Chapter 45 Justice Delayed *************************Hogwarts*******************************
June 13, 2006
8:50 am
"Harry, Hermione, a moment." Dumbledore called out as the pair exited the infirmary. They had just been to visit Ron, where he and several of the other survivors of the battle were still laid up, him until tomorrow, when Poppy had declared that he would be ok. Luna had been perched attentively on the edge of the bed when they came in. She had been giggling again at something Ron said. A welcome sight, she had been withdrawn for a day, becoming terse and dark, totally unlike her normal personality until word had come that her father had been found, alive and well, if a tad thirsty.
He had taken shelter under a large printing press as the giant had knocked the building down around his ears. Mr. Lovegood had already started to rebuild and had published a commemorative issue from the paper's alternate offices in Hogsmeade, both of the main wizarding papers were operating out of alternate facilities for the time being. Unfortunately the press being such as it was, the devastation had not stopped the reporters, and they had swarmed the castle almost before the dust had stopped falling in the Great Hall. But as Dumbledore had turned on the defenses they bounded off the wards of the castle resulting in a large, multicolored pile at the gates of the grounds. The nemesis of truth in reporting everywhere, Rita Skeeter, had managed to get in to the castle, but for her troubles she was now decorating a terrarium near Trevor's cage. And any other reporter that had been found to have snuck onto the grounds had been expelled, forcefully, by the house elves.
"Yes Granddad?" Harry asked as they swiveled to face him. Both of them were in more or less muggle clothes today, jeans and t-shirts, black dragonhide jackets over their wands and badges. They had already started on their new jobs, and had gone out with Tonks this morning to look for leads in the hunt for the remaining Death Eaters, many of whom were relatively highly ranked, such as Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy. So far the only member of Voldemort's inner circle that had been captured or confirmed killed, was Bellatrix. The son that they had denounced had already been accepted into the Auror academy on a fast track course, to get him out in one year instead of the usual three along with many other surviving graduates of Hogwarts and Beauxbatons. And as Moody had said, to them early this morning, they were agents anyway; they could let the bureaucrats fill out the paperwork. A new policy that immediately endeared him to the various field agents and operatives under his new command, at the same time as it annoyed the paper pushers, who had seemed to survive the events of last Friday in a much higher relative percentage than the people who went out and got things gone.
"It has been requested that as a symbol of our rebuilding that we have graduation, despite the events of last Friday." Dumbledore said with an expression that adequately showed his mixed feelings at that pronouncement. "Hermione, you will be expected to speak as will Harry, as Head Boy."
"Okay Albus" Hermione replied with a smirk, although the smile never touched her eyes. "When?"
"As you know the underclassmen that are well enough to travel will be leaving tomorrow, leaving the just the seventh years, or I should say the graduates behind. In consequence I am planning on having that event outside on the pitch this year, it escaped more or less unharmed. The construction wizards will take quite a bit longer to finish repairs on the Great Hall, and I am afraid that Ravenclaw tower will have to be rebuilt totally." Dumbledore paused and motioned them into empty classroom.
Puzzled, they followed him into the room, and watched with raised eyebrows as Dumbledore sealed the door, and cast an imperturbable charm on the door. "I have a proposal for the pair of you, Arthur as he may have told you, was looking for you to be, discrete, to keep your activities as clandestine as possible. As I see the situation, your main problem will be that there are few occupations that either or both of you could use as a cover and still be credible. I have a problem, myself. I need Professors, specifically," He raised his hand and ticked them off on his fingers, "Potions, Herbology, DADA, Care of Magical Creatures and Transfiguration." Dumbledore gave them a tiny smile at their confused looks, "the potions and DADA vacancies are obvious, Madame Sprout decided that she needs a more relaxing atmosphere, and has submitted her application for retirement, and Hagrid...is going to France for a while at least. As to Minerva, she isn't leaving, but I feel that it is time to start to transition more of my responsibilities to her. I would like to retire to enjoy my grandchildren in a few years."
Dumbledore almost laughed at their expressions when he said the last, but kept it in check, barely. "I was thinking of splitting the DADA and transfiguration requirements among you two if you feel the need for yet another career, I know how you hate to be bored." Dumbledore's eyes twinkled deeply as he finished. "Both Minerva and I will still be around to cover your classes in case your primary duties interfere with classes. You do not have to respond right away, however if any of those assignments would work as 'cover' please let me know." With a slight nod, Dumbledore canceled the locking and defense charms and headed out into the hall.
After he had left Harry looked over and crooked an eyebrow, a habit that he had gotten from her. In mute response, Hermione sighed and ran her fingers though her hair, his tic. "Bloody grandchildren?" She snorted, "You think he and Molly are in league together?" With a small laugh Harry reached out and intertwined his fingers with hers.
"I wasn't planning on it at the moment, but I seem to remember you saying something about practicing?" He replied puckishly. "And I'm just waiting for Sirius to start asking."
Hermione bit her lower lip for a second before she giggled, and relaxed with a sigh, "And Ron is still being held prisoner by Poppy, so he can't walk in...unfortunately..." she shrugged and pulling him by the hand, she led them back into the hall, and back towards Gryffindor, and the Head's suite where they were staying for a while longer. Technically, they could have already left, as they were both adults, and "Aurors without portfolio" for that matter but they were staying for a couple of reasons. First, while Sirius, Lupin and Tonks had returned to Grimmauld Place yesterday, the three of them taking up residence at Harry's insistence, even though Harry still thought of the place as Sirius.' Dumbledore had objected to Harry and Hermione moving in with them, or out to Godric's Hollow, until he had had time to personally review the security wards. After all, there were many who would love a chance at the two of them in revenge for Voldemort's fall. Ron and Luna, unknown to either of them, yet, would be under similar restrictions. And second, even though neither had admitted it out loud, they didn't really want to leave.
