A/N: This is the really important chapter, I suppose. It was most
exciting for me, anyway. Christmas time! More pain for Sirius, but not
just him. I guess I'll just let you read it for yourself, but first.
I'd like to give thanks to:
Neo - Thank you very much! I love comments like this - they really make my
day, or night, as the case may be.
oOo-Sirius-oOo - I hope this is soon enough for you, thanks for your
comments!
Rawiva - I'm glad someone can relate.the good news is that we're getting an
even better, customized computer now! One that doesn't look like a
Toaster, and won't let the house zap it, and isn't a laptop with its goofy
screen.I hate this laptop, but I love you for commenting, thank you so
much!
Ice - Aww, thank you! I'm sorry to say this will eventually end. As for a
sequel.well, if the computer doesn't explode from me posting this, I'll
think about it. I know it'll really need a sequel, but I'm too upset with
the story to even think about it right now.
The story has gaping holes in it, and I apologize for that.I wrote most of it a year ago, and my writing style has really changed over a year (and improved a lot.) I also got lost on some parts, and I hope you'll forgive me. If I ever write a novel, I'll remember not to take year-long breaks. Thanks for putting up with all that, and still reading. I love you guys and girls, really!
Rising Shadows Chapter Eleven - The Not-So-Merry Christmas
His head was spinning when he emerged, and he stumbled but Ms. Remington steadied him, then led him to a new room, dusting soot off his robes.
The room was covered in green and red. There were trees covered in white and gold and all sorts of other beautiful decorations. Candles were so abundant there was little need of extra lights. Five long tables had been set up, each filled with Ministry workers and their families.
Ms. Remington led Sirius to the middle table and sat him down close to the head.
"Stay here a moment, I have to talk with the minister." She left.
Sirius looked at the people around him. Children ran around, chased by their older siblings and parents. Families searched for their reserved places at the tables. At the fifth table, Sirius could see his father sitting with the Malfoys.
Rigel and never taken his son to the feast, but he'd always heard it was excellent from Lucius.
A family of redheads appeared on the other side of Sirius's table. A tall man, his wife, and two children. There was a boy around five, and another boy about seven. The couple smiled at him as they sat down.
"Sirius?" Ms. Remington was back. "Meet the Weasleys. Arthur and his wife Molly, and their sons, William and Charles. They're good friends of mine."
"Nice to meet you." said Sirius.
"Arthur, Molly, this is Sirius Black, you know, Rigel Black's son. I'm taking care of him for awhile."
The Weasleys smiled at him.
"Hello dear" said Mrs. Weasley as William waved and Charles hid behind his father.
"The dinner will start soon. How are you feeling, child?"
"I'm alright." Sirius replied. He still felt sore and tired, but he didn't want to ruin Ms. Remington's Christmas anymore than he had. Ms. Remington didn't seem convinced, but she didn't mention it.
"The room grew silent when a tall man with light brown hair stood up at the head of his table. Sirius recognized him as Anthony Fletcher, the Minister of Magic.
"Good Evening, all, and Welcome to this year's Christmas Feast. I trust you've all had a wonderful Christmas. Before we begin our magnificent feast, I have a few announcements."
Sirius let his eyes wander as the Minister spoke. He saw the Potters further down his table. He reminded himself to thank them = he knew they were responsible fore him being rescued. His eyes drifted toward the fifth table. It was overfilling with sour-looking men and women and their families. How half of them had even been married was a mystery to Sirius.
Sirius found it unfortunate that he knew almost every person at that table. Malfoy, Avery, Black, Crabbe, Goyle, Lestrange, Nightrunner, Macnair, Snape, Travers, Rosier, Wilkes, and Dolohov. Rigel was looking around as well. Sirius ducked down a bit and moves so that the Weasleys would block his father's view.
Ms. Remington looked worried about Sirius's actions, but nodded when she saw Rigel searching the room. She leaned down and whispered "Don't worry, he's not allowed near you." before reverting her attention to the minister again.
This comforted Sirius, but he wasn't sure his father would care whether or not he was allowed to do something. He was certain Rigel wouldn't do anything in front of all the Ministry, however.
Minister Fletcher finished with his announcements, and the feast appeared. It was very much like Hogwarts, the food appeared on the preset table.
