Soul Searching/End Game
SS Chapter 18 - Birthday Surprises
By Chem Prof
Chapter 18, Birthday Surprises
The first order of business that morning was a visit to Gringotts. This was the day that he would finally get access to the Potter vault. Bill had sent word that he had also completed the inventory of the Black vault. Getting there was a challenge. First Hermione, in her blonde disguise, apparated to Fred and George’s shop where she was met by Ron and Tonks and the three of them were able to make their way to Gringotts without attracting any undue attention.
Not so for Harry. Even with his concealment cloak he was recognized several times as he and Remus followed a few minutes later. Fortunately, they entered the wizarding bank before any reporters showed up, having only to deal with a few wellwishers. Once in the bank the goblins skillfully discouraged any further interruptions.
As Griphook led them to the tunnels, Bill handed him several pages of parchments with a listing of the contents of the Black vault as well as an entire sheaf of parchment detailing the Potter holdings. Just as they got into the little carts to head to the vaults, Bill also told him with a raised eyebrow that Ragnok wanted to speak with him when he was finished at the vaults.
This was Ron’s first trip down to Harry’s vault, and he was delighted with the rollercoaster type ride. Hermione, on the other hand, merely closed her eyes and clutched tightly onto Harry’s arm just as she had done the last time. Tonks whooped and hollered during the ride as Remus did his best to pretend he didn’t know the crazy witch riding in the cart with him.
The Potter vault was just a little farther down than the Black vault, but was twice the size. As Griphook produced a key that was considerably more ornate and much larger than Harry’s original vault key, Ron just stood gaping at the carvings on the vault door and at the forbidding lock itself. With a creaking noise revealing more than a decade of disuse, the door slowly opened and the three teens and two adults stepped inside.
It was an enormous room, with the look of a natural cave that had been smoothed out. An enormous alcove was filled with Galleons, with some Sickles and Knuts mixed in. One wall had a large collection of weapons and wall ornaments, including tapestries, paintings, portraits, and assorted decorative items. Several shelves of rare-seeming books lined another wall. There were also several large chests filled with jewelry, various documents, and several magical items. Along with all this, scattered around the vault were some objects not immediately identifiable.
Harry found his eye caught by the jewelry collection, which included rings, pins, and necklaces, many of which had charms on them, and also by the collection of weapons. At Hermione’s suggestion he decided that it would be easiest to refer to the parchments to figure out what was what. As he and Remus began to scan the Potter list, Ron and Hermione started on the Black list, with Tonks looking over their shoulders.
Ron made the first significant discovery. “Harry! You have another invisibility cloak!” This was good news indeed. It was the one thing they had been so far unable to purchase.
“Good news, Ron. That one can be yours.” Sensing Ron start to object, Harry reasoned, “well, Hermione and I can fit under my cloak a lot easier than you and I can, so it makes sense that you get it instead of her.” Ron was unable to find fault with that argument and besides, he always did want an invisibility cloak, so he returned to the list.
“I own a castle?” This time it was Harry who spoke up. At the end of a list of properties owned by the Potters was the name and a detailed description of a castle. Ron came hurrying over to look over his shoulder as he read the description.
“Now that you mention it, I do remember James saying something about that,” mused Remus. “He said it was empty and hadn’t been used in a long time as far as he knew.”
“Bloody hell! Harry, it even has a dungeon. And a courtyard and a great hall and a separate ballroom. Harry, you can even hold your own Yule Ball.” Ron laughed at Harry’s grimace as he recalled his last Yule Ball. “And how many – ten, fifteen, twenty – twenty bedrooms, Harry. We could hold a Weasley family reunion there and still have room to spare.” Harry, however, was having other thoughts about the uses of a castle when suddenly a gasp came from Hermione.
“H…Harry. Look at this.” Hermione was pale and trembling and Tonks was standing there in shock. Harry hurried over to her, the castle forgotten for the moment. Hermione’s shaking finger was pointed to an entry among the Black family jewelry. Listed there was a locket with a miniature carving of a snake and a large, ornate S. “It couldn’t be. Could it?” She looked up at Harry hopefully.
