CHAPTER FOUR
A/N - I know there was a bit of a Star Wars nod in that last chapter with the mysterious Auror, but it only adds to the story. I'll most likely throw in a bit of Lord of the Rings and maybe even The Matrix, who knows? Thanks for the reviews, hope to get some more! Here's Chapter 4…
"Found anything?" Ron asked Hermione over the table of the empty Hogwarts library.
"You mean in the four minutes since you last asked me?" Hermione asked snootily, eyes not leaving the thick, leather-bound text held in front of her face.
"Yeah,"
"No,"
"Okay," Ron said sheepishly, returning to his copy of Dark Wizards Revealed - Volume Four. Despite Hermione's dismissal of the book as a `shallow' source of information, Ron pressed on. Around them, the Hogwarts library was silent and deserted. On their arrival, the trio had found the school all-but-abandoned; only the teachers had remained. Harry was currently off seeing if Hagrid was still around. Professor McGonagall gave them permission to stay for a few days, long enough to complete the research they sought. Both Ron and Hermione, in moving through the immense corridors, felt a disquieting sense of emptiness in the grand old school.
"I wonder what the teachers are still doing here," Ron said as he flicked over another page.
Hermione rolled her eyes, "They're running advanced self-defense classes over the summer for sixth and seventh years, didn't you see any of the notices?"
"Okay then, smartpants, where's the students then?" Ron asked pointedly.
"They start tomorrow, genius," Hermione retorted, eyes kept on her book. Ron blushed and looked down at his book, wishing it would somehow swallow him whole.
Another couple of minutes ticked away silently.
"Wonder how the Cannons got on…"
"Honestly Ron, can you go five minutes without breaking the silence?"
"I hate awkward silences…"
"That wasn't awkward, it was…"
"Yeah?"
"…shut up."
Another couple of minutes of page-turning…
"Ah," Hermione said, mostly to herself, "found him!"
"Great," Ron exclaimed, "who is he?"
Hermione allowed the great heavy book to fall flat on the table; Ron had to quickly move his hands out of the way. She had acquired one of the massive volumes in the archive of former students, and pointed at the left-hand page, dominated with a black-and-white moving portrait in the centre, just like all the others. It was definitely the same young man as the one that had fought off Macnair, but younger and wearing a Hogwarts uniform.
"David James Adams," Hermione read, "Gryffindor house, left…three years ago," She said, looking up at Ron, eyebrows raised.
"Right after the Triwizard Tournament," Ron said, "No wonder we didn't notice."
Hermione read on through the columns of text, tracing her progress with her index finger, "Muggle-born…He was placed in Gryffindor almost immediately at the Sorting…strong academic performance…known preference for Muggle football over Quidditch…mentored by Dennis Morgan, an Auror…current record holder for Defense Against the Dark Arts test scores…disqualified from entering into selection for the Triwizard Tournament after violation of school rules…recruited by the Ministry after graduation." She looked up at Ron, "What does that tell us?"
Ron creased his brow, "How could you like football better than…"
"Oh, for heaven's sake, Ron!" Hermione shouted; Ron instantly snapped out of whatever reverie he was having, and coughed to clear his throat, "So, the Ministry recruits a top DADA student…he must be an Auror."
Hermione nodded, "Right, but why was he disqualified from the Tournament?"
Ron shrugged, "I dunno. With his test scores, he must've thought he'd be a shoo-in."
Hermione looked back down at the text, skipping through to the end, "It says here his work concentrates on developing advanced close quarters defense methods."
"Sounds familiar," Ron said lightly.
Hermione stood up, making for the door, "Come on,"
"Where are we going?" Ron asked as he moved to follow her.
"To see Professor McGonagall," Hermione said, marching down the corridor quickly, "She'll have known this David Adams."
"Why has he got anything to do with us?" Ron asked, struggling to keep in step.
"He somehow knew Macnair and the others would be in Diagon Alley," Hermione answered, "Perhaps the Aurors know something we don't about them, and they can lead us to Death Eaters who Regulus Black had contact with."
"Fair enough," Ron said nonchalantly, trying to decide whether or not he understood any of that.
* * * * *
"Ere ya go, Harry, get that down yer neck," Hagrid said heartily, setting down a huge steaming mug in front of Harry, in the living room of his hut.
The half-giant settled down across the coffee table in the cramped living room in his customary armchair, "So, c'mon then Harry, tell us everything," He said, beaming.
It took Harry a few seconds to look up at Hagrid, his distant eyes refocusing behind his round glasses, shrugging them nonchalantly, "There's not much to tell."
Hagrid waved off the rebuttal jovially, "Heh, I'm smarter than I look, ya know. C'mon, try me."