Harry waved at Padma as she passed on the way to the infirmary to visit a couple of her Ravenclaw classmates. She was coming from Gryffindor where the Ravenclaws had been staying for the most part, as Ravenclaw and Gryffindor, were probably the closest aligned houses in this century, almost as close as Gryffindor and Slytherin had been a thousand years ago. A thought that gave him sudden pause as the Heir of Gryffindor glanced over at the Heir of Ravenclaw. But as that same heir squeezed his hand affectionately that thought was banished, if that was the case in a thousand years hence, so be it, it was not nor never would be in the present. Harry gave her a smile in return as they continued down the hall, taking the time to further engrave the old castle in their minds. "Harry?" Hermione asked quietly, "What do you think about it...I mean Dumbledore's offer. It would be descent cover, I mean that we've already leaked, our quote, 'taking time to think things over' to the Quibbler, and you let them quote you as you didn't know if you were going to be an Auror after all...It would work as a cover, if we very publicly accepted the jobs from Dumbledore."
"Ok" Harry replied succinctly, then as she raised her eyebrows, questioningly, "Sure why not, it's not like this place isn't used to its Professors being involved in several things at once. And in your spare time you can get that degree from Stonehenge."
Hermione grinned back at him and kissed him on the cheek, but before they could prolong their 'conversation', they were interrupted again, with a dose of reality like a bucket of cold water being thrown on their heads. "Wotcher, you two" Tonks snapped as she slid to a halt, having just come running up the stairs from below. " We don't have time for this."
"What, Nymph?" Harry replied, just a touch annoyed at the interruption. Hermione leaned against him slightly as she gave Tonks a tiny glare.
"Listen you two, I haven't gotten laid in the last week either, but we have jobs to do, remember?" Tonks blurted, ever the font of tact, as Hermione's glare kicked up a notch, but neither of them argued. "Anyway, we've found them, well not all of them by any means, but a significant portion."
"Who, Tonks?" Harry replied tiredly.
"The Death Eaters," She replied, the 'stupid' at the end of the sentence not said, merely implied. Like a sea change, Harry and Hermione's manner changed, their eyes hardened just a bit, and focused intently on Tonks, their breathing became slow and deep as they regarded her.
"Where?" Harry asked, instantly all business, their irritation with Tonks gone instantly. "And which ones?"
"Lets go to somewhere private, and I have already called for Lupin, Sirius and Mad-Eye, I only want to go over this once." Tonks replied calmly.
Harry nodded in answer and pointed back towards the infirmary. "Let's go get Ron, I want him in on this, even though we'll have to sneak him out past Poppy. We'll meet in Dumbledore's office in fifteen minutes?" Tonks nodded and headed off at a brisk walk. Harry and Hermione pivoted on their heels and braced themselves for the argument with Pomfrey about letting Ron go the meeting. Even though he was now perfectly fine, Pomfrey had been keeping him in case there was a side effect from having to take so much blood-replenishing potion, as he had. In many ways Harry and Hermione had been injured much worse than he, actually if they had been muggles and had been treated by muggle doctors, Ron would have actually had a much greater chance of survival, but since so much of magic was tied in one way or the other to blood, the loss of so much by Ron's wounds had concerned Madame Pomfrey greatly, while Harry and Hermione's broken and shattered bones, concussions and internal bleeding were more or less an overnight repair, after all they had kept most of the blood inside where it could be reabsorbed, the scars they had gained had been minor compared to Ron's.
As they walked back in the Infirmary, almost abandoned at Ron's end except for Ron and Luna, Hermione and Harry stopped and looked down. Hermione stood; a hip cocked, a curious light in her eyes, "So big brother, are you ready to get off your arse and to work?" Ron grinned back up at her and sneaking a glance at the office the four of them left the infirmary quickly.
*****************************Headmaster's Office**************************
Twenty minutes later
"So that's it, Harry" Tonks said as the projection from the recording orb died. "I guess that the Death Eaters never realized that even if Malfoy Manor is unplotable, and hidden like Grimmauld is for the Order, that we can see them coming and going, especially if we have people who have been there before." She shrugged hopelessly.
"That's alright, Tonks" Harry replied evenly. "Who did the surveillance?"
"Not me...of course, I'd knock something over, it was Shawn Asten, you've never met him, but he's ok, he's a little older than me. We were about the last Aurors taken in before you three. Damn Fudge and his budget cuts." She muttered viscously, around the room everyone, even Sirius who had benefited as he was on the run at the time, nodded sagely.
Hermione sighed slightly, as she looked up from her notes, "do we know which ones are there?"
Tonks shook a head of glistening, blond curls. "No, Hermione, not in total, there were...um a few we recognized though." She looked around at the various wizards and witches in the room, but curiously she didn't quite meet either Sirius' or Lupin's eyes. Taking a deep breath she murmured, "McNair, Thomplison, Pettigrew, one of the Hamiltons..."
"WORMTAIL" Sirius growled as he jumped up from his seat. "I'm bloody well going Harry." He stared at Harry as if daring him to deny him. Lupin said nothing, but nodded along with Sirius' statement. Harry looked back on them evenly, weighing responses in his head.
