Chapter 64 : One helluva fight

All four courtyards of Hogwarts were full of Death Eaters and Defenders, dueling and maneuvering; the Death Eaters trying to push their way further into the school, their goal being the Great Hall, while the Defenders were keeping that progress at a maddeningly slow pace, seeming to retreat, only to attack and push the Death Eaters back.

Neville, Seamus and Dean had come down off of the battlements into the small courtyard in the classroom section of the school, to find Bill, Charlie and Percy Weasley, Justin, Ernie , Anthony & Terry trading spells and hexes thick and fast, the air almost electric with each flash. They gleefully joined in, whooping and hollering, making the others grin, rally and charge at the Death Eaters, yet again.

Over in the Fountain courtyard, Tonks, Lisa, Morag, Megan and Romilda were keeping the Death Eaters in the center of the courtyard, while they used the covered walkway to circle and contain them. Arthur, Remus and Sirius were blocking the entrances to the hallways when Ginny, Susan, Luna and Hannah arrived. After taking a look, the girls split up and joined their friends, ducking and weaving around the pillars.

Fred, George, Alicia and Angelina had been swooping overhead, keeping an eye on the different battles, when they spotted Draco and Harry streaking toward them.

"OY! Draco! Finished with target practice, are you?" Fred shouted in greeting.

"One got away, by turning and running, so I figured if he tells his friends back home about what happened, we won't have to worry about giants for quite a while!" was Draco's laughing reply.

"Harry! Any word on Tom's whereabouts?" George inquired, as Harry settled his broom next to the group.

"Myrtle reported his return from the Chamber of Secrets and he's headed for the Great Hall," Harry answered, as he watched the Death Eaters below firing spells in all directions.

"Oh, look!" cried Angelina, pointing at the roof of the nearby classroom wing. "Professor Sprout and Peeves are about to get started."

"Better warn everyone, then," added Alicia, as she pulled a whistle from her pocket. "Cover me!"

Putting her broom into a steep dive, the former Quidditch player swooped down over the Courtyard, and blew a sharp warning blast as she skimmed past the fountain and back upward, Fred, George and Angelina right behind her, shooting spells at any of the Death Eaters who were quick enough to react to her sudden appearance. The defenders pulled their earmuffs from their pockets and put them on for "auditory protection".

Suddenly, large flower pots began dropping from the sky, crashing and breaking apart on the stone pathways, releasing the Mandrakes, whose wails immediately pierced the air. Death Eaters yelled in pain, clamping their hands over their ears to try and shut out the screeching sound . . . some weren't quick enough and passed out, sprawling onto the ground, tripping their fellow invaders as they staggered around in the dark. Most of the Death Eaters chose to 'Apparate' out of the Courtyard to a different part of the castle, but the ones who remained were quickly subdued and bound.

X X X

Hearing the distant sounds of the Mandrakes, some of the Death Eaters in the neighboring Courtyard turned and fought their way out of the west archway and headed for the greenhouses, where they were joined by the Death Eaters who were 'Apparating' away from the Mandrakes bombardment. They began to circle around the outside of the castle, running between the greenhouses, in order to enter the school on the north side, by the viaduct.

"Should we follow them?" asked Lee, pointing at the backs of the running Death Eaters.

"Naw," said Charlie Weasley. "Let them think they're outsmarting us . . . they'll get trapped again, soon enough."

"Besides," Percy added. "The show is about to start . . . and I think Fred and George enjoyed this coming bit of 'business' just a little too much, but," he shrugged.

"There's no stopping them once they get an idea in their heads!" agreed Bill. grinning.

"Oh, I wouldn't miss this for the world!" agreed Seamus, ducking a spell and then answering with one of his own.

X X X

Having said goodbye to Draco, who had put his rifle in one of the classrooms and retrieved his broom, Narcissa picked up her equipment bag and 'Apparated' to the Lightning Struck Tower. Unzipping the bag, 'Clever fastening device - the zipper - Muggles are so good at little details!', she pulled out her crossbow and then two boxes of 'ammo'. Placing a box at each of the two vantage points she and the Weasley twins had selected, Cissa calmly loaded one of the 'arrows' and took aim at the first box of explosives hidden on the roof of the Bell Tower. Whispering "Incendio," she pulled the trigger and watched the faint spark of the fuse marking the path of the arrow as it arched downward and struck its target; a wooden box with Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes printed on the side. After a short wait, she was gratified to see the box explode, fire shooting into the air even as flaming debris and smoking chunks of wood showered down into the Courtyard below.

