FicWad

Chapter 12 - Back to the Department of Mysteries

A soft gong sounded and Harry, along with his wives, roused from their enchanted sleep, fully rested and fully awake.

No one spoke as each embraced the others before donning his or her basilisk armor.

The four Potters entered the Room of Requirement's common room the same time as the other commandos and silently embraced each other with heartfelt, filial love.

Harry held up his protean coin, as did all the commandos, save for Padma, who would be coordinating the defense of Hogwarts should it become necessary.

He tapped his coin with the tip of his wand and it began to buzz, buzz, buzz.

They counted down from ten as the triple-buzz pattern became more and more insistent.

Just before the countdown ended, Padma cried, "I will love you forever, Harry!"

Harry smiled and blew her a silent kiss just as the portkey aspect of the coins activated.

A swirl of color and a sound like howling wind and nine battle-ready commandos stood back to back, wands drawn.

"Good on ye' lad! Constant vigilance!"

Harry's wand didn't waver as he asked, "What were the first words out of your mouth when Dumbledore opened the trunk you'd been trapped in?"

Alastor Moody smiled his crooked smile, "I said, "I'm sorry, Albus." Will that do?"

Harry nodded, "Who've we got here?"

"I was able to get a squad of aurors, all of them hit-wizards."

"Oi, and witches!" Tonks said, "Wotcher, Harry!"

"Hey, Tonks, good to see you."

The metamorph mage smiled and whistled, "Cor, that's some serious armor ya got there, Harry. Izzat dragon hide?"

Harry shook his head, "Nope, basilisk."

Tonk's eyes grew wide and her jaw dropped.

Alastor put two fingers in his mouth and whistled a shrill, "Fweeeeeet!"

"I always wanted to learn to do that." Harry groused.

The old auror's voice didn't require a sonorous charm.

"Listen up, you lot. I know I don't need to remind you that Potter's Commandos are a ministry sanctioned, paramilitary force. But what you may not know is Commander Potter here has faced the Dark Bastard more times than any one man in history, and he's always come out on top, always!"

Every auror present had been thoroughly briefed on Harry's plan, most of them knew that it would be the most unbelievable stroke of luck if they all came out of this one alive, but, if that was the price of freedom, then they would pay it.

Algernon Croaker, head unspeakable, entered the room and said, "We're ready on the dais whenever you are, Commander."

The group moved into the next chamber where, on a stone platform ringed with steps, the Arch stood. Potter's Commandos, interspersed by aurors, formed a circle around the dais as it seemed fitting to do so.

Harry looked through the Arch and was startled to see Neville on the other side. He looked at Croaker and asked, "Is it working? I don't remember being able to see through it."

The old Unspeakable nodded his head, grimly, "Oh yeah, it works well enough. It don't matter what side you go through either, just passing through the arch activates the veil."

Two more Unspeakables carried the portal up to the arch.

"Leave at least a meter between the portal and the Arch." Croaker said, "My nephew will need to side-step at the last possible moment."

Neville, already dressed in Draco's robes, stepped up to the dais and uncorked a flask. Before he could drink it Pansy ran up the steps to fasten her lips to his.

"I won't want to kiss you when you look like that ponce!" She explained.

Neville took a deep swig and shuddered as his features became pinched and pale, his hair long and platinum blond.

"Good luck, mate." Harry said, obviously holding strong emotions in check.

Neville clasped Harry's hand, when he released the grip he'd left one end of an extendable ear behind. Grinning, the polyjuiced Gryffindor stepped into the portal.

Harry raised his end of the flesh colored string to his ear and nodded, "It's working."

Pansy looked nearly apoplectic with worry, gesturing for him to share what was being said, "Please, Harry?"

Luna touched the ear with her wand and said, "Sonorous."

Neville's voice came through loud and clear.

"Thank you for meeting me, mother; it's good to be home. You are looking well."

"I am better, now that you are here, son."

"Aunt Bellatrix, you are looking well."

"Your mother, my sister, has been very kind, nephew. Is all in readiness?"

There was a pause, during which Pansy explained, "It's the worst sort of manners, among pure-bloods, to be so blunt as to come directly to the point."