"Which one of the Hamiltons?" Hermione said quietly to the other witch in the room, ignoring the byplay beside her. Harry didn't however; he dropped his gaze back to Tonks and away from the original Marauders. Xavier Hamilton had been Lucius Malfoy's main minion at her parents' home, and he had been the leader of the Death Eaters when they originally stormed Gryffindor tower during the siege of Hogwarts. He had gotten away each time, each time, just before someone who could actually fight on an even plane could arrive.
Hermione's brief hopes were dashed however. "Sorry, it's Gregor, the youngest, Xavier and Albert haven't been seen since last Friday." Tonks gave another slight shrug, as Hermione gave her a resigned nod. The Hamiltons, were what for Dark Wizards that the Weasleys were for the light, there were five boys and two girls; they were all evil to the core, and the girls were if possible, worse. Aurors had killed one of the boys, Alexander, last year, and one of the girls had been stunned at the edge of the forest over the weekend, a straggler from the battle at the pitch.
He won't get away forever, Mione Harry replied silently, and he got a mental impression of a pained smile in return for his reassurance. "What do you guess is the upper limit on numbers, Tonks?"
"Twelve or so, we think that perhaps three hundred came here, and maybe another twenty five, thirty, at Diagon Alley with the giants. They had about fifty percent casualties here, either dead or captured, but the Diagon Alley crowd got away like a flock of snitches. Most of them are scattered to hell and gone, but a few have cropped up together at odd times. This is the only ..."
"WORMTAIL!" Sirius spat, again.
Harry dropped his head and took a deep breath, with a great sigh he looked up at his godfather, "we know Sirius; please let Tonks finish." Harry said with a slightly placating voice. But meanwhile, Hermione's brain had been chugging along.
"We'll need, Draco, Harry" Hermione said quietly, "He knows the mansion and if Lucius hasn't been back to the manor yet, he can probably control whatever wards they have." She gave Harry a slightly hopeless look, he frowned a bit, but on reflection he didn't disagree.
Others did though, "NO BLOODY WAY, WE CAN'T TRUST THAT WANKER!" Ron snapped, glaring at his two best friends.
But before either of them could respond, Sirius put in, once again, "WORMTAIL"
Oh, for the love of Merlin, Harry thought desperately, he closed his eyes, took a deep breath and snapped them open again. When they opened, the light from them rivaled the daylight coming in the room, with a thought, glass knickknacks exploded about the room, like little bombs going off. "SHUT UP, EVERYONE" Harry snapped, then in a calmer tone, "Sirius, you will get to go, unless you don't shut up about Peter Fucking Pettigrew. Honestly I think I owe him, as much as anyone here." Harry turned and glared at his best friend, "Ron, if Draco is willing, we will take him, Hermione is right, he has the best chance of knowing secrets about the manor that we don't."
Ron growled in response, "You're just taking her..."
To his surprise Harry replied with a short grunt of laughter, "of course I'm taking her side Ron...she's right. And you know it, Draco, not seventy two hours ago, stuck his wand in Lucius' ear and dropped him in front of fifty Death Eaters." Wearing a practiced calm look, the one he used when he was forced to mediate Hermione and Ron's arguments, when he couldn't otherwise escape, he turned to Dumbledore. Dumbledore had been sitting quietly during the whole conversion, and Harry watched mutely as Dumbledore raised an eyebrow, and silently repaired the broken babbles from Harry's demonstration. "Could you please have Draco summoned here, Professor?" Dumbledore merely nodded in response, and after writing a short note and giving it to Fawkes, he sat back, considering. After a ten-minute gap, in which the whole room sat silent, though Harry and Hermione did have a long mental chat about nothing in particular, a knock was heard at the door.
"Come in" Dumbledore commanded. The door eased open, and Draco entered. He was wearing an unadorned cloak, with no house emblem over muggle clothes. He looked tired, his platinum hair, worn long, was pulled back into a short tail at the base of his neck. Looking around the room, he noticed the even looks of Harry and Hermione, the hostile look from Ron, and the more or less neutral expressions of the others.
"Draco," Harry began with mixed feelings, "we need your help."
"For what...Harry?" He gave back, warily.
"We're going to Malfoy Manor, a group of Death Eaters are there. We can get in without you but it would be easier with you."
Draco frowned, but gave a slow nod, "ok."
Harry looked at him measuringly, and nodded in return. "Fine then...we'll leave at ten, meet up here at nine thirty.
With that dismissal everyone got up to leave, Sirius still muttering about, "that damn rat," under his breath and Ron shooting periodic glares at Draco when he thought Harry or Hermione weren't looking. But as they reached the door, Dumbledore spoke up. "Harry, a moment."
Harry glanced back at Dumbledore; I'll catch up Mione. Hermione nodded, Harry flicked a half smile at her and returned to Dumbledore's desk. Behind him, Hermione grabbed Ron's elbow and steered him away from Malfoy, even after the door closed, Harry could hear her words echo in his mind as she snarled at Ron, her annoyance with him spilling over into her thoughts. Harry winced a bit at the byplay.
Dumbledore noticed the wince, flicked his gaze to the door, and back to Harry with a wry smile. Then with another breath, his expression fell, and became serious once again. "I assume that you would like to try to end this with as little bloodshed as possible?"
"For the most part I would, and Mione would, but I don't know about the rest. Honestly, I'm a bit afraid of Lupin and Sirius, though. Ron's just pissy about Draco. " Harry said sympathetically, looking back towards the door.
"As I thought, then, this might help you" With a small wave of his hand, a box appeared, "It occurred to
me, that the Riddle's followers might need a source of...encouragement."
Harry opened the box, and suddenly looked a bit green. "Yes, Granddad, I think that might give them a bit of
encouragement."
