Unofficial Portkey Archive

Chapter 44

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Harry had his cloak on as he climbed the high wall of the castle. Numerous times he almost slipped on the stones, but he managed to hold on. He was positively sure that using his wand would set of the guards.

He flung himself over the edge of the wall and peered from side to side. He turned and looked at the spot where he knew Dumbledore was standing but he couldn't see him, Dumbledore was invisible just as Harry was.

Harry's heart raced as he waited for the door to open, and on the exact second Harry had expected, the guard came out from the manor onto the top floor. He patrolled here every ten minutes. He hurried down the corridor which Dumbledore had described and pressed against a corner as a guard passed by him. He flicked his wand and hissed

"Imperio."

The guard stopped walking and turned around. He walked three feet ahead of Harry as they hurried towards their destination. The guard reached out and opened the door to the room that had been their goal.

-

The room was a large circular stone room, and it felt like a prison chamber. A large crackling fire was ablaze and next to it set a desk with a man behind it.

Harry had only heard about this man, the man no one could get by because he was protecting Voldemort. He glanced over at the entrance to the stairway leading to the tower were Voldemort was and then back to the man. Could he just run? No. He knew it wasn't that simple. Dumbledore wouldn't have sent Harry for such a simple task.

"Who's there?" the man asked and stood up. The man had long dark hair, and a large hook nose. "Show yourself!" he demanded and whipped out his wand. "Avada Kedavra!" he hissed and the Imperioused guard slumped to the floor with a thud. "Tell me who you are or the alarm will be off in two seconds," the man looked wildly around the room and Harry knew what he had to do. He reached for the edge of the cloak and pulled it off.

The man looked startled at first by his actions and then squinted as if to see him better.

"You?" he asked in both accusation and disbelief.

"Do you know who I am?" Harry asked.

Severus Snape took two long strides towards Harry who mimicked the movement but at the opposite direction. They both had their wands drawn.

Snape stared into his eyes in a strange way and Harry wasn't sure what to do.

"I have waited for you for a long time," he pointed the wand angrily at Harry and sounded almost accusing. He took a small step forwards again, still keeping his eyes locked on Harry's. "Go on then," he said and nodded towards the door leading to the tower. Harry frowned doubtfully - a trap for sure. He stood still.

Snape glowered at Harry. "Go on!" he ordered and when Harry still didn't move he tossed his own wand aside with a hasty motion. Harry didn't have time to think this over; he knew he just had moments before the absence of the guard would be noticed. He backed towards the door to the stone tower.

"Good luck Harry Potter," the stranger whispered as Harry ran up the stairs.

-

"Eloise?" Hermione shrieked as she saw the young woman hiding in the corner.

"Oh my God, Hermione!"

They hugged each other in surprise.

"I thought you were dead," Eloise cried and sat down on the bed.

"No, I got away after the attack on the club. But what are you doing here? How did you get in here?"

Eloise looked very thin and pale, she smelled rather bad too.

"I hid in the streets after the attack, I was so afraid. But then I came here, I thought you'd be here. The old woman next door has been giving me some food."

"But you must have been here for months!" Hermione said and Eloise nodded. "I-I can't believe this. But I am so glad that you're okay of course."

Eloise frowned at her.

"You came here by portkey," she stated and Hermione looked away. "Muggleborns aren't allowed to travel by portkey," she continued.

"I paid a wizard to make me one, I wanted to get back to London," Hermione said dismissively. Having Eloise here would change everything. How should she handle this? Could she tell Eloise? No, she couldn't take the chance.

Eloise looked suspiciously at her but didn't press the point.

"Do you have any food?" she asked and Hermione reached inside her cloak and grabbed the loaf of bread she had brought. Eloise practically lunged for it.

"Have you found anything out when you've been in here?" Hermione asked nonchalantly. Eloise nodded excitedly.

"I usually watch the streets everyday, and I see almost everyone walking by here everyday. It is really exciting. I saw Christina with some older man a few days ago, hand in hand. I think she is back at the club because she is wearing really expensive clothes. And I've seen Draco Malfoy, the minister's son, with a married older lady, sneaking into the Leaky Cauldron late at night. I thought that when I get out of here, maybe I could sell that story to the Witch Weekly and get some gold or something."

She turned to Hermione and grinned. Suddenly her eyes opened wide and she stammered:

"H-How did you get a wand? What did you do?" Eloise had seen the wand sticking out of Hermione's pocket and she pointed accusingly.

