MH Chapter 39

~*~

Gah, all I can smell is chlorine. I joined a gym with a lovely pool. me, in a gym... hehehe, what a paradox. Song of the update : Linkin Park - Lying From You --"The very worst part of you, is me." ~*~

Remus watched the sun burn through the early morning mists through a thin window in the castle walls. From here he could see Hagrid going about his early morning business, tending soberly to some plants in his vegetable patch. Remus had rarely seen Hagrid look so sorrowful as now.

"Remus?"

Remus turned round to face the taller figure of Harry Potter. He looked ever more closer to James now that he had grown a bit and his voice had deepened.

"Harry, how did it go?" Remus focused his attention on the young boy. "I was trying to hold Edea back from attacking the Snapes and by the time I'd calmed her down you had already come back. Is everybody alright?"

"Yeah, just a few bruises and I guess there's nothing serious, because nobody's in St. Mungos." Harry looked a bit more cheerful, "Seen Sirius?"

"No. I assumed he'd made a trip to the kitchens the moment you all came back." Remus shrugged, "Why?"

"Ah, he's acting weird." Harry kicked the floor "All scatty and stuff."

"He's got issues." Remus sighed, "He'll be alright after a bacon sandwich."

"Lupin!" McGonagall puffed as she hastened up the staircase towards Harry and Remus. "Dumbledore needs to see you all in his office immediately, he has already alerted the Ministry of Magic. we have a possible means by which to end this terrible onslaught immediately."

Remus glanced at Harry, before setting of at a brisk walk for Dumbledore's office. There was no need to look like a deer caught in headlights in case some of the students got anxious.

~*~

"I have been informed of a meeting of Death Eaters at Tintagel Castle as we speak, I have called you all here this evening to ask if any of you are willing to stage a repeat attack whilst the followers of Lord Voldemort are at their weakest." Dumbledore surveyed those who had gathered in the room over the to of his half moon spectacles. "Alastor and Kingsley have procured for us, some secure portkeys."

"Which we should activate as soon as possible, these Revels could last hours, but the peak time for attendance is the late evening, which I believe it is now." Mad Eye interrupted, "So listen up, here's the plan."

~*~

"Did you hear that?" Draezyc was about to step inside the carriage when she turned to Severus, "I swear I heard a portkey."

"I didn't hear anything." Severus brushed away the idea, clearly impatient to leave. "In the carriage, come on. It's not worth investigating, however insatiable your curiosity may be."

"No, no." Draezyc pulled out her wand, "I heard a portkey. Death Eaters don't do portkeys to events like this." Draezyc rolled her eyes, "Much too attention seek-y." She headed to the small gatehouse on the edge of the castle grounds and threw the door open, ducking out of the way as a thousand and one curses and hexes flew through the door.

"Ah." Severus hitched up an eyebrow. "Gatecrashers."

"Get away from me!" Draezyc pushed Kingsley off the sleeve of her robes "Do you know how careful you have to be with the fabric of these robes?"

Edea and Remus followed cautiously out of the door, "I'll have you in Azkaban for this, Tealamon."

"Yeah, so I can get the Dark Lord to let me out again? I think not." Draezyc laughed, "Severus and I were leaving."

"Hardly." Edea snarled, "Incendio!" The carriage that the Snapes were planning on leaving in exploded into flames.

"Expensive debt you're incurring here, should I hold off calculating the total in case you're not finished here for tonight?" Severus smirked, "Come Draezyc, we shall be forced to use alternative transport."

"Well. Floo I suppose." Draezyc threw a dirty look at Edea, "Won't this look mighty destitute of us." She laced her arm around Severus' and they set off on a haughty, yet fast paced walk back to the castle.

"Will you look at that!" Kingsley tutted as he shook his head, "Right back into the Serpent's Den."

"They're like that." Remus shrugged, "They don't mean anything by it. It's just the way they are."

"I'm a pureblood, I don't act like that." Edea muttered, "As if I was royalty."

Kingsley and Moody shared a tired look. "Well." Moody rounded up the late arrivals, "There's a lot more of them than us, so I suggest subtlety upon entrance, just try to take as many out as possible as quietly as possible."

"That's not very . you. though is it?" Elphias Doge commented, twirling his beard

"I like it." Tonks nodded "Sneakily stunning them one by one. and I."

The castle doors swung open with a loud crash and Death Eaters were hurtling towards them, screaming out spells at the top of their voices.

"Showtime." Sirius clapped his hands in anticipation. "Hey, Eds, watch this." He picked up his wand from where he had left it on the floor and pointed it at Rodolphus Lestrange - "Masculato Maximus!"

"What on Earth have you done!" Edea screeched, as Rodolphus suddenly grabbed his growing groin and fell to the round under the weight.

"It's a bit like Elephantitis I think. I like that curse." Sirius grinned happily. "Size does matter, it would seem."