****************************Malfoy Manor********************************
With the familiar snap-tug behind their navels, Harry, Hermione, Ron, Draco, Lupin, Tonks, Sirius, appeared in a grove of trees, just out of direct sight of the manor. All of them could see the unplotable house, as Draco had done as asked and given them the information to see it. "All right Potter, I've done as you asked, now what?" Draco muttered. Harry glanced over at him. With a wave of his wand, he shrunk the box that he had been carrying when they met up, and stuck it in a leg pocket of his blacks. Everyone had wondered why Harry had a box, but no one had asked, out loud anyway. As soon as Hermione's eyes had crossed his, when he picked it up off Dumbledore's desk before they left, they had all heard her take in a sharp gasp, but she said nothing either.
"Can you take down the anti-apparation wards, Draco?" Hermione asked softly, then all seven of them snapped wands towards the tree line, to see the Auror Tonks had mentioned come walking out of the tree line, his hands carefully away from his wand.
Sean Asten was a very normal looking wizard. He had mousy brown hair, brown eyes, and an indiscriminate build. He was the type that you would look at once and pass right over. "Hello Tonks, Lupin." He said amicably, he turned to Harry, and held out a hand, "Pleasure to meet you sir."
Harry took his hand and shook it firmly, "call me Harry," pointing to the rest in turn, "This is Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, Sirius Black, Draco Malfoy."
At the introduction, Asten's jaw dropped, "Malfoy...Sirius Black." Harry rolled his eyes a bit, but did not explain.
He turned back to Draco, eyebrows raised. "Well?"
"I can't drop them, entirely, unless I'm declared master of the house." Draco shrugged, "but I can weaken them, maybe. Maybe enough for three of you to apparate in, if you jump with me, I can of course, enter myself, but my blood is synchronized with the wards."
"Fine Draco" Harry said, making an instant decision, "Asten, stay here and report back to the Ministry, if we aren't back in an hour, we probably aren't coming back. Draco, have Lupin, Tonks and Sirius grab onto you, and work together to apparate in. Ron..." Harry considered Ron, a tiny grin on his lips. Harry's, then Hermione's eyes lit up.
"Don't worry Ron" Hermione grinned, her expression eerily mirroring Harry's. "Its not that much worse than a portkey."
"What do you mean?" Ron asked a touch of nerves in his voice. His eyes flicked back and forth between his friends. He sidled back a bit, until Sirius pushed him back with a smirk.
"Well, you see mate, unlike Hogwarts, where the castle herself gives us permission to apparate, you didn't hear that by the way Sean" Harry interjected, "We have to force our way through the wards here." Harry laid a hand on one of Ron's shoulders, and as Ron turned to him, Hermione snuck up and grabbed his other shoulder. "See you there" Harry muttered and with a flash in their eyes, the trio vanished.
**********************Inside Malfoy Manor****************************
With a muffled pop, quite unlike their now normally silent apparitions, Harry and Hermione appeared in an empty, but ornate, upper bedroom of the manor, Ron, standing right in front of them. Ron staggered as he turned, just like coming through a bad portkey jump. As he took in his best friends, he saw with a shock that both of his best friends were sweating, looking as if they had just run a marathon. Both of their eyes had faded back to their normal colors, and Harry quickly wrapped an arm around Hermione's shoulders, though he didn't look much better than her. "What's wrong?" Ron asked quickly, concern flooding his voice.
"Honestly Ron," Hermione snarled, "we may be powerful, but we are not all powerful, by any means. The wards here are almost as old as the ones at the Hogwarts and Draco only weakened them, and to top it off we didn't have a beacon to guide us like the Eaters did at Hogwarts." Ron looked a bit taken aback at her tone, she frowned and apologized, "sorry Ron." He nodded silently.
CRACK, the rest of the team appeared, everyone letting go of Draco as they materialized, and looked about the room. Before anyone could utter another word, the door creaked open, and a small, oily man with a silver hand shambled in. Wormtail was looking down, not paying attention to his surroundings, until, "COLLOPORTUS, SILENCIO" Tonks snapped and the door sealed itself, and a brief white flash lit the walls.
"Hello Peter," Sirius said happily, his gray eyes dark and hard. Wormtail's gaze flew upward and about the room, and he let out a little squeak, just like a cornered rat.
"Accio Wand" Hermione snapped, and Wormtail's wand, a twisted piece of oak, shot across the room to her waiting hand. "Lacarm inflamare," With her bluebell incantation, the wand erupted into blue flame in her hand, reducing itself to ashes in a moment, and then it was gone, not a mark on her hand to signify its passage. She leaned back against the door, and watched with hooded eyes at the arch traitor.
"Peter..."Harry began, pausing as he looked the small wizard up and down and walked slowly around him, "you have a choice, right now. You can," Harry held up a hand, and a small vial filled with a bright orange potion appeared, "take this potion, and die quietly, or you can try to fight, I don't think you will do too well, after all Peter, I'm not tied up, but I've been surprised before, or..." Then as if making a snap decision, Harry's hand closed around the vial and it vanished. "No, Peter, you doomed yourself all those years ago," Harry stepped closer to Pettigrew and stared down at him, "you see Peter, when you betrayed my parents, your friends, you brought this on yourself. Your master feared Dumbledore all these years, when in fact...he should have feared me."
