(A/N: last chapter of DH... let's spam the chat ahhh)
CHAPTER FOURTEEN:
Third Person Narrative:
Charlie remained kneeling at Snape's side, staring down at him, until quite suddenly a high, cold voice spoke so close to them that Charlie jumped to his feet, the flask gripped tightly in his hands, thinking that Voldemort had reentered the room.
Voldemort's voice reverberated from the walls and floor, and Charlie realized that he was talking to Hogwarts and to all the surrounding area, that the residents of Hogsmeade and all those still fighting in the castle would hear him as clearly as if he stood beside them, his breath on the back of their necks.
"You have fought valiantly," said the high, cold voice, "Lord Voldemort knows how to value bravery, yet you have sustained heavy losses. If you continue to resist me, you will all die, one by one. I do not wish this to happen. Every drop of magical blood spilled is a loss and a waste. Lord Voldemort is merciful. I command my forces to retreat immediately. You have one hour. Dispose of your dead with dignity... treat your injured..."
"I speak now, Harry Potter, directly to you. You have permitted your friends to die for you rather than face me yourself. I shall wait for one hour in the Forbidden Forest. If, at the end of that hour, you have not come to me, have not given yourself up, then battle recommences. This time, I shall enter the fray myself, Harry Potter, and I shall find you, and I shall punish every last man, woman, and child who has tried to conceal you from me... one hour."
The voice faded away at last, and the four Gryffindors in the Shrieking Shack shared a glance between them.
"You can't give yourself up to him," Ron broke the silence, looking panicked. "Don't even think about it!"
"Don't listen to him, Harry," said Charlie immediately, and Hermione — her hands covered in Snape's blood — grabbed her boyfriend, shaking her head frantically.
"It'll be all right," she said wildly. "Let's — let's get back to the castle, if he's gone to the forest we'll need to think of a new plan —"
Harry said nothing in response, and only moved to gather the discarded Invisibility Cloak and tuck it back into Hermione's beaded bag. Wiping the blood from his cheek, Charlie spared one last look at Snape's dead body. He did not know what to feel, except shock at the way the ex-Potions Professor had been killed, and the reason for which it had been done...
Then, with a shudder of uneasiness, the four Gryffindors crawled back through the tunnel, none of them talking, and Charlie wondered whether his friends could still hear Voldemort ringing in their heads as he could.
You have permitted your friends to die for you rather than face me yourself... I shall wait for one hour in the Forbidden Forest... one hour...
Small bundles seemed to litter the lawn at the front of the castle. It could only be an hour or so from dawn, yet it was pitch-black. The four of them hurried toward the stone steps; there were two lone dogs, the size of small boats, which lay abandoned in front of them — Ludo and Fang. There was no other sign of Grawp or of his attacker.
The castle was unnaturally silent. There were no flashes of light now, no bangs or screams or shouts. The flagstones of the deserted Entrance Hall were stained with blood. Emeralds were still scattered all over the floor, along with pieces of marble and splintered wood, and part of the banister had been blown away.
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