Disclaimers: I do not own Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings.
A/N: When I first made this story, only Shadow of Mordor was out. Now Shadow of War is out and it adds a whole new layer of content I can use. Anyway, I'm sure some of you are wondering about Lavender's role in this story and I would like to say she will probably be the co-main character alongside Ron despite the fact that the two of them AREN'T going to end up a couple in this story. They are partners, nothing more. But she will have her own side of the story and you will see things from her point of view. It will also explain her change in personality.
Chapter 3
Where It All Began
"You know, I think I might go hunting in the woods around here after the job tonight. Take a shot at hunting down a unicorn. I hear they're delicious", Lavender, or "Moon Queen", said to her partner as she laid down on the bleachers, watching the clouds go by as the sun was nearly set.
"First of all, I don't think you could catch one", Ron, or "Crimson Griffin", replies.
"How dare you insult the Queen of the Night who also goes by the title of Queen of the Forest?", Lavender says as she mocks hurt, "I bet you ten galleons I could! Know what? Make it twenty!"
"Second of all, we do not want to cause an incident that we will have to explain to the boss and big boss about even if you did catch one", Ron concluded, "Also, just how many titles do you give yourself?"
"How would they know it was me?", Lavender questions.
"Oh yes, because a unicorn just happens to die in the same area that the two of us were operating in. Big coincidence there", Ron states, ignoring the fact that she fail to answer his question.
"Fine, fine, you made your point", Lavender says before an evil grin appears on his lips, "Still can't believe you chicken out at the last second though."
"I didn't chicken out as you say. I just wasn't ready to face Harry yet, so I left before he came in the room", Ron retorts as he rubs the scar that was running down his face over his left eye with his thumb, a habit that he had developed that he usually did whenever he was jittery. With his hood temporarily off, one could see the long red hair that went down to the top of his shoulders along with the small beard that adorn his lower chin.
"That's what chickening out means, or bitch out as the Yankees say. Oh man, I can still hear the boss' voice ringing in my ears from when he gave you such an ass-chewing for forcing him to postpone the Red Flag operation against Harry.", Lavender laughs. Unlike in the past, the girl had cut her hair short and now it barely reached past her ears. Also unlike her partner while he had on a full-body black cloak and hood, the former Gryffindor has instead worn a set of tatter clothes that look like they were pulled out of the dumpster, though she did wear an open black hoodie jacket on top of everything, the hood itself being magically enhanced to hide her face when necessary.
"You have gotten a lot nastier in these past few years, you know that?", Ron states.
"Well, walk in my shoes over these past years and see if you come out with an optimistic attitude", Lavender counters before looking around, "You know, I always wanted to sit up here during the matches just to see what the view was like."
"There ain't much of a difference if you ask me", Ron says, "By the way, was there fighting over here during the battle?"
Lavender shakes her head, "Nah, though I remember hearing that it was used as a gathering point but they destroyed it before moving on to the school."
"Huh", Ron states as he got up, "Well, let's get going. We got to be in our position soon."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm coming. Forgive me if I'm a little slow today, I just never thought I would be back here.", Lavender says as she and Ron started to head down from the teachers' section and left the Quidditch fields, the banners already set up for the upcoming Hufflepuff and Slytherin playing soon and toward their destination which was Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
A place that held countless memories for the two of them.
But they weren't here to revisit days long passed.
No, for tonight was a special night. For it was the night that mark the eight-year anniversary of the battle that ended the Second Wizarding War. Tonight would be a night for the survivors of that awful conflict to remember those who didn't live to see the end of it. Famous wizards and witches from across the Isles would gather here in a few hours to commemorate this event as they have done in years past.
And that alone made it a perfect target for the remaining Death Eaters who were now re-organizing. For the last seven times this event was held the lack of strong leadership within their ranks had them stop being considered a major threat to the magic community, and thus such events like tonight were safe from their retaliation.
