Chapter Nineteen
The Brotherhood of Merlin
Peace and quiet had returned to Spinners End, well relative quiet anyway, the sound of laughter coming from behind a low wall was fading as Harry and Hermione regained control of themselves. Then the thump of running feet brought them completely back to the moment, and peeking over the wall they saw Luna and Ron thundering down the street from the direction that they had followed Snape earlier that evening. Emerging from their place of safety Harry and Hermione surveyed the scene where only minutes before a swirling vortex had carried away Nagini and Wormtail. It was calm and still, no sign of the horrors of the last ten minutes were left, only the partly open door to Snape's house, and the dim light that shone from within, proved that this street was not as derelict as it appeared.
"Saw your sign," panted Ron as he ran up beside them. "Bit dramatic though don't you think?"
"That wasn't us," said Hermione, "but you're right it was a bit on the loud side." Then she took in Ron's appearance, he was rather untidy looking with twigs and bits of leaves in his hair, and his shoes were very muddy. "What on earth have you been up to? You're a mess."
Ron in turn regarded his two friends with their hair all over the place, though for Harry that was relatively normal, their dragon hide coats covered in dust, which as he watched slid off to gather around their feet like water off a wet raincoat, and a ruddy glow to their cheeks that suggested to Ron that something exciting had been going on. "Look who's talking, I could ask you the same question," he said with a slight smile.
"Time for that later," cut in Harry, "I don't think this place is very safe at the moment. If that enchantment doesn't bring old Tom and his followers then the muggle police must have herd it and I don't want to be around when either lot turns up."
"What about Draco?" asked Hermione.
"We'll close up Snape's house and leave dear Draco where he is. If we take him with us it will only complicate matters. We've found him once, I'll find him again." said Harry the tone of his voice suggesting that Draco had better hope that it would be far in the future. But before he could act on his words there were multiple CRACKS' as large number of wizards, their faces covered with masks, apparated into the street. Harry grabbed Luna and shoved her down behind the low wall that had protected them before, and Hermione bundled Ron in the same direction.
"Search everywhere," a deep voice commanded, and the Death Eaters spread out poking their lit wands into every nook and cranny. Harry looked at his friends scrunched up with him behind the wall they all stared back with wide eyes, and then as they heard footsteps approaching Harry shut his. Facing this number of dark wizards unprepared was not what Harry had in mind, in fact he really wanted to be somewhere else entirely.
The Death Eater, with wand held high, walked towards the low wall that protected the house's tiny front garden, one of the few in this dismal street. He peered over it into the shadows below, there was nothing there, and he thought to himself nothing was about all they were going to find here, but in that he was wrong. A shout from back down the street pulled his attention away, and he raced away to where two of his fellows were manhandling something out of one of the houses.
It was Draco, still under Hermione's petrifying spell, and still as stiff as a board. Only his eyes gave any indication that the lad was alive, and by the way they were protruding, scared out of his wits.
"Malfoy's boy, by the look of him," said one of the masked wizards. "We better take him with us. There's no sign of the snake or Wormtail and the Dark Lord will want something to vent his anger on. I would rather it was not me."
The wizards gathered in the middle of the street, and one raised his wand, "MORSMORDRE" he chanted, and the green skull erupted from the roof of Snape's house.
"What did you do that for!" The wizard holding Draco hissed out in anger at the display, a fine secret mission this was turning out to be.
"Sorry," his companion replied, suitably castigated, "Force of habit, I suppose."
"Well too late now, let's go." And with multiple CRACKS' that merged into one the Death Eaters disappeared…………..
The policemen in the muggle police car that moved slowly down the street five minutes later saw nothing, but the open door of Snape's house. From the safety of the car the officer shone his powerful light into the building and it revealed only the empty and derelict room he was meant to see.
"Kids you reckon?" said one to the other.
"Yeh, crummy area this, you getting out to have a look?"
"Not bloody lightly,"
The other officer grunted in agreement, and the police car quietly passed by, turned the corner and left the scene.
* * *
Harry opened his eyes there was a fire burning merrily in the grate before him and he looked around in astonishment, for although this is where he had wanted to be it just wasn't possible for him to be here. Then he noticed the others with him, Hermione and Luna sitting one on either side, with Ron at the far end of the sofa next to Luna, all of them taking in their surroundings with slightly disbelieving eyes.
