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Harry appeared at the judge's table with a jolt that almost made him lose his balance. Hermione and Narcissa were watching with their omnioculars as he arrived. The two women squealed.
"Harry won! He's done it. He's got the cup!"
Narcissa felt a huge sense of relief wash over her. It was done and Harry was safe and sound. She hadn't taken her eyes off of him. He held the cup up in the air in victory as the judges shook his hand.
That's when Narcissa and Hermione saw it at the same time. A rat running along the railing with a silver spoon in his mouth. A rat running straight for Harry.
Hermione cast a quick sonorous on herself and, in a terror filled voice, she shouted, "Harry! Behind you!"
Harry didn't hesitate, he threw himself backwards while twisting to get a good look at what was coming. He fell out of the way just in time. The rat had jumped to land on his back but instead overshot Harry and landed on the Minister of Magic's stomach. The rat and the man disappeared with a pop.
Sirius, Remus, and the eight aurors had arrived at the graveyard, disillusioned, silenced, and with scent masking charms applied to their persons. They quickly and quietly sought cover behind the gravestones while they waited to get the lay of the land before attacking.
As soon as they were settled in to watch, a popping sound echoed around the silent gravestones.
"Get off me! Get off me!" A panicked voice shouted before a stunner ripped through the air and silenced the man. Was that Minister Fudge being levitated up to stand in front of a tall headstone? He was quickly tied to it.
Sirius spoke into his ministry issued headset. No one could hear what he said except the people with matching headsets.
"Is that Fudge?" Sirius whispered, even though he couldn't be heard.
"I think so," Amelia answered grimly. "They've got a hostage. Everyone hold your fire until my say so."
They watched as a man suddenly appeared before the headstone.
"Pettigrew," Sirius hissed. He heard Remus' growl down the headset.
"Stand down until my say so," Amelia barked into the headset. Sirius thought about ignoring her commands but held his whisht for now.
They watched as a giant cauldron was levitated into the center of the graves. Pettigrew returned carrying a deformed looking baby thing.
"This is not the right enemy, Wormtail," a deep, evil voice came from the strange baby thing.
"I'm sorry master. Harry Potter ducked and I landed on the Minister. I didn't mean to bring the wrong one," Pettigrew cringed as he spoke.
"It matters not. I will punish you when I have my body once more. Nagini?" The evil baby called. Sirius gasped. The snake!
A giant, poison green snake came slithering out of the grass behind the cauldron. It circled the minister and then moved over to haul itself up so it could look the baby in the eyes.
"Keep watch," the evil voice hissed.
Sirius spoke into his headset. "We can't attack until we take down the snake."
"What? Why?" Came several voices down the line.
"Quiet!" Amelia barked. "Explain," she snapped.
"The evil bugger's got soul anchors. The snake is the last one. If we kill it first, he's gone for good. If we don't, he might come back again," Sirius explained hurriedly, keeping his eyes peeled for the snake to slither past.
He heard a cacophony of gasps echo down the line. They couldn't focus on that anymore. The ritual was starting.
Pettigrew dropped the baby into the cauldron. He used his wand to summon something from one of the graves. "Bone of the father, unknowingly given, you will resurrect your son."
The material from the grave flew into the cauldron. The aurors began moving slowly and quietly around to look for the snake.
Pettigrew walked up to the cauldron with a look of terror on his face. He cut off the hand missing a finger. It fell into the cauldron with a sick plop. Sirius almost wretched to see it.
"Fl, fl, flesh of the servant, wha, wha, willingly given, you will resurrect your master."
Pettigrew moved quickly to the Minister, who was starting to wake up.
"Wha's going on here? Le'me go!" Fudge demanded. Pettigrew ignored him. He cut through the Minister's robes on his arm and ripped the hole wider. He slashed the Minister's arm, deep, and walked back to the cauldron. He ignored Fudge's cries of pain as he went.
"Bl, bl, blood of the enemy, forcibly taken, you will resurrect your foe!" Pettigrew let three, thick drops of blood fall into the cauldron. The cauldron started smoking and writhing. Pettigrew fell to his knees and clutched the stump of his arm.
Pettigrew was so distracted that he didn't notice the scuffle amongst the gravestones.
"Got it!" One of the aurors shouted. "I got the bastard. Owe, he got me, too. I'm taking my emergency portkey to St. Mungo's. Good luck," the woman gasped as she portkeyed away.
The aurors crept slowly back to their attack positions as the figure rose from the cauldron. Pettigrew moved forward quickly with a robe and a wand. The figure took both with a contented sigh.
"Who are you? What's going on here?" Fudge practically screeched in terror.
The new figure laughed, high and cold. He cast a spell on the Minister, who screamed in agony once the spell hit him. The figure only kept the spell on the man for a few moments.
"I am Lord Voldemort, you fool," he said as he walked towards Pettigrew, who was once again, kneeling and whimpering from the pain. "Give me your arm," Voldemort demanded.
