Rating:
PG-13
House:
Schnoogle
Ships:
Cho Chang/Harry Potter Hermione Granger/Viktor Krum Original Female Witch/Ron Weasley
Characters:
Harry Potter
Genres:
Action Suspense
Era:
The Harry Potter at Hogwarts Years
Spoilers:
Philosopher's Stone Chamber of Secrets Prizoner of Azkaban Goblet of Fire
Stats:
Published: 02/06/2003
Updated: 02/18/2003
Words: 264,404
Chapters: 34
Hits: 87,813

Harry Potter and the Flying Squad

Horst Pollmann

Story Summary:
Fifth year in Hogwarts. Even before terms start, Harry is involved in the defence against an evil attack from the Dark Forces, something which ``later will be called 'The Hogwarts Express Accident' ...``In Hogwarts, many things are different - most of all, the joining of all four``Quidditch teams in the 'Flying Squad', for patrol and exploration services.``For Harry, this looks like a path toward Cho Chang, except that - well, ``maybe this should really be left to the story itself ...``At any rate, expect Giants, Goblins, and house-elves to play their roles in ``this fic - as well as some new characters.

Chapter 31 - The Battle of Hogwarts

Chapter Summary:
The fortress of Hogwarts is under attack from the Dark Forces - but the defenders strike back ...
Posted:
02/18/2003
Hits:
1,886
Author's Note:
If this fic is truly English, then it's thanks to the efforts of two people:

31 - The Battle of Hogwarts

Harry watched as Viktor's Steel Wing held its speed, still carrying a body that dangled from its safety belt. Another flash shot up from the attackers but missed, proving how simple speed could work as protection. Seconds later, the Steel Wing and its stunned rider were out of reach.

"C'mon!"

Not waiting for Cho's reaction, Harry accelerated as hard as possible without losing control. He aiming his course ahead of Viktor's Steel Wing, which kept racing across the sky.

He'd still aimed too short: the broomstick with its dangling body was passing the calculated meeting point while Harry was still at a fair distance.

Bending to the left, he drew the sharpest possible curve at his speed.

A hard force pressed him into the saddle and toward the broomstick. His vision dizzied; there was a lightness in his head, and his eyes were losing focus ... After a moment, his view sharpened again and the strange sensation in his mind faded. He was on course behind Viktor - well, more or less.

Then Viktor's Steel Wing started to slow down.

Harry closed in and adapted to the other broomstick's speed. Next moment, he had to brake hard - clearly the built-in escape from the battle scene had run out.

Cho appeared at Viktor's other side.

Harry pointed his wand at the motionless body, saw Cho do the same. In a moment, they'd know whether Viktor was only stunned or ...

"ENERVATE!"

A nerve-racking second passed, another, then a third, then Viktor's body twisted.

Relief washed through Harry. "Viktor! You okay?"

A hand waved, then there was a shout: "... guess so."

With his senses now fully awake, Viktor wasted no time. His hands grabbed the Steel Wing, his legs came up in a swing, and he was back in the saddle. The Steel Wing shuddered a bit, then Viktor had it under control.

They stopped in mid-air.

"Harry, Cho, thank you! What happened?"

"There must have been someone already out of the train," answered Harry. "It was at the head. I guess he saw you coming and had time enough to aim."

Viktor breathed deeply. "Wow - without this Steel Wing ..."

Cho asked, "What could you see?"

"In the train? Lots of people - standing at the windows and watching the spectacle."

"That's strange," said Harry. "Why don't they come out?"

Viktor hesitated and seemed to reconsider what he'd seen while passing the train. Then he looked up. "I'd say they were waiting for something."

"What?"

Viktor shrugged. "More wizards - Giants - Dementors. So far, we've been attacked only by bats and harpies."

Giants, Dementors ... The Death Eaters had timed the bats, the harpies, and the Hogwarts Express - then why couldn't Giants and Dementors arrive in time?

And what if they had been in time?

In that case ... An icy hand was crawling Harry's back.

"They're already there! And since they're not at Hogwarts, there's only one place left ..."

Viktor's eyes widened. "Our Giants?"

Harry nodded. "Must be - they've coordinated everything else. They're waiting until our Giants are fought down."

Slowly, Viktor nodded. "Sounds plausible ... yes, you might be right."

With every passing second, Harry felt more certain that this was the explanation. He looked at Cho. "Ready to check?"

She swallowed, then nodded. "Ready."

"Viktor - we're going to check on what's going on there. If it's nothing, or Giants against Giants, we'll be back as quickly as possible. If it's Dementors - "

" - you'll need longer," completed Viktor. "Be careful, and don't start something you can't finish."

Harry shook his head. "We're not going to fight Giants - or wizards, for that matter." He examined Viktor once more. "Are you okay, flying back alone?"

"I'm all right. Come back soon." Viktor sped off.

Harry looked at Cho. "Patrol formation - I'm head."

She nodded.

Pushing his own Steel Wing, he accelerated.

Bob ...

... saw Harry and Cho diving through the black cloud in which they'd blasted a hole. Scanning the sky for harpies, Bob wondered if it wasn't a better idea to clean the bats from below. As far as he could judge, the harpy attacks were completely above the layer; if that was true, a Squad team on the underside would be able to clean the sky unattacked.

Unless the harpies followed.

Unless other risks lurked on the ground.

Hissing in the distance announced another harpy wave. Their number was diminishing rapidly, now that teachers and students were shooting or beating them with success, but still - when a pair of them were closing in on you, a quick burst of speed at the right split second was the only way of avoiding a nasty hole in your body.

That one Squad member with the harpy on his back hadn't looked well. Oh well, Madam Pomfrey could do small to medium wonders, provided the patient was still alive when arriving.

Bob checked the courses of the approaching harpies. Then, glancing to his left where Angelina was busy cleaning bats, he saw that her attention wasn't fixed on the harpies.

"Ange - watch!"

Her hand signaled okay. So she'd checked them an instant before and had realized that none of the few remaining pairs was aiming at her.

Angelina - this name was just too long to call when fractions of a second counted. Bob had tried Angie, only to learn that no sir, that wasn't her name. They'd agreed on Ange, but it was still restricted to emergencies.

Sometimes, in other emergencies, he called her Angel, which never failed to get the proper reaction. And occasionally he called her Devil, watching with great delight how she beamed when called that way.

Two loud pops told him that Drilencu and the Gryffindor girl had scored again. Bob's glance followed the Slytherin Beaters, who were chasing a harpy. They reached it and knocked its wings from both sides. The creature fell like a stone.

The two Beaters pumped the air with their fists. Ahead of Bob, his teammate Chris gave them the thumbs-up.

So far, their team had come through unhurt - the alphabet team, as they liked to call themselves, after the initials of the three team members Angelina, Bob, and Chris. Of course, Chris had to remind them every now and then that Bob's contribution was a cheat; after all, his real name was Robert. But this teasing was part of their team etiquette.

Chris had been the right choice, thought Bob. With himself and Angelina so close to each other, the third teammate couldn't help but feel a bit excluded sometimes; but even so, Chris had found the right attitude. By habit reclusive enough, he acted like the common satellite of a double star. Bob suspected him of bearing deeper feelings toward Angelina than he usually showed, admiration at least, maybe more ... If so, Chris hid them well enough; and besides, sooner or later another girl would change his mind.

It would be even better, provided the girl didn't have a Steel Wing to put their team structure in jeopardy. But there were just two girls not yet 'in good hands', and those were Angelina's fellow Chasers, Katie and Alicia. With such a configuration, probably the role of the second twin team would pass over to Bob himself and Angelina, which was a nice thought because then, on occasion, they would team up with Harry and Cho.

The two Beaters were coming back, which meant they hadn't found another prey for their clubs. Their heads turned from side to side, scanning the sky, which had darkened enough to make it difficult to detect small, dark objects.

A flash of red lightning lit the sky, then another. The two Beaters crumpled on their Steel Wings and started to fall.

