Chapter 9

Much had happened since that Christmas. The Ministry had fallen to Voldemort's control, causing the Prime Minister to issue a declaration of war to the now Death Eater governed Ministry. The resulting actions had been numerous airstrikes against Death Eater targets, the locations of which had been provided by the Grims from information they had obtained from their prisoners. Even Malfoy Manor, Voldemort's headquarters, had been the target of an RAF airstrike, with Voldemort and Bellatrix barely managing to escape in time with only a small handful of followers who were present. Many of Voldemort's inner circle, including the surviving Malfoys, were killed in the strike. There had also been an occupation of Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley, both being placed under martial law. The Ministry had yet to be captured, but the Army was currently working on kicking down the door. Soldiers had also stormed Gringotts and seized all assets, effectively placing the magical economy under the control of the muggle government, as well as arresting several goblins for aiding in funding Voldemort's forces. This resulted in many pureblood families who had spent generations building up their wealth, to lose their entire fortune overnight. As for Hogwarts, it had so far been the calmest theater in the entire war, once the last of the embedded Death Eaters had been purged from the school population. However, it was only a matter of time before the war reached its climax, as the Death Eater raids grew more violent and desperate. They were losing the war, badly, and they knew it. The latest intelligence had been reporting that Voldemort was planning a last ditch offensive, gathering the remainder of his forces for a desperate attack that he hoped would tip the scale of the war back in his favor. With more and more Death Eater scouts being spotted around the edge of the school grounds, it became clear that the target of this offensive was Hogwarts itself. The last several months, the Grims had been tightening security and strengthening fortifications, even procuring a few jeeps fitted with mounted machine guns.

Then, on May 2nd, the day came. It had started early in the morning with a full scale attack on Hogsmeade. The villagers had been evacuated to Hogwarts while the forces in the village fought off the Death Eaters until the evacuation was complete, until they themselves were ordered to withdraw to the castle. Harry and the rest of the Grims were sprinting to their positions around the castle, with Harry taking up his position on the sandbag wall at the gate of the main courtyard at the foot of the bridge. He manned one of the 50 Cal machine guns placed on the wall, with several of his fellow Grims beside him with either their rifles or other machine guns. Further back in the courtyard, the mortar and artillery crews loaded and prepared their guns, itching to unleash their deadly payload. Captain Riley had been on the intercom, giving orders throughout the school. He ordered the civilians to proceed to the dungeons in order to be sheltered against the upcoming fight. Just then, the doors to the castle burst open and Charles, Ron, Hermione, the sixth and seventh year Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs, Ravenclaws, and even a good number of Slytherins emerged. They quickly jogged over to Harry, leaving Charles to do the talking.

"What the fuck is this! Get back inside and stay there, this is no place for any of you!"

"We want to fight! This is our war too!"

"Do you have any idea what's about to happen? We're about to literally tear these bastards apart. If you fight, at least some of you are going to die."

"We know the risks. We're willing to take them."

Harry had to give his brother credit on one thing, he had some serious balls. He might be a cruel and vindictive ass, but he never backed down from a fight, ever. He looked around the courtyard, gaging the faces of the other Grims. They just shrugged and gave nods of agreement with Charles. Turning back to his brother, clearly annoyed with the situation.

"Fine, but let's make this very clear, if you fight, you kill every death bastard you see. There is no place for mercy here, show none and expect none. Kill every last one of them because I promise you, they will show you no kindness."

Charles nodded and then leaned in, whispering in Harry's ear.

"Mom and Dad are here too. They're helping rig the wooden bridge on the other side of the castle."

Harry said nothing, he simply stared at Charles for a moment before turning towards the students and barking out a series of orders to them, telling them to spread out around the castle and help any under-manned positions.

"I'm staying here with you."

Harry groaned but otherwise did not bother to protest.

"Fine, but you do exactly what I say, when I say to do it, and without question. Don't even think about being more than an arm's reach away from me."

Charles nodded and took up a position next to Harry on the sandbag wall. Then a voice came over the radio, one of the snipers had spotted Voldemort and his forces assembling on the hill beyond the main bridge. Among the ranks of Death Eaters were groups of giants, orges, acromantulas, and dementors. Up on the hill, Voldemeort looked down on the castle, seeing the figures of the muggle soldiers waiting for the fighting to start.

"When will they learn? They cannot resist the true power of magic."

Bellatrix stepped forward.

"Perhaps we should attack them now my lord, and kill all of the blood traitors."

"While I admire your bloodlust my dear Bella, there is another way. I do not wish to see so much magical blood so needlessly spilled. Yaxley, go down to the bridge and inform them that if they surrender, their lives will be spared."

