"You have got to get out of here, Amelia. He knows where you are."
Amelia Bones peered through her monocle at the man sitting across from her, surveying his thick mane of hair, his yellow eyes. "I'm not going anywhere, Rufus. But you are." She jerked her head towards the dark figures standing in her sitting room door. "Shacklebolt and Dawlish, too."
Rufus Scrimgeour's eyebrows knitted together in genuine concern.
Amelia leant forward in her armchair, placing a hand on her friend's knee. "If he has marked me for death, I'm going to die. I may as well put up a fight. Let him know that he can't take down the Head of Magical Law Enforcement without a fight."
"But, Amelia, our intelligence suggests that he's coming here. You-Know-Who himself. Right now."
"Rufus…" Amelia trailed off.
Scrimgeour stood. "I understand, Amelia."
He made his way to the sitting room door, and swept his eyes across the comfortable room, with its sweeping fireplace, plush armchairs and hanging tapestry. The Bones family tree, emblazoned with the symbol of Helga Hufflepuff.
Amelia's wand slipped from her sleeve, into her hand. She gave it a wave, and the tapestry came off the wall and gently folded in mid-air. It drifted to Scrimgeour, who plucked it out of the air before him.
"Goodbye, Rufus."
"Goodbye, Amelia, my old friend."
He turned to leave, signalling to the dark shadows in the corridor.
"Oh, and Rufus?"
Scrimgeour turned to Amelia, one of the greatest witches of the era, made all the greater by her ready acceptance of death, and said "Yes, Amelia?"
"Within days, Fudge'll be gone. Merlin knows, he should have been sacked as soon as…" Amelia trailed off. "As soon as Voldemort came back, after the Triwizard Tournament."
Scrimgeour, who had flinched at the mention of Voldemort's name, felt his respect for the woman sitting before him rise. "And?"
"And, when you're Minister, trust Dumbledore. I implore you."
Rufus Scrimgeour's expression hardened. "I will try."
"And don't trust that reprehensible cow Dolores Umbridge. If there is any justice in the world, she'll be targeted by V-Voldemort next."
Scrimgeour cracked a small smile, despite his shudder at the sound of the Dark Lord's name. "I'll keep her out of the loop whenever possible."
Amelia nodded. "Now, please, go. I have to prepare my home for the invasion we both know is coming."
Without further ado, Scrimgeour, clutching the Bones family tapestry, and flanked by Aurors Shacklebolt and Dawlish made their way to the front door. Amelia Bones did not watch them go, merely staring into the flames in her fireplace, disconnected from the Floo Network, just in case the Death Eaters tried to get in from there.
She stood. With a wave of her wand, the room began to change. The armchairs, all but one, disappeared, the chandelier hanging above retreated into the ceiling. Pointing her wand in the direction of the front door, and muttered. "Colloportus."
Night had fallen in Amelia Bone's town of residence, as four cloaked figures, one slender, two of medium size and one that towered above the others. The slender one was leading the others down the road towards the home of Head of Magical Law Enforcement.
She pushed the garden gate open slightly, and slipped inside, only a shadow in the darkness. The pair of lumpish figures followed, and finally the giant one.
The leader reached the green front door of the Victorian-style home of Amelia Bones. A long, thin wand slipped from her sleeve. She tapped the door and whispered "Alohomora."
Nothing happened.
"Bella?" hissed the closest of the lumpish figures.
"We'll have to try something stronger."
"We'll lose the element of surprise," whispered the other lump, her voice shaking slightly.
"What does that matter, Alecto?"
The second lump growled at the first.
"Amycus, Alecto, calm down. Save it for Bones." Bella turned back to the front door, and lifted her wand.
There was a blinding flash of orange light, and the door exploded off its hinges.
From inside the house, there was a shriek. Not of shock, or surprise, but of anger. "STUPEFY!" a voice bellowed.
