Disclaimer: I own no part of Harry Potter or its associated canon nor, any other already copyrighted material.
(A/N): Okay...so it was more like 26 hours...
Chapter 34
The Cunning of Slytherin
Harry released his friends and whirled around to face the field, instinctively drawing his wand. His eyes panned across dozens of black cloaks picked out by the light Hermione had summoned. He heard the sharp gasp from her and knew she had seen what he had. The black mass of Death Eaters that had appeared a hundred meters away had them outnumbered as least two to one. And while they were fresh and ready to duel, the defenders of Hogwarts were tired, partially drained and in many cases were standing near their own fallen comrades, surrounded by pools of blood and the stench of charred flesh.
A sudden breeze rose and cleared the smell, sending out over the black lake, if only for a moment. Harry's eyes scanned over the remaining defenders, some of whom still had visible wounds that had either been missed or judged too superficial to fix immediately. They had faced and defeated hundreds of Inferi, dozens of giants and a large group of werewolves, but it had been at great cost. The group they now faced, though much smaller, was infinitely more deadly. Divided into a wide front line and a smaller second line, they also looked over the assembled defenders. Despite nearly all of them wearing the mask and hood of their allegiance, Harry could still make out the contempt on their faces.
As one, the group began marching toward the defenders, wands raised. Harry glanced back to Ron and found him holding the silver phoenix feather in one hand and his wand in the other while he stared at the approaching Death Eaters. "Uh…Ron? Any time now."
"Not yet…" The march continue, individual members now becoming clear as they grew closer. Still Ron failed to activate the object to summon their much needed aid.
"Ron…?" The red head shook slowly as he continued to wait. Harry glanced to Hermione who was also staring at Ron. The front line of Death Eaters had closed to fifty meters. "Now would be good." Whatever he was waiting for, it hadn't come yet.
"We've got one shot at this Harry…trust me." Harry nodded in response.
"I do." Ron actually cracked a small grin.
"Say that to my sister. I've already got someone." Harry smiled a little and grinned at the fact Ron could be cracking jokes now. He was nearly as bad as his brothers.
"POTTER!" The magically enhanced voice boomed over the field and his head whipped back to the black lines. He knew that voice from his visions; knew it as clearly as he did that of the voice's now deceased sister in law. He noticed Neville's head whip around at hearing it as well. It was the voice of Rabastan Lestrange, confidant of Lord Voldemort and one of the people responsible for Neville's parents. A madman who had earned his 'rewards' through loyalty even to the point of spending a dozen years in Azkaban. He couldn't immediately find the man in the line of cloaks that had stopped just twenty meters away. Harry took half a step forward before stopping. There was no reason to get closer…yet. The voice boomed across the field once again.
"There's someone here who wants to see you!" The lines parted near the center and the figure of a man was thrown forward, rolling across the ground, his tattered robes flailing around him. Somehow the beaten figure, who obviously had a broken arm, forced himself to his knees, facing them. Though he looked on the verge of death, the face was still proud and defiant. Harry heard a gasp run through the defenders that mirrors his own shock at recognizing the kneeling form of Rufus Scrimgeour. The Minister of Magic searched the field and actually cracked a grin with what was left of his jaw at seeing all the people gathered to fight. Struggling for breath, his eyes found Harry and focused on him for several seconds, a light of awe appearing there. Of all things, he smiled a little, a slight hint of the quiet, understated confidence that had taken him through the ranks of the Aurors to the Minister's office surfacing, if only for a moment. He nodded slowly, a gesture of respect Harry returned, before closing his eyes and lowering his chin to his chest to await his fate.
Harry's eyes rose to find Rabastan standing over the man, wand pointed directly at him. He locked eyes with the Death Eater in a silent battle of wills. "He's been dying to see you Potter! And now that he has…" Harry didn't flinch as Rabastan buried his foot in Scrimgeour's shoulder and kicked him to the ground. "Avada Kedavra!" The green jet hit the man and crumpled him the rest of the way to the dirt, joining the Inferi and giants already there. Harry noticed some the Aurors about to rush to him and quickly cast a focused sonorous charm.
