[2] after darkness → tom riddle

Chapter Forty: Goodbye

The Dark Lord and his followers of Death Eaters had found them on the beach. They were surrounded but they fought through it. Once again the former classmates fought against each other in the fight to the death, only this time more people were to die.

Classmate against classmate.

Friend against friend.

Brother against brother.

And ex-lovers face to face in their final battle.

Ophelia struck down Odgar Nott. She watched the fear in his eyes turn to nothing as she hit him with the killing curse. He was the only Death Eater to die that night, Ophelia made sure of it beforehand.

Emory, Adonis and Ophelia fought alongside each other against Tom. They were losing hope fast and Emory thought their time had come.

To their luck, Rune had saved them. He had arrived alongside Shafiq and fourteen aurors, colleagues of Adonis, Archer and Ophelia. The Death Eaters and their Dark Lord were outnumbered but that didn't stop them.

"You can never fight your own battles, can you Ophelia?" Tom screamed. The anger in his voice was so coherent that it caused him to send a power surge of energy through his wand.

The power was so strong that it knocked back the three who were fighting against him. Ophelia hurried to her feet to see if Emory was okay. When she saw him move she smiled, but the smile didn't last long.

Ophelia sent another cruciatus curse Tom's way which caught him off-guard as he scanned his followers. The anger in his eyes when he stood up to face Ophelia was enough to kill there and then.

Jinxs, hexes and curses were all thrown between the two former lovers. Until one hex caught Ophelia off-guard. This was his moment. It was time to end Ophelia Lockwood. Everything was in slow motion. From the way, Tom Riddle pulled back his arm to the way he uttered the words, "avada kedavra." The Dark Lord's arm slowly shot forward and the green light flashed its way out of the end of his wand.

It was a repeat of their sixth year at Hogwarts. Except, this time Tom was throwing the punches. But Ophelia didn't receive a hit. Her eyes closed hard and when she felt someone fall on her feet she knew.

Ophelia looked down at the sand. Emory's lifeless body lay before her. He had saved her. The shock didn't cause her to cry. But she finally felt Morgandy's pain. Her body was numb and she didn't know what to do. Her legs gave in and she fell to the floor. She couldn't accept that Emory was dead, even though she already knew he was going to go. Ophelia couldn't accept it. No. She wouldn't accept it.

Her head hovered over Emory's body. His eyes were closed and Ophelia had hope. "Come on, baby!" she cried as she began shaking his body for a response, "you can't do this to me, stop playing games Emory!"

Ophelia accepted defeat when Adonis pulled her away. Adonis wrapped his arms tightly around her, Ophelia continued to stare at Emory's body. Morgandy came into her vision. She had tears in her eyes and was saying something to her, but Ophelia couldn't hear anything but a ringing noise in her ear.

Morgandy shook her hard and Ophelia jolted forward. Her hearing around her returned and she focused on the sounds of spells hitting their victims along with the grunts that followed. Ophelia got to her feet with the help of Morgandy and Adonis, when she saw Emory's body again the tears began to flood in. It was real. It happened. Emory was dead.

The sadness of Emory's death was replaced with anger when Ophelia remembered her children were going to be alone. It should only ever be Ophelia that went, not both of them.

Tom was mid-fight with Shafiq with his back turned to Ophelia. Ophelia picked up her wand off of the sandy beach and attacked.

Crucio. Crucio. Crucio.

Ophelia really liked using that curse on him. One curse after another, Ophelia continued to strike Tom until he was weak. She didn't want to bring herself to this but the man she was hurting was the same man that had brought her so much hurt in the past. One more spell could have turned him mad.

"MUM!" a voice screamed. Ophelia recognised the voice instantly. Her head snapped in the direction that it came from. There stood her son, her precious little son, his arm being grasped by Lachlann Selwyn. There was fear in Fionn's eyes and Ophelia ran to him.

"Ophelia don't!" Archer screamed.

But it was too late.

Tom had already regained himself and stood on his feet. As she ran, he attacked.

Crucio. Crucio. Crucio. Just as she did to him.

This game of crucio cat and mouse between them was getting boring.

Fionn hated seeing his mother in pain and when he saw Emory's body lying dead on the floor he knew he had to do something. He fought with all of his might to get Selwyn to let go. Selwyn laughed as the boy struggled and Fionn took his opportunity. Fionn bit him on his opposite hand and Selwyn let go of him in agony.

Archer watched Fionn the entire way through and when Fionn was away from Selwyn, he sent him flying back across the field.

Fionn ran to his mother's side where she lay in pain. Just as Ophelia did to Emory, Fionn hovered over Ophelia's face. She could barely move her arm to reach his face. She wiped away his tears.

"You shouldn't be helping me," Ophelia said sternly, "go!" Fionn didn't budge and Ophelia liked that about him, oh how stubborn he was, "he will hurt you - I don't want that run, Fionn please!"

Fionn shook his head, "he won't hurt me or you whilst I'm here." Fionn looked up at his father, he could see through him. He had finally shown his true nature, a monster. "Why are you doing this?" Fionn screamed at the monster before him.

Ophelia got up, expecting Tom to retaliate against Fionn's behaviour. She stepped in front of him and ensured he was behind her. Instead, Tom held out his hand. Ophelia stared at it, unaware of what he was doing. Tom signalled with his hand for her to come to him.

"Bring the boy with you," Tom said.

Ophelia did as she was told and ascended towards him holding Fionn's hand. As she grew closer she reached her arm out and their hands interlocked. Tom pulled the two closer to him.

"Look at us," Tom smiled, "my perfect little family." Tom peered behind Ophelia to look at Fionn, "isn't this what you've always wanted Fionn? Your biological parents to love you unconditionally, we should have never abandoned you."

Ophelia was scared, her heart was racing. She could feel Adonis watching but knew she couldn't turn to look at him. Ophelia squeezed Fionn's hand to reassure him.

"Ophelia, you've got a big decision to make," Tom moved closer to Ophelia. He pressed their foreheads together, their noses touching, their lips brushing. The kiss Tom had been dying for the past two months finally happened. Their lips moved against each other but there weren't any sparks, there was nothing.

Ophelia didn't want the tears to slip and she held on so well. Tom pulled his lips from hers but their foreheads remained touched. He opened his eyes, looking from Ophelia's lips to her eyes. There were no sparks. It angered him. "It's time to choose," he seethed, "you choose me and Fionn and we play happy families and rule over the wizarding world. Or you choose to remain on your side, as a traitor."

Ophelia looked into his eyes. She could never choose for the sake of Fionn. She shook her head and Tom's eyes darkened. Tom let go of her hand and pushed their foreheads back together. His left hand held their heads together.

"I could never choose you," Ophelia stated. "Archer!"

Ophelia knew what Tom was to do next so she pushed her head away from his and pushed her son into Archer's arms. Archer nodded his head and disapparated himself and Fionn out of there.

Tom pushed their heads back together once one and Ophelia felt the tip of his wand jab her in her side.

"Avada kedavra!" Tom screamed.

Ophelia's body wasn't able to fly back and she died with her head pressing against Tom Riddle's. A man she once cherished and loved was now the man responsible for her death.

Her body remained there, her forehead still pressing against his as everything around the fighters turned to black.