"Don't move," Ginny insisted, her hand pressed tightly against the side of his neck. "You've cut yourself, it's bleeding like crazy."
"It's just a scratch," Harry murmured, swallowing thickly. Pulling his sleeve down over his hand, her pressed his palm against the cut on her cheek.
They stayed frozen in that position for a few moments, each trying to catch their breaths and make sense of what was happening around them. They couldn't make out anything other than their own heavy breaths and the sound of fighting, of Death Eaters attacking the castle where the giants had already passed. Taking his hand from Ginny's cheek, Harry sat up on his elbows and shook out the Marauders Map that was miraculously still clutched in his hand. Ginny lit her wand, and together they found the Great Hall where they were, their hearts sinking as they saw the numerous dots and names blending in and covering each other up. For a brief moment Harry thought he glimpsed Hermione's name, but it disappeared just as quickly. Finding the dots labelled with his and Ginny's name, Harry could see that their vicinity was largely being avoided, perhaps due to the rubble they were underneath. There was a fight going on, that much was for sure, and they weren't getting out of there without joining it.
"Are you ready?" Harry asked her, folding up the map and roughly stuffing it into his pocket. "We're going to have to fight our way out of here."
"Yes," she nodded, slowly removing her hand from his neck. She too sat up on her elbows, clutching her wand in one hand and taking Harry's in the other. "Stay with me."
"I will," he said, knowing that she had no intention of allowing him out of her sight. He felt exactly the same, he had to make sure that she was protected, that he did all he could for her. "Don't let go of my hand."
"I won't!" she promised him, raising her wand to the rubble above them.
At the last minute Harry closed the space between them and kissed her, fearing that this may be his very last chance to do so. His kiss was both a promise and a lie, that everything would be okay, that there was nothing to be worried about. Ginny kissed him back feverishly, she too fearing that this may be their last opportunity. They couldn't put it off any longer and so broke apart, taking one last minute together before clutching each other's hand as tightly as they could. Turning their faces away, together they raised their wands to the rubble straight in front of them, counting to three together.
"Bombarda!" they shouted, blasting at the fallen stone and wood. "Bombarda!"
It took them both two shots to clear enough space, and Harry climbed through first, checking their immediate surroundings before turning back for Ginny. Having let go again to climb through, Harry took her hand and helped her move against the far wall where they crouched for a moment, asserting themselves amidst the battle that raged around them. At first it was difficult to tell the Death Eaters from the students and Order Members, with most of the Death Eaters forgoing their robes and masks due to the short notice of the battle. The setting sun was low in the sky, casting a brilliant orange glow across the landscape, with the school grounds clearly visible through what was left of the outside wall that had enclosed the Great Hall. The ceiling and fallen stone lay in rubble around the broken house tables, providing the stage where the battle played out. Brilliant flashes and sparks were emitted with each curse, and in the brief few seconds where Harry and Ginny watched on, two of their own fell and did not get back up.
That was all the prompting they needed to act. Together Harry and Ginny skirted around the edge of the room, sliding down the rubble and trying not to look back at the spot where they had been buried. No one had noticed them yet, and together they stunned three approaching Death Eaters in quick succession before carrying on, looking for any sign of Ron and Hermione. They had just passed Kingsley battling with Rodulphus Lestrange when they saw Ron, he and Colin Creevy duelling a particularly large Death Eater on the other side of the hall. Hermione was still nowhere in sight. Sticking to the edge of the room as best they could, Harry and Ginny leapt and climbed over the rubble, trying to reach Ron, to find Hermione.
It was chaos, and it was clear that the Death Eaters and followers greatly outnumbered those on their side, and they were quickly taking over the school. Still more were spilling through the damaged walls and into the Great Hall, and soon Harry and Ginny were overwhelmed by suitors to duel with, having only other people to thank for helping them. Harry didn't even know who he was fighting, most of them seemed to be his age, one that he took down seemed even younger. They gave no thought to who they hurt, or to why they had been called to fight this particular battle, their only focus being to inflict harm, just as they had been trained to do.
