~~~~~~~~Chapter 6-The Downfall of the Dark Lord--Part 1Into the Castle of Night
Harry had just arrived at Dumbledore's office, a little bit shaken up by the memory he had just experienced, he walked up to the ever-familiar stone gargoyle.
"Barf Bag Blowpops" he said, and the statue sprang aside, for Harry to enter.
"Welcome Harry, please do take a seat." Dumbledore barely moved his wand, and a large cushioned, and very inviting chair appeared.
Harry sat down, and began.
"Well, where should I start?" he asked uncertainly.
"How about the begining?" replied the Headmaster, smiling.
"Very well, it started when I got an owl, the day Voldemort was overthrown." And Harry began the long tale that ended, with the downfall of the Dark Lord.
~~~~~Flashback~~~~~~~~~~
Dear Fisherman,
There has been some major trouble. I'm where I'm supposed to be, and I've found out that the snake is going to get his dinner within a week. We can't let that happen Harry, we have to stop it. I need your help. I'm going to replace the snake with the lion. I have some information that will get us in without notice, but we have to act quickly. You must hurry, because if the snake gets its dinner, we may not be able to stop it.
From,
Jogger
Harry read the letter, and though most people would not be able to make a bit of sense out of it, Harry knew perfectly what it meant.
Harry went by the code name Fisherman, and knew that "Where I'm supposed to be" meant in Albania, where the Head Quarters for Voldemort's operations had moved to.
"the snake is going to get his dinner" meant that Voldemort was going to get the rest of the prophecy. Harry couldn't let him know that 1 must kill the other, for he would then gain great power.
"Replace the snake with the lion" meant that the contact would go in himself after Voldemort, to end his reign, and start reign of the lion, the good side.
Jogger was Harry's contact. Bill Weasley. He had been Harry's only friend for 7 years, when Harry was on his own. Harry trusted Bill with his life, and it was the same way with Bill.
'I've got to go now. Can't afford to wait, so...' Harry ran to his bedroom, grabbed his wands, both real, and spare, and apparated away. When he reappeared, he was in a small shack.
A shack was being generous, Harry was really in a tree. Bill had hollowed it out, and made it as roomy as a tree could get. There was room, but just enough for the 2 of them to stand straight.
"What've you got? How do you know the snakes going to be fed?"
"Well, it turns out that each prophecy is classified by importance. The Judger of Importance placed the prophecy in question, as Highly Urgent, and anything equal to, or above this is duplicated."
"You mean there was a second copy of it, besides the one in the Department of Myseteries?"
"Yeah, and Voldemort found out were it is. He's been looking for it for 3 years. But its the most secure place in London, apparently, and as before, he has to be the one to pick it up. Anyway, he's found out were it is, and plans on retrieving it, this Saturday."
"What! But thats 4 day away. How're we going to storm the Dark Lord's castle, and only plan it for 4 days."
"Because I've got someone on the inside Harry. I trust this man almost as much as I trust you, and he can get us in real deep."
"Well, how do we know were Voldemort is, there's over 15 stories in the castle, and each of them the size of Hogwarts!"
"Because, I've managed to capture a Death Eater. He is in the 3rd tree to the right, soon as you step out."
"How did you do that?"
"Well, the stupid bloke came out here for a leak, and I took advantage. Snuck up on him, and captured him. We're going to have to clear his memory, and let him go back, but I'm sure if we're quick, nobody will notice, as its only been 2 or 3 hours. "
"Well then lets go."
And the 2 of them carefully walked out of their tree, and into that of their hostage.
He still had a mask on. Apparently Bill hand't removed it yet, and had no idea who he had under there.
"On three then. One...Two...Three!"
The mask came off, and under it stood Percy Weasley.
Bill fainted. Harry had to jump back a few paces, and smack himself a few times to realize that this was no trick. No Polyjuice Potion, no lie. That was Percy Weasley, a Death Eater.
After Harry woke Bill up, they managed to revive the stunned, and unconcious Percy, who was now chained to the tree.
"I'm sorry Bill, I really am."
"I wish there was an excuse. The whole time. The whole time he was. He was on his side."
But then Harry noticed something. Something that didn't fit. It wasn't right. Percy's sleeve had been singed off by Bill's stunner, and left his arm bare. That was the problem though, Harry thought.
