by Lisette: Lisette_an@hotmail.com

Legalese: The television series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and all related characters and material belong to Joss Whedon and UPN.  All things Harry Potter belong to JK Rowling.  I claim ownership solely of the story idea - no profit will be made by this.

Author's Note: Yikes!  I can't believe that we're up to chapter 14 already - and a fun chapter to write, at that!  In other words, things are about to pick up - and because there was so much action to shove into such a small space, I had no choice but to break the event into two large chapters.  So, despite the fact that this is a holiday for most this coming weekend, I'll try and get the next part up asap - however, a little encouragement never hurts, either! ;p Also, another round of thanks need to go out to Kiwi, Rob, Jeanne, Harry, Empress, Rosie, X-Lander, Tara, Claddagh, Gaeriel Mallory, Lady of Hogwarts, buffy addict, Lala, Lynn, poppie, Pan, and Saturn Maiden.  I seriously wouldn't be posting nearly this quickly if it weren't for your encouragements!  Thank you!  Oh - and thank you for withholding the flames for killing off the twins.  It was really hard to do, because I seriously love their characters in the books, but it was unrealistic to think that no one from their little group had been taken in the war.  Just be glad that I settled on the twins instead of my initial thought to have it be Hermione. ;p

KaylsDaeAlMon: Although I can't say for sure what JK Rowling has in store for Dumbledore, I assure you that my headmaster is completely benign.  He pushed that wizard for the minister's position because he thought he was the best man for the job - which makes it all the worse to think that he could be working for Voldemort, whether of his own will or not.  Such is an example of the hard and dark times they are all living in.

Angel: Welcome back and of course you were missed!  I hope that this chapter is a good enough welcoming back treat!

"When tempest-tossed, embrace chaos."
-The Book of Counted Sorrows -

    Okay, so she lied.  Lied big time.  Not like she'd never done that before.  Sighing softly, Buffy finished buttoning up her heavy khaki cords and then pulled the black long-sleeve cotton shirt over her head, absently twisting her long blond hair back in a loose French twist before bending down to retrieve her Docs.  And to think that Giles had nearly fainted at the price of the trendy shoes - but come on, steel toe, 'nuff said.  Smiling at the memory, she hummed absently to herself as she strapped a small dagger to the small of her back, securing another one against her ankle, and then grabbed her matching down vest, checking to make sure all the appropriate weapons were stashed in their normal places before asking the torch to douse itself, cloaking the room in shadows.

    Earlier that evening she had outright lied to Dumbledore and Giles when she said that Voldemort knowing about her and trying to kill her meant nothing.  Because it did mean something.  Just not the something that Giles and Dumbledore were thinking of.  After all, she was being honest when she told them that she wasn't frightened at the thought of mean old Moldy Wort setting a trap for her - trying to kill her.  After all, as she had stated plain enough, been there, done that too many times to even try counting.  However, what did worry her was the thought of Giles being outside with her and getting hurt in that trap.

    Sighing, Buffy stilled with her hand on the handle of the door, her features creased in a tired frown.  It was still far too easy for her to remember that night - the night that her life changed forever.  She hadn't seen it coming, and perhaps that was the worst part.  She had come home, just like any other night, only to find a strange car in the driveway.  From there, things only went downhill as Mr. Lyle shot her so full of those damn drugs that she couldn't do anything against him... couldn't do anything to prevent him from pulling that trigger.  With two shots Lyle had ended her mother's life in a spray of blood on their cream-colored walls.  She had died that night because of her - because of who she was.  And the hell if she'd ever lose anyone that she loved again because of that fact.

    Strengthening her resolve, Buffy tightened her grip on the handle and turned it slowly, cracking the door to their shared room.  And as the sound of Giles' soft snoring met her ears, Buffy released the breath that she hadn't consciously realized that she had been holding, a grim smile lifting her lips.  Pushing the door open, she crossed into the room and moved to her Watcher's side, his body slumped over the large desk, scrolls and books scattered before him.  As she picked up his forgotten cup, empty now of tea, Buffy realized once again how she'd really have to thank Hermione for the sleeping potion that she had supplied just a few short hours ago.  That the girl had been suspicious was without doubt, but in the end she had relented and had fetched the potion that she had been talking about a few days earlier - and the obvious results proved that the proud Gryffindor truly did know her potions.

