Unofficial Portkey Archive

Author's Note: Sorry it's been a while since the last update! Work has been crazy and I've been traveling a lot. However, rest assured that I still have many chapters in the que and I will try to be quicker about getting them posted. Hope you enjoy this chapter!

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CHAPTER 10: Once More into the Fray

Hermione was unable to sleep after her creepy dream about Harry turning into Tom Riddle as she kissed him. She was also shaken by her peculiar conversation with Ginny, in which the younger girl not only managed to mostly avoid talking about how she was coping with Harry's recent possession by the former Dark Lord, but she also managed to insinuate that Hermione was in love with Harry Potter.

It was all very strenuous to deal with at 4 in the morning.

Thus she had decided to get an early start to the day by taking a soothing shower. The hot water took some of the chill out of her bones that had been left over from the dream, and eventually she shook off the whole "are you in love with Harry?" thing like she always did. Yet after both of those nagging sensations were gone, there was a deeper, more pervasive issue that pulled at her. Ginny had mentioned that she still had dreams of Riddle due to her interactions with his diary, which had been a horocrux.

Sometimes powerful magic objects leave a mark on us is what Hermione said, and now she couldn't stop thinking about it. A piece of Voldemort's soul was trapped inside of Harry for sixteen years. Such a thing is unprecedented; the possible side effects are unheard of. The memories Riddle's experiences, Harry's changes in personality and attitude- could they all be lingering side effects of a having a powerful magic object trapped inside him? In the end, what could be more powerful than a soul?

There were still so many questions, but she felt her working theory was very sound and that scared her. As often happened with Harry Potter, they were wading into unchartered territory and thus no books, manuscripts, or proclaimed experts could help.

After she exited the shower, dressed and applied a few quick charms to her hair and make-up she decided that she would have to compartmentalize and deal with one mystery at a time. They would be meeting with Luna's source in a few short hours and she needed her head clear if they were going to get any real information from the woman. She was their only lead in determining who was behind the murders of the former Death Eaters, and thus the group who had issued Hermione's Death Threat, and thereby the same group that had burned down the Burrow. Oh, and they're also most likely being led by a man named Damon who is highly organized and hell-bent on "re-organizing" the magical world as we know it she added in for good measure.

There was a whole end-of-world scenario on their hands and the best lead they had was a batty woman with a far fetched story and maybe some dusty old memories that Draco and Harry were hoping to pry from the unorganized thoughts of former serial killers. As always, they were stretching the limits of conclusive evidence.

She was surprised to find that Ginny was already up and ready as well, and so the two women decided to take a walk through Paris as the sun rose, and this time they talked about nothing, each lost in their own individual thoughts, yet the beauty of the city wasn't lost on them. For those who have been through war, the peaceful moments in life become all that much more important.

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Draco had spent hours fixing the damage that his magical outburst had done to the Manor, but Harry was still lying unconscious on the sofa that Draco had levitated his body to. After Draco had returned to his senses he had been quite sure that he may have killed the Boy Who Lived. In the past, the idea of standing triumphant over Harry's crumpled body would have pleased Draco, but now it actually scared him. There was too much danger lurking in the distance for Draco to face it alone, and it was clear that Harry was the key to solving some of the many mysteries.

Fuck my life for even thinking this, but if we have any chance of stopping Damon and his hoard of weirdos, it'll be because of Potter.

He had checked Harry's vitals and they seemed stable enough. He was breathing a bit shallowly but his pulse was strong. Draco was no medi-wizard but he had done enough research over the past few years that he felt broken ribs were a safe bet. He was concerned about what else might be broken.

Like his mind Draco mused. What if when those eyelids open up instead of green I see grey? It didn't take him long to answer his own question. I'll have to kill him. But not before doing my damndest to get some answers out of that sadistic fuck who calls himself Riddle.

Draco supposed that others were probably wondering why Harry kept saying it was Riddle in his mind and not Voldemort, but Draco knew all too well. When Harry's consciousness was overwhelmed, it was Tom Riddle the youth who came out to play, not Voldemort the old man. The Greyback part of Draco's consciousness recognized this difference instantly, and to Draco it made sense. His brief, nasty encounter with Riddle had only confirmed what Draco knew deep down inside.

