Chapter One: Deceit
Author: Inntoxilamoon
Chapter Summary: With the contents of the letter come many consequences for our dear Headmaster as Harry takes control of his life.
Disclaimer: See previous chapter.
The Secrets Within
Deceit
Hermione reads over the letter silently before glancing up at Harry, shock written all over her fine features, "Oh, Harry… I don't know what to say! Are you sure that this person can be trusted? Merlin knows who sent this!"
Shrugging resignedly, Harry drops into the seat behind his potions desk with a soft sigh, "I don't know, 'Mione. Those seem to be the official Gringotts papers… Official seal and all… That makes be believe they're true, but so does the fact that all I have to do is request to see those documents and I'll be shown the official ones and given a copy…"
Glancing over the letter still held in her shaking hands, Hermione nods distractedly, starting when Draco clears his throat loudly in order to gain Harry and Hermione's attention. "May I?" Draco asks with a glance at Harry as he holds his hand out for the letter that holds everyone's full attention.
With a signal of consent from Harry, the letter is handed over to Draco who skims down the first page quickly. "Read it aloud, will you Dray?" Harry asks.
"'Dear Mr. Potter,'" Draco begins, clearing his throat quickly as the others present fall silent so as to hear what has been said, "'I apologise for not revealing my identity to you at this time but cannot do so lest Albus discover that I am in contact with you. I thought it prudent that you learn some details about your bank account and such as you have now come into an age where you are allowed to run your own finances from the trust fund your parents left to you. As you may already know, Albus is the guardian of your account and is therefore in possession of a second key to your account as well as the power to determine who can access your account and how much can be taken, until you choose to block them. Although this may not seem to be much of a problem at the moment, you will find that Albus is not as good and kind as he seems. I apologise for being the bearer of this news, but I believe that it would be in your best interests to take control of your account and to hire someone to assist you in keeping watch over it. I believe that, should you wish to keep these matters within your own group of friends, Ms. Granger, Mr. Zabini or Mr. Snape would be well suited to assist you in these decisions. I hope to be in touch. Best of luck.' Should I continue?" Draco asks, once the letter ends and Harry gets to his feet.
"No," He responds, taking the letter back and placing it into his robe pockets. "I'll just summarise it from here, thanks." Glancing at his friends and Professor, Harry begins, "The first attached page is from my account at Gringotts, and it lists some basic details about my account, including the fact that Albus Dumbledore is the guardian of my account. This page also shows that the account I have access to is not the main account but is, in fact, a trust fund which the main account feeds into. The main account cannot be opened until I come of age as a wizard.
The second page is a list of who has access to the account, including the dates that they were given permission to access my account. The only ones added before my parents death, besides family, was Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Albus Dumbledore and, surprisingly, Severus Snape." Glancing at Snape curiously, Harry receives a smirk as Snape prepares to explain the reason that he had been given access to Harry's account,
"Before your mother's death she gave me access to the Potter accounts to provide for you in the event that your Aunt couldn't or, as Lily feared, wouldn't take care of you. As your only blood relative, your Aunt has guardianship of you first and foremost. But magical guardianship of you has been given to Sirius Black who obviously couldn't have you as he was in Azkaban and myself. Remus Lupin was also listed although the Ministry would not allow him to look after you as he's a werewolf, nor would they allow me to take care of you due to my position as spy." Snape glances at Harry, who nods distracted before continuing,
"Although James trusted in Albus completely, your mother had a great deal more intelligence and refused to leave you in his hands alone. Lily was always a wonderful friend to me and I have never desired to betray her, therefore I have never accessed your account, although it is possible I should have kept a closer eye on it…" Trailing off, Snape glances at Harry as he looks at the letter in his hands.
