Sorry for the wait, my computer has been out of commission! Reviews are appreciated!

Professor Dennis Creevey turned to the door behind him, tapping the handle with his wand, the snick of the lock audible even from across the room. When he turned around, Ginny and Professors McGonagall and Longbottom had their wands out as well, pointed straight at him.

"Oh, you won't be needing those," he said with a casual flick of his own instrument, which sent their wands spinning suddenly out of their hands.

At their stunned looks, Dennis cast Harry a manic grin. "Disarming- Dumbledore's Army, first lesson, do you remember? The element of surprise…"

"What the hell are you playing at?" Harry hissed.

"I'm not playing games, Potter," Dennis retorted, still with a feverish gleam in his eye. "Do you have any idea how long I've been planning this?"

"What do you want?" Ginny asked, staring at the lean, mousy haired man, the sting of hurt visible in her voice. She had known him… trusted him. He'd had Christmas at their house for Merlin's sake…

"What do I want?" Dennis asked, his voice rising, staring at her, then at each of them. "I want all of you dead!"

"Dennis!?" Ginny said, staring.

"Why?" Harry asked, staring him in the face.

"You killed him!" Dennis shot back, standing, pacing.

"Voldemort?" Harry exclaimed, baffled.

"He trusted you… He was willing to fight for you… Die for you…"

Not Voldemort, then. But this couldn't be about…

"He dragged me down through the passage that night, told me to stay and hide, and then threatened to curse me if I followed him! The last I saw of my brother was his wand in my face, telling me to get down and wait for him, he was going to go fight for Harry Potter, and then he'd come right back! He promised…"

It was.

"Colin!" Dennis cried, his face twisted in torment. "He worshipped you, we both did, and you let him die! You didn't save him."

"Dennis," Professor McGonagall said quickly, carefully, "Dennis, think-."

"He doesn't even know the war is over!" Dennis shouted. "He never knew! He's sixteen, and he'll always be sixteen. Do you have any idea how hard it was to get older than my big brother will ever be? And it's all your bloody fault! Who the hell cares if Voldemort's dead! COLIN DIED FIRST!"

Harry's face twisted. "I know," he whispered.

"Fuck you," Dennis breathed, then he aimed his wand, pointing it directly at Ginny. "Avada Ked-,"

"Expelliarmous!" A voice rasped from behind them all.

James was propped up on one arm, his wand hand trembling as Colin lost his grip on his wand.

James cast him a furious look. "Disarming, Professor Creevey," he snarled, "First spell my dad ever taught me. He wanted me to be able to defend myself from scum like you. He's a great Dad, but you took that away from him."

Dennis's glare was so pronounced James could nearly feel it burning him. "And what did he take from me, James Potter?"

He took the smallest of steps, coming towards him. James glanced around. The adults all looked at a lost. No one could protect him.

Dennis picked up his wand. No one stopped him.

His father was far paler than he'd ever been. His mother was shaking. Albus's eyes were wide behind his glasses, Lily was crying.

"Exp-," James began again, but with a flick of Dennis's wand, he was silenced. His mouth formed the rest of the spell, but no words came out. Only feet away, Albus's lips worked, but he couldn't speak. No one could.

"Want to see how it feels, James?" Dennis leered, a manic smile spreading across his face. "Want to see how it feels to lose a brother?"

Suddenly, Harry was between Dennis and Albus, shaking his head darkly, standing tall and looming with his arms spread before both his sons. He could say nothing, but the message was clear. Don't you go near my children.

Dennis laughed, louder than before. "Petrificus Totalus!"

Harry's arms and legs snapped together, and he fell motionless to the floor, his eyes wide.

"I want you awake for this, Potter," Dennis said mercilessly, dragging him into an upright position and propping him against the wall, jamming on the glasses that had fallen to the floor.

Harry looked on in horror, his expression frozen.

"You know," Dennis said, evidently thinking aloud, "That's actually a really good idea."

Whirling his wand on Ginny, he shouted, "Petrificus Totalus!"

Before she could duck out of the way, the spell hit her square in the chest; her arms snapping to her sides and her legs binding like glue.

The same happened to Professor McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey, too old to fight it, and to Neville, trying desperately to defend them. They were moved to be propped beside James's parents, expressions fixed in terror.

But Teddy stood his ground. As a beam of light shot his way in turn, the metamorphmagus ran, ducking, twisting and turning; the very skills he taught on the Quidditch pitch, until Dennis grew tired of firing at him.

In an instant, his wand dug into Albus's throat, and though Albus's gasps and Lily's screams made not a sound, Dennis's voice echoed in the room. "Stop."

Teddy froze, his gaze locked on Albus, and Dennis hit him square in the chest.

So the adults watched, helpless, as Dennis turned to James, the unfrozen.

"Are you ready, James?" Dennis asked softly. "Time to learn. You won't be so cocky, after this."

His wand turned on Albus, and tears streamed down the younger boy's face as he cowered.

But James was out from beneath the covers like a shot, standing before his brother, his arms folded defiantly, staring Dennis in the face.

"Touching," he laughed, "But step away, James, or I'll kill you."

James let his arms drop to his sides, palms open.

And scanning his face, the others in the room knew. James was well aware of what would happen. He knew Dennis was being serious. He was willing to die to save his brother.

And not a single person in the room could save him.

Lily was shrieking at the top of her lungs, tears rolling down her cheeks, but the room was silent as a tomb.

James's eyes were locked on the tip of Dennis's wand, his brown eyes still defiant, but his face pale as anything, his freckles flashing like beacons. He glanced quickly behind him, at his terrified brother and sister, then ahead at Teddy, Neville, Professor Longbottom and his Mum and Dad.

Then, staring intently at his father's face, he closed his eyes.

"Kill me," he mouthed, turning to Professor Creevey with his eyes shut tight, burning his father's face into his eyelids.

Professor Creevey laughed, but it was slightly shaky; surprised.

"Colin," he said, then, the manic glint returned to his eyes, he screamed, "AVADA KEDAVERA!"

The bolt of green light collided directly with James's chest, the force of the impact sending him backwards slightly.

He fell into his younger brother for the briefest moment, and Albus felt something fall into his hand. Subconsciously, his fingers closed around it as his thirteen year old brother fell to the ground at his feet, still and unmoving.

There was a moment of utter silence, then the sound of his sister's shrieking reached Albus's ears.

His parents' cries of horror. Professors Longbottom and McGonagall, and Madam Pomfrey's shouts of shock and outrage. Teddy's stunned silence as he fell to his knees.

Dennis's spells had broken. James was dead. Albus's guardian lay before him, never to defend him again.

Then he looked down at his hand. In it was his brother's wand.

And he knew what to do with it.