Author's Notes –
Once again, I do not own either Harry Potter or Ranma ½. This is a work of fanfiction that combines elements of the two and borrows characters, ideas, and concepts in an attempt at something original (as much as fanfiction can be original).
For the handful of you who have read my only other attempt at a Ranma x Harry Potter fic, this is a companion piece to it. I was going to do this as part of the other story, but decided that it needed its own stage. Please read and review.
*****
The light evening haze filled the street as dozens of pedestrians walked on either side of the street. Though many took note of those around them or that they passed as, few actually cared about the people as they focused on their treats or on the costumes those around them wore.
Few would note the presence of the cloaked man or of his reptilian features. Even magical children celebrated Halloween after all. And the many costumed adults accompanying their children or their neighbor's children provided enough cover for the lone figure as he purposely made his way through the crowded street. Reaching the end of the street where the crowds thinned significantly the cloaked man hissed as he opened the gate to the yard of the last house on the cul-de-sac.
"Master," a rather rotund man in a bleach white skeleton mask called out.
"Silence Wormtail," the cloaked man hissed, his voice matching his reptilian features.
"The wards we set up should be sufficient to keep any prying ears from hearing anything we say," a second masked man said. Taller and leaner than the first, the second figure stood tall even as he bowed to the cloaked figure.
"Master," a woman called out, "we've secured the children."
A third man, this one much more stout in build than the second, and with a dark black beard beneath his half-skull mask nodded. "I'm not sure how, but Wormtail managed to secure the Potter child. It seems they placed too much faith in that charm of theirs. The Longbottoms were much less trusting."
The second masked man scowled. "My wretched 'cousin' thought she could trust me, but I owe nothing to her or her family. They are a stain on my family's honor."
"Enough!" the cloaked man said, hissing at his followers. "Where are the children?"
"Inside, master," the second man said as he opened the door to the tiny cottage. "Rabastan is watching over them."
"And the Longbottoms?" the cloaked man hissed.
"Incapacitated," the second man sneered. "Bella had a grand old time torturing Frank, but I wanted to break Alice myself."
"And so you shall," the cloaked man said, the smile evident in his voice, "so you shall."
Following his servant inside the cloaked man confidently strode through the dark kitchen, then the dining room, and finally to the living room where the last of his servants was still torturing the bound and defenseless wizard on the floor. It was clear that the woman that was bound was crying as she watched her husband being tortured, but no matter, she would be dealt with in time.
Two babies, one bundled tightly in a blanket and the other wearing just a simple one-piece outfit designed for a newborn, lay before him.
"Enough," he said, prompting his servant to cease the needless torturing of the captive Auror. "We need not waste any more time here. I'm sure the Potters have alerted Dumbledore and his precious Order already."
The masked figures bowed humbly.
"No!" the bound woman screamed.
"Quiet you wench!" the second masked man shouted as he backhanded the woman, drawing blood from her mouth and knocking her over, breaking the chair as she fell to the ground. "You and yours have soiled my family's honor long enough. It's time that we erase that stain."
"Enough Barty," the cloaked man said, silencing his servant. "Wormtail, I want you on watch. Let us know if anyone approaches."
"Y-yes master," the rotund man replied. Clearly the man was uneasy with the fact that he had betrayed one of his childhood friends. But at least he would be spared from having to witness his friend's son being murdered.
The bundled child wailed as the man left even as the other child rolled onto its stomach.
Smirking, the cloaked man drew his wand. "Avada Kadavra!"
"No!"
The bolt of sickly green light flew from the man's wand, only to connect with the woman as she threw herself before the two children.
"No!" the bound man shouted as he realized just what had happened. "Alice!"
A powerful kick to the face silenced him. "She deserved what she go," the man known as Barty said as he spit on the now unconscious man. "I'm sorry master," he said as he turned to the cloaked man.
The other masked figures snickered.
