AN It's always darkest before the dawn....and we're at about midnight right now. It's just
getting started
Chapter 15: Love Before Duty.
********************Azkaban Fortress, North Sea************************
October 11, 2012
11:00 am
A pair of raven-haired, emerald-eyed children glared in unison as they rose and regarded the pair of Death Eaters standing post outside of a large cell containing them, Harriet, Elliot, Abigail and Xander. The Death Eaters looked at them, and unconsciously backed away. They wouldn't dare leave their posts, but they didn't have to stand close. Originally Malfoy had ordered a Dementor to stand guard, but it had left rather abruptly after looking at Emilia. Ever since, human Death Eaters had been the only ones to stand guard.
With an expression that eerily mirrored her mother's annoyed one, Emilia spun back to the rest of the children, while Horatio contented himself with glowering at the Death Eaters. He glanced back at Em, and she nodded silently. Emilia curled up next to Harriet and closed her eyes, and after another minute or two Horry joined them. The twins had not slept since their abductions and the exhaustion was catching up.
Just as their eyes closed, the door creaked open, and a party lead by a tall, cloaked and hooded man entered. Trailing him, a tall, severe-looking blond woman and another tall, dark-haired man walked arrogantly towards the children.
With the sudden, strident warning call of an almost genetic level instinct, Emilia and Horatio's eyes snapped open and a shimmering field snapped in place between them and the rest of the children and the newcomers. Lucius laughed darkly as he raised a hand and gestured, to no effect. A slight growling noise came from deep in his throat as his eyes glowed bright, blood red. He gestured again, and for the briefest of instants the twins' eyes flickered blue before the shield collapsed with a loud snap. Lucius laughed and gestured, freezing the children.
He looked back as Bariss wheeled in a cart with several beakers of a lightly smoking, crystal clear, wine-red potion. Alongside of the potions on a cloth-covered tray, several syringes glinted dully in the torchlight. Lucius turned to his minion as Xavier and Narcissa looked on interestedly. "Bariss, I think we should start with the Mudblood's leavings. He nodded as he carefully filled a syringe from a beaker, tapped out the air, and spurted a bit from the tip.
The twins' eyes grew huge as they fought their silent bonds.
****************************Hogwarts**********************************
An impromptu council of war had convened at the ancient castle. As the news of the fall of the Ministry spread, more and more had appeared asking for sanctuary. In London and several other towns, already a hidden darkness was spreading. Muggles were already vanishing inexplicitly, at least to the Muggles. Reports of werewolves raiding Muggle and Wizarding homes were trickling in, and more than one had been found soulless and empty, victim of unchecked Dementor attacks. The few Aurors that were in the field, who had not escaped to Hogwarts had quickly been captured or vanquished.
Whitehall Air Base was a ghost town, a few survivors who had escaped had told of dark, cloaked figures attacking in an endless tide as they emerged from a floating, silver portal. They had related how, even though one, ten, a hundred, would be taken down by the machine guns and explosives of the guards, ten more would take each's place. Hereford Army Base had fallen as well, but not before the retreating SAS teams had taken a terrible toll on the odd figures. And of course the fact that the Regimental Master Sergeant had attended Hogwarts in another life hadn't hurt.
In the midst of the chaos in the Great Hall, as displaced wizarding politicians yelled and screamed back and forth at each other, and various house elves popped here and fro distributing drinks and food, Harry Potter sat silently on the edge of the raised stage that usually housed the teachers' table. He slowly raised his eyes from his hands and slowly panned his hard emerald eyes over the bickering crowd. It's amazing...of all of the people I could use here right now; the bloody politicians are the ones who escaped. Where the hell are the Aurors, the Unspeakables...hell Hagrid. God I could use Hagrid here, I wish we knew what happened to him. And these dumbarses are screaming because they can't go to their cushy jobs in the bloody Ministry. He rolled his eyes for a second before glancing out over the crowd in hopes that Dumbledore had appeared, but as had been the case for the last several days, no one could find him. Harry watched, with a feeling of utter contempt as Warlock Springbolt was arguing with Arthur over some piddly little matter.
