Chapter Twenty Six - Boiling up
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"I've scheduled a meeting tomorrow," Hermione said, a tad nervously.
Harry raised an eyebrow. "A meeting?"
"Yes," Hermione shifted a bit. "The DA."
Harry groaned. "I told you, not now! I'm busy, Hermione."
"Once a week, that's all," Hermione insisted. "Well, maybe twice..."
Ginny sat down besides Harry, and reached out for some soup. The wizard flicked his hand, extending the muffliato spell to include her.
"She told you about the DA?" Ginny asked him.
"You knew?"
"Not till half an hour back I didn't." Ginny shrugged. "You should do it. You like teaching, they need to learn... What's wrong?"
Harry sighed and shook his head. "Nothing... Are you going to ask Marietta to join?"
"Edgecombe?" Ginny's head shot up. "Didn't she give us up?"
"I can't invite Cho and leave out Marietta," Hermione pointed out.
Ginny smirked. "Then leave out Cho."
Harry snorted. "Are you jealous?"
Ginny smacked him lightly upside the head. "Grow up Potter. It's the principle of the thing."
"The thing?"
"Shush you."
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"Thank you all for coming." Harry looked around at the many faces surrounding him. Ginny was somewhere at the back, Hermione was right besides him.
Despite Harry's protests, the meeting was held once more at the Hogs Head. Harry wanted it to be held in an empty classroom, but for some reason he couldn't fathom, Hermione wanted to do it just like last time. She said she didn't trust Umbridge or someone like Draco to walk in on them. He hadn't argued, even if he had considerable faith in her privacy charms.
"Umbridge isn't teaching us anything," he went on. "And now, more than ever, we need to learn to defend ourselves."
"Because of you-know-who?" Zacharias Smith asked, his voice dripping sarcasm.
Harry fell silent for a few moments, his eyes on the table. Then his head snapped up, and he gazed at the Hufflepuff.
"Did you have to see Cedric murdered with your own two eyes?"
Zacharias colored a bit, and his lips pressed into a thin line.
Harry shook his head. "None of you really know what it's like... How many of you have had to fight for your life? How many of you have faced death, looked at it right in the eyes? Let me tell you, when the chips are down, and the only thing that can save you is yourself, it's hard. It's scary. I was terrified when Cedric was killed before me. I cannot - there are no words to describe the feeling. You break out in cold sweat, your stomach twists, you feel nauseous, and so damn terrified you can hardly get your muscles to move."
Years had passed, but Harry still remembered the over-powering terror he had felt in the graveyard.
"I sincerely hope none of you ever have to face a situation like that. I hope none of you ever have to fight to live. But what if you do? Voldemort is out there, death eaters are out there - and even if you don't believe that - peace doesn't last forever. Some new dark lord might rise - not as dangerous as Voldemort - but capable of casting a killing curse all the same."
Everybody was hanging onto his words now, and Harry once more marveled at the loyalty he seemed to inside. Dumbledore was right. He was a leader, whether he liked it or not.
"There are dark creatures beyond the wards of Hogwarts, evil wizards and witches... While you may never have to fight, you have to know how to.
"We'll only be learning a few spells, I'm not trying to create an army here. The. Defence Association, or the DA - it's for you to be able to defend yourself. "
"What makes you qualified to teach us?" Terry Boot asked, his voice calm, unchallenging. He simply wanted to know.
"Because I've been in situations where I've had to fight or die," Harry replied. "Because I know how to fight."
Zacharias scoffed at that, then turned pink when several around him gave him the evil-eye.
From the back, Ginny watched as Hermione took out a book and charmed galleons, and began to give instructions.
"A fine young man there, he is," said Aberforth Dumbledore, setting down a glass of water for her.
Ginny nodded. She felt so proud of him right then.
"A hero," she said fondly, and Aberforth nodded his head.
"Aye," he sighed. "A hero."
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"Stupefy, Expelliarmus, Stupefy!"
Harry ducked, twirled, then stood still, letting the final spell soar past his right shoulder.
Angelina was on the floor, a Petrificus Totalus keeping her unmoving. Alicia was still trying to take out Harry.
While he admired the girl's effort, her spells were horrible. They lacked real power, and her accuracy simply wasn't good enough.
