I'm back with another chapter! Life's kept me busy and feeling a bit down lately which cuts into my writing. I want to thank my beta, hkurtz2013 on Fanfiction .net for his help with this chapter.
Also big thanks to everyone who reviewed, all the comments really do help motivate me to keep writing! I'm planning on starting a second fic before the end of summer and I'll be posting a fic that's just the first chapters of my ideas to see which people like more.
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Chapter 27: The Goblin Rebellion of 1995
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Ever since Dumbledore had fallen from grace, Voldemort had been laying low. It both irritated and amused the man once known as Tom Riddle that his servants had likely done a better job of sweeping the country during the manhunt than the Ministry's forces. Sadly, neither group had found the old man, or even located a useful clue. After no small amount of thought, Voldemort was beginning to have concerns regarding Albus Dumbledore. Fighting Dumbledore and those that served him in the last war was one thing, fighting Dumbledore as a rival Dark Lord was another. Voldemort had followed the reporting, the endless speculation about when Albus became a monster, whether it was by choice or if the old man had simply gone insane. An insane Dumbledore was an even worse opponent than a rival; while Voldemort had learned lost magics and dark rituals, in his honest moments he admitted that his collected knowledge paled in comparison to Dumbledore's. Voldemort knew enough about magic to fear what an insane man with that knowledge and power to rival his own could do. (Lucius had gotten a taste of this when Dumbledore conjured a barrier that could block killing curses and nearly set off a Compressed Fiendfyre Bomb.) While he was confident he would survive anything Dumbledore could accomplish, ruling over a world of ash was not an appealing possibility.
However, Voldemort had to accept that Albus had either become a rival or gone insane and both possibilities were worrisome. If Albus had truly been 'good' he would have acted in an entirely different manner, instead apparently the old man manipulated and enslaved wherever he could. Something as simple as a loyalty potion could effectively enslave a man if used carefully, though Voldemort himself simply never had the patience for using that method; the Imperius was easily cast and far faster. Even after being exposed, the old man had so much support, obviously he'd been using potions on students at Hogwarts for years, warping their minds just enough to build his power but still present a shining image to the world.
For the moment it mattered little, however. It had been amusing to set the Aurors on Dumbledore, but it had also limited his own movements. But this inconvenience mattered little in the long run. Malfoy Manor was comfortable, and his servants catered to his every whim. Lucius even had a number of ancient tomes he hadn't seen before, and Voldemort had contented himself with studying them. He had even busied himself with some spell crafting, though he would naturally have some grunt test the magic before he used the new curses himself.
There were no threats to Lord Voldemort at the moment, so he was content with moving his plans forward slowly. Yes, he still wanted to hear the entire prophecy before he moved against the Potter boy again, especially because there was a possibility that Severus hadn't happened upon it, but been intentionally fed the prophecy fragment. In any case, patience was virtue, and for the time being Lord Voldemort was content to wait.
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Dolores Umbridge however, was much less content to wait. She had been humiliated at Hogwarts, and her plan to remove Minerva McGonagall had fallen apart. (In her defense, how could she have known the old woman was traveling with at least four deadly bodyguards?) Now she was trying to convince the Minister to simply arrest Harry Potter and charge him after dosing him with Veritaserum. She was sure that they would find something to charge him with and if not, well, when the stability of magical Britain was in jeopardy sacrifices had to be made. And magical Britain would be better off without that jumped-up halfblood anyway. Perhaps I should begin convincing the Minister that the boy is still too popular? Or maybe I can convince Cornelius that Potter is continuing Dumbledore's attempt to seize control of the Ministry?
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Fleur Delacour, three days after Harry and his team looted nineteen vaults, was not having a good day. In fact, she was regretting not taking her boyfriend's advice and leaving Gringotts. At the time she hadn't seen the need to leave immediately, and had balked at enduring 'a drafty old castle' in the Scottish winter. As the goblins threw her into a vault with all of their other non-goblin employees, she found herself shivering. Each of their wands had been taken and a pair of manacles clamped to their wrists; in her case a heavy wrought iron collar had also been placed on her neck. A goblin had sneered at her that the collar would prevent the Veela transformation. As the door to the vault closed, Fleur realized that there was no food, water, or light inside the vault. At least the air was kept fresh by enchantments tied to Gringotts's impressive wards, so the two dozen people inside didn't have to worry about suffocating. Sitting against a wall in the dark, Fleur sighed at the scratchy wool robe she'd been forced to change into. Whatever was going on, it did not bode well for those with her.
Speaking into the darkness, Fleur interrupted the panicked whispering already beginning. "Has anyone seen anything unusual recently?"
A newly employed Charms expert, hired only a few days ago, introduced himself and spoke up. "Yesterday the Goblins had us enchant five big trucks, the kind muggles use for transporting goods cross-country. The spells were nothing fancy, mostly to keep muggles from noticing anything. But our team did put up the biggest expansion that would stay stable inside." The young man took a deep breath. "The goblins could move an army in them."
This information left those in the vault with a very bad feeling.
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On November 23 1995, the Goblins of Gringotts began their war on the human magicals of Britain. For a hundred years they had been preparing and even starting the conflict five years earlier than planned, they were ready. After their last defeat they had decided to be patient, to wait until the wizards had become complacent as they tended to in times of peace. (However, that didn't mean that they ignored opportunities to weaken their enemy. For example, during the war with Voldemort the Goblins had decided to let both sides destroy each other, working to maximize the losses on both sides while they acquired as much wealth as possible. A few words here, a failed ward there, and a lot of people died. Naturally, any missing valuables were assumed to be the work of the Death Eaters.) For a century now, a highly secret division of Gringotts had been preparing weapons for their next war. And those weapons were ready; armor that negated direct offensive magic in addition to its usual physical protection along with bladed weapons that could penetrate magical shields had already been distributed to the Goblin Army. But the wizards were about to discover what else they'd been working on.
Most of Magical Britain received their first hint that something was amiss when Apparition, Floo, and Portkey travel became impossible at noon. Additionally, in the next three days nearly every mail owl would be lost to a sudden invasive swarm of suspiciously aggressive eagles that only targeted the magical mail carriers. When Gringotts closed its doors shortly after magical travel became impossible, most people simply assumed that they would reopen when the day's problems were taken care of. Suffice it to say, the Ministry of Magic was soon in complete chaos, but even if they were to find the source of the disruption, a farm on the Island of Man owned by an illegal shell company of Gringotts Bank, fighting their way inside would be a very bloody affair. The underground labyrinth waiting for the Aurors was a death trap, and one tailored specifically to thwart wizard curse breakers.
Of course Gringotts itself was now even more secure, as the warrens connected to the bank's tunnels were the primary stronghold of the Goblin people. Together those left behind to guard their home honed their blades and polished their armor as they waited for news from their assault force. Two-thirds of their army was now on the road, having begun moving into newly-purchased trucks at the same moment the ward went up. While not exactly glorious, a nine-hour ride in the back of a truck was a wiser strategy than marching for weeks through England since their entire plan depended on striking quickly. It was safer too, their armor and weapons were made to fight wizards and magic, not the modern weapons of the muggle British Army.