Bella leapt smartly aside, as did the two lumps, Alecto and Amycus. The larger figure, Thorninn Rowle, was not nimble enough. The red jet of unbelievable light knocked him off his feet, sending him sprawling through the air, over the garden, knocking his hood off, exposing his heavy features and blonde hair for a few moments, before he was dumped unceremoniously across the ground, unconscious.
Bella whipped her wand up. She ducked into the house, barely dodging a curse, that flew over her head, making her hair stand up on the back of her neck. Alecto and Amycus also slipped in unharmed, despite the curses that were continually hurled at them from the sitting room at the end of the hall.
A particularly powerful jinx rocketed towards Bella, who waved her wand and cried "Protego!"
The jinx bounced off the shield Bella had created before her, which struck the wall of the hallway, shattering photograph frames, ripping apart portraits. Their inhabitants scrambled out of the way, into safe frames. Bella noticed a particularly fat monk, clutching play cards in his fist, duck into a frame shared by a knight in white armour, and another in black. In pure annoyance, Bella pointed her wand at the painting. It burst into flame, its inhabitants unable to escape.
She turned back to the sitting room.
The constant flood of curses had stopped. The hall was a ruin, littered with broken glass and wooden splinters.
Bella kept her wand up, and lead Amycus and Alecto through to the sitting room, where, sitting in an armchair, she found Madam Bones, staring into the fire place, wand clutched in hand. The Head of Magical Law Enforcement's eyes flicked towards Bella, and she cracked a thin, humourless smile. "Bellatrix Lestrange."
"Madam Bones." Bellatrix said, inclining her head ever so slightly.
"And the Carrow siblings. I feel so honoured."
"You should," sneered Amycus, lunging forward, wand raised. "Cru—"
Before he could finish the curse, Amelia Bones flicked her wand, and Amycus' feet were swept out from beneath him, losing his grip on his wand. "Accio wand!" Amelia shouted and the thin wand sped into her hand.
Bellatrix and Alecto brought their wands up, and Amycus shouted in horror, but it was too late. Amelia tossed the wand into the guttering flames. Amycus screamed as though his right hand had just been severed.
"You bitch!" hissed Alecto, lunging forward, wand held like a sword before her. "Avada kev—"
"NO!" screeched Bellatrix, who pointed her wand at Alecto. There was a flash of silver light, and Alecto was thrown into a wall. She crumpled, unconscious to the ground of Madam Bones' sitting room. "She's the Dark Lord's!"
Amelia wasted no time. Pointing her wand at Bella, she shouted "Petrificus totalus!"
Bella dodged the curse, flinging a Stunning Spell at her opponent. Amelia deflected it with a simple wave of her wand, and the red jet of light shattered a shield above the fireplace.
"Amycus!" Bellatrix bellowed "GET UP!"
The small, lumpish man had been staring into the fire, clutching his wand arm. He looked up, in time to see a golden whip-like tendril of energy snake out of the end of Bones' wand. He dived away, and the molten gold whip dissipated harmlessly on the ground.
His hand dived into his cloak, and he drew a short, wicked looking knife.
He lunged towards Bones, as Bellatrix roared a complicated curse unfamiliar to Amelia. "Protego!" Amelia shouted, deflecting Bellatrix's curse, right back at her.
The woman's eyes widened, and she tried to jump aside. Too late.
The spell clipped her shoulder, sending her sprawling to the floor.
This momentary distraction to Amelia was all Amycus needed. He slashed out with the knife, cutting through the sleeve of Amelia's robe, and deep into her arm. Shrieking in pain, she plunged the wand upwards into his chin, and said the first spell that came to mind. "Aguamenti!"
A jet of water, as powerful as a Victoria Falls, shot upwards into Amycus' neck. He went flying into the ceiling, before tumbling to the ground, unconscious.
Amelia barely had a moment to breathe, before the hairs at the back of her stood on end. She spun around, eyes wide, and managed to cry out "Protego!"
The curse hurled at her by Alecto Carrow was flung back at her.
She leapt aside. Amelia saw that her nose was broken. "You'll pay for my brother's wand, wench!"