All this time, Harry and Ginny never let go of each other's hands, and by the time they managed to break through the chaos and sprint towards Ron they still knew exactly where the other was. As they ran, a great shadow cast itself over the Great Hall, followed by a strong wind and loud roar. The impact was not lost on anyone, every single witch and wizard in the vicinity stopping in their tracks to look up at the sky, watching in awe as a dark blue dragon soared overhead, it's enormous wings flapping slowly as it came in to land. It settled awkwardly on the side of the Astronomy Tower, bringing in its wings and breathing a small puff of fire just as it grew agitated again.
The Astronomy Tower crumbled at the site where the dragon hung on, and it toppled over in slow motion, falling out of sight as the dragon took flight again. At the same time, the giant which had nearly stepped on Harry and Ginny lost its footing in a moment of distraction, and he fell backward from the roof of the second floor, his thick trunk like arms flailing about as he dropped his club. Everyone sprang back into action, abandoning their duels and running far out of the giants way.
"Move!" Harry shouted at Ginny, who still stood entranced. He tugged at her arm and pulled her along with him. He looked towards Ron, and focused on getting the two of them to him. They didn't make it far, the impact of the giant's body hitting the ground knocking them clean off their feet.
Broken stone bounced across them where they lay, forcing them to keep their heads down. Hearing the growls of frustration from the giant, Harry raised his head a little and looked back, squinting through the dust and stone. The giant was rolling to and fro, trying to get back to his feet as the witches and wizards around him got to their feet and returned to the fight. Grabbing the back of Ginny's shirt, Harry dragged her to her feet and moved away, narrowly missing the dozen or so suits of armour on horseback that came charging past them.
"Are you alright?" Ron shouted at them when they came closer, pulling Ginny into a frightened hug.
"Where's Hermione?" Harry shouted back in reply, not answering. He raised his wand and stunned the wizard behind Ron who was approaching, seeing the intent in his eyes.
"I don't know," Ron moaned, looking around intently. "I lost her, we got separated. Have you seen her?"
"Maybe," Harry muttered, thinking about the brief moment when he had seen her name on the map. He moved with Ginny towards the edge of the room, finding a secluded spot on the other side of the Slytherin House table, which remained relatively undamaged. "Cover us, Ron."
Crouching down, Harry and Ginny tore open the Marauders Map, finding the Great Hall and scanning for Hermione's name, trying not to think the worst. Ron crouched close by and watched for attack, moving away only to briefly duel with a Slytherin boy who had left school in the lead up to Voldemort's take over. In the middle of the Great Hall, the fallen giant was slowly and heavily getting to his feet, hardly noticing the horse drawn suits of armour who were weaving tight ropes around both his shins, ready to steer him in the right direction.
"Here!" Ginny exclaimed, pointing hurriedly to a spot on the map. "I saw her, I saw her name!"
Harry looked closely, trying not to think about the battle that raged on around them, trusting that Ron had them sufficiently covered. Batting away Ginny's finger, Harry looked intently for Hermione's name, but still could not find it amongst the flurry of ink that declared the names of others. Frowning, Harry looked up to the general direction that Ginny had indicated, but saw only the giant, suits of armour, and broken tables and rubble. Consulting the map again, Harry's heart leapt as he caught a brief glance of Hermione's name, before it was covered up by the large dot that showed the giant.
"Shit," he muttered under his breath, his heart clenching tightly as he looked back to the spot indicated by the map. Suddenly he understood. "Stay here, Ginny! Stay here!"
Not waiting for her response, Harry dashed past Ron and entered the battle again, blocking a few stray curses that came his way. Climbing over the Ravenclaw table he approached the giant without thought, barrelling past a suit of armour that got in his way. Raising his wand, he pointed it to the giants ankle, that foot being the last he needed to move before he could stand.
