Chapter 6: It's Always about the Blood

*****Where We Left Off*****

Xander and Ron walked into the Leaky Cauldron and saw Hermione at a table, so they headed toward her.

"Where's Harry?" Hermione asked.

"He's right—" Ron said, turning. He stopped talking when he realized that Harry wasn't with him. "Huh. That's strange."

"Yeah, he was right behind me," Xander said. "He must've went to another shop."

"Let's get some butterbeer," Ron said.

Xander frowned. "I'm never going to understand your attachment to that disgusting drink. The name tells you all you need to know," Xander said.

"It don't have butter in it. I've bloody well told you that!" Ron said.

"May as well have—it's gross," Xander said with a shudder. "I want a Coke."

"Bloody Americans," Ron muttered.

The twins sat at the table next to them. "Where's Cordelia?" one of them asked.

"She's with her House," Hermione said.

The twins looked upset. "Why does she want to hang with those losers?" George asked.

"She is falling to the dark side," Fred said morosely. Xander had taught him all about Star Wars, and they really loved how much Darth Vader was like a Death Eater and couldn't wait to see the movie someday.

"Actually, she's not," Xander said. "She has to stay in good with her House as part of her plan to turn as many of them away from the Death Eater camp. Plus, her cousin is in that house."

"Ferret boy is the worst!" Ron said.

"Better get over that," Xander said. "Neither Buffy nor Cordy will take any criticism of Draco, so you need to stop. Have you ever considered that maybe he's the way he is because he only had assholes for role models? Buffy and Cordy will straighten him out. Besides, he's not so bad. I faced worse bullies back in Sunnyhell."

"That's hard to imagine," Hermione said. "He can be quite horrid."

They spent some time chatting. Then Ron stood up. "I'm going to go look for Harry. He should be here already," he said.

"I'll go with you," Hermione said.

"Should we stay here in case he shows up?" Xander asked.

Hermione nodded. "Yes," she said. "Tell him to stay put."

The two friends went everywhere they thought Harry could be. However, there was no sign of him, and both of them were growing anxious. They ran into Cordelia, who was with Draco, Pansy, Daphne and Millicent.

"Cordelia, have you seen Harry?" Hermione asked.

"No, I haven't," Cordelia said. "He's not with you?"

Hermione shook her head.

"If he's not with the two of you, he must be dead 'cause he's always with one of you," Draco said.

"Why did you go and say something like that, Malfoy?" Ron asked angrily.

"I was just kidding," Draco said, wincing in the face of his cousin's glare.

"He was just trying to say that you guys are always together," Cordelia said.

"We've looked everywhere, but we can't find him," Hermione said.

"When did you see him last?" Cordelia asked.

"We had left the joke shop together, and he was right next to me," Ron said. "I turned the corner to go to the Leaky Cauldron. When I got inside, though, he was no longer next to me."

"That's strange," Draco said frowning. He wondered if his father had planned something. All the parents of Hogwarts' students knew that they would be in Hogsmeade today. It was possible that someone could have planned something.

"Do you think someone has taken him?" Cordelia asked, already thinking the worst. In her experience, the worst always happened.

"Why would anyone do that?" Hermione said.

"'Cause Death Eaters hate him," Ron said. "He's the Boy Who Lived."

"He's just fourteen," Pansy said. "Why would they bother a kid?"

"He was a baby the last time your Dark Lord tried to kill him, remember?" Ron said, giving them a disgusted look.

"Hey, we have no Lord," Cordelia said. "Well, I was baptized Catholic, so I guess Jesus is my Lord. But none of us would do anything so lame as align ourselves with a wanna-be baby killer. Right?" She gave her friends pointed looks.

Millicent and Pansy nodded. "Of course not," Daphne assured her.

"I don't want to kill muggles," Millicent said with a shudder. She really liked that there were some members of her house who didn't see Death Eaters as a viable path for their future. Although she was normally somewhat of a bully herself, she only did so because people were so mean. She wasn't going to let them put her down or make fun of her looks first.

