A/N- Sorry for the long wait!!! I was really focused on finishing one of my other fics. With that accomplished, I hope to be able to divide my attention evenly…or as evenly as possible. Anyhow, here's the next chapter.


Chapter 7- Newfound Trouble

The troupe, led by June and Dumbledore, marched out of the doors of Hogwarts and down the stone steps at the entrance. There, at their foot, was Karkaroff with the limp, bloodless body of Pansy Parkinson in his arms. He seemed to be badly shaken by the whole affair.

Of course, who wouldn't be?

The Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher looked up at the group. The evidence was clear that he had just got done having a fresh sob. Glancing back at a few members of her group, June decided to note their reactions. Snape looked rather shocked, as did Draco. Hermione looked sympathetic. Harry and Ron simply looked mortified by the sight of Pansy body. June quickly walked down beside Karkaroff and took the body from him.

"What are you doing, girl?!" he demanded hoarsely.

"Let her, Igor," Dumbledore said gently, placing a hand on the professor's shoulder.

"What is she doing?" Karkaroff asked, seemingly in a daze.

"Yeah, I'd like to know that too," Draco put in, tears silently falling.

"I told you, Draco. She a Vampire Slayer. The monsters that the Death Eaters had with them were some form of a super-vampire she knows how to deal with," Hermione said quietly.

"I'm checking to see if they tried to turn her," June said.

"No!!" Draco cried suddenly, throwing himself at June.

As one, Harry, Ron, and Snape went forward and pulled him back.

"What?!" Karkaroff asked.

"I won't let you do it!" Draco yelled at June.

"Do what?" Ron asked, sharing the same dazed look as Karkaroff.

"Put a stake in her," Hermione said quietly, turning away. She was looking rather green in the face, unusual for the girl who could do any assignment.

"They didn't try. I don't have to," June said, thankfully, as she stood. She turned to Karkaroff and said, "You, Draco, and the others take her in. I think we ought to bury her soon…put her soul to rest, you know? Headmaster, if I could have a word with you privately?"

Dumbledore nodded. "Only a moment. I must make an announcement of sorts to the school," he said.

Harry, Ron, and Snape--still supporting Draco between the three of them--led the way back into the school. Karkaroff bent, picked up Pansy's body, and followed. Hermione, head hung low, followed as well.

"Let's take her to the dungeons, that way no one will see…" Snape said in a distance voice.

When they were gone, Dumbledore turned to June.

"You know who they will suspect," he said simply enough.

"They'll think Karkaroff did it, that he was one of the Death Eaters with the ubervamps," June replied. It was almost as if she and Dumbledore had developed their own unspoken code of understanding.

"And, what are your thoughts on that?"

"A polyjuice potion itself couldn't have pulled off that act. He was genuinely grieving."

Without another word, the Headmaster and the Slayer ascended the stone staircase. Both lost in thought about what was going to happen next.

…………………

They--or rather, Pansy's mother and Draco--decided to burn the young girl and to spread her ashes over the lake, for she had loved it so. Pansy's father had nothing to do with the funeral or funeral arrangements. June suspected that he himself might have been one of the Death Eaters that had sentenced his own daughter to death. When she ran this thought by Ron, Harry, and Draco, they said that it was most likely that it was true.

What frightened June the most about the attack on Pansy was the fact that after that…nothing happened. She ran into no signs whatsoever of vampires on campus or anything. Dumbledore asked her about this one morning at the end of October, in which she had simply replied, "I think their planning something. This isn't good."

But time moved on. Draco was no longer the well respected Slytherin he had once been, but because of who his father was, the other Slytherins left him alone rather than pick on him. June found that he more and more often hang around with the Gryffindors now, though he was still distant with even them. Snape seemed to be the only person he could or would speak with, and June just couldn't figure that out. How could anyone talk to that man?

Before they all knew it, the halls were empty. The only sounds were the echoed cries of "Happy Christmas!" and the giggles of the group left behind. They were comprised of Harry, Ron, Hermione, Draco, Snape, Karkaroff, Dumbledore, and McGonagall. As the sound of the train pulling away from the station reached Hogwarts, June let out a sigh and turned to face the scene before her.

Harry, Ron, and Draco were playing a game of Exploding Snap, which ended badly for Ron. Hermione was discussing some unheard topic with McGonagall. Karkaroff and Snape seemed to be just enjoying the silence they were providing for one another. And Dumbledore was lost in thought, sitting right beside June.

"No ubervamp trouble lately?" he asked in hushed tones, for no one had yet informed McGonagall of June's status of Slayer.

"None. It still worries me. I'm just glad the train left before sundown was over. All those students in a single container…it would've been a feast for the ubervamps," June said.

