So far, there have been only minimal changes to JKR's world. That is about to change. Without further ado, let's see how the rest of the world reacts to the events at Godric's Hollow.
Revised A/N:
Harry Potter and the Bonds of Blood
Chapter two
Reactions
OoOoOoO Sirius Black's House; 830pm, Halloween night, 1981 OoOoOoO
Sirius and Remus were sitting in Sirius' house just outside of London. While his mother had thrown him out of the house in town and forbid him access to the Family Vaults, like most Pureblood families, almost all of the Blacks had smaller private vaults, for funds that the Black Family didn't control for one reason or another. Most of them also received properties or land when they came of age, and Sirius was no exception.
This small house, a mere seventeen rooms, was a gift from his maternal grandmother on her death, along with the three House Elves that took care of the place. Sirius had learned quickly that treating the House Elves like he did the insane Kreacher resulted in service that was less than perfect. Since then, he'd learned something that he was quite certain no Black he knew had learned.
House Elves could adapt to almost any situation. Sirius had simply given them the instructions to take care of the house and any guests, and nothing else. Since then, the three had not spoken to him except in serving or when something required money or resources they didn't have.
Right now, Sirius was looking at a bill that the House Elves had brought him and sighing. "Remus, why do I have a bill for potion supplies when I haven't made a potion since the NEWTs?"
He looked up as the silence continued. Remus was staring at the fire with a frown. He seemed to fell Sirius' eyes on him and looked up. "Something is wrong," he said quietly, "but I don't know what. My wolf is very restless for a night with no full moon."
Sirius frowned as he checked the wards around the house. Everything was perfect, with not a Muggle or Death Eater in range of the wards anywhere. He looked at Remus, noting the amber tint in his eyes and frowned again. The wolf was riled up tonight. That was not a good thing and Sirius tried to figure out why Remus would be so nervous.
The two men looked at each other as something changed. Remus was the first to figure it out. "The Potters live in Godric's Hollow."
Sirius stared at him as his mind processed what he'd just heard and then he jumped up. "The Fidelius charm is gone. We have to get over there!"
Sirius ran for the door, just a step ahead of Remus. They cleared the Anti-Apparation wards and tried to Apparate to Godric's Hollow. Both men stared at each other as the Apparation failed.
"Come on!" said Sirius and he ran around the side of the building. He jerked open the shed and rolled out his charmed motorcycle. Remus waited for him to mount the bike and got on behind him.
"Sirius, you know how I'm always telling you to slow down?" said Remus tensely.
"Yeah?"
"Ignore that. Get us there now."
Sirius took off and before the two men had reached the end of the driveway, they were a hundred metres high and Sirius was kicking the bike into high gear.
OoOoOoO Hogwarts, 845 pm, Halloween Night, 1981 OoOoOoO
Professor Albus Dumbledore was in his office studying some of the instruments in his office. The Dark Detectors were going off, and he was trying to determine where the activity was happening. He frowned as a location became clear.
He looked up at the two men in the room with him. "Hagrid, go to Godric's Hollow, but be careful. Something is going on, and there may be followers of Voldemort there. Take the Floo to the Patil residence, it's the closest Floo. If you need to do any magic when you get there, I will deal with it."
"Yes, Headmaster." Hagrid stood up and was in the Floo almost before the older Wizard had finished speaking.
Professor Dumbledore considered the Detectors and as his clock struck nine, they exploded, sending a rain of glass and other things over the office. Professor Dumbledore looked at the other man. "Now, I think you will learn what comes of your actions, Severus."
Severus Snape looked at the Headmaster. "Will Hagrid be in time?"
Professor Dumbledore sighed heavily. "Alas, I fear not. Whatever was going to happen there has already happened. The best we can do is pick up the pieces."
OoOoOoO Godric's Hollow, 920 pm, Halloween Night. OoOoOoO
Sirius saw the house at Godric's Hollow and started down, easing the gas off as they came close to the ground. He snarled as he saw a body outside the front door and the damage to the door.
He landed in the front yard, and dropped the bike as soon as Remus was off. The two of them pulled their wands and ran for the door. Remus, with the added muscle and speed of his Curse, was the first one to the door and he went inside without stopping. Sirius ran into him just inside the door, where Remus had stopped suddenly.
He looked around Remus and his heart shrivelled as he saw the limp form of Lily lying on the floor with her wand in her hand.
Remus checked her pulse, knowing what he would find, but desperately hoping that she was alive. He looked up at Sirius and shook his head slowly.
Both men jumped as a baby's cry came from upstairs.
"Harry!" Sirius was closer to the stairs and he nearly flew up them. He jumped the body lying at the head of the stairs and grinned mirthlessly at the one stuck in the wall, with blood still running down it. He bounded into the bedroom that had been James and Lily's for such a short time and stopped. Two more Death Eater bodies lay on the floor, but Sirius only had eyes for the scene on the other side of the room.
James Potter lay in front of Harry's crib, anger and defiance still on his face as his eyes stared sightlessly at the ceiling. Next to him was a set of clothes with ashes in them and an ugly yew wand near one sleeve.
