La Lutte (Interlude)
Title: Two More Years
Author: RavanaSnape
Series: La Lutte (07/15)
Era: Post-HBP
Warning: Spoilers up to and including HBP
Rating: A Strong R. This is the most dark chapter out of the fifteen. It includes character death, references to extreme violence/torture and child murder. I rated it R, because I thought a fifteen year old [the equivalent rating in the UK would be '15'] could handle the images portrayed. This chapter is really not happy.
Pairings: References to Ron/Hermione and, indirectly, Remus/Tonks.
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. The song featured is the property of Bloc Party and in no way mine.
Summary: Two years pass as Harry watches, feeling powerless.
In two more years, my sweetheart, we will see another view
such longing for the past for such completion
What was once golden has now turned a shade of grey
I've become crueler in your presence
By this point Harry was becoming desperate. Ten months had passed since that night at the Riddle Manor and they were still no closer to destroying the Horcrux. The Cup had magical properties in of itself, which, with the help of Zacharias they had managed to unlock, but the part that belonged to Voldemort remained stubbornly resistant to all their efforts. According to Ron, Hermione had begun to mutter in her sleep and Harry had noticed that if the firelight caught her hair in a certain way the first strands of silver were beginning to show.
They say: 'be brave, there's a right way and a wrong way'
This pain won't last for ever, this pain won't last for ever
The losses had continued to mount on both sides and Azkaban had long lain empty. The Muggles, whilst not completely oblivious were for the most part still unaware that a war was raging in the Wizarding world. Tonks had died seven weeks ago - the victim of Bellatrix Lestrange. The woman had set herself the task of cleansing the Black family of all those who refused to ally with the Dark Lord - something to do with honour apparently. She had deliberately picked a full moon, when Lupin was unable to go to his wife’s rescue. Every time Harry thought of it, of the pictures that had been splashed over the Daily Prophet before anyone could intervene, of the tiny baby foetus which had been ripped from her womb and placed in her arms, and even tinier Dark Mark carved on it’s arm… well, luckily he didn’t eat much any more - less to throw up that way.
Two more years, there's only two more years
Two more years, there's only two more years
Two more years so hold on
Hermione had come up with a new theory three months after Tonks’ funeral. Helped by another of the small notes that were now appearing with reassuring regularity, they Apparated to Calais and travelled, like Muggles, to Paris. Late one night they descended into the catacombs, built to house the overspill from the cemeteries, and headed into the Wizarding section, where the bones had to be bound to stop them from walking. The Horcrux had been created before Zacharias’ time, so they sought out a member of the Smith family who would have been alive. Powdered bone, dragon blood and an incantation that Harry refused to let Hermione say - so close to the Dark Arts that he determined he would be the only one to bear the stain on his soul. With a scream that reverberated through the night the cup shattered into thousands of tiny shards and, barely stopping to pick up the pieces, they ran. The gendarmes and French Aurors chased them across Paris, but they made it to the Apparition point and then to Beauxbatons, where Madame Maxime hid them in the wine cellars until it was safe to leave.
You've cried enough this lifetime, my beloved polar bear
Tears to fill a sea to drown a beacon
To start anew all over, remove those scars from your arms
To start anew all over more enlightened
The war raged on, losses mounting on both sides. By now the Muggles knew. There was panic all over the world as Wizarding communities were outted. In those countries fortunate to escape the immediate consequences of Voldemort they had to contend with their own people rising against them. Civil War pitted Muggle against Wizard, brother against sister. In China there were reports of Wizarding babies being drowned at birth, in Africa they were presented as demon-children and slaughtered. In America they vanished overnight and strange new research facilities began springing up in every State. On a still night Harry fancied he could hear the screams of the tortured and dying reverberating around the planet. The Muggles were just confirming Voldemort’s prejudices and in vain did the Order and its allies try to put a stop to the atrocities. In the first three months of the slaughters more people defected to Voldemort than had in the previous twenty years.
