Chapter 18

Dark Signs

"You gotta sign this, Hermione! It's the only way!"

"You know I'm not comfortable with this, Harry. Why don't you get someone else to do it?"

"Oh yeah! That would be a piece of cake! Hello, fellow student-that-I-don't-know, would you kindly sign this consent form for me, so that I can go to Hogsmeade and spy on Tom-Oh he's so marvelous-Riddle?"

"You don't have to be so rude, you know? I mean, haven't you made any friends in Slytherin? I thought they were all so comfortable with this forgery stuff!"

"They've already gone ahead! What's your problem, Mia? I've already signed yours!"

"It's just that…. It's… just… wrong."

"Oh, for god's sake! Do you want an eye on Riddle or not?"

"Of course I do, but…"

"Then Sign it!"

"But Harry…"

"SIGN IT!"

And the sign was put down in a swift yet shaky swipe of the hand, and Harry snatched it back in another swipe and went off, running. He had to catch up to Slughorn, who was already past the courtyard with a group of Slytherins. Hermione stood there, confused. She'd already shown her consent form earlier, Harry had been so generous as to sign it for her the previous day.

Great. Now what? Harold and Septimus have already gone ahead.

"Alone, Ms. Sparks?" asked a cold yet soft voice, making Hermione jump.

"My apologies. Didn't mean to startle you, but, aren't you late for Hogsmeade?"

"Erm, I… I forgot my purse, yeah, purse… Came back to take it" Nicely done Granger!

"Oh…" He was looking dead into her eyes, she knew he could see right through her.

Harry?

Professor Slughorn? Wait! Sir!

Um, Harry? I've got your spying target right here!

Sir, here… it is…

Ugh! Useless.

"…company you? …. Hello? Ms. Sparks?"

"Huh, yeah?"

"Were you listening?"

"Yeah, I mean, No.. I just.. um, spaced out"

"Well, would you like me to accompany you?"

"Erm… No… I mean, yeah". When he looked skeptical, she added "Sure, why not?"

What IS happening to me? Calm down, Mia! Take control! Deep breath… huh… Ok, this is your biggest opportunity yet! A wee bit of scouting would be so helpful! But you must be careful not to divulge anything either! Hmm… Ok then. Let's do this!

" I was actually looking for someone to go with, I hate walking alone" She added. Yup! Lay it thick.

"I might say that I've found you in the nick of time, then."

"Most certainly."

As they picked up the pace towards Hogsmeade, Hermione couldn't help but notice the cordiality in his manner. Never in a million years could she have guessed that this boy would grow up to be the dark lord. But, she must be alert. After all, she knew that there was no one else he would grow up to be.

Hogsmeade.

The village that never changes.

It seemed the Wizarding world had been happy to keep itself constant. Hermione had always wondered why most buildings in the Wizarding world looked antique, while the muggle world was always changing with skyscrapers and 'development'. It was all 'out with the old and in with the new' in that world. But, here, all was the same, now and fifty years from now.

Maybe it was the same way from when it was built.

She shrugged. But, the familiarity was really calming her nerves. It helped to concentrate her thoughts and plan her every move. He had asked a bunch of questions, but she had not let up either. She had been cunning and calculated. Sticking to her cover, she had checked and cross-checked every answer before letting it go to him. She also had the chance to place a few tricky questions in there herself. But, to her dismay, he had been very sly. He had told her some little things, but she already knew those bits of his history.

He had told her about the orphanage that he stayed at during the summer holidays. He had been so keen to ensure that she grasp his hatred for that place. He said he felt so much welcome in the Wizarding world and this was where he belonged.

"All I want to do is make this world better. To return what it has given me."

Pft! As if! By purging this world of muggle borns? Heh!

"Planning a revolution, are you?" She asked, sounding unimpressed.

"Revolution?"

"Yeah, to make this world better?"

"Ha! In due time, . In due time."

"You know, you could call me Amelia. I mean, I do think we're friends now"

"Certainly, Amelia it is. Can I offer you a glass of pumpkin juice then?"

Gotcha. Fine job, Mia! You're one step closer to get inside 's head. The devil on her left shoulder must be proud of her.

MI…. YO… HE..AR…. MIA….. HEAR… ?

Harry? How did you get past my occlumency shields?

No time. Get out. Now.

What?

GET OUT OF HOGSMEADE!

What the hell's going on?

Chaos! A black army. EXPELLIARMUS! They're destroying everything!

Death Eaters? She glanced at Riddle, he was right there, in front, moving towards the three broomsticks inn.

No, No. No masks, no hoods. Where are you? GET. OUT.

Near the three broomsticks. I am not leaving you, Harry.

Bloody Hell! They'll be in High Street quickly enough. Be on your guard. STUPEFY! And don't worry, I'll be fine. We'll meet up after I wipe the floor with these thugs. RICTUSEMPRA! See ya!

"Hey Tom?"

"Yes, Amelia?"

"I think we've got trouble"

BANG! The building at the far end of high street had its roof shattered. A distinct line of black was visible at the end, getting larger by the second. Everyone snapped their heads to the oncoming mob. Tom, Hermione and a few other students on the street were staying put, some concentrating on the mob, others too petrified to move. There were people fleeing, some getting into buildings and some running out. Panic. How quickly peace turns awry.

"Wands out!" Riddle was shouting to those near him.

"Avery, to the side! Nott! Cover me!" The two boys up front assumed their battle stances. Riddle was advancing.

Wow! His reflexes are excellent! How quickly has he grasped the situation?!

