Disclaimer: I does not own. I does not want to. Would be shite if I owned. XD

//This is Parseltongue.//

Paraselenic

Ascendancy // a position of power or domination over others

Harry kept half his attention on the wand in her hand. He had seen her drop hers in the common room, so the question of whose it was came to mind first. Most of his attention was drawn, though, by the glint in her eyes and the nearly hysterical note to her voice. Something was off. Seriously off.

"Ron is the most fatuitous individual I've ever met… don't you agree, Harry?" she babbled. "Always whinging about the exertion he has to put into his work; as if he does anything on his own! He's been constantly using me as a stepstool since first year! He'd have failed out ages ago if not for me! But no, he continues to moan and bleat as if anyone cares what he has to say! Don't you agree, Harry? Don't you?"

Harry surreptitiously tightened his grip on his wand, trying to decide if he could manage to get her before she fired anything off. "Of course I do, Hermione…"

"He makes me so… so…" Her breathing was accelerating and a hand gripped hard in her bushy curls, yanking at it as if it would help alleviate her annoyance. "Have you ever looked at him and wished he were gone, Harry? I have. My head starts pounding and I just want to make him feel the pain he inflicts upon me and watch him writhe! Do you understand me Harry?" And suddenly her attention was all on Harry again, wand jabbed under his chin. "You agree, right? If not, I would be happy to show you how delicious it can be. Then again… it won't be you who will be happy in that case, will it?"

The wand, Harry thought it might be hawthorn or apple wood by the golden tint to the pale wood, traced over his jaw near lovingly, and had Hermione's grin not been so disturbing, Harry might have been uncomfortable. As it was, he was looking for an opportunity to stun his friend so he could figure out just what in the hell was wrong with her. Instincts in the back of his mind screamed for him to tear out her throat with his teeth and cast the corpse aside, but Harry ignored it. It had told him several times to do the same to Voldemort, even, and he had yet to listen to it then.

"The zygomatic bone is rather fragile… I wonder how many splinters I could break it into?" Hermione breathed, wand trailing over his cheekbone. "But then that might ruin those pretty eyes of yours, and we wouldn't want that, would we? No, no… that would be sinful. Tragic Boy Savior must have the soulful eyes… can't have a blind hero, now can we, Harry?"

Her nose was crunched in thought and her focus on somewhere around his ear, so Harry used that short moment of thought to send a silent 'Stupefy' at her. The red beam of light made her eyes roll back in her head and Harry roll to the side to avoid her falling body.

Harry didn't know what to think. Something was damned wrong with his friend, that was unquestionable. A million possibilities ran through his mind… the Imperious was out simply because of the way she had been acting. There had been nothing vacant or hesitant about her actions. A possession gone wrong wafted through his mind as well. Could someone have broken into her mind and done serious damage? Harry cursed that he did not have the knowledge necessary to find out what was wrong with her.

Harry quickly weighed his options without considering his feelings for Hermione. This raid was terribly important to the speed of the rest of the war and to showing the force and power they commanded; there was no way he could miss it. It had perhaps been fifteen minutes since he had received the summons from Voldemort and it would take another ten to get to the edge of the wards if he couldn't fly, which he wouldn't be able to if he was magicing his friend behind him. On the other hand, if he just left her and she awoke from the stunner and did damage to anyone, someone would very likely notice Harry's absence.

Harry sighed and chose the obvious first option, pointing his wand toward the collapsed form of his friend ready to cast Mobilicorpus when he spotted a crumpled mass of black and white-blond. Draco. Harry cursed and gritted his teeth… it seemed everything was out to slow him down.

Harry thanked the fact that the new moon had been only nights before and that winter nights were so dark so early as he quickly made his way to Malfoy's limp form. His own vision allowed him to see well enough but would make their identification from any of the castle's window difficult to impossible. He quickly cast an Ennervate at the Slytherin and impatiently pushed at his side with foot. "Malfoy! What the hell happened?"

Draco looked up at the barked command, silvery eyes wide for a moment before narrowing, a snarl forming on his lips. "That mudblood bitch Stunned me! I demand she pay for…"

Harry cut him off with a glare. "Tell me everything Malfoy. Now."

