A/N: Since no one is using the nick Tassadar, I will be under the penname
Tassadar from now so the numbers behind my name will be dropped.
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Chapter 29: Order 03: Abduction
Ever since the Valentine's ball, Harry's attention turned to practicing his spells and using his sword for he knew that in the upcoming missions, both Hermione and Cho would be in extreme danger. Despite the danger he would also be in, Harry was looking forward to not only fulfilling his resolution to protect Cho but also to rescue Dumbledore who had guided him for the past four years he had spent at Hogwarts. Furthermore, Ron was still absolutely clueless as to the Phoenix order and thus Harry would have to make sure that Hermione came out alive. This was not only because he still had some feelings for his best friend but also because Ron would be completely devastated if anything were to happen to her, not to mention quite enraged at him.
However the day where his resolve would be tested came all too soon for the news that Harry had been waiting for anxiously and dreading arrived two weeks after the Valentine's ball during breakfast.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Headmaster found guilty of Treason and Corruption -Rita Skeeter
The trial at which the former headmaster of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore, was tried for treason and corruption was completed last week and a verdict has now been reached. Thanks to the ever watchful Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, acting as witness to the crime of the deceptive headmaster's attempt of freeing the Death Eaters of Azkaban, Albus Dumbledore was found guilty unanimously by the jury.
As a result, the headmaster will be removed from his prestigious office at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and will be sentenced to life imprisonment in Azkaban with the rest of his kind. The transfer will take place sometime within the week. Unfortunately, the criminal Harry Potter, was not brought to trial since his charges were dropped due to the fact that witnesses testified that he was present at Hogwarts and had never left the school.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"This is just horrible!" Ron exclaimed when they had all read the Daily Prophet. "Why isn't anyone doing anything about this?"
"I think they are," Hermione said, looking over the article once more. "This isn't your typical trial Ron, it was rigged and we know it but there isn't much you can do at the moment."
"Are you suggesting we give up on Dumbledore?" Ron countered exasperatedly.
"No, I'm not saying that we should give up on him but there are other ways to get him back," Hermione pointed out. "But at least be glad that Harry wasn't brought to trial at the time of the incident."
"Calm down Ron before you make a scene," Harry interrupted. "I think Hermione is right and it's best if we leave it to the teachers."
"At any rate, we need to be going to class," Hermione said, getting up from her seat and gathering up her books. "We don't want to be late."
"Mr. Potter - Miss Granger," they heard Professor McGonagall say. "I'd like a word with both of you. Move a long Mr. Weasley, they should be joining you shortly."
Harry and Hermione threw Ron a look of confusion but they quickly followed Professor McGonagall out of the Great Hall without question.
Once there were no students within earshot, McGonagall began to explain the reason for pulling them aside. "The Order has been assembled and the other students are being pulled away as we speak. I'm sure you know about the news regarding the headmaster."
Harry couldn't help but grin for this was the moment that he had been looking for. "Yes Professor, we've heard."
"Good - but time is short," McGonagall said, now guiding them in the direction of Dumbledore's office. "We need to prepare and send out a group by this afternoon if we want to get the information we need."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
When they arrived at Dumbledore's office, Harry found that almost everyone was there with the exception of the students. Sirius was there with Arabella Figg and he gave Harry a wide grin that Harry returned enthusiastically.
The door opened and the rest of the students arrived with Walter. Oddly enough, Harry noticed a slight glow coming from his hand and upon looking down he saw something that he hadn't noticed before in a meeting; his ring was glowing red.
"Hi Harry," Cho whispered, sitting down next to him. "Are you looking forward to this, how about you?"
Harry grinned and nodded. "Same here."
Once everyone had sat down, Professor McGonagall stood up to speak. "I'm sure that all of you have read the Daily Prophet and know that our headmaster was found guilty of treason."
There were nods around the room and McGonagall continued. "Although I am not a big fan of Skeeter, she is telling part of the truth in that they would be transfer him to Azkaban sometime this week."
"How do you know if this is true?" Alastor Moody asked with a low growl.
"Mr. Weasley was able to confirm that since he does work for the Minister himself," McGonagall pointed out.
"So how do you propose we proceed?" asked Professor Snape coldly.
"That's where I come in," Sirius cut in, getting up from his seat and walking to the center of the room. He then proceeded to conjure up a map that displayed the layout of two parallel roads connected by two smaller roads running north south.
"This is a map of where the death eater Avery lives, located in York. He lives at the end of Kilburn road which is the southern road running east- west along the map. 64 Kilburn Road is the address."
"Bit far from London isn't it?" Terry commented.
"Not when you can apparate," Sirius pointed out. " - At any rate, this upcoming mission will require that everything is kept silent and stealth is of the utmost importance. Therefore only a group of four to six people will be all."
The sound of wood shifting on stone was heard and Harry turned his attention to Walter who was just getting up from his chair.
"The roles will be very simple," Walter explained as he walked towards the center to stand next to Sirius. "Two abductors to get the package and get out, and four lookouts to watch for problems. Two in the front of the mansion, two in the back should be enough to ensure that he doesn't escape and that no help comes."
"I assume that Avery will not be willing to go without a fight to Moody and Sepet will be the ones to take care of him," Sirius added. "Walter volunteered to be one of the lookouts in the front of the mansion and I will be one of the lookouts in the back."
"So now all we need is two volunteers to complete the team for this mission," Walter said.
Harry nearly jumped out of his seat at being offered the chance to participate in obtaining information of Dumbledore's whereabouts since Harry wanted nothing more than to get Dumbledore back and this would just be one step in achieving his goal. However he settled for a calm, "I'll volunteer," at which both Hermione and Cho looked in his direction, their faces full of concern.
Sirius beamed at Harry, "All right, anyone else?"
"There's no point in putting any other students in danger," Arthur Weasley stated. "I'll be the other one."
A squawk was heard in the room and everyone turned their heads to find Fawkes perched on his stand in the back of the room.
"Ah yes, we shouldn't leave Fawkes out," said Walter with a smile. "He will be providing some of the transportation for us. Since Alastor and Arthur can apparate and Lord Sepet can fly on his own while carrying Sirius, Harry and I will travel with Fawkes since we can't have a portkey set up in time."
"When do we leave?" Harry asked.
"We will have to leave this afternoon in order to get there by the time Avery gets back from the ministry," Sirius explained. "He doesn't exactly follow a definite schedule since he's one of the more paranoid Death Eaters. However he is always home in time for supper, which is around 7."
"Therefore if we leave at around 5PM, we should get there in time," said Walter. "York is quite a distance from London after all."
"How will we know where to go and what the inside of the mansion looks like?" Arthur questioned.
"The only people that will need to know about the layout will be Lord Sepet and Alastor since they are the ones to carry out the actual abduction," Walter said.
"How do we get out with Avery?"
"We'll have a portkey ready to get him here. It's set so that it directly transports him into the dungeon we've prepared for him. In addition, to make sure that he doesn't just grab the portkey and get back home, we've set it up so that it is a one way portkey."
"I thought we couldn't apparate or disapparate within Hogwarts," Hermione pointed out. "It's common knowledge."
Walter smiled at her. "You were always the one to bring up these facts but we already thought of it. That's why we're leaving from Hogsmeade."
"However," Walter continued, glancing at a timepiece in his hand. "We should allow the professors and students, with the exception of Mr. Potter, to return to their classes before anyone in the school questions - Mr. Weasley," Walter addressed Percy, "Please take care of my class."
"I will do my best," Percy replied and all of the professors got up and quietly left the room with all of the students but Hermione and Cho didn't move.
"Miss Chang - Miss Granger," Walter said, noticing that neither Cho nor Hermione had budged from their seats. "Is something wrong?"
"Um." Cho began. "Why are you allowing Harry to go on this mission alone rather than send someone else with more experience, like Miss Figg?"
"I agree with Cho here," Hermione said firmly. "Harry will be put in quite a bit of danger."
"Well, since it is an infiltration mission, I could argue that he is in no - " Walter began to state.
"If Harry goes, I want to go," Hermione cut in before he could finish.
"If she goes, I go too," Cho added.
"Miss Granger - Miss Chang, I understand your concern for your friend," Walter said. "However if we include you both in the mission, there will be the problem of transportation and chance of detection will increase."
"But - "
"I'm sure you both wish to come along but if you two are missing, who will be around to explain to your friend, Mr. Weasley why your other friend has disappeared?"
Hermione and Cho fell silent and got up to leave.
"We'll see you later ok Harry?" Cho said to him as she and Hermione exited the room.
"Bye Harry," said Hermione as she reached to close the door.
"Ok - I'll see you later," Harry called disappointedly as the door closed.
Once the door closed, Harry immediately turned his attention back to Sirius who was now speaking.
"Now we must go on to explain how the mission will proceed. - Once the entire team has arrived, both look out teams will take their places in the front and rear of the mansion," Sirius said, bringing up another map of the grounds layout surrounding the mansion. The mansion was surrounded by a high fence with high hedges just on the inside of it. The rear of the mansion had a pool and a fountain in the middle of a small courtyard but like the front, hedges also surrounded it.
"There are thick hedges on either side of the mansion entrance and around the gates that separate the grounds from the street," Sirius explained. "However we will carefully place the lookouts near the gate so that they can intercept anyone coming in from the front that could be viewed as hostile."
"The others will be placed in the rear on either side of the rear entrance," Walter continued. "Once we have Avery, Alastor will send up red sparks into the air indicating that the mission is complete and we will get out the way we came in. Any questions?"
