Summary: (Harry Potter / Hetalia Axis Powers Crossover) England decides to teach at Hogwarts to keep an eye on the Boy Who Lived. But the famous Trio (Harry, Ron, Hermione) are becoming suspicious of their new professor... Can England keep his status as a country a secret? And what does Voldemort want with him?

Disclaimer: Harry Potter was created by J.K. Rowling. Hetalia Axis Powers was created by Hidekaz Himaruya. Harry Potter and Hetalia belong to their rightful owners. I do not own either.

/

Harry

"Why did you question him about his family in the first place, Hermione? Kirkland, I mean." Ron questioned as they walked down to the Gryffindor common room at the conclusion of the day. This had been the first, private chance they had had to discuss the chat they had shared with Kirkland during lunch.

Hermione feet kept moving purposefully. "I'm not entirely sure what compelled me. Truthfully, I was just curious at first. I hadn't forgotten that over-blown howler he received, and I thought it was strange that Kirkland would have an American brother... Now, after hearing him talk about his family, all this makes even less sense, and the story he gave us can't be true. How can anyone that young have that many younger and older siblings? Even if some have been adopted? And some of those names he said... sound a little foreign."

"Personally, I'm glad you asked him about that, Hermione," cut in Harry excitedly. "I think we may be able to get some valuable enlightenment from what he said."

"But everything he said just didn't add up," Hermione protested.

Nodding his head in a jerk, Harry explained. "Yea, but it got me to thinking... what if his siblings are like him? Long-lived, I mean."

The curly-haired girl moved her feet a bit unsteadily, her face uncertain. "I feel like... that's just is a little too hard to grasp. It's difficult enough to even think that Kirkland alone may be that old; how can we believe that there's multiple people who somehow can live that old as well, either by the use Dark Magic or some other method? I can accept that one man could go through life without aging and not draw too much attention, but more than one? Wizards would have noticed that." she argued.

"He probably just has a big family. It's not that uncommon to have a larger family with a lot of brothers and sisters; just look at mine. We're probably making a big deal out of nothing," stepped in Ron.

Harry sighed. He didn't know what to think. Part of him was excited about the prospect of people living endlessly... whether or not it was brought upon by black magic, as he, Hermione, and Ron suspected was the case for Kirkland. However, he was forced to relent and admit to himself that Ron was likely the one who was right.

Either way, he wasn't going to abandon these thoughts permanently. It could very well be that Ron was wrong, and that something was truly unnatural and mysterious with Kirkland's curious family.

England

Brandee's purrs filled the air in England's office as he slowly petted and rubbed the small animal's soft back.

England had not been prepared to speak on the subject of family. That had taken him by surprise. Rarely in his extended life had a human being asked him such a question, and when they did, he could usually come up with an excuse to smoothly avoid the enquiries. How did you explain such a complex "family" in terms that normal people would understand and relate with, and then pass it off as an everyday, regular family unit? If England had known that the Granger girl would ask such a thing, he would have been able to come up with an ordinary and believable cover-story before-hand and avoid all chance of arousing suspicion.

It would probably have for the better if England had never invited Potter and his friends into his office in the first place. His motives for it had mostly encompassed the ever-growing loneliness England was feeling as he was being forced to distance himself from his students and deal with his problems with You-know-who by himself at the same time. It was times like these that he missed his brothers... as much as they irked him. During He-who-must-not-be-named's first rise to power, they had all been there for each other when things got rough, supporting each other and offering distraction from the ever-growing horror of You-know-who's threat to their stability. Another reason for his conversation with the three Gryffindors had been that those three had been... acting more cold around England lately. Because of this, England had decided for himself that he needed to spend more time with them... especially Potter. Building up trust with Potter was essential. England had been confident that they wouldn't notice anything amiss with his office's space, including his nigh-invisible portal for letter-carrying, but it hadn't crossed his mind that talking with them would pose a risk to his identity as a nation. England feared that he had let too much information leave his lips. Even the slightest hint could pose a major security issue, especially considering how bright Granger was.

England sighed and rubbed his forehead. He would have to think of these things later. Right now he had to get ready for a class. It would not do well for him to appear tense in front of his students.