Harry stepped back and pointed a wand at the traitor, "bestia mutatio congelo diutinus." Instantly, Pettigrew shrunk and transformed into a brown, dirty rat, his tiny sliver paw making tiny ticking noises on the hardwood floor. The rat, looked up and up at the others in the room, and one could see it trembling as Pettigrew tried to transform back into a human. Harry smiled darkly down at the rat on the floor, he unsealed the door, and after making sure the hall was clear he ushered everyone else out into the hall. Harry paused at the door, "APPERO CROOKSHANKS" Hermione gave him an odd, dangerous smile as he gently set the kneazle on the floor in the room and once again closed and sealed the door. A loud MEEROW was heard from behind the door as they started down the hall. Harry looked over at Ron and with a little shrug, "sorry about your rat, mate."
"Oi, no big" Ron replied evenly then he whipped out his wand, and pointed it at his hand. Instantly several red dots appeared in his hand, all of them were clustered together, somewhere ahead of a group of seven blue dots, except one, that was behind them. The one red dot behind them jittered about for a moment, then stopped suddenly, and slowly faded away. No one commented. "Looks like about eleven of them Harry, though this spell doesn't work that well on telling what floor, it's two dimensional only." Ron shrugged and closed his hand, the dots vanishing instantly.
"Ideas?" Harry asked softly.
Sirius looked back at the room, they had arrived in, then over to Draco. "I haven't been in this house since I was a child, but isn't there a meeting room or parlor, on the next floor down?"
"Yes," Draco answered succinctly, "there is. And if my father wasn't lying to me, then, I would suspect, that since you cut off the snake's head the body is writhing in that room, right now." At Draco's words, Harry and Hermione shared a knowing look, but did not comment.
"How about we Sonorus our voice, and tell then they are surrounded by Aurors. And to throw down their wands?" Tonks put in a little too brightly, and as one, pairs of, emerald, chocolate, hazel, blue and two pairs of eyes all snapped to her dark ones, and she shrugged, "Ok, it doesn't work on the telly either."
Hermione rolled her eyes and turned back to Harry, Honestly, was the only thought he could make out, though from Ron's suppressed laughter it was obvious, to him too. Then with a sudden thought she looked back at Harry, "There's only eleven Harry and they're all clustered together."
"Ok" Harry responded, as everyone else looked confused. "Draco, the wards don't protect from apparating in the house do they?"
"No" Draco answered back promptly.
"Good" Harry replied swiftly, "Mione and I will go together, you and Ron to the other side of the table, you three" motioning to Tonks, Lupin and Sirius guard the doors."
"Harry, I still don't trust him," Ron snapped lowly.
To which Draco hissed annoyedly, "You bloody prat, just like...."
"Enough" Harry snarled, "Fine then Ron, you go with Mione, and I go with Draco. We jump in and we do as Tonks suggested, sort of. I may be able to convince them to give up without a fight." Most everyone looked dubious at that statement, but didn't bother to try to correct him. "Ready, then." At a series of nods, "let's go" CRACK
**************************Meeting Room, Malfoy Manor********************
"Where is that damn rat?" Edward Thomplison snarled as he sat down at a seat at near one end of a long, ironwood conference table. The room was decorated, as was much of Malfoy manor, in an austere haughty style. There were no overt depictions of the dark arts, or associated paraphernalia, unless one counted the eleven Death Eaters, as there had been at Grimmauld Place before it was redecorated, but there was a distinct air, of unpleasantness about the room. The room was windowless, as it was in the center of the house, and was lit only by flickering wall scones that cast deep shadows in the room.
"Hell, if I know" Albert McNair muttered morosely, "he probably ran again, just like he did when he abandoned Master at the damn school." A series of loud hissing sounds erupted at the reminder of Voldemort's passing, until a rather handsome, black haired wizard grabbed an apple from a bowl on the table and started eating it.
Gregor Hamilton shrugged, and chuckled darkly, "he is a damn rat, as Edward so ably put forth. He is probably looking for some cheese." The Death Eaters gathered round the table laughed, until with a sudden thought McNair turned and glared at Hamilton.
"While we are discussing that matter, just how did you and your brothers escape Gryffindor Tower? You reported killing the traitor, and you were to have to your fun, I can't see any of your family passing up that fun." McNair snarled lowly.
"Yeah" snapped Samuel Blatz, as he looked up from his seat. He along with the others except Pettigrew and Hamilton had been at the attack at Diagon Alley, and unlike their Master's attack on Hogwarts, they had succeeded, the Auror corps was in ruins, and even if Voldemort had not been able to activate the Chamber, which evidentially he hadn't, they should have had free reign. The only issue was that Voldemort had not returned. Most of those at the table professed to not believe the reports from Hogwarts that Potter, with the help of his mudblood bitch and their blood traitor friend had killed their leader. No if anything Potter must have given the Dark Lord a mere setback, once again. The problem with that belief, was that very few of the Death Eaters that had been at the castle had contacted them, and those that had, had been either part of Lucius' group or one of the ones that broken off to have a little 'sport' in the castle. No one knew of any who had gone with their leader to the chamber that had returned. But how could that be? Only students, mere children had opposed that force.
Gregor opened his mouth to utter a response, only to be rudely interrupted by several loud, simultaneous CRACKs. Instantly the Death Eaters reached for their wands, only to stop at a soft voice, replete with threat. "The first one that touches a wand, dies, lads" Sirius growled dangerously.
