Harry Potter - Series Fan Fiction / Other Fan Fiction / Crossover Fan Fiction ❯ Fusion of Destinies ❯ Time Bomb Set! Get Out Fast! ( Chapter 24 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

You know the drill: get the hell out of the base/planet/station before the whole place blows. But Samus has one nasty last surprise waiting for her....

Anime/Manga: Harry Potter - Series Fan Fiction / Other Fan Fiction / Crossover Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Sci-fi / Fantasy / Action | Type: Crossover | Uploaded On: 05.10.2006 | Updated On: 05.16.2006 | Pages: 5 | Words: 10.8K | Visits: 546 | Status: Completed

Fusion of Destinies 
a Harry Potter/Metroid crossover 
Chapter 24: Time Bomb Set! Get Out Fast! 
5-10-2006 
by Grey

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter series and all of its characters are the creation and property of J. K. Rowling. Samus Aran and the Metroid series are the creation and property of Nintendo, and was originally masterminded by Gunpei Yokoi (1941-1997) .

This fic is dedicated to Razor Knight and CubedCinder128, whose support gave me the confidence I needed to write this thing.
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The entire chamber shook violently again and large chunks of stone and masonry rained down all around Samus and Harry, some falling uncomfortably close by. The alarm klaxon seemed to blare even louder as Samus looked about, trying to decide which way to go. She could either venture down into the reactor room and look for an escape route through there, or try to backtrack the way she came. Samus quickly activated her x-ray visor and looked closely at the walls, hoping to find the spot where she came in, where that door had magically vanished.

Luckily for her, she found it. It registered quite clearly in the x-ray spectrum. Wasting no time, she fired a few missiles at that spot while running toward it. Her missiles easily blew a hole through that part of the wall. "Hang on, Harry. We're getting out of here," she told her young friend as she continued to run, holding onto Harry tightly. She ran into the gaping hole, through Voldemort's private little workplace, and then through the long hallway beyond it. When she came to the gloomy vertical corridor with the long staircase along the walls, she didn't bother running up the stairs. Instead, she took a deep breath and leaped. She kept jumping from the stairs on one end of the shaft to the other end, and in that way, she ascended the shaft in only a few seconds.

Need to move fast. Doesn't matter if I've got more time to escape than on any other mission...no telling what other problems I'll run into, she thought to herself as she leaped up through the large doorway fixed into the floor, which thankfully, had still been open. But as soon as she touched down, the room heaved violently, and bits of the ceiling rained down, some bouncing off the locking pillars noisily. Sparks flew from some parts of the wall, tiny explosions burst through other mechanical components in the walls, billowing steam poured through some pipes, and the blaring alarm was louder than ever. Samus ignored all of that and pressed on, shooting the room's only hatch open and briskly darting through it. She turned right and continued running. A couple of Space Pirates were there in the hallway, but she easily disposed of them with a few ice missiles. After absorbing the parasites that were released, the station's computer spoke up again: WARNING! STATION WILL SELF-DESTRUCT IN EIGHT MINUTES!

Samus continued her trek through the main deck, mentally going over its layout as she did so and trying to plot the quickest route back to the docking bay. With any luck, Adam had already docked the ship there and was waiting to pick them up. From the way Voldemort had spoken, it sounded as if he'd left her ship alone. However, someone like Voldemort was, to say the least, untrustworthy, and she had no way of really knowing if her ship was intact and Adam was still online. But she pressed on, since it was her only hope. There was no time to find an escape pod or one of the other shuttles Voldemort said he had. Adam was their only ticket out.

After quickly darting through a hallway that led to what would have been crew quarters on the original station, Samus opened the hatch at the end and ran through. She glanced at her HUD again: they had seven and a half minutes until the station self-destructed.

Come on, Adam, be there, Samus thought nervously as she dropped down a vertical corridor, gripping Harry's unconscious body tightly. You've never let me down before. You even came back from the dead to help me. You've got to get us out of here. Me and Harry both.

Samus pressed on despite the fear and apprehension that threatened to overwhelm her completely. However, the terror she felt was not due to worrying about her own survival. It was her worrying about Harry's survival that spurred her to move faster than ever before. I'm not going to fail him now, not after we've come so far, not after everything we've been through today, she thought resolutely. It was failure she feared most, not death. Her own death was something was would inevitably happen, was unavoidable. But failure to live up to her responsibilities would only be allowed to happen if she wasn't fast enough, strong enough and smart enough, if she failed to act.... She could keep those she cared about from dying sooner than they had to if she could act decisively, as was the case here. He was willing to do so much for me, that stupid little kid. He put himself through so much, and he ended up saving me at the last second...we're going to survive this, together!

Of course, plotting a speedy route back to the docking bay was a bit of a chore, since she couldn't use any of the narrow tunnels she had bombed open earlier, now that she had to carry Harry to safety. And using the screw attack and speed booster to smash through any barriers were out of the question as well.

Eventually, she went through one particular hatch, and on the other side it was a roughly twenty foot drop into a large circular room, which had four support pillars in it. It was dimly lit, but occassionally, a shower of sparks or an explosive burst from the ceiling and walls illuminated everything. Samus immediately dropped down, and the entire chamber rocked violently as her feet touched the floor. And then, that automated voice spoke up again: WARNING! STATION WILL SELF-DESTRUCT IN SEVEN MINUTES!

I know, I know, thought Samus bitterly as she ran across the room, heading for the hatch. She fired her beam at it, but it didn't open. Panicking, Samus shot it repeatedly, but it still refused to open up for her. For a moment, cold numbness took hold of her, but then she calmed herself down and switched on her scan visor. This was one of those doors that had a array of internal locks, which her visor couldn't trigger into releasing.

