Disclaimer: All of this is based upon the lovely J.K. Rowling's work. I own nothing except Salazar's wife, son, and various other original characters. This story is an AU of sixth year, but it will contain a few spoilers from Half-Blood Prince and Deathly Hallows. However, it will still seriously diverge from canon.
"blah": dialogue
'blah': thoughts
"blah" : Parseltongue
"blah": Legilimency/Telepathy
Italics: excerpt from a book /newspaper or any other written form
Bold: a word or phrase that is emphasized
Italics, Underlined, and Bold: location/date of a scene in the story
The chapter is dedicated to TheGoldenSeraphim for her awesome reviews and comments.
Chapter Twenty-Nine: Here, There be Monsters, Part Two
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, The Dungeons: October 31st, 1996
Remus stared at the Marauder's map, his brow furrowed. How he wished he could be out there right now, helping his friends. He should be out there, protecting his adopted godson, the very last member of his pack. He had sworn to Lily and James and then later to Sirius that he would look after Harry if anything ever happened to them, and the werewolf fully intended to keep that promise.
But the blasted full moon was getting in his way.
It had been only been two days ago, but it still left him weak and shaking, not healthy enough to be of use in a full-on battle. Still, the urge to project the pack's cub was strong, even if the cub himself was all but grown.
Truthfully, Remus had been somewhat surprised by the change in Harry over the summer, something that was nothing short of a miraculous transformation. Gone was the angry and depressed boy. And in his place was a man, an intelligent and strong yet compassionate man.
Remus couldn't possibly have been prouder, and he knew Sirius would have been, too.
Harry had grown; he had left the very last vestiges of childhood behind, whatever scant ones remained after living with the Dursleys for fifteen years. He had shown up at headquarters with a strategy to defeat Voldemort already in the works, one which hadn't really needed much tweaking or input from his friends. Still, he had worked through it with those he trusted, highlighting the key points and willingly reworking the ones he wasn't sure about. He had solicited their opinions on the headmaster, the Order, the war, and the wizarding world at large in a way he never would have before.
Harry truly was an adult now. The young man was quick, witty, and wise. He was calm and thoughtful with a wicked twinkle in his eye. He was mischievous yet friendly.
He was scarily similar to Albus Dumbledore
And he was just as much Remus' friend now as the werewolf had been with James and Sirius. Though Harry would always remain his surrogate godson, no matter how old he was.
And now, Remus had to find his cub, his friend. He had to know how Harry was, if he was alright, though the map wouldn't really tell him that.
He had tried the easy method, of course. Remus had tapped the map with his wand and had said, "Harry Potter." But it hadn't worked. The map hadn't zeroed in on the teenager. And that meant one of three things. Harry wasn't within the range of the map. He was dead. Or the map was malfunctioning.
Remus knew the first to be false. Harry was definitely up there, and the werewolf doubted the Death Eaters would have had the time to kidnap him and drag the sixth-year off. If they had even been able to take him down in the first place.
The second sent a shiver of pure dread up Remus' spine, so he flat out refused to even think of it.
So that left only option three. The map wasn't working properly. It was the most likely, too, especially when counting the fact that Remus had seen the name Rowena Ravenclaw briefly blink into existence where there had only been Minerva McGonagall and Archimedea Vector before.
So if the map was malfunctioning, that meant he would have to search manually, which was exactly what he was doing. His eyes scanned the parchment's surface, gliding over all the assorted names. And were there ever names.
There had to be several hundred people listed on the grounds alone, most of whom were no longer alive. Luckily though, the Inferi didn't show up like everyone else on the map. In truth, the blasted parchment seemed rather confused what to do with them. It didn't know if they qualified as people or as objects, so it just displayed them in a very hazy grey. But despite that fact, Remus couldn't help but goggle at the sheer amount of them, trying not to read their names as his eyes searched.
Beside him, the former professor heard a sniffle, which momentarily distracted him from his quest. Remus turned to the little student who was sitting next to him, smiling kindly at the very frightened girl and her equally terrified year-mates. She merely whimpered before an older boy, a Gryffindor by his tie, went to her. However, his whispered words didn't seem to be effective, and the girl burst into tears.
Remus was just about to reach for her, waving a nearby Poppy away, when a dark-headed girl nudged both him and the older student to the side. She wrapped an arm around her friend, tucking the girl's head onto her shoulder. Then, she nodded to Remus and the Gryffindor, who looked on helplessly before taking a seat on the other side of the werewolf. Remus nodded back to the girl, staring intently into her very deep brown eyes. They looked vaguely familiar as did the student herself, though he couldn't quite place her.
At least, she seemed to be taking the situation rather well, and she was one of the few in her year or among any of them really. Out of all those gathered, the first-years were taking it the worst, not that anyone could really blame them. They were just children, in the truest sense of the word, and were so very young. It was understandable that they would be frightened. Well, terrified more like. It was only months into their magical education, and they were already being attacked, a battle happening just above their heads.