I think that in most cases, if a person's teenaged self was to meet their current self they would be displeased. Think about you for example.

That is all Riddle had to say to explain it clearly. Riddle had once been a young man who grew up dreaming of great power and control only to instead become an ugly creature that was slayed twice by a boy. It had to be utterly disappointing. Draco knew about being disappointed in oneself.

Suddenly Harry's eyes flickered open and Draco let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding onto as he saw that it was indeed Harry Potter in the driver's seat again. Draco's gaze met Harry's for just a moment and Harry's mouth parted slightly as though he were about to say something and then they went unfocused and he lost consciousness once more.

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"She was supposed to meet us here fifteen minutes ago" Luna announced, sounding uncharacteristically worried.

"I wouldn't fret about it too much" Ron responded. "From the way you describe this woman, she sounds a knut short of a galleon."

"Don't be rude Ron" Ginny said, elbowing her brother with a yawn and then greedily grabbing for her coffee as it arrived at the table.

"You don't understand" Luna argued. "My source may be a bit `barmy' as you would put it Ronald, but she is also very superstitious about arriving at precisely the right time. I feel like something is wrong."

"Do you know where her flat is?" Hermione asked, sensing Luna's sudden anxiety.

"Yes, I think we should go straight there and check on her" Luna said, standing up so quickly that her chair made a loud scraping noise against the floor, attracting the attention of the other patrons.

Hermione quickly threw a few Euros down on the table to pay for the coffee and nodded at Luna, following her from the cafe as both Ron and Ginny scrambled to suck down the rest of their drinks and join in suit.

Fortunately, the flat was only a few mere blocks from the cafe. They were in a tourist ridden muggle area and so apparation was out of the question. Thus, Luna half-ran, half-walked as Hermione followed quickly behind and the two redheads trailed like a couple baby ducks.

The flat they arrived at looked much the same as many of the others they had passed, and Hermione was surprised that Luna was able to find it as quickly as she did. However, she did not get the chance to question her about this because when they arrived the door was busted open and her blood ran cold.

They had all kept their wands carefully concealed as they trekked through muggle territory, but now that they were entering what clearly looked like a crime scene, they drew their wands and Ron took point, the girls following behind.

It had been five years since any of them had been in an organized combat situation, but the lessons of DA had not faded in the least. They communicated silently, fanning out through the flat in different directions to perform a fast and thorough search. It was Ginny who made a noise first.

"Guys, come in here" she said, her voice flat but somehow sounding very weary. They followed quickly towards her voice and found a petite woman's body curled into the fetal position as though asleep in the middle of an otherwise miraculously organized parlor. Yet as they drew closer it was clear she was not asleep. Her skin was a very light shade of blue and when Hermione touched her she was icy cold and very stiff.

"I've never seen anything like this" Hermione mumbled, shocked by how cold the dead woman's skin was to touch. "It must have been them... no magic I know of would freeze someone to death in this manner." She turned back to the other three and when she saw the stricken look on Luna's face Hermione felt terrible for discussing the deceased woman as though she were some classroom project.

"It's my fault" Luna gasped, her face paler than usual and a slight trembled in her voice. She turned quickly away from the sight and Ron grabbed her in his arms, pulling her close as she sniffled slightly against his chest. Luna had never been one for crying much, and Ron had never been one for consoling others, but they looked oddly natural in that moment.

"It's not your fault" Ron said when she withdrew from him a moment later. "The people who did this, they must have known that she'd seen something she wasn't supposed to. The poor girl was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"Well, whoever did it is long gone" Ginny announced after taking another lap around the small yet tidy flat. "And now we're royally fucked. This was our only lead."

