'NOW' Sirius bellowed.
Chaos erupted in the area around Helga's Hollow: Remus immediately roared 'EXPECTO PATRONUM!' and a huge, silver wolf exploded from the end of his wand, and charged at the Dementors. Snape, Oliver and Tonks fired dozens of stunning spells into the darkness, one after the other.
The Death Eaters had not realised that they had been spotted, and were not ready for the ambush. The loss of the Dementors (who were being held some fifty yards away by Remus' patronus) confused them and put them off their stride; but not for long. They responded with Killing Curses and Cruciatus Curses within seconds.
In the pitch black, all that could be seen was jets of different coloured light streaming across the battlefield, and the ghostly glow of the patronus cast by Remus. Sirius knew that it would be hopeless to fight in this way-nobody could see where they were aiming at all. Dodging between the trees, he stretched out his arms, feeling for any of his friends. He touched material, and hissed 'who is it?'
'Snape', grunted that familiar cold voice, 'what is it, Black? I'm trying to duel, in case you haven't noticed.'
Sirius ignored his biting remark, asking quickly; 'how long d'you think we can hold them for?'
'Ten minutes? Ten hours? How should I know?' Snape spat at Sirius, ducking to avoid a well-aimed stunner, 'and don't use my name-after I'm finished with this shambles of a mission, I may have to go back to my work as a spy. I don't want some fool like you destroying everything!'
Sirius resisted the temptation to strangle Snape, and hurried on around the glade, in search of another member of his team. By this time, the hollow was entirely surrounded by Death Eaters, while the Dementors hovered several hundred feet away, held back by the silver patronus of Remus Lupin.
Sirius heard a scream of pain, followed by a series of low sobs, only a few feet in front of him. Dodging a Killing Curse, which struck one of the birch trees down like a bolt of lightning, Sirius felt in the darkness, looking for whoever had been injured.
'Damnit, I need light!' He hissed desperately.
And Helga's Hollow granted his request.
Suddenly, all seven Order members could see clearly, although it was still pitch black. Sirius discovered that it was Tonks who had been hit by a Flame Hex, and cried out. He helped her to her feet, then peered out through the trees. The sight that greeted him made him draw breath sharply.
Two rows of Death Eaters, their wands raised, stood around the hollow. Some had removed their masks, and Sirius recognised them, from previous encounters with Voldemort's forces. They were the Dark Lord's best men and women, who would do anything to help their master. Sirius suddenly felt a lot less confident.
'We won't be able to hold them off for long', he whispered to Tonks, throwing his knife at the Death Eaters, and embedding it in one of their shoulders. Within seconds, it reappeared in his hand. 'Remus can't keep off all those Dementors by himself. I want you to go and help him-make the best Patronus you can. I'm getting an idea for a plan.'
'Ooh', Tonks hissed excitedly, 'I love your plans. Right-o, I'll go help Remus.'
'Thanks Tonks', Sirius grunted, throwing his knife again. Although it flew further and faster than any ordinary knife would, he still found his role in this fight tedious. He picked off several Death Eaters, helped by the fact that he could see so clearly into the still, black night.
Many of the trees were on fire, and Oliver was racing around extinguishing the flames with his wand, when three Stunners from the enemy all hit him at once, in the head, chest and leg. He fell heavily, banging his head off the trunk of a tree, unconscious. It was Bill who found him (or rather, tripped over him) and alerted Sirius to the fact that they were one man down. And so Sirius quickly made a decision.
'All of you, back to the Hollow!' He roared, not wanting to use names, or let the enemy know how many people they were fighting.
'Tell me when you're all safe, then I'll let go', Remus panted as Sirius passed him and Tonks, 'go on Tonks, get into the Hollow.'
Sirius waited and watched until the other five members of the party had disappeared into the Hollow, then whispered 'Now' to Remus.
With a loud grunt, Remus stumbled backwards and allowed his Patronus to vanish. Immediately, the Dementors began to advance. Sirius felt a wave of sickness come over him, and he staggered through the trees and down into the valley, Peter Pettigrew's voice echoing in his head...'Lily and James, Sirius! How could you?'
'Oh dear', Remus said weakly, tumbling down the bank into the Hollow after Sirius, 'that was close.'
'And they can't come in?' Eva asked, nervously eyeing the trees.
'Definitely not', Bill replied, shivering, as they all felt the presence of the Dementors around them, 'they're a force of evil.'
Oliver moaned softly, and Sirius dropped to his knees beside him. Oliver's face was ashen, and expressionless. Sirius shook him gently, and whispered his name. There was no response.
