John snapped his fingers. "Time to begin the plan."
Boom! The floor beneath Harry sank, pulling them down inside.
A loud crack sounded in front of the Death Eaters as a blond man appeared by Apparition.
Kim seized the hand of a Death Eater clutching his wand, pressed his own wand to the man's chest, and cast a Banishing Charm that sent him flying like a cannonball.
Cedric stepped out from the golden doors, wand sweeping around him.
A thick mist poured out, quickly filling the entire hall.
Bellatrix recognized the familiar haze and shrieked in alarm, "Get out of the mist, now!"
Two scarlet bolts shot out from within, striking down two Death Eaters, while a snake coiled tightly around Bellatrix's ankle.
Rookwood had just begun to retreat when a massive hand reached from the fog and clamped onto his wrist.
"Arrrrrgg!" A silver light pierced his abdomen and twisted violently inside him.
Percy raised his wand and with a single Disarming Charm wrenched the wand from another Death Eater.
Fleur leapt as if freed from gravity, her spells firing rapidly, one grazing an unfortunate man's ear.
Cedric tapped a stone at his side, transforming it into a small bird that darted straight for a Death Eater's eyes.
The mist spread farther and farther.
Bellatrix had only just rid herself of the snake when out of the haze rushed a platinum-blond head, closing in fast.
"It's you?!"
Bellatrix's eyes locked onto Draco Malfoy.
"Of course it's me!" Malfoy shouted back.
Facing the woman who was technically his aunt, Malfoy didn't hold back in the slightest. "Confringo!"
The spell shot toward Bellatrix and struck her petrified arm.
"Argh!!"
It exploded on impact, blasting the arm apart and tearing a scream from Bellatrix's throat.
"Now you look a bit more bearable, you ugly hag."
Malfoy's words only stoked her fury—Bellatrix went completely mad, hurling curses at him in a frenzy.
What had looked like certain death began to shift. Harry, crouched in the pit that had swallowed him, glanced up toward the roiling mist.
"That mist… they must have made it," Harry thought, remembering the fog in the Department of Mysteries.
"Harry, stay here."
Sirius tried to climb out, but he was badly wounded, his strength faltering.
"You're hurt, Sirius—let me go check instead," Harry said anxiously.
"No, Harry. You're what matters most," Sirius pressed him down firmly. "You're our hope. Voldemort wants nothing more than to kill you. You have to protect yourself."
Burdened with the mission of being the Chosen One, Harry fell silent.
He remembered what Draco had said: "You're not the savior, Potter."
"But Hermione and the others are still out there," Harry said stubbornly. "And so are Loony and Dumbledore."
"They'll be fine." Sirius glanced at Tonks. "Keep an eye on Harry."
Tonks, pale-faced, nodded. Sirius's keen sense of smell would allow him to track the others precisely.
Clambering out, he found himself surrounded by a vast expanse of misty white. Inhaling deeply, he caught the tangled scents hanging in the air.
He shifted back into his black dog form, determined to find Hermione and the two girls first.
...
Hermione stirred and slowly regained consciousness. Opening her eyes, she saw the great battle still raging on.
"Ginny, Luna—wake up." She shook her friends until they stirred.
The Death Eaters had fled from the fog and paid them no mind.
The three crouched low, moving quickly in the opposite direction.
But after only a few steps, Hermione was suddenly yanked back. Instinctively she grabbed Ginny, and Ginny caught hold of Luna.
Three startled cries rang out.
The three of them were pulled into a shelter. Just as they were about to raise their wands, they saw Lupin's pale face.
"Lupin." Hermione quickly lowered her wand.
"Don't go out. It's chaos out there." Lupin seemed injured; even speaking required several pauses.
"Lupin, are you alright?" Ginny hurriedly asked.
He forced a faint smile, then turned his gaze to Hermione and asked seriously, "Hermione, do you know why Sir Silverhand… ehm.. John appeared here?"
How could Hermione know? Only moments ago she had still been reeling from the shock of John dying and then coming back to life.
She shook her head, lips trembling. "John must have his reasons. Maybe… to save someone…"
"I'm afraid it's not that simple," Lupin panted, cold sweat beading on his forehead. "I once worked under Johnny Silverhand. He's far from the kind man you think you see."
"Perhaps he came with a purpose. And I suspect that purpose has to do with Harry."
Lupin's suspicion wasn't unfounded. When he first regained consciousness, he had overheard John making a deal with Harry.
As someone who had once been an employee at Johnny Silverhand's exclusive shop, he knew all too well—Johnny Silverhand was ruthless.
He could steal a soul with a casual gesture, and just as easily gamble away a life while winning people over with charm.
For Harry to be the target of such interest could only mean trouble.
He wanted Hermione to warn Harry—never to make a deal with John.
