DISCLAIMER: See Ch. 1.

A/N: Well, here comes the first battle scene... and I made the whole thing with Malfoy a HELL of a lot more realistic as opposed to the first time around.

As for Voldemort's Howler... yeah, he's somewhat hard for me to write.

By the way, some the Latin grammar got fixed in this chapter, so now it's "Spiculae Argentae" for the Silver Dart Curse, and not "Spiculumi Argentum."

I have a short piece of writing by Ray Bradbury entitled "Coda," and I think it actually assesses my feelings towards hell-raising reviewers quite well. IF ANYONE WANTS A COPY, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO EMAIL ME FOR IT!

IMPORTANT NOTE: Someone told me recently that an important part of what made people like my story was how quickly I updated it, like anywhere from 1-3 weeks between updates. Some people have taken much longer to update their stories, and besides, I'm in my first semester at college, so obviously I'll be busy. I only ask that you remain patient. I've already reposted somewhere between one-fourth to one-third of my story already, haven't I?

CHAPTER 19: THE FIRST BATTLE

"Why did wars always kill the innocent first, the guilty last or never?" -Larry Orbach, Soaring Underground (1)

...cuperem cum vertere peruiare moenia Troiae. ...when I wished to overturn the perjured walls of Troy. –Vergil, Aeneid (5.810f)

The Halloween feast was much less festive and much more subdued that night. In fact, hardly anybody ate at all. It turned out that Cho and Blaise weren't the only ones to have captured parents; among the other Hogwarts students, each House had at least a few students whose parents or other relatives were hostages, including the Patil twins' mother, who was an ambassador to India, or Gryffindor second year, Euan Ambercrombie, whose uncle was an ambassador to the United States. Out of respect for the situation, most of the decorations were removed. Before everyone went up to their common rooms, Dumbledore got up and said, "All those whose relatives are in dire trouble at the moment, our thoughts, hopes, prayers, and sympathies go out to you. If we get any helpful information, we will let you know right away." With some muttering, everyone left the Hall.

Harry returned to his office, trying to find some peace of mind. He was considering looking for Cho, but she found him first. With a fierce hug that could rival Hermione's, she basically flew through the door, grabbed him and forced him backwards into a wall, sobbing into his shoulder. After using his wand to securely shut the door so no one could see, Harry hugged her fiercely, whispering, "It's okay, Cho, I'm here for you. Shhh."

Cho seemed to calm down somewhat, and she held him even tighter than before. Her body was pressed against his so hard that he could almost visualize her every delicate curve... 'No!' he mentally scolded himself. 'Now isn't the time for that, Potter! Her parents could even be tortured right now, at this very moment!'

Cho stopped sobbing and looking up into his eyes. "Is something wrong, Harry?"

Harry could feel some strange prickling on the back of his neck. "Uh, no, why do you ask?"

"Nothing, it's just that your breathing is kind of ragged. I'm not cutting off your breathing, am I?"

"Huh? No, it's just that I don't know what to say or do right now. I don't know how I can help out right now."

She cracked a small smile. "Always so thoughtful, aren't you, Harry? Of course, if it involves any feelings for me in particular..." Cho left this sentence dangling, and an unfamiliar sort of glint appeared in her eyes.

Harry could definitely feel the blood rushing to his face now. "I, I'm sorry, Cho, I'm just trying to find a way to help you out," he stammered.

Cho grinned like the Cheshire cat. "I've been around various adolescent boys before, Harry, and I'm a Ravenclaw, remember? I can read you like a book."

'Checkmate,' he thought, 'Very perceptive girlfriend.'

"Of course, with the possible exception of Cedric, who played more of a brotherly role, you're the only true young man who I feel this way towards," she sighed, making Harry's heart thump wildly. "At least you have the good manners and modesty about these kinds of teenage issues." She ran a hand down his chest. "I can even feel your kind and loving heart beating with human decency," she murmured, closing her eyes and leaning against him.

Harry was blushing a shade of Gryffindor scarlet right now; he was reverently hoping no one would walk in at that moment and think that Cho was trying to seduce him. "How poetic," he sincerely commented, his voice a little strained from the situation.

Cho backed up a few feet, giving him some space, still smiling. "Thank you," she said. "It's perfectly normal for you to feel that way towards me, Harry. The wise man once said, 'I can resist anything but temptation.' And personally, I am flattered and touched that I have someone as noble as you who cares for me."

Harry found himself unable to say anything, so he just nodded. Cho giggled. "You're so cute when you're nervous, Harry. Thank you so very much for being there for me, Harry. You really helped me out just now. Good night," she added as she ran out of his office.

Harry stood there, rooted to the spot. How had he helped her? He hardly said anything. After making sure that all the blood had left his face and his breathing was normal again, he returned to Gryffindor Tower.

It was almost silent there, and after expressing his sympathies to Parvati and Euan (which seemed to comfort them slightly), he went up to his room to find all his friends worrying about the security of their families. Silently, Harry got changed and went to bed.

It was nearly midnight now, and Harry still couldn't sleep; he just kept thinking about the events of that evening. On one hand, Cho had told him that she was touched by his love for her; on the other hand, the Second War had begun. Was it really selfish of him for him to be madly in love like this when his world was on the brink of war?

Harry couldn't stand it any longer. He quietly got up and took out his invisibility cloak. Out the corner of his eye, he could see a figure on the grounds through the window, heading in the direction of Hagrid's cabin. It looked like a white horse, but it also had a human torso. 'Firenze!' Harry thought. He hadn't really thought about him, since he wasn't taking Divination anymore. Also, the centaur had never eaten with the other teachers at the High Table, possibly because of his preferred isolationism. Donning his cloak, he swept out of his dormitory and out of the tower.

Once he was on the third floor, he performed the Feather-Light Spell on himself (another nifty little trick he had learned from Professor Flitwick over the summer) and jumped out the window. He dropped through the air at a normal rate, but his feet gently made contact with the ground and he didn't get hurt at all. Making sure his cloak entirely concealed himself, he dashed off towards Hagrid's home.

As he got closer, he could see the centaur and the giant talking to each other. He got within ten feet of them when Firenze whipped his head around and exclaimed, "Halt, unseen stranger! Who are you?" Hagrid grabbed his crossbow and had cocked it in a flash.

"Don't shoot!" Harry said while taking off his cloak. The unusual pair looked relieved. Hagrid grunted, "Blimey, Harry, you certainly have a knack for visiting at odd hours. Why are you out here so late?"

"Couldn't sleep," Harry answered sheepishly.

Firenze took Harry's unexpected arrival in stride. "Hello, Harry Potter," he said, his eyes glowing like sapphires in the darkness, "I knew we would meet each other again very soon, and certainly didn't have to observe the heavens in order to determine that."

"Right. Anyway, can I ask what's happening?"

The centaur waved a hand towards a small hut built out of logs, which Harry recognized as being the so-called 'paddock' that Hagrid was building in the beginning of the year. "Hagrid and I were discussing the possible liaisons with the other creatures in this forest. Now that Professor Trelawny is back among the staff and in her tower, I am helping Dumbledore as a sort of escort to my former centaur brethren."

"What, they didn't welcome you back?"

Firenze sighed. "Unfortunately, the others can be rather narrow- minded at times. The centaur culture has existed for a few thousand years now, and that means that very little has changed within that time. When I worked as the Divination teacher for that brief while, they saw my pact with Dumbledore as a sort of betrayal or servitude, rather than an agreement between two intelligent individuals."

"I know. Centaurs don't like being compared to horses, no matter how much they might look like them. Umbridge, unfortunately, learned that the hard way."

Hagrid chuckled, and Frienze's features flickered for a moment. "Yes, I heard of that incident. Dumbledore told me all about that. He bought her back because as evil as she may have been, a gruesome death at the hands of the other centaurs would have achieved little good, if any. As the Muggle playwright Shakespeare pointed out in his play, 'Hamlet,' revenge only breeds more revenge."

"Where did you read that?" Harry doubted the centaurs had those books out in the forest.

"A student mentioned it to me once."

"Anyway, Harry," Hagrid stated, "Firenze's home for the time being is that hut over there. Firenze and I will alternate with trying to talk to the other creatures to join our side in the war. He will stay here when it's my shift, and even act as Care of Magical creatures teacher when I'm 'on duty,' so to speak. I can trust you with all this, right, Harry?"

Harry nodded. "Of course, Hagrid."

The giant gently clapped a hand on Harry's shoulder (mainly in order to avoid driving Harry into the ground like a pole). "Good man," he smiled.

"Speaking of creatures, Harry, what is this new ability of yours Hagrid has told me about?" Firenze inquired.

Handing his cloak and wand to Hagrid, Harry transformed into a lion. Hagrid scratched Harry behind the ears while Firenze looked amazed. "Excellent work, Harry," he complimented the young Animagus.

"Thanks," he replied after transforming back. Hagrid said, "Anyway, Harry, I have to speak to Aragog and his family again. Care to come with me?"

Harry remembered something. "Er, Hagrid? Do you remember when Ron and I followed your directions to 'follow the spiders' a few years ago? Aragog and his fellow acromantulas nearly ate us, even though we told him that we were your friends."

Hagrid looked mad now. "Yeah, he told me about that. I visited him when I got back to see if you had talked to him or not. I warned him that if that EVER happened again, I would snap his legs off. He agreed not to do that again. I even offered him some raw meat from the kitchens in order to feed him, and he accepted that as a sort of peace offering."

"Good, although Ron still dislikes spiders."

"Yeah, I know, so I won't ask him to do that again. Here, if we go, I'll hang onto your cloak and wand, and don't worry, they won't get ruined or anything." Hagrid put the cloak into one compartment of his coat and the wand into another compartment, which was magically designed so its contents wouldn't get damaged. Harry transformed into a lion again, and before he departed with Hagrid, Firenze said, "I will contact Dumbledore to let him know what is happening. Good luck."

Giant and lion both nodded, and Harry went inside to get some things. Once he came back out with a giant sack slung over his back, they set off into the woods. Hagrid had his crossbow cocked and ready just in case, and Harry silently stalked next to him, his eyes, ears and nose taking in his surroundings. Harry felt as though he was home, his leonine sense enjoying this environment. About fifteen minutes later, giant and lion found a trail of giant spider webs. An acromantula with very sharp fangs and hair that seemed to be made out of steel scuttled along over to Hagrid and asked him, "Hello, Hagrid. My father Aragog has been expecting you. And what is this?" he added, turning to Harry.

"Oh, this is my pet lion, Griffinclaw," Hagrid said, gesturing towards Harry. "And no, he's not a snack. That's what this is for, Zatomas," he added, handing the gigantic sack over towards the acromantula. He said "Thanks" before taking the sack in his jaws and leading the visiting duo to the inner layer. (2)

The jaws of all the acromantulas were clicking away, all coming over to greet Hagrid and his pet lion. A few moments later, there was silence, as Aragog came over to his childhood friend. "Ah, hello again, Hagrid," he said, facing the giant, even though he was blind. "Long time, no see, so to speak." Overall, Harry noticed, Aragog looked pretty much the same as the last time.

"Hello, Aragog," Hagrid said cheerfully. The acromantula named Zatomas was passing around the sack. Each of his brethren would open the sack with their front two legs, use their pincers to extract a cow's leg, and then passed it on to the next giant spider. Harry sniffed the meat hopefully, but his human preferences overruled his lion instincts, so he didn't take any.

"Mmm, cow meat, my favorite," Aragog commented as he ripped some meat off the bone. Hagrid looked a little queasy at the eating habits, but otherwise he maintained his stance. "Now, down to business," Aragog said after swallowing.

"Well," Hagrid started, "You never have been somebody who would want to join the likes of Riddle or his forces, especially not since the incident with the basilisk-" all the acromantulas shuddered "-and even recently, you haven't wanted to have anything to do with his kind. I understand you want to stay out of all of this, but if you help us out, the end might come faster. We could use your skills to prevent something terrible from taking place."

