Serendipity ━ H.Potter

O5. The Rabbit and the Black Cat

The last rays of the sun filtered through the canopy trees, illuminating the woods in a strange crimson glow. The leaves, once vibrant and full of life, had withered into a mosaic of deep vermilion, burnt orange, and ground brown, creating an eerie carpet underfoot. The woods was a perfect example of the taste of autumn dancing in the breeze with just a touch of enigma: there was a mysterious silence clouded in the atmosphere; something that indicated an impending arrival of danger.

As the last vestiges of daylight retreated, the woods seemed to come alive with an unsettling, otherworldly aura. Within the depths of the forest, a bizarre stillness prevailed, only broken by the occasional hoot of an owl or the haunting cry of a distant creature.

Dried leaves cracked under his feet as he hopelessly tried to remain as quite as possible. With the invisibility cloak on, he was sure the Snatchers camping a few feet in front of him colour never see him. Four men, all dressed in black and adoring bizarre dark ornaments sat around a campfire, basking in its warmth as the rest of the woods turned cold. Harry looked around for the fifth companion but never found him, coming to the conclusion that he was probably out of the league by now.

Amidst the shadow of a tree, a sense of foreboding gripped his heart, and he sought the comfort of the rabbit foot charm. Until then, he had not met with any disaster and he only hoped it was its power. Just keep helping me, Rabbit Foot, and I shall conjure a heap of carrots for you. . .Even if you can't eat them, Ron can.

With the newly found confidence, Harry crouched low, his senses alert. This was no time to think about Ron eating carrots.

Now aiming his wand at the center, at a much skinny fellow, he muttered the levitation spell. "Levicorpus." To the Snatcher's surprise, he was lifted into the air by foot. This caused a commotion just as Harry had expected. All of the burly men rose from their seats and began looking for the spell caster who had turned their mate's life upside down, literally. Harry smirked to himself before shooting a barrage of disarming spells – the particular one he was very skilled at and fond of – at the group.

To his victory, the wands of the Snatchers along with a couple of reflective daggers fell away and Harry quickly obliterated them, sending them to the rookie aurors who were within the vicinity. This was a signal for them to know that Harry had captured four snatchers.

"Who's there, eh?!" The burliest looking one shouted at nobody in particular. "If I find out who did this, I'll 'ave yer head, I'm warnin' yeh! This ain't no jokin' matter, it's a serious business, it is! Yeh better come out now and face the consequences of provoking Snatchers, 'cause I've got me eye on yeh, I do!"

Harry decided it as the right time to reveal himself. So, he shrugged off the invisibility cloak and emerged out of the tree he was hiding behind. The snatchers looked taken aback before an expression of smug confidence crossed their faces, splitting their faces with a sinister grin. Harry, however, wasted no time pondering over their reaction, and bound the standing three snatchers by sending simultaneous curses and spells.

"Incarcerous!"

Even as they went down, they were stubborn enough to comment about him. "Harry Potter? Who were we expecting!" One of them laughed. It somehow made the blood in his veins rush faster.

"Well, I certainly hope it wasn't Voldemort who you were expecting."

"Potter!"

The atmosphere suddenly changed as the temperature dropped to minus. Everything happened really quickly. A red beam of light flew past Harry's ear as he instinctively dropped to his knee. Behind him was the fifth snatcher, the one who had been keeping guard of the place unbeknownst to him all along. The wind rose and along with it, Harry. "Expelliarmus!"

"Protego!" A quick shimmering shield deflected Harry's signature spell and sent it back at him. Harry managed to side step it. Spells crackled through the darkening woods as they dueled, throwing jinxes and hexes at each other, leaves swirling in their wake. Branches splintered, and the air filled with cracks and sparks.

Driven by purpose, Harry unleashed the stunning charm that the Snatcher narrowly dodged. The curse hit a tree, burning a hole into the trunk. The Snatcher retaliated with the leg-locker curse, but Harry deftly got to his knee, causing the Snatcher to swear.

In the midst of their intense duel, a sleek black cat darted across the path and climbed the burnt tree, its eyes shimmering with an uncanny intelligence. It nestled on one of the branches, licking its paws and curiously enjoying the show. It distracted him, his wand wavered for a crucial movement, which lead to the Snatcher hitting him with a very familiar spell. One that he thought died with Severus Snape. "Sectumsempra!"

The spell hit him with an incredible force, and he cried out in pain as it slashed across his chest. Blood stained his clothes as he stumbled back, clutching the wound, and collapsed to the ground, the dried leaves, the stems of which, bruised his face. His vision began to blur, and the world around him seemed to spin. The pain in his chest intensified, and Harry's strength waned.

The black cat which had been there all along was no longer present, as if it was unfazed by the entire duel. It was as if it had vanished along with wind and was just a fragment of Harry's imagination. He could only wish his miserable state would also dissipate with the dying wind but it seemed that he was the one dying without the air rushing into his lungs.

There were sounds of rushing footsteps but it was all a distinct dream to his ears. Ginny's blazing look flashed across his eyes before everything turned black and he found himself slipping away into the realm of unconsciousness no matter how hard he tried to stay awake.

He failed.

Hey guys!
What do you think about the contrasting use of lucky and unlucky charms?

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Thank you for reading!

Miyoko x