Unofficial Portkey Archive

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the 'Harry Potter' universe. I don't profit from writing this crap in the least. I don't own or make any profit from the lyric bits that I use, either.

A/N: This is it. The final full chapter. The next chapter will be the epilogue. As you'll be able to tell by the end of this chapter, this was extremely difficult for me to write. The epilogue won't be a walk in the park, either, but I think I'll manage. Please don't be too angry with me by the way this chapter turned out. I left a few clues here and there that should give you all a bit of hope. This is, by far, the longest chapter in the story… I hope it doesn't drone on too long for you, but I really couldn't split it up. So, get yourself comfortable and enjoy! (Word Count: 11, 873)

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Chapter 52: The Fallen Angel

New blood joins this earth, and quickly he's subdued.
Through constant pained disgrace, the young boy learns their rules.

that old man here is me.

Excerpt from the song, 'The Unforgiven,' by the most excellent band, Metallica.

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July 31, 7:33 PM local time - London

Kotone was sitting on a stool in the center of Gringotts Highest Security Vault Number One, being attended to by several female goblins. Two of the goblin women were securing the shoulder straps of the ornamental breastplate that Kotone was wearing. The breastplate was made of goblin silver, enameled in red, with an ornate septagram, the Oni Star as she called it, emblazoned in flat black on the center of the front plate. Two more goblin women were wrapping her legs in goblin silver shin guards that were painted to match the red breastplate and the chainmail sleeves of her silver tunic.

'Please, hold still, Elder,' said one of the goblin handmaidens in Gobbledygook as she struggled to tie off the last strap of her leg armour.

Kotone hadn't noticed until then that her whole body was trembling. She took a deep breath as she tried to calm herself, but it did little good.

The goblin who was working on the strap looked up and tried to give the young half-witch a kindly smile, but even the normally good-natured female goblin couldn't hold the smile for more than a second before it was replaced with a sad, sympathetic frown.

Kotone continued to stare straight ahead, determined not to let the goblin women see her as anything but an Oni warrior… a true elder.

As the last strap was finally secured, the imposing figure of Kyuushuu appeared in the room, standing right before the trembling Kotone. His light, feminine voice echoed throughout the chamber as he addressed the young girl in front of him.

'It has begun. Are you ready, child?'

Kotone looked up into his piercing amber eyes and simply nodded, afraid that if she tried to speak, her voice would fail her.

In truth, she actually was ready. She knew that her actions this evening would have far-reaching effects. She understood the importance of her place in the grand scheme of things… but she didn't have to like it. Her father, Kyuushuu, was cheated, and it was up to her that the one responsible was held accountable. It was up to her to ensure the debt that was owed to her Oni father would be repaid this night. She knew that her night would be a very long one, and she found herself longing for the morning, but she knew that her 'morning' wouldn't come for a very, very long time.

'Come along, child,' said Kyuushuu as he held out his hand to her, 'Your children are already on the move. Have you chosen your beast?'

'Yes, Kamadake,' replied Kotone.

Kyuushuu's white eyebrows rose briefly, 'Kamadake? Speed over power? Unusual, but certainly acceptable… I believe that he will serve you well.'

At that point the large vault door ground open and Ragnok stepped in with his two hobgoblin bodyguards. One of his bodyguards was carrying a long, thin wooden case, which he placed upon the floor of the vault at Kotone's feet.

Kotone bent down and wordlessly opened the wooden case, revealing a scythe. The weapon's wooden handle was lacquered in black, and the curved blade was made of goblin silver and inlaid with golden runes. The weapon seemed to radiate some sort of ancient magic.

Kyuushuu simply smiled at Ragnok and said, 'Very fitting. I appreciate you lending my daughter your personal ancestral weapon. I'm sure it will serve her well.'

Kotone hoisted the scythe from the box and laid it against her shoulder. At the same time, one of the goblin handmaidens placed a silver helmet upon her head. Fully armed and hardened, the young half-demon certainly looked the part of an Oni warrior. Still, she remained silent.

"The First Legion is already on the march," said Ragnok as he addressed Kotone, "I took the liberty of also assigning the Redmoor Dragoons as your reserve. You know how to summon them if needed."

Kotone just silently nodded in acknowledgement to Ragnok

'It is time,' said Kyuushuu softly as he took Kotone's hand, 'I will bring you to Kamadake, and then both of you to the assembly area.'

Kyuushuu saw the anguished look that appeared on Kotone's face and said to her, 'Do not worry, my daughter. I will be there to take care of you when the time comes. It is my job, after all.'

Kotone smiled for the first time in a long time and replied, 'I know. I trust you.'

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July 31, 3:33 PM local time - Somewhere northeast of Bermuda

He didn't know how much time had passed. He barely even knew where he was. The entirety of his consciousness was the woman writhing beneath him, panting heavily and growling out incomprehensible phrases that he didn't think he could care less about knowing what the words were. Sweat was literally pouring down his back and chest as he pumped into her. The heat radiating from both their bodies made it feel as though they were about to set the sheets on fire.

This was their third time in a little less than two hours. He thought he'd be exhausted after the first round… well, he was exhausted, but the energy, adrenaline and hormones coursing through his veins kept him very much awake… alive… Somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew she was doing her best to keep his mind off of their impending mission. They both knew what the prophesy implied, and deep down he was very grateful to her… of course, he wasn't so thick as to imagine that she wasn't enjoying the activity herself.

He had her legs resting on his shoulders, which were the only things supporting his upper body as his hands were set in a vice-like grip on her heaving breasts. Even in her decidedly submissive position, Hermione still had the energy and the agility to push upwards, meeting each of his forceful thrusts with an energetic thrust of her own.

It was only when her eyes clenched shut and her face scrunched up into what appeared to him to be excruciating pain did he pause in his frantic thrusting, nearly panicking with the thought that he was hurting her in some horrific way.

Apparently, stopping mid-thrust was the wrong thing for him to do.

The instant he froze, Hermione's eyes snapped open. Her hands violently clenched upon his hips as she pulled his manhood deeper within her smouldering sheath. Her fiery gaze burned through his very soul as she practically screamed, "Oh, God! Don't stop now!"

Hermione's body seemed to go into convulsions. He knew that he had made her climax before, but this time she was obviously taken to an entirely new level. He suddenly felt a gush of liquid against his pelvic bone as an intense orgasm wracked her body.

Even if he wanted to, he couldn't stop the wave of his own orgasm from washing over him at the sight of her own intense climax. No matter what he was feeling himself, he knew that the ultimate pleasure for him was seeing her in the throes of her own ultimate pleasure. Her scraping nails, her clenching muscles, how her calves seemed to crush down on his shoulders, even the way her ragged breath blew against his neck in short and forceful pants, they energized every nerve ending throughout his body.

He couldn't stop her name from escaping his throat as he emptied himself into her, mixing his own semen with her still flowing orgasm.

