Post by ADDMod on Jan 8, 2007 17:49:29 GMT -5
The moon shone, full and bright, spilling silvery light onto the sweeping lawns of Hogwarts Castle. Ravens screeched out a deathly serenade to the night, and a soft wind caressed the trees of the Forbidden Forest.
A young man strode down the slope, with the air of someone who was sure about himself, and knew precisely what he wanted and how he was going to get it. His pale skin gave out an ethereal glow in the moonlight, contrasting sharply against the darkness of his shining hair. His eyes glittered like black crystals, with a delicate trace of malevolence.
Five other seventh-year boys followed in their leader’s wake, their steps matching his exactly. They had their eyes fixed on the boy leading the way, watching him in silent wonderment. These six young men were the most intimidating, and desired, Slytherins in the school, and together they formed just a selection of a group called the Knights of Walpurgis. The more rebellious girls wanted them, and the younger Slytherin boys wanted to be them. These young men were:
Xavier Lestrange – the womaniser. Tall, dark and handsome, Xavier is the most popular with the ladies. Every single week, he has a different girl on his arm. However, he is not very good at treating them well. He is unfaithful, to say the least, and rarely gives anything away. This mysteriousness makes him all the more appealing, not to mention his coveted French-tinged accent.
Logan Dolohov – the spy. Logan is the spy for the Knights; able to infiltrate into any crowd without causing the slightest suspicion, he is a valuable member of the “gang”. Logan is a good-looking young man, although quite vain, yet does not have nearly as much of a “bed-hopping” lifestyle as Xavier.
Abraxas Malfoy – the pretty-boy. With his blond hair and sparkling blue eyes, Abraxas is the last person you would expect to be in the inner circle of the Knights of Walpurgis, judging by looks, of course. But do not be fooled by his innocent appearance though – Abraxas is a dab hand with a wand.
Meridian Avery – the gifted one. Meridian is the one with the perfect grades and the wonderful reputation with the teachers. But do not worry – as much as Meridian looks like the teacher’s pet, he has an evil streak which has surpassed many Slytherins’ expectations, and led to him rising to the inner circle of the Knights. And of course, his intelligence means that Meridian has probably the widest knowledge of curses out of them – excluding the leader.
Nathaniel Rosier – the short-fuse. The students have learnt to stay well out of this Knight’s way, for his temper is legendary. One wrong word can set him off, and Nathaniel is pretty handy when it comes to the Dark Arts. His rage has got him into deep water with the teachers on many an occasion, and he’s often in detentions for snapping at innocent passers-by.
Tom Riddle – the leader. Like Xavier, Tom is tall, dark and handsome, but the girls of the school are said to be too frightened of the attractive, orphaned Slytherin. Just his presence seems to make people shrink back. Tom has a love of control and suffering, and, while the other five may be his most trusted associates, he does not see them as friends. And even they are a little wary of his smooth promises and hypnotising politeness.
Tom turned to the others just outside the Forest, his dark hair lifting slightly in the chilly breeze. His eyes swept over Xavier, Logan, Abraxas, Meridian and Nathaniel, all of whom gazed at him, nervously wondering what their leader had planned. They stayed a few feet way from Tom, unsure about whether to get closer. He soon made that clear, however:
‘Gather round,’ he said simply, in his smooth, amiable voice, which the Knights knew disguised his deepest intentions and desires. The Knights took a couple of steps towards Tom, still wondering what on earth was going on. Tom being Tom, he had only given them tantalising hints. His lips curled slightly at he watched them, knowing they were confused.
‘Which of you want to know what we are doing here?’ he asked, almost curiously.
All five of the Knights muttered incoherently. Tom’s smile widened. His eyes gleamed, and he followed his question with another frustratingly unclear question:
‘Which of you would like to travel forwards in time?’
Xavier, Logan, Abraxas, Meridian and Nathaniel looked at Tom, perplexed. Their leader’s expression hardened slightly.
‘I said, which of you would like to travel in time?’ he repeated, his voice plainly saying that he was impatient, and wanted to get whatever he was planning over and done with. Again, the Knights mumbled. Tom smirked ever-so-slightly. ‘Well, that is good. Because we are going to do just that.’ As the Knights looked even more bemused, he rummaged around in his pocket, even managed to make that look elegant. He pulled out what looked like a long gold chain, until the Knights spotted the miniscule sand timer dangling at the end.
Tom untangled the chain with a triumphant expression on his face. Finally, Meridian Avery spoke:
‘How exactly did you come to have this in your possession, my Lord?’
Tom’s smirk widened. ‘A third-year volunteered to take it from the Headmaster’s Office for me,’ he said austerely. The Knights knew exactly what that meant – a young student had been controlled under the Imperius Curse and forced to steal the Timeturner. Their admiration of Tom deepened, as it did every single day.
‘Where are we travelling to, my Lord?’ asked Xavier, in his subtle French accent, brushing his dark hair out of his eyes. Tom looked at him.
‘1977,’ was all he said.
‘Why 1977?’
Tom sighed, fixing Xavier with a firm, unyielding gaze. He did not like having answers demanded off him by his own Knights. ‘Because I feel an urge to go to 1977,’ he said in a voice that was just like a sudden gust of icy wind. ‘Do any of you have any protests? If you do, please feel free to speak out.’
