Author note:

Raven: Harry

Blade: Blade

ONE WAY OR ANOTHER

-CHAPTER FOUR-

BETA: Tammy

INFO: www. livejournal. com /users/draycious

They had both sat in a peaceful silence after Malfoy had left them in that odd kind of way. Soon enough though, the train stopped and Blade was the first one to break the silence.

"Look! Ron and Hermione are still looking for you!" said Blade and Raven saw the duo run around and asking people from his previous DA group if they had seen him.

"Let them work up a sweat before you tell them that I'm here, alright? Personally, I'm going to the castle," said Raven.

"Yo! I'm coming with you. I'm no professor yet so I don't give a shit if the students are worried," said Blade and walked beside him. Together they took down their trunks and made their way out of the train. At times it was difficult because the train was so crowded with a lot of confused young wizards and witches who tried to get all their things off the train in one go.

"I think you'll be a horrible teacher due to your lack of interest in the students," Raven stated.

"I wouldn't be a teacher in the first place if it wasn't for you. Besides, I've only got interest in you," Blade replied.

"Thanks," said Raven with a roll of his eyes. He wasn't sure if that kind of interest was a good thing. He was sure Blade would make his life difficult in some way or another.

"You're welcome." The odd gorgeous pair that always teased each other seemed to glide up to the carriages and waited to take the first one available.

"So those were the ones that you rode on to the Ministry?" Blade asked him in a low voice when he saw the Thesterals that stood ready to move the carriages.

"Yes," Raven tried to say but it came out as a low whisper. He gazed at the death-horses with darkened eyes; flashes of Sirius and the veil came unbidden behind his eyes.

"It's alright," Blade hurried to assure him when he recognized that Raven was thinking back to Sirius and the moment with the veil in the Ministry.

"Yeah... right," he said in a hollow voice void of emotions. Raven knew that his face was perfectly blank; all of him was lack of emotions like that of a body that's left after the Dementors kiss.

"Get a grip on yourself and be strong!" said Blade in quite a harshly hissed voice but it did the trick. Raven snapped back to normal, well, as normal as could be considered.

"Thanks. It happens every time you know. Every time that I think of him," he said in a low voice, guilty and pain-filled thoughts still fresh in his mind.

"I know, but not always. You've gotten better but you still have a long way to go before you can move on completely," said Blade in for once, a serious voice. He understood the meaning of loosing someone in an unexpected way, without warning. The shock usually didn't leave the body, least of all the mind, until way later. That didn't mean an expected death hurt any less though, because no death was ever easy on those left behind.

"Yeah. I know..." said Raven pensively and was lost in his own world while they took the short ride up to the castle. Blade watchfully left him alone with his thoughts.

Raven and Blade walked into the Great hall together, to join the opening feast of the new term.

"I'm going to say hello to Albus. I have to sit with him and the other teachers, you know." Blade said and Raven thought he sounded rather unenthusiastic about going up to the staff table.

"I guess that I'll see you tomorrow then. Do I have you for tomorrow?" Raven asked. He knew Blade had been owled about the details of his new job.

"I honestly don't know about that. I guess we'll just have to wait and see."

"Wait and see, yeah. See yah!" said Raven in a far away voice when he walked over to the Gryffindor table. Raven waited patiently while the first years were sorted. He didn't see Ron or Hermione but before Dumbledore spoke his last couple of words for the day he was interrupted.

"YOU!" Raven looked up when he heard his friend Ron's voice yell at some one. It took a while before he understood that Ron had in fact been yelling out to him. Ron was walking very quickly towards the table, and was glaring right at him, with what Ron must have supposed to be a threatening look, though really it only made him look decidedly cross-eyed and ill.

"Who, me?" Raven asked.

"Yeah you! Who do you think you are? Do you think that you are better than everyone else? You were socializing with Malfoy! And you are sitting in my chair! And at the Gryffindor table! What are you doing here? Go to the Slytherin table where you belong you filthy death eater!" Ron yelled. He was making a scene and Raven didn't like it one bit. Every table was looking at them and whispering among themselves. Malfoy however was looking mildly surprised and watched with an air of coolness around him. He seemed almost indifferent to what was happening.

"Is there something wrong? What did I ever do to you?" Raven answered calmly.

"You were rude to my sister!"

"I was? I can't seem to recall... Why do you think I was rude? Because I said thank you when she told me ' welcome to Hogwarts'?"

"No! When you said 'you should' to her in that rude way when she said that she recognized you. And Harry's not on the train and that fellow of yours said something to his relatives so they left in a hurry. Harry wasn't on the train so what did you do to him?" By now Dean and Seamus was holding Ron back from attacking.

Raven smiled nastily... Ron was in for a big surprise.