Quoth the Raven

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1. Reviews are welcomed, flames aren't. Once again special thanks to our beta Phil who knows all things British.

Chapter 38: Caught From Some Unhappy Master

Sirius Black was one confused and frustrated wizard! He thought things would be better since he had found his godson, Harry. However, much to his dismay, he had nothing in common with the lad. Harry may look like his father, James, but this young man was more like his mother, Lily.

It just wasn't right! Harry didn't believe in the fine art of pranking! He was very polite and studious, a real stuffed shirt.

Sirius was still trying to figure out how Harry had ended up among Squibs and Muggles. Granted, Maggie McIntyre was a formidable witch, but as far as he knew, they lived like Muggles. His mind just couldn't wrap itself around the fact that Harry grew up in such an accurséd place as the Tower of London.

Sirius shuddered as he remembered his last visit to the Tower. The place was spine-chilling, just one step above Azkaban with those wards... He shuddered again. It may have been the only place Harry could be hidden safely from Albus' manipulations and the remaining Death Eaters.

A low growl erupted from Sirius. The old coot tried very hard to get him to accept that his little vacation in Dementor Central was an honest mistake and that Sirius would surely 'forgive an old wizard.'

"Mistake, my arse!" growled Sirius, only to hear a chuckle from his best mate and fellow Marauder, Remus Lupin.

The two men were on their way to a meeting with the old bastard- er, headmaster. Seems that Harry Potter had very publicly asked Miss Granger, a fifth-year Muggle-born witch, if he could escort her to Hogsmeade on the morrow - much to the displeasure of several pure-blood witches and the Headmaster, who considered her totally unsuited for Lord Potter. Never mind the danger from Death Eaters, who were sure to have heard that the Boy-Who-Lived was gallivanting all over Hogsmeade with a Mudblood.

The meeting was held in the Headmaster's office. Sirius counted twenty-some people, not including all four Hogwarts Heads of House. Standing next to Amos Diggory were Molly and Arthur Weasley. Sirius had heard what Harry had done to their son, Ronald and from what he had seen of that boy, it was about time someone set him straight. The youngest male Weasley spawn was a disaster waiting to happen, and just as bigoted and obnoxious as the Malfoy brat. The only differences between the two boys were the Malfoy wealth and the fact that the Weasleys were considered 'light' while the Malfoys were 'dark'.

"Now that we are all present, I have some concerns about the Hogsmeade visit tomorrow," Albus sighed. "I'm afraid that young Mister Potter has ignored my concerns, and is planning to escort Miss Granger to the village for the day." He gazed sadly about him at the assembly. "My concerns are for his safety. It isn't known how many letters went out to the parents, but rest assured that it has been reported, and that Tom knows."

Severus Snape shifted slightly at the report.

Albus stroked his beard for a moment then continued. "And there is the fact Miss Granger, a bright young Muggle-born Ravenclaw, is to be his companion."

Molly sniffed loudly. "He is thumbing his nose at all our traditions. My Ginny has been mooning after him, but the way..."

Sirius couldn't help it; he burst into loud, barking laughter. Remus smothered his own mirth, but it was obvious from the look on his face that he was struggling for control.

Once he could speak, Sirius straightened, noting the furious glare from Molly and the confusion on the faces of the others present. "Harry wouldn't touch that girl with gloves on! He made that abundantly clear from what I was told."

Molly Weasley was turning red, her mouth opening to scream in defence of her daughter when her husband stopped her.

"Molly, be silent!" Arthur growled through clenched teeth. "Sirius is only telling the truth. It's obvious Lord Potter prefers the company of Miss Granger, and we will not try to convince him otherwise!"

Sirius watched as the twinkle left the Headmaster's eyes, leaving them cold and hard for a brief moment before it quickly returned.

"If you called us here to help you gain control of my godson, I'm afraid this meeting was for nothing, Albus. If you keep trying to manipulate Harry, you will be in for a rather unpleasant surprise. As for the rest of you, did you know that Lord Harry James Potter is a ward of the Crown and under the protection of the Queen herself? Furthermore, if she feels her Ward is in any way threatened or mistreated, she will not hesitate to step in and remove him. If She feels the need to do so, she will see such actions by us wizards as a breach of the treaty that grants the Wizarding World its autonomy - and the Crown would once more rule us."

