Jez: Here you are, hope I don't disappoint. Monica's a little more powerful here than she has been, but the toll is much higher than it would be on Adam.
---
He who was once called Tom Riddle, but now was known as Lord Voldemort, stalked the halls of the place he had taken as a home. Sand and sun could not penetrate the deep gloom. He stopped suddenly, and his fingers lit, shining black light into the room. A figure, a near mirror of his own, stepped out of the shadows. The difference was, that where his robes were a mottled grey, the others were deepest midnight black.
"Who are you?" The cold voice echoed through the room. "And how dare you enter my home?"
"I am you, Lord Voldemort, or what you may become, if you join us." The black figure answered.
"Us?" Voldemort asked. Another figure, darker than the first, appeared, in the form of a knight, wielding a lance in his hands, that seemed to draw even the black light from his fingers into it, yet he could see perfectly clearly.
"I" The word echoed, as did each one it spoke. "am the Avatar of the Black Lance. I am the ultimate force, that drives all universes. I seek to bring all things under my power. I wish you to become a general of mine. You will be granted the power of Immortality, if you can do two things. First, bring under my control, the power of the place known as Hogwarts. My minions have already penetrated it, and begun our work. Do not destroy anyone as of yet. Pure, or mud blood. Bring them all to my power. Then, when this world is ours, we can destroy them, and the muggles they are bred from."
"And the second thing?" Voldemort asked, letting the black light die from his fingers.
"Destroy the four who stand before you. Hermione Granger. Harry Potter. Monica Treborne. And Draco Malfoy." The Avatar answered.
"Malfoy? But his father serves me." Voldemort replied.
"But the boy is no fool. He learned everything his father taught him well. But he has something, that his father did not. A true, and worthy rival. There is too much at stake, to give him a chance to change his course. He must be dealt with, before he decides to throw his lot, for the other side. The risk is too great to chance him siding against us." The Avatar spoke.
"And if he can be turned, with the others dead?" Voldemort asked. He toppled to the ground, as a massive blow struck him.
"He must be killed first, or else the deaths of the others will turn him against us." The Avatar spoke, and began to fade. "This being will guide you. Heed him, or die."
---
"Did it really try to eat you?" A voice in the back asked. Harry shook his head. The portrait swung open to admit McGonagall.
"Alright now, everyone to bed. Including you Mr. Potter." She waved them up stairs, shooing the few stragglers, and waking Monica, who had fallen asleep in a chair. "And you." She added.
Harry ascended the stairs. Moving slowly, something smelled funny, but he couldn't identify what it was. "Lumos." His wand flared to life, and he swept it back and forth, and found... Crookshanks, spread out on the stairs, chewing on a rat. "You'd better not let Ron catch you doing that. He's still sore over the Scabbers incident. Nox." The wand shimmered out. He ascended the stairs, and entered the sleeping room. Ron was asleep already, and as Harry crossed to his bed, he heard a scream from Dean Thomas bed. He whipped around. "LUMOS!" Light flared, and shadows darted out from under the curtain around his bed. The combination of scream and shout had woken everyone in the dorm. Seamus Finnegan wrenched the curtain open, and then spun around, spilling the entire contents of his stomach into his waist basket. Harry spun, lunging down the stairs. He hit the bottom, and burst through the painting, smashing into Snape.
"Potter, what are you doing up?" Snape snarled.
"Another attack, in the boys dorm." He pointed.
"Show me." Harry led him up the stairs. Snape left with Dean, and McGonagall, as well as Dumbledore showed up a few moments later.
"What happened?" Dumbledore asked.
"I came in last, and I heard Dean scream. I flashed my wand to light, but all I saw were the shadows leaving." Harry reported. He sighed. "Professor? What is going on?" A scream echoed from the main staircase.
"I'd say, that we're under attack." Dumbledore replied, with a slight smile. Harry and McGonagall looked at him as if he'd gone out of his mind. "But we aren't defeated just yet. Minerva, gather the students in the great hall, Harry, wake the teachers if you please, tell them to meet me in the entrance hall." Dumbledore strode out, Harry following. Both heard McGonagall's voice echoing through Gryffindor tower.
"ALL STUDENTS, PLEASE PROCEED TO THE GREAT HALL." She ordered. Harry caught most of the teachers napping, and found himself in the main hall. He stopped beside Dumbledore.