After a long moment of silence, Neville sighed, "Yes, Aunt Bellatrix, all is ready. Are you so eager to leave the hospitality of my father's house?"

Bellatrix's answer sounded like it came through clenched teeth, "I am only anxious to do my lord's bidding, nephew."

"What have you brought, Draco?"

"Peruvian darkness powder, it will cast the other side of the portal into impenetrable shadows."

"Then how will we see?" a gruff, male voice asked.

"You won't need to, Greyback. Just walk straight through the portal, three paces straight through, then step left or right. First one through goes left, second right and so on.

"The darkness will clear after two minutes, but we'll have our wands out and ready."

There was a disturbance, then a voice said, "Someone claimin' ta be Malfoy here's on the floo! Say's to bloody well wait for im'"

"We don't have time for this!" Neville said, "We need to go now!"

Narcissa's voice said, "No son of mine would use that kind of language in his father's house, this is my son, and he says we should go. I will go with him!"

"Come, mother!"

Neville stepped into the room and quickly pulled Narcissa Malfoy to the side and down while simultaneously throwing the bag of powder to the floor between portal and Arch.

Narcissa looked up just in time to see Luna smiling down at her.

"Somnus."

And Narcissa slept.

The two Unspeakables moved the portal closer to the Arch then waited.

The extendable ear still played like a portable wizarding wireless set.

"Let's go lads!"

The sound of running feet, then a loud cry that passed into the Arch chamber only to be cut off by the veil.

"They're through, next wave, go, go, go!"

More sounds of stomping feet, hastening into the veil of death.

The voice of Bellatrix Lestrange commanded, "Tell everyone to move to the far left or right, the darkness powder is about to expire and I want to make an entrance."

A chorus of "Yes ma'am," was followed by still more running feet.

"Hey, move to the..."

The voice winked out of existence along with the speaker.

The artificial darkness fell away like atorn curtain.

"Reducto!"

No one in the Department of Mysteries knew what would happen if you were to hit the Arch with a powerful reducto curse, because, who in their right minds would try such a thing?

The blowback, as the potent curse rebounded, splintered the cabinet but somehow preserved the actual portal, a torus of power that fell over just as four shapes leaped into the room, well away from the veil of death.

Bellatrix and Rabastian Lestrange, Fenrir Greyback and Antonin Dolohov stood on the dais, a good three meters from the veil.

Bellatrix saw where she was and cackled with glee, "Oh good, back to the Department of Mysteries!"

Then, apparently, she assumed that any and everyone in the room was an enemy and began firing a string of lethal curses in every direction. Her own comrades had to dive off the platform to avoid being eviscerated. Random as her curses were, they were nonetheless deadly, two aurors and one commando fell in less than three seconds.

Her rapid fire spellwork kept everyone pinned down.

They had cover and concealment and were content to let the madwoman wear herself down before offering up themselves as targets.

She nearly tripped over the sleeping form of her sister.

"Cissy?"

Bellatrix took just half a second to cast an enervate and nodded grimly as Narcissa stirred.

Mrs. Malfoy's first words were, "Draco? Where are you, Draco?"

Bellatrix, still firing random curses, shook her head and groused, "Get a grip, Cissy, this is a trap!"

Narcissa didn't care, as long as her son could be safe. She kept calling, "Draco, Draco!"

Neville sighed, then stepped out from behind a column, hissing "Over here, mother, hurry!"

At that moment, the real Draco, disheveled and bruised, dirty hair curtaining his face, stumbled out of the fallen torus. He looked at his doppelganger and shouted, “You!”

Narcissa turned and saw Draco fire his curse.

“Reducto!”

“No!”

“Diffindo!”

Draco’s curse was spot on; Narcissa saw that and chose to protect the boy she thought was her own the only way she could think of.

She threw herself in the path of the powerful blasting curse.

Pansy’s cutting curse, fueled by years of abuse and disparagement, severed Draco’s arm at the shoulder.

The once-proud Slytherin prince looked confused as he glanced down and saw a disembodied arm, clutching his wand.

He crumpled to the ground and would have bled out but Pansy cauterized the ruined shoulder saying, "Oh no, too easy - way too easy."

