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Chapter 31

Lucius' nostrils flared, but he lowered his wand. "My Lord." He bowed.

Voldemort smiled. "I must say, I did not expect this from you. I understood the girl was in your favor."

"She killed my wife."

"A most regrettable loss. Her presence will be sorely missed."

"I request to kill the girl, My Lord," Lucius said, taking a step forward.

Voldemort ignored him, looking around. Bella was still dripping blood onto the floor. I couldn't get up—the pain had become unbearable. Harry was frozen next to Lupin—Lucius must have incapacitated him somehow. Lupin's eyes were wide, but he seemed unable to speak.

"Harry Potter," Voldemort said, releasing Harry from whatever curse was on him.

Harry gasped, nearly falling over.

"I'm so glad you made it, Mr. Potter." Voldemort was far too pleased with himself.

"You tricked me," Harry said.

"It wasn't very difficult. You so enjoy being the hero, I just thought I'd give you the opportunity. Giving you two visions felt a bit heavy handed, but I had to make sure you would come."

Two visions? I must have intercepted the second one. I didn't have control over my power yet, after all. It made horrible sense, and I felt even guiltier; had it been Harry who'd had the vision, I never would have let him go. As if only I could be trusted. As if I wouldn't make the same stupid mistakes.

Harry glanced at me, then back to Voldemort.

"Hand me the prophecy," Voldemort said. "Give it to me now."

"I don't have it," Harry said.

Voldemort narrowed his eyes. "Who does?"

Harry didn't smile, but there was triumph in his eyes. "No one. I dropped it."

"Crucio!" Harry dropped to the floor at his words, but after a moment I realized Lucius had fallen as well. My jaw dropped; I'd never seen anyone cast the curse on multiple people before. I thought it was impossible.

When it stopped, Harry lay on the floor for a moment. He eyed his wand, a few feet away from him, and Voldemort was too busy staring at Lupin.

"Who is this?" he said.

Bella glanced at Lupin. "No one of consequence, My Lord."

Voldemort nodded. "Kill him."

Bella eagerly raised her wand. I barely had time to scream before a green light emanated, and Lupin dropped, eyes open in pain and fear. My scream turned into a sob as Harry started to yell.

"Quiet," Voldemort said. With a flick of his wand, Harry was silenced. His mouth opened and closed, but nothing came out. "I'll deal with you in a moment." His gaze came back to me, and a few muttered spells later, all the pain was gone. All the physical pain, at least.

I stood up, tentatively, wiping the tears from my face. New ones fell in their stead, but I managed to keep from sobbing. Lupin is gone, I thought. Lupin is dead, and it's my fault. If Harry dies, it's my fault. I had to keep him alive.

"We meet again, Katarina," Voldemort said. "Have you had enough time to reconsider my offer?"

I glanced at Lupin's body. "I would rather die a thousand times than side with you."

"My Lord," Lucius said, "Let me give the girl what she wants. Please."

Voldemort clicked his tongue. "Lucius, the very last thing you should be doing right now is asking me for favors. Now quiet." He took three slow steps toward me, and I managed to only take two steps backwards. "First you kill one of my most skillful supporters. Now, you best Bella in a duel."

Bella glared. "She did not best—"

It only took one look from Voldemort to silence Bella. "And still you deny my offer. Shall I grant Lucius his request?"

"I can take him," I muttered.

Voldemort laughed. "I don't doubt it. But I very much prefer you alive. Why do you wish to stay at Hogwarts, with a grandfather who wants nothing more than to stifle your power?"

I frowned. "I'm sorry. Are you talking about the only wizard you're afraid of?"

His face went blank. "Albus Dumbledore is nothing but a mere annoyance. And he's keeping you from reaching your true potential."

"I think I'm fine with mediocrity, thanks."

He took another step towards me. This time I knew better than to move. "I can grant you any wish. Keep your loved ones safe."

My mind went to Fred, and I clenched my fists. I glanced at Lupin's body. "I could never trust you to keep your word."

