Dean looked disapprovingly at his brother.
"This might be the last day you'll breathe. Make it count brother."
Dean exited the room, leaving Severus deep in thought.
After a fair bit of five minutes staring at nothingness he left the room in a hurry and descended the stairs.
People all around him were hugging each other, some of them even crying. They did not know what was going to happen.
He saw the Weasleys hugging each other tight, Miss Brown kissing passionately Ronald Weasley, the Creevey brothers talking, both in a mixture of emotions. So many souls going into battle.
That was when he saw her, talking with Minerva and Rolanda. He had to make things clear. Rolanda looked at him and then turned her gaze back to Ember warningly.
He grabbed her back and turned her around to look at him. Several people around him stare, but he didn't care at that point.
"In case we don't get through this, I love you more than you'll ever wrap your head around. The only one for me is you. And I don't care about what the world thinks, I don't mind if I'll have kids with you. As long as it's you I don't care."
"I-I…"
"Oh just kiss the man already!" Rolanda shouted from behind. A large majority of defenders were looking at them.
"Rolanda, give them some leniency would you?"Minerva nudged her.
"Is there any chance Mister Creevey brought his camera with him? I'd love to show them this afterwards…"Rolanda pointed out.
"Rolanda for the love of God…"Minerva chuckled.
During this Severus and Ember shared a very long and passionate kiss. A kiss that could make every other couple jealous of.
"Ew gross!"Ron turned to look the other way.
"Well I think it was only fitting. They're mad for each other." Lavender said beaming.
"How do you know they're mad for each other?"Hermione asked frowning at her.
"Aren't they just adorable?"Luna said from behind.
"Harry would hate this…"Hermione murmured.
"Snape surely knows how to make a show doesn't he?" Ginny said standing right beside her mother and father.
"He can be just like James used to be. Complete show off." Arthur said, a smile playing on his lips."But I'm glad he finally found someone."
The Weasleys laughed aloud.
.
The sun had begun to set when the Death Eaters started casting spells towards the wards, creating explosions on the magical shield. From the inside it seemed as there was a show of fireworks.
"M'lord the shield is too powerful for us to destroy…"Alecto said at her Master. The two hateful red eyes looked at her in anger.
"Then try harder." Beside him Nagini curled inside her invisible bubble-cage.
"Of course m'lord…"Alecto Carrow bowed and disappeared from the woods.
After of what seemed an hour Alecto returned. This time she seemed sweaty and exhausted. The black robes of her Death Eater cloak had been muddy.
"M'Lord there is no use. We cannot destroy it." Alecto panted. You could make out the tiredness in her voice.
"Then stop idiots! Regroup and stop!" Voldemort hissed at her. Bellatrix moved around them both, looking as if she was about to commit murder. Everyone could see how displeased their master was with their efforts.
"Release the Manticores. Let them do some work for once." Voldemort said looking up the night sky.
.
Ember was with her snipers scooting the area. The explosions on the wards didn't cause much damage and they were able to look further into the woods because of them.
When they ceased however darkness fell all over Hogwarts.
"Night Goggles." Someone said.
"Do you see anything Mike?"Ember asked one of them.
"Unless they come inside the castle's grounds I can't see shit." One of them replied.
"Great."Ember huffed in irritation.
"What if we drop the wards, eh? And put them back in when they attack? We trap 'em like mice."Mike spoke again.
"That could be efficient- Wait. 12'o clock high! What the fuck is that?"Someone yelled. The six snipers looked up in the air.
With the help of the goggles, Ember saw not one or two but twelve Manticores bumping their man-like heads onto the shield. Their scorpion tails shot spikes. Fortunately for the defenders the spikes were destroyed once they came in touch with the shield.
"Manticores! How the hell did he got Manticores?" Someone spoke in terror.
"Give me that." Ember grabbed one snipe and adjusted it."All right shoot them on the head, when they get inside the shield! Go!"
