The Titans of Secrets

─Chapter Twenty Eight

Story: The Titans of Secrets
Chapter Twenty Eight: Change of Path

"Gi–Gilligan–? How–? Why–?" Harry stuttered. Riddle laughed mockingly in the background.

"You see Harry Potter, I can be very persuasive," he said, emphasizing the word 'I'. "Young Gilligan just needed a little bit of reminding that his family no longer cares for him."

"That's not true, I am afraid Tom," Dumbledore retorted, placing a hand on Harry's shoulder. Riddle rolled his dark eyes.

"Shut it you old fool. Now give me that cloak of yours Potter!" he boomed, pointing his wand at them. Gellert approached them and pointed Dumbledore's wand at Harry.

"Give it and you will be set free," Gellert intimidated. Dragonfly took a step forward but Riddle sharply turned his wand at her.

"One more step and consider yourself unlucky, girl!" Gritting her teeth, Dragonfly looked around. There seemed to be no escape now. If she were to even move a muscle, Riddle would kill her. Dumbledore and Harry were armless. Oh if only she could perform wandless, non-verbal magic. Wandless. Gilligan still had a wand, didn't he? Hoping that her friend would look her way, she slowly jerked her head.

It worked. Gilligan's misty green eyes caught her brown orbs and he winked. Dragonfly was puzzled; she did not tell him anything, did she?

"All right, Sixteen. Seems like your brother won't give up that cloak. Just grab it from him and we will let him go," Riddle said lazily. Gilligan nodded at him, causing a lump to form in Dragonfly's throat. He was still on their side and could not be trusted!

"Give me dad's cloak, Harry," he ordered. Harry's lips quivered. "I think I must take it by brute force –"

"Why, Gilligan? Answer me. . . I'll give it to you. . ." Harry whispered. Dragonfly could not hear his tone of hurt.

"Because Harry, no one! Not even a single soul except maybe Ginny, really wanted to ask 'how are you?'! Not you, nor mum nor dad! They were just worried sick about you but not about me! They expected me, the youngest Potter and an underage wizard, to take care of you and protect you even at the cost of my life! Was I born to be your bodyguard?! Or am I just a spare?

"And you! You aren't the old Harry you were before! You are so self-centered that you did not once care about what I was doing! I used the excuse of being sick to meet up with Riddle and Grindelwald but you never visited me or made sure that I was doing okay. . . Everyone loves you. . . Because you are the star of Puddlemere United. . . Why, even Ginny loves you! The only one who even cares about me loves my brother over me!"

Gilligan's words caused a great tide of guilt to wash over Dragonfly. Her knees felt weak when she recollected the time when he told her how wrong he felt. She bit back her apology knowing all too well that her identity would be revealed to several people.

"Gilligan –" Harry started but was interrupted.

"Enough, Harry! I've had enough! Now I know you will never trust me! I've broken the trust of everyone who loved me so it's better I turn dark. Yes, that's the only way to pacify my hurt," he lashed out before pointing his wand at Harry. Dragonfly felt truly helpless. She did not know what to do and how to stop Harry from getting hurt. It seemed that a Wendigo was chasing her and she had met a terrible dead end. "You'll get out of here alive. Riddle keeps his word and mum will be so delighted that her favorite son returned. Now, I need that cloak." Gilligan aimed his wand at Harry who did nothing to defend himself. "Stupe – Reducto!"

Shocked as anyone would be when Gilligan turned around at the last moment and sent the reductor curse at the shaft, Dragonfly froze. The shaft creaked before raining down in brash. The Unspeakable immediately threw her wand in the air. "Protego Totalum!" An invisible shield formed and her vision went hazy. The ash lifted and swirled in the air but she had not a moment to breath.