Chapter 37 - Bellatrix the Strange
Ten minutes beforehand
"Holy Merlin," Cyrus said, "That was impressive. I can't believe the bastard managed to transfigure that car and got under that dome so quickly."
Ellanore, seated at his right, didn't say anything, like everyone else she was on the edge of her seat, eyes fixed on the arena. They watched the dome intently. Remus Lupin was sitting between Ellanore to his right, and Sirius, who was at the end of the row, ready to get out to fight at a moment's notice. The werewolf was leaning over the railing, only just daring to peek through the gaps in his fingers.
"Stay high, Harry," Sirius whispered at Remus' side, "He couldn't hit you from that far. He couldn't hit you."
But Harry didn't stay high; he flew lower and the dome disappeared, revealing nothing but empty space.
"Fuck," Sirius cursed, "Hominem Revelio."
" Hominem Revelio ," Harry called, still hovering ten to fifteen feet up and gliding slowly backwards, shaking his head and blinking repeatedly. The magic of the arena allowed all conversation within to be heard loud and clear.
"Why'd he shake his head?"
"The arena," answered Augusta Longbottom, "and all the people, there's just too much magic. You can't cast it at a Quidditch match either, it's too much."
"But where is he?" Cyrus asked, clenching his fists on his knees.
"He's there!" Remus pointed as Cyrus launched to his feet, screaming "LOOK OUT!"
But of course, Harry couldn't hear him. Every witch or wizard watching the fight who were supporting Harry gasped in horror as Rookwood shot glowing white chains at him that wrapped around his trailing leg before slamming him to the ground.
"Fuck," Remus said under his breath, and they could see Rookwood advancing,
"Harry get out of there!" Ellanore screamed as all of them rose to their feet. She buried her face in her husband's chest, she couldn't look.
They watched curses bounce off Harry's armour and a bright blue stone whizz past his head.
"What was that?" Cyrus asked, but no one answered, for no one knew.
Remus had his fist over his mouth, muttering into it "Get out. Get out. Get Out. Get Out."
"Oh, thank fuck," Sirius sighed with relief, a collective breath echoing from the crowd as Harry disappeared.
"Where's he gone?" asked Remus
"I…I don't know," was all he could reply.
"There, the door!" Cyrus pointed a moment later, "The house on the left!"
"But now we can't see him!" cried Ellanore, her voice trembling with fear. The tension in the air was palpable, every second stretching into an eternity.
On tenterhooks, they watched Rookwood walk midway up the garden path and then stop.
"Why isn't he going in?" asked, glancing apprehensively at her husband
"He's toying with him," Remus snarled, "Harry's not going anywhere. He might be able to fly out somehow, but we know how well that went for him."
Rookwood's voice rang out across the viewing gallery.
"Come out Harry. I saw that leg. You're done. Let dear Sirius 'ave a go. Come on, stagger out here and I'll send you to meet your parents quickly. I'll even make it quick for him an' all."
Sirius' nostrils flared with fury, he wanted nothing more than to turn around and run right to the entranceway but he knew that in no way would he get past the Aurors. But no… this was good. Rookwood was giving him time.
"Anybody see him?" asked Cyrus.
"No," replied Ellanore breathlessly, her heart pounding in her chest.
Another minute and still nothing. Rookwood's pacing grew more frantic, his impatience palpable.
"Come on. Show yourself, coward," he called, "You've got ten seconds. Ten. Nine. Eight. Come on now. Six. Five. Four. Oh, fuck it. Fiendfyre ."
"No!" Remus screamed like the others, watching in horror as malevolent flames poured from Rookwood's wand.
Sirius let out a little chuckle, a satisfied glint in his eyes. Remus and the others turned their heads curiously.
"What?" asked Remus.
"Wait," Sirius sneered darkly. "Just wait, Harry's got a counter. We worked on it over the summer."
"A counter for Fiendfyre?" Ellanore replied, her voice full of disbelief.
"Watch," Sirius responded determinedly.
"He's still gotta get out!" Cyrus exclaimed, panic edging his voice.
"He's there! In the back garden." Remus called. "How is he running?"
"He's a healer," Cyrus smirked.
"But that break?"
"A Parseltongue healer, Remus. He completely reattached my severed arm in August in seconds."