"I never realised that you and mum were so close…" Harry murmurs before returning to the task at hand, "After my parent's death, records show that Dumbledore added his brother, Aberforth, to the account- although he has never touched it; and all of the members of the Order of Phoenix, although they have never actually touched my account purposefully. Dumbledore, on the other hand, has been taking reasonably large amounts of money from my account regularly since three months after my parent's death…
Dumbledore also attached my account to that of the Order, therefore ensuring that any money the Order uses is drawn from both the Order's account and mine. No one in the order would know, unfortunately, as the money would appear to be taken from their account and their account alone. A record of deposits into his account is also here… he was taking money out of my account and splitting it between the Order and himself…" Snape seems to be shocked into silence at these revelations, as are the others with the exception of Hermione.
"Well," Hermione begins positively, "At least he couldn't access your main account."
"Yeah," Agrees Blaise, "And now you know so you can block him from your account. Your old enough, the only thing you need to worry about is getting to Diagon Alley to sign all of the papers and stuff. Then Hermione and I can keep an eye on your account for you- I wouldn't trust those goblins as far as I could throw them!"
"And how is he going to get to Diagon Alley?" Theo asks before his eyes settle on his the Professor, "Unless Professor Snape can take you when he goes to get more potions ingredients on Saturday?"
"Then we can all go!" Daphne adds as Snape rolls his eyes, exasperated.
"And how are we going to explain me taking six students to Diagon Alley with me when I am only going to get some potions ingredients?" Snape's lazy drawl seems to put a damper on Daphne's mood as she slumps slightly in her chair, her disappointment obvious.
"Advanced potions class?" Draco suggested, looking at his godfather with a smirk, "You're testing us to see if we know what ingredients to buy if we wanted to make Veritaserum or something?"
"Why not take you to the Apothecary in Hogsmeade?" Snape retorts and Draco stops for a second before smirking,
"Easy, because you're already going to Diagon Alley and you want to make sure we don't actually buy the wrong ingredients." A smirk gracing his features, Snape nods his approval before turning to Harry.
"Well, Potter? This Saturday the six of us will go to Gringotts."
"Thank you, Professor Snape." Harry responds with a smile as Snape chuckles evilly, he can't wait to see Dumbledore's Golden Boy cut him off; it is, after all, the damn fool's fault- meddling in everyone's lives so much.
"You're welcome, Potter. I just can't wait to see Dumbledore's face when he finds out he's been cut off." Snape smirks, before noticing how late it is. "You six had better leave now, it's past curfew. If Filch or McGonagall catches you, inform them that you just completed a detention with me; go straight to your common rooms." Ushering them out of the classroom Severus shuts the door behind them before deciding to go to his private rooms. Muttering under his breath as he locks the Potions classroom; Severus Snape wonders who the anonymous writer is…
After gaining permission from Albus to take the children to Diagon Alley with him, Severus sits at the Head Table in the Great Hall, glaring at all the students eating so loudly. Dumbledore is sitting next to Minerva telling him how he's so proud of Severus, taking Harry and his friends to Diagon Alley with him today. At this discovery, Minerva promptly chokes on her toast in disbelieve and Albus pats her on the back as Severus smirks from his spot a few places down.
Owls begin to flock into the room, delivering the mail and Snape watched disinterestedly as students and teachers alike receive their mail. It is then that he notices a blue-black raven sitting in front of him on the table, a letter resting in front of it with the words Severus Snape written on the front. Immediately recognising the beautiful, delicate calligraphy as the same writing that had been on Harry's first letter he looks around noticing in shock when … crows enter the room, landing in front of Hermione Granger, Draco Malfoy, Neville Longbottom and Harry Potter. Another raven has landed in front of Lupin, who looks at the letter and bird in amazement.
Suddenly a golden eagle flies into the room, dropping a note in front of Severus as the school watches on in amazement. This note, already open, simply says, 'Do not read the letters here. Gather the others and find a place alone. Albus is not to read the notes.'