Even the older students interspersed throughout and Remus himself, who sat at the middle of their large group of first and second-years, could not seem to comfort them. The werewolf shuddered to think what would happen if the Death Eaters actually managed to enter the castle, if they were forced to flee through the secret tunnels Albus had shown Filius, Pomona, and he just days earlier. Remus didn't know how well the children would handle that, though he could hazard a guess. Just the thought alone sent chills down his already aching spine.
"Do you see my brother on there?" the dark-headed girl from earlier asked him, interrupting his reverie. At his look, she gestured at the map with her free hand, her friend's head still on her shoulder.
Remus blinked at her calm tone. "What's his name?" He eyed the first-year's Slytherin crest absentmindedly, mind focused on the fact that these children had to know he was a werewolf but that they were also close to him in spite of it.
"Blaise… Blaise Zabini," she replied slowly. "He said that he had to, you know," she carried on.
Remus looked at her with bewilderment.
"Blaise said that he had to protect the school, that he had to protect me. He had to stand with his friends."
The former teacher's face alit with comprehension, glancing back to the girl, who looked remarkable like her older sibling. "I can understand that. If I recall correctly, Blaise was very loyal to his friends when I had him as a student."
The girl gazed up at him, worry beginning to become visible on her face despite her attempts to quell it. She shivered very slightly, but it wasn't from the cold air of the room.
"Well, let's see if we can find him then," Remus put in, seeing her fight the losing battle. He eyed the map before deciding that he might as well try again, so the werewolf tapped it with his wand.
"Blaise Zabini."
Instantly, the map zoomed onto a spot near the direct center of the field in front of Hogwarts. There, in very dark ink, was the Slytherin in question, his name and little icon bouncing to the side as he sidestepped a streak of orange light from a dot labeled Patrick Goldstein. Remus, the Zabini girl, and the Gryffindor on the werewolf's other side watched with bated breath as another person, Millicent Bulstrode, appeared in their field of view. A flare of red-purple light left her miniscule and inky wand as she hexed the Death Eater from behind. His dot went still, though didn't fade away.
The first-year heaved a sigh of relief and blinked her slightly watery eyes up at Remus. "Thank you," she whispered, watching as her brother and his friend joined up with Theodore Nott and cursed another Death Eater in the back.
"What about Harry?" the older Gryffindor boy questioned after a moment. "Have you seen Harry on there?" the mousy student asked again.
Remus turned to look at him and belatedly realized that it was Colin Creevey, his godson's occasional stalker and sometime photographer. How he hadn't recognized the boy earlier was beyond him. Though truthfully, the werewolf had been rather distracted with the map, and his mind had taken to wandering as it sometimes did just after the full moon. Remus absentmindedly wondered why Colin wasn't in the battle, especially since he was a member of the original DA. Most likely, it was so the younger students would have extra protection in the event that the Death Eaters entered the castle. Or perhaps he simply hadn't wanted to fight, though the former teacher seriously doubted that.
"I haven't seen him yet," Remus admitted, trying to be quiet so that only Colin could hear him. "The map is malfunctioning, so it only lets me do a quick search sometimes. It worked with Blaise but not Harry."
"Malfunctioning?" the Gryffindor queried, his voice full of alarm. "Are you sure that he hasn't been taken or that he isn't…" the boy trailed off, unwilling to continue.
The older man responded hurriedly, "He's not dead, Colin." Remus patted the boy's shoulder. "I know that map is malfunctioning since people keep showing up that couldn't possibly be there." His eyes trailed back to the map, landing on two particular names. "See, even now, it has Rowena Ravenclaw and Elgin Hufflepuff."
Colin gave a small smile. "And they can't possibly be there; we know that at least one of them has been dead for a thousand years, and the other, well… I didn't think there were any of that Founder's family left."
"Not the family name," Remus put in as he searched the map once more, "but I think the line is still active."
The Gryffindor bit his lips, watching as the former professor continued to look over the parchment. Several moments passed that way, with the werewolf frowning severely, before the boy hopped up and slowly wandered away.
Remus, however, didn't even notice. He was too wrapped up in his task to even see the little Slytherin beside him put her head on his shoulder, her worried but oh-so-tired eyes drifting shut.
The former professor's gaze roved over the parchment, pausing as he recognized certain people. Remus eyed the names Draco Malfoy and Narcissa Black Malfoy, flinching when he realized that the two were dueling, an apparently unconscious Athena Avis nearby. He saw Draco dive out of the way of a pair of blue-black lights, the definite color of a Cruciatus curse. But the young man did manage to send back a yellow spell of his own, his mother barely stepping out of the way. A little voice bubble appeared above the teenager.
"Espejo Mágico."
And Narcissa's next spell bounced straight back at her.
Wide eyes gaped at the duel, unable to tear away his gaze. Still, as much as the werewolf wanted to continue watching, as much as he wanted to see if the Slytherin would make it out alright, the man had another mission. Remus had to find Harry.
