Chapter 24: The Battle
May 14, 1978
"So why did Peter say he wasn't coming again?" James asked Sirius.
"He said he had a lot of homework to catch up on."
James snorted. "He probably had some secret date he didn't want us to make fun of him for! Because Marauders skipping Hogsmeade for homework? That's unheard of."
Lily laughed slightly. "Marauders doing homework at all seems to be unheard of. James, I don't know when you get it done! You're never cramming last minute, like your son and Sirius, you don't get it done ahead of time like Hermione and I…I have no idea when you do it."
James straightened in his seat. "Well, Lilykins, that's a secret that I think I'll keep to myself."
Lily rolled her eyes.
The Marauders—minus Peter—their significant others, and the time travelers were seated at a large table in the Three Broomsticks for lunch. It was the last Hogsmeade weekend of the year, and the time travelers were getting fairly anxious about when they would be sent back. A few of them were discussing it at the other end of the table.
"This is getting worrying," Hermione said fretfully. "We've been here so long, and we still don't have a concrete reason why."
"We also still have no idea how to get back. I feel like Professor Dumbledore should have an answer for us by now," Kacey said, wringing her hands.
"Hermione, Kacey" Remus said from his seat next to Sarah, "Why don't you take a break from thinking about it for now. You've been thinking about it for almost two weeks straight."
Hermione sighed and exchanged glances with the other time travelers. The main reason they'd been thinking about it so much lately was because May 2 was the day of the Final Battle twenty years into the future. It had pulled things into perspective for all of them, because they'd been so used to being here, that it seemed to be the norm. But somehow, they had to get back to their own time.
Sarah sighed and nodded slowly. "Remus is right. We should talk about this later," she said, trying to convey to them that she thought they should discuss it privately, and also in not such a public place.
Kacey nodded quickly in agreement. "Yes, let's just—" Her words were cut off by an explosion outside. The force of it blew the windows of the Three Broomsticks inward and everyone inside was sprayed with glass.
Harry was on his feet immediately, wand out, followed closely by Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Draco. Harry had a dark look on his face, and almost unconsciously, as the others followed his example and got to their feet with their wands out, they looked to him.
"Haven't I had enough of this?" Harry growled, staying still and alert for a moment to allow the dust to clear. He shook his head, getting the glass out of his hair, and soon started to see the telltale jets of light that signified a duel. Without hesitation, he started forward to the door and immediately started firing spells at the black cloaked figures in the street. Glancing upward, he saw the smoky green skull in the air above the place the Apothecary used to be. It was now replaced by the multi-colored fire caused by the mixture of heat and different potions ingredients.
As he fought, Harry slowly lost track of everyone in his group besides Ron, Hermione, and Ginny.
"Reducto!" Ginny yelled, and her spell shot past the Death Eater she was dueling when he ducked, and hit the Death Eater dueling Hermione.
As she watched in alarm, afraid the spell might hit Hermione, Ron yelled "Stupefy!" at the Death Eater fighting her, stunning him just before she was able to hex him.
In a distorted circle, the Trio and Ginny were able to fight their opponents and keep an eye on the others. However, when a loud CRACK split through the air, Harry sucked in his breath. Raw energy blew outward, stunning the two Death Eaters he and Ginny were fighting as his hand flew to his forehead. Immediately, he looked around with keen eyes, and when he finally located the tall, pale figure of Voldemort, he started towards him.
Ginny immediately took off after him, matching his strides as she grabbed his hand. "Harry, you can't kill him yet!" She exclaimed.
"I know," Harry said shortly, "But that doesn't mean I can't injure him."
Behind them, Ron, distracted by the energy Harry projected, was Stunned from the side and fell hard, hitting his head on the cobblestone road. Hermione gasped and quickly stunned the guilty Death Eater before levitating Ron to the side of the road. As she let him down to the ground and spun to keep fighting, she felt a searing hot pain across her cheek. With a curse, her hand flew to her face and came away bloody. She scowled and made her way back into the fray.
Kacey, Sarah, and Jose stood by the entrance to the Three Broomsticks for a moment, trying to make out who needed help. The twins had done some research on Healing spells while being homeschooled, and Jose knew a little as well. Not being very proficient fighters, they all figured they'd be better trying to help those who were hurt.