Standing, Severus sweeps over to Remus Lupin just as he is about to open the note. "Don't. Not here." He growls as he heads towards the Great Hall exit, Hermione and Harry grab Neville as Draco, Blaise, Theo and Daphne follow behind them.
Leading the way out the front doors of Hogwarts, Severus strides over to the lake before sitting on a bench which he had transfigured out of a twig. Creating a few more benches for those who have not yet arrived, Severus glances up as Narcissa leaves the castle and spots them, walking over with Remus, Narcissa carries the same letter as the others and Severus glances at it curiously.
When everyone has been seated, Narcissa looks at Severus, "Do you know who sent these letters? I was just about to open the letter when this eagle flew into my room and gave me a note telling me to read the letter outside with my son!"
Remus looks over to Narcissa before turning to Severus once more, "Why did you tell me not to read the letter inside, Severus? What does it matter?"
"Moony, we weren't meant to read them where other people could see," Harry responds with a smile, "I got one of these letters Thursday, whoever wrote it told me some stuff about my account at Gringotts. Important stuff."
"What stuff, Harry?" Remus responds quickly, his concern for Harry over-ruling his curiosity as his blue eyes search Harry's green ones for an answer. "What did it say? Is everything alright?"
Nodding, Harry smiles and looks Remus in the eye steadily, "They told me that Dumbledore has been using money from my account for things other then school fees. They sent me the evidence," Reaching into his pocket, Harry pulls out the letter and hands it to Lupin, "We're going to Diagon Alley today so I can go to Gringotts, check the information and take control of my account, blocking Dumbledore."
Reading over the letter and evidence, Remus' eyes widen before he looks at Severus, "Who is sending these then?"
"I don't know," Severus responds, "But the seal gives me an idea that it's someone very powerful." With this Neville, Narcissa and Remus turn their letters over, gasping at the seal that has been used.
"The missing seal of the Founders…" Narcissa murmurs in shock and Neville adds,
"I thought that was only a myth!"
"Everyone thought it was," Remus responds, "I guess we know the truth." Watching the four animals interacting, a smile crosses his lips as the eagle catches the snake, placing it next to the badger and lion before landing as well.
"Should we tell Albus?" Narcissa asks, "After all, what if this is just a trick?" Severus shakes his head, about to answer when Draco decides to answer for him,
"We can't, mum. Whoever it is, they don't want Dumbledore to find them. Plus, if Dumbledore's been stealing from Harry, how do we know that we can trust him?"
Nodding in agreement, Severus reminds everyone, "We've already opened a letter and nothing bad happened! But if it will make you feel better, we can open the letters one by one."
"I'll go first!" Hermione states as she carefully breaks the seal of the founders and opens the letter. Reading the letter silently, Hermione's eyes widen slightly and she looks at the others as they watch her carefully. Clearing her throat, Hermione reads her letter aloud, "'Miss Granger, I would think you should ask your mother for an explanation of your family history. You are not the first witch of her line- you come from a very powerful line and have the right to know your own history. Born to a squib of the Amaelius line, you are the last left of this great family. You are the first in three generations to have any magickal ability and have a position at the Wizengamot that needs to be filled. Do not seek a course of action against Dumbledore as of yet, your plans can wait for the future.' That's it." Hermione states as she puts her letter down once more.
"Amaelius?" Narcissa repeats as she glances at Lupin and Snape, "They were once one of the most powerful families, in the same league as the Blacks, Malfoys, Snapes, Potters, Drusus, Simmiones, Civianus' and Farrets…"
"I need to speak to my mother…" Hermione murmurs at this revelation and looks at Harry, "But I wonder how they know all of this…"
"Okay, I'll open my letter now," Draco says as he rips through the seal, unfolding his letter and reading it aloud straight away. "'Mr Malfoy, one does not need to follow in his father's footsteps to succeed but must carve their own. But when pressured many cave, you have not and have therefore earned the name of Dragon… Can you step forward once more to take control of your own future? You are needed at the Wizengamot, take the place as representative of the Malfoy line or choose someone to do it for you. Choose wisely for this decision can help or hinder the fight that you face in the future. Return the power to those who truly wish to do good- I will know if you attend, as I will be there. Stay strong, Dragon, and watch out for your father today- today you are the head of the Malfoy line, your father has lost his privileges and they fall onto you. Watch your step carefully; it will determine your future.'" Looking at his mother, Draco smiles, "I guess we don't have to worry about money after all."
