Chapter 26
Soon, the students who didn't stay to fight exited the Great Hall and Kingsley stepped up to speak. Sira could feel her heart beat faster in her chest, starting to pound against her ribs. "We've only got half an hour until midnight, so we need to act fast!" Kingsley ordered. "A battle plan has been agreed between the teachers of Hogwarts and the Order of the Phoenix. Professor Flitwick, Sprout, and McGonagall are going to take groups of fighters to the three highest towers- Ravenclaw, Astronomy, and Gryffindor- where they'll have a good overview, excellent positions from which to work spells. Meanwhile Remus, Arthur, and I will take groups to the grounds. We'll need somebody to organize defense of the entrances of the passageways into the school."
"Sounds like a job for us," Fred shouted as he indicated him and George. Kingsley nodded, approving them.
"All right, leaders up here and we'll divide up the troops!"
"Remus, Kingsley," Sira called out, rushing towards them before the others could arrive, "where would you like me to be?"
The men looked at each other, almost seeming like they were sharing thoughts with each other without saying a word. "It would be safer for you to be in one of the towers," Remus stated.
"But fighters are needed for the grounds, and since you were a Death Eater, you know their skills and their weaknesses better than the rest of us," Kingsley explained rapidly. "You can be in Remus' group." She nodded as she gave Remus a little smile, even though he didn't seem like he agreed completely with Kingsley's decision.
"Come, Sira," Remus said quickly as he waved to the rest of his group. "We better go to the grounds."
With a nod, she followed him out of the Great Hall, along with the rest of the group. The tension was thick in the air, mixing with a small buzz of electric excitement. As the members of their group drew their wands, Sira shifted into a wolf gracefully, keeping pace with them.
Within seconds, they reached the grounds of the castle. If it weren't for the coming battle, one could say that it was a pleasant night. Warm, with a slight breeze. The night could've been perfect, but everyone knew it wasn't going to be. Sira grazed at the starry sky above her, her blue eyes filled with her hope and her regret. The breeze combed through her fur, comforting her, assuring her. Somehow, through all of the stress and the fear, she was at peace. She hadn't felt that way in the longest time.
"Ten minutes until midnight," someone, who she didn't know, stated, breaking the silence of the night.
Scabior, she thought, wherever you are, please, stay safe.
Nine.
She was looking into his blue-grey eyes when she realized she loved him.
Eight.
He held her close as she cried over the death of her friend, the death that she caused.
Seven.
His laugh echoed in her brain as he picked her up and twirled her, and she laughed with him, afraid he would drop her. She knew he never would.
Six.
His lips met hers as soon as he reached her, returning home from weeks of being away with the Snatchers.
Five.
His hand touched her cheek as a loving smile formed on his lips.
Four.
He promised he'd take care of her and the baby that wasn't his.
Three.
He asked her to marry him, lifting her spirits when all she felt was grief.
Two.
He was there for her when no one else was.
One.
He loved her more than anyone in this world.
A blast shook the ground around her, breaking her away from her thoughts. It was midnight and the battle was about to begin.
In the distance, she heard a roar of voices, causing her to snarl as the hackles on the back of her neck rose. Remus glanced at her and she looked at him, nodding slowly as she started to pace around the group. She had a perfect view of the covered bridge, and most of the battlefield, which to her, didn't really matter. All it meant was that she'd have a better view of the destruction.
More explosions shook the grounds as they saw their enchantments break. Death Eaters and their allies soon rushed forward, yelling and hollering with their excitement and their eagerness for battle. Fear panged through her heart; she wasn't sure what exactly was going to happen. She hoped for the best, but she was ready for the worst.
Within seconds, her enemies appeared before her, their eyes wild with the thrill of battle. She recognized many of the faces looking back at her. Dolohov, Yaxley, and even the Death Eater she went on a mission with near the beginning of the year, which he was a failure at. So many faces, so many people she knew but now she was on the just side, the side where she had always belonged.
Her paws pounded out a few beats before she lunged for a Death Eater, spells already illuminating the air with flashes of brilliant color. If not being so deadly and vicious, the color could have been seen as being beautiful, maybe even spectacular. Her jaws sank into the Death Eater's thigh; blood welled up from the wound as he cried out in agony. She gripped his leg tighter, sending her teeth deeper into his warm flesh.
In the next instant, she was on the ground, tumbling back away from him. Scrambling, she was back on her feet, barely missing a curse that flew by her ear. An inch closer and her ear might have been missing. She growled, throwing herself at him again as the rest of the group fought their opponents. They all fought with the same ferocity that she did.
