The Next Generation

[choki]

Nikolaus observed the cloaked man. The way he carried himself when 'talking' to Liam was rather suspicious. Although he was unable to hear their conversation, Nikolaus was pretty sure of one thing... that man wasn't part of the group that attacked them. Liam was in no particular danger except from any stray curses that rebounded from the fighting outside.

Nikolaus turned and looked the girl right before his eyes. Geneve appeared to be weaker by the second.
"Stay here and don't move around... I'll try to get Liam," said Nikolaus even though he knew Liam was in good hands.
"No..." said Geneve in a low, menacing tone, "he's mine..." Geneve gave a cold stare at Nikolaus, before collapsing. He caught her just in time before her head hit the ground. Even though it was a glimpse, he was certain that he saw a shadow looming in her eyes.

"As they always say... the eyes is the window to one's soul...you're still too weak...blood magic although strong... has its limitation...this body isn't strong enough to bear the blunt...and it is a real pity that the very person you wish to harm is the same person you wish to protect..." Nikolaus whispered gently into the ears of an unconscious Geneve.

[salemboy]

Damien looked on as he missed. The girl had been warned, somehow. Then he saw her Apparate right into the middle of the fight, only to be picked up by some man and escorted to safety? Damien wondered if the man knew what he was doing, but soon his attention turned to the fight. Some of the deatheaters had noticed his spell and were turning on him. It was two of them, who started advancing on him. They continued. Now, they were out of the fight and were advancing on him, wands directed at him. They both yelled, "Avada Kedavra," at the same time. Damien rolled out of the way, pulled two vials out of his potions jacket, and threw them at the deatheaters. The two vials shattered at the deatheaters' feet and there was a violent explosion, knocking the two into two other death eaters. Then he apparated to the other side of the battle. They were still fiercely engaged, and payed little heed to the unconscious deatheaters.

He ran to the door he saw the man carrying the young woman through. He blasted it off of its hinges and looked inside. The man was there, kneeling over the now unconscious young woman. There was also a hooded man in the corner, talking to a young boy. He seemed to be only eleven. What was this young boy doing this close to the battle? It didn't matter, for the man turned, and whether it was reflex, or malice, Damien did not know. All he knew is that he heard the man yell "Stupefy" and then Damien was on the ground, unconscious.

[*Riley*]

The man had just blasted a figure, he looked remarkebly like the person he had probably killed.

"Why did you do that!" said Liam half stunned

But the man didn't reply he just stared at the unconcious man lying on the floor.

[Ms. Elsewhere]

Geneve's eyes fluttered from the light of the curse that rendered the new comer unconcious. Nikolaus looked down at her, aware that she was stirring. Geneve was torn between the need to wake up, and the need to remain seperate from the thing that was slowing consuming her. She dreamed, and in her dream she was Geneve again; an 11 year old first year student at Hogwart's, nearly discovering that she was a witch, meeting new people. And then there was this person in the darkness with her, frightening her by lingering in the shadows, stepping forward every now and then, watching her from some light coming in through dusty windows. Geneve screamed, "Leave me alone!" A cold shrill laugh echoed in the room. It was inhuman, it was madening. She felt herself letting go of her sanity. Then, suddenly, her eyes tore open and she was staring up into Nikolaus's concerned face.

[salemboy]

"Uhhhhhhhhhhh," Damien said as he opened his eyes. His chest was sore from where the curse had hit him, and he was sure it was bruised. Then he realized where he was and jumped up, wand aimed at the man who had cursed him. He saw that it was his own dad.

"WHAT ON EARTH WAS THAT FOR?!!" he yelled. He kept his wand ready as he checked his potion jacket for any broken vials. Two vials of vinegar were all that were broken. He sighed in relief. If certain vials were broken and the contents mixed, it would be disastrous. He repaired the broken vials, and put the vinegar back in them. Then, having second thoughts, he took the second vial and drank the vinegar. He shivered as it went down his throat, but it woke him up the rest of the way.