No one spoke up so Walter proceeded to talk. "Since this will take place in an area with muggles, we will have to use stunning spells only. We don't want to draw attention by using anything that could potentially raise questions later. - That will be all, you are all dismissed. I will see you all later this afternoon."
"I wish we had more people that thought like you in our auror division, Mr. Laikov," Moody commented. "You truly understand how to handle a mission."
Walter smiled and bowed slightly towards Moody. "Coming from an experienced auror like yourself, I am honoured by your praise."
With that, the remaining people in the room got up and left, however Walter and Sirius remained in the room. Seeing this, Harry likewise pushed back his chair and got up to leave.
"Harry," Sirius called as he was about to leave. "I'll see you later. It was good to see you again."
Harry grinned at him and ran up to Sirius to give him a warm hug. "Thank you Sirius, it's good to see you too and I'm glad that you made it back safely."
Sirius chuckled happily. "That's my godson, now off to class before you miss it completely."
Harry nodded and ran out of the room towards Professor Flitwick's classroom for his charms class.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Later that afternoon, Harry was called down to Walter's office to meet with Walter and Sirius to prepare for the upcoming mission.
When he arrived at the dungeons after bidding good-bye to Hermione and Cho, who looked a little crestfallen, Harry found Fawkes perched upon a skull on the table that was off to the right just as he entered the room. However he also found that Sepet was there and that Walter was cleaning his dagger.
"Hullo Walter - Professor Sepet - Sirius," Harry greeted as he entered the room. "What are you doing Walter?"
Walter looked up from his work and smiled at Harry. "Since we'll be in an area filled with muggles, I thought it would be better if I used this dagger to kill anyone."
"Won't that draw attention to yourself?" Harry asked. "You are dressed in something that the muggles wouldn't normally see everyday."
"Perhaps, but in the case I needed to kill anyone, it would look more natural if I stabbed them than if I threw a spear at them."
"Good point." Harry muttered. "Except for the fact that you could just stun them."
"That's something he can't do," Sepet said, having overheard Harry's comment. "Walter's spells, unlike mine, do not have the capability to stun anyone. He can only kill them or injure them badly."
"I think that should do it," Walter said, sheathing the dagger again.
"Well, we're going to be late - Alastor and Arthur will be joining us when we get there," Sirius interrupted. "We should get going."
Sirius then transformed into a dog and Sepet led the way out.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Along the way to the front of the school, Fawkes came to join them and Sepet's figure suddenly dispersed into hundreds of bats.
The bats then went to pick up Sirius and flew up into the evening sky. Once they were out of sight, Fawkes let out a low squawk and he flew into the air to hover over Harry and Walter in order to allow them to grab on to his tail.
Walter grabbed on to Fawkes' tail and Harry proceeded to do the same, however before he was able to, he heard the sound of Hermione's voice calling his name.
"HARRY!" Hermione shouted as she ran down the steps at the front of the school.
Harry turned to face her only to find himself enveloped in a tight hug.
"Hermione! You aren't supposed to be here, where's Ron?"
"I'm sorry Harry," Hermione said, looking up into his eyes. "I just wanted to see you off. Cho is keeping Ron busy right now and - Oh please do be careful Harry."
Harry smiled. "Don't worry Hermione, I'll come back alive, don't worry."
Harry then turned serious and faced Hermione. "Listen, do me a favour. While we were in the meeting earlier, I noticed that my ring was glowing. Sepet wasn't there so something else must be wrong. I want you to investigate it while I'm gone ok?"
Hermione nodded nervously. "Okay. I'll take care of it."
"Here," Harry said, handing her his ring. "This should help you out."
Harry turned around to face Walter who, he noticed, was looking at him intently before turning back to face Hermione. "I need to go now."
Hermione smiled weakly with a glimmer of sadness. "We'll have a surprise waiting for you."
With that, Hermione leaned over and kissed Harry on the cheek. "For good luck."
"Thanks Hermione," Harry replied with a smile as Hermione withdrew and stood in front of him. "I'll see you later."
"I'll be waiting," Hermione said and Harry grabbed on to Fawkes' tail as well.
Instantly Harry felt all of his weight lifted from his body and he felt extraordinarily light. Fawkes took off into the evening sky but Harry couldn't resist looking back at Hermione's figure standing on the steps in front of the school which was quickly getting smaller as Fawkes rose higher and higher.
After what seemed like hours, Hermione was no longer visible to Harry but he continued to glance back at the school until it was completely out of sight. In the evening sky, the school had looked quite beautiful indeed and Harry thought it would be great if Cho was there to see it with him. Yet in thinking back to Cho, he was quite curious as to why Hermione had been the one to say goodbye to him rather than her.
"Quite a pleasant view, no?" Walter's voice was heard, drawing Harry's attention away from his thoughts.
"Yes it is," Harry said, looking at Walter. "What should we expect when we get there?"
Walter looked at him with a thoughtful expression written all over his face. "I'd expect that it should be a quick mission and that there shouldn't be any trouble at all."
"What happens if they are expecting us?"
"Then we'll have to fight our way out but we'll be fine. There should be no need to worry Mr. Potter. The enemy isn't expecting us and so we will have the element of surprise."
Harry nodded and glanced down at the trees and hills of grass below them. The trees weren't going by in a blur but they were moving by relatively quickly. They hadn't passed over any towns or cities along the way so Harry assumed that Fawkes was avoiding them all in order not to arouse suspicion.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
By the time they arrived over York, the sun had disappeared completely and the streets weren't visible from the sky. The street lamps however were but Fawkes continued to fly on until they were over what Harry thought to be Avery's mansion. Once there, Fawkes hovered and slowly descended onto the front lawn.
Walter didn't wait for Fawkes to land for he let go of the Phoenix tail and fell to the ground, executing a perfect forward roll before getting up on his feet. Seeing this, Harry followed suit, or tried to. He let go of the tail but unlike Walter, he landed on the ground in a crumpled heap.
"Are you all right Mr. Potter?" Walter asked, running towards him and helping him up.
Harry nodded. "I'm ok. Nothing seems broken."
"Good, now let's get out of sight before someone spots us from the house or the street."
They then ran towards the hedges near the front gate as they had previously planned and took cover where they had a clear view of both the streets and the front of the mansion.
The street was well dimly lit by street lamps and was completely empty with the exception of a few muggles walking along the sidewalk.
The mansion on the other hand had a pathway leading towards the front entrance lined by well trimmed bushes and there was a small fountain in the middle of the lawn, lined up perfectly with the double doors in the front. A few lights were lit in the mansion but no movement could be seen through any of the windows.
"Now all we need to do is wait for Lord Sepet and Alastor," Walter said, crouching down on one knee. "You keep an eye on the street, I'll watch the house."
"All right," Harry whispered, crouching down as well, and he turned his attention towards the street, keeping an eye out for trouble.
Minutes seemed like hours to Harry as he intently watched the street, earnestly waiting for Sepet and Moody to arrive so that they could go home.
A whoosh and rustling of leaves was heard overhead and Harry to look around to see what it was but when he looked at Walter, he saw that he was already drawing his dagger.
"Stay here while I look to see what it is," Walter instructed him.
Harry nodded and continued to look around at his surroundings, just in case something should attack them.
In the mean time, Walter moved along the hedges out of sight to investigate what the noise was. Tense moments passed without a sound but that didn't last long as Harry heard a feminine muffled cry that sounded all too familiar. Harry left his position and followed along the hedges in the direction that Walter had left.
However Harry did not have to wait long for Walter reappeared with a girl dressed in a Hogwarts school uniform. Walter smiled at Harry and removed his hand from the girl's mouth while releasing her from the grip that he had her in.
"Harry!" Cho exclaimed, running towards him and enveloping him in a tight hug.
"Wh - Cho, what are you doing here?" Harry said in shock as he slowly returned Cho's hug.
"I'm sorry Harry but I couldn't let you go on this mission alone," Cho said softly as she released him from the hug. "I was too worried that something might happen to you."
"That's okay Cho," Harry comforted her. "I'm glad that you're here."
Cho smiled at him and hugged him again but Walter interrupted them. "Lord Sepet should be here and you will want to retrieve your broom from the lawn miss Chang."
Cho nodded and disappeared around the hedges for a moment to get her broom. When she reappeared, Harry led her back to where they had been observing the street.
"It's been relatively quiet so far," Harry told Cho. "However there isn't any sign of Sepet."
There was a loud bark and the sound of many wings flapping was heard overhead. Harry looked up to see what it was but he could only assume that it was Sepet and Sirius for it was too dark to see anything over the house.
"Lord Sepet is here," Walter whispered to them. "Stand ready for trouble."
"How does he know if Professor Sepet is here or not?" Cho asked him, drawing her dagger and wand.
"He probably can sense his master," Harry whispered, following suit with his wand and sword. "But how he does that, I wouldn't know."
"Watch the street for trouble Cho," Harry said. "I'll watch the house."
"Okay," Cho acknowledged and she turned around to face the street, leaning on Harry's back in the process.
In this position and such close proximity to Cho, Harry found it very hard to concentrate on observing the house since it was rather pleasant to be so close to her with her back warming his.
Suddenly a figure dressed in a wizard robe and wearing a black top hat appeared in front of the house and unlocked the front door.
"Walter," Harry said, catching Walter's attention. "Avery just arrived."
"I saw," Walter replied. "Now we just wait for Alastor and Lord Sepet to carry out their task."
Sure enough, as if on cue, Harry's keen vision picked up a figure in a wizard's robe appear on the roof and another figure assembled aside him clothed entirely in black.
Harry then saw Sepet climb down the front of the house, very much like a lizard and somehow unlock one of the windows on the top floor. Sepet slipped through the window's opening and disappeared from view.
