AN: "The darkness of life's trials does not cease to fall but the light of my friends love makes it bearable" ~Ottery St. Thank you all ...

Two words failed us
and knowing how to forgive
how easy it would have been to say 'I'm sorry'

But we had more than enough pride
and we were missing humility
and I put so much effort in being the first to speak
that when one finally dares its too late now, its too late now Translated by me from a song by Alek Syntek

In the baggage compartment Maxie Zeus lay stuck inside of an open trunk, a girl’s sleeping gown on him all the luggage cluttered around him, but his trunk was safe, and what lay in it more so. The boss would not have liked it if the goods were damaged. Not that the boss would like what had happened on the train either.

Colin and Dennis Creevy helped some first years trapped in a compartment, while Cormac made sure that there were no girls hurt. Hannah Abbot went around asking for Ernie, while Pansy sat under the shade of a tree nursing Draco’s non-existent wounds. Everywhere wizards and witches from Saint Mungo's and Ministry authorities walked around surveying the damage apparating people to the hospital or into custody. The afternoon waned and the moon peaked in the sky before the sun set.

As Seamus held Ottery in his arms, Dean patted his back two dark robed men walked up to the trio.

“Ottery St. Catchpole?” one of the dark robed men asked.

“He’s not feeling well right now,” Dean said diplomatically.

“What do you want with him?” Seamus asked defensively. He held onto Ottery more tightly.

The dark haired boy looked up, knowing only too well he was in more trouble than ever.

“By order of the authority vested by the wizards and witches of Great Britain,” the first man began.

“You’re not--,” Dean started but already one of the aurors had an arm out holding the black boy back and his hands on his wand.

“We are placing you, Ottery St. Catchpole, under arrest and the authority of the Minister of Magic. You are to come with us to Azkaban until such a time as a trial can be …”

“The devil you’re taking him,” Seamus said standing up and in front of the dark haired boy.

Cormac could see something happening with Ottery and his fellow Gryffindors and he started over, as did Colin and Dennis Creevy. The raised voices, the commotion, and the tension erupting all around them attracted the attention of the other students. It was not long before they had a group of Gryffindors breathing down the auror’s backs.

“You can come with us the nice way or you and your friends can get hurt if you try to stop us,” The man threatened.

“Guys, calm down I’m sure there’s a mistake …” the dark haired boy started. “I’ll go and get this straightened out …”

“I’m sure there’s no mistake, Otts. You’re wanted in the murder of Alesia Deveraux, former Death Eater you cursed with an Imperius Spell. Her body was found two seconds ago floating down the Thames doubtlessly from when she went back to the Death Eaters headquarters and was met with more attackers than she could handle.”

The dark haired boy went pale.

In the midst of the crowd, Ottery could see Teddy standing, in one hand his wand in the other a pouch full of sticks of dynamite. The dark haired boy shook his head.

“Dangit Otts,” he shook his head as they took the dark haired boy's wand, and they cuffed him. “Make sure everyone is safe, Teddy,” he said. “I’m going to need a good lawyer … uhm, barrister so stay out of trouble.”

Night fell bringing with it a cold chill and leaving everyone with uncertainty as to the future.

♥

Oh dear! Poor Hannah Oh Draco! Get over yourself, and help your fellow Hogwartians! But, why? He didn't do anything wrong. What's wrong with those people?!?! OK, if this means she was a death eater, but converted over to the good guys, somebody didn't give Ottery the memo saying that. He looked into her eyes! She was a death eater still! There seriously needs to be an overthrow, or impeachment or something of most of the authorities in the Ministery of Magic! When will they start getting things right! Somone needs to sort out their priorities! Teddy is torn between what is right, and what he wants to do. And I can't blame him. And who's to say what's right or wrong anyway? Yes, and plus, we don't know what's happened to Harry and the others.
~Otts, it's good to see you, and your post was most excellent. Hope you can post another soon, when you can. Hope all is going better. Beautiful--- Forever and always Pals

I love the tone of this chapter Otts, it's spot on.

s galore lovely

YES! There's an awesome line



Aw, well, things have to get worse before they get better, right? Hope things work out Otter

We read completely different stuff I haven't really read much Clamp to be honest, but I'm definately going to get into it Bleach is my food right now


Did not see that one coming! Can't wait to see more o_O

Dear Readers,

I'm not dead yet. The intenet is down at my house and the library is too far away. No I haven't forgotten this story I hope neither have you.

all my love and wishes,

~Ottery St. "Running out of time at the library computer" Catchpole

EDIT: Readers,

Ottery is dead. From lack of interest in his story. I Teddy D. Bear will be ending this story with an apocalyptic ending wherein Ottery dies horribly trying to eat too much chocolate. That is all.

Bow down and Obey ME!,

~Teddy D.

Human Nature Book: VI
The train battle for Hogwarts (aftermath)
By Ottery St. Catchpole

The NEW & Vastly Improved Apocalyptic Uber Mensch totally manly and vastly less romantic violent and Capitalisticly greedy like Bankers and Wall St. Human Nature!