Every Death Eater is branded with a Mark. A dark mark, which could be used to identify him from the others, yet Percy bore no such mark. Harry knew it might be hidden, as it was from others, but had a gut feeling that it had never been there.
"Bill, look. His arm."
"What, his arm is fine."
"Exactly, no Dark Mark."
"So what! Only their kind can see it."
"Not entirely. Only supporters of Voldemort can see it. But when Voldemort tried to kill me, he gave me a little bit of him, so I've always been able to see them, and its not there Bill. Its just not there."
"What!" Bill said, with his face rising.
"Well, do you have any love juice?" Harry asked. Love juice was there code name for Veritaserum. It was hard to brew, so when they did get it, they called it the love juice.
"Yeah, give it to him, and we can get some answers."
Harry poored 4 drops of the liquid into Percy's mouth, and began the questions.
"What is your name?"
"Percival Weasley."
"Are you a Death Eater?"
"No."
And Bill's face looked as though it had been relieved of a 100 ton wieght.
"Why are you dressed as one?"
"The Dark Lord put me under the Imperius Curse, and I have been following his orders for 6 days."
"Do you know how to find him?"
"Yes. Enter the Castle of Night from the south. When you get inside, get to the basement floor, and you will see a statue of Salazar Slytherin. The password is Mudblood Death."
That was all they needed to know, but Bill refused to let Percy go back. He chained him again, and they headed back to the HQ.
"We have to go now. If we wait any longer, they'll miss him."
"Bill, if we go now, we won't be prepared."
"PREPARED? How much preparing can you do? I have the information to get in, you have your wands, what else do you want to do?"
"I guess your right, but I don't like it. You lead the way."
Bill grabbed the invisibility cloak he had taken from a Death Eater, and flung it around Harry and him.
They began to run, Harry hadn't known where exactly they were going, but knew that he'd better keep up. Ater about 2 hours, they reached a large clearing.
"WE're here." Bill whispered. He reached into his robe, and pulled out a piece of parchment. He began to read:
"Show me Darkness's fury unfold.
Show me Evil's power untold.
Show me death of those unpure.
Show me the way to the immortal cure.
Show me the master of pain.
Show me the way to endless distain.
Show me the empire that Hate has sewn.
Show me the place the Dark Lord calls home."
Then the ground shook, and out came a huge castle. Darker than black, it rose about 2,000 feet, and looked as if it were more protected than Hogwarts.
"Well, its not going to get easy from here on out. See the left wall over there, we have to sprint over there after the guard passes, and without being noticed. Brooms don't work over this ground." Bill added when he saw Harry's face light with an idea.
"OK, anything else?"
"Yeah, hovering charms. Its got to be done right. The ground is hexed, but so is the air. You have to walk exactly 4 inches off the ground, so that we can stay clear of the booby-traps."
Harry nodded, and muttered, repelus aerutus rockulus. The hovering charm. He saw Bill do the same thing. They waited about 5 minutes, and saw the guard passing. On Bill's signal, they ran towards the wall he had pointed out.
"Well, we're here. Now what?" Harry asked, realizing that all they had done was managed to get to the castle walls.
"Shhh." Bill muttered as he reached into his robes again and pulled out the same parchment he used to reveal the castle. He looked at the wall, counted 9 stones up, and 11 to the right. Tapped his wand to that stone, and began to read the parchment:
Castle of Night, into your walls we must go
For there are dangers outside who, of us, can not know.
They are searching, we are hiding
Let us in, so we can be safe from fighting
They will kill us, if we are found,
But if we gain entrance, Survival is abound.
Bill was cut off however, as someone screamed loudly.
"INTRUDERS!"
The guard had spotted them. He was pelting towards them, and Bill began to read faster.
"Your walls cannot be beat,
Your protection we cannot meet
Your safety we will need
In order to live, we must proceed
Let your stones aside,
We will enter, and survive.
And as he finished, the stones began to rearrange, to form a small passage, though Bill noticed that Harry was dueling the Death Eater. Bill pulled out his wand, and muttered Mortificus Temporanium. The Death Eater began to turn to stone. He was a complete statue within seconds, and they hid him in the newly made passage.
"OK, a little set back, but its no worries. We're in the Castle Harry. I didn't think it would work, but this passage leads straight to the 4th floor."
"Good job Bill, lets go."
And they headed down the narrow passage way to the end. There was a door there, and as they opened it, they were greeted by a cold drawling voice.