Seven bullets flied from the tower making one loud bang as they left their capsules. The witches and wizards flinched at the sound.
Ember's bullet found a red Manticore on the head and after several seconds the mythical beast started falling from the sky.
"Nice shot! Ten o'clock!"
"Got 'em!"
"Got another one!"
"Good one!"
"There goes another one!"
"Hell yea!"
.
"What is going on? What are these sounds?"Ginny said terrified.
"Guns."Hermione said plainly. "They are shooting at the Manticores."
"They are doing what? They could get killed!" Minerva said placing a hand on her heart. Severus laid a hand on Minerva's shoulder.
"They'll be fine. The wards are up and there is no way in Hades these beasts come through them."
The gun fire stopped.
"See? They killed them all."
He saw Ember climbing down the stairs. Well more like running down the stairs.
"Drop…The wards." Ember breathed. She just came from the top tower of the castle.
"What? Are you out of your mind?"
"Do it. When I apparate back in here wait for the Death Eaters to enter and put them back up. No one can apparate from inside when the wards are up right? We trap 'em and then we kill them, end of story." Ember stared at all of them impatiently.
"It's crazy!" Rolanda exclaimed. Ember pressed both her hands to her chest.
"When did I do anything sane?"Ember challenged."So will you do it?"
"I'm in."Gellert said.
"Me too." Spoke Hermione.
"Count me in." Harry said.
Severus sighed."The wards will be down as soon as you reach the edge."
"Thank you, guys." And with that Ember walked off the castle.
.
"My Lord! Someone is coming our way!" Crabbe Sr. said in anticipation.
"Who?"
"A woman m'lord."
If Voldemort had eyebrows he would've raised them in disbelief. He started pacing towards the edge of the forest when he saw her. Ember Potter stopped on the edge of the magical barrier and looked at them all in hate.
"Came to admit defeat, traitor?" Bellatrix laughed at her. Ember didn't spoke.
"How's your spy doin' hon'?" Someone else mocked her.
"Quiet!" Voldemort hissed and the murmurs stopped. He walked over to Ember and looked her straight in the eye. She didn't look away in terror. Voldemort made a very weird evil smile.
"Hello to you too cousin."Ember said bitterly. Several Death Eaters gasped.
"How dare you address him like that you-"
"Quiet Lestrange! I wasn't talking to you." Raw magic vibrated through her. A glimpse of red appeared in her eyes.
"You dare command my own people?"
"I would say they are more like your helpless little servants." She heard the Death Eaters hiss at her. She beamed at Tom with a cold smile."Just for the record, they are watching us as we speak." She noticed Draco, his family and some of the double-serpents on the far left of Bellatrix. Draco looked at her dully. She bent her head slightly, as if she wanted to signal him.
See saw many of her students, mostly older ones, with their families. They weren't supposed to get into this mess…
"What is it that you want?" Voldemort spoke, his wand playing in his hands. Her attention was back at him.
"Oh you know, just came to see how my enemies are doin'. I do that whenever I prepare myself to kill them."The smile was still on her lips.
"You little…"Bellatrix took a step forward. Voldemort didn't move a muscle.
"Jesus, you need to treat your servants a little respect." Ember joked."Here let me make a demonstration." With a quick move of a hand she took a shiny iron knife and threw it precisely onto the unaware Greyback's throat. The werewolf choked and fell on the ground around a puddle of blood, catching the Death Eaters and Voldemort off guard.
"How did she…"She heard a Death Eater speak. It wasn't possible for neither side to shoot through a magical field.
"See ya in the battlefield fellas!"And with that Ember disapparated with a pop.
"The wards are not up!"Someone said.
"Let's attack!"Another yelled.
"Silence!"Voldemort commanded. The crowd of upset Death Eaters went silent in just seconds. No one wanted to experience the wrath of Voldemort.
.