Resolve filling him, he forced his amber eyes to another spot, looking determinately at a different portion of the map. Strangely, this part seemed to be entirely filled by Inferi. They were everywhere, a veritable sea of the undead. The entire section of the map was a grey cloud of them as there were so many that their names overlapped and were impossible to read.
The former teacher studied the hazy mess of Inferi, eyes flickering over it. Yet, something at the direct center of the swarm caught his attention. There was a single bit of black writing amongst all the grey, and the werewolf squinted, moving his head closer. The seething hoard of Inferi jostled over the lone, black icon, obscuring it. Moments passed, the grey clouding the edges of the name, even as the person in question blasted the abominations away. There was a sudden burst of pure bluish-white, a massive flame spell, and an area around the person cleared.
At last, Remus was able to read it. And he goggled at the name, his stomach dropping to rest somewhere near his ankles.
Harry Potter.
His surrogate godson was in the middle of the seething mass of Inferi that were, even then, reforming around him.
The wolf inside him rose forcefully, urging him to abandon his post and rescue his cub, but sense soon won out. Remus knew he couldn't leave. He was in no condition to assist Harry. Most likely, if he went to him, the older man would be more liability than liberator.
Still, he couldn't just sit there and do nothing. There had to be something.
But even as he watched Harry battling his way through the Inferi, something unexpected happened. His name quickly blurred and disappeared, though the tiny, inky person underneath it remained. And Remus' heart jumped into his throat, not knowing what this meant. Fortunately, his agony was short-lived as the map quickly wrote something else in the words' place.
Salazar Slytherin.
Remus simply goggled at it, minutes ticking by. He just stared, watching as the little icon continued to fight the Inferi, completely oblivious to what was happening to the writing flashing above. More time flew by, and the man started when the name again blurred and was once more rewritten.
Harry Potter.
Confusion filled Remus completely, but the urging of his wolf tugged at his mind once again. Dragging his attention back to the task at hand.
Frantically, Remus' eyes darted around the grey swarm, hoping against hope that someone was nearby, that anyone was nearby. Evidentially, his whispered prayers were heard as the man noticed two more black names dart onto the scene, battling their way from the edges of the hoard toward Harry. And with bated breath, he turned his gaze to the first of them.
Severus Snape.
He breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that his cub was in good hands. So he turned to the second, only to immediately snarl, the girl on his shoulder waking with a start. Remus positively growled at the map, amber eyes burning with rage. The wolf within him rose again, this time in grief and anger.
If anything, Harry was in more danger than before, even counting the hundred Inferi surrounding him. And Remus was not going to sit idly by, watching as his friend was murdered.
He had to get help for Harry. He had summon someone, get them to go in his place.
And in that moment, Remus knew exactly what he had to do.
Department of Mysteries, Various Locations: The Same Day
Alastor Moody smiled grimly as he heard the thump of a body behind him, and his magical eye whirled from Nott to his two other opponents. Trust the same Death Eater who had cost him his eye to forget that he had a magical one now. The ex-Auror chuckled at that thought as he blasted one dark-robed figure and then the other in the very same fashion, the woman not even knowing what hit her.
He just loved stupid opponents; they were their own worst enemy.
Mad-Eye rounded to curse another, one of the new Auror recruits taking out the man's partner. Alastor's smile widened at the next spell his helper cast, watching as her Patronus tore through the Death Eater ranks, her silvery horse corporeal enough to actually kick one of them in the head. He eyed the girl, seeing her take down a foe with a sharp kick of her own to the groin.
'Johnson,' Moody recalled, magical eye whirling about. 'She's one of Potter's people,' he added and saw that all of the Death Eaters were down for the count.
He mentally calculated as he noted their numbers. Mad-Eye was pleasantly surprised when he realized that while they had some casualties, there were no fatalities. At least not on their side. The Death Eaters hadn't been so lucky, but it wasn't like he was going to cry over that fact or anything. It was their own damned fault.
"Johnson, report!" Alastor barked out to the young woman and hobbled over.
"We have a few injuries, sir," she replied steadfastly, handing her friend over to one of the field medics and standing at attention, "but the worst are Alicia's broken ankle and Percy's dislocated shoulder."
Moody nodded, mad eye swiveling over to the redhead, who was being tended by an older Unspeakable. The ex-Auror briefly wondered if the boy's transfer into the Department of Mysteries had been willing. He also speculated whether Arthur knew what his son had been up to or not. His mind further drifted to the Weasley patriarch and Apollo, curious as to how they were holding up against their former friend, but Alastor's common sense and the current situation soon caught up with him.
He didn't bother to reprimand her for using her friends' first names in her report. "What else, recruit?" he commanded.
The former Gryffindor kept a straight face, despite the excitement in her eyes. "Two Death Eaters are dead with three more critical. Master Healer Tonks is overseeing them now."
"Good." Moody nodded again, his attention going from the recruit to the Healer and back. "You did good today, Johnson. Real good. You were diligent and observant, but you also used unexpected tactics." Both of his eyes whirled to look at the tall female, who was just an inch shorter than him. "Tell me, where did you learn that to do with your Patronus, Johnson? That's a tactic I haven't seen since the war against Grindelwald."
