The Portkey Solution

CHAPTER 8 - The Battle in Diagon Alley

Staci woke early on the morning of the 23^rd feeling draggy. She had gotten little sleep, plagued by dreams in which everything that could go wrong today did; in her dreams Voldemort alternately killed Harry or her brother Ben, over and over. She entered the living area of the cottage and stopped short when she saw Harry, sitting on the deck in one of the hammock chairs, staring out at the dawn's light making diamonds of the surf. He was in jeans and his new Chudley Cannon sweatshirt. He was holding his journal, but not writing in it.

Staci's stomach clenched in sudden fear--all the worry she had been suppressing flooded in and she trembled from head to foot for a moment before she could pull herself together. She rubbed her hands over her face and under her glasses, then moved to the stove to heat some water. Caffeine was very much in order.

She let Harry be while she got dressed and made a pot of tea. She carried it out with two cups and the sugar bowl--both of them preferred plenty of sugar but no milk. He nodded when she held up the tray and she poured for both of them.

Harry looked up from the journal, where he had jotted down the latest dream-vision from last night. "Voldemort got the message, by the way. He's had Wormtail stationed in Diagon Alley for days waiting for me to show up."

"Well, that's what we wanted."

"Have Ron and Hermione's parents decided what to do?"

"Arthur and Molly are bringing Ron, and Bill and Charlie will be on hand as well. The twins and Ginny are supposed to stay at the Burrow, with the story that the three of them are grounded for flying too noticeably around the village."

Harry pondered the information a moment, then nodded. "I wish we could make them stay home, but Wormtail knows too much about our habits. One way or another, we tend to meet up in Diagon Alley."

"Ron has strict instructions to stay with his parents. Hermione is coming alone but has a Portkey to get her safely home the minute things start happening. The same goes for you: the minute Voldemort or his Death Eaters spot you, get out of there and back here. After that, it's up to the wizards Dumbledore has assembled."

Harry nodded but said nothing. His stomach felt like he'd eaten a dozen Peppermint Toads, but he made himself drink his tea slowly. He had spent much of the last few days trying to convince himself that it didn't matter who got Voldemort, as long as he was dead or captured by the end of the day. Fear of another confrontation warred with the need to be the one to avenge his parents' deaths. He had started writing the names of people he knew or had heard of who had suffered because of Voldemort, and surprised himself with how many of his schoolmates were on the list: Cedric, Neville, Susan Bones, the McKinnon brothers in Ravenclaw... It helped convince him that stopping Voldemort was bigger than his revenge; it was a necessity to preserve the wizarding world he had grown to love.

***

Harry and Staci appeared at a corner of the snowy white building that housed Gringotts. Diagon Alley seemed a little less crowded than usual to Harry, but perhaps it was his imagination. He scanned the area and saw no sign of any unusual activity as Staci put away the Portkey they'd used. He spotted Sirius in his dog form, sniffing idly around a nearby grate; he looked up, saw them, and wagged his tail before moving on to the next grate. Staci nudged him gently on the shoulder, and he led her into Gringotts. The goblins recognized him and one rushed to bring him to the Head Goblin's attention.

"Mr. Potter, we must apologize for the fraudulent letter that was sent to you. We have been unable to trace it, but rest assured that we will continue our efforts. We cannot allow our institution to be used in such a manner..."

Harry held up a hand when it looked as if the Head Goblin would go on for hours. "It's all right. No harm was done, in the end. But I think I would like for you to send quarterly reports or something to me from now on, just so I have a better idea of how much is in there."

"Not a problem, Mr. Potter, not a problem."

"And if you can, include the amounts in pounds. I'm not very good with the exchange rates."

With some bowing and trading of courtesies, the Head Goblin finally turned things over to Griphook, who led them through the nausea-inducing cart ride to vault 687 and opened the door for Harry to gather Galleons and Sickles. He took a bit more than usual, thinking in the back of his mind about Hogsmeade shopping trips and wondering when Cho Chang's birthday might be.

For the next few hours, Harry's nerves grew steadily tighter as they shopped without incident. He had his school and dress robes lengthened at Madam Malkin's. He replenished his potion stores, adding a few new things that Staci pointed out as useful. He got the year's books at Flourish & Blotts, picking up Numerology and Grammatica, the basic Arithmancy text as well. Hermione was so enthusiastic about the subject, and he was dreading another year of Divination.

They ran into Hermione and the Weasleys at the same time, outside of the bookshop. Hermione and Ron were also loaded down with purchases and they decided to leave everything in the room Hermione had taken at the Leaky Cauldron and have lunch there. In Hermione's room, he took a moment and loaded a backpack he'd found at the cottage with his Invisibility Cloak, some Filibuster's Fireworks, and a few of Fred & George's tricks. He took his broom out of Hermione's trunk and laid it on the bed, opening the window to make the Summoning Charm easier should he need it. He moved the plastic bag from his cloak into a pocket of his jeans and made his way downstairs.