Ms. Remington began to make a plate for Sirius. She chatted happily with the Weasleys and sometimes the minister joined in as well.
After everyone had had their fill, the main tables were cleared away, and replaced with smaller tables at the ends of the room.
Minister Fletcher approached the Weasleys and Ms. Remington along with his wife and a boy who must have been his son.
"Hello Selena! Arthur, Molly, how are you? You all remember my wife, Emily? And this is my son, Mundungus?"
The Minister leaned down to talk to his son. "Gus? This here is young Sirius Black. why don't you two join the other children and play?"
"'Kay dad." said the boy. Sirius turned to Selena. ""Don't worry dear. Play with Gus, just stay clear of the other kids if you don't want to talk to them. But stay with Mundungus, don't sit alone."
Sirius nodded and walked away with the other boy.
"You know, Selena, that boy will have to go back to his father," said Fletcher. Selena look up in shock as the two pulled away from the Weasleys.
"What? Why?" she whispered.
The minister sighed, "Well, the courts decided to accept Rigel's version, deciding that Sirius might have been mistaken."
"Minister! That boy was beaten! It's as obvious as the Wealsey's hair! How could you not see that?"
"Selena, I didn't say I agreed with the decision, I just wanted you to know." He shook his head. "To be honest, I think they may have been.err.paid off. But there's no way to prove it."
"I can't let him go back! I promised I'd keep him safe!"
"I'm sorry, Selena, I really am. We'll keep working on it, I promise, but he'll have to go back if we don't find a solution before June."
~oOo~
Sirius and Gus walked to the corner the other kids played in, but the two sat apart from the rest.
"Are you sure you don't wanna sit with those kids?" Gus suggested, pointing to a group of kids sitting together and talking. Sirius could see James and Frank in the group, along with other few other children he knew, but he didn't feel like talking to anyone, and he could just imagine all the questions James would ask.
He shook his head. "Not really."
Gus shrugged. "'Kay!"
"How old are you?"
"I'm ten, so I'll be in Hogwarts next year. What's it like?"
Sirius told him all about it. He told him about the feasts, houses, and Quidditch games, and also the teachers, classes, and the older students.
"What's the sorting like?" asked Gus, who had listened to Sirius with much interest. He hesitated a moment, then smiled and answered "You'll just have to wait and see." Gus pouted but Sirius just laughed. "Sirius?" The boy turned to see James and Frank standing over him. His smile faded, not that he didn't want to see them around, but he didn't want to talk about his father. James smiled. "Mind if we join you? The other company's gotten a bit tiresome." "sure." said Sirius. The four boys talked for a while. James and Frank added in their own views of Hogwarts and by the time they were finished, Gus was dying to go.
The other boys just laughed. "I'm kinda thirsty, you guys wanna get something?" James said.
"You guys go on, I'm feeling a little dizzy." said Sirius.
"Are you sure?" asked James.
"Yeah, just get the drinks and come back. I'll be find for a while.
The other boys nodded and left. Sirius leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes. The lights were starting to spin around him.
A rough hand grasped his shoulder and pain shot through the young boy as the grip tightened. Rigel picked his son up off the floor, and turned him around to face him.
"That was quite a trick you pulled, boy, but I'm afraid it didn't work. Come, we're going." The man dragged his son toward the door, but Remington and Fletcher stopped him.
"Rigel." said Ms. Remington, "This boy is to say with me for the holidays. What do you think you're doing?"
"Surely you've heard? The courts decided your accusations against me are false. Therefore, the child should be with his father on Christmas."
"I don't want." Sirius started, but Rigel interrupted him.
"Come now, child, you don't know what you're talking about," he added in a whisper "Nor do you have a choice."
"Rigel, I insist, the boy should stay with Selena for the holidays. You can have him back in June, but the orders were for him to stay with Selena. You're not."
"Minister, I give you my utmost respect, but I am quite tired of all these accusations. I have never hurt a hair on my son's head, no if you'll excuse me, we haven't had our Christmas together yet!" Sirius once again found himself being pulled toward the exit. He looked around, searching for help. James and his parents were walking toward him, but Sirius didn't think they'd be able to help. Mundungus was hiding under his mother's arms. Frank and his parents were also approaching them. Rigel stopped as the Potters, Longbottoms, Fletchers, Ms. Remington, and several others surround the two Blacks. Sirius was near tears from the grip his father had on his arm.