I know, my love, this is not the only story you can tell
This pain won't last for ever, this pain won't last for ever
Eventually the persecution ground to a halt and Muggles began asking if they could help. Hermione said it was the difference between assuming all Germans were Nazis, and knowing that a minority coloured the rest. Whilst she explained it to Ron, on a bleak rainy day where the chill struck through their very bones, Harry leaned against a windowpane and watched the droplets slide down the glass. Guns and bombs could only be effective for so long against a force that could put up shielding spells and tear your flesh from your bones with a few words. The American President had begun muttering about nuclear weapons, backed up half-heartedly by the Prime Minister. When Hermione had first heard, through one of their infrequent Floo conversations with Mrs Weasley, she’d gone white then red and had finally demanded that an Auror get on the other end of the connection. The resulting two-hour lecture, delivered in a furious voice that at parts got so shrill Ron had to cover his ears, was something Harry thought Kingsley Shacklebolt would not forget in a hurry. Needless to say, the Muggles stuck to their less effective weaponry.
Two more years...
Sometimes he wondered if it was worth it. Any of it. Mad-Eye had followed Tonks to the grave. The only bright spot in the whole thing was the death of Fenrir Greyback. Remus had exacted his revenge in terms that even the Twins wouldn’t discuss. Every time one of the trio brought it up, those who had witnessed it went pale and determinedly changed the subject.
You don't need to find answers for questions never asked of you
You don't need to find answers
The quest for the Horcruxes went on. Ravenclaw was the next target. Even Dumbledore’s portrait couldn’t give them a clue and Snape hadn’t contacted them for several weeks. In the end it was a routine report by Fred and George on the state of Diagon Alley that gave Ron the idea. Wands… Ollivander - the glass wand that had hung in the window since time immemorial. He explained, as they ran to the nearest Apparition point, that the one thing Rowena Ravenclaw had been famed for - the thing that had made her sought after above and beyond the other Founders - was her ability to create unique wands. Her own had been so slight and delicate that history had lost it, with only a few references contained in textbooks.
Dead weights and balloons
Drag me to you
Dead weights and balloons
To sleep in your arms
I've become crueller since I met you
I’ve become rougher, this world is killing me
It took them six months to find Ollivander. Six months during which Hermione learnt to braid her hair so the thick white bands weren’t so apparent. Six months, of which Ron spent two in a coma, half of his body covered with burns from a rogue dragon. Six months in which lines appeared on Harry’s face and scars patterned his body and his soul. After Ron’s burns he took two weeks to track down the Death Eater responsible for setting the animal loose, whilst Hermione kept a tear-stained vigil at her husband’s side. A week later she looked up to find Harry beside her, eyes gimlet hard and a set to his jaw that told her she did not want to ask what had become of the Death Eater. Ever.
Two more years...
After finding Ollivander, in a dusty Cairo apartment, six weeks passed before he would entrust the wand to them. Six long weeks whilst he taught them, and especially Hermione, everything he could about wands and their properties. They studied for eighteen-hour days, alternately working with Ollivander and the witches at the Cairo Consortium, who knew many arcane spells.
We cover our lies with handshakes and smiles
We try to remember our alibis
We tell lies to our parents he hide in their rooms
We bury our secrets in the garden
Of course we could never make this love last
I said of course we could never make this love last
The only love we know is love for ourselves
We bury our secrets in the garden
Two years after the original raid on the Riddle Mansion the trio returned to England, having taken the long journey home. Apparition and Floo were no longer reliable, so they made do with the train and boat - planes could too easily be shot down. They had the wand and were on their way to breaking the spells. For the first time since Ginny’s death, nearly three years earlier, Harry allowed himself to feel the tiniest sliver of hope. After the wand there would only be one Horcrux, about which they already had a few workable theories. Snape had been in contact with the Order a few days before they’d got back and they arrived to news that the Order, together with the DA - who had been extremely busy whilst they’d been abroad - had managed to capture the Lestranges. Again, Harry took himself off, but this time when he locked himself in a room with a Death Eater he had Neville and Remus Lupin by his side. Without a word the Order reinforced the silencing charms on the cells, and several hours later the three men emerged, only to disappear into a second cell.
There wasn’t enough to bury, so they incinerated the pieces.