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Life at Hogwarts Castle was fairly typical for a Thursday, at least until the Headmaster received a request from villagers in Hogsmeade to use his Floo. He was informed none of the ones in the village worked, and portkeys and apparition were useless as well. Promising to get back to them shortly, Aurogos began to investigate. It turned out that the only magical travel that still worked was the Azeroth Portal spell, even Teleport was blocked by a truly massive jinx or ward of some kind. Having a bad feeling about what was about to happen, the Headmaster rushed to the Room of Requirement, the castle opening a new secret passage in front of him in response to the dragon's urgency. Scrying magic wasn't something that the Blue was all that skilled with, but a perk of being Headmaster was the way the wards worked with him, especially if there was a threat to the students. Stine was waiting for him inside the Room of Requirement, and helped guide the Headmaster's scrying. By the time the Goblins had cleared London traffic on their way north, Aurogos was speeding to Hogsmead on a borrowed broom, an urgent assembly already having been called in the great hall. His wand was nearly a blur as he sent out a bevy of messenger Patroni, giving instructions to the staff, as well as asking those at Potter Estate to prepare for battle.
A few moments later, the young Headmaster had landed in the village of Hogsmead. An amplifying charm quickly ensured he could be heard in every part of the village when he spoke. "This is Headmaster Salonar of Hogwarts, I need everyone to listen carefully! The effect you've no doubt noticed that prevents magical travel covers all of Scotland, England, and Ireland. As anyone that survived the last war knows, when a ward like this goes up it's a very bad thing. There are at least three thousand Goblin warriors in full runic armor coming here right now; they seem to be en route to the nearest muggle town, and will probably march from there. Given the way the castle started activating its siege wards when my spell found the Goblins, I'd say the Goblin Nation has declared war. Hogwarts castle is their most likely target but Hogsmead will get hit first, just because the best approach is right through this town."
The Blue-haired Headmaster gave them a moment to realize how deeply in trouble they were. After letting the panic build for a moment, apparently some citizens did remember their magical history, Aurogon spoke up again. "I'm not leaving you here to die! I don't think we can count on the Ministry to get here in time, so I want everyone to gather what they can and head up to the castle in the next two hours. The only condition I have on that is that you need to help defend the school! I'm bringing up the wards to full strength to repel an invasion and preparing guardians, but we'll still need all the help we can get. Even if you only know domestic charms we'll have a place for you to work, the castle's elves are in bad shape as long as that ward is up. I'll have students fly down expanded chests to help you pack, but you need to move quickly."
With that, the Headmaster mounted his broom and returned to Hogwarts. (The broom had been a side project of his; Aurogos had the goal of teaching the seventh years to produce similar ones and eventually replace all of the school's aging brooms.) Upon landing he strode through the entry hall, his blue robes billowing dramatically. (To be honest, he'd stolen a few minor spells from the former Professor Snape. While Severus might be on the run, his house and every possession in his home or at Hogwarts had been added to the Potter Dragonflight's war chest.)
Waiting for the Headmaster in an otherwise empty room just off the entry hall was Professor Filius Flitwick. Aurogos had gotten to know the part-goblin fairly well since he'd seized the post of Headmaster, and while he didn't think Filius had any affiliation with Gringotts, it was best to be sure. When he strode into the room where Filius waited, the door closed and bolted on its own. Seeing that he had the undivided attention of the man with Goblin ancestry, the Headmaster spoke. "I'm sorry to do this, but I must insist. I'm going to ask you a few questions while I use the mind arts to ensure you're being honest, I won't go any deeper than that." When the charms professor nodded his acceptance, the dragon in disguise continued. "Do you have any allegiance to the Goblin Nation?"
"No, while I can walk among them they've made it clear I'm not welcome, that I'm not a real goblin."
"Do you mean any harm to the students of Hogwarts?"
"No."
"Do you have any knowledge of the Goblin army apparently on its way here?"
Suddenly very much aware of why he was being asked these questions, Flitwick responded quickly. "Not directly. I would assume they're either here to kill the students to break the will of Magical England or to capture them and use hostages to force a surrender from the Ministry. Probably capture, slaughtering the students would make them far too many enemies."
With a sigh, the Headmaster relaxed, ending the legilimency spell. "I agree. Fudge would surrender immediately with the only condition being the saving of his own hide. I'm bringing the war wards up to full strength, evacuating Hogsmead into the castle and preparing some surprises for when they arrive."
Together the two of them exited the room, heading for the Great Hall. "Do you know of any students with Time-Turners? Some extra hours would be very helpful."
"I think we have two right now, both are Ravenclaws."
"Good, I'll leave you to collect both of them. Bring one to me and one to Minerva and the students with her; I think the Forbidden Forest could use a few more predators right now, don't you?"
With that, the two walked into a rapidly filling Great Hall. Quickly striding to the slightly raised platform where the Professors usually ate, the Headmaster turned to face the school with a serious expression. "We have a lot to do, so I'll be short. Earlier this afternoon magic activated that prevents all magical travel anywhere in England, Ireland, or Scotland. There are thousands of goblin warriors in magical armor coming this way."
It took several moments to quell the panic that erupted at that. "Listen! We're not defenseless here! Hogwarts' wards are second to none, I've been working on two guardians, and we have the village of Hogsmead joining us soon. Here's what we're going to do: Professor McGonagall is going to take every student whose animative transfigurations can last two days or more into the forest. Professor, I want the creatures your group shapes to have a hierarchy where they're controlled by the more intelligent creatures. Sixth and seventh year rune students, you're going with Professor Lothar to work on a runic guardian. Mr Malfoy! You're going to be teaching as many people as possible how to use the Snake-Summoning spell, once Hogsmeade is empty I want it filled with poisonous serpents. I want six prefects to take charge of the first and second years and get some rooms ready for the villagers, then coordinate with the house elves to make sure all our needs are taken care of, the castle's elves are nearly paralyzed because of the enemy ward.
"For the next few days we need to work together or end up as slaves to the goblins. If the goblins capture this school they can use us as hostages to force the Ministry to surrender. There's a lot of hard work ahead of us, but this land won't fall because of us! Let's move people!" With that, the students and professors quickly got to work, there was a lot to do.
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With two Time-Turners ready for use the Potter Dragonflight quickly convened a war meeting at Potter Estate, five hours before the school assembly. From there they broke again with Harry, Alira, Hermione, Talion, and many of the castle's elves inside a box quickly traversing Elune's Portal and taking a portkey to Un'Goro Crater. (Located in southern Kalimdor, the humid jungle of Un'Goro Crater was surrounded on all sides by desert; the area was most famous for the dinosaurs that roamed the land. Most dangerous of all was the Devilsaur, a creature descended from Earth's Tyrannosaur. Coming to Azeroth had been good for the species apparently, since Devilsaurs dwarfed their ancestors.) During their brainstorm session Talion had suggested a wonderful idea for defending the school, so the group spent several hours harvesting a natural resource no one was likely to miss.
The Goblin's travel ward was adversely affecting the castle's house elves, preventing their form of magical travel, so they were eager to help out on Azeroth. When Harry's group had met their quota and avoided becoming extras in a Jurassic Park movie, most of the elves accepted the offer of spending the conflict helping the Azurewing set up their expanded farms. Two hours after departing Earth Harry and the others returned to Earth with their materials and split to assist the various projects. Hermione joined the Potter Dragonflight group installing the magical energy weapon to the outside of Ravenclaw tower. Apparently in the last 'Goblin Rebellion' their enemy had used armor that partially negated direct magical spells, so the weapon's schematics had been hurriedly altered to fire magically guided electricity, fire, and ice instead of simple bolts of magical energy.
Harry went to join Professors McGonagall and Sprout along with many students in the Forbidden Forest. Most transfigurations failed when the magic maintaining the change leached into the environment, but the Professors had a plan to make the transfigurations last longer. With Sprout and several of her best students, various magical plants were being bonded to the creatures being formed out of wood and rock; it wouldn't be enough to keep the creatures moving forever, but it would greatly extend the time they could be active. That was most certainly a good thing, Harry thought to himself, as he saw a muggleborn sixth year creating an army of creatures straight out of various horror movies.