Bob's glance flicked to the direction from where the flashes had come. He saw dark spots. For a split second, they could have been an afterimage of the iightning, but they were growing - like broomstick riders approaching at maximum speed.

"ATTACK!!" Bob yelled.


Here they came, six, eight, more figures, ducking low on sparkling broomsticks - these had to be Firebolts, judging from the speed and the glitter. Riding in a wide line, they raced through the space that was filled with Squad members and shot their spells at short distance.

Bob's Steel Wing had been pointing in the right direction, which saved him from being hit. With no time to grab his wand, he ducked down on his broomstick an instant before the attacker closest to him shot his spell. The red flash splashed onto the shield and bounced off.

The attackers had passed without slowing down. Probably they'd stop at a safe distance, turn, and come back. It gave Bob time enough to react. His first check was to his team.

Angelina was hanging from her belt, dangling a bit but otherwise motionless. A short flight brought Bob to her side.

"Enervate!"

She came awake: first her eyes, recognizing him, then her arms, waving. She grabbed her Steel Wing; a moment later, she was sitting upright.

Bob turned and accelerated to reach Chris.

His teammate was still in the saddle, though not really upright. There were dark traces on his face, which otherwise looked pale, as far as Bob could see in the dim light. Then Bob realized that the traces were blood. Chris' nose was bleeding heavily.

"Chris?"

There was a slow reaction, probably from shock.

This hadn't been a stunning spell; this had been something nastier. The nose-bleeding didn't look good at all.

Bob grabbed Chris' shoulder, careful not to touch the other Steel Wing. "Get in and find Madam Pomfrey! You need treatment!"

Chris nodded, then turned his broomstick and flew away - fast enough to reach the platform in time before the next attack was due, according to Bob's guess. Chris' movements were unsteady, but at least he seemed sufficiently awake to control himself.

Glancing around, Bob saw other Squad members recovering. They all had their wands ready.

If not for the Steel Wings and their safety belts, the attack would have killed most of the Squad. It would have killed Angelina - his Angelina. At this thought, something inside Bob condensed into a sphere of white-hot fury.

"WATCH IT! LOOK NORTH!"

The shout had come from the platform, and it meant that a second wave of attackers was closing in from the same direction as the first one. Thank godness, these Firebolts were sparkling even in the last light of the day.

Bob waved. "Ange!" Then he accelerated.

Fighting fire with fire ... attack the attacker. With a Steel Wing and its front shield, coming straight across was the most efficient technique, and the safest, too.

Bob noticed a sparkle ahead, apparently not aimed toward him. It didn't change course, didn't react - its rider didn't see him! Not on a Steel Wing with a light-absorbing surface.

But he could see, and his wand was ready.

"STUPEFY!"

He saw the spell hit and the rider fall to his side, then the wave was past him.

Braking, he slowed enough for the quickest loop, jerked upward and backward, turned, and flew back.

There was a sparkle far away. Bob saw Angelina flying an arc, probably about to follow in his path. The other Squad members around gave him the impression that nobody was hit - no, there was a body dangling. Then Bob was past them.

Ahead of him, he could see another sparkle that was coming closer at incredible speed. This had to be someone from the first wave. So they'd planned a pattern of crossing waves until the last defender was sent to the ground, stupefied or otherwise paralyzed. A clever tactic - it had almost worked, but had failed thanks to the features of a widely unknown type of combat broomstick.

Features ... There was another feature, and now Bob was going to find out whether his plan worked.


Aiming at the glittering spot, he raced forward, flat behind the shield, wand stored away, both hands on the handles. In a moment, he would need both hands.

Just before they passed each other, his opponent seemed to have detected him. All Bob could see in the short fragment of time was a body jerking around and an attempt to aim a wand.

The two broomsticks touched for a fleeting instant.

Bob felt a blow at his leg and a hard jolt in his Steel Wing. For a few seconds, he had to fight for control before his course stabilized again.

He braked, just enough for his next loop.

Angelina came into view. Her gesturing told him what he'd failed to watch himself: touching a foreign Steel Wing had kicked the other broomstick rider off his seat and had sent him spiraling through the air, disappearing in the cloud of bats.

Excellent - just what Bob had intended. As difficult as the manoeuver was, it didn't illuminate the sky with a flash that was visible from far away. Bob wasn't really invisible, just difficult to detect, very difficult actually. That was all he needed.

Going through the next loop, he slowed down at the zenith and scanned the sky below. The second wave was coming back.

Well - the second wave minus one, at least.

As he gained speed again, he realized that he risked being stunned by his own Squad when using the superior speed of his Steel Wing to attack the second wave from behind. Could he finish the manoeuver before reaching the tower?

It looked a bit too tight.

He decided to follow behind and above them, and then dive down after they'd passed the closer battle range.

On a Steel Wing, the full speed of a Firebolt felt almost leisurely. Below and ahead, Bob saw two flashes bounce off from some head shields. An instant later, there were two explosions of light - firecrackers!

The Weasley artists had struck with their dust bombs.

In the fading light from the two sparkling rainbows, Bob saw two bodies fall forward, sideways, and off their Firebolts, in slow motion. So they were granted a last dream before hitting the ground.

He accelerated.

Diving, closing in, he saw a flash from the tower platform. One of the attackers had come too close - close enough for that Bulgarian guy, who could use his wand with the accuracy of a sniper rifle. The stunning spell hit, the rider rolled to his side, hung there for a second, then started to fall.

Bob aimed at one of the few sparkles that were left. He closed in, then was only yards behind. In a moment, his Steel Wing would touch the body ahead.

The rider seemed to have sensed something. Maybe a sound or a sixth sense - anyway, he'd be too late.

The rider turned on his broomstick.

Even in the dim light, Bob recognized him immediately. Whatever he felt seeing that face, his own expression barely changed.

"Hello, Draco ... goodbye."

Almost gently, his Steel Wing touched Draco Malfoy's body.

Harry ...

... lay flat on his Steel Wing and raced at full speed toward the Giants' camp. Behind him Cho followed at patrol distance. To their left, the lights of Hogsmeade flew past. There was nothing unusual in sight; the townspeople seemed unaware of what was taking place at Hogwarts.

The Giants' camp appeared in the distance ahead.

No lights, no movements, no sounds - although, at this speed, almost every sound would drown in the thundering of air around the Steel Wing.

Harry lost some speed while at the same time gaining height, a healthy precaution for a first look on a place where fighting Giants might be found. True, Lleyrin had said he would move his people closer toward Hogwarts, but this had been hours ago, before the events had started.

From above, the camp looked abandoned, exactly what could be expected after the Giants had departed. There was no movement anywhere, the windows looked dark, and Harry could see some disorder between the huts.

Then he saw the first body on the ground.

By the time Cho had reached him, he'd counted half a dozen. He pointed toward the ground.

"See these bodies? I'm going down for a close check."

Cho's lips tightened. Then she nodded.

Harry swerved slowly down, carefully, taking his time. He scanned the ground, then approached several motionless bodies at a safe distance from the next hut. If this was a trap, his reaction would be fast enough.

He reached the bodies. Inching forward, only feet above ground, he checked them.

Yes, they were Giants - dead Giants; fatal wounds from a quarterstaff were very noticeable.

But somehow, these bodies looked totally unfamiliar. Their clothes were different from what Harry could remember, and none of their still faces rung a bell in his memory. These were dead enemies.

He flew up to Cho.

"They're dead, but none of them belonged to Lleyrin's group. Let's check toward Hogwarts."

They flew in the direction where their own Giants could be expected. They kept their height and kept the speed low, carefully scanning the ground. Between them and Hogwarts was the lake, and on the closer side of the lake was the Hogwarts Express. They would have to stop the scan before coming too close.

In the first seconds, they could see a few more motionless bodies, then the ground was clear.

