Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Crossover ❯ Remus Lupin ( Chapter 17 )

Chapter 17

The call had come a few minutes after they had arrived "home". Such a nice concept: home. The peace of it hadn't even lasted a week (typical, in marauder fashion). The reason, though, was not as jolly.

Both his and Sirius' minds had flown to a single target: Harry. The child was bound to be thick on whatever mess Voldemort had cooked up.

The animagus reacted faster, and Remus found himself in awe of the change that had come over his last remaining friend.

Sirius had always been an extremely powerful wizard, a fact that had gotten him admitted into Auror training as soon as he had been released from Hogwarts. James had also followed that path, while Peter became a simple Ministry worker and Remus became a full time researcher under Dumbledore's command.

Now, he could see the Auror taking command once again.

Harry was in danger.

That simple fact awoke the wolf he usually kept hidden deeply within himself.

Harry was Prongs' child.

Harry was pack.

If he was injured, the wolf would claim blood that night. And Remus wasn't entirely sure that he could stop it, even if he tried to.

Wands in hand and dark cloaks around their necks, they both made the sprint towards a nearby apparition point. No words were needed between them. They both knew what they had to do.

Keep Harry safe. Do or die.

Failure wasn't an option.

They both arrived less than a hundred yards from where the Express had stopped.

Flames were already claiming the first two carts, and Remus had a feeling that they were desperately late.

The distinct lack of screams didn't help either.

The closer they got, the stronger the dark magic residue and the smell of death and pain became.

Small bodies were littered around the front of the train, pools of blood glittering in the golden light of the fire.

Twisted and mangled limbs, horrified expressions. A cruel battle had just taken place.

A very one-sided one.

Deatheaters against first years.

A poem he had read once came to mind, in a morbid sort of way, along with the full impact of the scene before him.

"Sugar, blood

Diamond and rose

Irony, scorn

And a body torn

Pooled on the ground

Taken his life

Ripped out a heart

No light to be found

Itsy, bitsy

Tiny soul

Scream in the dark

Wake up the ghoul

Laughing, crying

Irony and its child

Leave nothing untainted

And nowhere to hide"

This children hadn't had a chance nor a place to hide.

The unfairness of it all brought tears to his eyes. Memories of another scene of similar destruction threatened to choke him.

Lily and James had died in the same way. Tortured and murdered by Voldemort, betrayed by Wormtail.

And their beloved son was lost somewhere in the hell that now surrounded them.

Sirius was grim and methodical as he searched for signs of life.

A soft shake of the head told him just how fruitless that endeavor was.

A sudden bout of screaming came from the back of the train, adult screaming, and they immediately took of that way. . . and crashed into, of all people, Severus Snape.

The Potions Master looked like he had just been subjected to several rounds of Cruciatus.

-"Lupin. Black."

The fact that Severus almost sounded pleasant got raised eyebrows from both Marauders. Snape had been one of the staunchest supporters of Sirius being sent back to Azkaban, after all.

-"Report."

Sirius' cold voice snapped all of them back to the matter at hand.

-"The front is. . . clear, after a fashion. By the sound of it, Albus and the others are taking care of the back. Amanda needs medical attention, so I left her under the care of some of the students. I'm still in capable condition."

-"Remus?"

-"He reeks of Cruciatus. Has had five, at least."

Tenacious, indeed. Snape, though, seemed to be ignoring us.

-"Quiet a bit of the children managed to make it into the woods, at least by what we could tell. Most of them, though, Amanda sent towards the back while we did what we could on the front. Thank God Albus didn't tale long to arrive."

A sudden wave of air threw the potent stench of dead into Remus' nostrils.

-"Are you sure Dumbledore is here?"

That got him their attention.

-"Lupin?"

-"There's an assassin here."

-"You sure?"

-"Death, but no magic."

Both Sirius and Severus let loose with a volley of expletives that would have managed to get the usually stoic McGonagall to blush.

They all took defensive positions, even as the darker men kept up with their muttering.

Remus' brain was going into overdrive. Facts kept streaming through his mind and aligning themselves in an effort to solve the puzzle.

Assassin. Adults screaming.

No magic. Death.

Colonial children. A muggle war had just ended.

No magic.

Shit.

-"Sirius, the children."

Sharp glances.

-"What about them?"

-"Colonial children, you fools. Soldiers."

Dawning comprehension.

-"You think they'd take matters into their own hands?"

-"There was no magic, Siri. Not at all."

Severus growled something under his breath about swords and braided idiots, but marched decidedly towards the back of the train.

Both Marauders simply raised eyebrows at that and followed.

They had barely made it halfway there when they found themselves face to face with several Deatheaters. Some of them were coming out of the woods while the others jumped out of the train.

