Legit five

Chapter 97

After Harry told them he'd hid the book, they headed back to the common room. Ron and Hermione knew they had to get Slughorn's real memory, Hermione suggested that Harry use the Liquid Luck. Harry ran up to his dorm and came back with the tiny vial in his hand. He opened it and poured it down his throat. The liquid tastes rather sweet and sent a positive sensation throughout his body.
" Well, how do you feel ? " Hermione asked him.
" Excellent. Really excellent," he answered standing up.
" Remember Slughorn usually eats early, take a walk and then return to his office," Hermione told him.
" Right, I'm going down to Hagrids," Harry said with enthusiasm.
" What ? No ! You need to speak to Slughorn ! " said Hermione
" I know but, I have a good feeling about Hagrid. I-I-it's the place to be tonight ! " Harry said excitedly. " You know what I mean ? " Ron and Hermione looked at Harry as if he was insane.
" No," they answered.
" Well trust me. I know what I'm doing ! Or....Felix does ! " Harry said before quickly leaving the room.
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Harry was heading towards Hagrid's when he stopped in front of the Herbology greenhouse. He saw Professor Slughorn leaning into a window of the greenhouse, he looked rated tense and was attempting to cut one of the Mandrake leaves. Harry walked up to him, startling him when he noticed Harry was there.
" Merlin's Beard ! Harry ! " Slughorn said shocked.
" Sorry sir. You probably feared I was Professor Sprout, " Harry said quickly.
" Yes I did," Slughorn laughed nervously. Harry continued walking down the hall, towards Hagrid's .
" Exactly how did you get out of the castle ? " Slughorn demanded.
" Through the front door sir. I'm off to Hagrid's he's a very dear friend and I just fancy him a visit. If you dot mind, I'll be going now," Harry explained and continued walking.
" Harry ! " Slughorn said.
" Sir ! " he mimicked.
" It's nearly night fall. Surely you realize I can't allow you to go roaming the grounds by yourself," Slughorn said.
" Well then by all means come along sir," Harry said. He began walking outside again. Slughorn followed still trying to stop him.
" Harry !" Slughorn called after him as they neared the hut. " I insist that you accompany me back to the castle immediately !"
" That would be counterproductive sir," Harry said.
" What makes you say that ? Slughorn asked.
" No idea," Harry admitted. They walk a few more feet until they found Hagrid, he was standing besides a giant spider. The legs and dead black eyes were vaguely familiar to Harry. As he got closer he realized it was Aragog !
" Merlin's Beard ! Is that an actual acromantula ? " Slughorn asked when he saw the dead Aragog.
" A dead one I think sir," Harry added.
" Dear fellow, however did you manage to kill it ? " Slughorn asked Hagrid.
" Kill it ? My oldest friend he was," Hagrid said sadly.
' I'm so sorry I didn't-" Slughorn began.
"
Oh don't worry yourself your not alone. Seriously misunderstood creatures spiders are. The eyes I reckon nerve some folk," Hagrid said.
" Not to mention the pincers," Harry added clicking his teeth ad pretending he had pincers.
" I reckon that too," Hagrid agreed.
" Hagrid, the last thug I wish to be is indelicate but acromantula venom are commonly rare. Would you allow me to extract a vial or two ? Surely for academic purposes of course," Slughorn asked.
" Well I don't suppose it's going to do him good now is it ? " Hagrid said chocking back tears. Harry patted him on the back.
" My thoughts exactly ! " Slughorn said as he hurried over to the dead Aragog, he took out a small vial and collected the venom before joining them again,
" Would you like me to say a few words ? "
" Yes," Hagrid sniffed.
" He had family I trust ? " Slughorn asked.
" Yeah," Harry laughed remembering when Aragog's family almost killed him, Ron, and Annabelle.
" Fair well," Slughorn began.
" Aragog," Hagrid said.
" Fair well Aragog, king of arachinds. The body will decay, but your spirit lingers on," Slughorn continued. After the unusual funeral of Aragog, all of them accompanied Hagrid back to his hut to try and cheer him up. They ended up staying there really late, it was pitch black outside. Hagrid and Slughorn started drinking about an hour ago and were now drunk and singing. When they finished singing, Harry clapped for them, he was still cheerful from the Liquid Luck.
" I had him from an egg you know. Tiny little thing he was when he hatched," Hagrid said talking about Aragog.
" How sweet. I once had a fish, Frances, he was very dear to me. Then one afternoon I came downstairs and.....he vanished. Poof," Slughorn said. " But that's life I suppose, you go along and then suddenly....Poof ".
" Poof," Harry repeated. Hagrid suddenly leaned back in his chair and fell asleep right there. Slughorn stared at Harry for a moment in total silence before he finally spoke.