"Hold!" They looked uncertain for a moment, but stopped cold and waited, throwing angry glances back at him. He ignored the looks. Running off now would just make them easy targets and they couldn't afford to throw any warriors away. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Ron tap the feather and jam it back into his pocket. Rabastan's magnified voice laughed viciously as Harry dispelled the charm.
"That's right cowards, stay where you are. Not that it matters…none of you will leave here alive." The darkness and contempt was plain in his voice as he scanned the defenders and again locked eyes with Harry. "You bring children to face us? You are even more foolish than the Dark Lord believes. However…since they are here…perhaps we have can find duelists…suitable to their…abilities." He stepped aside and more cloaked duelists filed up through the center, spreading out into a third and fourth line at the front. As they came to a stop, Harry's eyes focused on the man in the center of the rear group. He was tall, pale, had greasy straight hair and made Harry's blood boil.
Severus Snape looked over his fanned out students with what Harry could only describe as fatherly pride. Each of the new arrivals had a face Harry could match to his vision of Tom's lair and its 'classroom'. Better able to look at each now, he could tell some bore the distinctive walks and bearing he remembered all too well from fourth year and the students from Durmstrung and Beuxbatons. Most of them were formed in a closest line, wand drawn and the same malicious sneer on each face. With Snape though stood a smaller group consisting of a strangely blank faced Draco Malfoy, Daphne Greengrass, Theodore Nott and four others that looked to be from the other schools.
Each of this second line also had their wands drawn and were staring ahead, stronger focus in their eyes that the rest. They must be his inner circle of students; harder trained perhaps, more skilled, stronger…and more deadly. Harry did notice none of them wore the cocksure sneer of their comrades, instead merely looking determined. Draco's eyes locked with his for a moment and he was surprised to find no challenge in them, none of his trademark arrogance. Instead of breaking the contact, they just slid off to look elsewhere.
Rabastan stepped back and gestured to Snape. He nodded quickly in response and raised his wand, his voice just carrying far enough for Harry to hear. "Ready…" Among his students all raised their wand and picked out their opposite numbers. Among the DA, wands rose to create shields across the line. "Aim…"
The next second several things happened that shattered the relatively peaceful field. Popping sounds to either side signaled the arrival of the Order. They only hesitated for a moment before launching a round of spells at the Death Eaters. Kingsley Shacklebolt led the group that was appearing to the left, a swath of red hair signaling the presence of the rest of the Weasley clan, and Moody led the fighters to the right. Shocked by the sudden reinforcements, the black cloaked fighters hesitated for a moment before a group broke off each end to engage the new arrivals. The flanks of the line quickly dispersed into individual duels and battles with the Order members but the center held firm under Rabastan's forceful commands. They refocused on the DA and the few others with them and again readied to attack.
Snape's eyes flashed to Harry's for a second and a small annoyed sneer crossed his lips. It was a look Harry remembered well. It was the same one he had worn on the Astronomy tower, just before he had struck the fatal blow to Dumbledore, an act he had been forced into against his will. A heartbeat later another assault began at the heart of the Death Eater's lines as Severus Snape and his inner circle exploded in a blinding storm of spells aimed not at the DA, but at their fellow students. Many of them fell in seconds, stunned, disarmed or dead. Snape's first spell destroyed Rabastan whose magnified voice could only let out a surprised gasp as he fell to the ground.
Most of the fully fledged Death Eaters were stunned to inactivity and watched in astonishment as the assault tore apart their center before being shrouded in a sudden explosion of smoke from Severus's wand. Doubly shocked by this betrayal, they had only seconds to respond before a fourth assault erupted from behind. A flurry of spells rolled forth from the latest arrivals who dove in on brooms, throwing them to the side as they landed. Many cast off their bulky fur coats as they charged forward, wands firing spells in a wide arc of fire. At their head was the tall and imposing figure of Viktor Krum, side by side with the shorter but just as easily recognizable Fred Weasley.
The charge of the latest arrivals split the Death Eater lines cleanly down the center as they joined the few fighters already there; belatedly realizing they were Snape and his inner circle. After split second negotiations though, they stood back to back with the black cloaked fighters and did what they could to split the groups. Ron's voice snapped Harry back from his momentary shock.
