Chapter 15

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Harry's POV
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Yesterday, the students returned from the holidays, and so Ron, Hermione and I were discussing what happened over the last two weeks.

"Fred and George invented a few new things for the shop, but Christmas was a bit boring without my friends," said Ron.

"Yes, there's nothing interesting in sliding down mountains without you two," said Hermione.

"I was trying to eavesdrop on Voldemort, but I couldn't," said I.

We chatted for a while before I asked Hermione what a Felix Felicis was.

"It's a potion that will give the drinker luck for a period of time. It's other name is 'Liquid Luck'. Why do you ask?" She said.

"Nothing, I was just curius, I think I read it somewhere," and I wasn't lying.

After one more hour of talking, we went to sleep.

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The next day had gone by quickly. We took a seat at the Griffindor Table at lunch and conversed.

Five minutes after we came in the Great Hall, the doors burst open and spells were already flying everywhere. I stood up to see what happened, and saw that Death Eaters were cursing everyone in their way. And those who were not in their way also.

The teachers were already running towards them to stop them, and so I went around the table, careful not to let them see me, drank the Felix Felicis that was hidden in my pocket, and attacked from behind. With this, three DE went limp and lying on the floor by my Stunning Spell.

For a long time, we were just repeating this, the DA, the teachers and I Stunning the Death Eaters, some of us receiving cuts and curses. I saw a couple of students lying on the floor.

When only a dozen more Death Eaters were standing - and the same number of teachers, DA members and I, all in all -, an unearthly laugh filled the Great Hall. I knew that sound.

I turned and saw that Voldemort was standing in the door, his wand in his hand, and a cruel smile on his face.

"Harry Potter," he said in his high-pitched voice. I raised my wand and cast the strongest Shield I have ever heard of, which could not be broken by anything but my volition, around the Tables.

The Death Eaters bowed to their lord and went out from the Hall. The students and teachers were all safe behind my Shields, only Voldemort and I were out of them. I was standing a few metres away from the Head Table, and he was walking towards me but stopped fifteen metres before me.

"I hope you know by now how to duel, Harry, or we'll have to repeat what happened at the cemetery when I was reborn. We'll bow to each other first," and so he did, his crimson eyes never leaving mine.

When he stood, I said, "I will not ever bow to you."

He smirked and said, "Indeed. It seems like we must repeat last years events. Crucio!" I heard the teachers gasp, and some students shriek. I could fell nothing but pain, but I didn't move, nor did I scream.

"Bow to me, you insolent brat! Crucio!" It wasn't so intense as the previous, so it was slightly easier not to scream.

"Can't you hear me? Bow! Crucio!" I hadn't felt it now. I stood for some seconds, then raised my wand.

"Sectumsempra!" He fended it with a shield.

"So you're immune to two Unforgivables now, are you?" He smirked and cast a Cutting Curse. It missed my neck by inches, but it would have cut my head off had I not ducked.

"Expelliarmus!" He shouted, and my wand flew from my hand. Nevermind, I learned to duel without it, and I can use wandless magic just as good as I can use it with a wand.

I used a Conjunctivitis Curse to damage his eyes, but he defended himself.

We continued this for long minutes, when I saw something black moving between the Shields I cast around the House Tables. I couldn't see it properly, because in the next moment, Voldemort was cursing yet again.

"I wonder, Harry Potter, how you can bear so many wounds. Had Severus trained you to hide your pain away, too?" He asked. I looked down at myself, and found that I had quite a few wounds, some are bleeding, some just aching. I hadn't noticed them, maybe because of the adrenaline that was rushing through my veins.

"You have no idea about my training on bearing pain," I told him darkly.

He chuckled, "I'm curious. Can you tell me?"

"No, what the hell, Tom, we're in the middle of a duel," I said glaring at him with my sarcastic face.

"Well then, I'll see it for myself. Legilimens!"

I tried to fight him, but he was too strong.

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I was five, making breakfast for the Dursleys when I burnt the bacon.