"Like what?" the aging acromantula inquired.

"You-Know-Who is trying to involve normal snakes in some sort of project of his, but if he can, he'll want to use a basilisk." More shuddering. "One of Dumbledore's spies says that he's trying to hatch an egg for one somewhere in the Black Forest. If you can get to it first and destroy it, you won't have to worry about it anymore."

Harry wanted to ask what all this was about, but he couldn't ask as a lion, obviously. Hagrid continued, "If he can't use a basilisk, then he'll be forced to use normal snakes. Like you said, Aragog, you want to be rewarded in food for your help, and I know your tasty preferences, especially those for smaller, non-magical serpents."

Aragog and the others mused over this, pincers clicking furiously now. "You certainly are good at keeping your word, Hagrid. It is no small wonder that Dumbledore trusts you so much. We agree. Mosag!"

An acromantula about the same size as Aragog came into the clearing, and something told Harry that this one was female, possibly because it didn't look as fearsome. It was as old, but it still retained some of its eyesight. "Yes, husband?" it asked Aragog.

"Mosag, Hagrid brought you from the Black Forest, yes?"

"That's true, dear, Hagrid bought me back from there when I was young. Grindelwald had killed my family, and he promised me that he would find me a loving mate."

"I couldn't leave you like that, Mosag," Hagrid added, blushing a little from all the praise.

"The Dark Lord goes beyond Grindelwald's terror. In order to regain peace for our world, I will certainly help as your guide and partner. I will even chose and take with me five of my children to assist. I will send a message when I have decided," Mosag promised.

"And I agree with everyone on this," Aragog declared.

"Thank you, Aragog, Mosag, everybody," Hagrid said, scratching Harry behind the ears. Harry, however, was wondering this whole time what was going on.

"Aw, what a proud lion!" Mosag said. With a long leg, she stroked Harry's back in a way that sort of disturbed him. "What's his name?"

"Harry."

A pause. "I thought you said his name was Griffinclaw?" Zatomas said, sounding confused.

Harry transformed back. "Hello again, Aragog. Hagrid wanted me to come along in my new form as a lion in case anything happened. Also, I'd be honored to fight with you and your family against Voldemort, as long as you don't try to eat me or my friends again."

Excited clicking formed from this surprise. "Hello again, Harry Potter. Long time, no see, so to speak," Aragog said at last. "And don't worry, no more eating problems, since we have solved the problem regarding our source of food."

"Right. Anyway, what's all this about the Black Forest?"

Hagrid interrupted him at this point. "I'll explain when we return, Harry," he said loudly. "Anyway, time to transform back. 'Bye, Aragog." As the acromantulas all clicked, Harry transformed again and left with Hagrid.

Once they had returned to Hagrid's cabin, Harry immediately demanded to know what Mosag's little speech was about. Composing himself, Hagrid explained, "I'm sorry, I didn't want to mention it in front of her, Harry, because even about fifty years later, it's still a real tearjerker for her.

"After I was expelled, Dumbledore took me under his wing. I also learned how to defend myself. As you might know, he defeated Grindelwald in 1945. However, the year before that was utter chaos for England, as well as most of Europe. He mainly hid in the Black Forest, and tried to bring all the Dark creatures he could find under his control. There was a huge community of acromantulas in Germany at one point, most of them in that forest. Mosag and her family didn't want to join him. When they refused Grindelwald, he and his lackeys killed off her entirely family. She barely escaped the massacre.

"Dumbledore and I were traveling to Germany to meet with the top officials there when I found her cowering behind a boulder, scared and terrified. We were able to get information from her that proved vital to Dumbledore's victory. However, after the conflict, no one knew what to do with her. With Dumbledore's permission, I bought her back so she could live peacefully in the Forbidden Forest. She was hesitant at first, but as soon as I mentioned a handsome young male acromantula, she was about as giddy as a teenage girl."

When Harry finally found his voice, he hoarsely said, "I had no idea. So what's with all these snake plans you didn't tell me about?"

"I didn't say anything because it's Order business, Harry. But don't worry, you'll find out soon enough. Professor Dumbledore even said so himself. Just be patient, Harry."

The teenager sighed. "OK, Hagrid, I will."

The giant nodded and said, "Oh, and one other thing, Harry; don't tell no one about this, not even Ron or Hermione."

"Fine."

Hagrid smiled. "That's a good lad. Here's your cloak and wand. Good night."

"G'nite."

~*~*~*~

Harry was still sleepy that morning because of being up that late. His brain was still buzzing with information, and he seemed to go through his morning classes like a robot. Some people were looking at pointing at him at breakfast and lunch, but he could care less. How would he help out now? Voldemort was becoming more and more dangerous by the day. He kept brooding over this in his mind.

"Harry?"

Harry snapped out of his trance; he saw his first year Slytherins were sitting in front of him. Mark Evans had his hand raised. "Um, Harry, you've been sitting there like that for the last five minutes of class, and we were wondering about today."

"Hm? Oh, right, sorry, just thinking about what happened last night. Anyway, let's get to work."

Jennifer Smith suddenly started giggling. Regaining some control over herself, she said, "Sorry, Harry, you look so thoughtful and smart sitting there like that."

"Er, right," he said, caught completely off guard by this. Of course, some girls had been turning their heads at school, muttering about how cute and handsome he was. Ignoring some snickering, he went over and retrieved the hinkypunk tank.

As long as Harry was busy, he was able to keep his mind off what might be happening in the war. His class enjoyed his lessons as usual, although a couple of girls stifled screams when the hinkypunk made its horrible squelching noise against the glass. After they all left, he put the hinkypunk tank back in its proper place and he sat down at his desk, getting his thoughts together.

'Worrying won't help you at all, Harry,' he firmly thought to himself. 'Dumbledore will ask you for help when the time comes.' After using a couple of meditation exercises to calm himself down, he got ready for the second year Slytherins.

~*~*~*~

As the first Quidditch match drew nearer, there was the familiar excitement in the air, as everyone was talking about the new line-ups for both teams. Ron even kept up the excitement, even though he was unable to play this game. "On the plus side," he said, "No more Slytherins singing 'Weasley Is Our King.'"

Harry laughed. Even Ron had gotten along with a couple of Slytherins at the O.S. meetings. This was certainly an improvement.

Malfoy, however, was looking constantly sour every time he saw Harry. Somehow, Blaise had devised a method of popping unexpectedly out of nowhere to discourage the blond-haired boy from making any moves towards Harry.

In fact, Blaise was one of the first Slytherins who Ron could get along with, between the O.S., friendship with Harry, and Quidditch. When the last topic was bought up, Harry feared a fight between the two prefects from their opposing Houses. He interrupted Ron and said, "Ron, I know you'll disagree with me on this, but it's only a game." The redhead looked blank, shrugged, and muttered something about prefect duties before walking away.

After Ron was out of earshot, Blaise told Harry, "Snape might be disappointed about Montague's arm, but then again, he told me that it was what he got for teaming up with Umbridge. Even towards the end of last year, he would be ashamed of his students who joined her."

Harry was surprised. "How and why did he tell you all this?"

Blaise shrugged. "He trusts me, and besides, Malfoy only got the badge because of his father's influence. I was his first choice as a prefect."

"That makes sense. Also, who's the captain for this game, then?"

"Bletchley."

"Lucky for him, it's the Chasers he has to worry about, and not me."

~*~*~*~

On the morning of the match, the entire Gryffindor House wished Harry good luck. He even got a good luck note from Cho. He also noticed another letter, this one from Madame Hooch.

Mr. Potter,

This is only a friendly reminder, asking you not to have a repeat of last year's events. While Umbridge may have been trying to make you miserable for her own twisted pleasure, I still don't condone such violence. I'd wish you good luck, except being the flying instructor and part of the "non- partial" staff, I follow the philosophy of "may the best team win."

Sincerely,

Madame Hooch.

Harry turned the note over and wrote a response.

Madame Hooch,

Thank you for the friendly reminder. Don't worry, I'm past last year's problems, and given certain events of last summer (like a giant snake in Diagon Alley), I don't think Malfoy would be so eager to try anything again.

Sincerely,

Harry Potter

Harry sent the note back with the owl who bought it, and up at the staff table, he saw Hooch nod to him.

As he walked out towards the pitch, Cho pulled him aside where no one could see them and kissed him. "Good luck," she whispered.

"Thank you." With a smile that he knew would make Cho melt, he dramatically walked to the locker rooms.

The whole team was excited as they changed into their robes, and when they walked out onto the field, they saw only half the student body wearing red or green. Harry could immediately speculate why: a few years ago, everyone was eager to see the downfall of Slytherin's Quidditch dynasty, and now because of the O.S., there was more inter-house unity and less squabbles over a game that was intended as friendly competition. Even the older students had set examples for younger students who weren't part of the O.S. The Gryffindor spectators wore red, the Slytherin spectators wore green, and the rest didn't wear either. The Hufflepuffs merely followed the same philosophy of "let the best team win" and "it's only a game," and the Ravenclaws pretty much felt the same way, only because they were so analytical that they felt both teams had an even chance of winning.

The Slytherins were already waiting, with Bletchley in the lead. "A clean game," she said pointedly, and they all nodded.

A familiar voice suddenly interrupted. "Hello, everybody! This is Lee Jordan, and due to talks with Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall, I am back as match commentator, taking time off from my job at Weasley's Wizard Wheezes."

"No advertisements, Jordan, and no House bias, since you've graduated," McGongagall warned.

"I wasn't going to, Professor, and besides, you can't put me in detention anymore." Laughing rang out.

"No, but I can still fire you."

"Ooh, touché. Anyway, first match of the year, Gryffindor versus Slytherin, and from what I've heard, the fierce rivalry between the two has died off somewhat. Also, after last year's unjust ban by Dumbridge, I would like to welcome back Harry Potter as Seeker for the Gryffindor Quidditch team." The Gryffindors clapped fiercely and literally roared with praise, and even Bletchley applauded politely. Taking the hint, the rest of the team and some of the Slytherin fans did the same, although Malfoy refused outright.

"Bell, Bletchley, shake hands," Hooch continued after Lee's intro. Katie looked Miles straight in the eye, and they looked each other in the eye while doing so.

As the whistle blew, fifteen players and four balls rose into the air. The Snitch disappeared out of sight, and Harry and Malfoy immediately went looking for it.

"OK, and here we go, the Quaffle is immediately taken by the new Gryffindor captain, Katie Bell, and she's heading towards the Slytherin goal posts, and, NO, Pucey's trying to snag it- OUCH! A Bludger by Sloper, who has improved immensely since last year, the other Bludger by Kirke, who- I DON'T BELIEVE IT! Kirke has hit the other two Slytherin Chasers with one Bludger! Like killing two birds with one stone, eh?"

"Jordan!"

"C'mon, Professor, I certainly didn't mean that literally, it's only an expression! No offense to the Slytherins! Anyway, Katie Bell shoots, no, wait, she faked it, Ginny Weasley has it in possession, and GRYFFINDOR SCORES!"

The red-clad fans cheered as Pucey took the Quaffle. "Excellent job, Ginny! You certainly know how to play with those older brothers of yours, heh? I bet a few generations from now, your family might have enough people in it to start its own Quidditch league!"

"JORDAN!" she warned over the laughing. Even Ginny found it amusing.

"Sheesh, give me break, Professor, it's only a joke! You know what I mean, since all seven Weasley kids were under your guidance at one point or another!" More laughing.

The game progressed without any foul play or awful singing. Bletchley was like a flying barrier, and even Hooper was saving at least half the goals, even though he said some of it was too fast for him; fortunately, no one could hear him. The Chasers from both teams were pulling their best moves, and the new Slytherin Beaters were actually clever and cunning, unlike their predecessors. In general, both teams were evenly matched, and this was becoming one of the longest games that Harry ever played.

