Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part 2 -20... -

The echo of her footsteps on the marble stairs faded, replaced by the thundering of their own as they ran toward the Horcrux, toward Voldemort, and toward the end. End of scene.

McGonagall was silent for a long moment. Then she did something unexpected. She lowered her wand and smiled—a thin, fierce, terrible smile. “You have your mother’s eyes, but you have James’s nerve. Foolhardy, reckless nerve.” She looked past him at Ron and Hermione. “And you two. You never left him.” Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part 2 -20...

“The diadem,” Harry whispered, his voice barely a thread. “Rowena Ravenclaw’s. It has to be here, in the Room of Hidden Things.” The echo of her footsteps on the marble

She looked at Harry one last time. Her eyes were wet, but her jaw was set like flint. “Mr. Potter. It has been an honor to be your teacher. Now go. And for Merlin’s sake, win.” Then she did something unexpected

The battle had moved beyond screams. It had settled into a low, grinding roar punctuated by the crack of spells and the shriek of collapsing stone. Harry, hidden under his Invisibility Cloak, pressed his back against the cold wall of a corridor off the Grand Staircase. Dust motes danced in the eerie, spell-lit gloom. He could hear Ron and Hermione breathing somewhere to his left, hidden beneath a different Cloak—the one his father had once used, now mended.

A figure emerged from the swirling smoke at the far end of the corridor. It wasn't a Death Eater. It was Professor McGonagall. Her hair had come loose from its tight bun, and a long gash bled freely down her cheek. Her wand was raised, but not in a fighting stance. She was searching.

Before Harry could agree, a different sound cut through the din. Not a curse, not a scream. A footstep. Deliberate. Slow. And then another.