Author's Note: First of all, I want to apologize for my (incredibly stupid) mistake in the previous chapter. I do know that the Leaky Cauldron is not in Hogsmeade; I meant to put the Three Broomsticks. -head desk- I'm very sorry, I really don't know where my brain was! (Also, a thanks to skygodess27, who pointed it out.)
Now, onward, to some violence and gore! Enjoy and comment!
Disclaimer: Me no owny Harry Potty. (Ha - I'm so hyper right now...)
12. Battles
Harry was interrupted by a low, eerie howl. Hermione gasped loudly at his side, her hands flying to her mouth in horror.
"It... it can't be! That spell is forbidden!" she whispered. Harry didn't look at her; he couldn't tear his eyes from the glowing silver cloud surrounding Lupin.
"So he... he is... er... transforming?" he stammered. Hermione didn't reply; she was staring, as well, shaking quite terribly now.
The silver smoke finally cleared, revealing what Harry had hoped wasn't true: standing where Remus Lupin's body had been mere moments before was a handsome, if somewhat thin, tawny wolf. Its coat was streaked with gray, just like Lupin's hair, and its eyes were the same hazel color, but it was snarling and glaring so fiercely at the feral across from it that Harry had trouble believing it was actually his usually good-natured friend.
Silas, however, was beside himself with glee. He carelessly thrust his wand into the pocket of his robes and howled, an inhuman sound that made Harry cringe in fear. He shut his eyes and clapped his hands over his ears, and by the time he looked again, the feral had transformed himself into a large black wolf. The creature's eyes glowed red with rage and bloodlust, and Harry hadn't blinked once before it let out a loud bark and launched itself through the air toward Lupin, claws extended.
"This can't be happening," Hermione said breathlessly.
But it was; the two werewolves were now engaged in a fierce battle, tearing at each other savagely with sharp claws and even sharper fangs. The fight was a whirlwind of flying blood and fur, their bodies only blurs of black and gray-streaked brown. The low growls of the wolves were intermittently permeated by yelps of pain, but everything else on the grounds was silent.
Harry finally wrenched his eyes away from the battle and rose to his feet, grabbing Hermione up with him. She didn't seem to want to move on her own, so he had to practically drag her back to the bushes they had been hiding behind before. There, he grabbed her shoulders and shook her until she focused on him, seemingly too shocked and terrified to think clearly.
"Hermione, I need you to go to Hogsmeade and tell Madam Rosmerta what's happening," he ordered, keeping a firm grip on her. Hermione shook her head slowly.
"But... you..."
"No, Hermione. I'm staying here with Lupin. If something happens, and Silas manages to..." He trailed off, unable to complete that terrible thought, and cleared it from his mind with a decisive shake of his head. "No. If something happens, I should be here. You need to go. We're counting on you, Hermione." He shook her again to set these words in, and she finally seemed to come to her senses.
"Oh, Harry!" she cried, flinging her arms around his neck. Harry patted her back awkwardly, uncomfortable as he felt the shoulder of his robes getting wet from her tears.
"It'll be all right, Hermione. Just run to Hogsmeade, and I mean run, okay?" he said, trying rather unsuccessfully to be comforting. Hermione sniffed and let him go, nodding.
"Yeah, I will." She hesitated, then placed a kiss on his cheek. "Make sure both you and Lupin are here when I get back," she said, then sprinted from the bushes and disappeared into the darkness beyond the lake.
Harry blinked, slightly stunned by her sudden departure.
"She won't get far," a female voice drawled from behind him. Harry spun, wand out, to find himself face to face with a masked Death Eater. It didn't matter if he couldn't see her face, though; he would know that loathed voice anywhere. He opened his mouth to say her name, hoping to sound just as calm and cool as Lupin had when confronting Silas, but his voice caught in his throat and all that came out was a sort of croak. The Death Eater laughed and reached up a pale hand languidly, removing her mask and tossing it away gracefully to reveal an even paler face with dark, heavy-lidded eyes.
"Eloquent tonight, aren't we, Potter?" Bellatrix Lestrange taunted, twirling her long wand between her fingers casually. Harry glared at her in what he hoped was an intimidating way, but the Death Eater only laughed again. "The little boy is trying to ogle me into submission! What a joke!"
"I'm not a little boy," Harry retorted, finally finding his voice. "I'm sixteen, and old enough to hold my own against your mate Voldemort. Do you really think someone like you could scare me?"