"Welcome Harry Potter."
Harry had just arrived at Dumbledore's office, a little bit shaken up by the memory he had just experienced, he walked up to the ever-familiar stone gargoyle.
"Barf Bag Blowpops" he said, and the statue sprang aside, for Harry to enter.
"Welcome Harry, please do take a seat." Dumbledore barely moved his wand, and a large cushioned, and very inviting chair appeared.
Harry sat down, and began.
"Well, where should I start?" he asked uncertainly.
"How about the begining?" replied the Headmaster, smiling.
"Very well, it started when I got an owl, the day Voldemort was overthrown." And Harry began the long tale that ended, with the downfall of the Dark Lord.
~~~~~Flashback~~~~~~~~~~
Dear Fisherman,
There has been some major trouble. I'm where I'm supposed to be, and I've found out that the snake is going to get his dinner within a week. We can't let that happen Harry, we have to stop it. I need your help. I'm going to replace the snake with the lion. I have some information that will get us in without notice, but we have to act quickly. You must hurry, because if the snake gets its dinner, we may not be able to stop it.
From,
Jogger
Harry read the letter, and though most people would not be able to make a bit of sense out of it, Harry knew perfectly what it meant.
Harry went by the code name Fisherman, and knew that "Where I'm supposed to be" meant in Albania, where the Head Quarters for Voldemort's operations had moved to.
"the snake is going to get his dinner" meant that Voldemort was going to get the rest of the prophecy. Harry couldn't let him know that 1 must kill the other, for he would then gain great power.
"Replace the snake with the lion" meant that the contact would go in himself after Voldemort, to end his reign, and start reign of the lion, the good side.
Jogger was Harry's contact. Bill Weasley. He had been Harry's only friend for 7 years, when Harry was on his own. Harry trusted Bill with his life, and it was the same way with Bill.
'I've got to go now. Can't afford to wait, so...' Harry ran to his bedroom, grabbed his wands, both real, and spare, and apparated away. When he reappeared, he was in a small shack.
A shack was being generous, Harry was really in a tree. Bill had hollowed it out, and made it as roomy as a tree could get. There was room, but just enough for the 2 of them to stand straight.
"What've you got? How do you know the snakes going to be fed?"
"Well, it turns out that each prophecy is classified by importance. The Judger of Importance placed the prophecy in question, as Highly Urgent, and anything equal to, or above this is duplicated."
"You mean there was a second copy of it, besides the one in the Department of Myseteries?"
"Yeah, and Voldemort found out were it is. He's been looking for it for 3 years. But its the most secure place in London, apparently, and as before, he has to be the one to pick it up. Anyway, he's found out were it is, and plans on retrieving it, this Saturday."
"What! But thats 4 day away. How're we going to storm the Dark Lord's castle, and only plan it for 4 days."
"Because I've got someone on the inside Harry. I trust this man almost as much as I trust you, and he can get us in real deep."
"Well, how do we know were Voldemort is, there's over 15 stories in the castle, and each of them the size of Hogwarts!"
"Because, I've managed to capture a Death Eater. He is in the 3rd tree to the right, soon as you step out."
"How did you do that?"
"Well, the stupid bloke came out here for a leak, and I took advantage. Snuck up on him, and captured him. We're going to have to clear his memory, and let him go back, but I'm sure if we're quick, nobody will notice, as its only been 2 or 3 hours. "
"Well then lets go."
And the 2 of them carefully walked out of their tree, and into that of their hostage.
He still had a mask on. Apparently Bill hand't removed it yet, and had no idea who he had under there.
"On three then. One...Two...Three!"
The mask came off, and under it stood Percy Weasley.
Bill fainted. Harry had to jump back a few paces, and smack himself a few times to realize that this was no trick. No Polyjuice Potion, no lie. That was Percy Weasley, a Death Eater.
After Harry woke Bill up, they managed to revive the stunned, and unconcious Percy, who was now chained to the tree.
"I'm sorry Bill, I really am."
"I wish there was an excuse. The whole time. The whole time he was. He was on his side."
But then Harry noticed something. Something that didn't fit. It wasn't right. Percy's sleeve had been singed off by Bill's stunner, and left his arm bare. That was the problem though, Harry thought.
Every Death Eater is branded with a Mark. A dark mark, which could be used to identify him from the others, yet Percy bore no such mark. Harry knew it might be hidden, as it was from others, but had a gut feeling that it had never been there.