Giving Brandee one final pat, England stood and left his office, grabbing his coat and slipping his arms through the sleeves as he did so.

/

"Just think about it, Minerva," urged Flitwick excitedly. "It would really enhance the student's cultural Halloween experience!"

England was with Flitwick and McGonagall in the staff room. The three Professors were the only ones present in the room, and at the moment they were discussing the rapidly approaching Halloween dance.

"Filius..." started McGonagall tiredly. "I know it was your idea in the first place to have this dance... but having the children dress up for it... I just don't think-"

"Why not, Minerva?" challenged Flitwick, still enthusiastic. "I know the students don't have any costumes, but we can always provide for them or some of the more advanced students can try their luck with conjuring up their own costumes. It would be good practice for transfiguration... and it would exercise the creative juices in their youthful minds!"

Minerva sighed and turned to Kirkland. "What do you think, Arthur?" she said, accepting any advice he could offer her. "I'm just worried that some students might have a bad reaction to this idea... especially the Slytherins. After all, it's primarily a Muggle tradition..."

"I wouldn't worry too much about that," England reassured. "To be honest, most wizards don't know a blooming thing about the muggle world, and those that do are mostly muggle-borns, who should be fine with it. How can anyone be offended if they don't even know where the tradition originates? If some people DO happen to know about the custom's non-magical origins, and disapprove of participating, they can simply decline to wear a costume, no harm done. What could they possibly do to protest? The most important thing is that the children have fun."

From the content look on her sagacious face, Minerva looked like her mind was at ease after hearing England's words. "You're right, of course, Arthur. I suppose it would be fun. Very well, Filius, let's let them truly get into the festivities of Hallowe'en."

"Its settled then. I'll see about getting spare costumes for the students to use if they so desire, and the heads of the houses can notify them and spread the word." England said to his fellow Professors.

Hallowe'en was finally here.

For the most part, England had spent his days leading up to the ancient and hallowed holiday by continuing to teach lessons to his assigned classes and finding costumes for the Halloween dance that Flitwick had planned. Most of the costumes he ordered with the school's salary, but some he sewed by hand. England knew very well that by the end of the night, a lot of the costumes would probably look like complete rubbish, but he didn't mind. As long as the students had fun this Hallowe'en, that was all that counted in the end.

He put on his own costume, a garb of pirates clothing, specifically intended for the captain of a ship. England felt a peculiar bit of reminiscence as he clothed himself in the traditional pirate-captain garb, some of which he had recently made for himself for the occasion, but other pieces, such as his hat, were antique and had been a part of his wardrobe during his buccaneer days. As England dressed, flashes of memory erupted in the back of his mind...

The man cowered on the ground, an arm raised to deflect a blow. Despite his grovelling body language, his mocking expression of a smirk and the rebellious, defiant glint in his green eyes spoke otherwise. The man's elegantly coloured brown hair was unkempt, but as handsome as ever. The man's face was striking, with a suave smile and care-free, playful green eyes that most women would find absolutely gorgeous. His skin was tanned into a pleasant looking shade that was easy on the eyes, and the torn and blood-stained clothing he wore identified him as the ship's Captain. When he opened his mouth, the accent in his voice revealed him to be Spanish.

"Are you going to kill me, Arthur?" the man taunted, knowing he was defeated but still as droll and cheerful as ever. Arthur scowled. Sometimes he wondered how this man could stay so happy in the worst of times... In this way, he envied him...

"You and I both know that no matter how much I wanted too or how hard I tried, I could never kill you, Antonio," sneered Arthur, his bearing proud in the knowledge that he had once again conquered the Spanish pirate, whom was one of his greatest rivals.

Antonio smiled wider, licking some blood away from his lips. "You fought well, Arthur, I'll admit that. You've defeated my Armada, and your Queen will be proud, I'm sure... But don't get it in your head that you're invincible. Even the greatest eventually fall..."

"I know that," snapped Arthur, but then his tense face un-winded, revealing a calm and serene continence. "But I beat you pretty good, didn't I old friend?"

