The Scene They Deserved

He was thrown off balance and his head smacked hard against the ground. He shot another spell from the ground, but missed. Was he going to-

a blast that shook the floor threw the Death Eater back. He recognized Nymphadora’s clutch instantly as she dragged him to his feet. Fear and joy flooded over him. Her face was sheet white, making her black eyes stand out like deep, glistening pools in her face. Her hair was blazingly bright. He snatched her hand and squeezed it tightly as they turned away from one another. They let go quickly and continued fighting.

They were disgustingly outnumbered. He could see Order members and children fighting two, three Death Eaters at a time. There was no time to think.

He glanced from time to time, only when a frantic second allowed, at Nymphadora. She did likewise, only glancing if she was sure, positive that it was safe. A few precious times their eyes locked, and it strengthened him.

He shot down one of two men fighting him and glanced to the side.

The green blast shot her slender body backwards.

He screamed.

She was falling back towards the floor. His lungs ripped in two, but the scream didn’t stop, it only became more ragged. He threw himself behind her and caught her desperately, unnecessarily. He looked up and saw the man who’d killed her. He could’ve charged at him, bitten him, ripped out his throat. He could’ve been Fenrir Greyback for all the rage that burst from his chest, up his arm. He shot the man before him dead, one arm still wrapped around his wife. He knew, even as he killed this one man, that there were two more there, and that he would not survive this moment.

Teddy flashed before his eyes, filled his arms, clutched his finger. Panic jolted him, but then Harry’s image shot into his mind and his fear leapt from him. In that instant, as he saw a wand pointed at his forehead a couple yards away and knew another pointed on the other side, as he failed to raise his own wand in time, he knew that Harry would survive. He knew that Harry was worth dying for, that Voldemort would be defeated- knew with a violent joy that Teddy would not be left alone. He saw the world passing by him, saw the end of himself, but knew that Teddy would go on and that Harry would be as good a father figure to Teddy as Sirius would have been to Harry, had he not been imprisoned, just as Remus had always known he would.

He saw the blast coming, and was relieved to know that his son was alive. He was relieved that Nymphadora had not fallen to the floor, and that he would die with her in his arms.

He did. And his body broke her fall on the marble floor.