A/N: The last chapter caused some confusion that I'm currently working to fix. But for now I will explain. Bellatrix took Hermione's wand and then used it against her. When Snape yelled Expelliarmius it was Hermione's wand that flew out of Bellatrix's hand and because she was kneeling next to him and because it was her wand Hermione was able to catch it. She yelled Stupefy before Bellatrix could reach for her own wand. I hope that helps!

Chapter Twenty

Hermione had been involved in many skirmishes with Death Eaters over the last several years, but never had she experienced the full onslaught that was the final battle. They had left the deserted classroom after making sure that Bellatrix was tied up and locked in a closet. Severus didn't let go of her hand as they briskly walked through the halls, their wands poised and ready to meet anything that might come around the next corner.

Approaching the Great Hall, they heard the shouts and cries of the battle that had already started. They reached the small hallway that separated the Great Hall from the main castle door. Outside Hermione could see giants battling each other, using whole trees from the Forbidden Forest as weapons. Some were on their side, but she had a sneaking suspicion that they needed little reason to fight. Trolls battled with goblins; and she could even see house elves performing their special magic, in an attempt to protect the castle. Turning her head to the Great Hall, she saw that most of the human combatants had moved inside, away from the more primal magic that was occurring outside.

She squeezed Severus' hand one last time and then let go, raising her wand and sending a curse into the back of a Death Eater attacking Tonks. Bolts of multi-colored light flashed through the room, and Hermione watched in horror as a blaze of green light hit Professor Flitwick.

Harry had been right… this was it. Hermione swung into action, the months and years of training for this moment overtaking her.

"We have to get to Voldemort," Harry told her, pointing to a tall, skeletal man in the middle of the room. She nodded, looking around for Severus. He lurked on the edge of the room, inconspicuously aiming his wand and hitting fellow death eaters. He was the spy until the end, she thought, as she watched him pretend to help Crabbe but instead felling his companion. It was a clever strategy, taking out the enemy while they aimed their wands at everyone but him.

the battle soon took her attention away from her husband. She shot curses in every direction, many hitting death eaters, when a sudden chill knocked her off her feet. Every terrifying memory she ever had overtook her, blurring her vision. She had a vague sense that she had been hit with a hex, but it seemed nothing compared to the despair of reliving Ron's death, the fear for her life and her parents', and the intense agony that had been the Cruciatus curse.

With all of her being, she tried to push those thoughts away, clinging instead to a happy memory.

"You are the best thing to have happened to me," she heard Severus tell her.

"Expecto Patronum!" She felt the chill lift, but realized that many more Dementors hovered close by. They weakened the Order's ability to fight.

"Harry!" she yelled. They needed a strong Patronus charm, something more than she would be able to conjure. He pointed his wand at the center of the group and she watched as a beautiful silver stag galloped through the Great Hall, forcing the dementors back through the door. Hermione waved her wand and the door slammed shut, trapping them in the corridor where they couldn't distract anyone.

Turning around, she watched as a masked Death Eater aimed his wand at Dumbledore's back. Severus, seeing the words of the killing curse forming on his lips, abandoned his wand and threw himself full force at the man. His wand sparked, but it emitted no flash of green; however, the scuffle distracted the Headmaster. Turning around to see Severus fighting hand to hand with his would be assailant, he didn't see the purple flash that hit him in the side.

Hermione gasped as she saw him fall. If Dumbledore was gone, what hope did they truly have? He had been the one wizard Voldemort ever feared.

"Traitor!" she heard the fallen Death Eater cry, before Severus punched him in the nose; but, the threat around her drew her attention away. She had always been able to do more than one thing at a time, but this onslaught was almost too much to handle. She stayed as close to Harry as she could, guarding his back, as he waded through the crowd of combatants towards where Lord Voldemort stood.

"Are you ready to face me alone? Like your father did, like a man?" he taunted. "I suppose the old fool has told you that you are courageous, but I don't see what's so brave in hiding behind women and old men, Potter. Look at you; even now, you have a girl by your side to protect you. It's pitiful."

"It ends here, Riddle," Harry said.

"It certainly will." His voice was no more than a raspy whisper, but Hermione had never heard anything so chilling before in her life. His red slit eyes were just as she remembered them from Severus' memories.

"Expulsez!" Voldemort yelled and waved his wand. Every Order member and teacher's wand flew from their hands and hovered above them, just out of reach. The room fell quiet with stunned silence and helplessness. With another wave of his wand, they all rushed out a neighboring window. They were unarmed and at Voldemort's mercy.

"Don't kill them!" he yelled to his followers. "I want them to watch as their last hope dies before them. I want them to acknowledge me as the greatest wizard of all time; and if they won't, then they can die a slow and lingering death."

