Dark Daughter

Chapter 14: The Plan

(March 26^th)

Amy woke with a start. She had been lucky to drift off to sleep at all. She'd spent about four days without proper sleep. She looked around for the idiot who had woken her. It was Draco Malfoy.

"You awake, Evans?" inquired Malfoy. "Good. Come here."

Amy shifted Aria easily into Jason's lap (neither of whom woke) and got up to follow Malfoy out the cave entrance.

"What is it?" Amy asked sleepily.

"That," Malfoy whispered, pointing in the distance.

Amy stared blankly for a moment before she heard someone scream and the Dark Mark was fired into the sky. It faded after a moment or so. And then at least two other Dark Marks were fired into the heavens, farther away this time.

"They're killing out there, Evans," said Malfoy softly. "We can't wait any longer. We have to act now!"

"I don't know how I'm going to perform a spell that will kill Voldemort without a wand," said Amy rubbing her forehead with her left hand, the right being injured. "And besides, I can't kill Voldemort alone, remember?"

"Then get someone to help you," said Malfoy pointedly.

But Amy didn't cotton on, instead she said, "Listen let's wake everyone up. We develop a plan or something. You're right, we can't keep running like this!"

So Amy and Malfoy woke everyone in the cave up.

"What is the meaning of this?" said McGonagall indignantly.

"People are dying out there," said Amy. "We can't run from Voldemort anymore. We have to fight!"

"And how do you propose we do this?" asked Mrs. Weasley. She sounded angry and frustrated to Amy.

"There is a spell," said Amy. "It's an ancient legend that said one day, the Heir Hogwarts--that's the heirs of Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, Slytherin and Gryffindor--will unite and defeat an evil lord once and for all. Dumbledore and Voldemort and I think that Voldemort is that evil lord. But we don't have wands so I don't know how we will be able to perform the spell."

"Wait a minute," said Sirius Black. "How do you know where the other heirs are? And what spell?"

"The legend goes," Amy further explained, "that all of the Heirs of Hogwarts will be at the school at the same time, as students. Well, Dumbledore told me the names of the other two heirs. Harry's the Heir of Gryffindor and I'm the Heir of Slytherin. We're all here! And the spell--well, there is spell that we must use. It will kill Voldemort and it's probably the only one that will. The words are 'Ardere-aris.' And Dumbledore told me to use the Sorting Hat to help, but I don't know how, unless he meant to throw it in Voldemort's face and blind him with all the dirt."

Normally, Amy would have grinned, but she just put her head in her hands. She had no idea what she going to do. All that the Hat did was yell out house names and give swords to the Heirs . . . and then it clicked.

"I have it!" Amy said. "The swords!"

"The what?" said Lupin blankly.

"The swords," Amy repeated. She took the ratty old Sorting Hat out of her pocket and stared at it with excitement. "We don't need wands. We can use the swords to concentrate our magic!"

"Slow down, Evans," said Snape. "You mean you can perform a spell without a wand?"

"Yes," Amy said impatiently and then she took a deep breath, resigned to explaining. "Well, wizards don't need wands for certain spells. Some think that it is only with the wildest, most unconcentrated of spells that are you don't need a wand in order to perform magic. But when you have something to focus your magic with it's only the hardest of spells that you can perform and they are usually ancient, like the spell that will kill Voldemort. In order to perform this curse we need something strait and long. And a stick or twig won't do because it will just blow up under the pressure of so much magic. A sword is perfect. And besides, the Heirs can pull them out of the hat. It says in the legend, it says, 'then Hogwart's Heirs will wield the weapons of their ancestors and with them conquer the Dark Lord.' You see, it fits."

Everyone gazed in aw at Amy for a moment, as thought everything she'd said had gone completely over their heads.

"We have to find the other heirs, don't we?" said Malfoy.

"Yes," said Amy she turned to Harry. "You will help, Harry, won't you?"

Harry gave her a suspicious look, Amy's spirits fell, and he said, "Where did you find out all of this?"

"I read some of it in the library, there's an excellent magical legend section there that I've raided and then Dumbledore told me most of it. He gave me the book."

"Why'd he tell you?" asked Harry.

"Because I told him that I was Voldemort's daughter," said Amy.

"Why?" asked Ron incredulously.

"Bit stupid to keep it secret from him, isn't it," said Amy. "I was an idiot--waiting so long to tell him. And for that, I lost some of his trust."

"How are you You-Know-Who's daughter?" asked Hermione. "I mean--he didn't have a wife did he?"

"We don't have time for this," Amy said exasperatedly. She really didn't want to explain.

"We do if you want us to trust you," said Harry.

"Okay, okay!" said Amy. Well, she knew she'd have to explain properly in the end. "Ask what you want. What was your question again, Hermione?"

"How're you You-Know-Who's daughter?" Hermione repeated. "And how do you have the last name, Evans? It should be Riddle, shouldn't it?"

"Well," Amy said. "My mum was Circe Evans. She was Lily Potter's (your mum's, Harry) sister and--"

"Wait a minute," said Harry. "I only have one aunt, and that's my Aunt Petunia."

"Not many people know that she was Aunt Lily's sister," said Amy. "She--Er--was . . . was--evil. She killed a lot of people. And she was powerful--very talented at magic, like Aunt Lily. Only she used her powers for the wrong reasons. Voldemort ordered her to have a baby with him. And she was a loyal Death Eater so, they . . . um . . . well you know what happens next."

Amy felt uncomfortable explaining it like this. She decided to continue, "Well she got pregnant right before Voldemort's fall from power. I was born nearly a year later, I was a late baby, you see. And when she had me she didn't dump me. She knew not to give me the name Riddle because Dumbledore knew that that was Voldemort's name when he was at school. I think she knew that Voldemort would someday regain power.

"She was terrified of me once I was about five. But she still went about teaching me the Dark Arts. I had no idea what she was talking about, of course. She got really frustrated with me and stopped trying after about a year. And then she had a baby--Aria, here--with a man I never found out the name of. He had dark hair and he was really mean. Never messed with me though, I think he was once a Death Eater too. But he left when my mother died during childbirth. And that's it really."

"You said you didn't know anything about your family," said Sirius.

