Harry gasped at the sudden sensation of Apparating. He wished that his captor had used a Portkey instead. It wasn't nearly as gut-wrenching. For as soon as they touched firm ground, Harry fell to his knees and hands and puked up bile and a little water. His aim was accurate, and he avoiding getting the stinky smelling acid on his fur. But his mouth tasted horrible.

"Up on your feet, Potter!" snarled his captor, and the panther was forced to stand. He was then bound and led to a clearing in the woods that they had transported to. He could see that the place was filled with Death Eaters, though he couldn't count them. All he saw was a bunch of black cloaks and white masks. In the center of the clearing was a wooden pole with a downward-pointing hook on one side, and a cauldron large enough for a grown man to sit in.

He was tied to the pole in a way that even if he had been tall enough he wouldn't have been able to slip the rope up and over. He tried to struggle, but a muttered curse had him howling with pain for a brief second. It felt as if white-hot irons were being pressed into his bones. When his vision cleared, he saw that the group had formed itself into a circle with many gaps in it. Then pain shot across his scar, and Wormtail(in human form) came walking out of the woods holding a bundle.

When the rat of a man reached the cauldron, he dropped the obviously moving bundle into it. A liquid sound was heard, and Harry hoped the thing had drowned. Peter motioned to one of the Death Eaters, and (s)he came forward holding a pouch. Wormtail began speaking "Bone of the father, unknowingly given, you shall renew your son." The pouch was upended over the cauldron and a white powder was poured in. The rat then approached Harry, drawing a steel knife and a vial. Pricking Harry just under his inner-elbow, Wormtail collected the blood that spilt. All the while he was saying "Blood of the enemy, forcefully taken, you shall revive your foe." The drop of blood was poured into the cauldron. What happened next was gruesome, for Wormtail raised the knife and stuck out his hand. Harry closed his eyes, but it didn't stop him from hearing the man say "Flesh of the servant, willingly given, your master will live again." Nor could he block out the sickening sound of knife hitting flesh, or the piercing scream.

Afterwards, Harry would say that it felt as if someone had cut open his skin where his scar was. For that is what it felt like as Voldemort stood up, very much alive. He was robed, and given his wand before he even stepped out of his cauldron. This took a brief minute, and by the time it was done the panther had regained enough of himself to think of slamming his mental shields up. It worked enough to dull the pain in his scar to a low throb. With that out of the way, Harry looked up to face what was certain to be his doom.

***

As Draco walked into the Great Hall, he heard everyone there cry "Surprise! Happy...." The ermine looked at all of them, those Harry knew and loved well. The only one who hadn't cried out, of course, was Severus. But even he appeared puzzled that Draco had come in alone, and looking like things had turned very bad. His godson approached the group, and said just loud enough to be heard "May I please speak to the adults alone?"

The children looked indignant, but were ushered out by the adults. They then turned to the one remaining child, questioning looks on their faced. Severus was the one to break the silence. "What's happened?" he asked. So, Draco proceeded to tell them what had happened. Everyone turned grim, and Remeus muttered "I thought something smelt familiar, but I wasn't sure." Albus, meanwhile, was calling everyone up to arms. Any Order member, no matter how unknown, was being summoned.

While the people around him prepared for battle, Draco sat down in the nearest chair. A little to heavily, for Severus turned to him, his face asking simply 'What's wrong'. The ermine muttered quietly "My vision swam for a moment. Unfortunately, now that it's stopped, I'm beginning to see what Harry is seeing....and it's not good."

It soon became known that Voldemort was back. And very strong too, if the ripple power Draco could sense through Harry was anything to go by. It only took a short time for all the adults except Molly and Pomfrey to run out to beyond the wards. They were then Apparating away to the scene that Draco had described to them. The three remaining in the castle were left wondering if anyone would come back alive.

***

Tom looked at Harry, and the panther stared straight back. Not that the Dark Wizard was anything good to look at. The skin was pulled tight over the bones to give a skull like appearance, and it was white to complete that appearance. The nose was mere slits, like a snakes. He had no lips, and his eyes were blood red with zipper slits for pupils.

"Harry Potter, sssso nice to ssssee you at my rebirth. Then again, without you there wouldn't be one, now would there?" Voldemort hissed at his long time enemy. He then turned, saying "I'll get back to you later, Potter. To you, my Death Eaters, welcome. And very well done Nott, for capturing the last needed ingredient for my rebirth." Wormtail was still whimpering at his master's feet, holding the now wrapped stump close to his body. Tom turned to him, telling him to show his arm. When he did, Voldemort waved his wand over the stump. The rat shortly had a silver hand, looking for all the world that he had a glove on. One made of iron, for he was able to snap a branch in half by merely exerting pressure.

Tom then returned to Harry, and grinned toothily at the panther. "Little lion is a panther, eh? I've seen this spell before. It only lasts for five months after being cast. Not that you'll see yourself as human again. Your life ends here. Release him! I will not have it said that Voldemort didn't give his foe a chance." As Harry was being cut loose, he was thinking that if he lived, the curse would be lifted at around Christmas time.

He was given his wand, which he hadn't realized had been taken from him. He was forced into a duel with the Dark Wizard. What happened in that duel was strange, but it provided enough distraction that the pops of incoming Apparators went un-noticed. As the golden sphere was broken, it was apparent that the Death Eater's had been ambushed. Harry soon found himself dragged away from the battle by none other then Severus. After making sure that the panther would be okay, Sev ran back into the battle.

Flummoxed, Harry watched the battle. He noticed that Albus had taken over his duel with Tom. Then something caught his eye. It was Sirius battling with a witch(whose mask had fallen off). Harry's heart leaped into his throat with worry for his godfather. He didn't see the approaching enemy until he had been hit on the side of his head with a fist. Unfortuantely, Sirius had seen this and it distracted him. Another Order member stunned the one who had hit the panther, but it was too late. Siri was hit by a cutting spell. Harry managed to get up just in time to see his godfather falling, bleeding heavily from a wound across his chest.

No, it couldn't be. Not Siri! Harry felt his heart breaking. Then a rage like he had never felt before filled him. The rage was so consuming, it reached deep inside of him. That rage tapped a power he didn't know he had. It brought it out to the surface, and it glowed along him. Gold seemed to pour across his body, turning him from a black panther to a gold lion, complete with a mane. When the power was finished covering him, Harry stood. His eyes focused not on the witch that Sirius had been fighting, but Voldemort. He was the cause of all Harry's troubles. The lion began walking towards Tom. His power swept aside the battling wizards. The Heir of Hogwarts was in his full glory. The prophecy was being fulfilled.