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AN: Chapter betaed by the awesome Miette and Dstone12. They were even pickier than usual to make this chapter the best it could be, thank you!
"Which Horcrux is next?" asked Severus, looking at Marvolo.
"The diadem."
Severus nodded.
"Dhaal, would you mind getting it?"
"Tell Andromeda to stay put for now but to be prepared to send Augustus and Regulus at a moment's notice," he added through their bond.
He hoped the rest of the reunification would be as smooth as the first, but he would not let his guard down until the Lord was whole and hale.
Despite the anti-flow-travelling wards, Dhaal did not take more than a few minutes to come back, the containing box attached to his neck. The Lord had remained pensive the entire time, though there was a slight tension in his body now that he knew what to expect.
The Thestral shrank himself so that the box could slide to the ground then pushed the containing box through the blocking circle with his head before going back to Nagini's side.
Severus could see Marvolo's curiosity as he took the box in his hand and studied it before lifting up its lid.
"I wish I had had one of these boxes earlier. I would not have needed to hide them so far away from me."
Severus looked at the Lord askance but the man was seemingly speaking to himself.
He cleared his throat to get Marvolo's attention.
"Would you mind giving me the box? I need to check the Horcrux's state compared to your core."
The older man nodded and gave him the box without showing any hesitation. Severus nodded his thanks then focused his Sense on the diadem then on the link between the Horcrux and its Khorlo.
This one was linked to Anāhata, the Khorlo of links and relationships. The Horcrux was more similar to its Khorlo than the diary and Manipura had been. However, Severus felt himself grow cold. The flow between the diadem and Anāhata was too quiet compared to the flow that linked Vishuddha, the Khorlo of communication, to its Horcrux. His Sense was telling him that this was not the second Horcrux.
It might be an honest mistake. Severus could not remember if he had explicitly told Marvolo that they had to reunite the Horcruxes in chronological order and could only keep the last one the Lord had made and Nagini.
"This isn't the second Horcrux you've made," stated Severus, fighting to keep his tone steady and light.
"Indeed, that's the third one. I'm keeping the second," answered Marvolo calmly, though Severus noticed that the tension in his body increased.
"I'm afraid that's not possible. I'm sorry if I wasn't clear enough earlier, but we must reunite you with your Horcruxes in chronological order. If you want to keep one in addition to Nagini, it must be the last one you created," explained Severus, shoving his dread and uncertainty behind his Occlumency shield.
The Lord stared at him coldly.
"I am not reuniting with the ring. This is my last word Severus."
Severus felt his stomach sink. Wirkrund had been clear, they needed to reunite the Horcruxes in the right order. Severus was already taking a risk by allowing the Lord to keep one in addition to Nagini; they could not afford to deviate even more from the plan.
He took a deep breath, putting the box near the circle delimitation.
"I'm sorry Marvolo, I don't understand the problem. Any Horcrux works to keep you invincible, why would it matter which one you keep?"
"No!" shouted Lord Voldemort. "Not this one."
Suddenly, there was a glint of madness in his eyes.
"She was right. You are plotting against me. You want me to lose my head and suffer the curse."
"Marvolo—"
"Don't call me that! You are not to be trusted! How could I be so blind! How could I trust you when you went behind my back to collect my Horcruxes!"
"Get Augustus and Regulus!" Sensed Severus to Dhaal, understanding that the situation was getting out of his control.
"I'm not leaving you here alone!" exclaimed his Thestral.
"Go!" repeated Severus. "We have no guarantee to win a fight without hurting him or worse. The sooner you go, the sooner you'll be back!"
Severus twisted as the Lord shot a powerful stunning spell at him, narrowly avoiding being hit. He quickly cast Protego to absorb the next spell. The shield shook under the power of the Lord's Immobilius. Severus was not surprised that Lord Voldemort's power was between Dumbledore's and a voktere's, though with the both of them only able to use their core's magic, it gave him no indication about the amount of power the Lord could wield when using the Marks and his connection to his House.
"My Lord, please, I don't understand. What is so special about this Horcrux that you would endanger your core by not reuniting with it?" asked Severus, trying to stall for time and genuinely interested in the answer.
"Don't play me for a fool, Severus. You found my Horcruxes, you know this one is special," snapped Lord Voldemort, looking at him with fury and madness in his eyes.
"Is it because of the stone on the ring?" asked Severus. "It behaved oddly but I removed it, you have nothing to fear from it."
"I don't fear anything!" hissed the older man. "I don't care about that stone, I care about my special Horcrux! How long have you been planning to use it to crush me? You knew the group would never accept another leader if you killed me. You weren't even sure you could kill me, so you made another plan. Tell me Severus, did you want me to reunite with it then make a fool of myself so you could propose yourself as the new leader to save the group? Was it your master plan?"
"My Lord, I assure you I have no desire to lead the group or be elected Minister of Magic, I—"
"Then Dhaal did not leave to warn your allies that I have discovered your plan?" snapped Voldemort. "Well? Did he or didn't he didn't leave to call for your reinforcement in the hope that all of you together could take me down?"
Severus Sensed Nagini move, quick as lightning, and understood the Lord's plan. He wanted to get out of the circle to call for other Death Eaters, and needed Nagini to break the circle for that. So he was trying to distract Severus. He could not allow that.
Keeping his Protego up, Severus focused on the stones and willed them to stay. Magic was intent, and he did not have the time to wonder if a sticking charm would work or not so he just willed his Magic to keep the stones where they were.
