Disclaimer: Throughout the story, I've borrowed a bunch of quotes that aren't mine. Credit goes to the people who cam up with them. I don't remember exactly where and when I used them, but call 'em if you see 'em.

Important! Please Read.

Author's Note: Here it is, Chapter 21. You guys reviewed, so I was honour-bound to post it. Be advised, however, that it could have some mistakes, since it has been betaed only once, instead of the usual two times. Ashwinder's computer got fried in a storm. Let us all pray for her return online as soon as possible. And if you haven't yet, do read her stories. They're brilliant.

I hope you enjoy the chapter.

Cygnus Crux

Face of the Enemy

Chapter 21

Anastasiou regarded the Japanese inventor with steady eyes. "So you're saying it can't be done?"

The wizard shook his head. "I didn't say that, my lord. But trying to change the collar now would likely weaken it. Or the charms could fail entirely because of interference from the potion in which he is immersed."

"You believe it is too risky?"

"Personally, yes." Yamato nodded. "However, the collar he is wearing senses betrayal. If you expressively order Potter not to harm Draco Malfoy, and he chooses to do so anyway, the collar will sense it, and detonate."

"But I don't want that. Potter makes a more valuable weapon than Malfoy a spy." Anastasiou frowned. The way things were now, Draco Malfoy was on his own. True, Malfoy had been a promising ally, but now that Anastasiou had Potter, the situation was entirely different.

"My Lord…if I may?" Von Brandenburg interrupted.

Anastasiou gestured an acknowledgement, allowing him to speak.

"I believe Potter wants revenge above all. But I believe he will go along with you if you ask him to spare Malfoy temporarily. Tell him he'll be able to do as he pleases with Malfoy after Malfoy has outlived his usefulness."

"That might convince him. Excellent suggestion, Wilhelm. Is Potter ready yet?"

"Not yet. But the ritual is entering its final stages," Von Brandenburg answered. He opened his mouth to speak, but closed it as he seemingly changed his mind.

Anastasiou noticed this. "Wilhelm, if you have something on your mind, tell me."

"It's about Selene. She wants to see her son. I think she is reading the minds of everyone she sees to find a clue as to his whereabouts. The secret of his location may have been compromised. I recommend that we move him out of the compound in Morocco and take him somewhere else. And we have to make sure that whoever transports him doesn't remember that they did."

Anastasiou pondered this. Selene was planning something, he was sure of it. He'd felt her trying to read his mind several times the last few days, but a vampire as old as he would be difficult to read, if he were resisting. And he'd made sure to close his mind every time he saw her. "Yes, I know." He turned to a black-haired witch who was Vlado's second. "Paula, find Selene tell her to meet me here in an hour. Then go to the dungeon and let me know as soon as Mr Potter is available."

The woman bowed and turned on her heel, leaving the chamber.

"How are the preparations for the action in Scotland going?" Anastasiou asked, looking at Yamato and Von Brandenburg in turn.

"My beasts are ready," Yamato said. "They too have been outfitted with Portkeys. These will activate when I give the signal. The Portkeys worn by the men will activate by themselves at two o' clock Zulu time. I reckon the ceremony should have ended by then." He patted a pocket of his robes. "I have Potter's right here."

"What about withdrawal?" Anastasiou asked.

"Also automatic. They will have ten minutes to accomplish the task, then they will be transported back to the locations they came from."

Anastasiou nodded. If any of these troops were to die, the bodies would be whisked away, leaving the British Ministry of Magic with no evidence to examine. Nothing would point in his direction, adding to the confusion. "Do you have any extra Portkeys left?"

Yamato nodded. "I have three left. Why?"

"Selene will be going to Scotland too."

"Are you sure that is wise?" Yamato frowned. "After all, a mind-reader is a very valuable asset."

Anastasiou's fangs glinted as he bared his teeth in a predatory smile. What Yamato didn't know was that Selene had become expendable. One of Anastasiou's trusted servants had reported that the boy had been showing signs of his mother's gift.