The excitement in the group grows and Severus feels a weight ease off his shoulders at the good news that had thus far been revealed. Narcissa opens her letter nervously, reading through it quickly before beginning, "'Mrs. Malfoy, the Dark Lord searches for you but he will not find you until you are ready to fight- Lucius searches but his eyes are blinded by his hatred and rage. You and your son will be safe at Hogwarts as the school itself deigns to keep you safe; do not, by any means, fear leaving the grounds- until you are ready to take control nothing will harm you. Soon abilities will be unlocked and you will learn the truth of your line- it will be intact once more. Try to turn Bellatrix if you so desire, but the butterfly cannot revert- ensure that you remain on your guard; Andromeda awaits your letter with baited breath and her child, your niece, would like to meet you- mistakes can be forgiven. Take your place at the Wizengamot as the last member of the Black family, do not worry about mistakes, Andromeda will assist you until someone comes to take over from you. Trust in yourself, you are stronger than you realise.'" Narcissa falls silent for a moment as she contemplates her letter,
"I guess it's time to ask Andromeda for forgiveness… I never thought I'd see her again…" Tears of happiness glitter in Narcissa's blue eyes as she contemplates her reunion with her elder sister.
Smiling, Severus turns to face Neville Longbottom, "Longbottom, your turn." He snaps and Neville, hands shaking opens the letter…
"Pro-Pro-Professor? How do we know that w-w-we can t-trust this person?" Neville asks shakily as he reads over the letter once again.
"We don't, Longbottom. Now, hurry up. We don't have all day!" Snape snaps as Lupin frowns at him.
"Take your time, Neville," Lupin says calmly, "We're in no great rush."
Calming down considerably, Neville takes a deep breath before beginning to read, "'Mr Longbottom, life sometimes hands us a difficult part to play but we must all trust in our abilities and in fate to follow our own paths to success. Once, you lost something very dear to you- soon, I hope to see it returned to you. A great power flows through your veins, believe in yourself and you can change the world. A new tide turns.'" Neville glances around at the others self-consciously before turning to Hermione, "I don't understand it- what did I loose?"
"I don't know, Neville." Hermione answers vaguely as she looks at Harry. She obviously has something on her mind, but does not go any further then to reassure him, "Don't worry, Neville, it sounds like it will be something good and I'm sure we'll find out what it is soon. Who's going next?"
"I will," Lupin says as he carefully opens the letter, leaving the seal intact- reading through the letter his eyes widen. "'Mr. Lupin, I remember the first time we met. The full moon glittered on the Hogwarts Lake as dementors closed in on your friends- you seemed to wish to attack something but followed me when I lead you away, whispering of safety, comfort and food. I told you then as I tell you now: do not resign yourself to an early death, do not resign yourself to pain, do not resign yourself to loneliness as happiness will come again. Freedom is only a breath away, Mr. Lupin.'"
Looking around at the others, all with equally stunned faces, Lupin glances towards the lake in wonderment. "I don't usually remember things from when I've turned but I can vaguely remember sitting by the lake that night… I had come back here, it was almost dawn and this beautiful black jaguar stalked over to me… Her fur had this slightly reddish tint and her eyes were a blue-green colour… I could understand her… She was an animagus… She stayed with me as I morphed back, after I passed out she wrapped me in a blanket and left. But she left a change of new clothes, a brush, water and food behind..."