Harry had decided to duel Alicia and Angelina as a demo of sorts, to show the rest what they would learn. It had the added bonus of silencing any critics, when they saw the ease with which he moved, the obvious skill he had, the power he wielded.
"Telletangra, Stupefy, Inacerous, Stupefy, Petrificus Totalus," Harry incanted, waving his wand with exaggerated motions.
Alicia raised a shield, which collapsed under the second spell. She shrieked and dove to a side, but Harry had anticipated that. The full body bind caught her, and she froze on the ground.
Harry couldn't resist a smirk as he looked at the gobsmacked faces around him. Except for Ron and Hermione of course. Ginny rolled her eyes at him, and he winked back.
"Okay," he announced, idly flicking his wand to release the frozen girls. "Let's get to work!"
He had rarely seen the DA more enthusiastic.
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"Madam Bones?" Her secretary peered in. "I've got something here for you, it's marked urgent, but I don't recognize the symbol on it..."
"Did you check it for jinxes?" Amelia asked, not looking up.
"It's safe," the secretary assured her.
Madam Bones nodded and beckoned her secretary in. One look at the folder she was handed, and Amelia sat up straight, all business-like.
"I don't want to be disturbed for the next twenty minutes," she ordered. "If Cornelius himself comes down here, he can wait."
Her secretary nodded, closing the door behind her.
Amelia ripped open the folder and picked up the contents. There was a small piece of folded parchment, and what looked like several maps.
She unfolded the largest, and laid it out on her desk. It took her only a few seconds to realize what it was.
"The Ministry," she breathed. "The entire Ministry..." A quick examination showed that all five maps were of the ministry - each showing different areas with different degrees of detail.
She picked up the small piece of parchment, and carefully unfolded it. Only two words were written on it.
'Behind You'
Amelia yelped and whirled around, reaching for her wand...
Only to come face to face with nothing.
Then someone tapped her from behind, and she gave another undignified squeak, turning quickly.
"Hi."
Amelia glared at the wizard. He wore black hooded robes. Shadows swarmed his face, blue eyes gleamed from the darkness.
"Someday," she threatened, "I will arrest you."
Merlin chuckled, and the sound wasn't very pleasant. "Sorry."
"You will be," she muttered darkly, taking her seat. "What's all this?"
"These are maps," Merlin replied, gesturing with a hand.
"You don't say," Amelia responded dryly. "Where did you even get these?"
"You don't expect me to answer that, do you?" Merlin dropped into a chair opposite her, and winced beneath the shadows. "Why are these chairs so uncomfortable?"
Amelia smirked. "Cornelius comes down a lot."
Merlin chuckled. "Not your favorite person, is he." It was a statement.
"Every week, he manages to come down here and block my latest efforts..." Amelia shook her head wearily. "Anyway, what's all this about."
The blue eyes pulsed. "There's so much that is wrong with magical Britain right now. It's a breeding ground for extremist groups, dark lords... Almost anyone can make a following here."
Amelia said nothing, her face grave.
"You know what would help make things go right?" Merlin shifted forward in the wooden chair. He was speaking from experience, of a future in the past, but she didn't know that. "A war."
Amelia's eyes narrowed, but she held her silence.
"I'm not saying I want to plunge the country into war, no." Merlin paused and shook his head. "We're already on the brink of war. Voldemort is simply waiting, waiting for the right moment to stand up and reveal himself. But if war comes, and Voldemort is defeated, a lot of changes can be implemented, a lot of those that need to be put behind bars, can be put behind bars."
"I have listened to you, heeded your advice." Amelia's tone was cold. "You've made sense, you've given me some good pointers, showed me where our systems can go wrong. Which is why, I'll give you exactly two minutes to convince me not to dismiss you as a nutcase, and have you arrested."
The blue eyes flashed. "If every one of your aurors tried to take me down, you could not. Do not make idle threats, we're both better than that.
"Look, we need change, right? Lots of change, but I've shown you blueprints for a better future, a more reliable government. You've gone through my plans, you like them. But if it comes at the cost of a war, at the cost of lives, we don't want that. So what if there was some other way? A way, using all those contacts I've asked you to make, bearing in mind those two lists, one of those we trust, another of those we can't... Using the appearance and destruction of Voldemort, we bring about change..."
