Unofficial Portkey Archive

Chapter 45

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Hermione had heard about time standing still, and she had heard about life flashing before ones eyes. But this was just completely surreal. So many thoughts ran through her head in just a few moments in time, fractions even, so short she wondered if anyone even had time to move.

Fenrir just lifted his foot and placed it in front of the other, a half intake of her own breath, Eloise's wand nudging her just a bit more in the back. Still so many thoughts ran through her head. Time, she thought, I don't have time for this.

"Eloise listen…" she started and Eloise jabbed her hard in the back.

"No, you are aiming a wand at someone, you're a Muggleborn, You-you're not allowed to." Eloise stammered out the words and she sounded ready to cry. "You stunned me, you said you were my friend…" she sobbed.

"Eloise you know me, I am your friend. I am just trying to keep watch over some very bad people. You remember that night at the club right? I am trying to find them!"

Hermione hurried her gaze back on the street, they were getting closer. Antoin Dolohov and Fenrir Greyback were walking towards her in slow motion, but still every step brought them closer to her. She was supposed to have killed them by now.

She waited for a moment for Eloise to respond.

"But it's illegal…" Eloise murmured and Hermione grew impatient, she turned swiftly chancing on what Eloise would do, and in a quick motion Sirius has taught her - her opponents wand was in her own hand.

"No…" Eloise spoke softly, she looked like she couldn't believe it.

"Just sit down okay, you'll understand soon!" Hermione promised. She quickly glanced back over her shoulder at Eloise and promised: "I'm still your friend Eloise, I swear!"

She directed her wand at the two men who had now gotten much closer and without hesitating she sent a spell though the air, she didn't have a moment to think about the spell properly before she felt the small tug on her wand, the second spell flying through her hand and her wand.

Again time went slowly and she had time to see the first spell hit Antoin Dolohov in the chest, she didn't see his reaction before she turned to Fenrir. The spell hit him hard and he looked very surprised by it. It hit him at the side of the face and it looked like he had been punched as he stumbled sideways into the wall next to him and then he sunk to the ground.

At once people started shouting, running and hiding in the street. A group of people near her targets started pointing and yelling at once, they immediately pointed up to where they were and she shot spells at them. She got one of wizards in the chest, but she knew she had to run. She turned to the door and saw Eloise on the bed, her hands covering her ears and her eyes shut tight.

She yanked her by the arm.

"We have to go Eloise, now!" she screamed and tugged her behind her. She felt Eloise thud to the wooden floor and terror caught Hermione by the navel for the first time. Her eyes darted from Eloise to the small door where they would start to break through soon.

"Eloise, you have to get up or the Death Eaters will get us, do you understand what I am saying. They will kill you!" she tried to sound as intimidating as possible. When Eloise didn't even pretend to listen Hermione bellowed with all her might "NOW, or they'll Avada you!" Eloise's eyes shot open and she finally seemed to move. But by then it was too late, Hermione could hear them running up the stairs to her small flat. She cast another curse on the door and it remained closed.

Eloise shrieked in fright and Hermione threw herself against the windowpane.

"Stay down!" she ordered. She waved her wand and the large bed flew to the door, covering it.

She peered over the side of the house and threw curses and hexes down the street.

-

Harry really didn't know much about what was happening around him. He heard more than he could see, but from what he actually could see, the world was collapsing around him. So was that it then? Had Voldemort assured that the fall of the world would be along his own demise? Did that mean Harry had killed him? That would be good enough! A stone hit Harry on one of the arms he had raised over his head and he staggered to the side. He tried desperately to peer through the darkness. He needed to see, he had to know. He clutched at his arm and felt a small piece of bone sticking out, it didn't matter.

He heard something above him and ducked sideways- it was a large boulder almost catching him head on. He was crawling now, on his hands and knees, trying to get to the bed at the end of the room.

It was hardly visible anymore; all he could see was the burning gravel in his eyes. Brown and grey swirled around him and even though the room had been somewhat lit it was now very dark.

He reached the bed just as a stone hit him in the back of the leg. It didn't break but he screamed out loud in pain, feeling the warm blood at once pooling down his leg. By his one functioning arm he pulled himself up, clasping on to the bed cover, up to the bed.

He raised his wand as he heaved himself over the edge, staring down over his enemy.

The body of the man who had been there was already broken. The spell had hit him, Harry was sure of his, but a large stone had hit him square in the chest and it was now split open in an odd position, bones and flesh sticking out in abnormal angels. A stone fell on Voldemort's leg; right on his knee and it cause his leg to bend, his foot sticking almost straight up into the air.

Another large stone fell next to Harry on the bed and he hurled away. He heard the wall next to him collapse before he had time to see it, he tried to whirl to see where the stones were coming from but he didn't have time.

Everything went very black….

-

Dumbledore paced outside the remains of the castle they had arrived at. He had battled every single Death Eater he had found but now the castle had fallen and he was lingering outside of the remains.

"Harry…" he sighed for what must have been the tenth time. Another part of the manor collapsed and he tried to rush forwards. It had the same result as it had the other times he had tried; he couldn't even find a place to enter in the ongoing chaos.

There was a tumbling of stone so loud that he had to cover his ears as a large pile of dust rose, it happened even before he understood that the manor had completely caved in and vanished.

He remained frozen and staring at the large cloud of dust.