No time for niceties. Two Reducto's and an Avada Kedavra took care of three of them, while the others fired Petrificus Totalus, Impedimenta, Imperio's and several Avada Kedavra's. Remus ducked to the left, barely managing to get out of the way. Severus had also ducked to the right, but Sirius had been caught in between them and had been hit by Imperius.

Remus threw himself towards Sirius, just in time to push him out of the way of Cruciatus and to see Snape raise of the other side and fire an Incendio.

Two Deatheaters went up in flames and provided enough distraction for Remus and Sirius to join Snape and attack. The three Deatheaters left seemed to come to a consensus and Appareted.

This particular battle was over.

-"That was much too easy."

Nods all around and they picked up their pace. Something was very wrong.

At the end of the train, they came upon the other teachers while in the middle of loading the students into the horseless carriages.

Sirius all but Apparated to Dumbledore's side.

-"Harry. . .?"

-"Is fine, not even a scratch."

Both Marauders sighed in relief, much to Snape's contempt.

-"There is a small problem, though."

Poppy materialized at their side, obviously intent on giving them a checkup. Behind her came Amanda Hooch, head heavily bandaged. All three of the men remained stubborn in their denials of injury, especially Snape (even if he was shaking as the proverbial leaf).

-"What is it, Albus?"

The Headmaster suddenly aged before their eyes.

-"I believe we have bitten more than we can chew. More than even Voldemort would be able to chew."

The three younger men must have given him the same "Well?" sort of expression, since Albus simply turned towards the train and climbed inside. The trio hesitated slightly and finally clambered after the Headmaster.

The sudden stench of blood, pain and death that suddenly hit Remus' delicate senses sent him reeling into Severus. The other man barely managed to catch him, for which the werewolf was thankful.

Dear God!!! He had expected it, had even felt it, but nothing in his admittedly wild imagination could prepare him for it.

There was blood splattered everywhere! From top to bottom, the cart seemed to be painted the same nauseating shade of red. Bodies were piled messily along the corridor, most of them severely maimed.

Whatever had happened, it had been vicious, fast and bloody.

-"Which of the children was covered in blood?"

Sirius, unsurprisingly, had full stock of the situation.

-"Actually, none."

They all gaped at the man.

-"The students were clean, apart of those that were injured."

-"It's impossible."

-"Someone did this, alright. Most of the students that have been questioned agreed in their descriptions: small, dark cloak, swift as a shadow. No-one saw a face, not even a clue as to skin color. No use of magic, although obviously magical (after all, whomever it was could see the train). Just as obvious, this person was a professional. One of which we know nothing at all."

-"He was fast, came in as a surprise. Had a knife and a sword, at least. Also used his hands, there are several snapped necks. Professional indeed. The slashes are methodical, precise. Probably a martial artist. A really talented one at that."

Sirius turned haunted eyes from his exploration.

-"Petit and slender. Probably a teenager. A very small teenager."

Dumbledore nodded.

-"That'll help. Thank you, Sirius. Your expertise comes in handy at a trying time."

The animagus nodded, but his haunted expression remained.

Remus looked at him in concern. Sirius was keeping something back and it was obviously hurting him. Snape, too, looked as if there was something stuck inside his throat that desperately needed to come out.

As they exited, they caught sight of several centaurs that had arrived while they were conducting their inspection.

Magical, proud creatures as they were, they condescended to let the Hogwarts' teachers to ride on their backs.

The weary wizards and witches were left alone with their thoughts for the whole ride.

Hogwarts was silent.

Where they had expected to find frightened, noisy children in need of answers, they found empty, cold and silent corridors.

-"Where is everyone?"

-"Keep together. We don't know what may be awaiting us."

As a tight, virtually soundless cluster, they made their way towards the Great Hall.

From inside came the soft sound of people moving and, although puzzled, they all gave sighs of relief.

The remaining children were safe and Voldemort had been stopped again, even if at a terrible prize.

Gratefully, they pushed the great doors open and stepped into the Great Hall.

And froze.

The children were pushed tight together behind the Slytherin and Gryffindor tables. Their eyes locked on their professors in fright. Thick lines of Deatheaters kept them there.

And at the teachers' table, center front between his Inner Circle, sat Voldemort.

The doors closed with a resounding clang, trapping them all.

Voldemort cackled in triumph and Dumbledore told them to stay in touch of one another.

Sirius' hand in his own was warm, the animagus' eyes were locked on the small figure of his godson.

Harry looked intact, but both men knew that when it came to this particular Potter, appearances could (and would) be deceiving.

Voldemort began speaking about how almighty and victorious he was and then Remus felt it.

The sudden condensation of power around Dumbledore.

Voldemort and his Inner Circle obviously felt it too, because they all went for their wands.

That proved to be useless, as a golden glow surrounded the baffled teachers and the Great Hall disappeared.