Her second arrow set off the smoke bomb and massive flames from the rooftop, making it look, to those below, as if the building had been hit and was burning. There were faint cheers from the Death Eaters, who then continued their fight to gain entry to the school with renewed vigor. A few more similar explosions on other parts of that roof only re-enforced the perception of damage being done.

Shifting to the other side of the Tower, Narcissa took aim at more of the Weasley brothers pyrotechnic supplies, causing even the defenders to duck as flames and debris rained down.

"The boys really know their stuff, Arthur!" called Sirius, even as Remus swatted at a sparking bit of wood that had landed on his friend's shoulder.

"And this is after we had them tone it down a bit!" replied the proud Father. "And Cissa is quite a 'crack shot', as Fred and George call her!"

Mr. Weasley grinned, then sent another Hex flying toward one of the Death Eaters who blocked it and shot back, sparks flying off the wall where it hit just over Arthur's head.

X X X

Cho, Parvati and Padma had joined Professor Flitwick, Professor Snape, Molly Weasley, Colin and Dennis Creevy and Aberforth Dumbledore in the Cobblestone Courtyard, their assignment being to keep the Death Eaters from getting to the Grand Stairs and/or the outside walkway to the Great Hall Courtyard for as long as possible. This made it a matter of getting behind cover and holding the Death Eaters off until reinforcements arrived and/or the other battles melded into their territory.

They had been warned by the House Elves about the one group of invaders who were making their way past the greenhouses and would try to cross the Viaduct, thus outflanking them, so Hagrid and Grawp shifted themselves and took up station at the end of the Viaduct, along with Fred, George, Alicia and Angelia, who, having finished their aerial reconnaissance, had landed and joined in the dueling.

Draco headed to the Clock Tower Courtyard , coming in to land at the end of what was left of the wooden bridge, which put him behind the Death Eaters. He proceeded to add his spells to the chaos of that battle even as Oliver, Kingsley, Ron, Romilda, Lavender, Horace Slughorn, Hermione and Lucius backed slowly into the school . . . effectively leading the Death Eaters toward the next section of the school and joining the battle in the Cobblestone Courtyard.

X X X

Harry landed behind Hagrid and peeked around his oldest Wizarding acquaintance.

"How's it going, Hagrid?"

"Ah, well, one of the House Elves was just here and said there's a bunch coming past the greenhouses and will probably try to get across this bridge, but we're ready. How's the rest of the battle going?"

Just then more explosions went off on the roof over the building opposite them.

"Well, Narcissa's having a blast!" George laughed!

"I think we created a monster, George," agreed Fred, pounding his brother on the back.

"Well, regardless of the fireworks, to answer your question, Hagrid; we're holding our own, no one's been seriously hurt, thanks to the shield vests and the 'Felix', but we're not done yet. Myrtle reported to me that Tom 'Apparated' to just outside the Great Hall doors and went in there, so he's relaxing, waiting for me to be caught and dragged to him," Harry informed Hagrid.

"But that's not going to happen quite as he expects, is it, Harry?" Alicia asked.

"No, I . . . " But Harry's eye was drawn skyward as he spotted someone streaking toward them. Quickly pulling his wand, he pointed it straight at the oncoming figure, quickly copied by Fred, George, Angelina and Alicia. But just as suddenly, he dropped his arm and strode over to the broom rider, who had landed a bit further down the walkway. "Victor! What are you doing here?"

Victor Krum threw his arms around Harry and gave him a bear hug, pounding him on the back.

"Miss a battle . . . Me? . . . Ha! . . . I vould not miss this for all the Snitches in the vorld, 'arry! Fred! George!" The former Durmstrang Institute student , Bulgarian National Team Seeker and Tri-Wizard Tournament participant greeted the twins and then kissed Alicia and Angelina' hands, before turning to Hagrid. "Hello my mighty friend!" He threw his arms around Hagrid and gave him as much of a bear hug as he could. "And who is this?" Victor asked, looking up at Grawp.

"He's me half-brother, Grawp!" explained Hagrid. "Grawpy, this here is Victor, he's come to help us. 'Ya come to help, haven't 'ya?" Hagrid turned to the young man who was staring up at Grawp, grinning.

"I have come to help! Fleur has kept me informed and as soon as I got word, I started for Hogwarts. I haven't missed anything, have I?" Victor turned to look at Harry.

Another explosion echoed through the canyon as if in answer.

"We're just getting to the good bit, looks like," replied Hagrid, as Death Eaters burst out of the doors on the other end of the viaduct.

"Take cover!" called Harry, even as he started firing off spells at the advancing invaders.

