Azrail stood up and aimed his wand at Felix opening and closing his mouth several times yet spoke no words and cast no spells or curses until with tears running down his cheeks he sighed.
"Accio Shadeglass!" The Goblet flew to his hand where with shaking hands he emptied a vial containing a water shinning bright and silvery into it letting the vial drop to the soil.
He swallowed it in one go and fell onto the ground dead.
Felix walked up to him and closed his eyes before taking back the Shadeglass, Book of Leaves, vial and the Armour. He placed the vial, Book and Shadeglass into his robes and wore the Protection.
He felt no different but the Dementor's cloak changed into the sweater Charles had been wearing when he died. He joined the fight against Cillian's army remnants.
Sandra attacked Bellerophon with yet another killing curse, which he deflected off the shield, then his wand-hand tattoos glowed as if water flowed through them amplifying Bellerophon's spell's power and multithreading other properties changing the spell's simpler original use.
Sandra tried to deflect it but while she did avoid Bellerophon's initial Diffindo cast, the multithreaded multicasts eluded her severing her arm. She cast yet another killing curse at him which Bellerophon dodged before throwing the shield at her and with a pirouette pivot slashed at her remaining extended arm with his dueling xiphos severing it at the elbow and coming up behind her he grabbed her hair pulling her head back and grabbing his wand from the hole in the dueling xiphos' middle he shoved it down in her mouth, a different set of tattoos glowed as he cast Energia confrigia. Her whole body bulged out like an overgrown balloon before bursting like a pumpkin.
"My duty is done, my brother is avenged", Bellerophon said covered in Sandra's blood and grime.
Professor Jordan cast a spell which Marigold deflected but when she tried to raise her arm it glued itself onto her sides.
"You never could understand multi-casting, Marigold. Goodbye", with a switch and flick of his hand Marigold burned away from the inside out. Looking around he spotted Professor Horsewood fighting Joymother with Professor Hudson and an Asian woman fighting Nott.
He sent bombarda right at his feet causing him to defend himself and leaving him open to the Asian Auror.
A second later Alfred Nott lay dead.
"You do not deserve an easy death, Joymother", Professor Hudson pinned him down with a stronger version of Incarserus as Professor Horsewood levitated his wand making it burst into flames, Asmund came in from behind rendering him unconscious.
Felix joined them.
"Mr. Burton, where is your brother?" Professor Horsewood asked him, a tear marking her face from lip to left eye.
"Dead", Felix replied healing the scar on her face as she fired a curse at a soldier coming their way. He turned into a sick slug.
"Go to the train, we'll finish this up", Professor Jordan told him.
"Yes, sir…I gave him what he desired but I didn't kill him myself", Felix dissaparated.
Professor Jordan let out a sigh of relief. "I think this has gone on long enough, don't you?"
"What do you have in mind?" Professor Hudson asked.
"Protego Diabolica", Professor Jordan stated with a grim grin.
"That'll kill him, I want him humiliated in a trial", Hudson pointed at the unconscious Joymother.
"Won't kill him if we cast the spell around us with him in the center, it'll only kill their soldiers if we intent no one else harm, kids, Professors, parents or Aurors.
"All three of us then", Professor Horsewood said and the three of them cast the spell simultaneously pivoting around as a circle of cyan flames erupted out of the soil expanding outwards.
Any of Cillian's soldiers caught in them were incinerated in an instant turning bright blue and then to ash.
Ten minutes later it was all over. The battle was finished.
Felix and Miremba worked to help Emerick, trying to stop the bleeding and Ariana was tending to Uriel's torn arm.
"Uh…Felix, there's a rather large wall of cyan fire coming at us", Emerick whispered, drained by the blood loss. Felix took a look behind his shoulders and returned to what he was doing. "Protego Diabolica, don't worry, the flames won't harm us."
"If you say so, but if I die from this I'm haunting your ghost", Uriel tried to joke.
"You won't die", Felix finished doing what he could for Emerick. "just cover your eyes", the flames passed over them and through the train before vanishing.
"I-it's over?" Ethel kneeled next to them brandishing various cuts and bruises but no major injury. "Azrail?"
"Dead, he di…" The air was removed from Felix's lungs as Claudia glomped him, hugging him close.
"I'm okay…" Felix whispered to her but made no move to release himself from her embrace.
She pulled back. "Now, what?"
"Now, if you wouldn't mind apparating me inside St. Mungus…you know I'm kinda missing a portion of myself here…" Emerick said dryly.
"Oh my god! Emerick, what happened?" Claudia noticed everyone else for the first time.
"Well you know, someone thought I'd look better with one instead of two legs…what do you think?!"