"Wait, was that the Snitch?" Jordan suddenly shouted.

Both Harry and Malfoy looked around wildly. Harry saw it towards the Gryffindor goal posts behind him, but he had a sudden idea; he always wanted to try this move out-

Faking it, he pretended to see it towards the center of the field, and exclaimed, "There it is!" Malfoy fell for it, and they both dived downwards, barely hanging onto their brooms. The crowd gasped as the two of them dropped like stones.

Barely ten feet above the ground, Harry regained control of his broom and flew flat out, his feet barely scuffing the grass beneath him. Malfoy, on the other hand, wasn't so lucky. He plowed straight into the ground with a dull thud.

"Way to go, Potter! Excellent dive!" Lee yelled over the Gryffindor applause and the Slytherin moans. "The Wronskei Feint, skillfully executed, just like at the Quidditch World Cup a couple of years ago! Viktor Krum, beware!" Lots of laughter. "Of course, Krum doesn't have to worry about Potter being a rival; Malfoy is already one!"

"JORDAN!" McGonagall fairly screamed.

"Please don't hurt me, I'll be good," Lee mock-whimpered, inciting some sniggering from the crowd.

It took five minutes, but eventually Malfoy was able to stand up straight. There was even a mark across his forehead from where he plowed to the ground. "Great, now I've got a bloody scar on my forehead," he said. Some of the anti-Harry Slytherins chuckled stupidly.

"Do you want my glasses too, while you're at it?" Harry asked. "Or maybe some black hair dye?" Nearly everybody else laughed at this.

"OK, you two, now that you're both ready to Seek again-" Hooch's whistle blew again, and play resumed.

The back-and-forth scoring of both teams continued as Harry and Malfoy both circled each other, both trying to confuse and block each other. "Whoa, those two Seekers certainly know how to play!" Lee exclaimed as they both encountered each other, as a clashing red and green blur. "Those two never get along, now do they?"

Then, just as they were facing each other down, the Snitch flew upward right between them. 'Just like me and Cho during the first week of school,' Harry thought, 'only I HATE this other Seeker.'

The crowd gasped as the two rivals flew at each other. They were barely ten feet apart and closing as the spectators braced themselves as though expecting an explosion to result from a collision. At five feet away, Harry gently nudged his Firebolt as though he wanted to ram into Malfoy, and it worked: the blonde Slytherin screamed and veered off, while Harry reached out with his right arm and grabbed the struggling Snitch.

"GRYFFIINDOR WINS, 400-350!" Lee screamed as the Gryffindors applauded. Even the Slytherin team looked somewhat impressed with the display. Six red blurs enclosed Harry, all of them congratulating him. Off in the distance, Malfoy looked a little smug before flying off. A little worried, Harry quickly forgot about it as he went back to get changed and celebrate with his House.

~*~*~*~

The party in the Gryffindor common room was extravagant, and Ginny, while a prefect, had taken the liberty of doing some things that her twin brothers would do, like sneak food from the kitchens, and then stockpile them. She even unleashed a few of the Wildfire Whizbangs, so then, no damage would be caused. People partied, music rang, Catherine wheels flew around, silver-tailed rockets bounced around, and a couple of fire dragons flew outside the tower. Around eleven at night, Professor McGonagall came by, still dressed in her day clothes, but only to remind them that she wanted it done and all cleaned up by midnight. After they all agreed, Professor McGonagall took a butterbeer and walked out, commenting about the Wronskei Feint.

It was a few minutes before midnight, and all the Gryffindors were was just at the base of the boys' staircase when there was a sudden explosion outside like a bomb going off. They were all wondering what it was when Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall came running in. "Potter, Weasley, Weasley, Granger, Longbottom, get your wands and come with me," Dumbledore commanded, "Patil, Ambercrombie, go with Professor McGonagall."

"What's going on?" Harry demanded.

"I'll explain on the way, just get your wands and follow me," Dumbledore ordered. After they all dashed up to the dorms to do so, they hurried back down with their wands equipped, and hurried behind Dumbledore, away from the tower.

"Professor, what's going on?" Harry panted is as he ran alongside the Headmaster (for an old man, he was very fast).

"There was an attack in the Slytherin dormitories on Zabini, and possibly Malfoy."

'Malfoy!?' Harry thought. "What do you mean?"

"One of the Death Eaters broke into the Slytherin common room and was trying to go after Zabini. Snape, unfortunately, was away tonight because of his 'night job.' Whoever the Death Eater is, it stunned and restrained Malfoy. Whatever the reason, I don't know."

A few moments later, they were outside the Slytherin dormitories. "Poison Eraser," Dumbledore said, and the patch of bare wall opened up. It revealed Blaise trying to fend off the Death Eater. Pieces of furniture lay scattered across the room, and Malfoy was slumped in one corner, dimly watching the scene in front of him. As they rushed forth to help, Harry took pride in Blaise's skills, until-

"Crucio!"

Blaise fell against an armchair, screaming. Harry and Dumbledore rushed forward, but a sudden wall made of something like crystal appeared, blocking them back. However, as Dumbledore tried to pierce it, they could steal hear what the Death Eater was saying.

"You know, Draco, it's too bad you don't want to join your father and his old friends, and not even me for that matter. You'd rather be like Zabini over here, even after his family threw out all those centuries' worth of Dark legacies. You couldn't even follow through with tonight's plot to Portkey Mr. Zabini over to his miserable parents. I don't think your Lucius would appreciate that."

Malfoy scoffed as if this were all a minor trifle. "Yeah, right, whatever you say, Uncle Rodolphus. I don't give a niffler's paw about any of that Dark crap."

Harry and his friends gasped. Neville's eyes went as wide as dinner plates. Rodolphus Lestrange!? Then Harry remembered; this Death Eater was Malfoy's uncle...

"Not good enough, Draco. If you don't survive this little lesson, you'll lose your minds, and end up like the foolish Longbottoms. Cru-"

"NO!"

It was Neville. Harry almost cowered at what he saw; Neville, always the timid and polite one, was looking as furious as though he were being possessed. "REDUCTO!"

What Dumbledore couldn't accomplish, Neville did. The barrier shattered, sending several shards straight at Lestrange. The Death Eater howled in pain as Neville lunged forward. "You bloody bastard!" he screamed. "Spiculae Argentae!"

A barrage of silver darts shot out of Neville's wand and pierced the skin even more. Malfoy was crawling away behind the Death Eater towards the fireplace. Lestrange, however, was too enraged to notice. "I don't think so! Arieto!"

Ginny was thrown backwards by the Ramming Curse as though hit in the chest. Malfoy, in the meantime, was on his feet again, and kicked his uncle in the leg. "Leave her alone!" Malfoy yelled. Lestrange whipped around; "Why you little-"

Malfoy thrust a red-hot poker at his uncle's forehead; it pierced right through the mask, and the Death Eater screamed over the sizzling sound. Waving his wand wildly, Lestrange blasted his nephew into Blaise, who was just getting up. Taking off his mask, Lestrange spotted Dumbledore, who had tripped over a broken chair to help his Slytherin students, and with a flick of his wrist, sent a metal lantern crashing down on the professor's head.

Once again, Harry felt that pounding in his veins. Raising his hand as though trying to halt somebody, he shot out another stream of fire, this one at Lestrange, which not only engulfed the Death Eater, but filled throughout the room as everybody screamed with fright. Harry noticed something else; the Death Eater was in pain, but nobody else seemed to be affected by the fire anymore than they were by normal air. Feeling dizzy, Harry stopped, and the fire vanished, leaving Lestrange rolling around on the floor, trying to put out his robes. When the last bit of fire was put out, the black-robed man lay on his back, panting as though he had run miles without water.

Dumbledore got up, rubbing his head. "Are you alright, sir?" Harry asked?

"Yes, Harry, believe me, that's nothing to other experiences I've had before," Dumbledore said while wincing.

Neville looked as though he'd come out of a trance. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to lose control like that..."

"It's okay, Neville, I'm sure your parents would be proud, although I don't know if they would appreciate the language," Harry coaxed his friend, making him beam, even though he also blushed a little. "What was that, anyway?"

Neville shrugged. "Silver Dart Curse. It's supposed to be a N.E.W.T. level spell; I found it in a scrapbook in that box Sirius bequeathed me, which my father used from his training days as an Auror. Kind of dangerous though, and has some negative stigma, since it was originally developed to kill werewolves."

"I'll have to try that one out, then," Harry commented, although he didn't like the sound of the last part of that. Just then, however, a sound was heard coming from the flattened Death Eater. As Harry moved closer, he could have sworn that he heard Lestrange laughing softly.

"I don't see what's so funny, Lestrange," he said, peering into the man's scorched and blackened face.

"I had to deal with young Malfoy and Zabini here, but I guess Chang will learn soon enough, eh, Potter?"

Harry froze, and the Death Eater's eyes rolled back into his head, and his final breath left his body.

The raven-haired boy felt petrified. Lestrange had died, but Cho was about to die...?

With a wave of panic, Harry raced out of the common room and up the stairs. He didn't know where the Ravenclaw common room was, but he had another idea.

Running back up to Gryffindor Tower so fast that he wondered if his father could have run this fast as a stag, he hurled up to his dormitory, unlocked his trunk, retrieved his Firebolt, ignored the questions from Dean and Seamus, and dived out the window.

Harry wildly looked around. Which tower was the Ravenclaw common room? He remembered it was on the west side of the castle somewhere... and suddenly, he saw flashes of light coming from a tower on that side of the castle. He flew over to it, and saw the battle going on inside.

Flitwick was fending off another Death Eater with the help of Cho and Luna, while Sinistra was having students evacuate the common room in handfuls, all of whom were in their night robes. As Harry silently swooped in (he was trying to maintain some sort of stealth, just in case), he saw the other Death Eater blast Flitwick into a bookcase, which took up the length of the wall. The tiny Charms professor was promptly buried under a small mountain of books. Luna looked away in horror, and then she saw Harry. Winking, she sneakily and silently unlatched the windows as Cho rounded on the Death Eater.

Just as Luna gestured for him to come in and ducked under the windowsill, he zoomed forward. He was less than a foot away when the windows opened up to make room for him. With a BANG, he leapt off his Firebolt and landed on his feet, his wand at the ready. Everyone stopped to see Harry make his dramatic entrance, but Harry was more concerned with other things right now, like the Death Eater, whose eyes widened in surprise.

"You!" he exclaimed. "My brother should have finished you off, Potter!"

"Oh, was he? You're Rabastan Lestrange, then? Well, sorry to inform you, but Neville Longbottom fairly impaled him and I killed him. Even Malfoy took a hit at him. Oops, did I say sorry? I meant happy." The few remaining Ravenclaws gasped at Harry's claim, and then laughed at his taunt.

Fury seemed to burn in the Death Eater's dark eyes now. "You worthless little freak! I'll kill you right here and now!"

Harry snorted. "Oh, the same way you and your Death Eater chums tried to kill me and my friends at the Ministry? Some success that was." Sinistra and the last few Ravenclaws laughed before running out of the room.

Screaming, the younger Lestrange lunged at Harry with his wand cocked. Harry, Cho, and Luna were all ready for him.

"Venti Turbulenti!" Luna exclaimed. A strong gust of wind like that from a hurricane shot out of her wand towards Lestrange, pushing him backwards so hard he could barely keep upright.

Cho aimed her Bat-Bogey Hex so the bats would end up in Luna's slipstream, and the Bat Bogeys tore away at the Death Eater's robes ripped off his mask.

"VEXATIO FLUCTUO!" Lestrange screamed. Gigantic blasts of force knocked the three students to their feet, and the Bat Bogeys and wind vanished. The Dark wizard conjured up tight ropes on Harry and Luna while they were still down, and was about to do the same to Cho when a truly evil grin twisted Lestrange's face. "Oh, what a pretty little bird we are, so like a swan... I had the awful task of guarding your parents for a few days, Miss Chang, and they were so concerned for their beautiful daughter... Oh well, I'm sure that my Master won't mind me having some fun with you before I bring you to where your parents are being held..."