"Bring it on, bitch." Amelia snarled.
Alecto flung out her wand arm, crying "Crucio!", at the exact same time that Amelia Bones roared "Expelliarmus!"
Alecto's wand flew out of her hand, and waves of unbelievable agony bubbled across every fibre of Amelia's being. The spell was short-lived, thankfully, and Amelia blinked away the last traces of pain, leaping to her feet.
Alecto scrambled for her wand, snatching it up.
"Expelliarmus!" Amelia called again, and the wand flew away.
Alecto scrambled after it, but Amelia flicked her wand again, and the whip of gold flashed out of the tip, and cut across Alecto's back. There was a scream, and the smell of singed flesh, and Alecto collapsed, unconscious.
Amelia slumped to the ground.
She was exhausted.
Then, in the hall, she heard running footsteps. Thorninn Rowle burst into the room. He glanced around, saw his unconscious fellow Death Eaters, and the exhausted Amelia. He brought his wand up.
Amelia acted first.
"Petrificus totalus!" His legs snapped together, and he fell backwards onto the floor.
As he did, Amelia saw the woman standing behind him. Bellatrix Lestrange had rejoined the fray. Amelia tried to snap off a curse, but Bellatrix was too fast. "Expelliarmus!"
"NO!" Amelia cried, as her wand bounced out of her hand.
"Game over," Bellatrix sneered. "CRUCIO!"
The pain Amelia had felt when Alecto used that spell upon her was nothing compared to this.
"CRUCIO! CRUCIO!" Bellatrix bellowed, again and again, as Amelia twitched and writhed on the floor of her sitting room, screaming all the while.
"Bella!" came the voice of Alecto Carrow. "Let me have a go! CRUCIO!"
Cackling cruelly, the woman continued to torture Amelia Bones. Finally, Bella held up her hand. "The Dark Lord will want a piece of this."
Pointing her wand at Rowle, she muttered "Finite incantatem."
Rowle pushed himself up.
"Get her on the chair, Thowle." Bellatrix ordered. "He shall be here soon." The giant man lifted her into the armchair. With a wave of her wand, Bellatrix conjured chains, that sprung out of the chair, locking Bones into the chair.
Amelia's eyes flickered open, and she saw Bellatrix scoop her wand from the ground.
"Colloportus." Bellatrix hissed, and the door into the sitting room slammed shut. "As soon as she dies, the enchantments on this place will cease to function. We can Disapparate out."
"But, the Dark Lord. How will he get in?" Alecto asked, as Thowle tried to wake Amycus.
"You underestimate me, Alecto."
A high, cold voice hissed from the shadows of the room. Shrouded in thick, complicated robes, Lord Voldemort, murderer of thousands, stepped out of the shadows, wand out, and aimed straight for the woman tied in the armchair before him.
As one, Bellatrix, Alecto and Thowle dropped to their knees.
"My apologies, my Lord."
"None necessary, Alecto." His red eyes shifted towards the unconscious Amycus. "I see she gave you a run for your money." He waved his wand, and Amycus' eyes flickered open. "Congratulations, Madam Bones."
"You'll fail, Voldemort!" Bone shouted back.
"You dare…?" Bellatrix exclaimed.
"It's okay, Bellatrix." Voldemort said gently, his voice cold and ruthless. "She will pay. Your precious Ministry is coming to an end. Fudge will be gone, and Scrimgeour is next on my list. Such a shame. You were a truly gifted witch, once."
Nobody moved.
Gulping, Amelia Bones, defiant to the end, hissed "Screw you."
Voldemort's expression didn't change. "Still… we do what needs to be done. Avada kevadra!"
There was a flash of green light, and room was framed brilliantly. Amelia Bones was lifted slightly off the armchair, before being dumped, unceremoniously, back down, as the light faded away.
Author's Note: I always liked Amelia Bones. She had skillz, apparently. And I love Bellatrix. So here they are. The last stand of Amelia Bones.