Sirius's words were met with smothered gasps of dismay. Albus Dumbledore looked as if he wanted to hex him. "What, he didn't tell you this?" A nod to Dumbledore turned all eyes towards the Headmaster. "Nasty habit, that, Albus - keeping secrets again... Don't you think your staff and the Order members deserve to know that interfering in Lord Potter's life could be prosecuted as treason against the Crown?"

0o0o0o0

Dawn's early light filtered through the trees of the Forbidden Forest as the morning mist wafted lazily on the breeze. Not far from the edge of the forest stood a quaint Tudor-esque village with its rough beams of dark wood and grey stucco. The sharply pointed roofs of the village buildings stood silent in the early morning dew, their inhabitants still snuggled safely in warm beds.

What no-one saw were several figures clad in mottled greys and browns silently moving into the shifting shadows to take their places along the sharply slanted roofs and narrow alleyways. They took up key positions with an air of military precision.

By the time the first denizens of Hogsmeade ventured out for the day, the grey ghosts were nowhere to be seen, so well hidden were they.

During the course of the morning, many of the villagers shivered as if they felt eyes watching them, but dismissed it. However, many could not shake the chill that something was going to happen, and soon.

The day looked to be one of good weather. It was a scheduled Hogsmeade weekend and the students from the castle were expected to arrive soon. For many of the villagers, this would be the first time they got a chance to see their 'lost' hero who had recently returned to the wizarding world.

The rumours from those students that had made it down to Hogsmeade over the past month painted a picture that pleased a few, and dismayed many. The hero they had been expecting was nothing like the rumours described him to be. Today, their anticipation had reached a peak, and they were all waiting to see their hero for themselves.

The first students started filtering into the streets just after breakfast. Many wore Prefect badges, escorting younger students who clearly were experiencing their first trip into Hogsmeade.

Soon, the older students and professors started to arrive. It didn't take long for the village of Hogsmeade to be filled with the noise and laughter of the bustling students.

Sirius and Remus were sitting in the Three Broomsticks watching the students mill around outside. Several Order members had taken up key positions within the most popular shops and meeting places.

Sirius watched from his vantage point as Harry escorted Hermione to the nearby booksellers. He couldn't keep the smile off his face as he reminisced about another couple doing the same thing in his seventh year. He did frown, though. Where was that shadow of his? The Muggle-born soldier had been Harry's constant companion all year. Maybe the man saw no need to intrude on Harry's time with his new girlfriend? Yeah, right. Maybe Snivellus had a new hair shampoo? Sirius snorted at that last thought.

Something wasn't right here. Harry wasn't one for taking chances; that much Sirius knew from the reports he had read from Harry's adoptive parents. No, this did not add up. If he didn't know better, if Harry was more like James, this had all the earmarks of a prank set-up. But the question remained, who was being set up? And when was the 'prank' being pulled?

0o0o0o0

In a run-down manor house in Little Hangleton that many of the locals believed to be haunted, a snake-like man with a crumpled letter in his fist stood in front of an ornate throne. Twenty of his faithful followers were kneeling in front of him in fearful supplication. Off to one side stood two men in black robes with silver death masks in their hands.

"Rabassstan and Rodolphuss," Lord Voldemort hissed. "My two faithful followersss. I wish for you two to lead these, my servantss, to gloriousss victory today." He looked down at the nearest prostrate Death Eater and kicked him. "I will accept nothing lesssss! The Potter brat thinksss he can flaunt tradition by stepping out with a Mudblood. We shall show him the error of his wayss. Rise and go forth! Kill all, but bring Potter and his little Mudblood back to me, alive!"

In the shadows, Severus looked over at his long-time friend and ally, Lucius Malfoy, who returned his gaze with an arched eyebrow. Both had a feeling of dread in the pit of their stomachs. They knew this had all the earmarks of a trap; it was far too simple. Neither wizard wanted to be the one to point this fact out to their insane lord, who was hell-bent on the total annihilation of Harry Potter.

After watching the Death Eaters depart, Lucius and Severus remained in the shadows. Neither had been dismissed, and to leave the presence of the Dark Lord without his permission invited death.

Severus was worried; he couldn't get a message out in time to warn the headmaster. He wasn't certain what, if anything, Potter had as a counter-plan for an attack, but he didn't doubt there was one. After all, the brat had been very blatant in his proposal to the Granger chit.

After placing a Silencing Charm around them, he glanced over at his blonde companion. "This is a trap, you realise?"