The Knights shook their head, glaring at Xavier for his curiosity. Tom returned to the chain, lifting it up, and almost lasso-ing it over the Knights’ heads. They huddled closer, feeling quite uncomfortable so near to Tom, yet they could not tear away their eyes from the Timeturner being turned over three (and one-half-turn) times clockwise, indicating that they were to travel forwards three decades, three years and eleven months. The last thing the Knights experienced before the ground vanished from beneath them was Tom’s cool, almost minty, breath, and a sudden feeling of foreboding, as well as a rush of excitement, just as a crash of thunder rumbled over the mountains surrounding Hogwarts
September 1977
The Marauders’ last year at Hogwarts has begun smoothly. James Potter and Sirius Black are looking forwards to returning to their positions of school pranksters, and making this year even more chaotic than the last. Remus Lupin is looking forward to the first lessons of their seventh year, and Peter Pettigrew is, well, looking forwards to fawning over James and Sirius again. Though, of course, nothing can go smoothly.
The evening of the Welcoming Feast – the students and staff alike were stuffed to bursting with the delicious food delivered by the ever faithful house elves, and everyone is waiting to return to the comfy beds that the school has to offer.
Thunder suddenly exploded almost directly over the school, making the younger students scream, and the elders laugh. The sound of rain hammering on the roof and windows followed, and the enchanted ceiling showed an abnormally stormy sky, where it had been a deep, clear blue only minutes before.
The doors opened with a loud bang. Heads swivelled, and the Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, stood up in disbelief as he recognised the soaking young man stood in the doorway, his Slytherin robes absolutely drenched, his dark hair plastered to his head. Five other boys in wet Slytherin robes stepped up behind the first, slightly malevolent expressions disguising the confusion still there from before they had left 1943.
Lucius Malfoy, Stefan Avery, Evan Rosier, Rodolphus and Rabastan Lestrange and Antonin Dolohov stared in disbelief as they saw their teenage fathers stood in the doorway, larger than life, with another eighteen-year-old whom only Dumbledore seemed to recognise.
This boy took out his wand, and dried himself in a matter of seconds, seeming unperturbed by the stunning gazes he was getting. Now dry, he slipped his wand back in his robes, and made his way calmly towards the staff table, where he stood in front of the Headmaster, ignoring the other teachers, who gawped at him, obviously wondering who he was, and why he was there. A smile curled his lips as he looked directly at Dumbledore, their eyes locked together. It seemed to take a while for Dumbledore to register that he was actually real.
‘Tom,’ he almost gasped, in bewilderment. His crystal blue eyes roved over the other newcomers. ‘Meridian … Logan … Xavier … Abraxas … Nathaniel … what are you all –?’
Tom smiled at him. ‘Why, we fancied a spot of time travelling, Professor,’ he said calmly, showing him the Timeturner. ‘I must say that Professor Dippet does not hide these very well, does he? My puppet found it incredibly easily, and she was not the brightest girl alive.’
Tom was still ignoring the whispers and gawps he received, as were the other, although obviously they were oblivious to the fact that each of them had their own children seated at the Slytherin table
Up at the staff table, Tom pocketed the Timeturner again, and said with a smile, ‘And the best part is, Professor, you cannot turn us away. We have come here as seventh-year Slytherins – and so we count as Hogwarts students. I’m sure the public would not like to hear that the Headmaster turned away six students during their NEWT year, would they now?’
Albus gazed at Tom, still unable to believe his eyes, but obviously not that surprised that Tom had managed to acquire a Timeturner. He seemed defeated by Tom’s oh-so-truthful words.
‘Very well,’ he muttered. ‘You and your fellows will take up residence in the dungeons with the rest of the Slytherins.’ He seemed far from happy to see Tom again (not least accompanied by five of his most trusted associates, who were, at that time, the most dangerous Death Eaters around, especially as his older self was on a killing spree, and had murdered dozens of innocent people that summer.
So it was. Tom Riddle, Xavier Lestrange, Logan Dolohov, Abraxas Malfoy, Meridian Avery and Nathaniel Rosier joined the Slytherins of 1977. But it would not be that simple.
When Lord Voldemort receives wind of his younger self being at Hogwarts, he sets about formulating a plan to rid himself of the teenage him – worried that he might try to take his power. He sets about trying to find a way of sending the eighteen-year-old version of himself back to 1943, and to keep it there.
But that will not be very easy. Tom is in 1977 for a reason, and he wants to find his older self, and discover some information that he has not found out at this younger age. And we all know how determined he is. When two versions of Tom Riddle go to war – we can expect carnage.
Not to mention the Knights that travelled with Tom – they end up sharing a school with seventh-years who claimed that they are their sons! Soon, Xavier is bedding all the women, Meridian is beating even James, Sirius and Remus in lessons, Logan is spying on the other houses, Abraxas is being his normal pretty-boy snake self, and Nathaniel is terrifying younger students with his volatile temper.
Things are going to get messy. And very soon. Can anyone sort out this trouble, or will chaos claim the world, as daylight dies?
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