Severus grunted as Nagini hit one of the stones at the same time that Lord Voldemort's Deprimo cracked his shield. Thank Helhest that the man did not seem to want to kill him. Yet. Thank Helhest for his training with the voktere, as he easily sidestepped the next stunning spell from Lord Voldemort then raised another Protego while keeping his focus on the stones.
This time, Nagini aimed for another stone, trying to ram against it. The stone shook, Severus feeling the force of the impact rattle through his bones, but the stone did not move. The circle did not break.
Severus felt sweat trickle down his neck as he once more protected himself from Lord Voldemort's assault. What was taking Dhaal so long?
He felt his heart speed up as this time, he Sensed Nagini aim not at a stone but between two of them. She was joining them inside the circle, no doubt hoping to take him hostage so Lord Voldemort could negotiate with Severus' allies to have them open the circle.
At the same time, Voldemort increased both the speed and intensity of his attacks. Severus narrowly sidestepped a stunner only to lose his footing as his shield shuddered under a strong Levicorpus. He rolled on the ground and found himself straight in Nagini's path without any way to avoid her.
Severus braced himself as he conjured his strongest shield, hoping that it would be enough to stop both the giant snake and Voldemort's attack.
But the attacks never came. At the last moment, a blur of red stepped between Nagini and him. Severus blinked as Kea in full Nundu mode let Nagini sink her fang deep into her foreleg, only to behead her with her other forepaw. The Nundu's claws in action were breath-takingly effective.
Severus expected Voldemort to attack with vengeance at his Familiar's death, but when he turned toward the Lord, he found him slumped on the ground, a muggle sleeping dart sticking from his shoulder.
This was when he realised that Augustus and Regulus were here, despite him being unable to Sense them. Which made sense since the two of them were outside the circle, but then, how had he Sensed Nagini? Unless he had only Sensed her because of her link to Voldemort… Or the circle was already weakening after the first reunification, and Nagini being part of Lord Voldemort made it easier for her magical presence to be Sensed through the barrier…
"Severus, are you alright?"
He did not remember ever hearing his Grandfather so worried.
"I'm fine. Don't enter the circle!" warned Severus.
"I should check you over," protested Augustus.
"We've already begun the reunification. We cannot break the circle now, and the less people inside the better," countered Severus.
"Then what are those two doing in here?" asked Regulus, gesturing at the two Marauders.
Severus had completely forgotten about them, as they had been put in an out of the way portion of the circle and he had been a bit preoccupied.
"It's a long story," he answered warily, coming closer to Pettigrew and Potter-bis to check that they were still unconscious. So far so good.
He sighed as Kea rubbed her head into his back.
"You could have kept her alive."
She let out a low growl.
"She says that Nagini was an abomination and that it was kinder for her to die," said Dhaal, keeping outside the circle but Sensing his concern at Severus.
Severus Sensed back his reassurances that he was fine. They had arrived just in time.
"Did Nagini hurt her?"
Dhaal snorted as if amused.
"She's more venomous than Nagini, she'll be fine."
Severus petted the Nundu's head lightly. He was grateful she had not let Dhaal face the snake.
"Please keep an eye on the prisoners. No killing them but no letting them escape either."
Kea purred contentedly and went to curl next to the Marauders' feet, still in Nundu's form.
"Thanks for the save," said Severus, walking close to the circle limit where Augustus and Regulus were standing, the latter still holding the dart gun in his hand. "Nice shot," he added, nodding at Regulus.
"That was a close one," answered the younger man. "Dhaal gave us a brief summary of the situation when he first came to get the diadem, everything seemed to be going well. What happened?"
Severus quickly gave them a brief recounting of the Lord's refusal to reunite with his second Horcrux and how it had led to him thinking that Severus wanted his place.
"I don't understand what is so special about that Horcrux," said Regulus, puzzled, "aside from the stone that you removed that somehow made Jonathan see his dead father."
"I don't know either," answered Severus. "Speaking of, have you heard from Jonathan? He has been on that raid for several hours now."
Augustus shook his head.
"He still wasn't home when I tried to warn him that we were implementing our plan."
"I don't like this," said Regulus, echoing Severus' feelings perfectly. "I know raids sometimes take several hours to prepare, but only for the hardest ones. And he was called this morning."
Coupled with Voldemort's cryptic allusion, Severus worried that Jonathan had been tested like Severus had.
"Sadly, there's nothing we can do for Jonathan right now," said Augustus firmly. "We are on a time limit now that the reunification has begun, from what you told us about your circle. The drugs also won't work forever."
"And some of the other Death Eaters may come knocking at any moment, especially if the raid was a special one," added Regulus, biting his lower lips.
Severus nodded warily.
"Alright, let's keep going with our plan."
Wordlessly, Augustus and Regulus pushed the two remaining containing boxes in the circle, then went to set up additional protections to warn them if anyone else entered the manor.
Severus walked to Voldemort, putting him on his back in a more comfortable position. He took the time to study the man's core once more, relieved that Nagini's death did not seem to have impacted it negatively. She had been linked to Ājñā, the Khorlo of spirits, which might explain the Lord's less than stellar strategic choices of late, and his increasing mood shifts and general uneasiness these past weeks. It did not seem weaker than the other Khorlos.
Of course, when the Lord woke up and realised that the comforting presence of his Familiar in his mind was gone, her death would impact him greatly… But that was a problem for later.
Severus took the box containing the ring. His Sense immediately confirmed that this was the second Horcrux. The substance of the flow between the ring and its Khorlo just stood out, feeling like it was on edge.