"Thank you Sirius" Harry said calmly, he and Draco had appeared at the head of the table, Ron and Hermione had appeared just behind McNair to one side, while Lupin, Sirius and Tonks had apparated in near the doors. They had been lucky on their positioning, the spell just showed them where the bad guys were, not where the doors and such where. With a tight, dangerous smile, Harry sat down in the empty chair at the head of the table, carefully placing the sheathed Sword of Gryffindor on the table in front of him. With a negligent gesture, Harry took a small box from his pocket and threw it on the table in front of McNair. Smiling tightly he flung his dragonhide boots on the darkly polished table, and waved idly at the box. It instantly returned to its former size. "My calling card, gentlemen. And I assure you that I use that term, quite loosely." Harry steepled his fingers in front of his face, he glared at he Death Eaters at the table over the tops of his glasses in an remarkably good impression of Dumbledore dealing with a problem student.
"What do you want, Potter?" McNair snarled, then as he glanced up at Draco then around at the Aurors that had appeared in the room, "I see that you brought your little Mudblood, and a whole great lot of blood-traitors." He laughed bitterly, "or is it that she just clings on like a little..."
"McNair" Hermione put in sweetly, "remember Dolohov? I do." She stopped at a raised hand from Harry, and contented herself with glaring at McNair. Ron put a hand on her shoulder, but she shrugged it off violently.
Harry glanced over at Hamilton, who looked as if he was trying to sneak a hand towards a wand, and shook his head sadly, "don't...now listen carefully, I am not going to repeat myself. You have lost. Tom Riddle is dead. You can still survive, those of you who decide to surrender now and turn witnesses for the Ministry, will live, I'm afraid those of you who don't..." Harry left the rest unsaid.
"How dare, you use that name," Blatz howled, "You cannot kill our master, you have tried and failed..."
"NO!" Harry snapped, "The truth of the matter is that your master tried to kill me six times himself and failed and the rest of you tried many more times, I only succeed once. Open the box." McNair reached out and tipped over the box. Out onto the table, the severed head of Tom Riddle, rolled out, his red, cat-pupiled eyes open and staring, his mouth still open from shock, the gray skin waxy and taught.
Most of the Death Eaters stared in shock, but three did not, Hamilton, McNair and Ted Antilles all stretched for wands, and time slowed to a stop. The lights died in the room, steel hissed, and a bright flash lit the room for an instant, "Incendio" Harry murmured and the torches relit. Harry was in the exact same position he had been, boots on the table, next to the sheath of the Gryffindor sword, the sheath was now however empty. Harry held the sword, and was carefully, pointedly, wiping the blade with a small cloth. Hermione muttered a cleaning charm as she replaced her sword in its sheath, and across the room, Sirius relaxed from a crouch, his wand slowly coming down. No one else had moved. McNair, Hamilton and Antilles were dead, Hamilton joining their master on the table, McNair sprawled messily over a chair, and Antilles slumped in a heap at the base of the wall, his head at an odd angle, his face puce. "Anyone else?" Harry asked quietly only to watch eight pairs of hands slowly inch upward. "Very well. ACCIO WANDS" eleven wands shot to his hand, and he laid them in an untidy pile on the table in front of him. "Diffindo" all eleven wands neatly cleaved in two, small eruptions of energy releasing from each. Harry stood and looked down on them, "Tonks if you would..."
"You lot are under arrest for Murder, Attempted Murder, Rape, High Treason, Use of Unforgivable Curses on Sentient Beings, Cruelty to Creatures, and general unseemliness. I'm sure that we will come up with something else, INCARCEROUS," Tonks incanted, waving her wand over the surviving Death Eaters. Faintly glowing ropes instantly sprung into being, tightly binding the Death Eaters' arms to their chests. Harry picked up the bowl that had contained fruit before it had got knocked askew in the brief struggle, "portus." The bowl flashed blue for an instant, shivered and settled back down.
Harry handed the bowl to Tonks, "here this will take you to the Ministry. Dumbledore told me that the Wizengamot would be in session tomorrow to decide their fates. You lot better think about what you are going to say to them tomorrow." Harry glanced over at Lupin who nodded minutely and walked over to his partner. "Go on with them Sirius, we'll see each other tomorrow." He nodded to Harry, and as Tonks fastened the last of the captive's ropes to the portkey, Sirius and Lupin touched it and they all vanished in a blaze of color. Leaving the bodies and Harry, Hermione, Ron and Draco behind.
With a scowl Draco surveyed the scene, arms crossed over his chest. He blew a stray lock of hair out of his eye and glared annoyedly over at Harry, "you could have at least had her take the bodies, Potter." He growled, but there was no heat in the observation, more of a comment than anything else.
"Yeah I guess I could have," Harry agreed softly, getting up he headed towards the door, and held it open for Hermione, "Are you coming back to Hogwarts Draco? Dumbledore is having the graduation still Saturday."
"I don't know" Draco replied, sitting down in a chair in the room, his company the dead Death Eaters.
"Ok..." Harry replied, understanding instantly, "I have to go rescue a cat."
***********************Hogwarts, Heads Common Room*********************
June 14, 2006
1:00 am
"Harry" Hermione murmured next to him on the couch, both of them were too riled up to sleep yet, and had come up to the room, after talking briefly to those students still in the common room. The younger students were leaving in the morning on the express for London, and the older students, and those younger students staying for the graduation such as Luna and Ginny were staying. And so the common room was crowded, Gryffindor Tower was playing host to the Ravenclaws, whose dorm was lying to one side of the castle.
Harry and Hermione had had to stop many times for a word with their surviving classmates, and since they all had technically graduated, the atmosphere, was like a melancholy party. Seamus and Lavender had been dancing together, their annoyance with each other forgotten. Pavarti and Padma; were playing a muggle game with Ginny and Luna, though the shots of accompanying firewhiskey, were not part of the original rules of monopoly, even the enchanted version. Dean and Neville had been watching the game, quietly sharing asides as the girls played. Everyone had stopped as soon as the trio walked in, every eye instantly tracking towards them as they entered the main common room. Finally after several long minutes, Harry and Hermione had peeled off, Ron waving them goodnight, as he settled into the game next to his fiancée.