Lucius sighed and nodded. "I thought as much. Draco has been very detailed in his letters. This young Potter heir is nothing like his parents. Whoever raised him, did so knowing all the old ways which the old fool has tried to squash from the Hogwarts' curriculum."

"You are correct, Lucius. But what Draco doesn't know is that Potter also follows the Old Ones. He is much favoured by them, from what I witnessed on Samhain."

Lucius groaned, ducking his head. "Is there any chance we will survive this if They are involved?"

On the dais, the Dark Lord looked out the nearby window. That old crone was back! This time, she was sitting on the ledge of the crumbled old fountain that once majestically adorned the now seedy garden. She seemed to be waiting for him to join her.

0o0o0o0o0

Albus stood in front of his window that overlooked the front of the courtyard of the castle. He watched as happy students made their way down to Hogsmeade.

He sighed. He had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. He still wished he had called off this weekend, but he would've had many very angry students and professors for doing so. He just knew Tom was going to plan something.

If only Harry would listen to him! All this could be avoided. Maybe after this, the lad will be more willing to heed his advice.

Just as he turned away from the window, he spied a flock of ravens landing on every ledge and niche of the courtyard, filling the air with their harsh song.

Oo0o0oO

Harry and Hermione were just entering the Three Broomsticks for lunch when they heard multiple loud popping sounds echo through the village. Shortly after, they felt anti-Portkey and anti-Apparation wards being raised. Colourful flashes of spell-fire soon followed as students in the street started to scream and mill about in panic.

Harry glanced over at Hermione. Each had their assigned emergency orders and duties that had been hashed out the night before. From the looks of things, those orders had just gone into effect.

"See to the younger students, Hermione. Make sure they are safe and undercover." Harry's words were cold and terse. "I'm going to help in the streets." She only had time to nod an affirmative before he slipped through the door and into the street.

Wolf and his command had drawn back further into the shadows of alley and rooftops as the sun rose. They were a small, but elite group, and were relying on surprise to give them the edge on numbers.

The street was crowded with students when the Death Eaters Apparated in. They came in two groups of ten, appearing at either end of the main street and trapping the terrified children between them. As soon as they appeared, they began to fire off spells at their panicked targets. It was like shooting mice in a barrel and the Death Eaters laughed as they picked off the helpless students and villagers. That is, they laughed until the first casualty fell...

A small, third-year girl was the first to fall, struck down by the Killing Curse.

Wolf, watching from an alley beside the bookstore, cursed as she fell. "That's it: lethal force is authorised!" he snarled into his comm. "Hostile targets only; there'll be hell to pay if we hit civilians, so be sure of your targets!"

His words were followed by the muted pops of silenced weaponry as the hidden soldiers opened fire, the sounds of their weapons masked by the screams of the terrified and injured civilians.

Harry ducked from the doorway of the Three Broomsticks and slipped into the shadows beside the building. He was headed for the far end of the street where a large group of younger students were trapped near Zonko's. A semi-circle of five Death Eaters had them pinned against the wall of the building.

Two of the Death Eaters fell to the ground with blood streaming from holes that suddenly appeared in their bodies. Harry shot a spell at the three that were remaining and the fight began in earnest.

"Get out of here! Head inside the shop!" Harry shouted as he ducked away from the returning spell-fire. He pulled a throwing blade and, with pinpoint accuracy caught one of his opponents in the chest. One down, two to go.

0o0o0o0

Draco was near the entrance of a small alley next to the Three Broomsticks when all hell broke loose. He was appalled by the sheer carnage that was being wrought before him. The Death Eaters were paying no attention to who they were targeting with their spells! Draco saw the first casualty, a third-year Slytherin girl, and knew that no-one was safe.

There had been no warning given to the Slytherin students, but they should've realised this would be the results of sending letters to their parents about Potter. Merlin, even his own father had been very interested in everything to do with Potter. They should've all known the Dark Lord wouldn't pass up this opportunity!

A green-coloured spell bounced off the stone wall near him, exploding with lethal force and causing the blond-haired student to duck for cover within the alley.

As he slid into the shadows behind a barrel, a quiet rushing sound whined past his ear and the Death Eater who had sent the Killing Curse fell over with blood spurting from what was once his face.

'What spell was that?' a panic-stricken Draco could only wonder as he ducked further back into the dark alley and vomited. In his mind, it was every man for himself now, and he desperately looked for a way out.

00o0o0

As we promised, things are going boom! More to come.

Until next time. -GF and The Frau