by Ryan
Rating: 12 (I'm using the British system.)
E mail:
willow.codex@virgin.net
Violence: Some
Language: Some
Feedback: Please send it to me.
Disclaimers:
1. Willow and co. are owned by Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, WB fox and UPN.
2. All characters and places from the Harry Potter books are owned by J. K.
Rowling, Bloomsbury paperbacks and WB.
3. No copyright infringements intended.
Spoilers: Set after Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Summary: The forces gather
"So that's where the owls went." Hermione turned to see Willow standing. "The talking hat told me the owls had gone to fetch help."
"The Sorting Hat spoke outside the Sorting Ceremony?" The girl asked.
"Yes." The redhead answered. "We need to meet our allies." She moved towards the stairs.
"When are we going to rescue the others?" Hermione asked following.
"When we have enough firepower gathered." Willow replied, standing at the top of the stairs. "It's going to get a lot more bloodier and dirtier, before Voldemort is defeated permanently." The woman began to descend the stairs.
Ron Weasley was standing watch at the huge front doors. He had heard the approach of hooves. He was ringing a bell to alert the other remaining students. Several came running. The hooves stopped. "Put your wands away." Willow spoke loudly from the top of the stairs.
The redhead quickly reached the door. Her eyes flashed yellow for a moment. "They don't mean us harm. They're forest elves, centaurs, ghouls and half demons."
"Half demons." Ginny yelped. "Demons are bad." She moved behind her brother.
"Let them in!" The sorting hat yelled from the room it sat in. "The owls brought them here."
"Stand back." Willow instructed. She ordered the ward to lower and the doors slowly opened.
Outside was an assortment of beings. "It's her!" Came an elfish voice. "She's the lost princess." An elf threw himself at the feet of Willow.
Part 2
Then did several others. Hermione moved to Willow's side. The redhead was a little shocked. A small dragon, no larger than a snowy owl flew into the entrance hall and hovered around the girl's head. "Like pretty girl." Hermione realized she could understand the dragon.
"Thank you." She replied and got several stares at her. She was not speaking English, but dragon.
Voldemort looked out over the battlements of Azkaban. "What was Fudge's reply?" He asked.
Lucius Malfoy stepped closer to his master. "No word yet my lord." He replied quietly.
"Chopped off one of the hands of the mudbloods." Voldemort spoke without emotion, "and send it to him."
"Which one, there are several." Lucius smiled.
"Let your son, decide." Voldemort smiled. "I want him to do the deed. It'll make him truly one of us."
"Thank my lord." Lucius gave a blow.
"Tell him the mudblood is not to die, yet." The dark wizard's eyes flashed.
"It will be done." The Death Eater went off to carry out his master's orders.
Willow sighed, she had basically just ordered, the forest elves to stop throwing themselves at her feet. Centaurs where trying to workout, where they could station themselves. They had volunteered to guard the castle and was trying to gasped the idea of going up and down stairs.
"I thought elves were shorter?" Ginny asked Dobby, who was hiding behind her.
"Miss Weasley, these be forest elves." Dobby replied. "Dobby's grandmother said. They not be fully elves."
"No, some of our ancestors were human." A young eleven boy spoke. He had black untidy hair and brown eyes. "Is that a house elf?" He asked Ginny pointing at Dobby.
"His name's Dobby and yes." Ginny replied. "He's my friend."
"Treeheart!" A female elf stormed over. "There you are."
"Mother," he spoke. "I was just asking, if Dobby here was a house elf."
"Dobby doesn't like tall elves." Dobby spoke just loud enough for Ginny to hear.
"A house elf." An elf girl spoke. "I wonder if they made that statue outside that cottage."
"Hagrid!" Ginny gasped. She tried to move, but she and Dobby was surrounded by a group of elves. Willow had just refused the tenth offer of marriage in, as many minutes. The castle was in total chaos. Willow put her fingers in her mouth and whistled.
Everyone stopped and looked at her. "Thank you." She spoke. "Right lets get ourselves organized. I wish to see the generals or whoever is in charge of each group." She turned to a group of Hogwarts' students. "Try and billet, as many people, as possible in the dorms. Hermione, see if you can contact anyone outside the school. Lets move people sooner we're organized the better."