Fred grabbed Victor's elbow and pulled him behind Hagrid, even as George was reaching into a backpack he'd just removed; pulling out a vest and gloves, he handed them to Victor, who shrugged on the vest and pulled on the gloves with lightening speed, then he swallowed the vial of 'Felix' Potion Fred passed to him.

"Now you're ready!" George grinned.

"Well, vhat are we doing standing here?" laughed Victor, even as he pulled his wand and stepped out from behind the shadow of the Hogwarts Professor of Magical Creatures and joined in the battle.

"My question, exactly!" yelled Fred, as George and he leapt to the other side and fired off their spells at the advancing Death Eaters.

X X X

Lord Voldemort walked slowly down the length of the Great Hall, the noise of the explosions and shouts coming through the doors behind him hardly registering . His thoughts were flashing back to his student days and how he'd used his blossoming skills in the Dark Arts to use the Basilisk to scare the entire school . . . and if it hadn't been for that meddling Dumbledore . . . well, no matter . . . the old coot was dead and gone, he had the Elder Wand and Harry Potter would be dead before dawn.

Reaching the front of the room, he mounted the dais and circled the table to settle into the Headmaster's chair. Looking around, he waved the Elder Wand and moved all of the tables and benches against the walls . . . he wanted a front row seat for the final bit of dueling between his army of followers and this pathetic band of 'defenders' who thought they could repel and defeat him. His lips curled in a grimace, or what would pass, for Voldemort, as a smile.

Yes, the next hour or two would prove quite . . . amusing . . . especially with all of the punishment that needed to be handed out and he would force Harry to watch his friends suffer and die BEFORE killing him. Then the new age of Magic would begin.

X X X

Bella was getting madder by the moment; she and some of the other Death Eaters had tried getting around the group of defenders they were dueling by traversing various hallways and secret passages in the school, only to be turned back by the obstacles of swamps and dangerous plants they had found.

Back in the Cobblestone Courtyard she became aware that the fight in the Clock Tower Courtyard was starting to spill into the doorway behind them. Shrieking with glee when she spotted Lucius Malfoy in the entrance to the connecting hallway, Bella fired off a spell that just missed hitting Lucius, as he was ducking sideways, already busy dueling his brother-in-law, Rudolphus.

Lucius realized he was caught in a cross fire and sprinted for cover behind a large pillar.

"I've got you now, Lucius," Bella snarled even as she maneuvered through the crowd of dueling Witches and Wizards, keeping Lucius in sight and waiting for just the right moment. As Lucius jumped out and fired of another spell back toward Rudolphus, Bella raised her wand, eyes wide with excitement. "Avada Ka . . ."

"BOOM!"

There was an explosion right behind Bella which lifted her off her feet and pitched her forward onto the rough cobblestones, knocking the breath out of her lungs and leaving her lying there, dazed.

"Bella!" shouted Rudolphus, who made a move to go to her aid, but he was forced back by several spells coming at him from different directions.

" 'Accio wand!' " shouted Draco, as he came through the archway just in time to see his aunt land on the courtyard floor, wand skittering away from her hand.

There was a streak of black smoke as someone - Narcissa it turned out - 'Apparated' into the middle of the scene. Straightening up, she whirled around, scowl on her face as she stalked over to her sister, even as Bella was pushing herself up off the courtyard floor.

Narcissa grabbed a fistful of Bella's hair and yanked her head back, leaning over to hiss at her, "How DARE you try and harm my family!" With that, Narcissa threw her sister back down and turned to walk over to Lucius. Bella rose up in a rush, mouth open in a scream of rage, pulling her knife from its sheath even as she lunged toward her sister's retreating form.

However, that scream was cut short and her progress halted by a hand clamping over her mouth while another seized her wrist.

"Now, now, Bella. . . mustn't go playing with knives, you might do yourself a mischief," purred Severus Snape, as he halted Bella in her tracks.

Twisting her wrist hard, Severus shook her hand and the knife clattered to the cobblestones, drawing Narcissa's attention. Spinning, she saw Severus struggling with the outraged Bella, the knife rolling across the space between them to come to rest against Cissa's boot. Bending over Narcissa picked it up, regarded the razor sharp blade, then tossed it aside. She marched over to where Severus stood, grabbed her sister by the shoulder and spun her around, freeing her from Severus' grasp. Bella's eyes flew wide but before she could say a word Narcissa punched her, hard, with a right cross that dropped Bella like a sack of potatoes. Shaking her hand, "Ow!", she smiled and nodded to Severus and then turned to join her husband, who had been successfully holding Rudolphus away from the confrontation.

