A Living Secret ~ COMPLETED

Chapter 25 ~ Sometimes Entering is Easier than Leaving

Harry looked down at his necklace as it warmed and began to glow. Severus’ dark eyes rested on it. That was confirmation…he didn’t need to examine the cup to know it held the Dark Lord’s soul fragment. Harry looked at him.

“What do I do?” he asked the Potions Master.

“Destroy it,” the wizard replied, folding his arms, “and quickly. We can only stay in this room five minutes and we’ve wasted one already.”

“But I don’t have a wand,” Harry said.

“Improvise!” Severus hissed at him.

Harry looked around the room. There were a number of large stones on the floor. He looked at them. Would smashing the cup be enough to free the fragment?

Severus watched Harry impatiently as the boy walked over and picked up a hefty stone and walked over to the pedestal. He felt a slight throbbing in his head as he approached the cup. He raised the rock high over his head.

“Die!” Harry hissed, bringing the stone down with all his might and crushing the cup flat to the pedestal.

Suddenly a wind filled the small room, twisting and whirling like a cyclone trapped in a bottle. Harry dropped the rock as both he and Severus were lifted and whirled around the room at great speed. Luckily, they were caught directly in the wind and didn’t hit the walls, Severus’ robes billowing wildly and partially wrapping around his head. A light burst from the crushed cup, temporarily blinding both Harry and Severus with its brightness.

A tongue of light flashed out and hit Harry’s chest, the young wizard crying out as something inside him seemed to snap, then the wind stopped and both he and Severus dropped to the floor. The Potions Master scrambled to his feet quickly.

“We must go!” he hissed running through the exit.

Harry ran after him.

“Wait Professor!” he cried, then clamped his hand over his mouth as he realized he’d spoken. He couldn’t see the Potions Master but ran as fast as he could, hearing horrible noises behind him. Suddenly something grabbed at his leg and he wrenched it away, then another cold wet something grasped at the side of his face…he pushed it off and tried to keep running, but something wrapped around his waist forcing him to stop. He looked down and to his horror saw half a skeleton, wet with ichor and grinning up at him evilly.

“Arrrragh!” Harry cried out in horror as others slid out of the recesses, and one of them had a sword. Body hands were clutching at his body and face, and Harry punched and kicked desperately, screaming at them to let him go as the sword wielding skeleton walked toward him, the others parting to let him through. Its eye sockets glowed with an unearthly crimson light and Harry froze as it raised the rusted yet still sharp sword overhead. The young wizard closed his eyes. This was it. The skeleton swung the sword downward…

It was checked by another blade. Professor Snape had returned and he was covered in dust and bits of bone dangled from his hair. He had blocked the killing blow with a sword and yanked Harry back.

“Run! I’ve partially cleared the way. Grab a sword and hack through what remains!” the wizard cried, pushing Harry into the corridor behind him, his eyes on the skeleton. They all advanced, the armed one leading the way.

Severus parried as it thrust its sword at him. Harry stared for a moment, then ran up the corridor like Severus told him, grabbing a sword on the way. Broken skulls and bony limbs littered the ground in testament of Snape’s abilities. Some skeletons still rested in the recesses. Apparently only a few had the power to rise, charmed by Voldemort.

Severus chopped and hacked at the bony hands reaching for him, severing them as he battled the armed skeleton. Finally he managed to slice beneath the ribs and through the spine, cutting the creature in two, then he fled up the hall behind Harry, the cleaved skeleton dragging itself behind him with its hands.

He found Harry surrounded by skeletons, swinging two swords insanely and screaming at the creatures not to touch him. A cool head he was not. Luckily Severus had done in the armed skeletons his first round. He didn’t want them behind him when he went back for Harry. As inexperienced as Harry was, his fear made him ferocious. He wasn’t cutting the skeletons down as much as beating the shit out of them with the heavy blades. His adrenaline must have been pumping on high. Severus began to cut the skeletons down from behind, working his way towards Harry, whose green eyes had a mad look to them. Severus had to jump out of the way several times as Harry continued swinging, hacking and thrusting, spinning around.

