Not much to say here today, thanks for appreciating the chapter and story, and please enjoy the next. ~F
Chapter Two
Where there's a Will
Harry still wasn't completely sure what happened over the next few days. After driving off the Dementors from him and Dudley, Mrs. Figg arrived to escort them both back to Privet Drive. It then fell upon Harry to attempt to explain what had happened to his Aunt and Uncle, but they weren't much in a mood to hear it, convinced that Harry had used magic on Dudley.
Then over the course of about forty minutes, five different owls arrived. Two were from the Ministry of Magic for Harry, expelling him from Hogwarts then amending that he would need to attend a hearing instead. Another was from Mr. Weasley, explaining that Dumbledore was working to prevent his expulsion. There was one from Sirius telling him to stay at home. And finally a Howler for Aunt Petunia of all people, which came just in time to prevent Uncle Vernon from chucking Harry to the curb.
Harry then spent the next three days locked in his room, brooding over what had just happened and the utter unfairness of all the adults in his life. Not one had said anything about how well he had fought off the dementors, only talking as if he had done something terribly bad and that he needed to be scolded. Harry was worried that Aurors were going to turn up at any minute to fight him for his wand, to destroy it like their first letter had said. If that was the case, he wasn't going down without a fight, and redoubled his efforts to learn as much combat-oriented magic as possible.
The Dursleys had left that day, leaving him locked in his room, but he didn't care as he had lost most of his energy to his brooding. It returned in a flash when he heard a commotion downstairs, but thankfully it had turned out to be a rescue party comprising of Lupin, Moody, an interesting woman named Tonks, and around nine other people who had volunteered to take him away.
Mad-Eye Moody had shown a piece of parchment to Dobby with orders to take all of Harry's things to the location written on it, except his broom. They set off immediately after, flying up into the cold night air. The journey felt like it was very short, as Harry relished the short reprise from being confined in Privet Drive, and far too soon they started to descend, landing in the middle of a small square surrounded by grimy, imposing houses.
Harry had then been shown the same piece of parchment, which read: 'The Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix may be found at number twelve, Grimmauld Place, London.' No sooner had he read it then he understood the purpose, the location was under the same charm that Faykan's house had been.
Strangely, that thought of Faykan hadn't hurt nearly as much as it Harry thought it should, but he didn't get time to ponder this, as the house in question had materialized as he finished reading, and he was ushered inside.
The people who had escorted him filed in after him, going down into what looked like a dingy kitchen, while Mrs. Weasley shooed him upstairs, saying that Ron and Hermione would explain everything. Slightly dejected at being ignored and excluded, Harry mounted the stairs and entered the door that Mrs. Weasley had indicated.
~~Sina tea kirma : This is a line break~~
Hermione threw herself at Harry the moment he had opened the door to Ron's room in Grimmauld Place, "HARRY!" she cried. She was starting to lose hope that Dumbledore would allow him to come. "Ron," she called, "he's here, Harry's here!" Afterward she returned to crushing Harry's chest in her hug.
"Let him breathe, Hermione," said Ron, grinning as he closed the door behind Harry. She let go, still beaming at him. Hedwig sailed over to nibble Harry's ear, much to the boy's delight. Ron immediately started complaining about the abuse they had sustained when Hedwig had brought Harry's last letters, but Hermione saw that Harry didn't look either desirous to talk about it or sorry for it happening.
Harry demanded to know what had been happening so far over the summer, especially why they hadn't told him anything via letters, and both Ron and Hermione tried to explain that they had made to swear not to tell anything by Professor Dumbledore himself. It didn't seem to make Harry feel better, if his shouting was anything to tell by, and Hermione felt a pang of sympathy. If she had been left in the dark for an entire month, she would be quiet upset as well.
"Harry, we're really sorry!" she said desperately, but Harry just glared at her before pacing the room angrily.
"What is this place, anyway?" he shot at them both.
"Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix," Ron said automatically.
"Is anyone going to bother telling me what the Order of the Phoenix…?" Harry started, but Hermione cut him off. She hoped to prevent anymore shouting, as there were people sleeping a few rooms away.
