Canadian Intervention: Chapter 19 - October 31
I can now tell you, I have finished "Canadian Intervention". The last chapter is now with my beta, and I'm just waiting for to come back.
Title: Harry Potter and the Canadian Intervention
Chapter Title: 19. October 31
Fandoms: Harry Potter/Real People
Pairing: Harry Potter/Frank Iero
Story Rating: PG-13
Chapter Word count: ~7,234
Warning(s): Violence, gore, coarse language, canon character death!
Summary: See first chapter
Disclaimer: See first chapter
Chapter Summary: Another strange dream for Harry… another flying lesson for Frankie… a food fight during the Halloween feast involving the entire school… and Voldemort decides to drop in on the My Chemical Romance concert that evening in London… no good can come of this…
19: OCTOBER 31
The early morning of October 31, Harry had another strange dream. This one was rather fuzzy, as if it were a dream of a dream. Yet, the scene was clear enough for him to see what was going on. They were standing in a large room, around which were items that resembled aircraft. They were stacked neatly off to the side, and several large tables had been set up.
At said tables, were numerous individuals, two of which looked like naval admirals or something, as he thought back to seeing something of the like on the telly. Or the T.V., as Travis called it. As he looked at one of them, he recognized the person as being Deric, or at least a much older version of him. It was just that moment, another individual stood, saying, "United Commonwealth tribunal proceedings of October 31st, now in session. Captain Deric Stafford overseeing."
"The incident eight days ago concerning UCS Invincible has been most startling, and a blow to our ability to wage war against the enemy, being one of only sixth commonwealth ships with armament that matters," Deric began, standing. "It is far more disturbing that such an incident took place in a realm that is not our own. Yet, even more disturbing is the fact that one of our own perpetrated said incident. Engineer Tom Dorset, rise."
The view turned around to show two tables facing the large ones, and Harry quickly realized that this was a trial. Even more shocking, the man sitting at the table opposite, the defendant, was a future version of himself! Beside him sat the young man he had seen in an earlier dream, and he seemed to be whispering something to his future self. At this point, the defendant stood up, along with an officer who, as Harry assumed, had been assigned to defend him.
"On all 450 counts of first degree murder, this tribunal finds you guilty as charged. On the count of tampering with information technology systems, this tribunal finds you guilty as charged. Finally, on the single count of treason, this tribunal finds you guilty as charged." Deric paused. "Having been found guilty of treason, this tribunal issues the following sentence, bound by the laws of the commonwealth: Tom Dorset. You will, at dawn tomorrow, be executed by firing squad, for wilfully causing the crash of the UCS Invincible, and the death of nearly 450 of her crew. May the gods have mercy on your soul."
Dorset only smiled and turned to face the opposite table, saying, "You can't hide forever, Potter. The Dark Lord WILL take everything from you, before he finally takes your life." He yanked up the sleeve on his jacket to reveal the dark mark in its hideous form, for all to see. He burst into insane laughter as two soldiers gripped him about the arms to lead him away.
Just then, a strange creature approached the opposite table. He was human from the waist up, but had the legs of a… goat? 'What the hell is THAT?' thought Harry, as he watched the scene continue to unfold. The half-man, half-goat, as Harry thought of it, handed his future self a note and spoke rapidly to both him and the young man beside him. The expression on his future self's face said it all… something serious had happened. The last he saw, as the scene faded, was of his future self slumping to the table, burying his face in his hands.
Harry woke up immediately, the details of the dream still fresh in his head. It would be a long day for most of the residents of the trunk, with the day's planned festivities, and so he quickly pushed the dream aside. He would deal with it that night, or tomorrow, perhaps.
Harry quickly turned his attention to Frank, who was still sound asleep beside him. He gently leaned in and began planting kisses on his forehead, cheek and neck, slowly working his way down his chest. He ran his tongue across his left nipple, which finally elicited a sleepy grunt from Frank. "Mmmm… 'morning," he said.
"Happy birthday, Frankie," said Harry, moving back up to meet, mouth to mouth.
"Damn, you have one hell of a way of waking a guy up," said Frank, as they finally separated. That got a smirk from Harry.
"But did you like it?"
"Tell me," Frank hissed playfully, seizing Harry's hand and placing it on his boxers, on top of his very hard organ.
"Right…"
It was nearly a half hour later before they finally got out of bed and cleaned themselves up. In fact, someone had knocked on the door twice before they'd, at last, made their way out to the dining room for breakfast. Ginny, who was already having breakfast, looked at Harry and quickly looked away, a smirk crossing her face. In fact, several others already seated at the table seemed to be trying not to laugh.
"What?" Harry finally asked. Travis said nothing, other than gesturing to the side of his own neck. He then burst into gales of laughter. Still confused, Harry went into the common room and looked in the mirror near the teleport pad. The source of everyone's amusement became VERY evident.
"My, my, pup, it appears as though you have been marked," Sirius smirked from the portrait above the private fireplace.
"Lovely," Harry groaned.
"You know, I can always give you one to match on the other side," Frank hissed playfully, joining him at the mirror.
"It's not funny," answered Harry. "What if Malfoy was to see it? I mean, just don't do that where it might be seen, Ok?" He produced his wand, pointed it at the rather visible hickey, saying, "Episkey!" The spot vanished.
As they both finally sat down to breakfast, Bill made his way into the dining room as well, and sat down rather gingerly beside Travis.
"What happened to you?" asked Frank.
"We, um… well, let's just say it's a good thing we have silencing charms on the room." Travis smirked.
"Right, then," said Ginny. "I did NOT need to know that."
"It was worth it," said Bill as he leaned in and gave Travis a kiss on the cheek. "No doubt Mr. Carter's arse isn't in any better shape." He smirked.
"All right, boys, that's enough talk about that at the table," Lisa scolded.
"Fine with me," said Travis. "Now. There will be no studying of the sort today. It's all about fun, got it?" He looked at Hermione as he said that.
"I think we can definitely use a break at any rate. The DA isn't meeting tonight… I mean, there will be a big feast tonight, and knowing the way it is with Gryffindor, there'll be a house party tonight as well," said Harry.
"It just won't be the same…" began George.
"…Without us there this year!" Fred finished.
"Oh, I somehow suspect someone will fill your shoes, guys," said Harry, "although it won't be me. We have to be in London for 8 o'clock tonight anyway."
"In the mean time, I think I might like to go flying this morning. Anyone else game?" asked Travis.
Dressing warm against the chilly autumn air, Harry, Frank, Travis, Bill, and Ron exited the trunk, and then stepped out of the cottage. Instead of mounting his broom as usual, he handed it to Frank.
"Huh?"
"You've seen me do it enough. I'm gonna teach you how to fly."
"You sure that's a good idea, Harry?" asked Bill.
"He'll be fine," answered Harry. Frank took the broom hesitantly, then carefully straddled it, as he had watched Harry do so many times.
"What's next?"
"You pulled up on it."
"Gently," said Harry. Frank did so, and the broom lifted off the ground.
"Excellent. Now slip your feet into the stirrups and slide ahead a little, so I can get on," said Harry. Frank did so, and Harry climbed on behind him. "All right, take us up." They quickly rose into the air, to hover just above the tree line.
"What's next?" asked Frank.
"Lean forward with your body… EASY… the more aggressive you are, the more aggressively the broom will react."
"Right." Frank leaned forward, and the broom responded, quickly picking up speed.
"Excellent. Now, to stop, lean back," Harry explained. Frank did so, and they came to a stop.
"All right. Get us moving again… good… now to turn, you lean in the direction of your turn. Again, remember that the more aggressive you are…"
"The more aggressive the broom will react… got it," said Frank. He leaned to the left, and they turned slowly to the left.
"Excellent."
"How do we get down?"
"You push down on the broom handle. Why, do you want to quit?"
"No, just wanted to know."
"Right," said Harry. Then, he got an idea. "Guys, let's land."
"Why?"
"Well, I was thinking a change of scenery."
"A change of scenery indeed, Harry," said Bill, as they again mounted their brooms, this time after travelling to Hogwarts. Stepping outside, they found the air to be a little warmer, it being later in the day, and so Harry removed the heavy sweater he wore.
"Won't we get in trouble doing this here?" asked Frank.
"Nope. As long as we don't disturb any classes. But you better let me do the flying this time," said Harry.
"Ok." They quickly mounted their brooms, with Harry and Frank being the only ones to share a broom. Bill had retrieved his own Cleansweep(1) from his room.
"You really miss this place, Harry," said Bill. They were then hovering at the edge of the forbidden forest.
"Of course. Even with all the dragon shit that's happened to me here… I think Hogwarts will always be home to me."
"There's always teaching, mate," said Ron. "I mean, most of the DA got pretty good OWL scores in DADA, and that has to say something, right?"
"Professor Potter… has a nice ring to it," Frank teased.
"Not to mention, you could really stick it to the Slytherins, you know, the way Snape takes points from Gryffindor all the time," Ron added.
"That's not what it's about, Ron," answered Harry. "No, if I was to teach, I would be fair to everyone. Either way, it's something I won't worry about just now. I mean, as I said before, there's no guarantee I'll actually defeat Voldemort. The prophecy only says one must kill the other."
"And today isn't a day to worry about that," said Frank.
