Disclaimer: Go to www.geocities.com/quidditch_champ_raven/Coyote_Iktomi.html to see pictures of me, to read about me and to see the pix I have of Iktomi and upcoming characters. If you have any pictures you want posted them email them to me and I will have them posted for you. I do not own Harry Potter, but I do own Degas, Binx, Galileo and Iktomi (A character form the Oglala Sioux folklore) and the Little People, who are in all cultures of Native Americans. READ AND REVIEW!!!!!!!

Black Knight

          The night sky perfectly hid Degas as it usually did. She wore her black clothing (black jeans tucked into combat boots with a skintight black tang top and black fingerless gloves), her hair, shaved half and inch above her ears and all the way down leaving a small patch that was braided and reached the small of her back, the hair above her ears reached her shoulder and was jet black. Her tanned skin caught the soft moonlight and looked momentarily like a ghost. Her silver eyes were darting in every direction but saw nothing. She skidded to a stop in the middle of a deserted intersection. The wind stirred in a gentle breeze, but there was no sound whatsoever.

          "Degas," a voice said in her ear. She tapped the communicator and the voice got louder. "Degas, what's happening?"

          "I see nothing." Degas reported. "Are you sure that she is coming this way? Is there solid proof that she is coming to Hogwarts?"

          "Degas, where else would she go? Harry has a lot of enemies, Ikto is one of them."

          "But there is no proof that Ikto wants to kill Harry." Degas shook her head. "Galileo, what if everyone is wrong about Ikto? What if her story is like Sirius'?"

          Galileo laughed. "Hardly! We know that she is a murder and worse!"

          Something stirred in the shadow to Degas's left.

          "Hold on." Degas whispered and focused her eyes. "Something's out there."

          A shadow moved slightly then shifted and moved into a tree. Degas, standing in a pool of light, slowly stepped backwards out of it. The shadow jumped out of the tree and landed in the light staring at Degas maliciously. The person was tall leans, wearing a scary assortment of clothing. But what really caught the eyes of Degas was the large black sword the person held behind itself.

          "Hello Degas." The young man said in a soothing, seducing voice. His eyes were icy blue; his straight hair was gray-blue-black, partly cut to his shoulder and the rest of it reached the small of his back and his creamy tan skin had no faults.

          Degas was awestruck. Her jaw dropped and her eyes roamed his enticing body.

          He looked around and walked off, knowing that Degas wouldn't do a thing to stop him. Not that she could, He thought.

          "Dumbledore!" Degas shouted down the halls. It was two in the morning, Degas had just snapped out of her stupor from seeing the man and was now running down the Hogwarts corridors. "DUMBLEDORE!"

          The old man with long silvery hair was rushing toward her. "What is it Degas?"

          "Iktomi!" she breathed.

          "What?"

          Her brothers were running toward them.

          "Iktomi is here! He's come for Harry!"

          Dumbledore looked around. "Who's Iktomi?"

          Everyone starred at Dumbledore. "When Tom Riddle went away after he graduated this school," Jak started. "He went to America, there he met this man, a Native American man named Iktomi, now Iktomi is suppose to be this trickster of the Oglala Sioux culture, but I doubt this is the same man."

          "Anyways, he and Riddle got together and decided it best to kill Harry Potter together." Binx said.

          Dumbledore looked grave. "And he is here? In Hogwarts?"

          Degas shrugged. "I am not sure, I saw him at Hogsmeade but he got away."

          "Walked away is more like it." Binx muttered.

          "What was that?" Dumbledore asked.

          "Well sir," Jak said. "Iktomi is a very beautiful man, all who see him, men and women alike are in awe by his good looks. He gets away by stunning them with how he looks."

          The other nodded and Dumbledore looked around. "So he is after Harry?"

          "We believe it to be so." Galileo said. "He is a murder."

          "I murdered those people with good cause." A voice echoed lightly in the halls. "But no one hears my side of the story."

          They all looked around but saw no one.

          "Those people were guilty from the start." Iktomi walked into the light of a torch near them. "I do not work with any one person in specific unless I have no other choice. I am a rouge warrior, and depending on who you talk to I am a renegade."