“He put it in the family vault? Why didn’t we think of that before!” Before he knew it he was the subject of a fierce hug from Hermione, and he returned it just as strongly, actually twirling her around once before letting go. Meanwhile Ron had run over and picked up the parchment where Hermione had dropped it, just in time to be grabbed in a Granger hug of his own. Remus and Tonks were enthusiastically slapping the teens on the back, then Tonks managed to get in a few hugs, too.
“OK, OK, let’s just calm down and finish up here, then we’ll go get it,” announced Harry, trying to get them all settled down again. “Take a look at these weapons you two and each pick something out. I already have the sword, but you guys should have something too.”
Tonks led them to the wall of weapons and carefully inspected each one before letting them touch anything. Ron eagerly looked through the collection of swords, daggers, and knives and picked out a sword and scabbard. He strapped it onto his waist and as he pulled his hands away it immediately shrank. “Hey that’s pretty cool. It’s charmed to be out of the way when you’re not using it. I wonder if we can make it invisible, too?” As he was examining his new weapon more carefully Harry turned his attention to Hermione.
Somewhat more reluctantly, she carefully examined the array of blades, finally selecting a jeweled dagger. Harry noted that it was similar in size to the golden dagger of Rowena Ravenclaw, and realized that it too had been designed for a woman’s use. Tonks and Remus each picked out a dagger as well.
“Hermione, could you look at this jewelry next? Some of the rings or necklaces are supposed to have protective charms on them. Maybe we can each take one and distribute some to our friends.” Hermione and Remus put their heads together and studied Harry’s list, while Ron and Tonks continued to peruse the Black parchments. Harry looked around at the rest of the vault for a while.
“There’s a few of those in the Black vault, too,” declared Ron. “Most of them are cursed, but Bill’s notes say that a few of them have good charms on them. Harry acknowledged this and returned to his browsing. Soon the rest of them had collected all the charmed rings and necklaces they wanted and were ready to go.
At the last minute, Harry grabbed a set of throwing knives that had caught his eye. At Ron’s questioning look he explained, “I thought Ginny might like these. She’s pretty accurate at throwing a quaffle, so I thought she might be good with knives.”
Ron groaned. “Don’t remind me. She used to throw stuff at me all the time when she got mad. Deadly accurate, too. Could hit me in the head from just about any angle.” Hermione giggled at this and Ron glared at her before looking back at Harry. “You better not let Mum see them though.” Tonks and Remus shared a grin at this but didn’t say anything. Harry agreed and they left the Potter vault.
Griphook appeared and they returned to the carts and were soon at the Black vault. Although Harry and Hermione had been here once before, this was Ron’s first time in this vault as well, and he explored while the rest of them looked for the locket. Fortunately, the listing was very precise as to location and description and they soon found it. Before they could touch it Ron appeared beside them and insisted on doing the honors again. He carefully picked it up and held it for them all to see. It matched perfectly the one Harry remembered from the pensieve memory.
“That’s it!” he shouted, and another round of hugs ensued. After they had regained their composure, Hermione and Remus, consulting the parchment list of the other jewelry, carefully picked out the charmed necklaces and rings that they wanted. Soon they were ready to return to the surface.
-ooOoo-
When they entered the lobby, another goblin was waiting to escort him to meet with Ragnok. Harry told Ron and Hermione to take the locket to Bill and have him check it for curses, then have him take it to McGonagall. He figured that between the two of them they would be able to come up with a way to keep the true nature of the locket secret from Bill, and turned to follow the goblin while Tonks and Remus waited in the lobby.
“Good morning sir,” Harry greeted the head goblin, causing the assistant goblin to look at him strangely. Harry noted the look and wondered if he was as famous with goblins as he was with wizards.
“Good morning, Mr. Potter. I hope your visit to your vaults was a profitable one.”
“It was indeed. Thank you so much for your bank’s assistance. It has been most helpful to us.”
“I am glad to hear it. I believe that what I have for you here may be of even more assistance.” He handed Harry a sealed packet. Harry looked puzzled for a moment, then recalled his final request of the head goblin at their first meeting.
