Time After Time. *Complete*

Chapter Thirty Four - Amanda

"SHE WHAT?" Hermione and Leo shouted causing several people to jump and look in their direction, not actually able to see them. Madame Pince shushed them though as she knew full well where they were sitting.
Daphne nodded. "Theo and I happened upon them and Theo shielded Pansy, bouncing back and narrowly missing Amanda in the process. She ran off after that and we didn't see her again. Not until the battle."
"She was at the battle?" Leo asked wishing he had met Amanda to repay her for the kindness she showed to his wife and the love of his life.
"She didn't last long," Daphne frowned. "We found her in the dungeon after Draco helped us escape. We were clearing a path, moving bodies," Daphne began to shake. She hadn't had to think about this for years.

No one did, nor did they want to.
"We had to basically pile students, Death Eaters and the likes on top of one another to make space." She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. It was not something she had talked about much. The Order and teachers were able to have the time to lay their victims out to honour them properly but in the middle of the battle, there just wasn't the time. "A few of us, who had Medic training as part of our extracurricular activities, began to help with the injured."

Leo knew what she was going to say. Pansy had dealt with this trauma just before they first met. It took quite a bit of therapy and healing. Hermione however, had never heard this side of the battle before. She heard about everything from Draco's perspective and from those close to her at the time like Luna, Ginny, Order members but not her Slytherin family. She could tell that Daphne was struggling however, and she didn't want to press her further.

"It's alright Daphne," she smiled patting her hand. "You don't need to tell us any more."
"It was awful," another voice spoke up, and they heard the scrapping of chairs. Hermione looked up to see Blaise taking a seat and pulling Luna on to his knee. Draco caressed Hermione's cheek as he pulled a chair up next to her and wrapped his arm around her, with Harry taking the seat next to her. Pansy stood by Leo hugging him from behind, her eyes filled with tears. Theo perched himself on the edge of the arm of Daphne's chair. Blaise continued. "We didn't have much training, but we had to do something. We had to help."

"Professor Slughorn was with us," Pansy said her lip wobbling. "He told us to help those who could be saved. He was checking on people and...and...those who..." she sniffed.
Theo continued. "Those who could be saved, Slughorn placed an orb over them. Those who were too badly injured he didn't. He said he read it in a book," Theo sighed heavily. "So we worked on those who could be saved, leaving the others to.... Die."
Daphne and Pansy both sobbed, even Luna had tears in her eyes. Hermione was shaking and Draco was holding her tighter. Harry took her hand, gripping it tightly.

Pansy rubbed her eyes. "I was stepping over two victims who were dying to attend to a young boy with an orb over him when I spotted her. Professor Slughorn was checking her over. I couldn't move. I completely froze as I watched them. She was gasping for breath and holding onto his robes, fear, and panic in her eyes. She was crying as he scanned his wand over her. She was begging him to help her. Pleading with him over and over." Pansy was crying now as Leo stood up to wrap his arms around her, holding her close to him. "He... he... shook his head and stood up. I waited. I was waiting for him to put the orb over her head," she took a rasping breath. "But he didn't. He moved onto the next person." She sobbed. "He didn't put an orb over her head. He knew she was too badly injured. He... he left her. To die." She turned and cried into Leo's shoulder.

"Pans, honey," Hermione wiped a tear from her own eyes. "I am so sorry we brought this up. We didn't want to upset you or -"
Pansy shook her head and looked to Hermione. "It's OK Mia," she nodded. "It's good to talk about her. To remember her." She took a deep breath. "Theo began attending to the buy in front of me and I ran to Amanda's side. I held her hand. She knew by the look in my eyes that she was going to die. She smiled and then laughed. 'Well this is not how I planned to go,' she said as she squeezed my hand. 'But I deserve this. To make up for my mistakes. I go in place of him. Seems like a good swap.' She had jumped in front of a spell aimed at Blaise and was hit, falling back onto fallen debris which impaled her."

"She died a few minutes after Pansy got to her," Theo said sadly. We were consoling Pansy, and we didn't see the group who lifted her body onto the pile -
"Throwing her away like she was dirt!" Pansy snapped. "That was my cousin. My family. She may have... done something bad, but she was sorry. I knew she was sorry. She wasn't evil."
"No," Daphne and Draco said together with Draco adding. "She wasn't evil. She was manipulated and bullied, mentally abused. She was vulnerable, and those bastards took advantage of her!"

"I am so sorry that happened to you," Harry said. Pansy was sitting on his right and he turned his body in the chair to face her. "Your cousin didn't deserve that. I am sorry -"
Pansy used her hand to cover his mouth. "You didn't do anything wrong," she said looking him dead in the eye, no longer upset but quite determined. "You did not kill her! It wasn't you who threw a curse at Blaise. That is why she was killed. She jumped in front of Blaise to protect him. The final thing she did was an act of bravery."
"She redeemed herself," Draco nodded.
"In everyone's eyes," Blaise added.

"She was a very brave woman," Harry nodded. He had only heard half the story but he knew who they were talking about. After he graduated, he began his Auror training and one day a week of that training was looking into old files. Amanda Shrover was amoung those files. He read all about how her parents were thrilled she became a Death Eater and forced her to attend meetings, befriend the Carrows, taught her unforgivable curses and abused and beat her if she refused. It sounded like a horrible childhood, worse than Draco's. Harry remembered feeling very sorry for the girl.

"She was," Pansy agreed. "She made plenty of mistakes -"
"Like nearly killing you?" Theo asked his eyebrow raised. He never liked Amanda. At first he thought she was shy and quiet...and a Hufflepuff for Merlin's sake! But after she tried to curse Pansy he loathed her. He wasn't as quick to forgive.
"But she saved Blaise. She fought for the right side in the end. That iswhat is important," Pansy almost growled.

Draco cleared his throat. "We all made mistakes -"
"Some more than others," Blaise smirked but Luna slapped his arm.
"Any one of us Syltherin's could have had the same upbringing as Amanda. We did to a certain extent. She was one of us. She just never got her second chance," he looked down at the table. The guilt of surviving still haunted him at times. He lived while others like little Colin Creevy and Lavender Brown died.

"She sounds like she would have been a welcome member to our little blended family," Luna smiled making Pansy smile.
"She is one," Hermione added. "She will always be."

Pansy looked to the names on the table. Names she etched in when she was in 5th or 6th year. She smiled at the memory. She noticed the three missing and knew it was probably Daphne. No one else probably even knew the names were there. She lifted her wand, flicking it and watched smiling, as:
Hermione Granger
Luna Lovegood
Harry Potter
Were added to the list. She used the girls maiden names, like hers and Daphne's so if anyone did ever find them, they might know who they were.

Harry was touched that his name was added to the list. It was the final little touch to let him know that this group - the ones he had spent years judging and hating, thought of him as one of their own, part of their family.