Nope didn't own Harry an hour ago and still don't own him now... maybe I need to leave Santa more cookies next time!

I usually don't do this but this is the third chapter I have posted today... though it is almost midnight so hopefully I'm not too tired to mess up the final proof read!

Hope you Enjoy!

Chapter Thirty-four

An Ancient Language

A few minutes went by as the four friends sat in silence at the table in Mrs. Briggs cottage. Each deep in their own thoughts about all that they had just learned.

Mrs. Briggs waited, giving the young witches and wizards at her table time to think.

Harry finally broke the silence, "We appreciate your warning Mrs. Briggs, but the fact remains that it is very important that we take the books so we can study them."

"Harry dear, I realize that. I thought you should know just how dangerous those books are." Mrs. Briggs said.

A thought that had been nagging at Taylor for the last hour sprang to the front of her mind. "Mrs. B. I thought you had bridge tonight with your friends."

Mrs. Briggs smiled at the red haired young witch in glasses, "I usually do but Joyce was feeling under the weather today so we cancelled. I just flooed over to her place to take her the chicken soup I made." Waving her wand the teapot filled their cups once again and more biscuits appeared on the plate.

Hermione asked a few more questions about the books but Mrs. Briggs wasn't able to answer them.

Taylor watched as Ron and Harry took a couple more biscuits and spread marmalade on them before eating. "Mrs. B. I didn't know you were in the Order."

"Oh yes deary, ever since Albus first started it. I'm not as active now as I used to be. I tend to leave much of the spying and such to those who are younger, but I help out where ever I can." Mrs. Briggs answered with a smile.

The grandfather clock in the living room chimed nine o'clock.

Taylor met Hermione's eyes and she nodded, "Mrs. B. we have to get going." Taylor said as she got to her feet. "Thank you very much for telling us everything you did and for the tea and biscuits too."

"Oh deary, that was my pleasure." Mrs. Briggs said as she too stood up along with the others.

Taylor smiled at the older witch suddenly thankful that she had been able to see her once again. "I'm sorry about sneaking into your house and scaring you."

"Taylor dear, I am glad that it was you. You sure gave me a start though!" Mrs. Briggs said with a wan smile.

"I'm sorry!" Taylor said again as her face colored.

"I'm sorry too Mrs. Briggs." Harry said as he moved to stand beside his sister.

"That's alright dears. I know you didn't mean to startle me." Mrs. Briggs said as she put her hand on Taylor's shoulder and smiled up at Harry.

"I'm sorry about the books too. I should have asked you first but…" Taylor began.

Mrs. Briggs sighed as she answered. "Taylor dear, I can understand why you thought you needed to sneak in here and get them. In a way I am thankful that you did do it this way, now I won't feel obligated to tell Alastor the true reason you were here, nor need I tell him that those books were here all these years. It will be safer for everyone this way, I think."

"But what other reason would we have for coming?" Taylor asked slightly confused.

Mrs. Briggs laughed. "Why deary, I thought that would be obvious, for food of course! I imagine your food supply is very meager taking off like you did yesterday."

All four teenagers went red in the face.

The next several minutes, amid protests from the four friends, which Mrs. Briggs thoroughly ignored, the older witch took a supply of food from her pantry. Flour, tea, sugar, potatoes, canned goods and various other things and put them all in a cloth bag. "Now this should hold you for awhile. I'm sorry I don't have more on hand but it should do for a week or so. You are more than welcome to come back anytime, just give me a few days to restock my pantry."

"Mrs. B, I…" Taylor started when the kind witch passed the bag to Ron whose ears turned red as he took the bag.

"Taylor dear, if I didn't want to help out I wouldn't. I only wish I could do more." Mrs. Briggs said with a sad smile.

"Mrs. Briggs this is more then generous." Hermione too was a little red in the face. The two boys echoed Hermione's sentiments.

"Now I want you four to promise me that you will be careful. I will let your parents know Ron, that you were here. Hermione dear, is there anyone I can let know for you?" Mrs. Briggs asked kindly, but Hermione shook her head. "Harry dear, I will let the Order know that you are okay. I don't suppose you can tell me if you all are planning on going back to school in the New Year?" All four heads shook, they hadn't even discussed it yet.