"How dare you say the Dark Lord's name!" Bellatrix snarled. "Such insolence will not be tolerated!" She lifted her wand, prepared to curse Harry, when suddenly a loud yip sounded from where the werewolves were still fighting. Bellatrix's head snapped up, and Harry risked a glance over, as well. Fear gripped him, constricting his heart, as he realized that it was Lupin who had yelped. The tawny wolf was limping slowly away, holding his right forepaw aloft and licking the deep wound that Silas had inflicted while the larger black wolf paced, also (Harry was satisfied to note) bleeding from a number of deep scratches and bites.
"You would do well to ignore that battle, Potter. There is no doubt in my mind that Silas will defeat your friend Lupin. Why don't we resume our little duel, hm?" Bellatrix asked, grinning malevolently. Harry set himself grimly into a dueling position, prepared for the onslaught of Unforgivable Curses.
Sure enough, the first spell Bellatrix called out was the Cruciatus Curse. Harry jumped out of the way as the ground where he had been standing exploded with the force of the spell.
"Run, little Potter! You will get nowhere, except maybe closer to a pair of blood-thirsty beasts!" Bellatrix called after him. Harry turned swiftly, pointing his wand at the Death Eater's chest.
"IMPEDIMENTA!" he cried. Bellatrix raised her wand and the spell flew off her shield harmlessly.
"CRUCIO!" she retaliated, and Harry didn't have enough time to lift a shield before the curse hit him.
The agony was incredible; it felt as though he was being burned from the inside out, his bones were cracking and being pulled apart at the joints, his muscles being ripped from his limbs, his skin was melting, his heart was going to explode, and his head, oh, his scar, his scar was on fire, his head was splitting, he was going to die, if only he could die...
Then it stopped, and Harry was left panting on the ground, his wand lying uselessly beside him. Bellatrix stood above him, laughing maniacally.
"Did you enjoy that, Potter? Do you want more?" she asked. Harry tried to answer but he was too weak; he was shaking uncontrollably, and he didn't even think he could have managed to lift a finger. Bellatrix raised her wand again but something fast and furry streaked towards her, leaping over Harry's motionless body and latching onto her with such force that it knocked her off her feet. Bellatrix shrieked as she keeled over, and Harry painfully raised himself into a sitting position to watch with wide eyes as wolf-Lupin tore at the Death Eater's flesh, his fangs shredding her black robes and ripping into her pale skin.
The werewolf had been attacking her for less than a minute before he was knocked aside by a bright red stunning spell, which sent him flying through the air with a yelp; he landed hard on the ground and didn't rise.
Bellatrix's screams had stopped the moment the wolf was off of her, and she now lay inanimate, bleeding profusely onto the dark grass. Harry scrambled back away from her; he only looked at her once, for fear that his stomach would protest in his weak state. Lupin had ripped so deeply into her that the white of bone could be seen in some of the gauges covering her chest and face. Her heavily lidded eyes were sightless with agony, but she still breathed shallowly, her blood-filled lungs straining. Harry was about to try standing when a commanding voice made him halt.
"Harry, stay where you are!"
Albus Dumbledore strode across the grounds, robes billowing impressively outward. He looked so regal silhouetted against the glowing yellow windows of Hogwarts that it took Harry a moment to realize he wasn't alone: Professor McGonagall, Thoreau, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Mad-Eye Moody, and Nymphadora Tonks followed him out onto the lawn. The last hurried over to the insensible wolf after a nod from Dumbledore, kneeling beside him and stroking his gray-streaked fur gently, but the other four remained respectfully behind the Headmaster.
"Professor!" Harry exclaimed, relieved beyond measure to see him. Dumbledore motioned to Kingsley, and the tall black Auror walked over to Harry. He held out a large hand, which Harry grasped, and pulled the sixteen year-old to his feet with little trouble. Harry wavered, but Kingsley did not let him fall. As Harry was surveying the group of Order members, he noticed that Dumbledore was the only one with his wand at the ready; realization hit him like a hammer.
"Sir, you stunned -?"
"I did what I had to, Harry," Dumbledore interrupted. He turned toward his student, looking suddenly tired. "I beg you not to hold it against me. I'm sure Remus will thank me, when he awakens."
