Chapter 7 - Pawn to E5
A/N: Terribly, terribly sorry for the delay. A plot bunny attacked me and wouldn't let me be until I put it to rest. I know this is shorter than my usual chapter, I hope this tides you guys over before I can post the next one again. I'll try to make the next extra long to make up for this. My tremendous gratitude to The_Scribbler for the excellent beta work as always.
Pursuant to the Berne Convention Implementation Act of 1988 and the Digital Millennium Copywrite Act of 1998, this work is copywrited, 2007, with all rights expressly reserved by its author unless explicitly granted. No portion may be reproduced in any fashion without the express written and notarized permission of the author.
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Harry Potter characters. All characters are creations of Joanne K Rowling, © 2007, to whom I am deeply indebted.
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Dudley got a menacing look in his eyes as he spied his gangly cousin walking alone the narrow alleyway between Magnolia Crescent and Wisteria Walk. He walked faster to catch up with the freak. What was he doing here? He usually came and did chores around the house, what was he doing here tonight?
"Hey, you!" He called out. Harry didn't turn around. Dudley was annoyed, he lumbered to catch up. "Hey, Potter!" He yanked the smaller boy's arm.
Harry just stared blankly at him. "Yes?" He replied quietly.
Dudley scowled, "What's wrong with you?"
Harry sighed and shrugged off his grasp, then turned back to walking towards Privet Drive. "Nothing, Dudley. It's late, and I really just need to go back to the house and tell Petunia that I need to go home." He turned back to him and narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "It's awfully late. Does your mother know you're out at this hour?"
Dudley flushed and grabbed Harry's arm again. "Who the hell do you think you are? Just because you don't live us anymore doesn't mean you can talk to me like that."
"It would really be to your best interests, Dudley," Harry hissed. "If you took your hand off my arm." Dudley saw Harry take out a long and narrow stick from his left jean pocket.
He smirked. "You can't use magic, you're still in school." He said, still not letting go of Harry's arm.
Harry smirked back and leaned toward him. He saw his cousin's eyes blaze red and he hastily dropped his grip but the smaller boy grabbed his arm and twisted it. Dudley groaned in pain.
"That would have been correct," He heard the other boy whisper in his ear, "If I was Harry."
Dudley's eyes widened in fright; he pulled his arm from the doppelganger's grasp and ambled quickly away. He could hear the boy's laughter behind him. He glanced over his shoulder. "I'll tell! I'll tell on you!"
"Aww, running to tell Daddy, Diddykins? Harry told me how you hide your lardy arse behind your equally lardy father."
Harry's laughter was cut off abruptly as the temperature lowered drastically. Everything became pitch black.
Dudley whimpered. "Stop it! Stop doing that!"
"Shut up! I'm not doing anything. Don't move!" He heard Harry a couple of feet from him.
Dudley felt Harry grasping his shirt. He shook it away. "Get away from me!" He shuffled to his feet and started grasping his way through the alley.
"Dudley! Dudley, you idiot boy, come back here!"
Dudley only scrambled away faster in the dark. "No! I know you're doing this. Stop it!"
"I'm not doing anything, you moron. Now shut up because I'm trying to listen on where they are." Harry said exasperatedly, caught up with him and grasped a hold on Dudley's shirt.
Dudley fell silent. Then they heard it; long, hoarse, rattling breaths. Dudley started squirming from Harry's grasp. "Hold still!" Harry scolded him.
Suddenly, Dudley's fist swung through the air and hit Harry's face. He staggered back. Dudley scampered and ran away from his cousin.
"Dudley, you idiot! Stop! You're headed straight at them!" Harry yelled. "Goddammit! Lumos."
A strange eerie light filled the alleyway. Tonks, disguised as Harry of course, squinted to see further up and was alarmed to see a Dementor hovering over a shivering Dudley.
She snapped into action. "Expecto Patronum!" A large, silver wolf shot out from her wand and charged the Dementor. Tonks jumped back in surprise. What the hell? Her Patronus has always been a chameleon. Where did the wolf come from? The silvery, translucent bitch circled Dudley once before charging another Dementor that was coming up to her from behind. The Patronus circled them again before coming to rest on its heels in front of her. The wolf panted at her, lolling its tongue adorably. Tonks patted its head affectionately then it disappeared into thin air.