Narcissa had taken the full force of her son's blasting curse, which severed her spine while simultaneously liquefying her kidneys and lower intestines.

She fell into Neville's arms and pleaded, "Promise me you'll never take the dark mark!"

Neville, still wearing Draco's features, nodded, and eased Narcissa to the ground behind a column, "I promise, see?"

Saying this he bared his left arm, proving he never had.

"I know... you're a... good..."

And Narcissa Black Malfoy was no more.

Bellatrix wasn't content to just stand on the dais; she ran to where she'd seen her sister fall and came up short when she saw her nephew showing Narcissa his bare arm.

"You stupid bitch!" she cried, "Don't you even know your own son?"

Bellatrix looked at her fallen sister, then at Neville.

"Who are you?" She shrieked.

"Can't you guess?" he said, watching as his wife sidled around a far column.

"Tell me, before I kill you!"

"You'll just have to live with disappointment."

"Avada..."

"Diffindo!"

"Reducto!"

Bellatrix was hit from two different directions by two powerful curses, the cutting curse, combined with the blasting curse spun her around so that, when she fell over, it was in two different directions, her upper torso neatly severed from her body.

Antonin Dolohov's expression was one of recognition as he saw the bushy brown hair of the girl he'd nearly killed the previous June.

He screamed "Corpus fissus!" Then watched in grim satisfaction as the sickly purple spell struck her from behind just below her waistline.

Hermione spun on one heel and shouted, "Reducto- ducto!" firing two quick blasting curses, both of which impacted the Bulgarian's chest, breaking all the man's ribs.

Dolohov's last thought and word was,"How?"

Luna ran to Hermione, "Are you okay?"

"I think that in-bred bastard put a scorch mark on my cloak!"

Luna laughed, then quickly tackled her sister-spouse so that the green light of a killing curse passed just over their heads.

From their position below the dais they could see Rabastian Lestrange running back to the portal - problem was, the portal was on the other side of the Arch. He could see it, his avenue of escape. Apparently he knew the shortest distance between two points is, indeed, a straight line. Straight through the Arch.

Lestrange scrambled over the dais and, dodging spells from a dozen different wands, bound for the portal.

His plan was to leap through the Arch to fall into the portal on the other side. Of course, he had no way of knowing that the Arch contained the Veil.

This is known as "Jumping to a conclusion."

Fenrir threw off his cloak and quickly downed the contents of a flask.

The nature of the Potion became immediately obvious, as he transformed into the half-man, half-wolf form, the incomplete configuration that left a werewolf insane with pain and therefore even more dangerous than the pure wolf form.

Aurors and commandos alike had clear shots at the monstrosity but, even though the cutting, blasting, bludgeoning curses were hitting him, Greyback would not, could not be stopped before he had his last victim.

He bounced off a far wall, then slammed into a basilisk armored commando. The nightmare that was Greyback tore into his hapless victim tooth and claw until the combined curses of more than a dozen wands finally brought him down.

Keeping a wary eye on the still-active portal, Harry stepped over to where the werewolf and his victim lay.

The Basilisk hide cloak and boots had shielded the commando from the monster's claws and teeth, but not from the crushing force of the werewolf's powerful jaws or vicious blows.

Ronald Weasley lay dead.

"Hermione?"

"Here Harry."

"Luna?"

Silence.

"Luna!" Harry cried.

"Over h-here, Harry."

Luna sat on the floor cradling Lavender's head in her lap, sightless eyes staring into the distance.

"S-she put herself between Bellatrix Lestrange and these two," Luna said, indicating the fallen aurors, "She was trying to protect them with her basilisk-hide cloak, but no armor can protect you from akilling curse."

Alastor Moody stumped up, "We lost three; five more are on their way to St. Mungo's."

Harry held his anger in check, just barely. "Riddle never showed. That cowardly bastard never showed."

Alastor frowned, "Where was he expecting you to be, Harry?"

Luna gasped, "Hogwarts! Harry, he's at Hogwarts with his main forces - it's the only thing that makes sense."

Harry pulled out his protean coin, "Luna, take Lavender's coin, give it to Senior Auror Moody, Hermione, get Ron's for Tonks."

He tapped his coin and, as the countdown began, positioned the seven commandos and two aurors so that when they arrived they'd be back to back with wands at the ready.

