Author's Note: The first two weeks are always the easiest, it seems, so I'm updating before it gets harder. I'm glad all of you seemed to like my last chapter-I actually had a lot of fun writing it, considering how dark it was. Once again I ask all of you for your patience…it's going to be a long and bumpy road from here on out, especially since I'm looking at a pile of scholarship applications. Yay! Essays! *groans* But I promise this thing will be finished before HBP comes out. Thanks again to Nitya and Kalie for everything!
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
PERCY THE PRAETOR
Kissing Hermione, Harry had decided by the following Friday while walking down the corridors alongside both her, Ron, and Ginny to the prefects' meeting, wasn't as horrible as his mind was telling him. Truth be told, he had rather enjoyed that kiss they had shared in the Room of Requirement and whenever he thought about it, it helped battle the guilt he was still feeling inside him for June and Sinead.
The days since had been more lighthearted. Harry had returned to Quidditch practice, much to his team's delight, and he began studying with Hermione with a renewed vigor. Ron noticed his significant change in attitude and had inquired about it on Tuesday.
"Hermione and I had a talk and she finally got through my dense skull," Harry had replied.
So now they were walking towards Professor McGonagall's classroom, where that night's prefects' meeting was to be held, to discuss the boys versus girls Quidditch match that was to take place. Ron was babbling on and on about it as they went.
"We'll be discussing the rules and stuff tonight because we wanted all of the Quidditch players' takes on it. Malfoy, Katie, and I kept arguing in the last one and all of the other prefects feel they need to have control over every tiny little detail. Bunch of dictators."
"Ron, that includes you," Hermione reminded him.
"Yeah, but at least I know Quidditch," Ron said.
"You've never organized a Quidditch match," Hermione said.
"Neither have you!"
"Until now! And you didn't even participate in the logistics part of the planning!" Hermione shot back. "You just want to figure out if you're going to play in it."
Ron gaped. "I am going to play in it! There's no doubt the way the rules-"
"The rules haven't been finalized," Hermione snapped back. "You may not be chosen."
"If Harry's chosen team captain, I will-won't I, Harry?" Ron asked.
"What if I'm not team captain?" Harry asked.
"You will be," Ron assured him. "Team captains can only be current captains, which means Chang automatically is the captain for the girls' team."
"That doesn't mean I'll be team captain," Harry pointed out.
"Compared to Montague and that Hufflepuff Keeper, John Warren, you're the best, hands down," Ron said. "And besides, even if you're not the captain, you'll make the team. I mean, making Malfoy or that Summerby Seeker is idiocy."
Harry laughed. Hearing Ron's confidence for him made his heart continue to feel light and carefree. When they arrived at Professor McGonagall's classroom, it was filled with all twenty-eight Quidditch players, all of the prefects, the Head Boy, Madam Hooch, and Professor McGonagall.
"That's everybody," the Head Boy, Eddie Carmichael, said, closing the door behind Ginny. "Professor McGonagall."
"Attention!" Professor McGonagall called. "We are beginning tonight's meeting! Tonight we will be discussing the exhibition Quidditch match. Miss Bell, as the appointed Chief Organizer for this event, will you please get everyone in this room up to speed with what's going on."
Katie jumped up from her spot amongst the rest of the Gryffindor Quidditch team and walked to the front of the room. "Eddie, the prefects, and I have been working on preparations for the boys versus girls Quidditch match that is to take place before the regular matches that are to take place next month-"
"But I thought it's supposed to be between the matches," Zacharias Smith said loudly from his place within the Hufflepuff team.
"Maybe if you kept your mouth shut, Smith," Ron said scathingly, "Katie would already be addressing that."
"I was, in fact," Katie said in a falsely pleasant voice. "Anyway, we've moved it because we want to be able to separate focuses in team practices. The match will take place the week after the next Hogsmeade weekend, which is…" She paused, looking at Professor McGonagall with a questioning look.
"First weekend in February," McGonagall replied.
"There, so it's the second weekend in February, which is the ninth, I believe," Katie told them. "The Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff match will then be two weeks later on the twenty-third while the Ravenclaw versus Slytherin match will be a week after that."
Ron leaned in and whispered in Harry's ear, "Those two weeks need to be jammed packed to get back on target." Harry nodded.
