Chapter 12 - Best Laid Plans
Saturday 23rd August 1997
'Very well ladies and gentlemen. Is there any other business?' asked Rufus Scrimgeour as he surveyed his colleagues who were seated around the large mahogany table in one of the Ministry's many conference rooms. It was a select group; apart from himself, there were only four others present. Robert Buckley - Rufus' successor as head of the Aurors and a man he had known for years; Liz Theaker, head of the Unspeakables; Dolores Umbrage as personal aide to the Minister; and of course, James Walsh, his own right hand. Buckley had long understood the close relationship between James and himself and did not have any issues with the presence of one of his Aurors at such a high level meeting. Indeed, Robert had also come to appreciate the discretion and common sense of Rufus' lifelong friend.
'If I may speak Minister?' asked Umbrage. 'I just want to re-cap on what we have agreed. You state that Headmistress McGonagall has assured you that the wards and protections around Hogwarts will be sufficient to withstand any attempt by outside forces to take the school?' The sneer that she had given at mentioning McGonagall's name did not go unnoticed by the others in the room.
'That is correct, Dolores. We must trust the Headmistress in this matter. After all, she will have a greater understanding of the castle than anyone here. She assures me that no breach is possible. I have undertaken to leave a small Auror guard in Hogsmeade between now and September the first should anything untoward occur. I shall beef this force up significantly for the opening of the school, but in the meantime, the force I send ought to be sufficient. It must be, for our resources are very thinly stretched. I cannot spare the men before the school opens; as things stand, I will have to leave the Ministry with an absolute minimum guard force on Monday in order to cover the school.'
'And the predicted number of students?' asked Umbrage. Rufus struggled to maintain his composure with the woman, knowing what he knew.
'Our estimates are that the student numbers will be substantially reduced this term - possible even as low as 150. There is a great deal of uncertainty within our community so this is perhaps understandable. Nevertheless, I am confident that once the school is opened as normal, parents will have confidence restored and thus decide to send their children to be educated. There is not much more we can do at the moment.'
Umbrage nodded.
'So if there is nothing else?' asked Rufus. No one spoke. 'Very well. This meeting is now closed. Thank you for coming today.'
As everyone stood to leave, Rufus spoke again. 'Robert? James? If you two wouldn't mind remaining for a moment? I wish to go over some of the details concerning the Auror guard in Hogsmeade.'
The two men sat down again as Rufus escorted Umbrage and Theaker to the door. Once they had gone he turned to the remaining men in the room. Men he had known for years and men he knew he could trust.
'Right,' he began, rubbing his hands. 'Now we have planted that little piece of fiction, it's high time we reviewed the real plan for next Monday.'
James and Robert both smiled; both were aware of the treachery of Umbrage and the need for the deception.
'I sometimes think you wish you were still one of the Aurors,' said James with a smile.
Rufus didn't respond, for James' remark was too close to the truth for comfort.
**************
Sunday 24th August 1997
Harry was nervous. It was a quarter past seven in the evening and the others were due to arrive by half past. In fifteen minutes, Harry would break an oath made to a dead man.
Sukey had approached him earlier that day saying that Rufus wanted to meet with him in order to go over the final plans for September the first so that he would be able to relate this information to Snape. Harry had asked Sukey to confirm his assent, but had stipulated that he desired the presence of Lupin, McGonagall and Arthur Weasley too. A short while later, Sukey had returned to confirm Rufus' agreement to Harry's requests and his promise to make all arrangements.
He was aware that both Ron and Hermione wanted him to do this but he was still not happy about it. They seemed to sense his mood however, and had given him a wide berth for much of the afternoon. It was only now that Hermione was trying to give him some moral support by gently stroking his hand as they sat next to each other on the sofa. Not a word was spoken.
The fire flashed as the first of the guests began to Floo in. Harry did not rise to greet them, instead letting Ron deal with the pleasantries and the refreshments. Soon everyone was seated around the kitchen table and all looking expectantly at Harry who remained standing at the end. He did not know what to say.
Rufus seemed to sense his discomfort and so decided to break the ice.
