Harry felt himself slam into the ground; his face was pressed into the grass; the small of it filled its nostrils. He kept his eyes closed. He did not move. All the breath seemed to been knocked out of him; his head was swimming so badly he felt as though the ground beneath him were swaying like a deck of a ship.
He felt a soft hand on his shoulder, his mother's hand. He shut his eyes even more tightly, as though on opening them he would find his parents and Cedric gone.
A torrent of sound deafened and confused him; there were voices everywhere, footsteps. . . .
"Harry! Harry!" It was Hermione. "Harry, why are there two of you?"
"Hello Professor Dumbledore. I think you might be able to recognize me even after a long time of being dead!" he heard his father saying.
"James?" Dumbledore was dumbfounded.
"He's back," Harry shouted. "He's back. Voldemort."
"What's going on? What's happened?"
The face of Cornelius Fudge appeared upside down over Harry, it looked white, appalled.
"My God — James — Lily!" it whispered. "Dumbledore — they're supposed to be dead!"
The words repeated, the shadowy figures pressing in on them gasped it to those around them . . . and then others shouted it — screeched it — into the night — "Potters are alive!" "They're alive!" "James and Lily! Alive!"
"Bertha Jorkins?" Fudge asked.
"You-Know-Who's back!" she whispered.
"Harry will need to go to the hospital wing!" Fudge was saying loudly as Dumbledore was talking to James and Lily.
"I'll take Harry, Dumbledore, I'll take him —"
"No, I would prefer —"
"Harry, stay here —" he heard Dumbledore say.
(A/N: I will prefer not to repeat the scene where Moody takes him to the office, and then reveals the truth under Veritaserum, so to the time Dumbledore is taking Harry back to his office!)
"I want you to come up to my office, Harry," he said quietly as they headed up the passageway. "Sirius and the rest are waiting for us there."
Harry nodded.
Dumbledore helped him to reach the stone gargoyle. Dumbledore gave the password, it sprang aside, and he and Harry went up the moving spiral staircase to the oak door. Dumbledore pushed it open. Sirius was standing there, his face white and gaunt.
"Harry, are you all right? I knew it — I knew something like this — what happened?"
His hands shook as he helped Harry into a chair in front of the desk.
"Sirius, I want you to meet some people, who, under some strange circumstances, have been restored to life. Harry here will explain later, what exactly happened."
As if on cue, James and Lily entered the room from the door leading to Headmaster's private quarters.
"Prongs?" a surprised Sirius asked as happiness flooded through his eyes for a splitting second. The moment passed. "Who the hell are you? Thinking it is funny to —"
"Padfoot! It's really us!" James said.
"Turn into Prongs, if you even know what I mean," Sirius stated.
Immediately, with a flick of wand, James vanished. In his place stood a beautiful stag with peculiar markings around its eyes.
Sirius seemed satisfied. With a gleeful scream, he plunged himself on top of James who had now turned back to his usual self.
"James! Ho — Wh — Never mind! I never thought I'd live to see you again!"
"Lily-flower!" he went and hugged Lily. James joined the group hug. Dumbledore nudged Harry to go to his parents.
Lily hugged Harry as if there would never be a next time. "Oh! My baby has grown up so much! He looks so much like you James."
"But he has your eyes!" James whispered, hugging his son as well.
"So I've been told before," Harry grinned.
"What am I? Chopped liver?" Sirius whined. Harry went over and hugged him as well.
"Where's Moony?" James asked.
"Must be somewhere," Sirius replied, grinning. He looked as if he had become twenty years younger in presence of James and Lily.
"Ah, sorry to interrupt your family moment," Dumbledore spoke, chuckling, "Harry here has some explanation to do."
"The Wizard of Oz . . . always spoils the moment," Sirius said, whining.
"If I'm right Sirius, which I firmly believe I am, it was you who was eager to listen to Harry's experience," Dumbledore chuckled.
"Okay, what happened?" Sirius asked seriously. (A/N: No pun intended)
Dumbledore began to tell them everything Barty Crouch had said. Harry was only half listening. He was so tired every bone in his body was aching.
There was a soft rush of wings. Fawkes the phoenix had left his perch, flown across the offices, and landed on Harry's knee.
