Well of Shadows
Storm Warning
By Ruskbyte
Chapter Nineteen
~ Storm Warning ~
The alarm blared with deafening intensity, its undulating wail deep, clear and penetrating as it sounded through every corner of Hogwarts. The teachers and students paused in their conversation over
lunch, listening to the sound, which signalled a possible attack on the school. After half a minute the siren call trailed off, allowing a booming voice to begin speaking.
"Hogwarts is under imminent attack. Death Eaters are approaching from the north, through the Forbidden Forest," the magically amplified voice of Harry Potter declared.
His sharp and precise words sparked everyone into action, even as he continued to announce the evacuation procedures that had been formulated after a similar attack the previous year.
"All students are to gather in the Practical Fighting Techniques auditorium. Staff members and Prefects are to act as escorts, making sure everyone proceeds in a quick and orderly manner. All available Aurors are to make a sweep of the corridors and classrooms, ensuring that there are no stragglers."
"Death Eater penetration onto Hogwarts grounds is estimated at twenty two minutes," picked up Ginny's voice, not as deep as Harry's but carrying just as clearly. "Outer perimeter defences will be activated in ten minutes. All shield barriers will be raised and locked down in fifteen minutes. Situation Room will begin descent in twenty minutes."
Ron and Hermione were the first out of the Great Hall, already hurrying to the nearest staircase leading up to the third floor. They had sprung into action the moment the first blaring of the siren had begun and were well out of the hall, their lunch half eaten and forgotten, by the time it ended.
As they hurried to their destination, taking the steps two or three at a time, Hermione glanced over at Ron. Her boyfriend had been caught in mid-sip when the alarm sounded and as a result the front of his light blue shirt was stained with spilt pumpkin juice. Ron did not appear to notice or care about his soggy condition; he was far too focused on reaching the Situation Room to be bothered by minor details like that.
"You-Know-Who would attack on Valentine's Day," he huffed as they reached the top of the stairs and immediately turned to run down the corridor leading to what had once been Fluffy's lair.
Hermione was too busy trying to ignore the stitch developing in her side to answer with more than an inarticulate grunt.
Reaching the large spiral staircase leading down to the Practical Fighting Techniques auditorium, Ron and Hermione quickly began to descend. Ron, who was leading, looked over his shoulder as they hurried down and asked, "Last year it was during our Quidditch match with Ravenclaw. D'you think he'll do something similar next year?"
"Just - keep - running," Hermione panted, releasing her grip on the rail when they reached the bottom of the staircase. Twisting hard on her heel, almost tripping over her own feet in the process, she proceeded to hurry across the small entry hall and through the centre pair of huge oak doors that opened into the auditorium.
Bursting into the Situation Room, as it was designated during a crisis, Hermione and Ron sprinted down the middle aisle to the wide stage. Harry and Ginny were waiting patiently in the centre of the stage, the Situation Map glowing at their feet. As they tumbled onto the stage Harry glanced down at his wristwatch, which Ginny had given to him the previous Christmas.
He looked approvingly over to Ginny and noted, "Three minutes, seven seconds."
"Faster than last time," agreed Ginny, scribbling the time onto a piece of parchment she held in her hand. She twitched an eyebrow in his direction. "Of course, they were only in the Great Hall this time, not in Gryffindor Tower."
"It is closer," Harry acknowledged easily, turning to smile at Ron and Hermione as they joined Ginny and him.
By this time Hermione had caught on to what was happening, or rather what was not happening, and was thoroughly annoyed with her friends. She was not shy about displaying her annoyance either. Placing both hands on her hips and glaring up at Harry through the messy tangle of her hair, which had fallen into disarray during their mad rush to the Situation Room, Hermione scowled at him and demanded evenly, "This is just a drill?"
Ron, who was bent over double and gasping for breath, looked up just as Harry and Ginny grinned impishly, thereby confirming Hermione's accusation. He shook his head. "If 'Mione and I don't kill you, the rest of the school will. You interrupted lunch."
"Why on earth didn't you tell us?" asked Hermione, still glaring at them.
"If we'd told you," replied Ginny mildly, "it wouldn't have been much of a 'surprise' evacuation drill."