Harry bowed to him and replied, “I am sure that any assistance that you may provide will prove very valuable. Thank you again for your efforts on my behalf.” Ragnok gave a slight bow and the assistant ushered them from the room.
After leaving them in the lobby, the goblin looked after him intently, then returned to the office of the head goblin. Bowing low before his superior, he asked, “Master Ragnok, may I be permitted to make an observation?”
“You may, Bladrok.”
“Mr. Potter is a very unusual wizard.”
“Indeed he is, Bladrok, indeed he is. Are you familiar with the contents of the document we prepared for Mr. Potter?”
“I am. I supervised its preparation. This is an unprecedented step that we are taking.”
“It was not a decision to be made lightly. It is because he is most unusual that I have decided to aid him in his battle against the dark lord. If he is victorious it will be most profitable for us.”
-ooOoo-
Their exit from Gringotts was not as uneventful as their entrance. Word had spread of Harry Potter’s presence and there was a crowd of onlookers jostling for a glimpse of the Chosen One. To make matters worse, some reporters had turned up.
Sighing with disgust mixed with resignation, Harry quickly motioned to Ron and Hermione to stay out of sight and plunged into the crowd with Remus and Tonks. Ignoring the questions of the reporters, who asked everything from whether he was after the Minister of Magic’s job to how he was planning to celebrate his birthday to the current state of his love life, he finally made it out to Diagon Alley and back to the twins’ shop.
When Ron and Hermione finally caught up with him, he had secluded himself in their back room and was reading the parchment from Ragnok. However, his mood had changed immensely. With a grin on his face he handed to parchment to Hermione, and she began reading it as Ron looked over her shoulder. Harry enjoyed watching as her face cycled from curiosity, to interest, to satisfaction, to astonishment, finishing with wide-eyed excitement.
“Harry! This is fantastic!” Hermione squealed as she launched herself at him. A few seconds later Ron finished reading as well.
“Bloody hell!” Ron followed Hermione’s example, reaching around her to congratulate Harry, and making an impromptu sandwich out of her.
“Mmph, Ron let me out!” A well placed elbow to the ribs gained her some breathing room. Harry, still grinning, retrieved the parchment and held it out so they could all study it.
Mr. Potter,
We hope that the following information may be of some use to you.
Tom Riddle held a vault at Gringotts from 1945 through 1981, when it was seized by the Ministry after your first encounter with him resulted in his disappearance. The following items were stored in that vault at one time or another during that period:
A cup that once belonged to Helga Hufflepuff
A dagger that once belonged to Rowena Ravenclaw
A locket that once belonged to Salazar Slytherin
A sword that once belonged to Godric Gryffindor
You may be further interested in the fact that the same Hufflepuff cup later resided briefly in a vault belonging to the Crouch family.
Your humble servant,
Ragnok
Hermione was still bouncing with excitement. “That’s the last one. It must have been Barty Crouch, Jr. who had it. All we need to do is figure out what he did with it.”
Ron did not seem to be paying attention, however. Harry noticed that he had a thoughtful look on his face and motioned to Hermione. Hermione immediately calmed down and looked over at Ron expectantly.
“Winky.” Ron finally looked up at them, then repeated his unexpected comment. “Winky.”
Seeing their blank looks, which startled him a little since it was usually the other way around, he smiled triumphantly and explained. “Winky was the Crouch family house elf. She can tell us whether it was ever in their mansion, and maybe what happened to it. We have to be careful the way we ask it, though. She still considers them her masters to some extent. We’ll have to phrase it in a way that it seems like we’re trying to help them.”
“You mean like, ‘There might be a cursed object in the house and we want to get rid of it?’” Harry offered. Ron nodded. Harry noticed that Hermione was being uncharacteristically silent, and glanced at her questioningly. Seeing his concern, she smiled reassuringly at him and sighed, then turned to Ron.
“That was a brilliant analysis, Ron. You better not make a habit of that or I’ll start to think that you don’t need me around anymore.”
Ron started to apologize and assure her that they did in fact need her around very much when he noticed the grins on both of his friends’ faces and realized she was teasing him.
