James heard the front door of Grimmauld creak open and almost passed out in relief. Draco had been gone for far longer than they agreed upon, and while he tried to be optimistic that maybe it was a good sign Draco was being slow, and that meant that he'd gotten access to the vault, the sinking feeling that they sent Draco off to his death couldn't be shaken. Therefore, the door opening was such a sweet sound.
"Draco! Are you trying to kill us? I was this close -" He froze. That was Harry. Harry was here. At Grimmauld. "Harry," he said dumbly.
"Dad?" Well, at least Harry seemed as surprised as he was, but James recoiled internally at the use of that title. He didn't deserve it. Should he use James? Harry probably wouldn't be comfortable with that, would he?
"Call me Prongs." He stepped forward, arms open and then froze, realising Harry might not want to hug him. That was a bit much for people who were practically strangers. "I - uh - welcome," he said with a smile.
Other people had come with Harry, and they started talking and moving about while Regulus appeared from behind him, but all that was in the background. Harry was here.
"Thanks," Harry said, then stepped forward and froze, too, looking uncertain. Why was this so awkward? James decided to just go for what he wanted and strode up, advertising what he was aiming for, giving Harry plenty of time to dodge, and embraced him. It felt so damn good.
When they'd first met at the manor weeks ago, James hadn't been able to control the stream of words that tumbled out his mouth and had launched into question after question, distracting himself not only from the danger they were in but also the strangeness of the situation. He was the spirit of Harry's dead father locked in time, who couldn't do anything other than talk, but now he was a real person again. A real person who could hug Harry and it was amazing.
Harry tightened his grip before he pulled back slightly. "Is this real?" James grinned, and Harry turned to Draco and asked, "You figured it out?"
"Draco is a bloody genius," James said proudly, flashing Draco a grin.
Draco looked annoyed by the brag, but Harry said sincerely, "Yeah, he is."
James felt even warmer. How could Draco ever think that Harry didn't like him? It was written all over his face. Even if he didn't know Harry very well, he knew that look. It was one he wore far too often when looking at Regulus.
"But how is this possible?" Granger asked, and James finally realised Draco had dragged her and the Weasley kid with him. Ron? "You're both…"
"Dead? Not anymore," Regulus said, and James quietly snorted, "Not to be rude, but I think there is a better time to tell that story." He turned to James. "They got the horcrux at Gringott's, the Dark Lord knows, and it's time to destroy them."
"Finally," James said with a grin. He was done with staring at the dusty walls of the house, and when the girl said that they had a way to destroy them at Hogwarts too, he said, "Good enough for me," and clapped Harry on the shoulder. When Harry didn't pull away from the touch and if anything seemed to lean into it, James gripped his shoulder and tugged him upstairs to the cabinet.
"How did you get into Gringott's? Did Draco's plan to get the vault work?"
"No?" Harry said uncertainly and launched into the story about how Hermoine had pretended to be Bellatrix, broke in and then rode a dragon. It was absolute nonsense, and James wished terribly that he had been there for it. He savoured every word and expression Harry made. This wasn't a proper reunion as he imagined, talking late into the night and possibly introducing Harry to Firewhiskey as his father had done for him, but it was something. He was going to enjoy this before they all got distracted again.
They took a brief moment to gather themselves in front of the Vanishing Cabinet, and then Draco readied it. James pulled back, letting Draco take the lead and watched Regulus. He wore a neutral face, but James knew he must be freaking out. Since he'd gotten his body back, he'd been obsessed with preparing for any scenario, learning a whole new slew of spells, anticipating this very moment. Even though his face didn't betray him, James knew that he was doubting his preparations all the same.
Draco stepped into the cabinet, and as the others stepped in after him, James leaned over and squeezed Regulus's hand before he could follow them. "Welcome back to the wizarding world," he whispered.
"Welcome back," Regulus whispered back with a small smile, and they stepped in.
By the time they exited on the other side, fittingly, Draco was already arguing. Both he and Regulus kept quiet, letting the rest figure all this mess with the other students. They clearly needed the room emptied to get the diadem, but Draco was taking care of that.
