A/N: Wow! I sure got a lot of reviews on that one! I am left speechless, so this particular Author's Note will be short. I just want to respond to a couple of people, then we'll get started on the dementing, ok?
SerenityBliss: Why should it? The Dark Mark is like a cattle brand that resists attempts to remove it. Basically, it's just a tattoo that changes color and burns when activated. Voldemort, being a wizard, would not think of removing the flesh that it's burned into, then growing new skin, untouched by it. It's actually a simple process, but wizards have a tendency to miss the trees, as they're too busy gawking at the complexity of the forest. (Yes I know that sounds backwards, but think about it.)
Blank_eyes: Excellent point, my friend, excellent point. Now let me tell you why you can throw it out the window. How many people does Voldemort kill personally? I highly doubt that there are many. Yet, everyone fears him. Why is that? It's because he commands a small army of sadistic wizards and witches. Since Voldemort commands the Death Eaters, people associate him with all the murders and crimes carried out by them. In actuality, they're not as afraid of the man himself as they are afraid of the cloud of darkness that he surrounds himself with. By dispersing the cloud, you reveal the true face of the fear, which is not nearly as frightening. In other words, without a body, the head can't function, and will cease to be a threat.
Now that I've said my peace, on with the Dementing!
**
Chapter 17: Dementing the Dark Lord
**
Back inside the Chamber of Secrets, where Harry and Hermione kept their weapons and secrets, (A/N: It's the Chamber of Secrets, people. There have to be secrets in it, or it just isn't cool.) Hermione cornered Harry.
"Harry, what is that thing?" She pointed at his belt, where the weapon, which resembled a muggle toy, resided.
Harry chuckled. Leave it to Hermione to want every single bit of information she could get. "It's a ray gun, Hermione, what does it look like?" He pulled it off his belt, and showed it to her. Sure enough, it was a ray gun. A muggle toy, found in any toy store, that flashed lights and made noises when the trigger was pulled. "I just added a little Technomancy to it, and it became a Reducto-matic."
Hermione took it from him, and walked over to the workbench. Once there, she pulled out a screwdriver, and carefully opened the plastic shell. Inside was the most advanced piece of Technomancy she'd seen yet. Connected to the batteries was an extra set of wires, that led to a silver plate, with runes cut in a spiral pattern, culminating in the exact center of the plate. Sitting on the plate, directly connected to the center, was a perfectly cut white crystal. Each facet had a rune etched into it, denoting them as barriers. At he apex of the crystal was a flat spot with a gate rune carved into it. That was the release point. The trigger assembly attached to a small silver rod that extended down the barrel. On one end of the rod was a triggering rune. When the trigger was pulled, the triggering rune would meet the gate rune, and the spell would be released through the silver rod, and projected where it was aimed.
"The runes on the plate are there to transform electrical energy from the batteries into magical energy for the reductor curse." Harry said, coming up behind her. "Your crystal magic idea gave me the basis for it."
"Harry, when did you make this? We've been together for just about this whole school year so far, and I've never seen it before." Hermione asked, wondering how she could have missed him working on such an advanced project.
"The night of your solo outing. I got bored waiting for the surge, so I started playing with crystals, and that is the end result." Harry said.
"Well," Hermione responded, "I'll just have to make something more advanced and impressive then, won't I?"
"Be my guest, Hermione." Harry said. "I look forward to seeing what you come up with."
"Ok, but I'm not starting until tomorrow. I need some sleep before classes tomorrow."
The two Shadow Masters quickly made their way to Hermione's room, using the shadows to their advantage. Harry climbed into bed, and so did Hermione.
"Now, We celebrate." Said Hermione, before catching Harry's mouth in a passionate kiss. (A/N: Use your imagination here, so I can keep my story on Fanfiction.net) They didn't get much sleep before classes, even though that was the reason they went to bed.
**
John Simons was not happy. Rebecca Adams was missing. She'd left the ministry the night before, and had not shown up the following morning. It was possible she was taking a sick day, but she didn't call in. To tell the truth, he was worried about her. She had been witness to a very sensitive interrogation, and was possibly in danger because of it.
Another investigator from John's team knocked on his office door, and then entered quickly. "We just found twenty-one Death Eater bodies in Diagon Alley." This was good news for the Ministry. Twenty-one Death Eaters dead was a good headline for the Prophet. The man continued. " They were piled up right at the entrance to Knocturn Alley. This note was found inside one of the pockets of their robes." The investigator handed him a small piece of parchment. On it was written a familiar muggle phrase.
Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups.
Flame & Blade
Imperial Dragon Circle
"All but one of the Death Eaters we examined were hit by multiple killing curses, most of them originating form one of the other Death Eaters' wands. It looks like they got into some sort of fire-fight with Flame and Blade, and hit each other instead." The man said.
"What about the other one?" John asked.
"She died of a knife wound to the neck. There was also impact trauma, suggesting that it was thrown at her." The man said
"Were you able to identify her?"
"Yes, sir. It was Rebecca Adams." (A/N: Did anyone see that coming?)