*Ottery walks in* WTF?!!!!!!!! NO! *takes his fic back*

Still Book II: A new beginning … or old friends meet new ends …

Chapter: The end of one era begins another … the non-train era :3


“Don’t think more of me, point and fire
Your heart I’ve broken, love, shoot me, fire
Don’t think more of me, don’t expect of me anything
Your heart I’ve broken, love, shoot me, fire here … here …”

Infinitely better by Laura Pausini, humbly translated by me

The world was spiraling out of control, Remus Lupin could see that from the headlines. He had been wise not to let the boy onto the train not with Bellatrix on the loose. She did not know about the boy and Remus would see to it that she never did. That however had not stopped the Death Eaters invading the Hogwarts Express or the attacks at the Ministry, the bombings and retaliations of the Death Eaters since the capture and betrayal of one of their own. London burned tonight. A direct consequence of Ottery’s use of the Imperius curse. The Daily Prophet had not specified who had done it but Remus had heard rumors.

Elsewhere Remus knew some of his students lay dead. The newspaper had not revealed names but there had been casualties. He could not think about whether or not he had taught them well enough their defensive tactics, poor blundering Neville came to mind or Ernie who always seemed to announce his moves.

“Is everything all right, Remus?” the boy asked.

“What? Oh, yes, Nicholas,” Remus replied, standing up from where he had been perched on the window sill watching the quiet countryside. He folded the newspaper in his hands, careful to cover the front page folded in.

“I’ve read the papers, when I went to get eggs in town,” the boy added. “Not that I needed to, it’s all everyone’s been talking about, magic folk and muggles.”

Remus looked at the boy. It was silly to try to protect them from every evil in the world, but it was an instinct that you simply could not bury. He spared a thought for Romulus and then didn’t bother with it anymore. Melancholy had its place but that place was not during a crisis. Melancholy was a luxury of sentiment for better times when one could lose oneself to introspection.

“We should have been on that train,” the boy said. “We could have helped.”

“We could have died,” Remus replied. “Or hadn’t you read the news? There were a lot of Death Eaters.”

“So, what? Hiding out is the best thing to do?”

“You’re my charge, and I’m going to protect you. That doesn’t mean that I don’t think a good sounding wouldn’t benefit you.”

“We could have helped!”

“You’re a liability. You’re not that well trained, and there were too many Death Eaters! What would two more people have done differently when even Sebastian’s people couldn’t help?”

“I don’t know! Something!”

Just then Tonks walked in carrying a sack of groceries, over the top of which peeked a loaf of French bread.

“Boys?”

♥

Hi ~Otts, great to see you! The paper should have read, "A direct consequence of children fighting a war, because the Ministry won't do it's job!" He would have been surprised at Neville though, he did really well. I love that line!

Nicholas reminds me a lot of Harry, in JK'S books, because he felt like he was always being protected, and while he was being protected, others was getting hurt, and dying. He wanted to help fight somehow, but was kept away. (Till he took matters into his own hands, with Ron, and Hermione's help, of course.)

Thanks for posting ~Otts, and thanks for rescuing your story from Teddy. (He should write his own story sometime.) I'm still loving your story. Hope things are getting better, and I'll catch ya later.

This is one of those lines that makes your breath catch in your chest...awesome!

I like. SOOO true

And yes, Otty... I've been watching this thread...I just didn't want to spam it up Glad you're back!

Human Nature Book: VI
Still Book II: A new beginning … or old friends meet new ends …

Chapter: The end of one era begins another … the non-train era :3

‘If you throw a stone something is going to shatter somewhere,’ so the song says. And indeed that is the case. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. It’s simple laws of physics, the physics of science and the physics of life. The Dark Lord had decided to attack the Hogwarts Express and now there were casualties, Ottery’s friends had been attacked and he had reacted rather badly by using an unforgivable. The person he had used it on had ended up murdered. Now the dark haired boy sat in a dirty, dank cell on an island in the middle of a stormy ocean alone and away from every comfort and friend known to him. Left alone to ponder his thoughts.

In all his years traversing the wizarding world and the globe Ottery had never had the distinct pleasure of visiting Azkaban. He had heard stories enough though and they had not lied nor had they come close to the true mark.

Even without the Dementors patrolling the dark isle the place was devoid of any humanity or kindness. The screams of ghosts echoed, the markings of desperate men littered the walls and cells of Azkaban.

“It isn’t the first time I’ve killed someone,” the boy whispered to no one. “You can’t judge me. I’ve been here before. I’ve done what I’ve had to do before and I will again.” A pause with no reply just the silent stone staring at him. He answered in a more quiet whisper, “I never meant for her to …”

There was the sound of a door opening, the creak of the large metal door down the hall, the one that seldom opened, except once a day when they fed the prisoners gruel and water or hard bread like stone and water. The steps of five people echoed down the hall.

Three of them were Azkaban guards.

The door to Ottery’s cell opened bringing with it the slightest sliver of light. The boy blinked.

“Oh, hello there minister,” the dark haired boy remarked.

The three guards all had their wands out pointing at the boy ready to kill him, in an ironic twist, the ministry had overturned the use of some unforgivables but only for use by their soldiers.

“I’m sure that won’t be necessary,” the minister said, dismissing the three Azkaban guards. As they stepped out, reluctantly, Ottery noticed that behind the minister one of the unspeakables stood clad all in navy blue and violet robes.

