Harry Potter Through the Multiverse (Ch. 4)

Harry Potter Through the Multiverse

Chapter 4

Harry winced as the loud explosion hurt his ears just before his SUV rocked from side to side from the pressure wave of the blast. Sitting on the ground with his back resting against the driver's side door, he could hear pieces of debris falling around him, some of them even hitting the roof and hood. Once it stopped raining pieces of concrete and metal, Harry stood up. The CDC building was nothing but a flaming crater in the ground. “Well, that was a bloody brilliant idea,” he said sarcastically. “Great … Just fucking great,” he muttered as he checked over his ride. A handful of dents and scratches now pockmarked the hood and roof of his once pristine Range Rover. Harry took the time to toss away the large chunks of concrete resting on the hood. He then turned back to the group who were just pulling themselves back to their feet.

“Every walker within a few miles will have heard that. Let’s get the fuck out of here!” Harry called out, jumping into the driver's seat of his vehicle. No one needed to be told twice. They all jumped into their own vehicles and started up the engine, and just like that, they were all off.

HPTTM

Harry was zoned out as he cruised at a steady pace. The AC was blowing hard, filling the cabin with cold, filtered air. Fresh-smelling air was a luxury in this world, Harry had quickly realized. He was the last car in the convoy that was heading away from Atlanta. There was nothing left for them in this part of the state, the group had decided. Harry just went along with their plans since he didn’t exactly have any bright ideas either. When the brake lights lit up on the car in front of him, Harry stepped on the brake and stopped the car. “Unbelievable,” Harry muttered as he turned off the engine.

Getting out of the car, he walked into the patch of grass that separated the north and southbound lanes of the highway. There was a backup of cars that were blocking the path forward. Everyone was exiting their vehicles. Further up, Harry heard a bang that didn’t sound like a gun discharging. After strapping his belt and machete on, he walked over to investigate. As it turned out, the radiator hose that had been giving Dale so much trouble had finally burst, sending steam shooting out in every direction. Meanwhile, Lori was spouting some nonsense about this being a graveyard and not liking the fact that they were going to loot it. Harry didn’t give two shits.

“These people’s problems are over,” Harry told her, going to a car and prying the door open. “Ours are just getting started.” With that said, everyone shrugged and began looting. Harry moved to the opposite side of the highway since everyone else was looting around the parked convoy. Walking up to a blue truck, Harry could see a dead body in the driver's seat. Pulling out his machete, he opened the door expecting it to awaken. When it didn’t move, Harry gave it a poke with his blade. It still didn’t move. As quick as a flash, Harry pulled it out by the arm and let the body drop to the road. Without an ounce of remorse, Harry shoved his blade directly into its brain, just to be sure. Looking into the truck, he could see that the driver's seat was wet with decomposition fluids. The smell was horrendous. Going around to the other side of the truck, he opened the door and began rummaging. Harry found a 20 oz bottle of water that hadn’t been opened. The water inside was incredibly hot from baking in the hot cab. Still, Harry greedily cracked it open and downed the entire thing.

Harry was inside a large van searching through six large suitcases stuffed with clothes and other personal effects. He was so engrossed by what the owner of this particular suitcase had chosen to bring along that he never heard the soft steps of the wandering horde.

“Ooh la la!” Harry chuckled, holding up the pair of leopard print, g-string panties. He tossed them away and was just about to dig back in when he noticed movement outside the window. A quick glance had his heart hammering. “Shit!” he whispered under his breath and laid down on the seat. He didn’t think that any of them had heard him. From his quick glance, it appeared to be a very large horde. Even enhanced, it was still very dangerous to take on a horde of that size. He just hoped that the group had enough common sense to properly hide. Thankfully, he didn’t hear any gunshots. Listening carefully, he focused on the sounds of their shuffling feet and their breathy hissing until he was sure that they were far enough away from him. Staying another five minutes just to be sure, Harry quietly slipped out of the van and slowly climbed on the roof. Sure enough, the horde was moving on. He jumped down and joined the others back on the other side of the highway.

“Everyone alright?” Harry asked Shane.