Tonks ran to the muggle boy shriveled up in a fetal position on the pavement. "Shite," She swore softly under her breath. "Where the bloody hell did that come from?" She tried to lift the portly boy up and grunted with the effort.
"Did you see them?" Tonks jumped in alarm as a small, aged voice sounded from somewhere at her left. She turned around too quickly and promptly stumbled on Dudley. "Bloody hell, Mrs. Figg, don't do that to me again."
"I'm sorry, child. My kneazle, Mr. Tibbles told me what happened. Are you alright?" The aging witch asked, gray hair slipping from her hairnet in her haste.
"Yes, I am thank you. But can you help me with him?" She indicated the muggle boy. "I can't really change back until I'm out of this area."
She looked confused. "Change? You're not Harry?"
"No, Mrs. Figg. It's me, Tonks. Harry's…ill. So I took his shift for now." Tonks shrugged. "Good thing, I did though."
"Oh dear, this is the sort of thing Dumbledore warned me about." Mrs. Figg said, bending down to help Tonks shift Dudley between them.
"Well, I better get this boy home and feed him some chocolates. I have a feeling it's going to be a long night."
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Harry gingerly opened his eyes. A dull ache was throbbing in his head and everything was completely dark. He was in his room. He tried to remember what happened. The locket! One minute he was looking at it, and then it seemed to call to him. He remembered speaking to it.
"You're awake." Harry turned his head to see Hermione. She looked drawn and her hand came up to stroke his cheek softly. "You gave us another scare, y'know."
"I'm sorry." He sat up and made a space for her. She settled beside him and rested her head on his shoulder.
"Are you ok?"
Harry nodded silently. His eyes strayed toward the window to gaze at the starless sky. "What time is it?"
"Half-past eleven." She lifted an arm to drape it over him protectively. Harry leaned his cheek against her hair and inhaled her sweet, light scent. "You smell good."
Hermione snuggled in more against the crook of his neck. Harry closed his eyes and moved his arms to hug her to him fully and bent his head in her wonderful wild hair. He felt the tension leave him as her hands moved soothingly over him. He felt his stomach lurch. It felt so good to hold her like this.
"We were all so worried." He heard her mumble. He could feel her worry throughout her whole body.
"Shhh. I'm ok. I'm here."
After a few minutes, both of them had calmed their beleaguered hearts. Hermione shifted away from him and stared at his beautiful emerald eyes. She raised her hand again to his cheek. "Are you ok to talk? I should get Sirius and Remus. They're downstairs keeping watch."
"Better to tell everyone at once, isn't it?" He said dryly.
Hermione squeezed his hand then got up and fetched the adults. Both marauders faces broke into visible visages of relief when they saw him sitting up unharmed in his bed. They took seats beside his bed while Hermione resumed her place beside him again in a gesture of support.
"Are you ok?" Sirius looked at his godson.
Harry nodded. "What happened? What was that locket?"
"I don't know."
"What did you say to it?"
Harry looked at Remus perplexed. "You spoke in Parseltongue before you passed out, Harry." Hermione said softly.
"I remember looking at it trying to figure out if I'd seen it before. It felt… familiar somehow. And then the markings on it seemed to move. Like the snake carvings on the door of the Chamber of Secrets. And then I heard a voice at the back of my head say that the locket was hiding something. Or rather, hiding what it was. I told it to reveal itself. I didn't realize I spoke in Parseltongue. I saw the locket change; a snake carving was appearing on it. And then it seemed real and it came for me. That's when my scar hurt. That was the last thing I remembered."
Silence greeted him. He looked to see all of them with intense looks of contemplations on their faces.
"We have to get the locket to Dumbledore." Hermione said.
Remus sighed. "I'll owl to let him know I'll be bringing it in."
Harry lips thinned. "Also, tell him once he figures out what it is, I'll appreciate it if he lets me know - unedited."
"Oh Harry." Hermione put a hand on his shoulder.
"I'm sorry, Hermione. He's kept far too much from me. Things I would have preferred to know before this whole thing blew up in my face. I understand he thinks he's protecting us all but I just can't shrug off the fact that he's treating me like a pawn in this war sometimes."
She sighed. "I understand. It would have made everything a lot easier to go through if he'll be more honest with you."
Sirius was surprisingly silent the whole time. Harry noticed his godfather had gone a little pale. "Are you ok, Uncle?"
Dark haunted eyes snapped back at him. Sirius tired to smile. "Sure, pup. You're the swooning hero here."
