Attempted suicide by means of the Killing Curse. Not explicit or graphic, nor is it weighed upon.

A little bit of a shorter chapter but a lot happens!

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Katie and Ron were sat in their beds in the hospital wing, thoroughly disgruntled by the fact that Madam Pomfrey would not allow them to go down to the Quidditch pitch and watch Gryffindor play Hufflepuff. All they could do was stay put and listen to the commentary that they could hear very clearly thanks to the megaphone and, to their great amusement, it was Luna Lovegood who had been made commentator and she said some very funny things indeed.

The match seemed to end rather quickly because Luna fell silent after almost no time at all. Angry roars echoed from the stadium, probably from the losing team, but five minutes later, the door to the hospital wing opened and McGonagall entered. A stretcher was hovering along behind her and both Katie and Ron leapt out of bed when they saw that it was Harry lying on the stretcher.

"Get back into those beds, the both of you!" Madam Pomfrey ordered sternly as she hurried across the dormitory to Harry.

"What happened, Minerva?" she asked, and the two of them moved Harry from the stretcher and into a bed beside Ron.

"A Bludger hit him in the head," McGonagall said. Katie winced. Getting hit in the head by a Bludger was not pleasant, she of all people knew that. "That Cormac McLaggen thought it would be a good idea to take a Beater's club and have a swing at the Bludger himself and... well... I'm sure you can guess what happened next."

Ron smiled but tried desperately to hide it. Clearly, he was very happy to hear that McLaggen had messed up so badly.

After Madam Pomfrey had tended to Harry and wrapped his head in bandages, creating a turban of sorts, McGonagall left the hospital wing and Madam Pomfrey returned to her office. Ginny came by to visit at some point and Harry lay unconscious for hours, and when he finally did wake, he seemed just as confused as Katie had been after she got a bang of a Bludger.

"Nice of you to join us." Ron grinned.

"What happened?" Harry asked, reaching up to touch his bandage turban.

"Cracked skull," Katie told him. "Don't worry, Madam Pomfrey fixed it."

"D'you know how much we lost by?" Harry said to no one in particular. Both Katie and Ron frowned in syncronisation.

"Well, yeah I do," Ron said apologetically. "Final score was three hundred and twenty to sixty."

"Brilliant," Harry growled. "When I get hold of McLaggen—"

"You don't want to get hold of him, he's the size of a troll," Ron said reasonably. "Anyway, the rest of the team might've dealt with him before you get out of here, they're not happy... Ginny came to visit you, by the way."

Katie took note of the way Harry's face lit up when Ron mentioned Ginny's name.

"She reckons you only arrived just in time for the match," Ron went on. "How come?"

"Oh..." Harry said. "Yeah... well, I saw Malfoy sneaking off. Why would he be prowling around the school while everyone else is down at the pitch? Wish I'd followed him now, the match was such a fiasco..."

Katie was overcome with a strong urge to roll her eyes.

"Here we go again." she mumbled. Thankfully, neither Harry nor Ron heard her.

"Don't be stupid," Ron said sharply. "You couldn't have missed a Quidditch match just to follow Malfoy, you're the captain!"

"I want to know what he's up to," Harry said. "And don't tell me it's all in my head, not after what I overheard between him and Snape—"

"I'm sorry, what?" Katie interjected. This statement by Harry had caught her rapt attention, and both he and Ron seemed to realise that he had let too much slip, because their mouths fell open in horror. "Well?" Katie pressed sternly. "What did you overhear?"

Harry looked aside to Ron, his wide eyes silently begging for help, but Ron only shrugged and turned his attention to a quill on his bedside locker that he suddenly had a great interest in.

Harry sighed but apparently figured that there was no getting out of this.

"Right," he began reluctantly. "At Slughorn's Christmas Party, I followed Malfoy and Snape—"

"Of course you did." Katie scoffed.

"—and I overheard them talking about some pretty sketchy things," Harry continued as though he had not been interrupted. "Malfoy said something about a job he had been given, then Snape said he's promised Malfoy's mother that he would help him because he made an Unbreakable Vow, or something..."