The Spaniard laughed, a short barking laugh of amusement, but in the same moment his face suddenly became harsh and shrewd. "¿Qué? ¿Nostros? ¿Amigos? ¿Estás loco? We're hardly old friends, but I'm glad you think of me that way, Senor." he said, chuckling with bright eyes and reverting back to English. His never-failing bright and cheerful nature rubbed England the wrong way, but at the same time, though, England could now see that on the inside Spain was enraged with his great loss, and was simply burying this rage deep inside himself to prevent it from leaking out and revealing itself to Arthur. This knowledge made England feel satisfied. He enjoyed it immensely when his enemies squirmed with either fear or anger...

Antonio frowned, his eyes lowering to the wooden deck of the ship as though he was in deep contemplation. "...And... Sí... you did." he continued reluctantly. "Just this once. You won't let it go to your head, verdad?! Un dia..." He drifted off, panting a bit, his eyes bright eyes dimming a bit and fluttering closed.

England stood on the conquered ship, a lone figure that stood out against the sea's horizon, staring down at the enemy he had been fighting so long. Though fate had pitted the two nations against each other, England grudgingly felt a sense of respect for the Spaniard, and vice-versa. But today... England had proven himself the better pirate.

Lowering his sword which he had had leveled at Spain earlier, Arthur raised his head and let out a cackling crow of glee. His laughter was so intense... it almost seemed maniacal. His crew stood with alarm behind him, having escaped his notice during the confrontation with Antonio. England didn't care if they thought he was mad... his mind was completely absorbed and blinded by what he had just accomplished... The victory tasted sweet on his tongue...

With a sudden jolt England found himself in the present again. He could not remember the last time he had thought of that day, which felt like it had happened not so very long ago... and yet it had occurred hundreds of years ago.

The last component of his ensemble was the original hat that he had used when captaining his own ship. He held the hat fondly, stroking the plumes of white feathers adorning its top that were old and withered, but somehow were just as vibrant and attention-catching as ever. With a sense of finality England placed it on his head, where it rested over his short and wild blond hair and completed his transformation. Critically, Britain surveyed himself in the mirror, his eyes brushing over brown breeches, hard black boots, and the bright red coat. The only thing that was missing was the golden-hoop earrings and the eye-patch he had sported back when he had been a buccaneer. Inwardly, England shivered. It had been a long time since he had dressed in such a way... it felt exhilarating and frightening at the same time to have his body clothed in such familiar attire again. Ah, if only the good old days had never ended... when he was free to sail from place to place, plundering on a whim... free to follow his own wishes and impulses like any normal human... A part of whim brooded over the loss of those days on the sea...

He quickly shook himself out of these thoughts. It was just a costume, and he was supposed to be having fun this Hallowe'en night. Grinning from ear to ear, England left the office, with Brandee squeezing past the door before it closed scurrying out after him.

England picked up the kitten and cradled it to his chest. "Are you coming too, little one?" he said, and without waiting for a reply he ambled to the Great Hall, his blood red cloak swaying with his step's smooth motion.

The decorations from the traditional Halloween Feast that had been held earlier in the day were still up. Pumpkins carved with hideous faces were enchanted to glow eerily green and to float high above the floor, close to the bewitched ceiling which reflected the dark night sky. Candles had been placed in every available place that could be spared without causing too much of a fire-hazard, and bats hung on every on-occupied place, shrieking when a student got too close and flying away with a flutter of powerful wings. The house and staff tables had been moved out of the hall, replaced with a few small round tables scattered throughout the space and a dais where the staff-table had once been. Near the front doors were an array of wooden chests that were propped open. In each chest was various articles of clothing and costumes for the students to pick up if they so wished.

A substantial amount of students had already amassed in the hall, snatching up some Halloween-themed pastries from the floating trays that patrolled the space, but it was still early and everyone wasn't here yet. As the time drew closer to a half-hour after six, more and more students shuffled into the hall, and a surprising amount of them snatched a costume up from the trunks at the front doors or had previously used transfiguration to temporarily distort their physical characteristics. England jumped when he saw that the Weasley brothers and their close friend Lee Jordan had transfigured and charmed their faces so that every few seconds their eyes would glow red and long sabre-tooth fangs would pop out of the top of their jaws, hanging over their bottom lip for a moment before retracting back into their skulls. More teachers were here now as well, and England spied Minerva with the other Heads of Houses, wandering and making their rounds around the hall to ensure that everyone was behaving more-or-less appropriately. England also spotted Potter and his friends step through the doors with Ginny Weasley, Longbottom, and a Ravenclaw that England recognised as Miss Lovegood. Even Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle had come, though they had forsaken the costumes.