"Thing is, I do," answered Harry. "It's always there, whether it be right out front, or somewhere in the back of my mind. See, we could be attacked, just out of the blue."
"No dark thoughts today, Harry. Just let it go for now," said Frank. They were then flying over Hagrid's hut, and just beyond, several pens. "What the hell is that?" He pointed to the pen, in which there was what looked like a giant salamander.
"Blast-ended Skrewt," answered Harry. "Such pleasant creatures. Hagrid has a thing about showing his classes dangerous creatures."
"Speaking of whom," Bill gestured to his right. Harry looked in the indicated direction, and sure enough, there was a class in session. Hagrid happened to look up, and waved at them.
"Best not disturb the class," said Bill, and they circled around.
It was nearly dinner time (local time) before they finally landed, and stowed away the brooms. They had toured Hogsmeade, flown over the Black Lake (and greeted the giant squid at least twice), made a detailed tour of the castle, and circled the Forbidden Forest. Harry had not spent much time actually touring the area around the castle, so this was as much of an eye opener to him as it was for Frank and Travis.
"So… Potter's got a boyfriend." Harry wheeled around to see Draco standing at the top of the stairs in the entry hall, with Crabbe and Goyle at his side, not unexpected.
"It might be best for you to mind your own business, Mr. Malfoy," said Bill.
"I wasn't talking to you, WEASEL," Draco hissed.
"Man, you have no clue, do you?" Travis snapped. "Do you not realize that there are three adults here? You're still a fucking MINOR."
"Not that that's ever stopped him," said Harry. "Come on, it's just better to ignore him for now." They started walking toward the great hall, but Draco practically flew down the stairs, wand drawn.
"Don't you DARE turn your back on me, Potter!"
"You cast a single spell at any of us, it will be the last thing you do for a while," Travis hissed, his wand also drawn.
"And just what do you think you can do to me, mud blood?"
"Question is, do you really wanna find out, you fucking pompous ass-hat?" As ugly as the situation was, Harry couldn't help but laugh. Travis definitely had a way with insults.
"How dare you speak to me that way!"
"Why not? You're only a snivelling sycophant who can't wipe his own ass…"
"REDUCTO!" Draco roared, wand thrust at Travis.
"PROTEGO!" Travis countered, a blue shield instantly flaring up and deflecting the spell up at the wall.
"STUPEFY!" Bill snapped, his wand directed at Draco. The boy fell over, stunned.
"What's the meaning of this?" asked Professor Sprout, who happened to come down the stairs from the main stairwell.
"Another ugly incident on the part of Mr. Malfoy, Professor," answered Bill.
"Mr. Weasley, good of you to visit again…" she began, then saw Draco in the prone position, with his 'bodyguards' unsure what to do next. "Mr. Crabbe and Mr. Goyle, go to dinner… NOW." The two boys muttered something virtually incoherent, and then slinked off toward the great hall, leaving the group.
"What happened here?"
"We were just coming in for dinner, when Malfoy started in on Harry about Frank here. We tried to walk away, but he pursued us. He tried to curse Mr. Carter with the reducto curse."
"I see, then," said Professor Sprout, drawing her wand. She gestured at Draco, saying, "Enervate!" The boy regained consciousness. "Well, Mr. Malfoy, what do you have to say for yourself?"
"I was… I was only minding my own business, Professor… they… they started it… I was only defending myself…" said Draco, playing up the part of the victim to a tee. The head of Hufflepuff house narrowed her eyes.
"I believe 25 points will do for that bold faced lie, Mr. Malfoy. An additional 50 points will be taken from Slytherin, for attacking a guest of the school. I will also be discussing this incident with the headmistress."
"Oh, trust me. We'll be having our own chat with Professor McGonagall about this," said Bill. "Mr. Malfoy truly intended to do harm."
"As if she can really do anything," Draco sneered.
"Is there a problem here?" a voice drawled. Draco sneered again.
"I think I have things well in control, Severus," said Professor Sprout. "I was about to assign Mr. Malfoy here a week's detention for disrespecting the headmistress."
"But… but… THEY started it!" Draco whined. "How come they get off?"
"Might I remind you, Mr. Malfoy, Potter and Weasley are no longer students here," Severus drawled. "It might be more tactful for you to… more carefully choose your battles."
"Yes professor."
"Now go." Draco quickly backed away from the group and retreated toward the stairs which led to the dungeons.
"I will give you the same warning, Potter, and Carter. Choose your battles carefully," said Severus, less coldly.
"I try, Professor, believe me, I try," said Travis.
The group, along with both professors, entered the great hall together. Harry and Travis just wanted to forget the nasty incident that just took place, but it was something that nags on someone's mind, and it just wouldn't go away. The room was decorated in true Halloween spirit, which included huge jack-o-lanterns and live bats.
"Do you like it?" Harry asked Frank as they took their seats. Once again, they had been placed at the far end of the Gryffindor table, nearest to the head table.
"It's awesome," answered Frank.
"They do it every year," said Bill. "Halloween is always fun here."
"Well, save for my first year," said Harry.
"An exception, I'm sure," said Frank.
"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed as she and Ginny also seemed to appear behind the group. They had stepped into the hall a few moments earlier, along with Neville and Luna.
"Guess we have to slide down to make some room, eh?" asked Travis. The group quickly made room for the four extra people. It was just perfect timing, as the headmistress stepped up to the podium.
"Good evening, students," she began, "and welcome to this year's Halloween feast. As you have noticed, we again have a few guests who will be sitting with us for at least part of this evening. I remind all of you, do treat them with the respect you would a professor, for you are representing the school." She paused. "Now, tonight, each of the houses will, by tradition, have their own party. I ask all of you to behave yourselves, there are classes tomorrow. With that said, do tuck in!" The food instantly appeared on the tables. Bill, however, waved Minerva over.
"Yes, Mr. Weasley?"
"We will need to speak to you after dinner. An unfortunate incident involving Draco Malfoy just before dinner."
"I see. Very well, then, we shall visit my office after dinner."
Mid-way through the meal, everyone was startled as three owls swooped in through the upper window, carrying a long package. They fluttered down to the table where the group was sitting, and deposited the lengthy package in front of Harry and Frank, then took off, back up to the rafters and out the window.
"Who's it from, mate?" asked Ron.
"More like who's it for." Harry indicated the tag stuck to the package. It simply read 'Frankie'.
"For me," said Frank. It was more a statement than a question.
"Well, are you gonna open it, or just stare at it?" Harry prodded. Frank quickly picked up the package and tore off the wrapping, exposing a shiny black broom, identical to Harry's.
"Bloody hell, it's… it's a Firebolt!" Ron gasped.
"NOW I know why you wanted to teach me how to fly this morning!" Frank exclaimed. "Holy shit!"
"I wanted to be sure you can fly by yourself before I actually gave it to you," answered Harry. "Happy birthday, Frankie."
"Thank you," was all Frank managed to say. It was an expensive gift, and an amazing gesture. Refusing it would have been an insult.
"So how old are you now, anyway?" asked Bill.
"27," Frank managed, still struck dumb by Harry's gift.
"I think you broke him, Harry," said Neville.
"Oh, I did that many times over already," Harry smirked.
"Umm, right, we did NOT need to know that," said Hermione.
"Well, Frankie did mark you this morning, did he not?" Travis snickered.
"Shut up." Harry tried to sound menacing, but couldn't help but laugh. "Right then…" He picked up his glass of pumpkin juice, and proceeded to dump it on Travis' head.
"You did NOT…"
"He sure as hell did," Frank smirked. Travis only smiled, picked up a fist full of mashed potato, and smeared it in Harry's face.
It was a cascade effect. Within a matter of minutes, the great hall was a battle ground, with students grouping together, using whatever food item might be at hand as ammunition. The house lines were horribly blurred, with students from every house forming various groups in the battle. The professors had initially attempted to stop the chaos, but ended up being dragged into the conflict, much to Harry's amusement.
"I must say, rather amusing, Potter." Harry turned to the boy crouched beside him and Frank, behind one of the overturned tables. Theo Nott, if he remembered correctly.
"I'm sure as hell not cleaning this up," said Travis.
"We'll be lucky if we aren't made to," said Harry. "Bloody hell!" He ducked as a boiled egg came sailing overhead.
"Where the hell is all the food coming from anyway?"
"I think the house elves are actively supplying us," Ron guessed.
"Why would that not surprise me?" asked Travis. "If Dobby's anything like the rest."
"And they are," answered Harry, once again turning to face Theo. "How come you're with us?"
"Don't know… it just happened that way I guess… look. I just stick to myself, right… Malfoy and his pureblood nonsense… he can stick it." They ducked again as a piece of chicken narrowly missed Harry.
"Any more Slytherins feel that way?"
"A few," answered Theo.
"Why didn't you guys sign up for the DA?"
"Why do you think? Malfoy and his cronies, bloody hell, they run the house."
"Of course," said Travis. "That would make sense. I guess we need to cut the head off the snake." That got a scowl from Theo. "Um, sorry, not meant like…"
"Guys, um, we're gonna be late," said Frank.
"Shit. We're gonna have to make a run for it. Arm yourselves!" Harry exclaimed, picking up a chicken drumstick.