Katie recalled overhearing Harry and Ron talking about someone making an Unbreakable Vow over the Christmas holidays, but at the time, they refused to tell her who it had been.

"And that proves that Draco is a Death Eater, does it?" Katie said scornfully, folding her arms and narrowing her eyes.

"Well, no, but—"

"Did either of them mention Voldemort?"

"No, but—"

"Did Draco have a Dark Mark on his arm?"

"I didn't see, I—"

"Then let it go." Katie said curtly, turning over in her bed.

Harry let out a very long sigh.

"Look," he started firmly. "I know that he's your boyfriend... or whatever... but you can't deny that he's been acting really odd this year."

"Voldemort's back, Katie Bell got cursed, and Ron got poisoned — everyone is acting odd this year, Harry!" Katie snapped. She still refused to look at him.

"Yes, but Malfoy keeps disappearing off the Marauder's Map—"

All of a sudden, Katie sat bolt upright. "You're watching him using the Map?"

"Well, what do you want me to do?" Harry yelled back.

Ron sunk down into his bed and hid under the covers.

"I want you to drop your stupid obsession with Draco!"

"Oh please," Harry scoffed. "If anyone is obsessed with him, it's you."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me. You don't care about anything else. It's all 'Draco this, Draco that'," he mocked her voice. "You're so obsessed that you don't stop to think for one second that maybe he's manipulating you!"

Katerina let out a shout of cold laughter. "Manipulating me? What's that supposed to mean?"

Harry was on his feet now, but he did not move away from his bedside. "He's a Death Eater! And Voldemort really wants you on his side for some reason, so Malfoy could just be going out with you to lead you straight to—"

"Shut up!" Katie shouted. "You don't know what you're talking about!"

"Why won't you listen to me?" Harry shouted. "Ron and Hermione—"

"Don't drag me into this!" came Ron's voice, muffled by the duvet that was still draped over his head.

"What's going on?" Madam Pomfrey demanded angrily. She had just emerged from her office wearing a plum-purple dressing gown and an enraged expression.

"Nothing." Katie and Harry said at once.

Madam Pomfrey's scrutinising gaze traveled from Katie to Harry.

"Get back into that bed, Potter," she ordered. "I won't tell you again."

Madam Pomfrey retreated into her office once more. Before Harry could start making accusations again, Katie turned over in her bed. Boiling with fury, she found herself quite restless, but eventually, a long time after Ron's snores started filling the dormitory, she drifted off.

***

"What are you reading?"

Once Madam Pomfrey was sure that Katie's leg was entirely mended, she had been discharged from the hospital wing and now, a week later, she was sat in the Slytherin common room reading a book that Hermione had given her for Christmas titled: Shakespeare's Sonnets - The Quarto of 1609.

"It's a book called Leave Me Alone You Prat, I'm Trying To Read." Katie said coolly as she turned the page.

Draco laughed falsely. "Hilarious," he drawled. He was standing behind the couch that Katie was sat on and he rested his chin on his head. Katie was well aware of his antics by now — he was, surprisingly, exceptionally clingy, and this was one of his ways of showing that he wanted attention. "So, what're you reading?"

"Shakespeare." she told him.

Draco was silent for a moment.

"Why would I shake a spear?"

Katie snorted. "No, you twit, Shakespeare was a person. Hermione told me about him. The Muggles study his—"

Draco made an exaggerated gagging noise.

"Boring!" he said.

"No, he's actually quite good," Katie flicked through the book. "Here, read this, Sonnet 18. It's one of his most famous pieces — or, at least that's what Hermione said..." she added under her breath. Draco took the book from Katie's hand and began to read out loud.

"Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more—"

"Read it in your head, please," Katie rolled her eyes. "I don't fancy someone reciting love poetry to me, thanks."

Draco scowled but obeyed her wishes. A short minute passed and, once he had finished, he silently handed the book back to Katie. She stared at him, waiting for him to comment on what he had just read. However, he said nothing, and his expression remained unfathomable.

"Well?" Katie asked. "What did you think?"

