The Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition
Title: Darkest Soldiers
Team: Ballycastle Bats
Position: Captain - 1984
Reserve: No
Word count: 2,101 words
Warning for Voldemort Wins/1984!AU, mentions of several characters' deaths, the use of the Imperius Curse, and a slight bit out of character due to the AUs used in this story. I would like to take this moment to thank everyone who beta read this story for me. It truly means a lot that you would take the time to help me out like this. So, thank you very much, and I hope you all enjoy Darkest Soldiers.
No one noticed when the Dark Lord's takeover went into effect. Not the Muggles or the wizards who fought to protect them. But then again that had been his plan from the beginning of this whole thing. To start small and to make sure that no one knew what had happened until it was too late to do anything about it.
He'd been smart about it too. He'd placed officials in high places in the Ministry, especially ones who were close enough to affect Minister Fudge's policies. He even went as far as to put people in as officials on the Muggle side of things to keep an eye on them and make sure that no one on that side would get wise to what was going on.
No one noticed a thing was out of place for a time. Then little things started to change. Muggleborns were notified that they would no longer be accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Along with that, it was stated that Half-Bloods had to show proof that at least one of their parents was magical.
This caused a small uproar from the parents of some children who didn't think that they should have to show proof of anything for their child to receive an education. I shudder to think how my mother would have handled the news. With my father being a Muggle and my mother, the great Eileen Prince, being a witch. She would be affronted that her son would have had to have proven that she was a witch.
"Sir," a voice said from behind me, making me jerk around. Standing there, looking up at me with blinking confused eyes was a girl no older than eleven. She was holding a letter but looked very sad.
"What can I do for you, young lady?" I asked, going down to the same level as the young girl I could see out of the corner of my eyes that some of my cohorts were giving me a strange look as though I shouldn't be talking to this girl.
"I was trying to board the train for Hogwarts and those men over there said that I couldn't go," she said, pointing in the direction of where Tavers and MacNair were standing hassling a small-looking dark-skinned boy. "I showed them my Hogwarts letter and they asked me if I was Pureblood or a Half-Blood and I told them I didn't know what that meant."
"Are your parents both magical or do have one magical parent?" I asked, watching the girl's smile fall even further.
"I don't have any magical parents," she said, scuffing the toe of her sneaker on the ground in front of her. "What does it mean if you don't have a magical parent? Why should it matter? The letter came to me and said…."
"The new magical regime says that anyone without magical parents must have stolen their magic from a magic-user. That's why no one who doesn't have a magical parent is allowed to go to Hogwarts." I could see she was about to break down into tears, looking around to make sure that none of the other members of the Dark Lord's inner circle are watching. I lean in to whisper to her, "I don't agree with their little laws either. One of my best friends when I was younger didn't have a magical being in her family before her and she was one of the nicest people I know."
"What does that mean for my hopes of going to the best wizarding school in England though?" she asked, looking up at me pleadingly.
"It doesn't seem promising…."
"Sir, my daughter has been looking forward to going to this school since she first received the letter in her hand," a man who looked much like the little girl in front of me said, walking over to me. "What are we supposed to do?"
I looked around to find that the outburst had garnered the attention of people in the surrounding area. Some of those people were Death Eaters and were starting to walk over to put a stop to it. I waved them off before they could get any closer and took the man by the arm as though I was dragging him away from the scene.
When I was sure that we were out of anyone's earshot, I turned and looked at the man. "Are you aware that all the schools for wizardry are under the domain of the new regime?" I asked, flinching at the man's glare.
"If that is a threat…."
"It's an observation," I told him. "However, it seems that the regime hasn't made its way across the Pond, as it were. One would have to set up a way of getting there and back but it can be done. Especially if the education of one's child is as important as it seems to you, sir."
"But we don't have enough money to buy another set of books and…"
"As I am aware most of the teachers who worked at Hogwarts are now working at the prestigious Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."
"Are you telling me that we should try and send our daughter, Hermione, there?" asked the woman who had followed us out of the station. She was like an older copy of the girl, Hermione, right down to the hair and eye color.
"That is indeed what I am telling, madam," I said, seeing MacNair walking towards where we were speaking. "Now make it look like I've just told you off and walk away."
The little girl started to cry. Her brown eyes filled with tears that left slow tracks down her face as the slight wind blew her hair around her face. "But I wanted to go to Hogwarts," she said, her voice wavering softly as her mother and father took her hand and led her off.
It had been years since this encounter had taken place and I had started shepherding young Muggleborns towards Ilvermorny without the Death Eaters knowing. Hermione Granger, the little girl who was the first one I'd helped, had joined me in efforts.
Little did I know that the Dark Lord and his followers were more aware of my movements than I thought they were. Someone among the ranks of people who were helping me and Hermione move these students to their schooling was reporting back to the new regime.
It was after the current round of students were sent to us that I started to notice the watcheyes that had started to follow me around. These watcheyes look much like the messages that travel the halls of the Ministry. More than likely because they were taking notes of what the person they were watching was doing.
"Do you think that they have watcheyes on all of us, Severus?" Hermione asked, slipping her hand into my own.
"I'd say so," I said, seeing the flash of tiny words across the underside of the watcheye. "You do know that both of us could be in major trouble for you holding my hand like this, don't you?"
"But I don't care, Sev," she said, looking up at me. "How are we going to get this new batch of students out of England and over to America without getting caught?"
"I'll have to think of something," I said, trying to wrack my mind for something that would work out in our favor.
"Severus, maybe we should just…."