“That’s right Hermione,” he shot back good-naturedly. “You better watch out. I’m going to be getting my NEWTs in runes and arithmency before we go back to school. They’re both mostly analytical reasoning you know. I’ll be glad to tutor you if you need it though.” That comment broke them all up and they shared a good laugh before leaving the shop to get ready for the afternoon.
-ooOoo-
Not wanting to put up with Mrs. Weasley’s scowls all afternoon, Hermione chose a simple tee shirt and jeans for the afternoon. Even so, she happily noted that they fit her quite snugly as she checked herself in the mirror before they left the house. She glanced up in the mirror to see Harry smirking at her and felt herself color slightly.
“Don’t worry, you look great in whatever you wear,” he said teasingly. She playfully hit him in the arm, but smiled happily at the compliment.
“You don’t look too bad yourself,” she returned. He was dressed in a tee shirt and jeans also, one of his ‘chocolate’ shirts that made her roll her eyes every time she saw it. “Hoping for a little chocolate kiss this afternoon?” He colored a little himself and shrugged. It was hopeless, he thought. He never won one of these teasing battles. He took her hand and they smoothly disapparated with barely a sound.
Hermione had told Harry that the Weasleys were planning a small birthday gathering for him that afternoon. He decided that she was working with a completely different definition of the word ‘small’ than he was. In addition to the whole Weasley family besides Percy, including Bill and Fleur, McGonagall, Flitwick, Hagrid, and Pomfrey from Hogwarts were present. He also spotted Angelina Johnson and Alicia Spinnet, presumably there with Fred and George, as well as Neville and his grandmother, Luna and her father, Tonks and Remus, and a few other members of the Order of the Phoenix that had helped guard Harry over the years, including his former neighbor Mrs. Figg. He was very glad to see that Mundungus Fletcher was not among them. He had never forgiven the unscrupulous thief for stealing stuff from Sirius.
As soon as Harry and Hermione arrived Ginny rushed out to give him a hug. “Harry, where have you been? We haven’t seen you in more than a week.”
“Uh, we’ve been pretty busy,” Harry stammered, looking over to Hermione for support. He didn’t really want to tell Ginny he was avoiding her for fear of getting too close.
Hermione frowned at him but spoke up. “We’ve been doing something for Professor McGonagall. She had us working on a project that took a whole week.” She gave Harry a look that told him that the two of them would be discussing this later. “But wait until you hear what we found this morning.”
Ginny’s annoyance instantly dissipated at the opportunity to be treated as a confidant. They quickly found Ron and headed into the house to talk privately.
Ginny was bouncing with excitement by the time they had concluded the tale. Harry, though, had more on his mind. He pulled out several of the charmed necklaces and rings that they had removed from the vault and insisted that they each take one. While most of the necklaces looked like they were made for women, some of the rings were definitely masculine.
He picked out one of these and Ron picked out another. Hermione chose a necklace. Ginny was undecided. One of the necklaces really appealed to her, but on the other hand she rather liked the idea of having a ring from Harry! When Ron commented that he would have to make sure not to wear his ring around Molly, she realized that that would be even more of a problem for her, and chose a long silver pendant with a sparkling emerald set in a medallion at the bottom that could easily be hidden under her shirt or robes if necessary.
Hermione found her necklace fascinating. It was on a long gold chain, and it held a cross shaped symbol with four equal length arms and a red gemstone in the center. She couldn’t recall seeing anything like it in the wizarding world and found the idea of wearing a protective cross necklace comforting.
As Harry put his ring on it glowed briefly and Hermione gasped. She shook her head at his inquiring look and he turned back and took it off to examine it more closely, missing the blush that spread across Hermione’s face. Hidden from view inside her shirt, her gemstone had also glowed at the instant that he put his ring on, creating a warm feeling where it rested on her chest that quickly spread out to the sides, almost like a caress. She didn’t dare tell any of them that Harry had created that feeling in that particular area of her anatomy! ‘Or that you enjoyed it’ said the annoying voice in her head.
Harry’s ring was gold as well, inlaid with a red gemstone that Hermione now realized was identical to her own. As he looked at it he noticed some runes inscribed along the inside and asked Hermione if she could translate them. She immediately recognized the rune for power and was trying to work out the rest when a sly grin crossed her face. “Let’s see,” she began, “One ring … to rule … them all …” She peered up under her eyebrows at Harry to see if he was catching on.
