SWNOVELS Chapter The Last Horcrux
Sixteen years have come and gone
Since the evil hath begun
The end of which will soon be here
In the place of secrets there will be fear
Whether good to triumph it must be clear
The past of the present must meet here
The choice of the victor soon be near
As two become one with mortal fear.
Harry walked silently into the girl’s bathroom on the third floor and heard the sounds of singing.
“Myrtle?” he called out.
The singing stopped and Myrtle’s ghostly form peaked out from one of the stalls. When she saw who it was she giggled and smiled.
“Oh hello Harry,” she said and giggled, “What can I do for you? Did you come here for a visit?”
He shook his head, “I need to know if Ginny Weasley’s been through here?”
Myrtle’s face twisted in annoyance, “You always come here for something or someone else. Never here to say hi to me or talk.”
Harry was in no mood for Myrtle’s tantrum, “Myrtle, please tell me yes or no?”
Myrtle harrumphed and crossed her arms and started floating away from him slowly.
Harry shook his head at the ghosts’ attitude, “Fine then I won’t be returning anytime soon.”
He turned to leave but Myrtle’s form was quickly in front of him, “Wait! I’m sorry Harry, but I just get so lonely.”
Harry looked at her with annoyance, “Yes or no?”
Myrtle nodded, “She started coming here regularly since Halloween.”
Harry turned and went over to the sinks. He looked at the one in the middle and in Parceltongue opened the entrance to The Chamber of Secrets. He stood at the edge of the shaft and wrapped his cloak around him jumped down and slid to the bottom. He hit the ground and rolled to a standing position. He looked around in the dark and dank area. When he didn’t see or hear anything he started down the tunnel he’d walked with Ron over six years ago.
“Miss. Granger? What are you doing here? What’s wrong with Mr. Weasley? What on earth is happening?”
Hermione looked from tending to Ron to see Headmistress McGonagall standing in the Gryffindor common room with several other people. Madame Pomfrey, who was among the group, ran over and knelt down to tend to Ron.
“Colin Creevey’s been killed Headmistress,” she replied and pointed to the now covered body of the young man.
“Killed?” McGonagall said, her face turning pale at the sight, “By whom?”
“Voldemort,” Hermione replied.
There was loud muttering among the people and after a moment McGonagall held up her hand and they became silent.
“Miss. Granger,” she began and straightened he robes, “There’s a Dark Mark outside this castle and now a dead boy in this school. I want you to tell me exactly what is going on here.”
Hermione stood, “I will if you’ll follow me. We need to help Harry.”
“Mr. Potter?” the Headmistress asked in disbelief, “What is he doing here?”
“Follow me and I’ll tell you.”
Harry carefully passed through an opening in the caved in section of the tunnel and stopped in front of the large steel door with the figures of snakes on it. He concentrated on the images of the snakes and in Parceltongue opened the large door. He waited until it was opened fully before entering. He climbed down the old rusty ladder to the floor of the chamber and looked around.
He first noticed the carcass of the dead basilisk had been removed. He looked closer to the end of the walkway at the large face of Salazar Slytherin on the wall and saw what looked like a throne in front of the pool of water. Harry looked again and saw it was the same throne that he’d seen in Regulus’ journal memories.
He started walking slowly towards it. He listened with all his might, but never heard more than his footsteps and the sounds of running water. Just as he approached the throne a voice, cool at the same time as compassionate, echoed throughout the cavern.
“Welcome Harry.”
Harry stopped and listened for the source of the voice.
“I was wondering when you’d get here.”
“Ginny?”
“Yes and no,” the voice replied.
Harry walked the rest of the way and stood several feet away from the throne.
“Where are you?” he called out looking around.
“Right here.”
Harry turned and saw Ginny standing in the archway to an anteroom. She had changed since Harry had seen her last. She was now wearing all black with a black robe; her hair was not free, but tied up in the back in a ponytail and her face was much paler than usual.
“What’s the matter Harry? Don’t you recognize me?” she asked seeing his face.