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Harry's head was pounding and each breath felt like a stab wound to his chest as he struggled for air. Even in the dim lighting of Malfoy Manor it hurt for him to open his eyes, but he forced himself to do so and slowly his surroundings came into reality. He realized he was lying in a sofa of some kind and deduced that Malfoy must have moved him. There was no sign of the blonde haired man, and Harry glanced around at the morbid surroundings of what had to be the most depressing parlor he had ever seen in his life. Heavy black drapes blocked any sunlight from getting in, and the only light in the room was emanating from the embers of a low burning fire in the black onyx fireplace. On either side of the fireplace two cobra snakes had been sculpted and they were reared up, fangs showing, as though about to attack.

This must have been a gloomy place to grow up Harry thought, half delirious as he still worked for each breath against the pain in his chest.

The door suddenly opened and a thin sliver of light from the other side revealed that it was now daytime. Draco Malfoy came waltzing in, a large silver tray balanced carefully in his hands. And then, a moment later, Tom Riddle followed behind him.

It's impossible Harry thought, struggling against the pain he was experiencing to sit up. Riddle looked no older than 18, his physical features still perfectly intact, from his dark locks of hair to his slender nose and those stormy grey eyes which were now fixed on Harry.

"Are you a moron Potter?" Malfoy asked as he watched Harry strain himself in great pain as he attempted to rise to his feet. "Actually, I already know the answer to that question. If you're worried about me attacking you again..."

"I never trusted you, but I thought you had changed Malfoy" Harry grunted between clenched teeth. The pain was searing so he fell to his side as soon as he had managed to grab his wand and now he clutched it as he watched Riddle gracefully make his way to the opposing armchair, a smirk on his face.

"Listen Potter, I'll admit I lost control, and sure I almost killed you, but can you just not be total prat about it for now? I mean, you were possessed by the evilest mother fucker to live in a long time..."

"So you what, just let him out? This whole time, was any of it true about you wanting to change, about you wanting to redeem yourself for being a coward? Or maybe this is how you redeem yourself eh? You pretend we're on some mission together and all along you just waited for the right opportunity to drug me and bring Riddle back to life."

"What are you on about?" Draco spat, setting the tray down with heavy thud. "I didn't put Riddle in your head. And I'll admit that the potion had some adverse effects, but I didn't know THAT would happen."

"And now the two of you are just the best of friends is that it? What's in those potion bottles Malfoy, something to give Riddle more strength?"

"Why the fuck would I want that Potter?!" Draco looked truly affronted and now there was a dull rumble in the floors of Malfoy Manor as the two boys locked gazes with one another.

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Hermione rose slowly from the side of the corpse and tried to think. There's always a clue she reassured herself. I just have to use logic and search for it.

"This woman, she said that she saw her neighbor performing wandless magic from her balcony" Hermione spoke slowly as she walked towards the balcony and opened two double doors, which afforded a view of the street below, and across from that a small park. "She said she saw her levitate a large rock, but the woman said no words and used no wand. From this angle, there's only one rock I can see that's close enough to afford a good view. It's just by the park corner."

Ron had come up behind her and he looked over her shoulder to see where she pointed. "You reckon we should check it out?"

"What else do we have to go on?" she sighed, and when she left the flat to investigate they all followed, glad to no longer be in the presence of a dead person. Only Luna lingered for a moment over the body, whispering something none of them could make out.

At the park Ron, Luna and Ginny kept guard while Hermione levitated the rock. Unfortunately it was the broad of day and thus it was difficult to be subtle, but they waited until foot traffic had passed and she moved it very quickly. Underneath there was clearly a hollowed out space, but when she reached her hand inside it was empty.

"Whatever this woman came here to get, she hasn't returned it" Hermione said glumly, feeling like the whole trip was an utter failure.

"We could ask around the neighborhood" Ginny offered. "Maybe they'll know who we're looking for."

"We didn't exactly get a good description of this mystery woman. All Luna's source said is that the witch was quiet, tended to spend a lot of time to herself, and was wearing a black cloak."

"Better than nothing" Ginny shrugged, and Hermione had to agree.

"It's risky though. If we march around the neighborhood looking for her she'll certainly notice and either run or ---" Hermione was about to say "attack" when the rock that she had just moved exploded beside her, pieces of gravel flying every which way and knocking her from her feet. Her ears were ringing as she tasted dirt in her mouth, and the noise had attracted much attention from nearby muggles who were shouting and running for safety.

