More losses - 2

He stopped before them, casting his cold, mechanical gaze over them all. The Dursleys pulled back, huddling together in fear, but Ron, Hermione, and Charlie stood defiantly beside Harry.

"Tell me," Voldemort asked, his voice as cold as ice. "Are you enjoying the show?"

"Not particularly, Tom. I never thought anyone who attacked innocents was all that powerful," Harry said indifferently.

Voldemort's eyes dilated, and his tongue shot out as if testing the air. "Silence! I am the most powerful wizard of all time, and I have single-handedly managed to wrest control of the Ministry from the incompetent fools who were running it. I have eliminated my opposition, and you now find yourself standing alone, young Harry."

"Yeah, yeah. I've heard how full of yourself you are before, and I'm still not impressed, Tom," Harry replied.

"You impudent brat!" Voldemort howled in rage. Before Harry could react, Voldemort hit him with the Cruciatus curse. He dropped to the floor, screaming in pain. It felt as if his insides were slowly being ripped out. It seemed to last an eternity before Voldemort finally lifted the curse. Despite his pain, Harry noticed that Voldemort appeared flustered, as if he was struggling to control his anger.

"Harry!" Hermione cried, moving toward him.

"No!" Harry shouted, a rush of adrenaline filling his veins.

Voldemort raised his wand again, and Harry knew he'd take his frustration over being unable to kill Harry out on Hermione.

"Get back," Harry said, casting the strongest shield he could imagine in front of Hermione, Ron and Charlie. The three of them stumbled back as if struck, but in the process, they were pushed out of the way of Voldemort's Killing Curse.

"This is between you and me," Harry said, breathing heavily, his anger pumping in his veins. "You leave them out of it."

"You've grown powerful, Harry, but you're no match for me," Voldemort said, frowning slightly. "I'm not going to kill you here today, but you are coming with me. Lower your wand, Harry."

"Thanks, but no thanks," Harry said, concentrating on keeping his shield in place. He could see his friends desperately trying to break it so they could reach him, but thus far, they had been unable to do so.

Unfortunately, Harry knew he couldn't keep the shield in place forever. His muscles were already shaking from the strain. He also needed help bringing down that glass door blocking their escape. Knowing that as soon as he dropped the shield, Voldemort would take out his wrath on his friends, Harry was trapped. He needed a distraction, and he needed it badly.

It came when he was least expecting it from a source he hadn't even known was there. As had happened in the past, someone who loved Harry always seemed to show up just when he needed help the most.

Remus pushed his way through the still-fighting crowd and stopped in the open space between Harry and Voldemort. Harry was so stunned to see him that he dropped his shield, releasing his friends. Remus was filthy, and he appeared very tired and gray. His robes were tattered and covered with bloodstains, but a fierce determination glowed in his eyes.

"Remus," Tonks said, lunging through the fray. She was panting as if she'd struggled to keep up with him.

Remus winced, and Harry somehow knew that he'd tried to leave her behind. Like Ginny, Tonks had refused Remus's attempts. Remus and Tonks locked eyes, some sort of private communication passing between them. Tonks nodded heavily, her eyes filling.

Confused, Harry tried to move toward them, wanting to shield them from Voldemort, who was watching the scene with amusement. Ron and Charlie held him back.