Inverness was on fire.
A large river ran through the heart of the city.
They had apparated in the middle of a square.
Muggles were running and screaming in all directions. Homes by the river were burning, and cars were abandoned in the middle of the street.
Yaxley was arguing with Lucius, while Helen and Snape tried to find Edevane...
Hermione struggled to breathe under her disguise. Dolohov's mask was tied too tightly to her face. She feared her hood would slip off at any moment...
"WATCH OUT!" Draco shouted.
A muggle building in front of them collapsed.
Hermione and Draco ran, fearing they'd be trapped underneath the wreckage.
"Keep moving!" Draco shouted. "Come on!"
Muggles were crossing suspension bridges that led to the other side of the city. Some of them dragged their possessions along in suitcases, while others left everything behind.
In their panic, people shoved past each other. A child was left behind crying, as his father was lost in the crowd.
Hermione looked away from the bridge, her eyes scanning the streets.
Some muggles didn't dare move at all. They knelt in the middle of the square, hanging on to each other, as buildings around them collapsed.
"Where's Bellatrix?" Hermione asked Draco. Her voice still sounded like Dolohov's, altered by the potion Snape had given her. "She's supposed to bring Harry—"
"I don't know," Draco said, taking in the scale of the destruction around them. "I don't know..."
Edevane was leading Voldemort's Albanian army. They were advancing on the allies...
A large band of muggle rebels fought back, firing weapons at both the Albanians and Magical Alliance alike.
Gunshots and curses rang throughout the city, as the worlds of magic and muggle collided.
Hermione gasped when she saw the Arévalos standing in the crossfire, but the bullets bounced off their arms and torsos. Their dark cloaks billowed behind them, as they tried to compel the muggles to stay back, while the Order and the Alliance fought Voldemort's forces head on.
Some wizards dueled on the ground, while others fought on brooms in mid-air.
Hermione spotted Mad-Eye Moody as he aimed a curse at Rookwood and two others.
"Look!" someone shouted.
Hermione froze. In the distance, she could see a large loch that led to the ocean. The sails of the Dragomir billowed in the wind, approaching the city.
Nikola had come to join the fight.
Above Hermione, Braaten flew through the air, riding his eight-legged stallion. He shot curses at Edevane but the old wizard was quick to react, sending a forceful blast his way.
Braaten was nearly thrown off his saddle, but he recovered and made a nose dive for the Death Eaters gathered below.
They scattered, as the hooves of Braaten's horse slammed into the ground. The creature galloped across the square, trampling several of Edevane's followers in the process.
Hermione heard a loud roar. She looked up and saw one of Voldemort's dragons soar down, making a dive for the allies. In unison, they raised their wands. They conjured thick ropes that wrapped around the dragon's neck.
The beast roared in anger.
The allies sent curses its way, shooting jets of light into its eyes. Blinded, the dragon fell through the air and landed in the river with a thunderous crash that shook the whole city.
Hermione froze when she caught sight of Sebastián again. He streaked through the ranks of Voldemort's soldiers, ripping their heads from their bodies.
Soon, the streets were awash with blood.
"Where is the Dark Lord?" demanded a shrill voice.
Hermione jumped, seeing that Bellatrix had apparated by Yaxley's side.
Bellatrix was holding a broom in one hand. She maintained a vice-like grip on Harry with the other.
Hermione's heart leapt, desperate to grab him and run.
Yaxley pointed to the top of a cathedral.
Hermione looked up.
Clinging to the steeple was Voldemort. His eyes were alight with fire as he watched the city burn below him.
"We must keep the allies back!" Bellatrix warned. "I must take Potter to the Dark Lord!"
Hermione's pulse raced. She had to stop Bellatrix...
There was a loud whistling sound.
Draco reached for Hermione's arm. "Watch out!"
The Dragomir had released cannon fire.
A massive explosion sent everyone flying in opposite directions.
Hermione flew through the air...chunks of wood rained down on her face, her arms, her legs...
She hit the ground with a thud.
There was smoke everywhere, and Hermione felt something sticky and wet trickle down her face. She touched her forehead and her fingertips were stained red.
She realized then that her mask was gone.
Hermione pushed her way out of the wreckage, coughing.
Bellatrix was still standing.
She forced Harry onto her broom, intent on delivering him to Voldemort atop the cathedral.