The wand was in Hermione's hand before she could react and red light flew from Hermione's wand as she said "Stupefy".

Eloise, sitting on the floor, just tumbled sideways against the side of Hermione's bed.

"Sorry Eloise!" Hermione muttered and laid Eloise down into a sleeping position. "I just can't risk it."

-

Harry opened the door at the top of the stairs to the tower.

"Severus, what now?" a high voice demanded and Harry raised his wand. He was still hidden behind the door and his fast and razor-sharp instincts took in the room in front of him. It was dark, only a few lanterns lit. The room smelled very bad, like death, blood and rot. Harry wrinkled his nose. "Severus?" the man asked and coughed rather weakly. Harry took a steady breath as he came out from behind the open door.

The man in the bed hissed loudly and raised himself in the bed where he was laying; he also raised a wand he had under his covers.

"Who are you? How did you get by my guards?" the man demanded.

Harry didn't answer. "Don't be foolish boy," the man hissed in return.

Harry's eyes darted to the wand, they were both aiming for the others heart and the movement didn't go unnoticed by the man in the bed.

"Many have tried to kill the great Lord Voldemort," the man winced, "as you can see, none have succeeded."

Harry had known what to expect, he had never seen Lord Voldemort but he had heard him described many times. White face, slits as nostrils, and red eyes… he sure did live up to it. But still, the actual sight of this man, creature, made him uncomfortable. He was so inhuman, and the knowledge that he actually was human made it so aberrant…

Hastily Voldemort moved his wand and the large armoire behind Harry came flying towards him, he jumped to the side just as it was about to slam him in the back.

"Too slow," Harry said in a hushed voice and Voldemort squinted.

"Severus?" he called again.

"He isn't coming," Harry said and smiled as Voldemort raised his eyebrows.

"You've killed him? Well done."

Harry shook his head and Voldemort scowled, trying to read Harry's expression to see if he was lying or not. "Who are you?" Voldemort repeated what he had asked when Harry had entered.

"No one you have any memory of. Just a soldier in a war,"

"Well sometimes, a soldier just wants to die. Is that why you are here? Do you want to die Harry Potter?" Harry startled slightly at the mention of his name. "You look so much like your pathetic father, it's almost funny."

Harry's wand twitched involuntarily.

"But you have your m-,,," Voldemort trailed off and seemed to ponder something. Harry glanced at Voldemort's wand again, just waiting for a fraction of a second when he would lose his aim and Harry could curse him. "That's how you got to Severus… of course…" Voldemort smiled mockingly. "Those pretty green eyes… " he continued and Harry knew Voldemort was trying to distract him and he tried to not listen to the words he was saying. "For all those years, who could have believed he would still think about that mudblood whore-"

Harry didn't care how much in danger he was; he just had to stop Voldemort speaking. He couldn't bear hearing another word. He couldn't see into the eyes of the total evil anymore, no matter what he would lose, what it would cost, if he'd die… he raised his wand in a fast flick and as he yelled the words a green light came towards him.

-

Hermione was sitting on the ground, rocking back and forwards, holding her knees. Any minute now, any minute…

The street below was getting busier by the minute but she couldn't do anything until she saw the sign. She kept looking at every face down there. She winced as she bit her nails far too low and she had broken the skin. She had never been a nail biter in her life but now she was chewing away.

"Damn it," she hissed and turned to see that Eloise was still out.

She turned back to the window and `they' caught her attention at once. Fenrir Greyback and Antoin Dolohov walking side by side down the street. They were still quite a bit away and she had at least a minute until they'd get near enough for her to be sure she would hit them.

She glanced over at the small shop across the street. When someone sat down a pitcher of red flowers in the window, it meant it was a go.

She jerked her hand up to her mouth again and bit her bleeding finger. She couldn't even feel it anymore.

"Come on, come on…" she begged, her head snapping from side to side, darting from the window to the two men walking towards her. As Dolohov stopped at a shop window and looked at something she bit her lip. "Yes, just look at that window a bit longer… pleeeease…" she groaned in her head. Her eyes darted back to the shop and she saw the vase just being replaced and red roses being set clearly in the window. Yes!

She raised her wand and took aim, just a few more moments.

She suddenly froze when she felt something hard poke her in the back.

"Don't move…" Eloise hissed.

-

Thanks to my Beta, and thanks to all readers and reviewers!

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