'Well, Harry, I must thank you for agreeing to see me this evening. I was hoping to go over the plans for next week but I must confess I was taken aback somewhat at your request to make sure I brought along everyone else,' he said with a smile. He realised, however, that Harry did not smile in return. 'What is it that you wish to tell us?'
Harry hadn't been sure how to begin this conversation, but he finally decided that the best approach was to get right to the point.
'At the moment, Voldemort cannot be killed,' he said.
He watched the reactions of the others, seeing a mixture of bemusement, confusion and curiosity on everyone's face save McGonagall, who already knew. No one spoke for a moment.
'What? How?' James Walsh finally asked. 'Of course he can be killed. I know he is powerful but he's not immortal, is he?' He saw the look on Harry's face. 'Is he?' he asked again, this time uncertainty in his voice.
Harry paused for a moment. 'Do any of you know what a Horcrux is?'
He could tell right away from the reactions that Rufus, James and Arthur did not know. Remus, however, had gone white.
'I do,' said the old Marauder. 'It is an object used as a receptacle for a fragment of someone's soul after they have split it.'
'How does one split one's soul?' asked Arthur, incredulously.
'I do not know of the spell myself, but I do know that in order to carry out such an unnatural act, only the darkest magic will suffice. One must commit murder to seal the spell as the act of murder tears the soul. It is very old and dark magic.' He looked to the others, the teacher in him coming out for a moment. 'If someone splits their soul in two, he can place a part of it inside an object - the Horcrux - for safety. If that person is killed - or rather, disembodied - then the soul fragment in the Horcrux keeps that person tethered to our world. They cannot be killed.' He looked at Harry, almost scared to ask the next question.
'Is this how Voldemort was able to return? He split his soul in two?'
Harry shook his head. 'Not quite, Moony. Seven,' he said quietly. 'He split his soul into seven.'
He saw the impact of these words strike home. Remus looked as if he was going to be sick. Glancing at Arthur, Harry noticed that he too had turned pale. James and Rufus sat stoically, both struggling to deal with this new information.
'So we have to find seven Horcruxes before we can kill him?' James finally asked. His voice was hoarse. 'In that case, we must call off the attack. You should have told us about this sooner, Harry,' he added, accusingly.
'No, you don't understand, James,' replied Harry. 'He only made six Horcruxes - the seventh part of his soul still resides within his body. And we have managed to destroy five of them. Me, Ron and Hermione that is. And Dumbledore before his death,' he added as an afterthought. 'That is what we have been working on and why I had to disappear.'
He tried to ignore the looks of admiration and awe on the faces of those gathered round the table. And pride. McGonagall was beaming at him.
Remus stood suddenly and embraced Harry, who was taken aback by this demonstration.
'Do you have any idea what you have achieved, Harry?' Moony asked. 'What all of you have achieved?' he added, looking at Ron and Hermione. 'You three really are the most remarkable young people I have ever had the privilege to know. James and Lily would be so proud of you.'
'Thanks, Remus' said Harry. 'That means a lot.'
Rufus regarded the three teenagers for a moment, eyeing each in turn. 'So this is what you have been doing all this time?' he finally asked, the astonishment evident in his voice.
Harry nodded.
'Why didn't you ask for help? We could have put all our resources into the search.'
'Because Dumbledore asked me not to,' replied Harry. 'No offence meant, but I didn't know I could trust you. Also, the more people that knew of this, the more chance Voldemort would discover what we were doing.'
'So he doesn't know?' asked James. 'About you having destroyed five of his Horcruxes?'
Harry looked grim. 'He does now. He nearly caught us when we destroyed the fifth one last Saturday.'
'Did he see you?' asked Rufus.
'No, but he did see Ron and Hermione.'
'So that's why he was so keen to attack your families,' said Rufus, the realisation dawning. 'So there is one left to destroy? Is that why you are telling us now? Have you any idea what it is?'
'Yes, is the answer to all of your questions Rufus. Dumbledore believed that his snake, Nagini, is the final Horcrux. Snape confirms this. He says that Voldemort keeps her particularly close and that she has hardly been out of his sight since he nearly caught us last week.'