" 'Lo, Fawkes," said Harry quietly. He stroked the phoenix's beautiful scarlet-and-gold plumage.
"I need to know what happened after you touched the Portkey in the maze, Harry," said Dumbledore. He asked Sirius to change back to his animagus form and called Cedric, Bertha and the old muggle in his office.
Reluctantly, Harry raised his head, took a deep breath and began to tell them. As he spoke, visions of everything that had passed that night seemed to rise above his eyes; he saw the sparkling surface of the potion that had revived Voldemort; he saw the Death Eaters Apparating between the graves around them; he saw Cedric's body, lying on the ground beside the cup.
When Harry told of Wormtail piercing his arm with dagger, James let out a vehement exclamation, Sirius growled barring his teeth and Dumbledore stood up so quickly that Harry started. He told Harry to stretch out his arm. Harry showed them both the place where his robes were torn and the cut beneath them.
"He said my blood would make his stronger than if he'd used someone else's," Harry told Dumbledore. "He said the protection my —" he looked up to Lily, "— my mother — left in me — he'd have it too. And he was right — he could touch me without hurting himself, he touched my face."
"Ah, that doesn't matter now does it?" Dumbledore smiled. For a fleeting second, apart from happiness, he saw a gleam of something like triumph in Dumbledore's eyes. "Your mother — Lily — is now back, so the protection won't work. Harry, continue, please."
Harry went on; he explained how Voldemort had emerged from the cauldron, and told them all he could remember of Voldemort's speech to the Death Eaters. Then he told how Voldemort had untied him, returned his wand, and prepared to duel.
He told, rather gleefully, about the golden beam of light that had connected his and Voldemort's wands. He could see Cedric emerging; see the old man, Bertha Jorkins . . . his father . . . his mother . . .
His father broke the silence. "The wands connected?" he said, looking from Harry to Dumbledore. "Why?" He quickly added, rather cheekily, "Not that I am complaining. It's good to be . . . um . . . alive again!"
"Priori Incantatem," Dumbledore muttered.
"The Reverse Spell effect?" Lily asked.
"Exactly," said Dumbledore. He went on to explain the shared core between the two wands — Priori Incantatem — which reverses the recent spells cast by the wand in reverse order, starting with the latest and going to the oldest.
(A/N: I'm not writing that part in detail here, you've read it before.)
Harry suddenly became aware that Fawkes had left his knee. The phoenix had fluttered to the floor. It was resting its beautiful head against Harry's injured leg, and thick, pearly tears were falling from its eyes onto the wound left by the spider in the maze. The pain vanished. The skin mended. His leg was repaired.
"Healing powers of Phoenix tears," whispered Cedric. "Professor Dumbledore?" he said.
"Yes?"
"Sir, I'm of age now, and I've seen him return. I want to join you against You-Know-Who, please."
"Are you sure Cedric? Once you are a part of people against him, there is no turning back. And let me tell you, the dangers you might face will be much worse than the supervised ones we had in the Triwizard Tournament, and that too turned out to be unsafe," Dumbledore said.
"I've died once, and I'm ready to do it again to make this world a better place," Cedric politely but firmly stated.
"Alright Mr. Diggory. You'll follow us to the hospital wing then," said Dumbledore. To the muggle who had introduced himself as Frank Bryce, he said, "I'm afraid I cannot let you go live where you had spent your life, purely for the reasons of your safety."
"You are good people," the old man said. "You will fight the bad man who killed me. I do not know magic, but I will live with you. I will be your servant. I know how to cook and clean, and trim gardens."
"Dumbledore, I want to join you as well," Bertha stated. "I can be your spy at the ministry."
"Very good," Albus Dumbledore said. "Welcome then, to the Order of the Phoenix. I must state this, I have full trust over every single person in the Order, and I believe you will trust each other as well. Please do not let earlier differences come in way of your unity, which is what we require the most to conquer Voldemort." He cast a meaningful glance at James and Sirius.
