Chapter 10 - The New Aurors
Two weeks had passed since the night of the ball and Harry had been informed that he would be graduating from training and would soon be an official Auror. He was elated but he was very hesitant about his abilities to perform the job. Since that night with the troll he had been plagued with doubts about his skills and his abilities even though he would be graduating at the top of his class. No one had failed which was quite amazing since Neville could swear he would have to repeat his final year of training. The Slytherins were implying that Neville had passed because his father had a good standing in the Auror office being James Potter's right hand man.
The actual graduation ceremony was starting in an hour and his class was currently assembled behind a stage where the ceremony to become an Auror would be performed. The entire town of Hogwarts usually turned out to see who passed and who failed. There had been quite a few failures over the years and those poor wizards were then branded as not being good enough to do anything.
Harry hoped that Hermione would come. She had locked herself in her room for a full week before Luna had been able to coax her out to visit some mysterious midnight flower that he had never heard of. Draco had told him that almost every full moon, both he and Hermione would accompany Luna on her bizarre search for this flower because they were afraid she would get lost.
It had actually been fun wondering around the rolling plains of Hogwarts looking for a bright orange flower that Luna claimed only appeared at the exact time that the clock hit midnight on the night of the full moon. He was sure Ron would have been entertained as well and maybe he should invite him for the next full moon.
Mr. Granger had calmed significantly over the week and had allowed Lilly to visit Hermione during the following week. His mother had managed to get her out of her room for tea and it was during one of the tea sessions that Lilly discovered exactly how important Comet was to her. Hermione viewed the horse as an important connection to her mother since Comet was sired from her mother's championship horses. Her mother had worked very hard on breeding them and now she had lost everything her mother had worked for. Harry had felt extremely guilty when he heard this. He felt if he had done his job properly he could have saved both Hermione and Comet.
The Krums had left the Grangers as Mr. Granger turned down their business proposal but Mr. MacNair, at Slytherin Manor, was very interested in the deal and the Krums had moved to the Slytherin Manor to discuss the details further. Hermione was relieved that they were gone but she felt slightly disappointed that Victor wouldn't be able to court her further. For some reason that irritated Harry and he was happy that Victor was far away from her. He didn't think his presence would be a good influence on her.
Neville came bustling back stage tripping over a curtain in the back and tumbling into his father. Frank Longbottom rolled his eyes at his son's clumsiness and James informed the graduates that it was time to get ready. James looked at the flaming red robes his son was wearing and immense surge of pride coursed through him. Harry would finally be an Auror.
-*-
The man eyed his servant critically. He could sense the wizard's reluctance to involve his son in his quest for immortality. The other parents had readily offered their children to him but one of his most trusted lieges was being very careful with his only son. He would have to remind him who possessed the real power in this manor.
"The ceremony will be done this evening." He hissed to his servant who was bowed below him. He watched the wizard's shoulders tense at the unexpected news and a cruel smiled passed over his features.
"Yes my lord." The platinum blonde figure agreed hoping his master didn't detect the undertones of resentment.
"Once the Auror ceremony is finished I want your son and his friends brought to me in the night for the ceremony or else there will be grave consequences." He further emphasised as Nagini started hissing and coiling around the bowed figure.
"Of course," his servant replied smoothly ignoring the threat of Nagini and the implied threat of his masters other pet.
"Get out of my sight now. I have things to prepare for tonight." He spat at his servant who wasted no time in fleeing the room.
The figure on the throne sat contemplating all the possible scenarios but no matter how much he thought about it, he would always miss one minor detail, Draco.
-*-
The ceremony started and the graduating class appeared on stage with Mad Eye Moody, all dressed in their flaming red robes. The audience applauded and everyone was asked to be seated. Professor Slughorn was invited to make the feature address to the young graduates and Harry tuned out the entire monologue, deciding instead, to test his observation skills on the audience.
