Remus appeared with a pop directly into the Hog's Head. A loud sound assaulted Remus' ears; the Caterwauling Charm had already been set off by others, as multiple wails were heard throughout the village.
"Here!" Aberforth called from the bar. "Through here."
Remus stepped around the bar towards an opening. Aberforth led him towards an open portrait hole, through which Remus climbed and wandered towards what he hoped was the castle. Upon reaching the end of the tunnel, Remus found himself in a room filled with familiar, tired faces.
"Harry was just here!" announced Neville. "He's off to find something - something from Ravenclaw, we think."
"Where do you need us?" Kingsley asked.
"We're not sure yet," Neville replied, looking around at his fellow classmates. Remus was taken aback by how bold Neville looked; despite his various injuries, Neville had grown into quite the leader.
A door burst open to reveal Harry, Ron, and Hermione at the top of a few steps. Remus rushed forward, and asked, "Harry, what's happening?"
Harry was bewildered and more ragged-looking than Remus had seen him before, but he replied, "Voldemort's on his way, they're barricading the school - Snape's run for it - What are you doing here? How did you know?"
Fred quickly explained the notifications sent to the D.A. and the Order of the Phoenix, while Harry replied with the plans to evacuate the school. The whole room emptied, leaving Remus with Mrs. Weasley, Ginny, Bill, Fleur, Fred, George, Harry, Ron, and Hermione. Ginny was struggling against her mother.
The argument was broken by the sudden appearance of Percy Weasley, who stammered an apology and looked expectantly at his family. The silence of the room plunged everyone into awkwardness, until Fleur spoke up.
"So - 'ow eez leetle Teddy?" Fleur asked.
Remus blinked, startled, and then replied.
"I - oh yes - he's fine!" Remus said loudly. "yes, Tonks is with him - at her mother's—"
Everyone stared at one another, frozen.
"Here, I've got a picture!" Remus shouted, pulling the photograph Dora had given him earlier that day. He showed the photograph to Fleur and Harry, who both looked in awe at Remus' bright turquoise haired son, waving his chubby fists to the camera.
Percy spoke again, suddenly, spluttering apologizes towards the members of his family. After some name-calling and berating, Ginny was back to fighting with her mother for her to stay at the castle to fight alongside the others.
Trying to steer the conversation back to something more sensible, Remus spoke again. "Molly, how about this? Why doesn't Ginny stay here, then at least she'll be on the scene and know what's going on, but she won't be in the middle of the fighting?"
Ginny attempted to protest, but Molly and Arthur glared at her sternly, causing the teenager to scowl. Remus followed the remaining Weasleys to the stairs and out of the Room of Requirement. The seventh floor corridor was eerily empty, but Remus could hear shouting and scurrying from several staircases below.
From each window to the outside, Remus cast as many protective enchantments as he could think of to secure the castle. It became a mantra as he descended each floor: "Protego maxima! Fianto duri! Repello inimicum!" The spells were said solemnly, nearly-chanting, as he rounded upon each corner and corridor of the castle, hoping that each enchantment would save one more life from being harmed that night.
Remus finally made his way downstairs, following Molly and Arthur, to come upon the Great Hall. Students were seated at their House tables, looking anything from terrified to excited at the events occurring at Hogwarts. McGonagall made her announcements to evacuate the Houses and all the underage students.
The hurried orders of McGonagall were soon drowned out by a high, cold voice that sent shivers down Remus' spine:
"I know that you are preparing to fight. Your efforts are futile. You cannot fight me. I do not want to kill you. I have great respect for the teachers of Hogwarts. I do not want to spill magical blood."
The voice sent terrifying shivers up and down Remus' tired body. Hearing Voldemort himself speak to everyone caused a creepy, unnerving silence to fall over the once-buzzing Great Hall.
Voldemort spoke again.
"Give me Harry Potter, and none shall be harmed. Give me Harry Potter, and I shall leave the school untouched. Give me Harry Potter, and you will be rewarded. You have until midnight."