“Damn it! Stop it boy…they’re gone,” Severus said, wiping his brow.

Harry stopped swinging, panting heavily.

“Are you sure?” he asked.

Suddenly they heard the rattle of bones down the corridor. A lot of bones.

“Not completely,” Severus said, pushing Harry, “To the ladder, quickly!”

Both wizards dropped their swords and took off at high speed, Harry scrambling up the ladder. It seemed more skeletons rose as those before were defeated. Severus climbed up quickly behind Harry. He could hear the rattling drawing closer. The skeletons were on the ladder and closing in. They didn’t tire and Severus was slowing down.

“Hurry!” he cried up at Harry, “When you reach the top, leave the church and head for the moors. If I don’t follow return to your home!”

“What? No!” Harry yelled down at him.

Severus felt something grab hold of his robes.

“GO!” he screamed at the boy-who-lived, “OBEY ME!”

Severus could see the top of the hole and Harry scrambling through it. He yanked his robes desperately and ran up a few more rungs before something grabbed his ankle and pulled him back so his feet slipped. He held on with his hands, kicking desperately. Shit.

He managed to break free and made it to the top of the ladder when his entire waist was gripped and a heavy weight threatened to drag him off the ladder. Severus strained to reach the top, one hand gripping the edge of the stone altar…but his grip was loosening.

He couldn’t hold on any longer.

Just as he was about to let go and let fate have him, two hands grabbed his wrist, pulling at him desperately.

“I’ve got you, Professor!” Harry cried, straining with one foot against the heavy stone altar.

Idiot boy. It didn’t make sense for both of them to be killed. Who would destroy the Horcruxes?

”Let me go! Flee!” Severus hissed up at him.

“No! You’re coming with me!” Harry said, every vein in his neck bulging as he pulled at the Professor. He wasn’t making any leeway but he wasn’t about to give up.

“That damn hero complex again,” Severus thought.

Harry felt Snape pulling away from him. The weight was too great. A bony hand reached over the top of the wizard’s head, clutching it.

“NO!!!” Harry cried.

Then suddenly he wasn’t alone. He felt other hands around his, reaching for the Professor and pulling at him strongly. But the hands…the hands were fleshless. Harry looked to see several skeletons around him, pulling at the wizard, hoisting him upward and over the altar. They all fell, bones, robes and flesh entangled for a moment. Then their bony rescuers leapt to their feet began fighting with the skeletons attempting to escape the altar…pushing them back down.

Harry realized these had to be the skeletons he saw praying in the pews when he first climbed down the altar. They were the good guys.

One grinning creature pointed at the doorway leading out of the church imperiously, its eye sockets glowing with a golden light. It was time for them to leave.

Severus grabbed Harry’s arm and fled for the exit, pulling the boy after him until Harry began running on his own. They ran out of the church, a few of the evil skeletons who managed to get by the good ones pursuing them but stopping short at the exit. They couldn’t leave the church. They rattled there angrily.

Both Severus and Harry stopped running, panting heavily as they looked back at the skeletons, which slowly faded from sight. Severus looked at Harry.

“You just had to say something, didn’t you?” he snarked, brushing bone dust from his robes. He had a bony handprint on the side of his pale face to add insult to injury.

Harry was about to apologize when several glowing orbs of light floated out of the church and hovered before the two wizards. Severus quickly drew his wand as the orbs elongated and formed seven skeletons. They stood there facing each other in silence for a moment, then the skeletons began to change, becoming flesh-covered and dressed in robes. One was a tall, dark-haired man with a large crucifix hanging on his black robes. He held a leather-bound book in his hands. The others were all women, also dressed in black with large hoods fringed in white drawn over their heads. All wore kindly looks.