"Taylor dear," Mrs. Briggs said as the older witch's eyes became overly bright. "Please be careful. I have grown very fond of you deary, in the years that you have stayed with me, and I worry about you. I know, probably better then anyone else in the Order, how important what you and your friends are doing is, but I want you to be safe too." Mrs. Briggs pulled the red haired witch into a tight hug.

"I'll try Mrs. B." Taylor whispered as a lump formed in her throat.

"Gracious me, I'm as bad as an old mother hen worrying over her chicks!" Mrs. Briggs chuckled sadly. "Now be careful with those books! Tell no one that you have them! If you can, please let me know that you all are still all right from time to time. Remember, you all are more than welcome to come back here anytime."

The four teenagers moved over to the door, and Mrs. Briggs gave them all a parting hug. "Be careful. Stay safe."

Taylor glanced one last time at the witch who had taken her in and been so kind to her for six years, before she followed her brother and two friends out the door and down the path where the wards guarding Briggs Cottage ended. Taking a deep breath she linked her arm with her brother's and stepped outside the wards. Turning, she apparated them to their tent less then a kilometer away.

The four did a quick check to make sure everything was safe and as they had left it. Satisfied they went into the tent as a cold wind moaned through the trees.

Ron set the bag of food on the table and Taylor began to unpack it and store it in the tent so that when they took the tent down tomorrow it could stay within the tent.

Hermione lit their lamp and conjured a small smokeless fire to help warm up the tent. No one had yet spoken since they got back.

"Mrs. Briggs is very nice." Hermione said softly as she looked at the other witch.

Taylor looked over from where she had just stored the last of the supplies that Mrs. Briggs had given them. "Yeah, she has always been very nice to me."

"Well let's have a look at those books," Harry said curiously as he pulled his sister's book bag over to him and opened it and took out the stack of books. He passed one to each of the others then opened one himself.

For a few minutes all that could be heard was the turning of pages and the snap of the tent canvas as it was blown about in the wind.

"Uhm," Ron broke the silence first, "This one is in Greek or something."

Harry looked up from the foreign words in the book he had, it had some interesting drawings but he couldn't read a word of it.

"I thought it was Latin, or even Ancient Runes, but it's not," Hermione said as she glanced up shaking her head in frustration. She had never seen this language before. This was going to slow them down considerably if they had to try and translate every thing before they could read it. Providing that they could find a book to help them translate it. "Taylor, I thought you said you read these?"

Taylor glanced up at the sound of her name. She had been totally absorbed in the way the spells in the book she was reading were worded; unlike any spells that she read from the books at school. She noted the expressions on the others faces and knew she had missed totally what they had just said. "I'm sorry, what were you saying?"

Ron rolled his eyes as he said, "These ones are in a different language. What's yours say?"

Taylor looked at him in confusion.

Hermione sighed, "Taylor, I thought you read these?"

"I did."

Hermione stood up from the sofa and went over to the table where Taylor was sitting to look at the book in her friend's lap. "You can read that?" Hermione asked as she looked at Taylor in a funny way.

"Yeah…" Taylor answered looking at Hermione in exasperation.

"But they are written in some ancient language I've never seen!" Hermione exclaimed, waiting for Taylor to start laughing at some joke she was pulling.

Bewildered Taylor looked from Hermione to the book. Then Taylor looked closer at the writing, as color drained from her face. It was true. Now that Hermione had drawn attention to it, Taylor could tell that it wasn't written in English, or anything slightly resembling English. "But how is that possible?" Taylor breathed.

"I don't know." Hermione said as she stared at her best friend. "You're sure you can read them?"

"Yeah! This one says, 'To make a spell, to bind not a friend, you need to put a bit of your self in the binding that you form'" Taylor read, then she looked up at Hermione. "You did just understand what I said didn't you?" Taylor asked a little apprehensively.

"Well you were speaking English if that's what you mean. As far as the rest, I haven't the foggiest what you meant by it." Ron said in a dumbfound voice, much like he used when Professor Slughorn asked him a question in Potions.

Taylor looked over at Harry who was staring at her intently. Feeling suddenly restless Taylor stood and began to pace the small confines of the tent, as an uncomfortable feeling of deja'vu came over her, as very similar circumstance ran through her mind.

