A/N: Update: (24/09/07) Checked Baron's dialect a bit on demand on Bundibird.

(12/10/07) Checked Baron's speech again!

Power of the Moon

Chapter 10: The Grave of the Brother

It seemed that getting the Moon Eye had done Snape some good. He was no longer bullying Neville (Sabian always stopped him by jabbing him with his elbow), had stopped sniping at Harry and had stopped favouring the Slytherins. This had not gone down very well with them. Harry once overheard Pansy Parkinson say 'how could a teacher that is doing really well suddenly do that?' Baron spotted Professor McGonagall pinching herself a couple of times.

Harry, however, had other things on his mind. The first Quidditch match was coming up and Harry was training harder than ever. The weather worsened and he was tried to his very limit, "Such a tempest of devils should these games deter!" roared Baron on a particularly windy day. Baron had taken to going with Harry during practice. He had refused pointblank to remain on the ground.

Despite this, it was obvious that he did not like being in the air one bit. Nevertheless, he mounted the broom behind Harry and they flew together, with Baron clutching Harry's waist. No one noticed of course but it was annoying when the wind was blowing behind them and Baron's cloak was blowing into Harry's face from behind (he promised not to wear it on the day). Then came rather drastic news. That Slytherin would not be playing them that weekend. Hufflepuff would instead.

"What happened?" Angelina propped her broom against the wall, staring,

"Probably too wimpy to play in this weather!" Fred suggested, scornfully. George nodded, laughing with the same scorn. Baron glowered furiously at them,

"No!" roared Wood at the twins, "There's something wrong with Malfoy apparently!" Baron's ears pricked up at this comment,

"What is it?" he asked. Angelina did so at the same time.

"I dunno. What I do know is that fainted in the middle of the Slytherin Common Room." The twins laughed derisively at this, earning them unfelt elbows in the arms from Baron, "He then woke up, all scared and babbling that they had to stop the match." This comment was awarded with complete silence of shock. Baron leaned forward a little in his seat, silently encouraging him to continue, "He told Flint about someone sending his servants and he had to stop the match. I know; weird!"

"And just a shade creepy."

Wood nodded, "Well, you know Flint. He wasn't going to back out of the tournament. But Malfoy wasn't having any of it. I actually heard him beg to Flint." He put on a high, frightened voice, " 'Don't make me go on there! He'll be waiting for me. Don't send me there!' " He cleared his throat and spoke normally, "The way he was talking; you'd think he was going to be sent to Azkaban or something."

Fred and George snickered. Baron scowled and took a swipe at the two of them, that passed straight through their heads and didn't in the slightest bit hurt them. After Baron had turned his attention away from them, Wood clapped his hands,

"Right. Now Malfoy's gone insane, we'll have to work out a whole new strategy. But we'll do that tomorrow. Right! Everyone out!"

Harry stood up but Baron held him back, "Our words should ne'er be heard." They hid themselves in the shower-rooms behind a closed door until all of them had filed out. When they had all gone, they went back out and sat down on one of the benches together. Baron looked as though he was deep in thought. He ran a hand through his hair; a common motion to show that he was thinking, "...this turn of events has me much astonished. Methinks the villain Nekros is abroad."

"What? Nekros, again? What's he up to now?"

"Nekros did pluck Draco's feeble soul to his abode and hath given him this knowledge to aggrieve him. Yet..."

Harry thought for a moment, "Did Nekros have...y'know...followers?"

"More of a mystery it is that he had none. The Dark Sorcerers employed no true servants. Quoth they 'No man can equal us'."

"So what can he mean by 'sending his servants'?"

Baron lapsed into thought, "Those souls lost in that Ring may be the thing..."

They were interrupted when Snape entered followed by Sabian. Apparently, Baron had called him. He sat opposite them with Sabian next to him. Both looked rather grim, "So, you've heard about Malfoy's dark predictions too?"

"Yeah." Harry nodded, "About Nekros sending his servants to the match. But Baron reckons that doesn't really make any sense to us since he doesn't have any servants. He always worked alone. So did the other two."

