Merry Christmas everybody! Happy Holidays! Thanks always to my readers, and especially to my reviewers who say such nice things and make me want to write more.
Damn. It's after midnight. Well, it's only a few minutes after Christmas Day, so the chapter's not really a late present. Unless you want to get technical.
In every cry of every Man,
In every Infant's cry of fear,
In every voice, in every ban,
The mind-forg'd manacles I hear.
-William Blake, "London"
Strange to say, if you do not stamp yourself with the words exhilarated or terrified, those two things feel exactly the same in a body.
-"Adah," The Poisonwood Bible, Barbara Kingsolver
It had taken a while to calm Syaoran down, especially with his knowledge of the war beginning among the wizards and witches that centered in England. He had been nearly frantic with worry once he had managed to pry the full story out of Cerberus and Tomoyo. The Li clan Elders had been concerned enough by recent activities to put a watch on the British Isles, although no sorcerer could interfere. Wizards and witches were the only race who had chosen to set themselves apart so. Where others lived and moved comfortably among those without magic, wizards and witches had created their own little world, isolated from any other race. Therefore, sorcerers, whose job it was to be caretakers of the earth's magic, were required to leave them be. As a whole, sorcerers held the most power of any mortals, and so their restrictions were much stricter. In any conflict occurring among any other race, whether human, spirit, or animal, no sorcerer could interfere unless needed and invited by those in charge. The only loophole occurred where kin were involved, and that provided only a limited freedom of movement.
Syaoran was not happy with this new situation, but he reluctantly agreed to help, since Sakura refused to sever all ties and forget about her uncle. She could be very stubborn when she wanted to be. So, he had told her that he would go with her when she ventured back into the Wizarding World, no ifs, ands, or buts.
Tomoyo wisely decided that it would not be prudent to mention that, since Eriol lived in England, perhaps it would be simpler to just ask him to accompany his half-daughter. Syaoran was on edge as it was.
So it was that a week after Sakura had followed her uncle, she, Syaoran, and Eriol found themselves exploring Diagon Alley. Eriol had somehow gotten wind of her plan to study wizards and witches so that she would not slip up in front of her uncle, and he had informed her of the popular wizarding shopping district. Sakura had promised Severus that she would stay away from Hogwarts until the Headmaster returned, but she had said nothing about the rest of the Wizarding World.
Sakura gazed around wide-eyed in the crowd, darting here and there as foreign and fascinating objects caught her eye. Syaoran scowled darkly, daring anyone to come near as he struggled to keep up and keep his eye open for any danger. Eriol merely sauntered along, explaining what items and signs he remembered from Clow's memories to Sakura. His own knowledge of the culture was lacking, as he had only rarely studied witches and wizards, and Clow's memories of them were centuries old and shared with Fujitaka.
"Look at this," Sakura breathed, fascinated. "They actually fly on brooms. And they're more elaborate than my staff. What's our equivalent for a Galleon? Oh." She dashed off without waiting for an answer, coming to a stop in front of a window that said Eeylops Owl Emporium. "Owls. My uncle mentioned something about 'owling' me. Do they use owls? Let's go look around."
The shopkeepers in the various shops gave the group strange looks when asked what was to them simple and well-known questions, but Sakura's innocence, enthusiasm, and cheerfulness soon drew indulgent smiles, and the three sorcerers came away with necessary knowledge, if not actual purchases. Then they discovered Flourish and Blotts.
Sakura grinned, Eriol eyed the stacks hungrily, and even Syaoran seemed inspired by the wealth of information contained in the bookstore.
Eriol beckoned to one of the assistants and asked if she could recommend any books for those new to the Wizarding World. Sakura tagged along behind the two as the worker led them to the section they needed while Syaoran slipped off to browse on his own.
"Don't worry about the cost," Eriol told Sakura as they skimmed titles, flipping through any that seemed interesting or informative. "As long as they take pounds, I can pay for everything."
Sakura paused in her search, giving him a worried look. "Are you sure? I don't want…"
"It's no trouble," Eriol interrupted with a careless wave. "I will be benefiting from this as well."
"All right," she murmured uncertainly and returned to her perusal of A General Overview of the Wizarding World.
