A/N: Yes, I know I said Essence was next. I apologize, I lied, not intentionally, however. I went to start the chapter and found my notes were a mess. I'm still working on fixing them, but the muses were demanding me to write this and the next chapter, so enjoy. As always, thanks for the R/Rs.
Chapter 6: Silver Trails
The students had returned to school after the Holidays to fall into much the same routine that had been established before. Neville had joined Luna and Hermione in their research of the odd glow they had witnessed on Halloween coming from Harry and Ginny, but they had not found anything that was even remotely close to the glow or the reasons behind it. Lily continued her own research with James and Remus, but even with the extensive Potter Library, had yet to yield any answers. Both the teens and the adults felt that it would be better to wait and have a few answers before telling Harry and Ginny about the glow.
In February, Luna had been the only one to witness the glow on Valentine's day, and that was completely on accident. Luna had been heading back to Gryffindor Tower after an unsuccessful search of the next section on her list of research topics when she had seen a familiar glow coming from under an empty classroom door. She had snuck over to open it slowly. Luna had stared in awe of the bright golden glow emitting from her friends as Harry held Ginny close with her head resting on his chest as they danced to a very slow song. Harry and Ginny were oblivious to everything, except each other, as they danced with their eyes closed. Luna had smiled and slowly backed out, leaving her friends to their moment.
Spring was finally coming to Scotland in the middle of March. The snow had melted away to water the lush grounds of Hogwarts. The trees were starting to grow their green leaves back, and the sun was warm on the students' skin after so long being cooped up in the castle for the winter.
Harry and Ginny sat down at the Gryffindor table as the post owls were arriving.
"What kept you two?" Neville asked.
"Wait for it," smirked Harry.
"What did you do now?" sighed Hermione with a look of disapproval.
"Just wait for it," Ginny grinned.
"Which way should we be looking?" Luna asked with a shake of her head. She turned to Neville and Hermione. "You have to ask the right questions to get anything out of these two."
"Slytherin Table, of course," Harry answered Luna as if it should have been obvious.
An owl landed in front of Harry. He took the letter after giving the bird some bacon. He glanced at his watch with a smirk. "Almost time."
Suddenly, the Slytherin table was shouting in shock.
Ginny turned to watch her and Harry's handiwork in progress.
Pansy Parkinson had stood quickly as her hands had started to sprout hair. Draco Malfoy had looked at her with a questioning look until he started coughing. As he coughed, bright yellow and green feathers started to spring from his pours. Before anyone could react, Pansy had turned in to a pug-nosed Siamese cat. Draco had changed into a yellow and green parrot. As the other students looked on in shock, the cat that was Pansy started chasing after the little bird that had been Draco.
General chaos ensued as the cat ran up and down the Slytherin table trying to catch the parrot. Drinks, plates, and serving dishes went in every direction as the pursuit continued. The Great Hall erupted in laughter as they realized what had happened. Even many of the Slytherins were laughing. Professor Sinistra, Head of Slytherin House, was beside herself trying to stop her two transfigured students from destroying the table and hurting anyone.
Harry and Ginny looked at the Head Table to see the teachers' reactions. Dumbledore was sitting casually, enjoying the show. McGonagall was frowning, but Harry could tell she was fighting not to laugh. Remus and Lily were pointedly not looking at the Slytherin table. Both were fighting not to burst into laughter. Flitwick was hiding his face behind his large goblet.
"You two are terrible," Hermione admonished them with a grin.
"They had it coming," was all Harry could get out through his own laughter.
"What…what did…they do…?" Luna gasped through her giggles.
"They were bully a Hufflepuff Muggleborn outside the loos on the third floor," Ginny told her looking serious as she stopped laughing.
A small blonde-haired Hufflepuff turned with a nod to Harry and Ginny. She mouthed a "thank you" before turning back to laugh with her friends. Madam Pomfrey arrived to sort everything out quickly. After Pansy had been changed back, she started coughing and choking. Suddenly, a large greyish hairball came flying out of her mouth to land squarely on Draco's recently restored face. Groans of disgust and more laughter followed, especially when Draco coughed up twenty more yellow and green feathers that stuck in the hairball.
As the chaos subsided, Harry and Ginny turned back to their breakfasts, and the letter Harry was still holding.
"What's that, Harry?" Ginny motioned to it.
"Oh," Harry looked down in surprise. "Forgot about that. Hang on." Harry opened the letter, reading it quickly. "Hagrid invited us down for tea this afternoon."
"Sounds fun," Ginny nodded. "Anything to get out of the castle right now."
"You three coming?" Harry asked turning to Neville, Hermione, and Luna.
"Give him my regards," Neville shrugged.
"Sorry," Hermione shrugged apologetically.