"Three, two, one..."

When they appeared in the great hall it was to the sound of chaos.

Every staff member and every DA student who could were setting patronus charms to guard the windows.

"Harry!"

Padma ran to her husband and hugged him, rubbing his arms and back, as if taking inventory.

"I'm fine, sweetheart, how are things here?"

"The headmaster is dead, apparently cursed from behind by Draco Malfoy, just before he ran away." She said, "McGonagall is coordinating the patronus defenses against the dementors."

“What about Snape and his pet snakes?”

“Oh, well, Professor Snape and the non-DA Slytherins are in the dungeons. It seems, once the Slytherin DA members had left to patrol the castle, someone put the whole house into an enchanted sleep and summoned every wand in the Slytherin rooms before casting a fidelius on their exits, all of them. Now they can’t seem to find their way out of their own common room.”
Professor Flitwick smirked at hearing this.

“It was a good thing we had patrols out on the battlements, we saw the dementors coming and got everyone into the Great Hall. Myrtle was fantastic! She rallied the ghosts, even Peeves helped. Together they roused all the students and staff, well, except for the Slytherins, of course. Now we’re having patronus practice, see?”

Saying this, Padma's patronus, a Brahmin bull, galumphed up to a window to give another caster a breather.

"There are giants on the edge of the forest, but they won't come near the castle while the dementors are here."

"Professor Flitwick," Harry called the diminutive teacher, "Portkeys should work, we arrived that way."

The charms professor sighed, "It's alobster trap, Mister Potter; people can portkey in but not out."

Harry sighed, "So, we're okay, just trapped in here?"

"Pretty much." Padma said, giving him alittle bus on the lips, "The firsties think it's a play day."

"Padma, Luna, Hermione, I need you to be brilliant. How do we get rid of the dementors?"

"Brilliance." Luna said, sounding like her old ethereal self.

At Harry's puzzled look she explained, "They can't handle bright light."

"So, if we all cast a lumos at the same time?" Harry suggested.

"Well, that might work, but wouldn't it be better to have the sun instead?" She asked.

"Yes," Harry agreed, "but there's all this fog and gloom out there."

Luna turned to Hermione, "Did you know the National Weather Service doesn't do a thing about the weather?"

Hermione nodded, trying to read between the lines, to see where Luna was going with this.

"Now, if the Weather Service could actually move those lovely aiches about."

"Wait, aiches?"

"You know, the big letter 'H' symbols on the map?"

Hermione smiled, "Got it! High pressure areas, wherever the high pressure systems go, that's where the sun shines brightest."

"So all we have to do is create a high pressure zone around Hogwarts?" Harry asked.

"Hogwarts, Hogsmeade, and surrounding areas, yes."

"And how do we do that?"

"Magic."

Oddly enough the solution was simplicity itself, the charms teams pulled down very dense, cold air from the upper atmosphere, forcing the less dense, warmer air to rise, there was a bit of icy condensation that froze the ground solid, but once that had formed the bright sun shone through crisp, clear, cold winter air. The frozen ground sparkled like diamonds.

The dementors flew screaming for the hills.

"Defense Association!" Harry shouted,"To the battlements, now!"

The well-disciplined DA climbed the steps to the ramparts none too soon. With thundering strides, half a dozen giants, each as tall at the outer walls, rumbled toward the outer defenses.

Just over a hundred students and professors cast blasting hexes simultaneously; the combined force was such that the giants were blown back across the icy lawn to crash into the trees.

"Tha' was yer warnin, boys. I'd nae try that again if'n it were me!" Hagrid bellowed to his cousins.

The three largest giants shook themselves and charged again.

"Put em' in the lake, Harry." The half-giant said, his head bowed in sorrow, "If ye' don't, they'll jes keep comin' back."

The effort, even more coordinated than before, propelled the three tenacious giants onto the frozen surface of the black lake. Each tried to stand on the ice but couldn't get their footing. Finally one tried to crawl along the ice on his belly, and would have made it to shore if it hadn't been for the giant squid.

Ten powerful, gigantic tentacles erupted from below, shattering the ice, and dragged the howling, panic stricken giants to their watery graves.