Wait, I remember! Harry opened this particular door for me last time, when we headed back after having to destroy that shuttle, Samus remembered. As that thought went through her head, she heard a faint moan from Harry. "Harry!" she shouted, setting him down next to her. He still looked utterly exhausted, naked from the waist up and blankly staring ahead with half-opened eyes. "Harry, I can't open this hatch without you! This is the quickest way back to the docking bay!"

Harry only seemed to be dimly aware that Samus was speaking. He let out a weak groan again, then said, "Samus, we're...still on the s-station? What are...where...."

"Harry, listen to me!" Samus said, harsher than she intended to. "You've got to open up this hatch with your magic! It's our quickest way back! Are you listening!?"

Harry stared listlessly up at Samus. At first, Samus feared her words were lost on Harry again, but then he slowly turned to look at the locked door. Then, his every movement betraying his fatigue, he reached into his pocket for his wand. "Alohomora!" he said weakly, pointing at the hatch. It immediately opened up for him, and he put his wand back in his pocket. "Alright, now what...wha!?"

"Here we go, Harry," said Samus, picking Harry up again and slinging him back over her shoulder. As soon as she did, though, the automated voice blurted out: WARNING! STATION WILL SELF-DESTRUCT IN SIX MINUTES!

"Not much longer now, Harry. We're almost there!" Samus said as she ran down the hallway beyond the hatch. She opened the hatch at the other end, ran through, and dropped straight down the long vertical shaft. The yellow-and-black striped platforms in there had been sliced away when she first arrived, making that quite easy. After that, it was simply a matter of crossing a few hallways, and Samus encountered no more problems on her way back to the docking bay. Luckily for them, no more X-hosts tried to get in their way.

Samus shot open the hatch leading to the docking bay and ran through. She expected to see her ship already there, Adam awaiting their arrival and ready to depart. However, the docking bay was vacant, hauntingly empty.... Oh no! Without Adam, we're dead! she thought fearfully, but then she noticed that, though one set of docking bay doors were still open, something the blocking the open pathway....

It looked as if thick, blackened, diseased roots had burst from the floor in front of the docking bay entrance, shooting upward and growing over the open pathway, forming a sturdy, impregnable wall. And the other docking bay doors...though the rest remained closed, they too had ugly, black roots gowing over them. Samus instinctively fired her beam at them, hoping to burn them away. However, the large, black roots seemed to simply suck up her beam's power and weren't harmed in the least. This is what's keeping Adam out, it has to be, Samus reasoned, trying to make sense of their predicament. But what's causing it? Are they some sort of X-host? If that's the case, maybe a power bomb will....

However, Samus was snapped back to attention when Harry suddenly let out an ear-piercing scream. Not only that, she felt his entire body twitch uncontrollably. "What the...Harry, what's going...." she began to ask.

His answer made Samus's eyes widen with shock and fear. "He's here!" he screamed hysterically. "He's still alive! He's here!!" Samus knew that could only mean one thing....

"How's that possible, Harry!? You said the SA-X assimilated him! How can...." But her words trailed off when she noticed a faint blip on her radar, just as the station's computer blurted out: WARNING! STATION WILL SELF-DESTRUCT IN FIVE MINUTES! Whatever was in the docking bay with them, it was about ten meters behind her. She whirled around, arm cannon at the ready, and was just in time to see a tall, robed figure aiming a wand at her.

"Avada Kedavra!" bellowed a familiar, cold voice, and a jet of green light shot out at the pair. Samus reacted with practiced swiftness, jumping to the side, and as she did so, she tossed Harry's unconscious body up onto the docking bay's upper walkway, where he would hopefully be out of harm's way.

"Not yet, Samus!" cried Voldemort. "It's not over yet!"

Samus touched down several feet away from Voldemort, her arm cannon raised, pointed directly at him. She stared at him with a look of mingled anxiety and confusion. It was impossible - Harry had said he saw the SA-X assimilate the Dark Lord right in front of his very eyes - and yet here he was, standing before her, making one last, defiant stand.

And then, something occured to Samus. "Harry didn't damage the fusion core. It was you, wasn't it? You started the self-destruct cycle. Now that you realize that you can never fully control the X parasites, you're getting rid of them completely."

Voldemort glared at Samus from underneath his hood, his scarlet eyes glistening. She thought she saw his lips curl into a wicked smile. "Very good, Samus, very good," Voldemort sneered. "Now all that's left for me to do is ensure that your corpses go up with it!" With that, Voldemort aimed at her again and bellowed "Glacius!", releasing a wide burst of icy wind.

However, Samus easily dodged it, jumping aside yet again. But as she did, she switched her scan visor on and tried to scan Voldemort, but once again, she couldn't get any data. Then she tried to scan the black roots blocking Adam's path into the docking bay, and found out something that made her hopeful: they were continuously being supplied with magical energy from the one that had conjured them, and that's what reinforced their cell structure and made them impervious to all harm. If I can stop Voldemort for good, then I should be able to hack away at those roots and let Adam in, she reasoned as she took aim at Voldemort and fired. But then she noticed the timer at the bottom of her HUD.... She had only four and a half minutes to defeat Voldemort once and for all....

And once again, it proved easier said than done. Voldemort merely conjured that silver shield of his again, which he used to block all of Samus's shots. Then he took aim himself, and shouted "Avada Kedavra!" Samus dashed aside to avoid the curse, but another one came right after it, forcing Samus to duck. She fired more ice missiles at him before he could attack again, but he easily picked them off with Reductor Curses well before they reached him. Then he continued his relentless assault, continuously using Glacius and Avada Kedavra as he ran around the docking bay, all the while keeping his shield raised.