The group remains silent for a few minutes before Blaise asks, "Couldn't we check the animagus records then? Maybe she's registered?"
"I doubt it," Snape responds distantly, "Then it'd be easy to find her…"
"Most animagus don't keep their eye colour, do they?" Daphne asks as she shifts herself, leaning more into Theo before becoming still once more.
"No… I've never heard of anyone who could… besides the Founders, that is." Lupin responds and everyone stays silent once more.
Snape picks up his letter, breaks the seal and reads it over quickly, nodding silently. "I'll go before Potter; I'm sure his will be much more interesting then mine." Snape snarls before reading, "'Mr. Snape, not all has been lost. Blood is not water and water is not blood. There is someone who wishes to meet you, Potions Master, someone other than I. The Mark you bear will fade away and all will become clear- things can be fixed but with these powers comes new responsibilities; you must learn to trust others, forgive them for that which they have no control over. You may hurt but others do too- relax, join forces with those whom you sit with now and your combined power will be above that of your imagination. One can do anything when they have the power. Watch your back today, Potions Master, in the Alley are those you once called brothers- the traitor in their midst, you are in danger. Trust those with you and you will succeed over all.'"
"'Blood is not water and water is not blood'?" Draco repeated and Narcissa looks up,
"I assume that it's the same as 'blood is thicker than water'?" When no-one replies, Severus shrugs unconcernedly.
"We don't even know who this girl is, why are we worried about what she says? I'm sure we'll find out in due time." Nodding in agreement the group lapse once more into silence.
"I suppose I'd better read my letter now," Harry states as he lifts the letter up, breaking the seal quietly, "Don't want to be late for the Death Eater attack at Diagon Alley. 'Dear Mr. Potter, in the Mirror of Erised you seen what you truly desired- a family. Sometimes what you desire can come true, although not in the ways you expect it to. In life you gain and loose many things- one can also recuperate what they have lost. You can not fight the Slytherin heir on your own, but with the support of others and special training, you will easily win. The Heir of Slytherin will fall, eight will rise and one will find the path home. Hold your group together. You have yet many surprises left in store. Use Dumbledore, but do not yet dispose of him- you will find that he still has his secrets. The prophecy does not end with 'the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies…' I hope to see you soon, Mr. Potter.'"
"The prophecy continues? Or is the last line wrong?" Theo asks as he strokes a hand through Daphne's hair, glancing up at them, Harry shrugs.
"I believe that she means that the prophecy continues… Do you think Dumbledore will tell us?" Hermione asks excitedly and Snape snorts in a derisive manner.
"I doubt it, Miss Granger. Dumbledore is a fool. One wonders if he knows the end of the prophecy!" Glancing at Harry who has been silent since reading the letter, Severus stands quickly, remembering the advice he received. "As it seems that we are supposed to work together I would advise that special allowances be made. In private I believe we should call each other by our first names, it will get rather tedious using 'Professor' and surnames all the time."
A smile crosses Narcissa's face and she nods in agreement, "We should probably also give the children extra lessons, Severus. It shouldn't be hard between you, me and Remus?"
"Sounds fine to me," Remus responds and Severus nods reluctantly.
"Shall we all go to Diagon Alley, then?" Narcissa's question is answered silently when all of the students jump up, brush down their clothes and glance at the adults impatiently.
"Come on, Sev." Draco says, glancing at his godfather happily as they all begin to head towards the Hogwarts gates.
Stumbling into Diagon Alley after using a port-key, the seven students and three adults stand to the side quietly, discussing where everyone needs to go. "Remus, how about Hermione, Blaise and I go with you to Gringotts, that was Blaise and Hermione can have a quick look at my account. Severus, you could go to the Apothecary and Narcissa could take Draco, Daphne, Theo and Neville… where-ever."
"I don't know, Harry." Hermione says, "Remember what Prof… Severus' letter said? There's going to be an attack. We really should stick together."