Fear writhed within Harry like snakes in a pit. He didn't like the sound of the Death Eater's voice.

With a wave of Lestrange's wand, Cho was lifted off her feet and stuck against the wall at eye level to the Death Eater as though she were glued to it. He shouted, "Avello!"

The front of Cho's robes was torn open, as was the shirt underneath, revealing her bra and midriff. She screamed as the Death Eater slowly advanced on her with that greedy look in his eye and that cruel smile on his face. Harry purposely didn't stare at Cho as to avoid being distracted, and was trying to break loose of the cords so he could help her. He struggled and struggled with every step that Lestrange took as Cho screamed even more.

'Oh-' step- 'no-' step- 'you-' step- 'WON'T!' he thought furiously. RIP!

Transforming into a lion, he easily burst through the cords which bound him. With an almighty roar, he lunged at the now-terrified Death Eater. His current form matched what he was feeling right now: a furious beast. In a flurry of swipes and bites, the Dark wizard dropped his wand and was trying to defend himself, but to no avail. Lestrange made a desperate scramble for his wand, but Harry easily broke it by stepping on it and bit him in the arm. Harry didn't take time to gloat, because the predator instinct within him was screaming like a siren, "Kill! Kill! KILL!"

Lestrange's horrible screams of pain were drowned out by Harry's roaring. The weight, claws and fangs all took their toll on the ill-fated Death Eater, and blood started seeping from various places all over his body. Suddenly, Harry was thrown off him and back against the nearest wall. Lestrange got up, holding Cho's wand. "Well, sorry, kitty, but if I can't enjoy her company, I'll enjoy her death!" Pointing it at Cho, who closed her eyes, whimpering, he started, "AVAD-"

If Lestrange wasn't so cocky and hell-bent, he would have been more prepared for Harry's attack as he spring forward with all his strength, his claws ready to slice, a terrible roar issuing from his mouth. The Death Eater turned his head around to see Harry, but was a couple of seconds too late to do anything to defend himself.

With all his might, Harry swung his right claw across Lestrange's exposed face. With one final, strangled scream of pain, Rabastan Lestrange fell to the floor, lying on his back with his head faced at an angle, his eyes wide open. Four identical red trenches were etched into his face, oozing blood.

There was silence, other than Cho's uneven breathing and Luna's attempts to wriggle free. As Harry started to use his leonine claws to cut Luna loose, the spell wore off and Cho slid slowly down the wall and onto the floor. Just then, the pile of books trembled, and Professor Flitwick popped out. "Oof!" he squeaked, "I have such a headache! Oh dear, what's all this?"

"We were just wondering the same thing," Dumbledore said, arriving with Madame Pomfrey, and Professors Lupin, McGonagall, Snape, and Sprout. Their wide eyes wandered over a sobbing Cho, who was trying to conceal herself, Lestrange's dead body (which now had blood surrounding it like a macabre aura), and Harry, who was cutting Luna loose. The male professors looked shocked, and their female colleagues gasped.

As Harry carefully sliced the cords without hurting Luna, Cho sobbed, "He, the Death Eater, I mean, knocked us over, bound Harry and Luna, and he, he stuck me to the wall, he tore my-" she broke off, sobbing even more. The nurse and Transfiguration teacher rushed over to try and comfort her, while Dumbledore looked furious, Snape glared at the corpse with a look of pure hatred on his face, Sprout clapped her hands to her mouth, Flitwick gave a squeak of horror, and Lupin looked about ready to kill. Still sobbing, she continued, "Harry, he, he transformed, he tore at him, but was thrown back, then the Death Eater tried to k-k-kill me, and Harry lunged at him- OH GOD, I was so scared-" Cho sobbed even more as the nurse conjured a blanket over her.

Harry sliced the last cord just as Cho looked up at him and asked, "H-Harry, you're an A-Animagus?"

He transformed back as Luna got up and brushed the dust off her robes. "That was amazing, Harry," she said dreamily as though nothing was wrong.

Harry, however, was unable to take all of this in at once. Cho had nearly been assaulted, he had killed two Death Eaters, and somehow the two Dark wizards had circumvented security. He looked for his Firebolt (which he found under a table, where it had landed after he leapt off of it), while McGonagall mended Cho's robes and Madam Pomfrey got her up on her feet, saying to her, "Come on, we'd best get you to the hospital wing, my dear." As they walked out, Dumbledore turned to Harry and Luna. "Mr. Potter, Miss Lovegood, please come with us to the staff room. The others are waiting there."

"I would also like to put my broomstick away-"

Crack! Dobby appeared. "How can I help Harry Potter?" he exclaimed.

"Please put my Firebolt back in my room, Dobby," Harry said.

"Of course, sir!" Taking the broomstick, Dobby disappeared with it.

Silently, Harry and Luna followed Dumbledore and the other teachers to the staff room, where Harry's fellow Gryffindors were sitting, along with Blaise and Malfoy.

"Him!" Harry snarled, pointing at Malfoy. "What's he doing here?"

"Harry," Dumbledore warned him, "Trust me on this, we can trust him."

Before he could say another word, however, Dumbledore opened up a case and revealed a Memory Orb. "I was able to procure one of these myself," the Headmaster explained, "and lucky too, because they're a very rare and new invention. Fudge got one of these months ago, being the Minister. If you don't mind, Harry, please show us what happened with the skirmishes in the Slytherin Dungeons and the Ravenclaw Tower."

Harry looked at Malfoy, but as though Dumbledore had read his mind, he added, "We will question Mr. Malfoy afterwards."

Deciding to take his mentor's word on this, Harry grasped the Orb and began the memory. He saw himself battling Rodolphus Lestrange in the Slytherin dungeon, finishing him off with that fireball attack. As the fire filled the common room, he noticed that no one else was harmed by the fire, nor was any of the furniture or carpeting damaged. Ignoring the looks of awe from the teachers and students, he progressed to the battle in the Ravenclaw common room, and ended it with Rabastan Lestrange's grisly demise. Hermione and Ginny gasped at Cho's suffering, and Neville looked away as the memory-Harry tore up the Death Eater's face.

After ending the memory and handing the Orb back to Dumbledore, Ron blurted out, "You're an Animagus!?"

Harry was about to respond when Dumbledore spoke for him. "He was training secretly for that last summer. He was quite ambitious, and I think he even broke some records with his progress. Since it was secret, he wasn't allowed to tell all of you, so please don't be angry at him over that."

Hermione looked impressed, and to demonstrate, Harry transformed in front of them and walked up to them. Neville looked awed, and Ginny scratched him behind the ears. Luna said in an awed voice, "Wow, even my Gryffindor Quidditch hats aren't this good!"

After some brief chuckling, Harry transformed back, and Snape said in his icy tone, "While I congratulate you for getting rid of that intruder, Potter, you're lucky you didn't ruin my common room; otherwise I'd put you in detention for the rest of the year and charge the repair costs to your vault. You're also about as arrogant as your father, the way you taunted the younger Lestrange, so you'd better not let your cockiness interfere with your work."

Harry glared at Snape to maintain a convincing act, although he had to admit that the ex-Death Eater had a point about the arrogance bit.

Just then, Cho walked in with Madame Pomfrey, still looking quite upset. "She's fine, Headmaster," the nurse stated, "Although after this meeting is over, I want her to spend the night in the hospital wing, just to be safe."

"Thank you, Poppy. Miss Chang, please have a seat." As soon as the nurse left and Cho sat herself down at the table, a rush of concerns rushed forth, but Dumbledore held his hand up and said, "Please, not now. Maybe later."

Dumbledore then got up after putting the Memory Orb away and looked at Snape. "Severus, if you please."

Snape took a vial of Honesty Elixir out of his robes and let a few drops fall into a goblet of water in front of Malfoy. When that was done, Malfoy drank it and set it back down. No physical change was seen; Harry knew that it still worked, because he had read up on these weaker but more flexible Truth Potions during the summer. They weren't as restricting as Veritaserum, but nearly as reliable.

"What is your name?" Dumbledore asked the pale Slytherin.

"Draco Malfoy," he answered casually.

"What house are you in?"

"Slytherin."

"What position do you play on your House Quidditch team?"

"Seeker."

Dumbledore nodded as though confirming that the potion had worked. "Are you supportive of Voldemort?"

"No."

Everyone in the room gasped; this was a switch. "Why do you put on the public appearance of being supportive of Voldemort?"

"Because he expects me to be loyal just because my father is a Death Eater. I don't want to have anything to do with that, because it's my own life."

"Who do you support in this war?"

"Neither. The Dark Lord is a twisted, evil freak and Potter is a glory hound. I was hoping to try and hide and hopefully remain neutral throughout this whole thing."

"How did those two Death Eaters get in?"

"My father told me to give him the password and create a Portkey to send Blaise over to where his parents are being held. He warned me that otherwise, he would send another Death Eater to make sure that Blaise was captured. I gave him the password, but I purposely didn't use the directions instructed for the Portkey, and since I expected another Death Eater to come, I decided to be prepared. I even warned Blaise about the situation. He didn't trust me at first, but I eventually gained his trust. We both tried fending him off once he showed up. He knocked me aside and fought with Blaise until Dumbledore, Potter, and those other friends of his who fought in the Department of Mysteries last summer arrived."

"How did Rabastan Lestrange get into Ravenclaw Tower, if you don't know the password?"

"I have no idea. Someone else must have told him that."

"Do you follow Voldemort's pureblood ideals?"

"Unlike what everybody might think, no. I did, but for a while."

"For how long?"

"Up until my second year, about, with that Chamber of Secrets fiasco. I may have been uneasy with the ideas of wizarding blood mixing, but I never wanted the Dark Lord to be in control. I only was wary about those ideas of wizards marrying Muggles or Muggle-borns because my father told me about those pureblood ideals, but then again, there's plenty of arguments on both sides."

"What made you change your mind?"

"The Dark Lord upheld all those pureblood ideals, and he got himself killed, or at least half-dead, from what I've heard. Potter opposed those ideas, and he was successful. I was more anxious to be with those who were right about what they were doing, and after the hell my father put me through before Hogwarts, I was starting to reject his beliefs more and more every single day.

"The only thing I like about my heritage is that all of them happened to be witches and wizards, and that I can trace my genealogy so far back through history. Otherwise, I hate the fact that my family has often associated with such twisted maniacs like the Dark Lord."

The students and most of the staff were deadly silent now. This was not what they had expected. "What do you mean, 'the hell your father put you through'? Has your father ever been unethical or abusive in raising you?"

Malfoy shuddered as though he'd rather not talk about this, but he continued anyway. "Yes." Harry's eyes almost popped.

"How did he abuse you?"

"He would often berate me for not acting like a 'properly raised pureblood wizard,' like at the end of my first year when Hermione Granger beat me on almost every test. For a whole day after I got home, he locked me in a cellar writhing with snakes of almost every variety, even a couple of Runespoors. Having certain privileges taken away, like flying or music that I liked, that I could understand, but not being locked down there. I couldn't even sleep, because I had to be awake every single moment, just to make sure that nothing happened to me. Or, in my second year when I lost to Gryffindor, he was disgusted that the Snitch was right above my head, and Potter catches it with a broken arm. He even used the Cruciatus Curse on me as 'motivation,' he said, because he spent money to buy seven Nimbus 2001's to reserve a spot for me on the team. Even I felt it was unfair, since all I asked for was a broomstick and a spot on the team, he was the one who went over the top."

Neville in particular looked horrified, and Dumbledore looked fairly angry now. "Do you believe that your father misunderstands you?"