"Mr. Burton", the Headmistress apparated next to them. "Take your friend to St. Mungus, we'll take care of the rest."
Felix nodded and taking hold of both Emerick and Claudia's elbows he apparated away.
Next thing Emerick knew he was lying in St. Mungo's reception hall. "NURSE! Someone help!" Claudia yelled, the three of them lying on the cold marble tiled floor.
Nurses came running. "What happened!" One of them, a male nurse asked while another yelled for a gurney.
"Azrail…there was a battle, Azrail attacked the Hogwarts' Express, Emerick lost a leg and lots of blood", Felix replied, his chest and hands covered in Emerick's blood from trying to heal him just moments before.
Behind them Professor Hudson apparated holding Uriel and Ariana.
"Azrail? When is this war going to end!" A female nurse exasperated tending to Emerick as another two nurses placed him on the gurney.
"It's over…the war's finished, Azrail's dead, I…I sorta killed him..", Felix replied trying to wipe his forehead with the back of his hand. A nurse waved her wand at him and all the blood cleared up.
"Thanks, I'm okay…physically. I'm fine, the others need help", Felix told her when she started to examine him. Professors and Aurors had started to apparate in the injured and the dead.
More nurses and doctors came in the reception hall trying to help, examine and decongest the reception hall.
"Uriel, are you okay?" Felix went over to him as Professor Hudson dissaparated away.
"I'll live…the arm needs healing and my spleen may need removing…oh god that hurts…" Uriel replied, with the adrenaline leaving his system pain was slowly taking over.
"Prepare the surgery rooms! Nurse Daniels, wake people up, we need everyone in STAT!" A doctor yelled to a nurse near the reception booth. She nodded as she started calling and sending emergency memos.
"I can help, how can I help?" Felix tried to tell a nurse, panting as the adrenaline high left him disorganized and almost incoherent.
"Felix", Claudia took his wrist in her hand. "Come with me, there's nothing we can do here, let's go out get some air, come", she tagged it speaking gently.
"No, I can help…so much pain and death, I must help…" he stuttered trying to get to a first year missing his left hand's fingers.
"Felix, stop. Listen to my voice", she turned his head to her eyes. "You can't do nothing here, you are not a healer, doctor or nurse. We'll be in the way. We're not injured let's go out", she started walking and he didn't resist.
They went outside in the Hospital's courtyard, taking a seat on a bench under a statue of St. Mungo. It was a glorious and nicely cool summer dawn break.
"Look, Professor Horsewood was correct, after a night dawn always comes", she pointed at the rising sun.
"Told you I'd come back to you", he told her placing his head between her neck and shoulders holding her hand in his.
"Can you imagine it…we are officially war veterans...and this war is over", she whispered.
"At what cost…has all of this been my fault? If I had given Azrail wh…"
"No, you can't do this to yourself, love. For one thing up until a few months ago you didn't even know what Azrail -really- wanted and some months before that you knew not you even had the Shadeglass…none of this is your fault. You are not Cillian nor are you Azrail. They made their choices and you chose to oppose and resist them", Claudia caressed his hair and cheeks.
"Okay", he kissed her hand.
"FELIX! You are okay!" He heard William's voice, he had been nodding off when he was suddenly fully awake again as William and Alfred fell on him hugging him close.
"I'm so glad you two are okay as well", he held them there relieved he had not lost any more of his family to Azrail.
"Yeah, Claudia was amazing!" Alfred exclaimed. "She let no one near us and we helped!"
"You guys sure did, you've learned a lot from Felix", she replied.
"Well we couldn't very well not be gentlemen and not protect you", William pipped in nodding his head.
Felix had to laugh. "My two gentlemanly apprentices."
"Uh huh!" Alfred nodded his agreement.
"Ah good, you are all here", Professor Horsewood appeared from within the hospital. "And what an incredible morning this appears to be."
"Ma'am", Felix tried to stand but his legs wouldn't obey him, he was only beginning to understand just how exhausted he really was.
"I have a couple of pleasant surprises for you", she smiled. "First things first…I think it is time to reunite the two boys with their parents", she dissaparated and when she apparated back in a second later Helen and Peter Blake stood next to her.
"MUM! DAD!" William and Alfred run to them. A huge smile spread over Felix's face as he found the strength to stand up and go to them.
"Oh my days, I've missed you three so much!" Helen hugged them close to her, crying tears of joy. "Felix love, we've been hearing all about you, we are so proud of you and so damn happy you are well…well at least healthy", Helen told him kissing his cheeks and forehead repeatedly. Peter gave him a large, prolonged bear hug before shaking his hand.
"Thank you for protecting my boys, and for being there for them despite some….childish silliness on Alfred's part", Felix felt himself blush.