Voldemort's not really trying to kill me himself. He just wants to make sure Harry and I can't escape, Samus thought bitterly. He's just keeping me at bay until I run out of time, since he can just teleport himself away right before the countdown reaches zero. As if to punctuate her thoughts, the computer's automated voice spoke up just then: WARNING! STATION WILL SELF-DESTRUCT IN FOUR MINUTES! Samus then heard Voldemort laugh maliciously after the computer finished its dire warning.

"You hear that, Samus? Only four minutes until I am rid of two of my most dangerous enemies!" boasted Voldemort. "Think you can beat me before then!?"

Alright Riddle, you're asking for it, thought Samus vindictively. There was no time to play it safe. Voldemort had to be taken down quickly if she was going to escape with Harry in time, and that would mean abandoning all caution and taking the offensive. She decided to do the unexpected. She darted toward Voldemort while firing wildly, then went into a screw roll.

Voldemort immediately brought up his shield again, raising his wand at the same time. But just before she would have slammed into Voldemort's shield, she bounded upward and over him. Before he could cast any sort of spell, Samus aimed directly downward as she passed over him and unleashed a charged shot. The plasma and electricity tore through him like before, but didn't vaporize him. Samus expected this, though, and fired an ice missile upon touching down. It hit him while he was still stunned and froze him solid, and Samus managed to hit him with another charged shot before he broke free.

However, after freeing himself, Voldemort immediately let loos another Killing Curse, then another. Samus dodged the first, but the second struck her in the leg, paralyzing her entire body for a second. Luckily, she recovered in time to avoid another burst of frigid mist heading her way. However, Samus was becoming discouraged again, to say the least. He's too crafty, too powerful, and he can take way too much punishment, she thought fearfully. How can I possibly beat him in time!?

Once again, the gnawing fear of failing those she cared for overwhelmed her, so much so that she barely managed to dodge another Killing Curse sent her way. And then, Voldemort tried a new approach: Samus suddenly heard a strange scraping sound and metallic clanking from behind her. Turning around, she saw what looked like a large snake, formed from various machine parts taken from the docking bay and magically animated. Its eyes, which were fluorescent bulbs, fixed on her, and then the machine-snake lunged at her with its mouth open wide, its forked tongue made up of wires and its rows of teeth composed of shrapnel shards.

But before it could reach Samus, the entire docking bay was filled with the sound of someone bellowing, "Incendio!" Instantly, the parts of the machine-snake began to combust, and flames began to consume it from without and within. Then there was the cry of "Aguamenti!" A powerful stream of water struck the mechanical aberration, instantly cooling all of its metal parts. It exploded in a shower of reformed metal plating, bundles of wires and fragmented circuit boards.

For a moment, Samus stared dumbly at what was left of the machine-snake, and so was Voldemort. Neither of them had expected this....

He's conscious!? He's awake!? thought Samus, surprised and confused. He's still got some fight left in him? She looked around just as the computer blurted out: WARNING! STATION WILL SELF-DESTRUCT IN THREE MINUTES! Sure enough, standing at the other end of the docking bay, closer to Voldemort, was Harry. Somehow, by some miracle, he had managed to get back on his feet, and was standing tall, staring down his arch-nemesis. Harry glared at the Dark Lord, and even though Harry was quite a distance away from her, Samus could see the fiery determination in his eyes, his courage, his iron will.... She could see that, just like her, he would never go down without a fight, no matter what....

Voldemort glared back at Harry, then glanced hesitantly over in Samus's direction. His self-assured expression was gone; he seemed uncertain whether he should attack Harry or Samus next. Just then, the entire docking bay shook violently, almost knocking all three of them down, and sparks flew from several places along the walls. A second later, a few steel support beams, ablaze with red-hot flames, fell from the ceiling and clattered noisily.

This seemed to jar Voldemort into action. After dashing aside to avoid a falling beam, he pointed his wand at Harry and yelled, "Avada Kedavra!" At first, Harry didn't move at all; there was merely a scornful look in his narrowed eyes. The beam of green light sped toward him, unabated. Samus was about to cry out to Harry desperately, tell him to get out of harm's way, but then....

"Protego!"

Harry cast his Shield Charm at the last possible second, and the instant the jet of green light struck the glimmering, scarlet barrier, their wands became connected by a sort of golden beam. Boiling, liquid gold seemed to drip down from the center of the beam, and both Harry and Voldemort seemed paralyzed, unable to do anything else. Samus looked back from one to the other, unsure of what was going on, unsure of what to do. This went on for several seconds, until Harry spoke in a loud, yet strained, voice.

"Samus, GET HIM!"

It took a second for Samus to get over her shock, to realize that whatever was happening had rendered Voldemort defenseless. She aimed at the Dark Lord and quickly fired several shots in rapid succession. They tore through him effortlessly, and Voldemort let out a scream of agony that was music to her ears. Then, Harry lifted his wand and broke that golden beam connecting their wands, perhaps because he could maintain it no longer. Both of them were blasted backwards, their spines slamming into opposite walls. Then a sort of maniacal laughter filled the docking bay. But it wasn't Voldemort's laughter; it was Harry's.

"You really DO have a dodgy memory, Voldemort!" Harry spat disdainfully, then he laughed again. "How could you have forgotten so quickly!?"

