NOVEL NEXT Chapter 13: A Grim Warning
It was then that three huge dementors floated slowly out of the alley where Dudley and his gang had lain in wait. They were about thirty feet from the boys, and Harry could feel their cold, slimy presence on the air. Dudley couldn't see them, but he certainly felt them. Shrieking with terror, he advanced on Harry with his stick and began swinging wildly.
"MAKE…..IT….STOP!" Tears were now running down the huge boy's face as he tried to bludgeon Harry.
"Dudley….damnit!"
Harry had finally had enough of his cousin. He had dodged the first three swings before being struck on the shoulder with a glancing blow. He knew he couldn't fend off both Dudley and the approaching dementors at the same time, so he did the only thing he could do.
"STUPEFY!"
A weak jet of red light sent Dudley crashing to the pavement just as the closest dementor began to extend his long arms toward the boys.
"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" Harry roared, desperately trying to think of how proud his parents would have been of his accomplishments.
A faint, silvery mist spilt from his wand and quickly dissipated.
Harry looked at his wand incredulously for a split second. He hadn't performed this charm since third year, when Professor Lupin had reluctantly taught it to him, but he knew he had done it correctly. He was masterful at this charm. Was he simply out of practice?
By now one dementor was stooping to reach for Dudley's prone body and the other two were advancing on Harry. They were frighteningly close. Harry focused his thoughts on how happy he would be when Voldemort was finally pushing up daisies:
"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" he shouted again, but got little more than silver mist. "EXPECTO PATRONUM! EXPECTO PATRONUM!"
The dementors had paused at the presence of the silver mist, but it quickly evaporated and they continued forward. The dementor in the rear was now lowering his hood to kiss Dudley and the dementors attacking Harry were reaching out their arms to grab him. Harry wondered how he was going to live through this. Why the bloody hell isn't the spell working? He couldn't die like this, could he? His mind had frozen into a blank wall of terror as the closest dementor seized his wand arm and lowered it. Its companion slowly lowered its hood and Harry could do nothing but moan in despair during what seemed to be his final seconds on earth.
He mercifully blacked out before he could experience his soul being sucked out through his mouth.
August 6th, 1995 – Hogwarts, Headmaster's Office
"HEADMASTER!"
Albus Dumbledore flinched involuntarily as a frantic female voice shouted at him through the green flames of the floo. He recognized the voice of Junior Auror Nymphadora Tonks, a new member of the Order who was scheduled for guard duty at Harry Potter's house later that evening.
Dumbledore had returned to his office from dinner only seconds ago, and was still standing in the center of the room trying to discern which of his monitoring devices was making such a racket. He had just realized that the device which monitored the use of magic in Harry's neighborhood was shrieking madly when the floo erupted. He silenced the alarm with a wave of his wand and strode quickly over to the fireplace.
"Nymphadora, what is happening?"
Tonks was breathing heavily, and seemed to be shaking. She didn't even wince at the use of her first name.
"It's Harry, sir… there's been an attack….Dementors…three of them…"
"What?! How could…is Harry alright? Where are you now?"
"I'm at Figgy's. Harry's on the couch…he's, er, he's still unconscious, sir…I don't know if…" She couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence.
"Stand aside, Nymphadora. I'm stepping through."
August 7, 1995 – Hogwarts, Headmaster's Office
Albus Dumbledore sat at his desk with closed eyes, absentmindedly stroking his long beard while pondering yesterday's events. Three dementors had somehow entered the wards surrounding Harry's neighborhood and attacked him. His cousin had been kissed in the attack, and Harry had been milliseconds from succumbing to the same fate. If Tonks had not been early for her shift of guard duty, Harry Potter would likely be a soulless husk right now.
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