"Sabe," Snape turned to the spirit beside him, "Didn't you tell me once that Nekros was the creator of Dark Creatures."

"Aye, I did."

"O, I do forget!" Baron snapped his fingers as he remembered, "He fathered Boggarts but no worthy army are they, as hast been proven. He is kith and kin with Dementors..."

"Dementors!" Snape and Harry shouted at the same time, horrible realisation coming upon them. Sabian looked perplexed so Snape elaborated,

"Sabe, since Sirius Black is on the loose, the Ministry wants to shield Hogwarts from him. They think it possible that Black will try and attack. The only way they can think of is for Hogwarts to be guarded by some of the Dementors..."

"What?" the Scottish spirit stood up in anger and panic, "Is the Minister mad? Dementors! I ask you; they'll do anything but protect Hogwarts. And what's Sirius Black got to do with anything?"

"The Dementors guard the Wizard Prison, Azkaban."

"Well, then Dementors are pointless! If he can get past them once, who says he cannae do it again? They will nae remain loyal to the Ministry given the choice between that and Nekros. Nekros is their creator, lord and master. They only answer to him and he can give them more of their rights and their pleasures than the Ministry can with just guarding prisoners."

Harry struggled against the weather with Baron clinging on to his waist behind him to keep himself on the broom. He was nearly thrown off once or twice. The trouble was that he wasn't very good at flying brooms and was having trouble staying on, let alone keeping up with the motions of it. He had kept his promise and not worn his cloak. He replaced it with a white, fur-lined trenchcoat but it made it no better since the rain practically blinded him. Harry's teeth chattered and Baron held his coat around Harry as well as himself. This shielded his body from the cold very efficiently but did not help to clear his vision.

Baron then spotted the captain motioning Harry down. He called to Harry and he dived down to the ground. Wood told them they were fifty points ahead but, at this rate, if the Snitch wasn't caught soon, they would be playing into the night.

Hermione then hurried over. She did an Impervious charm on Harry's glasses so they would repel water. Baron removed his own glasses, gave them a quick wipe on his sleeve and did the same to them. Baron hopped back onto the broom and Harry got back on. They took off again, this time with full vision, "Thank the heavens; our vision hath come in the form of learned Hermione!" Harry however became distracted. High up in the stands was a gigantic black dog. with shaggy black fur, "What ist?"

"Is that a...Grim?"

"A Grim? O, jackanapes and trickery! Harry, the damselfly is not in earnest. Death omens are naught but a falsehood to charm and torment fools and unknowing maids."

Wood suddenly yelled to Harry. Diggory was heading towards the fluttering Snitch, "Hence, my Harry! Hence!" screamed Baron. Harry spurted his broom forward, going at full pelt, Baron hanging on for dear life. The stadium suddenly went strangely quiet. Baron stiffened, "O, terrible instant!" Draco's prediction had proved correct. Dementors swarmed onto the pitch and a figure was to be seen high in the stands, behind the spectators, out of sight. The glint of metal was enough to tell them who it was.

Baron felt Harry begin to weaken. He quickly swapped places with him and sealed his now unconscious soul into the Moon Medallion for safety. He stopped himself from changing form and turned back to the Snitch. Diggory was distracted by the Dementors and the Snitch was hovering in front of him. Never had he been in a Quidditch match but he knew what he had to do. He lunged for it and managed to close his fingers around it, barely managing to stay on the broom.

No one had noticed however. Dumbledore had strode out onto the pitch. He looked absolutely livid. Baron now knew fully why Harry had so much respect for his headmaster. The man seemed to give off burning heat and his silver hair appeared to be crackling with electricity. He fired one of the strongest Patronuses Baron had ever seen and they sent the Dementors scattering everywhere. Baron was very impressed with this amount of power such an old man possessed.

He turned his eyes back to whom he thought was Nekros. Even though he could not see his face, Baron smirked as his the steps, onto the grounds outside imagination conjured up the look of twisted fury there. He then strode down and out of sight, leaving Baron extremely satisfied. Everyone seemed to be coming back to their senses now. The commentator noticed that Baron had caught the Snitch, "HARRY POTTER HAS CAUGHT THE SNITCH! GRYFFINDOR WINS!"