"Clever." said Ron admiringly.
"Impossible." countered Harry.
"Not necessarily, it's happened before. Remember with Hagrid?" added Hermione thoughtfully looking past Harry to the blonde haired girl at his other side. "There's something……Damn! It's gone again." Luna was very aware of Hermione's gaze, she said nothing, but kept her head down and stared intently at her shoes.
"Well whatever, are you going to tell us what happened at Snape's house?" asked Ron, and putting the conundrum of their appearance in Gryffindor common room to one side. So in the dancing fire light, Harry and Hermione told them exactly what had occurred.
"Wow," Ron found it hard to take it all in, it was not the first time that night that he had found himself in that position. "You think that all the Horcruxes are accounted for now?"
"Well it would seem that's the case, but I don't suppose there is anyway of being sure other than ask Voldemort himself." said Harry thoughtfully. "So how did it go your end?"
Ron looked just a little uncomfortable and hesitated; Luna still counting the lace holes in her shoes elbowed him in the ribs. "Go on tell them what you did, or do you want me to tell them that you followed Snape."
"Looks like you already did," said Ron sourly, then he relented, "Oh damn Luna I said I'm sorry."
"You did what?" Hermione stared at Ron in disbelief, "How could you be so stupid."
"Ronald here can be stupid …very easily," Luna answered for him, looking up for the first time. "He never once gave any thought as to how I would feel if he was caught," a large tear rolled down her face, "or worse."
"Know how you feel," Harry and Hermione said as one, Hermione gave Harry a mild scowl.
"I meant Ron as well," he said hastily.
"Really, I meant you."
"Oh!" said Harry, suitably chastened, but he recovered quickly, "Come on then Ron spill the beans, what happened?"
So he mentioned the woods, the building, the gathering of the cloaked and cowled witches and wizards, Dumbledore's painting, and Fawkes the phoenix being there, then he stopped.
"What else," said Hermione, she knew he was finding something hard to tell.
"Well," continued Ron eventually, "When they all stopped the chanting, they removed their hoods. There were, oh I don't know, maybe thirty or forty of them, possibly more, I couldn't see right into the room." he added explaining his lack of accuracy. "Some I vaguely recognised, but I couldn't tell you their names, but…" he paused again, "Harry… Tonks was there, and so was Shacklebolt, there was that chap who had that ice cream parlour, and the leader was the old man who sold me my wand you know Ollivander."
"Is that all Ron?" Harry asked, "Tonks, Shacklebolt, Fortescue and Ollivander all in with Snape, but Dumbledore and Fawkes mixed up with them too, I don't get it."
"No, that's not all" said Ron looking quite upset, "What am I going to do?" he agonised over his decision, and then he looked straight at Harry and confessed, "My Dad was there as well."
"There has to be a rational explanation to all this," said Harry, once he had absorbed Ron's latest bombshell.
"Yes there is," said Hermione, "but there's something I need to check on first; in the library, come on." She leapt to her feet, and was opening the door concealed by the portrait of the fat lady before the others had caught her up.
Their journey to the library was unimpeded, with no sign of Argus Filtch or Mrs Norris, and Hermione quickly headed for the history of magic section. After a few minutes searching she reappeared at the large work table which she had so often used in the past, carrying two large heavily bound tomes. Placing the books down she opened one which was obviously very old, its pages crackled as she turned them over, and scanned the yellowed sheets for the information she needed.
"There," she said talking to herself, "Sixth century, and again in the Ninth, Gryffindor himself mixed up with that one."
Harry watched as Hermione lived up to his expectations of her brilliance, as the knowledge flowed out of the dusty pages she appeared to glow with excitement as yet again her suspicions were proved correct. Then she dived into the second book she had collected, this one was relatively new, the white pages and clear script in great contrast to the older volume.
"I thought so!" Hermione exalted in her success, "The defeat of Grindelwald in 1945 it's all here, and it makes perfect sense.
Harry grinned as Hermione jumped up and looked at each of them smiling fit to burst, it was quite clear that she had solved the mystery; she had just forgotten to let everyone else in on the secret.