Harry watched as Springbolt snarled a bitter retort as Arthur who hadn't slept in almost two days, who had watched the fall of his Ministry, who had been forced to abandon a friend of almost forty years to the lethal pit of duty and who had come home to find that his grandchildren were in the hands of the enemy, barely kept from punching the man. After another instant, with a harsh, sharp gesture the room became silent. There were still lips moving for a good minute, but it was silent. Harry slowly stood and glared down at the assembled crowd. He could see a few grim smiles on the faces of the few agents and Aurors in the crowd as he took a breath. "Listen you bloody pounces." His words were not shouted, but they carried as if he was whispering in every ear. "I do not have time for this shit." He flicked his fingers and the silencing spell fell away.
Springbolt spun on him, "Now listen Potter..." he shut up as Harry turned in his direction, a harsh blue glow lighting his eyes and a curious energy crackling about his figure.
"No you listen Springbolt, you are part of this mess, and maybe if HALF THE FUCKING AURORS in England hadn't been looking for one of my agents then Malfoy wouldn't have been able to walk into an undefended Ministry." He sighed heavily, "I have discussed the situation with Minister Weasley and he agrees that for the time being that the majority of you should go to ground. Hide."
"What about us?" Samson Kingsley yelled from the back of the room, where a few Aurors who had been reluctantly on field assignments looking for Draco and thereby escaped the sacking of the Ministry and the reported assassinations of Aurors in the streets had congregated.
"You know the protocol Samson."
"Why can't we stay here?" Yelled an anonymous voice in the crowd.
"This is the first place that will be targeted." Harry responded with a bare trace of patience. He jumped down off the stage and headed out of the room without pausing.
Bare minutes later, he found himself walking the seventh floor corridor on the way to the Room of Requirement. While he could have used the SG-1 facilities far below, somehow this seemed much more suitable. His head down, he walked into the room, not even slowing as the door opened and closed for him. He barely noticed the room had oriented itself into a replica of the Gryffindor common room. He missed the ragged couches and the tattered chairs as he sat mutely next to Hermione. She slumped onto his shoulder and grasped his arm. Across from them on another couch Ron glanced at him and nodded while Luna looked off into the distance, not seeing anything in this room. Tonks was pacing, occasionally tipping over her own feet as she ran her fingers through lank, black hair until Lupin stopped her pacing by the simple expedient of hugging her so tight she couldn't move.
Finally Harry broke the silence. "What do we know? How bad is it."
Sirius glanced around before replying, "Bad...real bad. He's already begun moving in on the Muggle government too Harry. From the descriptions we got, at least a thousand X'Sheen overran Whitehall and Hereford, and very possibly three or four times that many. It seems that a Sergeant Major Paxton was an old friend of Dumbledore's. He was there when Dumbledore inserted into Berlin to go after Grindlewald...he's a bit older than the Muggles realize. He confirmed that it was X'Sheen that took that base, though they paid for it. Seems that explosives do a job on them, as well as large caliber projectiles. But he also confirmed that at least a thousand attacked there and probably more."
"Where are the kids Sirius?" Hermione whispered.
But Luna answered, "he has them at Azkaban. I will see Lucius die someday for this." She added almost contemplatively. Luna stood and looked off to the Northeast, as her eyes lit with an internal golden light. "He has everything there right now, he's waiting for us, and I can sense both anti-apparition wards and anti-portkey fields the likes of which I've never felt, not even here. I see at least twenty dragons, and fields of X'Sheen... oh and that's just what's outside, I can't SEE into the fortress... And I'm going to pass out now." Luna was true to her words as in her next breath, she collapsed bonelessly, her eyes slipping closed. Ron barely caught her and carried her back over to the couch.
"She's drained Harry." Ron commented softly, "How are we getting them back Harry?"
"How the fuck should I know Ron." Harry snapped, "I'm not Dumbledore." He took a breath as he watched his brother flinch and felt Hermione shudder next to him. "Sorry Ron." Ron shrugged it off. "I don't know. Hermione and I could maybe...maybe force the wards, especially if we had time or the element of surprise, I can't imagine that they could keep the transportation wards up that strong all the time, and if we could force them to guard from physical attack, it would be easy to penetrate them. But if they are as strong as Luna says, even if we could force them neither one of us could fight when we got there. If Dumbledore was here..." he shrugged. "Brooms are out too, even I can't outfly that many Dragons on a broom, and a boat's just suicide."