Hermione almost seemed like a statue with her legs rigidly wrapped around his upper back, her arms locked behind his neck and the frozen, pained expression etched upon her face. It appeared as though she passed out for a moment, but he could only tell that she was actually alive and right there with him by the short breaths through her flaring nostrils and the pulsating compression on his flesh that was still buried deeply within her searing hot core.

Both being totally spent, Hermione's unfocused eyes seemed to stare straight through him as her legs slid off of his shoulders and landed heavily on the mattress, while Harry's arms that were supporting him gave out and he put his full weight on the still trembling woman that was panting beneath him.

"Finally! We've been waiting for ages… about time you two finished up. A right fine job you two did of it, too!" Those words were accompanied by the sound of clapping hands.

Harry stiffened on top of Hermione, but not in the good way. Hermione let out a gasp and a shriek. Harry craned his neck while Hermione lifted her head to look over his shoulder. They were so focused on their lovemaking that neither one of them heard the clamorous entrance of their friends through the fireplace in the living room. There at the top of the steps stood Tonks and Ron. Tonks was looking devilishly amused by the young lovers' embarrassment, where Ron was staring nonchalantly down at the floor in the living room, but looking as though he were ready to run down the stairs and back into the harrowing floo.

As if their actions were choreographed, Harry and Hermione tumbled sideways along the bed, drawing the upper sheet over themselves in a futile effort to salvage what little modesty they had left, which caused Tonks to let out a braying laugh before she said, "It's a bit late for that… and it's not like I haven't seen it before…" With a mischievous grin, she looked directly at Hermione, winked, and then added, "I told ya he 'ad a cute bum, dinn'I?"

Tonks' laughter followed her down the stairs as she led Ron back to the living room to allow the young couple time to present themselves properly. Hermione disappeared into the loft's bathroom while Harry used his wand to clean up the sweat and other bodily fluids, even the slight amount of blood, from the soaked bedsheets. He had already been warned of her ebbing menstrual cycle, but neither of them seemed bothered by it in the least. After dressing, the couple slowly made their way down the stairs, both looking quite red-faced, and not entirely from their previous vigorous 'exercise.'

Ron was sprawled out on the large sofa, while Tonks was amusing herself by spinning around in one of the egg-shaped chairs that were suspended from the ceiling by a chain. Hermione claimed the other suspended chair as Harry stepped in front of the fireplace. His eyes glanced downward to the white, polar bearskin rug, but the indentation of Kotone's body that was molded there had been brushed away, probably from the arrival of Tonks and Ron. He didn't know why that seemed bother him, or maybe he did. He was shaken from his thoughts when Tonks made a comment about his brain being addled from the power-shagging.

Harry tried to shake off his embarrassment by asking Tonks, "So, I see your legs are better. I heard you were injured quite badly in the St. Mungo's attack."

Tonks still wore that devious smile. Clearly not willing to let up on the teasing, she said airily, "Oh, it still hurts now an' again… I know I couldn't do what Hermione was doing up there, that's for sure." She then turned to the steadily reddening Hermione and stated, "I had no idea you were double-jointed… quite the surprise, I must say!"

The building tension was broken when Ron absently commented, "Oh, that's nothing! Luna can take her legs and wrap them behind her neck, and can almost give… herself… ummm…" Ron's voice trailed off when he noticed the incredulous, open-mouthed stares he was getting from the others in the room. A heartbeat later, his own mouth fell open as his face turned red as a beet.

That caused a round of laughter to echo around the room. Ron joined in the laughter a few moments later, but they could tell his heart really wasn't into it.

Harry was the first to stop laughing. He set his piercing on Tonks and asked, "So what's the word from the Order and the aurors? Are we going to get any support from them? We've already checked out the area, and we believe Voldemort's still there right now, but of course we'll check on that again right before we're ready to move."

The smile from Tonks' face dropped slightly as her hair involuntarily darkened from her recent favorite colour, a fluorescent lemon-yellow, to a sort of sickly light beige as she answered, "The Order, or what's left of it, will be there. We aren't as many or as strong as we were before… before Dumbledore died, but we still have some real talent. Ben told me that you got to see nearly every member when you were at Hogwarts, so you have a rough idea of how many bodies we can supply."

Harry did indeed remember that meeting in McGonagall's office where he was told of the fate of the surviving orphans from Haversham's, and where Ron and Hermione got their heads badges. He figured there were about thirty or so backed into the headmistress's office then. Not nearly enough for what needed to be done.

Harry nodded grimly, and then prompted Tonks, "…and the Ministry? Are they sending aurors? After all, this is our best chance to finish this… taking the war to him instead of waiting and cleaning up the messes after he attacks, as the ministry has been known to do."

Tonks' eyes dropped into her lap as she said, "It seems the Minister has gone missing, and…"

"Scrimgeour is gone?" interrupted Harry.

"Yeah, he hasn't been seen since the attack inside of the Ministry. Some people believe he was under the Imperious, along with most of the other top officials. Nobody seems to know. The de facto head of the Ministry now is a wizard named Harman Stryfe, that is, until Scrimgeour can be found."

"Harman Stryfe? I've never heard of that wizard… who is he?" asked Hermione.

"He took over as the Chief Mugwump in the Wizengamot after Dumbledore's passing. The Vice-Minister would have taken over, but he was one of the officials who was Imperioused… he was killed by aurors during the attack."

Harry didn't like where this was going. With a frustrated sigh, he said to Tonks, "Okay, so he's the acting Minister for Magic right now. Will he send in the aurors?"

"No." Tonks answered bluntly.

Harry waited a few moments for an explanation, but when Tonks didn't add anything more, he asked, "Well? Why won't he? This is the best opportunity we've had during this war! Most of Voldemort's inner circle have been killed or captured, and the giants are all up north, the full moon isn't for a few days, so the werewolves won't be too big of a problem… why the fuck not?" he finished with a yell.

Tonks looked mildly ill as she continued to stare at the hands in her lap, where her fingers were nervously twining around and between each other. This struck him as odd, because he'd never seen the woman quite that upset before, at least when it didn't have anything to do with the romance matters between her and Lupin.

After almost a half minute, Tonks quietly said, "Well, those in You-Know-Who's inner circle that were killed are still dead…"

Hermione gasped and Ron sat up straight on the sofa. Harry's eyes narrowed as he said in an angry hiss, "Are you trying to tell us that the Death Eaters who were captured have escaped? The Lastranges… Dolohov…?"

"They were still in the holding cells in the DMLE holding area, being interrogated by the Hit Wizards. Well, you know about Umbridge, right? It's a good thing that she's still with the Order, or she might be the acting Minister by now. Anyway, it seems that everyone in her Hit Wizard office was Imperioused, so when the revolt at the Ministry started, the Imperioused guards let the prisoners out of the cells and they escaped. Nothing was announced because the Ministry, or what's left of it, didn't want to lose face again, especially in the face of what happened at St. Mungo's and Haversham's… they didn't want to start a panic…"

"Didn't want to start a panic?" yelled Harry, "With all of the attacks going on, just how much more panicked do you think the wizarding populace can get?"

