Blood Bound: A Vampire Tale
Disclaimer: Everything concerning Harry Potter belongs to J. K. Rowling. I own nothing, nor is this done for any purpose except my own enjoyment and the enjoyment of anyone reading this. There is no attempt to make any profit.
I wish to extend a grateful thank you to my beta readers, Amanda and Prof Roz. Any mistakes left in this story are due to my last minute revisions.
A/N Conversations in italic print are telepathic in nature.
Chapter Eighteen
The sun dropped behind the mountains. The vampires went up stairs to find Peter eating a simple meal. He had evidently been busy gathering wood for the fire. While the cabin was not in the best of shape it did block out the cold wind.
"Peter," said Harry, "did Lord Voldemort keep a cup or a ring here in the cabin?"
"No …, Harry," he replied obsequiously, "not here, but perhaps in the cave."
"There's a cave? Where?"
"About a half mile from here, it is up the slope between here and the ruined castle."
Harry ran his fingers through his hair as he tried to decide what to do. "We need blood, that has to come first," he thought to Hermione. "I'm going to the village. Would you search the cabin while I'm gone? If Peter says neither of the objects is here I believe him, but I'd feel better if we searched ourselves."
Hermione followed Harry outside to wish him luck. Away from the city the clear sky was ablaze with stars. Evidently the winter had been mild; the snow covering the ground wasn't deep. A keen wind blew through the peaks of the mountains to the north. As it sighed through the trees it brought with it the howl of wolves. They both stopped to listen to the mournful sound. Hermione remembered reading "Dracula". Examining the area for the first time she was impressed at how accurately Bram Stoker had described the countryside. The wolves howled again and she thought, "You're not going to go on about 'the children of the night' are you?" being here brought that passage to life.
Harry remembered the line Hermione was referring to, "No," he smiled back, "but I was thinking about Lupin. They all looked pretty upset that we're vampires." It was the first time he brought up the experience at Hogwarts. "I just thought the howling sounded lonely and I realized how isolated it must have seemed for him sometimes."
Hermione patted him on the arm. Harry thought for a while, "If there are wolves around maybe…" He transformed into a wolf and looked up at Hermione, "I won't draw too much attention."
As he bounded down the mountainside, Hermione watched him go. She was concerned for him. Ever since the night he brought Wormtail to the lair he had been closed and businesslike. Hermione knew Harry was hiding something. It did not cause him the same pain the incident with Dobby had caused him, but he was not himself. Now that he was gone she resolved to have a little chat with Peter Pettigrew.
Harry approached the village with caution. It seemed to have grown somewhat since Peter was last there. There were approximately three hundred souls in the town. Harry located a small inn. He hid in the darkness picking up the surface thoughts of the occupants. The customers were very happy. Most of the villagers worked in the nearby chromium mine. Albania was one of the leading producers of chromium and the discovery of a new vein was expected to ring in a new era of prosperity to the little town. Already, they were working to improve the docking facility on Lake Fierzes in anticipation of the barges that would carry the ore away. Harry wandered around the little town observing the townspeople as they went about their business. Not that there was that much activity. The people worked hard and most went to bed early.
There was a police station in the town and it boasted of having a patrol vehicle left over from when the Communists ruled the country. Now that the Communists were gone there was a small church and a mosque. They were located on opposite sides of the town.
It was also a place where the people remembered how to deal with vampires. As he moved through the residential areas, he was sickened by the pervasive smell of garlic. Most of the doors and windows had been treated with the pungent little herb, and Harry's sensitive sense of smell was reacting badly. He was glad that he didn't need to breathe, nevertheless the smell was oppressive and he began to move away from the area.
He backtracked to the inn. As he approached, the back door swung open and a barmaid exited with a large box of bottles. Harry transformed and used his power the snare her. He left her a few minutes later and hurried to locate another victim. He was fortunate enough to catch the lone police officer napping in the patrol car. Once more in the form of a wolf, he returned the way that he had come and made his way to the lonely cabin on the mountainside.
He found Hermione searching the cabin as he had asked. She looked up as he entered, it was obvious that he had fed and she was sure he had taken enough for her. Hermione commanded Peter to remain upstairs as she beckoned Harry to the basement. "Tell me about the village," she asked. She seated him gently on the workbench.