Then something came from the young woman. She screamed out, "Leave me alone!" and then started to laugh maniacally. Damien recognized that laugh. It was a hard, cold, icy laugh. He knew that laugh, because he heard that same laugh from Voldemort. As he recalled the memory, and what Voldemort had done to him, he turned to the woman. There was the man kneeling over her. But then he saw the woman's face again, and he forgot everything else. He forgot his father, Suge, Tomo, Potter, and even Japan. All he remembered was Voldemort and what he had done to him.

He remembered how he had been on his knees pleading. Begging Voldemort not to kill her, crying for him not to kill her. Then Voldemort laughed, and killed her. Like that. He remembered seeing her cold eyes looking at him, dead, almost accusing him of not trying to save her. He remembered that cold, evil laugh.

Damien drew his wand, and used it to slam the man kneeling over her out of his way and into the wall, and advanced on the woman. He was going to finish this. He was going to use the words he'd saved for Voldemort, and only Voldemort. This had to end. He had to have his revenge. He looked down on the young woman, and directed his wand at her. He looked into her eyes, wanting her to know the hatred and anger he felt. Then he saw something. It was in her eyes. It was fear. Not the fear Voldemort could feel, he had an almost pitiful fear, but was to prideful to show it. This was different. He saw the fear of a young girl, not of a sadistic killer.

Then he realized it, no matter how much he hated it. He could not kill this girl. She was not Voldemort, no matter how much Damien wanted her to be. He would never get his revenge, for Voldemort was dead. This was not Voldemort, and even though she seemed in many ways to be him, he saw still a child. Still, even though she was not Voldemort, Voldemort had some type of hold on her which Damien could feel. He turned his back on her. Then he left the house. Suddenly, people apparated in a circle around the death eaters, who were still fighting, and the fight continued with more verocity. Damien recognized the newly apparated wizards as members of his order. Damien joined the fight, ducking and weaving, and cursing. As he was fighting he saw death eater by death eater go down, unconscious, until there was one left.

This last one was fighting with a fierceness that was terrifying. Everybody, Potter, his friends, Damien, his order, were all cursing at him, but each curse failed to incapacitate the deatheater. Eventually, Damien found that even more death eaters were apparating in, and the fight suddenly became ten times more hectic. Damien found himself fighting alongside Ryu, one of his best friends. Ryu was laughing at the death eaters. Damien took down yet another deatheater and laughed himself. They started systematically taking down deatheaters, some of their allies actually standing by to watch. They started cracking jokes in Japanese as they fought. Damien thought it was ironic. Most Aurors who're in their forties were all serious, yet here they were, making fun of people who could easily kill them.

Finally, it was over. The deatheaters were out cold, and every one else were sweating like pigs. Laughing, Damien looked around for Suge. He couldn't see him. He called out, "Suge?" He didn't come. He called him again, and again, and again. Nothing. Now, very panicked, he dashed over to the house where the man was at. Suge had to be in there. He had to be.

[DucksRMagical]

Neville was the first one to barge into Galena's new office, followed quickly by the remaining professors. Slughorn brought up the rear, panting slightly. Every single professor stopped in their tracks when their eyes came upon the portrait of the dead headmaster.

"Prescott?" Neville whispered.

Galena stood up from her chair with a grave expression on her face. She quickly conjured a few more chairs and gestured for her staff to sit down before she explained. Once they were sitting, she began. "There is a fight going on in Hogsmeade."

"Does this have to do with your and Valencia's disappearance?" Neville asked.

"Yes, as well as the three first years, Geneve, Liam, and Arthur here," Galena gestured to the trembling boy beside her. "Valencia was kidnapped. I, the headmaster, and the three first years went to rescue her. As it turned out, this was much more complicated than we had thought..." Galena went on to explain everything that had happened between Valencia's disappearance and when they returned to Hogsmeade. "Prescott was killed, although I am not sure who did it."