Hermione watched them fly away, paralyzed.
"Your mask!" Draco shouted. "It's gone!"
Hermione turned to look at him. She had lost sight of him in the explosion.
Draco was lying on the ground. He unfastened his mask and threw it at her.
"Put it on!" he shouted. "Hurry!"
Hermione did as he said.
Draco stood. His robes were torn. There was a terrible gash in his leg.
"You need to go now," Draco said, seeing that his father was standing only a few feet away, looking for him.
Hermione stared back at him, wondering if this was the last time she'd ever see him...
A horde of muggles pushed past them and one of the men started shooting.
Chaos reigned.
The Death Eaters shot killing curses into the crowd, but they struggled to see through the flames and smoke that surrounded them.
Draco reached for Hermione's hand. The man with the gun rounded on them.
Draco had a split-second to react. "Protego!" he shouted, as the muggle blasted a whole round of fire into his shield.
"I can't stun him!" Draco shouted, turning to Hermione. "You have to—"
"I'm trying!" she cried. "I can't see—"
Draco's eyes widened when he heard her speak. "Your voice...it's back. You don't sound like Dolohov anymore."
"Petrificus Totalus!" Hermione screamed.
The shooter's arms snapped to his sides, and he keeled over with a heavy crash.
Draco and Hermione ran, disappearing into the crowd.
Lucius seized Yaxley.
"Where is Draco?!" he asked, trying to see through the smoke.
"I don't know!"
Lucius struggled to breathe. The heat from the flames was unbearable, the smoke was choking him...
"Lucius we must go," said Yaxley.
Lucius looked desperately into the crowd. "I'm not going anywhere without my son."
***
Hermione and Draco ran.
The muggles around them screamed, pointing to Voldemort at the top of the cathedral.
Hermione looked up. Voldemort was clutching Harry tightly to him. He raised his wand.
A wave of blue light washed over the city.
The muggles ran and hid inside buildings, terrified.
Hermione had a sudden sinking feeling. She knew what the spell was, even though she'd never seen it before.
"We can't let it touch us!" Draco shouted.
The allies raised their wands and conjured a protective shield around the square. It trembled slightly, threatening to buckle under the weight of Voldemort's spell.
Hermione felt her nerves electrify. Her magic shot through her veins, blasting to the ends of her fingertips.
She and Draco screamed.
Hermione tried to reach for her wand, but as soon as she touched it, she felt a terrible pain.
She snatched her hand back.
It was like she'd been electrocuted.
She saw flashes of white. There was a loud whirring sound...her vision blurred...
Voldemort was trying to drain them of magic.
For several moments she and Draco couldn't breathe. They stood frozen, and their magic pulsed weakly, threatening to leave their bodies completely...protected only by the thin shield the allies had conjured.
There was a loud snapping sound.
Hermione looked up.
The shield started to shatter, and light burst through the cracks, striking some of the allies.
Hermione knew she and Draco had to move. They had to look for cover. If they were caught in the light, their magic would be ripped away...
They spotted an old building a few feet away, but it was on fire.
She and Draco made a run for it, but Voldemort's spell yanked them back.
At the last second they threw themselves behind a pile of rubble.
The shield in the sky shattered completely.
Hermione and Draco watched, helpless, as Voldemort's curse inched towards them across the ground.
Suddenly, there were shouts from the crowd. A woman in a blue cloak was walking through the flames and rubble that engulfed the center of the square. She walked forward, unafraid, and a silver light erupted from her wand, shooting into the night sky.
The light illuminated the crowd's faces. It twisted and spread over the city, moving through buildings, and across the ground. It weakened Voldemort's curse until it dissipated.
There was utter silence.
Standing with the Order, Hermione recognized survivors from Hogwarts: Dean Thomas, Anthony Goldstein, Michael Corner and a few others...
She wondered if Ron was here.
When Hermione looked away from them, she saw that the woman in the blue cloak had gone.
"Can you still do magic?" Draco asked, distracting her.
"What?"
"Can you still do magic?"
Hermione's hand trembled.
She raised her wand and levitated a stone. It raised an inch then fell again.
"It's weak," she said.
Draco took her hand. "We need to disapparate."
"I'm not going anywhere with you!"
Draco ignored her and closed his eyes, trying to focus...
He pictured his destination...