But Sirius wasn't listening, he finally let himself release the breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding as he watched Harry point his wand at the burning house and hiss in Parseltongue.
"Holy Merlin! What the hell is that?" cried Ellanore as a massive blue-hot basilisk rose quickly, towering over the house, its fiery tongue flickering with menace.
"Serpentfyre," said Sirius lowly, allowing himself a snarling smile. "Family Magic."
"It's amazing."
The Serpentfyre quickly made light work of the Fiendfyre before it appeared to retreat, shrinking and flickering back into Harry's holly wand.
"It left the rest of the house intact!" said Remus, shocked, "How?"
"He mastered it," Sirius said, a proud smile on his face. "His ancestor told him how. I shan't say more."
Remus glanced curiously at his friend but didn't dare take his eyes off the arena for more than a second.
"But he should've pushed it further," snarled Cyrus, "Burned that cunt to cinders."
"No. That purple shield saps magic, the younger Rookwood used it on him before Harry killed him. He might've been able to use it on the Serpentfyre," said Sirius.
"With that heat? I don't think so," said Remus.
"I wouldn't risk it," Cyrus replied. "It saps magic?"
"Until death," Sirius replied grimly. "Only the shielder can break the spell's attachment to the other's wand once it's attached, unless disturbed."
"Hence the Exploding Charm at the beginning at Rookwood's feet, he was testing how to break it," Ellanore nodded in understanding. "Thank Merlin he has two wands."
"Where's he gone?" Remus asked a few moments later.
"Back in the house, Bubblehead Charm," Remus answered quickly, his eyes never leaving the arena.
Two minutes later and the whole audience still stared, intently watching the burned-out house and Rookwood standing casually with a sneer.
"That was very impressive Lord Slytherin-Potter," growled Rookwood patronisingly, "I didn't expect such power, but I know how much that took. That smoke won't last foreeeeverrrr, and I saw that leg. You're stuck like a niffler in a dragon's hoard, much too greedy, vulnerable and exposed."
"Where is he?" Ellanore asked, "Do you think he's passed out?"
"No way. Rookwood's vanity just cost him his life. He basically confirmed he thinks Harry's done for and told him his guard is down," Sirius replied. "Harry's not just a Potter, brave like a Gryffindor, you know. He's also a Slytherin, the Slytherin. Part lion, part snake."
"And a snake waits for the opportune moment to strike," Cyrus smiled grimly. "Come on, Harry."
Each of them leaned so far over the railing that if there weren't a forcefield blocking the guardrails, all of them would've fallen over.
There were several nail-biting moments of silence, and then it happened so fast that if they weren't watching so intently, they might have missed it. Rookwood went flying backwards and Harry shot through the cloud of smoke, casting rapidly. A water pipe exploded and less than a second later, Rookwood was brutally impaled by the spike of ice. He hung grotesquely limp as his blood poured down the ice.
"Yes!" they all cheered, jumping to their feet. Sirius and Remus and Ellanore and Cyrus hugged each other.
Their hugs broke and Ellanore wiped tears of relief from her eyes as Sirius proudly watched his Godson drink the potion he had given him. He looked up towards Lord Parkinson, whose face was white. Sirius caught his eye and smiled smugly. Parkinson gritted his teeth and looked away.
But the feeling of victory that lifted their spirits and brought such immense relief didn't last long. The air grew thick with tension once again, the moment Dumbledore bid Harry stand in the silver circle.
"Aurors," the Chief Warlock said, "Please escort Bellatrix Lestrange to the entranceway. Mrs Lestrange, upon your arrival, please stand in the circle illuminated."
They watched nervously as to their right, Bellatrix and the eight Aurors guarding her got to their feet. Sirius gritted his teeth as he stared at Bellatrix strolling casually past, but then she stopped and turned her head towards him with a twisted smile.
"Playtime soon, Siri. This won't take long," she said, altogether much too casually, before glancing at Augusta Longbottom and smirking as she walked away.
As much as Sirius seethed, his heart plunged into the pit of his stomach.
Harry took a steadying breath as the entrance door once again materialised on the Faux-Privet Drive, about thirty feet away.
'Okay, okay,' he thought, 'What's the plan? Fuck plans, the plan for Rookwood went out the window. What do we know and what do we need to know?'
