Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

Web of Redemption COMPLETE	By : FemmeBono Category: HP Canon Characters paired with Original Characters > Het - Male/Female Views: 3455 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 15
- 16
- 17
Chapter 16: The fabric of life, woven by fate's hand
In the strange way time has of speeding up when there is something truly bad
coming, the month of May gave way to June as exams came and went with only a
modicum of fuss. No sooner had the students left on the Hogwarts express, then
Order members started Flooing in and apparating just on the edge of the grounds
almost daily. Tonks, who had already been stationed at the castle, was now
staying round the clock, and surprised Cassie with the knowledge that she was
also pregnant, though not nearly so far along. All of the Weasleys descended on
the castle two days after the kids were shipped off and Cassie wondered if she
had ever seen so many red-heads in one room. Fred and George had even gone "on
vacation in Bora Bora," leaving the store in the capable hands of
their assistants. They were distinctly surprised though, and there was an
initial tense moment when Percy Flooed in the day after and abruptly admitted to
being a "bit of a git about things." At this, Molly burst into tears
as Fred and George both chucked him around the head and pulled him into a
noogie. Hestia Jones and Dedalus Diggle even showed up, once they had
successfully secured the Dursleys and the Grangers. Kingsley, who was still
assigned to a night and day watch on the Muggle prime minister, regretfully
could not leave his post. He did, however, send his well wishes by owl. Remus
came strolling up the hill one day with the news that though he could not garner
any support from the werewolves, neither did Greyback. The ones who retained
more of their humanity had no desire to fight and the others, who preferred to
live as animals, did so without caring which side won or lost.

With the arrival of the Order, the dueling practices stepped up in their
intensity. All of the DA members and several other witches and wizards who were
of age stayed behind to help in the fight. The Room of Requirement was in daily
use as novices and veterans alike practiced with each other, sharing secrets and
swapping tips. Diggle was delighted to learn Ginny's Bat Bogey Hex and returned
the favor by showing her and the others how to cast a Occaecocare spell, which
blinded one's opponent. The house elves even showed up from the kitchens to help
and to teach. The centaurs began doing drills out on the grounds and the
merpeople staged battles in their underground realm, facing off against one
another with their tridents. So it continued for the next several weeks as they
banded together, with everyone practicing during the day, coming together for
meals in the great hall, meeting there again in the evenings for entertainment.
Sometimes they played games, told jokes or stories--anything to keep their minds
from dwelling on what was to come.

It was one such night, two days after Harry's birthday that Severus and
Cassie lay together on his bed. He ruffled her hair with one hand, while the
other stroked over her increasing belly. Both of them thinking the same thing,
neither wanting to voice it, they knew that Severus would be summoned at any
time and the war would truly have begun. Just then, he bolted straight up,
flexing his hand and wrist and clutching his forearm.

"Is it--"

"It's burning!" he broke in before she could even ask, grabbing his
wand from the side table and stowing it in his pocket. "I must warn the
others."

Severus made a dash for the door, buttoning his coat as he went and slamming
the door behind him. Thinking at first that it was only out of habit, Cassie
reached for the latch and tugged, only to find herself locked in. With a CRACK!
she turned, astounded, to face Dobby who gestured quickly for her to come to
him. "Hurry missus! Dobby will help you," he squeaked as she grasped
his outstretched hand. Another CRACK! and she and Dobby were then standing at
the door of the Room of Requirement as Dobby started tottering back and forth in
front of it muttering. "Good lord, Dobby, what are we doing here?"
Cassie prompted, close to the end of her patience as the door formed and she
stepped through with the elf in tow..

"Master Snape has requested you be put here, miss, with the other
ladies, and out of the fighting." Cassie looked around to see that
"other ladies" meant Tonks, who was clearly as furious as she and
Narcissa Malfoy, who swept in from what appeared to be the passage into the
Hog's Head, carrying a bottle of red currant rum. No sooner did Cassie register
this than Dobby disapparated again, leaving her at a loss.

"Don't even bother trying to get out, mate," said Tonks.
"Somehow they've barricaded the door."

"Cheers," said Narcissa, looking thoroughly resigned as she took a
large belt straight from the bottle.

"How did you two get here?" Cassie questioned.

"Remus, who will be rapped soundly round the head afterwards, sent me up
here for weapons and locked me in," snapped Tonks as she started pacing.

Cassie glanced over to Narcissa. "I was tired of fidgeting around my
dear departed aunt's with that barmy little elf, so Dumbledore brought me here.
And now I can watch my one and only child get his head blown off, all in the
name of Muggles," she sighed, filling a tumbler on the table and taking a
strong sip. "No offense of course."

Surprisingly, they were joined very shortly by Poppy, who walked straight
through the door. "Poppy!" the girls exclaimed. "How did you do
that?"