Something in the air pitched them forward then snapped them back like a tightly wound chord.
Draco looked around. There were bodies scattered all around him, mostly fighters from Voldemort's army. He searched for a broom, but most were broken and splintered. He guessed the wizards had fought in mid-air, then fallen to their deaths.
"Here," he said, rolling the body of a man over. "I think I found one—"
There was a familiar whistling sound.
Draco and Hermione ran for cover.
They launched themselves behind a car, covering their heads as a thunderous blast shook the earth.
They coughed, covered in dust and smoke.
When they stood, they saw a crater inches from where they'd been standing.
"Hurry," said Draco, mounting the broom he'd found. He pulled Hermione up behind him. "We have to get out of here."
***
From the top of the cathedral, Harry stared down at the burning city.
His scar throbbed painfully.
"You could have spared Inverness before you died," Voldemort said. He laughed softly. "You should have asked the allies to surrender long ago."
Harry looked into his snake-like eyes. "They'll never stop. They'll go on long after I'm dead. And you know it."
Voldemort raised his wand, casting curses at the bridges below them.
"No!" Harry shouted.
The cables snapped. The concrete crumbled. People screamed as they fell into the river.
Voldemort laughed. He seized Harry's neck and they both soared into the sky.
"You are the reason they, and everyone else in this city will be dead by dawn."
***
Hermione and Draco flew haphazardly, weaving in and out of buildings.
Through the rising smoke, Hermione caught sight of Harry.
She grabbed Draco's wrist, trying to steer the broom in his direction.
"Stop!" shouted Malfoy, as the broom jerked left.
Voldemort threw a curse at the cathedral, hoping to kill the muggles standing below.
The steeple snapped in half.
The muggles fled as the cathedral began to crumble.
Hermione screamed. "Draco, watch out!"
He swerved to avoid the wreckage. He couldn't see through the fire and smoke that consumed the city...they were going to hit something...
"Hold on!" he shouted. "Hold—"
Something struck the back end of the broom.
They lost control...they were spiraling...
They flew off the broom and into the air...
Hermione's heart seized as she fell.
The ground was rushing up to meet them all too soon. They were going to smash their heads against the pavement...
Hermione whipped out her wand. "Arresto momentum!"
Their bodies snapped forward violently, freezing an inch above ground.
Hermione looked at her surroundings. Her pulse quickened when she caught sight of the woman in the blue cloak. She was at the edge of the river, weaving in and out of the crowd of panicked muggles.
Hermione released herself and Draco from the spell, and their feet hit solid ground.
Only ten feet away Alastor Moody and the rest of the Order were trying to rescue muggles trapped in the wreckage of an old building.
Hermione spotted Bill Weasley, and ran towards him, forgetting she was dressed as a Death Eater.
"BILL!"
He spun around and raised his wand at her, "Get back, you bastard!" he shouted. "AVADA KEDAVRA!"
Hermione fled, missing Bill's curse by inches.
She tore off her mask and pushed back her hood.
"Bill, it's me!"
"Hermione?!" yelled Ron, running up behind his brother.
"RON!" she shouted.
Bill grabbed the back of his cloak. "Stop! It might be a trick!"
Hermione looked left.
The woman in the blue cloak was getting away, crossing a bridge that led to the other side of the city.
Hermione swallowed. She was still in time to reach her...
"Alastor!" shouted Bill, when his gaze landed on Malfoy. "It's Draco Malfoy! He's got Hermione—"
Hermione's blood chilled.
Moody spotted Draco from the other side of the street. He raised his wand.
"CRUCIO!" he shouted.
Draco collapsed, screaming in agony.
"STOP!" Hermione screamed.
Mad-Eye raced towards Malfoy. He looked determined to curse him to pieces...
Adrenaline rushed through Hermione's veins. She ran in front of Draco, blocking him.
"HERMIONE, NO!" Ron shouted, trying to rip free from Bill's grasp.
"What are you doing?!" Draco whispered at her through clenched teeth, "Get out of here—"
"Out of my way, girl!" growled Moody.
He was standing directly under an arch. Hermione raised her wand, muttering a spell.
There was a loud rumbling sound as the structure began to fall apart.
Moody jumped backwards.
"Run!" Hermione shouted at Draco, as the arch crumbled. "You're on your own now, go!"