Harry was standing up in his crib and crying, with blood running down his face. He saw Sirius and held out his hands, crying harder as help was in sight. Sirius crossed to him and picked up the last tie to the man he'd thought of as a brother for more than eight years.
He held Harry and looked at the blood, tracing it back to a wound on his forehead. Sirius tried a first aid spell on the wound and frowned as it didn't work. He took a baby blanket from the crib and held it to the injury, trying to stop the bleeding.
Remus came in and sank to his knees besides James. He checked James, as he had Lily, and with no better result. Remus reached out and closed James' eyes.
The two men looked at each other as the three of them cried, the pain of the men being emotional rather than physical, but no less hurtful for that.
Remus suddenly spun, looking at the ashes in the clothing, and sniffing. He turned to Sirius and the wolf was very close to the surface. "That's You Know Who."
Sirius blinked tears away and looked at the remains. "Are you sure?"
Remus tested the air again. "Oh yes, I'm sure. His smell was unlike any other."
Sirius looked at the scene, trying to figure out what had happened. "James got the four Death Eaters, Lily got the other one downstairs, but who killed him?"
Remus looked at the scene. "You Know Who came in here, and he had to have killed James, or one of the other Death Eaters would be alive."
"Unless there were more of them than just the six," said Sirius, looking around, as if to see tracks.
Remus shook his head. "Had there been another here, they would have taken You Know Who's remains and his wand at least. No, He was the last one here, and he faced James." Remus frowned thoughtfully as he looked around.
"Either James got him as he died, or something happened to You Know Who after James was dead. I just don't have enough information to know what could have happened."
Sirius was looking at Harry. "Remus, Harry's wound won't stop bleeding."
Remus looked at Harry, and brushed his hair back from the injury. His wolf growled deep inside of him as they looked at the Lightning bolt shaped cut still trickling blood, and Remus bent down, sniffing the wound.
Sirius flinched, holding Harry a little closer.
Remus barely felt the familiar flash of pain as someone close to him misunderstood some wolfish thing he did. He was far more interested in the smell of magic around the wound. He stood up and looked again at the human shaped ashes.
He picked up the wand and cast "Prior Incantato" on it. In quick succession three Avada Kedavra spells came out of the wand, separated only by a single blocking spell. Other spells came with them, but Remus wasn't paying attention. He was staring at Harry.
"Sirius, the Death Eaters broke in, and He kills Lily after she got the first person in the door, agreed?"
Sirius thought about the spells from the wand and what they had seen downstairs. "OK," he agreed.
"They come upstairs, and had a hard time finding the bedroom for some reason, probably a spell."
Sirius nodded, wanting to know where Remus was going with this.
Remus was looking in the hallway, picturing the scene. "They found the room, and James cut the first one with that spell of Snivellus', and banishes the second into the wall, because that was how James always fought."
Sirius nodded again. He'd seen James use that combination many times as it was very effective. "Go on."
"Two more Death Eaters try to get in here, and James gets them. Then He enters, using that blocking spell in his wand." Sirius nodded, his throat getting tight as he waited to hear how Remus thought James had died.
"You Know Who gets James," Remus says, avoiding the word kills, "and then steps over him to face Harry, look at the position of the clothes."
Sirius turned and looked at the scene again, imagining what the clothes would have looked like if someone were in them. "You're right," he said in surprise, looking back at Remus, "if the clothes were standing, they'd be facing the crib."
"I know. And here's another puzzle for you." Remus pointed at the crib. "Harry, there, Him, here, and one killing curse. I think we can assume that Harry didn't cast it."
Sirius looked at the scene and frowned, looking at Remus in bewilderment. "I'm lost, Moony. Fill me in."
Remus sighed. "I can't. All I can add is that Harry's injury smells of an Unforgivable, and he's still alive." He let Sirius think about that for a second. "The smell is bitter, like blood and decay."
Sirius made the connection between the last spell Voldemort cast and what Remus was saying. He looked at Harry. "What happened, Harry?" he asked, not expecting an answer.
Harry was calming down as he was held by a familiar presence, and starting to fall asleep when a grotesque howling arose from downstairs, and the house trembled as something struck it a terrible blow.
The noise startled Harry and he started crying again. "Harry, I'm coming!"
Remus and Sirius had turned toward the door when the noise had started, their wands out, fearing another Death Eater attack. They looked at each other and relaxed at that huge bellow. "Hagrid."
Seconds later, Hagrid appeared in the door, his umbrella in one hand and a large knife in the other. He stopped, looking at the two men. "What." his voice died away as he saw James on the floor and Sirius shushing Harry. "What happened?"
Remus snarled, and with his wolf so near the surface, it was a true snarl. "Peter Pettigrew was the Secret Keeper for the Potters, " he said, having heard the story from Sirius on the way here. "He betrayed them, or was tortured for the information, we don't know which. The Death Eaters and You Know Who appeared," He sighed as Hagrid flinched. "They killed James and Lily, but they lost everyone except You Know Who during the attack."
