Shadow Phoenix

@ Dark Dragen, firelordeg & April: Thanks for your reviews!

@ All: Sorry, I forgot to put up one chapter yesterday. I got distracted... And Raina is to busy with her studies, to beta my story... meaning, you've to bear my paragraphing and other mistakes.



C24: Loyalty


Harry was after a long day of lessons, self-study, highly complicated potion brewing (Snape's memories were really useful there...), teaching and experimenting with artefact creation, Harry wanted nothing more than to take a long, hot shower.

He discarded his robes in his bathroom, what left him with just his jeans and started to undo the wand-holster on his right wrist, something Hermione had read about in one of her books and decided everyone in the DA had to have it.

Harry had found it to be highly useful.

He didn't even had to draw his wand any more (which he could faster than anyone could blink now), except for new or extremely complicated spells, he just had to make sure he didn't coincidently hit his own hand with his spell.


He had loosed the first of its five straps, when he felt an odd draw.

After a single moment of resistance, ha gave in to it and the next moment he stood in the Slytherin dorm, a spell flying toward him.

He had just enough time to raise his arm, so it didn't hit his chest.

The spell hit him, causing a long, bloody gash at his arm.

Harry used his wandless magic to rip the wand of his surprised assailant out of his hand and to him, as well as everyone else's wand within the room and the one which lay on the floor.

He looked at the scene around him.

Blaise Zabini, Pansy Parkinson, Crabbe, Goyle, Theodore Nott and three other children of Death Eater stood around Draco Malfoy, who sat against the wall, wandless and bleeding from several cuts on his arms and legs.


“I see...”, Harry said slowly.

He took a tear with the fingertip of his left index finger and put it into the gash on his right arm, healing it instantly.

They were shocked enough, for Harry to tend to all of his ally's wounds, before the first of them, Pansy, snapped out of it, turning on her heel and tried to run for it, causing the other ones to follow her example.

But as they reached the door, they found, it wouldn't open.

Panicked they turned back, only to see Harry and Draco standing there bloody but completely healed and in possession of all their wands.


“I's useless.”, Harry mentioned. “I wont let you escape unpunished.”

With a scream of pure fury, Pansy charged at Harry, trying to use her sharp nails like claws.

Harry dodged at the last moment and slapped her with the back of his hand.

She was thrown to the floor, barely conscious.

Crabbe and Goyle, stupid as they were, followed her example again, each of them trying to get a punch at Harry's face.


Their fists stopped abruptly as they met his open palms.

His strong finger closed firm around their big fists, slowly tightening even further.

The two Wizards made futile efforts to pull away from him, starting to whimper.

Then there was a faint crack, as if someone had broken dry wood, followed by screams of pain.

When he let them go, the two sacked to the ground and held their broken hands protective to their chests.


“Must be because of strengthening potion...”, he heard Blaise whisper to the others.

Harry let his gaze wander on the pale faces of his remaining victims.

“Hmm... how should I punish you?”, he asked to frighten them further.

“Wait! I want to deal with Blaise myself.”, Draco mentioned. “He's their leader.”

“How about a little duel with him? If he wins we'll let them get away unpunished.”, Harry suggested.

“Good idea, Potter.”, Draco answered.


Harry draw his wand and with a view smooth moves of his wand, he transformed the room into a duel arena.

“Now, Draco, Blaise on your positions!”, he commanded.

Blaise hesitated only a moment, before he obeyed.

“I'll need my wand.”, he mentioned.

Harry put up a strong shield charm around the others.

“Wait for my command before you attack, or you loose.”, Harry said. “After I start it, by saying 'Duel!', you may use any spell except unforgivables. If you use this spells, admit your defeat, are unconscious or death, you loose. Do you understand these conditions?”

“Yes!”, they both answered.


Harry let go of Blaise's wand, which flew back to his master and stopped, floating right before him.

The Slytherin swallowed, then took hold of his wand.

“Greet!”, Harry commanded.

The opponents bowed slightly at each other.

“Get ready!”

Both raised their wands.

Harry stepped back.

“Duel!”


Curses, hexes, jinxes and defensive spells were cast with adorable speed.

Just once Harry had to take a step back, to evade one of Blaise's spells, which had gone wide, because Draco had hit him at his arm with a cutting spell.

The next moment Draco, who wasn't hit by a single one of his opponent's spells, casted the disarming spell, which the other one couldn't evade or block.

Blaise's wand flew out of his hand again, which was this time catched by the Slytherin's searcher.

Harry waited, as Draco slowly stepped towards his opponent.

“You know, what you have to do.”, Draco said, smiling.

“I wont give up!”

“Well... I'll just have to get a little bit more convincing...”

He fired several painful hexes, jinxes and curses at his helpless opponent.


“Did you change your mind?”, he asked again.

“A'll nvrr afmif ... mee dfeed!”, the other one answered with great effort, spitting out blood in between.
(I'll never admit my defeat!)

“Em... I guess, I shouldn't have used that tongue splitting curse after all... but well... Stupor!”

Blaise lay unconscious on the floor.

“Blaise Zabini is unconscious. He lost, Draco Malfoy has won this Duel.”, Harry announced.

Then he pointed his own wand at Blaise, who waked instantly, coughing out more blood.

Another wave of his wand vanished the shield charm.


“Now, because your friend lost, you wont get around punishment. This still includes the three idiots who dared to attack me. Brave but stupid. Maybe these three should have been sorted into Gryffindor? Well however. I'll make it quick. I was just about to shower before you interrupted me, after all.”

Harry pointed his wand at the frightened group of students.

“Torturas!”


Their screams filled the room for a whole minute, while Draco looked shocked at his friend.

Then Harry lowered his wand and screams became faint whimpers, as the agony of his torturing spell creased.

“I never thought you'd use a spell like this...”, The young Malfoy said warily.

“I know.”, Harry said, before handing the wands to Draco and returning the room to it initial space and look. “I'll leave it to you to take care of the rest, my loyal friend.”

He vanished in a flash of black and Draco let his gaze wander about the students which had attacked and overpowered him together.


The last insecurities about his decision to turn to Harry creased.

Now he was sure, the black haired wizard was ready to do whatever he had to and not let pity get in the way.

But why had Harry called him his loyal friend?

He had to swallow as an other thought bloomed in his mind.

He could only prey, Harry wouldn't turn into another Dark Lord.

But then... as long as he was on Harry side...

Neither Voldemort nor the ministry would stand a chance.


Draco opened the door with a flick of his wand and then sent a message to Snape, the Head of the Slytherin House.

Some students had to be brought into the infirmary.

He already knew what to tell his godfather, Snape.

Even though Snape was supposed to be a Death Eater himself, he hadn't changed his behaviour
towards him.

Maybe Avery was right, and Snape was loyal to Dumbledore... maybe...

He could just hope.

He really liked his godfather.