Disclaimer: all characters belong to J K Rowling and Warner brothers. Not me. Sucks don't it! I think I own the plot though, but since it took off where JK left off I'm not even sure of that. What's that, I think I hear the sound of the worlds smallest violin playing me a sad song. I think I'll just go crawl under a rock and die.

Harry Potter and the Call to War!

Chapter 5: Encounters in the Dark



(IMPORTANT A/N: The second section might be closer to a R rating. The scene in the torture chamber could be considered to have thematic elements not suitable for PG 13. Language isn't a problem though! Thank you for taking the time to read this.) ******

Sirius and Brin, Thursday June 27th

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Thoughts of how stupid this actually was kept crossing Sirius Blacks' mind as he slunk through the shadows. To the guard who had spotted him minuets before he was just another stray dog looking for a scrap to eat. Yet he was a animagus, and more importantly he was on a mission. The clock by the entrance read 11:52 P.M., this meant that he only had 8 minutes before the changing of the guard. He wouldn't get another shot until several hours latter, not to mention Brin would be very mad at him for making her wait.

His thoughts turned to his godson, who he recently received word was gallivanting in the mountains with Hagrid and Remus. He would have words with Dumbledore about that particular omission latter. Sirius had been worried about the boy after the trauma that he had suffered last year, yet Dumbledore had assured him that Harry would get along fine. Years of being unable to take care of the child had caused Sirius to become protective of Harry.

Child, if any word described Harry that was not it. Sirius regretted being unable to preserve the boys childhood. Instead of growing up knowing love and care free happiness, Harry had known only responsibility and pain. Harry was by no means a child, he was never afforded that particular luxury. A curse upon the Dursley's and Voldemort for tearing away the happiness of his godson and forcing him into this life of cruelty. What would James and Lily say if they say what was constantly heaped upon the shoulders of their son. They would of course be proud of him, how couldn't they be. But would they be disappointed that no one protected Harry through all this?

James and Lily brought memories in Sirius that he had tried desperately to suppress. Even after spending two years out of Azkaban he couldn't banish the horrible after effects of the Dementors. He had failed them in protecting their lives, and he had failed them in being a godfather to their son. He had failed them in more ways than he could name and the guilt brought a tear to the dogs eye.

Sirius thanked whatever gods were listening that Harry didn't see it that way. It was the boy's acceptance and forgiveness that brought him through some of his darkest hours. Lily's love ran through Harry, and Sirius knew that he would probably forgive Voldemort himself if he asked for repentance and truly meant it. Yet he had the determination and courage of James as well. Harry wouldn't ever stand aside and let anyone be treated unjustly. Even if it meant risking his life he would easily give it to protect others, Harry proved that to often. Sirius once more cursed himself for not being their to help shape such a wonderful person. To offer the boy the assurance that someone was their for him. Even now they were so far apart that they couldn't even contact each other. Something had decided that they would never be allowed the happiness of being together and seemed determined to keep it that way.

To hell with that, when he finished this he would see his godson again and nothing would stop him. Azkaban or not he wouldn't let Harry be alone any longer. Their was so much he could teach Harry, so much that James would have wanted Harry to know.

Sirius was brought out of his musings to see that the guard had decided to leave early. This would give him more time to slip in the small air duct and allow Brin entrance to the archive facility. Sirius ran from the shadows to the grating and bashed into it with all his might. The grating groaned but did not give way. He was forced to back up and try again, no magic could be used or alarms would be set off and the mission would be ended. The grating dented and then burst at it's hinges allowing the panel to swing inward. Sirius wasted no time in entering the duct, and escaping the possibility of being seen by the next guard on duty. Inside it was dark and Sirius had trouble seeing one foot in front of him, so he relied on his other senses to direct him. Sounds up ahead alerted Sirius to his proximity to the main hall and he adjusted his direction to match where he wanted to come out. After what seemed like minutes he had reached the vent that was located next to the side door where Brin was waiting. Sirius pushed the vent open and then crawled out, he was a bit sore from having to crawl so long but he shock it off.

