Yeah!  Finally updated!  Go me!  ^_^  Sorry it took so long – lack of inspiration, bleh.  Anyway, hope you all enjoy this chapter that was so long in the making.  Please feel free to kick Icarus Knight's ass if you so desire at the end.  Here we go!

~~ Chapter Twenty-Seven: Holiday Turned Horror ~~

            "Have any of you seen Fred and George?"

            Parvati Patil's question caused the four couples it was directed at to halt their conversation.  "I thought they were with you," Harry Potter said, glancing at the twin girls.

            Padma shook her head.  "We got separated, and we can't find them."

            "Over there," Oliver Wood said, pointing to a red-haired boy across the room.  "Oh, wait, that's Percy.  Never mind."

            Ron Weasley shot the captain of Gryffindor's Quidditch team a surprised look.  "I can understand not being able to tell Fred and George apart, but them and Percy?"

            "Hey, it's from a distance," said Ron's date, Lavender Brown.  "Give him a break."

            "Yeah, give him a break," Oliver agreed, and they all laughed.  Oliver's eyes scanned the crowd again, and he spotted one of the twins for real this time.  "Look, there's one of them, talking to Professor Dumbledore."

            "Which one?" asked Cho Chang.

            "George, I think," Oliver answered.

            Cho shook her head.  "No, which Professor Dumbledore?"

            "Oh.  Minerva."

            "That's good enough for us," Padma said, grabbing onto her sister's wrist.  "Come on, Parvati."  The girls left to seek out their dates.

            "Maybe it wasn't such a good idea for the Patil twins to go with the Weasley twins," Hermione Granger commented.  "Things could get confusing real fast."

            Ginny Weasley shook her head.  "No, what wasn't such a good idea was for Parvati and Padma to wear the same thing."

            "Did they plan that?" inquired Ginny's date, Draco Malfoy.  Parvati and Padma were wearing identical powder blue dresses, and both girls had their hair down.  Earlier that night, Harry asked if they would be able to tell themselves apart.

            "No, but Fred and George did," Ron answered.  Fred and George were both wearing kilts.

            The Yule Ball had been under way for an hour, and so far, nothing out of the ordinary had happened.  Lee Jordan turned Angelina Johnson's punch into vinegar, but that aside, the ball had been relatively uneventful, which was fine with those in attendance.  With everything that had taken place over the last few months, a party was just what they needed to unwind.

            Draco turned to his date and asked her if she would like to dance.  Ginny accepted, and the two of them excused themselves from the other six and made their way out onto the dance floor.  His mind was spinning as he danced with the girl that up until a few weeks ago, he'd absolutely hated.  Then again, until recently, he hated all Gryffindors, and even more so when they were Weasleys.  Mostly, it was because of his father and his longtime rivalry with Arthur Weasley.  Lucius wasn't the only Malfoy that had undergone a lot of change in the last few months.  Draco had become a different, and in his opinion, better person since he became friends with Harry, and he couldn't remember seeing his father happier than when he was with Alina Terringer.  Lucius and Arthur were still far from friends, but in light of Lucius's recent visit to the Ministry of Magic and a long, more or less neutral conversation, the two men were no longer out to kill each other.  And since Arthur and Lucius weren't enemies anymore, Harry had suggested that Draco celebrate by asking Ginny to the Yule Ball.  And so there they were – two former enemies, now enjoying time together.  Friendship was a wonderful thing.

            "Are you okay?"

            Ginny's voice broke into Draco's thoughts, and his mind returned to the moment.  "Yeah, I'm fine," he said.  "I was just thinking, that's all."

            "Anything in particular?"

            He laughed.  "Are you always so inquisitive?"

            Ginny grinned.  "Yes."

            "That's all," Fred Weasley said as he finished talking to Minerva Dumbledore.  "Thanks, Professor."

            "Any time, Mr. Weasley," she replied.  "You look very… nice, by the way."

            Fred grinned.  "Aw, shucks."  He was rather proud of the kilts he and George had acquired for the occasion.  "You do, too, Professor."

            At that moment, Albus Dumbledore walked up to the two of them and planted a kiss on his wife's cheek.  "I concur," he said.