“Sophia got chased into the woods. Rick went after her,” he told him. As it turned out, Rick had found and lost her again. Now he and Daryl were out trying to track her down. While Harry’s sense of smell was very good, it wasn’t like he was a bloodhound. When you added in the fact that he knew less than nothing about tracking, Harry stayed behind knowing that those two could handle it. T-Dog was sitting down, not looking too good.

“You alright, man?” Harry asked, concerned when he saw his wrapped arm. “You weren’t bit … were you?”

“Nah,” he quickly answered. “I cut my arm bad on a car door. It’s pretty deep.” It was clear that he was in pain.

Harry saw that his arm was now bandaged up. Harry had given his medical supplies to the group to use and only kept a small, emergency stash in his wallet for himself just in case. T-Dog’s arm was bandaged using some of the gauze that he had provided. Harry nodded at his explanation. “Just take it easy in the shade. We’ll handle things for now,” Harry told him. T-Dog nodded and closed his eyes.

Harry went around the corner and dipped into his wallet stash. Inside he had a few bottles of prescription-strength painkillers. He went back to T-Dog and gave him a bottle. “This should help with the pain,” Harry told him. T-Dog gratefully took the bottle.

“Thanks, man. I appreciate it,” he said while cracking open the bottle.

The rest of the group continued to loot up until it reached the afternoon. By then, it was clear that Sophia wouldn’t be found that day. Harry’s thoughts were confirmed when Rick came back without the girl. Once the sun had set, the sad and weary group got into their vehicles to try and get some rest. From the front seat of his SUV, Harry could see that the girl’s mother, Carol, wouldn’t be getting much sleep that night.

Early the next morning, everyone except Dale and T-Dog had formed a search party. He saw Amy talking with Andrea before she looked over at him. Harry sent her a sneaky smile, and she blushed prettily before smiling back. Harry really wanted some alone time with her, but out there on the road with the entire group around, there was little chance of it. Harry decided to be patient. His chance would come sooner or later.

“I can cover more ground on my own,” Harry told them, checking that he had plenty of clips on his belt. The group wasn’t even planning on going out yet. They were still eating breakfast. The sun was just cresting the horizon, and the woods were still dark.

“We don’t need any more people getting lost,” Shane chimed in. Harry nodded.

“The highway is directly south of all these woods. If anyone gets lost, just head south. It’ll take you to the highway, and you can follow it back,” Harry told them. “I’ve got my compass right here,” Harry said, pulling it from his pocket.

“Alright,” Shane said, slinging his shotgun over his shoulder. “Just be careful out there. It’ll still be dark in there for another couple of hours.”

“If you find the girl and I’m not back yet, just go on without me. Leave a note on my car, and I’ll catch up,” he told them. And with that, he slipped into the woods.

It was still early enough that the grass and leaves had morning dew on them. Harry was sucking in deep breaths as he ran through the woods, ducking under low-hanging branches and jumping over fallen trees. His eyes were so good that he could almost see as if it were daytime. Once he had reached a mile or so in, he stopped and climbed a tree halfway up. Closing his eyes, he concentrated and listened. The chirping of birds and the buzzing of mosquitoes could easily be heard. He waited a while longer until he heard the crunching of footsteps a hundred or so meters away. Dropping down, Harry landed on his feet and was off in a flash. He covered the distance in a very short time and slowed as he approached. Slipping behind a tree, he peeked around it and waited. The noise was getting closer. Then, a walker moved out from behind a cluster of trees. There was only one.

Removing the machete from its sheath, Harry walked over to it. When it saw him, it let out a ragged growl and started moving toward him with its arms out. Harry easily sidestepped it and embedded his machete into the top of its skull. It dropped to the ground from the single blow. Harry poked it a few times just to make sure. Harry examined the creature. There was no flesh or fresh blood on it, meaning that it hadn’t eaten recently. That was good news, he guessed. Leaving it behind, Harry continued to fan out, checking the entire area.