As the sun set, there was something of a competition for who could create the larger, smarter creatures that would lead the rest. It took a lot out of him, but Harry managed to create a nearly life-sized model of Senegos. Needless to say, the other students didn't need to know he'd placed a magical beacon inside the construct, along with an expanded trunk with a few of the Hoarfrost Pines growing within. The beacon would allow the original Senegos to control the construct as long as Elune's Portal remained open, and the trees would provide a familiar type of magic for the constructs. Jagragosa and Stellagosa also received avatars, having volunteered to help out in exchange for the borrowed expertise of Hogwarts' house elves. (Apparently Stellagosa had heard about the interesting glamours Harry used on his dragons, because she had requested an avatar that looked very different from her real form. Harry hoped she enjoyed her avatar made of blue diamonds and steel emerald scales.)
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Harry had been a little worried about dealing with the villagers that evening, but was tired enough he barely noticed anything as Madam Rosmerta led a number of villagers into the Great Hall, each of them levitating large platters of food. Aurogon had announced to the school that the house elves had been sent away for the time being for their own health, as he was afraid they would work themselves to death trying to keep their normal workload while the Goblin's magic crippled them. With all the magic he'd expended that day, Harry could barely keep his eyes open as he sat between Ron (Who was as tired as he was, and had a face blackened with soot from working hard in the forge.) and Hermione who had been carving runes for the tower's weapon until her fingers were aching and bruised.
Harry was actually tired enough to miss all of the new rumors going around the Great Hall, mostly revolving around the Basilisk skeleton that had been moved up into an adjacent hall to have a vast number of runes carved into it. The Headmaster had told the students it was being prepared as a golem, but the truth was the final result would be a mix of rune-based magic and the Red Dragon's seldom used power to breathe life into the bones of the dead. (This was considered to be the Red Dragonflight's darkest art, and was to be used only in their darkest hour with the express permission of their Aspect. It was the last skill taught to Broodmothers as they completed their training, in the hopes that should everything else fail, they could use it to protect their charges.) If the physical proof that Harry Potter killed a massive Basilisk when he was twelve years old wasn't enough to get the students and villagers to rethink their opinions of him, the fact that he transfigured three life-sized dragons to defend the castle did.
Harry was extremely thankful he had competent people around him that night as he went to sleep, only to be awakened at three am by the Headmaster. Though he did get back to sleep after only an hour and a half of giving commands to the serpents summoned by the team that had learned Draco's famous Serpent Summoning spell. Harry's presence was required due to the poor control many people had over the spell and the highly poisonous snakes being laced around the village. After the last batch of snakes were summoned, Harry insisted on warming charms being placed on the hidden burrows now filled with serpents to ensure they could move quickly enough to be deadly. By the time he crawled back into bed he was so very tired of extolling the virtues of tasty goblins.
Making use of a good idea from Harry's first Azeroth expedition, the Room of Requirement had been turned into a joint war room and surveillance chamber. Those on the night watch had strict instructions to not wake the castle unless the Goblins reached the outermost boundary of the Castle's wards or Hogsmead village. Luckily for all the people who needed sleep, the Goblins had gotten out of their trucks, unloaded their siege equipment (mostly ladders and ropes to scale the walls, though they did have some heavier equipment) and marched to a location an hour's hike from Hogsmead before stopping for the night. Harry woke up at nine o'clock the next morning and ate a hearty breakfast before joining the group setting up golems of various types, making sure to conserve his strength and magic for the fight to come. Despite a number of improvements, most of the golems produced were still not much more than cannon fodder, but given the numbers expected to siege the castle shortly every bit helped. After all, if nothing else every attack taken by a golem was one not taken by a student or villager.
It wasn't only here that had been busy. Potter Estate and Azurewing Repose had both been working through the night to prepare supplies and weapons. Every one of Harry's oathsworn fit for battle had been armed and given amulets that disguised them as human, (obviously except for the few humans saved from Azeroth) and would be waiting in Hogwarts' secret passages in case they were needed. The longer the Potter Dragonflight and its forces remained a secret the more time they had to prepare for war with Voldemort and the Ministry, the more time to train their warriors, and the more lives they would save when Voldemort inevitably made war on England. But Harry and Aurogos both felt strongly that keeping the students safe was more important than their preparations.
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The Grand Army of the Goblin Nation broke their camp at eleven o'clock that morning. While they expected a simple sacking of Hogsmead and Hogwarts, if the battle lasted into the night it was important their troops be well rested. A night battle would play to their strengths anyway. Before they reached Hogsmead a cheer went up as their forces in Diagon reported that the Ministry of Magic remained in disarray. The Aurors had not been sent to reinforce the castle or village, and the Ministry had yet to assault their labyrinth on the Isle of Man. Now, all they had to do was burn down Hogsmead and capture Hogwarts and in less than a week Wizarding Britain would bow before Goblinkind, no matter how many children had to be used as 'examples.'
Five thousand goblins marched over the hill and broke into a charge when they saw the village of Hogsmead. They were disappointed when they found the village empty, and not just of people. Every building had in fact been emptied of everything. Honestly it took all the fun out of burning down the village, but General Ironclaw ordered the town burned anyway. As the army marched through the streets and the first wisps of smoke began to rise, a voice rang out from the castle they were moving towards. "Goblin army, this is Headmaster Salonar of Hogwarts, the individual responsible for protecting this school. I know why you're here. If you turn around and flee right now, I will spare your lives. Attack my school and I will see every last one of you dead. The choice is yours."
Almost as one, the Goblin began to laugh heartily at that. They did not, however, cease marching towards Hogwarts. In response, the Headmaster, now visible on one of Hogwarts' battlements, spoke once more, this time in an archaic form of 'Gobbledegook.' "If that is your choice, everything that follows is on your own heads. Die well. Or poorly, it doesn't make any difference to me. Enjoy a gift from my mentor, it's previously used and has a few quirks, but I think it's still quite effective."
Ignoring the derisive laughter from the Goblins as they charged the school's gates, the Headmaster raised a hand glowing with magic. With a dull thud a section of the lawn just inside the boundary of the gates fell away, and from the darkness a platform rose. Standing on the platform was a thirty-five foot (10.6 meters) tall gleaming construction of blue metal and gleaming white crystals in the general shape of man. When the platform rose flush with the ground the Headmaster made a dramatic gesture with his hand and the construct shivered to life, sparks dancing across it's form briefly. In a booming voice that sounded both mechanical and reminiscent of a polite butler, the thing spoke. "The Menagerie is for guests only."
Then the thing moved, and it was much faster than something of its size had any right to be as it charged the Goblins. Spheres the size of a goblin that appeared to be composed of nothing but arcing lightning came out of the metal giant's chest just as it reached the front of the Goblin lines. The spheres immediately began moving through the goblin ranks, hovering just above their heads. Where the spheres went, goblins were arc-welded to their armor in gruesome, fatal injuries. Just as the goblins saw the danger of the 'sparks,' the Curator met the front line. With the same emotionless voice, the construct spoke as it brought its foot down hard on three goblin warriors and ground its foot while pressing down, smearing the warriors into mush as their armor crumpled. "You are not a guest."
As the construct began to move forward into the goblin's lines, it released more sparks and spoke again. "This Curator is equipped for Gallery protection."
Given the distraction, none of the goblins really noticed the loud hissing sound that echoed through the village of Hogsmead. They did, however, notice the sudden swarm of brightly colored and highly venomous snakes that seemed to swarm out from every nook and cranny at once. Most of the student's summoning attempts had not actually produced snakes whose bite could kill an adult goblin, but even the weaker breeds would leave those bitten weak and sick. While November in Scotland wasn't an ideal condition for cold-blooded reptiles, Hogsmead was now solidly on fire. Real snakes would be in trouble from the smoke, but conjured snakes were less picky about air quality.
