Chimera

Part 1: Prophecy and Portents

Prologue: Madness

Professor McGonagall loved the halls of Hogwarts. She appreciated its storied beauty, its history, the hallowed halls that had welcomed, taught, and had given guidance to so many. But on nights like tonight, where the air was heavy, the castle seemed to be holding its breath, magic crackling in apprehension, she was reminded of the darkness inside the castle. What was more concerning though, was that Albus seemed to do nothing about this darkness.

I've seen that look in your eyes
It makes me go blind
Cut me deep, the secrets and lies
Storm in the quiet

"Albus, surely you cannot expect us to sit here and…" Professor McGonagall starts to reason with her old friend.

"I'm afraid there's little we can do at the moment, Minerva," Dumbledore says as he pushes the treacle tart around the plate in front of him, "The pieces are already in motion."

Professor McGonagall sat rigid, her eyes rolling before they grew sharp and she scanned the faces around her, while Severus Snape leaned back in his chair, his expression unreadable. In the corner, Trelawney's frail frame seemed even more fragile as she mutters and rocks back and forth in her seat. Every Professor in Hogwarts was gathered in this dimly lit staff room, flickering candlelight highlighting all their worry. How the Headmaster could expect them to turn a blind eye and allow Harry Potter and his friends to rush to the Department of Mysteries was more than most could bear, it boarded on madness.

The fire in the hearth continues to crackle and Dumbledore slowly moves to stand from his seat. The door bursts open, and Percy Weasly falls through the threshold, his face pale and his robes askew, as though he had been running.

"Death… Eaters… at the Ministry," Percy gasped, breathless, eyes wide with fear.

All resistance wearing thin
Nowhere to run from all of this havoc
Nowhere to hide
From all of this madness, madness, madness

It's as if Percy's words had cast a stasis spell on the room. No one moves, McGonagall's eyes widened in disbelief, Snape's face remained impassive, unreadable. It isn't until a shriek fills the small space and all eyes turn to Professor Trelawney. She moves to stand, grasping at her throat, clawing at an unseen force that seems to grip her.

"Severus, please fetch Poppy for Sibyll." Dumbledore commands as he moves to attend to Trelawney with McGonagall.

"Albus do not be daft…" Snape interjects, before Dumbledore moves to further dismiss him sharply with a cut of his hand through the air.

"The one who walks in shadow and flame shall be unveiled…" Sibyll Trelawny's voice quakes with the words pouring from her lips. Her eyes are misty and unfocused before she convulses and falls to the floor.

"Severus, now." Dumbledore's voice was calm but his eyes betrayed a flicker of the urgency he had tried to hide. Snape's jaw tightened as he turned on his heel, practically throws his chair back and leaves the room with an angry sweep of his robe

McGonagall's moves to Trelawney's side, cradling her head into her lap and smoothing the hair away from her face. But her eyes grow wide as she listens to what comes next.

"born of both lion and snakes, forged from fire and venom... the Chimera shall stand at the crossroads of light and dark, neither fully bound to one nor the other... and the Dark Lord shall seek to bend its will, but the light shall call it, too... for in the heart of the Chimera lies a power unclaimed, a force that may tip the scales of fate... swayed by the hand that guides it…"

At this moment Snape returns with Madame Pomfrey on his heels.

"… the Chimera will bring either ruin or salvation..." Trelawney says in a broken sob as she collapses into tears under the weight of the words she'd just uttered—words that hung in the air like a storm cloud ready to burst.

Nowhere to hide
From all of this madness, madness, madness
Madness, madness, madness

As the words of the prophecy filled the room, McGonagall's heart sank. For a moment, her mind raced back to the last time such dark words had been uttered, and the destruction that had followed. Dumbledore's usually calm gaze hardened, and for a fleeting moment, the flames reflected in his eyes mirrored the urgency of the coming storm.

AN: Hello! I am back with a new crossover for our favorite reader. This story is currently not beta read. If anyone would like to beta this story, please hit me up!