Draco shrank away a bit, face closing off. "I was patrolling the corridors when Granger ran by me, nearly managing to knock both of us down the stairs. She ignored me when I had words with her and proceeded to run out the front doors. I chased after her. She started screaming and gripping her head and then attacked me with no provocation! She took my wand, as well! Where is it?!"

Harry growled. "That was no answer at all. If was not in such a hurry…"

"Is there a problem, Mister Potter?"

Harry turned to face Severus, who had just exited the castle's doors. He was already unshrinking a set of robes from his pocket that Harry recognized as Death Eater regalia, "You were Called, then?"

"Yes," he said shortly. "Now, why is Miss Granger unconscious and what is Mister Malfoy doing out here?"

Harry shook his head. "I don't have time for this shit, Tom needs us there in less than ten minutes now."

"What's going on? The Dark Lord is summoning you both? I want to go!"

Snape turned a disdainful sneer on his student. "Mister Malfoy, you are acting like a petulant first year. You are not a Death Eater and therefore this does not pertain to you." Severus turned and addressed Harry. "If the Dark Lord requites our presence, why are you dawdling here, Potter?"

Harry growled and straightened, "Something is wrong with Hermione. She fled the common room in a panic and apparently attacked Malfoy before I arrived and she attacked me as well. If I leave her here and she is discovered, my absence will be obvious."

Snape's dark eyes narrowed, but he didn't snap back. Instead he cast a silent spell to levitate Hermione's inert form. "Mister Malfoy, return to your dormitories; I think your patrols are complete for the night."

The blond took on a resemblance to a bird whose feathers were puffed out in outrage. "Why can't I come as well? I think I have every right…"

Snape opened his mouth to contradict his student when Harry raised his hand. "Let him come. The boy needs a wake up call anyway."

Severus' pale lips thinned almost to nonexistence, but he inclined his head. "As you wish, my lord."

"Good. You take him and I'll take Hermione. Tell Tom I'll meet him in his office or his rooms or… well, I'll meet him somewhere between his entrance hall and his bedroom."

Severus looked pale. "My lord allows no one above the first floor of the manor, are you sure it is wise…"

Harry snorted as he flicked his wand at Hermione and took over the 'Mobilicorpus' spell. He began at a fast pace towards the nearest edge for the wards, tossing a smirk over his shoulder as he replied. "I don't have time to revert to my natural form right now and I don't have a suitable change of clothes on me. His clothes are only a bit long on me, easy to fix."

Harry ignored the incredulous expressions the two Slytherins gave him and laughed as silently as he could.

"What is this Severus tells me about you bringing your mudblood into my manor?"

Harry glanced under his arm at the serpentine Dark Lord before turning his attention back to getting his second foot through the leg of Voldemort's leather pants. He had Reverted directly after leaving Hermione in Voldemort's office under a strong sleeping hex and was now trying to dress as quickly as possible. Harry shivered as he felt crimson eyes on his bare back. "It was either leave her there to be discovered and have my cover blown or bring her along and put her under a strong sleeping spell, Tom. I didn't get much information out of Malfoy, but something is obviously wrong with her. She attacked me and was acting… well… like an Azkaban escapee, really."

Voldemort tapped his long fingers on his crossed arms. "We'll discuss that later, then. May I ask why you are wearing my clothing?" The sarcasm was apparent as Harry rolled too-long sleeves up to his forearms before pushing through the wardrobe for an appropriate robe.

"Because I wasn't expecting to be called away," Harry retorted with a glare, pulling out a nice black set of robes with crimson detailing and pulling them on. "May I ask why you suddenly moved the raid up from next month?"

Voldemort leaned against the doorframe and spoke in a bored tone. "One of our people in the Ministry got word that this would be the last full Auror meeting for six months; they have devised a new way to get word through their ranks. If we wish to take out as many as possible, this is our last chance."

Harry sighed and walked for the door, stopping a foot away from his partner. "Well, I suppose there's nothing we can do, then. Do you have the portkeys?"

