The Crow: Phoenix Rising

By: Belcris

Summary: What if "the power the Dark Lord knows not" had nothing to do with love? What if it had everything to do with justice? Crossover of Harry Potter and the Crow.

Harry Potter created by: JK Rowling

The Crow created by: James O'Barr

I do not own these characters and I do not seek to profit from this story. I only wish to pay tribute to two great authors.

WARNING: This story contains scenes of graphic violence, foul language, and death. Rape is implied. You have been warned.

Category: AU. Dark Fiction.

Correction:

The version of this chapter that was originally posted here was not the final version. If you have read this chapter before, you might want to read it again.

Chris :)

5/1/2010

Chapter 5: The Lady is a Tramp

Last night was a rough one. Hermione woke up several times, crying and confused. I spent most of the night holding her, tying to convince her that it was going to be alright. I finally managed to convince her that things would be better in the morning, but funny thing is, I didn't even believe it myself. By the time Hermione was out for good it was too late to actually get any "work" done. Evidently, according to my feather duster of a companion, even psychotic killers need sleep.

Oh, before you wonder, I was talking about the Death Eaters when I mentioned psychotic killers. I am not psychotic, though I am currently narrating my own life to a bunch of imaginary readers. What does that really say about me?

Anyway, after I finally got Hermione to sleep, I made my way downstairs to the kitchen. From the look of things, the last person to use this place was probably Mrs. Weasley and that was before I died. The closest thing to food in the pantry is a piece of dried cheese in a broken mousetrap. Now personally, I haven't felt the need to eat anything since I woke up, rose from the dead, or whatever you want to call it, but I'm guessing Hermione is going to get hungry eventually. Unfortunately, given how I look, it's not like I can run down to the local grocer for a bag of crisps and a juice. Then again, given some of the things I've seen some of the Muggle teens wearing, the grocer might not even notice me.

"Maybe I should send her to the Burrow?" I ask a solitary spider as it crawls across the pantry floor. "And why am I always talking to spiders?"

Talking to yourself, Harry?

Looking over my shoulder, I see the Crow sitting on the back of one of the dusty kitchen chairs. "No, I was talking to the spider."

And did it say anything back?

"Yes it did," I reply, with a smirk that Draco Malfoy would be proud of. "It told me to tell you to sod off."

Cute, Harry. Really cute.

I watch as the Crow takes wing and leaves the room. I get a chuckle out of giving my mystical guide a hard time, but I know I wouldn't be here if she hadn't brought me back. I also know that my time is limited. Since this all started I've felt that my time among the living is running out, rather like I think a watch feels as its spring slowly unwinds. Honestly, I'm glad it is. What I said to Hermione was true, I'm tired. Poking fun at the Crow is just a way of taking my mind off it for a little while, but the truth is that being here again hurts. I don't know where I was before she brought me back. Maybe it was Heaven, or maybe it was Hell. Whatever the truth is, at least I didn't hurt anymore. At least I could rest. I can't do that here and every day I feel a little more exhausted.

"Myrtle or Nick might understand," I murmur to myself as I close the pantry.

Walking back upstairs I glance around at the dingy wallpaper and dust covered furniture. Grimmauld Place has probably sat empty since Dumbledore's death, but it feels like it's been empty for a lot longer. I think the spirit of the house, that feeling of belonging that exists in a real home, has been gone for a very long time. I'm really surprised that Sirius didn't go mad when he was trapped here before his death. I've only been here a few days and I already want to burn it to the ground. Maybe I will right before I leave for the last time.

Taking a seat on the couch I found Hermione on, I look around and wonder if there was ever a time when this house was full of laughter and love. That's when it hits me. When we were all together here, all the Weasleys, Sirius, Hermione, and me, that's when this place was alive. We were the family that this house had been waiting for. It's too bad that we never had the chance to clean this place up and make it a real home again. But, just like my life, this house went through a long period of darkness before it was filled with the love of a family. And just like my life, it was all taken away far too soon. Now, for a short amount of time, we are both getting to experience what it feels to be alive again.

Looking around the room, I can't help but talk to the old house. "Soon we'll both be able to rest again. For me it will mean the grave and maybe seeing Ginny again, but what for you?"