It was like running the gauntlet. The group was pelted with food as they stormed out of the great hall, skidding to a halt in the hallway outside. There they found Minerva waiting, fighting hard to retain a stern face.
"I do believe the headmistress is amused, whether she wants to show it or not," Bill smirked.
"Indeed, Mr. Weasley, although I must say, this was not exactly what I had in mind this evening," said Minerva, at last allowing a smile to escape her usually tight lips. "Now, if I remember correctly, we do need to have a conversation."
"It will need to be quick, we do need to get ready for tonight's concert," said Travis.
"Indeed."
"Concert?" asked Theo.
"Yes, in about an hour and a half from now," said Travis, glancing at his watch.
"Look. Theo. We'll talk later, all right?" said Harry.
"Sure."
A few minutes later, the group, minus Theo, was gathered in Minerva's office. They had already cast cleaning charms, and now looked at least half presentable.
"Now what happened earlier? Pomona explained things on her end, yet I would appreciate a pensieve account, if you can give one," said Minerva. Harry only nodded, and Minerva quickly activated the pensieve that was actually Albus'. Harry placed the required memory into it, and Minerva then stuck her finger into it, then it went still.
She pulled out of it a minute later, looking rather sour. "I will be writing a letter to Mr. Malfoy's mother tonight, I believe. All of you did very well, I am very pleased with the way you handled this incident."
"Professor, isn't that enough to have him expelled?"
"Mr. Carter, unfortunately, if we were to expel him, we could not keep a close eye on him. As it stands, Severus will be having a strongly worded conversation with him later about this."
"We could lock him in a cell in the trunk, like we did Albus," said Travis. "If that's the problem."
"We'll only do that if we absolutely have to," said Bill. "The more people like that we have in the trunk, well, I need not spell it out, right?"
"The thing is, what if he truly hurts another student?" asked Frank. "I mean, I've watched Harry duel enough to know, that 'reducto' spell would have hurt Travis badly."
"Indeed, it would, Mr. Iero," said Minerva. "That is the difference between the punishment he received, and him being expelled and arrested."
"Professor, I think, if you do expel him, it's best we put him in one of my cells. The ministry isn't competent enough to keep him in jail," said Harry. Minerva only nodded. What Harry said was true. Fudge was still acting with blinders on, virtually handcuffing Amelia Bones from adding to the Aurors' numbers, or acting in any way that would better prepare the ministry for the true danger the wizarding world faced.
"Harry, we really better get going," said Frank.
"Do be careful tonight, Harry," said Minerva.
oOo
Like the previous two venues, Harry, Travis, and Bill had front row seats. The building was smaller than the previous locations; Harry guessed maybe about five thousand people would be in attendance. According to Gerard, the concert, which had been arranged by several London-area radio stations, had sold out in about a half-hour, the day the tickets went on sale.
The group had taken the floo back to the trunk, and then used the teleport pad linking it to the trailer, which was on site already. Deric and several off-duty Aurors were already in the building, having arrived much earlier in the day, to team up with the traditional event security.
The concert got under way just after 9 pm, with the band playing songs off their latest album. Harry had already heard everything, but he still enjoyed the show immensely. Like the previous shows, the seat was unnecessary, for the most part.
oOo
Azkaban was a smoking ruin. Within a half-hour, the Dark Lord overwhelmed the fortress, along with the security force present. Now, a large contingent of witches and wizards stood on the beach, along with the Death Eaters, facing Voldemort. Pepper-up potions were flowing like water, as he wanted his newly freed forces to be at the best they could be, even given the circumstances.
"Tonight," he began, "we truly make a statement to my return. Tonight, we will demonstrate the true power we wield, to give both the wizard world and the useless muggle world reason to fear us. To a point, tonight's demonstration is also to the Potter brat, to prove to him once again, without a doubt, we will be victorious in our actions, and he is only delaying the inevitable." That was met with a loud cheer. He then looked up, and could see the dark shapes circling overhead. It hadn't taken much to sway the Dementors to join him. The dozens of bodies that lay on the beach, and inside the prison itself were only the slice of what Voldemort promised for later that night.
"My lord." Voldemort looked down to see Lucius Malfoy kissing the hem of his robes.
"How good of you to join us, Lucius," Voldemort sneered. "I was half-tempted to leave you to the Dementors, you know." A look of fear flashed across the senior Malfoy. "However, since I still have a use for you, I decided you shall live… for now… CRUCIO!" Voldemort hissed, his wand suddenly levelled at Lucius. He dropped to the ground, screaming in agony. He held it for a few moments, and then released it. "Now. I do believe we have a date in London."
oOo
Just after 9:30 pm, the first alarm was received by the Department of Magical Law Enforcement at the British Ministry of Magic. The staff on duty, realizing where the alarm originated, called in all available Aurors to travel to the prison and investigate exactly what was going on. They would later regret that decision. For, while the majority of British Aurors were then on the way north to Azkaban, Voldemort and his collected forces were heading south.
oOo
Just before 10 pm, Voldemort, Bellatrix Lestrange and Lucius Malfoy apparated into the building that was the Earls Court Exhibition Centre. His sources had been quite accurate in getting information about the building, how many it held, and so on. More importantly, through his contacts and his methods of persuasion, he had ensured that the venue would be packed on this particular night.
"Excuse me, I must ask to see your security clearance." It was a boy of no more than 18, dressed in a typical corporate security uniform.
"Clearance? How dare…" began Bellatrix.
"Oh, it's all right, Bella," said Voldemort. "I do believe this will suffice… AVADA KEDAVRA!" he roared, thrusting his wand at the unsuspecting boy, who dropped to the floor, a look of surprise frozen on his face.
While this went on, Harry saw a blur of black shapes began to materialize in various places about the large room. His blood ran cold, as it quickly dawned on him what they were: Death Eaters.
"Harry?" asked Bill.
"Death Eaters! FRANKIE!" Harry shouted, gesturing to the leather bracelet. Frank looked down at him quizzically, but continued to play, as did the others, still not aware of the grave danger that was unfolding in their midst.
A red bolt of magic impacting with the back wall spelled out EXACTLY what was going on. That was followed by several bolts of green magic. Every member of My Chemical Romance knew all too well what that was, as the music instantly died.
"FRANKIE! Get the fuck out of here!" Travis practically screamed. "ALL OF YOU!"
"Oh, you going somewhere?" a voice cackled. Harry looked to the right, to see Bellatrix Lestrange standing there, wand levelled at the stage. "Awww, what a surprise, itty baby Potty's here too!" she said, using her 'baby' voice. At the same moment, a sharp bolt of pain flared through Harry's scar.
"He's here."
"What? Harry?"
"Voldemort. He's here," said Harry, casting a quick glance up at Frank, who was frozen in place, then back to Bellatrix, still holding her wand level at the stage. Several more loud crashes were heard, and a loud rumble. Whatever had caused it now sent a cloud of dust into the air. It was the distraction Harry needed, as he produced his own wand, pointed it at the ceiling above Bellatrix, and casted a blasting charm. It brought a small piece of the roof crashing to the floor, causing Bellatrix to flee, cackling all the while.
"Frankie, and all of you! Get the hell out of here!" cried Harry.
"No!" Frank answered, dropping his guitar and leaping off the stage, narrowly dodging another green bolt of magic. Gerard, Mikey, and Bob quickly activated their own emergency port keys, while Ray and Adam remained rooted to the stage. Ray was forced to duck, as yet another green bolt of magic whizzed overhead. A red bolt of magic impacted Bob's drum set, shattering the equipment into a million pieces. Adam finally clued in that it might be a good idea to actually duck, but as he dropped to the stage, yet another green bolt of magic struck him in the shoulder.
"Adam!" cried Ray, stunned and horrified at the sight of his band mate, now lifeless on the stage. Frank, too, was horrified by the act. Adam had been a fill-in for other band members in the past, and earlier in the year had been added as a permanent sixth member of the group.
Another tremendous crash brought everyone out of the stupor, as another section of the roof crashed to the floor, crushing scores of people trying to escape the room.
"Come on, let's go back stage," said Frank, grabbing Harry's hand.
"Not until you get the hell out of here!" Harry hissed. "Bloody hell, that could have been YOU!" He gestured wildly at the stage, as several more bolts of red magic whizzed overhead.
"My, my, my, what an unexpected surprise." Harry wheeled to see Voldemort, standing at the edge of the stage, as his scar again exploded in pain.
"Piss off."
"Now, now, that's no way to talk to me, Harry. Now, who do we have here? A blood traitor, a muggle… and hmmmm, I don't recognize you."
"Fuck you," Travis growled.
"Travis!"
"Ah, we have a first name… now how about a last name? I will only ask once." Voldemort was by this time joined by Bellatrix and Lucius, with both of them training their wands on the group.
"Fuck you."
"Crucio," said Voldemort, levelling his wand at Travis.
Travis had never been exposed to the Cruciatus curse before. He lasted only a few seconds before actually losing consciousness, the pain being so great.
"Such an itty, bitty, baby," Bellatrix mocked, in her 'baby' voice. Yet more explosions and crashes were heard behind them, but none of the group dared turn around.
"Perhaps we should take this conversation elsewhere," said Voldemort, gesturing behind the group.