A rare goblin archer eventually managed to hit the Curator's 'face' with an arrow. (Lacking a true head, there was simply a line reminiscent of a visor on the rounded protrusion where a living giant's neck would be.) The Curator's voice boomed out again as the entire frame began to spark with power. "Failure to comply will result in offensive action."
In an action rarely seen, the now much faster construct punted a goblin into the distance and spoke again. "Do not touch the displays."
From there, the battle dragged on with the giant construct taking up most of the attention of the invading army. Archers and ballista proved to be about the only option to damage the construct as it charged through the goblin army, it's feet claiming as many lives as surprisingly fast punches from its hands. The sparks it cast off would chase down as many goblins as possible until enough arrows struck and destabilized their cores. (Only rarely would a spark last long enough to run out of power on its own.) Though it fought hard, eventually the Curator slowed as more and more sharp projectiles punctured its armor. As it slowed the goblins managed to begin hacking at everything they could reach with their blades, and eventually the construct fell with a few final words. "Curator is no longer operation-a-l."
A cheer went up as the construct ceased movement, though the goblins continued to strike it. As more goblins charged forward swarming onto the construct to ensure it didn't rise again and secure the valuable parts for themselves they didn't expect the entire frame, and all the goblins standing on it, to vanish in a flare of purple magic. While the battle with the metal titan had been intense, there were only a few hundred injured or dead. With a sneer on his face, General Ironclaw ordered the school taken at any cost from his position on a hill near the fence line that separated Hogwarts and Hogsmead. That was his final order, incidentally. The final thing the goblin general saw was the blue-haired headmaster make a vertical slash with his right arm and a newly-installed band around one of the castle's towers glowing brightly. Despite their general and his second in command falling in a blast of lightning, the army surged forward.
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Standing on the castle's exterior, incidentally not far from his office, Aurogon began barking orders now that the goblins were making their assault. A grim smile was on his face; the Curator golem had been deployed early to buy enough time to complete the tower weapon and get a few other things in place. "Curator's down but it did its job. Tower weapon fire at will, priority targets are the enemy siege weapons. Catapults, fire sequentially and form a barrier to funnel the goblins into the kill zone, then focus on their rear. Activate the golems when they get near the main entrance. Potter, signal the transfigured creatures to attack the goblins and focus their efforts on thinning out the front column. Archers, take every killing shot you can, remember they've got more soldiers than we have arrows right now. Everyone else focus on transfiguring reinforcements and summon snakes into the charmed baskets, when you have a full basket bring it to the overhangs."
At that, a lot of things began to happen. Ravenclaw tower glowed again, and a beam that honestly looked like a red laser struck a ballista setting up on a hill, reducing the siege weapon and the goblins manning it to ash. Two trebuchets sitting in an inner courtyard sprang into motion, their counterweights hurling payloads of metal cubes contained in glass spheres into the goblins that were attempting to encircle the school. The projectiles did look markedly odd, and the goblins were not overly concerned until the runed glass shattered, destabilizing the expansion charms on the metal cubes within. The expansion charms on the cubes then failed in exactly the way they were meant to, releasing the contents that filled them to the brim. Kept warm in stasis charms, a great volume of molten lava, fresh from Un'Goro, flared out on each hit. From the forest came a cacophony of animal calls as hundreds of transfigured creatures came charging out at the unsuspecting goblin lines. Many soldiers were torn apart by a variety of monsters before they even knew there was danger, the hazard of ignoring the threat of an unknown forest.
All along the battlements of Hogwarts, centaur filed out. It had taken them most of the night to decide to stand with the new Headmaster when he had visited them the previous afternoon and warned them a hostile army was coming. Headmaster Salonar had asked for their help and then told them if they chose not to stand with him to get far away for their own safety, but to take his gift no matter what they chose. The centaurs had been rather surprised when the gift turned out to be a metal cube that was much larger on the inside than the outside, and was filled with pasture and a few elk. Most surprising were the racks of enchanted bows, arrows, and armor near the entrance. Not only were the weapons better than what they used, they were the best weapons any living centaur had ever seen. The Headmaster had impressed them with his honesty and plans for the future during the brief speech that followed his gift. It seemed an especially important point when he pointed out that if nothing changed drastically, nearly half of the future Wizengamot was currently enrolled at Hogwarts. (The post-war baby boom had not been a small one.) If there was ever a chance to change the minds of future leadership, it was now. So now when the goblins swarmed the school grounds, the Forbidden Forest tribe of centaur stood on the battlements and rained death on their chosen enemies.
For now, the battle was going well, the Headmaster thought as he watched, making adjustments to the castle's defenses to confound the invading army and calling for the defenders to focus on specific areas as the battle progressed. He was also transfiguring as many creatures as possible to reinforce the front line that was keeping the goblins out of the entrance hall. Sadly there were a lot of goblins. But the folks manning the trebuchets were good, and soon they had created a barrier that drastically reduced the number of goblins that could assault the castle at once. (If the goblins tried to cross the lake to encircle the castle they would quickly discover exactly where Harry's Naga were spending the battle.) Of the things their enemies had prepared for, molten lava was apparently not one of them. On the plus side, if they could hold out for another half hour or so Stine and Alira would be back from Stormwind, where they were hurriedly buying out as many fletchers as possible. If the battle turned against them they had plans to protect the students and villagers, but a solid victory here would be a great boon for their future plans. With the advice of people who knew war, Harry had decided to make Hogwarts and if possible Hogsmead sanctuaries from the war Voldemort was about to start. If they could prove they could protect the castle from five-thousand goblin warriors, that was a very good start. An example also had to be set for what happened to those who attacked this school.
After the goblin's approach was narrowed by enchanted siege weapons whose reach was much farther than possible without magic, Aurogon smiled as he felt the first drops of rain begin to fall. What was about to happen was part of the reason why he felt comfortable as one of Harry Potter's oathsworn. Yes he was an advisor, yes he was the Headmaster and the one dealing with the magical public right now, but the innovative plan taking shape in the sky was all Harry's.
.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.
As the battle raged on, the attacking army only became angrier and more determined to repay the insults shown to them that day as their numbers were slowly whittled down. In the end there was no chance of any result other than victory, their army simply had numbers on their side. The fact that the wizards had gone to such great lengths instead of simply surrendering to the obviously superior race was infuriating, and even the gentle downpour falling from the sky couldn't quench the fires of their hatred.
.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.
Harry Potter, strangely enough, stood in the rain surrounded by Hermione along with Draco Malfoy and most of the notable Slytherin students. A leaning towards magic involving water had proven common in Salazar's house, for the same reason the Sorting Hat had placed the individuals there in the first place. No few Quidditch players joined them on the Astronomy Tower as well. Together they were doing something that really ought to be impossible, but seemed to be working so far. Both he and Hermione were directing the group, shouting out orders as needed. It wasn't easy, working together to create a much larger magical effect. Despite conventional wisdom saying this couldn't be done, the clouds were taking shape as they should, those disposed towards water magic bringing water vapor off the lake and forging it into dark clouds. Feeling that the next part was ready, Harry spoke up. "Good work on the clouds! Wind team, bring up hot air off the lava, but disperse it a bit or you'll overwhelm our storm!"
Those working hard with wands and mostly closed eyes worked in silence for several moments, the sounds of battle being heard not far away. Harry knew what he was 'feeling' for, and as Hermione's hair began to stand up despite the gentle rain, he knew they were close. Now for his part. "That's good, that's brilliant! Hermione, take over leading us, I need to focus. Give the storm as much juice as you think we can without dissipating the whole thing."
