RunAway
Moon: Hello everyone, I'm back! Might be surprised by how fast I'm updating, but I actually had everything up to chapter 9 written before I started posting. I just wanted to see if anyone liked it. Anyway, here's the next chapter. Honestly, I can't remember exactly how when Tonks became an Auror, but for the purposes of this story (especially later chapters) she's going to be a few years older than she was in canon. I do not own Harry Potter and enjoy chapter 8!
Chapter 8: Horcrux
Claire saw her godfather stiffen when Luna said the name, eyes widening. "How..." He blinked slowly, "Regulus was the name of my younger brother...he became a Death Eater and died one...why do you ask?"
"Didn't...didn't die a Death Eater..." Luna said softly.
"What do you mean?" Sirius asked sharply, shock written plainly in his eyes.
"Luna," Draco whispered in a soft, gentle voice, "what did you see?"
"I..." Luna's gaze was harsh and stared straight ahead, "I heard him...You-Know-Who."
Dead silence fell over their table at the Leaky Cauldron. The children exchanged horrified looks, Sirius, Andromeda and Remus froze up and Claire swallowed. Hannah and Neville unthinkingly grabbed each other's hands for comfort, Susan, Hermione, Cho and Padma bunched together while Blaise watched Luna was a serious expression.
"He said...that he'd found the secret. To living eternally." Luna continued, her voice growing steady as she recalled her vision. "He took Slytherin's locket from its hiding place at Hogwarts...he put it down on a desk and called for a prisoner, a muggle-born...and when he was brought in, You-Know-Who murdered him." She blinked once, a single tear splashing her cheek. "I can't tell you what else happened, it was so horrible...but, in the end, a part of Voldemort was moved to that locket."
The blood had drained out of Nymphadora's face, and eventually she whispered, "Horcrux?"
"What?" Remus asked tensely.
Tonks took a deep breath, fear and disgust evident in her eyes before saying, "Mad-Eye told me about them during my training...it's some of the darkest magic in existence...it's what you do when you break your soul apart and seal it in an object."
Padma looked sickened, "No wonder he's so crazy, a soul isn't meant to be divided like that...he'd loose his humanity and his sanity every time he split his soul."
Tonks looked sharply at the young girl, "You know about these?"
"Sort of," Padma said quietly, "At home it's standard for children to know about even the darkest magics because of the dark lords that tend to crop up around there. I read about it in a history book."
Luna took a deep, shuddering breath, bringing the attention back to her. "He hid it in a cave...and he forced a Black elf to drink the potion that caused him a lot of pain...but Regulus wasn't happy about this, he cared about Kreacher and hated how You-Know-Who treated him...so he went into the cave with Kreacher, and drank that horrible potion...and switched the lockets, put a fake one in the font...but he didn't make it out of the cave...he ordered Kreacher away, and to destroy it."
Her eyes rolled up in her head and she went slack in Draco's arms.
"We need to get her to St. Mugo's." Draco said harshly, having not said a word through the entire conversation. "We'll call Kreacher afterwards."
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Claire sat next to Draco, who was holding Luna's hand and waiting for her to wake up.
Everyone had crammed themselves into the ward. Blaise's mother had Floo-called him and asked him to come home; Blaise politely refused and explained why. Cho, Padma and Neville had needed to do the same with their guardians, the ensuing shouting match that had occurred between Neville and his grandmother was impressive to behold. Eventually Neville wrested the right to stay until Luna woke up.
"She'll be fine," the mediwitch informed them. "She's just having a bout of magical exhaustion, it happens to Dream-Weavers often. She should wake up soon."
"May we have a moment?" Draco asked, his voice strained a bit. The mediwitch nodded and left the room.
At this, everyone turned to Tonks. "Why would anyone make a Horcrux?" Neville asked the question that had been first on his mind.
