Chaos Falls
Chapter I
Breakfast is a quiet affair, so he doesn't linger long, choosing instead to scarf down his breakfast and then go out into the estate with his broomstick. Mother frowns at him, but is quickly pulled into conversation by Narcissa and Lucius.
It's with a looming sense of delight that he finds his best friend already in the sky, whipping about on a broomstick around an older man. He climbs into the air, laughing as Draco nearly knocks Regulus of his broom.
"You know, when your mothers asked me to teach you two to fly, this was not what I signed up for," calls Regulus good-naturedly, righting himself on his broom.
"It isn't as if you have anything else to do with your time, old man," laughs Draco, "It must be awfully boring pretending to be dead."
Faking his death is, Harry has been told, Regulus' biggest mistake in life. He'd been nineteen when he'd done so, having chosen to purposefully mislead the Order into thinking he's changed sides and suffered for it, but when their Lord had been stripped of his body, he'd found that his death had become somewhat permanent.
"Not one of my finest moments," agrees Regulus, "Now if you two think you can play nice for a bit, I'll be going in to have my breakfast."
No sooner is he gone than Harry yells, "Race you to the pond, Draco."
"You're on, Harry," shouts back Draco, and they're whizzing through the air. Neck and neck, they're flying, till at last Draco begins to creep ahead. Wincing, Harry forces himself forward, putting everything he's got into the race.
So he misses Draco pulling up, resulting in the other boy skimming the surface of the water whilst he slams into it. Spluttering and splashing, he swims for the shore, swallowing more than half the pond before dragging himself onto the grass and collapsing over it.
"Slow as usual," teases Draco, landing beside him.
"It's my Potter side," he scowls in response, before grinning and shaking himself like a dog, making sure to get as much of the water onto Draco as possible.
"Don't be a tosser all your life," chuckles Draco, merely grinning in response. "So where's Hermione this fine morning?"
"Severus is here," Harry replies, "You know what that means."
"I think he's a little bit scared of her, truth be told, and that's why he always lets her get away with insulting him to his face."
"Her mother's one of the only Gryffindors to have ever gone dark, and her father's the darkest wizard to have ever lived. What do you think she'd be like?"
"Less scary," nods Harry, causing Draco to burst out laughing.
Later that day, Harry finds himself wincing as the meeting commenced. What with them having to start Hogwarts in two weeks, it's time for them to all plan their upcoming Sorting. Naturally, Draco's destined to be a Slytherin, but it's a lot harder for Harry and Hermione.
As much as wants to be a Slytherin, he knows that he can't.
Unlike him, Hermione has been quite vocal in her need to not be a Gryffindor, and as much as she's his best friend, he wishes she'd be a little more, well, nice about it. There's nothing like the Riddle temper to start your day, and they're all, to their displeasures, getting it in spades.
"I refuse, point blank, to be both a Mudblood and a Gryffindor for the next seven years of my life," snaps Hermione, folding her arms and glaring around the room as if daring anyone to contradict her. Harry feels his heart fall, for now it's certain that he'll be alone for the next seven years, as he'll have no choice but to make himself a Gryffindor.
With Hermione being the daughter of their Lord, she always gets what she wants, more so than the rest of them, and if she doesn't want to be a Gryffindor then there's no power in heaven or hell that can force her to change her mind.
The blood of Slytherin is strong in their veins, all three of them, and he hates that Draco is the only one who'll be able to join the house of serpents.
"Hermione," says Regulus calmly, "Be rational about this. Dumbledore's going to have his eye on Harry from the minute the boy sets foot within Hogwarts. You need to be there to help him."
"Why does Harry have to be a Gryffindor anyway?" Hermione raises, folding her arms and raising her eyebrow.
"We've been over this," hisses Lily, her eyes glowing green in the dully lit room as her serpentine nature took control. Harry could see his mother fighting to retain her human form, and he's about to reach out a hand to reassure her when Regulus does instead. Frowning at the older man, he turns back to the conversation when he sees his mother link her fingers with his.
His mother spends less and less time in her reptilian body with every passing day, and he cannot help but feel that Regulus may be the cause of this. It's odd to think of his mother as a person who has romantic needs, cold-blooded as she is, but the stains of humanity have been forming across her for over two decades now.
"Draco, Harry, and I are stronger together than we are apart," counters Hermione, "Splitting us up, with each in a different house is no different than your plan of splitting us two in Gryffindor and one in Slytherin."
An uncomfortable silence falls over the room. Hermione isn't usually this argumentative and pigheaded about her arguments, and he's unsure as to what's provoked her to just a point. That being said, he sees the logic of both sides, and he wants nothing more than to see the return of their Lord.
"Honestly, Hermione," says Narcissa, "The three of you may be stronger than most of the other children your age, but you're no match for Dumbledore and the other wizards he has about the school. Whether divided or together, we're sending you to school to get an education, not to start a war."