Hagrid smiled grimly. "Good fer them."
Remus nodded and continued. "You Know Who got James, and then some thing went wrong for him. He tried to use the Killing Curse on Harry and it backfired somehow, killing You Know Who."
Hagrid stared at him, and then looked at Sirius, who stepped to the side so Hagrid could see the ash filled clothing. Hagrid stared at it for a minute. "Professor Dumbledore has to know this. I'm going to go back there now. What are you two going to do?"
Remus and Sirius looked at each other. Sirius, being more familiar with the Dark Arts and the people that used them, was the first to think it though. "First, we've got to hide Harry. The Death Eaters don't know what happened here, and sooner or later, they're going to come asking questions. Then, we have to find Peter, and find out if he's alive or not. If he's alive and unhurt, he betrayed James and Lily, and he'll pay for that."
Sirius' face had changed as he thought about Peter, reminding the other two men that this man had grown up in a family that fully supported Voldemort and likely had trained Sirius in various unpleasant ways to deal with people that he didn't like.
Sirius was taking charge. Remus was the brains of the two, but Sirius was the one that led when things got tight and James wasn't there. "Remus, write Professor Dumbledore a note telling him everything we found here tonight. Hagrid, take it to him, and tell him that Remus and I are going underground for a few days, until word of You Know Who's death gets out. We'll be in touch in a week."
Remus nodded and went down the hall to the Library to use the paper and quills there. Hagrid looked at Harry. "What's that on his head? Is he hurt?"
Sirius was thinking about what they were going to do next and answered him absently. "Calm down, Hagrid. It's just a cut Harry got when Voldemort cast a Killing Curse at him."
Hagrid stared at Sirius for a long time, absorbing what he'd just said and then looking for signs that Sirius was kidding him. When he didn't find any, he tapped Sirius on the shoulder. "Did you just say Harry survived being touched by a Killing Curse?"
Sirius looked at Hagrid. "That's what it looks like." He took Hagrid though the logic chain Remus had made.
Hagrid listened, and then looked at the remains of Voldemort, noting where the clothes were pointing. He read the signs better than Sirius had, because Hagrid had been tracking animals and other thing down for years and could read sign better than Sirius. He looked at Harry with a touch of awe, and whispered. "How?"
"I might be able to answer that," said Remus from the doorway. He had a long note for Professor Dumbledore and a book, which he was skimming. "If I'm reading this right, it's a spell, a charm you can cast on another person. It's very difficult though. I don't know if I could cast it."
Sirius looked up. "You and I may not be able to, but what about James?"
Remus frowned as he thought about it. "Maybe. It would be a the biggest thing he'd ever done if he did do it."
"What does it do?" asked Sirius, looking at Harry. Maybe this would explain how Harry survived a Killing Curse.
Remus frowned. "I'm not sure. I need to study this more. I think it's a protective ward. The more you put..." his voice faded away. "Oh no, James." Remus looked up at the others. "It's a ward, powered by sacrifice. The bigger the sacrifice, the stronger the protection."
The three of them turned to look at James, lying in front of the cradle Harry had been in. Sirius put their thoughts into words. "James and Lily were both keyed into the wards here. He could have Apparated away, and Lily bought him that much time."
Remus nodded. "I wondered why he didn't take Harry and run, but I think Lily figured out what this spell can do, and James cast it."
Hagrid looked at them. "Just what did his sacrifice give Harry?"
Remus looked in the book, skimming it for the section he'd been reading. "And lo, should one, bound by blood and love, willingly give up their life whilst under this charm, the Charmed One shall be protected from all harm that is aimed at them."
Remus looked at the other men. "Harry cannot be hurt, by any action or magic aimed at him. That's why he survived the Killing Curse." He read a bit more. "There is something else here, about bonds of love, but we don't have time right now."
Sirius looked up from Harry. "Right. Hagrid, go to Professor Dumbledore and tell him what we know. Remus, you've got a cooler head than I do. See if you can find Peter. We need to know if he's the target of our revenge, or a victim to be avenged."
Sirius started ransacking the drawers, looking for Harry's clothes. Hagrid was on his way out and Remus stopped at the doorway, looking at Sirius packing Harry's stuff. "Where are you going to be?"
Sirius looked up, smiling. "I think it's about time I dropped in on a couple of cousins the Blacks won't even admit are in the family tree."
Remus raised an eyebrow, waiting to hear this. Sirius grinned. "I'm going to run off and become an Auror with the Longbottoms."
OoOoOoO Hogwarts, 0530AM, 01NOV81. OoOoOoO
Albus Dumbledore sat behind his desk and stared at the fire. This had been a long night, and it was not a good one. They had lost two of the brightest Light Wizards of their time tonight. He stared at the ashes on his desk again. He couldn't prove it, but he knew Voldemort was not dead. Disembodied for a time, yes, but not dead. Unfortunately, he couldn't prove that, and after the Aurors had told Minister Fudge that Voldemort was gone, the Minister had made it public. Even now, Voldemort's wand was on display in the Ministry and hundreds of Wizards and Witches had flocked to see it and hear the story (according to the Ministry) first hand.