Amelia frowned. "What are you talking about."
Merlin smiled beneath the shadows.
"A coup, Madam Bones. A coup."
And to that, she had no reply.
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Twenty miles along the coast from Blackpool, lay Pilingshire. A small fishing community, just the kind of place Voldemort liked to attack.
Only a week ago, darkness had descended upon Pilingshire. Voldemort, along with the most trusted of his inner circle visited the tiny community.
But Voldemort did not have them killed. He did not let his followers run free, satiating their own twisted desires. He was here for the graveyard.
Pilinshire had a massive graveyard. It was said to be hallowed ground, and there were many tales about the sanctity of this particular graveyard. People for miles around would bury their dead here.
Voldemort turned the dead, into undead. All around, death eaters worked furiously. His most skilled spellcasters - a few hired - helped to create a massive illusion, to hide the inferi.
The inferi were then hidden all around Pilingshire. More illusions, several Imperio's ensured that life in Pilingshire proceeded as normal.
In a show of pure power, Voldemort erected wards for a mile all around. The ward was thin, but his followers worked hard to make them even stronger.
This work was carried out over the space of three nights.
Lord Voldemort was thinking about Pilingshire, and the trap set around it. The preparations were complete. It was time to set the bait. The only question now was, would Merlin bite?
"Lucius."
Malfoy kissed the hem of the Dark Lord's robes. "Yes my lord?"
"Spread the word. Pilingshire will be ashes, one week from now. I want every initiate, every mercenary to know of this plan."
"My lord? We just spent so much time to keep our actions here a secret, perhaps -"
"Crucio," Voldemort intoned conversationally.
A few more seconds of Lucius Malfoy's life was spent writhing in pain on the ground.
Voldemort lifted the curse. "Make it clear however, that nobody is allowed to partake the festivities without my permission."
"Yes my lord," Lucius agreed, gingerly rising to his feet.
"Do not doubt me, Lucius."
"No my lord," Malfoy agreed, and hastened to leave the Dark Lord's presence.
A massive green snake slithered along the ground, then coiled up Voldemort's body, it's head coming to rest above his left shoulder.
"My lord!"
Voldemort turned around. The wizard before him was one of the most accomplished in the field of warding. He was most unwilling to lend his services, so Voldemort had had to threaten his brother.
"Ze wards are compete," the man informed him, giving the Dark Lord a deep bow. He held up a glowing blue cube. "You only have to smash zis, and everyzing activates.
Pity he had to die, ward-master Monsieur Dubois was quite competent at what he did.
The lipless mouth curled upwards. "Thank you, Monsieur."
The wizard hesitated. "My lord...my brozzer."
"Will be released," Voldemort assured him. Dubois nodded jerkily and turned away, eager to leave. He crashed to the ground, Voldemort's full body bind catching him square in the back.
"Dinner, Nagini" Voldemort whispered softly.
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"Focus Luna. Take a deep breath. You can do this."
Luna's eyes fluttered open, and she took three deep breaths. She sat cross-legged on the grass, somewhere on Hogwarts vast grounds.
Harry - sitting opposite her - waited patiently. A few seconds later, he raised the Elder Wand once more.
"Ready?" He asked softly.
Luna nodded determinedly. She took another deep breath and closed her eyes.
Harry waved his wand in large circles. He wasn't casting any spell, simply pushing out magic.
Harry was trying to help Luna embrace her ability, to look into magical mode, see the very fabric of magic. He was saturating the air with magical energy, and for the first time, Luna was actually trying to spot the unusual.
Harry had explained his ideas, what he thought she could do, what he needed her to do. Luna had not hesitated, agreeing at once.
Harry had never seen her so serious. He just hoped she hadn't her entire outlook on life. Luna was special, something different. Luna was... Luna, and he hoped he hadn't take that away.
Luna opened her eyes, and Harry had to stifle an unmanly shriek.
Luna's eyes were completely white.
"It's working, isn't it?" He asked, his voice a touch weak. He was asking Luna to dabble in something he didn't fully understand.
For a long moment, Luna didn't say anything. Then she nodded.