" It was a student who gave me Frances. One spring afternoon I discovered a bowl on my desk. Just a few inches of clear water in it floating on the surface was a flower petal. As I watched it sank, just before it reached the bottom, it transformed into a fish. It was beautiful magic, wondrous to behold. The flower petal had come from a Lily, your mother Harry. The day I came downstairs, the day the bowl was empty, was the day your mother....I know why you're here, but I can't help you. It would ruin me," Slughorn confessed.
" Do you know why I survived Professor ? " Harry asked. " The night I got this scar ? " Harry gesture to his forehead.
" Because of her, because of my mother. Because she sacrificed herself, because she refused to step aside, because of her love was more powerful than Voldemort ".
" Dot say his name," Slughorn said shuddering.
" I'm not afraid if the name Professor," Harry said standing up. " I'm going to tell you something. Something others have only guessed at. Its true I am the Chosen One. Only I can destroy him, but in order to do so, I need to know what Tom Riddle asked you all those years ago in your office. And I need to know what you told him," Harry said with confidence. Slughorn sadly shook his head.
" Be brave Professor. Be brave like my mother. Otherwise you disagree her. Otherwise she dies for nothing. Otherwise the bowl will remain empty forever," Harry said
" Please. Don't think badly of me when you see it. You have no idea what he was like then," Slughorn said before reluctantly pulling the memory out and placing it in a vial for him to take to Dumbledore .
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Now having what he needed, Harry literally ran all the way back to Dumbledore's office not caring if anyone saw him. He ran into the office without knocking, Dumbledore looked at him expectantly, but the look in Harry's face said everything. Harry handed the vial to him and they walked over to the Pensieve. * video * When they emerged Harry was confused. What's a Horcrux ? Dumbledore in the other hand looked nervous, scared even.
" Sir ? " Harry asked. Dumbledore held up his hand to silence him as he sat down.
" This is beyond anything I imagined," Dumbledore said grimly.
" You mean he succeeded sir ? " Harry asked. " In making the Horcrux ? "
" Oh yes, he succeeded alright. And not just once," Dumbledore said.
" What are they exactly ? " Harry asked.
" Could be anything, most common cases of objects. Ring for example," he said pushing a ring towards him but not touching it. " Or a book," Dumbledore held up Tom Riddle's diary, Harry destroyed in second year.
" Tom Riddle's diary," Harry said.
" It's a Horcrux, yes. Four years ago when you saved Ginny Weasly's life in the Chamber of Secrets you brought me this. I knew then this was different kind of magic. Very dark. Very powerful. But until tonight I had no idea just how powerful," Dumbledore said.
" And the ring ? " Harry said.
" Belong to Voldemort's mother. Difficult to find. Even more difficult to destroy," Dumbledore held up his hand that was now black and wrinkly.
" But if you find them all. If you destroy each Horcrux-" Harry began
" It destroys Voldemort," Dumbledore finished.
" How do you find them ? They could be hidden anywhere couldn't they ? " Harry asks.
" True but magic, especially dark magic-" Dumbledore began. Harry lightly touched the ring and images flashed through his mind. " Leave traces ".
" It's where you've been goi isn't it ? When you've been leaving the school ? " Harry asked.
" Yes. And I think I perhaps I may have found another. But this time I can't destroy it alone. Once again I ask too much of you Harry ".
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It was very late,like two in the morning. Malfoy already left the hospital wing, sitting in the hospital wing was Neville. He was sitting on a chair next to Annabelle holding her hand, tears streaming down his face. Now Annabelle was beginning to hear things around her but she couldn't recognize anyone's voice or anything, Her eyes were still closed, her pulse was still dangerously slow, she was extremely pale and cold but she couldn't feel anything. Neville was distraught earlier that day before the hospital when he was visiting her with Thomas, Madame Pomfrey told him that Annabelle was now at a 5% chance of surviving. Neville wiped his eyes, took a deep breath and then opened his mouth to speak.
" Annabelle Christine Hood. Please wake up. We all miss you and we are deeply worried about you. It's been awhile since I last talk to you and saw those big beautiful blue eyes. I miss how I would look in them and see how much they shined or sparkled, as if the sun was shining off the ocean or lake. Your eyes held comfort, I miss your laugh," Neville breathed a laugh. Annabelle began to feel a tingling in her toes in her left foot, but she was kinda freaked out, she didn't know who was talking to her.
" Remember when we first met ? You came into the compartment with Hermione and Trevor because I lost him and was looking for him, and you happened to find him. And I remember the way you held him in your hands. I never told anyone this but, at first I kinda stared at you as if you were insane to talk to me or let alone be in the same compartment. You were so pretty. Then I jumped up shouting Trevor and scared you. Seamus gave you the nickname of Anniebelli," Neville began to laugh. Then the tingling in Annabelle's body went to her foot.