The hall he found himself in was dark, typical for the time he had chosen to intrude at. The tiled floor caught the dim shine from ceiling lights spaced sporadically down the hall. Few doors lined the hall and a red exit sign hung above the one Sirius was searching for. After transforming back into his human form he cautiously crept towards the exit. Slowly he made his way to the exit, constantly checking to hear coming voices as he went. Sirius cursed under his breath when he heard the noise of a guard standing at the door. It must have taken him longer to move through the duct work then he expected. After taking stock of his options he concluded that he couldn't wait in the open for the next guard change. It wouldn't be long before the next hall sweep alerted his presence in the building.

Sirius knocked on the door to get the guards attention, then he hid to the side where the door would hide him once opened. The guard opened the door and called for whoever knocked, yet he received no reply. Carefully he stepped into the darkened hall and lifted his wand to cast light. No sooner did the light appear then Sirius grabbed his wrist and twisted it behind his back. The man made to scream in pain, but found a hand had been firmly placed in front of his mouth. A small vile was crushed against his chest and a noxious fume raced to his nose. No sooner did he breath in the gas then he began to fell to tired to fight. Sleep overwhelmed him and he slumped to the floor.

Sirius opened the door once more, and was meet with Brin waiting on the other side. He motioned to the fallen man and together they drug him back to the duct and slide his body into it, before replacing the cover. Sirius grabbed the mans wand which was still lit with the Lumos spell and used it to light there way as they crept through the darkened halls.

A tap on his shoulder alerted Sirius to Brin, who was pointing towards a door marked stairwell. They tried to open it, but found it locked to their efforts. Sirius withdrew his own wand to unlock the door, but Brin motioned for the wand of the guard they had taken care of earlier. Sirius handed it to her and, after looking at him with a look that said can you be that stupid, she tapped the guards wand on the knob. It glowed red for a second before turning green and clicking open. Brin took the lead up the stairwell and Sirius prepared his wand in case it was needed. The many metal stairs clanged with their footsteps and Sirius cringed at every peep.

At the top of the stairs Sirius waited for Brin to open the door and then followed her into the new hallway. This one was carpeted and the walls were painted white giving it a very office building look. Pictures lined the wall and Sirius thanked good that the ones with people were sleeping. After another ten minutes of searching they ran into another door marked Census documents and knew that had reached their destinations.

After using the guards wand once more they opened the door and stepped inside. As they entered lights lit the room and Sirius dove to the side, searching for targets as he went. Finding none he concluded that the room was charmed to light upon someone entering it. The room was decorated much the like the hall except this one was filled with enough rows of bookshelves to rival the Hogwarts library. Thousands of folders lined each bookcase and Sirius inwardly groaned at the prospect of trying to find information in this mess.

A noise behind them at the door alerted them to someone who was about to come in behind them. A man in a guard uniform stepped into the room , Sirius and Brin took cover behind a desk set up for reviewing files.

"I don't see anybody in here, are you sure there isn't just a problem with the spell. It could just be a rat, we've been having problems with them recently." He spoke to another who hadn't entered the room.

"Look the detectors alerted energy usage on the spell net in this room. It's standard procedure to check it out." The first man got a exasperated look upon his face and turned to face the second. Sirius reached into his cloak and drew out a much larger beaker of the potion he had used earlier.

"Fine, just reset the system and if anything happens it's on my head. They aren't paying me enough to deal with this." The second guard waved his wand and the lights went out once more. Sirius waited till he could no longer hear their footsteps and their voices grew distant before exhaling and placing the beaker away once more.

Unfortunately it had taken them to long to enter the building and wait for the guards to leave. They wouldn't have enough time to search out all the files they needed.

"We'll have to use plan b. What do you think?" Sirius pulled out a bag on his desk and began preparing something inside it.