The lights in the Great Hall dimmed, the candles casting a faint pale orange on the faces of all that were gathered. With a youthful grin, England put down Brandee at his feet, where she looked up at him with large eyes, paws resting on the toes of his boots. Music struck up, and Hogwart's first Hallowe'en party in years officially began.

Harry

Stepping into the Great Hall, the first few things that struck Harry was the chests situated at the entrance overflowing with costumes, the Halloween decorations that had been left behind from the feast, and a flat platform in place of the staff-table.

While living with the Dursley's before coming to Hogwarts Harry, had never celebrated Halloween all that much, and he most certainly had not dressed up and walked from door to door begging for candy like Dudley and his cronies were so fond of doing. Thus, he had felt strange and subconscious when Hermione insisted that he and Ron put something on from the trunks. Harry decided to humour her, and ended up putting on a ridiculous-looking wizard's hat, that when coupled with his dress-robes, made him look like the stereo-typical wizard from muggle fairy-tales. Ron became a leprechaun, and Hermione a vampire, complete with transfigured incisor-teeth and fake blood stains.

Neville, Ginny, and Luna had accompanied them into the Hall, and for the first time Harry got a chance to truly look-over what they had done with their own appearances. Ginny was a fairy, Neville had chalked up his skin to look like a ghoul or ghost, and Luna had created a mask of a bat-head that could move so that it appeared almost life-like.

Ginny laughed clear and joyfully. "We all look absurd, don't we?" she said giddily, gesturing around at everyone. "But still, what a fun thing to do!"

It was to Harry's incredulity that he could pick out many of the Slytherins wearing costumes of their own, with the exception of Malfoy and his cronies. They must not have known that dressing up for Halloween was primarily a muggle practice.

As the lighting began to darken, harsh rock music started to play. It was impossible to tell where it was emanating, and there were no visible speakers. It was though the music was blaring from the very walls.

Wincing, Hermione raised her hands to cover her ears. Ron, Ginny, and Luna had the exact opposite reaction, swaying to the music and in Ron's case letting out loud and pep-filled whoops. Harry flashed a broad grin and began to mimic Ron and many other students, moving to the music and dancing as crazily as possible.

"I think this is the Weird Sister's new single!" bellowed Ron over the music.

While at the Yule Ball, most of the music had been formal and meant for partner-dancing, and Harry and Ron had mostly sat out of the other songs played because of their shared melancholy concerning Cho-Chang and Hermione going to the dance with alternate guys. With this dance, though it had only barely began, Harry felt like he truly had a chance to enjoy himself and to dance away all his troubles.

England

Brandee scampered circles around England's two boot-clad feet, acting not unlike a young and empty-minded puppy who was endlessly trying to chase its tail, and causing England to giggle a bit under his breath at the young animal's antics.

At the moment, England was supposed to be supervising the students to ensure they didn't try anything... out of bounds. He was especially mindful to keep two eyes on the twin Weasley brothers, knowing full well their trouble-making potential.

Hmm... it seemed that Umbridge hadn't decided to show her face. England knew that she wasn't a head-of-house, and therefore had no obligation to come and chaperone, but he still would have thought she would shown up considering she was the Ministry-proclaimed "High Inquisitor" of Hogwarts or some such bollocks. Other members of staff were here even though they weren't required to be present, so what was stopping Dolores? In the end, England concluded that she must not be in the mood for parties or celebration the Hallowe'en spirit.

The hard rock music that England was enjoying came to a close, it's last few notes fading away before being replaced by a softer song, one more suited for partner-dancing.

Out of the blue, England felt a slight and tentative tug on his pirate's cloak. He tilted his head down to see none other than Rose Zeller, timidly looking up at him.

"Hello sir," she said. "It's nice to see you again."

With a blur of motion and fur Brandee bounded forward and attacked Rose's legs with rubbing cuddles and purrs. Rose squealed and giggled in delight, bending down to pat her cat's kitten fondly.

