A/N: It has come to my attention that perhaps my censure by FFN was due to my Author's Notes, which I have been told are now forbidden. Since FFN has decided not to inform me if this is the case, perhaps someone out there can tell me; Have Author's Notes been banned?
And as always,
Enjoy.
Disclaimer: All characters of the Harry Potter series (hereafter known as 'legal property') are the sole ownership of J.K. Rowling (hereafter known as 'owner of said legal property'). No infringement on any copyright of owner of said legal property of the legal property is knowing intended. Published by author (hereafter known as 'other') for entertainment purposes only. No monetary or personal gain was knowingly made by other with the publication of this story, which was based on ideas and characters created by owner of said legal property as they pertain to legal property. No plagiarism of legal property or of any ideas of the owner of said legal property was knowingly intended by other. This statement is fully transferable and is legally held binding for all chapters of the story Family Relations as they are presented under different chapter headings and titles for individual chapters.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN: THE ATTACK
"Hershel?"
Katlin bolted upright in her bed.
Next to her, her husband stretched out under the covers, then turned one barely opened eye to his wife. "Love," he said in a half-sleep induced voice, "if you have to dream about other men, at least have the courtesy not to wake up screaming their names. And as for this particular dream," he added cautiously, "I can only hope that the name to follow that first one wasn't 'Bennett'. Because my wife having dreams about my uncle is a bit more than I can handle at one in the morning."
But Katlin appeared not to have even heard him, already pulling herself out of the bed.
A hand reached out and grabbed her wrist. "Katlin, where are you going?"
"Hershel's." she stated, grabbing for her robe at the end of the bed. "I have to go to Hershel's."
Orion held onto her. "Love, it's one in the morning. Even the king of the Dementor's needs his sleep."
Katlin wretched her hand free. "But he's in trouble." Katlin replied, her voice teetering on hysterics. "He was calling me. He needs help. Orion, something is very, very wrong."
Getting up, Orion barely had time to grab his own robe before catching up to her at the door. Again he grabbed her wrist. "If something is wrong then you're not going over there alone." he stated.
They had both only managed to get home a few hours earlier. Katlin having returned from the lair after an unsuccessful day of trying to uncover Voldemort's latest scheme, and Orion from the castle, having explained to Dumbledore he needed at least one night a month at home, if for no other reason than to remind him family of who he was and that he did, in fact, live there.
The evening hadn't been wasted, either. No sooner was he in the door than he was deluged by a wave of tiny hands as the two younger children fought for chance at a cuddle from their father while the older two immediately set him up as referee of their latest dispute. And amid it all, Katlin passed the toddler off to him, who was in complete tears over something, but who immediately settled down and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck with a now contented sigh.
He couldn't have been happier.
And the evening had ended with a soft affectionate cuddle with his wife in their own bed before settling down to sleep.
Now he was wide awake again, trying to keep up with Katlin as she bolted out of the bedroom.
He had never approved of the bond Hershel had set between himself and Katlin, but there was painfully little he could do about it. Hershel himself had explained that once enacted, the bond couldn't be broken, and every person and spell book Orion had consulted seemed to bare the statement out.
And Katlin certainly didn't seem to mind when Hershel summoned her. She always went gladly, explaining to her husband that Hershel needed someone he could depend on. Life was hard enough for him, and after what he had done for them, it was truly a small price to pay.
But a summons at one in the morning was a bit over the top, Orion thought. What could the half-Dementor want with his wife at one in the morning?
Hurrying down the hallway, Katlin broke free of his hold again at the stairs and hurried down them. But again Orion managed to catch her hand at the bottom of the stairs and pulled her towards the cellar.
"What are you doing?"
"If you insist on going to Hershel's, Bo can get us there faster." Orion stated as he banged on the door. "Bo!" he called through the door. "Come on. Walkies."
Almost immediately the tower of robes appeared next to them. It paused for a moment, then shook its head before settling it gaze on them. A flurry of gestures started that Orion quickly brought to a halt. "Bo, I am sorry if we woke you." he stated.
Katlin turned quickly to him. "I thought you said he didn't sleep?"
"He doesn't." Orion replied, "He's just being obstinate." Turning back to the boggart, Orion continued. "Bo, this is important. We need you to take us to Hershel's house."
The boggart paused again, leaning forward as though he didn't quite catch what Orion had just said. But suddenly he launched into a flurry of gestures again, these much more pronounced than the ones before.