**
It was becoming more and more difficult to find Voldemort in something other than a foul mood. Right now, he was picturing the headlines in the Daily Prophet, proclaiming that his Death Eaters were killing each other. It made him look foolish, and the Wizarding world was beginning to doubt his power. That would not do. He was trying to think of an appropriate display of power to sufficiently terrify the world.
The Imperial Dragon Circle was terrifying his followers. They were reluctant to go on missions, and when the missions encountered any kind of resistance, they turned tail and ran, their skin more important to them than his plans. He took a joy in punishing them, but this was getting ridiculous!
The Vampire Nation had declined to join him, wishing to be left alone. He would deal with them later, but they were of no help to him at the present time. Werewolves were also out, as the next Full moon wasn't for two weeks, and as humans they were useless to him. Come to think of it, the only dark creatures he really had at his disposal were the Dementors….
There it was. That was the idea that he'd been searching for. The Dementors would march against Hogwarts! Sure, Dumbledore could stop them eventually, but they could probably take a fair number of student souls. The world would panic, and he'd be powerful! It really was brilliant. The Dementors were, after all, expendable. Now, which Death Eater should lead them? It would have to be someone stupid enough to march on Hogwarts, cowardly enough not to question his plan, and ultimately expendable. Who else would it be?
"Wormtail!" He yelled. The man, pathetic as he was, slinked into the room. Given Voldemort's recent mood swings, he was positively terrified. "I have a job for you."
**
It was during their D.A. meeting that Harry and Hermione first felt it. Nobody else felt it; their magical senses were not nearly sensitive enough, but the two demons both felt the massive influx of demonic presences. They exchanged a look. Dementors were coming. Lots of Dementors were coming. Harry stood up.
"Last year, we learned the Patronus charm in this room. Today, I want you all to practice it. Right here in this room. Hermione and I have something to take care of, so help each other out." The others agreed, and the two demons left the room.
Their first stop was the Astronomy tower, to throw off the Veritaserum tests. Being tested was unlikely, but just in case, they wanted to make sure that the answer to the question "Where did you go after leaving the D.A. meeting?" was answered with "To the Astronomy tower." It also provided them with a wonderful view of the Dementors gliding up the path leading to the school.
"Sent the whole troop, didn't he?" Hermione said. "I think that group is the entire Azkaban population."
"You're most likely correct, Hermione. After the way we humiliated him last night, he'd be furious. The worst blow to his ego is the twenty-one Death Eaters that died last night. Not only does that seriously damage his forces, but it makes him look weak in the eyes of the public." Harry said. "Riddle can not afford to look weak. His entire power structure is based on fear of his power. Sending the Dementors to Hogwarts is a rather desperate attempt to reassert his power on the world."
After taking a good look at what they were up against, they traveled to the Chamber of Secrets, to get suited up. Harry put on his black combat robes with the Circle emblem, done in red, on the front. Shifting his magic slightly, his cloak appeared on his shoulders. Hermione did the same, her emblem done in silver. Harry then strapped on his sword, merely for decoration, as the Dementors would not dare attack them. Hermione didn't grab any weapons, since she could conjure her own.
Their next stop was the Entrance Hall. Harry and Hermione needed to make sure that no student or teacher could interfere. Discussing the problem earlier, they had come up with the perfect locking spell for the doors. Since their spell casting power was nowhere close to Professor Dumbledore's, they had to use their ingenuity to lock them, rather than magical prowess.
Hermione reached into one of her robe pockets, and pulled out a small device, which Harry had enchanted earlier, before her awakening. It was a Starlight Stone, enchanted so that the light was only visible to their eyes. Hermione walked out the doors, and set the stone on the steps outside. Walking back in, the demons could clearly see the shadows that were cast by the doors. Working quickly, and calling forth their full powers, the two demons bound the Shadows to the floor. Now, until the stone itself was removed, nothing could open the door, since it would be impossible to move the door without changing the shadows. Human magic users would never think of checking the shadows for binding spells. (A/N: Bare with me on this, it's demon magic.)
Once the school was secured, meaning no Dementors could get in, and no humans could get out, the two demons used the shadows to travel outside, placing themselves in the path of the Dementors.
**
Albus Dumbledore was sitting in his office, working on new ways to discover Voldemort's plans, when the wards alerted him to the presence of Dementors on school grounds. Acting quickly, he used one of the Headmaster items in his office, the announcement stone, to send all students back to their dormitories immediately. Looking at the map, he watched as the little dots with student names over them made their way to their common rooms. He looked out the window of his office, and surveyed the scene. Dementors, hundreds of them, were gliding towards the school. He left his office in a hurry.
By the time he made it down the steps, the rest of the teachers had gathered there, wondering what was going on. He quickly told them about the impending attack, and the teachers made their way to the Entrance Hall. Reaching the door, Dumbledore tried to open them, and found he could not. He tried several unlocking charms, even a spell detection spell, to find out what had been placed on the door. Nothing produced any effect.
Collecting himself, he dashed into the Great Hall, and to the window. He made to open the window, but before he could even start, the scene outside captured his attention. The Dementors way was being blocked by two figures. The truly astonishing thing about this, however, was the fact that the Dementors had stopped, and lowered themselves to an almost kneeling position.