He tilted the box over gently so that the ring landed on Voldemort's chest. Immediately, he could Sense the ring reaching toward the man's core.
Severus carefully ensured that the Horcrux did not latch at another Khorlo than its own, and then just watched as the flow between Horcrux and Khorlo slowly became smaller and thicker until suddenly, they were one.
Severus had been prepared to shield himself after the first experience, but this time, there was no explosion of Magic.
Looking over the newly reunited Khorlo, Severus was glad not to notice any holes or unevenness in it. Marvolo's core was still vibrating but Severus did not notice any increase of frequency. Even better, the wrongness coming from the Lord's core seemed to have abated slightly.
The next Horcrux was the diadem. This time, its flow was the one vibrating with anticipation. Its reunification went as smoothly as the previous one, and Severus felt himself relax slightly as he reached for the last box.
"Can you hurry Severus?"
Severus looked at Regulus' concerned face in surprise.
"What's wrong?"
"The stones are beginning to crack."
Helhest.
"What in Merlin's beard are you doing?"
Severus almost jumped in surprise at Potter-bis' voice. Quickly getting up to his feet, he walked closer to the two Marauders, Kea already interposing herself between him and the threat.
"What is it with you and dangerous magical creatures?" asked Potter-bis, eyeing the Nundu warily.
Severus ignored him, instead checking their restraints over.
The chains were still locked, restraining them effectively. The runes engraved on them prevented them from performing wandless magic or using their animagus form. However, the spells that Lord Voldemort had added like the silencing charm had failed. The reunification with three of his Horcruxes had changed his core so much that it had cancelled them. That was a good sign.
"Is that Voldemort down there?" asked Pettigrew, looking far less afraid than when Severus had first arrived.
"Finally came to your senses and decided to off him?" added Potter-bis, looking at Severus with a calculating look in his eyes. "Free us and I'll kill him for you, spare you the heartache and all."
The man was as unfeeling as ever, the perfect little Black despite his claim to the contrary. Severus ignored him.
He would have loved to put them back to sleep, but inside the circle, he only had access to his core magic. In the event that Lord Voldemort woke up angry – and who was he kidding, of course the Lord would be since he already thought he had been betrayed and now Nagini was dead – he just could not afford to waste his resources on the two idiots. He had already used up a significant part of it in his previous duel against the Lord.
Nodding to himself, Severus went back to Voldemort.
"Hey, Caspian! What are you doing?" asked Potter-bis. "Why are we in a weird magical circle? Why—"
"Won't you shut up Sirius!" snapped Regulus, glaring at his older brother and coming as close to him as the circle allowed.
"Regulus!" said Sirius, surprised. "What are you doing here with someone like him?"
"None of your business. Just stay quiet and don't distract us. I mean it."
"Broer, you really should finish this quickly. The stones won't hold much longer, and if we want his core to stabilise before he attempts to pay Magic back…"
Severus nodded and tuned out the growing argument between Regulus and his once-brother. Focusing back on his task, he quickly guided the locket toward his Khorlo. Svādhiṣṭhāna, the Khorlo of desire and pleasure. This Horcrux was eager to be part of the whole core again, and in a mere minute, the reunification was done.
Severus let his Sense roam over the Lord's core, checking it over for any incoherence. It seemed far different from before, stronger, more coherent and healthier. It was still twisted, however, the wrongness coming from it was still decreasing. The only concern was the vibration of the man's core, which had once more increased now that it was whole. However, Severus wondered if the vibration was not the manifestation of the core cleansing and fine tuning the pieces of itself into a stronger, more cohesive whole.
Could he have misjudged? What if the Horcruxes truly were the only reason why Marvolo's core was twisted?
Suddenly, Severus was propelled several feet away from the Lord. He barely had the time to think of a cushioning spell to soften his landing.
Blinking dazedly, Severus stared as Lord Voldemort stood up.
"What did you do, Severus? Where is Nagini?"
The Lord's voice was unsteady, yet it sent cold shivers down Severus' spine. The man was beyond angry.
Shaking his head to clear it, Severus got to his feet.
"You killed her! And you put the curse back into me! How dare you!"
Voldemort's Bombardia hit Severus' shield with a loud crack, fissuring it. The Lord was no longer willing to spare him.
Lord Voldemort let out a cold laugh as he spotted Severus' companions.
"And here they are, the bloody traitors. Black Junior and Augustus. I was right. I should never have trusted you."
"Tom, please. Like Severus told you, we are trying to help you. You need to—"
"Don't try to say you're just helping me," snarled the Lord, sending a volley of blasting curses toward Augustus. "Dumbledore's act is far better than yours."
Severus felt his alarm rise as the curses hit the circle. He could Sense the stones cracking further, Magic pressing on them from both the outside and the inside.
Augustus seemed to have noticed as well.
"Please, let us talk about this calmly. The circle is going to break even sooner if you keep this up. You need time to get used to your Magic again."
Voldemort froze.
"You want me to be calm. After your betrayal. After you killed Nagini."
The Lord met Severus' gaze steadily, rage burning in his eyes in sharp contrast with the iciness of his demeanour, and let out a series of hissing sounds.
Severus shivered. Had Lord Voldemort found another snake to control after failing to get Slytherin's Familiar away from Hogwarts? Or was he attempting a spell he had created in Parseltongue?
What could Severus do to convince the Lord that he had acted in good faith?
"My Lord," tried Severus. "I am really sorry about Nagini. We didn't want to kill her, but she attacked me and the Nundu protected me."