"Well, I just found out about who my mum was last week. I went to Dumbledore after I heard who she was from Voldemort. And, well, I'd just met you when I told you I didn't know anything about my family, and I hadn't even told Dumbledore who my father was, so I wouldn't have told anyone about him. So, anymore questions? Because I can't stress enough how little time we have!"

Amy felt so strange explaining her life to these people. She wished they would stop asking such personal questions.

"Wait a minute," said Harry again. "Sirius, did you ever know about my mum having Circe Evans as a sister?"

"Er . . . yes," said Sirius, looking uneasily at Lupin. "Lily asked us never to tell anyone. So, very few people know."

"So you're my cousin?" said Harry looking at Amy with new light.

"Guess so," said Amy. "Do trust me now?"

"How do we perform this curse?" asked Harry, not answering her question. "And why can't we just use Avada Kedavra?"

"Have you ever used Avada Kedavra?" Amy asked quietly and Harry shook his head. "I have. I used it on a snake, when Voldemort was teaching me the Dark Arts. It consumes you."

"How does it do that?" asked Ron.

"You perform it using pure hate," said Amy, more quietly still. "It can destroy you and make you go mad . . . to hate that way. If you use it too much you will become evil. I remember the feeling. And after the hate was gone it came back to haunt me. I couldn't sleep for a week. But the spell that we're going to use is performed using pure love. You can only destroy cruelty and evil and loathing with love, and all that's Voldemort is--evil and hate."

"There's one more thing," said Harry. "You said to Voldemort that her inserted some of himself into me. When and how did he do that?"

"He didn't do it on purpose," Amy said. "But that really doesn't matter. He can kill you anyway. I lied to Voldemort in order to save you."

"Thanks," Harry muttered. "But how did you lie to Voldemort. I'm usually under the impression that he can detect lies easily?"

"I know how he detects lies," said Amy. "So all I have to do is keep my face evil looking or confident and I'll be fine. I've been doing it all year. But listen, we need to get the other Heirs of Hogwarts. I'll go find them. If you want to, you guys can search for whomever you want and whoever will help. The Heirs cannot do this alone. When everyone's here, we can discuss exactly what we're going to do."

Everyone nodded. Aria stayed with Sirius, Lupin, Fudge, Diggory, Malfoy and Moody, who were remaining inside the cave, though she had wanted to come.

"I still don't get something, though," said Jason as they left the cave. "How did they think that Aria was dead?"

"Well they never found her body," said Amy. Jason knew that "they" was referring to the people who had done the autopsies on the bodies of those killed during the destruction of A New Day orphanage. "They did find some of her blood. They just assumed that her body had been burned. Well, see you."

"Why can't I come with you?" said Jason indignantly.

"Because I need to find the Heir of Hogwarts alone, it'll help with the magic needed to kill Voldemort."

Jason didn't argue. So Amy went north, and Jason west. The rain became a drizzle. Fred and George caught up with her. Amy was very annoyed by this. She needed to get going. There wasn't much time, and no one could go with her. And she didn't want to talk to the teenagers who were jogging to keep up with her. She really wanted to get away from them after all of the grief they had caused her.

"What is it?" Amy asked coldly as she stopped and faced them angrily.

"Listen Amy," said George. "We--we're sorry. You did show that you're on our side."

"Most people on our side wouldn't have done the brave stuff you did for us," said Fred, looking down at his feet. "We really are sorry."

"I forgive you," said Amy, her anger subsiding. "But I've really got to go. Our classmates are dying out there. You guys be careful, this isn't a time for being silly."

"Hey," said George. "We're not complete idiots."

Amy smiled. Her hopes were rising now that she had friends back on her side. But as high as her spirits were, it would still be a challenge to find the other Heirs of Hogwarts.

* * *

"Child seems quite corrupted," Cornelius Fudge was saying. "I don't understand why any of you are believing that rubbish she's told you."

"You ought to trust people more, Fudge," said Sirius.

"I'd never trust someone like you, Black!" burst Fudge.

Sirius felt a ripple of anger, but he fought it back. He would not look like an innocent man if he socked the Minister of Magic. Though Sirius had not been innocent since he was five years old. Instead he said casually, "What makes you say that Fudge?"

"You killed thirteen people!" cried Fudge. He got to his feet, as though ready to run for his life.

He didn't seem to have noticed Sirius at any other time that they had been in the forest. Fool! Sirius thought. I could have attacked him or Harry long before now! Sirius also thought it foolish for Fudge to speak someone he thought a murderer in the tone he was using.

"I never killed any of those people," said Sirius, trying to keep calm. "I was never even given a trial!"

"Who did it then?" said Fudge, lowering himself again, as though he thought that Sirius was mad and couldn't hurt him.

"Peter Pettigrew," said Sirius simply. He saw the disbelieving look on the Minister's face and said, "He had his wand behind his back and escaped in the chaos."

"You were laughing when the Ministry arrived," said Fudge suspiciously.

"I admit that I wasn't entirely sane then," said Sirius thoughtfully. "Otherwise I would have gone to talk to Dumbledore and gotten my godson back. But Lily and James were my best friends and I had told them to change Secret-Keepers at the last moment because it was too obvious that they would use me. I trusted Peter and told them to use him, it was far less obvious.

"But Peter was the spy that we knew was sneaking around us. I was so angry and horrified that he would do such a thing that I went after him, planning to kill him, or at least capture him."

"What about that finger?" said Diggory.

Remus, cut in, seeing that Sirius wasn't really up to responding at the time. He said, "Peter cut off his finger during the explosion, in order to make it more convincing that he'd been blasted to bits. We've no idea how he got away, all that we know, is that Sirius was alone when the smoke cleared."

"How do you know this?" asked Fudge. He looked quite confused now.

"I met Peter the night Sirius was recaptured two years ago," said Remus, and then he added quickly, "I didn't help him out of it, only Dumbledore and Sirius know that."

Sirius had in fact; told Remus how he'd escaped and how Pettigrew had escaped fourteen years ago, but Remus thought it wise not to mention that. Also, he hadn't mentioned that Sirius or Peter were Animagi.

"So you're innocent?" said Fudge, staring at Sirius with a new light. "You were thrown in Azkaban for nothing?"