He stared at the dark rectangle, just making out the metallic glint of the iron step-edging on the last step of the spiral staircase.
'Where is she? Is she not coming? Nah, she's fucking with me. What do we know? The psych eval. She's vain. Piss her off, she'll make mistakes. She's fast, all offensive, but struggles if you break a spell chain. Hates transfig. Anything else? She's a bitch. Shut up. There's no time. Why is she not here? What do we need to know? Can she cast void magic? We need to test that but I don't dare cast directly just in case, she won't let me get away with it like he did. You're gonna have to at some point. If she has it, don't lose a wand. If you do, you've got the runestone. You've got the runestone. Breathe, Potter, no. Breathe Slytherin-Potter. You've got this. Fuck this bitch up. He'll fucking hate you for it. Fuck her up, not just for you. Do it for Neville.'
As Bellatrix Lestrange stepped out into the arena, twirling her wand nonchalantly in her fingers, Harry was plunged once again into his waking nightmare. At first, she said nothing, simply beaming at him as she casually strolled towards him. Her expression, and especially her smile, was almost like she'd just cast her eyes on a young relative she hadn't seen for a long time, but in those cold dark eyes, there was not a hint of warmth, only the chaotic glint of insanity and the chilling promise of unspeakable evil.
A short, simpering, girlish laugh welled its way up through her chest as she took the last few steps into the circle.
"Bet you hoped I wouldn't show, didn't you?" she asked, her eyelids flaring.
"No," Harry sneered patronisingly, "It's lovely to meet your Halfblood master's right-hand slave."
"Power is power," Bellatrix replied in a singsong voice, rocking her head from side to side. "You showed a good bit of it against old Rookyboy. Ha. He was weak. But now we get to play, I've been so excited."
She leaned forward and put the back of her hand to her cheek in a stage whisper, "I'll be honest, I thought it would be me against Siri."
"But oh well!" she said highly, raising her hands in a shrug, "Rooky didn't know how to play the game. Tell me. What do you wanna lose first? Your arms or your legs?"
Harry's sarcastic, smug smile grew more pronounced as he responded with fake curiosity, "Why are we chopping off my limbs now? Couldn't you just get me with a cheeky killing curse? Are you jealous? Is it because mine look nicer than yours? Your dress really doesn't fit you, does it? I bet it's my arms you want. I mean, the skin on yours is so saggy, I bet you could fly away!"
Bellatrix's lips went from thin to thinner as she immediately stopped twirling her wand and raised it at Harry across the street. Her eyes burned with fury as Dumbledore's voice rang out loud and clear.
"Miss Lestrange, do not cast, or you forfeit."
"Fine," Bellatrix snapped, dropping her wand and rolling her eyes like a disgruntled teenager, "But I'll get you for that one."
Harry simply smirked.
"Now, bow," Dumbledore called again.
Harry bowed straight and low, while of course, Bellatrix had to be awfully flamboyant about it.
"Take your positions."
Harry swallowed. He'd done a good job winding her up, but he still needed to find out if she could cast void magic. He had an idea. He took the same position as he had with Rookwood, crouching low. Bellatrix simply put her hand on her hip and pointed straight at him, cocking her head to the side.
Eerie silence filled him. This was it. His very life, his future stood on the edge of a knife. He was in the eye of the storm.
"Three… two… one… begin!" The words barely left Dumbledore's lips before Bellatrix unleashed a barrage of spells.
The sheer speed at which she fired her opening salvo was staggering and she didn't say a word. Her wand danced with such precision as she chained spell after spell in a manner not showcasing power, but lethal art. Harry was immediately on the back foot, his heart pounding, but he got his Protego up in time. More than twenty spells of every variety had shot right at him in the time it would've taken Rookwood to cast five. They smashed into his shield, but it held firm. Over and over he batted whatever spells he could back at her, but she danced and dodged through them with little effort.
