Author's Note: Things are starting to get a little dark. As everyone knows, peace can't last forever.


Chapter Eleven

The Prophecy

"Miss Taylor, Miss Carinana, Mr. Malfoy, and Mr. Reed, please report to the Headmaster's office." Professor Thornwood's voice rung through the halls of the old castle. Each student looked up from their classes, the teachers dismissing them to settle what was needed of them. One by one the students met up on the way there, Alice walked with a nervous looking Scorpius while Oliver made his way around the corner, meeting up with Raven. The four stood in front of the gargoyle statue, it staring down at them with menacing eyes.

"You are expected." The stone beast grunted, sliding out of the way to give them access to the Headmaster's office. They moved into the door, heading up into the office. As normal the room was cluttered with books and objects of wonder. The opposite wall filled with the portraits of Headmasters past. Alice's eyes were drawn the portrait of Snape, his eyes watching as the students piled in.

While Alice moved to be closer to her idol, the three remaining stared ahead, convinced they were going to be punished for entering the forest. Raven grit her teeth thinking of what would happen. Would she be expelled? Would they send a note home to her parents? She had never gotten in trouble in school before, of course the one time she would it would be in an element she couldn't control.

The door to Thornwood's office opened and without looking at them she waved the children in. Oliver grabbed Alice to pull her away from her conversation with Snape's portrait and the four of them moved into the smaller office that was for the assistant headmistress.

"Sit." Thornwood motioned to the chairs in front of her desk, the students sitting down without question. The silence was strong, only broken by the steady pace of the pendulum on the clock on the wall. It was enough to drive someone insane let alone the wait she was putting them through. It was almost to the point where Raven couldn't take the guilt when the professor spoke finally to Scorpius.

"Mr. Malfoy. Can you please explain to me what you and your classmates were doing out in the forest on October thirty-first at eleven twenty three pm.?" She looked over at him, the young boy looking back at her with a fearful look.

"I-I was being taken into the woods." He squeaked out.

"And why was that?"

"Those boys said … it was an initiation for all F-First year Slytherins."

"So you did not go into the forest on your own accord?"

"No ma'am." Scorpius replied last. Thornwood nodded, turning her attention to Alice who looked like she'd much rather be outside the office continuing her conversation with the portrait.

"And what were you doing out there Miss Carinana?" She spoke with a stern tone.

"I was going to find my classmates and return them to the school so we would not get in trouble. Raven and Oliver followed me to make sure I was safe."

"And what happened after you found them?"

"We got lost trying to find our way back and were attacked by something in the forest." Alice seemed to stare back at the woman in a fight of authority over the situation. Thornwood stared back at her, eyes narrowed.

"You three, is this true?" She turned her attention to Raven, Oliver, and Scorpius. They all nodded silently. The headmistress' eyes scanned each of them, then after moments of silence she smiled and nodded with confirmation.

"The stories match up then. Each of you will only lose ten points for your house, you still went into the forest and endangered your own lives. And you have detention for a week helping Professor Longbottom in the greenhouses."

"WHAT?" Scorpius blurted out. "I was forced to go in there!"

"Mr. Malfoy, there is a time and place to speak. This is not one of those times." Thornwood glared at him, causing the child to tightly close his lips. Her attention turned to the three others. "You are free to go, except you Miss Taylor. I need to speak with you farther."

Not really paying much attention until now, Raven lifted her head to face the woman. Her face was still covered in small cuts from her shattered glasses, the frames and lenses had been repaired thanks to Alice when they were in Hagrid's hut. The others left, leaving Raven and Professor Thornwood in the company of each other. The door shut and with that the young girl glanced back to the woman with a questionable look.

"What do you remember from your attack? I was informed you were assaulted by one of the beasts of the forest." Thornwood asked softly, leaning onto her desk to peer closer at Raven.

"Not much... I just remember being really scared, and smelling dirt..." She sighed, slouching back into the chair and looking away from prying eyes. Thornwood gave her a curious look, leaning back into her own chair.

"Nothing else?"

"Nothing."

The woman paused, tapping her desk with her quill tip and leaving soft blots of ink on the blank parchment left there. "I see, in that case you are free to go."

"Thank you Professor." Raven stood feebly, trying to use her leg strength which had depleted. Once she wandered out of the office the door shut behind her and Thornwood stared at it for at least a moment's time. A sigh escaped her pursed lips, Thornwood gripping her wand tightly in her hand.

Conjuring a happy thought, silver light threaded from the tip of her wand, swirling and forming the shape of a fox. The patronus pranced about on the ground, the woman smiling at the shimmering canine and began to speak lightly so her words were clear but quiet to prying ears.

"Head of Ministry, Kingsley Shacklebolt. Your attendance is requested immediately at Hogwarts." She spoke to the fox of light and once her message was finished it bounded out the open window and into the sky.