"Oh any of us can walk in. It's walking out you can't do until they
lower the enchantments."

"Blast it all, those blighters! I want to help," said Tonks,
kicking one of the hospital beds that had appeared, before lowering herself on
to it and massaging her sore toes.

"Serves you right," Poppy snapped. "You've no business, either
of you, fighting and straining yourselves in the condition you're in." She
barely spared Narcissa a glance before carrying the supplies she had brought in
over to an exam table in the middle of the room.

"Oh good lord," Cassie groaned. "I at least want to know
what's going on!"

At that, a set of mirrors on the far wall lit up as images from the castle
and grounds swam into view. "Alright! That's more like it," said Tonks
sweeping over to see the Death Eaters making their way up the hill as everyone
inside scrambled to their positions.

"Severus," echoed Voldemort's voice through the castle. "We're
here. Open the doors so I can extend Potter my deepest condolences on his
imminent death!"

Inside the room, Cassie and Tonks clutched at each other's hands as Poppy put
her fingers to her lips, listening to the evil voice seeping through the very
walls. Narcissa had sloshed rum all over the table and sat quaking with fear as
she tried to toss back the drink in her hand. Just then Dumbledore's voiced
bellowed through the corridors and out on the grounds, "not today Tom. If
you want Harry, you have a few of us to get through yet." Before Voldemort
could counter or even demand what was going on, the doors burst open and the
assault began. Watching from their vantage point, the women saw chaos erupt on
the grounds as people streamed out launching themselves in attack. They saw Flitwick,
Aurora, and Trelawney on the top of the Astronomy tower throwing fireballs at
Inferi. Watching incredulously as Flitwick charmed the gargoyles into action,
Cassie was amazed to see them fly into the fight below, buffeting Death Eaters
and Inferi and dive-bombing the giants.

"Bloody bleeding buggering hell!" exclaimed Tonks, as she watched
Remus dueling two Death Eaters at once. "Why'd I have to get
pregnant?"

"I'm thinking because he's as hard to say 'no' to as Severus..."
Cassie said, trying lamely for a joke as Narcissa tipped the bottle again back
at the table.

"Are you sure you don't want just one?" she called, gesturing with
a shot glass and already slurring her words. Poppy tutted disapprovingly as the
three women turned their faces back to the battle raging just outside.

Cassie looked back over to see Neville fall to one of Bella's stuns as Draco
rushed forward engaging her in a flurry of hexes and counter curses. Fred
Weasley having just bound Dolohov in restraints and stunned him for good
measure, spun on the spot shouting, "renervate!" at Neville's
unconscious form before turning to help Hannah Abbot fend off Greyback. Finding
himself on the floor in the heat of battle, Neville flung himself straight up and shot
Bella with a full body bind spell, effectively putting her out of commission.
"Thanks mate," said Draco as he moved off to engage one of the
Carrows.

"That's my boy," said Narcissa sadly from the safety of their
shelter. "God help him."

Outside the castle, Order members and Death Eaters alike dodged and leaped
out of the way to avoid the giants' trampling feet as the house elves set upon
them, levitating the clubs so that they beat their owners around the head and
face. Roaring in protest, the giants flung up their hands to avoid the blows
which gained in strength with every swing, stumbling and snarling as they broke
into full retreat. Hagrid, outdoors as well, had cornered Macnair by the lake
having chased him from the castle. Still enraged over Buckbeak's near demise, he
bore down on the Death Eater as he flung curses to no avail. His giant blood
protecting him from the onslaught, Hagrid lifted Macnair's body straight up as
he dropped his wand, tossing him into the lake as a merman rose out of it,
impaling him on the trident. Other merpeople were tossing their tridents like
spears at any spiders that had wandered close to the lake's edge as they swarmed
out of the Forbidden Forest. Now cut off from his route back up to the castle,
Hagrid screamed at the creatures whose ancestor he had so diligently seen to,
"hey ye lot! Get back where ye belong!" He bellowed as they swarmed
around him. Just as suddenly as he was engulfed by a sea of arachnids, a dragon
swooped down from overhead sending a rush of flames out ahead and clearing a
swath through them. Hagrid glanced up in time to see Charlie Weasley soaring
past on a Norwegian Ridgeback that looked all too familiar. Splitting into a wide
grin as he barreled back up to the castle, Hagrid waved, "Charlie! Ye've
got Norberta with ya?" Charlie smiled as he looped around on a return path,
taking out Inferi and several more spiders on the way.