After nearly five minutes of furious exchange, Harry's mind raced as he thought he'd gotten the hang of one of her spell chains. She seemed to be going through three or four chains, but in one, she'd move from a Cursed Cutter to a Blasting Curse, a Gutrot Jinx, and then two rapid-fire immobilising spells - Tarantallegra and Impedimenta - two reds, a light green, two more reds and a white. He couldn't bat away the Cursed Cutter; he'd read that some variants came with the capability of immobilising one's wand. But he could shield against the others, apart from the Gutrot Jinx. It would go right through his shield and wasn't magically tangible enough for him to deflect back at her. It did, however, take a complex, multi-part wand movement to cast. It was an opening. She'd been casting so fast he hadn't been able to get a single spell off. He knew if he managed his Family Immobilising Whip he'd either win entirely or at least get knowledge of if she could cast void magic. But did he dare? It was difficult, trying to think while trying to recognise all the different spells, but he watched her go through them again. Yes. It was only in that chain that she would cast two reds in a row.
The first red came, then the next, and he was already moving. He faked a dodge left and stepped right, twisting his wand to form the whip, hissing in Parseltongue. His wand glowed silver, but he hadn't spoken the incantation. Instead, he'd simply said, "Fuck you."
Bellatrix's Void Shield flared into life at that very moment, but when no spell came she glared. She'd fallen for the bluff and given him vital information, but it meant he was in the same boat as he'd been with Rookwood, no direct casting, for now at least. He'd always planned to use the Lily on Bellatrix, not Rookwood, to keep the element of surprise, but he'd need to touch a wand tip to it for five seconds for the wand to start channelling magic from the runestone inside the locket, instead of his core. Right now that wasn't an option.
Furious at being given away and having a weakness in one of her chains figured out, Bellatrix started casting faster and sending more and more obscure spells that Harry had no choice but to dodge and retreat. She started smirking as Harry bobbed and weaved, both of them knowing that if she kept this up he'd slip up sooner or later. At the end of her barrage, she cast a spell he recognised - a Bludgeoner - and he batted it away, not at his enemy but at the car nearest her. The windows shattered into a hail of glass. They were too fine to do any damage, but she staggered backwards, shielding her eyes and giving Harry time to dodge behind the parked car on the opposite side of the road.
Finally with some cover, and knowing just what was around him from his years at Privet Drive, he looked to Mrs Number Six's nearby recycling bin. A cast shattered it quickly and he transfigured the shards of green plastic into a dozen venomous snakes, hissing at them to attack. Hissing in return, they slithered towards Bellatrix quickly, Harry saw the car begin to erode away, as if drenched with some invisible, venomous acid, and knew he'd need to find more consistent cover. A hasty Disillusionment Charm gave him the space he needed to jet off into the air, but the spell was too rushed and Bellatrix spotted his shimmering outline in moments.
Flying in the opposite direction, he didn't see her cast her next spell, but felt it immediately, a crushing force pulling him down. He snapped his head around mid-flight, feeling the unrelenting pressure pulling him to the floor. She'd dealt with the snakes, and around her twisted wand was a swirling blue vortex. Harry knew at once what it was - gravity manipulation. He was falling faster and faster, knowing that even if he managed to land safely, she could keep channelling the spell and his body would be crushed into nothing.
As he strode menacingly towards him while he fell, he cast a cushioning charm on the grass outside Number Four, and as he landed, he managed to cast a well-aimed Confringo at a nearby postbox, showering Bellatrix in sharp red chunks. It forced her to stop channelling and gave Harry just the time he needed to get into Number Four and slam the door behind him.
He sprinted into the kitchen and managed to shut that door as well, sealing it with a Colloportus, breathing heavily as he turned his attention to the silverware.
"Come out, come out, wherever you are!" Bellatrix called, and there was a loud bang as the brown front door was blasted to smithereens.
Frantically, Harry grabbed the kitchen knife block on the back windowsill and tipped them onto the worktop with a clatter. He quickly cast Gemino , and six exceedingly sharp blades became sixty, but the two extra seconds to overpower the charm were two seconds too many. A foul stench accompanied by a violent hissing came from behind him. Unable to keep his back exposed, he had no choice but to turn away from the knives he'd been planning to banish at her.
As the door melted to the ground, the nightmarish silhouette of Bellatrix Lestrange standing in the hallway was revealed. She waved her wand but no visible spell formed. Unable to shield against an invisible spell, Harry dived to the side, but she'd been casting before he'd even turned, and she'd caught him with a Summoning Charm. She stepped to the side as he flew past her, landing painfully on his back with a thud that knocked the wind out of him, skidding on the rough stone of the Dursleys' garden path.