"DIFFINDO!" cried a voice from the left side of the stage. A powerful beam of magic slammed into Bellatrix's left leg, literally blowing it off, causing her to shriek in pain. That caused Voldemort to look behind, looking for the unseen attacker. Lucius, meanwhile, kept his attention on Harry, Frank, Travis, and Bill. To further amuse himself, he pointed his wand at the wreckage and the sea of humanity trying to escape from it, and said, "Incendio."
"I'll take care of Bella," said another Death Eater, climbing up on stage from the right. He glared at Harry, then gripped the fallen witch, and vanished with her.
"See if the bitch recovers from that one," Bill growled under his breath.
"Silence!" Lucius hissed, levelling his wand toward Bill. Harry noticed it wasn't the same wand he had had in June. 'Of course, then again, it wouldn't be, they would have taken it from him… but how is he here in the first place, he should be in Azkaban!' he thought. Another red blast of magic flashed from out behind a stack of speakers, narrowly missing Voldemort and Lucius, exploding on impact with the right wall. This forced both of them to duck, and gave Harry the diversion he needed.
"Get the FUCK out of here!" he erupted. "NOW!" Bill only shook his head 'No', while he quickly woke Travis. He moaned as he came to. Harry then pointed his wand at the stage, muttering "Incendio." He paused, watching the fire rapidly grow. "Come on, then!"
They got perhaps 20 steps before Lucius actually realized what was happening, having been pinned down by the attack from back stage. He pointed his wand in the direction of the group, casting a reducto curse. Frank let out an agonizing scream, and fell to the floor, the curse having nailed him in the left leg, gouging out flesh and muscle.
"Going somewhere?" said Voldemort, as he and Lucius again closed on the group. "I don't believe we were done talking just yet." He glanced at Frank, who now lay prone on the floor, blood seeping out of the wound in his leg. "Rather impressive, the reducto curse," Voldemort mused. "It does create much pain. On the other hand… CRUCIO!"
Harry almost cried out himself, hearing Frank scream. He had suffered under the Cruciatus curse numerous times, and so knew exactly what it felt like. 'Why didn't he listen to me?' he screamed in his own head, all the while wishing he could switch places.
After what seemed like hours, but in reality was only a few seconds, the Dark Lord finally released the curse, leaving Frank heaving on the floor. "Now," he said, "I will ask you once, and only once. Who are you?"
"He's Frank Iero," Harry quickly supplied, hoping to prevent Frank from receiving further doses of the Cruciatus curse.
"Thank you for supplying his answer, Harry, although I don't believe I was speaking to you just now." He directed his wand at Frank again. "Crucio." Frank again screamed in pain, as the curse seared across his body. "You know, Mr. Iero, many individuals have lost their mind from the Cruciatus curse. Muggles seem not to have quite the constitution a strong wizard does," said Voldemort, as though teaching a class of school children. Frank had curled up into the fetal position, as the spell continued to inflict searing pain across every inch of his body. 'I'm going to die' was all he could think. That, and the unbearable pain.
Just as he thought he was about to black out, the curse ended. Realizing that he had to act, he slowly brought his trembling hand up to his neck, and pulled out the chain, around which was the dog tags. 'Take me home', he thought.
Lucius happened to see this movement, and thrust his wand at Frank, saying, "REDUCTO!" The bolt of magic struck just as he vanished, with a loud BANG, sending Harry, Travis, and Bill flying. Bill recovered first, launching a blasting hex of his own at Lucius, who barely had a chance to block it.
"AVADA KEDAVRA!" Roared Voldemort, his wand thrust at Bill. He too, just managed to banish a piece of debris in the way of the spell, which impacted with it, blasting it into tiny pieces.
"DIFFINDO!" came a cry from behind, and Travis was forced to duck; the bolt of magic narrowly missed impacting with his head. They once again found themselves facing three enemies.
Harry was in a fog. Even though he was facing the Dark Lord himself, he still worried about Frank. Did he get away unscathed? A purple beam of magic slammed into the floor at his feet, snapping him back to reality. This scenario was far worse than the graveyard or the Department of Mysteries in the spring. The debris gave great cover, and there could be enemies anywhere. That was reinforced, when yet another green beam of magic flew from somewhere in the back, to narrowly miss Harry and strike a group of seats that were still intact.
A loud POP startled the three of them, but they were relieved to see that it was Deric.
"What the hell are you standing around for? Let's get the hell out of here!" he thundered.
"Leaving so fast? I don't think so," said Lucius, wand levelled at the newcomer. That was a good enough distraction for Harry, who gestured toward Lucius with his wand, shouting, "EXPELLIARMUS!" The wand flew from the elder Malfoy's hand, and clattered against the wall.
"Accio WAND!" Travis cried, and the wand sailed into his hand.
"Break it!" Deric ordered. Travis did not hesitate, and quickly snapped the wand, while they quickly ducked to avoid yet another barrage of angry magic.
"Now let's get out of here!"
"No, I most certainly don't think any of you will be leaving so soon," said Voldemort. "I must say, I am impressed with this little show you have put on here with your friends, Harry. Sadly, it must come to an end. It's only appropriate we duel, don't you think?"
"Piss off," Harry answered, glaring at the Dark Lord. This was most definitely NOT the time, he was by no means ready! 'But he can force me to, remember?' he thought to himself.
Then, he got an idea. "You might not want to. The prophecy says I will win in a duel against you."
"Liar!" Voldemort hissed, raising his wand menacingly.
"Why would I lie? I've heard the prophecy verbatim, Tom. You haven't," answered Harry, reaching deep for his Gryffindor courage. "…But he will have a power the Dark Lord knows not …and the Dark Lord will die at the hand of the one…"
"LIAR!" Voldemort thundered again, although his face carried a flash of doubt.
"Doubt me not, Tom. I will kill you."
Several things happened at once. Voldemort thrust his wand at Harry, shouting, "AVADA KEDAVRA!!" Travis shot a stunner at the second armed attacker, Harry dropped to the floor, and Bill cast his own disarming charm at Voldemort. The end result, only one thud was heard, as Lucius crumpled to the ground. Harry still lived, the second armed wizard had ducked, and Voldemort still had his wand.
"Shall we try that again? It WAS most amusing," Voldemort laughed.
"Next distraction, we have to go," Bill whispered.
"AVADA KEDAVRA!" Voldemort roared again, wand directed at the group. All four of them were forced to duck as the angry green bolt sizzled overhead. The second wizard added his own green bolt of magic, making the group have to dodge a second time.
"REDUCTO!" Deric shouted, once again targeting the second wizard. Travis and Bill also sent curses of their own Voldemort's way, to keep him busy for a moment, while Harry added a cutting curse of his own toward the second wizard.
Nothing touched Voldemort. That was to be expected. However, Harry's cutting curse managed to strike the other wizard, nearly taking his head off. He fell to the floor with a sickening thud. The smoke was now getting dangerously thick, so both parties were having difficulty seeing each other.
"Well, well, Harry. You CAN kill. Most impressive," Voldemort praised. "Really, we would make such a great team."
"Over my dead body," Harry hissed. "You think I enjoyed that? I KILLED someone, and that will be with me the rest of my bloody life!"
"Harry, he'll never understand. He's fucked up far worse than Dumbledore is," said Travis.
"Dumbledore? I must ask, what has become of him anyway?"
"Somewhere safe," answered Harry, carefully choosing his words. Last thing he needed was for Voldemort to know that Dumbledore was seeing a mind healer.
Suddenly, there was an array of POPs throughout the wreckage of the room.
"MINISTRY OF MAGIC!" a voice thundered. "Drop your wands immediately!" Harry recognized it as belonging to Kingsley Shacklebolt. Voldemort capitalized on this distraction, and sent yet another green bolt of magic at the group. This time, he did not miss.
"BILL!!" Travis virtually screamed, as the eldest child of Arthur and Molly fell to the floor, his blue eyes frozen open, unblinking.
"See, Harry, you can't protect everyone," Voldemort drawled.
"DIFFINDO!" Harry erupted, wand thrust at the Dark Lord.
"AVADA KEDAVRA!" Voldemort countered. Harry knew what was about to happen, as the two spells collided, mid-air.
A golden cage appeared to surround the two wizards, as once again, Harry could hear the song of a phoenix. Tremendous bright light burst from both wands, sending what looked like molten metal to the floor as the song got louder. Then, shapes began to appear from Voldemort's wand, the first, as expected, being Bill. Next came several people Harry did not know, including what looked like several security guards.
"Harry," said the ghost of Bill, "get yourselves out of here. We'll hold him off for a few moments…"
"I know," answered Harry, using every ounce of concentration to hold himself together. Losing it now would cost more than tears.
"Let go, NOW!" said Bill. Harry let go of the wand, as the ghosts swiftly engulfed the Dark Lord.
"Emergency teleport NOW!" Harry bellowed, grabbing hold of Bill's body. He then reached with his other hand, touching the leather bracelet, thinking, 'take me home'. He quickly felt the sensation of a hook about the naval, as the battle scene vanished.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Damn. That's all I have to say. I've been cooking this scene virtually from the day I started this version of "Canadian Intervention". Now, of course, we are not done here, but the story is rapidly reaching its end. Comments/reviews are most definitely welcome!
(1) if anyone knows what kind of broom Bill really has, let me know!