Tonks gave him a humourless smile. "Because, as long as you have a Horcrux, you cannot truly die. Your body may be destroyed, but you will survive as a spirit, and you will be able to come back again and again as long as your Horcrux survives."
Hermione paled dramatically, "Wait, you mean You-Know-Who is still out there?"
Tonk's grimace deepened. "If he has a Horcrux? Then I'm afraid, yes."
"B-But he's just a spirit, right?" Hannah asked, shivering. "H-He can't hurt us like that, right?"
"He's a spirit...for now," Andromeda said seriously, "But I don't think someone who's gone so far as to make Horcruxes would stop there...he'll be looking for a way to come back."
"He'll go after Claire right away, won't he." Ginny's voice was dead quiet. Claire felt the earth shift under her feet, and her mind went back to the note she had found in Petunia's drawers all those years ago. If he returns, she must be ready to face him. It wasn't a question, and Sirius would only confirm it.
"She was his downfall last time." Sirius said, his grip on his goddaughter's hand tightening automatically when he thought of that night. "He wouldn't want her to be around to foil him twice."
Claire shivered and realized that he was right, and fear crept into her heart. When would he try again? How would she keep her friends safe? How would she survive? What was she going to do?
Ginny immediately took Claire's other hand and squeezed. "We won't let him get near her," she said decisively.
"Over my dead body," Sirius agreed, Remus nodding in his support of this. Claire's eyes were wide as she took this in, her heart swelled at their love for her but it was matched by a terror when she realized that there was a chance that protecting her was the last thing any of her friends and family might do. It certainly had been the last thing her parents had done.
"I think he'd find that quite agreeable," Tonks said flatly, as if she had read Claire's mind, before continuing determinedly, "But this time we have a head start on him and we know how he managed to survive. If we get rid of them – however many their might be – before he comes back, then we might be able to get rid of him, this time for good, before he can do the damage he did last time around."
"You should go to the Auror's office as soon as possible, Dora," Andromeda said, shaken. "They need to know about this right away."
"Wait," Susan said suddenly. Everyone turned and looked at her. "My aunt would love to look for Horcruxes," she said calmly, "but we're forgetting something. Not only are we yet to have proof of a Horcrux, there's also another consideration. Lucius Malfoy."
Draco went rigid, the way he always did when Lucius came up in a conversation. "He's not as powerful as he used to be," Susan continued, "but he's still in tight with the Minister, Fudge. Fudge listens to almost everything he says. If we try to do anything about the Horcruxes, he'll know about it, and he'll blow the lid on it. Fudge would probably refuse to let auntie send out any aurors to look for them, and the Dark Lord will be forewarned."
Blaise said something in Italian that Hermione was willing to bet wasn't very polite. "Susan's right," he said grimly, "and he's not the only Death Eater who dodged Azkaban by claiming to have been under the Imperious Curse. They're still out there, waiting for their leader to return. A few of them – his closest – probably know about the Horcruxes and are charged to keep them safe. If they know you're looking for them we'll be back to square one."
"We'll have to look for them ourselves, then." Sirius decided. Andromeda didn't look very happy at that idea, and Claire didn't blame her, but it seemed to be the only good option. "Do we have any idea of where to look, other than with Kreacher?"
Everyone took a moment to think.
Then something else that was quite important popped up, "Did your Horcrux lesson include how to destroy them?" Claire asked Tonks quietly.
"Yes," Tonks replied immediately, to the relief of the others. "Silver that has some goblin enchantments work, so does Fiendfyre, though I wouldn't recommend that spell because it's very difficult to control. Powerful venom, like that of a Basilisk or similarly massive snake will also destroy it."
"The Sword of Gryffindor." Claire muttered. When everyone stared at her, she said, "Gryffindor had a sword, it was very old and said to be very powerful, the goblins helped make it, it might be able to destroy Horcruxes."
"Where could we find it?" Remus asked tensely.
"It's in Hogwarts...somewhere. It will come to someone who shows true Gryffindor qualities." Hermione said automatically, clearly she'd read it in one of her books.