"And she was only protecting me," hissed Lord Voldemort, glaring at Kea who hissed back at him.
Severus watched fascinated as the Lord and the Nundu stared at each other, locked in a duel of domination. Then his attention was caught by a weird sizzling sound. It was coming toward them, surrounding them, accompanied with another low sweeping sound.
Glancing at Augustus and Regulus, Severus saw that they now were back to back, Dhaal standing close to Regulus.
He felt his eyes widen as he finally saw the origin of the sounds. Snakes. At least thirty of them.
He immediately recognised some saw-scaled vipers, which were at the origin of the sizzling sound produced by their scales rubbing together. They were small but their bite was painful and venomous, and often led to internal hemorragia and death.
Of course the Lord would have an army of deadly snakes, thought Severus as he also spotted the distinctive thick white crossbars patterns of common kraits, a snake species well known for its paralytic venom.
Severus was not afraid of snakes per se, but like any Slytherin, he had a healthy respect for their defensive and offensive capacities, even when they were not from a magical species. Besides, this was an army of snakes that could be coordinating their efforts thanks to Lord Voldemort's parselmouth abilities.
He watched warily as the snakes came closer to Regulus and Augustus. In addition to the saw-scaled vipers and the common kraits, he could now see the beautiful pattern of leopard snakes, their reddish transverse blotches alternating with smaller black spots. They were not venomous, but Severus could easily imagine them coiling around a foot, a hand or even a neck to distract or hurt an enemy. It was even easier to picture with the big Caspian whipsnakes closing the rear, which were known for their aggressiveness.
Augustus was the first to act, his Diffindo neatly cutting three snakes in two.
Dhaal followed suit, using his Scream on those facing him. Sadly, Dhaal's Scream did not affect them. Well, it actually only spurred them on.
"Careful of the venomous ones!" Sensed Severus, alarmed, as he watched the very distinctive triangular head of a common adder barely miss Dhaal's foreleg. He had no idea if its venom, highly paralytic to humans, was as effective on Thestrals.
"Noted," Sensed back Dhaal, taking up to the air to avoid the saw-scaled viper that had jumped at him and neatly hitting it with his hoof.
Augustus and Regulus were not idle, using a shield to protect themselves while trying to either blast or cut through the snakes' bodies. The snakes were agile and showed quite apt at avoiding spells. Still, their numbers were diminishing quickly.
None tried to enter the circle, to Severus' relief and Kea's apparent disappointment. However, it was short-lived when he suddenly realised that the magical pressure around him was increasing steadily. He looked at Voldemort and saw his face tight with concentration.
What had the Lord done while he was distracted? Severus was not used to fighting with anyone other than Dhaal. He found it hard to trust Augustus' and Regulus' skills and not keep his eyes on them, which was problematic when he needed his focus on Lord Voldemort.
"He's using the wards of the manor on the stones," Sensed Dhaal grimly, hitting a whipsnake toward Regulus who beheaded it neatly.
Of course the blocking circle could not block the connection between a Head of House and the heart of his personal contract with Magic. It could make it fainter but not block it completely, same as with a Familiar's bond.
Severus shook himself and fired a stunning spell, then the bewitched spell, then any other spell that would put the Lord unconscious.
The man's shield stopped all of them. One stone exploded, breaking the circle.
"Crucio!"
Severus fell to the ground in a surprised shout of pain. Fire ran through his body, alighting his every nerve, burning everything on his path.
He gasped as the pain stopped as suddenly as it had begun. Augustus was fighting Voldemort while Kea used her claws on the few remaining living snakes trying to throw themselves at his grandfather.
Looking around, Severus saw Regulus get up to his feet, Dhaal crushing one last adder and shielding the younger man with his wings. The Black heir hurriedly walked toward the two Marauders who were looking at the scene with a mix of disgust and awe.
"What are you doing?"
Regulus looked back at him.
"I'm freeing them. He called the others."
True to his words, Severus heard their wards chime, warning them that other people were in the Manor. He needed to think fast.
"Hide your face."
"What?"
"We need to hide our faces. The others must not know with certainty who they are facing," explained Severus, quickly taking the Death Eater mask from his pocket and transforming it into a simple black mask.
Regulus nodded in understanding and did the same before running to the prisoners. Severus hurried to Augustus's side.
"The other Death Eaters will be here soon. We need to leave."
"Leave?" said Voldemort mockingly, casting a cutting hex at Augustus who blocked it expertly. "The manor won't allow you to leave us so soon."
Severus cast his own blasting spells, careful not to put enough power into them to explode something, but enough that it would push someone several feet over. Of course, the Lord blocked them easily despite also facing Augustus and Kea. However, Severus spied a tiny wince on his face. Was he getting tired, or was Magic beginning to ask for its payment? How long until they knew if their plan had worked? How long until Lord Voldemort was fully back to Marvolo and realised that Severus had not betrayed him?
Not right now apparently. Severus felt his eyebrows rise as a sea of Fire Salamanders invaded the garden, smoke trailing in their wake.
Black with yellow spot, the largest were just big enough to fit in one of his hands. While Fire Salamanders had the ability to use fire magic to create small flames or puffs of smoke, on their own, they were not dangerous creatures. However, according to Master Isäntä they could combine their magic together. With more than one hundred specimens in the garden, the Fire Salamanders could hurt them badly.
Sadly, they had not been the focus of his studies during his Apprenticeship, the goblin Master focusing more on snakes and dragons as they usually were far deadlier on their own.