          Dumbledore looked curious. "Renegade? From who?"

          Iktomi smiled. "Voldermort." He rested his hands on his sword and leaned back slightly.

          "Why are you here?" Dumbledore asked.

          Iktomi turned slowly and began to walk away. "Why was Sirius Black here?" he crackled a cold laugh and vanished.

          Everyone looked at each other, awe struck and scared.

          Sirius kept an ever-watchful eye on his godson after Dumbledore told the staff that Iktomi was on the prowl and possibly after Harry. Hagrid occasionally caught glimpses of Ikto walking around the forest, but Hagrid made no attempts to go after Ikto, though he did ask the centaurs to keep an eye on him and report if he does anything funny.

          "People are afraid of you Ikto."

          "I know that Los." Ikto replied one night under the full moon. They were staring at the stars, a rouge warrior and a centaur.

          "So tell them the truth, get your name cleared."

          "Why should I?"

          "The stars would have it that way." Los paused. "Well, they would if you were written up there in them."

          Ikto laughed. "I am written up there in them!"

          "Where?"

          "But I am written in the western sky, above my home in the Great Plains of America. But people do not read of me, they think that I am still the man in the old myths. Well, that was my ancestor, I am not the trickster who gets my head stuck in any buffalo skulls anymore."

          Los laughed. "Buffalo skulls?"

          Ikto smiled. "Yes, it was something my prideful grandfather did a long time ago."

          Los laughed and then stopped abruptly. "Did you hear that?"

          Ikto was on his feet. "More sensed it then heard it."

          They were looking around, not with their eyes, but with their ears. They stopped and looked straightforward. A giant wolf and a bear sized black dog were staring at them through the brush.

          Los, deep black with hazel eyes and long braided black hair was pawing at the ground. "What to do?" he said softly.

          Iktomi was on his feet. His cloth held at his belt was black now; his tang top was a dark gray. He did not have his sword with him; he had left it in a cave where he slept. He pulled a white-silvery wolf skin of his head and ran off. Los followed, so did the wolf and dog.

          Over there! In that clearing! Sirius said to Remus through ESP. the two headed for the clearing but saw nothing. They were looking around with a giant white-silvery wolf leapt out of a tree and tackled Remus. The tackle was more of a threat then an attack. The wolf backed off and crouched close to the ground ready if they attacked him.

          Why are you after Harry! Remus growled.

          My business is of my own knowing. Why do you care about the boy? Ikto asked.

          The boy is dear to me.

          Then it would pain you to know that I am not the only one after him. But I am sure you knew that… thing is I am not after him to kill him.

          Then why?

          Ikto growled and circled them. Like I said my business is of my own knowing.

          The boy is my godson! Sirius barked. You shall not touch him! You shall not go anywhere near him!

        Ikto laughed his cold eerie laugh. I never go anywhere near people… they… Ikto was walking off but his voice drifted to their ears. … They come to me…

        "You are to go nowhere near the forest, do you understand this Harry?" Sirius said. "Nor are you to go to anyone whom you do not know."

        "Sirius," Harry started. "Why are you being so uptight?"

        Sirius frowned and looked away. "Just do as I say."

        Harry looked down and walked off. He met with Ron outside. "Where's Hermione?"

        "Off with Degas would be my guess." Ron suggested. "What did Sirius want?"

        "Just told me not to go to anyone I don't know and to stay away from the forest. That's all."

        "Why?"

        "He wouldn't say. It is as if someone is after me again… why can't they understand that I am perfectly capable of watching out for myself. I've met Voldermort," Harry saw Ron wince. "Sorry, I've met You-Know-Who many times and I always get away."

        "Barely."

        Harry glared at Ron.

        "Well, it's true." Ron shrugged. "Point taken, you do get away alive."

        "Precisely!" Harry nodded. "So why worry? If it is Voldermort, I'll manage. If it is someone else… then what's there to worry about?"

        They made their way to the Great Hall in silence. Hermione and Degas came running down the hall to join them.

        "Where were you?" Ron asked.

        "Nowhere." Hermione panted.

        "Did Sirius talk to you Harry?" Degas asked.