"Now, really," said Rigel, "Is this really necessary? The courts have decided -"
"You paid off the courts, Black." said John Potter.
"And you murdered Jill!" added his wife. Several gasps erupted at this comment. Ms. Remington's eyes flashed as she stepped forward.
"Rigel, I will not allow you to hurt this boy any more. You've done more to him than any child, or any adult for that matter, deserves. I don't care if I have to put you down myself, you won't touch him again!" Sirius cringed at her tone. So did his father. Sirius wouldn't have been surprised if there was smoke rising from her.though something about her eyes was familiar.
"Do you think so?" Rigel's tone was quiet and dangerous; there was no need to shout in the silent room. Everyone was watching, breath held, just waiting. But no one expected what came next.
"We'll see." said Rigel. Before anyone could stop him, before anyone could move, the man had his want out and had muttered "Crucio!"
Sirius fell to the ground, screaming louder than he ever remembered screaming. He felt as though he'd just jumped into a pool of glass. The pain set fire to his bones. He was sure his body would shatter with even a second more of such pain. But he did not, and the pain didn't stop. He was aware of nothing else. After what felt like years, the pain dulled, and everything went black.
James had never heard of that spell. He had never seen it used, and no one had told him anything about it. But he knew instantly what it was used for. Never before had James heard such a scream. He froze. He watched as Rigel began to laugh over his son's ear-splitting scream. People all around him began to scream as well, but they were like faint whispers compared to Sirius.
When people once again began to move, though James was still froze, the woman who had been addressed as Selena jumped forward and knocked Rigel to the ground. Sirius stopped screaming and lay on the ground, shaking and whimpering.
"James!" his father was yelling to him. "Get away! Run!" James turned around confused. But when he looked, he saw that Rigel hadn't been the only one to move. Several men and women had begun casting spells. James recognized several people whose children were in Slytherin.
"Run!"
James ran toward Sirius and began to pull him towards the door. Frank and Gus soon joined him. As the reached the door, however, a man appeared.
The man was pale and thin. He had red eyes and a snake-like face. He was clad in a long, billowing, black robe and examined the chaos with a look of mild amusement. His red eyes fell on the group of children. James led them back to the corner. Several other children soon joined them as they huddled together and tried to stay out of the way.
Lucius Malfoy's father approached the pale man. They whispered for a moment, then Mr. Malfoy bowed and left. Malfoy began rounding up the attacking wizards children. The pale man stepped aside, and Malfoy led them away.
Wizards and witches all around were dueling and running around. Some were gathering the stray children and leading them toward the corner. Others were moving fallen wizards out of the way so they wouldn't be trampled.
The red-eyed man was walking toward the center of the room, moving as though her were walking through a market rather than a wizarding battle. He stopped when he reached the center. The attackers stopped anyone who moved toward him.
The man lifted his wand into the air, and everyone stopped moving. The pale man muttered a spell under his breath as the room became quiet. A large figure erupted from the tip of his wand. It was a skull with a snake rising from its mouth. The image seemed to freeze James's insides with fear. The defending Ministry Wizards moved backward from the image and the man. The attackers fell to their knees and formed a circle around him.
The man observed these actions with an evil grin. When everyone had again stilled, he began to speak.
"Hello everyone." his voice was soft and high-pitched. "I do hope I find you all well. Since one of my servants has decided to rouse a bit of trouble here tonight, I've decided to make this my. 'Opening Night'." The man paused for a moment to gauge the reactions, then continued. "I am Lord Voldemort." He paused again. "Soon you will all shudder to hear that name. If you don't believe me.why don't you ask my.friends."
The man opened his mouth, but did not speak. Instead a horrifying hissing sound emitted from him. At first nothing happened, and people began to whisper again. John Potter, who was standing guard over the children's corner along with the minister, the Weasleys, and the woman who had shouted at Rigel earlier, started to move forward.
Without warning, hundreds of snakes began swarming into the room. The seemed to appear out of nowhere; coming down the walls and from the ceiling. The snakes slithered over to the pale man. He hissed at them again, and they slithered back to where ever they came from.
Everyone was eyeing the man with horror and shock, though James wasn't sure why. The man spoke again, this time so that they could understand him.