"The rules for this event are still dodgy," Katie admitted to them. "That's why we're here-to finalize the details. What we've come up with so far is how players shall be selected for the teams, but they need tweaking. So, to go over them…" She took out her wand and waved it-a neat and tidy scrawl appeared on the blackboard behind her, revealing how the teams were to be made up.
"As you can see," she said, "we are trying to go for equality. Because Slytherin does not have any female team members, we've had to make some trying adjustments." She pointed to the side of the blackboard marked "Girls."
"The girls' team begins with Cho Chang, the only female captain. The girls' team will be comprised of seven girls from the three Houses with girls on their teams-Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw. Two of these Houses will have two team members on the girls' team. The other House will have three.
"Meanwhile, the boys' team has all four Houses to contend with," she said, moving over to the side of the blackboard that said "Boys."
"We have to wait and see what the girls do," Ron whispered to Harry.
"The boys will have team members from all four Houses. Three of the Houses will be represented by two players, while the fourth, which will not be Slytherin, will only have one. The House that only has one will be the House that holds three on the girls' team. Everybody following thus far?" she asked, turning to face them all.
"Basically," Madam Hooch said from her place in the corner, "if Chang selects two other Ravenclaws to join her on the girls' team, the boys' are allowed one Ravenclaw."
"Exactly," Katie said. "Now, as I've said, Cho Chang is automatically the captain of the girls' team as she is the only female Quidditch captain. Potter, Montague, and Warren will have to come up with a way to decide who is captain for the boys' team. Then, the captains need to work on making their teams. I've already had it set with Madam Hooch about practice times, so neither team can hog up the pitch. Any questions thus far?"
Harry looked at Ron as the hands shot up. "This will be interesting."
"You bet," Ron replied.
After the meeting, both Montague and Warren approached him before he could leave. "Let's get this over with," Montague said aggressively. "I'm captain."
"That's not very fair," Warren said. "Don't Potter and I get a say?"
Montague stared down at Warren. "You don't get a say because your captaining skills are worse than a flobberworm's."
"So is your intelligence," Harry snapped back. "Look, what's our goal here?"
"To slaughter the girls," Montague replied.
"To work as a team," Harry corrected.
"I'm on the team, Potter," Montague said.
"And you think that the only way you'll be on the team is if you're captain?" Harry asked. "You're a decent Chaser, Montague, and we're required to have two Slytherins on the team. I would never choose Crabbe and Goyle to be those two."
"Nothing against Summerby," Warren whispered, "but I'd rather have Potter be the Seeker."
"What about Malfoy?" Montague said angrily.
"Potter kicks Malfoy's arse every time they play," Warren said. "It makes sense to make Potter the Seeker. How about if we say each of us will be on the team?"
"Bletchley's a better Keeper than you," Montague said.
Harry frowned. If he agreed to the arrangement, it meant that Ron would not play in the match; something he knew would crush him. "We'll have tryouts to see who's the best for each position, okay? Now, let's settle who the captain is."
"It is settled. It's me," Montague said.
"No, it's not," Warren said and turned to Harry. "You be the captain, Potter. I wouldn't be able to handle this blockhead."
Harry glanced at Montague and dug out a Sickle. "Let's flip for it, okay?"
Montague sneered. "Fine."
"Call it," Harry said, and tossed the Sickle into the air.
"Tails," Montague said as the coin fell back into Harry's hand.
He flipped it onto the back of his hand. Montague and Warren leaned in as he removed his hand. Montague swore.
"Heads it is," Warren said cheerfully. "Okay Potter, you're captain. When do we start?"
"Monday," Harry replied. "You can bet Cho will start as soon as possible."
Warren nodded. "Alright."
Without another word to each other they turned and exited the classroom. Ron and Hermione had waited for him.
"What happened?" Ron asked quickly.
"Flipped a coin and now I'm captain," Harry replied.
"Excellent!" Ron said, pumping his fist triumphantly into the air. "When do we start?"
"We assess everyone on Monday," Harry said.
"Assess?"
"To get the best players," Harry replied, "the best person for the job."
"Oh."
"I'm sorry, Ron," Harry said, "but getting on the team has to be done the hard way, not by association."