The dark-skinned recruit had to fight a grin at the praise. "From a friend during the DA meetings last year, sir."
"Potter?" the ex-Auror asked with a slight hitch to his voice, even as he hobbled over to the downed Death Eaters and motioned for the girl to follow.
She shook her head. "No, sir. Harry just instructed me on how to cast it and make it corporeal." Angelina paused to help the Aurors and Unspeakables spell bindings on their captives. "It was Luna Lovegood, sir. She said that she learned it from her grandfather."
Several corridors away, Apollo Avis ducked, a Stunner whizzing over his head and hitting one of the display cases. Well, it would have hit the case had the Shielding spells that were laced throughout the vault not activated, absorbing the magic. The Unspeakable dodged again as his former friend sent a Blinding hex followed by a Percussion jinx, both of which hit a bookshelf. The shield snapped into focus again, this time deflecting the spells toward the ceiling.
Growling now, the Death Eater sent another volley of magic, stomping as his adversary ducked around a row of shelves. Despite the smell of power in the room and the feel of energy from his spells, Apollo was grateful to notice that Rookwood wasn't aiming to kill. At least, not yet. Perhaps the ex-Unspeakable just couldn't bring himself to do that to his old friend, though the Order member wasn't willing to bet on that.
Rookwood had murdered his boss, Director Revan, who they were still finding pieces of sixteen years later. Well, supposedly murdered at any rate. The other Unspeakables still weren't sure what spell was used. Much less who actually did it, though most suspected Augustus Rookwood.
The brunet zipped around another shelf, separating himself from his foe and hoping to flank him. He briefly wondered how Arthur was, praying that the two other Death Eaters hadn't harmed him. He had lost the redhead in the chaos when the pair had shown up, moving to help their leader. Rookwood had actually managed to alert them to his situation somehow, though Apollo hadn't seen him do it.
The Order member glanced around, seeing no other people or spells racing by, and he started to not only wonder about his friend's condition but also where the hell he was. Apollo snapped out of his reverie as magenta light flashed into existence, clipping him in the side. Flames raced through his belly, and he immediately knew that he had been hit by a Fire-Fever jinx, a spell designed to incapacitate the victim by overheating them in seconds. It wasn't deadly or particularly dangerous in its own right, but it would leave him completely helpless as fever ravaged his body. Luckily though, Apollo knew the counter, casting it on himself before the fire could spread further than his stomach.
However, the Unspeakable's luck seemed to have run out as another spell flew at him from behind. He didn't have enough time to move out of the way, and the Bone-Shattering curse lived up to its name as it caught his ankle. Apollo felt the bone splinter, pain shooting up his leg. He bit his lip to keep from crying out and alerting the Death Eater to his presence, which didn't really matter since the man already knew where he was.
All this time he had been trying to flank Augustus, only to be outflanked by him. He had forgotten just how good his friend had been at chess. In fact, Rookwood had usual beaten him, and it was a reminder that was greatly emphasized by the red light that flew from above and caught the Order member in the shoulder as he sagged into one of the display cases.
Just a few feet away, by the entrance to the vault, Arthur's eyes flickered around. Edgecombe and the MacMillan boy were down for the count nearby, victims of a specialized Stunner that had recently been developed by Apollo and his sister. The regular counter to the spell alone wouldn't work, and the only way for them to wake up would be for either the magic to wear off, which it would in roughly twelve hours, or for him to use a password with the counter.
That left only Rookwood, and Arthur wasn't sure if he was in good enough condition for that. His leg could barely support his weight due to the fact that it was fractured in two places, and his side was aching fiercely from a miscast Entrail-Expelling curse. Further, he had just seen Apollo brought down by another Stunner.
The redhead did have one advantage, however, one which he fully intended to use. Rookwood didn't know he was still in the fight nor had the man seen how he had taken out the two Death Eater lackeys.
Nodding to himself, he quietly spelled his unconscious foes invisible and hobbled over to one of the cases, sinking to the floor and propping himself up against it. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a wand he had taken from his earlier duel, snapping it cleanly in two and tossing the pieces a few feet away. Next, he carefully placed his real wand under his leg and next to one of his hands. He then slowly lulled his head to the side, sagging against the case behind him and appearing to all the world as though he was unconscious. Or dead.
Now, all he had to do was wait, and the entire time Arthur did so, he promised himself that he would learn to duel better. It hadn't been one of his skills in the last lifetime. And that fact was coming back to bite him on the ass, if his injuries were anything to go by.
Thankfully, or maybe not, the redhead didn't have long to wait as the remaining Death Eater slowly came around the corner, wand in front. When nothing flew at him, he eased out further, eyes darting all around. Soon enough, they landed on the Arthur, studying him for several long seconds before flitting to the broken wand nearby. His gaze traveled to the exit just five feet away, not seeing his invisible and still unconscious fellows.