"Bombarda!"
Though there was no visible injury, the giant howled and roared in pain, momentarily scattering the suits of armour back a few yards. Harry attacked again, and the giant got to his feet with almighty strength, awkwardly moving his big body around to look for what had hurt him. Spotting Harry, the giant took a heavy step towards him, his large foot crunching down on the already broken Ravenclaw table.
"Protegro!" Harry cast desperately, pointing his wand to the table. Ducking through the feet of the slow moving giant, he skidded to a stop and dropped to his knees, trying to figure out what was what in all the rubble. "Hermione! Hermione, where are you?"
Her calls were only just audible over the noise around him, but it was the only thing he needed to hear. Knowing that his shield charm would protect her somewhat, Harry hastily shifted away some of the rubble, praying that he wasn't attacked from behind as he tried to help his friend. Clearing enough rubble, Harry could see right under the collapsed table, and he shone his wand under and could just see the top of Hermione's head.
"'Mione! I'm here, look at me!"
"Harry?" she called out, twisting her neck around to look at him. "I'm stuck, Harry. I can't move."
"Give me your hand," he instructed her, laying down on the ground and pushing himself through the hole he had cleared. He coughed harshly, tasting dust and dirt in his throat as he reached his hand out of her, reaching as far as he could to her and taking hold of her fingers. "Where are you stuck?"
"My foot," she sobbed, clutching his fingers as tightly as they could manage. She was panting heavily, trying to catch her breath.
Laying his wand down on the ground, Harry shone it as far as he could, seeing that she was laying on her side. Her free hand was clutching her ribs, her face contorted in obvious pain. She tried wriggling her right foot, showing Harry exactly where she was stuck.
"Can you take your trainer off?"
She shook her head, and it was only then that he saw the laces were undone. "No, I already tried."
"Harry!" Ron shouted, stumbling across his exposed legs and crouching down to peer under the table. "Is she in there?"
"I'll be right back," Harry said to Hermione, releasing her fingers before kicking at Ron with his legs, making him move. He slid out from under the table, breathing in the gloriously fresh air. "She's alright, just stuck. Where's Ginny?"
"She's covering us," Ron said, crouching down and looking under the table. He started to say something, but Harry pulled him away and moved him down a few feet.
"Here," Harry muttered, grabbing at the long piece of wood that had once been the top of the bench. From the corner of his eye Harry could see Ginny only a few yards away, fending off any Death Eaters or attackers who came close. On the other side of the table, Neville had joined them, and was doing the same. "Help me move this."
Together they quickly cleared away the mess, and soon they could see the sole of Hermione's trainer, the top of the heavy table pinning it to the ground and trapping her. Quickly assessing the situation, Harry and Ron wordlessly came to an understanding, both of them knowing what they needed to do. As Ron set about lifting the heavy wood, Harry scrambled to get back under the table with Hermione, forcing himself to reach even further under. He grasped Hermione's wrist now, taking out his wand with his other hand.
"I'm gonna pull you out, alright?" Harry panted, giving her wrist a short tug. "Ron's going to lift the table, just pull your foot straight out."
"Yes, alright," she said, Ron lifting the table not even a second later.
It was only an inch or so, but Hermione wrenched her foot out with a loud gasp, and together she and Harry began to move. Every movement appeared to hurt, but there was nothing he could do to prevent that, and so Harry focused on getting her out of there as soon as possible. He pulled at her as hard as he could, wriggling around and grabbing the back of her jeans with his free hand. She cried in pain, but in less than half a minute Harry was dragging her out from under the table, Ron giving a shout of relief when he saw her.
He couldn't stay, and seeing that Hermione was okay and attended to, Harry turned away and went straight back to Ginny, seeing that the sky was still slowly darkening. There was a terrible cold breeze, and Harry shivered as a bout of horrible thoughts crossed his mind, clouding him for a moment before he realised that he could see Dementors on the horizon, and they were closing in fast. Getting himself together, Harry found Ginny expertly duelling with another wizard, and he was forced to intervene. He stunned the wizard from behind Ginny, and quickly took her by the elbow.