Selene hadn't known her parents and had therefore always been insecure about her heritage. She'd tried to read Anastasiou's mind to look for answers, but he'd always closed off his mind to her, lest she found out the truth. This had proven to be one of the nails in the coffin of their relationship. But he would make sure that little Charles would see his mother's killers through the memory of one of the foot soldiers who would be attacking Hogwarts in a few hours. He would use that to ensure the boy's loyalty to him, and nurture the boy's hatred of their enemies. Anastasiou stroked his chin thoughtfully. "It just so happens that Selene's son inherited her gift. She's expendable. Is there a way to make sure that she doesn't return from Scotland, Tetsuo?"

"I could disable the return charm on the Portkey. I could also modify the Portkey…booby-trap it, if you will."

"How?"

"Oh, a delayed disorientation curse. I can set it to kick in half way through the operation. One of the Aurors will surely finish her off after she's been slowed down."

"I like it." Von Brandenburg smiled.

"How fast can you do this?" Anastasiou asked.

"Give me fifteen minutes."

Anastasiou nodded. "Do it."

Yamato gave a short bow, before he tapped what looked like a Muggle watch, with his ring finger. He was gone in the blink of an eye.

"I guess that's his newest Portkey." Anastasiou smiled. "An odd wizard, but his toys make our ambitions easier to attain."

"Yes, they do," Von Brandenburg answered.

**

"What is taking Ginny so long?" Malfoy hissed angrily, as he advanced on Hermione.

"The Floo powder connection to the Burrow went down because of bad Floo," Hermione said calmly. After all, it was the truth. "She should be putting on the dress now."

"I know that! But why is she taking so long? The guests are waiting…Do you know how bad this is for my image?"

"You wouldn't want her to rush, would you?" Hermione smirked. She was enjoying Draco's nervousness. "I guess we should have let her prepare here at Hogwarts. I'm sure McGonagall would've let us borrow a room. Ah well, hindsight is always twenty-twenty," she added airily. "Now if you'll excuse me."

Hermione left the impatient Slytherin behind and went up to McGonagall's office. The Headmistress wasn't in, but she'd assured Hermione that her office could be used to communicate with the other Rangers, so Hermione briefly transformed the mirror into a communications mirror, like she'd done at the Burrow. She knew Gudrun had set up a second mirror there, enabling them to communicate.

The Icelandic witch's face appeared in McGonagall's mirror. "Yeah, what is it?"

"Any word from Doc?"

"I know he has the part. He made good time, and he's on his way back." Gudrun glanced at her timepiece. I think it's time you start the diversion at Hogwarts now." Gudrun sniggered. "I should've given you something to record it with."

"Don't worry. Luckily George thought of that too." Hermione grinned.

"Outstanding!" Gudrun laughed, and looked over her shoulder. "You'd better begin with that plan. Ginny's getting ready to go. She's looking for the special Ministry Portkey. The guys and I will Apparate to Hogsmeade and go from there."

"All right." Hermione nodded, and pulled the little crystal circle off the mirror, ending the connection. She turned around and caught Fawkes staring at her with a twinkle in his avian eyes. "Well, I have to do this, you know! Otherwise Ginny will marry an evil, scum sucking, bottom dwelling piece of vermin. "Fawkes merely stared at her with that same look and for it second it seemed as if Albus Dumbledore was contemplating her. She guessed it was true, that pets took over some characteristics of their masters.

Hermione then called Professor Sinistra, who'd also been included in the plan, using McGonagall's fireplace.

"Yes, Hermione?" The resident stargazer of Hogwarts asked.

"It's time," Hermione said.

"I'll be right down," The witch replied, and her head vanished from the flames.

That was part of the plan. MacFusty and Lupin were already in the Forbidden Forest, their cover story being that they was searching for imps to study over the summer and use in their respective classes. But in reality, they were about to summon hundreds and hundreds of pixies that would be attracted to the wedding site on the grounds by the pheromones that Snape had surreptitiously sprayed earlier. Sinistra would go out on the roof of her tower, which would be the signal to start.

Hermione heaved a sigh of guilt as she hurried downstairs. She wished she could've warned Ginny's guests, but if all the bride's guests left the site, it would look suspicious.

She got to the Entrance Hall just in time to see the electric blue swarm of Pixies come dashing out of the trees and head straight for the wedding arrangements.

George, who'd been filming the guests, turned his magical recorder on the action outside, howling with laughter as the pixies tore into the decorations, completely demolishing the tent that had been set up for the outdoor celebration.