"Don't yell at me like that, Potter! It wasn't my doing, you know!"

Harry blew out an angry breath and began pacing along the rug before the fireplace, "So, that's it, then? We're on our own?"

"Well, there is some good news… We've found out for sure that none of the aurors were under the Imperious, and most are quite disillusioned with the way things have been managed so far. You know, most aurors aren't purebloods… there's a few purebloods, true, but most are muggle-borns and half-bloods like you me and Hermione here. We've seen the way the tides are turning, and we realize that it's not going to be pretty. When Ron told me about how you need support going against… You Know Who… I thought the time was right to see how many of the aurors could be swayed into going against the Ministry… in other words, how many would ignore the Ministry's order to ignore you."

Ron, being quite proud of his pureblooded heritage, stayed curiously silent, while Harry and Hermione seemed quite interested in what Tonks was saying.

"Shack and Ben are, at this moment, feeling out the other aurors' opinions on what's going on, on the sly, of course. They're trying to see how many are sympathetic to our cause, and how many are still loyal to the Ministry. I got a report from Ben just before we came here, and he says he's getting a 'generally favourable response' to his inquiries, and even went so far as to recruit quite a few of the lowbloods into coming to your aid when needed. I haven't heard from Shack yet, though, but last I knew, he even had a few purebloods convinced that this is the best way to end the war. We'll know more in a few hours, but still, that's good news, innit?"

"Better than I could have hoped for," smiled Harry sincerely, "You don't know how much I appreciate your efforts… everyone's efforts."

Tonks eyed the fireplace with a grimace as she said, "Well, I'll be heading back to Stanton H.Q. and let Ben know that I've been in touch with you."

"Hang on a mo'," said Harry as he ran up to the loft to retrieve his bag. He came back down and said, "Let me give you a ride back. I don't know where this 'H.Q.' is, but I'm sure I can get you within Apparating distance… I know that the floo from here is a right menace."

Harry then turned to Ron and Hermione and asked, "Are you guys ready? Now's the time to tell me if you want out. I know that you both said that you'd be with me to the end, but now that the time is here… well… this is your chance. I'll tell you right now, I'm not coming back here until Voldemort is dead, and I can't guarantee that either of you will see tomorrow if you come along."

He addressed both of them, but Hermione could tell by the briefest flicker of a glance in her direction that he meant it more for her than anyone else. She appreciated that he would make it appear that he wasn't deathly afraid of her being hurt, but he must have known that nothing in this life would ever keep her away from him in his hour of need… especially where she was the only way that could carry out the plan that they made. She was the only one who could remove the horcrux soul from Nagini's body, so she had to be there, not that she'd want to be anywhere else.

Harry gave them a few moments to answer, then smiled and said to Tonks, "Can you get word to the Order and to Ben that it's happening now? As soon as you hear from Shacklebolt, let us know. We'll need to tell everyone where to rally up. Ron and Hermione will be at the Barnstable Crossing Inn in Cheriton, Devon. Let them know how many are going to show, and they'll tell them where they're needed."

When Tonks nodded in understanding, she, Ron and Hermione took hold of Harry's arms and in a flash of blue light, Lilly's Love Lagoon was once again totally uninhabited.

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July 31, 8:17 PM local time - Exmoor Forest, Devon

Harry was in the lead as they made their way down the dirt road that led towards the outskirts of Godric's Hollow.

Well, it wasn't actually Harry himself, but his disembodied soul form leading the spearhead. In his form, he could easily find the locations of the disillusioned Death Eaters that were stationed along the road. He would see their souls, and then move back to Hermione who was shifted into her state so that she could see him. After telling her the exact location of the Death Eater guards, she would relay the message to Ron, who would in turn approach the guard under Harry's invisibility cloak and then quickly and quietly dispatch him without using magic, just in case there were any magic detection wards in effect. It turned out that Ron was quite handy with a beater's bat, and one swift knock on the backs of the guards' heads was usually enough to get the job done. Members of the Order were following closely behind Hermione, collecting the prisoners from Ron as he retrieved them and transporting them to the waiting aurors.

They only managed to recruit about forty aurors, and along with the Order members, Harry determined that the sides were about evenly matched. He wished he could have gotten a few more… a few dozen more, actually… but with every guard that was ambushed and captured, the odds were continually shifting in their favor.

Most of the members of the Order weren't very comfortable with the initial plan, thinking that mere teenagers couldn't possibly be able to clear the path to the main concentration of Death Eaters. Of course, they couldn't argue with the results once the continuous stream of prisoners were delivered into their hands. Even Moody, who was nearly as adamantly opposed to the plan as Mrs. Weasley, changed his tune as they approached the outskirts of the town without a single incident.

They were very lucky that the alarm hadn't been raised yet, but with each passing minute, they knew that could drastically change. They had no idea if the guards were supposed to check in periodically, so they had to work fast to ensure the road to the town was cleared. They assumed that with the first Apparition their presence would be known to the Death Eaters, and they wanted to delay that eventuality for as long as possible.

Once the approach was cleared of guards, Harry made a quick pass through the town, checking the locations of the Death Eaters there. Thankfully, the old church was still empty, much to Harry's relief. That building was a key element to their plan, and it wouldn't do to have any surprises awaiting them inside of it. Upon ensuring that Voldemort and Nagini were still inside of the Potter cottage, he then traveled back to his body that was safely resting on the bed in the beach house. A moment after that, he Apparated back from the island and appeared beside Hermione in a flash of light, hopefully out of the boundaries of any Apparition detection wards the Death Eaters had erected.

"Alright, the easy part is over," said Harry to the gathered Order members, "The rest of the guards are in groups, so we can't continue to take them out individually. Once the aurors have secured whatever prisoners we've taken so far, we'll need them back here right away."

Harry pulled a sheet of parchment out from his pocket and unfolded it. It was a map of Godric's Hollow that he and Hermione had created depicting the layout of the town and where the Death Eaters were concentrated earlier that day. He took Kotone's wand and began making notations and adjustments, updating the positions of the Death Eaters in the town. He had tick marks inside each of the buildings showing how many were currently asleep inside, small circles drawn around the alleys that showed where others were hidden, and small arrows showing the last known locations and routes of those that were patrolling the streets. Once he was done, he made copies of the parchment and began handing them out to the different team leaders to try to work out a strategy of attack. He also set aside a set of copies to give to the aurors, for they were the ones who would be making the initial assault upon the village.

No sooner had Harry handed Remus Lupin a copy of the map, the collection of aurors led by Kingsley Shacklebolt Apparated to their location.

"Situation?" asked Kingsley, forgoing the friendly banter that he usually engaged in whenever he met up with Harry. Kingsley was also uncomfortable with Harry making all the plans, but he had gained enough respect for the lad over the years, and he really couldn't argue with the results so far.

"The way in is clear," said Harry as he handed Shaklebolt a set of the diagrams, "Here's the layout of the town and where the Death Eaters currently are. That information is good as of five minutes ago, so I can't imagine much has changed. We'll go as a group to the outskirts."