Astonishingly, an older Slytherin girl Remus recognized as Miss Parkinson threatened to hand Harry over herself. Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs, and Ravenclaws all stood before Harry, wands out, in defiance.
McGonagall dismissed the Slytherins and Kingsley spoke, giving assignments to the students and Order members alike. Remus was assigned to guard the grounds with Kingsley and Arthur.
"Gryffindors who are of age, with me!" Arthur called, as the eldest Gryffindor students whipped their wands out and followed Arthur out to the grounds.
"Ravenclaws, with me!" Kingsley announced, leading a small, but determined group of older Ravenclaws with him.
"Hufflepuffs, you're with me!" Remus shouted. "To the grounds!"
"Professor Lupin!" Ernie Macmillan called. "It's so good to see you!"
"We heard you got married!" Hannah Abbott squealed.
"Is it true your wife was a Hufflepuff?" Susan Bones asked, a wide grin on her face.
"All true," Remus beamed. "My wife, who likes to be called by her surname, Tonks, was a Hufflepuff, and we had a son almost a month ago, called Teddy."
The girls smiled at him and begged for a picture. Remus gladly showed them the photograph of the turquoise-haired Teddy, making the girls ooh and ahh at him.
"If we all make it out of this, I'll bring Tonks and Teddy by to meet you all," Remus said, grinning. "For now, we have a battle to win."
The Hufflepuffs around him had their wands out, ready to take others on. There were nearly fifteen of them around him; almost all the sixth and seventh years he had taught when they were second and third years were determined to fight. Remus taught them all the protective enchantments he'd been using, and the Hufflepuffs surrounded him in placing enchantments around the grounds. Remus noticed they were near the Hufflepuff common room when they were out in the grounds and smiled to himself, despite the stress. Dora would be proud of him for helping to keep the Hufflepuffs safe from harm.
Remus looked up to the sky, where he saw sparks flying against the enchantments he and the Hufflepuffs had just placed.
"They're going to crumble eventually," Remus said, with a heavy sigh, upon looking at the anxious students in front of him. "We're going to hold out as long as we can, and then we duel." Remus swallowed as the enchantments continued to break.
"What—what if—" Hannah looked up to the sky, eyes wide with terror.
"We fight to the death, if necessary, Hannah," Remus said solemnly, now looking at the others. "Let me die before any of you do. I know the risks I took. I'll fend as many away as I can, and cast any spell you know to deter them. Some of them are going to be very experienced. It might be four of you against one of them to take them down. Work together, and work hard. Make Hufflepuff House proud."
"Hear, hear!" Ernie said, puffing out his chest. Remus had always thought the boy was a little pompous, but the other Hufflepuffs clearly looked up to him. They wore similar expressions of understated bravery and resilience, which reminded Remus terribly of Dora and her bravery.
Remus looked up again to see that the enchantments were still failing, despite several of the others' attempts to keep them up. He glanced over at Arthur and Kingsley's groups - their students were also pointing their wands up to the sky, but the Death Eaters were stronger and breeching the protective enchantments.
"We're only going to be able to hold on a few minutes longer!" Remus shouted. "Prepare to fight!"
Just as Remus predicted, a few minutes later, figures began appearing at the edge of the grounds, coming wildly for them. Remus stole one more glance at the photograph of his son, before tucking it back into his jacket. For Teddy. For Dora, he promised himself.
Lower-ranking Death Eaters arrived first, and Remus stepped in front of the students to bear the brunt of the attacks.
The first Death Eater was disarmed quickly, and rushed towards Remus; the Death Eater attempted to grab Remus by the collar, but Remus sent him flying backwards with a Flipendo, and the Death Eater's limp frame slid against the side of the castle, as blood from behind the Death Eater's skull came trickling down against the stone wall.
Two more Death Eaters arrived. Remus cast stunning spells first, knocking the two on their backs immediately. Remus could smell the fear coming from the stunned Death Eaters; Remus met their eyes and cast Incarcerous on them both, binding them together.