        "Yeah, what is everyone so uptight about?" he asked but Degas diverted her gaze to a suit of armor.

        "Wow look at that… a stain, Flinch will have a hay-day getting that out." Degas said pitifully.

        They all sat down, Remus and Sirius tapped Degas and her brother on the shoulder and took them to the hall. Harry, Ron and Hermione watched from their seats.

        "He transformed?" Binx asked. "How?"

        "I don't know, but I saw him with a wolf skin and then the next time I saw him he was a wolf." Remus said.

        Galileo and Jak starred at each other. They seemed to be thinking the same thing, yet the thought seemed impossible.

        "What is it?" Sirius asked.

        "Well," Galileo looked over at him. "It is said that Native Americans have this ability to transform."

        "He cannot be an animagis we would have spotted that a long time ago." Jak said. "But… skin walking? Do you think that could be his power?"

        Galileo shrugged. "Skin walking is a power strictly given to Native Americans. They put the skin of an animal over their heads and they can transform into that animal. If he is a skin walker then… then I just don't know."

        "Can't you kill it?"

        "Oh yeah!" Binx said. "Skin walkers can be killed. But Iktomi is something totally different. He is far from being human."

        "What do you mean?"

        "In the old stories of the Lakota people, Iktomi is a sort of God. Even if this Iktomi is not the Iktomi from the stories, he is bound to be of blood kin of the real Iktomi. Meaning he has God blood in his veins, which means that he will be very difficult to kill."

        "But you can kill him?" Sirius asked.

        "Yes, we can, it will take some time, but we can do it." Degas smiled. "We will do it."

        They returned to their meal, looking more than a little worried.

        "What was that about?" Hermione asked Degas.

        Degas smiled and shook her head. "Nothing."

        Harry and Ron exchanged looks and nodded. That night when everyone was asleep they crept into the common room and transformed into small Anubis jackal and left the common room.

        They bounded through the corridors and out of the castle. They ran at full speed to the forest and, once safely inside the thick coverage of the forest, they transformed back into themselves and looked around. They wondered around for about an hour before they came upon a clearing.

        "Well, well, well," a cold voice pierced the silence. "Look at what the cat dragged in." Iktomi jumped down in front of them smiling. "Harry Potter," Ikto bowed slightly. "So very nice to see you… again."

        "Again?" Harry asked.

        "Of course you would not remember but I first saw you when you were very young, that night when your parents were killed. I admit that I was going to give you to Voldermort, but for two reasons I did not." Ikto looked around. "Do the others know that you are here?"

        "No." he said quickly. "What are your reasons?"

        Ikto smiled. "One was Voldermort was nowhere to be seen. But the main reason I did not give you to him, was because I sensed something in you." Ikto looked at Harry with puzzlement. "Funny, it is still there."

        Harry shrugged. "Are you trying to kill me?"

        "No beating around the bushes with you is there?" Ikto laughed.

        Harry glared at him. "Well even if you did want to kill me the love my mother had for me disables you from touching."

        Ron nodded happily.

        Ikto starred at them then burst out laughing. "You are so funny!" Ikto calmed himself and ran a hand through his hand. "I never intended to kill you. As for love, I understand it way better then Voldermort."

        Ron shuddered. "Then why are you here?"

        "Oh yeah, my mission." He scratched his head. "I am here because Voldermort is coming and I want to tell him something. Of course he won't come near me unless-" he ripped out a rope from behind him and tackled Harry to the ground and quickly tied him up.

        Ron grabbed his wand but before he could say anything Ikto tripped him and was bearing down on him with his sword.

        "Don't get me wrong or anything, I am not even planning on giving you to Voldermort Harry. I don't even know you,"

        "Then why are you doing this?" Harry asked. "Ron, are you okay?"

        Ron gulped. "I'm fine." He whimpered.     

        "Don't worry Ron," Ikto said but didn't ease the sword away from Ron's throat. "I don't even plan on doing anything to you. I am doing this because I am a rouge warrior, do you understand that?"