Thinking his opponents unconscious, Rookwood stole forward and stood to the side of his former friend and in front of a bookshelf. He was just about to stun the man again just to be sure when Arthur, who had been listening intently, took his chance. His fingers were already resting on his concealed wand, and he barely lifted the tip of it off the floor. Eyes snapping open, he cast.
Without thinking, Augustus sidestepped instead of blocking, years of training urging him to conserve his magic when he could. Only seconds too late did the ex-Unspeakable realize that he hadn't been Arthur's intended target at all, at least not in the sense he had thought.
The Stunner flew by him, and the shield snapped into being. The red light deflected beautiful, ricocheting and hitting the Death Eater squarely in the back before he could even move away. His last conscious thought was how much trouble his was now in, just as the blackness encroached his vision and he knew no more.
In turn, Arthur heaved a sigh of relief and promptly climbed to his feet. Several moments later, he found and revived Apollo, helping the man up. They both limped back over to Rookwood and stood next to each other, staring at their fallen friend.
The brunet couldn't help but laugh at the irony of it all when he learned what happened, causing the other man to look at him bemusedly. While Rookwood had often beaten him in chess, Arthur had always gotten the both of them.
Elsewhere, Tom Riddle looked down at the bleeding Auror in front of him, smiling as the dark-skinned man struggled for breath. His gaze wandered then, knowing his opponent was in no condition to challenge him. Especially with his wand in pieces and with a fair portion of his life's blood currently on the floor around him, even more joining it with every heartbeat. Still, the man's single, golden earring did make a nice contrast to all the red, if the Dark Lord did say so himself.
Laughing at the thought, Riddle's equally bloody gaze flickered to the carnage around him. He momentarily glanced at the corpse of Amelia Bones, the witch's dead eyes open and staring. Though she had put up a valiant fight, she had been no match for him, and all it had taken to fell her was a quick and silent Killing curse. Even the fact that she had sidestepped and had used her wand to summon a piece of debris in front of her had not saved the woman. The residual energy alone had been more than enough to finish her.
His attention roved again, noting McNair lying in a heap at the edge of the dais, his head several feet away. Voldemort merely sniffed at the loss, absentmindedly wondering who he could promote to replace his formerly favored creatures expert.
He took in the sight of Director Avis blasting yet another one of his Death Eaters, the man landing with a sharp snap against the far wall. The complete limpness to his follower let Voldemort know that the man was beyond saving, not to mention the way he slid down the wall.
The Dark Lord's lip curled then, a hiss leaving his throat. He would have to deal with her and do it now before she became a real problem. His eyes went back to the bleeding Auror, who was even then trying to get to his knees. Riddle had to give the man credit; he didn't seem to give up, even with the odds stacked against him. Even when he was dueling Lord Voldemort himself. Such a person was worthy of respect, worthy of a better end than slowly bleeding to death. So the serpentine man flicked his wand, bringing it forward, the words of the Killing curse filling his mind.
He was just about to complete the motion when a terrible scream ripped through his thoughts and burned its way up from his very core. He violently trembled as it ravaged his senses, his wand slipping through his suddenly limp fingers. The shriek tore through him, pure agony racing by in its wake. It was like being hit by a dozen Cruciatus curses all at once, and he fell to his knees, the Veil fluttering at the edge of his Basilisk-hide boots. A scream of sympathy echoed from his mouth, the pain of both he and the other person reverberating through the hollow chamber. The sound momentarily stunned everyone present, Ministry workers and Death Eaters alike pausing in their duels. Most wondered if a Banshee was on the loose.
Nevertheless, it was over almost as soon as it started, and the shriek died within his mind, its resonance soon fading. The shivers remained for several moments, though they lessened with every breath. Still, within seconds, Voldemort was struggling to his feet. He reached for his wand and managed to grasp it in a shaky hand. Rage had now replaced the agony, and the Dark Lord was burning with it, burning with the humiliation that something could weaken him so much. He actually flushed with shame at the knowledge that so many people had seen, including some of his own.
He wanted an end to this battle, and he wanted it now! Tom wanted to get out of here, his unfinished mission be damned. He had to leave. He had to return to his palace, find the source of this scream, this weakness.
But first… first, he had an Auror and a Director to finish off.
Drawing up his power, his anger, his rage, he pointed his wand at the still bleeding Auror, who had actually made it to his knees. The bald man defiantly looked up at the Dark Lord, his eyes blazing. But Voldemort didn't really care. Instead, he just flourished his wand, and his mouth opened to say the spell as he wasn't quite sure he could manage to cast it silently.
"Avada Keda--"
A tingle down his spine was all the forewarning the Dark Lord had as he hastily cast another spell instead. The silvery shield shook, resounding with a clang as it intersected whatever magic had just been flung at it. Voldemort whipped around to face his new opponent, a sneer on his face.
However, Albus Dumbledore merely smiled, his eyes twinkling. "Hello, Tom."
