Power Plays Chapter 20 (Patreon)

AN: Hello everyone! I know it has been a while since the last chapter, and I'd like to thank you again for your patience as I wrote You're Losing Me instead. We're back now, and we're racing towards the end of Part 1 of Power Plays. I don't know exactly how many chapters we have left to go, but expect that I will be finished with Part 1 sometime in the Fall. Shortly after that, Part 2 will begin.

This story will be plot-heavy for a while, but there is one more smut scene left in Part 1, so stay tuned for it!

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The clicking hands of the wall-mounted clock seemed to echo loudly in the near silence of Amelia’s office. She had all of the documents Harry had procured from Cyrus’s—now Daphne’s—office back at Greengrass Manor, and by the stern frown on her face, she found them as worrying as he did.

In the seat beside him, Susan suppressed a yawn and stretched her arms out. They’d been stuck at the Ministry for hours now as Amelia had been preoccupied with overseeing the investigation as to how Cyrus Greengrass and Nerys Orpington broke out, or were broken out, of their cells right in the heart of the Ministry. The details were still unknown, and that had left Amelia in a terrible mood. That mood didn’t necessarily alleviate with the promising news Harry had brought to her office, but her trademark determined spark in her eyes did return.

Amelia moved the parchment she had been reading aside and picked back up the important document: Euphemia Rowle’s letter.

Harry waited with bated breath as Amelia read it over once again. The connections were all there: Euphemia had been the third person at The White Wyvern and she was the one helping Bellatrix! Only, the letter didn’t say so explicitly. To Harry, this conclusion was only logical given the trail of evidence that he and Susan had gathered over the past few weeks, but if they didn’t have Amelia’s confidence, then they’d be left searching for more evidence.

Magical law was a tricky thing. The pure-blood families had so much power enshrined through the Wizengamot that it was difficult to pursue them on criminal matters unless they were caught out in the act. Men like Kingsley and Dawlish helped them to retain their power and allow them to continue their criminal deeds in secret, feigning ignorance to the truth that seemed so plain to Harry. Technically, this letter didn’t have enough actionable information in order to secure a warrant under normal circumstances, but Amelia, as the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, had a certain degree of leeway that allowed her to supersede normal protocol under extenuating circumstances. In short, she could make a warrant for Euphemia herself, and Kingsley, Dawlish, and even the Wizengamot couldn’t stop her. There’d certainly be an inquiry after the fact, but Amelia wouldn’t be penalised if the warrant led to a successful raid that proved the accusations levied against Euphemia.

But again, it came down to whether or not Amelia had faith in Harry and Susan’s reasoning.

Amelia set the parchment back down and looked up at her two charges with a piercing look. “You’re absolutely certain about this?”

Neither Harry or Susan hesitated. “Yes,” they both replied in near unison.

Susan leaned forward to continue. “There’s too much circumstantial evidence to ignore this. Euphemia is the woman that we’ve been looking for. There’s a good chance that we’ll be able to find more information on Bellatrix at her manor.”

Rowle Manor. Harry had picked up the Auror file on the Rowle family while he and Susan had been waiting for Amelia. The building was built along the southern shores of England, just west of Eastbourne, on a short cliff overlooking the sea and the rocky beaches below. It was surrounded by rolling hills covered in wild grass. There wasn’t much else around of note. It was secluded enough for a full-scale Auror operation, but only if Amelia approved of it.

To her credit, Amelia didn’t baulk in the face of taking on a pure-blood family through direct action like this. Kingsley had specifically directed the Department of Magical Law Enforcement to treat pure-blood families gently in the wake of the Second Wizarding War, and Dawlish had been more than happy to support this unofficial policy. Together, they’d created a culture in which actively pursuing the misdeeds of pure-blood families was a surefire way to put yourself in a great deal of trouble. There were several good Aurors who’d ended up reassigned to petty casework or patrols after they kicked up too much of a fuss. Most people had learnt to look the other way when dealing with pure-bloods, but Amelia wasn’t about to be cowed so easily.

