Title:: The Strangest Thing

Author: Sekhmet, the White Lion

Rating: R, for being truly twisted in general

Pairing: None….technically ::evil laugh::

TimeFrame: AU 1980/81 (there will be a sequel to this, that will take place 5th year)

Summary: The Forbidden Forest hides many things, some good, some evil. One day Severus Snape was the victim of an unusual spell while within the Forest….a spell that could bring about the downfall of the Dark Lord. Unfortunately, Severus isn't given a choice but to play his part….but will he be strong enough to survive, and will the spell's result finally crack his stone cold heart?  And if the Dark Lord finds out….will he live long enough to find out?

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and co. are the property of J.K. Rowling. I own them not, I'm just taking them for a while and mutating them with my radioactive quill. Only the plot and the Nuala belong to me.

WARNING::: This is a seriously TWISTED fic, and it's probably best that you consider it AU. If you're disturbed by the strange and unusual, turn away now, I don't want your flames. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED! 

The Strangest Thing

By the White Lion

PROLOGUE:

                        The Forbidden Forest was the perfect place to hide. Dark, dense, dangerous…only the insanely powerful or self-assuredly stupid would even consider venturing very far into its depths. Things lived within those tangled vines and briared branches that didn't even have a name, for no civilized creature had ever laid eyes on them, or lived to tell the tale. Some of those things were bloodthirsty and deadly, mindless products to the forest's dark power. But others pulsed with ancient magic, hidden within the shadows until something on the outside drew their attention. Voldemort had succeeded in doing just that. These creatures were known only as the Nuala, long forgotten by even time itself.

Coursing through the air, throbbing in the very earth, the Nuala could sense his darkness, feel the evil, pain, and terror he spread like a disease throughout the world….and they hated it. They felt pain every time another muggle died, each time the Cruciatus was cast upon a screaming child, with every breath of evil they were reminded of their own banishment so many thousands of years ago….by Slytherin himself. As the screams grew louder, the fear spread farther and wider, the air thicker with darkness and death, their tribe drew together and made an oath. Though they could never cross the boundaries of the Forbidden Forest, they would see to it that the Dark Lord fell. They would taste his blood on the breeze, hear his followers screaming in the night…they would stretch out their claws and scratch his fate into his flesh. Yes…they would aid the human wizards, and prevent them from sharing their own wretched fate. The time had come to act.

"Have you found the one La'rahi dreamed of?" hissed Ka'har, his fiercely green, serpentine eyes glowing out of the darkness of the forest. A tan, shaggy, lion-like mane hung across his furry shoulders, intertwined with small bits of leave and twig. His stance was proud, shoulders held back and scaled tail held high. The figure knelt before him rose at his words, glancing up with matching emerald eyes.

"Yes, Ka'har. Fate has brought them to our very door." The figure replied, an amused smile crossing his feline face. He was similar to the other in appearance, with a wild mane and serpentine tail, though all in all he was smaller. All of the Nuala shared those features, theirs was a race of blended traits, sharing those of human, lion, and serpent. Neither wholly one nor the other, they were majestic in their own way, powerful and deadly, but wise in their ways.

"And La'rahi? What does she say of them?" Ka'har asked, crossing his large arms over his chest, tail flicking in anticipation. The other, known as Yu'ral, smiled wider, bearing a mouth full of sharp teeth in an odd grin.

"He is the exact match of the words she spoke. She dreamed that he shall come to us tomorrow, we must prepare." Yu'ral exclaimed excitedly, his whiskers twitching against his thin muzzle.

"He?" Ka'har blinked, his green eyes widened with surprise.

"Er…yes…." Yu'ral muttered nervously, reaching up flick a twig out of his mane. To his relief, however, Ka'har didn't appear to be angry. The leader or the Nuala instead only appeared slightly confused, and definitely amused by this new revelation. He indeed…

"This shall be interesting….but, it is destiny. He has no more choice than we in the future." Ka'har sighed, shaking his mane with a short laugh. He straightened up a moment later, once again fixing his gaze on Yu'ral. "What of his temprement? Is he suitable, or will we have to make…accommodations?" he said, voice dropping down into a purr.

"His...uh…temperament is quite foul, Ka'har. I fear we will have to speed the development up a bit, if we are to be assured of success." Yu'ral said, once again shifting nervously from paw to paw. Ka'har sighed again, raising one clawed finger to tap his muzzle in contemplation.

"Pity…I'd hate to be him when he wakes afterward." He said after a moment, his eyes shining with vague guilt. What they would have to do to the man…would not be an easy thing. In fact, it might very well break his spirit, if things were not conducted properly. But then again, Fate had chosen him for a reason. "He has no family or friends that must be dealt with?" he asked, and Yu'ral shook his head.

"Not that we have detected, aside from the Headmaster of the school. Dumbledore will understand, if we send him word of our reasoning. He is of the Light, after all."

"That is good…it will make it easier for him to deal with if Dumbledore understands. The centaurs have told me many good things about that human…let us hope that they are true." Ka'har said thoughtfully, and then dropped down to all fours beside the messenger. He shook his mane and rolled his shoulder blades, and looked Yu'ral in the eye. "We shall prepare. Alert Hu'kai and the others at once. Time is short…." He growled, and leaned back on coiled haunches before springing off into the shadows, leaving Yu'ral to bow to his memory.

"It shall be done, Ka'har." Yu'ral whispered, and turned on his heel before bounding off in the opposite direction.

Note:: Don't worry, the Nuala aren't a prominent part of this story, they only have a brief role here in the beginning and in chapter 1, and then near the very end. Unless, of course, you want me to keep them around…..~.^ Severus and the other familiar faces (well, for 1980) show up next chapter.