Again Orion waved him off. "I know all that." he stated. "I didn't say you had to go 'in' the house. Just take us to it, all right?"
Katlin was about to protest the further delay when she suddenly found herself standing before Hershel Bennett's stately mansion.
Although at one time the house had stood in a state of severe disrepair, it now could grace the cover of any decor magazine, muggle or wizard. Tall, ornate columns lined the front of the three story house while two story oval capped windows gave a regal state of elegance to it. Pristine white, Orion was willing to bet that at any given time you couldn't find so much as a bug crawling its walls. For as stately and majestic as the home looked, it was still a house that no living creature would willing enter. Standing before the house, Orion faced the ascending staircase to the two large oak doors that guarded the entrance.
"Now the question is how to get in?" Orion pondered, staring at the house. It was well known that Hershel warded his house to the highest levels. No one could enter the house if the owner did not wish it. "Any ideas?" he ask the black mass of robes next to him.
But before Bo even had time to answer, Katlin broke away from them and ran up the stairs to the large oak front doors. With a single shove, she pushed the doors open and disappeared inside.
Pausing for a moment, Orion finally turned back to the boggart. "Never mind, Bo." he said calmly. "It appears my wife has a key."
Orion left the boggart standing on the front lawn as he hurried up the stairs after Katlin. But once inside the foyer he stopped dead, standing as motionless as his wife at the sight that greeted him.
The area before them was utterly destroyed. The only thing that remained in tact were the large glass windows that stood on either side of the doors. Whoever had been there before them obviously had not wanted to alert the outside world to the chaos within. And as Orion recalled standing outside the front of the house, they had done a good job of just that. Looking at the house from the outside, no one would guess the destruction that lay behind its doors.
Inside, the foyer was systematic and complete destruction. Everything from the furniture to the floor to the walls and even the ceiling bore some mark of the forces that had turned the area into a war zone. And directly in the middle of the destruction was what appeared to be its sole casualty.
Suspended by four ropes, spread eagle some nine feet above the destruction, was Hershel Bennett.
Katlin stood staring in abject horror at the sight before her, not making a move or a sound.
"We have to get him down." Orion instructed as he walked past her.
On instinct Katlin woodenly pulled her wand from her robes. But Orion stopped her with a with grab of her wrist.
"No." he stated quickly. "Any jarring of the body could injure him further." He wouldn't even make the suggestion to her that the man might be well past caring if his body was jarred about anymore. Katlin had not only taken well to her role as Hershel's private valet, but she had genuinely embraced the man as a friend. He had never heard her speak so much as one word against the man, and staunchly defended him against anyone who did.
Losing him would likely devastate her. Whereas he would feel it was a favor long over-due the world.
Following the suspension of the ropes, Orion located where they were tied off at the far side of the foyer. Hurrying over to them, he quickly undid them and slowly lowered the man into the arms of his wife, who quickly cradled him in her lap as she brushed the matted hair away from his face.
Orion hurried back over to them. "How is he?" he ask.
Katlin was already running her hand carefully down the man's arms and torso, assessing the damage as she went. A natural healer, Katlin could gauge injuries faster than the best medi-wizard.
Shaking her head, she tried to hold her voice steady. But still it came out shaken and strained. "It's not good." she whispered. "Whoever did this, they did not expect him to survive." She shook her head again. "Look at him." She added vehemently, anger strengthening her tone. "He was sport to them."
"Sport?"
"They could have killed him outright. But they didn't. They wanted him to suffer. They wanted him to die in pain."
Orion watched in silence as Katlin continued her assessment of the man's injuries. As her hand continued to travel over his body he noted it was now covered in blood, much as Hershel's body was. There wasn't a place on the man that she could touch that wasn't bathed in his own blood.
Orion could not begin to guess who was responsible for this. It wasn't as though Hershel didn't have his share of enemies. The man seemed to positively cultivate them and then constantly dare them to attack him.
In over thirty years, not one had ever succeeded.
But the best of them had been driven off a screaming lunatic by the man most whispered was more Dementor than human anymore. And Orion was the last to argue with them. Hershel seemed to revel in the Dementor's powers even as it slowly ate away at his humanity. The only person Orion had ever seen the man show the slightest care towards was the woman who now cradled him in her lap. Whatever cord Katlin had struck in the man, it had likely been the last sole remaining breath of humanity in him. And she had grabbed hold of it and nurtured it, using it as often as she could to remind the man of who and what he once was.
