Chapter Twenty Five

The Avenging Angel

She was laying face down again, she could smell the pungent aroma of decaying leaves and lichen-covered trees around her, the scent of the forest invading her nostrils. Every inch of her ached, the place between her breasts where the killing hat hit her felt like she had been hit with a blasting curse. She did not stir, opting to remain where she had fallen, her body twisted in an unnatural angle – taking in the soft gasps that filled the air before she felt herself levitate. She opened her eyes a millimetre, gazing at Voldemort through her lashes and noticed his wand trained on her, causing her to float ominously above the sky like a marionette, the death eaters falling into step behind him as he began the long march back to the castle.

She remained still, letting herself be carried, dimly aware that they were now crossing the stone bridge known as the viaduct; that they were approaching the main entrance into Hogwarts. Through her barely open eyes she made out the silhouettes of the castles defenders, exiting the castle to meet this final attack. The dementors flitted through the air above her, dragons and giants prowling behind as they approached, they could not hurt her now, the knowledge of her own survival burned within her heart, brighter than any patronus.

"Who is that?" she heard a voice, Scorpius, "Who's body is Voldemort carrying?" and in that moment she knew that he knew, that he could see her seemingly lifeless body and was hoping that his eyes were deceiving him. Hoping for someone to prove him wrong, her heart shattered at the pain she was causing him, her pain only numbing when she realised that it would soon be over.

"NO! LILY! NO!" Scorpius screamed, the anguish in his voice more terrible than anything Lily had ever felt in her life, daring a glance at him she fought the urge to run to him and comfort him. Teddy and James were both restraining him, keeping him from physically pouncing onto the Dark Lord in his anger, tears were streaming down her brothers' faces.

"Lily Potter is dead," said Voldemort, his voice magically amplified, "I bring you proof of Harry Potters cowardice, your so called beacon of hope remained in the castle whilst his daughter died for him. Who else must die before you learn the truth Harry? You cannot beat me!"

"The battle is won. You have lost many of your fighters. You are outnumbered. There must be no more war. Submit to my–."

"NO!"

The sound was all the more ghastly because she had never thought her mother could emit such a sound, not when her brothers had died, not when her mother had fallen . . . never before had her voice been so filled with grief and anger and despair. Lily heard another woman's harsh cackle, Bellatrix gloried in Ginevra's pain and a jolt of anger shot through her body as she heard the dark witch laugh – how dare she sound so joyous when she had put so many in the ground; Dominique . . . her own son, Altair . . . Andromeda, her last surviving sister.

Draco and George had their arms wrapped tightly around Harry, whose face was more furious than Lily had ever seen it, both men struggling to keep her father from attacking Voldemort. Behind them Hermione held Ginny, both woman crying silently, but Hermione still met Voldemorts gaze with a glare of defiance, enough to convince Lily that the Order was far from broken. To the left, she was stunned to see that Albus, Roxanne and Lysander were all struggling to hold Cassandra back, her face furious as she fought them to join Harry and Scorpius in their efforts to tear Voldemort apart.

"She beat you," screamed Harry finally breaking free from Draco and George and slashing his wand through the air. Had Lily not been immobilised in thin air by the levitation charm she would have broken her cover in reverence, for the first time in his life, Harry Potter cast an unforgivable, his killing curse whipping through the air, hastily deflected by Voldemort. But the die had been cast the Order surged forward, hate and determination etched on their features as wands were drawn and the battle began again in earnest.

Lily couldn't help the groan that escaped her lips as she hit the ground, the charm breaking as Voldemort rose to face his attackers, spiralling her wand in a discrete motion she covered herself with a disillusionment charm and disappeared from sight, pulling herself backwards into a ruined alcove to await her chance to strike.

"PERCY!" screamed Ginny, as she tore off after her brother, killing curses flying from her wand. Her father was duelling a dragon, slaying the beast with a single curse before whirling on another death eater, striking his victim would an Avada Kedavra to the face before turning to duel former Slytherin Quidditch Captain – Marcus Flint. Lily's eyes widened, Harry was duelling to kill. Teddy and Victoire fought side by side, slowly giving ground under Bellatrix's assault, backing away into the castle. There was a flash of green light and a giant fell, struck in the vulnerable eye by Albus and James' combined killing curse.