'Oh, that's going to be a great bit to tell everyone, when the time comes,' thought Draco, who was grinning from ear to ear, even as he dueled with two Death Eaters who were trying to get back through the archway, in an attempt to use the stairs in the hospital wing to get around the courtyard battle.

"Good to see you, Mister Malfoy," Filius Flitwick said, as he joined Draco, hitting a Death Eater with a 'Jelly Legs Jinx'.

"AH, Professor, how's it going?" replied Draco, ducking and then returning a spell.

"Holding our own, as you can see. Your mother packs quite a punch!" Flitwick grinned.

"That she does, Professor, that she does!" agreed Draco.

"Giants taken care of?" asked the diminutive Charms teacher.

"Four out of five dealt with, the last one turned and ran for it!" answered Draco.

"Good. Well, shall we?" inquired Filius.

"Let's!" smiled Draco, even as the two of them emerged from cover and waded into the thick of the battle.

X X X

Katie Treiber and Madam Pomfrey were watching from the hospital windows as the fight in the Cobblestone Courtyard raged below them. It wasn't that they hadn't had any patients to tend to, but the ones who had shown up for medical help had been, luckily, minor scrapes, bruises, cuts, gashes and burns.

The House Elves were being a tad overprotective in their assigned duties as partners with each defender, as most of the patients were a bit vexed at being taking from their posts for what they considered minor wounds. But as they were also returned, almost as quickly as they arrived in hospital, to their assigned places immediately after being patched up, the complaints were few.

"Look Poppy! Severus just grabbed Bella Lestrange from behind!" Katie pointed to a corner of the dimly lit courtyard; the fires on the roof and some torches on the walls being the only light shining on the scene.

"Oh my, that woman is . . . "Poppy started but then gasped as Narcissa cold cocked her sister.

"Way to go, Cissa!" cheered Katie, clapping, as she watched Severus and Narcissa walk away from Bella's sprawled form.

"Perhaps they should have tied her up instead of just leaving her there," suggested Poppy. "She'll be even more dangerous when she wakes up."

"If she wakes up before it's all over; that was quite a punch!" Katie observed.

Just then Tiny 'popped' into the room with Dean Thomas, who was holding his right arm.

"Oh dear, Mister Thomas, what happened?" inquired Poppy, as she and Katie turned from the window.

"Tripped over some Death Eater who was lying with his legs sprawled out . Thought I'd stepped over them, but caught my shoe on his trouser, probably. Lucky thing, too, as a spell just missed me as I went down. But I landed badly and think I did something to my wrist," Dean explained, even as Healer Treiber ran a diagnostic over his arm with her wand.

"Just a sprain, and they hurt just a bad as a break. We'll wrap it and Tiny can get you back down there in a jiffy, can't you, Tiny?" Katie directed a smile at the little House Elf waiting patiently by Dean's side.

"Yes, Miss, Tiny knows her duty, to Mister Dean and to Hogwarts," answered Dean's helper, nodding emphatically.

"All of the House Elves are doing a very good job," nodded Madam Pomfrey, as she wrapped Dean's forearm in a pressure bandage. "There! All right and tight!"

"Great!" Dean lifted his arm and moved it a bit. "That'll do fine. Thanks! Let's go, Tiny!"

"Yes, Mister Dean, sir!"

'Pop'

X X X

Albus had been watching the progress of the different skirmishes, using Harry's map, which Dobby had delivered to him. He could see Voldemort was stationary in the Great Hall, no doubt sitting in the Headmaster's chair.

"Well, let's see if this will get you up and moving, Tom," Albus muttered, as he raised the Basilisk fang that had been retrieved from the Chamber of Secrets and plunged it into the Ravenclaw Diadem. Black smoke and screeching voices poured forth, swirling around Albus, even as he picked up the headpiece and flung it into the roaring flames of a confined bit of Fiendfyre in his office fireplace.

X X X

Harry gasped as his scar burned.

'Five down, two to go . . ' He grimaced and then continued helping repel the invading Death Eaters.

X X X

"AHH!" gasped Voldemort, as the dizziness hit him and he grasped the arms of the Headmaster's chair. "Another one!? NOoooooo!"

He stood, a bit unsteadily and started to stalk the length of the Hall but stopped midway, thinking.

"No, I will not be manipulated . . . lured out . . . you will come to ME, Harry Potter!"

Whirling around, he returned to the dais and resumed his seat.

'Do you hear me, Harry?' he thought viciously. 'YOU will come to ME!'

X X X

Harry smiled grimly.