Harry frowned, then his face broke into a grin. “One ring to find them?” he responded.
“One ring to bring them all,” Hermione continued, “and in the darkness bind them,” they finished together and burst out laughing.
Ginny and Ron were starting to get used to this behavior from their friends. “Which movie is it this time?” inquired Ron in exasperation.
“No, this is from a book – a series of books actually. Harry’s started to read them this summer.”
Harry thought for a minute. “Don’t you think Gandalf is a lot like Dumbledore? Powerful, all-knowing. Leading the fight against the dark lord even though no one wants to believe him.”
“Sticking poor Frodo with a burden that he never wanted?” Hermione responded, suddenly growing serious. “You’re a little like Frodo, you know. Nobly accepting the quest, determined to see it through no matter the odds.”
“Along with his trusted friend who never leaves his side?” asked Harry softly. Hermione suddenly felt the need to study her shoes.
“Hello! You two are doing it again.” They whirled around to see Ron grinning at them, while Ginny had a puzzled look on her face. “Going off in your own world and forgetting that there’s anyone else in the room.”
Harry and Hermione looked at each other sheepishly.
“The ring?” Ron prompted.
“Oh.” Hermione quickly recovered her thoughts. “I think it’s some kind of power ring. It seems designed to temporarily boost the wearer’s power levels. You shouldn’t wear it all the time,” she added, trying to hide the embarrassed look that crossed her face. “Only put it on when you really need it.” Harry wondered at her expression, but decided not to pursue it. Hermione turned her attention to Ron’s ring and Ginny’s pendant, and eventually declared that theirs had charms that would reduce the effects of curses and hexes.
-ooOoo-
Harry was having a marvelous time at the party, and had managed to talk with nearly every one of his friends. They had all brought small simple gifts, mostly books. Apparently everyone thought he should specialize in defense against the dark arts, as nearly every one was on that topic. To his delight, Hermione had given him his own set of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. As he opened it she commented tongue in cheek that now she wouldn’t have to worry about him messing up her copy by folding down the corners of the pages.
As he finished the presents Fleur approached with a devious look on her face. “It is a tradition in my country,” she announced to everyone, “for all the girls to give the wizard a kiss on his seventeenth birthday and tell him how much he means to them.” Before Harry could move or object she was right in front of him. “I shall go first.”
She startled Harry with a passionate kiss that took his breath away, to the accompaniment of whoops and hollers from the males present. Fleur stepped back and said, “I have wanted to do that for two years,” which generated more laughter from the others. Then she leaned closer and said in a low voice only Harry could hear. “Thank you for accepting me. I know what you told the others and I am grateful. You must know that Bill and I will do whatever we can to help you.” Harry nodded and she continued. “Here is my advice to you.” She motioned over to where Ginny stood by Hermione. “You must follow your heart.”
As she stepped away, she proclaimed, “Now the rest, oldest to youngest.” As she walked away the guys all cheered again, but Bill called out, “Shouldn't that tradition only be for single girls?”
Fleur gave him a sweet smile and tossed her hair, “Ah well, so we change the tradition a little,” and more laughter followed.
Angelina looked at Alicia and said, “I guess I’m next.” She walked up to Harry with Alicia following along and gave him a quick, friendly kiss. “I first knew you as only a teammate, but eventually I came to know you as a friend and a teacher. Thank you for everything you’ve done for me Harry.” Alicia did likewise. “Same for me, Harry. You really are an amazing teacher, and you’re not too shabby at quidditch either.” They both smiled at him and stepped back, to more cheering from the guys.
"Why didn't anyone tell me about this tradition yesterday when it was my birthday?" complained Neville good-naturedly. Angelina and Alicia promptly ran over and each gave him a kiss, causing him to blush furiously.
Now it was Hermione’s turn. Harry was suddenly very nervous as she approached. When she was right in front of him, she winked and leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek, to a chorus of boos. Pulling him into a hug, she whispered to him. “You got the real one three weeks ago. Ginny already looks ready to kill Fleur.” She pulled back slightly and looked into his eyes. “There isn’t enough time to tell you everything you mean to me, Harry. I don't even want to think about what my life would be like without you in it. Thank you for being you.” She hugged him again and kissed him on the other cheek, eliciting a fresh round of boos.
