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Weapon	By : uqui Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Voldemort Views: 105432 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 26
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 27
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Note: There are two conversations happening here, the one between Remus and the Shadows, and the one between Sirius and the
Shadows. They are separate, and only Sirius and the
Shadows can hear all sides. Remus can't hear Sirius'
mental questioning of the Shadows.
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Weapon (Possession Chapter LXXIX)

Chapter XXVIII - Inviting Chaos

------------------------------
"I am here," Sirius said softly as his contact entered the small
clearing. He moved forward slightly to detach himself partially from the darkness.
The meeting was deep in the Forbidden
Forest. He was familiar
with the outskirts of the Forest but the
Shadows had lead him deeper into it that he had even
been. On the outskirts of the forest, the trees were well spaced, dry and there
was only sparse and well defined undergrowth. In this section the trees seemed
smaller, denser, their limbs tangled with each other forming a confusing and
almost impenetrable mass. Smaller brush formed the undergrowth and Sirius could
barely see ten foot passed the tree line in any direction. The whole place was
slick with water and he could smell the sharp odour of rotting plants from
where footsteps had disturbed the mass underfoot. He could hear the drip of
water patting softly to the ground.
He could see the stars here but it was dark, there was no moon but upon
seeing who he was to meet, he now knew why the Shadows had chosen a moonless
night.
The Shadows had asked for some of his time, saying that they needed to talk
with someone and that they thought it would be best if this time they had a
physical presence; and so now he was standing, cloaked in shadows, trying to
control his surprise as Remus flicked back his hood
to look directly at him.
/- Just follow our prompts, -/ the shadows murmured.
"I wanted some clarification," Remus
said without preamble. There was no need for introductions, not at this stage.
"I know."
"What is your offer, in your own words?"
/- Offer? -/ Sirius asked silently. /- I knew you were up to
something but this... you're trying to subvert the werewolves? -/
/- We prefer the term recruit. -/
/- Does Harry know? -/
/- Of course. -/
/- What's the offer? -/
/- Just let us talk. -/
Inwardly Sirius nodded. It would be quicker and easier if they did that, rather
than him continuously relaying their words. There was an odd shift in
perception and he heard himself speak. "My Master wants what has been
relayed to you."
"Just so that I'm clear then, please, tell me, as I have never directly
heard your offer."
"Ah..." the Shadows seemed amused but Sirius shared Remus' curiosity. He wanted to know what the shadows were
offering. He though, could always ask them why later. "We want the
werewolves' support. We would prefer if it was your passive support but we expect,
unfortunately that your support will require fighting in at least one battle.
We will specify that battle, and will accept that some will not wish to fight
but want at least fifty percent participation. The old, the young and those
females carrying young are excused. Apart from that battle, we want the public
acknowledgement of werewolf support. We don't expect you to say who you support
but we will expect it explicitly stated that the werewolves support neither the
Dark Lord Voldemort nor the Ministry Order of the Phoenix Alliance."
"That is a lot to ask," Lupin objected.
"We know."
"We?"
"We speak for our Master."
The werewolf frowned. "I was lead to believe I would be speaking with
your Master."
The Shadows hissed at the implied insult but quickly countered, prompting
Sirius to speak himself. "I rank equally with you
within our respective communities," Sirius said before he asked an
internal question. /- I do? -/
/- You do. We'll explain the werewolves later although you could probably
convince Remus with some pillow talk, -/ the
Shadows teased as they took control again.
Remus took the hint. "I apologise," he
said easily but sincerely. "The werewolves are not used to being dealt
with honourably."
"We apologise for any misconceptions."
"You are still asking for a lot."
"We know but we are offering what we believe to be an equal amount in
return and are open to discussions on many things to compensate."
"I know. You are offering sacrifices to swell our numbers, which will
appeal to those pack members who wish to follow the
Dark Lord. You are also offering Law Reform for those who wish to stay within
the system and from what I have seen your replacement laws do seem
equitable..."
/- That's a lot to offer, -/ Sirius murmured.
/- It had to be impressive to get their attention. -/
/- So you're not going to deliver it? -/ he asked with a disapproving
mental frown.
/- Of course we are, -/ the Shadows seemed offended but the animagus knew that it took a lot more than that to truly
offend them.