"Bill, look. His arm."
"What, his arm is fine."
"Exactly, no Dark Mark."
"So what! Only their kind can see it."
"Not entirely. Only supporters of Voldemort can see it. But when Voldemort tried to kill me, he gave me a little bit of him, so I've always been able to see them, and its not there Bill. Its just not there."
"What!" Bill said, with his face rising.
"Well, do you have any love juice?" Harry asked. Love juice was there code name for Veritaserum. It was hard to brew, so when they did get it, they called it the love juice.
"Yeah, give it to him, and we can get some answers."
Harry poored 4 drops of the liquid into Percy's mouth, and began the questions.
"What is your name?"
"Percival Weasley."
"Are you a Death Eater?"
"No."
And Bill's face looked as though it had been relieved of a 100 ton wieght.
"Why are you dressed as one?"
"The Dark Lord put me under the Imperius Curse, and I have been following his orders for 6 days."
"Do you know how to find him?"
"Yes. Enter the Castle of Night from the south. When you get inside, get to the basement floor, and you will see a statue of Salazar Slytherin. The password is Mudblood Death."
That was all they needed to know, but Bill refused to let Percy go back. He chained him again, and they headed back to the HQ.
"We have to go now. If we wait any longer, they'll miss him."
"Bill, if we go now, we won't be prepared."
"PREPARED? How much preparing can you do? I have the information to get in, you have your wands, what else do you want to do?"
"I guess your right, but I don't like it. You lead the way."
Bill grabbed the invisibility cloak he had taken from a Death Eater, and flung it around Harry and him.
They began to run, Harry hadn't known where exactly they were going, but knew that he'd better keep up. Ater about 2 hours, they reached a large clearing.
"WE're here." Bill whispered. He reached into his robe, and pulled out a piece of parchment. He began to read:
"Show me Darkness's fury unfold.
Show me Evil's power untold.
Show me death of those unpure.
Show me the way to the immortal cure.
Show me the master of pain.
Show me the way to endless distain.
Show me the empire that Hate has sewn.
Show me the place the Dark Lord calls home."
Then the ground shook, and out came a huge castle. Darker than black, it rose about 2,000 feet, and looked as if it were more protected than Hogwarts.
"Well, its not going to get easy from here on out. See the left wall over there, we have to sprint over there after the guard passes, and without being noticed. Brooms don't work over this ground." Bill added when he saw Harry's face light with an idea.
"OK, anything else?"
"Yeah, hovering charms. Its got to be done right. The ground is hexed, but so is the air. You have to walk exactly 4 inches off the ground, so that we can stay clear of the booby-traps."
Harry nodded, and muttered, repelus aerutus rockulus. The hovering charm. He saw Bill do the same thing. They waited about 5 minutes, and saw the guard passing. On Bill's signal, they ran towards the wall he had pointed out.
"Well, we're here. Now what?" Harry asked, realizing that all they had done was managed to get to the castle walls.
"Shhh." Bill muttered as he reached into his robes again and pulled out the same parchment he used to reveal the castle. He looked at the wall, counted 9 stones up, and 11 to the right. Tapped his wand to that stone, and began to read the parchment:
Castle of Night, into your walls we must go
For there are dangers outside who, of us, can not know.
They are searching, we are hiding
Let us in, so we can be safe from fighting
They will kill us, if we are found,
But if we gain entrance, Survival is abound.
Bill was cut off however, as someone screamed loudly.
"INTRUDERS!"
The guard had spotted them. He was pelting towards them, and Bill began to read faster.
"Your walls cannot be beat,
Your protection we cannot meet
Your safety we will need
In order to live, we must proceed
Let your stones aside,
We will enter, and survive.
And as he finished, the stones began to rearrange, to form a small passage, though Bill noticed that Harry was dueling the Death Eater. Bill pulled out his wand, and muttered Mortificus Temporanium. The Death Eater began to turn to stone. He was a complete statue within seconds, and they hid him in the newly made passage.
"OK, a little set back, but its no worries. We're in the Castle Harry. I didn't think it would work, but this passage leads straight to the 4th floor."
"Good job Bill, lets go."
And they headed down the narrow passage way to the end. There was a door there, and as they opened it, they were greeted by a cold drawling voice.
"Welcome Harry Potter."