Ron was trying to pull her to her feet and say something, but she couldn't hear as she waved her arm dumbly at a woman standing across the street. "HER!" Hermione heard herself screaming as her hearing recovered. "It was her!" Ginny and Luna wasted no time in drawing their wands and aiming hexes at the plainly dressed woman standing across the street. Bright lights flashed back in their direction in return, and although Hermione's hearing was damaged, she could tell that the woman's mouth wasn't moving. Silent, wandless magic.

Hermione narrowly dodged a curse as she regained herself, and then she was joining the others as they raced across the street, combatting their attacker. The woman was a formidable opponent and she was barraging them in a storm of silent hexes and spells, but Ron, Luna, Hermione and Ginny weren't new to magical combat and they were able to evade or block everything she sent while still returning their own fire. Eventually the telltale flash of fear could be seen in her eyes as they gained ground in her direction, and she turned quickly and fled down a narrow alleyway.

"Follow her!" Hermione shouted, her own voice still sounding like it was coming from underwater. Ginny and Luna pressed forward without hesitation, but when Ron looked back he suddenly stopped, his face looking pale with concern. "Keep moving Ro-" she tried to scold him but suddenly felt strange and light headed. Without a moment's notice her legs gave out beneath her and she fell to the curb.

Lying on the curbside Hermione felt woozy but was still conscious as Ron rushed to her, cradling her in his lap. She glanced down and saw the bloody mess that was her abdominal area. For a moment she looked up at the sky and marveled at how blue it was against the dark peaks of the French buildings. Slowly the world faded away from around her.

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The rumbling was intensifying as the uncontrolled magical output both boys were experiencing started to take grip. The chandelier above their head (also adorned with snakes of course) was rattling loudly now and Harry was trying to calm himself but Tom Riddle was just sitting there smugly grinning as though he hadn't a care in the world.

"I'll tear this whole house down on top of us rather than let either of you live!" Harry shouted of the escalating noise.

"WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?" Draco roared, and now the chandelier did fall, and shards of glass exploded through the dimly lit room in a miraculous fashion, cutting into Draco's arms as he tried to protect his face and tearing a deep gash beneath Harry's eye. Tom Riddle got the brunt of the damage, but he did not flinch, blink or move. In fact, the glass seemed to go right through him.

"Ah, finally you get it Potter" Riddle sneered as the world went deaf around Harry. All he could see were those grey eyes, and all he could hear was that lilting voice. "Draco Malfoy can't see me. I'm in your head."

"You're not real" Harry said slowly.

"Define `real'" Riddle shrugged. "I can't physically interact with the world around me true, but I have control of my consciousness and now you can't bury me any more. The Odyssea potion split your consciousness in two, and now you can see me and hear me. Now you have no choice."

"That's not possible. You are dead. I destroyed every sinful little piece of your soul, even the one that was inside of me."

"Maybe not every piece. While I may never be entirely whole again, I do believe I can take control of you. I will drive you to madness Potter, and then your body will be mine. I'll have a second chance to undo all of the mistakes I made as `Voldemort'. I will redefine myself as an entirely new Dark Lord, one who has your power and my cunning."

"I will slit my wrists before I allow that to happen" Harry spat.

"Who the bloody hell are you talking to?" Draco exclaimed and suddenly Harry remembered that the blonde haired Slytherin was standing just meters away.

"Lock me up Malfoy" Harry urged. "Lock me up somewhere I can't get out."

"What? Have you totally lost it?"

"So it would seem. I don't know how much control I have, just lock me up until we can figure out what can be done. Does Malfoy Manor have a place strong enough to hold me?"

"Of course" Draco spat as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Care to explain what's happening?"

Harry briefly and vaguely described the fact that Tom Riddle was sitting in the armchair on the other side of the room, and to Harry's surprise Draco laughed. "Oh hallucinations now Potter? That's just rich."

"I think it's more than a hallucination" Harry said sternly. "Something happened when I took that potion and he's stronger now. Controlling my emotions won't be enough anymore, we can't risk letting him take control of me. Lock me up and send an owl to Hermione."