"There!" Kacey exclaimed, pointing to a fallen woman in the middle of the street whose son was shaking her insistently. "The little boy, look, we have to get him inside."
"Okay," Sarah replied, "I'll get the boy, Jose can levitate his mother, and you cover us, Kace."
The others nodded and they started forwards, blocking the spells aimed at them, and taking out Death Eaters when they could. Upon reaching the woman and her son, Jose levitated the woman, and Sarah quickly swooped in on the boy, "It's okay, honey, we're gonna help your mother," she said, picking him up.
Slowly, they made their way back to the Three Broomsticks, Kacey and Sarah blocking spells from hitting themselves, Jose, and the woman. Kacey let out a little scream and ran forward, the incantation for a shield charm on the tip of her tongue, but wasn't able to say it in time and Jose was hit with a red jet of light and went down, which meant the woman did too.
"Jose!" Kacey cried, and Sarah quickly grabbed her arm.
"It was just a Stunner, he'll be alright. Cover me, I'll get him. That man right there has the woman," she pointed to the man from town who came forward immediately to help and was levitating the woman inside.
Sarah quickly levitated Jose, and the group made their way back into the building before heading out again.
James grabbed Lily's arm and pulled her out of the way of a stray spell, sending a stunner at the Death Eater responsible. In response, Lily yelled, "Protego!", shielding them from the two stunners headed their way next. Suddenly she gasped and grabbed James' hand. "There's Harry! He's going straight for Voldemort!"
"Stupefy!" James yelled at another Death Eater, before he followed Lily's gaze and started forward. "Let's go."
They weaved and ducked through fighters, helping their friends when they could. They slowed down when they approached Voldemort and Harry, trying to figure out what Harry's strategy was for dealing with the Dark wizard, while helping Ginny shield him from stray curses and fight off the closest Death Eaters.
"Hello, Tom," Harry said, pointing his wand at the man. Voldemort responded with a Cruciatus Curse, which Harry dodged and then grinned. "Oh, I forgot. You don't like that name much, do you, Tom?" he taunted with a smirk.
"Avada Kedavra!" Voldemort yelled, and Harry dodged his second spell. "How dare you call me that filthy Muggle's name?! I am Lord Voldemort!" Voldemort screamed in rage.
Harry sent a cutting curse at him, which Voldemort dodged. "You've got a bit of temper, don't you, Tom?"
Voldemort sent two Cruciatus curses at Harry, who dodged one and wasn't able to dodge the other. Excruciating pain rippled through his muscles as he fell to his knees and then his back and screamed.
"Harry!" Three voices yelled.
"Diffindo!" James yelled, pointing his wand at Voldemort, who deflected the spell easily.
"Come now, Potter. You can do better than that for your brother, can't you?"
James sent another cutting curse at him, while Lily and Ginny quickly helped Harry to his feet.
"Well, well, if it isn't the Mudblood. One of my colleagues told me a lot about you two," Voldemort said, looking at James and Lily when James grabbed his girlfriends wrist. "Used to hate each other, clever and powerful. You could join me, you know. I could give you more power then you could ever imagine. Your families would be safe from death."
"I will never join you," James spat.
"I can't believe you think I would, either, you bastard!" Lily scowled.
Voldemort's face twisted into a snarl, and he whipped his wand towards James. A red jet of light flew towards him and knocked him back ten feet, where he landed with his leg at a strange angle. In quick succession, he sent a stunner towards Lily as well, which sent her into the path of a fire curse. Her red hair caught fire and Ginny quickly sent a jet of water at her before spinning back around to face Voldemort. Harry dodged the curse sent towards him and sent one back.
Sirius and Draco were working their way around the outside of the battle area, both trying to find certain Death Eaters. Sirius was trying to find and stun Regulus before he was killed or caught, and Draco was trying to find Severus and his father, knowing they had to stay alive through this battle. As they worked their way around, they took out Death Eaters who were fighting their friends, and fought anyone else who was trying to take out members of their side.
As they made their way around, they realized that Katie was fighting two Death Eaters, who both appeared to be stronger than her. Quickly, they sent spells at them, and one of them went down. The other spun around and froze for a moment before sending a stunner at Sirius, who suddenly found himself face to face with his brother. He dodged the first Stunner, and then each brother sent another at each other. Both hit, and both brothers fell to the ground, stunned.