A tumult of noise erupted from the red and gold stands. Baron carefully guided down the broom, just in time before the rest of the Gryffindors engulfed him. Such animated greeting, he thought, thinking also that perhaps he should have paid more attention to itThe Weasley twins lifted him up onto their shoulders and they carried him up to the Common Room. They left for a moment and came back with handfuls of party food.

Baron was very impressed with how much they got. They must be allied with the elves. He decided to check on Harry. He told the others he was going to be putting away his broomstick. He hurried up to the quiet of the dormitory and descended back into the Moon Medallion. Harry was lying on the bed. He looked seriously pale. He hurried to his side.

Harry stirred feebly. Baron shook him slightly until he woke. He gave him a Chocolate Frog he had saved from the party, "What happened? Who won the match?"

"Gryffindor." Baron swelled up with pride again, "I caught the elusive thing for you. Twas hovering before me to be caught, And, returning was less demanding than thought." At that moment, the door opened and Sabian and Snape came in,

"Ah, I see Harry's alright." Sabian grinned.

"And may I compliment you on your capture, Sir." Baron nodded in gratitude,

"Did you see the headmaster, though? Och, I've nae a man look so riled."

"Neither have I, Sabe. Mind you, Dumbledore hates the Dementors, doesn't he?"

Winter fast approached and a thick snow began to fall over Hogwarts and the grounds. Twice, Harry got hit over the head with snowballs by a cheeky Sabian, always accompanied by an amused Snape. Baron always fired back and on both occasions, Harry and Snape had to stop them because people were wondering how the snow was balling itself up and flinging itself at thin air. These games, however, were short-lived. Coming up to mid-December, Baron suddenly became a little more docile and more silent. He couldn't even throw any insults at Trelawney. He woke Harry later than normal. And then, he didn't wake Harry at all. But Harry's body seemed to be used to Baron's get-up calls so Harry woke up around that time. He woke up to see a contemplating Baron sitting on the window ledge, looking forlorn.

How strange thought Harry. Perhaps it's because it's Christmas. Christmas is a time for family after all. Maybe he misses his family. Harry's mind drifted back to the memory Baron had showed him last Hogsmeade visit. The one where he had watched the child version of Baron and his little brother...what was his name again?...John, yeah that was it. Funny, Baron seems to be avoiding the issue of his brother. Did something perhaps happen to him? Was Baron involved?

These unanswerable questions went through his head every day. He daren't ask them. He had a feeling that Baron would not give him a straight answer or else become violent. Another Hogsmeade weekend approached and they were both fully prepared with what they were going to do. They went together to the one-eyed witch statue when all of a sudden, "Psst! Harry!"

Harry whipped round and found Fred and George beckoning to him. Harry and Baron walked over, both perplexed about what they would want just before they were to go to Hogsmeade. Harry asked and Fred just winked, "We've come to give you a bit of festive cheer before we go. Come in here..." He nodded towards a empty classroom. Baron and Harry exchanged looks that said plainly 'What on earth do you think's going on?',

"Early Christmas present for you, Harry!" George handed a square of parchment that he had just produced from under his cloak. It was very blank and very empty. The both of them immediately suspected a joke,

"What's this supposed to be?"

"This, Harry, is the secret to our success."

"It's a wrench, giving it to you but we decided that your needs were greater than ours."

"Anyway, we know it off by heart. We bequeath it to you. We don't really need it any more."