"We have to get him out of here before whoever did this decides to come back to check on their handy work."
Katlin's head snapped up. "No!"
Orion turned back to her. "Why not?"
Katlin shook her head. "I don't know." she replied. "Just...the minute you made the suggestion...I just felt...afraid." Understanding dawned over her features as she turned back to the man in her arms. "You can't take him from the house, Orion. It protects him somehow. It's how he has managed to stay alive this long. If we take him out of it, he'll die."
Orion didn't question Katlin's statement. Part of her bond with Hershel was an almost empathetic link between them. Katlin felt what he felt, seemed to be able at times to read his thoughts or know what he needed without his having to ask her for it.
"Then we're going to need help for this." he stated, pulling out his wand and pointing it to a side area of the foyer. On a word, a large fire sprang to life in the midst of the open area.
"Talon Black." Orion stated.
Within moments a tall figure, dressed in black, emerged from the flames, the fire disappearing immediately behind him. The man appeared to be simply an older version of his son. He was approximately the same height as Orion. His face the same configuration of sharp angles and planes. His hair the same raven black, with the exception that the older man's was now peppered with silver.
Katlin had met her father-in-law many times over the past years since, despite his stern appearance, the man absolutely doted on his grandchildren and used nearly any excuse to come to the house with his wife. It was the man's sheer force of presence that Katlin could never get use to. Power seemed to simply emanate from him.
The man said not a word as he took in the scene around him. Finally he turned a hard stare to his son.
"So this is what it takes to get you to say my name?" the older man ask.
"Based on what's happened here, I felt perhaps you were the best person to call."
Talon quickly knelt next to his former partner. "What's happened to him?"
"Katlin woke from a dream tonight feeling something had happened to Hershel." Orion explained. "When we came to check we found the foyer destroyed. Hershel was tied to four ropes and suspended from the ceiling. Katlin said if we try to move him from the house, we'll kill him."
Talon was already running his hand down the man's body with a whisper soft touch. "She would be right." he replied finally, pulling back. "He's very badly injured. Whoever did this I doubt even thought he was still alive when they left. As it is, they were careless." Talon looked about the foyer again. "Hershel always kept his house warded. Not only to keep others out, but to protect himself. If he was ever sick or injured, he would literally feed off of the house to heal himself. In his current state, removing him from it would have been the worst possible thing for him." Talon turned back to his son. "Where's Bo?"
The question took Orion completely off-guard. Usually his father always knew where the boggart was simply by virtue of their connection. But he quickly remembered the wards Hershel had placed on the house, one of which was placed there specifically against the boggart. It would surely weaken that connection.
"He's out front." Orion replied.
"Then get him in here. We'll need his help."
Orion stood silently in place, making no move to comply with his father's wish.
The older man turned to him. "Well?"
"You know how Bo feels about coming into Hershel's house." he answered. "He doesn't like it."
"His personal likes and dislikes are irrelevant to me at this moment." the older man replied in a stone cold voice as he got to his feet. "And he'll do as I say."
Orion stepped in front of his father. "Let me talk to him." he said quickly. "He'll be a lot more help if he comes in of his own free will."
Orion hurried back out of the house, not only to cut off his father, but because he knew any time he wasted was time Hershel may not have.
Bo was exactly where Orion had left him, although he had taken to entertaining himself, it seemed, with a small grasshopper, which he was slowly following across the front lawn. He turned his head as Orion approached and quickly made a gesture in the air before him.
Orion nodded in answer. "Yes, father's inside." he replied. "Which is where he would also like you to be."
The boggart froze, then quickly shook his head.
Orion sighed to himself. This was not going to be easy. "Bo, Hershel's hurt and father needs you inside to help him."
The boggart shook his head again.
Orion knew Bo's refusal was going to be pointless. While growing up, he and his brother had quickly learned that his father meant what he said, and when he wanted something done, there was generally no negotiating the terms.
He turned again to the boggart, trying another tactic.
"Bo, Hershel's hurt very badly. The injuries could...damage him." he explained, trying to put the situation in terms the boggart could understand. Bo simply never could seem to grasp the concept of the word 'dead' or any words associated with the state. The best he could ever get to was 'damaged', referring to something simply not being in its proper state. "Father says he can't be moved yet, and he needs help now. I wouldn't ask you if it wasn't important, please."
