Risen From The Ashes || A Clare Siobhan/Harry Potter Crossover

Prologue

Disclaimer: All rights to Clare Siobhan and J.K. Rowling. I do not own Harry Potter or Clare's Sim characters. 

It was snowing for the first time in over a year. The dark-haired young man's bright pink eyes followed the flakes as they drifted down to the already white ground. Usually, he hated to be stuck inside during a snowstorm, but this time was different. This time, it would buy them valuable time.

Seth Spicer turned away from the window to face his mother. "They're here," he said hoarsely. 

Ever since the article, he'd known it wouldn't be long before they reached the island - it wasn't exactly difficult to find - but that didn't stop him from feeling a jolt in his stomach as he gazed out at the four robed figures who were fighting their way up to the house, wands held aloft. 

Holly sighed heavily, but remained in her chair, a passive expression settling on her face. 

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Seth cried, seizing the bag Holly had made him keep by the door. "Let's go!"

Holly let out a slow breath, and when she spoke, her voice trembled and shook. "Seth, I want you to go as quietly as possible out the back door and down to the dockyard. Don't stop, don't look back, and don't speak to anyone. Go to Forgotten Hollow, Sammy will look after you; I told him to expect you."

Seth stared at her, the bag slipping through his fingers and hitting the floor with a clunk. "What, you expect me to go and just leave you here? Mum, they'll kill you!"

"I should have died a long time ago," Holly replied heavily. "I think it's my time now, Seth"

"No way," said Seth fiercely, shaking his head. "No way!"

"Oh, and do one thing for me, Seth" Holly continued, as if he hadn't spoken. "Find Eve, Seth. Will you do that for me? Tell her," her voice shook once again. "tell her I'm sorry - sorry I couldn't be a good enough mother, sorry I let her carry on doing awful things, sorry I let her down."

"Mum, listen to me," Seth said urgently. "None of that was your-"

But he was interrupted by a loud rap on the door. It sounded as though the intruders were trying to dig a hole in the wood. 

"Quickly," cried Holly, thrusting Seth's bag into his arms and dragging him down the hall. She shoved him towards the back door and moved swiftly back the way she'd come. "I love you!" she called over her shoulder as she disappeared round the corner by the front door. 

Seth stood stock still, not knowing what to do. He wanted to protect his mother, but that would mean using magic, and he'd resolved to never try that again. Not after what had happened to the last intruder. 

"Bombarda!" 

A loud crash shook the house as the door flew off its hinges. The cry reverberated around Seth's head. He wanted to run to his mother, to help her, to fight them off, but he was frozen to the spot. Seth sank slowly to the floor, vision blurred by the tears that swam before his eyes, hearing blocked by the fingers he had shoved into his ears. 

And there it was again; the energy, pulsing beneath his skin, fighting to be free. It was angry and scared, and wanted to burst out, to kill. Just as he always did, he fought it off, trying desperately to rein his monster in, but it was far stronger than him. 

The flash of green light that illuminated the house was the final straw. Seth's world exploded, his resolve failing. His monster burst free, ravaging the house, wanting nothing more than to hurt, to destroy, to fly. Again and again it dove, blasting walls apart and sending the bodies of the men flying, their wands tumbling from their hands. It was only when the house was almost completely destroyed that Seth's monster melted back into the figure of a shivering, frightened young man with black hair and pink eyes.

He stepped through the wreckage, stumbling over the rubble. When he reached his mother's body, he gently closed her open, staring eyes, and slid the engagement ring from her finger and onto his own. 

Many eyewitnesses would describe the attack in the following weeks. Their stories varied in many ways, but they all had a few things in common: the house had been attacked by an invisible force that had destroyed everything in its wake, leaving five bodies with strange scarring covering their faces. One or two of the islanders had spotted a dark-haired young man, believed to be the son of the old woman who had owned the house, slipping away onto a boat bound for the mainland. 

For a few months, the entirety of Windenberg and surrounding towns were fascinated by the mystery, but after the excitement had faded and the police had given up on their investigation, no one really cared. Holly Spicer had been a recluse, they told themselves, someone who had few friends and hadn't really made much of an impact on anything. She had no relatives other than the two "ghost children" (as the islanders had called them) who hadn't gone to school and had rarely been seen by anybody. 

It was for this reason that no one bothered to wonder about the whereabouts of Seth Spicer after his disappearance. Few people had known anything about him, and even less actually cared for him.

One who did was sixteen-year-old Raven Villareal.

A/N: I hope you all enjoyed the first part of this story! I'm going to try to update this story as often as possible, because, as you might have noticed, I am a massive Potterhead and peacharoonie! But, knowing me, it might be about a month before the next part goes up!

Nita xxx