"Besides," Harry continued, "we told Dumbledore and Idaho this morning, during breakfast. They were the ones that approved the drill."
Hermione shook her head and muttered, "I was busy finishing up on the Transfiguration essay Professor McGonagall gave us last week. Now I'll never have enough time to make it perfect."
Harry offered the bushy haired young witch a mischievous look. "You should never actually manage to achieve perfection, Hermione. What else would there be for you to aim for, if you ever did?"
"Maintaining that perfection," answered Hermione, as though it were perfectly obvious.
"But true perfection wouldn't need to be maintained," teased Ginny impishly.
Hermione blinked in consternation. She scowled slightly as she considered this idea. Finally she settled for folding her arms across her chest and giving her friends a disgruntled look as they unsuccessfully tried to stifle their smiles.
By now the first of the other students were beginning to hurry into the auditorium, their excited and sometimes worried chatter filling the air. Harry and Ginny quickly convinced Ron to start acting the part of examining the Situation Map, with Hermione watching closely over his shoulder.
The minutes seemed to pass interminably, either lasting no time at all or stretching on for what felt like an eternity. Harry, who was observing the filling auditorium keenly, would occasionally call out a time for Ginny to jot down. Finally the three entrances into the room swung shut with a reverberating boom, signalling everyone had retreated into the safety of the Situation Room and that the drill was now concluded.
"Eighteen minutes, twenty two seconds," announced Harry once a modicum of impatient silence had settled over the waiting students. He smiled with quiet satisfaction and added, "An improvement of nearly a minute and a half since the drill we held last month. Congratulations."
"What?" bellowed Snape, looking distinctly displeased.
Professor Dumbledore, who was standing where the four heads of house were grouped, placed a calming hand on the Potions Master's shoulder. He shook his head slightly before releasing Snape and moving down to join Harry, Ginny, Hermione and Ron on the stage. Following right behind the headmaster was Duncan Idaho, the senior Auror stationed at the school.
"How did it go?" asked Harry once the two wizards had reached them.
"The usual mix of blind panic and excitement," admitted Idaho, a touch of annoyance creeping into his usually even voice. "Almost the same as last time we held a drill. Despite the improved time getting here, there was little improvement in the organisation of it."
"What the fu-"
"Ron!!" exclaimed Hermione, appalled, cutting him off.
All eyes immediately turned to the young wizard, who was standing over the section of the map representing the lake. He had been peering intently at something on the map, but looked up at when Hermione's yell registered. He had the good grace to blush fiercely upon realizing what he had just said and in whose presence.
Dumbledore, rather than being angered by the severity of Ron's curse, actually seemed somewhat amused though still bore himself in a stern manner. He pushed his spectacles up the length of his crooked nose and asked, "Ronald?"
Ron looked up at them all, surprise etched on his face.
"It's Malfoy. Lucius Malfoy."
***
"You know, I've been thinking," Ginny began as they Apparated into the Great Hall.
"Now I'm worried," Harry interjected, looking far less serious than Ginny felt the situation warranted.
Ginny bit off her sharp retort as Dumbledore, the Proteuses, Idaho and half a dozen Aurors used their Portkey bracelets to transport themselves out of the now secured Situation Room. Their arrival coincided with Lucius Malfoy's own entry into the Great Hall.
The Malfoy patriarch looked as well groomed and disdainfully aristocratic as he always had, even before becoming a fugitive. His black silk and velvet robes were perfectly tailored and pressed, swirling out behind him as he strode down the centre of the hall to meet them.
"Snotty git," muttered Ginny, who was glaring balefully at Lucius as he approached.
"Calm yourself, Virginia," said Dumbledore, moving to stand between her and Harry, placing a kindly hand on each of their shoulders. He smiled in the calm and unassuming manner that was so uniquely his, though Ginny noticed that it was not mirrored in his watchful eyes. "Just because he's the enemy does not mean we have to be rude."
Gregory Proteus, who was standing just behind the headmaster, nodded in agreement and added solemnly, "Besides, he'll be getting his just deserts before the day is out."