Yaxley and the other Death Eaters looked at their master in confusion. What had inspired this seemingly spontaneous act of mercy? Yaxley stumbled out a reply and apparated to the foot of the bridge. Voldemort would never admit to it, but he feared Harry Potter, knowing all too well that his reputation was no mere drunkard's tale. He knew who was leading those soldiers down there and how far the Potter twin had gone, and how far he was very much willing to go to achieve total victory. The real reason he feared Harry Potter was simple, he was so much like himself. It was no wonder that the boy had been placed in Slytherin, his ruthless determination and near fanatical devotion to achieving his ends, as well as his bloodlust, very much rivaled that of his own, and it scared him. The boy was a killer, ruthless in his pursuit of his enemies. Having lost future servants from powerful pureblood families during Potter's now infamous purges, and due to the boy killing off all of the heirs to every bloodline aligned with him, he was not very keen on risking even more pureblood lives. To Voldemort, Harry Potter was a mad dog, and the muggles had let him off the leash.

Yaxley appeared on the bridge and took out a white handkerchief, waving it over his head. Harry and the other Grims observed him in confusion. It seemed like Voldemort wanted to talk, or lure them into a trap. Harry aimed his machine gun at Yaxley and called out to him.

"Drop your wand now!"

Yaxley complied and slowly withdrew his wand from his robes, placing it on the ground at his feet.

"Kick it away!"

Once again he complied, kicking his wand away from him.

Satisfied for the moment, Harry handed his rifle off to another Grim and hopped over the sandbag barrier. He and Yaxley met at the center of the bridge, his hand resting on his sidearm.

"To what do I owe the displeasure of your company Yaxley?"

"The Dark Lord wishes to avoid such unnecessary spilling of magical blood. He states that if you surrender now, your life, the lives of your men, and the occupants of the castle will be spared."

Harry stared back at Yaxley with a bored expression.

"Anything else?"

"Surrender boy, you and your army can not stand against the full power of the Dark Lord."

"I'll take that into consideration."

Suddenly, he drew his sidearm and shot Yaxley point blank in the face, killing him before he even hit the ground. He then drew his wand and held it against his throat, amplifying his voice.

"Now hear this, you fucking inbred trash! There will be no surrender, no truce, no negotiation, only war!"

The Grims let out a Spartan like chant, signaling their approval.

"Oh Tommy boy, when I find you, I'm going to cut off your head and use your skull as a fucking chamberpot!"

"The Grims gave an even louder chant of approval before Voldemort responded with his own voice amplified.

"You will die for your insolence, boy!"

Harry placed his weapons back in their holsters and turned around to face the castle.

"Artillery, mortars, let them have it!"

All at once, the Artillery and mortars roared to life, firing on the hill where the Death Eaters stood. On the Death Eater side, confusion reigned as the artillery shells and mortars landed amongst the large clusters of people. Arms, legs, blood, and guts flew in every direction as the shells and mortars continued to land. Voldemort gave the order to attack, his forces charging towards the castle. Harry manned his machine gun once again and gave the long awaited order.

"OPEN FIRE!"

The Battle of Hogwarts had begun.

Gunfire met spellfire as the machine guns unleashed. Death Eaters fell in droves, being brutally cut down by the wall of bullets. Soldiers fired their guns while the students cast spells. Harry manned his gun, pouring into a group of giants on the bridge, Charles was firing off killing curse after killing curse, hitting his mark every time. Eventually though, enemy forces began breaking through as the machine guns began to run out of ammunition. The Grims soon went to their rifles as the last of the machine gun's ammunition was used, continuing to pick off Death Eaters. Meanwhile in the castle ramparts, Arthur, Remus, and Kingsley dueled against a swarm of Death Eaters coming in through the windows, so far proving successful in repelling them.

By the wooden bridge, Lily and James, with Seamus and Neville's help, had successfully managed to blow the bridge, waiting until the werewolf horde was too far across the bridge to turn back before blowing it. Now Lily and James were fighting back to back as Death Eaters finally managed to penetrate the castle. They had heard Harry's "speech" before the fighting had started. Lily had been quite appalled while James had actually been quite amused, if not a little proud. Throughout the night, they had seen Harry and Charles fighting together. Their personal issues, at least for the moment, being put aside.

In the Great Hall, one of the fiercest duels of the battle was taking place as Neville and Bellatrix threw spell after spell at each other, neither combatant giving an inch in their long overdue grudge match. Both Neville and Bellatrix gave as good as they got. Unforgivables, bonebreakers, blood boiling curses. Nothing was off the table as the two made every effort to kill each other, and judging by the rage in Neville's eyes, this was a fight he was going to win, no matter what.

