Harry Potter and the Foe Glass
Ch. 22 Guerilla warfare
The fight begins and might conclude depending on how long it takes. As this chapter begins final preparations are made to fight.
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any other magical entities that appear in this story.
"I just don't understand why I can't come in for the last supplies?" Victor whined.
"Because Victor my friend, they know we know their secret and they also know that this is where we are most likely to assemble. Therefore it is crucial that you stand watch", Mark elaborated.
Two days had passed since Harry and Mark had lost all contact. The days had been spent with more meetings like the first and a lot of planning and reconnaissance.
The group realized that they couldn't kidnap Makepeace, as she was referred as to takeout the human aspect, during school hours and that the whole affair could last several hours. They ended up deciding on choosing the upcoming Friday's afternoon, today.
In order to free up Victor from his parents and Justin from his stepparents, they both claimed to be staying over at Marks house. And Crow, well he didn't have anyone to care whether he came home or not.
They were just about to leave for the park, the place where Susan was most likely to be, when Mark decided it was time to drink the potions.
"Well I suppose, but how am I going to be able to do anything if we're attacked by those insane eleven year olds?" Victor asked in dismay.
"Simply, you beat them off while we hurry out", Crow stuck in.
"Who asked you, punk?" Justin piped up.
"Punk? Don't you know that's Mark's nickname? I don't think he'll like you using it around like that", Crow said gleefully.
"Quiet all of you!" Mark yelled, "We are going to need flawless team work for this and you're not really making me feel confident".
The others stayed quiet and Mark continued.
"Okay, Victor, you stay here. Crow and Justin, come on", he finished.
The oldest boy stayed out while the younger three walked into the most magical household in Little Whinging.
"First things first", Mark turns to Crow and points his finger at his face, "You must now swear that you will not damage any and all property inside this household".
Crow slowly smiled, "Now Mark, you can't be serious".
"Deadly serious, now swear".
"Fine", the young black haired boy cleared his throat, "I, Phillip Crow, solemnly swear that I will not destroy or otherwise harm any property in this household".
Crow moved to punch threw a wall.
"Or the house itself!" Mark added quickly.
"Fine, you got me", Crow laughed casually.
The three boys stood awkwardly for a moment.
"Crow, now that you have been kind enough to swear that my property is safe you may go get yourself some snacks in the kitchen", Mark finished.
"Oh boy, you know how I love the snacks!" Crow smiled, the boy oddly enough skipped off and repeatedly said 'snacks' while on the way.
Mark instantly sighed and relaxed back into the main den. He gazed at the serpent that had once been a lion.
"Justin, come in and take a seat", the boy sighed again.
"But I want snacks too" Justin said.
"The snacks were a lie. You realize that Crow is completely insane, correct?" Mark asked in turn.
"Yah, I've been meaning to ask about that. He seems really unstable, why is he in our group?" Justin asked.
"Well simply put, he knows more about this particular situation than any of us", Mark explained.
"How? He isn't even a classmate of ours", Justin pointed out.
"He just does. You see he is incredibly intelligent and has the unique ability to find information without any obvious effort. Whether he really just finds stuff out that easily is still yet to be seen. The point of this is he could turn against us at any moment and trust me when I say that he is worse as an enemy than a friend", Mark said.
"How long is the longest time he's stayed friendly?" Justin asked cautiously.
"This is the longest time", Mark said.
"What! But he has only been here for an hour at most! You're saying there is no telling when he might snap into a hostile state?" Justin asked.
"That would be accurate, but it is safe to rely on him for the moment", Mark responded.
"One more thing, why did you make him swear to not wreck anything?" Justin asked once more.
"Last time I let him in here; he destroyed half the house", Mark answered.
"You ever think that you are too trusting of people you barely know?" Justin said.
"Literally all the time."
The two boys quickly shifted their gazes to the door where they saw a rather red looking Crow was giving Mark a look that would make a lesser child cry.
