Chapter 43
The Battle of the Ministry
.
Forty-five minutes later, they stood at the guard desk in the visitor center.
"Where's the guard?"
"Better question, Gin, where's everyone else?"
Fred had a good point and Harry couldn't help but feel like they were all alone somehow. Harry had hoped to ask the guard if Sirius had been here already. If not, he'd wait for him here in the atrium. However, now not being sure if Sirius was already here; maybe already down in the Hall of Prophecy, or if he'd have another way in, Harry knew he had to go on. They went over the plan again as they made their way slowly to the lifts. Harry and Neville would lead the way while Hermione and Luna would follow close behind under his Invisibility Cloak. Fred, Ginny, and Seamus would stay back a ways, to cover their escape.
On the ride down to level eleven, it was just them. So far they hadn't seen another soul, not even the little notes flying overhead. The feeling was so oppressive and ominous it was all Harry could do to keep from turning back and one glance at Hermione told him she felt the same.
As the lift stopped, Harry spoke, "Look, I don't like this, you guys should go back."
"Only if you come with us," Fred said matter-of-factly.
Hermione moved and stood in front of him, "We've followed you this far Harry, we'll follow you back if you want, or we'll follow you on. The choice is yours, but our minds are made up."
It was true Seamus thought as he nodded in agreement with Hermione. Although he was scared, he wanted to do this. It was a way to help both Harry and Hermione and in a way, to redeem himself in his own eyes.
Harry stood there staring right back at Hermione. He never did believe her little speech about, 'Not wanting to die for you.' This was the Hermione he knew, the one he loved. Of course, she didn't want to die, but he knew she would sacrifice herself in a heartbeat if she felt she had to in order to keep him safe. He knew she would follow him through the gates of hell if he asked her to. That was what troubled him, he didn't want her too. He could turn back now and lead them and her to safety, but if Sirius really was here he'd be leaving him to die without even trying. He had hoped to find Sirius in the atrium, so he wouldn't have to go looking for him. Harry sighed, He really wasn't all that surprised that it wasn't going to be that easy.
They all stood there watching Harry, it was his move so they waited. Harry slowly looked at each of them in turn, "I can't go back till I know for sure."
"We know, Harry… we know," Luna said with a knowing smile.
"Okay… let's just please be careful and at the first sign of trouble, or that it might be a trap… we run and get to safety." Harry made sure they were all still listening, then went on, "According to my vision, Voldemort won't be here until one o'clock in the morning. That gives us a little more than an hour, assuming of course, that part is true. Ready?"
They were all nervous but each of them had their own reasons for wanting to help. So with a few nods, they started forward. "Oh, and thanks," Harry added quickly. While Hermione was still looking at him, Harry leaned down and whispered, "Please be careful, Hermione…"
She could see the fear in his eyes, not for himself but for her. Slowly she nodded okay, "You too." She whispered back before turning to follow the others.
As they made their way quietly down the hallway, Neville caught up with Harry. "Is this what it looked like in your dreams, Harry?"
"Yeah, pretty much," Harry said nodding his head. Then touching Neville's arm to get his attention, he said quietly, "Look, Neville, I know you'll be keeping an eye on Luna, just like I'll be watching out for Hermione, but if we should get separated will you try to keep her safe too."
Neville knew Harry was especially worried about Hermione and gave him a weak smile, "If I were half as good a wizard as you…"
"There's no one I'd trust more… please, just do what you can."
Neville seemed to take a second and then stood slightly taller and gave Harry a quick nod. He would do whatever he had to do. Harry gave him a small smile of thanks, but Neville knew he was still worried.
~oOoOo~
It had taken almost twenty minutes for the group to quietly make their way to the Hall of Prophecy. Along the way, they had passed through several strange rooms, full of even stranger things. At one point, they had found themselves in a circular room with several unmarked doors along its walls. Had it not been for Hermione's quick thinking, Harry was pretty sure he'd still be stuck there.
Pausing just outside the door that Harry recognized from his visions, as the door to the Hall of Prophecy, Harry motioned for everyone to gather around, "This is it, I don't know what we'll find on the other side, but through here is where I've seen them take Sirius. Fred, you, Ginny, and Seamus stay here and out of sight if possible, if we get into trouble you'll have to decide the best course of action." Hating the idea of his friends going up against Death Eaters, Harry closed his eyes for a second to control his emotions before continuing, "If you do end up in a fight, stick together and remember your training. Also, keep in mind that it might be better to just run for help."
Fred and Ginny shared a look that definitely said, 'No way'.
"Neville, you're with me. Hermione and Luna, you two will be under my Invisibility Cloak. I'll walk slowly and think out loud. If you want to ask or tell me something, just touch me and I'll stop. That way you can lean in close and whisper."
Luna and Hermione nodded okay and then Luna asked, "What if they catch onto us Harry?"
Hermione spoke before Harry could think of an answer, "If they catch on, one of us will slip out and the other will try to stay hidden."
Harry looked at Hermione, "Yeah…good, that might work."
Luna added while looking at Hermione, "You're better with a wand, so I think it should be me who comes out. I can probably hold my hand up and duck out without giving you away."
Hermione wanted to protest but could see the logic in Luna's plan and so reluctantly nodded okay.
"Right then," Harry said, then after taking a deep breath added, "we'll have a quick look for Sirius and if he's not here or if we get into trouble… we'll make a fast exit." Harry turned and stared at Hermione and while she stared back, he couldn't help but think maybe he should just turn around now and go back, back to where it was safe, 'After all, wasn't her life more important than Sirius's,' of course, he knew the answer. But he couldn't think about that, not now anyway. So, after what seemed far longer than a couple of seconds, Harry turned and opened the door while praying to whoever might listen, that he wasn't making the biggest mistake of his life.
Harry moved slowly to allow Luna and Hermione to keep up. The room sort of reminded him of a library, row after row of shelves as far as he could see. He kept moving forward with determination… searching for the one thing that would connect reality with his dreams. A short way in Harry stopped to examine the names and numbers on the shelves before continuing on. After about a minute of searching, he slowed and turned right down a new row. Harry's walk slowed to a crawl as he carefully examined the shelves before coming to a stop. Harry peered further down the row intently for a moment then quickly turned back, only to stare in the direction they'd just come. Not seeing anything, Harry turned back and took a couple of steps further before stopping once more and staring into the darkness.
Neville noticed the almost frantic way Harry was searching the area around them. He looked around too but found nothing out of the ordinary.
Hermione glanced at Luna and although she could hardly see her in the poor light, she could tell she was wondering the same thing. Reaching out, she gave Harry's arm a slight touch.
Harry stopped and looked around making sure they were alone, "What?" He whispered.
"What are you looking for?" came the reply out of thin air.
"Sirius… he should be here, he was down this row."
"Harry, they all look the same, how can you tell?"
"There's a small brass number on each end."
Between the low light, the cloak, and trying not to lose sight of Harry, Hermione hadn't noticed the numbering system.
Neville spoke next, "Maybe you should call out to him."
"Someone else might hear."
"Harry, look," then realizing that she was still under the cloak and Harry wouldn't be able to see what she was looking at, Hermione added quickly, "to your right, Harry, and up a little."
Up, on one of the higher shelves, was a glass sphere about 3 inches in diameter. The nameplate in front of it had the date it was made and the words;
.
S.P.T. to A.P.W.B.D.
Dark Lord
And
Harry Potter
.
Harry slowly reached up for it.
"Careful, Harry."
Harry could hear the trepidation in her voice, even as a whisper and he paused for just a second. A quick glance at Neville told him just how un-nerved his best mate was becoming with the current events. But they'd come this far and with no Sirius, Harry felt he should take it, less they come away completely empty-handed.
As he lifted the sphere, he noticed it felt unusually warm and it began to glow with a very pale light, revealing a swirling cloud inside.
~oOoOo~
Just outside the Hall hidden out of sight, Fred and the others watched in horror as Lucius Malfoy and five other Death Eaters pasted by and into the Hall of Prophecies. Ginny was holding onto Fred's arms so tight he had to bite his tongue to keep from yelling at her. Finally, once they had passed he took her hand and pried it off. "If you don't mind, I'll be needing this," referring to his half-numb arm.