A plan started to form; Harry would go to the staff to evacuate the school. Draco, Regulus and James would get the diadem, and then whoever could go for the sword after would. Simple enough.
Then, of course, when it was just the three of them in the Room of Requirement with the diadem, Regulus made them act responsibly and go over plans again. The goal was to get Harry the ring and keep Draco alive. Again, simple. His stomach twisted at Regulus's demand to get close to the Dark Lord when needed. James rebutted with his own demand. If Regulus was going to be allowed to walk to his death to kill the Dark Lord, James was too.
"But if we need to surprise the Dark Lord, let me do it. I can almost guarantee he'll freeze seeing another Potter live a killing curse." Regulus agreed quickly, which was even more distressing and indicated how dire it was.
But despite the weight of it all, as he waited for Harry to return, James was excited. Most of the horcruxes were conveniently in Hogwarts, and considering Nagini was going to be arriving shortly, this was their chance to end this war. After years of fighting in the first war and now months of not being able to contribute anything real, James was finally doing something meaningful.
He watched Draco and Regulus while they waited for Harry, but his excitement would likely not be well received by either. Draco was so stressed that he looked like if James tried to say anything, he'd get his head bit off. Regulus was too absorbed in his thoughts to pay anyone mind, so James waited quietly and impatiently until Harry returned with a crowd of students behind him.
The girl, Hermione, explained with a grimace, "They need to use Grimmauld to evacuate."
Draco scowled and said, "I can't make any promises about the house not killing anyone." James thought Kreacher was probably the bigger risk to students' health but let Regulus and Hermoine deal with the details.
As James watched the students gather nearby, he realised that he wanted to help beyond just the horcruxes. If a battle was incoming, James was going to be a part of it, aiding the castle however he could. Hogwarts had been his home, just as it was to so many of these students, and it was wrong for that home to be endangered. James had to help, and Regulus, bless him, must have seen that written all across his face.
After sending Hermione and Ron to help the students, Regulus asked Harry, "How long do we have?"
Harry shrugged. "I keep getting flashes; he knows the ring is gone, and he's moving fast."
Regulus considered. "James and I will stay here too. You two get the sword, make sure it works for what we need."
Harry and Draco agreed readily and sprinted off together. James tried to ignore the anxiety their absence brought him and thanked Regulus for letting him stay.
Regulus gave the barest hint of a smile before he went to help the first set of students through and, hopefully, tell Kreacher to keep to himself or, better yet, leave for the next few hours. He chatted with students as they traversed through the cabinet, even cracking a joke here and there, and things seemed to be going smoothly until Regulus reappeared and towed James backwards.
"What are you doing?" James hissed, but Regulus pulled harder, making him duck behind a bed.
"I'm not ready," he said panicked. James looked around and saw people coming into the castle, and most notably, he saw his best friends, Sirius trailed by Remus. He instinctively tried to stand, wanting to get closer, but Regulus yanked him down. "I don't want him to see me."
So this was about Sirius. After Sirius and he had learned of Regulus's death for the first time, they'd both been beyond distraught for weeks. Sirius was particularly useless and depressed, but of course, Regulus hadn't been there to see how much he meant to his brother. Regulus couldn't believe Sirius would always love his little brother. James glanced back at his friends, and his gut twisted as they disappeared behind the students and joined a growing group of other Order members. James wanted nothing more than to fight alongside his friends, but Regulus was more important right now. Regulus needed to keep a level head if they were going to succeed in killing Voldemort. Decided, James pulled up his hood, and Regulus gave him a questioning look.
"Might be a bit distracting when your dead best friend appears in a battle," he said, meeting Regulus's gaze. "Reunions after." James quickly shut down the thought that hiding their identities also meant that if they died again here, no one had any false hope.
"Reunions after," Regulus agreed, pulling his own cloak over his face.
James stood back up, hoping his cloak wasn't too creepy looking when movement opposite the flow of students caught his attention.
"Where are they sneaking off to?" he asked, nodding his head to where Hermione and Ron were trying to slip out of the room.
"I'll find out," Regulus said, watching them sneak. When he moved, James followed, but Regulus turned and said, "Stay. You can stay." Regulus's eyes darted to where Sirius had disappeared, and the Order was still gathering. Regulus knew James would want to stay with his friends.