"I always liked plan b better, much less of this sneaking around. Perhaps we should try plan Q?" Sirius stopped what he was doing to look at Brin.

"Plan Q? I didn't know we had a plan Q." Sirius scratched his head and went over what they had discussed.

"Sure we do, you know, plan Quite talking and hurry the hell up!" Sirius grimaced and then turned pack to what he was doing.

"All right, Albus said that once we take this potion we'd only have ten minutes in which our spells would be hidden. Extraction begins in five so we'll only get another five minutes to make it out to the escape point. After plan b goes into effect we have to move quickly because this place will be swarming." Brin nodded and took the first potion. Sirius followed her, and then together they began summoning hundred of folders into two black bags Albus had given them. Several times Sirius had to duck oncoming folders which threatened to paper cut off his head. He wasn't entirely sure whether Brin was doing it on purpose or not, but it didn't seem to be happening to her. After four minutes they seemed to have gathered 75% of the folders, and more were streaming into the bags every minute.

Sirius stopped summoning and began work on the next step of plan b while Brin continued the mad dance of papers. He removed a marble beaker of a dark red liquid and a much smaller, yet thicker glass vile of a clear one. After avoiding the papers, he moved to the center of the room and set the marble beaker on the floor.

"That's as much as we're going to get, besides I don't know to many people with last names beginning with WXY or Z. I really dislike those letters anyway, they always seemed to irk me." Sirius just shock his head.

"All right shut the bags." Sirius took a bag and swung it over his back.

"Twenty seconds!" Brin nodded and Sirius dropped the vile into the dark red liquid. Immediately they took off out of the room. Not bothering with the fact that the lights went back on when they opened the door again. Meanwhile the dark red potion was eating away the glass that kept it's clear contents separated. This was the dragons fire potion, and once the two potions mixed you didn't want to be anywhere near.

Sirius and Brin had just shut the door to the stairwell when the sound of the archive room door slamming into the opposite side of the hall reached their ears. A deafening roar of fire was the only thing that preceded the stairwell door bursting open and liquid fire spilling down the staircase. Sirius cast a fire shielding charm on himself and Brin, then two rushed down the remaining stairs. Both of them prayed that the shield would withstand the immense heat long enough for them to reach safety. This was not to be, they watched as the shield which had been glowing bright red began to dull. The fire had forced the bottom stairwell door open as well, it's burning hunger overcoming all magical restriction barriers. Sirius and Brin dove out of the stairwell and into the hall on the ground floor just as the shield faded completely. The majority of the explosion had already passed and now only the structure was lit on fire. Soon they reached the emergency exit only to find that the intense flames on the upper level had eaten through the floor and to much debris was blocking their exit.

Thinking fast they decided to try their luck with the main entrance, and pray Moody had the situation under control. However they would not make it without running into guards attempting to put out the fire. By now water was pouring from ducts in various sections of the hallway in a attempt to put out the fire. Though it would have been useful in most situations, the dragon fire had already reached the central supports of the building. It had stressed the magical enforcement's to their breaking point and the magical fire prevention system couldn't act quickly enough to put it under control. Pieces of the ceiling fell into their path, but Sirius and Brin attempted to avoid the delays. The water was building up and they were forced to slog through it while attempting to avoid the still burning walls.

Two guards turned the corner of the last hallway and Sirius drew his wand to defend. The guards used the debris that pilled above the water level to provide protection, while Sirius and Brin ducked into a side door which had fallen. The water was beginning to tax the already stressed building and the walls began to groan under the strain. Sirius grabbed the green beaker from inside his cloak and tossed it down the hall. It connected with the debris and a cloud of noxious gas put the two guards to sleep.

Sirius and Brin reached the guards and took their wands. They were about to continue when Brin made Sirius stop. She pointed her wand at one of the fallen guards and cast enervate upon his sleeping form.