"Albus, you should see this!" Tonks called, her voice wavering, from her position beside the wolf-Lupin. She wasn't looking at her friend, though; she was staring wide-eyed at a dark, hulking form lying inert in the grass nearby. Dumbledore followed her gaze, as did Harry; it was obviously Silas, and it was even more obvious that he was dead. His bloody throat was exposed, and it looked like his neck had been broken.
"Merlin," Harry heard Kingsley swear above him, and Harry had to agree. He hadn't thought Lupin could actually... kill... Silas. The thought that his kind-natured friend was actually capable of murder like that made him shudder. Kingsley must have felt him, because the Auror called out.
"Dumbledore, Potter needs to get some rest. He's dead on his feet," he said. Dumbledore nodded.
"Minerva, Vedette, go with Harry. Kingsley, Alastor, and I can handle Bellatrix and Silas, and Nymphadora will watch over Remus," he said. Before Harry could protest, Kingsley handed him over to a tight-lipped Professor McGonagall.
"Come, Potter. We'll take you to the hospital wing, and Madam Pomfrey can give you some dreamless sleep potion to help you rest," she said sternly, but Harry knew she was only worried about him. He suffered one glance back toward where Tonks was still watching over Lupin and was surprised to see that someone (likely Dumbledore) had managed to transform the wolf back into a human. Harry caught a brief glimpse of the Marauder's drawn face and felt a strong rush of emotion; Lupin had almost sacrificed his life for Harry and Hermione in facing Silas, and then had saved Harry from Bellatrix...
"Professor, will Lupin be all right?" Harry asked as they headed up the stairs toward the hospital wing, surprised at his raspy voice. Professor McGonagall did not answer right away, so Thoreau quickly spoke up.
"He should be fine, but we aren't entirely sure of the extent of that transformation spell Silas used. It's forbidden, but that's no surprise, seeing as Voldemort uses it," Thoreau said. Harry vaguely recalled Hermione saying something about 'forbidden' when the curse had first taken its hold on Lupin, and that made him remember.
"Hermione!" he exclaimed suddenly, making Professor McGonagall and Thoreau jump. "Is she okay? Did she make it to Hogsmeade?"
"Yes, she did," Professor McGonagall said proudly. "In fact, it is because of her that we managed to contact Kingsley, Moody, and Tonks. Their appearance turned the tables on the fight, and we were able to overcome them. Only Mr. Filch and Hagrid really got hurt - excluding you and Remus, of course - but they should be fine by tomorrow morning." Harry felt as though a great weight had been removed from his shoulders, and he suddenly realized just how tired he really was.
Luckily, the three of them had just reached the hospital wing. Thoreau held the door open as Professor McGonagall led Harry inside.
"Harry!"
Something rammed into him, and his vision was suddenly hindered by bushy brown hair.
"Harry, I was so worried! I ran as fast as I could! Is Lupin okay? Did the Aurors get here in time? What happened to that Silas? Did anyone -"
Professor McGonagall cleared her throat, causing Hermione to stop abruptly. She blushed and let go of Harry, stepping back and looking down. Professor McGonagall smiled at the both of them.
"I think the interrogations can wait until tomorrow morning. You two should get some sleep." She gestured toward two turned-down beds right next to eachother. "Madam Pomfrey has some dreamless sleep potion if you need it. We will talk in the morning, Potter," she added when he gave her a questioning look. "Good night." With that, she left the room. Thoreau remained, looking rather sheepish.
"Look, I just wanted to apologize if I frightened you earlier. I don't usually -" she started, but Harry shook his head furiously.
"Don't. It was fine. I know you can control yourself," he said.
"Actually, it was kind of... interesting to watch," Hermione added shyly. Thoreau cocked an eyebrow, but appeared heartened.
"Maybe I should be worried about what you find 'interesting', Miss Granger," she joked. "Sleep tight. You don't have to worry about anything for the rest of the night, I promise. I'll be right outside."
Harry could barely remember climbing into the warm sheets of the bed prepared for him. He did, however, recall Thoreau peeking back in the door once he had removed his glasses and settled in.
"Oh," she said, "and Happy New Years."
Author's Note: Wow, I really need to start writing... (Just so you guys know, I'm all caught up on my pre-written chapters, so they might come a tad bit slower now. But don't fret, I will post them! And the more comments I get, the more I want to write, so the faster they'll come!
Thanks for reading! Now finish up by giving my some nice feedback!