Previous Chapter: 18 - A Slytherin Action
Next Chapter: 20 - Picking Up the Pieces
Table Of Contents
Title: Harry Potter and the Canadian Intervention
Chapter Title: 19. October 31
Fandoms: Harry Potter/Real People
Pairing: Harry Potter/Frank Iero
Story Rating: PG-13
Chapter Word count: ~7,234
Warning(s): Violence, gore, coarse language, canon character death!
Summary: See first chapter
Disclaimer: See first chapter
Chapter Summary: Another strange dream for Harry… another flying lesson for Frankie… a food fight during the Halloween feast involving the entire school… and Voldemort decides to drop in on the My Chemical Romance concert that evening in London… no good can come of this…
19: OCTOBER 31
The early morning of October 31, Harry had another strange dream. This one was rather fuzzy, as if it were a dream of a dream. Yet, the scene was clear enough for him to see what was going on. They were standing in a large room, around which were items that resembled aircraft. They were stacked neatly off to the side, and several large tables had been set up.
At said tables, were numerous individuals, two of which looked like naval admirals or something, as he thought back to seeing something of the like on the telly. Or the T.V., as Travis called it. As he looked at one of them, he recognized the person as being Deric, or at least a much older version of him. It was just that moment, another individual stood, saying, "United Commonwealth tribunal proceedings of October 31st, now in session. Captain Deric Stafford overseeing."
"The incident eight days ago concerning UCS Invincible has been most startling, and a blow to our ability to wage war against the enemy, being one of only sixth commonwealth ships with armament that matters," Deric began, standing. "It is far more disturbing that such an incident took place in a realm that is not our own. Yet, even more disturbing is the fact that one of our own perpetrated said incident. Engineer Tom Dorset, rise."
The view turned around to show two tables facing the large ones, and Harry quickly realized that this was a trial. Even more shocking, the man sitting at the table opposite, the defendant, was a future version of himself! Beside him sat the young man he had seen in an earlier dream, and he seemed to be whispering something to his future self. At this point, the defendant stood up, along with an officer who, as Harry assumed, had been assigned to defend him.
"On all 450 counts of first degree murder, this tribunal finds you guilty as charged. On the count of tampering with information technology systems, this tribunal finds you guilty as charged. Finally, on the single count of treason, this tribunal finds you guilty as charged." Deric paused. "Having been found guilty of treason, this tribunal issues the following sentence, bound by the laws of the commonwealth: Tom Dorset. You will, at dawn tomorrow, be executed by firing squad, for wilfully causing the crash of the UCS Invincible, and the death of nearly 450 of her crew. May the gods have mercy on your soul."
Dorset only smiled and turned to face the opposite table, saying, "You can't hide forever, Potter. The Dark Lord WILL take everything from you, before he finally takes your life." He yanked up the sleeve on his jacket to reveal the dark mark in its hideous form, for all to see. He burst into insane laughter as two soldiers gripped him about the arms to lead him away.
Just then, a strange creature approached the opposite table. He was human from the waist up, but had the legs of a… goat? 'What the hell is THAT?' thought Harry, as he watched the scene continue to unfold. The half-man, half-goat, as Harry thought of it, handed his future self a note and spoke rapidly to both him and the young man beside him. The expression on his future self's face said it all… something serious had happened. The last he saw, as the scene faded, was of his future self slumping to the table, burying his face in his hands.
Harry woke up immediately, the details of the dream still fresh in his head. It would be a long day for most of the residents of the trunk, with the day's planned festivities, and so he quickly pushed the dream aside. He would deal with it that night, or tomorrow, perhaps.
Harry quickly turned his attention to Frank, who was still sound asleep beside him. He gently leaned in and began planting kisses on his forehead, cheek and neck, slowly working his way down his chest. He ran his tongue across his left nipple, which finally elicited a sleepy grunt from Frank. "Mmmm… 'morning," he said.
"Happy birthday, Frankie," said Harry, moving back up to meet, mouth to mouth.
"Damn, you have one hell of a way of waking a guy up," said Frank, as they finally separated. That got a smirk from Harry.
"But did you like it?"
"Tell me," Frank hissed playfully, seizing Harry's hand and placing it on his boxers, on top of his very hard organ.
"Right…"
It was nearly a half hour later before they finally got out of bed and cleaned themselves up. In fact, someone had knocked on the door twice before they'd, at last, made their way out to the dining room for breakfast. Ginny, who was already having breakfast, looked at Harry and quickly looked away, a smirk crossing her face. In fact, several others already seated at the table seemed to be trying not to laugh.
"What?" Harry finally asked. Travis said nothing, other than gesturing to the side of his own neck. He then burst into gales of laughter. Still confused, Harry went into the common room and looked in the mirror near the teleport pad. The source of everyone's amusement became VERY evident.
"My, my, pup, it appears as though you have been marked," Sirius smirked from the portrait above the private fireplace.
"Lovely," Harry groaned.
"You know, I can always give you one to match on the other side," Frank hissed playfully, joining him at the mirror.
"It's not funny," answered Harry. "What if Malfoy was to see it? I mean, just don't do that where it might be seen, Ok?" He produced his wand, pointed it at the rather visible hickey, saying, "Episkey!" The spot vanished.
As they both finally sat down to breakfast, Bill made his way into the dining room as well, and sat down rather gingerly beside Travis.
"What happened to you?" asked Frank.
"We, um… well, let's just say it's a good thing we have silencing charms on the room." Travis smirked.
"Right, then," said Ginny. "I did NOT need to know that."
"It was worth it," said Bill as he leaned in and gave Travis a kiss on the cheek. "No doubt Mr. Carter's arse isn't in any better shape." He smirked.
"All right, boys, that's enough talk about that at the table," Lisa scolded.
"Fine with me," said Travis. "Now. There will be no studying of the sort today. It's all about fun, got it?" He looked at Hermione as he said that.
"I think we can definitely use a break at any rate. The DA isn't meeting tonight… I mean, there will be a big feast tonight, and knowing the way it is with Gryffindor, there'll be a house party tonight as well," said Harry.
"It just won't be the same…" began George.
"…Without us there this year!" Fred finished.
"Oh, I somehow suspect someone will fill your shoes, guys," said Harry, "although it won't be me. We have to be in London for 8 o'clock tonight anyway."
"In the mean time, I think I might like to go flying this morning. Anyone else game?" asked Travis.
Dressing warm against the chilly autumn air, Harry, Frank, Travis, Bill, and Ron exited the trunk, and then stepped out of the cottage. Instead of mounting his broom as usual, he handed it to Frank.
"Huh?"
"You've seen me do it enough. I'm gonna teach you how to fly."
"You sure that's a good idea, Harry?" asked Bill.
"He'll be fine," answered Harry. Frank took the broom hesitantly, then carefully straddled it, as he had watched Harry do so many times.
"What's next?"
"You pulled up on it."
"Gently," said Harry. Frank did so, and the broom lifted off the ground.
"Excellent. Now slip your feet into the stirrups and slide ahead a little, so I can get on," said Harry. Frank did so, and Harry climbed on behind him. "All right, take us up." They quickly rose into the air, to hover just above the tree line.
"What's next?" asked Frank.
"Lean forward with your body… EASY… the more aggressive you are, the more aggressively the broom will react."
"Right." Frank leaned forward, and the broom responded, quickly picking up speed.
"Excellent. Now, to stop, lean back," Harry explained. Frank did so, and they came to a stop.
"All right. Get us moving again… good… now to turn, you lean in the direction of your turn. Again, remember that the more aggressive you are…"
"The more aggressive the broom will react… got it," said Frank. He leaned to the left, and they turned slowly to the left.
"Excellent."
"How do we get down?"
"You push down on the broom handle. Why, do you want to quit?"
"No, just wanted to know."
"Right," said Harry. Then, he got an idea. "Guys, let's land."
"Why?"
"Well, I was thinking a change of scenery."
"A change of scenery indeed, Harry," said Bill, as they again mounted their brooms, this time after travelling to Hogwarts. Stepping outside, they found the air to be a little warmer, it being later in the day, and so Harry removed the heavy sweater he wore.
"Won't we get in trouble doing this here?" asked Frank.
"Nope. As long as we don't disturb any classes. But you better let me do the flying this time," said Harry.
"Ok." They quickly mounted their brooms, with Harry and Frank being the only ones to share a broom. Bill had retrieved his own Cleansweep(1) from his room.
"You really miss this place, Harry," said Bill. They were then hovering at the edge of the forbidden forest.
"Of course. Even with all the dragon shit that's happened to me here… I think Hogwarts will always be home to me."
"There's always teaching, mate," said Ron. "I mean, most of the DA got pretty good OWL scores in DADA, and that has to say something, right?"
"Professor Potter… has a nice ring to it," Frank teased.
"Not to mention, you could really stick it to the Slytherins, you know, the way Snape takes points from Gryffindor all the time," Ron added.
"That's not what it's about, Ron," answered Harry. "No, if I was to teach, I would be fair to everyone. Either way, it's something I won't worry about just now. I mean, as I said before, there's no guarantee I'll actually defeat Voldemort. The prophecy only says one must kill the other."
"And today isn't a day to worry about that," said Frank.