Voldemort nodded and pulled out several trinkets to hand to Harry. "Only you and I will have them; choose wisely. The higher in rank the better. We each have three."

While they would be killing as many Aurors as they could in this raid, they also wanted information. Voldemort had easily solved the problem by suggesting a few one-way portkey trips to his dungeons to await interrogation. Harry pocketed the random pieces and nodded. "Activation command?"

//Morsmordre// he hissed, and Harry rolled his eyes. Typical Voldemort. However, he couldn't deny the chill down his spine and suddenly wished he could hear how Parseltongue sounded through the ears of a non-speaker. "Now, care to tell me why the young Malfoy arrived with Severus?"

"The brat needs a dose of reality if he is to be of any use to us ever. He'll be coming with us."

"He will be a liability!"

Harry crouched down and picked up his invisibility cloak. "Not really. He'll have orders to stay against a wall in this. Let him see a real battle… let him witness death and blood and pain. He will come out better for it."

"You do know Lucius and Narcissa won't like this… as it is, Lucius was glaring something terrible at Severus."

Harry snorted. "Be that as it may, I say the boy comes. Let Lucius argue with me over it. It isn't like I'm having the boy take part in the fight; he's just going to be a spectator."

Voldemort inclined his head and turned on his heel to start out the door. "My Inner Circle is gathered. We leave now."

Harry nodded at the man's back and let out a mental sigh. Voldemort's attitude was distant and cold; he was obviously still pissed off at him from the week before. He would have to rectify that before the night was over. Something inside him twisted violently at the thought of the rift between them and made Harry have to will back the urge to wrap his arms around the Dark Lord until he was forgiven. He was not a teenaged girl and he would not give into these silly impulses.

But he could not deny the pain the cold crimson eyes invoked.

It was disgustingly easy to break into the Ministry of Magic.

Harry had thought that perhaps they had learned their lesson after Voldemort had been in the Department of Mysteries, but apparently not. They were able to enter without interference only an hour after normal Ministry hours while over half of the Aurors in Wizarding Britain were in the same building. It was nearly laughable that so many put their faith into such incompetents.

Harry walked alongside Voldemort through the empty Atrium and past the empty desk where the watchwizard should have been. In Harry's fifth year, he had thought it was foreboding that the desk had been empty, but apparently it was regular procedure. Harry sneered in grim amusement. Oh, the things they would change when they had control. No longer would the British Ministry of Magic be a laughingstock amongst other territories.

There were still a few memos flying here and there erratically, the only sign that the Ministry was not utterly abandoned. Harry and Voldemort paused at the lift to allow their Death Eaters to catch up with them, as the phone booth only comfortably fit two at a time. Harry folded his arms and reclined against the lift doors, green eyes settled on the side of Voldemort's reptilian face. The man had yet to respond to Harry's usual banter, instead giving curt orders and giving of an aura of frostiness that had the Death Eaters wary.

Harry, of course, was immune.

Harry knew this battle was important for several reasons. First of all, it was his going to be his first fight alongside the Inner Circle. Though perhaps he had Lucius and Severus softly swaying to his point of view, that still left all three Lestranges, Dolohov, and Macnair that were now aware of his identity and were present. Since the revelation of his true identity, he needed something concrete for them to see that he was not to Golden Boy they had encountered the summer before, he had to show them that he was well capable and qualified to be the partner to their leader.

Secondly, this was a chance to take out their most organized opposition. The Aurors were foolish to have meetings that put almost all of their higher ranks in one place. Though there would still several dozen Aurors remaining after this battle, most were inexperienced or inept. This would take away their structure and send morale into negative numbers. After the massacre of their numbers on Halloween, this assault would nearly cripple them.

And thirdly, the Wizarding world would know after this battle that the Dark Sect was not to be toyed with. They would see that their precious leaders could do nothing to save even their strongest fighters, twice now in a matter of months. They would see the incompetence of the influential and doubts would take root in their mind as to the outcome of the war. It would perhaps not convince them, but it would surely go a long way to making the misgivings take hold.

