The Return of the Saviour
The Boy-Who-Lived.
DISCLAIMER: I don't own the world of Harry Potter in any form, as it belongs to J.K. Rowling.
RATING: PG-13 (T) to R (M).
TIMELINE: Takes place during and after Harry's seventh year at Hogwarts. Completely AU after the Order of the Phoenix.
FULL SUMMARY: After Voldemort hits Harry with the killing curse in a battle at Hogwarts at the end of Harry's seventh year, Voldemort is forced to retreat, as his soul is once again ripped out of his body when the killing curse bounces of the boy-who-lived for a second time. However, life isn't all roses as Harry himself disappeared mysteriously when the curse hit. Three years later, Harry is back, but this time with a new identity and new powers. Voldemort has returned, and become stronger than ever in Harry's absence, and it is up to the boy-who-can't-seem-to-die to put a stop to the Dark Lord, once and for all.
PAIRINGS: Harry/Luna, Ron/Hermione, Remus/Tonks.
Beated by: Willow Evenstar
Harry watched in disbelief as smoke and fire rose from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. This wasn't how it was supposed to be! Hogwarts was supposed to be invincible! Ever since he was eleven years old, Harry had grown up, knowing Hogwarts was his home, the only place on earth where he felt completely safe. And here it was, at the end of destruction.
People were fighting, lying dead or severely hurt. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Ron take the Cruciatus for Hermione, pushing her away, to keep her from harm, and he fell down, screaming in pain. They had finally expressed their love for each other in their sixth year, during yet another of their famous arguments at Hogwarts.
Flashback
"...I think our History of magic lesson was great today - the first time professor Binns did not talk about the Goblin wars," Hermione said happily.
Harry nodded. "Yeah...but I was under the impression Salazar Slytherin and Godric Gryffindor didn't get along? Hearing they were best buds from a teacher that has been dead for quite some time isn't enough for me to change my mind."
Hermione frowned. "...Hmm, well, I suppose," Hermione said. "You might be correct, Harry, but I need to check with 'Hogwarts; a History', just to be sure..."
Ron snorted down in his pudding, and Hermione gave him an angry glare.
"What, Ron?"
Ron sighed."For Merlin's sake, Hermione, can't you get into your thick skull that a professor isn't always right? There's no way Gryffindor and Slytherin ever got along! And you can't always run to your books for help - they have to be wrong sooner or later."
Hermione stared in shock at Ron, at loss for words, and so was everyone else at the table. Finally, she started to splutter indignantly, and Ron smirked, seeing this as a victory. Imagine his shock when Hermione stood up abruptly, and started screaming at him.
"YOU JUST CAN'T ACCEPT THAT SOMEONE IS ACTUALLY USING THEIR BRAIN!" She yelled. "EVER SINCE I MET YOU, YOU'VE BEEN ACTING LIKE A PRAT TO ME! ALWAYS TRYING TO PROVE ME WRONG, ALWAYS TRYING TO RUIN MY HAPPINESS!"
Ron stood up also, yelling back, red in the face."THAT IS NOT TRUE! HOW DO YOU THINK I FEEL, HUH? YOU'RE ALWAYS ACTING LIKE YOU'RE SUPERIOR TO ME - THAT YOU ALWAYS KNOW EVERYTHING!"
"WELL, MAYBE BECAUSE I MOSTLY DO!" Hermione retorted, tears in her eyes, which were blazing angrily.
"THAT'S NOT TRUE!" Ron yelled, furious. "YOU'RE ALWAYS BRAGGING ABOUT! YOU CAN NEVER JUST RELAX AND LET GO OF YOUR ALL-WORLDLY KNOWLEDGE! DO YOU BAVE ANY IDEA HOW STUPID YOU MAKE ME FEEL WHENEVER I'M AROUND YOU!"
"WELL, NO ONE IS FORCING YOU TO SPEND TIME WITH ME, IF THAT'S HOW YOU FEEL, RONALD!" Hermione yelled back, her voice growing louder and shriller for every passing word. "IF YOU FEEL SO SMALL IN MY PRESENCE, THEN WHY DO YOU HANG AROUND ME! WHY ARE YOU ALWAYS ACTING LIKE A PRAT!"
"BECAUSE I LOVE YOU!"
Silence. The expression on Hermione's face was one of outmost shocked, and when looking at Ron, Harry saw he wasn't faring much better. The redhead was stammering, growing redder and redder, as he desperately tried to come up with something to say.
"I-I...H-Hermione...I-I didn't...I-I mean - "
Ron didn't have a chance at saying anything else when Hermione threw herself around his neck and started kissing him. At first, Ron froze, but then he relaxed, and soon, the two were completely unaware of everything but themselves.
End Flashback
Harry was abruptly snapped out of his memory of the 'good days' when he heard a scream of pain, and he spun around,just to see Ginny Weasley lying in a pool of blood, and Luna Lovegood trying to heal her, and at the same time, defend her. Luna. His girlfriend since the beginning of the year...His date and partner since the last...She was the love of his life.
Luna had been there for him during his darkest periods, mourning over Sirius' death. She had stood by him when he didn't feel like he had strength enough to keep going. When he just wanted to give up. She understood when no one else did. He prayed she would make it out of the battle all right.
He saw Neville Longbottom fight alongside Susan Bones from Hufflepuff. Neville had really grown stronger over the past two years, and his self-confidence had risen steadily ever since the battle at the Department of Mysteries - Having his own wand helped a lot.
He saw Dumbledore fight at least twenty Death Eaters at once, and Hagrid shooting arrows with his crossbow. He saw Mad-Eye Moody, Kingsley and Tonks fight side by side at the same time as they screamed out orders to the incoming Aurors.