"Which is how it should be," Hermione said. "Besides, what if Hunter, or McGuire, or Kirke, are the best Chasers and Beaters? Gryffindor will only be able to let two people on the team and you must think strategically. You must do what's good for the team as a whole."
Harry nodded. "Yes, that's true."
Ron, however, was frowning. "It would be bullocks if I didn't make the team."
"You never know, Ron," Hermione said quietly.
"Bullocks," Ron repeated and took off, leaving Harry and Hermione behind, grimacing.
*****
Monday was a cold, harsh, bitter day. As Harry stepped onto the pitch in the late afternoon, he knew it would be a tough practice for everybody. On Sunday, Cho had taken the girls out and by dinner she told Harry the information he needed to know.
"You'll be down to one Ravenclaw," Cho had told him. "My Chaser, Stella Hazelwood, and a Hufflepuff Chaser volunteered to be our Beaters. So our team consists of them, Zoe Reid, my Keeper, the other Hufflepuff Chaser, and of course, Katie and Ginny Weasley."
From what he knew of most of the girls on Cho's team, most of them were playing in their first or second year of Quidditch. Most of Harry's team had been playing for longer than that.
Hunter walked up next to him, the snow crunching underneath his feet. "We're going to be ice cubes by the time we're done here," he murmured softly.
"I know," Harry said. "There's a large patch of ice in the middle of the pitch there." He pointed to it. "I had planned on doing a scrimmage match, but now it looks like we'll have to kick off from the side and circle around the center."
Hunter nodded. "At least it's not snowing or anything. It would make visibility horrible."
"Yeah," Harry agreed and turned as he heard more snow crunching behind him, signaling the arrival of everyone else, Draco Malfoy in the lead and looking very sulky.
"If everyone else has to work for their position on the team, Potter, then you should too," he spat.
"Potter's a much better Seeker than you, Malfoy," said a Ravenclaw that Harry didn't know.
"Besides," Hunter said from beside Harry, "he's captain."
Malfoy looked down at Hunter in disgust. "You're that pathetic little first year, aren't you?" He glanced up at Harry. "They're against the rules, Potter. The First Year rule is in place, as always. I don't know how you got him through it for your measly team, but he can't play here."
"He's a Quidditch player," Harry said sharply, "and that means he's qualified."
Malfoy sneered at Hunter for a moment, then mounted his broom and soared into the air. "Come on, Potter, let's get this over with."
Harry gave an exasperated sigh. "Let's go," he muttered to everyone else. With Alex McGuire's help, he pulled the crate of balls over to the edge of the field and then opened it, tossing the Quaffle to Zacharias Smith before releasing the two Bludgers and taking the Snitch. Finally, when everyone had kicked off from the frozen ground and hovered in the air, he gave his instructions and took off, letting go of the Snitch as he did. "You really want to try and beat me, Malfoy?" he asked. "Then let's play."
Malfoy pulled up alongside him as they waited, Harry counting softly to thirty. Then, on twenty-eight, Malfoy tore off, flying as fast as he could to catch the little golden ball. Harry swore and took off after him, flattening himself on the broom's handle.
It was here where he saw the true speed of the Mercury Silver. While Harry was flying faster than he ever had before, he seemed to not be making any ground up on Malfoy. They soared around the pitch, no more than blurs to the naked eye. Then suddenly, the Snitch dived. Both Harry and Malfoy followed, Harry taking an angled path towards it rather than Malfoy's ninety degree dive. The Snitch flew lower and lower until it was nearly a meter above the ground. Harry spared a glance up at Malfoy, who looked like he was about to slip right off of the broom. And suddenly, with a yell of surprise, that's exactly what happened, and Malfoy fell three meters to the ground as Harry barrel-rolled over him and caught the Snitch. Slowly to a stop, Harry noticed the clapping and laughing from those above him-clapping for Harry's triumph and laughing at Malfoy's failure.
"Looks like Potter beat you!" a Ravenclaw Beater shouted merrily.
"Sod off, you wanker!" Malfoy snarled back as he picked himself up off of the ground, grabbed his broom, and turned his back on them all.