Draco, like some other guests, was doing his best to banish the pixies. But there were just too many of them. Four pixies ripped his wand out of his hand, while a dozen pixies grabbed him by his robes. He was lifted up ten feet of so and carried over to the long table that held the food, and dumped head first into the extravagant wedding cake.

Narcissa Malfoy and a handful of other guests were grabbed by the ears and tossed into the lake, and by now everyone except for a brave few had taken cover.

The mess was unbelievable…the destruction was absolute. It had worked better than Hermione had imagined it would.

George was clutching his sides, he was laughing so hard! And Millie and Susie, having the same slapstick sense of humor, were rolling on the ground howling with laughter.

"I say, what an unfortunate event," McGonagall commented, her lips quivering in an attempt to hide her own smile.

**

At a quarter past one, Ron, his Mum and Ginny arrived at Hogwarts. The Portkey had taken them straight into the chamber behind the teacher's table. Ron saw that it hadn't changed much. The portrait of the Fat Lady's friend, Violet, still hung on the wall.

"What's all the commotion about?" Ginny asked, as she heard an exited buzz emanate from the Great Hall.

Ron had an idea what it was about, and he couldn't wait to see how the plan had worked out. He stopped Ginny from walking out of the room. "Draco might be out there. It's bad luck…"

"Tradition be damned." Ginny snapped and tried to shove him aside.

She ceased her attempts to push her brother aside when someone knocked on the door. "Is anybody in there?"

"Yes, the bride and her escorts." Ron answered. "Who is it?"

"Amos Diggory."

"Is Draco Malfoy with you?"

"Ah, Mr Malfoy is indisposed at the moment." Diggory answered, after a brief silence. "May I come in?"

Ron opened the door and Diggory quickly walked in.

"Oh, Molly…a disaster!" The Minister began. "A swarm of pixies came out of the Forbidden Forest and completely wrecked the preparations for the ceremony. Everybody is helping with the clean up and repairs. Mr Malfoy is getting his robes cleaned, and the Best Man is being treated by Madam Pomfrey."

Ron sniggered and tried to cover it up by coughing. "Crabbe? What happened to him?"

"Ah, well…the pixies pulled up his underpants rather vigorously, and he got a bit…err, constricted."

The door burst open and George strode in, followed closely by Hermione, who closed the door behind them. George was laughing hysterically, and to Ron's surprise Hermione wasn't bothering to cover up her mirth either.

"It was brilliant." George howled, gasping for air. "The pixies gave Crabbe…what did you call that, Hermione?"

"Atomic wedgie." Hermione clarified.

"Oh, it was priceless!" George chuckled, wiping the tears out of his eyes. "And I recorded all of it!"

"Ah, Miss Granger!" Diggory said, reaching over to shake Hermione's hand. "We need to discuss some things after the ceremony. It concerns Ginny's safety."

"What do you mean?" Hermione frowned.

"Well, given the Potter situation…for Ginny and Draco's safety, we were thinking of performing a Fidelius Charm with you as the secret keeper."

"Why me?"

"Excuse me! Don't I have a say in this!" Ginny huffed. "You can't go about discussing my life like I'm not even here!" Then she turned to Diggory. "And let me tell you a thing or two, Minister! First of all, don't call Harry a situation. If it weren't for him, none of us would be standing here. And secondly, even if he were dangerous I'd still not hide from him and the rest of the world, I don't want to crawl into a dark hole. I want to see my family!"

"Don't worry, Ginny," Ron said confidently "You'll be seeing plenty of your family." After all, he knew she wouldn't be marrying Malfoy today, or ever.

Diggory cleared his throat. "Well, the actual reason I'm here is to tell you that the ceremony will probably begin ten minutes to two. If everyone pitches in, everything will be repaired by then."

The door burst open once more, and the four Rangers came in. The half-goblin wizard gave Ron a brief nod, and Gudrun mimicked the gesture. Ron finally allowed himself to relax. "Good, you're here!"

Diggory smiled and nodded. "It can't hurt to have four Rangers present in these troubled times."

"What the hell happened out there?" Gudrun asked.

"The pixies were upset about not being invited to the wedding." George grinned. "A whole swarm of them completely trashed the place."