"Harry! Now!"
"Right. CHARGE!" As one the defenders dashed forward with a sudden burst of speed. The short distance the attackers had marched to was crossed in seconds, the now defending too stunned to repel it. Reaching the dark lines they broke through in multiple places and shattered what little coherency the Death Eaters had maintained. As Harry rushed forward with Ron and Hermione hard on his heals he noticed Sarah and Matt appear on either flank. A momentary glance told him Keystone had chosen to fight without them and was ripping into lines elsewhere, helping where he could.
Sound light and color exploded around him as the two forces, now relatively even, tore into each other. Groups of defenders quickly formed, floating in a sea of black cloaks as they battled. Given a short rest, Harry took over the shielding duties for is team, the charms he cast rivaling Voldemort's shield in the Ministry for power. Everything save Unforgivables bounced off his defenses, causing other attackers to scatter as the spells ricocheted toward them. Hermione and Ron proved every bit as capable as the professional duelists as they traded attacks back and forth with an ever growing ring of Death Eaters.
Having identified the trio, more black cloaked attackers were rushing to help and the pressure was starting to build by sheer volume to more than Harry could block. But they had to hold on. Every Death Eater that came to attack them was one less the rest had to deal with. Just as the level of spells cast became too much, Keystone swept through the black ring and captured the interest of several of them, his sword causing another wet arc as he slashed. With a nod from Harry, Matt and Sarah joined him and began slicing through swaths of the black robes attackers.
Taking advantage of the momentary distraction and the short rest his arms had gotten, Harry drew his sword and led his friends the other way, his blade singing through the air as it swept out in a wide arc. Unlike the DA and even the remaining Aurors, the Death Eaters either refused or didn't know how to operate as a team and instead ran around individually trying to attack where and when they could. Because of this, the slightly smaller number of defenders was holding their own against the sea of attackers and slowly whittling them down. More immediately to Harry, it meant that he, Ron and Hermione were able to single out targets which he could attack while they watched his back.
Taking down another with a point blank expelliarmus, he heard the cries of students to his right. The group's shields had been down for a critical second and two were unconscious while the others writhed in agony from the Cruicatus. Pointing with his blade, Harry knew the other two followed as he dashed toward the surrounding Death Eaters. The first had only a second to respond before he fell and the second scarcely longer. As their attackers were drawn to focus in the sudden assault, the three students flattened to the ground, twitching horribly in the aftereffects of the curse.
As Harry and Ron stood over the fallen students and viciously tore apart anyone foolish enough to engage them, Hermione revived the Patil twins and the rest of their all female group. The squad had proven very powerful in training and now at least a dozen Death Eaters lay around them. Other than the twins the group had one girl from each Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw. They had been one of the star examples of the houses uniting in the DA and now Hermione was working furiously to make sure they wouldn't be representatives of unity in death.
She managed to get four of them on their feet though Ginny's roommate was still unconscious. Those who had managed to rise were now half stumbling and half staring at Harry and Ron defending them. Hermione glanced around quickly and found a giant nearby, lying dead on his side, his massive club behind him. "Ron! Harry!" She jerked her head toward the giant and they began stepping back while battling the Death Eaters that strayed too close. Harry's sword was slapping away spells almost as efficiently as Keystone's had at the ministry.
"Come on, get to the giant!" She managed to gain the others' attention and they began scrambling for cover, the Patils carrying the unconscious girl between them. In only moments they had ducked in between the club and the giants back, the unconscious girl nearly completely hidden in the gap. "Now stay down and don't try anything stupid!" They nodded slowly, still too shaken to speak. Hermione turned back to find Ron and Harry's wands silent and the battle largely elsewhere. Wiping the blood from the sword with a dead man's cloak, Harry sheathed it to save his arm.
Though most of the field was still rolling in battle, this small corner was strangely quiet. Harry glanced around quickly. People were still fighting and dying out there and he needed to help. But first…there was one other thing he had to do. Hermione's voice came from behind him again.