Even as Albus mourned the two youngsters that had died, Wizards and Witches across Britain were celebrating the death of Voldemort and praising Harry Potter. The legend of the Boy Who Lived was beginning.
Professor Dumbledore looked again at the book. That charm was very difficult, and when you put the power needed for the spell, the research to find it in the first place, and the skill needed to make the potion that went with it, he doubted more than a dozen people could have pulled it off.
Knowing the Potters as well as he did, he could reconstruct the scene fairly well. Lily found the spell, and broke it down, making it easy to teach the spell itself to James.
Remus was very good with Potions, and might even have been a Potion Master, if the Wizengamot would allow a werewolf to test for it. Albus was positive he'd made the potion the charm required.
James had the power, and the will to cast the spell. He had to know what he was doing when he cast it, or it would not have worked.
Albus sighed and stopped thinking about that. He had another problem. Harry Potter was in the hands of a man Albus didn't control. Sirius Black was a rebel, and only James Potter had been able to control him. With James gone, Sirius would not listen to anyone, except maybe Remus, who was missing as he hunted for Peter Pettigrew.
Albus considered his options. He wanted to keep an eye on Harry, because sooner or later, Voldemort would be back, and Harry was the only person that could kill him now. He had to be sure that Harry would want to do what he had to do.
If Lily had cast the spell, he would have given Harry to her family. When it came time for Harry to come to Hogwarts, he would have been so grateful to be away from them that he would have done anything to stay away from there.
With James casting the spell, there were a few more options, but not many. Harry did have a dozen or more relatives in the older families but most of them supported Voldemort and to leave Harry with them would be folly.
Albus consulted a chart of the Potter family connections. The Greengrasses. No, they were part of the Windenmere group, and that wouldn't do Albus any good at all. Those people were fanatically loyal to their Family and the Windenmere group, and anyone else was a distant third.
Albus Dumbledore would not accept being third in Harry's loyalty chain. Harry had to trust him completely. He sighed and checked again to be sure he was the only person in the office. He looked at the prophecy that the Divination Professor had given during the interview.
Harry had been born as the seventh month died, on July 31st, Neville Longbottom a day earlier.
The power Voldemort knew not. Well, that could be the charm, since Harry was immune to anything aimed at him. Not that the charm would protect him from an accident, or from something not aimed at him. If anyone tried to kill Harry with a Killing Curse, it would rebound, but if Harry jumped in front of a curse aimed at someone else, it would kill him just like anyone else.
A fall from a high place, injury, illness, any of that could kill Harry, as he was only protected from things directed at him.
Albus considered the prophecy. Somehow, he didn't feel that the charm was that power. There had to be more to it than that.
Marked as his equal. Voldemort certainly had marked Harry, trying to kill him with a curse and failing. Albus knew more than almost anybody alive about curses, due to his research during the Grindelwald era, and he knew that the attack that left that mark would have done something to Harry but only time would tell them what those things were.
Neither can live while the other does. Albus frowned as he looked at that line. Voldemort was not alive right now, so was this part concluded? He considered it and decided that Voldemort would find a way to return, someday.
He considered the fact that Harry had technically killed Voldemort on Halloween. Tom Riddle's body was destroyed, and by most definitions, he was dead. Even if his spirit survived and he found a way back into a physical body, he would not be the same person that had entered Godric's Hollow that night.
Ultimately, Albus Dumbledore decided that as long as his spirit survived, Voldemort was alive.
Yes, Harry was the only weapon against Voldemort's return. All Albus could do now was make sure Harry was ready for that and hope Voldemort took at least a decade to return.
When he was done with that, he looked at two more lines of Prophecy, cursing Severus. Albus' brother had gotten Albus after seeing Snape skulking about, and Albus had re-entered the room after dealing with Severus to hear Sybil Trelawney speaking another Prophecy.
He'd only heard the last two lines of this one though.
"In that battle, with faith the main focus, two of four shall die the final death.
Owl, Rat, Snake or Cat, two will be destroyed, no soul to rise."
Albus had wondered if the two were connected, until Halloween night. Tom Riddle was a Parselmouth, and he would be the snake. Peter Pettigrew was an Animagus, a rat. Albus frowned. He really couldn't think of anyone that fit the owl part. Harry could fit as the owl or the cat, and given that his father was an Animagus, it would not surprise Albus to find out that Harry could be one as well.
Of course, he could not discount Professor McGonagall either. She was after all, a cat Animagus already, and she would be on the light side, fighting as fiercely as anyone else. Not for nothing was she a Gryffindor.
Eventually, he put that away, cursing Snape again. If only he had the complete text to the second Prophecy. What did it mean, 'faith the main focus'? More important, how did one avoid being one of the two that died the final death? That was an archaic way of saying even their spirit would be destroyed, so that nothing of them remained, nor could any magic, Dark or Light, bring them back from that death.