Hogwarts, The Grounds: The Same Day
Harry Potter was having a bloody awful day, one filled with swarms of Inferi that insisted on singling him out personally. Currently, they were all around him, inching closer, despite all the spells he launched at them. There were simply too many for him to fight. But just as the Inferi completely encroached on him, there was a whisper of magic. And more than half keeled over on the spot. A flash of a black robe was all the sixth-year saw before he immediately turned and began to cast more curses. While the Inferi were significantly thinned now, there were still quite a number of them. And they insisted on still attacking him.
Luckily, just as they were beginning to regroup from their sudden losses, another person appeared onto the scene. There was a sudden burst of flame just above Harry, and Fawkes swooped in to join him. The phoenix seemed momentarily surprised by the teenager's helper, but the bird took it in stride, simply flapping himself over to the nearest Inferi. With a sharp chirp, Fawkes ignited as he went by the beast, the whispers of his phoenix fire more than enough to set it completely ablaze. The bird went on his cheery way, and every undead within a twenty meter radius soon met the same fate as the first.
Harry just trembled involuntarily, watching as they were reduced to ashes in seconds. There was a fluttering of black robes at the edge of his vision, and the reborn Salazar whirled towards it. Using the moment of reprieve, Harry glanced at his original savior, and even with her mask on and her hood up, he could tell exactly who it was. A relieved smile graced his face at the irony of it all before his situation quickly sobered him.
Bellatrix merely smirked behind her mask, casting a wide-stream Fire hex at the few remaining Inferi in their area. She followed it up with a Blasting hex, taking down a pair of stragglers.
"I… thank you," Harry said after he had finished the last one and had looked for any others within range. The teenager turned to her, not sure what else to do or say.
"No, thank you, cousin," Bella replied, and she didn't have to say what it was for.
Yet, it was with those simple words that everything between them: the hurt, the anger… Everything suddenly became a mere memory. A spark of understanding shot between the two, and his dim world unexpectedly became a bit brighter.
Harry stopped shaking.
However, the arrival of yet another person prevented her from saying more. Hogwarts' very own Potions master strode into view, blasting a lone and half-burnt Inferi as he went. His robes billowed behind him as he hurried over to Harry, casting the masked woman a quick and assessing glare before swiftly dismissing her.
"Potter," Severus stated, worry obvious in his voice as he stopped in front of Harry. Dark eyes took in the visible cuts and scratches on the reborn Salazar's arms. Thankfully, they weren't very deep.
"I'm fine," Harry responded readily enough. "Really," he added at the man's skeptical sniff. "Bellatrix here and Fawkes came to my rescue, but there is no time for that. We have to go." He moved to step back into the battle, but the tone of the witch's voice caused him to hesitate.
"Harry… Severus…" Bellatrix breathed, her eyes very wide and her wand in her hand.
She nervously twitched, not knowing what to do. The Potions master was a Death Eater, and he had just seen her rescue Potter. By the Maker, she was just standing by the boy, chatting with him like they weren't mortal enemies!
"He's with me," Harry put in quickly, as if reading her mind. "I trust him as I trust you, Bellatrix."
She gaped at him.
"But there is no time to explain. We're in the middle of a battle, if you haven't noticed."
She gave a weak snort, not being able to help herself, and said after a minute, "If you say he's with you, then I believe you." Bellatrix gave the Potions master a cautious glance.
Harry nodded, but out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Fawkes weave to the left and into the heaviest group of Inferi. Still, there was another hoard of them heading the trio's way from the other side. The teenager didn't even pause to rest or say anything else before going after them, though he did motion for the others to follow. Now was not the time for pleasantries or anything else of a similar nature; no matter how much he wished it was.
"How did you find me, Bellatrix?" Harry questioned, even as he moved.
Severus fell into step.
"I just followed them to you. They seem keyed to your magical signature somehow," she responded, as if nothing had happened between the three of them. The witch ran to catch up with the two males. "Besides, most of these are ones that I weakened the magic on, and it's odd that they are all clustered in one area."
He contemplated her earlier statements. "The surge… yes, of course," Harry murmured to himself, but the teenager suddenly blinked as something occurred to him. "How many did you spell?"
"Not nearly enough," the woman admitted and pointedly didn't look at the third person of their little group. "Maybe an eight of them, if that. There was simply too many and not enough time."
The teenager nodded, listening intently. "Do you know of any other way to stop them? Something faster?"
Both Bellatrix and Severus shook their heads, quickly moving up beside him as he stopped several yards from the approaching Inferi. Harry simply sighed and watched Fawkes set a few more abominations on fire out on the far left of them. He turned his attention back to the monsters nearby, preparing to hex them into oblivion.
If only there was some better way to disable the Inferi though. Or better yet, control them. Send them back to their creator. But how? Was it even possible?
And it was like a light went on in his head. In that moment, Harry had a sudden and rather brilliant plan, if he did say so himself. There was a way for him to gain control of the Inferi. It just required a slight bending of several laws.
He quickly looked to his companions, completely capturing their attention with a single glance. An unexpected but very welcome smirk spread across his face, even as a rather fat Inferi waddled closer to him.