Three more Death Eaters arrived now, better versed in their spells. A few well-placed Stinging Hexes and Conjunctivitis Curses blinded the three Death Eaters coming at him. The Conjunctivitis Curse worked splendidly, and Remus could see the pus emerging from their swollen eyes as they cried in agony and fell over, pounding their fists into the charred grass at their feet. Remus took the moment to cast Expelliarmus on the three Death Eaters; he further incapacitated them by tying them together with another well placed Incarcerous. With each wand he caught, he snapped it in half to keep the Death Eaters from casting any spells as they approached the Hufflepuff students.
Remus didn't recognize any of the Death Eaters coming his way, and they were clumsier than the ones he was accustomed to. They ambled, as if drunk, towards the castle, casting curses from their wands haphazardly. Slabs of stone and rock began raining down upon Remus and the Hufflepuffs. While the students began blasting the boulders of stone apart, Remus took to disarming the approaching the Death Eaters immediately.
When disarming failed, he summoned sizable portions of boulder and sent them hurling into the approaching Death Eaters. One by one, boulders slammed into their fleshy, lumpy bodies, and the Death Eaters flew backwards, some pinned under the weight of the stone. Disarming continued, and a small pile of snapped wands lay at his feet. In a brief moment of idleness, Remus cast Incendio on the pile, reducing the wands to ash.
Remus looked at his own wand and hands momentarily, horrified. He had been mercilessly and unthinkingly slaughtering Death Eaters. When he looked behind him, every Hufflepuff under his care was still alive and fighting. It would be worth it, if they were all alive and came home to their parents, he reminded himself.
Remus was proud to see that the Hufflepuff students were well-matched for the lower-ranking Death Eaters, and they were dueling well. The few lower-ranking Death Eaters who managed to get past Remus were just barely outpacing the Hufflepuffs.
Remus turned around, as he saw a new wave of Death Eaters on the horizon. He was still on the frontline of the Hufflepuffs, just as Kingsley was on the frontline for the Ravenclaws and Arthur was on the frontline for the Gryffindors. The Death Eaters were speeding across the grounds. With each Death Eater Remus and the students were incapacitating, a newer, stronger one came from the shadows.
Remus grew anxious; Voldemort had sent the weakest ones to weaken the castle's forces, in order to send the strongest and most loyal into battle after the weaker Death Eaters were injured.
The simple stunning spells and disarming that the weaker Death Eaters had been sending were now being replaced by Dark curses. Remus was dueling in earnest now, panting and sweating with the effort. The Hufflepuffs were now doubling or tripling up to take on each Death Eater. Remus was taking on two at a time, interchanging his own hexes and jinxes with shield charms as he battled the two robed figures on either side of him.
A flash of green light stared Remus in the eyes, and he jumped aside as the stray Killing Curse singed the end of his robes. The scent of singed fabric reached his nose, which began picking up another scent.
A new, tall figure approached Remus from the shadows. Remus could smell the figure before he could see him. Remus smelled the hot, rotting stench of spoiled meat. The metallic tang of dried blood. The charred edges of clothing and human hair – or was it fur?
Fenrir Greyback was now in Remus' line of vision.
"You took my mates and my children," Fenrir growled, staring at Remus with murder in his eyes. Fenrir began casting curses upon Remus. Ribbons of purple, green, and red emerged from Fenrir's wand, and it took all of Remus' effort to move around to avoid the hexes, while simultaneously casting shield charms from others' stray curses.
"I saved innocent children," Remus retorted harshly, as he cast a jinx at Fenrir. The older werewolf had improved in his dueling skills, slightly alarming Remus.
"When you are dead," Fenrir grinned menacingly, "your precious multicolored mate will be mine." Fenrir sent more hexes towards Remus; each was just barely missing Remus. His threadbare robes were charred around all the edges.
"She's mine," Remus said coldly, casting another Dark curse at Fenrir. Never had Remus wanted to hurt another human being – this monster – like he wanted to hurt Fenrir.
"Your pup will be mine too," Fenrir goaded. "I smell him on you. You have your own pup now, don't you?"