"Did you miss me?" asked Lily, yanking Scorpius into the alcove as he darted passed and pressing her lips to his.

"Lily . . . how?" he broke away from her, his eyes widening in disbelief, "I saw your body . . ."

"I'll explain later Scor," she said, kissing him again, "Right now I have a date with old Voldy."

Nodding, Scorpius disillusioned them both, and together, they entered the battle field to track down the dark lord.

(*)(*)(*)

Teddy and Victoire slammed against the wall with two resounding thuds, the force of the blasting curse against their shield charms enough to send them flying through the air. Their opponent stalked towards them, dancing with glee as she raised her wand, laughing manically as she approached.

"Following in mummy and daddy's footsteps little Lupin?" she asked with a cackle.

"Go fuck yourself," spat Teddy, his spittle laced with red, as he reached for his wand. Bellatrix giggled, flicking her wand and disarming the couple simultaneously.

"Nymphie was screaming for mercy by the time I was done with her," laughed the eldest of the sister's Black, "How loudly will you scream mutt?" Before giving him the chance to respond she flicked her wand again, murmuring the curse like one would whisper a lover's name, "Crucio."

His screams filled the air, white hot knives stabbing his body again and again, whilst his veins rubbed together like sandpaper. His nerves were frayed by acid, piece by piece, whilst the scars on his back burned with a savage ferocity. He chanced a glance at Victoire and he felt relief fill his aching body, her fingers were twitching feebly, indicating she was still alive.

"Scream like your half-breed father," shrieked Bellatrix, "Beg for death like he did." Teddy shook his head stiffly as Bellatrix strengthened her cruciatus.

"They . . . died . . . heroes," he managed, whilst his eyes grew bloodshot and his mind screamed for an end to the pain, "Never . . . begged . . . bitch . . . like . . . you."

"Scum," she shrieked, breaking the curse and straddling his lap, flicking her wand to bind him against the ruined wall behind him as she drew her favourite knife. Ripping down the collar of his shirt, she began carving across his bare chest with a sick delight. Freak, she wrote it as an insult. He wore in as a badge of honour, spitting full in her face as she finished scarring him.

"Filthy hybrid mutt," she shrieked, drawing herself to her full height and wiping away the bloody spittle with her sleeve, "Avada Ked –" A jet of electric blue light slammed into her chest, sending her spiralling across the room and crashing to the ground.

"Stay the fuck away from my brother you whore!" snarled Cassandra Malfoy as she entered the room, her wand raised threateningly before her, the very air crackling with her rage and magic. If she was afraid she did not show it, her usually kind face was contorted with malice and fury as she advanced on her great-aunt. Vaguely from the corner of her eye she noticed Teddy muster a wandless patronus and send it darting into the castle.

"Oooh if it isn't Draco's little girl," giggled Bellatrix as she got to her feet, "I was planning on ending Andromeda's bloodline first, but I suppose you'll do."

"You. Will. Not. Harm. My. Family. Again," said Cassandra, each word punctuated with a blaze of light from her wand, her curses slamming against her great aunts shield charm. The power that was emanating from the collisions were powerful enough to give Bellatrix pause, her demented and haughty sneer fading to be replaced with a look of sheer hate. The girl radiated power the likes of which she had never seen, but she was sure she could overwhelm her; raw magic had nothing on her formidable skill.

"Avada Kedavra," snarled Cassandra, casting a roaring torrent of green light, which shattered upon Bellatrix's shield charm, the resounding explosion shattering ever window in the room. Curses were flying from both wands in earnest, striking each other in mid-air . . . but Cass was tiring quickly, she was pouring in too much energy into her attacks whilst Bellatrix remained stoically collected. The older witch seemed to realise this as she doubled her assault, and now Cassandra was forced on the defensive, barely having the time to shield herself let alone muster a counterattack.

Sidestepping a streak of purple light, she lost her footing and stumbled, her shield charm failing as the crescendo of green energy darted towards her, like a spectral beast in slow motion. I'm sorry Albus . . . she thought as she braced herself for death.

"Not my daughter you BITCH!" shrieked Hermione, deflecting Bellatrix's curse and bearing down upon her with a rage so lethal, that if looks could kill then Bella would already be decomposing. A wave of her mother's hand sent her hurtling to the side, relatively out of harm's way, where she felt familiar arms catch her.