"...And finally," Remus said, "you are guaranteeing this with a blood oath."
/- Blood oath! -/ Sirius shrieked mentally.
/- It's no big deal, -/ the Shadows shrugged before speaking again.
"Did you want something else?" They asked with good humour.
Remus blinked. What else was there to offer? He
shook his head, there was no need to be greedy and the possibility could be
examined later.
"I realise that you shouldn't doubt an offer," he said honestly,
"but the werewolves have been betrayed so often and now you want something
very large from us so we need the reassurance that you can actually fulfil your
promises because if you can't we will have made enemies of both the Dark Lord
and Ministry and this is not something I will allow my people to risk lightly."
"The werewolves are lucky to have you as a leader," Sirius heard
his voice say as his mental eyes widened. Remus was a
leader? He knew Moony communicated with other werewolves but he'd never really
given it much thought. What was a leader of the werewolves anyway? They had a
structure that required leadership?
/- We'll explain later. -/
"We want the werewolves to hold neutral," the Shadows continued
speaking to Remus. "Until the battle where your
support is required, we will accept if the werewolves just wish to state their
neutrality. When the dust settles on this war our Master will stand as the
victor and we are giving the werewolves an opportunity to be associated with us
from the beginning."
"Yes, that is your intention and if it comes true you will be able to
deliver on your promises to my kind and we are thankful for the opportunity to
join with you but that doesn't explain how you will accomplish your
goals."
The Shadows, if they had of been able to would have smiled. "We are the
power that stands behind the Dark Lord, that rescued
him from Malfoy's Rebellion." The Shadows
stepped Sirius' body forward and he could see the werewolf's eyes widen in
recognition. Despite his best efforts there had been pictures taken of him in
the Atrium.
"That explains why I can't smell you," Lupin muttered.
/- We have completely hidden you, -/ the Shadow's reassured Sirius
before the werewolf continued.
"So why don't you support him?"
"We will but we support our Master above all else and in time the Dark
Lord will either accede to us or be destroyed."
/- Harry wouldn't allow that, -/ Sirius objected.
/- You know that, we know that but Remus
doesn't. -/
"If the Ministry and the Dark Lord toe the line so to speak, they can
both survive but given the adaptability of them both we rather imagine only
Voldemort will survive us."
"So why shouldn't the werewolves support him?"
"Because he will not truly acknowledge your rights when it does not
suit him, we will guarantee your rights with the Oath. We have the power to
give you what we have offered and..." Sirius wasn't the only one to sense
their hesitation.
"And?" Lupin prompted.
"And there is one more thing we can offer you. We don't really want to
though as it has implications you may not be ready to accept."
"What?"
"There is a charm. Pretty much anyone can perform it but the more
powerful, the better since it is tied into the very roots of magic. It is a
strengthening charm and we estimate that it will work on about five percent of
werewolves."
"What does it do?"
"It increases mental resistance to magically imposed changes."
Lupin gasped, brown eyes wide, "You can't possibly mean..."
"It does," Sirius felt his body nod. "But not in the way you
expect. It is like the Wolf's Bane Potion but translates further with its own
risks. Those who have enough mental strength for whatever reason will maintain
their human mind even with the change of shape and for those capable of that
the change is relatively painless. The only problem is,
it doesn't always work."
"What do you mean?"
"Wolf's Bane Potion is more reliable because it always works even if it
tastes disgusting but this is completely dependant on your state of mind. If
you are distracted, if you are worried or concerned, if you are fatigued, or in
any way not focused you will revert to a normal transformation. You have to
want, with every fibre of your being to maintain control and that's why it's so
unreliable... Because there are so many variables, it can work for one
transformation but not others... Hence our offer of Wolf's
Bane Potion instead."
Remus nodded, understanding the reluctance now.
Truth be told he had heard of a charm like the one
they described... But all the literature he had ever seen dismissed it as a
wishful fantasy, something that didn't work... With the restrictions they had
just described though, it made sense why it was not used, and not known. Even
so, he was still not convinced that they could deliver everything but they were
viable to delay the Ministry and Dark Lord... which would serve their purpose
anyway... They had certainly planned this well.
"You are offering Wolf's Bane but that is a very difficult potion to
brew. Do you have a Potion Master capable of it?" He asked carefully.