Lord Voldemort had set up interesting defences in the manor.
"Regulus, cover Augustus' back," ordered Severus.
"What? Against him?" asked Regulus, glancing between Severus and the on-going Voldemort-Augustus duel.
Potter-bis and Pettigrew were behind him and were looking at Severus as if he was crazy.
"Would you rather take care of the salamanders?" asked Severus, ignoring the Marauders' unwanted opinion.
"They won't hurt me as badly as him," answered Regulus, looking at the advancing creatures, his once-brother nodding in agreement.
"Wait. What are they doing?"
"They are combining their fire," answered Severus grimly, watching as the salamanders formed several groups, climbing on each other to create small towers containing about twenty creatures each.
"Dhaal, can you back up Augustus? Regulus doesn't seem keen on facing Marvolo and Kea is better suited to fighting salamanders' flames than you are."
Nundu were impervious to both venoms and magical fires among other things.
"On it," Sensed back his Familiar as he turned himself invisible.
"What do you mean, combine their energy?" asked Regulus.
Severus did not need to explain as the first salamander tower sent a ball of fire towards them.
Regulus hastily cast a Protego which did nothing to stop the fire.
Voldemort had chosen the creatures well. Only water could extinguish their flames. While it was easy enough to summon enough water to put out the fire of one creature, it was another matter with a combined fire coming from several creatures. Its intensity was too much for a single Aguamenti to snuff out.
Luckily for the Black heir, Severus had his Absorball ready. Using the same move he had tirelessly practised these past days, Severus angled the crystal ball so that it caught the fire in its centre. Mere seconds after contact, the fire ball had disappeared, absorbed by the magical device.
"Neat," whistled Regulus.
Severus did not acknowledge him, already sending the Absorball to stop another salamander tower's fireball. With only one Absorball for six groups of salamanders, he would soon be overwhelmed if they did not manage to scatter the creatures.
As if reading his thoughts, Kea jumped on one of the towers and roared, spreading her toxic breath on the salamanders.
Half of them dropped unconscious, while the other half seemed dazed and broke out in an unsteady flight.
Severus stopped another fireball then rolled on the ground to avoid another while Kea took care of another tower.
The Nundu let out a growl of pain as a fireball grazed her foreleg.
Severus immediately sent the Absorball to block the next fireball aimed at her while he jumped to the side to avoid the one aimed at him. A third one was in preparation, and he cast a quick Aguamenti in the hope of distracting the tower.
It worked, the fireball sputtered out as the Fire Salamanders let out tiny shrieks of dismay.
"Regulus!" shouted Severus.
The young Black understood his mind easily and began casting Aguamenti on the towers, aiming at a different one each time. Between Severus blocking the fireballs and Regulus making it harder for the towers to send the fireballs continuously, Kea did quick work of disposing of the four remaining towers.
It was not a moment too soon as Fleamont, MacNair, Nott's cousin, Carrow's sister, Beltram and Mulciber Jr. entered the room.
Severus was surprised but relieved that Bellatrix was not among them. Still, those were capable duellers.
Glancing toward Augustus, he was glad to see that the man had managed to cover his face in time.
"Try to capture them, but a kill is acceptable too!" shouted Voldemort at his followers who nodded and launched their attack.
"We need to get out of here," Sensed Severus to Dhaal as he blocked and avoided the Death Eater's spells, careful not to let Regulus be overwhelmed.
"We're on the opposite side of the exit," answered Dhaal frustrated.
"Can you see if there is another exit than the way we came in?" asked Severus, sidestepping a tripping spell and blocking a Stupefy.
"I would need to leave Augustus to check," answered Dhaal, uncertain.
Severus sighed as Lestrange, Mulciber Sr. and Euphemia Rowles arrived and joined the fight.
Dhaal and Augustus were fighting Voldemort while Regulus, Severus and Kea were keeping the others at bay, Potter-bis and Pettigrew behind them as they could not protect themselves without their wand.
It was not easy to leave your opponents unharmed when they did not care if they maimed or killed you.
"The other Death Eaters will keep coming, we cannot stay here," stated Severus.
"Wouldn't it be better to move together as a group?" asked Dhaal. "At least we'll keep our fire power. And Marvolo may drop before—"
"We should look for our wands," shouted Potter-bis, unaware of the discussion he was interrupting.
"You don't even know where they are, Sirius," replied Regulus exasperated, barely blocking a Bombardia.
"It's somewhere inside, I should be able to feel it," answered Potter-bis.
As if they were going to let the two Marauders go alone so they could call for other Aurors and arrest everyone.
"You're not going anywhere alone," snapped back Regulus. "Why are you always…"
Their words disappeared from Severus' focus as he suddenly Sensed the protection which had been dormant when he had first come into the manor activate.
Severus chanced a look at Voldemort, noting that his face was looking pale and drawn despite seeming to easily hold his own against Dhaal and Augustus.
"We need to regroup with Augustus and get out of here," said Regulus.
"I know," answered Severus, "but something's coming…"
He felt his eyes widen as the ground between Voldemort and Augustus suddenly moved, growing and growing until a giant of clay and stones stood before them. Cautiously using his Sense to examine the creature, Severus confirmed what his eyes were telling him: the Lord had conjured an earth elemental.
The fighting stopped as the elemental turned his head toward the Lord.
Voldemort held his hand toward Severus, his arm shaking slightly and sweat glistening on his forehead. The elemental tilted his enormous head then took a step toward the Horcrux group.