As he described what he had seen and felt she moved behind him and began to massage his shoulders. Harry wished he could enjoy the feeling of her hands on his body. Slowly she unbuttoned his BDU jacket and pulled it away from his shoulder. He felt her lips on the base of his neck. He reached up to caress her face as she asked, "What happened to Snape?"
His mind immediately began to replay the awful scene as Hermione's fangs penetrated his shoulder and she slipped past his mental defenses. He tried vainly to stand and pull away, but she held him fast as she shared his horror, watching Snape's body shrivel in the flames. At last she allowed him to pull away from her. He whirled around staring at the blood dripping from her mouth.
"Why did you hide that from me, Harry? I want to help you; do you think I can't see when something is wrong with you?"
"I didn't mean to kill him, not like that," he confessed.
"Of course you didn't. I could see that it was an accident," she thought as she wiped the blood from her lips. She stepped forward, kissed his shoulder, and closed the wound she had made.
She slipped off her blouse, "Drink from me; there is something I want to show you."
Harry began taking her blood, reliving the Death Eaters attack on her family. "Snape killed my parents, without a moment's hesitation. He deserved everything he got." Her expression was one of anger.
Harry closed the holes he left in her shoulder. He slipped the straps of her bra down and returned the caress she had given him earlier. He knew the gesture was symbolic; she could not feel it much, either. Yet, he tried to soothe her emotions by touching her shoulders and neck as he told her, "Revenge isn't the way, Hermione. Justice would have been better; he should have been turned over to the Aurors. There's nothing that can be done to return what he took from you or your parents."
"That may be true, but the world is far better off without Snape in it," she said angrily.
Harry nodded his agreement as he took her face in his hands. He was trying to calm Hermione's anger and offer comfort for the loss of her parents.
"Remember this, Harry; at first, you struck out in anger. You felt you wanted Snape to die, because of how he treated you, what he did to Dumbledore, and now that you know what he did to me. But you didn't really want to kill him, the proof of that is in what you are feeling now. If you really wanted to kill him you would be glad, and you aren't. What happened was an accident. You have to separate what was deliberate, like his killing my family, and what is accidental, like knocking over a lamp. In his death you are only indirectly responsible. If you had had your wand you might have been able to do something."
Harry felt somewhat better for having talked to Hermione. Together they continued to search the basement, but they found no evidence of the Horcrux they sought. At the approach of dawn Harry went up the steep steps to the cabin. Peter had gone to bed and the fire had burned low. He threw a couple of logs on the fire so that it would not be so cold after the sun rose and descended the stairs.
Hermione had already transformed and was hanging in the corner. She spread her wings and Harry joined her.
The next evening, both vampires ventured to the little town seeking blood. This time they ambushed a pair of workers coming home late from the mine. It still bothered Hermione somewhat to take blood like this, but now there was no choice. In a small village the criminal element was negligible.
Not wanting to waste time they Apparated back to the cabin. Peter was waiting to guide them to the cave. The cabin was situated somewhat over half-way up the mountainside. Above it, to the east, a sharp ridge began that ran up to the top where the castle was. The village was down the mountain to the west. Northward the ground fell away steeply as erosion carried material down to the lake. To the south the ground sloped gently away. The terrain was heavily forested with dark pine trees with a scattering of fir trees.
It was not a place where cloaks would help them much and they left them in the cabin. Their BDU's and boots were exactly what were needed. They gathered their wands, gloves, and scarves. Even the vampires cast warming charms to keep out the pervasive cold and the three of them set out to climb the ridge to the cave.
They followed the ridge upwards. Not far from the summit the trio entered a flat place. The ridge began to climb more steeply and a narrow path branched northward. The path was about ten feet wide and the face of the cliff rose vertically above them. To the left the slope was also very steep and would have required experienced climbers to gain the path from the shore of the lake. Several hundred yards from the flat area there was a fissure in the face of the cliff. It was the entrance to the cave.
The entrance was narrow and they were forced to walk single file. The passageway was about fifty yards long ending in a room of moderate size. The temperature was far warmer in the room than outside and there were a few stalactites. They removed their gloves and scarves and had a look around. At the back of the room was a great pile of fractured rock. There had been a substantial cave-in and whatever existed beyond was forever blocked by a massive fall of boulders.
At first glance it was an ordinary cave. To a Muggle it would have appeared uninteresting and might have been a place for young adventurers to explore for a picnic. To a vampire, however, there was a rectangular area on the floor that shone with magical energy. A powerful wizard or an initiate would have known of its presence.