Harry looked at him concernedly. "I'm alright. Been through worse."
Sirius nodded. "Well, then we'll let you rest." He and Remus stood up and closed the door.
Hermione leaned her head on Harry's shoulder, his head resting on top of hers again. He could feel himself being lulled to sleep once again.
"Harry, I should go and let you sleep." She moved to get up from bed. Harry's arm shot out and grabbed her elbow.
"Stay. Please." Hermione stared into the eyes she loved so much that were already befuddled by sleep. Her face softened and she sighed.
"Okay."
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The adults at Grimmauld Place haven't slept. The tiny bubble they had created that summer had cracked with the disturbing incident earlier that night. Their minds were eased a little when Harry had woken up unharmed and now, they were waiting for Tonks to come back from her stint as Harry in Privet Drive. The two marauders were lost in their own thoughts. Lexie, on the other hand, sensed they also needed to talk of it in the open.
"He's in danger isn't he?" She never really believed in beating around the bush.
The two men looked at each other. Remus finally answered. "Yes. Hence, all the training. But you've already figured that out haven't you?"
"There is something special to him, I concede."
"Maybe this isn't the best time to talk about this." Sirius said sullenly.
Lexie arched her brow. "And when do you propose to discuss it? When they come down in the morning and become suffocated by the cloud of depression you have hanging on your head?"
Sirius glowered at the woman. "How dare you? You have no idea what is going on around here!"
"So what? I know something dreadful happened earlier tonight. And I figured it's not a one time occurrence either from the looks of you. And the fact that my cousin is out god-knows where pretending to be that boy; That means whatever it is you are all preparing those kids for is something they shouldn't have been involved in given how young they are. But I also know that being glum about it and avoiding facing it would only throw them in even deeper and murkier waters. They need you to be strong."
They both glared at each other, eyes flashing. "What do you think I've been doing?"
Lexie took a deep breath. "I'm sorry. I'm out of line. I was trying to help." Sirius narrowed her eyes at her. Then his shoulders sagged. "Apology accepted. You were sort of right, anyway. We can't stay sullen about this. Remus, you are going to Dumbledore tomorrow right?"
Remus nodded. "I think it's best if we leave it to Dumbledore to figure out what this locket is first. We wouldn't know where to start looking for answers anyway."
"My brother."
Remus fell silent. "Regulus?"
"I think it is something that involves him. Tell Albus that."
At that moment, the fire glowed green and Tonks tumbled out, still in Harry's form. Her clothes were all muddied and traces of sweat were visible through the thin shirt she had on. Her hair - still Harry's unruly mop - was messier than usual. She was almost ashen. Remus shot to his feet to help her up, meticulously checking her for injuries without preamble.
"Tonks, what happened?" Sirius' voice was alarmed.
Tonks was trying to shrug off Remus. She changed back to her own body in seconds and proceeded to swat the concerned man's hand as it moved precariously close to her chest area. Remus seemed to realize that she had changed back at that moment and ceased his check up, blushing. Tonks gave Remus an apologetic smile.
Tonks moved to the dining table and tiredly sat down. Remus pushed a piece of chocolate at her. She looked at him gratefully before answering. "We were attacked by Dementors."
"Dementors?!" Sirius was aghast.
"We?" Remus asked almost at the same time.
Tonks carefully nibbled on the chocolate. "I was walking back to the house; I'd done my prerequisite round the neighborhood walk. Harry's cousin, Dudley, saw me and started harassing me. He thought I was Harry."
Both Remus and Sirius' hands clenched. Tonks flushed a little, "I was taunting him a little. But I couldn't help it, you know. I'd heard how the git used to beat up Harry. I just wanted to scare him for a bit. Then all the lights went out and it became cold."
The marauders had sat down at the table at this point; both listening to her intently. Lexie remained quiet, listening to her cousin's story and also watching the men's reactions.
"I tried to calm Dudley down. But the moron panicked and hit me, so I lost my hold on him. I had to use my wand for light and I just saw this Dementor hovering over the boy. I conjured my Patronus then; it turned out there were two. There was another behind me that I didn't see. Good thing my Patronus drove it off too. Then Mrs. Figg showed up." Tonks took another bite from her chocolate bar.
"Petunia's squib neighbor?" Sirius asked.
