50

Hannah

Her head whipped around as the sword sliced through the air, lethal and shining, and blood spatter hit her cheek with a hissing of burning flesh. Her wand twirled, sending curses at Voldemort, and he parried them with a single swipe and she was thrown back twenty feet into a Death Eater.

Arrows rent the air, zipping down to stick in arms and necks and blood and screams covered the air, thick as the smoke that had cleared. Hannah curled into a ball on the floor, trying to avoid the deadly spikes raining down, and felt herself being dragged up by her hair. She screamed and kicked, connecting with her attacker, and Luna jumped next to her, graceful and furious, sailing as though riding the wind, sent the man back to the ground with an airborne kick to his face. Her wand flicked angrily over him, and swooped in a circle, sending four others onto their backs, where a Devil's Snare plant began reeling them into its coils. Screams filled her mind and she covered her ears, looking for a wand, but another grabbed her from behind and bent her down. She struggled, feeling a wand tip pressing into her back.

"HANNAH!" Neville cried out, and she flew out of the man's hands again, a green spell hitting him where she had been seconds before. Neville caught her around the waist as she soared towards him and handed her a wand, grabbing her free hand.

"LET'S FINISH IT!" he screamed. "IT'S GOT TO BE ME! I JUST KNOW IT!"

Hannah threw curses left and right, and suddenly, the doors had opened, and the Hogwarts house elves were practically flying out from the Great Hall, cleavers and meat tenderizers and chopping knives blazing next to their faces as they screamed tinny, shrill battle cries. She saw Yaxley and Dolohov go down their knives, saw the others around her, their faces shining with sweat and deadly anger, sending flashing curses. Heat curled up, pluming from the floor- green light was dancing around her, rebounding off the walls, glass shattered behind her and she twirled, trying to find Neville, and Ginny was running past, her hair flying, and she was snarling like Hannah had never seen. Hannah sent a trip jinx at Rookwood as Percy Weasley dueled him, and Arthur and Bill were dueling a persistent Dolohov, who sent killing curses at their feet, making them dodge in between sending their own.

Hannah watched Luna shoot past, her eyes wide and furious, and join in the fight between Ginny and Bella.

"TOGETHER!" Hermione screamed from beside her, joining next to Luna and sending a spell at the ceiling that caused chunks of rocks to rocket towards Bellatrix. The three girls ducked and wove, avoiding the green flashes of deadly light, and Ginny looked ready to kill as she screamed a decapitation hex, blasting reductos in its wake. Hannah was pushed to the side as a blur of red hair went flying past once more, her own curse at Dolohov skewed by the woman barreling past, and then suddenly, Luna and Hermione were holding Ginny back beside her, and the room had erupted into more yells as Molly Weasey dueled to the death. Bellatrix sent spells cracking like whips, flames with hot tongues, and the floor trembled as the volley of spells increased, shaking the building when they hit the walls. The crowd had thinned, bodies of Death Eaters lined the floors; Neville was fighting his way toward Voldemort, crying curses as McGongall, Flitwick, and Slughorn dueled him, and then the crowd erupted in victory chants as Bellatrix fell, the hordes of angry house elves racing to her body, and Voldemort's fury exploded. Hannah sent up a shield, trying to cover the girls, who were now being dragged forward by a sobbing, swearing Ginny, her hair in her mouth as she spat out curses, and she went stiff as a single voice screamed, "PROTEGO!"

"OH GODRIC!" She heard Ginny scream beside her, shaking, and Hermione had almost fainted beside them. Hannah pulled her up, sending healing charms at her many cuts and an envigoration charm to her head, but Luna pulled her back.

"Harry's back to the fight," she said quietly, and Hannah's jaw dropped as she saw the unmistakeable face of her classmate, hunched and intense, begin to circle Voldemort.

"I DON'T WANT ANYONE ELSE TO FIGHT. IT'S GOT TO BE ME," Harry was yelling for the whole great hall to hear.