'That's exactly what happened to Minerva-but he's got a nasty bruise coming up on his head, he must have banged it off something', Bill observed, 'I'm sure that hasn't helped.'
Sirius chewed his lip, and tried to shake off the depression that hovered around him like a fog, 'bring him inside. We'll just have to hope he'll be okay. Did you try reviving him?'
'Used every incantation I know, and made up a few', Bill shook his head resignedly, 'c'mon, Remus, will you help me?'
Remus nodded, and the two men carried Oliver carefully into the cottage. When they had returned, Sirius took a deep breath, and explained his final, desperate plan.
**************
'Ready?' Sirius asked nervously, standing up and glancing around at his comrades, who were all sitting cross-legged in front of a campfire.
'Ready', they murmured.
Dawn was approaching. The Dementors and Death Eaters had not left their positions around the Hollow-the Order members were besieged. It had been difficult to work on Sirius' plan with a horrible feeling of despair clinging to them, but they had little option. From time to time, Remus and Tonks sent their Patronuses to ward the Dementors off-but the evil creatures soon returned. It had taken five hours to finalise all the details of the plan, but it was ready at last.
Sirius turned to Tonks, and nodded gravely. She swallowed hard, but smiled and scrambled to her feet. Sirius felt extremely grateful that she was not making this any more difficult for him than it had to be. She moved out of the light from the flames, and stood next to Sirius.
'Good luck', she whispered bravely, although Sirius could hear her breathing coming shallow and fast. He clapped her on the back, and said 'thank you. I swear I wn't let anything happen to you.'
'Mmm', Tonks nodded and smiled again.
And so the plan was put into action.
'Order of the Phoenix, rise to your feet!' Sirius cried, in a deep, throaty voice. Instantly, there was silence outside the Hollow, as the Death Eaters listened intently.
Obediently, the four remaining members rose to their feet-they wore hooded robes now, and hid their faces from the light. Sirius raised his arms above his head, and proclaimed in a voice quite unlike his own:
'Spirits of the Dead, come to our aid, avenge your deaths and live once more!'
The others joined in the chant, slowly and methodically. On and on it went, getting faster each time. They began to move around the fire in a circle. Snape threw various concoctions onto the fire, making the flames change colour, and give off strange, heavy scents, not unlike the smell of incense. Then, Remus and Eva stepped out of the circle, and grabbed Tonks by the arms, propelling her towards the fire. At first, she let them lead her, but then quite suddenly, she began to kick and scream violently, calling for help. She elbowed Remus, and knocked Eva off her feet, before sprinting up the bank of the Hollow, straight into the clutches of the enemy.
'Let her go!' Sirius called, as Remus made to pursue the young witch, 'if she wishes to die, then so be it! We will use another. Bring the boy from the cottage.'
Remus nodded, and entered the cottage. Five minutes later, he emerged, dragging Oliver Wood by the armpits. He forced the boy to kneel in front of the fire, then Sirius stepped forward with his knife...
********
'Oh my...' Jacob Krane, Commander of the troop of Death Eaters, could not hide his shock. 'They beheaded the boy! Dropped his head in the fire!'
Jacob heard footsteps approaching, and muffled sobs.
'The girl who ran away, sir', growled one of his men, 'we caught her.'
Jacob considered whether it was safe to light his wand, and concluded that the Order members were making such a racket, they probably wouldn't notice a little wand light.
'Lumos', he muttered, holding his wand up to inspect the girl, who was being held tightly by two Death Eaters.
She was a small, wiry sort of girl, with short blond hair and a pretty face. There was a look of terror in her eyes, and huge, gulping sobs racked her body.
'Please', she gasped, 'please don't hurt me! That's why I ran away, please don't hurt me, please-oh!'
The girl swayed on the spot, but was held up by the two burly men. Jacob stepped forward for a closer look.
'Who are you?' He hissed threateningly, 'and what the devil is going on down there?'
'L-Laura Payne', stammered the girl, 'they-they're t-trying to c-call on the D-Dead!'
'What?' Jacob breathed, stunned.
'They want to get the sp-spirits of everyone Y-you-Know-Who has k-killed', she spluttered, 'and make them f-fight you all!'
'Why did they kill the boy? Why did they want to kill you?'
'Th-they have to s-sacrifice a y-young man or w-woman for the sp-spell to work', the girl sobbed, 'it's a new spell, Dumbledore created it. He w- wanted us to t-try it out f-far from home. I didn't want to die, I had to run away. Please, stop them, I'm so scared!'
Jacob considered the girl for a moment, then called forward one of the other Death Eaters. 'You're good with this mind-reading stuff', he snarled, 'tell me if the girl's lying.'