Harry referenced the map, pointing along the road that lead eastward into the town, "Once we're in sight of the village, I'd like your aurors to head north inside of the treeline and get as close as you can to the schoolhouse where they have their potions lab set up, and also most of their supplies are stored there… mainly the things they stole from Diagon Alley. If you can quietly take that building, you will be within striking range of the town square where most of the Death Eater patrols meet up. As near as I can figure, they'll next be meeting up there at nine. If you time it right, you can take out the whole group in one volley. Of course, that's going to get the ball rolling as far as resistance goes. After that, do what you came here to do, but remember, Voldemort's mine… we have a special plan for him."

Kingsley studied the map for a few moments. He looked as though he was studying the layout and the path of the patrols, but actually he was trying to formulate a better plan. It soon became apparent to him that what Harry was suggesting was indeed the best course of action… if the information was accurate. Kingsley was so used to going into situations either after the fact in a clean-up operation, or heading into a battle blindly. He wasn't used to having such detailed and accurate intelligence during an operation. He glanced up from the parchment, looked Harry in the eye, and nodded.

Harry turned to Moody and continued, "When the aurors head north, I'd like you to take the Order and head southeast behind the farm. As you can see on the map, most of the Death Eaters who aren't on patrol are sleeping in that house, and a few are in the barn."

Harry looked down at the map in Moody's hands. He pointed to the barn that had a thick red circle drawn around it. Inside, there were three tick marks drawn along with six small black checkmarks, "Last I saw, there were two Death Eaters guarding in there and one was taking advantage of the 'entertainment.' They come and go from the house, visiting whenever the fancy strikes them, so that information could change at any time. Just make sure you get those kids out of there quickly and quietly, and then take care of the sleepers in the house."

"Kids?" asked McGonagall, who was looking at the map along side Moody, "What kids?"

Harry sighed and said, "They have a bunch of muggle girls held prisoner in there… for sex… and there's a little boy in there, too. I suppose some of the Death Eaters have peculiar fancies. Just please, make them your first priority. Get them to safety, then take out the sleeping Death Eaters in the house, but be careful when you're in there, they might have taken one or two of the prisoners in as bed warmers."

McGonagall looked mortified while Moody just grimaced angrily and said, "Aye, laddie. We'll get them out."

Harry gave them a pointed look and nodded, saying, "After that, wait for the aurors to start the attack… You'll certainly be able to tell when that happens, because all Hell's going to break loose."

Harry then turned to Ron and Hermione. They took a few steps away from the group as Harry whispered, "Ron, you know what to do. You still have that package the twins gave you, right?"

Ron glanced over at his brothers, who were standing along with their parents and looking as serious as they'd ever seen them. Ron looked back to Harry and said, "Yeah, I've got it right here. I don't think my brothers ever intended this stuff to be used in quite this way, but as long as I can get them set up in time, I think it'll work."

"Alright, you have the map that shows the houses that have Death Eaters in them. You know what to do, so get under the cloak and head out now, and for Merlin's sake, don't get caught!"

Ron gave him an impish grin as he disappeared under the cloak.

Harry's smile slid from his face as he turned to look at Hermione. He could see the worry in her eyes, but couldn't think of a thing to say to assure her. They both knew that the odds were stacked against him, but if Voldemort was true to his past behavior, he couldn't meet up with Harry without his usual self-absorbed diatribe, and a few seconds would be all that Harry would need for Voldemort to be mortal once again.

-----~-----

July 31, 10:23 PM local time - Godric's Hollow Village Square, Devon

An hour and a half had passed since Harry had side-along Apparated Hermione into the bell enclosure of the church's steeple. He had stayed there with her until he saw the telltale flashes of the curses that the aurors and Death Eaters were exchanging.

Before Harry had left the bell tower, he looked along the main street and saw the horde of Death Eaters emerging from the various houses that they had commandeered, only to stand in the doorways with blank, unfocused expressions upon their faces. Apparently, Ron had done his job well, attaching one of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes Patented Daydream Charms on the front doorknobs of each building the Death Eaters were residing in. For thirty minutes, those particular Death Eaters would be in their own little fantasy world.

Harry Apparated to the eastern end of the main street where he met up with Ron, who was waiting there still under the cloak. They both quickly made their way down the street, plucking the wands out of the daydreaming Death Eaters' hands and casting Hermione's bone-separating hex on each of their wrists, ensuring that they would be permanently out of the fight.

Of course, the effectiveness of that little daydream trap was only marginally successful, as many of the Death Eaters either used magic to open their doors or had Apparated directly out of the buildings to their designated rallying points, most of which were near the town square… and the attacking aurors. As they met up with the Death Eaters who weren't affected by the daydream charm, Harry would shift into his state and conjure a static shield while Ron would maneuver himself to stun the attacker. They found that the shield that Harry was creating while in his state could withstand multiple curses and hexes without weakening in the least. Again, Harry was becoming frustrated with the fact that he still couldn't move while in his state. Fortunately, he didn't have to move when he was creating the shield.

The initial success of the surprise attack by the aurors didn't last long once the fresh Death Eaters began appearing in the town square. The fact that the Death Eaters weren't restricted in the variety of spells they used didn't help matters, either, but since this wasn't an officially sanctioned Ministry operation, the aurors didn't strictly limit themselves to Ministry approved spells, only drawing the line short of using the Unforgivables.

The Order's success was much more profound. They had taken the farm by storm, freeing the muggle prisoners and taking out every Death Eater inside of the farmhouse. Surprisingly, McGonagall was ruthless when dealing with the guards inside of the barn, apparently driven by righteous anger to secure the children held there. She moved through the farmhouse like a woman half her age, dispatching every Death Eater she found with extreme prejudice, not pausing for even a moment as she hexed and bound the sleeping Death Eaters with as much force as she could muster. She was none too gentle while levitating the prisoners out to the barn, frequently dropping the wizards roughly to the ground while saying the occasional, 'Whoops… sorry.'

By ten o'clock, it appeared that the battle was nearly over. The remaining Death Eaters were gradually being maneuvered into defensive pockets, being separated from each other to prevent them from Rennervating their fallen comrades. Their spells were becoming darker and more deadly as their desperation grew.

When Harry arrived at the battle going on around the town square, he was momentarily shocked at what he saw. He had been in battles before and had seen his share of death, but even the battle that occurred inside of Hogwarts earlier that year couldn't compare with the scene of destruction that he was now witnessing.

Along with the assortment of blankly staring, lifeless bodies, obvious victims of the killing curse, there were others who had met their ends in much more gruesome ways. Some lay with their abdomens ruptured open, other bodies had limbs missing or horrendous, open wounds, other bodies were charred almost beyond recognition.

The smell of death hung in the air like a shroud. Smoke from the various burning buildings drifted low in the air, making breathing difficult and severely reducing the visibility.

Above the screams and yells of the ongoing battle came an eerily high-pitched voice, calling out from, what most saw to be, a small clearing a short distance from the main square.

'Lunilumos Maxima!'