"Thank you," James said again. "Be safe."
"I would tell you the same, but that's against your nature," Regulus said cheekily and disillusioned himself. James jolted. Of course, Regulus wanted to sneak and follow Ron and Hermione instead of simply asking where they were off to. He shook his head with a laugh, and as he turned back to the students, he realised he didn't have to worry about scaring kids with his pulled-up cloak since the flow of students turned to a trickle.
Feeling like he should do more than just lurk around the room, he decided to trail the group of Order members. He supposed it was lucky that everyone was too distracted by the events to question his appearance, but they should be more aware of their surroundings. Auror Moody would be appalled by the breach.
As they reached the corridor outside of the room, he found Professor McGonagall ushering the last of the students away with the aide of the other staff. She and Shackle-something, James could barely remember him from before, seemed to be in charge by the way they organised people. Harry's warning about Voldemort coming to the castle had been taken seriously, and they started to break off and prepare the castle's defences. Knowing he wouldn't be able to handle being near Sirius or Remus without revealing himself, James snuck behind Professor McGonagall as she started transfiguring statues. She was bloody amazing at it, making the transfiguration look effortless, and while James had no chance of outdoing her, it was his best subject. He let her handle the larger ones while he copied her movements on the smaller gargoyles.
It didn't take her long before she started to question the talented wizard at his side. At first, she stole some glances but didn't say anything, likely appreciative of the help. Eventually, though, she deliberately looked under his cloak's hood.
"Potter!" She shouted. "I thought you needed time! What are you doing?" Oh, she thought he was Harry.
"I, uh -" James blurted the first thing that came to his mind, "I will not transfigure anything or anyone without the expressed permission of Professor McGonagall." It came out as instinct; it was the lines she'd made him write in detention, although it never had any effect even though he'd probably spent days in total writing it.
She gaped at him. "James?"
"Hello, professor," James said sheepishly.
"How?" She blubbered.
"Let's catch up later, yeah?"
She shook her head, likely trying to rid it of bewilderment, and said. "Quite right."
She continued with the same fierceness, but James noticed the smile she wore as they continued their transfigurations. They were almost finished with their current row when a loud voice interrupted them.
"I know you are preparing to fight." They both jumped at the sound of the voice. "It is futile. You cannot fight me, and I do not wish to spill magical blood. Give me Harry Potter, and I will leave the school untouched."
James shivered involuntarily at the words.
"Give me Harry Potter, and you will be rewarded. You have until the top of the next hour."
McGonagall recovered quicker; he was still gaping like a dead fish. "Come, we need a plan," she ordered and headed back to the Great Hall.
He trailed behind her, but as much as he wanted to join the fight, Voldemort's message was a grim reminder the horcruxes were far more important.
Regulus should be proud of him, he thought a little bitterly and headed back towards the Room of Requirement, knowing Draco and Harry should have found the sword by now. He tried to get back there, but getting distracted was far too easy. People were casting charms here and there, and every humanoid statue he tried to transfigure. Eventually, he reached the room and nothing. After minutes, the only people he saw were two boys rushing to evacuate.
How long should he wait? He wasn't going to do nothing while the fate of the wizarding world was on the line. His mind was made up when the booms sounded. The battle had started, and he needed to find Harry.
The castle dissolved into chaos faster than he could have imagined. The sounds in the castle weren't that of just Death Eaters, but like creatures were invading the castle. In an alarmingly short amount of time, he ran into the conflict. He rounded a corner into a full fight between Order members and two death eaters, frantic spells and taunting included.
He saw what the Order members, two red-haired brothers, didn't. As the brothers goaded their opponents, they failed to appreciate the terrain they were on. Next to them was a wall with large stones practically asking to be exploded on top of them. James didn't have a clear line of sight to the other side, where the Death Eaters stood, so he grimaced, cast the strongest shield he could and yelled, "Watch it!"
The wall exploded a moment later, and even James, being metres away from the wall, was forced backwards. The shield shattered, but it had at least disintegrated many of the stones. The force still sent the two brothers sprawled on the ground.
James recovered quicker than they did. "Are you alright?" he said, running up.