Samus had sprinted toward Harry as soon as the beam connecting their wands broke. As she ran, she finally remembered what Harry had told her about that night he dueled with Voldemort. Their wands cancel each other out because their cores are from the same phoenix, she remembered. He can counter anything Voldemort dishes out.

Samus then realized that perhaps, in that way, they could beat Voldemort in time....

"Harry!" Samus cried out as she ran up to his side. "Harry, how...."

"I'm fine, Samus," Harry replied, turning to look at her. There was a wry smile on his face. He was hunching over slightly, but the look on his face told Samus that he still had plenty of fight left in him. "Let's do this. If we gotta go, we might as well take this wanker down with us."

For a second, Samus just stared at Harry, nonplussed. But then, she smiled, and since Harry couldn't see that, she nodded as well. Then they turned to face Voldemort again....

Voldemort had already recovered and was running back toward them, his shield raised and wand at the ready, his eyes filled with livid fury. But Harry made the next move. He aimed his own wand and yelled, "Aguamenti!" Voldemort brought up his shield to block the powerful water blast and it forced him back slightly, but Samus was on the move, running so she could attack Voldemort from the side. Once he realized that she was taking advantage of Harry's distraction, it was too late. Samus unleashed another charged blast that bore into the Dark Lord, elicting a scream of agony from him.

But Voldemort got himself together almost immediately, raising his wand again and spraying icy mist everywhere. Samus was forced to back off by jumping backward, and Harry ran to a safe distance. Samus wondered why Harry hadn't simply jumped out of harm's way, or why he didn't unleash a beam attack earlier. As she pondered this, the voice of the station's computer rang throughout the docking bay: WARNING! STATION WILL SELF-DESTRUCT IN TWO MINUTES!

Running out of time, running out of time, Samus thought nervously. She noticed Voldemort was facing her again. He was standing about thirty feet away, his wand raised, his eyes seeming to pulsate with fury and frustration. But Samus also noticed that Harry was some distance behind Voldemort as well. In addition, he seemed to be making some sort of hand signal. He pointed at her while raising his wand at the same time, then he pointed at himself, then at Voldemort. At first, she wasn't sure what Harry was trying to tell her, but after a second or two of thought, she thought she knew.... Nice idea Harry. Let's hope it works.

She then had her sensors lock onto a target. But the target wasn't Voldemort. It was Harry.

Samus fired an ice missile. Voldemort brought up his shield and raised his wand to pick it off, but stopped when he noticed it wasn't coming at him. Harry took advantage of that laspe and sent out a Stunner, landing a perfect headshot and dazing Voldemort for a split-second. Then, in one lightning-swift motion, Harry turned his attention to the ice missile coming right at him. He performed a Banishing Charm when it was within five feet of him, and sent it spinning towards Voldemort. It struck him in the back, freezing him solid.

"Got you!" cried Samus triumphantly as she sent a charged blast at Voldemort, which ripped through his frozen body. She realized then that they still had a chance to defeat him in time; but only if she and Harry kept working together. Alone against Voldemort, they could only hope to hold their own....

But when fighting together, Voldemort didn't have a prayer.

Let's just hope we can do it in time, Samus thought glumly, noticing the timer on her HUD. They had only ninety seconds left, and the timer kept on ticking down....

The entire docking bay lurched again and almost made Samus lose her footing. Voldemort, however, had somehow kept his balance and took advantage of that. He sent out another Killing Curse, but Samus rolled to the side to avoid it. Voldemort immediately followed up by bellowing, "Glacius!" Another rush of frigid air, rich with frosty particles, sped toward Samus, threatening to envelope her.

However, it seemed that Harry was ready in case he tried anything like that. He had kept his distance, waiting for the right time to act, and that time was now. His cry of "Aguamenti!" resounded over the explosions and creaking in the docking bay. And the instant his stream of water made contact with the cold air Voldemort had conjured, their wands once again became connected by a beam of brilliant, shimmering golden energy. Both of their bodies tensed up, paralzyed as if they had been hit with an electric shock.

This time, there was no hesitation on Samus's part. She immediately aimed her arm cannon directly at Voldemort, fired her beam, and kept on firing non-stop, determined to bring down the Dark wizard for good.

At last, it seemed it was over. The golden band of energy broke again just as Voldemort let out an inhuman howl, and he crumpled to the floor. For a few seconds, Voldemort remained on the floor, apparently too weakened and in too much pain to try anything else. But Samus kept her arm cannon aimed at him, and charged a shot while she was at it. Harry kept his wand trained on Voldemort as well, all the while inching closer to him. At one point, Harry brought his other hand to cover his scar, as if it were burning, and it almost looked as if he were about to pass out again.

Voldemort then propped himself up off the floor, glaring at Samus. His hood had slid off, and Samus could see that his slitted nostrils were flaring and his teeth were clenched in anger. Not only that, it looked like there were several plasma burns all over his head, where blackened flesh seemed to char and bubble. Those livid, scarlet, serpentine eyes met with hers one last time, and then, Voldemort slowly raised his arm and waived his wand....

A loud crack announced that Voldemort had Disapparated, and that sound was immediately followed by the station's computer blaring another ominous omen: WARNING! STATION WILL SELF-DESTRUCT IN ONE MINUTE!

We did it! We beat him! We forced him to run! thought Samus, feeling a swell of satisfaction from not only defeating Voldemort, but from having done it in concert with her good friend Harry. Somehow, it was more satisfying than any other victory she had achieved when fighting alone....