"Yep," said Sirius and then thinking that he should probably say something a bit more interesting to the Minister of Magic, as poor of one that he was, he said, "And thanks for all of those yearly visits, the some highlights of my stay."

His voice carried a slight hint of sarcasm, though not what he had intended. But it never the less showed how he felt. Mad-Eye Moody had a crooked grin on his face, but was silent. He was staring blankly out of the cave entrance (and exit), thinking of his deceased friend. So, no one spoke to him.

Aria watched with interest. She was dying to know many things that her sister had never mentioned (there seemed so much). She had never known that this man--Mr. Black--had been accused of killing thirteen people. But he was obviously innocent. And he had been sent to--

"What's Ask-a-band?" she asked, unable to contain herself.

"Azkaban is a place where magical people are sent to prison," explained Remus kindly.

The other man--Fudge, as Mr. Black called him--was looking at her like she was dirt. She avoided his eyes.

"And what're Deaf Eaters?"

"Those are people who support Voldemort," said Draco Malfoy. Everyone looked at him, and he stared back defiantly.

"What's Vol'mor?" asked Aria.

"He's the evil man who captured you," said Sirius. "And killed those in your orphanage. He began this war."

"The snake-man with the red eyes?" asked Aria softly.

Everyone nodded. Draco thought he saw a chill run down the child's spine.

"An' Amy's his daughter, an' she's gonna try ta kill him?" asked Aria.

"Yeah," said Sirius.

"I hope she's okay and . . . " Aria's voice trailed away and she looked out of the cave entrance. No one spoke. "Is that boy--Harry--your son?" Aria asked Sirius after awhile.

He laughed. "No," Sirius said, "but he's my godson and I'm his guardian."

Aria smiled. "I heard--from my sister--that there's a boy called Harry Potter and he defeated Vol'mor before and Vol'mor lost his powers. She said that Harry Potter had a lightening-bolt scar on his head when Vol'mor was--when he lost his powers. Is your godson Harry Potter or is he just another Harry."

"Oh, he's Harry Potter," said Sirius. "His father was a friend of mine."

"Oh," said Aria.

She was silent for a long time. All of them looked out to the forest beyond the cave. They could see that a magical mine had been dropped. The explosion was quick, but its fire licked sky for maybe ten seconds. A dragon hovered over the forest. A Dark Mark was sent into the sky again. Sirius felt a strong urge to out there, dying with them and not here, listening and watching the signs that students--people--were being killed. He thought of his godson.

Why had he let him go out there on his own? Why had he let any of the children go out alone? His memory flashed back to Harry's eyes after the third task. He needed to do this on his own. He wouldn't be alone. He would be with the Heirs of Hogwarts. But all of them--every student--had just grown up an amazing amount during the last days (it could have been weeks for all he knew) and they needed to use their newly found maturity. And Sirius refused to stop them.

He knew that it was children who would shape his future and he could protect his godson no longer. It was time fore kids to show what they could do. It was in Amy Evans and Harry and in all of the other students who could fight that he and the rest of the world would now have to put his fate and he was ready to except that.

* * *

Harry, Ron and Hermione were dashing through the trees, a werewolf on their tail. It was snarling and snapping its great jaws. Harry could hear the pounding of its feet but didn't dare look back. They weren't even looking were they were running and Ron ran head long into Mundungus Fletcher, who said, "What in blazes--" and then he spotted the werewolf pursuing them and turned to run with Harry, Ron and Hermione.

"Up that tree!" yelled Hermione.

They ran to a nearby tree and climbed as fast as they could. Mundungus slipped on the wet wood but Harry and Ron both caught one of his arms. Once they were out of the werewolf's reach Mundungus said, "Thanks laddie. You saved my neck."

The werewolf was fighting madly to get up the tree. But suddenly, Crookshanks bounded out of a tree. He launched himself at the werewolf's head. It yelped and fell backwards. Crookshanks hissed and whisked off away from Harry, Ron, Hermione and Mundungus. The werewolf followed him and its footfall faded into the distance.

They climbed down.

"Crookshanks is a smart cat, Hermione," said Ron bracingly. "He'll be fine."

"I hope so," said Hermione. "He--did you hear that?"

"Wha--" Mundungus began, but then he fell silent.

Harry heard it too, now. There was a squeaky voice moaning, "Please, no . . . Oow . . . please stop! Oh, stop!"

Harry recognized the voice--it was Dobby. He was apparently in a great deal of pain. Harry could hear Lucius Malfoy laughing.

"This way," Harry whispered, gesturing for them to follow him.

He stuck his head around a large pine. Dobby was lying on the ground squealing as Lucius Malfoy kicked him. He rolled next to Hermione's feet. Hermione darted out from behind the tree and scooped Dobby into her arms.

She screamed, "RUN!" and all of them dashed back to the cave without a backward glance. Harry, Ron and Mundungus threw sticks,stones and whatever was in reach over their shoulders. Ron finally hit Malfoy with an extremely large rock. Ron cried out in victory. They reached the cave and, panting, Hermione laid Dobby down on the floor.

He didn't seem to be hurt badly, a couple bruises and bloody nose, but nothing serious. He was conscious, and the moment he was able to get to his feet, he ran and hugged Hermione, then Harry, Ron and Mundungus.

"Hermione Granger and Harry Potter and his friends has saved Dobby!" he squealed.

"Why was Mr. Malfoy doing that to you, Dobby?" asked Ron.

"He is not liking Dobby leaving his service, Sir," said Dobby. "He is holding a grudge for years and years."

The elf looked around to see one of his old masters standing there. Draco looked at him almost cautiously.

"What did my father do to you?" he asked after awhile.

"He is kicking Dobby, Sir," said the elf, without making eye contact.

Draco didn't pursue the subject. Aria was looking at Dobby curiously. Harry was sure that she had never seen a house-elf before. He knew she was dying to ask what he was, but knew better. Harry, feeling that he should try to get to know his cousin walked over to her and held out a hand. She took it carefully and he guided her over to Dobby.

"Aria, this is Dobby, he's a house-elf. Dobby, this is Aria, she's a girl named Amy Evans' little sister. You probably wouldn't know her but . . . that's what she's doing the forest, long story short."