"Thank you, sir…it's all in the past, Alfred will be a great wizard one day, he has both the passion and determination for it."
"Now, for the second surprise, and the most emotional one, I'd wager…" Professor Horsewood paused for a moment to clear her throat. "Professor Jordan…"
Blink.
Professor Jordan apparated in only he wasn't alone and holding his hand standing next to him stood Hope.
"H-how…I…I…saw her, you die, burn alive…I still remember the smell….the…how!" Felix felt week on his knees, and Claudia taking his hand to steady him.
"The deception was all your idea", Professor Jordan told him. "You came to us towards the end of your third year, when we were dealing with the APBm and the Pureblood legion, and told us how you knew what you had to do but didn't know if you could so long as your mother and cousins could be killed by Azrail…you proposed we make you believe they were all dead, and safekeep them somewhere until Azrail was dead. After some discussion we agreed…unfortunately…"
"Charles is really dead, isn't he, not hiding him anywhere…" Felix replied hugging his mother as if she could and would vanish.
"No, I am afraid we were a day too late…" Professor Horsewood's voice trailed.
"Fortunately for all involved the Protection did not see Obliviate as "magical harm" and allowed me to alter Azrail's memories of what had really happened. And now to restore yours…" Professor Jordan told Felix before undoing the memory charms he had placed on him at years three and end of four.
"One day…" Felix whispered as the true memories flooded his mind replacing the false ones Professor Jordan had placed to make him forget his own plan to enable himself to fight Azrail.
"I don't say this often, especially not to students. But you are without a doubt the bravest person I've met, Felix Burton", Professor Jordan told him, Professor Horsewood nodding her head in agreement. "To willingly and knowingly place yourself in such grief, and pain to enable you to fight your worst fears and face your archnemesis."
"Sometimes I feel like I did not do enough…or if I had done things differently Charles and others could still be alive and well…"
Helen caressed his hair. "Oh, Felix…don't do that to yourself. Survivors' guilt is not deserving of you. What is done is done, and I don't know how you could have done anything different…remember your happy memories with Charles, like the one you shared with us…remember him like that and he'll never truly go away."
Felix nodded in his mother's embrace, tears streaking down his cheeks.
"Claudia!" Her mother run to her.
"mama…stop, I'm okay…" Claudia tried to disentangle herself from her mother's arms.
"Oh, I was so worried, your father is being tended to, just a few cuts and bruises. My bear fought so well, protected so many."
"Mum, I must tell you something…if Mrs. Burton doesn't object I want to spend summer with Felix, I'm not coming to New York, Aunt Victoria can live without me for a year."
"My girl…you've grown much, so that's the boy you couldn't…"
"MUM!...yes, and he's not "a boy", he's mio amore", Claudia could feel her cheeks burn.
Her mother started speaking fast in Italian. Felix guessed it to be something akin to "oh my girl has grown and has an "amore" and how did you grow so fast, and you were just a little girl a month ago!" He made eye contact with Claudia trying to convey his support at her embarrassment.
"Speaking of amore…mum, if Professor Jordan makes you happy…I'm more than okay with it", Felix told his mother.
"And you thought he wouldn't figure it out, ha!" Helen told Ives Jordan triumphantly laughing. "Thanks I guess? Oh and Claudia dear, yes you can come stay with us…if your parents are okay with it as well…"
"She's my daughter, she has my stubbornness, no point in telling her not to, she'll apparate away from New York if I say no anyway…" Claudia and everyone else laughed at her mother's comment.
"Where did you hide my mother?"
"In plain sight, you kept wondering why the room of requirement was constantly being used, but you never -thankfully- stayed outside it to see who's using it…your mother has been in there since the end of your fourth year…and I had to obliviate a couple of students who saw me bring her food or open the room so she could take some air well after hours", Professor Jordan told them looking smug at having pulled it off.
"I knew there was something off with it!" Felix announced.
"You knew nothing", Professor Jordan teased him. "I should get going…I guess we'll be seeing a lot of each other during the summer", he dissaparated before Felix could say anything in reply.
"I should get going as well, Mr. Burton, isn't it a most beautiful dawn?" Professor Horsewood asked him with a smile.
"Indeed, ma'am", Felix nodded. "What about Emerick? Can they reattach his leg?"
"No, but he'll be alright, he's getting a magically enchanted prosthetic that should make it indistinguishable from the real thing if one doesn't know", Professor Horsewood said in reply and then walked back inside the Hospital.
"We have a lot of catching up to do, how about we buy you all breakfast and we catch up?" Peter asked them.
Felix threaded his fingers with Claudia's. "I'm in, who needs sleep."
And they headed off to their summer's vacations in the sunlight.
End of Book 6.