May 1, 1998

Travelling with Tinsy was easy, she asked very few questions and the general oddities of the family were things she had long learned to ignore. Only seeming to inquire about my health when I stared at the wraith in the trees above, silently and with a hard look in my eyes. Tinsy never pried too deeply, there seemed to be something she understood to be unnatural in the world around me, the way she stared off in the trees and alleyways with darting eyes and terse set to her mouth. In the evenings, she would run a whet stone over her collection of blades and stare into the fire, pretending that she did not sense the wraith doing a patrol at the edge of our camp.

"Why is Miss Audrey not returning home to the Mistress?" Tinsy's voice was a quiet squeak that broke through the darkness of the bothie we were staying in for the night.

"There's something I need to do. I can't go home until I finish it."

Tinsy looked at me with her large eyes, running her whet stone over a cleaver she kept in her apron before beginning to cut a loaf of bread she had procured from a baker in the village nearby, along with some jam and butter. I had not provided Tinsy with money and I had no need to quibble with Tinsy's morality – she was an old hat at remaining unseen and staying alive per that trip she had taken from America to Britain to find me.

It was not my place.

I was afraid we would need the money for other things.

I took the buttered and jam covered bread, biting into it with a kind of supressed delight. I could feel my sense of taste fading away – in the last few days, when the wraith was nearby, food tended to taste like ash in my mouth. It was like a petty sort of revenge for my lack of focus and attention given as my thoughts turned to Harrow and returning home to Percy.

I was not sure I could risk bringing the wraith home with me. I was concerned it would find ways to hurt people I cared about until I abated to the desires that kept it tied to the earth. It already ate small animals, I often found bones inside places I was sleeping. Rat bones, rabbit, and last night, the intact hind leg of a fawn.

Unspoken threats or a temper tantrum?

It could have been either.

Tinsy shrieked as a silver mist appeared in the bothie, her bread and jam falling to the floor as she threw a knife at it in reflex, the knife going straight through the silvery magic and into the wall behind it. My wand was in my hands, it looked like a patronus charm, but there were no dementors around.

The mist twisted itself into the shape of a goat with a pair of matching, well formed horns.

I stared at the glowing goat in a remarkably stupid manner.

Once it began to speak, my mouth promptly fell open in shock.

"Get to the pub! Potter's here and the fight is coming to Hogwarts!" The silver goat disappeared in a flash of mist, the unmistakable voice of Aberforth echoing through my mind.

I reached into my pocket to pull out the coin Colin had left for me – the words jumping and shifting as more people put in their own messages. The coin was burning hot in my hands.

'Lighting has struck!'

'Fight's coming'

'Meet in the Room!'

'See Ab if not in Hoggy!'

I leapt to my feet, a cold dread in my guts at everything I was reading. It was happening. Right now! It was time!

My mind moved a mile a minute as I watched the four messages replay on the coin. Potter was at Hogwarts! Either we fought now or resign ourselves to the horrors of the world we lived in. We would need help – reinforcements.

"Tinsy! I'm going to Hogwarts! Find Lucinda! Tell her to bring as many people as she can to Hogwarts! We'll need help!"

There was a moment of hesitation in Tinsy's eyes, her hand moved slightly as if to grasp at me and beg me to stay, but the panic in my voice must have been the deciding factor in her sudden obedience. She gave me a sharp, military salute and disappeared with a pop!

I shoved the wraith away and focused on the outskirts of Hogsmeade. The sensation of apparition fell over me like a blanket and I was away in less time than it took to blink.

When I opened my eyes, I ran out of the apparition point to the gate that marked the Hogsmeade entrance, there was a great chaotic roar from beyond the unmanned gates. The sound of caterwauling cats assailed my ears as I stepped through the gate. I was expecting resistance, but not on the scale of what I was seeing before me.

The streets of Hogsmeade had exploded in chaos.