            Minerva smiled and blushed slightly.  Fred laughed.  "You two are so…"

            "So what?" Minerva asked.

            "For lack of a better word, cute."

            Two identical twin girls appeared on either side of Fred.  "'Cute'?" said the one on the left.  "That's the best a Weasley could come up with?  How about endearing, or adorable, or charming?  Certainly something better than 'cute'."

            "Take it up with Fred," Fred said.  "He thought of it."

            "Does that make you George?" asked the twin on the right.

            "Only if you're Parvati," Fred answered with a grin.

            "I am," she confirmed.  "Let's dance."

            "Yes, let's.  Please excuse us."

            Dumbledore, Minerva, and the twin on the left watched them go.  "You know, I could have sworn that one was Fred," Minerva said.

            The twin on the left laughed.  "Good, because that was Padma.  Have either one of you seen George, Professors?"

            "Not unless that really was George," said Dumbledore.

            Parvati shrugged.  "Who knows with those two?  I'm going to find my date.  Wish me luck."

            "Luck," the headmaster and deputy headmistress said in unison as the third-year Gryffindor left to seek out George.

            Dumbledore was about to ask Minerva to dance when another student came up to them – Colin Creevey, with a camera in hand.  "For the school scrapbook, Professors?" he asked, holding the camera up for emphasis.

            "I didn't know we had a school scrapbook," Dumbledore commented, and slipped his arm around Minerva's waist and bent slightly over so their heads were level.

            Colin snapped a picture.  "It's my project for this year," the second-year Gryffindor explained.  "I plan to make one for the school as a whole and one for each house."

            "What a splendid idea, Colin," said Dumbledore.  "Five points to Gryffindor for your wonderful creative thinking."

            Colin beamed.  "Now, how about a picture for the Gryffindor scrapbook?"

            They kissed.  Colin chuckled and took a picture.  "I don't know if that beats one I took for the Ravenclaw scrapbook, but it might come close."

            "And what might that be, Mr. Creevey?" Minerva asked.

            "Penny Clearwater and Cho Chang kissing Professor Flitwick on either cheek," Colin answered with a grin.  "I also got a good one of Professor Terringer, Professor Snape, and Mr. Malfoy.  She's giving them bunny ears."

            "Bunny ears?" Dumbledore repeated.

            Colin held up two fingers and placed his hand behind his head.  "Like this, so it makes you look like you have ears like a rabbit."

            "Bunny ears," Minerva said thoughtfully.  "What will they think of next?"

            Colin excused himself, and Dumbledore offered Minerva his hand.  "May I have this dance?"

            When the song ended, Harry, Ron, Draco, Oliver, Cho, Lavender, Ginny, and Hermione regrouped near the punch bowl to hear the surprising news Draco had promised to tell them that night.  As it turned out, Draco and Ginny were the last ones to arrive, and when they finally did, Ron nearly pounced on him.  "What's this big news you've been talking about for the last few days?" he asked.  "Come on, man, spit it out!"

            Harry laughed and put his hand on Ron's shoulder.  "Ron, breathe!"

            "It's about my father," said Draco.  "He's getting married."

            "To who?" asked Cho.

            "Professor Terringer."

            Hermione let out a squeal of delight and hugged the nearest person, which happened to be Lavender.  Lavender laughed and said, "I love you, too, Hermione."

            "Sorry," Hermione said, and let go of Lavender.  She smiled warmly at Draco.  "That's wonderful, Draco.  It really is."

            Draco basked in the glow of Hermione speaking to him like a friend for a moment, and then said, "The wedding's going to take place after school gets out in June.  You're all invited.  It'll probably take place at either Malfoy Manor or our summer home outside of Cardiff.  My money's on Cardiff at the moment; they want it to be outdoors and that one has a bigger garden.  And here's the real surprise – you'll never guess who my father asked to be the best man."

            Harry wanted to say Professor Snape, but that was too obvious.  Ginny asked it before he could, though.  Draco shook his head and said, "No."

            "Eko Chang," Harry guessed.