With that said, Harry reached out the spear in his hands and threw himself into controlling the ionization of the brewing thunderstorm. While normal lightning would easily kill an enemy or two with each strike, their goal was something much bigger. As he focused Harry could feel the charge in the storm clouds build bigger and bigger, desperately trying to ground out through the castle or a tree. But he held it in, carefully threading his magic through the sky and usurping control of the electrical energy. For Harry the rest of the world fell away and there was nothing but the storm clouds, not the archers, not the trebuchets now firing boulders with time-released expansion charms on them to conserve their few remaining lava cubes. What he was doing was difficult and rewarding, every moment he thought that if the charge built any farther he'd lose control but he managed it anyway.
Finally he truly couldn't control any more power in the storm, and with a slashing downward motion of his spear a blinding white light shot out of the clouds. Harry could feel the enormous bolt of lightning desperately wanting to ground itself in the earth, but that would be wasted effort. Instead, he brought it close to the ground near the largest concentration of goblins and with an immense effort shaped the electricity into an outward radiating arc that traveled horizontally to the ground for almost two-hundred feet (~60 meters). The first goblins hit experienced something similar to your average oak tree, when the water inside is flash-boiled by the heat of a lightning strike. Those near the point where the arc of lightning dissipated fell to the ground convulsing as the collapsing attack lost cohesion and simply electrocuted them.
Ginny Weasley, who was present to be their spotter and record their group use of Storm magic, let out her held breath slowly. "Holy fuck Harry, you just killed two or three hundred goblins. I think some of the ones near the edges are getting up, but holy fuck!"
With a dark smile on his face, Harry stopped panting and gathered his will and magic again, just in time to prevent the storm from discharging a natural lightning strike. Seeing the others were still staring, he began barking orders. "Don't just stand there people! Intensify the storm! More heat, more moisture! Let's see if we can be the ones to make them flee!"
Harry did in fact manage four more scything lightning strikes before the goblins were able to employ their own magics to disperse the storm. If asked, he would fervently deny his gleeful cackling as he smote the goblins with the fury of the skies. Their group, while hopeful they could continue to wield the storm unopposed, had actually expected the goblins to counter them at some point. Harry had been eager to create a magical air bomb by using an electrolysis spell to split the fallen rainwater into hydrogen and oxygen, but sadly the goblins had raised a defense over their army, (it was actually very similar to the common magic that protected buildings from lightning strikes) being rightfully fearful of what else the wizards had up their sleeves.
At this point, almost a third of the goblin army was dead. Sadly that still left a lot of goblins coming at them, only now the oncoming army was very, very, mad. As the storm clouds cleared, the students with strong connections to wind speeding them away now that they were no longer useful, Harry looked out. The avatars controlled by the Blue dragons of Azurewing were making their move in the form of a localized storm of sharp ice approaching the column still stretching between Hogwarts and Hogsmead. As he watched the battle continue, Harry caught his breath and felt his magic replenishing.
He had never been more grateful to Dalistraza for fixing his eyes as he watched a shape stumble into the burned out wreckage of Hogsmead. Wait, that looked like a person but the distance was far too great for it to be a human. Hastily pulling out a pair of high-end binoculars enchanted by Sirius, Harry quickly zoomed in on what he saw and cursed loudly. Not caring about having to explain his Blue Disc later, Harry removed it from an expanded pocket and flipped onto it, making a beeline for the Headmaster. Following his line of sight, Ginny zoomed in on her omnioculars and gasped when she saw what Harry had. Rubeus Hagrid had returned to Hogwarts, and at the worst possible time.
.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.
Professor Rubeus Hagrid, Keeper of the Keys and Grounds for Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry had been on a long journey. Over the summer he had been on an assignment for Albus Dumbledore to speak to a Giant colony Voldemort was interested in. When that assignment failed Hagrid had taken his half brother with him and been forced to move slowly back to Hogwarts to keep 'Grawp', his half brother, from being seen. He was planning to return through the forest and meet with Dumbledore tonight, but had hurried when he smelled and saw the smoke from Hogsmead burning down. For his entire life Hagrid had tried to be exceedingly careful not to hurt anyone with his great strength. But when he realized the army of goblins were assaulting Hogwarts, he simply grabbed a nearby fallen log and struck a goblin wearing his armor, sending the creature flying. Grawp followed his example. In that moment, nothing mattered other than protecting Hogwarts, the only home he'd known in decades, the only place he'd ever really been welcomed.
.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.
Harry had quickly reached the Headmaster and explained what was going on. Aurogon's response had been a succinct 'Accio chest A21.' A moment later said chest had arrived and the Headmaster quickly cast a flurry of spells onto the contents even as he enchanted a new speak-stone and bonded it to the interior of a helmet sized for a half-giant. Casting more spells on chest, Aurogon took careful aim before he banished it at his newly returned Care of Magical Creatures Professor with enough force to cause a sonic boom.
.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.
At the rear of the goblin army, Hagrid suddenly realized he wasn't going to survive this battle. No matter how thick his skin or strong his arms were, there were simply too many enemies, but damned if he wasn't going to take out a few of the greedy little bastards down with him! It was something of a surprise when a chest impacted the ground at his feet. He didn't have more than a few seconds to consider it before the lid snapped open and things began flying at him. He was going to fight as the objects tore off his bulky jacket and traveling clothes but he calmed down when he realized the objects were actually a full suit of armor attaching itself to him. Less than a minute after the trunk impacted the ground, Hagrid was standing in a full set of heavy plate armor. It was ornate with a fully enclosed faceplate and blended the colors of all four Hogwarts houses blending together artfully. The shoulder pads had fierce wolf heads on them, the golden yellow breastplate had the Hogwarts insignia, and a flowing crimson and black cloak had an image of a Norwegian Ridgeback dragon displayed proudly.
From the armor near his ear Hagrid heard an unfamiliar voice. "Rubeus Hagrid, do you give your oath to protect Hogwarts and its students from every danger?"
"I swear to protect Hogwarts to my last breath!" Hagrid bellowed, punching a goblin that had gotten too close and realizing that the armor didn't just protect him, it increased his already impressive strength.
With Hagrid's declaration, two beautiful axes flew out of the chest. Needless to say, they were sized appropriately for the half-giant. Double-headed, sharp and deadly with golden decorative dragons resting above the blades they floated into his hands. "Then defend your home Professor. The axes will return to your hands unless you place them on your back, where a sticking charm will hold them steady. Stay alive Professor, Mister Potter will be most upset if you don't survive this battle."
During the previous war with Voldemort, open battles like this were rare, and the mostly small skirmishes did not play to Hagrid's strengths. This battle was an entirely different story. Hefting both of the massive axes with one in each hand, Hagrid gave the one in his right hand a testing strike at a goblin who was charging him. The half-giant was honestly astounded by how easily the ax cleaved through goblin-forged armor. In truth the weapons were carefully forged by Ron and several dragons before they were enchanted as much as possible, but Hagrid's immense strength still played a large part in making them useful. With weapons and armor, Hagrid began hacking away at every goblin that charged at him, quickly becoming separated from his half brother. He didn't really realize that however, his attention was bent mostly towards cleaving the endless wave of enemies that rushed at him.
.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.
Back at the castle, Harry and the Headmaster were transfiguring monsters to reinforce the battle line while watching Hagrid tear into the goblins. If there were only a hundred enemies to worry about today he would have been fine, but there were still far too many of the little bastards. Back on the Astronomy tower the students were filling snake baskets and invisibly launching them onto the advancing force. Turning away from the newest gryphon that took wing and glided down, landing claws first onto a goblin that had just taken out a transfigured Worgen, Harry looked over the entire battlefield, trying to take stock.