"You will never touch my son," Remus growled. Fenrir's threats against his family – his pack – were only fueling the lethal fire in Remus' soul.
Remus conjured a ball of fire and flung it at Fenrir's face. Fenrir deflected it with a shield charm and cast a torrent of ice in Remus' direction. Remus rebounded the ice, melting it so that Fenrir became soaked and staggered in the wet grass, falling on his back.
Before Remus could cast another spell, Fenrir had disarmed him. Remus was now wandless ahead of Fenrir, and watched in abject horror as Fenrir snapped Remus' wand with his sharp teeth.
Remus was now completely unarmed, and the pile of wands he'd disarmed from others was nothing but ash.
"FIGHT ME LIKE THE BEAST YOU ARE!" Fenrir bellowed, as he brandished his wand at Remus.
"Professor!" Hannah called. She brought Susan with her, and they cast shield charms in front of Remus, deflecting the curse Fenrir had sent.
"Disarm him!" Remus cried. Both Susan and Hannah attempted to disarm Fenrir, but the wand stayed firmly in the monster's grasp.
"You brought me girls again, Lupin," Fenrir growled, a perverse smirk on his face. "I'll take them before I take your mate!"
"NO!" Remus yelled. Susan and Hannah were struggling to fight against Fenrir, who was casting curses at each of them. Without a wand, Remus felt helpless.
"Once I'm finished with your mate, then I'll take your pup," Fenrir sneered. "For a snack, of course!"
"FUCK YOU!" Remus screamed. The threats to his wife and son had reached a tipping point, and rage was now blinding the younger werewolf.
Remus saw his moment as Ernie joined the skirmish with Hannah and Susan. Fenrir briefly took his gaze off Remus, and the younger werewolf took the opportunity to lunge at Fenrir with his bare hands.
It had been years since Remus was in a physical fight, but the rage was boiling in his veins at the threats made against his family. The desire for blood, for murder, was ranging through Remus' body and he was readying himself to rip out Fenrir's throat – even if he had to do it with his own teeth.
Remus slammed his fist into Fenrir's face. The pain was excruciating in Remus' hand, but it paled in comparison to the thought of Fenrir anywhere near Dora and Teddy.
Remus heard the panicked screams of the Hufflepuffs around him, as all three attempted to disarm Fenrir.
They weren't successful, as Remus had taken it upon himself to snatch the wand from Fenrir's hand and shove it into Fenrir's eye until the older werewolf howled in agony at the gouging.
Remus snarled and pummeled his fists into Fenrir's face. Furious, Fenrir began fighting back and pinned Remus underneath him. Fenrir slashed Remus' face with his sharpened nails. Remus felt the blood on his face, stinging in the night air.
"I'll be pinning your mate underneath me, just like this, when I take her," Fenrir breathed into Remus' face. Remus smelled the rotten, putrid breath on his face, and the disgust he felt for the older werewolf led Remus to use wandless magic to thrust Fenrir off his chest and fly back against the ground.
Remus' eyes were watering with the stinging of the scratches on his face, but he was determined to destroy Fenrir. The blood was pounding in his ears, and he felt the coppery, tangy taste of blood in his mouth. Wet, hot blood was dripping from his lips and onto his chin.
Fenrir stirred and lunged towards Remus. For his part, Remus grabbed Fenrir by the collar and shoved his knee into the older werewolf's groin. Fenrir stumbled back, reeling from the intensity of the pain. Remus took the chance to place Fenrir into a headlock, thrusting Fenrir back to the ground.
Remus began pummeling Fenrir's face again with his fists. Remus felt the crunch of broken bones in his hands, as well as the crunch of Fenrir's broken nose. Remus kept pummeling Fenrir's face until it was a bloody, unrecognizable mess. Remus felt a perverse joy in destroying the man who had ruined his life in so many ways.
Fenrir growled and pounced Remus back, using his sharp claws anywhere that would land on Remus' body. Remus felt the sting of the werewolf's sharp nails on his face, neck, and upper arms. Fenrir was flailing on top of Remus, their blood intermingling in the tussle.