Now I know that magic is sort of the catch all for the things that happen around me, but when the fireplace suddenly lights, that's a sign. If I had to guess, I would say that Grimmauld Place is just as tired as I am. I think when I'm gone, it's going to go as well. I better make sure Hermione isn't here when that happens.

Hermione…

Now there's a problem with no quick and easy solution. Hermione is one of my best mates, but she's a complete mess right now. My death really messed with her head. All the confidence that she once had is pretty much gone now, replaced with fear and doubt. That's the reason why she and Ron couldn't find the Horcruxes. It wasn't because they lacked the pieces to the puzzle. No, it was because they were too afraid to take the risks required. I can't say I really blame them after what happened to me. Still, I don't want Hermione to feel she like she failed me, because she didn't. No one failed me. Life just isn't fair sometimes and no one is to blame for that.

Well… that's not exactly true. My life was like a train wreck that started when I was a year old and lasted for sixteen years. The man who set that in motion is still out there terrorizing other people. Voldemort has ruined lots lives, just like he ruined mine. That's the real reason I'm back, to make sure that he gets the measure of Justice that he's been avoiding for far too long. He should have gone to Hell seventeen years ago, but he managed to avoid it. Now, with my return, his time is running out just like mine is. In the end, neither of us can survive while the other lives.

You know, if you think about it, I really wasn't his equal until I died and came back, just like he did. Yeah, he marked me, but I think the second time was the one that really counted. Now I'm back, just like him, and I've got a power he can't possibly know, or understand. I mean, really, I don't even understand what it means to be the Avatar of Death and Justice, so how could he possibly understand it. Hell, he's been running away from death since the day he was old enough to know what death was. So there you go, prophecy explained and ready to be fulfilled. Only thing is, I'm not going to live once he's gone, so that last part it bollocks.

Harry. While Hermione is sleeping, we're needed somewhere.

"We've got all the Horcruxes save Nagini, so I'm guessing this has to do with someone else on our list of naughty children?" I ask, standing up and stretching.

Oh yes, this one is most definitely on our list.

I walk over and pickup my things from where I dumped them the night before, then turn around and ask, "Are you going to tell me who we're going after this time?"

I'm going to let it be a surprise.

A moment later and we are standing in front of one of the last houses I thought I would ever see again. It took me a moment to overcome the shock at being there, but I managed it. As a small child I had nightmares about this place and the monsters within. I still carried the scars of the numerous battles and attacks that had been fought and lost here. It was, needless to say, one of my least favorite places in the world.

"You brought me to my Aunt Marge's house?" I finally asked, looking up at the Crow on my shoulder. "So, what, this means I get to show her a little justice?"

No, though she is deserving of it, replied the Crow. Turn around and look across the street.

Still a little shocked to be seeing Aunt Marge's dump again, I turned around and for the second time in one morning thought I must be dreaming, or at least having a nightmare. Directly across from Marge's house, in what I had always thought was a very large vacant lot, stood the ugliest and nastiest looking house I had ever seen. If Grimmauld Place was a rundown mess, this place was Hell on Earth.

"What's the saying?" I asked the Crow. "If I owned this place and Hell, I'd rent out this place and live in Hell?"

That about sums it up perfectly.

"So, who lives here?"

Walking towards the gate that surrounded the property, I looked up at the large three story house and wondered what type of person could let a house fall this far into disrepair. Of course, that got me to thinking about my thoughts about Grimmauld Place. Evidently being dead makes you think of things like this, the aspects of being alive. I mean, when you are alive you surround yourself with memories of your life. Seeing places like this and Grimmauld place, as opposed to places like the Burrow, just made me realize how much life the living really wasted.

Oh, the owner of this charming little honeymoon bungalow is someone you've been wanting to talk to for quite some time, Harry.

"Spit it out already!" I demanded, already sick of all the cryptic crap.

Bellatrix Lestrange.

That's all it took. No more angst ridden thoughts about old houses. No more weighty contemplation about the meaning of life. No, now it was all about getting that bitch's throat in my hand so I could inflict as much fucking pain as possible without killing her. You might be surprised that I didn't want her dead, but like Dumbledore said once, "there are far worse things than death."

"I just happen to be one of them," I thought as the Crow flew off and I leapt over the gate.

What are you going to do to her, Harry?

"Oh, I'm sure I think of some way to make her outside match her inside."