Harry looked down, shaking his head solemnly, "That's just it, Hagrid; there really isn't much to tell. We're nowhere on this, I just…" He paused, taking a deep breath that swelled his thin diaphragm, "I have no idea where we should be looking, what we should be doing." His voice began to crack, a mix of frustration and sorrow underscoring his words.
"Ya will," Hagrid said, "The three o' yer always figure these things out."
"That's all we've been trying to do for the last month," Harry said quietly, "Voldemort's out there, he's getting ready for…whatever it is he's got planned, and when it matters most that the three of us come through, we're sat on our bloody hands trying to…"
"Hey, tha's enough!" Hagrid said sharply, the kind look on his face replaced by a harsher one, "I won' be hearing you giving up, alrigh'?"
Harry registered the look on Hagrid's face, casting his eyes back down towards the floor, "I wish I knew what Professor Dumbledore knew about me, Hagrid."
Hagrid nodded slowly, "Yeah, bit o' divine wisdom would help righ' now."
"Do you think I stand a chance?" Harry asked, his eyes finding Hagrid's, for the first time betraying a sense of total hopelessness. Hagrid saw it, and got to his feet at once, moving over towards Harry, gripping him by the shoulders, "I'll tell yeh this, Harry, yeh ain't going anywhere. There ain' no bloody way I'm losing yeh an' all, do you get me?"
Harry returned his gaze silently, betraying nothing.
"If `e wants yeh," Hagrid said determinedly, "'E's gotta go through me."
Harry shook his head, "We both know it'll come down to me against him."
"Then I'll be there to make sure it's a fair fight," Hagrid said with fierce pride, "You promise me, Harry, when you three find summat, `cause you will, you come back here and get me, alrigh'?"
Harry locked eyes with Hagrid's for a few seconds, and then nodded, "Okay."
Harry knew, deep down, that if he, Ron and Hermione stood any chance, he'd have to break that promise.
* * * * *
"Well then, what is it that is so desperately urgent?" Professor McGonagall asked as she sat down behind the desk in her office, Ron and Hermione facing her on the other side. The Scottish professor remained the picture of calm stoicism she had always been, even during these troubling times. To Ron especially, that was comforting.
"Professor, do you know about the Death Eater attack in Diagon Alley yesterday?" Hermione asked.
"But of course, Miss Granger," Professor McGonagall replied with a raised eyebrow, "I was one of the first to know."
"It seemed that somehow the presence of Death Eaters had been anticipated," Hermione pressed on, "There was an Auror on-site as soon as they appeared to us."
"Hardly surprising," Professor McGonagall answered, "considering the levels of security and surveillance we have you under."
Ron and Hermione exchanged surprised, startled looks. Ron turned to the teacher, "You mean, you've had us watched?"
The professor nodded, "In as many ways as possible, Mr. Weasley. You'd hardly think the Ministry would allow the three of you to get away from their protection."
"That's…" Hermione said, stumbling over herself to find the right word in light of this level of intrusion.
"…that's outrageous," Ron exclaimed, "I mean, how the hell can we go after Voldemort's Horcruxes with Aurors and the Ministry at our backs? He'd see them coming a mile off!"
"If the current state of events were less dangerous to the wizarding community as a whole, I'd be inclined to agree with you," Professor McGonagall conceded sternly, "but that is the way things are. The Ministry will not budge on this issue, I'm afraid."
"This is why we can't afford to have Hagrid with us," Hermione said, her voice rising, "We need to be able to move around without attracting attention!"
"I have been over this with the relevant officials, but their orders stand, at least until the situation changes."
"Meaning?" Ron asked.
"If you find something, a Horcrux maybe, then special plans can be made," Professor McGonagall said dispassionately, "Unfortunately, there really is nothing I can do about this." She made to stand up, "Well, if there's nothing else…"
"Do you know a former student called David Adams?" Hermione asked.
The professor paused, sitting back down again. The flash in her eyes betrayed clearly the fact that she did. She nodded, "Yes, as a matter of fact he was one of my more…challenging students, until he graduated three years ago."
"He was the Auror that fought off three Death Eaters," Ron explained, "I've never seen anyone who can do that like he did."
"It was his prodigious talent at Defense Against the Dark Arts that saved him from expulsion, I'm sure," The professor said lightly, "I've been made aware of his involvement; he even sent me a copy of his report as a courtesy."
"He seemed to know one of them," Hermione said, "Would we be able to talk to him?"
"I'm quite certain that can be arranged," Professor McGonagall said.
"Where can we find him?" Ron asked.
"I would try the Defense classroom," the professor said, "Starting tomorrow, Mr. Adams is the acting Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher."
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