There was a seriousness to Amelia’s expression as she let the information Harry and Susan presented her ruminate through her mind. Surely she could see the connections too, regardless of how circumstantial they seemed in isolation. When put together, all of the clues added up to the only plausible explanation they had.

“If the Minister finds out about this, there’s a good chance he’ll send out a warning letter to Rowle Manor first,” Amelia muttered. “It’ll give them all the warning they need to wipe any signs of their crimes.”

“Which is why we can’t wait on this information,” Harry argued passionately.

“I agree,” Amelia nodded. She dipped a quill in some ink and began writing down orders on a piece of parchment. Then, once she finished, she waved her wand and magically duplicated the parchment several times over. “We need to move fast. I have private orders here for some of my best men and women. Gather them up and then bring them to my office. Don’t tell anyone else what’s going on.”

“Understood,” Susan replied as she picked up the parchments.

Harry felt a rush of joy course through him. Finally, they were going to end this!

As Harry and Susan headed for the door, Amelia’s voice stopped them.

“Thank you, both of you, for all of your hard work,” she told them, sounding much more kind and caring than her typical stern tone conveyed.

There was nothing that needed to be said in reply. The best thing they could do was see this job through to the end.

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A dozen Aurors and a dozen Hit Wizards and Hit Witches stood at the ready inside of a large room just below the lowest level of the Ministry. Harry had been here many times before. The room was carved straight out of the earth and was noticeably damp and dreary inside. It was used as a staging ground for raids since most of the Ministry’s wards didn’t cover this room—there were only enough on it to keep the room stable and to prevent any unwanted guests from arriving without prior authorisation.

Amelia stood at the back of the room, dressed in the trademark red robes that all Aurors and Hit Wizards and Hit Witches wore during their normal duties in the field. She was surveying the collection of individuals she’d brought together for this mission. While Harry was unfamiliar with the various Hit Wizards and Hit Witches, Susan had assured him that they were all very competent at their work. He was also pleased to see that the dozen Aurors she had picked up for this mission weren’t any who were particularly loyal to Dawlish or his way of thinking. Several of them had greeted Harry warmly, which was heartening to experience given his time away from the Auror Office these past few weeks.

Harry and Susan stood just a short distance away from Amelia, watching as everyone checked over their gear and equipment to make sure that they were ready for the mission. Barely two hours had passed since they first began rounding up everyone here, so the short notice had everyone on edge.

“Alright, listen up!” Amelia barked, instantly gaining the attention of everyone in the room. “We’re here today because we have a concrete lead that suggests Bellatrix Lestrange may be found in Rowle Manor. We will be sweeping through the building in search of her, but be aware that it is likely that other Death Eaters may be there as well. Our secondary target is Euphemia Rowle; I have written a warrant for her arrest in connection to the disappearances of Cyrus Greengrass and Nerys Orpington, as well as a longer list of criminal activity spanning the last few months. Your orders are to take everyone alive!”

Harry bit back a grimace at that. Daphne’s words were still ringing in his mind, reminding him of the promise he’d made to her. Bellatrix needed to die in order for Daphne’s best friend, Tracey Davis, to break free of the curse that held her in limbo.

“We’ll be sweeping through in teams of two!” Amelia continued. “You all already have your assigned partners, and I expect you to watch over each other closely. I don’t want any accidents on this mission, so stay alert!”

Amelia picked up a long, coiled rope off of the small table behind her and threw it forward while still holding onto one end. The rope unfurled, stretching out down the centre of the room.

“This is our portkey,” she explained. “It’s set to take us in exactly ninety seconds, so finish your last minute checks and then grab hold of it.”

Harry and Susan were already set, so they were the first ones to grab onto it.

“I hope Bellatrix is in the left wing,” Susan murmured to him.

