Lord Voldemort
"Are you sure she just wanted to know when the next prefect meeting is?" asked James suspiciously.
"Honest!" replied Remus exasperatedly, although this wasn't the least bit true. Sirius shrugged.
"Okay then, because if I found out you were going out with my cousin…" at this, he gagged and fell to the floor in a very impressive faint. He held his hands to his forehead, and then seized James' hand.
"Mother, is that you? Please… save… me…" he whispered convincingly. By this time, he and James were in stitches, but Remus rolled his eyes.
"What am I going to do with you?" he asked, shaking his head. Sirius sat up instantly.
"Well, old Moony, you can help me train for the last obstacle!" he said delightedly. James grinned.
"So do you know what it'll be?" he asked. Sirius nodded.
"Yeah, the judges told us that it'll be some kind of obstacle course with different magical creatures," he told his friends. Peter gulped.
"What kind of creatures?" he asked, staring around the room as though one of these creatures would suddenly jump out at him. Sirius thought for a moment.
"Hmm, I think there's a Sphinx…" he began. James and Remus grinned.
"That'll be easy, you'll just have to solve a riddle," said James happily. "Go on."
"Hmm, then there's a Boggart or something… and a Hinkypunk… a couple of Red Caps, Grindylows… It'll be easy, I'll win it for sure!" said Sirius, stretching his arms, and then spreading himself out over the soft carpet in the common room near the fire.
"Yeah, but we'll still help you study for it," said Remus. James was deep in thought.
"We could probably help you practise on that Boggart in the old broom cupboard…"
At last, the day of the third obstacle arrived. Sirius stretched and checked his watch, before shaking James to rouse him. They breakfasted in the Great Hall with Remus and Star, as well as a large crowd of admirers, all wanting Sirius' autograph, which he happily scribbled on old bits of parchment. After breakfast, the group walked to the Quidditch pitch, where the third obstacle had been set up.
James, Remus and Peter hung over the fence, near the sidelines so they could have a clear view of Sirius. They were joined by Lily and Bellatrix. At that moment, Dumbledore cleared his throat, and a hush fell over the chattering crowd.
"Welcome, welcome! Here we all are, about to enjoy the third obstacle in the Hogwarts Best Young Witch or Wizard Competition. I hope you will all support your house's champion by cheering them on with pride. As you all know, at the end of this obstacle, we will tally up the scores and find out who the Best Young Witch or Wizard will be! Now then, without any further ado, please welcome the house contestants!" his voice echoed around the pitch.
"GO SIRIUS!" screamed James and Remus at the top of their lungs. Sirius merely winked, and several girls nearby swooned.
"Competitors, on your marks, get set and… GO!" boomed Dumbledore. They were off!
"Boggart first, that'll be a cinch…" said Star, watching as Sirius effortlessly fought off the Boggart. While the other three cried, "Riddikulus!" at the top of their voices, Sirius was wading across a boggy marsh, not paying the slightest bit of attention to the misleading Hinkypunk.
"He's in the lead by far!" shouted James, watching as Severus scrambled through the marsh, his skinny legs covered in thick mud. Sirius, meanwhile, was standing in front of the sphinx. Severus stumbled beside him to hear its' riddle.
"Oh no, they're tying…" moaned Peter, covering his eyes. "I can't look!"
"Don't be daft, Peter!" said Bellatrix, as Sirius correctly answered the riddle. The sphinx was now giving Severus a second riddle… After what seemed like an age, Sirius was wading through a tiny lake, with several Grindylows attacking his legs. Severus was right behind him… Star bit her lips.
"Oh no! Come on, Sirius!" she cried, but there was no need. Sirius was running towards the finish line, with Severus trying to catch up.
"Hurry up, Severus! You can do it!" screamed Bellatrix. Lily closed her eyes, before feeling someone tugging at her sleeve.
"It's a tie!" came Bellatrix's excited voice. Lily's eyes fluttered open.
"Wha-?" she began, but Bellatrix was pulling her onto the pitch to congratulate Severus. James, Remus and Peter leapt over the fence and onto the pitch, where they slapped Sirius on the back. Star was a little more graceful. She slid over the fence and ran to Sirius.