    Pushing her thoughts away, Buffy gently reached down and lifted her watcher from his chair, dragging him into the other room and depositing his dead weight on the bed.  Quickly she bent down and unlaced his shoes, slipping them from his feet and retreating to snag a spare blanket from the other room.  As the heavy cotton material settled around his lean frame, Buffy leaned forward and gently pressed a kiss against his smooth forehead, smothering a smile as he snored in protest, shifting under the blanket. 

    "I won't let anyone hurt you," she promised, knowing without a doubt that her watcher was going to be mad as all out come tomorrow morning, but not really caring.  He'd have to forgive her in the end, because she'd already lost her mother to her duty.  She couldn't stand it if she lost him too.  That would be the final straw and she knew without a doubt that it would destroy her.  It was better for them both, then, this way.  "I love you," she whispered, voicing the words that both knew, but neither said.  Smiling once more, she cast the room into shadowed darkness and crept into the dark hallway beyond, her favorite sword held in hand.  She had a job to do.

    The infirmary was quiet at this time of night, Madam Pomfrey having shooed away the concerned hordes that crowded around Harry's bed - somehow managing to convince all of his well-wishers, friends and guardians alike that rest was the best medicine for the feeling that his head was was about to be cleaved in two.  Which left him in one of the places that he hated most.  Groaning, Harry allowed his eyes to trace over the stones that made up the room's ceiling, the ward quiet and the beds empty around him.  In the past seven years that Harry had attended Hogwarts, his visits to the Infirmary had been far too often for his liking.  Whether it be mind-numbing headaches from his scar or the regrowing and mending of bones from various Quidditch accidents, Harry had quickly come to detest the room and everything it stood for - not healing, but rather keeping him captive until his warden decided on a reluctant release.  Secretly, he was sure that Madam Pomfrey would keep him in in the large room forever if she had her way.

    Sighing, Harry pushed the thoughts away and instead focused on what had brought him to this place: his vision, of course.  So Voldemort knew that something was destroying his forces in the Forbidden Forest and was having Draco's dad send something out there to stop it... to stop her.  Buffy.  In his brief moment of lucidity before darkness swept him away, Harry clearly remembered Buffy's beautiful green eyes staring down at him, eyes filled with such concern and horror - concern and horror for him, the freak of the Boy Who Lived.  It had been a while since he'd had a vision and no one had thought to mention that oddity that made up one Harry Potter.  Well, now there was no hiding the fact. 

    Sighing once more, Harry slowly rolled over on the small bed, careful not to jostle his glasses.  Idly he wondered which he would get from Buffy - the pity or the distance.  After all, it was always one or the other.  When people learned about all the great stuff that comes with being the Boy Who Lived, it either freaked them out and they began keeping their distance or else they looked at him with that horrible expression - the pity nearly suffocating him.  He didn't need their pity.  He didn't need anyone's pity.  And seeing as how Buffy seemed pretty accustomed to weird stuff, he knew it was the pity that he'd be getting.  And to think that things had been going so well between them...  Smiling softly, if Harry closed his eyes, he could almost imagine the feel of her small arms wrapped around his waist as the wind whipped past them, the sound of her laughter echoing in his ears...

    "Harry, are you awake?"

    Startled, Harry quickly rolled over and sat up, absently adjusting his glasses on the bridge of his nose while his other hand tried to smother his wayward black hair.  "Hermione?" he asked, eyes locking on his best friend's slender figure as she parted from the shadows and tiptoed to his bedside.  "What are you doing here?  If Madam Pomfrey catches-"

    "How are you feeling?" Hermione interrupted, her cheer obviously forced as she smiled nervously, her hands twisting her black robes that hung open over her skirt and blouse.

    "The smallest of headaches," Harry assured, eyes narrowing as Hermione's eyes seemed to look everywhere but at him.  "Madam Pomfrey is just being a dictator, as always," he added, a small frown touching his lips.  "But you didn't come sneaking in here to ask about my health," he continued, watching as Hermione flushed at his words.  "What's wrong?"

    For a moment, it was almost as though Hermione debated on saying anything, which was just ridiculous seeing as how she obviously came all this way to tell him something.  Then, with a dramatic sigh she rolled her eyes and brushed a wave of auburn hair from her shoulder.  "I'm sure it's nothing," she said, her tone belying her words.  "I just ran into Buffy after dinner," she continued, a small frown pulling at her lips, "and she was acting strange, even for her."

    Ignoring the slight, Harry felt his frown mirror his friend's.  "Strange how?"