"Harry?" one asked, dazed.
"I think you just saved my life," the other said, grimacing. James recognised that one. It was one of the best wizards of his time, a founder of Weasley Wizard's Wheezes.
"I would happily do it again. You are an inspiration," James said quickly, leaning down to help the man. Would it be weird to shake his hand?
"Who are you?" The twin asked, dazed and in pain from the blast but clearly realising he wasn't Harry.
"Just an admirer," James said and then grimaced, noticing the twin's leg that had been fully smashed by some stone that hadn't broken apart from James's shield. "Get him to the centre of the castle, he needs a healer," James said to the uninjured brother. He was in shock but listened and bent down to get an arm under his brother.
"Quick!" James said, noticing a different group of cloaked figures approaching. It took everything in him not to confront them. He needed to find Regulus and the others.
James prided himself on being able to handle chaos, but even this was testing his limits. He scanned a courtyard, where it seemed like the worst of the fighting was concentrated, for any sign of Harry, Draco, or Regulus, but it was hard to focus on any one thing. Giants stomped. Huge spiders scurried. When he swore he heard Bellatrix cackle, he began to search, panicked. Other than Voldemort himself, she might be the most dangerous one here.
Another sound distracted him before he found her. Sirius yelled and fell over, scrambling to regain his feet. Standing over him was one of the largest spiders and the pinchers he had narrowly avoided. Before James could react, Remus stepped forward and cursed the spider, causing its retreat. Sirius got to his feet unsteadily, and James flooded with relief.
Until he heard Bellatrix again. "I killed you!" she screamed from across the courtyard at Sirius. The two quickly rounded on her and dodged the curse she sent their way.
"Yeah, doesn't look like it stuck," Sirius yelled back, rolling out of the way of another curse. "Gives me another chance to try this." He started firing back savagely, with Remus acting as support. It was one of the most terrifying duels he'd seen. Both of his friends had gotten far more experienced since the first war.
They were a good match for Bellatrix. No one was able to establish an upper hand. And it would have stayed that way if that blasted spider hadn't returned. It made a swipe for Sirius again, which he dodged easily but he let out a frustrated shout. The noise startled Remus, and he looked to Sirius, momentarily distracted.
James cursed, starting to move around the courtyard, determined not to let his friends die here. Unfortunately, Bellatrix saw Remus give the same opening that James had seen.
James didn't hear her cast the curse, but a flash of green light barely missed Remus, going to the space between his neck and shoulder. Remus, incredibly unbothered by the near-death experience, responded by firing a stunner back at her, but she didn't even flinch as she blocked it.
That fueled something in James. He wasn't going to watch until his friends were overpowered or Bellatrix got in a lucky shot. He needed to distract Bellatrix without distracting Sirius.
He continued along the edge, trying to get behind her. A lone pillar that hadn't been toppled by one of the giants still stood nearby, so James sent a blasting spell, sending it tumbling towards her. It was a proper distraction, although it did little good since that damned spider snapped at Sirius again.
"Oh, little Siri, when will you learn?" Bella said, leaping over the rubble of the pillar. "You don't have what it takes." She cast an unfamiliar curse that Sirius wasn't able to fully block, and the maroon sparks hit his side.
James knew how the next few seconds would play out before they did. Sirius would cry out in pain, distracting Remus yet again. Remus was out of sight of Bellatrix but not of the spider. It was already in a crouch, waiting for a chance to lunge at Remus. And if James knew anything about Sirius, it was that he wasn't about to let Remus be killed right next to him, no matter how much pain he was in or how much he hated Bellatrix. Then Bellatrix, the woman who had already almost killed Sirius before, almost killed Draco weeks ago, would finally kill Sirius for good.
James stepped out from behind the stone he was ducking behind and yelled, "Avada Kedavra." Bellatrix didn't even get a chance to mutter another word as James's green light hit her squarely in the back. She dropped dead.
James stared at her body, a strange lull falling over him despite the ongoing frenzy of the battle. Then the guilt slammed in at how easy it was for him to cast that spell, but he refused to regret it. Bellatrix had been a curse on the world. Without Bellatrix as a distraction, Sirius and Remus finished off the spider and rushed over to him. James turned away from Bellatrix to find their shocked expressions. He cringed, realising his hood had fallen back, revealing his face.