Draco swallowed hard and his eyes met Remus', as Remus tried to fight his way to Katie, who looked relieved that Draco and Sirius had taken out the two Death Eaters. Draco turned to revive Sirius, when Katie suddenly looked horrified and screamed, "DUCK!" Draco did so immediately and Katie sent a stunner over his head, but the Death Eater had already shot off his spell, and the jet of orange fire hit Katie in the center of her chest. She fell and instantly started screaming.
"No!" Draco yelled, lunging forward.
His head snapped up at the next sound he heard—an inhuman roar coming from Remus, who suddenly looked devastated, cold, and fierce all at once. Draco was almost afraid of him and the methodic way he suddenly started shooting off spells. With a hard swallow, Draco leaned forward and shook Katie, whose screaming had died down to whimpers, and whose eyes were starting to close. "Katie, no, come on, don't do this."
He jumped when the twins dropped to their knees on either side of him, and Sarah gripped his arm. "What happened?" she asked desperately.
"She saved—one of the—she got hit with something, then started screaming. I don't know what it was." Draco stammered, blinking fast.
"Katie," Kacey said desperately. "Talk to me, wh—what's wrong? What happened?" She felt tears welling up in her eyes and dripping down her cheeks.
Sarah's grip on Draco's arm tightened as Katie looked up at them. "Burns," she whispered, her voice hoarse, and then cried out with pain. She grabbed Kacey's wrist. "Tell Rem—tell Remus I l—love him," she choked out, before suddenly screaming again weakly.
"No, no, Katie, you can tell him yourself! Katie, please!" Kacey took her head in her hands and tried to turn it towards her, but Katie eyes slid closed and her chest stopped moving.
Draco, Sarah, and Kacey stared at her for a moment, before suddenly a curse came out of nowhere and hit Draco in the chest. He flew backwards, blood spurting from his chest, and Sarah crawled after him, screaming "No!" She screamed again when a second curse hit her side and she started bleeding.
Kacey whipped her head up and brandished her wand at the culprit, sending a stunner at him which hit dead on. She quickly got to her feet, rushing towards her sister and Draco, when suddenly a curse hit the ground near her feet, exploding the cobblestone. She screamed and fell, reaching for her ankle, which was completely burnt.
"Kacey! Sarah! Draco!" Celeste's voice came through the dust, and Kacey sighed in relief when she realized they were closer to the Three Broomsticks than she thought. That was where Celeste was working.
"Help them first!" She exclaimed as Celeste came running towards her.
Harry was still fighting Voldemort when he heard Remus scream. Immediately, he started sending spells faster towards Voldemort and they seemed evenly matched at this point. Ginny was fighting Lucius Malfoy next to him and when he heard her scream in pain, he couldn't help but to look over at her. She was on the ground clutching her ankle, and Malfoy was grinning maliciously above her. In that split second of distraction, Harry was hit with another Cruciatus curse and he screamed. He heard Voldemort's cold laughter loudly, and then it stopped suddenly.
"Now, Tom, why don't you fight with someone more evenly matched to you?" Professor Dumbledore's voice was calm and suddenly the pain disappeared.
Harry sat up and started to scoot away, but cried out when a cutting curse hit the back of his shoulder. He turned his head as best he could to see that Lucius Malfoy had got him too. He quickly spun his wand towards him and caught Lucius by surprise with a stunning spell. Then he finished his trip towards Ginny and grabbed her hand.
"Are you alright?" He asked urgently.
"Am I alright?" Ginny exclaimed. "You're shoulder's spewing blood!"
Harry grimaced and tried to look at it. "I wouldn't say spewing is the word," he responded, smiling slightly.
Ginny huffed and they both turned to watch as Dumbledore and Voldemort dueled. Harry could only remember the last time he'd seen it, and it was just as magnificent as the day in the Ministry of Magic. It wasn't long before Voldemort and the other Death Eaters disapparated, and Dumbledore took a deep breath and turned to face Harry and Ginny.
"Are you both alright?"
Ginny shrugged from her spot on the ground, and Harry nodded slightly, but his eyes widened as his head wobbled. His face went deathly pale and Ginny looked at him, alarmed.
"Professor, I think he might have lost too much blood."
Harry blinked, and suddenly everything went black.