"Yeah Mione," Harry replied sleepily, snuggling down on the couch and pulling her with him. Crookshanks looked up at the pair, and went back to cleaning his whiskers, he had been inordinately pleased with himself ever since they had opened the door at Malfoy Manor, and he came strutting out. Neither of them had looked into the room, but stepped away and rode the portkey Ron had created back to Hogwarts.
"Lets get married." Hermione said suddenly, not glancing back at him.
Harry raised an eyebrow as he woke back up, "umm, love, that's why you have that ring on."
"I mean now." Hermione replied though a bit lower lip. The sudden case of nerves she felt as the words left her lips, was odd, especially considering what they had gone together through in the last few days.
Harry had gotten much better at reading girls' moods, especially hers, but his response didn't need to take any of that into account, "ok, dear" he responded instantly. His lips twitched upward at a random thought, "I don't know who we can get to perform the ceremony at one am, though Granddad's probably still up. I'm not sure how your bridesmaids will take it though, from what I saw down stairs I'm not sure they can stand right now." Hermione reached back, and gently rapped him on the back of the head.
"I didn't mean tonight, dufus." Hermione giggled then sighed, "Though it would shock Molly if we did tonight, I bet we could get Ginny at least, standing." She squeezed his trapped hand, and he laughed at the shared mental image. Harry could feel her mental gears kicking into overdrive, and he shuttered just a tiny bit. "What about after graduation, Saturday?"
"Fine."
"Fine, FINE...HARRY, this is..." Hermione snapped.
"Mione, love...I know. Whatever you want is fine with me, I mean if you want to go off to the States, and go to Vegas, that's fine, if you want to get married in the Great Hall a year from now, that's fine. The moment you came into that stable in Hogsmeade after me, I was yours forever. That bloody month at the Dursleys damn near killed me."
"Me too," She whispered in response. Tilting her head back she looked into his eyes, "then its agreed?"
"Yeah, actually lets do one better, I assume that you would like Ginny and Luna as bridesmaids, Pavarti and Lav too?" Hermione nodded, as she sat up and looked at him quizzically. Harry grinned at her and reached forward and scrawled a note on a scrap parchment that Hermione kept on the table for that purpose. With a wave of his wand, the parchment folded itself into a small little owl and flew out of the room and down to the main common room below.
"What was that?" Hermione grinned. Harry didn't answer her; he raised a hand to forestall comment. Several moments later, the just mentioned witches and Ron staggered up the stairs, actually Ron was fine, just exhausted; he had been working after all.
With a tired grin, Ron plopped down in an armchair opposite the couch; Luna immediately dropped in his lap, and wrapped both arms around his neck. She looked up at him dreamily, smiling. She was either, really, really herself tonight, or rather this morning, or a bit in the cups, or a bit of both. Ginny came sleepily in after the other girls, "What's up mate?" Ron asked as Luna started nibbling on his neck. Ginny looked down at the pair and rolled her eyes, muttering something about permanent damage. At that same moment, Neville came up the stairs and walking over to Ginny, he put his arms around her waist. Unconsciously, Ginny's hands came up to capture his automatically, revealing a glint on the third finger of her left hand.
Hermione was too tired, and Luna, too Luna to notice right now, but Pavarti, let out a squeal, "GINNY, WHEN?" Hermione's and even Luna's gaze snapped to the diminutive Weasley, with the attraction instinctive to most girls. Ron's reaction was a bit slower, but no less dramatic.
"Actually two days before Harry broke down" Ginny replied beaming. "But we are not planning on anything until after I graduate." But before she could gloat any on Neville beating Harry to the punch, Ron exploded. It wasn't much of gloat anyway, everyone, including them, more or less, had already considered that Harry and Hermione more or less engaged anyway. Their infamous fight that had scared small children, namely Gryffindor first years, had been enough evidence of that, and even more so, the garbled rumors of the make up to that fight.
"WHAT?" Ron snapped, and glared at Neville. Neville Longbottom was not the same boy he had been seven years ago, he glared back at the fire-haired wizard, and slowly raised an eyebrow, as if daring Ron to start something. To everyone's surprise however, Ron took a deep breath, as if to collect himself, and held out his hand, "Congrats, mate...I'm glad you'll be the one who has to put up with her."
"RONALD," Ginny snarled, but she was laughing by the time she got to the end of his name. "Thanks bro," she said seriously.
Ron nodded and turned back to Neville, and tried to adopt a threatening glower, which was rather hard, as Luna had resumed her ministrations. He pulled it off more or less. "Neville, you hurt her..."
"And you'll hunt him down," Harry and Hermione chorused together. Ron had said the same thing to Harry, at Grimmauld right after they all had resolved their differences.
"I'm glad you remembered," Ron groused, and then sighed. In a somewhat shaky voice, "Ummm Harry, Herm, why did you want us up here?" Luna's hand was wandering south, and Harry and Hermione were watching with small, matching grins.
"Ron, everyone" Hermione said looking around the room at everyone, including Luna, who didn't look back as she was buys with Ron's neck, but she didn't hold it against the blond. "We are going to ask Dumbledore if he would marry us Saturday after the Graduation ceremonies, and do you guys want to be in it? The wedding that is. You all are graduating, right Ron?"
