To begin at the beginning, HELLO NEW FOLLOWER PEEPS! Thank you for coming, please have a cup of tea and a biscuit! Now sit down, for we are about to begin.

Alright, so I stole this chapter from myself back in 2009 (just in case somewhere someone goes "OI YOU FEEF!" I'm feefing from myself, please calm down and have another biscuit). I was once a plucky young writer (now I'm a plucky old one) who wrote a fanfic crossover between Twilight and Harry Potter (I have since realised that Twilight, in my opinion, is a bit naff and maybe was a bit overhyped), and subsequently I never finished the fic, even though I got further than I realised. I always like this level of nasty evil, so I've upcycled and tweaked to fit the plot of this fiction. Once again, apologies for not posting regularly/quickly/sporadically posting. I cannot promise to do better, as I never know when I will get half a minute to sit and write, but I will not do what I did with s/4890587/1/Fire-Ice-Blood-and-Power (no promptings, this story is rar old). If anyone ever felt they wanted to see what they could do with this old fic though I'd love to see what you can come up with, and you can have the old fic as a sign of good will :)

Again, shout out to anyone that feels like they wanna bully a half-arsed writer into action and who would kindly check said half-arse isn't making whopping great mistakes would be gratefully received, just PM me and I'll respond :)

Now, enough waffling, let's get on with the show!

Chapter 16 - A Friend In Need

A friend in need's a friend indeed
A friend who'll tease is better
Our thoughts compressed
Which makes us blessed
And makes for stormy weather

Placebo - Pure Morning

_-o0o-_

The dark crimson banqueting hall glistened in the fluorescent light of a thousand suspended candles, each one hanging spectrally in mid air, casting long shadows across the gathering mass. The hall echoed with the primeval, angry screams of the congregation, all awaiting their chosen leader. The man in question drifted to the head of the throng, his long silver hair cascading over his shoulders, accentuating the power in his sleek upper muscles. He stood on a prepared stage, his tall slender frame seeming to rise above the shifting crowd, establishing instant authority. His silvery grey eyes swept the room calmly, the ancient portraits of family hanging gracefully against the bloody red walls. He tapped thrice upon the box and the room instantly fell to silence. This was his power, and he grinned menacingly at them.

"My dear and ever faithful friends, today we begin to enact the plan which has been our main focus for these long and stress filled years!"

He waited for a lull in the throng and, raising his voice ever so slightly, he continued:

"We have wished for this day since the time of the great disgrace…"

Once again, the baying crowd, their anger seeping from every pore like a bad smell, interrupted him. He scowled at the gathering, bringing them to a hiss.

"We have suffered! We have been exiled! Ostracised! Removed from all that we held dear to us! Our lives! Our homes! Our FREEDOMS!"

The crowd roared in agreement, their wild eyes searching to meet the man's in this dark place. He simply continued,

"We were hurled from our paradise! And for what?"

From the crowd came a cacophony of answers that invited a cruel smirk to pass his lips.

"Yes friends! Those filthy Muggles and their lovers have controlled us for far too long! They are the reason we shrink into the shadows! They have taken our reputations, our lives, and made what we hold dear sound obsolete! This is not how we should have evolved! The despot charlatan half breed grew greedy for his own power, drunk on his successes he was blind to his own failures, and in turn lost the true cause for which so many of our brothers dies. Now, we pay for his hubris! We lose everything whilst he has the benefits of a fitting death! And, with the blood traitors and turn-coats lording it over us at every turn, we are living the lives of house elves, bowing and scraping to our benevolent overlords! They are no better than that snake-faced bastards! They care not for our traditions, our ways of life, and yet they preach tolerance and acceptance of all! Well, comrades, I say no more!"

The crowd, now angrier than ever, began to move and rock as they shouted and whooped their agreement, as if under a sort of trance, until all suddenly felt the presence of something new, and their attention shifted to the darkness around them, the spaces between the candlelit that were now moving slowly towards them, bodies materialising into existence draped in dark cowls, like moving night. There, in the darkness behind their spokesman, materialised a figure flanked by two, larger shadows. The palpable tension in the room raised a quiet that would echo a pin-drop.

"Friends! Good and Noble Comrades! We must take back what is rightfully ours! Reclaim what was taken from us! We must regain our positions in society. It is the only way that we can begin our lives, the way they are meant to be lived! In a Muggle and Mudblood free world! Who is with me? Who wants our justice?"

Lucius Malfoy, exceptional orator that he was, left a pregnant pause, allowing for his crowd to regain composure as their new allies made their presence known. He had not discussed the alliance with the other members of the pureblood campaign, now dubbed the Purity Initiative, a slowly building movement that's lynchpin was sold on the assurance that they no longer tethered to acting as henchmen for a maniac, and rather were solely focussed upon rebuilding their shattered world into the true image they had wished for for so many years. Although many of the congregation had either received pardons, spent brief stints in Azkaban, or were the sons and daughters of those lost in Voldemort's war, there was still the undercurrent of the maligned truly feeling rejected by society for their previous actions. Though vocal amongst themselves of their malcontent, they were yet to actually maneuver the cause further than a few meetings, held in the utmost secrecy, and orchestrated and organised predominantly by Lucius himself. Lucius, ever the shrewd and cunning Slytherin, had thus taken it upon himself to seek out others who may share a similar displeasure and, in so doing, had stumbled upon the upsets between supernatural creatures abroad. Similar to the wizards wars in Britain, in America, the filthy creatures of nightmare, the Vampires, Were-beasts and all other abominations, had made themselves known to the world, forcing the wizarding world of America further into the shadows and causing, to Lucius's understanding, a magical revolution that left the witches and wizards buried in the dust.

