When the Light Goes Out

When the Light Goes Out Chapter 07

Harry stood there, panting. He walked over to Potter, temporarily forgetting about his Ron, Hermione, Snape, Dumbledore and McGonagall.

He was about to say another spell, when he looked down at his doppelganger, thinking. He still had that vacant, blank look on his face. Realisation dawned on Harry.

He turned to Voldemort, who stood just out of the ring, surrounded by Death Eaters, and said coldly, 'I think it is time that you took the Imperius Curse off him.'

The crowd gasped, collectively.

Voldemort smirked. 'Oh, congratulations, Mr Potter. I thought that you would figure it out, but I'd hoped Potter could kill you before you said anything. But I don't really feel like lifting it just yet.'

Harry sighed. 'I haven't got time for this, Riddle. Just lift it, or I will. Your choice.'

Voldemort's red eyes widened slightly. 'You can't. You're bluffing, Harry Potter.'

'Okay then, watch me. Potter is me, more or less, so I can do things like that.'

He pointed his wand at Potter who was still lying on the floor. 'Finite Incantatem,' he said clearly, for the Stunning Spell and the Imperius Curse.

Potter sat up. 'W-where am I?' he asked slowly.

The other Ron and Hermione rushed over to him. His eyes were no longer red-tinged or snake-like; they were their normal, vivid green.

Voldemort seemed speechless. 'But you can't!' he shrieked, then summoned and disappeared into the large, black cloud that he came from. The Death Eaters followed.

~ • ~

Snape took the small, purple, sparkly, potion-filled flask out of his pocket. His alternate self watched him with interest.

The two sets of people stood in two lines, facing each other, in the girls' bathroom on the first floor.

Now that Harry compared them, the alternate Ron was more blonde, and Hermione had more freckles. Minor details.

The other McGonagall was wearing navy blue robes instead of emerald green, and Dumbledore had some auburn colour left in his hair. Snape looked the same, except maybe the other one had slightly more brown eyes, instead of black. From what Harry could see, he and Potter were identical.

'Ah, yes, Mr Potter, our Mr Potter, you need to add some blood to this potion. Otherwise you cannot get back. It would be a...shame...if you couldn't.' Snape's lip curled, and Harry grimaced.

And there are two of them, he thought.

His nose had stopped bleeding, so he took the sharp-looking dagger from Snape. He pierced his own arm in the exact spot where Wormtail had cut him, almost two years ago.

Blood dripped down his arm, and he added it to the potion.

Harry did not know that the potion had gone only slightly darker for the others, so when the potion turned black when his blood touched it, he thought nothing of it.

The right set of people stepped through the portal, and Harry was the last to go. 'Bye, then,' he said.

'Thank you,' his alternate self said, 'for everything.'

Harry grinned, and followed his friends into the shimmering, now black, mass.

Harry's body tingled and he stepped out into a brilliantly clean bathroom.

'Oh, no,' he moaned, 'it hasn't worked. Where are we now?'

Hermione smiled. 'Don't worry, Harry, I just decided to do a bit of Spring Cleaning while you were gone.'

END

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