Dear Mom and Dad,

This is my monthly to you. School is great, I'm learning

so much about magic and how to control it. I can't wait

until Christmas to come see you, only 2 more months to

go! Halloween was fun this year, there was a large feast

and we got to go trick-or-treating around the school. My

friend Alice made me dress up like a bird, while she went

as someone named Snape and my other friend Oliver went

as someone named 'The Boy Who Lived'. I guess that was

the name James and Albus' dad used to be called.

Keep Tobi out of my room and tell Nat I miss her and hope

to see her at Christmas!

Love,

Raven

She reviewed the letter as she sat outside on a bench. The cold air of November causing her to start to wear her winter robes and scarf. Par stood on the back of the bench next to her, nibbling at her ear affectionately as she scanned the words on parchment. She chose not to tell her parents about the Forbidden Forest. They would most likely find out about that soon enough from the school.

While it was something they would find out sooner or later, what had happened was something she wasn't sure. The ground moved with her fear, every time she felt death was close, the earth would rise to her defense. Was the forest helping her escape the fate of death? That must have been it. The forest was magical after all right? It must have been protecting her from Fluffy.

Raven closed her eyes, holding the folded paper in her lap. Why would the forest chose to protect her and no one else? Was there a reason for it? The questions swam through her head like koi fish, large and active. Par nipped at her ear once more, his good eye watching the moisture from her mouth float in the air in a thin fog.

Slowly she lifted the folded letter up, Par chattering to her before grabbing it in his beak and taking off into the sky. Raven watched as the white bird seemed to blend into the clouded sky and vanish within the puffs. She hoped the letter would find her parents well, she knew Par would make it, he had been delivering her letters without flaw. Once she could no longer see the owl she sat up, stuffing her hands in her pockets and heading down to the shore of the lake. For some reason she felt she had to go there.

Raven's head was hung low as she made careful steps along the frosted grass. She came to a stop at the edge of the water, looking at the monument before her. Broken in previous years, the grave of Albus Dumbledore stood fully repaired before her. A man she never met, never knew, and yet she felt an odd air of friendliness around him. Raven rounded the grave to make herself face him as he he was standing before her, her eyes locked on the nameplate with his name.

"Alice has told me a lot about you." Raven began to speak to the grave. Her voice was greeted with silence, that was all she was expecting.

"She says that you and that Snape guy were friends. Everyone adored you. I wonder if you think about how your school is doing." Slowly she sat on the grass the frost stinging her bare legs. "I heard everyone came to you when they had problems. Do they still do that now?"

Silence continued to be her answer, she frowned and looked down into her lap as she placed her hands over her skirt to hold it down. "I wish there was someone here now I could talk to that was like you. I'm sure you know everything there is to know about this school and the area around it."

"You can still talk to him you know." A voice interrupted her self conversation, she whipping around to see a young man in his late thirties standing behind her. He wore the long black robes that most of the faculty was issued for winter clothing, his brown hair trimmed short but still parted to the left. Raven turned, gray eyes meeting with a pair of brown ones. A cold wind danced around them like the meeting was planned.

"Huh?" Raven's delayed voice finally came out.

"Dumbledore, you can still talk to him. Have you never noticed the big painting behind the Headmaster's chair?" The man smiled, moving towards her and holding a hand out to her to help her up. Taking the hand, Raven lifted herself up to a stand.

"I … That's just a portrait..." She began, causing a smirk to spread across his face.

"Portraits and simple pictures are different here in this world. Next time you're in the Headmaster's office, try talking to his portrait. I'm sure he'll listen." He smiled down at her, then glanced up to the large monument that was the resting place of a once great headmaster.

"Do people come visit him here?" Raven glanced up to him, looking rather curious.

"Sometimes, though not much." The man looked back at her, offering what comfort in his smile he could. Raven looked down at the grass where she had been sitting, the frost having been melted from the heat of her own body.

"It's cold out here, you should come to the Greenhouses, if you have something you want to talk about, I can listen." He nodded lightly at her, waiting to see if she followed before moving on. When Raven started, he began making the small trek uphill back to the school. She followed, tripping a little here and there but managed to keep herself upright enough to make it to the top of the hill.

The Greenhouses were a short trip from where they were, once they arrived the man opened the door, allowing her in first before shutting it behind her. The room was warm and immediately Raven began to peel the layers of her coat and scarf off her. She hung her coat up on the coat rack and turned herself around to look at the plants of the room.

"You're Professor Longbottom..." She spoke softly, then suddenly grit her teeth and went stiff as she realized she'd never really looked at him when he taught.

"And you're Raven Taylor, the girl who never pays attention in my class." Neville chuckled, hanging his coat up.

"I-I'm sorry!" She began again, glancing to the sides but stopped once he held a hand up to silence her.

