Just answering the one question I was asked when writing this chapter...

Voldemort... back?

Sort of. He can still possess things. I figure that even though he has his own body... his  black magicks can corrupt even the most powerful magical things. He's not back in body YET,  but his power has possessed the amulet. If you saw what it did to Spike, you're going to  love what it does to those fighting it now.

A nice shorter chapter. It's your last battle chapter, too. So you can look forward to two  and a half more!

- - - - -

Chapter 32

The Hogwarts Army

- - - - -

The red was still glowing oddly as Harry's back suddenly went rigid and his eyes became  wide, possessed.

"Harry?" Hermione whispered.

He turned to her and she gasped. He lifted up his hand and touched his face, grinning. But  it wasn't Harry's smile. It was twisted and evil. "That was easier than expected," Harry  said, only it wasn't Harry's voice. It was distorted, almost like the hiss of a snake.

He pulled his hand from his face and pointed at Hermione. "You."

Hermione's eyes widened just as a voice from somewhere around her screamed, "Hermione,  move!"

A jet of violet light shot from Harry's fingertip and surrounded her. She screamed as it  seemed to prickle her skin and then dove deeper. She could no longer hear her screams as  she tumbled sideways to the ground, next to an unconscious Ginny.

Harry stepped over toward her. "I remember her too well." He paused, amused for a moment  before turning to the large crowd of people staring at him. Beyond them the giants were  approaching. "About time!" he shouted out.

Buffy spun around and noticed the giants. Hiding a note of panic, she swung back around to  face Harry, but no one, not even Willow or Giles or anyone, seemed able to move.

Harry walked around in front of them, his eyes surveying, an eerie tint of red beginning to  surround him. "Just when I thought it couldn't get any better."

His eyes had fallen on Tara.

Behind them all, the giants bellowed out.

"Hagrid, where are you?" Buffy muttered, her feet still rooted to the spot. She knew that  if she moved, if any of them did, Harry would have a clear shot. Of course, he could kill  them all where they stood with just a point of that pale finger, but she still had hopes  that Harry was fighting with everything he had inside.

Behind Harry, Hermione groaned softly and started to stir. As she sat up, making as little  noise as possible, her fingers felt a large scrape on the side of her face and she pulled  them back, startled to see blood. With Harry's back turned, she reached into her robes and  pulled out her wand. She had to give the message to Professor Dumbledore, who was still  back inside the castle, too many paces away for Hermione to risk running.

The giants were closing in and suddenly stopped as Harry placed up his hand. His eyes  glistened scarlet as he stared over the treetops in the distance.

A horrible shrieking noise filled the void of silence.

From above them, great winged creatures were circling around.

"Oh my God," Dawn breathed. The creatures appeared to be dragons, with figures in long  cloaks riding them.

"What are those?" Cho gasped.

Draco knew immediately. "Those are the sisters to the veela. I heard they were real and not  a myth, but..." His voice cut out as another dragon wailed above them.

They seemed to be in a holding pattern, waiting for Voldemort to strike. Harry stepped  forward, his eyes scanning the fear on each of their faces. "My friends," he sneered. "We  have come to this at last."

"When you will you finally learn that defeat is when you yield?" an ancient-sounding voice  demanded behind Harry.

Harry spun to see Professor Dumbledore, surrounded by Aurors and other Professors,  including Snape and McGonagall.

"Albus," Harry growled, extending his arms in mock greeting. "You need to know when you're  not wanted. I hardly doubt you'll kill this boy's body before I'm done with it."

"You could have killed us all where we stood and taken the school," Dumbledore said  quietly. With a motion as quick as the blink of an eye, he pulled out his wand and had it  level to Harry's forehead. "And I would not hesitate to take his life if it meant that our  world wouldn't fall."

Harry's eyes narrowed as he lifted his hand. "Your world is mine, now. I pity you fools who  fight it."

Now that Harry was occupied with Dumbledore, Buffy quickly glanced at all of the students.  "Get out of here, now. Your lives aren't worth this."

As the students quietly crept into the woods on either side, Buffy kept her eyes on the  four dragons still circling before lowering her eyes back to Harry.

Harry opened his mouth to retort to what Dumbledore had said when a loud commotion caught  him by surprise. Harry turned to see the giants battling with the Aurors and with one  another. They had grown bored by holding.

Above him, the dragons were growing restless.

"Your allies have given up on you, Tom," Dumbledore said quietly.

But Harry's attention was diverted elsewhere. "Their hold is failing because someone here  is doing something they shouldn't be doing."

His eyes fell on Tara, who stood motionless next to Willow. "It's not the witch." His eyes  gazed behind them to where Cordelia stood, her body glowing white. "It's a demon." He  looked surprised, but pleased nonetheless. "You can fight me all you desire, because in the  end, you'll still die."

Cordy lost none of her luster as she glared up at him. "I will break you."

"Not before -- AAAHHH!" Harry suddenly collapsed to his knees.