Harry shook his head and whispered, “You’ve changed.”
“For the better, don’t worry,” she said with a slightly cool smile.
“Not to me,” Harry replied.
Ginny walked towards him smiling. Her walk was slow, deliberate and almost snake-like, “Why not? I now have not only my own powers, but Voldemort’s as well. I’m even more powerful than you,” she stopped in front of him. She looked at his face then a quick glance at his dress and chuckled briefly, “Oh Harry. Even as grubby and dirty as you are you’re still handsome.”
She stood on her tippy toes and gave him a quick peak on the cheek. Harry backed up a couple of steps in revulsion. She put her hands on her hips and pouted her lips at his reaction.
“What’s the matter Harry? You’ve never complained about my kisses before.”
“You didn’t have Voldemort controlling you then,” he replied.
“Oh, not controlling, Harry. He never controlled me after my first year.”
“Believe that if you must,” he whispered.
“I don’t believe, Harry. I know,” she replied coolly as she turned and walked towards the throne, “Every horcrux you or Dumbledore destroyed he became more fixated on the one in me. He built it up with every extra reserve of power he had.”
“How did Dumbledore not see it?” Harry asked.
“Oh it was well hidden,” she said as she sat down, “Once he was dead, I was able to release it a little more. Even for all your powers I knew, well he knew, that you’d never suspect me in a million years to be the last horcrux until it was too late.”
Harry watched as she sat back perfectly relaxed in the throne. He wasn’t sure if she had set up a trap for him, but he knew he must act soon.
“Why did you kill Colin?” he hissed, “Or was it just for fun?”
She smirked at him and shifted in the throne, “He just wasn’t fun to be with, not like you though Harry. You were always fun to be around. Besides, I need to re-awaken the wizarding world’s fear of me again and he was the perfect starting point.”
Harry wasn’t getting caught in that trap, “That’s not a good reason to kill another person, Ginny.”
She shrugged, “Maybe for you, but not for him. He thrives on fear, peoples’ fear of his power.”
Harry was well aware of Voldemort’s power and thirst for it using fear. The Dark Mark above the castle would certainly be panicking many people by now.
“What happens now Ginny? Are you going to take over the world?” he asked, “You’re only seventeen.”
She smiled at him and sat back, “Yes, but I have over sixty years of experiences from Voldemort in me and all of his power.”
“Ginny, you’ll nev…,” he stopped.
“Harry, Harry, Harry,” she interrupted him sweetly and leaned forward in her throne, “I am Lord Voldemort, you just can’t see it yet, but you will.”
Harry’s course of action was now chosen for him, “I’m sorry Ginny, but I have to stop him.”
She laughed at him.
“HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
She looked back at him standing there standing absolutely still and without any emotion on his face. She started laughing again.
“See! That’s one of the reasons why I loved you! You have a great sense of humor!”
“I’m not joking,” came his reply.
She wiped the tears from her eyes, “Oh thank you Harry. I haven’t had that good of a laugh for many years.”
“I’m not joking Ginny,” he said again, “You have the last horcrux as a part of you. I can’t allow that to exist. He must be destroyed. His reign of terror must end.”
“And you’re going to stop me right?” she asked with a big smile on her face.
“Yes,” Harry said as he took of his robe and drew his wand.
Ginny she stood quickly, all humor lost in her expression, at his actions. Harry backed away from her as she came down the two steps from the chair to the floor. She reached into the pocket of her robes and pulled out a familiar object to Harry… Voldemort’s wand.
“You’re in way over your head,” she said her voice as cold as ice. She took off her robe and tossed on the throne, “The sad thing is… you don’t even know it.”
“No Ginny,” he whispered, “I’m not.”
They stood facing each other for several seconds each waiting for the other to strike first. The only movements were there fingers gripping their wands. The only sounds were the sounds of running water and their breathing.
Ginny struck first, “Glacialis!”