Harry's eyes scanned from left to right, flicked back, then scanned the next stripe below. He saw nothing unusual and heard nothing that sounded like combat - which was strange, somehow, because the banging of quarterstaffs would carry quite some distance.

A cold breeze washed over his body.

Breeze? Then why didn't the leaves farther down move?

This was no breeze - there were Dementors somewhere ahead!

Harry took his wand out of his pocket. Slowing down still more, he inched forward, wand ready. The cold feeling was growing.


He passed some more trees, then he saw the first figures, then the first movement. He advanced a bit more, until he could see the full scene.

There was a large group of unfamiliar looking Giants. They stood almost motionless and watched what was happening from some distance.

What they watched was another group of Giants - Lleyrin and his men. They were surrounded by the largest number of Dementors Harry had ever seen. The small group of Giants in the middle used their quarterstaffs to keep the Dementors at distance. They were fighting desperately because the surrounding Dementors constantly tried to reach them. When a hooded figure came too close, the Giants also used their legs to kick, but the only effect they achieved was to delay: when hit, a Dementor retreated but didn't fall to the ground. In the few seconds of his watching, Harry saw only quarterstaffs with the thick ends used as clubs toward the attacking Dementors.

One Dementor had caught hold of a kicking leg. Next moment, he was beaten off by other Giants, fell back, and was up again.

Harry flew forward, looking for the best spot where he could touch down. Diving to the ground, he let his mind recall the memory of the arc from the sibling wands.

He oughtn't come too close - he needed a few seconds of full concentration.

His legs touched ground. The first Dementors were twenty yards away. He closed his eyes, pushed the scene around him to the background of his mind, and called up the image ... The arc was there, he heard the phoenix song ... his parents ...

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!!"

As he opened his eyes, he saw a golden light erupting from his wand. It grew larger and larger until it filled the air in front of him. The light condensed to a shape, then formed a Centaur.

Some of the hooded figures ahead had turned and now glided toward Harry. They had no faces, and sent only waves of coldness through his bones.

The Centaur moved forward.

With two jumps, he'd reached the Dementors closest to Harry. He passed the first, turned sharply, passed the second, then turned again on his hind legs and pranced forward, gaining speed.

Where the Centaur had passed, cloaked figures crumpled and collapsed, sending out short shrieks that were muffled quickly, ending in a choked sound before they'd reached the ground, never to move again.

It was like scything corn, or grass.

The Centaur had crushed every Dementor within short distance. Now it thundered at full pace into the ring that was surrounding the Giants. The horse body bent to the side like a race horse passing the last curve. The man-horse shape disappeared behind the wall of black cloaks and hoods.

Harry felt a light touch, then heard Cho's voice: "It's me, guarding your back."

He nodded but kept his mind with his Patronus, sending it all his power and his determination.

The Giants in front of him were no longer obscured by Dementors, at least none that were standing upright. Harry saw some of Lleyrin's men waving, using the moment to recover from the frantic action during the last minutes.

The Centaur appeared at the other side. At full gallop, the horse body still tilted inward, he started the next circle.

The ring was broken. The Dementors, as far as they were still alive, retreated. They turned, glided away, then started gliding faster - fleeing this place which, a minute earlier, had looked like a dinner plate for them, richly filled with victims whose souls could be sucked out.


Returning from his second circle, the Centaur slowed down, then looked around.

As much as the magic creature was moving on his own, Harry knew that the Centaur responded to his own thoughts. For a moment, he had considered pursuing the Dementors to diminish their number as much as he could, but dropped the idea at once. His first priority was the Giants, and once the immediate danger for Lleyrin and his men was gone, Harry and Cho were urgently expected back in the castle. That left no time for chasing Dementors - and if they were going to make another try at Hogwarts, Lupin would be ready.

With a last prancing up and a wave of his arm, the Golden Centaur faded, then was gone.

Lleyrin's men had started regrouping to form a battle line toward the other Giants, who'd watched the Dementors' defeat in a state of paralyzed agony. Only now, Harry saw them prepare for the next minutes, with slow movements, obviously still in shock.

A Giant stepped toward Harry and came down, kneeling on his heels. It was Lleyrin.

"Harry Potter and Cho Chang, your timing is flawless. My life is in your hands, from now till death do us part."

A chill ran down Harry's back. Lleyrin had spoken the ritual words: he'd entitled Harry to send Lleyrin into death, for any reason, at any time, and he'd promised to follow any such order without hesitation.

Another bond.

Harry's mind worked again and finally provided him with the proper answer. "I will save it in my heart, Lleyrin, from now till death do us part."

Any other answer would have counted as a decline, which was the ultimate insult, not even leaving a chance for response.

Looking up, Harry saw Lleyrin's eyes shining. The Giant made no attempt to rise.

Startled, Harry said, "Excuse me, Lleyrin - I hope you're not waiting for something I have to say before you can fight with your men."

The Giant smiled. "No, Harry Potter, you already said what had to be said. I'll stay close to you as long as you're around, as your personal guard - I couldn't stand the thought of you trampled to the ground by some foolish accident."

Only halfway relieved, and not in the mood to share Lleyrin's joke, Harry said, "Then Cho and I should fly up - at fifty feet, we're secure and still at hand if some Dementors come back."

"Don't worry, Harry Potter, we have a minute or two. And besides, my men would be very upset at hearing that I didn't pay the proper attention to our rescuers. Now watch - in a moment, the riddle of the oiled balls will be solved." With these words, Lleyrin turned on his knees to watch for himself.


One glance to the battle line was enough for Harry to solve the mystery. Every second Giant in the line held a long leather strap and now started to whirl it around.

Slings! Built after Viktor's - or Hermione's - present.

There was no question, the other side knew exactly what to expect in a moment. Still outnumbering Lleyrin's men by far, these Dark Giants were already beaten before the first ball was thrown. They stepped backward, pushing those behind, trying to be out of the way as the deadly projectiles went flying.

Lleyrin's men stood guard: every other quarterstaff ready, every other right arm whirling a sling in slow motion.

"Lleyrin, what are they waiting for?" asked Harry.

"The decision of the other side," replied Lleyrin. "Harry Potter, this is a battle, not a slaughtering. The others now have the chance to turn and walk away - except that they ought to do it within the next twenty seconds, otherwise - "

As if to remind them, one sling-shooter whirled faster for a moment, then fired. With a hollow clank, the ball went into a tree within the other group.

The shooter had reloaded immediately; his sling was already whirling again. However, there was no need any longer: the message was understood and accepted. The other Giants stepped back, or to the side, signaling the Giants' version of surrender. Watched by Lleyrin's men, they started to build a march formation to leave the battleground as quickly as possible.

Cho asked, "Lleyrin, what happened at your camp?"

"A misunderstanding, Cho Chang," answered Lleyrin grinning, "a big, big, misunderstanding, one of those which damage your faith in good luck - if you're on the wrong side of it. And the poor fellows you see walking away were on the wrong side. They'd been told they'd find us in the camp, so they made a nice surrounding to catch us all together, but alas, we weren't at home, and instead arrived just in time to start a roll-up while feeling somewhat upset to find them in our camp without the proper invitation."

Lleyrin's grin faded. "Well - then came the Dementors. For a Giant, a Dementor is like a rat for a human - a big rat. With a single one, you can play kickball from here into the next week. But here - I never saw that many Dementors ..."

The grin came back. "Thanks to your Centaur, Harry Potter, I'll never see that many again. It'll take them a long, long time to balance out their losses."

Lleyrin seemed to know a lot about Dementors, for example where they came from and how their population was growing. Still, Harry didn't feel like asking for details; other things were more important now.

He told Lleyrin about the train full of Death Eaters, then asked, "What are you going to do now, Lleyrin?"

"We'll position ourselves as close to Hogwarts as possible, without interfering with those wizards. This way, we can block the other Giants in case they find some fighting spirit on their way home. If the Dementors come back, we'll escape toward Hogwarts - so that we can be seen from there - "

"So that I'll know and come again," interrupted Harry.