Dumbledore shot the younger wizard a sharp look just as Hilary, his wife, jabbed him in the ribs with an elbow and whispered, "Don't give them any ideas!"
Gregory raised his hands in appeasement, taking a judicious step back from the group as Lucius stepped up directly in front of them. His cold grey eyes flicked briefly over Gregory and Hilary, who he had obviously not encountered before. With a subtle sneer he visibly dismissed them both of having any importance and turned his attention solely upon Harry.
"Potter," he acknowledged with a miniscule tip of his head.
"Malfoy," responded Harry with an equally small nod of greeting.
Lucius finally recognised the remainder of Harry's companions, this time not curbing his sneer when his glance slid past Ginny. He focused upon Idaho for several seconds, appraising the man, before matching his cold stare against Dumbledore's. Ginny, who was watching the Death Eater closely, could not see the headmaster's response, but was easily able to feel the gathering of Dumbledore's magic. Clearly Lucius' disrespectful comportment was not sitting well with the venerable wizard.
Harry cleared his throat, somewhat impatiently Ginny thought, and drew Lucius' attention back to him. He tilted his head to one side and asked, "I assume you're here for a reason and not a social call."
"Hardly a social call, Potter," Lucius snarled, clearly displeased with the situation. He turned to one side, presenting his profile for inspection, and continued, "My Lord has seen fit to grant your request. He is willing to hand over Pettigrew in exchange for your assistance in the final dispersion of the Well of Shadows."
"The original agreement was only that we would not actively move against him," Harry immediately replied, his tone clipped.
Lucius visibly clenched his teeth, a flush of pink spreading across his pale cheeks, before responding in an equally clipped manner. "Lord Voldemort will never give something for nothing, even if it is Pettigrew's paltry contribution to his cause. If you want more out of this agreement than simply staying out of each other's way, then you'd best be prepared to contribute more. You will actively aid in removing the threat posed by the Well, or these negotiations are over."
That pompous... arrogant... Ginny began, feeling her blood pressure begin to rise.
~Calm down, Gin~ Harry told her, surreptitiously reaching out to take her hand. ~We were expecting something like this, remember?~
Ginny managed to suppress her need to punch Lucius' lights out and nodded, Yeah, but it still goes against the grain.
Harry smiled darkly and asked, "Why do you believe we would aid in 'removing the threat'? Especially when Draco's efforts are curtailing your own little raids quite nicely."
"Don't try to play me for a fool, Potter!" Lucius snapped, resentment of some sort flashing in his steely grey eyes. "You are fully aware that practically all of the incursions since December have been solely the work of the Well of Shadows."
"Yes," agreed Idaho, barging into the discussion. He smirked at Lucius, who was glaring wands and Killing Curses at the dark haired chief Auror, and added, "We noticed the most recent attacks have been far more efficient than any you Death Eaters tried to stage. Unlike you amateurs, Draco never leaves any survivors."
Lucius turned away from Idaho with an audible exhalation and said coldly, "That is what the Well of Shadows was created for."
Dumbledore shifted his stance and said mildly, "I find it curious, Lucius, that you have not once called your son by name."
"My son is not an issue here," Lucius said shortly. An expression crossed his eyes, one that Ginny couldn't quite identify before it was gone.
"Plausible deniability, eh, Lucius?" asked Harry. When the Death Eater failed to react to the words, undoubtedly because he was unfamiliar with the Muggle saying, Harry elaborated, "It means you've washed your hands of the matter. You're no longer acknowledging that the entire situation is your own damned fault."
Ginny could tell this had struck a cord in the Death Eater by the way Lucius' jaw clenched and unclenched, not to mention how his back stiffened until it was almost painfully straight. For her own part Ginny felt a shiver lightly tickle its way up her spine, though she could think of no reason why she should respond to Harry needling Lucius in such a way. The situation certainly did not warrant such a reaction from her.
After taking a good many moments to compose himself Lucius practically growled, "I am here to discuss Lord Voldemort's gracious offer to cease open hostilities and transfer into your custody Peter Pettigrew in exchange for your cooperation in dispersing the Well of Shadows. No more. Now, do you accept my Lord's proposal... or not?"