He further spoke, "You have shown bravery beyond anything I could have expected of you tonight, Harry. You have shown bravery equal to those who died fighting Voldemort at the height of his powers. You have shouldered a grown wizard's burden and found yourself equal to it — and you have now given us all what we have a right to expect. You will come with me to the hospital wing, as will the others I suppose. A Sleeping Potion and some peace . . ." he paused. "I'm afraid I cannot say how the Ministry is going to take the news of Voldemort's return. Ms. Jorkins, I must ask you to go find Cornelius now and try to gain his full trust. You will not speak of today's events unless asked, and must speak only of what you saw, not what Harry or I told you. You must not cross what Cornelius says, and must agree to whatever he says, stating that you might have been confounded and mistaken some Death Eater as You-Know-Who, should such a situation arise."
Bertha gave him a solemn nod.
"I must also add, what we discussed today should not leave this room. I trust you all for this. Now, off you go Ms. Jorkins."
She nodded and walked away. Everyone else stood up as well and walked with Harry and Dumbledore out of the office, accompanying them down a flight of stairs to the hospital wing.
When Dumbledore pushed open the door, Harry saw Mrs. Weasley, Bill, Ron and Hermione grouped around a harassed-looking Madam Pomfrey. They appeared to be demanding where Harry was and what has happened to him. All of them whipped around as Harry, Dumbledore, rest of the group and a black dog entered, and Mrs. Weasley let out a kind of muffled scream.
"Harry! Oh Harry!" she started to hurry toward him.
"Still as fussy as ever, Molly?" James grinned.
Mrs. Weasley glared to see who had spoken up. Then, seeing James and Lily, rushed forward to give them a big hug.
"Molly," Dumbledore said, "please listen to me for a moment. Harry has been through a lot tonight. What he needs now is sleep, and peace, and quiet. If he would like you all to stay with him," he added looking around at everyone present in the room, "you may do so. But I do not want you questioning him. James and Lily will answer everything for him."
Before Madam Pomfrey could question him, he said, "This dog will be remaining with Harry for a while. I assure you, he is extremely well trained." At this, James grinned at Sirius, muttering under his breath. "Harry — I will wait while you go to bed. I will be back to see you as soon I have met with Fudge. And I would like you and Cedric to remain here tomorrow until I have spoken to the school. And Poppy, I think Sleeping Draught will do some good to Mr. Diggory here as well."
Cedric knew better than to protest, and soon, he and Harry were fast asleep.
Harry woke up to the whispering around him.
"They'll wake him if they don't shut up!"
"What are they shouting about? Nothing else can have happened, can it?"
Harry opened his eyes and put his glasses on. Cedric had already woken up and was sitting propped up on pillows in the bed next to him.
"That's Fudge's voice," Mrs. Weasley whispered. "And that's Minerva McGonagall's, isn't it? But what are they arguing about?"
Now Harry could hear them too: people shouting and running toward the hospital wing.
"Regrettable, but all the same, Minerva —" Cornelius Fudge was saying loudly.
"You should never have brought it inside the castle!" yelled Professor McGonagall. "When Dumbledore finds out —"
The hospital doors burst open. Fudge came striding up the ward. Professor McGonagall and Snape were at his heels.
"Where's Dumbledore?" Fudge demanded of Mrs. Weasley.
"He's not here," said Mrs. Weasley angrily. "This is a hosp—"
The door opened and Dumbledore came sweeping up the ward.
"What had happened?" said Dumbledore sharply, looking from Fudge to McGonagall. "Why are you disturbing these people? Minerva, I'm surprised at you — I asked you to stand guard over Barty Crouch —"
"There is no such need to stand guard over him anymore, Dumbledore!" she shrieked. "The Minister has seen to that!"
"When we told Mr. Fudge that what had caught the Death Eater responsible for tonight's events," said Snape in a low voice, "he seemed to feel his personal safety was in question. He insisted on summoning a dementor to accompany him into the castle. He brought it up to the office where Barty Crouch —"
"I told him you would not agree, Dumbledore!" Professor McGonagall fumed. "I told him you would never allow dementors to set foot inside the castle, but —"
"My dear woman!" roared Fudge, "as Minister of Magic, it is my decision whether I wish to bring protection with me when interviewing a possibly dangerous —"
But McGonagall's voice drowned Fudge's.