The boggart stood stock still in front of him, staring back through its hooded view. For a brief moment, Orion was sure Bo was going to refuse again, but the next he found himself standing inside of the foyer once again.
"You really coddle him too much." was all his father had to say of the accomplishment. But Orion was determined not to let Bo's effort go un-rewarded.
"Thank you, Bo." he said past a small smile. "I know it's not easy for you, all right?"
The boggart reached forward and simply patted the man before him on the head.
"Bo!" the older man barked at the boggart.
The boggart shifted its attention quickly to the other man. Orion was never really sure how Bo felt about his father, but he often wondered. His actions around him could only be described as 'polite'. He never appear to hover over the man's attention to him as he did with Orion, but he wasn't completely immune to seeming to need some acknowledgement from him either. To Orion he could only ever best describe the relationship as a child constantly seeking its parent's approval. Approval that Orion knew was likely to never come. His father simply didn't see the relationship in those terms. The boggart was, to him, little more than a tool. One that was to be used sparingly, if at all.
Talon directed the boggart's attention to the man still laying as still and pale as death in Katlin's arms.
"You created this creature." Talon reminded him. "And now he is injured. He needs your help to heal himself."
Orion could see the boggart physically pull back from the order. His father's eyes narrowed as Bo went through a series of gestures, then fell silent.
"I do not," the older man stated in a low, measured voice, "remember asking your opinion on the matter. I am your host, and you will do as I say."
Standing next to the boggart, Orion heard it emit a low, quiet whimper. Laying his hand on the boggart's arm, he gave the creature a sympathetic look. "Bo, can you just keep him alive until we can heal him to a point he can help himself? Can you just do that?"
The boggart stepped back and lowered its head, shaking it under its robes. Quickly he made a few gestures, then shifted himself until he stood behind Orion, no longer facing the group before him.
"Don't coddle him, Orion." his father stated. "You give him too much will and look at how he abuses it."
"He's not abusing anything." Orion snapped back. "He afraid."
"He's being obstinate." Talon retorted. "Bo!"
But Orion stuck his hand out before the boggart could answer the summons. "Just give me a minute." Orion said. "This will go better if he helps willingly. You know that."
"And Hershel doesn't have time for you to sit and hold Bo's hand and coax him to cooperate."
As if on cue to confirm his statement, Katlin suddenly pulled up sharply with a soft groan. "He's slipping." she informed them, her eyes closed tightly in concentration. "We have to do something now or he won't survive."
Orion turned quickly to the boggart. "What about me, Bo?" he ask quickly. "Can you help Hershel through me?"
A hand grabbed Orion's arm and pulled him about to face the hard expression of his father. "No!" he stated sharply. "I forbid it!"
Orion met the set expression with his own. "It's not your choice." he replied calmly. "Bo," he stated, "let's go."
Holding his arms out, Orion welcomed the familiar feeling that had become second nature to him so easily. But the feeling didn't come this time. Instead a hand grabbed his arm again and pulled him back.
"Bo! Stop!"
Orion opened his eyes to find his father standing between him and the boggart, the man's stare fixed on his son.
"How many times," Talon stated slowly, "do I have to explain this to you? Every time he touches you, you die a little bit more."
"As a host." Orion reminded him. "I'm not the host. I'm only a channeler. Bo doesn't hurt me."
"You don't know that."
"And Hershel doesn't have the time for us to argue it out. Now this is the best way. If Bo is forced, he gets...unpredictable. You know that. If he gets nervous, he could end up hurting Hershel more. He could unintentionally kill him. How would that effect him if he felt he was responsible for killing someone? If he can work through me, he'll be more focused."
Talon paused as he considered the point. But Katlin's voice brought him back to the urgency of the situation. Sweat was beading across her forehead as she held her eyes shut in hard concentration. "Talon, please..." she begged in a strained voice. "I can't do this much longer."
Talon quickly stepped aside. "All right. But make sure you keep hold."
Orion quickly gestured to the boggart. "Come on, Bo."
Anyone watching the scene would swear the tower of black robes was about the attack the man before it as it lunged at him. But just before it made contact, it effortlessly wrapped itself about his body and just as quickly disappeared.