"Sorry," she began weekly, "what are we going to do?"
Fred, worried for his little sister glanced at Seamus who seemed to understand instantly. Without speaking, he nodded, effectively giving his word that he'd watch out for her. Answering his sister, Fred said in his best big brother's voice, "You two are going to go back and try to find help… I'm following them."
As Fred started to get up, Ginny grabbed him once more, "Oh no, you're not leaving us here alone, we're going with you."
Seamus could only shrug. If Ginny wouldn't listen to Fred, then he knew she sure wasn't going to listen to him.
"Ginevra Molly Weasley," Fred tried again, but it was no use, she was already heading through the door with Seamus hot on her heels.
~oOoOo~
Back in the Hall of Prophecy, Harry and Neville stood staring at the small ball of glass.
"Harry, bring it with you, but let's go," whispered Hermione.
Harry nodded and glanced around once more.
It was Luna this time who leaned in and whispered, "Harry, I don't think he's here."
"Harry… I don't like this, if Sirius isn't here… then this…" Hermione started.
"Is a trap," Harry answered for her.
No sooner had Harry finished, than from somewhere in the dark, hidden in the shadows, someone started laughing. It started as only one but quickly grew into several. Then, they just stopped.
"Harry, let's go!" Hermione said as she pulled on his arm.
"Right… This way."
Just as they reached the intersection that led towards the exit, Lucius stepped out of the shadows directly in front of them blocking their escape. "Well, now... what seems to be your hurry, Mr. Potter?"
Harry stopped dead in its tracks, "Where is Sirius?"
"Really, Potter, you disappoint me… I would have thought that even you would have known your vision was a trick by now."
If there had been any doubt before, it was gone now. Harry and the rest now knew for sure, that Sirius wasn't here. It had been a trap all along and Harry had led his friends right into it. At first, Harry felt that all was lost until he noticed that Lucius was being very cautious, 'does he know I'm not alone?' Harry wondered, but his thoughts were interrupted when Lucius spoke again.
"Look, Potter... I'm sure neither one of us wants any trouble. I only want one thing and then you can go on your way." Lucius said with a smile that looked anything but sincere.
"Fine, what do you want?"
"It's simple really, give me the prophecy and I'll leave."
Harry looked down at the small ball of light, "Why should you care about a prophecy concerning me?"
Lucius, growing impatient said rather harshly, "It doesn't matter boy, I'll have it one way or another." Lucius calmed himself and after regaining his composure added, "I just thought I'd give you and your friends a chance to leave here alive."
Harry's eyes widened slightly and he mentally cursed himself. A moment later the air seemed to shimmer for second just to the right of Lucius, as a Death Eater removed his Disillusionment Charm. "Dolohov," Harry whispered. Then just as suddenly, two more appeared behind him, one was none other than Bellatrix Lestrange.
"Oh, I see you've already met some of my friends," Lucius laughed. "Honestly, Potter, did you really think I'd come alone?"
Fear was clawing at the edge of Harry's emotions, trying to gain a foot-hold. He had brought his friends here and now they were in serious trouble.
Hermione could almost sense Harry's worry, so as gently as she could she touched his arm and gave it a little squeeze. She wanted to remind him that he wasn't alone, hoping to help him focus. They needed him at his best now.
Her touch of reassurance was all he needed and Harry relaxed, if only by a small amount. His next concern was for Neville. Harry could see it in his eyes and knew Neville was on the verge of attacking Bellatrix. He could only hope that Neville would keep his patience a little while longer.
'So, tell your friends to show themselves. Oh yes, I know there are four of you." Lucius said in a condescending voice as he took a small step forward and held out his hand.
'They don't know about others,' Harry thought, 'and we're going to need to move fast.' Harry turned slightly and said, "It's okay, come out both of you… and put the cloak away." For a moment nothing happened, then realizing Harry must have a plan, both Luna and Hermione showed themselves.
From behind him, Harry heard Bellatrix laugh with a shrill high-pitched squeal that was almost a shriek, it wasn't hard to imagine just how insane she must have been. "Oh how precious, a Mudblood, and a baby Longbottom." Then while looking right at Neville she added in a sickly sweet voice, "How's mummy and daddy?"
Neville raised his wand and stepped towards her.
Hermione grabbed his arm and gave him a slight shake of her head as if to tell him, 'Not yet.' Neville stopped but his eyes never left Bellatrix's, his hatred for this woman knew no bounds and it was clearly evident.
"Now, now," Lucius started, "There'll be time enough to catch up later I'm sure, but for now let's just be civil, shall we."
While Lucius was talking, Harry caught Hermione's eye. He glanced at all the shelves and nodded very slightly down the row. Hermione knew right away what he meant and was ready. Harry turned back to Lucius, "How do I know you won't kill us anyway after you have this?" Harry asked as he slowly held out the prophecy as if intending to hand it over.
"Don't be silly boy, I'm only interested in the prophecy, not a bunch of school children," Lucius answered while staring at the small globe as he spoke. He almost had it and was about to take it when Harry suddenly snatched it back.
"I don't think so," Harry said before shouting, "NOW!" Then he quickly cast a Reductor at the shelves above Lucius, sending wood and glass crashing down on him. At the same time, Hermione spun around and blasted the shelves over Bellatrix. Neville and Luna caught on quickly and started firing hexes as well.
Harry grabbed Hermione's hand and shouted to the others, "Let's go!" And in the confusion that followed, the four of them were able to get past Lucius and Dolohov.
Running as fast as they could down the long row while firing spells over their shoulders, the four headed for the exit. All around them, the shelves were collapsing in a huge explosion with debris flying everywhere. Dust billowed up in their wake, helping to hide their escape. For a moment the Death Eaters were nowhere to be seen, then as they rounded a corner that led to the exit door, Dolohov and Bellatrix appeared out of the shadows right in front of them, again blocking their way.
Suddenly, the air was full of spellfire as flashes of different color lights lit the room. Spells were flying back and forth between the Death Eaters and Harry's group. Some deflected off hastily made shields, others missing their targets and destroying even more of the Hall. Lucius along with three other Death Eater Apparated in behind them and they were cut off again. Trapped in the middle of a crossfire, Harry and Hermione crouched down low, back to back, and fought back the best they could. Neville and Luna knelt down along the sides, out of Harry's and Hermione's line of fire, and cast their strongest shields, providing them with some protection. But, they all knew they wouldn't last long like this.
Then suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere right behind Bellatrix, a new group appeared and started firing spells at a surprised Bellatrix and Dolohov. Fred, Ginny, and Seamus had caught them off guard.
Bellatrix turned and Disapparated, but Dolohov in his arrogance turned to fight.
"Stupefy!" Yelled Ginny, and Dolohov went down.
Harry, Hermione, Luna, and Neville wasted no time and were soon heading out the door and into the short hallway beyond.
"Thanks… come on," Harry yelled to Ginny and the boys as they ran past, with Fred and Seamus providing covering fire.
Ginny didn't need to be told twice as all seven raced for the door while spells flew past them.
Remarkably, Harry and the rest had made it unscathed into the next room where they found it eerily quiet. Out of breath, Neville whispered, "Harry, why didn't they follow us?"
"And did you see Bellatrix Disapparate, she shouldn't have been able to do that," Hermione interjected, clearly worried that things weren't right.
Harry turned to face everyone, "They must have done something to the wards." Then after slowly looked around, he added, "They didn't follow us because I think they're probably trying to get in front of us again."
"An ambush?" Neville asked, then added quickly, "Harry, I can go ahead under the cloak and try to find them first."
Harry held his hand up, "No, I don't want to underestimate them again, besides they know about the cloak… no, we stay together."
"Harry is right," Hermione agreed, "we're stronger as a team."
Harry looked at Hermione and gave her a quick smile, "Any ideas?"
Hermione knew Harry appreciated her support and no matter what he thought of her, he still valued her opinion. "Right now… no… move quickly and cautiously. The only thing we know for sure is they'll be waiting for us ahead somewhere." Hermione's eyes never left Harry's as she spoke, she could tell just by looking at him he felt totally responsible for their predicament. She also knew, now was not the time to tell him he was wrong.