Wormtail spoke, "There is a passage beneath the rocks. The Dark Lord never allowed me to enter nor did he tell me the password."
Harry remembered his journey to the cave with Dumbledore. As he examined the enchanted rock he noticed a small indentation in the stone. He placed the tip of his wand in it and commanded, "Alohomora". The stone did not move.
Next he cut his wrist and allowed the blood to fill the hole. The stone began to glow more brightly. Again he used the unlocking spell, but with no effect. Hermione ran her hand over the stone. Harry followed her example, his hand, however passed through the stone; he fell forward a few inches as his hand dropped beneath its surface. Hermione tried again, her hand rested on the surface of the door.
"Maybe you need to pay with your blood to gain entrance, Hermione."
Hermione grimly cut the skin of her palm and allowed the blood to fill the indentation. She closed the cut and tried to slip her hand through the door. The stone remained unyielding.
"Try casting a spell on it and see what happens," suggested Harry.
Resisting the temptation to try to blast the door with a "Reducto" curse she tried to unlock the door. This time her hand, too, passed through the surface of the stone.
Together they stepped onto the doorway. As the illusion vanished they saw a series of steep steps leading down to a passageway beneath the cave in.
"Stay here, Peter. Build yourself a fire and wait for us," Harry commanded gently.
Together the vampires passed down the flight of steps. At the bottom they entered a narrow passageway. It was circular and inclined gradually upward. There were small chambers cut into the walls, each was set with heavy wooden door, no different from the dungeons at Hogwarts. They opened a few. All were empty, in some there were rusted sets of manacles hanging from the wall.
The passage spiraled upward. Higher up the chambers were larger and had the appearance of work rooms rather than prison cells. At last the hallway leveled out and through the door they could see a large room filled with bookshelves. When they entered they noticed there were several cavernous fireplaces along the walls and quite a few lamps hanging from the ceiling. The floor was tiled with mosaics of magical symbols and despite the feeling of great age there was no dust anywhere. The passage entered the back of the room. At the opposite end there were copyist's desks, a lectern, and a doorway. The doorways, before and behind were flanked by suits of ornate armor.
Harry and Hermione continued their exploration by crossing the library and exiting the opposite door. There were stairs leading upwards. The space above the library was broken into rooms of various sizes and were obviously classrooms. The furniture was very old and fragile, and here the centuried dust lay heavy on everything. Climbing once again they entered an area where the walls were falling and they recognized that they were in the ruined castle.
"Harry, I wonder if this could be the Scholomance, the school where Vlad learned to be a wizard. It's mentioned in "Dracula" and I remember Professor Binns said a little about it in the History of Magic. They taught the Dark Arts here, it was said the devil claimed every tenth scholar."
"The chance to learn really dark magic is possibly why Voldemort would want to come here," observed Harry. "I wonder how long ago the school closed. This place looks like it has been deserted for centuries."
"It may be that the school exists somewhere else, perhaps with a different name," concluded Hermione. Both of them were thinking the same thing, perhaps its name was now Durmstrang.
"Anyway, the library is still protected by magic. It might still be in use. Let's go back and check it out. Suppose this is where Voldemort learned to make the Horcruxes. Maybe we can find information on how to detect and destroy them."
They returned to the library and began examining the books. They were all hand bound and hand written in old languages. Many were in Greek and Latin, but there were books lettered in runes or other ancient scripts. Not a few featured coded writing in strange alphabets or alchemical symbols that could only be read by initiates of some forgotten wizard. There appeared to be no system of organization.
Both Harry and Hermione could read a little Latin as many of the older books in the library at Hogwarts were written in it. Hermione could, of course, translate the books of ancient runes. Neither of them was familiar with Greek.
Harry was deeply disappointed, he expected to find a Horcrux here, but there was none that was immediately obvious. They backtracked to the cave, where Wormtail waited for them. As they emerged from the magical doorway he noted the disappointment on Harry's face.
He appeared anxious to please as he asked, "Harry, what's wrong?"
"We found a library, but we can't read the books. Most of them are in Greek or Latin. You don't read Greek, do you?"
"Yes, master, I am fair in Greek, and better in Latin. I used to help the other Marauders with their studies. Is there something I can help you translate?"
The vampires looked at each other. There had had to have been a reason why Peter was included in the group, perhaps he was the key to them all becoming animagi. It had been said he wasn't really good at magic, but he must have been good at something.