"Ok clever clogs," said Ron in a resigned tone, "we're not mind readers you know, …uhh, well not all of us," he said giving Luna an apologetic look, "how about telling us what you have found out."
"What, …oh sorry, …yes, …of course." And she sat back into her seat, "This book," she indicated the new one, "This is The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts and it confirmed the information I got from the older book." Hermione gently stroked the cover of the ancient tome. "And this is The Legacy of the King's Magician it's nearly a thousand years old. Both of them tell of a group of witches and wizards who have aided in the defeat of dark magic throughout the centuries. It was formed after Merlin defeated Morgan-le-fey and Arthur killed Mordred; but as you know, in that battle the king died as well, and the loss of Arthur had a profound effect on Merlin and his magic began to diminish. This group joined together and stood behind the old man, they were able to fool the world that Merlin was as powerful as he ever was. Several times, in the intervening years, this group has come to the aid of the battle against the dark arts. They are obviously not the same people but often descendents of the original members. Gryffindor was probably one, and so was Dumbledore, because they were with him when he defeated Grindelwald fifty years or so ago."
"You're talking about The Order of the Phoenix, right Hermione?" Harry asked.
"No Harry, the Order was something quite different. They were Dumbledore's own more a sort of surveillance and sabotage organisation, tripping up the enemy at any opportunity, rather than an out and out fighting group," Hermione gave him an apologetic smile, "I suppose that if your Mum and Dad, and you, hadn't interfered with Voldemort's plans, then the Brotherhood would have stepped in as he became more powerful. Until now no one, apart from its members, has known where the group meets, or with any certainty, who is in it. There can be years, sometimes generations, between their gatherings, until the dark forces rise again, then as now they meet more frequently to prepare and reaffirm their loyalty. The Brotherhood of Merlin is the most secret of the secret societies that exist in our world, they swear absolute fealty to the pursuit and the destruction of dark wizards and their magic."
"And Snape is one of them?" said Ron the disbelief clear in his voice.
* * *
Severus Snape returned to his apparation point close to the post box, this early in the morning it was still dark, and a green glow that should not have been there struck the side of his face and drew his gaze. The sight of the Dark Mark suspended over what he knew was the only magical house in the area made his blood run cold, moving quickly he raced down Spinners End to find his front door ajar and the house empty. He couldn't understand it; the house showed signs of some disturbance, the hidden doorway to the upstairs rooms was scattered about the sitting room. But Wormtail, Nagini and Draco were nowhere to be found. Outside in the street everything appeared normal, disgusting and derelict but normal. What was Voldemort up to, why had he taken them, and had he discovered that he, Snape, was not as completely dark as he seemed?
Snape looked up at the family crest hanging on the wall, the chameleon, how apt. His wizarding family, always in the past able to disguise themselves, to fit in with which ever side appeared to have the upper hand. Only now the family was split, Pattiswick, his cousin, had gone her own way and was paying for it in Azkaban, and he Snape was playing the most dangerous game of all feet in both camps heart in neither. His commitment and promise to Dumbledore, and an unbreakable vow to protect Draco. He had to make a decision and if he made the wrong one he was likely to pay for it with his life.
He reached into a pocket of his robes and pulled out a small hand mirror, he gazed into it and tapped the edge of the mirror with his wand.
"Severus, what can I do for you?" said an instantly recognisable voice.
"It appears I have had some visitors."
"Yes I know, Harry and his friends were there, they located the last two Horcruxes, destroyed them."
"I find that very difficult to believe, Headmaster, but if true has Potter taken to using the Dark Mark to signal his successes?"
"No, of course he has not." The voice from the mirror had an anxious edge to it. "Is Draco still there?"
"No the place is deserted Pettigrew, Draco and that awful snake all gone."
"Well Peter and Nagini will not bother us again, they were it appears the vessels that Tom had used and are gone, but Draco did not leave with Harry. I am sorry Severus but it would seem that Tom has Draco."
Snape sighed he had hoped that with the end getting so close that he would not have to tempt fate yet again, but young Malfoy's predicament made that impossible now. "You understand what I have to do now," he said with resignation to the face in the mirror. "The promise I made to Draco's mother is still binding I must try to keep him safe."