"That's what I had in mind," confirmed Lleyrin, smiling in spite of Harry's impolite interruption. "Conversely, if it looks as if your people can't settle with those wizards, we'll come for help."

"Does this mean that we can fly off and return to Hogwarts?"

"Yes, Harry Potter and Cho Chang, you have completed your task for us."

Harry suppressed a remark such as, 'Be careful' - even in the heat of the fight, certain things simply weren't said to a Giant chief, especially not if the Giant's life was stored in your heart.

He looked at Cho. When she nodded, he went up.

Cho followed. After a last wave to Lleyrin, who stood watching them, apparently until they were gone, Harry accelerated.

The direct path was blocked by the wizards in the train. Passing them high up in the air might have been a possibility, but Harry wanted to do a last check to make sure that the Dementors didn't visit Hogsmeade just to cool down their frustration.

There was no need to worry. Passing Hogsmeade, they found the town strangely quiet and calm. They flew onward.

Ron ...

... saw Viktor arriving - from the other side, thank God, otherwise the Squad leader might have met the attackers unprepared.

Viktor touched down and reached him. "Ron?"

"Attack by broomstick riders, almost twenty initially. Half of them have been sent to the ground while the others have lost their coordination. The Squad's chasing them - Steel Wings with safety belts against Firebolts without, and our own broomsticks don't sparkle."

"What about the harpies?"

"A few might be left - I haven't seen any in the last few minutes."

Viktor looked around. "How's the Squad?"

"Four injuries from the harpies: one severe case; the others are doing okay, might even return within the next hour. Two more were hit by the broomstick riders with something other than a stun. And Harry and Cho are still off, they followed you - "

"I know - they found me stunned. They went to check the Giants, because we think there are other forces, Giants or Dementors, or both. The train's full of wizards. We need Dumbledore here, but I don't want to go inside."

Hermione, who looked better than a few minutes before, was already moving. "I'll fetch him."

Suddenly there was a scream, somewhere in the air.

It had come from the direction opposite the lake, where the first wave of attackers had appeared. Ron scanned the sky while inwardly cursing the darkness.

A fiery ball raced from the platform up into the sky, sent by Drilencu's wand. Reaching its peak, it slowly fell down and illuminated a breathtaking scene.

A broomstick rider - on a Firebolt, by the gleaming reflections - was twisting and gesticulating - no, trying to beat off something on his back. Then Ron saw it more clearly: a huge bird, its wings outstretched, now hitting forward, its beak hacking into the rider's head, its claws obviously deep in his neck.

Incredible - Almyra was hunting as an eagle and had caught someone.

Two Squad members - the Ravenclaw Beaters, if Ron's guess was right - had already flown forward. They reached the bundle of man and bird; then a red flash sizzled through the air.

The man's arms fell down. For a moment, he sat motionless, held upright by the gigantic wings. Then the bird separated from the man and climbed upward, out of the illuminated zone. Left alone, the man's body fell to the side, then disappeared in the dark below.

Ron made another mark on his parchment.

Dumbledore appeared in the door, followed by Hermione, and walked to Viktor. "Mr Krum, I heard about your courageous flight. What did you see?"

"The train's full of wizards. They tried to hit me, so it's clear which side they belong to. But the question is, why don't they come out? When I talked to Harry and Cho, my guess was that they're waiting for something, or someone. Then Harry thought they were waiting for Giants or Dementors, or both, after those troops have finished off our Giants, so he and Cho went for a check."

Dumbledore digested the information.

"I come to the same conclusions," he said eventually. "If we're right, either we'll see Giants or Dementors appear within the next minutes, or Lleyrin and his men could fight them down. Either way, we need the report from Harry and Cho."

Ron said, "Those wizards might get tired of waiting. We should have light there, or another patrol, or an outpost to watch."

"I can check again," said Viktor, "provided another team can watch my back - and catch me when I'm stunned again."

Dumbledore shook his head. "I have a better idea." He looked at Ron. "An outpost is the right idea, and we have the right men for that: the Goblins. Let me send them out - I'll be back in a few minutes." He went inside.


Viktor turned to Ron. "I'm off to have a closer look around - I want to see how the Squad's hunting."

"Join the other twin team - Katie and Alicia," insisted Ron. "A single broomstick rider might be confused with an attacker."

"Good idea." Viktor went up.

Ron watched as Viktor flew slowly first, glancing all around. Then Viktor accelerated. A moment later, he was out of sight, too far away to be discernible in the nightly sky.

A Squad team appeared in the darkness. They kept to the formation with head and two wings. No, it couldn't be, because the two wings were Katie and Alicia, their wands aimed at the broomstick flyer in front of them.

The trio came to a stop before the balustrade.

Katie shouted, "Oy, Ron - we have a prisoner."

Ron stared at the prisoner - a young man, obviously disarmed by the two girls. He seemed quite happy with his fate, not too surprising when the alternative was a high dive without either wings, or Firebolt.

Well, thought Ron, he could have flown, but maybe he preferred an imprisonment at Hogwarts over freedom with his fellows. That meant he would be ready to sing for his supper ...

"Touch down! Slowly, then stay."

Holding his own wand ready, Ron watched the young man come down and dismount, then stand motionlessly.

"Hermione, do you know a binding spell?"

"Of course."

Of course.

Hermione walked behind the young man, snapped, "Hands at your back!" pointed her wand, and murmured something.

The man grimaced for a second, then relaxed again.

Ron asked, "Hermione, can you cas Cruciatus? Just enough so he still can answer our questions?"

"No - please! I'll tell you all I know!" The man looked pleadingly at Ron.

Without answering, Ron looked to Hermione. "Well?"

"I'll tell you, I'll tell you! Here - my name's Damian Loew, I came with the others to - to ... I'm sorry, I didn't want - really, the others threatened me ..."

With some effort, Ron suppressed his triumphant grin. "How many?"

"Sixteen altogether." Relief was spreading across the man's face.

"You know their names?"

The relief was wiped off. "I know ten names - the others are foreigners, the first time I saw them was a few days ago. Those I know are - "

"Hold it." To Hermione, Ron said, "Put him downstairs - into a room where you can interrogate him. Let him do the writing, and if you think he needs a bit of encouragement, you know what to do."

From behind the man and out of his view, Hermione said, "Believe me - he'll write as fast as he can." Then her wand touched the man's neck. "Forward!"

With a twist, the man started to walk toward the door. Hermione followed him with a look on her face as if she was hoping for a little resistance.

Ron turned to Katie and Alicia. "I thought you were with Viktor."

"We've been," said Alicia. "Then we found that guy. He was so grateful at being captured. Here - catch!"

A wand sailed through the air, thrown by a Chaser: Ron caught it without difficulty.

Viktor appeared behind the girls. He slowed down, then shouted, "Ron! Did you get some information from that prisoner?"

"Yes, the number of attackers. They were sixteen, so if I've counted right, there are still five somewhere out there."

"I don't think so," replied Viktor. "I haven't seen any spell or any fighting. I guess they decided to disappear before they met another Steel Wing, whether in singles or together."


Another team appeared in the darkness: the twins, trailed by Lee Jordan. Fred called, "Viktor - air's clean, as far as we can judge, except of course for those bats."

"Okay. Come down and stay ready."

The Squad lacked a signal for gathering, as Ron realized. They could only wait until the teams returned from their hunt. But maybe if ...

He walked to Drilencu. "Prof, could you shoot something like a red signal?"

"Certainly, Mr Weasley."

Drilencu pointed his wand into the sky. A glowing ball raced up and exploded, forming a crown of red stars.

A few seconds later, the sky was dark again.

"Another one, Mr Weasley?"

"Yes, please."

Drilencu aimed, then shot a second ball.

"Thanks, Prof."

Staring into the darkness, Ron hoped that the Squad members had seen the signal and had understood. Aside from that, he wondered what might be taking Dumbledore so long. Still another corner of his mind was worrying about Harry, and Cho.