At that moment, Harry felt Cho move away from him suddenly and he turned around to see what was wrong.
"What's wrong Cho?" he asked.
Cho didn't replay but pointed towards the street at a muggle who was standing up against the lamp post on opposite side of the street.
"It's a muggle, what of it?"
"Look more carefully," Cho said.
Harry carefully looked the muggle over but he didn't notice anything odd about him except that his hands were gloved. However when Harry looked at the muggle's hands he noticed the glimmer of a silver object in his hand. A knife.
"Is it normal for muggles to carry knives around?" Cho asked.
"I don't think so," Harry said. "Muggles are very strict about carrying weapons in public."
"Wait, there's another muggle," Cho said, pointing to another one walking towards the muggle with the knife.
"Walter," Harry called. "There's a muggle with a knife across the street. Something might be wrong."
Unfortunately, Harry had spoken too soon for he heard a yell pierce the quiet night. Looking back at the muggle with the knife, Harry noticed that he wasn't standing at the lamp post any longer. In fact, the muggle was grappling with the one who was walking towards him earlier.
"Give me your money, NOW!" the muggle with the knife commanded.
Walter, seeing this, immediately drew his dagger and ran towards the front gate separating the estate from the street. He then kicked the gate continuously until the padlock keeping it shut fell off and the gate swung open.
"YOU THERE! STAY WHERE YOU ARE!" Walter shouted as he ran towards the armed muggle with his dagger in his hand. "DON'T MOVE!"
Hearing another person come towards, the muggle immediately drew another weapon, pointed at the unarmed muggle and fired. Harry heard the loud bang echo through the night sky and he saw that the muggle's body went limp and that blood had splattered all over the sidewalk as the bullet went straight through the body.
The armed muggle then dropped the body and searched its pockets for something. Walter was now more than halfway across the street. He took something out of the dead muggle's body and smiled. Then he pointed his weapon at Walter and was about to pull the trigger when Harry pointed his wand at the muggle and fired a stunning spell.
The spell flew through the air and struck him in the chest, knocking him out completely but when Walter got to the unconscious body, Harry could see that Walter's face was twisted in anger.
"Mr. Potter," Walter called. "I will need your assistance with this."
Harry turned to Cho and told her to stay put while he went to help Walter.
~*~*~*~*~*~
By the time Harry reached Walter on the other side of the street, Walter was already leaning over the body of the muggle that had just been shot and examining the body.
"He's dead," Walter said, taking his hand away from the muggle's neck in order to check for a pulse.
Walter shook his head and stood up. "Mr. Potter, revive the other one."
Harry nodded and pointed his wand at the stunned muggle. "Ennervate."
The muggle slowly revived and shook off the stun but he never got the chance to get up for Walter kicked him hard in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him and causing the muggle to throw up some stomach acid and saliva.
"For every crime," Walter said, kicking the muggle in the ribs. "There is a price to pay."
The muggle screamed in pain and rolled over on the pavement, leaving his back facing Walter.
"Now you will pay the price," Walter continued and kicked the muggle in the back, around where the kidneys would be and the muggle screamed in pain even more as every muscle in his body tensed up.
"Walter, that's enough," Harry said, not enjoying the scene very much. "We have a mission to get back to."
"Remember Harry," Walter told him. "If there's one type of person that never deserves to live, it's a criminal."
Walter kicked the muggle one last time in the small of his back with the point of his boot, paralyzing him from the waist down. He then turned the muggle over so that he was looking directly at his face.
"W-Who are you?" asked the muggle with fear written all over his face. "What business is it of yours if I decide to go mug someone?"
"Muggles such as yourself are criminals and don't deserve to live," came the cold reply.
"There's nothing wrong with wanting to steal his money. I j-just wanted to relieve him of his burden and make it mine. You're not a bobby. My parents will press charges for victimizing me. You hear? I'm the victim of this, not the person I killed. He only died because you interfered."
"If I leave no witnesses, they won't know who to press charges," Walter said, bringing out his dagger. "The penalty for taking a life is to pay with your own and I hereby sentence you to death."
"It's your fault he died, all your fau ."
The muggle never had time to finish his statement for Walter quickly thrust the dagger into his throat and flipped it to that the point was now facing downward before stabbing the muggle again in the heart.
Harry stood there quite horrified at Walter's brutal treatment of the muggle and the swift execution as blood continued to ooze out of the injuries and soak the sidewalk in blood.
Walter then withdrew his bloody dagger from the body and sheathed it. Harry could see that a spot of blood was already there from the initial injury but when the dagger was removed, the spot quickly grew and spread throughout the shirt, adding even more to the already growing pool of blood on the sidewalk.
After several moments of staring in utter horror, Harry finally gathered the courage to speak. "Was that really necessary? What if the muggles see us?"
"There shouldn't be anyone around here at all," Walter said, heading back towards the hedges. "We should go."
Harry started to walk back towards the hedges where they were hiding previously but he couldn't help but look back at the dead bodies lying there on the sidewalk. Surely they would attract suspicion.
"Walter, should we be leaving the bodies there?"
"Leave them, they won't know who to come after," Walter said, now running back towards their hiding spot.
Harry took one look back at the two dead muggles but quickly broke into a run so that he wouldn't be left out in the open anywhere near the dead bodies and upon arriving at the front gates, he then saw red sparks fly into the air from the roof of the mansion.
Cho came up to meet Harry as soon as he arrived at the hedges with her broom looking a little pale but she nevertheless shakily said something to him. "Time to go Harry."
Soon Fawkes reappeared with Sirius and Walter took hold of its tail.
"Come on," Walter urged him. "We need to get out quickly."
"If you don't want to go with Walter on Fawkes, you can ride on the broom with me," Cho told him, smiling slightly. "I don't mind."
Harry was rather grateful of Cho's offer since he was feeling quite uneasy about going with Walter on Fawkes. "Sure."
"I'll ride with Cho on her broom," Harry called.
Walter nodded his head in acknowledgement and said something inaudible to Fawkes.
"See you back at the castle," Sirius said loudly as Fawkes then took off in the direction of Hogwarts.
"All right, shall we go?" Cho asked him, climbing onto her broom.
"Okay," Harry said and he too mounted the broom right behind her.
With that, Harry and Cho kicked off, taking off in the direction that Fawkes had left in.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Do you know the way?" Harry asked Cho.
"I think I do, how else do you think I found you?"
Harry grinned, "Then please do the honours of directing us."
Cho looked back at him and smiled. "Only if you handle the broom."
"Deal, now where do we go?"
"Just go in the direction that Fawkes went in and we should get there," Cho instructed, pointing in the direction that Fawkes had flown in.
With that, Cho leaned back lazily into Harry's chest but kept a grip on the broom with her hands. "I wonder why Walter killed that muggle. That wasn't really necessary."
"I wouldn't know. He can be every bit as brutal as Sepet but unlike Sepet there is also a playful side to him and I suppose it's his way of carrying out justice."
"A life for a life?"
"Probably but then again, what that muggle was saying before Walter killed him was almost as if he thought it was his right to steal and murder. I mean he was referring to himself almost as if he was the victim, not caring much for the person he had just killed."
"He was? I couldn't hear what he was saying from where I was," said Cho.
"Yeah."
Cho's face twisted into a look of shock and horror. "How horrible. No one should be think it's right to take a life. That's why we're fighting against You-Know-Who in the first place."
"I agree but somehow that muggle was led to believe that it was his right to do whatever he wanted to."
"I don't think I'll ever understand the muggles. Their society is so different from our own - what kind of society doesn't enforce the laws that criminals think that they can do whatever they want?"
The direction that the conversation was going in was starting to make Harry uneasy so he quickly made an attempt to change the subject. "I'm pretty sure that they bother to enforce the laws but they probably aren't so strict about it, almost like Flitwick."
"Yes, Flitwick is such a nice professor," Cho commented agreeably. "He's a lot better than Snape in my opinion and I wish more professors would be like him."
"Flitwick or Snape?"
Cho laughed. "You are a funny one indeed Harry, why Flitwick of course."
Harry grinned. "I was just making sure."
"I like Snape as much as I like Malfoy," Cho said, gazing up at the starry night sky.
Harry noticed this and saw that this was a perfect opportunity for some alone time with Cho.
"The stars are beautiful tonight," Cho said dreamily. "Don't you think so?"
Harry also glanced up at the night sky. "Yes they are but wait until we get back to the school. It looks better there."
"All right, let's hurry. I wouldn't want to miss the beautiful view that you want to show me," Cho said, looking back at him and smiling.
Harry smiled back and leaned forward on the broom causing it to accelerate until it couldn't go any faster, guiding it in the direction of the school.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
By the time Harry arrived at the school again, he could have thought that more than two hours had passed because the school was already well lit with torches and smoke could be seen coming from Hagrid's hut signaling the start of dinner.
Unfortunately Cho was fast asleep, leaning against Harry's chest. Probably exhausted from the long trip he figured so he headed in the direction of the astronomy tower.
A long, thin object, glowing a bright green colour, was shot into the air as Harry approached the Astronomy tower and it dispersed into many sparkling green particles once it reached a certain height, signalling him to land there. Figuring Walter was already waiting for him, Harry gently descended onto the astronomy tower so as not to wake Cho.
Walter was indeed standing there waiting for them to land.
"Cho," Harry whispered into her ear, "we're here."
Cho stirred in her sleep and opened her eyes. "We're here already?"
A mischievous smile played upon Harry's lips. "Yes dear, we're here."
Cho sat up in surprise at being called 'dear' by Harry but since the broom was still hovering a foot over the ground, this caused Cho to fall off the broom and fall onto the floor.
