Bertha Jorkins, formed from smoke, visibly froze for a moment. Harry could spare her no attention and kept gripping his wand tightly with all his strength.
Just then, something else emerged from the tip of Voldemort's wand. It was another person, and another woman at that. But when this woman appeared, Harry visibly froze.
He had seen that face in photographs. It was the face of his mother, Lily Potter.
Were these people Voldemort had killed? Harry began to understand.
The smoky Lily saw Harry, then gave him such a gentle smile. "Your dad's here too. He really wants to see you. Everything will be all right, Harry."
Harry's body trembled violently, not because of magic, but because of his feelings, because of Lily's words.
Sure enough, the next moment, another figure emerged from the tip of Voldemort's wand.
It was a tall young man with untidy hair. Harry had seen him in photographs too, always with his arm around Sirius's shoulders, beaming.
Now, however, he wore a rare, gentle expression. "I'm so happy to see you, Harry."
It was his father, James Potter.
Harry felt his body shake even harder.
After that, several more figures emerged from the tip of Voldemort's wand. They all seemed to know James and Lily, and then nodded to Harry. Every one of them told him to hold on.
Harry did not know whether Voldemort could see or hear them. But his expression had turned extremely ugly, and his body was shaking violently too. Veins bulged across his once rather handsome face, making him look hideous.
Around them, the Death Eaters, kept outside by the cage of golden arcs, paced back and forth, each looking utterly panicked.
"Harry, don't worry. Everything will be all right," James said again. "In a moment, the connection will