"So when will the ceremony begin? Gavin asked.

"I've been told that everything will be ready in half an hour." Diggory answered.

"Thank you, Amos." Mrs Weasley nodded. "Could you do me a favour and tell Narcissa that the bride is here?"

"Of course." Diggory nodded. But as he retreated from the room, Ron heard him mutter; "Minister…messenger boy…no respect these days!"

"Doc…glad you made it!" Ron said, the smile on his face expressing the relief he was feeling. Finally, Malfoy would get what he deserved.

"Where were you anyway?" Ginny asked, eyeing the half-goblin curiously.

"Oh, I had to rush back to the Citadel to get your wedding gift." Doc shrugged. "Gudrun forgot to bring it!"

Gudrun looked livid. "Doc, you can pucker those wrinkly goblin lips and kiss my tattooed…"

"Gudrun!" Gavin cautioned. "Watch your language. We have a virgin bride-to-be in the room." He said, winking at Ginny. "Can't have you corrupting her!"

Ginny scowled and gave him the finger.

Gavin shivered theatrically at Ginny's hostile look. "Oh, is it just me or did the temperature suddenly drop? I had better get out of here before my arms freeze and snap off!" He said as he moved toward the door.

"You're right! There are several other parts of your body, I'd much rather snap off..." Gudrun retorted.

"I love it when you talk dirty!" Gavin chuckled before hurrying out of the room.

"Gudrun, I didn't know you had a tattoo." Hermione said.

"It isn't in a very visible spot…"

"Could you please take this discussion outside?" Ron asked. After all, he didn't want Gudrun to contaminate his little sister with her wild attitude. He knew that a spitfire like Ginny would take to it like a fish to water.

Gudrun laughed and winked. "Don't worry, Ron…I'll show it to you sometime."

Hermione's own smile vanished. "No, you won't!"

"Oh, don't be jealous, Hermione. I don't like red-heads." She looked at Doc. "Come on. Let's make sure the gift works!"

Ginny looked at Hermione questioningly. "What did they get me anyway?"

A very precious gift. Ron thought, as he watched the Rangers leave the chamber.

*

The minutes dragged by, and the Rangers, Ron, Molly and Percy had joined the guests outside. Ron would be sitting with the sneakoscope in plain sight, and Doc and Gudrun would be setting up the device. Thankfully, Doc had also taken the time to test it first.

Hermione had been chosen to be Ginny's Maiden. She'd read all about it in a book about wizarding weddings. It was much like being a maid of honour, but she played a much more active role in the ceremony itself. Crabbe would be the Guardian, the equivalent of the best man. Bill and Percy would be the guardians of the North and South respectively, each representing one of the elements, and Charlie would be the Summoner, walking the Bride and the Maiden into the ceremonial circle.

After reading the book, Hermione had concluded that wizarding marriages were quite beautiful to witness. Pity that the wedding would end rather abruptly. She looked at Ginny, who was nervously toying with Harry's ring on her right hand.

Ginny had sent Hermione a letter in April, in which she described the day Draco had given her his engagement ring. It had nearly ended in a break-up, because the git had been unwilling to accept the fact that Harry still held a very important position in Ginny's heart. He had insisted that Ginny take off Harry's ring, even though she wore it on her right hand as a friendship ring and not on her left hand as an engagement ring, next to Draco's. Ginny had refused to take off Harry's ring, saying that she could wear both rings. Draco hadn't been able to accept that, and in retaliation, Ginny refused to wear his engagement ring instead.

Hermione shook her head. She had been convinced that that argument had been a sure sign that Ginny would not follow through with the marriage, since Ginny had never worn Malfoy's ring since. She was really looking forward to finding out exactly how Malfoy had got her to change her mind overnight.

The door opened and Charlie poked his head in. "Ready?"

Ginny cast a nervous glance at Hermione, who nodded and handed Ginny her bouquet. Then Ginny took Charlie's arm, and he lead them out of the castle and walked towards the ceremonial circle.

The guests all stood up…Ginny's guests all looking like they were witnessing a funeral procession. Hermione quickly searched the crowd to find the Rangers, and she found them sitting in a row near the back, not too far from the frightened looking Dursleys, who were flanked by a pair of Aurors. Doc nodded and gave her a toothy grin and thumbs up.