"Don't let it happen again," the cloaked man stated. "Or else I'll be forced to turn my wand on you."
"Sorry master," the masked man said as he bowed deeply.
"Rodolphus," the cloaked killer said as he turned to regard the children, "make sure that Frank is secure. Barty, move your cousin out of the way – the children are small enough that they could hide behind her."
Both men bowed before following their lord's commands. In a matter of moments the two had completed their tasks – Rodolphus by firmly tying the Auror to the chandelier and Barty by transfiguring the corpse into a rather large bone.
"Take them outside," the cloaked figure commanded. Silently the others obliged, leaving the man with the two babies.
With no other obstacles in his way, the cloaked man turned his wand on the children again. "Avada Kadavra!"
A brilliant flash of green light filled the tiny cabin then suddenly the building collapsed.
*****
The loud crackling of wood as it burned in the fireplace and the loud yet gentle gonging of the grandfather clock echoed through the house as several figures sat in the kitchen. One figure clung tightly to the tiny bundle in her arms, sobbing silently as she cradled her child to her bosom.
Standing beside her was a tall with glasses and unruly black hair. With one hand in a sling and the other on his wife's shoulder, he looked at the ancient wizard sitting across from them. "I don't know what to say Sirius," the man said. "I thought we could trust him…"
"So did I," the other man sighed. "So did I. At least we captured him."
"What about Frank and Alice?" the man asked. "How did they get to them?"
"It was Couch Jr."
Stunned silence filled the room as only the crackling wood and gentle snores filled the kitchen.
"The Lestranges were injured and initially escaped," the scruffy man finally said, breaking the silence. "Mad-Eye got them. After what they did to his partner I don't blame him for going all out in capturing them."
The be-speckled man nodded.
"Frank was subjected to the Cruciatus Curse for a fairly long time," Sirius explained, "the healers aren't sure if he'll make a full recovery… and the fact that he watched as Alice was killed… the emotional, psychological, and physical pain may have broken his mind."
"And Neville?" the woman asked even as she cradled her own son in her arms. "What happened to Neville?"
"Madam Pomfrey already examined him, and he looks to be fine," the wiry wizard stated. "I heard Dumbledore already left to take him his closest relative on Alice's side."
"But Frank…" James muttered.
"He's in no shape to take care of Neville, James," the wiry wizard replied. "Besides, the charm that protects Neville requires that he stay with Alice's closest blood relative."
"Did Alice even have any other relatives?" the be-speckled wizard asked.
"I don't know, Frank and Alice never told us about any of her relatives," the scruffy wizard replied. "Then again, I barely knew Frank and Alice."
"She never talked of her relatives," the woman said quietly. "She wasn't close to anyone in her family."
"But Dumbledore knows who she's related to?" James asked.
Sirius nodded. "Apparently they don't live in England."
*****
A gentle breeze caressed the ancient wizard's face as he stood in beside a giant boulder. The distinctive boulder was bound by a large rope with several seals attached to it, clearly designed to keep a great evil sealed away.
Reaching into his pocket the wise old wizard extracted a small vial and threw it against the boulder, shattering the small glass container and spilling its contents over the rope. In a matter of seconds all the areas of the rope that had come into contact with the liquid had dissolved, falling away from the stone and displacing the carefully placed seals.
For several minutes the wizard simply cradled the small bundle in his other arm as he took in the sights of the barren mountain. Finally a gentle rumbling slowly could be heard as the mountain began to tremble ever so slightly. Ever so slightly the rumbling began to grow in correspondence with the trembling of the earth.
Suddenly the giant sealing boulder exploded violently, showering the area with stone, though none seemed to reach the ancient wizard or the small bundle that he carried.
A tiny figure emerged from the gaping darkness, stumbling out of the cave as it strained itself after having sundered the giant boulder. Exhausted by the incredible feat, the diminutive figure fell to the ground.