Hermione followed him. She had tons of battle training and some good experience. She was definitely a frontline person.

"Battle much?" Riddle had noticed her advancing with him.

"Very."

"Good, take the first alley to the right."

"What? I can take'em on from the front!"

"Judging from the number, this must be the preliminary wave, and there are gaps. They must've taken a few hits on the way. I can handle them. What concerns me are those you see way at the back"

He was right. A small group was far ahead of the others. The real strength was just entering high street. They need to be cut off.

"The building, tallest one, Bring it down. That'll slow them down"

"What if there are people in there?"

"An unavoidable sacrifice"

"What? They're not expendable!"

"Have a better plan?"

Judgment call. Fleeing is not an option. Forward. Go with the plan, I'll have to save the people, if any, somehow.

" Damn!"

Hermione cut into the alley and onto a parallel pathway. There was turbulence and noises to her right. A battle was already raging on somewhere close.

I'll have to be quick, or high street will see the same turmoil. But how? There's too little time.

An explosion in the shop to her right jolted her. And in that shockwave, an idea came to her. She smiled. That's it. Time to give that a try!

Hermione started running, as fast as she could and then put all her will into it. She started bending down, while her body was getting longer, her arms and legs got puffier, paws were emerging where her palms used to be and notably, nine tails emerged and were elongating from her back. The next moment, there was a beautiful Kitsune dashing through the path.

Oh yeah! My first transformation on the field! Guess that training really paid off. That mandrake leaf thing in my mouth was extremely yucky! But, guess it worked! Now, let's test this body!

And in a flash, she was at her destination, which was indeed occupied. There were 3 kids huddled in a corner of the room at the ground floor. Thankfully, she could sense no one else.

The children were too terrified to move. But, in a sudden flash of light, they found themselves in a completely different building. BANG! They looked out the window to the see the building they were in just a moment ago suddenly coming down, towards high street. And out of the corner of the eye, one caught a glimmer of light on the alley towards the far right. But before they could let his eyes focus on it, it was gone.

"CONFRINGO! That's the last of the first wave. Now, for the main course!" Riddle turned his attention to the black mass approaching. There were four wizards behind him, in his support. Five would not be enough, there's too many of them. Unless… The high rumble in front caught his attention. The building was coming down, right in the middle of the mass. They were least expecting it, and only the first 2 rows were able to avoid the oncoming mass of wood and stone. A smile broke in his lips, and his eyes gleamed. Now, we're even!

It took only a matter of minutes to bring down the rest of the confused and dazed mob. The falling building had really absorbed their momentum. Disorientation took them by force, and they stood no chance. Riddle advanced beyond the debris to cut off any stragglers, but on the other side, he saw Amelia, standing, smiling victoriously.

"You're good!"

"So are you."

Riddle reflected her smile perfectly. Good indeed.

"Mia!" Hermione turned round to see Harry approaching. He was battered, and there were bruises all over his arms and on his cheek.

"Harry! You ok? You look awful."

"Sorry for not living up to your beauty expectations, but I WAS in the middle of a battle!"

"So were we, you idiot! But, good to see that you're alive!"

"But, there's not a scratch on you! Must've been some easy battle!"

"Yeah, we managed. Besides, Tom here planned the attack well"

"Ri… Riddle!" Harry was cautiously surprised about the fact that Tom Riddle was standing right next to them and he had blurted out all those words without even noticing.

"Mr. Bolt!" Tom acknowledged.

"So.. Some battle, eh?"

"Yes. Took us all by surprise"

"But, who are these people? Why would they attack Hogsmeade?" Hermione speculated.

"Actually, there is something I'd like to show you, come on." Harry led them on.

As they walked along high street, the degree of devastation in Hogsmeade became subtly clear to them. Half the buildings were in ruin, none were without damage. There were bodies on the road, some with black robes; others were of innocent residents or passers-by. One group had already started tending to the injured, taking them to The Hog's head, where Aberforth was busy arranging the necessary requirements to accommodate them. Everyone who was standing was bleeding from at least one part in their body. As they went forward, Hermione could make out a small crowd gathered in front of the Ollivander's branch. The building was more intact than most others, but all eyes were focused on the top of the building. As they got closer, she realized the name board had been blown off, and there was some other writing, probably by wandfire, on the wall. Pushing and squeezing through the crowd, they managed to get ahead and Harry pointed to the exact same spot the writing was. Following his pointed hand, Hermione read the words written.

"FOR THE GREATER GOOD"

The dark hooded figure approached along the hallway towards the fire-lit throne at the end of it. A well-built figure adorned the throne, his head, dropped down, was resting on his right fist placed on the handle of the throne.

"There is news from Britain, sir"

"How did it go?" There was no movement to the figure, but the voice echoed throughout the hall.

"The objective was fulfilled, although the damage to our army was beyond our calculations, sir"

"No matter. Sacrifices are necessary for a greater cause."

"What do we do now, sir?"

The figure in the throne moved. He took a deep breath in, and let out a sigh. He let his head away from his fist, which he dropped down to grip the throne's handle. And then, slowly he raised his head to face his questioner, his general.

"Now…"

The torchlight reflected his bright golden hair and his wild, yet merry, face. He was twirling a wand, caressing it almost lovingly/

"Now, I get to see him again."

A/N : PROTEGO! We can almost feel all the barbs you guys aiming at us… not apologizing. Life has an uncanny way of getting in between updates…. But right now, one of us is free… so will try updating more often. We will also be editing the whole story…. We found many inconsistencies and will try to rectify them. Thank you for your reviews and support guys