"I agree with Miss Gran… Hermione, P-Harry. There's no sense in taking needless risks. We have all day."
"Harry, maybe would should just stick together," Neville adds nervously, "There's strength in numbers and all that."
Finally, when everyone has agreed to stick together, the group finally sets off for Gringotts. At Gringotts, the paper-work changing full control of the Potter account to Harry with Hermione, Severus and Remus given permission to check how the account is and Remus permission to use the account if something happened to Harry and he needed the money but couldn't get it himself was completed. Dumbledore and the Order, excluding Severus and Remus, were blocked and Narcissa, Draco, Blaise, Theo, Daphne and Hermione were given access to the account in case of an emergency.
After finishing up in Gringotts, Severus leads the group to the Apothecary, buying extra ingredients to teach the group with and picking up the other ingredients he needed- while Severus was looking at a vial of Dragon's Blood a loud noise occurred out in the Alley. Leaving their purchases in the store, Severus and Remus lead the others outside to find the Death Eaters had attacked.
"Harry, Draco, Hermione… everyone try to stay out of sight. You can still fight, just try to stay hidden as you do so!" Narcissa orders as she ducks behind a shelf just as a stunner hits the spot where she had previously been. Severus and Remus follow Narcissa's example of concealing themselves as they begin to fire curses, jinxes and stunners at the attacking Death Eaters. The students don't take long to join the fight and, with the ten of them fighting the group of ten Death Eaters begin to fall. Suddenly, as if from no-where, Lucius Malfoy steps up behind his son, grasping him around the neck as he forces him to his knees.
"Aveda Ked-"Lucius begins before his wife tackles him to the floor, leaving the curse unfinished as the last few Death Eaters left standing outside disapparate.
"Bastard!" Narcissa shrieks into Lucius' ear as she sits on the middle of his back, "How dare you even think of doing that to my son!" Pointing her wand at Lucius, Narcissa murmurs, "Petrificus Totalis!" A smirk crosses Narcissa's face as she leans towards Lucius and says, "Furnunculus!"
Lucius' eyes widen in shock as boils appear, covering his body and he glares at Narcissa as the Aurors begin to arrive. "Traitor." He spits out, "You're a blood traitor, Narcissa! Blood traitor!"
Suddenly, although Lucius still moves his mouth, no sounds escape and Severus, a smirk crossing his face, hoists Lucius to his feet before leading him over to the Aurors who are grouping together the other Death Eaters, stupefied in the street. "Kingsley, will you get rid of this Death Eating scum, find a place he can't escape from?"
Kingsley laughs heartily, "Is there such a place, Severus?"
"I'm sure I could find one for you if the Ministry can't." Severus answers darkly and Kingsley's smile drops slightly at the pure malice shining in Severus' eyes as he glares at Lucius.
"I, ah, better get him back to the Ministry. See you later, Severus."
Turning back to where the others stand, ready to leave, Severus smirks, "I think I scared Kingsley," He murmurs unremorsefully as Narcissa and Remus laugh.
"That wasn't very nice, Severus." Narcissa tries to reprimand, although she cannot seem to keep a straight face.
"You're right, Cissy. But it's not like I meant too," Severus smiles, heading over to the counter to pay for the ingredients he had picked out earlier, "He just seen the look I was giving Lucius."
Placing the ingredients on the counter, the shopkeeper, an older man with dark hair, waves him away. "It's free," He says, "If it wasn't for you guys I'd probably be dead. Thank you." He murmurs with a smile and Severus seems to be speechless for a moment.
"Thank you for the ingredients." He finally responds and the three adults and seven teenagers return to Hogwarts. They had had enough excitement for one day.
Author's Note: Okay readers, I haven't had any response to the name situation, so please! Please, please, please, review! I need a name! Please tell me:
- Khalida?
- Octavia?
- Nicolette?
Which one?
Hopefully will have another chapter up soon, so far- so good.