He saw Severus Snape fighting his fellow Death Eater, Lucius Malfoy. Everyone knew this was the final battle. Nothing mattered anymore. Snape's supposed loyalty to the Dark side was not an issue. Things would end here tonight, and everyone needed to choose a side to fight for. Everyone had to show where their true loyalties lay.
He saw Remus Lupin disarm Peter Pettigrew, and catch the rat's wand easily. Harry had just started to think he had won over the traitor, when Peter threw himself at Lupin, making him drop both Peter's wand and his own, as he tried to pry Peter off him before his silver hand came in contact with Remus' skin. Harry hoped Remus had enough strength left to fight him off, and win.
He didn't want Remus to die. Remus couldn't die...he just couldn't. He was the last true marauder, the last real contact Harry had to his parents and Sirius. The one who filled in the role as guardian after Sirius' death, even though he was mourning as well. During the last two years, the two had become close. Maybe even closer than Harry had been to Sirius, because Sirius hadn't really been there, as he had had to spend his last time in life locked up in Grimmauld place, and be on the run from the Ministry...he and Harry hadn't gotten enough time to get enough each other. They should have had their whole lives. But Sirius' life had been cut short...Too short.
Then he saw Him. Voldemort had finally appeared at the centre of the battle, and Harry watched in horror as his fellow classmates and his professors got hit by one curse after the other. He saw Seamus Finnigan, his room-mate ever since his first year, get hit and knocked down by a green light, and as Harry watched in growing horror, he fell to the ground, never to rise again.
He saw Dumbledore fight his way forward, but Harry knew that he really couldn't do anything. It was up to him. Then he saw Voldemort hit Luna with a bone-shattering curse, and she fell down, screaming in pain, as the curse worked its way through her body, breaking everything in it's path. With a cry of rage, Harry rushed forwards, ignoring his friends' screams, and the curses flying through the air. He only had one thought in his head: To get to Voldemort. To end this once and for all...to fulfil the prophecy.
'…And either must die at the hand of the other, for neither can live while the other survives.'
Harry had never felt such fear before. In his mind, he knew he had lost. He and Voldemort had duelled, and even though Harry had done his very best, and used every ounce of his knowledge and every spell he could think of, it hadn't been enough. No matter how hard he had trained, how much he had learned during the past two years, it hadn't been enough. Voldemort was still stronger. He would always be.
The fight on the grounds had stopped when the duel between Harry and Voldemort began, and his friends now watched in fear as Harry lay on the ground in front of Voldemort's feet, shaking in pain, while the Dark Lord laughed maniacally. The Death Eaters were screaming "Victory!", but Harry couldn't care less. He had lost. He was barely able to move, even a little bit, because of the spells cast by Voldemort. Harry saw dazedly how Dumbledore now tried to get to the Dark Lord, to distract him maybe, or to sacrifice himself for Harry, but the Dark Lord had somehow spun a shield around them, and nothing was able to get through. Nothing; not even the supposedly strongest wizard in the world.
"So this is how it ends, Harry Potter." Voldemort hissed cruelly, with a sardonic smile. Harry barely heard him, but coughed, and spat up blood on the ground. His wand was destroyed, his body broken, and he could already feel himself dying. He had failed. He had failed everyone. He had not managed the task given to him, and now the world was lost - everyone was lost, muggles, wizards and witches alike. Voldemort would show them no mercy.
"I think it would be fitting if you end the same way you ended me," Voldemort mused. "Your mother's protection died when I used your blood to return myself into a body. You are nothing special, Harry – You're just a boy. That 'power the Dark Lord knows not' doesn't exist anymore - a mother's love." The Dark Lord snorted. "You are pathetic - weak. I will have victory, and you will die. Say goodbye to the world Harry. You, the Boy-Who-Lived will rot away in a grave, while I conquer the world!"
He cackled madly, and in that moment, Harry knew for sure that Voldemort was crazy. If he had ever thought that somewhere in Voldemort, existed an ounce of humanity, that thought was long gone. Voldemort was a monster.
Harry watched in a mix of anger and fear, feeling completely helpless, as Voldemort raised his wand over his head, and said the words that would forever change the world. Harry closed his eyes.
"AVADA KEDAVRA!"
The curse hit Harry full on, and he screamed in pain as the green light surrounded him. But something was wrong. Was death supposed to feel like this? Whenever he had seen someone being hit by the killing curse, they had fallen dead on the spot. It had taken less then a second, but this seemed to last forever. Harry opened his eyes, and what he saw would forever be etched into his memory.
The green light from the killing curse exploded off of Harry, and spread out in a big, green wave across the grounds. Everything it hit was destroyed completely, and turned to dust. Everyone ducked, screaming in fear, as the light approached. But what Harry found amazing, was that the green light had hit Voldemort, and he was now the one screaming in pain. He saw as the Dark Lord and the light seemed to fight an inner battle, and then Harry thought he actually saw Voldemort's soul being ripped from his body, when the green-cursed light destroyed it - the Dark Lord's body was just gone - wiped out. He thought he heard Voldemort's screams and how the Dark Lord's soul escaped, fleeting across the ground, fleeing into the Forbidden Forest.
He heard someone screaming his name, but Harry didn't know who. He closed his eyes again, and he was somehow certain that the green light that was surrounding him now engulfed him completely. Everything went black. The people who watched the scene saw how the green light seemingly became one with Harry, lighting him up in a glow, and then how Harry simply vanished. There was no sign that he was ever there. The Boy-Who-Lived had disappeared from existence.
A Link to a Wallpaper for the Return of the Saviour can be found on my profile page.