Harry’s quidditch training paid off. He dove to his right as the spell hit a statue of a snake and froze it. He rolled to a crouch and pointed his wand, “Incarcerous!”
“Protego!”
Harry’s spell was blocked effortlessly by Ginny.
She smiled slyly at him, “Is that the best you can do?”
Harry set is jaw and stood, “No, I just want to destroy the horcrux and I don’t want to destroy you.”
“Awww, that’s so sweet,” she said in a very patronizing tone, “Too bad I don’t have that same problem with you. Capto Potter!”
Harry felt as if a giant hand had reached out and grabbed him. He was lifted off the ground and with a flick of Ginny’s wand he was tossed like a rag doll into the frozen statue. He hit headfirst and thankfully the statue being frozen therefore the impact wasn’t as bad, but it was bad enough to cause him to lose his vision and nearly blackout. He tried to get up and stumbled to his knees. The felt a warm trickle down the side of his head and he put his had on his head and it came away slick with blood.
He looked back up at Ginny who was looking at him smiling, “You are such a stupid boy, Harry,” she said.
Harry growled and shakily got to his feet and pointed his wand at her.
Her reaction was to give a short laugh, “Oh Harry, you are so brave. Too brave I’m sure, or what did I call it after Dumbledore’s funeral? Oh yes… noble.”
She flicked her wrist and a small brick from the wall flew out and hit Harry in the small of his back. He grunted in pain and fell to his hands and knees, he couldn’t feel his legs. He stayed in that position while his feeling returned before getting slowly back to his feet.
Ginny looked at him now with mild annoyance, “You just don’t know when to quit, do you?”
He never answered her. He just stood and tried to regain his senses. He didn’t want to do what he knew he’d have to.
“Ginny,” he whispered, which echoed in the cavern, “I don’t want to hurt you. You mean a lot…,” he stopped as a wave of nausea suddenly came over him.
For a second Ginny’s face became soft, then she turned cold again, “Oh Harry. You still love me don’t you? That’s why you can’t defeat me.”
Harry was silent, but his face gave her the answer, “Then I have truly found the one thing you feared would happen the most,” she said softly and with a coldness that sent a chill down Harry’s spine, “I have taken control of the one person you love.”
Harry still rooted to his spot, wand still pointed at her, followed Ginny’s walking until she came to a stop in front of the throne.
“Now victory will be mine,” she said, “and I will rule the world as I was meant to.”
“Accio chair!”
Ginny never had a chance to move. The throne leapt up and struck her hard in the back knocking her to the ground hard and forcing her wand to fly out of her grip and be lost in the dark shadows of the cavern.
Harry stepped out of the way of the chair as it sailed by him and he rushed at her. She recovered long enough to roll out of the Incarcerous spell Harry sent at her and brought herself up to standing position. She screamed at him in anger and sprang at him. Harry, not prepared, felt her fist connect with his head and knock him to the ground on his back. He landed hard and his wand was knocked from his grasp and skidded several feet from him.
He recovered quick enough to bring his leg out and sweep her off her feet and bring her to the ground. She landed on her backside with a yelp and a curse before rolling with the momentum and into a crouch just as Harry did the same. With a cat-like growl she came at him again.
He punched her.
Hard.
She hit the ground like a puppet cut from its strings. Harry stared in shock at her still form for several moments in realization of what he’d done. He was breathing heavy and was not really sure what to do next. He knew he had to get help and to see if she could be treated.
He turned and limped over to his wand and bent over. The moment his hand grasped his wand he felt as if a ton of bricks had hit him. He flew in the air several feet towards the anteroom and landed on his chest knocking the wind out him and cracking a few ribs.
“Accio wand!”
Harry turned back and saw Ginny standing where he’d been looking very angry and blood running down from the cut above her left eye where he’d punched her. She had retrieved her wand and walked towards him.
“That was by far the dumbest thing you have ever done,” she hissed, “Don’t you know you’re not supposed to hit girls?”
Harry gripped his wand and prepared for her attack. It wasn’t long in coming.
“Crucio!”