"If you still doubt me, let me show you what I can do." The man lifted his wand, and a hundred more were raised. Shields went up all around the children, and other areas of the room. Blasts of red and blue light shot toward the man, but those still kneeling at his feet repelled them.
He muttered a spell and the room erupted into a flash of green light. James put his hands over his head and moved his body so he was covering Sirius. Screams sounded all around him. Cracks began to form on the ceiling and walls, and they soon started to crumble. Stones fell all around James, the shields shuddered and whined under the beatings. John and Amethyst Potter, Anthony and Mary Fletcher, Arthur and Molly Weasley, and the woman Sirius had come with stood in a circle around the children, wands raised high, muttering the shielding charms under their breaths. One could see the strain they felt as the room crumbled around them.
Blasts of green and red (Yay! Christmas colors!) light began hitting the shields as well (Maybe not yay.) James shook with fear when he heard the shields crack and start to fail. The wizards protecting the children strained to keep the shield up.
Children began screaming as the shield wavered and disappeared. James squeezed himself as small as he could get, still hunching over Sirius's head. He worried that he'd be hit somewhere else, but when he moved his head to look, he saw Frank and Gus covering him as well.
Little bits of stone stung James's back and arms, but nothing big hit him. The crumbling slowed and soon only dust was rising around him.
His eyes burned but he turned to see both Frank and Gus coughing on the dust as well.
The adults around him soon cleared the air. He rubbed his burning eyes and stretched out his contracted body. But a loud scream froze him.
"JOHN!"
It was his mother's voice. James was almost too scared to look. But he forced his head up and eyes open.
However, it took only a few moments for the screaming, the blood on his back and arms, and the gash in his father's head to cause James's eyes to close, head to drop, and limp form to hit the floor.
Remus and Peter sat impatiently at the main doors of Hogwarts. The school had received the news of what had happened, but they didn't have any details. Al they knew was that four people were dead, and that many more had been injured.
The two boys were worried about their friends. They hadn't received any messages from them since Christmas morning.
"Here they come!"
And so they were. The black carriages were making their way toward the school.
Remus and Peter nearly jumped with joy when Sirius, James, Lily, and Frank appeared form a carriage. They stopped themselves, however, when they saw their somber faces.
They ran up to meet their friends. James looked pale, and Lily was crying. Sirius was covered in marks and bruises, and seemed to be twitching.
"Are you.you alright?" asked Peter.
"What happened?"
Frank sighed and led his friends inside. They all sat together at the Gryffindor table, and Frank explained what had happened Christmas day.
The story has gaping holes in it, and I apologize for that.I wrote most of it a year ago, and my writing style has really changed over a year (and improved a lot.) I also got lost on some parts, and I hope you'll forgive me. If I ever write a novel, I'll remember not to take year-long breaks. Thanks for putting up with all that, and still reading. I love you guys and girls, really!
Rising Shadows Chapter Eleven - The Not-So-Merry Christmas
His head was spinning when he emerged, and he stumbled but Ms. Remington steadied him, then led him to a new room, dusting soot off his robes.
The room was covered in green and red. There were trees covered in white and gold and all sorts of other beautiful decorations. Candles were so abundant there was little need of extra lights. Five long tables had been set up, each filled with Ministry workers and their families.
Ms. Remington led Sirius to the middle table and sat him down close to the head.
"Stay here a moment, I have to talk with the minister." She left.
Sirius looked at the people around him. Children ran around, chased by their older siblings and parents. Families searched for their reserved places at the tables. At the fifth table, Sirius could see his father sitting with the Malfoys.
Rigel and never taken his son to the feast, but he'd always heard it was excellent from Lucius.
A family of redheads appeared on the other side of Sirius's table. A tall man, his wife, and two children. There was a boy around five, and another boy about seven. The couple smiled at him as they sat down.
"Sirius?" Ms. Remington was back. "Meet the Weasleys. Arthur and his wife Molly, and their sons, William and Charles. They're good friends of mine."
"Nice to meet you." said Sirius.
"Arthur, Molly, this is Sirius Black, you know, Rigel Black's son. I'm taking care of him for awhile."
The Weasleys smiled at him.
"Hello dear" said Mrs. Weasley as William waved and Charles hid behind his father.