"Let's get this little session over with, okay?" Harry called, watching Malfoy go. "We're allowed one Ravenclaw and I want to make sure the Ravenclaw we choose is the best man for the job. You lot, what are your names?" he asked the group of four Ravenclaws hovering in the air.
"I'm Jack Chambers, Ravenclaw Chaser. This is Noah Bradley, our other Chaser, and those two are our Beaters, Samuel Emerson and Will Bancroft," the Ravenclaw in the middle said.
Harry turned to the two Hufflepuffs he did not know. "And what are your names?"
"Robert Mathis," replied one.
"Henry Vance," replied the other.
Harry nodded. "Great. Okay, let's get to work."
*****
Sitting down in the locker room later, the boys sat around while Harry wrote on a sheet of parchment, writing names down and scratching them off. Quietly, John Warren walked over and sat down next to him.
"Look, I know I said I wanted to be on the team, and that each of the captains should, but that Weasley sure did his job today. I think it would be wise to make him your second Gryffindor," Warren whispered.
Harry nodded. It was true that Ron had done a knockout job that day, besting both Warren and Bletchley. It was painfully obvious that Ron wanted on the team and Harry was more than welcome to have him.
"With that said, I would suggest that the two you use from Hufflepuff are Vance and Smith. Vance isn't the best Beater, but he's better than those two Slytherin blokes. And, if I were you, I'd use that Ravenclaw Beater, Bancroft," Warren suggested.
"Yes, I already had him penciled in," Harry replied. "I have the team decided now, so I'll just make the announcement and then we can all head back."
Warren nodded and got up, leaving Harry to jot down the names and double-checking them to make sure they properly fit within the rules. Then, he stood up and addressed them all. "Well, I've got the team figured out. Our Chasers will be Smith, Rich, and Montague. Beaters will be Bancroft and Vance. Keeper is Ron and I'm the Seeker. I'd like to thank you all for coming and trying out. So-erm-let's get back to the castle and warm up, because it's freezing."
"Hey Harry!" Ron called as they all exited the locker room. "Thanks for putting me on the team."
"Don't thank me," Harry said with a wry grin. "You got yourself on the team. Warren himself said you bested him."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Fantastic job, mate. It's good to have you on the team," Harry said as they walked through the snow and up to the castle.
"It's good to be on the team. We're going to kick some girl arse," Ron said, grinning wickedly, causing Harry to laugh.
"Don't let the girls hear you say that, Ron, or you'll never get near one of them again," he replied, winking. "Now come on, let's go tell Hermione."
They raced up to the common room to find Hermione sitting with Ginny, doing their homework. "Oh Ron, glad you're back," Ginny said the moment she saw him. "Pig brought a letter."
"Pig? What, did Mum send us something?" Ron asked blankly as he sat down.
"No-Percy did," Ginny replied, holding up an opened envelope, "and he's really bloody annoying."
Ron snatched the envelope from Ginny and took out the letter before roughly opening it. "What in blazes does the git want? And why didn't he use Hermes?"
"I dunno, but you'll see," Ginny said vaguely, going back to her assignment.
Ron slumped on the arm of a chair and began to read while Harry stood behind him and read the letter over his shoulder.
Dear Ron and Ginny,
I hope you are well and that everything happening at Hogwarts hasn't been too troubling for you. The Ministry is well apprised of the situation and is handling it to the best of their abilities. The Aurors already stationed there have been investigating, so don't worry, but the Ministry feels there needs to be something else done. Listen to me, jabbering away. I guess all I wanted to say was to be careful.
Oh, and read tomorrow's Daily Prophet. You may find something of interest in there.
Percy
"Quite subtle, isn't he?" Ron muttered, folding the letter. "I bet he's quoted or something. How is that supposed to be interesting to us?"
"Well, he is your brother, is he not?" Hermione asked distantly. "Shouldn't you care?"
"No," Ron replied. "He's a prat, a brown-nosing prat."
"Still though," Ginny said, "it would be funny to see what kind of garbage he said in the Prophet."
"The fact that he's working for Fudge makes me not care," Ron spat, looking at the letter. "You can't even call this thing a letter. It's a bloody note! Is that all he can send us?"
"You said it yourself, Ron-he's a prat," Ginny said, grinning.