“Protego! Flipendo!”
Harry blocked her spell and his second spell sent her flying backwards into the small pool of water near the base of the face statue. Harry quickly got up and limped into the anteroom and was forced to stop up short. There was a sharp ledge that went down about twenty feet to another ledge before it dropped off to nothingness.
He quickly turned and disappeared to his left just as he heard Ginny scream.
“POTTER! COMEBACK HERE!”
He stopped and quickly altered his plan. He went and hid just out of sight in the doorway as he heard her approaching.
“You can’t hide from me!” she screamed.
She barged into the anteroom and Harry quickly came out of the shadows. He pointed his wand into the back of her neck, stopping her cold in her tracks.
“Snap your wand in half and throw it over the ledge,” he ordered. When she didn’t comply he pressed the wand into her neck and shouted, “NOW!”
She did what she was told with a smirk on her face. Harry heard the snap and watched as the two pieces of Voldemort’s wand sailed over the edge and into oblivion. Harry wiped his face with his free hand, “Now…,” was all he got out.
She dropped down and shot her legs out hitting him just above his ankles. He fell down on top of her and grunted in pain as his arm hit the ground and his wand went flying away out of sight behind him. She quickly rolled him over and pinned him to the ground.
“Nice try Harry, but all things must come to an end… even you,” she placed her hand on his cheat and uttered, “Corripio Viscus!”
He yelled in pain as his heart felt like a hot poker had been shoved through it. He looked up and saw pure enjoyment on her face at his suffering. Then, with an almighty scream of anger, brought his body up and with more strength than he thought possible threw her up and off of him.
He heard as she cried out in surprise then in terror. Then, a second later, he heard a sickening crunch and a small whimper from below.
Trying to regain his breath, he looked around him and didn’t see her anywhere. He got a sickening feeling as he crawled over the edge and looked over. He saw on the ledge below Ginny’s broken body looking back up at him. She turned her head and looked up at him.
“Harry,” she whispered. Her voice seemed to have lost all coldness from before. Her expression was not one of arrogance, but of kindness and serenity.
“Don’t talk Ginny,” he said, “I’ll get help.”
“No,” he heard her say, “Don’t. I don’t want to have him in my soul forever.”
Harry became lightheaded at her implication and his heart truly did start breaking, “No, Ginny. I’ll get Hermione and Ron. Hold on, I’ll get you out of here.”
Ginny smiled up at the man whom she had had a crush on since she was ten years old, “Harry, no, let me go. If you do he dies.”
Harry shook his head, “No,” he looked around for his wand but couldn’t find it, “Hang on Ginny.”
Suddenly Harry thought he heard Hermione’s voice from the entrance calling him.
“’MIONE HELP! BRING MADAM POMFREY! HURRY!” he shouted back at her.
He turned and saw Ginny’s eyes begin to droop. Her breathing was becoming more shallow and uneven. He was losing her.
“Ginny please hang on,” he said looking for a way to get down to her, “I’m coming.”
“Harry,” he stopped at her whisper and looked back down at her, “I love you. Always have. Remember that,” Ginny smiled at him and exhaled her last breath a moment later.
“Ginny?” he said, “Ginny! GINNY!”
He looked at her still form a few moments longer in disbelief then slowly sat back from the edge and stared off into space in a daze. He never heard the sounds of running footsteps and a voice calling out to him. Hermione along with McGonagall, Madam Pomfrey and many others raced into the anteroom.
Hermione went over to Harry, looked over the edge and gasped at the sight of her friend lying at the bottom and stepped back. She placed her hand over her mouth and sobbed. She looked down at Harry and nearly lost it. He sat, shoulders hunched over, face blank as paper... he sat as a defeated man instead of a savior of the world. She knelt down and put her arms around him.
“I’m so sorry Harry,” she whispered over and over.
Harry was oblivious to it all. He’d lost his parents, his family, many of his friends, his mentor and now, finally at the end, he’d lost the girl he loved.
But then magic is a mysterious thing…