Albus Dumbledore sat backed and thought. He had been subtly guiding the Wizard world, at least the British part of it since he first stepped into the Wizengamot after defeating Grindelwald. He had a plan to raise the Wizard world into a new golden age, with him the power behind the throne, and control of key figures was a linchpin of his plan. Fudge was an incompetent moron, swayed only by money and fear. He scrabbled around, doing whatever it took to hold onto his power and leaving Dumbledore alone, since Albus could have him removed with a few quiet words.
In fact, Albus had been grooming Fudge's replacement until the man was killed in a Death Eater attack. He would have to find someone else soon. Diggory, maybe. Already in the Ministry, he trusted Dumbledore completely and was passing him information secretly.
Albus laid that aside for later and thought about his current problem. Harry Potter had overnight become a key figure, and he was out of reach, since not even owls could find Sirius or Harry. Hagrid had told Albus about what Sirius had said, but Hagrid had left before Sirius had said where he was going.
Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft, Supreme Mugwump of the Wizengamot and leader of the International Conference of Wizards sent off three owls. Those three owls caused a flock of owls to fly. Within twenty-four hours, hundreds of people from all walks of life would be looking for Sirius and Harry.
Albus would control Harry, no matter what it cost Sirius or Harry.
OoOoOoO The Longbottom Estate, 04NOV81. OoOoOoO
Sirius and Frank Longbottom were discussing the people looking for Sirius. "They're not my family," Sirius said, "they'd be sneaking around. These people act as though they have a right to know where I am, or Harry is."
Frank agreed. "I confronted one of them I ran across in Diagon Alley, and he wasn't worried about me being an Auror."
Sirius frowned. "That means that whoever is doing this has friends in high places, or is in a high place himself."
Frank shrugged. "It doesn't matter. You can stay here as long as you want, and no one can find you here." He smiled. "It's amazing, what you can learn in the Hallowed Halls of the Ministry." The sarcasm in his voice was thick enough to walk on.
Sirius grinned. "You've been in Knockturn Alley. Specifically, you've been to Graterson's Grotto, and bought his wards and charms book."
Frank tilted his head. "Shall I assume you have a copy?"
Sirius nodded. "As long as you stay out of chapters twenty-seven to sixty-eight, it's a great ward book. I've used many of the spells in it."
Frank sighed. "Those Charms though." He shivered. "Those are just disturbing."
Sirius agreed, to a point. "Most of them are a bit Dark Arts, but some of them are just dangerous, without being dark."
Frank looked at Sirius with a frown. "'A bit Dark Arts'" he quoted, shaking his head. "Cousin Black, I submit you are out of your mind. One of those spells beheads a person. In my opinion, that's more than a bit Dark."
Sirius grinned. "I like the idea, and it's not very Dark at all. It was created to have a fast and humane way to slaughter farm animals." Sirius looked at Frank. "The darkness usually isn't in the spell, but in how you use it."
Frank considered that for a minute. "What about the Unforgivables?" he asked, curious to see how Sirius regarded them. While the Longbottoms and the Blacks were related, there was not a lot of contact between the two families. Not surprising, considering that the Black family had a long history of living up to their name, while the Longbottoms had been Aurors for seven generations.
Sirius frowned. "You're an Auror. How many times have you faced Death Eaters?"
Frank shrugged. "We've faced You Know Who three times, and various Death Eaters maybe a dozen times."
"Ever had to kill one of them?"
Frank sighed. "Yes." His eyes were far away as he thought about it. He was brought back to the present by Sirius.
"Is it really better to cut them in half, or drop something on them, or any of the other ways you're restricted to, than to end it quickly and suddenly, with a minimum of pain, and little risk to you?" Sirius looked at Frank soberly. "Again, the spell itself can be used to stop a Death Eater, or to kill an innocent person or child. Like any other spell, the usage defines the intent."
He looked up as Harry started crying. "Harry needs me. I will say this as I take your leave. The only spell I have found no good use for is the Cruciatus. That spell is purely Dark."
Frank watched Sirius go. He thought about how Sirius saw the use of spells and conceded that in a perfect world, he might be right. The world wasn't perfect though, and people were scared of anything they perceived as Dark, even if it wasn't. That made Sirius's opinions of those spells dangerous, should they become public knowledge.
"That was a fascinating conversation on comparative morality." Alice Longbottom sat down in the chair Sirius had left and looked at Frank. She was holding Neville and gently rocking him to sleep.
Frank nodded thoughtfully. "He has a point about many of those spells. Used properly, no one would ever complain about the beheading spell. If you only used it on animals, it wouldn't even raise eyebrows."
Alice shivered. "I beg to differ, Mr. Longbottom. I would wonder where you learned a spell like that, and why anyone was teaching it."
Frank smiled at his wife. "That's because you are a suspicious type, well suited to be the senior Auror of this team."
Alice glared at her husband, before a smile broke out on her face. "You're just trying to get me to take that position so I'll have to do most of the paperwork the Ministry wants, instead of us sharing it."