Next part
Author: RavanaSnape
Series: La Lutte (07/15)
Era: Post-HBP
Warning: Spoilers up to and including HBP
Rating: A Strong R. This is the most dark chapter out of the fifteen. It includes character death, references to extreme violence/torture and child murder. I rated it R, because I thought a fifteen year old [the equivalent rating in the UK would be '15'] could handle the images portrayed. This chapter is really not happy.
Pairings: References to Ron/Hermione and, indirectly, Remus/Tonks.
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. The song featured is the property of Bloc Party and in no way mine.
Summary: Two years pass as Harry watches, feeling powerless.
In two more years, my sweetheart, we will see another view
such longing for the past for such completion
What was once golden has now turned a shade of grey
I've become crueler in your presence
By this point Harry was becoming desperate. Ten months had passed since that night at the Riddle Manor and they were still no closer to destroying the Horcrux. The Cup had magical properties in of itself, which, with the help of Zacharias they had managed to unlock, but the part that belonged to Voldemort remained stubbornly resistant to all their efforts. According to Ron, Hermione had begun to mutter in her sleep and Harry had noticed that if the firelight caught her hair in a certain way the first strands of silver were beginning to show.
They say: 'be brave, there's a right way and a wrong way'
This pain won't last for ever, this pain won't last for ever
The losses had continued to mount on both sides and Azkaban had long lain empty. The Muggles, whilst not completely oblivious were for the most part still unaware that a war was raging in the Wizarding world. Tonks had died seven weeks ago - the victim of Bellatrix Lestrange. The woman had set herself the task of cleansing the Black family of all those who refused to ally with the Dark Lord - something to do with honour apparently. She had deliberately picked a full moon, when Lupin was unable to go to his wife’s rescue. Every time Harry thought of it, of the pictures that had been splashed over the Daily Prophet before anyone could intervene, of the tiny baby foetus which had been ripped from her womb and placed in her arms, and even tinier Dark Mark carved on it’s arm… well, luckily he didn’t eat much any more - less to throw up that way.
Two more years, there's only two more years
Two more years, there's only two more years
Two more years so hold on
Hermione had come up with a new theory three months after Tonks’ funeral. Helped by another of the small notes that were now appearing with reassuring regularity, they Apparated to Calais and travelled, like Muggles, to Paris. Late one night they descended into the catacombs, built to house the overspill from the cemeteries, and headed into the Wizarding section, where the bones had to be bound to stop them from walking. The Horcrux had been created before Zacharias’ time, so they sought out a member of the Smith family who would have been alive. Powdered bone, dragon blood and an incantation that Harry refused to let Hermione say - so close to the Dark Arts that he determined he would be the only one to bear the stain on his soul. With a scream that reverberated through the night the cup shattered into thousands of tiny shards and, barely stopping to pick up the pieces, they ran. The gendarmes and French Aurors chased them across Paris, but they made it to the Apparition point and then to Beauxbatons, where Madame Maxime hid them in the wine cellars until it was safe to leave.
You've cried enough this lifetime, my beloved polar bear
Tears to fill a sea to drown a beacon
To start anew all over, remove those scars from your arms
To start anew all over more enlightened
The war raged on, losses mounting on both sides. By now the Muggles knew. There was panic all over the world as Wizarding communities were outted. In those countries fortunate to escape the immediate consequences of Voldemort they had to contend with their own people rising against them. Civil War pitted Muggle against Wizard, brother against sister. In China there were reports of Wizarding babies being drowned at birth, in Africa they were presented as demon-children and slaughtered. In America they vanished overnight and strange new research facilities began springing up in every State. On a still night Harry fancied he could hear the screams of the tortured and dying reverberating around the planet. The Muggles were just confirming Voldemort’s prejudices and in vain did the Order and its allies try to put a stop to the atrocities. In the first three months of the slaughters more people defected to Voldemort than had in the previous twenty years.