        Harry squirmed. "When I get out of this-"

        "Don't even try to transform, those are magical ropes binding you, they won't allow you to transform." Ikto looked at Ron. "Now let me explain my plan to you, but after I do you have you have to swear that you will not repeat it to anyone, especially Degas and the others. Is that clear?"

        Ron and Harry nodded.

        "All right then." Ikto snapped his fingers and the ropes loosened but did not come off. "There is something that Voldermort took from the forest of America, if you ever come across something in the forests of America you never take it without asking permission of the owners first. Voldermort took a plant and he did not ask permission."

        "A plant?" Ron chuckled. "Who cares about a plant."

        "Un-ah…" Ikto shook his index finger. "The forest belongs to the Yunwi Djunsti otherwise known as the Little People. If you take something form them and do not ask permission to take it then they can and will track you down and attack you. This plant was a very special plant, it is known as the Brandy Weed and it possesses great power. A kind of power that can make you immortal when mixed with other plants and herbs. The Little People of that forest I know very well, and they know that he will use that plant to cause harm. So they are coming after him."

        "And why are you here?" Harry asked.

        "Well, they have been looking for him for about ten years now, he is a very hard man to track down. But after Degas and the others killed Uutte, his daughter, he decided to come straight here and kill you, Ron and Hermione."

        "Why Hermione and me?" Ron whimpered.

        "Because he knows that you, Harry and Hermione are now siblings to Degas, Binx, Jak and Galileo." Ikto smiled. "And if he killed you and Hermione it would really pain the guys, Hermione and Degas are lovers are they not? Hermione's death would greatly hurt Degas and Harry's death would just be heaven." Ikto frowned. "Not to mention that your death would impale Binx and Jak and Galileo, they are very protective of you Ron, did you know that?"

        Ron apparently did not know that. "Really?"

        Ikto laughed. "Really! Whenever someone badmouths you they are in their face all the time telling them off. You take lot of shit you know Ron? There are a lot of other things going on between them right now, you'd really be surprised." Ikto put his sword away. "You have to go back to them telling them that I have kidnapped Harry and am planning on giving him to Voldermort."

        "What!" Ron jumped up.

        "Don't worry I would never do that," Ikto smiled. "But it has to be said, Voldermort has a lot of spies and just in case any of them are listening to you, they can't hear here, I've enchanted this place to be silent, but if they are listening to you at Hogwarts then they will report to Voldermort that I have Harry. Voldermort always seems to find me when I want to be found." Ikto smiled wider.

        Ron put his wand away. "What if they ask how I got away?"

        "Say I was too busy with Harry." Ikto smiled. "I am way to powerful for you to handle alone, so I think that they won't ask anything beyond that."

        Ron looked at Harry. "You think I should?"

        Harry nodded. "Yes, be afraid when you tell them though."

        Ron nodded; he turned, looked over his shoulder one last time, then transformed into a cheetah and ran full speed toward the castle.

        Ikto looked at Harry. "If this all goes the way I think it should… then Voldermort will still live, he is yours Harry, you have to kill him, you know that right?"

        Harry closed his eyes. "I know."

        Ikto looked up at the night sky. "Wow… you can really see Saturn can't you?"

        Harry opened his eyes and looked. "Yeah, is that good?"

        Iktomi looked at Harry. "I guess we'll see, won't we?"

        "HE'S GOT HARRY! HE'S GOT HARRY!" Ron shouted and he transformed and skidded to a halt in the Great Hall. Remus and Sirius were passing when they heard Ron.

        "Who's got Harry?" Sirius asked.

        Degas, Binx, Jak and Galileo came running out to them. "What's going on?"

        "Iktomi!" Ron shouted. "He's… he's got Harry."

        Degas looked around. "Where are they?"

        "The forest." Ron panted.

        "What were you doing in the forest!" Sirius boomed.

        "Harry wanted to know what you were all so uptight about. We were curious."

        "Curiosity killed the cat." Sirius hissed as they all ran out, leaving Ron in the hall.

        Voldermort chuckled; through a little mirror portal he watched them. "And satisfaction brought it back."

        Okay people, read and review, I am almost done with this story. Well, I thought I was done with it but I am not… so I will finish it here in a few weeks depending on how school goes. Please read and review!!!!!!