"I would think not," Cordelia said with a disapproving sniff. "We will keep an eye out for him. I'll see if anyone else from our house has seen him."

"Thanks," Ron said. "Xander and the twins are at the Leaky Cauldron waiting, so go there if you find out anything."

They went into opposite directions looking for Harry, but he was never found. Eventually, they had to tell their head of house. Professor McGonagall was more than a little upset.

"How did he wander off?" she asked his friends.

"We don't think he did," Hermione said. "He was with us over an hour ago. Then he just disappeared—someone must've taken him."

"We all left the joke shop and were walking here," Ron said. "He was right next to me. Then we went around the corner and came in here. But he wasn't behind me when I stepped inside."

"He's been Harry-napped," Fred said,

George snickered. "Good one, brother," he said.

"This is serious, Mr. Weasley," Professor McGonagall said, frowning at them over her glasses. "Your housemate, who has dangerous enemies, is missing. If you cannot bring levity to the situation, then take yourself back to Hogwarts."

The twins sobered up and murmured apologies.

"What should we do?" Hermione asked.

"We will continue to look," Professor McGonagall. "If he does not appear in another hour, we will notify Professor Dumbledore."

"Should you call the police?" Xander asked.

"We do not call the police," Ron said. "We call aurors."

"Yes, it might be necessary, but we will first exhaust all searching," Professor McGonagall said. "Let any other houses members know he is missing. I want everyone searching for him. Make sure you search in pairs at the very least." The last thing they needed was another student to go up missing.

They did as she said and kept searching for Harry

They didn't find him anywhere in Hogsmeade.

******Sunnydale******

Buffy had mixed feelings about returning to Sunnydale. It was familiar like an old pair of jeans, but the magic and energy at Hogwarts was so pure that it was difficult being at the hellmouth the first night.

"Are you okay?" Angel asked. They were patrolling with her father a step or two behind them. For Angel, having her with him again was a dream come true as he had missed her very much.

"I'm fine," she said. "It's just strange being back on the hellmouth. I never noticed before how dark the energy is here, but Hogwarts is so magical. The contrast is insane." She paused and looked at her Father. "Father, do you feel queasy?"

"If I wasn't a marked Death Eater used to dark magic, I might," he said with a sneer.

She rolled her eyes. "Well, I've never been down with the dark mojo, and I feel a bit sick to my stomach," she admitted.

"You will probably feel that way the first night each time," her father said. "As we will be coming back and forth, you will have to acclimate all over again each time."

Buffy grimaced but was resigned. The hellmouth had to have a visible slayer. "How have you been, Angel?" she asked.

"I can't complain," he said. "I've tried to help patrol, but Kendra was very hostile and dismissive of my help."

"Which led to her death," Buffy said glumly. "I still can't believe it."

"It might've happened even if I was patrolling with her since I can't be with her all the time," Angel pointed out. "You and I didn't patrol together all the time."

"That's true," she acknowledged. "It just is such a waste."

Angel nodded. "I know," he said.

They patrolled just like normal, and they soon came across two vampires. Severus set one of them on fire while Buffy engaged the other, killing it after several exchanges of hits.

"Why do you waste energy?" Severus asked, annoyed. "Use your wand and set it on fire."

"That's totally cheating, Father," Buffy said, rolling her eyes. "I'm a slayer. I'm especially a slayer here. I'm a witch at Hogwarts."

"You are both," he said. "It would be just a moment of carelessness for you to be dead. Kendra was trained much longer than you—from a child. And now she's dead. You died once already, remember?"

"Yes, Father, I know," Buffy said grimly. "But you don't understand. The slayer in me craves the fight, the battle. If I don't fight, I will go insane. I thought you understood that? Didn't Giles explain this?"

"He has," Severus said. "And it's one thing to go to the Forbidden Forest and kill creatures with him or me. That is a more controlled circumstance. It is another to be here on an active hellmouth. There are too many dangers here that I cannot control. I would not survive your death—surely, you know that?"