Frank sighed heavily, even as he leaned over to kiss Alice. "Curses. Foiled again."
Alice was about to say something else when they felt the wards shiver. Frank examined them, as they were tied to his bloodline. "Death Eaters," he swore after a second. "Come on. There's too many to fight out here."
The three of them ran for the house, Frank hanging back a bit, making sure his wife and son reached safety first.
He stopped just inside the door and locked it, reinforcing the lock with a spell. Alice was putting Neville in a playpen and drawing her wand. Frank looked out the window and swore again. "There's nearly twenty of them, and the one in the lead is a woman."
Alice hissed, in fear and anger. "Bellatrix Lestrange."
Frank looked up as Sirius came down the stairs holding Harry. "Sirius, we've got problems."
Sirius looked up, and as he started to say something, Anti-Apparation wards went up around the house. All three of them looked at each other. Augusta Longbottom came from the stairs, her wand firmly in hand.
Frank looked at his mother. "I thought you were going to your meeting."
"I was," she said calmly, "but I was playing with Harry and Neville and missed the start, so I decided to stay behind."
Frank opened his mouth to say something but stopped as a voice came from outside. "Oh Aurors, I want to give myself up." The mocking tone of Bellatrix's voice gave the lie to her words and Frank ignored her to plan the defence of his home and family.
Sirius grinned, a tight little smile. "Alice, may I borrow one of your House Elves for a minute?"
Alice blinked at the bizarre question. "Why?"
Sirius grinned wider. "I want to give my dear cousin a gift, and they are the only creatures I know that can remain unseen and get away unhurt."
Alice shrugged and called a House Elf. "Snicky, would you assist Mr. Black, please?"
The House Elf bobbed his head. "Of course, Mistress." He looked at Sirius. "How may I help the Black Sir?"
Sirius was rooting around in his pocket and pulled out a small vial. "Simple. There is a woman out there, only one. Just pour this on her and run. If it is too dangerous, don't worry about it."
The House Elf took the vial and went to a window. He opened the window and the vial vanished as he held it. He looked out of the window and concentrated. A minute later, he turned back to Sirius. "Done, Mr. Black sir."
Sirius grinned, and put Harry down with Neville. "I suggest everyone draw a wand. We're about to have company."
"SIRIUS BLACK!!" The shriek from outside was filled with anger and hate. "I"LL SHRED YOUR ORGANS FOR THIS!!"
"Promises, promises," Sirius called back, starting to laugh. "How's life on the run treating you, Cousin? Lost the rest of your mind yet?"
Sirius looked out the window, barely peeking around the edge of the window and grabbed Frank, pulling him away from the door as a scream from outside began the attack.
The front door of the house shivered in its frame and splinters shot out of it. Frank looked at the one sticking in his robes and frowned at Sirius. "What did you do to that madwoman?"
Sirius smirked. "Nothing much. It's merely an oil that makes all your hair fall out. The thing is, Bella has always been vain about her hair."
Frank and Alice looked at each other as they listened to the threats that were accompanied by magic slashing at the door and starting on the windows. "Sirius," said Alice after Bella started raving about slowly strangling Sirius with his own intestines, "If she gets her hands on you, you're going to regret having ever even thought about that."
"I know," Sirius said, listening to Bella threatening to castrate him with his own teeth, "but it wouldn't be nearly as much fun if there wasn't any risk."
The three adult Longbottoms looked at each other. Augusta put their thoughts into words. "Insanity has to run in the Black family. He's as crazy as she is."
The talk ended then as the door splintered again and broke under the abuse it had suffered.
Frank banished the first person in the door back out, directly into the path of the next two, knocking them all over.
Augusta chanted something and a Death Eater looking through a window screamed as the window exploded outwards, filling his face with glass.
Alice waited until her window had broken and a Death Eater put his arm inside. Before he could cast whatever spell he had in mind, she cast a spell. The bright blue light that came from her wand touched the Death Eater and he screamed as he went up in flames. Alice smirked. "Oops. Wrong fire spell. I never could keep Naphtha and Naphthalene straight."
Sirius laughed. "Oh, I like you. Want to run off and play jokes on everyone for a few years?"
He'd barely finished speaking when a Death Eater appeared in his window and he cast a cutting charm at him, slicing the mask off of the man and cutting his face from his left eye to his chin. "Learn to shave," Sirius called out the window, only to duck as Bellatrix sent an Avada Kedavra at him. He looked at the smoking hole behind him and then at the others. "I think she's a bit peeved with me," he said quietly.
The others were busy watching for more Death Eaters and only Frank replied to the inane comment. "I'll be peeved with you if you keep making offers to Alice."
Sirius sighed, a shadow crossing his face. "Sorry. I used to do things like that with James and Lily. Only it was Lily that usually threatened me afterwards."
Alice looked at him. "Fine. Sirius, one more comment like that and I'll have the House Elves throw you out to Bellatrix."
