A Hogwarts Legend: Changing Paths [3]

Chapter Twenty Nine

Unedited

Chapter Twenty Nine - "Doesn't even know what a rat is."

Hermione is screaming; Ron and Maya are yelling; Elinor and I are stunned; there's a blinding flash as the wands in Black's hand send into the air a jet of sparks which miss Harry's face by inches; but this doesn't stop Harry from punching every part of Black he can.

But Black's free hand has found Harry's throat -

"No," he hisses. "I've waited too long -"

The fingers tighten, Harry chokes, his glasses askew.

Not wasting any more time, I jump forward and kick Black as hard as I can. Ron has thrown himself on Black's wand hand and I hear a faint clatter -

Harry fights free of the tangle of bodies, as Hermione, Elinor and Maya have started to help; I see my wand rolling across the floor and grab it quickly as Harry does the same but -

"Argh!"

Crookshanks has joined the fray; both sets of front claws have sunk themselves deep into Harry's arm; Harry throws him off, but Crookshanks now darts at Harry's wand -

"NO YOU DON'T!" roars Harry, and he aims a kick at Crookshanks that makes the cat leap aside, spitting; Harry snatches his wand up.

"Get out of the way!" he shouts.

We don't need telling twice. Hermione, gasping for breath, her lip bleeding, scrambles aside, snatching up her and Ron's wand. Elinor grabs her and Maya's wand as Maya helps Ron to the four-poster and Ron collapses onto it, panting, his white face now tinged with green, both hands clutching his broken leg.

Black is sprawled at the bottom of the wall. His thin chest rises and falls rapidly as he watches Harry walking slowly nearer, his wand pointing straight at Black's heart.

"Going to kill me, Harry?" he whispers.

Harry stops right above him, his wand still pointing at Black's chest, looking down at him. A livid bruise is rising around Black's left eye and his nose is bleeding.

"You killed my parents," says Harry, his voice shaking slightly, but his wand hand quite steady.

Black stares up at him out of those sunken eyes.

"I don't deny it," he says, very quietly. "But if you knew the whole story -"

"The whole story?" Harry repeats, furiously. "You sold them to Voldemort, that's all I need to know!"

"You've got to listen to me," Black says, and there's a note of urgency in his voice now. "You'll regret it if you don't ... you don't understand ..."

"I understand a lot better than you think," says Harry, and his voice shakes more than ever. "You never herd her, did you? My mum ... trying to stop Voldemort killing me ... and you did that ... you did it ..."

Before either of them can say another word, something ginger streaks past Harry; Crookshanks leaps onto Black's chest, and settles himself there, right over Black's heart. Black blinks and looks down at the cat.

"Get off," he murmurs, trying to push Crookshanks off him.

But Crookshanks sinks his claws into Black's robes and won't shift. He turns his ugly, squashed face to Harry, and looks up at him with those great yellow eyes. To my right, Hermione gives a dry sob.