"Okay, we've trained for this…" Harry said, looking around at his friends, then quickly added, "and be careful." Harry then started to lead them towards the next room and hopefully closer to the lifts.
As they moved into the last room Luna cocked her head slightly and said slowly, "Something's not right."
Harry stopped and looked at her, he'd learn to trust her instincts, "What is it?"
"I'm sorry, I don't know… I just feel like something's wrong."
Harry gave her shoulder a squeeze letting her know it was okay, that he still appreciated the warning. After getting a small nod back, they started moving forward again, slowly.
This time there was no laughing, no warning. Only a flash of yellow light as a cutting curse hit Fred just below the hip. He whirled around in pain and went down. After their encounter in the Hall of Prophecy, the Death Eaters had learned the hard way that these mere students were far better at fighting than they thought possible. They knew they'd have to be more careful and stop toying with them.
"Down!" Harry shouted and began to return fire in the direction the spell had come from. While the others provided cover, Ginny helped Fred control the bleeding. Fortunately, the spell barely connected or he might have lost his leg. Once again spells were flying back and forth. This time however, most of the spells coming their way were quite dark and even included some unforgivibles. This time, they were fighting for their very lives.
They were out in the open and Harry knew they had to move. They needed to get behind some cover. While rapidly firing a series of low powered defensive spells to keep their attackers down, Harry ushered everyone behind an over-turned desk near the back wall. Catching his breath between shots, Harry told everyone, "Look, they're not going easy on us anymore, so we won't go easy either. We need to get mean. We need to take them out… permanently. So, use whatever you have to."
As Hermione listened, she caught sight of a Death Eater trying to move into a flanking position, but waited patiently. Finally, with a clear shot, she fired, "Diffindo!" The Death Eater cried out as he fell to the ground. He was out in the open and bleeding badly. Hermione was hoping someone would try and help him so she could try and get another one.
Several spells few in their direction, most off to one side, missing the desk. "They're not very accurate," Neville noticed.
"Yeah, I think maybe they're trying to push us to the right, towards that open hallway," Harry said as he pointed towards a long dark hallway.
"What do you suppose is down there?" Seamus asked.
"Death." Everyone turned to look at Luna for a second, "sorry," was all she added.
"Well, we can't stay here," Hermione added while looking around as another spell blasted off a chunk of the desk, reminding her of a similar situation from not too long ago.
"Is that what you felt before or something new?" Harry wanted to know as he searched Luna's eyes trying to understand. He needed to make a decision and fast.
"I think the same, but, Harry… whatever is down there will affect them as well as us, don't you think?"
Harry looked at Fred and glanced at his leg. Fred gave a small nod indicating he was alright for now. "Seamus, Ginny, help Fred, Neville, Luna cover them, Hermione, you're with me… we'll cover the rear." Even though no one said it, they were all glad Harry was calling the shots. This was life and death. And while most people would hesitate or panic, Harry seemed to rise to the occasion. This was when he was at his best. Fast, sharp, and focused.
Hermione would admit later just how scared she was, but at the same time, how proud she was of Harry. He was a natural leader and she had complete faith in him.
Under a barrage of covering fire, they hurried towards the hallway and out of the room.
Once a short way down the hallway the fighting stopped again. It wasn't the way they had come, but they didn't have much of a choice, so they quickly made their way towards the unknown. The hallway was more like a long tunnel with no light and was deadly silent. Even with her wand lit for light, Luna couldn't see more than a couple of feet ahead. It was almost as if the hallway was absorbing the light. The silence and the unnatural darkness only added to everyone's already high anxiety. Finally, after what seemed like they had run several hundred feet down the hallway, Neville and Luna both came to a sudden stop.
"What's wrong?" Harry asked slightly out of breath, he had switched with the Ginny to give her a break. He and Seamus had been practically carrying Fred the last part of the way.
Luna turned to Harry, "There's some kind of shield, it's blocking…"
"Harry, the floor…" Hermione started to yell. Suddenly, before she could finish, there was no floor and they were falling. Startled, Luna lost her concentration and her wand went out, plunging them all into total darkness.
Falling with no light and no sound… no feeling of anything, just falling. Ginny let out a frightened scream as the seven of them fell further into the abyss. Harry briefly thought back to the second task of the Triwizard Tournament and prayed there were safeguards here as well, to keep them all from falling to their death.
Although it felt far longer, the terrifying descent lasted only a few seconds. Out of the void, the dimly lit bottom appeared. It was rising rapidly to meet them, but before anyone could even scream, they all slowed to a stop, suspended just barely above the floor. Then as if an unknown force had cut the imaginary wires holding them up, they dropped the last few inches to the floor.
With a collective 'Hmpf' after they landed, the rattled group caught their breath. "Bloody hell, think I'll use the lift next time." Despite how unusual it was for Neville to swear, they all pretty much agreed with his sentiments.
The room they found themselves in was dimly lit by the walls that just seemed to radiate light on their own. Standing up, the group took in their surroundings. Harry couldn't help but voice his muse out loud, "What is it with wizards and dark mysterious rooms?" The room was circular and about a hundred feet in diameter with a floor that sloped downwards towards the center. Looking up, no ceiling could be seen, it was either too dark or too high, although Harry doubted there was one at all.
As Hermione looked around, she noticed the room resembled an arena. There were several rows of circular benches that ran all the way around and faced the middle of the room. Four aisles split the seating and ran from the back wall to the center where there was an elevated platform.
But the main item of interest was a large stone arch that stood right in the center of the room in the middle of the platform. Since there were no apparent exits along the walls, the group gradually made their way towards the center and the arch.
It seemed that Harry and Luna were not only curious but actually drawn towards the arch, like it was calling to them. The arch was about ten to twelve feet tall and maybe half again as wide. Shimmering across the face of the arch from one edge to the other was a luminous veil-like curtain that moved as if an imaginary wind was blowing across it.
"It's beautiful,"
Harry looked at Luna and nodded, "Yeah," then asked, "can you hear them?"
"Yes."
Hermione looked at Neville who shook his head slowly. She didn't like the effect the arch seemed to have on Harry, he seemed beguiled by it. Worried, she asked, "Hear what, Harry?"
"The voices."
"Harry, we don't hear anything," Fred said.
It was now obvious to Hermione that only Harry and Luna could hear the voices, "Harry, what are they saying?"
"I don't know, they're so... faint… I can't quite make them out," Harry said as he took another step closer to the arch, straining to hear. After a second, he glanced at the blond girl next to him, "Luna?"
She shook her head, "I can't hear clearly either, Harry. They're almost like a whisper."
Looking around, Hermione could see the worry on the other's faces, "Harry, I don't like this, there's no way out of here and you two seem… distracted."
That was all it took to snap Harry out of his trance. He stopped moving and straightened up while turning to the group, "Sorry, got a little caught up in…" but he didn't have time to finish, because, suddenly out of the darkness several smoke-like figures came flying at them. Harry looked around quickly for an exit, but there wasn't one, "Hurry! Get behind me," he yelled. The group got into a defensive stance behind him, wands drawn and ready to fight.
The figures weren't solid, they only seemed half there and looked as if made of smoke, so they presented no real target. Harry and Hermione both tried firing hexes at them but to no avail. The smoke-like figures swirled around them without actually attacking, as if only teasing them. Then all at once without warning, they dove into their formation. Harry ducked and raised a shield, but it didn't stop them and he was cloaked in darkness. Within only just a few seconds the swirling smoke stopped and the blinding darkness quickly faded allowing Harry to see once more. As Harry stood, Lucius materialized right in front of him. With the darkness lifted, Harry saw he was now alone.