Eriol and Sakura were organizing their choices when Syaoran returned with a stack of his own.
"Books on history, wizard myths, magical theory, and basic spells," Syaoran explained. "I thought they'd be useful eventually, once we understood the culture. It also gives us a larger variety of books."
"Good idea," said Eriol approvingly.
Syaoran grunted and led the way to the checkout desk. After some discussion the cashier allowed the three to pay in pounds with a reminder to stop by Gringotts to exchange Muggle money for Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts. Paying with Muggle money was unusual, but not unheard of.
Eriol, seeing other customers doing the same, discreetly shrank and pocketed their bag. They had only just continued on their way when they heard screaming.
A tall, rather thin, nondescript man in a plain black robe walked casually down a side street of Diagon Alley, pausing in front of several store windows before finally seeming to find a display that truly interested him. He stopped outside of a clothing shop, the window at the perfect angle to spot the wizard who had been tailing him since he'd left the pub. It was difficult to make out any specific features, but he committed what he could make out to his memory. He palmed his wand and pointed it behind him, murmuring the incantation that would reveal whether any disguise spells were in place, making sure to keep his wand hidden. There was no glow to indicate that any disguise spells were being used, which would make identification easier.
He stepped inside the shop, browsing through the robes as he pondered whether it would be better to simply lose the wizard, or kill him. He could feel the other man watching him, probably staring through the window. Amateur, he thought idly, picking out an elegant pair of dress robes to take back to the dressing rooms. It was likely that the Death Eater had no real idea who he was following. Killing him might arouse suspicion.
The dressing rooms were out of sight of the window, so he felt he could relax a little. Hanging the robes up on the inside of the door, he froze, closing his eyes to listen for the creak and clatter of the shop door opening.
Nothing.
Apparently the other wizard was content to simply keep watch from outside. Shoddy work for a spy.
He heard the witch in the stall next to him gather up her things and leave. He watched her feet go past his door, and then rolled silently under his door, keeping behind her, which was no small feat considering his height and her lack thereof. The bundle of robes in her arms helped greatly. Coming to a rack of clothes, he ducked behind it and carefully made his way to the back door he'd noted upon his entrance into the shop. There were no wards to alert the owner to anyone leaving, so he slipped out, the other wizard's attention still firmly on the dressing room area. He found himself in a narrow back alley, and began walking away, making sure to head towards the sun so that it would be that much harder to see him.
He was about to step onto the main street when he heard the screams. Taking a quick step back, he hid himself in the shadows, releasing the spells that disguised his face. Silky blonde hair partially obscured bright blue eyes, striking in such a smooth, pale face. His body became longer, leaner, more wiry. Albus Dumbledore's second Spymaster, Fai D. Flowright, watched as chaos reigned in Diagon Alley.
Syaoran dragged Sakura around a corner, shielding her with his body, as Eriol quickly threw up a shield around them. He was just in time as something connected with the side of a building across the street, flinging shrapnel in all directions, drawing blood on several pedestrians. Syaoran saw one man lose an eye, and quickly blocked Sakura's view.
Figures in black robes and skull-like masks appeared at one end of the street. Wizards and witches screamed, many apparating away. Children cried and shrieked with fear as parents tried desperately to gather them together. Many shoppers fled as the Death Eaters advanced, wands drawn as they destroyed buildings and cursed any in their path. Several brave people attempted to stand against the threat, but were too unorganized to do more than slow them down.
The three sorcerers stood frozen, unable to tear their eyes away from the carnage. A picture of a skull and snake appeared in the sky, the same icon that had been tattooed to her uncle's arm. The Dark Mark, he had called it, rage and despair in his voice.
Sakura's eyes were drawn to a small girl, no more than seven or eight, who had fallen into the path of the Voldemort's supporters, wailing and scrambling to get out of the way. Her mother was nowhere to be seen, no doubt having been separated in the chaos.
"She'll be killed!" Sakura gasped, and raced out into the street.
"Sakura, no!" exclaimed Syaoran, grabbing for her desperately as she slipped through his fingers.
Sakura reached her in time to yank her out of the path of a spell, and hauled her into her arms.