"And you too," she greeted. "I hope you're taking care of Professor Kirkland well," she added, suddenly stern. Brandee's ears dropped to her head, giving the illusion of guilt and bashfullness, and England just about laughed out loud at the comical sight.

"It's good to see you again too, Miss Zeller," returned Kirkland, giving her a little bow and taking off his tri-cornered pirate's hat, resting it against his breast. Rose blushed and curtsied in turn, not accustomed to such formality and kindness. Suddenly, England was struck with an idea.

He reached out a hand, extending it towards the Hufflepuff girl. "Would you grace a poor sea-dog like me with a dance, my lady?" he said, ever the gentleman, and yet, at the same time, his voice had slightly reverted to the accent it had had when he was a privateer. It was a strange combination, with two sides of him clashing and having an unlikely collision.

Rose Zeller giggled and accepted his hand, slipping her own tiny and delicate fingers into his larger and stronger grip. He led her onto the dance floor, and for the entire song they danced, though England had to bend over quite a ways to reach her. All the while Brandee pranced around them, occasionally pouncing on their feet before retreating a ways. When the song was over, Rose thanked England sincerely and while he was still bent over stood on her tip-toes to plant a kiss on his cheek before hastening off to join the other Hufflepuffs.

England smiled and straightened his back. What a sweet girl, he mused to himself. She is a prime example of the reason I need to protect Potter... she's muggle-born, and if Voldemort isn't stopped, children like her will never be safe or live in peace... I can't have such innocence tarnished by living in perpetual fear. He shuddered at these unfriendly thoughts. He was at a school party, he shouldn't be thinking such things at this time...

Another cat slightly brushed up against England's ankles. It was a gray tabby, with fur so light it almost appeared silver, and stripes that were dark. It's eyes were green, and around them were dark circular markings reminiscent of spectacles. Although England had never seen the animal before, part of him felt like they had met before...

This peculiar feeling was explained when the cat suddenly blurred and morphed into a familiar sight: Professor McGonagall.

"Minerva!" said England. "I had no idea you were an animagus!"

"It never came up in conversation," said McGonagall in justification. "Besides," she continued, winking. "I wanted to keep my Halloween costume a secret."

England's eyes dawned with understanding. "Oh," he said in an appreciative tone, his mouth going round. "That's a very clever idea," he complimented.

"I'm glad you think so, thank you," McGonagall said graciously. "And what are you? A dashing scoundrel of a pirate?" she joked, raising an eyebrow.

His eyes twinkled almost mischievously. "Indeed. You guessed right."

"I saw you dancing with Miss Zeller earlier. That was a really generous thing for you to do," McGonagall remarked. "That poor girl is awfully shy, and it's a difficult task for me to get her to participate in class, and her friends are few... She really seems to like you and looks like she's comfortable around you though. However did you manage that?"

England shrugged his shoulders. "I suppose I just tried to be there for her, offering every supportive word and kindness I could."

"You really are good with kids," noted McGonagall respectfully.

"I try my best..."

The dance carried on, with many of the songs played being Halloween-themed. Occasionally England would snatch up a pumpkin pastry from a passing tray to satisfy any hunger, and he often found himself talking to McGonagall, even dancing with her once. A few other students dropped by fleetingly every so often to say hello, including Draco Malfoy, Blaise Zabini, Terry Boot, Hannah Abbot, and the Creevey brothers.

At one point, England lifted up Brandee into his arms and deposited her on his shoulder, where she sat and keenly observed her surroundings with owlish eyes, in awe of how high she was and taking in everything she could. England thought to himself that she looked an awful lot like a pirate's parrot when perched upon his shoulder like that; a strange, wingless, and furry parrot in any case.

England found that he was rather enjoying himself, and an inner part of him revelled in the opportunity to once again be dressed in the captain's clothing of his pirating times. If only things could stay like this forever, without his inner worries ruthlessly and unceasingly plaguing him... where he could just let loose and act like any normal human being.

Harry

How am I going to contact Sirius? It's impossible to relay information to him right now without Umbridge somehow finding out about it... Despite it already being Halloween night, Harry still had no idea of how to solve his predicament with speaking to Sirius. The best he could hope for was that Sirius would understand that it was impossible for them to have a two-way communication, and would have enough faith to keep his mouth shut for just a while longer...

