Disclaimer: I own Harry Potter...not!
This story is based on Liam O'Flaherty's classic : The Sniper, i don't own that amazing story either, obviously.
Read and Enjoy.
Chapter 1: Sororicide!
'I hate February'. Daphne Greengrass fumed as she stomped through the dense undergrowth of the Caledonian Forest. Beneath her, dead and brittle leaves crunched noisily, and the snow got inside her shoes, freezing them. She blew a puff of breath on her hands, the warmth both surprising and welcome. The steady drip of the melting icicles from the tree branches did not help sooth her frayed temper.
It was a cold night, with the last of the chilling winds blowing, as if compensating for the fact that they won't be returning till the next year. After escaping from Hogwarts, the Defense Association, or as they were calling themselves, Harry's Army, had found themselves on the run, hounded not only by Death Eaters, but also by the Order of the Phoenix. The former to hunt them dead and the latter to drag them back to the metaphorical light.
The DA's last battle at Hogwarts, where they had successfully thwarted Malfoy's stealthy invasion of Hogwarts, had demarcated the boundaries between the Death Eaters and the rest. Many of the Voldemort sympathizers had escaped, to either be trained by their families, or to join the Dark Lord's service. Sometimes both.
This had happened a year ago.
Now, a year later, Harry's Army had swelled in numbers, with several underground resistances and individuals joining them. There were several detachments and fortresses under their control now, with even the vaunted Albus Dumbledore recognizing them as a power to be reckoned with, and an ally.
Daphne Greengrass, who had risen quickly through the rank and file to the position of an Aide-de-Camp to Harry, had been forced to take part in increasing amount of missions, mostly dealing with Sabotage and Demolitions, owing to her intimate knowledge of Death Eaters' stomping grounds.
The statuesque Slytherin had finished her latest mission, by destroying a Death Eater Training Ground and Supply Dump at Fort Augustus in a pitched battle. With her tactical insight and Harry's power and combat awareness, their squad of ten had not suffered a single casualty. Once the battle was over and done with, the Ten-member squad had retreated, and were even now making their way to the magical part of Castle Sween, the hereditary Castle of the Macmillan clan, magnanimously being given as a base of operations by Ernie, the Hufflepuff heir of the Clan. Unfortunately, a detachment of Death Eater Hunter Killer Team had been spotted near Loch Arkaig, and Harry being Harry, had set out to rescue them. The rescue had been successful, but the battered and abused casualties of the Death Eaters were not easy to move, so they had set up camp to allow the refugees a few days breather to recover the worst of their injuries.
As a result, everyday, a squad member would patrol the perimeter at night, allowing the others to have a much-needed sleep. Daphne had not looked forward to this, and had groaned out loud when she drew the shortest straw, making her the patroller for the night. A post she accepted with an ill-humor and a great deal of reluctance.
Consequently, Daphne stomped through the dense undergrowth of the Caledonian Forest, the dead and brittle leaves crunching noisily beneath her feet.
The first quarter of the night went quietly enough, however at around 12:30 in the night; the ward stone at the furthest boundary of the camp was tripped, alerting Daphne to the presence of intruders. Falling silent, she quickly applied the muffling charms to her feet and disillusioned herself, then took to the trees, not risking making an inadvertent noise below. Then she waited, silently, quietly. Waiting for the intruders, whoever they were, to trip her Perimeter Charm.
At 12:45, at a distance of 700 meters from the main camp, the charm was tripped twice, signaling the Slytherin's Ice Queen of their numbers and their location. Jumping through the branches, she reached the tripped location and observed with narrowed eyes.
They were Death Eaters, made obvious by their conspicuous masks and uniforms. The tall one in front, obviously a male, was casting about diagnostic charms to search for traps, a shorter one in the back lounging lazily against a tree. Just two, probably a returning team to Fort Augustus, who after seeing the carnage was now trailing the perpetrators.
Daphne quickly made calculations in her head. The lazing one was an easy target, but his death would alert the one with the wand at the ready. But by the posture, it was obvious that the lounger was the more powerful of the two, evident by his bossing around of the tall one. Two targets to kill, how was a girl to choose?