She nodded at him. "She said one of her kneazles told her what happened so she rushed over to help. She helped me carry Dudley back to the house but I had to stay awhile because the Dursleys were panicking that I had done something to their son. I wish I could've memory charmed the lot of them, it would have made my night a lot easier."
"Why couldn't you?" Lexie's voice cut in.
Remus leveled his gaze at her. "Harry is the only known magical resident at Privet Drive. Any magical resonance from there would automatically be assumed to be his doing. As is, the Patronus Tonks cast might already be trouble for us. They would assume that it was Harry, and he's not of age yet. If we tell them it's Tonks, we risk exposing her and the Order."
"Remus!" Sirius warned his friend from saying any more.
"Do you honestly think, Padfoot, that a Muggle who just happened to be learned in defensive arts would just mysteriously appear this summer, ready to help you train Harry and Hermione?" Remus said softly.
Sirius turned to stare at the black-haired woman who had started fidgeting under Remus' inspection. Then his anger switched over to his cousin who was keeping her head down, still nibbling on the chocolate.
"Tonks." He growled.
"I can't tell you anything, Sirius. I was approached as an Auror." Tonks met his eyes.
"It's not her fault." Lexie interjected, her voice firm. "I had my orders too. I asked her to keep it secret. We had to keep it secret."
Sirius' jaw clenched. "Who the hell are you, really?"
Lexie kept her eyes trained on Sirius. "I'm a potential ally."
Sirius barked a disbelieving laugh. Lexie's mouth quirked up. "Well, that was expected." She stood up. "I know you have some things to discuss. And I know you don't trust me yet, so I'll go. To show you that I'm prepared to help, I'll go. You'll tell me what you want when you're ready." She stood up and faced the fireplace. Then she turned back to Tonks. "Sorry, Nymphie, but can you?" She gestured towards the fireplace.
"Tonks' flat!" The purple haired witch said to the fireplace, tossing some green powder into the hearth. Lexie gave the two men a nod and stepped into the green flames.
"Tonks, how could you?" Sirius said.
"She is my cousin, Sirius. I trust her, she checks out. She came to me, and told me everything. I know you're not ready to hear what she has to say though, so we'll talk about it later, ok?" She sat back down again.
Sirius ran his hand over his face irritably. "Like I have a choice." Then he stared at the witch again. "Be sure of her, Tonks. Or I swear…"
"Yah, yah, yah…You'll tie me up and hang me upside down, blah-blah. You know me Sirius." The older man just nodded at her. "So about the attack?"
Remus groaned. "This couldn't have come at a worse time."
"I'm not sure what to do. Dumbledore should be informed right away though." Sirius stood up and scribbled on a piece of parchment. He then walked over to Hedwig's perch and stroked the bird awake.
There was a flash of red flames. Fawkes suddenly appeared in the middle of the kitchen.
"Bloody bird!" Sirius exclaimed still clutching his letter.
"Well, it seems Dumbledore already knows something happened." Remus said dryly. He got up and took the note from Fawkes' leg. He looked up from the parchment. "He wants whoever was at Privet Drive to come see him now. He says Fawkes has consented to bring you." Tonks nodded at him and stood up. "Would you like me to come with you?" He asked her softly.
"That would be really appreciated." She answered tiredly.
"Bring the locket with you, Moony. Better to have all this at once. I'll have a kip; wake me up once you're back."
The couple nodded at him, grabbed Fawkes' tail feathers and disappeared in a flash.
Sirius sighed in the empty kitchen. Then he went upstairs to collapse on his bed.
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Sirius felt like someone was shaking him from underwater. He automatically swatted the arm that was joggling his shoulder.
"Sirius, wake the bloody hell up!" Tonks said, irritated.
He opened his eyes to see her standing over him. "Whuz?" He shook his head awake. "Back from Dumbledore?"
She shook her head at him. "It was too late, and I was about to collapse from exhaustion. Remus took me home and squatted on my couch. It's already morning."
Sirius looked out his window. He can see the signs of early dawn. "Let's talk about it downstairs."
Tonks nodded and left the room.
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Feeling adequately awake, Sirius carefully made his way downstairs so as not to wake the younger residents of the house.
He walked in Remus and Tonks at the table, each staring silently at their cups of tea. "You two look like shite."
"Looked in the mirror lately?" Tonks quipped back.
He went to the simmering pot of tea and poured himself a cup then joined them at the table. "What did he say?"