Harry couldn't help but be aware of the many female students swooning and watching Kirkland as he occasionally danced to a few songs that appeared to have struck his fancy.

"Apparently," said Ron to Harry. "Pirate costumes must be girl-magnets."

A little over an hour before the conclusion of the dance, Fred and George sidled up to Harry and his group. Everyone besides Hermione and Ron had gone their separate ways, so it had just been the three of them.

"Hey, you three," hissed Fred excitedly. "Guess what?"

Hermione looked like she'd rather not know, but she asked anyways, not comfortable with being left in the dark.

Warily, George looked around over his shoulder to make sure no one was in hearing range. Every few seconds, large tusks popped out of the top of his mouth, making Ron jump. "...We spiked the drink," he whispered excitedly.

Ron, who had been placidly drinking a goblet of pumpkin juice, immediately spat it out in a thick torrent of mist. Hermione and Harry instinctively jumped back to avoid the spray, and a few people looked over at them.

"Calm down, you, we don't want to draw too much attention," said Fred, slapping a coughing Ron's back. "We only spiked the one cooler, that punch over there," Fred gestured towards the drink he was indicating. It was a bowl of punch sitting atop a table on one of the small round tables off the side. Nothing seemed off about it, but Harry noticed that most people were steering clear of it, save for a few of the older students who greedily drank.

"Now, don't blow your top just yet, Hermione," advised George to a literally steaming Hermione. "Hear us out a bit first. Both of use made sure to spread the word, so that no one will take a sip by accident. I also personally saw to a spell that would repel anyone under the age of sixteen from coming within a few feet of the punch-bowl. See! We're not as irresponsible as we look," explained George, winking.

While Hermione appeared just about ready to explode into a million pieces, Ron looked both excited at the mischief his brother's had worked and disappointed that he wasn't a year older. "What did you spike it with?" he asked yearningly.

"Firewhisky and just some straight alcohol. Too much for you too handle, little brother," chuckled Fred to an infuriated Ron.

"You'll get expelled!" muttered Hermione unhappily, her conscience and her duties as a Prefect clearly pressuring her to stop this. "Precautions or not, this is still wrong!"

Personally, Harry didn't know what to stance to take. It was probably wrong what the twins had done, but at the same time, he found it amusing that the twins would go this far. Where had they even obtained the alcohol? What with Filch and Umbridge doing their best to search people's incoming and outgoing mail, and just about anything entering the school.

Lifting aloft a partially-full glass of the same punch they had just been discussing, Fred simply brushed away Hermione's arguments with a devilish smile. "Let us live a little, Hermione. We didn't tell you all this so you could get all put-out with us. We're teenagers, what else did you expect? Not all of us can be saints like you."

"What if-" Hermione started in a cross voice, not doubt to rain down another tirade of scolding upon the twins, but just then her words seemed to fail her. She moved her head to peer out at something behind the twins, her eyes growing larger at the second. Involuntarily, she let out a little gasp.

"Hmm? What? What is..." Fred and George turned at almost the exact same moment to see what Hermione could have seen, Ron and Harry mimicking their actions in turn.

What Harry saw filled him with a dark feeling of dread and numb astonishment.

Professor Kirkland grabbed a ladle and poured himself a full glass of the punch, chugging it down in only a few deep and thirst-satisfying gulps. As if that wasn't enough for him, once that glass had been emptied, he scooped himself another glass of the spiked-liquid with the ladle, smacking his lips as he did so. Of all the times for a Professor to have a parched throat... and of all the punches or juices he could have chosen to drink...

"...I-it's okay..." stuttered Fred, stumbling over his words. "It's not like anything worse could happen... he may get a bit tipsy b-but..."

The five students anxiously watched the Professor with morbid fascination, waiting to see what would happen. At first, Kirkland seemed perfectly normal, but as the hour wore on his movements became clumsy and his voice more and more slurred. It reached a peak when Kirkland leapt atop a table and screamed at the top of his lungs, "WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO PARTEH!" He awkwardly hopped off the table with his arms spread apart like a bird in flight straight into the crowd. The petrified and stunned students were shell-shocked and didn't know what else to do besides catch him before he slammed into the floor, so that's what they did. Kirkland's cat padded around its owner's legs in bewilderment, mewling as it did so.