"Sirius, they've added up all the points. You've won!" she said breathlessly. Sirius whooped and punched his fist in the air. At that moment, a tall blonde seventh year interrupted their celebrations.
"Sirius…" she sneered. Sirius looked at her, startled.
"Why, Narcissa, I thought you were at home…" he began, eyeing his cousin darkly. Narcissa laughed and James found himself shivering for no apparent reason.
"I'm just here to congratulate you," she said, smiling broadly. Sirius narrowed his eyes.
"No you're not…" he began, but Narcissa had already thrust a small object into his hands. Before he could even see what it was, Narcissa cried, "Portus!"
James felt a strange, curious sensation, as though a hook was pulling him from somewhere behind his navel… Suddenly, he hit the ground, landing on all fours. He looked up, dazed, and saw Sirius, rubbing his elbow nearby. Lily, Star and Bellatrix hadn't moved an inch, but Remus and Peter were getting to their feet rather shakily. And much to James' displeasure, Severus was dusting off his robes in the corner.
"Master, I have brought him…" said Narcissa, dropping to her knees. James looked around wildly to see who she was talking to, but there was no one in sight. They were in a huge, beautifully furnished room and James could see the doorway opposite. Near the doorway was the small object that Narcissa had given Sirius. Something clicked in James' brain. The locket was a Portkey!
"Excellent, but who are the others?" replied a voice. James stared at Narcissa.
"Who are you talking to?" he asked her, but Narcissa ignored him. James was angry. "Show yourself!" he cried. By now, Sirius, Remus, Peter and Severus had joined James, and the girls were beginning to come to their senses.
"If that is what you want," came the voice again. There was a blinding flash of green light, and James shielded his eyes. The light died away, and James almost screamed in shock. Standing in front of him, sneering, was none other than Lord Voldemort.
"Why are all these children here? I asked only for one…" said Voldemort, staring around the room.
"Master, they were transported here because they were touching Sirius at the time I gave him the Portkey…" stammered Narcissa, still not looking her master in the face.
"Foolish girl. I have no need for you. I thought you would be the perfect apprentice. Clever, charming and beautiful… But you have failed abysmally, Narcissa. You are no longer a servant of Lord Voldemort," he said coldly, staring down at Narcissa. He pointed his wand at her, and she cowered.
"P-p-please, master, please…" Narcissa was sobbing uncontrollably and the sight of her sickened James.
"AVADA KEDAV-…"
"EXPELLIARMUS!" screamed James, and Voldemort's wand flew straight out of his hand. James snatched it out of midair. No one, not even Narcissa, deserved to die like this. James felt anger bubbling inside him, uncontrollable anger; he wanted to kill Voldemort…
"Accio wand!" shouted Voldemort, but without his wand, the spell was useless and James gripped the wand tightly, his teeth clenched.
"Give it back!" Voldemort screamed, but James' hands stayed firmly on the wand.
"Tell us what we're doing here," he said, fingering the wand, trying to play for time… Voldemort considered wrestling James for a moment, before disregarding the thought. James was armed – and he was strong. There was nothing he, Voldemort, the most powerful wizard in the world, could do.
"Fine," he snapped, lowering himself into a comfortable looking armchair. He then began to speak…
"It all started several months ago. I was having a discussion with my good friend, the faithful Death Eater Slythmus Black. He mentioned that he had a daughter called Narcissa, and I became interested… You see, for many years I had been thinking of taking on an apprentice, someone who I could teach Dark Arts, someone young, but not too young. Narcissa was perfect. She came from a pure-blood family, where both parents were loyal Death Eaters. She was in seventh year at Hogwarts and was very intelligent. I decided to talk to her, so we arranged to meet over the school holidays. However, I knew something was wrong, but I couldn't understand what it was… School term began, and Narcissa told me that this year was the Hogwarts Best Young Witch or Wizard competition. By then, I had figured out what had been troubling me – Narcissa was a coward, and I do not approve of cowards…" at this, he paused to draw breath.