Percy, who was fighting furiously with Avery closer to the castle doors, fell
back as he was slashed across the face by a powerful Sectumsempra spell that
shot through his shield charm. "Avada Kedavra!" was the last
thing he heard from above before he clenched his eyes shut, sure it was the end.
Truly he did feel himself levitating upwards and gliding through the air amid
the beating of wings. When he was finally brave enough to open them again, he
got an eyeful of massive scales and the ground far below him. Craning his head
up, he was shocked to see his brother Charlie, smiling down at him as they rode
to the top of the Astronomy tower. "Got to let you down here, bro, you're
out of commission now." Charlie pulled him off the dragon and handed him
over to Trelawney, who laid him out whispering the counterspell to bind his
wounds before he passed out again. Once again, Charlie launched off the top of
the tower, scattering Inferi and spiders as he swept across the grounds.

"God this is killing me!" Cassie said, stomping her foot. "I
could be out there right now with a sword, hacking them to pieces but no--"

"Sword?" slurred Narcissa from behind. "Are you the great
bloody wench who killed my husband?" Cassie glanced back to see Narcissa
sizing her up through bloodshot eyes.

"Well," she said, figuring she could hardly cause Cassie any harm
in this state, "actually I did."

"Thanks for that," she snorted, before falling face forward on the
table and knocking over the near empty bottle.

"I suppose I'd best get her to a bed and have a hangover emulsion
ready," said Poppy, shaking her head.

"At least she can sleep through this and wake up when it's over,"
Tonks replied, still looking at Cassie with a newfound respect.

In other parts of the castle, Pettigrew, seeing the inevitability of the
Death Eaters' defeat, deflected a spell from Ernie Macmillan and turned towards
Greyback who was steadily cursing and slashing at anyone close enough. Pettigrew
stood as curses and jinxes flew past him, his silver hand elongating and
sharpening to a deadly point, caught Greyback's eye just before he lunged
striking true through the heart as the werewolf belted out a raging howl and
dropped to his knees. Seizing his opportunity to attempt to save himself from
Azkaban, Pettigrew turned once again and began fighting other Death Eaters.
Alecto Carrows, who witnessed his change of loyalties from the landing above,
aimed a killing curse squarely at his back catching him completely unaware.
George Weasley, charging up the stairs, shot a leg-locker curse at her before
disarming and shouting, "incarcerous!" on his way to engage
Yaxley.

In the great hall, Molly and Arthur battled it out with Amycus and Gibbon,
covering each other as they spun and slashed, before Aberforth came barreling
down the aisle with a well-aimed Levicorpus that brought both Death Eaters ass
over shoulders in the air before they were bound and trussed, only to be
summarily dropped onto the floor. "Flammare!" shouted Dean and
Seamus together as Inferi began trying to crawl through the broken windows as
Grawp plucked more of them away, tossing them several yards to the ground. Dean and Seamus then
turned, only to find themselves facing none other than Crabbe and Goyle senior, and automatically began
dodging and parrying with wands flying and flashing as Aberforth, Molly and
Arthur ran to help.

Back inside the entrance hall, Severus spun to avoid a curse and flicked his
wand deflecting another. True to Cassie's expectations, he seemed to be
garnering quite a bit of attention from his old friends. He smiled grimly at the
thought, as Rowle filled his vision. "What are you smirking at,
Snape?" growled the towering Death Eater. "I've decided to quit
playing with you all," he replied, throwing a perfectly aimed killing curse
at Rowle's mocking leer before turning back to the two who had just tossed a
stray jinx at him while fighting Hermione and Ginny. Tossing a shield charm in
front of the two girls, Severus joined them as they collectively stunned the
still masked Death Eaters, before they each went their separate ways. He ran
headlong out the door, straight for the center of battle where Dumbledore and
Harry both lashed at Voldemort who had observed so little of the battle that he
was still smiling. The smiled slipped from his face as Severus stepped up,
aiming a stun which he quickly deflected.

"How dare you, Severus," he hissed. "Ever more the truth that
you never can trust anyone!" Vengefully he swept his wand in front of all
three of them, causing the ground to quake as the three men braced themselves
against the shift. A feral cry of rage rent the air as Bella, apparently freed
from the bind Neville put on her, bulleted into the fray. Severus spun away,
engaging her as Dumbledore and Harry continued with Voldemort. Dumbledore kept
up the charge as again and again Voldemort deflected Harry's stuns and
cursing.

"You should have learned quite more, Potter, before you came to
me." Voldemort laughed wickedly. "It will be entirely too easy to take
you once I finish off the old man."

His earth tremors continued, bucking under everyone's feet, as Dumbledore
tipped his wand to the ground causing it to split open beneath Voldemort's feet. Falling
into the chasm, Voldemort screamed once before shooting straight up in mid-air
hitting Dumbledore with a forceful stun that slammed him onto his back before
turning a killing curse on Harry, who walked right into the force of the blast.
Seeing this taking place on the edge of their vision, Bella and Severus turned together to see Harry hit
the ground. She let out a deranged cackle turning back to Severus as he took
advantage of her distraction. "Avada Kedavra!" he screamed,
lashing his wand and catching her in the face with it. Again he spun toward Voldemort, and
they began circling each other as Voldemort growled low in his throat.