"It's a secret society;" she said quickly, "Dumbledore founded it. It's the people who fought against You-Know-Who last time."
"Who's in it?" said Harry, coming to a halt and thrusting his hands into his pockets.
"Quite a few people… We've met about twenty of them," said Ron, "but we think there are more."
Harry glared at them.
"Well?"he demanded, looking from one to the other.
"Err," said Ron, stupidly. "Well what?"
"Voldemort!" said Harry furiously, causing both Ron and Hermione to wince. "What's happening? What's he up to? Where is he? What are we doing to stop him?"
"We've told you, the Order doesn't let us in on their meetings," Hermione repeated nervously. "So we don't know the details… but we've got a general idea," she added hastily, seeing the look of fury returning to Harry's face.
"Fred and George have invented Extendable Ears, see," Ron explained. "They're really useful."
"Extendable…?" Harry started to ask.
"…Ears, yeah." Ron confirmed, "Only we've had to stop using them lately because Mum found out and went berserk. Fred and George had to hide them all to stop Mum confiscating them. But we got a good bit of use out of them before Mum realized what was going on. We know some members of the Order are following known Death Eaters, keeping tabs on them, you know…"
"Some of them are working on recruiting more people to the Order…" Hermione added.
"And some of them are standing guard over something," said Ron. "They're always talking about guard duty."
"Couldn't have been me, could it?" said Harry sarcastically.
"Oh, yeah," said Ron, with a look of dawning comprehension.
Harry snorted. He walked around the room again, looking anywhere but at either of them.
"So, what have you two been doing, if you're not allowed in meetings?" he demanded. "You said you'd been busy."
"We have," said Hermione quickly. "We've been decontaminating this house, it's been empty for ages and stuff's been breeding in here. We've managed to clean out the kitchen, most of the bedrooms and I think we're doing the drawing room tomo… AARGH!"
Fred and George had apparated into the room, startling Hermione, "Stop doing that!" she said to them, but she knew they wouldn't listen. They had been apparating every and any amount of distance in the house as much as possible, infuriating Mrs. Weasley, but since they were legally adults she couldn't stop them.
"Hello Harry," George said, beaming at him, "we thought we heard your dulcet tones."
"You don't want to bottle up your anger like that, Harry, let it all out," Fred added, also beaming, "there might be a couple of people fifty miles away who didn't hear you."
Ron complained that it would have only taken several seconds for them to just walk down, but Hermione saw that he was jealous of his brothers being seventeen and thus able to use magic freely.
"Anyway," said Fred, "Harry, you're interfering with reception." Harry raised his eyebrows and Fred quickly clarified, "Extendable Ears, we're trying to hear what's going on downstairs."
"You want to be careful," Ron said, staring at the fleshy string of the Ear, "If Mum sees one of them again…"
"It's worth the risk, that's a major meeting they're having," Fred said, waving his younger brother to silence.
The door opened and Ginny walked in, "Oh hello Harry," she said, "I thought I heard your voice." Turning to Fred and George, she added, "It's a no-go with the Extendable Ears, she's gone and put an Imperturbable Charm on the kitchen door."
The twins' faces fell.
~~Sina tea kirma : This is a line break~~
Severus waited at the base of the stairs for Molly Weasley to call the children down. Faykan had been here for several days, hidden behind powerful glamours that Severus was sure even Dumbledore wouldn't be able to see through. He had smuggled they boy here with the story of finding a potions prodigy in a distant relative and deciding to take the boy on as an apprentice.
Faykan descended the stairs first, making a beeline for Severus when he spotted him. His appearance was drastically different, despite Severus being able to see through the glamour himself, and if the boy could just act his age the disguise would hold up to all scrutiny.
Severus was unsure at that point, as he had witnessed many instances where the boy would blurt out something clearly above the knowledge of a person of his age group. Faykan had let slip that it was a disguise he had used before, but Severus didn't understand, and he had tried to pry what the boy meant, but Faykan would always quickly change the subject when he did. Severus truly hoped that the boy knew what he was doing.