But Hermione still held faith in John. She hesitated and said, "John wouldn't do that. Even if he and Harry have their differences, he would never hurt him."
Lupin glanced at Ginny and Luna. Ginny looked uncertain too. In all the stories she'd heard about John, there had never been anything about him hurting people. But Harry's safety mattered above all.
Luna, however, spoke with conviction: "John wouldn't hurt anyone. He's a gentle man."
Lupin coughed twice, his face full of helplessness.
These children had never seen John's ruthless side. Did they still think he was just some student?
This was Johnny Silverhand—someone who, in only a few short years, had amassed the power to influence the entire wizarding world.
A man like that could never be a harmless little rabbit.
Just as he was despairing, Sirius came running over.
"Moony, are you alright?"
"Padfoot," Lupin looked at him and saw he was badly injured too. It seemed that the outcome of this battle would depend entirely on Dumbledore.
And just then— Boom!
Dumbledore and Voldemort were finally nearing a decisive moment.
The effect of the Sovereign's Authority had faded.
Voldemort flicked his hand and sent the obstructing Lucius flying.
Dumbledore seized the moment and swung his wand, making the ground sink.
"Running away, Tom?"
He taunted Voldemort with words. He knew killing him now was pointless—if Voldemort was cornered, he would simply vanish and hide.
And Dumbledore wasn't certain he would live long enough to see Voldemort's next return. All he could do was force him to retreat.
Sure enough, Voldemort's expression flickered several times at those words.
He had thought that with the support of the Death Eaters he could deal with Dumbledore, but those useless fools were far too incompetent.
From the corner of his eye, he caught sight of someone rushing out of the mist.
He smiled. Fush~!
In an instant, his body vanished.
Dumbledore's face darkened, his wand sweeping in wide, fluid arcs.
"Hermione, Ginny, Luna!" Harry cried out his friends' names.
The witch statue lunged toward him as he broke from cover.
But just as it was about to reach him, Harry's scar seared with agony. His body burst with power, blasting the statue away.
All around him, the shattered debris of the floor rose into a circle, enclosing him within.
"Harry?" Dumbledore turned, batting away Lucius's curse and striking him down in a single exchange.
He slowly walked toward Harry. At that moment, Harry seemed like a different person entirely.
His body twisted like a serpent, his eyes narrowing into slitted pupils as he looked at Dumbledore and sneered, "You've lost, old man."
Dumbledore's expression grew solemn, his voice soft. "Harry, what matters is not how you resemble him, but how you are different from him."
Those words seemed to inject strength into the Harry bound by possession. Memories flashed through his mind in a torrent.
School, Grimmauld Place, family, friends, the Weasleys, his godfather…
He writhed on the ground, body contorting.
Then came the vision of Voldemort, making his struggle even more excruciating.
Dumbledore watched him with deep concern. Hermione and the others, along with Ron, ran over as well, worry etched across their faces.
Seeing his friends and family standing by him, Harry clenched his teeth and spat out, "The weak one is you, Voldemort."
"You will never understand love or friendship." He gasped for breath, collapsed on the ground, and with a note of pity in his voice mocked, "I truly pity you."
The visions in his mind began to rewind, and the world around him seemed to rewind with them.
Black mist erupted from within Harry, scattering the dust and forming a barrier that cut him off from the outside.
The darkness coalesced into a human figure—Voldemort, standing before Harry with his wand raised, sneering. "You're a fool, Harry Potter."
Looking down at Harry's powerless state, he jeered, "You will lose everything."
Harry stared at Voldemort. He knew Voldemort was about to flee—yet he couldn't even summon the strength to mock him.
"If you two are done talking," a voice rang out. John appeared inside the circle, smiling lightly. "Then it's time we had our conversation."
Outside, Dumbledore—unable to enter—froze when he saw this.
Hermione caught sight of John and cried out anxiously, "John, save Harry!"
Voldemort's face twisted in disbelief. "How did you get in here?"
John raised a hand and pointed upward, grinning. "The stars guided my way."
Voldemort and Harry both looked up. At some point, the ceiling of the Ministry had turned into a star-filled sky.
Hundreds of stars glittered above. John lifted his wand.
The starlight melted into a cascade of brilliant auroras, descending to envelop the space.
Unfastening his cloak, John caught it in one hand and tossed it back behind him.
His gaze locked onto Voldemort. "For the third time—are you ready, Tom?"
Something seemed to click in Voldemort's mind. His face darkened, growing twisted and cruel.
Outside, Barty Crouch Jr. pushed himself up with his single hand, eyes locked firmly on that scene.
He needed to be certain—who was truly the one he should follow.
This battle would decide his answer, and his fate.
________
o(*￣▽￣*)ブSupport and Read 12 Chapters ahead: Patreon/Dragonel