"Oh yes. In fact, just to ensure he wouldn't be ashamed of me, he puts me up to this year after year, playing the part of the high-and-mighty student, always acting as Potter's student nemesis, being supportive of the Dark Lord. Truth be told, playing that role isn't all that hard for me to do, but I hate being in his shadow and taking orders from a hypocrite like the Dark Lord.:

"Why do you trust neither Potter nor Voldemort?"

"From what I've heard, my father was a decent person before the First War. Then the Dark Lord came along, promising glory and fortune, and when my father found out the truth, it was too late to back out without being killed. The time in between the two wars was relatively peaceful for me. I say 'relatively,' because of those extreme and unjust punishments. My mother knew of what was going on, although she didn't dare say anything for both our sakes. Even with the Dark Lord hiding in a remote country somewhere, my mother and I both feared that he had somehow left some evil touch on my father, which made him so cruel. Then Potter returns with Diggory's body, claiming the Dark Lord to be back, and my father was doing his Death Eater routine once again. In short, the Dark Lord twisted my father, and Potter prevented me from trying to keep my father away from the Dark Lord, and my father got dragged into this conflict between the two of them."

"Where are the ambassadors being held?"

"Somewhere in central Europe, maybe Germany; the letter my father sent me doesn't tell me exactly where."

"If you still have it, can you please show it to me?"

"Yes." Harry then asked his questions that had been in his mind. "If you could help us get rid of Voldemort forever, would you do that?"

"Yes."

"If you're going to help us, can you be trusted with the knowledge that I'm a lion Animagus?"

"Yes."

"Wait just a minute!" Ron protested, launching himself out of his seat. "Harry, don't trust him!"

Harry looked back at Ron, his face devoid of any emotion. "Ron, I know what you're thinking, and that this was unexpected, but-"

"But what?" Ron countered. "Just because he's been hiding all this stuff for the past five years or so, we should just open up to him as well? Don't you even remember what he's done or tried to do to you? How about impersonating a dementor during a Quidditch match to fool you? Or those stupid badges he produced during the Tournament? Or when he joined that stupid Inquisitorial Squad to let Umbridge have her merry way? She nearly used the Cruciatus Curse on you, and he-" Ron pointed a shaking finger at Malfoy, who merely watched complacently "-would have laughed like a maniac!"

"Sorry, Weasley, but you're wrong on the last one," Malfoy said coolly.

Ron whipped his head around so fast that his neck cricked. "What?"

Everyone's attention in the room was now focused on Malfoy. "Think about this for one moment. Umbridge uses the Cruciatus Curse on Potter. I was serving Umbridge. That would make me an accomplice. Tell me, do you think I'd want to be shipped off to Azkaban along with her?"

An uneasy silence followed that. True, Harry and none of his friends ever considered that. The surprise only sunk in more when Malfoy added, "In fact, I would have stopped her if Granger didn't intervene at the last moment with her 'let's leave Umbridge stranded in the forest plan.' Then again, everyone was too focused on what was going on, so you wouldn't have seen me anyway."

Hermione looked completely stunned. "Did you just compliment me?" she asked quietly but suspiciously.

A shadow of a smirk was seen briefly on Malfoy's face. "I can recognize and appreciate something sneaky when I see it."

"And only you would be an expert on such things, Malfoy," Ron muttered darkly.

"We all have our little vices, Weasley. Some of us like to subtly work things from behind the scenes, and some of us love to charge into a fight and risk ourselves for the sake of victory whilst gallivanting about." The message wasn't lost on anyone in the room.

"As interesting as this discussion is," Dumbledore said (causing all the students to jump a little, since they had forgotten the staff members in the room with them), "And seeing how mature some of Hogwarts' best students can be, we still need to get back to the topic at hand." Turning to Malfoy, Professor Dumbledore asked, "Would you be willing to work with us, Mr. Malfoy?"

Malfoy hesitated for a moment, and slowly nodded with a "yes." (3)

Dumbledore then turned to Harry. "If I didn't know any better, Mr. Potter, you seem to be vouching for Mr. Malfoy. I assume you're willing to follow through on that?"

Harry cautiously weighed the pros and cons in his mind for a moment. Then he remembered his vow over the summer. "I am willing to work with anyone who's against Voldemort, Headmaster. This is no exception. I'll go with this."

Snape swept over and administered in the antidote. Malfoy blinked and looked horrified (Harry knew that the Honesty Elixir ensured a calm personality for the person ingesting the potion). "I can't believe I just said all that! What's gotten into you, Potter? Trying to ruin my life and have things to laugh at me for later?"

Harry felt offended. "No, Malfoy, I just wanted to make sure we could trust you, in case you wanted to help us out."

"Hmph, like I believe that," Malfoy said, crossing his arms over his chest. "And what would you know, Potter? I bet you've never been abused by your relations or compared to your father!"

Harry nearly fell over, completely caught off guard by that accusation. He vouched for Malfoy, and this was what he got in return? Regaining his composure, he looked his Slytherin rival square in the eye, and said very distinctly, "That's what Professor Snape thought, too. Why don't you just ask him?" With that he stormed out of the staff room and leaned against the wall outside, trying to calm himself down.

'It's strange how much enemies can have in common,' he thought to himself. Hearing this from Malfoy was like when he found out about Snape's past; five years of misconceptions and hate shattered by a few moments of truth. Just then, Cho came out and walked over to him. "I got permission from Dumbledore for you to stay with me tonight in the hospital wing," she told him.

"What?"

Cho smiled weakly. "I was hoping you could protect me for tonight, my handsome lion," she murmured, running her hand through his untidy hair. With sudden emotion coursing throughout his body, he instantly blurted out, "Of course I will."

She leaned closer to him. "Thank you so very much, Harry. You saved my health and my life. Come here, my hero." With that, she fairly grabbed him and kissed him right on the lips.

"Aw, look at the hero get his reward," a voice said behind them. They quickly parted to see Dumbledore, who looked politely amused by the scene. "Harry, before you meet Cho in the infirmary (and Madam Pomfrey, who's insisting on checking you after tonight's skirmishes), I would like to see you in my office."

"See you in the Hospital Wing, Harry," Cho said before she left down the hallway, looking much happier than she was a half-hour before. Lupin and the House Heads came out and followed the Headmaster and his famous pupil up to the office. Once past the gargoyle ("Canary Creams") and through the door, Harry and his half-dozen professors sat themselves down as the portraits cheered and Fawkes trilled a victory song.

"Well, Harry, you certainly proved yourself tonight," Dumbledore said. "You managed to defeat a couple of Death Eaters, with some help from your friends, of course."

This bought Harry back to his mood earlier. "Sir, I don't see how you can be so happy about this."

Dumbledore looked confused. "What do you mean?"

Harry felt awful right now. "I just killed two people, that's what I mean! I just stooped down to becoming a murderer!"

Dumbledore looked shocked. "Harry-"

Harry just buried his face in his hands. "Don't get me wrong, I didn't want them to hurt my friends, but I-" he broke off, unsure as what to say.

"Harry," Lupin said hoarsely, placing a hand on his shoulder, "It's not your fault. They knew the risks they were taking, and that's the price they paid for their evil."

"If you thought they would have spared your life the same way, Potter, then you should get this through your head right now: They are barbarians," Snape warned Harry. "Those savages would have killed you and your friends without a second thought. They chose that life for themselves the moment they allowed the Dark Lord to brand the Dark Mark onto their arms."

"We're in a war, Potter," Flitwick piped up, his Ravenclaw wisdom at its peak. "Your enemies have to be killed. If you think about it, there's no way they could have safely been held in Azkaban now, either."

"You fought hard to ensure your friends' safety, Harry, and you were able to save Miss Chang's dignity, as well as her life," Sprout added, "If we didn't have to wait for a response from the Ministry, we would give you an Order of Merlin right now."

Harry blushed a little from all this praise. He finally said, "Even if that were the case, it would feel like a reward for killing somebody."

"Mr. Potter," McGonagall interjected, a very serious tone in her voice, "Why does it bother you now about killing your enemies? You didn't seem to have a problem with destroying Quirrell or Riddle or the basilisk."

'She's got you there,' a voice in Harry's head said. "I don't know, because it was Voldemort who left Quirrell to die, Riddle was just part of an evil diary, and the basilisk was a beast I was trying to kill before it could kill me?"

"Not good enough, Potter," McGonagall said sternly as though he had answered a question wrong in her class. "We've all worked and fought for the Order, and sometimes we've had to kill Death Eaters in order to win, because they're certainly not the type to be content with being captured alive. Often, letting them live is like leaving the door open a little for them to have their revenge on you; you just have no choice in the matter. Just like you said, kill or be killed."

"Well, Minerva, you must really want to keep your promise to Mr. Potter about becoming an Auror, because you're sounding like one right now," Dumbledore grinned.

"I'll keep the promise even if it kills me," she responded flatly, "And because I want to prove Umbridge wrong, especially now, with her on the loose."

"In the meantime, Harry, we'll figure out Draco Malfoy's letter from his father and try to use it to find the ambassadors," the Headmaster said, turning back to Harry. "He can be trusted now, and I hope you can work with him."

"That's the other thing, I had no idea his life was about as bad as mine," Harry said.

"Believe me, Harry, none of us saw that coming," Lupin added seriously, as his colleagues nodded and muttered in agreement.

Dumbledore leaned across the desk. "Look, Harry, at least you feel some remorse. That's a definite sign that you aren't sadistic and evil like them. I know you too well to think that you might end up like them. Anyway," he finished, "You might want to hurry to the hospital wing. We are all grateful for your help, Harry."

"Right," he mumbled. "Good night." With that, he got up and left the office, anxious to get out. On the way out, he thought he heard Flitwick tell McGonagall, "Oh, and please tell Miss Granger that she's welcome to borrow some books from the Ravenclaw common room..."

~*~*~*~

Madame Pomfrey was waiting for him at the entrance to the hospital wing. "Hello, Potter," she said. "I wanted to make sure you're alright after tonight's confrontations with those awful Death Eaters." The last few words came out very bitter.

"Really, I'm fine," Harry insisted as the nurse checked his pulse and did a few other things.

After Madam Pomfrey was done, she told Harry, "Miss Chang is at the end of the ward. Please be careful and make sure nothing happens to her. Those are the Headmaster's orders."

"Why, what do you think would happen?"

The nurse shrugged. "She seems to want you protecting her for the rest of the night. No one felt like arguing with her, given what happened. Follow me."

The ward was empty, apart from Cho, who was sitting upright in bed, wearing her pajamas, and staring at the wall opposite her. "Cho?"

She turned and saw him, and she felt relieved. "There you are!"

"Well, guard her well, Potter. Good night." And with that, she left, muttering about horrible things that could happen to students.

Harry transformed into a lion and prowled up to Cho. She scratched him behind the ears, and then she even got out of bed to hug him. "Aw, you're like an oversized teddy bear! Except that you might be able to rip apart anyone who tries to attack me."

Harry winced and looked away at this point. Cho put a hand to her mouth and said, "Oh, I'm sorry, Harry."

Harry purred as a way of saying "It's okay," and Cho stroked his back and even ran her hand down his tail. He looked her in the eye, and she giggled a little. "I don't know many green-eyed lions. And you still have the scar on your head. Don't worry, Harry, I can kept this secret. Oh, and Harry," she whispered in his ear, "one day, eventually, I'll find the proper way to repay you for your rescue tonight." She giggled as though she had said something immature, and lay back in bed, watching Harry as he crossed the ward and leapt onto the bed facing hers, so he could watch her for her own safety.

As Cho dozed off, his mind wandered to the last thing she had said. She couldn't mean that she wanted him and her to... 'No, she couldn't have, could she?' Harry thought as he shook his big furry head. Soon he had dozed off too, trying to think about anything other than forbidden delights.