But now was not the time to dwell on that. She fired her charged blast at the bundle of black roots blocking the open docking bay door, then kept on firing more beams. "Harry, now that Voldemort's gone, we can kill these roots and let Adam in! We can get out of this alive!" she called out while running up to the roots, firing at them at point-blank range. She felt as if she was mining with a plasma drill, hacking away at the roots. Slowly, she managed to blast them away, burning them away at their base. The severed roots tumbled down around her, but there seemed to be several rows blocking Adam's entrance....

WARNING! STATION WILL SELF-DESTRUCT IN FIFTY SECONDS!

Out of the corner of her eye, Samus saw Harry run up to the roots, having gotten the message. He looked beyond fatigued now, especially since he wasn't running on hate, adrenaline and pure force of will anymore, as he undoubtedlt had while fighting his most hated enemy. He aimed his wand at the base of one root and weakly muttered, "Diffindo!" A squelching sound was heard and it was immediately severed, and Harry quickly repeated the process with another root.

WARNING! STATION WILL SELF-DESTRUCT IN FORTY SECONDS!

The docking bay lurched again as if to drive the point home, almost making Samus and Harry fall down. They kept on relentlessly laying waste to the roots, and at one point, Samus thought she could see the blackness of space beyond some of the black roots.

WARNING! STATION WILL SELF-DESTRUCT IN THIRTY SECONDS!

"Oh come on! We've got to make it through! We've come too far to lose now!" cried Samus vehemently as she kept on firing at the roots' bases. "Harry, back away. I need to use a power bomb. It's the only way to clear all these away," she spat, angry at herself for not thinking of that sooner. Harry nodded and slowly backed away.

WARNING! STATION WILL SELF-DESTRUCT IN TWENTY SECONDS!

Samus was about to roll into morph ball mode when something totally unexpected happened: her ship came smashing through what remained of the wall of roots, instantly knocking her to the floor, pinned underneath several of the roots. Luckily, Harry had gotten out of the way and wasn't trapped. Adam quickly turned the ship around to face the docking bay door, ready to fly out, and his gruff, computerized voice cut through the din of the doomed station. "Same old Samus. Always blowing up stations and planets. But what's say we get to a safe distance to watch the pyrotechnics, hmm?"

WARNING! STATION WILL SELF-DESTRUCT IN TEN SECONDS!

With one mighty heave, Samus threw off the ugly roots pinning her to the floor, then righted herself and ran to her ship. Harry had already made it underneath the ship and was immediately carried up into its interior, and Samus followed a second later. The instant she was aboard, Adam said, "Hang on you two. We're outta here."

Samus grabbed Harry's weary body and threw him down into the pilot's seat just as her ship lurched forward on its own accord. Samus was almost thrown into the back of the ship, Adam had taken off so fast, but she had held on to the seat. She glanced at the timer on her HUD one last time.

0:03:00

We did it....

0:02:00

We made it together....

0:01:00

We won....

0:00:00
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Sirius Black had almost fallen asleep in his chair when Minerva McGonagall came through the dining room door, Severus Snape following close behind. "Finally, someone...." he started to say, but his words trailed off when his eyes met Snape's. Snape just stared back with a sour expression, looking as if he was trying to think of some sarcastic quip.

"Sorry we're so late, Sirius," said McGonagall apologetically. She was wearing a simple Muggle dress, obviously because she had just come back from some assignment. "A lot of other Order members were on assignments, and mine took longer than expected. As for Snape, he was working with Dumbledore all this time, doing research and trying to figure out if there was any way we can find the X parasites for ourselves."

"It's alright," Sirius said, but he couldn't keep the bite of impatience out of his voice. "So, what's the situation? Anything new? Any word from Samus?"

McGonagall sat down at shook her head. "I'm afraid not. It's been hours since she departed, and she has yet to return. At least no more X parasites have shown themselves anywhere else in the world. But we have no way of knowing if she's even still alive, or if she found the hideout in the first place."

"Not to mention it's now obvious that Potter stowed away with her, no doubt thinking that he can accomplish something Samus can't," said Snape bitterly. "It was going to be hard enough for the Headmaster to prove the boy's innocence, but now that he's mysteriously disappeared...."

"Snape, don't even," said Sirius dangerously.

"Of course, I can't say I'm surprised," continued Snape, ignoring Sirius completely. "We all know he likes to be the center of attention, and believes he can always play the hero. Just like his father, he's...."

Sirius was about to fire back at Snape, but McGonagall beat him to it. "Snape, I'm warning you, I'm stressed out enough as it is, and I won't tolerate any of your ranting about Mr. Potter. So kindly shut up before...."

"Before what, might I ask?" asked Snape smugly.

McGonagall didn't say anything in response. She merely aimed her wand at Sirius's empty butterbeer bottle in a lazy fashion; she transfigured it into a ferret that immediately leaped up at Snape and began biting and clawing at his face. Sirius just stared dumbly as Snape fell out of sight behind the table, trying to pry off the furry critter. He then looked McGonagall in the eye. "Minerva, that...now I remember why James and I never dared play any pranks on you."

McGonagall smiled. "Naturally," she said, but her smiled eventually faded and she let out a sigh. "But in all seriousness, Snape does have a point," she said as she waved her wand again, no doubt to vanish the ferret. "It was quite foolhardy of Harry to follow Samus like that. I didn't want her to go alone, I begged her to take me along...but I doubt there's much that Harry can do either, exceptional as he is."

Sirius glared at McGonagall just as Snape got up from the floor. "It's what I would've done, if I were in his position," he said coldly. "I wouldn't let some stranger go and do the fighting for me."

"She's not a stranger, Sirius," said McGonagall. "Harry and I know her quite well, and I, for one, am willing to trust her. It's the only reason I'm not going out of my mind with worry; I'm confident she won't let any harm come to Harry. She seems to be very overprotective, always watching over him...."