"They're safe for now. Where to next?" Harry pointed his wand toward the closest mass of black, dropping his arm back quickly after doing so. His breathing had intensified and he could feel the slow burn in his calves that would soon begin elsewhere. He was getting tired and he still had his greatest challenge to face. Concentrating, he threw off the tiredness and focused. Turning back, they both noticed the look on his face. Ron cocked a questioning eyebrow.
"What is it Harry?"
"Listen…I need you to something for me."
"Anything, you know that."
"Good. I need you…to abandon me." They both looked shocked at the statement and Hermione's was the loudest protest. Her tone was oddly reminiscent of Mrs. Weasley…or perhaps Ginny when she was acting like her mother.
"Harry! We're not going to run away and leave you here! We told you we're in this together and that's the way it's going to stay!" Ron was nodding in furious agreement to her side. Harry shook his head sharply.
"No. I don't mean run away. Listen…Voldemort's going to attack soon, but the only way I can be sure he'll come after me is if he knows I'll be fighting him alone. He wants the pleasure…and the glory, of cutting me down himself. That's why you two have to get away from me. He'll wait until I'm alone and look weak to strike. Understand?" After only a second of shocked consideration, during which they looked like they might continue to protest, both nodded slowly. "Thank you. Now…make it look convincing. Good luck."
"You too mate." Harry nodded and turned back. Taking a breath during a moment of hesitation, he could see the battle around him clearly for an instant. So far it was dead even and had become a battle of attrition. It was a stalemate he had to break…soon. With Ron and Hermione once again on his heel, crimson and gold robes whipping around them, he charged toward the group of Death Eaters surrounding another DA squad. They had formed a circle around the team and were pummeling it from all sides.
With sword and wand he blew through one side of the ring, bowling over a pair of black clad duelists. Not stopping he danced between surprised DA members led by Luna Lovegood, looking more focused than he could ever remember. He spared her a glance and a returned nod before breaking out the other side and smashing through the opposite arc of the ring, throwing all of them into chaos. Sparing a glance back he could see that the squad, now joined by Ron and Hermione, were taking full advantage of the havoc he had created to cut down the remaining Eaters. The last glimpse he had of his friends before they disappeared behind a flourish of black, was Ron and Hermione literally back to back, launching spells in perfect unison.
Silently wishing his friends good luck, he turned his full attention to the group in front of him. He had broken out to the flank where instead of groups fighting, Order members and Aurors were engaged in one on one duels with their opposites. Harry noticed Moody engaged with three Death Eaters as the same time, his skills being displayed to full, and awe striking, effect. The ex-Auror had a look Harry could almost describe as glee on his face. It was slightly unnerving but betrayed just how at home the man was in a fight. Lupin blurred across his vision, literally nipping at the heels of another so Tonks could cut her down.
Dedalus Diggle went down directly ahead to what could have been a Killing Curse or something else Harry couldn't immediately identify. With a cry of rage he jumped the man's still body and landed facing three attackers. He deflected the first pair of spells shot his way with flicks of his blade, a move that stunned the trio ahead of him. Before they could respond with what were sure to be Killing Curses, he aimed and thought with all his might 'levicorpus!' Instantly the three were pulled from their feet and hung by their ankles from the air. Struggling in vain to pull loose of their invisible binding, they were easy targets fro the follow up. "Expelliarmus!" All three were blasted back and their wands landed lightly in his hand. Sheathing his own, he sliced them in half and dropped the pieces to the ground.
Turning his back on the disabled fighters he started back along the lines of battle, carefully weaving through the many duels going on around him. Taking over another duel for a fallen Auror, the same Tonks had chosen as her second to guard Pansy, he found himself back to back with Alastor Moody. As they fought, the man began speaking in a conversational tone as if they were walking down the street. Actually, considering it was Moody, it was a good deal calmer than he would have been during a simple walk. Harry did his best to split his concentration between the duel and what he was saying.
"Doing well so far lad. You've learned quite a bit from that teacher of yours." Harry nodded as he dodged a curse.
"Yeah…he's been a big help."