He found the Weasley's easily as their bright red hair stood out among the many different hues of black and brown. Ron looked just as bored as him and Molly was busy trying to keep the twins in line. Fred and George seemed to be trying to make the event as entertaining as possible by occasionally letting off a firework here and there, though that didn't affect Slughorn at all, who kept ploughing through his speech.
He found his mother glaring at his father, who appeared to be deep in discussion with Sirius. William was attempting to eavesdrop but his mother was telling him to pay attention to Slughorn. His youngest brother was avidly listening to the boring Professor and if it weren't for the fact that Charles looked very much like himself, he would swear his parents picked Charles up from an orphanage. Besides his looks, the boy didn't have any other Potter gene in him. Even his sister, was trying to entertain herself by making faces at Ginny, who was on the other side of the building.
The Slytherins sat together again and Harry noted that the Krums had joined them. Victor sat proud and tall but he seemed to be looking around for someone. That would be the first time for the night that Harry would be thankful to Mr. Granger for not letting Hermione attend the ceremony. Victor's younger sisters seemed to have sunk their claws into Marcus Flint and his brother and Harry felt a twinge of sympathy for the two wizards.
Draco's father sat at the head of their delegation but something seemed to be bothering him. His wife looked very pale and Harry wondered if something was wrong with her. Lucius's hands were entwined with hers and he seemed to be offering her some sort of comfort. They were quite a stark contrast to the Goyles and Crabbes who appeared proud of their sons. He remembered Draco telling him that his father had pushed him to be an Auror and wanted him to graduate top of his class. He wondered if Lucius was disappointed that Draco placed second to him. The Slytherins were always a weird bunch to figure out.
He found the head of Ravenclaw, Mr. Chang, seated next to the head of Hufflepuff, Mr. Diggory. Cho was close to her father and he was happy to see Cho beaming at him. Mr. Chang looked deep in discussion with Mr. Diggory and he wandered what the two manors were planning. Cho's younger sister, Wei, was busy flirting with a Hufflepuff who sat in the row behind and further down that row he caught Cedric staring at Cho. He knew he should have felt jealous but he found that he was alright with that fact that Cedric appeared to have feelings for the Asian beauty.
Slughorn was now making his way off of the stage and there was a loud cheer from everyone. The Potions Professor beamed at the audience's "appreciation" of his speech and took a fancy bow, exposing his rear end to the graduates who all groaned in disgust.
"Gosh, I'm going to be blind for life." Draco commented dryly next to him.
"He was your advisor for your Quidditch team." Harry reminded him.
"Another reason why I've been damaged for life," Draco added bitterly.
James Potter proudly took the stage to induct the new graduates into the Auror office. They were required to take an oath to serve Hogwarts diligently and justly. James lead them in the oath and they all repeated after him. Once the oath was completed they were each handed their first assignments. The ceremony ended with a congratulatory speech by Albus Dumbledore, the Headmaster of Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Harry eagerly opened his assignment and found that both he and Draco had been assigned to the Troll case. Before he could read more about the case he was enveloped in a massive hug from his mother and congratulatory pats on the back from his brothers and the Weasleys. Ginny gave him a hug with a soft kiss on the cheek and his sister punched him in the arm.
"Where are we celebrating?" Ron asked him anxiously.
"Godric's Hollow," Harry replied happily.
"Great, we'll see you there." Charles Weasley stated before he left with the rest of the Weasleys.
"We better get a move on if we are to arrive home before our guests." Lilly stated.
Her children nodded and she looked around for her mischievous husband.
"Where is James?" She asked angrily.
"Oh, dad told me that he had some paperwork to finish in the office and we should go ahead of him." William said sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head.
Lilly narrowed her eyes at her second born, "And you're now telling me this."
"Uh, yeah," He said uneasily as he shifted from side to side. "Hey, don't kill the messenger!" he exclaimed as a deadly aura surrounded his mother.