"It was — er — nice." Draco nodded stiffly.

A smirk formed on her face. "You liked it, didn't you?" she teased.

Draco hastily shook his head. "I didn't say that!"

"Oh — you did, you're just ashamed to admit it!"

"Shut up." Draco bit, turning away from her as she laughed.

***

"Katie! Katie!"

Katie glanced over her shoulder. Harry Potter was racing up the corridor behind her. Rolling her eyes, she ignored him, picked up her pace and continued walking, but Harry caught up to her in no time.

"Katie, I need to talk to you!" he panted.

"Go away, Harry, I want to go to bed."

Katie was, indeed, quite tired. She had lost track of the time and stayed up very late studying in the library. As well as this, Katie would rather not be in Harry's company. They had not spoken since their argument in the hospital wing, which had occurred a fortnight before. Harry still hurried alongside her.

"Please," he begged desperately. "This is really important."

"I don't care." Katie snapped. She had just sharply turned a corner when Harry seized her wrist.

"It's about Voldemort." he whispered.

Conflict roared inside Katie. After glancing helplessly between the open corridor behind her and Harry, whose emerald eyes were swimming with desperation, she sighed and nodded. Harry led her into a nearby deserted classroom, closing the door behind him. Then he spun around and, under the gleaming moonlight, Katie could see that his face had suddenly been drained of all colour.

Harry took a deep breath before beginning. "Remember when Dumbledore asked me to get the memory about Horcruxes from Slughorn?"

Katie nodded but said nothing.

"Well, I got it last night."

Expecting Harry to say more, Katie waited, tapping her foot irritably against the dusty wooden floor, but when he didn't continue, she said, sounding slightly aggravated, "And what are they? What do they do?"

Harry's face was contorted with reluctance, but he had dragged Katie into the empty classroom and knew that he had no choice but to tell her now.

"They're objects that a witch or wizard has concealed part of their soul in," he explained, shivering as he done so. Katie, too, felt goosebumps erupt on her skin. "To split your soul, you have to kill someone."

"And — and Voldemort made a Horcrux?" Katie whispered fearfully.

Harry gulped. "Dumbledore reckons he made six."

For a moment, Katie felt like she had been abruptly flung into the Floo Network. She felt her head flip and her stomach lurch.

"Six?" she cried.

"Yes," Harry nodded. Katie noticed how, with every passing second, he seemed to be growing paler. Evidently, the worst of the news that he bore was yet to come, and he was dreading sharing it. "So, essentially, he's immortal. If we — if I want to kill him, I have to destroy his Horcruxes first."

Katie contemplated all this new information, then a horrifying thought dawned on her.

"You don't know what the objects he chose are, do you?"

Harry was so white now that he looked to be on the verge of fainting. He shook his head very slowly and swayed slightly, as though about to pass out.

"Well, how are you meant to find them?" she said, a hint of desperation to her voice. "They could be anything, they could be anywhere!"

Katie had anticipated Harry to share her frustration, to agree with her cries, but instead he just stared silently at her, his face now so pale that it faded against the moonlight, his forehead wrinkled from a deep frown, his eyes swirling with despair.

"I think I'm looking right at one." he whispered.

Stupidly, Katie cast a glimpse over her shoulder as though expecting to find an antique labelled 'Horcrux', perched on a desk behind her, but with a horrible surge of horror, what Harry had been referring to struck her. Eyes widening in fear, she took a step back, as if she was almost trying to step out of her own body, like she was contaminated.

"Me?"

Harry averted his eyes to the floor and Katie was sure she heard a small whimper escape from the back of his throat.

"Well, Dumbledore said it, didn't he?" Harry uttered quietly. "He said that a piece of Voldemort lives inside you. And it would explain why he wants you on his side so bad. He needs to make sure you stay safe."

Unexpectedly overcome with a wave of nausea, Katie staggered backwards and she would have fallen over if there had not been a table behind her to catch her. She clung to the desk to balance herself, all the while staring, eyes alive with terror, at Harry and shaking her head frantically. If she really was a Horcrux, then she knew exactly what had to be done. There was no way around it...