"Good. Down." They ducked as curses flew in from both sides, missing them and nearly hitting the casters. They both took advantage of the distraction to end their fights and Mad-Eye turned to face him. "Keep it up. You should get up to the rise where people can see you…and you'll get a better view of the battle."
"Right. Constant Vigilance."
"Constant Vigilance." Moody dove back into the fray as Harry headed back through the battle, trying to fight his way to the center. The ranks of each side had thinned considerably over the intervening minutes and he could hear the screams and moans of the wounded and dying as he ran. Still neither side had any advantage and it looked as if the fight would indeed be decided as a battle of attrition. The defenders of the school would lose that battle if they didn't get a boost soon. They still had one small group of reinforcements to call, but Harry had no idea whether Ron had summoned the rest of the Aurors yet and trying to ask him would waste the work they had done to separate.
Smashing through another ring of black cloaks to aid Neville's squad, he crossed what appeared to be an intentional buffer zone to find Death Eater fighting Death Eater. He had a moment to look over the multiple duels and figure out who he wanted to help and who needed to fall. He could pick out Draco fighting with the same passive expression and demonstrating a decent level of skill, perhaps just a little less than Hermione's. Nott and Greengrass fought together and were holding there own as were a pair of the students Harry didn't recognize. The other two were on the ground, disabled or dead. Outshining them all, relatively speaking, Severus Snape stood at the center of the group, fighting five of his former comrades and easily holding his own.
Harry blasted down a sixth that was attempting to attack the man from behind and slid to a halt at his back, engaging two more. With his burden nearly cut in half, Snape was able to quickly defeat the three left and Harry cut down the other pair. After slashing his blade backward to jam it under an Eater's arm, he drew it out and neatly cleaned the blade while turning back. They both spun to check their rears and found themselves staring at each other, only a couple feet between them. Snape's eyes held the same cold focus that Harry knew his did, but it lacked the spark of life present in so many others. The man seemed to have no drive for the battle he was fighting; merely doing what he must to survive. After a second of staring, he spoke.
"It's real." Harry was confused as to what the man meant. The battle? Of course it was real. It had gone on too long and been too painful to be anything else.
"What?" Exasperation crossed the ex-professor's face at Harry's blank stare.
"The anti-venom. It's not a trick." Harry's eyes popped open at the statement. How did he know about that?
"How…" The professor sneered in a familiar look of contempt toward Harry's question.
"Seriously Potter! Do you think I would create anti-venom to the Dark Lord's pet snake and mention it for any random person to overhear! I called Draco to my office knowing he would bring Parkinson with him and knowing that she would steal it to help him! The Dark Lord's wrath was horrible to bear when she disappeared, but it was worth this last strike at him." Harry's eyes widened even further in surprise than they had before. Somehow he responded, not really thinking.
"You manipulative bastard! Using people like that! Why!" Snape's eyes focused sharply on Harry and he spoke in a severe tone bordering on a curse.
"Because I made a promise to Albus…and…Lily. Now get out of here before someone sees us!" He shoved a stunned Harry back roughly and turned to find his next target. Harry stumbled back several steps, barely keeping himself from falling. As Snape was swept back into the maelstrom, he regained his footing and managed to shake off the stupor caused by the exchange and the odd mention of his mother.
He had seen in the pensieve, and it had been indicated by other people, that Lily Evans had actively tried to protect the young Severus from…James and the rest of the Marauders. Harry wondered momentarily just how much his father had changed in his last year from the arrogant, cockeyed…brat he had been in his sixth year. If he had become as good a person as Remus and others had indicated, Lily must have had as much influence on him as…as…as Ginny had on him he realized. He smiled a little at the thought before the din of battle snapped him rudely back to the present.
Remembering Moody's words, he headed for the rise and soon reached the middle of the battlefield. He glanced around quickly, trying to see exactly what was going on. Dozens of fights and individual duels raged, merely half the original numbers of either side managing to last this long. A flash of steel picked out Keystone and Montoya joining their fellow professors. It took him a moment to notice Matt was nowhere to be seen as the pair met up with their beleaguered colleagues. Firenze's arrows seemed to be especially effective as none of the Death Eaters were prepared to face a physical projectile. Harry was about to sigh a small breath of relief as the tide in that area shifted when a short series of cracks and pops pulled his attention dead ahead.