But now times have changed. A strong leader has risen up from the ranks of the remaining Death Eaters and their allies, one who plans on bringing out a Third Wizarding War and this time succeeding where Voldemort had failed. He has begun gathering the remaining cells and bringing old allies back into the fold along with new ones.
One would hope that with all of this maneuvering and such that even the Aurors would put a name and face to this so-called "Second Voldemort", but alas, such information evaded them and their Shadow Aurors counterparts.
And this is where Crimson Griffin and Moon Queen come in along with the rest of their team dubbed "The Misfits".
The current Minister of Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt, wasn't taking any chances. While he was smart enough to keep the same numbers of Aurors in the security force for the memorial service as it was in previous years in order to keep everyone calm, he also ordered an entire Shadow Auror team to be on the grounds as well.
Safe to say that neither Ron nor Lavender were particularly happy that it was their team that was chosen, though if the other six members of their team had the same sentiments, they didn't voice them.
"Unbelievable, why in the bloody hell did we get chosen to babysit?", Lavender grumbles as the two of them made their way across the fields to the castle, using the night as cover. Luckily for them, Mr. Shacklebolt was kind enough to provide them with the patrols route for the regular Aurors, though even without it the two of them would have easily evaded their watchful eyes, especially in the dark.
"Because we're, I don't know, one of the two teams assign to the entire British Isles and Rickory and his team are busy dealing with the Leprechaun's Rebellion in Ireland. Geez, if I didn't know any better, I'd say it almost sounds like you don't want to make sure your old friends don't get kill tonight", Ron dryly states.
"Oh please, Harry is considered the best Auror since Mad Eye. Neville, despite only serving as an Auror for three years and is now the Herbology professor here, is still on the recall list due to him being surprisingly good at hunting down Dark Wizards, plus Dean and Seamus will be there as well and they're Harry's right-hand men", Lavender retorts, "Plus, nearly all the surviving members of Dumbledore's Army will be there as well. I doubt they need us here."
"But you never know, Greyback himself might show up", Ron points out.
At the mere mention of the werewolf's name, Lavender's blue eyes shift to blood red and Ron watches as she bare her fangs and extended her claws.
"That would more than make this whole thing worth it", she chuckles darkly as a sinister smile appears on her lips, "Almost as much of having to see you deal with the fact that all the friends and family you abandon will be here tonight in one room."
"Don't remind me", Ron says as his mood suddenly darkens. Harry was one thing, but his family was another. He has been keeping tabs on them ever since he got back from his "adventure" and if it was one thing he was amazed by it was the number of nieces and nephews he now had. Children who will grow up in a world where the closest they get to see "Uncle Ron" was through the family picture albums that were dotted all over The Burrow or whenever one of them inevitably walks into his old room whenever they visited Grandpa Arthur and Grandma Molly.
"I wonder if my room is even still there", Ron thought to himself before his mood sour even further as one more person pop into his mind and she was the only one the Shadow Auror wanted to avoid even more so than Harry Potter or his own family.
But his thoughts are interrupted by Lavender answering a call on her communication trinket, having now reverted back to her normal self.
"Copy that, we'll be there", she says before turning to Ron, "The Minister wants to meet with us in the Headmaster Office, he'll be leaving the window open for us. Oh, also he won't be alone."
"Bloody marvelous", Ron states as he throws his hood over his head and the werewolf next to him did the same. They then look toward the new destination and saw that the window to the Headmaster's Office was indeed being open by Arthur Shacklebolt.
"Well, that's way too far for the Gauntlet and the Kite would draw attention, guess there is only one other way. You ready?", Ron asks as he focuses his magic and places a hand on Lavender's shoulder, ignoring the shaking he felt when he did so though it did bring a slight smile to his face.
"S-surely, we could use the Floo Network. I might have some Floo Powder lying around somewhere on me", Lavender suggested.
"Hmm, they have wards in place to prevent that in all the chimneys in the school, so that's a no", Ron told her, still smiling underneath his cloak.