The residents and shopkeepers had thrown open their doors and were in the streets, screaming and throwing things at the Ministry Officials who had been running Hogsmeade for months. Those who had tortured the locals and ran off paying customers. Clearly all of that had come to a head. One official was bleeding on the street from a nasty head wound, he was not moving and I assumed he was unconscious. The rest of the crowd had herded the remaining guards and Death Eater supporters to the center of the village.

I turned away, I needed to get to the Hog's Head – whatever these people got was deserved and I would not interfere with their justice.

My feet were moving carefully over the stone streets despite my speed. I moved quickly and quietly through alleyways and ignored the panicked, exhilaration that gripped my chest. I did not know what was coming next, but I was ready to meet it head on.

Aberforth's pub was lit and abuzz with activity. There was a herd of people in the room, hurriedly exchanging information with Aberforth. I could recognize a few of them, a couple of shopkeepers Tavish was friends with. There were a couple of people I recognized from the Ministry; I felt my teeth grind in a sudden response before the recognition set in. Arthur Weasley looked tired, worn down from the last few months, but he was bouncing on the balls of his feet like a crup on the hunt as he spoke with Aberforth and the Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt. I could see glimpses of a shorter, maternal looking woman next to Arthur, her red hair a couple shades darker than his, closer to Percy's, and seemingly trying to go gray at her temples.

I pushed my way through the crowd, there was a line to go through a portrait on the wall. Kingsley Shacklebolt had a steady, but commanding presence, he did not have to raise his voice to be heard as he politely moved people into place – I suddenly recognized his voice from PotterWatch, he had a very distinctive cadence. Aberforth was shoving people through the portrait when it was their turn at the front of the line.

"Aberforth!" I moved forward, catching the pubkeep's attention over the steady noise of the crowd. I found myself next to Kingsley Shacklebolt, who stopped for a moment to look down at me in interest. I guess he had heard about some rogue American running loose in the country – or remembered me from the Ministry. "What's the plan?"

"Plan?" Aberforth snapped, "Invade my pub and go kill Death Eaters at Hogwarts is the plan!"

"When you arrive at Hogwarts, stay in the Room of Requirement until we have word!" Shacklebolt's voice carried over the crowd, "Then we'll muster our defenses and prepare for battle!"

A great roar shot through the pub and the line moved faster. Aberforth shoved me into the line, I staggered, someone put their hands out to steady me. I glanced over to see Arthur Weasley who gave me a quiet nod, acknowledging a comrade in arms. I nodded back and no words needed to be said at the moment. I noted Molly Weasley's shaking hands as she turned to look at the rest of the crowd behind us.

I turned around to find myself at the front of the line and leapt into the portrait. The tunnel was long and full of people all moving together in a determined pace, helping those who were staggering or tripping over robe hems.

I heard a familiar Scottish brough somewhere behind me and I turned quickly only to stumble into the person ahead of me. That was Oliver Wood!

Okay! Great! I was not alone in this madness, I would team up with him to help navigate the castle – I just had a feeling I was going to get very lost, even with the benefit of Percy's tours of Hogwarts through his memories.

The light at the end of the tunnel was a relief to my encroaching claustrophobia. It did not last long as I stepped out into a room that seemed to be expanding to accommodate the influx of people coming from the Hog's Head. I could see an array of teenagers, clearly students, who had made themselves a sort of clubhouse with hammocks and couches, places to sleep, rest and study... also to hide. This must have been the Room mentioned on the coin.

Oliver put a hand on my shoulder and shook me like I was one of his teammates at a Quidditch match.

"Alright there, Aud!"

I clasped his offered hand, "I'm here aren't I?"

Oliver laughed, throwing his head back with the energy and enthusiasm I was not sure I could feel myself. I could see Katie Bell behind Oliver talking with two other girls, one was tall with tightly braided hair in the way my cousin Quincy wore his. The other girl was olive skinned and all toothy smile as she spoke quickly to Katie – hugging her and jumping in joy at being reunited with a friend.