“Hello Ottery St. Catchpole or should I call you Ottley as Minerva used to call you?”

The dark haired boy hid his blush well. “Call me whatever you want as long as it isn’t insulting Minister.”

“Funny thing about you Ottery. It seems you’ve been around for a while in the wizarding world but records of you seem to simply not exist and the few I have found were buried under mounds of other useless mundane papers. Still, I’m a paranoid old man so I had everything turned and looked at. Meticulously.”

“And in times like this who can blame you, right? But that still doesn‘t explain why you‘ve taken to randomly accosting wizards and witches and subjecting them to truth serums and spell checks.”

“It must be easy to be one of the prattling cattle that doesn’t rule. You all seem to think that leadership is this candy coated pastry stick we all want to eat. Well it‘s not! With it comes the responsibility of leading the useless, the stubborn, the good and the evil, with it comes the charge of maintaining order and peace and with rabble rousers like you I can assure you it isn‘t as easy a job as you‘d like it to seem.”

“I wouldn’t know Minister, you see I’ve never been one of the bullying fascist ne’er do wells. I’ve never belonged to the oppressive ruling class.”

“I didn’t come here to trade insults boy,” the man said.

“Oh? I’d ask you what you did come here for then, but that would imply interest on my part.”

“You might not be very interested but I can assure you, I am. In knowing who you are, where your friend Teddy D. Bear has gone, and what your connections to Sebastian Shaw as well as Tom Riddle are.”

Ottery sat on the floor staring at them. The best lies are said to someone’s face when looking at their eyes.

“I haven’t the foggiest who any of those people …”

Before he had even finished the sentence Scrimgeour had dropped three photographs on the floor next to the boy.

The first one showed a very young Sebastian Shaw dressed in muggle clothes standing on Ottery’s shoulders, a group picture of a quidditch team at some indeterminate magical school; the second showed a group of well dressed boys at a table toasting, at the head of the table Tom Riddle, to his right a strange boy, and on his left Ottery; and the last picture at the bottom had a young handsome boy his arms draped over two other boy’s necks. They were standing in an airfield an airship taking off behind them, carriages and horses in the distance a photograph in black and white.

None of the images were moving.

“You’ve done a magnificent job of disguising, destroying and evading your presence in the magical world Mr. St. Catchpole. However, muggle means and muggle cameras are not new or rare in the wizarding world.

“That last one in particular is rather interesting … I had to ask around and look at old Hogwarts school yearbooks to find out who those two boys were. Albus Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald.”

Ottery said nothing.

“I find it particularly interesting how you manage to look the same age in all the pictures even though they’re all from different times.”

♥

Hello~Otts! I'm so glad you posted here. I've been wondering when you would be able to, and what your post would be. Things were looking awfully bad for Ottery. I've read your post and have to say it's the most incredible thing I've read of yours. In my opinion anyway. The first 4 paragraphs were supurb. You must save them and use them in a story you can get paid for. They were beyond brilliant! I love how Ottery is sitting there pondering the the reason he is there. He isn't making excuses or feeling sorry for himself. He is I think feeling remorse for the lives lost, his friends, the girl he used the unforgivable on for he wasn't expecting her to go to the lengths she went to to carry out his command.
So not fair! But, alas, that's the government for yuh. Who is he to call Ottery a rabble rouser and a prattling cow?!?!?!?! He thinks he's got everything figured out, yet he doesn't have his priorities figured out. The Ministry are the ones causing predjucies (sp?) and babbling like fools. Does he think Dumbledore an evil wizard? He better, well I'll stop there before I get in trouble with the Ministry myself. Well, Scrimgeour, What do you think? If you want to ride in a time machine just ask politely. Don't beat around the bush and be all rude about it. It might not turn out favorable for you.

Super great post Ottery! It was all brilliant! So very brilliant! Please post soon. I don't want the story to end though.

“On a midnight voyage/ one that has no ending and it’s sending me the things that I need/ far away from shore further than I’ve been before,/ but I feel the strength of the new seas”
Midnight voyage by The mamas and the papas

Teddy D. Bear was not accustomed to being followed, neither did he take kindly to it and he seriously contemplated ending the poor fool’s miserable existence on earth having realized that someone had the audacity to try to shadow him.

Still, something stayed his hand. He would not admit it to anyone, but he missed Ottery, and he missed Ottery telling him not to exaggerate and kill any one just because they annoyed him. Teddys sighed, took a cigar out of his jacket pocket and lit it as he walked.

He paused on a street corner. The situation merited some thought if he wasn’t going to go with his default action which was to pummel the problem until it gave him an answer, or a satisfactory sense resolution. Teddy hated thinking. He stared at the sky and thought, “Ottery you should kick yourself, you’re starting to stick on me.”

He knew it wouldn’t be the ministry, quite simply because he had contacts at the Ministry of Magic. The Death Eaters would not dare, because unlike Ottery he had no qualms about using unforgivables, Sebastian Shaw and he had nothing to do with one another so that was a less likely option, and Tiffany he had just come from seeing so it wasn’t her. Teddy did not know who could be following him, which piqued his curiosity.