Harry, Draco, and Ron--who was still rubbing the soot off his face--made their way over to the single, long table set up for the remaining faculty and students and sat across from the Headmaster and June.

"Bad timing?" June asked Ron.

He narrowed his eyes at her and chose not to reply. Dumbledore tried hard to suppress a chuckle. Quickly, they were joined by McGonagall, Hermione, Snape, and Karkaroff.

"The house elves should have dinner ready any minute now," the Deputy Headmistress said. Hermione made an almost inaudible scoff.

The food materialized soon afterwards and the group began to talk and eat happily. June was, at one point, about to respond to a joke ventured by Harry when she felt the tiniest inkling of trouble. She shot to her feet. All eyes went to her.

"What is it?" McGonagall asked breathlessly.

June looked to the Headmaster. "Trouble," she said. "Don't move…none of you."

Reaching into the pocket of her black jeans, June withdrew a small hair band in which she used to tie back her hair into a ponytail. She walked to the center of the Great Hall--the tables had all been removed--and waited. The feeling of peril was growing stronger.

"Don't move," she reasserted to those behind her.

"What in Merlin's name is going on?" McGonagall asked, beginning to stand.

Dumbledore gently rested a hand on her wrist to keep her seated.

June reached down into her right boot and withdrew a dagger. Nothing better to use when it came to slicing off an ubervamps head.

"They're immune to Wand Magic," June restated.

"Who?" McGonagall whispered, for the tension in the room was now strong.

There was no time to answer. The doors to the Great Hall were flung open. No less than ten ubervamps made their way into the room, followed by one cloaked figure. A Death Eater.

"Which are you?" Karkaroff called.

"Oh, my!" McGonagall gasped.

With a sweeping bow, the Death Eater made no move to reply. The ubervamps were now encircling the room.

"Trap them in," the Death Eater said.

"Rookwood!" both Snape and Karkaroff said.

A laugh leaked through the Death Eater's masked, but still there came no sound of affirmation.

"Wands out!" cried McGonagall.

"Didn't you hear her? They're immune to our magic!!" Draco hissed.

"But we can't leave her out there helpless!" the woman said disbelievingly, for not even Dumbledore had his wand out.

"Trust us, she's not helpless," Hermione said.

"KILL THEM!!!!!" Rookwood shouted.

But there was no "them." The ubervamps went straight for what they deemed as the "big prize." The Slayer.

June ducked and kicked out, sending two ubervamps to the floor. She only got to dust one, but there was time, just so long as they kept attacking her. She rolled out of the crowd of them and leapt back to her feet. For a split second, they were all lined up. In this moment, June kicked out and knocked them back. At the same time, she reached out for one. She pulled him toward her, and his neck got real friendly with her blade. Two down, eight to go.

With a series of kicks, punches, ducks, and such, June managed to get the number down to one on one. The Death Eater had been a silent spectacle in all of this, but now he was getting jittery.

However, this last ubervamp decided to take a different course rather than follow the method of those before him. He turned and began to charge the table!

"Duck!!" June cried.

The people at the table did so instantly, but this cry confused the ubervamp. He turned toward her, as if he wanted to see what she was planning to do. Hurling her dagger like a boomerang, it made a whishing noise through the air and appeared to miss the vamp as it stuck solidly in the wall behind the table.

The ubervamp looked shocked for a moment…just before he crumbled to a pile of dust. The group slowly stood.

"Rookwood!!" Hermione cried.

June whirled, expecting a confrontation. Instead, all she seen was a cloak disappearing around the corner.

"He's gone!" Snape cried, rounding the table to join June. The others did so also.

"What is going on?!" McGonagall cried.

"I'll explain everything later," Dumbledore said.

June, huffing and puffing for air, turned to the Headmaster, a panicked look on her face. "They'll know now. They'll know I'm here. It's not safe here anymore. Not for me, not for any of you. They'll also know about Snape now too," she said hurriedly.

"Then to the Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix it is," Dumbledore said.

"That's not all. I'm going to need help…I just know it," June said. Suddenly, she let out a painful gasp and fell to the floor. Harry rushed to her side.

"Are you alright? I don't see an injury! What's wrong?" he asked.

June stood. "I'm fine. I'm sending a letter to Buffy for reinforcements. All of you go pack. I'll join you soon enough," she said.

They all nodded and did as they were told. June quickly found quill and ink and wrote two simple words on the parchment she found as well.

Help. Now.

She rushed to the Owlery and sent the letter. Then, allowing herself to calm down so that the scarily familiar pain in her chest would subside, she went to pack.


End Notes: What did you think? Did you like it? I hope so. That was so much fun to write!! Personally, I loved it! Please R & R! Thanks!!