Quick, accented movements followed by long, legato strokes. Slowed down, it'd look like a dance, if the dancers' faces weren't maddened by the sure exhilaration of battle.
Rapidly, Sira took down her opponent, felling him to his knees. When he had fallen the rest of the way to the ground, she felt a bit sorry for him. Sorry that he didn't see the error of the Death Eater way. Sorry that he thought he could easily overtake her when she had a new will, which burned in her heart, a rekindled flame. Sorry that he wouldn't be leaving this battle the same man. He'll be badly scarred, and going to go rot in Azkaban. She knew she might be rotting with him in the end, for that was what she deserved. Or, at least, that is what she thought she deserved.
The next thing she knew, she was out of her Animagus form.
The first thing she did was look at her hands, gazing down at them with astonishment and wonder. She hadn't shifted, so why had she changed?
She barely had time to duck when she had found the answer to her question. Someone had forced her out of her form, back into her human form, and it just so happened to be another Death Eater she barely knew at all. In a moment, she drew her wand and started to duel him, gracefully dodging his attacks, which she countered with her own. He never took a bad step; he never made a wrong move. He was young and brave, fearless, and his abilities matched hers step for step.
He had eyes so blue that they were the color of the midnight sky; his hair fell into his eyes a bit, a rich, dark-chocolate brown. His face, defined, would've been handsome if it weren't for the snarl that twisted his face from battle. He looked to be about Sira's age, maybe a bit younger, and she felt sorry for him as well.
He couldn't have known exactly what he was getting into when he joined the Death Eaters. He couldn't have known the pain and the suffering such a simple act could cause. He was just a kid, like she was. A kid in a grown-up world. A kid who would make mistakes and then would have to pay for them in the long run.
How could they have been so blind?
An explosion came out of nowhere, catching her attention out of the corner of her eye. She froze as her heart skipped a beat.
The bridge collapsed and people fell with it, and even from a distance, she knew who they were. Her eyes couldn't leave the sight, couldn't break away for any reason what so ever. Her chest tightened with dread, her eyes growing wider.
"Scabior," she whispered her mind racing.
Pain seared through her leg and she gasped in agony, losing her balance a bit.
"Stupefy!" she barked as she aimed at her opponent, stunning him before looking down at her wound.
She gritted her teeth at the site of it. There was a deep gash in the middle of her thigh, so deep it cut into the muscle. Tears welled up in her eyes as her pain increased. There was quite a bit of blood.
She had to get to Scabior though, even if it killed her.
The tears rolled down her cheeks as she hobbled her way towards the collapsed bridge. Able-bodied, the walk would've taken her just a few minutes, but in her state with her injured leg pretty much immovable, it took her what seemed like ages.
Step, drag. Step, drag. She shuffled, slowly making progress. Her eyes fixed on the river below, watching for any movement.
The pain was great, urging her to quit, but her will was greater.
She saw no movement from the river.
Step, drag.
Her eyes scanned for him, blinded by tears.
Her heart pounded against her ribs.
Step, drag.
Her vision started to blur.
She found him.
She slid the rest of the way down towards him and the water on her knees, her breaths hard and labored. "Scabior," she whispered softly as she examined him. His chest rose and fell in deep breaths and his eyes were closed. His body, his lower half in the water and his upper half on the shore, looked battered and broken. She moved closer to him and touched his cheek, looking at him with terror in her eyes. She couldn't lose him now. She loved him too much for that, even if they weren't the best for each other.
His eyes opened slowly, as if it hurt him to do so. "Scabior," her tears soaked her face as a wave of light-headedness washed over her. He looked awful; his eyes were clouded over with his pain. "I'm so glad I found you."
"Sira," he said, his voice gruff and raspy, "you're bleeding. You're hurt." The haze in his eyes mixed with concern as he gazed at her, knowing that she wasn't alright even if she said she was. She was losing quite a bit of blood, and her face was sheet-white. She nodded; shutting her eyes gently as her head swam more, causing her to sway a bit.
She put her hand on her head, gritting her teeth, as she laid down beside him on the shoreline. Everything was blurry. She couldn't even understand what he was saying to her as she closed her eyes. Exhaustion, weakness, and blood loss tugged at her body, drawing her closer to the welcoming blackness.
"Sira…" A long breath left her chest as her body relaxed.
A pair of hands gently gripped her shoulders.
It was the last thing she felt before she slipped into the dark.