The night I was killed, Bellatrix was the one that captured Ginny. It was Bellatrix that tortured me and Ginny until we couldn't fight back anymore. And it was Bellatrix that made sure that as the others raped and abused Ginny, that not only could she not fight back, but that I was forced to watch it all. I couldn't even pass out from the pain because Bellatrix wouldn't let me. So, listening to her little baby voice as she taunted me while making suggestions to the others, Bellatrix was the one that truly earned my wrath that night.

The moment the Crow told me who was inside this shack, I knew what I was going to do. It was mean, it was cruel, and it was perfect. Bellatrix had facilitated the rape and murder of the woman that I love and now she was going to get her just reward. Normally, as if my life could actually be considered normal, I would have just killed her. However, what I had in mind for Bellatrix was going to be far worse than merely killing her.

"Oh, yeah, she's going to pay for her crimes," I thought as I approached the front of the house.

Drawing the Elder Wand from its hiding place in my sleeve, I cast a few spells to make sure we wouldn't be disturbed. It wouldn't do for someone to stumble in on us while I was "talking" with dear Bella. No, I wanted plenty of time to be alone with the woman that had caused me so much heartache. She was responsible for the death of Sirius and then Ginny. Oh yes, I wanted there to be no interruptions.

It didn't take much to get past the wards around the outside of the house. As the Avatar of Death and Justice, I don't really qualify as a Wizard or a Muggle, so wards created to keep them out were useless against me. A few little transfigurations to turn a stone into a ladder and a blade of grass into a knife was all it took to climb up to a second story window and pry the window open. Just like that I was inside.

Ok, there are a few things in life that I NEVER want to think about. One of those things is Bellatrix Lestrange having sex. Unfortunately for me, the second door I opened was the door to the master suite. Now, I've seen some strange things in my life, but the sight of Bellatrix Lestrange in a Muggle schoolgirl outfit takes the cake. I mean really, white knee socks, Mary Janes, and pigtails are not a look I ever would have expected to see Bellatrix Lestrange wearing. Add to that the fact that her partner, maybe her husband and maybe not, was dressed exactly like Albus Dumbledore, and I was really grateful that I didn't need to eat anymore.

"I've been a naughty little girl, Professor!" screamed Bellatrix as the Dumbledore impersonator smacked her bare bottom with what looked like a wooden version of Gryfindor's sword. "You should punish me! I need to be punished!"

"Remember, little girl," said the man in a perfect imitation of Dumbledore's voice, "it's not about doing what's easy, but about doing what's really HARD!"

"OH HELL NO!" I shouted just as the look alike decided his wooden sword was not the only thing he needed to use on Bellatrix. "Stupefy! Stupefy!"

I watched as the two bodies hit the ground and wondered how exactly I was going to get that image out of my head. Seriously, I would rather have one of my visions of Voldemort than have to remember THAT sight. Walking over I kicked the guy in the stomach a few times, payback for looking like Dumbledore and for putting that image in my head. As for Bella, I reached down and pulled her skirt down so I didn't have to look at… well… THAT anymore. My mistake was forgetting what touching Bellatrix was going to trigger.

In a flash of memories so vile that I doubt even the darkest of souls could handle it, I saw that night through her eyes. I watched as she cursed Ginny, freezing her in place so her fellow Death Eaters could take their turns with the woman I love. I felt her getting excited as she listened to Ginny and me screaming and crying. Hell, I even knew that she had wanted a go at me before Voldemort killed me, but had held back for fear the others would take advantage of her. That's the sickest part of her memories, that Bellatrix's deepest and darkest fear was that of being raped by her fellow Death Eaters. Sure, playing games in a controlled environment like her own home was fine, but the thought of her fellow Death Eaters turning against her and raping her was a nightmare that had played out repeatedly in her mind since she joined Voldemort's forces. Yet even with that thought in her mind that night, she had helped them to rape Ginny.

"She's got to pay," I growled, grabbing hold of and dragging Bellatrix and her friend from the room. "She let them do to Ginny what she herself feared. She has to pay for that."

And she will, one way or another.