"Remind me never to get on your bad side," Albus said wryly, "Your mum will take it from here."

"How did yo–" Cass began, breathing shallowly as she recovered from her fight.

"You're lucky Teddy sent his Patronus when he did," said Al his voice thick with emotion as he realised how close he had come to losing her, "A few seconds more and we would have been too late." He winced audibly, pressing an arm to his side to stem his own bleeding, he had taken a diffindo severing charm to the pelvis, and the cut ran deep. He didn't have the strength to lend his aid against Bellatrix.

Across from them, Hermione duelled like a woman possessed; her hair whipping around her face from the speed of her movements. The ground around them grew hot and cracked, the air growing thick and charged with ozone from the force of their opposing spell work, ancient curses springing from their wands. The epitome of pure blood t fought against the greatest muggle-born of their age, fighting as equals, diverting the rooms attention as an incisura shot so close to Hermione that she missed decapitation by an inch, several strands of her chocolate hair falling to the ground in the aftermath of the slashing curse. Cassandra watched in terror and elation, shivering lightly in Albus' arms as her mother's wand slashed and twirled to send streaks of light flitting across the room against Voldemort's greatest lieutenant.

"What will happen to your children when I kill you mudblood?" taunted Bellatrix, as deranged as her master, moving like a demented ballerina as Hermione's curses danced around her. "You shouldn't worry though, you'll be seeing dear Scorpy and Cassie soon enough."

"You will not lay a finger on my children you fucking bitch," screamed Hermione, and never had the four observers ever seen her temper flare in such a manner. The threat against her children had struck a chord within Hermione, and her power flared with the same potency that Cassandra had exhibited. Bellatrix's mad cackling filled the air as took advantage of her opponent's momentary distraction, replaced by a look of bloody exhilaration. The look that preceded murder.

The killing curse arced through the air, soaring beneath her outstretched arm and hit her squarely in the chest, directly over her heart. For a split second, she realised what had happened, her eyes bulbous with disbelief, her breast heaving from the exertion of her fatal duel. Then she fell, crumpling to the ground as Hermione Malfoy stepped forward in victory with a cold look on her face, "Never threaten a child in front of their mother," she spat, forever ending the tale of the Sisters Black.

(*)(*)(*)

James saw Blaise Zabini fall with a cry under Charlie Weasley's assault, his wife Daphne succumbing to death at his side as Ginny hurled a killing curse at her heart, he saw Walden Macnair thrown bodily across the room by Alison Longbottom's curse, watched as Theo Nott went down screaming under Granpa Arthur's cruciatus curse, the older man claiming a semblance of vengeance for his wife and daughter-in-law. Augustus Rookwood took a stunner to the chest, hastily followed by an Avada Kedavra courteousy of his father Harry and cousin Roxanne. Rabastan Lestrange duelled with a fiery urgency, striking down the co-leader of the D.A'a Gryffindor's Alex Chase, only to find himself slashed across the waist as Lena screamed, avenging her twin brother with a fatal incisura, her angelic face marred with hate as Rabastan's intestines spilled like writhing serpents.

Voldemort was now duelling Draco, George and Luna all at once, and there was a bone-chilling hatred in his eyes as they wove around him, all of them exceptionally powerful fighters yet unable to finish him.

Audrey Weasley was still fighting too, across the hall from Voldemort and like her master she duelled multiple opponents at once. Fred II and Cassandra, both battling their hardest, but Audrey was possessed with a thirst for revenge for the husband and daughters she had lost and she proved to be their equal. James attention was diverted from Voldemort in an instant as Cassandra was flung back, striking the cold stone wall and crumpling to the ground, accompanied by Fred's scream of pain as he went under the cruciatus.

He changed course, running at his aunt rather than Voldemort, but was knocked aside before he had gone so much as a few steps. Audrey spun on her heel, roaring with maniacal laughter, as mad as Bellatrix as she whirled on Albus. James could only stare at the malice which contorted his easy-going, usually mischievous brother's face, slightly shocked at the anger in his eyes. Then his gaze flickered to Cassandra, feebly stirring, and he understood. James turned his attention back to Voldemort, trusting in his younger brother's abilities as he started towards the Dark Lord.