Harry couldn't resist laughing at the sight he caused but he promptly stopped laughing when Cho reached out a hand and pulled him by the leg, off his broom.
"OOWW!" Harry exclaimed when he hit the floor next to Cho who was now laughing.
"Can't say you deserved that one," Cho said smugly.
A smile also fell upon Walter's face and he went to help both of them up. "Come now you two, we have work to do - Miss Granger will meet us at the South Tower."
Harry had never been to the South Tower but Walter didn't give them much time to recover from their fall for he walked into the school at a brisk pace.
Harry quickly grabbed the broom from the floor and he and Cho broke off into a run after Walter.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The South Tower was quite a way from the Astronomy Tower but when he arrived, he was pleased to find that Hermione was already waiting for them. However the first thing he noted was the glowing ring on her finger.
"Harry!" Hermione said, running up to him and enveloping him in a hug. "I see that Cho found you. We thought it was best if one of us followed you to see that you were safe."
Harry gently returned the hug and Hermione slowly broke away. "How was your day?"
"It was great," said Hermione. "Ron is now on his rounds so I was able to get here. Unfortunately I didn't accomplish much in solving the problem you asked me to take care of Harry."
"What problem?" Cho asked.
"I'll tell you later," Harry whispered to Cho.
"I will be going up now," Walter announced and he disappeared up the stairs.
"I think we should follow Walter up," Cho remarked, starting up the stairs. "We don't want this one to get killed."
"Do you think it's Walter?" Harry asked as they headed up the staircase after Walter.
"Walter? Betray the Order?" Hermione asked thoughtfully. "That doesn't seem to make sense but he certainly does have the skill to do so."
"The ring wasn't very helpful because Parvati was around," Hermione whispered to Harry.
"That's ok, there's still time. I don't think that this death eater will get killed because there's too may people around," Harry whispered back. "We should figure out who the traitor is before something else goes wrong."
~*~*~*~*~*~
When they arrived at the tower, Harry and Hermione were shocked to find that Avery was strapped down to a chair with magical bonds and there were all sorts of odd looking tools laid out on the table next to the fireplace which contained a roaring fire.
"What are all the tools for?" Hermione asked Walter as she entered. "They look like they're used for killing or torture."
"That's precisely why they are here," Walter stated, picking up an iron poker and placing it in the fire. "We can't use Veritaserum simply because there is a chance that Avery could be poisoned."
"But you could easily have Snape prepare it," Cho said, looking at the tools in horror. "That way no one could slip poison in it."
"Someone could easily slip poison in the ingredients," Walter said, withdrawing the iron poker from the fire to examine it. It had turned a reddish colour indicating that it was indeed hot.
Walter then walked towards Avery who was staring at him in fear as he approached. "Now, let's see if this works."
Walter lowered the hot poker until it was barely inches away from Avery's arm which was now perspiring from the heat and the nervous state that Avery was in.
"Tell me Avery," Walter said in a voice that was almost like Snape's in that it was barely a whisper. "You are part of the Department of Transportation are you not?"
Avery nodded.
"Good - now you are aware of a certain prisoner transfer taking place some time soon, yes?"
Another nod.
"Who will you be transferring?"
"High level prisoners that the Minister thinks are dangerous, including the former headmaster of Hogwarts, that's who you're looking for right?"
"That's right," Walter said, keeping the hot poker above Avery's arm. "Now when and where will you be transferring him to?"
"I don't know," Avery said, his voice starting to fall.
"You're lying," Walter stated and he pressed the iron poker to Avery's hand.
"AHHH!!" Avery screamed in pain, trying in vain to withdraw his hand from the poker. Harry could see the skin sear under the heat and even the surrounding skin had turned a charred, black colour.
"I can't stand this anymore, this is wrong" Hermione said, running out the door. "I'm getting McGonagall."
Harry wanted to run after her but Cho had fainted and so he had to see to it that she was ok, but until then Walter's torture act continued.
"Now let's try again. Where are you taking him to?"
Avery choked on his own saliva and writhed in pain but eventually was able to speak. "He's being transferred to Azkaban next week. He's being held in the Malfoy mansion right now where there's a charm in place so that he can't disapparate and no one can apparate in."
Walter smiled and placed the iron poker on the table, making sure that the hot part wasn't touching the wood so as not to set the table on fire.
The door opened and Professor McGonagall entered with Professor Snape carrying a flask of Veritaserum. Hermione was also behind them.
"Ah, Minerva," Walter said with a bow. "How nice of you to come. Avery has just yielded the location of the headmaster."
McGonagall was shaking in fury. "Walter, you know better than to torture the prisoners. Here, we have rules and those rules include treating the prisoners like human beings. We have our methods and you have yours but while you are here, you will follow our methods."
Walter's smile disappeared slowly from his face. "As you wish. You may feed him the Veritaserum but Mr. Potter will be my witness that my methods had worked as well should Avery yield the same secrets as I had just extracted from him."
"Very well - Serverus, give him the potion," McGonagall ordered.
Snape then pulled out his wand, stunned Avery and opened his mouth so that he could pour the Veritaserum down his throat; reviving him afterwards.
"Now, where can we find the headmaster and how long before you take him to Azkaban?" Snape questioned Avery.
"The headmaster will be delivered to Azkaban by next week an is being held at Malfoy's mansion."
Walter smiled slightly. "It is as he had said before, but I will take my leave of you now."
With that, Walter left the room and Hermione broke in a sigh of relief. However Harry realized that Cho was still unconscious in his arms the entire time so he pulled out his wand and revived her.
Her eyes opened slowly and Harry gently helped her to her feet.
"Thanks Harry, did I miss something?" Cho asked him with a very confused look.
Harry couldn't help but laugh at the confounded expression on Cho's face but he just shook his head. "Nothing that you wouldn't mind missing."
"I guess that's good, right?"
"Yes it is," Hermione said. "But we should get going - it's late and I think Ron is starting to worry where we are."
"What time is it?"
"It's around 9:00," McGonagall told them. "You should be heading up to your dorms. However Mr. Potter and Miss Chang may want to detour to the kitchen for your dinner."
"Thank you Professor," Cho said as she turned to Harry. "Well, shall we go?"
Harry nodded and the two of them, along with Hermione, headed down to the kitchens for dinner.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A/N: Well, that took way too long to post just one chapter and it didn't have as much action as I would have liked but the next two should have a decent amount. Next update shouldn't be anymore than longer than two weeks, providing midterms don't get in the way. I hope to post every Saturday so if you guys checked then, the next chapter should be up. Special thanks to Quis for beta-reading part of the chapter.
Phoenix of Light: Bare the torture of R/Hr for now, it'll be a lot better later. I may not like R/Hr but this is only book 5 so as Rowling says, Harry has plenty of time to change his mind.
Icedrake: Parvati was cured of vampirism? I wasn't aware of that. The H/Cho will last throughout the book and as for Sepet's role in the plot, you'll have to keep reading to find out.
darthmaul2209: hmm, have Harry teach Cho some of the elemental magic? Maybe
Shadow: updates are slow now, sorry. Too much work, argh!
MaxLoneWolf: Thank you very much for the wonderful review. I would be more than happy to discuss any topic regarding Harry Potter you wish to discuss. Unfortunately, I don't have ICQ or MSN so I can only e-mail or IM you over AIM. As for the flamer, I figured out who it was. It's always nice having people everywhere to find out stuff for you. However I think that he just helped me rather than hurt me because his points don't make sense. As for Cho, although I'm a H/Hr shipper, I dislike it when people portray Cho as a mean/slutty girl. In fact, since she's the only Asian in the HP series, it makes me think that these authors are racist and being an Asian myself, I find that very frustrating because it's unrealistic.
The-Dude: I will keep H/Cho for the rest of this fic as I have said before and you're right, changing the couples in this fic would completely ruin the whole thing. I'd wait until at least the next fic before trying anything like that.
Angelis: =)
Genius1724: I'll try to get chapter updates about once a week, on Saturday but work is piling up unfortunately.
Elfin Warrior Maiden: I'm glad that you like the plot and it's nice to see that the time I put into thinking it out paid off.
Talon 1: original magic, I wouldn't say that. most of it was ripped off the games I play though I wish I had invented them. The words to go with the spells though, those are my own invention with a few exceptions. As for Sepet, he's a vampire. They are naturally violent beings so if the extreme violence bothers you, I apologize but you're right, this wouldn't be fit for a child's movie.. The skeletons, yes that's a lot of dead bodies but skeletons last a long time so I'll just say that they're an accumulation of all the dead bodies that Walter has gathered over the years.. Also, all those people that Sepet has bitten have got to be useful for something, right?
FictionalLove: Please be patient with the H/Cho romance scenes if they bother you. They're all part of the plot.
Vinz: You'll be happy for the rest of this fic at the very least since H/Cho will last.
Sikokid: yep, H/Cho will last throughout this book.
Jordan: What do you mean who are the vampires? It should have been clarified after the Christmas chapter.
Electrodragonman: send a copy to Rowling? Hahahaha, that'd be nice but I don't think she would use the animagus ideas. She stated in her interview that no one out of the trio will become an animagus.
Katy999: Thanks for the review. I'll certainly try to update faster.
steviej1026: ??? Why would I flame myself?
Soccerpunx: Thank you. I'm glad you're enjoying the plot and the relationships.
Charlie: Yeah, that's where the spells come from.