Harry watched as Voldemort stared at the entry where the last of his Inner Circle, Rookwood, Dolohov, and Macnair had finally entered the Atrium. He wanted to say something-- anything-- to make the man break out of the cold, aloof persona he was currently exuding, but the words seemed lost to him. It was hardly the time, he knew, to start a conversation like the one they needed to have, but Harry couldn't stand the sudden fissure that seemed to have opened up between them. So he had forgotten about the stupid second prophecy. So what? He hardly put stock in the things to begin with, why did it really matter? Prophecies only came true because of those involved making them do so. It was silly for Voldemort to be so frigid in response to something so petty. They had been doing nearly well before then…

"Move out of the way, Potter," a sudden sneering voice said, making Harry blink his eyes rapidly. He had apparently been a bit more lost in thought than he'd realized. Bellatrix Lestrange stood before him with a haughtily raised eyebrow. "Or do you plan to block the lift all night?"

Harry's eyes narrowed and he took a step towards her, pleased to note he was actually taller than she was. His height was eternally a sensitive issue with him. "What's that Bella? Did you say something? Because all I heard was, 'Cruciate me, my lord, because I'm an insolent bitch.'"

The dark-eyed woman drew herself up with a rage-filled expression only to back down immediately as Voldemort stepped up to his side. "Stand down, Bella, and show respect to your superiors. Shall we, Potter?"

"We shall," Harry said with a dark grin. He looked forward to the massacre to come. They boarded the lift and Harry made his way towards a scowling Lucius; the man's scowl didn't lessen as Harry approached. For a moment, Harry couldn't place why Lucius would bet hacked off at him, until he ran into an unseen obstacle.

"Omph!"

Harry started before a crooked smile settled. "Oh, I'd forgotten about you."

Lucius' displeased frown deepened. "I do not appreciate your sanctioning of my son's presence."

Harry sighed and opened his senses to be able to keep notice of where Draco was at all times as he made his way to Lucius, standing shoulder to shoulder with the man he considered something like a friend. "I am not asking him to take part in the battle, Lucius, and it is no offense meant to you, but your son badly needs a dose of reality. His petty grievances against me grow tiresome, and his belief in his superiority will get him killed. If he is to be of use to Voldemort or me, and if you expect him to live through this war, he needs this."

The frown had melted into a contemplative look by the time Level Two was announced. Harry cast a silencing charm on Draco to make sure he stayed hidden and gave the spot where the young blond was a serious look. "Stay behind us all and stay to a wall. Against one of the magical windows would be good, a corner even better. Keep your wand out and ready to cast shields at all times. Do not try to do anything other than that. Do you understand, Little Pretty?"

Belatedly, Harry realized the blond was silenced, but figured the blond was going to obey anyway. Harry nodded to him and walked towards where Voldemort was waiting with a blank look, crimson eyes empty. "Would you like to enter first or after the Death Eaters?"

Harry gave a coy smile and linked his arm through the Dark Lord's. "I'd say we make an entrance, dear Tom. Don't you think?"

Harry was pleased when Voldemort did not pull away, though the man did nothing but nod. "Alright then. Macnair, remember to set wards in place to keep any from escaping."

The two stood side by side at the closed double doors that separated them from over half the Aurors of the British magical world, the utter silence suggesting a silencing charm was in place. Voldemort raised his pale yew wand and without even an incantation the doors blew open in a suitably dramatic way, making Harry smile viciously.

The cubicles had been replaced by a long table, over three dozen Aurors surrounding it. Harry knew the odds were against them, but they had the element of surprise, skill, and no qualms against bringing about the deaths of those present. In fact, it was preferable. None would leave the room alive but for those he and Voldemort chose for interrogation.

Harry's eyes widened in surprise a he took in several unanticipated people around the table. Apparently the Order was more actively involved with the Ministry since they had finally acknowledged Voldemort's return, because Mundungus Fletcher sat very near the door. Other than the annoying con artist, whom Harry would enjoy killing and marked mentally off as his, Harry saw Emmeline Vance, Hestia Jones, and, most surprising and mildly upsettingly, Remus Lupin.