"Thing is, I do," answered Harry. "It's always there, whether it be right out front, or somewhere in the back of my mind. See, we could be attacked, just out of the blue."
"No dark thoughts today, Harry. Just let it go for now," said Frank. They were then flying over Hagrid's hut, and just beyond, several pens. "What the hell is that?" He pointed to the pen, in which there was what looked like a giant salamander.
"Blast-ended Skrewt," answered Harry. "Such pleasant creatures. Hagrid has a thing about showing his classes dangerous creatures."
"Speaking of whom," Bill gestured to his right. Harry looked in the indicated direction, and sure enough, there was a class in session. Hagrid happened to look up, and waved at them.
"Best not disturb the class," said Bill, and they circled around.
It was nearly dinner time (local time) before they finally landed, and stowed away the brooms. They had toured Hogsmeade, flown over the Black Lake (and greeted the giant squid at least twice), made a detailed tour of the castle, and circled the Forbidden Forest. Harry had not spent much time actually touring the area around the castle, so this was as much of an eye opener to him as it was for Frank and Travis.
"So… Potter's got a boyfriend." Harry wheeled around to see Draco standing at the top of the stairs in the entry hall, with Crabbe and Goyle at his side, not unexpected.
"It might be best for you to mind your own business, Mr. Malfoy," said Bill.
"I wasn't talking to you, WEASEL," Draco hissed.
"Man, you have no clue, do you?" Travis snapped. "Do you not realize that there are three adults here? You're still a fucking MINOR."
"Not that that's ever stopped him," said Harry. "Come on, it's just better to ignore him for now." They started walking toward the great hall, but Draco practically flew down the stairs, wand drawn.
"Don't you DARE turn your back on me, Potter!"
"You cast a single spell at any of us, it will be the last thing you do for a while," Travis hissed, his wand also drawn.
"And just what do you think you can do to me, mud blood?"
"Question is, do you really wanna find out, you fucking pompous ass-hat?" As ugly as the situation was, Harry couldn't help but laugh. Travis definitely had a way with insults.
"How dare you speak to me that way!"
"Why not? You're only a snivelling sycophant who can't wipe his own ass…"
"REDUCTO!" Draco roared, wand thrust at Travis.
"PROTEGO!" Travis countered, a blue shield instantly flaring up and deflecting the spell up at the wall.
"STUPEFY!" Bill snapped, his wand directed at Draco. The boy fell over, stunned.
"What's the meaning of this?" asked Professor Sprout, who happened to come down the stairs from the main stairwell.
"Another ugly incident on the part of Mr. Malfoy, Professor," answered Bill.
"Mr. Weasley, good of you to visit again…" she began, then saw Draco in the prone position, with his 'bodyguards' unsure what to do next. "Mr. Crabbe and Mr. Goyle, go to dinner… NOW." The two boys muttered something virtually incoherent, and then slinked off toward the great hall, leaving the group.
"What happened here?"
"We were just coming in for dinner, when Malfoy started in on Harry about Frank here. We tried to walk away, but he pursued us. He tried to curse Mr. Carter with the reducto curse."
"I see, then," said Professor Sprout, drawing her wand. She gestured at Draco, saying, "Enervate!" The boy regained consciousness. "Well, Mr. Malfoy, what do you have to say for yourself?"
"I was… I was only minding my own business, Professor… they… they started it… I was only defending myself…" said Draco, playing up the part of the victim to a tee. The head of Hufflepuff house narrowed her eyes.
"I believe 25 points will do for that bold faced lie, Mr. Malfoy. An additional 50 points will be taken from Slytherin, for attacking a guest of the school. I will also be discussing this incident with the headmistress."
"Oh, trust me. We'll be having our own chat with Professor McGonagall about this," said Bill. "Mr. Malfoy truly intended to do harm."
"As if she can really do anything," Draco sneered.
"Is there a problem here?" a voice drawled. Draco sneered again.
"I think I have things well in control, Severus," said Professor Sprout. "I was about to assign Mr. Malfoy here a week's detention for disrespecting the headmistress."
"But… but… THEY started it!" Draco whined. "How come they get off?"
"Might I remind you, Mr. Malfoy, Potter and Weasley are no longer students here," Severus drawled. "It might be more tactful for you to… more carefully choose your battles."
"Yes professor."
"Now go." Draco quickly backed away from the group and retreated toward the stairs which led to the dungeons.
"I will give you the same warning, Potter, and Carter. Choose your battles carefully," said Severus, less coldly.
"I try, Professor, believe me, I try," said Travis.
The group, along with both professors, entered the great hall together. Harry and Travis just wanted to forget the nasty incident that just took place, but it was something that nags on someone's mind, and it just wouldn't go away. The room was decorated in true Halloween spirit, which included huge jack-o-lanterns and live bats.
"Do you like it?" Harry asked Frank as they took their seats. Once again, they had been placed at the far end of the Gryffindor table, nearest to the head table.
"It's awesome," answered Frank.
"They do it every year," said Bill. "Halloween is always fun here."
"Well, save for my first year," said Harry.
"An exception, I'm sure," said Frank.
"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed as she and Ginny also seemed to appear behind the group. They had stepped into the hall a few moments earlier, along with Neville and Luna.
"Guess we have to slide down to make some room, eh?" asked Travis. The group quickly made room for the four extra people. It was just perfect timing, as the headmistress stepped up to the podium.
"Good evening, students," she began, "and welcome to this year's Halloween feast. As you have noticed, we again have a few guests who will be sitting with us for at least part of this evening. I remind all of you, do treat them with the respect you would a professor, for you are representing the school." She paused. "Now, tonight, each of the houses will, by tradition, have their own party. I ask all of you to behave yourselves, there are classes tomorrow. With that said, do tuck in!" The food instantly appeared on the tables. Bill, however, waved Minerva over.
"Yes, Mr. Weasley?"
"We will need to speak to you after dinner. An unfortunate incident involving Draco Malfoy just before dinner."
"I see. Very well, then, we shall visit my office after dinner."
Mid-way through the meal, everyone was startled as three owls swooped in through the upper window, carrying a long package. They fluttered down to the table where the group was sitting, and deposited the lengthy package in front of Harry and Frank, then took off, back up to the rafters and out the window.
"Who's it from, mate?" asked Ron.
"More like who's it for." Harry indicated the tag stuck to the package. It simply read 'Frankie'.
"For me," said Frank. It was more a statement than a question.
"Well, are you gonna open it, or just stare at it?" Harry prodded. Frank quickly picked up the package and tore off the wrapping, exposing a shiny black broom, identical to Harry's.
"Bloody hell, it's… it's a Firebolt!" Ron gasped.
"NOW I know why you wanted to teach me how to fly this morning!" Frank exclaimed. "Holy shit!"
"I wanted to be sure you can fly by yourself before I actually gave it to you," answered Harry. "Happy birthday, Frankie."
"Thank you," was all Frank managed to say. It was an expensive gift, and an amazing gesture. Refusing it would have been an insult.
"So how old are you now, anyway?" asked Bill.
"27," Frank managed, still struck dumb by Harry's gift.
"I think you broke him, Harry," said Neville.
"Oh, I did that many times over already," Harry smirked.
"Umm, right, we did NOT need to know that," said Hermione.
"Well, Frankie did mark you this morning, did he not?" Travis snickered.
"Shut up." Harry tried to sound menacing, but couldn't help but laugh. "Right then…" He picked up his glass of pumpkin juice, and proceeded to dump it on Travis' head.
"You did NOT…"
"He sure as hell did," Frank smirked. Travis only smiled, picked up a fist full of mashed potato, and smeared it in Harry's face.
It was a cascade effect. Within a matter of minutes, the great hall was a battle ground, with students grouping together, using whatever food item might be at hand as ammunition. The house lines were horribly blurred, with students from every house forming various groups in the battle. The professors had initially attempted to stop the chaos, but ended up being dragged into the conflict, much to Harry's amusement.
"I must say, rather amusing, Potter." Harry turned to the boy crouched beside him and Frank, behind one of the overturned tables. Theo Nott, if he remembered correctly.
"I'm sure as hell not cleaning this up," said Travis.
"We'll be lucky if we aren't made to," said Harry. "Bloody hell!" He ducked as a boiled egg came sailing overhead.
"Where the hell is all the food coming from anyway?"
"I think the house elves are actively supplying us," Ron guessed.
"Why would that not surprise me?" asked Travis. "If Dobby's anything like the rest."
"And they are," answered Harry, once again turning to face Theo. "How come you're with us?"
"Don't know… it just happened that way I guess… look. I just stick to myself, right… Malfoy and his pureblood nonsense… he can stick it." They ducked again as a piece of chicken narrowly missed Harry.
"Any more Slytherins feel that way?"
"A few," answered Theo.
"Why didn't you guys sign up for the DA?"
"Why do you think? Malfoy and his cronies, bloody hell, they run the house."
"Of course," said Travis. "That would make sense. I guess we need to cut the head off the snake." That got a scowl from Theo. "Um, sorry, not meant like…"
"Guys, um, we're gonna be late," said Frank.
"Shit. We're gonna have to make a run for it. Arm yourselves!" Harry exclaimed, picking up a chicken drumstick.