Harry returned to the library and took one of the books from the shelf. As he approached the door the suits of armor closed the entrance by crossing their halberds over it. He took another step forward and the suits of armor began to move ominously as if preparing to step off of the platforms on either side of the door. Harry began to back away. The suits of armor pulled the deadly looking pole arms back to their sides. Harry replaced the book and exited the library. Evidently Peter would have to pay to enter here as well.
The next evening began a new routine. The three of them would come to the library after Harry and Hermione fed. With the village being so small they had to shift their food gathering activities to the small town of Kukes, located about twenty five miles to the east. Peter had been there before so he knew where to exchange their money and purchase the food he needed to survive. The vampires alternated their own blood gathering expeditions between the village and Kukes. As the time progressed Harry left Hermione and Peter reading and he began searching for the Horcrux he hoped had been placed here.
As the nights passed it became obvious that the subject of Horcruxes was not much discussed even among dark wizards. It became apparent that the library possessed some organization after all. Various shelves contained books that pertained to certain areas of magic; there were shelves devoted to transfiguration, charms, hexes, curses, and enchanting objects.
It was among the last that they began to find references to the evil things. At last, in one of the old Latin texts they found a description of the process. A wizard had to perform a series of ritual meditations to prepare his soul for the split. The object that was to contain the soul had to have been enchanted beforehand, or some object that was already magical. Once the murder had been performed the wizard would, by the power of an incantation transfer part of his soul to the object. Hermione, who understood the type of switching spell involved, shuddered when she read the incantation.
Given what they found out, Harry and Hermione came to the decision that there could be no Horcrux at Hogwarts. There was nothing to indicate that Voldemort learned the process there, more likely that he had found everything he needed here. Once he had the objects he wanted to make into Horcruxes he could have made them all at once, or more likely, he had made one or two at a time and waited to perform some special murder to make the others.
A few days later a new piece of the puzzle fell into place. Peter translated from a Greek text the description of a potion that was a part of the process. The potion produced an altered mental state that helped the wizard guide his soul fragment once it left his body; it had the side effect of helping a wizard draw power from his soul fragment within a Horcrux. Peter had been feeding it to Voldemort to help him sustain himself while he waited for the Triwizard Tournament to end.
This information helped explain why he had chosen Nagini as a Horcrux and had needed her venom as part of the potion. Nagini was a Basilisk. She might be immature now, but had a potential lifespan of several hundred years. When she died, Voldemort, who probably planned to be immortal by then, could transfer the soul fragment to another object. It also explained his interest in Hogwarts; what better place to hide his Basilisk-Horcrux than in the Chamber of Secrets, a place only a parselmouth could enter?
The following evening Harry and Hermione fed from the village. They met Peter after he finished his supper and they prepared to walk up to the cave. The trio had arrived at the cabin early in January, now February was drawing to a close. Early on, they had checked the area for people that might have wandered into the area. As time drew on, they had checked the area less frequently; it proved to be a serious mistake.
They were walking up the ridge. Peter was in front, with Harry and Hermione walking a few paces back talking about the ramifications of Nagini being a Basilisk. Suddenly, they walked into Peter. He had stopped and was looking up the slope at a dark figure that was blocking the path.
"Well, well, well, what do we have here? Could it be Wormtail? The Dark Lord wondered where you had gotten off to when Snape died." Harry recognized the voice at once. The figure was Fenrir Greyback.
Wormtail, enslaved as he was to Harry, said nothing, neither did he flinch away from the werewolf's accusation.
Greyback emitted a low growl as he recognized the presence of two vampires standing behind Wormtail. His eyes began to burn as he bared his sharp, yellow teeth. Grinning triumphantly, he looked back over his shoulder. A full moon was rising over the mountains. Shortly, he would be at his full power.
Not knowing what to expect, Harry and Hermione extended their talons. The vampires within them prepared to do battle with the ancient enemy.
"What are you doing here, dog?" Harry's focused thought rocked Greyback.
"Gathering the clans of Europe to aid the Dark Lord," the werewolf managed to growl. Under the rays of the full moon, he was transforming into a huge, shaggy wolf. His mind was so far gone he failed to recognize Harry; his beast was ascendant and all he wanted to do was rend and slay.