An hour had passed and Harry hadn’t found anything except a few stray walkers that he quickly dispatched. By then, the morning sun was just starting to lighten the dreary woods. Suddenly, he heard a high-pitched scream in the far distance. Harry tore off toward the sound of the noise without even thinking about it. Had he been any other member of the group, he never would have heard the scream. It was just too far away. Harry pushed his body to the limit. He didn’t bother ducking as he crashed through tree branches, getting his arms scraped up as he broke through. Just ahead of him, the ground dipped down where a shallow stream cut through the rocky terrain. Harry never slowed down. As he reached the edge, he jumped. Soaring through the air, his feet hit the water right in the middle of the stream. A scream rang out again, only this time, it was very close.

As quick as he could, he climbed up the opposite slope and pushed on. It was only a few seconds more until he saw a flash of blue through the brush.

HPTTM

Sophia tried to keep running, but it was no use. She hadn’t slept a wink all night long. She was hungry, hot, and exhausted. All she wanted was to be back with her mom. Tripping on a large tree root, she hit the ground hard. She cried out in pain as the wind was knocked out of her. She looked behind her. The group of walkers was so close that they could almost touch her. With her last bit of strength, she crawled on before pushing herself to her feet. Gasping for breath, she tried to run. One reached out and pulled her hair. Sophia screamed in terror and thrashed around, breaking free of its grip. Their moans and hungry gasps sent shivers down her spine, especially since they were so loud. She could smell the stench of their rotting flesh which was making her stomach turn. Holding back a gag, she lunged forward, escaping a swipe of their hand. She pushed herself as hard as she could, but she could barely stay ahead of them. Taking one last look behind her, she cried as they clicked their wide-open jaws. Their teeth were rotted and brown. Six pairs of hands were clawing at her. Then, out of nowhere, something slammed into their backs, sending them all scattering away from her.

She could barely believe her eyes. The new guy, Harry, rolled to his feet with his “sword-thing” in his hand. The walkers were slow to get up. Some didn’t even bother. They just dragged themselves forward, intent on biting his legs. Harry was swinging his sword-thing like a crazy person, chopping up their heads. The sounds, sights, and smells were too much. Sophia turned her head and vomited what little was left in her aching belly. Suddenly, something touched her back. She screamed in fright even though she was still retching.

“Calm down, Sophia. You’re safe,” she heard. She choked out a cry that was half happy and half manic. His voice was soft and sweet. It was the best thing that she had ever heard, she decided. His hand rubbed her back as she dry-heaved. When her stomach settled, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. “Were you bitten or scratched?” Harry asked her. Sophia shook her head, too freaked out to talk.

Harry looked her over, checking her neck, shoulders, and arms. “Come on. We need to go,” he told her. It was music to her ears. She was already half-asleep on her feet. “I can hear more walkers close by.”

She immediately stiffened in fright. She didn’t want to go through that again. It seemed that Harry didn’t either. She was scooped up into his arms. His muscular forearm was right below her bottom, so she found it easy to rest upon it. Without thinking about it, she wrapped her arms around him and rested her head on his broad shoulder. He began moving, trying his best not to jostle her too much. Sophia tried her best to keep her eyes open during the journey back. At one point, he climbed down an embankment and crossed the same stream that she had been chased across earlier. By the time he climbed up the other side, she had drifted off, feeling safe for the first time since this whole mess began.

HPTTM

Carrying the tired girl wasn’t a problem for him. She was as light as a feather. In fact, she was probably a little too skinny. He made a mental note to scavenge more food for the kids. Checking his compass again, he turned slightly and headed directly south just as he had said. It took him longer to get back to the highway since he didn’t want to wake the girl. Her little arms still clung to him even while she lightly snored against his neck. It took him close to an hour to finally reach the highway. Once he had, he walked on it, making better time now that he was out of the woods. It was another ten minutes until he saw the traffic jam along with Dale’s big-ass RV. Dale was standing on top of the RV with a pair of binoculars to his eyes and a rifle slung over his back. When the old man finally saw him, he removed the binoculars and cried out happily, waving his hand. He climbed down just as Harry walked up.