The left wing was where they had been assigned. They’d be going there with two other pairs to search through that section of the manor. “So do I,” Harry replied eagerly. Finding her and putting a stop to her had long been a dream of his ever since that night at the Department of Mysteries where she killed Sirius. Harry had been torn between wanting to see her arrested and answer for her crimes and simply seeing her dead, but now he supposed that his mind was settled on the latter.

“You’d better not get yourself killed out there,” Susan winked at him. “I’d hate to be the Hit Witch who let the Chosen One die.”

“Come on, you’re a capable and competent witch; there’s no way I’d die with you as my partner,” Harry replied with a playful twinkle in his eyes. “Although, I do remember that time in Italy when we were chasing down our target and you ran straight into a door—”

“You promised never to bring that up again,” Susan replied quickly in a hushed tone as she nervously glanced around to see if anyone overheard.

“Oh? You don’t want everyone to know that black eye you had was from the door knob and not the target?”

“Fine,” Susan huffed. “I guess I’ll act just as good as you think I am; guess I’ll be too busy walking into doors to stop the killing curses from hitting your back.”

“I’m just teasing you,” Harry chuckled. “I know you’ll do an excellent job like always.”

“Gonna push you into a door,” Susan muttered quietly.

“Ten seconds!” Amelia called out.

Suddenly, the banter stopped between Harry and Susan as they both readied themselves. They had the portkey-rope in one hand and their wands in their other. The Aurors, Hit Wizards, and Hit Witches all grabbed hold of the rope in time before that familiar jerk behind everyone’s navels sent them flying through a tube of swirling colours far away from the Ministry.

The moment they landed in the grassy fields in front of Rowle Manor, Harry knew that something was wrong. There was a magical tingle in the air that had all of his senses alight. Though he could not place it exactly, the magic in the air screamed danger.

He didn’t wait for anything to strike him first. Instead, he grabbed the back of Susan’s robes and threw both of them to the side as he simultaneously brought up a shield charm. The translucent light formed a protective barrier in front of him just in time to block a burning sphere of flame, which exploded upon contact with his shield, sending fragments of molten rock and fire scattering around on the dry grass.

Someone shouted: “Ambush!” And then all pandemonium broke loose.

Under the night sky, powerful gouts of flame rained down on the assembled group of Aurors and Hit Wizards and Hit Witches. Many brought up shields to protect themselves and their allies, but not everyone was so quick. The stench and crackling of burning flesh filled the small valley between a couple of gentle hills that they found themselves in.

Susan wasn’t fazed as she staggered forward onto her feet. Her wand was already in her hand and she was casting retaliatory spells as Harry continued to block the incoming fire with his shields. Dodging wasn’t an option with the unprotected backs of his allies behind him, so he kept up his shield for as long as he could, hoping that they’d managed a successful counterattack before the drain on his magic became too much.

The dark shadows on the two hills on either side of the valley continued to spew fire down upon the group even as they began to suffer return fire. It took Harry a moment to realise that they weren’t all aiming for them; some were directing their fire spells onto the dry grass, and the ground was quickly igniting.

“We can’t stay here!” Harry shouted over the sound of spellfire. “We need to push up one of the hills!”

He didn’t know how many heard him, but Susan did at least. She pressed forward, casting spell after spell with incredible speed and precision. Harry kept hold of the back of her robes, moving step by step with her so that he could easily block any incoming spellfire. They made for an effective duo like this, especially with Susan’s stunning offence.

Two of the dark shadows ahead dropped as two of Susan’s spells caught them both while they were in the middle of casting more fire spells. They dropped to the ground, their wands tumbling out of their hands, and that provided just the gap that Harry needed.

“Go!” He shouted in Susan’s ear, and the two of them took off running.

The shadowy figures on either side of the newly-formed gap backed off as Harry and Susan burst forward. They shot off several spells at them, but Harry blocked them all with his shield. Once they reached the top of the hill, Harry dropped his shield for just a moment in order to cast a spell on the ground.

Suddenly, a perfect ring of earth rose up from the ground. It came up to Harry and Susan’s chests, providing a fair amount of cover while allowing them to easily fire back on the retreating enemies.