"You good-for-nothing freak, had I not showed you how to fry the bacon?!" Uncle Vernon yelled. He grabbed my hand and pushed it on the stove. I whimpered and tears tricked down my face by the time he let go of my burnt hand.

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I was seven, weeding the garden on a hot summer day. I accidently cut my palm with the secateurs, and went inside to get something for it from the bathroom. As I was looking through the cabinet, a rough hand landed on my shoulder and spun me around.

"What are you doing, boy? Stealing from me?" Uncle Vernon asked.

"No, Uncle, I just cut my hand and it's really nasty, I think it might get infected if I don-" he didn't let me finish my sentence, instead, he grabbed me by my collar, dragged me to my cupboard and threw me in, so that I could hear my shoulder crack when it hit the opposite wall, but I merely winced at the sound.

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I was twelve, leaning against the wall of my bedroom, as Uncle Vernon commanded. I had no shirt on, and my back was covered in velts and blood.

"No more freakish owls! No more!" He yelled, each word followed by a hit by his belt.

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I finally pushed Voldemort out of my mind, finding both of us panting.

"So, the Boy-Who-Lived was... abused?" He said, clearly amused.

The Great Hall fell in silence. No screaming, no profanity, no panting could be heard.

"I. Was. Not. Abused," I said slowly, in such a deep voice, I didn't recogise it as mine.

Voldemort laughed.

And then, the black thing I saw earlier move between the Shield appeared behind Voldemort.

It was Snape.

He raised his wand and muttered a spell. However, the white light bounced off Voldemort, because he quickly cast a Shielding Charm.

"Severus, you traitor. Sectumsempra!" He snarled and Snape fell on the floor, covered in blood.

"NO!" I yelled over the crowd of terrified screams.

Snape was dead. The man, who saved my life several times, who knew my mother closely, who taught me how to protect myself. Our relationship was getting better over the last few months, but now he was dead.

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General POV
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White-hot rage flared in Harry. It could be seen in the way his fists were clentched, in his trembling, in the way his jaw was silently moving as of he was trying very hard not to scream. But most importantly, his rage showed in his eyes. It was still green, but it was shining, and it's shine was so bright it could have illuminated in the dark.

"Oh, had I killed someone you liked?" Voldemort asked sardonically with a smirk, "Let's solve that problem. I'm going to kill you, so that you and the traitor will meet in hell."

"Don't call him a traitor. He was the bravest man I've ever known," Harry said through gritted teeth, his jaw clenched in anger.

Voldemort rolled his eyes lazily, "Whatever. Avada Kedavra!"

And something happened in that moment, that no one had counted on.

Harry Potter took a step back away with his right leg and raised his hands in waist-height.

The green light shot from the wand and towards Harry, right into his hands.

Several people screamed and looked away. The Shields around the Tables shook, but regained strength. Harry's feet slid back a few inches, but he was holding onto the green light.

Harry chuckled, so deeply that it would abash Snape's bariton voice, and looked up to the eyes of his opponent.

"For every death you caused, for every life you ruined."

And he outstretched his hands, and the green light shot back to its caster. Voldemort yelled in rage and surprise, but the curse hit him and now he was lying dead on the floor.

Harry ran to Snape's side. He was pale and cold, but Harry still had that little piece of hope inside him that said Snape's alive.

He kneeled beside Snape, Accioed his wand, and tried to heal Snape - with no success. But he tried anyway and flinched when a hand touched his shoulder.

"He's dead, Harry," Dumbledore's sad voice said.

Harry looked up. He hadn't noticed his Shields fall, and nor did he hear Dumbledore walking to him. He looked at the old man and dropped his wand.

Harry put his two hands on the long gash over Snape's chest and belly. He closed his eyes, and felt his magic run through his shoulders and arms to his hands to reach Snape.

Blue, red, green, yellow, purple, and every other colour in the spectrum appeared as thin jets of light around his arms and hands, and spread over Snape's upper body. As these jets of light touched each other, white light appeared in their place. After ten seconds, it was so bright that the people around Harry had to close their eyes.

The gash under Harry's palms slowly closed, and he fell unconsciously to the floor next to Severus Snape.