The Fall Of The Dark Lord

The Fall of the Dark Lord

Chapter 5: Repeated History

 

The screaming was terrible, and the students flooded toward the exits of the great hall in fear of Voldemort.

"No," he hissed, "You will all stay to witness my victory."

Harry watched in horror as Voldemort pointed his wand at the floor, "Inlaqueareus!"

The same light violet light from his dreams erupted from Voldemort’s wand and sealed off all the exits of the hall so that everyone was trapped there. Voldemort sneered at Dumbledore before motioning with his wand. Dumbledore was pulled forward. As the faculty made moves to intervene despite the guard of the Death Eaters Voldemort cast another spell, "Munimentumis!" A hazy ring of light formed around the hall, entrapping Death Eater, Professor, and student alike in a barricade between the light and the walls of the hall, leaving Voldemort and Dumbledore separated from everyone else. "No interference," Voldemort smiled, "I have waited for this for a very long time, Albus. Tell me, are you ready to die?"

Professor Dumbledore stood unarmed before the Dark Lord showing no hint of fear, "You never could fight fair, could you, Tom?"

Voldemort’s eyes narrowed, "Never call me by that name."

"You are hopeless."

Voldemort scowled, "Fool. Crucio!"

Harry heard Dumbledore scream and suddenly the pain in his scar was magnified ten fold. He fell to his knees, Hermione following him. He felt the pain of the Cruciatus Curse rush though his system; he could feel Dumbledore’s pain…the same way he had felt…

The image of a screaming woman flashed though his mind, and the wailing infant…it was him…and he could feel her pain too…

Harry’s eyes snapped open as the pain of the curse subsided. He saw Dumbledore collapsed on the ground at Voldemort’s feet. Something was beginning to snap inside of Harry. He could feel his heartbeat in his temples as he watched Dumbledore struggling to his feet again.

"DUMBLEDORE!" Harry cried as Voldemort sent him skidding across the floor with a wave of his wand.

"No…no I can’t let this happen!" Harry reached into his pocket for his wand.

"Harry, what are you doing!?!" Hermione frantically whispered.

"I won’t stand by and watch this!" Harry choked out. Lucius Malfoy’s back was turned as he watched Dumbledore’s beating. Harry leapt up, "Stupify!" Malfoy never knew what hit him. Before any of the other Death Eaters could stop him Harry ran to the barrier.

The pounding in his head was terrible.

He didn’t know what he was doing.

He pointed his wand at the barrier and muttered something he didn’t even recognize. A rift appeared in the light for several seconds he jumped through and it sealed behind him.

Voldemort’s back was to Harry. His wand was raised to strike Dumbledore again.

No.

"Stupify!" Harry yelled again, this time directed at Voldemort.

The light shot at him, but Voldemort turned just in time to diffract the beam off to one of the walls with a wide sweep of his wand.

"Well, what have we here? Harry Potter. Are you so eager to die that you cannot wait your turn? You were next after all, dear boy."

Harry ignored Voldemort’s heart-felt sentiment and looked at Dumbledore’s crumpled form. "Bastard!" Harry bit out. "Expelliarmus!"

"Repellerous!"

The two beams met in midair, but Voldemort’s overtook Harry’s quickly.

It can’t be!

The beam connected with the tip of his wand—it shattered—like his fathers…the wood fell in splinters from his hand, Fawkes’ feather curled, burned black as it floated to the floor.

"That’s impossible…"Harry whispered.

"Oh, I assure you it is possible, Potter. Priori Incantatem will not save you this time. I have changed the core of my wand."

Harry looked up from the remains of his wand with a mix of loathing and fear.

"Oh my," Voldemort sneered, "Doesn’t this look familiar, where have I seen this before, let me think…" Voldemort put one finger to his mouth in mock-seriousness, "Oh yes, I remember! This is just the way your father looked before he died! And since you are intent on being as foolish as you father was…Abjicereum!"

Harry had no time to react.

It felt like he had been hit by a bus, and the force of the invisible blow sent him flying backwards against the remainder of the back wall. He fell to the ground dazed for several seconds. He coughed…he could taste blood.

"Now let’s see," Voldemort hissed, "what came next? Oh yes…I suppose it’s pointless to go though the ropes with you Potter. Yes, you are too much like your father to come over, so we will skip strait to…Crucio!"

Harry screamed, clenching his fists against the floor.