It was like running the gauntlet. The group was pelted with food as they stormed out of the great hall, skidding to a halt in the hallway outside. There they found Minerva waiting, fighting hard to retain a stern face.
"I do believe the headmistress is amused, whether she wants to show it or not," Bill smirked.
"Indeed, Mr. Weasley, although I must say, this was not exactly what I had in mind this evening," said Minerva, at last allowing a smile to escape her usually tight lips. "Now, if I remember correctly, we do need to have a conversation."
"It will need to be quick, we do need to get ready for tonight's concert," said Travis.
"Indeed."
"Concert?" asked Theo.
"Yes, in about an hour and a half from now," said Travis, glancing at his watch.
"Look. Theo. We'll talk later, all right?" said Harry.
"Sure."
A few minutes later, the group, minus Theo, was gathered in Minerva's office. They had already cast cleaning charms, and now looked at least half presentable.
"Now what happened earlier? Pomona explained things on her end, yet I would appreciate a pensieve account, if you can give one," said Minerva. Harry only nodded, and Minerva quickly activated the pensieve that was actually Albus'. Harry placed the required memory into it, and Minerva then stuck her finger into it, then it went still.
She pulled out of it a minute later, looking rather sour. "I will be writing a letter to Mr. Malfoy's mother tonight, I believe. All of you did very well, I am very pleased with the way you handled this incident."
"Professor, isn't that enough to have him expelled?"
"Mr. Carter, unfortunately, if we were to expel him, we could not keep a close eye on him. As it stands, Severus will be having a strongly worded conversation with him later about this."
"We could lock him in a cell in the trunk, like we did Albus," said Travis. "If that's the problem."
"We'll only do that if we absolutely have to," said Bill. "The more people like that we have in the trunk, well, I need not spell it out, right?"
"The thing is, what if he truly hurts another student?" asked Frank. "I mean, I've watched Harry duel enough to know, that 'reducto' spell would have hurt Travis badly."
"Indeed, it would, Mr. Iero," said Minerva. "That is the difference between the punishment he received, and him being expelled and arrested."
"Professor, I think, if you do expel him, it's best we put him in one of my cells. The ministry isn't competent enough to keep him in jail," said Harry. Minerva only nodded. What Harry said was true. Fudge was still acting with blinders on, virtually handcuffing Amelia Bones from adding to the Aurors' numbers, or acting in any way that would better prepare the ministry for the true danger the wizarding world faced.
"Harry, we really better get going," said Frank.
"Do be careful tonight, Harry," said Minerva.
oOo
Like the previous two venues, Harry, Travis, and Bill had front row seats. The building was smaller than the previous locations; Harry guessed maybe about five thousand people would be in attendance. According to Gerard, the concert, which had been arranged by several London-area radio stations, had sold out in about a half-hour, the day the tickets went on sale.
The group had taken the floo back to the trunk, and then used the teleport pad linking it to the trailer, which was on site already. Deric and several off-duty Aurors were already in the building, having arrived much earlier in the day, to team up with the traditional event security.
The concert got under way just after 9 pm, with the band playing songs off their latest album. Harry had already heard everything, but he still enjoyed the show immensely. Like the previous shows, the seat was unnecessary, for the most part.
oOo
Azkaban was a smoking ruin. Within a half-hour, the Dark Lord overwhelmed the fortress, along with the security force present. Now, a large contingent of witches and wizards stood on the beach, along with the Death Eaters, facing Voldemort. Pepper-up potions were flowing like water, as he wanted his newly freed forces to be at the best they could be, even given the circumstances.
"Tonight," he began, "we truly make a statement to my return. Tonight, we will demonstrate the true power we wield, to give both the wizard world and the useless muggle world reason to fear us. To a point, tonight's demonstration is also to the Potter brat, to prove to him once again, without a doubt, we will be victorious in our actions, and he is only delaying the inevitable." That was met with a loud cheer. He then looked up, and could see the dark shapes circling overhead. It hadn't taken much to sway the Dementors to join him. The dozens of bodies that lay on the beach, and inside the prison itself were only the slice of what Voldemort promised for later that night.
"My lord." Voldemort looked down to see Lucius Malfoy kissing the hem of his robes.
"How good of you to join us, Lucius," Voldemort sneered. "I was half-tempted to leave you to the Dementors, you know." A look of fear flashed across the senior Malfoy. "However, since I still have a use for you, I decided you shall live… for now… CRUCIO!" Voldemort hissed, his wand suddenly levelled at Lucius. He dropped to the ground, screaming in agony. He held it for a few moments, and then released it. "Now. I do believe we have a date in London."
oOo
Just after 9:30 pm, the first alarm was received by the Department of Magical Law Enforcement at the British Ministry of Magic. The staff on duty, realizing where the alarm originated, called in all available Aurors to travel to the prison and investigate exactly what was going on. They would later regret that decision. For, while the majority of British Aurors were then on the way north to Azkaban, Voldemort and his collected forces were heading south.
oOo
Just before 10 pm, Voldemort, Bellatrix Lestrange and Lucius Malfoy apparated into the building that was the Earls Court Exhibition Centre. His sources had been quite accurate in getting information about the building, how many it held, and so on. More importantly, through his contacts and his methods of persuasion, he had ensured that the venue would be packed on this particular night.
"Excuse me, I must ask to see your security clearance." It was a boy of no more than 18, dressed in a typical corporate security uniform.
"Clearance? How dare…" began Bellatrix.
"Oh, it's all right, Bella," said Voldemort. "I do believe this will suffice… AVADA KEDAVRA!" he roared, thrusting his wand at the unsuspecting boy, who dropped to the floor, a look of surprise frozen on his face.
While this went on, Harry saw a blur of black shapes began to materialize in various places about the large room. His blood ran cold, as it quickly dawned on him what they were: Death Eaters.
"Harry?" asked Bill.
"Death Eaters! FRANKIE!" Harry shouted, gesturing to the leather bracelet. Frank looked down at him quizzically, but continued to play, as did the others, still not aware of the grave danger that was unfolding in their midst.
A red bolt of magic impacting with the back wall spelled out EXACTLY what was going on. That was followed by several bolts of green magic. Every member of My Chemical Romance knew all too well what that was, as the music instantly died.
"FRANKIE! Get the fuck out of here!" Travis practically screamed. "ALL OF YOU!"
"Oh, you going somewhere?" a voice cackled. Harry looked to the right, to see Bellatrix Lestrange standing there, wand levelled at the stage. "Awww, what a surprise, itty baby Potty's here too!" she said, using her 'baby' voice. At the same moment, a sharp bolt of pain flared through Harry's scar.
"He's here."
"What? Harry?"
"Voldemort. He's here," said Harry, casting a quick glance up at Frank, who was frozen in place, then back to Bellatrix, still holding her wand level at the stage. Several more loud crashes were heard, and a loud rumble. Whatever had caused it now sent a cloud of dust into the air. It was the distraction Harry needed, as he produced his own wand, pointed it at the ceiling above Bellatrix, and casted a blasting charm. It brought a small piece of the roof crashing to the floor, causing Bellatrix to flee, cackling all the while.
"Frankie, and all of you! Get the hell out of here!" cried Harry.
"No!" Frank answered, dropping his guitar and leaping off the stage, narrowly dodging another green bolt of magic. Gerard, Mikey, and Bob quickly activated their own emergency port keys, while Ray and Adam remained rooted to the stage. Ray was forced to duck, as yet another green bolt of magic whizzed overhead. A red bolt of magic impacted Bob's drum set, shattering the equipment into a million pieces. Adam finally clued in that it might be a good idea to actually duck, but as he dropped to the stage, yet another green bolt of magic struck him in the shoulder.
"Adam!" cried Ray, stunned and horrified at the sight of his band mate, now lifeless on the stage. Frank, too, was horrified by the act. Adam had been a fill-in for other band members in the past, and earlier in the year had been added as a permanent sixth member of the group.
Another tremendous crash brought everyone out of the stupor, as another section of the roof crashed to the floor, crushing scores of people trying to escape the room.
"Come on, let's go back stage," said Frank, grabbing Harry's hand.
"Not until you get the hell out of here!" Harry hissed. "Bloody hell, that could have been YOU!" He gestured wildly at the stage, as several more bolts of red magic whizzed overhead.
"My, my, my, what an unexpected surprise." Harry wheeled to see Voldemort, standing at the edge of the stage, as his scar again exploded in pain.
"Piss off."
"Now, now, that's no way to talk to me, Harry. Now, who do we have here? A blood traitor, a muggle… and hmmmm, I don't recognize you."
"Fuck you," Travis growled.
"Travis!"
"Ah, we have a first name… now how about a last name? I will only ask once." Voldemort was by this time joined by Bellatrix and Lucius, with both of them training their wands on the group.
"Fuck you."
"Crucio," said Voldemort, levelling his wand at Travis.
Travis had never been exposed to the Cruciatus curse before. He lasted only a few seconds before actually losing consciousness, the pain being so great.
"Such an itty, bitty, baby," Bellatrix mocked, in her 'baby' voice. Yet more explosions and crashes were heard behind them, but none of the group dared turn around.
"Perhaps we should take this conversation elsewhere," said Voldemort, gesturing behind the group.