“Good job, son!” Dale said happily as Sophia yawned and opened her bloodshot eyes. T-Dog joined them as well. Sophia looked around.

“Where’s mom?” she asked, still clinging to him. Beads of sweat were clinging to her forehead.

“She and the others went out looking for you,” Dale told her. “They’ll be back in a bit,” he reassured her. “Let’s get her in the RV and out of the sun,” he said, looking at Harry. Harry agreed. He carried her into the RV and placed her on the bed.

“I’ll go get her some water and snacks. She must be hungry and dehydrated,” Harry said. It wasn’t long before he returned with a couple of bottles of water and a few packets of cookies and snack cakes. Sophia happily tore into them as he sat on the bed next to her. While she was eating, he turned to the others.

“I’ll go find her mom and the others,” he told them, getting up off of the bed. Sophia grabbed his arm tightly, or at least as tightly as a skinny, twelve-year-old girl could. He could see that she was trembling slightly. He smiled kindly and rubbed her shoulder.

“Don’t worry,” he told her. “Dale and T-Dog won’t let anything come near you,” he promised.

“You bet we won’t,” Dale added.

“Your mum needs to know that you’re okay. She’s worried sick,” Harry said. Sophia swallowed the lump in her throat and nodded. She let go of his arm and curled up on the bed. The two men followed him outside.

“Which way did they go?” Harry asked them.

“They took off that way,” T-Dog said, pointing with his good arm. He was swaying slightly. He didn’t look too good.

“You alright?” Harry asked, concerned. T-Dog just waved him off. If he didn’t want to talk about it, Harry wasn’t going to push. He just nodded and made his way back into the woods as Dale took his place, asking about T-Dog’s messed-up arm.

Just as Harry suspected, his tracking skills were subpar. The best he could do was go in the general direction that they had indicated and keep his eyes and ears open. It took him a while, but he finally heard the sounds of the group from just beyond a thicket of brush. If he wasn’t completely sure of that fact, Andrea’s panicked yells of terror were enough to convince him. Harry moved forward and pushed through the brush. There ahead of him, Andrea was lying flat on her back and scooting away from an approaching walker. Harry found the whole ordeal very embarrassing for her. ‘Grow a pair,’ he wanted to say, but it probably wasn’t the best time for his dry, British humor. Rolling his eyes, he burst into a jog.

Within seconds, the bottom of Harry’s boot connected with the walker’s chest. It screeched as it flew backward and landed hard on the ground. It stayed there on its side, twitching from the brutal damage done to its bones. Harry looked down at Andrea whose eyes were wide with terror. Amy quickly joined her side, kneeling down to check on her sister. Everyone else was running over to join them. Harry suddenly looked confused. He could hear the sound of a galloping animal coming near. Daryl put a crossbow bolt in the walker’s head just as a pretty brunette on a horse frantically rode up. The horse reared as she stopped.

Within less than a minute, Lori was climbing on the back of the horse. Apparently, the boy had been shot. She told them the direction to wherever the Greenes were staying. As they rode off, Harry was confused.

“What the fuck happened?” Harry asked, looking at each of them. None of them could answer. Daryl pulled the bolt from the dead walker’s head and whipped it hard, trying to force some of the rancid blood off of it. Without saying much of anything, the group sullenly began to walk back toward the traffic snarl. Carol looked terrible. Harry suddenly remembered why he came.

“Carol,” he called out to her. She turned to look at him as she slowly trudged forward. “I found Sophia. She’s fine,” he reassured her. “I left her in the RV with Dale and T-Dog watching over her.” Carol cried out with a shaky voice, and she looked close to collapsing. Her hand was clutching her chest. Everyone else looked at him as well. Being the center of attention suddenly embarrassed him. It reminded him of his Hogwarts days when all of the students would stare at him as he walked down the corridors. “Let’s get back so we can go find this Greene place,” he told them, moving out before they could respond.

The reunion between mother and daughter was a joyous one. Dale seemed particularly pleased. At least he did until he heard that Carl was shot.

“How? How did it happen?” he asked in shock. Obviously, no one could tell him since they didn’t know themselves.