There were two ways he could play this: 1) Teddy could disappear down some dark alley and aparate to a safe house, safely away from the culprit 2) Teddy could make like he disappeared and find out who was tailing him, then turn the tables on them by chasing them, 3) Teddy could disappear, find out through some third party who followed him, then proceed to maul them for doing it and if he could remember in the midst of his berserker rage he could torture them for the answers to the questions he knew he should be asking.

Three seemed like the best option so far.

Teddy walked down the street past happy couples, rowdy college kids, gentlemen, and tourists turning into a dark alley. The brown haired boy whispered a spell and melded into the shadows becoming one himself. It was dark magic and he knew that Ottery would not approve of him turning into a shade but it wasn’t as if he was kicking puppies or killing people, so whatever. Bleeding hearts stained shirts, as Teddy always said.

A grey haired figure, a boy from the look of him walked very silently into the alleyway. Teddy watched him for a few seconds, the boy moved with a feline grace, a fluidity of movement like something inhuman.

“Oh crap!” Teddy said aloud.

Angel had his wand out and pointing at the black smoke-like shadow that suddenly became Teddy D. Bear.

“Put that away before I shove it so far up your …”

“What the devil is your problem popping out on people like that? I could’ve hexed you.”

“I’m not afraid of bat bogeys little boy.”

“I was thinking more along the lines of an almighty wedgie and a stunning spell but I don’t feel like quibbling.”

“Kid you’ve got a serious death wish or you don’t have the sense God gave a mule if you think tailing me is a good idea,” Teddy threw back walking back into the street.

“As,” Angel whispered and followed after the acrid smell of burning cigar.

“I heard that!” Teddy exclaimed as he signaled for a muggle cab.

“I really don’t care!” Angel shot back. “Your ‘purported’ best friend gets arrested and here we are going on a week and you haven’t done a blanged thing. You haven’t even gone to visit him!”

Teddy turned on him blowing smoke in his face before replying in a deadly whisper, “In case you hadn’t noticed, the Ministry of Magic and I aren’t exactly on speaking terms, genius. I set one foot there and I’ll be doing them all a favor by walking into a trap!”

“All I know is that you say you’re Ottery’s friend. So why don’t you start acting like it.”

Teddy had his wand in his hand, at the boy’s throat and Angel against the wall in seconds, “Who the hel-”

“I wouldn’t if I were you,” Angel replied, pushing the point of his wand into the boy’s chest.

“I don’t need a heart to function!” Teddy replied, “But I’m betting you need a throat to whisper your pretty little spells.”

“Look if you can’t walk into Azkaban then why don’t you work with me?” Teddy gave the boy an odd look. “You don’t have to walk in the front door for you to get in. And they don’t need to know you’re there. Help me get him out. We can free him. If you’re as swift with a wand as you are with your threats … we could put together a crew and get him out.”

Later that night at one of Teddy’s safe houses Angel and he were going over a list of possible candidates, acquaintances in the underworld, former allies, enemies, spies, cutthroats, pirates, thieves, any one who could be called on for a favor, paid to help or who would willingly help in Ottery’s escape and didn’t mind bending or just outright breaking the rules.

“If you bring in Madison then you automatically bring in Freddie,” Teddy explained. “I don’t like Freddie. A stick in the mud, rule follower, the last thing I need is someone on me about whether or not I said please or thank you during a torture session.”

“The reason you don’t like him is because he’s always keeping you from pawing Madison I bet.”

The brown haired boy shrugged and did not argue.

“There’s also Cerberus and Athena St. Wisdom. We could call in Mouse and …”

“I know all of Ottery’s old crews, and his nemeses. We don’t have time to go around globetrotting trying to put this team together. Five of us. We’ve already got two. It’s a simple in and out job, incursion/extraction.”

“Cracking Azkaban isn’t going to be easy,” Angel argued.

“More than five people to a crew and it gets cumbersome. We’re not hitting three casinos or something, this isn’t Ocean’s Eleven. We’re hitting one place. A prison. We’re going to need an inside man, the getaway driver, someone to handle distractions, the muscle is me, you’re the extra and I was hoping Ottery would be the brains once we picked him up.”

“Oh, you’re a love. I‘m the extra he says. I‘m not the one who came up with the whole idea, noooooooo, I‘m the extra.”

“Baggage,” Teddy added and proceeded with his sketching of the Azkaban blue prints.

♥

Hi ~Otts, Hope you had a wonderful day yesterday! This is my second attempt to comment on this great post. The first one I spent so much time on it, and then I had to leace it for a minute, and when I came back to it, well, it was gone. So here I am again, only with half the enthusiasm. I would laugh but I'm a little afraid of Teddy at the moment. Maybe it isn't thinking that he dislikes. Maybe it's his conscience that he didn't know he had. I should have realized it was Angel. He was the one who saved him from RL's prison in China. But, I was thinking maybe it was Freddie tailing Teddy to get him to help him spring Ottery. But, how could he? He would then be caught and put in a cell there as well. Oh I love this! A plan coming together, but I don't see it as an in and out job. My picks would be Teddy, Angel, Freddie, Madison and The Great Ape. (Sorry, I forget his name.) I loved this part. I love the whole post ~Otts and thank you for your dedication. I hope all is well with you.