"It's working."
Harry leaned forward. "What's it like?"
"It's... Magic."
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The moment Merlin apparated into Pilingshire, he knew something was wrong. His finely honed sense of danger was screaming at him.
From the information he had picked up, there was to be a raid here, on Pilingshire. The usual stuff - a bunch of death eaters preying on muggles.
There was some sort of fair - a party or something. Men, women and children were all over the place, country music blared over loudspeakers. The smell of food permeated the air - stalls here and there were loaded with treats. Flashy, colorful lights roved about.
If he had to protect this chaos... It would not be easy. At least he didn't have to worry about the more skilled death eaters being here, or Lord Tom himself.
There was the distinct sound of apparition, further ahead. Harry stuck in the shadows, letting the invisibility cloak cover him.
And then the wards were raised.
Merlin felt them. Powerful, extremely powerful. His skin felt something was crawling over it, then the sensation passed - the process was complete.
A trap. That was the only explanation.
Merlin tried to change into a phoenix. He would retreat, call for Auror's instead.
A bolt of pain sizzled through his head, and he stumbled a bit. He couldn't change!
What Voldemort and Merlin didn't know, was that Monsieur Dubois had done a thorough job. The ward-master had tried to account for every possibility, and a combination of many, many words had reacted to form an anti-animagus net. It was not intentional, but it had happened, and so Merlin was unable to morph.
Then the illusions dropped, and right before Merlin's eyes, the people changed. Very few of them began to scream and run. The majority turned into grotesque undead, inferi.
Inferi poured out of houses, rose from behind bushes, stepped out from shadows. They ran, and Harry felt the very ground shake.
The sheer number of undead was staggering.
Red jets of light shot in the general direction of Merlin. Clothed in dark robes, silver masks covering their faces, the most powerful of the Dark Lord's servants stepped forward.
Merlin ducked an unforgivable, and moved away swiftly. His only advantage was the invisibility cloak. As long as they couldn't see him, the inferi couldn't swarm him.
But then a hissing sound filled his ears, and to his horror, Merlin saw dozens of snakes wriggle their way out into the open, their forked tongues tasting the air, searching for him.
And they found him.
Very well. Battle it would be. Merlin twisted a wrist, and the Elder Wand flew into his hand. The invisbility cloak coiled up into a wristband.
And then a thought struck him. If the snakes were giving away his location, there would have to be someone here who could understand them. And there were only two Parselmouths alive... Which meant Voldemort was here.
Damn.
The death eaters were closing in. All around, Inferi gathered en masse, collecting around Merlin's vicinity, ready to attack when he showed himself.
Avery was the first to die, a trio bone breakers coming from the side at unbelievable speeds, smashing his ribs and head.
Immediately, the Inferi closed in on Merlin. The wizard stuck to the shadows, clicking the deluminator in the few precious seconds he had, leaving only a few lights glowing.
The Sword of Gryffindor would be of great service here. Merlin flicked his left palm, trying to summon it. Nothing happened. The myths of Gryffindor's champion, a person who could summon the Sword whenever he wanted were just that - a myth.
Spells rained down on the death eaters - bone breakers, cutting curses, bolts of black lightning, blasting curses, curious thin jets of pink light.
While these were the best of Voldemort's men, they were not prepared for the sheer power and ruthlessness Merlin displayed.
Jugson died next, a blasting curse plowing through his shield like a hot knife through butter, nailing him on the forehead. It was not a pretty sight.
They learnt quickly though, to reinforce their shields, or evade his spells altogether.
Merlin was fighting viciously, never in the same place. He ducked, rolled, jumped, twisted, conjured shields, curses flying from his wand at a terrific rate. It was a very difficult fight, but he was fairly confident his raw power would see him through.
And then the inferi struck. They jumped from rooftops, threw themselves out of windows. More and more inferi swarmed him, and the sheer number meant even his constant blasts of fire weren't enough.
He was being forced to retreat down a street, and then inferi came up from behind as well. Together, the death eaters and inferi were a formidable force, and Harry felt a flash of fear.
"Incendio!" he yelled, desperately pouring power into the spell, and twirling the wand around. The flames gave him a few seconds of respite, and he used it.