"The moment that — thing entered the room," she screamed, pointing at Fudge, trembling all over, "it swooped down on Crouch and — and —"
Harry did not need her to finish the sentence. The dementor had administered his fatal kiss to Barty Crouch, and had sucked his soul away. He was worse than dead.
"By no accounts, he is no loss!" blustered Fudge.
"But he cannot give testimony now, Cornelius," said Dumbledore.
"Well, there's no mystery to it, is it? He was a raving lunatic! From what Minerva and Severus have told him, he seems to have thought he was doing it all on You-Know-Who's instructions!"
"Lord Voldemort was giving him instructions, Cornelius," Dumbledore said. "Those people's deaths were mere by-products of a plan to restore Voldemort to his full strength again. The plan succeeded. Voldemort has been restored to his body."
Fudge looked as though someone had slapped him in the face. "You-Know-Who . . . returned? Preposterous. Come on, Dumbledore . . ."
"As Minerva and Severus have doubtless told you," said Dumbledore, "we heard Barty Crouch confess. Under the influence of Veritaserum, he told us how he was smuggled out of Azkaban, and how Voldemort —learning of his continued existence from Bertha Jorkins — went to free him from his father and used him to capture Harry. The plan worked. Crouch has helped Voldemort to return."
"You — you can't seriously believe that. . . . Certainly Crouch may have believed himself to be acting on You-Know-Who's orders — but —"
"When we touched the Triwizard Cup tonight, I and Harry were transported straight to Voldemort," Cedric said. "He killed me."
"I see you very much alive, Mr. Diggory." Fudge spoke.
"That was because something happened between our wands . . . mine and Voldemort's . . . which revived Cedric, Bertha, Frank, my . . . mum and dad!" Harry spoke up.
Ron, Hermione, Mrs. Weasley, Bill, James and Lily jumped. None of them had realized that Harry was awake.
Fudge's face wore a curious smile. "You are — er — prepared to Take Harry's word on this, are you, Dumbledore?"
"Certainly, I believe Harry," said Dumbledore. His eyes were blazing now. "I heard Crouch's confession, and I heard Harry and Cedric's account of what happened after they touched the Triwizard Cup; the two stories make sense, they explain everything that happened since Bertha Jorkins disappeared last summer. Along with that, I have listened to the account of James and Lily Potter, this muggle man Frank Bryce, and Bertha Jorkins."
Fudge still had that strange smile on his face. "You are prepared to believe that Lord Voldemort has returned, on the word of a lunatic murderer, a boy who believes he had been killed by You-Know-Who, two imposters who say they are a couple that had died fourteen years ago, a muggle, and a boy who . . . well . . ."
"You've been reading Rita Skeeter, Mr. Fudge," Harry quietly said as he understood what Fudge was implying.
Fudge reddened slightly, but spoke up, "And if I have?" he said, looking at Dumbledore.
"Listen to me, Minister. Or should I say a Junior Assistant of Vice-Head of the Auror Department, as you were in my time, Cornelius." James Potter spoke up, shooting him a deathly glare. "I am the same James Potter who appointed you as my Jr. Assistant. Same person who told you that you have fallen in love with the wrong man, Malfoy is a Death Eater, same person who helped you out of an illegal business with the goblins — should I continue Fudge . . . er . . . Minister."
Everyone laughed as Fudge went redder and redder with every word James spoke.
"James, you forgot the time when dear old Fudge was pranked by Sirius Black who had turned his hair pink and he had been dressed in nothing but pink underwear, so he had to take leave from ministry for two days!" Lily added, sneering at the Minister.
"You're imposters! All this is a lie!" Fudge roared.
"May I ask, Minister, why have you gone all red then?" Minerva McGonagall asked innocently.
"I fully believe that these two people are James and Lily Potter, returned to life by a rare event, Priori Incantatem. I believe you have heard about that before, Cornelius." Dumbledore asked. "Yet, if you have any doubts, you can check them under Veritaserum. I think they will have no problem with that."
"None at all, Dumbledore," James said.
Fudge looked defeated, he still spoke "Come on Dumbledore . . . you atleast know that we cannot use Veritaserum for small things like this!"
