AKI- Sorry I have not updated in a while, but my mom had major surgery last week and I had to stay over my Grandmother's house and then I had exams to study for exams. Enough for excuses. Thank you all of my reviews, I hope you like this chappie. I worked really hard on it.


Chapter 10

Dogs, and snakes, and Raven. Oh, my!

Another day had come. Though it had been less than a week since three of the Teen Titans had been captured, to Raven it felt like an eternity. She could only judge time by the hourly chiming of a distant clock somewhere in the mansion. Sometime around noon a Death Eater came in with a tray of food. Though the bearer was still wearing a black robe, he did not wear a mask or his hood and observed Raven in a curious manner rather than a malicious one as Raven might suspect. Nonetheless Raven gave him a maliciously cold look as he entered, set the food down and excited. She barely even moved her head, just the pupils of her eyes. No matter how much Raven did not want to touch the food out of spit or fear of being drugged, it was the first sight of food she had seen for days, so she devoured it hungrily. The hours dragged on at an impossibly sluggish manner. Although Raven did not know it, she was not the only one who felt that way...

Lord Voldemort paced around his study in anticipation. The plans had been set and everything was ready. The night was to far away for his taste and he could not wait. In his impatience he looked for something to do or someone to order around. He finally commanded some lowly lackey to get Raven food. He had half a mind to leave her starving, but decided against it. He was going to need her in prime condition tonight to properly execute his marvelous plan. The Dark Lord dwelled on the thought. It was going to be a full scale attack, secret attack and he was going to succeed because of his secret weapon. Dumbledore would never even expect it…

Beast Boy, Cyborg, and Starfire holding up a still unconscious Robin stood in the middle of a pine forest clearing. The mansion they were captured in stood slightly in the distant on top of a small hill. They were in a conference prioritizing what was needed to be done now that they were free.

"We need to awake Robin," insisted Starfire persistently even after her idea had been rebuked due to pervious failure, "He will surely lead us to victory."

"Star, we have been over this," explained Cyborg patiently, yet slightly downhearted, "We don't know how to wake him and nothing has worked so far."

"He's right, Starfire," added Beast Boy solemnly.

"Do not trouble friends, for I have surely thought of a way to awake Robin, though it is most grievous that I have not thought of it earlier."

"What is it, Star?" asked Cyborg impatiently, though trying not to show his irritation to the faith of the girl because he knew she had good intensions at heart.

The red-headed beauty smiled warmly, "Tameranian acupuncture." Neither Beast Boy nor Cyborg could talk Starfire out of it and honestly, neither actually tried to. The Tameranian flipped Robin effortlessly upside down and did something that looked quite painful. To all their surprise a groan escaped from Robin's lips. Whether the acupuncture actually worked or the spell on Robin had finally run its course may never be know, but what is know that Starfire dropped Robin on his head before hugging him upside down and calling out his name in joy, "Robin!"

It took a little while for Rob into get oriented with himself and his surroundings and when he did he got straight to business. It took a better part of the day to explain to Robin what had happened and caught him up to the now, especially with him interrupting and asking questions, to what seemed to Beast Boy, every three seconds. When Robin was satisfied with the degree of detail he had received he started strategizing and working out the current problems.

"First thing, we need to figure out where we are. Cyborg?" alleged Robin in a commanding, yet patient tone.

Cyborg looked at this arm sensor and typed in a few things, "Well, according to this. We are in the middle of the British countryside."

"We're in England?" said Robin in a very surprised way. The half-robot simply nodded in an answer.

"He's right," added Beast Boy.

"England is far, yes?" asked Starfire confused.

"Yeah Star, "confirmed Robin. "Next issue," continued the leader, "We need to find out who the people are who kidnapped us and why they did," said Robin looking firmly in Beast Boy's direction, knowing he had the most knowledge on the topic.

Beast Boy took the hint, "I don't know any of their names, but their leader is, well, quit frankly, just plain creepy. He doesn't even look human," Beast Boy stopped talking in deep thought.

"What did he look like?" prodded Robin.

"He was talk and on the thinner side. He was pale skinned and bald and his face was …snake-like."

