Author Notes: Again, Kingsley might have appeared as though he died in the chapter, but I've changed it so there is a possibilty that he didn't and so he can reappear later on.

Chapter 16

As he strode down the hall, he was met with respectful inclination of heads from those he passed by, who were also heading in the same direction.

"Malfoy" one of the Death Eaters halted and Remus pulled up next to him. "Do you know what this is about?" The elder Lucius seemed to study him, with a sly smile playing on his lips. Remus frowned.

"I do not believe your presence is mandatory Lupin." He replied. "It might be a waste of your time, as you do prefer snooping around the place instead of killing and torturing." The blonde smirk at him. "I really don't see what the Master sees in you."

"Malfoy…" Remus growled, irritated.

"However, you may find it worthwhile and meaningful to attend this one." Malfoy sounded as though he knew something, but had no intention of giving it away.

"Malfoy" Lupin repeated sharply. Lucius only smiled inwardly, before clenching his Mark, and hissed in pain. Glaring at the other man, as though it was the werewolf's fault, he took off in a quicker pace, practically fleeing down the corridors.

Remus watched him turn the corner before making his way to the room of the North East Wing. He was surprised to find the door already open, and even more surprised at being addressed by Harry, something that the young man had rarely done even after announcing his guardian as vinco custos.

"You're late Avenger." The Prince hissed out, sounding quite inpatient. Remus frowned. From the doorway he took in the surroundings. There was no tortured prisoner, which meant no stench of blood and gore nor was there the screaming melody that he had grown so accustomed to and secretly enjoyed. True there were Death Eaters, but only a handful, enough to be counted.

"Let me remind you, I'm here on my free will Harry" Remus replied coldly. Still he made his way towards Harry who had his Death Eater's surround him in a half-circle.

Harry eyed him, but said no more. From his robes, he took out a piece of parchment and stuffed it in his guardian's hand. Lupin said nothing. He just crumpled up the parchment and threw it carelessly onto the floor.

Harry cleared his throat. "Those who must leave, leave now. Remember the most effective way is if everything occurs in unison"

"Yes Master" rang out, and all but three stayed behind.

"Those, Remus, were the Inner Circle, Voldemort's loyalist men, who now belong to me." He paused. Although he was speaking directly to his guardian, the three other Death Eater's listened raptly, knowing that there were spoken to as well. "The Dark Lord placed a burden on me, a heavy one at that. He handed me the entire world on a silver platter. It's about time I thanked him for it." Remus raised an eyebrow as the other's stirred uneasily.

"And how will you do that?" Lupin asked, not really wanting the reply.

"By fulfilling his greatest ambition." A smile formed on the young man's lips. "With you helping me."

"Accio Parchment." The crumpled paper bounced up from the floor and zoomed into Harry's outstretched hand. He un-crumpled it and shoved that paper in front of Lupin.

It was a newspaper clipping. An article that came from the Daily Prophet with the heading

WANTED: Avenger: vinco custos.

Below it was a picture of Avenger in full suit with his back towards the reader, during his initiation to the Dark Order. The caption read

Believe to be highly dangerous, he is now officially the Master's Guardian, reigning second in power to the Prince himself.

Remus' eyes widen before closing and then reopening them with a very mixed expression. His face paled significantly.

"Care to enlighten me?" He growled out with displeasure.

"Did you really think something as important as this, I'll let escape the Media's attention." Remus growled again, looking quite murderous. "No, in fact, I broadcasted it as usual. You should have known." Remus made to attack the younger man, but the Death Eater's stopped his blows.

"Why the hell are you so keen with tormenting me? You know I rather be dead then to wake up another day in a nightmare reality. If it wasn't for my."

"Your will, then you would be dead right? Well guess what. I admire you Professor. You have something that no one else I know has. You believe in something that no one else believes in. You have a spirit, a will that even my reigns cannot bind you to. You have something from within that I cannot quite put a finger on. It's a matter of time before you find it, before I find it. In the meantime, I enjoy breaking you."

"Then you have long succeeded. I know not what you speak of. I have none of which you are seeking for. A broken man cannot break twice. I have been broken and shattered long before you stepped into power and I will rebound and mend long after you have fallen. "

"I will bear that in mind." Harry spoke softly. "Now, will you assist me, or will you not? You know you have a purpose. You know that I know that you know that you have a purpose. You know that I know that you know that I know what that purpose is." The Prince lowered his voice. "And I await the day you succeed." Remus' eyes flashed at the mockery and the taut in the voice.