Suddenly, multiple cracks of Apparition resounded around the square. Every Death Eater in sight that was still active had fled.

A cheer went up from some of the less experienced aurors, and even Harry and Ron let out sighs of relief.

Above the din of the cheers came Kingsly Shacklebolt's booming voice, "Get inside of a building and barricade yourselves in!"

Ron poked his face out from under the cloak's hood. Harry and Ron looked at each other wondering what was happening when they noticed a slowly expanding ball of yellowish light hovering over the town.

"What the bloody Hell is…" Ron's rhetorical query was drowned out by a cacophonous howling coming from the expanse of woods to the north.

Harry's eyes widened as he yelled out, "That was a false-moon spell! Werewolves are coming!"

Harry grabbed Ron's invisible shoulder and began dragging him towards a nearby building that looked as though it hadn't sustained too much damage during the fight. Just as they entered the building and Harry was pushing the doors closed, he looked across the square and saw a throng of large, gangly beasts surging into the square.

Harry almost ran back outside when he saw that there were still some aurors and Order members that hadn't been able to make it into a building. He could just make out through the darkness one figure in particular, that of Tonks, facing off against a werewolf. Harry thought it odd that a werewolf was already far across the square and apart from the others that were arriving. He suddenly realized who that werewolf was.

'God, no… Remus!' Harry thought desperately.

Harry grabbed at the door handle, but was roughly pulled back by Ron, saying, "Are you mental? There are werewolves out there! What do you expect to do?"

"But Tonks… she's trying to talk to Remus! He's going to kill her!"

Ron let go of Harry and began dragging a sofa towards the door, "Yeah, well, he's going to kill us, too, if we don't get the doors and windows barricaded!"

Harry slammed his fist into a wall and let out an aggravated growl. It grated against every fibre of his being to hide himself away while his friends were in danger. He knew that Hermione was safe as long as she stayed in the church's bell tower, as the access stairs had collapsed long ago and there was no other way up there aside from Apparition.

Reluctantly, Harry began grabbing furniture and helped Ron secure the room. They were just in the process of moving a heavily laden bookcase towards the front window when they heard strange yells and screams coming from outside. Suddenly, the window they were about to block crashed inwards as a pair of fur-covered, sinewy arms reached in towards Ron. The beast stuck his head in through the shattered window, snarling and snapping and spraying its filthy saliva as it tried to bite him.

Ron let out a yell as he fell backwards, but before he even hit the floor the werewolf let out an earsplitting howl and collapsed on the sill, where it remained silent and unmoving. A moment later, a few drops of its blood dripped from its mouth and spattered upon the dusty floor.

Harry glanced out through the window and saw that the beast had been run through from behind by a long, thin spear. He then looked out at the square that was bathed in the flickering light from the multiple fires just in time to see a mass of small, red-clad beings swarm into the area. He could hear the howls of the enraged werewolves and they turned away from the barricaded buildings to address this new threat.

Ron stood from the floor, stepped beside Harry and looked out, too.

"Harry! They're goblins!" exclaimed Ron with more than a hint of incredulity in his voice, "The goblins actually came, just like they said they would."

Harry didn't hear what Ron was saying. His attention was fixed on a slight figure sitting astride a small beast that seemed to glow with a silvery light. He would never have seen it in the darkness if it weren't for the beast's radiant glow. It took a few moments to make out what the beast exactly was through the darkness and the drifting smoke, but he saw that it was actually a young unicorn. The small figure sitting on the unicorn wore shiny red armour and carried a vicious-looking, silver scythe as it rode freely through the horde of werewolves.

It appeared that the werewolves wouldn't go near the figure, but that was probably because of the inherent purity of the unicorn. Even beasts as dark as werewolves knew that coming into contact with unicorn blood was a very dangerous thing to have happen to them… nearly as dangerous as the silver weapons that the goblins were armed with.

Harry stood transfixed as he stared at the figure on the unicorn. The rider swung his weapon effortlessly, carving a path through the crowd of werewolves who were locked into heated battle with the goblins. It was only when a gap in the smokescreen cleared and the rider had reared back the unicorn for another charge did he catch a glimpse of the rider's face under the gleaming silver helmet.

At first, Harry didn't want to believe it, but when he saw the rider charge, he couldn't help but notice the mane of flaying, white hair that flew behind the rider as she urged the unicorn forward.

"Kotone?" whispered Harry in disbelief. The shock quickly wore off and was replaced with panic.

"KOTONE!" screamed Harry as he scrambled over the werewolf's corpse, through the shattered window and out into the street. Ron tried to stop him, but Harry had easily shrugged off Ron's restraining hands.

"Kotone!" yelled Harry as he ran towards the battle in the square with Kotone's wand in his left hand and his glove on his right. He was practically wading through the torn and mangled bodies of werewolves, goblins, and humans alike. Even as he ran, he saw a particularly large, silver-backed werewolf swipe his claws into a group of goblin warriors, sending three out of the five of them flying through the air in a spray of blood and gore.

Harry held out his gloved hand towards the large werewolf and incanted, "Flamarris Totalus."

The werewolf let out a pained shriek as a globe of blue-white flames encompassed the beast and began collapsing around it. As the flames coalesced around it, its fur began burning as if it was soaked in kerosene. When the howling beast fell to its knees, a half-dozen goblins pounced upon him with their silver scimitars hacking and slicing into him.

Harry began moving purposefully towards Kotone again, mostly ignoring the violence and bloodshed around him. He only paused a moment when out of the darkness, a goblin ran directly towards him with a wild look in its eyes. Harry flinched as the goblin raised his scimitar and launched himself up from the ground, seemingly towards Harry's face. The goblin's feet landed on Harry's shoulders, and a moment later the goblin disappeared behind him. Harry glanced around just in time to see the goblin plant his blade in the neck of the werewolf that was stalking directly behind him.

Blood gurgled from the werewolf's throat as it fell heavily backwards and landed dead on the ground. The goblin flashed Harry a toothy grin as he pulled the scimitar from the smoking and sizzling neck wound before he leapt off towards another nearby beast. At that particular moment, Harry knew that he never wanted to be on a goblin's bad side. Ever.

While he was distracted, he had lost sight of Kotone within the dark and smoky chaos that was surrounding him. It was only then that he realized the immediate danger he was in. While doing an admirable job of battling the werewolves, the goblin numbers were obviously dwindling rapidly. All around him the quick and agile goblins seemed to move in a blur, while the slow but vastly more powerful werewolves didn't appear to have much trouble taking out two or three of the goblins in a single strike. Harry helped out the best that he could, but most of the hexes and curses he used had little effect. Only the flame globe seemed to have any effect, and that effect was marginal, at best. Most times it threw the target werewolf into a fiercer rage, although its movements slowed to the point where the surrounding goblins could make short work of it. Still, he felt as though he was more of a hindrance than a help, because more than once he had to be rescued from a were that was barreling towards him.