Taking careful aim at the lazier Death Eater, Daphne whispered 'Terebro Tormentum', unleashing a fast-moving, dull-orange curse from her wand. The spellbeam hit the Death Eater on his left eye, and drilled through it, spurting blood and the jelly-like Aqueous Humor from his eye, killing him instantly. Daphne smirked. The 'Drilling Torment' Curse was a specialty of hers, the quick and relatively efficient spell suiting her battle style perfectly. She was about to train her wand on the grunt to end his life too, as he flailed about, searching for her, when a spell smashed next to her head.
Daphne swore, most unladylike, and jumped away, a rapid blaze of Spellfire following her. She hadn't expected a Death Chewer to be bright enough to hang back and just observe, not tripping her Perimeter charm. She had been lulled into smug confidence, and when she had taken out the Death Eater, her own position had been compromised. Just Peachy.
An exploding curse knocked the branch from below her feet, making her fall down. Daphne had barely a moment to recover as she saw a silver-gray spell arcing towards her, resembling a crescent moon in its majesty. Daphne ducked to the side, letting the spell brush past her. She saw with widening eyes when the Area-Effect curse cut through several trees, withering them as they fell.
Taking the advantage of the momentary lull, Daphne let loose with several Incendios and Confringos, rapid spells to sow chaos and confusion and then she muttered 'Ventus', blowing a gust of air near her, causing a flurry of snow of obscure her position, then reapplying her disillusionment charm, she ran farther away, to reassess the situation.
She saw the two remaining Death Eaters standing with wands at the ready, once again searching for her. The mystery death eater was quite small, barely topping five feet, and was slightly built. Despite the childish appearance, the Death Eater had proven to be clever and observant. Daphne noticed the faint shimmer of the 'Custodio Corpus' shield over the small Death Eater.
Growling, the older Greengrass cast a blasting charm in their midst, and in the subsequent confusion, cast a severing charm at the Grunt, neatly cutting the head off his body.
The scarlet blood spread rapidly on the pristine snow, staining it red.
And now it was reduced to a duel. Mano a Mano. One on One. Daphne twirled and ducked and moved gracefully through the spellfire, all the while returning fire of her own. She tensed as she felt her reserves start to run low, then unbidden, a desperate gambit came to her mind.
Using a Flare Spell, to blind her opponent, Daphne deftly used a bit of wandwork to create a timed illusion, then quickly apparated away.
She watched her illusory self duel the Death Eater, and winced when it was vaporized by a withering curse.
She watched as the small Death Eater relaxed slightly, and lowered the wand.
She watched as the Death Eater removed the 'Custodio Corpus' Shield and slumped to the ground weakly.
Smirking in triumph, Daphne let loose her 'Drilling Torment Curse' from behind, skewering the Death Eater through the chest.
The Death Eater gurgled weakly, the blood spilling over from the torn arteries. Then collapsed, dead.
Daphne followed suit, weakened from the exhaustive battle. As she lay, with her face pressed in the scarlet snow, she was filled with a sudden curiosity at the identity of her opponent. Whoever they had been, they had been skilled, and very clever. Clever enough to nearly overwhelm Daphne herself.
Daphne crawled through the blood stained snow and again collapsed near her opponent. This close, she began to discern the individual in the Death Eater.
The Death Eater had been female, evidenced by the swell of the breasts within the uniform and the curvaceous, lithe figure of a young woman.
Daphne reached for her mask, suddenly seized by a sense of trepidation and dread. Her gut was telling her to leave the mask on and be on her way, but her heart was seized by a strange desire to see the face of her enemy.
Daphne reached for the mask and held the cool metallic surface in her hands.
Tugging, she pulled it off.
Daphne Greengrass stared into the glassy, dead eyes of Astoria Greengrass.
Spell names :
Terebro Tormentum : Drilling Torment
Custodio Corpus : Protect my Body
Ventus : Gale