The fighting raged on throughout the night, the Union Jack flying high in the courtyard, being illuminated by the flashes of guns, spells, and explosions. The main defensive positions had been overrun by this point, with the fighting having spread out throughout the castle. Soldiers fought alongside students as more and more bodies mounted. Albus and Aberforth had cast a massive patronus, eliminating the Dementors from the battle. Harry and Charles had killed Greyback as he attempted to attack a group of first years, Hermione and Ginny were fighting off the last of the Acromantulas, and Neville had finally emerged victorious from his duel with Bellatrix, having struck her with a killing curse while she had been off balance.

Eventually, Voldemort ordered his forces to retreat and regroup, leaving behind countless bodies. Word had reached Harry that Captain Riley had been killed. Apparently, he had been surrounded by Death Eaters and had run out of ammunition, so rather than being taken prisoner or worse, he blew himself up with his remaining grenades, taking the group of Death Eaters with him. At least fifty other non-Grim soldiers had also fallen during the battle. The Grims reformed in the courtyard, once again taking up positions behind the barrier. It was clear that the remainder of Voldemort's forces were preparing for another assault, this time all of them coming across the bridge. The Grims were nearly out of ammunition at this point and while they had also been using magic, if the enemy charged the bridge, their response would come in the form of hand to hand combat. Charles looked up over the sandbags and saw the Death Eaters reforming on the bridge, with Voldemort at the head of his army.

"What do we do now?"

"The only thing we can do. Fix bayonets!"

The Grims immediately began fixing their bayonets to their rifles, knowing exactly what Harry had in mind. Charles looked at him in confusion.

"What are you doing?"

'We're going to charge them of course."

"Are you mad!?"

"Yes Mr. Potter, very much so."

By then, the remaining Hogwarts defenders had joined the Grims in the courtyard, taking up positions beside them. Voldemort's voice echoed through the air.

"You have fought valiantly, but there is no escaping the inevitable. Surrender, or die."

Voldemort stood for a moment, waiting for a response. Then a loud crack rang out, followed by a bullet tearing through his gut, causing him to scream in agony as he went down. Harry lowered his rifle and smirked in satisfaction before turning towards the Grims.

"Bayonets!"

The Grims held out their rifles like spears, ready to advance.

"Charge!"

The Grims, led by Harry, jumped over the sandbags and charged straight at the Death Eaters. After a few seconds of hesitation, Charles spoke up.

"Well, you heard him, charge!"

The rest of the Hogwarts defenders joined in the charge behind the Grims, with Harry at the front of the pack. Surprised at the soldier's suicidal charge, the Death Eaters eventually charged as well, some of them falling as the Grims cut loose the last of their ammunition. The two sides met at the center of the bridge as the first line of Death Eaters were gutted by the Grim's bayonets. The fighting quickly turned to hand to hand as the Grims used their rifles as spears, tearing through their enemies. The other soldiers, as well as the students, also engaged in the melee, with some spells being cast at point blank range, and fists flew.

As their numbers began to dwindle, more and more Death Eaters began to surrender. However, the Grims cared little and killed them regardless. As the last of his followers meet their grizzly demise, Voldemort was crawling away from the battle, trying to get away from the school, and from Harry Potter. He left a thick trail of blood behind him as he desperately tried to crawl away. It was then that he saw the shadow of a figure come up from behind him, followed by the last voice he wanted to hear.

"And just where do you think you're going Tom?"

He felt his blood run cold, as Harry Potter moved around behind him. He let out screams of agony as Harry stomped on his legs, feeling the bones snap. Satisfied with the damage he had done to his legs, Harry then proceeded to stomp on his arms, snapping them as well. He then placed his foot on Voldemort's side and rolled him over to his back, kneeling over the now crippled Dark Lord. They locked eyes as he did, Voldemort seeing the same look that he himself had worn many times. The look someone gets when they're going to enjoy killing you. Harry grabbed him by the throat with one hand and raised his other with his fist balled.

"Beg!"

"N..never!"

Harry's fist came down like a steel hammer, pounding away at Voldemort's face, more and more blood flying everywhere. After several moments, Harry stopped, seeing blood flow freely from Voldemort's mouth as he struggled to remain conscious.

"This is the end for you Tom."

"I.. I.. am L.. Lord Voldemort."

Harry drew his sidearm and gripped it by the barrel.

"Who fucking cares."

Then, using the pistol as a club, he began pistol-whipping Voldemort, slamming the butt of the weapon repeatedly into his face. Blood and brains flew everywhere as Harry caved in Voldemort's skull, reducing it to mere chucks of meat after several minutes. Eventually, Voldemort's body let out a few last twitches before it fell still, never to move again. Harry got off of the body and fell to his knees, releasing a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding. He looked around to see everyone staring at him, shock evident on many of their faces, particularly Charles and the other students. The Dark Lord had been killed by the other Potter twin, by a muggle weapon no less. In their eyes, there was no greater irony. By now, the rest of the Death Eaters had been killed, the last one being Peter Pettigrew, begging for his life before a knife had been plunged into his neck.