Totally exposed without any cover, Harry rolled to the left and out of her line of sight. Panicking, he pointed his wand at the garage door, heart thudding in his ears. The metal creaked and buckled slightly before he tore it off its hinges and dragged it in front of the doorway. Bellatrix simply vanished it, but that extra, bought moment meant he was on his feet and ready. His wand tip glowed a near-blinding yellow as he pulled all of the front side roof tiles from Number Four to the floor. They came down in a cascade, many of them peppering the floor and leaving Bellatrix unable to leave the doorway. He caught the first fifty of them mid-air and he used the earned time she was stuck inside to whirl his wand around in a great arc, calling, ' Lapis Papilionidae '. The dark slate tiles paused mid-fall as they were immediately transformed into hand-sized butterflies with razor-sharp wings. He didn't pause his wand movements, spinning his arm like a lasso to maintain his deadly insectoid tornado.
Bellatrix came out casting furiously, but when three of the first five spells ricocheted back dangerously close to her, one of which she blocked with a hasty shield, she relented.
Every single spectator in the viewing area was on their feet, and the majority - those rooting for Harry - breathed another collective sigh of relief
"Come on Harry, think," Sirius said under breath, his fist pressed to his mouth, "What's the number one rule?"
Almost telepathically, as he stared Bellatrix down, Harry thought 'When they give you time, you either make it longer or use all of it for something special. Need to think. Keep her talking.'
"Aww, pretty butterflies," Bellatrix sneered.
Harry flicked his free wand and she reflexively threw up a Void Shield, but he'd targeted a butterfly and it shot towards her at blistering speed. Inwardly he groaned as it missed her throat, but she hissed as a sharp wing left a deep gash from the corner of her mouth to her ear.
"Prettier, than you now, eh Bella? Actually, I'd say it's an improvement," Harry goaded, "You've got Neville Longbottom to thank for that one."
Bellatrix wiped the blood trailing from her cheek, glaring.
"Aww. Wickle Bickle Wongbottom," she said in a childish voice as she began to circle him, spinning her wand in her fingers like she had when she'd first entered the arena, "You know what? I bet he remembers me. He looks so funny, hiding under his wickle bed. That was a good day that was."
Harry fumed, searching his mind for a retort, but then he noticed that as she twirled her wand, a tiny glint of light had formed at the end of it. Seeing it just in time he dived to the side as three great balls of roof tile chips soared towards him in an arc. The first two he missed easily, but the third came with a delay and it hit him hard in the side of his chest, spinning him around so his back was facing her.
The crowd gasped at the sudden impact, as Bellatrix quickly reached into her cleavage, pulled out the second blue stone they'd seen that day and lobbed it directly at Harry's back. It stuck instantly and as Harry spun back around with a shield already raised, Bellatrix simply grinned evilly at him and said "Activate."
Harry felt a sharp tug at his navel, the telltale sharp tug of a portkey, but apart from that, nothing happened.
Harry smiled, half-wincing at what he thought was probably two or three broken ribs.
"Did you really think your master's magic could overpower the wards, Bella?" he asked as if she were stupid "Did he promise you it would? One set of wards, perhaps, but do you think I didn't ask the Minister to set up an extra set specifically around this arena? You wouldn't want me to escape now, would you?"
"Fine," Bellatrix seethed, a pulse of erratic unstable magic flowing from her, "I guess I'll have to kill you myself. He won't be happy, but I'm his favourite. Avada Kedavra"
Harry easily sidestepped the first killing curse and summoned lumps of debris to intercept the other two bright green jets. There were so many bits of broken glass, lumps of concrete, brick and metal the curses were easy to defend against, even if the butterflies had fallen to the floor when she'd hit him.
"Oooh, I nearly got you that time," Bellatrix said her eyes gleaming with sinister delight, "This is pretty fun, but you've got to cast a spell at me. No more transfiguration. Or are you too afraid of Rooky's magic? I won't drain it all, I promise."
"Are you sure?" Harry said, matching her playful tone, like he too was massively enjoying himself. He raised his right wand to his chest, its tip touching Daphne's Lily as he spoke, "You promise, you won't take all of it. It's important we play fair, you know."'