"I quite understand Severus and so will the others," the voice tried to be encouraging, "It will not be easy this time. Tom will be very suspicious, more than usual, the destruction of the Horcruxes will have reduced him to no more than an ordinary wizard, but even so his power will be great. Be careful Severus."
"I will do my best Headmaster," he replied and the gentle glow from the mirror faded, leaving Severus Snape alone to try to keep a promise and face the ultimate test.
* * *
"If this Brotherhood is so all powerful why didn't they jump on Voldemort's neck the moment he poked it over the parapet?" Harry asked Hermione. They were cuddled up on the sofa in the Gryffindor common room. After the late night visit to the library Ron and Luna had departed to their respective dormitories, and Harry and Hermione had made use of the old but comfortable sofa as they had so many times before. They had dozed and chatted through the most of the rest of that night and now a lazy dawn was approaching.
"I don't know Harry, the information on them is very sparse, mostly conjecture really, no solid facts," she sounded very sleepy, and pulled herself closer to him nestling her head on his shoulder.
"But they let him carry on for so many years," Harry sounded indignant, "all those people, my Mum and Dad. It just doesn't seem fair."
The tone of his voice brought Hermione wide awake; in the glimmer from the fire in grate she could see the moistness in his eyes. She leaned forward and kissed him gently on the cheek and then ran her fingers through the tousled mop of dark hair, he turned towards her and their lips touched. There was nothing timid in their kisses anymore; it was their love that was holding them together and helping them to face what they knew was coming. Their lips parted and leaning back Hermione examined the face before her, now so strong and dependable, with only the one blemish. She ran her finger down the sinuous scar that marred Harry's forehead, and she felt a tingle run up into her hand, it was as if the scar was alive, as alive as the man that carried it.
"Perhaps they had their reasons, waiting for all that time," Hermione said, it took Harry a moment to tune back into the conversation. "Perhaps they were waiting for you."
"Me?" he said with surprise. "Do you really think me being here has made any difference?"
"Harry it has made all the difference in the world, think of the prophecy, you are the one with the power to end all this. In 1945 it was Dumbledore who did it, now it is up to you."
Harry gazed at the girl in his arms; she was so sure, so confident; he could hear it in her voice and see it in her face. "I love you Hermione," and he smiled at her.
"That's good Harry cos' I love you too." And once again the proof that love is the strongest feeling of all was demonstrated and confirmed……….
By the time breakfast was done and dusted Harry had made the decision that he was going to visit the home of the Brotherhood of Merlin. Hermione was going with him, and at the look of worry on Ron's face, partly due to the thought that he would be left out, but mostly because of his concern for his father's involvement in all this, made Harry decide to take him too. Luna had implanted the destination in each of their minds; she was surprised that Ron still retained such a clear picture from the night before, but then they did enjoy a particularly close intertwining of thoughts, and she had promised to clear Ron's absence with the Headmistress.
The three neatly bypassed Argus Filtch, standing guard by the doors in the entrance hall, and walked quickly and quietly up the driveway to the main gates. Standing close together in the centre of the gravel roadway they concentrated on their destination, and with no sound to signal their going or arrival they vanished. Snape's apparation point was a little crowded as the three arrived together, and they had some difficulty in disentangling themselves from the bushes surrounding the spot. Ron led them through the path he had tried to follow the night before, it was much easier now that he could see and it ended as before at the edge of the clearing and at the centre of this wide grassy area was the building that was the meeting place of the Brotherhood of Merlin.
"That's the window," said Ron pointing to the large square opening not too far from the main door of the building.
"And you said that you passed through some sort of ward or alarm as you crossed the lawn?" Hermione asked.
"Yes that's right, gave a little golden flicker but let me through."
"Ok," said Harry moving out and starting to cross the lawn, "let's see how it reacts to me."
"Harry wait!" hissed Hermione, but he merely turned and beckoned her forward. "Oh damn!" she said with feeling, then, "Hang on, I'm coming." And she ran to catch up with him.