The teenager pointed his wand. "Imperio."
Not so far away, blue-black light sped at Draco Malfoy just as he finished intercepting the vivid, green flash that had just been sent at the still helpless Athena. But the Slytherin didn't have enough time to react to the second spell, and it hit him, shattering his shield before he could move away. Terrible pain flared through him as the Cruciatus curse connected, and he would have shrieked had his throat actually been willing to work.
It refused, however. But his screams still clawed at it, nonetheless. Endless moments passed in the throes of agony before the spell silently ended. The Slytherin tried to raise his wand, but his hand refused to obey. Draco finally opened his eyes, wondering when they had closed, also confused by how he had ended up on his knees. He couldn't even remember falling to them.
"Tut tut, Draco," his opponent said coldly, watching him twitch on the ground. "I expected better from you. Why are you even fighting me, my son?" Narcissa Black Malfoy hissed at him. "You should be glad that I am here, ridding the school of the filthy heathen. You should thank me, not duel against me!"
She sent another Cruciatus, one he again couldn't dodge. Thankfully, the Death Eater lifted it within a moment, clearly not wanting her child too damaged. But unbeknownst to her, his phoenix pinion chose that moment to flare under his robes, spreading relieving warmth through him and alleviating the pain. The cavalry was already on its way.
"Come now," Narcissa intoned, as though she hadn't just tortured on her own son. "Come, my little dragon. It's time for us to leave. You will come back with me. Our lord will forgive this little transgression, but he won't stand for any more defiance."
Draco struggled to his feet, discreetly fingering his wand as his mother watched with a sickening smile of encouragement. But her eyes flickered just behind him for an instant, and the Slytherin Prefect knew they were no longer alone. Nevertheless, there was another brief spark from his phoenix pinion, and Draco let out a silent sigh of relief.
"Come, love. It's time to go home to our lord," Narcissa inserted with a sickeningly sweet voice, and the heinous fiend of a woman held her hand out to him.
But he wouldn't take it. "No." Draco straightened his back, ignoring the still lingering aches in his muscles.
Narcissa froze at his tone, her mouth actually hanging open. "What?" she asked, sounding like she couldn't believe her ears.
"I said no, mother." Draco inclined his head, feeling more like himself now and giving her a patronizing smirk. "It's rather simple, and I believe even you would be able to understand. You see, my place is here… at Hogwarts, and I am not going anywhere with you."
Draco heard the swish of another Death Eater stepping up behind him, but the Slytherin wasn't worried. His phoenix pinion had already let him know that help was just about to arrive.
The woman sneered. "You ungrateful little snot. You have no choice in this!" She brandished her wand at him. "I think that you just need a little more persuasion. Crucio!"
Draco ducked and sidestepped at the same time. He dodged two Cruciatus curses, the one his mother had cast and the one from Dolohov, who had been standing behind him. Instead of hitting him, the spells continued on their merry way. Narcissa's nailed her ally in the chest, and the other blue-black light clipped the furious woman in the shoulder. Both went down screaming. The curses were over in an instant since their casters had been distracted, but it was more than enough time for the just arrived Neville to work his magic.
The round-faced Gryffindor appeared on the scene, enchanting the grasses around the Death Eaters with a wave of his hand. The plants sprung from the ground in an instant, twining their way thoroughly around the two. The grass tangled about them tightly, actually snapping the pair's wands in its exuberance to follow Neville's directions.
Draco blinked wearily and let out a sigh of blatant relief at the sight, swaying on the spot. He inclined his head to Neville, who had just stunned Dolohov. The Gryffindor turned to him, seeing his friend paused in front of Narcissa.
Around them, the battle was already coming to a halt. The Death Eaters were all either captured or were in the process of fleeing, the students and teachers not bothering to give chase. In fact, Hogwarts' denizens were more interested in first helping the wounded and then in keeping their current captives. Sybill was even now going among the injured, healing as she went. Minerva was not too far way, helping stem the blood on Seamus Finnegan's nose with a very pale Dean assisting. Molly and Bill were in the process of rounding up all the captured Death Eaters, even as Tonks spelled bindings onto them with help from Ginny.
Further, there were less than a fifth of the original number of Inferi left, and over half of those were now strangely attacking their fellows. The rest were being swiftly taken out by Severus, Dominic, Harry, and an unfamiliar woman, Fawkes occasionally setting several dozen ablaze with his phoenix fire.
Regardless, Draco didn't really notice any of it. Nor did he note Neville put an arm around his shoulders, helping support him. The blond's attention was too focused on the still struggling Narcissa, who was now even more entangled in the plants than before. Her son simply stood in front of her and stared like he was trying to burn the image into his mind. A moment later, his wand raised, now level with her eyes. And she paused in her thrashing.
"I won't serve your master, mother," he began calmly, eyes suspiciously bright. "I don't bow to anyone, especially not someone like Voldemort," Draco said without even fumbling over the name; he sounded as if he was talking about nothing more personal than the weather. "I'm sorry." He blinked back moisture, unwilling to let her see such a weakness.