~*~*~*~

Harry's sleep was blissfully devoid of any dreams. All he felt was the nice, gentle sensation of lying there, still drowsy from his rest. He blearily opened his eyes to find Cho still sleeping, her hair spreading out from her head like a halo, with that angelic smile on her face. With a low roar that passed for a yawn, he got up, and with a sudden idea, he quietly sunk under her bed and waited.

A few minutes later, she heard the mattress groan as she got up and out of the corner of his eye, he saw her beautiful feet dangle off the side of the bed as she yawned. Harry emitted a low growl, and he heard her give a surprised yelp. Very slowly, she got off the bed, and crouched on her knees to look underneath. When he saw her wide eyes, he roared, causing her to jump with fright.

Dumbledore and Pomfrey came rushing in. "Miss Chang, what's wrong?" the nurse asked her patient.

Harry came out from under the bed and tried to put on an innocent sort of face with pleading eyes. Cho and Pomfrey glared at him while Dumbledore smiled. "I think Harry was trying to surprise any possible attackers. I've known some criminals who can still be scared of the creature under the bed," he chuckled, scratching Harry behind the ears.

Cho rolled her eyes. Harry transformed back, smiled, and said, "Good morning, Cho. I'm glad you're feeling better today."

Cho cracked a smile. "Good morning, Harry. Thanks for protecting me."

"My pleasure," he said. Turning to Dumbledore, he asked, "What's going on with Malfoy?"

"We will discuss that later after lunch. You might want to walk in to breakfast ten minutes late by Sunday standards, Harry, because I have to address the school."

Harry winced. He hated the publicity. "Okay, thank you, sir. Good morning, and see you then."

On the way back up to Gryffindor Tower, he saw Luna pass him in the hallway. Remembering something, he pulled her aside and said, "Luna, please keep the Animagus thing a secret, OK?"

She smiled. "Of course, Harry. I don't know many lions with green eyes, black hair and lightning bolt scars on their foreheads."

'Whoa,' Harry thought, 'Very good insight for a girl who goes running after imaginary creatures.' "Thank you, Luna."

"You're welcome, Harry," she said as she wandered off. After Harry had gotten past the Fat Lady, the room exploded with cheers. After several people asked him about what happened, he raised his wand and said "LET ME THROUGH!" Like Moses parting the Red Sea, he went through to the boys' dorm room; these days, no one wanted to be on the other end of Harry's wand. "Dumbledore will explain at breakfast," he added as he went up.

After Harry changed into a different set of clothes, he collapsed into his bed and read the last chapter of "The Hobbit." As he finished the last page, Ron came bounding into his room.

"Harry!" he panted, "Come on, you're expected in the Great Hall."

Harry checked the time and remembered. Tossing his book onto his bed, he rushed after Ron. Another good thing about his dueling and exercise was that he could run faster and breathe easier after running certain distances. As he entered the Great Hall, cheering erupted from all four tables. Dumbledore was clapping lightly as he walked down from the staff table. "Everyone was delighted to hear of you and your friends defeating the Lestrange brothers. Due to everyone's efforts last night, 50 points to Gryffindor, and 25 each to Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin." Seeing Harry, Dumbledore called out to him, "Have some breakfast, Harry; you'll need the strength for the reporters who will undoubtedly be charging through the front doors within an hour."

Some laughter followed that as Harry groaned. "Can you please set the wards to keep them out? I've been through enough within the past twelve hours."

"Unfortunately, Harry, I can't find a way to keep the reporters out."

Harry groaned again and retreated towards the kitchens.

~*~*~*~

An hour later, Harry left the kitchens, feeling quite full (last night's battle had drained a lot of his strength), and as he reached his office, he heard muttering. 'Great,' he thought. Building up his determination to last through this meeting, he walked forward and allowed the reporters to see him. After sudden exclamations, he walked inside and patiently answered the reporter's questions. He purposely didn't give the names of the people he had rescued, and when the reporters asked why, he said pointedly "Death Eaters can read too, you know." They all got the hint, and they didn't press the subject any further.

After the reporters all left, he returned to lunch to find some people looking at him, and muttering arose once again. On the way to lunch, he found out that Hufflepuff had gotten points because Susan Bones had recruited some of her fellow Hufflepuffs to help fight any intruders and search the school for any other problems.

As he walked over to the Gryffindor Table, Dumbledore stood up and said, "Well, Harry, I see you survived another round with the press, and we never did rejoice over our victory in last night's fight. This calls for a celebration." Taking a tray of pudding at the staff table, he suddenly flung its contents left and right, splattering it all over the other professors. "FOOD FIGHT!" (4)

The students immediately seized this opportunity to cause trouble. Students forcefully threw their food at students from other houses, although Harry used this as an opportunity to throw food at his friends. As soon as Ron got soaked with a pitcher of pumpkin juice, he said, "Argh, I'll get you for that, Harry Potter!" Everyone in the hall heard him, and simultaneously, waves of food came raining down upon Harry, who raised his hands in futile attempt to shield himself, laughing hard.

The High Table was pandemonium in itself. Half the teachers were ganging up Dumbledore for starting it, but he was looking as though he was having the time of his life. Lupin made his pitcher of water fly over to Snape and dunk the Potions Master in ice-cold water; with a sneer, Snape retaliated by making the roast chicken fly up and divebomb Lupin, who had to blast them out of the air and send bits of chicken all over the table. Hermione's jaw dropped when she saw McGonagall smear a dish of butter in Professor Trelawny's face after she tossed the tuna fish at the Transfiguration professor, but fell over laughing when she heard the McGonagall exclaim, "Bet you didn't predict that one!"

When the Headmaster decided that enough was enough, he shouted, "Okay, students (and staff), that was only to take everyone's minds off last night's attack! Calm down now." With waves of his wand, everyone and everything was cleaned up. He then said, "I was looking for an excuse to do that," inciting some chuckling from everyone in the hall.

~*~*~*~

After lunch, Harry went to Dumbledore's office to discuss the plan. He saw Ron, Hermione, Neville, Ginny, Luna, Susan, Cho, Blaise, and Malfoy all standing there with the Headmaster. Harry was about to ask why Susan was here when her relatives weren't hostages, until Dumbledore held out a Portkey (a large plate), and they all touched it without question. A few seconds later, they were hurling along, and then they all landed in the kitchen in Grimmauld Place. As they all got up, Malfoy said, "This place looks familiar... I remember being here when I was three or something..."

"Yes, you would, Mr. Malfoy," Dumbledore said. "Number 12, Grimmauld Place, is now the Headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix."

Alarms went off in Harry's head. "Bring Malfoy here!?"

Dumbledore smiled as though he hadn't heard this outburst. "Obviously, Harry, you're still trying to deal with five years of experience. Malfoy is on our side now. I even had him sign a contract."

Malfoy looked at Harry and quietly said, "That's true, Potter." Harry merely nodded, and said, "Sorry I jumped to conclusions."

"Anyway," Dumbledore continued, "Mr. Zabini is also here because not only are his parents among the kidnapped ambassadors, but also because he can put on a really convincing act."

Blaise nodded. "Cunning, manipulative, and sneaky. I can do all that; I'm a very good actor."

Something arose in Harry's memory. "Blaise? Lestrange said something about your family heritage. What was all that about?"

Blaise grimaced. "About half my relatives, well, weren't Death Eaters per se, but they still had ties with other Dark wizards. Lestrange was trying this stupid 'Live up to your family glory' speech. You know how much of a success that was."

"Also, Harry," Dumbledore continued, "It seems your 'fireball' ability seems to work whenever you're seeing someone close to you harmed. It will only do damage to your friend's attacker and it won't harm anyone else, and it doesn't even damage the surrounding area. I will do research on it later, so I won't have to ask you to try not to burn the house down."

After a fresh bout of laughter, the other Order members walked in. After everyone was called to order, Dumbledore took out a magical looking device that was the equivalent of a Muggle tape recorder and replayed Malfoy's answers under Veritaserum. There was silence after it was finished, but everyone politely applauded when Bliase and Malfoy were welcomed to the Order. Then, the Minister outlined the plan, using Snape's latest information to plan their attack, which would be on the Saturday at the end of the month. The hideout was located in the Black Forest in Germany, in the remains of Grindelwald's old base. The ambassadors were being held there on minimal amounts of food and water and were being guarded alternately between Death Eaters and dementors, but otherwise no harm was done. The reason Susan was with them was revealed: her great- grandparents had fought in the war against Grindelwald alongside Dumbledore, and they even brought back with them blueprints and layouts of the stronghold. While Fudge and his officials would pretend to "negotiate" outside the prison walls, Malfoy, Blaise and Cho would slip into it through a tunnel, accompanied by whom he nicknamed "The Heroic Half-Dozen" (Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Neville and Luna,) among with Dumbledore, Lupin, and Mad-Eye, Tonks and Kingsley. They would quickly and quietly disable the guards and Portkey the ambassadors to safety. As a back-up plan, Malfoy would try to sweet-talk his way out a situation in case he encountered his father or his Death Eater friends. After all the hostages had been taken to safety, Hagrid and his forces would attack the base in order to render it defenseless.

Of course, there were some objections to Dumbledore having some of his own students accompany him. He was able to defend his decision by saying that these students had plenty of experience with fighting and/or tactics, and that they would be right with highly experienced adults.

Another snatch of information rose in Harry's memory at the mention of forces attacking the base. "What 'forces' are we talking about here?"

"Mosag, along with twelve of her acromantulas, plus about twenty centaurs. I even got this Norwegian Ridgeback from Charlie to help me out," he added, winking at Harry.

'Uh-oh,' Harry thought. Ron was about to say something, but Hermione kicked him under the table; if anyone else knew about Norbert, then Hagrid would get into trouble.

When the meeting was over, Malfoy pulled Harry into a corner and looked him straight in the eye. "Harry," he said urgently, with seriousness in his voice that Harry had never heard before, "I had no idea about your life outside of school and your hate for the publicity, and I'm sorry I considered you responsible for some of the trouble with my father. I still have to put on a convincing act when we get back to school, at least until this all blows over. Professor Snape will help me maintain the 'junior Death Eater' façade." He held out his hand. "Allies?"

Harry thought carefully, and a few seconds later, he said, "Of course, Draco." Draco smiled weakly and Harry was reminded of that first day on the Hogwarts Express where Draco tried offering Harry his friendship.

After they all took the Portkey back to Dumbledore's office, McGonagall and Snape swept into the room, levitating a gigantic crate along with them. Inside them were enchanted vests filled with potions and chocolate for the upcoming battle, in case they were harmed or affected by dementors. They wouldn't be weighed down by their ingredients, and the goods wouldn't be damaged. Each student took a vest, thanked the professors, and left.

Before the students all left, the Headmaster whispered in Harry's ear, "Just be patient for the rest of the week. Even in war, it's a virtue." Harry nodded and returned to his dormitory, anxious to get started on "The Fellowship of the Ring."

~*~*~*~

The rest of the week went slow but steady. Harry waited, using his meditation to try to calm himself and cleanse his mind. There was a good chance of him being killed (especially if Voldemort was there), and his friends could have been killed too. They all accepted the challenge of walking straight into enemy territory.

Saturday morning dawned cloudy, cold and gray. Harry woke up, his face set with determination. He dressed and ate in silence. After breakfast, he met Dumbledore, his fellow students, and the Aurors who would accompany them. "Where's Hagrid?" he asked them.

"Here's out in the forest. He and other Aurors are Portkeying the centaurs and acromantulas," Dumbledore explained. Conjuring up a long length of rope and hardening it, everyone took a grip on it. A moment later, they had rushed through a blur of color and sound and landed in a forest.

Harry looked up to see that the sun was in the middle of the sky; they had leapt over a couple of time zones and he knew he was in the Black Forest.

"Everyone, quietly follow me." The students and Order members all silently trailed behind the Headmaster, until the came into a clearing where Hagrid was standing, his acromantula and centaur friends going over the details of the plan with Fudge, his Ministry negotiating officials, and other Order members and Aurors. Suddenly, two redheads came rushing up to them.