The other three giants ran for all they were worth away from the castle and the lethal lake.

"Where is he?" Harry asked.

Luna stood to his left, "Try looking within." She suggested.

Hermione, although obviously fearful of the consequences, nodded her approval.

Harry closed his eyes and looked into his curse-scar connection with Voldemort.

"Hogsmeade." He said, finally. "He's in Hogsmeade. There are death eaters patrolling the streets as if they own the place."

"How many?" Luna asked.

"No more than twenty, the rest, perhaps fifty or so, are set to charge the castle at Riddle's orders."

He rubbed his lightning-bolt scar and frowned, "Moonrise will be at a quarter to seven, he plans to have his werewolves in the courtyard by then, but how?"

"Luna?" Harry asked, "How would you get werewolves to the castle courtyard just in time for them to change?"

"Oh that's simple, they'd already have to be here - hidden, to be sure, but they're here."

"I need the Marauder's Map!" he cried.

Dobby appeared with a loud 'Pop!'holding the magical artifact.

In short order Harry found himself scouring the magic map along with his three wives, looking for people who didn't belong.

"Harry," Padma said, "look at the Slytherin common room."

In that room, grouped in a tight huddle, the name 'Severus Snape' stood between the tightly huddled students of Slytherin that weren't aligned with the DA and four names that were not on the current Hogwarts rolls.

"I'm guessing Colin Frizzell, Kenneth Lars, Michael Powers and James Sneed are not new transfer students." Luna observed.

"My gut tells me to leave them there." Harry groused.

Hermione frowned, "Tempting as that is, you know we can't."

"So how do we get them out of there?" Padma asked.

Professor Flitwick sighed, "I can get into and out of the Slytherin common room easily enough, and four unarmed werewolves shouldn't be too much of a problem."

"I'll go with you," Professor Sinestra offered, "After all, Slytherin was my house."

"We can help as well." Harry said.

"No, Harry, this is our responsibility. "Flitwick said, "You just keep an eye on those death eaters at the edge of the forest.

The Potters watched anxiously as the names 'Filius Flitwick' and 'Sidra Sinestra' closed on the dungeons. As the two entered the Slytherin common room there was a surge of names trying to exit where the professors had entered, but, apparently, once the door was closed it was immediately lost to those not privy to the secret.

Flitwick, Sinestra and Snape stood together, the four strangers were standing against a far wall.

The charms professor approached the werewolves and suddenly Frizzell moved toward him. In less than an instant the name Frizzell disappeared from the map.

"Where'd he go?" Hermione asked.

"The map only shows living people, I guess." Luna said.

She was right.

The other three werewolves seemed content to stay still and live.

When the professors left, they took eleven students with them, ten first and second years and Millicent Bulstrode.

Snape stayed, or was left behind.

When Professors Flitwick and Sinestra returned to the battlements Harry asked, "Spot of trouble?"

The little man shrugged, "No more than I expected, Sid, I mean, Professor Sinestra, had my back, and good thing too. Werewolves don't like confined spaces even when they're in human form and those four were on their last frayed nerve when we got there."

Professor Sinestra continued, "We offered them wolf's bane and a powerful sleeping draught, but they were suspicious, who wouldn't be?"

"I would have been, if I'd been in their shoes." Flitwick added.

"One of them tried to jump Phil, I mean, Professor Flitwick, and I..."

"It's okay, Sid, you did what you had to do."

"I could have just stunned him." She said, visibly shaken.

"And he could have chosen not to attack me." He said, placing a calming hand on her arm.

No one pressed any further.

"I saw Bulstrode leading a group of firsties to the great hall." Harry said.

Sidra smiled, "Millie has taken it on herself to look after the younger students in that house. Apparently bullying has become an accepted practice there, and she won't stand for it."

Filius frowned, "That kind of behavior will no longer be tolerated. I believe Mister Snape needs to consider other career options."

The Astronomy professor nodded, "The younger Slytherins flock to Millicent for protection. If any of those men had come near her 'sprogs,' as she calls them, I think she'd have killed them with her bare hands."