"Ginny, let's go!"
"Is she alright?" Ginny asked, allowing Harry to steer her towards the Entrance Hall. "Hermione?"
"She's fine," Harry told her, the two of them breaking into a run. "They're ahead of us, see?"
He pointed ahead of them, to where Ron was carrying Hermione as gently as he possible could, Neville by their side and protecting them until they could get to safety. They passed dozens of bodies, some of them from their own side, but Harry couldn't bear to look. He needed to get Ginny to safety, he needed to end this. They followed Neville and Ron through the Entrance Hall and through the corridor behind the stone steps, which were only half standing now. At her instructions, Ron put Hermione down and let her hold onto him as they ran, though she still clutched at her side and winced with each movement.
Taking a few short cuts, the five of them quickly moved up stairs, managing to slip past the worst of the battle as reinforcements from the upper floors descended. They passed portrait after portrait, the painted figures dashing through adjoining portraits, cramming themselves past each other in order to pass on news from the other side of the castle. They reached the third floor, but could not get through the corridors, which were crammed full of frightened students who were praying to be evacuated, and they were forced to double back to the moving staircases. Bypassing the fourth floor all together, they reached the fifth, slowing down to allow Hermione a few moments to recover. It was quieter on that floor, and so Harry dropped to his knees and spread out the Marauders Map, trying to get some idea of what was happening in the castle.
"Oh look, the House Elves are out there," Ginny exclaimed, pointing to the Great Hall where they could see a swarm of minute dots and labels converging on the Death Eaters.
"Here's Remus," Harry muttered, indicating to a corridor on the fourth floor. "And your Dad too. Can you see your Mum?"
"No," Ginny sighed as Ron came over, crouching down beside them.
"There's Sirius," he said, shuffling through the folds and finding the seventh floor. "Looks like he's coming down to us."
Harry nodded in understanding. "Alright, let's go then," he said, wearily getting to his feet.
"Go where?" Neville asked from a few yards down the corridor, where he stood on watch.
"The other side of the castle," Harry explained, pointing to the third floor where students appeared to be fending off Death Eaters from getting close to the evacuation point. "They'll need our help."
"Let's just wait for Sirius," Ron insisted, helping Hermione up from the floor.
"No, we need to go. We don't need him."
"But what if he needs us?" Ron continued impatiently. "He's not far, let's find him, figure out where we really need to be.
"I said no," Harry replied sharply, already setting off down the corridor with Ginny in hand. As he said this, he felt rather dizzy for a moment, and he involuntarily slowed down his footsteps as he slipped away into Voldemort's mind again.
Lord Voldemort watched on with mild amusement as his Death Eaters and other followers broke through the hastily conjured enchantments, striding through the gaping holes the three giants had created as they too entered the castle. Though he did not like to see his school, his home, trampled by giants and a dragon found at the last minute, it was a necessary sacrifice, means to an end to draw Harry Potter out of the castle. The attack had reached a time of fifteen minutes now, with the first of the giants now stumbling off into the Forbidden Forest after a grand fall, led by suits of armour. The two remaining were making excellent progress, one reaching as high as the fifth floor.
The Astronomy Tower had fallen only minutes ago, and from what he could sense, no Death Eaters were yet to approach the ruins that lay strewn across the nearby rooves and grounds. Not even the Order had yet to approach, to search for survivors. Lord Voldemort was growing impatient, waiting for Harry Potter to make his next move, to leave the castle and allow him to recover the endangered Horcrux.
"My Lord!" a hoarse voice cried out, interrupting his quiet viewing of the battle.
Turning around slowly, Lord Voldemort considered the young man who was running towards him, waving his hand in the air to get his attention. Marcus Belby, though not yet initiated as a Death Eaters, showed great commitment to the war, and Lord Voldemort had so far looked upon him favourably. Despite his less than gracious approach, Lord Voldemort sensed that the young man had something of worth to tell him, something of great importance.