"You lied", he whispered, almost to himself.
"Now Crow, we can be reasonable about this, right", Mark reasoned, "I'll make some snacks later okay".
"It's to late for that, but don't worry yet. Your punishment will come when you expect it least", Crow said in a voice that was far too happy for someone so mad.
Mark shifted uncomfortably, but he didn't get overly worried, "Okay, well let's get on with it then."
The two others nodded and they walked to the corridor and down to Mark's bedroom. Inside the small cauldron was still bubbling with the dagger amulet still bobbing away inside.
"Is it done?" Justin asked hopefully.
"Yes, it has had more than enough time to simmer. If I'm right it will give us each immunity to Makepeace's powers", Mark explained.
"Oh it will, I've seen sloppier work than this used to make synthetic aracnomantula venom", Crow put in.
"How do you? It doesn't matter, as long as it works", the American put in.
Mark pulled out some of the empty vials that he always carried around (Potions masters habit) and dipped them into the elixir. To his disappointment, once he had filed the four vials for his team the brew was already half empty.
"Well", Mark said nervously, "Bottoms up".
He passed the two others their drinks. They counted to three and chugged the potions.
"Anyone feel different?" Mark asked.
The other two shook their heads.
"Good, you shouldn't", Mark sighed in relief.
"What would happen if we did feel different?" Justin asked.
"You don't want to know", Crow began, "huff, but I do, 'tis the burden of knowledge".
"Well time, no time to lose. We have a friend to save", The American said.
It took a matter of minutes for the boys to set up their plan. Crow positioned his tent near by for an interrogation site, Mark was sitting casually by the swings, and Victor and Justin were waiting behind the trees on either flank of the park for reinforcements.
Mark looked to see the entourage of Susan Markepeace waltzing threw the gates with the girl herself standing in the middle.
"Right on schedule", Mark smiled slyly.
Mark was confident because of his preparations. The eleven year olds that guarded Ms. Makepeace were stronger and more numerous than he had initially expected, but if all went well he would be able to take care of them with his friends.
Victor and Justin would be the ones who did the first strike; they would simply distract the outer boys by spouting insults at Makepeace until a response was registered. Mark would continue to wait for the next minute or so while the boys got farther away.
Then it would be all up to Crow. His job was perhaps the most important of all. With the outer guards gone, Harry would be exposed and so would Susan. Crow needed to take care of the final protection, five burly looking twelve-year-old boys who never left her side.
His job was simple enough; that is if he did it. All he needed to do was blow away the final protectors with his telekinesis like he had done to Mark on several occasions in the woods.
Once that was done Mark had the simplest task of grabbing Makepeace and carrying her to Crow's tent, which is invisible to muggles. Now it was time to start.
Mark signaled for the two boys in the outskirts to attack.
He heard Makepeace yell, "There they are! Get them, but don't leave the park!"
Mark's heart skipped a beat when she said 'don't leave the park', but he tried to ignore it and waited for them to leave.
They didn't go and they caught up with Victor and Justin.
"Take them to me", she yelled in an officious tone.
Mark looked in disbelief as he saw two boys on either side of Victor and Justin dragging them to the center of the park where Makepeace waited patiently.
"Perhaps all is not lost, if Crow comes", Mark said optimistically, then to his utter depression, as the crowd around Makepeace thinned not only did he see Harry, but Crow too.
"Not good", the young boy said to him self.
"You can say that again", said the rather annoying voice of Bruno.
Mark turned to see a small but potent group of boys standing ready to stop him in any direction except towards the larger group.
"Pipe it Bruno, we aren't supposed to talk with him", said one of the others.
They each pushed him forward despite his intense struggles and counters. Before he knew it, Mark was in the middle of the group.
"Hello Mark, and how are you doing?" Makepeace said in a soothing voice.
"It's not going to work Susan", Mark began.
"Whatever do you mean Mark?" Makepeace asked.