Luna sighed, "The weak flock to the strong in times of crisis, the children look to Millie, Magical Britain looks to the Ministry of Magic to protect them, and the ministry, weak and corrupt, folds at the first sign of trouble."

She turned her head slightly sideways and said, "Kind of like the French."

Hermione nodded, "How many death eaters did you say were in Hogsmeade, twenty?"

Harry nodded.

"There are hundreds of adult wizards and witches in Hogsmeade, and they all have wands." She spat, "I say we leave now."

"I have to agree," Padma said, "Magical Britain is in-bred, bigoted, weak and corrupt. Let's say you beat Riddle; how long will it be before some other dark lord rises and starts all over again?"

Luna, her ethereal smile at its best said, "But then, you wouldn't be Harry Potter if you did that, would you?"

"Enough." Harry said, "I need two teams of twenty fliers, ready to go in ten minutes."

"Hagrid!"

"Yes, Harry?"

"Can you get into the forest, unseen?"

"No problem."

"Go tell the centaurs that we're going to need them to man a firebrake, we're going to start a fire and I hope it'll be a controlled burn, but if they want to help protect their homes and families they need to be ready."

Hagrid was a natural follower, used to taking orders, and Harry was clearly in command here. The half-giant ambled off.

Fifty students, all quidditch players, were gathering on the lawn.

"Excellent, who can cast a reducto?"

All the hands went up.

"We're all in the DA, Harry." Said one of the flyers, Billy Danvers, a third year Hufflepuff.

Harry divided out the youngest and smallest and had them gather round, "All right then, here's what I need you to do..."

Eyes lit up with evangelical fervor as Harry described his strategy.

"Questions?"

There were none.

"Remember, cut a swath, then fly back by way of the lake. Ready?"

The first group nodded, no one said aword as Harry, and his wives, along with professors McGonagall, Flitwick and Sinestra disillusioned the flyers.

"Allright, Phoenix Squad, move out and godsspeed!"

Harry had the remaining flyers gather around.

"I only have one question." Harry said, and pointing to Justin Finch-Fletchley, "Can you kill a man?"

He thought for a moment and then nodded,"Yes, I'd rather not, but if I have to I think I can."

Harry clapped him on the shoulder,"Thank you for being honest."

He turned to the group again.

"If Voldemort succeeds today he will kill you, his followers will rape, rob and kill your families. Do you understand this?"

Twenty-five heads nodded.

"Are you willing to take a life in order to save the lives of your family, your friends?"

Four flyers stood away from the others.

Li Su of Ravenclaw sobbed, "I can't take a life, I don't even eat meat, but if it will help, someone else may use my broom, it's a good one, a Comet Six-sixty."

Harry hugged the girl, "You are the second bravest girl I know, thank you for your offer."

"These four have shown real courage, remember, not everyone can be a front line fighter, we need people like Su supporting us."

"I would be honored to use your broom, Miss Li."

Harry looked down and saw a grim-faced Professor Flitwick accept Su's Comet.

Minerva McGonagall stepped forward but Harry said, "No, Professor. You're headmistress now; your first duty is to the school and her students."

Minnie was about to get her Scottish burr up but Filius placed a calming hand on her arm and said, "Don't you hate it when he's right?"

"Listen up, Dragon Squadron, stay on your brooms, don't make any noise, when we get to the town square in Hogsmeade land on your designated rooftop - this will give you a clear line of fire. Remember: bone breakers, blasting and cutting curses, flame hexes, anything that will take a man down and keep him there. No stunners, if you stun them another death eater will just revive them.

"Death eaters are used to people cowering away from them, fear is their most potent weapon."

Harry's eyes grew narrow, "We're going to deprive them of that weapon, then turn it around and cram it down their throats."

Each flyer was given half a dozen small runes carved in bone, then disillusioned by either a Potter or one of the professors.

"First group, Dragon's Head, swing wide and come in from the north, mount up! Go!"

"Second group, Right Wing, approach from the west. Mount up!"

"Third group, Left Wing, come at them from the east. Mount up!"

"Fourth group, Dragon's Tail, on me, mount up!"

It was a clear, cold midwinter's day. Disillusioned as they were, the flyers were hard to see and mid-air collisions were likely, but one broom rider bumping into another is an inconvenience, not an aerial catastrophe. A few "beg pardons," and everyone was well on their way to the final battle.

