The answer came to him as he felt his eyes close. He gripped his wand tightly as he focussed his mind on his Phoenix Animagus form. He felt his body shrink as feathers sprouted over his body. As soon as he felt his wings form he took off, soaring back out into the air of the temple before landing next to Hermione and transforming back.
"Oh Harry!" said Hermione, nearly crying with relief. "I thought we'd lost you!" Harry smiled weakly as he regained his breath, panting hard. He turned to peer around the statue once more.
Godric and Salazar were duelling on the stairs, wands moving in a blur as spells and shields erupted and dissolved in the blink of an eye. James was duelling Wormtail in one corner, as Sirius fought with Bellatrix not far away. But, after a moment spent scanning the room, Harry spotted Voldemort, who was inexplicably facing away from Harry. He seemed to be trying to get Salazar's attention while gesturing at the trap Harry had just fallen down.
"He thinks I'm still down there!" Harry breathed. "I don't believe it!"
"Are you sure?" Hermione whispered back. "It's probably a ruse isn't it? Surely he can still sense you?" Harry had to concede that this was possible, but this was a chance he couldn't afford to miss. He leant around the side of the statue once more and took a deep breath. He steeled himself for a moment.
"Now!" he whispered to himself. He leapt to his feet and tore across the room, his feet racing over the marble. He saw Voldemort turn ahead of him and he pointed his wand at Voldemort once more.
"Avada Kedavra!" Again, diving to one side saved Voldemort. As he jumped back to his feet again, Harry noticed that behind him stood Salazar, Bellatrix and Wormtail. Before Harry could wonder what had happened to Godric, Sirius and James his question was answered as two stags appeared either side of him, and a black dog hurtled past, knocking straight into Bellatrix Lestrange. Sirius bit down onto her neck and bodily lifted her, screaming, into the air.
Everyone's attention was on Bellatrix and Sirius now, frozen in morbid fascination as Sirius began to spin on the spot, his sharp teeth digging ever deeper into Bellatrix's flesh. Her screams of agony increased tenfold as Sirius released her. Just as Sirius had in the Department of Mysteries two years before, Bellatrix's writhing body arched through the air before smashing into the statue behind which Hermione was hidden. She bounced off and crumpled on the floor in front of it, but Harry's attention was on the statue. He was terrified that Hermione would be crushed as it fell, but Lily appeared out of nowhere and dragged Hermione to safety.
Harry turned to face Voldemort, Salazar and Wormtail, who had their wands drawn. "Stag Aniservia!" Harry yelled. As he transformed Harry felt a strange sensation. He felt a unity, a closeness, an affinity with the two Animagi on either side of him. And suddenly he started to glow.
Harry was as caught off guard by this as Voldemort and Salazar were. This surprise was nothing compared to the shock of the power suddenly unleashed from the three of them. A flood of golden energy pulsed forward with the force of a raging dragon, a force that overwhelmed ghost and Voldemort alike, blowing them backward through the door behind them.
"Hermione!" Godric yelled, having transformed back, "stay low and follow us!" Harry and James also changed back to human form and followed Godric into the room ahead, Hermione and Remus behind.
The room they entered was different to the previous room. It was circular, with annexes leading off in all directions. Through one, Harry spied a bed. The room had skulls painted all around the walls that even Harry could tell were formed of a shimmering silver.
It was the centre piece of the room that caught the eye though. A statue of Slytherin, seated on a throne of serpents dominated a slightly raised platform in the centre of the room. At the bottom of this statue, staggering to their feet, were Voldemort, Salazar and Wormtail.
Godric and James leapt forward to engage Salazar and Wormtail, forcing both back and away from the statue. Voldemort was on his feet, any former air of calm, cruel malice replaced by enraged anger. Harry didn't wait.
"Expelliarmous!" Voldemort threw the spell off and without waiting, flung his own back. Harry ducked aside.
"Crucio!" he bellowed. Voldemort sent up a shield of his own devising but, to Harry's pure astonishment, his spell passed through it. It struck Voldemort squarely in the chest. He fell to the floor twisting as Harry watched, but he quickly managed to throw off the curse and before Harry knew it, he had been hit by the Cruciatus curse again.
This time there was to be no let up. Hearing Voldemort's high-pitched laughter only served to redouble the pain that he was experiencing. Above him he saw Voldemort grip his wand and he knew he had to act. The answer came to him in a flash. Through the pain he prepared himself, mind focussed to the task.
"Serpent Aniservia!" Harry yelled. As his body lengthened he felt the heat of the killing curse whistling over his head, but he knew that he had to protect himself from the intense pain he was about to feel. He looked up as the pain hit to see Voldemort fall to the floor.
Harry's preparation served him well. Despite his proximity to Voldemort amplifying the effect the fact that he was ready for the pain enabled him to endure the twisting, head-spinning agony much better than when he had been caught unawares. Voldemort on the other hand, was screaming in pain. Harry held onto the spell for a few more moments until he could feel that the pain was starting to overwhelm him. He felt his body reform as a human and he staggered to his feet.
Tears blinded his eyes as he gazed down at the barely conscious form of the mighty Lord Voldemort, breathing slow ragged breaths on the floor. Harry could hear Hermione and the others yelling but his mind was entirely focussed on the man before him. The sound numbed and deadened to a faint echo in the background, as if they were speaking to him from inside a bathroom.
Harry took several deep breaths. He searched his whole body for anger, summoning up every memory of death, every moment of pain and torment he had endured, every humiliation he had suffered, that could almost all be in some way attributed to the wizard lying before him. He and countless others had suffered as a result of Tom Riddle's cruelty, and Harry knew that he was ready. He knew what he had to do. With rage coursing through his veins, Harry's blazing green eyes met Voldemort's red ones. He raised his wand.
"Farewell, Tom," he said simply. "Avada Kedavra!"
An enormous jet of green light exploded from Harry's wand and struck Voldemort in the chest. As in Azkaban, Harry saw that little wand movement, but this time there was no blue light. There was to be no salvation for Tom Marvolo Riddle.
Voldemort's body was already starting to fade when Hermione yelled at him. "The spell Harry! The spell!"
Harry quickly pointed his wand at Voldemort one last time. "Vita Ingressus!" A ball of light moved from Voldemort to Harry's wand, and he leapt over to Hermione. He thrust his wand into her ghostly form, before stepping back.
Hermione's whole body was illuminated in a golden light. Harry looked up at her face to see that she was beaming at him. As the light faded, Harry beamed back at her dazzling colourful form. Tom Riddle was dead. Hermione was alive.