No! He thought to himself. No, I can’t give in…if I do, then he’ll kill Dumbledore, and everyone here…or worse…I can’t let him!!! As these thoughts ran through his mind his screams toned down to moans through clenched teeth. I have to block out the pain! It’s the only way! I can’t let him do this…I have to find the strength!

The pounding in his head was growing worse by the second, and not because of the Cruciatus Curse. He could hear Voldemort laughing over his screams. I won’t let him!!! If I don’t stop him…

Voldemort broke off the curse. Harry nearly collapsed before struggling to his feet. I won’t let this happen! The pounding in his ears was torturing, and the more he thought of Voldemort winning the worse it got! The apparition’s words came back again, Remember. Set me free. If you want to save any of them set me free. Otherwise you will lose them all. This was what it had been talking about…Voldemort’s attack…

Harry coughed and blood spurted from his mouth. His rage was building inside of him, to the point that he thought he would burst.

Voldemort raised his wand to afflict him with another curse.

NO! I won’t let him win! Not after… The images of his dreams flashed before his eyes: his father’s torture…his mother’s sacrifice…the images came over and over again…I won’t let it happen again!!

That something that had been building in Harry finally snapped. The pounding in his head gave way to the tingling feeling he’d felt coursing from his scar down his spine in the previous night’s dream. It was a raw serge of emotion…of power…of memory…

Harry closed his eyes and lowered his head trembling from the sensation.

"Are you afraid now, Potter?" He heard Voldemort hiss, "Don’t worry, it will all be over soon, that’s right, just close your eyes. After all, you are defenseless now without your wand…you never had a chance. I have already won! And now, I’m going to finish what I started sixteen years ago!"

Harry’s eyes snapped open. Somehow everything had become clear, and he knew exactly what to do. His arms shot up above him, his fingers spread wide. I don’t need my wand. I never needed my wand!

Voldemort began to shout, "Avada—"

"Quassarius!"

Suddenly every window of the hall shattered one by one in a fast wave as a surge of blue-white light erupted from Harry. Voldemort was too taken by surprise to finish the curse.

"THAT’S IMPOSSIBLE!" Voldemort shouted with barely enough time to react as the glass came soaring at him. He blocked it with the shield charm and the glass fell to the ground.

"I assure you that it’s quite possible," Harry snarled from across the room. "You of all people should already know that, after all, that was the reason you came after us, wasn’t it?"

"What?"

"Yes, it’s true. You weren’t after my parents at all. You were after me. You were after me because of this!" Harry tore his bangs away from his forehead, "I had this long before you came!" At this outburst a shudder was felt through the walls of the castle.

"No! Stop you fool, you’ll bring the roof down on us!"

"No. I won’t. It’s true that your powers have grown since you were resurrected, but so have mine! And I can control them now." Harry made a fast sweeping motion with his arm and sent Voldemort flying backwards. "You have not won Voldemort, you may have earlier, but now you have one small problem. You’re no longer dealing with the same Harry. I remember! I remember everything, and I understand, and there is no doubt in my mind that I will defeat you today and it is because of this!" Harry motioned to his forehead again. "What was the name of it, what did you call it? ‘The Sign of Primus?’"

Voldemort’s face was horror stricken, and for the first time he shook with unbridled fear.

"Yes, that is what it was called! What were your words? Oh yes, I remember…"

Voldemort’s voice was suddenly heard echoing throughout the hall, even though Voldemort himself was not speaking:

"In every millennia or so, there is a witch or a wizard who is born with exceptional power. They are destined to be great leaders of the wizarding world. They make the most potent changes in magical society. They are destined to become the greatest of us all, and the way they are distinguished from the rest of us is by a distinct birthmark in the shape of a lightning bolt; The Sign of Primus."

"That is why you came after us. That is why you killed my parents. I was born with it, and you thought that if you raised me then you would have the most powerful wizard of this millennia at your side!"

"How did you do that you little bastard!?! How did you know!?!"

"You cannot fathom the changes I’ve gone through. You are no match for me now. If you would have come a year ago perhaps, but not now. The sleeper has awakened; that power you stunted when I was a baby has been reborn. I will not let you hurt anyone else. I can shatter you with a thought."

Harry walked toward him, that same cold look on his face that he had had when he confronted Malfoy the day before, the same cold look that the apparition had had on its face in the dream. The tingling in his scar had grown more powerful, and he was sure that it had grown darker—become blood red, like in his dreams. His eyes flashed at Voldemort, the bright green of his irises more luminescent then ever.

