Snape watched the scene unfold, beak open in silent shock. Granger was reaching slowly for her wand; she'd never reach it… Weasly was confused, looking back and forth between the two like a lost puppy. Voldemort watched her coldly, waiting…
The air grew cold…

Hermione grabbed Ron, pulled him against her as the walls began to tremble. Blue light filtered in between the boards, and the air filled with a stench like decaying flesh. A crack, a shudder, the nails were pulling free of the boards. Voldemort curled into himself, muttering under his breath, "Harry! Get over here!"
"That's not Harry Ron!"
"Have you lost your mind! That's… that's not Harry…"

His murmuring had grown stronger, become definable, he raised his voice further, yelling into the growing wind. " Ego'lego disco consilio adeo hae'he deusa tenebrous!" The wind grew to a frantic shriek, attempting to drown his words but he shouted with all his might against it. "Ego'lego huic ignis! Ego'lego imputo in inflexion Daemones me,Vent! Vent! …Vent!"

A shriek filled the air, a roar answered it. Ron and Hermione had never seen an Uber Demon before, and would never wish to again. Its flesh was black and cracked, showing the fire within while its veins remained on the outside, pulsing and dripping foul black ichor onto the floor. The wings were shredded, it floated in place, a garment like a monks robe wrapped about it. But that face… Have you ever seen a leper? Such are rare these days. In extreme cases, skin will fall off, or hang dead and rotting from the still living victim. Such was this. The jowls were so far down that they hung wrapped around its neck, the nose was shrunken, peeled back, the tip rotted clean away. The eye sockets were melted, cheeks green and caved in, the mouth trapped in a permanent snarl displaying withered gums and long, chipped teeth. That was not the face of a man, but of a lion.

It shrieked again, spread its tattered wings and looked silently at the boy who had called it. Voldemort kept his eyes averted, on the wall where the stench was coming from. The blue light faded, the demon that was its source amused enough to let the insult pass.

All was still. The Ubur Demon flexed its wings, narrowed its eyes and bowed sarcastically. It was gone as easily as it had come. Ron looked at Hermione, she looked at Ron, Snape pulled his head up from under his wing, and all three watched the Dark lord quietly. He turned, gave them a silent sneer, and turned back to the wall. "…this has the potential to complicate things…"

"Who the hell are you?"

Voldemort turned, his eyes narrowed on Weasly's. "What are this bases defenses, where are its spell pillars, who supports the core? Are they capable? Answer quickly." Hermione had her wand out by now.

"None of that is any of your business, and I suggest you step awa...!"

Ron grabbed for her feet, but missed as Hermione soared into the air and against the wall with a crash, her wand dropped from her hand and rolled away.
"Hermione! Hold on, I'll…"
"You will do nothing, mister Weasly…"

Voldemort raised his hand again, the ground about Ron's feet shook and he stopped stunned. Laser green eyes with no trace of gentleness turned back to granger where she struggled, in three strides he reached her; in a moment he grabbed her chin and pulled it down to face him. "You like learning things, don't you muggle born? Then perhaps this will sound familiar to you. There are three kinds of wizards, 'Miss Granger', hand wizards, speech wizards, and thought wizards. A hand wizard," his grip tightened and he jerked her down further. "…requires his wand at all times to cast even the simplest of spells, a speech wizard can summon their magic without the use of a conductor, through simple words and phrases!" Ron made as if to step forward, but the eyes turned and met his, and the grip on Hermione's jaw tightened so that she cried out. He paled and did not move. "The last, and truly gifted, are the thought wizards, who need neither wand word to work their will. I am a thought wizard, 'Miss Granger', and I will not take well to any further insolence from you, when I am attempting to save my life, and coincidentally, yours!"

He let her drop. She sat there for a moment, stunned. Voldemort smiled, leaned down. "…now, I need to know these things, and you will tell me… or I will not intervene next time, and the demon will break your mind, and feast on your flesh, and shred your pathetic mud blood soul from your body, and I will laugh as you are tossed into the abyss… am I understood?"

Harry shook his head, trying to clear the red away. The death eater assembly stood silent, shocked. The serpents were laughing, he could hear them after all, but most were retreating back into the grasses. There, silent and broken, lay Bellatrix Lestrange. Her eyes were wide in shock, and her mouth was ajar. Harry stared baffled. (…what… have I done..? I didn't do this… I couldn't… it was the snakes! They did this! I…) He took a step forward, but it felt unbalanced. He looked down and froze. The tiger's paws were bloody, the claws were stained and one was cracked. (…no… I didn't… I would never… not like this! Not like this!) He tossed back his head, roaring, letting his fear and hate bleed from him as only the beasts know to. (I wanted her death, for Sirius, to avenge Sirius, but not like this… not…)

And in the middle of the death eaters circle, the tiger placed its maw in its paws and screamed. The sound echoed…
And the wind whispered madness, hunger, and death…

Dumbledore looked down on the scene with dark eyes, he raised his hands, reached out into the tiger's mind, searching through instinct and madness for the child he had watched grow. And with his hands together, pushed through the barriers to shout out three words.

("Look up Harry! Look up!")

The darkness spreads like a stain…
It's a taint more than a mark…
And those that claim it's all a game,
Do not know their piece is dark.