Draco stood, breathing hard.
Hermione pushed him again. "GO!"
Draco backed away from her but then Hermione spotted the woman in the blue cloak again. She had almost reached the other side of the bridge.
"Hermione don't," Draco warned.
"I have to find out who she is."
"Then I'm going with you."
"I don't need your help."
"HERMIONE!" Ron screamed.
For a moment time stood still. Instinct told Hermione to move towards Ron, but her feet remained rooted to the ground.
Hermione jumped when she saw Moody climbing over the wreckage.
It was now or never.
Hermione ran and Draco cursed loudly, chasing after her.
They pushed past muggles, dodging curses from the Albanians.
"Where are you going?!" Draco shouted.
Hermione ignored him, finally making it to the bridge.
She climbed on.
Draco followed after her. "Hermione, wait!"
They made it half-way across, then jets of green light shot over their heads.
People pushed past them, screaming.
They looked up.
Rookwood flew over the crowd on a broomstick.
He slashed his wand through the air, as Voldemort had done earlier.
One by one, the cables of the suspension bridge snapped, and Hermione and Draco were pitched forward.
The bridge split in two and the river rose up to meet them...
People slid past them as they fell into the murky water.
"Hold on to me!" Draco shouted. "Hold on—"
The bridge crumbled.
They fell forty feet, plunging into the ice-cold water.
Hermione was buffeted by bits of falling wreckage.
Draco's hand closed around her wrist, and he pulled her to the surface.
They broke through the water and gasped for air. People were kicking and screaming around them.
Some lay face-down in the water, struck unconscious by bits of metal and concrete.
Other muggles tried to swim to the riverbank, but there were Death Eaters waiting for them on the other side. They kicked them in the face, forcing them to stay back.
A little girl next to them cried, holding onto her younger brother. She pointed up at the sky.
A swarm of Dementors were gliding towards them.
Hermione raised her wand, trying to cast a patronus charm. A wisp of silver-blue light emerged from her wand but quickly dissipated.
She turned to Draco. "It's not working!"
"A witch!" A woman next to her screamed. "A witch—in the water!"
Before Hermione could defend herself, the woman hit her in the face. She grabbed her shoulders and pushed her down, submerging her.
Hermione saw people's legs...chunks of concrete and metal...a body drifted past her...
She shot a spell at her attacker and twisted free, rising to the surface again, gasping for air.
"Hermione!" shouted Draco.
"I'm fine," she said.
The little girl next to them struggled to hold onto her little brother. She sank an inch below water, and Draco rushed to help her.
"It's alright," he said. "I've got y—"
"Draco watch out!" Hermione cried.
A man swam up behind him, holding a weapon. He tore the children out of his grasp.
"Stay away from them, you devil!" he shouted, catching sight of Draco's wand.
He fired a shot into the air, making the Dementors scatter.
Hermione watched the man swim to the riverbank, only to be blocked by the Death Eaters.
The dementors moved back into formation and surrounded the muggles trapped in the river. Cries of anguish rent the air, as their souls were removed from their bodies. Hermione heard the dementor's rattling breath, and watched the muggles fight tirelessly against them, but it was no use. They dropped like stones to the bottom of the river.
Hermione and Draco panicked, struggling to stay above water.
"We're going to drown!" Hermione cried. "We have to disapparate!"
Two of the Dementors rushed towards them, sensing their unwillingness to die, their desire to fight...
Draco raised his wand, trying to focus, trying to envision a destination in his mind. The air around them trembled, but they didn't move an inch. "I can't, it's not working!"
"Draco, hurry!" she screamed. "Hurry!"
"I'm trying!"
"DRACO!"
They both screamed. They were wrenched away from the river, sucked into a whirlwind, but something was wrong. They were spinning in odd directions, knocking into each other, then drifting apart again. Hermione reached for Draco, but her fingers only grasped thin air.
"Draco?!" she screamed into the void, spinning more violently.
"DRACO!"
But there was no answer, he was gone.
***
Voldemort and Harry flew over Inverness, eventually reaching the edge of the city.
They hovered just above the Dragomir.
The crew ran across the deck, scrambling to reload the canons.
"REIGN HELL UPON THEM!" Nikola cried, as she and the crew blasted fire into the city once more.
Konstantin stood faithfully by her side, unfazed by the shouts and blasts.