'So we must kill the snake before tackling Voldemort?' asked Arthur.
Harry nodded. 'Yes. But Snape says that he will deal with it.'
Rufus considered this for a moment. 'We are trusting that man an awful lot at the minute. Do you believe he will be as good as his word?'
'Yes, I do. I believe him. He said he has a plan to destroy the snake. He said I was to assume that it would be removed when the time came to face Voldemort. I have to trust him.'
'So why tell us now?' asked James.
'You needed to know,' replied Harry simply. 'You will have made your plans for the attack on the school, but you have done so without this knowledge. If we kill Voldemort but the snake escapes then it will have all been for nothing. We must be sure Snape has done his part.'
Rufus regarded Harry for a long moment. Finally he nodded. 'Very well. We will have to trust Snape. Thankfully, this does not affect our plans over much. If he can destroy the snake then it will make no difference at all. If he can't? Then hopefully we can at least disembody Voldemort. That should certainly cramp his style enough for us to pursue the snake afterwards.'
'So what is the plan then?' asked Hermione, who up until now had remained silent.
'It's quite clever really,' replied Rufus. 'We let Voldemort take the school. On September the first he will be expecting the arrival of students. We give him students - or at least we give him a full squad of Aurors disguised as students.' He smiled. 'Not so much a Trojan Horse; more of a Trojan Train. At the same time, we prepare a trap in the Ministry. Voldemort is banking on secrecy, so he will not be expecting us to be ready.'
'That simple?' asked Ron.
'There is nothing simple about it, Mr Weasley,' replied Rufus. 'Have you any idea how difficult it is to obtain that amount of Polyjuice potion at such short notice? I had to consult with one of our Unspeakable friends in order to obtain their stock. And the organisation involved in obtaining the necessary samples of hair and such is quite a challenge, believe me. Not to mention trying to keep the whole thing quiet.'
'So how are you going to do it?' asked Harry, curious now.
'We will obtain the samples on Platform Nine and Three Quarters before the train leaves. An Auror guard will be expected at the station anyway. We will prevent any students from actually boarding the train and take whatever samples we need at that point. The potion will be ready - all we will need to do is add the final ingredient.'
'Clever,' acknowledged Hermione. 'What about students who want to travel? I can think of a few who will want to help. Neville Longbottom, for one.'
'We cannot have students getting in the way,' said James. 'It could put the whole operation at risk - they are not sufficiently trained.'
'You'd be surprised,' said Harry. 'Neville is old enough - so are some of the others who were in the defence club. And don't forget that a number of these students fought off a Death Eater attack the night Dumbledore died. Can we really afford to turn volunteers away considering what we are going to be facing? And what about us? You can't expect us to remain behind.'
James glanced at Rufus before replying. 'We were not intending to allow you to go,' he replied meekly. He held up his hands as if to head off the expected onslaught from the three teens. 'I said we were not intending to let you go. It would seem that this decision was somewhat hasty, in light of recent developments.'
'Besides,' began Ron, who began to speak before actually engaging his brain, 'Harry needs to be there. He's the only one who can kill Volde…'
'Ron!' shouted Harry and Hermione together. Ron clamped his hand over his mouth. 'Oh shit!'
A devastating silence greeted this revelation. No one spoke for nearly a minute - instead, the five adults in the room all stared at Harry. Finally, Rufus broke the tension.
'Now that Ron has let the cat out of the bag, Harry, would you mind elaborating on what he said?'
Harry inwardly cursed. He had really hoped to avoid this ever coming out, but he realised that Rufus was entitled to know. For the plan to succeed, Harry had to be in position to face Voldemort.
'It's true,' he finally said, with a deep sigh. 'It's all true. There was a prophecy - made before I was born - and it basically said that I am the only one that can kill Voldemort. It's why he came after me when I was a baby and why my parents died. Either I kill him or he kills me.' He sat down. 'It's all true what they have been saying about me. I am the bloody 'Chosen One,' he added bitterly.
He placed his head in his hands and suddenly felt the soft touch of Hermione as she gently rubbed his back. No one quite knew what to say now.