" I still treasure the moment in second year, when it was really late and I was in the middle of a story when your just dropped, you fell asleep. I tried getting up, but you pulled me back down, before I fell asleep I played with your hair ". Neville started to blush. The tingling was now up her leg.
" I also love how when I came back from the first Christmas at Howgarts. You were wearing the necklace I gave you, whenever you were scared or something you played with it. Do you even take it off ? " He gently grabbed the necklace around Annabelle's neck to feel the engraving of the frog. All of a sudden the tingling in her body stopped her body was shutting down, she was losing the battle.
" Do you remember when we danced at the Yule Ball. Ginny and Noah were tired so they went to bed. We were at a table talking when this song came on. Hero by some guy, I don't remember the name. You looked at be with those blue eyes. And we went to the dance floor and danced. We looked at each other. I looked at you memorized. I wanna be able to dance like that again with you," Neville began to cry again. The voice Annabelle was hearing began to fade away as he spoke. Madame Pomfrey steppe out of her office to see what was going on.
" You had me very concerned about you in fourth year. You fell asleep this one night. Your head was on my stomach, Seamus's head was on your stomach, Dean's head was on Seamus's stomach and my head was on Dean's stomach. You fell asleep before any of us. You looked so small, fragile, and peaceful. Then you started to squirm, whimper, and cry. All of a sudden you jolted up, eyes bloodshot. We asked and you said just a bad dream. Later that night we were all asleep. I woke up to you squirming, I pulled you closer to me, dragging the others with, and wrapped my arms around you. You stopped. Do you feel safe ?" Tears rolled down his cheeks and fell onto Annabelle's cold body. Madame Pomfrey began to tear up at the scene in front of her eyes.
" Sandra and Annie told me what happened the night of the Yule Ball. Saying you screamed and cried worse then ever. You said my name and don't die in the same sentence. You won't lose me. To be honest I'm more afraid of losing you," he cried. Annabelle's hearing was getting worse but she could still hear him.
"I also remember when earlier this year, when I had nightmare and you were there to comfort me, thank you so much, it meant a lot ". The tears were coming down faster.
" I remember when you and Jóse got together, I was jealous. But you two fought all the time it was insane. He made you cry and then you were angrier more than usual, you snapped at me. It's okay, I forgive, I always will. And your not a lost cause. I still can't believe he hit you. I remember earlier this year you got injured badly and Madame Pomfrey had me clean your wound. As I did I pointed out your birthmark of clover be your belly button ". Neville took the back of his hand and wiped his eyes, then he got up and at on the edge of the bed.
" You never liked when anyone cried and we never liked when you cried, we would all try and make each other feel better ". Neville cried more, he took a deep breath again. Annabelle could now barely make out the words he was saying but she was able to catch the last part he was about to say.
" I-I m-miss y-you s-so m-much Annabelle. I can't lose, I don't wanna lose you, please don't die. I love you so much," Neville said, then tears were coming down like a water fall. Annabelle could began to fell her body about to give up. Neville wiped his eyes, he slowly leaned down and gently placed his lips on Annabelle's lips. The tingling sensation shot through her body. Neville removed his lips, got up, picked up parchment and quill wrote something down and began to walk out, slowly letting go of Annabelle's hand. Just as Neville was about to leave, Annabelle's eyes opened. She looked over and saw his super blurry figure walk out closing the door. A liquid was coming up her throat and fast. Ananbelle jolted up and coughed up the remainder of the drink into a bucket on the floor. The owls sat up and looked around the room, everything was super blurry. Madame Pomfrey stood there for moment shocked.
" Ms. Hood !? " Madame Pomfrey gasped walking over Annabelle with a potion in her hands. Annabelle looked and saw a super blurry figure coming towards her.
" I'm sorry, but who are you ? " Annabelle asked still not be able to recognize anyone's voice.
" I am Madame Pomfrey dear, drink this," Madame Pomfey gasped. She was still surprised Annabelle woke up.
" Thank you," Annabelle said drinking the potion. Madame Pomrey grabbed her wrist. Annabelle's pulse was at level were she is alive, her skin was warm, even in darkness you can see color starting to come back.
" Get some rest, Ms.Hood, and welcome back," Madame Pomfrey said walking away into her office to send Dumbledore a note. Annabelle slowly laid back down, she was lightly touching her lips smiling. She had no idea who loses her. Soon she fell asleep.
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Authors note: Hey everyone !! So she woke up !! Well this will be the last time I will be posting till after Christmas. So Merry Christmas !! Comment your thoughts !! Love you all.
- Pickles