Baron shook his head, "They play us the fool. Are they not doing Loki's work?"
Not having the faintest idea of who or what Loki was, Harry voiced Baron's scepticism. George acted mortally offended and the both of them launched into the story of how they had stolen it from Filch's office from a cabinet that had read 'Confiscated and Highly Dangerous'. At this fact, Baron stiffened. Something marked dangerous should be cautiously received…Baron thought, narrowing his eyes. He un-narrowed them however when Fred gave the map a tap with his wand and said clearly, "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good!" Ink lines traced and criss-crossed until it made some kind of map. Green words on top proclaimed:

Messrs Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs

Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief Makers

are proud to present

THE MARAUDER'S MAP

"By Jove!" Baron's suspicions for the twins vanished instantly as he stared at the map, "Tis Hogwarts portrayed here and, by Hermes!" For he had noticed that the labelled dots representing people were moving. There was Professor Dumbledore pacing his study, Mrs Norris skulking the second floor and Peeves bouncing around the trophy room, "Incredible sight!" Harry just had to agree. He also noticed passages that led right to Hogsmeade. Fred and George told him about all of them and Baron swelled with pride (doing a very good impression of Percy) when they said that his passage, as of yet, was unblocked and undiscovered. He made to take the map but then Fred's hand prevented him. He now had a rather uncharacteristically serious look on his faces,

"And just before we go," Fred said slowly and deliberately, "Harry, we've got a bit of a bone to pick with you."

"Yeah," George was looking at him and speaking the exact same way, "We've been seeing some funny things on the map."

"Like you seem to be constantly in the company of one Gabriel Cinclion."

Baron stiffened. What map is this. Canst show spirits?

Fred glared at the map for a moment, "He's meant to have been stone-dead and yet he's in your lessons, in the grounds with you and even on the back of your broom during Quidditch practice. And, look," He pointed at a dot on the map and, to their horror, a clear dot labelled 'Gabriel Cinclion' stood right behind Harry's, "there he is, right now."

"Also," George came forward, "Malfoy has not been on the map for the first two months of term but has been labelled Jean Nekros, who's also meant to have been stone-dead. And, on the night when the Fat Lady was slashed, you came across Nekros. After a bit, you disappeared entirely along with the Nekros guy. There was a dot but no label. Then Snape came and he seemed to be in the company of one Sabian Brunroux."

"Who's meant to have been stone-dead."

"Who has also been constantly in his company ever since then. And also, when the Baron took Ron and Hermione out, they too, after a while, your names disappeared off the map. Just dots. And on the day of the match, the dot labelled Draco Malfoy was replaced with Nekros again. Malfoy disappeared off the map."

"Explain, Harry!" demanded Fred, suddenly stern, "We know that you know."

Harry gulped. What am I supposed to say? Baron looked equally worried. Harry gave it a try, "What, really? Oh, I had no idea!"

George shook his head, "Nice try but the truth, please."

"Why are you picking on me?" Harry demanded, "Why don't you go to Snape?"

"We're not asking him!"

"Be collected, Harry." Baron put a hand on his shoulder, taking a step forward, "I wilt turn our fortunes half circle." He then closed his eyes as if concentrating.

Harry then realised Baron, until then, had been a bit blurred. Now his outline was becoming sharper. Harry then realised. He was going to make himself visible to Fred and George. Harry watched as the twins' eyes simultaneously widened. Baron opened his eyes and gave them a hard look and then said,

"I charge you damned for intruding into our business."

He stepped forward. The twins seemed intimidated by Baron, their strict facade vanishing abruptly, nothing compared to the Baron. He advanced on them until he was looking straight down on them. Baron's height passed the twins' by a long way. Baron's hand then glowed a blood red to match his shirt. Fred and George gulped. Uh oh... must have crossed their minds at that point. The taller spirit then made a movement with his arm that was so fast that his arm was just a blood-red blur. He had struck both the twins so hard that he had knocked the both of them out. Harry nodded as Baron blurred again, "Nice hit, Baron."

"I thank you. When they wake, no recollection of this encounter will have hence gone." He tapped his nose cheekily, "Now, we too must hence, Harry."

Hogsmeade in winter was picturesque. Just like a Christmas card. Baron smiled in a sad sort of way, "Such a beautiful sight, is it not?" They strolled down the high street and caught sight of Sabian (who was solid) and Snape (who was in spirit form). Baron reasoned that they had probably done the same as them. He then caught sight a graveyard and froze.

Harry noticed Baron had stopped. He hurried back to him,

"What is it, Baron?"