As the sun rose over the Hogwarts grounds, the full carnage of the battle became more and more visible. Bodies were strewn about, limbs and other extremities littered the ground as well. Most of the bodies were that of Death Eaters and their allies. However, there were quite a few bodies of students and soldiers as well. Among them was Colin Creevey, who had been one of the few people Harry had been friends with during his time at Hogwarts. It was his death that pained him the most, because it was an undeserved fate, an unnecessary sacrifice. It infuriated him further, causing his hatred of Voldemort to grow ever deeper. As Colin's body was carried into the Great Hall, Harry stopped and saluted his body as it passed, giving a final farewell to his friend. A single tear falling as he did.

Harry and the other Hogwarts defenders spent the morning gathering the bodies of students and soldiers, executing any wounded Death Eaters they found. The castle had suffered extensive damage in several places during the battle and it now looked blown out and ruined. Smoke continued to rise over the castle, scorch marks from spells and bullet holes littered the walls, along with the unpleasant and nauseating sight of blood. The flag that had flown during the battle remained on the pole, still flying in the wind, though not without its own rips and tears. Harry spotted George hugging his twin in the Great Hall, relieved to see his twin alive, fearing he had been killed when the wall behind him suddenly exploded.

Several days had passed, and the Army had finally called the Grims back from Hogwarts. After Voldemort's death, the Army and the remaining Aurors seized control of the Ministry and installed a provisional government with Kingsley Shucklebolt as acting Minister, until the Ministry could get back on its feet and elections could be held. With the war over, and the magical world beginning to recover, the Grims job was, for now, done. While muggle forces would continue to aid the magical world's recovery, all combat operations had ceased and the military presence was being scaled back considerably. Forces would remain until order was restored, but only until the magical government was once again capable of managing its own affairs.

The day had come when the Grims and the other combat troops would be pulled out of Hogwarts, and replaced with engineers and humanitarian personnel to aid in treating the students and the rebuilding of the castle. The transport choppers had arrived early in the morning, and the soldiers began loading their equipment and the flag draped caskets of their fallen comrades. As the caskets were loaded, the Grims stood in formation and held a long salute until the last casket had been loaded. As Harry was about to board the last transport, he heard Charles calling out to him.

"Harry, wait!"

He groaned and turned to face his brother, who was being followed by Ginny and his parents.

"What the fuck do you want?"

"Look Harry, I know what you think of me, and of our parents."

At Harry's stoic silence, he continued.

"After everything that's happened, don't you think we should try and settle our differences?"

Harry raised an annoyed eyebrow, but still he said nothing.

"Ginny and I are also getting married next year, and I would like it if you came."

At this point. Harry couldn't help himself. He burst out into hysterical laughter.

"You want me to go to your wedding!? Ha! Good one!"

"I'm serious Harry, we'd like it if you would be there."

"No."

Lily spoke up.

"Harry, it would mean so much to us if you at least made an appearance."

He just stared at them in disbelief, he just couldn't believe their audacity.

"You think just because we killed some Death Eaters together that I'm going to hold your hands and frolic through a field of flowers with you? Pretend like nothing ever happened? You lot really are delusional. Let me make this clear, this changes nothing."

Lily turned to James, her eyes pleading for him to say something, only for him to remain silent as Harry's venomous gaze killed anything he was going to say.

"Nothing to say James, how unusual." Harry drawled sarcastically.

"Let me explain this to you, so that you can understand, from this moment forward we are dead to each other. Nothing more than strangers. Don't ever contact me, invite me to anything, or even ask anyone about me. We do not exist to each other, do you understand me?"

The group looked down at their feet, shame and embarrassment evident on their faces. Harry had just completely disowned his own family in full public view. Considering the status and reputation of the Potter family, having one of its members, the heir no less, disown them in such a public fashion was a catastrophic embarrassment and a serious blow to their reputation. Such a thing had never happened in the Potter family, until now. Harry turned away and boarded the last transport, joining up with the other Grims. The Potters watched as it took off and faded from view, with Arthur Weasley looking on in complete fascination.

Charles's face soured as Harry's final rejection fully hit him, realizing the full scale of his loss. Ginny squeezed his hand and shook her head. Harry Potter had a new family, and that was the Grims.

AN: There it is, the long awaited Battle of Hogwarts. I had a lot of fun writing this chapter out. Follow the story to keep track of when new chapters are released and leave a review, as they help me improve the story and I just enjoy reading them. Thanks for reading.