He caught her by the hand as she reached him and he marched resolutely toward the building. With Hermione by his side and Ron just behind, Harry walked straight into the protection ward he assumed Fawkes had set up. It didn't stop him or hold him, or any of the others, but for two steps it was like walking in treacle and small golden sparks jumped off their dragon hide coats. There was no alarm, and no out poring of the members of the Brotherhood to apprehend them, but there was a loud click and the main door to the building swung open.
"Looks as if we're expected," said Ron with a nervous laugh as they reached the open door, "After you," he added gallantly. Hermione rolled her eyes heavenwards and the quickly followed Harry into the building.
"The Hall of Merlin," said Harry.
"What?"
"Up there Hermione, it's carved into that beam." And sure enough over the central passageway deeply engraved into the old timber were the self same words.
"Gosh," she spun around taking in the sight of the interior of the Hall. "This hall is ancient, Harry, look at the way it's put together, like parts of Hogwarts, probably a thousand years old at least."
"Err… one thousand, five hundred and seventy three," said Ron slowly as he struggled with the arithmetic.
"Pardon." said a disbelieving Hermione turning on him, "How on earth would you know that."
"Err… there's a date on this column, 425 AD," he gave Hermione a big grin, "the rest is just taking away."
Harry laughed, Hermione scowled, at them both, "And you worked all that out in your head?"
"Yes," said Ron triumphantly.
"Amazing," said Hermione with all the sarcasm she could muster.
"Come on you two," said Harry still chuckling, "you can fight about it later." He walked into the main body of the timber and stone hall, it certainly wasn't the warmest place on earth, but it was dry and airy. At the far end of the hall was a raised platform with Fawkes' perch to one side and to the other something large and flat covered with a sheet of dark blue material, which was itself covered in many golden stars.
"See," Ron pointed them out, "Fawkes was there as large as life, and that under the sheet is Dumbledore's portrait."
Harry stepped up onto the platform; the perch was definitely the one that had stood in Dumbledore's old study, Harry recognised it easily and then he turned and drew back the cloth covering the picture and he stood there silently staring at the thing he had uncovered.
"What is it Harry?" Hermione asked anxiously, for Harry was frozen in place his arm raised and the object only partly reviled.
"Come and look at this," he whispered, and Ron and Hermione were quickly at his side. He finished removing the cloth and there beneath it was not a painting but a large mirror. It was not the fact that it was a mirror that had surprised him, but what he was seeing in it, or rather what he was not seeing in it. There was no Harry, Hermione or Ron reflected in the surface of the glass, instead there was a large room, its walls hung with more mirrors than Harry had thought he had ever seen before, but then he began to remember something.
"I knew it!" cried Hermione, jumping up and down in glee, something she hadn't done since her second year, and then she realised what she was doing and stopped.
"Knew what?" said Ron, peering over Harry's shoulder at the view in the mirror. "Oh where's Dumbledore?" he added expecting to see the old man's face immortalised in oils.
"He's there," Hermione pointed at the tall stooped figure that had just that second walked into view. "I remember it all, don't you Harry?"
"Yes." was all he said.
Then as Albus Dumbledore turned and walked toward the other side of the mirror, Ron's cognitive processes clicked into gear, and he stared at the old man and said, "Bloody Hell."
* * *
Severus Snape stood outside the mouldering manor in Little Hangleton; this could be a very easy way of committing suicide he decided, as he walked to the door where a giant stood guard. Snape drew back the sleeve of his coat and showed the mark on his forearm that identified him as a Death Eater. The giant screwed up his piggy eyes and peered down, he grunted in acceptance that the brand was real and allowed Snape to pass.
There was little light inside the building, but through the cracked and dirty windows there was enough filtering through for Snape to see the peeling wallpaper and heavily cracked plaster frieze that looked as if a light vibration would bring the whole lot down. There was too much evil in this place and Snape knew it, the very fabric of the manor reeked with it, and somewhere in amongst all this decay he had to find Draco, he just wasn't sure where to start.
"Severus!" the voice was no more than a whisper but the urgency put into the calling of his name could have made it a shout. "Severus!" a thin feminine hand appeared from the darkness in the corner of the entrance hall and beckoned him over. A quick glance told him that apart from the owner of that arm he was alone, and he crossed the floor quickly to be grasped and dragged into the shadows and the doorway that led to the old servant's quarters below the stairs.