"You know very well what. I made a counter to your manipulative powers that will defend us against any thing you can throw", Mark laughed spitefully.
"Oh I know. Your associate, Phillip, told me all about how you imbued your little potion with the power of that magnificent amulet. I'm not too worried though, it will be easier to get information from you if you aren't intoxicated by my sight", she responded.
"One thing though", Mark turned towards Crow, "Why did you so brutally betray us?"
"Snacks", Crow said.
"What?" Mark asked.
"You lied about the snacks and I told you that I would get you back, so betraying you to Susan here was my best option and I took it, of course", Crow laughed.
"At this point that doesn't surprise me", Mark began, "But how much did you tell her".
"I can answer that", Susan answered, "He came to me instantly after ingesting the potion, and I'm not sure why he ingested it since he is apparently immune to potions effects. After that all I had to do was call some more help and put some people in ambush positions."
"Now what do you have planned for us?" Victor piped up from where he was being held.
"Oh we have plans", Susan smiled, "Everyone! Take our guest to the school so we can properly interrogate them!"
"Yes Susan!" they all said in a very creepy and unanimous voice.
The mob of children grabbed the three boys as Crow, Harry, and Susan watched. They began walking down the street in the direction of the school.
Mark thought about how quickly and how terribly his plan had collapsed and all over something as mundane as a snack that he didn't provide.
"Ms. Makepeace?" Crow walked over to the leader and looked her in the eyes.
"Yes Philip? Do you have a question", Susan began as she pushed away the boy from her proximity.
"I took the liberty of preparing some provisions for the masses you have assembled here. By the way, excellent army, it is by far the most organized child based army that I have ever seen in my journeys", Crow said as he once again got in the girls face.
"Keep your distance, boy. I trust your advisor ship, but I don't really trust you as a person. Now what kind of 'provisions' did you gather?" she asked as she made a gesture for a guard to stand between him and her.
"Why cupcakes of course", the young psycho said cheerily while he took the guards hand off his shoulder with two of his fingers.
Marks ears were pricked when he heard the word 'cupcakes', but he decided it was still a bit early to hope.
"Cupcakes? You know how to bake? What an odd skill for a wandering insane person", the girl remarked as she picked up pace past the upcoming corner.
Crow sped up to keep next to her, but made sure that she didn't stay to far away from the main group, "I know many things, I am a genius after all. Now I do have one for everybody except the prisoners of course".
"Alright, but you understand if I'm going to make you eat whichever one I choose to make sure you aren't trying to poison me with 'the old potion in the pastry bit'. I think we have arrived", she finished as they rounded a corner into the school lot.
The large group walked down over to the entrance where the good doctor Caine was waiting with the door wide open. Mark was sickened by the glimpse of his 'so-called' ally catering to an evil ten-year-old girl.
The main group walked to the teachers lounge and waited as the leaders walked into the room with and sat down across from the prisoners.
"Alright, it is time for torture", Makepeace said as she made a gesture to her biggest guards that weren't restraining Mark, Justin and Victor.
"Wait!" Crow interrupted
"What is it now Crow", Susan said irritably.
"Snacks! Everyone, my good friend Atticus will now distribute the cupcakes", Crow said gesturing in the direction the wolf waltzing in very regally with a platter of pastries stacked up on his head.
A lot of the boys stuttered and tripped back as they saw the ferocious beast calmly walk to the ringmaster or mistress more likely.
"Very well then, but Crow I insist that you eat… this one", She pointed to a rather large looking cupcake that appeared to be meant for Susan as it had a figure of a bee and the inscription queen bee.
"Why thank you!" Crow exclaimed delightedly, "I was hoping to get a good one like that".
He ate the dessert in three bites and sat back satisfied. Mark watched with vigor as Justin and Victor stayed on their knees with their heads down in submission.
The others watched and one by one they all ate the cakes in whole until Makepeace herself took the last bite.