He ignored me. "Or maybe there's something you want? I can give you power. I can give you immortality."

"I don't want anything from you!" I only realized I'd screamed after the fact, and I started trembling.

Voldemort raised an eyebrow. "So be it."

I frowned. "You're going to kill me?"

Lucius and Bella perked up. Voldemort shook his head.

I frowned harder. "You're going to let me go?"

He laughed. "No." He summoned my wand and handed it to me.

My fingers brushed his and I shivered. I couldn't duel him. I didn't have the same benefits as Harry did. I would die. For sure.

"Face Harry."

I did.

"Raise your wand."

Something terrible was about to happen. I knew it. I braced myself.

"Now kill him."

My arm dropped to my side. "No." It was the easiest answer I'd given all night.

Harry could be a disobedient brat, and he didn't listen. But he tried, and without him, there was no hope for victory. That much I was sure of.

Voldemort raised his wand and I closed my eyes, waiting for the Cruciatus curse. Then I heard a scream.

Harry writhed on the floor, shrieking in pain. Voldemort watched me carefully, waiting for me to break. I took a deep breath, trying not to shake. Then I caved.

"Stop!"

He did, smiling serenely. Of course he was serene; he had all the power. "The boy who lived is going to die tonight, Katarina. There is no one who can stop it. But you have the chance to be kind to him."

"What—what do you mean?"

"Join me, and I will let you kill him now. Defy me again, and I'll torture him until he loses his mind. It's your choice."

"Don't do it," Harry said. His voice was ragged and tired. He was fifteen. He couldn't die. Not tonight.

I thought back to my visions. How long did it take for Dumbledore to arrive? Would he even come after all that I'd changed? And how long could someone last under the Cruciatus curse? How long had Harry ever endured it?

My hesitation lasted too long, and Harry started to scream again. I looked around. Bella and Lucius only had eyes for me. Voldemort had enough power to make mine look laughable, with or without a wand. Harry was running out of time, and Lupin was dead.

I'd wanted to be a part of this world for the majority of my life, and now what? There had been nothing but death. My friends. My mother. My father. Lupin. And now I was going to watch Harry die?

No. It couldn't end like this. My throat tightened up as I tried to think of something, anything, that could help. No one was coming. No one would save us. Panic settled in, and each of Harry's cries made my stomach turn.

"Wait." My voice broke. "Wait."

Voldemort paused.

My eyes burned as blood rushed to my cheeks. "I'll do it. I'll—I'll kill him. Just don't hurt him anymore."

Harry looked up at me, mouth agape.

"I'm sorry Harry," I said, crying in earnest. "I'm sorry about Lupin. I'm sorry I failed."

He said nothing, his green eyes more on my wand than me. I pointed it at his heart and took a deep breath.

"Avada Kedavra!" I screamed.

Harry closed his eyes as the curse blurred past him and towards Bella. At the same time, I shot a disarming spell at Voldemort with my free hand. I'd been practicing wandless magic ever since the train, but I was still weak. My desperation made the curse stronger, and to my surprise, Voldemort stumbled back. But the green light fizzled out before it got within a foot of Bella, and Lucius took the opportunity to throw another painful curse at me.

My wand flew into the wall and smashed into a hundred tiny slivers as I fell to the ground. It was the same fire as before, but instead of burning in lines, it seemed to run through my veins.

Bella let out a laugh. "You call that a killing curse, do you?"

Lucius' lip pulled up in an angry sneer, wand on me.

Voldemort frowned. He didn't scream. He didn't curse me. He didn't even look upset. I was going to die.

I pushed myself up to my knees, ignoring the searing pain in my body. I knew my plan wouldn't work, but I had to fight. Still. I stood up as Voldemort walked up to me, and stuck my chin up.

"You continue to surprise me, Katarina."

"Go ahead," I said. "Kill me."

"By all means, my Lord," Lucius hissed.

"No." Voldemort's answer was barely louder than a whisper, but it gave me goose bumps.