"Hermione and I already agree to help Professor Sprout with a project," Neville stated before Harry or Ginny could ask.
"Luna?" Ginny asked. "You coming with us?"
"Yes," Luna nodded. "I think I shall. Maybe Hagrid has some news of some new creatures being found."
Ginny, Harry, and Luna sat in Hagrid's hut that afternoon with the large man. Fang, Hagrid's huge boarhound, sat next to Luna with his large head on her lap. Luna was absently stroking his head as they talked about different Magical creatures while they drank their tea. Harry looked around as Luna brought up some strange creature, he had never heard of to spark a discussion about habitats. He noticed that Hagrid had his crossbow leaning by the door. Harry knew the big man usually kept it hanging over his fireplace unless he was planning a trip into the Forbidden Forest.
"Hagrid?" Harry asked as he turned back. He tilted his head toward the door. "What's with the crossbow?"
"Oh, dat," Hagrid sighed. "Som't'in's been killin' th' unicorns inna Forest. Professor Dumbledore as' meh ta look inta it."
"Unicorn's have silver blood," Luna commented absently. Harry and Ginny spun to look at her. Luna's eyes grew big as she remembered what they had seen in September on the terrace.
"Hagrid, we may know something," Harry turned back quickly.
"Wha's dat, 'Arry?" Hagrid looked confused. "Wha' got ya t'ree all rile' up?"
"Back at the start of school, I took Ginny and Luna up to the sixth-floor terraces," Harry began.
"We saw…" Ginny hesitated looking over at Harry. He shook his head slightly. "Someone go into the Forest."
"This person came back covered in what looked like silver paint," Luna added with a look at Harry.
"C'n ya show meh where? It'd be a place ta start," Hagrid stood.
"Of course," Harry nodded as they jumped up.
Harry, Ginny, and Luna led Hagrid to the place they had seen Professor Spears enter and exit the Forbidden Forest. Hagrid looked around. Something glinted in the sunlight to his left. Hagrid knelt to look at it more closely. He found fresh and dried unicorn blood on a small trail into the woods.
"Dis be th' place, a'right," Hagrid nodded. "Sorry ta cut our tea short, ye t'ree but…"
"We understand, Hagrid," Harry nodded as he motioned the girls away quickly. After they were out of earshot of Hagrid, Harry turned to Ginny and Luna. "I think it's time to bring mum and Uncle Remus up to speed on this."
"I think you're right, Harry," Ginny nodded as she glanced back at Hagrid entering the Forest carefully. "Something is definitely off about Spears. And it's not just because of my scar."
"You do realize we'll have to tell her you have the Map?" Luna asked. "She won't take just 'someone going into the Forest', like Hagrid did."
"Yeah," Harry sighed. "That's why I've put off telling her about this for this long. But if Spears is out there with this Riddle person killing unicorns, they need to be stopped."
"Your father gave you the Map?" Lily half-yelled at Harry as they sat in her office.
"Mum," Harry sighed. "The Map isn't important right now, the unicorns are."
"Harry James Potter, don't you try to change the subject on me," Lily glared.
"Lily, please," Ginny spoke up. "The unicorns are more important than the Map right now. Besides, we need the Map to show you and Remus, or whoever when Spears leaves the castle."
"That's…" Lily started then stopped. She looked away taking a deep breath. "Alright, I see your point."
Lily stood, walking into the storeroom. After a few minutes, she came back out.
"Two weeks from tonight," Lily pointed at Harry. "After you show your dad where, and who, you will give that bloody Map back to him. And if I catch you with it after that, you are so grounded to your room for the whole summer. Am I clear?"
"Yes, mum," Harry nodded.
"And you two," Lily frowned at Luna and Ginny slightly. "If I catch you with it, you'll be in detention for the rest of the term. Understood?"
"Yes, Lily," Ginny and Luna nodded.
"I swear if I find out your father gave you that bloody Cloak as well," groused Lily, "he'll be sleeping in the guest house for the summer."
Harry shook his head, trying to hide the cringed look on his face from his mother.
Two weeks later, Harry, Ginny, and Luna waited in Lily's office for James to come through the floo. Harry and Ginny sat on the sofa close together whispering and giggling at something. Luna sat off the side in one of the armchairs looking at the Map, keeping an eye on Spears and Riddle. They were waiting alone because Lily was on patrol in the castle. Harry and Ginny were so lost in their own conversation that they jumped as the fire burst into green flames.
A man in tightly-pressed, stylish Auror's uniform stepped out. His long black hair was pulled back in a short ponytail. He had a mustache that met neatly trimmed chin hair to form a goatee and long sideburns that stopped just short of joining his goatee. Harry looked up with a groan. As Ginny turned to him Harry closed his eyes. He looked like he was bracing himself for something.