"Well if that is all then lets continue", she renewed her gesture, but as the guards got up to walk to the prisoners they fell down, hard.
"What is going on? Crow is this your doing?" she turned to see where the boy had been sitting to see him too snoozing happily, "No, you wouldn't do that to all of them! You couldn't have! No one would poison them selve-"
She fell down to her knees and then onto her face. Mark got up and looked out the door and found every other member of the group had eaten the 'special' snacks. The boys walked up and gathered in a circle around Makepeace.
"I can't believe that he would do something so stupid as to poison himself", Justin said looking over to the unconscious figure of Crow.
Mark smiled to himself and replied, "Just wait for it".
Justin looked at him in a confused manner, "What do you mean?"
"This is what he means", Crow said.
"Ahhhh!" the two older boys screamed as Crow had appeared right beyond their shoulders.
"He is immune to many potions and other things", Mark said thought fully as he picked up the unconscious form of his best friend, "I'll take care of Harry, you three take the girl to our interrogation site. Oh yah, one last thing".
Mark threw the dagger amulet that he had stashed in his pocket, just in case he needed it, back to its proper owner.
With that, the party departed and made preparations for their next step.
"You cannot", Justin said to Crow as they waited for Mark to return from dropping off Harry at Crow's tent.
"But I can. Didn't you listen when our good friend Mark said, push them back and out with your powers", Crow boasted.
The two sat alone with Ms. Makepeace inside the tent. Victor had been sent to the outskirts of the field to guard the parameter. It took a lot of arguing to convince him not to go to the tent, but even if he did come to it he wouldn't have seen anything.
Justin knew of the magical properties involved, so naturally the wards were visible to him. Even if he didn't, the amulet very well could have revealed the truth to him. Showing the place to Victor though would just be irresponsible.
Crow was all for revealing the magical world, but Mark made Justin swear not to reveal anything to Victor and to stop Crow from doing the same.
"I still can't believe you though. Psychic powers? I barely believed that there was any such thing as magic, but now you expect me to believe in psychics? Yeah right", Justin laughed as he finished tying Makepeace to a chair in the center of the room.
The sun was setting now, so it was perfect for an intimidation factor.
"Really and truly", Crow began as he finished tying his side, "If you don't believe me I will have no option but to demonstrate".
The boy smiled a creepy smile and pointed his hand at Justin. The older boy was a bit startled and tried to back off a bit, he didn't get far.
Justin quickly found that he was trying to walk in mid air and that is when Mark stepped in.
"What on Earth is going on here?" the American asked.
Justin was starting to get fed up with his situation, "Mark! Make him to let me go!"
Crow laughed and began to slowly send him on revolutions around the room, "Not going to happen. Mark knows he can't make me do anything and it is about time you learn that as well".
"Crow, this is remarkable", Mark commented as he watched his friend spin faster and faster.
"What do you mean Mark? This is ugh terrible", the spinning boy said as he began to flip up and down in the air as he spun around.
"I mean that Crow has been practicing lately, haven't you. Before you could only send me or Harry in linear paths, but this is three dimensional acrobatics", the young boy explained as he turned to talk to Crow, "I do ask that you release him, we still need him for the time being".
Crow dropped the older boy head first on the side of the room, "You're no fun", he pouted.
"Ugh", I small female voice said from the exact middle of the room.
Everyone snapped to intention, Justin and Crow left the tent as Mark took up position right across from the girl in he chair.
This was the first time that Mark was glad that the old military tent was so rugged. He was also glad that he had left the barbed wire on the windows.
"Where am I", Susan said as she finally came to from her prolonged nap, "Why am I tied up? Where are my guards?"
Mark let out the deepest chuckle a ten year old could, "You are out of your element, that's where you are. As for your guards, don't count on help from them. This place is invisible to muggles".
"Muggles?" Susan asked.