Before Sirius could say anything else, more of the Order arrived. Tonks, Lupin, Moody and Mrs. Weasley slowly walked into the dining room and sat down. "Anything new to report?" asked McGonagall hopefully while Snape healed up the claw marks on his face, looking daggers at her.

Lupin shook his head. "We've all been tailing Death Eaters today, but so far, they still haven't done anything out of the ordinary. It's as if Voldemort has put all of his plans on hold for the moment."

"All the better, I say," said Tonks. "Less we have to worry about at the moment. Knowing our luck, we'll be up to our armpits in those parasites soon enough." She then shuddered, obviously remembering the massacre at the Handu Mountain Preserve.

"Don't talk like that," snapped Mrs. Weasley. "Mad-Eye and I actually had to FIGHT those things, remember? I'm not anxious to do it again."

"Hopefully, we won't have to," growled Moody. "If Samus is as good of a fighter as she makes herself out to be, they'll all be wiped out before any more come down to Earth."

"Still willing to confide in her?" asked Mrs. Weasley disbelievingly.

"No," said Moody. "I've never trusted bounty hunters and mercenaries, and I never will. But she cured Potter, flushed out all the X in the Chamber of Secrets, and volunteered to go and wipe them all out for us. I'm just willing to give her the benefit of the doubt, that's all."

"You don't fool me, Mad-Eye," said Sirius suddenly. "I can see it in your good eye...you see something in her."

Moody took a swig from his hip flask, then fixed his gaze on Sirius with both of his eyes. "You could say that, I suppose. We do have something in common after all. I can tell that she's obsessed with hunting these monsters down, just like we're all obsessed with hunting down Dark wizards."

"I must say that I vouch for her as well, but there's more to her than that," spoke up McGonagall. "I've spent a lot of time with her, and I can tell there's a fragile, tormented soul behind that hardened exterior; it's as if the grizzled huntress we see is just a facade. And yes, Moody's right...she won't stop until all of those parasites are destroyed."

"I still don't like how she let Harry follow her into the Chamber of Secrets," said Mrs. Weasley.

"She didn't," said Snape coldly. "Potter followed her in despite her wishes."

"Still, she seemed almost happy that he ended up tagging along," spat Mrs. Weasley. "Saving him from that infection with her blood, only to run the risk of him getting slaughtered by another basilisk? Then she dragged him into the Forbidden Forest at night just so he could see that fancy spaceship of hers?"

"Can't say I blame him for that," said Sirius quickly, smiling. "I would've loved to see that for myself, too. I admit I've always loved reading those books Muggles call 'science-fiction'...."

"I'm with Sirius on this one; I would like the chance to fly in that spaceship, too," Lupin chimed in, flashing a weak smile as well. "And as for Harry's willingness to fight alongside Samus, well, I can't say I agree with his decision to stow away. But I can't help but wonder...would any of us have had the courage to do the same?"

"I would have!" snapped McGonagall. "I begged Samus to not go by herself! I pleaded with her to wait until Poppy could prepare the potion for me, so I could go with her! But she wouldn't hear of it. She insisted on going at it alone!"

"In that respect, Samus Aran and Potter are truly two-of-a-kind," said Snape harshly. "They're so conceited, they obviously believe they can save the universe on their own."

"That's not it, Snape," said McGonagall, her tone razor-sharp. "She must have a good reason for not wanting anyone with her, though I'm not sure what...."

At that very instant, Arthur Weasley burst through the door, an overjoyed and ecstatic expression on his face. "THEY'VE DONE IT!" he exclaimed jubilantly. "I don't know how, but Harry and Samus have done it!"

All the other Order members stared at Mr. Weasley incredulously for a moment. "W-what do you mean, Arthur?" Lupin asked hesitantly. "How do you know they've succeeded? How can...."

"Because I was at the Ministry working when reports started flooding in!" Mr. Weasley began. "Muggles all around the world...they're all buzzing about the same thing they just saw in the night sky: some sort of huge explosion behind the moon!!"

An uncertain, deafening silence hung over the dining room for several moments. It was McGonagall who finally spoke up. "Arthur, are you saying you believe that...."

"Yes!" Mr. Weasley spoke up. "Don't you see!? THAT had to be where these things were being hidden: someplace behind the moon! Samus must've somehow blown it kingdom come!!"

"So it's over?" asked Tonks. "Do we dare believe that it's over?"

A sudden, terrifying possibility then came to Sirius, making him stand up. "And what about Harry and Samus? What's happened to them?"

An awful silence hung over the dining room once more.
<hr>
Samus slowly pried herself up off the floor next to the pilot's seat, her entire body aching yet again. She had hit the floor hard when the station finally self-destructed, forcefully throwing her forward. All she heard was the faint blips from the cockpit controls and the steady hissing of the ship's life support systems circulating air. Her vision was blurry, but it soon came back into focus. She looked around, and saw that Harry had been forcefully slammed into the cockpit's controls. His arm were sprawled out against the controls, and it looked as if he were unconscious. "Harry?" Samus asked hesitantly. She gently grabbed his shoulder and propped him back against the seat. There was a tiny cut on his forhead, right next to his curse scar, but otherwise he looked fine. His eyes soon fluttered open as well.

"S-Samus?" he muttered weakly, his tone one of uncertainty. "Where a-are...did w-we...."

Adam decided to chime in just then, cutting Harry off. "Take it easy, Harry. We're not dead, if that's what you're thinking," he said calmly. "We were just a little too close to the station went the fusion core went critical, and we were simply caught up in the outer fringes of the blast radius. Aside from some minor damage to the propulsion systems and an overload in the matrix of the hull's deflector shield system, the ship weathered the impact fairly well."