Standing around the edges of the room were six Death Eaters, each holding one of Harry's friends' hostage, plus three more new arrivals who were standing by a door which wasn't there a moment ago. Bellatrix was holding Neville, but what really worried Harry was who had Hermione. Dolohov held her tight with one arm around her waist, and with the other, he held his wand to her neck. Judging by the look in Dolohov's eyes, Harry could only guess at what horrible things he was planning to do. Now he wished Ginny had used a more incapacitating spell on him. Up until the last fight, he and the rest had been using light spells, mostly stunners and such. They hadn't wanted to fight, only to get away. Well, he and the others were quick learners too and they weren't about to make that mistake again.
"So, did you really think a bunch of school kids stood any chance against us," Lucius said with a smirk in his usual condescending tone.
"Well, I see you needed to get reinforcements, and except for you and two of your crazy friends, the rest are obviously too scared to even show their faces." It was Harry turn to smirk, "Plus… I still have the prophecy now don't I." Harry stood tall, trying to look braver than he felt.
Turning serious, Lucius answered, "Yes, you do… for now. And you can keep it if you don't care if your friends die,"
"Don't give it to them, Harry," Neville managed before Bellatrix jabbed her wand in his throat and whispered, "Silencio." Causing Neville to fall quiet.
"They'll kill us anyway, Harry!" Hermione yelled and then yelped as Dolohov forcefully pushed his wand painfully into her neck.
Harry turned to her when he heard her cry out and something came over him upon seeing her in pain, a sort of rage. Harry forgot about his fear… they were hurting Hermione, his Hermione, and he wasn't going to let that happen.
Hermione saw the look in his eyes and she almost blushed because she knew it was for her. It also gave her the courage she needed to help him. Putting on a stern face of determination, she gave Harry an almost unperceivable nod which he returned the same way. Everyone always said they understood each other completely, even without words, and here they proved them right. Harry surveyed the others and saw that they too were ready and just waiting for a signal.
"Come, boy, I haven't got all night, give me the prophecy now or they die."
"Fine... you want it, you can have it."
Slightly surprised, Lucius stepped forward and reached out.
Harry took one last look at the small globe in his hand and then without warning, he tossed it up high into the air. It arced upward towards Lucius and as he had hoped, all eyes that were on them, were now on the small glass ball flying through the air.
The Death Eaters hadn't expected the kids to know any form of fighting, yet alone Muggle martial arts, so they were all badly caught off guard again, as each of them used some type of escape move to free themselves.
Hermione had grabbed Dolohov's thumb and was bending it back to pry his hand off of her. As she was spinning away she heard it snap. Not satisfied with that, she used her momentum as she turned to kick him in the head… Dolohov went down holding the side of his bleeding face with his one good hand, groaning in pain.
Dolohov started to scream a curse, but before he could retaliate, the little witch that he had so badly underestimated was now firing spells at him. "Shite," was about all he could manage to say before jumping out of the way.
Neville and Luna had turned towards each other after slipping free, and as Luna fired a cutting course at the Bellatrix, Neville yelled, "Confringo," at Luna's Death Eater, blasting his shoulder apart. Luna followed up with another cutting course to his wand hand and the badly injured Death Eater Disapparated away leaving Luna to join Neville in fending off Bellatrix.
Lucius was ignoring everything and was completely focused on the globe, his master had made it painfully clear how important it was.
Harry watched as the globe began its slow-motion like descent towards Lucius. With his wand tracking it as it fell, he waited until the last second and then yelled, "Reducto!" A blinding flash and the prophecy exploded into a million pieces of glass, right before Lucius could wrap his eager fingers around it and ensuring that the Dark Lord would never hear it. He never even saw Harry draw his wand and had only barely heard him yell the Reductor Curse… he was too concerned with catching his prize. Lucius's next surprise, was having to dive out of the way of Harry's second curse that he'd fired his way.
Lucius screamed in rage, he would kill the boy who had repeatedly caused him so much trouble. 'But first, a little pain,' he thought. "Crucio," his first curse came hard and fast. After that, all hell broke loose as the nine remaining Death Eaters traded spellfire with seven teenagers.
One of the newly arrived Death Eaters, who was barely holding his own, yelled to his partner, "Who the hell taught these damn kids to fight?" Unfortunately for him, Neville had heard him and took advantage of the distraction. A Reductor Course to the knee took him out of the fight and he fell to the floor gasping in pain. Neville smirked as he answered the bleeding Death Eater, "Harry Potter, that's who."
Neville and Luna were holding their own as they slowly made their way back to Hermione. "You okay?" Neville asked.
"Yeah, you two?"
"We're good," Luna answered.
Neville looked around then quickly added, "Three more showed up, they were by the door, guarding it I think. I got one, but the other; a witch I think, managed to slip away."
Hermione nodded, "I saw you take him down." Seeing him grimace, Hermione added, "It was the right way to handle it, Neville." She figured Neville was second-guessing himself on his choice of spell and she wanted to reassure him. Seeing his relieved look, she continued, "Come on, we need to get to Harry."
Fred with his bad leg wasn't doing too well. He was holding his own and adding a lot of confusion to the battle for the Death Eaters with a variety of strange spells, but wasn't mobile enough to really do a lot of damage. Ginny noticed a Death Eater trying to get behind her brother and quickly fired a Tripping Jinx and then followed up with a Bludgeoning Curse, leaving him with several broken bones, before heading in Fred's direction. Ginny and Seamus had just made it to him when Ginny was hit from behind with the Cruciatus Curse. She screamed in pain as she fell to the floor convulsing.
An outraged Seamus managed to hit the Death Eater that was cursing Ginny with a severing charm that cut his arm off at the elbow. As soon as he'd seen Ginny cursed, Seamus knew exactly what Harry had meant about getting mean and now he was more than mad enough for it. The injured Death Eater had managed to Disapparate away, but Seamus didn't think he'd be coming back any time soon. Being left alone for now, Seamus slid over to Ginny and pulled the shaking girl into his arms and tried to comfort her. Fred gave him a grateful smile before turning back to the action. Although he couldn't move much, he could cast spells at any Death Eater stupid enough to get within range.
Halfway to Harry, Luna jumped in front of a pair of curses meant for Neville and screamed in pain as she fell to the floor. She had been hit with a strange type of cutting curse and a Bludgeoning Curse at nearly the same time and was now lying on the ground helpless, just trying to stay conscious.
"Diffindo," Hermione yelled at one of their attackers, just barely clipping his leg as he dove behind a bench. Neville, seeing the other was Bellatrix, screamed in rage and fired a Blasting Curse at her, only to miss and blow apart a large section of bench sending debris everywhere. Neville wanted another shot, but by the time the dust had settled, Bellatrix was gone again. Out of danger for the moment, Hermione dropped down next to Luna and started tending to her wounds while Neville gave them cover. When she had finished healing the worst of Luna's injuries, Hermione grabbed Luna under her arms and started dragging her back towards Fred's group. While Neville shielded, Fred and Seamus fired a barrage of spells over their head allowing them to reach Fred and the others relatively safely. While taking a moment to catch her breath, Hermione desperately looked for Harry.
What she saw once she found him, she almost couldn't believe. Hermione and Neville both watched in shock and amazement as Harry dueled not only Lucius but a second Death Eater as well. When a third Death Eater Apparated in behind Harry and raised her wand to his back, Hermione saw red, or as Neville would say later, pink. The despicable witch in question was none other than Dolores Umbridge. They'd find out later, that Voldemort had used her and her knowledge of the Ministry again, to not only gain entry, but to alter the wards and to steal some highly classified documents.
Knowing the vile witch was more than capable of using an Unforgivable on Harry, Hermione reacted quickly and with a vengeance. "Diffindo!" Hermione cried out, and Dolores lost her wand arm from just above the elbow. Hermione waited for the stunned witch to turn and recognize who had just cursed her before casting again. "Deprimo!" Hermione roared, and as her second curse also landed true, she spat, "Take that, you bitch." Dolores, eyes wide with shock fell to the floor dead with an eight-inch hole in her chest. Dolores Umbridge would never torture anyone again.
Hermione dropped back down next to Neville and started to shake as the reality of what she had just done took hold. She had just killed a woman, and she had meant too.
Neville grabbed her and gave her a little shake and reminded her, of her recent advice, "Hermione… remember? You did the right thing. We both know she probably would have killed Harry if you hadn't acted."