    "Well, she asked for a small bottle of sleeping potion, of all things," she whispered, obviously trying to play down the importance of such a strange request.  "Said some nonsense about not being able to sleep well at night," she added, hazel eyes finally meeting his.  "I... I just thought you'd want to know."

    "Harry, dear, who are you talking to?"

    Eyes going wide at the sound of the nurse's voice, Hermione waved a hasty goodbye before beating a quick retreat, her tall form slipping through the door and into the hall just as the nurse stepped from her office at the far end of the ward.  "Uh - Dobby," Harry quickly called out, hoping that he wasn't getting the little house elf into trouble.  "He was just making sure that I didn't want anything from the kitchens," he fibbed, forcing a bright smile that seemed to put the witch at ease.

    "Well, just be sure that you get some rest," she called out, shaking her head slightly before turning on her heel and returning to her office, the door closing softly behind her.

    "Not that there's anything better to do," Harry muttered crossly, alone in his solitude once more.  Sighing, he slowly leaned back into the soft pillows propped behind him, his mind wandering to Hermione's words.  So Buffy wanted a sleeping potion because she wasn't sleeping well at night.  He wasn't surprised at that admission, but the part that caused a tight ball of dread to form in his stomach - most likely the same thought that broughht Hermione out past curfew to give him the message - was the fact that because Buffy was a Slayer, magic didn't affect her like it did everyone else.  A sleeping potion would do nothing for her.  Which begged the question, why did Buffy want one when she was well aware of that fact?

    Frowning, Harry allowed his gaze to drift to the tall window that was set into the wall beside his bed.  Pushing the covers aside, Harry slipped from his warm bed and padded over the cold stone floor until he stood before the glass, his breath fogging the window before him.  Not really knowing what he was looking for, Harry pressed his forehead against the cool glass, relishing in the cold against his aching head, eyes drifting over the dark Hogwarts' grounds - and freezing as they caught on the small shadow that moved away from the castle and towards the edge of the Forbidden Forest.  The lone, small shadow that was without her usual watcher escort.

    "Bloody 'ell," he cursed, borrowing Ron's trademark words as he quickly turned away from the window, everything falling into place in a sickening manner.  Buffy drugged Giles so she could escape his overprotective reach - so she could face Voldemort's minions on her own.  Feeling a spark of anger burn within him, Harry couldn't help wondering if she was overly confident or else very stupid with a death wish.  Whatever the case may be, he had to do something, and fast before she got herself killed.  Hurrying to his bedside, Harry's hand closed around the smooth length of his wand even as he substituted his pajamas for his clothes from earlier that day. 

    "Accio invisibility cloak!" he hissed, waving his wand and flicking it just right as he moved towards the infirmary door.  He just had to hope that both Sirius and Remus were asleep already, or else the sight of his invisibility cloak freeing itself from wherever Sirius had hidden it was going to give them one heck of a surprise.  Smiling at the thought, Harry tiptoed towards the door and then slipped into the darkened hallway, just in time to catch the cloak as it tumbled into him in a sheet of silvery material.

    "If I'm going to break the rules, might as well do it right," he murmured with a small smirk before taking off down the familiar halls.  It had been too long since he had sneaked out of the castle.  Too long and at the same time, not nearly long enough.

    With the stealth of a predator in her element, Buffy crept beneath crooked branches and over gnarled roots, her steps light and sure and her sword held ready in one hand.  Usually her nights were about making the most noise possible, trying her best to draw every creepy crawly in her direction so she could fulfill her nightly slay quotient.  No longer.  The simple fact that Voldemort had his goons out in the forest waiting on her arrival ensured that this would be a different night with different tactics.  No, she'd rather pinpoint their location and ambush them rather then walk into their trap.  After all, even though she had fervently denied it just a few short weeks ago, she wasn't completely without strategy and she did use her head when circumstances called for it - as they did this night.

   No, this night was about cloak and dagger and having her finely tuned senses tuned to the... er, finest.  Wrinkling her nose at her inner dialogue, Buffy quickly forced her mind back on the present danger that she was, per usual, throwing herself into.  With a grim smile, she stilled her steps and closed her eyes, allowing her keen hearing and that innate other sense to sweep the area around her - and turning up one lucky hit.  Smirrking, Buffy continued walking forward, as though she were oblivious to the presence that she had felt, until she finally located a large enough clearing for the confrontation that she had been looking forward to all evening.  Stilling once more, Buffy allowed all of her senses to awaken as she focused on that single bead of energy - a familiar bead of energy.  No, a very familiar bead of energy.