"BUT HOW?" she began, and suddenly Neville was beside her, holding her hand in a vice grip.

"If he can't, be ready . . . I'll need you to cover me, I'm going in with the sword," he whispered, showing her the ruby handle, and the girls looked at him and nodded, walking with him to the forefront of the crowd. The people parted, and Hannah could see only her own and Voldemort, cornered and deadly, and her stomach turned. Silence fell, and Ginny pressed to the front of the crowd, standing by with them, ready to take out the man who had stolen so much from them all.

But the lion and the snake were circling, talking quietly, and the echoes of their conversation reached her ears in fragments,

" . . . believe you have a weapon more powerful . . ."

" . . . WHAT'S THIS? . . . I got there first, little boy . . ."

"Snape beat . . . wand's last owner . . ."

"The new owner of the wand was Draco Malfoy," Harry's voice called out, and whispers spread as the crowd tried to follow what they were arguing. The Great Hall had begun to shine, light from the sunrise trickling in as the blood red sun hit the horizon. The people held their breath as one, transfixed by the slow, deadly dance they watched before them.

"So it all comes down to this, doesn't it? Does the wand in your hand know it's last master was disarmed? Because if it does, then I am the true master of the Elder Wand," Harry whispered, and as the sun struck, you could have heard the sizzle of the grass on the grounds.

"AVADA KEDAVRA!"

"EXPELLIARMOS!"

Silence blanketed their fuzzy minds for but seconds as all the world stood still, eyes fixed on the body slumping to the ground like melting butter. Harry's eyes settled on body and looked up, slow, and the silence shattered.

Neville crushed her to him, the sword clattering to the floor, and lifted her off the ground. Shock rang in her ears and she watched between kissing him hard as Ginny, Hermione, and Ron raced to smash into Harry, and the crowd jostled around them, petting him, hands reaching out to touch the hero, screams and cries of jubilant victory cutting the air around them. Neville's hands gripped her tight, pulling out her breath, and she tugged at him and he released her, gasping for breath.

"WE WON!" He screamed hoarsely, coughing, and she grabbed his middle and jumped up and down, tears falling down her cheeks, overcome with relief. "DANCE, NEVILLE! WE'RE ALIVE!" She yelled back, and he threw back his head and laugh, jumping beside her and reaching down to hook his arms under her bum. She shrieked as he lifted her, throwing her up into the air, and caught her, holding her against his chest pumping his other fist into the air. Sparks flew up and everywhere, patronuses were flying, hopping, slithering, running- racing out the doors, between windows, through the walls- and the crowd was crying, yelling, hugging, joyous faces beaming with tears and kissing one another; a rabbit hopped past, shooting from Luna's wand, and a turtle began to crawl beside her, faster than any turtle should ever plod. A fleet of horses, deer, gazelle, wildebeast, tigers, bumbling bears, sleek cats and wolves and trilling birds was surrounding her as the patronuses attempted to escape the Great Hall. Seamus' raccoon was scurrying past and an ostrich was zipping between celebrating onlookers with sturdy feet. Hannah concentrated for a moment and conjured her own badger to send to her father, then looked at Neville in shock as a female German Sheppard barked beside her. Neville dropped her suddenly and she fell into the crowd, knocking Luna down.

"OH! Sorry Luna!" she offered, but Luna just pulled her into a tight hug and grinned.

"Hannah Banana . . ." Neville said softly in her ear, and she turned, seeing his shocked look.

She smiled at her new protector.

"Tell Daddy I'm safe and the war is over. Voldemort is dead. I'll be home soon to visit. It's safe," she said, tears welling up over her cheeks and sliding down as Neville looked at her in awe, his shock fading to an impressive blush.

"D'you really . . . ?" he trailed off, seeing his own German Sheppard, conjured for St. Mungoes, playing with hers.

Hannah nestled her head on his chest and felt her happy tears leak into his shirt. Neville wrapped his arms around her.

"We're alive," he whispered fiercely.