"Well done my boy, but you should get inside the hall." Dumbledore suggested. Harry started to move, then stopped.
"What about Hagrid?" He called. Dumbledore smiled.
"Wha' abou' me?" Hagrid grinned, as he moved through the doors. "I heard Professor McGonagall. Reckon they heard her in London." McGonagall winced. "Go on in." Hagrid waved. Harry entered the room, to find the students arranged in concentric rings, oldest first and so forth depending on year. The few students from the infirmary were in the middle, along with Hermione, Monica, and Madame Pompfrey. The walls glowed white, as the students spoke in unison.
"LUMOS." They spoke, all at once. The walls seemed to vibrate a moment. Harry stepped through the rings, into the center of the circle.
"What's going on?" He asked Hermione.
"Madame Pompfrey is supervising the defenses. I'm keeping an eye on the injured, and you're helping me. I haven't the slightest idea what she's doing." She waved at Monica, who had her staff in her hands, and her head bowed, and seemed to be whispering something under her breath. Then the room shifted, but she didn't flinch. Harry spun wildly around towards Hermione. "The castle is folding in on itself, and bringing it's walls around to protect us. I'd bet it's Dumbledore." She explained. "It was built in by Slytherin. Apparently he was a bit paranoid." Harry gave her a level look.
"I wonder why?" He asked, rolling his eyes. "Where are we going?" He asked.
"The great hall is being drawn down inside the castle,and the rest of it will seal over head. The entrance hall will move slowly up to the top and become the only way in here. They lit the walls, so the shadows can't strike at us." Hermione replied. They were disrupted by Monica at that instant.
"Deus Omni Et Eternia!" She snarled. Energy swirled around her, and then burst out into the air. A white bubble expanded from the ball of energy, and as it passed him, Harry could feel what she had done. A shield of sorts, it was not strong, but it was dangerous. Anyone not recognized, was attacked with the full force of the shield. It did not, however need to feed off just her power, as most did, but it used the force of the will to survive of the entire student body. Monica collapsed to the ground, curling into a ball. The staff glowed faintly. Hermione moved to her side. A resounding thud crashed into the side of the school, as the room continued to retreat. Lightning flashed over head.
---
Outside the school, the teachers were battling against the monsters assaulting the school. Dumbledore flashed lightning into the sky, striking down to try and drive the huge Rocs that were attacking, away from the castle. Stun spells lashed out at Werewolves drawn into battle, and McGonagall and Snape were generating two massively powerful Patronus', keeping the Dementor's at bay. Then the shield flashed across them, surrounding the school. A werewolf crashed to the ground, caught in the shield, blown to pieces by it's power. A dementor, crashed against it with it's full might, and shattered. The shield seemed to pulse, and then a wave of energy lashed out, clearing a bit of space around the base of the castle. Dumbledore lashed out with the castles own defenses, stone gargoyles coming to life, and rising into the air, to sweep out of the shield, and crash into the roc's overhead. On the ground, stone dragon statues rose from their pedestals, and moved towards the werewolves. Insane or not, even a full grown werewolf is stupid enough to mess with a full grown dragon, not under it's own control. When Lord Voldemort was controlling them however, they couldn't help it. The dragon's snapped at the werewolves, as they lunged in, moving in a single pack.
"What do you want?" Dumbledore bellowed across the intervening space between himself and Voldemort.
"What do you think? I'm going to take this school, and turn it's inhabitants against you and your little muggle friends. I'll rend them limb from limb, when I rule the world." He laughed. "First, I guess I have to kill you!" Lightning flashed from the end of his wand. Dumbledore's wand flashed up, and a steel rod did as well, attracting the lightning away from him. The other teachers joined in a single chorus of voices.
"EXPELLIARMUS." They spoke as one. A great silver bolt smashed into Voldemort. He crumpled to the ground, and screamed, as he disapparated, just short of being mauled by the werewolves over which he'd lost control. The Rocs swept around, and away, as did the Dementors, all heading north. The Werewolves swung around, and retreated into the forest.
"That was, less than spectacular." Sechell commented. "I'm surprised he backed off so easily."
"He didn't back off. He retreated. He will return." Dumbledore replied. "For now, we will focus on strengthening our defenses. Severus, Dorion, Minerva, I want you three to lead the efforts." The castle seemed to pulse, and reverted to it's usual form. "For now, let us all get some sleep."