When he finally looked up he noticed that Remus, Arthur and Minerva were all weeping quietly. Finally, Remus spoke.
'We never knew,' he said brokenly. 'All this time and we never knew. How have you been able to cope with this?'
Harry shrugged. He did not have an answer to that. 'It doesn't matter, Remus. What's done is done. I learned a long time ago to accept it.'
'When did you find out?' asked Arthur.
'The night Sirius died. Dumbledore told me after what happened at the Ministry.' Remus almost collapsed at this revelation.
Rufus looked at Harry and realised now what Albus had meant in his letter when he had written that Harry was 'our best and only hope.' He tried to keep the pity from his voice when he finally spoke.
'So it has to be you?' he asked quietly. 'Our job is just to make sure we give you a shot at him?'
Harry nodded.
Rufus looked at Harry, and his eyes blazed.
'Then, damn it, we will do everything we can to make sure you get the chance!' He thumped his fist on the table. 'Don't you worry, Harry. You will defeat him! You will have our full support!'
Harry had no response to this. At that moment he felt overwhelmed, as if all the burdens he had been carrying had finally proved too much for him. He flashed Rufus what he hoped was a grateful look before turning and leaving the room. He couldn't face any more of this right now.
***********
Hermione left just after Harry, concern etched on her face. She followed him upstairs and approached the door to his room cautiously. She gave it a soft rap.
'Harry? It's me. Can I come in?'
She did not receive a reply, so tentatively opened the door. She saw him sitting in a chair by the window, looking more lost and alone than she had ever seen him. She felt her heart break, but knew that right now, he needed her to be strong.
'Are you OK?' she whispered, the question sounding foolish, even to her. Of course he wasn't OK! Who was right now?
'I'll be fine, Hermione,' he replied, without turning to look at her. 'It's just that so much has happened recently. It's a lot to take in. First Snape; then the Horcruxes; and now this. I never thought I would have to tell anyone this stuff. People think I'm a freak enough as it is,' he added, bitterly.
Hermione didn't say anything to this, thinking it best to let Harry take the lead. She was content for him just to know that she was there if he needed her.
'Do you know that I have been cursing the wrong men all summer?' he finally asked.
Hermione said nothing, surprised at the seemingly irrelevant remark and knowing that he was not expecting an answer.
'First of all, it was Rufus and the bloody Ministry,' Harry continued. 'Look at us now - I couldn't have done any of this without him. Then there was Snape. I wanted to hurt him so badly the night Dumbledore died - I never knew I could hate that much. And now? Well, whilst we're not exactly bosom buddies, I do understand him better, and I know that he is not a bad person. Then I was angry with Dumbledore for dying.' He finally turned to look at her as he said this. 'Can you believe that? As if he wanted to die? I felt like he abandoned me.' He sighed. 'I should have spoken to his portrait right after he was killed. It would have saved me a lot of bother. And now, just when I had finally come to terms with all of that, this happens,' he added, with a vague wave of his arm towards the stairs.
'You weren't to know, Harry. It was understandable that you were angry with him - after all, he did leave you with quite a task to accomplish. It's only natural that you felt abandoned. And I know you hate all the attention, but you were right to tell Rufus. He does need to know.'
Harry nodded, but did not look her in the eye.
'Is there something else bothering you, Harry?' she asked shrewdly.
'It's hard to explain, Hermione. I don't know if you will understand.'
'Try me.'
Harry sighed. 'I don't think I can do this, Hermione. Everyone seems to think I will defeat Riddle, but I don't think I can. It's nearly time to finally face him and I'm afraid, Hermione. Afraid of letting everyone down.'
'Don't be, Harry. You are working wonders, and you are more powerful than you give yourself credit for. I'm sure you will defeat him.'
'That's the problem, Hermione,' he replied, looking straight at her. 'It's not that I don't think I can fight him; it's more that I don't know if I can kill him. Either must die at the hand of the other, remember? I don't think I have it within me to kill someone, Hermione, even Voldemort. So what am I going to do? How can I possibly face him knowing that I don't have it in me to kill him?' This last question was asked with such despair that Hermione had to bite her lip to stop herself from crying. She knew that her tears were the last thing he needed to deal with right now.