"Foolish girl," someone hissed menacingly, and Sakura twisted, shielding the child. She braced herself for the impact, and was surprised when nothing touched her. Turning, she realized that Syaoran stood between her and the Death Eaters, on the balls of his feet, knees bent and ready to move, katana out, the flat of the blade having blocked whatever the wizard had cast.
"Sakura, get out of here," he ordered through gritted teeth as he parried another Dark curse.
Sakura needed no further urging. She ran with the child in her arms and prayed desperately that her mother was close. It seemed that fate was on her side when she heard a woman screaming for her daughter, and the girl whispered, "Mommy."
She thrust the child into the surprised witch's arms, and then raced off to where Eriol had been.
Meanwhile, Eriol had been examining the surrounding area for an idea when his eyes alighted on a small, out of the way wooden toy store. He grinned, eyes flashing as he wove his spell, and a line of toy soldiers marched out the door, quickly forming into rows of six as they faced the Death Eaters. The Dark wizards and witches paused at such a strange sight, and then the toy soldiers were upon them, stabbing with muskets where they were able, and otherwise simply piling on top of the individual, pinning them to the ground with surprising strength. Syaoran used the distraction to slip away and join his two friends.
The three of them blinked in surprise when the toys' jaws unhinged and spat a large ball of pink flaming glue at their opponents, drawing shrieks of pain.
"Well," said Eriol, stunned at how his sorcery had mixed with the wizardry already present in the boys. "That was…"
"Interesting," muttered Syaoran.
"Weird," offered Sakura.
"...unusual," concluded the blue-haired man.
The streets were all but deserted by now, and the Death Eaters, realizing their defeat, began to apparate away. Sakura noticed this and quickly drew out the Wood card. She pressed it to the ground, not summoning her per se, but drawing on her power to encourage any weeds, plants, or roots to grow at a prodigious rate, bursting through the cobbled street to bind any person they could reach.
Eriol, seeing what she was about, quickly put to sleep the handful she had managed to catch.
Syaoran looked around nervously as Sakura bit her lip, surveying the few bodies that were lying in the street. She hoped they were just injured and would have moved to help if the two boys had not stopped her.
"Sakura, we need to go. Their police, or whatever they call them, will be here any moment, and we don't really want to stick around to be questioned," Syaoran told her softly.
"But," she protested weakly.
"My cute little descendent is correct, Sakura-chan. We need to hurry away. However, we can take to the rooftops to keep watch until they arrive."
"Hai," she sighed, and quickly called upon Jump. Syaoran and Eriol followed her as she bounded off the sides of two buildings, back and forth, but always up, until they reached the roof.
Fai D. Flowright's eyes darkened momentarily as he emerged from hiding to survey the carnage of Diagon Alley. They brightened almost immediately with curiosity when he noticed three figures leaping from building to building with superhuman ability. His hands on his hips, head cocked to one side, and smile playing about his lips, he barely made out that they were all teens, one girl and two boys.
Dumbledore, he decided, would be very interested in this. He himself was very curious. Never before had he seen such unusual technique in battle, and he'd bet his wand that those three teens had something to do with it. He mentally applauded such unorthodox methods.
Humming cheerfully to himself, Fai disapparated just as the first Aurors appeared.
"Sakura! You've seen how dangerous it is. How can you even think of going back?! You could be injured!"
"I don't care, Syaoran," Sakura argued, emerald eyes flashing, hands planted stubbornly on her hips. "I can take care of myself. I want to help in any way I can. I know I can't intervene directly," she said, forestalling the Chinese boy's next words. "But he's my uncle. Even if there was no loophole in our laws, I would still do all I could to protect at least him."
"He doesn't want you to," Syaoran returned.
"He has no idea what I'm capable of. I'm not going to tell any of them. Not yet at least. But I will visit as often as possible, and do anything I can. I'll be careful, about my safety, and how I practice my magic. I'm sorry Syaoran, but nothing you say or do can stop me."
Syaoran's expression tightened, and he turned away. He was scared to death by the thought of what could happen to Sakura in this war that was none of their concern.
Eriol, who had been watching from his kitchen doorway with a tea tray decided to intervene.