Harry made an act of pausing to consider. Anyone would have thought he was giving the matter all the due deliberation it required. Ginny was the only person present who could hear and feel the low bubbling train of his real thoughts... and the fact that he was simply being dramatic.
You should've been an actor, love, she told him, hiding her smile.
~I'm the Boy-Who-Lived. Being a celebrity teaches you how to act~ he answered, keeping his face carefully neutral.
Ginny shivered involuntarily and again wondered at the reason. Harry was easily capable of making her shiver, but the tone of his thoughts at the moment was not one that normally generated such a response from her. It was just that at that moment an inexplicable, though oddly familiar chill had run through her.
In fact, she noted with some puzzlement, she was not the only one. Idaho, standing beside her, had crossed his arms. It did not seem significant at first, but then Ginny saw that he was surreptitiously rubbing his hands over his biceps.
"Accepting Voldemort's proposal would seem a prudent course of action," Harry finally admitted. He then looked Lucius levelly in the eyes and added, "However I retain the belief that such easy acceptance would be... dangerous."
"Rejecting my Lord's offer is even more dangerous," Lucius replied, not bothering to even lightly veil the threat.
Harry suddenly shivered.
Lucius immediately noticed the action and quickly tried to take advantage of it. "Perhaps it is merely that you are, as I have always maintained, a mere boy. Hardly capable on any level to make such adult decisions, in fear of overstepping your bounds."
"Hardly," replied Harry, his eyes narrowing. Ginny could feel a low anger beginning to boil within her boyfriend. Then she noticed that several of the half a dozen Aurors stationed around the Great Hall were also shivering, acting as if it were far colder than Ginny knew it to be.
What the devil is going on here? She wondered.
"Then why do you tremble, Potter?" Lucius asked silkily. His lips curled into a cruel smile as he voiced his opinion. "It looks very much like fear to me."
Idaho interrupted, angrily defending Harry. "And you would know, wouldn't you?"
Lucius lazily waved a dismissive hand. "I have seen it in the eyes of many-"
Satisfaction suffused Ginny when Lucius' voice abruptly trailed off. His eyes grew wide and a slight tremble ran up his black-clad frame. Her pleasure in seeing the Death Eater suffer from the same mysterious affliction was short lived, however, as another chill seemed to embrace her.
"Harry, this is Ron. Can you hear me?"
Harry frowned and reached for the Portkey bracelet he was wearing. Neither he nor Ginny required the specialized Portkeys to move about Hogwarts while its defences were engaged, but the bracelets doubled as communication devices. Pressing down on one of the ten numbered studs, arrayed on the back of the thick bracelets, Harry answered the call.
"Loud and clear, Ron," he said. "What is it?"
"Something strange is going on, Harry, Ron's disembodied voice answered.
Hermione's voice then spoke up, "The Situation Map has gone... fuzzy. If I didn't know better, I'd say it was the same as static on a Muggle television; as if something were interfering with its operation."
Ron then asked, "D'you think it could be that git, Malfoy?"
"It's not Lucius," answered Harry, shooting the man in question an appraising glance. He shook his head and asked, "How much of the map is affected? All of it, or just around the castle?"
"All of it, I'm afraid," confirmed Hermione's voice. "In fact, I think it's getting worse. Pretty soon we won't even be able to make heads or tails of anything on it. As it is we're already having trouble reading the dots."
Harry looked towards Lucius again, a peculiar expression forming on his face, and slowly nodded. He glanced over at Ginny, his face and eyes conveying his realization more easily than any words or thoughts he might form. Ginny immediately understood and suddenly the cause of the faint chill permeating her being became very clear.
"Draco."
***
Ron Weasley found himself faced with an odd quandary.
One large part of him was currently crying out for him to leave the safety of the Situation Room, to use his Portkey bracelet to deploy up to the Great Hall. Once that was accomplished he felt the overwhelming desire to seek out Draco Malfoy and kill the smarmy bugger. As painfully and slowly as possible, in retribution for all the harm he had inflicted upon Ron, his family and especially Hermione.