Looking over my shoulder I saw that the Crow had landed on Bellatrix's foot. I swear from the way the bird was trembling, it was laughing at how uncomfortable I was at the moment. I also noticed that the Dumbledore clone had changed his appearance. Imagine my surprise when the glamour fell away and the image of Albus Dumbledore was replaced with that of Stan Shunpike. Now I had gone head to head with the Minister of Magic to get this guy released from jail, and even after he attacked me a few days before my death I still thought he was just under the Imprius curse. Yet for all that, here he was shagging Bellatrix Lestrange?

"And I thought my life was a mess," I sighed, dropping Stan to the floor and pulling Bellatrix a bit further way. "I mean, I had no control over most of my life, but you chose this? What's up with that?"

Stunning Bellatrix twice more to make sure she didn't wake up any time soon I left her by the front door, turned back around, and stepped over to where I had left Stan's unconscious body. Part of me hoped he really was under the Imperious curse, but there are only so many times someone can be connected to the Death Eaters before you just have to wonder if they really are what everyone else says they are. Kneeling down next to him I lifted up the sleeve of his right arm and sure enough, clear as day, there was the Dark Mark.

I've never bought that whole, "Voldemort forced me to do it," argument. As far as I'm concerned, if you wear the mark, you are His slave. That being the case, I cast a few charms and soon had Stan tied up on the floor. I'm not sure what I wanted to do with him, but for wearing the Mark he had some questions to answer.

"Rennervatei!" I bellowed with a flick of the Elder Wand.

"W-wuh?" Stand mumbled as his eyes blinked several times, before looking around and then up at me with a sneer. "Do you have any idea what you've done? You've signed your death warrant."

"Oh, I wouldn't go that far, Stanley," I laughed, crouching down on the ground in front of him so I could look him right in the eyes. "I will say though, I'm really impressed with your lack of an accent. Last time I saw you it was so thick you could have cut it with a knife."

"Sorry, Guvnor," drawled Stanley, his eyes taking on a dull appearance before clearing and taking on a cruel gleam. "What better way to pick up information than posing as an uneducated buffoon. I'll have you know I graduated from Hogwarts at the top of my year before attending Oxford."

"Pull the other one, Stanley," I scoffed. "You're only a few years younger than me and I know you were working on that fucking bus before Voldemort's return."

"You dare say the Dark Lord's name!" screamed Stanley. "He'll…"

"He'll what?" I cut him off. "He'll kill me again? Been there and done that, it was actually quite refreshing."

"Who are you?" whispered Stan, trying to see past the pasty white skin and black lines. I knew the moment he figured it out, the moment he saw the blood red scar on my forehead. "Oh, bugger me."

"Nope, sorry Stanley my boy, but you're not my type," was my witty reply as I stood back up. "I guess it's safe to say you took that mark willingly, no matter what your bullshit story is, right?"

"Fine," grunted Stanley. "So I didn't graduate at the top of my Hogwarts class or go to Oxford, but I am truly gifted with the Imperio curse. A little acting to make myself look like a fool and I ended up working on the Knight Bus, robbing the rabble for all they were worth. I got the idea from Gilderoy Lockhart. I can't cast a memory charm to save my life, but I could make old women change their wills to make me the sole recipient of their estates."

"Let me get this straight," I said quietly, feeling my temper start to boil. "You swindled old ladies out of their estates by using the Imperio to force them to give it to you?"

Stanley shrugged saying, "Yeah, basically. It's not like they needed it after they were dead. And if someone just happened to knock them off a little early, like Bella once she got out of Azkaban, well so much the better for me."

"And the Bellatrix thing?" I asked with a shudder, remember what I had walked in on.

Stanley just shrugged, replying, "Well, she thinks I'm harmless and I think she's hot. As long as I let her set the rules, I get to play all I want. Now where's the harm in that?"

"Stan, may I call you that?" I asked, not caring what his answer was going to be. "You're a sick fuck. I actually fought with the Minister of Magic to get you out of jail and now it turns out that you're a con man that takes advantage of people. Top it off, you then arrange for them to be killed so you can benefit from the misery of their families. Suddenly, I don't feel so guilty about what I'm going to do to you. IMPERIO!"

An hour later, a command to write down nothing but the truth, three more stunners for Bellatrix, and a pile of parchment the size of a horse, Stanley Shunpike had divulged the names of all the people he had swindled. One last command to him, compelling him to take all of his confessions to the goblins, and he was on his way to his own version of justice. Oh, did I mention the tattoo of a crow that I permanently placed on his forehead?