"What is it, Belby?"
The boy dutifully sank to his knees before him, his head bowed as he tried to catch his breath. "My Lord, Potter wants to negotiate. I was Imperiused by the Order of the Phoenix to deliver this message to you."
"Negotiate what?" he replied slowly, having expected to receive this message sooner or later.
"He wants to evacuate the students to Hogsmeade," Belby managed to pant. "He wants you to hold off and let them get students to safety."
"In exchange for what?"
"He says he has what you want," Belby informed him, swallowing thickly.
This had Lord Voldemort's attention immediately, and he considered Belby for a long moment. "You may stand." Belby scrambled to his feet, looking up at him when instructed to. "What exactly, did Potter say?"
"He said he has what you want, and that it's safe. He said let them evacuate, and he'll bring it to you."
"He'll bring it to me?" he laughed, smiling as he detected only honesty from Belby.
"Yes, he was very clear on that. He'll bring it to you, he said…"
Harry came round again, finding himself sitting against the wall as Ginny waited impatiently for him to return to her. Relief was flooding through his veins, knowing that Voldemort had received his message. The only thing to wait for now was for him to consider the offer put forward.
"Belby got to Voldemort," he told her, wearily trying to get up for a moment. Searing pain struck his scar, making him sit back down and lean back against the wall. "He told him we want to make a deal. How long was I out this time?"
"It's been about ten minutes," she explained softly, sitting back on her heels and brushing her hair off her face. "He announced a ceasefire just after you blanked out…all the Death Eaters have retreated."
"Where're Ron and Hermione? Neville?"
"They went down to the second floor, they're trying to find Madam Pomfrey. We think Hermione's broken some ribs."
"Okay," Harry muttered, feeling strong enough to get up. He took out the map again, consulting the floor above them. Sirius was on the sixth floor now, and by the looks of it he was making his way towards the moving staircases, and in a few minutes he would be there by Harry's side, ready to get him out of the school. He wouldn't take no for an answer this time.
"Let's go," Harry said firmly, taking Ginny's hand. "We should help on the fourth floor."
"You're not going to Voldemort," Ginny said to him lowly as they hastened down the corridor, taking a short cut to find another set of descending stairs.
"I know that," he snapped in frustration, praying that she took his tone as honesty rather than deceit. "Can we just focus on getting people out of here?"
She nodded grimly and they kept walking, and when they reached the fourth floor they were surprised to find that the corridors full of people were beginning to move, the younger students being the first to slide down the back of the witches hump and into the secret passage below. As they slipped through the thinning out crowd, Harry and Ginny quickly came across the one eyed witch statue, where Remus and Hestia Jones were helping students climb up the statue.
"Are you two alright?" Remus exclaimed, looking at them in surprise.
Harry glanced down at himself, seeing the dust and mess that he and Ginny were covered in, the gaping hole in the knee of his jeans. He nodded, relieved to see that Remus was apparently unharmed.
"Have you seen Dora?" he asked urgently, already steering the next students towards the statue. "I haven't been able to find her."
"No," Harry said with a sinking feeling, remembering that she had been in the Great Hall with them when the giants attacked. "She was in the Great Hall when it all started. Have you seen Kingsley? He was with her."
"He hasn't seen her either," he said lowly, not able to hide his worry.
"What can we do then?" Harry asked, quickly changing the subject. "Where are we needed?"
Remus raised an eyebrow at him. "Get ready to fight!"
"To fight? He's holding off, there shouldn't be a fight!"
"Yes, he's holding off for now," Remus implored. "But we've got another ten minutes at best before he's walking through those front doors."
"He only gave us until sundown, Harry," Ginny said quietly. "And that was a few minutes ago, it's already past six o'clock."