"The dinner will start soon. How are you feeling, child?"
"I'm alright." Sirius replied. He still felt sore and tired, but he didn't want to ruin Ms. Remington's Christmas anymore than he had. Ms. Remington didn't seem convinced, but she didn't mention it.
"The room grew silent when a tall man with light brown hair stood up at the head of his table. Sirius recognized him as Anthony Fletcher, the Minister of Magic.
"Good Evening, all, and Welcome to this year's Christmas Feast. I trust you've all had a wonderful Christmas. Before we begin our magnificent feast, I have a few announcements."
Sirius let his eyes wander as the Minister spoke. He saw the Potters further down his table. He reminded himself to thank them = he knew they were responsible fore him being rescued. His eyes drifted toward the fifth table. It was overfilling with sour-looking men and women and their families. How half of them had even been married was a mystery to Sirius.
Sirius found it unfortunate that he knew almost every person at that table. Malfoy, Avery, Black, Crabbe, Goyle, Lestrange, Nightrunner, Macnair, Snape, Travers, Rosier, Wilkes, and Dolohov. Rigel was looking around as well. Sirius ducked down a bit and moves so that the Weasleys would block his father's view.
Ms. Remington looked worried about Sirius's actions, but nodded when she saw Rigel searching the room. She leaned down and whispered "Don't worry, he's not allowed near you." before reverting her attention to the minister again.
This comforted Sirius, but he wasn't sure his father would care whether or not he was allowed to do something. He was certain Rigel wouldn't do anything in front of all the Ministry, however.
Minister Fletcher finished with his announcements, and the feast appeared. It was very much like Hogwarts, the food appeared on the preset table.
Ms. Remington began to make a plate for Sirius. She chatted happily with the Weasleys and sometimes the minister joined in as well.
After everyone had had their fill, the main tables were cleared away, and replaced with smaller tables at the ends of the room.
Minister Fletcher approached the Weasleys and Ms. Remington along with his wife and a boy who must have been his son.
"Hello Selena! Arthur, Molly, how are you? You all remember my wife, Emily? And this is my son, Mundungus?"
The Minister leaned down to talk to his son. "Gus? This here is young Sirius Black. why don't you two join the other children and play?"
"'Kay dad." said the boy. Sirius turned to Selena. ""Don't worry dear. Play with Gus, just stay clear of the other kids if you don't want to talk to them. But stay with Mundungus, don't sit alone."
Sirius nodded and walked away with the other boy.
"You know, Selena, that boy will have to go back to his father," said Fletcher. Selena look up in shock as the two pulled away from the Weasleys.
"What? Why?" she whispered.
The minister sighed, "Well, the courts decided to accept Rigel's version, deciding that Sirius might have been mistaken."
"Minister! That boy was beaten! It's as obvious as the Wealsey's hair! How could you not see that?"
"Selena, I didn't say I agreed with the decision, I just wanted you to know." He shook his head. "To be honest, I think they may have been.err.paid off. But there's no way to prove it."
"I can't let him go back! I promised I'd keep him safe!"
"I'm sorry, Selena, I really am. We'll keep working on it, I promise, but he'll have to go back if we don't find a solution before June."
~oOo~
Sirius and Gus walked to the corner the other kids played in, but the two sat apart from the rest.
"Are you sure you don't wanna sit with those kids?" Gus suggested, pointing to a group of kids sitting together and talking. Sirius could see James and Frank in the group, along with other few other children he knew, but he didn't feel like talking to anyone, and he could just imagine all the questions James would ask.
He shook his head. "Not really."
Gus shrugged. "'Kay!"
"How old are you?"
"I'm ten, so I'll be in Hogwarts next year. What's it like?"
Sirius told him all about it. He told him about the feasts, houses, and Quidditch games, and also the teachers, classes, and the older students.
"What's the sorting like?" asked Gus, who had listened to Sirius with much interest. He hesitated a moment, then smiled and answered "You'll just have to wait and see." Gus pouted but Sirius just laughed. "Sirius?" The boy turned to see James and Frank standing over him. His smile faded, not that he didn't want to see them around, but he didn't want to talk about his father. James smiled. "Mind if we join you? The other company's gotten a bit tiresome." "sure." said Sirius. The four boys talked for a while. James and Frank added in their own views of Hogwarts and by the time they were finished, Gus was dying to go.