"How do you know if you are reading it right?" Hermione asked in her teacher's voice.

"Well for one, it's the spell I used on Snape to bind him that time at Grimmauld Place." Taylor replied as she ran her hand nervously back through her hair. "And two, I know what it means. To bind an enemy you need to put some aspect of yourself into the spell. It goes on to say that it is an unbreakable binding spell and that only the spell caster is able to release it."

"You put a binding spell on Snape that only you could release?" Hermione asked a little shaken by the revelation.

"What part of you did you put into the spell, Taylor?" Harry asked in a tight voice.

Taylor looked from her brother to her bushy haired friend. "I used the first binding spell that came to mind, Hermione! If you remember, Harry was bleeding to death at the time. I really didn't stop to think overly long about which one I used!" Taylor bit out as anger started to pump through her veins, her pacing becoming tenser.

"I'm sorry, Taylor, I didn't mean it like that. It just surprised me that you would understand what was written in this book enough to perform it flawlessly the first time." Hermione hastened to explain.

"I understand everything written in these books- well most of it. A few things I didn't have time to really study before I left last summer. I was only looking for spells that I thought would help us at the time." Taylor answered as she continued to pace.

"Taylor," Harry growled in a low warning tone, "what part of you did you put in the spell?"

Taylor had to stop or run into her brother as he moved in front of her. "I… I didn't stop to think about it. The spell just rolled out. I never even really thought about that part to tell you the truth."

"Didn't you say that you could see a snake about to swallow Snape's soul?" Hermione asked in a frightened voice, "And you see a snake in your nightmare, about to do the same?"

Taylor wheeled to stare at Hermione, shocked by the ease that her friend had put those two incidents together. A cold sweat broke out over Taylor's skin at the realization that the two were connected. Heart hammering, Taylor headed for the door. "I'll take first watch."

Ten minutes later as her anxiety gave way to the cold. Taylor realized that she hadn't grabbed her scarf or mittens, only her cloak, in her hurry to get outside to think. Rubbing her hands together she paced back and forth, a sort of nervous energy keeping her feet moving. At least they weren't cold, yet.

She didn't know how she had read those books during the summer without realizing that they were in a different language. She hadn't even realized it tonight until the others had pointed it out. Pausing in her musings only now and then to listen and look around her, Taylor pondered this. Was it possibly something like Harry and his ability to speak Parseltongue? Was this some of the power that Dumbledore had said Voldemort had maybe transferred to her? This ability to read and cast this ancient Dark Magic?

Taylor lost all track of time as she paced and thought, a cold far more penetrating then the icy wind that blew crept over her. What was the significance of the snake and her soul? How could she have cast that spell and not even realized that she had put that part of her into it? Taylor shivered, but not from the ice pellets that stung her bare face and formed ice on her glasses.

"Taylor?"

Jumping at the sound of her name she swung around wand at the ready, only to see her brother standing behind her.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you." Harry said softly as he looked out into the dark woods surrounding them.

"It's not a good idea to scare me like that!" Taylor growled trying to slow her pounding heart. "I could have jinxed you with pus filled boils right there on the spot."

Harry shook his head, "Not after the months of training with Shacklebolt. 'Always identify your target before you jinx it!' That is at least one lesson I've learned."

"That doesn't mean I have learned it!" Taylor growled.

Harry sighed, "Taylor I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get upset with you in there. It's just that this thing you do with Dark Magic, well… quite frankly, it worries me. Now tonight I find out you can read some ancient language…"

"Yeah! Well you weren't the only one shocked on that one." Taylor said dryly.

Harry saw his sister shiver as a cold gust of wind whipped past them, "I came out to relieve you. Go in and get warmed up. We can talk about this some more tomorrow."

Taylor hesitated. She was going to tell her brother that she needed more time to think tonight, but his warm mitten clad hands wrapped around her almost frozen ones and Taylor knew that she did need to get in where it was warm before she froze her hands.

Nodding slowly, "Alright. Thanks." Taylor said softly as she saw a smile play at her brother's lips.

When Taylor entered the tent, after she un-fogged her glasses, she saw a hot cup of tea waiting for her on the table and Hermione curled up on the sofa beside Ron, with one of the Dark Magic books open.