"Take your buddy out of here, and down the hall on the left there is another guard in a vent shaft. Go now!" The man hustled to his feet and dragged his still sleeping comrade into a less damaged side room.

Sirius and Brin didn't wait to see the man go after the outside guard. Right now they had to escape as well. They turned a corner and were meet with several stunning spells fired in their direction. Brin looked up and saw a low hanging bar which came loose from the rafters.

"Jump!" Sirius obeyed and the two leapt up and grasped hold of the bar. Brin used one hand to fire a freezing charm at the water around their pursuers and it immediately turned to ice. The guards were trapped in the ice and Sirius and Brin continued down the direction to the exit.

Lights of the less damaged section of the building assaulted their eyes when they rounded the final corner. Their standing in the middle of the hall was Alastor Moody with a rye smile on his face.

"Kids today can't pull off a simple mission without bringing the house down. Shouldn't send some young pups to do a mans job I say." His magical eye roamed over the two of them and then began to scan the interior of the building.

"You two better get out of here. I told them I'd guard this entrance while they took care of the fire. But I can see several are headed this way." Sirius just nodded and took off past the retired Auror and out into the night. They ran twenty feet down the path and then Apparated to safety.

They appeared back inside the old tree which Brin called home. After removing the hoods that they had used to keep their identities hidden they sat down around the kitchen table which seemed to grow from the floor.

"Well that was a success. Now all we have to do is sort through all these names and send letters to the list of names Dumbledore gave us." Sirius smiled and leaned back in his chair.

"Yeah right, perfectly simple. We just have to sort through several million names and get into contact with several thousand people, more than half of which we don't know. Then we have to convince them to agree to attend a meeting at Hogwarts. Did I forget to mention that all this has to happen by the last week of August before the school year starts." Sirius smile just continued to grow.

"Yeah, that's about it." Brin got a puzzled look on her face which soon reverted to her normal smile.

"Oh, okay then. Just making sure." The two had their work cut out for them, and the next two months would be extremely busy.



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Snape Voldemort Lucius, Sunday, June 30th

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The French café that Lucius choose to meet at wasn't the type of establishment Severus usually frequented. While Malfoy enjoyed luxury, nothing would delight Severus Snape more than a darkened quiet tavern. One where you didn't see the other patrons because they were well hidden in the shadows. Yet here he was, about to enter the world of the rich and snobbish just so he could pump this miserable excuse for a human for information.

If there was one thing Severus couldn't stand, Potter outstanding, it was having to pretend that he actually gave a damn about anything Lucius cared about. Alas, Lucius had been present at the castle more than he had been. Therefore he would be the best source to find the goings on of Voldemort.

After spotting the cocky older Malfoy sitting in the back Snape made his way through the mass of witches and wizards to meet him. With any luck this wouldn't be a entirely taxing visit, and he could return to his dungeon soon.

"Hello Lucius." Snapes' greeting did nothing to veil his mood, but it seemed to fit with the snobbish conceited atmosphere that any good death eater was supposed to give off. As long as you treated the rest of the world like it was beneath you, you were succeeding quite well.

"Hello Severus, I must say I am pleased that you know where your loyalties lay. I was most concerned when you didn't show up for the re birthing. It was a grand event to see our Lord torture the Potter boy. Pity he didn't kill him. However, your capture of the traitor ensured your loyalty quite nicely."

"Yes it is a pity the boy didn't die, however, that is a pity that could be soon rectified. Have you heard any plans to kill the miserable whelp. I don't think I could stand another year without doing the job myself." This was a mixture of lies and truth, but its answer would provide valuable information. The longer Voldemort obsessed over the boy, the bigger a weakness his obsession would become. Snape had to admit that Potter had succeeded in thoroughly pissing the Dark Lord off on several occasions.

"No, while our Lord doesn't actively seek the boy he believes the opportunity will soon present itself. Now he deals with more important matters." Perhaps he would get a chance to gain some insight into what the Dark Lord planned.