Hearing Harry's name brought her focus back to the fight, it wasn't over yet. With a nod, she returned to the action.
Fred, Ginny, and Luna were all effectively out of the fight. Ginny was suffering from the aftereffects of the Cruciatus and Luna was struggling against the pain of a couple of nasty cuts and more. Fred's leg had begun bleeding again and it was al he could do to protect the two girls. It was five against four now, but those odds would change again soon.
Bellatrix and Dolohov Apparated in behind Neville, Seamus, and Hermione and caught them in a crossfire with the fifth Death Eater. Once again they were fighting for their lives. Meanwhile, Macnair, new to the fight, Apparated in and removed his mask and smiled as he joined Lucius and the other Death Eater. Together they were slowly backing Harry up against a wall. It wouldn't be long before he'd be in trouble.
Hermione was desperate to get to Harry, but Bellatrix and Dolohov were two of the better fighters on the Death Eater side, so she knew she couldn't leave Neville and Seamus alone to fight them by themselves. As it was, they were barely holding their own.
Harry was worried… they were losing and his friends were hurt. Luckily, just as Harry bumped up against the wall, the room seemed to fill with light as Order members started to appear. Kingsley, Moody, Remus, Tonks, and Sirius had all Apparated in at the same time.
Now with the tables turned, the Death Eaters were in retreat and it didn't take long for them to start to Disapparate away.
With Bellatrix, Dolohov, and the other Death Eater now being attacked by Moody, Tonks, and Remus, Hermione was finally free to make her way towards Harry and she slowly started to move in his direction. Neville looked at Seamus who was obviously hurt but still able to fight. He had wanted to stay with his girlfriend but knew it should be Seamus who stayed behind. Neville knew he was a better fighter of the two and could move a lot faster than Seamus currently and so wouldn't slow Hermione down. Neville grabbed Seamus by the arm, "Stay with them… and keep Luna safe." Seamus knelt down next to her with his wand at the ready as Neville bent down and gave Luna a quick kiss, "I'll be right back love. Seamus will look after you till then."
Even though she was in pain, Luna smiled, "I know. It's okay…go, keep your promise."
Neville hastily caught up with Hermione and fell in step behind her. So far he'd been able to keep his promise to Harry and had blocked two different spells directed straight at her. Of course, he was sure she had probably done the same for him. As they neared Harry, they crouched low and got ready to join the fight. Neville took a quick look over his shoulder at Bellatrix and for a moment was tempted to go back. He so wanted to hurt the witch who had caused his family so much pain, but he wasn't about to leave Hermione yet.
"Well, Lucius, you never could fight fair... now watch as my godson and I kick your arse." With the third Death Eater out of the fight, Harry couldn't help the smirk that formed on his face as he and Sirius took on Lucius and Macnair.
As Hermione made her way closer to Harry, she was both proud to know him and amazed by his abilities as she watched him. He was confident, fast, and powerful. She was maneuvering herself and Neville into a position where they could catch Lucius and Macnair in the middle of a crossfire with Harry and Sirius. But then almost as quickly as it had started, it seemed it was over. Lucius, Bellatrix, Dolohov, Macnair, and one other Death Eater Disapparated away.
Harry walked in a tight circle and looked around, surveying the situation. Tonks and Remus were checking on Fred and Ginny. Kingsley and Seamus were helping Luna to stand while Neville made his way back to her. Moody was identifying an unconscious Death Eater, who turned out to be Rookwood. To Harry's right stood a smiling Sirius by the arch, and to his left, Hermione. She was slowly walking towards him. Although she wore a smile on her face, Harry could still see the look of concern in her eyes.
After insuring Rookwood would no longer be any trouble to anyone, Moody stood up and from the other side of the room, called out, "Sirius, keep your guard up, it's not…"
Sirius had turned to listen to Moody but the last part was cut short by the sound of Apparition. Dolohov and Bellatrix had appeared on the opposite side of the room as Moody and together they both yelled, "Avada Kedavra," before Disapparating again. Two bright green rays of death shot out towards their targets, Sirius, and Hermione.
Hermione had her back to the attackers and thought it was only some more Order members arriving to help clean up, she would never see what hit her. Sirius had been facing Moody and started to turn around when he heard the sound of Apparition. But, he wouldn't be fast enough to see the spell coming in time to dodge it. Harry had only an instant to decide who to save and who would need a miracle. He was already diving towards her before he even finished the thought.
It had all happened so fast, Hermione was almost to Harry when suddenly he came flying at her, arms outstretched and panic in his eyes. She froze just before he tackled her to the ground. A split-second later she saw the green light pass mere inches overhead. Then Hermione noticed the second spell streaking towards its victim.
He'd made it, he had beat the spell. He had landed on top of Hermione rather ungracefully, but she was safe and alive. Harry lifted up to double-check that she was alright but when he saw her face a cold chill rippled through him. There was a look of utter horror on her face and her eyes were starting to tear up. But what scared Harry the most was the fact that she wasn't looking at him, she was looking over his shoulder back to where Sirius once stood and even before he turned… Harry knew.
Sirius was already falling backwards but was looking straight at Harry. As their eyes locked, Harry saw the sorrow in his godfather's eyes as he disappeared from sight.
Harry let out a bloodcurdling scream, "NOOOO!" Not far away Bellatrix could be heard giggling like a little girl who just spilled her milk. She had reappeared again in what was becoming a sick game of cat and mouse. Harry turned in time to see her smile and dash through the door that had appeared along in the wall. Never before in all his life, had Harry felt such anger and hate. All he wanted to do was hurt her and cause her as much pain as possible. He wanted her to feel what he felt.
Harry tried to stand but Hermione held him tight, "No, Harry, don't." Hermione could see the fury in his eyes and she knew it would make him reckless. She held onto him with all her might but it was no use, he was far stronger than her.
Neville's group, mindful of their injuries were slowly walking over to join Harry and Hermione. They were almost there when Lucius and another Death Eater Apparated back in, forcing Neville and the others to drop back down for cover momentarily.
At the same time, an angry Harry had broken free from Hermione and was giving chase to Bellatrix. As Harry raced up the aisle towards the door, an unknown Death Eater stepped in and stood between Harry and the door blocking his way.
Seeing Harry heading right for him, the Death Eater smiled and fired a curse at Harry. With barely a thought, Harry effortlessly blocked it then returned fire, "Protego, Reducto." The power of the second spell was greatly amplified by his raw emotions and the Death Eater was literally blown to pieces. There was nothing left, at least nothing more than a splattered red mess on the floor and wall behind were the Death Eater had stood.
Neville's group had finally reached Hermione but had to take cover with her again as the fighting resumed. With Harry off seemingly on a rampage to avenge Sirius, everyone turned to Hermione, their unofficial second in command.
Amazed by what he'd just seen, Fred said, "Did you see that?" He could hardly believe his eyes.
"Oh yeah," was all Luna could say.
Ginny and Hermione nodded their heads in agreement.
Neville was actually shaking a little as he said, "He just… I mean… he went right through that guy like he wasn't even there."
Seamus nodded his head, "He was there all right… bloody hell, Harry just blew him apart."
"Merlin, Hermione, when did Harry get so powerful?"
Hermione's head snapped around, "Sirius!" She yelled, while staring at him like he was a ghost."
Concerned, Sirius crouched down next to the young girl he thought of like a daughter. Putting a hand on her arm, he said gently, "It's okay Hermione, it's okay… you're okay." Mistakenly thinking she was in shock or something.
"I saw you fall into the vail…"
"Idiot, let his guard down," Tonks smirked as she approached. With a reproachful glare at Sirius, she added, "Next time, I might just let you fall through."
While still looking at Hermione, Sirius ticked his head towards his cousin, "Summoned me towards her at the last second and the spell missed." Sirius gave a dramatic sigh, "Suppose I'll never hear the end of it."
Finally understanding what had actually happened, Hermione turned and faced Sirius, "Harry thought you were dead. He doesn't know, Sirius, and he's gone off chasing after Bellatrix, alone. He's going to need help, are there any Order members out there?"