He pounced so swiftly that even a vampire was hard pressed to react quickly enough. Fenrir bounded down the ridge, blind to all else except the vampire before him. Harry grabbed Peter and pulled him out of the way as Hermione leaped in the opposite direction. As the werewolf bounded between them, Harry raked his talons along the werewolf's exposed flank. The talons cut deep, and the blood poured from the cuts as the werewolf howled in pain.
Greyback was used to prey that did not fight back and was unable to move nearly as swiftly as he did. He checked his charge and pivoted with blinding speed, marking the targets before him. He gathered himself and leaped at Harry with his maw agape.
He did not reckon on Hermione's swift response. She reached out with preternatural speed and strength, grabbed his forepaw and slung him into the trunk of a nearby tree. The collision would have killed an ordinary wolf; and even a powerful werewolf like Greyback was stunned. Unfortunately for Hermione, she had been unable to plant her feet correctly and now she slipped in the snow. As she struggled to regain her feet, she was sliding down the gentle slope.
Fenrir crouched momentarily, shaking his head. As he surveyed his enemies, he noted that one of the vampires was down in the snow. Once again he pounced, now targeting the struggling vampire. Harry stepped in front of the werewolf's charge, grappling with the beast by grabbing its throat and one of its paws. His muscles strained as he caught the great werewolf; he arrested the beast's forward momentum and held him aloft, using all of his strength to hold the snapping jaws away from his face.
Hermione was still trying to regain her footing and Harry was having difficulty, the sheer weight and strength of the werewolf was proving impossible to manage. Fenrir kicked him in the stomach with his hind legs, the heavy blows forced Harry to bend at the waist and fall with the snarling beast squarely on top of him.
Harry grimly managed to fend off the monster's jaws with his hold on Greyback's throat, but the werewolf was now in a position to maul him with its own claws. As the beast transferred its weight to its hind legs, Wormtail entered the fray. Using his silver hand he grabbed at the wounds Harry had made on the werewolf's left flank. The werewolf's flesh smoked and charred as Peter tore the skin away from the underlying muscle. In his agony, the werewolf pulled sideways, tearing itself away from the vampire's powerful grip. Fenrir bounded up the slope a short distance and rolled in the snow to cool the burning in his flesh.
Wormtail pulled Harry to his feet and moved to help Hermione as well.
"Hermione, get the silver knife from your potions kit," Harry ordered. They had been carrying their school things for months. Now, maybe, there was a real use for her old potion kit. Hermione Apparated back to the cabin.
Greyback had been frustrated in his initial attack. Now he was slinking back down the ridge, growling his hatred, unsure of which target represented the greater threat. Harry and Peter were advancing up the slope, with Peter keeping to the trees along the edge of the drop-off. He was not as fast or strong as Harry and he needed to keep his right hand, the silver one, toward the enemy.
With a loud pop, Hermione reappeared near the Harry. With a nod of his head, he motioned Hermione to move to his right. The noise distracted Peter and he looked at Hermione. At that moment Greyback struck. He leaped down the slope toward Harry. At the last moment he side stepped, throwing his weight against Peter, knocking the little wizard off of the cliff, then leaping once again at Harry.
Harry leaped sideways also, avoiding the werewolf's charge. Once again he raked Greyback with his talons. This time, he caught the beast's muzzle; the monster's left eye exploded, the skin ripped back from the werewolf's skull, and three deep gashes were cut into the werewolf's shoulder. Greyback continued down the ridge a short distance, dodging among the trees. Hermione came up to Harry and passed him the little knife.
They were standing side-by-side as the werewolf bore down on them again. As he approached Hermione transformed herself into a wolf and leaped away into the brush. Distracted by the sudden transformation, Greyback watched her as Harry stepped in to attack. He drove the knife into the werewolf's side. His strength was such that Harry drove it completely into the werewolf's body, handle and all.
The great wolf crashed to the ground. His jaws champed together as he writhed in his final throes. The silver was swiftly poisoning him and in a minute or so he lay still. "Is he dead?" Hermione asked.
In answer Harry nodded at the body. Even in the light of the full moon Fenrir had returned to his human form.
The vampires changed into bats and flew down the cliff side, the slope was not vertical, but it was pretty steep. Peter had fallen about twenty feet and rolled down the rough mountain side for another two hundred.
He was stirring feebly when they reached him. Blood was trickling from his nose and his mouth had a pink froth around the corners. His left arm was badly broken. Harry gently turned him on his back, taking care not to hurt his damaged arm.