Hermione stood, as her eyes relit and ran her fingers inattentively through her hair. She bit her lip absently as she spun around and looked at him. "Not on a normal broom, no. We can though Harry. The twins told me just Monday that all of the weapons were fitted and ready to go."
Harry stood wand walked over to her. "Are you sure?" He asked in a bare whisper. She nodded and a second later, he did too. "Fine then." He looked at the rest of them. Sirius Cordy, you don't have to..."
"Are you bloody insane Harry -- of course we are coming," the Marauder shot back almost indignantly, and as one, the rest of the family who didn't have kids in the fight nodded.
"Ok then. Here's the plan such as it is. Arthur, you stay here with Molly, Ginny and Neville, Alicia and Angelina you too." Fred and George's wives nodded, they weren't exact really suitable for a fight as they were both around six months pregnant with their second child each. Arthur if Dumbledore makes it back." He nodded, "coordinate with Minerva to evacuate this place. We don't have the forces to take on Malfoy's. We are going to get the kids out. We can kill him later. Hermione and I will take the Lily and knock a hole in the Dragons. The rest of you follow on brooms. We get the kids and get out. That's it. We go as soon as we are ready. Go take a nap, I mean it even if Poppy has to knock you out, you'll need it." He waved and without another word the rest of them filed out. Ron squeezed Harry's shoulder for an instant as he led a hovering, sleeping Luna out at the tip of his wand.
As the door eased closed on the last of them, Hermione turned to him, and buried her face in his shoulder. Tears that she had been afraid to show to anyone else bloomed as Harry stroked her hair silently; there was really nothing he could say now. The lives of their children were suddenly contingent on the role of the astral dice. No Felix Felices potion, no magical object was able to help. It was just their skills and powers and the slim hope that that would be enough to get the kids out alive.
**********************Azkaban, North Sea******************************
8:15 pm
"Is everything ready Xavier?" Lucius asked as the sun set over the battlements of the dark stone fortress. Far below him, in the shadows of the tall, thick walls, hundreds, possibly thousands of X'Sheen mulled about. Half a dozen large mountain trolls, pulled on the chain of a reluctant Hungarian Horntail, while above his head at least twenty large winged shapes wheeled through the sky. At least a hundred Death Eaters lined the walls, looking out to sea as they waited for something to happen.
"Aye my Lord," Hamilton answered with a cruel half smile. He gave a small shrug, "I still think it would be better however if I was allowed to make an example. Perhaps if I were to send an arm from the spy's child."
Lucius smiled and shook his head tolerantly, as if regarding a small child who was selfish with his toys. "Nothing as pedestrian as that will be necessary Xavier. They will be here tonight. Potter can't resist playing the hero. And what better bait, hmmm?"
"But sire, how will they know where..."
"They already do. It was our former master's mistake to underestimate Potter and his friends, but this time it is them who will underestimate us. Their ancient protector is gone and they are coming to us this time." Lucius turned to walk to the stairs leading down. "Make sure that they reach my throne room...but don't make it too easy." Xavier nodded with an air of awe of the new Dark Lord as Lucius chuckled to himself and opened the door of the turret. His glowing red eyes lit the narrow passage the color of blood as he headed for the interior of the castle.
*********************Near Inverness, Northern Scotland*******************
10:17 pm
A hovering red-light orb cast the abandoned aircraft hanger on the outskirts of the old seaport town into stripes of pale pink light and deep shadows. In the exact center of the cavernous space, a large, sleek black shape perched on its landing feet, ready to spring into flight. Around and under it, Fred and George were crawling, waving wands and muttering notes to enchanted clipboards that were following them around. George tapped the belly of the beast and a pair of doors slid shut, hiding a rotary spindle filled with fifteen, slivery-white sticks. Fred walked to the front of the ship and pulled covers from a pair of wand-like antenna in the nose and a hollow right behind the cockpit that through which the top three barrels of an enchanted Gatling could be seen.
