A/N: I know. I said I would never write anything but humor. However, my plot bunnies had an angsty relative visit for an extended period of time (damn morbid family), and he decided to take over the fan fiction side of my brain. Sadly enough, I DO have a side of my brain devoted to fan fiction. I used this song because the story idea "hit" me while I was listening to it, and it sort of mirrors the situation. Except the witches and wizards AREN'T the Noldor elves, and Harry, last time I checked, ISN'T Fëanor. I must warn you that if I run out of ideas, this fic will be discontinued.
Disclaimer: Wish the hell I owned some of these characters, but I don't. Jo does (Damn her!). Time Stands Still (At the Iron Hill) is owned by that lovely group known as Blind Guardian. Those of you who have read my other fic, Wrong Turn, are familiar with them because of Nightfall in chapter 4. The candle thing kind of came from a Redwall book, Lord Brocktree, I think. It might have been Salamandastron. Meh. Whatever.
Chapter 1Light fails at dawn
The moon is gone
And deadly the night reigns
Deceit
The heavy clouds that lay thick across the sky permitted no light to be shed upon the ground in front of the castle. The only light to be seen was the flickering of the torches lining the halls of Hogwarts, and the candles held by every member of the crowd on the edge of the grounds. Shadows flickered in the dimness, small movements of anticipation and anxiousness. Hogwarts appeared strong in the darkness, but both those in and out knew that it retained little of its former strength. The castle had been worn down over the past few years by the ceaseless attacks from the Death Eaters.
Inside Hogwarts, those remaining of the Order were pacing the halls. In the past three years since the rebirth of the Dark Lord, they had lost so many brave souls. Arabella Figg had been killed less than two months ago while out on a mission to save a group of muggles being tortured by the supporters of Voldemort. Mundugus Fletcher had not been killed directly by a supporter of the Dark Lord; he drowned in the ocean when his broom malfunctioned on his way to Ireland to contact the Minister of Magic there. There had been six that died during the first attack two years ago, three more were murdered as they walked down the streets of Hogsmeade, and nine lay dead on the fields of Scotland, where the previous great battle had taken place. Minerva McGonagall glanced out the window at the numerous candles before walking briskly to the Headmaster's office.
"Bean sprout," McGonagall said impatiently. The gargoyle jumped aside to allow her passage to the staircase. She walked up the stairs and entered into the circular office. Albus Dumbledore lay on the bed inside the office, pale and unmoving. He had been drained of almost all of his strength in the previous battle, and he was now nearly on his deathbed. He only carried on his life to give the Order encouragement and advice. He had given up his position as Head of the Order of the Phoenix, and no longer planned the complicated raids and battles. Dumbledore barely had the strength to turn his head when Minerva spoke.
"They're out there, Albus. All of them. Wearing robes and holding candles as though they were some type of Holy Order. There are too many of them. We cannot win."
"Faith…Minerva. You must…have…faith. The…Order has…held out this…long. There is…always…a chance. You must…trust…your leader. Trust…in…Harry."
Dumbledore closed his eyes and slept. McGonagall bit her lip to fight back the tears as she left the room. Down the hallways she walked once again, this time without purpose. Had her mind not been preoccupied, she would have noticed the figure standing in the hallway. She bumped hard into Severus Snape.
"Oh dear, I'm so sorry, Severus. I've just been to see Albus."
Snape's expression changed to one of concern and interest. "How is he?"
"He fell asleep again just as I left. He says we should have faith." This was the breaking point for Minerva McGonagall. She buried her face in her hands and cried. "I don't think he's going to last much longer."
"I'll see what I can do for him. Go speak with Potter, he's been asking to see you." Severus stormed off with his cloak billowing behind him (A/N: Sorry to upset the mood, but does that constant billowing bother anyone else?).
Minerva made her way to Gryffindor tower, where a seventeen-year-old Harry Potter stood at the common room window, watching the enemy. Ron and Hermione stood on either side of him, no one saying a word. McGonagall broke the silence. "What is it, Mr. Potter?"
Harry didn't turn his head as he spoke. "Have you seen them out there?"
"Indeed I have."
"Each of them holds a candle. There are too many for us."
Ron broke in, trying to find some way in which their situation could lighten. "Harry, isn't it possible that some are holding two candles? Then their numbers would seem larger than they really are!"
"No. Can't you see the shadows of their hoods? They are as many as they seem to be."
"What should we do about them, Potter?"
Harry turned around to give McGonagall a laugh of pure irony. "I called for you to ask you the same question."
"Perhaps someone else has an answer," mused Hermione, speaking for the first time.
The Boy Who Lived nodded in agreement. "I want the three of you to gather everyone together and meet me back here in a half an hour."
Ron looked at his best friend. "Where are you going?"
Harry slipped his wand in his pocket and fastened his school cloak. "I need to see a few people first."
*****
A/N: WOW. Never before have I read something that SUCKED this bad. I must warn you now that I have absolutely NO idea where the hell this is going. I'm writing it as I go. I would definitely recommend downloading this song simply because it is a damn cool song. Sorry about the short chapter thing. The next one MIGHT be longer. I'm planning on this being 18 chapters, so they won't all be incredibly long. If anyone wants to BETA this, e-mail me with the subject line BETA, and tell me a bit about you and your writing habits. I generally don't make too many mistakes, but I'd prefer if it was proofread, JUST to be sure.
I would thank my reviewers if there were any, but since this is the first chapter, that's kind of impossible.
~~Aindel~~
Na Rain cy Aind El
Maegla dest itishek theranos.
Ish lowla serámbar thé na elek,
A serowla tay sal na teler nat.