"Then what about Apparition? Surely that must be an option! I have gotten quite good at it", Lavender states.
"Nope, same reason as the first, and those were in place when we were in school; plus I hate that spell with a passion ever since I had a certain little incident all those years ago", Ron replies as he looks directly at the window, "Oh well, here we go. Oh, and try not to vomit this time. "
In a flash, Lavender saw her vision go black and white, the surrounding area cover in what seems to be a thrashing ocean of visible air. For a moment in time, she could see the masses of people starting to gather in the Great Hall despite there being several walls between them. They were merely white outlines, but she could make out subtle movements from a distance like drinking and scratching one's head. But in the next moment, they all became a blur as she was flung forward through the air, and within a heartbeat, she found herself standing on the window ledge which led in the Headmaster's office, struggling to keep herself from falling forward while keeping her lunch down.
"Goodness gracious!" she hears a voice ring out in front of her as she tries to regain her balance and quickly looks up to see a familiar face.
It was the Headmistress of Hogwarts, Minerva McGonagall, and at the moment she had her wand out and alternating pointing it between the two operatives.
"Minvera, please!", she hears from her left and turns her head to see her big boss, the Minister of Magic, moving to step between the two parties, "I warned you that these two make quite unusual entrances and to not be alarm when they do!"
The former teacher now headmaster briefly glances over at her friend before speaking, though she kept her wand switching back between the two mysterious strangers who she didn't know were people who once sat in her Transfiguration class.
"You will have to forgive me, Kingsley, but one moment I am staring out the window wondering why you open it and the next two mysterious individuals with their faces covered up suddenly appear!", Professor McGonagall states as she then slowly lowers her wand, "I deduce that these two are part of the team you ordered to oversee the memorial?"
Seeing that the situation has calm down a little, partially due to neither of the Shadow Aurors in the room actually making any attempt to respond to the Headmistress' aggressiveness, Kingsley step to the side and gestures a hand at them, signaling them to step forward. While doing so, both of them took note of the portraits in the room which had blankets thrown over them, held up by magic.
"The big boss is taking no chances right now", Ron thought as he turn his attention back to the Minister, who was visibly letting out a sigh of relief.
"Thank the heavens these two do not consider the Minvera a threat even with her wand out or it would have been extremely difficult to explain why Hogwarts suddenly has a new Headmaster while the previous one suddenly went missing. Though I could chalk it up as her being their former Professor", Kingsley thought before speaking, "May I introduce Crimson Griffin and Moon Queen, Minerva?"
"Delighted to meet you", she responded, though her expression and tone said otherwise, "I believe Mr. Shacklebolt introduce you two as the", she says before looking at Lavender with a look that the girl couldn't put her finger on, "The werewolf and the...", she said as she then turn her attention to Ron "Well, I'm afraid the Minister couldn't quite describe you."
"You can just call me a ranger, if you must. Though I have to ask, why are we being introduced to a civilian so casually?", Ron said from underneath his hood, though his voice was several octaves lower than before and was even distort. This night was already going to be complicated enough as it is and he didn't want to throw more chaos into it.
"If you must know, Crimson Griffin, she is one of the reasons you and Moon Queen even have a job right now", Kingsley admits.
Lavender raises a finger while scratching her neck, secretly activating the Amplifying Charm that was applied to the inside of her hood in order to change her voice, "Some contexts would be nice."
"You see, years ago when I was debating whether or not to go forth with the notion of reviving the Shadow Aurors, I came to the Headmistress for advice", Kingsley began, "While she was initially against it, she did see the value of having such an organization around and would only agree to back me if I agree to make sure strict regulations were placed on them so that we would not have a repeat of the past."
"That's funny seeing how nearly half of my team was part of the original Shadow Aurors before their disbandment and constantly comment on how there are a lot more rules now then there used to be", Lavender says.
"Wait a minute", Ron says, "Are you implying that the Headmistress knew about the Shadow Aurors prior to?"