Luna walked up in her typically dreamy fashion, then surprisingly pulled Harry into a serious snog. ‘Wow, who knew Luna would be such a good kisser?’ thought Harry, as the cheering and catcalls resumed.
As the others had, Luna spoke in a low voice that no one could overhear. “Ginny’s just going to have to deal with it,” she said. “Harry, thank you for accepting me. You befriended me when everyone else could only see the strange girl in weird clothing. Thank you for everything you’ve done for me. You know I’ll support you in anything you do.” She also finished with a hug and walked away.
Ginny was the last one. Harry realized that Fleur had set it up this way and wondered if Ginny appreciated it. He suspected not. As she walked toward Harry, hesitantly at first and then with more determination, Hermione found Fleur. “I’ve never read anything about this French tradition,” she mentioned casually.
“Oh, I made it up,” the part Veela answered with a Gallic shrug. Hermione made a supreme effort to stifle her mirthful gasp. Fleur smiled at her. “I was surprised that you did not take advantage of your opportunity.”
“Not you too,” Hermione moaned. “What part of ‘just friends’ don’t you people understand?”
“Perhaps we see something that you do not?”
“What I see is that Harry’s enjoying himself just fine right now,” Hermione retorted, a little more snappishy than she had intended. Fleur merely raised an eyebrow and turned back to the couple.
Ginny was apparently attempting to outdo Fleur’s kiss, and to Harry’s mind, was succeeding admirably. The whoops and hollers started again, but were suddenly broken by a loud voice calling, “Oi, Potter! Get your hand off my sister’s bum!” followed by raucous laughter. Harry turned bright red as he quickly moved his hand up to Ginny’s waist, not even realizing that it had wandered. Ginny finally broke the kiss and leaned back, regarding him with an extremely satisfied expression. She had been planning exactly how to say this next part and intended to get it just right.
“Harry,” she said in a low voice that sent shivers down Harry’s spine. “You not only saved my life, you’re the bravest, nicest, most considerate and most noble man I know. Maybe even too noble,” she added, with a sly smile on her face. “You’re my hero in every possible way.”
Just as she leaned in for another kiss, Harry caught an unmistakeable sound that brought dread to his heart. The pop-pop-pop of multiple apparations. No! Not here! Not now!
Instantly he spun around, his right hand drawing his wand and his left hand forcing Ginny to the ground. “Everybody get down!” he shouted, while hearing several other voices screaming the same thing. He dropped into a crouch looking toward the direction the pops had come from just as a green streak flashed by overhead. Before he cold blink a granite slab appeared in front of him. Darting a look to his side he saw Hermione crouched down with Ron, conjuring another slab in front of him and herself. Within seconds more slabs appeared as Flitwick and McGonagall noticed what Hermione was doing and added some of their own (Flitwick conjuring and McGonagall transfiguring), while Remus and Tonks did the same in another part of the yard.
Twenty to thirty Death Eaters had appeared just outside the anti-apparation wards and several had already encountered the impediment jinx embedded in the wards as they rushed forward. Harry fired of a series of stunning spells and was pleased to see four Death Eaters drop as his and other spells connected.
“Fred, George, watch the flanks!” shouted Ron as he looked around, determined to avoid the outcome of the attack at Diagon Alley. Mum, Dad, stay back and watch behind us!”
The slab in front of Harry exploded and was immediately replaced by another. He looked over at Hermione and gave a grim nod of thanks and quickly turned his attention to the Death Eaters. To his dismay, the stunned ones had already been revived and more were fighting their way through the wards.