"I was thinking," Hermione began as she watched Taylor perform a quick warming spell and sit down at the table to drink the tea. "That maybe if you can translate, we will be able to understand what's in these books fairly easily."

"Yeah, that won't be a problem," Taylor replied as she was still mulling over her earlier thoughts.

Hermione watched Taylor for a few minutes over the top of her book, but she decided to let her friend be for now. There was time to talk about this tomorrow.

Hours later as Taylor wrapped her scarf around her head and neck, she was still plagued by the same thoughts from the night before. Glancing at the dimly glowing hands on the old clock on the table, she noted it was a few minutes past three am; a whole hour before she was due to take over her watch. She wanted to talk to her brother and this seemed the best time to do it alone.

After magically heating some water and making two cups of hot chocolate, Taylor slipped out of the tent.

"Hey, I thought you might like something to help warm you up," Taylor said softly with a bit of a smile.

"Thanks," Harry smiled as he took the hot chocolate from his sister. "What are you doing up so early? I've still got another hour yet."

Taylor shrugged her shoulders under her heavy cloak as she gazed out into the darkness. "I thought maybe we could talk."

Harry took a sip of hot chocolate and regarded his sister for a few moments, "Yeah that's probably a good idea." Harry put up a silencing charm before he continued. "So you had no idea that those books were in a different language?"

Taylor shook her head in the darkness, "No, not until Hermione pointed it out."

They were both silent for a few minutes as snow swirled around them driven by the wind.

"Harry, do you think… well Dumbledore told me that he thinks Voldemort might have inadvertently passed on some of his powers to me, like he did you, that night. Do you think that maybe that's why you can speak Parseltongue and that's why I can read and do Dark Magic?" Taylor asked as she met her brother's eyes.

Harry was silent as he thought about what his little sister had just said. If this were true, it would explain a lot. Slowly Harry began, "It would explain a lot. If it is true, how come it's taken so long for you to discover it? I could speak to snakes even before I started at Hogwarts."

Taylor thought about this for a while and she answered just as slowly. "Well… you only figured out that you could speak to snakes when you were looking at one…" she began to speak faster as the idea solidified in her mind. "I didn't know I could do Dark Magic until last summer. After I found the books and read them. I did look at them briefly the summer before but only just briefly; not enough to remember the spells. At the time I didn't even realize that it was Dark Magic; not until I used it on those guys that were trying to take Hermione from the wedding. Not until the time that I needed to protect someone that I care about."

"Only I'm positive that Voldemort doesn't use Dark Magic just when he's trying to protect someone he loves." Harry pointed out.

"No. I'm sure old Voldy doesn't have the faintest idea what that emotion is." Taylor said sarcastically before she continued thoughtfully. "However that is how I started using Dark Magic. The need to defend or protect seems to make the Dark Magic spells come foremost in my mind. I'm not sure if I can describe it better."

The two siblings were quiet for a while again as they thought.

"I think we should ask Dumbledore, he might be able to help. I know I feel better thinking that the reason you can use Dark Magic is because Voldemort can and he transferred that ability to you." Harry said after he drained the last of his hot chocolate from the cup.

Taylor looked over at her brother, and she rolled her eyes. "Only a big brother could think it was okay for his little sister to be able to perform some obscure form of magic because the most evil wizard ever, bestowed her that gift, inadvertently!"

Harry shook his head in disbelief at his sister's statement as she snorted with laughter.

An owl hooted out in the dark woods drawing their attention for a few minutes.

When they heard nothing else stir in the trees that were quickly being covered in snow, Harry broke the silence.

"Briggs Cottage was nice, I'm glad I got to meet Mrs. Briggs, although under better circumstances might have been nice."

Taylor blushed in the dark. "Uhm, yeah about that. Well you see, Mrs. Briggs, she's always asking about my friends at school and, well I told her about being friends with you. Well when I had to pick my code words… I really never thought you'd actually hear them… but anyway…" Taylor stammered as she felt her face become hot.

Harry chuckled at his sister. "Relax lil' sis, I get it. You just think that your big brother is handsome!"

Taylor snorted and rolled her eyes at her brother's teasing. "Yeah, you wish!"

An easy silence settled between them for some time.

"Taylor, do you like Hunter?" Harry asked as he glanced over at his sister.