Draco pulled a first year up by her hair. "No, to skinny." He dropped her. She fell to the floor the chains on her hands and feet to heavy for her. He looked at the young witches and wizards in the large cell. He looked at a young witch.
"You'll do." Draco grinned at her. "It's pay back time." He pulled out a sword.
"What you going to do?" A Hufflepuff student asked.
"Just cut of her hand." He replied, he turned to the girl. "Which one, left or right?"
"No please." The girl begged.
"Now, Parvati." He cooed, as he trace a line down her sister's front. "Don't you wish you had accepted my offer to go to the ball last year."
Parvati's arms raised in front of her, it was not her doing. She whimpered. "Okay can't choose." Draco smiled. "That's all right, I'll have them both." In a smooth movement, the sword moved gracefully obeying it's master's command. Parvati screamed. Two hands fell to the floor. Several cried out, some vomited and some fainted at the sight.
"Really my son." Lucius Malfoy spoke. "You certainly know how to get revenge."
"Thank you father." The boy replied.
"However, our master wants the girl to live for now." The older Malfoy waved his wand. The girl cried out in pain, as two fingers of fire sealed her bleed stumps. She passed out.
Draco placed the hands in a box. He and his father then left the room. The cell's heavy door closed behind them sending the cell into complete darkness.
Part 3
Cornelius Fudge, the Minister for Magic sat in his office. He was worried. There was a box in front of him. Several member of the ministry stood round him. "He's over powered Dumbledore." Fudge spoke.
"He's gained control of the Dementors and Azkaban." Percy Weasley entered the room. He was carrying a folder "The head jailer managed to escape. Muggles found him collapsed on a road."
"The others?" Fudge asked.
"Prisoners or dead." Percy placed the folder on Fudge's desk. "We better see what his new demands for the safe return of Hogwarts students and staff are."
Fudge opened the box. He paled inside the box was a girl's hand. A voice boomed. "You will surrender unconditionally by midnight or I will start sending parts of the mudbloods to their parents. When I've done with them the pure bloods who refuse to follow me!"
"Are the Aurors and combat wizard regiment ready?" Fudge asked.
"Yes," A wizard in military uniform replied. "I, however, caution against sending them in without more intelligence."
"Noted Wizard General." Fudge sighed. The Minister lent back in his chair. "They attack Azkaban at sunset. They are to destroy Voldemort and his followers."
The Wizard General left the office. "Now Percy, I want you to go to Hogwarts." Fudge spoke.
Ginny had managed to get away to Hagrid's cottage. She had her wand in her hand. Dobby had gone with her, before them was a stone Hagrid. "Miss Weasley," Dobby spoke. "I think he's too big for you. Lady Willow said students was not to leave the castle for their own safety."
"I'm going to try anyway." The girl lifted her wand.
"You don't have the power change him back." A man walked out from behind the cottage.
Ginny jumped and pointed her wand at him. "I come in peace." He showed her the palms of his hands. "My name is Rupert Giles."
"Stay there. Dobby fetch help." Ginny spoke, not keeping her eyes off the man. Dobby vanished with a pop.
Willow and several elves, ghouls and centaurs stood round a table. Dobby popped on to the table. Making everyone jump.
"A man called Rupert Giles is outside." Dobby spoke.
"Giles doesn't know I'm here." Willow spoke. "Describe the man to me."
"Black hair, tall." Dobby made his face like the man's
"Where is he? Who's with him?" The redhead asked quickly
"Hagrid's cottage. Ginny Weasley, as wand pointed at him." The elf answered.
There was shouting from the entrance hall. Willow left the table and opened the door. "Ethan Rayne!" She screamed. "Put that girl down! This instant." Ginny was over his shoulder. She was punching and kicking.
"Ah, Ms Rosenberg. I would be delighted to." He dropped the young witch off his shoulder.
"Now explain what you are doing here?" Willow's eyes flashed dangerously. "And make it quick."
"I thought, I would visit my old school." Ethan grinned.
"The truth." Willow snapped. He paled a little.
"I thought Hogwarts would be better, than being cooked by a fire ball." Ethan's grin faded. "I upset a wizard called Lord Voldemort."
"So you came running here." This time it was Hermione. She was stood at the foot of the stairs. "I remember reading, you got expelled."