The man gave a barking laugh that sounded very much like a dog. James stepped out of the fireplace before anything could be said. The man turned to James with a maniacal grin.
"You weren't joking, were you, Prongs?" the man asked. He shook his head. "Good Godric, you Potters and your redheads."
"Pads, we're here on business, not to tease Harry," James sighed dramatically. He flashed Harry and Ginny a devious grin. "Yet!"
"Daaad!" Harry groaned.
"Well, don't be rude, Prongslet. Introduce me," he paused, waiting for Harry to draw in a breath. "To your lovely redhead and your friend."
"Uncle Pads, come on," Harry moaned as he lowered his head. He took a deep breath before looking up again. "Sirius Black, or Padfoot, my godfather, this is Luna Lovegood and…" Harry trailed off mumbling under his breath.
"What's that?" Sirius asked with a raised eyebrow and smirk, placing his hand by his ear.
"Ginny Weasley," Harry breathed out a little louder.
"Oh, she is now, is she?" Sirius broke into a wide grin. For some reason, that grin did nothing for the sense of embarrassment that was building in Ginny as she looked at him. "So, you finally meet your dream girl? And look at this; you're sitting so close you could almost kiss her."
"Uncle Paaaads," Harry whined. Ginny flushed a crimson red, knowing he was right.
"Padfoot, focus," James smiled at his son's discomfort. "We'll have plenty of time later to tease them."
"You're no fun, Prongs," Sirius moped. "Fine. Let's see the Map, and what all the hullabaloo is you're talking about."
"Here you are, Mr. Black," Luna handed him the Map.
"It's Sirius or Padfoot," Sirius shuttered. "That goes for you especially, Miss Redhead who can't resist a Potter."
Ginny flushed more as Harry groaned again. Luna bit her lip trying not to giggle.
Sirius laid the Map out on Lily's desk to take a better look at it. He turned back to Luna. "Show us where. Yes, we can read the Map, but you know what you're looking for."
Luna placed her finger on the map next to Professor Spears' name. Tom M. Riddle was still floating behind the professor. James joined Sirius to look over the Map as they watched Spears for a few minutes.
"Alright," James looked up. "Show us where you were and we'll go from there."
Harry, Ginny, and Luna led James and Sirius up to the terrace they had visited in September. James pulled the Map out again, checking on Spears. He nodded as he looked up at Sirius. "He's on the move."
Sirius nodded.
Ginny took a step back in shock as Sirius transformed before her eyes into a big, shaggy black dog. She squeaked in surprise, unconsciously grabbing Harry's hand in the process. The dog looked at her and Harry, huffing out a loud barking laugh.
"Go stake out the treeline," James ordered. "I'll stay here with the kids."
The dog nodded before running back into the castle.
"So," James grinned. "How's the relationship-building going?"
Harry and Ginny blushed as Luna laughed.
"James Potter," Sirius' voice whispered out of nowhere. Ginny looked confused as James pulled a small mirror out of his pocket.
"What's up, Pads?" James spoke at the mirror. Ginny and Luna looked at Harry for an explanation.
"That's the more secure way I mentioned," Harry told them quietly. Ginny and Luna nodded as they listened to James and Sirius.
"He's heading back," Sirius was telling James. "He just killed another unicorn and drank its blood. Meet me in the Entrance Hall and we'll get to the bottom of this."
"Right," James nodded. He looked at Harry and the girls. "You three stay here. I mean it."
Without another word, James pulled his wand, mumbled a spell on his legs, and jumped off the terrace. Harry, Ginny, and Luna rushed over to see James land with a soft thump before running into the castle.
"How'd he…?" Luna asked in shock.
"No clue," Harry shook his head. "That's probably why he mumbled the incantations. Come on. I want to see this fight."
"But, Harry…" Ginny called after him as he started running for the opposite wall of the corridor.
Ginny and Luna paused for a second as the wall slid to the side, revealing yet another secret passageway.
"How many bloody hidden passages does this castle have?" Luna asked a bit rhetorically as the girls caught up to Harry as he headed for the far corner of the corridor.
"A lot," was Harry's only reply as he hurriedly led them down a huge spiral staircase around the corner.
They arrived in the Entrance Hall behind one of the many suits of armor. Harry motioned to the girls to be quiet as he peeked out from behind the legs. A breeze came through the Hall as the giant doors opened to reveal Professor Spears. James looked over from his hiding place by the next suit of armor at Harry with a frown. He checked Spears before turning back to Harry.
"I thought I told you to stay on the terrace?" James whispered harshly. Harry grimaced as he shrugged. "Stay put!"