Each group dropped their runes on the outskirts of town at each of the four points of the compass. Once that was done there would be no apparating or portkeying into or out of Hogsmeade.

Luna settled her broom comfortably on the thatched roof of the Lord Mayor's house. She wasn't surprised to see Riddle sitting on a comfortable chair - probably the Mayor's - in the middle of the square.

His dark robes seemed to flow around him like silk, the only concession Riddle made to the cold was to raise his hood, but that could have been vanity as well, after all the soul rending rituals he'd endured, Tom Riddle was no longer easy on the eyes.

I wonder if the town offered any resistance at all. She thought, disgustedly. Probably not.

A few death eaters were strutting about the town square, perhaps a dozen or so.

A raven landed at Riddle's feet, carrying a scroll in its beak.

Luna knew what the note said.

Tom Marvolo Riddle,

You and me, alone, high street at high noon.

Harry James Potter

P.S. You are the only one who has any chance of beating me, and you know it - we've both heard the prophesy.

Harry

Luna had wanted to use the word 'defeat'or 'vanquish' but Harry insisted on keeping the note simple.

The Raven vanished, having been conjured for the single purpose of delivering the note.

Riddle laughed and summoned the nearest death eater who rushed to prostrate himself at the Dark Lord's feet.

"Hold up your arm."

The death eater bared his left arm and Riddle touched the man's dark mark with his wand.

All the death eaters in town, a full two dozen, quickly assembled in the square.

"Harry Potter is calling me out." He said, his voice smooth and sibilant, "We shall prepare a welcome for him."

There was a sound like a screaming banshee as Harry, still disillusioned flew straight toward the ground from a hundred meters up, at the last possible instant two things happened, he pulled up, translating his downward momentum toward the self-ordained dark lord and he un-disillusioned himself.

Harry's broom handle impaled Tom's chest so that he looked like a large, black insect pinned for display in a museum. Harry simply rolled off the back of his broom to land lightly on his feet.

"Ta, da!" he said, then proceeded to blast Riddle with an unceasing string of bludgeoning curses, the Elder Wand seemingly alive in his hands.

The rest of the death eaters were so shocked they didn't, at first, notice the barrage of deadly curses being rained down on them from above. Cutting them down like so much wheat.

An unseen enemy was hurling lethal curses on their heads.

Some tried to fire back, but fire at what?

They tried to apparate away, only to find they couldn't - neither did their portkeys work.

"You fools!" Voldemort cried, spitting blood as he shouted, "they're on the rooftops, destroy the houses, blast the rooftops, burn the houses!"

But the disillusioned broom riders were airborne again, and were firing hexes that prevented the assembled death eaters from escaping.

"We surrender!" one man screamed, throwing down his wand and holding up his hands.

Voldemort, run through by a broomstick, screamed, "Avada kedavra!" effectively culling the coward from his ranks. Then he turned his red eyes toward Harry.

"You can't kill me, Potter, I am immortal!"

"Oh, you mean your horcruxes?"

Tom Riddle's eyes grew wide.

"Seen your snake, Nagini, recently? No, how about Salazar's ring? His locket? How about Helga's Cup, or Rowena's diadem perhaps? Maybe your old diary?"

Harry looked grim, "Try to connect with any of them, go ahead, I'll give you half a minute."

Riddle surreptitiously brought his wand to bear and Harry pounded him with another bludgeoning hex, making him drop his wand, which Harry summoned.

"Do try again; try to connect with any of your horcruxes."

He did, and smiled, "One is still active, and while that one lives I cannot be killed."

"Yeah," Harry said, sadly, "I know."

Harry grasped the handles of both wands so that they pointed in opposite directions. He pointed his at Riddle, which in turn, directed Riddle's wand back at his own chest.

"You've ruined my life, Tom. You killed my parents, and then you or your sycophants made my life a living hell. Well, since I've already done my time in hell, maybe I'll be forgiven for this..."

"Avada Kedavra!"

The twin AKs struck Harry and Tom at the same time.

Luna's world went dark as she fell in adead faint off her broom.

Author's note: One chapter to go, you might want to read it.

N!