together. Only because he didn't like the Ministry. But after a few moments he realized that all that needed to be put aside. Having Ministry aid could benefit all three of them. "I need time to think about that. Can we have a meeting about it, say tomorrow?" Harry asked, weighing the options.
"Yes, of course! I will be in my office at the Ministry. Goodness knows I will have a load of paper work to do on this little fiasco," he said, sounding disgruntled.
"Good. I will have me and…my team, in to see you," Harry said smiling dismissively and shook the man's hand. They said their goodbyes before Harry and Hermione walked off.
"We need to go see Ginny," Hermione said softly.
"I know," Harry replied. "I'm afraid though. I don't want to see her hurt. She may have been a nuisance, but I never wanted anything bad to happen to her." Harry carefully studied his shoes.
"Alright, let's go," he said, and before she could reply, he took her arm and side-along apparated her to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries.
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