Buffy looked at her father and could see his real fear, and her annoyance left. She moved to hug him. "I know, Father. I promise you that I am not being needlessly rash. I can tell when a vampire is a newbie."

"Not at first glance," he said.

"Fine," she said, glancing at Angel, who looked amused. "I will set them on fire whenever I can, but that is so not any fun!" Then a thought occurred to her. "What if I accidentally set Angel on fire? I haven't been practicing magic all that long!"

Severus didn't care if she did set the vampire on fire, but he knew that it would destroy her to accidentally kill the vampire. "That is a good point," he said. "I will set them on fire for you, and you will wait until the year is over at Hogwarts. We will practice the fire spell in the Forbidden Forest after the new slayer makes her way here."

Buffy was just glad she was able to fight the next monster they encountered as she was feeling discombobulated, her senses all screwy.

The first night was rough, but the second night went much better. She was adjusting to the dark energy, and she went to the Bronze with a spring in her step.

"Why are we going to a dance club?" Severus asked, annoyed.

"Because it's prime hunting ground for vamps," she said cheerfully. "Plus, I really miss dancing!"

"You have entirely too few clothes on," Severus said looking at her spaghetti strapped top, paired with very tight leather pants. "Those pants are indecent."

Buffy giggled. "Sorry, Father, but you are in Southern California. This is how we dress. I wear those hideous robes at school, so you can deal," she said, sticking out her tongue before leading him to the club.

Severus sighed in resignation and followed her. She was so complicated, but he adored her even if she was more than a little maddening.

When it was time to head back to Hogwarts, Sunday night, Buffy kissed Angel goodbye—much to her father's disgust. "I'll see you on Friday," Buffy said, giving him a last hug goodbye.

"Take care," Angel said. Being with her again had been wonderful and showed him how empty his life was without her in it. He missed her so much, and he hated that she would keep leaving him. However, he just smiled and watched her disappear—a sight he would never get used to.

When Severus and Buffy made it back to Hogwarts, both released the tension they'd been carrying. Buffy didn't realize how much more tense she was while on the hellmouth, but Severus knew. Only at Hogwarts did he feel that his daughter was safe.

Discovering that Harry was missing, however, upset them both. Severus didn't have the attachment Buffy had to Harry, but he knew that Harry's disappearance was no accident. What ill intent the disappearance had was not known, but he would do what he could to find out.

Buffy, though, was pissed. She just knew that her father's Death Eater associates had something to do with it.

She was right.

Harry glanced up at the hooded figures surrounding him in fear. He had been snatched and rendered unconscious just as he was about to go into the pub with his friends. He didn't know how much time had passed, but he couldn't move much due to the ties on his hands and feet.

Two figures wore no cloak, and he recognized Bellatrix Lestrange. The other had a missing finger, and Harry deduced it was the traitor who had framed his godfather, Peter Pettigrew.

"Now, it is time," she said. "This brat has a real purpose."

Harry realized that Peter was holding something in his arms, and he was filled with disgust when he saw the deformed baby-like creature. What is that?

Bellatrix bared Harry's arm and used a knife to cut him. He struggled, but her grip was too strong, and others stood at his back, preventing him from moving much.

When she squeezed his arm, he cried out in pain. Then she stuck a large cup under his arm, collecting the drops of blood.

Much to Harry's relief, she released him and walked away. He used his robes to stem the blood and watched as they poured the blood into a large cauldron. Then other things were put into the cauldron.

"Our Dark Lord will be reborn and restored!" Bellatrix said excitedly. They had taken the spirit form of her master and put it into this human facsimile. Now, though, her master's killer would be the tool to restore him back to his former glory.

Harry watched in horror as the baby grew, and Lord Voldemort stood before him in the flesh.

Harry's nightmare was alive.

*****To Be Continued*****

Yes, the way Voldemort returned had to change since Buffy, not Harry, was called in the tournament.