"But Dobby knows Amy Evans, Sir," said Dobby excitedly. "She is always coming to visit him, and to get food," he added.

Aria smiled and the tortured look in her eyes faded for a few moments. She said hello to Dobby and said that it was nice to meet him and then went back to sit with Sirius and Remus, who seemed to like her and she seemed to like them. All of them sat down I a sort of semi-circle and they told Mundungus that they would tell him everything once everyone came back.

* * *

Severus Snape, Minerva McGonagall and Filius Flitwick were scanning the forest, looking for signs of students, or indeed, anybody. But it was no use. Everyone seemed to be hiding somewhere, or captured. There were occasional screams, but they were very far away.

"I'd even be happy to see a Death Eater," said Flitwick. "It would be better than this silence."

"Did you see where the Death Eaters and dementors were taking the students who were captured, Filius?" asked McGonagall.

"No," said Flitwick. "I've told you Minerva, I only saw them capturing students. I don't remember anything else after that."

Minerva gave an impatient sigh and proceeded onward but bumped into Severus, who had frozen.

"What is it Severus?" she asked.

Filius joined them. He only came up to Severus' waist. Snape merely pointed and the others looked. A shadow was slinking between the trees. None could be sure on which side he was. The figure froze, stiffened and stared at Snape, McGonagall and Flitwick like a dear caught in the headlights.

"You there!" Snape called. "Come here!"

It was apparent at once that the figure was a student. He came cautiously forward at first, but then saw that it was three of his teachers and he hurried closer. All of them recognized him as Mordicus Flint.

"Professors?" he said in disbelief.

"What on earth are you doing out here on your own?" said Minerva severely.

"My friends were captured," said Flint. "I've been trying to find someone--anyone--who wasn't captured."

He was visibly frightened. Even Snape's heart softened for the boy.

"Come with us," said Flitwick.

Flint seemed very happy about this. He told them about how he'd escaped. He'd been wrestled to the ground by a Death Eater but at that moment a magical mine was dropped and he was saved. That explained to them why he had a bruise on his cheek and a lump on the side of his head. They took him back to the cave.

* * *

Jason, Fred and George slopped through the mud. They were trying to get to a Charlie, who was wading through the mud and fog to get to them as well. When they finally met up, Charlie said, "Boy, am I glad to see you guys alive!"

Charlie looked like he'd been all over the forest. He had blood under his right ear and his jacket was ripped in several places.

"And you," said Fred. "We'd thought you were a goner."

"What's been going on with the three of you?" asked Charlie, surveying them. Jason noticed him taking in a large scrape on his own cheek, the ripped, bloody sleeve of Fred's robes and George's bruised forehead.

"What happened?" he asked after a moment.

They launched into an explanation of being captured by Voldemort and Amy being his daughter. How she was tortured and she still refused and how Dumbledore had been killed. They told of their escape and how Amy had led them to the centaurs and how they gathering people to help destroy Voldemort once and for all.

"How do you know that you can trust Evans?" Charlie asked.

"She's done so much for us already," said George. "You-Know-Who would've killed her if Dumbledore hadn't been killed instead. She was going to die for our side. We have to trust her."

"What if this is all You-Know-Who's plan?" said Charlie.

All of them paused. What if Amy was working on the lines of a plan Voldemort had devised.

"How do we know that you're not helping with You-Know-Who' plan?" said Jason bravely. Charlie looked offended, but Jason continued, "What if I'm helping with You-Know-Who's plan? What if the whole world is helping with You-Know-Who's plan?

"That's what he wants. He wants us to not trust each other. I don't know if you heard about Dumbledore's speech last year, but he said, 'You-Know-Who's gift for spreading hatred and panic is very great' or something like that. And then he said, 'we can only fight it with the same amount of love and trust.' Don't you see? We have to trust one another. Dumbledore was right. Friendship and trust is the only way to combat fear and hate. So let's trust Amy."

"You're right, Jason," said George, and he walked over to stand side by side with him. Soon Fred did the same and, eventually, Charlie did also. All had come to an agreement. They had to trust each other. It was their only hope for survival.

Jason felt a strange sense of panic in his stomach. Every way that he looked at it, they were in a terrible fix. The panic was making everyone act idiotic. They refused to trust their only hope, Amy. He had to admit, they had a point. Amy was the daughter, the only heir, of the Dark Lord. She could easily betray them. But they did not look deep into her eyes--they did not seem to see the shining within those emerald orbs. She was going against what was easiest and working alone on the side that she was truly loyal to. She had been born on You-Know-Who's side, after all. She had turned her back on him, on her mother, on everything that she was destined. It amazed Jason to see her courage. It amazed Jason when he saw any courage in this Goddamned forest.

* * *

Molly Weasley and her husband, Arthur was trudging through the forest. She was desperate to find her children. Author pointed up ahead.

"Look, Molly!" he cried. "Who's that?"

They hurried to motionless body. It was that of a girl, probably fifteen years of age. She had blonde hair, which must have been up in pigtails at one time, but now it was all over her face. She was wearing a pink nightdress. She also had a large bruise on the side of her face and her bottom lip was bleeding. Molly picked up her wrist to feel the girl's pulse and found that most of her left arm was severely scraped.

The teenager opened her eyes and stared blearily at the two Weasleys.

"Mmmph?"

"It's all right, dear," said Molly, her maternal instincts kicking in.

"What?" said the girl. She seemed dazed.

Molly worried that a memory charm had been put on her.

"Can you sit up, dear?" she asked.

The girl nodded and Molly and Arthur helped her sit upright.

"What happened?" asked the girl.

"We don't know," said Molly gently. "We just found you on the ground a couple minutes ago. What do you remember?"

"They dropped one of those fireball things on my friends and I. I think it sent me flying, but I can't remember much else."

Molly knew that the "fireball thing" had been a magical mine.

"Do you think you can get up dear?" she asked. They needed to get going again, it was dangerous to stay in one spot for long.

"Who are you?" asked the girl suspiciously.

"Oh, of course," said Molly, not believing that she could be so rude. "I'm Molly Weasley and this is my husband, Arthur."