Another equally large part of him, however, was well aware that only Harry and Ginny possessed the abilities needed to confront Draco. It cautioned him to do his best to remain calm and, even if he wasn't a Prefect, try to maintain that calm which also existed in the rest of the students now sheltered in the Situation Room, deep beneath Hogwarts.
Then, annoyingly, there was one small part that was screaming in mortal terror at the prospect of coming face to face with the monster that had put Ron in a coma for four months.
"The Situation Room has been lowered into its secure position," he reported, pressing down on the principal stud on his Portkey bracelet. He glanced over to the other side of the stage where Gurney Halleck, Idaho's second in command, was organising the rest of the Aurors for their deployment along the school's battlements. "Halleck should be sending up the first squad of Aurors any second now."
"He already has, thanks Ron," confirmed Harry's voice over the link established by the bracelets he, Ron and the others were wearing.
Hermione, who had been examining the Situation Map, came to stand next to Ron. She silently slipped her injured right arm around his waist, a sign of her nervousness. "Harry," she reported, using Ron's bracelet rather than her own, "the map is completely out of focus now. We can't read anything; the lines are so badly blurred."
It was Ginny that answered, "That shouldn't be a problem, Hermione. We've moved up onto the walls and, trust me, there's no way we could miss Draco's approach."
"What's it look like?" Ron asked curiously, silently cursing that yet again he would not be able to see the battle transpiring high above them. He felt just as helpless now as he had the first time he had overseen a battle using the Situation Map, on the Ides of March the previous year.
"Hell on earth," was Harry's bland response, "and it's coming our way."
"Really?" interrupted a voice Ron recognised as belonging to Victor, one of the younger Aurors stationed at Hogwarts. He continued to say, "I think it looks more, y'know, like Bugs Bunny digging on steroids... and he forgot that left turn at Albuquerque again."
It was only Hermione that seemed to understand the bizarre statement, undoubtedly because of her Muggle upbringing, and she shook her head. Sighing she pulled away from Ron and activated her own bracelet to tell him, "Vic... you scare me sometimes."
Ron noticed that Halleck had finished arranging his Aurors and that they had all Portkeyed up to the Great Hall. Most of the staff had also left to join in the defence of the school, with the exception of McGonagall, Hagrid, Vector and (unfortunately) Trelawney. He reported as much to Harry and added, "I think some of the older students, including Moira, want to join you up there. What should we tell them?"
"Absolutely not, Mister Weasley!" announced McGonagall. The deputy headmistress, having deployed the remaining three teachers around the perimeter of the auditorium, had walked out onto the stage to join Ron and Hermione.
"I'm afraid Professor McGonagall is correct, Ronald," confirmed Dumbledore's authoritative voice. Apparently the headmaster had also been listening in on the conversation between the only four students participating in the proceedings. "According to Harry and Virginia, dispersing the Well of Shadows has great potential for magical backlashes. I do not want to needlessly risk any of the students should the situation get out of hand."
"Understood sir," Ron agreed. He paused and asked falteringly, "Since the Situation Map is not working, may Hermione and I join you?"
Harry's voice was unexpectedly tense as he answered, "I'm afraid not, Ron. From the look of things, Draco's not quite as inexperienced in the art of war as we originally thought."
McGonagall frowned and asked, "What d'you mean by that, Mister Potter?"
"He's raised some kind of anti-Portkey ward around the school. Ginny and I only felt it being formed a minute ago. It's a strong one too, even more powerful than the one I put in place last year. I doubt that even the specialized Portkeys we have for evacuation and deployment will be able to slip through."
"In other words, nobody's leaving this party until either Draco or the rest of us are dead," summed up Ginny succinctly.
"Miss Granger," directed McGonagall, turning to Hermione. "Assemble a dozen students, a mix of first and seventh years if you can. Give them one of the evacuation Portkeys and test if Mister Potter and Miss Weasley's suspicions are correct."
Hermione nodded and strode off the stage, pointing out students as she spotted them. Ron glanced to the back of the auditorium where the cabinets holding the Portkeys, in the form of Muggle hula-hoops, were arranged. If the specially built Portkeys, which were designed for a one-way trip to the Auror Headquarters at the Ministry, were not working it meant that everyone inside the Situation Room was effectively trapped beneath the school.
