For an endless moment none of them moved, they were too busy absorbing Herne's incredible revelation. All except Throckmorton, who cared naught for anyone save himself. He released Draco abruptly and began to edge backwards out of the clearing. Until a red-eared hound crept up and snarled at him in warning. Throckmorton cringed and shivered, returning to his spot beside Lucius, too much of a coward to risk getting bitten.

Herne pinned him with his gaze and sneered, "Whither thou goest, knave? Think thou can escape my justice? Not in this life, necromancer! Stay and meet thy doom with dignity, if thou knowest yet what that is." His horse, a red roan, trumpeted and stamped a hoof. The Hunter patted it and it stilled. Then he turned to the assembled group of wizards and one witch and said, "As I said before, the contract is void because the quarry I was bound to hunt is unlawful. Yet, a sacrifice is owed, for nothing save blood and souls shall sate my huntsmen and hounds."

Before Herne could continue, Lucius interrupted. "Well, Snape, now's your chance to play the martyr and sacrifice your pitiful life for your child's. Whatever one you choose!" the blond wizard laughed mockingly.

Severus stiffened, and was about to respond, but Herne cut in before he could get a syllable out. "And what makes thou think he is a suitable sacrifice, Lord Malfoy? Willing, aye, but his soul matches that of my descendant, and thus it is almost impossible for the Hunt to claim it."

Lucius roared in laughter. "Snape? A pure soul? Merlin's bloody hat! He is tainted by the Dark Lord's service. He bears the Mark even as I do, the Mark of a Death Eater. How then can he be a 'pure soul'?"

"Whatever outward scars Severus Snape bears, they do not reflect his inner spirit. Else my horned sister there would never have consented to bear him upon her back." Herne said sharply, his eyes narrowing. "And his willingness to sacrifice himself for a child not of his blood, for both his children, shows that he is on the side of the Light. And I shall not declare him mine enemy, nor accept his sacrifice."

Lucius gaped like a landed fish, his mouth opening and shutting. This could not be happening. In the span of an hour, all of his carefully orchestrated plans were falling to pieces. "You must-he offered and no one else did."

Just then Silver shifted, pulling himself up from the ground with tremendous effort. Blood soaked the ground where he had lain, but he lifted his head proudly and gave a soft growl, looking directly at Herne.

The Hunter dipped his head slightly in respect. "Thy request is noted, wolf-brother, but I shall not accept thy blood either, noble one."

"You cannot do this!" raged Lucius, sensing the situation spiraling out of his control. "I summoned you, you must obey me, Hunter! Take what is offered and be done with it, or else suffer my wrath!"

Herne looked amused, like a parent weathering a disobedient toddler's tantrum. "Thou no longer commands me, Malfoy. I claim breach of contract and thy hold over me is forfeit. There is only one here whose request I shall honor, and that is thine, Holly Amanda Sinclair. What wouldst thou have of me, littling?" he tilted his head towards Holly, who stared up at him in awe.

"Have of you, my lord? Perhaps you may go back to sleep, if that is your wish?"

Herne chuckled, a deep booming bass that rang throughout the clearing. "In good time, child, I shall return to my rest. However, there is the matter of a debt owed. As the one wronged, thou hast the right of accusation. Choose, great-granddaughter, who shall suffer my justice this night?"

Lucius glared at Holly, fury mixed with fear in his breast. But when he spoke again, his voice dripped honey. "Holly, princess, you wouldn't give your father to this madman, now would you? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to set him upon you. It was a mistake, I was angry . . ." Holly said nothing, simply looked at him with Valina's sapphire eyes, accusing. Lucius began to sweat. "You remember how we used to play together on cold winter nights in front of the fire? I taught you to play chess and Gobstones and Exploding Snap, and I bought you all those pretty dresses and that stuffed kitten you loved so much. Remember how we used to go out for ice cream, and you would sit upon my shoulder and wave to all the other people in Diagon Alley? I used to tell you stories too, and you said I was the best dad in the world . . ."

His honeyed tongue began to work on her, though she knew he was only trying to save his own skin. And yet . . .she did remember those times, the good times before she had lost her mother, when he had been there for her, and she had felt part of a family . . .

"Holly, your mother loved me too, she wouldn't want you to do this," Lucius purred, weaving a spell of persuasion effortlessly.

But he had slipped, his suave tongue had miscalculated.

Abruptly, Holly shook her head and cried, "But you never loved her, Lucius! It was all a lie! You only loved us when we gave you what you wanted, and when I couldn't be what you wanted, you threw me away like a piece of trash! You killed my mum and then left me to die in the street, like a stray dog, frozen to death!" Her little hands clenched into fists. "You never loved me! Never! I was never your princess!" Tears were streaming down her face now, but her eyes remained fixed and resolute.

"That's not true! I take it all back. You can come to live with me at Malfoy Manor, I'll give you whatever you want . . ."