Harry and Voldemort shot through the night sky, hidden by clouds and smoke.
Voldemort laughed into Harry's ear. "The Bulgarians will soon meet their end. They will fall with the Order and the allies...and they will see that the only way forward, is at my side..."
Harry felt as though he was a million miles away from the people fighting below.
They were flying over the ocean now. Moments later, they plummeted down, heading for shore.
Harry's feet slammed into the ground.
The hillside in front of them was dark. The only thing he could hear were the waves crashing onto shore.
Harry's heart began to beat faster. He had prepared for this, thought about it for months. He willed himself to meet death calmly, but his body refused to listen. His heart was hammering in his chest violently, as though it would fly out of him.
He thought of the people trapped in the city and gathered his courage. He knew that the sooner his life ended, the sooner theirs could be spared.
Harry stood and faced Voldemort.
A jet of light hit him full in the face.
Harry flipped backwards and into the air, landing with a crash in the ocean.
Voldemort moved towards him. He seized the back of his jumper and plunged him head-first into the freezing water.
Harry screamed, but no sound came out, only bubbles emerged from his mouth. The water stung his eyes, and his glasses floated away.
Voldemort yanked him up for air then plunged him back down again.
Harry fought him, but soon his lungs were burning...there were black spots in his vision...
When he thought he couldn't take it any longer, Voldemort tossed him back to shore.
Harry coughed up water, shaking violently.
Death Eaters apparated around them. First Bellatrix, then Yaxley, followed by Lucius and Snape...
"He's mine!" Voldemort warned them, moving in front of Harry.
"We have come to assist you, my Lord!" Bellatrix pleaded.
Voldemort pulled Harry into the ocean. He raised his wand, muttering an incantation. A wave crashed over them. The water wrapped itself around them, turning to ice.
"That's better," said Voldemort.
Harry shivered. It felt like they were trapped in a glass cave. He could see the outline of the Death Eaters, blurry now, behind the ice.
Voldemort moved closer to him.
"I asked you to join me in your very first year at Hogwarts, do you remember it, Potter?"
Harry looked at him, surprised. "You wanted the Sorcerer's Stone. You wanted to trick me into handing it over."
Without warning, Voldemort touched his face.
Harry screamed as his scar seared with pain.
"You could have been my heir," Voldemort said softly. "Learned magic only I could teach you..."
Harry pushed him away and gasped for air. "You've never wanted an heir. All you've ever wanted is immortality."
Voldemort stared at him like he was a particularly interesting puzzle. "You grew up at Dumbledore's side, but you developed no special skills, no extraordinary talents...and yet somehow, your fame rivals my own. Why do you think that is, Potter?"
Harry swallowed. He knew there was no right answer to the question. Voldemort would punish him either way.
"I don't know," said Harry simply. "I'm not like you or Dumbledore. I haven't changed the laws of magic. I haven't started wars or ended them. But I lived my life, truly lived it. I don't think you can say the same."
Voldemort's eyes narrowed. His fingers tightened on his wand.
"What are you waiting for?" Harry challenged. His body trembled with anticipation. "Go ahead."
He didn't fear Voldemort anymore. He only feared the loss of his friends, the life he knew...
"At least you are brave," said Voldemort. "That much is true...your parents were brave too..."
Voldemort raised his wand, but still, he hesitated.
"DO IT!" Harry shouted. "DO IT NOW!"
"MORS MULTARUM!" Voldemort cried.
The curse hit Harry squarely in the chest.
The ice around them shattered.
Both Harry and Voldemort screamed.
They both flew backwards, landing on the shore.
Harry gasped for air. Patches of light burned bright on his arm, and like a network of veins they traveled up to his neck then to his forehead. The lights blazed brilliantly then faded, and just when Harry caught his breath, they formed again, causing him terrible pain.
Voldemort's eyes narrowed, as he caught sight of something in the distance. A woman was standing alone on the hillside. Her blue cloak billowed in the wind. He knew her face, her eyes...but something about her was different...
Snape moved forward.
"Don't touch them!" Bellatrix shouted. "You may harm the Dark Lord!"
Voldemort's eyes lost focus, and his head snapped back.
Snape pushed past Bellatrix. "We must make certain that Potter dies."
Harry saw Snape approach him while the rest of the Death Eaters stood back, watching apprehensively.