Unfortunately, she did not know what he did need. For once, she lacked an answer, so had to content herself with moving across the room to him and holding him tight, hoping that the love she was conveying would be enough.
They remained like that together for some time, although neither had any idea how long had passed. Finally, Harry released her and tentatively reached up to kiss her. She responded gratefully and they lost themselves in each other, driving out for that one sweet moment all the fears and terrors that lay ahead.
They broke apart and Harry smiled at her; a smile that almost broke her heart.
'C'mon,' he said, 'No time for play at the moment. We had better go back and re-join the others.'
***********
Wednesday 27th August 1997
Harry sat in the same armchair as the previous week and waited for Snape to arrive. He was feeling benevolent tonight and had decided to stand the drinks. It was only fair, he supposed; Snape had provided the whisky last time.
Thankfully, the Old Smiddy was a lot quieter this time as there was no football on to attract a large crowd. Instead, only a few regulars were dotted about the place; all men and all over forty. It also occurred to Harry that most of them were alone too. He felt a surge of pity for Snape as he realised that this was the man's only means of release. He at least had his friends. And his girlfriend, he thought, with a smile.
The door to the pub swung open and Severus Snape entered, casting a quick glance to establish whether Harry was present. He was once again dressed in black. He cast a quick look around the room before approaching and Harry was sure that in that one swift sweep of the room, Snape had taken in everything and had decided that there were no obvious dangers present.
'Potter,' he said curtly as he sat down across from Harry.
'Snape,' Harry replied. He indicated to the bottle and glasses on the table. 'Help yourself, it's the same stuff as last week.'
Snape nodded his appreciation and poured himself a measure, adding some water before sitting back and regarding Harry.
'So have you finalised your plans?' he asked, taking a sip.
'We have,' replied Harry. 'Rufus has agreed to your suggestions. You will not be opposed when trying to gain entry to the castle.'
'How do we get in? We can't just walk in the front door.'
'I know,' replied Harry, trying to hide his annoyance at the obvious statement. 'You are aware, are you not, that there are a number of secret passages that run into the school?'
Snape nodded. 'Yes, but I am not certain where they all are. Is there a specific one you have in mind?'
'Yes,' replied Harry. 'There is one that runs from Honeydukes straight into the school. I am sure that it shouldn't prove too difficult for you to gain entry. Rufus has arranged it so that only a minimal guard will be in Hogsmeade; just be sure that you don't harm them.'
'That will not be a problem,' replied Snape. 'The idea is for us to get into the school undetected - we could hardly do this if we attack an Auror guard, could we?' he asked, scathingly.
Harry was too relieved to be annoyed by Snape's tone. One of his - and Rufus' - greatest concerns was the danger posed to the Aurors who were to be posted in the village. They could not be told of the plan in full and so were left dangerously exposed to attack. Snape's assurances that Voldemort did not want to engage this guard came as a huge relief to him.
'Good,' he replied. 'What of Minerva? She will be in the school too, and there is a chance that some of the other teachers will also be present. Voldemort would be suspicious if they were not there. What will become of them?'
Snape looked thoughtful for a moment. 'I do not think the Dark Lord will harm them - provided they offer no resistance. It might be an idea to make sure that any teacher present is a half-blood at least - that way the Dark Lord will not be tempted. Hagrid, for one cannot be present. The Dark Lord would not tolerate his presence. Filius too, should not be there. And make sure they know not to resist; only then will they be spared.'
'How can you be sure?'
'I can't, but the Dark Lord will need these people.' He noticed that Harry looked confused. 'What you need to understand, Potter, is that the Dark Lord does not wish to kill everyone who does not support him. If that were the case there would only be a few hundred of us left. No, he will need people like the Hogwarts teaching staff, whether they support him willingly or not. His dream is not to destroy our society; it is to purify it. Those that he cannot persuade he will coerce. He wishes to be an absolute ruler, not a benevolent leader. Those that do not comply will be crushed. Fear is a tool for him; it will not matter to him what motivates someone to obey him - so long as they do obey him. If the teachers do as he wishes they will not be harmed.'