I glanced over at the Weasleys, searching for a familiar glint of glasses but saw none. There was a tall, scarred man with long hair, the must be Bill, I remembered him from when Tavish and I crossed paths with him in Diagon Alley. The blonde woman standing next to him was stunning – quarter Veela if Percy had heard correctly during the Triwizard Tournament... What was her name? I had a vague recollection of the wedding announcement... Flower? No, fleur de lis! Fleur! That was it.

Huh, the picture in the newspaper wedding announcement did not do her any justice.

I caught a quick glimpse of the Weasley twins barrelling over a friend of theirs, there was a lot of hair ruffling and apparent ribbing I was not sure I would understand if I could hear them. There was a shorter girl bobbing around them, a mane of red hair dancing behind her as she moved. I quickly lost sight of Ginny Weasley and turned my attention inward. I still could hardly believe this was happening!

Kingsley Shacklebolt had just stepped through the portrait hole with a man who had apparently hit a hard middle-age, graying brown hair and scars across his face. He had an exhausted, but contented sort of look to him as he greeted the Weasley's, nodding his head excitedly at some question asked of him.

The room continued to fill with people and I wondered how many people this room could hold. It seemed to never fill, it seemed to be expanding to accommodate. Yes, I could understand why the students had been hiding out here, no better hiding place in the world apparently. Cozy with all of these furnishings and adornments. Wonderous bit of magic, I was not sure Ilvermorny had the equivalent.

There was a sudden intrusion from the staircase at the other end of the room and two pairs of feet came into view.

I stood on the tips of my toes to peek over the shoulder of a tall boy in front of me wearing black robes lined with yellow trim. The room was taking in the sight of Harry Potter, a boy none had really seen in almost a year. He was scruffy looking; his black hair flying in all sorts of interesting directions and barely hid his lightening shaped scar from view.

The scarred, graying man broke away from the Weasleys with Shacklebolt and ran forward to meet Harry at the foot of the steep staircase. The blonde girl next to Harry Potter was staring off into an upper corner of the room, some idle thought clearly taking her attention.

I could not hear what they were saying, I saw the twins move closer to the stairs, clearly a nosy pair.

Potter's voice broke through the murmured whispers in the room, "Voldemort's on his way, they're barricading the school-"

I bit my lower and felt a cold fear settle in my guts.

"-Snape's run for it – What are you all doing here? How did you know?"

I could hear Fred's voice clearly; he was too close to me to be ignored. "We've sent messages to the rest of Dumbledore's Army."

Oh, right, that was a silly and very unsubtle name for a rebellious group of teenagers.

Fred continued, "You couldn't expect everyone to miss the fun, Harry, and the D.A. let the Order of the Phoenix know and it all just kind of snowballed."

That was one way of putting it.

"What first, Harry?" I was not sure I had ever heard George speak before; he sounded exactly like Fred and the only reason I knew it was not Fred speaking is because I could see Fred's mouth was not moving. Also, I could see what appeared to be a missing ear. When did that happen? "What's going on?"

"They're evacuating the younger kids and everyone's meeting in the Great Hall to get organized." Potter's voice was clear as a bell over the sudden silence of the room. "We're fighting!"

The sudden chorus of shouts and jubilation, wands were being drawn and the noise carried on with the surge of people going to the stairs, almost sweeping Harry Potter along with the tidal wave of bodies. I was pulled along with the crowd, pressed and jostled, but my feet never lost step as we broke through the door. I stayed with the crowd as we moved, I lost sight of Oliver and fell in step with a Gryffindor student who had clearly taken a beating recently, judging by his cut face and blackened eye. He was rallying the troops as we moved through the corridors and down a grand staircase that moved and the paintings in the hallways roared their approval as word was getting through the castle. Potter had returned, Voldemort was coming and now Hogwarts was fighting back.

I quickly gathered the boy's name was Neville Longbottom and if the other students were anything to go by, he was their leader.