Next to him, Voldemort was flat on his back, staring up at the sky, his mouth open in a silent scream.
Snape spoke so low, Harry could barely hear him.
He placed his hand under his head, lifting him up.
"Look at me," he said.
Harry turned his head. Blood spilled out of his mouth and ran down his chin.
It was odd, how cold it was...much colder than when Voldemort had plunged him into the ocean...
Snape's face was blurry...he fought to bring it into focus.
"Potter, can you hear me?"
He was glad that Ron and Hermione weren't here. He didn't want them to see him like this...bleeding and weak...
Harry grimaced with pain.
"Lily is waiting for you," Snape was saying softly. His voice was almost like a distant echo. "She has always waited for you..."
Harry frowned at Snape, wondering why he was trying to ease him into death.
Snape bent his head down, as if to check his heartbeat. "I loved her," he whispered almost inaudibly. "Your mother...I love her still."
Harry's eyes widened. He clutched Snape's arm as pain racked his body.
They stared into each other's eyes.
Harry realized then that everyone had their secrets.
And secrets were what killed you slowly. He should have told Hermione the truth ages ago. Maybe she could have helped him find a way to—
He shuddered, coughing up blood again.
He looked up at the star-filled sky, trying to keep from sliding into the darkness that beckoned him...
He tried to focus on the sound of the ocean, if could just focus on that, then maybe...maybe...
Snape shook him. "Potter?"
Harry lay still in Snape's arms, his eyes permanently fixed on the stars.
"What's happened?!" Bellatrix asked.
Snape stared into Harry's eyes...Lily's eyes. The light was gone from them. It was like losing her all over again.
"He's dead," said Snape, his voice hollow.
Behind him the other Death Eaters shouted triumphantly.
But their cries of joy were soon stifled, when they saw Voldemort stir.
"My Lord?" Bellatrix asked.
Voldemort gasped loudly. He looked at Snape.
Harry looked like a small child in his arms.
"What's happened?" Voldemort asked, disoriented. He touched Harry. "Did she kill him? Did Catherine kill him? Henry..."
Lucius and Yaxley looked at each other.
Voldemort yanked Harry away from Snape, pressing his ear to his chest. "There's no heartbeat," he said. "He's dead...Henry is dead..."
"Henry?" repeated Bellatrix, approaching him. "That is Harry, Harry Potter my Lord." She kneeled beside Voldemort. "You killed him."
"Potter?" Voldemort repeated. He looked in the direction of the hillside again. The woman in the blue cloak was gone, but other figures emerged from the darkness.
"The Arévalos!" Yaxley shouted.
Sebastián, Magdalena and two others were approaching, tearing down the hillside.
They had left their fellows in the city, ordering them to keep fighting.
"We must go, my Lord!" Bellatrix screamed. You cannot remain here unprotected!"
Voldemort finally came to his senses. "We will not cower to them," he said, staring at Sebastián.
He let go of Harry's body and gestured to Yaxley. "Lift me up!"
He pulled Voldemort to his feet and within seconds the Arévalos surrounded them.
Sebastián stared at Voldemort with his golden eyes. "Hello, Tom," he said.
Voldemort looked at him resentfully. "Sebastián Arévalo...you haven't changed at all."
Sebastián glanced at Voldemort's red eyes and the slits he had for nostrils. "I'm sorry I cannot say the same for you, Tom."
"You have arrived late, Harry Potter is dead."
"So he is," said Sebastián calmly. "I did not come to save him."
Voldemort spoke again. "You would do well to re-think your loyalties, Sebastián. I would not stop you from indulging in your true nature. In fact, I would welcome it. The allied forces will weaken as soon as they learn Potter is dead. The miserable boy hardly lived at all, he will be forgotten, in time..."
Sebastián smiled at him. "Potter lived more in his short life than you can ever imagine."
Voldemort gave him a withering look. "Such pitiful sentiments are beneath you. If you will not join us willingly, then be damned..."
Voldemort raised his wand, cursing him.
Sebastián moved out of the way.
The other vampires launched themselves at the Death Eaters.
Magdalena threw Bellatrix across the shore, eager to rip her to pieces.
Jets of light flew in every direction, as Lucius, Yaxley and Snape fought to keep the others at bay.
Voldemort cast another curse at Sebastián and he laughed, streaking past him.