Voldemort shook uncontrollably. He backed away shaking his head, muttering under his breath about the impossibilities he was witnessing. Harry had gotten too close, his wand shot forward, "Avada Kedavra!"

The jet of jade light shot toward Harry…

It took him by surprise…

He had no time to react…

His arms shot out…

He threw his leg behind him and braced himself against it…

He clenched his teeth as the light came closer…

He could hear screaming all around him…

But it was drowned out by his thundering heartbeat…

Voldemort would not win this way…

It had failed before, and it would fail again…

The curse struck the shield that Harry had projected around him…

The light did not shatter the shield, although it tried to. Harry shut his eyes tightly as the light broke into a dozen wisps that surged about the shield searching for any entry to the body inside. Harry struggled against the force of the lights. He slowly lowered his arms, leaving them bent at the elbow with his palms facing up and spread as if feeling for rain. He snarled from the strain, throwing his head back, his scar feeling like it would split in two.

Harry slowly brought his arms forward, holding his hands as if he was about to receive a large object. He brought his head back down in concentration as the separate lights slowly began to gather between his hands.

The light was incredibly bright and incredibly wild. It tried frantically to escape, but Harry had it trapped.

He opened his eyes and looked at Voldemort, his eyes nearly glowing with the same brilliance of the Avada Kedavra, his face contorted in hatred, his hair flying about from the force he exerted to control the curse, his scar so dark that it appeared black. He started forward again, the curse raging between his hands. Voldemort frantically backed away before tripping over his own feet and falling to the ground. He continued to back away hastily until his back met with his own barricade and he could retreat no farther. Harry stopped a few feet in front of him, extending one arm with the Avada Kedavra dancing at the end of his fingertips.

"If I release it, you will not survive this time. It has lost no power to me. It is as potent as when it left your wand." Voldemort watched terrified at the bending light, which licked inches away from his body. If one wisp of the light even grazed him he would more than likely die. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t retaliate for all those you’ve murdered?"

Voldemort sucked in a breath, throwing his arms up in front of his face.

Harry aimed the light and let it fly forward.

The unblockable curse rocketed through Voldemort’s barricade and in a great blast left a crater in the floor of the Great Hall the size of a car.

Voldemort brought his arms down in disbelief that he was still alive.

"I will give you a reason: because I will not become a murderer for the likes of you. I have proven here and now that I am stronger than you. If you ever rise up again, I will defeat you again, and the next time I will not be so lenient."

The force surrounding Harry evaporated. His hair became still, and his eyes and his scar returned to normal. Harry turned his back on Voldemort, who still shook, propped against the barricade. Harry went to Dumbledore, who, like everyone else in the room watched in utter shock. Harry helped him to his feet, ignoring Voldemort.

Voldemort shook, his fear turning into outrage. He had been defeated again—by a mere boy! He would not stand for this. He was Lord Voldemort. He could not be defeated…he would never surrender…not so long as there was breath in his body. He slowly rose to his feet. No, he would not leave it as it was. He still had a trump card to play.

"Boy," he snarled as he got to his feet, "you are a fool. The man you let go can be your downfall. I am Lord Voldemort. I will not be beaten so easily."

Harry turned slowly, the coldness still present on his face, "You are nothing."

Harry may have said something more if he wouldn’t have been caught so off guard.

Voldemort had suddenly hunched over making horrible hissing noises, tremors racked his body, and then without warning his form started to grow. His face elongated, his eyes became huge, his robes melted into albino skin and his limbs disappeared.

Within ten seconds a sixty-foot long albino cobra coiled before Harry and Dumbledore.

The snake laughed in Parseltoungue, "You see Potter, I still have a few tricks up my sleeve! If I cannot beat you by magic, then brute force it is!"

Harry turned and opened a rift in the barrier again shoving Dumbledore through to the other side just before the snake struck. Harry turned in time to avoid being bitten, but not fast enough to avoid being caught by his robes.

Suddenly he was raised upside-down thirty feet into the air by Voldemort’s jaws. Before he could cast any counter attack he was flung across the great hall strait at the opposite wall.

In the little time he had he was able to turn facing the wall and slow his velocity slightly, but not enough to keep him from hitting hard. He heard terrible cracking sounds when he hit and shooting pain rushed all through his body. He fell back to the ground unable to move.