The Death Eater grimaced. 'It's not mind reading', he corrected stiffly, 'it's seeking out the truth.'
'Whatever', spat Jacob, 'just do it.'
The Death Eater muttered the appropriate words under his breath, and met Tonk's gaze. After a few seconds, he sighed, and shook his head. 'She is too frightened to be lying', he concluded, 'what she says is true.'
Jacob cursed loudly, and moved forwards to peer down into the Hollow. The small group was now chanting louder than ever, their arms raised, dancing, as though it was some sort of ritual. Before he could decide what to do, everything went black...
**********
After extinguishing the flames, Sirius knew they must act quickly. With a roar of triumph, he allowed Remus to alter all their voices, so that when they spoke, it sounded like fifty people were speaking instead of five.
'Revenge', he hissed loudly, relishing the echo of his voice, 'we must have our revenge.'
The battle was won before it even began again. The Death Eaters, many of whom had committed murder, were so afraid of retribution, that they fled as soon as word reached them about what was happening. The two Death Eaters who held Tonks loosened their grip, allowing her to slip away.
Sirius and the others swooped down on the remaining Death Eaters, while Remus held the Dementors at bay once more. They shouted the names of many of the deceased members of the Order of the Phoenix, as they stunned and cursed every enemy in sight. Snape went berserk, casting the Killing Curse with gay abandon. Even Sirius was frightened when he saw Severus, white and tight-lipped, aiming Avada Kedavra at the heart of a Death Eater, killing him instantly.
But there was no time to criticise the fighting tecniques of others. With his knife in his hand, Sirius killed several of his enemies, whispering one name before they died. Finally, he reached Commander Jacob Krane, who saw a tall, forbidding figure coming towards him, and aimed the Cruciatus Curse in his direction. Sirius easily avoided the curse, and grabbed Krane by the throat. He ripped the man's mask off, and laughed.
'Jacob Krane. I thought I might see you here.'
'Mercy, I beg of you, Mercy!' Jacob choked, as Sirius half-strangled him.
'Do you want to know who I am?' Sirius hissed bitterly, 'don't you remember me? I played quidditch against you in school. You always did use foul methods to win.'
'Who are you?' Jacob gasped, going purple in the face.
Sirius held up the knife for Jacob to see. Before he plunged into the man's black heart, he whispered harshly into his ear:
'I am James Potter.'
Chaos erupted in the area around Helga's Hollow: Remus immediately roared 'EXPECTO PATRONUM!' and a huge, silver wolf exploded from the end of his wand, and charged at the Dementors. Snape, Oliver and Tonks fired dozens of stunning spells into the darkness, one after the other.
The Death Eaters had not realised that they had been spotted, and were not ready for the ambush. The loss of the Dementors (who were being held some fifty yards away by Remus' patronus) confused them and put them off their stride; but not for long. They responded with Killing Curses and Cruciatus Curses within seconds.
In the pitch black, all that could be seen was jets of different coloured light streaming across the battlefield, and the ghostly glow of the patronus cast by Remus. Sirius knew that it would be hopeless to fight in this way-nobody could see where they were aiming at all. Dodging between the trees, he stretched out his arms, feeling for any of his friends. He touched material, and hissed 'who is it?'
'Snape', grunted that familiar cold voice, 'what is it, Black? I'm trying to duel, in case you haven't noticed.'
Sirius ignored his biting remark, asking quickly; 'how long d'you think we can hold them for?'
'Ten minutes? Ten hours? How should I know?' Snape spat at Sirius, ducking to avoid a well-aimed stunner, 'and don't use my name-after I'm finished with this shambles of a mission, I may have to go back to my work as a spy. I don't want some fool like you destroying everything!'
Sirius resisted the temptation to strangle Snape, and hurried on around the glade, in search of another member of his team. By this time, the hollow was entirely surrounded by Death Eaters, while the Dementors hovered several hundred feet away, held back by the silver patronus of Remus Lupin.
Sirius heard a scream of pain, followed by a series of low sobs, only a few feet in front of him. Dodging a Killing Curse, which struck one of the birch trees down like a bolt of lightning, Sirius felt in the darkness, looking for whoever had been injured.
'Damnit, I need light!' He hissed desperately.
And Helga's Hollow granted his request.
Suddenly, all seven Order members could see clearly, although it was still pitch black. Sirius discovered that it was Tonks who had been hit by a Flame Hex, and cried out. He helped her to her feet, then peered out through the trees. The sight that greeted him made him draw breath sharply.
Two rows of Death Eaters, their wands raised, stood around the hollow. Some had removed their masks, and Sirius recognised them, from previous encounters with Voldemort's forces. They were the Dark Lord's best men and women, who would do anything to help their master. Sirius suddenly felt a lot less confident.