Finally able to pause his shielding for a moment, Harry turned back to where they had arrived. There were still half a dozen of his allies trapped down in the centre of the valley, surrounded on all sides by roaring flames that were licking at their feet. They were trying desperately to beat the fire back with water-based spells, but the magical flames were proving surprisingly resilient. Past them, a much larger group of Aurors, Hit Wizards, and Hit Witches, led by Amelia, were pushing up the opposite hillside.

Four Hit Wizards clambered over the ring of earth Harry had erected and dropped themselves into cover. One looked badly burnt while the other three were simply winded.

“How the fuck did they know we were coming?” One of them asked breathlessly.

“It doesn’t matter,” Susan snapped at the man before she fired off a stunner over the wall. “We still have a job to do, and we need to get to that manor.” She pointed down at the manor in the distance. All of the windows glowed with the flickering light of candles, and Harry could see some activity inside as dark silhouettes sprinted past the windows.

There were maybe ten shadowy figures running down the field that led up to the manor, but it appeared to be clear otherwise. Harry turned back to the other hill and saw that Amelia was standing atop it barking orders, and several of her forces were running back down to help their trapped allies in the valley below. The fighting was done for now, but there was bound to be more soon.

“We’ve got the anti-apparation wards up, right?” Harry asked the group.

Susan nodded. “I heard our warder set them up in the middle of the chaos.”

“Perfect.”

Harry pulled open his robes and reached inside one of the inner pockets. He quickly found the objects he was looking for. He tossed them into the air and silently returned them back to their original size.

“Let’s get them before they can get back to the manor,” Harry said to Susan as he caught his Firebolt broomstick in his free hand.

Susan snatched the other one out of the air. “Got it,” she agreed with a grin. “The rest of you should link back up with Director Bones.”

Before the other could respond, the two of them kicked off and took to the skies.

For a moment, Harry relished the feeling of the cool air whipping past his face, but he quickly refocused back on the task at hand. He and Susan both knew that he was the much better flyer, so she always let him take the lead.

The ten figures running through the fields were halfway back to the manor now. They looked disorganised, which made them perfect targets for Harry.

Straightening out his body so that it was parallel with the broom, Harry zipped through the air towards the targets. He gained ground quickly on them as he readied his wand. He laid himself out perfectly flat so that he could stare down at the ground with his wand in front of him. The moment he passed overhead of one of the targets, he let loose a trio of stunning spells. One missed, but the other two struck the large man cleanly, sending him tumbling to the floor.

The first man’s defeat caught the attention of a couple others nearby. They shouted to their comrades about what was happening, and then two things happened. The first was that the majority of them sped up their pace as they sprinted towards the manor, intent on gaining shelter. The second was that three of the figures looked to the skies and started firing curses indiscriminately at Harry.

With the speed of his Firebolt, dodging the curses was like child’s play. Harry swerved out of their path and cut back around to take them head-on. Only, he didn’t need to do anything because while the three figures had their focus on him, none of them spotted Susan flying down behind them. Without anyone noticing her, she was easily able to take her time and line up her shots so that all three of them struck the three targets.

“Nice shots!” Harry shouted at her as he flew past. He quickly turned back around and set off to chase after the fleeing targets.

With the lack of cover, even in the dark of night, none of the targets were able to avoid Harry’s spells. He swooped low towards the ground and fired off a volley of stunners. Even though a few managed to dodge out of the way, Susan’s follow-up strikes took them down cleanly.

Being as low to the ground as he was, the skull-faced masks were plainly visible on the targets faces.

“Death Eaters,” Harry spat on the ground as he landed a bit short of the manor. He shrunk his broom and stowed it back inside of his robes. Having seen more people running past the manor’s windows earlier, he didn’t want to get too close and chance another ambush from an elevated position.

Susan landed close to him and hurried over to his side. “Aunt Amelia is on her way with everyone,” she said, gesturing over her shoulder. “We should wait for them to get closer.”

