章 32: Chapter 32 : The Battle of Hogwarts starts !
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For a moment that seemed to last forever and at the same time felt very short, silence reigned over the forest around Ned and Greyback's pack. Then, a feral smile made its way on the werewolf's face and with a deep growling voice, he commented :
« Well, well, well… The Silver Lad himself in the flesh… Or rather in goblin silver. Tell me… What did you have to do to for those greedy little goblins to give you their silver ? »
« The rabid dog and his pack of mutts. I'm not prejudiced against werewolves but you and your people are just making the situation worse for your kind. Not to mention your disgusting habits… As for the goblins, they are businessmen first and foremost. I presented them with an offer to good to pass up and they gladly taught me how to forge goblin silver… »
The latter part of his statement was only half-true. Although it was the truth that they'd taught him the basics, not only were they reluctant to do so, they withheld a great number of information about the properties and applications of the metal. Whether that was because he needed to figure it out on his own or to protect their secrets, Ned didn't know.
« Tell me, lad… » Fenrir said as he licked his lips. « … Is there flesh underneath all of that armor. »
« See ? That's what I was saying about disgusting habits… Are you a man or a wolf ? That said… Even wolf are smarter than to attack humans, unless they're threatened or starving. »
« I am both ! I am the perfect hybrid of human smarts and predatory instincts. Werewolves are the world's answer for the plague that humans are. Muggles, wizards and witches… They've forgotten how it was when they feared the wilds, when they lived holed up in caves and shabby huts. Now they think the world is their's… I aim to remind them of their place, in time. »
« Whoa ! A megalomaniac working for another megalomaniac… Aren't your egos clashing ? All I see is a beast, though… Careful, your saliva's dripping on the ground. »
Greyback made to wipe it out only to catch himself and growling :
« You and they will respect me. Especially once I'll have eaten your entrails and brought your cold remains to Voldemort ! »
The werewolf lowered himself like a beast, while his pack-mates took their own ready stance. Some took out their wands, while others readied their fists. Ned leisurely positioned himself to attack at any moment before saying :
« You know… I don't like the idea of killing my enemies, though it probably happened more than I care to admit. For you, however… I think I won't mind ending you. » Glancing behind the leader, he added : « If any of you don't actually like mauling and killing children, go back. I won't come after you. If you choose to remain… I won't stay my hand ! »
With those words, the battle started !
* * * * *
The Dark Lord stood in silent jubilation in front of the tomb of his old enemy. The old wizard had been a thorn in his side for most of his life… First hindering his progress, then thwarting his attempts at rising into power with his pitiful 'Order of the Phoenix'. Watching his tomb was satisfying.
However, the idea of desecrating his resting place was even more so ! A pity he wasn't the one to kill the old man… For a moment, Voldemort felt the urge to punish his killer… until it passed. The former headmaster was killed by his order, and even though it wasn't the young Malfoy who killed him, as he intended to, Severus Snape once more took it upon himself to fulfill his wishes where others could not.
Nagini, his faithful companion for the last few years and his latest horcruxe, hissed by his side, probably sensing his inner turmoil. Ignoring her, the Dark Lord waved his wand. In a silent show of magical mastery, the white coffin blew up to reveal the seemingly pristine body of Albus Dumbledore. His hands, crossed over his chest, held the object of his desire.
« The Elder wand… » Voldemort whispered, excited.
With trembling fingers, the Dark Lord unceremoniously plucked the wand from underneath the corpse's hands. Once it was in his hands, he marveled at how beautiful it was and the raw power that seemed to exude from it. Then, he spoke an order for his people waiting in anticipation behind him :
« Spread out and start the attack. »
Then, he waved his new wand in the air to launch the signal : above the group, a green skull, with a snake coming out of its mouth suddenly appeared in the night sky, illuminating the surroundings in its ominous glow despite the dark and stormy weather.
* * * * *
The boy-who-lived was pacing back and forth in the Gryffindor common room : a sense of impending doom had been plaguing him all day. And now, for an unknown reason, fear was gripping him in its grasp tightly. Harry didn't know why that was, but he was sure of one thing… Something terrible was about to happen !
His friends were silently observing him. Ron thought he was a worrywart for no reason, or that he was anxious as it was the last few months they'd spend in Hogwarts. After all, Harry had always considered Hogwarts as his true home, contrary to the one he shared with the Dursleys. And now, they were in their seventh year, the last one with the NEWTs to graduate from. Ron nodded to himself, satisfied of his conclusions.
Hermione was not much better. She was a muggleborn with two doctors as parents. They believed in science and raised her to think with logic. In the crazy and nonsensical world of magic, it helped her make sense of things, even though sometimes, logic couldn't account for everything in this particular world. Still, it brought her comfort. That, and her love for books, had been the only things that made her stay during her first year in this school. After all, she was a newcomer in an unknown world, viewed by some people as an eyesore because she didn't have wizard ancestry, and by the others as an annoying know-it-all.