Shaking his head, he considered the thick bracelet on his wrist. A thought occurred to him and he asked, "Harry, Ginny, d'you think whatever it is Draco's doing, it'll affect our communications?"
"We don't know for sure," replied Ginny. "We certainly hope not."
"I think he's nearly here," Harry announced with remarkable calmness. "Hold the fort while we're away, Ron. With luck this won't take long."
Ron shared a look with Professor McGonagall and asked, "And without luck?"
***
"I suggest you prepare yourself, Lucius," Harry told the elder Malfoy. "You son will be arriving shortly and I think he will wish to speak with you."
"I don't think that would be a prudent move on my part," answered Lucius, his mounting nervousness clearly visible as they stood on the castle ramparts. The silver haired wizard was clearly apprehensive about the upcoming confrontation, unable to escape from facing it as he had the similar situation over Christmas. Draco's anti-Portkey ward had disabled his personal Portkey as well as all the others, stranding him at Hogwarts for the duration of what was to come.
Lucius winced at the admission, but was able to state in a reasonably level voice, "I am man enough to admit that Draco is likely to be… displeased with my role in his transformation into the Well of Shadows."
Harry nodded in acquiescence to this observation and said, "True, he might even kill you."
Lucius turned to face him and asked, "Then why should I accompany you?"
"Because if you don't," replied Harry blandly, "I will kill you."
Ignoring the dumbstruck expression that had suddenly formed upon Lucius' face, Harry turned away from the Death Eater and strode along the battlements to where Ginny, Dumbledore and Idaho were grouped. He nodded briefly to both men, before moving to stand at Ginny's side, making sure to be just close enough that their shoulders could brush together.
This time it was not a drill, nor was it simply a matter of facing down whatever twisted creatures Draco was sending to try and test their defences. This was going to be an encounter that would almost certainly leave at least one of the participants dead.
~Not quite the bright, sunshine filled day this morning started out as~ his girlfriend commented sarcastically as Harry took up position beside her. She was looking out over the grounds, to the broad expanse of the Forbidden Forest, which was shrouded in darkness.
It was overcast this morning, replied Harry, following her gaze.
In truth, the morning had been rather dreary and dank. A thick layer of dull pewter grey clouds had hung low in the sky, while wisps of light fog had obscured the ground. What had been a plain and miserably mundane autumn day at Hogwarts --even though it was Valentine's Day-- was now the single most foreboding atmosphere Harry had ever encountered.
The layer of clouds had thickened and grown taller and higher, darkening into a deep purple, run through with dark blues and greys that were almost black. This covering blanket completely blocked the sun from sight, giving the impression that it was near the twilight hour, rather than just after midday.
Occasional drops of rain, fat and heavy, were dropping down from above. The growing chill that continued to encroach upon the school and its grounds was different to that which had accompanied the scores of Dementors that had led Voldemort's attack the previous year. Then the chill had been solely felt in their minds and bodies; the chill brought about by the approach of the Well of Shadows pervaded everything, including the air around it.
It was difficult to see through the darkness shrouding the Well's arrival, but occasionally a flash of lightning would crack overhead. In these brief moments of cold illumination, Harry and the others could make out the indefinable maelstrom of shadows that were slowly drawing nearer to Hogwarts, tearing and rending great tracks of the forest with each passing second.
At this rate, Harry mused after one particularly bright bolt of lightning struck down in the very heart of the forest, there won't be much of a forest left by the time he gets here.
*He the embodiment of darkness,* noted Osiris wryly. *Of course he's not going to worry about a bunch of useless trees that might happen to get in his way.*
Ginny shook her head. "He's certainly making a mess. Obviously he isn't going to bother with a subtle approach."
Harry nodded in thoughtful agreement. "Yeah, in fact I think he's deliberately making a show of it. Ensuring that he had our complete and utter attention."
"Rather childish," said Ginny.