"I'm ashamed of you, Severus," he sneered. "And all these
years I thought you liked Bella."

"Insanity is only so entertaining," replied Severus, never lowering
his wand or his guard. Sure enough, he cast Sectumsempra just as Voldemort
lashed at him with a Cruciatus, which each deflected.

"I have taught you entirely too well," Voldemort conceded.
"Luckily, I have not taught you all!" He launched again at Severus,
again Severus deflected it, shouting "resulto!" as the curse
rebounded on his attacker. The spell caught Voldemort full in the chest, causing
him to crumple as he began writhing and twitching, with Snape bearing down
forcing the curse to continue its assault. He broke off the curse as Voldemort
lay gasping, raising his wand once more he heard a voice behind join his as he
yelled, "Avada Kedavra!" With a blast of green light that
at first blinded his vision, he looked back to see Voldemort lying supine, no longer
writhing. No gasps, no maniacal gleam in the snakelike eyes. They stared up at
the sky, empty. As he turned, he saw Potter standing, his wand still aimed at
Voldemort's lifeless body as if expecting him to rise once more, but both he and
Severus knew full well that this was the last time.

Hearing a groan from behind them, they both glanced over to see Dumbledore
moving as if trying to get up and finding the thing impossible to do. They
walked over and, each outstretching a hand, pulled him to his feet. Looking
around, he managed a weak nod of approval as he took in the scene. The two
giants had long since fled. Charred remains of Inferi littered the ground and
any number of other Death Eaters lay dead, either from being cursed, burned, or
shot with arrows. A few lay moaning in agony over their wounds, and still fewer
had been backed up to the walls of the castle having surrendered as soon as they
saw their master fall.

"That'll do, I suppose," managed Dumbledore, who allowed himself to
be ushered back inside with Severus on one side and Harry on the other.

As the sun rose later that morning, the castle's residents were still awake,
tending wounded and binding prisoners for the Aurors to take back to Azkaban
prior to their hearings. Cassie took a break from helping with the injured, who
were still streaming in from outside, to look for her love. Down she flew to the
first floor and there, as she looked over the huge balustrade that was missing a
large chunk, she locked eyes with him as he glanced up from surveying the
damage. Climbing the main stairs to Cassie, Severus stepped on Yaxley, who
appeared to have a strange combination of green tentacles and Ginny's signature
bat bogey wings sprouting all over him, he met her halfway as she ran down to
him. "It's over," she exclaimed, overcome with relief as she latched
onto him. "Thank god it's over!"

"You said it, love," he sighed, burying his face in her hair,
hanging on just as tightly as he lifted her off the ground in a fierce hug. He
had his coat off, and his sleeves rolled up after setting aside bodies for
burial and shoring up any damage that could be dangerous if left unattended. She
turned his forearm to touch her lips to the mark he would never have to feel
burning again, only to gasp when she found only the barest trace of a scar.

"For the first time in years," he said, as she looked up
questioning, "I know what it feels like for my life to be my own."

***

Weeks later, they stood together at the lake's edge, surrounded by all her
new friends and her family, who had been escorted as a service by the Ministry.
She and Severus stood under a bower, ringed with garlands as they held hands.
Dumbledore, smiling widely and enjoying his official capacity to the hilt, spoke
of love, courage, and faith with a merry twinkle in his eye. Neither of them
heard much of it, not even as their mouths formed the words they repeated after
him. She watched tearfully as Severus slid his grandmother's ring onto the
correct finger and pulled her closer to him.

"Now by the authority vested in me as Supreme Mugwump of the
Wizengamot, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Severus," Dumbledore
winked, "you may now kiss your bride."

She tipped her gaze up to his, smiling as his lips met hers. Cheers and music
rent the air and arrows arced overhead as the centaurs, mermen, and any number
of other magical creatures joined in the celebration. She looked around at all
the smiling faces watching them: Harry and Ginny arm in arm, Hermione and Ron,
the Weasley twins elbowing each other, Minerva and Aurora dabbing their eyes
with handkerchiefs, Narcissa, Mandy and Draco standing close by, and any number
of the other faces she had grown to know and love. Thinking of the only other
occasion she knew where all these beings came together, Cassie was eternally
grateful that this one really happened, as the other had been rewritten and any
number of lives had been redeemed.
- 15
- 16
- 17
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Web of Redemption *COMPLETE*

Web of Redemption COMPLETE