It was a castle on a dark cliffside where it stormed perpetually. The night brought with it a chill and dampness, the thunder and the lightning all the appropriate props were there to keep people away and disinterested in the tiny chalet precariously sitting on the leaning cliff‘s edge. Sebastian had picked his hideout exactly to keep out muggles and had placed it on the precarious perch overlooking windswept seas to keep wizards away as well. The only thing that attached the castle and the tiny cliff it sat on to the mainland was a thin bridge made of stone.

It was here that Dumbledore had come to see him to turn down his assistance and it was here that his knights now showed up.

“He’s gone too far!” Sebastian exclaimed. “Targeting the children. A more heinous crime … and they dare to call us the criminals.”

Spider fiddled with his glasses, his boots on the table, consciously aware that they were new boots and the table was older than all the present company. “I didn’t know Bellatrix was out of Azkaban.”

“You’ve been out of the country for a while now, Spider,” a girl’s voice exclaimed.

“Off with the cloak you,” Spider exclaimed.

The wall next to Sebastian shimmered and seemed to twist like the ruffles of a curtain as a cloak’s hood fell back and a young girl appeared.

“So that’s where you’ve been hiding Cassiopeia,” Spider remarked. He grinned at her.

“Cassie, if you please,” the young girl said. At fourteen she was the youngest of the knights but she was also one of the most dangerous which is why Sebastian had chosen her as a bodyguard. Sebastian had a soft spot in his heart for his youngest niece, and not just because she was his only other living relation. Playing his bodyguard was the safest place for Cassiopeia as far as Sebastian was concerned. There was so much he owed her. On occasion he would think back to how he had lost his wife and sister and her husband.

He missed his wife with the intensity of a burning sun, a longing as deep as the end of the universe, a pain that wracked his body physically as no pain ever could. His solitude, his pain had no release, no repose, and it was immeasurable. And Cassie represented the child his wife and he could have had, had their marriage not been so tragically cut short.

The doors of the room blew open suddenly with a gust of wind and a black charger stood on it’s hind legs kicking his front hooves in a battle stance. Riding the horse was a man clad all in black, his face hidden under the shadow of a black cloak, at his back an absurdly large broadsword. Behind him were a small horde of short gremlin like creatures, dark purple skins, with razor sharp claws, eyes like diamonds, and weird markings in red on their stomachs like grotesque tattoos.

“Cheshire is here,” Cassie remarked, “and so is Black,” she giggled as she mentioned the horse’s name, in eager anticipation of the opportunity to ride the wild stallion. The creature did not like anyone riding him, but Cassie secret was a cube or three of sugar to sweeten his disposition.

“Ever the dramatist, I see,” a little white kitten exclaimed from under the table.

“Binx, when did you get in?” Cassiopeia asked, turning in surprise.

“He came with me,” a deep voice, like the sound of the ocean currents deep in the sea replied. The griffin who spoke it stood by the fireplace. It was a long white creature, the body and hind legs of a white lion and the head, wings, and front feet of an eagle. Noble Wings the griffin.

“I’m glad to see you all here,” Sebastian began. “You will of course not mind stabling yourself Black, I hope. The castle room hardly seems like a fitting room, and take the minions with you if you please.”

The horse neighed in disgust and throwing his head back proceeded to turn angrily walking out. The man in black smacked his steed on the rump, “On with you nag, you know this isn’t a fit place for you,” he said playfully.

“We’re not all here yet, lord,” Spider replied.

“I know, but we’ve got to begin sometime. The others can be brought abreast of the issues later. We need to start devising counter insurgency plans. Hogwarts will likely be their next target or the ministry,” Sebastian began taking his seat at the head of the table.

“And heaven knows those poor fools are ill equipped to fend off any Death Eater attacks,” Cheshire remarked.

“This has been a war long before now, and it is time we stepped in an took a more active role seeing as Dumbledore’s Order is ill equipped to deal with this threat,” Sebastian continued. Secretly he wished that the old man had agreed to join them, it would make the whole war a lot easier going on them, the casualties would be high and that meant that his knights would be fighting against Dumbledore’s Order, the Ministry, the Death Eaters and any other rogue groups. But needs must.

“This is war,” Cheshire remarked.

:3

Hi ~Otts, You really outshine yourself, everytime you post! Once again your opening was nothing shorter than spectacular. I loved every word of it. Love this name! Made me cry! Loved this! Would love to be in that meeting. Nowhere close to Spider though. He gives me the heebie sheebies. Who are they waiting on? Gasp! I think I know! Thank you ~Otts, I'm humbled by your dedication. Great post ~Otts! I'll be waiting for your next post.

Well you can bump and grind
If it's good for your mind
Well you can twist and shout
Let it all hang out
But you won't fool the
Children of the revolution
No you won't fool the
Children of the revolution

Somehow or other the majority of the students had arrived at Hogwarts under heavily armed escort, except those that had not arrived at all. Despite all the violence there had not been that many deaths of students, likely thanks in part to all the training of past professors of Defense Against the Dark Arts. The first years had taken the most losses, being completely unversed in magic. Many parents had promptly arrived at Hogwarts and taken their children home, some students had stayed against their parents protests, still others left their children there in the vain hope that they would be safer away from all the violence in the wizarding world. There was much crying and fighting in the halls of Hogwarts those few first days. The tragedy of the day echoed through the days after for those who had made it back to Hogwarts as much as those who hadn‘t.