How was the Lord still able to use so much Magic? Had Severus miscalculated?
"This isn't good," said Regulus.
"No kidding, Merlin," answered Potter-bis, rolling his eyes.
"Now is not the time, Sirius," chided Pettigrew, looking suitably frightened by the earth giant. "Unless you somehow know how to deal with elementals, I suggest we move quickly!"
"He's blocking the exit, we're only going to get trapped," retorted Potter-bis. "I wish James was here, the surest way to deal with elementals is to conjure them back into their primary state."
"Certainly not, that would require an enormous amount of power!" countered Augustus who had begun moving toward the left-side of the garden to put distance between them and the elemental. "Without using an alternative source of magic to bolster your core, you will just kill yourself."
The once-Black heir shrugged.
"James did it during training with only his House's power. Lord Prince, you should be able to do it too."
"But that would require a mastery of Transfiguration equal to Master McGonagall," intervened Severus. "Plus, elementals' strength depends on the one who created them and the ritual they used. I guarantee you this one will be more powerful than any you've ever faced during Auror training. Now move!"
"Don't twist your pants, Caspian," replied Potter-bis. Yet, he complied without hesitation.
Of course, the Death Eaters moved accordingly to prevent them from circling around the elemental.
"What else do we have against elementals?" asked Regulus as the creature slowly reduced the distance between them.
"You can try to break the magic that holds it together with a combination of spells. Air spells that will stretch the distance between each earth particle to put the maximum of tension on the magic that bind them together combined to an exploding spell which will break the magical link between the particles usually are the most efficient. If they are under enough tension, the loss of magic will be too important for the elemental to reform," answered Severus.
"That, or water spells until water magic overwhelms the earth magic holding it together," added Augustus.
"But we might drown ourselves before overwhelming it," grimaced Severus.
"Are those our only choices?" asked Pettigrew anxiously.
"There are specific runes and rituals to take care of elementals, but they require using tools we do not have at our disposal," conceded Augustus with a sigh. "No, we must decide between—"
The elemental stopped suddenly, his entire frame taut with tension. An inhuman scream followed. Severus watched both concerned and excited as Lord Voldemort fell to the ground, writhing.
This should be the culmination of Magic paying itself back. They would soon know if all those months planning had been worth it.
"What did you do?" shouted Dolohov at Augustus.
The older man shook his head, gesturing that he had nothing to do with it.
"Don't lie! Who are you? How did you enter the manor?" asked Mulciber Jr.
Augustus slowly stepped back toward Regulus and Severus while the other Death Eaters moved closer to Voldemort, though they remained on the opposite side from the currently unmoving elemental.
"I think it's time for a strategic retreat," said Augustus, eyeing the elemental warily.
"Why don't you lead the way?" asked Severus, sarcastically.
He did not fancy trying to scurry past under the elemental's arms.
He had no idea how long he had been in Nather Manor, but he was beginning to feel the stress of the day catch up with him. He had also used more of his core magic than was usual because of the blocking circle, and it was taking its toll on him.
Severus wanted to scream as Lord Selwyn's cousin, Lord Black and Parkinson joined the group of Death Eaters.
"Shit!"
He looked at Regulus. The younger man's lips were drawn in a thin line.
"My last wristband is breaking."
Already?
"Use your Patronus," ordered Severus.
"I don't know what good I'll be in a fight if I also have to focus on my Patronus," replied Regulus.
"The Patronus is your priority," stated Severus firmly.
"Why would you use a Patronus in a fight?" asked Potter-bis.
"Not now, Potter!" snapped Severus.
"I think I found another way out," Sensed Dhaal excitedly. "I just need to deal with this Occamy then you'll be safe to come."
Their chances were looking up.
"Where should we go?" asked Severus.
"Behind you, in the left corner, there's a small archway which leads to—"
The end of his sentence was lost in the screams of horror of the Death Eaters.
Severus watched, almost uncomprehending, as flames rose around Lord Voldemort. What was the Lord doing now?
"Merlin's balls," whispered Potter-bis. "He's burning from the inside."
No, that could not be possible. Their plan was working. It was.
The Death Eaters now were trying to rescue the Lord, having decided that the immobile elemental was safe enough for now. Of course, neither Aguamenti nor Glaciepiti could prevent Magic from paying herself back via spontaneous combustion.
Severus felt his horror grow as the fact sank in that yes, the flames were coming from Marvolo's body.
When the fire stopped, there was nothing left of Marvolo's body. At the same time, all the Death Eaters around him dropped to the ground unconscious.
"I don't feel too good," whispered Regulus.
Severus only had time to cast a cushioning charm as the young man slid to the ground.
"Regulus!" shouted Potter-bis, scrambling to check over his once-little brother. "What happened?"
"Check his left arm," ordered Severus.
For once, Potter-bis obeyed without arguing.
"His arm is fine."
"And the Mark?"
"What mark?" asked Potter-bis.
Severus looked at Regulus's bare arm. Only skin remained where the Dark Mark had once stood.
Severus took a shaky breath and focused his Sense on Regulus. The pattern which had once been linked to his Mark was badly torn up, but it was not broken. A few potions may help bolster his core, but all in all, there was nothing they could do for Regulus except wait and hope that his Magic would heal him. Nothing to do except hope he had not failed Regulus as he had failed Lord Voldemort. He had been so close. So close to getting Marvolo back.
The earth shaking took Severus' attention back to the elemental. He hastily put the mess of his feelings into his big cauldron. There was no time for regrets right now.