Remus was struggling under Fenrir's weight. He was becoming exhausted, physically and magically, and his defenses were becoming weaker as he lost blood.
Fenrir seemed to notice Remus' weakened state and began growling – or was it laughing? Fenrir took several more swipes at Remus' neck, leaving Remus gasping for air.
In a surge of adrenalin, Remus took his hands and wrapped them around Fenrir's meaty neck, wringing the air out of Fenris' windpipe with everything he had.
Fenrir was thrashing under Remus' hold, and despite Remus' slight wooziness from blood loss, he held onto Fenrir's neck for dear life, thrusting Fenrir's skull backwards into the night sky until he heard a grotesque snap underneath his thumbs. Fenrir fell back, blood gushing from his mouth, and he staggered onto the bloodstained grass.
Remus fell over as well, gasping for his life. He lay in the grass, staring at the night sky, as warm blood pooled at his neck and chest. He wasn't certain if he was breathing or choking. His breaths were shallow, and each was tinged with the taste and smell of tangy, metallic blood.
"Professor Lupin!" Hannah cried. Remus was losing consciousness, and Hannah was shakily casting healing spells on him. Remus continued spluttering blood from his mouth and neck.
"Madam Pomfrey will help!" Susan yelled. "Cast the protection charms!"
Remus felt a peculiar sensation beginning from the top of his head to his feet, as if an egg had been cracked on him. The girls were disillusioning him.
He was able to see the fighting from his periphery now; more advanced Death Eaters had arrived while he was fist fighting Fenrir, and the Hufflepuffs were just barely managing four students to one Death Eater.
The sound of soft, heavy bodies thudding around him was difficult to ignore, even with his own gurgles to stay alive. He still wasn't certain if he was breathing or choking. It hurt to take in any breath at all; he suspected broken ribs. This was as cruel as a lonely post-full moon, and yet he was helpless to save himself.
"Well, well, well, look what we have here!" Bellatrix Lestrange's cackle was easily identified. Remus felt the effect of the Disillusionment Charm wearing off.
Antonin Dolohov was at Bellatrix's side, sneering alongside her.
"If it isn't the half-breed himself," Dolohov jeered. "Looks like he made quite a mess of our own pet, didn't he?"
"What would your precious Dumbledore say to that, beast?" Bellatrix mocked. "Aren't you the noble ones, not killing?"
Remus could do nothing but gurgle, feeling the sticky mess of blood all over his broken, battered body.
"Finish him off," Bellatrix ordered Dolohov.
"I like to play with my food first," Bellatrix noted, before her cackle became quieter, as she presumably walked away to terrorize someone else.
"Crucio!" Dolohov cast upon Remus.
Every remaining nerve Remus had in his body was on fire. It was being stabbed. It was being tortured. Knives were entering every battered inch of flesh hanging on his body. Hot, stabbing pains were invading all his senses, organs, and nerves. He could barely think through the pain. It was searing, senseless, debilitating pain.
The stinging blood was nothing compared to this.
His throat being ripped to shreds was nothing compared to this.
A full moon transformation was almost as terrible as this.
The pain from the Cruciatus Curse wasn't going anywhere.
Remus thought to beg for death. He thought to beg for an end to his misery. He screamed, he cried, he begged for it to be over. Fenrir was dead now – all that was left was Bellatrix. Dora and Teddy could live free for the rest of their lives!
"Just kill me!" Remus screamed. "Stop it!"
"Not when I can hear you beg and cry," Dolohov jeered. The Cruciatus Curse was still wreaking havoc on his battered body. Remus felt himself grow in and out of consciousness, despite the pain.
"I'M BEGGING YOU, END IT NOW!" Remus howled in agony. "KILL ME!"
"I'm enjoying myself," Dolohov said lazily.
The pain was overwhelming; Remus simply couldn't bear it anymore. He couldn't feel anything anymore. He closed his eyes, begging for mercy from someone – anyone – to put him out of his misery.
Through his barely open, tear stained, bloodshot eyes, he saw a flash of green.
His pain stopped.