'We won't be able to hold them off for long', he whispered to Tonks, throwing his knife at the Death Eaters, and embedding it in one of their shoulders. Within seconds, it reappeared in his hand. 'Remus can't keep off all those Dementors by himself. I want you to go and help him-make the best Patronus you can. I'm getting an idea for a plan.'
'Ooh', Tonks hissed excitedly, 'I love your plans. Right-o, I'll go help Remus.'
'Thanks Tonks', Sirius grunted, throwing his knife again. Although it flew further and faster than any ordinary knife would, he still found his role in this fight tedious. He picked off several Death Eaters, helped by the fact that he could see so clearly into the still, black night.
Many of the trees were on fire, and Oliver was racing around extinguishing the flames with his wand, when three Stunners from the enemy all hit him at once, in the head, chest and leg. He fell heavily, banging his head off the trunk of a tree, unconscious. It was Bill who found him (or rather, tripped over him) and alerted Sirius to the fact that they were one man down. And so Sirius quickly made a decision.
'All of you, back to the Hollow!' He roared, not wanting to use names, or let the enemy know how many people they were fighting.
'Tell me when you're all safe, then I'll let go', Remus panted as Sirius passed him and Tonks, 'go on Tonks, get into the Hollow.'
Sirius waited and watched until the other five members of the party had disappeared into the Hollow, then whispered 'Now' to Remus.
With a loud grunt, Remus stumbled backwards and allowed his Patronus to vanish. Immediately, the Dementors began to advance. Sirius felt a wave of sickness come over him, and he staggered through the trees and down into the valley, Peter Pettigrew's voice echoing in his head...'Lily and James, Sirius! How could you?'
'Oh dear', Remus said weakly, tumbling down the bank into the Hollow after Sirius, 'that was close.'
'And they can't come in?' Eva asked, nervously eyeing the trees.
'Definitely not', Bill replied, shivering, as they all felt the presence of the Dementors around them, 'they're a force of evil.'
Oliver moaned softly, and Sirius dropped to his knees beside him. Oliver's face was ashen, and expressionless. Sirius shook him gently, and whispered his name. There was no response.
'That's exactly what happened to Minerva-but he's got a nasty bruise coming up on his head, he must have banged it off something', Bill observed, 'I'm sure that hasn't helped.'
Sirius chewed his lip, and tried to shake off the depression that hovered around him like a fog, 'bring him inside. We'll just have to hope he'll be okay. Did you try reviving him?'
'Used every incantation I know, and made up a few', Bill shook his head resignedly, 'c'mon, Remus, will you help me?'
Remus nodded, and the two men carried Oliver carefully into the cottage. When they had returned, Sirius took a deep breath, and explained his final, desperate plan.
**************
'Ready?' Sirius asked nervously, standing up and glancing around at his comrades, who were all sitting cross-legged in front of a campfire.
'Ready', they murmured.
Dawn was approaching. The Dementors and Death Eaters had not left their positions around the Hollow-the Order members were besieged. It had been difficult to work on Sirius' plan with a horrible feeling of despair clinging to them, but they had little option. From time to time, Remus and Tonks sent their Patronuses to ward the Dementors off-but the evil creatures soon returned. It had taken five hours to finalise all the details of the plan, but it was ready at last.
Sirius turned to Tonks, and nodded gravely. She swallowed hard, but smiled and scrambled to her feet. Sirius felt extremely grateful that she was not making this any more difficult for him than it had to be. She moved out of the light from the flames, and stood next to Sirius.
'Good luck', she whispered bravely, although Sirius could hear her breathing coming shallow and fast. He clapped her on the back, and said 'thank you. I swear I wn't let anything happen to you.'
'Mmm', Tonks nodded and smiled again.
And so the plan was put into action.
'Order of the Phoenix, rise to your feet!' Sirius cried, in a deep, throaty voice. Instantly, there was silence outside the Hollow, as the Death Eaters listened intently.
Obediently, the four remaining members rose to their feet-they wore hooded robes now, and hid their faces from the light. Sirius raised his arms above his head, and proclaimed in a voice quite unlike his own:
'Spirits of the Dead, come to our aid, avenge your deaths and live once more!'
The others joined in the chant, slowly and methodically. On and on it went, getting faster each time. They began to move around the fire in a circle. Snape threw various concoctions onto the fire, making the flames change colour, and give off strange, heavy scents, not unlike the smell of incense. Then, Remus and Eva stepped out of the circle, and grabbed Tonks by the arms, propelling her towards the fire. At first, she let them lead her, but then quite suddenly, she began to kick and scream violently, calling for help. She elbowed Remus, and knocked Eva off her feet, before sprinting up the bank of the Hollow, straight into the clutches of the enemy.