"Not too loud, Mione," I said, pointing towards the watcheye overhead. "You know that Big Brother is always watching nowadays." I could see the small flashes of writing scrolling across the bottom of the watcheye, like how a Quick Quotes Quill would work.
"I know, Sev, but we need to figure this out and fast," she said, looking upward warily. "It won't be long until we have to send these kids and their parents overseas."
"Severus," said a small blond-haired man who I knew very well and wanted to avoid like the plague.
"Peter," I said, not turning around to face the man but continuing to walk with Hermione.
"I think that maybe I have a plan to help get the children to Ilvermorny," he said, looking around warily, as though he thought that anyone would overhear and turn them in. "But it has to be done soon."
"Why so soon?" Hermione asked, looking as anxious as she sounded. "We never send the children this soon. Don't you think that would put the people at Ilvermorny on edge?"
"I'm sure that they would understand," Peter said, looking over his shoulder.
I followed his gaze and saw the approaching masked figures. I felt Hermione squeeze my hand and knew that she saw them too. I pulled my wand from the front pocket of my jacket and stunned the rat.
"Now what?" Hermione asked as we took off away from the scene.
"Now we regroup and make sure that Peter didn't betray any more of our group," I said, watching as the masked men pulled Peter up from the ground. I could see Peter yelling and pointing towards us. "We have to go now." I took her in my arms and apparated away from the scene before making sure that no one could see us.
Later that day I would find out that most of the young children who were on the list of students that needed to be sent to Ilvermorny and their families had been rounded up and executed. I could feel the bitter tears well in my eyes. I had been working on helping these families for at least twenty years now. This was the first year that something as horrible as this had happened to our little enterprise. But it wouldn't be the last, not by a long shot.
"This is starting to look awfully familiar," Hermione said, watching as a new group of youngsters and parents stood around us ready to be sent to Ilvermorny and their new lives. "Like from a book that I've read before."
"I doubt that the Dark Lord would model his regime of terror after a Muggle book, my love," I said, kissing the top of her head. We'd been married for a week now and everything was starting to look up for us. Or at least that was what we thought.
"But it is awfully familiar. Maybe I'm just thinking too much about it."
"Maybe."
I should have known that something bad was going to happen. The absence of the watcheyes should have the first sign of trouble. But I hadn't been paying attention to that. If I had, I would have noticed that we were short another member of our group.
"Do you know where that Delphini girl is?" I asked Hermione, scanning our helpers for the young woman who had been acting quite strange since she'd joined our cause. "She said she'd be happy to help us with this lot, didn't she?"
"She did," Hermione said, now looking around like me. "She said that she thought that these kids deserved to learn as much as the Purebloods and Half-Bloods did."
There was a faint pop from the clearing where we were all gathered and Delphini ran towards us, a panicked look upon her young features. But there was a faint glimpse of something else under that. A look that sent a chill down my spine and made me look towards the direction she'd just come from.
Standing in the shade of the trees were men in black robes and masks of the Dark Lord. Their wands were pointing into the crowd of children and parents. Muggleborns, Muggle, and wizards alike were being targeted.
"I'm sorry, Severus, Hermione," Delphini said, pointing her wand at me. "I really did think what you were working for was a good cause."
The stunning spell hit me like a ton of bricks falling from the sky. I could see Hermione falling to the ground beside me, the jets of green streaking around the sky overhead. I could hear bodies hitting the ground around us. The sound of it was tortuous and made me want to cry.
I watched in horror as Hermione was pulled to her feet by Delphini. I could feel myself being hauled to my feet as well. The last thing I heard before losing control of myself was a quick "Imperio!" being cast at me from the Dark Lord himself. Then a jet of green light left my wand, followed by the sound of someone falling to the ground. Everything faded to black.
Also for the following items on the following forums:
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry:
365 Prompts: 188. (character) Hermione Granger
Fantastic Beast and How to Collect Them: Behemoth (theme) chaos
Scavenger Hunt: 84. (AU) Voldemort Wins
Potions: Gillyweed Task 3 - Write about someone learning to adapt to a new environment.
Dog Show: Dachshund (character) Hermione Granger Obstacle Course (genre) Hurt/Comfort
Milkshake Bar: Toppings M&Ms (word) Canoodle
Paint a Rainbow: Blue (AU) Voldemort Wins!AU
Leaving on a Jet Plane: Rome (genre) tragedy
Written in the Stars: (trait) reckless
Elizabeth's Empire: Earth Sleeping at Last (word) courage
Liza's Loves - Stickers: Ron (word) sacrifice
Sophie's Serial Killers: (scenario) lying to authorities
Scamander's Case: (number) six
TV Spree: (trait) determined
EnTitled: Growing Pains (word) transition
Days of the Year: March 29th Pay it Forward Day - Write about doing something good for someone else.
Library Week: Suspense/Thriller
Children's Book Day: The Tin Man (trait) heartless
Zoo Lovers Day: Penguin - Write about two people who are together for many years.
National Teachers Day: Severus Snape
Space Day: Mars (trope) Opposites Attract
Spring Colors: Green
Crystals and Gemstones: Topaz (word) Canoodle
Hufflepuff OTPs: Severus/Hermione
Hufflepuff Challenge: Riding Out The Storm R.E.O Speedwagon - Write about waiting for something bad to happen.
Monthly Challenges For All:
Link Maker: Same Ship, 2,101 words
Spring Bingo: 2B (green) 2,101 words
Trope Bingo: 4E (Unreliable Narrator) 2,101 words
I hope you all enjoyed Darkest Soldiers as much as I enjoyed writing it.