There was a great swarm of bodies from all directions, children, students running from their dormitories in pyjamas and travelling cloaks. Several younger students were crying, others looked panicked and even more looked quietly resigned to staying calm and handling whatever came next, perhaps doubting it would be worse than anything else they had experienced this year.

The staircase was as grand as Percy's memories had shown me, the way they moved was so seamless and such a flawless enchantment, I would have stopped to admire it all if there had not been such haste and a hurried flow of scared children all around me. The thought came upon me that even destroying one of these staircases would greatly impede any invaders attempt to go up to the dormitories. It could be a last line of defense if everything went wrong.

I pushed the thought away. We were nearing the bottom of the stair now and the flow of people shifted and altered to accommodate the flow through the corridors. I was being pulled along and found myself lockstep with Kingsley Shacklebolt, who was shouting encouragement to the students, offering comfort and pushing them forward with assurances that they would be safe when several began to falter. One small girl suddenly grabbed my hand and I tucked her against my side before she could be pulled away from me in the stampede.

"You'll be alright! Stay with me!"

She looked up at me, catching that I was not British, my words to harsh sounding to be from any of the nations on the isles. I kept her with me.

"I'm Audrey, what's your name?"

"Evie Smith," She tried to motion to her blue travelling cloak. "I'm from Ravenclaw."

"Ah, you're supposed to be clever than? I went to Ilvermorny, Horned Serpent House."

Her big brown eyes grew wider as a great set of doors opened before us.

The Great Hall lived up to its name, the enchanted ceiling promised a clear night with only the stars above to light the way. This was beautiful. I stepped off to the side towards a corner where I could see other adults gathering. I recognized Shacklebolt and a couple of shopkeepers from Hogsmeade, along with a few other adults who must have gotten word as well. Oliver Wood and Katie Bell were on their way over as well, listening carefully to Kingsley as he spoke.

"Evie, I think I see your house over there."

Evie gripped me tighter in response. Okay, I guess she was going to cling to me like a burr, I guess.

"Okay, you stay with me until we know what the plan is, alright?"

I moved over the adult group, pressing my back against the wall and allowing myself to fall out of sight within the group as Shacklebolt spoke.

"...Air support, anyone who's good on a broom needs one. We can't dismiss as much surprise as we can give them, we'll need to get to the broom storage room-."

"You think I travel without my broom?" Oliver sounded appalled at the suggestion, "I've got three former Chasers with me-"

"We all have our brooms." Katie clarified with a grin.

Oliver continued, 'We can find some more flyers easy. I know some of these older students are fair with a broom, we have the Weasley twins-"

"We may have another job for those two," Shacklebolt said evenly, a twinkle of mischief in his eyes, "We need their unhinged sense of mayhem on the ground and their knowledge of the castle."

"Fair," Oliver nodded in agreement, "they don't need to be airborne with their whole product catalogue – I get the idea those were designed for close quarter chaos. I will see if we can get some fireworks from them though."

I blinked slowly. This was going to be a long night.

"You fly, Aud?" Oliver's voice cut through my horrible images of the twins unleashed on open ground.

"No." What was I good at? "I know a lot of defensive magics. Ilvermorny has an excellent program and my grandfather's a retired Auror, he taught me how to duel every summer with my cousin, who's now an active Auror on duty with the embassy in London."

Shacklebolt looked at me, I could sense him sizing me up as the remaining students and defenders filed into the Great Hall. I saw a whole collection of redheads going to the Gryffindor table and my heart leapt into my throat. I could not see to count them, but I was half sure one was Percy. I wanted to get to him, but the way Evie clung to me made it hard to move and Shacklebolt was looking at me like he was making plans.

"What do you think, Remus?"

I looked over at the scarred, graying man who had joined us. Something clicked in my memory, anti-werewolf legislation, Thalia having a contact with the werewolf pack... Remus Lupin! This must be him. Yes, he had that same worn look Thalia had during some of my visits, the way the transformation could eat away at one's energy for weeks at a time.