"The nerve of that man! Doing paperwork on a day he should be with his family!" The Potter Matriarch declared a bit too loudly and garnered the stares of the Slytherins who were silently making their way out.
While his mother ranted and prepared them all to leave, he wondered why the Slytherins had been deathly quiet. The usual arrogant air had left them and they seemed to be rather gloomy with the exception of the two he noted earlier.
He felt a soft hand on his side and turned to face Cho who had sidled up next to him.
"Congratulations!" She whispered in his ear.
"Thanks," he grinned at her unconsciously stepping back to put a bit more space between them.
"I will see you at the party." She said with a wink before she sauntered off in the direction of her father.
"Harry don't just stand there. Let's get moving." His mother angrily shouted.
Harry nodded at his mother as he cast one last look at Draco and his parents. Soon the auditorium was empty except for a small rat that was scurrying around near the stage.
-*-
James Potter and Frank Longbottom both retired to the Auror office after the elaborate ceremony had finished.
"I see you assigned your son and that Malfoy boy to the Troll case." Frank said casually.
"They are the top of their class; I couldn't assign it to anyone else." James pointed out.
"I don't trust that Malfoy boy." Longbottom commented.
"Neither do I but we are stretched rather thin right now and we needed this new set of graduates. Besides, the oath makes anyone in capable of betraying this office. As a safeguard, we are both working the case with them and you can keep a close eye on the Slytherin if you want." James said as he rifled through some paperwork on his desk.
"I still can't figure out how a giant troll can escape from Auror lock up without anyone noticing till the next day." Frank commented as he collapsed on a chair that surrounded his boss's desk.
"They obviously planned it to coincide with the ball, knowing full well that all of our attention would be there." The raven haired man explained as he continued to look for the file he wanted.
"I guess it would be good to have two fresh minds on this." The brunette relented.
"Ah here it is." James said as he pulled a plain brown folder from beneath a stack of similar folders and handed it to his second in command.
Frank took the offered folder and curiously opened it to see what was bothering his boss. His eyebrows soon disappeared into his hairline and his head snapped up to look at his old friend.
"How did you get this?" he inquired.
"Xenophilius Lovegood," James responded as he took a seat opposite his friend.
"Is he reliable?" Frank questioned knowing that Mr. Lovegood's reputation wasn't very sound.
"I believe he is. Harry's been spending quite a bit of time with his daughter and he's only ever had good things to say about her." The chief Auror explained.
"I don't think you have anything to worry about. You've served Hogwarts well." He said trying to reassure his boss.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that. Mr. Chang has been trying to convince Mr. Diggory to support his request to the Wizengamat for my removal from the Auror office. I've heard that since my testimony last year that caused Mr. Diggory to lose his dispute, he's been looking to get back at me." He said sternly.
"But still your record speaks for itself. What possible benefit could Lee have for pursuing this personal attack against you and your family?" Frank asked.
"He's after Godric's Hollow. He's wanted it for a while. I suspect that's why he had approved of Cho and Harry's relationship but now that that's falling apart he's taken a new approach." The raven haired explained to his loyal friend.
"I've also heard he plans to start up his own newspaper." Longbottom interjected.
"I suspect he wants to spread his own propaganda and turn Hogwarts against the Potters." The head Auror told his counterpart as he remained deep in thought about Mr. Chang's possible strategies to achieve his removal from office.
"It won't work. You'll always have my support as well as the support of the Aurors." Frank said confidently.
"Thanks but right now my major concern is how to prepare my family for the upcoming turmoil." The eldest Potter explained.
"You'll think of something." His friend reassured him.
James nodded. He had already discussed the matter with Sirius and Remus. They would both support him and Remus was going to do a little digging around to find out what Mr. Chang would be offering Mr. Diggory for his co-operation. He had trusted Frank with this information because he had grown quite close to him over the years. With Peter gone, Longbottom had informally become the fourth member of his little group. He had yet to tell Peter what was happening and honestly didn't feel like spoiling his friends return to Hogwarts.