Bella nearly stomped her foot. "But why?"

"I find her interesting." He reached up a hand, nearly touching my face. Then it fell back to his side. "There is something about you, Katarina. You will prove yourself most useful, I think." He turned to Harry. "You, Mr. Potter, are of no more use to me."

"No!" I screamed, throwing as strong a curse as I could muster without a wand. Voldemort deflected it easily. A blue rope emanated from Bella's wand, wrapping around me so I couldn't move. "NO!" I screamed.

Harry stood up, but even though his jaw was set, I could see his hands shaking. "Someone will stop you," he said calmly into Voldemort's red eyes.

Voldemort smiled. "I doubt it."

I struggled against the rope, but it held. Then Voldemort's wand slipped out of his grip. The world slowed down as Voldemort's face scrunched up in confusion. First he looked at me. Then Bella, then Lucius. They shook their heads. But Harry looked victorious, staring at something behind me.

"Let them go, Tom."

Voldemort sneered. "Dumbledore." It came out like a curse as Bella and Lucius fled.

The bonds around me disappeared. At the same time, a curse threw Voldemort back a few hundred feet. I dragged Harry out of the way, and we hid between two enormous fireplaces. As every window in the hall shattered and thick shards of glass zoomed our way, I knew that it wasn't over.

The fight was just beginning.

Dumbledore cast a quick spell and the shards faded into sand. Voldemort sent flames Dumbledore's way; Dumbledore dowsed them with water. A giant snake made of green light charged at Harry and me, but a shield of red blocked it at the last second. Then their spells dissipated into quick bursts of light that I could barely follow. I knew that this was pure dueling, magic without a show. It also looked much more dangerous, and one slip, one moment of hesitation could mean everything.

It was then I saw the fatigue in my grandfather's eyes. It was almost unnoticeable, but it scared me.

Still, Dumbledore seemed to have the upper hand. Finally, when he disarmed Voldemort for the second time, Voldemort disappeared. Then I remembered my what had happened, just after Harry grabbed my wrist so hard it hurt.

"Go ahead, Dumbledore!" he shouted, eyes red, pupils dilated. "Kill me now!"

Voldemort had possessed Harry.

Harry placed the tip of his wand at my temple, and I froze. "Choose now, Dumbledore," he said. "Your granddaughter or your golden boy."

"Harry," I said delicately. "Harry, I know you're in there."

He laughed again. "You think he's strong enough to fight me?"

"Harry, please. Listen to me."

"Harry cannot hear you!"

I felt tears press against my eyes. "You can fight him. Remember yourself. Remember your friends."

The cruciatus curse hurt, but it only lasted for a moment before Harry collapsed on the cold floor. His wand clattered to the ground as he writhed. Dumbledore yanked me away from Harry.

"Why not kill me now?" he said, half grinning, half grimacing. "Why so much hesitation?"

Dumbledore's usually bright eyes were dark and intense, but his wand remained at his side.

Harry screamed out, and I tried to go to him; Dumbledore's grip was too strong, and only after Harry crumpled did he let go.

"Harry?" I called. "Harry!"

His chest wasn't moving. His eyes closed, and his skin was pale as death. Then he twitched, took a few heaving breaths, and opened his eyes. "Kat? Professor Dumbledore?"

My grandfather helped Harry up, slowly. A few members of the Order trailed in, and soon the Minister followed.

"Get back to the castle," Dumbledore said. He made a portkey out of a stray flier, but Harry paused.

"What about the others?"

"Tonks has already taken them back. Wait for me in my office."

Again, Harry hesitated.

"Harry, Katarina, go. Now."

OOO

So? This part was, admittedly, really difficult to write. I'm not even going to claim that this story is anywhere near as good as the original, but I'm trying my best to make it a good interpretation. It's different. But still readable, I hope. No?

Note: There will most definitely be a sequel. Just so you know :)

I appreciate reviews! Please review! The more you review, the sooner I post the next chapter! Thanks!