"Well, I think we have a chance." He had a nice, easy voice and seemed as ready for this to happen as the rest of us did.

There was a call for attention from the front of the Great Hall where the teachers usually sat. The room turned together to stare at the Deputy Headmistress and Head of Gryffindor House, Minerva McGonagall. I remembered her from Percy's memories, she was stern, but fair and she very much looked the part of a war leader and someone who had forced out of bed to handle pure insanity.

"Voldemort is on his way to the castle."

The students gasped, cried out and the sense of sudden panic overcame many of them. Evie whimpered next to me and dug her fingernails into my arm.

"Silence! All of you!" McGonagall's voice echoed through the room, calling for order that was quickly given with the other professors. "We have arranged for an evacuation point on the Seventh floor which will take you to Hogsmeade." The room was in rapt attention as McGonagall continued. "Evacuation will be overseen by Mr. Filch and Madam Pomfrey. Prefects, when I give the word, you will organize you House and take your charges, in an orderly fashion, to the evacuation point."

A boy at what I assumed to be the Hufflepuff table leapt to his feet and bellowed, "And what if we want to stay and fight?"

Applause rolled through the chamber.

"If you are of age, you may stay." Professor McGonagall had a tight set to her mouth, seeming to understand the gravity of what she was offering that the students could not seem to grasp themselves.

There were silly questions about trunks and owls, possessions – the kinds of things scared children would ask.

My thoughts were interrupted by a roar from the students at the word that the Headmaster, Severus Snape, had fled the school. I hoped that was what doing a bunk meant.

I caught a glimpse of Harry Potter moving up the hall along the Gryffindor table, a rolling chorus of quiet, awed, whispering in his wake as people turned to look at him. A savior. A prophesied hero. He looked like a boy. A worn down, tired boy and my heart went out to him. He really deserved better than all of this.

Professor McGonagall continued to issue instructions, "We have already placed protection around the castle, but it is unlikely to hold for long unless we reinforce it."

In that moment, I understood where I was going to be needed tonight. American protection charms could help slow the onslaught; they would be harder to break in areas where I set them because they were unfamiliar to foreign warlocks. Ours were different. I could buy time for those manning the defenses inside the castle.

"I must ask you therefore, to move quickly and calmly, and do as your prefects-"

"I know that you are preparing to fight."

I knew that voice. It scratched and clawed at the inside of my skull and I looked around the room, half expecting to see Voldemort descending from the enchanting ceiling of the Great Hall. The voice came from the floor below, the walls... The castle itself... There was no place where one could escape it. Evie whimpered somewhere next to my ribs, her nails digging into my arm.

"Your efforts are futile. You cannot fight me. I do not want to kill you. I have great respect for the teachers of Hogwarts."

"Then leave." I muttered to myself as the screams of the younger students chilled my bones.

"I do not want to spill magical blood."

"Never stopped you before, you son of a bitch." I muttered to myself, the anger making me braver than I thought I was as I remembered how Scrimgeour died in his office.

The room had grown quiet, I could only hear my own heartbeat threatening to shoot through my chest and the muffled, terrified noises Evie continued to make against my arm.

"Give me Harry Potter, and none shall be harmed. Give me Harry Potter and I shall leave the school untouched. Give me Harry Potter, and you shall be rewarded."

"With slavery to a warmonger."

"You have until midnight."

The whispering voice faded and left all of us to contemplate a lopsided offer in a crypt-like silence.

If someone had dropped a pin in the Great Hall, the noise would have echoed through the room for eons to come.

A figure rose from the table, pointing at Potter with an expression of terror in her eyes. "But he's there! Potter's there! Someone grab him!"

A surge of movement through the room left me with wide eyes. Three tables worth of people had risen to their feet with their wands drawn and pointed them at the Slytherin table. Several pointing directly at the girl who had wanted to hand over Harry Potter.