Remus sighed. "About the attack? He'll memory charm the Dursleys into thinking that Tonks was visiting Harry. They met through Sirius, and all that. And she was the one who cast the Patronus."
Sirius scowled. "So Harry would still face a trial then."
Tonks nodded glumly. "Well, you have to admit, it covers all the bases. The trial is inevitable if I can't admit that it was me posing as Harry all along. Besides, with how things would be, if I raise the question of why there were Dementors in Privet Drive in the first place, it would be more credible since I was there as an objective third party."
"It was highly suspicious why they were there in the first place. It seems Fudge has made his first move against Harry." Remus stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"He was bound to, sooner or later. Let's just be grateful it's still something that we can handle. Besides, if they accuse Harry further, I can ask for a formal investigation as the Head of the House of Black. The trial would be nothing more than an inconvenience right now. They know they won't be able to go after him if I accompany him there." Sirius said. "What about the locket?"
His friend took a deep breath. "He says he doesn't know what it is."
He snorted. "And I'm a monkey's uncle. Whenever he says that, it means he has suspicions on what it is. And they are suspicions which usually turn out to be right. Did he at least tell you what he thinks it is?"
Remus gave a tired sigh. "I know him as well, Padfoot."
"Well?"
Tonks answered. "He thinks the diary Harry destroyed in his second year and the locket are connected. He doesn't know how, that's why he says he still doesn't know what it is. But that still means it is connected to Voldemort. He says it is an important item though, and that we may just have stumbled into something that may turn the tide of this god-forsaken war." Sirius perked up at that.
"What do you think it is?"
Remus looked at his friend with haunted eyes. "I think it is something made from the bowels of the Dark Arts. Something that Voldemort may have poured his evil into. You saw how it had affected Harry when he applied magic to it. It was almost alive in its malevolence."
"I was afraid of that. I felt the same thing."
"So did I." Tonks shuddered.
Silence prevailed between the three of them for a few seconds.
"So he claims he doesn't know what it is? Do we trust him enough to leave it up to him to look for the answers?" Remus turned surprised eyes at his friend. He had never heard Sirius talk about their former headmaster using such a tone.
"Don't get me wrong, Moony. I still trust Dumbledore with all my heart and I will still follow him even to my death in this war. I just cannot help but think that he may be moving all of us like chess pieces sometimes. He can be quite detached with dealing with delicate issues."
"Like putting Harry with the Dursleys?" Tonks said softly.
He nodded. "If you look at it from his point of view, letting Harry live with the Dursleys is a stroke of genius. He is the unspoken leader of this war, Remus. And Harry is the chosen warrior. Granting the blood wards were his main reason, from a tactical point of view, he has ensured that the wizarding world had its champion by deciding to leave him with those loathsome people. He knew what they were. He was close to Lily and James, especially with Lily. There is absolutely no reason for him to be ignorant of her background. He knew that by leaving him with them, he would grow up to be ignorant of his infamous 'greatness.' He knew that by his eleventh birthday, Harry would be so miserable and alone there that he would jump at the chance to join a world where he is obviously welcome. And that at that point, he would be most receptive to whatever ideals and principles he would like Harry to adhere to. And I'll bet that he knew that by exposing Harry to suffering, the boy would grow up to be someone who would choose to save people from others who choose to inflict it."
Remus looked pensive. "I don't know, Padfoot. It seems like he left an awful lot to chance."
Sirius shook his head. "Don't you see? It was a calculated risk because of the prophecy. He knew of what Lily and James was able to leave Harry with. If he had grown up in the wizarding world, Harry would have grown up to be arrogant, spoiled, and headstrong. He would have been impossible to mold into anything. I refuse to believe he had no idea how the Dursleys were treating him. He could have interfered. But he chose to leave him alone for ten years. He chose to let him suffer. And it was my fault."
"You couldn't have done anything, old friend."
"It was my impulsiveness and temper which caused him his childhood. I should have thought of him first instead of my grief and thirst for revenge."
"We were young, Padfoot. And we just lost the people who meant the world to us. Anyone would have lost their minds at the time. I certainly did, and as a consequence I withdrew from everything and everyone I knew. You couldn't have known what would happen. Nobody would have. And you are currently making reparations for those actions."
Sirius sighed deeply. "I know. And I am trying. But the question remains whether we leave him alone with the issue of the locket."
"I know his actions might be questionable at times. But you have to concede that all his motives were for the greater good."