Harry took a moment to digest this little lesson, but it did make sense. Voldemort would need people to administer his new world if he won, and so he would need to rely on people who formerly opposed him. Examples would be made of those who did not comply, he was sure.
'So how will you gain entry, Potter?' asked Snape. 'You and the rest of your little force?'
'Polyjuice potion,' replied Harry. 'The Hogwarts express will be full of Aurors disguised as students. Voldemort is expecting a load of children - that is what he is going to get. Once in the school, we can turn the tables on him. He will not be expecting us. Also, we will have a force ready at the Ministry to deal with whatever transpires there. Rufus knows that the key to this is Hogwarts, though. He's willing to sacrifice the Ministry to save the school and get Voldemort.'
Snape looked impressed. 'I don't suppose this was your idea?'
Harry flushed. 'No, Rufus came up with it.'
'I though as much. Simple; elegant and subtle. It could not have been one of your ideas.' He was smiling as he said this. 'And it was a masterstroke to feed some disinformation to Umbrage. She reported exactly what Scrimgeour wanted her to. I may yet learn to fear that man; we finally have a Minister who knows what he is doing.'
Harry nodded his agreement. 'And what of the snake?' he asked. 'You will deal with the snake?'
'I said so, did I not?' replied Snape. 'Do not fear. The snake will be dealt with. Just make sure you keep your wits about you. The end is near; one way or the other this will soon be over.'
Harry looked at Snape thoughtfully.
'So what will you do?' he asked. 'When it is over, I mean.'
'I do not think on such matters. I do not presume that we will be victorious, or even if we are, that I will see the end of this. Neither should you, Potter. It does not do to take one's eye off the ultimate goal.'
'There must be something you look forward to? Why fight otherwise?'
'I fight because I must. The Dark Lord must not be allowed to win - his evil will destroy our world. That is sufficient reason, is it not? What other reason could there possibly be?'
'To live,' replied Harry. 'To really live. I want nothing more than to put all of this behind me and live the normal life that I have always been denied. To do what I want rather than what I must. Is that so hard to understand? There must be something you want to do.'
Snape sighed deeply. 'I just want to be left alone, truth be told, but I suspect that the Ministry will not allow me such licence. I believe that they will want me to answer for the death of Albus.'
'But he asked you to do it! Surely they cannot hold that against you. The work you are doing at the moment should be sufficient to convince them that you are not deserving of punishment.'
Snape looked amused. 'I'm touched by your concern, Potter, but life is rarely as straightforward as that. Whether he asked me to do it or not is of no importance. I will be forever damned as the man who killed Albus Dumbledore. Do you honestly think I will be allowed to go back to leading a normal life? To do what I want to do?'
'So there is something you want to do then?' said Harry, smiling. Gotcha!
Snape smiled in return. 'Teaching,' he said. 'I love teaching.' He noticed Harry raise his eyebrow in surprise. 'Whilst you may not have approved of my methods, Potter, there are some out there who do. I have always enjoyed teaching Potions; the talk of the Dark Arts job was just that - talk. It was necessary to give people the idea that I was obsessed with the Dark Arts. In reality, I have always preferred the subtlety of potion making. If you paid any attention to my book last year, you will have realised that I have a certain flair in the art of potion making. I have experimented a little, but what I would really like is the opportunity to experiment a lot; and to teach a little I suppose, in order to pass on my findings. I would like to return to Hogwarts - it is the only place I have ever been able to be myself and the only place I have found happiness. It does not seem too much to ask, but I am afraid that not many will see it that way.'
Once again, Harry felt a degree of sympathy for the man sitting before him. He was aware of just how much Snape had sacrificed in order to gain the trust of Voldemort, and he vowed that he would help this man, if he could. He didn't think he could ever completely bury the hatchet, but he reckoned that the man did deserve some peace for everything that he was doing to bring down Voldemort. Snape was correct. It wasn't too much to ask.