"It's not uncommon. A lot of people think Herbology is a boring class, they just don't see plants the way I and a select few people do. Besides I hear you're serving detention with me this week. We'll see if we can't change your mind about these plants." He laughed lightly, then gave a frown as he reached in his pocket, pulling out a small spherical object. It looked like a clear glass ball and it was cloudy within. It would glow red in his palm.

"What's that?" Raven asked, looking at it slightly.

"What? This? Oh, it's a Remembrall. It glows red when you've forgotten something. My grandmother got it for me in my first year to help me remember things. Funny, I still can't remember what I've forgotten." Neville grinned at her, handing it over so she could look at it. Once it came in contact with her touch it's cloudy insides returned to a normal gray, indicating there was nothing to remember. She smiled as she looked it over and handed it back to him where it once again lit up red. Raven's eyes traveled over the many plants in the room, then looked back to her professor. He knew a lot about plants, maybe he would know if the forest was actually protecting her.

"Professor Longbottom, do you know a lot about the Forbidden Forest?" She asked, looking up at him from behind her glasses. He glanced at her from his eye contact with the Remembrall and placed it in his pocket, looking out one of the steamy windows of the greenhouse.

"Well, I suppose I know a bit about it. Is there something wrong?"

"When we were stuck out in the forest, I was getting attacked. The ground kept coming up around me and protecting me from danger. Will the forest try to protect those within it sometimes?" Raven asked, looking up at him. Neville stared down at her, watching as she tried to search his face for an answer. He then turned his head away, looking out the window again.

"You know, I can't really say." He finally looked at her again. "You said the ground would rise up and protect you?"

"Yeah..." She answered. Neville was trying to think of something to say. In all honesty he had no idea what she was talking about. This would be something to tell the Headmaster about once he returned. If he did anyway. A nervous glance to his student, he cleared his throat and pointed towards a pot with dirt in it.

"Here, could you get me that pot?" He spoke, watching as she nodded and walked to pick it up. She brought it to him, setting it on the examination table. Neville watched for any signs of movement from the earth while she held it. Nothing happened. It was a curious story she had confided in him, the earth of the forest floor rising up to her protection. He was unsure as to how or why it would do so unless she was having some sort of hallucinations. That couldn't be the case though. While Raven stared at him, wondering why he had asked her to bring him a pot of dirt only to stare into it. Herbology sure was weird.

When Neville finally stopped scanning answers he lifted his head, then gave her a facade of a smile. Gently he took the pot and moved it to the side, then stood in silence. Raven looked sideways out the window, then apologized for the question while grabbing her winter robes from the coat stand. Before Neville could say anything else she darted out the door. He walked to the door after she left, watching as she jogged back into the school like she was late for something.


"Thank you for coming Minister." Thornwood sat at the headmaster's desk while the older man of dark skin sat across from her. He nodded to her, politely placing his hands together in his lap while he listened to her.

"It is no trouble, your Patronus sounded as if it was indeed urgent." Kingsley replied, watching as the spectral fox paced back and forth on the desk before vanishing once Thornwood frowned, her happy thought depleted.

"I called you here because of an incident on the thirty-first of October. As you know there was a … disturbance within the Forbidden Forest that night involving one of our students." She pushed forward a small paper clipped stack of papers, the first one Raven's student record, her picture on the front smiling back of at Kingsley when he took it into his hands.

"I need the Ministry's protection on this girl, without her knowing it." Thornwood said in a stern voice.

"I see, you believe this girl is the one the late prophecy spoke of?" Kingsley asked, setting the record back on the desk.

"I know so." The woman stood up from her chair, glancing to the empty portraits along the walls. She had asked the ones within them to leave for a private meeting with the Minister.

Kingsley chuckled, rising to a stand as well. "These Prophecies, never let us have a moment's peace do they? In this case I will see to it that she get the protection she needs. If anything it will be as if history will repeat its self."

"It is Kingsley! Trust me! I know these things! This is not something to be casually set aside as some kind of hoax. I am warning you now, things are going to change now that this has happened. The Headmaster has not returned and so in his wake I would advise that I replace him as Headmistress. I know what it will take to keep this school safe." Thornwood narrowed her eyes as she spoke loudly, trying to convey the gravity of the situation she felt. The Minister could see the look of desperation in her eyes, and gave a sigh as he closed his eyes and placed his hands in his pockets.

"The ministry will do what it can then. I will not appoint you as Headmistress just yet, but if you think is going on is true, I will want any and all cautionary movements applied. Our world has gone through two wars already, we do not need a third one."

"I will keep you updated as I can." She sighed, head lowered slightly. The Minister nodded, and turned, heading to leave. He sounded like he understood but she knew he didn't. No one understood what was coming, only herself and soon those of her family tree.