   Scowling, Buffy lowered her sword and turned, her eyes searching out the dark night and quickly coming up empty.  Confused, she felt her brow tighten, wondering for the briefest of moments if she had been mistaken.  But it took only one more feel with her senses to know that it was impossible for her to be wrong.  "Okay, Harry Potter, I don't know why I can't see you, but I know you're there," she stated, her voice quiet yet carrying in the dark clearing as her eyes stared directly at an empty spot a few feet before her, her senses finally pinpointing his location.

   For a moment, the silence endured, only to be shattered by her muffled gasp as Harry's head suddenly appeared out of nowhere, floating in midair.  Nearly falling to the ground in her shock at the strange sight, Buffy slowly gathered her wits and then began advancing on the floating head, her eyes wide.  "How'd you... what.." she stammered, tentatively reaching out a small hand and poking it hard against, what looked like nothing, but what felt like Harry's chest.  "I don't understand," she murmured, her voice filled with awe as she finished the distance between them, both hands splayed across what had to be Harry's chest.

   "It's an invisibility cloak," Harry explained, finally getting over his confusion at being caught as he gently caught her hands in his, squeezing them briefly as her eyes lifted from the odd sight of his hands floating before her, to meet his own emerald gaze.  "But how did you know I was even there?" he asked before curtly shaking his head.  Stupid question.  He should have known that a Slayer would be able to sense his presence - to somehow hear his awful attempts to follow her in the dark woods.  Instead, he had a better question.  "How did you know it was me?"

   "I could feel you," Buffy answered simply, shrugging her small shoulders as her eyes swept over him once more, hands creeping down to finger the invisible cloth that cloaked his lean form.  "I can always feel the magic," she continued absently, plucking the material and rubbing it between her fingers, watching the way it seemed to bend the moon's light around it.  "But you feel different than the others.  Like Dumbledore, but not," she added, pausing only as his hands caught hers once more.  Startled, Buffy looked up into Harry's brilliant green eyes, his glasses reflecting the bright moonlight through the branches high above... branches... woods... Forbidden Forest.  Jerking back, Buffy felt her lips turn down in a fierce scowl.  "Harry, what are you doing out here?" she asked, her tone sharp.

   "I could ask you the same thing!" Harry quickly retorted, the magic broken as his hands disappeared under the cloak, crossing his arms stubbornly across his chest - a move that he realized that she wouldn't be able to see.

   "Hello, Chosen One, remember?" Buffy asked, glaring at him as she angrily lifted her sword.  "This is my job.  It's what I do."

   "Alone?" Harry asked, knowing he had her as her face began to flush, her eyes looking anywhere but at him.  "Where's Giles?"

   Scowling at the teen, Buffy turned and looked back in the direction of the castle, so far away.  "Safe.  Where you should be," she stated, jabbing a finger angrily against his invisible chest - rewarded when he grimaced at the force behind the move.  It would bruise, she knew, and to be honest, at this point she didn't care.  "Harry, there's a reason that this forest is forbidden.  You're not supposed to be here.  It's... dangerous..." she murmured, her voice trailing away as her senses began to prickle.  Ooh, not good.

   "Exactly, which is why you should-" Harry began, his protest smothered beneath Buffy's hand as her green eyes swept over the dark woods that encircled them.

   "Shh," she shushed as she quickly reached forward, her free hand wrapping around the glimmering hood of the cloak and pulling it up and over Harry's head, making him fully invisible once more.  "We've got company," she murmured in way of explanation as she felt the different energies surround their position.  "And it doesn't feel like the good kind," she added, almost to herself as she turned, allowing her back to settle against Harry's invisible chest, lifting her sword before her.  "When the bad stuff starts, get low and out of the way," she murmured, trying to keep her lips from moving.

   But whatever response Harry was going to give died away as a low hissing filled the clearing.  Stiffening, Buffy slowly turned, feeling Harry match her movements as she tried to pinpoint the direction of the sound.  It was hard, though, because there were too many things out there - it was confusing her senses.  She felt power - dark power from a number of different soources - but a power that felt human.  Felt wizard.  And then there was the something else - a few something elses that included the unmistakable feel of a vampire or two and then... well, something not good.