"Small things?" Harry shouted. "Look, I saw Voldemort come back! I saw the Death Eaters! I can give you their names! Lucius Malfoy —"
"Malfoy was cleared!" said Fudge, visibly affronted. "A very old family — donations to excellent causes — I know boy, you'll merely repeat the names of those who were acquitted of being Death Eaters thirteen years ago!" said Fudge angrily. "For heaven's sake Dumbledore — the boy was full of some crackpot story at the end of last year too —his tales are getting taller, and you're still swallowing them — the boy can talk to snakes, Dumbledore, and you still think he's trustworthy? It seems to me that you all are determined to start a panic that will destabilize everything we have worked for these last thirteen years!"
"Voldemort has returned," Dumbledore repeated.
"And Bertha Jorkins has admitted to me that she might have been confounded and believed some random Death Eater to be You-Know-Who. She had been held captive at that place for large part of a year now! And she, unlike you all, will be rewarded for telling the truth. I will take her under my own wing."
Harry saw the ghost of a smile on Dumbledore's lips. Bertha had played her part well.
"If your determination to shut your eyes and the love for your office will carry you as far as this, Cornelius," said Dumbledore, "we have reached a parting of the ways. You must act as what you see fit. And I — I shall act as I see fit."
"I've given you a free rein always, Dumbledore. I've had a lot of respect for you. But if you're going to work against me —"
"The only one against whom I intend to work," said Dumbledore "is Voldemort. If you are against him, then we remain, Cornelius, on the same side."
It seemed Fudge could think no answer to this. He rocked backward and forward on his small feet for a moment and spun his bowler hat in his hands. Finally, he said, with a hint of plea in his voice, "He can't be back, Dumbledore, he just can't be . . ."
Snape strode forward, past Dumbledore, putting up the left sleeve of his robe as he went. We struck out his forearm and showed it to Fudge, who recoiled.
"There," said Snape harshly. "There. The Dark Mark. It is not as clear as it was an hour or so ago, when it burned black, but you can still see it. Every Death Eater had the sign burned into him by the Dark Lord. It was a means of distinguishing one another, and his means of summoning us to him. When he touched the Mark of any Heath Eater, we were to Disapparate, and Apparate, instantly, at his side. This Mark has been growing clear all year. Karkaroff's too. Why do you think Karkaroff fled tonight? We both felt the Mark burn. We both knew he had returned. Karkaroff fears the Dark Lord's vengeance. He betrayed too many of his fellow Death Eaters to be sure of a welcome back into the fold."
Fudge stepped back from Snape too. He was shaking his head. He did not seem to have taken in a word Snape had said. He stared, apparently repelled by the ugly mark in Snape's arm, then looked up at Dumbledore and whispered, "I don't know what you and your staff are playing at, Dumbledore, but I have heard enough. I have just this to add: ask your people imposing as the Potters to stop this act, or I'll have to turn them to Azkaban. I will be in touch with you tomorrow, Dumbledore, to discuss the running of this school. I must return to the Ministry."
He had almost reached the door when he paused. He turned around, strode back down the dormitory, and stopped in between Harry and Cedric's bed.
"Your winnings," he said shortly, taking a large bag of gold out of his pocked and dropping it on Cedric's bedside table. "One thousand Galleons. Five hundred each. There should have been a presenting ceremony, but under these circumstances . . ." He turned to Dumbledore, "And I might add that this Diggory boy should be transferred to St. Mungo's immediately. He is not in his state of mind."
Sirius growled at him barring his teeth.
He crammed his bowler hat on his head and walked out of the room, slamming the door behind him. The moment he had disappeared, Dumbledore turned to look at the group at Harry and Cedric's bed.
After sending Bill, McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey away to do assigned tasks, and making sure that the door was locked, Dumbledore spoke again.
"And now," he said, "it is time for some of our number to recognize each other for what they are. Sirius . . . if you could resume your usual form."
The great black dog, in an instant, turned into a man. Several things happened at once afterwards.
Mrs. Weasley screamed. "Sirius Black!" she shrieked, pointing at him, as Ron calmed her down.
Snape, who had not reacted as violently, gave him a look of mingled fury and horror. "Him," he snarled, staring at Sirius. "What is he doing here?"
Frank Bryce shouted, "I KNOW HIM! I saw him on television, he's a prison break!"