Karenr9: unfortunately Rowling will do Ron/Hermione in her book and since I'm following her interviews for what to do about the relationships, this book will be H/Cho and Ron/Hermione but that's always subject to change as Rowling says. :)
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and associated characters belong to J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Chapter 29: Order 03: Abduction
Ever since the Valentine's ball, Harry's attention turned to practicing his spells and using his sword for he knew that in the upcoming missions, both Hermione and Cho would be in extreme danger. Despite the danger he would also be in, Harry was looking forward to not only fulfilling his resolution to protect Cho but also to rescue Dumbledore who had guided him for the past four years he had spent at Hogwarts. Furthermore, Ron was still absolutely clueless as to the Phoenix order and thus Harry would have to make sure that Hermione came out alive. This was not only because he still had some feelings for his best friend but also because Ron would be completely devastated if anything were to happen to her, not to mention quite enraged at him.
However the day where his resolve would be tested came all too soon for the news that Harry had been waiting for anxiously and dreading arrived two weeks after the Valentine's ball during breakfast.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Headmaster found guilty of Treason and Corruption -Rita Skeeter
The trial at which the former headmaster of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore, was tried for treason and corruption was completed last week and a verdict has now been reached. Thanks to the ever watchful Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, acting as witness to the crime of the deceptive headmaster's attempt of freeing the Death Eaters of Azkaban, Albus Dumbledore was found guilty unanimously by the jury.
As a result, the headmaster will be removed from his prestigious office at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and will be sentenced to life imprisonment in Azkaban with the rest of his kind. The transfer will take place sometime within the week. Unfortunately, the criminal Harry Potter, was not brought to trial since his charges were dropped due to the fact that witnesses testified that he was present at Hogwarts and had never left the school.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"This is just horrible!" Ron exclaimed when they had all read the Daily Prophet. "Why isn't anyone doing anything about this?"
"I think they are," Hermione said, looking over the article once more. "This isn't your typical trial Ron, it was rigged and we know it but there isn't much you can do at the moment."
"Are you suggesting we give up on Dumbledore?" Ron countered exasperatedly.
"No, I'm not saying that we should give up on him but there are other ways to get him back," Hermione pointed out. "But at least be glad that Harry wasn't brought to trial at the time of the incident."
"Calm down Ron before you make a scene," Harry interrupted. "I think Hermione is right and it's best if we leave it to the teachers."
"At any rate, we need to be going to class," Hermione said, getting up from her seat and gathering up her books. "We don't want to be late."
"Mr. Potter - Miss Granger," they heard Professor McGonagall say. "I'd like a word with both of you. Move a long Mr. Weasley, they should be joining you shortly."
Harry and Hermione threw Ron a look of confusion but they quickly followed Professor McGonagall out of the Great Hall without question.
Once there were no students within earshot, McGonagall began to explain the reason for pulling them aside. "The Order has been assembled and the other students are being pulled away as we speak. I'm sure you know about the news regarding the headmaster."
Harry couldn't help but grin for this was the moment that he had been looking for. "Yes Professor, we've heard."
"Good - but time is short," McGonagall said, now guiding them in the direction of Dumbledore's office. "We need to prepare and send out a group by this afternoon if we want to get the information we need."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
When they arrived at Dumbledore's office, Harry found that almost everyone was there with the exception of the students. Sirius was there with Arabella Figg and he gave Harry a wide grin that Harry returned enthusiastically.
The door opened and the rest of the students arrived with Walter. Oddly enough, Harry noticed a slight glow coming from his hand and upon looking down he saw something that he hadn't noticed before in a meeting; his ring was glowing red.
"Hi Harry," Cho whispered, sitting down next to him. "Are you looking forward to this, how about you?"
Harry grinned and nodded. "Same here."
Once everyone had sat down, Professor McGonagall stood up to speak. "I'm sure that all of you have read the Daily Prophet and know that our headmaster was found guilty of treason."
There were nods around the room and McGonagall continued. "Although I am not a big fan of Skeeter, she is telling part of the truth in that they would be transfer him to Azkaban sometime this week."
"How do you know if this is true?" Alastor Moody asked with a low growl.
"Mr. Weasley was able to confirm that since he does work for the Minister himself," McGonagall pointed out.
"So how do you propose we proceed?" asked Professor Snape coldly.
"That's where I come in," Sirius cut in, getting up from his seat and walking to the center of the room. He then proceeded to conjure up a map that displayed the layout of two parallel roads connected by two smaller roads running north south.
"This is a map of where the death eater Avery lives, located in York. He lives at the end of Kilburn road which is the southern road running east- west along the map. 64 Kilburn Road is the address."
"Bit far from London isn't it?" Terry commented.
"Not when you can apparate," Sirius pointed out. " - At any rate, this upcoming mission will require that everything is kept silent and stealth is of the utmost importance. Therefore only a group of four to six people will be all."
The sound of wood shifting on stone was heard and Harry turned his attention to Walter who was just getting up from his chair.
"The roles will be very simple," Walter explained as he walked towards the center to stand next to Sirius. "Two abductors to get the package and get out, and four lookouts to watch for problems. Two in the front of the mansion, two in the back should be enough to ensure that he doesn't escape and that no help comes."
"I assume that Avery will not be willing to go without a fight to Moody and Sepet will be the ones to take care of him," Sirius added. "Walter volunteered to be one of the lookouts in the front of the mansion and I will be one of the lookouts in the back."
"So now all we need is two volunteers to complete the team for this mission," Walter said.
Harry nearly jumped out of his seat at being offered the chance to participate in obtaining information of Dumbledore's whereabouts since Harry wanted nothing more than to get Dumbledore back and this would just be one step in achieving his goal. However he settled for a calm, "I'll volunteer," at which both Hermione and Cho looked in his direction, their faces full of concern.
Sirius beamed at Harry, "All right, anyone else?"
"There's no point in putting any other students in danger," Arthur Weasley stated. "I'll be the other one."
A squawk was heard in the room and everyone turned their heads to find Fawkes perched on his stand in the back of the room.
"Ah yes, we shouldn't leave Fawkes out," said Walter with a smile. "He will be providing some of the transportation for us. Since Alastor and Arthur can apparate and Lord Sepet can fly on his own while carrying Sirius, Harry and I will travel with Fawkes since we can't have a portkey set up in time."
"When do we leave?" Harry asked.
"We will have to leave this afternoon in order to get there by the time Avery gets back from the ministry," Sirius explained. "He doesn't exactly follow a definite schedule since he's one of the more paranoid Death Eaters. However he is always home in time for supper, which is around 7."
"Therefore if we leave at around 5PM, we should get there in time," said Walter. "York is quite a distance from London after all."
"How will we know where to go and what the inside of the mansion looks like?" Arthur questioned.
"The only people that will need to know about the layout will be Lord Sepet and Alastor since they are the ones to carry out the actual abduction," Walter said.
"How do we get out with Avery?"
"We'll have a portkey ready to get him here. It's set so that it directly transports him into the dungeon we've prepared for him. In addition, to make sure that he doesn't just grab the portkey and get back home, we've set it up so that it is a one way portkey."
"I thought we couldn't apparate or disapparate within Hogwarts," Hermione pointed out. "It's common knowledge."
Walter smiled at her. "You were always the one to bring up these facts but we already thought of it. That's why we're leaving from Hogsmeade."
"However," Walter continued, glancing at a timepiece in his hand. "We should allow the professors and students, with the exception of Mr. Potter, to return to their classes before anyone in the school questions - Mr. Weasley," Walter addressed Percy, "Please take care of my class."
"I will do my best," Percy replied and all of the professors got up and quietly left the room with all of the students but Hermione and Cho didn't move.
"Miss Chang - Miss Granger," Walter said, noticing that neither Cho nor Hermione had budged from their seats. "Is something wrong?"
"Um." Cho began. "Why are you allowing Harry to go on this mission alone rather than send someone else with more experience, like Miss Figg?"
"I agree with Cho here," Hermione said firmly. "Harry will be put in quite a bit of danger."
"Well, since it is an infiltration mission, I could argue that he is in no - " Walter began to state.
"If Harry goes, I want to go," Hermione cut in before he could finish.
"If she goes, I go too," Cho added.
"Miss Granger - Miss Chang, I understand your concern for your friend," Walter said. "However if we include you both in the mission, there will be the problem of transportation and chance of detection will increase."
"But - "
"I'm sure you both wish to come along but if you two are missing, who will be around to explain to your friend, Mr. Weasley why your other friend has disappeared?"
Hermione and Cho fell silent and got up to leave.
"We'll see you later ok Harry?" Cho said to him as she and Hermione exited the room.
"Bye Harry," said Hermione as she reached to close the door.
"Ok - I'll see you later," Harry called disappointedly as the door closed.
Once the door closed, Harry immediately turned his attention back to Sirius who was now speaking.
"Now we must go on to explain how the mission will proceed. - Once the entire team has arrived, both look out teams will take their places in the front and rear of the mansion," Sirius said, bringing up another map of the grounds layout surrounding the mansion. The mansion was surrounded by a high fence with high hedges just on the inside of it. The rear of the mansion had a pool and a fountain in the middle of a small courtyard but like the front, hedges also surrounded it.
"There are thick hedges on either side of the mansion entrance and around the gates that separate the grounds from the street," Sirius explained. "However we will carefully place the lookouts near the gate so that they can intercept anyone coming in from the front that could be viewed as hostile."
"The others will be placed in the rear on either side of the rear entrance," Walter continued. "Once we have Avery, Alastor will send up red sparks into the air indicating that the mission is complete and we will get out the way we came in. Any questions?"
No one spoke up so Walter proceeded to talk. "Since this will take place in an area with muggles, we will have to use stunning spells only. We don't want to draw attention by using anything that could potentially raise questions later. - That will be all, you are all dismissed. I will see you all later this afternoon."