Hearing her father's name caused Cho to glance at him briefly out of the corner of her eye.

            "No," was Draco's response.

            "Professor Dumbledore?" guessed Ron.  "Albus Dumbledore, that is."

            "No, and it's not Minerva Dumbledore, either," Draco said, and all eight of them chuckled.

            "Then who is it?" asked Hermione.  "Professor Lupin?"

            "I know!" Cho exclaimed.  "Professor Flitwick!"

            They all laughed again, and Draco said, "No and no."

            "Filch!" said Oliver, and more laughter ensued.

            "Okay, you're never going to get this," said Draco.

            "Who is it?" inquired Lavender.

            Draco took a deep breath, and then gave them the answer.  "Arthur Weasley."

            For a few moments, the others were too surprised to speak.  "What did he say?" Hermione finally squeaked.

            "Yes."

            "No way!" Ron almost shouted.  His smile was so wide it looked like it would split his face in two.  "My father's going to be the best man at Lucius Malfoy's wedding?  Draco, I could kiss you!"  A horrified look crossed his face as he realized what he just said.  "I mean – Harry, stop laughing!"

            Harry was laughing so hard tears were rolling down his cheeks.  He started to lose his balance and had to lean on Cho for support.  The others, besides Ron, had no idea what was so funny, and stared at Harry with mystified expressions on their faces.

            Deep inside his fortress at Ras Dashen, Icarus Knight was definitely not laughing.  He stormed into the room the Nundu was kept in and immediately began speaking to the creature.  "I can't take it anymore, Artawny," he said.  "We are powerful enough, and if we strike now, we can defeat them.  While they are celebrating their victory, their defenses will be lowered.  We can crush them now with one swift blow!"

            "But you have not cleared this yet with Lord Voldemort," came Artawny's deep, rumbling voice that sounded more like thunder with fluctuation than an actual voice.

            "To hell with Voldemort," Knight replied.  "I'll do it myself.  Are you coming?"

            If a Nundu could smile, that's what Artawny would have done.  "I have a better idea," he growled.  "They will be too strong for even the two of us there, but if you could lure them here…"

            "That didn't work at Loch Lomond," Knight said.  "Why would it work here?"

            "Because at Loch Lomond, they only had to deal with an Erumpent, a mountain troll, a Kelpie, and a Manticore," said Artawny.  "I am a Nundu."

            The left corner of Knight's mouth twitched upwards into a half-smile.  He reached into an urn sitting on a nearby table and stepped into the fireplace built into the room's east wall.  "That's right, you are a Nundu."

            Knight tossed the handful of Floo powder to the floor and shouted, "Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!"

            Harry and Cho were dancing together when he spotted Lucius Malfoy and Alina Terringer nearby and suggested they go congratulate them.  Cho agreed, and the two of them walked over to Lucius and Alina.  "Draco told us the news," Harry said when they got closer.  "Way to go."

            "Yeah," said Cho.  "Congrats."

            Alina smiled warmly at both of them.  "Thank you."      

            "Yes, thank you," said Lucius.

            "You're welcome," said Harry.  Suddenly, he felt a twinge of pain – his scar.  He grimaced and pressed his hand to his forehead.

"Something's wrong," Lucius said.

            Cho touched Harry's shoulder.  "What is it, Harry?"

            "There's someone here," Harry replied.  "Someone evil."

            "Voldemort?" Alina asked in a nervous whisper.

            Harry shook his head.  He didn't know how, but he knew it wasn't Voldemort.  It was probably a member of his enemy's inner circle, though.  "No, not Voldemort.  Someone else."

            "Icarus Knight," Lucius realized.  Who else would it be?

            "Who?" asked Harry and Cho in unison.

            "No time to explain."  Lucius reached into his jacket and pulled out his wand.  "Go to your friends, and tell them what I am going to tell you: be on your guard and get your wand out."

Knight was able to walk freely through the crowd at the Yule Ball.  No one had seen him in seventeen years, and on top of that, only a handful of people knew he even existed anymore.  The students he passed, if they noticed him at all, didn't so much as give him a second look.  For all they knew, he was just another figure within the Ministry of Magic.  He wouldn't be the only one – Eko Chang was there, as were a few other Ministry officials.  He certainly couldn't be a psychopathic murderer.