Instead of a sigh, he gulped loudly at the new arrivals. Thirteen black cloaked individuals appeared together across the smoky scarred field from him. All but one wore a hood and mask. The one who didn't stood in the center, surveying the destruction before them. His eyes locked on to Harry, eyes that he would never forget set in a face that had haunted his dreams, nightmares and visions for years, belonging to a man who had shaped the course of his life for over sixteen years. His mouth formed into a sinister smile as he stared at Harry and began to walk forward.
Lord Voldemort had arrived.
Flanked by his closest and most deadly followers, he began a quick and decisive march through the carnage across the field and toward Harry. Glancing quickly around, Harry realized there wasn't another witch or wizard within twenty meters of him and the closest ones were engaged in furious duels anyway. The arrival of the darkest wizard in history didn't go completely unnoticed though as a few people managed to launch attacks at the group. Any aimed at Voldemort were blocked by a shield he raised momentarily and knocked aside. His personal retinue began to break off one by one and launch a terrible storm of spells from their wands. They were the freshest fighters on the battlefield and it was readily apparent.
Harry could only spare them a moment's notice though as Voldemort came closer. He could feel the burn in his muscles and the tiredness in his limbs from the desperate battle all of them had been fighting. He needed more time to rest…and Voldemort knew that. Harry began to retreat toward the castle, slowly climbing the rise as Voldemort advanced, a twisted grin forming on his face. As he came closer, a dull pain began emanating from his forehead, the slightest burn beginning in the scar. Harry spared a second glance around and noticed the newly arrived Death Eaters had neatly split the battle in half and now prevented anyone from coming to his aid. Returning his gaze to Voldemort, Harry noticed a diminutive man crouch behind him and sneaking peeks out from behind his lord's billowing robes.
His surprise at seeing Peter Pettigrew nipping at his master's heels caused Harry to trip over and arm he did his best not to identify. Falling roughly to the ground, he hesitated for only a second and ignored the sudden pain in his wrist as he scrambled backward on hand and heel to get away from the approaching wizard. Rolling over he quickly pushed himself to his feet and continued his panicked retreat. Glancing down he noticed he had backed over the line he had scribed in the ground before the battle began. Voldemort reached it a few seconds later and paused, staring down at it. For the first time since he had arrived, the man spoke in his low hiss.
"A line to cross Potter? Wormtail…wait here." He took a solid step forward, leaving the cowering Pettigrew and his silver hand behind. "What are you going to do now?" In response, Harry backed up even faster as the man continued to advance. Leaving the line behind, Voldemort closed the in like a hawk stalking his prey.
With sudden resolve, Harry stopped and stiffened, his previously panicked features gone, replaced in a blink with focus. The split second change in his countenance surprised the wizard and he paused mid step. Harry drew a firm breath and spoke with a cold firmness that betrayed his previous behavior as misdirection. "No further Tom. You go no further." The self named lord of darkness looked momentarily annoyed at the use of his real name, but quickly shrugged it off.
"Very well…if this is the place you wish to die…who am I to argue? You can fall on the same ground as your beloved," he nearly spat the word, "headmaster." Harry knew without looking that they did indeed now stand very close to the base of the astronomy tower where Dumbledore had fallen. He didn't let that knowledge affect him for the moment, he had other things on his mind. He spared half a second for the battle behind Voldemort and could see the first Aurors arriving. Ron must have activated the book. Maybe they could win now. "Now…to make sure we aren't disturbed…" He raised his wand and crackling yellow light shot from it and several meters into the air before spitting apart and spreading to the sides in a wide plane. A moment later the edges began to curve down and form a dome over them that resembled the one they had caused in the graveyard.
As the dome fell around them in a twenty meter wide circle, the last thing Harry could see of the battle was an explosion of attacks from within the ranks of the newly arrived Aurors. Someone had betrayed them. A heartbeat later the crackling yellow light hit the ground and cut off all sight and sounds from the rest of the battlefield.
(A/N): If you feel it is warranted feel free to review. I welcome any and all opinions.