There was a collective gasp from the rest of the professors. They all started whispering amongst themselves. A few were angry, but most were just saddened by Prescott's abrupt murder.

"Quiet," Prescott said from his portrait, "Galena is Headmistress now. You will listen to her."

The room fell silent again. "Thanks," Galena whispered, "Like I said earlier, the fight has moved to Hogsmeade. I believe the students are perfectly safe so long as they remain in the castle. I am not sure what is going on with the fight. I came here as soon as I returned to the village. Harry Potter is there and I am sure he has summoned a few more Aurors-"

"Harry's there?" Neville stood up abruptly, "I'm leaving to help him."

"Very well. I was hoping you would volunteer," Galena responded. Neville nodded and fled from the room, already brandishing his wand. "I need at least four of you to remain here, but the rest of you may go fight, and I highly recommend you do. Any volunteers to stay behind?"

Slughorn, who was starting to feel the affects of old age, immediately volunteered to stay behind, as well as Trelawney. The rest were more reluctant, but eventually the Astronomy and Ancient Runes teachers gave in and said they would stay behind as well. Galena told them to spend the night patrolling the corridors and to alert her about anything suspicious. The four of them nodded and left the room.

"I will meet you in Hogsmeade," Galena told them, "I'll be down shortly."

The remaining professors nodded grimly and left to prepare for the battle.

[salemboy]

Damien had almost reached the door when he heard a harsh voice from behind, "Looking for this?" He whipped around and pointed his wand in the direction of the man who said that. It was a masked deatheater, and he was holding Suge by the scruff of the neck. Suge was starting to screech in terror. It wriggled around, trying to get away.

Damien was thinking of curses when the deatheater said, "Curses won't help you, or potions in fact. I'll have moved your vermin in the way before you finish the incantation." Then Damien realized that he wasn't protecting his mind. The man knew Legilimency. Damien blocked his mind, now thinking how he would get Suge away. Before he could do anything though, the air grew cold, Damien shivered as it settled upon him. Then it became black. No, he thought. NO!

Then he half way heard the man say, "Imperio," and then, "Engorgio." Damien no longer felt happy. He no longer had the will to live. Then he saw it again. He saw him laughing. He saw him kill her. Damien tried to think of a happy thought. He thought of Hogwarts and said in a small voice, "Expecto Patronum." Nothing. Everyone else was trying it, but nothing. He heard her scream as the bolt of green blasted across the room. "NO!" He yelled. He thought of Japan, and he said with more force, "Expecto Patronum." A tiny wisp. That wisp illuminated the area around him slightly, and he saw something. It was of the human shape except larger, and it was now breathing heavy.

Damien ignored this and thought of his broomride with his father, and said even more forcefully, "Expecto Patronum." It gave an a barely brighter illumination. Then he saw Suge. But it wasn't the Suge he was used to. It had grown, and it took more of the physique of a gorilla than a spider monkey. This wasn't a vision though. This breathing monster was actually Suge. Then Suge attacked. It slammed its shoulder into Damien's chest, knocking him several feet through the darkness into a wall. Damien slumped to the ground blood trickling out of his nose, and his already bruised chest now having a stream of blood flowing out.

Then he heard somebody scream and drop to the ground. "NO!" he yelled again. The dementor had found a target. Then he felt it advancing upon him, not by seeing it, but by feeling the fear within him grow. Then he could feel it directly upon him. No! He would rather die than live with his soul in eternal torture. He reached into his potions jacket and pulled out two vials, intending to smash them together. He was half-way to his goal when a fleshy, cold, clammy hand seized his wrist. He tried to break the vials with his other hand bringing it two the hand holding them. Another hand grabbed his other wrist.

He couldn't think of a happy thought. All he could think of was eternal torture. Worse than death. Worse than death. Those were all the words that came to his mind. Then, he saw something. It made a silhouette out of the dementor. Then the light grew stronger and then a giant stag rushed up and knocked the deatheater from Damien. It hissed as it turned on the person who cast the spell. It was Potter. Damien looked at where he had heard the scream, and saw the deatheater, now maskless, with an undeniable expression of sheer terror etched permanently across his face. Suge, now normal sized, jumped onto Damien's shoulder, holding his wand for him. Damien took it and stood shakily.