'Let her go!' Sirius called, as Remus made to pursue the young witch, 'if she wishes to die, then so be it! We will use another. Bring the boy from the cottage.'
Remus nodded, and entered the cottage. Five minutes later, he emerged, dragging Oliver Wood by the armpits. He forced the boy to kneel in front of the fire, then Sirius stepped forward with his knife...
********
'Oh my...' Jacob Krane, Commander of the troop of Death Eaters, could not hide his shock. 'They beheaded the boy! Dropped his head in the fire!'
Jacob heard footsteps approaching, and muffled sobs.
'The girl who ran away, sir', growled one of his men, 'we caught her.'
Jacob considered whether it was safe to light his wand, and concluded that the Order members were making such a racket, they probably wouldn't notice a little wand light.
'Lumos', he muttered, holding his wand up to inspect the girl, who was being held tightly by two Death Eaters.
She was a small, wiry sort of girl, with short blond hair and a pretty face. There was a look of terror in her eyes, and huge, gulping sobs racked her body.
'Please', she gasped, 'please don't hurt me! That's why I ran away, please don't hurt me, please-oh!'
The girl swayed on the spot, but was held up by the two burly men. Jacob stepped forward for a closer look.
'Who are you?' He hissed threateningly, 'and what the devil is going on down there?'
'L-Laura Payne', stammered the girl, 'they-they're t-trying to c-call on the D-Dead!'
'What?' Jacob breathed, stunned.
'They want to get the sp-spirits of everyone Y-you-Know-Who has k-killed', she spluttered, 'and make them f-fight you all!'
'Why did they kill the boy? Why did they want to kill you?'
'Th-they have to s-sacrifice a y-young man or w-woman for the sp-spell to work', the girl sobbed, 'it's a new spell, Dumbledore created it. He w- wanted us to t-try it out f-far from home. I didn't want to die, I had to run away. Please, stop them, I'm so scared!'
Jacob considered the girl for a moment, then called forward one of the other Death Eaters. 'You're good with this mind-reading stuff', he snarled, 'tell me if the girl's lying.'
The Death Eater grimaced. 'It's not mind reading', he corrected stiffly, 'it's seeking out the truth.'
'Whatever', spat Jacob, 'just do it.'
The Death Eater muttered the appropriate words under his breath, and met Tonk's gaze. After a few seconds, he sighed, and shook his head. 'She is too frightened to be lying', he concluded, 'what she says is true.'
Jacob cursed loudly, and moved forwards to peer down into the Hollow. The small group was now chanting louder than ever, their arms raised, dancing, as though it was some sort of ritual. Before he could decide what to do, everything went black...
**********
After extinguishing the flames, Sirius knew they must act quickly. With a roar of triumph, he allowed Remus to alter all their voices, so that when they spoke, it sounded like fifty people were speaking instead of five.
'Revenge', he hissed loudly, relishing the echo of his voice, 'we must have our revenge.'
The battle was won before it even began again. The Death Eaters, many of whom had committed murder, were so afraid of retribution, that they fled as soon as word reached them about what was happening. The two Death Eaters who held Tonks loosened their grip, allowing her to slip away.
Sirius and the others swooped down on the remaining Death Eaters, while Remus held the Dementors at bay once more. They shouted the names of many of the deceased members of the Order of the Phoenix, as they stunned and cursed every enemy in sight. Snape went berserk, casting the Killing Curse with gay abandon. Even Sirius was frightened when he saw Severus, white and tight-lipped, aiming Avada Kedavra at the heart of a Death Eater, killing him instantly.
But there was no time to criticise the fighting tecniques of others. With his knife in his hand, Sirius killed several of his enemies, whispering one name before they died. Finally, he reached Commander Jacob Krane, who saw a tall, forbidding figure coming towards him, and aimed the Cruciatus Curse in his direction. Sirius easily avoided the curse, and grabbed Krane by the throat. He ripped the man's mask off, and laughed.
'Jacob Krane. I thought I might see you here.'
'Mercy, I beg of you, Mercy!' Jacob choked, as Sirius half-strangled him.
'Do you want to know who I am?' Sirius hissed bitterly, 'don't you remember me? I played quidditch against you in school. You always did use foul methods to win.'
'Who are you?' Jacob gasped, going purple in the face.
Sirius held up the knife for Jacob to see. Before he plunged into the man's black heart, he whispered harshly into his ear:
'I am James Potter.'