"Shite, I don't know." Sirius turned and had a quick conversation with Tonks. While he was doing that, Neville asked, "Now what?"
Hermione glanced around the room and noticed something odd, "Lucius and his gang are badly outnumbered, so why are they still here…" Hermione's eyes widen, "They're a diversion. Come on, we have to hurry. Sirius, you coming?"
Keeping low, the six plus Sirius and Tonks made their way out of the chamber to try and follow Harry. "I hope we catch him in time," Hermione worried aloud, she just knew Harry would be alone as he chased after Bellatrix as all of the Order members had their hands full dealing with the Death Eaters that had returned.
"Hermione, slow down, we have to be careful, plus some of us are hurt."
Hermione stopped and looked at Ginny, then surveyed the situation. Fred was barely keeping up and his leg had started bleeding yet once again. Luna's cuts were still closed, but by the look of pain on her face as she tried to breathe she probably had a cracked rib or two. Ginny was bruised and battered and still quite shaky from the Cruciatus Curse she had endured earlier. Even Seamus looked pretty beat-up now. It seemed only she and Neville were still in any shape to put up a good fight.
"I… I'm so sorry… I wasn't thinking…"
Ginny cut her off, "Yeah you were, you were thinking of Harry and it's okay," she finished with a shaky smile.
"Okay, you four stay here and catch your breath, then slowly try and make it to the atrium to get more help. Neville, stay with them in case they're discovered." Hermione turned to go but a hand on her arm stopped her.
"I'm staying with you… I made a promise."
Hermione knew by the look of determination in his eyes he'd never take no for an answer. She also knew what and to whom he had promised. A quick look at the others and a nod from Fred and Seamus told her they would be all right. Hermione then glanced at Luna wondering how she was doing with this and found her nodding as well.
"Fine, don't slow me down," and she was off.
Sirius quirked a brow and smiled, seemed like the old Hermione was back. Pointing to the other, he said to Tonks, "Stay with this lot, I'll go with them. Catch up when you can."
~oOoOo~
Harry had finally caught up with Bellatrix in the atrium of the Ministry. She was only half running, kind of like skipping as she laughingly sang in a singsong voice, "I killed Sirius Black..."
Renewed rage flared again in Harry, he'd just lost his godfather to this psychotic witch and she was laughing about it, but more importantly, she was responsible for it. Not bothering to offer her a chance to defend herself, Harry yelled, "Crucio," while his wand was pointed straight at Bella's back. Bellatrix let out a short cry of pain and fell to the floor trembling as her wand rolled away out of reach. Harry tried to hold the curse but oddly enough, he found he couldn't.
Bellatrix Lestrange rolled over and stared up at Harry, and for the first time realized his potential. He stood there towering over her with his wand pointed at her heart. It wasn't the hate in his eyes that gave her pause, but the power. He was going to kill her, she was sure of it. Then he seemed to reconsider.
For a moment, Harry noticed fear in her eyes and then a second later it was gone.
"Poor little, Potter, so easily fooled. Much more easily than that old fool Dumbledore you look up to…" She cackled.
"You couldn't beat him on your best day," Harry snapped.
"No, maybe not, but it was rather simple for My Lord to do it… You'll see," she bragged, still confident that her master's plan would work out.
"What are you on about?"
Laughing almost hysterically, she teased, "Him and your Mudblood whore… and a fake prophecy of course," she smirked before finishing, "they'd do anything to save their precious little Harry Potter."
Hermione, Neville, and Sirius had just exited the lift near the entrance to the atrium and stopped. There in front of them, halfway to the floo was Harry, standing over a disarmed Bellatrix with his wand pointed at her and so far it looked as if they were alone. They were talking, or more accurately, they were taunting each other. That's when Hermione heard her telling Harry about fooling Dumbledore and that the prophecy was a fake. Her eyes filled with tears as her fears were realized. The wise old headmaster had been tricked, fooled. It had all been for nothing, and everything she had done was for naught. She'd lost Harry because of a lie. She'd lost Harry… lost everything. Why had she listened to the Headmaster in the first place, she knew better… didn't she? There it was again, every time she questioned her actions regarding Harry she lose her train of thought, why…
Neville had heard the same thing but at the moment didn't understand. Hermione was slowly sinking to her knees as she broke out in quiet sobs. Neville stared down at her for a second and then it came to him. Suddenly he knew why his best friend had been acting so out of character. He knew why she had asked Seamus to fake sleeping with her. Why she had tolerated all the abuse. Dumbledore and some fake prophecy had convinced her it was all necessary… necessary to save Harry.
Neville knew Hermione loved Harry and as he watched her cry, he now fully realized just how much.
Seeing Harry had Bellatrix under control, Sirius turned to Neville and nodded to Hermione. Neville just shook his head. Not knowing what to say or what to do, Sirius knelt down next to her and put his arms around her, it would have to do for now.
Luna and the rest of their group had finally caught up. They were all looking at Hermione and at first feared the worst, but then seeing Harry standing over a subdued Bellatrix they couldn't help but be confused. Neville raised a hand to stop the questions Fred was about to ask and mouth 'later'. He then put a hand on Hermione's shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze. Ginny and Luna dropped down next to her and wrapped her in a gentle embrace as Sirius released her. Even though they had no idea what had upset her, like Sirius had done, they'd offer what support they could. Shouting from the middle of the room brought their attention back to Harry.
"Shut up, don't you dare call her that," Harry hollered at Bellatrix for using that hated slur. He inched forward, his anger building inside of him again and once more Harry noticed a fleeting look of fear on Bella's face. She was unarmed and Harry couldn't bring himself to maim her, let alone kill her outright, so he'd have to settle for stunning her for now. As Harry began the incantation, she looked away to his right and behind him and smiled. Harry stopped as the hair on the back of his neck stood up. Harry knew who was there even before he turned around.
"Go-ahead, Harry… do it, you know you want to. Release your anger, Harry." The methodically slow evil voice of Voldemort rang out through the atrium. Harry quickly, but cautiously turned around, never lowering his wand.
Bellatrix, although renewed with confidence with the appearance of her master, was not as crazy as most people thought. Slowly and quietly she scooted back away from Harry. She didn't want to get caught in the crossfire between her Lord and the Boy-Who-Lived, a boy she had until recently seriously underestimated.
As soon as Hermione heard his monstrous voice her head snapped up, now was not the time for remorse. Neville and Tonks instantly dropped down next to the rest of the group, for the time being, they were out of sight.
Together, they all watched for a second with a weird sort of fascination, for none had ever seen Voldemort before. Hermione knew surprise was on their side and so when Sirius and Tonks went to get up, she stopped them, knowing Voldemort would want to taunt Harry for a bit before the fight. At their surprised look, she said, "We have a moment." Turning to Tonks, she asked quickly, "Where's the Order?"
"I think a couple more Death Eaters showed up. They're probably still busy with them"
Hermione worried her lip. "They don't know Voldemort is up here… we're on our own for now." Hermione wracked her brains trying to think of a plan. Inside she was terrified, not just for her life but for those of her friends and most importantly for Harry's.
As the others waited, they watched in awe as Harry stood alone face to face against the most powerful and feared wizard of their time.
A second later, Hermione turned to Sirius and Tonks, "You two make your way over there, around the other side. Get behind him and wait as long as you can. As long as Voldemort thinks he has the advantage he'll go easy. He like to terrorize people first."
"How do you know?" asked a worried Sirius.
"Harry," She answered simply. "Neville and I will move over there and try to flank him. The rest of you stay here." No one questioned her orders.
Harry looked around quickly and realized he was alone. He had forgotten all his training and acted stupidly again, chasing after Bellatrix alone was a mistake. He hadn't followed Bellatrix, she had led him here. It was all part of their plan. Trying to control his rapidly escalating fear, he took a calming breath. He needed time to think, he needed to stall until help could arrive, "So, it was a… trap."
"Yes, Harry."
"Seems like a lot of trouble just to get me."
"No trouble at all, Harry, but I'll admit killing you and getting the new version of the real prophecy at the same time would have been a bonus."
"You sure seem fascinated with prophecies."