Sirius came out of the shadows on the other side of the Entrance Hall behind Spears as James faced the so-called professor again. Both James and Sirius had a cocky smile on their faces. Their wands were already in their hands as they came face to face with the teacher.
"That's far enough, Spears," James ordered as he stepped into the light.
Spears froze, but from what Harry, Ginny, and Luna could see, it was not out of shock. Spears had a sneer on his face as he glanced behind him.
"Potter and Black, I should have known you would figure it out," he ground out. "Or was it that mudblood wife of yours?"
"Let's say it was an anonymous tip," James frowned. "And call my wife that name again and you'll have to visit Saint Mungo's before we take you in."
"How astute," Spears sneered. "And just how did you figure it out. That oaf Hagrid hasn't. Dumbledore hasn't. And without help, you two idiots couldn't figure it."
"Funny thing is, we know a lot of smart people," Sirius grinned. "But we are cleverer than we look."
"Overconfident as always, Black," Spears shook his head. James and Sirius were taken aback by the change to Spears' voice. Ginny looked at Spears, horrified. That voice was so very familiar to her. Ginny gasped quietly as her scar began to burn intensely.
"Sounds like we've met before, Spears," Sirius spoke. "Funny thing is, don't remember ever doing so. Funnier still, when we investigated your record, you had a three gap when no one knew anything. Where you were, what you were doing, nothing."
"Care to explain before we arrest you?" James asked.
"No," Spears huffed simply.
Without warning, Spears flung a curse at Sirius. The impact of it threw Sirius off his feet and into the wall behind him. Sirius slumped to the floor unconscious. James took the opportunity to send a stunning spell at Spears but it was simply batted away as Spears turned to face James with a snarl on his face.
"You, Potter, I shall kill, then deal with Black," Spears taunted.
"Yeah?" James asked. "You and what army?"
James wasted no more time or words as he started throwing spells at random. Spears laughed a high-pitched laugh that sent chills down James' spine.
Ginny stood frozen, gasping for air. She knew that laugh all too well. It was the laugh of her nightmares. The laugh of a madman. The laugh of the man who was responsible for the deaths of her family.
"No, it can't be," Ginny breathed out.
"Gin?" Harry whispered, worriedly.
A loud sound drew their attention back to the battle as James was flung into a suit of armor with a crash. Spears grinned evilly as he started to raise his wand again.
"Dad!" Harry yelled.
"James!" Ginny and Luna shouted as the three of them rushed to Harry's father.
"Well, well, well, what have we here?" Spears gloated as they spun to face him.
"We know it was you killing the unicorns," Luna spat as she pulled her wand. "Why? They are such innocent creatures!"
"One must do what they have to in order to survive, little girl," Spears answered unconcernedly by Luna's outrage. "And you, little Potter, will join the rest of your interfering family. And you, Miss Weasley…you and I have unfinished business."
"Monster!" Luna shouted as she raised her wand.
Spears flicked his wand, sending Luna sprawling next to James.
"Luna!" Harry and Ginny shouted.
"Now then, since it's just the three of us," Spears sneered. Harry and Ginny turned back to Spears after checking on Luna. "My master wishes to speak to you."
Spears' face contorted in what looked like pain, but he stood motionless. Harry and Ginny stood in morbid fasciation as Spears' features changed.
"Hello, again, little Ginevra," the voice sent chills down her spine as her eyes widened.
"Voldemort," Ginny ground out as the shock wore off.
"Very good," Voldemort taunted. "You are smarter than the rest of your blood traitor family was."
"Why are you here?" Harry stepped slightly in front of Ginny.
"Oh, my dear little Potter," Voldemort shook his head. "Other than needing the unicorns to survive such as it is, I am here to keep an eye on that old fool Dumbledore. He was close to ruining my plans before this blood traitor did for him. I needed to know how much he knew of my plans then and now.
"I admit, my plans have changed somewhat," Voldemort shrugged. "My first priority is ending that redheaded blood traitor!"
Harry and Ginny's eye went wide as Voldemort raised his wand. They didn't think, they instinctively took the other's hand. Harry turned to Ginny as the curse left Voldemort's wand. Ginny met his eyes as the corridor was bathed in green light. They raised their free hands to shield themselves.
With an echoing thud, the curse hit something.
In the blink of an eye, everything was blinded by a white-gold light.
Harry and Ginny didn't hear the scream of pain from Voldemort or Spears as the spell rebounded back to him. A whitish-grey ghost-like form was thrown out of Spear's dead body as it fell. The spirit screamed in agony. It hung in the air for a few seconds before flying out of the castle.
"Harry! Ginny!" Lily screamed as she came running down the stairs as they fell to the floor, hands still locked together.
A/N: One of my reviewers said the last chapter had a cliffee. No, that was not a cliffee. This is a CLIFFEE!