Lion's Fire

Harry Potter was bored; this week could not go fast enough. He had arrived at the Dursley's knowing he needed to be there only until his birthday, now one week away. Then the news had come and hit him like a hammer, Aunt Marge was coming on the day he was supposed to be leaving, and she was staying for a week. Harry, his aunt and uncle had been trying to think of a way to explain his leaving but had been unsuccessful. It was to the great displeasure of all that he would have to stay the extra week. So now Harry sat at his bedroom window waiting to see Uncle Vernon drive up with that despicable woman in the car next to him. The hours had passed and even Aunt Petunia was worried about her husband. "He hasn't called or sent word," finally she rounded on Harry, "can't you find him with, with your..." her voice trailed off.

"My magic?" Harry asked tentatively.

"Yes," said his aunt. "Yes, that."

"Sorry," said Harry, "but I don't know how." Aunt Petunia seemed ready to make a remark at this point but, just then, was a loud bang and the roof of number four Privet Drive was blown off. Aunt Petunia screamed. There, hovering above the house, was Lord Voldemort on the back of what appeared to be a throne made entirely out of bone and sinew. Aunt Petunia fainted as he began to speak.

"It isss good to sssee you again, Harry Potter." He sounded more snakelike than ever. "I had hoped that you might be with your dear friendsss and that you could watch them die while I tortured you ssslowly." Several popping sounds filled the night and Death Eaters surrounded them.

Harry immediately recognized Bellatrix Lestrange by her babying voice. "Ahh, little Baby Potter, how does it feel to know that you are not only responsible for the death of my dear cousin but also Dumbledore?"

"Shut your mouth, you filthy excuse for a woman."

Bellatrix looked shocked for the comment had come, not from Harry but, from Voldemort. "This is exactly why you failed at the Ministry, you spent all of your time goading and gabbing and giving him time to think of a plan to escape. This is your last chance to do things properly."

Bellatrix raised her wand and spoke, "Crucio!" The inside of Harry's skull waited for the pain that he knew would come, but the screams were not his. Aunt Petunia shrieked as the curse racked her body.

"Harry, take Dudley and run. Go quickly!" Harry was numb. At last, he gained his senses enough to grab his cousin and together they Disapparated, to the first place that came to mind.

"Harry, why is your cousin with you?" Harry's vision cleared as he focused on the questioning face of Remus Lupin. They were standing in the brightly illuminated kitchen with Mrs. Weasley, Dudley was sobbing.

"No wonder," thought Harry. Dudley had gone from waiting for his father to come home, to having his house destroyed, to watching his mother be tortured and now to a kitchen full of the kind of people he most feared.

As Harry tried to explain, Ginny and Hermione took Dudley aside and began to calm him down. During the first few minutes, Charlie, Fred, George and Mr. Weasley had Disapparated to investigate the house while Lupin and Mrs. Weasley stayed to hear Harry finish his story.

"Oh Harry, I know that she was never particularly kind to you, but she didn't deserve that," said Mrs. Weasley. Hermione came back in to tell them Dudley had fallen asleep and, thanks to Ginny's sleeping potion, would remain that way for a while. As the minutes passed, Lupin asked Harry if he would like to join him on his way to Privet Drive. "Of course," said Harry. As they popped out of thin air, Harry realized that none of the people, most of whom were wearing Ministry for Magic insignia, were inside the house itself. Even more unusual was that there was no Dark Mark to show someone had been killed.

"Harry, my dear boy, how are you doing?" Harry turned to see Rufus Scrimgeour, the Minister for Magic, walking toward him accompanied by Percy Weasley. "Now that you're here, you can take down the Shield Charm you placed around your house"

"But I didn't place a-" began Harry but Scrimgeour cut him off. "Now, now Harry, maybe you thought you hadn't because of your panic, but who else could have done?"

Suddenly, several people screamed as the charm pulled in on itself and vanished. A second later, three hooded and cloaked figures appeared in the remains of the house and strode over to the body of the Death Eaters that had lain there unnoticed by anybody.

They began conversing in a quiet musical language that Harry couldn't place; and certainly, the Minister was equally baffled.

"MY NAME IS RUFUS SCRIMGEOUR MINISTER FOR MAGIC WHO ARE YOU?" shouted Scrimgeour rather more loudly than was necessary. The figures continued to speak in their strange musical language for a few moments before stopping. As one, the figures looked around as though they were honestly surprised to see fifty wizards staring at them.

"Wenesta daoth nayontae staresteldakay curosnelfallonithcuraetyn wininatinhal Hiemuneminannirsae," said one of the figures

"What the devil is he saying?" demanded Scrimgeour.

"Excuse my grandson, he speaks only a little of your language and so he uses our native tongue without meaning to," this was from the tallest of the figures who was easily seven feet tall. As he and the others lowered their hoods it was apparent why the language had seemed otherworldly, these creatures were not, for lack of a better term, human.

The speaker had long, white hair that fell to just beyond his shoulders. It was pulled back with a simple leather cord into a ponytail. This creature said he was a grandfather but this could not be true: he looked no older than Bill Weasley. His eyes were a pale, blue-grey that held wisdom and the pain of his many years of life. His face looked more like a well sculpted statue's than a person's. His nose was narrow and bladelike, but this only added to the fact that his face reminded Harry of nothing so much as a falcon though he looked more amused than dangerous. The most startling feature of the three was that their ears all tapered into points that complimented their faces. Harry noticed that all of them were in robes along with traveling cloaks, giving them the appearance of the stereotypical wizard though their robes were obliviously well made and easy to move in.