"Ah your little mudblood girlfriend" Riddle taunted. "Malfoy was right when he said she was your Achilles heel-"

"SHUT UP!" Harry shouted with such force that Draco actually flinched and the laughter drained from his eyes.

"This may not be all bad. He could give us answers if you're able to talk to him." Draco said, looking at what only appeared to him as an empty armchair.

"Blondes really are stupid" Riddle sneered with a smirk on his handsome youthful features. "How could you possibly get me to talk? I feel no pain and death has already happened to me."

"Get Hermione and lock me up" Harry repeated.

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When Hermione Granger regained consciousness she was lying on the stiff sanitized sheets of a hospital bed, the midday sun streaming through a nearby window and painting a neat square on the shiny floor tiles. She watched as small dust specks danced lazily in the sunlight, and she felt oddly peaceful for someone who had just been wounded while chasing a mysterious and dangerous stranger, and for someone who had lost consciousness in a foreign country only to wake up in a strange place.

"They must have given you some good potions" chuckled a familiar voice, and as Hermione turned her head towards Ginny Weasley she had the light sensation of floating.

"Where are we?" Hermione asked, her voice sounding as dreamy as Luna Lovegood's.

"That bitch took off down an alleyway that led into Ville Cachee, which I guess means..."

"Hidden Town" Hermione laughed arily. "It's the French Diagon Alley and I always thought the name was rather obvious. I also always meant to visit it one day."

"Well, we're here now. Luna and I were chasing her as she ran right for a brick wall and just as we thought she was going to face plant the wall opened and revealed this village. The streets were jam packed with shoppers and we nearly lost her but I managed to stun her as she tried to round a corner." Ginny's voice sounded triumphant. "A few minutes later Ron caught up with us and he was carrying you. Of course, the whole event had attracted a lot of attention so when people saw that you were injured they directed us to the hospital."

"What about the woman?"

"French aurors showed up around the same time Ron did and they took the woman into custody. They recognized you and Ron of course, as part of the `trio d'or'."

"Golden Trio" Hermione grumbled, her strange sense of euphoric peace fading. She had always disliked that silly phrase.

"Well, they took Ron's words seriously when he told them to lock the woman up and that she might be involved in the recent attack on the Burrow. I guess the two of you are as internationally famous as Harry these days."

"No, not quite that famous, thank Merlin."

"Maybe not, but I'm glad that for once Ron's fame was useful for something other than picking up some bimbo at a party."

"Where is he now?" Hermione asked, trying to sit up but feeling a pressure near her stomach that made her lay back down.

"He and Luna are talking with the aurors. Our whole attempt to stay under the radar in France is pretty much blown now, so we need all the back up we can get. There are guards stationed outside the room here and they put so many wards on this place it would be easier to break into Gringotts."

"I need to be involved in questioning the woman. We need answers, we don't have much time..."

"Rest for a moment longer" Ginny said in a calm but warning tone. "When that rock blew up a chunk of it put a good gash in your side. It didn't hit any critical organs, but it's still mending. They said you should be fine, but you may have a scar."

Before I know it I'll look like Harry she thought distantly, suddenly remembering a day she had brought him to the beach and noticed how many scars he had collected in his arms, chest, back, ribs and abs. It was a strangely unbidden memory as she remembered him shirtlessly walking into the waves with great caution. He hadn't spent much time at the beach as a child and he looked unsure about stepping in the cold water. His caution made him seem so innocent and childlike to her, and that made seeing his scars all the worse. As she remembered that moment she missed him tremendously in a way that made her heart rate speed up and her soul ache.

"There's something else..." Ginny said slowly. "An owl arrived for you. The aurors checked to make sure there was nothing dangerous about it. It came before they put up wards to make us untraceable."

"Is it from Harry? I hardly expected to hear from him so soon, he's always been bad about writing..."

