Special thanks to my beta-readers, Divaat12 and Alyria.

Friend or Foe

Chapter 2

Silver and gold sparks came out of the headmaster¡¦s wand. They suspended in mid-air and fused together to become a tiny dazzling light ball. Harry watched with fascination as Dumbledore poured more magical power in the charm, making the light ball grow in size.

A tingle went through Harry¡¦s famous scar, but he paid no attention to it. He was too absorbed in watching his Headmaster performing the charm. Then suddenly, his scar exploded in pain and his vision blurred. The surroundings started to fade away. Harry gasped as he found that he was now in an unfamiliar place.

There were various kinds of shops and houses, much like a bigger vision of Diagon Alley. The street was lit up by torches, and the people were chatting, dancing and drinking merrily. It seemed that they were celebrating something. There was an unusual tall tree at the end of the village, and it was nicely decorated. Out of the corner of his eye, Harry saw a hooded figure appeared out of no where. Two bright, gleaming red eyes were peering through the hood. Harry felt his heart sinking¡K He knew who this person was¡K

Voldemort.

A little girl stopped in front of the Dark Lord, staring at him curiously. She really wanted to know how this person looked like.

Harry, however, was screaming at her to run away. Then he found that nobody could hear him. He tried to tug a woman¡¦s robe, hoping she would notice him. He yelped as he discovered that his hand went through the fabric, and the woman walked through him.

The feeling of dread was consuming the teenage boy.

Voldemort slowly removed his hood, revealing his chalky white skin, blood-lust eyes and lipless mouth. He gave a twisted smile at the little girl. A glint of evil was dancing hungrily in his eyes.

The girl¡¦s mouth was hanging opened. She did not expect this. She backed away from the evil man shakily. With a terrified cry, she turned around and ran for her safety.

Voldemort smiled even wider. He raised his wand and mouthed the deadly words.

¡§Avada Kedavra,¡¨

The sickly green sparks raced towards the innocent child. The curse hit painfully on her back and sent her sprawling on the stony ground.

She was dead. Not a single drop of life was left behind.

The child¡¦s parents were at the girl¡¦s side in a flash. They sobbed in despair and disbelief when they discovered that their beloved daughter was no longer alive.

Wizards and witches pulled out their wands. They yelled in anger and advanced on the Dark Lord. Curses flew through the air, but they seemed to have no effect on the evil man. The villagers soon discovered that Voldemort was very resistant towards the curses, or more precisely, he was absorbing the magical energy of every curse cast on him.

The air around them soon filled with terror and hopelessness.

Voldemort sneered in disgust. He flicked his wrist. At least fifteen wizards and witches were thrown at the walls or glass windows of the shop. They moaned in pain. None of them was able to get up.

The Dark Lord was having his fun. He cast the Cruciatus Curse on them. The sick enjoyment on his face was obvious when he heard the victims¡¦ agonizing screams.

The other villagers shouted in fright. They ran aimlessly like wild animals, trying to escape from the insane demon.

Voldemort laughed wickedly. He stretched out his hand and muttered some strange words. A dark red aura appeared above his palm, but it turned into a black energy ball almost immediately. The ball of power grew bigger in an alarming rate. Deadly silver and green sparks appeared and surrounded the orb of darkness. Harry could feel the power radiating from the black orb.

The power of hatred, evil and darkness.

The power of destruction.

Harry shuddered violently. He was sweating profusely and his head hurt like hell. He did not want to witness what was going to happen. He wanted to get out of this vision.

Without warning, the dark orb of energy above the Dark Lord¡¦s palm exploded. Harry found himself being thrown into a void of darkness. Inhuman howls of pain filled his ears¡K He could smell the iron-like scent of blood¡K

The frightened youth flailed his arms about blindly. He could feel the dark magic crawling on his skin. The scene of evil seemed to be seeking a way to enter his very soul. A wave of pleasure washed over his body momentarily, as he continued to listen to the victims¡¦ screams. Then he felt the power of darkness trying to rip his body apart¡K he was suffocating¡K

Then it was gone.

Harry gasped, loudly. He looked around wildly, hoping to find some lives.

The whole village was ruined. It looked like there was a powerful explosion. Blood was everywhere. The bodies of the villagers were mangled and pale. It seemed that their blood was drained completely. The remnants of the buildings scattered around. The most mysterious thing was that the corpses and the place were radiating an eerie dark aura.

Harry felt his stomach churned. He did not deserve to witness this. A massacre! He was trembling like mad and tears were making their way down his cheeks.

¡§Stand,¡¨ a voice hissed.

The boy jerked. He had forgotten that Voldemort was still there. He turned around to watch the Dark Lord fearfully. He couldn¡¦t see me, could he? Harry thought frantically.

Harry saw a slight movement out of the corner of his eye. He took a few steps forward to get a better view. What he saw made him freeze in his tracks.

Dark flames were engulfing the corpses. The clothing on them was torn apart as their bodies started to change in shape. They became bigger and more muscular. Their skin color became an abnormal bluish grey, while their lips were in a poisonous black color. Their fingers lengthened and the nails became sharp, blood-red talons. Their legs were twisted in odd angles, much like the hind legs of wild animals. Shiny black scales decorated the limbs as the feet slowly became claws. Spikes struggled their way out of the backs of the corpses, tearing the fresh apart in the process. The hair was burnt into ashes in seconds, yet silver locks replaced it almost immediately. The creatures hardly had any clothing now, as they were torn into pieces during the transformation. The dark flames seemed to be burning forever. They licked the creatures¡¦ frames playfully, shielding the creatures¡¦ torsi.

Harry wanted to back away, but his feet were rooted on the ground. Whatever these creatures were, they were dangerous and evil.

¡§Come to me,¡¨ Harry heard Voldemort hissed maliciously.

One of the creatures next to Harry opened its eyes, slowly.

The boy had to cover his mouth to muffle his scream of horror. The creature¡¦s eyes were pitch-black from corner to corner. Without the pupils and irises, they were just like endless dark tunnels. If you looked carefully, you could discover a slight tint of angry red swirling within the darkness. Harry could feel the chill ran down his spine. The creature¡¦s eyes showed nothing but menace.

Voldemort¡¦s face wore a crooked smile as the creatures half-crawled and half-walked to him.

¡§Welcome to my Dark Fortress, my loyal Eversors,¡¨ the Dark Lord said as he raised his wand, sending the Dark Mark up to the sky.

It was the final straw. Harry felt as if his head was going to burst. His vision darkened¡K

* * *

Author notes: Here¡¦s chapter two. I hope you¡¦ll like it.

Thanks to all reviewers:

Angelica, padfootprankster13, Aeryn Alexander, A Snape & Sirius Fan, sirius the homicidal maniac, o0o- Sirius -o0o, chris, sweetnessspy, Chaandsitarah, someone :), Christina, and Heaven's Angel Chick