"If you were going to attack me and my family you would have done so already, so please, put those wands away and we can talk like civilized people."

"Now, I know that my people haven't shown themselves to wizards in over two hundred years but is that any reason to use death spells on us at first sight?"

"But we didn't fire death spells," the Minister began.

"No, not you, those other hoodlums, the ones obsessing over the idiot on the floating chair."

At this, Harry could not help laughing at the description of Voldemort, which, Harry supposed, was exactly how he would have looked to someone out of harms way who didn't know who Voldemort was or the danger he posed.

"So," the Minister began, "you are telling me that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named just ignored you and your family?" He looked disbelieving, but lacked the overwhelming sarcasm that Fudge would have had in this situation. The more Harry looked at the figure the more he realized that though they were lithe and seemed physically weak, the incredible aura of power that the incredible aura of power that surrounded them put Voldemort to shame. As Harry thought this, he felt his scar burn and fainted.

*****

"Crucio." Harry watched in horror as the boy on the floor writhed in agony. His usually sneering face was contorted into a mask of never ending pain. Harry counted mentally to him self: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine and finally Draco Malfoy let out a scream that seemed Harry both reveled in and reviled.

"My Lord, please, make it stop I will never fail you again."

"No, you will not, Draco," hissed Voldemort. "Lucius come here!"

"Yes, My Lord?"

"I trust you will ensure your brat learns this lesson more fully than I currently have time for?"

"Of course, My Lord." Harry watched in horror as Lucius Malfoy strode over to his son's prostrate body and jerked him up. Draco let out a small moan of pain.

"Shut up, you ungrateful failure."

As they departed, Harry called for another Death Eater and his vision began to blur, as he felt his awareness being pulled from Voldemort's mind.

"Lucius, how pleasantly nauseating to see you again." The voice of Severus Snape echoed from across the front hall of Malfoy Manor.

"Severus! Why are you here? Where is Narcissa, and for that matter, where were you when the Dark Lord did this to my son?"

"Firstly, Lucius, I am here for your son. Secondly, Narcissa is safe at another location and awaits Draco, and lastly, don't pretend to be a bereaved father. At this stage, the only reason you care about the Dark Lord's treatment of Draco is because it shames you in his eyes!"

"I am not the only one at fault, you were, are, his teacher and were to protect him at school. These were the orders you received from our master seven years ago!"

"That's right, Lucius, play the sniveling Slytherin ever watchful of a more powerful master. I thought that my cover would be ruined when Narcissa asked for the Unbreakable Vow with Bellatrix there to bond us, but in the end, the old fool knew of his coming death and had me kill him. For these long years I have deceived the most powerful Dark wizard since Grindelwald and soon Voldemort's power will surpass his."

"That's all I need, Snape, a confession from you and the Dark Lord will make me his favoured once more."

"I think not Lucius, Expelliarmus!"

"Cruci...!"

Snape's spell hit the elder Malfoy before the incantation was complete, throwing him to the floor.

"Obliviate! Can't have you remembering details about our little chat, Lucius, give my warmest regards to Voldemort when you see him." Snape strode over to Draco's unconscious form and, gently lifting him up off the ground Disapparated from the manor as a light rain began to fall.

"Hermione, the rain is starting to get worse, time to go!", shouted an exasperated Mrs. Granger.

"Be right there, mum!" replied Hermione over the first peal of thunder. That boy would be the death of her. He had said he would meet her here and now, two hours later, no word, not so much as an owl dropping, of where he was. When she got her hands on him...

"Excuse me would you be Hermione Granger?" asked a soft voice from behind her.

"Yes of course I-" Hermione stopped and saw that the speaker was a small girl with jet-black hair that flowed down her shoulders and seemed to glisten in the rain. Her face was pale, though she seemed healthy, but her ears tapered to points that stuck out from under her hair.

"Hermione, why on earth are you standing here in the rain? Oh, hello." Mrs. Granger appeared to have just noticed the girl her daughter had been talking to. "Who are you?"

"I am my name is Elena Ka-ael Auvrea-Mitore, or Elena Dragon-Knight of the House of the Moon in your tongue."

"That's very nice dear but what is your real name?" Mrs. Granger asked sweetly.

Elena seemed not to notice this and addressed Hermione again. "I have been sent by my grandfather to inform you that Ronald Weasley cannot come because he has been injured along with Harry Potter. You are to come with me to them." Elena then began an incantation that seemed well practiced.

"Wait just a moment!" Was all Mrs. Granger had time for before all three of them disappeared in a cloud of black feathers, and the downpour began in earnest.

"Where are they, Arthur? You don't think that You-Know-Who could have..."

"It's unlikely that Voldemort could hope to kill them before they Disapparated with more than a hundred Aurors in the area." A sudden pop announced the arrival of a rain-soaked Remus Lupin.

"Molly, Arthur, Ron and Harry have been hurt."

"How badly?" asked Mr. Weasley.

"Very," replied Lupin as Molly began to break down into sobs.

"St. Mungo's, I assume?" she managed to say.

"No, it's a long story, but it can be better explained by others. They are at Grimmauld Place." With that, the three strode out into the rain and Disapparated.