Harry nodded to them as he sat on the edge of the stubby port wing and looked out over his gathered family and friends. "Listen, this is when I normally try to get some or all of you to stay back to protect yourselves. I don't really it will work this time will it?" A sort of dark, forced chuckle answered his words. "I just want to say...thanks..."
"Yeah, thanks." Hermione repeated as she hoped out of the cockpit, paced lightly down the edge of the wing and dropped next to Harry. "We appreciate it."
"It's our kids too," Ron reminded them grimly. He glanced down to check that his wand was still secure in the thigh holster he had strapped on and that the falchion that he had taken at Hogwarts was still secure on his back. He crossed to Harry and held out a hand Spartan style. As Harry took it, Ron leaned in close, so only Harry and Hermione could hear. "Whatever it takes, you know that, just promise me one thing."
"Yeah." Hermione whispered.
"When we get the kids back and safe...we end it, every damn one of the wankers." He whispered hotly. His blue eyes glittered dangerously as he looked back and forth between then. "No matter what Dumbledore says about trials and fairness and whatever other codswallop, we end it."
Hermione leaned forward and placed her small hand on top of Harry and Ron's, "no matter what, he's crossed the pale this time big brother." She muttered as she noticed out of the corner of her eye Sirius and Lupin looking at the trio oddly.
Harry nodded, "there's nowhere on Earth, not this time."
Raising his voice, Harry gestured towards the center of the room with his wand. Muttering an incantation under his breath, a large map of the North Sea, with the Northeast corner of Scotland peaking in at the bottom left, appeared floating in midair. He flicked it again and the image zoomed in on a large, irregular island in the middle of the North Sea. It was flashing, pulsing slowly yellow. "You all know the where we are going, but we are going to go over it again."
Hermione pointed her wand at the island. A thin red beam shot out of the tip and she used it as a pointer. "Azkaban Fortress. Located approximately 150 miles or 241 klicks northeast off the coast of Scotland. It is, of course, unplottable to Muggles and highly secret, except that everyone knows where it is. " She announced flatly. "Used since 1475, or the end of the seventh Goblin Rebellion, as a prison for various wizards and witches by the British Ministry. Innocent or not." She added almost absently as Sirius caught her eye. The image zoomed out slightly. Four tiny dots appeared surrounding the island. "These four outlining islands act as a outer line of defense. They were created early last century to add an additional barrier to the island's defenses." She flicked her wand again and the map zoomed out again to once again show the coast of Scotland at one corner with Azkaban at the opposite. A new blip pulsed yellow about 2/3rds of the way to the Prison. "St. Christopher's Rock. I think you are familiar with this island Sirius?"
"Yeah I swam to that island in dog form and stowed away on a boat back to the mainland." He replied slightly thoughtfully as he remembered a long ago stormy night.
"Indeed." She responded softly. Small blue icons representing the Lily and several normal brooms appeared on the cost. "At 2345 hrs, Harry and I will depart in the Lily in echelon with the rest of you on brooms. At the maximum controllable cruising speed for most riders on your Firebolts, 200 mph, it will take approximately 36 minutes from launch to the edge of the island. Putting us here at St. Christopher's Island at 0021 hrs. This is important, as this island is exactly on the edge of the zone at which they can detect us approaching, or rather that they pay attention to. Since it is a Muggle fishing and supply hub for the nearby oil rigs, they ignore anything further out as the traffic is rather heavy."
"Here's the fun part." Harry put in. "As soon as we reach the island, I will put the Lily on the deck and floor it. At mach three, we will cross the gap in about a minute. It's our job to clear the skies, you follow as soon as you can.
"That will leave you two alone for almost nine minutes Harry." Sirius objected. He stood and walked into the projection. "Why don't we start off earlier while you loiter and then run in?"
"Can't Padfoot." Hermione replied quickly, "Honestly...this is the best chance, if we can hit them before they are ready. Just don't be late ok?"