**
Outside, Wormtail was frantic. His Master had given him a task, and made it very clear that if it wasn't finished, he would be. Now, the Dementors were bowing to these two people! His fear gave him the strength to speak.
"What are you doing?! Continue the attack!" He shrieked. The Dementors ignored him. They started making odd growls and shrieking sounds. To Wormtail's immediate surprise and terror, the two figures answered them in the same sounds.
Harry and Hermione, or Flame and Blade as they were now playing, felt their vocal chords changing to suit the demon language. To them, it sounded like English, but to humans, it sounded like soundtrack from a horror movie. (A/N: Think of the Ring Wraiths from Lord of the Rings.)
The lead Dementor was the first to notice them. His posture had immediately changed from silent assassin to unworthy subject. He stopped, and all the rest stopped behind him. He lowered himself, in what appeared to be a bow, and the rest followed suit.
"My Lord Shadow Master. I humbly greet you." Said the leader.
"Dementors. To what do I owe this visit?" Flame said
"Our Ally bids us to dine here tonight." The leader said. "He gave permission to fully satisfy ourselves in this place."
Harry laughed, which to Wormtail sounded like an unearthly shriek. He fell to his knees whimpering. "Do you believe that you can find satisfaction here? Weren't you given a sample of what you would be eating?"
"No, My Lord, we were not. Lord Riddle surrounds himself with such excellent souls, however, and he informed us that they were raised here." The leader said. "We assumed that the souls here would be equally palatable."
Harry raised his hand to the level of his chest, palm toward the sky. A ball of magic began to form in his hand, in which he deposited the 'flavor' of Susan Bones, a Hufflepuff student. As he made the ball, Wormtail tried in vain to get control of the situation once more.
"The Dark Lord commands that you attack this place, and take as many souls as you can! He can not be defied!" Wormtail's words were actually dripping with desperation now. "His power over you is absolute!"
Blade shifted her attention to the rat-like human. "Absolute? Hardly, you miserable rat. Dementors may be his allies, but they are our subordinates first. We are demons, and they are wraiths. We outrank them, so to speak. Now shut your pathetic mouth, before I cut your throat open, and leave you to bleed here on the grass."
Wormtail's eyes bugged out at the threat. Standing in the middle of Three hundred Dementors, these things were threatening him. As much as he feared the Dark Lord, these two frightened him much more at the moment. His mouth shut with an audible snap.
Meanwhile, Flame had finished his ball of magic. "This is what food is available here." He said, tossing the ball to the lead Dementor. The Dementor, knowing that the ball was a sample of the prey, caught the ball immediately. It raised the ball to its mouth, and inhaled. A loud shriek, that sent everyone in hearing range into uncontrollable shivers was heard from the lead dementor.
In the demon tongue, it was much more clearly stated. "This is rubbish! How can we be expected to eat this filth. There is no flavor, and no substance either!" Flame had chosen Susan Bones' 'flavor' since he knew her personally. She was the cleanest soul in all of Hogwarts. Dementors were some of the foulest creatures that walked the planet, but their purpose was to destroy the foulest souls on the planet. Contrary to popular Wizarding beliefs, Dementors did not feed on happiness. They fed on negative emotions such as fear, anger, guilt, and sadness. That was why Dementors sucked the happiness out of places. It was tasteless and indigestible to them, so they got rid of it, making way for the negative emotions to come through. That was why the Patronus charm worked against them. A corporeal Patronus was the essence of innocence and happiness, and was completely un-appetizing to them. "My Lord, do you have something I can get rid of this foul taste with?"
Behind the shadows made by his hood, Flame smirked. "Why not eat him?" He asked, pointing to Wormtail.
"My Lord, he is protected by some sort of shield, emanating from the necklace he wears." The Dementor said. "It is the same necklace that the Head of the Ministry wears."
"Really?" Harry reached out with his aura, and felt the blocking spell place on the necklace. "Let's fix that, shall we?" Getting a firm hold of the necklace's magic with his aura, he pushed his aura harder, and crushed the structure of the magic in the necklace. "Eat, my friend, eat."
Wormtail felt coldness envelope him, and realized that the necklace he was wearing was not working. He tried in vain to transform into a rat, but the horrible memories of being punished by his Master wouldn't let him concentrate on it. He felt a hand grasp his neck, and looked into a face that would give him nightmares, if he were ever to think again.
Once that task was done, Flame surveyed the Dementors. They were still standing still. "My Lord, how may we serve you?" The leader asked.
"I can only think of one thing you can do." Flame said. The next sentence was enough to cause the Dementors to shriek with demonic joy. "Go home, my friends. You've been kept away too long."
As one, the Dementors turned around, and walked away. Their destination was the only portal from this world to the next, the veiled archway in the Department of Mysteries.
**
A/N: Wormtail is a shell!!!! This chapter was one of the hardest ones I've ever written. I just couldn't seem to make anything happen in it, until the end. I have a problem with the next chapter, so I'm putting it to a vote. Which Assassin pair takes Bellatrix LeStrange out of the picture permanently? Send me a review with your vote.