“Thank you,” the priest said, “For removing the evil that kept us bound to the earth. I am Father Ordnay, and these are the sisters of the Order. We were slaughtered by a young man with great power, but were too blessed to be held to his purpose after our deaths…so we were trapped here in limbo. With the destruction of that evil that rested below, you have freed us. God smiles upon you both. We are eternally grateful.”

The priest and nuns bowed, then slowly evaporated. A great rumbling filled the air. Severus and Harry watched as the ruin fell in upon itself, totally destroyed.

Severus put his wand away and began walking across the moor, Harry still looking at the collapsed ruin. Then he turned and saw the Potions Master was leaving him and ran to catch up.

“We did it, Professor,” Harry said to him.

Severus grumbled something at him.

“What?” Harry asked.

“You should have left me, you idiot. What if you were killed too? Then there would be no one left to fight Voldemort,” the pale wizard said.

“But I wasn’t killed. I couldn’t just let you die,” Harry said to the wizard.

Snape stopped and looked at him, his eyes glittering.

“I’m sure a little less than a month ago, you would have gladly removed me from my mortal coil yourself, Mr. Potter,” he said silkily.

Harry nodded soberly.

“Yes, I did want to kill you, Professor. More than I wanted anything in this world…but then I found out the truth. You really are on the side of Good,” the wizard said.

Severus continued to stare at the boy, then said, “Make no mistake, Mr. Potter…I still loathe you. Your little act of heroism did nothing but remind me how you cannot follow instructions. Remember this…I am working with you under duress, because we have something to accomplish and for no other reason. I am not your friend. I will never be your friend.”

Harry blinked at him.

“Well, ally will do just fine then, Professor,” Harry replied sincerely.

Severus snorted and turned away from him.

“Whatever,” he muttered bad-naturedly as he began walking quickly again. Harry caught up and matched his stride.

Suddenly, Severus reached over and gripped the back of his neck again. They disapparated, Harry’s complaining drowned out by the thunder clap.

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They returned to Harry’s house and a delighted Dobby. Severus utilized Harry’s medicinal stores and used a few dabs of healing potion to remove the skeletal bruise from his face. If he were going to tell Voldemort the Horcrux was fine, he didn’t need to be bearing any marks from his guardians. He also removed his robes and scourgified them of bits of bone thoroughly. Satisfied, he returned to Harry’s living room. The boy who lived held out a glass of firewhiskey to him.

“I thought you could use this,” Harry said.

Severus eyed him, then took the glass and tossed the drink down, rasping slightly. He had needed it. A firewhiskey served as a nice buffer between him and the memory of almost losing his life. He handed the glass back to Harry, who handed it to Dobby.

“Before I leave Mr. Potter, I need to let you know that both Miss Granger and Mr. Weasley have been targeted for death by Voldemort. I am sure you know Draco Malfoy has returned to Hogwarts. Neither of them is safe. You will have to tell them and convince them to go into hiding for the time being. If they refuse, you can say your goodbyes now,” the wizard said, turning and heading for the door.

“Targeted? Why?” Harry asked, walking after him.

Severus turned and his black eyes washed over Harry. He was like a magnet for death.

“Don’t you know, Mr. Potter?” he purred at the wizard.

Harry looked at the pale wizard and did know. It was because Hermione and Ron were his friends. What he feared the most was now coming to pass.

Severus gave him a smirk.

”I will come to visit you in a week’s time,” the Potions Master said, disillusioning himself and exiting the house. Harry didn’t hear anything. Snape must have used a silencing spell as well.

Harry turned and walked back into the living room. Dobby looked at him furtively.

“What will Harry Potter do?” the elf asked him as he sat down heavily in the armchair.

”Dobby, prepare the two guestrooms for long-term stays,” the wizard replied, staring into the fire.

“Yes sir,” Dobby said, bowing, then winking out. He loved when he had extra work to do.

Harry stared into the fireplace, his face determined.

“Hermione, you better not fight me on this,” Harry said to the flames.

He didn’t even notice that Voldemort’s stone had a very soft, barely perceptible glow.

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A/N: Another chappie. Thanks for reading. ****