"Can't be that hard to find, then." Ginny said hopefully.
There was a soft sigh. Everyone turned towards Luna, who's eyes opened. She sat up and said, "I feel fluffy, what happened?"
Draco let out a relieved sigh and released his grip on her hand. Luna glanced at him and smiled.
"You had a vision, Luna. Scared the life out of us." Cho said. "Are you feeling okay?"
"I'm feeling fine, just a little stiff." Luna confirmed. She looked around, "What are we going to do about the Horcrux?"
"Why would he just have one?" Blaise asked mildly. When Tonks looked at him in shock, he responded, "What? Slytherin philosophy. One Horcrux would protect you...but it gives you one vulnerable point. Never go into a situation without a backup...so, he would make more than one." He grimaced. "I'm afraid there's no way to tell how many he might have made."
Silence descended. It was a sickening thought, and a frightening one. What Blaise had mentioned was very likely, but that meant not only did they not know what the other Horcruxes looked like, but they weren't sure how many others there were or how to find them.
"There will probably be some outside school," Sirius said, brain already in motion. "Me and Remus don't have anything better to be doing, and we've got experience behind us. We'll go out searching for them as soon as we know what we're looking for. Andi, I'll need to you stall Dumbledore, tell him anything you'd like except the truth."
"Why aren't we telling Dumbledore?" Andromeda asked, blinking.
"He left me to rot in jail for ten years, so my trust of him is a little short." Sirius explained coolly. "You up to that Remus?"
Remus nodded, "It's been a while since I've had anything interesting to do." He said. "I appreciate a chance to stretch my legs."
"There will probably be something inside the school, information, clues anything." Ginny said, "we can look for them after hours, we'll borrow the Map and look for it. He did go to Hogwarts, after all."
"We can ask around his old haunts," Draco continued Ginny's train of thought. "Ask the people there if there's anything fishy around. Maybe there's something in his ancestral house. Anything could help, especially if we don't know what we're looking for."
"It almost makes me wish we could shut the school down for a little." Neville said. "It would be easier, fewer questions asked."
"We'll all pitch in. Old news and information could prove handy," Blaise picked up the strain, "I could ask my mother to provide us with something."
"As long as you promise Samantha won't murder me and string me up," Sirius said, shuddering. "And tell her I really am sorry about the Yue Ball!"
Blaise chuckled, "Mother told me about that incident, Black, I assure you, she's over it. Despite what the rumours of what happens to all her arranged husbands might be."
Hannah's eyebrows shot up, "Is your mother really a 'Black Widow', Blaise?"
"I can't tell you anything for certain," Blaise replied lightly, with a tone that said the exact opposite, "but I can't remember the name of my last stepfather."
"I'll be on the lookout in the auror office," Tonks chimed in. "There might be a pattern we could look follow." She grimaced. "Our only real lead is Regulus Black's death, and Luna's vision hasn't left us with much. Kids, you better get back to Hogwarts. Draco, please tell us where the nearest Black house is, Sirius, Remus and I will go straight there."
"Great. Let's get to work," Cho said determinedly.
Draco gave Tonks directions while the kids piled in the direction of the Floo. "Horcruxes," Cho muttered, "I never would have dreamed someone would actually..." She shivered.
"It's sick," Neville muttered, "But You-Know-Who has always been pretty twisted. He'd do anything to get what he wanted."
"Anything." Claire murmured, her mind still spinning as she tried to guess where the Horcruxes might be.
"It's very inconvenient to not be able to trust authority," Hermione said belligerently. "How could they not imprison Malfoy? After all the stuff he did!"
"He had some deniability and friends in the right places," Cho said darkly, "That's how that kind of people always get away with stuff.
"Then how do we take him down?" Neville asked.
"We'd have to get serious dirt on him," Ginny said, "Something serious that overwhelms anything he might have done in the past. I'm pretty sure he has the Dark Mark on his arm, but how to get anyone to see it is the problem..."