As he did so the dementor turned on him again. But this time, Damien was ready. He thought of Suge, and of life, and how much Suge helped him and why he needed to fight. Then, with that, he yelled, "EXPECTO PATRONUM!!!"

[FawkesthePhoenix]

Valencia reached the fight just as the dementors started gliding in.
"Expecto Patronum!" she screeched, before they could affect her. A pearly white eagle flew out of her wand and streaked towards the dementors. Then Valencia ran into the fight, patronus by her side, wand up, to fight those who's fate could've been hers.

[Ms. Elsewhere]

Geneve took a sudden breath in as if it were the breath of life. Her blood boiled and it was all she could do not to leap out of her skin with the urgency that stirred inside her. She stood up and looked around. She found a window and looked outside. She could see the patronus Valencia had conjured, and it's brilliant light lit up the dark shop she was in. She held her hand up to shield her eyes. The slivery glow caught every shiny surface in the shop, and Geneve noticed a collection of vials on a surface near the window. She took one, uncorked it, and held it in both hands. Valencia's power was vibrating through the air as each ray of her patronus poured into the room. Geneve felt something inside her stir with excitement. "Foolish, emotional girl. You draw out your most powerful spells to help your friends, and you leave yourself open...." she heard herself utter, and then she started speaking a spell which caused her feel like she was lifting off the floor. The room started to shake and there was a wild wind stirring from the tips of her toes up into her hair. Threads of the patronus were pouring into the vial she held. She could hear shouts around her. Nikolaus? The voice inside her told her to smash the vial, as someone tried to touch her. She dropped it, and it smashed, sending the silvery strands of Valencia's magic rolling around her like smoke. She breathed in deeply, and then, as her feet touched ground again, crunching the glass from the broken vial, she suddenly felt an eerie calm. She looked to her left where Nikolaus stood, then to her right where the old man and Liam were staring. Then, it was like her vision glassed over, and she was thrown to the back of her mind, and a darkness took her visions place. She could only hear herself now, or rather, she could only hear what and who had replaced her. There was a terrible exploding sound, followed by a shrill laugh that tore itself from her lips. "Leave them. To the castle, NOW. " she commanded of the battlion outside. The remaining deatheaters, and the dementors retreated from the battle, leaving an eerie silence in their wake.
"What's going on?"
"Why did they leave?"
"Where did they go?"
"Are you alright? Look out, it's one of the first years..."
Geneve had walked out into the street. She smiled. "I knew I'd see all of you again. The next time I see you, I will be looking into your cold, dead eyes. You have not escaped Lord Voldemort. My plan will not fail. It never did. It only took your Next Generation to breed what was needed to finish you. " and she disapparated away...

[salemboy]

Damien leaned against the wall, dazed from his bleeding. The young woman hadn't reacted until the teacher had used her patronus. Could it be? Yes, he could see the resemblance between her and the photo of old Marcellus. He was starting to grow faint, and fumbled through his potions jacket. He tore open his shirt and poured the contents of the vial onto the cut, the wound closing in seconds. He was still dazed, but his blood would regenerate over time. He realized that his patronus, a mountain gorilla was still there. He cut the spell and petted Suge, who was still on his shoulder.

"Hey boy," he whispered. "How ya doin'?" then he stitched up his shirt and came to talk to Ms. Marcellus. He asked her, "What was that all about? How did Voldemort get a hold over that girl? Who is that girl?" His father came up beside him with a young boy.

"I'd like to know that too," he said. "But first tell me, what on earth is a young boy doing right next to a battle?"