"As the Minister of Magic, I decide who can and cannot know about them", Kingsley replies, "Do you not agree, Crimson Griffin?"
Ron knew better than to answer this question and merely shook his head before sharing a look at Lavender. Thanks to the magic in their cloaks, they could see each other's faces and hers mirror his own.
"This is going to be a long night", they both thought.
"I...know... you two", a voice groggily says from behind them.
The duo spun around to face the originator of the voice with such speed that they startle both the Minister and the Headmaster. Ron drew his sword and had it poise to strike while Lavender extend her claws and lowers herself to the ground, ready to pounce.
And came face to….face with the Sorting Hat of Hogwarts on a shelf behind an enormous, claw-footed desk, looking like it just woke up and was now staring at the two.
"You both have an aura about you that I have felt before. You two walked these halls, studied in these classes, and stroll through the grounds of this very school years ago. You made memories that would last a lifetime and experience the ups and downs of growing up", it began to speak, "Yet you are far different than you once were when you attended. I cannot seem to rightfully determine who you are exactly. Were you Slytherin, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, or maybe Gryffindor? Perhaps if you were to place me on your head, I could make a better guess."
Both Ron and Lavender freeze up at this revelation for it never occur to either of them that a situation like this would come up.
"You two used to be students here?", the voice of Headmistress McGonagall says from behind them, causing them to turn around and for a brief moment in time, they were positive they were going to have to enact the Shadow Aurors' "Full Secrecy" protocol on their old professor.
Luckily, the big boss decided to step in.
"Minerva, literally thousands of students have come and gone through the halls of Hogwarts. It is not far-fetch to believe that not all of them ended up with worthwhile careers such as Harry Potter or Hermione Granger. For example, Bellatrix Lestrange.", he spoke, not seeing the uncomfortable look on Ron's face despite the Minister being able to see through the charm that was placed on his hood.
"Then I suggest you aid me and reveal the identities of these two former students of mine since I have taught far more than I could possibly remember", the Headmistress presses.
"Shadow Aurors' identifies are classified and you know this", Kingsley states.
Headmaster McGonagall regards her old comrade with a glare that almost made both Ron and Lavender want to run for the hills, an instinct that was basically drilled into them during their days at Hogwarts.
"This conversation is far from over, Mr. Shacklebolt", she merely says before finding her attention drawn to the black sword that Crimson Griffin was holding. Despite being as dark of the moonless night sky, it glow brilliantly and for a moment in time, Minerva found herself in a trance as she took in the sight of it.
"What sort of magic could have created that?", the Headmistress wonders as the two Shadow Aurors look back at the Sorting Hat, which was still staring at them, one last time before returning their full attention back to the matter at hand Ron sheathing his sword along with Lavender retracting her claws in the process.
"Now that that is all out of the way, we can get down to business", Kingsley states as he pulls a map out of his sleeve to show the layout of Hogwarts Castle, "Now I have credible evidence that all points to there being an high probability of an attack on the memorial this very night. "
"How many can we expect and are they all Death Eaters?", Ron asks, happy to finally get to do something he could handle.
"Actually Crimson Griffin, we have no estimate on the numbers nor their make-up. All the intel that both the Aurors and Shadow Aurors have gathered point to the fact the Death Eaters have been expanding their recruitment to both werewolves, vampires, and the likes, so be prepare for anything tonight.", Kingsley answers, "For days now, there has been reports of small numbers of Dementors trying to get through the wards on the furthest edges of the Forbidden Forest and the Centaurs tribe have reporting seeing human-like figures moving in large numbers in the distance beyond the edges of their territory. Seeing how whoever this was did not make any move to threaten the tribe, they chose not to engage them."
"Is there any chance that Greyback himself will be appearing tonight?", Lavender asks and both Ron and Kingsley cast her a warily look, for they could feel the menacing aura rolling off of her; so much that even Headmaster McGonagall place her hand back around her wand and slowly moved a few steps away from her.