"Thanks, Harry," Sirius said, clearly surprised to see "Harry" here. Remus looked at him far more carefully. James squirmed under the gaze but recognised the moment Remus knew the truth.
"James?" Remus asked, eyes wide.
"What?" Sirius asked, head snapping away from where Bellatrix was.
"Heya, Moony," James said sheepishly.
"Prongs?" Sirius said, equally as stunned. James nodded, unsure what to say. "How the -"
"Watch it!" Remus yelled. Apparently, the spider from earlier hadn't been as dealt with as they thought and made one last lunge for Sirius, gripping his arm between its pinchers and hauling him away. James transformed into his stag, using his antler to hook one of its legs as he went to kick it with a hoof. It gave Remus a chance to finally off it with a curse.
Breathing heavily, James transformed back, and Remus grabbed for Sirius, who was still just staring at James. They retreated further into the castle, letting other Order members fill the spot they had just been fighting.
"How bad is the bite?" Remus said, eying Sirius's bloody arm.
Sirius shook his head. "Just a scratch, I am far more interested in how James is here!"
"We need to move," James said, a little apologetic. He wasn't about to let them get distracted again on his behalf. Remus nodded, and they started further down a corridor. James was hoping for a rest before returning to the fight when Sirius stumbled.
Remus caught his arm and exclaimed, "Is that blood!?" James looked closer. Sirius's whole side where Bellatrix's curse landed looked wet.
"Oh, yeah," Sirius said dismissively, still stumbling forward.
James moved to help, but Remus turned his wand on him. "How do we know we can trust you?"
James spluttered. This Remus was terrifying, and he didn't doubt that this man would protect Sirius at any cost.
"He killed Bella. Good enough for me," Sirius said with a grunt, but Remus didn't lower his wand.
"It's really me," James said, hands raising, and said the first things that popped into his head. "I will not transfigure anything or anyone without the expressed permission of Professor McGonagall." She would be proud to have gotten in his head so much.
Remus relaxed slightly and let James approach. "We need to get him to Pomfrey," James said.
Sirius half-heartedly tried to shrug them off but immediately tripped while trying to do so and let Remus get a better grip on his arm.
"How is this possible?" Remus asked James.
"Can't you just be happy, Moony?" Sirius said, but James still gave the abridged version as they walked.
"Do you remember that ring I always wore? It saved my soul. Preserved it, I guess you could say. Draco found that ring and then shoved my soul back into my body."
Remus looked confused but held his questions after looking at Sirius and said instead, "So we are all in debt to Draco Malfoy."
"Yeah, we sure as hell are," James said.
"Lily?" Sirius asked, hopeful.
"Dead," James confirmed with a hard swallow.
When Sirius only responded with a grunt, they increased their pace to the makeshift infirmary. It was busy, with people heading in and out, with screams and grunts of pain. James was satisfied to see the twin that he'd helped earlier walking out with only a bit of a limp.
As they pulled Sirius to an empty table, James saw a cloaked figure dragging a protesting Harry away from them. Regulus.
James slipped away, hoping Remus would be fully invested in Sirius rather than tracking his movements.
"What's happened?" He asked when Regulus stopped and turned towards them. Harry turned with a grin, and when James noticed what he was holding, he said, "Nice sword."
"Are you okay?" Harry asked, staring at his forehead. James reached up and felt wetness. He didn't even know when he'd got hit.
"Oh yeah, just a scratch."
All the same, Regulus stepped forward and healed it. When he'd finished, he looked James right in the eye and said, "Only Nagini is left."
A thrill shot through him. They were getting close. "Do we have any idea where she is? I haven't seen any signs of her."
"She's with Voldemort," Harry said.
Regulus and him shared a glance. "Can you see where he is?"
Harry nodded and closed his eyes. After a moment, he announced, "She's still with him, but in some kind of shield. They seem to be headed to the Shrieking Shack."