Charlie delivered Ginny in front of the main altar, and gave his little sister a kiss on the cheek. Ginny responded by giving his hand a little squeeze before he reluctantly let her go. Then he joined his family on the first row, where Angelina, Ron, Molly and the three eldest Weasley grandchildren were sitting. The others had remained in the care of the house-elves at the Warren, being too young to attend a wedding.

The Priest and Priestess in charge of the Ceremony were a pure-blood pair of acquaintances. Apparently, they had married Lucius and Narcissa, and Hermione saw the Priestess eye her with disdain. She probably thought that a Muggle-born like Hermione had no business attending a wizarding wedding, much less having a very important role in the ceremony.

Hermione absently registered the sound of several wizarding timepieces making an odd assortment of sounds as they struck two.

The Priest cast the Sonorus Charm before he opened his arms as he addressed the guests. "Marriage…marriage is what brought us here today."

A cold, cackling laughter rang out over the Hogwarts grounds. "Speak for yourself, old man! I had something else in mind."

As soon as the last word had been spoken, a roar coming from many throats cut through the silence. Hermione's head whipped around as she searched for the voice, and the roars. About five hundred feet away, near the edge of the Forbidden Forest, stood a cloaked figure. He was flanked by five Trolls on each side, and behind them more cloaked figures emerged. But the most terrifying things about these intruders were not the trolls. The trolls were handling what looked like a pair of manticores.

The hooded figure up front removed his hood, revealing a pale and hairless head with smouldering red eyes.

Ginny shrieked in fright, and most of the other guests did the same. Hermione couldn't produce a sound. She was afraid that the intense and irrational fear she was feeling would make her throw up. She leaned on the altar because her legs had become like jelly and wouldn't support her weight anymore. It just wasn't possible. People couldn't come back from the dead, and Harry had killed Voldemort. She was sure of it.

The Priestess however, seemed delighted by the arrival of this avatar of evil and ran towards him. "The Dark Lord has returned to us! I knew it. I knew they didn't kill you. I knew it was a…"

"Avada Kedavra!" The wizard roared, and a green light surged out of his wand and struck the woman. Her lifeless body hit the lawn an instant later. The wizard's cruel laugh froze the hearts of the guests, who all seemed petrified by fear and unable to move. "The Dark Lord is dead! I killed him myself!" The wizard rose into the air a few feet, and began to hover forward slowly. "I killed him, delivering you from him, and I was banished for it! I am no longer Harry Potter…I am no longer the boy who lived! I am the right hand of vengeance, the one who will send you all to hell! I am death incarnate and the last living thing that you are going to see!" He pointed his wand at the ceremony. "Take no prisoners!"

*

Ron felt sick. His nightmare had come to life. The wizard resembled Voldemort a great deal, but as he drew closer, Ron and the others could see the lightning shaped scar on his forehead. Harry had completely been consumed by evil now, and Ron knew there was no way Harry would ever return to the light.

The intruders were too numerous and powerful to defeat, but maybe…just maybe…they could be delayed long enough for the bulk of the guests to retreat to the safety of the castle.

"Move to intercept!" The lead Auror ordered, but half of his subordinates seemed to frightened and shocked to move. They were young and inexperienced Aurors.

"Are you insane?" Ron roared. "They'll be killed instantly!" He turned to Diggory. "Get everyone who can't fight away from here. Anyone who is too afraid to fight can leave too. I can't use you like that!"

"You heard him!" Percy barked, also taking charge.

"We've sent out a distress signal seconds after that monster appeared. Reinforcement will arrive in five minutes!" Doc said, rushing over to the Weasley's side.

It'll be all over in five minutes! Ron thought to himself. "All right." He waved his wand and tipped the main altar over. The altar was reinforced by several charms and could probably repel curses.

The Rangers reacted quickly, and began summoning the benches the guests had been sitting on. Then they transfigured them into heavy metal blocks and stacked them up for a barricade.

Ron spared a glance backwards and saw that Diggory and a few older wizards were herding the Hogwarts students and the non-combatants away. Typically, Draco Malfoy was at the front.