"Cheer up James, I believe we both have a celebration to attend at Godric's Hollow. Enjoy tonight. Tomorrow we can come up with a strategy to handle this matter."
James smiled at his friend and both of them set off to join the celebrations.
-*-
Godric's Hollow was crowded with all of Harry's friends even friends from Hogwarts had turned up to wish him well. Fred and George were the life of the party and eagerly displayed their latest line of party favours. Seamus Finnegan and Dean Thomas placed orders for items and even Neville bought something to surprise his father with. Harry noticed a flash of bushy brown hair heading into the kitchen and quickly followed after it, hoping that the hair belonged to the person he most wanted to see.
"Harry," a familiar voice called out.
"Cho," he responded irritably as he watched the kitchen door close.
"I was wondering if you would dance with me?" She asked sweetly.
"I'm sorry Cho, but I really can't dance right now, maybe later." Harry said as he steered passed her and into the bustling kitchen.
As the door opened, he was greeted with the overwhelming smell of food and eagerly grabbed some miniature pumpkin pies that had passed on a tray near him. He stuffed one in his mouth and surveyed the kitchen for the hair. He spotted her in a corner with Luna. The Ravenclaw was working feverishly at trying to get Hermione's hair under control and in to a decent state.
"Hermione," the young wizard eagerly called out.
"Harry," she responded with a bright smile and instantly received a pinch in the side from Luna for turning her head at the wrong time.
"Nice to see you to Harry," Luna replied a bit disappointedly. She thought they were friends but Harry had failed to even greet her.
"Luna, hi, I'm sorry, I'm just a bit surprised to see her here." He said pointing at the bushy haired witch. Luna eyed him with her piercing glue gaze and immediately doubted that that was the whole truth.
"Your mother thought it would be a nice surprise." The brunette revealed.
"It is." Harry said shifting anxiously from foot to foot.
"Finished!" Luna chirped proudly as she presented the final product.
"Thanks Luna." The brunette replied sincerely as she grabbed the mirror by her side to survey her friend's fantastic work. Her hair was now in an intricate twist with a few ringlets falling in the front.
"It's alright, with hair like yours brown Grumpets love to attack and make a mess." The blonde stated serenely.
Harry frowned at her statement and figured it was just one of those Luna moments.
"Dobby," Harry called out to the young and she came running towards him with a tray of food.
Harry grabbed the tray from the small elf and handed it to Luna. "Take this to Ron. He'll love it." He said with a wink. The blonde's face lit up and she hurriedly left the kitchen.
"Did you do that for Luna or to get rid of Luna?" Hermione asked.
"A little bit of both." Harry confessed as he shoved his hands in his pockets.
"You got a house elf named Dobby too?" She asked as she thought of Draco's elf.
"Yes it's quite a popular name for house elves. Dobby, Winky, Mindy, Bindy, Hokey, anything that ends in a Y." He revealed to her.
"Oh like Harry!" Hermione teased.
He frowned at her for a bit but then turned it into a dazzling smile that would have made any witch weak in their knees.
"I have a surprise for you. Come with me." Harry said as his hand easily slipped into hers and he was dragging her out the back kitchen door towards the stables.
-*-
Draco sat in silence staring out the window of his room. This was the first time he ever wished he could be at Godric's Hollow. He knew that both Luna and Hermione were going to be there and he felt like he was missing out on everything despite their promises to show him what happened in a pensieve later.
The house had been strangely silent and neither his father nor his mother had said anything to him since the graduation. He had observed several of the families that were in good standing with Mr. Riddle pass his house on the way up to the Manor. He wondered what meeting they were having. His parents would most likely have to join that meeting soon. Maybe he could sneak out and surprise the girls. He certainly had to keep an eye on Luna's interactions with Ron and he was a bit uneasy with the way Potter had been hanging on to Hermione during the past few days.