"Then I suppose I have no choice. What do you wish my Prince?" A warm smile crept over the Master's lips. From within his robes, he pulled out the werewolf's wand and handed it to him.

"I think you'll enjoy yourself with the first one."

Dumbledore gave a sigh of frustration. For the 1,848,165,481st time, he was replaying a magically broadcast video, the latest one provided by the Prince.

He watched as the single man, Avenger entered the room. The whole thing, the whole process was mute, as though what was being said at the time was very important and crucial to who the person behind the mask was.

"I, Harry Potter, the Half-Blood Prince, the Master of the Dark Order, herby dub—as Avenger, as vinco custos."

That was the only line in the entire film that was spoken out loud. The name, whoever Harry had dubbed had been beeped out, as though it was a swear word on Muggle TV.

Dumbledore was curious. He knew Latin inside and out, so he knew the meaning of vinco custos. In truth, he didn't care who it was. That was not what was bugging him. The back of the person's head was blacked out so that any possible distinguishing feature was not shown.

He watched on, watching the final minutes of Molly and Dean. It wasn't the fact that they had died that made him feel terrible, but the facial expressions. The sheer looks of clueless-ness, hurt, sorrow, pain and betrayal disturbed him. By their faces, it was clear that they had been expecting death, but they were taken by surprise by who had given it to them.

Dumbledore sat with his head resting in his hands. The look of betrayal was what bugged him the most. The same look that the ex-headmaster realized must have been on Sirius' face when he found out that Peter had betrayed them. Yet, all the same it proved useful. At least with this hint, he would be able to prepare himself for the worst, the worst most unimaginable candidate possible. He wasn't ready for Harry's betrayal, but he would be ready for whoever this person may be.

From the gap through the door, a freshly graduated blonde watched the old man. To say the least, he had just been as surprised as anyone else, of the new appointment. He had been told nothing about it. His father, his godfather, his aunt, everyone he had trusted to let him in on the inside had failed him.

The Prince and the Death Eaters watched Avenger apparate away.

"Master, do you think its safe to let him do this? Are you afraid that he will betray you?" Lucius asked the question that was bearing down upon everyone's mind.

"Yes. Remus gave his word of honor. He has never failed to keep it. There is no reason to doubt him…yet…" Harry turned to the others. "Besides, who else would be more suitable for the task? He has long proven his strength and skills through leaving quite notable and decent scars on my body which will be left as permanent damages." He indicated his blind eye along with the claw mark slashes that ran down his face "and through the attempted assassinations."

Harry looked between them, studying them.

"In the meantime, I believe we do have our own task to attend?"

"Of course." Bella snickered, quite egger to attend.

"Besides, the goal is for a series of wide spread, consecutive attacks. The purpose would be entirely defeated if only certain places are involved and the Order and the Ministry have enough forces to withhold us." Snape inputted, letting in his two cents.

"Right, so on we go…"

Avenger reappeared on the outskirts of a lonely manor. Any closer to it, and he would have been detected by wards. Not that it mattered. However, he did enjoy the notion of suspense and surprise.

The fully cloaked, hooded man scooped the entire outer perimeter of the manor. He couldn't help but smile at the task at hand. True, he wasn't fond and hated to kill, yet his Prince had offered him the chance to rid of the world's most despised bastard. It was an offer to tempting to refuse. Besides, he reasoned with himself, getting rid of Cornelius Fudge was one of his self-made goals.

Avenger crept closer to the Fudge Manor. As predicted, the wards went off like a siren with flashing red lights accompanied by the hideous wail of an abandoned newborn. Immediately, from all directions, the lonesome, silent house came to life with barking hound dogs, Aurors and ministry officials. He watched as they surrounded him.

Those who had merely thought it were Muggles who had accident stumbled upon the land, or maybe a stray cat or dog, or maybe at worst a low class Death Eater were surprised. They squinted and stared at the newcomer as though they had seen Death long before it came.

Avenger scanned the crowed. He recognized none of these young men who ranged from early 20's to their late 30's. He suspected that these must have been the freshly trained, new recruit who had just graduated from Auror or Ministry school. This would be easy, a mere 'warm up' as the Prince had put it and thus had advice him to attend first. He could see why. These youngsters were inexperience and naïve and it was clear on their faces.