***

The entire group voted to go to Fortescue's for ice cream to extend the excursion. They pulled two of the small umbrella tables together for ease of conversation. Harry noticed Padfoot, who flopped down on the warm sidewalk close to the tables. He was just about to sit down when he heard his name being yelled.

He whirled around, his wand half-drawn, and spotted Neville jogging up to him. "Hi, Harry. Hi, everyone." He puffed a moment, catching his breath, and Harry noticed a flash of reflected sunlight, then a tiny dark shape move out of his line of vision around a corner. He looked over to Staci, holding his gaze on her until she noticed and nodded his head in the direction of the maybe-rat. She turned her chair that way casually, as if to get more sun. She reached out and gently nudged Padfoot with her toe, and he rolled over so he could get a better view.

"I've got some great news. I saw Professor Sprout in Grasswort's Gardening Shop. I was telling her about my experiments over the summer and asking her advice about which importers have a better grade of Purple Rieshi from China, and she told me that Snape is going to do something completely different for Potions this year! Fourth years and up are going to do an independent study!"

Hermione perked up instantly. "Really? What kind of study?"

"We have to create a completely new potion! We have to research it and test it and everything! We're supposed to work in groups of four, and we'll only meet as a class once a month!"

Harry and Ron traded identical grins of glee and Ron crowed, "No Potions for a month at a time!"

Neville practically hopped in place, trying to get their attention back. "We have to use the time to do our research and brew our potions. We also have to present what we want to try to him before we do it." He looked around at them, Ron still exulting, Hermione pondering possible projects, and Harry suddenly understanding. "I...I want the three of you to help me with my memory restorative."

Harry nodded immediately. "I'm in."

Ron looked at Harry and shrugged agreeably, still giddy over the news. "Sure, Neville."

Hermione hesitated for a moment, as if reluctantly shelving a dozen other ideas for later, and nodded. "All right. Me, too."

Neville broke into a relieved, thrilled smile, and drew breath to say thanks, but suddenly several things happened at once. Harry heard the pops and cracks of a dozen wizards Apparating around them. Staci leapt to her feet and whipped out her wand, hissing "Testudinis maximus!" as she waved it over her head in a circle. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley scrambled to their feet, whipping out wands. Harry spun around, wand in hand, seeing the circle of Death Eaters surrounding them.

A barrage of spells flew at them; Harry could hear shouts of "Stupefy" and "Crucio", but every single spell bounced off a shield that seemed to surround them all like an igloo. Staci kept her wand raised and pulled something out of a pocket with the other hand...a push-button air horn. Harry and Hermione covered their ears, and the Weasleys and Neville followed their example hurriedly as Staci blew a long blast on the horn. Padfoot backed under the tables, whimpering loudly at the noise.

The Death Eaters had ducked, fearing some strange attack from the horn, then broken ranks as they dodged the backlash of rebounding spells. Harry was scanning them furiously, looking for a short figure with a tell-tale silver hand and a tall, bony one. All he could see were the hooded and masked minions of Voldemort and the bystanders scattering in panic. Then other wizards and witches started Apparating in behind the Death Eaters, surrounding them as they had tried to surround Harry and the others. Harry had to turn his face away in the face of warring magics, unable to see much for the brilliant flashes of light that quickly filled the plaza.

Staci kept the shield up until every last Death Eater was engaged by Dumbledore's forces. Before she dropped it, she hooked an elbow around Neville's arm and glared at Harry and Hermione. "You two, Portkeys now. I'll get Neville away." Arthur and Molly already had firm grips on Ron from either side, and Harry obediently reached a hand into his pocket.

When Staci dropped the shield, they all vanished instantly except for Padfoot, who took off after a random Death Eater and sank his teeth into a leg.

***

Harry popped back into existence in Hermione's room, having Apparated instead of using the Portkey in his pocket. Through the open window, he could hear the noise and shouts of the battle as it continued. He could also feel a twinge in his scar. He went to the window and concentrated all his awareness on that twinge. It grew faintly stronger as he turned to the right, and he focused on a rooftop some yards away. He snatched up the backpack and Apparated there.

From this vantage point, he could see everything: Dumbledore and McGonagall bearing down on a figure that could be either Crabbe or Goyle, judging them by their sons' bullishness; Mad-Eye Moody directing several of his trainees in concert against a pair of Death Eaters who were back to back; the bright red heads of Bill kneeling over Charlie, who seemed to have been hurt. Harry studied the scene, then saw his target. Voldemort was down a side alley, watching the battle and wringing his wand in frustration.

