A.N: Dun dun dun! Showdown with Voldy time!

Chapter 15

Steeling himself to stand firm when all he wanted was to run as fast and as far as he could, Sirius turned. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the others turn as well. Peter and Celina turned last, Peter because he'd never been as brave as his friends, Celina because she was the only one who knew what it was to stand face to face with the tall, dark form at the top of the stairs.

None of them spoke. For perhaps the first time in their lives, Sirius and James were both robbed of all bravado. They simply stood, bodies screaming with fear but minds refusing to give into it.

Voldemort's eyes swept over them, a cold smile playing about his thin mouth. "I feel I should extend my congratulations." He said in a musing tone, clearly enjoying their fear. "I didn't doubt you children would make some sort of foolish rescue attempt, but I never imagined you would get this far." He gestured to the three unconscious Death Eaters. "I certainly didn't expect you to subdue Malfoy and the Lestranges."

"We're full of surprises." James managed to get out, although his attempt at a cocky smirk fell flat.

"So I see, James." The Dark Lord turned his full attention on James, his smile widening as the young man struggled not to shrink under his cold glare. "But don't make the mistake of thinking that any of you stand a chance against me."

Taking advantage of the fact that Voldemort's attention was fixed on James, Lily, Sirius, and Remus exchanged barely perceivable glances, one thought running through all their minds. The only way they stood a ghost of a chance here was to hit him with everything they had and hope he didn't see it coming. Hands tightened around wands as Voldemort continued speaking.

"I could kill you all now, easily. I could also offer you all the chance to join me, but I know you would all refuse me outright-at least, most of you would." His eyes wandered over each of them in turn as he said this. None of them was singled out, but each could not help but wonder-were his words true? Were there any among them who would ever consider joining him? Surely not...

"Instead," Voldemort continued, "I give you one chance, and one chance only. Leave. Now."

The only response any of them made was to step closer to Celina, forming a tight circle around her. Peter cast one despairing glance toward the door, but stood with the rest of them, trying not to shake.

Voldemort's smile twisted into an expression of disdaining pity. "So be it." He surveyed them for a long moment like a predator toying with his prey, trying to decide which to feast on first. Then, with snakelike speed, his wand came up, pointing at Alexandra. "Crucio."

Ally, who tried to dodge, was not fast enough. Sirius, who threw himself in front of her, was. He doubled over and cried out, paralyzed with pain. Voldemort kept his wand and attention focused on his victim, prolonged and reveling in the pain he inflicted. And that was where he made the mistake they'd been hoping for.

The instant they recovered from the shock of seeing Sirius hit with the curse, James, Lily, Remus, Peter, Alexandra, and Celina, who had picked up Bellatrix's wand while no one watching, attacked, all using the most useful spell they could call to mind. Lily successfully disarmed the Dark Lord, while Remus and Ally both used Conjuctivus Curses which, their strength combined, temporarily blinded him, Celina set his robes on fire, and Peter used a Stunning Spell that, against such a powerful enemy, only caused him to stumble. But it was James's blasting spell that, by either sheer luck or disgustingly good aim, hit a crack running through the ceiling above Voldemort and caused it to completely collapse on top of him.

"Bloody hell." he said weakly as the dust settled. "I did that?"

"Is he...did you kill him?" Ally stammered.

"If he didn't, I'm not waiting around to find out." Sirius struggled to his feet, speaking through clenched teeth. Ally rushed to his side, and he slipped an arm around her shoulders. "Let's get the hell out of here."

Since neither Ally or Cel could Apparate, they'd kept using James's parents' car, leaving it far enough away that they could approach the house silently on foot. They abandoned any attempt at stealth now, running back to the car as fast as they could and driving back to the Merlin house so fast it had to be some kind of miracle they didn't have some sort of accident.

Stumbling into the parlor, they surprised-and were surprised by-Nick, Alastor Moody...and less than half of the Auror squad that had been there earlier. Almost all of them seemed wounded to varying degrees, including Nick, who didn't let this stop him from pulling both Celina and Alexandra into a tight embrace.

Still holding them, he looked up, his eyes finding Sirius and James over Ally's shoulder.

"As soon as I finish being out of my mind with relief, you lot have some serious explaining to do."

A.N.: Been focusing on getting to this point so much that I'm not sure where to go after it...I have ideas, but they're just kind of scattered around in my brain...So! Stay tuned, and I'll try not to let it go too long without an update.