Arthur grinned warmly and shook the girl's hand. Molly asked her name.

"I'm Hannah Abbott," she said. "And have you any relation to Ron Weasley and his brothers and sister?"

"Yes," said Mrs. Weasley smiling. "I'm their mother."

"Oh," said Hannah. She didn't to know what to say next. "May I ask what you're doing out here?"

"We're working for Dumbledore," said Arthur. "We were meeting with him when this attack started and we're looking for people who have not been captured. But we have to keep going. Can you walk?"

Hannah nodded and got to her feet.

As they proceeded, they heard a scream from up ahead. Arthur recognized it as his daughter's.

"Ginny!" he and Molly yelled together.

"Ginny?" said Hannah. She stood for a moment, cocking her head and then tore off in hot pursuit of the Weasley parents, who were running towards their daughter's screams.

Her school robes snagged on branches and her hair was caught in a low tree. But the Weasleys seemed to be magnetically drawn to the screaming and ran through the rough forest faultlessly. She didn't dare call for them to wait up, because she knew that Ginny could be in trouble. Finally, Hannah, panting and clutching a stitch in her side, reached a clearing.

The screaming had stopped and now Mr. Weasley lay unconscious on the ground, with Mrs. Weasley and Ginny crouching over him. Mr. Weasley sat up as Hannah came closer. Apparently he hadn't lost his senses at all. Thank God he's all right, she thought, her worry for the man diminishing.

"Oh, Hannah, dear," said Mrs. Weasley. "Are you all right?"

When Hannah assured her that she was fine, Molly said, in a slightly tearful voice, "Oh, I'm ever so sorry for leaving you back there, dear. It's just we were so worried about Ginny. But she's fine."

The fourth year grinned at Hannah and they shook hands.

"How'd you fend off the Death Eaters?" Hannah asked. "Where there any at all?"

"Oh, yes, two," said Ginny before her parents could.

"Arthur and I grabbed sticks and pretended that they were wands," said Mr. Weasley proudly, much like Ron. "They seemed quite jumpy and ran away instantly. I don't think that we were really the ones who scared them away. though."

"Come along," said Molly. "We've got look for more people."

The four clambered to their feet. Hannah stayed close. She had no idea what was going to happen to her, but at least she had some else to help her figure it out.

* * *

Cho Chang opened her eyes. Her body was aching all over and she just wanted it all to end. But she had to fight. The lingering remembrance of a talk that she and the headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, had had about a month before still remained in her mind. She had to fight.

Cho sat up and swayed slightly. Her head was pounding and she remembered the magical mine that had been dropped. All that she could remember after a blast of fire was flying though the air and all going black.

She couldn't sit here for long. Cho endeavored to stand up, but fell back. Her ankle had burst with pain. She remembered her escape from one of the torture and prison units that the Death Eaters had set up. She had fallen nearly twenty feet after jumping from a wall and before landing and she was sure that she had sprained ankle at the very least. Cho bent down to examine her injured leg.

It had swollen so much, that it looked like a purple basketball had replaced her ankle. She winced as she prodded it cautiously. A strong urge to scream in frustration and pain erupted throughout Cho's body, but she held it back and searched for a way that might help her to walk. I'm an intelligent Ravenclaw, she told herself. I can think. And I can find a way to walk.
Finally, she decided upon using a splint. She would use a piece of her torn robes as a bandage, and a stick for a splint. That wasn't so hard! She worked feverishly to reach a reasonably strait branch, which was almost out of her reach. Finally, the Ravenclaw achieved her goal and stood on her two feet.

Now that she looked at with a rational mind, Cho didn't think it looked like a basketball at all. It looked more like a large softball. Cho was lucky to know so much about Muggles, being half-blood. It had helped her solve many problems in the time that she had been in the forest.

I've got to look for the other Heirs of Hogwarts, she told herself. Dumbledore will probably be with Potter. And Dumbledore and the Heir of Slytherin are the only ones who know how to perform the spell that will kill You-Know-Who.

So Cho, filled with a fire of courage and hope, set out into the darkening forest.

* * *

"Derek!" Hannah cried. "Oh, Derek!"

"Hannah!" Derek gasped. "Hannah, I can't--breathe!"

"Oh, sorry," said Hannah, loosening her grip around her younger brother's neck.

Molly, Arthur and Ginny had their arms around each other. Derek was glad to see his sister, but he liked breathing too.

"You guys haven't seen Amy, by chance, have you?" he asked the Weasleys. "I heard the most bizarre rumors in those dungeons. It's a miracle I got away."

"Yes," said Molly. "But we'll wait until we've got cover to explain."

* * *

Amy stumbled over the low hanging branches of an old tree. Why hadn't she brought anyone with her? Why? She was having trouble on her own. Of course she had the Ring of Slytherin. This powerful piece of jewelry had actually proved to be a tool that would help her find the Heirs of Hogwarts. When she had shown it to Dumbledore, he had said there was a ring for all of the Heirs, and they were currently on the fingers of the Heirs of Hogwarts (except Harry). He had told her that it would point the way to the next Heir in the list (first to Hufflepuff, then to Ravenclaw, and finally, to Gryffindor). It would check off the heir on the list only if it and the other heir's ring were united.

The ring had an arrow inside it now, pointing west, drawing her deeper into the forest. I've got to do this, she told herself. She trudged through the forest. She kept thinking of Aria and her friends. She wanted to see them free again.

Amy also wondered how Voldemort was trying to take control of the world. Had it already started now that Dumbledore was dead? Or had it began at the same time that the attack on Hogwarts had. Maybe there were more Death Eaters in the world. Perhaps it went much farther than the Death Eater circle that Amy and Snape had taken part in every week. Amy wondered if any other Death Eaters had known. She wondered once again what was going to happen to her?

And then she heard the thrashing of brush up ahead. The arrow in her ring had disappeared and the entire jewel glowed blackish and green. Amy raised her hand with the ring in it like it was a wand and made her way forward. But she knew that she had done it!

* * *

Mike McKinnon was stumbling though the trees and running as fast as he could away from the dungeons where he had been kept. His thigh was hurting him worst then ever, but he found an amazing ability to ignore it. Suddenly, he stopped crashing though the trees. He sensed someone coming toward him.