"We've barely even started the evacuations, Hogsmeade is just filling up with students," Remus added. "This is the slowest evacuation point. Go to the end of the corridor, send groups of people upstairs to the Room of Requirement, and others downstairs to the mirror. I think your Dad's down there now, Ginny."
"Let's go then," Harry said to her, giving Remus and Hestia a quick farewell before taking off down the hallway.
Still students looked at them both in surprise and curiosity, having definitely not expected to see Harry Potter back in their school after his abrupt departure. Reaching the end of the corridor in record time, Harry grabbed the oldest student there he could see, Parvarti Patil.
"Pavarti, do me a favour," Harry said lowly, pulling her away from the other students. "Grab some students and take them up to the seventh floor, to the Room of Requirement. They're evacuating out of there too, it'll be faster."
"The Room of Requirement?"
"Yes," Harry said impatiently, watching as Ginny rounded up a group of students to escort themselves. "There's a passageway that leads to Hogsmeade, just take a group of people up there."
"Yeah, alright then," she agreed, apparently relieved to have something to do. Without further instructions he took off back to the students, rounding them up just as Ginny came back to him.
Behind her trailed a dozen or so students, frightened and worried about whether or not they should be moving elsewhere. Taking Ginny's hand, Harry confidently ushered everyone to follow him, and they set off at a quick pace, trying to keep track of everyone that was following them.
"I don't suppose I can convince you to take these guys to Hogsmeade, can I?"
"No, you can't," Ginny replied tersely, glaring at him from the corner of her eye as she kept an eye on their surroundings.
Despite their haste, the group seemed to move painfully slowly, while Harry's watch moved at lightning speed. It was well after six o'clock by now, and when they passed through a corridor whose outer wall had been smashed by the giants, he could see how dark it was. His heart was racing as he and Ginny helped the students clamber over the debris and unstable stones, and he knew that time was fast running out. Ginny was keeping a very close eye on him, just waiting for him to try and run off to Voldemort, and he knew he would have to do this very carefully. He couldn't have her come running after him, and for a moment he wished he hadn't given her his invisibility cloak. It would be so easy to slip away from her if he had that to hide beneath.
When they finally reached the third floor corridor where other students were being evacuated, Harry could see that Remus was right. A corridor that had been jam packed when they last passed it by was now sparse, perhaps only forty or so students steadily making their way through the large mirror and into the passage on the other side. They appeared to be leaving in groups of five, leaving a thirty second space in between groups so as to no overcrowd the tunnel. Mr Weasley was easily visible above the students, his blading red head moving amongst them in reassurance, dividing them into groups made up of students of all ages.
"Dad!" Ginny called out as soon as she spotted him. She glanced back to Harry who nodded at her reassuringly, and she released his hand and dashed forward to her father.
Watching as she gave him a cursory hug, Harry hung back and ushered the students forward, wondering if this was his moment. He hesitated, but could see that she was otherwise preoccupied for the next few moments, and may not even notice his absence for some time. Making his way to the back of the group, Harry took aside one of the students that he knew by sight, speaking to him quietly.
"If Ginny asks where I went, tell her I've gone back to the fourth floor, okay?"
"Okay, Harry," the boy said gratefully. "Thanks for bringing us down here, we've missed having you around here you know."
Harry didn't say anything to that, only looking back down the corridor to give Ginny one last look. She was talking to her father still, still perhaps trying to figure out what had happened to those they loved, the ones they couldn't yet locate. His hands shook as he looked at her, wanting nothing more than to run back to her, to shove her through that mirror and escape together. Hell, he'd settle for just one last kiss, a hug goodbye and the chance to tell her that he loved her, but that would ruin everything. Taking a deep breath, he stopped thinking all together, turning on his heel and marching down the corridor.