"I tire of waiting, when are we going to move once more." Severus put on a impatient face, and his best superior to the world expression.

"Rest assured my friend, the wait will not be long. Battle brews on the horizon, any day now our Lord will get the information he seeks and then we will move. Though I fear you will be forced to keep up appearance and abstain from the opportunity."

"Really, what information would that be?" Severus leaned closer so that he could better here the reply.

"I do not know, two were captured under his orders three nights ago and none have seen them since. I have been invited to assist the Lord, I can only guess it is to torture some secret out of them. Perhaps you could join me. I'm sure you could come up with something interesting to break them. The very fact that they have survived three nights without being broken speaks of what a challenge this will be. Other than that, he speaks nothing of his plans or what information he seeks." Snape considered the possibility of what could be so important that one would undergo such torture without revealing. If it was that important, the Dark Lord would not let them die until he obtained what he wanted. There would be no mercy visit for those two unfortunate souls.

"Willing to venture a guess as to who they are?" Severus quickly began to realize just how important this information could prove to be.

"At first I thought they were ministry, maybe Unspeakables. However this morning I checked the logs and all Unspeakables and Aurors are accounted for. Than I thought they were working for that fool Dumbledore, but you would have gotten word if that were so. Perhaps we could persuade them to be more forthcoming with our Lord. Shall we go then?" Snape could only think about how little he wanted to spend his day with Malfoy and Voldemort for company.

"Might as well, perhaps we can obtain insight into who the prisoners are." After leaving several Galleons on the table Lucius and Severus exited the café and used their mark to Apparate to Voldemort. Not even Lucius knew the location of Voldemort's castle. He too had to rely on his mark to bring him to it's gates.

They walked in silence through the perpetually darkened castle. Turning down corridors and stairways that formed the interior of Voldemort's stronghold. The gloomy atmosphere was a testimony to the dark unnatural evil that lurked within it's walls. If one stayed long enough they might forget there was a sky beyond the castles walls. You could become condemned to the castles interiors forever.

A final turn brought them to the entrance to Voldemort's personal dark torture chambers. Lucius knocked upon the door and waited for admittance to the horrors that lay behind it. The chamber door creaked open and the two who waited for admittance where allowed entrance.

"Ah Lucius, and Severus. It pleases me that you both could join me." The Dark Lords face split into a grin that would send shivers down the steeliest heart.

"My Lord, how may we be of assistance." Lucius and Snape bowed before Voldemort to show the respect that the Dark Lord required of his followers.

"You can join me on my personal project. My patience grows short with these two filth and I grow bored hearing their screams." For the first time Snape caught sight of the two Lucius had mentioned. One man and one women had been stripped naked in the center of the room. They were being suspended from the ceiling using large metal bolts driven into there wrists and ankles. The weight of their bodies pulled at the ripped flesh and tore even larger wounds in there limbs. Blood dripped from there naked body like falling rain and the stench that filled the room was sickening. Underneath them a fire had been magically built to scorch the underside of their bodies and force them to thrash about more.

"My Lord, I don't believe we could possibly do a better job than you have done. However we will try to continue to break them down in your stead." Voldemort gave them his twisted grin once more and then left the room.

"Yes, now where shall we start?" Lucius took a brand that was set beside the fire and began to burn deep holes into their backs, forcing them further towards the fire. Yet neither of them pleaded for mercy, they only screamed out in pain.

"Why don't you just make it easier on yourselves. The pain could end if you simply give our Lord what he wants." The man turned his head to the side to face Malfoy. At first he looked like he was about to speak, but then he spit into Malfoys' face. A Cruciatus curse caused the tortured man to struggle with his bonds once more before going slack when the curse was lifted. Malfoy resorted to torturing the female by shoving burning coals inside her. Severus wanted to rip his own ears off so he wouldn't hear her screams, instead he was forced to steel his own gaze.