Ron scowled. "The way he crawled back home after it was proven that You-Know-Who was back, practically begging for forgiveness. Makes me wonder why the hell he was a Gryffindor. His ambitions and cowardice makes him a worthy Slytherin!"
"He's not a model Gryffindor obviously," Hermione said reasonably, "but there must be something in Percy that we all don't see that the Sorting Hat did."
"Like in you?" Ron suggested. "But I think he was right to put you in Gryffindor instead of Ravenclaw. Look at all of the things you've done-going with Harry and me to save the Philosopher's Stone, saving Sirius and Buckbeak with Harry, battling Death Eaters last summer in the Department of Mysteries…"
"I will admit to being completely terrified when we took on McGonagall's giant chess set," Hermione said. "I was afraid you had died when you sacrificed yourself to win."
Ron reddened a little. "Really?"
Hermione rolled her eyes. "Ron, you're my friend! Of course I was scared!"
A little grin spread over Ron's face.
"Bloody hell, Ron, I was scared," Harry added and found it strangely satisfying to see the grin wiped right off of his face.
"What about you, Ron? Did the Hat ever think about putting you in any other House?" Hermione asked.
"Me? No."
"Never thought twice about me either," Ginny piped in.
"And there's no doubt about Harry," Ron said with a grin. "He's braver than all of us. A pure Gryffindor."
They all laughed, but Harry didn't meet any of their eyes as they did so. The last thing he wanted was for them to find out that he, Harry, had been seriously considered for Slytherin. If the Sorting Hat had made him a Slytherin, he was positive that his life would be completely different from the way it was now. He had wondered several times that if his current self were to ever meet his Slytherin self, would he even be able to recognize himself?
"Harry? You okay?" he heard Hermione ask distantly.
He shook his head clear and focused on her. Ron and Ginny were joking about their older brother again. Harry nodded. "Yes, I'm fine."
"Are you sure?" she asked, frowning slightly.
"Absolutely."
*****
The next morning, they took Percy's not-so-subtle hint and snatched the Daily Prophet the moment the owl had delivered. It didn't take them long to find out what exactly Percy had been talking about.
Ministry Assigns "Praetor" to Supervise Hogwarts Investigation
Yesterday afternoon, Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge and Madam Amelia Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, announced that in order to help with the Auror investigation of two deaths at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the Ministry would send a "Praetor" to supervise them in hopes of speeding up the investigation and finding the perpetrator.
Chosen to be the Praetor is Percy Weasley, Junior Assistant to the Minister himself. "It is an honor to be able to carry out this duty in such dark times," Weasley said after the announcement. "I will do my best to guide and assist the Aurors as needed."
"Percy's a fine candidate for the job. He was a prefect and Head Boy at Hogwarts, so he knows the school well and he's very organized," Fudge said to critics who asked why the Head of the Auror Division, Xavier Jarrett, was not chosen. His agitated response was this: "Jarrett is quite busy at the moment, directing the Aurors in the war against You-Know-Who. It's not practical to send him away from that and to a school. We need him here!"
Weasley will arrive at Hogwarts today. For more information on the two deaths at Hogwarts, see pages 8 and 9.
Harry heard Ron groan from across the table. "Today? He's going to be here today?"
"That's what it says," Harry murmured.
"Somebody hates me," he muttered and stabbed his bacon strips with his fork.
*****
Sure enough, around noon, as Harry, Ron, and Hermione were walking down to the Great Hall for lunch, they saw the oak front doors open, Professor Dumbledore standing in the doorway with Kingsley, Crow, and Frost. Harry couldn't help but notice the sour look Frost had on her face. Approaching the front doors at a fast pace was one of the thestral-drawn carriages. Dumbledore smiled warmly as it stopped and the red-haired Percy Weasley stepped out before striding up the short steps and grasping Dumbledore's outstretched hand.
"Welcome back to Hogwarts, Mr. Weasley," Dumbledore greeted.
"Thank you, Professor, although I would prefer to be called Praetor," Percy said pompously.
Dumbledore gave a slight bow. "As you wish, Percy."
Kingsley stepped forward and shook Percy's hand. "Kingsley Shacklebolt. Let us get you updated, Praetor."
Ron started pushing Harry and Hermione down the marble steps and into the Great Hall. "Move! Move!" he whispered urgently. "I don't want him seeing us!"