Harry grimaced. That would be the logical thing to do, but more eyes on him would make it a lot harder to kill Bellatrix without any of them noticing.

“They’re probably already getting ready to flee out the back,” Harry argued. Four Aurors had been chosen to guard the back of the manor, but they obviously didn’t make it given the ambush. “If we don’t push inside now, whoever is in there might get away.”

Susan bit her lip as she glanced up at the manor. The shadows of figures inside still passed by the windows occasionally, but their numbers were dwindling.

“We’ll keep each other safe,” Harry assured her. “I trust you to watch my back.”

Susan met his gaze for a moment, re-cementing her trust in him. Harry felt a bubble of guilt in his stomach that he was pushing her to do this, but he knew that this was the best path forward. Even if he didn’t have his deal with Daphne in place, he would have argued to go inside anyways; he’d always been headstrong like that.

“Okay,” Susan replied evenly. “But we stick by each other’s sides the whole time. No heroics.”

Harry snapped off a mock salute. “Yes, ma’am.”

Susan rolled her eyes. “I’m going to regret this, aren’t I?”

Harry hoped she wouldn’t.

They ran up to the front of the manor together, both shielding for the spellfire that never came. They stormed up the front steps and Susan blasted the door inward to reveal the entry hall beyond.

The long hallway was filled to the brim with trunks of all shapes and sizes. They were stacked on top of each, lining each of the walls. Three doors, one on each of the three walls within the entry hall, led deeper into the manor. No one was in the entry hall besides Harry and Susan, but the sounds of pounding footsteps and voices shouting could easily be heard from beyond.

“Stick to the original plan?” Harry asked Susan as he slowly approached the leftmost door.

“I’m with you,” Susan confirmed as she planted herself against his back.

Harry blew open the door with another blasting curse and immediately threw himself out of the way as two jets of green light shot towards him. Susan took cover against the door frame instead as the two killing curses soared past her faces with only inches to spare. Without missing a beat as the spells passed her by, Susan peered around the corner and fired off several stunning spells into the room, trying to quickly pinpoint whoever had just tried to kill them.

As Harry scrambled to his feet, he heard a deep, male voice say “Rennervate” inside, signalling that one of Susan’s stunning spells hit. Not wanting to waste the momentary advantage, Harry leapt into the room. He immediately saw the masked Death Eater helping his compatriot to his feet at the far end of the small sitting room. Two quick stunning spells dropped the men to the floor.

“I’ve got em,” Harry called out to Susan, who quickly entered the room.

Susan hurried over to the two men and tore off their masks. “I don’t recognise either of them,” she said to Harry. “Do you?”

They were just as unknown to Harry. “No,” he answered. “New recruits maybe.”

That wasn’t a thought that either of them were happy to consider. If the Death Eaters were recruiting again, that meant that they must have someone or someones leading them. Bellatrix was an obvious candidate, but her insanity likely wouldn’t lend itself well to a formal leadership position.

Regardless, that type of speculation could come later. Right now, they had a job to do.

Susan and Harry kept pushing forward through the manor. Most of the rooms on the main level they ventured into were deserted, but they did manage to catch two more Death Eaters who were trying to sneak out the back door by the kitchen and one who was hurriedly descending down the staircase from the first floor.

“Upstairs,” Susan directed him as she took the lead.

They crept upstairs slowly, mindful of the dangerous angles that came into play as they neared the first floor landing. Thankfully, in the chaos of the attack, no one seemed to notice them creeping up the staircase. Several Death Eaters went sprinting by the top of the stairs, but none of them bothered to look down at Harry or Susan. Instead, they all seemed to be focused on gathering trunks together.

“Get the next group that comes round,” Susan whispered into Harry’s ear.

Nodding in reply, Harry waited, tightly coiled and ready to strike. It only took a couple minutes before a group of three came running down from the right. As they passed by the top of the staircase, Harry and Susan burst out of hiding with a flurry of stunning spells. The three figures dropped instantly, but the sounds of their bodies hitting the floor were noticed.