One person who had neither been a part of the group who helped Sirius escape, nor had been dead for more than fourteen years, but still was calm and collected, was Cedric Diggory. He had meant it when he said he would trust anyone Dumbledore trusted.
Meanwhile, Sirius grinned at James and Lily, "Welcome to the group of people trying to run away from Azkaban!"
"Azkaban?" James and Lily frowned.
"Yeah, for selling you out to Voldy!"
"But you did not! It was that old rat Pettigrew!" James shouted angrily.
This caught everyone's attention.
"You mean to say he did not . . . Oh my God!" Molly Weasley whispered.
"I tried to tell people the same thing for fourteen years, nobody believed. And Prongs here said it once, you take his word! How justified." Sirius stated.
Even Snape had looked aghast.
"If that is settled," Lily spoke up, "May I ask what a Death Eater is doing amidst us?" She glared her old best-friend with a look of pure hatred.
"Listen!" Dumbledore said, silencing everyone. "Both Sirius and Severus are here at my invitation. I trust both of them. It is time for everyone to lay aside old differences and trust each other."
"Now I have work for both of you. Fudge's attitude, though not unexpected, changes everything. Though I must say, Ms. Jorkins played her part well. Sirius, I need you to set off at once. You are to alert Remus Lupin, Arabella Figg, Mundungus Fletcher — the old crowd. Lie low at Lupins for a while; I will contact you there. And take this good old man with you," he said, pointing to Frank Bryce.
Sirius bade a goodbye to the Potters, transformed again into a black dog, and went away followed by Mr. Bryce.
"Severus," said Dumbledore, turning to Snape, "you know what I must ask you to do. If you're ready . . . if you are prepared. . ."
"I am," said Snape.
"Then good luck," said Dumbledore. After a few minutes, he spoke again. "I must go downstairs and leave you to take some rest Harry, and family reunion I suppose," said Dumbledore.
"Headmaster —" Cedric spoke. "I will come with you. I must say goodbye to my parents. I, too, am ready for any task you have for me."
"Ah! Hop along then."
"Back to his crazy old self," James grinned as Dumbledore went away with his arm on Cedric's shoulder.
"Dad!" Harry scolded.
"You know, I'm still waiting to be called 'mum' by you!" Lily said, smiling.
"Oh mum!" Harry hugged her.
"Hey! Cedric left the prize money here only," said Ron.
"Ronald Weasley!" Hermione glared at him.
"These are my two best friends, mum and dad! Hermione," Harry said looking at the brown haired witch, "and Ron!" he finished, turning to the redhead.
"Pleasure to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Potter," Hermione said shaking James' hand.
Lily pulled her into a hug. "Call us James and Lily, dear."
"I'm Ron. Ron Weasley," Ron said.
"Oh! I remember you, you were a little, pink, freckled baby when we —" Lily said.
Ron blushed as everyone laughed, exempting Lily from completing the sentence. James pulled her into a hug.
"Look, here's a note," Harry spoke up, looking at the note placed by the winnings.
Harry,
Thank you for saving my life. Or should I say returning me to life? I owe my life to you now. And you are the true Triwizard Champion. I would not have been able to duel Voldemort for even a second, as was proved today. But I'll dedicate this life into making the world a better place to live in. Keep the winnings — you are the one who deserves them. And don't try to return them back, or I'll hex you into oblivion. You might be a better dueler, but I still have three years' worth of knowledge more than you. Again, thanks for everything.
Cedric
P.S. I won't be coming back to Hogwarts for now, so, as a last favour to me, if you can, please tell Cho that I really liked her. She should go make new boyfriends, because I'm at your service now, which most probably means Dumbledore's — the crazy old man — the Wizard of Oz!! Tell her I'll meet her soon if possible.
Harry had tears in his eyes, yet could not help but smile at Cedric's humor as he finished the note. He passed it on for the others to read it.
"Blimey! When d'you reckon he wrote this?" Ron asked.
"No idea," Harry replied, feeling tired.
"Your potion, Harry," said Mrs. Weasley quickly, as she saw his sleepy stature.
Harrydrank it in one gulp. The effect was instantaneous. Heavy, irresistible wavesof dreamless sleep broke over him; he fell back onto the pillow and thought nomore.