The second week of school proceeded as usual, though with a much more somber tone and the absence of the Headmaster. Students found it especially difficult to get back to the normalcy of their classes.

Before the first week was up Harry had already gotten detention with Professor Snape five times for tardiness and spacing out in the middle of class. Ronald Weasley was not at the school refusing to leave Hermione’s side at St. Mungo’s. She had fallen into a coma and there she lay still.

Luna Lovegood walked the halls of Hogwarts in a slight daze. Ginny walked alongside her neither of them talking their thoughts lost on different things. Dean and Seamus had taken to skiving classes to be together, knowing full well that the war could irreparably separate them at any moment. Neville and Trevor lost themselves in their Herbology studies, and Professor Dumbledore had left him some books on Alchemy he thought the boy should peruse. He had his arm in a sling, which made things difficult, and he could not bring himself to talk to Luna Lovegood, and he avoided Hannah too though she seemed very eager to speak to him. Ernie MacMillan’s death had shaken everyone in Hufflepuff much the way that Cedric’s death had.

All the houses had suffered loses, and the deceased were honorably housed by the sorting hat but that just lent a somberness to the everyday activities of life. Somehow Hogwarts would never be the same again.

“Voldemort has to die, Ginny. He has to pay for what he’s done,” Harry remarked quietly, with a coldness to his voice that broke her heart.

Ginevra Weasley sat on the comfortable Gryffindor Common Room couch where many times in the past she’d seen him, with Hermione and her brother Ron laughing, working on class work, playing chess but now they boy sat there alone, and he wanted to talk of death.

“Once I thought I couldn’t bring myself to think about killing him, about having to actually do it and then … well, not wanting to, but now … I mean he killed my parents, and Sirius, and these kids. They were just first years what the hel did they know about the war or their bloodlines or anything?!”

“Harry I’m sorry,” Ginny replied, holding his hand. What did you tell someone who suddenly found his purpose, and it wasn‘t a purpose you completely agreed or disagreed with?

“You’re not the only one who wants Voldemort dead, Potter,” a boy remarked standing behind him. “Whether you want to acknowledge that he was my father or not, Harry, I want revenge against him. I want him dead and buried, and with him all the evil he’s wrought.”

With a tiredness that seemed to contradict his years, Harry turned to look at the boy. Nicholas Black had dark black hair, and an uncanny resemblance to his godfather, that Harry never wanted to acknowledge. But politics and vengeance make for strange bedfellows.

“If you want him dead as much as I do, then I don’t care who you say you are, just that you’re willing to help me do it. Because no one is going to do it but me. He marked me as his enemy and I’m the one who has to do it. That’s not bragging, it’s not even something I have a choice in … it’s just … it’s just something I’ve got to do.”

Nicholas looked at the boy, standing behind him were a large group of Gryffindors who had come to hear what was being said, on their faces Ginny could see cold determination, a need for answers, a need for vengeance, a need to push the pain in their hearts onto the ones who had caused it, because there was no one there present who had not felt the attack personally or had not been wounded in some way by it.

“We’re all with you, Harry,” Colin Creevy replied.

Seamus and Dean nodded as well. Neville standing there with a plant in his hand whispered an ‘aye’ half heartedly but in his eyes was the resolve of someone who knows what he has to do.

“Fine, then we take the war to them!” Nicholas exclaimed.

Unbeknownst to Harry he would become his second in command and his closest ally in forming an army, in the absence of Ronald Weasley. For the red haired boy stood by a lonely window looking out at the dark city bright with artificial lights but not the smile of the girl he loved. He stared out at the city, but watched her through the windows reflection. Her parents would come and go but he would not let himself leave her side.

AN: Still dedicated to Connie, who has been here ... always.

I'm so bad! I've lost track of this because of my stupid back and a big scary needle *shudders*

I luff you otts!

Hello~Otts! I'm always so happy when you post to your stories. This was a very sad post, but what you said here was what made me the the saddest: To honor your last post when you post it, I'll say my good-byes now, and let your last post be the final word. As you surely know, I love this story, and of all of them I've read, this one is my favorite. I hate to see it end. So much more to be said, but I won't. On with this.

Everything has changed at Hogwarts, except this: What a jerk! Or maybe Snape knows things are coming to and end and just wants to spend quality time with Harry. This was good of Dumbledore. I hope we see more of Neville making use of it in the near futre. I wonder where Dumbledore is? I have my own theary. (of course)

I know how she feels.

We can only have hope for the future. ~Otts, I can't wait to read the next post. I know your next and last post will be above all else, brilliant. This stiory has been a blast, a trip, so many times funny, surprise, excitement, and sad, but mostly a pleasure to read. Good-bye to, "Human Nature".