'However,' Snape said, interrupting Harry's train of thought, 'we are getting ahead of ourselves. We still have a Dark Lord to defeat, in case you had forgotten. 'Have you decided what you are going to be doing when the attack takes place?'
Harry looked nonplussed. 'What do you mean? I will be on the train with the others.'
'Are you sure about that, Potter? Remember, you are dead as far as the Dark Lord is concerned. Your presence could be noticed.'
'But I will be disguised too. How will I be noticed?'
Snape closed his eyes in despair. 'You know, Potter, just when I begin to think that you may be of some use after all, you say something that reminds me why I never bother making plans for the future. To think that the future of our world rests with you!' He shook his head mournfully.
'What?' asked Harry, somewhat defensively.
Snape regarded him. 'Are you not forgetting something, Potter? Forgetting that the Dark Lord may be able to sense you when you are near?' He pointed to Harry's scar. 'You are linked, remember. If he even so much as gets a hint that you are alive and nearby, he will know. You cannot be on that train - when you arrive with the others there is a chance that he will sense you immediately. Do not underestimate his capabilities.'
'He never sensed me in the graveyard,' replied Harry, indignantly. 'I managed to shield myself.'
'I know, but the risk still existed and I imagine that he was in a particularly murderous mood that morning. He will not lose control of his emotions in that manner on September the first, believe me. Are you willing to take that risk again? To wager the future of our entire world on your ability to prevent the Dark Lord from sensing you?'
Shit, thought Harry. He hadn't thought of it like that. He knew instinctively that Snape was correct. There was an excellent chance that Voldemort would sense him the second he stepped into his presence. For one thing, Riddle wouldn't be as angry as he was that day in the graveyard. 'So what do I do?' he finally asked.
***********
Thursday 28th August 1997
Hermione was angry. And afraid. Harry had returned from his meeting with Snape the previous night in a very subdued mood and had refused to go into details of his meeting with their former Professor. She knew right away that something was wrong as he would not meet her eye when she questioned him. She could always tell when he wasn't being totally honest with her - in fact, it was one of the things she loved about him - and right now she knew that there was something he wasn't telling her. Even Ron agreed with her assessment, although he was being infuriatingly blasé about it.
'So what if he isn't telling us something, Hermione? He's entitled to some secrets, for goodness sake.'
'Not at the minute he isn't,' she had replied. 'He's up to something, and you know that when he is keeping stuff from us then it usually means something bad is about to happen. Or has happened already.'
Ron hadn't wanted to get into an argument, pointing out that Harry would tell them when he was ready.
And that was why she was afraid. Harry had asked for Rufus and James to visit and she suspected that whatever he was not telling her and Ron would be revealed when the others arrived. She knew that Harry was doing this so as to avoid a fight with her, thinking that she would be less likely to argue in front of others.
Fat chance. If she didn't like what he had to say, then he would soon know of it.
She heard Harry coming down the stairs and turned in her seat to face the window, her arms folded across her chest. Even Harry would notice that she was not happy with him right now.
For his part, when Harry entered the room he immediately glanced over to the window and saw Hermione sitting with her back to him, a cold shoulder turned towards him. He smiled ruefully. He knew why she was angry with him, but this was nothing compared to what he knew was coming his way when he finally told her what he had refused to mention thus far. He was nervous - not about what he had already decided to do - but about Hermione's reaction when he finally told her. He hoped that the presence of Rufus and James would alleviate some of the fury that would come his way, but he suspected that this was clutching at straws a little. He glanced towards the fire as he heard it roar into life and a few moments later, Rufus and James stepped into the room, both dusting themselves down.
'Good evening, Harry,' said Rufus as he approached. 'What can I do for you?' he asked, with a smile.
'Hi, Rufus' replied Harry, shaking the older man's hand. He greeted James in the same manner. 'Please, take a seat. There is something I have to discuss with you both.' He turned as he saw Ron enter the room, and gave his friend a nod as he joined them at the table. He looked over to Hermione.
'Hermione? Could you come and join us please? This is important.'