"Kill me," she said. Harry's eyes snapped up from the floor. "Harry, you have to kill me."

Harry was stunned into silence. Feeling a little more balanced, Katie let go of the table, rushed towards Harry and grabbed his arms.

"Do it," she told him. "Do it now. Get it over with."

Tears were welling up in her eyes and she furiously blinked them away.

"What?" Harry yelped, finding his voice again. "Katie, no, I'm not going to kill you!"

"You have to!" Katie cried. Tears were rolling down her cheeks now but she chose to ignore it. She plunged her hand into the pocket of Harry's cloak, extracted his wand, and shoved it into his own hand. Then she stood back, trembling all over, but still invited him to kill her. Shaking his head defiantly, Harry stuffed his wand back into his pocket.

"I'm not going to kill you!" he hissed. "We don't know for sure that you're a Horcrux."

"Oh, come off it," Katie said, her voice escaping in a choked sob. "Dumbledore said it himself, Harry."

"I'm not going to kill you." Harry said for the third time. Although his voice cracked, he kept his tone firm and obstinate.

Feeling that she was left with no other choice, Katie reached inside her own pocket, pulled out the yew wand that was apparently almost identical to her biological father's — she wondered again who he was, but now, she supposed, she was never going to find out — and placed the wand against her temple.

"If you don't do it, I will." she croaked.

But Harry was too quick. In an instant, he had his wand back out and had aimed it at Katie.

"Expelliarmus!"

Katie's wand flew from her grasp and Harry caught it with ease. He stared at her in disbelief and, letting out a very loud, involuntary sob, she collapsed to the floor, crying uncontrollably. There was a clatter as Harry dropped the two wands to the floor and rushed forwards, crouching down so that he was level with Katie. Not really knowing what to say, Harry simply wrapped his arms around her and, forgetting all about their feud, she leaned into him as sobs continued to rack her body.

"You don't have to die," Harry said softly. "We'll find a way around it."

"Could — could you do that... that Muggle thing to extract it?" Katie asked weakly through sobs. "What do they call it? Sour — sour jury?"

Harry let out a small chuckle.

"Surgery, Katie. It's called surgery."

A further twenty minutes had passed, during which, after Harry had said that Muggles can not extract pieces of a soul from a person using sour jury, Katie insisted that she had to die, but he shushed her every time. Harry walked her down to the dungeons and, very reluctantly, handed her back her wand with the promise that, were she to use the Killing Curse on herself, he would Apparate to the Afterlife and, as he put it, "clobber" her.

The next day, both Draco and Pansy were thoroughly bewildered by Katie's sudden change in attitude. She was quite unresponsive as, all day, the words I have to die were ringing through her head. Of course she knew that everyone had to die eventually, but the fact of the matter was that the sooner Voldemort was destroyed, the better, and never in her life had Katie stopped to think that her story might come to an end when she was the mere age of sixteen. There was still so many things she wanted to do and so many places she wanted to see. She would never graduate, she might never see Chris again, she would never play for the Appleby Arrows or the Holyhead Harpies, she would never know the truth about her mysterious family...

As Katie wandered a corridor alone some days later (she had just escaped Draco and Pansy who were non-stop questioning about the unforeseen dip of her mood), she ran right into a bumbling Professor McGonagall, who seemed to be avidly searching for something.

"Ah, there you are, Miss Blair," McGonagall said, clearly having found what she was looking for. "I went to look for you in Potions but you weren't there... your skipping of classes is most understandable given your current situation, of course..." she added and Katie gave her a sceptical look. Did Professor McGonagall know that she was a Horcrux?

"I'd like a word with you in my office, please." McGonagall said. As Katie looked up into the woman's aged face, she saw the same whirring apprehension in her eyes that had been in Harry's only a few nights before.

"Am I in trouble, Professor?" Katie asked nervously.

"Not at all," McGonagall responded rather stiffly. "I just want to... tell you something."

Katie blinked, bemused, at her. "Tell me what?"

There was a short pause.

"The truth."