In what was probably the most important development, Stine had returned from the emergency shopping trip with enough arrows to fight two battles, a stockpile of potions that they would have to brew at some point to leave for Stine to pick up today, (Hurrah for time travel!) barrels of 'alchemist's surprise' (the surprise was that the recipe for 'Greek Fire' wasn't actually lost) for the trebuchets, and a masterfully crafted suit of armor for Harry. The new armor was simple dull gray plates that fit snugly over the leather armor he was already wearing, and had jumped onto him when one of the DA students had handed him a box. Looking out, he could see the three avatars of Blue dragons were holding their own, apparently using the opportunity to brush up or instruct on the proper way to deal with hoards of small creatures attacking. But the goblins were pressing their line too hard, they'd lost nearly all of their original constructs and golems and even with the disguised Night Elves joining the Centaur archers, their last defense before the doors was about to crumble.
But looking out to where Hagrid and the accompanying giant still fought, Harry's stomach sank. There were too many, and Hagrid's giant companion was nearing exhaustion, small wounds were beginning to pile up on him. Once the larger distraction was down Hagrid would be next, and while the armor he and Ron had forged for him was good it wasn't perfect, eventually the goblins would get through. Taking a deep breath, Harry turned to his fifth oathsworn. "I need to get to Hagrid, bring up the Basilisk. After I'm there I'll draw on my mark and transfigure something big, but I'm sending the Basilisk back to reinforce the main defense."
Magic already moving to open the second 'silo' that contained the newly animated skeleton of Slytherin's monster, the Headmaster turned to Harry. "Stay alive, my Lord. Remember even if they breach the doors they haven't won, Hogwarts does not suffer invaders easily."
With that, every eye turned to what was ascending on a swiftly rising platform. It was a massive skeletal snake but each bone had been carved elaborately and then individually coated in the strongest aluminum they could forge. While much of the resulting construct was indeed based on the runes carved into it, a mockery of life had been breathed into it by all of Harry's Red dragons. Unlike a lot of other necromancy, the Red's version made no attempt to pull the soul from the afterlife or restore parts of the target's mind. Their touch, visible as an aura of red magic that shifted like a roaring fire and the red burning orbs that replaced the snake's destroyed eyes, had simply created an automaton, a construct that would eagerly obey orders.
In a funny twist however, the snake only obeyed commands given it in Parseltongue. And that fact made for an interesting side effect: Parseltongue magic wasn't just used to communicate with snakes, but for the many mundane snakes that were simply animals with no intelligence of their own, the magical language gave them the intelligence to speak. It apparently did the same for necromantic constructs. Harry had already had a conversation with the construct this morning, explaining that its purpose was to be a protector, a defender of its home and the other people who lived there. Thankfully the construct was happy in its role as a guardian.
With a hiss, Harry commanded it to come to the battlement and catch him, killing as many invading goblins along the way as possible. The Basilisk was their last big card to play, and unlike the Curator golem, this construct was connected to the castle's wards and was now filling the role of castle guardian. (While the Curator might have been a more powerful construct, it was the creation of an insane mage and had previously guarded a cursed tower. There had been concerns that connecting it directly to the wards could leave Hogwarts cursed as well.)
The soldiers that had time to set up a line of pikes in front of the snake as it came towards the castle had a rather large surprise when instead of slowing at all the snake simply let loose a torrent of flames from its mouth. Three of the Potter Dragonflight's expanded cubes had gone into the construction of the school's new guardian, one filled with sparking Stormbark trees gave the construct a surprise for anyone who struck it, one filled with Spiral Oaks provided both the Fire magic needed to produce flames and Life magic to reinforce the magic animating it, and the final cube filled with Blackstone trees both provided additional heat and the Earth magic that reinforced the skeleton.
Wishing he could ride his disc over to Hagrid, Harry leapt off the rampart and swiftly used magic to land softly and keep his footing on the sleek metal of the serpent's head. Damn the goblins and their effective broom disrupting ward. Over the course of the battle they had learned that while the goblin's armor stopped direct offensive spells, it did not protect from fire, lightning, or other physical forces. So as the rather speedy snake slithered towards Hagrid, it's fire breath clearing a path as the goblins rushed to get out of the way, Harry used both a variant of the bird-summoning charm (pulling small gryphons out of thin air was difficult but rewarding) and a spell which sent orbs of lightning bouncing after goblins. As he arrived he saw Hagrid's companion go down, a dozen bladed weapons pushing the giant beyond the help of the healers back at the castle. Hagrid didn't take that well, charging the swarm hacking the giant with a hoarse scream.
More hissing and the snake left behind a burning circle that would keep Hagrid from being stabbed in the back. With a quick leap, Harry was back on the ground nearby and ordered the snake to return to protecting Hogwarts and kill as many attackers as possible. With hard won skill and strength enhanced by his own armor, Harry leapt to the aid of the man who had introduced him to the magical world. His own spear would probably need the blade reforged after this, Harry thought as he used it to puncture the armor protecting a goblin's neck. Skipping away from three more as they charged him, Harry spun as he slashed his spear's blade into the ground and transfigured the soil into a dozen tigers that immediately moved to protect him and assist Hagrid.
Taking the brief respite to consider his situation, Harry looked around. When the flames left behind by the Basilisk faded, it looked like he and Hagrid would be swarmed. Transfiguration was clearly the way to go as far as his magic went, Harry thought as he reached a hand over his heart and opened the reservoir of magic within the magical tattoo there. He didn't expect the rush of magic to feel like pure adrenaline pouring through his body. As the released magic flooded his system, Harry had a brief moment of thought about what to shape. I've been avoiding wolves ever since the Battle for Silvermyst Isle to avoid attracting more attention from Goldrinn. But since I need to visit him soon anyway for Remus, no sense holding out now.
With that, Harry reversed his spear and drove the blade into the earth as he focused his magic briefly. With no reason to hold back he decided to go big. The soil shifted as a giant wolf's head rose up and Harry found himself standing on the wolf's head. At first Harry thought he had poured far too much magic into shaping the wolf, but then he felt it. As Harry jumped off the wolf and used magic to slow his fall, a sensation crawled up his spine. Whatever his work was now, it was no simple transfigured creature. As the wolf shook as if getting used to a new shape, every living thing in the valley where Hogwarts stood suddenly knew they were in the presence of a dangerous predator. Standing next to the wolf the size of a sprawling two story house, Harry had never felt so small. With a deep breath, he bowed his head slightly, never letting his eyes leave the creature. In his surprise at what had happened, Harry forgot to use one of the Azerothian languages he knew. "Greetings, Avatar of Goldrinn."
Goldrinn, the Great Wolf, was one of Azeroth's Ancients. From the time the first wild creatures stirred on Azeroth, Goldrinn walked the land, embodying their tenacity, ferocity, and savagery. He personified the spirit of the hunter and the instincts animals felt when prey was near or their young were threatened. He had fallen against a great host of demons in defense of Azeroth ten thousand years ago, and while he had only recently regained a physical form, his spirit had experienced much of the world while he recovered within the Emerald Dream. Goldrinn's spirit had discovered the damaged king of Stormwind and been impressed with him, bolstering Varian and granting him strength when the man needed it most.
More than anything else, Goldrinn was drawn to those who were not only capable of great feats of brutality and strength, but those who could tame their savage hearts, could focus their bloodlust and savagery towards a noble purpose. Goldrinn had already chosen Varian Wyrnn as his champion when he sensed another interesting individual shaping constructs in his image, a mage who had chosen to protect those sworn to him at any cost. If Harry Potter had to burn two worlds to the ground to protect those who had placed their trust in him, two worlds would burn.