No love lost here; I think.

"Thank you, Miss Parkinson," Professor McGonagall's voice was clipped and tinged with a barely audible disgust. "You will leave the hall first with Mr. Filch. If the rest of your House could follow."

The sound of wood on stone ground through the room as the table of students got to their feet to do as they were ordered.

As the Slytherin House left the room, leaving only an empty table behind, I wondered if this was the best option anyway. How many of those students' parents were behind the Death Eater mask? Wouldn't it be a good idea to keep a couple of those kids as hostages? No. I was going to be able to look at myself when the night was over.

"Ravenclaws, follow on!"

The younger students in the blue and bronze trimmed robes rose to their feet, the younger students clutching older students, siblings or friends as they evacuated the hall. Several older students remained in their seats.

Evie gripped me even more tightly, trying to pull me with her to the exit. I put my hands on her shoulders, moving her back as kindly as I could.

"I'm staying to fight." I looked over and made eye contact with a young woman wearing a prefect badge. She waved her group on again and came over to me, her hand extended and ready to take Evie to safety.

"Don't!" She shook her dirty blonde hair. "Come with us! He'll kill you!"

Yes. He might, but I was willing to risk my life to try and give these kids a better future. One where they no longer needed to be terrified.

"Let him try." I did my best to wear a confident sort of smile. "You're going to leave the castle with your house. When this is over, that monster will be dead, I promise."

I should not make promises I was not sure I could keep.

"C'mon Evie, let's get out of here." The prefect held out her hand. Evie let me go with great reluctance and took the offered hand after giving me one final squeeze, a final, wordless goodbye that had an unspoken finality to it.

The prefect gave me a solemn nod, "Good luck."

The pair disappeared through the door at the end of the Ravenclaw line and I felt strangely lonely without someone clinging to me. I understood everything I would be fighting for tonight. Shacklebolt put a hand on my shoulder and gave it a paternal squeeze before moving through the group of gathered adults, closer to the center of the room. As an Auror, he would be taking some form of command tonight.

The evacuation process continued from the remaining two tables, most of the older students remaining seated to stay for the fight to come. Some looking solemn and committed to the decision they had just made. Others, mostly from Gryffindor, half of the table elected to remain in their seats, looked excited by the prospect of finally handling this war in the open.

McGonagall stepped down, noting as I had that an unusual number of young looking Gryffindors who had remained. "Absolutely not, Creevey! And you, Peakes!"

Creevey! I perked up to see a head of bright yellow hair stand up with a sturdy dark-haired girl, both getting ready to fight with McGonagall before she shoved them at a lingering older student, who cuffed them both by the back of the robes and hauled them towards the door where the rest of the students were filing out. The older student shoved them both out the door and returned to his seat.

Colin Creevey better adhere to good sense and get out of here, but I knew he would not. Colin had already made his choice months ago. If a saw him tonight, I would do my best to look out for him, but I could not waver when I knew I was going to the front to reinforce the wards and aid in the front lines of defense.

I looked up to the center of the room where Shacklebolt had stepped onto the raised platform recently occupied by Minerva McGonagall.

"We've only got half an hour until midnight, so we need to act fast! A battle plan has been agreed between the teachers of Hogwarts and the Order of the Pheonix. Professors Flitwick, Sprout and McGonagall are going to take groups of fighters up 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" – he motioned towards the scarred man who had moved closer to the center of the room to be better seen by the defenders - "Arthur" – I could see Arthur Weasley get up from the table and I tried to glance around for Percy but lost sight of him in the shifting crowd at the table – "And I will take groups into the grounds. We'll need somebody to organize defense of entrances into the school –"

"Sounds like a job for us," I could see Fred standing up at the table with George beside him as Shacklebolt nodded in approval.

"All right, leaders up here and we'll divide up the troops!"