************************Hogwarts*****************************
August 11, 2012
11:59 pm
Molly Weasley sat heavily, her hands in her lap, as she watched Ginny sleeping. A set of knitting needles flashed in the dim gas lamps lighting the infirmary as they worked on some jumper or hat or something, anything to keep busy. Ever since she had been freed from the Petrifaction Hex at the Burrow, she had not really said much. After since Harry and Hermione had forced themselves back into action and sent everyone to relative safety at Hogwarts, she had been sitting here.
Arthur had just left, with Dobby in tow carrying the uneaten remnants of her dinner. Yes, her precious youngest daughter had been rescued, but at such a price that even now, hours later, she almost could not stand it. Her thoughts kept flashing back barely a day, when she had convinced Harry and Hermione that she could take care of the kids. She had always known and accepted that she wasn't really a fighter. She had done so in the dark days of Voldemort, of course, but that was more because of her innate stubbornness really. If she had let her boys join when they had first asked instead of making each fight her in turn as they came of age she wouldn't have had to fight even then. Intellectually she knew that she couldn't have stopped Xavier and his men, especially not when the entire security detail had died trying to do so, but even so her heart still burned.
With a slightly tremulous expression, she reached forward to gently brush a lock of Ginny's hair away from her face. Her once vibrant red hair hung lank and flat. A large chunk was torn out over one ear. A bandage covered one cheek, with others covering her legs, left arm and one, she knew covering her side under the scrubs Pomfrey had placed her into after a hurried examination. There were other injuries that Molly only feared about, and that Poppy had refused to either confirm or deny. The lingering effects of the Cruciatus and the Flagellation curse were terribly familiar to Molly from the last war though.
Next to Ginny, with his bed scooted up to abut hers; Neville was laying heavily on his mattress. Both he and Ginny were hooked to several IVs, one with the age-old glucose solution common to Muggle and Wizarding medical care alike, and the other with an thick-looking dark purple potion that Madame Pomfrey had developed in the last few years, and that would probably eventually earn her an Order of Merlin for magical achievement, that cut short the after effects of the Cruciatus. Neither of the pair had woken since Ginny had passed out when Hermione and Harry had entered their cell at Malfoy Castle, but Poppy had confirmed that Neville was in a more or less normal sleep, putting aside his obvious injuries.
Ginny stirred and Molly leapt forward. "Ginny, dear." She whispered hopefully.
"Mum..." Ginny whispered and Molly suddenly remembered random scenes from Ginny's childhood, of bouts of Wizarding Flu, Dragonpox and the like. "Neville?" Her hand weakly felt about for his, and Molly gently moved it until she could feel him. Ginny visibly relaxed, then all at once stiffened. "Mum...where's Elliot, I wanted Neville to finally meet him." She croaked. It was Molly's turn to stiffen abruptly.
"Ginny, dear...Uhh"
"Out with it Mum." Ginny snapped, or at least tried to. The fire in her eyes was real however despite her physical weakness. She knew something was odd, immediately, as Molly looked about the room for help or something, but to no avail. Poppy had kipped off on a cot in her office, exhausted after almost a day straight of work, Arthur had left to go try to deal with the politicians, and the rest of the family...was busy. Bill and Charlie were presumably safe for now outside of the country and the rest of her boys were about to assault Azkaban. Ginny coughed, "out with it."
"They have them Ginny...All of them, they came in a rush, I couldn't stop them, and I tried." Molly blurted, and let out a soft wail. "Its all my fault."
"No mum, its mine." Ginny whispered, "ohhh God, its all my fault." She fought to rise and fell back onto the bed. "Get me a pepper-up potion, I'll be fine, I need to help."
"No Ginny." A soft, deep, ancient voice responded from the doorway. A tall shadow detached itself from the doorway and entered. As the figure came into the light, a long, silver beard glinted. Dumbledore sighed softly as he removed his half-moons and polished them slowly on his robes, as Ginny and Molly watched him mutely. "I am afraid it is too late for that, even for me. For good or for ill, it is up to them now. We must be ready for what is still to be." He glanced to his right shoulder, "however that does not mean that I should not send what help can get there in time. Fawkes."
The Phoenix chirped once and vanished in a fall of fire.
A/N Next chapter the start of the assault on Azkaban...