"Yes, Hermione" Ron muttered, but as he said that Luna's head popped up like a wolf tracking her prey. She looked over at Hermione, who gave her a puzzled little wave, then bent back down to Ron, and whispered something urgently in his ear. Harry could have overheard easily from that distance, but he carefully kept his senses in check, so as not to violate their privacy. "Are you sure, luv?" Ron replied, softly to Luna. "Even with school?" Luna nodded vigorously and laid her head on Ron's shoulders. "Harry, Hermione, how about we make that wedding a double?"
Harry and Hermione's gaze snapped to each other, and a pair of broad identical grins slowly spread across their faces. It's fitting love. Harry replied with a laugh.
I'd like nothing better Harry, but Luna won't graduate until next year. Hermione looked back to her adoptive brother and sighed, "Ron...Luna, you won't graduate until next year. Otherwise..." She shrugged a bit.
But Luna had the answer, in her 'working tone', the one she dropped into when being shot at or something else necessitated her being fully on this plane of existence, however briefly, "Honestly, Hermione...its in Hogwarts a History. Married couples can get special exemptions for one of the pair to commute to school, or for the non-student, to live on site. There are still married quarters, even if they aren't being used right now." She smiled and kissed Ron on the ear, which turned red instantly.
Bloody hell, Hermione remembered with an annoyed sigh, She's right. "You're right Luna, sorry." Lavender and Pavarti gasped a bit as they heard her admit that she was wrong, it happened so infrequently, that probably only Harry had heard that admission before, and he only once in a blue moon. "Ron, Luna, we'd be honored." And with those words, another chapter was written in the legend.
*****************************Headmaster's Office**************************
"Another Alastor?" Dumbledore asked softly and at Mad-Eye's nod, he poured him another shot of hundred-year-old Ogden's. Dumbledore sat back and regarded his old friend, and took a sip of his own drink. Briefly his thoughts flashed back to a conversation in a muggle pub, years ago, and a brief smile crossed his lips, Looks like I did raise Arthur, after all old friend.
Moody was obviously also thinking of that night, but his thoughts were a touch darker. "This isn't over yet is it Albus?" He took a gulp of his drink, downing about half of the generous portion.
Dumbledore sighed, as if to demonstrate every one of his years. "I don't know. There are forces in play, still. Forces that are..." He said the last in a whisper and Moody did not hear it that, for it was for another time, hopefully never.
"This is like last time, Albus" Moody growled, "we didn't get Lucius this time either, honestly most of the Death Eaters are still free, not counting those that were captured, "he paused looking at his watch, "blimey...yesterday."
"Yes, Alastor, we did not again." Dumbledore shrugged and regarded him over the tops of his half moons. "But this time is different. Lucius may very well become the next Dark Lord, it was always his ambition after all, but his powers do not rival Tom's. And second, he is not off the hook, with a lie and bribes this time. The Potters and the Weasleys won't stop until he's in Azkaban for good, or dead of course, they all owe him far too much."
"For now Albus, but remember Tom's powers suddenly jumped in magnitude too, after he left Hogwarts, what's to say it can't happen again? And Lucius will be out for revenge." Mad-Eye shot back, slammed his drink and sat back in his chair, his eye spinning wildly as if expecting an attack any second. Outside, an early summer rain started to hammer on the windows. Alastor sighed and took a sip of his whisky, his eye spun to look at the glass as Norbert flew past; then back to Dumbledore.
"Albus...explain something to me. How did Harry kill Riddle, and how was Granger able to hurt him as well, and survive the Kedavra?" Dumbledore started to say something but was cut off by a quick headshake. "No Albus, I don't want details of the battle, I was in part of it after all...I mean how? I have seen Voldemort shrug off spells that should have crushed a mortal, and turn sword strikes with his hands, and things that still give me nightmares, and I KNOW the bastard is dead."
Dumbledore settled back in his chair and took a drink. He did not answer right away, but his eyes held an odd, odd look. The twinkle was there, but it seemed to be warring with something darker, something like grim satisfaction at a job that you hated, but knew was crucial. "Alastor, as you know, Tom Riddle's greatest fear was death. He performed brutal, arcane rituals to hold off his death, and indeed some of those may have helped keep him, in some sense, alive after Harry defeated him as an infant. And with his rebirth he should have regained those protections tenfold, and indeed, as I can tell you from my experience at the Ministry he did. I do not feel shame in admitting I was a touch, concerned, for a bit during that duel. But in the end, he caused his own demise. You see, Alastor, yes I could fight him, and in time, perhaps, I could have battered my way through his defenses, but not before, he would have already destroyed me, I am afraid. You see, when Tom...insisted...on using Harry's blood to complete his rebirth he created the very enemy that could destroy him. Oh, the fact that Harry and his friends, or rather I should say, family were at his side, did not hurt, but by using Harry's blood, the very protections that Voldemort had performed on himself were null and void, as it pertains to Harry, just as the converse became true when Tom took his blood. And as to Hermione, did you not notice the ring that night Alastor, or more importantly her hand?"
"Blimey...I saw the ring of course, but we all knew that was coming..."
"Yes," Dumbledore smiled slightly, "but they bonded Alastor, they were one when Riddle faced them. That is why the original Kedavra did not kill her on the pitch; it is very hard, even for Lord Voldemort, to tear asunder two souls with one curse, especially when they both can provide such an anchor for each other. She actually found the solution last year, but discounted it as being impossible. There is probably no other pair that could have performed that feat. As to her being able to hurt him, it was the exact same reason as Harry could."
A/N: I'm back, sorry it was a bit, I literally just got off the plane. But it's a long chapter. Ohh btw this story is now at least 49 chapters long....