"Albus!" Mrs. Weasley snarled, "Why did Fawkes have to bring back that awful thing?"

"Excuse me?" Dumbledore said, completely unaware of what she was talking about.

"What she means," Mr. Weasley said, "Is that before Hagrid bought the acromantulas and centaurs here, my old Ford Anglia came up to me, and Fawkes, who was with us, bought it along with him. Isn't that great?" he added excitedly.

"Arthur," his wife growled.

"Molly-" before he could say another word, however, Fawkes swooped in, carrying the old car. It was badly damaged and dirty all over the place. Dumbledore, however, had a sudden idea.

"Scourgify, Reparo," he started, restoring the car to its brand- new appearance. Mrs. Weasley's jaw dropped. "You can't be serious, Albus."

Her husband, on the other hand, looked like a five-year-old on Christmas morning. He got inside and tested it out. It hummed to life, hovered in the air, and even became invisible. After undoing all of this and getting back out, he said, "We could use this, you know."

Suddenly the car moved up to Harry and Ron and honked excitedly, like some parody of a large turquoise dog. Draco laughed. "Well, I never expected to see that thing again. I still remember the Whomping Willow incident."

Harry and Ron had the good grace to look ashamed, and Mrs. Weasley even laughed softly. Just then, however, the twins came running up to them, carrying large crates. "Whoa, look! It's our old car!" "This is going to make things so much easier!"

Mrs. Weasley whipped her head around. "What are you two talking about?" she asked in a deadly voice.

"Well, you see, the Minister asked us to develop our pranks to actual weapons," started Fred.

"As much as we love mischief, we also hate hurting innocent people," continued George.

"But in times of war-"

"-this chaos just might help us out in fighting the evil people."

"Load unhealthier and more indelible Portable Swamps into the trunk, complete with baddies like grindylows and hinkypunks, designed to explode on impact-"

"-and then carpet-bomb them with extra-fiery Wildfire Whizbangs!"

Everyone seemed to approve, except for their mother of course. "Oh, just great, thumb your nose at the Dark Lord!"

"It's an excellent idea," Dumbledore said approvingly, "and with your parents in the front seat, supervising all of this, it will greatly hinder Voldemort's forces."

Mrs. Weasley looked indignant. "Albus-" she started to protest, but the old man gave her one of those piercing looks. For one of the rare moments in her life, the loveable and sometimes feared matriarch was defeated. "In which case," she said, finding her voice at last, "Load the trunk quickly and get ready to go."

"It's time for us to go," Dumbledore said. "Fawkes, please help Hagrid out." The immortal bird whistled and flew off. Turning to the students and Order members, he said, "Follow me."

~*~*~*~

Fifteen minutes later, they were slinking through the tunnel into the base. Harry and Lupin employed their Animagus forms to try to smell the traces of people who had been there before. In front of one door, Harry stopped, resumed his human form, and motioned to slowly open the door.

They were at the end of a large hallway with six floors of sells running along the walls. It reminded Harry of pictures he saw once of the Muggle prison, Alcatraz, but on a larger scale. There were more than a hundred prisoner cells. Dementors were strolling up and down the cells, and people were screaming as they passed. The group shivered, and they were about to summon Patroni to take out the dementors when the door suddenly slammed behind them and was sealed with a squelching sound.

Instantly, the dementors were swooping down to attack them. "EXPECTO PATRONUM!" they all roared in unison. A whole herd of animals shot at the dementors. Harry's stag immediately charged down the nearest dementor, and he paused for a moment to see how every one else was doing. Another dementor was being nibbled upon Hermione's otter and Ron's rat. Cho's swan soared into an airborne menace, who got sideswiped and tried to fly at Cho herself, only to get intercepted by Harry's stag. Blaise's bull barged at three dementors in a row, while Neville got cornered by another dementor. He was only emitting silver puffs of smoke, and the dementor was only a couple of feet away when it got tackled by Susan's greyhound. With new confidence, Neville yelled, "Expecto Patronum!" A lion shot out of his wand and helped defeat that dementor. (5) Ginny and Luna were trying to tackle a dementor together, but it kept closing in on them; Malfoy spotted this in time and shot a dragon at that dementor. The same moment the girls' attacker was defeated, he felt a wave of cold over him, and he turned around to see a dementor in the face. He felt about ready to faint when suddenly, a silver wolf leapt upon it, scaring it off.

"Thanks, Lupin," he said weakly.

"It's my job, Harry," Lupin replied, helping him up onto his feet.

Just then, however, the tide was turning. More dementors swept down upon them in waves, and their chill began to take effect. With much anger in his voice, Dumbledore thundered, "EXPECTO PATRONUM!" A gigantic phoenix blossomed out of his wand, raising its wings and displaying itself to its full height, which was almost as tall as the room. Its wings gracefully moved and it quickly soared throughout the room, disabling all dementors in its path. A few of the dementors shied away, retreating from the room.

"What happened to them?" Harry asked, taking all this in at once.

"I believe that they all just fled," Dumbledore stated calmly. "Now, I believe we have hostages to rescue?"

"How do we unlock their cells?" Hermione inquired. "Somehow, I don't think that 'Alohamora' would work on these."

"True," Dumbledore answered. Out of his robes, the Headmaster pulled out a penknife, much like the one which Harry had received from Sirius. Moody, Lupin, Tonks and Kingsley all did the same. "All Aurors use these as part of their standard equipment. My guess is that Harry's knife was from Sirius' Auror-in-training days.

"Anyway, two students and one adult to a floor. Tonks, you cover this floor with Ginny and Luna. Lupin, you do the next one up with Harry and Draco..."

The last three mentioned didn't stay still to hear the rest. Dashing up a flight of stairs in a corner next to them, they climbed the stairs and started unlocking cells using Harry's knife. As soon as the prisoners inside were freed, Lupin would conjure up a brick and Portkey the ambassadors to the designated clearing the Ministry had set up. The plan was working so far: the Ministry would keep Voldemort and his highest- ranking Death Eaters busy, and the whole time, the prisoners would slip out under their noses.

The once-unlikely trio systematically opened each cell and freed the prisoners inside them. "Nice knife," Draco commented after they had freed their fifth set of prisoners, "I have to remember to get myself one of those for my birthday."

"Thanks," Harry replied, "When's your birthday?"

"Halloween, of all days," Draco drawled. "Can you believe it?" (6)

"I wouldn't have guessed. I'll definitely get you one after we live through this."

"I'll remember that."

"So, where did you learn to produce a Patronus?"

"The basement my dad used for his 'snake punishments' also held all these old and unused books fell of Defense Against the Dark Arts. I passed the time reading them. I would have practiced, except it was during summer break, so I tried it again at school while no one was looking, and I eventually got the hang of it over time."

"Interesting."

"Of course, I really wanted to learn how to summon a Patronus after I saw you use yours on me."

Caught somewhere between anger at the scandal and surprise at this statement, Harry wisely said, "No comment."

He unlocked the last cell and got a surprise. A very ill-looking Chinese couple was sitting inside, but Harry recognized them. Turning around, he looked up to where Cho was helping Blaise and Kinglsey and bellowed, "Cho! I found your parents, they're down here, but they look all shook up!"

With a scream, Cho whipped her head around and performed a tricky spell on herself before she jumped over to them and landed gracefully on the walkway. She ducked inside and hugged her parents fiercely. Her mother, however, looked confused, pointed at Harry, an exclaimed, "Ha Li Bo Te!"

Mr. Chang cut her off and explained, "She reacts very badly to the dementors. We need to get out of here now." Lupin conjured another brick and Portkeyed Cho's parents to safety. After they were gone, Harry turned to her and asked her, "What did she say?"

Cho giggled. "It's how your name is pronounced in Chinese." Harry tried to ignore Draco's smirk and Lupin's chuckling. (7)

Just then, Dumbledore's voice rang through the prison hall: "We got everyone, now let's regroup and get out of here!" Everyone performed Feather-Light Charms on themselves and jumped over to Dumbledore. The instant they turned to leave, however, the sealed door burst open, and several black-robed figures glided in, but they weren't dementors. A dozen Death Eaters fanned in and half a dozen each lined up against the wall on either side, and a moment later, a tall, hooded figure with a snake wrapped around him glided in. Harry's scar prickled (it didn't hurt so much these days, thanks to his Occlumency lessons), but fear shot through him as he knew who this figure was.

Taking off his hood, the figure revealed his red eyes and white, snake-like face: Voldemort.

Only Dumbledore, Harry, Moody and Lupin remained calm as their friends gasped. Dumbledore smiled and stepped forward, "Well, hello, Tom, long time, no see."

Voldemort's face twisted in anger. "You dare call me by that foul name, you old fool?"

"Now, now, Mr. Riddle, there's nothing wrong with having a Muggle father," Dumbledore teased in a tone he would reserve for his first year students. More gasps from Harry's friends at this revelation.

Voldemort's eyes swiveled onto Harry. "Oh, you can guess why I'm here, Dumbledore," the Dark Lord said, not taking his eyes off his young nemesis. "I'm here to kill the Boy-Who-Refuses-To-Die, and maybe feed him to my dear Nagini." His pet snake hissed excitedly at this.

"Oh, and I suppose that will happen, right?" Harry shot back, standing his ground. "In case you haven't noticed, you've failed miserably four times in a row. Or do I have to put up a giant scoreboard to remind you?"

The tension seemed to loosen among Harry's friends, while the Death Eaters bristled with indignation. Dumbledore laughed to raise the Dark Lord's nerves; Dumbledore taught him once are more likely to do reckless things when they're angry. Voldemort, however, went on. "As soon as I do away with Mr. Potter over here, maybe I'll pick off your other friends. Let's see, should I start with Harry's admirer who I used to open the Chamber of Secrets, the Longbottom's son, the foolish Spanish Slytherin, or maybe the last true Marauder?"

Neville gulped while Ginny glared and Lupin looked ready to transform into a werewolf without the full moon present. Draco and Blaise, however, used their acting skills. "Well, whoever said I wasn't going to join you?" Blaise said innocently. "As soon as I declared my loyalty to you, I would have been thrown out of school and have been no help to you whatsoever. I would have been waiting around until my initiation on my seventeenth birthday, doing absolutely nothing productive, oh soon-to-be- Master." The other students and Order members glared at him, maintaining the act. Voldemort certainly seemed to buy it.

"The same for me," Draco drawled, "you know what-" he suddenly grabbed Ginny and held his wand to her "-why don't I take back your little basilisk raiser to prove my loyalty?"

Draco's true "friends" in this case (being the Order of the Phoenix) with the exception of Blaise drew their wands on him, and Ginny seemed to struggle, but he shouted, "One wrong move and she'll be Nearly Headless Nick's girlfriend! Blaise!" The other Slytherin stepped forward. "Help me bring her over to our future Dark Lord!"

He complied, but as soon as he grabbed her arms and Voldemort started to walk over to them, he suddenly tripped Draco, who fell to the ground with a groan and Ginny raised her wand to the Dark Lord. With a powerful Bat Bogey Hex, countless winged creatures tore at Voldemort and Nagini. But the bat bogeys didn't stop there; their minions started harassing the other Death Eaters as more and more of them spewed out of Ginny's wand.

A few moments later, Voldemort looked infuriated as he Vanished the bat bogeys, glaring at Ginny. "Foolish girl," he breathed, raising his wand. "AVADA KED-"

"NO! Protego!"