"I am aware of your past with him and I feel that I must order you that the protection of the civilians attending the memorial is our top priority", Kingsley tells her.
"Fine", Lavender grumbles as she calm down.
"As are the students who will be staying in their dormitories while this event is going on", Headmistress McGonagall chides in while re-focusing her attention on the Minister, "Can you and your people ensure the safety of my students or do I need to use my authority as Headmistress to cancel this gathering?"
"Then I would have to use my authority to override such a thing", Kingsley warns her.
"So then you are using everyone in attendance tonight as bait to capture these Death Eaters, including mere children!", McGonagall accuses.
"To be fair, it was mere children that brought down Voldemort", Kingsley states, and both Ron and Lavender were presented with the sight of watching the most politically powerful wizard in the Isles start sweating profusely as the McGonagall levels him with a cold stare.
"P-Please believe me when I say it is not my intention to put innocent people in harm's way, but I ask you to please try to see things from my point of view. I have an extremely dangerous dark wizard who, despite the efforts of both the Aurors and Shadow Aurors, has evaded all efforts to gather any information on them let alone catch them, and this might be the one opportunity to apprehended them before they get too dangerous should they show themselves tonight", Kingsley explains as soon as he gathers his nerves, "It's a risk I have no choice but to take in order to prevent a Third Wizarding War."
"Then I advise you and your people work harder, Kingsley, and not endanger the lives of my students", Headmaster McGonagall counters before looking at the other two occupants in the room, "Now, if you would be so kind, tell me how exactly how these two "former students" of Hogwarts are going to achieve this."
Kingsley coughs into his fist before speaking, "Crimson Griffin and Moon Queen are just a quarter of the team patrolling the grounds, though they will be the only ones inside the actual school seeing how they are familiar with the layout. The rest of their team will be taking sentries duty in various points. Forest Charger and Rock Smasher will be guarding the Forbidden Forest while Water Damsel and Beast Master will be patrolling the Black Lake. Finally, Blood Fang and Fiery Beauty will be constantly circling overhead, ready to provide assistance to either one of the ground crews if needed as well as keep a lookout for trouble."
"Must all you have such...intriguing names?", the Headmaster asks, "Surely, you could simply go by your birth names."
"If it makes you feel better, we had no say in the names we were given even if the one given to me fitted quite nicely", Lavender laughs.
"It does not, Miss Moon Queen", McGonagall replies before focusing her attention on her for the moment, "Also, should I be worried about having a werewolf wandering these halls tonight, even one such as yourself that is on our side? The last time such individuals were on Hogwarts' grounds, they were not the most pleasant of guests."
"That's a pretty crappy way to put that I nearly got mauled to death, but okay", Lavender thought bitterly before speaking, "Of course not, Headmaster. Unlike those...uncivilized peasants, I have more control over myself."
"Well, I certainly hope so", McGonagall says and the two ladies go back to listening to Kingsley.
Ron, on the other hand, had completely drown out the whole conversation at this point for his mind was a jumble wreck as a flood of memories and guilt that he has been trying to suppress had finally made it way to the surface.
"I can't bloody believe I'm actually going through with this. I'm standing in the very place where people I knew and care for died while I wasn't here to help them. Where Lavender was nearly mauled to death by Greyback and Harry nearly died. And where was I when all of this happen? Running away from my problems like a coward", he thought as he remembers back to that day that his whole life changed.
Remembering back to the day he walked out on his two best friends, found himself in the beautiful yet deadly Middle-Earth and how he first encounter the ranger known as Talion and the elf known as Celebrimbor.
A/N: McGonagall plays no games when it comes to her students. Next chapter we find out what happens to Ron when he walks out of that tent. Plus Hermione and Harry finally make their appearance as well as Talion. Also, Ron "Shadow Strike" with Lavender to the window, and what Lavender saw was the Wraith World.