"Don't play that game with me, we both know that you are a witch and given you are still under age, a good one", Mark grunted.
"Fine you've got me, at least I'm not an American dog like you!" she said with particular disdain.
Mark was a bit thrown off by the sudden turn of events, "How did you know?"
Makepeace smiled despite her obvious rage, "I've known this entire time, ever since I came to this little town. I enjoyed watching Goyle beat you two around the place".
Mark raised an eyebrow, "You've been here for that long? Well that is impressive. I bet that you had no idea what you were doing with your little potions and tiny army".
Makepeace laughed, "I bet you think you're clever, trying to use my pride to get me to tell you what's going on. I'm not going to tell you, because you will at one point release me and I will get my target yet".
Mark smiled with the latest development, "Your target? You'll never to get Harry; he is too well protected. After he has gone to Hogwarts he will be out of your grip forever".
Susan laughed even louder than before, "You think Harry is my target? That's laughable, he isn't worth my time. No the thing that I am after is an incredibly powerful magic artifact. It was passed down through the pure blood families for generations. It would be a great asset to allow my family to recover it rather than one of the other so called pure blood mongrels that have a 'claim' to it".
Mark thought for a moment about his relief that Harry wasn't the target, but then it occurred to him that this might be more sinister. A pure blood artifact that people would be so obsessed to get that they would send ten year olds is just unfathomable.
"An artifact you say? Tell me more", Mark pled.
"No. I have said too much as it is", Susan said bluntly.
"One last question before a send in my associate who is going to implement some advanced interrogative methods. Why abduct Harry?" Mark asked.
"Simple, I couldn't stop you, so I did the next best thing and took your best friend. I assumed you would role over and let me go on with my mission. Then that Justin kid, he ruined everything by telling you how I sent kids to take the artifact", Susan complained.
"Alright, Crow will be in shortly", Mark said as he walked out the tent.
"Not him!" Makepeace cried.
The young American walked out the tent and let his enemy in.
"Remember Crow", he said as he passed the boy, "Don't carry through with your threat unless she doesn't cooperate"
"Whatever Mark", Crow smiled, "I got this".
Mark sighed felt a bit light hearted as he left the tent and took a seat next to Justin outside. Some people were looking around out in the distance, but if they ever tried to enter the field Victor would leap in to stop them.
"Should we help him?" Mark asked as he watched his newest ally fight kid after kid.
"Nah, he's been at this for an hour. It must be puberty or something, because he never seems to get tired and is always focused on the fight", Justin answered as he watched Victor kick a kid in the side of the head.
Mark nodded and shifted his attention back to his friend, "It won't be long now, Crow shouldn't have any trouble convincing her to spill everything".
As if on queue, Crow poked his head out and said, "She cracked".
"Already? That was so fast, did you have to follow through with the threat?" Mark asked.
"No, she chickened out", Crow laughed.
The three walked in as they saw a now scared Susan Makepeace, fidgeting in the center of the room.
"I'll talk! Just make him stay away!" Makepeace cried.
"Fascinating, how simply entertaining. Our young heroes triumph past a seemingly flawless betrayal to turn the entire situation around for a victory!" Albus Dumbledore exclaimed as he looked away from the crystal ball mounted on his office desk.
"Yes hic-up professor", Snape said a bit uneasily.
"Are you drunk again Severus? This is becoming an epidemic", the headmaster said.
"I'm sorry sir. It eases the pain that comes with my terrible life", Severus said.
"I do hope that you will improve by the next year when those kids come to our school", Dumbledore said.
"I will sir, perhaps if I have people around that don't crush my spirits periodically", Snape commented as he put away the flask he had been drinking from previously.
"Now Severus, you must be more compliant. That is why I always had to crucio you to keep you in line. I have been lenient lately, but you must obey", the headmaster said in a far more menacing tone than before.
"Yes sir", Snape said submissively.
Chapter 22 is complete; I'll get right on the next one, but only if you comment.