Harry jumped in front of Ginny, a silver streak from his wand colliding with the green from Voldemort's. Once again, their wands were connected with a golden thread. Everyone else immediately backed up, awed by what was going on; however, both sides kept their wands up, ready to attack or defend against the other side if anything else happened; the Order members and students formed behind Harry, and the Death Eaters formed behind Voldemort. The golden thread of light exploded into several, creating the familiar golden dome as the phoenix music began to play. As soon as the beads of light appeared on the golden thread, Harry immediately forced the beads down to Voldemort's end. The Dark wizard tried to fight back, but to no avail. Once the beads made contact with his wand, the familiar process called "Priori Incantatem" started again. Both sides at a stalemate, the students, Order members and Death Eaters alike watched what was happening before them.

Screams upon screams came from Voldemort's wand, and soon enough, the representation of a familiar person appeared. It was Cedric Diggory.

Squeezing out through the wand, he walked over to Harry's friends and said in that voice as though from far away, "Hello, Professor Dumbledore. Hello, Cho. It's nice to see you again. I hope my death didn't cause you too much trouble."

Dumbledore sadly nodded as tears leaked from Cho's eyes.

Soon enough, the old Muggle named Frank Bryce appeared. "It's happening again, isn't it? All his victims coming back..."

He was cut off as Bertha Jorkins emerged. "Don't let go!" she urged Harry as she floated over to Moody. "The next time you're in the Ministry, Mad-Eye, please tell them I say hi and that I hope they didn't waste too much time searching for me. My body is in the Albanian forest."

Moody dumbly nodded, while his normal eye wide and his magical eye swiveling around crazily in its socket.

The victims walked around the dome, greeting Harry's friends and hissing things to his enemies. Soon enough, Harry's parents reappeared. First was Lily Potter, who smiled when she saw her son. "Hello, Harry. You certainly have grown up. I hope that Dumbledore and Lupin have been helping out."

"Indeed we have, Lily," Dumbledore's said, although his voice came out rather strangled. Lupin stared at her like a goldfish, at a loss for words.

The next victim to emerge was James Potter. He gave a fatherly smile when he saw Harry, and said, "Hello, Harry. You certainly look a lot like me now. The last I heard was that you made it back to Hogwarts, except the deliveries we get here are... deadly slow," he joked. Turning to Harry's professors, he said. "Hello, Albus, Remus."

Dumbledore returned a sad, tiny smile, and Lupin croaked out, "James...?"

"Yes, Moony, I'm here, although I wish it were under much more lively conditions..." (8)

Harry maintained the connection much longer this time. They were mainly Muggles who had been killed, some of them were wizards. They mainly hissed insults at the Death Eaters and their leader, while Cedric comforted Cho, and Harry's parents talked to the Headmaster and DADA teacher. Moody's magical eye nearly fell out when a certain wizard appeared.

"Caradoc Dearborn!?" he exclaimed. Harry remembered; he was part of the original Order in Moody's old photograph; his body had never been found.

"Hello again, Alastor," the wizard responded. "Unfortunately, they burned my body. At least now, you know what happened to me." He glided over to whisper some things in Moony's ear, and he listened intently for a minute, until there was a large BOOM!

The wall at the rear end of the hall collapsed as Hagrid moved through. The centaurs and acromantulas followed behind. Hagrid gaped at the scene, but regained his composure. "Sorry, Dumbledore, sir!" he shouted, "You were down here for so long we came digging through!" The giant spiders started scuttling along the walls and ceiling, and the centaurs mounted their bows and arrows as Hagrid raised his crossbow. "Fire!" The acromantulas moved first, spitting out globs of green goo which covered the Death Eaters. The more they struggled, the goo hardened, slowing them down. The centaurs then fired their arrows so they impaled every last Death Eater, and they fell screaming in pain.

Voldemort unleashed a howl of fury. "Hagrid!" he bellowed. "You an your wretched spider pets yet again!"

"Yeah, but this time, it's you who's in trouble, Tom," Hagrid growled, aiming his crossbow.

"You can't shoot me from here, Hagrid!" the Dark Lord laughed. "You'd kill your dear friend here in the process! I know you'd never do that, no matter how much you hate me!"

Hagrid grinned in a secretive sort of way. "What are you so happy about!?" Voldemort shrieked.

"Oh, I can't sacrifice Harry to kill you, Tom," Hagrid said slowly, climbing up the levels of the prison hall one handed, aiming his crossbow again, "but I can do this!"

ZING!

The huge arrow went right into Voldemort's chest, sticking out in a sick sort of way. Voldemort ripped his wand away- Harry dropped onto his feet, the dome disappeared, the light thread vanished, and the music died- and savagely ripped it out of his chest with a groan as blood came oozing out.

Clutching his chest and dropping onto his knee, he said, "Nice try, Hagrid, but that won't work. Until next time, you'd better be careful." Raising his wand, he stabbed the ground with it as though he wanted to stick it in like a pole. A bright light appeared on the floor and lead off to a portion of the wall between cells. A doorway appeared and opened, and a large ovoid egg the same height as Harry with several cracks in it hovered out of it and came to a rest in front of him. Looking straight into Voldemort's eyes, he suddenly saw an image of a sort of laboratory with a bright golden egg in the center. Just then, his nemesis' voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Careful, Potter, this basilisk egg is about ready to hatch, and this whole place will come down in five minutes, starting when I leave this room. Have fun!" And with that, he took out a Portkey shaped like a human skull; a moment later, he was gone.

The others immediately began to panic. Hagrid loaded another arrow, and pressing a switch, ignited it; knowing what would happen, Harry backed up towards his friends. Aiming it at the egg, he fired it; it shot right in the egg. Just as fluid came out of it, it exploded, and a flaming basilisk corpse flew out of it and came back down, dead. Dumbledore's voice rang out, "Hagrid, get the centaurs and acromantulas out of here! Everyone else, come with me!" As Hagrid led the Forbidden Forest's inhabitants back through the tunnel they made, Dumbledore conjured a giant rope, which everyone other than Harry grabbed. He ran towards the door just as Lupin called out, "Harry! Where do you think you're going?"

"There's something in there, I know it! I looked into Voldemort's eyes, and I saw an image of what's in there! It's not a trick, I'm sure of it! Send Fawkes or something!"

Dumbledore nodded, and they all vanished, leaving Harry alone with Voldemort's victims. Bits of the ceiling were starting to fall out now. Cedric said, "What are you waiting for, Harry? Get going!"

"Good luck, Harry," his mother said in a highly encouraging way.

"You'll like what you find," added his father wink a mysterious wink.

"Thanks," he said weakly. Just then, they all vanished, leaving him on his own.

Harry immediately sprinted down the hallway. Throughout the serpentine passageway, he kept running, thinking about the golden egg he saw. Come to think of it, how did he see it to begin with if the Occlumency was going so well? Pushing that aside, he bounded through the door at the end of the hall. He burst through it, and found himself in what looked like a Potions lab full of diagrams, corpses, and body samples of various snakes and other serpents. At the end of the room, there it was: a golden egg. Rushing forth, he picked it up; it weighed about as much as two textbooks put together. Looking around, he found a bag with straps on it. He placed the egg inside, closed it, and slung it over his back; the bag was obviously enchanted so the weight of its contents wouldn't bog the wearer down. As the room started to shake really violently now, there was a flash of flames; Fawkes had arrived, singing in a worried sort of way.

"There you are; now let's go!" Harry said, rushing forth. The phoenix trilled excitedly as he flew over and clutched Harry's shoulders with his claws. In a flash of flames, they were gone.

~*~*~*~

Harry now flew a couple of hundred feet above the stronghold, hanging onto Fawkes; it was a castle, at least ten stories high. It was crumbling. With one final shudder, it collapsed, sending loads of dust into the air. Looking down, he saw dementors and Death Eaters battling the Aurors, centaurs and acromantulas. As he watched in amazement, they suddenly looked up at him. This was explained why a moment later, when a flash of green light just narrowly missed him. He whipped his head around, and nearly fell in fright at what he saw.

Voldemort was in a flying chariot, pulled by four thestrals. It was a sleek black vehicle shaped like an arrowhead or dagger's point, adorned with silver snakes with emerald eyes. The Dark Lord stood upright, wincing a little in his pain. "I always love hunting. Prepare to go down in flames, Potter! AVA-"

FWOOSH!

A gigantic streak of fire nearly scorched Voldemort, and the thestrals snorted in fright and annoyance. "What!?"

A gigantic black, leathery dragon, as long as at least three buses end to end, was soaring menacingly behind Voldemort's chariot. A silver leash was around its throat, and on the back of it was a seat in which a giant man was mounted.

"You all right there, Harry?"

"Hagrid! Norbert!" The dragon growled in recognition of his smaller human friend and snapped his jaws at the demonic horse-like creatures, causing the chariot to shake dangerously.

"Gah! Curse you, Hagrid, you always did fool around with creatures that were too dangerous for your own good!" Voldemort screamed. "But let's see just how unwilling your pet is to throw you off, shall we? CRU-"

Fawkes, however, swooped off to the side towards Voldemort, scaring the thestrals while Harry used this close opportunity to try the Silver Dart Curse; the Dark wizard was bruised all over, the darts sticking out of his skin. "POTTER! AVADA KEDAV-"

FWOOSH! This jet of fire hit the back of the carriage and even set the lower part of Voldemort's body on fire. Realizing he couldn't face the human, half-giant, phoenix and dragon all at once in his condition, he veered off into the rising cloud of dust, shouting out to them "You won't be so lucky next time, either of you! Beware, Potter, you can't escape me forever!" And with that, he was gone.

"Excellent, Hagrid!" Harry yelled out to his old friend.

"Great, isn't it, Harry?" he yelled back. He pointed off to somewhere behind Harry. "Look at that!"

The flying Ford Anglia was zooming up to them, up at an angle, right underneath the battlers beneath. As its trunk opened, the army for Dumbledore and the Minister retreated. Out of the trunk fell dark, liquid- filled orbs, each about a foot in diameter. As they hit the ground, swamps expanded over the Dark army. There was movement as Dark creatures popped out of the newly-created swamps and attacked Voldemort's troops. A moment later, glowing crates fell out of the car's trunk. As those exploded on impact, the familiar enchanted fireworks terrorized the army.

"Hiya, Harry, Hagrid!" Mr. Weasley called out through the car window. "Follow us!" Fawkes sang and Norbert roared as they swooped over to the clearing where medical tents had been set up, alongside the flying turquoise car, which now had several wild laughs coming from it.

As soon as he landed gently on the familiar forest ground, his friends immediately rushed up to him and congratulated him. They all "oohed" as Cho kissed Harry right on the lips (again!). As she sauntered off, winking, to see her parents, a storm of reporters came charging up to him. About an hour later, they were able to return to Hogwarts.

(End of Chapter 19.)

A/N: O.O Holy Snitch! Nearly 20,000 words! (Of course, that's hardly anything compared to some more stuff some chapters from now...)

(1) Yay, the first ever quote I put into the original version this story!

Also, in case any of you are interested, it's about a Jewish man who lasted through two years in Nazi Berlin as a young man. Kind of thrilling, although rather PG-13 or R-rated.

(2) This acromantula's name is supposed to mean "very sharp" in Greek.

(3) A defected Draco seems more and more in-style nowadays, doesn't he? I decided at the last minute to have him be all secretive or something, not just because it made for a good plot twist, but because I needed my bad guys at Hogwarts to be people that the readers wouldn't guess until the end, and Draco just didn't fit the bill. So, it's just as well.

(4) Heh, I was looking for an excuse to do this!

(5) Ha, another hint to make you guess at the identity of the Heir of Gryffindor! (Author ducks flying tomatoes.)

(6) My brother was born on Halloween, as a matter of fact; somehow, it just seemed fitting for Draco Malfoy.

(7) This is the Chinese pronunciation for Harry Potter, as Monkeymouse demonstrates in her version of the HP series from Cho's POV. Thanks for the help, Monkeymouse!

(8) In some versions of GoF (including my own copy), James comes about BEFORE Lily, when Lily should come out BEFORE James; however, this WAS fixed in later copies of the books.

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