Keeping his eyes closed, Orion focused on the power suffusing itself with his own inborn magical ability. The feeling was positively addictive. He could easily understand how his grandfather had become so dependent on the 'Power', and why his own father so adamantly abstained from it.
Walking over to where Katlin still knelt with Hershel in her lap, Orion knelt next to them and carefully began to work over the man's body. As he worked he was glad he had not allowed Bo to attempt the work on his own. The healing was difficult and required a concentrated effort. But after several hours of careful, meticulous work, Orion felt he had done as much as he could.
Although Hershel was of Bo's making, and therefore linked to him, he was still, at least on some level, human. And Bo could never seem to quite get the hang of healing humans on his own. But working with Orion, and drawing on his knowledge base, the boggart had proved more than effective at healing on more than one occasion.
Katlin's anxious stare met her husband's. "Will he be all right?" she ask quietly. "Did Bo heal him?"
"We did all we could, Katlin. What he's going to need now is a great deal of rest."
"He'll need someone to look after him." she added. "I'll stay and make sure he is taken care of."
"You're not staying here!" Orion quickly snapped back. "If whoever did this comes back, you won't be a match for them alone. Even Hershel couldn't fight them off. That says a lot for their level of skill right there. He should be able to leave the house now without any repercussions. We just need to decide on where to take him."
"We can take him back to the castle." Katlin suggested quickly. "I can look after him there."
"I'll have to clear that with Dumbledore first. I'm not sure how he'll feel about having Hershel in the castle."
"For magic's sake, he's not a monster, Orion. Dumbledore would never turn away anyone in need of protection. And this attack alone proves that whoever was responsible, meant to kill Hershel."
"Well, he certainly isn't without his enemies. The only problem in the elimination process is not one of them has this kind of power that I'm aware of."
"What about more than one then?" A voice suggested from behind him.
Orion turned to face his father. "More than one?"
"As you suggested, any number of people have a bone to pick with Hershel. And as they say, 'Anyone who is the enemy of my enemy is my friend'. Perhaps a few of them met in a local pub one evening and decided there was strength in numbers."
"Knowing Uncle Hershel, it had to be more than a 'few of them'." Orion commented as he looked about the foyer again. "And from the looks of this place, it was one heck of a fight."
Talon gave a slight shrug. "Hershel was always known for standing his ground."
"Well, this time he almost ended up in it."
Q&A
FAMILY RELATIONS
MasterLupin:
Hmm. I don't think that Orion will much care for this. I am thinking that Voldermort has sentinced all the death eaters tasked with this, to death. So I time to make a head on prediction.(for the first time in while.) I am going to guess that the death eaters will stalk Orion to his house or wherever it is that his children live. Orion will know that they have discovered the kids location and move them to the castle for protection. thats my prediction, and i sticking to it.
I just love your theroies, Dear. Don't ever stop.
Now, on to said theory. Orion not care for it? Voldemort just effectively signed a death warrent on him. I doubt he's crazy about it either.
Now, as to who really got the death sentence, your right about that one. Something I'm willing to admit I hadn't even considered. And I'm writing this thing! So, congrad's to you, Dear, for out thinking the author. And yes, it is unlikely the Ministry will be in a very forgiving mood.
Now, as to the rest of it...ummmmmmmm..., no. Sorry. Aside from the brief note as was made in this chapter, Orion's children do not really ever come into this story. They would simply be too much of a story in and of themselves.
Skahducky:
Maybe it's a good thing that Katlin is getting Orion to hurry up so she can get back. Maybe he'll be able to get away before the other Aurors can come after him? Anyway, this is a great chapter. Please update soon!
Probably wouldn't matter how fast or slow she went, Dear. The Deatheaters still have to come up with a plan. Let's face it, you can't come after a man like Orion without one.
FEVER
Gersh:
I appreciate the warning, Dear, but that story went up LONG before this rule came out. (By the way, where is this posted exactly? I checked back posting on the Home page, where they would have had to list a change to TOS and could not find anything. Nor could I find it in the TOS. I would appreciate being directed to this, as that I have not read exactly what the ban is about.) FanFiction I would hope would not make everyone who has been doing this as long as I have go back and edit out the Author's Notes from all of their stories. It simply would not make sense. It would be needless wear and tear on their server for all the changes for one thing. And as for the work it would involve for me, I would simply let them delete the stories.
All reviews are as of 02/26/2006.
And remember;
Why isn't there mouse-flavored cat food?