"Oh Harry," he grieved. He sank to his knees, still keeping his eyes on the collapsed pile of stones.

He stared, blinking hard as his eyes filled with dust. His eyes hurt and begged to be shut but he stared and implored.

From the brown and black cloud of dirt and shadows, he saw the figure of a man emerging and hope gripped him.

"Harry?,…" he groaned but hesitated just as he was about to sprint forwards. A tall man in black robes was walking in a strong but haggard stride towards him. His long black hair was now matted with dirt and in the morning light it almost looked blonde. He was panting loudly, but he kept up his steady stride. His long black cloaks flailed behind him, but now they were thorn.

"Severus thank the lords…" Dumbledore closed his eyes and tears spilt over on to his wrinkled cheeks, making a clear pathway across the dirt.

In a dark silhouette all that could be seen was the figure of Severus Snape against the dark, in his arms he was carrying something, or someone.

He was staggering against the weight, not used to such burden but his tempo never slowed as he fought towards Dumbledore. When he finally reached him he collapsed to the soil, his knees hitting the ground far too hard, dust rising around them.

The body he was clasping on to so hard was finally loosened from his grasps and he let Harry Potter hit the ground.

"Is he alive?" Albus Dumbledore asked Severus Snape in a shallow voice

"Yes, for now." The black haired man answered in a croaky voice.

"Are you okay?" Dumbledore eyed the many cuts and gashes along the tall man's body but he waved it away. "And Voldemort?" he hurriedly asked.

"Gone. Really gone," Snape whispered almost afraid to say the words. Dumbledore eyed the man in front of him.

"Thank you," he whispered.

"I waited so long…" Snape almost complained, almost accused.

"But finally you did get what you wanted," Dumbledore assured and Snape leaned back on his heels. He looked down on the boy before him.

"But it took so long," he moaned and let a hand cover his face. "At least he made it. Lily's boy is alive…" he almost laughed mockingly.

Dumbledore laid a hand on Snape's shoulder.

"Yes, Harry is alive, you brought him here."

Snape rocked for a very short while on his broken knees, still in the dirt. Then he leaned forward and let a hand grace the forehead of the man... boy beneath him. He lifted his eyelids and looked into the green eyes.

They were unfocused, not there, but they were still those green eyes he loved so.

He leaned forward, his eyes so close to the green eyes that everything around him was lost.

"I have waited my whole life to see those eyes again," he whispered and Dumbledore nodded sadly. "Goodbye," he murmured and his tears fell on to the cheeks below him. "Lily… I'm so s-…" he trailed off. With a quick jerk he hurdled back onto his feet and was standing. He turned to the old man still on the ground below him. "Farewell, we won't be seeing each other again," he promised and when Dumbledore gave him a short nod he spun and disappeared into the dust around them.

-

"Hermione? Are you there?" someone yelled from beneath. Hermione peered over the edge and saw Ron in the middle of the running crowd below.

"Ronald!" she shrieked in relief.

"Hurry down here, we have cleared the street for now, but we have to move. Death Eaters are moving down this way in a matter of minutes."

Hermione grabbed Eloise by the elbow and now she wasn't resisting anymore, she followed Hermione willingly.

Hermione was on the street in a matter of moments and she threw herself into Ron's arm.

"Are you okay?" they both asked at once.

"I got them," Ron smiled.

"So did I." she grinned back and they hugged again. She lifted Ron's arm and looked at his bleeding elbow, dripping on the street, but he just shrugged.

"Come on we have to move," Lupin interrupted them as he caught up to them and they started running together.

"Where are we going?" Eloise panted.

"The ministry, it is all ours now." Lupin called over his shoulder.

"What?" Hermione couldn't believe it.

"Reclaimed!" Ron screamed excitedly and made a raised fist of victory as they ran.

"I can't be-…" Lupin's voice trailed off and he tumbled to the ground. Hermione stopped running and looked down at him, reaching out a hand, thinking he had stumbled.

"Remus?" she said in a shaky voice and a Death Eater jumped out from behind a trashcan they had just ran by. He had hit Lupin in the leg and he was clutching it hard, obviously in a lot of pain. The Death Eater pointed his wand at Hermione and she looked straight into his eyes. Her eyes darted back to the small wooden tip of the wand and she blinked.

She was too shocked to move. Ron's spell whirled by her shoulder and hit the man.

"Let's go, more of them will come any moment!" Ron yelled, he grabbed Lupin's arm and helped him up. Holding on to Ron he limped along as they started running again.

Hermione suddenly heard a small whimper just behind her right shoulder and turned around. Eloise was just falling face down into the ground.

A spell from Lupin flew by her and hit a second Death Eater in the chest.

"Eloise?" she shrieked as she leaned down, thinking she had just been injured like Lupin had. But she knew, by the stillness of Eloise's body - she knew…

"Come on, let's move her. We have to hurry; soon they'll all be here!" Ron said and Hermione just shook her head in disbelief. They had made it through all of this! Made it this far, it just wasn't right, it couldn't be right that Eloise would fall so close to the finish line. Lupin and Ron hurried forward and lifted Eloise from the middle of the street; they carefully placed her behind some parked bicycles near the wall. Ron hurried back to Hermione and grabbed her hand. He yanked hard and she stumbled a bit.

"We'll come back for her Hermione, now move!" he ordered and she ran behind him.

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