            A smirk crossed his face as he spotted the perfect opportunity: Minerva Dumbledore standing off to one side, alone.  He couldn't believe his luck.  Knight made his way over to his former Transfiguration instructor and said, "Hello, Professor."

            Minerva gave him a look that wasn't unfriendly, but by no means welcoming, either.  "Who are you?" she asked, an edge of suspicion to her voice.

            "Why, Professor, what kind of a greeting is that to give one of your former students?"  He leaned in closer to her and whispered, "Don't tell me you've forgotten about Icarus Knight."

            "KNIGHT!" Minerva shouted, attracting the attention of almost everyone in the room.  "ICARUS KNIGHT IS HERE!!!"

            Knight put her in a headlock and stood behind her.  He then spotted someone else he needed to come to terms with – Sibyll Trelawney.  "You will pay for exposing me, Professor Trelawney," he said when the two of them made eye contact.  "I will see to it that you never get another prediction right again."  He pointed his wand at her and shouted, "AVADA KEDAVRA!"

            Screams filled the room as green light shot through Trelawney's body, killing her instantly.  Minerva struggled to break free of her captor, but he was surprisingly strong.  "Think you're going somewhere, Professor?" he asked.  "You are going nowhere but with me."

            Albus Dumbledore had been fighting his way through the crowd to get to his wife ever since Minerva screamed the warning about Knight, and was finally close enough to see them.  "Let her go, Knight!" the school's headmaster shouted in a voice that would make mountains tremble.

            Icarus Knight, however, was not a mountain, and Dumbledore's order didn't make him so much as blink.  He pointed his wand at Minerva's head and said, "Not one more step, Dumbledore, or she's next."

            "Then kill me," Minerva said, "if you dare."

            Knight snickered.  "Spoken like a true Gryffindor."

            "As if you would know what it means to be a true Gryffindor!"

            He could have easily snapped her neck, but opted to punch her in the face instead.  This enraged Dumbledore to a point none had ever seen him at before.  His wand was out in a flash and he shouted something to capture Knight, but much to the dismay of all, both he and Minerva had vanished.

            Dumbledore ran over to the spot where they had last stood and looked around frantically.  There was no sign of them.  Eko Chang broke through the crowd and hurried over to him.  Close behind the Minister of Magic were Lucius Malfoy and Alina Terringer.  "He must have Apparated," Chang concluded.

            "But with Minerva?" Alina asked.

            "It's possible to take another person when Apparating," Chang said, "but it's difficult, and dangerous."

            "Where could they have gone?" inquired Lucius.

            "I don't know," Dumbledore said weakly.  There were tears in his eyes as he looked at the other three.  "But we have to find her."

            Knight had only Apparated as far as the Gryffindor common room.  From there, he used Floo powder to transport himself and Minerva back to Ras Dashen.  "Well, Artawny, it looks like I've been successful this time," he said, throwing Minerva to the floor.  "We've got Dumbledore's little whore of a deputy headmistress.  He'll stop at nothing to get her back, and when he gets here, we'll be ready for him."

            "I thought," Artawny growled, "that this was about Lucius Malfoy."

            "It is about Lucius Malfoy!" Knight snapped.  "But while we're at it, why not take down Dumbledore as well?"

            "You're going to fail," Minerva said wearily.  "Albus is too smart to fall for that."

            Knight rolled his eyes.  "Professor, has anyone ever told you how much of a bitch you are?"

            She didn't answer; instead, she reached for her wand.

            "Oh, no you don't," Knight said.  He pointed his wand at her.  "Crucio."

            Intense pain like nothing she had ever felt ripped through her body.  Minerva couldn't help but cry out in agony.  About thirty seconds later, Knight lowered his wand and released her from the spell.  It hurt to breathe, but she managed to inhale enough air to say, "It doesn't matter what you do to me.  You won't win."

            He let out a cruel laugh.  "I already have."  He cleared his throat and pointed his wand at her again.  "Crucio."