“We don’t know, but we’ve got instructions on how to get back to Rick … so let’s go,” Harry told them. Within a couple of minutes, everyone was loaded back in their vehicles. With Harry being in the last car, he was the first to turn around and backtrack as the horse rider had said. He pulled up further and waited until all of them had turned around and were ready. Once they were, he drove back the way they had come until he reached the turnoff for Fairburn Road. Following her directions, he drove down the road a couple of miles until he saw the house that she had been talking about. It was a nice house, Harry thought. It looked like an old farmhouse, which from the amount of land surrounding it, he guessed that it was. By the time they pulled into the long, dirt driveway, the light from the setting sun was turning orange. Night would soon be upon them.

Before they could even get out of their cars, Rick and an older gentleman were coming out to meet them. Harry stayed in the back of the crowd, listening from there. From what he heard, Carl getting hurt was an accident. Sadly, the boy wasn’t doing too well. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much that Harry could do about it. Harry was zoned out and didn’t notice that Rick was talking to him. It took the man finally shaking his shoulder to snap him out of his daydream.

“Sorry … What was that?” Harry asked, not hearing what he had said. It had been a long day.

“My boy … Harry. He’s in bad shape. Hershel here …” Rick said, indicating to the older man. “... thinks that he can fix him up, but he needs some medical equipment. Shane and Otis went to the nearby school to get the things we need, but … they ain’t been back yet,” he explained. “I don’t know how much longer we have …”

Harry didn’t know who Otis was, but he understood the situation. “How do I get there?” Harry asked.

HPTTM

Harry parked nearby but far enough away that he wouldn’t set off any of the walkers, assuming that there were any. Making sure that he was fully equipped, he quietly got out of his car and crept over to the school. Harry left his 12 gauge shotgun in his ride, not wanting to be burdened by the big, bulky weapon. With his enhancements, he was much more deadly with his trusty machete. He was much faster with the light weapon as well. Hunched over and walking fast, he crept up as quietly as he could. He finally saw the two men hiding behind a police cruiser. Harry whistled softly, mimicking a bird. Shane looked over and saw him, his eyes going wide. Harry crept up to them.

“The entire place is swarming with them,” Shane said as Harry took a quick peek. He wasn’t kidding.

“Shit … That’s a lot,” Harry replied. “Carl’s not doing well. I don’t know how much time we have,” he told them. The large farmer-looking guy was starting to breathe heavily. Clearly, he was nervous.

“Goddammit!” Shane cursed.

“So what do we do?” Otis asked.

“I’ll lead as many of them away as I can,” Harry told them. “I’ll lead them that way,” Harry pointed. “There’s a large field. That should give me plenty of room to move and attack.”

“I don’t know about this, Harry …” Shane began.

“Every minute arguing is a minute less that the kid’s got,” Harry reminded him. Shane’s jaw tightened, and he nodded. “Move around that way and stay hidden until I give the signal,” Harry said. “Don’t wait for me,” he ordered. “Get the stuff and go. I’ll make my own way back.”

“What’s the signal?” Otis asked as he sweated profusely.

“You’ll know it when you see it,” Harry told them. “Give me a few minutes.” And just like that, Harry slipped away.

HPTTM

Shane and Otis waited impatiently. It had only been a couple of minutes, but to them, it felt as though it was an eternity. Shane was gripping his shotgun tightly while Otis’s hands were shaking. “Do you think something happened?” Otis asked. Suddenly, he jumped when he heard a loud horn blaring. “What the …”

Tires squealed as Shane watched a military HUMVEE rip through the adjacent field. The vehicle turned, the horn still honking. Shane could hear the walkers getting riled up. But instead of leading them away, the HUMVEE turned and was heading right toward the school!

“What in the world …” Shane began as the HUMVEE began to speed directly at the growing horde of walkers. Then, at the last second, they watched with wide eyes as the front door opened, and Harry jumped out, landing hard on the grass and then tumbling and rolling to a stop. The HUMVEE continued forward, plowing into dozens of walkers before slamming into a torn-up cop car. The impact was deafening. The HUMVEE even rolled up onto the car’s hood before finally stopping. The engine smoked and sputtered a few times before finally going silent. The walker horde had been thinned out significantly, but there were still many of them left.

