The vast and unbroken sea of stars stretched out above him, unending and continuous. It was easy to pretend that his struggle was meaningless, that he could simply give up and hand the beacon of light onto someone else. But it was impossible. The incessant pressure of war had worn him down, bit by bit, death by death; It felt like there was nothing left. Nothing left at all.
24 Years Earlier, 2nd of September, 1881
"Jamie! Come Quick, it's the Longbottoms!"
"What?" James called from the stairs, stumbling down the staircase.
"We have to go! It's Alice, she just sent through a Patronus. The warding around her manor just crumbled and she needs help to get Neville to the safe house!" Lilly spoke quickly, her voice wavering slightly.
James' eyes widened in shock, and without wasting another second, he ran to the fireplace and grabbed a handful of powder from the pot on the floor. He chucked it into the roaring flames, and without waiting for them to turn fully green, he stepped into the fire and spoke his destination with the voice of a man barely containing his fury.
Shaken from the suddenness of the situation, she quickly sent a patronus to the DMLE and Sirius before grabbing her emergency potions kit from her mokeskin pouch. After running through her mental checklist, she ran right into the fire after her husband.
It was chaos, right in the entrance hall, Alice was fiercely defending her home against two masked Death Eaters. She saw Alice's brilliant white shield flicker slightly under the onslaught of spells and rushed to join in the fray. An orange curse sped past her head, and she just dodged in time. She yelled a shield charm just as Alice's gave out and reached inside her pouch for a pepper-up potion. The liquid swirled as she wasted no time in pouring it down Alice's mouth, and soon enough they were both back up on their feet vigorously defending the manor.
One of the Death Eaters threw something on the ground, and before she could react a strange swirling blackness erupted from the object and swept towards them. She pulled Alice back just as it reached their shield and ripped right through it. She recognised the darkness as one of Bellatrix's specialities.
A quick Diffindo into the darkness rewarded her with a cry of pain, although she was then struck in the abdomen with an unrecognisable curse. The adrenaline pumping through her bloodstream was enough to keep the agony at bay, but she knew that if she didn't end the fight soon there would be much more dire consequences.
The smoke cleared enough for her to see through it, and she conjured a dozen blades and drove them at Bellatrix, the other Death Eater nowhere to be seen. The dark witch turned the metal into a swarm of insects and sent them right back. She dodged, and a weak area of effect stunner was enough to knock them out of the sky.
There was a shout from behind her, and conjuring a shield to protect herself, she cast Homenum Revelio to take stock of her surroundings. There were seven people nearby, but she could sense several more faint magical signatures swirling around on the grounds. There was her and Alice, Bellatrix in front of them, and both of their husbands forcing Neville into a warded safe room.
Crying out, she felt a heavy weight thump on her back, and there was a sharp pain in her neck. She could barely hear her and Alice's simultaneous scream, but it registered in her subconscious behind the red haze of pain. She threw her assailant off, and feeling her life flowing out through a gash in her neck, transfigured a pillar to emerge from beneath her, launching her into the air. That gave her just enough time to call her blood-replenishing potion to the opening of her pouch and take a swig.
Landing catlike back on her feet, she noticed Alice's limp form lying on the ground. Not far away, Bellatrix was on her knees, seemingly exhausted from the fight. Her assailant was again nowhere to be seen. She immobilised Bellatrix with a word and cast another Homenum Revelio, sensing a strong magical signature creeping up behind her.
Spinning around, she only saw empty space but shot out a spurt of water from the tip of her wand. Some of the droplets stuck to a disillusioned form, and she immediately followed it with a stunner, hearing the thump as an invisible body struck the floor. She smiled to herself, while disillusionment was certainly a good defence, it was impossible to cast a shield or have spells ready while under the charm's influence.
Bellatrix was still motionless, so she felt safe to check on Alice, briefly wondering where the men were. All thoughts of them fled her mind however when she saw the severity of Alice's condition. It seemed to be some sort of necrosis curse, one that targeted her skin and blood. There was already a large black pustule on the surface of her chest, and the veins extending from it were faintly black under the skin. With no time to detect the curse and find a countercurse, she pulled out a Draught of the Living Dead and dripped it on her tongue, careful not to spill a single drop. Hopefully, it would stall the poison from infecting her further.
Running from the entrance hall, she spotted her husband and Frank standing with their wands out and petrified expressions on their faces. It was silent now except for her heavy breathing, the sound of shouting outside having dulled.
The quiet was broken by a haunting sound, a cold laugh like shards of glass scraping against one another. It struck her like a blow, the sound that ravaged her nightmares seeming to damage her very soul.
Shaking with fear, she disillusioned herself, becoming almost entirely invisible but for a small outline, and turned the corner.
It was him, the Dark Lord. He was standing in the centre of the hallway, the paintings on the walls either unconscious or looking on in obvious horror. His wand was ready, a vivid green light that radiated terror waiting at the end of it, ready to shoot at the one-year-old baby clasped in his long, bony fingers.
"It is so very amusing, don't you think?" his voice was high, the cold and manipulative tone bubbling with mirth. "You put so much effort into protecting your little boys. I have little doubt that you would put your life on the line for even a chance at saving such an innocent soul, but alas, it was not to be."
She shivered, her eyes wide, like she was prey caught in headlights. In a choked voice, she could only utter a single cry of desperation, but it seemed to break the spell, her voice raw as she fell to the ground.
James jumped to life, erecting a wall of stone between the Dark Lord and the child, but suddenly a shield appeared midair before the transfiguration could reach the pair, and a glance behind her confirmed her word fears. She was trapped.
An exhausted Bellatrix was standing behind them, having silently stumbled over. She had her feet planted wide apart as if she was steadying herself, her once lustrous hair was frizzy with small sparks jumping between each strand. Her mask was cracked down the centre, and her pure black eyes permeated the room with malevolence.
The standstill continued, neither side willing to make a move as it would leave them open for an opportunity.
The sound of fighting outside had restarted, as if reinforcements had arrived. No one had made it inside of the manor, so it was likely it had sealed itself off, preventing anyone from getting in, but also preventing any of them from getting out.
*Thump*
Her heart was threatening to break free from her ribcage.
*Thump*
Her adrenaline was running out, she would soon be unable to stand.
*Thump*
There was still no movement.
*Thump*
Nothing
*Thump*
There, a slight shift in Bellatrix's stance.
*Thump*
She was going to go to her left, Lilly was sure of it.
*Thump*
Her heartbeats were slowing down.
*Thump*
Blackness tinged the edges of her vision as sleep attempted to claim her.
*Thump*
An explosion, she wasn't sure who cast it. Bellatrix moved. Lilly aimed. She called to the forefront of her mind all of the hate and the pain and the deaths and let out a soul-wrenching cry, "AVADA K–"
*Thump*
Darkness.