"I don't think it's from Harry, it's not his handwriting" Ginny interrupted, handing the letter to Hermione to inspect it for herself. The first thing Hermione noticed was how smooth the envelope felt in her hand. The paper was top quality and she could see that the quill used to address it was as well crafted based on how dark the ink was and smooth the lines. Ginny was right, it wasn't Harry's penmanship. Harry had small, untidy scrawl while this was elegant, near-perfect calligraphy. There was something vaguely familiar about the handwriting, but she couldn't put a finger on it.

Of course, there was no return address, but the front of the envelope was addressed to "Ms. H. Granger, The Hospital Cot in the East Wing, Ville Cachee, France." She ripped it open and quickly looked to the bottom to see whom it was from. Her stomach sunk in a way that made her feel ill.

"It's from Draco Malfoy" she said, and Ginny forwent any sense polite privacy and leaned forward to read over the older girl's shoulder.

It began quite simply addressed to "Granger" and moved forward in the same abrupt and impersonal manner. "As you know, I have had to form an alliance with Potter to deal with some of the suspect activity we've all be witnessing as of late. In the process of seeking answers there has been a misstep and he now seems fairly certain that he is unstable and that you are the only person who can assist him. I will reserve my personal sentiments until a later date, but he is requesting that you come to Malfoy Manor as soon as possible."

"Well, that was bloody vague of him" Ginny complained, but Hermione could barely hear her. All that was echoing through her mind were the words he is unstable. When she had last seen him they had been sitting on his bed in Grimmauld Place and he had been worried that he wouldn't be able to maintain control forever. She remembered his words now, and they pressed in on her with such pressure that she suddenly had trouble breathing... if he's in there, I mean really, fully in my head, what's to stop him from growing stronger and taking over?

It had only been a few days, but she had promised him that she would do everything she could to solve the problem, but she had no answers whatsoever. She wasn't sure how she could face him knowing that she couldn't save him. It would break her heart... it already was.

"Are you even listening to me?" Ginny asked suddenly, and Hermione's thoughts came back to the present moment. "I was just saying that it could be a trap. Harry felt that there was some reason to trust Malfoy..."

"He never trusted him" Hermione interrupted. "But he did feel that he would need him."

"Fine, but that only makes it worse doesn't it? What if he double crossed Harry like he did Dumbledore, what if he's done something to him and he's using him as bait..."

"Well, we can hardly sit around and speculate now can we?" Hermione burst out with such vigor that Ginny jumped a bit. "Even if it is a trap, we can't just ignore the fact that Harry may be in serious danger. If Malfoy is being sincere, something might be very, very wrong. I'm the last person Malfoy would reach out to."

Ginny felt uncomfortable by the raw emotion in Hermione's usually composed features. She had often suspected that Harry and Hermione slept together, not just because they were close but because the Boy-Who-Lived was always sleeping over Hermione's house, they were both adults now, and they both went through long lapses of being single. Who could blame them for wanting to get it in every once in awhile?

Ron had always told her it was shallow to think such things, claiming that neither Harry nor Hermione would want to risk their legendary friendship for an occasional shag. Ginny secretly felt that Ron only made such claims because he was jealous that things had crumbled apart with him and Hermione. After all, Ginny had done the friends-with-benefits routine several times in life and saw no reason for drama- sex was sex, it was perfectly natural. Now however, she suddenly felt very sure that Hermione and Harry had never been intimate, that if they had it couldn't possibly be casual. For the first time, under Hermione's carefully composed exterior, Ginny glimpsed the truth.

I wonder if she even knows? Ginny mused.

"I need to go now" Hermione was saying, and Ginny realized that the older girl had sat up in spite of the still mending wounds, and was gathering her things. "You, Ron and Luna will have to handle the inquiry of the suspect, along with the French aurors."

"I'm going with you" Ginny said, as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. "If it is a trap, I won't let you walk into it alone. I suspect Ron won't feel too happy about letting us take off to Malfoy Manor based on a summons from Draco Malfoy."

"Then it's good that there's no time to tell him. Write a quick note and we'll send it off from the owlery before we go. We need him here with Luna finding out whatever they can, there's really no time to debate that with him."

Ginny saw Hermione wince as she stood up, but it was so slight it was almost impossible to detect. Her mask is back on Ginny determined. Once more into the fray.

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