A cry went up from someone further down the corridor. Cursing, Harry leapt out of cover even as Susan called for him to retreat. He hit the man who had shouted with a blasting curse that sent him flying into the back wall before Harry’s follow up stunning spell made him slump to the floor.

“Come on!” Harry called back to Susan.

“I said to pull back!” Susan shouted at him, but she came running after him regardless.

Harry sprinted full speed down the corridor towards where the concentration of voices and footfalls was coming from. There was an ajar door at the end of the corridor with flickering light coming from inside.

“Potter!”

There she was: Bellatrix Lestrange, standing in what looked to be a child’s bedroom. She looked older than Harry remembered. Streaks of grey threaded through her long, curled, black locks of hair and her face was looking much more wrinkled. The years in Azkaban had aged her terribly, and her life on the run since Voldemort’s downfall couldn’t have helped much either.

There was an old woman beside her wearing casual robes and carrying a young girl in her arms. The girl had her face buried in the old woman’s neck, trembling as the sound of spellfire resumed elsewhere in the manor. Amelia must have arrived with everyone else, Harry realised.

“We don’t have time for this,” the old woman hissed to Bellatrix, but Bellatrix didn’t seem to care. Her cold, angry glare was focused solely on Harry’s face.

“Five years,” Bellatrix fumed. “Five years since this half-blood killed our master, and you just want to leave him here unpunished?” Her voice was shrill as she shouted.

The little girl let out a whimper, and Bellatrix rounded on her.

“Shut it!” She snapped. “Or you can say goodbye to your precious pet.”

Somewhere to the right of the door frame that Harry was on the other side of, an Augurey cried.

“Enough of this, we need to go,” the old woman insisted. “Leave Potter. You’re too important to risk losing.”

“Are you suggesting that I’d lose to a pathetic worm like him?”

Harry heard Susan’s footsteps coming up from behind him. Knowing that she had his back now, he stepped closer into view, revealing more of his body around the door frame to allow Bellatrix a perfect target. “A pathetic worm who killed Voldemort,” Harry goaded her, hoping she’d engage him and give him the justification he needed to kill her.

“You dare speak his name”! Bellatrix screeched. “Avada—”

The entire manor rumbled fiercely as an explosion rocked its foundations.

“Kedavra!” Bellatrix concluded, but she stumbled when the building shook. Her killing curse smashed against the wooden floor, sending up fragments of the wooden planks through the air.

That was all Harry needed. After the wartime measures had been removed, Kingsley had left in a caveat that allowed for the use of lethal force against any Death Eater who utilised lethal force first. It wasn’t a popular measure among the pure-bloods, but the Aurors appreciated the fact that, in a life-and-death situation, they’d be able to defend themselves adequately. Few ever resorted to it though given the massive political pressure they’d face in the aftermath.

Harry didn’t care about the political pressure—he’d handled far worse than whatever fallout he’d receive. All that mattered was putting a stop to the one who killed his godfather, the one who had cursed Daphne’s best friend, the one who was the most dangerous criminal-at-large in Britain.

“Reducto!” Harry fired the spell as soon as he steadied his aim again. The curse nearly caught Bellatrix, but her duelling talents were legendary for good reason. The hastily-cast shield she brought up had more power in it than nearly any Auror’s properly-casted shield, and Harry’s spell ricocheted off of it and struck the ceiling. A shower of debris rained down, and Bellatrix used the momentary cover to  dash back deeper into the bedroom.

Even though he knew that she was baiting him inside, Harry wasn’t going to let this opportunity slip through his fingers. He lunged inside, ready to face whatever danger came his way.

“Harry!” Susan called out as she ran in behind him. “On your right!”

He’d already seen the spell coming from the old woman. Her casting had been clean but terribly slow. He batted away whatever curse she’d sent his way and went to return fire when he paused. She was still holding the little girl against her chest like a shield. The old woman smirked, realising that Harry wasn’t going to attack her, and unleashed a couple more curses.