Ember apparated right in front of the entrance to the great hall where, about a hundred and something, men and women alike were coming and going in a hurry.
As soon as she made eye contact with Severus, every professor started to cast the protective spells over Hogwarts.
Ember had to stop to catch her breath. The world had started to spin around her, she felt as if she was going to faint. She reached to the nearest wall and let herself let down her guard for a bit. She pressed her eyes shut and started to rearrange her thoughts. While doing this she made a desperate attempt to control her breathing, which failed miserably.
Shots were fired from up the towers and through the walkie talkies Trelawney with the Patil twins gave away the positions of the mad horde of Death Eaters and monsters that ran towards the castle. Explosions were heard from the battlefield. The mines had gone off…
A single tear fell from Ember's eyes. This war was so unfair.
.
Draco felt Pansy's hand on his shoulder. She bent close to his ear and whispered so low no one around them could hear.
"We have to go in the castle, Draco."
"I know. I just need time. Crabbe and Goyle-"
"Crabbe and Goyle can go to hell. We couldn't persuade them, Dray. We have already stretched too thin."Pansy said fiercely, trying to keep her voice low.
"Alright. Fine. Take Daphne, her sister, Blaise and get going. I'll be right behind you." Draco reassured her. She started walking when she stopped and looked back at him.
"And Dray. Good luck."Pansy started running into the masses behind her Daphne, her little sister and Blaise followed.
He stared them for a long minute before he went the other direction into the woods. He had to try once again.
When he reached his two tall friends, Goyle turned to him.
"The Dark Lord is wicked-angry."Goyle droned.
Crabbed scratched his ear."A group of us are going to the castle, to kill the half-breed and Weasley."
"I wish you wouldn't."Draco murmured. He tossed a glance at his aunt, who was busy rounding up people to carry out this asinine mission."Those DA member, Potter and Dumbledore, they'll shoot you. Did you see what they did to the Manticores?"
"Nah."Goyle said."You know what we can do, Draco; we'll be fine."
"Go!" Bellatrix commanded, shooing everyone off to the battlefield. The two boys followed both their fathers out of the woods.
"No!"Draco hissed. He clutched the back of Crabbe's robes.
The wizard jerked away, giving him a strange look. "Don't be absurd, Draco-you have the Dark Lord's favor, but we don't." He started running.
Goyle swift on Crabbe's tail. Draco's face went pale. They were running straight on a mine. He made a move to go behind them. A desperate act to save his best friends.
"Guys wait don't-"Before he could finish his sentence the mine had went off, scattering the remaining of their bodies around. Draco started to tear up. They were gone, he couldn't do anything anymore. His actions to sway them to the light had gone in vain. They didn't listen, never did.
Draco Malfoy had his back against a tree. The hem of his Death Eater robes were soaked and his fingers were freezing. He watched his parents sit in the snow. When had his mother gained all those wrinkles around her eyes? Merlin, his father looked awful. Draco clenches his fists.
Heat raged, blistering his breast pocket. As he pulled out his DA coin, he felt raised letters around the edge.
Snakes prepare to slither.
.
Fire spread across the ground, despite the wet grass and melting snow. The greenhouses were engulfed one by one. Fiery maws opened, swallowing any person it ran into.
Hagrid and Charlie stood outside of their creature paddock, trying to shoo the hippogriffs away. Death Eaters slowly ringed them, their faces frozen in silver, skull-like sneers. Hagrid clutched his pink umbrella in his hands.
"Hagger!"Out of the darkness lumbered Grawp, Hagrid's little brother. "Hagger!"
"Fred, George!" Ron yelled from the radio."Use the guns! Charlie and Hagrid are in trouble!"
"We're out of bullets!"Fred yelled from the other side of his radio.
Severus massaged the bridge of his nose. The skyline above the trees shifted from pitch black to grey. On the grounds, witches and wizards murdered one another. The snow in front of the castle was grey, streaked with brown, or red and pink.