"Where do you think you're going…Malfoy?" Ron screamed.

"Don't have my wand!" Malfoy screamed back, increasing his pace as he did so.

"Bloody coward," Ron muttered as he spared a glance at the defenders. George, Percy, Bill, Charlie, Ginny and his Mum were all there. Angelina was also present, clutching her wand in a white-knuckled grip, and a dozen or so witches and wizard had remained behind as well.

Ron eyeballed his mother and Angelina in disbelief. "What are you still doing here? The children need someone to take care of them if we don't make it, and by the looks of it none of us might make it out alive," he cried in outrage.

"We're going to fight!" Mrs Weasley said grimly. "If all of us die, Hannah and Fleur will take care of the children."

"Mum, no!" Ron roared. "Ginny, go to the castle!" He wanted to add something about Malfoy's cowardice and duplicity, but he realised that it was not the time to rub it in.

Ginny shook her head. She looked scared to death, but determined. "It's no use arguing."

"Ron!" Hermione screamed. "Now is not the time to bicker."

"They've released the manticores!" Gavin warned.

"Line up!" Ron ordered. "Killing curses as soon as you see the whites of their eyes!"

"Their eyes don't have whites!" A young man said. Ron recognised him as Dennis Creevey. The kid had no business being there, but Ron didn't have the time to argue anymore. From the corner of his eye, he saw Mayumi stand on her toes and kissing Gavin on the lips.

"I'm sorry that I've been so cruel to you. I love you!"

Gavin stared at her in disbelief and he brushed his lips with his hands. Ron had to call them to attention. "You have terrible timing, Mayumi. Now keep you eyes on those manticores!"

Gavin turned his attention back towards the attackers, and the defenders had all lined up behind the makeshift barricade.

"On my order…." Ron said, raising his left hand and waiting for the manticores to come just a little closer. Three hundred feet…two hundred feet…"Now!" Ron roared, and the defenders all shouted the feared words of the Killing Curse. A dozen green beams shot out of the tips of their wands. Seven of them hit the manticore of the left, and five crashed against the manticore on the right. Ron's face drained of all blood and he forgot to breathe as he witnessed the result, or rather, the lack of result. The beasts just kept coming.

"They're already dead!" Gavin groaned. "Killing Curse doesn't work!"

It was one of those moments where time seemed to slow down. It had happened far too often in his short lifetime. Ron had had far too many moments like this. He looked at Hermione, and found her staring back at him with a sad and apologetic look in her eyes. It was nobody's fault. Fate had caught up with them. Their number was up!

He looked at the others. Angelina and George shared one last kiss. Ginny gripped her mother's hand tightly, tears streaming down both their faces. Charlie, Bill and Percy just looked at the approaching manticores in disbelief. He knew exactly how they felt. He could only hope that the others would be spared, and that there was someone out there who could stop Harry. The manticores came closer and closer…one hundred and fifty feet…one hundred and thirty.

He looked up at the sky…cloudless and beautiful. It was midsummer, and the sun was still near its zenith. A beautiful day to die! Ron mused, relishing the blinding rays of the sun. Then the sun was gone…blocked out by a huge hovering sea-creature. I must be hallucinating! He thought, and the belly of the creature opened. It was laying eggs…two pair of shiny white orbs shot out of the belly. His eyes followed the orbs as they shot towards the ground…towards the two charging manticores.

A bright light…then the thundering sound of an explosion…followed by the huge shock wave that blew his off his feet. He landed ten feet away. His were ears whistling. He looked at the sea creature, which was right over them. The rear part of its belly opened and a man tumbled out, falling a good fifty feet. But at the last instant, the man slowed down and made a soft landing. Half a heartbeat later, another touched down next to him…and another…and another. All of them armed to the teeth and wearing battle armour.

The one who had come down first knelt down beside him.

"Wolfe?"

The man nodded and yanked him to his feet before turning to Hermione and yelling instructions to her. She nodded and turned to the others, relaying the orders. Soon, his brothers were on the move, retreating with Angelina, his Mum, Ginny and all civilian witches and wizards. He felt a hand on his shoulder, gently but insistently trying to get him to move. He saw who the hand belonged to. "Hermione?"

"Ron…we have to go!"