"I wish we had more people that thought like you in our auror division, Mr. Laikov," Moody commented. "You truly understand how to handle a mission."
Walter smiled and bowed slightly towards Moody. "Coming from an experienced auror like yourself, I am honoured by your praise."
With that, the remaining people in the room got up and left, however Walter and Sirius remained in the room. Seeing this, Harry likewise pushed back his chair and got up to leave.
"Harry," Sirius called as he was about to leave. "I'll see you later. It was good to see you again."
Harry grinned at him and ran up to Sirius to give him a warm hug. "Thank you Sirius, it's good to see you too and I'm glad that you made it back safely."
Sirius chuckled happily. "That's my godson, now off to class before you miss it completely."
Harry nodded and ran out of the room towards Professor Flitwick's classroom for his charms class.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Later that afternoon, Harry was called down to Walter's office to meet with Walter and Sirius to prepare for the upcoming mission.
When he arrived at the dungeons after bidding good-bye to Hermione and Cho, who looked a little crestfallen, Harry found Fawkes perched upon a skull on the table that was off to the right just as he entered the room. However he also found that Sepet was there and that Walter was cleaning his dagger.
"Hullo Walter - Professor Sepet - Sirius," Harry greeted as he entered the room. "What are you doing Walter?"
Walter looked up from his work and smiled at Harry. "Since we'll be in an area filled with muggles, I thought it would be better if I used this dagger to kill anyone."
"Won't that draw attention to yourself?" Harry asked. "You are dressed in something that the muggles wouldn't normally see everyday."
"Perhaps, but in the case I needed to kill anyone, it would look more natural if I stabbed them than if I threw a spear at them."
"Good point." Harry muttered. "Except for the fact that you could just stun them."
"That's something he can't do," Sepet said, having overheard Harry's comment. "Walter's spells, unlike mine, do not have the capability to stun anyone. He can only kill them or injure them badly."
"I think that should do it," Walter said, sheathing the dagger again.
"Well, we're going to be late - Alastor and Arthur will be joining us when we get there," Sirius interrupted. "We should get going."
Sirius then transformed into a dog and Sepet led the way out.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Along the way to the front of the school, Fawkes came to join them and Sepet's figure suddenly dispersed into hundreds of bats.
The bats then went to pick up Sirius and flew up into the evening sky. Once they were out of sight, Fawkes let out a low squawk and he flew into the air to hover over Harry and Walter in order to allow them to grab on to his tail.
Walter grabbed on to Fawkes' tail and Harry proceeded to do the same, however before he was able to, he heard the sound of Hermione's voice calling his name.
"HARRY!" Hermione shouted as she ran down the steps at the front of the school.
Harry turned to face her only to find himself enveloped in a tight hug.
"Hermione! You aren't supposed to be here, where's Ron?"
"I'm sorry Harry," Hermione said, looking up into his eyes. "I just wanted to see you off. Cho is keeping Ron busy right now and - Oh please do be careful Harry."
Harry smiled. "Don't worry Hermione, I'll come back alive, don't worry."
Harry then turned serious and faced Hermione. "Listen, do me a favour. While we were in the meeting earlier, I noticed that my ring was glowing. Sepet wasn't there so something else must be wrong. I want you to investigate it while I'm gone ok?"
Hermione nodded nervously. "Okay. I'll take care of it."
"Here," Harry said, handing her his ring. "This should help you out."
Harry turned around to face Walter who, he noticed, was looking at him intently before turning back to face Hermione. "I need to go now."
Hermione smiled weakly with a glimmer of sadness. "We'll have a surprise waiting for you."
With that, Hermione leaned over and kissed Harry on the cheek. "For good luck."
"Thanks Hermione," Harry replied with a smile as Hermione withdrew and stood in front of him. "I'll see you later."
"I'll be waiting," Hermione said and Harry grabbed on to Fawkes' tail as well.
Instantly Harry felt all of his weight lifted from his body and he felt extraordinarily light. Fawkes took off into the evening sky but Harry couldn't resist looking back at Hermione's figure standing on the steps in front of the school which was quickly getting smaller as Fawkes rose higher and higher.
After what seemed like hours, Hermione was no longer visible to Harry but he continued to glance back at the school until it was completely out of sight. In the evening sky, the school had looked quite beautiful indeed and Harry thought it would be great if Cho was there to see it with him. Yet in thinking back to Cho, he was quite curious as to why Hermione had been the one to say goodbye to him rather than her.
"Quite a pleasant view, no?" Walter's voice was heard, drawing Harry's attention away from his thoughts.
"Yes it is," Harry said, looking at Walter. "What should we expect when we get there?"
Walter looked at him with a thoughtful expression written all over his face. "I'd expect that it should be a quick mission and that there shouldn't be any trouble at all."
"What happens if they are expecting us?"
"Then we'll have to fight our way out but we'll be fine. There should be no need to worry Mr. Potter. The enemy isn't expecting us and so we will have the element of surprise."
Harry nodded and glanced down at the trees and hills of grass below them. The trees weren't going by in a blur but they were moving by relatively quickly. They hadn't passed over any towns or cities along the way so Harry assumed that Fawkes was avoiding them all in order not to arouse suspicion.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
By the time they arrived over York, the sun had disappeared completely and the streets weren't visible from the sky. The street lamps however were but Fawkes continued to fly on until they were over what Harry thought to be Avery's mansion. Once there, Fawkes hovered and slowly descended onto the front lawn.
Walter didn't wait for Fawkes to land for he let go of the Phoenix tail and fell to the ground, executing a perfect forward roll before getting up on his feet. Seeing this, Harry followed suit, or tried to. He let go of the tail but unlike Walter, he landed on the ground in a crumpled heap.
"Are you all right Mr. Potter?" Walter asked, running towards him and helping him up.
Harry nodded. "I'm ok. Nothing seems broken."
"Good, now let's get out of sight before someone spots us from the house or the street."
They then ran towards the hedges near the front gate as they had previously planned and took cover where they had a clear view of both the streets and the front of the mansion.
The street was well dimly lit by street lamps and was completely empty with the exception of a few muggles walking along the sidewalk.
The mansion on the other hand had a pathway leading towards the front entrance lined by well trimmed bushes and there was a small fountain in the middle of the lawn, lined up perfectly with the double doors in the front. A few lights were lit in the mansion but no movement could be seen through any of the windows.
"Now all we need to do is wait for Lord Sepet and Alastor," Walter said, crouching down on one knee. "You keep an eye on the street, I'll watch the house."
"All right," Harry whispered, crouching down as well, and he turned his attention towards the street, keeping an eye out for trouble.
Minutes seemed like hours to Harry as he intently watched the street, earnestly waiting for Sepet and Moody to arrive so that they could go home.
A whoosh and rustling of leaves was heard overhead and Harry to look around to see what it was but when he looked at Walter, he saw that he was already drawing his dagger.
"Stay here while I look to see what it is," Walter instructed him.
Harry nodded and continued to look around at his surroundings, just in case something should attack them.
In the mean time, Walter moved along the hedges out of sight to investigate what the noise was. Tense moments passed without a sound but that didn't last long as Harry heard a feminine muffled cry that sounded all too familiar. Harry left his position and followed along the hedges in the direction that Walter had left.
However Harry did not have to wait long for Walter reappeared with a girl dressed in a Hogwarts school uniform. Walter smiled at Harry and removed his hand from the girl's mouth while releasing her from the grip that he had her in.
"Harry!" Cho exclaimed, running towards him and enveloping him in a tight hug.
"Wh - Cho, what are you doing here?" Harry said in shock as he slowly returned Cho's hug.
"I'm sorry Harry but I couldn't let you go on this mission alone," Cho said softly as she released him from the hug. "I was too worried that something might happen to you."
"That's okay Cho," Harry comforted her. "I'm glad that you're here."
Cho smiled at him and hugged him again but Walter interrupted them. "Lord Sepet should be here and you will want to retrieve your broom from the lawn miss Chang."
Cho nodded and disappeared around the hedges for a moment to get her broom. When she reappeared, Harry led her back to where they had been observing the street.
"It's been relatively quiet so far," Harry told Cho. "However there isn't any sign of Sepet."
There was a loud bark and the sound of many wings flapping was heard overhead. Harry looked up to see what it was but he could only assume that it was Sepet and Sirius for it was too dark to see anything over the house.
"Lord Sepet is here," Walter whispered to them. "Stand ready for trouble."
"How does he know if Professor Sepet is here or not?" Cho asked him, drawing her dagger and wand.
"He probably can sense his master," Harry whispered, following suit with his wand and sword. "But how he does that, I wouldn't know."
"Watch the street for trouble Cho," Harry said. "I'll watch the house."
"Okay," Cho acknowledged and she turned around to face the street, leaning on Harry's back in the process.
In this position and such close proximity to Cho, Harry found it very hard to concentrate on observing the house since it was rather pleasant to be so close to her with her back warming his.
Suddenly a figure dressed in a wizard robe and wearing a black top hat appeared in front of the house and unlocked the front door.
"Walter," Harry said, catching Walter's attention. "Avery just arrived."
"I saw," Walter replied. "Now we just wait for Alastor and Lord Sepet to carry out their task."
Sure enough, as if on cue, Harry's keen vision picked up a figure in a wizard's robe appear on the roof and another figure assembled aside him clothed entirely in black.
Harry then saw Sepet climb down the front of the house, very much like a lizard and somehow unlock one of the windows on the top floor. Sepet slipped through the window's opening and disappeared from view.