I found myself moving forward into the crowd with the shopkeepers from Hogsmeade who had come at Aberforth's request. I stood on the tips of my toes searching for Percy, my eyes moving towards where the Weasley's were sitting, I glimpsed Arthur bend down to kiss his wife quickly, lingering to grasp her shoulders and say something that made her steady herself and nod in agreement to what he said.

"Anyone who has played Quidditch on your House team, go to the door and speak with Oliver Wood, we'll need air support! We need surveillance and people in the air. Stay out of sight until they hit the grounds!"

Several older students broke off from the larger group in the center of the hall – nine in total, bringing the total for the air support crew to thirteen as Oliver led them away to get their brooms.

Neville Longbottom immediately began sorting the students who were in the back of the crowd, he was the student leader and had enough pull to know where some of the students would do their best and who they would partner with – seeming to try and keep a few people together.

McGonagall was next to Shacklebolt, calling individual students by name as she saw them. "Weasley - the married one! – with me to Gryffindor tower! McNulty – Astronomy! Chang – Ravenclaw!"

More names were called, people were running out to take their position as they received their assignments. I saw Molly Weasley again, with a small group heading into the main part of the castle. I saw the Weasley twins leave with another redhead in tow, the three out of sight before I could confirm if it was Percy or another Weasley brother. I hoped that was Percy. He would be safer inside the castle.

I felt a hand on my shoulder as the room began to empty, the groups splitting off in a rushed, disorganized mass of bodies and crowded chaos that made my heart race.

There was a hand on my shoulder.

"Graves, was it?" Kingsley turned my attention back to the things I could immediately control.

"Yes, sir."

"You're going with Arthur Weasley's group."

I nodded quickly. This was going to be fascinating.

Shacklebolt shock my shoulder as if I were a young wix getting ready for their first Auror raid before pressing on to divide the last of the defenders, the two shopkeepers from Hogsmeade went to the remaining ground defense teams.

I could see Arthur Weasley leading a group of people towards the door. I glanced once more around the deserted Great Hall and followed, my heart somewhere in my throat as I trailed behind the rest of my team. Most of them were students. They looked so young.

We trailed out the door, a large group with a solemn sort of air. The three groups split off, Remus Lupin and Kingsley Shacklebolt splitting off with their team, leaving our small defensive group alone together as Arthur gave instructions. We would be guarding the main castle entrance, it was the best way into the castle, the other two groups would go to the right and left sides to hold the line and divide the engagement. Our goal was to keep the coming army out of the castle as long as we could. This was going to be the easiest way for them to get inside.

There was a couple of minutes of chatter from this small group of about ten people or less, I was not sure I could focus to count. Some exchanging names, asking about Harry Potter, one girl asked Arthur if it was true about there being giants-

I could not bear the thought of giants.

I looked out into the darkness, I could see statues moving at the edges of the castle, glimmers of steel armor in the moonlight. Someone had cast a powerful spell to bring the statues of the castle to life to defend the school. A sudden wave of confidence filled me. We could do this. We could hold the line here and put a dent in Voldemort's plans – maybe the wraith would find a purpose beyond bringing me bones. If it wanted to have a fit, he could have it on the Death Eaters coming to kill us. I wondered if Annie would like a Death Eater's arm with the Mark included? No, probably still easier to just send her a mask.

I stared out into the darkness, holding my breath as the clock began to chime for the midnight hour.

Oo0Oo0

Author's Note: Battle for Hogwarts folks! Let's go! There was quite a bit of dialogue borrowed from chapter 30 and 31 of Deathly Hallows – I tried not to make it to repetitive, but kept the important bits of information and tried to make it a bit more interesting due to the First-Person POV and Audrey's outsider status in this chain of events.

Also – per my family tree for Audrey, Ernie McMillian is one of Audrey's cousins through her grandmother.

Little notes of Minister Shacklebolt in here. Also, Audrey missed Percy by moments in the Room of Requirement and in the Great Hall.