   "It's a basilisk," Harry whispered, answering her unasked question, his breath hot against her ear.  "Close your eyes," he added, his voice tight.

   Instantly Buffy complied with the warning, ridiculously thankful to her Watcher for all of the time she spent training blindfolded, honing her 'better' senses.  "A what?" she hissed back, suddenly wondering if the sword and her daggers were going to be enough.  Vampires.  Great, and she didn't even think to bring along Mr. Pointy.  Apparently, decapitation would have to be the trick of the trade tonight.

   "A basilisk," Harry's voice repeated, from what felt like scant inches from her ear.  "It's a giant snake-like creature with poisonous venom and if you look into its eyes, you'll die."

   Shuddering at his wonderful description, Buffy felt her hands tighten on the helm of her sword.  "Okay, when you say giant snake-like creature," she returned, feeling the sweat slicken her palms, "are you talking giant mayor-ascension giant or just boa giant?"

   "Let's just say that the one I faced in second year was about the length of the quidditch pitch," the whisper returned, causing Buffy to grimace.  And then, as the hissing continued, Harry quickly hurried on.  "It says that Voldemort sent it here - sent them all here.  They're to stay in the Forbidden Forest, waiting for Voldemort, and then they're going to strike against the school."

   Bewildered, Buffy couldn't help her skepticism at his words.  "And how can you possibly know this?"

   "I'm a parsel tongue."

   "A partial what?"

   "I can speak to snakes," Harry returned, as though the answer was completely obvious.  Which, of course, it wasn't.

   "Oh... uh, neat," Buffy deadpanned, forgetting to muffle her words as she sighed in exasperation at the teen that was pressed so closely against her back.  First mind-numbing visions, invisibility cloaks, and now snake-talk.  She had to wonder what else the Boy Who Lived had forgotten to fill her in on.

   "They don't know what you are," Harry continued, listening as the basilisk hissed from somewhere in the dark shadows that surrounded them, "but they've been ordered to find out and then... kill you."

   Snorting at Harry's words, Buffy quickly shook her head.  "Well you can tell the big snake-thingie to tell Moldy Wart that the Slayer is in town," she quickly countered, speaking loud enough that her voice rang out in the dark woods, "and that this is my forest now."  Smiling, Buffy opened her eyes, slowly lifting her sword before her.  "I'm perfectly willing to take down any big bad that comes my way," she added, a steel edge tingeing her words.

    But even before her words finished their quiet echo in the dark woods, a lone figure stepped clear of the shadowed depths, cloaked in black robes with a dark hood covering his face.  "So, Dumbledore found himself a Slayer," the man murmured, his voice cold as a hand slowly reached up and lifted the hood, revealing the pale and angular features of a stranger that was more boy than man, pale blond hair trailing over his sharp eyes.

    "One and only," Buffy quipped nonchalantly, lying through her teeth as she felt Harry draw in a hiss of breath behind her.  Ignoring him, she grinned brightly at the teen, eyes raking over his shadowed form.  He couldn't have been that much older than her, if he was older at all - yet his eyes held a look of smug superiority and a coldness that she could recognize all too well.  "And you must be one of those Death Eaters that everyone is always on about," she countered.  "A little young, aren't you?" she asked, unable to resist as she arched a slim brow at his form.

    "Old enough to handle the likes of you," the teen quickly retorted, his smile cocky as his eyes roved over her petite form.  "Draco Malfoy," he added, almost absently as his eyes finally lifted from her figure and settled on her face.  "And you are?"

    "The girl who's about to kick your ass all the way back to your Dark Lord," Buffy returned sweetly, slowly lowering her sword to her side.  Such a lethal weapon would definitely not be needed on the likes of him.

    "Hardly," Draco murmured, his voice filled with such disdain that Buffy felt herself stand even taller, her eyes flashing.  And then, with a ridiculous flourish the tall teen pulled a wand from somewhere within his dark robes, his eyes glinting in the dark night, oddly playing off of Buffy's skeptic arch of a brow.  With a grand wave and flick of the wand, a large smile lifting his lips, Draco called out one of his favorite curses - one that would surely land him in Azkaban should he ever be caught.  "Crucio!" his hissed, watching as the girl seemed to stumble slightly as the curse hit her before an irritatingly sweet smile lifted her lips.

