Well, I'm expecting MUCHO reviews for this chapter. I'm not posting the last chapter until I get at least 5 reviews. And that's a promise! So there had better be some good reviews for this chapter.
Chapter Ten: The Final Battle
Beth stood in awe. She had heard of the greatness of her father, mostly from Uncle Ron and the other Weasleys. But no story could compare with the sight of Harry firing spells, counter-jinxes, and shields to combat his old schoolmate. The battle had raged so long and so fierce that the two duelers had worked their way outside, just within sight of the Quidditch stadium. Sirius had long ago relieved his death grip on her, as they were both riveted to the spot by the dangerous and fateful duel before them.
Suddenly, Harry decided the duel had gone on far too long. "Expelliarmus!" he shouted.
As Malfoy's wand flew through the sky toward Harry, Sirius realized the implication. Malfoy, second-in-command of Voldemort's operation, had been beaten. Or maybe not. Sirius raised his wand in an attempt to stop Harry from winning.
"Oh no, you don't!" Beth yelled at her twin brother, physically tackling him. Then a loud crack stopped everyone dead in their tracks, including Harry and Malfoy.
From the source of the sound came a tall, ominous, hooded figure. Immediately, Malfoy and Sirius dropped to their knees. "Master," Sirius murmured, kissing the edge of the newcomer's robe.
"Malfoy, leave Potter to me." The harsh voice spoke.
Harry had known who the figure was, and had prepared for the confrontation from the moment he had felt the scar in his forehead hurt once again. "Let's finish this, once and for all," Harry replied to his life-long adversary.
"No, don't do it!" Two voices rang out in unison.
Beth looked into her brother's eyes for understanding. "Dad, you can't fight now. We need to find 'those of the blood'!" Beth explained her outburst as Sirius overlapped with his.
"Master, please allow me to finish off my blood traitor father!"
"No boy, leave this to me," Voldemort replied, and physically pushed him out of his way.
"Beth, I've been hiding for 15 years. I can't hide anymore. If Trelawney's prediction was right, which I doubt, then there's no hope for it now," Harry tried to assuage the fears of his daughter.
Without warning, Voldemort began the duel by hitting Harry with a blinding red curse that lifted Harry into the air and dropped him suddenly. Harry retaliated by pointing a red beam back at Voldemort, though he dodged the silently aimed stupefying charm.
"Master, please allow – " Sirius attempted to reason with the Dark Lord, wanting to please his master by destroying his greatest enemy.
"Get back boy, or I will kill you myself," Voldemort sneered, and proved that his threat was not empty but hitting him with a short Cruciatus Curse. The sudden pain that coursed through the teenager's body sent him into shock. Suddenly, his world no longer made sense. His master had attacked him with an Unforgivable Curse, and he had only be prevented from continuing the curse by the intervention of Harry, the man he had been raised to hate.
"If you hurt one more member of my family, in any way, you will wish that your life had ended many years ago," Harry threatened darkly.
"Remember, your blood runs in my veins. I can touch you now. There is nothing you can do to me that I cannot in turn do to you," Voldemort hissed back.
Beth, who attempted to attend to Sirius's needs, heard Voldemort's comment, and began thinking deeply about the term 'blood.' Voldemort carried Harry's literal blood in his veins because of a cursed ritual. But another way of looking at it, blood also meant relations. That's where the term pureblood comes from after all.
"It doesn't have to mean literal blood, or even 'purebloods.' Maybe, just maybe…" Beth glanced at her brother.
"Sirius, please, I need your help." Sirius gave her a short, blank glance, still dazed by the actions of his master.
"Sirius!" Beth cried again, nearly yelling to the boy sitting just feet away from her. His blank look continued as he wallowed in the self-pity of feeling worthless.
Beth looked up, almost as if searching for an answer from the skies. And it did.
"Buckbeak!" she yelled up as the figure now blocking the sun. "You remember Beaky, don't you?" she addressed Sirius. The gray hippogriff landed majestically, just feet away from the two teenagers. He stretched his wings, still sore after such a long time of avoiding contact with the evil that engulfed Hogwarts by flying only at night. It was good to finally be out in the sun.
"Beaky?" Sirius whispered reverently. His face lit up as he recognized the incarnation of his long-forgotten childhood friend. Buckbeak felt Sirius's awe and respect for him, and allowed him to gently and lovingly stroke his feathers.
As Beth watched the two bond in a mutual feeling of reverence and need, a light bulb went off in her head. "Get on his back!" she ordered.
Sirius gave her a puzzled look as he stopped petting the hippogriff. "Just get on!" she shouted once again, climbing onto the large creature's back herself. Sirius looked at her once again, then pulled himself up right behind her. They took off, leaving the still feuding Harry and Voldemort. As they circled and flew over the lake, Harry dodged another Imperious Curse.
"Okay, on my cue, we're going to stupefy Voldemort," Beth instructed, and raised her wand in preparation. Sirius gave her an incredulous look. "Do it! He would have done the same thing to you! He's not your father!" Sirius couldn't look Beth in the eye, but pulled out his wand anyway. "On three. One, two…" From high in the sky, two strong stupefying curses hit Voldemort squarely, and he crumpled to the ground. Moments later, Buckbeak landed just a few feet away from Harry.
"Dad, Sirius and I are here to help!" Beth announced, jumping off Buckbeak with Sirius right behind her.
"I'm glad. I think it's finally time to finish what started thirty-six years ago, this very day." Harry raised his wand, flanked by his two children. Voldemort, for his credit, was already beginning to recover from the stupefication. As he rose up, he saw was that of three people, similar enough in appearance to prove their family relationship, casting a spell that seem to float around and cover them.
"You should have done better than that Potter! Avada Kedavra!" Voldemort shouted. As his vision was clouded by the green light that surrounded him, he felt no pain as his last soul left his body, never to terrorize muggle, wizard, or any other creature, ever again.
A/N: There is still more. But you don't get it until I get reviews. So click on that button there, it's right there.