"Minister Fudge must be corrupt, too, if he's letting people like Malfoy waltz around free," Hermione growled, "We need a new minister too. Can't Professor Dumbledore do something? He is Head of the Wizamgot, after all."
Ginny and Claire shared a look. Despite his dubious methods Dumbledore was still the man who stood up to Voldemort when no one else could. He would do anything to defeat the Dark Lord, even if it meant hurting Claire. Perhaps they could leave a few hints that could get him to do something that could help their overall mission.
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Voldemort hated the position he was in.
He hated being stuck at the back of Quirrel's head, the useless fool hadn't done anything productive since his arrival here. He couldn't read Claire Potter's mind, though that should have been child's play. Where had the girl found a way to raise her mental defences? It was a frustrating setback; the girl wasn't as weak and naive as he had expected her to be. Her gestures and the tone of everything she did made that obvious.
Lucius was officially useless to him; he might still have the ear of the Minister but even the slightest pressure sent the the man scurrying. He'd become a fool among the other purebloods after he'd disowned his son. The imbecile! Forget pitiful, he'd murder the ponce himself if he ever came within ten years of the school.
He would not be denied his glorious return. He'd have to find some able pureblood who wouldn't make the same petty, idiotic mistakes, one who would remain loyal to him, one who wouldn't lean on his fortune to stay healthy while he suffered as a mere wraith.
But before he did any of this he needed a real body; it wouldn't do to continue to latch onto bodies like this. He couldn't afford to keep subsiding on unicorn blood. He had to kill the girl before she became a threat. As soon as possible.
Right now, he needed spies within this building, since he no longer had the assistance of Malfoy's spawn, he'd have to find new ones.
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Ron Weasley was not a happy boy.
Not only had he made an idiot of himself in front of Claire Potter on the train, she'd already been shacked up with the blonde Black heir. Figured, girls always went after the rich jerks and ignored the hardworking, perfect nice guys who deserved them more.
He wanted the girl-who-lived on his arm. He'd finally be able to step out of the shadow of his elder siblings and become someone everyone looked up to, wanted to be. His mother had promised Potter to him, what had she done to screw that up? Perhaps he'd been too forward?
Whatever it was, he'd show her what a true Gryffindor man was like. He'd be the Hero of Hogwarts and Potter would fall into his arms when he saved her from the people who wanted to use her.
He'd have to get the Black boy out of the picture somehow. He couldn't have someone around who'd be a more attractive option to her if he was planning to sweep her away.
The other source of anger was towards his little sister, Ginny. Perfect little Ginny! From the moment she'd been born she'd done nothing but absorb his mother's adoration, and everyone who met her immediately loved her! She was far too fiery for a girl, Molly getting her married off would be the best thing that ever happened to him and the girl had the audacity to run away. She met Potter sooner than him and lived with her for several years, the mere thought made him green with envy and anger. And when she popped up again his brothers were soooooo happy to see her, instead of giving her the thrashing she deserved for running away!
His dormmates were no help, called him rude and cruel and unpleasant. He didn't care, that Chinese girl had deserved it, why couldn't she stay in her own country?
Ron got out his diary, which he'd snatched off the Slytherin table a few days ago and started writing in it.
Tom understood him and would help him get what he felt he deserved.
This change in Ron's behaviour and attitude was bewildering to anyone who talked to him, and the reason for it was remaining hidden from view – a diary with the name T.M. Riddle on it.
If he didn't stop writing in it soon, the change of personality would be the least of his problems.
End Chapter
Aaaand that's that! It's shorter than some other chapters but that was kind of the point. Also - hello, reason Ron is acting out. I figured that Lucius would have given the diary to a different Weasley if Ginny hadn't been there, since they were 'blood traitors'. Also, don't worry about Lucius, he'll be getting his soon enough.
Review please!