Pulling a large bottle out of his pocket the wizard sighed as he set it down. Pulling out his wand he uncorked the bottle before magically lifting the bottle towards the fallen figure.
Slowly the tiny figure propped itself up. Not even bothering to look up at the tall figure, the tiny man quickly guzzled the alcoholic beverage. Sated, he finally turned his attention to his reluctant rescuer.
"Happosai, I presume," the tall wizard stated rather than asked.
"Eh, English, I haven't heard that in a while," the tiny figure replied.
"I am Albus Dumbledore," the tall wizard stated. "And this is Neville Longbottom," he added as he indicated the tiny bundle in his arm.
Happosai didn't like the sound of that. It was all the worse considering that it was a man holding the baby. Just what had they been able to accomplish with magic in the time that he had been sealed away?
"Neville is the great-grandson of Abigail Couch," Albus stated, hoping that the name would ring a bell. True, the man had been sealed away for several years, and he was reportedly nearly three hundred years old, but it was clear that the man was still very spry despite his age. "From what I hear you may not recall her very well considering that you were fairly drunk after consuming several bottles of fire whisky."
That rang a bell. It'd been a long time since he'd had fire whisky, the favored drink of the English witches and wizards.
"Please, if you would," Dumbledore said as he conjured several seats for them. "This is a long story."
*****
A gentle rainfall provided a light and soothing rhythm for the small child to fall asleep to. Exhausted from a full day of training and watching his three month old son, the rotund martial artist gently set his son down. Eyeing the recently repaired family shrine the martial artist contemplated contacting his friend and fellow master of Anything Goes Martial Arts but having recently contacted Soun regarding the joining of the Schools already, the rotund man decided against it. It had only been a few days since the shrine had broken, and it had apparently been because of the light tremors that had rocked the entire ward – definitely not because some ancient evil had escaped.
With his mind quickly shifting back to the training regimen that he was developing for his young son, the man barely even registered the gentle knocking at the front door.
"Dear," his wife called out in her soft and sweet voice, "you've got company."
Hearing her distinctive shuffling feet as she lead their guest into the he strained his ears for the sound of their guest's steps. He must be skilled, the rotund martial artists surmised, not hearing any footsteps.
Putting on a warm, welcoming smile, he went to greet his guest. Had he been paying attention he would have noted the presence of a tiny bundle in his wife's arms, and he would have recalled that his son was asleep in his crib. As such, the skilled martial artists simply froze as he spotted the tiny figure that waited for him in.
"Hello Genma," the diminutive figure said coolly, barely containing a dark glare.
"Ma-master!" the balding figure shouted as he knelt and bowed to the powerful martial artist before him.
"Oh, so you do know him," the woman said as she rocked the stirring child. "I'll just take…"
"Longbottom, Neville Longbottom," Happosai said in perfect English.
Genma looked up, unsure of the turn of events.
"My great-grandson," Happosai sighed. "You can sit up now," he instructed his former student.
"I-it's good to see you master," Genma lied.
Seeing through the lie, the ancient martial artist stared at his former student. "I know that you and Soun were the ones that sealed me away. If I weren't a responsible for Neville, I'd extract some sort of revenge on both of you. As it is, I think that having you and… what's your wife's name?"
"Nodoka," the flabbergasted martial artist supplied.
"Yes, Nodoka," the tiny martial artist said, "I think that staying with you and your family will be punishment enough."
"B-but, why me?"
"Because you have a child," Happosai answered.
"B-but Soun has three," Genma pleaded.
"Three daughters," the ancient master corrected. "I'm sure that he and his wife have plenty on their hands with his daughters. But you and Nodoka only have…"
"Ranma," the rotund man offered.
"Ranma to look after, and with me around I'm sure that the three of us can watch over Ranma and Neville," Happosai reasoned.
Genma sighed. He definitely was not going to get out of this easily.
*****
A/N
I think I'll just leave things where they're at for now.
Please Read and Review.
Dreamingfox