He didn't allow himself to look back, and as soon as he turned round the corner he broke into a run, jogging back to the corridor that had been destroyed where he could look out across the grounds. Stumbling over the loose stones, Harry came closer to the edge to where he could look right down to the collapsed roof of the Great Hall. From this distance in the darkness, he couldn't quite tell who was down there, but as he looked out to the west he could easily distinguish the lit wands of the hordes of Death Eaters who stood in wait. Watching them for a long moment, Harry realised they were moving back towards the castle in a slow but steady march. Wasting valuable time, Harry tried to relax his mind, to see where Voldemort was and what he was doing, but nothing came to him. The only indication of Voldemort's whereabouts he had was the burning in his scar, and the way it was steadily increasing.
He moved on from the destroyed corridor and went back to the moving staircases, intent on descending to the ground floor. Swearing loudly as the stairs refused to cooperate, Harry leapt from the foot of a moving staircase to the landing it had just left, catching his balance and holding onto the balustrade. Maybe in the way the castle had helped him reach the Prefects Bathroom when Hermione needed it, it was now holding him back. A second and third set of stairs shifted as he tried to descend, wasting even more time. Their lack of cooperation only fuelled Harry's determination, and with a few bold leaps he managed to reach the first floor again.
Already hearing loud chatter and commotion, he found a secluded spot and crouched down to at the map again, looking straight at the grounds west of the Entrance Hall. The sea of dots were unmistakably Death Eaters, led by a single lone dot ahead of the pack, marked as Tom Riddle. They were closing in, and Harry allowed himself one last minute to look at the map, turning back to the fourth floor in search of Ginny. Her dot was nowhere to be seen, and he wondered if perhaps she still hadn't noticed his absence. He grew nervous when he couldn't find her on the third floor with her father, and barely a second later he found her just reaching the second floor accompanied by Remus, where the moving staircases had just deposited them on the landing. Their dots stood still for a moment until they appeared to get onto another staircase, and began to descend. Ginny hadn't believed the story about him going to the fourth floor, but who had alerted Remus?
Panicking, Harry took the beaded bag from his pocket and summoned the diadem, which he would present to Voldemort. Leaving both the bag and the map where they lay he took up the diadem and sprinted off down the corridor, determined that Ginny was not going to catch him, that she would not try to stop him. He now began to see other people who were milling around in the corridors, and he passed Madam Pomfrey who was administering treatment to all those who were injured. Down in the Entrance Hall, Kingsley was there trying to organise the crowd of Order Members and students who were preparing to fight. Coming back to the open corridor above the Entrance Hall, Harry skidded to a stop when he almost came face to face with Ron and Hermione, who stood on the other side of the steps.
Looking at them wide-eyed, he tried to convey what he was going to do to Ron, who was only looking at him with a gaping mouth. Already they could hear the jeering calls and yells of the approaching Death Eaters, which grew louder and loud with every second that passed. Looking to his left, Harry could see through the Great Hall to the grounds outside, where Voldemort passed in and out of his line of sight.
"You don't have to do this, mate," Ron said lowly, seeing the broken diadem in Harry's hand. "It's dumb, we can fight! We can take him down now!"
Ignoring him, Harry looked back over his shoulder to the end of the long corridor, to where he saw Remus and Ginny come skidding around the corner. Harry was momentarily shocked into immobility, frozen under Ginny's gaze, and all he could think of was how badly he wanted to live. He was only seventeen, and hadn't ever considered what he wanted from his life. Now that it was ending, his desires and reasons to live became harder to forget. He and Ginny looked at each other for a long moment before she started running again, calling out his name as she stumbled past those in her way. She was desperate, fearful for what he was doing. What a terrible torture it was, to be walking to his death and hear the pain in her voice, to hear her pleading with him as she ran as hard as she could. She called out to others closer, to make them stop him, but everyone just looked on in shock.
Harry looked back to Ron, hoping that he would understand why he was doing this. "Ron, please," he appealed to him, moving towards the only part of the stairs that were still standing. "It's me or her!"