He heard a soft ringing, almost too low and soft for him to hear. He looked down at the Ring of Hufflepuff, which was on the index finger of his left hand (Mike was left handed) and was glowing brilliantly yellow light.

"Who goes there?" he called, knowing that this was probably not the smartest thing to call out.

"Amy Evans!" cried a student's voice.

They made their way toward each other. Mike's mind was buzzing. Amy Evans? The girl whom Dumbledore had told him about? The Heir of Slytherin? Dumbledore had told him to trust her and she would know what to do if the time should come when the Heirs of Hogwarts would have to unite. He had also been told that she was thirteen and in Gryffindor. Well, Gryffindors were fairly good people--at least, from what he knew. He also knew that Potter had not killed Mike's friend, Cedric Diggory.

Mike found himself facing a scrawny girl with matted black hair, a pale, dirty face and bright green eyes (hey, they look like Potter's). She was wearing dark green robes with a heavy, silver, serpent-shaped button in the form of an S at her collar.

Amy found herself looking at muscular (but filthy at the moment), fourth year boy with light brown, curly hair, and yellow robes on with a pewter badger's head at the collar. Her suspicions that all of the Heirs had had their school robes switched for the Robes of Hogwarts (a more fancy name for the origins of the school Quidditch robes) had evidently been true.

"Hello," she panted, "I'm Amy Evans. Who're you?"

Mike was sure that she already knew who he was, but thought it polite to ask.

"I'm Mike McKinnon--Heir of Hufflepuff," he said. "And you must the Heir of Slytherin."

Evan's looked down. "Yeah," she muttered. Her head shot up and she stared into his eyes. "But I'm not evil like my father or Salazar Slytherin was. I assume Professor Dumbledore told you who my father is?"

"Yep," said Mike, then, thinking that it would be nicer to say something else, he said, "He told the Heir of Ravenclaw too, but I don't know who that person is. I guess he told all of the Heirs to trust you, but didn't tell them about anyone but you. He sounded like he trusted you, Evans."

Evans seemed to glow with a new hope, but then it flickered and went out. "I think I should tell you," she said somberly, "that Dumbledore is dead."

Mike opened and closed his mouth a couple of times and then whispered, "How? Are you sure? When? Did you see it with your own two eyes?"

"I watched with some people from the Order of the Phoenix and Harry Potter and his friends," said Amy. "You know what the Order of the Phoenix is don't you?" Mike nodded numbly. It just couldn't be true. Evans' voice was trembling. "He was dueling with Voldemort in order to protect us and--and--"

Evans' voice broke and she looked down again, her eyes glistening with tears. Mike couldn't believe it. Dumbledore was dead. Was there any hope for them now? Evans seemed to regain control of herself.

"We can't give up," she said, her eyes gleaming again. "I know it sounds hopeless, but Dumbledore wouldn't have wanted us to give up."

"What do we need to do now?" asked Mike, fighting to keep his voice steady.

"I'm pretty sure that the whole world is being attacked by Voldemort," Amy said. "Don't ask me how but he mentioned this being the beginning of his siege of the whole world--I was a spy for Dumbledore--and he said that once Dumbledore is dead that he would have an easier time of destroying Hogwarts."

"How're we going to stop it?" Mike asked. He believed Evans' story whole-heartedly and he was terrified, but knew what he had to do.

"We need all of the Heirs of Hogwarts to kill Voldemort," said Evans. "I'll explain better when we reach the cave we've been staying in. It's such a long story that I can't tell you all of it now. Maybe if we get out of--when we get out of this forest, I will tell you." Amy couldn't allow herself to despair. "We've only got to find the Heir of Ravenclaw and then we will be ready to start our mission."

Mike had a hard time disagreeing with this kid. She seemed to speak the truth and could tell that she wouldn't give up.

"Right," he said. "Well, lets unite our rings and keep going. I think Ravenclaw's a girl."

Amy and Mike touched each other's ring with their own and there was blinding flash of light, along with sudden surge of overwhelming power that ruffled their hair as though it was wind.

"These rings haven't been reunited for nearly a thousand years," Amy said softly. "Did you feel the power in them?"

"Yeah," said Mike, shifting his shoulders, "it was creepy."

"We've creepier things yet to encounter," said Amy. Her face as oddly blocked. "Let's find the Heir of Ravenclaw as quickly as we can."

"Right," said Mike and he followed Amy as she went deeper into the dark.

* * *

"Jason!" cried Fred. "Get out of the way!"

Jason jumped aside as a large werewolf came bowling toward him. It skidded around for a new attack.

"Take our hands!" shouted Charlie as he and George reached out to pull up the tree they had scrambled up.

Jason, in his panic, had not gotten up the tree as quickly as the other, older boys. He reached up and was immediately pulled up the tree and out of harm's way.

"Thanks," he panted.

"How're there werewolves when it's not a full moon?" wondered Fred as he watched the werewolf circling the base of the tree and snarling up at them.

"You-Know-Who's got a spell on them," said Jason. "Amy mentioned it. She says that many of them are probably under the Imperious Curse."

"He's accomplishing his wish of terror, then," said Charlie with a grim smile.

"Yeah," said Jason gloomily. "I don't think we can get down for a while, you guys."

"S'pose not," said Fred, looking down at the prowling wolf thoughtfully.

"Wonder if this one's under the Imperious Curse," sad George.

"I think it is," said Charlie. "Look at his eyes."

"They don't need to be under the Imperious Curse," said Jason. "Werewolves loose their minds when they transform, so even if they're friends with someone, they'll attack, even if the human inside is screaming for them to stop, they can't do anything."

"How'd you learn this?" asked Fred.

"Read it," said Jason simply and he voiced a worry, "I hope the Ministry goes and looks for werewolves in the forest when this is over. Because they'll transform back into humans and I know You-Know-Who will have cursed them to make them weak--as humans I mean," he added hastily.

"Yeah," said George gloomily.

There was a loud shrieking a short way off.

"Joanne!" yelled Jason, Fred and George at the same time.

"The werewolf!" exclaimed Charlie. "What're you doing, you three?"

