16 Phoenix
After dinner Harry, Ron and Hermione went looking for Hagrid. They'd missed him at the Owlery and needed to return his keys. They slipped across the darkness towards Hagrid's hut. A lone figure stood in their path.
Voldemort turned in their direction. He took in the school grounds almost fondly. He-who-must-not-be-named stood there, wand at his side as if he'd already taken possession of Hogwarts.
"We don't have to fight Harry. Join me."
Harry stood with his wand out and said nothing. Hermione took a step back and pulled her wand. Ron stayed next to Harry, wand also at the ready.
Voldemort waved his arm. Harry's parents appeared just as he had seen them in the Mirror of Erised.
"It's not too late, Potter. I can still bring them back," Voldemort hissed softly.
"You need to worry about who's going to bring you back," Harry snapped.
"You know that you're gonna pay double when you snuff it." Ron said.
Harry looked at him sharply.
"He's cheated Death, Harry, he's got to come to a bad end for that," Ron said unapologetically. Hermione kept moving as if she were looking for the best spot to make a stand.
"Expelliarmus!" Ron's spell set Voldemort off balance for less than an instant.
"Avada Kedavra," the Dark Lord spat. Harry took the deadly green bolt full in the chest and dropped to his knees. Voldemort buckled and nearly dropped his wand. Harry fell back, gasping. Ron and Hermione jumped in front of him, showering Voldemort with hexes. He waved them away with his wand, scattering their spells over his shoulder. A great disturbance rang out from the edge of the Forbidden Forest. The sound reached all the way to the school itself.
An enormous bolt of red light knocked he-who-must-not-be-named to the ground. Harry was back up on one knee. Both wizards got to their feet at the same time. Killing curses flew from each of them. Their wands locked as the two curses wrestled for dominance. Ron charged the Dark Lord and struck at his wand arm. Ron fell to the ground, arm burned to the bone, writhing in pain. Hermione rushed to him with an extinguishing spell. She looked up at the maelstrom of light between Harry and the grotesque snake creature. She examined Ron's mangled arm and uttered a summoning charm.
Her potions bag zoomed to her from across the grounds. She calmly put a healing salve on Ron's arm while Voldemort and Harry fought on with Death Eaters approaching the grounds from the Forbidden Forest.
"I'll be back, Ron," she whispered. Hermione shouldered her bag and crept towards Harry.
Sparks and spells raged between the two wands. The two combatants moved closer to each other still locked by their wands. The magic was strong enough for her to feel it prickling her skin.
She hurled the first dragon-bludger. It burst in the air behind Voldemort. The second burst over his head. As she aimed the third, a corpse-like figure grabbed her arm. Ron let go of her with his good arm and grabbed the sphere from her. The bludger sailed towards Voldemort's chest. He held out his free hand. The orb exploded harmlessly.
Hermione screamed with rage and fear as she threw the last two dragon-bludgers at his blazing wand. He disappeared in a cloud of the sickly yellow smoke.
The wands broke apart. Voldemort stepped like a spectre through the thick yellow fog and laid a Cruciatus Curse on her and Ron.
"Never interfere," he said icily. Ron writhed and convulsed, his eyes rolled back into his head. Hermione curled up into a twitching ball.
Dobby appeared, he dropped a sword and a wand at Harry's feet.
The house elf walked right into the path of Voldemort's wand, drawing the curse to himself. The Cruciatus didn't seem affect him at first, then he began to tremble. Ron pulled Hermione close to him but neither of them was able to get on their feet.
Harry blasted Voldemort onto his back. The Dark Lord rose up as if unhurt. He uttered an arcane curse in a language long unheard. Harry met the ghostly blue curse with a jet of green. Sparks flashed blue-white where the spells crashed against each other but the wands did not lock. Harry held the thick black wand Dobby had left him. He had slung the sword over his shoulder. The effort for Harry to move was brutal. Harry slowly pressed Voldemort back, away from his friends.
The duel became a contest of curses, shields and reflexes, each trying to find an opening, a weakness. They fought right up to the steps of the entrance hall.