"Oh, no…"Hermione breathed.
Severus followed her eyes. "Crabbe…"he muttered. A hippogriff had dug his claws onto his ex-comrade's back making his scream in agony and pain. He felt Ember's hand rubbing his back.
Hermione ran towards the Entrance Hall.
.
Minerva and Filius bounded down the trembling staircase."What are we doing to do now?" Filius huffed. Pebbled debris from above scratched his glasses.
A mass of students, Neville Longbottom at the front of the queue, shoved against the front door. Death Eaters scrabbled against the wood.
Minerva held up her hands."Locomotor Mortis!"
Filius watched every suit of armor in the school raise first one knee, and then the other. The steel men marched down the stairs, joints clanking. Neville, covered in dirty scratches, huffed, his shoulders straining to keep the door closed. As his muscles strained, he watched the armor come to a stop before him. Professor McGonagall stood at the back, her wand raised to guide the school's metal soldiers.
The Charms professor mimicked his colleague, summoning stone statues off their plinths. Hermione appeared, breathing heavily.
"Release the doors on three!" Hermione yelled. The door shook and vibrated. The crush of screams and splintering wood had everyone's heart racing."One!" The wizard in the back of the group took a step back, their wands at the ready."Two!"Professor Sprout stumbled away, standing between two statues."Three!"
The students ducked, letting the Death Eaters into the Entrance Hall. No one wasted any precious time. Swords and maces swung into ribs and necks. Masks clattered on the floor or shattered under hexes. Kingsley led his troops in from the snow, trapping the Death Eaters inside.
"Death Eaters have entered the castle," Hermione said into her walkie-talkie."Secure the infirmary."
Dora jumped from her seat. Remus thought she was going to shut the doors, but she kept on running."Dora!" he yelled. He left Diggory in the care of Madam Pomfrey, sprinting after his wife. A rumble knocked Madam Potter to her knees and she screamed. Windows cracked under the force of magic furling beneath them in the Entrance Hall.
Remus pulled the doors closed, straining to see his wife through the dust. "Dora, no wait!"
The walls exploding caused Remus to fall down. A Death Eater jumped on top of him, pinning him to the floor. Remus clawed at the man's throat, trying to get away. Turquoise light blasted the Death Eater back. Arthur Weasley grabbed Remus by the arms. Molly polished off a few other wizards trying to get into the infirmary.
"Can they get in there?"Arthur yelled over the din.
"No-No one can get in through these doors now, unless Poppy opens them!" Remus shouted back, only inches away from Arthur's ear.
.
Harry watched from his window as Death Eaters swelled the front doors, slashing their way through. When Hermione's voice declared, "Death Eaters have entered the castle; secure the infirmary." Harry burst into action.
Dumbledore stood up, yelling at Harry to stay hidden, but the boy didn't listen. Death Eaters were ripping apart his home, tearing down his friends, killing his family. On the seventh floor, the walls were crumbling. Grindelwald was guarding the Room of Requirement when he saw Harry darting past him.
"Potter!"
He had to act and think quickly, he had to fight for his home.
.
Severus pulled Ember behind him, defending her from the vicious lights streaming towards them. Arthur and Molly stood back to back, dueling in tandem-Molly's patchwork skirt fluttered in tatters around her knees. Arthur's scarf had been incinerated during his fight-his snake bite, like a symbiotic monster sucking on his neck, was bared for all to see. Remus and Dora were fierce, both trying to meet each other in the center of the room.
A behemoth man punched Filius in the nose; blood spurted out from behind his knuckles. George jumped over the stair rail, landing on the Death Eater attacking his favorite teacher; Fred was nowhere to be found.
Ropes burst from Harry's wand; Severus slashed the throats of his former friends and classmates twisting inside Potter's ropes.
"Potter alert the Snakes!"
"I'm on it!"Harry replied, grabbing out the DA galleon.
Snakes Prepare to Slither