Voldemort's scream of rage filled the air, blasting from him like a shockwave and James stared as if in slow motion, his opponents were sent careening through the air in agony. Hermione Malfoy had entered the hall, her wand slashing through the air as she dropped death eaters on all sides, and Voldemort pointed his wand against her, the slayer of his most faithful follower, and spat out the killing curse.

"PROTEGO MAXIMA!" roared two voices, and a shield charm expanded in the middle of the hall, every fight ceasing as Voldemort stared around for the source as the hall fell silent, the few surviving death eaters and the bulk of the defenders of Hogwarts falling back as if sensing that all was drawing to a close. There was a light pop as a disillusionment charm lifted, and Scorpius and Lily appeared side by side their wands raised against the Dark Lord.

The yells of shock that followed his sisters return from the dead, his mother's heart wrenching sob, his father's gasp of elation, all were stifled at with a flick of Voldemort's wand they were silenced. James stepped slowly, his hand curled around the hilt of Gryffindor's sword as he quietly walked around the room, shifting in between the crowd.

"I killed you," hissed Voldemort, glaring at Lily is disbelief.

"I sacrificed myself," corrected Lily simply, Scorpius standing silent at her side, "You did not kill me."

"I KILLED YOU," screamed the Dark Lord, and his whole body was taut, a snake about to strike at its prey, "How do you still draw breath?"

"You will never understand Riddle," said Lily, still in that calm voice, "The value of love and the power that it holds." Voldemort scoffed.

"Love? Dumbledore's great answer to everything," he jeered, "Where was love when he was flung from the tower? Love did not save him and it will most certainly not save you."

"But it will save them, or have you not noticed that none of your spells are binding? You truly never learn Riddle," she said just as the silencing spell broke and the room filled with cries and taunts, all directed at the Dark Lord.

"Accidents," roared Voldemort, once more silencing the audience, "Luck is all that ensured your survival!"

"Accident was it when my mother died to save me," cried Harry, as the silencing spell lifted.

"Was it an accident when I chose love over my own life?" called Draco, struggling to his feet.

"Was it accidental that I imprisoned myself in crystal to keep my children safe?" taunted Hermione, as she knelt beside Cassandra to heal her.

"And was it an accident when I survived your curse?" asked Lily, a smirk now playing on her features.

"ACCIDENTS," screamed Voldemort, before gasping in pain, and flinging out his hand, sending James telekinetically flying through the air but the damage was done. The Sword of Gryffindor stood in stark contrast to his pitch black robes, the ruby hilt sticking out of the small of his back, the bloody tip poking through his pelvis.

"You're finished Riddle," said Lily, but Voldemort's killing curse shot from his wand with such a speed that her life flitted before her eyes, stopping only when she noticed Scorpius meeting his assault head on. The platinum haired boy stood before her, tall and imposing, the jet of green light hitting him dead on and dissolving around his body, leaving him unharmed. Her Protection

"Impossible," scowled Voldemort in disbelief, "You two should be dead!"

"I was dead," said Lily, "But I was came back . . . I guess that makes me an angel . . . an Avenging Angel."

"Avada Kedavra!" bellowed Voldemort.

"Incisura!" said Lily calmly.

The jet of green light flew towards her, seemingly striking an invisible barrier and fading away in mid-air, just as it had done for Scorpius. She had died to save them all, he couldn't hurt them no matter how he tried.

The cutting curse slashed through the air, striking his bone white face and for a minute Lily thought that the curse had had no effect. Then a crease of thick black blood streaked across his face. A second later his face seemed to slide, the top of his head from his non-existent nose upwards slipping of his body to reveal his bisected head. His corpse slumped to the ground, falling with a dull thud as the rays of sunshine began streaking down from the roof of the great hall.

The first cry of jubilant victory came from Fred II, but soon everyone was shrieking with glee, even those who had lost loved ones found they were overwrought with joy. They surged forward to grab her, to touch the girl who had saved them all but she had eyes for only one.

There and then she flung herself into Scorpius' arms, kissing him full on his lips as she murmured:

"We did it."

(*)(*)(*)

A/N: Just the Epilogue left.