Sirius blinked and grinned. "That's what I like. A woman with spunk."
Augusta and Frank looked up and swore, nearly in unison. "They've started the house on fire."
Alice felt it a second later and looked at Neville and Harry. "The children. We have to get them out of here."
Sirius looked at the two boys. "We can do it. The three of you," He stopped to behead another Death Eater that popped up in his window and glance at Frank. "Was that Dark?"
Frank was banishing another one out the door again, but somehow missed the door, sending the Death Eater into a suit of armour standing next to the door. He watched calmly as the Death Eater kicked for a minute, impaled on the pike the Armour had in its hands. "Now that I think about it, I guess not."
Sirius grinned. "Now, the three of you can handle these goons if Bellatrix isn't there, so I'll deal with her, and you protect Harry until I get back."
Sirius waved his wand and muttered something. He looked at Frank. "By the way, I'd really appreciate it if you didn't see what you're about to see."
Frank frowned at him but before he could say anything, Sirius' motorcycle burst through the only unbroken window left. Sirius caught it as it rolled to a stop and mounted it. He looked at Alice. "Take care of Harry until I return."
The three Longbottoms watched as Sirius revved the bike and drove over a Death Eater coming in the door.
"Oh Bella, where are you?"
"Sirius!" came the reply. "I knew you were in there. That bike can't escape my Broomstick."
"Do you mean to say that you've finally learned to fly higher than three metres?"
The Death Eaters were watching the show until three curses from the house took three of them out in various ways.
Sirius led Bella on a wild ride through the woods behind Longbottom Manor, staying ahead only by the virtue of being in the lead and able to choose his path. The two cousins flashed through the trees, ducking and weaving madly. Bellatrix sent curses at Sirius every chance she got, narrowly missing him several times.
Sirius thought he could take Bellatrix in a fight, but the point here was to draw her away from the house. If he was wrong, and he lost, she had to be far enough away to give the Longbottoms time to deal with the other Death Eaters and escape. He flew on through the woods, ducking and weaving, stretching the time out so the Longbottoms could escape.
Bellatrix's anger was growing as Sirius avoided her every attack as if he was charmed. Bellatrix was not sane. She'd never been a normal person and the amount of mental damage she'd taken under the 'loving' touch of Voldemort had broken all the chains of sanity in her mind. She had several reasons in her mind to kill Sirius, preferably in a long and slow way, with lots of attention to the finer points of hurting him. First, he'd betrayed the family, joining the Light side. The Black family had been supporters of Wizard supremacy for ten generations and Sirius had thrown that all away. Second, he opposed Bella's god, Lord Voldemort. Voldemort was on the path of immortality and he would take the best of his people with him when he was ready. Bella meant to be one of those few, even if she had to kill half of Britain's population to do it.
This thing he'd done to her hair was just another reason to kill him slowly.
For his part, Sirius was concentrating mostly on manoeuvring the more cumbersome motorcycle and could only send occasional insults back at his cousin. Sirius winced as a familiar looking green light flashed by his head. He had about ten seconds of cover left and then he'd be in the open where the Broomstick would catch him easily.
He sighed and reached for a switch he'd installed in case of emergency. This definitely qualified. Sirius flashed past the last tree and stood the bike on end, pointing straight up. He gave it all the power it had and looked back.
Bellatrix came out of the trees and heard the bike above her. She looked up and was after Sirius in an instant. She was grinning manically and pointing her wand at Sirius. "Goodbye, cousin Sirius," she called mockingly as she closed the distance rapidly. "I can't say it been a pleasure, yet. That's going to change, right now."
Sirius watched her and as she opened her mouth he flipped the switch. Bellatrix's spell struck Sirius an instant later He faltered, and the bike power cut off. It continued to fly up for a second, until gravity reclaimed it.
Bella slowed, watching the bike come closer. "Don't you hate that? All the magic we know, and you'll die because of a total body bind, a first year spell."
As the bike came closer, Sirius suddenly disappeared. Bellatrix Lestrange glared at the bike for a second in furious disbelief. "NO! You won't escape that easy!" she screamed, casting another spell at the falling bike, now only metres from her.
The last thing she saw was the bright flash as the bike exploded, sending shrapnel and bits everywhere.
Back at Longbottom Manor, the three Longbottoms had quickly wiped up the remaining Death Eaters and were looking for a sign of Sirius when a fireball erupted behind the house, nearly a hundred metres up. It was at least forty metres across and they looked at each other. Frank and Alice ran for their Broomsticks while Augusta watched over the boys.
They found bits of a Broomstick and of Sirius' bike, but no trace of either of the combatants. They watched as the fire burned out of control and made their plans.
They were just finishing when another party of Death Eaters came looking for their friends. The Longbottoms and Harry Potter were trapped between a burning house and Death Eaters with no cover in sight.
OoOoOoO Sirius Black's house, 04Nov1981. OoOoOoO
Remus was pacing and snarling. He'd seen Peter for just a second today, and he appeared to be in perfect health, which meant he'd betrayed James and Lily. The sight of him and the realization that he'd helped kill two of Remus' only friends had nearly brought the Wolf out in broad daylight.