"No, Harry!" Sirius cried out from the stands, "What are you doing?!"
"I promise," Bella simpered, her eyes widening with excitement, "Cross my heart and hope to die."
"I'll hold you to that," Harry said as he felt the magic flowing into his wand switch from his core, to the runestone. "Confringo"
Bellatrix smiled as she raised a Void Shield, the Blasting Cure quickly crashing into it, the shield emitting a loud roar as it started to drain the magic from the locket. As it took hold, Harry simply smiled, feeling no effect, and hissing in parseltongue while he weaved his Azhdahak wand in a complex pattern. Behind her, the garden wall of Number Four was being ripped up brick by brick.
"What?!" Bellatrix cried out, "What's happening? How are you doing that?"
"Magic," Harry sneered, hissing finally to finish the spell.
A great shadow loomed to the right of Bellatrix. Harry had transfigured a hulking brick golem, the size of a mountain troll. It stomped towards her, making the ground shake. Now it was time for Bella to be on the back foot. She gasped and retreated quickly, casting spells at the monstrosity as fast as she could. She managed quite a bit of damage, but as it got closer and closer, she didn't notice the Leg Locker Curse zipping towards her. With her legs snapped together immobilised, the brick golem reached out with its hand, Between the four solid red bricks that were its fingers, it grabbed her skull and picked her up from the floor. A flick of Harry's wand superheated those bricks and he watched intently as Bellatrix screamed, her hair burning away and the sallow skin of her face badly burned. He commanded it to throw her to the ground hard, but she managed to flick her wand up in time and shatter its arm. She rolled as she fell and came up with an overpowered Bombarda on her lips, obliterating the rest of the golem completely.
"Much prettier, Bella," Harry called, and now knowing that even though the magic in the runestone was gone, she wouldn't dare raise another Void Shield against him while he had two wands, he raised his Protego and went on an all-out attack, casting as fast as he could. She gave as good as she got, and they were matched spell for spell, the very air crackling with the exchange. He raised his wand in a lightning whip, crackling and filling the air with the stench of ozone. He lashed it at her, she dodged the first strike as she retreated. He struck again, and her footing faltered. Sensing his moment, Harry dropped the shield on his left and it joined his right in offensive casting.
Every member of the crowd was on their feet in anticipation. This was it. He had her, any second now. One more crack of his whip came, and it looked like it made contact, but then the electric blue whip straightened and became a solid black thread. She'd caught it on the tip of her wand and nullified it somehow. Bellatrix grinned as she jerked her wand back and Harry's phoenix feather wand was torn from his hand. In the moment of shock, he didn't register the danger of casting with one wand and with the runestone now depleted, she brought up a Void Shield in time with Harry's cutter.
Harry dropped to his knees, feeling the life draining out of him quickly as Bella strode towards him, not releasing the spell, relishing watching his magic drain away. He fell forward onto his hands, unable to keep hold of his other wand which dropped beneath him. With no need for it, Bellatrix dispelled her shield, took a quick step and drove her boot into his ribs. The crowd was completely silent. Sirius grabbed for his wand as Ellanore buried her face in Cyrus' robes.
"Silly… Little… Potty," Bellatrix said as Harry vomited what looked like black coffee grounds onto Vernon's front lawn. The chemical reaction of his blood having mixed with his stomach acid sent shivers through the crowd. "Looks like your time is over. And look. I've got all the time I want. They can't do anything until you're unconscious, or dead. People have last surges of energy, you know, it's happened in lots of duels, but between you and me, you're done, aren't you?"
She sauntered around him as Sirius sprinted up the banked seating, torn between watching what was happening and getting into the arena as quickly as he could.
"Aaaaall the time," Bellatrix said, giving Harry another sharp kick, painfully forcing air out of his lungs. "Just like the time you took from me when you were an ickle baby. And don't think I don't know where this is. This is where Dumbledore left you. No one can even get here when they want to harm you, but people can be imperiused to have a look around. It should look better, shouldn't it? We need to make it looks right. The myth of Harry Slytherin-Potter was born here, and it'll die here. Reparo maxima."
Before the crowd's eyes, the debris all around soared back into place, leaving the property as perfect as it had been at the start of the fight.