“Focus your fire on the ones caught in the jinx!” shouted Remus. “Don’t let any through. And stay down!” Ginny popped up and fired off a spell and ducked back, and Harry added two more of his own. But he soon realized that crouched behind the barrier like this they couldn’t shoot many spells, and the ones they did get off weren’t very accurate. Others had realized the same thing. Remus and Tonks stood up as a pair and with one firing and one shielding quickly downed several Death Eaters before ducking back. Off to the other side, Harry noticed Bill and Fleur doing the same. Suddenly his eye caught a streak of blonde hair rushing forward. Dodging a quick jinx Luna dove to a stop beside Hermione and Ron. After a short exchange Hermione looked up at Harry. Realizing instantly what she was doing, he stood up and fired off a half dozen spells, drawing several in return that he ducked while Hermione scampered over to join him.
“Ready?” he asked after she had caught her breath. She nodded.
“Harry, no!” cried Ginny pulling at his shoulder. He turned and shook his head at her.
“Have to, Gin. We can’t stay here like this.”
He turned back and nodded to Hermione and they both leapt up and he began firing off spells as she shielded. He scored several hits and saw that the Death Eaters were no longer trying to force their way through the barrier, having abandoned several of their comrades, but were now moving off to the sides. With a sinking feeling he realized that they would soon be caught in a crossfire. A tap on the shoulder from Hermione let him know it was time to duck again.
A reducto blast exploded the slab in front of them and again Hermione instantly replaced it. Harry felt a trickle of blood running down his arm and mentally berated himself for not wearing his dragonhide armor today. The reducto blast made him recall the fight in Diagon Alley, and he realized that they had to start using more serious curses. He glanced over at Hermione and saw that she had come to the same conclusion. He gestured to the right and they quickly rose again in unison. This time he fired three reductor curses at the Death Eaters moving to that side and saw two fall with shattered legs. This time, they wouldn’t be getting up so easily he thought grimly. A twang came from somewhere behind him and the third Death Eater fell with a bolt from Hagrid’s crossbow in his chest.
Seeing what he was doing, first Ron and Remus, then Bill and Charlie also began using more destructive spells. Harry noted with admiration that Luna was trying to shield for Ron now. As he and Hermione ducked down again, he realized that several of his friends were down with injuries and out of the fight, but everyone still seemed to be alive. As long as they were firing steadily at the Death Eaters they wouldn’t have time to aim and cast Avada Kedavra, Harry thought hopefully. He was relieved to see that Ginny was still OK, but a little shaken up. She was still managing to get a shot off every so often. He reached over and gave her hand a squeeze, trying to keep her spirits up.
Jumping up again, the pair found that more of the Death Eaters were down, but it wasn’t clear if their side was ahead or behind on this deadly scorecard. He began to cast more reducto curses. Suddenly he felt a sharp pain in his head and staggered back, instantly throwing his full effort into his occlumency shields. He knew that mental signature anywhere. Snape was here! An arm around his waist steadied him, as Hermione held him with her left hand but kept flicking her wand with her right to keep her shields up as spells kept flying at them. Harry gradually fought off the mental attack and could see Snape on the other side of the ward, putting everything he had into his Legilimency spell.
Suddenly Snape crumbled to the ground. Out of the corner of his eye Harry saw Augusta Longbottom who had arisen from behind her barrier, eyes blazing and wand out. Two curses streaked toward her, but before he could shout out a warning they impacted on another shield. Beside Augusta stood Neville, his wand arm trembling. The shield held.
Pop-pop-pop-pop. Harry’s heart sank and he looked despairingly at Hermione. Reinforcements had arrived. Now they would be overmatched.
But these new wizards, though dressed in dark robes, were firing at the Death Eaters! Within seconds another dozen Death Eaters were down. Sensing that tide of the battle had turned against them, the remaining Death Eaters touched portkeys or disapparated, taking several wounded and unconscious with them including, to Harry’s disgust, Snape.
Suddenly it was quiet. Madame Pomfrey appeared from behind one of the barricades at the rear and began examining the wounded. Molly, and Charlie who had learned quite a bit of first aid in his dragon handling career, hurried to assist her.
Harry slowly approached the mysterious blacked garbed wizards, Hermione and Ron a step behind. Suddenly a grin broke out on his face as their dark haired leader stepped forward. “Viktor! Glad you could make it.”
A small smile replaced the scowl that normally resided on the face of Viktor Krum. “Happy birthday, Harry.”
-xox-XOX-XOX-xox-