"Potter is here," Severus whispered in Faykan's ear as he placed a hand comfortingly on the boy's shoulder.
"I know, didn't you hear him yelling earlier?" he replied. Severus had, muffled though it was due to the charms they had on the door. Severus could see the agitation in Faykan's eyes. He was worried about Potter, and saddened that he had to hide himself from the boy while here in the stronghold of the man who tried to have him killed.
"Are you sure you want to stay here during the summer, there are plenty of other places…" Severus began but Faykan cut him off.
"I need to see him again Sev, I need to know he's alright. And there's important information here that I need to get before going to Hogwarts," Faykan said cryptically, although Severus had a thought as to the reasoning.
The curious little signs were now weaved into an equally strange belt that the boy wore, seemingly designed specifically to hold those little items, and there were places along its length for four more of them. Clearly it was something powerful that the boy needed to collect, but what they were or what they did Severus was not privy to. He just nodded therefore, knowing the boy was not going to be dissuaded, and given the amount of power that Faykan possessed, Severus was not inclined to try and force him against his will.
"Then I'll be on my way then, I'll see you at Hogwarts." and he turned to leave just as the other Gryffindor children joined Molly at the base of the stairs.
~~Sina tea kirma : This is a line break~~
Harry watched as Professor Snape exited, wondering who the boy that the Potion Master was speaking to could be, but just then Mrs. Weasley started talking, "We're eating down in the kitchen, Harry dear, if you'll just tiptoe across the hall it's through this door here…"
CRASH!
"Tonks!" cried Mrs. Weasley in exasperation, turning to look at her.
"I'm sorry!" Tonks wailed, "It's that stupid umbrella stand, that's the second time I've tripped over…"
But the rest of her words were drowned by a horrible, ear-splitting, blood-curdling screech. A life-size portrait of an old woman was screaming at them, awakening all the other portraits, "Filth! Scum! By-products of dirt and vileness! Half-breeds, mutants, freaks, be gone from this place! How dare you befoul the house of my fathers…"
Mrs. Weasley darted around stunning the smaller portraits, and a man with long black hair came charging out of a door facing Harry.
It was Sirius.
"Shut up you horrible old hag, shut up!" he roared, seizing the moth-eaten velvet curtains and attempting to wrench them closed.
"Yoooou!" the woman howled, her eyes popping at the sight of Sirius, "Blood traitor, abomination, shame of my flesh!"
Lupin had darted forward to help but their combined strength wasn't enough, "Will, a little help if you don't mind!" Sirius bellowed, and Harry felt someone brush past him.
A tall, thin boy with a round face and a mop of straight, mouse-brown hair walked swiftly over to face the portrait, which froze the moment the old woman saw the boy, although glaring angrily. Harry couldn't blame her, as he had a hard time taking his eyes off the boy as well. The air around him felt, off…
The boy just stood there, holding the portrait's eyes, and opened his mouth, "Behold the coming of tall ships, and see the kings they bear...Over the sea they come to this land, three times three... What brought they from the foundered land, o're the water deep? See they bring from those lost lands, seven stars and stones. And upon their flag bore on the wind, see the emblem: one white tree..."
The portrait froze, transfixed upon the song, until Sirius and Lupin managed to close the curtains. "I don't know how you manage to shut her up Will, but I'm grateful that you can," Sirius said, patting the boy on the shoulder before turning to Harry, "Hello, Harry, I see you've met my mother."
"Your…?" Harry asked.
"My dear old mum, yeah," Sirius said with a grimace. "We've been trying to get her down for a month but we think she put a Permanent Sticking Charm on the back of the canvas. Let's get downstairs quick, before they all wake up again."
Sirius ushered Harry and the taller boy back from where Sirius had come, and down a narrow flight of stone steps. "This was my parent's house," Sirius explained, correctly interpreting Harry's questioning look. "I'm the last Black left, so it's mine now. I offered it to Dumbledore for Headquarters, only useful thing I've been able to do." He added glumly. He fiddled with a strange silver ring on his right hand, the glint of it caught Harry's eye, and he frowned at the snake motif that it bore.