"Ah," Ethan seemed a little embarrassed. "I made a love potion."
"Which went wrong and almost killed several students." Hermione added.
"Right, Ethan listen carefully." Willow walked over and looked him straight in the eye. "I'll say this only once. No tricks, no lies, no prank spells, no endangering this place, or it's students, understood?"
"Crystal." Ethan swallowed.
"Now, what where you doing outside the castle?" Willow turned her attention to Ginny.
"Hagrid's been turned to stone." Ginny replied.
"Hermione, " Willow spoke.
"On why way." Her apprentice replied moving for the door, a small dragon following her.
"See if his fire can be called out from." The redhead called after her. "Someone go will her." A couple elves ran off after Hermione.
Hermione moved quickly to Hagrid's cottage. The dragon landed on the stone Hagrid's head. "Can you get off his hand, please." She told the dragon before summoning up the her power. The elves following her arrived just into time to see her display of power.
She stepped before Hagrid. Magically energy flown from her, in living colour. She directed it towards the half giant. The power barely touched him and he was flesh and bone again.
Part 4
Percy Weasley portkeyed to Hogsmeade. The people were quieter than usual. They were hurrying around looking over their shoulders. The young man made his way towards Hogwarts' castle. He kept his hand over the wand in his pocket.
The minister wanted the situation kept quiet. His father had been sent to deal with muggle with a broken wand. The muggle was causing trouble. He knew it was to stop his father from finding out about the problem at Hogwarts.
Hagrid almost fell over. "What happen?" He asked.
"Voldemort happened." Hermione replied. The elves stepped forward. Their mouths open.
"Hermione you're back." Hagrid grinned.
"Not just back. Better and stronger than before." The girl smiled and hugged him the best she could.
"Lady Hermione," an elf interrupted their reunion. "Someone is coming."
One of the elves unsheathed a sword from her back.
The castle now had some order. Some of the elves had found Pansy Parkinson, as a statue. Willow, of course, had turned her back, but not before one or two of her fellow students had hexed her. So her skin was bright orange and her hair was day glow green. The girl was now moaning that she was sharing her dorm room with 12 female elves. "Can I get to the loo," she groaned to her fellow students.
"Well, we have better things to think about." Ginny interrupted. "The school was betrayed from within. We need to know who put the potion in the water."
"What potion?" Pansy snapped.
"The one that turned you into a statue." Ron answered, sitting next to his sister. "Percy's just arrived, almost got his ass kicked by some elves. Willow wants to talk to him. Somethin' about restoring the fires connection to the network."
"Shouldn't we see him?" Ginny frowned.
"Yeah, I suppose you're right." Ron picked up a piece of bread. "But after dinner."
Hermione pulled Percy along. "This way."
"Hermione slow down." He pleaded he was breathless and Hermione had not even broke a sweat.
She stopped. "We're here."
Willow was crouched on the floor looking at a pool of water on the floor. "Percy, I believe." The redhead spoke. "I see Fudge, is making a terrible mistake. Azkaban is a dark point, a Hellmouth, an open Hellmouth, below the foundations. Voldemort as been tapping into this power."
"A Hellmouth?" Percy asked puzzled. "Never heard of them."
"They are doorways to the demon worlds." Willow looked up. "Voldemort knows everything about them. Even more than I do. If he release it's power, nothing that attacks Azkaban will survive the night." The witch's eyes were glowing orange. "They must be warned, unfortunately we have been cut off and the owls are behaving oddly and refusing to take messages at all."
"I was sent to investigate why the communications have failed." Percy spoke.
"No, you were sent here for a different reason. To keep you from warning your parents, of Fudge's decision." Willow waved her hand over the water. "Watch and listen."
The pool showed Fudge's office. "I intend to lead this assault myself. I will destroy Azkaban and all that those in it. Weasley and his son would undermine this course of action. It is necessary that his hostages die as well. "
"I don't believe it." He snarled.
"Believe it." Willow spoke softly. "This is a pool of true sight, it can not show a lie. Only what is and what was."
Part 5
Willow stood watching the pool. Percy had tried several times to call the minister, but when he finally got though there was only static from the other side. "It no good." Percy sighed. "Hogwarts connection, as been terminated at the exchange itself."