"You have destroyed your last link to immortality, Tom."
Voldemort spun around, trying to keep Sebastián within his line of vision.
"You see, a part of your soul lived inside Harry...and now you have extinguished it, along with his life."
In a flash Sebastián seized Voldemort's neck. "You are mortal now."
Voldemort screamed with rage, trying to throw him off.
"Did you not suspect it?!" Sebastián shouted. He pressed his forehead against Voldemort's, searching his thoughts. "Think Tom, think back to that night..."
Voldemort's eyes widened, as Sebastián forced him to remember...
He was in Godric's Hollow. Harry was crying in his crib, and Lily was pleading at his feet.
Sebastián whispered into his ear. "Did you hesitate to kill him that night, because he reminded you of your own son? Did you resent the way Harry's mother fought to protect him, while your wife killed her child? Perhaps it was your hesitation that allowed Lily's sacrifice to take hold...and your soul to latch onto Harry's..."
"You know nothing of my past," Voldemort began, his eyes alight with rage.
"I know more than you dare dream," Sebastián whispered.
Voldemort pushed him away. Their connection broke and the memory vanished. He raised his wand. "Crucio!"
Sebastián laughed, as the jet of light hit his body with full force. "Is that the best you can do, Tom?!" he shouted, fighting through the pain.
Voldemort looked at him with contempt. "You forget that I am a WIZARD!"
Sebastián smiled. "And you forget, that I am IMMORTAL."
He threw Voldemort across shore, watching him fly through the air then hit the ground with full force.
Sebastián moved towards him.
"Try to remember, Tom. You swore a vow of loyalty to Salazar, did you not? You found his old writings, it was the condition he set in them, for his secrets to reveal themselves to you. You made a magically binding oath to protect his memory, his purpose and his bloodline."
"What of it?" Voldemort spat.
"You are Salazar's descendent, but what you do not know, is that I am his brother."
Voldemort's eyes widened in shock.
"We are kin, you cannot harm me. And I cannot harm you—because you made the oath."
Voldemort stood.
"You lie!" he began.
"Salazar was not who you think—"
"You are telling tales—"
"He and I shared the same father—a muggle—"
Voldemort tried to curse him again, but Sebastián flung him into the raging sea.
The waves crashed over Voldemort, obscuring him from view.
Moments later, he swam to the surface with furious, purposeful strokes, and when he reached shore he marched up to Sebastián. Beads of water dripped down his face and neck. "Salazar was a pure-blood."
Sebastián shook his head. "No, he was a half-blood like you. When you came to see me all those years ago, you were so obsessed with the way I had triumphed over death, but you should have asked me how I lived, not how I died."
"It is of no consequence!" Voldemort bellowed. "You will not stop me, I am stronger than you are! My life—"
"Your life ended long ago, when you killed your wife, just as mine ended when I betrayed my brother."
Voldemort's confidence threatened to break.
Sebastián circled him. "Immortality will not give you what you seek, Tom, it is a curse."
"My Lord, more are coming!" shouted Yaxley.
Members of the Order and the Alliance were running down the hillside.
Yaxley and Snape disapparated. Lucius followed shortly after.
"My Lord!" Bellatrix shouted. "We must go!"
Voldemort screamed.
There was a loud crack as he and Bellatrix vanished.
When they were gone Sebastián nodded to Magdalena. She edged away just as Alastor Moody, Hestia Jones, Aksel Agarby and two others reached shore.
"WHERE'S POTTER?!" Moody demanded. "WHERE IS HE?!"
"He's dead," said Sebastián simply.
Hestia covered her mouth in shock.
Moody's blue eye swiveled in its socket.
He turned to the youngest wizard accompanying him, a thin, freckled boy. "Recover Harry's body. Now, quickly!"
Moody rounded on Sebastián. "You could have stopped this from happening," he said, seizing his cloak. "But you just stood by!"
"Harry was not meant to survive," Sebastián said calmly. "In time you will understand."
Moody pointed a finger at him. "Always the same with your kind! Useless the lot of you! For all I know you're working for him!" he said, pointing to the spot where Voldemort had disappeared.
"Sir," said the freckled wizard, running towards Moody again.
"SIR!"
"WHAT IS IT?!" Moody growled.
"It's Harry's body, sir. It's gone."
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