At that moment, Harry felt Cho move away from him suddenly and he turned around to see what was wrong.
"What's wrong Cho?" he asked.
Cho didn't replay but pointed towards the street at a muggle who was standing up against the lamp post on opposite side of the street.
"It's a muggle, what of it?"
"Look more carefully," Cho said.
Harry carefully looked the muggle over but he didn't notice anything odd about him except that his hands were gloved. However when Harry looked at the muggle's hands he noticed the glimmer of a silver object in his hand. A knife.
"Is it normal for muggles to carry knives around?" Cho asked.
"I don't think so," Harry said. "Muggles are very strict about carrying weapons in public."
"Wait, there's another muggle," Cho said, pointing to another one walking towards the muggle with the knife.
"Walter," Harry called. "There's a muggle with a knife across the street. Something might be wrong."
Unfortunately, Harry had spoken too soon for he heard a yell pierce the quiet night. Looking back at the muggle with the knife, Harry noticed that he wasn't standing at the lamp post any longer. In fact, the muggle was grappling with the one who was walking towards him earlier.
"Give me your money, NOW!" the muggle with the knife commanded.
Walter, seeing this, immediately drew his dagger and ran towards the front gate separating the estate from the street. He then kicked the gate continuously until the padlock keeping it shut fell off and the gate swung open.
"YOU THERE! STAY WHERE YOU ARE!" Walter shouted as he ran towards the armed muggle with his dagger in his hand. "DON'T MOVE!"
Hearing another person come towards, the muggle immediately drew another weapon, pointed at the unarmed muggle and fired. Harry heard the loud bang echo through the night sky and he saw that the muggle's body went limp and that blood had splattered all over the sidewalk as the bullet went straight through the body.
The armed muggle then dropped the body and searched its pockets for something. Walter was now more than halfway across the street. He took something out of the dead muggle's body and smiled. Then he pointed his weapon at Walter and was about to pull the trigger when Harry pointed his wand at the muggle and fired a stunning spell.
The spell flew through the air and struck him in the chest, knocking him out completely but when Walter got to the unconscious body, Harry could see that Walter's face was twisted in anger.
"Mr. Potter," Walter called. "I will need your assistance with this."
Harry turned to Cho and told her to stay put while he went to help Walter.
~*~*~*~*~*~
By the time Harry reached Walter on the other side of the street, Walter was already leaning over the body of the muggle that had just been shot and examining the body.
"He's dead," Walter said, taking his hand away from the muggle's neck in order to check for a pulse.
Walter shook his head and stood up. "Mr. Potter, revive the other one."
Harry nodded and pointed his wand at the stunned muggle. "Ennervate."
The muggle slowly revived and shook off the stun but he never got the chance to get up for Walter kicked him hard in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him and causing the muggle to throw up some stomach acid and saliva.
"For every crime," Walter said, kicking the muggle in the ribs. "There is a price to pay."
The muggle screamed in pain and rolled over on the pavement, leaving his back facing Walter.
"Now you will pay the price," Walter continued and kicked the muggle in the back, around where the kidneys would be and the muggle screamed in pain even more as every muscle in his body tensed up.
"Walter, that's enough," Harry said, not enjoying the scene very much. "We have a mission to get back to."
"Remember Harry," Walter told him. "If there's one type of person that never deserves to live, it's a criminal."
Walter kicked the muggle one last time in the small of his back with the point of his boot, paralyzing him from the waist down. He then turned the muggle over so that he was looking directly at his face.
"W-Who are you?" asked the muggle with fear written all over his face. "What business is it of yours if I decide to go mug someone?"
"Muggles such as yourself are criminals and don't deserve to live," came the cold reply.
"There's nothing wrong with wanting to steal his money. I j-just wanted to relieve him of his burden and make it mine. You're not a bobby. My parents will press charges for victimizing me. You hear? I'm the victim of this, not the person I killed. He only died because you interfered."
"If I leave no witnesses, they won't know who to press charges," Walter said, bringing out his dagger. "The penalty for taking a life is to pay with your own and I hereby sentence you to death."
"It's your fault he died, all your fau ."
The muggle never had time to finish his statement for Walter quickly thrust the dagger into his throat and flipped it to that the point was now facing downward before stabbing the muggle again in the heart.
Harry stood there quite horrified at Walter's brutal treatment of the muggle and the swift execution as blood continued to ooze out of the injuries and soak the sidewalk in blood.
Walter then withdrew his bloody dagger from the body and sheathed it. Harry could see that a spot of blood was already there from the initial injury but when the dagger was removed, the spot quickly grew and spread throughout the shirt, adding even more to the already growing pool of blood on the sidewalk.
After several moments of staring in utter horror, Harry finally gathered the courage to speak. "Was that really necessary? What if the muggles see us?"
"There shouldn't be anyone around here at all," Walter said, heading back towards the hedges. "We should go."
Harry started to walk back towards the hedges where they were hiding previously but he couldn't help but look back at the dead bodies lying there on the sidewalk. Surely they would attract suspicion.
"Walter, should we be leaving the bodies there?"
"Leave them, they won't know who to come after," Walter said, now running back towards their hiding spot.
Harry took one look back at the two dead muggles but quickly broke into a run so that he wouldn't be left out in the open anywhere near the dead bodies and upon arriving at the front gates, he then saw red sparks fly into the air from the roof of the mansion.
Cho came up to meet Harry as soon as he arrived at the hedges with her broom looking a little pale but she nevertheless shakily said something to him. "Time to go Harry."
Soon Fawkes reappeared with Sirius and Walter took hold of its tail.
"Come on," Walter urged him. "We need to get out quickly."
"If you don't want to go with Walter on Fawkes, you can ride on the broom with me," Cho told him, smiling slightly. "I don't mind."
Harry was rather grateful of Cho's offer since he was feeling quite uneasy about going with Walter on Fawkes. "Sure."
"I'll ride with Cho on her broom," Harry called.
Walter nodded his head in acknowledgement and said something inaudible to Fawkes.
"See you back at the castle," Sirius said loudly as Fawkes then took off in the direction of Hogwarts.
"All right, shall we go?" Cho asked him, climbing onto her broom.
"Okay," Harry said and he too mounted the broom right behind her.
With that, Harry and Cho kicked off, taking off in the direction that Fawkes had left in.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Do you know the way?" Harry asked Cho.
"I think I do, how else do you think I found you?"
Harry grinned, "Then please do the honours of directing us."
Cho looked back at him and smiled. "Only if you handle the broom."
"Deal, now where do we go?"
"Just go in the direction that Fawkes went in and we should get there," Cho instructed, pointing in the direction that Fawkes had flown in.
With that, Cho leaned back lazily into Harry's chest but kept a grip on the broom with her hands. "I wonder why Walter killed that muggle. That wasn't really necessary."
"I wouldn't know. He can be every bit as brutal as Sepet but unlike Sepet there is also a playful side to him and I suppose it's his way of carrying out justice."
"A life for a life?"
"Probably but then again, what that muggle was saying before Walter killed him was almost as if he thought it was his right to steal and murder. I mean he was referring to himself almost as if he was the victim, not caring much for the person he had just killed."
"He was? I couldn't hear what he was saying from where I was," said Cho.
"Yeah."
Cho's face twisted into a look of shock and horror. "How horrible. No one should be think it's right to take a life. That's why we're fighting against You-Know-Who in the first place."
"I agree but somehow that muggle was led to believe that it was his right to do whatever he wanted to."
"I don't think I'll ever understand the muggles. Their society is so different from our own - what kind of society doesn't enforce the laws that criminals think that they can do whatever they want?"
The direction that the conversation was going in was starting to make Harry uneasy so he quickly made an attempt to change the subject. "I'm pretty sure that they bother to enforce the laws but they probably aren't so strict about it, almost like Flitwick."
"Yes, Flitwick is such a nice professor," Cho commented agreeably. "He's a lot better than Snape in my opinion and I wish more professors would be like him."
"Flitwick or Snape?"
Cho laughed. "You are a funny one indeed Harry, why Flitwick of course."
Harry grinned. "I was just making sure."
"I like Snape as much as I like Malfoy," Cho said, gazing up at the starry night sky.
Harry noticed this and saw that this was a perfect opportunity for some alone time with Cho.
"The stars are beautiful tonight," Cho said dreamily. "Don't you think so?"
Harry also glanced up at the night sky. "Yes they are but wait until we get back to the school. It looks better there."
"All right, let's hurry. I wouldn't want to miss the beautiful view that you want to show me," Cho said, looking back at him and smiling.
Harry smiled back and leaned forward on the broom causing it to accelerate until it couldn't go any faster, guiding it in the direction of the school.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
By the time Harry arrived at the school again, he could have thought that more than two hours had passed because the school was already well lit with torches and smoke could be seen coming from Hagrid's hut signaling the start of dinner.
Unfortunately Cho was fast asleep, leaning against Harry's chest. Probably exhausted from the long trip he figured so he headed in the direction of the astronomy tower.
A long, thin object, glowing a bright green colour, was shot into the air as Harry approached the Astronomy tower and it dispersed into many sparkling green particles once it reached a certain height, signalling him to land there. Figuring Walter was already waiting for him, Harry gently descended onto the astronomy tower so as not to wake Cho.
Walter was indeed standing there waiting for them to land.
"Cho," Harry whispered into her ear, "we're here."
Cho stirred in her sleep and opened her eyes. "We're here already?"
A mischievous smile played upon Harry's lips. "Yes dear, we're here."
Cho sat up in surprise at being called 'dear' by Harry but since the broom was still hovering a foot over the ground, this caused Cho to fall off the broom and fall onto the floor.