"We do."
/- You do? -/ Sirius asked, surprised. /- Who?
-/ He was almost certain he was the only one apart from Harry tied to the
shadows.
/- You are the only one tied in such a unique way, -/ they responded,
/- but we have others who have been seduced and are bound to our will.
-/
/- Who's the Potion Master? -/ He pressed the question.
/- Severus Snape,
-/ they grumbled the answer. /- We just have to finish seducing him but that
will be complete by the time the werewolves agree. -/
Sirius mentally narrowed black eyes. They were playing a very fine game but
as he reached out he could sense the centuries behind them and knew they had
been playing for a very long time. They knew what they were capable of and they
knew how much time they would need to achieve their goals. Severus
might not be theirs yet but, stubborn as he was, he would be by the time they
needed him, if not by his own choice, then at least by circumstance and they
were masters of controlling circumstance. He shrugged, he didn't like the man
but he did recognise his skill as a potion maker, and it wasn't like he would
have to deal with Snape that often. If he was
necessary, he was necessary. Besides even if Severus
had been seduced by the Shadows, that didn't mean anything had to change
between them.
While he had been questioning the shadows, they had continued to speak to Remus and belatedly the canine animagus
remembered to pay attention to what his body was saying. "And we will
allow you to examine their credentials when an agreement is reached. If you are
not satisfied with their level of skill, we will stand open to renegotiate our
agreement, or we will accept and recruit which ever Potion Master the werewolves desire, or you may declare the entire agreement
null and void and strike through the blood oath."
Lupin narrowed his eyes. "You are very accommodating," he stated
blandly, fishing for a response.
"We are asking a lot from the werewolves, it is in our interest to be
accommodating, and to allow for bargaining on many points," the Shadows rephrased
their previous answer.
There was something else going on here and Remus
didn't know what. They were powerful, he had no doubt
of that. He'd seen images of this individual before and knew by reputation what
they were capable of. The fact that he had been destroying vampires would bode
well for them as well. On a more personal level he couldn't hear, smell or
otherwise sense them. It was truly as if he was speaking with a shadow. Remus realised with a start suddenly wanting to run back to
Sirius where it was warm and he felt safe. This whole conversation was not safe
and there were too many things happening that he didn't understand. He didn't
like that.
But he had a duty to fulfil and he would do it no matter how uncomfortable
he was. The forest suddenly seemed colder.
"Are you reassured?" Sirius heard himself ask.
Lupin nodded. "I understand more now," the werewolves said calmly
although Sirius recognised the pinched lines around his eyes as being signs of
anything but relaxation. He was tense. "I will relay your offer to the
pack as being a viable if difficult option but it is an option which may suit
us."
"We thank you," Sirius said at the shadows direction. "Do you
have any further questions?"
Remus smiled. "Do you and your Master have
any plans for the vampires?"
"Plans?" The Shadows repeated the
question through Sirius' body and he could feel their amusement. "Nothing
quite that formal but there are certain rules to be
observed between creatures of the dark and they have broken those rules and so
must now suffer the consequences. If the Light wins, we suppose that would be
different but one way or another we are going to see our Master victorious and
so they will eventually learn, once and for all, that all actions have
consequences."
The werewolf nodded, grinning. For the sake of his people there were things
he wanted to see happen and watching the vampires brought low was one of them,
no matter how it happened. It was one of those things that was
universal to all werewolves. "I will relay that as well, and while I might
personally prefer a different path, I feel that the Pack shall lean towards
either the Dark Lord or your Master. Whichever it is I thank you for your time
and for your honesty," Remus said formally.
Sirius felt the Shadows bow low. "We understand that the Pack will
choose as it feels is best but we will like to remind you that the werewolves
need only show their loyalty in one battle of our choosing. For the rest of the
time the Pack may preach neutrality while allowing individuals to serve as they
will."
Lupin smiled some what sadly. He already knew that last point. Chaos. While the concept of being able to serve as the
individual desired was appealing, in the end, when they were compelled to show
their loyalty it would only lead to chaos. He wasn't sure what he wanted. He
felt compelled to follow the light, to continue campaigning for the lawful
rights of werewolves because it was only through law and the altering of wizarding thought and perception could they truly be accepted
as magical beings but he knew many of the Pack were tired, and Voldemort was
the strongest Dark Lord in centuries. If they followed him, even if it, in the
end turned out the same as all the times before, at least that was a path they
knew and it was possible the Dark Lord would win this time. At least it was a
path they could survive on for another round but it was a path that was
unnecessarily painful. But chaos was not likely to be better, even if it was
the best offer they had.