James pondered that. It wasn't where he would have expected, but now they just needed a way to get Voldemort's guard down. The best way was to probably send one person to investigate, and he sure as hell wasn't going to encourage Regulus to do it. He was brought out of his thoughts when Regulus grabbed him roughly and spun him towards him.
"I sent Draco to the shack," he whispered directly into James's ear. He pulled back, and they shared a panicked glance.
"Mind if I borrow this?" James said, reaching for Harry's sword. Harry looked confused but relinquished it.
"You aren't going after the snake alone, are you?" Harry asked.
James looked to Regulus and saw the moment he decided not to protest. This was their deal. If Voldemort found Draco, he'd need a surprise to get him to break his concentration long enough to get Draco out. Besides, James was with a sword if all he could do was take the snake down with him.
"Don't worry," James told Harry, "I'm good with a sword." He threw it into the air, letting it spin, before catching the hilt smoothly to prove his point.
Before Harry could protest again, he turned and ran back into the fray. The battle was still chaos, but there were enough gaps for him to get through without having to engage. He tried not to think about Draco or what could be awaiting him at the shack and focused on moving.
When he got close to the Whomping Willow, James realised someone had lit the tree on fire. He barely broke his stride as he transformed into a stag, grabbed the sword with his mouth and sprinted for the shack, running as hard as he could.
The shack was finally close enough to see, and he caught sight of a tall figure walking away from it and towards the forest. He went a few more paces, then shifted back into a human, catching the sword.
He entered the main room of the shack, caring more about speed than stealth, and James froze seeing red, and it wasn't just because of Draco's blood. Nagini was partially coiled around Draco and was biting down on his upper arm. She lifted her head, fangs dripping with blood, body tensing for another strike. Before she could land her hit, he yelled, swinging the Sword of Gryffindor down on her neck.
The snake let out the eeriest sound, a mix of a hiss and a squeal, and exploded into black smoke. James recoiled from it momentarily until it cleared, and he saw how bad of a state Draco was in. He wasn't responsive.
James dropped to his knees, pulling out his wand and focusing on the grievous wound on his neck. He cast a healing spell, and it did nothing. He tried again, but nothing. Draco was struggling to breathe.
"Anapneo." His next breath was clearer, but the wound on his neck was still open.
Regulus had tried to prepare him for this. They'd spent hours after Draco went to bed practising spells, but all of that knowledge escaped him now. "Episky," he growled in frustration, knowing it wouldn't do much, but he had to do something.
Draco turned slightly to look at him, and James was struck by how pale he was. Tossing his wand to the side, he pressed his hands into the worst wound. Draco barely reacted, but he finally looked at James.
"Harry?"
"Hey, just stay with me," James said through the tears.
"Forever," Draco said, eyes closing.
James felt the moment Draco gave up; his features relaxed, and his body went still. His hand on his neck stopped moving. "Draco!" James shouted with no reaction.
He felt hopeless. The kid who saved his life, brought him back from the dead, wasn't breathing, his heart wasn't beating, and James couldn't do a thing about it. He stared, hands still pressed against Draco's wounds. He registered sounds from behind him but was too transfixed by what lay in front of him to pay it mind. He didn't move until someone body-slammed him.
"Move!" Regulus shouted, and he physically shoved James out of the way, taking his place at Draco's side. James blinked and rubbed the tears from his eyes, clearing his vision.
Regulus started casting a web of spells, but Draco was dead. He'd seen and felt his heart stop.
James pushed himself farther away, not taking his eyes off Regulus but suddenly feeling like he needed space. He bumped into Harry, who was standing frozen.
"Is he -" Harry asked, voice tight.
James nodded, but Regulus was going to save him. Regulus could do this. He could barely follow the spells Regulus was casting, but considering Regulus never stopped, it was a good sign. Regulus was a realist. Only when he stopped would James believe that Draco was beyond hope.
He let himself drift, detaching himself from the blood on his hands and Draco's body nearby. He knew Voldemort had made another sort of echoing announcement to the castle and grounds, but he couldn't recall the words. He didn't process anything until he had the sense that Regulus was calling his name. He looked at Regulus. He said something else, but James felt like he was underwater.
"Where is Nagini?" Regulus asked, and he looked worried.