"This is Will, by the way," Sirius said, clapping the other boy on the shoulder and turning him to face Harry, "Will Stanton, this is my godson, Harry Potter."
"Hello," the boy said, taking Harry's hand in a firm grip, staring at him with blue-grey eyes. Harry felt sparks of pure magic run down his spine when their hands touched, and his breath caught in an inaudible gasp. The sensation was so odd that it distracted Harry from noticing that Will seemed to not care about who Harry was.
"H-hello…" Harry managed to force out after several seconds, then looked away, trying to prevent himself from blushing slightly. What was wrong with him?
"Professor Snape brought Will here just about a week ago. Says he a relative from somewhere in Wales, where Snape found him working in an apothecary…" Sirius was saying. Harry noticed that his godfather wasn't referring to Snape in a demeaning way anymore, and Sirius laughed when he pointed this out.
"Yeah," Sirius admitted, "old Snape and I managed to patch some things up over the summer. Ever since… the Third Task… Snape's been a lot less snide and cruel for some reason. Don't suppose you know why Harry?"
Harry did know why, but he had no desire to voice it aloud, even less with some stranger right next to him, causing him to feel very odd and uncomfortable for reasons Harry could not explain.
"Ah well, Snape apparently decided to bring Will back here as his apprentice in Potioneering, so Will gets to come to Hogwarts for a few years, but he couldn't stay at the castle for the summer, so Dumbledore allowed Snape to bring him here." Sirius explained in a rush, seeing Harry's discomfort.
They reached the kitchen, which looked scarcely less gloomy than the hall above. As they entered, Mrs. Weasley cleared her throat, causing Mr. Weasley and Bill to look up from the end of the table. They had been talking in low voices previously, but jumped to their feet at the sight of Harry.
"Harry! Good to see you!" said Mr. Weasley, hurrying forward and shaking his hand vigorously as Bill cleared the papers they were looking over away.
Harry spotted Will cross to the far side of the table, seating himself near a large pile of rags and start shaking it vigorously, "Dung…Dung! Wake up Dung!" he said, and the pile of rags stirred, mumbling sleepily, "I 'gree with Sirius…"
"The meeting's over, Dung," said Sirius as they all sat down around the table, "Harry's arrived."
"Eh?" said Mundungus, peering balefully at Harry through his matted ginger hair. "Blimey, so'e'as. Yeah... you all right, 'Arry?"
"Yeah," Harry said, although it was a lie. He had not been alright for the entire summer.
Mr. and Mrs. Weasley stated fixing dinner while Ron, Hermione, and Ginny set the table, leaving Harry at the table with Sirius, Mundungus Fletcher, and Will. Harry had a difficult time answering the questions Sirius posed him, as he was busy watching the very quiet boy across from him. Will was pretending to pay attention to Sirius and Mundungus, while covertly sneaking glances at Harry, looking away every time Harry started to notice. It was slightly disconcerting, but Harry summed it up to the other boy's reaction to being thrust directly into the presence of the 'famed boy-who-lived.'
"Fred, George, NO, JUST CARRY THEM!" Mrs. Weasley's shrieks caught all their attentions. Harry, Sirius and Mundungus looked round and, within a split second, they had dived away from the table.
Fred and George had bewitched a large cauldron of stew, an iron flagon of Butterbeer and a heavy wooden breadboard, complete with knife, to hurtle through the air towards them. Will rose and whipped out his own wand, causing all the flying objects to halt midair, and settle gently on the table.
"FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE!" screamed Mrs. Weasley. "THERE WAS NO NEED, I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS, JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE ALLOWED TO USE MAGIC NOW, YOU DON'T HAVE TO WHIP YOUR WANDS OUT FOR EVERY LITTLE THING!"
Harry and Sirius burst out laughing at the situation as they rose to their feet. Harry turned to see if Will was fine, and saw him calmly stowing his wand in a sleeve holster. It was a rather peculiar looking wand, bright silver with carvings down the length, ending with a rather large sapphire in the handle.
