A very special thank you to my reviewers; all of them - those who love this story and those who don't.

Much love to Diana, who makes me work at this.

I dedicate this chapter to Angelfeather for her encouragement and her thoughtful words.

Chapter 35 – How Can A Man Die Better?

Sophie was not sure who had interjected their opinion first, but almost immediately, Severus, Remus, Neville and Harry started yelling.  The room instantly filled with irate and frenzied voices and she closed her eyes in preparation for the onslaught.

"There is no way, in the name of everything Holy, that I will allow you to ever return to that-" 

"Sophie, you can't be serious."

"Aunt Sophie, you….you… can't. You just can't…."

"There is no way I am letting you impersonate me.  It's not your fight…."

"THAT IS ENOUGH!" In voice oddly reminiscent of the clap of thunder and the roar of a lion, Albus Dumbledore took control of the situation.  "You will all cease this behavior without delay."  Everyone in the room stood silent.  Sophie had never, ever, heard of him losing his temper; his mask was thought to be nearly impenetrable.  Vivid blue eyes glistened with some emotion she could not place; neither anger nor annoyance as she expected. It was more sadness than anything else. And it was directed at her.

The Headmaster turned to Sophie and eyed her for a moment.  Though he was looking at her pale face and thin frame, he saw something else. He saw Severus as a boy and a man. He saw Neville visiting his parents in the hospital. He saw Harry and the parents he doesn't remember.  He saw Remus and Sirius and a thousand other faces lost over the course of two decades. She said she had a plan, and though he considered her a bit too impulsive, what he saw before him was more a warrior than woman. Something in her tone and her demeanor told him to pay attention. "Dr. Young, what exactly does this plan entail?"

Sophie suddenly became aware of the tension in the room and started to shiver involuntarily.  Once again a room full of eyes was turned to her in anticipation of a story she was going to tell. In some ways this was worse than the first time; there would be no sympathy for her here. Some part of her brain told her to run away, and for the first time in a long time she wanted to listen. 'Not now,' she thought, 'you can do this.'  Getting herself under control, she took some deep cleansing breaths before speaking.  "I don't have all the details worked out but the main part of my plan is this:  I know that some work has been done on the Polyjuice Potion to make the effect longer lasting, so that one will not need to constantly replenish the source.  I think Severus can continue that work to allow the ruse to take place. With me masquerading as Harry, someone else masquerading as a Death Eater will bring me to Voldemort as a prisoner.  He needs a continuous, fresh supply of Harry's blood, so he won't kill me outright.  The worst that will happen is some…sport.  I am prepared for that. He will want blood right away, so chances are he will ingest it quickly, before anyone has time to figure out something is wrong.  The point is, as soon as he drinks it, he will be poisoned.  When we know for sure that he is dead, we can summon awaiting Aurors or something.  Then they can come in, wands-a-blazing, and capture the remaining Death Eaters." She waited nervously for the reaction.

"Is this necessary, Albus?" Surprisingly, the first remark came from Minerva McGonagall. "It seems as long as we keep Harry safe, Voldemort is useless.  We have managed to go almost the entire year without an incident.  Since the Ministry already doubts his return, how are we going to convince them to let us use the Aurors?"

It was Sophie who answered.  This was a comment she was prepared for. "Are we to wait until something happens before we act?  We all know he is back.  We all know he wants – no, needs Harry.   It's only a matter of time before he comes after him, or someone close to him.  Are you willing to let that happen, because I'm not?  This could work.  I know it.  We just need to work out a few bugs."

"A few bugs?  There are so many bugs, this plan is infested."  Severus scowled.

"What problems do you foresee?" Sophie returned curtly.

He drew in his robes around him. "How are we going to get the personal bodily sample from the Death Eaters to add to the Polyjuice potion?

"I don't know," she answered plainly.

"How are we going to get the Death Eater we plan to imitate out of the way before our plan is discovered?"

"I don't know."

 "How are we going to get all the Death Eaters together to make the attack successful?"

"I don't know."

"How are we going to signal the Aurors, if we can even get them to help?

"I don't know."

"How are we going to get the Aurors to the site?"

"I don't know."

"What if I can't get the potion to have the effect you are looking for?"

"Then you're not trying hard enough."

They stared hard at each other for while before being interrupted by Draco.  Everyone turned to the figure that sat in the far corner of the room.  He had spoken little since his return; everyone was a little more than confused by his voluntary insertion in this battle between Sophie and Severus.  "I think I can answer one of your questions." He paused.  Sophie nodded for him to continue. 

