"Hermione, are you sure about this?"

Voldemort, back. They needed a way out. They needed a way to know that they could get rid of him. They needed an escape, a weapon, something to make sure he was gone.

"No, Ron, of course I'm not… but it should work."

Two months of non-stop research. Old myths, new creatures, varying rituals, tested spells, all documented perfectly.

"Harry, what do you think?"

One old ritual, a strange and twisted thing, that Hermione had found and thought could work, and more from many other countries and numerous languages, all spun together in a way that only a person of unparalleled intellect could have managed.

"Look at it this way, mate, Hermione's the one that found it. The only people I'd trust more with something this complicated are McGonagall and Dumbledore, and you and I both know that they'd never let us try this."

The runes were old and difficult, and there were other symbols, kanji and hieroglyphs and even, in one particularly obscure piece, braille, but Hermione had managed.

"…Let's do it, then."

She had tagged it so that the ritual's effects would target anyone with a Dark Mark, with a small, reluctant attempt to exempt Snape. She had done it, though.

"Are you sure?"

She had managed to get everything right.

"Let's go."

Except a single cuneiform.

"It didn't work."

o.o.o.o.o

In a sprawling old forest in Poland, a strange being awoke.

It had only just been created.

But there was still something ancient to it, something that made it know, not just be.

It was a result of many old rituals, and that stayed with it.

It turned its head to the North, and silently moved off towards its prey.

o.o.o.o.o

A/N: I blame a friend on DA for getting me into a certain mood. This is technically a crossover (…I think), but I want to see if anyone can figure it out before it gets obvious.

Ja ne,

Phoenix