"What's no good?" Ron asked from the door way. Ginny was with him.
Hermione was checking the infirmary's supplies. "So you're back." Hermione stopped what she was doing and turned to face Pansy Parkinson.
"I see you got hexed." Hermione replied. There was several small dragons flying around and walking around the floor. Crookshanks was sleeping on a chair.
"Yeah, so I did." Pansy frowned. "So you got you powers back then?"
"Yes," Hermione placed her hands on her hips. "Now, can you get to the point." She challenged.
"I was wondering who is the most powerful." Pansy pulled out her wand.
"You? Challenging me?" Hermione grinned, a little amused by Pansy's words
"Yes," the other witch replied.
"When?" Hermione kept her eyes on her.
"Now!" Pansy yelled firing off an hex.
Hermione lifted her hand and caught the spell. "Inverto!" She shouted. The spell shot back hitting Pansy's in the chest.
Pansy went flying off her feet and land roughly on the floor. The dragons surrounded her and started to sniff at her. "I hope that answers your question. Now I have work to do. Like a post recognition spell on the potion remains." Hermione turned back to the task she was working on.
Pansy pouted, as she sat on the floor. The dragons sent back to what they were doing before. "No one wants anything to do with me." It was a sob.
"What do you expect?" Hermione turned back to her, she was annoyed. "You've put down people left, right and centre. It doesn't give people a warm feeling inside when they think of you."
"That's easy for you to say." Pansy yelled. "You mother and father don't ignore you."
"My mother and father are dead." Hermione snapped. "Be grateful."
Pansy's mouth fell open.
Willow paced watching the pool. "Fudge is no long in his office. In fact, his already gone." Ron and Ginny were watching her.
"I must get back to ministry." Percy hurried around the room looking for floo powder. "Where's the floo powder?"
"Did floo powder get you here?" Ginny asked her brother.
"No," he paused. "The portkeys are down too."
"Then the Minister of Magic is about to be creamed." The redhead sighed. "Show me Azkaban." She waved her hand over the pool. The pool faded out Fudge's office and shown a map of Azkaban.
"Blast he's jamming me." Willow made a fist. "Show me the outside of Azkaban." The pool faded out the image and evaporated."
"What are you checking for?" Pansy asked. She and Hermione had talked and in a way bonded a little.
"If we have enough healing potions. Bandages and salves." Hermione replied checking a potion. "This is the one."
"The one?" The other girl asked.
"A revealing potion." Hermione poured the potion into a test tube, then poured a sample of the other potion into it. "It save me casting a post recognition spell, which takes three hours to complete."
"Erk!" Hermione yelped, as the test tube exploded. An image appeared of one of the students.
"Goyle." Pansy whispered.
Part 6
"My Lord." A wizard appeared before Voldemort.
"Speak Macnair." The dark master of magic spoke.
"My sources say Fudge, is going to lead an attack against us." Macnair reported. "This evening."
"I thought he would." Voldemort stood. "I think it's time a gave the minister an example of my dark power." The wizard grinned. "I detected someone at Hogwarts was trying to spy on me earlier."
"It could be that American witch." Draco suggested, as he knelt before Voldemort. "She was able to kill a Dementor and drive off the others."
"Tell me young Draco." Voldemort's eyes narrowed. "Where is the boy, who lead the attack?"
"Gone mad, sire." Macnair answered the question. "The Dementors' attack was reversed and he was caught in the backlash."
Neville pulled against the chain on his ankle. A link was weak and he had be working on it since they locked him in this dark cell. The link gave way. He grinned.
He now put his hands inside his robes and found what he was looking for! His pocket tool kit. His non magically cousin Herbert, a locksmith, had insisted that Neville learn about locks. He was taught that the locks in Azkaban could not be opened with magic. But, maybe someone with the right tools could pick the lock to his cell.
Hermione and Willow sat on the floor in a room. It was Snape's office. "What are we doing?" Hermione asked not sure why they were now sitting on the floor. "Shouldn't we try and stop Fudge from running into a trap?"
"Fudge wouldn't listen, his mind is made up." The older witch replied. "We're going to try and make contract with one of Voldemort's prisoners."
"Then what?" The apprentice asked.