Edea rolled her eyes, and ran out into the foray closely followed by Moody, Tonks and Kingsley Shacklebot, all yelling out hexes and curses at the Death Eaters.

"You know," Remus turned to Sirius, "I think Snape told them we were coming."

"Yep." Sirius shrugged, "I guess old Snivelly did, the greasy git." Sirius ducked as a red bolt of light narrowly missed his shoulder. "Oops." He smirked. "They're not very good with their aiming are they." He paused, "Corpus Verde!"

A death eater looked down at himself, speechless at the sudden change in his skin colour to a tropical lime green, which gave Sturgis Podmore the chance to stun him and a couple of his neighbours.

"Really." Remus sighed, "Not as good as you used to be at this," He took aim at a young death eater near the left "Corpus Argentorus!"

The death eater turned a shimmering shade of silver, which glinted in the twilight. He too was stunned.

"Cunning." Sirius laughed, "You always were better than me at that." He poked around in the gatehouse. "And the Fortunes shine upon the Adonis known to man as Sirius Black once more, fair viewers!"

"Eh?" Remus stuck his head back round the door. "What are you barking about?"

"This." Sirius lifted up a heavy trapdoor, "Is, if I am not very much mistaken, a trapdoor."

"Your skills of observation dazzle me, Paddy." Remus snorted. "Where's it lead to?"

"That, my dear compadre, is what we're about to find out, come on!" Sirius grabbed Remus' arm and pulled him down into the dark musty tunnel. "A cleverly concealed route that doesn't involve the risk of being stunned by death eaters."

"Do you HAVE to speak in that ridiculous voice-over style?" Remus asked, exasperated.

"Why, no!" Sirius continued, flashing a toothy grin, "But it makes me sound handsome, don't you think?"

"Yeah. If that's what you want to think." Remus trudged on ahead.

"Oi!" Sirius called out, "You passed another door thing!"

Remus turned back, "But this still goes on further."

"Yeah, and if we go on too far we'll come out at the OTHER end, which means we'll have defeated the point entirely." Sirius pushed up and brusquely stuck his head up and out of the tunnel. "Swish!"

"What?" Remus frowned.

"Check out the Malfoy's Dinner!" Sirius eagerly climbed out, reaching down to help pull up Remus. "A full roast, with trimmings!"

"I don't think this is really the time for eating." Remus pulled Sirius away from the food.

"Aw, Reeem!" Sirius picked up a roast parsnip, as Remus tried to drag him away. "But it tastes so good."

Sirius was rudely interrupted as Draezyc Snape hurtled through the room, closely chased by Edea, Severus and Lucius Malfoy.

"Trouble." Remus sighed, letting go of Sirius and sprinting after the crowd,

"Hey. wait!" Sirius wiped his hands on his shirt and was about to chase after them when he turned round and came face to face with Bellatrix Lestrange.

"Well, hello!" Sirius beamed, taking out his wand and was ready to aim. "Not as cute as you used to be, eh?"

Bellatrix fumed, and raised her own wand for the attack.

~*~

Remus was soon out of breath after running up countless stairs and through corridors, they had to be in a tower somewhere, and he was far behind. Following the voices he turned right and up another 20 or so stairs.

"Every step that I take is another mistake for you, isn't it?" Edea pushed Draezyc who smashed through the tower's thin glass and fell backwards, looking horrified. Before Edea had the chance to pull back, Draezyc grabbed tight on her wrist, and pulled her out as she fell. Snape moved forward, but was forcibly held back by Percy Weasley and another member of the ministry hit wizard squad, who had been contacted and asked to come forward to help the Order's attack. Percy nodded to Remus, who hesitantly joined in restraining Severus Snape.

"DRAEZYC!?" Severus shouted, it echoed off the walls and doors until it sounded horribly distorted.

"She'll be ok." Lucius Malfoy replied from his captive position under the pinning of a dozen ministry wizards, "There's a moat you know, I like to protect my houses. Thieves, trespassers, gipsies, the Ministry."

Severus turned to look at Lucius with an incredulous look of astonishment that he could be so calm and offhand at such a moment. Then it hit him. Lucius was never so calm and offhand unless he had a plan. There was something up his sleeve.

"My god." Kingsley Shacklebot peered down out of the broken window. "She's going to kill her."

"Who? WHO?" Lucius Malfoy was getting quite frustrated at being ignored.

Kingsley disappeared down the steps followed by Moody, and various Aurors until Severus was left under the guard of Percy Weasley, Remus Lupin, Mundungus Fletcher and various Ministry Hit Wizards. Remus loosened his grip on Severus' arm, imperceptibly to those who might have been looking, but it gave Severus the go- ahead and now all who remained holding him back was the thin and rather lanky Percy Weasley. An deathly scream, shot up, rocking the doors in their hinges, Percy was distracted for long enough and Severus took his chance and whipped out of their grasps and threw himself out of the door, closesly followed by Remus, who had sealed the door after he had come through it.