However, Harry did manage to make his way to where he last saw Tonks. After a brief search, he found her lying beneath the bodies of a rather puny looking werewolf and a goblin infantryman. She was just barely alive, but it was apparent by her torn shirt and the jagged rips in the flesh of her shoulder that she had been bitten.

As suddenly as they had arrived, the werewolves began fleeing. Their hoarse howls sounded oddly subdued, and the reason for that soon became apparent. The false moon spell had faded and the weres were beginning to transform back to humans, and what little cognizance they were regaining was telling them to get the Hell out of there. They raced between the buildings towards the woods to the north, being chased by the remnants of the goblin army that had arrived to assist, leaving Harry standing alone in the middle of the square.

Well, he wasn't quite alone…

"Father?" asked a deep, grating voice from behind him, "Are you all right?"

Sitting on an adolescent unicorn was Kotone. Although her red armour masked most of it, he could still tell that she was covered in bloody gore. Sizzling werewolf blood and bits of sinew were still dripping from the tip of her silver scythe as it rested upon her shoulder. Her normally pale, white face was streaked with grime and blood, and even the unicorn she was sitting upon was splattered with gore. It looked as though the unicorn didn't come through the battle unscathed, because Harry could see streams of it's shiny, silvery blood mixed in with the red.

The unicorn canted nervously when Harry made a quick movement towards him, but with a quick, whispered word from Kotone, the young unicorn stilled. Harry reached up and pulled Kotone from her mount and hugged her as if his life depended on it. Tears came to his eyes as he felt her animated hair wrap gently around his neck as she hugged him back. He couldn't help but laugh as a relief washed over him like he had never felt before. Harry held her out slightly, looking her over for any wounds. Not finding any at all, he had to admit… the goblins certainly made some fine armour.

The grin on Harry's face quickly disappeared and was replaced with an angry scowl, "This is what the Oni wanted you to do? This was their important mission… to send you up against a mob of werewolves?"

The look of joy on Kotone's face fell also. She looked up at Harry and simply shook her head, saying, "No, my job is not finish. One thing left for me to do."

Harry was startled by the pained look in Kotone's eyes as she said those words. He didn't have to have the connection to her to see the stark anguish in her unyielding gaze. He was about to ask her what she had left to do when a cackling, high-pitched voice sounded from nearby.

"At last, we meet again, Harry."

Stepping out from within the surrounding smoky haze came Lord Voldemort. Harry could just barely make out the slithering form of Nagini trailing behind the dark wizard.

Harry briefly glanced up to the bell tower, and when he did, the familiar sensation of time slowing encompassed him. His surroundings faded from view as his entire focus was centered on the two brown pinpricks hidden behind the louvered slats that enclosed the church's bell tower. He briefly wondered when Hermione had learned to do the 'connection' thing just like Kotone could when her voice drifted through his mind with that same reversed-echo effect, "I can see Nagini from here! Do it now!"

The connection abruptly ended, immediately giving Harry a splitting headache. He hated when that happened.

"I've so been looking forward to this…what's this? Why, I do believe I have yet to meet…"

Just as they had assumed, Voldemort would be so sure of his abilities that he couldn't help but to start mouthing off immediately. Taking advantage of Voldemort's guard being down, Harry surreptitiously angled his glove towards the slithering Nagini. He then concentrated on the ethereal septagram that always seemed to be lurking in his mind's eye and fully entered his state. Time seemed to stop completely as his awareness of his surroundings became vividly clear. He still couldn't attain that sensation of 'total awareness,' but he was shifted enough to do what he had to do.

Harry let his soul dictate what spells to use to accomplish what he and Hermione had planned. Before even he could comprehend what he had done, he saw Nagini's head cleanly separate from her body. A fraction of a second later, a duplicate of Nagini's body was laying alongside the original. A blink of an eye later, he saw Nagini's original body, the one that held the horcrux form of Voldemort's shattered soul, fly up from the ground towards the bell tower.

Harry let out a mental sigh of relief… Hermione had summoned the snake's body to her. The last horcrux would soon be destroyed and the arrogant fool standing before him would be mortal once again. Once Voldemort was mortal, anyone could kill the wanker. It didn't matter to Harry what happened to him now, his job was done.

As Harry dispelled his state and felt time resuming its normal course, he suddenly remembered who he was holding in his arms. He could also hear the remainder of Voldemort's sentence…

"…your precious Necromancer!" With a triumphant look in his eyes, Voldemort's wand flashed out towards Harry, "Avada Kedavra!"

Harry immediately tried to tap into his state to Apparate away, but something quite unexpected happened. He found himself staring into a pair of teary, violet eyes as his surroundings faded from view. The sensation of time slowing around him returned as he heard the lithe, ethereal voice of Kotone drift through his mind.

'Thank you for everything you have done for me, Shishi-san.'

For a moment, Harry had no idea what was going on. His soul was being battered by the waves of emotions being emanated by the young girl in his arms. The feelings of sadness and fear were palpable, as well as a vast array of other emotions, but the one emotion that seemed to make all the others pale in comparison was unmistakably love.

'Kotone, what are you doing! I can Apparate us away from here! He's casting the killing curse!'

'I know,' came Kotone's simple reply, 'You would not be able to Appaate in time. You would realize that at the last moment and turn to protect me… and that can not be allowed. This is my mission… to make sure my father survives.'

'NO!' screamed Harry through the connection, making Kotone mentally wince, 'You can't die for me! Too many have died for me already! I won't allow it! Not again!'

Harry was once again engulfed in the emotion of love coming from Kotone. Although he was trapped in his state, he could feel the wetness building in his body's eyes.

'I can't lose you too!' pleaded Harry, 'I can't! I won't survive this!'

At first he didn't notice, but around the edges of his periphery, he could see a sickly green glow slowly building in intensity. He also noticed that Kotone had begun to sing. The tune of the song was totally unfamiliar to him, but it seemed as if he knew each note and word by heart already.

'I was a child without a dream,
but like a dream, you came to me
and you brought me home…'

'Kotone, no! Please don't do this… there has to be a way! The Wisp! I have the wisp in my pocket! It can save you…' Harry knew he couldn't get the wisp out in time, but he was desperate. Kotone seemed to know this, too, and kept singing the song that was rending his heart.

'…but after every day, there comes a night,
and if you cry alone in the night,
only the darkness will hear…

but the darkness won't care.'

Her words were like honey and poison, sweet and bitter. Her voice lilted and pitched, making the song both the saddest thing he had ever heard, and at the same time the most hopeful. Still, he pleaded with her to release the connection, but she kept on singing.

'…I was a child without a dream,
but you came and gave me love
and I gave you my heart…'

Her voice seemed to become louder as the green glow became more intense. In the background, Harry could hear the violent rushing of wind, and the distinct peal of a bell in the distance.

'Kotone! Please! Before it's too late!'

'…so during the dark night,
think of our love, and dream of the morning
where we will be as one…

until we meet anew when our morning comes again...'