"Try and get as many out as possible, under the cover Fudge's attack. I need you as an anchor. Now lets begin" Willow cut the tip of one of her fingers and spoke some words from a language older than Latin. The redhead passed out.
Hermione felt herself being pulled on like she was being pulled out of her body. It was painful.
Willow found herself in Azkaban. She could sense the darkness and pain of this place. She moved unseen and unnoticed by the rulers of Azkaban. This being the advantage of moving via the astral plane.
She sensed a small amount of hope from a cell. A boy had picked the lock to his cell, but was hesitating about opening the door.
Willow moved to the cell with a thought. "Hermione, who is this boy?" Willow spoke.
Hermione was a little shocked to hear Willow in her head and seeing what she was seeing. "Neville Longbottom." Hermione gasped. "You're going to use him? His spells backfire on him a lot."
"Well, it appears Neville's, the only one who's working towards regaining his freedom. So he's our only hope in rescuing the others." Willow replied
Part 7
Percy Weasley was furious Fudge had played him for an idiot. He downed a bottle of Butterbeer in one go. "Bastard! That Bastard.!" He yelled and threw the bottle in a fire place. The bottle shattered.
"What that necessary?" Ginny asked looking up from the book she was reading. "That's the tenth one in less than an hour."
"No," he replied. "But it made me feel good. What are you reading?"
"The Book of Legends." Ginny walked over to Percy. "Here read this passage."
"The First Heir will be named after a tree, The Second will summon the First." Percy looked at Ginny. "Hermione and this Willow are the first and second?"
"It looks that way. The castle itself changed their clothes." Ginny paused. "It welcomed them home in a way."
Neville looked round someone had spoken his name. "Neville," a woman's voice whispered again.
"Who's there?" He snapped loudly.
"Quiet." The voice responded as a ghost of a woman with red hair appeared. "Neville, I'm here to help you. My name is Willow."
Neville stared at her.
"Fudge is going to attack at sunset. That is when you and as many others that are able to be rescued must be ready."
"For what?" Neville asked not completely sure were or not to thrust the woman in front of him.
"I'll open a portal that will get you just outside Hogwarts' ground." She answered. "Are you ready to leave your cell?"
"What about the Dementors?" His fear of them was clear.
"Upstairs. They are preparing to counter the coming attack. That means they have to shut down their senses until they're needed. They won't sense anything, what is happening in this part of the dungeon." Willow smiled a little.
Hermione could hear the conversation in her head. "Sunsets in about three hours here." The girl spoke.
Willow heard this. "We have about two and a half hours." She informed the young wizard.
Neville Longbottom swallowed and spoke, "I'm ready."
Part 8
A group of Aurors approached Azkaban. Their wands were in their hands ready. Voldemort smiled. "So they come. Let them." He walked down some steps from the battlements. "Malfoy! I sense several combat wizards coming from the east. Killed them." He commanded Lucius Malfoy.
Neville opened the door of a cell and slowly he enter.
"Came to torture us some more?" It was the voice of Seamus Finnigan.
"No, I'm trying to get us out of here." Neville replied.
"Neville?" Came another voice from the another side of the room.
"Professor Sprout is that you?" The wizard asked.
"I think so, my mind he played with it." The woman giggled.
"Neville," Willow whispered. "We don't have much time left. The attacks have began."
"Okay," Neville appeared to be talking to thin air. He walked into the cell.
"Hold out your hands," She instructed. "I'll shatter the chains holding them."
"You sure?" The boy asked holding his hands out in front of him.
"Who are you talking to?" Seamus asked.
The chains shattered and fell to the floor.
Malfoy raised and pointed his wand at the approaching group of witches and wizards. The ground opened up under their feet and swallowed them. Their screams filled the air, as the ground closed above them.
Fudge was at the field command centre on the field. "The first wave as failed." A combat wizard reported.
"Bombard the place flat." Fudge ordered.
"The hostages?" The General wizard asked.
"Expendable." The Ministry replied. "We finish it completely. No mercy."
The wizard general fought back his rage. "Bombard Azkaban." He spoke coldly.
The combat wizard left them. The General turned to Fudge. "Are you mad?" The General asked.
"If you can't or won't carry out my orders, I will relieve you of command."