"Narcissa's right," points out Severus, "Minerva and I will be able to protect the three of you from any schemes Dumbledore's got hatching beneath his wrinkled ass. We cannot keep you three home to train you ourselves, because the world expects to see the great Harry Potter on parade. Draco and you are easier, seeing as you're listed as Muggleborn and it's not uncommon for Muggleborns to decline the choice to study at Hogwarts, whilst Draco staying home wouldn't be the first time a Pureblood has opted for homeschooling."
"But Harry's going to need us," agrees Draco.
"That he is," says Regulus.
Hermione simmers, whilst Harry simply rolls his eyes at them all discussing him as if he's not even there. As far as he knows, it's just Hogwarts, and he'd much rather be going to a school more suited to his talents. Durmstrang may be far away, but it's a school of the Dark Arts, and one that he's sure to thrive in.
Sadly, they're right, and he'll have no choice but to attend Hogwarts.
"There is more," raises Severus, and the entire room turns to him. Harry is as shocked as the rest, for the man's tone indicates that he is deathly serious. Frowning, yet thankful that Hermione appears to be done arguing with them, he turns his full attention to the Potions Master.
"Dumbledore has asked us Professors to devise a series of obstacles to protect something of great value. Naturally, as a Slytherin, I was not told about what it is that he's been hiding... but Minerva is above reproach in his eyes."
"What is it, Severus?" asks Hermione, her eyebrows forcing their way together as a suspicious look came about her face.
"The Philosopher's Stone," the man answers, and the atmosphere in the room lifts. Harry can almost feel the excitement, and he himself wants to leap into the air and celebrate. It is no secret that their Lord is nothing more than a spirit, kept safe within a magical urn stored deep within the Malfoy Vault at Gringotts, but with the stone he will be able to be returned to his body.
It is the answer to their prayers, and perhaps Narcissa is wrong about them not starting a war at Hogwarts. He can see it by the looks in Draco and Hermione's eyes, they both will share his desire, a desire to stop at nothing to retrieve the stone and bring back the Dark Lord.
"Can you retrieve it?" asks Lily.
"No," Severus replies, but then smiles and goes on, "But I know who can."
The room is silent as his meaning sinks in, until finally Hermione lets out an irritated sigh and says, "But I don't have to be a Gryffindor, right?"
"So, what do you think about the Philosopher's Stone?" Harry asks, leaning back against the backrest of the couch with his hands folded behind his back. Draco is comfortably reclining against the armrest, and much to Harry's annoyance, Draco's propped up his feet on his lap. Hermione is, as always, distant, the gears of her mind whirring louder than their own words as she stares out the window.
"I think, regardless of this foolish plan Severus is suggesting, we'll end up having to get the stone ourselves before the year is out." She doesn't turn to face them, instead choosing to play with a lock of her hair as the first stars begin to make their appearance across the twilit sky.
"Severus and Minerva know what they're doing," says Draco, but holds up his hand to stop her when she whirls around, a retort evident on the tip of her tongue. "But I agree with Hermione. I don't trust their plan to get the stone."
"What about our houses?" asks Harry, relieved that like him, both his friends are not prepared to let the opportunity pass them by. It's one thing to trust in Minerva and Severus, but it's still wiser for them to have a failsafe in place between themselves to use in the event that the plan fails.
Hermione's father is counting on them.
"I don't like this, you in Ravenclaw, and him in Gryffindor," says Draco worriedly. "I have the other Slytherins around me, but you're both going to be alone there. I hear there's a Weasley in our year, and that family is to Gryffindor what mine is to Slytherin – they're going to try and get their hooks in Harry, mark my words."
"I can keep their hooks out on my own, thank you very much," says Harry crossly.
"No," mutters Hermione, "No, you can't. I hate to agree, but he's right, Harry." She sighs, rubbing her knuckles against her temples before turning towards the couch, and sitting herself right on Draco's knees, ignoring his protests. "I'm going to have to convince that Hat to look past the fact that my father is a Dark Lord, and put me in Gryffindor with the rest of those moronic lions."
"Think of the bright side, Hermione," laughs Draco, poking at her side. "One of the lions might end up falling in love with you. My money's on the Weasley"
Harry can't help but laugh when Hermione grabs the nearest cushion and begins beating Draco with it, knocking him on the head and chest till, spluttering, he begs for mercy.
Author's Note:
I want to first thank all my readers who've given me such a heartwarming response to this story. It's been a long time since I've been writing, mostly because of my daughter being born and me having no time to write for my favourite fandom.
Chapters may be a little on the short side for a bit, at around 2000 words, whilst I get back into the "groove" of writing, because it's been six years since I last wrote a story.
That all aside, I'll be updating this once a week, usually on Saturdays, and I hope you all continue to enjoy.
~Athena~