Percy, unfortunately, glanced over and obviously caught sight of his brother's red hair. "Ron! Harry, Hermione!"
They paused and turned around to face him. "Hello Percy," Ron muttered. "I got your note."
"Oh, good. So I suppose you understand what I'm here to do," Percy said importantly. "You three will be safe now."
"Right, no fear now," Ron muttered.
Percy frowned. "And why don't you be a good son and write home? I'm sure Mother would like to hear from you."
Hermione tugged on Ron's sleeve just as he was about to snap out something particularly vicious. "We've got to go to lunch," Hermione said pleasantly. "See you later, Percy."
He gave a slight nod and turned his attention back to the Aurors and Dumbledore. "Now, let us discuss these ghastly happenings around here."
Harry spared a glance back as they walked into the Great Hall and saw that Frost was visibly gritting her teeth, her eyes blazing. Suddenly, Harry reached out and caught Ron's arm. He turned back. "Do you have any of Fred and George's Extendable Ears?" Harry asked him.
Ron stared at him curiously while Hermione's eyes widened. "Er-yeah. Six of them, actually."
"Great. You and Hermione get back to Gryffindor Tower, pick up the ears, my invisibility cloak, and the Marauders' Map and then find me," Harry said, taking off.
"Where are you going?" Hermione hissed after him.
"To follow them," Harry replied. "Be quick."
They rushed off as Harry stealthily took off after the Aurors. They weren't hard to follow-Percy's loud, pompous voice echoed down the corridors. Part of him hoped Percy would continue talking in that manner once they got to their location so that Harry would have an easier time listening to them.
He turned a corner…the Aurors were at the other end of the hall. Frost stopped and opened up a door to an empty classroom. Harry quickly jumped behind a suit of armor and flattened himself against the wall.
"In here," he heard Frost murmur. "It's safe."
Percy marched in first, followed by Dumbledore, Kingsley, and Crow. Frost swept her sharp gaze up and down the corridor, searching. When she was apparently satisfied, she strode in herself.
Harry pounced, making his way to the door, his ears craning to hear. Suddenly, he felt a tap on his shoulder and was grabbed from behind as the silky material of his invisibility cloak was pulled over him.
"Here's an Extendable Ear," Ron whispered, handing him a flesh-looking string. "Have they started yet?"
"Just walked in," Harry whispered back, inserting the string into his ear and watching it lower and crawl along the floor and under the door.
"Shhh!" Hermione said irritably, her Extendable Ear under the door.
"So, when did the first murder take place?" they heard Percy ask.
"Halloween," Kingsley replied. "Potter, Granger, Lovegood, and your brother found her."
"The second took place a little over two months later," Crow told him. "Potter and Granger discovered her."
"Rather quickly, in fact," Frost added. "The girl wasn't even dead yet. Funny that Potter and Granger happened to be wandering around that part of the dungeons at that time."
"Ms. Frost, I hope that you aren't insinuating that Mr. Potter or Miss Granger committed murder," Dumbledore said sharply. "Especially when they both have an alibi for the first."
"Certainly not, Professor," Frost said smoothly. "I just find it…curious."
"What was Potter doing the night of the second murder?" Percy asked.
"He was conducting a Defense Club meeting," Crow replied. "I attended part of it."
"I'd like to know what led him to the dungeons that night, and why he dragged Miss Granger with him," Percy said.
They heard Frost snort. "Perhaps to snog," she muttered.
Underneath the invisibility cloak, Harry and Hermione looked at each other and blushed. Ron's face was looking rather red too.
"Well, check into that," Percy ordered. "What have you uncovered in your searches of the crime scene?"
"No fingerprints, no fibers-practically nothing," Kingsley replied.
"Any suspects?"
"Well, there was Argus Filch," Crow replied, "but Professor Dumbledore has been vouching for him."
"Evidence to prove it?"
"Filch had a knife and the girls were stabbed to death. The man is a Squib, and I've asked a student how resentful Filch is of the students. The reply was quite a bit," Crow told him.
"Which student?"
"Eddie Carmichael, the Head Boy," he murmured.
"And you firmly believe Filch didn't do it, Professor?" Percy asked.