There was a sudden knock on the door and his mother slowly entered the room. He turned to look at her and was surprised to find her paler than she was earlier.
"Mother, are you sick?" Draco asked with a concerned tone.
She ignored his question and walked over a picture of him on a broom when he was in Hogwarts. She gently caressed the picture and Draco thought he saw a tear slowly make its way down her face.
"Mother, what's wrong?" The young wizard asked as he approached her worriedly.
She looked at him and angrily batted away the stray tear. She then lifted her head high in the air, in an attempt to display the usual Malfoy arrogance but the sadness in her eyes betrayed her.
"We have to go up to the Manor." She stated before turning around and leaving Draco standing in his room.
He glanced at the picture and found that his mother had placed it face down on the shelf. He wondered about her strange behaviour and his sudden inclusion in these meetings. His personal house elf appeared in front of him with big worried eyes.
"Master, your parents require your presence downstairs." The elf told him.
"I know." He snapped at his him.
He watched Dobby's ears drop and he heard Hermione's lecturing voice reminding him to be kind to the elf. A few years before, Dobby would be banging his head against the nearest surface when he displeased him but now the elf's ridiculous self punishments had abated a bit.
"Why don't you go visit some of the female elf's while I'm gone." Draco offered as way of an apology. Usually, his elf enjoyed fraternizing with the female of his species but today he didn't seem to keen on it.
"Something's wrong." The elf said.
"What do you mean?" Draco asked.
"Dobby is worried for Master Draco." He explained. "Dobby promised Miss Hermione that he would look after you."
Draco shook his head. Hermione had such a way of getting things to be so loyal to her. Dobby was bound by magic to be his personal slave yet he thought more about his female friend than him. At a time he had even researched if it were possible for an elf to have a crush on a witch.
"I am a Malfoy. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself. Go do what you want. I'll be back later." He ordered as he lifted his head high in the air and met his parents at the entrance to their house.
His father was out the door before Draco could even say a word to him. He watched his father's black cloak billow behind him and he was reminded of the apothecary Snape. His mother followed behind his father and they made their way, single file, up to the Manor.
Bellatrix Lestrange, his aunt, met them at the door with a cruel smirk. Narcissa didn't seem too pleased to see her sister and he heard his aunt tell her that she would be foolish to defy him. His father was already at the entrance to the cellar and Draco hesitated a bit.
"Come son," Lucius stated firmly. "It's time for you to meet Mr. Riddle."
-*-
They had arrived outside of the stables and Harry stopped and turned towards Hermione.
"Close your eyes." Harry said to her.
"Why," She asked.
"Just trust me." He said exasperatedly to her.
She obliged his request and she felt him guide her into the stables. They walked a little ways inside and he turned her to face into one of the stalls. She heard him open the stall and he guided her inside.
"Open your eyes." He whispered in her ear causing a shudder to go down her spine.
She opened her eyes and gasped at the site in front of her.
"Harry, she's so beautiful!" Hermione said approaching the foal in the stall.
"She's yours." Harry said with a goofy grin on his face.
Her head shot towards him in a questioning look.
"I got her for you." He said as a slight blush started to dust his cheeks. "She only a few months old, you can train her."
"Harry, I can't accept her." The witch responded.
"Of course you can. She's yours. If you leave here she will starve to death because I won't feed her nor will the elves." He told her. "She also needs a name."
Hermione eyed the horse like a child eyeing a cake but not sure if it was ok to have slice.
"I name her Europa." She told Harry quietly.
"Great now that that's settled." He said smiling at her.
"Harry," a soft voice called out interrupting their moment.
Hermione moved away from him just in time as Cho entered the stall.
"What are you doing in here with her?" Cho asked as her pretty features soured to that of a common hag.
"Cho, I uhh, Europa, uhh," The poor wizard had no clue how to explain the situation to Cho so Hermione helped him out. "Harry was introducing me to Europa." She said pointing at her new horse.