[FawkesthePhoenix]

Valencia suddenly heard her patronus utter a cry. The girl was taking her magic. NO!!! every particle of her being screeched. Valencia fought to keep herself together, she was losing control, she was losing herself. Until.... until.... there. She grasped the last thread of magic just before it entered the girl. She was not invinsible, though she thought she was. The girl could still be stopped. She still wasn't complete. There could yet be hope. Valencia just had time to dimly realize that someone was talking to her, asking her a question about who the Dark Lord's granddaught was, before she crumpled to the floor, drifting away into a part of her mind where she was safe, where on one could touch her.

[Ms. Elsewhere]

Geneve reappeared just outside the castle grounds. She could feel the power that protected the castle. She put u her hands, and with a flick of her finger, the spell around it rippled like water and she walked into the grounds. She was back, here again on the outskirts of a battle that was once hers. ANd they had left the weakest here to protect the most powerful buiding in the wizard world. She could sense the inosence within. There would be no prisoners, no exceptions. She felt a ruthless reckoning burning inside her. She wanted a lesson to be learned. She wanted to burn it all down... but she held her power back, because she wanted Hogwarts for herself. She started to walk to the castle confidently.

[*Riley*]

The strange man had just wlked out of the shop to comfort the others...

Liam didn't know what everybody was fretting about, dementors made hm feel cheerful and happy. He didn't understand why people would want to drive them back. He knew this was Geneve's mistake, the connection she made with him was more dangerous then she thought.

His mother hurried over to him and soothed him, but she soon had to leave.. It was the full moon.

"Stay with these people Liam, your sister Victoire is in that castle safe, your father is looking tired I have to take him to the Whomping Willow" and with those final words she guided Liam outside to where the others were standing crowded around a whimpering thing.

"Bill.. no Bill , listen to me. Bill!" Fluer screamed as she kneeled next to him.

"Has anyone got a potion! Anyone?" she said with tears streaming down her face.

Salem slowly stepped forward,
"Please young man.. do you have anything to aid him" she said trying to sound polite in such an urgent situation.

He held out his hand and Fluer took a bottle full of whizzing black liquid, it looked like watered down licorice to her but she didn't care as long as it helped her husbandwho was in such agony.

[Ms. Elsewhere]

Geneve stopped in her tracks. She could feel something pulling at her, that odd little string unraveling in her mind. It was Liam. She sighed. Veela magic was essential to the transformation and power she needed, but it was as fickle as the heart was. She wanted her heart to be black, not soft and seeking like it turned when the Veela magic within her sensed the magic of another. She knew Liam was a liabiltiy, and so was his mother. Could she kill again? Could she look Liam in the eye and not let herself hesitate? She turned and looked back down the hill. She dissapparated, and reappeared next to Liam. He was on his own, watching in horror as his mother struggled with his father as he started to turn into a werewolf. No one had noticed her reappearance. She hissed a command under her breath to the wolf, "Kill her." Bill reached out and clawed at his wife, smacking her face with an deafening, sickening crack which caused her to fly to the side, the potion smashing across the cobblestones. Liam screamed no, just as Geneve wrapped her arm around him, and disapparated them back to the foot of the castle once more.

[*Riley*]

Liam found himself sat the fot of Hogwarts, Geneve towered over him when they were clearly the same height.

"Down on your knees you stupid boy" a harsh voice snarled, it wasn't Geneve's someone was trapped.. or someone was trapping her.

He obeyed, he kneeled in front of her as she pulled out her wand and without hesitation , uttered the two most chillng words..

"Avada Kadavra"

Liam felt pain hit his chest as he felt death overcome him, the green light vibrated through his blood. The pain made him want to tear his heart out.

But death wasn't as he expected he was still able to smell hogwarts, and whn he lifted his leg he saw Geneve standing there looking terrified.

He wasn't dead he knew that much... Was he like the famous Harry Potter, no he couldn't be, no one sacrificed themselves... Then it hit him like a bullet, he was part of Geneve, she couldn't kill him without killing herself. Voldemort still hd one horcrux and that was his heir.. Geneve.