"I don't want anything you could give me, Lucius," she declared coldly, sounding remarkably like her trueblood sire then. "I'm done with lies, and done with you! You're not my father, Lucius Malfoy! Severus Snape is! Want to know why? Because he loves me, even if I am merely a Squib! And he gives me what you never could-a real home and a father I can be proud of!"

"Ah, now there speaks Valina's daughter!" Herne applauded. "Hast thou no reply now, Sir Golden Tongue?"

Lucius sputtered.

"So be it. Well, shall I dispense justice upon this rogue, child?"

"And don't forget Thick-moron there," Holly pointed to the other culprit in the crime. "He summoned you too."

"Indeed." Herne drew himself up and the white lightning flashed from his brow to strike the earth before the two dark wizards with a thunderous CRACK! "Lucius Malfoy and Victor Adolf Throckmorton, thou hast been judged and found wanting, thou art necromancers steeped in all manner of degrading darkness and thou didst murder one of my kin and attempt to murder my other one, Holly Amanda Sinclair Snape, without regret or remorse. Therefore I name thee outcast, rogue, thy life forfeit-"

"Wait, my lord!" Narcissa cried. "I crave a boon before you send him down to hell."

"Go on, lady."

"I have a score to settle with him myself, for trying to kidnap my son and turn him to the lefthand path." Narcissa said grimly, and with that she pointed her wand and shouted a very old spell, one that no witch had used in a decade, or so it was said.

A spark shot out of her wand, and Lucius snorted, acting unconcerned with his wife's vengeance.

Until the spark struck him, and then he went to his knees and screamed in agony.

"Bitch . . .you bitch . . .you have . . .you have . . .unmanned me! How dare you?"

Narcissa nudged her unicorn forward and sneered down at her former husband. "You have never taken me seriously, Lucius. Perhaps now you will. Payback's a bitch, isn't it?" Then she held out her hand, and Draco came running to her. She swung him aboard Duchess and he hugged her hard. "Are you all right, little dragon?"

"Yes," he muttered into her robe. "What did you cast on Father?"

"A spell that all witches should learn. I castrated him."

Draco winced, but he couldn't really bring himself to feel very sorry for his father, knowing what he had done to the women in his life.

Then Narcissa turned away and trotted back to stand next to Severus on Dancer.

"Is thy vengeance satisfied, my lady?" inquired Herne.

"It is, my lord."

"Well done! Now for the rest of thy sentence." Herne spoke in a soft tone that nevertheless raised the hairs on the back of their necks. "For thy crimes, I declare both of thy lives forfeit. Thou are now my quarry. I shall give thee a five minute head start, a sporting chance, if thou wilt." He cracked his whip and Lucius turned and bolted, getting to the edge of the clearing and transforming into the red-tailed hawk.

Throckmorton turned and ran too, his eyes wild and terrified. "Lucius!" he shrieked. "Don't leave me! Wait for me!"

Hounds and huntsmen chafed at the bit, baying and rattling their spears and bows.

"Five minutes, lads," said Herne, and in his green eyes blazed an unholy eagerness. "Even wings shall not save thee from the wrath of the Hunt, Lord Malfoy." He dismounted suddenly, coming to tower over Holly, who came barely up to his waist. A tender look bloomed for an instant upon his stern face. "Remember, littling, that thou are my blood, and the favor of the wood is always upon thee." He reached into a pouch upon his belt and withdrew a shiny silver brooch of a leaping stag wearing a wreath of mistletoe. It was set with precious rubies for the mistletoe and a single emerald for the stag's eye. "This was once my crest, when I ruled as lord of Wood's Edge. I give it now to thee, Holly." He pressed it gently into her palm. "A small thing, but it shall protect thee from poisons and if thou are ever in mortal peril, thou may use it to call me, one time only, and I shall come to thy aid." His hand caressed her cheek. "May the blessing of the forest be thine always, child." He bent and his lips grazed her forehead in a brief kiss.

At his touch a golden glow outlined her for a brief instant, then it was gone.

"Farewell, Holly. I must away, the hunt is calling!"

He swung onto his horse with a graceful leap, and the horse reared. Herne put his silver horn to his lips and blew a mighty blast, releasing the hounds. "Away! Away!" he bellowed, and then he and his spectral riders followed the white hounds, pursuing their rightful quarry through the Forbidden Forest, and the mist swirled about them until they were obscured from view, though they could hear the cries long after Herne had departed.

"Think they'll catch them, Dad?" Harry asked, speaking for the first time since Herne had appeared.

"Yes. Nothing escapes the Wild Hunt," Severus answered, then he dismounted and ran forward to embrace both his son and his daughter tightly.

After a long moment, however, Holly said, "But what about Silver? He needs help, those dogs hurt him badly."

The Potions Master released his children reluctantly to stare at the battered wolf, who was lying upon the ground again, the light in his amber eyes fading.

Severus knelt beside the stricken wolf. "Lupin, you heroic imbecile! Why didn't you tell me you were hurt? Great Merlin, you may be almost beyond my skills to heal."

But he would try, for Silver was a Snape too.