A first team appeared, closely followed by another one. So the signal had worked.

Viktor directed the incoming teams down to the platform and ordered them to stay on alert but otherwise recover, and not bother with the remaining bats.

He was right, thought Ron: the sky was dark anyway, and furthermore, the bats seemed to disappear on their own. The ground was becoming more and more visible again, but mostly as another darkness deeper below.

Dumbledore came through the door and reached Ron and Viktor. "The Goblins are back. They didn't come far because the wizards have left the train. They are coming to the school, but very slowly."

"Shall we attack?" asked Viktor.

"No - first because they'll find a roadblock of dragons, second because I have another order for the Squad, a very special one."

About to ask, Ron stopped, then stared.

A Goblin came through the door, then another, then a third.

"The Goblins have asked for a lift," said Dumbledore, his eyes sparkling. "They want to be put down behind the end of the Hogwarts Express - that is, at the enemy's back.

Viktor nodded, not showing much of a surprise. "Sure - on our shoulders, they mustn't touch the Steel Wings." He turned to the teams. "Attention! I need the twelve strongest Squad members first - and the others for escort."

What a pity, thought Ron, that Harry was missing the spectacle. True, he definitely couldn't be counted among the twelve strongest Squad members - physically, that was, but he probably felt closer to the Goblins than anyone else. What was taking him so long?

Dumbledore called, "Lights out! What's happening here must not be seen from below."

Harry ...

... was wondering why Hogwarts looked so dark. There were only a few windows lighted, and where the tower platform had to be was only darkness. He didn't like this prospect.

Near the lakeside, flames roared through the air. The dragons!

The flames faded. Thin red lines shot from the other side and were answered by another strike of orange-red ribbons which lapped up and then disappeared.

Followed by Cho, Harry raced toward the buildings, at the same time gaining height. It seemed better to approach the platform from high above the ground, where the fiery spectacle continued.

Close to the building, he slowed down, then examined his way to the platform. There were some people there - one of them the unmistakable shape of Dumbledore.

He touched down and only then recognized Dumbledore and Ron.

Both of them wheeled around, then smiled with relief. "Harry - and Cho," said Dumbledore. "I take it you did more than a check."

"Yes, we had a fight." Harry told them what they'd seen and done, and what Lleyrin had said about his next steps and plans.

"Excellent," said Dumbledore, beaming. "So the wizards down there are locked between dragons and Giants."

Harry glanced around. "Where's the Squad?"

Ron answered, "They're carrying Goblins behind the lines. Viktor's with them, and Hermione's downstairs interrogating a prisoner."

"A prisoner?"

Ron gave a hardened grin. "You missed the show here. We were attacked by broomstick riders, sixteen of them, actually. About ten have been sent to the ground, and one was caught by Katie and Alicia - the one Hermione's squeezing now. The others decided to leave."

Ron turned to Cho. "Almyra was hunting as an eagle - she caught one."

Cho looked concerned. "Where is she now?"

"Chasing bats, this time as an owl. Some of them were real ones, which didn't disappear from the spells, but were quite in a hurry when that owl appeared."

"Of course," replied Cho, "bats are owl food."

Ron looked baffled. "That's why. I didn't know."

Harry turned to Dumbledore. "Professor, what are you planning against those wizards?"

Dumbledore's gaze was fixed on the scene down on the ground where yellow-red torches alternated with red flashes. "Nothing yet," he replied. "Have a closer look - they're not attacking seriously. Sure, the dragons are quite impressive, but this can't be the only reason. In any case, Voldemort is not with them."

"You think there's more to come?"

Now Dumbledore looked up. "I'd like to know where Voldemort is, Harry. As long as he's not seen, I'm not going to expose us more than necessary."

People on Steel Wings emerged from the darkness and came down, filling the platform rapidly. Viktor was among the last of them. He touched down, then came over.

"Task completed. The Goblins are on their way."

"Very good," said Dumbledore. "Mr Krum, I'll be downstairs with my colleagues and our supporters. You and your Squad should guard the air unless told otherwise."

Viktor nodded.

When Dumbledore was gone, Viktor pointed at Squad teams in an order that seemed only determined by their position next to him. "You three: slow patrol toward the forest ... you three: same toward the other side. The others stay alert."

* * *

Harry tried to guess the number of wizards on the ground. Assuming the train had really been full, there were quite a lot of them, squeezed on the narrow path from the train platform so that only the front line was exposed to - or fighting against - the dragons.

Then he tried to guess the number of wizards on their own side. The Hogwarts teachers, plus those who'd followed the chain call, plus volunteers from Beauxbatons - plus the students of the classes five to seven. It seemed still a minority - counting their number only.

But then, numbers meant only so much. Chief Lleyrin and his men had given an example how much. And a dozen Goblins should reach the remote lines of the attacking crowd within the next five to ten minutes.

Harry then saw something on the lake.

A deep-violet glow was slowly growing and intensifying not too far from the lakeside closest to the line of dragons. It seemed to come from deep below.

The surface above the glow rose. It formed a ring, then a bubble. The bubble split open and exposed a large shape - a ship, smaller than that from Durmstrang, but otherwise similar.

The cascades of water didn't fall back into the lake. Instead they rushed forward, gaining momentum and height while collecting more water from the surface as they passed. It looked like a gigantic sphere of water which rolled toward the lakeside, toward the line of dragons.

The sphere left the lake behind. Not losing shape, it crossed the few yards of grass and reached the first dragon. The sphere hit the animal and drowned it, throwing it to the ground.

The impact had separated the sphere into two halves. The two halves drove forward and hit the next dragon, then the next, splashing the fourth dragon before the remnants floated down the dragon flanks.

Where a moment earlier long flames had erupted, steam now hung in the air. The sphere had extinguished the dragon fire, at least for a short while.

A fireball raced from the school building toward the lake. It missed the newcomer and instead hit the Durmstrang ship, which was anchored nearby.

For a moment, Harry thought the fireball had missed its target. But an instant later, another ball went the same way. Watching, he realized that both of them had hit exactly as planned: flames spread across the Durmstrang ship to illuminate the other ship, which still was dripping wet, glistening in the flames.

Harry saw three figures on deck, two of whom he recognized instantly. The one on the left was Lucius Malfoy. The face of the man on the right was hidden in the shadow of the tall, thin figure in the middle.

Voldemort.

In unison, the three wizards pointed their wands at the dragons. Balls of dark and yellow erupted from their tips, smoking and whirling. Slowly at first but gaining speed, the balls raced toward the dragons.

Another flash from below shot through the air and hit one of the balls, but all it did was make the ball bounce, changing its course only marginally.

The balls landed on and between the dragons. An instant later they exploded and spread an acid yellow smoke.

Harry heard a horrible sound coming from the animals - a choking, a pained breathing. The four mighty creatures twisted and trembled. There was a last jerk of the long necks, then they collapsed on the ground.

Someone had escaped the collapsing bodies. Head bent forward, hands clutching his throat, he stumbled forward in an attempt to cross the short distance to the building.

From the ship, a green flash hissed through the air. It hit the man and crushed him to the ground, where he lay without moving.

In the short moment, Harry had recognized first the figure, then the face: Hagrid ... Hagrid was dead, killed by Voldemort.

Harry froze, unable to think.


A black shadow sprinted from the building to the heaped bodies on the ground and stopped behind their cover. Harry had just enough time to recognize a huge black dog when the shape changed to a man who immediately started shooting one flash after the other toward the enemy.

Then Harry saw a cat follow and change into McGonagall. Her first spell shot a cloud of steam into the air. The cloud dissolved quickly, but during these few seconds, many more figures - humans - had passed the distance to the covering wall.

A firework of spells flashed through the air - toward the dark wizards in front of barricade and toward the ship.

The three wizards on the ship used their wands to block spell with counter-spell, and send their own flashes between the defenses.