"Who…who…are…you…and…and…what…what…do…do…you…want…" One of the younger men towards his left asked boldly, taking a step forward. Avenger secretly marveled at the man's courageousness. The man's knees were buckling against each other and his facial expression told the older man that he would rather be anywhere but here. "Surely…surely you have not…have not come here for the mere…for the mere pleasure of killing and destroying."

Avenger shut his eyes before slowly opening them.

"I think it's quite clear why I'm here. Perhaps if you all merely back off and mind your own business then none of you will die. I'm only here for Fudge." There was the dreaded pause. "Now where is he?" Avenger strode across to the person who was speaking.

"Stay….stay…back"

The approaching man ignored him, coming right up to wand tip, before reaching out and casually snapping the fragile stick. Fear trickled down the man's face as the hooded man towered over him. His legs seem to give way and he ended up sitting on the floor.

Avenger turned away and began pacing around the circle, coming close to each person and watched as fear took shape. There was no need for wands, no need for spells. There was something that the hooded figure projected that caused any lesser man, with a few exceptions, to fall silently to the opening hands of Death. What use to have been courage, to have been strength were forcefully taken and so they were left with nothing but a whimpering, trembling shell.

"Accio Wands" The wands from the group zoomed out from the owner's feeble hands and into the spell caster's. "Now let me try this again. Where is Cornelius Fudge?" No one replied. "Now I can do this the easy way or the hard way and since we are going nowhere with the former, I think I'll switch to the latter."

He began to snap the wands between his fingers, noticing the owner flinch as it broke in two.

"20 wands, 20 seconds. I prefer if you will all cooperate." As he spoke, the wands continued to snap.

"Why don't you just get it over with? Neither the Dark Lord, nor the Half-blood have ever been forgiving, I don't see why you wouldn't either" That came from the same man that had spoken earlier, the only man who has.

"Yes, I am not forgiving. However, I am neither Voldemort" He was surprised to find those who still flinch. "nor am I Harry." There was the ring of fear. "The Master and I side differently on nearly every matter. In fact we are on opposite ends. I see no point in taking away an innocent life such as yours."

"But then why?"

"Why do I still side with him, and not Dumbledore…" There were scattered nods. "Because we both agree on matters such as these…"

"But.."

"Do you want to die? Do any of you want to die?" the werewolf shot back. "I gave him my word of honor, I will keep it."

"Now I will give you my word of honor." Avenger spoke softly, eyeing everyone. "For the life of one ex-Minister of Magic, I will spare the rest of you." There were eyes that gleamed with hope. "Frankly, I don't see the reason in protecting that man."

"Where is Cornelius Fudge?" Avenger's patience was clearly running thin. "Is he here? Do I really have to leave a bloody trail behind me?" The Master's Mark began to glow, and he knew that the other man was also inpatient. The man who was the only person to speak throughout the whole time, seemed to have noticed.

"Will, will he come? Will they come?" The voice was shaking this time and his eyes were glued on the Mark.

"Quite possible. When he comes to check up on me and I'm standing here causally taking then that will not be a good picture. The consequences will be severe. There will be no mercy" The mark glowed brighter so that it gleamed in the morning air.

"He's at St. Mungo's" A flash of betrayal swept through the crowd. The man, one of their fellow comrades had causally passed information to a Wanted, highly dangerous man, to the second in the Dark Order, willfully.

"Bingo! Now" the hooded figure whispered more to himself then to the others. He took the man's hand and placed the left over wands in his hand. "I keep my word of honor." With that, Avenger disappeared.

The man stared blankly at the wands that were within his grasp. He, as well as the others did not know what to feel or what to do. Truth be told, the entire group had been holding onto their breaths, knowing that they would be dead. No one, absolutely no one had dreamed of walking out alive. Even more unbelievable was that Avenger actually kept his word, something that was rare for anyone on either side to do while holding onto such high power.

No one noticed the hovering enlarged Mark above the Fudge Manor. When reinforcements and other people did come, that was how they found the group. Everyone was dazed and unhurt. No deaths, no property aside from the wands were damaged.

"He was merciful." The young man commented to the press who had rushed over quickly. "He's a good, pure man who trended down the wrong path."

He reappeared on the deserted streets, outside of St. Mungo's. His right hand held his wand, while his left a dagger. There were a few spare daggers that were ready for use in his robes. He knew that this place was much harder to penetrate. Looking around, and quite prepared for sudden attacks, he stepped through the glass with the dummy in green nylon in the window.