Pettigrew held up his injured arm and thanked his master profusely.
Voldemort sneered and smacked the bloody appendage away. Pettigrew screamed. Voldemort laughed and demanded, "Your other arm."
Pettigrew held out his whole arm and winced when the Dark Lord touched his mark. "My Death Eaters will soon arrive. We will finish with you quickly once they are here," Voldemort sneered at the whimpering Minister.
Dark figures began to appear with varied pops into the graveyard. As soon as they all seemed to be present, Amelia gave the signal.
"Now," she shouted, leaning around the headstone and opening fire.
The firefight was fast and vicious. The Death Eaters were unprepared and went down quickly. Voldemort, not so much. Even though he was new to corporeal status, he was no slouch in the wand work department.
Unfortunately for Voldemort, the aurors had cast anti-apparition and anti-portkey wards on the area before they started the attack. He had no escape. He had to fight his way out or die trying. Unfortunately for him, die trying was his only real option.
In just a moment it was six to one against Voldemort. He fought gallantly but Sirius snuck up behind him and aimed for his head.
"This is for my godson, his mother, and my goddamn best friend, you bastard," Sirius hissed before he took his shot. Voldemort felled two of the aurors before his head exploded. Blood and viscera splattered over a wide radius. Some of it got in Remus' hair. He was disgusted. He'd never get the smell of dead dark lord out of it now.
Sirius laughed loudly, and a little psychotically, if everyone was being honest.
The remaining Death Eaters tried to flee but they didn't make it very far. Amelia hurried over to cut the Minister down.
"Are you all right, Minister?" She asked the man. He blubbered like a baby into her shoulder. She sighed and patted his head in disgust.
Back at Hogwarts, the Black contingent fought their way through the crowds to get to the stage and Harry. Everyone was going berserk now that the Minister of Magic had disappeared right before their eyes, kidnapped by a rat, of all things.
They finally reached the stage when both Severus and Karkaroff had momentarily doubled over in pain. The men both gasped in horror as they looked down at their right arms. The dark mark was back in full force.
Narcissa saw it and her eyes filled with tears. "We were too late."
Karkaroff took off like a bat out of hell. He made his way back to the ship and left without his students, fleeing back to Durmstrang, the coward.
Harry rushed over to his family. "What's wrong?" he asked.
Narcissa explained about the mark. "No!" Harry exclaimed. He explained about what had happened with the cup.
"Sirius, Remus!" Narcissa was looking around for more aurors when Severus fell to his knees in pain and then passed out.
"Severus!" Narcissa shouted. She and Harry stretched the man out and cleared a space so he could breathe. That's when Narcissa noticed his arm.
She grabbed it up in shock and examined it closely. "It's gone. Harry, it's gone!" She shouted in joy. Harry gaped at the smooth, clear skin on the inside of Severus' right forearm. You couldn't even tell there had ever been a mark there!
Narcissa cast a quick rennervate spell on Severus. He came slowly back to himself. She helped him sit up and then kissed him soundly.
"It's gone, Sev. It's really gone!" He didn't know what she was talking about for a moment, then it hit him. He scrambled to examine the inside of his right arm. The mark really was gone. Severus was free.
Albus Dumbledore bustled over and put his big, fat conk exactly where it wasn't welcomed to be.
"What's this? What's happened to Severus? I have a job for him to do that must be undertaken immediately," Albus said in annoyance.
Narcissa looked up at the man, happy tears still running down her face. Harry just glared at the man. Albus looked down and saw what had affected the two Magicals so deeply.
"No! What happened? His mark can't be gone. I need him to be my spy!" Albus erupted, not meaning to let so much of his plan out for others to hear.
Narcissa began to look angry. "Your spy? Were you preparing to send my husband back to the Dark Lord?" Narcissa thundered.
Albus winced but decided to stand his ground. He would need Severus to confirm Voldemort's return. "Your husband is proud to serve the light, Mrs. Malfoy."
Narcissa screamed and jumped to her feet. Before he could blink, Narcissa had popped Albus a good one right in the nose. He grabbed his beak and groaned, tears streaming from his eyes.
"It's Mrs. Snape or Lady Black to you, sir. As I have said many, MANY times," she seethed.
Albus groaned again before casting an episky on himself. His nose stopped bleeding, even if it didn't stop throbbing.
"I apologize," Albus said in a nasally voice. "Mrs. Snape, your husband's services are needed. He must return to the Death Eaters."
Narcissa screamed between her teeth. "My husband is no Death Eater. He will go nowhere near any such vile person. My husband is a proponent of the light and will not be tarnished by the likes of you. See? Just look at his arms. He bears no dark mark."
Albus could see that Severus currently did not but it didn't matter to him. He knew Voldemort was back. Severus would see reason. Albus just knew it.
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