HDTH Chapter 25: Battle Ground
She smiled.
“What do you think you are smiling at you little bitch.” Lucius sneered at her.
This time when the anger flashed inside of her, she didn’t hold back. She lifted her wand and pointed it straight at him and whispered the forbidden words. “Avada Kedavra.”
A green light shot from her wand and hit Lucius in the chest. He flew back and landed with a dull thud on the ground. He was dead.
She wished she could have made him suffer before killing him but either way she was happy that he finally met his end and was no more. He would never again threaten her or Draco and never again would he ever hurt or murder anyone.
Just as the army of death eaters started raising their wands, spells started to hit them from the back, from the manor.
Looking past all the shocked faces, she could see Draco and Harry run out of the Malfoy manor with a full army of their own. It was filled with their friends, parents, and teachers. It was the perfect plan. She was able to distract them long enough for Draco to release everyone and launch a sneak attack from the back.
When she and Draco planned everything out, they knew that the surprise attack was their only real chance and they knew they couldn’t waste it. So, they decided that everyone should attack with the killing curse. There was no room for angry death eaters retaliating against them while they were in the middle of a battle for their lives.
Green sparks lit up the yard and death eaters started to drop to the ground as death hit them. The group with Draco was able to make a pretty big dent in death eaters by the time they realized what was happening to them. Surprise had definitely been a smart move for them.
“You.” Voldemort looked at her surprised.
Hermione pointed her wand at him and he raised his own to meet hers. A loud pop echoed around her and without looking, she knew that Draco was by her side. He pulled her hand into hers and as they held hands, they pointed their wands at Voldemort. He looked disgusted at them and angry.
“Blood traitor!” He yelled at Draco.
Draco looked furious. He squeezed Hermione's hand and flicked his wand behind Voldemort.
“I think you have more important things to worry about.”
Harry slowly walked around Voldemort while pointing his wand at him. He never took his eyes off him as he gradually made his way to stand in front of Draco and Hermione.
“Let’s finish this!” Harry shouted as he lunged at Voldemort and they both disappeared in a cloud of black smoke which went flying through the air.
Draco and Hermione shared a quick embrace before pulling apart and looking at each other intently.
“I so glad you’re okay.” He told her.
“Me? What about you. I hated hurting you like that.” She replied while rubbing a gentle hand over the bruised and torn flesh on his neck.
He flinched slightly at her touch but grabbed her hand and held it in place.
“It was worth it. I would do it again if I had to. Now let’s go help our friends.”
He smiled at her and they took each other’s hands once again before heading off into the battle.
Every death eater they saw, they used the killing curse without hesitation. They knew it was their best chance of making it out alive. To have no remorse, just resolve in making it home together.
Not everyone on either side was so convinced that using the killing curse was the best plan apparently as they both saw different colored sparks of light flying through the air and hitting people. Some were using torture curses or spells to bind their opponent.
One of these random curses grazed Hermione’s cheek and she felt blood leak down her face. She kept going like it never happened and kept throwing curses out wherever she could.
Draco was doing his best to block any curses he saw coming their way but unfortunately a few made it past. He was bruised and bleeding from the hits and he knew at least one curse had made it past him and hit Hermione. He couldn’t let anything happen to her. If he lost her again, this would all be for nothing. He couldn’t and wouldn’t live without her.
He quickly turned to her and kissed her quick on the lips and whispered in her ear.
“I love you, always.” He said softly.
Then he whispered something inaudible and she felt herself being sucked away.
With a loud pop, she disappeared from the battlefield and reappeared at the edge of the forest.
She looked around frantically. It wouldn’t take her long to get back but by then it could be over and Draco could be dead.
Tears started falling from her eyes as she took off as fast as she could towards the manor. She felt angry at him for sending her away and she felt destroyed at the thought of losing him.
***** ***** ***** ***** *****
He knew that if he managed to make it through this fight alive that he would have to deal with her anger but it was worth it. At least she would be safe for a little while.
He knew that she would try to get back as fast as she could but he needed the time to focus on the battle and not protecting her. It was what was needed to make sure they both made it out together in the end.
He felt more focused and strong. He blocked curses with ease and he was hitting death eaters with the killing curse all around him. He thought he was doing pretty well and making real progress when someone tackled him to the ground. He felt the air get knocked out of him as he hit the ground with a hard thud.
The man held him down and started hitting him. Hard blows landed painfully on Draco’s face. He tried to block the hits the best he could but he was pinned and having trouble breathing.
A green light hit the man in the back and he slumped forward on top of Draco. It took him a minute to be able to push the dead weight off of him and when he did, he was surprised to see who had saved him.
Ron Weasley nodded to Draco and he nodded back as a silent thank you. Ron ran off into the crowd and rejoined the fight while Draco slowly got back to his feet. He could feel blood running down his face and the back of his neck. He knew there was a gash on the back of his head and busted up nose from all the hits he took.
He looked around and he could see that the death eaters were losing. Their numbers were dwindling fast and he felt hope fill his emotions. ‘We might actually win.’ He thought to himself.
Just then he saw Hermione run through the crowd towards him. He was expecting her to slap him but instead, she ran straight into his arms.
The battle was starting to die down and there was a group forming behind them of their friends.
“I was so worried about you.” She cried into his arms.
When they finally pulled apart, they could see the crowd looking past them. They turned to see what they were all looking at. They were surprised to turn around and see Harry and Voldemort still battling each other. Their wands had locked on to each other with sparks from their spells shooting out everywhere. Red light was shooting from Harry’s wand and Green was shooting from Voldemorts.
The spells were tangled together and they were both fighting for dominance. The sparks turned into what looked like lava spilling from the lines of light with a great white ball of power stuck in the middle.
Slowly the red lava and light started to take over the green and push towards Voldemort. Harry was winning. Harry gripped his wand with both hands and gritted his teeth. Voldemort started to lose composure and even he knew this was the end.
The red light enveloped the green and hit Voldemort hard with a loud thud. Everything became silent and Voldemort dropped to the ground dead. It was finally over.
The crowd started to cheer and everyone hugged everyone. Hermione and Draco kissed each other and everyone was happy.
Slowly they felt the wind pick up and started to swirl around them. It was pulling hard at them and they had to hold each other so they wouldn’t fall over.
There was a groaning sound that came with the wind and it got louder and louder until they couldn’t hear anything else. There was a tornado of wind and sound pulling from every direction and into Voldemort's body.
The sky turned dark and red with lightning striking nearby. Then just as suddenly as it all had appeared, it stopped. The wind halted and the loud groan went completely quiet.
The sky remained dark and red but the lightning stopped. Everyone breathed heavily and looked at each other not knowing what had just happened.
Then, a loud bang and crack were sent through the air and the ground began to shake. Some people started screaming but no one knew what was happening or what to do.
Slowly a bright cloud of lightning and smoke started to gather around Voldemort and shot out towards everyone. It hit Harry first because he was the closest and he immediately disappeared with a loud scream.
The cloud was like a forcefield that was being sent out in every direction. It was moving so fast that it would hit all of them in a matter of seconds. There was no escape.
Draco pulled Hermione so tight into a hug that it hurt both their ribs but he would never let go. “I love you so much, Hermione.” He cried into her ear.
“I love you too.” She managed to gasp out through sobs.
They barely had enough time to say their final thoughts as the cloud hit them and all they could feel was agony… and then nothing.