The Raven's Call

The Beginning of the End

Saturday, May 2nd 1998

I'd been counting down to this day without even knowing it. Every moment of silence in the corridors, every scream behind the Carrows' office door, —it was all leading to now. The castle was holding its breath, and so was I.

The Undercroft felt different this morning. The cold stone walls still surrounded us, but the air had shifted. It was heavier. Tighter. Like the magic inside the castle knew what was coming. I stood by the same stretch of wall I always did, fingertips grazing the edges of my wand. Not nervous, not quite afraid—just... still. I hadn't felt still in weeks. Not since we escaped that basement. Not since they buried Dobby.

Luna sat near the back, quietly braiding wildflowers into her hair like she didn't hear the thunderstorm rolling in around us. Stella hadn't spoken much this morning. No one had. It was as though we all knew, without saying it out loud, that this was the day the world would split in half.

And then—

The portrait creaked open.

"Hey!" Neville called out as he stepped forward. "Listen up, you lot. Brought you a surprise." "Not more of Aberforth's cooking, I hope!" Seamus cracked from amidst the members of the D.A. "Be a surprise if we can digest it!" With a grin, Neville stepped to the side, revealing the surprise.

The room immediately exploded into chatter and cheers as Harry Potter stepped into the room. Maybe there was hope for today after all. As Harry began hugging some of his friends, Neville leaned over to me. "Get the word out to Remus and the others that Harry's back," he whispered over the noise. With a nod, I made my way over to the Order phone—Neville's idea while I was gone. A direct line, rigged and protected, connecting to safehouses.

"Okay, okay!" Neville called out, trying to rein the room back in. "Let's not kill him before You-Know-Who gets the chance, eh?" he chuckled. I lifted the receiver and spoke clearly into the old device. "Moony? D.A. calling. Do you read? We have a new weather report: Lightning has struck. I repeat, Lightning has struck." The person on the other end just grunted and hung up.

Message received.

"So what's the plan, Harry?" Neville asked as the crowd began to settle. We all gathered around. I found a spot near the front, right next to Luna. "Okay," Harry started, eyes sweeping across the sea of expectant faces. "There's something we need to find. Something hidden here in the castle. And it may help us defeat You-Know-Who."

"Right," Neville replied, hopeful. "What is it?" "We don't know," Harry responded flatly. "Where is it?" I asked, raising a brow at him. "We don't know that either," Harry mumbled. Silence. "I realise that's not much to go on—" "That's nothin' to go on," Seamus interrupted, clearly dumbfounded. "I think it has something to do with Ravenclaw," Harry explained. "Um... it'll be small, easily concealed. Anyone—any ideas?" I opened my mouth to say something, but Luna beat me to it.

"Well, there's Rowena Ravenclaw's lost diadem." Ron muttered something under his breath. I shot him a glare. "Lost diadem of Ravenclaw?" Luna repeated. "Hasn't anyone heard of it? It's quite famous." "Yes, but... it's lost. For centuries now," I said, gently patting her head to comfort her. "There isn't a person alive today who's seen it."

"Excuse me, can someone tell me what a bloody diadem is?" Ron asked. "It's a sort of crown. You know, like a tiara," I explained. Just then, footsteps echoed down the corridor—familiar ones. Ginny and Asteria appeared, stepping into the Undercroft.

 "Harry," Ginny said, stepping forward, her voice soft but charged. "Hey there," Harry replied, a small smile tugging at his lips. Ron started to grin, ready to say something, but then noticed Ginny's eyes hadn't moved. They stayed fixed on Harry, as if no one else in the room existed. Ron's smile faltered. He turned to Hermione with a frown. "Six months she hasn't seen me and it's like I'm Frankie First Year," he muttered. "I mean, I'm only her brother." Seamus, who had wandered over, snorted. "Got loads of those though, doesn't she? There's only one Harry." 

"Shut up, Seamus," Ron snapped, clearly not in the mood. Neville, clearly sensing the shift in energy, looked to Ginny and Asteria. "What is it?" He asked. Asteria's expression darkened. "Snape knows. He knows that Harry was spotted in Hogsmeade."

"Then we need to come up with a plan." I speak up, turning towards Harry. "The Order are on their way."