Hagrid was dead ... Then Charlie was dead, too, and the third wizard ... and Voldemort was standing there, ready to shoot the next Killing Curse as soon as possible.

Somebody had to stop him.

Harry had to stop him.

He wheeled around. "I'm going to stop Voldemort. Who can take the other two?"

Faces were staring at him - Viktor, Ron, Cho; Cho's face was white.

The twins stepped forward, their eyes burning, their faces two masks of fury. "He just killed Charlie - make him pay, Harry."

Cho took a step. "You two fly second line - behind me."

"And behind me," said Viktor.

Harry nodded. "Now."

He flew slowly, though accelerating steadily. Cho flanked him on his right side, Viktor on his left, the twins behind and to both sides. They dived down, then flew an arc in order to come flat from behind and close above ground.

Harry's mind was focused on the most difficult manoeuver he was ever to perform: a touch-down point blank at Voldemort, to be at him and to have his wand ready, the sibling wand which was supposed to block the other one.

The five Steel Wings had reached their attack level and were racing toward the ship, Viktor and Cho slightly ahead, Fred and George behind.

The ship was growing, as well as the three shapes on deck. As Harry's eyes watched the decreasing distance, his mind kept counting and calculating.

At just the right moment, he braked.


Four Steel Wings, two on either sides, rushed past. The three wizards on deck - was it a sixth sense that made them turn? A split second, just enough to see the Steel Wings but too brief to aim their wands ...

Harry's mind registered three images.

Viktor passed the wizard on the left side, close enough to touch his shoulders. Viktor didn't touch him, though; he shot his spell right into the face, an instant before he'd passed it, before he bolted up and raced toward the sky, out of the light, away from the stunned wizard whose body was still on its way falling on the deck.

Cho aimed for the other wizard, Lucius Malfoy. Not finding the time to wonder, or worry, Harry saw that Cho didn't have her wand ready: she held the Steel Wing with both hands on the handles and drove it straight into the figure. She hit his throat, driving the Steel Wing right through the throat, and thereby pushing the body off the deck like a puppet. An instant later, she steered free again and steadied the jolting broomstick. Still close to the ground, she kept a low course, flat on the Steel Wing, then passed the crowd of dark wizards and their distant lines, too fast for them to recognize her and shoot a spell before she was gone.

Harry's own Steel Wing came to a halt inches before Voldemort's body. His feet were on the deck, his wand ready to act, or to respond.

"Voldemort! It's me."

The snake-like face distorted. "Harry Potter!" Voldemort's wand came around and up ...

Harry never found an explanation for why he reacted the way he did. Rather than shooting spell against spell, his wand parried Voldemort's and pressed it upward.

A vibrant sensation raced through Harry's arm. It felt as though his wand welcomed this contact and was urging for more.

"Foolish boy, what do you think this is? A sword fight?"

There was no mistaking while watching Voldemort's face - he, too, had felt something, although for him the sensation appeared all but welcome.

"No, Voldemort. This is a wand fight, and you'll lose it. The last time it was a draw, but now that you've killed my friends, I won't let it rest. I'm not fleeing you again, I'm going to stop you here, and I'm going to stop you anywhere."

Hate burned in the other wizard's eyes. Harry's scar felt like a hot iron, but he couldn't care less. "And some day," he snarled, "I'm going to finish you, ridiculous Lord."

Voldemort's face seemed to fall apart. The pressure on Harry's wand, held easily against this second-birth body which never was made for physical power, faded.

Voldemort took a quick step backward. His wand came down and pointed at Harry.

Was it Harry's eye, or did his wand move on its own? The instant Voldemort had opened his bloodless lips, the two wands touched again, tip against tip.

A brilliant light sprang from the point where the two wands touched each other. It sent arcs of gold and violet to all sides; they formed a sphere of light that encircled the two combattants.

Voldemort made another step backward to break the connection.

Harry felt a blow to his hand, then a pull. The two wands didn't separate; instead they formed a single wand of double length with the brilliant spot in the middle.

Voldemort pushed, then pulled, moving his end from side to side. But whatever he did, the double wand refused to separate, even to bend. And there was nothing that could break Harry's grip on his own end - not now, not here, not in this sphere which now filled with the most beautiful sound on earth: phoenix song.

Harry felt another pull: it was only a fraction of an inch, but incredibly strong.

The double wand was shrinking in the middle! It was as if the blindingly bright spot was burning it while at the same time grabbing for more: the two wands had begun to eat each other.

Harry watched them shorten, all the while almost effortlessly holding against Voldemort's last attempts to stop what was going on. Both of them were unaware of their surroundings and unable to see clearly outside the sphere of light.

Inch by inch, Harry and Voldemort were drawn toward each other, just by following their wands, which were sucked into the light.

The remnants of both wands together had come down to the size of a single wand. The brilliant light faded from full-size to small, to a sparkle, to nothing.

Harry heard the phoenix song fade. The sphere dissipated; suddenly, they were just two people struggling for a wand on deck of a ship.


Harry stared at Voldemort and saw his eyes flick to the side, then come back. Was there -

A hand touched his shoulder and came to rest there. "It's me," said Cho's voice.

Holding his end of the wand, Harry shot a quick glance to his side. Cho stood there, calmly examining Voldemort. "What an ugly face," she said. "Harry - what's this beanpole doing with your wand?"

"This is what's left from our two wands," hissed Voldemort, "and now I'll use it as my own."

"Stupid Lord," said Cho, "look where the tip is pointing! The wand has made its decision - can't you see it, you imbecile?"

Her words seemed to infuriate Voldemort beyond measure. Harry felt hate like a wave from an open furnace, yet no longer in his scar: Whatever Voldemort tried, no matter how much evil power he sent, it broke - stopped by the wand that pointed at him.

"You've lost, ridiculous Lord. Your wand has joined with mine - look!" Harry felt like laughing. "Another present ... each time you attack me, I gain more of your powers. Soon I'll know how to use this one, and then, I'll come to you!"

Voldemort's hand left the tip of the wand. He made a jump to the side and snatched the wand of the wizard who'd been stunned by Viktor. Then he came up and pointed it at Harry.

Voldemort's movements had been incredibly fast. But even so, for Harry it seemed to take place in slow motion. He knew what was happening, anticipated it, and had all the time in the world to react. His only movement was a shift to the side so that his own body covered Cho's. His wand, the united twin, was held flatly across his chest, rather than pointing.

Almost casually, he said, "Doesn't work, Voldemort."

"It will! In a moment, you'll be dead."

"Really? Then what are you waiting for?"

The wand which pointed at Harry was trembling with Voldemort's rage ... or fear?

"You know why, don't you? You know it would backfire, even worse than the last time. But do it - that's how I'll make an end to you."

"You think you're still protected by the love of your mother?" The sneering in Voldemort's voice seemed close to desperation. "No longer, you fool. Remember, your blood is in my veins."

"Yes, it's love, the power you can't master, never could and never will. But it's Cho's love for me, and mine for her, that's the united power that'll crush you, false Lord."

Voldemort's eyes confirmed it: he knew that this was the truth, and it was almost eating him alive.

Almost leisurely, Harry pointed his wand. "Expelliarmus."

The wand broke from Voldemort's grip with a force that made him stumble and almost fall down, then it buzzed through the air into Harry's hand.

Voldemort's face no longer looked human, not even snake-like. For an instant, he stood there, hands outstretched like claws. Then he was gone. With a pop, the air imploded into the space where a body had been just a second before.

Voldemort fleeing ... the thought might be savoured later, but now it was more important to figure out what he would try. Of course - the ship!

Harry turned to the ship's bridge and pointed his newly elongated wand. "DIFFINDO!"

The explosion surprised him considerably. This united twin wand had to be used with care - the spell, intended to break a door open, had blasted away most of the bridge structure.

"Wow," said Cho, "now that's a hell of a wand, Harry."

He rushed inside the remnants of the deck house, looked around, then relaxed. This ship wasn't going to move, not now and not for a while, if ever again.