"But first, we will need allies. Powerful, ancient allies! If we are to succeed in our mission, we must have help. We cannot do this alone. We are separated by our mortality, friends. So, I have asked for an alliance with an older magic. One that the dark lord himself could not procure!"

Three of the hooded figures removed their hoods and their eyes pierced the crowd. A cold shiver ran through the assembly, shock mingled with fear and awe engulfing each member. Before them stood the True Dark Fae, their beauty the stuff of tales older than time itself. The room was still as each wizard and witch marvelled at the ancient beings, their beauty radiating through the dim light, terrifying in their power. Two flanked a single female, who looked up at Lucius, eyes ablaze.

"To you, Sir Malfoy, and your cause, my men and I are fully in agreement. We will follow you sir, until you are victorious."

Lucius reached for the hand of the Fae directly behind him and, touching the ethereal skin that was as cold as death, shivered as the icy chill of ancient magic pushed itself along his arm and straight to his heart. Still he kissed it, eyes entranced by the beauty of the woman's face. Raven hair flowed in a long braid down to an hourglass waist. Full red lips parted slightly revealing perfectly set teeth, all tipped with a razor sharp edge that drew stark comparison to the disarming beauty, as white and brilliant as the ivory skin. Her eyes were a piercing blue, but every now and then flashed a dazzling red that hypnotised the viewer. Helen. Her outstanding beauty was beyond compare. Her scandalous birth and tendency to enjoy the human attention had cast her aside as a rebel and degenerate, and she had accepted this. Joining Lucius Malfoy's cause would be profitable for both parties. Brutus, her second in command and first chosen mate, was not exactly clever, but he was an excellent fighter with a special talent for reading the minds of other non-human creatures. Claudius, the other man flanking her, was her second chosen mate. He was of a slender build, but his strength was incomparable, and his wit devilishly charming. He exuded Fae magic, shimmering in the darkness , and his radiant, dangerous beauty was in parallel with Helen's, however the cold, calculating gleam in his eye told a tale of revenge and bitterness that could only come from millenia of hatred. At strategy, he had no better, and Helen had proudly claimed him as her mate many moons ago, revelling in the darkness with him in the land of Fae before their world had been torn apart by Nial and his own dalliances with the human scum.

"WHAT NOW?"

A strong voice echoed through the hall, breaking the silence that had been festering. Lucius looked out and tried to pin name to voice.

"Now? Now we begin to move in. First we show penitence, we show meekness and humiliation and regain a footing in the Ministry and the magical world. Then, when the time is right, WE TAKE BACK WHAT IS OWED TO US!"

Roars, claps, cheers and cries rose around the room at the promise of violence and revenge.

"YES, BUY WHY DON'T WE JUST ATTACK NOW?"

"Because…" Lucius injected smoothly, noting the voice was the same as before and resolving to have a quiet chat after the meeting had concluded, "we need to have power, and we need to show that we are truly sorry for our great mistakes. Do you understand? The Ministry will allow the ones of us who have the influence to regain footings in the Ministry ladder. Others of us may try begging if it is necessary, pleading with that headmistress at Hogwarts to be heads in the parental council. Choose small jobs that seem to them to be simply handouts for us poor deluded souls. But, with that small influence, we will have enough to penetrate the inner sanctum."

"Leave the violence to usss," Helen hissed, quiet and yet clearly audible above the throng.

Both Lucius and Helen locked in a fiery stare and began to laugh as if some private joke had been shared, causing the mass hysteria to fall into mass laughter.

_-o0o-_

Hogwarts was restless, it sensed the evil rising and was impatiently anticipating its future. Fawkes, trilling from the highest buttresses, tried to sooth the castle's angst with his song, but knew the castle would only truly be appeased once the Guardians entered the ancient fortress. He knew he was close to his burning, having survived for many years as the companion of an ever deteriorating mind as best he could, however he was anxious to allow himself to regenerate until he was sure that the castle's plans were in motion. Stretching his magnificent wings, he took to the air, flying low over the forbidden forest and conveying the castle's messages to the creatures there. Ronan, who had been tracking a stag for over an hour and found himself constantly downwind, chuffed as he heard the bird overhead. He would need to take this message to the Herd. The guardians were nearly upon them, and they would all need to be ready for whatever lay ahead. They had all sensed the forests unrest, and the rumblings of the castle had been affecting the forest in many ways, game was leaving in droves or hiding deeper within the tangle of foliage, and the unicorns had been seen thundering through the underbrush in angry masses, a behaviour the Centaurs had never witnessed in their lifetimes, but had read of in the stars from the time they were foals. The earth itself was preparing for war, and the Herd would be ready to fight when the time came to defend their home. They would not ignore again the old magic calling to them, and they knew whom they would need to speak with, if only she would hurry up and get to the castle!