His breathing was ragged and shallow. When he spoke the blood flowed faster from mouth, "I'm free, even from you, vampire." He was wracked by a coughing fit, he rolled over and a large amount of blood flowed onto the ground, followed by a deep groan. He was plainly dying.
"I'm sorry, Harry for…betraying your parents," he whispered. "I was so afraid…"
"So you gave up my parents for your own life, by your own choice you lived all those years as a rat and when you finally went back to Voldemort your treatment was even worse, I saw the way he treated you in my visions." Harry's tone was bitter.
"You don't understand…he's so powerful…the things he can do to you…"
"No," said Harry, with a new measure of understanding. "He is just like you, so afraid of dying he hides behind the name of Voldemort. It's like a mask, he scared you and the other Death Eaters with it, it's so powerful even he believes in it, but behind it he's just like you, a little coward who wants to exist so badly he'd tolerate the most cursed existence just to live a little longer. He doesn't care who he has to sacrifice just as long as he comes out with his skin whole. Did he come to you before or after you became my parent's secret keeper?" Harry hissed angrily. Yet as he regarded the history of the pathetic creature before him he was moved by pity.
"Before, he wanted…access to Sirius' money…and he hated your father for refusing to come to his side. I hoped to keep on the outside…but he knew I was hiding something. He threatened me… and I gave in…"
Harry knew Peter would not last long, in memory of his father's former friend he resolved to be kind. "Thanks for saving me from the werewolf back there." There was real gratitude in his voice as he tried to smile. He thought the last thing Peter should see was a semi-friendly face.
Peter shook his head, "I owed you…" A spasm passed over his face, with a gasp, he died. Harry gently closed Peter's staring eyes and he slowly stood up.
"We can't leave him here," said Harry, "He was my parent's friend and a Marauder." He and Hermione searched for a relatively flat place and they buried Peter under a cairn of stones. By the time they finished the dawn was burning above the low mountains to the east.
"We can't stay here now," said Hermione. "Voldemort knows Greyback was here and about the library. If more of them come during the day there is nothing we can do. They will destroy us."
Harry nodded his agreement. Together they went back to the cabin for their things. They left all that Wormtail had there so that it would look like he was hiding there alone. There was one last disagreeable task to perform, and then they Apparated back to England and the cover of night.
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Arthur woke to the sound of Molly's screams. The sound was coming from far away. He leaped out of bed, grabbed his wand, and flew down the stairs to the kitchen.
The screams were coming from outside, so he threw open the back door and ran into the garden. Molly was standing there in her bathrobe and rubber boots. Her egg basket lay forgotten on the ground as her hands were covering her face. His focus was totally on her as he ran to her side, "Molly, what's wrong?" he demanded.
Molly threw herself into Arthur's arms and buried her face in his shoulder. He threw his arms around her and looked around for the source of her fright. His eyes grew wide in surprise and horror as he noted the new addition to his garden.
He guided Molly into the kitchen. There was only one course of action; he led her upstairs, placed her in bed, and said, "Obliviate." There was a little of the sedative potion left, he gave it to her and left her gently sleeping.
"Harry," he thought, "what have you done?" He went downstairs and made some tea. Then he called Kingsley Shacklebolt. As he waited for the Magical Law Enforcement wizards to arrive, he tried to think of what was going on with Harry. First Snape was killed, now this. From what Tonks had said about the meeting with Carstairs and Shacklebolt, it seemed Harry was on some kind of rampage. He was deeply afraid for Fred and George; how long would it be before Harry could not distinguish friend from foe? Was Harry trying to threaten the wizarding world? He was a vampire, after all. But why here, why not at the Ministry? No wizard had threatened him that he knew of.
No, he answered himself; he had seen him break down when Dobby reacted so badly. He could not believe Harry could become so callous so quickly. Was he trying to send a message, perhaps a warning to Voldemort? Then why not at some Death Eater's home?
Perhaps he was letting him know Bill had been avenged, or was it something like a cat bringing one a dead bird? Kingsley was afraid Harry's humanity would disappear, but this was so far beyond what he would have expected Harry to have done. His young life had been filled with horrors, vampirism not the least, had Harry gone insane? And what part had Hermione played in all this?
His thoughts were whirling, with no clear answer in sight when the flames in the fireplace turned green. Shacklebolt and Littleton stepped into the kitchen. Weak kneed and nauseous, Arthur led them into the garden.
There, on a pole, was the head of Fenrir Greyback.