"DIFFINDO!" cried a voice from the left side of the stage. A powerful beam of magic slammed into Bellatrix's left leg, literally blowing it off, causing her to shriek in pain. That caused Voldemort to look behind, looking for the unseen attacker. Lucius, meanwhile, kept his attention on Harry, Frank, Travis, and Bill. To further amuse himself, he pointed his wand at the wreckage and the sea of humanity trying to escape from it, and said, "Incendio."
"I'll take care of Bella," said another Death Eater, climbing up on stage from the right. He glared at Harry, then gripped the fallen witch, and vanished with her.
"See if the bitch recovers from that one," Bill growled under his breath.
"Silence!" Lucius hissed, levelling his wand toward Bill. Harry noticed it wasn't the same wand he had had in June. 'Of course, then again, it wouldn't be, they would have taken it from him… but how is he here in the first place, he should be in Azkaban!' he thought. Another red blast of magic flashed from out behind a stack of speakers, narrowly missing Voldemort and Lucius, exploding on impact with the right wall. This forced both of them to duck, and gave Harry the diversion he needed.
"Get the FUCK out of here!" he erupted. "NOW!" Bill only shook his head 'No', while he quickly woke Travis. He moaned as he came to. Harry then pointed his wand at the stage, muttering "Incendio." He paused, watching the fire rapidly grow. "Come on, then!"
They got perhaps 20 steps before Lucius actually realized what was happening, having been pinned down by the attack from back stage. He pointed his wand in the direction of the group, casting a reducto curse. Frank let out an agonizing scream, and fell to the floor, the curse having nailed him in the left leg, gouging out flesh and muscle.
"Going somewhere?" said Voldemort, as he and Lucius again closed on the group. "I don't believe we were done talking just yet." He glanced at Frank, who now lay prone on the floor, blood seeping out of the wound in his leg. "Rather impressive, the reducto curse," Voldemort mused. "It does create much pain. On the other hand… CRUCIO!"
Harry almost cried out himself, hearing Frank scream. He had suffered under the Cruciatus curse numerous times, and so knew exactly what it felt like. 'Why didn't he listen to me?' he screamed in his own head, all the while wishing he could switch places.
After what seemed like hours, but in reality was only a few seconds, the Dark Lord finally released the curse, leaving Frank heaving on the floor. "Now," he said, "I will ask you once, and only once. Who are you?"
"He's Frank Iero," Harry quickly supplied, hoping to prevent Frank from receiving further doses of the Cruciatus curse.
"Thank you for supplying his answer, Harry, although I don't believe I was speaking to you just now." He directed his wand at Frank again. "Crucio." Frank again screamed in pain, as the curse seared across his body. "You know, Mr. Iero, many individuals have lost their mind from the Cruciatus curse. Muggles seem not to have quite the constitution a strong wizard does," said Voldemort, as though teaching a class of school children. Frank had curled up into the fetal position, as the spell continued to inflict searing pain across every inch of his body. 'I'm going to die' was all he could think. That, and the unbearable pain.
Just as he thought he was about to black out, the curse ended. Realizing that he had to act, he slowly brought his trembling hand up to his neck, and pulled out the chain, around which was the dog tags. 'Take me home', he thought.
Lucius happened to see this movement, and thrust his wand at Frank, saying, "REDUCTO!" The bolt of magic struck just as he vanished, with a loud BANG, sending Harry, Travis, and Bill flying. Bill recovered first, launching a blasting hex of his own at Lucius, who barely had a chance to block it.
"AVADA KEDAVRA!" Roared Voldemort, his wand thrust at Bill. He too, just managed to banish a piece of debris in the way of the spell, which impacted with it, blasting it into tiny pieces.
"DIFFINDO!" came a cry from behind, and Travis was forced to duck; the bolt of magic narrowly missed impacting with his head. They once again found themselves facing three enemies.
Harry was in a fog. Even though he was facing the Dark Lord himself, he still worried about Frank. Did he get away unscathed? A purple beam of magic slammed into the floor at his feet, snapping him back to reality. This scenario was far worse than the graveyard or the Department of Mysteries in the spring. The debris gave great cover, and there could be enemies anywhere. That was reinforced, when yet another green beam of magic flew from somewhere in the back, to narrowly miss Harry and strike a group of seats that were still intact.
A loud POP startled the three of them, but they were relieved to see that it was Deric.
"What the hell are you standing around for? Let's get the hell out of here!" he thundered.
"Leaving so fast? I don't think so," said Lucius, wand levelled at the newcomer. That was a good enough distraction for Harry, who gestured toward Lucius with his wand, shouting, "EXPELLIARMUS!" The wand flew from the elder Malfoy's hand, and clattered against the wall.
"Accio WAND!" Travis cried, and the wand sailed into his hand.
"Break it!" Deric ordered. Travis did not hesitate, and quickly snapped the wand, while they quickly ducked to avoid yet another barrage of angry magic.
"Now let's get out of here!"
"No, I most certainly don't think any of you will be leaving so soon," said Voldemort. "I must say, I am impressed with this little show you have put on here with your friends, Harry. Sadly, it must come to an end. It's only appropriate we duel, don't you think?"
"Piss off," Harry answered, glaring at the Dark Lord. This was most definitely NOT the time, he was by no means ready! 'But he can force me to, remember?' he thought to himself.
Then, he got an idea. "You might not want to. The prophecy says I will win in a duel against you."
"Liar!" Voldemort hissed, raising his wand menacingly.
"Why would I lie? I've heard the prophecy verbatim, Tom. You haven't," answered Harry, reaching deep for his Gryffindor courage. "…But he will have a power the Dark Lord knows not …and the Dark Lord will die at the hand of the one…"
"LIAR!" Voldemort thundered again, although his face carried a flash of doubt.
"Doubt me not, Tom. I will kill you."
Several things happened at once. Voldemort thrust his wand at Harry, shouting, "AVADA KEDAVRA!!" Travis shot a stunner at the second armed attacker, Harry dropped to the floor, and Bill cast his own disarming charm at Voldemort. The end result, only one thud was heard, as Lucius crumpled to the ground. Harry still lived, the second armed wizard had ducked, and Voldemort still had his wand.
"Shall we try that again? It WAS most amusing," Voldemort laughed.
"Next distraction, we have to go," Bill whispered.
"AVADA KEDAVRA!" Voldemort roared again, wand directed at the group. All four of them were forced to duck as the angry green bolt sizzled overhead. The second wizard added his own green bolt of magic, making the group have to dodge a second time.
"REDUCTO!" Deric shouted, once again targeting the second wizard. Travis and Bill also sent curses of their own Voldemort's way, to keep him busy for a moment, while Harry added a cutting curse of his own toward the second wizard.
Nothing touched Voldemort. That was to be expected. However, Harry's cutting curse managed to strike the other wizard, nearly taking his head off. He fell to the floor with a sickening thud. The smoke was now getting dangerously thick, so both parties were having difficulty seeing each other.
"Well, well, Harry. You CAN kill. Most impressive," Voldemort praised. "Really, we would make such a great team."
"Over my dead body," Harry hissed. "You think I enjoyed that? I KILLED someone, and that will be with me the rest of my bloody life!"
"Harry, he'll never understand. He's fucked up far worse than Dumbledore is," said Travis.
"Dumbledore? I must ask, what has become of him anyway?"
"Somewhere safe," answered Harry, carefully choosing his words. Last thing he needed was for Voldemort to know that Dumbledore was seeing a mind healer.
Suddenly, there was an array of POPs throughout the wreckage of the room.
"MINISTRY OF MAGIC!" a voice thundered. "Drop your wands immediately!" Harry recognized it as belonging to Kingsley Shacklebolt. Voldemort capitalized on this distraction, and sent yet another green bolt of magic at the group. This time, he did not miss.
"BILL!!" Travis virtually screamed, as the eldest child of Arthur and Molly fell to the floor, his blue eyes frozen open, unblinking.
"See, Harry, you can't protect everyone," Voldemort drawled.
"DIFFINDO!" Harry erupted, wand thrust at the Dark Lord.
"AVADA KEDAVRA!" Voldemort countered. Harry knew what was about to happen, as the two spells collided, mid-air.
A golden cage appeared to surround the two wizards, as once again, Harry could hear the song of a phoenix. Tremendous bright light burst from both wands, sending what looked like molten metal to the floor as the song got louder. Then, shapes began to appear from Voldemort's wand, the first, as expected, being Bill. Next came several people Harry did not know, including what looked like several security guards.
"Harry," said the ghost of Bill, "get yourselves out of here. We'll hold him off for a few moments…"
"I know," answered Harry, using every ounce of concentration to hold himself together. Losing it now would cost more than tears.
"Let go, NOW!" said Bill. Harry let go of the wand, as the ghosts swiftly engulfed the Dark Lord.
"Emergency teleport NOW!" Harry bellowed, grabbing hold of Bill's body. He then reached with his other hand, touching the leather bracelet, thinking, 'take me home'. He quickly felt the sensation of a hook about the naval, as the battle scene vanished.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Damn. That's all I have to say. I've been cooking this scene virtually from the day I started this version of "Canadian Intervention". Now, of course, we are not done here, but the story is rapidly reaching its end. Comments/reviews are most definitely welcome!
(1) if anyone knows what kind of broom Bill really has, let me know!
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