"Shouldn't it have disappeared with his creator's death?" asked Potter-bis.
"It depends on the ritual used to create it," answered Augustus grimly. "Potter, Pettigrew, Kea, can you move Regulus and the other unconscious people to the farthest corner away from here?"
"Of course," agreed Pettigrew, giving Potter-bis an admonishing look.
The other Marauder nodded, put his hands under Regulus's arms and began pulling him away using a fireman's hold, Pettigrew and Kea following them.
Augustus turned to Severus.
"You cast Ventus Tria, I cast Bombardia?"
Severus nodded.
He was not sure it would be enough but they had to try.
"Dhaal, could you also try a Scream on it?" Sensed Severus to his Familiar.
He was not certain that an elemental could hear the sounds of Dhaal's attack Scream, but it was worth a shot.
The Thestral answered with a feeling of frustration and a picture of an Occamy who prevented him from coming back to the garden.
They should not count on him then.
"On three then," said Severus, moving to the right while his grandfather went on the other side to confuse the earth creature.
Taking a deep breath, Severus focused on the huge well of magic at his disposal thanks to his House and cast Ventus Tria at the elemental.
The first one hit the chest of the creature. It created a big impact, the earth parting under the shock and expanding in various directions, but it reformed mere seconds afterwards. The elemental let out a low rumble and swept his arm toward Severus.
It was slow, and Severus easily avoided it. He cast a series of Ventus Tria aimed at different parts of the elemental, trying to see if it possessed a weaker spot. Each time, the disorganisation of the earth particles created by the spell reformed in seconds. However, the hit at what would be its navel was the one that angered the elemental the most.
It growled and jumped toward Severus, who avoided him easily but was surprised when the elemental hit the ground with its two fists. He narrowly escaped being crushed with a roll to the ground.
Augustus then aimed a Ventus Tria and a Bombardia at the elemental's belly, both to take the elemental's focus from Severus and to test the effect of the combination of the spells.
The effect was immediate. The elemental let out a grumble that sounded like an earthquake as its form partially lost control for a few seconds. It turned toward Augustus and hit the ground with its fist, making the earth shake and causing the older man to stumble.
For several minutes, Severus and his grandfather fought in tandem, sending spells and coordinating to cause the most damage to the earth creature.
Severus was beginning to worry about his magical reserve when the elemental broke, its form dissolving completely into a cloud of dust and stone. However, he did not have the time to celebrate. Instead of slowly dissipating, the cloud gained speed and substance, transforming into a small tornado.
Severus and Augustus watched wide eyed as it grew with each passing second.
How was it possible? With its energy broken, the elemental should be no more than a pile of dust on the ground. Instead, it now felt like air Magic. But you could not make an elemental from two kinds of magic, that was the definition of an elemental itself, to be made of only one kind of Magic. Though the tornado was not organised like an air elemental should be. Could Marvolo have imprisoned air Magic inside the earth elemental, a bit like Severus had done with his own Magic when he had had his problem with his wand? But then, did the tornado still have bits of the elemental's consciousness in it? Or was it only wild energy?
"You need to move!'
Severus was shaken out of his speculations by Pettigrew's voice which bordered on hysterical.
Sharing a glance with his grandfather, they hurried back to where Potter-bis and Pettigrew had gathered the unconscious Death Eaters. Severus was pleasantly surprised to note that while the Marauders had retrieved their wands, they were not aiming them at Severus and Augustus.
"Now what?" asked Pettigrew.
"We could try to contain it with runes," proposed Augustus.
"It's using the earth and stones at his disposal to grow and mixing them with air. It will destroy everything we try to set up," answered Severus, shaking his head.
"What about surrounding it with shields until we can call in reinforcements?" asked Potter-bis, watching Severus closely.
"So that you can call your colleagues? I don't think so," snapped Severus.
"Then what do you propose, genius?" replied Potter-bis, eyeing the growing tornado which was destroying the garden quickly and moving toward them.
"What is that?" interrupted Pettigrew, gesturing behind the elemental.
Severus felt his throat tighten as he saw Dhaal set his stance in front of the tornado.
"Shield yourself!" Sensed the Thestral.
"Protego everyone," said Severus, obeying his Familiar without hesitation.
All of them obeyed.
"Don't let them get down," ordered Severus.
He did not hear their answer as Dhaal Screamed. There was no sound coming out from his mouth. Instead, an oppressive silence settled while the tornado stopped its advance.
It struggled, trying to expand and increase the strength of its wind.
For a few instants, they were at a stalemate. Then the tornado began growing again, its speed increasing. Some stones rebounded on the group's shields, the strength of the hits enough to make Severus' teeth rattle.
Pettigrew's shield flickered, but Potter-bis bent down to whisper in his ear and his shield strengthened.
"It's too strong," Sensed Dhaal. "I didn't have enough time to train, I don't know how to control it."
"We're strong too," answered Severus, sending his faith in his Familiar through their bond. "Are you already using the connection to our House?"
"I'm using all the power at my disposal," Sensed back Dhaal.
Severus frowned, focusing on their bond.
"No you're not," said Severus, shaking his head. "You're not using the bonds."
"I'm already using most of our House's Magic. If I also use the bonds, I could kill all of us."
"We'll both certainly be dead if you can't control the tornado," replied Severus.
Dhaal remained silent, considering his words.
Severus smiled when he felt his Familiar hesitantly tug on their bond, and focused on pushing magic toward him. It was a delicate balance, keeping enough magic to cast Protego while giving most of it to Dhaal, all the while making sure he was not exhausting his own core.