*He's insane, Virginia,* Romulus reminded them. *Our past encounters with the Well have shown that they invariably develop a need, however irrational, to prove themselves.*
*In other words,* repeated Sun Tzu, *They begin to act rather childish.*
Harry ignored the light-hearted, but slightly forced, banter of the Order. Instead he maintained his vigil on the looming blackness that somehow appeared to stand out against the dark surrounding it. The rain was beginning to fall harder now, no longer only a few isolated drops here and there.
By now the sounds of the devastation Draco was wreaking upon the forest, as he ploughed his way through it and towards Hogwarts, was beginning to reach the ears of those assembled on the stone ramparts. Sharp cracks echoed thinly in the air as massive and ancient trees --as wide across as a three adults with their arms outstretched and even older than the school itself-- were torn apart and shattered like weak kindling.
He looked away, gazing down the length of the ramparts and the line of faces looking out upon the grounds. They were pale, but steadfast and set with a grim determination. Harry recognised many of the faces, those Aurors whose division had been stationed at Hogwarts this year. He, Ginny and Hermione were on familiar terms with most of the younger ones, who more readily accepted the Boy-Who-Lived and his friends as equals. The older Aurors were less approachable, but had developed a grudging respect for the students since the incident with the dragons over Christmas.
Standing slightly apart from the assembled Aurors and teachers was Lucius, whose pointed features stood out starkly in the harsh flashes of lightning. His lips were drawn into a thin line, pressed so tightly together that they were drained of blood and almost the same pale shade as the rest of his face. A growing wind had begun to tousle the long silver locks of his normally immaculate hair, causing it to fall in disarray around his face.
"Is everything ready?" he asked Ginny, pensively crossing his arms over his chest.
"I hope so," she said. She looked very nervous and very young at the moment, not what anyone would expect from a young witch with enough power to shatter mountains. She swallowed and looked up at him. "We're taking an awful risk, Harry. Especially if things don't go according to plan. This had better work."
"It will work, Gin," he assured her. "After all, we grew the focusing crystals ourselves. They're absolutely perfect — we made certain of that. We don't have to worry about them or the diffusion prisms. Albus gave the job of cutting those to Nicolas Flamel — and he's had nearly six hundred years of experience making them."
*Ze man, for all 'is quirks, doez 'ave talent,* agreed Joan, lightly.
Ginny took a deep breath, ignoring the mounting wind that swirled around them. "I have to admit he did a brilliant job. Those prisms are better quality than we could've managed in twice the time. It's the question of whether or not we managed to position all the components correctly that's bothering me the most. If we're even the slightest fraction off…"
Harry wrapped one arm comfortingly around her shoulders. "We did not forget anything, love. Everything is placed exactly as required. We've check and rechecked against the ambient magical fields surrounding the castle. We've personally placed each and every one of the foci, double-checking each other as we went. This will work - there's no doubt about it. In any case, it's out of our hands now."
A loud crack of thunder snapped their attention back to the gloom enveloped Forbidden Forest, where a deep growl of rushing wind could be heard. Debris, from the hundreds of trees caught and destroyed in the Well's approach, swirled and whipped through the air like a blizzard. Darkness, an impenetrable and inky black, seemed to leap from one surviving tree to the next, moving as though it was alive rather than merely flickering shadows.
Lightning flashed overhead, framing Hogwarts in its stark light, as a sudden calm settled all around. The tempest of debris, wind and rain that was lashing over the castle abruptly died down and stilled. This, they instinctively knew, was the anticipated calm before the true storm would begin.
*You had best get ready, Harry,* instructed Merlin in his normal calm and sanguine voice.
Harry took a steadying breath and tried to sound positive about the situation he was about to thrust himself headfirst into. "Don't worry too much, Gin. Just wait until Draco's in position, or until I give the signal. Unlike everything else we've set up, the trigger is entirely in your hands."
Ginny smiled wanly. "Literally. I just hope it works."
"It will work," insisted Harry. "After all, we built the bloody thing.
"Be careful, Harry," she urged him. "I don't want to lose you."
Harry smiled confidently and bent down to briefly kiss her cheek. He wrapped a strong arm around her shoulders and told her, "Don't worry, Gin, I have an excellent sense of direction."
TBC...