Susan stepped in and blocked them. “Get Bellatrix!” She told him as she searched for a way to deal with the old woman without harming the young girl.

Harry didn’t need to be told twice. Bellatrix had sprinted out the door on the far wall, and Harry went chasing after her.

As Harry sprinted through the door and out into another corridor, he felt the intense heat of flames soaring in from his left. He threw himself forward into a roll, letting the flames pass overhead and ignite the walls of the manor instead of him, and quickly turned to see Bellatrix coming at him.

The fury on Bellatrix’s face was matched by the chaos she created. Explosions, bolts of lightning, and killing curses flew from the tip of her wand like she was a witch possessed by a malevolent evil that sought only destruction. It had been so long since Harry had fought anyone as strong as this, and his lack of recent experience showed as he struggled to keep up with the powerful stream of magic. His shield cracked but held firm under the onslaught, but various fragments of wood and plaster bounced wildly around the corridor, occasionally striking him and cutting his skin. The windows in the corridor shattered, adding broken glass to the chaos around him.

“You’ll be dead soon,” Bellatrix cackled madly. “Say hello to Sirius for me, will you?”

Harry roared and stepped out of the path of two of Bellatrix’s spells rather than shield against them. He could taste the magical energy as they whipped past his face, but he didn’t let himself get distracted. “Defodio!” He shouted, sending the gouging curse right at the mad woman.

Bellatrix leapt aside just in time. The blue-coloured spell soared past her and struck the wall beside the door Harry had come from. It blasted a person-sized hole in the wall, revealing Susan in the room beyond. She had backed the old woman into a corner and wasn’t letting up with her stunning spells. All the old woman could do was shield and cry out for help while the little girl in her arms screamed in terror.

For just a moment, as the little girl’s screams rang out, Bellatrix turned her head to look back. Harry saw the look of worry in her eyes, the momentary distraction that had given him just the opening he needed.

“Pestis Incendium,” Harry growled.

His wand bucked in his hand as the powerful Fiendfyre coursed out of it. He could feel the flame’s desire to turn on him, to make him pay for daring to try to control it. Harry pushed with his will, dominating the curse fully until the newly-formed phoenix bowed its head in submission and flew off towards Bellatrix. The phoenix’s wings scratched along the already-burning walls of the manor, making the flames grow brighter and more powerful. The phoenix screeched, a cry that promised death for any in its path.

Bellatrix turned with wide eyes to see the death that was approaching her. She realised that she had no good options. She couldn’t apparate out, nor could she hope to conjure her own Fiendfyre in time to stop Harry’s. Her eyes searched the corridor for any means of escape.

Just as the phoenix was about to engulf Bellatrix, she charged straight through one of the wings of the phoenix and leapt out of one of the broken windows. She screamed as the cursed fire struck her body, but she made it through the empty window and out into the air.

Harry pulled hard on his magic to reign in the Fiendfyre before it could continue on its path of destruction and hit Susan. The phoenix stopped short of the doorway and screeched again. It thrashed against the invisible bonds of Harry’s magic, desperate to burn the world around it. Harry had to grit his teeth and focus hard to slowly shrink the Fiendfyre until it was little more than a spark that he could finally snuff out.

The second the Fiendfyre was gone, Harry sprinted to the window that Bellatrix had leapt out of. He could see her down in the field below, still alight from his spell. She was hobbling along with a broken leg, but she’d made it quite far towards the cliff’s edge that led down to the ocean below.

Without so much as a warning to Susan, Harry pulled out his broom, returned it to its normal size, and fled the burning building to chase after Bellatrix.

“Bellatrix!” Harry roared, his voice echoing down towards her.

She turned back to look at him as he cut through the air like a knife. Her mask of rage and fury hadn’t abated, but there was a smugness in her visage as she reached the cliff’s edge.

“Accio Bellatrix!” Harry called out desperately, but it was too late as she leapt off of the cliff’s edge. Then, the telltale sound of apparation rang out.