"I killed it," James said, remembering how easily the sword cut through the neck. And then the smoke and then…
Regulus cursed and said something else, but Draco…
James shifted upright and looked at Draco, "Is he -"
"I am not letting him die," Regulus said, moving quickly.
"But he wasn't breathing," James said.
"Now he is," Regulus said, and sure enough, Draco's chest was glowing with some sort of magic and even better, it was rising and falling. James couldn't take his eyes off of it. "Help me move him," Regulus ordered.
"Why?" James said, feeling even slightly more like himself at the sight of Draco alive.
"Where do you think the first place Voldemort is going to look for his snake when she doesn't return?"
The shack. Where they currently were. Undefended. He scrambled to his feet. Regulus stood too but looked around.
"Where's Harry?"
James jolted and looked behind him, where Harry was last. "I don't know." James started to move. He needed to find Harry.
"Stop," Regulus shouted, "Help me move Draco, then find him."
James was happy to let Regulus order him about, so James levitated Draco while Regulus kept up his web of spells. They moved as fast as they could and remarkably didn't run into any trouble. When had the fighting stopped?
They got Draco inside the castle and onto the nearest table in the Great Hall. Regulus kept working as James tried not to think about how they'd brought Draco to where the other dead were gathered. He glanced around. At least the number of dead wasn't too high, but he avoided looking at any faces.
"Have you seen Snape?" Regulus asked suddenly.
"Snape?"
"Snivellus?"
"I - no."
"He is our best chance of stopping this bleeding. I can't get his spell right," Regulus said angrily, shifting his grip on his wand. James hovered, worried that if Regulus couldn't get the spell, he certainly wasn't. "I am not letting him die," Regulus hissed, frustrated tears forming.
"I'll look," James said, backing up. He needed to find Harry anyway.
James walked briskly, asking anyone he passed, uncaring for those who recognised him. No one had seen Harry anywhere, but luckily, it didn't take long to stumble upon Snape.
He was near the Great Hall, and James was embarrassed he didn't spot him sooner, although he was tucked away in the shadows. He looked miserable, with his eyes shut, head leaning against the stone. James got the sense that the man might have been crying.
"Fucking finally," James said and stalked right up to him.
Snape jerked, and his eyes flew open. To his credit, it didn't confuse him with Harry.
"Potter?" He asked, shocked and instantly started to raise his wand. With a flick, James disarmed him. "How -"
"Doesn't matter," James snapped, grabbing Snape by the front of the robes and hauling him to his feet. "Draco's dying. He needs you."
Snape's face made a confusing sequence of expressions, but he landed on a frown, asking, "What happened?"
"Nagini," James said simply and pushed him towards where Regulus was waiting. He didn't need any further push after that, and Snape glided up to where Draco lay.
"I need you to seal the wounds. I've removed most of the poison, but for some reason, I get them to seal," Regulus said and made room for Snape next to him.
Snape jerked backwards, hearing Regulus's voice, and hissed, "Black?"
Regulus pointed his wand at Snape threateningly. "Just help him."
Snape did. The wounds sealed themselves, but just barely. They were angry and red and looked like they would tear open at the subtlest movement. After a few seconds of watching Snape work and seemingly satisfied, Regulus fell in next to James.
"Where's Harry?" Regulus asked, eyes still not leaving Draco.
"I don't know," James said, knowing he should go back and look but utterly transfixed by Draco's bites finally getting healed.
"He went to do his duty," Snape said sadly, pausing his work.
"What are you talking about?" James growled. Dread filled him.
"The Dark Lord -" Snape started.
"Put a piece of his soul in Harry," Regulus finished coldly, finally looking up from Draco for the first time to glare at Snape.
"How -" Snape started, but James interrupted him.
"What did you tell him?"
Snape sighed and closed his eyes. "The truth. The Dark Lord can't be destroyed while he lives."
James slammed a fist into his skull. Snape recoiled, but before he could redirect his wand, James hit him again, and Snape fell to the ground, clutching his jaw. Rage filled James as he started to move on top of him, readying his next punch when Regulus yelled, "Stop! James, Stop!"
James jerked up to look at Regulus. "He has the ring," Regulus said in a rush, "I gave Harry the ring."