The small lantern that lit the passageway behind the door allowed him to see the drawn features of the pale haired, tall woman, the owner of the arm and Draco's mother.
"I knew you would come," she said still keeping her voice low. "They brought Draco in a few hours ago, he was paralysed, stiff as a board, but he was alive, I could tell." Narcissus Malfoy was beginning to lose control, Draco was all she had left and she was desperately afraid she was going to lose him as well. "What are we going to do?"
"We must keep calm Cissy," Snape told her, "Where did they take Draco?"
"Straight to him," she replied emphasising the objective, unable to hide her distaste for Voldemort any longer.
"Take care how you speak," he admonished her, "walls have ears and around here that could be literally true." He thought for a moment, "It could be very difficult to get to him; I would not be a popular visitor to our Dark Lord at the moment. Has Draco been released from the paralysing spell?"
"Yes, but it took the Dark Lord himself to do it, as none of the others could break it. You could tell he was impressed with the strength of the spell, Draco told him the Granger girl cast it."
"Umm… yes well that particular piece of news was not unexpected."
"But that is not all Severus. Draco was talking to him about Potter and Pettigrew and something about Nagini, but Voldemort laughed, and said "So he thinks them gone, I have you now Potter," and he laughed again, it made very little sense. Do you know what it is that is supposed to be gone, and what is this fascination with the Potter boy, I thought the Dark Lord would have had enough of him the first time they met?"
"It's a very long story Cissy, and one I fear is drawing to its end."
"Perhaps that is what he is planning," Narcissus said her grip hardening on Snape's arm. He gave her a questioning look. "That is what it is, it is the end of the story, and it is to be tonight."
"Cissy I think you better tell me everything you know." And Severus Snape led her out of the light down the passageway to the rooms beyond.
* * *
"Hello Harry," the two words from the old man hit Harry like a blow to the stomach. He did remember it all, and strangely he understood reasons for encouraging them to forget the meeting so many weeks ago.
"The time must be getting close?" there was concern in Harry's voice, not for himself but for his friends.
"Yes Harry I think it is," Dumbledore replied, "Why don't you step through," and he moved back himself, inviting them with a bow and a wave of his arm.
Harry glanced at Hermione and Ron then, as he had so many times to gain access to the Shrieking Shack, he walked forward into the mirror. The sensation was no different either and between one step and the next Harry, Hermione and Ron crossed the hundreds of miles that separated the Hall of Merlin with the top most room in Gryffindor tower. The room was as he remembered it, ….at least now he remembered it, …but the last time Dumbledore was here on his own, this time however there was another wizard present and Fawkes resplendent in his scarlet and gold plumage was perched on the edge of a desk.
"Lo' Fawkes," Harry greeted the Phoenix. Fawkes stared at him, his large unblinking eyes made Harry feel just a little uncomfortable, and then the bird dipped his head in acknowledgment and turned his gaze to Dumbledore.
"Ahh Mr Potter…."
"I suppose you were wondering when you were going to see me again," Harry finished for him. "Hello Mr Ollivander."
The old wand maker looked shrewdly at Harry then smiled…. "Err… yes you could say that."
Ron standing behind Harry and Hermione was not as confused as he expected to be, but he did have one burning question for the old wizards, one he desperately wanted answering and he couldn't wait any longer.
"Excuse me," he said quite loudly, everyone turned to him, and Harry raised a questioning eyebrow. With all attention pointed in his direction Ron was momentarily lost for words, and then as he saw Hermione draw breath to speak what he knew was on her mind Ron found his voice again. "Would someone please explain to me what my Dad is up to?"
"Come and sit down, all of you," said Dumbledore, "and I will try to tell you what is going on." He waited while they made themselves comfortable. "Hermione was quite correct in everything she discovered about the Brotherhood, for a little over fifteen hundred years the Hãlga, have banded together to aid the chosen one in the defeat of the dark wizard."
"So Merlin, Godric Gryffindor and …you, were chosen ones?" asked Hermione.