Once Stan was merrily on his way, it was time to deal with Bellatrix. For my plan to work, no one could ever come looking for her. This was easily solved by transfiguring a stick from the front yard into a perfect copy of her. I can't take all the credit for the idea as the Crow and the Elder Wand made it all possible, but it was my idea. With Bellatrix's body double safely tucked in her bed, it was time to set my plan in motion. All I had to do was carry Bellatrix outside and across the street to Marge's house. I cast a Notice-Me-Not charm on her before heading back across the street.

Once again I got a lot of suggestions from my avian friend which allowed me to fine tune my plans. You see, Aunt Marge likes to take the meanest of her bitches and breed them until the poor dog can't give birth anymore. Well Bellatrix is definitely the meanest bitch I know, so it seems like a perfect fit to me. All it would take were a few permanent transfigurations, a slight memory modification, and a compulsion charm for dear old Aunt Marge, and Bella would spend the next twenty or so years as Marge's brand new breeding phenomenon.

Dragging Bellatrix around to the kennels I looked in the window of her house and saw my dear auntie passed out in her favorite chair. Ripper, her pride and joy, was asleep at her side. Knowing them both, she was probably passed out from too much brandy and Ripper had finished his fair share as well. That would work out perfectly. In fact, it was going to work out even better than that.

Finding an empty cage, I dragged Bellatrix inside and began stripping her. Being a guy I could appreciate the sight of an attractive woman. Too bad for Bellatrix, but no matter how incredible her body might be, her soul was dark enough to make her ugly no matter how she looked. Add to that the memories of what happened to Ginny and I just couldn't enjoy her nakedness. Although, I was surprised that she had Sirius' name tattooed on her left breast with a heart around it. Talk about being just plain wrong.

"I knew she was messed up, but that is just sick," I muttered to myself before pointing my wand at her. "Petrificus Totalus!"

A little known fact about the Full Body Bind curse is that once the person is frozen in place, you can pose them any way you want. It didn't take me long to have her on all fours with her head looking up at me, so she would see me the moment she woke up. Then, transfiguring her clothes into a collar similar to the ones Aunt Marge put on all her dogs, I fastened it around her throat with a brand new tag declaring her name as, "Bella."

"Yep," I said, laughing at the sight before me. "You are in for one heck of a treat, little baby Bella. Rennervate!"

Okay, so in my life there are a few things I consider as special memories. The first was seeing Hogwarts for the first time. The second was becoming friends with Ron and Hermione. The third was getting my first broom. The fourth was finding out Sirius was my Godfather. The fifth was kissing Ginny for the first time. And now, after everything I've seen and done, the sixth was watching Bellatrix Lestrange open her eyes, recognize me, figure out she was in deep shit, and then piss herself. What can I say, it's the simple things in life that really bring joy my life.

"It's so good to see you again, Bella," I said with a smile. "I've really missed seeing you and now, to see you like this, just fills my heart with joy. I mean, it's not very often you get to spend time with someone so intimately involved with the way your life turned out."

Yep, she was scared now. Not being able to speak or move was really messing with her head. I could see it in her eyes, the absolute terror that had filled her mind. If she wasn't insane before, she was now. She was struggling so hard to get free from the body bind that her body was actually starting to vibrate. Considering what I had in mind for her, I couldn't let her break free, so I was going to have to cut our reunion short.

"Let's forget the small talk, Bella," I continued, stepping back and pointing the Elder Wand at her face. "I'm not going to kill you, even though that's exactly what you deserve for everything you've done. No, I'm going to do something much worse to you. See, this is my Aunt Marge's dog kennel where she breeds English Bulldogs. I'm going to help her out a bit by giving her a new breeding female, you. You're going to spend the rest of your life being shagged by every one of her males, but you will never deliver a single litter."

Tears were now pouring from her eyes and I could hear low moans coming from her sealed mouth. "I'll put a little memory modification on my dear aunt so she doesn't remember breeding you the day before. That way, each day, she's going to let her dogs at you."

More moans from the human statue along with even stranger vibrations told me that Bellatrix was at her wits' end. Kneeling down in front of her, I released her mouth from the spell. I really wanted to hear what was going through her head right now.