"I do," Dumbledore responded.
"Does Filch have an alibi for either of the murders?"
"Filch claims that during the first he was battling with the Poltergeist and for the second he was cleaning the windows on the third floor," Kingsley said.
They heard Percy sigh. "We'll have to watch him. Now, anything else?"
There was a pause-"Just one other thing," Kingsley said quietly.
"Which is?"
"At the second crime scene, I noticed something on the floor, so we investigated it. We found-" He let out a sigh. "-the Dark Mark. And when we checked the bathroom again, we found it there too."
"The Dark Mark," Percy repeated, a hint of fear in his voice. "That means-that means there's-"
"A Death Eater here," Crow finished for him.
"Or someone out to prove they're worthy of becoming one," Kingsley said.
"Prove they're worthy? Tell me, how many children of Death Eaters go to this school?" Percy asked.
"Several," Dumbledore replied. "But I do not think-"
"It's possible that one of them is trying to show You-Know-Who how brave and loyal they are, how they're willing to kill, but I doubt it," Kingsley said. "Only a highly advanced student would have the abilities to clean up after themselves the way our killer did."
"Precisely," Dumbledore murmured, nodding to Kingsley.
They heard footsteps coming towards the door and even then had to strain to hear Frost mutter, "They wouldn't have the guts to kill Mudbloods."
"Yes, only a real Death Eater is capable of these attacks," Crow said, "And we do have a 'former' Death Eater right here at Hogwarts."
"Severus Snape was sitting in the Great Hall when Miss Winters was killed," Dumbledore said sharply. "Unless he has the ability to be in two places at once Professor Snape could not have possibly killed her."
"Praetor," Kingsley said, "that is all the information we have for you." His voice took on a sharp edge. "I would appreciate it if my colleagues would stop name tossing until we have some hard evidence. We will continue our investigation tomorrow. Now, I'm sure you'd like to get settled into your room."
Harry, Ron, and Hermione yanked on their Extendable Ears and quickly walked away before the door opened. They cut around different corners to lose them and when they were far enough away, Harry pulled the cloak off of them and they stood, gazing at each other.
"Well," Hermione said at last, "it certainly seems as though the Aurors are as lost as the rest of us."
"But that Frost sure does hate Muggle-borns. Did you hear her?" Ron spat. "She's the number one suspect in my book."
Harry nodded. "She hates Muggle-borns-June and Sinead were both Muggle-born."
"And let's not forget that we saw her days before Sinead's death screaming at her," Ron muttered. "Rotten little b-"
"Funny how she seemed to dismiss that it could have been a child of a Death Eater," Harry said.
"It would be stupid to think that anyway," Hermione said vaguely, her brow furrowing.
"Why?" Ron asked.
"Because everyone seems to forget who else has been attacked this year," she said irritably.
"Me," Harry replied softly. "The Soul Reaper."
"Exactly. No Hogwarts student, no matter how brilliant and talented, could have pulled that off. It takes some serious Dark magic to do it," Hermione said.
"And we know a Death Eater's here," Ron said.
"Two, actually, but only one is obviously still active," Harry said. "But I wonder why Snape hasn't mentioned Frost to anyone? He confronted her at the Yule Ball."
"Perhaps it's part of Snape's Order assignment. I wouldn't doubt that he's playing double agent," Hermione said.
Harry shook his head. "Voldemort would kill him if he got too far back in. He knows Snape switched sides. He's not fool enough to believe he switched back."
"But does Frost know this?" Hermione asked.
"If she's here, I'd say she was close enough to Voldemort. He wouldn't send just anybody here to spy and commit murder," Harry said.
"Yeah, but what if she's the only Auror in You-Know-Who's pocket?" Ron said suddenly.
Harry considered this. "So she hears about the assignment and works to get selected for it. Once she is, she contacts Voldemort. He's now got a spy in Hogwarts, so why not do some damage?"
"Why not turn Dumbledore's focus back to his school instead of the war? Without Dumbledore being a step ahead of you, you can reign supreme," Hermione murmured.
Harry looked at both Ron and Hermione for a moment. "Let's keep an eye on her, and let's find out her history. Maybe then I'll find out why she hated my mother," he said, "and maybe we'll be able to keep her from striking again."