For Jason, Fred and George had just leapt from the tree and were running in the direction of the girl's screaming. Jason had no thought in his mind except to find and rescue his friend. Charlie jumped from the tree too and speed after them.

The werewolf was nowhere to be seen and all of them had a horrible feeling that Joanne was his next target. Jason crashed through the trees and brush with the Weasley twins and Charlie trailing behind. The screams stopped, but Jason remembered where they had come from. Dreadful pictures that explained why Joanne had stopped screaming played around his mind.

He stopped so suddenly that Fred and George ran into him and they all fell over. Joanne was in the center of the clearing, and the werewolf was advancing upon her. She held a stick in her hand like a baseball bat, ready to strike, but she seemed to know it was no good. Jason searched for a way to save his friend; he was running out of time. Picking a stone off the ground, he chucked it as hard as he could at the werewolf. The rock hit it on the side of the head. It froze.

Joanne looked up at him and let her mouth hang open. The wolf began to advance towards Jason, Fred, George and Charlie, abandoning Joanne. She didn't like this. She shouted and threw her stick at it.

"RUN!" she yelled at them. "GO!"

"We're not leaving you!" Jason called back.

Jason felt sure that the werewolf would kill them. He wanted to back away but his legs wouldn't obey him. Without warning, a ginger cat flew from a nearby tree and flung itself at the werewolf. The werewolf's head became a hissing, growling ball of fur.

"That's Crookshanks!" cried Fred suddenly. "Hermione's cat!"

Jason felt a rush of gratitude towards the vicious little feline, and swore that someday he would repay it. Joanne stumbled over the undergrowth to get at them.

"You idiot!" she shouted. "Why did you do that? You could have been killed!"

"You would have been," Fred pointed out.

"I--" Joanne scowled. She knew that what Jason had done was brave, but if he had been killed, she would rather it be were her than him. But she also knew that her friend would not accept that. "Yeah, well, thanks. Not that what you did wasn't stupid," she added hastily. "You just got lucky."

"Uh-huh," said Jason. "Listen, Joanne. I've got a lot to tell you."

"Shoot."

Jason took a deep breath, as did Fred, George and Charlie. They began to explain how Amy was the Heir of Slytherin, as was Harry of Gryffindor. They explained how Dumbledore had been killed and that they'd gone to the Valley of the Centaurs. Joanne's mouth fell open again by the time they'd finished.

"So Amy's Voldemort's daughter?" she said in an awed voice. "And Aria's alive? And--and--and Dumbledore is dead?"

They nodded mutely. Joanne stared at the ground, tears welling in her eyes, as she understood the fact that the wise, old headmaster was dead.

"Poor Amy," she said. "She must have been hiding it from us all year. She must have been so scared of what people would think." Her head snapped upward to glare at the twins. "You two didn't give her a hard time about it, did you?"

"Er . . . "

"I don't believe it!" cried Joanne. "After everyth--"

"We apologized, Joe," said Fred.

"She forgives us," said George.

"Yeah, no need to be sore," said Fred.

* * *

(six hours later)

Cho Chang fell hard on the ground.

"Ungh!" she cried out.

Almost immediately after she yelled, someone answered her. Oh no! The Death Eaters had heard her.

"Are you all right?" asked a brown-haired boy, emerging from the bushes.

Without answering, Cho asked, "Who are you? Where did you come from?"

"The name's David Fletcher," said the boy. "I was just--er--well, I was knocked out and I--er--just woke up a few minutes ago. I was trying to keep low-key, but then I saw you fall."

"Oh," said Cho. She was going to say something else, but then suddenly, another voice called out.

"Is that Cho Chang?" called a girl's voice.

"Depends who's looking," Cho called back. David's face seemed to lighten in the dark.

"I'm Amy Evans," called the girl. "We're sent by Dumbledore!"

"Amy?" David called.

"David?"

We? Cho wondered. But at the same time, she was filled with relief. At last, she'd found the Heir of Slytherin. As Cho struggled to get to her feet and David endeavored to help, a scrawny thirteen-year-old girl with green eyes and black hair came up to her. She was closely followed by a fourth year, Hufflepuff boy with brown curly hair. He was wearing yellow robes, while the girl was wearing green. Her shoulder was dark with what seemed to be blood. Evans and the boy helped Cho to her feet.

"I'm Amy," said Evans, extending her hand, "Heir of Slytherin." Her eyes fell on the blue robes that were draped around Cho's body. "And you must be Cho Chang--Heir of Ravenclaw?"

"Indeed," said Cho.

"And I'm Mike McKinnon," said the boy. "I'm the Heir of Hufflepuff."

"Nice to meet you," said Cho. They shook hands.

Suddenly, The Rings of Hufflepuff, Slytherin, and Ravenclaw burst into life. A brilliant light erupted from them and threw the three Heirs to the ground again. Cho needed help getting to her feet again.

"That--" said Amy, panting. "Is what happens when the Rings of the Heirs reunite."

No one responded to those words and Amy and David hugged for a long moment, whispering joyful words to each other.

"We need to get back to the cave that we're staying in," said Amy, breaking away from what was apparently her friend and looking at Cho. "And quickly. We're running out of time!"

They went back to wherever Amy had been staying as quickly as they possibly could. Cho found herself being led through thick brambles and shrubs. It was impossible not to make a lot of sound, but no one was pursuing them, so they needn't worry much. Cho didn't pay any attention to the scenery except to notice that it was very dark. She wondered how Harry would take the fact that he was the Heir of Gryffindor. She wondered how he would take the fact that she was the Heir of Ravenclaw. Last time she'd checked, he'd still had that childish crush on her.

As they reached a rocky landscape, a boy stuck his head out of a crevice in the rock.

"C'mon, Amy," he said. "You're the last one to come back."

"I'm coming, Harry," she said.

Harry? Cho thought. Now that she got closer, she couldn't miss the unruly black hair and round glasses. This was Potter, all right.

Amy led her tiny group into a cavernous cave and was immediately thrown to the ground by a force in the form a little redheaded girl.

"This is Aria," Amy explained from the floor, flat on her back with the child's arms fastened securely around her waist, "my little sister."

Amy managed to get her sister to release her, but was instantly seized around the neck. She hoisted the girl off the ground and walked over to where everyone was sitting.

