The Stag and The Harpy | James Potter

Ouch

"I wonder if she's read it yet."

Sirius lets out a quiet snort of laughter, the two of them crouched down underneath a bush.

"If she has she probably is pissed," Sirius mutters. James flushes and shrugs, replying bashfully,

"Everything I wrote is true. She can't be mad at me for that, can she?"

Sirius smirks and shakes his head.

"She can't be mad at you for that. But Remus said she will be mad that you didn't say it all to her face."

James groans quietly, glancing at where Remus and Peter are huddled nearby. They'd been waiting hours despite Madeye's insistence that danger here was imminent. He wonders what Phoebe is doing, wonders if she's been to the house yet. Grief twists it's dagger in his heart, making him breathless.

He tries to focus on the mission at hand, but his head and his heart are elsewhere. Phoebe still loved him, that much he knew. But he wants to know if she read his letter. He meant every word, even the sick feeling in his gut that something very bad was going to happen. That he might not see her again.

He nearly tells Sirius that he's just going to apparate quickly and then come right back. He needed to see her. But then a loud bang sounds in the distance and chaos erupts.

James and Sirius stare in horror as a sudden greenish cloud in the sky morphs into a skull, a snake slithering from its mouth. They were here.

"Let's go, Padfoot," James says quickly, crawling out from under their hiding spot. They're running, shouting aguamenti to put out fires and yelling at people to move. Hoards of people are fleeing past them, running in the opposite direction. James glances to his left and sees Remus and Peter hurling curses at men in silver masks and black robes.

"Stupefy!" Sirius cries, quickly drawing his attention again. They stand together, blocking curses and hurling hexes until James cries,

"Expelliarmus!"

"Nice one, James!" Sirius shouts when the death eater's wand goes flying. James and Sirius stare in horror when he turns into a cloud of black smoke and disappears before they can do anything further.

They start running again, searching desperately for more death eaters. James is desperate to stop them before more damage is cause or more lives are lost. He can already hear weeping and sobbing. It makes him sick to his stomach.

He sees a flash of red hair and can't help but crack a smile at the sight of Lily Evans and Madeye backing down two more death eaters. His eyes quickly survey the area. Peter and Remus, Lily and Alastor, Benjy and Dumbledore. Dumbledore. He nearly sighs in relief, grateful that the old wizard has finally shown. Maybe everything would be okay.

But he still hears screaming as he and Sirius weave through the rubble of destroyed homes. Innocent children. Mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers. There's crying and yelling and hopelessness erupting all around him.

It all stops, time freezes when he spies who is ahead. His eyes rake over a familiar head of black curly hair streaked with white.

Bellatrix.

She spots him too, doing a double take before she laughs, practically basking in his anger. She hoots and hollers and shows her stained teeth when she grins and asks coyly, "Where's your Veela, Potter?"

Sirius tightens his grip on his wand as he faces his deranged cousin. He glances at James out of the corner of his eyes, wincing when he notices the set of his jaw. He tries to get his attention, warning loudly, "James, don't—JAMES!"

It's too late. James only has eyes for Bellatrix and is already sprinting after the witch. She skips once, twice, and then starts running as well, like she has no care in the world. She cackles loudly, the evil laughter following behind her as she sings shrilly,

"I cursed Potter's girlfriend, I cursed Potter's girlfriend!"

He flings curses at her, seeing red as the sounds of the muggles screams around him suddenly turn into Phoebe's. He can hear her screaming, hear her wailing in pain. When he looks at Bellatrix running away, the sound grows louder and louder until he finally shouts,

"Crucio!"

He feels a surge of triumph when the witch falls to the ground with a sudden shriek, looking up at him in horror as he jumps the fence of the muggle garden and stalks closer.

He's nearly there, nearly close enough to strangle the life out of her with his bare hands. Just for causing Phoebe pain, for making her live with a painful reminder that there are people in the world that want her dead for the rest of her life.

For making James wake up in the dead of night, sweating and shaking and crying from the sounds of her screams. Months wouldn't wash it away, years wouldn't bury the trauma. But killing her, James decided it was exactly what he needed. For himself. For Phoebe. He's so close. So close to revenge.

He misses Sirius yelling his name, misses the vile bitch's wicked smile. The house next to him explodes and then he's flying backwards, sailing through the air. He feels a sudden amount of pressure in his abdomen, gritting his teeth in pain before he crashes to the groan and violently smacks his head.

His vision is blurred around the edges. He sounds like he's underwater. Trying to sit up, James feels like he needs to be sick. But he can't move, every nerve ending in his body sending signals to his brain in the form of aching pain that spreads from his head to his toes. His heart feels like it's going to explode, his lungs burning for air.

He sees someone standing above him and then shaking his shoulders, but rest beckons him. He can't hear Sirius or Remus or whoever it is yelling at him. Only the sound of whispers in his ear, promising peace and serenity and no pain. He closes his eyes and succumbs to the warmth, slipping under the blanket of darkness with only one thought in his mind.

Phoebe.