The other boys just laughed. "I'm kinda thirsty, you guys wanna get something?" James said.
"You guys go on, I'm feeling a little dizzy." said Sirius.
"Are you sure?" asked James.
"Yeah, just get the drinks and come back. I'll be find for a while.
The other boys nodded and left. Sirius leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes. The lights were starting to spin around him.
A rough hand grasped his shoulder and pain shot through the young boy as the grip tightened. Rigel picked his son up off the floor, and turned him around to face him.
"That was quite a trick you pulled, boy, but I'm afraid it didn't work. Come, we're going." The man dragged his son toward the door, but Remington and Fletcher stopped him.
"Rigel." said Ms. Remington, "This boy is to say with me for the holidays. What do you think you're doing?"
"Surely you've heard? The courts decided your accusations against me are false. Therefore, the child should be with his father on Christmas."
"I don't want." Sirius started, but Rigel interrupted him.
"Come now, child, you don't know what you're talking about," he added in a whisper "Nor do you have a choice."
"Rigel, I insist, the boy should stay with Selena for the holidays. You can have him back in June, but the orders were for him to stay with Selena. You're not."
"Minister, I give you my utmost respect, but I am quite tired of all these accusations. I have never hurt a hair on my son's head, no if you'll excuse me, we haven't had our Christmas together yet!" Sirius once again found himself being pulled toward the exit. He looked around, searching for help. James and his parents were walking toward him, but Sirius didn't think they'd be able to help. Mundungus was hiding under his mother's arms. Frank and his parents were also approaching them. Rigel stopped as the Potters, Longbottoms, Fletchers, Ms. Remington, and several others surround the two Blacks. Sirius was near tears from the grip his father had on his arm.
"Now, really," said Rigel, "Is this really necessary? The courts have decided -"
"You paid off the courts, Black." said John Potter.
"And you murdered Jill!" added his wife. Several gasps erupted at this comment. Ms. Remington's eyes flashed as she stepped forward.
"Rigel, I will not allow you to hurt this boy any more. You've done more to him than any child, or any adult for that matter, deserves. I don't care if I have to put you down myself, you won't touch him again!" Sirius cringed at her tone. So did his father. Sirius wouldn't have been surprised if there was smoke rising from her.though something about her eyes was familiar.
"Do you think so?" Rigel's tone was quiet and dangerous; there was no need to shout in the silent room. Everyone was watching, breath held, just waiting. But no one expected what came next.
"We'll see." said Rigel. Before anyone could stop him, before anyone could move, the man had his want out and had muttered "Crucio!"
Sirius fell to the ground, screaming louder than he ever remembered screaming. He felt as though he'd just jumped into a pool of glass. The pain set fire to his bones. He was sure his body would shatter with even a second more of such pain. But he did not, and the pain didn't stop. He was aware of nothing else. After what felt like years, the pain dulled, and everything went black.
James had never heard of that spell. He had never seen it used, and no one had told him anything about it. But he knew instantly what it was used for. Never before had James heard such a scream. He froze. He watched as Rigel began to laugh over his son's ear-splitting scream. People all around him began to scream as well, but they were like faint whispers compared to Sirius.
When people once again began to move, though James was still froze, the woman who had been addressed as Selena jumped forward and knocked Rigel to the ground. Sirius stopped screaming and lay on the ground, shaking and whimpering.
"James!" his father was yelling to him. "Get away! Run!" James turned around confused. But when he looked, he saw that Rigel hadn't been the only one to move. Several men and women had begun casting spells. James recognized several people whose children were in Slytherin.
"Run!"
James ran toward Sirius and began to pull him towards the door. Frank and Gus soon joined him. As the reached the door, however, a man appeared.
The man was pale and thin. He had red eyes and a snake-like face. He was clad in a long, billowing, black robe and examined the chaos with a look of mild amusement. His red eyes fell on the group of children. James led them back to the corner. Several other children soon joined them as they huddled together and tried to stay out of the way.
Lucius Malfoy's father approached the pale man. They whispered for a moment, then Mr. Malfoy bowed and left. Malfoy began rounding up the attacking wizards children. The pale man stepped aside, and Malfoy led them away.