"You're a dead man, Potter!" she screamed at me the moment she could open her lips.

"You know, I keep telling people I've already done that, but no one seems to believe me," was my calm reply. "I mean, you were there when your master stuck the knife in my chest, so you have to know I'm not really worried about that anymore."

Something seemed to click in her mind at that moment and she looked at me with understanding in her eyes. "It was you that killed the others! You killed Wormtail, MacNair, and Greyback?"

"Now, Bella," I scolded, in the most irritating tone I could manage. "Let's not forget Umbridge. She wouldn't like it if you forgot her."

"H-how?" she stammered.

"How did I kill them?" I asked, seeing her nod her head in clarification. "I think you know that, Bella. I staked Wormtail to a building, fed Umbridge to a few wild tigers, chopped MacNair up like a side of beef, and castrated Greyback after feeding him his own legs. What can I say, it's been a busy week. And now, I'm going to deal with you, only I'm not going to kill you. I'm going to make your worst fear, the fear of being raped, come true."

"You haven't got the balls for it, Potter," spat Bellatrix, but you could see in her eyes that she was no longer so sure of that.

"Are you serious?" I asked, surprised by what she had just said. "After everything I've done, you still don't get it, do you? This isn't revenge, Bella. This is Justice!"

"P-please!" she sobbed, finally realizing this was not going to end well for her, looking at me through her tears. "Please don't! I'll do anything, Potter! Don't do this to me, I beg you!"

"Funny," I hissed, looking right in her eyes as I pointed my wand right between her eyes. "I seem to remember that being exactly what Ginny said to you right before you let the first of your friends rape her."

I didn't let her say anything else. It took about ten minutes to finish all the spells I had in mind. There was of course the spell to change her into a dog, but that was fairly easy. Then there was the spell to make the change permanent. Another spell would prevent her from being able to communicate in any way shape or form with another human being. A series of spells would prevent her from killing herself, or even doing serious injury to herself. Oh, don't forget the spell to hide her magical signature from anyone that might come looking for her. Finally there was the spell to make sure she would never conceive with any of Aunt Marge's dogs, but be in heat continually. I wouldn't have been able to forgive myself if some poor puppy had been forced to have her as a mother.

Once Bellatrix was safely tucked away in her new cage, I removed the Full Body Bind and locked her cage behind me. It did my heart good to hear her start whining and howling as I walked away. I know she wanted to get my attention, but it wasn't going to happen. Instead I made my way inside to quickly modify Marge's memories. By the time I was done she was convinced that "Bella" was her best breeder, ensuring that Bellatrix was going to be punished for a very long time, just like she had asked for from Stanley.

"Irony is a bitch," I chuckled as I walked out of the house.

A quick spell cast across the street at Bella's house had it burning away happily as I walked down the street. Later someone would probably come looking for Bellatrix and find her "body," or what was left of it, dead in her bed. Further investigation would probably notice the fact that the area around the house also burnt in the shape of a gigantic crow, thus tying it to me. What they would never find would be a female English Bulldog in the kennel across the street being repeatedly mounted by numerous dogs, day in and day out, for some years to come. Maybe if they had they would have wondered why it looked like the poor dog was crying, or why her dog tag was in the shape of a crow. Then again, no one really cares what happens to dogs, so no one ever did notice either of those things.

As soon as I arrived back at Grimmauld Place, Hermione came running downstairs and wrapped her arms around me. She had been crying. From what I could make out between sobs and sniffles, she had woken up while I was gone and been unable to find me. Thinking I was gone again, she had freaked out. I guess I couldn't really blame her, but I did realize that I was going to have to do something about her before I left or she was not going to survive my second "death."

"I'm here now, Hermione," I whispered in her ear, hugging her tightly. "I'm here now and I will make it all better."

"Somehow," I thought as she continued to cry.

Author's Note:

No, I do not believe that rape is acceptable under any circumstance. However, in the context of this story and the whole "eye for an eye" mentality that goes along with the Crow series, it was fitting.

i Spell used to revive a person who has been hit by a Stunner.

This spell has been officially renamed by JKR from its original name. Some versions list this spell as "Enervate," which changes the etymology quite a bit. In fact, if the word was really Enervate, the Latin origins would have exactly the opposite meaning from what it meant as Ennervate.