They had been on a Muggle street though, and Remus had fought the Wolf back. By the time he'd controlled it, Peter was gone and Remus couldn't risk finding him again right then. He wasn't sure he could control the Wolf again, not if he'd gotten close to Peter.
He was waiting for a potion to finish and then he was going to the Longbottom's house to tell Sirius what he'd seen.
He stopped suddenly as the wards around Sirius' house flared and something struck the side of the house a resounding blow. He ran outside, looking up and saw a body falling from the side of the house where a huge dent showed the point of impact. The body hit the ground and lay still.
Remus kept his wand pointed at it as he crossed to it. It was the scent that told him who it was. He dropped his wand and ran, skidding to a stop on his knees as he turned Sirius over.
His breath caught in his throat. Sirius was a mess. His shirt was gone and every inch of his upper body was either burnt or shredded of skin, and in some places, charred flesh combined both aspects of his injuries. From the way he moved when Remus picked him up, there weren't very many intact bones either.
Remus glanced at the dent in the side of the house as he hurried inside. Hitting the house hard enough to cave it in would account for the broken bones and shredded skin, but where had the burns come from?
He was already pouring potions down Sirius' throat when he remembered a drunken conversation just after they had left school.
"Of course it's dangerous," said a tipsy Sirius, "Thasht why it's fer emercenslies only." He shook his head and tried again. "Emergencies only."
Remus and James had looked at him. James had tilted his head in that gesture that was him getting curious. "So, if you're having an emergency, you flip the switch, and what happens?"
Sirius had grinned drunkenly. "Thee things. I turn invishible first. Five seconds later, puff! Sirius is gone, Portkeyed away." He thought about what he'd just said. "I mean, Poof! I'm gone."
"And the third thing?" Remus asked, already seeing the hole in this scheme. From the look on James' face, he saw it as well.
Sirius frowned. "It's my bike. No one else can have it. It goes Boom."
Remus and James looked at each other. "Sirius," James said patiently, "Where do you go?"
"My hoose, House," he said proudly.
"Sirius, how fast do you go on that motorcycle?" James asked.
"As fash as I can," Sirius glared at Remus. "Unless the scaredy wolf there is wif me." He looked at James and lowered his voice to a whisper so Remus couldn't hear him. "He don't like fash."
Remus looked at the drunken man sitting next to him and sighed. "I don't mind fast, but you want to break the speed of light." he said defensively.
"See?" Sirius appealed to James. "He don't like fash."
James rolled his eyes. "Sirius, if you're moving at fifty kilometres an hour when you use the Portkey, you'll still be moving that fast when you get to your house."
Sirius thought about that for a few minutes. Suddenly it sank into his inebriated head. "That would not be good, would it?"
"Hitting the house at fifty kilometres an hour?" James said with heavy sarcasm. "You'd bust the house, especially if you hit head first."
Remus snickered. "If he hit head first, he'd go through the house."
Sirius looked offended. "Hey, what about my head?"
James and Remus grinned at each other. They turned to Sirius and smirked. "It would be fine. It's too hard to be damaged by a mere house."
Sirius nodded. "Oh, OK."
Remus and James waited, but Sirius passed out before realizing what they'd just said.
Remus frowned as he worked feverishly to save Sirius. He'd run out of potions he could use already, and now he was racking his brain for every healing spell he'd ever learned.
There had been quite a few of them, since occasionally the Marauders had bitten off more than they could chew in their escapades. He blinked at that thought.
There was a way to save Sirius. Remus could call up his Wolf and bite Sirius. The disease would keep Sirius alive, since none of his injuries were from Silver or any of the things that could seriously hurt a Werewolf.
Remus shook his head, trying to forget that thought, but it wouldn't go away as he watched Sirius' vital signs ebb away. He cast every spell he knew, until he couldn't cast any more, and still it was not enough.
He frowned as he listened to Sirius' heartbeat. It was getting weaker and starting to beat erratically.
Remus looked at his last living friend and thought about all the years ahead without him. He looked at the injuries he could not fix and Sirius' pale skin and made his decision.
OoOoOoO Here and Now, 25FEB2007 OoOoOoO
Hehe... I love cliffies. I hope you enjoy this. I know it was a bit violent and bloody, but it always seemed to me that the first part of the Voldemort War was just like that. Flush in his power, and with Death Eaters behind him that had never known defeat, Voldemort and crew would have been more violent and sadistic. One doesn't use caution or learn fear until one has been beaten at least once.
Coming next time:
More Dumbledore, we may find out what happened to Bella, (maybe), Remus' decision, and the Longbottoms. And as a special Bonus, Harry and Neville.
Revised Notes: There is one major change in this chapter and I'll award ten house points to the first person to find it. There were also a few minor changes, covering things people mentioned in reviews or that I thought needed clarification. I also added two whole lines not in the first version, just to make my cliffie more fun for me.
Raven