Mrs. Weasley continued to berate Fred and George for their careless use of magic, alternatively thanking Will for stopping any damage from being done, until she started listing all the elder Weasley boys and how responsible they had been when they came of age. She stopped when she mentioned Percy, catching her breath and looking slightly frightened at Mr. Weasley, who had suddenly gotten a rather wooden expression.
"Let's eat," Bill said quickly, reading the signs in the air.
"It looks wonderful, Molly," said Lupin, ladling stew onto a plate for her and handing it across the table.
Slowly the conversations started up again, and Harry felt the familiar discomfort of Will's eyes watching him. Harry glared at him, starting to get rather tired of the stranger's scrutiny. Will looked both slightly surprised and hurt afterward, and stuck to staring into his bowl of stew.
Three helpings of rhubarb crumble and custard later and the waistband on Harry's trousers were feeling uncomfortably tight. As he set down his spoon there was a lull in the general conversation: Mr. Weasley was leaning back in his chair, looking replete and relaxed while Tonks was yawning widely, her nose now back to normal.
"Nearly time for bed, I think," said Mrs. Weasley with a yawn.
"Not just yet, Molly," said Sirius, pushing away his plate and turning to look at Harry. "You know, I'm surprised at you. I thought the first thing you'd do when you got here would be to start asking questions about Voldemort."
The atmosphere in the room changed with the rapidity Harry associated with the arrival of Dementors; where seconds before it had been sleepily relaxed, it was now alert, and even tense. A frisson had gone around the table at the mention of Voldemort's name. Lupin, who had been about to take a sip of wine, lowered his goblet slowly, looking wary.
"He did," Will said calmly from the far side of the table, playing with the last few bites on his crumble and not looking up, "At least, if the first twenty minutes of shouting was any clue of it."
Harry's face went red, had he really been shouting that loud? "I asked Ron and Hermione, but they said we're not allowed in the Order, so…"
"And they're quite right," said Mrs. Weasley. "You're too young."
She was sitting bolt upright in her chair, her fists clenched on its arms, every trace of drowsiness gone.
"Since when did someone have to be in the Order of the Phoenix to ask questions?" asked Sirius. "Harry's been trapped in that Muggle house for a month. He's got the right to know what's been happen…"
"Hang on!" interrupted George loudly.
"How come Harry gets his questions answered?" said Fred angrily.
"Probably because the business of the Order coincides directly with Harry's life, as long as… You-Know-Who… is still after him," Will said, still not looking up.
"How do you know that?" George said angrily, glaring at the top of Will's head.
"Because I pay attention, not to mention that Master Snape answers my questions, within reason for the Order's privacy of course…" Will said, still more calmly.
"That's not fair, their both fifteen, not even of age, and they get to know what's going on!" Fred said, his anger growing.
"It's not our fault you haven't been told what the Order's doing," said Sirius, "that's your parent's decision. Harry and Will on the other hand…"
"It's not down to you to decide what's good for Harry!" said Mrs. Weasley sharply. The expression on her normally kind face looked dangerous.
"Well, technically, it is. Or else the title of godfather would be pointless now wouldn't it?" Will said, and Harry felt a small spur of gratitude for the boy, siding with Sirius to tell him what he had been worrying over for a month.
Mrs. Weasley glared at him, but as Will had still not looked up from his plate, he didn't see. "You haven't forgotten what Dumbledore said, I suppose?" she shot at Sirius.
"Which bit?" Sirius asked politely, but with the air of a man readying himself for a fight.
"The bit about not telling Harry more than he needs to know," said Mrs. Weasley, placing a heavy emphasis on the last three words.
Ron, Hermione, Fred and George's heads swiveled from Sirius to Mrs. Weasley as though they were following a tennis rally. Ginny was kneeling amid a pile of abandoned Butterbeer corks, watching the conversation with her mouth slightly open. Lupin's eyes were fixed on Sirius. Will kept his eyes downcast, as if trying to bore through the solid wood with his eyes alone.