“That crazy son of a …” Otis began but was cut off by Harry yelling wildly and firing his Glock at the horde. They watched as dozens more angrily walked and trotted after him. Just as he had said, he led them away from the school. Shane looked around his cover. There were still some walkers around, but thankfully, it would be much more manageable. “I guess that’s the signal,” he chuckled. “C’mon … let’s go!”

HPTTM

Harry’s aim was pinpoint accurate. One shot after another hit a different walker directly in the forehead. When the dwindling horde got too close, Harry would use his speed to slip away and fire another clip from a distance. It morbidly fascinated him as he pulled the trigger and saw a burst of brains or a mist of blackened blood. Intent on doing his job, he led them further and further away from the school. It was beginning to get dark by the time Harry pulled the trigger and the gun clicked. It was empty. He checked his belt and found nothing but spent clips. “I guess I’ll have to do it the old-fashioned way,” he said to himself, pulling out his machete.

As one got close, Harry swung and removed its head. Another head was cleaved directly in half. Harry stayed just out of reach, hacking at a few before slipping back. It was almost ten minutes later that Harry heard the loud blast of a truck’s horn. Looking toward the noise, he saw a blue pickup truck kicking up dust as it got as far away from the school as possible. Harry took it as a good sign. A hand reached out for him. A second later, the hand dropped to the floor. This place was a gold mine of medical supplies, and he wasn’t going to leave without a bounty.

Now that they had safely left, Harry had much more room to move. He moved back toward the school. By then, he only had twenty or so walkers chasing him. Swing after swing, his machete connected with the rotted skulls of the undead. Blood and guts spewed out, stinking up the entire area. Harry jumped up on top of the wrecked HUMVEE. From up high, he could slash downward and kill those that were reaching up for him, clawing for food.

“You … gross … fucking … bastards …” Harry called out, splitting open a different skull with each halting word spoken. Finally, he looked around, expecting to see more, but all he found was a large pile of dead bodies. Jumping down, Harry easily killed the walkers that had been run over. Most were crippled and crawled along the ground. Harry pushed his blade into the tops of their skulls and ended their miserable existences. After finishing the crawlers, Harry focused and listened. He didn’t hear a peep. Satisfied, he got to work, never letting his guard down for a second.

HPTTM

Shane was jittery. Night had fallen, and Harry had yet to return. He was already making plans to go back when the rest of the group started chattering loudly. He stood up and sure enough, his SUV was driving down the road with its headlights turned off. He turned down the driveway and came to a stop behind the rest of the parked convoy. Shane got up and walked up to him along with everyone else. He was glad to see that he wasn’t severely injured. “What took you so long?” Shane smiled. He noticed that Amy had moved closer and was looking him over, making sure that he wasn’t hurt.

“I decided to clear the rest out and loot the supplies,” he said, opening the back door and tossing seven completely filled duffle bags out. “Bandages, rubbing alcohol, painkillers, antibiotics, suture kits, hand sanitizers, soap … pretty much anything worth grabbing.”

“You’re hurt!” Amy stated, grabbing his arm and holding up his elbow and forearm. It was scraped up pretty good.

“Yeah,” Harry grunted, tossing the last bag out and closing the door. “Took a bit of a spill.”

“You mean when you jumped out of a moving vehicle doing about fifty miles an hour?” Shane asked, amused. The crowd gasped and looked at Harry as though he was nuts.

“Not my best idea,” Harry chuckled happily. “But it worked. You got the stuff right?” he asked Shane. Shane nodded.

“Hershel’s working on Carl right now.”

“Good. Then it was worth it,” Harry said with finality. No more needed to be said about the subject.

“Come on,” Amy said, pulling him away as everyone grabbed a heavy bag. “Let’s use some of these supplies and clean up that arm before it gets infected.

Harry didn’t notice Maggie, the farmer’s daughter, looking at him intently as the pretty blonde pulled him away.