Disclaimer: Don't own HP.
Lupin's Last Battle
Smoke and screams filled the Great Hall; the sound of splintering wood, falling bodies and flashes of green light pounded the air. In the corner of the room, two men were battling hard, oblivious to the world around them. Antonin Dolohov, his pale, twisted face tinged with sweat and his eyes glinting malevolently, was slowly forcing Remus Lupin into a corner. Lupin was panting, his face strained and taut, as he fought for his life.
"Crucio!"
In another world, separated from Remus's by a thin yet impenetrable barrier, James and Lily Potter and Sirius Black watched the battle below with tense faces and anxious eyes...
Lupin warded off Dolohov's curse and launched a new attack; firing off a rapid series of powerful firecrackers from his wand, he ducked swiftly under Dolohov's arm and so reversed their positions. Cornered, Dolohov snarled.
"Get him, Moony, go on!" murmured James, a world away. Lily gripped James' arm and said nothing, her lips white.
"Kill the slimy git, Remus!" urged Sirius as Lupin and Dolohov continued duelling fiercely. "Dammit, I wish I could be down there – no!"
All three of them cried out as their friend was thrown off his feet and into the wall by the force of Dolohov's curse. But Lupin staggered to his feet again and raised his wand. Now the two men were circling each other, like beasts waiting to find a weak spot. Dolohov made a sudden lunge and Lupin slashed his wand; flames erupted from its tip and Dolohov stumbled.
"I swore I would kill you, Nymphadora – now I fulfil my promise, ha!"
A screeching laugh from behind made Remus turn; for a brief second he froze. Bellatrix Lestrange was bearing down on a fallen, dazed Tonks, a crazy smile on her face.
As she raised her wand to deal Tonks the final blow, Lupin threw himself bodily over his wife.
"What are you doing, Moony?" yelped James, horrified. "Behind you!"
Dolohov advanced – Tonks stirred, half-conscious – Bellatrix cackled – and a jet of green light from Dolohov's wand hit Lupin squarely in the back.
Sirius and James both gave a shout of shock and dismay as their friend's body slumped lifelessly over that of his wife.
"Dolohov, you b—!" James yelled. "You complete and utter – Moony!"
The body of Remus Lupin had appeared in their midst, battle-weary, grey-haired and looking entirely bewildered. "James?"
James and Sirius threw themselves on him. "Sirius? Lily?" came Lupin's muffled voice from beneath their bear hugs. "Am – am I dead?"
James finally let go and Lily embraced Remus, smiling with a mixture of sadness and joy.
"Only because you were idiot enough to let that git curse you while you forgot about him," said James, beaming; he seemed to have forgotten the horror of the last minute or so with the arrival of his old friend. "But we'll forgive you, as you were being heroic at the time."
"Heroic – 'Dora!" Lupin cried, whirling around to stare at the scene below them. "No!"
Far below him, his own body was still sprawled over Tonks', and Bellatrix was laughing, her face triumphant. Lupin gave a strangled cry. But it was already over; and a new body with pink, tousled hair was materialising before them.
"Remus?" said a very surprised-looking Tonks. "Where am I?"
Lupin was growing younger before their eyes; his hair turning from grey to a light brown, the lines on his face fading until he looked as youthful as his friends. He embraced his wife without a word, as her heart-shaped face showed signs of dawning comprehension.
"So my aunt got the better of me after all," she said ruefully. "I hope the others will be all right without us." Her eyes grew dark with worry. "And my little Teddy, and Harry..."
"Harry will pull through," said Lily softly. "He'll win – I know he will. He has James' blood."
James gave his wife a small smile.
"And Teddy will be okay, don't you worry," Lily told Tonks. "You'll always be with him, just as we've really always been with Harry."
She pressed Tonks' hand; the younger woman held it as though for comfort. The little group sat in a close huddle and watched the terrible battle below them.
And an hour later, when Harry emerged triumphant – weary, aching and grieving – he felt the presence of those he loved press round him. Far away, the united Marauders, Lily and Tonks, were celebrating his victory and their long-awaited reunion.
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