The connection abruptly ceased, making Harry's pounding headache even worse, but he couldn't be concerned with that at the moment, he had to get them out of there before…

Harry found himself staring into a pair of lifeless violet eyes… eyes he had seen before on the boggart in Ollivander's shop. He didn't even realize that Kotone's body, unsupported by her hair and various appendages and weighed down by her silver armour, was slowly slipping from his numb arms. Harry dropped to his knees, following the lifeless body of his daughter to the ground. It was getting difficult to see, as his vision was being obscured by the tears falling freely from his eyes.

"Kotone?" asked Harry softly as his gloved hand gently touched her dirty cheek, "Little one?"

"And with that," proclaimed Voldemort haughtily, "my immortality is sealed! Without your Necromancer, there is nothing anyone can do to stop me!"

Voldemort looked down at Harry and sneered, "Crying over your girlfriend, Potter? I've done you a favor! Half-breeds are for killing, not for mating, although I imagine that tail of hers was quite the turn-on for you, wasn't it?"

"She wasn't my girlfriend," said Harry in a voice that wasn't entirely his own, "she was my daughter…"

A look of true surprise flashed across Voldemort's face for the briefest instant. He recovered quickly and said, "No matter… it had to die…" Voldemort then glanced down at the lifeless body of Nagini and said with a laugh, "Ah, you managed to kill my pet. You must know that killing the body doesn't destroy the soul inside, and with your Necromancer dead, you could turn the snakes body into ashes and that one speck that the soul will adhere to will still survive… and make it that much harder to find."

Harry, who still hadn't lifted his face from Kotone's forehead, simply said in a dull monotone, "Is that a fact?"

"Voldemort laughed again, "Indeed, it is! And I'll tell you what… Here's a free shot at me, Harry…" Voldemort placed his wand into the pocket of his robes and held his arms out away from his sides, "I've killed your precious Necromancer, here's your chance for a little revenge! Come potter, strike me down!"

Harry didn't move. He just continued holding Kotone's lifeless body, rocking her back and forth in his lap. A bell tolled from the church's steeple… Harry noticed, but Voldemort apparently didn't.

"Come now, Harry! Do us a favor! Rid me of this wretched body… it had outlived its usefulness. A mistake was made when it was created… I used the flesh of a traitor, and your blood. This body is unstable, and it will continue to fail. But thankfully, I have another body ready and waiting… freshly relieved of his soul, thanks to our friends the dementors. I will be stepping into the shoes of none other than Rufus Scrimgour… so come along, Potter! Now's your chance! Strike me down!"

Harry sighed, and then placed a kiss on Kotone's forehead before gently laying her down on the ground. Harry rose to his feet, keeping his head bent downward as he began, "Well, I have some news for you. You made two fatal mistakes. This girl wasn't the Necromancer, but I do know where the real one is, and I know that she just finished banishing your last horcrux. You are now mortal."

Voldemort's eyes narrowed, as if he didn't believe a word of what Harry was saying. His mouth dropped open when Harry pointed Kotone's wand towards Nagini's fake body and said, 'Finite.'

While Nagini's severed head remained on the ground, the fake body vanished into thin air as the illusion was dispelled.

"Your second fatal mistake, you might ask?" came a voice, wicked and menacing, that seemed to echo out from the very air around the village square, "That was killing my daughter!"

Voldemort took an instinctive step backwards as he saw Harry lift his gaze from the dead half-witch in his lap. When he saw the blue-white glow in Harry's eyes, he paused for only a moment before Voldemort's hand dove into his robe pocket for his wand, but by that time, it was too late… much too late

-----~-----

July 31, 11:36 PM local time - Church of St. Gabriel's Steeple, Godric's Hollow, Devon

The acrid stench of sulphur and brimstone permeated the warm, stagnant air inside of the bell enclosure where Hermione had just completed the ritual to banish the final anchored fragment of Tom Riddle's soul. All that was left was the two shards residing in the body of Lord Voldemort. Since neither of those two soul fragments were spiritually anchored to his body, they would be released to the afterlife in the event of his death. Tom Riddle was finally mortal once more.

Hermione peered through the slats of the bell enclosure and looked down upon the town square where she last saw Harry. She was hoping that he would look up towards the steeple again so that she could tell him that the ritual was completed,

When she had looked down earlier, she could clearly see the forms of those still alive in the town square. She stood mesmerized for a few moments as she noticed a few of the soul forms wink out of existence as their mortal bodies expired. She wasn't horrified or even disturbed by the sight… it was a natural process… a conclusion of one form and the beginning of another… a transition of consciousness. In a way, it was strangely beautiful…

She focused on the center of the square and saw Harry's lion form crouched on the ground, while the twin serpents of Tom Riddle's soul stood several meters away from him. She had seen the angelic form of Kotone when she looked down earlier, and was surprised to see how small it was. For a moment, she had thought it wasn't Kotone at all, but when a slight, sporadic cleared some of the looming smoke, she could easily see the small half-witch dressed in shiny red armour. A lump formed in her throat when she realized that, while her body was still there nestled in Harry's arms, her angelic soul form was nowhere to be seen.

Hermione stood up and prepared to Apparate down to Harry's side when she felt the pressure of a slight hand rest upon her shoulder.

She quickly spun around while drawing her wand, and instinctively entered her state. In the blink of an eye she had fully transformed, faster than she had ever managed to before. She paused as her eyes traveled up the set of the radiant white robes before her, finally resting upon the gently smiling face of Kyuushuu.

'You must stay here,' said Kyuushuu in her mind with his soft, feminine voice, 'The young lion has already lost one love, do not defy fate and make it two.'

'He needs me…'

'He needs you alive,' countered Kyuushuu.

'He's facing Voldemort!' pleaded Hermione, 'He's going to…'

'It is not his time, and you know it,' said Kyuushuu calmly.

Hermione paused and studied the face of the being standing in front of her. Somehow, she knew he was right. She couldn't describe it, but as she looked into Kyuushuu's strange, amber eyes, a feeling of familiarity came over her, as if she had known this being for her entire life, even though she had only seen him once before.

'Who are you?' asked Hermione as she matched his steady gaze.

'You still haven't figured that out yet?' answered Kyuushuu with his own question.

'No…' said Hermione as her eyes narrowed, 'what are you?'

Kyuushuu sighed, but he was also smiling, 'You have spoken to me before… supplicated me for assistance…demanded my attention. You have even sung to me. Your voice is quite becoming when you sing, you know. You should sing more often.'

Hermione just stood there shaking her head, refusing to believe what both her heart and her head were telling her.

'You westerners are so mired in your preconceived notions… perhaps this is more like what you expect from me?'

Kyushuu's form began to shift and change right before Hermione's eyes. The white of Kyuushuu's robes and cloak darkened to a flat, midnight black and the texture of the material thinned to resemble what Hermione was now dressed in… spidery and nearly transparent. His long, flowing white hair fell from his scalp as the flesh seemed to melt away from his bones. He held out his now bony hand and in it appeared an absurdly large reaper's scythe.

Gone was the tall, impossibly handsome facade of the radiant Oni warrior. What stood before Hermione now was the classic visage of Death.