"Lupin! What are you doing?" Snape spat

"Helping you." Lupin shrugged "I don't want your wife to kill Edea either. Or the other way round. Four hands are better than two, right?"

Snape shook his head, and continued running down the stairs. Remus easily caught up with the distracted Severus Snape, reaching the doors first, and flinging them open, running across the blurred grass until they had circled the castle walls to the site of the tower.

Edea had Draezyc by the hair, covered in mud and stagnant moat water. Draezyc was scrabbling about in the water for her wand, whilst Edea was kicking and trying to gouge out her eyes. Remus held Severus' arm "Let them get on with it, without wands, they'll just knock each other unconscious."

"I wouldn't be so sure." Severus grimaced as Edea tripped Draezyc over and held her head underwater. "Accio wand!" Draeyzc's wand flew out of the muddy waters into Severus' outstretched hand. "Accio wand!" Edea's willow wand followed the same suit as Draezyc's, except when Severus held both wands in his hand, he pocketed Draezyc's and without a backward glance at Remus, snapped Edea's wand into three pieces and dropped them to the floor.

"What are you doing?!" Remus looked worriedly at the taller dark haired man. "That's Edea's wand!"

"I know." Severus replied calmly. "She doesn't deserve it." He turned to face Remus, "Obliviate!"

Remus' face slid into confusion for a minute before smiling happily at Severus, "Must have gone a bit faint. I."

"Have you seen Edea's wand?" Severus asked,

"No, why? It must be in the waters somewhere. I. my goodness, look down!" Remus scrambled on the grass, picking up the pieces "It must have broken on her fall."

Snape smiled smugly, "You'd better go and get help, hadn't you. I'll stay here to make sure nothing terrible happens,"

"Yeah." Remus nodded, concentrating. "I wonder where Moody and Kingsley went. I'd better go get them."

"An excellent idea. Off you go." Severus tapped Remus on the shoulder, who ran back inside the castle. "Fool." He added.

Edea screamed and clutched her leg as Draezyc came up from under the water with a piece of Edea's robes between her teeth, taking advantage of Edea's moment of pain to punch her hard in the face, and thus, topple her back down into the water.

"I'm not sure whom I should congratulate."

Severus straightened up as he felt the point of a wand between his shoulder blades. "Mad-Eye."

"Whether I should congratulate you for finding their wands, or Edea for beating the crap out of your wife. without magic." Moody rasped in Severus' ear. "But casting that charm on Lupin wasn't fair play, my boy." He picked Draezyc's wand out of Severus' cloak's pocket. "Uneven game play, if you know what I mean. I've never trusted you or your malicious little Death Eater wife, and now, I think I have enough for you both to be sent to Azkaban, if not for life, for a decent amount of time."

Severus ground his teeth, seething with hatred for Moody. "Just you try it." He hissed, "Get of your high horse and see the world for what it is you. Pompous. Facially inept. Infestation of Ministry Powers that give decent wizards a bad name."

Moody let out a harsh laugh "Call yourself a decent wizard do you?" He prodded Snape harder with his wand. "Don't make me laugh."

Draezyc had spotted Severus and Mad Eye Moody and was trying to climb up the steep bank of the moat, with Edea desperately trying to drag her back down, Draezyc kicked down hard, and took hold of the chance to escape as Edea slipped down the slimy banks, now a step behind Draezyc who had started running, with a pronounced limp that made her gasp each time she put down her left foot, towards Snape.

"Moody, you Auror scum!" Draezyc made a mad rush towards the peg-legged auror when he pushed Snape aside and threw a string of hexes at Draezyc who, threw herself to the ground, well aware that Edea was catching up, Draezyc got up and started to run again

"Averte statiens!" Moody shouted, knocking Draezyc back into Edea, who rolled over and pinned Draezyc to the ground. Severus reached into his inner pocket, and realised that Moody had surreptitiously managed to take his wand also. "Bastard!" Snape barked loudly, aware that any movement could spell his untimely doom at the hands of the disfigured old Auror.

"Antagonise me again and I'll."

Severus never thought he'd have to degrade himself into using old fashioned muggle display, but for this one occasion. He balled his fist and well used to the actions his father used against his mother when Severus was a child, drew his arm back and hit Moody sideways across the head.

Moody staggered sideways, furious, turned away from Snape and pointed his wand at Draezyc "Avada Kedavra!"

Draezyc had stood up and was trying to throw off Edea when Moody had aimed his curse, neither Edea nor Draezyc had noticed until Draezyc ducked to elbow Edea in the stomach, and Edea simply fell to the ground before Draezyc's elbow made any contact. Draezyc looked up, looked back at the fallen Edea, and ran.

TBC