If Voldemort had apparated inside, he'd apparated once more to another place. There was no sense in searching further, in particular since there was no need to worry about a spell from behind: Voldemort had avoided a better chance, and for good reason.


Stepping out, Harry found the first opportunity to examine the scene on the battleground ahead. What he saw was a picture to be held in memory forever.

Along the path, dark wizards lay on the ground, in singles, in heaps, in bulks of bodies clinging together. At several places, he saw things glittering - traces of the Weasley twins' work with dust bombs. At the far end toward the train platform was some movement - Goblins, not wizards.

In the middle, a few people still stood upright, more or less, hiding behind other bodies and glancing toward the front of wizards ahead or the deadlier line of Goblins behind.

It was only a question of minutes until the last of them surrendered - or died from a Goblin arrow. However, it gave Harry a chance to test his reinforced wand.

He pointed into the middle. "EXPELLIARMUS!"

The effect was as if a firing command had been given to a sagittarius Squad. Like arrows, four - no, five wands raced through the air, across the water, and to him. He almost hit himself while catching them.

Cho giggled. "Stop blustering, Harry. They're done."

"You're right." He stored his wand away. With his arms free, he took a half-step to her, then she was in his arms.

They stood there and held each other, tightly, wordlessly. Words would come later, about themselves, about dead friends, about the days and weeks ahead -

There was a sound inside the ship.

Harry wheeled around. His hand grabbed the twin wand, then he darted forward, but stopped almost at once.

Through the debris came a long shape, shimmering magnificently in the wavering light from the burning Durmstrang ship. It stopped, then a triangular head rose into the air and yellow eyes stared at Harry.

"Nagini!"

"We came, Harry Potter, my master and I, to give you the answer. But you answered by yourself."

"Yes, indeed. So then, what's your comment?"

"You have defeated Voldemort. He has left me behind. So I am at your command; you are my new master."

"Really? And what if I don't want to act as your master?"

"Then I will die soon."

"Oh." Harry stared at the snake, not knowing what to think of it. "Can't you just live like an ordinary snake?"

"No. I have lost too much of my own power while keeping my former master alive."

"That's not exactly a recommendation for you, Nagini."

"I'm not begging, Harry Potter. You are my master, be it merciful or pitiless."

That damned snake - he might as well argue with a wall. She saw no choice, had no choice, gave no choice. Harry looked at Cho. "I don't know what to do."

"Sorry - I didn't follow. I'm limited to English, Mandarin, Cantonese, and French - if you know what I mean."

Seeing Cho's face, Harry couldn't suppress a giggle. Had his question been English? He would find out later.

He turned back to Nagini. "What kind of food do you need?"

"Any kind of meat - of any size, up to a limit."

"No human bodies!"

"My master commands my food."

Harry sighed. The last thing he needed was a snake of these dimensions, especially now. Although Almyra might have another opinion. Either way, he couldn't leave her on the ship, even less than he could kill her.

He looked at his Steel Wing, then at Nagini's body while trying to guess her weight. He was unable to come up with a number, but certainly she was too heavy for his shoulders.

"Can you swim?"

* * *

Harry watched Nagini swim toward the lakeside. He mounted his Steel Wing, went up, and touched down immediately, feeling like a frog hopping through the grass.

Nagini arrived and glided onto the ground.

"Wait here - I'll fetch you as soon as I know what to do with you. You may guard my Steel Wing."

"Yes, Master." Nagini moved forward to cover the broomstick.

"Watch it! Don't touch - "

It was too late - Nagini's front section made contact with the Steel Wing. Even so, nothing happened. The Steel Wing didn't jerk; Nagini lay quietly.

"What's this?" Harry stared. "Nobody except me can touch this broomstick when it's activated - why doesn't it react to your body?"

"I don't know. But you are my master, so I can't act against your will. It seems this device senses me as an extension of your will, and treats me as an extension of your body."

Harry shook his head in astonishment. "A new wonder every minute ... Don't move, I'll come back, although it might take a while."

Followed by Cho, who had watched the conversation without comment, Harry walked to the bulwark of dead dragons, living wizards - and dead wizards.

The first person they met was Snape. He knelt besides a motionless body which had been small in lifetime and looked even smaller in death: Flitwick.

Snape glanced up. "I never saw anyone shoot spells that fast. He was incredible - took me fully by surprise. I think the curse that hit him was meant for me."

"I saw what he could do - in the patrol exam."

Snape seemed in shock. "Flitwick ... fainting from a troll, and then this ..."

Harry shook Snape's shoulder. "Professor - we owe him all the same, and you might have been next. But you're alive, and the others need you."

Glancing around, Snape finally seemed to register his colleagues, who were busy with the dark wizards, checking and disarming them, then carefully moving forward. "Yes," he said, his mind apparently returning to the present. "Yes - of course."

He stood up, then looked at Harry. "You - "

"Later, Professor."

Snape nodded and started to walk. After a few steps, his gait became more energetic. With his wand ready, he headed toward the other teachers.

Someone appeared between the huge bulks of the dead dragons. It was Sirius.

"Harry - and Cho, thank God. Are you okay?"

"Yes. And you? I saw you coming out."

"I'm fine - got hit, but only stunned. I guess it was your Head of House who woke me up. Listen, we'll talk later, after those bastards are taken care of." Sirius climbed through a gap and followed Snape.

Walking around the next dragon body, Harry and Cho found a group of five, one of them dead: Ron, Hermione, and the twins around Charlie's corpse.

Ron looked up from his kneeling position, revealing a wet face.

Harry knelt down and hugged Ron, feeling his friend's body shake with sobs. "Ron ... I'm so sorry."

"Harry - " Ron sobbed. "Please go to Hagrid - his corpse, I mean. He's so alone. I'd come with you, but I can't - " He was shaking again.

"It's okay. I'll do it in a second."

Harry turned to the twins, where he saw hard faces except for the eyes, which were red and swollen. "Fred, George ..."

George said, "Ron's right, Harry, and we feel the same, so let's talk later."

They found Hagrid's dead body lying face-down on the ground. Harry rolled it over, then sat down to study the face, which had relaxed in death. He closed the sightless eyes.

"Hagrid ... you were the first friend I had, and the biggest, until we met Lleyrin, but you were still the greatest. And now you're dead, and I have to figure out how's life without ..."

He fell down onto the broad chest, the motionless body, and started to cry, quietly, ceaselessly.

Behind him, Cho's voice said, "Goodbye, li'l bird. Be sure you'll meet your dragons - wherever you go ..."


A noise that was coming closer made Harry look up. He saw the huge figure of Madame Maxime coming and stood up in anticipation of someone else's need for a last hug.

The Beauxbatons Headmistress reached the dead corpse and flung herself down. "Mon 'agrid, mon 'agrid - tu m'as ... sans toi ..." Her voice faded in a pained breath while her hands kept stroking over a calm face.

After a moment, Harry touched her shoulder. "Madame - est-ce que vous voulez rester seul avec lui?"

Only now, the half-Giant witch recognized him. "Oui, 'arry - si vous avez trouvé le temps de dire Adieu. Vous étais un ami, un des rares amis de lui - "

Harry nodded. "Oui - il était mon premier ami. Mais j'ai dis ce-que j'avais le besoin de dire. Il y a des autres morts." He stood up.

Walking back, hand in hand with Cho, he found the place where Charlie's corpse had been lying empty. So they'd moved him inside.

Coming toward the entrance, they saw a slim figure appearing: Almyra.

She ran the few steps, then had her arms around Cho. "You're okay - I'm so glad to see you."

Before Harry had found the time to prepare for an outburst of other people's emotions, Almyra grabbed him and hugged him, too. "Oh, Harry."

Hugging her back, he asked, "Did you meet the Weasleys?"

Almyra nodded, then separated from him. "Yes, I saw Charlie - his body, I mean."

