𝕭𝖆𝖙𝖙𝖑𝖊 𝕾𝖈𝖆𝖗𝖘 || Fred Weasley

74

"Cassie!"

She was hugged by someone unfamiliar to her. She pulled away and looked at Viola. What Cassie hated was that she didn't see an ounce of sadness or fear.

"You picked the right side, have you?" she asked. "I knew you would."

"You think this is right?" Cassie sneered. "People are dying, Viola. Our friends are dying, even the pure-bloods."

There were two pairs of heavy footsteps. Cassie looked to the front and saw Dolohov and Yaxley walk towards them and the Dark Lord looked up.

"No sign of him, my Lord," said Dolohov.

The Dark Lord's expression did not change. His eyes seemed to burn in the firelight. Slowly, he drew the wand between his long fingers.

"My Lord— " Bellatrix had spoken from his side, disheveled, her face a little bloody but otherwise unharmed.

He raised his hand to silence her, and she did not speak another word but eyed him with admiration and a bit of longing.

"I thought he would come," said the Dark Lord in his high, clear voice, his eyes on the flames. "I expected him to come. I was, it seems... mistaken."

"You weren't."

Cassie looked ahead. In front of them was Harry Potter. The giants roared as the Death Eaters rose together. There were many cries, gasps, and even laughter. The Dark Lord had frozen where he stood and he stared as Potter moved toward him.

"HARRY! NO!"

Hagrid was bound and trussed, tied to a tree nearby. His massive body shook the branches overhead as he struggled, desperate.

"NO! NO! HARRY, WHAT'RE YEH— "

"QUIET!" shouted Rowle, and with a flick of his wand, Hagrid was silenced.

Bellatrix was looking eagerly from Voldemort to Potter. Cassie glanced to her mother and father, who did not care about the boy's death, but the status of their son.

"Harry Potter," said the Dark Lord softly. "The Boy Who Lived."

None of the Death Eaters moved. They were waiting. The Dark Lord had raised his wand. His head was still tilted to one side, like a curious child, wondering what would happen if he proceeded. Potter had glanced to Cassie, who was standing with her parents and had turned to her father, away from him. Then, Potter looked back into his eyes. With a flash of green light, everything was gone.

Whispers and solicitous murmurs filled the air once it was done. Cassie had watched as the Dark Lord had fallen, weakened.

"My Lord... my Lord... " Bellatrix spoke as if to a lover. "My Lord... "

"That will do," said the Dark Lord, silencing her.

Several people backed away from the spot and returned to the crowd lining the clearing. Bellatrix alone remained behind, standing behind the Dark Lord.

"My Lord, let me— "

"I do not require your assistance," said the Dark Lord coldly and Bellatrix withdrew her hand. "Cassie... if you would?"

Cassie remembered what Snape had told her. She sighed and walked towards him. The Dark Lord grabbed her hand with much force that it hurt. Then, the magic Cassie had transferred to him. Cassie couldn't fight it, but then Viola had grabbed her hand and pulled her away. The Dark Lord looked up at Viola with a dangerous look, but Viola did not tremble.

The Dark Lord slowly stood then said, "The boy... Is he dead?"

There was complete silence in the clearing. Nobody had approached him.

"You," said the Dark Lord. There was a bang and a small shriek of pain. Cassie looked back to her mother. "Examine him. Tell me whether he is dead."

Narcissa walked towards the boy's body. She had touched his face and felt his heart. She leaned closed and whispered, "Is Draco alive? Is he in the castle?"

The whisper was barely audible, her lips were an inch from his ear, her head bent so low that her long hair shielded his face from the onlookers.

"Yes," Potter breathed back.

Narcissa withdrew from Potter and stood up. "He is dead!" Narcissa Malfoy called to the watchers.

The crowd had shouted, yelling in triumph, and stamped their feet. Red and silver light shot into the air in celebration.

Still feigning death on the ground, Potter had understood it all. Narcissa knew that the only way she would be permitted to enter Hogwarts and find her son was as part of the conquering army. She no longer cared whether the Lord won. And Cassie had been risking her life to take care of her family, and not only her family by blood, but the people who he had also considered his family.

"You see?" the Dark Lord yelled over the cheers. "Harry Potter is dead by my hand and no man alive can threaten me now! Watch! Crucio!"

Potter was lifted into the air and was thrown three times into the air. His glasses had flown off and Cassie had seen his wand slide beneath his robes and land on the ground. When Potter fell to the ground for the last time, the clearing echoed with jeers and shrieks of laughter.

"Now, we go to the castle and show them what has become of their hero. Who shall drag the body? No... Wait... You carry him," the Dark Lord said to Hagrid. "He will be nice and visible in your arms, will he not? Pick up your little friend, Hagrid. And the glasses, put on the glasses. He must be recognizable."

Cassie had walked towards Potter slowly, feeling drained after she had given so much energy. She picked up Potter's wand and slipped it into her robes. She picked up his glasses and put them on his face. As she did so, she felt his breath on her hand and stared at his figure as Hagrid had picked him up in his trembling arms.

"Move," said the Dark Lord and Hagrid stumbled forward, forcing his way through the close-growing trees, back through the forest.

"BANE!" Hagrid's unexpected bellow had taken Cassie off guard. "Happy now, are yeh, that yeh didn't fight, yeh cowardly bunch o' nags? Are yeh happy Harry Potter's dead!"

They exited the forest and crossed the bridge and to the courtyard which had been destroyed. Through the door was the entrance hall where many would be in the Great Hall, tending to the wounded.

"Harry Potter is dead," said the Dark Lord. "He was killed as he ran away, trying to save himself while you lay down your lives for him. We bring you his body as proof that your hero is gone.

"The battle is won. You have lost half of your fighters. My Death Eaters outnumber you and the Boy Who Lived is finished. There must be no more war. Anyone who continues to resist, man, woman or child, will be slaughtered, as will every member of their family. Come out of the castle now, kneel before me, and you shall be spared. Your parents and children, your brothers and sisters will live and be forgiven, and you will join me in the new world we shall build together. Come," the Dark Lord finished.

The Death Eaters came to a halt, then they had spread out in a line facing the open front doors of the school.

Slowly, heads came into view. Cassie had seen Neville walk towards them with a tattered hat in his hand. Then, Ginny had approached with her father beside her. Ron and Hermione had come forth and so did more of the staff and students. The Malfoys looked around, trying to spot the youngest of the family.

"NO!" screamed Ginny, running forward, but her father stopped her. "NO!"

"SILENCE!" cried the Dark Lord, and there was a bang and a flash of bright light, and silence was forced upon them all.

It was quiet. The wind blew and the two sides faced each other. One with triumphant expressions, the other with defeated, sad ones. They believed it to be the end, but only a few knew it was not.