AN: I'm having a seriously impossible time finding Chinese folktales ... like the story of Buddha's journey with the monkey and the pig ... seriously, it's only like the equivalent of Cinderella in the East but here? Nothing. Ditto with Water Margin, totally well known in the East and completely obscure (except on Wiki which doesn't help) in the West. *sighs* How does one do research on this stupid thing called internetz? Tomorrow I'm just asking the librarian ... good old books any day thank you very much. On that note and love I leave you ♥

This chapter I dedicate to Rupert ... cuz he's soooooooooo bloody cute. Even now. ♥ And Ottery's Angels wherever the four winds scattered you ... you were all the best readers ever.


“Now I've got one less egg to fry ... one less bell to answer
One less egg to fry ... Oh, why, why did he leave
And all I do is cry
One less bell to answer ... Because a man told me goodbye
Oh, why, why did he leave?”
~5th dimension

Towards the end of any great campaign a general finds himself wondering, pondering the possibility of failure whatever his previous successes, likewise and on the opposite face of the coin a general on the verge of a major defeat loses himself in thought at the unique possibility of an ironic victory that would lay his enemies at his feet. Thus and like neither Ottery St. Catchpole paced the small confines of his Azkaban cell. A small terse room hewn out of rock, an empty cube built to house a soul.

“You pace like one whose done this before,” a grating voice susurred in the quiet night.

“What? Thinking?” the boy said self-deprecatingly.

“You’re a funny one aren’t you? I meant the pacing,” the dark voice replied.

Still the dark haired boy did not raise his head. His eyes stared only at the dirty dusty floor. He gave in to his curiosity and looked up. Ottery’s cell sat in the highest reaches of Azkaban, he well knew because the sound of the ocean outside lulled him to sleep each night, the gulls crying out marked the hours of the day, he could almost smell the salt air but knew he couldn’t nor could he see it because of the enchantments on the room. It was one of the ways that the Dementors tortured their prisoners.

On looking up the boy smiled. He closed his eyes and finally smelled the salt sea air wafting in from the newly made window, a window with bars. The boy stared past the crow and the bars at the stormy sky behind them. He could hear the sound of thunder in the distance.

“They’re moving you tonight, you know?” the crow asked.

“I didn’t expect my execution would come so soon,” the boy sighed. The new ministry was running things differently now.

“You should be so lucky boy. You’re a valuable little pawn to them alive,” the creature replied.

“A pawn? You mean a knight or at least a queen,” the boy answered back annoyed.

“Think highly of yourself do you, Ottery St. Catchpole?”

“Well somebody has to,” the boy answered with his usual mischievous grin. “So which one are you? One of Sebastian’s or has the Dark Lord finally realized how dangerous I am to him? Because you’re not Dumbledore. He isn’t an animagus. So … are you one of Valerian’s boys? The Coven Darque, who sent you?”

“A werewolf clan.”

“But you’re a crow,” the boy complained.

“What? I can’t be a crow and an animagus at the same time?”

“And you’re a wizard?!” Ottery remarked.

“Well you’re swift aren’t you. Anyways, the reason I’m here is because they’ve put a hit out on you, Ottery. The wolf pack of San Gilman want you dead.”

With those words the bird flew at the boy pecking at his face, the dark haired boy just had time to cover his head with his arms. Ottery grabbed the crow in his hands and holding its neck in one hand chocked it slowly while it still writhed and tried to peck him.

“Pity it takes more than a little bird to kill me. Care to try it in your wolf form?!” the boy exclaimed angrily. “You could have ruined really nice robes.”

“Stupid boy … my beak is laced with poison. I may die but you go with me, mudblood.”

“You’re really sick, you know that? There’s nothing I hate more than a zealot. And I‘m pureblooded for your information,” And with that the boy threw the bird against the wall. “Go on. If you’re going to die at least go spend your last hours with your family.” The crow watched him through slit eyes, wary and unwavering. The dark haired boy lay down on his hay mat and sighed before he fell asleep, muttering, “Oh great, my assassin is a bird. They send someone to kill me and it’s big bird. Teddy’s never going to let me live this down.”



After much deliberation and arguments, not a few fights, and hexes fired at one another and some talk over drinks the boys, Teddy and Angel decided that the team to rescue Ottery was going to consist of five members, the sixth volunteered on her own, against both their vehement wishes.

As they stood around the zeppelin in the empty airfield the figures there each looked at one another assessing their teammates on Ottery‘s rescue.

“Look, we know we all don’t know each other,” Angel said, “But we’ve got Ottery in common. He’s a friend and he needs us right now. He’s been unjustly incarcerated and it’s our job to get him out.”

Tiffany sighed, “You know, he’s got lawyers, right? Wolfram and Hart. It‘s not too late to stop these asinine shenanigans,” she remarked with a level headedness that took the boys by surprise.

“Yeah, cuz lawyers aren’t just different kinds of sharks,” Teddy grumbled as he loaded boxes of explosives onto the airship‘s hold.

The boy standing next to him held on to his spear, for all the world like he was leaning on it bored, but Cerberus was the one most ready for an attack. He didn’t speak. The sword at his side, and his apparently laid back manner would have been warning enough for anyone. The truth though was that he was ready to pounce, duck or dodge at a moments notice. Diego Cerberus was a bodyguard and the most dangerous individual there, the only one who could go toe to toe with Teddy D. Bear and one of Ottery’s staunchest allies and closest friends.

“You guys don’t think the dragon was a bit of overkill?!” Madison exclaimed.