"Is that it?" asked Robin skeptically.

"Oh yeah, and he had red eyes," all but BB sweat-dropped at that.

"So…," said Cyborg breaking the silence, "why does he want us?"

"Not us," corrected Beast Boy, "Raven." Robin looked piercingly at the green changeling as he absorbed that new information. "You guys were just the leverage, the way to get her to do what he wants."

Robin opened his mouth to say something important, but he never got to finish because that was when the pack of wild dogs attacked.

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The dusk was approaching swiftly on the late autumn day. The red-eyed dark lord smiled grimly with anticipation. This would be the best night of his life he decided. He sent for Raven. It was too late, too close to have any foul ups now. She would have to stay safely watched until the night came. Of course, she needed to have a briefing too.

Soon after the dark girl was brought roughly into the windowless room, were she was given a hard back wooden chair which she sat in, crossed legged and cross armed, in the corner. Her hood was drawn far over her face, putting half of it in shadow. Her eyes seemed to glow white from underneath it. Her expression was somewhere between apathy and anger, not a hint of fear, though Raven feared her rapidly pounding heart would surely betray her, as she glared at the dark lord across the room in an incessant silence.

Voldemort looked over the Hogwarts blue-prints again, making sure that he had not overlooked a tiny detail that would prove fatal for his ingenious plan. When he assured himself that everything was perfected, he looked up from the table against the wall to see notice Raven's unabated glare.

"Well," said Voldemort turning toward the teen girl completely and continued in a sarcastic, mock, teacher-like way, "There is no need for that attitude." Raven's glaring eyes narrowed into thin slits as she glowered at the man. "Come here," he summoned with a small wave more vindictive tone than when he had previously spoken.

Raven stood from her chair at the far wall and walked stiffly over to the man, arms still rapped around her chest. She leaned forward slightly to see what was lying on the table. It was a rough parchment, not unlike the kind the ransom note was written on. It obviously had been rolled up because the parchment's corners where held down by a goblet, an inkwell, a potion bottle, and a paper weight. Raven scanned the paper and realized that it was an outline of a, she was taken back for a moment, castle manner. As her eyes examined the plans, she absorbed some of the labeling, Dark Forest, Gamekeepers Hut, Quiditch Pitch…whatever that was. Immediately Raven's eyes were drawn up to the title of the page. The cursive hand-writing read 'Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.' Truthfully, Raven had seen so many weird things it did not faze her.

"We'll be paying a …visit here tonight," said the wizard cryptically. Raven did not need any further explanation on the subject. She knew instantly what he meant. She was going to have to help him with another attack. She shivered slightly at the thought. Then something in her mind was triggered. Her eyes instantly flew to the title again, hoping against hope that she had read it wrong the first time. It said 'Hogwarts School.' It was a school. There would be children their, people her own age and younger. It was hard enough the first time to help this man with his murderous attack on random people, but children, that was different, that was worse. Children are innocent, young, and have so much life to live and look forward to.

Though Raven's face remained impassive, Voldemort could sense her horror and discontent. He used one long finger under chin to raise her head so she would look at him in the eyes. She stared at him in disgust.

"Now," he began poisonously, "You have to ask yourself what is more important to you. On one hand you have an unknown number of nameless and faceless people that you have never met." He paused for dramatic effect. Raven's hands were now at her side and she was balling them into fists, "And on the other hand you have your precious friends, their lives, and their wellbeing." Raven's fingernails were cutting into the flesh of her palms. "Now come on Raven, they're only children."

Raven could contain herself no longer, so she broke her silence, "You are a monster."

"No more than you, Raven."

"No, don't put us on the same level. I am nothing like you."

"That is were you're wrong child. You are everything like me."

"I don't murder children."

"But you're helping me." Raven said nothing. Voldemort smiled to himself. "You claim that we are nothing alike, but you are just as selfish. You would trade the lives of tens, maybe hundreds of innocents to rescue the lives of your friends, to rescue yourself, maybe not from death, but from the pain of losing them. It is a fine line between good and evil. Who is the monster now Raven? They are just helpless, foolish children…just like you."

Raven knew she had been wrong when she had called him a monster, he was a snake.