After hearing this, Samus turned to head to the back of the ship, but Adam spoke up again. "There's no need for that, Lady. The engines' automated repair system can easily handle things. We should be able to get underway and return to Earth within minutes. Besides, even though I have no idea just what went on back there, I'm certain that you could use a break."

Samus let out a sigh as she removed her helmet. "Yeah, you could say that," she said weakly.

"And before you ask, I've already taken the liberty of conducting a series of sensor sweeps," added Adam. "Fear not, Lady, there aren't any escape pods out there this time. This time, we got them all."

"That's good to know," said Samus. Then she turned back to Harry. "What about you? You alright?"

Harry looked at her with a weary expression and nodded. "Yeah, I'll be fine. I'll probably sleep for the next day, though. I'm completely exhausted. Come to think of it, I have no idea how I managed to get back up and fight that one last time. Guess I'm not as weak as I thought I was."

Samus shook her head. "Physical strength and endurance had nothing to do with it. It was the strength of your will that mattered in the end," Samus explained. "I saw you Harry, the look in your eyes, how you carried yourself...you weren't going to let Voldemort have his way, not as long as there was a breath in your body."

Harry just stared back at Samus's wearily, apparently lost in thought. Then he turned to look out the cockpit window, gazing at the splendid view of the moon's surface and the bit of Earth that peeked out from beyond it. Samus gazed out the window as well. Occasionally, a mangled bit of debris from the decimated space station floated by. "We actually did it," he suddenly said silently, making Samus look back down at him. "We saved the universe."

Samus looked through the cockpit window again, admiring the view of the moon and Earth. *He's right, the danger's over now. The Earth, galactic civilization, all of galactic history as I know it.... I - we - safeguarded it all. But I have to admit, I've made some narrow escapes before, but that was my closest one yet. And if Harry hadn't tagged along....* She glanced down at Harry again, and decided to voice her thoughts. "You were right, Harry. I really did need some help this time around. There's no way I could've done all of this without you, especially that last fight with Voldemort. If you hadn't stepped in, it would've been impossible for me to beat him in time."

Harry reached up and put a hand on Samus's shoulder. "Don't mention it. Like you keep saying, I do this sort of thing all the time," he said, a hearty smile now etched on his face. "I was just helping...a friend."

Samus smiled back, then looked back out the window. "Voldemort's still out there, though," she said, suddenly feeling weary and depressed again. "It's a shame we couldn't finish him off for good, or at least bring back some proof that he was behind all of this."

The smile slowly vanished from Harry's face as well. "Not to mention, he could Apparate back in here at any time," he said in a dire tone. This sudden statement made Samus feel anxious all over again, but once again, Adam spoke up with some comforting news.

"That is highly doubtful, Harry," he said calmly. "Most likely, Voldemort believes that the ship's deflector shield systems are still operational, making it impossible for him to reappear here."

"You mean he can't get in if the hull's shields are active?" asked Samus incredulously.

"If that's the case, how come he was able to Apparate in here and kidnap me?" Harry asked harshly.

"Because at that time, I had no data about what I was dealing with," replied Adam. "But after he teleported in and then teleported out with you, I was able to collect some data, and using that data, I was able to recalibrate the shields to prevent him from reforming himself within the ship."

Harry snorted. "You make it sound easy," he scoffed. He obviously found it hard to believe technology could so easily thwart Voldemort when he put his mind to something.

"I assure you, it wasn't," said Adam in an almost defensive tone. "When I returned to the station after detecting that the fusion core was going critical, I could tell that Voldemort was once again trying to teleport into the ship. The strain on the shield's matrix was intense. He was very persistent, and taxed my systems to the limit. But ultimately, he must have given up."

"So eventually, he gave up and settled on keeping you out of the docking bay with those ugly plants," said Samus.

"Evidently," said Adam. "I tried to blast those vines away with the plasma cannons, but I couldn't damage them at all. I kept on trying, but still had no success, and the weapon systems overheated. Luckily though, you two found a way to penetrate those vines just enough so that I could barge in and retrieve you."

"Yeah, good thing," said Harry offhandedly.

"What I still don't understand is HOW he can still be alive," Samus said, voicing the question that was still nagging her. "Harry said that the SA-X broke the hold Voldemort had on her kind and turned on him. But when we reached the docking bay, there he was again."

"It was probably because the Voldemort we fought as first wasn't the real one," Harry said quickly, with a tone of certainty that startled Samus. She quickly got over her surprise, though, and was about to ask Harry what he meant. But once again, Adam spoke up unexpectedly.

"What exactly do you mean by that?" asked the computerized voice.

"It's because of this curse scar that I can sense whenever he's close, or when he's feeling a powerful emotion," Harry started to explain. "But during the whole time Samus and I fought him that first time, I didn't feel a thing. I didn't think much of it at the time, but now I realize...."

"Perhaps Voldemort cloned himself and mentally controlled that clone in some fashion, and in that way he worked with the X onboard the station," Adam suggested. "It would be a prudent way to manipulate and experiment on the X parasites without directly placing himself in danger."

"I wouldn't put it past him, to try something like that," said Harry, sounding as if he agreed with Adam's theory. "And the SA-X said there was something funny about him while she was infecting his body. She must've realized something was wrong."

"It's true that there are minute differences in the biochemistry between a clone and the original organism," said Adam simply. "I suppose that's even true of a clone created with magic."