Harry couldn't resist laughing at the sight he caused but he promptly stopped laughing when Cho reached out a hand and pulled him by the leg, off his broom.
"OOWW!" Harry exclaimed when he hit the floor next to Cho who was now laughing.
"Can't say you deserved that one," Cho said smugly.
A smile also fell upon Walter's face and he went to help both of them up. "Come now you two, we have work to do - Miss Granger will meet us at the South Tower."
Harry had never been to the South Tower but Walter didn't give them much time to recover from their fall for he walked into the school at a brisk pace.
Harry quickly grabbed the broom from the floor and he and Cho broke off into a run after Walter.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The South Tower was quite a way from the Astronomy Tower but when he arrived, he was pleased to find that Hermione was already waiting for them. However the first thing he noted was the glowing ring on her finger.
"Harry!" Hermione said, running up to him and enveloping him in a hug. "I see that Cho found you. We thought it was best if one of us followed you to see that you were safe."
Harry gently returned the hug and Hermione slowly broke away. "How was your day?"
"It was great," said Hermione. "Ron is now on his rounds so I was able to get here. Unfortunately I didn't accomplish much in solving the problem you asked me to take care of Harry."
"What problem?" Cho asked.
"I'll tell you later," Harry whispered to Cho.
"I will be going up now," Walter announced and he disappeared up the stairs.
"I think we should follow Walter up," Cho remarked, starting up the stairs. "We don't want this one to get killed."
"Do you think it's Walter?" Harry asked as they headed up the staircase after Walter.
"Walter? Betray the Order?" Hermione asked thoughtfully. "That doesn't seem to make sense but he certainly does have the skill to do so."
"The ring wasn't very helpful because Parvati was around," Hermione whispered to Harry.
"That's ok, there's still time. I don't think that this death eater will get killed because there's too may people around," Harry whispered back. "We should figure out who the traitor is before something else goes wrong."
~*~*~*~*~*~
When they arrived at the tower, Harry and Hermione were shocked to find that Avery was strapped down to a chair with magical bonds and there were all sorts of odd looking tools laid out on the table next to the fireplace which contained a roaring fire.
"What are all the tools for?" Hermione asked Walter as she entered. "They look like they're used for killing or torture."
"That's precisely why they are here," Walter stated, picking up an iron poker and placing it in the fire. "We can't use Veritaserum simply because there is a chance that Avery could be poisoned."
"But you could easily have Snape prepare it," Cho said, looking at the tools in horror. "That way no one could slip poison in it."
"Someone could easily slip poison in the ingredients," Walter said, withdrawing the iron poker from the fire to examine it. It had turned a reddish colour indicating that it was indeed hot.
Walter then walked towards Avery who was staring at him in fear as he approached. "Now, let's see if this works."
Walter lowered the hot poker until it was barely inches away from Avery's arm which was now perspiring from the heat and the nervous state that Avery was in.
"Tell me Avery," Walter said in a voice that was almost like Snape's in that it was barely a whisper. "You are part of the Department of Transportation are you not?"
Avery nodded.
"Good - now you are aware of a certain prisoner transfer taking place some time soon, yes?"
Another nod.
"Who will you be transferring?"
"High level prisoners that the Minister thinks are dangerous, including the former headmaster of Hogwarts, that's who you're looking for right?"
"That's right," Walter said, keeping the hot poker above Avery's arm. "Now when and where will you be transferring him to?"
"I don't know," Avery said, his voice starting to fall.
"You're lying," Walter stated and he pressed the iron poker to Avery's hand.
"AHHH!!" Avery screamed in pain, trying in vain to withdraw his hand from the poker. Harry could see the skin sear under the heat and even the surrounding skin had turned a charred, black colour.
"I can't stand this anymore, this is wrong" Hermione said, running out the door. "I'm getting McGonagall."
Harry wanted to run after her but Cho had fainted and so he had to see to it that she was ok, but until then Walter's torture act continued.
"Now let's try again. Where are you taking him to?"
Avery choked on his own saliva and writhed in pain but eventually was able to speak. "He's being transferred to Azkaban next week. He's being held in the Malfoy mansion right now where there's a charm in place so that he can't disapparate and no one can apparate in."
Walter smiled and placed the iron poker on the table, making sure that the hot part wasn't touching the wood so as not to set the table on fire.
The door opened and Professor McGonagall entered with Professor Snape carrying a flask of Veritaserum. Hermione was also behind them.
"Ah, Minerva," Walter said with a bow. "How nice of you to come. Avery has just yielded the location of the headmaster."
McGonagall was shaking in fury. "Walter, you know better than to torture the prisoners. Here, we have rules and those rules include treating the prisoners like human beings. We have our methods and you have yours but while you are here, you will follow our methods."
Walter's smile disappeared slowly from his face. "As you wish. You may feed him the Veritaserum but Mr. Potter will be my witness that my methods had worked as well should Avery yield the same secrets as I had just extracted from him."
"Very well - Serverus, give him the potion," McGonagall ordered.
Snape then pulled out his wand, stunned Avery and opened his mouth so that he could pour the Veritaserum down his throat; reviving him afterwards.
"Now, where can we find the headmaster and how long before you take him to Azkaban?" Snape questioned Avery.
"The headmaster will be delivered to Azkaban by next week an is being held at Malfoy's mansion."
Walter smiled slightly. "It is as he had said before, but I will take my leave of you now."
With that, Walter left the room and Hermione broke in a sigh of relief. However Harry realized that Cho was still unconscious in his arms the entire time so he pulled out his wand and revived her.
Her eyes opened slowly and Harry gently helped her to her feet.
"Thanks Harry, did I miss something?" Cho asked him with a very confused look.
Harry couldn't help but laugh at the confounded expression on Cho's face but he just shook his head. "Nothing that you wouldn't mind missing."
"I guess that's good, right?"
"Yes it is," Hermione said. "But we should get going - it's late and I think Ron is starting to worry where we are."
"What time is it?"
"It's around 9:00," McGonagall told them. "You should be heading up to your dorms. However Mr. Potter and Miss Chang may want to detour to the kitchen for your dinner."
"Thank you Professor," Cho said as she turned to Harry. "Well, shall we go?"
Harry nodded and the two of them, along with Hermione, headed down to the kitchens for dinner.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A/N: Well, that took way too long to post just one chapter and it didn't have as much action as I would have liked but the next two should have a decent amount. Next update shouldn't be anymore than longer than two weeks, providing midterms don't get in the way. I hope to post every Saturday so if you guys checked then, the next chapter should be up. Special thanks to Quis for beta-reading part of the chapter.
Phoenix of Light: Bare the torture of R/Hr for now, it'll be a lot better later. I may not like R/Hr but this is only book 5 so as Rowling says, Harry has plenty of time to change his mind.
Icedrake: Parvati was cured of vampirism? I wasn't aware of that. The H/Cho will last throughout the book and as for Sepet's role in the plot, you'll have to keep reading to find out.
darthmaul2209: hmm, have Harry teach Cho some of the elemental magic? Maybe
Shadow: updates are slow now, sorry. Too much work, argh!
MaxLoneWolf: Thank you very much for the wonderful review. I would be more than happy to discuss any topic regarding Harry Potter you wish to discuss. Unfortunately, I don't have ICQ or MSN so I can only e-mail or IM you over AIM. As for the flamer, I figured out who it was. It's always nice having people everywhere to find out stuff for you. However I think that he just helped me rather than hurt me because his points don't make sense. As for Cho, although I'm a H/Hr shipper, I dislike it when people portray Cho as a mean/slutty girl. In fact, since she's the only Asian in the HP series, it makes me think that these authors are racist and being an Asian myself, I find that very frustrating because it's unrealistic.
The-Dude: I will keep H/Cho for the rest of this fic as I have said before and you're right, changing the couples in this fic would completely ruin the whole thing. I'd wait until at least the next fic before trying anything like that.
Angelis: =)
Genius1724: I'll try to get chapter updates about once a week, on Saturday but work is piling up unfortunately.
Elfin Warrior Maiden: I'm glad that you like the plot and it's nice to see that the time I put into thinking it out paid off.
Talon 1: original magic, I wouldn't say that. most of it was ripped off the games I play though I wish I had invented them. The words to go with the spells though, those are my own invention with a few exceptions. As for Sepet, he's a vampire. They are naturally violent beings so if the extreme violence bothers you, I apologize but you're right, this wouldn't be fit for a child's movie.. The skeletons, yes that's a lot of dead bodies but skeletons last a long time so I'll just say that they're an accumulation of all the dead bodies that Walter has gathered over the years.. Also, all those people that Sepet has bitten have got to be useful for something, right?
FictionalLove: Please be patient with the H/Cho romance scenes if they bother you. They're all part of the plot.
Vinz: You'll be happy for the rest of this fic at the very least since H/Cho will last.
Sikokid: yep, H/Cho will last throughout this book.
Jordan: What do you mean who are the vampires? It should have been clarified after the Christmas chapter.
Electrodragonman: send a copy to Rowling? Hahahaha, that'd be nice but I don't think she would use the animagus ideas. She stated in her interview that no one out of the trio will become an animagus.
Katy999: Thanks for the review. I'll certainly try to update faster.
steviej1026: ??? Why would I flame myself?
Soccerpunx: Thank you. I'm glad you're enjoying the plot and the relationships.
Charlie: Yeah, that's where the spells come from.
Karenr9: unfortunately Rowling will do Ron/Hermione in her book and since I'm following her interviews for what to do about the relationships, this book will be H/Cho and Ron/Hermione but that's always subject to change as Rowling says. :)