James was numb with shock. Nothing was making much sense…
"When she told me of the competition, a brilliant plan struck me. I would watch the three obstacles, and determine which competitor was the best. The winner would then be transported here by means of a Portkey. Now, Narcissa had also mentioned a certain cousin she had, by the name of Sirius Black. She told me that he was very intelligent. In fact, his Defence Against the Dark Arts marks were truly astounding. I knew from that minute that Sirius Black would be my apprentice. I would have disposed of Narcissa there and then, but she played a key role in my plan, so I couldn't kill her… then."
James clenched his fists, only half aware of the group of people surrounding him. All he could see was Voldemort, his mouth twisted into a wicked grin.
"Instead of killing her, I put the Imperius curse on her and forced her to put Sirius' name in the casket. I bewitched it, so that it would have to be chosen. From then on, I watched Sirius' progress. Unfortunately, I was aware that he was getting a great deal of help from his friends," he jerked his head to Remus' direction, then Peter's.
"But I didn't want him getting any help. I wanted to see him perform independently. Narcissa poisoned the werewolf's orange juice at breakfast one morning, and that night he turned into a werewolf. I hoped to see Sirius fight him alone, but for some reason, none of you were injured. Why you didn't even get a bite, I will never know…"
You'll never, ever, ever know why, thought James. Voldemort continued.
"It was also I who made Sirius' owl faint," he said smugly. Bellatrix had gotten to her feet by now.
"But you didn't make his owl faint! James' and mine were the ones who fainted!" she cried angrily.
"YOU HURT ARTEMIS!" screamed James, unable to contain his rage. Here was this man, sitting so calmly… He wanted to kill people, and he had deliberately hurt two innocent owls… Voldemort looked concerned.
"I never intended to hurt your owl, boy. I must have confused yours with Sirius'," he murmured.
"But why did you hurt my owl?" Bellatrix burst out angrily. "What's she ever done to you?"
"When Sirius' owl fainted, I assumed that he would use his relatives' owls, because not many people know the location of his house. Naturally, I had to make sure that their owls couldn't reach him either," said Voldemort. James was shaking.
"Now, I will take my apprentice," said Voldemort, smirking.
"He'll never go to your side!" screamed James, vaguely aware that Severus was standing right beside him.
"You may be surprised to find out that I can be very… how shall I put it? Ah, yes, I can be very persuasive," he said. At that precise moment, Voldemort's wand slipped out of James' shaking palms. It was like a slow-motion film, the wand fell through the air for an age, before finally landing softly on the carpet. James bent down to pick it up, but it was too late. In that split second, Voldemort had apparated to James' feet, picked up the wand, and was now twirling it in his fingers.
"Everybody, RUN!" screamed James, and he heard the others run to the Portkey. It suddenly seemed very far away…
"AVADA KEDAVRA!" shouted Voldemort, but James managed to dodge the spell. Instead of concentrating on the killing curse, Voldemort was now sending jets of light in all directions. Lily was hit by one, and with a soft gasp of surprise, she fainted onto the carpet.
"LILY!" Meanwhile, Star had reached the Portkey. Behind her, Bellatrix was screaming, writhing on the ground with pain, twitching violently. Clearly, Voldemort had put the Cruciatus curse on her.
"CRUCIO!" yelled James, aiming his wand at Voldemort. Voldemort twitched in pain, but straightened up almost immediately.
"Ha! You'll never be able to use an Unforgivable Curse properly, boy!" Voldemort laughed.
"YES I WILL! CRUCIO!" roared James, as the others ran to the Portkey. This time, he didn't wait to see what happened to Voldemort. Bellatrix was straightening up, and James grabbed her. Severus was carrying the limp form of Lily over his broad shoulders. He and James reached the Portkey at the same time as Peter and Remus. Each member of the group reached out and touched the locket, and there was the peculiar sensation again…
They landed softly on the grass of the Quidditch pitch. James felt almost delirious. His head was aching like it had never ached before. His heart was beating faster than ever…
"Lily!" he cried softly, dimly aware of the strange coloured shapes that were swimming above him. His mind was racing… Was Lily safe? Someone above him screamed in terror, and there was a flurry of activity. Suddenly, his body was enveloped with a pain so strong that his heart almost burst. His head was aching so badly that he just wanted to end this excruciating pain. And he knew, in the few seconds before he lost consciousness that Lord Voldemort had truly returned.