Harry made a mental note that despite what the portkeys were meant to be used for, one of his was going to go to the werewolf. It would certainly be informative, and despite their relative disconnection to one another and his letter from months prior, Harry couldn't bring himself to willfully see him dead. Harry drew his blackthorn wand and smirked viciously at the startled, gaping faces of their soon-to-be victims.

Chaos ensued.

The Voldemort and Harry each picked raised their wands and cast Killing Curses randomly, taking out half a dozen of the opposition before they even managed to break their shock. When the volley began, Harry lost himself in the feeling of dodging and twisting to evade the bolts of light sent towards them, firing off curses left and right. Most of the Death Eaters were using the Killing Curse mainly, as they needed to take down the numbers as quickly as possible. However, he did notice Bellatrix holding some poor fool under the Cruciatus as her shrill laugh echoed over the din.

Harry was startled when a young witch tried to bodily tackle him, overly thick light brown hair falling haphazardly out of her ponytail. She cast a Body-Bind at him as she recovered, which Harry easily blocked with silent Protego. He fired off a Killing Curse and was pleased when the girl managed to evade it, heart-shaped face set with grim determination. She was willful and fiery, and Harry was amused by her immediately. He also had not fed that day, and the scent of blood and the panicked heartbeats of the room's inhabitants were beginning to effect him.

Harry had the young brunette pinned against him in a smooth motion, his back to the wall and his eyes peering over her shoulder and watching Auror after Auror fall to the elite soldiers of the Dark Lord. He laughed lightly and tightened his arms around her to cease her struggles. "Don't you see? You cannot win. You didn't have a chance from the beginning. Silly girl… you really thought you could fight?"

He relished in the painfully fast staccato of her heart, the quickening of her breath as she stuttered out what would be her last words in a rather brave display. "You may win here, but the Dark will never conquer the Light."

"Even in the brightest day, the shadows linger, my dear. But darkness… darkness is consuming and corroding. It swallows the light. As we will swallow up all of your petty resistance."

Her breathing hitched and muscles clenched as Harry sunk his fangs into her neck, both of them unnoticed in the heat of battle. Harry kept his eyes from sliding shut as he drank, watching the battle through a haze of bliss. It was so pleasing to feel the girl's heart rate drop and not have to pull away, to feel the very life pulled from her and into himself. He nearly cringed away from the thought of relishing in death as much as he was, but his mind was currently too occupied to dwell on it.

He watched Voldemort effortlessly cutting down Aurors on all sides, standing nonchalantly with his wand moving rapidly with bright green rays of death emitting from it. Curses were shot at him continuously but he had some manner of Dark shield surrounding him that seemed to absorb them. Harry decided he needed to ask about that; it would come in handy, he was sure.

On the far side of the room, Harry cringed as he saw the bloodied form of Rabastan Lestrange dueling against Remus Lupin. He knew the man was a talented wizard, and since the full moon was still nearly two weeks away he had none of his usual lethargy to deal with.

Harry tossed the girl to the side as he finished draining her and made his way towards them, killing those that got in his way. There were barely more than a handful of Aurors remaining and most of the Death Eaters were contenting themselves to play with the residual opposition. When Arthur Weasley appeared in front of him, Harry paused only momentarily to wonder why the man had been present… then he remembered that his department was linked to the Department of Magical Law enforcement enough that his office was not far off the main room. The man shouted a curse and Harry reeled back as it surprised him enough to leave a gash down the length of his arm. Harry hadn't thought the timid man had it in him.

Harry chuckled and fired off a Cruciatus, watching the man writhe and feeling little compunction for doing so. "Good job, Weasley," Harry said dryly as he released the Unforgivable. "That actually bloody well hurt."

"It should have hit your neck!" Arthur yelled shakily.

Harry laughed again. "Wow, I wouldn't have guessed. I'd kill you, but I think you have information we might seek. Feel lucky." Harry stunned the man before he could reply and placed the portkey on his neck. It would be activated once he had decided on the others he meant to be spared. While he really had no particular feelings toward the man, his friendship with Ron -- even if it was strained -- dictated that he didn't kill the man himself.

Harry continued back on his path towards where Rabastan and Remus were dueling, seeing Remus had managed to cast an Incarcerous on the Death Eater; he was the first to actually manage more than superficial damage on one.

