Fic: Sacrifices
Title: Sacrifices
Author: interpretthis
Fandom: Harry Potter
Characters: Fleur Delacour, Bill Weasley
Genre: Gen/Angst
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Fleur finds a way to keep Bill from the war. Character death.
Notes: Written for
30minutefics's "What Did You Do In The War?" challenge.
I did not want him to fight. Not ever. Not before the attack and especially not after. He was stubborn. Desperate to heal and raring for the fight. I was not ready for that, and I knew at the same time that I never would be.
I thought of a number of things. Poison. Not enough to kill him of course, just enough to keep his strength sapped, force him out of the battle. In the end, I couldn’t go through with it. Too much of a coward after all, I suppose. At least when it came to Bill. I thought about locking him up, just keeping him away from the world and its horrors, but that was out of the question even before it came to mind, and I knew it. He would become stronger and resist me, and sooner or later he would be out of my control. And yet I could not let him fight. I could not let him die.
On occasion, it would strike me that I was being incredibly selfish. But any guilty thoughts were almost immediately overtaken by memories of his smiles, of his laughs and jokes and touches and love, and I would think nothing else of guilt. It was just as the war was beginning to bear down hard, just as bodies started to appear and people started to disappear, just as gloom and darkness took its place in the breasts of every wizard fighting the good fight that my plan came to me.
In my form, Bill was not as strong. In his form, I was able to subjugate him easily. Fleur Delacour grew very sick one day, the wizarding world knew. She was kept in a room in the Weasley house to ride out her illness and shelter herself from the war as it scoured the land outside. Voldemort cared nothing for poor, sick Fleur Delacour, and I knew then that Bill was safe as me. I was not safe as him, but I was prepared for that. Prepared to show the world I could be just as brave as anyone else, even if I didn’t believe it myself. I delegated Dobby from the Hogwarts kitchens to stay with Bill whenever I went out. The elf was unaware of the true nature of his task. As far as he was aware, he was treating the sick wife of an Order member. I was deeply relieved he’d not been familiar with the Polyjuice Potion.
The final battle broke out on the grounds of Hogwarts School in late June. I gripped my wand tightly in my hand as I darted my way through the grass, trying to duck curses and keep out of the fray, the flask of Polyjuice Potion thumping against my thigh as I ran. As much as I detested Voldemort, I still valued my life more. One round of the Triwizard Tournament was not enough to prepare me for this, and I knew it.
The battle raged around me as curses were shouted, dull thumps echoing as people fell to the ground. My checks were wet with tears I hadn’t felt fall. I tripped over Hermione on my way to the castle steps. I hid behind their stone as one of the Hogwarts professors fell to a curse from a cloaked and cackling Death Eater. And then Ron was down by Voldemort’s hand, and something inside me broke. My feet moved as if they were truly my husband’s. My wand arm twitched and rose, and I knew I was being stupid and reckless and doing exactly what Bill would do in my place. His jet of green light hit me before I could open my mouth. The wind was knocked out of me. My feet slipped out from under me. The world rushed by my ears as I fell backwards. I was dead before Bill’s body could hit the ground. The crowd around me went silent. I watched from somewhere outside of myself as Order members’ faces twisted in shock. They stared as Bill’s long red hair turned silvery in the moonlight. His scars receded into stark white skin. His dead eyes went from brown to my ice blue. I smiled despite myself, hovering above the chaos. They’d never expected that. Me dead, Bill safe. They never saw it coming.
Author: interpretthis
Fandom: Harry Potter
Characters: Fleur Delacour, Bill Weasley
Genre: Gen/Angst
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Fleur finds a way to keep Bill from the war. Character death.
Notes: Written for
30minutefics's "What Did You Do In The War?" challenge.
I did not want him to fight. Not ever. Not before the attack and especially not after. He was stubborn. Desperate to heal and raring for the fight. I was not ready for that, and I knew at the same time that I never would be.
I thought of a number of things. Poison. Not enough to kill him of course, just enough to keep his strength sapped, force him out of the battle. In the end, I couldn’t go through with it. Too much of a coward after all, I suppose. At least when it came to Bill. I thought about locking him up, just keeping him away from the world and its horrors, but that was out of the question even before it came to mind, and I knew it. He would become stronger and resist me, and sooner or later he would be out of my control. And yet I could not let him fight. I could not let him die.
On occasion, it would strike me that I was being incredibly selfish. But any guilty thoughts were almost immediately overtaken by memories of his smiles, of his laughs and jokes and touches and love, and I would think nothing else of guilt. It was just as the war was beginning to bear down hard, just as bodies started to appear and people started to disappear, just as gloom and darkness took its place in the breasts of every wizard fighting the good fight that my plan came to me.
In my form, Bill was not as strong. In his form, I was able to subjugate him easily. Fleur Delacour grew very sick one day, the wizarding world knew. She was kept in a room in the Weasley house to ride out her illness and shelter herself from the war as it scoured the land outside. Voldemort cared nothing for poor, sick Fleur Delacour, and I knew then that Bill was safe as me. I was not safe as him, but I was prepared for that. Prepared to show the world I could be just as brave as anyone else, even if I didn’t believe it myself. I delegated Dobby from the Hogwarts kitchens to stay with Bill whenever I went out. The elf was unaware of the true nature of his task. As far as he was aware, he was treating the sick wife of an Order member. I was deeply relieved he’d not been familiar with the Polyjuice Potion.
The final battle broke out on the grounds of Hogwarts School in late June. I gripped my wand tightly in my hand as I darted my way through the grass, trying to duck curses and keep out of the fray, the flask of Polyjuice Potion thumping against my thigh as I ran. As much as I detested Voldemort, I still valued my life more. One round of the Triwizard Tournament was not enough to prepare me for this, and I knew it.
The battle raged around me as curses were shouted, dull thumps echoing as people fell to the ground. My checks were wet with tears I hadn’t felt fall. I tripped over Hermione on my way to the castle steps. I hid behind their stone as one of the Hogwarts professors fell to a curse from a cloaked and cackling Death Eater. And then Ron was down by Voldemort’s hand, and something inside me broke. My feet moved as if they were truly my husband’s. My wand arm twitched and rose, and I knew I was being stupid and reckless and doing exactly what Bill would do in my place. His jet of green light hit me before I could open my mouth. The wind was knocked out of me. My feet slipped out from under me. The world rushed by my ears as I fell backwards. I was dead before Bill’s body could hit the ground. The crowd around me went silent. I watched from somewhere outside of myself as Order members’ faces twisted in shock. They stared as Bill’s long red hair turned silvery in the moonlight. His scars receded into stark white skin. His dead eyes went from brown to my ice blue. I smiled despite myself, hovering above the chaos. They’d never expected that. Me dead, Bill safe. They never saw it coming.