"At the end of the school year there is supposed to be a mass initiation ceremony.  A bunch of trainees are supposed to receive the Mark.  Everyone should be there.  Voldemort is usually given tributes so a Death Eater presenting Potter in front the whole group would not be seen as unusual, and everyone you would want to capture would be there." 

Sophie stared at him with pride and excitement.   "Perfect. That's just the thing we need."

Muttering voices filled the room as people discussed this development. "Why hadn't you mentioned this before," Charlie Weasley asked.  "It seems a pretty important bit of information to share, doesn't it?"

Draco looked at his hands. "Because up until very recently, I was supposed to be a part of it."

As everyone sat in contemplative silence, Sirius spoke up next.  "We have a pretty good idea who most of Death Eaters are.  I don't think it would be too difficult to detain one for a few days.  Taking a hair sample shouldn't be a problem then."

Sophie smiled at him before turning to the Potion's master. "That takes care of two of your objections, Severus."

The din of voices became more enthusiastic as they were seeing the possibilities of this plan.  It was Bill Weasley who offered the next suggestion: "I think we can ensure that many Aurors are available at the right time.  We have been experimenting with Muggle tracking devices that would allow us to pinpoint where you are.  Voldemort won't be able to detect those because they don't work with magic. He considers anything of Muggle origin beneath him, so we are confident he has no idea these devices exist. Once we have the coordinates we could use instant portkeys to get us to the spot.  The wizard impersonating the Death Eater can easily set up the destination port with little trouble, and we would be there within seconds of being alerted. As long as someone can disable the wards."

The room was mired in silence.  They could not only see the possibility, they could see success. It seemed too good to be true.  They had a plan, and it could work. 

It was Ginny Weasley who asked Sophie the inevitable.  "Who will go with you?"

"I will."  The response came from several points in the room.

It was Severus who spoke up. "Don't be absurd.  It can only be me."

Remus was not going to be swayed that easily. "Why you?"

"First of all, I am the only one who understands Death Eater protocol.  I am the only one who knows what to say and when to say it.  I am also the only one who has a Dark Mark.  Voldemort can sense it.  If we are to make him believe that a Death Eater is before him, then a Death Eater must be before him."

"Wouldn't the potion duplicate the Mark With everything else?"

"It is not a matter of having a picture on your skin.  The Dark Mark invades every cell in your body until it envelops you in whole.  It binds you to him by the joining your souls.  If we really plan to follow through with this madness, it is the only way."   He seemed despondent, but he also seemed to accede.

Neville stood twisting his hands. "You can't do this."  His voice was filled with anguish, his eyes with tears. "Why does it have to be Sophie?  We just got her home and now we're just going to send her back.  Is he going to destroy everything I care about?"

Sophie's shoulders dropped as she listened to his plea.  With a heavy heart, she called him over to her.  Slowly he walked over and sat on the bed besides her.  She took his hand and gave it a squeeze before she gently placed her arms around him.  "Neville, sweetie, I know you are worried about me.  But I need you to be strong right now.  I need you to understand what we are doing is not about you or me; it's not even about your parents, or Harry, or anyone in this room.  It is about all of us, about our future…about peace."

The Headmaster watched her comfort him for a moment before he spoke. "Voldemort has hurt so many, Neville," he began. "The ripples of that pain encompass hundreds of thousands of lives such that no one in the end is untouched.  For the first time in my recollection we seem to have a chance to stop it; to truly put an end to it. Unfortunately, it is an opportunity we cannot ignore."

The honesty in his words struck Neville, but did little to lessen the weight on his chest.  He began one last appeal to Sophie, "How can you just leave again?"

"Oh Neville," she said with a small smile, "I am just tired.  I'm tired of seeing those I care about hurt.  I'm tired of living a life of fear.  I'm tired of seeing children fight the battles of adults.  It is no way to live."

He slowly nodded, his eyes staring past her to some point on the wall. 

She placed his chin between her thumb and forefinger and gently guided his face till it was parallel to hers. "Remember when I spoke about hearing poetry in my head? Sometime though the ordeal the poem changed.  I was hearing something different:"

"Then out spoke the Brave Horatius,

The captain of the gate:

To every man upon this Earth

Death cometh soon or late.

And how can a man die better

Then facing fearful odd

For the ashes of his fathers

And the temples of his gods?"

Author's notes: Excerpt taken from "Horatius" by Thomas Babington Macaulay.