    "Hmm, that kind of tickled," she laughed, parroting her words to Sirius Black of a few short weeks ago right into the Death Eater's face.  For a moment, she relished the utter shock and surprise that registered on the youth before he was joined by seven other men and women, all clothed in the dark robes of the Death Eaters - and that was before the scaly brown demon and the two vampires joined their sides.  Smiling, Buffy lifted her sword and swung it experimentally before her like a baton twirler in a marching band.  "I was hoping that you brought friends," she called out, ignoring the group's raised wands even as she felt Harry's warmth disappear from her back.  She'd just have to hope that he would stay out the way and out of danger.

    But even before she had time to truly voice that thought, she and everyone in the clearing were surprised by the voice that seemed to come from nowhere.  Buffy, however, was even more surprised by the result of Harry's cry of expelliarmus.  With what felt like a shockwave, all of the Death Eaters were effectively disarmed and thrown back into the trees, leaving Buffy with only the single demon and two vampires to play with.  Then, before anyone truly had a chance to recover from the shock, Harry cried out again from beneath his invisibility cloak, sheltered by the trees behind Buffy.  "Confundo!"

    This time, the effect was less apparent until her remaining opponents began to stumble around, looks of confusion upon their faces.  Grinning despite herself, Buffy threw a brief glance at where she knew Harry to be, sending a silent thanks before turning back to her bumbling opponents.  "Oh yeah, I got this one," she muttered as she quickly dodged forward, avoiding the vampires easily enough and aiming for the scaly demon.  She didn't recognize its type, but that fact alone made it her current greatest threat - best to neutralize it while she had the chance.  So, with an easy swing of her sword she parried off of its hard hide, ducked its stumbled swing, and lodged the blade into the thing's thick neck.

    Grunting, Buffy struggled to free her sword, all the while conscious of the vampire that was quickly shaking off Harry's hocus pocus and heading for her unguarded back.  Grimacing, Buffy finally relented her sword to the dead demon and snatched the dagger from the small of her back, swiveling towards her new threat even as Harry's voice rang out once again.

    "Locomotor mortis!" he called out, and almost instantly the vampire that was almost upon her did a face-plant at her feet, its legs locked together.

    Pausing only long enough to take in her downed opponent, Buffy continued her turn until she was faced in the direction of the other vampire who was only beginning to head in her direction.  Without pause she quickly pulled back her arm and released the dagger with a precision and force born out of her chosen duty, the knife lodging itself between the vampire's yellow eyes and sending him to the ground for the moment.  In full battle swing, she was already moving back towards the downed demon even before her blade struck home, planting one doc on the dead creature's chest and wrapping her small hands around her sword's hilt.  With a mighty heave, she managed to pull her sword free just in time to swing back and behead the vampire who was busy comically crawling towards her, its legs still magically linked together.

    As the vampire exploded into ash Buffy was off and moving across the clearing, launching a spinning kick at a Death Eater that was just regaining his feet.  As her foot connected with the person's jaw with a sickening crack that sent the human to the ground in an unconscious heap, she was already blocking the weak and clumsy swipe of another Death Eater, knocking her elbow back into his throat with a minimal of force, sending him beside his comrade, gagging pitifully.  Even as she moved she felt curse after magical curse crash harmlessly against her form as her eyes swiveled to a hooded woman a few feet away.

    "Yeah, like that worked so well before," she muttered, shaking her head ruefully as she launched a spinning roundhouse that connected with the woman's temple, sending her to the ground in yet another unconscious swirl of black robes.  It was obvious that these mighty Death Eaters were thrown by such fierce hand to hand combat - or any sort of combat, for that matter.  They were used to fighting with their wands and anything physical threw them.  Rolling her eyes, Buffy felt another curse strike against her back.  "Will you never learn?" she asked, beginning to turn towards the Death Eater who stood defiantly behind her when her senses began screaming at her.  Relying on instincts born and honed from years of battle, Buffy dove to the side and rolled, lightly springing to her feet and watching with wide eyes as a snake that was indeed around the length of the quidditch pitch struck at the ground where she had just been standing, its coiling body slithering from the woods and long, pointed fangs gnashing at the dark night.  Stumbling back, she watched as her previous opponent fell to the ground even though not a thing had touched him.  Instantly, she realized the man's mistake as she remembered Harry's earlier warning, her eyes quickly snapping shut as she lifted her sword high above her.  Now didn't seem like the best of times to test her immunity to all things magical.  "Harry?" she asked, her voice more of a whispered plea that her friend had another one of his little incantations up his sleeve.  Right now, she could do with about anything.

To be continued...