And then, the unfortunate incident of Hallowe'en, when Harry and Ron came to her rescue… She still wondered if the affection she felt for the ginger was a result of some kind of Suspension Bridge effect… Not only was the situation extremely terrifying, and probably a little traumatic, she saw two young boys, the same age as her, take on a grown troll, with Ron even taking him down with his own weapon… So, maybe not just Suspension Bridge but also some kind of Reverse Nightingale effect… Should I continue to date him if I think things like that ? The Bushy haired girl pondered to herself.
What she thought of Harry's current agitation on the other hand was rather simple. She believed he was afraid of peace and quiet. Harry has lived most of his life from one crisis to the next. First year : attempted murder by Voldemort and deaths of his parents. The next decade : living with abusive or dismissive relatives, with most of those spent sleeping in the cupboard beneath the stairs. After that came the Hogwarts years… And if, for the majority of the school's population, they were dull and repetitive, being Harry's friends made their own experience much more… lively ! Adventure after adventure, it was as if, either the dark haired boy was a trouble magnet, or a sniffler for trouble, instead of riches. The Philosopher stone, Riddle's diary (which they now knew was an horcruxe), Sirius and the dementors, the Triwizard tournament, Umbridge and her reign of terror… Only the last year was, all things considered, relatively calm for Hermione and Ron. Harry still had lessons and a few adventures with the former headmaster. Still, this peaceful year ended with Dumbledore' being murdered, and Harry dueling with Snape…
Harry never had any peace in his life. It was understandable that he was feeling jittery at the idea that soon, all his problems would be over. What would he fight against next ? Hermione figured that's why he wanted to become an auror… Not just to honor his father, as he seemed to think, but more so because he needed a crisis in his life.
All their unshared and silent pondering ended when a green glow drew the group's eyes to the outside. Almost at the same time, the voice of McGonagall sounded all around the castle. It was a call to arms !
« All student and faculty personnel : wake up ! The Death Eaters are attacking Hogwarts. The faculty personnel are to meet me in the Great Hall. Students : stay and prepare to defend the common rooms. The prefects, head boy and girl will give you further instructions… »
While Ron and Hermione looked around as if to figure out where the voice came from, Harry's eyes didn't leave the reason for the glow.
« The Dark Mark… » He muttered lowly, frowning.
* * * * *
The pack of werewolves' strategy was remarkably similar to how a wolf pack would hunt, Ned thought. Well, except that some of them had wands and took potshots from a distance. Plus, their current prey wore an enchanted suit of armor and could fly, so… Most wolves would have abandoned right after figuring out there was no opening this tin-can. But those wolves not only could open it, they were also led by a cannibalistic and resentful madman.
Despite how J.K Rowling portrayed him in the books (subservient to those stronger than him, which mostly consisted of Voldemort's inner circle), Ned doubted whether it was his true sentiment. The squib rather thought that he was biding his time, waiting for an opportunity to strike.
Thankfully, in this timeline, Fenrir Greyback wasn't allowed free reign. During this year, Voldemort's forces should have taken the Ministry and, under his orders, Greyback and his men/wolves would have formed the Snatchers, a bounty hunter team aiming to track down and either capture or kill no-majs-born. Greyback's sadistic and cannibalistic tendencies aside, they would have basically become Voldemort's gestapo. His political police whose leader position was filled by a truly despicable man… Ned really didn't see how the nut-bag's reign could have lasted, even if he wasn't miraculously killed by Harry Potter.
The alarm rang again in his ear, reminding him once more to focus on the present. The werewolf pack had surrounded him, with the magic caster farther. The others, visibly more physical fighter were scanned and Ned found out they didn't possess wands. Some didn't even have magic ! No-majs werewolf were especially rare, since they usually died from the injuries inflicted by a werewolf who infected them. As for the others, well… With how bigoted this country was, maybe they were born werewolf or became one very young. Ned could see children like this probably wouldn't be sent to Hogwarts, or any other school for that matter.
His HUD lit up in orange alert, signaling incoming spell-fire and closing fast. Silver Lad dropped from the air, ducked, dove and weaved between the attacks as he headed for his first target. Feeling a small amount of pity, despite not knowing much about them, he decided to go easy on them. Except for Greyback… At first heading straight for the disheveled and feral looking woman, he rose up fast at the last possible moment and sent her stunners as he passed her by.
In his speed fight and flight such as this, Ned could only feel pride at the system he designed ! It was very difficult to hit a target when you moved so fast after all. But his targeting and positioning software helped tremendously in that regard. It wasn't infallible as people could still dodge his shots, but if they stayed still, he pretty much hit them every time.
The next few minutes, Ned flew around, dwindling their numbers little by little. Some he stunned were revived, by others as he did, of course. In the end, though it didn't make a difference. He just dropped them too fast for them to effectively attack, defend and tend to their fallen. Greyback put up a good fight, focusing almost exclusively on attacking. Unlike a certain retired auror, the werewolf was a dynamic fighter. He chained his spells all while constantly on the move.
When all of his people were down and out of the fight, only two remained. Ned hovered in place in front of Greyback. He was wondering what he should do with the man…
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