Bookwurm1612 - ta for the review

Chapter 75:

Mary rused up to Gargoyle that stood before the headmaster's study. Shit I don't know the password… she thought, "Erm… pucking pastries, lemon drops," it's always a sweet… "Sugar quills… crystalised pineapple…" Nothing seemed to work, "Look I know you don't have to do this but… well there's a huge fight… please I need to see the headmaster… It's the death eaters."

"Well why didn't you say so?" the gargoyle moved out of her way. Professor Dumbledore had given the gargoyle a secondary password – death eaters… If the gargoyle got wind of an attack he was under direct orders from the headmaster to allow the individual in to see the headmaster. She ran up the stairs, the hovering Snape following directly after her. She banged loudly on the door. There was a cough from within and a scurrying around sort of noise. Mary banged again, "Professor – it's urgent!"

Professor Dumbledore came to the door, he was still tying his dressing gown, "Miss MacDonald," he yarned.

"Sorry Professor but there's a fight… please you have to come."

Dumbledore saw the terror in her eyes, "Ok – let me just change."

"But professor, theres no time."

Professor Dumbledore touched his clothes with his wand and they transformed into a dark purple wizarding robe, "let's go…" Dumbledore followed his student down the stairs, Snape following behind them. "Where are they?"

"Astronomy tower sir," Mary replied.

"Right – I want you to go fetch Professors McGonagall, Flitwick, Slughorn… anyone you can find really. Make sharp MacDonald." Professor Dumbledore told her as he marched towards the astronomy tower.

Kate stood banging on Kilmont's door, "Holly! Holly!"

Holly came to the door fully dressed wand in hand, "where's James?"

"Astronomy tower," Kate replied.

"Crap – lead the way," Holly pointed her wand out the distance and non-verbally cast her patronus, hurry Charlus… he's in danger. She was so grateful Charlus had taught her that spell. Apparently it had been Dumbledore's idea to use the patronuses for communication. A spell that every member of the newly forming order had to know.

They ran towards the astronomy tower. As they approached it they ran into Dumbledore. They could hear crashes and screams from above. Dumbledore whispered to Kate, "Stone keep your wand up…" He led them up the stairs and into the fight. Dumbledore looked around, assessing the damage. Several of his students were on the ground but some were still fighting. His eye met James' briefly before he quickly cast a cascading jinx. It hit several of the death eaters and caused them to stumble briefly. Holly made her way over to where James was leaning against the wall still engaged in battle with a death eater that she didn't recognise. "Inflatus," the boy cried. He was trying to ignore the pain in his whole body. Holly quickly assessed the damage, "James…" She could see the pain in his eyes. She was so proud of him, he's so brave – just like his father. She turned towards the death eater and called "Flipendo" at the same time as James cast the backfiring jinx. The death eater flew backwards into a wall. James and Holly fought together against several death eaters. They just kept coming – James couldn't understand how there were so many. Dumbledore was duelling three death eaters, "aqua eructo!" An incy blue jet of water shot out of his wand. Dumbledore manipulated the water to hit the deatheaters in the face. They were momentarily blinded by the water as they covered their faces. Kate quickly joined Alice as she duelled several Slytherin second years. Avery was laughing happily as he pointed his wand at Kate, "Confringo!"

Kate blocked it before returning her own blasting curse at him. He stumbled but regained his composure and sent a cutting curse at her, "Interficiam!" It hit her across the face and she felt her skin break as if she'd been cut with a knife.

Lily was duelling Malfoy, "Come on Mudblood. Is that all you've got?"

Lily responded with a knockback jinx. He fell back but quickly righted himself, "Crucio!"

Lily felt pain like nothing she'd ever felt before. She screamed in agony. James heard her scream and was momentarily distracted. He made to go help her, completely forgetting the death eater he was currently duelling. The death eater raised his wand, "AVADA KEDAVRA!" There was a flash of green light that filled the entire room. James turned to see the light. Holly was lying on the ground at his feet. She had stepped in front of the curse for him. James felt tears on his cheeks, she's gone.

The death eater sneered before pointing his wand into the air, "Morsmordre!" A green light flashed out of his wand into the sky. It quickly transformed into a skull. James watched it. The rest of the duels had momentarily paused to watch the skull. Alice screamed as she saw a snake protruding from the skull's mouth. In seconds the duel had begun again and James was fighting the death eater before him, completely forgetting the pain in his broken body, overcome by anger. The pain caused by the death of his friend far outwaying the pain in his hundreds of broken bones. He sent a stinging hex at the death eater. The curse however, barely affected him, he merely continued to leer at James. He tried a bat-bodey hex but the death eater just pushed it aside with his wand.

Mary ran from teacher to teacher, telling them what was happening. Professor McGonagall ran to the fight still in her nightgown, wand raised high. The other teachers were soon on her tail. Professor Sprout told Mary to go and warn Madam Pomfrey. Mary ran to the hospital wing to tell the nurse. "My dear, what on earth is the matter?" the young nurse asked.

Mary buried her head in her knees, trying desperately to regain her breath, "there's a fight – people are going to be hurt."

"How many?"

"I don't know… a lot."

"Ok – tonight Miss Macdonald you are my assistant."

Mary nodded.

"I need to write to St Mungo's urgently," Pomfrey ran into her office grabbing a quill and parchment. She quickly scrawled, Fight at Hogwarts – not sure of severity as of yet… may need help! Pomfrey. She returned to Mary, "first thing you can do is run this down to the owlery."

Mary quickly grabbed the piece of paper and ran from the room. She darted through the corridors quicker than she'd ever run in her life.

Please don't hate me... I fully almost cried when I killed her off... She was my fav. non canon character... :(

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