"I don't intend to tell him more than he needs to know, Molly," said Sirius. "But as he was the one who saw Voldemort come back he has more right than most to…"
"He's not a member of the Order of the Phoenix!" said Mrs. Weasley. "He's only fifteen and…"
"And he's dealt with as much as most in the Order," said Sirius, "and more than some."
"No one's denying what he's done!" said Mrs. Weasley, her voice rising, her fists trembling on the arms of her chair. "But he's still…"
"He's not a child!" said Sirius impatiently.
"He's not an adult either!" said Mrs. Weasley, the color rising in her cheeks. "He's not James, Sirius!"
"I'm perfectly clear who he is, thanks, Molly," said Sirius coldly.
"I'm not sure you are!" said Mrs. Weasley. "Sometimes, the way you talk about him, it's as though you think you've got your best friend back!"
"What's wrong with that?" said Harry.
"What's wrong, Harry, is that you are not your father, however much you might look like him!" said Mrs. Weasley.
"Mrs. Weasley," Will said, finally looking up. The calmness in his voice was replaced by what sounded like a stern rebuke, and there was something in his eyes that was unnerving, like looking into the eyes of a far older person than the teenager had any right to be, "Your coddling of Harry is not doing him any favors. You all know what's at stake, and it would be wiser to let him know something then keep him in the dark… I'd resent being left out of the loop because people wish to treat me like a glass ornament personally…"
Everyone was stunned unto silence for a moment.
"I think Harry ought to be allowed a say in this," Lupin added after the pause, "He's old enough to decide for himself."
"I want to know what's been going on," Harry said at once.
"Very well," said Mrs. Weasley, her voice cracking in defeat, "Ginny, Ron, Hermione, Fred, George, Will, I want you out of this kitchen, now."
Protests started flying around the kitchen from everyone, except Will Harry noticed. In the end, Mrs. Weasley gave in and allowed everyone except Ginny to stay, not that she went quietly. After Mrs. Weasley returned, closed the door and retook her seat, Sirius spoke.
"OK, Harry… what do you want to know?" Sirius asked.
The answers turned out to be much less than what Harry had expected. The only news that was even worthwhile was that Voldemort was after something new, like a weapon that he didn't have last time. Unfortunately Mrs. Weasley drew the line at that and frog marched them all up to bed.
"All right, Ron, Harry, Will, you three are in here," Mrs. Weasley said on the second landing, pointing them into their bedroom, "Off to bed with you all."
Will went directly in without a word, while Harry and Ron bade goodnight to Fred and George. Mrs. Weasley closed the door behind them with a sharp snap. Ron bolted the door as Harry went to pull his pajamas out of his trunk. Will was already pulling his on, and Harry noticed a strange belt that the boy was wearing, with little buckles on either side of the front. They were strange little circles of metal, with crosses inside cutting them into four sections. There was also an identical mark on the inside of his right forearm, looking like a scar of some sort.
The boy's trunk was open, and Harry couldn't help but peek inside, his curiosity raging. Will had already purchased all the things he would need for fifth year, and his robes had the scarlet and gold of Gryffindor. "You've already been sorted?" Harry blurted out without thinking.
"Yeah," Will said, not turning around, "Master Snape brought me to Hogwarts to be sorted over the summer before bringing me here. I'm not 'officially' a student, but Professor Dumbledore suggested that it would be easier for everyone if I took classes like everyone else and slept in a house dormitory instead of in Master Snape's private quarters."
"Oh…" Harry said, wishing slightly that the boy would look at him, and he was slightly surprised when Will sat down on the furthest bed and turned to face him immediately when he thought it.
"Well… I wanted to thank you for standing up for me and Sirius down there, Mrs. Weasley had good intentions but sometimes…" Harry trailed off, not wanting to voice how coddling Mrs. Weasley could be at times, especially in front of Ron.
"You're lucky to have someone who cares that much about you," Will said sadly, and Harry felt a sudden pang in his chest, something between an electric shock and a bucket of ice water. He was suddenly reminded of Faykan again, twice over as that would be something he'd say and something he'd represent.