Sirius looked at Remus long and hard. Then he nodded. "Alright then." He then turned to stare in the fire. "For now."
"Where are they, by the way?" Tonks said.
"Still asleep. I checked before I came down." Sirius replied distractedly. He seemed to be contemplating something.
"Is something the matter?'
His friend didn't reply for a few moments. Then he said, "If you had a chance to give someone a …gift but it would require you to do something that may be borderline unethical, would you take the chance?"
Tonks narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "What are you talking about?"
"Harry."
"What about him?" Remus asked guardedly.
"He will be the one leading us in this war. We are training him but he has a long way to go. This is Voldemort we are talking about that he's preparing to fight."
Remus was silent. "I think we are giving him all the help we can afford."
"I know. I'm just scared of losing him, Moony."
"It will be like James and Lily again." Remus nodded." But we have to have faith in him. I, for one, believe he can win."
"I do too. I'm not sure if I'm just being paranoid but I've taken to looking for every way, muggle or magical, to help him prepare. And I found something, but it might be too dangerous."
Remus sighed. "I understand how you feel. But…" He shook his head. "What are you planning to do? I might as well hear you out before I pass judgment."
Sirius smiled at them wryly. "Have you heard of the Itineris Verum Potion?"
Tonks frowned. "It's vaguely familiar."
Sirius nodded. "Yes, Itineris Verum, the Odyssey Potion."
"Odyssey?" Remus repeated, trying to remember where he heard of it.
Sirius turned towards the fire. "Like the Greek myth where the hero Odysseus travels through innumerable challenges for twenty years before being reunited with his faithful wife Penelope and his family. The potion will put the drinker in a trance-like sleep which is supposed to be a journey of self-discovery in the subconscious. It's said that you would encounter your worst fears in the dream, along with discoveries of your strengths and unknown weaknesses and will culminate in revealing your true desires."
Both Remus and Tonks were silent. "I see."
Sirius sighed. "It will be finished day after tomorrow."
"No, it's manipulation, Sirius. You have no idea what he will go through in his mind." Tonks argued.
"He needs to do this." Sirius gave a sad smile. "No one is more merciless in cruelty as your own self when you look at the mirror. I should know. There are no more terrifying ghosts than the ones you meet in your mind."
"Isn't there the possibility he might not wake up?" She asked him angrily, her voice raising a little.
"And there is also the possibility that in the morning, he'll find out the meaning behind that blasted prophecy." He replied, matching Tonks's raised voice.
Remus opened his mouth to argue.
"And he'll realize what has been in front of him the whole time."
Remus snapped his mouth shut. He hissed at Sirius. "There is also the possibility that that may not be what he wanted. That he may cross over to the other side. That he might choose to be in the dream rather than wake up in this god-forsaken reality. Remember, Padfoot, True Desire!"
"I know all this!" He yelled at Remus. "But think of what he might gain! Knowing who you truly are, what you might be capable of, who you really love! He needs this as much as the training we're giving him. I believe in him. I believe in them!"
His friend fell silent.
"If I fail in my faith, Moony, then why am I fighting this war?" Sirius asked softly.
"Tell him. At least tell him everything before you give it to him." Remus replied firmly.
The three adults fell into brooding silence. Remus eventually got up and started to prepare breakfast.
Not one noticed a pair of trainers sneaking stealthily back upstairs.
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Harry and Hermione entered the kitchen an hour later. Sirius schooled his features to show a nonchalance he definitely did not feel. He missed the studying look Harry gave him. "Hello, pup. Had a good sleep?" To his surprise, both teenagers blushed. He raised his eyebrow, the bad mood he had woken up in dispelled for the moment.
"Er, yes, I did surprisingly."
His mouth quirked up at the look of dread on both their faces. Clearly, they fell asleep together. He knew they were expecting teasing. He looked at Tonks. The pink-haired witch had an almost evil smirk on her face. "How about you, Hermione? Did you rest well?"
Hermione narrowed her eyes at Tonks. "Yes, I did."
"Oh. Good for you." The young witch snickered. Hermione rolled her eyes. "So I fell asleep in Harry's room. Was that what you perverted individuals wanted to know?"
Harry groaned. "We are best friends, y'know. We have slept together before."
Sirius gave a dramatic gasp. "Merlin! You move fast, young man. And under my roof without permission, no less!" Remus and Tonks laughed. A pancake hitting him squarely in the face stopped his theatrics.