Narcissa howled with rage and spit in his face, now struggling even more violently.
Draco simply took it, looking at her for a long minute with very sad eyes. "Goodbye, mother," he stated and lifted his wand that had momentarily wavered. "Forgive me."
Pure, red light shot out of the end, nailing the woman full in the face. She slumped to the ground.
Her son exhaled shakily, leaning even more onto his friend. Draco allowed Neville to steer him away, towards the rapidly approaching Luna and Hermione. And he bowed his head, no longer fighting against the tears.
Department of Mysteries, The Veil Room: The Same Day
Albus flicked his wand, a random piece of rubbish transfiguring into a rock wall and intercepting the Killing curse for him. The green light crashed into it, shattering the stone completely. The leftover magic from the spell attempted to continue on its way, but the additional charms the headmaster had laced on the wall absorbed it entirely.
Voldemort snarled and launched another hex at his former professor. Dumbledore simply transfigured a golden shield. This time he deflected the magic back to his sender, Riddle ducking out of the way just in time.
With the Apparition wards in place and with Fawkes gone, the headmaster couldn't use his normal method of missing deadly spells, so he had to improvise. However, it didn't seem like the wards would hold very long. Tom and his followers were using every spare bit of energy and concentration to bring them down, and in spite of the strength of the protections, they were newly formed. They had only been finished two days ago, and as such, they were still charging. Further, they had not had enough time to fully connect with the building, to weave together completely.
Within minutes, they would drop. And Tom would escape, taking his servants with him. Albus knew it was inevitable, but he still had to distract Riddle, keep him from taking out his rage on anyone else.
The old professor sent three rapid spells back in response, the last one whizzing by his former student by mere inches. The Dark Lord growled, lashing out with his wandless magic. He threw it all around him, creating a veritable maelstrom of energy that rippled through the chamber. His Death Eaters quickly followed suit and joined their power to their master's in a torrent of magic. The air in the room was now virtually alive with energy, and Dumbledore ducked out of the way as a vicious bolt of it flashed where his head had just been.
The wind swirled about the headmaster, whipping his bead into his face, even as he attempted to use his own magic to calm it. Regardless, he didn't have much of a chance as Voldemort gave a sudden and violent push with the energy, sending it cascading into the walls.
And with that, the Apparition wards finally fell. As one, all of the still standing Death Eaters popped away, grabbing their unconscious compatriots. Voldemort spared one finally snarl at Dumbledore before joining them, whirling his cloak around him and disappearing without a sound.
Albus merely exhaled, dragging his weary body over to Kingsley Shacklebolt at top speed. He bent by the fallen Auror, ignoring the fact that he was kneeling in blood and using his wand to staunch the flow as best he could. Thankfully, his one-time student was still alive, though if Albus had been any later that might not have been the case. The headmaster couldn't help but tremble as Director Avis rushed over to help him, a harried field medic following in her wake.
The man pushed Dumbledore away from his patient assessing the situation, and the elderly professor rose, moving to gauge the rest of the damage to those gathered. Amelia Bones and Walden McNair both laid nearby, obviously dead. And Albus blinked away tears at the sight of his former pupils, saddened that things had to be this way.
His tired and no longer sparkling eyes travelled around the room, taking in at least three more corpses, only one of which was a Ministry employee. He noted several others injured. But already, more medi-wizards, Unspeakables, and Aurors were filtering in. Most of them looked to have just left their own battles against Tom's followers. But despite the fact that they had succeeded in their plans, despite the fact that they had forced Tom to flee, Dumbledore couldn't feel anything but sadness and an anxious desire to return to his school. There had been too much bloodshed for anything else.
The old man looked about the room again, seeing that his help was no longer needed. Everything seemed to be in order. And Kingsley, the worst injured, was now stabilized. Nevertheless, there was an inkling of dread in him, and it coiled through his belly.
The battle might have been won, but Albus had a sinking feeling that war was just about to get worse.
Much worse.
Espejo Mágico: Magic Mirror. Verbal and non-verbal. Can both absorb and reflect almost any spell, despite its apparent size. The absorbed energy can be used to fuel additional counters. The smaller the physical manifestation of the shield, the more powerful.
AN: There you have it folks. The battles are over. This chapter is done, and it's a rather long one, too. I believe it is the longest I have written for this story. Also, from the looks of it, the epilogue will actually be a full length chapter, instead of just the short, little thing I had originally envisioned. Too much has happened for it to be less than ten pages, I'd say. It might even reach fifteen or twenty, depending on how much I draw it out.
Things to think about: What was Luna up to during the battle? Now that Tom has fled, how will he retaliate? What will happen with Bellatrix since she doesn't appear to be going back to her master? How will Draco handle the aftermath of his duel with Narcissa? There is one more person to recover their memories of the past, at least in this story. Who will it be?
To everyone who reviewed: Thanks.
Epilogue: When All is Said and Done
Ever Hopeful,
Azar
Updated and Edited:
06/26/08