The Thestral spread his wings, using them to anchor himself against the strength of the tornado, and amplified his Scream. Severus gritted his teeth, feeling his last Magical reserves drop fast.
A burst of stones and dirt came out of the tornado, raining on their shields as the tornado tried to escape Dhaal's control. Severus' Familiar held on.
Slowly, the tornado began to settle. It lost its speed, its size decreasing until it fell back to the ground.
Dhaal stumbled. Severus cancelled his shield without thinking and half-ran half-tripped toward him, barely taking the time to check that the Sense of the elemental was truly gone.
"Dhaal! Are you hurt?"
"I'm fine Broer. I just used up a lot of our magic."
At that moment, Severus realised that yes, he was feeling a bit lightheaded.
"You were perfect."
Dhaal sent a flicker of contentment through their bond, but could not hide his exhaustion.
"Shrink yourself, I'll carry you," said Severus gently.
His Familiar did not protest.
"Is everything alright?"
Severus nodded at Pettigrew who had joined him.
"Just a bit tired after taking down a tornado."
"I can't imagine," said the Marauder sympathetically. "You should leave with Lord Prince and Regulus now."
Severus blinked. In their planning, they always were alone with Lord Voldemort. They always waited for him to either get better or be killed by his debt to Magic. Today, there were twelve unconscious Death Eaters and two Marauders too many, and one Lord too few. Severus also was in no shape to duel anyone right now.
"The Aurors are coming any moment," added Potter-bis, coming up to them with Augustus following him, Regulus levitating between them.
At Augustus' interrogating look, he added:
"They were ready to come as soon as we sent the signal. We let ourselves get captured, as bait to trap the Death Eaters and Lord Voldemort."
"Are you crazy?" asked Severus. "You could have been killed!"
"We had a plan," protested Potter-bis.
"Even with Dumbledore gone?" asked Augustus, sceptical.
"We don't need Dumbledore to protect Harry," said Potter-bis coldly, looking every bit like Bellatrix at that moment. "It was our plan, not his. He's the one who recruited Mary into the order, but Mary and Lily have been really good friends, especially since fifth year. Lily was very angry with Dumbledore for manipulating Mary into becoming a spy. When we learnt about the Prophecy and that he kept insisting that James and Lily needed to use the Fidelius, we decided we needed a Marauders' plan."
"So you decided to use Pettigrew and yourself as bait and cross your fingers not to get killed while your colleagues were unable to find you because of the wards?" asked Severus scathingly.
"We managed to find a way to get past the wards," answered Pettigrew, looking offended that Severus thought he would take such risks. "Mary spent a long time examining them, and with the help of her Death Eater coin, we managed to create a device which when activated would act like a beacon for the Aurors. We also managed to find how to use the coin to let them go through the wards."
Severus hated to admit it, but the Marauders had always been creative. Aimed at a worthy problem and with the help of Lily, this tale was not outside of the realm of possibility.
"So we let Voldemort believe that Lily and James had listened to Dumbledore and used the Fidelius to protect their son, and that either Peter or I were the secret keepers. We hoped to have the maximum of Death Eaters present and ready to torture us before activating the beacon," continued Potter-bis.
"We did not expect Voldemort to call only for you," admitted Pettigrew. "We did not expect you to put us to sleep. And then, when all the snakes arrived, we tried to call for the Aurors but it did not work."
"Your circle blocked the signal," said Potter-bis, looking at Severus with something akin to respect for the first time in their life. "Then, we were a bit occupied and you were watching us, and then the elemental was interfering with the device. We only were able to call them now."
"And what if you had been tortured and Voldemort had managed to find the Potters' true protection?" asked Severus, feeling his anger at the reckless Marauders grow.
He had taken many risks to warn Lily so that the Longbottoms and the Potters could protect their children, and the Marauders had endangered them with such a badly thought-out plan?!
"We're not stupid, Caspian," replied Potter-bis with a roll of his eyes. "We don't know all the protections that protect Harry, only Lily does."
That only mollified Severus a little. Much could have been inferred from the Marauders' memories.
"Why warn us of the Aurors coming?" asked Augustus, changing the subject.
Exactly, why would they be nice now? Even if they had not gotten their proof of torture, they could press kidnapping charges and argue that Severus should have called for the Aurors when Augustus and Regulus had first come in and restrained Lord Voldemort.
Potter-bis shrugged, looking a bit uncomfortable.
"You protected us. Caspian did not even try to torture us despite… well, our history. And Regulus doesn't deserve this."
Loyalty to his little brother. That was more believable.
Severus shared a look with Augustus. The other Death Eaters would be arrested, but their crimes here were debatable. Severus had not noticed any Unforgivable being cast aside from the Lord's Crucio on him. Unless the Aurors found other testimonies to incriminate them, with the Marks gone, they would get away with fines and a few days at Azkaban at worst.
"Alright. Thank you," said Severus to the two Marauders.
Augustus nodded to them, settling Regulus on Kea's back.
"You're welcome," answered Potter-bis, looking uncharacteristically serious. "And Caspian? Moody will be waiting for a visit from you."
Severus held his gaze before nodding. They left by the backyard exit Dhaal had discovered without meeting any Aurors. Severus hoped none of the other Death Eaters would wake up before they arrived.
Still, it was Potter-bis and Pettigrew's problem. Severus had an Auror to meet. And then, maybe, he would try to understand all the conflicting emotions that he was feeling.