/- Say something! -/ The Shadows hissed at Sirius when he saw Remus' reaction. The animagus
blinked and almost stumbled as the Shadows relinquished control of his body. Remus was pensive and that alone was not good.
Sirius could tell that Moony's heart wanted one
thing while his mind argued for something else. They had to align his heart
with his head then they would have Lupin's support,
and while the Shadows hadn't explained yet Sirius knew Remus' support was necessary. "We are neither Light nor Dark, Mr Lupin," Sirius said and he
knew his voice was pitched differently. Remus would
know someone different was speaking. "We are not good or bad but rather we
are what we need to be to fulfil our goals. We have entered the battle this
time because we are tired of the continuous struggle for dominance and so one
way or another we want to see it end, just like you do. And that is why we have
made this offer."
Remus' eyes softened slightly but he was not yet
convinced and Sirius smirked as he realised what he needed to tell the werewolf.
"I remember," he started again, his voice still soft in the dark
of the forest but he saw Lupin come to attention at the singular word use.
"I remember when I wasn't sure, when I thought that allying this way, with
my Master, was the betrayal of everything I had fought for, was the betrayal of
everyone who has died in this conflict but then I realised that living my
entire life for war, living just to continue the fight, or living just stuck in
the same continuous circuit of destruction and betrayal, that was the true
betrayal of everything and everyone. We fight to see the conflict end, not to
see it continue, and those who have died, died with the wish to protect, with
the hope that their sacrifice would see their loved ones survive, but further with
the hope that their loved ones would know peace. That is why, Mr Lupin, I can
stand before you, knowing that I came to the Dark Lord's aid when once I would
have died willingly to take him with me and why I know that if so instructed I
will come to his aid again because I can now see an end to it all. I can see
that my Master can do what the others cannot, that he can bring an end to the
cycle of conflict.
"That is how I know that there is no betrayal, that the greater wrong
would be to continue as I once did, and how I know that at the end of it all, I
will be able to face those who sacrificed everything and be able to thank them,
for the gift they were trying to give as well as show them the peace that was
wrought through their sacrifice and they will know too that it was not all for
naught. It is this change, this ending that we wish to offer the werewolves,
although we understand that not all of them will accept it initially and so the
allowance to fight as individuals desires has been granted by our Master. In
time though, he believes all will see the truth."
Lupin was silent for many long minutes and the sounds of the forest intruded
upon them. The soft drip of water, the rustle of leaves in the breeze, a call
of a bird and a dull hoof fall sounded from the distance. The rich loamy smell
pervaded everything and Remus breathed deeply before
he looked up again. The man's words had been those of the converted but they
also were from the heart, from one who knew the pain of battle. Whoever this
Master was, they had chosen well in sending this man to speak with him.
"Are you happy?" he asked finally.
"Yes," Sirius answered simply, allowing his sincerity to echo
through the word. "But there is happiness I still seek because while my
Master is an end, he does not wish to be the end of all things. He has his
mate, his beloved, and I am seeking my own."
Remus nodded. At least this Master did not wish to
be regarded as a God.
"One more thing," Sirius said as the Shadows prompted him to
leave. "My Master does not offer the same thing to everyone however I can
guarantee you there are rewards for those who follow but there is also freedom.
I can promise that you and the rest of the Pack would still be yourselves and
that nothing more than what you are prepared to give both as individuals and as
a Pack shall be asked for." With that Sirius bowed his head and allowed
the Shadows to wrap around him completely muffling his presence as he backed
away, leaving Remus to his thoughts.
He couldn't help but notice however that a good deal of the tension had
faded from Lupin and in the back of his mind he could feel that the shadows
were pleased.
They were sure now that the werewolves would choose to follow Harry. And
once that happened.... Well that was just the beginning.
----
Snippet: '"Xeloc finally explained things
to me," he said softly and wasn't surprised to see the Dark Lord shift at
the name. "He was wondering how Xatarass
was."'
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