Hermione was crying now, covering her mouth with her bloodied fingers, and Harry could still hear Ginny crying out to him. Inexplicably, he saw Sirius appear at the other end of the corridor behind Ron, as though he too had somehow been tipped off. Voldemort now stood at the threshold of the Entrance Hall, watching and patiently waiting for Harry to descend as selected Death Eaters filled the hall, but Harry didn't look at him yet.
"Please, Ron!" he said desperately, taking a step forward. He needed Ron to understand, to stop Ginny from getting hurt.
Ron panted, heavily conflicted by the choice he was being given, but he acted just in time. He looked away from Harry and moved past him quickly, intercepting Ginny before she could reach Harry. She was screaming now, and Harry couldn't bear to hear her, couldn't bear to even turn around and look at her. Death would be more merciful than to listen to her torment any longer. Without giving it another thought, Harry looked directly to Voldemort and descended the stone steps, and when he reached the ground floor he dropped Draco Malfoy's wand to the floor, leaving himself completely defenceless.
Purposefully, Harry strode towards Voldemort and looked him in the eye, not at all surprised to see amusement there. The Death Eaters surrounded him in a large circle, blocking everyone else out as they stomped their feet and cheered loudly. Suddenly from nowhere, Bellatrix Lestrange and her husband appeared from the sides of the room, striding over to Harry and taking him by the elbows with glee.
"Let go of me," Harry growled, shoving them off him. He was determined that he would not die on his knees, but with dignity on his feet, just as his father had done. When Rodulphus made to take the diadem from him, Harry swung it at his head hard, knocking him over with a yell of pain.
"Enough," Voldemort said patiently. There was immediate silence from everyone.
The Lestranges backed off, and joined the others. Harry wasn't even paying attention to them anymore, praying that Voldemort acted quickly before Sirius or Ginny could break through and reach him, before they became another person who had been killed for him. Suddenly Harry remembered the diadem that Voldemort was waiting for, apparently having not seen the damage to it yet. He tossed it to the ground at his feet, trying not to smirk when he saw Voldemort's wide eyed look of surprise. The diadem rolled towards him for a moment, making him back away as though afraid of it touching him, and it finally settled to perfectly display the missing sapphire.
Voldemort looked back up at him, his cool façade back in place. He cocked his head to the side, looking like a curious child who wondered what would happen if he were to proceed. For a moment he seemed to admire what Harry had done, probably even wishing that he had The Boy Who Lived as a follower instead of an enemy. With obvious mirth he looked around at those in the Entrance Hall, smiling a little as he looked back to Harry.
"It seems I underestimated you, Harry."
"You usually do," Harry said, speaking to him for the first time. To his great surprise, he felt calm and relaxed now that he stood there in front of him. In a fleeting thought, Harry knew that he was ready for this.
"Your life, for theirs?" Voldemort asked slowly, mocking him.
"Yes," Harry answered clearly.
There was a chuckle from the Death Eaters, and from Voldemort himself too. "My, my, young Harry. You're braver than I expected."
"I'm a lot of things you haven't expected," Harry smirked openly, his own private little joke.
Voldemort drew his wand, and Harry heard the sharp intake of anticipated breath from every Death Eater who was watching, and the eerie silence that came from everyone else. He couldn't even hear Ginny, and it was a relief to not hear her pain anymore. He didn't know what to expect from his death, or if there was even some kind of afterlife that existed, but he knew he didn't want that to be the last thing he remembered of her. In the brief moment it took for Voldemort to raise his wand, Harry thought only of the day he had first kissed her, of the blazing look she had on her face as she ran towards him, still riding the high that came with winning the Quidditch Cup.
He saw Voldemort speak and a flash of green light, and it was over before he could think about it.
A/N Two chapters to go and this story is done. I'm having great trouble keeping on contact with my beta's, and so would like to once again put out a plea for help. If there is a reader out there interested in working on the next story as a beta/plot advisor, please let me know by emailling me at killtherat hotmail . com (no spaces), and we'll have a quick chat.
Thanks for reading, please review and watch out for 56.