He shook his head after he'd looked around. Despite the arrival of a dozen Combat Rangers, they were still badly outnumbered. "We can help!"

"No! Max told us to get out of here!"

"I'm not a Ranger yet, so he can't order me around!"

*

Hermione ground her teeth together in frustration. Typically, Ron wouldn't listen

"Tactical retreat!" Faust ordered, and the Rangers began hurrying back to the castle.

"We can't!" Ron argued. "They'll have fair shots at our backs!"

"The Hurricane will cover us!" Faust said. "Now move!"

As Ron ran back to the castle, he looked over his shoulder and saw the war cruiser shoot several of those white orbs into their attackers. But the orbs seemed to shatter over a shield that protected the attackers. It was as if they were co-operating to create that shield. It was clear that they were very disciplined, and that the defenders would have been overrun quickly had it not been for the arrival of the Rangers. It suddenly occurred to him that the Rangers had arrived very quickly. But before he could entertain that thought any further, he saw Harry shoot curse after curse at the Ranger ship! The shields held the repelled five curses, but the sixth one breached them and hulled the cruiser. The craft wobbled violently before drifting off, all the while losing altitude. It plunged into the shallows of the lake!

The Rangers had all come to a halt. "He brought down the shields on his own!" Patience Gedeon exclaimed, horrified.

"This isn't fair!" Gudrun yelled angrily. "We're like the National Guard, going up against Godzilla."

"Yeah…well, Tokyo is still standing!" Mayumi answered.

Faust in turn, looked at Ron. "Suggestions?"

"No." He knew too little about the attackers. Ron shook his head. "I won't be much help."

"Sir…we'll take the trolls first. They're highly resistant to a lot of curses. But the curse capsules should take them out. Then we shatter their formation and pick then off one by one…"

"They're charging now!" Kahn yelled.

"Stunners on the wizards…destroy the trolls!" Faust spoke calmly into his broadcaster. "Wolfe Khan….Wolfe?"

Ron looked at Wolfe, who was staring at the cruiser with a horrified expression.

"Galatea…" Wolfe's anguished howl echoed over the grounds and Ron suddenly understood. Galatea must have been on the cruiser.

Wolfe fixed his gaze on Harry, who stood smirking on the barricades that Ron had erected earlier, while the strange trolls and the wizards charged. The air around him shimmered briefly, before he burst into a sprint. He moved several times faster than humans were able to move, going straight at Harry, not caring about the fierce trolls and dozens of wizards that were in his way. He drew his sword and held it in his left hand, while he held his wand in his right.

The lead troll saw him coming and attempted to cut him in two with a swipe of its huge scythe.

Wolfe, boosted by a wand-less speed and levitation charm, leapt over the blow. His jump carried him up and over the troll and he thrust his sword into its skulls when was directly above it. Leaving the sword behind, Wolfe continued on.

The troll's eyes rolled up in its head as it crashed to the floor, as Wolfe nailed a second troll with a killing curse between the eyes.

The sudden defeat of two powerful trolls caused the attack to waver, and Ron knew this was the only chance they'd get to counter attack. The German Ranger Captain apparently had had the same thought, because he ordered the Rangers to attack.

"Incapacitate the wizards, destroy the dark trolls!" he shouted as he lead the others into the fray.

"What are you waiting for?" Ron shouted at the Aurors, who were watching the Rangers leap into action but not moving themselves. "They need help! Watch each other's back, but stay apart." This was a standard battle field wisdom, since a group of people made a tempting target for a Reductor Curse, since a powerful enough curse could kill a lot of people. "We'll go around and attack their right flank!"

"Not alone, you're not!" Charlie yelled.

*

As Ron lead Charlie and the nine Aurors around for a flanking assault, Hermione and the Rangers drilled into the enemy formation. The Trolls were the first to fall to a storm of green light, but not before one of the Combat Rangers was hit by a huge mace. The blow caused the Ranger to fly back and crash onto the ground fifty feet away.

Suddenly she was pulled down, and a beam of green light passed right where her head had been. The person lying on the floor beside her fired a stunner at her attacker, and the wizard was blasted backwards by the sheer force of it.

"Watch yourself!" Khan yelled, before scrambling back up.