"Welcome to St. Mu-" The receptionist with blond hair did not have a time to finish, when she let out a shriek. Those nearby turned to her, before traveling to the newcomer. The others poke their heads around the corners and doors to see what the commotion was. Knowing that no one was prepared, Avenger quickly silenced the receptionist with the killing curse, before turning to everyone else and firing onto him or her as well.

He dodged the curses, rushing in and out of the now chaotic lobby. Taking the stairs, he rushed up to the first level of patient rooms.

"Stupefy! Avada Kedavra! Avada Kedavra!" He yelled, killing anything that gave the slightest movement with both hands. Avenger could hear the arrival of reinforcements. He didn't care. The sooner he finished the task, the sooner he could get out. He barged in and out of patient rooms mercilessly killing everyone, including the patient. He figured, after this mess, it would be better to end up dead then end up half alive. Technically, he was sparing his victims the pain and torture that the Prince and any other Death Eater would have enjoyed.

"Surround him! Stun him!" Avenger recognized the voice of Fudge trying to direct the Order and the Aurors from behind him. Quickly he turned around.

"Expelliarmus!" Fudge was disarmed. He watched painfully as the hooded man snapped it in two. However, before anyone could react, consecutive Cruicos were sent, followed by a series of Avada Kedavra's that were thrown quite randomly.

"How nice of you to join me at last Fudge. I must say, you weren't an easy prey. You've made my work difficult." Avenger sneered, holding the Cruciatus Curse on the ex-Minster of Magic. He grip his bloody dagger with his left hand in a defensive position, ready for sudden attacks. The loner looked around casually at the large group that had formed around him. These people, unlike those at the Manor, were much older, the youngest in their late 40's. He pondered a bit, recognizing a few use- to- be co-workers and Order members that he had been fighting with since the first war with Voldemort. He knew he was facing a tougher crowd, a much more experience group of people.

"Let him go" A voice cried. Avenger did not need to look to know that it was Kingsley. It caused Avenger to strengthen the spell.

"Avenger, Guardian of the Master, you are now under arrested for numerous offensives, including murder, and the use of all the Unforgivable curses. You are being completely surrounded. I order you to surrender. Drop all weapons, and then unhand Cornelius Fudge. I will personally escort you to Azkaban until further trail." It came out quite stable and confident. Avenger was surprised, that under pressure, the Auror was still able to hold his own ground and take action accordingly, reciting the words needed to prosecute anyone.

Slowly, the hooded figure released the spell. Long after it was released, Fudge lay sprawled on the floor, drowning within his blood. The only signs of life was that he was shaking and trembling.

"Go…" Avenger sneered, using his dagger to direct Fudge back towards Kingsley. The man did not move. "Go!" Avenger hissed again, kicking the man away from him. Fudge moved slowly, making his way toward the Auror, Order member.

Avenger watched slowly, keenly and carefully. He silently switched his wand with his dagger so that he held his dagger in his right hand. He watched again, not moving, eyes trained on Fudge's fragile form. Fudge was two inches from reaching Kingsley when Avenger made his move. He purposely dropped his wand next to himself. Then he swung his right hand back, aimed, and threw the dagger. The flying dagger caused a swishing wind towards it target. Fudge screamed a final cry. The dagger, pierced through the back of Fudge's neck, flying out from the other end. Like a boomerang, it stopped in mid air, and zoomed backwards, beheading Fudge before plunging through the top of the man's head entirely so that only the handle stuck out. The blade in the head continued to vibrate long after it entered its target.

Kingsley had thought his job was easy and done with as Avenger did comply. He had been looking forward to both a pay and position raise. Never had he imagined the turn of events. The eye's on Fudge bulged out, and was staring directly at him. Blood was gushing out from the eye sockets, nose, and ears as well as the injured area. The dissembled head and body had caused blood to spray onto the Auror's entire figure.

Everyone watched, horror stricken. They had all involuntarily backed up leaving the rooted Kingsley where he was. No one notice Avenger pick up his wand and disaparate out of St. Mungo's. From the outside, about a block away, Avenger stared back at the building, the hospital of London's magical community. Taking out his wand, he performed a spell. The entire block, and not only the hospital engulfed in fierce blue flames. Taking one last look at the burring street in London, he cast the Mark, and casually walked away, never turning back to look at the disaster that he had caused. He walked away from the panic, confusion and terror caused by those who wanted to save those they could and those who miraculously managed to escape in time and were helping others do so.