"He meant sleep as in sleeping." Hermione hissed at him.
"That's what I meant, too." He grinned back at her. She rounded the table to smack him at the head.
"You know you're too old to be this immature." She rolled her eyes at him. Sirius stuck his tongue at her.
Harry was pensively quiet. He was studying each face before him. He noted the tired lines of their faces, and the dark smudges beneath their eyes. He sighed as he took his seat and reached for his plate.
"Would anyone like to start telling me what happened last night?" He asked, not looking up from putting food on his plate. He felt Hermione look at him, studying his face. He raised his eyes to her. She then looked at the three in front of them with eyes narrowed.
"I think I'd like to be informed as well." She said softly.
"Well," Tonks started. "I went to Privet Drive as you last night since…because of what happened." She stopped and took a deep breath. "I bumped into Dudley. Then we were attacked by two Dementors."
Harry's jaw dropped. He could see Hermione with the same look of disbelief from the corner of his eye. "Dementors? In Little Whinging?" He asked.
Hermione clamped her mouth shut. Harry could see the wheels turning in her head. "This is obviously a scheme to discredit you, Harry. It must come from the Ministry, I mean, no one else can give orders to Dementors to leave their post in Azkaban."
Harry looked at Sirius. His godfather stared back at him as he said, "That is true. We're just not sure if this came from Fudge himself or one of his puppets. Tonks and Remus went to Dumbledore last night. He said he'll memory charm the Dursleys into thinking that Tonks was visiting you. You met her through me. And she was the one who cast the Patronus."
Harry massaged his forehead. Hermione took his free hand and gave it a squeeze. He smiled at her in appreciation. She turned back to Sirius. "If I'm not mistaken, you'll accompany Harry to his trial right?"
He sat up straight. "Trial?"
"It's expected that the Ministry would launch an investigation at the magical surge that was recorded in the Privet Drive area. A Patronus is considered highly advanced magic. They won't be able to ignore the high level of magical resonance it produced. They'll assume that was you. But don't worry. That would only be a formality. My presence there as your magical guardian would…insure that rules would be followed."
Hermione arched her eyebrow. "You'll accompany him as Head of your House."
Sirius nodded. Harry turned to Hermione. "What difference would that make?"
"As a charge of the Ancient and Most Noble House of Black, Harry, you would be reasonably protected. It's public knowledge that Sirius is your godfather, so that won't be questioned. They won't be able to accuse you of anything without credible proof. That would be tantamount to accusing Sirius. And accusing a Head of House is almost political suicide. The legalities and excessive amount of evidence such an act requires is almost insurmountable. I looked it up one time in the Hogwarts library. I was getting annoyed at how Lucius Malfoy kept getting away with everything, I wanted to know how he was able to do it."
"Which would explain why Malfoy's such an arrogant git then." Harry quipped.
Hermione's mouth quirked up. "Well, yes. Pureblood families get away with almost anything, especially if they are considerably wealthy. It's really not worth it to fight them most of the time."
Harry contemplated this tidbit of information. "So as your charge,"
"Actually in this case, as my unofficial heir, since I don't have a son." Sirius supplied. "When I adopt you, then it would become legal and uncontestable."
Harry met his godfather's eyes, unable to form the words to convey his gratitude at how Sirius had taken him in as a family without hesitation. Sirius just smiled at him. "So as your unofficial heir, I can tell them Dumbledore's revised version of events and they won't be able to question me too much?"
"We have two witnesses to support you. Tonks was there, and it was her Patronus. They can check her wand and it would still be a fact. Also, Mrs. Figg saw what happened too."
Harry shot up in his seat. "Mrs. Figg? She's a witch?!"
Tonks shook her head. "No, she's a squib. Dumbledore had asked her to keep an eye on you while you were there."
Harry went livid. "What?!"
"Harry, calm down." Hermione held his arm. "What's wrong with having a squib neighbor?"
Harry eyes flashed with anger, he was desperately trying to maintain control over his emotions. "He knew, Hermione! He knew how the Dursleys treated me and he didn't do a damn thing! For ten years!"
Hermione gasped, her hand flew to her mouth. "Oh, god."
Tonks was glowering. Sirius and Remus were silent but their knuckles were turning white from clenching their fists.
"Dumbledore would have a lot to answer for." Sirius said menacingly.
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