I know, my love, this is not the only story you can tell
This pain won't last for ever, this pain won't last for ever
Eventually the persecution ground to a halt and Muggles began asking if they could help. Hermione said it was the difference between assuming all Germans were Nazis, and knowing that a minority coloured the rest. Whilst she explained it to Ron, on a bleak rainy day where the chill struck through their very bones, Harry leaned against a windowpane and watched the droplets slide down the glass. Guns and bombs could only be effective for so long against a force that could put up shielding spells and tear your flesh from your bones with a few words. The American President had begun muttering about nuclear weapons, backed up half-heartedly by the Prime Minister. When Hermione had first heard, through one of their infrequent Floo conversations with Mrs Weasley, she’d gone white then red and had finally demanded that an Auror get on the other end of the connection. The resulting two-hour lecture, delivered in a furious voice that at parts got so shrill Ron had to cover his ears, was something Harry thought Kingsley Shacklebolt would not forget in a hurry. Needless to say, the Muggles stuck to their less effective weaponry.
Two more years...
Sometimes he wondered if it was worth it. Any of it. Mad-Eye had followed Tonks to the grave. The only bright spot in the whole thing was the death of Fenrir Greyback. Remus had exacted his revenge in terms that even the Twins wouldn’t discuss. Every time one of the trio brought it up, those who had witnessed it went pale and determinedly changed the subject.
You don't need to find answers for questions never asked of you
You don't need to find answers
The quest for the Horcruxes went on. Ravenclaw was the next target. Even Dumbledore’s portrait couldn’t give them a clue and Snape hadn’t contacted them for several weeks. In the end it was a routine report by Fred and George on the state of Diagon Alley that gave Ron the idea. Wands… Ollivander - the glass wand that had hung in the window since time immemorial. He explained, as they ran to the nearest Apparition point, that the one thing Rowena Ravenclaw had been famed for - the thing that had made her sought after above and beyond the other Founders - was her ability to create unique wands. Her own had been so slight and delicate that history had lost it, with only a few references contained in textbooks.
Dead weights and balloons
Drag me to you
Dead weights and balloons
To sleep in your arms
I've become crueller since I met you
I’ve become rougher, this world is killing me
It took them six months to find Ollivander. Six months during which Hermione learnt to braid her hair so the thick white bands weren’t so apparent. Six months, of which Ron spent two in a coma, half of his body covered with burns from a rogue dragon. Six months in which lines appeared on Harry’s face and scars patterned his body and his soul. After Ron’s burns he took two weeks to track down the Death Eater responsible for setting the animal loose, whilst Hermione kept a tear-stained vigil at her husband’s side. A week later she looked up to find Harry beside her, eyes gimlet hard and a set to his jaw that told her she did not want to ask what had become of the Death Eater. Ever.
Two more years...
After finding Ollivander, in a dusty Cairo apartment, six weeks passed before he would entrust the wand to them. Six long weeks whilst he taught them, and especially Hermione, everything he could about wands and their properties. They studied for eighteen-hour days, alternately working with Ollivander and the witches at the Cairo Consortium, who knew many arcane spells.
We cover our lies with handshakes and smiles
We try to remember our alibis
We tell lies to our parents he hide in their rooms
We bury our secrets in the garden
Of course we could never make this love last
I said of course we could never make this love last
The only love we know is love for ourselves
We bury our secrets in the garden
Two years after the original raid on the Riddle Mansion the trio returned to England, having taken the long journey home. Apparition and Floo were no longer reliable, so they made do with the train and boat - planes could too easily be shot down. They had the wand and were on their way to breaking the spells. For the first time since Ginny’s death, nearly three years earlier, Harry allowed himself to feel the tiniest sliver of hope. After the wand there would only be one Horcrux, about which they already had a few workable theories. Snape had been in contact with the Order a few days before they’d got back and they arrived to news that the Order, together with the DA - who had been extremely busy whilst they’d been abroad - had managed to capture the Lestranges. Again, Harry took himself off, but this time when he locked himself in a room with a Death Eater he had Neville and Remus Lupin by his side. Without a word the Order reinforced the silencing charms on the cells, and several hours later the three men emerged, only to disappear into a second cell.
There wasn’t enough to bury, so they incinerated the pieces.
Next part