Taylor looked out into the dark that surrounded them for a moment before she answered, "I'm not really sure. I think if circumstances were different… if I could relax enough around him so that I could allow myself to trust him… if it wasn't so dangerous for him to be near me… then maybe I could allow myself the freedom to let my feelings for him grow."

Harry stared out into the darkness too. The snow had almost stopped again, as he thought about his sister's answer. He could read between the lines. She was scared to let anyone get too close. Hunter was an unknown, a possible threat and it would be dangerous for him to let it be known that he was associated with Taylor. They were different, but similar worries that Harry had about his relationship with Ginny.

After some time passed, Taylor broke the silence that had settled between them again, "You had better get in to bed. I'm sure it's past time that my watch started." After her brother went into the tent, Taylor thought about all that they had talked about and as it seemed to happen more and more during the lonely watch, her mind drifted once again to a tall Hufflepuff.

"Taylor! Hey Taylor wake up!" Ron's voice called from seemingly far away as Taylor tried in vain to ignore his voice and stay in the comfort of her warm cozy bed, asleep.

"Taylor breakfast is ready." Hermione said as she stirred the porridge and Ron set the table.

With an audible groan Taylor rolled out of her bed and dressed before she stepped out around the curtain, rubbing the sleep from her eyes and she dropped into a chair.

"You look like hell this morning." Ron said with a grin.

"Stow it Weasley, before I open my eyes enough to properly see you so I can jinx you." Grumbled Taylor.

Ron just grinned wider.

After a good breakfast and some tea, Taylor was finally starting to feel awake. She hadn't been able to sleep at all before she talked to her brother, so when Hermione finally relieved her she had crawled thankfully into her bed for a couple of hours of much needed sleep.

"I thought we'd head to a new location around noon," Hermione was saying as she picked up one of the Dark Magic books and settled on the sofa with it.

Taylor nodded absent-mindedly as a thought slowly formed in the back of her mind.

"Even though I can't read this, the illustrations are fascinating," Hermione continued to no one in particular.

Taylor picked up one of the books and started to flip through it.

Harry came into the tent covered in snow. "It's really starting to come down out there." With a wave of his wand he dried himself off and with another warmed his chilled body.

A smile slowly spread across Taylor's face. "Hermione I think I have an idea!" Taylor said as she jumped up to go sit beside her friend on the sofa. With a flick of her wrist Taylor's wand slid into her hand. "If I just give the book a tap I think maybe you can read it." Taylor closed her eyes as the spell formed in her mind, taking a deep breath, calm settled over her as the pendant began to get hot. Opening her eyes, Taylor gave her wand a little swish and then tapped the Dark Magic book in her friend's hands.

Hermione gasped and then her eyes grew excited, as the words in the book seemed to shift and shimmer then settle back on the page. "That's amazing!" Hermione exclaimed, the book was now written in English.

"It's really just a variation on a revealing spell." Taylor explained as Harry and Ron came over to look. "It will only last for a while, a few hours or so but it should give us time to read the books."

A/N Well what did you think? As I began to write more and more about Taylor and her use of Dark Magic the idea came to me that it would be in an acient language... and to tell the truth i did, at first anyway, plan on trying to look up some ancient language and use it but the more I wrote the more I liked the idea that we never really know what language it is...it was enough for me to know that it is a forgotten language and older then Latin. Plus I didn't need to try and use my dismal searching skills to try to find one. What the language is is really irrelivant... or that is what I thought if you disagree let me know! :) I hope that Voldemort 'transfering' this ability to Taylor is believeable Harry was able to speak Parrseltongue(? man my spelling is getting worse as the clock ticks after midnight!) so why couldn't Voldemort give Taylor this ability? I personally really like this chapter... there are several scenes that are some of my favorite! So I hope you enjoyed it too!

Well it is New Years Eve here! So a early Happy New Years! (I am trying desperately to post up to chapter 35 before the new year, a little goal I set for myself! Though I can't post any more tonight... or this morning however you look at it. See to tired to make much sense and I am rambling on a keyboard! LOL! Snort!) Thanks to my wonderful bata barbc who bata'd the chapters for me so I can try and keep my goal! You rock barbc!

Until next time, cytpotter