Will had clearly noticed the reaction. "I'm sorry," he said, "I heard about how that boy who died two months ago… I understand if you don't want to talk about it, but I think you were both incredibly brave… and, well, that's all…"
"Thank you…" Harry said as Will lied down and rolled away to face the far wall. Harry glanced at Ron, who was watching with raised eyebrows from his own bed. Harry tried to sleep for a while, but didn't manage to drift off for what felt like hours. Occasionally Will would mumble unintelligible words in his sleep, but it was Harry's inner turmoil about the weapon that kept him awake.
"Harry?" Ron whispered, "You want to see something really freaky…"
Confused, Harry sat up slowly. Ron was creeping across the room towards Will's bed, beckoning Harry with one hand. Slowly Harry got to his feet, easing from one to the other as they tiptoed toward Will's sleeping form. Ron pointed to Will's face, and Harry nearly gasped. Will was unmistakable asleep, but his eyes were wide open, moonlight reflecting off them from the window.
"Creepy, isn't it?" Ron said as they made their ways back to their own beds.
"Kind of…" Harry replied.
As they turned, the boy mumbled something more understandable, but it was a strange thing, like an old rhyme. "When the Dark comes rising, Six shall turn it back…"
Harry went back to trying to sleep, and soon found himself standing on a dark cave floor in front of several black robes men. They were herding a gang of the foulest looking creatures Harry had ever seen into their midst. They were squat, with very broad shoulders, had flat noses, sallow skin, wide mouths filled with small fangs and yellow slanted eyes. They ambled forward, looking to the largest whose eyes were locked with Harry's.
"What are these…?" Harry asked in a high, cruel voice.
The lead monster answered, its voice gruff and gravely as if unaccustomed to speaking in English, "We are servants of Darkness, my Lord, sent by the Dark Powers to aid you and your cause. We are orcs… and we are yours to command."
"I see…" Harry replied.
"We also bear an item from our ancient and long-dead master, Annatar… this ring of power." The orc leader held up a small silver ring, set with a piece of crimson gemstone. The edges were masterfully carved to look like kings rising on either side of the gem, and it was held in its setting with little prongs, "This ring, like its eight lost brothers, renders the wearer no longer subject to the decay of time, and grant other unimaginable powers. I lay it at your feet, my Lord, as a gift to the future Lord of the earth."
Harry reverently pick up the tiny ring, watching the torchlight gleam in the redness of the stone set amongst the silver, and with yearning and a tiny sigh, slipped it onto his finger.
"Ash tug Shakhbûrz-ûr Ulîma-tab-ishi za…" the orcs began chanting, the harsh words rolling off their tongues.
Harry sat bolt upright, his scar burning and tingling like mad. A soft sound to his left made him turn his aching head slightly. Will was sitting on the edge of his bed, watching Harry in an almost serene manner. "Are you alright?" he asked quietly.
"Yes," Harry lied quickly, "Just a dream…"
"Sure didn't look like 'just a dream' the way you were talking and moaning…" Will replied observantly.
Harry started to feel uncomfortable, was this boy watching him while he slept? Will seemed to sense what Harry was thinking, as he shrugged slightly and mumbled, "I was coming back from the loo…"
Harry had a suspicion that Will wasn't being completely honest with him either, but simply shook his head to indicate that he didn't wish to discuss it anymore.
"If you're sure…" Will said, and settled down again with his back to Harry. Harry watched the strange boy for a few minutes, wondering why he seemed so very familiar to him. Vilya tingled on his finger momentarily, and Harry looked down at the little blue gem imbedded in the gold. Somehow, Harry had a feeling of comfort swirl over him, and he finally was able to drift off.
~~Sina tea kirma : This is a line break~~
In all honesty, Severus was not surprised with how well his and Faykan's plan to smuggle the boy back into Hogwarts had gone. Albus was practically skipping down the corridors these days, and Severus guessed that the old man thought his plans for Potter were to go unchallenged with Faykan 'out of the picture.'