Goldrinn had amused himself by empowering the mage's creations when they used his form, but had unnerved the teen. This time, when he felt the human mage shaping the earth into his likeness, he had poured a bit of himself into it and taken the mage's creation as an avatar. Looking around, he breathed in the air and understood the situation. A large army had attacked the place where this land's people sent their children to be trained, and a friend had found himself far from safety. The young mage seemed surprised by the Ancient taking his construction as an avatar, but that was understandable. If nothing else, it looked like there was a fierce battle going on here, and his blood boiled at the thought of joining in. But first, in a deep voice that was heard by everyone in the valley, Goldrinn spoke. "Young mage, you will come to my shrine on the sacred mountain after we win this battle."
Harry found himself nodding in agreement. "As you wish."
With that Goldrinn's avatar looked around at the two thousand goblins still standing and let loose a deafening howl. Space seemed to warp around his feet, and armored figures appeared, well most of them were armored. Harry was surprised to find all of his Worgen oathsworn along with Sirius and Remus. Looking at Sirius, the avatar's eyes glowed and man shifted into his animagus form, then the giant black dog began to shift. Sirius's second form grew in size, more than doubling into a solid mass of muscle and fang as the species changed from dog to one of Azeroth's great wolves that were often used for carrying hulking orcs in heavy armor into battle. Goldrinn looked down to Remus and spoke again. "Follow the boy to my shrine cursed wolf, and I will twist your curse into a blessing."
With that, Goldrinn howled again, making an entirely different sound this time, and every defender suddenly gained a second wind. Having thoroughly announced his presence, the avatar charged headlong into the goblin army. Lining his spear up at a goblin far from Goldrinn, Harry loosed a lightning bolt that killed it and leapt to several others before fading away. "Kill them all. We need to make an example that you do not attack this school."
To the roaring laughter of the avatar, Harry led seventeen people into battle and began pressing towards Hogwarts. It was a long, bloody slog to hack their way through their enemies, but with Goldrinn and the castle's defenders on their side they made it. The two remaining Blue dragon Avatars viciously tore into the enemy as the one controlled by Stellagosa fell. Goldrinn threw the organized ranks of the goblins into chaos and Harry's group killed many of those the Ancient did not. By the time they fought their way to the gates, half of the remaining enemies were dead or dying. With about a thousand goblins left, they realized they weren't going to win the day and began to retreat. It was with a heavy heart that Harry ordered Aurogon to cut off their escape with the last of the magma charges. Once their enemy began retreating, Harry ordered the Basilisk guardian to kill all of them and it joined the pursuit. Mercy had its place but giving it to an army that had chosen to attack a school would be foolish. Not to mention with the coming war against Voldemort, an example had to be set: Threaten the innocent here and you will die. To their detriment or credit, not one goblin attempted to surrender that day. When the battle was finished, the remaining avatars simply faded into dust on the steps of the entrance to Hogwarts.
For the defenders, there were only two fatalities: A centaur that caught an unlucky goblin arrow in his throat and stumbled off the battlements before a healer could get to him and Hagrid's half-brother. Immediately after their first loss, the Headmaster had ordered the older students and villagers to keep shields up in front of their archers and that kept the others safe. Of course there were many injuries, and more than one villager and student had been left with an arrow magicked to stay in place until a healer had the time to remove it. But still, the defense had been a crushing success. Not one enemy soldier breached the doors of Hogwarts that day.
.*.*.*.*.*.*.*.
The cheers that had erupted when the Headmaster announced the battle was over were deafening. As their injured were treated and anyone with any cooking skill rushed to the kitchens to prepare a celebratory feast Harry's more battle-hardened sworn began walking the battlefield with the returned house elves, removing everything valuable from the enemy soldiers and throwing the bodies on pyres to burn. No one really wanted to dig the graves for that many fallen, and the prevailing wisdom in those who'd sworn themselves to Harry was 'burn your dead or expect the undead.' Given the problems Azeroth had with the undead, this was a perfectly reasonable belief; additionally Voldemort had been known for creating Inferni for major battles as well. Another practical matter was that the dead have no further use for property, and goblin silver was a valuable metal. Rebuilding Hogsmead wasn't going to be cheap, every last structure had been burnt down to their foundations.
As the waxing crescent moon rose, the inhabitants of Hogwarts castle gathered in the dining hall. Everyone save a few wounded resting in the infirmary were there and had taken the opportunity to bathe vigorously. Hagrid sat at the staff table for the first time that year, missing his beard (a goblin firebomb had gotten through his helmet and ignited his beard) and was visibly depressed at the loss of his brother. He also looked like he'd been beaten to within an inch of his life, abrasions and black eyes easily visible. The poor man was horribly depressed at losing Grawp.
Coming into the hall fresh from a much-needed shower, Aurogon called for attention. "I want to thank everyone for their contributions today. Not only did we survive, but we stand victorious!" He had to wait several moments for the cheers to die down at that. "I want to thank some people in particular! Professors McGonagall and Sprout, your work with the transfigured army was inspired! I want to thank Professor Rubeus Hagrid for returning to us in our hour of need and bringing along his half-brother. For those who don't know, his brother died in the defense of our school, and will be buried along with Bane of the Centaur at the edge of the forest in respect for their sacrifice in our defense.
"I want to especially thank the Centaur for their aid today. Since Hogwarts was founded their herd and our school have been neighbors, and it pains me to say that Hogwarts has not always been honorable in its dealings with them. But so long as I am Headmaster we will never turn our backs on our allies and friends of the forest, because they did not abandon us when we needed them!"
With that, those centaur who chose to stay for the victory feast came in through the main doors, those who had stood on the walls obvious for the bandaged arrow wounds on their bodies. No shield was perfect, and those responsible for protecting the archers were not exactly trained Aurors. There was a cheer that went up, though it was quieter and more reserved than before. Still, the centaur were handed mugs of ale saved from the two bars of Hogsmead and welcomed to the celebration.
Continuing on, the blue-haired headmaster spoke once more. "As for the students who contributed to the battle, I want to thank everyone who worked on that wonderful Storm spell. That was new magic, performed for the first time today, and it was effective! I want to thank everyone who transfigured and conjured! Your hard work ensured our battle line held and not one Goblin made it into our school!"
When the room quieted again, the Headmaster continued. "Some of you may have seen the large wolf, just before it demanded Mr. Potter visit his shrine, summoned a number of beings. Most of those are creatures similar but different from werewolves. From my research of the werewolf curse, I believe it was a corruption, a twisting of an enhancement ritual that gave warriors an additional spirit to empower their bodies and magic. Sadly 'dark lords' have been a problem for a very long time, and I believe that the original blessing was warped into the lycanthropy curse. The beings that fought with mister Potter are not werewolves, but something else; apparently even in the light of the full moon they have control of themselves.
"Before we start the feast, there is one last thing. I had a request from Harry Potter, he claims that his godfather was imprisoned by the Ministry without a trial, and that his attempts to convince the Minister or anyone with power in the Ministry to grant the man justice have failed. I happen to have a vial of Veritaserum on hand thanks to the previous Potions Professor, so we're going to determine his guilt or innocence right now. Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ronald Weasley, and Remus Lupin have submitted their memories of the events that convinced them Sirius Black was innocent. Hogwarts just so happens to have a large projecting pensieve, so we're going to find out the truth together."