"Wait a minute...couldn't you still sense him if he's possessing something that's close to you?" asked Samus, not convinced. "That's how it was four years ago when one of your teachers served as a host for him, right?"

Harry slowly nodded. "That's true, but maybe this time it was a little different...."

"And what about his emotions? With the way we were obliterating X-Cores left and right, you'd think he'd be a little annoyed...." Samus continued.

Harry shrugged his shoulders. "Insane as it sounds, maybe he's finally learned to keep a lid on his emotions. Like I can talk," he finished with a laugh. "I think it was my anger that triggered me turning into that...Metroid form."

"Forgive my asking, but...what Metroid form?" asked Adam curiously.

Samus quickly explained how Harry had somehow transformed into a Metroid shaped just like a human. Harry stared out the window again while Samus recited all the details. When she finished, he said, "To be honest, I hope I never turn back into that Metroid thing ever again."

"That form certainly came in handy, though. You beat the SA-X that way," Samus pointed out.

"Yeah, but when I was like that...it felt like all I could do was fight and kill. These instincts I had were so...overpowering. It was like...every bit of anger I've felt in my entire life just burst to the surface, like something went off inside me," Harry said timidly, sounding ashamed of himself. "They say that absolute power corrupts absolutely. I think I understand that now. I'm better off without that power."

"Well, what about the rest of your new powers?" Samus asked delicately. "That reminds me...during that last battle, how come you didn't use your beam or jump around or...."

"It's because I couldn't," said Harry flatly, cutting her off. "I don't know how, but...all that power I had is gone. I feel completely normal now. Maybe I'm better off not having your abilities either, especially since Adam said my body can't handle it."

"If I may, I'd like to add my two bits," Adam suddenly said. "After running some more quick bioscans, I can confirm that, indeed, all of the mutations caused by the absorption of X-Cores are no longer present in any of your cells. Furthermore, the distinctive energy signatures your body gave off from having those abilities are gone as well."

Samus and Harry were silent for a moment. "Any idea how?" asked Harry.

"I have no way of knowing, but perhaps...your own body has rid itself of those mutations and energies," Adam suggested. "It may be some sort of magical effect that you didn't even know you could perform. Perhaps your body purged its cells of those genetic alterations because the use of the abilities they granted were doing you harm, coupled by the fact that you now desire to be rid of them. This is only a hypothesis, though, one which I have no way of testing. Again, my knowledge of your kind is severely limited."

"So...you're saying I'm back to the way I was?" asked Harry, his tone neutral. "You mean I don't even have Metroid DNA anymore?"

"No. The alien genes that were initially spliced into your genome are still present. It is merely the additional mutations acquired from the absorption of X parasites that have been reversed," said Adam. "Furthermore, those specific genes are unlikely to ever be used by your body's cells ever again, now that the X parasites are no more. You will never come into contact with any more X parasites, and your cells will never pick up the distinctive properties of their life energy. Thus, your endocrine system will not be spurred into releasing hormones that will trigger the transcription of the DNA instructions for the enzymes and proteins that Metroid cells use to fend off and consume X parasites. In that way, your body will supress most of those genes and their traits. Aside from being adverse to cold weather, you should be able to live the rest of your life as a normal wizard."

"That's...good to know, but nothing about my life has ever been normal, Adam," said Harry tentatively. "But, if I still have Metroid DNA, I might change back into that monster someday...."

"One day, perhaps," said Adam simply. "I am not sure how or when it could happen, though."

Silence lingered in the cockpit, but Adam eventually broke it. "Harry, you should not let that possibility disturb you. As many great philosophers and leaders have said, it is not one's genes that define what a person becomes."

"Dumbledore's told you the same thing, hasn't he?" Samus interjected. "You once said he told you that choices matter more than ability."

"Yeah, he did," said Harry, sounding like he felt a little better.

"And in the end, you made the right choices," said Samus. "Instead of finishing off the SA-X, you chose to help me first. That proves you aren't a slave to hate and rage. And you made the choice to come and help me fight. That proves you have more courage and determination than anyone."

Harry looked up and smiled weakly. "T-Thanks, Samus...."

"And by the way, the repairs to the engine are complete," said Adam. "Lady, shall I pilot the ship, or would you rather take us in manually?"

Samus thought about it for a second. "Nah. You can go ahead and take us back. I'll let Harry sit here."

"Very well, Lady. Here we go."

Samus felt the ship begin to move forward, and saw the moon' surface getting closer. But Adam curved their path so they shot past the moon, and prepared the ship to enter Earth's atmosphere. Soon, the continent of Europe loomed into view as the ship sped back toward Hogwarts. We're going home, Harry, she thought happily. My...OUR mission's complete.
<hr>
I bet some of you wonder what possessed me to write a story like this. Well, in part, I wanted to do something unique. After looking around, I saw so many Harry Potter crossovers that used the same things, such as Dragon Ball Z, Stargate SG1, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings.... I just wanted to try something that hadn't been done before, so I went with the idea I had come up with after replaying Metroid Fusion way too many times and then reading Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. And the way I modeled the second half after your typical Metroid game...again, I wanted to try something that, to my knowledge, had never been attempted. Plus, I wanted to recreate all the thrills that define the Metroid series: the exploration, the suspense, the action, the kick-ass superpowers. Unfortunately, I can't duplicate one of the best parts: having all sorts of hidden goodies to find after going through it once.

Or can I?

This entire fic is loaded with references to other game franchises besides Metroid, as well as some nods to classic movies and TV thrown in for good measure. Some were blatantly obvious, but others were really subtle. While waiting for the epilogue, why not go back and try to find them all?

So long, 
Grey