Albus had all too quickly allowed Severus to bring 'Will' into the castle as his Potions apprentice, even smiling at the thought that Severus had finally overcame his grief of Lily and reached out to his wizarding family. Little did the old fool know that it had been Faykan, not time, that had helped Severus come to terms with Lily's passing.
He still missed her, it was true, and Faykan had reminded him over and over that the pain would never truly leave him, but it had lessened dramatically. But Severus had found a new reason to continue living, Potter… Harry… needed someone who truly cared about him to help guide his destiny, and Albus had dashed all of Severus' belief in him ever since Barty Crouch admitted that it was the old wizard who had conspired to kill the young boy's best friend.
If the great and noble Albus Dumbledore was capable of attempted murder, Severus would never truly give Albus credit for Faykan's death, then how could the same man be trusted with the life of the only person capable of destroying the Dark Lord.
Severus had been surprised however, with how deeply Albus had played right into their plans, by suggesting himself that 'Will' be sorted unofficially into a house and attend classes with the other students, as he was still underage himself, arguing that it would be less of a strain on Severus if he didn't have to house the boy and keep him underfoot at all times as well as train him.
Severus may have seemed too eager to agree, but he felt that Albus was senile enough to have overlooked his enthusiasm. The old fool hadn't even questioned how 'Will' could have lived in Britain and not come to or at least been invited to Hogwarts much earlier.
Now Faykan was inside the Order's Headquarters as well, another idea proposed by Albus himself, knowing how inconsistently placed Severus would be over the summer holidays, and the boy would slowly work his way back into Harry's group. Severus didn't question how the boy planned to do this, he was rather confidant that Faykan would use whatever means needed, just as his Slytherin forefathers would have.
Over the month that Severus had spent off and on with the boy, the more he found how just how alike he and his father were, it was almost as if they were the same person, aside from the Gryffindorish tendencies of the boy, and several other things that Severus couldn't quite place his finger on.
But the thing that truly worried him was the Dark Lord. New dark creatures had arrived to fill his ranks, calling themselves… orcs… and they had brought a powerful magical artifact, a silver ring that radiated extremely dark magic. The Dark Lord had taken it and donned the jeweled ring without a second thought, and the darkness of his power was now almost sickening to be in the presence of.
Severus knew that there would be people, Bellatrix, Lucius and Nott Sr. who would defiantly enjoy the increased power of their Lord, but behind the walls of his own mind, Severus was worried that this may tip the balance of power into Voldemort's favor.
Even Faykan had been worried when Severus had told him about it briefly, offering only the barest hint of a speculation in response.
Will Stanton, the name, comes from one of the main characters from 'The Dark is Rising' series by Susan Cooper. Highly recommended as a read for anyone who loves LotR and/or Harry Potter.
Ash tug Shakhbûrz-ûr Ulîma-tab-ishi za : One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne
Potential Spoilers Ahead: You Have Been Warned!
Frankly, I almost didn't post today, and not because I almost forgot for once. But in the end I realized that punished the readers of this fic for the unhelpful complainers on another was not appropriate for me as an author. I just... don't understand why people refuse to understand that just because a story isn't going the way they want automatically makes it bad. There is such a lack of charitable thought in regards to some people and their "reviews" if you can call them that. I will not say who, what story, or anything to the specifics, but I was thoroughly irritated by comments made, which lacked any sort of construction or true criticism. Sigh... pushing past that, the explanation: Yes, before anyone asks, Will is Faykan, not only in persona but in what I am weaving together between the three stories. at the minimum I would encourage a brief read of a synopsis of the book "The Dark is Rising," "The Grey King," and "Silver on the Tree," all by Susan Cooper and all in the same 5 book sequence. Although I still strongly recommend, (and am most pleased that some have actually done so) to aquire a set of the books and read it for yourself. they're quite good and on the same level as LotR and Narnia in my opinion. We also see the introduction of the Witch King's ring, and the start of the true tying together of the overarching plot behind the scenes of the simply HP plotline. but I will refrain from spoiling, but needless to say that the ring Voldemort has is one of the Nine, and genuine. but more on that in due time. until later! ~F