At that, Andromeda Tonks came forward and swore a binding oath that all of the memories that she carried in vials had been verified by two mind healers. Also that the second mind healer was keeping a low profile as she worked with Hogwarts students because she feared the Ministry. With that, Professor Senas Lothar levitated a rather enormous pensieve into the room and everyone present got to view the confrontation between an escapee from Azkaban prison and the man who had framed him. Harry kept the memory going right up until the Minister was convinced by Severus Snape that the students had been confounded. Andromeda spoke for a few moments on the effects a Confounding charm had on memories and how they were obviously not present here.
Sirius Black was brought in, escorted by Harry Potter and two men who enforced the law in Hogsmeade. He was seated in a chair in view of the entire hall and given what three different healers confirmed was perfectly brewed Veritaserum. With a clever use of silencing charms, Sirius was questioned as to whether or not had betrayed the Potters or killed muggles without being able to hear shouted questions from the crowd. To the collective gasp of the hall, Sirius answered the accusations against him in a calm, emotionless voice. "I did not betray James, Lily, and Harry Potter to Voldemort, Peter Pettigrew was the secret keeper. The only people I have ever killed were wearing Death Eater uniforms during the war which ended in 1981."
The Headmaster asked one last question of the supposed convict. "Why do you think you were imprisoned without a trial?"
"Barty Crouch Sr. hated my family. My imprisonment was also convenient for Lucius Malfoy to allow his son to inherit the Black Estate. Given recent revelations about Albus Dumbledore, he may have also played a part. But I don't know for sure, I can only guess."
Looking out at the crowd Headmaster Salonar spoke to them, adjusting the spells so Sirius wouldn't be forced to answer an asked question. "Does anyone else know of a crime this man should be in Azkaban for?"
Suffice it to say, Sirius was soon happily eating next to his godson and his friends. He was getting a lot of wary looks, but with the population of Hogsmead and the students having seen incontrovertible proof that he was innocent of everything but escaping prison, no one spoke against him. He was even forgiven for his attempts to storm the Gryffindor Common Room, since his target was actually a Death Eater that was hiding as a rat and sleeping with students. As the desert course was being served, Harry asked the villagers if they would like to see a few more of his memories. When they said yes, he asked Andromeda to show the memory of Hagrid being arrested by the Minister.
"The Ministry has to be seen to be doing something!" Was not a statement that went over well when the villagers realized that if the Minister could throw people into Azkaban at his whims, no one was really safe. Also the small fact that Hagrid had somehow brought a giant to protect them and fought hard in apparently ill-fitting armor earned him a lot of points. A lot could be said of Rubeus Hagrid, but before today no one had ever seen him harm so much as a fly but when the students were threatened he proved he had the heart of a lion. The Headmaster had briefly looked at the man as they removed the armor and treated his injuries and promised the man to have their Blacksmithing students forge him armor that fit better soon. Hagrid hadn't had the heart to tell him most of the bruises were from his brother.
Harry excused himself from the meal with Hermione quickly following him after the next memory, the attack during the summer by Dementors finished. He'd given Andromeda enough memories to outline his experiences at Hogwarts, and the next memory was Umbridge and her blood quills, and after that would be Voldemort and the Philosopher's Stone, and after that when the children had been led out would be the first public viewing of the last few moments in the Third Task's maze through the death of Barty Crouch Junior. He really didn't even remember getting into bed that night, just waking up rested and warm with Hermione and Alira's elven form at his sides. It really wasn't a bad way to wake up.
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It had been a busy night for quite a few of Harry's oathsworn, but those who had lived through wars in the past managed to finish their tasks. With help from Luna Lovegood, the Potter Dragonflight was able to negotiate a fair deal for use of 'The Quibbler's' printing press. In the early morning hours, Hedwig led the owls of Hogwarts to deliver a morning paper that was almost entirely moving photos lifted from pensieve memories and captions that told the true story of the events starting from the preparations for the battle to the impromptu trial of Sirius Black. The magically controlled eagles that had eliminated nearly every mail owl in Britain over the last few days were countered both by applying an Engorgement Charm on the delivery owls and by no small number of Hogwarts students on brooms under heavy Notice-Me-Not spells.
During the night Bill Weasley led a team composed almost entirely of Twilight dragons to rescue the Gringotts employees. It wasn't easy working out how to get a tracking spell to adhere to his patronus, but after a number of false starts he managed to find the correct vault and enter through the Twilight Realm. Thankfully they were mostly in good health, though dehydrated and hungry. Out of respect for their rescuers, the former employees of Gringotts all agreed to either swear a loyalty oath or have the exact manner of their rescue obliviated in exchange for getting them out. When the prisoners learned their escape method was through another layer of reality made safe only by the dragons with them, they understood why the group saving them wanted secrecy.
Back at Hogwarts, a discussion had gone on long into the night and only in the early hours of the morning had a deal been reached between the Headmaster of Hogwarts and the leaders of Hogsmead. The village would be rebuilt and the wards of the castle extended to protect the town, and in exchange the village would accept leadership from the Headmaster. After seeing the truth through Harry's eyes, the village also decided to secede from the Ministry's control. Hogwarts had already proven it could deal with five-thousand goblins, it seemed unlikely that the Ministry could do worse.
More than one of Harry's followers already had ideas on how to rebuild the city of Hogsmead. Though it would likely not be complete for some time, a list was being made of plants to import. More than one dragon had already resolved to import the white bark and golden leafed trees from Quel'Thalas in addition to the various new trees already grown in great numbers by the Potter Dragonflight. Azeroth and Draenor both had some strikingly beautiful plants and there really wasn't a reason not to introduce them here, so long as care was taken to prevent them damaging the local ecosystems. The only thing all of Harry's followers agreed on was that the only fully-magical settlement in Great Britain really should be more impressive than a medieval village. The elegant golden beauty of Quel'Thalas, the gleaming splendor of Dalaran, the natural beauty of Darnassus; all would influence the new design of the village adjacent to Hogwarts castle.
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Interlude: Something's Missing in Spinner's End
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Nearly a month after being rescued from Ministry custody, Severus Snape finally had a moment's peace. Yes, it was more of an errand to collect rare potions ingredients he had stockpiled at his house in Cokeworth, but it was still refreshing to escape Malfoy Manor. Voldemort… had not been pleased at the way his actions had lost any chance of him maintaining a position of power at Hogwarts. Damn that upstart for stealing the Headship, Voldemort even refuses to act against him because he's doing better than Dumbledore and giving interesting lectures!
Severus broke out of his inner monologue when he reached the home he had inherited from his parents and mostly used as a storehouse for things he didn't want found should his Hogwarts rooms be searched. Given the fact that it was a fairly pleasant day and he hadn't seen the sun in a while, he had apparated to an empty park and walked several blocks instead of appearing directly in his house. Now, he was glad he had because there was no house where his should have been. In fact it looked like someone had dug out the foundation and poured fill dirt into it. Grinding his teeth, Severus sought out a particularly noisy neighbor and knocked on their door to find out what happened.
Apparently, the same day as Albus Dumbledore was chased out of Hogwarts, an explosion had been heard and when the fires had been put out, not even the basement (where his extremely valuable potions and ingredients had been stored) or foundation was left. Dirt had been brought in so the neighborhood children wouldn't fall into the pit. The damned muggles were convinced someone had been running a meth lab in the basement! As he listened, Severus decided that some magical or another had simply stolen the entire house, poured something flammable into the pit left behind and set off an explosion. I don't know who did this, but someone is going to pay! I bet Potter and his friends had something to do with this!
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A/N: Thanks for reading! I hope you decide to review. Next chapter Remus takes an eventful day-trip to Azeroth and the wheels turn a bit.
Also, if you want to see Hagrid's axes, do an image search for 'Draconic Avenger ax' Hagrid's are just scaled up a bit.