Voldemort laughed, "Actually it's that bumbling old fool Dumbledore that's fascinated by them." Voldemort pinned Harry with evil red eyes and smirked, "That's why you're alone now, Harry. Why you'll always be alone."
'Alone… Hermione,' Harry thought as everything clicked into place in his head, he finally had the missing piece of the puzzle. It was Voldemort who caused all this, 'He wants me to be alone. Why?'Unfortunately, Harry knew he couldn't dwell on that thought now, not with this madman standing in front of him. He also knew he was no match for Voldemort, he only hoped he could hold on until help arrived. Unfortunately, it seemed Voldemort was in no mood to wait.
"Shall we try again, Harry?" Voldemort said as he laughed and readied his attack. Now, knowing all about Priori Incantatem, Voldemort changed his tactics. He fired a strong Reductor Curse at the floor in front of Harry causing it to explode in his face. Harry barely managed a shield in time to protect himself and even then a few pieces made it through leaving a couple of small cuts.
Harry just managed to roll out of the way in time as another curse nearly brought part of the ceiling down on him. At the same time, Harry sent a wave of debris flying back towards Voldemort, but wasn't really surprised to see him block it easily.
"I'm disappointed, Harry… I expected more…" His voice softly condescending like a parent talking to a child about poor grades. It was very odd sounding for someone so evil, but Voldemort never got a chance to finish. Harry had used his own Reductor Curse to break off chunks of stone from the wall behind him and then had banished them towards Voldemort. While the rocks were speeding towards their target, Harry transfigured some of them into spears. Even though it was a very impressive piece of magic for a fifth year student, it was woefully inadequate against someone like Voldemort.
Voldemort smiled, it looked like Potter might actually give him a good fight. And then with a quick twist of his wand, he transfigured the spears into sharp spinning disks, like circular saw blades, and sent them flying back at Harry.
Harry didn't know if a shield would stop the menacing blades or not. Not taking the chance, he yelled, "Protego," and dived and rolled out of the way. The combination worked… mostly. One of the blades had nicked his back, but Harry was fairly sure it wasn't too bad. He had expected a follow up curse but it never came. Looking up Harry saw the reason why, Sirius and Hermione were firing spells at him from two different directions while Tonks and Neville provided cover. Unfortunately, even together, Voldemort had no problem defending himself.
Jumping up, Harry tried an old trick. He cast a Starburst spell directly at Voldemort, and followed up with two quick low powered Reductor's to Voldemort's left and then the strongest one he could manage to his right, hoping for a hit.
Voldemort was no idiot. He knew the bright flash from the starburst was meant to blind him so he wouldn't see what else was coming. With a turn, he Disapparated only to reappear off to Harry's side. He would have liked to have stayed and toyed with Harry a bit longer, but he also knew time was running out.
"Better, Harry, but I grow tired of this," Voldemort's eyes flashed an angry red as he lost his temper and yelled, "Avada Kedavra!" Momentarily forgetting about Priori Incantatem.
Surprised, but hoping for the same results, Harry had only just managed to yell back, "Expelliarmus!" And just as before, their wands locked up as they fought for control of the magic they had invoked. Voldemort's temper had just given Harry a little more time.
A thick blue-white beam of pure magic danced between them like a thick electric rope. Reddish bolts of energy flashed out and hit things nearby, instantly blowing them to pieces. Hermione couldn't believe her eyes as she watched the sheer magnitude of the power being displayed. She always knew Harry was strong and would be a great wizard someday, but this was incredible. The beam of magic pulsed and undulated as the magical cage formed once again. And just like before, riding along the beam were ball-like shapes, like large pearls on a necklace and they would slowly move back and forth as the two struggled. But even as Hermione watched, she could tell Harry was weakening. Knowing what to expect, Voldemort was gradually pushing the glowing balls of magic back towards Harry. The beam was gradually becoming more red-like as the balls of magic got closer to Harry.
Then, an instant later, Harry screamed out in pain as his wand was ripped from his hand and flew across the room. Defenseless and exhausted Harry dropped to his knees.
Hermione's hand shot to her mouth to cover her scream. She had been in a mild state of hysteria since Voldemort's arrival, but now seeing Harry fall, caused her panic to escalate of control. She didn't know what else to do but Hermione knew she had to do something or Harry would die. She turned and looked for Sirius, only to find both he and Tonks lying prone and unmoving. She could only hope they were just unconscious and not dead.
"You see, Harry, you cannot win… Bow to me and ask for mercy and I shall make your death quick."
Harry, using all the strength he had left, stood and straightened up, and with his head held high proclaimed, "Never… I will never bow to the likes of you." Harry managed a small smile as he continued, "You may kill me, but sooner or later someone will defeat you."
Several times tonight Hermione had thought of how proud she was of Harry, but this moment seemed to eclipse all the rest. She made a silent vow that if by some miracle they made out of this alive, she would stand by him to the end regardless of how their final relationship turned out. And she would never let anyone interfere in their lives again.
Voldemort roared with indignation, no one talk to him like that… no one. He was going to make this troublesome little boy named Harry Potter pay dearly. As Voldemort slowly raised his wand, the growing anger on his face was easy for all to see. Yet Harry would not look away. "Crucio!" Voldemort snarled.
Even without a wand, Harry still tried to defend himself by trying to jump out of the way, but Voldemort was too close. The curse caught him on his side and blasted him backwards several feet. Lying on the floor jaw clenched and eyes shut tight, Harry trashed about in pain, but he didn't cry out. He wouldn't give Voldemort the satisfaction.
Hermione started to get up, she knew she wouldn't last long but she had to try. Neville too stunned by all that was happening almost didn't notice, but at the last second, he snapped out of it and pulled her back down. "Damn it, Hermione, what are you doing?"
"Let me go, I have to…"
A bright flash of white light interrupted her. Turning back in a panic expecting to see Harry badly hurt or worse, Hermione was never so glad to see the man she hated so much. Dumbledore stood facing Voldemort, wand in hand.
"It was a mistake to come here tonight, Tom," Dumbledore's voice was strong and sure.
Forgetting Harry for the moment, Voldemort spun around, "Ah, I see you've come to join the party, uninvited as usual… but no matter."
Hearing Dumbledore's voice, Harry tried to stand, he wanted to help, but with the lingering effects from the Cruciatus and his prior struggle with Voldemort, it was all he could do to stay conscious.
The light show Harry and Voldemort had put on a moment ago was certainly something to see. However, now even that paled in comparison to the spells exchanged by Dumbledore and Voldemort. Instead of quick flashes of light, their spells were continuous. Their magic was flying back and forth, either being absorbed or deflected. The errant magic of the ricocheting spells was tearing the atrium to pieces. Growing frustrated at the stalemate, Voldemort stopped and stared at Dumbledore for a moment and then disappeared in a column of smoke, only to reappear a few seconds later behind him. At the same time a large ball of fire erupted from Voldemort's wand and flew straight at Dumbledore. The old wizard threw up a shield that stopped the ball of fire momentarily, only to then have it encapsulate him. Dumbledore then summonsed water from the fountain to surround the fire but the fire didn't go out. Dumbledore was left standing in the middle of a ball of fire within a ball of water.
Voldemort stood by laughing at Dumbledore's predicament, then watched in anger as the water turned to ice causing the fire to quickly die out. Voldemort threw a new spell at the ball causing it to explode, but before any of the sharp shards of ice could reach his foe, Dumbledore had changed them back to water.
It was clear to Voldemort that his time was running out, he needed to try something else. As both Dumbledore and Harry watched, Voldemort turned into smoke again. Instead of dissipating like before, a thin black line of smoke drifted up and then without warning, un-expectantly shot straight into Harry.
Harry cried out in pain as he twisted around on the floor with his eyes screwed tightly shut. Dumbledore looked on helplessly as Voldemort took possession of Harry's body.
"You lose old man," Harry said in Voldemort's voice.