Harry examined her face. "How ..."

Almyra had understood and shook her head. "There was a kind of 'maybe', in the future - except there is no such future any longer. I feel sorrow, yes, but right now I could shout or cry just from seeing you two alive and well."

She looked at Cho, beaming. "I saw your attack - incredible!"

Cho's face showed deep satisfaction. "Not at all - you're the one who should know better than anyone else that I'd always go for the throat."

Remembering the scene on the ship, Harry suddenly remembered something else. He slapped his forehead.

"My God - Cho, we didn't even use Lleyrin's powder! Everything was happening so fast - "

Cho interrupted him. "Didn't you? Well, I did, the moment that ship broke through the water. What do you think made me act like that? It wasn't exactly my usual style, was it?"

Almyra made a sound that was half a giggle, half a sob. Then she had herself under control again and looked at Harry. "I couldn't see what you did. Nobody could see it, actually, there was all that light around. What happened?"

"Voldemort escaped."

Almyra stared at him. "Are you angry because Voldemort escaped? Harry, give it a rest. Tell me why he decided to flee."

"The two wands did something, and when they were finished, only one wand was left - and that was mine. Except ..."

When Harry didn't continue, Almyra apparently had to stop herself before shaking him. "WHAT?"

"Well - it's twice as strong as before, or more. I guess I could blow the ship out of the water - only problem is, I have to figure out how to do careful spells."

Cho said, "He's found something else - you'll like it, Al, no doubt about that."

"Right," said Harry, feeling Almyra's questioning look. "It's Nagini. She was on the ship, and she said now I'm her master, and she's at my command ... I couldn't leave her there, let alone do anything else."

In disbelief, Almyra asked, "Did I get that right? You've stripped Voldemort of his wand, and of his snake, and that's why you're so upset?"

"Well, not really, but you know, it feels better than thinking all the time about Hagrid and Charlie and the others, like Flitwick ... Want to see Nagini?"

"Yes, of course!"


They walked back to the lakeside. A massive double ring lay in the grass; at their arrival, a head came up and stared.

"Nagini, this is Almyra, a friend. You'll learn more about her later."

The snake's head waved toward Almyra, then back to Harry. "Your friend has many shapes, Master."

Harry glanced up. "Al - she's sensed your Animagus shapes!"

Almyra looked at the snake with shining eyes. "Fantastic ... and clever too; what a find."

Only now, Harry noticed that Almyra had responded to his words. Eager to get confirmation, he asked, "So I spoke English, right?"

"What? Oh, of course - yes, you spoke English." Almyra's eyes widened. "Harry, can you control it?"

"Don't ask me - maybe I've got something else from Voldemort, or his wand, or his snake. As long as it works, I don't care."

"Where do you want to keep her?"

"Good question." Harry looked at the snake. "If you weren't so incredibly big, things would be a lot simpler."

"My size is the result of an Engorgement Charm, Master. It was done by my former master, so I could provide more fluids for him. In my true form, I'm much smaller."

Harry stared, speechless. After a moment, he asked, "Doesn't it hurt to be bigger? Or would it hurt to reduce you again?"

"No, Master. For snakes, the usual problem with engorgements does not occur - legs, arms, necks, all those joints and ankles."

"Hmm ... You seem to know a lot about magic. Do you have magical power of your own?"

"I don't know what is normal or magical, master. I have some abilities, but maybe all snakes have them."

"Abilities?" Harry felt like he was in a dream. "What, for instance?"

"It is difficult for me to answer this question, Master. They feel entirely natural to me, so I don't know what is special or common."

"You have sensed shapes in Almyra. Can you sense things in humans?"

"Yes, Master. I feel them."

"Do you feel if they're evil, or good?"

Nagini's voice seemed almost apologetic. "I don't know what is evil, Master, or good. I sense truth, or a lie, but I can't tell you if the truth is evil or the lie is merciful."

A thought struck Harry. "Nagini - you've just earned yourself a job. There are a lot of wizards to be interrogated - with your help, we can verify what they say."

"It is satisfying to know that I can serve my Master, in exchange for the covering of my own demands. As for those wizards, I was present in many conversations between my former master and them."

"Our Headmaster will listen with interest, but now let's see how we can make you a little smaller." Harry drew his wand, noticing an unusual clumsiness. "I'm a bit reluctant - with this super wand, you might end up as an earthworm, and that's not what I had in mind."

Almyra had watched him. "The winning wand - let me see, Harry, please!"

He held it up. "Here, looks the same as - " He stopped, staring at his own wand.

It was longer than before - obviously the reason why he'd had trouble getting it out of his cloak. The part at the tip was darker, not the light grey of holly but almost black ... maybe blackthorn.

A voice resurfaced in his memory. "... thirteen and a half inches, very powerful, Mr Potter." Mr Ollivander had said these words, about the sibling.

Two and a half inches more - pretty much the size of that black piece at the top. Harry examined it more closely. The wand changed seamlessly from holly to blackthorn, or whatever kind of wood this was.

His fingers felt the piece without sensing any dent or disruption. The brilliant light had forged the two parts together as if they had grown from the same tree.

Suddenly, the black piece lay in his left hand, and his right held a light grey wand of eleven inches, holly from end to end.

Cho smiled. "Your old wand, Harry - and an attachment if power's all that counts."


Harry held the black piece at the tip. It snapped in - looking fixed like ink on parchment, dentless, with the change of colour as the only sign of a difference. He tried to take it away, but it held, hard and unbending.

How had he ... Then he knew.

With his hand at the headpiece, he imagined the light again. The piece fell off into his hand. Beaming, he said, "Got it - a black Patronus, or something like that. Now we can put Nagini straight."

"What?" Almyra's face showed alarm.

"Calm down - it's okay." Harry aimed. "Reducio!"

In the grass lay a snake, brilliant as before, still of impressive size, however manageable.

"How do you feel, Nagini?"

"Lighter, Master, and not as hungry as a moment before."

"That's good. The quantities you'll need now aren't a problem at all." Harry heaved her up, feeling surprise at the considerable weight. "Curl yourself around my body - and be careful with my ribs."

"Certainly, Master."

Snakes couldn't grin, could they?

The snake felt warm, dry, smooth, and heavy, like a thick coat of massive weight. Her head was on Harry's shoulder.

Harry grabbed his Steel Wing. "Ready? Let's go."

Walking along, Cho said, "I can't wait to hear their comments if they see you coming. There's nothing like a little fun at the end of a long day."

"Now you've got two pet animals," said Almyra, "Hedwig and Nagini."

Hedwig ... Hagrid's present. Harry's eyes started to swim.

Almyra saw it. "I'm sorry - it was a stupid remark, Harry."

He choked. "No, it wasn't. I have to get used to the thought, although it might take some time."

An idea was forming in his mind. He pondered it, knowing instantly that it was the right thing to do. "Al?"

She glanced at him.

"Nagini's not a pet animal, not more than Sirius for me, or ..."

"... or Al as a falcon for me," completed Cho.

"Right. And Hedwig - I can't be a partner for Hedwig, but I know someone who can."

Two faces spun around to stare at him - Cho's, showing the first signs of a beaming smile, and Almyra's, with a worried expression ...

"Harry," she said, almost choking, "you can't do that. She was Hagrid's present - "

"Yes, and I'll always remember - " He had to steady his voice. "But that's what I mean: a pet can be a present, but Hedwig's more than that, and deserves the best life she can have. Hagrid would be the first to agree, the way he had it with animals. And besides, I would of course come to ask when I need to send letters."

Almyra swallowed.

"Then - we still have to ask Hedwig what's her opinion, but I know what she'll answer, and you know, too, don't you?"

There was the faintest nod ever from Almyra.

"So?"

Almyra beamed at him. "Yes. Thank you, Harry, it's so ... If you didn't have that snake around you, I would ..."

Cho was grinning. "Sister and brother, that's fine and well, but - you know, sometimes a snake just comes in handy."