Hermione looked at the battle. So far only one Ranger had been incapacitated, but by the looks of things they were about to get very ugly. The attackers had been caught off guard by the sudden charge, but they had regrouped quickly enough. The odds were stacked heavily against the Rangers.

Just as the attackers began to take aim, a handful of them were knocked away by stunners that came from the right, and again the enemy formation hesitated in confusion, giving the Rangers time to unleash another salvo that took down another ten attackers. The odds were about even now, and the Aurors merged with the group of Rangers.

"Charlie, watch out!" Hermione heard Ron scream. Charlie had gone to check on the fallen Ranger and he had his back turned. Even as Ron and Hermione aimed at the attacker, she knew it would be too late. Hermione's intestines turned to lead. They would never save him in time.

Suddenly the attacker flew forward, propelled by a burst of red sparks. The others were shocked and turned their heads to see who had managed to come up behind them.

The Rangers and Aurors used the additional distraction to stun even more enemy wizards, until only a single one remained. The hood had fallen back, revealing it to be a woman. She obviously was having difficulty remaining upright.

In a flash of insight, Hermione recognised her. But before she could say anything about it, a bluish light washed over everybody in the vicinity. Hermione found that her body was nearly completely petrified. She could only move her head. She craned her neck to get a better look. Only Max had managed to block whatever it was that hit them, and he was standing in front of Harry, his wand pointed at him.

Harry laughed mirthlessly. "I'm impressed, Wolfe. I put a lot into the freezing wave, and you can still move. But you're exhausted, aren't you? Of course you are…you're nothing special."

"This is the end!" Wolfe said. "I won't let you hurt anyone else!"

Hermione knew that there was nothing Max could do. He was too worn out. He was only trying to buy the people in the castle more time to prepare themselves.

With a casual gesture, Harry cast a banishing charm that sent Wolfe careening away and smashed him against the Whomping Willow.

"So much for the greatest Ranger." Harry cackled.

"Harry, this is madness!" someone pleaded. Hermione couldn't see who it was, but she knew it was Ron.

"You can still stop this, Harry."

"Stop?" Harry threw back his head. "Why would I want to do that?"

"Because it's the right thing to do!" Hermione yelled, making her presence known.

"Ah, Hermione!" Harry grinned maliciously. "I should have known…you never leave your boyfriend!"

"It that what this is all about? Are you angry because I turned my back on you?"

"Not everything is about you. I've given my life for the wizarding world, and all I got in return was misery. The wizarding world owes me, and I'm collecting." Harry said, aiming his wand at her. "Time to say goodbye, Hermione! Be grateful…now you won't have to marry Ron and raise a next generation of paupers! Avada…" he screamed, but before he could finish the fatal spell, another curse blasted him off the barricade. He tumbled out of sight for a moment, only to come hovering back up seconds later. "Wolfe! You don't know when to give up, do you?" Harry laughed as he aimed his wand. "Then you'll die first! Ava…

"Before he was able to finish the curse, an angry voice roared…"Expelliarmus!" This curse had been much more powerful than the last one. It wrenched Harry's wand out of his hand and blew Harry into the lake. Hermione hadn't known that Wolfe had still had such a reserve, and she hoped that he'd be able to keep it up, as she tried to use the extra time to concentrate, trying to overcome the freezing wave. But it was no use.

"Finite Incantantem!" The voice bellowed, and a white light washed over them, stripping away the curse that had her immobilised. Hermione immediately got up.

"By Baron Samedi!" Patience Gedeon gasped. The other Rangers were also wearing stunned expressions as they all stared at something behind Hermione. She turned around to see what the commotion was all about, and her mouth fell open in shock. Their rescuer was wearing what looked like a golden, medieval, full-body-armour. It consisted of plates and chainmail, which sparkled in the blazing sunlight. His green eyes held a look of fiery determination, and he brushed a fringe of raven hair out of his face, revealing a lightning shaped scar.

"By Grindelwald's black heart!" Faust muttered. "There are two of him!"

***

A/N: Surprise! Man, I wish I could see your faces. I have waited so long to get to this point, but I didn't want to rush the story. Please review to let me know what you think…and Condor 5, I am not blackmailing anybody this time! J I'm asking nicely.

Bucky, I hope this improves the story for you a bit.