"May I remind you, that military and combat decisions fall under my domain I asked that you respect that, sir."
A group of Aurors approached the fortress. The Dementors pounced on them.
The General watched the situation. "Company A, rescue party! Company C, covering fire!" He shouted.
"Why are you countermanding orders?" Fudge was furious.
"Cause I must, sir." The man responded. "To save any chance of winning this mess."
Fudge was about to reply, when the the wizard gasped and fell to the floor. A bolt had struck the general in the heart. Fudge smiled a Death eater had handed him total control of his forces.
Neville and all, but a handful of the hostages were making their way to the place, Willow was directing them to.
"Back in a minute." Willow spoke disappearing from Neville's sight.
"Hermione, is it spell ready?" She asked her apprentice.
"Yes," The girl replied.
"Impune." They spoke together.
Azkaban rocked from the explosions of magic. Neville was feeling a little unease. His follow students were staring at him.
There was a flash of light and a doorway appeared. "Going somewhere?" Came the voice of Draco.
They group turned and saw Draco standing there with his wand pointing at them. "Thinking of leaving I see." He grinned. "I don't think so."
Just then a piece of rock hit Draco on the forehead. He was out cold. They turned to see would thrown the rock. Padma stood there, with a murderous look upon her face, next to her was her sister. Who was missing both her hands.
"Well do you want out of there or not?" Hagrid's voice came from the doorway.
Part 9
Hagrid helped the students and freed Professors though the enchanted door. He had to hold a badly beaten Madam Pomfey. The students for the most part were in good shape physically, apart from one or two that had been tortured.
"Shouldn't we get Draco?" Seamus asked, on the other side of the door, as the last group of his fellow students fled though it.
"No," Neville shook his head. "He threw in with the Death eaters." He grabbed his follow student's shoulder. "Let's go." An explosion rock Azkaban.
They jumped though the door.
In Snape's office, Willow and Hermione spoke another word. "Finis." The doorway closed.
Voldemort signalled to the Dementors. They closed in on Fudge's location. The military wizards began to pull back in a desperate move to save what was left of their number.
"Fall back!" An officer on the front ordered. "There's too many! Flee while you still can, go!"
Fudge grabbed one of the retreating wizards. "Get back there!" He yelled at the a cold covered woman.
"Not of you life." She spat breaking free of his grip. "This battle can't be won." She ran off.
"Cowards." The minister yelled, only to be confronted by Voldemort himself.
"They would have fort to the death for their General," The dark wizard grinned. "But you gave me victory. Take him."
Fudge tried to step back something had his foot. Vines grabbed at his limbs. He was turned round, he screamed at what he saw.
Arthur Weasley returned to a Ministry in chaos. "He routed the mage regiment." A witch spoke clearing out her desk. "He will be coming here soon. I suggest you grab your wife and kids, and get out of the country." With those words she vanished.
Arthur saw a wizard Captain. "What happened?" He yelled.
"Fudge," the man answered. "He wanted a straight victory, he might have lost us the war."
"Where is he?" The wizard flumed.
"Dead," the man shook his head. "Ripped apart by a creature. It wasn't of this world."
Hogwarts was alive with freed students. The injured were quickly placed in the hospital wing. Several eleven healers got to work on them.
Willow asked Hagrid to gather those rescued, in the great hall. Standing at the walls where centaurs, elves and ghouls.
They saw Hermione, she was sitting in a chair on a raise platform. To one side was an empty chair and to the chair's other side was the Sorting Hat. They noticed the colours of her robes. The silver and scarlet. A small dragon lay in her lap. Several dragons had formed a protective circle around her chair.
Willow entered the hall. "My name is Willow. I am the first daughter of Hogwarts. Heiress to the Founders." She introduced herself. "I believe you know Hermione, Apprentice of Hogwarts."
She paused.
"Voldemort, defeated ministry forces." Willow announced. "Hogwarts castle is the only placed his powers do not reach."
"What about him getting in?" Seamus yelled.
"He was invited. The invitation as revoked." Willow answered. "By now Voldemort will be preparing to move, he will no realise that I and Hermione have rescued you. He will attack once his grip on power is stronger. The war as only just begun."
tbc Flames of Darkness.
Page Created : 09/11/2001
Page updated: 14/12/02