Remus lay dead in the corner, having finally joined his boyhood friends. Professor McGonagall tended to a prone Dumbledore, who looked as though today would be the last of his 150 and some odd years. Other Order members, including Severus, stood along the wall, Death Eaters' wands trained on them. Hermione's leg twitched, from where she had been hexed before, and she could hear the battle still raging on outside the castle.

"Do you like my new spell, Potter? Very handy, a broad version of the Expellarmius. Of course I couldn't leave my Death Eaters without their wands, so they have all had theirs charmed to resist the spell."

That meant that Severus still had his wand, she thought desperately.

"Potter!"

Harry turned and caught the wand that Snape threw him.

"Arvadek Adava!" he yelled, pointing the wand at Voldemort. A bright blue light burst forth, from not only from the wand, but from Harry's eyes. He seemed to be bathed in it. The light swirled out from around him and rushed towards Voldemort. He tried to block it, but it barreled through the magical shield he conjured. There was a terrible cry, like that of a banshee, as the spell hit him.

She covered her ears with her hands and watched, as Lord Voldemort, the terror of the Wizarding World, seemed to unravel before her. Small threads unwound and tore away, leaving at first a skeleton and then nothing at all. So caught up in the drama of his undoing, Hermione didn't notice that all around her Death Eaters were collapsing, grabbing at their arms in agony.

When he at last disappeared, Harry fell to his knees, Snape's wand dropping from his hand.

"Harry!" Hermione cried, rushing to his side.

"It's over," he gasped.

"Your scar," she exclaimed. "It's gone!" He reached up with one hand and felt his forehead.

"It's never hurt like that before," he said. "I thought I might die from the pain, but I knew I had to hold on, that if I could just wait a few moments more it would all be over."

"What was that spell you used?" she asked.

"Something Dumbledore and I came across when we were planning strategies. It's Avada Kedavra but in the reverse. The spells and enchantments he used to gain power, to stave off death, had to be unwound bit by bit with 'backward mutterings of dissevering power' according to the ancient manuscript we found," he explained.

"But how did you know saying the spell backwards would work?"

"I didn't," he said, shaking slightly. "I just hoped it would." He smiled and grabbed her to him in a tight hug.

Letting her go, she helped him to his feet and they turned to survey the room around them. Most of the other Order members were working to subdue the Death Eaters, some who lay still writhing on the floor in pain, and others who had fallen unconscious. Fawkes flew in, and Minerva worked to apply his healing tears to the Headmaster. Large sections of stone littered the floor, and looking up she could see the sun peeking through the ruined ceiling—it was no enchantment this time.

Despite the bustle of activity all around them, Hermione focused only on finding Severus. Their victory today had been possible because of him. Harry's wand might not have worked against Voldemort's. She found him, not among the others, but lying on the floor. He was unconscious, his hand still gripping his marked arm.

"Is he dead?" she asked Madame Pomfrey and Tonks, who were kneeling beside him. Her voice cracked and her hands trembled as she barely restrained her hysteria.

"No, dear," Madame Pomfrey told her. "But he's in a bad way. We need to move him to the infirmary as soon as possible."

Hermione nodded and helped Tonks levitate him up the stairs and into a bed. While the rest of the Wizarding world celebrated, she stayed by his bed, hoping for a miracle.

She sat by his bed a week later, when Professor Dumbledore approached her.

"How is he doing child?" he asked.

"The same as before. It's good to see you back on your feet, sir."

"Thank you, but I think I'm done with fighting dark wizards. I'm afraid I'm getting too old for this," he said, sitting in the chair on the opposite side of the bed. Severus lay between them, tucked firmly into bed. His pale skin almost matched the crisp linens and his black hair lay behind his ears, where Hermione had tucked it.

"Can I ask you a question, sir?" she asked shakily, betraying her emotions.

"Certainly."

"What happened that day? Severus fought valiantly for our side. He doesn't deserve this," she said indignantly.

"Love saved the day, Hermione, and it will again," he reassured her. "The love that prompted Lily Potter's sacrifice, that fateful day seventeen years ago, invoked an ancient magic that has protected Harry ever since; and he was able to finally harness that power and use it against Tom Riddle. The one thing Voldemort never understood was love; he was constantly underestimating it. Don't fall prey to the same thinking."

"But will it be enough this time? Does he even know?" she gestured at Severus.

"What did I tell you before you married?"

"That love is more than an emotion…that it comprises all the little things we do to show the other person we care," she said.

"Then he knows. I have hope that if he has held on this long, then he will wake up before long."

"Why do you say that?"

"He's never had so much to live for before now," he answered simply.

A/N: The idea of saying the spell backwards comes from the opening to CS Lewis' The Great Divorce. The quote from the "ancient manuscript" are in fact Lewis' words.

Thanks for all the reviews and support, and to AMRA1 who looked over this for me.