"Okay, everyone," she said. "I have an idea." She smiled to herself. "Let's all sit in a circle."

Everyone sat in a circle without much complaint. Amy was happy to see many of the people and beamed at all of her friends, happy to know that they were all found and realizing how strange it was that none of them were in the camps.

"What's going on?" asked Hannah Abbott.

Amy sighed. She, with the help of others who had been with her, began to explain everything that had happened so far. Everyone appeared shocked when she told them all about Voldemort being her father, but almost all excepted the fact that she was for their side when she told them about how her father had tortured her. There were many tears (including Amy's) when it was made clear that Dumbledore was dead.

"He would have wanted us to go on, though," she insisted.

"How will we kill Voldemort, if Dumbledore can't?" asked Mundungus.

"There's a spell," explained Amy.

She began to retell the discovery of the spell and the swords. No one interrupted her and the other Heirs accepted what they had to do without complaint. Dumbledore had convinced them long ago. "But the Heirs of Hogwarts can't do this alone," she concluded. "Everyone here has been offered the kindness of this cave, and therefore, is obliged (though not forced) to help us in this last battle against Voldemort." She paused. "Now, who's going to help, us?"

Not one person could be found with his or her hand down, though Amy had hopped that maybe Diggory would give her a reason to chuck him out. But, unfortunately, he wanted to avenge his son.

"All right, then," said Amy. "I have a plan and a job for each of you. I came up with it a long time ago and I hope it ends up being successful. Plus, it's our only chance." Amy paused. "Okay. We'll need to have someone who will free the students that are in prisons. This won't be the easiest job. There is probably some of the most danger in this mission. Who's up for it?"

Taking a deep, steady breath and gritting his teeth, Draco raised his hand. They were going to need someone who knew Death Eaters. He eyed Mordicus, basically ordering him to do the same. Mordicus raised his had without hesitation, as though he'd merely been looking for a reason. Amy stared at her school-enemy with shock, but then, the only real enemy now, was Voldemort.

Ron and Jason gritted their teeth too, but lifted their hands into the air too. Derek decided to join his friend. Hannah was reluctant to let her brother go alone (or, without her), so, she did the same.

"Thank you," said Amy. "You guys--don't be afraid to use the weapons of the enemy, as they may be the only defense and tool you'll have. I'm sorry, but you'll have to play it by ear. The first camp is northeast of here, the second is northwest from there and then the third is northeast again from there."

The new group nodded silently. Amy began to look for groups again.

"The next mission," she said, "is that of alerting the magical community of our crisis. It is possible that Voldemort has already begun to attack the world, but it is still important that we get Aurors here. Now, who wants this one?"

Without a moment of reconsideration, Ginny, Joanne and David's hands shot like bullets into the air.

"That was quick," said Amy, a grin coming over her pale, tired and somber face. "This is a good group for this job. Now, what you'll have to do is get into Hogwarts, into the Owlery and send a letter to the Ministry. Send a letter to as many people as you can think of. Most important is the Ministry. Does anyone have any suggestions as to anyone else that they may want to contact?"

No one answered. Amy continued. "Make sure to get to Hogsmeade as well. They, too, have undoubtedly been attacked. Help in anyway you can. And--" Amy looked at Aria and Dobby. "I'm trusting you with Aria and Dobby. Dobby may be able to help in getting around the castle without being seen and I want Aria out of this forest as quickly as possible, and you guys are the ones who are staying out."

Amy's eyes were locked on Joanne and David's and they could almost hear her begging them to keep her sister safe. Her two friends nodded at her in agreement.

"The next job won't be so easy," Amy said, snapping back to the missions that she was assigning. It reminded her vaguely of Dumbledore. "I need some people to get inside Hogwarts and distract the Death Eaters by any means necessary. We need our castle back. It should be our haven, not theirs. Get them out if you can. You don't have to work with the other group going to Hogwarts, in fact; you should go first--right away actually. So, who wants this one? Just to remind you, there's only two more missions, and the last one is for only a few people."

Flitwick and Remus raised their hands willingly. Hermione was next, seeing that she had Lupin. Amy chose Diggory and Fudge to go too, seeing that they were hoping to stay behind. They got up and left at once. Amy thanked them as they headed out. Lupin gave Sirius a somber goodbye with his eyes as Hermione did the same to Harry and Ron.

The next mission, as Amy explained. Was to gather the students that had been freed by the first group. This group consisted of adults, this time. Arthur, Molly and Charlie Weasley, Mundungus Fletcher, and Moody volunteered. Amy made it clear that they needed to be gentle with the students. She had some doubt about Moody.

The next group was to stay behind and wait for the Heirs of Hogwarts to return. "They'll--we'll--need rest," Amy said. "And this cave will be the closest place."

As Snape, McGonagall, the Weasley Twins and Sirius were the only ones left, they needn't volunteer. It was, of course, fitting that Sirius stay and wait for his godson, but Amy secretly wished that Snape wasn't staying.

"There's one more thing that you should know," said Amy. "I should have told the others." She sighed. "When Voldemort dies, part of the Death Eaters dies too. Professor Snape and I know it, but none of the others do. They will likely pass out, or go into convulsions--actually, both. The ones who have more of Voldemort in them will probably die, but it all depends. I just thought that you should know that."

There was a ringing silence inside the cave and out. Snape and Amy were a lot braver than the others had thought. Amy stared around, deciding to move on.

"Does anyone else have anything to add?"

"I do," said Moody. "I have a spell that I want to teach."

The next hour or so was devoted to learning an old Auror spell that would blast objects into oblivion. It was extremely hard to perform, but many of them managed it soon enough. The group that contained Malfoy, Ron, Mordicus, Hannah, Derek and Jason left first. They'd decided to scatter the departures so that they would not attract a lot of attention.

Amy felt that, at last, she was doing something right. It was likely that many of these people would die, and probably because of her. But she knew that even more people were dying now--and would die--if they didn't try to stop it. She knew, now more than anything, what she was facing. Amy wondered what would become of the world after . . . well, she didn't think she would see it anyway.

Closing her eyes, Amy leaned against the wall. It's time, she told herself. It's my time.