"Europa?" The Ravenclaw asked looking at the horse and snorted in disgust. "Ugly creature."
Europa reacted and Hermione immediately tried to soothe her. "I guess the feeling is mutual." The brown-haired witch spoke on behalf of her new friend.
Cho drew her wand but Harry intervened.
"Let's go back inside Cho. I did promise you that dance." The raven-haired wizard said.
"Forget it Harry. I can find someone better to dance with." She said as she stormed away from them.
Harry gave Hermione an apologetic look. "It's ok. I think you need to go after her though, that is, if you still want her for a girlfriend."
Harry paused to think over her thoughts and made a decision. He exited the stall and Hermione felt strangely disappointed that he left her. She knew Cho was his girlfriend and that he should be with her but a part of her wanted Harry to stay with her. She turned around to talk to Europa when she heard his voice.
"Let's give her something to eat." Harry offered with a bucket full of food.
A thrill of excitement went through Hermione and she beamed at him while a small part of her of her conscious nagged at her for wanting to spend so much time with Harry, especially when there was another who had the honour of being his girlfriend, thought that title would be in question after today.
-*-
Inside the study, Frank Longbottom watched Cho storm away from the stables as Harry chose to stay with Hermione.
"I see why you stated that their relationship was falling apart." He commented to the others in the room.
James glanced outside for a second before smirking. "I'm always right."
Frank rolled his eyes at him.
"Yes little Harry seems to be finally growing and realising that there's more to a woman than just beauty." Remus said proudly.
-*-
Throne room
Draco looked around the room curiously. It was his first time here and he was taking in all the details. Everyone was gathered around an elaborate chair which had silver snakes intertwined at the top and two snakes as arm rests. On top of the intertwined snakes rested a large emerald which reflected the candle light in green hues causing the room to appear as though it was glowing green.
"Father why are we here?" the younger Malfoy asked.
"He'll be here soon." Lucius said refusing to meet to his son's gaze.
Crabbe and Goyle were happier than he had ever seen them and he wondered if it dawned in their pea size brains that something serious was happening.
Draco felt a soft vibration through the room that soon caused a low rumbling sound. A piece of the wall moved to the right revealing a cave like entrance. Everyone in the room looked away and he heard his mother telling him not to look at the dark cave but Draco ignored her.
He saw a pair of small red eyes in the darkness that was slowly approaching the room. As the figure came out into the light, he realised that the eyes belonged to what Draco could assume was once a man. His skin was now hard and dry and his face had a snake like appearance. The wall closed behind him and everyone bowed slowly as they turned to look at him.
Draco felt his mother pull him down and he followed them.
"I see you managed to bring your son Lucius." The voice sneered.
"My lord, I do as I am ordered." The blonde wizard responded.
"Has he taken the Auror Oath already?"
"Yes my lord, he has."
Draco winced as the creature's face contorted into what he thought might have been a smile.
"Draco, do you know who I am?" The figure asked as he took his seat on his throne.
"Mr. Riddle." Draco replied in a rude tone.
Faster than Draco could register a hand struck him across the cheek.
"Do not be read to our lord." His father stated.
"Lucius! Do not damage my new body." His master snapped at him and he bowed quickly begging for forgiveness.
"Body?" Draco questioned as a sense of panic rose in him.
"Yes young Malfoy. I, Salazaar Slytherin shall become the new auror Malfoy."
-*-
Granger estate
Hermione had thoroughly enjoyed her time at Godric's Hollow and thanked her father immensely for letting her go. Her father had frowned at Europa but allowed her to carry her home. Harry promised to visit in a few hours as Hermione and Luna both wanted to congratulate Draco on his graduation. She didn't like the fact that Harry doubted that both she and Luna could reach Slytherin estate safely but they both relented to him joining them.
She made her way though the estate and entered her room quietly. She turned on the candles with a flick of her wand and was horrified to find an unconscious bloodied Draco hanging halfway in through her window.
"Draco!"
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