"Wait here, I pray you." his voice sounded strange. Hard to read. He slipped through a gap in the gates of the graveyard and entered. Harry watched him as he pulled up his hood. This made him almost blend in with the snow. He turned a corner and disappeared from sight. What was Baron doing? Was this something to do with him being suddenly silent over the past few days?

After a while, Sabian and Severus came around the corner. They saw Harry and went over to him, "Hello there, laddie." Sabian grinned, "Where's Gabriel?"

"He just went in there." he gestured into the graveyard, "He said he'd be back in a minute."

"Och, I see." Sabian suddenly became grim.

"What?" Snape looked a bit confused, "What is it?"

"Today's the day when his little brother John, whom he loved so dearly, died. So did he, in fact. At around the same time. There's nae a person who knows how or what happened. John had been missed for quite a while. Seven years in fact. Tore Gabriel apart and changed him forever. His body just turned up along with Gabriel's. That was also the day Nekros disappeared, oddly enough. The other Dark Sorcerers had been killed by each other by then. Nekros was the only one left and he just...vanished."

"Has he said anything about this to you, Potter?"

"No, sir. In fact," Harry realised, "he hasn't really said much at all lately."

"Och, maybe I should go and have a chat with him. Harry, Severus; you wait for me."

Sabian slipped through the gap just like Baron and hurried up the path. He turned a corner, looking this way and that. The place was a veritable maze of tombs, gravestones and crypts. How on earth am I supposed to find Gabriel here? He peered at the tombstones. Well, these are recent ones. Maybe the ones from the seventeen hundreds are somewhere around the back. He hurried up, sometimes cutting across the frozen ground and over the snow that had fallen thick onto the earth. He gazed around as he reached a tombstone of a person who had died in 1707. Getting closer.

Suddenly, he spotted him. He was almost invisible with his white cloak and hood that blended almost perfectly with the snow and the white marble tomb in front of him. Sabian slowed down as he walked up to him. He was standing stock still next a dead black tree and gazing down at the name on the tomb. It looked like he had had to brush away the snow to see it. It read 'Johnathan Nathaniel Cinclion'. Sabian put a sympathetic hand on Baron's shoulder,

"Many years have passed since John's death, Gabriel. Maybe it might be high time you stopped thinking about it."

"My mind agrees, Sabe." he gave a hollow, mirthless laugh at this point, "Agreement doth always favour your advice," his humour vanished in an instant, "but to say goodbye; tis a lengthy and painful task."

The Councillor nodded wisely and then became serious, "Gabriel, forgive me asking but how did you and John die? There's nae a person who knows how."

Baron stiffened. He didn't even seem to want to look at Sabian. He had seen this kind of behaviour in Baron before. He had acted the same way when he had heard about John going missing, "Gabriel..." He tried to take hold of his face but it was jerked away from him, "Gabriel...you can trust your old Councillor. I will nae tell anyone." Gabriel sighed. He suddenly looked like the years he had endured were having an impact on him. It wasn't right since it looked like he was only in his twenties,

"Sabian." He raised his eyebrows. Baron had never called him by his full name, "you know these flighty and wrecking hostilities hath transformed my fragile heart. Before the war, twas was more carefree...more of child...more foolish..."

"Aye, you were a wee terror!" he joked, trying to lighten the atmosphere. But Baron wasn't in the mood,

"Death hath laid change my heart further. The child I was; ist no more. His mistakes wilt ne'er be repeated. To be betrayed shall do more injury to my heart than a knife's point. Sabian," he turned to him, his face very solemn, "The secret of mine and John's death is mine; ne'er to be told to anyone. Not now. All shalt be reveal'd at the right time. At time such when my heart is stronger, you shalt know. Do you comprehend me?"

Sabian nodded. He then whispered, "Come on. Severus and Harry are waiting for us outside."

He put an arm around Baron, who still looked very solemn, and led him back the way he came.

A/N: Okay, bit of a depressing chapter. By the way, Loki was the Norse God of Mischief so, when Baron referred to the twins doing Loki's work, he meant that they're being mischievious.