Wizards and witches all around were dueling and running around. Some were gathering the stray children and leading them toward the corner. Others were moving fallen wizards out of the way so they wouldn't be trampled.
The red-eyed man was walking toward the center of the room, moving as though her were walking through a market rather than a wizarding battle. He stopped when he reached the center. The attackers stopped anyone who moved toward him.
The man lifted his wand into the air, and everyone stopped moving. The pale man muttered a spell under his breath as the room became quiet. A large figure erupted from the tip of his wand. It was a skull with a snake rising from its mouth. The image seemed to freeze James's insides with fear. The defending Ministry Wizards moved backward from the image and the man. The attackers fell to their knees and formed a circle around him.
The man observed these actions with an evil grin. When everyone had again stilled, he began to speak.
"Hello everyone." his voice was soft and high-pitched. "I do hope I find you all well. Since one of my servants has decided to rouse a bit of trouble here tonight, I've decided to make this my. 'Opening Night'." The man paused for a moment to gauge the reactions, then continued. "I am Lord Voldemort." He paused again. "Soon you will all shudder to hear that name. If you don't believe me.why don't you ask my.friends."
The man opened his mouth, but did not speak. Instead a horrifying hissing sound emitted from him. At first nothing happened, and people began to whisper again. John Potter, who was standing guard over the children's corner along with the minister, the Weasleys, and the woman who had shouted at Rigel earlier, started to move forward.
Without warning, hundreds of snakes began swarming into the room. The seemed to appear out of nowhere; coming down the walls and from the ceiling. The snakes slithered over to the pale man. He hissed at them again, and they slithered back to where ever they came from.
Everyone was eyeing the man with horror and shock, though James wasn't sure why. The man spoke again, this time so that they could understand him.
"If you still doubt me, let me show you what I can do." The man lifted his wand, and a hundred more were raised. Shields went up all around the children, and other areas of the room. Blasts of red and blue light shot toward the man, but those still kneeling at his feet repelled them.
He muttered a spell and the room erupted into a flash of green light. James put his hands over his head and moved his body so he was covering Sirius. Screams sounded all around him. Cracks began to form on the ceiling and walls, and they soon started to crumble. Stones fell all around James, the shields shuddered and whined under the beatings. John and Amethyst Potter, Anthony and Mary Fletcher, Arthur and Molly Weasley, and the woman Sirius had come with stood in a circle around the children, wands raised high, muttering the shielding charms under their breaths. One could see the strain they felt as the room crumbled around them.
Blasts of green and red (Yay! Christmas colors!) light began hitting the shields as well (Maybe not yay.) James shook with fear when he heard the shields crack and start to fail. The wizards protecting the children strained to keep the shield up.
Children began screaming as the shield wavered and disappeared. James squeezed himself as small as he could get, still hunching over Sirius's head. He worried that he'd be hit somewhere else, but when he moved his head to look, he saw Frank and Gus covering him as well.
Little bits of stone stung James's back and arms, but nothing big hit him. The crumbling slowed and soon only dust was rising around him.
His eyes burned but he turned to see both Frank and Gus coughing on the dust as well.
The adults around him soon cleared the air. He rubbed his burning eyes and stretched out his contracted body. But a loud scream froze him.
"JOHN!"
It was his mother's voice. James was almost too scared to look. But he forced his head up and eyes open.
However, it took only a few moments for the screaming, the blood on his back and arms, and the gash in his father's head to cause James's eyes to close, head to drop, and limp form to hit the floor.
Remus and Peter sat impatiently at the main doors of Hogwarts. The school had received the news of what had happened, but they didn't have any details. Al they knew was that four people were dead, and that many more had been injured.
The two boys were worried about their friends. They hadn't received any messages from them since Christmas morning.
"Here they come!"
And so they were. The black carriages were making their way toward the school.
Remus and Peter nearly jumped with joy when Sirius, James, Lily, and Frank appeared form a carriage. They stopped themselves, however, when they saw their somber faces.
They ran up to meet their friends. James looked pale, and Lily was crying. Sirius was covered in marks and bruises, and seemed to be twitching.
"Are you.you alright?" asked Peter.
"What happened?"
Frank sighed and led his friends inside. They all sat together at the Gryffindor table, and Frank explained what had happened Christmas day.