Harry fired a Blood Boiling curse at the werewolf as he moved towards his captive, effectively turning his attention towards Harry. He saw the moment the man's senses told him that he was facing a vampire and smirked. "Sorry, wolfie, I can't let you do that."

"Expecto Patronum," Remus hissed, calling out his Patronus to help defend him. While they were only effective against creatures like Dementors and Lethifolds, they were a reasonable help against any Dark creature. They couldn't harm, but they were enough of a deterrent that it tended to buy time. It couldn't harm the caster, though, and Harry smiled pleasantly as he prepared to cast his own. However, he noticed the shape of Remus' Patronus and froze for a brief moment.

The silvery Grim was growling at him, hackles up and ghostly teeth bared. Harry remembered that for years he couldn't decipher the shape of Remus' Patronus, and now it made his heart clench. Years and years had passed since he had watched his godfather fall through that veil, but still it hurt. He counted Sirius as more of a loss than his parents had ever been; he had known Sirius, after all. Perhaps not well and perhaps not for long, but he had been a real, tangible being, someone who had hugged him and made Harry feel like he had a parent for the first time in his life.

Harry resumed casting, pushing away the painful thoughts and waiting for his Patronus to escape his wand. He expected the fox he had discovered it to have become after a few years in Sceaduwe and had no reservations about revealing it, but his breath caught in his throat as the shape was revealed.

His bloody Patronus had changed again.

And this time… Harry had no confusion as to why it had changed or what it was to represent.

The sleek panther stood proudly before him, ears pinned back and tail flicking from side to side. Harry was pale as he watched the ghostly apparition stare down the large dog before it, his mind racing. Damn. Damn. This was complicated, and he knew it. He was relatively glad that it hadn't become a basilisk or some other telling creature, and he was sure no one but him would know who the panther represented… but how often had he, in his mind, compared the man's gait and calculating ferocity to a panther, after all?

Harry just hoped Voldemort didn't notice or realize the symbolism.

However, whether Voldemort noticed or not was negligible. The problem was what the changing of his Patronus represented, and Harry was very much not willing to face that at the moment.

Harry's lack of focus led to Remus casting a full Body-Bind curse that Harry didn't block, and Harry swore fluently -- and unfortunately mentally -- at the werewolf for using his distraction to his advantage. But just as quickly as Lupin was able to get him with the spell, a furiously hissed Crucio resounded nearby and sent the werewolf to his knees.

His wand still trained on Remus, Voldemort waved a hand to release Harry from the Body-Bind and turned crimson eyes on him even as the werewolf screamed. Voldemort was glaring. "What was that all about, Potter?"

Harry glared back as the werewolf's screams broke long enough for amber eyes to swivel to him, obviously having heard the Dark Lord. "Damnit, Tom, you're going to have to figure out a better way to address me in public."

Voldemort released the Cruciatus and waved his hand, calling Harry's attention to the room. "No one else is alive or conscious, Potter. It is only us, the Death Eaters, and this mangy excuse for a wizard. No matter for him, because he is about to die, isn't he?" Voldemort said with a discomfiting grin. "Avada…"

Harry lurched forward and placed a hand on Voldemort's arm. "No! Wait, I think we should keep him for questioning."

Voldemort stopped the incantation but didn't lower his wand. "Why?"

Remus was looking back and forth between them, a betrayed look on his face that Harry refused to acknowledge. "He is a member of the Order, surely he would have some interesting revelations for us?"

Voldemort looked at Lupin before raising an eyebrow at Harry. "And the fact he is the werewolf you were in a strop about in October has nothing to do with it?"

Harry refused to look away. "No. My personal feelings on the matter are meaningless."

Voldemort waved a hand for him to place the portkey around Remus's neck, and Harry met the werewolf's eyes as he stepped away. //Morsmordre.//

Symbolism for the Panther -- "The panther often signals a time of rebirth after a period of suffering and death on some level" … "a time of moving from mere poles of existence to new life without poles or barriers." - Ted Andrews. After all, what does Voldemort symbolize but the breaking of laws, rules, and beliefs? ;)

Revised 3/20/09