Harry pulled out the Invisibility Cloak and donned it, not taking his eyes off Voldemort for a second. He Apparated to the roof above Voldemort, then took out a hearty string of fireworks and lit the fuse with a quick "Incendio". He dropped the string over the parapet, behind Voldemort and farther up the alley. He Apparated to a spot behind the fireworks, in front of a potion shop with a large outdoor display of ingredients. He pointed his wand at his throat and whispered "Inflectere George Weasley" and slid behind a large dustbin close to the end of the alley.

The fireworks went off, whizzing and banging loudly. Voldemort jumped and whirled, nearly dropping his wand. "Who's there?"

"Hey, Voldy! Scared of a few firecrackers?" George's voice trumpeted out of Harry's mouth. Voldemort clenched his wand and took a few hesitant steps up the alley.

Harry spotted a flash of brown hair, green cloak and a surprised look at the mouth of the alley, then focused as Staci back-pedalled behind the corner out of Voldemort's sight. He renewed his catcalling. "What's the matter, Voldy? Aren't you worth anything without your little group of Death Nibblers? Get bent! You're a has-been, a blip in history, nothing!" Voldemort began throwing curses towards the sound of the voice and Harry responded by using Banishing Charms to send boxes, jars and a display table to absorb them, continuing his taunts from under the cloak.

Staci began working her way up the alley, occasionally having to duck a piece of Harry's ammo. She had ditched her cloak for the more practical jeans and jumper she wore underneath. She looked as grim as Dumbledore at his angriest.

"Finite Incantatum!" Voldemort shouted, and Harry felt the mild twist in his throat that said the voice-disguising spell had been cancelled, along with a flash of pain in his scar. He clamped his lips shut and drew the folds of the Invisibility Cloak more closely to him, considering which of the twins' props to try, then froze.

Harry watched as Staci moved carefully around a barrel of dried toads' livers and realized she was manoeuvring for a physical attack. But he could see something she couldn't--Wormtail in his rat form scurrying away from her and towards Voldemort. Once Wormtail warned him, Voldemort would have a clear shot at her.

Harry slipped off the Invisibility Cloak and his school cloak, shoving them into his open backpack, readied his wand, and shifted into a crouch. He took careful aim and suddenly rolled out from behind the dustbin in a controlled tumble to let fly with another spell.

"Stupefy!" Wormtail was caught and sent flying against the wall. Voldemort jumped and Harry stood up. Behind him, Staci made a grimace of resigned irritation at Harry but continued working her way toward Voldemort. In the distance they could hear shouts as the other wizards tried to regroup from the battle with the Death Eaters.

Voldemort's lipless mouth curled, his eyes dancing in glee. "So, Harry Potter. We meet again. And this time I am prepared for you."

"Are you? You don't look it. In fact, I'd say you're in desperate need of a good hols in Majorca." Harry strove to make his voice as flippant as possible and held his wand rock-steady on Voldemort.

"Brave as always, my dear boy. Trying to distract me from the young woman who is even now SLIPPING BEHIND ME--" Voldemort finished with a roar as he spun to face Staci. "IMPERIO!"

Harry's scar flared in agony. He shouted, "NO!" and started forward as the Imperius Curse hit Staci.

She froze as Voldemort told her, "Kill the boy!"

She shook her head as if trying to clear it. His eyes were watering in pain, but Harry was almost close enough and as Voldemort raised his wand again...

"Imperio! I order you to kill Harry Potter!"

She raised her own wand and pointed it at Voldemort instead. Harry dodged to one side. "Obrigescere aeris!" The air shimmered around Voldemort and Harry realized the dark wizard was shouting but not making any noise. Then he began pounding on some invisible barrier, looking like the world's ugliest mime. Harry ran forward to Staci.

"Dammit, Harry, what are you still doing here? I thought you'd Portkeyed away!"

"I Apparated to the Leaky Cauldron. That way I had a chance to sneak up on Voldemort when he wasn't expecting me." Out of the corner of his eye, Harry saw Voldemort blasting his transparent prison and getting the ricochet in his teeth. His forehead throbbed to a raging pulse.

The crowd noise grew louder and they could see Dumbledore, leading the others as he turned a corner. But down the street Harry saw Lucius Malfoy, his Death Eater hood torn, taking aim.

"Duck!" Harry yelled, dropping to the cobblestones and pulling Staci with him. Malfoy's spell went over their heads and crashed against the invisible wall. They could hear Voldemort again, screaming orders in a frenzy, and Staci swore furiously under her breath.

Harry saw Voldemort raising his fists for another bout of pounding and grabbed his chance. He pulled out the object, the one he had created with Hermione's help, and tossed it out of its wrapping and onto the ground in front of the dark wizard. Sure enough, Voldemort fell forward, having swung his full weight against a barrier that was no longer there, and landed flat on his face.

Instinctively Voldemort reached for the jagged stone that was poking him in the stomach...and vanished.