'Is this more to your liking?' asked Kyuushuu in a now hoarse rasp, 'Do you know who… or what I am now? I am Kyuushuu! I am the bitter enemy to all of life! Everyone must meet me when their time is due, but there was one who cheated me, and by doing so, threw off the ultimate balance. He thought he could fool me. He thought I wouldn't notice, but the cycle had been thrown askew… the balance disturbed. The continuation of the one you know as Tom Marvolo Riddle had to be paid for by the lives of others. Hundreds of souls have been sent on before their time since his Great Deception. Souls that were due their redemption before their end never got the opportunity to repent. Righteous souls who were doomed to corruption were sent on to rewards that should not have been due them.'

Kyuushuu shifted back to his normal form, and then continued in his usual airy, effeminate voice, 'The balance will be restored tonight by the actions of your mate. He is the Emancipator. It is up to him, not you. You have been my emissary, my tool, as you will continue to be, but for now, you have already done your job, and you have done it most admirably. Rest now, child.'

Hermione still couldn't move, being locked into a connection to Kyuushuu's eyes. When Kyuushuu reached up with his thin, dainty hand and rested it upon Hermione's forehead, she immediately collapsed onto the floor in a deep sleep.

Kyuushuu looked fondly down at her and softly said, 'You have a long life ahead of you, and the morning will be here before you know it…'

Kyuushuu turned away from the sleeping witch, then, as almost an afterthought, he said, '…and take care of our daughter.'

Kyuushuu disappeared in a flash of light, on his way to witness the fall of the man who had cheated him for so many years.

-----~-----

July 31, 11:37 PM local time - Godric's Hollow Village Square, Devon

"Your second fatal mistake, you ask?" continued Harry in an icy, menacing voice, "That was killing my daughter!"

Harry didn't know how those words made it out of his mouth. He wasn't even sure that those words came from his mouth. His tortured soul just seemed to radiate that thought. As he lifted his gaze from the ugly, lifeless husk that had once ensconced the pure, beautiful soul of his adopted daughter, he immediately recognized the sensation that was enveloping him.

It was the same sensation he had while performing the Warlock's enhancement ritual, but there was one glaring difference… Restraint. While on the island, he had subconsciously held back, effectively limiting the full effect of his powers due to the fear that his loved ones were so near to his proximity.

Now, he wasn't restrained by that little, niggling fact. Kotone was dead. Hermione was ensconced within the bell tower. Everyone that he knew that was still alive in the immediate area was either dead or corrupted, as was the case with Tonks. There were no shackles on the power he could unleash… there were no boundaries to restrain his wrath…

Thoughts and memories cascaded through Harry's mind as the nearly frozen figure of the dark lord Voldemort loomed before his eyes…

He could now clearly see what the dementors' effects had only hinted at… the deaths of his parents… the pleading of hid mother before the killing curse stole her life away… the clueless inquisitiveness of Cedric before his life was ripped away from his body upon Voldemort's order… The frightened pleading that was in Dumbledore's eyes as Snape was bound to end his life…

The sad, loving essence that was Kotone's soul just before it was stolen from her body…

No, there was nothing left in this world to restrain his soul's wrath.

Harry almost didn't realize that his soul had taken over his actions. He didn't even realize that the sensation of omniscience had already implanted itself into his psyche.

He was looking at Voldemort, and then suddenly realized that the man was going to cast a killing curse at him, but before Harry even realized it, a section of fallen fence from one of the surrounding houses seemed to summon itself into the path of the comically slow-moving curse. Harry reflexively thought to use a stunning hex on Voldemort, but Hermione's very effective Ossisindum curse had already left his gloved hand and caused Voldemort's wand arm to drop lackadaisically to his side as the curse separated the bones in Voldemort's arm at the elbow.

It was only then that Harry realized that he was fully in his state, and he was able to move freely. Although he didn't see it himself, his appearance had miraculously changed in the most radical sense…

A silvery white glow seemed to surround him as he stood there. Harry's hair, although still as black as pitch, had lengthened dramatically and seemed to be flowing and rippling behind him, as if in a wild, chaotic wind. He was no longer wearing the gray shirt and denim slacks that he had donned earlier in the day, but was now clad in what appeared to be a white silken robe that was waving and billowing behind him in the same non-existent breeze that was tousling his hair. On the front of his robe was a large black septagram symbol that seemed to be burned into the cloth. The most pronounced change in him was his eyes, which were brightly glowing with a blue-white light that totally washed out the black and green of his pupils and irises.

Voldemort was in the middle of saying 'something…' Harry really couldn't make out what it was in his accelerated state, but when he saw the particular build-up of positional magic being conjured around the dark wizard, he knew that Voldemort was about to try to Apparate away.

Harry's consciousness wanted to kill the dark wizard before him, but in the state he was currently in, his soul was in control of his magic, and his soul seemed to refuse to allow itself to become a murderer. He grunted out in frustration. The rage and agony that was dominating his thoughts over the death of Kotone, the turning of Tonks, the deaths of all the brave goblins… Sirius… Dumbledore… Diggory… his parents… As much as he wanted to snuff out the life of Tom Riddle, his magic wasn't about to let him stoop to the level of the shell of a man before him.

Suddenly, the idea came to him. He wasn't sure if his soul had planted the idea in his mind or if he thought it up himself, but there was a way to defeat Voldemort by having the man defeat himself.

Voldemort was already mid-turn as he attempted to Apparate away. Harry, being in his accelerated state, walked the few meters towards the man. It was almost funny the way Voldemort's eyes slowly widened as Harry approached… it must have looked from Voldemort's perspective that Harry had Apparated between the few meters that separated them. With a grim smile, Harry grasped Voldemort's arm. In a flash of light, both Harry and Voldemort disappeared from the town square of Godric's Hollow.

-----~-----

July 31, 11:38 PM local time - Ollivander's Wand Shop, Diagon Alley, London

Harry and Voldemort appeared in a flash of light in the front room of Ollivander's Wand shop. The moment that they arrived, Harry casually released his grip on Voldemort's bony wrist and then shifted his state so that the time around him sped up.

Voldemort, who was already in the process of Apparating, never had the chance to stop the attempt. The very last thing he saw before the uncomfortable squeezing sensation encompassed him was a tall figure dressed in translucent black robes and carrying an absurdly large Harvester's scythe. The white skull that was peering out from beneath the shrouded hood seemed to smile wickedly at him as half of Voldemort's presence left the room and landed unceremoniously onto the cold stone floor of his underground hideout.

Voldemort was vaguely aware of the fact that the lower half of his body was missing. As the last few seconds of his life spilled out from his abdomen along with his entrails, the last thing that he saw was the same visage of the grinning Grim Reaper that seemed to have followed him from Ollivander's. A last, gurgling breath marked the end of the most feared and hated dark wizard in living memory.

Tom Riddle, also known as the Dark Lord Voldemort, was dead.

-----~-----

A/N: Fun Fact: Sorry, there was nothing fun about this chapter… I found myself crying more than once while writing it.