OotP, Chapter Thirty-Four - Beyond The Veil
This is a very action-packed and highly emotional chapter in which Harry realises quickly that he was tricked and there wasn't any need for a rescue mission for Sirius. As soon as Harry picks up the prophecy the sextet is surrounded by several Death-Eaters led by Lucius Malfoy. A battle of wills and skills ensues as Harry tries to protect the prophecy and his friends and at the same time escape from the Death Eaters. Lucius and the others including Bellatrix taunt and attempt to torment the sextet in their attempt to get the prophecy. When Harry realises that the DEs are interested in keeping the prophecy intact, he distracts them by talking while thinking up a plan to escapr the room. A spell shot by Bellatrix is deflected by Lucius and it causes several other prophecy orbs to shatter and break and this gives Harry the idea to smash the shelves of prophecies and make their escape. In the meantime, Lucius tells Harry that the prophecy he was holding had something to do with Voldemort and Harry and the reason Voldemort made Harry have that vision about Sirius being tortured was so that Harry would go to the MOM and find the prophecy as the prophecy could only be retrieved by those about whom it was made.
Harry decides to set his plan into motion and signals the others to smash the prophecy shelves abd they start to make their escape. A lot of pandemonium ensues as the sextet battle the DEs. Harry, Hermione and Neville find themselves in a fierce battle with one of the Death Eaters and it results in the DE's head entering a glittering bell jar and becoming affected by time. As they escape this Death eater, they're found by another pair and in the battle that ensues Hermione gets wounded and lies motionless. Harry and Neville get her away from the enemies and realise that she's still alive and they half carry/drag her and go to find the other three. They find Ron who's acting strangely and Ginny who's ankle seems to be broken and Luna who remains unaffected.
As the sextet attempt to find a way out again, they're found by the Death Eaters again and in their attempt to escape, they end up in the Brain Room. Before Harry Luna and Neville manage to close all the doors to the Brain Room, five of the DEs enter the room through the door Luna was trying to close and manage to strike Luna motionless. In the meantime Ron decides to accio one of the brains from the brain tank, which attack him by wrapping around his arms like ropes. The others try to help him but get attacked by the DEs and Ginny is the next one to be struck by them. Harry and Neville are the only two left fighting and Harry distracts them away from the others by holding the prophecy high above his head and running to the back of the room. He gets out through the one open door and as the DEs follow him, he hopes that Neville would stay and help Ron. As he runs into the new room he falls down some steep stone steps and lands on his back in the sunken pit with the stone archway.
Harry finds himself cornered against the back of the dais where the archway stood and Lucius tells him to hand over the prophecy. Harry tries to bargain with them when Neville joins him in an attempt to help. he's immediately targetted by Bellatrix who decides to crucio him in an attempt to make Harry give the prophecy away. Harry decides to do this but at the very same moment two doors burst open and Sirius, Lupin, Moody, Tonks and Kingsley enter the room and begin fighting the DEs. A fierce battle ensues again and the order members try to get Harry with his prophecy and Neville out of the room. They are impeded by Neville's inability to walk properly due to a tarantallegra spell and as Harry tries to help Neville up the steps, the prophecy suddenly falls out of Harry's pocket and shatters when Nevilles floundering feet kick it. They're unable to hear it in the crash, yell and screams surounding them.
Suddenly, they realise that Dumbledore has arrived also and Harry feels electric charge surge through him and giving him the sense that they were saved. The other DEs attempt ti run for it when they see Dumbledore. Only two people seem oblivious to his arrival. Sirius and Bellatrix are on the dais fighting and taunting each other. A flash of light from Bellarix's wand hits Sirius squarely on the chest and he falls back slowly, almost in slow motion though the ragged veil hanging from the arch.
Harry, who starts running down the steps again, with his wand out, watches and waits for Sirius to appear from the ther side, but nothing happens. He starts yelling and sprints towards the dais but Lupin grabs him and holds him back and tells him that Sirius is gone and there was nothing Harry could do.