"Yes my dear, although there were many others over the centuries, but in those instances we were, it was my …honour, I suppose, to be the chosen one in the fight against Grindelwald and of course now…"
"It's Harry," she finished for him.
"Yes, …. it is."
"That is why the Brotherhood didn't intervene the last time Voldemort rose, there was no chosen one, they had to wait for Harry, I was right," Hermione's delight at being proved right yet again was suddenly dampened by the expression on Harry face, "Oh Harry I'm so sorry."
This was not going the way Harry had imagined it at all, there was no room in his thoughts for a major battle this was a private fight just him and Tom.
"But you told me that eventually it would come down to the fight between the two of us, Voldemort and me and only on that." said Harry. "Did I misunderstand?"
"No not at all, but it would surprise me if Tom is on his own when the time for the final battle is chosen, and should you not be similarly supported?"
"But that's no the way I wanted it to be," the concern for his friends was too great to ignore, "In a pitched battle others will get hurt, I cannot let that happen."
Dumbledore looked at his protégé with sympathy, and sighed. "I am sorry Harry but there is no way to prevent it. It will be incidental to your meeting with Tom, but his Death Eaters will march and the Brotherhood will be there to stop them."
There was silence for a moment and very quietly Ron asked in a plaintive voice, "But what has all this got to do with my Dad?"
It was Ollivander who answered this time, "There has been a Weasley in the Brotherhood since the fourteenth centaury," he told Ron, "Horwood Weasley was the first and your father the latest. Considering the company you keep young man, I would have thought you would understand."
Ron looked in bewilderment at Hermione and Harry, "I do understand," he said, "It's just that I have never looked a Dad in that light before, he's always been, you know, just Dad."
"And that is what he was until the Brotherhood was activated two years ago when Voldemort reappeared." Ollivander realised that a fuller disclosure as to the workings of the Brotherhood was needed here, he may well be looking at the faces of the very future of the society and at the moment those faces were puzzled. "The magic that drives the Brotherhood is very old, ancient really, much older than the society itself. Each member is chosen at birth, the magic that does this is not well understood, but each of the Brotherhood is marked in some way, and at the appropriate moment they can be called into service. You see that some of the Hãlga live their whole lives never hearing the call to arms, and pass on not knowing what they might have been asked to do. For others the call comes early, and it would seem to them as if an eternity was spent engaged in combat."
He paused looking wistfully at the other old man sitting on the edge of the bed with the three youngsters. Dumbledore smiled and encouraged Ollivander to continue.
"So it has been for some of the older members, those who were with your Headmaster back in 1945, we were lucky enough to survive but had to carry our knowledge of the Brotherhood with us. Hermione was partly correct we older ones saw Voldemort rise, but there was no fully active Brotherhood, so we could not stop him, we did help start the Order of the Phoenix and trained its members, but we could not defeat the dark one we had to wait for Harry to be ready."
"So Harry has to lead the Brotherhood into battle?" asked Hermione, Harry looked at her with a horrified expression.
"Oh no my dear," replied the old wand maker, Harry visibly relaxed, "as Albus said Harry has his own battles to fight. The Brotherhood is here to make sure Harry gets to confront Voldemort and not become side tracked by his Death Eaters."
"That's nice," said Harry, again unsure that he liked the way things appeared to be going. "So whatever, the Brotherhood and the Death Eaters will have to fight it out?"
"It would seem inevitable," said Ollivander, "They will have to be dealt with either before or after your confrontation with Voldemort." He scratched his chin while he considered a point. "I suppose if it is after then they may be more inclined to give in with less of a struggle."
"You are assuming that I will defeat Voldemort, of course?" asked Harry with a worried smile.
"Of course my boy," the strange old man replied jovially. "I never doubted that for a moment."
It was nearly midday Harry and Hermione talked quietly, sitting side by side on the edge of Dumbledore's bed, Ron and Ollivander were on the other side of the room engaged in a similar pastime, and Albus Dumbledore was attending to the many mirrors that litter this most peculiar room.
"So what are we going to do Harry," Hermione whispered.