It was the break everyone had been waiting for.

"Now!" Buffy shouted. The Slayers scattered toward the giants and other dark creatures  while the dragons swooped down on them. Willow took command of the dragons immediately,  managing to freeze two mid-air with a single incantation.

The Professors and others with Dumbledore surged forward, leaving a large bundle of Death  Eaters held behind by one of Dumbledore's spells.

"NO!" Harry shouted, trying to stand again but failing. "I will not let this child take  me!"

"Come on, Harry," Hermione muttered as she stood up slowly. "You can fight him... use your  heart." She gulped as she saw Ginny's motionless form. "Use your love."

"NO!" Harry finally shouted as a deep red light swept through the entire expanse, knocking  everyone except Dumbledore off their feet. Willow landed with a thud, her wand that had  been holding the dragons still falling from her hand. The dragons remained stationary, but  she knew her hold on them would fail. Grasping her wand, she was the first to her feet.

Harry turned toward her. His eyes glistened with hatred as he sized her up. "You have seen  darkness."

"It's an awful place," Willow retorted as others began to rise around her. "A place I'm not  willing to go again."

"Good," Harry said, turning back to Dumbledore, who was approaching quickly. "Not a good  plan, Albus. Your school is taken."

He turned sideways to see Professor Snape. "Severus... you have betrayed me, but I have not  had the chance to kill you. Until now." He pointed his wand toward him. "Avada Kedavra."

The jet of violet light struck out.

In slow motion, Buffy watched as someone reached out and pushed Snape roughly aside, taking  the full blast of the spell head on.

"ANGEL!" she screamed, diving toward him as Harry turned his wand to his other target.

"I knew there was a reason I wanted you dead," Harry spat as he lifted his wand toward  Tara, muttering a curse.

Tara's eyes widened as she realized that death would finally be her escape, her release.  She closed her eyes, expecting that the next time she opened them, she would be with her  mother again.

But the next thing she knew, she was being checked off her feet and flew to the side with a  cry. And the figure who had checked her took the blast of the spell head-on.

"No!" Tara screamed as the figure collapsed into her arms. "Willow! No!"

Time seemed to speed up again as Willow groaned, unable to move.

Harry's eyes were full of hunger just as a jet of red light hit the square of his back. His  mouth opened to scream, but as his eyes drained of energy, Harry's body fell aside, leaving  a shadow of crimson floating right where Harry's body had been seconds before.

Buffy bent over Angel, who was still, his eyes frozen wide.

Tara collapsed from her awkward position, Willow still in her arms.

Harry fell unconscious at Hermione's feet.

And the shadow starting laughing, jeering at them all. "You may have taken the School, but  I will meet Potter one last time. And it will be his last."

"Not if it is yours first," Dumbledore said pleasantly as the red shadow faded to nothing.

Hermione crawled over to Harry, turning him over. "Harry? Harry?"

A few feet away from them, Tara had just managed to lay Willow down. She was gasping for  breath, her eyes starting to roll. "Willow? Willow?" Tears threatened her vision as she  turned to see Dawn stumbling and falling next to Willow, turning two blackened eyes onto  her dearest mentor.

"I just found you again," Tara whimpered, holding Willow's limp body in her arms. "Don't  give in to darkness. Stay with me. Don't die! I need you! I'll do anything... just don't  you die on me."

Dawn reached forward with a trembling hand to take Willows' that was dragging in the dirt.

Willow's lips parted and a strange croak came out. "I--I..." And then she breathed one last  raggedy breath before she lost consciousness.

"Willow!" Tara cried, her voice reverberating through the area. "I love you Willow... don't  leave me... don't leave me here alone... No...."

But she was forced to set Willow's limp form on the ground and turned with tear-filled eyes  to Buffy. "S-She... needs help."

Buffy turned toward Snape, who had stepped up behind her, offering her his hand. She took  it and stood up, looking around. "Conjure stretchers for all those who've been injured."  Her eyes fell on Harry and she looked up at Dumbledore, who was bending over the boy.

"He'll live," Dumbledore finally said as he glanced back at the Slayer, who with a flick of  her wand conjured stretchers.

"It's over," Dawn said, walking next to her sister. Above them, the dragons had been  released when Willow had fallen, taking their leave. The giants, being chased by Hagrid and  his deep forest friends, were also fleeing. "We've won."

"But we've lost so much," Buffy said with a small sigh.

"Is he dead?" Dawn asked in a tiny voice.

Buffy shook her head no. "He can't die again, Dawnie." But her eyes were now on Willow, who  was lying on a conjured stretcher. "Get all the wounded to the hospital wing, immediately."

Faith, after pushing a few stretchers toward the castle, turned to Buffy, who was standing  there, eyes wide, not moving. "It's over. It's finally over."

Buffy nodded. "But what a price to pay for such a victory."

- - - - -

To be continued.

Who died? Who's living? The tally is counted in Chapter 33.