"Both of you come and have something to eat and drink. Let's calm down before we do something rash."
Sakura sighed and lowered herself onto the couch. Syaoran huffed angrily, but he also stalked over to take a seat. Spinel Sun, who had been fascinated by 'first-hand wizarding books,' was curled up by the fireplace, already starting on the piles of books the three had acquired. Nakuru was apparently out terrorizing the neighborhood at the moment.
As soon as the police force had showed up, the three had teleported to Eriol's London mansion to recover.
They drank in silence until Syaoran turned to his partner.
"Sakura, please. I couldn't bear it if anything happened to you."
Her expression softened. "I love you, Syaoran. I promise to be careful. But you know I can't stand by without at least trying to protect Severus-ojisan."
"Yes," he sighed, drawing her close to him. "At least keep to the Japanese wizarding community until your ojisan lets you know that their Headmaster is back in power."
Sakura drew back, considering. "All right," she agreed, giving him a quick kiss before rising to help clean up their tea things. "Now let's get our books. I think it's time to go back to Tomoeda."
"Curious," murmured Albus, after hearing Fai's account of the day. "What do you think, Severus?"
Dumbledore and his two Spymasters were meeting in an undisclosed location somewhere in the country, where he had been staying since Umbridge had taken over Hogwarts.
The dour man was silent for several moments before shaking his head. "There's not nearly enough information to go about searching for three unknown teenagers. We can keep an eye out for strange occurrences, but that's the best that can be hoped for. However, we can only speculate that the three are connected to the…toys and plants."
"Ah, but Sev," Fai said enthusiastically, oblivious to the man's murderous scowl, "it only makes sense. Strange powers and strange techniques."
"I assume then, that you will keep an eye out for anything else of note," Albus cut in.
The blonde wizard nodded happily.
"Well, then, I'm becoming concerned about the samurai-wizard Voldemort has recruited," the old man said seriously.
Severus grimaced at such a casual use of the Dark Lord's name. Fai's smile remained in place, but his expression became more thoughtful, his eyes a little darker.
"My spy that I had set on the samurai was supposed to meet me in Diagon Alley three days ago, where he would pass information on to me. He never showed, and I have been back every day since. I believe that he is dead," Fai stated.
"Dammit," cursed Severus. "Every one we send to get close to him has disappeared."
"You are unable to speak with him?" Dumbledore questioned.
"No," he scowled. "He keeps mostly to himself, away from the rest of the Dark Lord's followers. Combined with the fact that the Dark Lord is still suspicious of me, I have only been able to glimpse him from time to time. I know, however, that he has killed a few that have enraged him."
"Yes," murmured Fai with a half smile. "I had heard that he had a temper."
"The best I can tell you is what you already know," continued Snape. "Tall, well-built, short black hair, red eyes, and a sword he calls Ginryu."
"He is also bloodthirsty?" asked Fai.
The Potions Master considered this. "No, not bloodthirsty exactly. More like, he simply doesn't care who falls to his sword as he works to be the best."
Albus sighed wearily. "It would be helpful if we could at least find out the myriad of spells that were woven into his sword. As it is, this Kurogane is a mystery, and a serious threat." He paused. "I suppose we will just have to continue as we are for now."
He stood, and the other two pushed back their chairs as well. "You will continue to watch out for Harry?"
Severus sneered. "Yes, I will continue to babysit the 'Boy Wonder'."
Fai beamed, and glomped the other man from behind. "Aw, Sevvie cares about Harry Potter."
Severus, eyes flashing dangerously, flicked his wand, and Fai twisted away and slipped out of the room, leaving behind an enraged professor, amused headmaster, and still-smoking scorch mark on the wall.
"I do NOT CARE about POTTER! AND DON'T CALL ME SEVVIE!!" he bellowed after the other Spymaster.
Albus held in his chuckles, in fear of what his Potions Professor might do.
Next I will update The Road Less Traveled, which will take me a little while. Also, before I can add to this story, I want to reread HP 5 and 6 so that I can stick to the storyline better, which should only take a few days. Well, once I finish my library books. Hopefully you'll hear from me soon.
Mystical Magician