Hermione considered staying where she was but realised that the desire to discover what Harry had to say was too strong in her. She rose from her seat and crossed the room to join the others. She selected the seat farthest from Harry and - once seated - promptly crossed her legs and folded her arms. She never said a word, nor did she look in his direction.
Harry could see the humour in the situation and it took all of his willpower not to laugh as he saw the bemused expressions on the faces of Rufus and James who were both casting furious glances between himself and Hermione. Ron just rolled his eyes at the whole thing.
'Thank you for coming,' he began, 'I wanted to discuss something that Snape mentioned when I met him yesterday.' He noticed that all the attention was on him now - even Hermione had deigned to look at him. Ah well, here goes.
''I won't be able to come with you on the train on Monday.'
A shocked silence greeted these words and Harry noticed perplexed looks on everyone's faces. Even Hermione looked confused.
'Why not?' asked Ron, eventually.
'Bacuase Snape pointed out that there is a chance that Voldemort will be able to sense me if I am there.' He pointed to his scar. 'He would know something was going on if he felt my presence. He thinks I am dead. If he discovers otherwise then the operation will be blown. We cannot risk my presence on that train. The first hint of treachery and Voldemort will lock us out.'
No one spoke for a moment, each person digesting this news. Finally Hermione spoke.
'I had forgotten about that. Snape's right, Harry. There is a good chance that Voldemort would sense you. I know he never sensed you by the graveside, but we had no choice in that situation and I suspect that his anger saved you that day. We have a choice here. We can't risk it again.' She looked relieved. 'And to think I was worried you were keeping something sinister from me. You should have told me, Harry; we can work something out.'
'We have worked something out,' he replied.
'We? Who's 'we'?' asked Hermione.
'Snape and I.'
Hermione's eyes narrowed dangerously. 'So what exactly have you worked out, Harry?' There was real menace in the question.
'Snape proposed that I enter Hogwarts early too - before Voldemort gets there. I can hole up in the Room of Requirement for a few days until you lot arrive. Snape also pointed out that it might be a good idea to have me there as a contingency in case anything goes wrong.' Harry waited for the onslaught.
'That's actually a very good idea, Harry,' said Hermione, surprising everyone in the room. 'Voldemort would never suspect that we were already in the school. It's a great idea.'
'We?' asked Harry. 'You don't understand, Hermione. It would just be me doing this.'
'Not a chance!' shouted Hermione. 'Give me one good reason why you think I would let you do this on your own?'
'Because if you and Ron don't get off that train, Voldemort will be suspicious,' replied Harry, quietly.
Hermione opened and closed her mouth for a moment, unable to think of a response. She looked to Ron for help, but he just shrugged. She turned her attention to Rufus and James, seeking support from them, knowing that if they disapproved, Harry would not go.
Rufus cleared his throat. 'We actually looked at this possibility - of putting a large Auror force in the school before Voldemort got there - but we decided it was too risky. If Voldemort sensed anything out of the ordinary then he would simply disappear and the chance would be lost.' Hermione looked triumphantly at Harry on hearing these words.
'However,' Rufus continued, 'the idea of hiding Harry in the school does have some merit. If he is the only one who can destroy Voldemort then it would be prudent to be certain that he at least gets into the school. It does give us a back up in case things go awry. It's an excellent idea.'
'But why can't I go with him?' asked Hermione, desperation in her voice.
'Because Harry is correct. If you and Ron do not get off that train, Voldemort will suspect something is wrong. It is just as important for you to be seen as it is for Harry to remain hidden. It cannot be otherwise.'
Hermione looked defeated. 'Why does it always have to be you?' she asked in a small voice. 'We were supposed to do this together - I promised that I would see you through to the end.'
Harry rose from his seat and walked round the table. He crouched down beside Hermione and took her hand.
'You will be with me, Hermione. It will be more dangerous for you - I will be skulking in the Room of Requirement. When the time comes, you will be by my side. You don't think I would leave you there with him alone, do you?' He embraced her, and she gratefully fell into his arms.
'So when are you going to Hogwarts, Harry?' asked Rufus.
'Tomorrow,' replied Harry, who felt a sudden increase in pressure around him as Hermione tightened her grip at these words.