Freddie sighed, “Where Teddy’s concerned we should consider this an understated ploy.”

Tiffany laughed at that in agreement. Freddie smiled back at her and Teddy grumbled from where he was walking out of the airship’s hold and Madison glowered silently.

On the other side of the air field the giant red beast flapped it’s wings and snapped at nothing then turned it’s attentions back to the haunch of cattle that were its meal.

“Are you sure you can keep that thing under control?” Madison asked Teddy a little worriedly.

“Of course, I can,” the boy replied. “Hey Drax, what’s up boy?” he asked walking over to the beast. The dragon for his part ignored him. As Teddy approached he yelled, “I’m talking to you you big brute!” The change in tone caught the dragon’s attention and it turned on the brown haired boy and spewed fire at him. Teddy had a shield up just before it struck him.

“Okay, I don’t see this happening,” Madison remarked.

“I’ve got him under control,” Teddy remarked.

Silent as the night Diego walked out of the group and past Teddy spear in hand. He stayed clear from the flames but he walked towards the dragon.

“Hey, what do you think you’re doing?” Freddie asked. Madison held him back. “You can’t love, I won’t let you,” she said. “But he’s going straight at the dragon and he’s … that boy’s crazy.”

Tiffany merely watched.

Diego Cerberus stood and waited for the dragon to turn it’s attentions from Teddy to him, and when the great beast turned to him to snap at him the boy caught the dragon’s eyes with his own. The dragon was angry and it reared its head back as if to fire at the boy but Diego would not look away. Teddy took out a cigar and placed the end on the melting tarmac. The dragon’s blazing fire had melted part of the runway. His cigar lit.

Drax looked at the boy angrily, but still Diego held it’s gaze. Then slowly and carefully he laid down his spear in front of the great beast only then his gaze leaving the beast, which left the boy at his most vulnerable as the dragon could snap him in two or fire off another fireball.

The great red beast snarled and nodded. It was then the boy smiled in the barest possible way. A thin line across his beautiful brown face. He shook his head. Diego’s sword never left his side. The dragon snorted, turned away and blew smoke rings deliberating. The dark haired, brown skinned boy merely stood there waiting patiently. Drax bowed his head and nuzzled the boy with his maw and Diego laughed. Blood smeared over the boy’s clothes but Diego Cerberus did not seem to mind he turned and pet the dragon’s large hot nose.

“Well that’s one way to tame a dragon,” Freddie said.

“If you want to do it the easy way,” Teddy grumbled as he walked past.

Madison stared at the boy in awe. Tiffany watched him warily. Something within her did not trust the boy, never had, nor would it ever trust Xerxes and his soldiers. But if Teddy were going to commit the most idiotic crime of the century and likely botch it since Ottery would be involved as well, she knew that his presence would likely help to get them all out alive.



In a hospital ward of St. Mungo’s lying asleep on her bed a frizzy haired girl mumbled something in her sleep, “Ron … Ronald, where are you? Its … you … I love …”

Her words echoed in an empty room, save the figure of Mrs. Weasley asleep on a chair across from her. The boy had gone home after standing vigil for two weeks straight. It had not been easy and it had involved Fred and George, Bill and Fleur forcing him to leave, but he was on the verge of collapse.

Hermione smiled in her slumber but sleep’s grip would not release her from her comma. Her hand reflexively closed around a piece of parchment on which the following was written:

Love Is In The Air

Love is not caught with hook or snair,
As it glides gently in the air.
If you grab and take by force,
It will rip and tear of course.
If you want true love, be smart,
Open up your lonely heart.
When the one whose meant for you,
Stops and hears your longing coo,
This will unlock that heart, you'll see,
Come in, come in, it's only plea,
I only beat for me and thee.
Love is free for all to pair,
As it glides gently in the air.

It was a poem that Ron had found on the Hogwarts Express the day they had been attacked. The tiny burnt shriveled piece of paper had caught his eye and it had been the only thing he’d picked up before he’d taken Hermione in his arms and taken her to the healers. He had placed it in her hands … an unspoken promise that he would come back again.

End Book One

The poem was by one of my readers, not me, I don't take credit and I found the story by the Chinese author for Water Margin yay, on Gutenberg. Only problem is that it's in Chinese

Oh, yeah. Read all my other stuff on SS too, it's Awesome!

Love's Whimsical Melancholy
The Love Parade
The Autobiography
The Strawberry Summer
My Girlfriends Story
Have no clue Mars Attacks!
Madcap Romance
Saturday Night's All right
Royal Drabbles
Three's Company

*Walks in coughing* It's still a bit dusty from all the construction or destruction depending on the chapter in this fic Thank you Droo for posting my poll, I was starting to hate that thing people stopped voting after a while and it became an albatross around my neck honestly Thank you all for reading this fic and anything else I've written. You all pwn. I love my readers past and present and future and that poem in the last post was by Connie so there go see her fic for more of her writing. I had the distinguished pleasure of the company of her fic and a few others like Dean Thomas, who are far better writers than I. It's been a pleasure kids ... all these years. It'll be six in July fancy that *ahem* it's something in my eyes.

SS rules 4ever! Especially the fanfic section!!!!!!!!!1111