Dumbledore knew that Voldemort could kill Harry if he stayed in control long enough, "Harry, do not give up," he said before speaking to Voldemort, "Tom, the Aurors will be here soon." Dumbledore had hoped he could convince him to leave, because even if he didn't kill Harry outright, he could use him to attack the Aurors and they'd be forced to defend themselves. Either way, things looked bad. The only positive aspect was that Voldemort was using a large amount of power to maintain control of Harry, and it seemed to Dumbledore that he might not have been able to in the first place had Harry not been so drained.
Hermione watched in horror as Voldemort took over Harry's body. She couldn't begin to imagine how horrible that might be, his screams alone were enough to tell her how painful it was. She could see Harry struggling, trying to fight back, but like a snake wrapping around its victim, the more Harry fought back the tighter the snake wrapped its coils around him. Movement in the shadows caught her eye and she looked over, Remus had showed up and was slowly making his way over to Sirius and Tonks. Somewhat relieved, she turned her attention back to Harry.
Harry could feel the evil presence that was Voldemort inside of him, it felt as though he was being burned from the inside out. Harry thought his blood might boil soon if this evil stayed much longer. He wanted to scream out in pain but couldn't, Voldemort wouldn't let him. Harry's mind began to playback his life, but only the worst parts, the parts Voldemort wanted him to see. Memories that should have been left long forgotten; living at the Dursleys, being beaten up by Dudley, watching as others ate the food he had prepared and then going to sleep hungry under the stairs. Harry tried to fight back, only to have another vision accompanied by a wave of pain wash through him. As the images flashed behind his eyes, he could hear Voldemort speaking to him. "Why do you care, Harry?" Harry was sitting in potions class, Snape ridiculing him, "Why do you fight it, Harry?" Harry at the graveyard in Little Hangleton being tortured, watching helplessly as a young girl was tormented in front of him, Cedric falling, "It could all end now, Harry. I can take away your suffering." In his mind, he could almost see Voldemort evil smile leering down at him.
Hermione couldn't leave him like this, alone in his most desperate time of need. Snatching her arm free from Neville, Hermione jumped away and ran to Harry's side. She dropped to her knees beside him and reached out.
Dumbledore quickly blocked her hand and found Hermione furious glare directed at him for interfering. Then, realizing that maybe she could do what he could not, explained, "Hermione," he said in a soft but urgent voice, "help him if you can, let him know you are here, but do not touch him… try and pull him back."
Hermione's eyes narrowed as her harsh glare turned into a determined one. She leaned down and started talking softly, "Harry…" she began. His eyes were closed tight with pain etched across his face, his breathing rapid and labored. Harry was reliving all his worst nightmares. "Harry…" Hermione said again, this time with more effort, "it's me, Hermione… Harry, you have to fight him."
Watching Harry, Hermione studied his features, looking for a change, any indication that showed she might be getting through to him. "Damn it, Harry… you can do this, I know you can. I've told you before… you're a great wizard Harry, you can do it." Nothing, no change. Hermione's voice broke just a little as tears started down her face. "Please, Harry… come back." Sobbing now, Hermione could barely continue as she lowered her head next to his, "Harry, I need you… please." Her desperate plea coming out as a mere whisper.
At some point during Voldemort's torment, Harry became aware of a new voice. He knew that voice, trusted that voice. New visions started flashing behind his eyes… Neville and Luna… friends. The voice grew louder… 'I need you…' Hermione… Realization slammed into him as he considered her words. She needed him! Harry remembered that he needed her too, but most of all, Harry needed her, to need him. Voldemort's voice was all but gone as Harry remembered all the good that came from her. His first hug in second year, first kiss… first love. Somewhere in the distance within his mind, Harry heard a scream and then Harry could no longer hear Voldemort at all.
Voldemort was thrown from Harry's body and out of his mind. Harry's breathing eased as his blood cooled. The evil was gone and Harry opened his eyes and looked for the voice that needed him. But as he did, he noticed something strange had occurred, time seemed to have stop all around them, leaving him and Hermione alone with Voldemort. He was standing only a couple of feet away, his face contorted in rage and his eyes full of evil and hate. For just the three of them; Voldemort, Harry, and Hermione, time continued on.
"You're a fool, Harry Potter, now I know…" Voldemort smiled at them both and with a sadistic laugh added, "You'll lose her too, Harry… you'll lose everything."
Suddenly in a flash, time was running normally again for everyone. Voldemort turned around to face Dumbledore so quickly, that he caught him off guard and managed to banish him for a moment. As he was turning back to Harry he yelled to his last two Death Eaters, "Kill the girl."
Bellatrix with an evil smile and her wand again in her hand wasted no time and yelled the killing curse, "Avada Kedavra."
Hermione dove out of the way of the curse barely avoiding getting hit. After rolling once she jumped back to her feet and sent a bludgeoning hex at Bellatrix. Distracted by angry spellfire coming from the Longbottom brat and his friends, Bellatrix didn't notice Hermione's quick response and was thrown back and slammed into the wall where she slumped down into an unconscious pile next to one of Floo Fireplaces. Meanwhile, Harry had his hands full with Voldemort again, only this time, he seemed to just be toying with Harry.
Hermione, satisfied that Bellatrix was dead, or at least out of action, turned her attention to Harry and started to move towards him to help. Then with a crack, Dumbledore appeared in front of her. He motioned her back and took over the duel from Harry.
The rest all happened in only a few seconds and all at the same time. First, the fireplaces started coming alive with green flames as Aurors and even the Minister himself arrived, only to step back and stare at the sight before them. The atrium was barely recognizable through the rubble of broken glass, tile, and stone. When the fountain in the middle of the room exploded into a million pieces leaving water spraying from broken pipes, their attention was immediately brought to the dramatic fight between two of the most powerful wizards alive.
While Dumbledore was busy with Voldemort, Harry started to work his way around the fight towards Hermione, who was at the same time trying to get to him. The D.A. being pretty banged up, was trying to stay undercover and out of the way now that help had arrived. Most of the Order members were still in the Death Chamber cleaning up after the fight with Lucius and his group of Death Eaters and were unaware of the continuing battle above. Remus was sitting beside Sirius with Tonks in his arms doing the best he could to protect them as they recovered slightly from their injuries. Between the destruction in the atrium, the presence of school children, and of course the spectacular duel between Dumbledore and Voldemort, it was a very confusing sight that the Aurors walked into. Some dropped down next to Neville to check on his group first before moving on to Remus and trying to sort out the fighting. During all this, at some point a badly injured Bellatrix came to and managed to slip away in the confusion.
Just as Hermione was reaching Harry, movement off to the side and behind Harry caught her eye. She turned to check and what she saw caused her to yell frantically, "Harry!" He had been trying to keep an eye on the dual while working his way around and never saw the Death Eater behind him raise his wand. Dolohov had slipped out from the shadows and now was making his last move before leaving. Harry saw the look of panic on Hermione's face when he heard her scream. Knowing what it meant, he started to turn around raising his own wand in self-defense, but he was going to be a fraction of a second too late and he knew it. Hermione tried casting a cutting spell at Dolohov as she ran the last couple of feet, but he managed to block it. Annoyed, Dolohov fired his signature spell back. "Nooo…" Hermione screamed as she jumped between Harry and Dolohov throwing up a shield at the same time. Unfortunately, because she was already badly drained from all the fighting, it failed as the purple flame that lanced out from his wand smashed through it and hit Hermione in the chest. Harry watched in horror as Hermione was blasted backwards into him. "REDUCTO!" Harry screamed in rage. Hitting the mark, Dolohov was no more. Harry dropped his wand and fell to his knees, only just catching Hermione before she hit the floor.
Voldemort stopped his duel only long enough to turn and look at Harry for a brief second. Neville who had rushed to Harry's side as Hermione fell, dropped down next to them. Neville's hand was trembling as he reached out to check on Hermione. She was such a sight. She had several nasty cuts on her face, arms, and legs, but the one running diagonally from her right shoulder to her left hip was by far the worst. Her clothes looked like they had been burned into her skin on either side of the deep bleeding wound. While Harry held Hermione in his arms with her head hanging back and her blood-stained hair fanned out on the floor. Neville knew even before he checked, just by the empty lifeless look in her eyes… Hermione was dead.