"A-Arthur?" McGonagall stared with a hand over her mouth. "What is the meaning of this?! Control yourself or-"

"DANCE WITH ME MINERVA!" came Kirkland's garbled scream from across the room as he blundered in her direction, swooping her up into his arms and swinging her in a circle bridal-style. McGonagall's shrieks were deafening, and it was dawning on a few older students just what had overcome the usually calm and proper Assistant Professor.

McGonagall whacked Kirkland on the chest, though this didn't seem to hinder or bother him in his drunken daze. "I insist, no demand that you put me down this instant Arthur, or so help me God..."

With a snigger Kirkland set her back down on her feet. "M-jussshtt having a tad of fun ma lady, 'tis no reason to-" Kirkland stopped in his tracks, having just lost his trail of thought. "Mayy apologerezes, I fergot wha I wass goin' ter saay," slowly said Kirkland incoherently, chortling as he talked. All the while, Fred and George looked and sounded just about ready to die of a heart-attack.

As they moaned and groaned, Kirkland's behaviour only continued to deteriorate. He stumbled and lurched, jerking forward with wild and blurry green eyes and causing terrified first years to hide behind each other. "THE BLOODY UNITED KINGDOM BOWS TO NO MAAAN AHAHAAAAaaaAAH! Take THAT Antonio, and you too Alfreeedd! I'M THE BEST FREAKING PIRATE EVER TO WALK THIS EARTH."

Harry didn't even bother to attempt to decipher the words coming out of Kirland's mouth. It was all drunken gibberish that made no sense. Though, it sounded like Kirkland was particularly patriotic.

George just stared with horror, his mouth agape. "Good Lord, what have we done," he bemoaned. "If someone finds out it's our fault, we can expect detentions for months..."

All in all, Harry decided that it had been an extremely interesting and entertaing Halloween Party, though he didn't envy the Dark Wizard when he would finally snap out of his condition. McGonagall was not going to be pleased...

Somewhere.

"S-sir? Why bother with any others i-if you're primarily concerned with f-finding only one in particular?"

The air in their meeting place was musty and thick, and many were finding it difficult to breathe. In the far corner was the most recent and poorly disposed kill of Nagini, who had spared her meal's head and left it to rot.

Voldemort's nostrils flared at the impertinence of the Death Eater. He managed to control himself, however. Blood-shed in this circumstance was completely unnecessary... unnecessary...

"Because, you fool, we've made no progress in locating him," hissed the Dark Lord. "-As a result of your... pathetic performances..."

The entirety of the congregation winced and ducked their heads.

"We need to lure him out, like a fish drawn to bait. The one we're looking for is unique in the way that he is a... father, of sorts."

"Are you meaning to say that he has children?" Snape said, looking up with renewed interest.

"Yes and no. In a way, yes. In either case, I've dealt with parents before, and they are extremely... cooperative, when it comes to the safety of their spawn."

Some of his followers still seemed confused, which irritated Voldemort immensely. "But my Lord... why not just keep one of them? Why do you need this one in particular? Wouldn't... any one of them do?" fearfully pointed out a new recruit, in disbelief that he even had the courage, nerve, or idiocy to speak up.

"I have my reasons." Voldemort said in a sibilant voice, his large snake lazily draped across the back of his chair. "Only he will truly serve my purposes. Now, no more questions, it's tiring. Tomorrow, they will be gathering in Berlin. Bring one back to me, but whoever you capture must match the descriptions and images I provided for you prior to this. Certain individuals are higher on the list and are of a high priority, so try to bring them first if you can. Once you've completed all this, bring it back here, detain it, and above all keep it secure. Then, when the time is right, we'll broadcast that we have one of his kin trapped here. The rest will fall into place."

Author's Note:

Ha, this chapter is like, almost twice the length of my regular chapters. XD I hope you enjoyed it, because I have a feeling you'll like the next chapter! ;) *notgivinganythingaway*

Wasn't that last segment, like, toootally mysterious? IKR? *fails at Poland's valleygirlness XDD*

I probably will come back to fix typos and the like :3.

REVIEW PLEASE! Reviews inspire me to write faster for you guys!