"What's the matter bitch, do I light your fire? Your friend won't even speak to save you. Why don't you cooperate and we will end the torment." The woman gave Snape a look of pure hate, only making him loathe himself once more. The thought that he ever got off on this was something that made him hate himself even more. Severus watched as Lucius took a blade and carved the dark mark into her backside. He watched with a smile as blood welled from her wound and dripped into the fire.

"I urge you to speak now before I allow the wolves to nibble upon your breasts." Snape cringed at the mental torture this poor woman was going through.

"Severus, join us! I don't want to hog all the fun." Severus walked over to the man and took a dropper from inside his cloak. He took two drops and placed it on the mans back. The greenish liquid ate into the mans back and made the skin boil. His muscles began to spasm and he screamed in pain, he tried to relax but the potion kept tightening the muscles. No amount of control could cause the pain to go away.

"Severus you did always enjoy the most interesting forms of torture." Lucius chuckled as he took a filet blade and skimmed off layers of her flesh until blood began to coat the surface. He continued to skin her alive until he grew bored of her screams. A handful of salt on the raw tissue made her scream once more.

The door to the dungeon opened once more and Voldemort strode back into the chamber. He had a pleased expression on his face when he saw his two loyal death eaters hard at work.

"I have acquired the location of a third. We can kill these two, perhaps this new one will provide more information." The man who was just being released from the effects of Snape's potion turned and spoke for the first time in three days. His voice was scratchy and it took great effort for him to speak.

"Take as many of us as you can find, we phoenix will never reveal the secrets given to us. For everyone of us you kill a new generation will take our places. So has it been since the beginning of time. A curse upon you and your kind!" Voldemort was outraged and he stepped closer to the man.

"Mark my words, even if I have to kill every one of you vermin till all your lines die, I always get what I want." With that said Voldemort took a blade and sliced the man's stomach open. His intestines spilled out and fell into the fire bellow him. The scent of burning human flesh met the mans nostrils before the pain became to much. He watched as his insides were cooked as he died there.

"Leave her, I'll kill her in front of the new victim." Lucius and Severus bowed before their Lord and exited the chamber.

Severus returned that afternoon with more questions then he had when he left. Who were the two poor souls who meet their ends in Voldemort's chamber, and what was he after? Only time could answer these questions. For now he could only tell Dumbledore what he had learned, and hope the Headmaster could find a way to protect others from similar fates. Whoever they were, these people were in serious trouble.

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(A/N) Thanks to all who reviewed

Oriana Dumbledore: Thank you, I pride myself in originality. I don't like reusing common themes. I really wanted to get Harry out into the world early.

Animagiman: Rest assured the magic usage in this fic will definitely begin to pick up. They'll be a good magical battle in the next chapter. Thanks for the review.

Sabrina: Thanks for the review, and I am currently looking for a beta for this fic. I really wanted to get that last chapter out so I didn't have a whole lot of time to proof it. I'll make sure to dedicate more time to making sure there are less mistakes. And I do plan to fix some of the mistakes in the previous chapter as well. Thanks for the review, and I'm glad you like the story!

You-Know-Who: *Blush* your sweet! Thanks for the review!

Ariel: Thanks, I appreciate your input. You hit on some of the major things I hope to work through emotionally. Harry's going to have to realize that sometimes you can't talk out your differences. All leading to the point that the right path can be a hard one to tow. I really want to keep working with Harry, he has a lot ahead of him. Thanks for the Review!

Otaku freak: Thanks for reviewing!

Rachel A. Prongs: Thank you very much, I'm glad you like my fic!

BlackDragon: Thank you very much for reviewing, I always appreciate a review!

Rogue1615: I'm glad you like it, and thanks for reviewing

Namwolf: Thanks for your comments, I'll remember that in the future. I like to keep realism in my fic, and I appreciate that information. Thanks for the review!