"Don't have a lot of choice, do we." he said matter of factly, "If I don't face Tom before all hell breaks lose then a lot of people are going to be injured, or killed, or worse. Snape must know where he is hiding out." There was a tone of frustration in Harry's voice, and then he paused in thought. "Umm… I wonder if Luna skimmed that little piece of information from Snape's mind as well."
"Possible Harry, no harm in asking, I suppose." Hermione gripped Harry's arm and pulled him close, he could feel her whole body shaking.
"What's the matter?"
"Its getting close Harry and I'm scared."
"Not losing your confidence?" he said gently, remembering all the times she had bolstered his.
"No Harry, not at all," she replied defiantly, "but someone once said only a fool goes into battle feeling unafraid."
"And you're no fool."
"That's right,"
And to calm her and comfort her he held her tight, stroked her hair and whispered into her ear, "I love you."
There was a muted ringing noise from over where Dumbledore was working, he picked up a small hand mirror, and listened to the tinny voice that whispered an urgent message.
"You are sure of this Severus?" He was the only one who could hear the reply, but his words suggested a positive response, "Very well, I will pass this on." There was another unintelligible sound from the mirror. "Be very careful Severus, he will suspect, and I doubt he will be forgiving. Good luck."
The old Headmaster spun around his robes whirled dramatically and Harry could see something like the old fire in his eyes. "Fyrsil you must call the Brotherhood to order, Tom is making his move. He is sending his Death Eaters against the Ministry and the muggle government, and he intends to attack both tonight. If he is successful there will be such confusion in both the wizarding and muggle worlds that neither will recover in time to stop him taking over."
Harry stood, "I must get to Voldemort now and put a stop to all of this, I need to know where he is."
"No Harry you do not," Dumbledore's voice was stern, "You need to be away from this, attacking Tom on his home ground would put you at a great disadvantage, and I forbid you to try."
Harry's temper flared, "You forbid! Just who do you think you are!"
Dumbledore regarded him coldly, and Hermione grabbed him trying to shake the anger from him. "Who am I? actually Harry, since I was never given the opportunity to resign and you are technically still a student of this school I am you Headmaster, but I am also your friend. I also know that if you go to Little Hangleton you will loose to Tom, the connection between the two of you is far too strong to be tested in that particular location. Have patience, he will make a mistake, and then you will have your chance, and you will not have to wait much longer." He sighed deeply. "Before the sun rises again the matter will be settled, his forces will be triumphant or the Brotherhood will break them."
Ollivander was already on his feet heading to the mirror that would take him back to the Hall of Merlin, "Later Albus," were his only words as he passed through.
"I don't believe this," said Harry his voice still shaking with the anger that he under Hermione's urging was trying to suppress. "You expect me to hide while you and the Brotherhood fight it out?"
"This is what the Brotherhood is for; it is their destiny, not yours and not mine." Dumbledore said with resignation.
"You're not going with them?"
"No Harry, I cannot leave this castle," he gazed affectionately at the old stones and patted the pillar he was standing next to. "She is all that is keeping me alive, I told you before how weak I was, …well perhaps I was not totally honest. So you see you are not the only one to sit on the side lines this time." The Headmaster walked over to Harry, Hermione and Ron standing together watching him. "I want you to go to the Burrow, and promise me that you will stay there, unless you are called. Ron's mother will need him near her, she will not know what is happening tonight," he laid a hand on Ron's shoulder, "but be there just in case."
Dumbledore looked deep into Harry's emerald green eyes, and he in turn regarded eyes of sparkling blue.
"Take this Harry," he said holding out a small hand mirror, it was so like the one Sirius had given him all those years ago, "And I want you to promise Harry, not until you are called."
He did not like it, he wanted desperately to strike out on his own, but deep down there was a quiet sensible voice telling him to do as he was asked, so Harry took the mirror Dumbledore offered and said "Ok I promise."
"Right off you go then," said Dumbledore lightly, as if the argument had never happened.
"From here?" asked Ron, Dumbledore smiled and nodded.
"It was you wasn't it? You let us apparate in and out of the Castle, all the times when we need it?" asked Hermione.
"If that is what you wish to believe, my dear, then yes it was, but remember that Hogwarts is more than just a castle, and it looks after its own. Now go."
And the three of them holding hands closed their eyes and vanished.
* * *