He crouched down on one knee, his wand pointed straight ahead.
This particular spell had no incantation. It was silent magic, powerful magic. Harry closed his eyes and focused.
His wand shook as flames blossomed from it's end. These flames were different, they burned hotter than any other. A roaring sound filled his ears as the fire formed fiery crows. They strained against his will, and he fought determinedly to keep control.
Fiendfyre.
The crows flew, the fire raged, inferi burned all around.
The crows advanced upon the death eaters, and they tried to make a shield of dark magic, overlapping shields in the hopes of containing it. The shield held, then the crows flew over it and descended upon the death eaters.
One more of their number fell, and the rest scattered, cutting through the mess of inferi themselves to get away.
They were far now, further away than Merlin trusted his control over the fiendfyre. He focused on roasting the inferi instead, and they burned and burned.
It was quite hard to keep a level head while using such dark magic.
All of a sudden, the flames furthermost away from Merlin began to die down.
Merlin summoned the rest of the fiery constructs and sent them that way, then relinquished his hold on the spell, cutting off any further growth of the fiendfyre.
There was only person that could control fiendfyre like that, snuff it out in that manner.
Voldemort strode through the fallen undead, his wand idly creating a path.
Merlin stood up straight, magic singing in his veins.
"I'm flattered Tom," Merlin admitted mockingly. "So much effort, so much planning, just for little old me."
"I must confess I did not expect fiendfyre," the Dark Lord replied softly, gazing around at the destruction the fyre had caused. "It is a pity you refuse to join me."
"Oh, don't be -" Merlin broke off, twisting away to evade a cruciactus. Two death eaters stood behind him, they had snuck around. More spells flew at him from the sides, the death eaters were back.
Merlin responded with a volley of blasting curses, blowing apart walls and causing a great deal of dust to rise. He used it as cover, but Voldemort cleared the air with sweeping strokes of his yew wand.
Merlin was being forced on the defensive. Fighting Voldemort was difficult enough. Add his followers...
One death eater got too close to him. Merlin jumped at the man, using him as a shield. A killing curse crashed into the death eaters body, a cutter split open the mask. Harry spared the wizard a glance as he dropped him. Rookwood. That was good.
Voldemort bellowed in rage, and Merlin felt the anger drainage through the scar. He gritted his teeth and ran on. If he could reach the boundary of these wards, he could get away.
He reached the end of the street, and came face to face with another mass of Inferi.
Merlin waved his wand, and concentrated. The wizard rose up into the air, flying seemingly without any support. He flew away, even as Voldemort rose into the sky as well.
So Lord Mould had managed to learn the trick after all. Oh well.
And all of a sudden, another volley of curses shot up at him from ahead. Merlin's eyes widened, and he dove down, wandlessly putting up a shield.
Voldemort had hidden even more death eaters around. Again, damn.
A red curse struck him, and pain coursed through his body. The Cruciactus curse. Someone had nailed him with an unforgivable.
The spell was weak, nothing as potent as Voldemort's, and Merlin was able to shake off the pain, magic running through his body. A powerful blasting hex left his wand, making for where the curses had come from.
The curse was cut off as the death eaters scrambled away. One wizard stood his ground and put up a shield. He didn't make it.
Again, the inferi had reached him. More curses flew towards Merlin.
And then pain rippled through his body once more, but this was pain on a level only one could administer...
Voldemort glided along the ground, wand trained on Merlin. The lipless mouth formed a cruel smile. He had won.
The cruciactus was lifted, and Merlin threw up both hands. He had dropped his wand, and he couldn't scramble for it now. A glowing shield erupted around him. He needed only a second, and he could get the Phoenix wand out.
The world was lit up as a multitude of spells crashed into the barrier. The shield flickered, and fell.
For the level of magic that had been used, it was a rather simple spell that ended the fight.
"Stupefy," Voldemort whispered, and Merlin's world went black.
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There are only a few more chapters left in this tale, maybe three, or four perhaps. The ending - the last few chapters seemed rather rushed, and I do apologize for that.
The next update should be sometime within a month. My primary focus as of now is my other fic, Emerald Eye Knight
Thanks for reading. Do leave a review.
Cheers,
Timefreak