"That's better, isn't it?" Bellatrix said with a tone creepily reminiscent of Hermione, "Now, for the pain you caused me. Crucio. "
He barely had the strength to look back up at her as agonising pain shot through every inch of him like someone had reached into his soul and was tearing it apart from the inside. He convulsed and fell onto his side before she dropped the spell, his body still faintly twitching, He could barely move. In the viewing area, Sirius ran at Moody and the other Aurors, but with tears running down her face, Tonks could do nothing but raise her wand to stop him and tell him that until Dumbledore spoke she couldn't let him pass. He spun on the spot to face the old man.
"Nearly done now Potty," she said, like a husband encouraging his wife in the last stages of labour, "Then I'm coming for Sirius. He's such a pain in the bum, even was when we were little. I'm gonna kill you and then I'm gonna kill him and then I'm gonna get away scot-free! How wonderful."
She let out a little giggle and then, " Crucio. "
She held on a little longer this time, tilting her head back as Harry could do nothing but scream himself almost hoarse, his bones feeling like they were on fire. She pushed her boot into his shoulder and with a hard shove she rolled him onto his back.
"Oooh, that's pretty," she cooed, reaching down and pulling the Lily from his neck with a sharp snap, slapping Harry's dazed hand out of the way before standing up to examine it.
"Aww, it's a Lily," she teased, "Is that for your mummy? Goblin silver, very nice, it'll make a lovely souvenir. Don't worry, I won't use Crucio on you any more. I do love it though, sends tickles to all the best places. When I did it to Mister and Missus Longbottom was the best, I came right there and then."
She stepped around him a little more, biting her lip.
"Oh go on then, one more. Crucio."
All thought left Harry as the crowd looked on in horror. Albus had tears in his eyes and with him being unable to open the door for Harry's Second just yet, Sirius was on his knees. Ellanore still had her face buried in Cyrus' chest. He looked on with an open mouth, not believing what happening. Remus was bawling, torn between not bearing to look and showing the respect of watching Lily and James' son meet his untimely end.
There was almost no Harry left, only sheer unrelenting agony as he twitched and jerked, his joints seizing as he involuntarily rolled back over onto his stomach. When she released it, he was in a daze. He could barely think. He could barely move. He grasped blindly for his wand, but realised it was a good metre away. He had no chance. This was it. If she cast it on him again… no… he couldn't take another curse. He could almost beg her to end him already. No. He could never do that. He had to fight, somehow. Limbs shaking, he just about managed to get onto his hands and knees.
Bellatrix rested on her ankles right next to him, stroking the hair from his face as if he were her own child, "Yes Harry, it's nearly over. And you know what? After today, after I'm done with Sirius, I'm gonna go hunting. Greengrass hunting."
Harry's mind stilled at the name Greengrass. Who or what was a Greengrass?
"Oh yes," she cooed. "After this, I'm going to find sweet Daphne. Sweet, beautiful Daphne, and then I'm going to do her exactly what I did to Neville's mummy and daddy. She won't remember you, or even anyone."
Daphne? Daphne. Her face flashed over and over through his mind. That first day in the library. Saving Astoria in the hospital wing. The party. How she'd held him after Remus had given the memory of his wedding. Their first time together. The look on her face when she'd asked him to marry her.
She leaned forward and whispered into his ear, "And you know what? You won't be here to do a-ny-thing about it."
The fire blazing from the Slytherin pendant around his burned with a fury that, if Harry were conscious enough, he would've sworn it would leave a mark. A sudden moment of strength burst into him and, twisting, he grabbed Bellatrix by the scruff of her dress, found purchase with his feet and kicked off hard, tackling her to the ground and onto her back. She gasped as he ripped her wand out of her hand, and with a great effort, he pulled her just over three feet to the doorstep of Number Four. Straddling and pinning her, her arms clawed at him as he took hold of her head. All he could do was scream the only words ringing through his mind, and with every word, he brought her skull down with a sickening crack on the corner of the doorstep of Number Four, Privet Drive.
"NO. ONE. EVER. GETS. TO. HURT. THE. ONES. I. LOVE!"
Bellatrix lay unmoving. Her arms slack by her sides as her crimson blood spilled out from the back of her head, spreading out across the pavement and saturating the front lawn.
Sensing it was over, Harry rolled off her, and then everything went black.